What's New?

It's been a few days since my last post. What has happened??
1) I decorated my room for Christmas. Even have some lights. I'll get some pictures later.
2) As I was smooshed in a crowded bus inching it's way towards my bus stop, I decided to buy a bike. Will do that tomorrow.
3) We had our first snow today, although it didn't stick, it still fell down.
4) I explained HIS Grace to a friend tonight at study.
5) I just finished my last leftovers from our Thanksgiving meal. I've been eating mashed potatoes for every breakfast and lunch (which usually occurs at the same time since I've been getting up a little late lately and decide it's not worth eating breakfast at 9:30).
6) I am in the process of reviewing a friend's personal statement for his Doctorate application for an American University. Hmm.. hope this goes well. :)

Thanksgiving in Wuhan

Thanksgiving has come and gone and now the Christmas season is here. I hope all of my friends and family enjoyed their Thanksgiving with loved ones. This year was yet another year to be thankful for all the wonderful things HE gives us every day. I'm working on a list of what I am thankful for, tell ya later. For now... I will tell you about Thanksgiving half the way around the world.

 First, China doesn't celebrate this American holiday. I asked my students what they know about Thanksgiving and most of them only knew that we eat Turkey (which in Chinese translates as "fire chicken"). Don't worry, I taught them all about the Pilgrims and Native Americans. Then, as a discussion topic, they had to pretend they were turkeys and Thanksgiving was near. They had to tell the class why we should eat their partner over them. Quite entertaining!

Thursday evening the four of us in the middle area of the city (Nicole, Peter, Darin, and myself) treated our friends to a Thanksgiving meal- Chinese style. We found a restaurant with a big private room and ordered the dishes. Altogether we had 15 people show up. It was a great time to show our friends how thankful we are for them.

Vivien, Joanna, Peter, John Wayne, Tracy, Bruce, Edward

Sherry, Jacquline, Nicole, Julian, Darin, Jonathan, Lisa

This was our Chinese Thanksgiving Feast! From the rice going clockwise: Rice, spicy bean sprouts, mushroom broth, something I forgot, donkey/cucumbers, spicy french fries, sweet and sour pork, eggplant, in the middle is tofu.

Today (Sunday) we had our FoC Thanksgiving meal. We all met at Beth and Sarah's home and worked on our feast. The final result was amazing! It felt just like a real family dinner. We had potatoes, chicken, rolls, veggies, fruit, cornbread casserole, sweet potatoes, stuffing, bacon wrapped hot dogs, wine, and of course... pie! After dinner we played some games and people fell asleep on the couch while watching football. Kidding... no football here. We watched a movie.

Our Western Feast!

Before tonight it didn't really feel like Thanksgiving, however, having our whole "family" together is a great way to spend the holiday. I am Thankful for my great support system over here. Keep us in your thoughts especially as Winter comes and sicknesses are seeming to conquer us one by one.

Care Skin Bathe Turban

I never know what to call it in English, but now I know. It's a bathe turban. More commonly known as a loofah or a pouf. I bought one today and started reading the description... enjoy! (If it doesn't make sense, it's ok)

Add some shower juice is it is it make foam to be abundant all over to wipe to wipe away, smooth and incomparable before taking a shower, is it carry on keep-fit massage to whole body, let skin gloss extraordina rily of you happy easily to equal to, fine and smooth and rich flexibly, like bud being generally pleasant. 
If anyone would like to rewrite it into what you THINK they meant, give it a shot. I'd love to see what you get! :)

Worth the wait

Went to get a massage tonight. The lady told us it would take 10 minutes, then we would start. We waited 15 and Nicole started. I waited another 30 and finally my guy came. I was a little annoyed for having to wait so long. But it was worth the wait... He was so good I felt like I was floating on the table. As I was laying there I was thinking... I can't wait for my parents to come and experience this. I hope they are able to experience a Chinese massage when they are here and will enjoy it at least 1/2 as much as I do.

In my extra class tonight I started talking to one of my students about my name. He asked me if there is more than one Jessica in my class, how do they know what to call me. I then proceeded to teach my small group of students about nicknames, last names, and middle names. I had all of my immediate family's names on the board with circles around the common names. I also had a 2 minute lesson on how to pronounce my last name. Names in China are much different than names in the States. It was a fun little cultural lesson. :)

Teaching at University

As some of you may know, I am teaching at a university this year. It's completely different than my time teaching last year. Last year I taught 1st and 2nd grade. They were small, cute, and super excited about having a foreign teacher. This year I am teaching college freshman. They are not so small, not always cute, but luckily, still excited about learning English.

Every Monday I teach a Study Skills class. This class is to help prepare the students to go abroad and study in a university there. I cover topics such as taking notes, time management, stress management, how to give a speech, etc. The topics are a bit dry and their English level is a bit low, which causes some difficulties. The classes are also a bit big, about 30 students in each class.

