Pink Lemonade

the end of days (third edition)

2012-01-30T09:20:00.000+08:00

Back in the days when I blog-stalked the "old" teachers of Berhan, I could never understand why it was that they were still posting about their time in Taiwan a month (or more!) after they had gotten home. Umm.. Sorry guys. I understand now that I am one of you (that is so sad to think about, being an "old" teacher).

First, I woke up Early (actually, not really. I think I woke up at the same time as usual, I just GOT UP instead of laying there longer). After helping the secretaries move some things out of the storage room, it was time to go.

Saying good-bye to the beautiful Kailey

Dad was downstairs at the gate waiting for me. (It took me a while to make it down the stairs because I had my arms full of luggage.) We headed off to the train station to meet up with Fenny who took us to breakfast at this cute little breakfast restaurant that had delicious food. (Sorry, only took one picture and I think Dad would hunt me down and do something dreadful if I posted it online.) We decided we would meet up again when I came back through Feng Yuan to pick up my passport, so luckily it was not my last time seeing Fenny in Taiwan.

After breakfast, we all made our way back to the train station. In Taichung, Fenny helped us to get our tickets to the HSR and also helped us to use a computer at the train station so we could tell our friends in Kaohsiung about what time we would be arriving.

On the train to the HSR, I got talking to this nice Taiwanese man named Dennis. He said he would help us know when to get off the train. He was actually on his way to a wedding in Chunghua and his stop was relatively close to ours. Dennis's English was very good, and we had a nice discussion. He told me about Buddhism and actually knew a fair amount about the "Mormon" church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints). Well, there was a little bit of confusion and we missed our stop (and Dennis missed his too, oops!), but with his help, we were able to get turned around and found the HSR. This was my first time riding on the high-speed train. It was actually a really short train ride. When we got off in Kaohsiung, we were lucky enough that Alisa (friend) hadn't checked her email until later, and Allen (her husband) and just arrived at the train station. We found each other pretty quickly and were soon on our way to Gary's (Alisa's dad) apartment.

After a little lunch (peking duck pizza from Costco), Allen took Dad and I to the Lotus Lake which is also where the Dragon and Tiger pagodas are located. There is a temple across the street from that place, so actually we stopped off at the temple first so that Dad could see what the temples in Taiwan are like.

Then off to the pagodas and various sights around the lake.

Inside the pagodas there were some pretty intricate murals. I think they were telling some sort of story, but I don't know what it was...

But I'm guessing this lady is dying.

After the ward Christmas party that night (Gary was hosting it at his house), Allen and Alisa took Dad and I out to one of the night markets. It was really a pretty small market, but I found some cool things there to bring home.

Christmas day there was only Sacrament meeting for church, but we went with Alisa and her family. Everything was in Chinese, however Allen served his mission in Hong Kong, Mandarin speaking, so he was able to translate most of the meeting for the three of us (Alisa being included) lacking in Mandarin speaking skills. After a light lunch back at the apartment, Dad and I went out across the street to the Love River and just took a nice walk.

When we got back to the apartment, we found out that Santa had come while we were out! The Obas were very kind to get us Christmas presents.

I feel like this post is long enough, so I'm going to leave off for a week... Or two. Or three (hopefully not that long).

The End of Days (second edition)

2012-01-18T09:57:00.000+08:00

My last Wednesday. There probably won't be a whole lot of detailed description to this post simply because I don't want to think about the good-byes. I'm not ready for that yet.

Christina and I gave the AK kids their Christmas presents from us (we didn't do it the last day of class because Wednesday was Jack's last day).

I also attempted to take pictures of my 5Ga class. Yeah... didn't work so well.

My with Katie. She doesn't come on Friday's, so she was kind enough to take a picture with her teacher.

After class, Christina and I decided to take a present to the nice scooter people by the train station. It was... slightly awkward (no English on his part and very limited Chinese on our part. VERY limited). A few days later, when Dad and I were walking by, the other scooter guy came running out to me with a Christmas card and a present for us (Christina and I) of "wife cakes."

On our way home, we found this tree about a block away from the school. With Christmas lights. And garland. And ornaments! Behold:

Then, it was Friday. I woke up early (well, same time as usual, actually, I just actually got ready when I woke up) to pick Dad up at the Fengyuan train station. I had to wait for... a lot of time, but it was worth the wait. He spent the day with me and got to go to all my classes. Lucky Dad!

AK went... crazy. Since I was teaching PE anyway, though, I decided running around the playground would be just as good a work-out as anything I had planned, so we ended up going with that instead of most of our "exercises" for about 10-15 minutes. Then we went back inside and played a game of Cone Catch. The kids loved it that Dad played with us!

Then there was my 5Ga class. PARTY DAY! For about the first 20 minutes I had them clean a classroom that had already been cleaned at least 2 times. Then we played games, ate food, cleaned up all the crumbs, and watched the old cartoon version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. After whining that they didn't want to watch a Christmas movie and being obnoxious for the first 3 minutes of the film, they got sucked into it and loved it.

Sam and Johnny

Me, teaching Rosenna, Sam, and Johnny how to play LIFE.

Jacky, William, and Chris were playing Monopoly.

Me with Jacky. Let's just ignore what was going on in the background.

Amanda, Me, Anne, and Rosenna. Nini and Pamela were little stinks and didn't come to class. SAD FACE!

Johnny (standing as far away from me as he possibly can), me, Sam, William, Jacky, and Chris

Class picture!

Finally, writing class. We finished watching Hook and practiced communicating in English. I'm going to miss these two. I do miss these two. Thanks for saving my Friday's, Angel and Kevin!

Finally, before seeing Dad out for the night (he was staying at a hotel down the street by Night Market), I had Dad help me to take a picture with Frances.

And then I hunted Charlene down because I love her, and she sang "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" to us in Chinese! (There is videographic evidence of this somewhere on the internet, but I don't want to embarrass her too badly.)

The End of Days (First Edition)

2012-01-13T09:14:00.001+08:00

FINE. I'll blog again.

So, I'm back in America. It's a bitter-sweet thing, and I'm trying hard to be glad that I'm back but, truth be told, there are many times throughout the day where I wish my time in Taiwan was not yet quite over. Jet lag may or may not have something to do with this.

I have... a lot of pictures and things to blog about. December was quite the month for picture taking. So, because I don't want to overload you too much, I'll be doing this in segments (however many it takes to get caught up).

First up, Christina and I attempted to take pictures with each of the little AK kids for Christmas. It took us three days to accomplish this, but I think it was worth it. Here are some of the little squirts that my heart is aching for:

Tiffany

Kevin getting the Teacher Look (but the tail end of it, so... doesn't look too intimidating here, does it?)

Group picture with Christina!

Group picture falling apart.

And Tim. How can you not miss this face? (Totally stole this shot from my partner in ~~crime~~ teaching)

Jay, trying to do a fish face. Perfect, because I'm the one that taught them that.

Now, the following three pictures tell a story. Kylie was trying to help us to take a class picture (unfortunately, not everyone was there, but you work with what you get in Taiwan). Nick was, well, being Nick. He was trying to cover his face, so I was holding his arms down.

Nick is now drooling. A lot. I haven't noticed. Yet:

I have now noticed the drool:

And declared picture time to be OVER!

Then there was Roommate Christmas (December 17). We had Christmas breakfast (pancakes and waffles), then opened presents. It was great fun. I'm going to let the pictures tell the story, though, because my brain is tired.

Immediately following Roommate Christmas, a few of us booked it to the bus station to make our way to Taichung for a Branch Christmas lunch (there was so much eating that day; I hate it when my whole day is centered around eating). For months I'd been wanting a good picture of one of the speaker trucks that drives by (usually advertising for the upcoming elections). How lucky was I when one not only drove by, but had a giant straw man on top? I'd say very lucky.

Christmas luncheon that turned out to be mostly the people I live with, but a few other dear friends from church as well.

Elias, Jenny, and the Listons

On the way home, Jenny wanted documentation of how crowded the bus can sometimes be. This isn't even close to the worst that I have experienced, but still is noteworthy.

Then there was the school Christmas Dinner. (Like I said. Nonstop eating All Day Long). There were these terribly delicious fruit mousse things, though, and I wish I could eat them always. They had strawberry (the flavor I chose) and mango (as pictured here, before Christina dived into it). SO FREAKING GOOD!

Kylie decided to sport a mustachustache for part of the evening, with a little help from Christina. Doesn't she look great?

Group picture with Kailey and Charlene. Man, I miss you guys! <3

Change

2011-12-24T07:00:00.000+08:00

I don't like change. The most obvious proof of this is staring you in the face: my blog, which has gone roughly unchanged for the past 5 years. I found a layout I loved, and I've stuck with it, despite the fact that it doesn't really cooperate so well with the "new" (or even "newest") version of Blogger.

