Smoochy

So for privacy reasons I'm not really supposed to post pictures of my students or probably talk about them online much... which is too bad because I've honestly had so many funny moments that I would have liked to share that are quickly forgotten because they are just far too innumerable. Haha. But I can't stand it anymore. I'm breaking down and putting something up tonight.... Just a little thing, but too cute really... If only I'd had a video camera...

One of my littlest guys, barely over 2 — but obsessed with music and dancing — was at the toilet yesterday directly next to the long mirror that stretches over the little trough sink where they all wash their hands. His little bum is exposed and I glanced over to check that he was doing ok while all the other kids rushed past to dry their hands on the paper towel. Blinking with some surprise I saw that he was pursing his lips at himself in the mirror. At first it was just a little smooch, almost like an exaggerated pout, but it quickly grew more outrageous. I couldn't help but laugh. I mean he seemed like he was flirting with himself in the mirror — all the while at the urinal with his little buck-naked butt showing — and it was like he KNEW how cute he was because instead of sparing me a glance he got even more ridiculous: pursing his lips, smooching, and then poking one cheek with a finger and tilting his head to the side....

Oh for a camera.... Haha. I have moments like that with him a lot, though — like the time he started doing the exercise time choreo to Chris Brown Yeah 3x all by himself! In front of the whole class...our little dancing machine...

Last week one of my favorite little guys was gone all week because he was sick, but yesterday he was back and the first thing he did when he saw me walking past the classroom he was waiting in was to let out a loud, "Teacher Alyce!!!!!!!" as he came flying out of the room to throw his arms around my legs in a big hug....

It's the moments like that when they catch me off guard that they manage to chip away at my reserve and germ-phobias and take little chunks of my heart, bit-by-reluctant-bit. Little charmers — puke and drool and snot and all — still manage to steal your affection somehow. I let them hug me the other day at the beginning of class, cause I thought about how I will miss them later — because there's no denying I will — and the way some of them launched themselves at me with face-splitting grins was heart-warming and heart-wrenching at the same time.. It'd be easier in some ways if they hadn't managed to worm their way into my heart, steal my affection, and make me swell with pride whenever they do something good. They are a great bunch of kids. I really hope whoever gets them down the road will appreciate that...I'm really glad I got to meet them, even when they make me frustrated and make me want to bang my head against the wall, it's still been so great to spend time with them... I know they'll forget me, but I don't think I'll ever forget any of them....

Rat Race.....Literally....

So... Yesterday was Friday the 13th and it definitely ended up being a bit of a Freaky Friday...

I was walking to work at about 3:15 in the afternoon — broad daylight — plugged into my ipod enjoying Digital Daggers when I started to cross a busy intersection less than a block from work. It's on a main road of downtown with a large McDonalds on one corner and a weird KTV place on the other with a silhouette style neon light sign of a woman in a martini glass. Nothing dingy, or "dark, back alley" about the area.

And I'd just like to reiterate it was broad daylight.

I'm almost halfway across the four lane intersection walking on the white pedestrian stripes of the walkway when I start to notice some high-pitched female voices and sounds of surprise behind me so I glance back. There are two women huddling close to each other kind of giggling nervously and looking at something on the ground right behind me and I realize that other people walking behind me are also looking so I glance down and my brain comes to a stuttering halt.

There, less than two feet behind me is a big, fat rat.

Bouncing like Pepe Le Pew. Right behind me. Like a dog chasing my heels, just rapidly hopping along the ped-walk with everyone else. Except everybody else was BEHIND him, where as I was IN FRONT of him and being FOLLOWED. And he wasn't skittering like they do in the movies, no he was HOPPING; full out HOPPING.

And at first, as my brain ceased to function I honestly couldn't believe what I was seeing. Then I realized that it was real; there really was a rat bounding after me across the ped-walk and it just kept COMING. The next thought that crossed my brain was: I'm wearing flip-flops — what if it got really close and something scared it and it decided to bite me? Probably not a likely thing, the rat biting me, but I couldn't help but think about it. So I decided, "Ok Alyce, don't freak out, just walk a little faster so you can put some more space between yourself and Mr. Rat."

Giggling awkwardly and making eye contact with my fellow road-crossers — who were also giggling awkwardly — I start walking more briskly.

