Back in Black

My hands are dry and chalky. 

No, it’s not from the cold weather.

 It’s from the chalkboard, silly.  

We’re baaaaaaack! 

And “Team Fresh” is ready for action!

 

Some things you forget after not teaching for awhile:

-Chalk breaks. Easily.

-Hearing forty different answers to a question is really overwhelming.

-I am, perhaps, a little too overzealous with my chalk.

-Being an energetic teacher and having an energetic classroom works up a sweat!

-Chinese students will tell you exactly what they think of you, for better or for worse.

-Their smiles mean everything.

Dear South Korea...

For those of you who were unaware, the ladies of Team Harbin took a weekend excursion...to South Korea.

For those of you who were unaware, I was recently able to acquire a MacBook over here whilst in China. I didn't realize how artsy-fartsy these computers actually are and their programs allow my inner artsy-fartsyness to go berserk. Regardless, I thought I would take a new approach to "Blogging" and try something new this time around... "vlogging!" [video-blogging].

I hope you enjoy the glimpse of our weekend!

baby, baby, baby, OH!

Oh goodness, I feel like such a blogging-slacker…but it’s so not true!

Since arriving back to Harbin we’ve had some very exciting episodes of sitting around and talking. Usually every day we play some card games, and then we sit around and talk some more. As you can see, this leaves me with very little action-type things to tell you. It’s not like we’re mountain biking anymore (or ever again), or even like we can go outside and build a snowman…there’s no snow. We’ve explored some new restaurants in the area,  basically everyone has completed a “spring cleaning” in their apartment, and lots of cookies and goodness has been consumed by our bellies.

The general gist is that we have sat around and have had many good discussions. Good discussions build good community, and good community builds happy feelings inside.

What can I say? Valentines day came, and Valentines day went. Us girls celebrated with a little girl time. Laura {marie} Baker made dinner for us complete with Broccoli, Cheese & Rice casserole and homemade buns! (Love me some buns…) Whilst eating we thought it would be super girly to watch the documentary “Babies”. [in case you’ve never seen or heard about it, it’s a documentary that following four babies from Mongolia, Namibia, Japan, and the USA from birth until one year old. Super cute]. We were then joined by then men who joined us partway through the film, and who finished all our food (way to go boys).

Inspirational/ vulnerable thought for the day? After watching that documentary and being surrounded by kiddos and babies at our Annual Thailand Conference, I drew a conclusion about myself whilst dancing across Laura {marie} Baker’s apartment… I’m terrified of babies. I absolutely love kids, but babies are so fragile, soft, helpless, moldy (like, you can dent their heads. No, they don't grow mold). I’m terrified that I’m going to break it. At this point, Laura looked at me and with as much care, grace, and attitude as she could possibly fit into one sentence, she simply said:

“Kayla, you can’t break a baby.”

I feel like I can. Toddlers, young ones, those ones between 13-19 with attitude, I got all them under control…it’s just those babies. Also, completely random, but I highly recommend the movie Moneyball. We found it on the black market near by and watched it as a team. Seven thumbs up!

Betty Crocker: Hero of the Day

Laura's crazy table...where all the baking happens.

We have a few days of freedom. So far that has consisted of hanging out with each other all day, every day. A couple movies have been thrown in there as well as a couple games of Cribbage {card game}. It’s sweet and precious goodness that has been steadily growing as our team delves into knowing each other more and more. Today  we decided to add peanut butter cookies, no-bake cookies, and {Valentines!!} funfetti cupcakes to the goodness that’s already happening in our community. [thanks for the cake mix, mom].

 

It’s no secret that our team likes to bake, and by “baking” I really mean “making cookies”. Particularly us women. China doesn’t do sugar like America does. Ask any person who has spent some time in China: their cakes and pastry shops are terribly deceiving for the  taste buds of Americans. What appears a delicious delicacy on the outside is really a luscious croissant stuffed with pork filling. Great thing we have awesome supporters who send us dozens (and I mean dozens) of cookie mixes and cookie-making ingredients (as things such as vanilla and chocolate chips are nowhere to be found in China.)

I thought that today I’d show you a glimpse of our baking skills in action so you can see what lengths we go through to get these delicious cookies.

Our oven is a trooper, only able to handle 6-9 cookies at a time, it's served us well in our cookie making endeavors. For hours on end it has slaved away at warming and heating fresh cookie dough and aiding in the chemical processes that turn them into edible delights and [literally] "tastes of home".

We don't have a muffin tin, so cupcakes are made in a cassarole dish.

It takes teamwork to stir the chocolate for the no-bake cookies on the hot plate (where we are unable to control the temperature.)  Can't let it burn!

Pink Valentines Day frosting...yea, buddy!

Cupcakes, peanut butter cookies, and no-bakes. All in a days work ;)

Laura [marie] Baker stirring her homemade applesauce. So much cinnamon!

Everyone enjoying a cupcake...or two.

Celebrity

Airports, traveling, exposure to new things: all catalysts for writing new blog posts. My mind was going crazy on the plane rides, over spewing with ideas and things to say and a severe lacking of paper. That therefore leads to my spillage into a blog post and [just for fair warning] there are probably many more to come. I just wanted to jot down a few of the things that I had forgotten while I left the country for three weeks. Don’t worry, within the first 20 minutes of returning to my beloved China I was quick to remember (and realize) that…

-If you want to go anywhere, you have to push through a mob to get there.

-Directions don’t matter. People will still do what they want to do….even if that means unfastening their seatbelts and getting their luggage from the overhead bin two seconds after the plane lands.

-It’s super relaxing not being able to eavesdrop on anyone around you because you can’t understand their conversation.

