Making Potions in a Traveling Show

Well folks, it's time for another post.

Christmas themed!

My Christmas plans are going to be lonely, with an extra scoop of depressing! All my roommates have left, either to return to their home country for good or just for the holidays. Nevertheless, my 5-bedroom apartment now only contains me, wandering the cold, desolate rooms like a forgotten castle guard. I will wake up on Christmas day, maybe go find a cheap massage for a good dosage of treat-yo-self, and then I'll go off to work.

It'll be fun leading up to then, though.

I just got done with a Christmas dinner celebrated by my school and a nearby campus. This was following a Christmas fun-day at my school, which included me teaching Christmas songs and dances with my guitar. It was a lot of fun. Because of the school event, I had my guitar with me at the dinner, which led to some impromptu performances.

After dinner, we all headed off to KTV. KTV is similar to karaoke, but even more quintessentially Asian, and a very popular pastime in China. The KTV we went to look like the perfect lounge/layer for an extravagant Bond villain, and it was super fun. The Chinese staff sang their edgy Chinese Janet Jackson-like music and their emotionally-wrought ballads, and me and the foreign boys wrapped our arms around each other and belted some Elton John. It was fun. It was also a China bucket list experience. If you want to dip into some authentic Chinese culture, you must go to KTV with Chinese friends.

I've gotten some cool chances recently to make Chinese friends. I went into a Muslim restaurant, which is my favorite form of Chinese cuisine. I'd been there once before, and both times the family-owned restaurant workers would come sit down at my table while I eat and read. We had a fun conversation which consisted of fun Chinese phrases that roughly translate "Oh, you American? America is bad! Obama is bad, just bad all around." This time I brought a side-by-side Chinese and English Bible, and the guy asked to borrow it and read the first four chapters of Matthew. Talk about miraculous. Merry Christmas, indeed! I think I changed his mind a little about America, but Chinese is still not good enough to get him to stop hating Obama.

Then I went to ANOTHER Muslim restaurant, and while I was waiting for my to-go order, another patron of the restaurant invited me to sit at his table, and so now we're friends. His name partially translates to "Handsome Tiger," which I'm told is a completely acceptable name in Chinese society. So, cool.

Tomorrow, I have another round of KTV that will also serve as a concept meeting for an upcoming company-wide party, in which I'll be singing.

Tuesday, I have a Christmas Eve party with one of my life groups.

And that's that.

圣诞快乐
Which means, "Merry Christmas."
(pronounced something like "Shung Dahn Kuai Luh")

A Season Of

I realize that I have not posted a December blog, so I will update you a little.

The theme of these past few weeks is evaluation. I've been faced with so many situation that have caused me to step back and think about where I stand and what it is that I stand for. In fact, that's been a theme of my entire time in Shanghai so far...

How should I live in a country that incorporates lawlessness into every day life?

What do I truly believe about the hot button issues facing Christianity today?

Where the heck does such certainty in my own faith come from?

Where does the truth of my beliefs and the whirlwind of my own emotions intersect?

Why don't I drink?

At one point do differences in doctrine require a breaking in fellowship?

There are so many different beliefs in the world. So many. Atheism versus Theism does not begin to cut it. Republicans versus Democrats. There is so much more diversity in the world, that even within belief system, variety overloads the infrastructure of one worldview. People will choose one belief among the trillions and cling to it so tightly as truth.

It's almost obnoxious that I hold fasts to the beliefs that I have, isn't it? And yet I do. These questions were and continue to be challenging to me, but I see God rowing me through the torrent and strengthening me. It's an exciting, troubling, peaceful, crazy time.

Christmas is coming. I've spent way too much money trying to get my living room to reflect it, but my mom sent me some stuff to aid me!


I have four Christmas parties lined up, but nothing to do on Christmas day! Isn't that depressing? I might just have a treat myself sort of day, foot massages and what not. Who knows?

Had authentic Mexican food for the first time in a long time. Amaaaaaazing.

Oh and my company is has this yearly event, and my friend Maddie and I have been asked to sing! She has a terrific voice and we both have terrific taste in music, so I'm excited! Peace!

In the Midst of So Many Noodles, I'm Thankful For Burgers

Soooo,

What's new?

I have gone to two out of my three scheduled Thanksgiving dinners, none of which fall on the actual Thanksgiving day. But it ain't no thang; I'm enjoying what I got.

Today was an interesting day. It was, in fact, a day off, but it was very busy. I had a scheduled company meeting, which turned out to be a sort of award ceremony event...90% of which was in untranslated Chinese. Although I'm sure you all have grandiose ideas of me in Shanghai being a Mandarin chatterbox, I did not understand a word. So needless to say, it was a long couple hours. We foreign teachers were informed literally right before it started that we would be going on stage to sing Bryan Adams "Everything I Do, I Do It for You."

Hardly any of us knew the lyrics besides the titular section, so we just hid behind the louder people and swayed. It was awkward. Thankfully we had a live Wechat session between a few of the foreign teachers to liven up the ceremony with colorful Western commentary.

After that, I went to my second Thanksgiving dinner, which was with one my small groups. This is the one with the generally older, married couples. Although now I won't use that word "older" to their face, as I got a lot of grief for it. Anyways, during the dinner we were told to write our name on a piece of paper and pass it around the room. We then had thirty second to write some form of encouragement and thanksgiving for the names on the paper.

Once I got mine back, I had some very encouraging and heartwarming notes. Those, however, are not the ones I'm going to mention. Here are my top three favorite thanksgiving notes written to me:

1. "Great hair." (That particular note went on to write stuff about my character, but this is the only part I wanted to transcribe.)

2. "I think it's great that you're brutal and sarcastic like me and Bet." (A note from a married couple who have a harmonious sense of humor with me. We have a nice back and forth.)

And my all time favorite:

3. "Sometimes you open your mouth and I don't know what you're saying - I like that." (This is what I want written on my tombstone)

Anyways, my last Thanksgiving dinner is next week. Ironically, it'll be hosted by my South African friend. I need to take care of the vegetables, so I need a Thanksgiving vegetable recipe.

Also, there's this boy I pass every time I walk to one of my small group. He's probably about 11 and he knows enough English phrases to try and sell me the oranges he's always peddling.

Boy: (Upon seeing me, the blond-headed foreigner) Hello, How are you? Oranges, switt, yummy!

I'm never like super in the mood for oranges, but I can't resist buying them; this kid's just too cute. But now he thinks I'm Mr. Money Bags and he gets super excited every time he sees me. ("Hello, my good friend! Oranges, yummy!")

After so much China commuting, I've gotten used to all the conversation being a nonsensical buzzing in the background of my life. Now, the concept of being able to eavesdrop on public conversation sounds like a super power. I was walking by some English speakers tonight, a girl and a guy:

Girl: "Tell me the most private thing about you. Like, I own a Pikachu one-sie."

Good on you, American girl. Live loud.