On Tuesdays and Fridays I teach an Oral English class. This class is an opportunity for the students to use the English they learn in other classes. It gives me an opportunity to present topics and discussions to encourage talking. I have 2 classes of 12 each. An amazing number! I enjoy teaching this class and have gotten close to these students. Some topics have included crime, teachers, Taylor Swift, characteristics of a person, traveling, and many many more!

Two of my best students: Olivia and Sybil. They both work very hard in class.

Students working on designing their Halloween costumes.

Two of my favorite students: Jim and Ken. Jim (on the left) is AMAZING at violin

Two of my most talkative students, Larry and Jerry. Yeah, I get their names confused sometimes...

Chinese/American Dentists

I know you got some of the differences last time I went to the dentist, but this time I am making a side by side list of how they are the same/different. If I wasn't the patient, this would all be quite amusing, so I hope you enjoy this cultural lesson. :) I'll try to make them in a logical order, but bear with me. I'm just going to write as I think...dangerous, I know. Please don't take this in a "I don't like China" way. Read this as in a "This is different" way.

America: People make appointments, then wait in the waiting room until their name is called. As you wait you watch tv or read old magazines. Sometimes there is quiet music in the background.
China: People make appointments (sometimes) but you don't really have to get there on time. People wait next to the current person getting their dental work done so they can be sure to be next. There is a Chinese soap opera on in the "waiting" room if anyone wants to sit down. Otherwise you hear music blasting from the streets (even while you are in the chair)

America: Dentists speak English.
China: Not all speak English, so a translator is needed. Thanks Adam!

America: The hygienist preps you for anything that needs to be done. She/he is also at the dentist's side to aid in any way needed.
China: There are no hygienists, the doctor does any prep work needed as well as any busy work to get ready for the day. He/she is also the only hands in your mouth, ever.

America: You have detailed records on file at the dentist. If you switch dentists, you can ask for your file.
China: They give you a book when you get there to keep your records. You bring it back every time you go. If you go to a different dentist, you get a new book.

America: There are at least 3-4 utensils in your mouth at all times: mirror, water spitter, water sucker, and the drill (sorry, don't know all the technical terms)
China: There are 2 utensils in your mouth: mirror and drill. You spit in a sink and rinse your own mouth.

America: They numb you up and may even give you laughing gas.
China: They only numb you if you beg them too.

America:You have individual cubicles for privacy.
China: You are all in the same room so if someone screams in pain, you all hear it. Short story: There was a lady next to me who was getting something done. I heard her moaning and flinching quite often.

America: You are taken to a back room to get your work done. It is away from any distractions.
China: You are taken towards the back (sort of) but can still hear the street and anyone outside. Outside people can also look inside and see what's going on.

America: They put the fillings in each individual tooth so you can still floss once you go home.
China: They put the filling across the teeth so there are no gaps, which means, shorter time spending on flossing!

America: The filling fits perfectly on your teeth so you don't even notice that there is a filling in your mouth.
China: The filling is smooth, and I can tell that something is different in that part of the mouth.

America: You can't eat anything hard on the side of the filling for 24 hours.
China: You can't eat anything hard on that side of the filling forever! Yeah, not sure how that's going to work. :(

America: Everything is clean and looks perfect.
China: I'm assuming everything is clean, but not sure. I do know my light would flicker every once in a while. Also, not sure what caused it.

America: The dentist wears goggles and magnifying glasses to 1) keep anything flying around you out of their eyes and 2) allow them to see better.
China: No glasses for either dentist or patient. I got a little something near my eye once. But it was ok, I got it out. :)

America: After you've finished with your work you leave and say bye to the dentist.
China: After you've finished with your work, you get a photo op with the dentist and your translator.

America: Before you leave you pay whatever your insurance doesn't cover.
China: Before you leave you pay 200rmb (about $31) for a filling.

Even during the dental work, I could tell things were different, but I don't know how to explain them to you. What have I learned from this experience... if possible, don't go to a Chinese dentist, but if you have to, you will survive. I had an encouraging thought from a fellow FoCer, "Going to the dentist in China is one of my worst nightmares... and your living it!" -Aaron S.

I survived. Even at the dentist HE was at my side. I was nervous and afraid of what would happen, but I kept remembering the passages that I learned when I was little about trusting in HIM and casting all my cares on HIM. I survived and you could to. Here's the man who fixed my cracked filling....

I like how she included the bar in the picture.

Here's the trio. After they took (no lie at least 8) pictures, I had to get out my camera. Look how young this guy looks! He could be my little brother. I think I told you last time that he's 28. But he might be 27.

Unrelated topics

I got three tidbits for you. First, if you haven't been checking facebook regularly to see my updated posts, you may have missed that Nicole found an amazing thing at the grocery store! Frozen pizza! One thing I do miss from back home is a good 'ol frozen pizza for supper, or lunch, or breakfast. It was a bit expensive (5x the price of an average Chinese lunch), but it was time for a treat. Nicole did the honors of baking  and cutting it. It was great. Not as good as American pizza (it's from Germany), but close.

