Chapter Six

Monday, July 27th

I had to send Joe to Sherry’s office today. That darn kid—us teachers just don’t know what we will ever do with him. He’s getting pretty good at sitting in timeout…he’s there just about every day. He can’t seem to keep his hands to himself. He’s fighting, pinching, or off in Joe world. He is a distraction to the other students and he never listens. He just needs a little lovin’!

Once again, during gym Joe wasn’t paying much attention, so I had to call him out of soccer….I gave him a big bear hug just so I wouldn’t hit him…ha…also so he wouldn’t run around and ruin the game for the other kids. It was cute; when I was hugging him he looked up at me and just started pushing me forward. I had no idea what he was doing until he got behind me, wrapped his little arms around my legs, and was now giving me the biggest bear hug he could manage. That little fart….you can’t help but smile. At least he makes a good referee in an intense game of soccer.

After my 7A class this evening I was able to go downstairs and visit with JoAnna and Martin’s father, Frank. He’s actually a business man, has his MBA, and owns his own trading company. It was really fun talking to him considering I like business and am considering my MBA. Lucky for him, in Taiwan you don’t have to take the GMAT (the entrance exam to get your MBA….not a fun test)! As we were talking, JoAnna looked bored out of her mind, but I really enjoyed it. We skipped around from subject to subject, but I liked what he said about having the softer skills with the harder skills. The harder skills are all the technical stuff, the books and junk. The softer skills are personality, social sills, and the good stuff. You can’t survive without the softer skills! It’s so true. Even though you don’t necessarily have a class in school to learn the softer skills, they are much more important than the harder skills in the long run. Anyone can learn harder skills, but softer skills don’t come as naturally to everyone.

After work I went running at the track. Sarah and I waited until about 10 at night to run; that’s when the track lights turn off and the temperature drops a bit—yes, I said a bit…I still can’t believe how much I sweat with the humidity. After running, I literally had sweat dripping off of my body….I’ve never been swimming in my own sweat but I might as well have been. There’s a first time for everything!

Tuesday, July 28th

Oh my goodness! You know you’re getting older when you have to get up in the night to go to the bathroom, MULTIPLE TIMES! I hate it. For some reason my bladder has shrunk ever since I’ve gotten here. I guess it’s all that water I’m drinking to replenish myself from sweating all the time, sick! Anyhow, it was about 5:30 in the morning and I had to get up to go to the bathroom….I went to kick my feet over the side of the bed and I totally fell out of bed! The whole right side of my body had fallen asleep. Haha, I couldn’t believe it. Even at 5:30 in the morning I was laughing. No worries, it was no stroke; I’m not that old…I contribute my ‘fallen asleep’ body to the hard beds we sleep on. Oh yeah, there is no ‘give’ in these beds. I added a couple sleeping bags underneath me to give a little cushion, but even then….my bed is still as hard as a brick. I may have to resort to sleeping on my back. Watch, I’ll be like one of those missionaries who comes back home to the states and can’t stand to sleep on a soft, nice mattress….I’ll want to sleep on the floor.

This morning I didn’t have to go to work until noon, YAY! I was able to talk to mom and dad. I showed them all our family history online. It was so fun learning more about my heritage—I absolutely love it. So, it turns out I am more than a quarter Swiss…that must explain my very intense personality? Ha. I love coming from a pioneer family. I’m so grateful. I had one great, great…..great grandmother who was born in Switzerland, came to America, and died in St. George. Wow! Dad was laughing, our first family home evening together, EVER! Ha…another first, it just took me getting to Taiwan to get it done.

In class today my 2A kids were telling me jokes, here it goes: What’s a deer called that has no eyes? ……do you know? I have ‘no eye deer.’ Haha. I know right, just great! Here’s another one, where do sheep go to get their hair cut? ….any ideas? The ‘baaaaa beeeer.’ That’s code for ‘barber.’ Samuel told me those jokes. He is just adorable. He was born in England and lived there for awhile before his family moved back to Taiwan. He has a Chinese/English accent. Whenever we talk about clothing (shorts, shirts, and such) he always points out that he is wearing ‘trousers.’ I love it!