But then, so does Mr. Rat. His hopping speeds up and then I can't help it, I start jogging across the intersection and he speeds up to keep chasing my heels. Finally when I'm thinking I am definitely going to start getting really creeped out if he keeps coming after me, he veers off and heads for the curb that we've nearly reached. Everyone giggles and points and we all share looks of "Oh, thank goodness! He's gone!"

"Join me for a dance, darling?"

I don't think anyone was as relieved as I was, though. But pretty quickly the hilarity of the whole situation hit me and I let out a barking laugh which quickly turned into a bubbling onslaught of laughter that I couldn't stop — it probably made me look completely mad to other passerby that had no idea what had just happened.

I never would have thought I'd be chased/followed across the street by a Pepe Le Pew wanna-be rat in the middle of the day in the downtown of a city though. I figure there are two ways to look at it: either be horrified and disgusted OR find the humor in the situation. So humor it is! But it was still freaky, and you can't convince me otherwise! Haha.

Your Not in Kansas Anymore Dorothy....

So I had a moment of, "Oh, right...I'm in a foreign country," yesterday in my junior high students' class (a.k.a. Tree House 6).

We were checking the spelling on the vocab quiz and since one of the words was poisonous I thought, 'Oh, ok, let's do a fun extracurricular reading exercise.' So I picked up the book of Guinness Records and flipped through to find "World's Most Poisonous Snake" (which is apparently the Black Mamba of Africa...capable of killing 200 people with the venom from one bite...yikes). So I read the description to the class and we talked about it and I thought that would be it, but nooooooooo, because once I said it was a member of the cobra family —

Student 1: What's a cobra?

So I drew it on the board and the whole class went, "Ooooooh." And I thought ok, they get it, they've probably seen shows on TV about cobras and stuff... cuz growing up cobras were about as out-there as anacondas — not exactly something I ever had to worry about bumping into. They were in the cool story Ricki Ticki Tavi and the Jungle Book and stuff — not in my part of the world. They might as well have been dragons for all the reality they held. So I'm thinking that their comprehending, "Ooooh"s are simply due to book knowledge.


And then one of them pipes up, "Teacher, Teacher, one time when I was little I was at my grandpa's house and I found a baby cobra and I pointed at it and said, 'Grandpa, look!' and then he stomped on it. So I jumped on it, too."

Me: *blinking owlishly*

Student 1: Ya, teacher, one time I found one at my friend's house...

Student 2: One time there was a little one at my elementary school and I picked it up and threw it out even though everybody else was really scared.

This students' English is superb, but I had a moment of hopeful denial and said, "You don't mean a cobra, do you? Like a real cobra?"

Cuz cobras are like dragons... haha

Student 2: Yes, a real cobra.

Me: But that's so dangerous. Of course everyone was scared!

Student 2: No, it was so easy!

Me: Ooooooook....

Honestly, I questioned his intelligence at that moment. Haha. But yes, so apparently I live in a country where you can find cobras at your elementary school and your grandpa's. No rattlesnakes or copperheads here...

So ya, apparently my kids have had real-life experience with them.... Yuuuuuuuck... hahaha and don't get me started on the spiders... It's bad when you live somewhere where you know there are a LOT of poisonous spiders but you have no knowledge about any of them so every time you see a spider you sit there wondering whether it's harmless or not. Fun times!

For the curious folks out there, here's a massive site on the snakes of Taiwan - you've been warned. Hehe. http://www.snakesoftaiwan.com/Start_Page_EN.htm

Nice song: Aaranne aaranne from Malayalam film Urumi :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAsVNuWZUjk


above is the link for the song and here are the lyrics :) loooooooong words ahaha



aarppo..irro..irro..
aaranne aaranne othupidikkunnatharaanne
theeyaadan thirayaadan
maanikya kaaviluranjaadan
onaann onaann ethu pidikanath onaann..
neraanne neraanne koottinu vannathavanaanne..
mannaann mannaann ponnu vilayana mannaann
poyorum vannorum chora kudichoru mannaann
kathirellaam kettanu kettanu
pathirellaam paattanu paattanu
niraprayara nirayatte thanthira thonthaaro..
kathirellaam kettanu kettanu
pathirellaam paattanu paattanu
niraprayara nirayatte thanthira thonthaaro..
(aaranne aaranne )
thanthathe thei thei thithithe thei thei..
eehey....ey..ehei..
chempakai raanimala niranirayaale
thakiladi chendayum poomkurumkuzhalum thalamayallo
valakilukki thalakilukki kiliyattille
njangal kanaka kathir mani neettan kaval ninnille..
kumeera kumeera kudi kottina
thakida thakida thaka thithana
thara thara thara tharayilakki thalayilakki mudiyatti..
uyirin uyire pado nammalonnalle..

