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Published: March 26th 2010
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Hello everyone! I still haven’t had a disposable camera developed from my holiday. That’s why I haven’t completed my blog entries for the trip yet. Rest assured it will be done soon. Eventually. Someday.
In the interim, I thought I’d say ‘hello’ and share some little tidbits of what’s been going on. Since my holiday, work has been really busy. I’ve been teaching an average of six hours per day. I know that doesn’t seem like a lot of work, but consider that it takes at least 30 minutes of planning time per one hour class. Then imagine standing in front of people and talking at them for six or seven hours in a single day. I’m doing a lot of SAT preparatory classes now. The upside is that my vocabulary is rapidly improving. The downside is that recollections of my own experience with that unfortunate paradigm of a standardized examination leave me feeling apprehensive and inadequate. I’m also doing TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) classes. Students who want to attend school in the U.S. must take both the TOEFL and the SAT. Students who want to attend school in the U.K., Australia, New Zealand, etc. must
take the IELTS exam. I can’t remember what that stands for, but it tests English in four sections: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. And it’s not as difficult as the TOEFL test, plus there’s the added benefit of not having to take the abhorrent SAT. So I’m always surprised at the number of students who choose the U.S. over other countries.
Aside from work, there hasn’t been a whole lot going on. I learned that other day a disturbing yet unsurprising fact about Chinese restaurants. According to a British coworker (and later confirmed by Chinese friends) it is a common practice for establishments to take sewer water, boil it, let it cool, and then scrape off the fat from the top for cooking. Yes, fat boiled out of sewer water used for cooking. If that makes you spitty-mouthed, think about how I feel! After I learned that juicy tidbit I couldn’t bring myself to order out for lunch. I went back to my apartment instead for a sandwich. But then I thought, “If China was going to kill me, it would’ve have done it by now.” I’ve already seen vermin and insects scurrying in and out of countless kitchens.
Mmmm...
Nothing is quite as refreshing as a beverage made from, um, lemme see, water, sugar, jelly, permitted food conditioners, flavorings, and bird's nest extract. Yummy! So now I just have one more thing to block from my thoughts while eating out. God bless Pepto Bismal, Imodium, Rolaids, and my apparently adequate immune system.
Last week I went to Hong Kong to mail some packages home. I don’t live far from the border and it was a nice day so I decided to walk. On the way I came upon a street crossing that had turned into a river. I stopped at the curb and looked left to see the source of the water and noticed a fire hydrant gushing about ten feet into the air. It’s not everyday one sees something like that so I paused to watch it. A Chinese man tapped me on the shoulder and started babbling in Chinese about how I should cross there and he helpfully (but needlessly) pointed out where it was dry and told me I should cross there. (Duh) I said thank you but didn’t move. Then another man went through the same spiel and again I thanked him but didn’t budge. Before I knew it I was surrounded by about five guys all urging me to cross where it was dry. I absent mindedly muttered
Tiger Undies
In China, it is good luck to wear red underwear everyday of your zodiac year. My neighbor only has one pair. So either he doesn't wear red undies everyday or ewwwww. “I’m just looking at the water” in English but the cacophony of imperious Chinese didn’t cease. “I’m looking!” I said, louder this time. Then one man said in Chinese, “Oh, you want to go that way?” and he pointed at the street filled with water. “No!” I said in English “I’m just looking!” Then a random neuron fired and I remember how to speak Chinese. So I said, more forcefully than I intended, “I want to look at the water!” Then there was a chorus of “Ooohhhh!” from the men surrounding me. Then one said “Loooooking!” And we all launched into uproarious laughter. *sigh* Oh, China. That little incident gave me sporadic giggles all day and reminded me that, while China can be exasperating at times, it call also be a lot of fun.
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Michael Purdy
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Nut meat
Love the nut meat ooo btw the new one is a boy