All sharpened up and no where to write!

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When I asked my contact teacher, "What time I should be downstairs for class tomorrow?", her reply was simpily, "sometime after you eat breakfast." Well lady, I wanted to say....that could be anywhere from 6am to 1pm....could we be a bit more specific.....But for the sake of arguement or more confusing english-chinese conversation, I didn't press the issue. I figured I should downstairs around 8ish, which I found out was preciously after the flag raising ceremony (opps!). I spotted my contact teacher, which was a little feat, because, you guessed, it she is a small, petite, chinese looking women....one of about a hundrend or so at my school. But with eager anticipation for my first day (I mean struggled through at least 4 outfit changes for this important event) I found her and the first words she spoke, where "teach first period, no time to talk!" So with no class schedule, to contact teacher to puppy dog follow around, and a vague idea of where my "office" was, I went exploring. It was actually quite easy to find my office....thank goddnes for signs with translated english...I walked into the office, waved a big hello to the 15 chinese teachers who were apparently on time for work today, and did my best set of charades to ask "which one was my desk?" Since my computer has been broken I have been dying to get my paws on a computer I can call my own! So when I looked around the office room and saw that just about every desk and a NICE flat screen monitor and very new computer, I wanted to scream Halleijuah or however you spell that word. Well they got my charades, but I was less fortunate in the desk they offered me....why you ask? Because I was currently covered with newspapers that were acting as a cutting board for the watermelon some had brought in a cut up.... So instead of my new baby flat screen, I got watermelon seeds and some excess juice.

Not a problem I thought, I'm sure it is just a mistake and they will realize sooner rather than later, that I the american teacher NEEDS a computer. While I waited, for someone to realize the error, others cleaned up my desk, which was now completely empty. I honestly don't know which looked more pathetic, the watermelon guts or a whole bunch of nothingness. I quickly ran back upstairs to my dorm room and picked up a bucket load of books, magazines, journals, waterbottles, anything to fill my next 8-10 hours...(or until my computer came) After an hour or so of nothingness. Some one told me that it would be a few months until MY computer came. I think the look on my face quite scared her, because she immediately followed that statement up with "you can use my computer anytime." aRGH!! But then I thought maybe she just got confused. A simple chinese-english mix-up. I'm sure what she meant to say was that in a few hours, I can get my own 2.5 ounce monintor with connecting computer to play with all day long.

Well, it's officially nap time here at school (honestly, from 12-2 all the teachers go take nap) and I am using my new friends, if you can call someone who brings you bad news a friend's computer) I have officially finished a book, written in my journal twice about the same thing, practiced my chinese characters, read a lucky magazine from July for the third time, gone to the bathroom 3 times, filled my waterbottle twice, am on my second cup of coffee, been up to my room 3 times, lesson planned about a lesson I had allready planned, made a to-do list, and know am about to sink to a new low and read a BOP magazine. I brought if for my students, but am desperately bored. My next entry will include updates on all the hottest teen stars (unless i get my computer).....stay tuned.......

sorry no pictures... no computer...

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Photos

Alternate Viewing
This is a picture of another part of school. On the left is a classroom building and staight ahead is the administration building

My School
My School had several buildings and takes up somewhere around 3 city blocks (In my professional opinion) These are the Classroom Buildings. There are 3.