It's raining today....again!
The weather has been so weird and inconsistent recently.
It will be hot and sunny one day and cold and rainy the next....the weather is totally unpredictable and it's kind of annoying because I don't know how to dress in the morning.
I'll look out my window and see that it's cold and rainy so I put on several layers and then go out and teach for a few hours.
Then after I emerge from the teaching building the weather has changed to, not warm, but HOT so I have to shed a few layers...ugh.
Anyway, I'm still just kind of counting the days (more like the weeks) until my contract finishes here so that I can take a higher-paying job in a different city.
I actually might consider staying in Changsha if I get a higher-paying job and if I can live closer to the downtown area.
Right now I'm kind of out in the rural part of town and it takes me nearly an hour on the bus to get into the city...so, I do have access to the city but I'd prefer to just live IN the city!
I'm starting to widen my net a bit as well....Shanghai is still my number one choice but I'd be willing to work in Ningbo or Suzhou (which are both close to Shanghai) or even Wenzhou.
Changsha isn't a bad city or anything it's just that I've already been here for nearly a year and I'm ready for a change....again.
I'll definetly be in China for a while but I don't think I could stay in this area for much longer just because I know I could make more money in another city (doing the same job) and be able to mingle with more foreigners and NOT BE POINTED AND STARED AT......
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
10 weeks to go
It's nearly 11pm on Wednesday right now....October 29th, 2008.
As of now, I have about 10 weeks left on my contract and I'm still trying to decide if I should renew for a second year or look for a different school to work for in China.
I'm really considering working at a high school or University in Shanghai if I can get a pretty good deal and considering how much teaching experience I now have I think I can.
There would be some advantages to staying in this school. I'm familiar with the area, familiar with the students, I have a few friends, I could get a raise, etc.
However, I think I'd be better off in Shanghai, in the long run, for several reasons: No one would point or stare at me, I could earn more money, I could meet more foreigners, etc.
Also, I enjoy teaching ESL but I don't think this is something I want to do for the rest of my life.....if I were to work in Shanghai for a few years I think I'd be able to find another field of work to enter into and earn a better living.
Working here in Changsha for nearly a year has been a positive experience overall but I'm ready to move on and I think Shanghai is the place to be if I plan on staying China for a long time.
As of now, I have about 10 weeks left on my contract and I'm still trying to decide if I should renew for a second year or look for a different school to work for in China.
I'm really considering working at a high school or University in Shanghai if I can get a pretty good deal and considering how much teaching experience I now have I think I can.
There would be some advantages to staying in this school. I'm familiar with the area, familiar with the students, I have a few friends, I could get a raise, etc.
However, I think I'd be better off in Shanghai, in the long run, for several reasons: No one would point or stare at me, I could earn more money, I could meet more foreigners, etc.
Also, I enjoy teaching ESL but I don't think this is something I want to do for the rest of my life.....if I were to work in Shanghai for a few years I think I'd be able to find another field of work to enter into and earn a better living.
Working here in Changsha for nearly a year has been a positive experience overall but I'm ready to move on and I think Shanghai is the place to be if I plan on staying China for a long time.
Friday, September 26, 2008
2 pics of me
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Today's Mandarin Exercises
我对他的工作表现很失望。
(I am very disappointed with his work performance.)
wo dui (toward) ta de gongzuo
biaoxian (performance) hen shi wang (disappointed).
没有收到他的礼物,我很失望。
(I didn't receive his gift, I'm very disappointed.)
Mei you shou dao (to receive) ta de liwu (gift),
wo hen shi wang (disappointed).
这个城市没我想象的好,我有点儿失望。
(This city isn't as good as I imagined it would be. I'm a little disappointed.)
Zhe ge chengshi mei wo xiang xiang (to imagine)
de hao, wo you dianr (slightly) shi wang.
我们分手吧,不要再互相伤害了。
(Let's break up, and not hurt each other anymore.)
Wo men fenshou (to split up) ba, bu yao zai (again)
hu xiang (each other) shanghai (to hurt) le.
大家一起学习,互相帮助,过得很愉快。
(Everyone learn together, help each other, and enjoy it.)
Da jia yi qi (together) xue xi, hu xiang (each other) bang zhu (to help),
guo (to spend) de hen yukuai (happy).