kathirellaam kettanu kettanu
pathirellaam paattanu paattanu
niraprayara nirayatte thanthira thonthaaro.. (2)
(aaranne aaranne )
othupidiche eilesa ethupidiche eilesa..
neeti valiche eilesa vari valiche

ponnaaryan padathum ulsavamelam
nammalu thudikotti adivach thalamittille
thattuduthu njuriyittu kuriyittore
onnu vattamittu kaikotti poopoli paadam
kumeera kumeera kudi kottina
thakida thakida thaka thithana
theluth theluth vilavilakki
para para para parakottana
uyirin uyire pado nammalonnalle..

kathirellaam kettanu kettanu
pathirellaam paattanu paattanu
niraprayara nirayatte thanthira thonthaaro.. (2)
(aaranne aaranne )

video blog - cuz i'm feelin' laaaaaaazy

also a few pictures from the past couple weeks:

 purple lotus that I bought at the street market in Longtan

Annebel at the beach on Sunday April 3rd, 2011

Temple near Zhong Li that I love

Bronze incense holder on the second level of the temple...

Mossy tree in the park near my apartment

Do the Creep! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah~

So after months of being lazy — due to lack of energy as an excuse (albeit a fairly feeble one once i got over being chronically sick) — I stopped riding my scooter to work in Zhongli and now only use to go to Longtan in the mornings. I'm within easy walking distance of my branch in Zhongli — about 10-15 minutes depending on the rate at which you move your legs — and really, a person can only handle so many near-death experiences on their scooter a day before they realize that maybe, just maybe, they should consider walking when they can to lower the statistic likelihood that they are going to get into an accident.... even typing this now I can't help but cringe and can't keep myself from knocking on wood. I'll confess – I can be a bit suspicious. And honestly, riding a scooter in Taiwan has caused me to knock on wood with no small amount of trepidation...on innumerable occasions.  After all, it only took me two weeks on the scooter — driving CAUTIOUSLY I would like to point out — to get broadsided by a taxi and sent in a careening spin-out through a large intersection where I fortunately was lucky enough to walk away with a single scar in my arm...That was amusingly enough, shaped like Taiwan for a few months.

Anyway, so now I walk. Rain, shine, hot or cold: I walk. And I rather like it. I have several routes that I favor and I enjoy the time alone with music blasting my ears for the duration of the trip. By the time I get to work I feel settled and am ready (-ish) to start in on work. It's refreshing and often I spend the walk pondering or simply people watching. Yesterday I was over half-way to work — about two city blocks left — when glancing at people in a charming restaurant I regularly pass I started contemplating how it can be hard to meet people here. Outside of work or outside of parties — and let's be honest, the people you usually meet in a club, aren't exactly the kind of people that you're probably going to have important conversations with. It's usually things like, "Hey! Whoo! Yeah!" or "Wanna dance?" Sure, people here are friendly and warm and great — NO complaints there — but conversations you have usually don't go past very simple ones. For example, the people in Starbucks now know my name and always greet me cheerfully and we have nice little chats, but it never goes past that. Sure, the language gap adds an extra challenge, but honestly, it's the same back home. It's hard to make new acquaintances outside of certain circles or situations — you aren't likely to go to coffee with someone you just met on the street, right? So I was musing on that, just the general difficulty people have just walking up and starting conversations. The general reservations we have — whether from shyness or social norms, there's usually something that stops us from talking to the cute boy at the store and so we go about the day smile and stealing glances and maybe digging up the courage to say, "Hello."

Don't get me wrong, wasn't really complaining. Was merely...pondering. And thinking that it was even worse here, because of the language gap and the fact that my alien-ness might just add an extra level of intimidation that keeps people from saying what they might like to otherwise... I guess mostly I was thinking about inhibitions.

