Halloween

No costumes today. No kids coming to the door saying "Trick or Treat." Homesickness likes to creep up on me once in a while. Fall is my favorite time of year back in New England and the hardest time to 'not be there', in New England, in the USA, is right about now. The funny thing is that China has so many great qualities to it that homesickness never really sticks around too long. It doesn't seem to be capable of anything more than the occassional bother. My friends, primarily Liana (who I've finally discovered is actually named Jiao Wun Wun), Tan Yen, and Long Tso, are a constant reminder that I'm in the place that they're from and since they are fascinating people it follows that their homeland is also fascinating. Another reminder is the mountains right outside of town. They're like no other mountains I've ever seen and a simple look at them makes homesickness take a backseat for a while. I expect Christmas to be even tougher than this, but something tells me I can deal with that when it comes. I didn't come to China to whine about how much I miss pizza and blonde girls. I'll head back to the states someday. The big question in my mind right now is, "Will I want to stay there when I do return?" The honest answer is, "I don't know."

China has an amazing ability to piss me off one second and then make me smile the next. People I don't know ask me for my phone number and it becomes annoying. Little kids wave at me and it makes me laugh. Kids are shocked when they find out that I'm not very good at basketball. Adults seem impressed when I say that I'm not cold in this weather. I see homeless animals all over and it makes me angry. People want to meet me just because I'm white and it's a good/bad experience depending on my current mood.

I'm planning a trip. My class schedule seems to be in a constant state of change, it just won't sit still. One week I'll be working my full contract load of classes and then all of a sudden, like this week, my boss will tell me I have 7 days off. I might head to the city of Nanchang to see a friend or I might head to Changsha. It's high time that I explore more than just Kaili. Xijiang and Zenhyuan were nice cities but I didn't spend too much time in either one. So, my current goal is to get my ass out and about so I can really see the country. Maybe I'll avoid the tourist traps. Maybe I won't even bother with things like the Great Wall or the Terra Cotta warriors. Maybe I'll just go where the locals go. Go to the places that small town NH boys never hear about.

A few comments on my schedule. It changes every few weeks and I can't get a straight answer as to why this happens. Mistakes are a regular thing when it comes to schedule making and it's honestly not my fault. I don't make my own schecdule. I receive schedules from Henry and Ms. Fu. I find, all too often, that some kind of unexplained change has happenned. A class has been moved to a new time or a new day and it sure as hell wasn't on the slip of paper that was given to me. Or maybe Ms. Fu said that I did not have class on Wednsday when she actually meant that I did have class on Wednsday. Stuff like that. My work schedule is actually pretty easy but all the changes and the lack of people informing me about the changes can be pretty damn aggravating sometimes. However, I worked a lot harder than this back in the states and that helps to keep it all in perpective. As long my pay continues to arrive in full and on time, I can deal with nonsense like that.

Language. Chinese is hard and the fact that Kaili really doesn't have any classes for foreigners who want to learn Chinese makes it even harder. And although I don't have a 'real' teacher, I do have three good Chinese friends who take it upon themselves to help me learn whenever they can. I think I'm at a level where my Chinese is just basic enough that I can feel relatively comfortable taking a solo trip to just about anywhere in the country in order to mispronounce the names of food in a restaraunt or stare in blank ignorance of the question that the lady at the train station asks me. In other words, I expect plenty of errors, misunderstandings, and complications but I expect to find ways of working out those errors, misunderstandings, and complications.

Happy Halloween! My night will include a half-full bag of peppermint patties, thanks Heather, and possibly a dinner with Dave and Lucia. Most of my other friends are currently out of town for work, so it's possible that tonight will end up being a bit more quiet than I'd like for Halloween. But, I don't intend to let things stay that way. I intend to plan my trip. I intend to explore. Maybe tonight will turn out to be quiet but tomorrow won't.