A Different Memorial Day - The Start of Week 3 (May 28th)

While everyone else is having cookouts and such, I’m teaching. I’m not complaining although it may sound like I am. Today was exam #1 day for me. I told students that they could leave after they finished their test because well, I didn’t want to start anything new. Test day meant that I finally saw some students who I didn’t know. Last week I spent a lot of time trying to learn their names and I probably have about 70% of them down. It’s hard when they all have the same color hair and look similar!

Here’s how the Chinese take tests. They “help” each other, or in our terms, they cheat! Even though there were two versions of the test, they still felt the need to help their friends. I’ve only graded half the tests at this point, but I feel like some of them need a better friend! ;) Ha ha – that should teach them. I did have one perfect score so far and that didn’t include her bonus points from being on the winning Jeopardy team. Angelina, who is more beautiful than Angelina Jolie, was the first 105% exam I’ve graded.

We went to the “noodle place” for dinner. Before we went into the noodle place, we stopped at a fruit store. Erin has been looking for pineapple guy outside the apartment for a week and thought maybe she could get some at this store where they would cut it for her – we don’t have knives to cut it ourselves. Instead, we opted for the quarter of a watermelon. We wanted it cut in half so we could split it, so here comes the charades again. Erin used her hand as if it was a meat cleaver and the woman understood. Not only did she slice the watermelon in half, she cut it into slices. How nice!

Excited about our sliced watermelon, we walk down the street to see a light tan poodle with a pink tail just running down the street and a guy selling sneakers out of the back of his bright yellow car. We arrive at the “noodle place” and the lady who greets us smiled and knew what we wanted to eat. We are regulars there. Good thing I like that food – rice, chicken, cucumbers, peanuts, carrots, and something else in there like lettuce. Again, some of it came home with me to enjoy later.

Once I get back to the apartment, I skype with mom, sis, and Aunt April. What a busy Skype night for me! I only have one more lesson to finish for this week before I can start preparing stuff for “practice week” which I refer to as something else. I’m sure you can guess what I’m calling that week of craziness! Fifteen activities with rubrics and I’m supposed to have the first eight done by Wednesday. HA! I’m not guaranteeing anything!

I guess instead of writing this, I best get to grading tests, preparing a lesson on cash flow statements and financial ratios and calculations, and preparing practice week activities and rubrics. Don’t be jealous of all the fun I’m having in China! ;)

Happy Memorial Day! Thanks to all our service men and women who stay away from home in some crazy conditions in some remote lands. I know I could never do it and I’m so grateful that they do (or did)!