Teaching curses

I'm not sure if these exist but right now it seems like one might be hanging over my head, similar to the dark cloud that enjoyed following Eeyore around in his (mis)adventures with Winnie and the gang.

In the past two weeks, I've had the following events take place in my PE classes:
- a kid pass out due to hypoglycemia and low blood sugar after our class run
- a student sprained his wrist and hit the deck while playing ultimate frisbee after slipping on the wet basketball court
- a kid get smashed in the face with a soccer ball (no blood, thankfully, but a pretty crooked pair of glasses went flying)
- a second kid with something akin to hypoglycemia more or less pass out and vomit because of low blood sugar (and possibly mild heat stroke)

-  I did a movie-style slip and fall while attempting to run to the kid who sprained his wrist... I'm talking a one foot slip, both legs in the air, flat on my back, head slamming into the hardtop, and mild whiplash the next day

I'm starting to wonder if there's enough injury forms to satisfy my need for being a PE teacher.

Luckily I'm clumsy and I've had enough injuries in my time to have an idea of what to do. The first holiday is only 3 work days from now, and it can't come soon enough.

T

From the deck of my apartment

Lately the days have been stunning and the nights have followed suit.

As the darkness chases away the daylight...



T

Cool photo project

This country is one of quiet contradiction. In the name of "harmony", people continually bypass their regular/constant impulse to speak their mind, share their worries, and express their inner anxieties or their inner dreams. They don't want to ruffle feathers, or in the most extreme cases they fear prison or legal incrimination. There is an endless amount of rote regurgitation of party line and nationalistic nonsense living on the lips of Chinese people and the true thoughts of many Chinese are never known but to their closest friends/family members. As I enter my third year here, I see the same surface of the students I teach, all following the jargon-based platform that has been placed inside their head since the moment they began speaking. It's rare that we get real, honest insight into what they muse/worry/fret/dream about. Although not impossible, such moments are fleeting. But they're worth chasing.

A co-worker of mine came across a fantastic photo-based e-project that allows a small (and likewise honest) peek at what people around China really think about life and the world without worry of judgment or incrimination. I've always believed that we're at our most... real in private, safe moments and places. And I think this sort of project provides just that sort of environment. These people were given a piece of paper and encouraged to write whatever they want/feel on it. Then they had their photos taken. The website is simply a collection of photos and mini-bios of people from across the excessively vast landscape while inhabits 1.4 billion people.

Spend some time here.

iSpeak China

T

I'm the worst pet-sitter ever.

You may ask me, after hearing this story, "How can you POSSIBLY LOSE two out of three cats in TWO DAYS?!?!?". Well, my friends. It's not probable. But it is possible. And it was true.

I arrived at A&S's place tonight to feed their cats and clean the litter boxes. S's mom is seriously sick and they are together in Harbin (northern China, home of the Ice Festival I attended the past two years), and A went up to stay with them for an extended weekend. I, being the excellent friend that I am, told them it was no problem to take care of the three rascals while he was away. No worries. De nada.

Day 1 found no issues (other than the terribly involved feeding process for their little cat Arza... spelled Erzi in pinyin Chinese) and I thought to myself, "Hey, there's nothing to this do-gooder thing."

Day 2 was even easier... the cats seemed to be friendlier and more curious and I got the routine for feeding Erzi down to a smooth process. I aired out the place a bit, opening up the windows, cleaned the litter boxes, refilled bowls and all was well.

Day 3 was strange. I walked in with my friend TL who loves cats and wanted some cuddle time. Looking at the state of bowls in the living room, I was struck by something... their food dishes were full. As were the water dishes.

Now, I know cats are finicky. And I knew that the little cat Erzi only ate wet food provided by me upon arrival. TL thought it odd, but also mentioned the fact that cats can be moody and cantankerous and it shouldn't be something to worry about.

But the strangeness kept on going. The past two nights, the other cats (Mia and Peter) had checked me out with some serious curiosity and uncertainty while I was feeding Erzi in the kitchen. Tonight... no visit. No appearance. Nothing.