Other examples to follow suit:

When my BFFs KyleandFelix quit working at Disney. I didn't like that. It's not because I suddenly found myself with out an "in," but because it hit me that, hey, things really have changed and we will never go back to the way we were, hitting up B&N, snacking on Sprinkles, and gossiping about various cast members that we all associated with (even though I had already Moved On).
When my friends, any friend (not limited to the BFF category), move. If it's just down the street, or a few miles away, fine. But when I suddenly find my friend moving to a completely different city or state (or, heaven-forbid-but-it-happened-anyway) country, I don't like it. I don't like that there is suddenly more distance between us and the difficulty this distance causes me in being able to visit my friend whenever I want to.
And, finally, changes that involve saying Good-bye, possibly forever. This last one has been a pretty constant Theme in my life over the past two or three years, but this time feels different. This time I'm leaving another country that has come to feel like home to me. This time I'm leaving all my students that, while it took a lot of work on my part, I have really fallen in love with. This time it means leaving friends that have helped me to find doctors, fix my watch, and solve a variety of other problems. Friends that speak one of the most beautiful languages on the planet, yet were kind and loving enough to speak to me in my own language while, occasionally, trying to help me learn their own. It means saying goodbye to the nine other girls that I have shared a kitchen and a bathroom with, the girls that I have lived and been frustrated with from (but only frustrated from time to time, not often), the girls that I have stressed and worked with, and the girls that have had to endure a never-ending amount of rants and complaints from me. Some of them are staying on for another six months, some of us are returning to the States, and one of us is heading off on her next great adventure (Bulgaria!).

It's not so much Change itself that I don't like, I guess (change happens, it can't be helped; I mean, thank goodness for it, too, otherwise we'd still be living like the 80's with the big poofy bangs, and those blinding neon colors), it's the part where changing means saying goodbye to one thing so that you can move on to the next.

When they say "Taiwan will touch your heart," they're right. It has truly touched my heart. It has (ironically) changed me in many ways. It will always be a part of, me and the time I spent living here will always be one of my most treasured memories. Here's to hoping that, this time, it's not "good-bye" forever, but "until we meet again" on the beautiful Ilha Formosa.

P.S. Merry Christmas! This year, I'll be celebrating just with my Dad, and, when this posts, traveling around the Southern part of Taiwan before heading off to Hong Kong for adventures galore. If there are two weeks without you hearing from me, it's because I'm having far too much fun with my Daddy (and possibly no internet) to bother with blogs and things like email. If that's the case, then I'll catch you again sometime in January!

Place Holder

2011-12-18T23:08:00.000+08:00

Guys, there are so many things to blog about. So many pictures. So little time, though!

Hello, last week of teaching. How did you get here so soon? How is it already time to pack up and get ready to go home?

Moral of the story, it might not be until January, but I'll get you all caught up at some point. With more pictures than ever before.

I'm sorry. I'm a lame face.

A summary of 6 month's time. In pictures!

2011-12-18T21:31:00.000+08:00

Many of these pictures you'll have seen before. And, also, I'm only doing one picture per month. Sorry.

June 29, 2011: First HOUR in Taiwan!

July: Christina and I are blessed with two trips to the hospital for an MMR shot

August: AK finally has more than 5 students!

September: Christmas at Costco!

October: Halloween happens.

November: An "American" Thanksgiving with friends in the lounge

December: Staff Christmas party, with a special visit from ~~Gerald~~ Santa!

Happy Birthday, Blog!

2011-12-08T09:20:00.000+08:00

Today, my blog turns 6. Yup, I've been an avid blogger for 6 whole years now! Incredible how time flies.

Speaking about how time flies, in approximately one month from now, I'll be back home. Probably fighting jet lag.

I Love AK

2011-12-06T12:35:00.001+08:00

Guys, this is why I'm here. (P.S. Sorry for the dis-jointed music videos. Also for my voice.)

These were all taken last Wednesday. For some reason, Coco did NOT want to be on camera.

Also, there are pictures!

HA! You were not fast enough this time, Coco!

This is Tim skipping (hence the blurriness of it all), and it makes me laugh every time I look at it.

Coco and Jack during Eliminations. They were the only two left in the game

I gave everyone a balloon to try to blow up by themselves. Sam was the only successful one by the end of the day, but their facial expressions in the attempts? Classic.

I told Ray to stretch his balloon some more....

THERE WILL BE GREAT, SOBBING TEARS WHEN I LEAVE THESE CHILDRENS!

To the Future Teachers of Berhan

2011-12-03T23:08:00.001+08:00

Dear Future Teachers of the Berhan Language Institute in Taiwan,
If you happen to find this blog before you leave the States/start packing, then you should send one of the current teachers (or myself) an email. You won't need half of the ~~crap~~ things ILP suggests that you bring.

Dear everyone else who is interested in my life,
The semester ends in 19 days. My dad will be here in 19 days. I will be home in 33 days. How has this happened so quickly?

The Holy Temple —A Beacon to the World

2011-11-28T13:11:00.001+08:00

My LAST Relief Society Lesson in the Wu Chuan 2nd Branch. (I think I managed to get rid of all the typos...)

The Holy Temple —A Beaconto the World

Thomas S. Monson

April 2011 SundayMorning Session of General Conference

Matt 16:19

And I will ^agiveunto thee the ^bkeysof the ^ckingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thoushalt ^dbindon earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earthshall be loosed in heaven.

D&C 128:9

It may seem to some to be a very bolddoctrine that we talk of—a power which records or binds on earth and binds inheaven. Nevertheless, in all ages of the world, whenever the Lord has given a ^adispensationof the priesthood to any man by actual revelation, or any set of men, this powerhas always been given. Hence, whatsoever those men did in ^bauthority, in the name ofthe Lord, and did it truly and faithfully, and kept a proper and faithfulrecord of the same, it became a law on earth and in heaven, and could not beannulled, according to the decrees of the great ^cJehovah.This is a faithful saying. Who can hear it?

Why do you think that temples are important?

The all-importantand crowning blessings of membership in the Church are those blessings which wereceive in the temples of God.

What are some of the blessings that wereceive by going to the temple?

Elder Robert D.Hales said, “The ordinances and covenants of the temple are the protection for us in our trials andtribulations inour day and for what we will face in the future. Temples are the greatestuniversity of learning known to man, giving us knowledge andwisdom about the creation of the world. Washings and anointings tell us who we are. Endowmentinstructions give guidance asto how we should conduct our lives here in mortality.”

Some degree of sacrifice has ever beenassociated with temple building and with temple attendance. Countless are those who have labored andstruggled in order to obtain for themselves and for their families theblessings which are found in the temples of God.

My brothers andsisters, temples are more than stone and mortar. They are filled with faith andfasting. They are built of trials and testimonies. They are sanctified bysacrifice and service.

What are some examples of sacrifice that youcan think of?

The first temple tobe built in this dispensation was the temple at Kirtland, Ohio. The Saints atthe time were impoverished, and yet the Lord had commanded that a temple bebuilt, so build it they did. Wrote Elder Heber C. Kimball of the experience,“The Lord only knows the scenes of poverty, tribulation and distress which wepassed through to accomplish it.” And then, after all that had beenpainstakingly completed, the Saints were forced to leave Ohio and their belovedtemple. They eventually found refuge —although it would be temporary— on thebanks of the Mississippi River in the state of Illinois. They named theirsettlement Nauvoo, and willing to give their all once again and with theirfaith intact, they erected another temple to their God. Persecutions raged,however, and with the Nauvoo Temple barely completed, they were driven fromtheir homes once again, seeking refuge in a desert.

The struggle and thesacrifice began once again as they labored for 40 years to erect the Salt LakeTemple…

One of the templescurrently under construction is in Manaus, Brazil. Many years ago I read of agroup of over a hundred members who left Manaus, located in the heart of theAmazon rain forest, to travel to what was then the closest temple, located inSão Paulo, Brazil—nearly 2,500 miles (4,000 km) from Manaus. Those faithfulSaints journeyed by boat for four days on the Amazon River and its tributaries.After completing this journey by water, they boarded buses for another threedays of travel—over bumpy roads, with very little to eat, and with nowherecomfortable to sleep. After seven days and nights, they arrived at the templein São Paulo, where ordinances eternal in nature were performed. Of coursetheir return journey was just as difficult. However, they had received theordinances and blessings of the temple, and although their purses were empty,they themselves were filled with the spirit of the temple and with gratitude for the blessingsthey had received. Now, many years later, our members in Manaus are rejoicingas they watch their own temple take shape on the banks of the Rio Negro.Temples bring joy to our faithful members wherever they are built.

