new favorite foods

These are my new favorite foods. Taro Milk Muffins (Taro, is my absolute new favorite flavor!) and Egg Cakes. The Egg cakes have like, a cream in the middle. They're tasty. I like my new foods. I can buy them at the Orange Store (as we have come to call it, since we do not know how to read Chinese and learn the name, and the big huge sign is orange), that is just a couple blocks away from my house. Such happiness. I'll probably stop on my way home today. The muffins made a brilliant breakfast!! And the egg cakes. . .are a great snack/breakfast.
SO yeah. This is what I find to love in China.

not such a deep day. . .

"If cheeseburgers were cute, folks would probably think you were Big and Bad, too."
(The TRUE Story of The Three Little Pigs)

an interesting life. . .

It's Tuesday again. I was going to post last Tuesday. . .but I didn't. Last Tuesday, my class said goodbye to a student who was moving out of the country. So we were having a goodbye time of sorts, where they made him going away cards. So they were asking me how to spell, I Will Miss You. So I wrote it on the board. But one of my boys asked what he should write on his card, so I pointed it out, and said he could write that. But he said he couldn't, because he wasn't going to miss his friend. I was a little in shock and trying to figure out what to do--because they were both standing right there, and they were friends. So I tried to joke and lighten the mood--because that's what I do. But he insisted, "I never miss people. I don't like missing people anymore." I couldn't say anything after that.
For some of you who know me, I do the same thing. I lie a lot, when I tell people I'm going to miss them, because I know that that's what's socially acceptable. I don't usually bring it up unless it's true, but if they say it, I can't make myself hurt their feelings by not repeating it. From Covenant, there are 4 people that I can honestly say I miss. I'll have fleeting memories of random people that I spent time with, and think, aww, it would be fun to do such and such with them. . .but I don't really care very much. There are lots of people that I love--so when I'm with them, or I talk to them, I enjoy it. . .but if they're not around, I probably won't think about them.
I'm probably just sounding like a bitch right about now, aren't I? I don't even know. I guess I'm just thinking out loud, because it's kind of rough trying to create deep relationships here in China, where I know that they will tend to be very short. At Covenant, I knew I had 4 years. I still lost people--they dropped out, or we just went our separate ways. Covenant is small, but it's still possible to never see people.
But here. . .I have a 2 year commitment. The other new teachers have the same. So I know I have that with them. All the rest--teachers, students--I don't even have a guarantee of that long. The students could be gone in a week, like the one that left last week. I was told on Friday that Tuesday would be his last day. And that was it. He's gone. Will I ever see him again? I doubt it. It's just so frustrating never having that kind of stability. And I'll never have it. I know me. This is the world of today. It's a world of constant transition and change. Which is cool, and exciting. . .unless it's an unpleasant change.
Se la vi.

I also have the strangest feeling that today is someone's birthday, or a Yemeni holiday or something. . .confustation. The date is familiar, somebody help me out. . .

Oh, and if you have never heard the song "Home" from Beaty and the Beast (Broadway version)--it's amazing. I confess, it's on my Disney Princess CD, and that's how I know it. But yeah.

Seriously. . .something's wrong with me

I don't know what's wrong with me. I guess this must be some sort of stress relief. Libby told me what to wear yesterday, and then demanded pictures of me. So I took some!! :-D
So above are just a couple of the 30-some-odd pictures I ended up taking of myself in the mirror.



Also, one of me and some random lions by a smoothie place where I got a sugar high from a lime sherbet smoothie thing that had a scoop of some sort of purple ice cream (possibly taro flavored--if i knew what taro tasted like, i could say for certain.) It was good though.



Oh, and these are my two most important things in my life right now. My cell phone, and my bus card. This morning though, there was a horrible thunderstorm, and the traffic is always 10 times as bad in the rain, and so i ended up sharing a taxi with another teacher that I saw at the bus stop, and it still took us 40 minutes to get to school, instead of the 30 min bus trip I take if I leave early enough on a dry morning. So hopefully tomorrow will not be as wet, because it cost me 9 qwai to get here, instead of the normal 1.8. That's a pretty big difference.
Anyways. Today I had a fun math morning. We sang The Ants Go Marching One By One, the first five verses. Then I taught them how to play Face-Off, which is basically just the card game War. I know, it sounds like fun--but it was learning. We're focusing on the numbers 1-5 and their sequence and comparing them to each other this week, and so this is waaaay more fun than the crap worksheets from the math book. They'll learn and not even notice. I love Kindergarten!!! Especially the rest time factor--which they're having right now. But now I have to go figure out a grade of some sort for a student who's transferring to another country. Sadness. :(

The end of another crazy week

Friday afternoon is an ideal time to go crazy. So, since I heard a complaint recently that I'm supposed to put up more pictures of myself, here we are.