Well, it turns out that A&S's cats are super athletic and were able to jump, climb through the 3 inch gap in the skylight and out onto the roof. 2 cats gone. Out of 3. That's a 33% success rate. And an epic fail. But how was I supposed to know?

After some serious searching, a bit of finding, and a whole lot of coaxing (which turned into me literally reaching my hand into a dark hole and pulling out this scared-witless cat), we were back to a passing grade of 67%, or 2/3 cats. But really... are A&S gonna forgive the loss of one pet within 3 days of me housesitting? Uhhh... it's unlikely.

After numerous phone calls, tonnes of food-bag shaking, some beckoning from balconies and a whole lot of prayers, no 3rd cat was located. Not on the roof (it seems roofs for me are particularly important in China... Halloween last year I had another rooftop escapade), not on the patios, not in the neighbours apartments. Nothing. I couldn't find him. So, there's a bowl of food and water on the patio and a whole lot of wishing rising to the heavens tonight for Peter to safely return to A&S's place.

For now, it's time to attempt to sleep while dreaming about accidentally killing my friends' animals while they are on vacay. Worst. Petsitter. Ever.

T

Whirlwind returns

After another adventure-filled summer, I'm left weary-legged and saggy-eyed as I boarded my flight from Victoria to Vancouver to Tokyo to Dalian. I've been back almost two weeks and this passage of time has zipped by with a serious amount of urgency. I attempt to ask, "Why the hurry?", but Time has no regard for such nonsensical questions. The weekends are now full of errands and recovering from too much excitement, and the weekdays are filled with the furious race to be ready for the hooligans waiting for us (im)patiently in classrooms. New faces appear every day and just when the moment arrives when I've come to learn the names of many/most of my students, classes change or shuffle or shift so that I'm left reeling. PE facilities are constantly being rearranged to accommodate a variety of challenges and ongoing requests. And, being the social creature I am, I feel compelled to sign up for everything being offered up by my ambitious co-workers.

In all the continual hubbub, I can't seem to focus long enough on a story in my head to tease out anything of interest. But I was able to finish posting my summer pictures (all the ones I can manage to put up), and enough time to read the blog of a friend from last year who moved on to the brighter pastures in Pakistan to teach. N&J are now in Lahore, Pakistan working at another international school. And after being sent the link, I realized that N wasn't kidding about J's talent for writing. So, in the spirit of passing the buck, GO HERE to read about N&J's adventures in the South Asian lands of Pakistan. The link is a fantastic story which makes me believe that some profound experiences are only found when immersing one's self in a new place and new culture. Check out the rest of her blog when you have time.

In the meantime for me, I'm signing off. Enjoy the pics, enjoy J's story, and I'll write more in coming days... particularly about small linguistic triumphs and my moments of love for this place called China. Until then...

T

Entry 48

In pursuit of Hermes in the mountains, though Olympus lies far beyond these borders.

Entry 47

Remnants from time and fires gone by.

Entry 46

Getting ready to sign off from the mountains.

Entry 45

Time on the lake.

Entry 44

Shots of colour in the forest.

Entry 43

Mountain recreation.

Entry 42

Chasing storms across the prairies.

Entry 41

Paddles and pelicans.

Entry 40

From fairways to farmland. From Montana to the Alberta prairie.

Entry 39

Sometimes I feel like a propaganda poster for coffee.

Entry 38

Landscapes passing by.

Entry 37

Slow shutter speeds and quick steps.

Entry 36

Sorry for the hiatus, everyone. I'll post a few more pics on here to round out my favourites, and then will get back to posting stories about the summer and about being back. I'm officially back to the distant eastern lands of NE China for another year of weird experiences, crazy food, and far too much fun. And some work will be thrown in there as well. For now, here are a couple of pics from Blue Lake at the Blue Lake Centre north of Jasper, Alberta.