Why are so manywilling to give so much in order to receive the blessings of the temple? Thosewho understand the eternal blessings which come from the temple know that nosacrifice is too great, no price too heavy, no struggle too difficult in orderto receive those blessings. There are never too many miles to travel, too manyobstacles to overcome, or too much discomfort to endure. They understand thatthe saving ordinances received in the temple that permit us to someday returnto our Heavenly Father in an eternal family relationship and to be endowed withblessings and power from on high are worth every sacrifice and every effort.

If you have been tothe temple for yourselves and if you live within a relatively close proximityto a temple, your sacrifice could be setting aside the time in your busy livesto visit the temple regularly. There is much to be done in our temples inbehalf of those who wait beyond the veil. As we do the work for them, we will knowthat we have accomplished what they cannot do for themselves. President JosephF. Smith, in a mighty declaration stated, “Through our efforts in their behalftheir chains of bondage will fall from them, and the darkness surrounding themwill clear away, that light may shine upon them and they shall hear in thespirit world of their work that has been done for them by their children here,and will rejoice with you in your performance of these duties.” My brothers andsisters, the work is ours to do.

If you have not yetbeen to the temple or if you havebeen but currently do not qualify for a recommend, there is no more importantgoal for you to work toward than being worthy to go to the temple. Yoursacrifice may be bringing your life into compliance with what is required toreceive a recommend, perhaps by forsaking long-held habits which disqualifyyou. It may be having the faith and the discipline to pay your tithing.Whatever it is, qualify to enter the temple of God. Secure a temple recommendand regard it as a precious possession, for such it is.

Until you haveentered the house of the Lord and have received all the blessings which awaityou there, you have not obtained everything the Church has to offer. Theall-important and crowning blessings or membership in the Church are thoseblessings which we receive in the temples of God.

… Do nothing whichwill keep you from entering [the temple’s] doors and partaking of the sacredand eternal blessings there.

Great personal preparation is required for us to receive thespiritual benefit of standing in holy places. Holy places and sacred space arealso distinguished by the sacrifice they require. Elder M. Russell Ballard hastaught that “the word sacrifice means literally ‘to make sacred,’ or‘to render sacred’” (“The Law of Sacrifice,” Ensign, Oct. 1998,8; Liahona, Mar. 2002, 13). Thewords sacred and sacrifice come from the same root. One maynot have the sacred without first sacrificing something for it. There can be nosacredness without personal sacrifice. Sacrifice sanctifies the sacred.

… To you parents, …may I share with you some sage advice from President Spencer W. Kimball. Saidhe: “It would be a fine thing if… parents would have in every bedroom in theirhouse a picture of the temple so [their children] from the time [they are]infant[s] could look at the picture every day [until] it becomes a part of[their lives]. When [they reach] the age that [they need] to make [the] veryimportant decision [concerning going to the temple], it will have already beenmade.”

Ask for experiences, ideas on how to beprepared to enter the temple either for the first time or for each reoccurringvisit

The world can be achallenging and difficult place in which to live. We are often surrounded bythat which would drag us down. As you and I go to the holy houses of God, as weremember the covenants we make within, we will be more able to bear every trialand to overcome each temptation. In this sacred sanctuary we will find peace;we will be renewed and fortified.

“The temples, with “Holiness to the Lord” inscribed on them,are among the most sacred of all places on the earth. They stand as evidence ofGod’s love to all His children, past and present. The blessings of the templeare intertwined and inseparable from significant sacrifice. The ordinancesperformed therein provide access to the full expression of the Savior’s atoningsacrifice. This alone would qualify the temple as holy and sacred. However,personal sacrifice is also required. We sacrifice time in search for ourancestors and time to attend to our temple responsibilities. We also strive tolive the highest standards of personal worthiness, which qualify us to enterthe sacred space of this most holy place. In holy places and in sacred space wefind spiritual refuge, renewal, hope, and peace. Are these not worth everynecessary personal sacrifice? My brethren and sisters, may each of us revereand respect the holy and sacred in our lives. May we teach our childrenlikewise. Let us all stand in holy and sacred places of spiritual peace.” Elder Dennis B. Neuenschwander

What does the temple mean to you?

I express my undyinggratitude to my Heavenly Father for… all of our temples, wherever they are.Each one stands as a beacon to the world, an expression of our testimony thatGod, our Eternal Father, lives, that He desires to bless us and, indeed, tobless His sons and daughters of all generations. Each of our temples is anexpression of our testimony that life beyond the grave is as real and ascertain as is our life here on earth. I so testify.

My brothers andsisters, may we make whatever sacrifices are necessary to attend the temple andto have the spirit of the temple in our hearts and in our homes. May we followin the footsteps of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who made the ultimatesacrifice for us, that we might have eternal live and exaltation in ourHeavenly Father’s kingdom.

D&C 128:19,22-23

19 Now, what do we hear in the gospel whichwe have received? A voice of ^agladness!A voice of mercy from heaven; and a voice of ^btruthout of the earth; glad tidings for the dead; a voice of gladness for the livingand the dead; glad tidings of great ^cjoy. Howbeautiful upon the mountains are the ^dfeetof those that bring glad tidings of good things, and that say unto Zion:Behold, thy God reigneth! As the ^edews ofCarmel, so shall the knowledge of God descend upon them!

22 Brethren,shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. ^aCourage,brethren; and on, on to the victory! Let your hearts rejoice, and beexceedingly glad. Let the earth break forth into ^bsinging.Let the ^cdeadspeak forth anthems of eternal praise to the ^dKingImmanuel, who hath ordained, before the world was, that which would enable usto ^eredeem them out of their ^fprison;for the prisoners shall go free.

23 Let the ^amountains shout forjoy, and all ye valleys cry aloud; and all ye seas and dry lands tell thewonders of your Eternal King! And ye rivers, and brooks, and rills, flow downwith gladness. Let the woods and all the trees of the field praise the Lord;and ye solid ^brocksweep for joy! And let the sun, moon, and the ^cmorningstars sing together, and let all the sons of God shout for joy! And let theeternal creations declare his name forever and ever! And again I say, howglorious is the voice we hear from heaven, proclaiming in our ears, glory, andsalvation, and honor, and ^dimmortality, and eternal life; kingdoms,principalities, and powers!

Book of Mormon Thoughts to The End.

2011-11-25T11:37:00.001+08:00

(111) 3 Nephi 19:24 “And it came to pass that when Jesus hadthus prayed unto the Father, he came unto his disciples, and behold, they didstill continue, without ceasing, to pray unto him; and they did not multiplymany words, for it was given unto them what they should pray, and they werefilled with desire.” When we have theHoly Ghost, we can know the things for which we should pray, which are right.

(112) 3 Nephi 22:14 “In righteousness shalt thou beestablished; thou shalt be far from oppression for thou shalt not fear, andfrom terror for it shall not come near thee.” When you are established inrighteousness, you have no cause or reason to fear. Isn’t that a wonderfulthing? I think this is something that I, especially, need to remember moreoften. If you feel fear, it is perhaps time to evaluate your standing with theLord, and decide if you are “established in righteousness,” or if, perhaps, youmay have wavered a little.

(113) 3 Nephi 27:24 “Write the works of this people, whichshall be, even as hath been written, of that which hath been.” It is importantfor us to write down all the manifestations from the Father that we witness. Itis also important that we keep a record of our own works.

(114) Mormon 4:2 “And it came to pass that the armies of theNephites were driven back again to the land of Desolation. And while they wereyet weary, a fresh army of the Lamanites did come upon them; and they had asore battle, insomuch that the Lamanites did take possession of the cityDesolation, and did slay many of the Nephites, and did take many prisoners.”Remember that the Nephites no longer had the Spirit with them. I believe that theSpirit will help to strengthen us and help to keep us from being defeated byour enemies.

(115) Ether 2:25 “And behold, I prepare you against thesethings; for ye cannot cross this great deep save I prepare you against thewaves of the sea, and the winds which have gone forth, and the floods whichshall come. Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye mayhave light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea.” It’s nice toknow that the Lord will prepare us to overcome every challenge that we face.That is a pretty empowering thought, actually. I think we should also noticethat the word “if” is not present anywhere in this verse. There is no “IF thereare waves” or “IF the floods come.” They willcome, but the Lord will have already prepared a way for us to cross throughthem.

(116) Ether 3:26 “For he said unto him in times before, thatif he would believe in him that he could show unto him all things –it should beshown unto him; therefore the Lord could not withhold anything from him, for heknew that the Lord could show him all things.” We should remember that thispromise applies to us as well. If we believe in him, he can show us all things.We just need to have that believe and the faith to have our eyes (and hearts)opened.