First, I took a picture of my desk (the crap of which had desperately spilled over onto Jeanet's desk as well--ooopS!)(keep in mind, that this was AFTER I'd already started cleaning stuff off of it!). Then, a picture of the area that I'm lesson planning in, by my computer.


Then I thought, I should take some pictures of how I feel on Frazzled Friday. I put up the few most attractive one.




Then, a picture of what keeps me going, and will help me lesson plan my brains out this afternoon. Although, I feel as if I have no brains left, the children took them out and smashed them out against the wall.





On another subject, the power of stickers astounds me. What is it that children love so much about them, that they are a sufficient reward for being quiet, or for doing a great job? They invariably lose them in a matter of minutes. Anyways, I held several contests this morning for the quietest table. The whole room was blissfully quiet, so everyone got a sticker. It was a beautiful thing. A couple parents came through on a tour during one of these contests and I felt kind of funny that my classroom was dead silent--but hey, they were working. My children are amazing and they do all sorts of wonderful things for me.

Just some snapshots from my life

The gorgeous sunset one evening from my apt balcony. Oh, but the color is so gorgeous. I wish I could have captured it better. I love watching the sun set behind mountains. I love living in the western side of the city. It's great.


Notice the huge mosque in the background--I love this picture for so many reasons.



This is just soooo funny. There are a few of these signs around town, and we just bust out laughing every time. It's just too much.


This one's for you Evs. These guys play their music right by where Bus 82 begins at the big square. So I get to listen to them as I wait for the bus to pick me up.


This is us playing chopsticks. This was our Chinese version of spoons. An excellent game. Mary Van is the cute one sitting on my lap, and she was "helping" me. She's one of my students, and quite precocious. She's been out for the past two days, and I've missed her.

The way I make it through each day

May the Mind of Christ, My Savior

1. May the mind of Christ, my Savior,
Live in me from day to day,
By His love and power controlling
All I do and say.

2. May the Word of God dwell richly
In my heart from hour to hour,
So that all may see I triumph
Only through His power.

3. May the peace of God, my Father,
Rule my life in everything.
That I may be calm to comfort
Sick and sorrowing.

4. May the love of Jesus fill me,
As the waters fill the sea;
Him exalting, self abasing
This is victory.


’Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus

1. ’Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to take Him at His word;
Just to rest upon His promise,
Just to know “Thus saith the Lord!”

REF: Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust Him more!

2. O how sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to trust His cleansing blood;
Just in simple faith to plunge me
’Neath the healing, cleansing flood!

3. Yes ’tis sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just from sin and self to cease;
Just from Jesus simply taking
Life and rest, and joy and peace.

4. I’m so glad I learned to trust Thee,
Precious Jesus, Savior, friend;
And I know that Thou art with me,
Wilt be with me to the end.

a long distance relationship

Austin holding Abby

My newest niece was born the evening of August 29. She's a nice healthy baby, and her big brother is very proud and excited. Abby is her name, and she's just the cutest. . .ok, well, obviously I haven't seen her in person. Janie's doing well, apparently, and is glad to not be pregnant anymore!!
I'm sad--I got to see Austin three days after he was born, and we bonded--and then I saw him every few months or so until this July, and he's two. But I don't get to see Abby at all until she's almost two. And I don't get to see Austin again till he's 4. This is really sad. Their grandparents have promised to deluge me with pictures though, so that I can feel like I'm watching them grow up.
So along with my Anjuli, Austin and Abby (woah, there's a theme here. ..) I have to be Aunty Jazzy from China for at least the next couple years. Now, what should I send my babies for Christmas?
This is the worst part of living overseas. The relationships that have to be long distance. Of course, the best part is that you get to have lots more! I don't regret being here. . .I just sometimes wish I could be close to all the people I loved all at once.

So nostalgia reigns once again. I do have 16 children right next door to me right now "resting" whom I love and have a responsibility towards. So it's really not so bad. I really have it pretty good. I love my job, I love my coworkers, and I love China. I love people that are in Yemen, people at Covenant, people in Atlanta, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Illinois, Massachusetts, California, Canada, and well. . .you get the point. What can I say? I got enough sleep last night. . .I'll love just about anybody right now!

It's Friday, my day is nearly done, and life continues with gusto! My children are happy, and I'm happy, and tomorrow, I get to sleep past 6:30. What more can I ask for? God is good, and He takes care of me, and the people that I love. So it's all good.