So I don't know if "quarter-life crisis" is a recognized phenomenon, but if it is, I definitely am experiencing it. I turned 23 two days ago and am really struggling. I guess I never thought I'd be teaching English in China right now. Don't get me wrong, I love it! But I do feel that my life is in a bit of a holding pattern. I'm not exactly moving forward.
My next big goal is to get a PhD in linguistics. And living and teaching in China is definitely helpful for that. I'm learning Chinese and all... But a lot of me is afraid that I won't get into a program when I want to. If I want to go to school next year than I need to apply now. Do I want to go to school next year? Or do I want to wait another year? If I want to go in two years I need to apply next year. But what if I don't get in on the first try? Then I should apply now so that I can have another shot in two years... It's confusing, isn't it? This is what my mind has been like for the past couple of days. It's a little disorienting.
Life is nice when you have a plan. But life also makes it hard to plan. I can take all the "right steps" and still not get what I'm aiming for. The inherent unpredictability is hard to deal with, you know?
Anyway, China is good, teaching is good, but my inner dialogue is going a little crazy.
Oh, and I'm dog-sitting Joni's [crazy] dog SonSun tonight. She's stuck in Guiyang and I now have the little creature running around my apartment.
So, yeah... That's my life right now. :)
Monday, October 30, 2006
Monday, October 23, 2006
Shopping!
Grocery shopping in China is crazy! I actually love it. I go once or twice a week. I can't buy as much as I could in the states, because once I buy things I have to carry them to the bus stop, on the bus, off the bus, back to my apartment and up six flights of stairs.
There are no carts at the grocery store - only baskets. It's a good thing, because if there were carts I'd buy way too much stuff!
Anyway, I do all my shopping in two legs. The first leg is at the grocery store. The closest thing to it in America is Walmart: it has household items and non-perishable food items. There is a very small produce section, and I think you can also buy meat there.
The name of our grocery store is Wong Ke Long. I think it is a brand name like "Walmart" or "Wegmans", not a generic name for "grocery store". It's funny, one of the American teachers here who has lived in China for eight years and is fluent in Chinese calls it the "Wonka", for short. "Wong Ke" usually comes out "wonka". So we call it the wonka long!
We take the bus into town and walk three blocks to the wonka. I sometimes buy bleach or shampoo from the second floor. Then we go downstairs and buy non-perishable food. For some of the other teachers this means cookies and crackers. For me it usually means oatmeal, canola oil, brown sugar, or rice. I generally spend about 30 kuai (kuai = reminbi = yuan; it's the unit of money here, and there are 8 kuai in 1 dollar).
Then I put my purchases into my backpack and walk three blocks back to the bus stop for the second leg. I overshoot the bus stop by maybe 10 feet and arrive at the outdoor market. It is essentially a wide alley that has fruit, vegetable and meat vendors on both sides for 1/4 to 1/2 mile. We generally only shop in the first half since the second half just repeats.
Some vendors just sell what is in season. Peas are out of season, but squash is in season.
My pattern is to walk up to a vendor, point to something and ask "duoshao qian yi jin", which means "how much does this cost for one pound". (A jin is half a kilogram, which is 1.1 pound). If the price is too high I say "tai gui le" which means "that's too expensive!" and move on. If the price is reasonable I say "hao" ("good") and put as many as I want into a bag. Then they weigh the bag and I pay for my vegetables.
Some things are very reasonable: potatoes cost .8 kuai a pound, carrots and celery are generally 1.5 kuai a pound. Soybeans and tomatoes can be 4 kuai a pound, and peas (which are out of season) are upwards of 7 kuai a pound.
You can also buy meat at this market. There is one vendor which carries frozen chicken breasts (YAY!), or you can buy a whole chicken (whole as in head, feet, everyhing!). Most of the chickens in the market are alive. You can watch them pluck the chickens - I usually avoid that part of the market!! When I bought my [first] whole chicken yesterday I said "bu yao" (I don't want) and pointed to the head and the feet. They looked at me like I was crazy and I said (in English - good call, Liz) "I don't want the head or the feet". I was pointing to my own head and feet. Somehow, they understood me!
There is very little beef in this part of China. So we eat chicken and pork. Pretty much anywhere we use beef in the States, we use pork in China. The pork process is the same - "how much does it cost?", "I want one pound". They have machines right there (the market is outside!) that will grind your chosen cut of meat. Sometimes I buy ground pork, sometimes I buy it whole. They will also sell you pork fat, which you can render to make lard (I have successfully avoided that, so far!).
Oh, you can buy fish (which are alive) there. They sell it to you alive and you kill it, etc. at home. I am not nearly brave enough to do that!
Also at the market you can get good prices on spices (which you buy whole and are freshly ground for you), grains (I buy flour and cornmeal from one nice lady), and beans. You can even buy freshly cooked beans, which is very convenient. In fact, I bought a pound of cooked kidney beans for 1 kuai this morning!