(117) Ether 12:19 “And there were many whose faith was soexceedingly strong, even before Christ came, who could not be kept from withinthe veil, but truly saw with their eyes the things which they had beheld withan eye of faith, and they were glad.” I think the last three words of thisverse are my favorite: “they were glad.” Our faith helps us to feel glad.

(118) Moroni 7:3 “Wherefore, I would speak unto you that areof the church, that are the peaceable followers of Christ, and that haveobtained a sufficient hope by which ye can enter into the rest of the Lord,from this time henceforth until ye shall rest with him in heaven.” Note the word“sufficient.” We don’t need to have a perfect amount of hope; we just need to haveenough.

(119) Moroni 10:31 “And awake, and arise from the dust, OJerusalem; yea, and put on thy beautiful garments, O daughter of Zion; andstrengthen they stakes and enlarge they borders forever, that thou mayest nomore be confounded, that the covenants of the Eternal Father which he hath madeunto thee, O house of Israel, may be fulfilled.” Confounded means to be angryor annoyed. When we make and keep sacred covenants, our ability to remain happyincreases and we are actually guarded against unhappiness.

The End.

Funnies

2011-11-22T12:28:00.001+08:00

I'm on a blogging binge today. Probably because I'm procrastinating the grading that I need to get done before class tomorrow AND we're supposedly going off to lunch Any Minute Now, so I need something with which to occupy my time. You're welcome, blogging world!

Here you get a post of mostly nonsensical things that were, at least, really funny in the moment, but may lose something in translation (ie: without the background story). And now, a list of (nearly) everything that's been said since my arrival in Taiwan that I have found to be funny:

Lauren: “If you want to take a picture, put my poo on your food.”
Mom: “I admit that the Modern Toilet would be a place I do not think I would go to. My body knows what it's supposed to be doing when I sit there - and it wouldn't be very pretty!”
Me: “I see a trash can!” Christina: “I brought my camera, don’t even worry.”
Felix: “Cat videos on the Internet are my black hole.”
Heather: “Children are adorable. They disgust me.”
Heather: “I think I’m going to do that, just for funny.”
Kylie: “Was that Irish?” Heather: “I don’t know what that was. Let’s not talk about it.”
Heather: “Yes, I hum in Chinese.”
Lauren: “Our service turned into gluttony, but it’s OK!”
Sister Baclayon: “You know in our body we have a lot of cells, and they die. Mine are already dying.”
Rachel: “Heather just gave me a flat tire!” Heather: “Because I love you!”
Dad: in regards to finding a hotel in Taiwan “Make sure it’s clean and nice, not a brothel.”
Christina: “And then these thoughts come into your head and you say, ‘yep!’ and then they go away.”
Rachel: “It’s like a Mormon rave! … with only four girls.” Heather: “That’s pretty much what a Mormon rave is.”
Dad: “Maybe we’ll get you some compression pantyhose so you don’t come home with bungles. And it’s plural because you have two buns.”
Christina: “India’s on here twice! I’m going to go to both Indias.”
Kylie: “Oh! I wanted to get into your closet!”

Happy Birthday, Christina!

2011-11-22T11:59:00.001+08:00

Today, our Christina Joy turns 23. Tomorrow, in America, she will turn 23 again, except that she'll still be in Taiwan, so I guess that doesn't really count.

To celebrate this momentous occasion, I give you my favorite pictures of Christina, documenting the best five months we've ever spent together (don't worry, you've probably seen all of these picture before). (I was going to write you an ode, but .... it didn't turn out very flattering. Something about trying to use a madlib generator online.)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CHRISTINA JOY!!

Kids Write the Darndest Things (part 3?)

2011-11-21T13:00:00.001+08:00

This is Jacky's writing practice from Friday. Their writing prompt was that they wake up one morning and find they can talk to any one kind of animal:

"I want to talk to a cow because if I can talk to a cow, I can ride on its back and the cow can protect me. I will let him hit the bad guy. I can drink milk every day, and he will eat the grass, but the cow's fart is very smelly. The cow's poop is very yucky, and stinky, and the poop is hard to clean."

Helaman through (most of) 3 Nephi

2011-11-21T12:53:00.001+08:00

(95) Helaman 5:47 “Peace, peace be unto you, because of your faith in my Well Beloved, who was from the foundation of the world.” When we have faith in Christ, we can have peace.

(96) Helaman 10:4 “Blessed art thou, Nephi, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word, which I have given unto thee, unto this people. And thou hast not feared them, and hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will, and to keep my commandments.” How often do we think about our own lives instead of thinking about God’s will for our lives?”

(97) Helaman 10:5 “And now, because thou hast done this with such unwearyingness, behold, I will bless the forever; and I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works; yea, even that all things shall be done unto thee according to thy word, for thou shalt not ask that which is contrary to my will.” There are some pretty amazing promises given to us here if we seek God’s will with “unwearyingness,” suck as being blessed FOREVER and being mighty in all things.

(98) Helaman 12:1 “And thus we can behold how false, and also the unsteadiness of the hearts of the children of men; yea, we can see that the Lord in his great infinite goodness doth bless and prosper those who put their trust in him.” This is something that I have seen in my own life, especially here in Taiwan. It is amazing the blessings you can see when you do put all your trust in God, and when you are looking for those blessings.

(99) Helaman 12:15 “ And thus, according to his word the earth goeth back, and it appeareth unto man that the sun standeth still; yea, and behold, this is so; for surely it is the earth that moveth and not the sun.” I think that similarly we can say that it is the world that moves and not the Son. It is pretty easy to see the shift in values of the world throughout history, yet what the Lord expects of us and what he wants for us stays the same. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He does not move away from us, but sometimes we move away from him.

(100) Helaman 15:6 “Yea, I say unto you, that the more part of them are… striving with unwearied diligence that they may bring the remainder of their brethren to the knowledge of the truth.” What I learned from this is that we should never tire of being persistently righteous.

(101) Helaman 15:9 “And ye know also that they have buried their weapons of war, and they fear to take them up lest by any means they should sin, yea, he can see that they fear to sin –for behold they will suffer themselves that they be trodden down and slain by their enemies, and will not lift their swords against them, and this because of their faith in Christ.” I think that this (burying our “weapons of war… [for] fear to take them up lest by any means [we] should sin”) is a very important principle for us to apply to our own lives. I feel like we can also see how faith in Christ makes us afraid to sin and gives us more desire to live righteously.

(102) 3 Nephi 4:33 “And their hearts were swollen with joy, unto the gushing out of many tears, because of the great goodness of God in delivering them out of the hands of their enemies; and they knew it was because of their repentance and their humility that they had been delivered from an everlasting destruction.” Can you imagine so much joy and gratitude? Maybe you have experienced it before, but I hope that it is something that all of us will be able to have in our lives.

(103) 3 Nephi 6:14 “And thus there became a great inequality in all the land, insomuch that the church began to be broken up; yea, insomuch that in the thirtieth year the church was broken up in all the land save it were among a few of the Lamanites who were converted unto the true faith; and they would not depart from it, for they were firm, and steadfast, and immovable, willing with all diligence to keep the commandments of the Lord.” This is how we need to be (firm, steadfast, and immovable in our faith in Christ), especially as the world would have us depart from our conversion.

(104) 3 Nephi 7:19-20 “And in the name of Jesus did he cast out devils and unclean spirits; and even his brother did he raise from the dead, after he had been stoned and suffered death by the people. And the people saw it, and did witness of it, and were angry with him because of his power, and he did also do many more miracles, in the sight of the people, in the name of Jesus.” Can you imagine being angry with someone for performing a miracle? I think the devil would have to have complete hold over a person’s heart for them to be so hard.

(105) 3 Nephi 11:7 “Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name —hear ye him.” To glorify is to reveal or make clearer the glory of God. What is God’s glory? It is his work, which is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. I feel like there is a great deal that we can learn from this verse.

(106) 3 Nephi 11:11 “And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning.” Glorified or revealed the work of the Father. Work=purpose?

(107) 3 Nephi 15:19 “But, verily, I say unto you that the Father hath commanded me, and I tell it unto you, that ye were separated from among them because of their iniquity; therefore it is because of their iniquity that they know not of you.” This makes me wonder how many things are kept form us because of our iniquity?

(108) 3 Nephi 16:2 “For they of whom I speak are they who have not as yet heard my voice; neither have I at any time manifested myself unto them.” One of the brothers in the high council in the Taichung North Stake gave a talk in our branch. His talk was about scripture study and coming to know the Lord. It was a very powerful talk, and even though the majority of it was given in Chinese, it still put me in tears. Anyway, something he said really struck me, something which I feel, is relevant to this verse: though none of us have actually seen God the Father or his son Jesus Christ, by studying the scriptures constantly, we can hear God’s voice. That is what he said, and I think it is true. So while we have not yet seen God the Father or Jesus Christ with our physical eyes, through the scriptures they can and will manifest themselves to us and we will hear his voice and see the marks in his hands, his feet, and sides.