That's all I got. I'm coming back to 'Murica in February for 2 weeks. I imagine about 8 days will be spent in Tampa and North Carolina with family, and about 6 days in Orlando.

Facing Off

So great news, e'erbody! I'm sick!

I woke up to my alarm this morning, sat up, and then my throat ambushed me. My throat was in such an awful state that getting it to function in any way was agony. Better yet, today's the day where I usually must teach 4 90-minute classes. I knew if I did that, my throat would get more diabolical in its plans for revenge.

So I'm out home today, just resting. Here's the bright side though: I left my wallet at work. So after scrounging, I found about 18 kuai in my room. That's enough to get me some water and some soup. Tonight, I'll pick up my wallet from a coworker.

Shanghai has been fuuuuun recently.

I just saw Catching Fire on Thursday night. It was my first time in a Chinese theater. I'm going to rate my experience overall as a 6.5. The screen was bigger and better quality than I anticipated, so that's good. But here's a few weird quirks of the Chinese movie theater:

1) The movie begins promptly at the start time, and there are no previews. Our show time was 10:20. My friends and I got in there at 10:23, and so we missed the first 3 minutes.

2) The popcorn is SWEET, which is a travesty. I was so excited for my buttery tub of popcorn, and was majorly disappointed. Get it together, Chinese theater!

3) They have no qualms closing everything down in the middle of your late movie. That means if you're the last movie playing, then when you exit the theater, everything will be dark and closed up, and you'll be escorted out the side exit.

4) The entrance from the outer hall to the theater is right next to the screen. Now more than ever I appreciate the design of American theaters, in which the entrance is position in a hallway behind and leading to the big theater. I had to announce with a burst of hallway light that I was going to go pee.

5) The lights come on as soon as the credits start rolling, and everybody immediately stands up and leaves. No contemplation of the film you just saw; just keep it moving.

It was still fun though, and the movie was good.

Next week is Thanksgiving week. I'm hoping my throat will feel better so I don't have to miss any of it.

As for prayer requests, pray for two things. And I'll list em, because apparently this is a listing blog:

1) Pray for my witness. Pray that I'll have more opportunities to share God's love. I've met cool people here, and my heart especially goes out to the locals I've befriended.

2) Pray for me to be strong. All believers fight against sin and the dark spiritual forces. I feel like I have a nemesis. Like yeah, pride is a big one. He's my Penguin. Purity is my Riddler. But doubt and anxiety is my Joker. And especially now, in my current place in life and the decisions I have to make, I'm facing off with my own doubt a lot these days, and he's a powerful opponent. Of course, God provides me with everything I need to defeat it. So just pray that my confidence will grow in the strength of God.

Oh, and pray I'll get better fast! Thanks!

Next To Me

Hey y'all.

Just another little one; not too much to report between the last blog and now. I have not done much socializing, so no major adventures to speak of. All of the socializing I have done recently has been under the format of meeting for one-on-one/heart-to-heart conversations with fellow Christians in the area, which has been a huge blessing for me. Unfortunately, I do not have the transcripts to those conversations, so I'm not going to fill you in.

Thanksgiving is coming up, and I'm replacing quality with quantity. To my knowledge, I have not missed a Thanksgiving dinner with parents since birth. so this will be tough. Instead of having Thanksgiving with my family, then, I'm having 4 replacement Thanksgiving dinners. It's whatever, 4 dinners, no big deal. I'm going to be more turkey than man that week.

The selfie contest didn't pan out like I hoped, but not before getting these awesome selfies. The first one was with the security guard at the subway station. He was so unbelievable bewildered by the phone stuffed in his face. I still see him almost every day. It's awkward.












This second one was kind of cooler and way less awkward. I had thought up this idea in my crazy laowai arsenal in my head. I decided that if a guy sat down next to me on the subway, I'd ask for his phone. Then I'd just stick my earbuds in his phone and listen to his music. Turns out, this guy was thrilled. We swapped playlists and just sat and jammed out to each other's music for a few minutes. His taste is quintessentially Chinese, some soft-beat club beats, and over-wrought love ballads. He actually pulled out his phone for a selfie before I pulled out mine. Then he texted me afterward and thanked me for letting him listen to my music. Awwwwww....


Yes, I know that sounded so much like a pick up or a come on, and in America, it would be. But I can get away with stuff like this in China, and it's not creepy.



Aaaaaaaanywho, it's super cold, and the only solution at this point is setting myself on fire. I'm going to die.

Tidbits from the Middle

You're going to notice a sharp decline in the quality of my posts, because right now they are being written more out of obligation than inspiration. Like I have already explained, I like constructing these blogs into cohesive story with a beginning, middle, and end. I feel like I'm in the middle of the middle, albeit an important and worth-mentioning middle. I just feel like I can write more clearly and effectively about it in hindsight.

So this is going to be a disjointed post, featuring the compulsory chronological recap, left-field analysis of the latest season of Walking Dead, and a series of unrelated anecdotes.

I've been doing a lot of, you guessed it, work. It's still fun, I enjoy my students immensely. I still stop myself sometimes in class, and appreciate this chance I have to hang out with a bunch of adorable Chinese kids, making them laugh and have fun with my language. When they imitate me, it's the best. When my brain stalls, and I'm transitioning between material, my brain leaks "Ok, ok, ok," which they've begun immediately repeating. I also like to sing their names when I write them on the board. They've picked up the melody and the rhythm of it.

I've also been spending time with my friends, hitting up hip restaurants and hip bars where I order my hip hot chocolate. Shamefully I will admit that my weekend outings with friends are to Western food restaurants, because we are all filled up to the brim with Chinese food and culture that we need to stock back up on 'Murica. That's what has us in a diner style restaurant called Munchies on a Sunday night, eating burgers and singing the "7th Heaven" theme song.

VIOLENT SUBJECT CHANGE

To anyone who is a fan of the Walking Dead, I have also been enjoying this season. Can I point out something that's been troubling though? I was also a fan of Lost, and to this day I still will defend the overall story arc of the show. However, in hindsight, it is easy to see Lost's flaws, mostly in its tropes and plot devices. One is where they set up a homebase of survivors, which includes a handful of the main cast, and then a sea of faceless extras. Then the main cast goes out in endless combinations on arbitrary "runs" for supplies and stuff, and the characters kind of blatantly talk through their ongoing character development. And so I'm just getting this uncomfortably familiar vibe with the new season of Walking Dead. Thoughts?

BACK TO CHINA

I've begun a contest with my friends. It is to see who can get the most selfies with strangers in the course of a week. Being a laowai (which is a sort of sassy, slightly demeaning term for a foreiger, more literally "old outsider") gives you a certain free pass to be as crazy and creepily outgoing. Because you're a foreigner, they sort of just accept it, and oftentimes enjoy it.

So next week's blog will feature the results of that.