Here is a list of all the vegetables I can think of that are available at the market:
Leafy greens, spinach, water spinach, eggplant, onions, tomatoes, green onions, garlic shoots, bean sprouts, potatoes, peas, soybeans, corn, carrots, celery, bamboo shoots, cauliflower, broccoli, cucumber, peppers, squash, and a bunch of native vegetables that I don't know what they are.
Fruits include apples, bananas, oranges (which are green), pomegranates, pummelos, grapefruit, grapes, and kiwi.
When I have purchased all that I want to I head to the bus stop and take the bus back to the university.
The other option is to go to the morning market which is close to the school. It's a smaller version of the outdoor market and is set about 1/2 mile from campus. Most of the people who run the restaurants on campus buy their vegetables and meat there. The only thing is that it is gone by 10am. So when I don't have early classes I try to walk to that market. I'd much rather walk 1/2 mile than take the bus for a half an hour.
There are no carts at the grocery store - only baskets. It's a good thing, because if there were carts I'd buy way too much stuff!
Anyway, I do all my shopping in two legs. The first leg is at the grocery store. The closest thing to it in America is Walmart: it has household items and non-perishable food items. There is a very small produce section, and I think you can also buy meat there.
The name of our grocery store is Wong Ke Long. I think it is a brand name like "Walmart" or "Wegmans", not a generic name for "grocery store". It's funny, one of the American teachers here who has lived in China for eight years and is fluent in Chinese calls it the "Wonka", for short. "Wong Ke" usually comes out "wonka". So we call it the wonka long!
We take the bus into town and walk three blocks to the wonka. I sometimes buy bleach or shampoo from the second floor. Then we go downstairs and buy non-perishable food. For some of the other teachers this means cookies and crackers. For me it usually means oatmeal, canola oil, brown sugar, or rice. I generally spend about 30 kuai (kuai = reminbi = yuan; it's the unit of money here, and there are 8 kuai in 1 dollar).
Then I put my purchases into my backpack and walk three blocks back to the bus stop for the second leg. I overshoot the bus stop by maybe 10 feet and arrive at the outdoor market. It is essentially a wide alley that has fruit, vegetable and meat vendors on both sides for 1/4 to 1/2 mile. We generally only shop in the first half since the second half just repeats.
Some vendors just sell what is in season. Peas are out of season, but squash is in season.
My pattern is to walk up to a vendor, point to something and ask "duoshao qian yi jin", which means "how much does this cost for one pound". (A jin is half a kilogram, which is 1.1 pound). If the price is too high I say "tai gui le" which means "that's too expensive!" and move on. If the price is reasonable I say "hao" ("good") and put as many as I want into a bag. Then they weigh the bag and I pay for my vegetables.
Some things are very reasonable: potatoes cost .8 kuai a pound, carrots and celery are generally 1.5 kuai a pound. Soybeans and tomatoes can be 4 kuai a pound, and peas (which are out of season) are upwards of 7 kuai a pound.
You can also buy meat at this market. There is one vendor which carries frozen chicken breasts (YAY!), or you can buy a whole chicken (whole as in head, feet, everyhing!). Most of the chickens in the market are alive. You can watch them pluck the chickens - I usually avoid that part of the market!! When I bought my [first] whole chicken yesterday I said "bu yao" (I don't want) and pointed to the head and the feet. They looked at me like I was crazy and I said (in English - good call, Liz) "I don't want the head or the feet". I was pointing to my own head and feet. Somehow, they understood me!
There is very little beef in this part of China. So we eat chicken and pork. Pretty much anywhere we use beef in the States, we use pork in China. The pork process is the same - "how much does it cost?", "I want one pound". They have machines right there (the market is outside!) that will grind your chosen cut of meat. Sometimes I buy ground pork, sometimes I buy it whole. They will also sell you pork fat, which you can render to make lard (I have successfully avoided that, so far!).
Oh, you can buy fish (which are alive) there. They sell it to you alive and you kill it, etc. at home. I am not nearly brave enough to do that!
Also at the market you can get good prices on spices (which you buy whole and are freshly ground for you), grains (I buy flour and cornmeal from one nice lady), and beans. You can even buy freshly cooked beans, which is very convenient. In fact, I bought a pound of cooked kidney beans for 1 kuai this morning!
Here is a list of all the vegetables I can think of that are available at the market:
Leafy greens, spinach, water spinach, eggplant, onions, tomatoes, green onions, garlic shoots, bean sprouts, potatoes, peas, soybeans, corn, carrots, celery, bamboo shoots, cauliflower, broccoli, cucumber, peppers, squash, and a bunch of native vegetables that I don't know what they are.