(109) 3 Nephi 18:10 “And when the Disciples had done this, Jesus said unto them: Blessed are ye for this thing which ye have done, for this is fulfilling my commandments, and this doth witness unto the Father that ye are willing to do that which I have command you.” Part of the purpose of the sacrament is to show that we are willing to keep all the commandments and to do everything that God has asked us to do.

(110) 3 Nephi 18:12 “And I give unto you a commandment that ye shall do these things. And if ye shall always do these things blessed are ye, for ye are built upon my rock. “ We will also be blessed for parting of the sacrament.

Kids say the darndest things

2011-11-19T12:01:00.001+08:00

Me: “Cinderella is a princess. She lost her glass slipper.” Johnny: “What, her shoe? She go buy one more, it’s OK! Throw this one out and just get new shoes!”

(Not sure that this is the exact phrasing; I totally put our spelling test on hold while I wrote down what he said, but I'm too lazy to dig out the paper right now. Also, sudden torrential rain storm. Woohoo!)

Taiwan is Safe.... Mostly

2011-11-16T21:10:00.001+08:00

Another fun adventure in the world of Taiwan.

Last night Heather and I went grocery shopping. We stopped at the bakery to buy some bread (there were only two loaves of wheat bread left, so we each bought one), and across the street from the bakery is the fruit stand, so Heather stopped there as well to get some apples. P.S. We were riding our bicycles. This is important.

After finishing up at the bakery, we rode our way over to the 24 hour store (a grocery store here in Taiwan). Heather made a comment that she didn't really want to carry her bread inside with her. "Just leave it in your basket," I said. "That's what I always do, and I've never had anything happen to it. Jenny is the one who taught me to do that." So, we both left our bread in our bike baskets and went inside. I think we were not in there for very long, maybe 20 minutes TOPS (but probably closer to 10 or 15). As we were approaching our bikes, Heather said something along the lines of "You have got to be kidding me!" ran over to her bike, and, yup. Her bread and her apples were gone. But, don't worry, even though my bike was right next to hers, my bread was still in the basket. Also, Heather still had her pineapple.

I'm voting it was some homeless person that was starving and saw her bread and apples. He didn't take the pineapple because he had no knife with which to slice it open, and he didn't steal my bread because, hey, one loaf is plenty for any person, and I didn't have any other food in my basket.

Moral of the story? It's fine to leave groceries in your bicycle baskets, but if you're going to do that, then you should probably park on the street side of the store instead of the alley way..

Scooter Fun; Doctor Fun

2011-11-13T18:37:00.001+08:00

Once upon a time it was today, and Nica and I were coming home from church on a scooter. Sara and Christina were on another scooter (also coming home), and for a while we were basically traveling together. Then we hit this one intersection, and Nica and I sped ahead of Sara and Christina. Eventually, Sara and Christina must have taken a different turn, because suddenly they were no where in site; and, oh yeah. The scooter Nica and I were riding died basically in the middle of an intersection, but we had enough momentum left to get us through the intersection and over to the side of the road. Sara and Christina did not pass us. Ever.

So we sat there, Nica repeatedly trying to get the scooter to turn on.

It didn't turn on.

It still didn't turn on.

I noticed a gas station on the next street corner, so we got off the scooter and started pushing it towards the gas station. The attendants there saw us coming and one of them came running over to us (at this point we were just across the way), thinking we needed more gas.

You know, despite English being a required course in schools here, it surprises me how many young people don't know a single word. They make up for their lack of knowledge in kindness, though, and it's not like I can really speak their language, either, so I can't complain.

Well, the kid tried getting our scooter to turn on. Wouldn't. He noticed that the gas meter said we still had about half a tank of gas left, so then he helped us push our scooter the rest of the way to the gas station. Then ALL the attendants came over and tried to help us. Finally, after a lot of discussion in Chinese and Nica and I just staring dumbly at the scooter not knowing what was going on, the female attended pointed to the scooter, to herself, and then to the street. "Follow you?" I asked, hoping they would understand. "Ah!! Follow you!" said a male attendant (I think the one that had first tried to help us). So she starts pushing the scooter down the street, and Nica and I trot after her for a ways. We arrived at what I am assuming is a scooter repair shop, and this short little man came and took a look at our scooter. He started unscrewing things, trying a few times to get the engine to turn over... Then he took out a part and replaced it (cost: $80NT) and tried to get the engine to turn over again. Still wouldn't work. Then he got the bright idea to actually look in the gas tank and, oh. Guess what? No gas! The male gas attendant that had first tried to help us arrived on his scooter, words were exchanged in Chinese, he left, then came back with $20NT worth of gas in a water bottle. The engine turned over, the scooter turned on, it was glorious! A neighbor to the repair guy came over to us and was able to tell Nica and I what the trouble was. "The oil meter is not sensitive. You should get it replaced. For now, though, it is OK, only no gas." We said our thanks, then followed the gas attendants back to the gas station and had our scooter filled with gas. I told the female 谢谢 (xie xie: thank you) and she said, "Ah?" and then garbled off some Chinese to me, sounding really excited. I stared at her rather dumbly and then said,, in the most-used Chinese that I know, "Dui bu qi. Ting bu dong." (I'm sorry, I don't understand." "Ah. Ting bu dong," and she smiled, and Nica and I proceeded to follow the attendants back to the gas station. They filled our tank the rest of the way with gas, we expressed our sincere thanks once again, and made our merry way home without any more trouble.

Thing I learned from this experience:

Always be prepared with phone numbers (check). By some stroke of genius that I can in no way attribute to myself, I had written down a bunch of Important Phone Numbers on my Berhan business card that I carry around with me at all times. Even though we didn't end up needing to call anyone, it brought me some comfort to know that we could if it became necessary.
Never travel alone on a scooter. Or anywhere.
People in Taiwan are basically good and will go out of their way to assist a Mei Guo Ren (an American) (this has actually been affirmed to me several times now, but never quite so obviously as with this experience).
Prayer is powerful. Even though the miracle didn't happen in the way I expected, it still happened.
God is great.
You should always go to church and do everything in your power to remain worthy of the blessings that you seek after and/or ask for.

On that note, let's talk about Friday. If you haven't heard or gathered by now, I have been suffering from extremely severe insomnia for the last two months (give or take a week or two). Like, it's been really bad. I've averaged 4 hours of sleep a night (sometimes only 3 hours) and have been unable to even fall asleep for a nap. I haven't been able to get myself to fall asleep at night, and when I have fallen asleep, I've woken up to Every Little Sounds. It's ridiculous. I've never slept so poorly in my life. Recently it reached the point where I would burst into tears randomly at least once a day simply because I was so tired. My anxiety has shot through the roof, and I've had a fairly severe migraine almost every day due to lack of sleep. P.S. I have even been taking the Ambien that I brought with me, but it has done me little to no good.

Well, last week I mentioned my sleeping problem to Fenny when I was at her house. She, being the wonderful person that she is, offered to help me find a doctor and to take me to said doctor. This past Friday we were finally able to go. The doctor is a specialist, and actually a psychiatrist. He's also located right next-door to one of the supermarkets that I shop at. His English? Impeccable. Much better than Dr. Wong's (the ENT doctor that I saw back in September). We chatted for a while, Fenny occasionally clarifying somethings for him in Chinese that weren't coming across real well in English, and I came away with a week's supply of medications (Xanax, to help with the anxiety, a higher dosage of Zolpidem, and... something else that is also supposed to help me to sleep, but I don't remember the name of it right now). Fenny is going to take me back this coming Friday for an evaluation, but let me tell you. Wow. It has been so nice to sleep again! I've even taken naps the past few days and still have been able to fall asleep at night. Also, it only cost me $150NT for the visit, drugs included. For those of you not in the know with the conversion rate, that comes to about $4.97 USD.

I don't care what people say about national health care. Here in Taiwan? It works, and I have no complaints about it.

And... there are only 6 weeks of the semester left. That's only 24 more days of AK, 18 more days of Elementary, 6 more days of my writing class, and 5 more days of tutoring. In just 54 days, I will be home enjoying my parent's company, my mother's cooking, delicious restaurants that don't make me sick from all the MSG and onions, a room (and house) all to myself, and having my preciously adorable kitty cat following me around.

(What? Don't pretend like you didn't know a picture of my cat was coming.)

I anticipate, however, that I'll also be pining over lost friendships (or friendships with people that, really, who knows if I'll ever see them again?), never seeing my little kindergarten devils, and the kindness and generosity of people in Taiwan.