I DON'T WANT TO WRITE ANYMORE

Books Bent in Jagged Shapes

Greetings, Brethren, let's begin.

Today has been a relatively uneventful day, involving laundry, cleaning, Kristen Wiig, pizza, The Walking Dead, the book of Genesis, and vegging. So I figured I might put some of my time to good use and write a blog.

My life has been progressing without any exciting cultural interruptions to flavor my blog with. Or maybe I'm just becoming jaded to the weirdness of it all. A man in a suit, holding a "Practical English for Hotel Service" book to his face, walked into the suubway and promptly began a very long conversation about his journey of teaching himself English, his brother who lives in Washington, and his Sunday night habits. The cashier at the KFC I regularly stop at asked for my number. I think it was platonic. I gave it to him because I thought it was guest service related. I thought maybe I would get texted when my order was ready. But no, I think he just wanted it. Yay for new Chinese friends!

My kids have been great. Some kids and I don't see eye-to-eye on how they should be taught and disciplined. They'll have to teach themselves the English idiom "cry me a river" and learn to cope with performance based reward systems. However, a lot of my kids love me and shout an accent-mangled version of my name ("Crit-chun!") whenever they see me.

I had hot pot recently, so that's fun.

It's gotten colder, and I've had a cold for about a week and a half. That's also fun.

I made a Norwegian friend, who feeds me Norwegian chocolate. That's miraculous.

A lot of my Bible reading has been in Genesis, after a conviction to know the Bible better burgeoned inside of me. A major theme in this book, besides the beginning of time, is God's plans and promises. The men he calls on to follow him have to rely on the inevitability of his plans and purposes. It seems like it's the timing that always throws humans off. They want what God promises in their own timing, not when their wife's uterus has already shriveled and gathered dust. God always comes through in miraculous ways, though, with humans learning to simply rely on Him, wholly and helplessly. He fulfills promises, answers prayers, and takes care of His people, on His timing.

Isn't that difficult to deal with sometimes?

Anyways, your prayers for me have been felt and appreciated. Keep it up. I see you all like the slaves in the Ben Hur rowing scene, only you're praying instead of rowing.

And I appreciate that, slaves.


Nothing else to report. Just bought a keyboard, that gets here tomorrow. Halloween at my school has been super cute. I can't wait to do more travelling. I love the television show, Parenthood. Eating fruit is healthy.

That's it. Before I go, here's an update to my seconds video. I will admit to you that I missed some days in October, but I feel the integrity of it has been maintained. Enjoy.

http://youtu.be/nuAWoOM8yok

Having Crossed the Threshold

Hello, my people.

I am updating simply because some time has elapsed. I certainly don't feel inspired to write this, so I will keep it brief.

I have not written because of what I feel I am in the middle of.

I am a huge fan of storytelling. I like the way people can derive meaning out of other people and events by organizing them into a narrative. I learn a lot that way. I hope I can look back on this blog and see a story arc, one that shows me going on adventures, meeting new people, and facing obstacles. I hope that when the blog is complete, I and those who read this will glean something meaningful that ultimately draws them to God.

What I'm in the middle of is an obstacle. A trial. I don't feel drawn towards writing a blog because I can't figure out how to derive meaning from it yet. I don't quite understand how it fits into my story.

So for now, I'll just call upon prayer from my brothers and sisters. Pray that I will overcome the doubts that are plaguing me, and that my faith will be strengthened and perfected by God.

That's what I want. That's what I want my life's story to be, a life walking alongside God, growing closer to Him day by day, and allowing Him to work through me.

It's very difficult to envision this life story with confidence at the moment. So I call upon the power of your intercessory prayer.

Thanks, I love you all very much!

This blog does not depict my experience here in China. I'm still enjoying being here, seeing new things, and having fun. I'll tell you more about it, soon.

Xiamen

Xiamen.

Why did I choose Xiamen? Maybe it was because of the acient haiku I read as a child was inspired by the hills of Xiamen. Maybe it was because I missed the ocean and the way it reminded me of home. Maybe because it was really close to the island on which my favorite Taiwanese Drama, Summer Fever, was filmed. Whatever the case, my reasons for coming are not what sustained my reasons to stay for the 5 days. It was definitely God.




Like I said, I found my place to stay through couchsurfing.org. I found a Chinese guy named, Kevin, whose profile indicated he was a christian. My other suspicion was that he was one of the guys Liam Neeson beats up while looking for his daughter, except if I was dragged into the human trafficking industry, Liam would not come for me.

So that was my fear going in. I set up some emergency contacts and flew over.

And I had the most God-directed, authentically Chinese, exhausting week I could have dreamed of.

Kevin is not a wealthy man. Of course that does not matter to me, but I didn't stop to think on how having him as my guide would affect the itinerary. I pictured luxurious times on the beach, eating nice Xiamen cuisine in restaurants with impressive views. Instead, Kevin showed me how to get around Xiamen in the most cost-effective way. Now this meant him taking me into these narrow, seedy alleys that I half expected Jason Bourne to chase a double agent through with a rolled up magazine as a weapon. I ate in little out of the way restaurants and from stands. For all those who hold onto the childhood image of me as a picky eater, I will have you know that I have (1) eaten sea worms and (2) slurped yoke out of an egg with a chicken fetus floating inside.

I also had very little contact with anything familiar. While that notion may at first sound exhilarating, and it is, I did soon find myself sinking and starving for familiarity. Half-way through my trip, I was just fed up. Fed up with China, Chinese people, Chinese foods, and Chinese sorry-excuses-for-lines, and the buses. GAH, the buses. Either the bus driver is trying to knock you over, or he is really invested in you developing core strength. Either way, buses were not always a restful experience.

I will now proceed chronologically:

Day 1 (Monday)

Kevin picked me up from the airport and took me to his apartment. It's just a one-bedroom, about the size of the dorm. What I forgot to think about was that it would be Chinese style. You know what that means - Squatty potty. I will proudly tell you that for numbero dos, I have deftly avoided using the Chinese toilet. This week, however, it was impossible. Another fun Chinese fact: many Chinese bathrooms  are positioned in such a way that you can use the toilet and the shower standing in the same place. I did not feel that the time saved would be worth it.

But Kevin sat me down and told me how he came to know Christ. He told me a little of the struggles he was going through, and then he allowed me to pray for him. I knew then that good stuff was going to happen.

Kevin took me to a couple places, ending in a hike up a hill above a Budha temple. It was beautiful. His favorite worship song is "Blessed Be the Name of the Lord" and we sang it as we climbed.

After that, we went down to the beach and took a walk. He got to tell me a little bit about his dreams, to go to New Zealand and go to Bible school. Then he would come back and bring the good news to his home country. We talked and sang a little more. There was an off-brand Mickey Mouse walking around the beach and taking photos for money.