Fruits include apples, bananas, oranges (which are green), pomegranates, pummelos, grapefruit, grapes, and kiwi.
When I have purchased all that I want to I head to the bus stop and take the bus back to the university.
The other option is to go to the morning market which is close to the school. It's a smaller version of the outdoor market and is set about 1/2 mile from campus. Most of the people who run the restaurants on campus buy their vegetables and meat there. The only thing is that it is gone by 10am. So when I don't have early classes I try to walk to that market. I'd much rather walk 1/2 mile than take the bus for a half an hour.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Chicken take two
Well, the chicken was a success.
Much like Chinese people, Chinese chickens have very little meat on their bones. In fact, laying on its back, this chicken was taller than it was wide. I couldn't even fit it in the (toaster) oven. So I had to lay it on its side. Crazy, eh?
The roasted chicken was delicious! I also made mashed potatoes and sauteed baby spinach. I even made gravy (which will not be a surprise to my family). It was so yummy.
After dinner I picked all the meat off the bones. I'll use it in quesadillas or chicken salad or something.
And then I boiled the bones with some onions, garlic, celery and carrots for chicken stock. It made my house smell so wonderful! I strained out the solids. I froze 4 cups in 1/2 c. portions for future use.
Iam currently making chicken noodle soup out of the rest. I added penne, carrots, some shredded chicken (from last night) and oregano. It is the best chicken noodle soup I've ever had!
Mmmmmmmmm.
So, the answer is "yes". The chicken was a success!
Much like Chinese people, Chinese chickens have very little meat on their bones. In fact, laying on its back, this chicken was taller than it was wide. I couldn't even fit it in the (toaster) oven. So I had to lay it on its side. Crazy, eh?
The roasted chicken was delicious! I also made mashed potatoes and sauteed baby spinach. I even made gravy (which will not be a surprise to my family). It was so yummy.
After dinner I picked all the meat off the bones. I'll use it in quesadillas or chicken salad or something.
And then I boiled the bones with some onions, garlic, celery and carrots for chicken stock. It made my house smell so wonderful! I strained out the solids. I froze 4 cups in 1/2 c. portions for future use.
Iam currently making chicken noodle soup out of the rest. I added penne, carrots, some shredded chicken (from last night) and oregano. It is the best chicken noodle soup I've ever had!
Mmmmmmmmm.
So, the answer is "yes". The chicken was a success!
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Chicken!
So, I just bought a chicken.
Yesterday sometime, I was thinking about how much I love a good, roasted chicken. You know, you put onions in the cavity and the skin gets crispy. You can even make gravy!
Well, the only chicken I had was in the form of boneless/skinless, so I decided to brave the fresh meat market.
Sara came with me, as we also did some general grocery shopping. I told her that I was planning on buying a whole chicken. She looked at me with disbelief, but accompanied me, nevertheless.
Most of the chickens at the market are still alive. As I've never purchased a whole chicken before, I was unsure as to whether you chose your favorite live chicken and they cleaned it for you, or what.
But luckily there were two and a half whole, dead, plucked chickens laying on a board. I walked to the people and said "bu yao" (I don't want) and pointed to the head and the feet. They looked at me like I was crazy and I said (in English - good call, Liz) "I don't want the head or the feet". I was pointing to my own head and feet.
Somehow, they understood me. The guy picked up the chicken and put his knife on the neck. I nodded my head, and Sara and I both closed our eyes (I don't want to see a chicken decapitated!). He also cut the feet off for me. I said to Sara, "hey, it looks like a chicken!".
They weighed it and I paid 13 kuai and got myself a chicken!
I'm about to go put it in the oven. I'll let you know if it's as delicious as I had hoped!
Yesterday sometime, I was thinking about how much I love a good, roasted chicken. You know, you put onions in the cavity and the skin gets crispy. You can even make gravy!
Well, the only chicken I had was in the form of boneless/skinless, so I decided to brave the fresh meat market.
Sara came with me, as we also did some general grocery shopping. I told her that I was planning on buying a whole chicken. She looked at me with disbelief, but accompanied me, nevertheless.
Most of the chickens at the market are still alive. As I've never purchased a whole chicken before, I was unsure as to whether you chose your favorite live chicken and they cleaned it for you, or what.
But luckily there were two and a half whole, dead, plucked chickens laying on a board. I walked to the people and said "bu yao" (I don't want) and pointed to the head and the feet. They looked at me like I was crazy and I said (in English - good call, Liz) "I don't want the head or the feet". I was pointing to my own head and feet.
Somehow, they understood me. The guy picked up the chicken and put his knife on the neck. I nodded my head, and Sara and I both closed our eyes (I don't want to see a chicken decapitated!). He also cut the feet off for me. I said to Sara, "hey, it looks like a chicken!".
They weighed it and I paid 13 kuai and got myself a chicken!