情侣之间互相信任是最重要的。
(The most important thing for lovers is that they trust each other.)
Qinglu (lovers) zhijian (between) huxiang xinren (trust) shi zui zhongyao de.
我来中国是为了跟我女朋友在一起。
(I came to China to be with my girlfriend.)
Wo lai Zhong guo shi weile (in order) gen (with)
wo nu peng you zai yi qi (together).
为了有个好身体,我坚持每天锻炼。
(In order to have a good body, I stick to a daily workout routine.)
Weile you ge hao shen ti, jianchi (to persist) mei tian duanlian (to exercise).
(I am very disappointed with his work performance.)
wo dui (toward) ta de gongzuo
biaoxian (performance) hen shi wang (disappointed).
没有收到他的礼物,我很失望。
(I didn't receive his gift, I'm very disappointed.)
Mei you shou dao (to receive) ta de liwu (gift),
wo hen shi wang (disappointed).
这个城市没我想象的好,我有点儿失望。
(This city isn't as good as I imagined it would be. I'm a little disappointed.)
Zhe ge chengshi mei wo xiang xiang (to imagine)
de hao, wo you dianr (slightly) shi wang.
我们分手吧,不要再互相伤害了。
(Let's break up, and not hurt each other anymore.)
Wo men fenshou (to split up) ba, bu yao zai (again)
hu xiang (each other) shanghai (to hurt) le.
大家一起学习,互相帮助,过得很愉快。
(Everyone learn together, help each other, and enjoy it.)
Da jia yi qi (together) xue xi, hu xiang (each other) bang zhu (to help),
guo (to spend) de hen yukuai (happy).
情侣之间互相信任是最重要的。
(The most important thing for lovers is that they trust each other.)
Qinglu (lovers) zhijian (between) huxiang xinren (trust) shi zui zhongyao de.
我来中国是为了跟我女朋友在一起。
(I came to China to be with my girlfriend.)
Wo lai Zhong guo shi weile (in order) gen (with)
wo nu peng you zai yi qi (together).
为了有个好身体,我坚持每天锻炼。
(In order to have a good body, I stick to a daily workout routine.)
Weile you ge hao shen ti, jianchi (to persist) mei tian duanlian (to exercise).
Friday, September 19, 2008
Monday, September 15, 2008
The Pali Canon
The Pali Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pali language.[1] The Canon was written down, transcribed from the oral tradition, during the Fourth Buddhist Council (in the usual Theravada numbering), in the 1st century BCE, in Sri Lanka[2] on ola (palm) leaves.[3] Passed down in writing and to other Theravadin countries, this originally largely North Indian[4] Canon is the most complete surviving early Buddhist canon and one of the first to be written down.[5]
The Canon was not printed until the nineteenth century, and is now also available in electronic form.[6]
The Pali Canon falls into three general categories, called pitaka (piṭaka, basket) in Pali. Because of this, the canon is traditionally known as the Tipitaka (Tipiṭaka; three baskets).The three pitakas are as follows:[7]
Vinaya Pitaka, dealing with rules for monks and nuns
Sutta Pitaka, discourses, mostly ascribed to the Buddha, but some to disciples
Abhidhamma Pitaka, variously described as philosophy, psychology, metaphysics etc.
The Canon was not printed until the nineteenth century, and is now also available in electronic form.[6]
The Pali Canon falls into three general categories, called pitaka (piṭaka, basket) in Pali. Because of this, the canon is traditionally known as the Tipitaka (Tipiṭaka; three baskets).The three pitakas are as follows:[7]
Vinaya Pitaka, dealing with rules for monks and nuns
Sutta Pitaka, discourses, mostly ascribed to the Buddha, but some to disciples
Abhidhamma Pitaka, variously described as philosophy, psychology, metaphysics etc.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Tao Te Ching Chapter 1
The Tao that can be trodden is not the enduring and unchanging Tao. The name that can be named is not the enduring and unchanging name.(Conceived of as) having no name, it is the Originator of heaven and earth; (conceived of as) having a name, it is the Mother of all things.Always without desire we must be found,If its deep mystery we would sound;But if desire always within us be,Its outer fringe is all that we shall see.Under these two aspects, it is really the same; but as development takes place, it receives the different names. Together we call them the Mystery. Where the Mystery is the deepest is the gate of all that is subtle and wonderful.
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