Not sure why this picture is this way. I even tried downloading it again. Here's the pizza and Nicole cutting it with the meat clever. You use meat clevers in China for everything. Cutting meat, veggies, pizza, doesn't matter.  We lack a pizza cutter. Probably cause this was the first time we ever needed one.

Next unrelated topic. I bought a pillow yesterday. It was very small see...

Super small! Do we have pillows like these in America?

Then I cut it open and it became really big!!!

Now she's happy!

As you can see, one chopstick. The other one fell on the floor.

Third, I made myself a Chinese meal the other night. The mom at our kid's study taught me how to cook a dish. Mushrooms and lettuce. However, everything was prepped when she taught me, so I didn't know what kind of mushrooms or what kind of lettuce it was. I had the wrong kind of lettuce, added too much oil and too much salt, not enough garlic. BUT overall, I would call it a success. :)

Knots

There were two different knots in life the past week. The first one happened after doing my laundry. The second one happened before kids' study. Let me explain...

Washing machines here are good. Not great, but good. They are good in the sense that you don't have to wash your clothes by hands. They also make doing laundry interesting. You throw your clothes in and you never know for sure how they will come out. Here is the knot I received the other day.

The second knot was a knot of people. I came early to kids study this past Saturday. After watching the mom make some of the food, I went into the living room to see what was going on. Brian decided to play the human knot game. This is where you grab random people's hands, then you try to untangle yourself. The Dad at the home took a picture of us. Unfortunately, we were defeated by the knot. After trying for some time, it was time to eat. Next week... we will win!!!!!!

The Dentist

Before I left for China I made sure I visited the dentist. I did this for two reasons. 1) I'm still under my parent's insurance so I wanted to take advantage of that and 2) I didn't want to go to the dentist in China. Well... that didn't happen.

After I arrived in China, I noticed that my filling was cracked. Hm... how long can I wait to get that repaired? After talking with the dentist and another dentist friend, I decided it was best to fix it now. I can always get it fixed again in the States if needed. I did some research on places to go where there are western style dentists. However, with the price, and the traveling it was a bit troublesome. So, I decided to check out places in Wuhan.


I went to one place this morning with a Chinese friend. His English is great, but he is a bit younger so inexperienced in how dentists should work. After I went to get my x-ray and saw how dirty this place was, I didn't feel comfortable having any work done here. Plus, without a fellow American with me to help me, I decided to leave and ask Adam (our Shepherd) what he thinks would be best. We decided to try the place next to his apartment. He lives in an expensive area, so we figured this place would be much better. And perhaps they have worked with other foreigners before.

See, you can see them work on this lady. :)

I walked in, we explained what I needed, then I sat down. After sitting for about 30 seconds the dentist office asked to take my picture. Hm... maybe they haven't worked with foreigners before! Adam translated, told my dentist I was afraid of the pain and talked him into giving me a shot of local anesthetics. Hopefully it won't hurt too bad. Well, as he started drilling, I slowly started to feel more and more pain. Yup, I was flinching. They had to remove my filling in order to replace it. It was quite deep! The best part... Nicole was sitting there watching this all too. It's an open room with 5 or 6 dentists chairs. Check out the pictures.

This was most of the dentist office. There were a few more chairs on the right and one more behind.

 

 

 

Long story short, I have a temporary filling in right now. I will go back next week to get the permanent filling put in. So for the next week I cannot eat on my right side of my mouth, eat anything hard, or chewy. I might end up losing some weight this week. I'll let you know how the return to the dentist goes next week.

You can see the person on the left taking my picture. Adam is translating.

I was very thankful that Adam could translate so well. Here is my 28 year old dentist (we asked him his age)

A Day of Golf

As foreigners in China, we often get invited to unique parties or gatherings. If we can, we like to accept because we never know what will be in store for us. Here is a "party" I was invited to. I invited some friends to share in the experience.

I received an emailing saying their is a party which included free golf, wine tasting, tea tasting, a brief introduction to a new website to teach Chinese, and then a goodie bag. Why not!? I thought.

Nicole, Brian, Aaron, and I went with some people from my school. The party started off with 1 hour of free golf at a driving range. My first time at a driving range! They even had golf instructors there to help us. Unfortunately, they didn't speak English and we don't speak Chinese. It's ok. I had Golf and First Aid at MLC, so I sort of knew what I was doing.

After golf, they took us to a room with traditional Chinese snakes (this is how they spelled it). Really they were snacks, those two words are very confusing for friends. We had a demonstration on how to drink tea (there are quite a few steps to do it correctly), a demonstration on the new program. They even gave out some prizes. I got 2 tea cups and Nicole got an electronic thing to help her learn to write Chinese characters. Not real sure exactly what it is.

The afternoon ended with wine and baijiu tasting. Baijiu is a Chinese alcohol. It is very strong and doesn't taste very good. After I tried both of them, I remembered I had to teach in an hour and shouldn't drink too much. The people in charge told us we could drink as much as we would like. I didn't think it would be good for me to walk into class with the smell of alcohol on my breath.

Overall, it was an ok day. I think the free golf was worth the rest of the afternoon.