The night ended after some dinner that included fish with eyes still in the sockets. He took me to Gulangyu Island, a small island off the coast of Xiamen. There are no cars, so there are only compact streets where people walked. We stay in this hotel you would not know was hotel. You would also never find it either. But I'm with a local, so it's whatever. We wanted to get an early start exploring the island before the holiday really started and all the Chinese tourists arrived.

Day 2 (Tuesday)

We woke up early. Kevin is a six-hours a night kind of guy. My charm and charisma is very hard to summon on little sleep, but I was able to pull through. Gulangyu is a beautiful, quaint island. It was once used to defend against invading Japanese.

On the island, I explored the beaches, went to a calligraphy museum, walked through an old abandoned mansion (wherein I got many bug bites [but no Japanese encephalitis]), went through the stores. One of the stores, a worker girl started following me around (Blonde hair = MONEY). She was following me around so closely, so much like a homeless puppy. So once I turned the corner of a wide pillar, I started running in a big circle. She got so confused and started chasing, but couldn't find me. It was funny.




We left there and went to a truly amazing art, science, and history museum. It had a lot about Chinese immigrating to America. Truly fascinating. Then we did some shopping, wherein we made our way into an antique store. On the second story, there were old stacks of books. I found a Bible and pulled it down. It was 73 years old. It had a letter in it addressed to someone named Brenda Belchen. I was able to track the Bible's origin to a chapel in Yarcombe, Devon, England. I have emailed the chapel, and am waiting to see if I can track down the original owner. I bought the Bible, and I would like to send it to Brenda or her family.

After that, we met up with one of Kevin's old childhood friends and went out to dinner. Kevin informed me that his friend did not believe in God, and he wanted me to share a little of my story with him. It was a great blessing. This is the night I ate seaworm. I did not find out exactly what it was until the next day, so it was too late to have my stomach pumped. This was also the night we started using motorcycles instead of taxis to get around. That was my first time on a motorcycle, also my first time on a motorcycle with three other men.

Day 3 (Wednesday)

This day was maybe the hardest of all. Kevin can speak some pretty good english, but definitely not perfect. We had had a lot of miscommunication by this point. I had spent the past two days speaking a lot of Chinese, eating very Chinese food, and coming into very little contact with anything Western. I felt depleted. There was a time in this day where I was told to push my way onto a bus. Here is a quote I wrote down from Kevin:

"This is China. Don't worry about gentlemen. You will be loser. Keep fighting. Go go go."

 But I ended up pushing this lady really hard, practically pinning her to the bus. She thought nothing of it, but it just made me angry. Angry with China and angry with myself for what I felt was sinking. I know I'm in a new culture, but I don't want to be a guy who goes with the flow, especially if it means compromising my beliefs on how to treat people. There's such a hard balance; is it okay to voice moral commentary on aspects of a foreign culture? How can you be sure you understand it fully?

But that's when Kevin asked to meet up with an old friend, a friend who had just come back to town. Kevin had been talking about him for the past few days; he was an American who played a huge role in Kevin's walk. So we go to the basketball court where a bunch of Westerners are playing. I end up meeting an amazing group of Christians. Some live there, and some are visiting from Iowa. They were the first Westerners I had spoken to in a couple of days, so I was very grateful to talk with them. But more on them later.

We had done a lot of physical activity. We had been getting around everywhere by buses and walking. Earlier that day we had hiked the stairs to the Buddha statue.

















And hiked back down.

And then we went and had some lunch with his aunt. His cousin was so freaked out by eyes that she covered her own eyes when she passed me.

Anyways, this all required a lot of travel. So I insisted on a massage. So we went and got an amazing massage for 30 kuai (5 dollars). It was thirty minutes, from neck to feet, including a foot bath. AND I could keep my clothes on. It was Chinese heaven. The leg massage part was a little awkward, this may have been the first time my masseuse was faced with so much leg hair.

While waiting for our massages, we met a girl named Charlene. God opened the door for us to invite her to English corner. English Corner was a little get-together that Kevin's Western friend Jim organized near the Xiamen university, where they could share English by making friends and sharing good news. The girl was interested and said she would come.

The end of that night, though, I still felt quite alienated, and longing for home. But God was not finished.

Day 4 (Thursday)

I honestly have some trouble remembering parts of this day. I think it was a slow start day. We finally took time getting up and getting ready. We did a little shopping, I think. This was the morning he brought me to a place to eat a chicken egg with a little unborn baby chicken in it. I took a slurp, because he insisted. But I refused to follow his lead and consume the fetus. No thanks. We met up with one of the Christian guys on the court yesterday and had some watermelon juice together. It was a good time of me and the guy, Jeremy, teaming up to encourage and counsel Kevin. I wish I could tell you a big part of my time there, but it's Kevin's story to tell. God really brought us together as brothers, opening Kevin's heart to tell his story. Later that night, Kevin opened up fully to me, in a time of testimony and prayer. It was a sweet time.

Before that, however, we headed to the beach with my guitar. Xiamen is far less used to Foreigners (Waiguoren, or a more playful nickname for us: laowai) than Shanghai. So I was a mini-celebrity this week. Little baby's squealing and staring at my eyes. Old men walking up and showing me all the english they could say, girls running up and asking for photos. And any friend I made would eventually ask for a photo. So yeah, it's whatever, don't even care. But anyway, two amazing things happened during my guitar fun times. The first was me playing With Arms Outstretched by Rilo Kiley. A girl ran up while I was walking and playing it, and she gave me a rose. By gave me, I mean she stuck it down my shirt. Kevin and I continued walking down a ways, and saw a couple. I snuck up behind then, and Kevin and I serenaded the couple with the only Chinese song I know (My Heart Represents the Moon - Teresa Teng). Kevin hands the guy the rose, and we run off. They were very happy for that occurence.

The more exciting part was that, as I was playing, a college-aged guy started following us. He was following us and asking us questions. Then Kevin told him about English corner, and he was elated.

Day 5 (Friday)

UM, this is a long post. Friday was good. The girl we invited on massage night brought another friend, so we spent part of the day with them. It felt like an awkward double date.

I'm going to interrupt the narrative, because my time with Kevin and these girls leads me into a culture tidbit: Chinese people are BRUTALLY honest in their opinion on your appearance. Let's review some notes on my appearance made in my week in Xiamen.

a) "How do you say this?" Pointing at my face and asking how to say "pimple" in English

b) (paraphrased) "Your hairline is receding!" *swoon*

c) You look like a girl.

Needless to say, my self-esteem was at about a 2.3 by the end.

I'll skip ahead to the English corner. Due to some circumstances, Kevin couldn't come to the English Corner. So it was up to me to bring in 4 people to the English corner, all of whom I believe God used Kevin and I to bring there that night. It was so much fun. I named a newcomer "Jack." The guy we met while I was playing guitar got the name "Silas." Although the girls were uncomfortable, the boys were having a blast being there. Some of the Iowa people visiting stood and told the story of their family, one being a story about adoption. This was a great segue in the discussion time into talking about the Father who adopted me. It was a sweet time, connecting very strongly with the Western people there as brothers and sisters, as well as making wonderful friends with the Chinese people there.