I love this country. I love the people. I love the children (most of them). Good-byes are always hard, but at least I do have 54 more days to prolong the inevitable.

Also, hey. Fun fact: today Sara and I discovered that we had the same First Grade teacher, just two years apart. Awesome? I think yes. Note to self: when you get home, find your third grade yearbook and try to find Sara's picture.

Congratulations, Cindy!

2011-11-09T00:36:00.001+08:00

This past Saturday Cindy, one of our secretaries, got married. We were all invited to the wedding (which is more like a reception/party/8-course dinner), and Jenny, Kendra, and I were able to go. We met up with the other secretaries, and really had a fantastic time. The Taiwanese really know how to celebrate such a happy, momentous occasion! And the bride and groom's wedding photos were phenomenal! Guys, if I ever manage to get married, I want to have all of my pictures taken in Taiwan. And maybe even have a wedding party in Taiwan. (Let's not think about the logistics of this.) It was really just incredible.

Me, Cindy, Kendra before the wedding

Unfortunately, this cuts off right before the pyrotechnics started up. Assuming I understand correctly, though (which is highly questionable), this is the wedding procession. You'll have to excuse the horrible photography going on; I was a little bit overwhelmed by the lasers, disco balls, and misters that were filling the room.

Kendra, about to devour a raw prawn/jumbo shrimp (I have no idea which it is, what the difference is, or if there even is a difference). You can see Kailey laughing about our grossed out faces and Jenny being unsure of what's about to happen in the background. There was also me making noises something like "ew ew ew ew ew ew!"

A close-up

And then Maggie helping Kailey dissect her... prawn thing.

Nasty, yo.

Then they came out with this fish that still had its eyes. The best (?) part was that it had teeth, too!

Cindy's parents, then Cindy, then Cindy's husband and his parents (I have no idea what his name is, and I don't know who the guy at the very end with the microphone is, either, nor do I know what he was saying).

Jenny eating a cooked jumbo shrimp

Kendra hiding behind the crab hide

Kendra, me, the happy couple, and Jenny

They were handing out "lucky candy" in the baskets as the guests were leaving. Isn't it adorable? It didn't taste that great (it wasn't horrible, just not as delicious as what I would hope), but it sure was cute.

A Little Bit of Sunshine

2011-11-01T23:45:00.000+08:00

Here are some things that are making me smile right now (via Pinterest):

(Anyone else noticing the T-Rex theme going on here? This is even funnier if you were on that train back from Stake Conference a couple of weeks ago.)

This post is brought to you by our nightly sponsor, Insomnia, and has nothing at all to do with Taiwan, other than the fact that that's where I am living.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-29T00:11:00.000+08:00

We've spent about two months discussing and several long weeks planning and preparing for Halloween at the Berhan Language Institute, and finally last night we were able to decorate and pull it all together. Today was our big activity, and I think it is safe to say that there were some very memorable things for the kids (good memories and bad memories; some of them cried because they got scared so badly). It was a LOT of work, and, despite my fears and worries, it was a really fun day (also despite the fact that most of us were running off of little to no sleep). Last night around 8:30, once classes were over and all the kids had gone home, we started decorating the entire first and second floors of the school. We didn't finish decorating until a bit after midnight, and I don't think we had our bedroom lights off until after 1 am. Then we had to be back downstairs, in costume, by 8:30 this morning.

Nerd Jessica

Spongebob Jenny

Mummy Sara and Pirate Kylie

Mr. Veronica (with Kylie and Maggie in the background)

Mysterious Kaylee

Veronica, Sara, Jessica, Kylie, Kaylee, Christina, Heather, me, Kendra

This time the same people as the picture previous (minus me) plus Jenny

Cut-throat Kylie's got a pretty nice ring to it, don't you think?

Kendra with some of the MK kids

More Mk'ers

Christina and Nica. Oh, man, this picture makes me laugh.

The bloody bandages hanging in front of the first floor kitchen

We were all super tired when we got up, but the fishing didn't take any energy (I sat behind a cardboard wall/door and just clipped things on to the end of a fishing pole; Gerald did all the talking and stuff with the kids on the other side), and the afternoon kids liked the slimy noodles. The AK kids LOVED it, and they loved seeing me (I didn't look scary yet). I scared Tim pretty bad. He went to pull out an "eye" from the noodles, and I had my hand under it (covered with noodles) and knocked it into the air, screaming, as he went to touch it. Then HE went screaming and ran back to his desk. I wasn't able to get pictures of ALL the AK kids, but I did manage to catch a few of them on... digital memory card (I was going to say "film," but who uses film any more?).

The fishing "door" that took up five hours of my life to make. Even Frances told me she liked the fish, and that's a Big Deal! I didn't like the way it looked last night when I finally called it quits, but, looking at it today? It does look pretty good. I hope they keep it for next time! (I only did fishing for the babies and MK; Jenny was the fisher for the afternoon classes.)

Jack and me before Afternoon rotations started

The slimy noodles with a slimy mouse, some spiders, and eyes mixed in. There were a few other nasty random things, too (like a tomato that was almost totally demolished by the time evening classes were done with this and a bunch of grapes, also of which many were unrecognizable as fruit by the end).

Some of the decor of my classroom. Nica was in charge of designing/decorating this room, and I think she did a fabulous job!

Oscar saw the red-eye thinger on my camera light up and stopped digging long enough to smile at the camera. I love this kid!

Mia. She was not phased even a little bit by anything disgusting in here. She just dug right in, found what I told her to find, and went back to her seat. This kid has only 2 facial expressions: this one, and crying (which I've only actually seen her do twice; Jack and Sam cry a hundred times more than she does).

Vincent

Tiffany (shaking some noodles off her hand)

Kevin

Coco

Jay

Me, Candice, and... a girl I don't know.

Me, another girl I don't know, and Nick

Ok, the deal with the mystery children. Nick and Candice were with this group of kids instead of with the rest of the AK kids. They were my very first slimy noodle rotation, and I really wanted to try to get a picture of/with all my AK kids (but I totally failed with accomplishing this as I missed out taking pictures of an entire group of them; sad hearts). I took the pictures with Nick and Candice first, and then all these other little kids in the group wanted a picture with me, too, so I obliged them.

And this little girl really wanted me to wear my sparkly glasses, so I did.

The evening kids... well, I think most of them liked it OK, but by that time I had a bad headache, I was getting really shaky and dizzy from not eating (there wasn't any time to eat after noon today) and it was hard to get some of the older ones to cooperate. Amanda from my elementary class told me when she came in (the room was dark, by the way; there were only two lights: the bug zapper light and the light coming in through the window from the hall) "Miss Rachel, you don't look like you." I asked her if I looked scary, and she said "A little bit scary" in a voice that said, "You're making me nervous. Can you please not stare at me/stand so close to me?"

Heather and me in our Evening Garb. I actually added a trickle of blood from the stitches on my forehead shortly after this picture was taken

The festivities finished at about 8 pm, and we were completely done cleaning everything up by nine. It's disgusting how long it takes to prepare for something like this and how little time it takes to ~~destroy~~ clean it up.

Meanwhile, I'm seriously looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow and catching up on some much-needed R&R.

The daily commute

2011-10-20T10:09:00.002+08:00

This is why literally living at work is not too bad. Unless...

TRAFFIC JAM ON THE STAIRS! STAMPEDE!

(can you tell I haven't gotten much sleep lately?)

Lukang

2011-10-16T16:25:00.002+08:00

*Note: I've been made aware that my archives are having... issues. This, I hope, will be resolved in the near-ish future. Until then, I'm sorry if you miss a post.

So, yesterday (Saturday), some of us took the train to Changhua to meet Bree and Jessica Stoker (they teach at the ILP school there), who then showed us the way to Lukang.

Lukang is one of the older villages in Taiwan. When we got there, we went down Old Market Street and just wandered around shopping for the day.

(I want a door like this some day)

Happy Birthday, Taiwan!

2011-10-11T18:59:00.000+08:00

*Edit: This post is very long and picture-heavy, and, as such, it has bumped off the front of my blog the previous post that I wrote today. So, if you're reading this directly from my blog and not Google Reader or something like that, you may want to go back and check the archives for the earlier post. There are pictures in that one, too. And now back to your regularly scheduled reading.

October 10th (also called Double Ten day) is National Day in Taiwan, and since it fell on a Monday this year, we got to have a long weekend! So Saturday after tutoring, I caught the bus to Taipei and met Jenny at the Stake Center where we watched General Conference (like I said before, Church broadcasts are a week later here). This time there was no worry in my heart about getting there by myself, and since I didn't have to be at the temple/stake center IMMEDIATELY upon arrival in Taipei, I took my own sweet time meandering down the street. Also, There were police officers lining the entire length of the street, and every once in a while some military cars would drive by. Jenny and I were guessing that President Ma (I think that is who the President of Taiwan is right now?) was around, hence the added security of the area. I got a lot of really strange looks from almost every single police officer that I passed, though (more than is normal around here).

