Best day in China so far!

I had a really good day today. It's almost like I can FEEL the Presence around me and the answered yarps in front of my face. It's amazing, and I am thoroughly enjoying it. Here's the rundown of great things that have happened just today:

I shared my favorite story with a student for the first time. I think that was the springboard and after that, it HAD to be a good day.

Then this woman who is in charge of the double majors came over to discuss my plan to reschedule the last 12 classes of the semester, which I wanted to do so I can be done early. When I spoke with her earlier in the week over the phone, it didn't seem like it was going to happen, but today when I met her and showed her my plans for it, she said she thinks it's a really good idea and she likes my enthusiasm! Yay! So this means I might be able to come home for Christmas!!! My last day of class was supposed to be January 11, but now it should be December 14 if all goes according to plan.

Then, my very good friend from home called me and we had a great time catching up. Things have been very hard for him lately, and he called to ask me to yarp for him. I was so touched that he trusted me enough to share his gory details with me and bring them to my Father. He doesn't have a strong relationship, but he is searching, and it makes me so happy.

Then I went to Lu Xiang (loo-shong) and I was able to use my American ATM card to get Yuan out of the machine! Hooray! Now I can pay back my friend for my train tickets to Beijing.

On my way back from Lu Xiang, I decided to stop and buy new glasses. My ones from home were too strong, so I sent them back. FYI: Buying glasses in China is toooootally the way to go! I got an eye exam, frames, and lenses... in less than an hour... for 118 Yuan or about $15. It was really funny too because I went through the whole process without a translator. The eye exam was the funniest part. They do the same techniques there as they do in America, but their eye chart is a little bit different, since they don't really have letters like we do, they just have the letter "E" facing different directions, and you have to tell if it's pointed up, down, right, or left.

Also, I have been considering getting lasik eye surgery. It's 4,000 Yuan, which is about $500. At home, it's about 4,000 dollars... about 7.5 times more expensive for the exact same thing. I'm only nervous because it's voluntary surgery... and that's never fun. Yarp for that, please.

The Internet was working fast when I got back, so I got caught up with the Hills online.

My afternoon class was so much fun! I literally spent the entire first half of the class (45 minutes) talking about Saved by the Bell and stereotypes. So I gave them a ton of slag vocabulary, like preppy, nerdy, and ditzy. I also addressed the three major stereotypes of Americans... we are not all grossly wealthy, all American women are not easy (another good vocabulary word) and we do not all carry guns. I also described "Red Necks" and introduced them to Nascar using stereotypes from Taladega Nights. This is in addition to slag vocabulary I have been dishing out all along... mug shot, PJ's, lesbian (they asked about the last one). Chinese people don't usually smile in their pictures, but I said most Americans do unless they go to jail and have a mug shot. Hahhaha.

Also, I made a new rule: If you are late, you have to sing a song in English in front of the whole class. I was trying to find a way to show mercy for being late without being a pushover, so I think this is the answer. In college (okay, and high school too) was late to about 1 out of every 1.5 classes by at least 5 minutes, 10 if it was the first class of the day, 15 if I didn't like the class, and 20 if it was both the first class of the day and I didn't like it. Anyway, they loooved that rule, and sure enough, 3 students were late. So the second half of the class, the three late students sang. It was HA-LAAARIOUS! They were all hams. The first girl sang "Close to You" by the Carpenters- the Carpenters are big here- then a guy sang "Mama Mia" and it was soooo funny because he's kind of a bigger guy for China, and he purposefully sang parts of it a high-pitch voice. The last guy was sort of shy, so he started by explaining it in English, and he wrote the lyrics down, so he would pause whenever he had to turn the page. Oh, I should have thought of this idea sooner! But I expect that none of my students will ever be late again.

After class, I met up with Fawn for our Wednesday McDonald's date. It was really good to talk to her, and I told her about my good day. She was having a good day too, so we just talked about fun girly stuff and life, etc. When we were walking back to the bus stop, we saw a store selling winter coats and like, hiking gear. I need a coat and a back pack, so it was great that we saw it. The only bummer of the day was when I tried on a pretty coat, it didn't fit, so I checked the size to figure out what the next size would be... it was an extra large! I really am a human giant here. I keep telling myself, it's not me, it's China. So basically, I will be buying lots of purses and accessories and no many clothes and shoes. Whatev.

When I came back to my apartment, Sara knocked on the door and said she had some stuff for me. Guess what it was... moon cakes from our liaison, FOUR cards/ letters from home, aaaaaand... MY VERY FIRST CARE PACKAGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHH!!


I'm going to bed soon, but tomorrow sounds just as promising.
I'm meeting the last two of my five groups of students for the first time tomorrow.
Fawn and I are going to get massages again with Yultuz and Kunduz
I have my third Chinese lesson

And then I honestly can't tell which I'm more excited about.... I am meeting with Nikki to discuss my Favorite Story and... big news...



****************WE ARE GETTING A DAIRY QUEEN TOMORROW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*****************


Can life get any better? I submit that it cannot.