So that was the last night. That was my trip. Kevin and I were bonded as brothers, and maybe one day I will be able to tell the story of how God worked in Kevin's heart this week. I connected very strongly with American members of the English Corner group, and felt a very strongly familial bond with them, even in the short time I spent there. I can't check back in on any of the people, like Kevin, his childhood friend, Charlene, or Jack and Silas, any time soon, but we chat on the Wechat app, and I will continue praying for all of them.

It was an exhausting week, and I am very glad to be back. My original plan was to just come here to travel with a bunch of my new hire friends, but God's plan is always better. Next week, seven work days in a row, including an extra class. Yessssssssssssssssssssssss. I actually really missed my students while I was away. Oh, and I rode the Maglev train back home, once I was in Shanghai. Veryyyyyy fast.

There are even more stories to tell, but I will tell them at a later time. I will leave you with a couple photos of food.

This sea food pie is exclusive to Xiamen, so I am one of the few foreigners who have tried it. 

This is a breakfast Kevin made for me. The brown stuff is rice.

Quantifying

So, here is a post. It will be about a myriad of subjects. So get comfortable.

This week has been a crazy week of fun and busy-ness:

I visited the Shanghai Ocean Aquarium

I went to the top of the Shanghai World Financial Center

And I visited the Shanghai Museum in People's Square:

(No photos were taken)

I've hung out with a lot of friends and had a lot of fun.

What you have read so far transitions my blog into two BUTS. So review the above material before reading the second BUT.

(1st) But even though my fun times and adventures have been a blast, I couldn't help but second-guess what they meant for my time here. As most of you know, I am in the process of making a one-second-a-day montage video, and it's still looking great. It has caused me to find something to savor in a day, but it has also been working insidiously in my mind. It has almost convince me that I can quantify the value of my experience abroad. Like, if I can show the world enough amazing places I have been, then I will prove worthwhile my time here has been.

But that's not right, that's not how it works. I could go do every cool thing there is to do in Shanghai, embark on amazing once-in-a-life time adventures, and have nothing to show for it spiritually. To really make this time valuable and life-transforming, I have to use my time getting to see God more clearly, love him more dearly, and follow him more nearly....day by day. So, if I allow God to use my time here to transform me, it won't show in my photos and videos. 

(2nd) But even though I have loved it here, I haven't loved every second. Anybody who has experienced culture shock can tell you, you won't be able to love the new culture forever. It will grate on you. I'm in a time where Shanghai is reaaaally grating on me. I'm tired of the culture differences, which result in me feeling mistreated. People will cut me in line, attempt to gouge me, or close elevator doors on my body without apologizing. It has become clear to me that public places are the conveyor belt of the China factory. It's where you get to where you're going in the fastest way you know how. Courtesy and empathy have no place. It's hard for me to separate what are fundamental moral flaws in a culture, and which are simply differences I don't have the native brain to understand yet. It's definitely a mixture of both. China wasn't always like this, when Confucian principals of kindness and filial piety governed the society.  And Shanghai is in a very precarious time in its developmental growth. Only recently has Shanghai risen to be a city of great wealth, like a lottery winner who has no idea to respond to his new-found fortune. So I will continue to shape my opinions and reactions to Shanghai, trying hard to not let it get stuck in bitterness or prejudice. 

Come Monday, I will be heading to Xiamen! I am excited and nervous! But what a trip it will be!

PS: Tried squid. Not bad. Won't eat it again.

A Vacation Where I Keep My Kidneys

Soooo, I hope you are all doing well. I'm doing ok, I'm at the end of another one of my weekends. I've gotten to spend time with some very cool people over the past couple days. I visited an amazing little hole-in-the-wall photography gallery that my friend Alice found out about. It's about a photographer who went around China during a very VERY brief period in China's history called the One Hundred Flowers Movement. It's a well-known movement, when Chairman Mao very briefly allowed for artistic and creative freedom in China. China immediately experienced a surge of artistic expression, and the photographer captured some amazing moments from the time. This was 1957.

But anyway, I've been looking ahead and planning out my October holiday vacation. I time off spanning from September 30th to somewhere around the 6th of October. So a few friends and I began planning a trip to Xiamen. However, we have yet to find available train tickets. I bought a plane ticket. Due to some Visa processing my friends are going through, however, they can only buy train.

So, I made a little back up plan. Originally, my friends and I were planning on staying in a nice hostel while we were there, and that still may happen. In the event that it falls through, I made other arrangements.

And it involves couchsurfing.org.

In case you're not familiar, CouchSurfing.org is an international social media sites that connects travelers with people willing to let them crash. The safety comes from various things, such as the website verifying your address and other Couch Surfers vouching for your character. My friend, Łukasz, vouched for me on the website. I found a guy to host me, a Chinese guy named Kevin, who had some positive references.

So that's my plan right now. I know this idea might really frighten some of you. I will give out my phone number, location, and the information of my CS host to a few people so that people know how to find me. I promise I'll be careful. I'm really excited though. This is like the true test of my new traveler persona. And I think God will do miracles.

在翻译中丢失

So, I said I was going to do a blog centered on Chinese culture. So I'll start with a few of the questions people posed to me:

1) What's the weirdest thing you've eaten?

I think jelly fish probably takes the top of the list. I spoke in an earlier blog entry how it tasted like jellified soy sauce. It was a gross experience and I have no desire to try it again. I also tried bull frog, which was not so bad. One weird food worth mentioning was a strange Chinese shrimp taco I had. The shrimp wasn't exactly shrimp though; it was a sort of shrimp bark substances that I smashed into the taco with a weird sauce.

2) (paraphrased) What is the general climate of Christianity in China?

It's difficult for me to speak to that, as my Chinese is way too limited to explore the topic with others. So I posed the question to members of an international church that I met. It's important to understand how Christianity has evolved in America. Our nation was founded under many Christian principles, which has benefitted our countries in many ways up until this day. It's unfortunate and unintended side effect was that Christianity became so engrained into the culture, that for a while it could hardly be disassociated with American culture itself. People were Christians because they were Americans, not always necessarily reflecting a change in heart. Thus, the doorway for intense legalism and hypocrisy crept in. Now, as American culture grows and evolves, it seems to have outgrown Christianity.

Now look at it from China's perspective. Christianity, as it appears to them, is far more (but not entirely) presented in its purest form. There is no dogmatic distortions of American culture to muddle with the Gospel belief system. Thus, Christianity can be viewed by the fruits of its followers. And in that, Christianity has a good reputation. For instance, businesses looking to start construction on new buildings look for Chinese Christian contractors, because they know that they can be trusted. In ways like that, Christianity is, in general, viewed as having a positive impact on the community it is in.

