Hey everybody. Today was another busy day.

I had my second of two sections of graduate students for, you guessed it, Oral English. The last two mornings have been a little bit stressful, as I've had to basically turn away the 15 or so extra students that want to "audit" my class, on top of the 40 per section that I already have. Know a few things first about these students: they are all older than I, and most have pretty impressive credentials behind them already--doctors, dentists, anesthetists. Also, most of the would-be auditors (almost all men) have even lower English levels than the low-level students registered for the class. I honestly think they just want to sit and watch me. Anyhow, after giving a little speech introducing myself as a volunteer teacher who was there to help serve the community, I did feel a bit guilty turning them away, plus they were trying their damndest to boss little old me around. Now, however, my resolve has thickened (is that the right metaphor?) and I've firmly decided that I can't have a large floating group of auditors in each class. They would only make me less effective for the actual students of the class. Besides, they can come to English corner, or take my class next term...or the next term, or the term after that. I'll be here awhile.

Mid-morning I met my friend and favorite Chinese colleague, Xiang Bing, to go to the city. Xiang Bing is a fellow English teacher and part-time department secretary. Kind and down-to-earth, I can identify with her in a way that I really haven't been able to yet with other Chinese I've known. She is a little older than me, but from her petite build and open face, you probably wouldn't be able to tell. In addition to all this, she will likely be my first Chinese tutor. Anyhow, we trekked downtown in search of speakers for my computer. Two years of music on my rinky-dink laptop speakers wasn't too appealing, and hey, I have to spend my settling-in allowance on something... Now, after a little savvy jiang-jia-ing (that means bargaining in English) I am the proud owner of two desktop speakers AND a sub-woofer, all for the low low price of about $11 USD. Makes me pretty happy.

After class with my two sections of sophomore English majors, who are quickly endearing themselves to my heart, I hopped a ride back to my campus with the director of the foreign affairs office (my Waiban). She told me she is still investigating apartments for me, and that she has found a great place. It is big, very nice, furnished, expensive...and available in January. She laughed as she relayed this last bit, I kind of choked. So the latest plan sounds like a little like this: she and her family are moving into a new apartment, which is still being completed. It may or may not be completed sometime around October. Then, after she moves, I'll move into her old place, until the "very nice" apartment is vacated sometime in January. I guess I spoke too soon when I celebrated the end of my transient lifestyle.

In other news, I taught a lesson on family today. In the course of the lesson I showed the students my family photo. It was taken at Annie & Brandon's wedding in May. My brothers, you'll be interested to know that it was a horserace to tell which one of you the girls thought was the most handsome. I showed them a picture of Greta, and the first comment I heard one girl say was, "She has a big nose!" Don't worry, though--this is a compliment for the Chinese; Westerners are frequently toasted for their big noses. They were all very excited to see photos of my family, and amazed in a very touching way at its size. The one-child policy has left a lot of Chinese youth longing for siblings, and to see the horde of our family made some of them feel wistful, I think.

NOTE: I haven't taken many photos since my arrival in Luzhou, but I've recently been reunited with my camera USB cord/transfer thing, and so have uploaded my photos from PC swearing in. Check back a few posts to see some pictures of my comrades and I all cleaned-up and pretty for the big ceremony. Photos of Luzhou Medical College are soon to follow...