Wednesday, July 29th

I don’t have much to write today. Surprising? Haha. My classes went well—I am definitely learning more and more patience everyday. I just don’t know how some mom’s do it. Thank you to all MOM’s out there who have ever raised any children! You’re the best!

Once funny thing happened today—it was during drama. I was reading a story to Gary and Mimi (the SPE’s). The story was about a beautiful princess who was covered in glitzy jewelry. I started to point out the jewelry I was wearing for the day, but I had forgotten my earrings. Gary looked at my ears and said, “Teacher, your ears are broken!” It was so funny—because I have holes in my ears, my ears just must be broken, ha! It was funny. There aren’t too many women in little Changhua with their ears pierced, it must be a ‘big city’ thing.

Thursday, July 30th

I didn’t teach any SPE’s today….it was a nice break! Engine walked into 2A’s with his genie pants on, that’s what I like to call them. He takes Kung Fu….those pants are soooo big on him, like MC Hammer, parachute pants! Anyhow, during break he busted out some Kung Fu in class. I’m amazed, that kid can kick high! I wanted to take a video of it so I could post it, but he got all shy on me. When he warms up a little more, I’ll try to snatch a clip for ya’ll.

After work Hanna and I went exploring around town on the scooter. I got some massage coupons so we were trying to find the spa. We didn’t have much luck following Chinese directions, but we did find a little night market—we got our favorite night market treat—coconut milk! Yummy. Hanna also took me to this small department store that sells the cutest swimming suits. I’m gonna have to go back and buy one, only $30! They have some great styles here.

Friday, July 31st

Pay day! I love pay day, I mean…who doesn’t. I feel so rich after getting paid in THOUSANDS! We’ll see how much I can actually save.

Dad, Gary gave you a nice compliment in drama today. We were reading our story and I was teaching the kids the difference between a moustache, beard, and goatee. I asked him if he had a moustache or goatee, he just started to laugh. I then asked him if his dad had a moustache or goatee….he just kept laughing and shaking his head no…”Those are only for old people,” he said! Sorry, dad! Don’t worry, in all the years I’ve known you with a beard, mustache, or goatee, I’ve never thought you were old!

For dinner we went out to Thai Food again. Julia and Molly came with us. We tried a different place since last time we weren’t too satisfied. This restaurant was great! Sarah and I shared shrimp and pineapple fried rice, which was accompanied by some dried out, shredded pork. We also shared the coconut curry with chicken. This time it was real spicy, and delicious!

After dinner, Molly and Julia came over to our house. We watched a Taiwanese Drama on TV. Molly loves it and never misses an episode. It’s super famous because it’s filmed right in Kaohsiung…not too far away. She always asks me whether I think any of the characters are cute….”do you prefer big eyes or small eyes,” she says. You think we’d do more on a Friday night, but I just crashed I was soooo tired from the week!

Saturday, August 1st

Today I went to Tao Yuan with Molly and three other Asian friends. Try riding in a car for nearly three hours, just one way, listening to Chinese the WHOLE time….I tried to pick up on some of the conversation, but after so long, I just zonked out. Every once in awhile, I’d hear my name (that always got me interested), the word what, this, that, yes, no…that’s about all I could understand!

On our ride down to Tao Yuan, Molly asked me how I felt, as in, was I tired? Before I could respond, she kept talking …”because you know, whenever Tabbi comes she is always so tired…” This is true, Tabbi is always tired. I responded, “No, not at all.” I didn’t tell her I went to bed the night before at four in the morning—I just couldn’t sleep. I did my best on staying awake, but when I couldn’t contribute to the convo, and when I saw ADA sleeping in the corner, I figured it was alright to rest.

Before arriving in Tao Yuan, we stopped in Shing Ju for lunch. I tried duck and squid. Duck was interesting…it kind of tasted like turkey, with a little twist. ….and the squid, well….chewy! It’s always nice going to a Chinese restaurant. You hardly ever get a beverage, and the food is set on a lazy susan for everyone to share; it’s great! The restaurant is in a little hole in the wall, but there is always a nice T.V. The set up is the same in Taiwanese homes as well. Someone could have a poor looking home, but there’s always room and money for a giant flat screen hanging on the wall.