However, it is an Atheist nation, and it is important to know that Christianity seems very irrelevant to the every day like a Chinese person. It doesn't have enough face time in their lives to be controversial.

3. What has surprised you most about Chinese culture - good and bad?

These surprising learning moments for me are to classify under good and bad. I will say it is disheartening to see ethics and integrity play an insignificant role in the business lives of Chinese people. I find myself getting manipulated and deceived all the time by people see me only as potential for money.

However, it has been amazing to see the sweet, kind heart of my Chinese coworkers. They seem to work so much harder than me and have so much more responsibility, and yet they go out of their way to help me and assist me. They are always smiling at me. Talking with them is often times the best part of my day.

4. Tell us more about the Chinese kids!

Kids are kids are kids. There are some who are adorable, some who are challenging, some who don't listen, and some who want to be your best friend.  I love the kids I teach. Their English names are chosen arbitrarily, so they come up with cute names like "Happy" and "Dragon." They love cute English names like "Cici," "Kitty," and "Jerry."

They are absolutely fascinated by my arm hair. That's why I created a rule in class never to let them get to close to me. If my arms are within reaching distances from them, they immediately stop hearing a word I say and start playing with my arm hair.

They love being goofy and silly, and I love being goofy and silly with them. We sing songs, dance, play games. I've taught some of them fist pounds. They're really cute. Learning tough discipline has been a taxing experience, but probably an important skill set to have.

Those are the only questions I was asked. Here's some bullet points of other small Chinese stuff"

a) Don't use the American way of beckoning some over to you with your hand. That is considered a degrading gesture saved for dogs. Instead, flip your hand around with your fingers facing the ground and wave them over that way.

b) Do not write someone's name in red. Older generation perceive that as a curse!

c) Avoid conversations about Taiwan. Yikes.

d) Being white = MONEY. You will be fending off a lot of street solicitors. It's good to learn the words "Bu yao (Don't want)," as you will be using it to fend off watch salesman, cigarette vendors, and pimps.

e) Chinese people LOVE it when you use Chinese. Service people are pretty jaded, but it's quite the party trick in Chinese social settings.

Oh well, I'm tired of writing. I'm still loving it.

Zaijian!

To Be Moved

So I have completed my first week as full-fledged teacher. My weekend is finally here. I have a full load, which means I have 12 90-minute classes. It's a lot of fun, but it's very demanding. I have stay high-energy intense for the full class time, and I am drained.

It's been a good week, and I think I'm going to enjoy being a teacher. The kids are very adorable, and it is great to see some of them trying so hard to be English speakers. My classes range from almost total beginners, to upper intermediate classes. It's interesting to see how kids adapt to my quirks and special teaching techniques. When I am transitioning into a new activity or learning segment, I always say "ok, ok, ok!" but with an inflection like "oKAY-oKAY-oKAY" and I have students in each class who now mimic me whenever I say it. They're accents are adorable as well. In addition to English, I am teaching them fist pound techniques and the appropriate  time to use the exclamation "righteeeous."

My Chinese is also improving. I can communicate moderately well with different service people, like taxi drivers and restaurant servers. I practice with the Chinese teachers in my school.

Tonight as I was walking home, I resolved to just stay in tonight and unwind. Plans changed, however, and I ended up going out with my friends Brittany and Candace to People's Square and Nanjing Road for Papa John's and Coldstone, a very Christian Walker sort of evening.

We then walked down Nanjing Road, which is like Time's Square, or CityWalk.  But let me tell you people. Every night, and I mean EVERY night, on nearly every street corner or square, three activities transpire:

1) Karaoke, all Chinese ballads. It's so common, that you could walk 60 yards and pass by 3 different Karaoke groups.

2) Ballroom dancing: Not anything fancy, like a waltz, but it's everywhere.

3) Line dancing.

Was this country freaking designed for me? Most of these activities are done by middle aged to old people, although some young people join in.

Tonight, I decided to join in some of the line dances. Now Nanjing is a very touristy road, which means it brings international tourists as well as Chinese tourists from the country, who are not as used to white people. I ended up drawing a pretty substantial crowd. It was a lot of fun, and I think I might go back.

BUT

I visited a church last night. I don't know if it's the church I'll be going to, but it reminded me of a very important fact: I am here on God's behalf. I am here as a servant and ambassador of God. I have a very clear calling. I got so swept up in sightseeing and trying to get situated that I forgot that I am a servant of God, first and foremost. I want all my decision, even where I decide to spend my night's dancing, to be a decision that glorifies God.

I'm excited to see what He does.

I'm going to do a culture blog soon. Stay tuned.

Teacher, Teacher, Let Me Try!

So, I am on to the new phase of my Shanghai life. I have finally moved out of the hotel, and I have finally completed training. I live quite near my hotel, near Zhongshan Park, near one of the biggest malls I have ever been in. It's in Puxi (West of the River), while my work is in Pudong (East of the River), but Puxi is more of the city center, and that's where I wanted to live.

I have only met one of my roommates. It is a big apartment, with 5 bedrooms, so I have a lot more meeting to do. My next door roommate is Marion, a French girl. She says a friend of her's will be moving in soon. So apparently I will be living with 2 French girls, 1 French guy, and an Australian girl.

Just in case the news that I am living with girls is off-putting to some of you, I wanted to explain real quick. Shanghai is such an in-and-out city, with people studying for a semester, taking a summer internship, working on a year-long contract, that many expat apartments will experience heavy turnover. Although in Orlando, I would have strongly pulled for a guys-only apartment, that just isn't a possibility here. I am not sure if I even saw 1 available apartment listing that was only guys.

But anyway, my training has been a really fun experience. Teaching classes is a very intense, high energy experience. I got my first class all to myself on Saturday, and it went pretty well. Education here, especially with language, is very chanting based. The title of this blog is what they must shout if they want to play whatever game I have set up. I do a lot of role play. Like when I was teaching about the weather and phrases having to do with rain, I poked a hole in a water bottle, and shot water at the kids, teaching the phrase "You're all wet!" They loved it.

I've made a good amount of friends here. One of my coworkers, as it turns out, is from Florida and is a Christian. She, another friend, and I are planning to visit an international church on Saturday night.

I will show a few photos of my apartment and stuff once I get the Wifi situation figured out there. In the meantime, I am writing this from my local Starbucks. It's literally on the same block.

Now that I have a place and a job and everything, I desperately want visitors. If you ever decide you want to come see me, I promise you it will be worth it. Shanghai is an amazing place!

Water Though Its Frozen

Well, my first weekend has just ended. I am back to work today, still in training though. I don't feel like I should use this blog to say whatever I want about the company I work for, so I'll just say I have really enjoyed it so far, and the kids are adorable. You'll have to get more information in later blogs or in a Skype session.