And then the universe decided to have a good laugh.

Because I'd walked half a block — after having these thoughts zip through my head for a grand total of about seven seconds — when I was stopped at the red light, enjoying the upbeat tunes of Emily Osment as I stared ahead, counting the numbers. And then I heard some noise and I realized that someone was talking to me. I glanced over and saw this guy, right at my shoulder, grinning. I turned down my music and stared at him as he said — in English — "Can you speak Chinese?"

And this, my friends, is where it is BEAUTIFUL to be an alien — cuz you can "turn it off" anytime you want. So I just stared at him, doe-in-headlights, and shook my head "no."

"You don't speak Chinese?"
*blank, startled stare*
*disappointed grin*
I stared resolutely ahead, waiting as the counter ticked towards green, and then set off like a shot, taking advantage of my not-so-short legs. Really, I mean, go figure, there I'd been thinking about how people were afraid to approach others and then — like 300 feet down the non-existent sidewalk — I get smacked in the face with one that doesn't seem to have said inhibitions. And I can't help but think "CREEPER." I thought that was it, I'd gotten past him and I thought I was safe.

Again, the universe got a good laugh at my expense.

At the next intersection I got caught at the red again, the branch tantalizingly close — just across the street — and a scooter "parking lot" lining my side of the street all the way up to the intersection. The light's getting ready to turn and I was shuffling from foot to foot and since I was looking straight ahead at the branch I didn't miss the black scooter that turned right in front of me. He cut the corner pretty close — not atypical, believe me (sadly, walking in Taiwan? About as dangerous as driving? Nothing is for the faint-of-heart. I almost got creamed by a scooter crossing the street last night and ended up with my heart in my mouth. A daily occurrence — it's kind of like a caffeine jolt. Har, har). The driver was right at eye level and since he crossed my line of sight I made eye contact as he slowed down and grinned suggestively and I realized with a revolting curl in my gut that it was THAT guy.

After I got over twitching and going, "Eeeeew" and the light turned green I couldn't help but laugh. And all I could think was, "Do the creep, aaaaaaaaaaah, do the creep, oooooooooooooh". Thank you Lonely Island, thank you! :P

I swear life is never lacking in the amusement department. <3

disclaimer: i found these pics on google search - they aren't mine and I don't claim them :) hehe

video link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLPZmPaHme0     for those brave souls out there haha

songs of the week:
Adele, Set Fire to the Rain: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlsBObg-1BQ&feature=BF&list=FLgogT7bAtGb0&index=21
Emily Osment: Lovesick (AWESOME video!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jauthmokKWk
Boy Who Murdered Love: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1wKCXbrK74&feature=my_favorites&list=FLgogT7bAtGb0
My Wicked Heart: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxR7ZlCs9k4&feature=relmfu
The Wolf: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Zsnw6yxH2o
Teenage Dream - Glee: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAW38wMdKr0&feature=BF&list=FLgogT7bAtGb0&index=10
Army of Love: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhgvWLs2rsM&feature=BF&list=FLgogT7bAtGb0&index=5
Backin' Up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjYSERaXEGI&feature=BF&list=FLgogT7bAtGb0&index=24

TIME WAAAAAAAAAAAARP! :D

Well, ahem, it's been a while... to say the least! *insert cheeky grin

It's been a whirlwind — truly. Some negative things of course, but it's been balanced out by an even greater number of wonderful things. It's the beginning of November so I've been in Zhongli for 3 full months. I am FINALLY over being chronically and severely ill and I find I have more and more energy every day — which is GOOD since I'm teaching little kids and have to have the energy to bounce around like a chicken with it's head cut off. But honestly, I'm really enjoying work these days. Not to say that there haven't been rough patches — had some cultural issues that caused some misunderstandings and discouragement, but with the encouragement of a good friend I have here I went and talked it out with the management and I feel even better at work than I have since I started. The people I work with are awesome, the friends that I have here are great and I'm feeling more and more at home every day.



***** AHAHAHAHAHA talk about a time waaarp geeminey-cripes... i drafted this in NOVEMBER planning on writing more and finishing it BEFORE i posted it but well, cest la vie  — har har. I'mma just post it with the glaring hilarity that points to my SAD ability to keep a post :P and just continue on

mwahahaha