Saturday after Conference, Jenny and I caught a train to Dansui. Unfortunately, I left my camera in the locker at the MRT station, So I don't have any pictures to document our fun times. We each bought an incredibly tall ice cream cone (seriously, a foot high of just ice cream) and just wandered the street(s) of the night market by the shore. There were ferrys in the river, and it was so much fun! I loved Dansui. I would totally go back to Dansui. I purchased for myself some traditional looking shoes and shirts (two shirts; I was only going to buy one at first, but... let's just say that the sales lady was very persuasive. Also, she gave me a discount, and we all know I have a hard time passing up discounts), as well as a little something for my sister for Christmas (you're welcome, Sister. I'm not telling you what it is!). We also stopped by a massage parlor and got ourselves a shoulder massage for just $100 NTD. AMAZING. After a couple of fun-filled hours there, we headed back to Taipei to find our hostel.

The hostel. Well, you get what you pay for, and we didn't pay much. The AC worked, and the owner was friendly, plus you couldn't really ask for a better location. That's about all the good things that I have to say about it.

Sunday morning General Conference started at 9 am, so we got up fairly early and headed back to the Stake Center. This is when Kylie and Sara met up with us.

It was a bit rainy after Conference let out on Sunday. While we were trying to figure out where we were going next, I snapped this picture of the temple.

And the flowers.

Kylie and Sara joined up with Jenny and I on Sunday (and most of Monday), and neither one of them had been to the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial yet, so we stopped by. Last time I went, the guards were already gone for the day. This time, though, there were guards, and they looked like statues. If you looked closely enough, you could see them slightly swaying, or maybe even catch them take a breath. I watched this guy for 15 minutes, though, and he didn't blink once. His friend directly across from him did blink (once), but that's only because someone came to wipe his face and his nose for him. Jenny and I were coming up with things that we thought the guards might think about as they're standing stalk still for an hour. It was amusing.

Then there was the changing of the guard, which we stayed to watch, however, I had to watch it through other people's cameras because I am short and not aggressive enough to stay near the front.

Monday we started bright and early. Jenny and I woke up at 5 AM and were at the Taipei Main Station to meet Kylie and Sara by 6. Our first stop was Jiufen, specifically Jilongshan Mountain, which is pretty steep, though only 588m high. We climbed all the way to the peak and back down in about an hour. After climbing the mountain, we walked down Jishan Street which has some really cool shops, though it was super crowded (as you will see further down).

Beautiful Jenny taking in the scenery

Instead of paying someone with relatively little education a bucket-load of money to stand at the edge of a construction site, the Taiwanese have these batter-powered manikins.

That's a cemetery upon the hill.

Jiufen from a distance

The stairs. Oh, the stairs. I lost count after about 400, and we weren't even close to half-way up the mountain yet at that point. I have no idea how many stairs there actually are, but it felt like thousands. My calf muscles still feel quite cramped and sore.

A butterfly that alighted on some wildflowers as I was taking one of many breathers.

And this is what I looked like when I finally reached the top of the mountain. A short few minutes later and I had a very curly halo surrounding my face. I had nearly forgotten how curly my hair actually is.

Sara, feeling blown away in more than one sense of the word

The roads that the buses take to and from Keelung are like this: windy, crazy, and nerve-wracking.

On our way back down the mountain, the cloud started to really roll in. We were walking in a foggy cloud the whole way down, and water was forming on our faces, only to drip down seconds later.

Kylie and Sara

I thought this was a fun looking garden. There are stairs like this all over the village. These ones we did not climb, and while I do wonder what it is they led to, I did not wonder enough to want to climb them.

Some cats we found

Also, look at this hat. Look closely at this hat. Notice that it has the Air Force One emblem on it and that it says "Washington D.C." on the rim. "Cool hat! You get it in America?" "No, actually, I bought it in Taiwan."

The sea of Asians. And Sara. I don't know that I have ever been anywhere THIS crowded before in my life.

We went back to Keelung and split up there. Kylie and Sara returned to Taipei, and Jenny and I caught a bus to Yehliu to check out the awesome geological rock formations.

Taiwan will Touch Your Heart. You see this saying everywhere, and it's true.

The Queen's Head is the most famous rock formation in the park. There was a huge line to take pictures in front of it, but neither one of us cared so much for standing in that line. Plus, the park was beginning to close and dark was closing in.

We stopped in this pavilion of shops just outside the park as we were heading out, and they had all these nasty fish and squids and things to eat.

Also, hermit crabs. They had those, too.

This was a fantastic way to spend the weekend. Really, pictures do not do any of the sights justice. Jenny and I had so much fun together, despite the fact that the hostel I booked for us was less than stellar. Happy Birthday, Taiwan!

A Mish-Mash of Events

2011-10-11T14:50:00.000+08:00

I finally uploaded 100+ pictures from my camera onto my computer, which means it's time to blog again!

There was this day in September (on the 3rd, if you want to get specific) where our Taiwanese friend James took us on a little tour of Feng Yuan. We saw this scooter that has Mickey Mouse on it. Adorable.

Then, later that night, Jenny, Kendra, and I went to Costco.

Yes. This is a Christmas tree. In Costco. In September. In Taiwan.

September 12th featured a lovely sunset, as seen below:

On September 17th, the school hosted a late Moon Festival BBQ for us. Very good food, and it was fun to see everyone outside of the norm.

Here is Gabriel. He is one of Heather's students. He has a twin named Caleb, and you can only tell them apart when looking at them by which one has the freckle (Gabriel). I snapped this one while he wasn't paying attention, which was pretty difficult because this kid loves cameras.

Seth and Angelica are Gerald and Francis's kids.

Kendra, Gabriel, and Heather

Christopher is Peggy's baby. Almost every time I see him, he is crying. The other... week, though, I was downstairs making some copies and one of the secretaries was holding him and he was looking at me (not crying), so I started making fish faces at him, and he tried to copy me.

The men doing their manly BBQ-ing thing.

About two weeks ago we had the Relief Society Broadcast (all Church broadcasts occur a week later here due to the time difference and need to translate things into Chinese). We went to Taichung a bit early and stopped at T.G.I.Friday's for dinner. I got the ribs. Delicious? Yes.

The group.

Also, I appear to have hit the picture limit for this post (I don't really know what is going on here), so I'm going to end this one with a video of Kylie eating an oyster at Style a week or so ago.

20 Questions

2011-09-29T22:58:00.001+08:00

I realize that there are, potentially, a few questions about my time here in Taiwan that you may have that I have never answered. So, I'm giving you the opportunity now to ask them, officially, and I will answer those questions to the best of my ability. This is to celebrate the three months that I have been here in Taiwan. So, get cracking! Deadline will be... Next Thursday. What is that, October 6? We better make it October 10, then (double-ten/National Day), because I won't be around that weekend (for reals this time).

Restatement:
Ask me anything you want to know about my being in Taiwan, and ask it by October 10, 2011.

The last of Alma (where Helaman begins)

2011-09-24T11:59:00.003+08:00

(85) Alma 60:16 “Yea, if we had gone forth against them in the strength of the Lord, we should have dispersed our enemies, for it would have been done, according to the fulfilling of his word.” We must be totally devoted to living God’s will if we are to succeed against Satan and his forces.

(86) Alma 61:13 “But behold he doth not command us that we shall subject ourselves to our enemies, but that we should put our trust in him, and he will deliver us.” I love how this is repeated so many times in the Book of Mormon. As we put our trust in God, he shall deliver us of all evil as long as we do our part and work towards our own deliverance. We can’t just sit idly by waiting for our troubles to go away. Part of trusting is doing or acting upon our trust.

(87) Alma 62:49-51 “But notwithstanding their riches, or their strength, or their prosperity, they were not lifted up in the pride of their eyes; neither were they slow to remember the Lord their God; but they did humble themselves exceedingly before him. Yea, they did remember how great things the Lord had done for them, that he had delivered them from death, and from bonds, and from prisons, and from all manner of afflictions and he had delivered them out of the hands of their enemies. And they did pray unto the Lord their God continually, insomuch that the Lord did bless them, according to his word, so that they did wax strong and prosper in the land.” When we are humble and remember all the things that the Lord has done for us, we too will be blessed and delivered from our afflictions.