My free hotel stay is up in a few days, so the last couple days have been a flurry of apartment hunting. The listings online are always very eclectic sounding, like "you'll be rooming with a French guy and a Chinese girl" or "You'll be sharing a bathroom with an Irish club promoter."  I'm kind of bordering desperation at this point, so I'll take anything clean looking. My kind of one luxury that I'm holding out for is a room on a high floor. I want that high floor.

I've gotten to see a lot of the city. On Monday I found Jinling Road, which is just like a half mile stretch of mostly music stores. I went in and out of them, playing pianos and ukuleles. I even found a banjo!

Yesterday, my friend Brittany and I decided we wanted to get a good view of this city, which meant finding the top of a high building. We tried to get to the top of this one, which was our favorite, but no dice.

Then it hit us: hotels usually have restaurants at the top. So we got up to the 39th floor of the JW Marriott. The restaurant prices were a tad steep, so we just got desert. I don't think they liked that. But the Crème Brule was amazing, and so was this view:
















Overall, it's been a good past few days. I've been into way more bars than I care to mention, ordering my ginger ales and lemonades. But I wanted to step out and socialize with people I'm meeting. At least one of the bars had an awesome band doing BeeGees covers.

Monday night was a bit of a bad night for me. I feel a tad depleted. It's been a while since I have had some real, authentic Christian fellowship. Because of my hectic training schedule and plans this weekend, I didn't get to go to church, but now I feel like I'm running on empty. So I'm definitely gearing up to visit a church this weekend. I'm really excited to begin that part of my Shanghai adventure.

ALSO - Pray that God will provide me with the right apartment.

Giving Love a Little Shove

Hey, a lot has happened since my last post, but I'm not going to go over it in full. This isn't much of a recap blog. I'm not just going to log my schedule over the past few days. I don't owe you that; step off.

I'm here just to talk about culture shock and expatriation.

It's difficult to accurately present how my first week in China has gone. I don't want to paint it too obnoxiously bright, because that will omit the important struggles and low points. However, I don't want to over-present its more difficult aspects, because it will paint my overall mood as depressed, which it's not. At all.

I have absolutely loved this first week, but spare moments have been a very special brand of loneliness. Not because I don't know anybody. I could have moved to Boise and not known anybody. But a culture shapes so much of how its people think, and how their personalities develop. It's like everybody in the same culture has their brain tuned into the same radio station. It's an exhilarating and tiring feeling to be one of the few not tuned in.

My dietary habits personally encapsulate the ebb and flow of this experience. When I try new, signature Chinese foods, they sometimes taste amazing. I savor it, and can't wait to try it again. I know if America took a stab at this particular dish, it would taste inferior. However, sometimes the cuisine is completely unappealing. I don't want my chicken cold and slimy. I want to retreat to the American chains. But when I go to KFC and Subway, it tastes somehow off. No restaurant here, even if USA-originated, can truly emulate the food that I grew up with.

Despite this explanation, I want you to all understand just how amazing this week has been. I have made so many new friends. I have visited my school and sat in on classes. I am so excited to get my own class and students, and I know it will be an amazing growing experience. If you want more details on what my company is like, or my school, you can talk to me privately.

This is going to be an amazingly transforming experience. It will be an adventure that I will be desperately thankful that I had, no matter if it last only a year or longer. I know that it will ebb and flow; some days will be harder than others. The only unifying characteristics of these disparate days will be the plans in motion by the loving hands of God. So my purpose in glorifying God will propel the days forward. Be praying that I can palpably feel God's hands in my life, and that my heart would be stilled to listen to Him every moment of every day!

Because I was Craving Duck Blood

So it's been a few days, I've been able to fudge my existence with China a little. The past few days have entailed opening a Chinese bank account, registering at the police station, and doing some sightseeing with the other new hire Kyle. We went to the Bund, which is an area next to the river with beautiful buildings and architecture. It looks like this.

But other than trying some new Chinese dishes (while avoiding ones advertising Bull Frog meet and duck blood), it's been a pretty low-key past few days. So I'll use this blog to just talk about just a few first impressions on the differences in China.

1) The pedestrian is not top dog in China. In the US, hitting a pedestrian can cost you big time. Cross-walks are like holy force fields. Here pedestrians exist on a very Frogger-like playing field. The vehicle is king, and they do not watch out for you. Watching out for you is your job.

2) Although I'm sure rural areas have a much bigger hoopla over seeing foreigners, we're not so uncommon in Shanghai. On any walking trip or subway trip, I'll see at least a couple non-Chinese people.  There's still a small enough number that I will catch people looking me over. People try to be discreet about it, but I still catch them.

 But I very rarely get the long, unadulterated stare from people. While at the Bund, my buddy Kyle was approached by Chinese tourists in Shanghai. They asked for a photo of him, saying he was the first white person they saw and he was handsome. However, there are still plenty of expats enough that our presence is no big deal.

3) China has a very, very specific smell, BUT it is not at all bad. Most of you who know me well know that in the past I have made a slightly diva-like dramatic emphasis on my sensitive nose. Coming here, I was legitimately worried about what smells I would encounter. Having come here, though, stay in a hotel, walk down a busy street, be harassed by an army of beggars, and hang out on crowded subways, I have not run into any problems. It's not always pleasant, but the US isn't always a rose either.

4) Finally, I want to clarify a little on how international churches work here. To the best of my knowledge, I believe an international church for expats was set up in the 90s. Since then, quite a few official, well-sized international churches have sprung up in Shanghai. These churches are open only to expats. Beyond this restriction, however, the churches function just like churches in the US. They have contemporary worship services, retreats, youth groups, and cell groups. This is all legitimate and state recognized.

That's all I got right now. Tomorrow I start orientation! Here's another photo to part with.

I'm a Shell; I Have Nothing Left to Give!

Ok, so I'll try to keep this one short, as there will be no photos accompanying it. I did take photos today, but only on my iPhone, which you may have to wait a few weeks before you see.

Today was the great day of subway. I had looked up an international church I wanted to visit, mapped out the route, and took it. This particular church met weekly in a Marriott.

Surprisingly, I did not get lost while taking connecting subways. I surprised myself. One of the metros is above ground and has a beautiful view. Somehwhere between computer searching and the actual trek to the church, my brain must have had a mini-stroke and switched the name of Marriott to Ramada in my brain. Therefore I was unable to find until after the first service had started. There was another service at 11 though, so I decided to wait in a nearby Starbucks.

 It was there that I started creeping on a conversation of international expats nearby. Hearing trigger words like "fellowship," I asked them who they were. Turns out, they were a group of locals who were promoting and dealing out tickets for Hillsong, who just so happens to be coming to Shanghai soon. When I told them I had only been here two days, they all let out a hearty laugh and invited me to sit with them.

They told me about another church that most of them went to in another part of town. So I ended up going to that church in the afternoon. It was in this beautiful brick chapel, with vines falling down. The service was amazing. Everybody in there was just so passionate, awesome.

