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Tuesday!
Here’s a quick update on what’s going on in China before my next class…
We had our annual science fair day last Friday, which included a quiz bowl, science olympiad, and pentathlon in addition to the judging and awards ceremony. Though we aren’t sending kids on to the next level this year, the top projects in each age group received iPods… they were thrilled about that!
The weekend was a restful time, with Sarah and I traveling to the southeast side of Chengdu to shop for a bookshelf at a friend’s antique market. We were worried it wouldn’t fit through the door of our apartment, but it made it in with only minor alterations (they took a hatchet to one of the corners), and now we have a place for our books.
Monday was Sarah’s birthday - she’s 24! After school we celebrated by making pizza and lemon poppyseed muffins. The presents from home were a welcome sight.
Our injured student, Susan, is still in the hospital but is recovering well after her surgery. She is bored and ready to get back to school - it’s very nice to hear that sometimes.
We have two busy weekends coming up - an encouragement conference this weekend and a middle school retreat next weekend. Should be fun!
Randomness
Dreary day… I guess the rain comes hand-in-hand with springtime. A blessing, but not so helpful when we’re trying to wake up early.
I went to visit a student in the hospital yesterday. She dislocated her ankle and broke both bones in her leg on Friday. They originally scheduled surgery for today, but it got pushed back to Thursday because of the swelling in her ankle. Please pray that it will subside enough today. She’s really anxious to get on with the surgery and be a little more comfortable. Right now, she’s flat on her back, and if she tries to move too much, it hurts terribly…
In other news, I’ve been given leave to go back to Cali for a couple of weeks over May break. Grandpa B’s taken a few "wooden nickels" and has recently been diagnosed with the early stages of leukemia.
Finally, Dan & I are afraid we’ll hit our mid-life crisis far too early because of our students. Yesterday, they asked if I was going to turn 40 on my upcoming birthday! Surprising, since I’ve always been pegged as several years younger… They didn’t quite believe Dan when he told them our ages, and were appalled that I am actually older than he is ("does that make her the man of the house?") Ahh… middle schoolers…
weekend update
It’s a drizzly Saturday - time to tell you what’s going on in Chengdu. Here’s a couple of comments:
- it is still amazing to see the prices on some things here. We just bought 3 jin (over 3 pounds) of strawberries (Strawberries in March! Wonderful) for less than $1.50. They are tasty.
- We have been going to a marriage home group on Friday nights, and while the interaction is wonderful, the real reason for going is the pot luck dinner we have. Don’t ever take pot lucks for granted.
- We got a plant for our house… and I just realized we haven’t shown you our new apartment yet! We will try to get pictures of our apartment (still a work in progress) and school up to the album soon.
- The CDIS boys basketball team is in Qingdao for the ISC basketball tournament. They got first place last year; as of last night, they had won two games.
That’s most all for now… time to get to work on some papers.
still going:
the fireworks. I’m watching them out the window as I write this.
The frequency has dropped to the point that the displays are 1-2 days apart and only last for a few minutes when they happen.
But still.
I can’t complain about the view - it’s a great vantage point!