-It’s a lot more comfortable to be around a familiar unknown language (such as Chinese) than an unknown, unfamiliar language (like…Thai).

-China is dirty. I mean, every country has their fair share of litter but…China might win.

-Everyone gets a meal on every flight, no matter how long the flight actually is. Thanks, China Southern.

-White people are famous and super interesting, which is why everyone stares at you all the time. This is a subject that often gets under foreigners skin. They watch us all the time. Not only that, but they invade any personal space that you possess while doing so. For me personally, I find it super hilarious. I mean, let’s be honest, I’m not that interesting but upon immediate arrival to China I could feel the eyes of the natives watching my every move. However, NOT in a suspicious or condemning way whatsoever, more in a curious and fascinated type of sense, waiting for us to do something new. 

We can pick up on social cues, we can fight our way through a crowd just as good as any Chinese person. They stand amazed. We order our food on the plane in Chinese…every time the flight attendant did a double blink [although I’m not quite sure whether or not the blink was out of sheer amazement that a white person spoke their language or that they were trying to interpret what I attempted to say…just to make me feel better, lets go with the former.] The best is when they gawk that we can use chopsticks. In fact, I’ve found myself getting kind of defensive when I’m given a fork and spoon to eat with. Noodles just aren’t the same with a fork and spoon. If you eat Ramen with a fork and spoon, newsflash: you’re doing it the wrong way.

This isn’t even close to the entirety of thoughts that I have on these subjects, but my brain is shutting down. Until next time… happy sleep!

Ghost Town

I can’t help but be really concerned by the thought that scampered across my mind alls of 40 minutes ago, the thought of “did that really happen?”  We’ve arrived home safe and sound back to Harbin, a beautiful and surprisingly refreshing 2°F greeted our faces as we stepped off the plane. Who knew that our campus would be so dark at 1am? Oh that’s right…we usually get locked in to our building at 10. Anyways…

The RA in me took care of things before we left for the airport. Fridge was cleared out and unplugged, as were all the other electronics in my apartment, things were {relatively} clean. That person three weeks ago wasn’t thinking ahead to the person I would be last night. A sleepy, physically tired, and cold human being, fumbling around the apartment with forty pounds of belongings, wondering why in God’s {great and powerful} name none of the lights work as I stagger about knocking into tables and chairs. Brilliant, Kayla. Brilliant.

My backpack and suitcase huddled together in the middle of the floor, and my refrigerator is dark, quiet, and empty: other than that, this place looks just how it always does. Everything else is normal, it’s like I didn’t even leave at all. In fact, where did I just come from?

Thailand.

I have a new shirt in my bag to prove that I was there, as well as some scabs on my arm from an encounter with some barbed wire (perhaps you heard…? :P) There is an ever so faint tan line on my legs from a day in the sun, and whilst unpacking I found a cookbook from a Thai cooking class that I took. Other than that, in this very moment it feels as though Thailand didn’t happen at all.

Why is this scary? Because some day in the nearer-ish future there is going to be a day where I step off an exceedingly long series of plane rides and I’ll stumble into my room with a suitcase and a backpack [and another suitcase and a duffel].That place will look just like it always did. Light blue carpeting, soft purple walls, an abundance of pictures and artwork, and trinkets of childhood scattered throughout the walls and dresser. It’s scary because I know that I know that I know that the thought of “China: did that really happen?” will scamper across my mind. For a hot two seconds I’ll convince myself that it was just a dream and be on my way…but life happened. What’s “familiar” has a special way of tricking our minds into thinking that we’ve always been there, or (worse) that nothing’s changed.

Reality check: China did happen. China is happening. I’ll never forget this year, these students, this experience…or will I? 

Maybe I just need some sleep.

Thailand Bucket List

In all, I’ve spent about 3 weeks in Thailand and while here, I’ve done some things. Some notable things, if I do say so myself. And although I’m no longer one of those people who puts things on a list just for the satisfaction of crossing them off [used to be…I’ve found new life ;)], for old times sake, I figured I’d just make a list for the sake of helping me remember, as my increasing age is taking it’s first steps at conquering my mortal body.

 

-I’ve biked a mountain…see post below.

-I’ve gone white water rafting

-I rode an elephant

-I have had elephant terds launched in my general direction [thank you, Tony].

-I hiked in the jungle…barefoot.

-I swam in a waterfall…in the jungle. 

[ps, it was really cold]

-I sang in my sleep

-I have eaten Pad Thai for all three meals in one day.

-I have played the piano…in a Kodak print shop.

-I have jumped in puddles during a thunderstorm... (Thailand down…118 more countries to go.)

-I have woken up with the sheet (yes, singular) pulled completely over my head, completely mummified, for a week straight.

-I have been scolded for not abiding by “quiet hours” (oh the shame as a ResLife alum)

-I have watched two sunsets by the river

-I have witnessed approximately 37 floating lanterns in the night sky.

-I have worshiped the King on the rooftop (with a guitar and other people, of course).

-I have read three books. Seven, if you count Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

What does any of this have to do with my students? One thing is for sure, this time off has benefited them too. When we started in September we were told that we were re-writing the English program of our college and we had three days to do so. So for those of you who have never written curriculum before, let’s just say that there is a reason why the big dawgs get paid a lot of money to do it. They spend months and months and hours perfecting these things. We just graduated from college and had three days before the rocket took off. In the end, we ended up writing it as we went along and it was the longest and biggest act of improvisation that I have ever performed in my life [this coming from the girl who has done her fair share of musical theatre shin digs].

This time off has given me a lot of time to think, prepare, and write for this upcoming semester.  

Here’s hoping it’s gunna be good!