Well, well, well…what’s in Tao Yuan, you may be thinking! Amway party! I know right, I must be crazy for going? Come on now….it’s all about the experience. A lot of the Asians are into multi-level marketing here, and I think a lot of them are church members as well. Anyhow, an Amway party was going down, and I just couldn’t miss it. Picture this, Amway meets night club/cruise spectacular—hilarious. To get into the party you had to wear some type of flower in your hair or on your clothes…then, as your ticket in, they gave us all fake tattoos! Oooh, so exciting already! The party was in a warehouse. When we first entered we were greeted and given some peach punch. We then went and had our pictures taken in a photo booth…FUN! Oh, the fun hadn’t even begun yet. The funniest thing—in the warehouse they had backdrops perched up high on beams. They also had show girls standing on the beams in front of the backdrops. At first they were just sitting there as people took pictures of them, but once the music started, they stood up and started dancing all around; there were neon lights too…can you say RAVE! Haha. It was so funny.

At the party, the DJ played American and Chinese music….a lot of rap. Amway was introducing its new product for Artistry. They had some models come out and present the product—some who happen to be very famous in Taiwan. Molly was star struck! The MC hosted some cruise ship games, a band came out and performed, and Molly and I got up and stage and started dancing….surprising, no….we had a blast! I was the only foreigner in that warehouse. It was great to watch as people turned to look at me. I could see them tap their friend’s shoulder, whisper something in their ear, then I would watch as the friend turned to looked at me.

Molly and I had a great time at the party. Afterward we went to McDonald’s and got some ice cream. Later that night when we got back into Changhua, Molly took me to get dumplings for dinner. Then we came home and watched Freedom Writers with the group.

Sunday, August 2nd

Molly picked us girls up for church today. It was nice to take a car to church instead of the train for a change! Alright, so like I said, the English branch is super small. There are less than 50 members; therefore, everyone has a calling! Yay, right? Ha, you are now looking at the new 2nd counselor in the Relief Society, ahhhhh….any pointers? Everything is really disorganized because the turnover rate it really high, and there aren’t many resources. In fact, I’ve never met the 1st counselor in the RS because she hasn’t been to church since I arrived in Taiwan. The RS president is another teacher from the other school, so together, hopefully we can get some things done. Another great thing about a small branch…I get to speak in Sacrament next Sunday, great huh? My topic is ‘Building the Kingdom of God in our homes and communities’….any advice? I’ve only spoken in church twice in my lifetime, yes…TWICE, I need all the help I can get.

After church Charles, our friend from Kaohsiung, came up for the weekend. He met us after church and we hung out in Tai Chung for the day. First, Charles took us to a nice little pasta restaurant! It was delicious—American delicious. I had penne noodles with chicken pesto sauce, so yummy, garlic bread too! After lunch Charles took us to a science museum. We toured around, looked at some cool stuff, you know…dinosaurs, constellations, the good stuff. Then we watched two movies in 3D: one about Africa, the other about creatures under the sea. Too bad we couldn’t understand a thing, it was all in Chinese. Even the African men in the Safari video were speaking Chinese!

From the museum we went to the metropolitan park. There were a ton of people there; they were feeding the ducks or flying kites. It was a nice park, but I was surprised by how ‘not green’ the grass was, especially for such a tropical place. At the park, some people were playing the stick-bottle game. You hold a thin stick in one hand with a string attached to the stick, and a ring on the end of the string. Then there is a glass coke bottle lying on the ground. Holding the stick with one hand, you have to put the ring around the bottle, and try to stand the bottle up on its own. We all tried it out…it was actually more difficult than it looked. Charles got it the first time, so lucky. It took me a couple tries, but I got it! We even got prizes too—little boxes we could keep coins in.

When we finished up at the park we headed to the night market; the one where you’re herded like cattle. I am still amazed by the number of people there, every night too! I found some really cute shows, but I held off on buying them, even though they were just $6.00. Man, as if I wasn’t tight before, I sure will be when I get back to the states. Anyway, I think that’s enough for the week! Love you all! T