Back by popular demand...

I must say, it is nice to know that people out there want to know what's going on with me! Many of you have left subtle (and not so subtle) messages that you'd like a blog update. Thanks for caring! There has been a lot going on here, so much that I can't even think of everything. So I'll highlight a few of the "firsts" that I've had lately.

My first fake Christmas tree:A Langfang Wal-Mart specialty, this beauty stood 5 feet high. It was actually kind of fun to unfold it and design my own tree for once (this is the OCD in me speaking). The decorations were modest (only on the front side), and the presents underneath wrapped in pink Disney princess paper (which was hard enough to find, forget red & green), but it definitely lifted my spirits during my first Christmas away from home and family.

My first donkey burger:

This is not some kind of metaphor or analogy for some other food. I straight up ate a donkey sandwich. It wasn't so much a burger (they call all sandwiches "burgers") as it was like a roast beef sandwich from Arby's, which is what I was telling myself as I ate it. Honestly though, it tasted pretty good, even if I was eating it for breakfast at 8 in the morning. This was part of my visit to Lindy's house in Da Cheng, and the whole experience was pretty fun. I even got to share some Good News with her :) After the donkey burgers, we hit up the local photo booth shop- a very popular thing for friends to do here. Though I'm pretty sure most people don't get 16 pictures taken like we did. We picked out the different backgrounds, and then cheesed it up. Towards the end, I was running out of creative things to do, but I think they're all pretty funny:(keep in mind that these are pictures of pictures-glittery pictures)

My first Paula Abdul experience:

I got to be one of the judges for our department's talent show! Ten students made it to the final show, which was a lot like the Miss America pageant: they introduced themselves, answered different questions, and then showed off their talents, which ranged from singing and dancing to designing clothes out of plastic bags and acting like Obama and Kobe. One of my freshmen, Sherry Carter, did a great job singing "Waiting For You" by Bryan Adams- and she ended up winning the whole thing. But probably my favorite part was the GIANT banner that was made for this occasion, with the ten participants' glamour shots all over it. Here is Sherry singing (on the right), with her giant glamourous self in the background:

My first failures:

It's still hard for me to believe sometimes that I am teaching college students. I guess it's because part of me still feels like I could be one of them, sitting there taking the exam, rather than the one creating and grading exams. My Oral English classes all had interviews for their final- it is Oral English, after all. Though it was exhausting to listen to all 120 of them answer many of the same questions in the same way, I was happy to hear most of them do well- especially my freshmen, who showed marked improvement. My film students, on the other hand, got a written exam- 15 questions about the movies we watched, and most of them multiple choice. Soo easy! Yet they seemed to do worse, and one girl outright failed the exam with a 43%. Due to her lack of participation in class, she subsequently failed the class. I also had to fail two others on account of their attendance. That was my policy, and I had to stick to it, even after the one girl cried in front of me. I'm such a people pleaser, and I hate being the bad guy. But I'm a huge believer in doing what you say you'll do. Let's just hope it doesn't come to that again.

My first Chinese haircut:

Don't read too much into this; I do not have some crazy, assymetrical Chinese hairstyle. But I did have to submit myself and my hair to someone who does not speak English and thinks American hairstyles are boring. I get stressed out enough getting a haircut in my own country (weird, I know), so this was a special test in faith and letting go. When I told the guy (through my student interpreter) that I just wanted a little bit cut off, and that I wanted all of my hair to be the same length, he actually looked a tad bit sad. Some random lady jumped in and said that my hair would look just the same if they did what I asked. EXACTLY!

I'd say that's about enough for today. Now: please, Please, PLEASE tell me what's going on with you!! It is only fair, you know...