Upon leaving the church, however, I get super harassed. It felt like I was a celebrity whose location had been found by a hive of paparazzi, but instead of journalists, it was beggars. There at least 7 people who started yelling at me and sticking cups in my faces, two of them little girls. I gave out as much as I could before trying to get a way, a few of them following me down the street a ways. It was a bit jarring.

I was so exhausted by the time I got back to my hotel. I had spent around 3 hours in the subway yesterday, so I just skipped the hassle of dinner and got Pocky and Green Apple Fanta from the little Family Mart.

So that was yesterday!

Pasty White Glory

Alright, so it's 5 PM of my first full day in Shanghai! Today has been a blast so far, and also very exhausting. I know I mentioned it in my last post, but I'm going to mention it again: It is very, very hot here. At one point, I couldn't help but think, ya know, maybe I'm being rude to my body, forcing it to function in the weather. Maybe the only polite thing to do is to let it die. But I kept going.

Now, I didn't have to meet my company contact, Joe, until about 3, so I had the first half of the day to do whatever. Last night I went to bed at 6 PM Shanghai time, and managed to sleep for 11 hours. I'm telling you, my jetlag has not been bad at all since I've been here. I woke up around 5 and took my time getting up.

Around 7, I went walking around looking for an ATM. After the ATM, I went into a little convenience store to get a little breakfast snack. I found some what I think were raspberry and blueberry Oreos and some chocolate pretzel-like sticks. They were yummy and nutritious.

After that, I went to a nearby park I had seen on a map. It was way larger than I thought. And beautiful. There were winding paths, with flowers, ponds, gazebos. There were endless senior citizens doing tai chi. Like everywhere. My path led me to a little bench where I sat and had a brief but friendly chat with a nice old Chinese man. Then I went down into the metro card looking to buy a metro card with no luck.

It was still pretty early when I got back to the hotel room. I was hot and exhausted, so after Skyping with my parents I sat down and watched a movie. My Skype session made me realize I had hardly taken any photos of my morning adventure, so before I grabbed something to eat, I went back into the park and took the photos that are on Facebook.

The second time around, I was walking, and a woman far away on another path started shouting "Ni guo lai!" (Come over here) I walked over, and she starts asking me all these questions, most of which I couldn't understand. I talked with her as long as I could. By the end of the conversation, I sensed that she wanted to spend more time with me, so I barfed out a weird Chinese sentence along the lines of "I want to go find a restaurant now, goodbye." and left.

Another man stopped me and started asking me questions, most of which I again couldn't understand. He kept talking and exaggeratingly running his hands through his hair and flipping his hair back. I couldn't tell if he was mocking my hair or complimenting it so I had no idea how to respond. Either, "Oh thank you for noticing" or "You know, menopausal women in my country pay for this hair, so step off."

I found a KFC/Pizza Hut, and since I was too nervous to begin my journey of authentic Chinese cuisine and the diarrheal adventure that accompanies it, I went into the KFC. I went in expecting to walk up to the counter and order, but upon entering, a women asks "One person?" I respond affirmatively and am whisked to my seat, upon which I learn that KFCs in China are sit-down affairs. I ordered a black pepper steak pizza, which was very good.

After that, went back to my hotel, waiting for stomach problems that never came (Yay!) and met up with Joe. Joe and another new hire, Kyle. We went to a Starbucks, got cold drinks and discussed the contract that I eventually signed. They were both very nice guys, nice and white.

Out of the three, I am the palest, which for just one year, will be a good thing.

I also took some photos that I will use for various documents, so cool.

I am tired from the heat, but I have accomplished a lot. I have done my first store transaction, been to my first restaurant, gotten my metro card, and met with my new coworkers. I might just call it a day, but we'll see.

One last note. If you are reading this and plan to stay tuned in to this blog, it'd be awesome if you got a Google account to post comments to my blog posts. All you need is a Gmail, which will automatically give you a Google + account, and then you can follow me and post comments. I would like my blog to be interactive, and I would like to know who is reading this. Thanks!

Be in touch again soon!

I Write This with Sweaty Hands

So I'm here. I've made it. And my jet lag isn't all that bad, up until now, the only huge symptom is that my face has felt numb and stiff, like it's been under a recent Botox operation.

I'm starting to crash now, though. It's a little past 5 PM here, which means I've been up for 24 hours, 18 of these hours spent on an airplane.

Thankfully, I was seated on the international flight next to two really cool guys, with whom I exchanged contacts. I watched 5 movies, and nearly 2 episodes of New Girl on the flight. It wasn't actually that torturous of a flight.

I wish I could have had a more profound thought as I took my first step off the plane, but the first thought to slip my brain was "Holy crap." And that was in response to the heat. I wouldn't say it reaches the heat of, say, hell, but like a demi-version of hell. In terms of kitchen appliances, Shanghai is the Easy Bake Oven of Hell.

There was a driver to pick me, whose American name is Tom. He spoke very little English, so most of our conversation relied on my Mandarin. Now, keep in mind that I haven't been in Chinese class since April, and I had just been through 18 hours of air travel, so the fact that we could have conversations discussing American and Chinese Idol and "Shanghai is hot!" should impress you.

The drive into Shanghai was crazy. I couldn't help smiling. This place is completely unlike anything I've ever known. It was all new and foreign to me. It was indescribable...it was another vague, abstract descriptor.

It was huge; that's what it was. Starting on the outskirts from the airport and driving into the heart of the city, Shanghai just seems to go on forever. The buildings are tall and impressive.

I'm in my hotel room now, and I'm thinking about whether or not I should go back out. After I settled into my hotel room, I did a lap around my giant city block, half-sight seeing, half-looking for an ATM to get some more cash out. I'm feeling very intimidated, and also exhausted. I should have plenty of time to go exploring tomorrow.

Signing out.

Don't Get Excited(!)

Hey guys,

Don't consider this a real post. I am just fashioning my blog ahead of time. I don't have anything to write for you at the moment, but I want you to know where to find my blog when my travels give me something to say.

I'll do my best to at least write a weekly post. I'll use this blog however I see fit. You don't control me. If this blog degenerates into organic lasagna recipes, well then, it's my blog; I can do that. I imagine I will use this blog to guide you all through my ugly-American adventures in China. I'm sure the sheer force of my whiteness will supplement me with really good anecdotes.

I'll get photos and hopefully videos to post on here. Some nights I may choose to use this blog for angsty, introspective rants about my feelings, and you'll just have to cope with that too. I'll be happy to post what God teaches me and the awesome miracles that he does.

And I may even sparingly post some of my more artistic writings or songs.

However, if something drastic happens to me along the lines of Maggie Grace in Taken, and my lifeless body is found cheerfully bobbing down the Yangzi River, I have a physical, leather-bound journal in which I will relay my more profound thoughts and musings. I am preemptively placing the responsibility on all of you to see that the physical journal gets published post-mortem.

I haven't written in so long, so my writing style will improve; I promise!

I love you all!