Update

This is just some rambling because I feel guilty for not posting for so long.

A little over a month ago my computer screen died, no exaggeration, so I am waiting for my parents to bring me my new one next week when the arrive. I'm super excited for them to visit me! We're going to start our trip in Beijing, travel to Xian, then Changzhou, and finally Shanghai. From Shanghai they go to Hong Kong to see Sandi. Hong Kong will be good to ease them out of Chinese culture shock. I am beginning to forget how different it is in America. Not that it is different or what is different, but I am forgetting what it is like to live there.

When we were in Hong Kong the bed was soft and I am so unaccustomed to how a soft bed gives that when I tried to kneel on the bed to hand something to Tom, I actually fell. I forgot how hard the beds are here and how they bruised my hips until Ruchi complained about it. As much as possible, I have come to terms with the staring.

The dirt and germs still get to me and unfortunately Tom caught something during our travels. After two weeks and a talk with his mom he decided to go to the hospital. There are many horror stories of Chinese hospitals to be found online, so Tom's trepidation was understandable. One of the English teachers, Molly, took us to the hospital where Lily's husband works. It was cleanish and very much not private. As we waited our turn with the doctor, I looked in the room across the hall to see a family standing around an old woman getting her blood pressure taken. The doctor had slicked back hair, was wearing glasses, a short doctor's white coat, shorts, dress socks and dress shoes, and was puffing away at a cigarette. I wish I'd had my camera.

Molly translated Tom's illness to the doctor while about six strangers waiting their turn listened intently. Tom got some pills and is doing much better. Even though the hospital experience was not enjoyable, it is good that he went. Especially since I started having the same pains in my stomach that day.

We have been enjoying the summer vacation. In order to really enjoy it though we went and bought a new DVD player for the apartment. The DVD player was a piece of junk and with so much free time we watch a lot of movies and TV shows. Besides watching movies we wander about town or come to the office.

Yesterday, I was leaving the office around 6 to go cook dinner (except that I forgot to take the chicken out of the freezer so we just had malatang anyway), when I realized I couldn't leave the office. Tom and I were locked in the teaching building. I scouted out all of the doors and gates to assure we were really locked in. I checked the classroom doors on the first floor to see if we could jump out a window, but all of the first floor windows have bars on them, obviously to keep us from escaping. The best window I could find was a floor and a half up. I fetched Tom to look at the escape route but vetoed it because we'd have to jump onto concrete. Instead, I chose to lean out of a second floor window, wave my arms and yell, "HEY!! MR. GUARD!! HEY!! MR. GUARD!! HELP US!!" (in English) at the guardhouse about 100 yards away. After a few minutes of frantic yelling and waving, during which Tom gathered our things from the office, he saw me. The guard laughed at us in a good natured, "Silly foreigners" kind of way. The guards at the school are really nice and always smile.

Enough for now, I have to go cook dinner - I'm starving! Then I'm going on a bus adventure. Tomorrow morning I am tutoring a new student, an adult, and I'm not quite sure where to change buses to get to her house so I thought it'd be best to try tonight. I am still trying to convince Tom to come with me :)