I'm about to go put it in the oven. I'll let you know if it's as delicious as I had hoped!
Friday, October 06, 2006
National Day
Well, it's the National Day holiday here in China.
*Guoqingjie, or National Day, marks the founding of the People's Republic of China by Mao Zedong on October 1, 1949.* (from answers.com)
There are no classes this week. In America that means that you get two weekends, plus one week off (total of 9 days). Well, only three of the five school days are excused holiday days, so we have to make up the other classes during the weekends. So we had Thursday classes last Saturday, and Friday classes this Sunday. So the total days off is only 7 (Sunday to Saturday).
I was so looking forward to a week of doing nothing. My wish was not granted :)
Sunday we went out with Joni (another American living in Anshun) because it was her birthday. We met her at 12 for lunch, then facials, then head massages, plus a lot of walking around and window shopping. Finally we went to her apartment for dinner and birthday cake.
Monday a student of mine taught me to cook. It was informative, but a lot of work. She arrived at 10am and we didn't finish lunch until 3pm. Phew!
Tuesday we met up with Joni again to check out more of Anshun. We visited the fabric market, went shoe shopping and had lunch. In the afternoon Sara and I attended one of the classes that Joni gave at the English Salon on teaching methods.
Wednesday I met Sara at 7am and we caught a bus to Guiyang. We were there by 9am. Rickey (another student) was visiting her grandma in Guiyang and hosted us for the day. It was a long, full day of shopping, eating snacks and walking around. We got back to Anshun around 8 and to our apartments by 8:45 or so.
SO... Thursday I did NOTHING! I didn't even get dressed! Actually, I rearranged my living room, did dishes, and did my laundry. But still.
I'll post soon about learning to cook. I just thought I would catch you up on my little life here in Anshun.
*Guoqingjie, or National Day, marks the founding of the People's Republic of China by Mao Zedong on October 1, 1949.* (from answers.com)
There are no classes this week. In America that means that you get two weekends, plus one week off (total of 9 days). Well, only three of the five school days are excused holiday days, so we have to make up the other classes during the weekends. So we had Thursday classes last Saturday, and Friday classes this Sunday. So the total days off is only 7 (Sunday to Saturday).
I was so looking forward to a week of doing nothing. My wish was not granted :)
Sunday we went out with Joni (another American living in Anshun) because it was her birthday. We met her at 12 for lunch, then facials, then head massages, plus a lot of walking around and window shopping. Finally we went to her apartment for dinner and birthday cake.
Monday a student of mine taught me to cook. It was informative, but a lot of work. She arrived at 10am and we didn't finish lunch until 3pm. Phew!
Tuesday we met up with Joni again to check out more of Anshun. We visited the fabric market, went shoe shopping and had lunch. In the afternoon Sara and I attended one of the classes that Joni gave at the English Salon on teaching methods.
Wednesday I met Sara at 7am and we caught a bus to Guiyang. We were there by 9am. Rickey (another student) was visiting her grandma in Guiyang and hosted us for the day. It was a long, full day of shopping, eating snacks and walking around. We got back to Anshun around 8 and to our apartments by 8:45 or so.
SO... Thursday I did NOTHING! I didn't even get dressed! Actually, I rearranged my living room, did dishes, and did my laundry. But still.
I'll post soon about learning to cook. I just thought I would catch you up on my little life here in Anshun.
Sunday, October 01, 2006
Part-ay
In the past week I've been to three parties (part-ays).
The first one was last Friday (September 22nd). It was at my apartment. I invited two of my classes and 11 people came (a pretty good number). The theme was Mexican Fiesta! We had chips & salsa, chili and chicken quesadillas. Yum! It was so fun to have people in my apartment. I really made some good friends!
The second party was Tuesday Sept 26. It was a mid-autumn festival party thrown by one of
the sophomore classes. Mid-autumn festival goes by the lunar calendar. This year it is happening right around now. It celebrates the moon - so people eat things that are round - apples, pomolos, and moon cakes (which I don't like - yuck!). The party was in their classroom and mostly consisted of karaoke performances and sunflower seeds (a favorite snack of the Chinese). The third party was held at the Gateway English Salon in Anshun. The English Salon is run by
an American woman who lives in Anshun. It's a place for students to borrow English books and movies, and learn more about teaching English (since this is a teacher's college). The party was for all new freshman. Sara, Kris and I gave out invitations in our freshman classes and accompanied the students to the Salon. They got to eat American food (peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and chocolate cupcakes) and learn about the Salon. It was a lot of fun! But I'm all party-ed out! Thankfully this week is a vacation in China. It's "National Day" and there is no school this week! I'm going to stay here and recover from my first month of teaching! Sara and I may go to Guiyang to visit a student who will be staying with family there. But we're not sure yet. I have no plans, and that makes me so happy! :)
I'll write more later!
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