(88) Helaman 1:18 “And it came to pass that because of so much contention and so much difficulty in the government, that they had not kept sufficient guards in the land of Zarahemla; for they had supposed that the Lamanites durst not come into the heart of their lands to attack that great city Zarahemla.” We cannot suppose that Satan will never go for that part which used to be the strongest, or that he will never go for our hearts. Whatever happens, we cannot let our guard down.

(89) Helaman 1:28 “But when Moronihah had discovered this [that the Lamanites had come into the center of the land and were taking possession of many cities], he immediately sent forth Lehi with an army round about to head them before they should come to the land Bountiful.” I like how it says he immediately sent an army to defend the land Bountiful. Instead of waiting for the enemy/Satan to arrive at our threshold, the moment we are warned or become aware of the threat of danger we should send out our armies and our defenses. Luckily God has provided us with many means by which we can learn of the things that Satan will and does try to attack.

(90) Helaman 3:25 “And so great was the prosperity of the church, and so many the blessings which were poured out upon the people, that even the high priests and the teachers were themselves astonished beyond measure.” Have you ever been astonished beyond measure by the number of blessings you have received? Or even just astonished to receive a certain blessing? I know I have been, especially as I have been living in Taiwan.

(91) Helaman 3:27 “Thus we see that the Lord is merciful unto all who will, in the sincerity of their hearts, call upon his holy name.” I have witnessed this of myself many times. I think that this is something that everyone needs to try to gain a testimony of, and perhaps several times. It is sometimes easy to forget.

(92) Helaman 3:35 “Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God.” I feel that this verse contains the ingredients for joy, namely: fasting, frequent prayer, humility, and faith in Christ. I think also that this is one of the most beautiful verses in the Book of Mormon. “Joy and consolation.” What does it mean to be consoled? Consolation is to receive comfort after a loss or disappointment. God and Christ recognize that there will be losses and disappointments in our lives, but because of Christ and because of faith in him, those losses can be made up to us. We can find comfort and joy through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. It is through the Atonement that we are also able to become pure and holy. For all of this to come to pass, we must “[yield our] hearts unto God,” or comply with the desires of God. We must give our hearts to Him and keep his commandments (all of them) completely.

(93) Helaman 5:6 “Behold, my sons, I desire that ye should remember to keep the commandments of God; and I would that ye should declare unto the people these words. Behold, I have given unto you the names of our first parents who came out of the land of Jerusalem; and this I have done that when you remember your names ye may remember them; and when ye remember them ye may remember their works; and when re remember their works ye may know how that it is said, and also written, that they were good.” We that have been baptized have been given or take upon us the name of Christ. When we remember our name, then, we should remember him and His works, and try to live up to that name. We should do all that we can to be good as He was and is good.

(94) Helaman 5:42 “And it came to pass that they did all begin to cry unto the voice of him who had shaken the earth; yea, they did cry even until the cloud of darkness was dispersed.” I love this. I love that when we pray, our faith in Christ can be increased. I also am reminded, in regards to the cloud of darkness, of Joseph Smith when he was in the Sacred Grove. It was through the power of prayer that the cloud of darkness was lifted from him, and it is the same thing here. I think that it is important, though, to remember that a cloud of darkness doesn’t have to be caused by sin. Joseph was not sinning when he knelt to pray. Sometimes darkness is caused by evil trying to obscure our view of the light. It is important that we don’t allow that to keep us from praying. We should always pray.

Friday Fun

2011-09-23T23:17:00.000+08:00

By the time I am done teaching on Friday, it is 9:00, and I feel like my day has been wasted away into nothingness. There's not a whole lot of time to do things for myself, and I feel positively exhausted once classes are over. Actually, that state of exhaustion pretty much starts after the first 10 minutes of AK, if you want to be honest. Still, how can you not love these kids?

The first rotation: Zoe, Immy, Candice, Sam, Vincent, Daniel, and Oscar (who was absent today)

Zoe (who we thought was named "Lori" for about a week") Immy, and Candice

Sam ("love" may not actually be the right word for this kid, but he's doing a little better ever since we got our third rotation)

Vincent

Zoe, again. Seriously, doesn't she look like some sort of gorgeous child model?

Daniel (he didn't want to dress-up, but he asked me to take a picture of him erasing the board, so I did)

Rotation number two consists of Jay, Jack, Tim, Tiffany, Kyran, Peko, and Coco.

Jay (again, not sure if "love" is the right word here)

Kyran- he for sure has an aunt that lives in Australia because he's told me about it several times now in very specific details. He just doesn't know how to tell me why she lives in Australia.

Kyran and Tim

Tiffany, my little Diva.

Crazy Jack. He's been sick this week, but he insisted today that he was not too sick to play.

Mullet-haired Tim

Coco and Peko

My second rotation. I could not get them to cooperate well enough to see everyone's faces at the same time, so I had to take too shots. See below:

Left to Right: Jay, Kyran, Tiffany, Peko (in the back with the cow hat), Coco, Tim, and Jack

And, finally, the third rotation, the children that most often make me want to pull out my hair, stomp my feet, or throw someone out the window (occasionally all three) Nick, Danny, Carl, Derrick, Ray, Mia, and Angelina.

Nick (who didn't want his picture taken) and Danny

Ray

Ray again. He keeps telling me his name is Ferrari. I have no idea where he got that, but he does know what a Ferrari is.

Special, special Mia. This child has no coordination whatsoever. She's very sweet, though.

Angelina

Ray (again)

Mia and Angelina

You guessed it: Ray.

Derrick, my saving grace in the third rotation

Carl, who keeps telling me he is named "Kevin." I may need to check up on this. This child... There are not words. He's new, so I may yet learn to love him, but... Until then, he likes to try my patience more than most of the other kids.

(P.S. I took all of these pictures today. They are not the ones that I have been meaning to post. I'll try to get around to those ones this weekend.)

Mid-Semester Blahs

2011-09-20T23:23:00.001+08:00

I have pictures to upload. Not very many, but some. Life has been busy, but also relatively boring lately, which is why there's been such a lack in note-worthy blogs here. We've hit the mid-semester blahs (not to be confused with blues), which mean most things are pretty much routine and it takes a lot for something to feel "special."

I did, however, take a ride on Heather's scooter with her today to Costco in Taichung. I bought a bag of Rocky Mountain Marshmallows, a True American Tradition (yes, I went to Costco solely for the marshmallows). That was some fun times, but my bottom was pretty sore by the time we made it home. We passed the National Art Museum on our way to and from Costco, and decided that one of these days we'll be making a trip to Taichung to go there. Probably on a Tuesday since neither one of us teach in the afternoons.

On that note, every once in a while you can smell fall in the air, but it's still pretty hot here. It wasn't too bad riding on the scooter, and at night it's quite nice outside, but generally speaking? HOT. I hope it cools down soon, because I'm getting really tired of all my short-sleeved shirts. I'd like to be able to start wearing my warmer clothes without roasting myself to death, just for a change in wardrobe.

My new mantra

2011-09-16T12:20:00.000+08:00

Watching the first 20 seconds of this clip will tell you what I've decided to repeat in my head over, and over, and over again throughout the day when I'm stressed.

I'll let you know if it helps.

Thank you, What About Bob?!

Happy Moon Festival!

2011-09-10T22:22:00.001+08:00

Remember how I was going to Kenting today?

Well, instead I've spent the majority of the day bonding with my bed, but I also:

Bought bread
Had my throat swabbed and medicine subsequently shoved into the back of my mouth
Had... something (I don't know what) shoved up my nose and into my throat (I'm sorry, was that too graphic for you? Trust me, I could tell you more.)
Was given a million pills to take over the course of the next three days (tried tweeting a picture, realized it didn't work)
Watched some movies
Worked on my cross-stitch that I brought from home for 3 hours

My throat really burned for about an after going to the doctor, not to mention the nasty taste in my mouth every time I swallowed, but then it was magically Not Sore for about 5 hours. Dr. Wong speaks some English, enough to understand what I was telling him, but not enough to really efficiently tell me what's wrong. All I know is that there's some post-nasal drainage going on and that it's causing an infection in my throat. I don't know why my ears hurt because we kind of hit a communication wall at that point, so I just nodded my head and smiled. Then they loaded me up on drugs and sent me home! For $5.15 (USD, going off of today's conversion rate), I can't complain too much about the price. That includes all the pills and the visit. Awesome, right? I think I can handle this National Healthcare System they've got going on over here in Taiwan.

Honestly, though, I'm still enjoying myself. I'm enjoying my long-yearned for Alone Time, the fact that I don't have any obligations for a few days... This isn't such a bad way to spend a vacation.

Also, the Pills:

Don't ask me what they are or what they are for (other than making me better), because I haven't the faintest idea. I take all of these three times a day for three days. Cool, right? If there's any other nasty bug inhabiting my body and waiting to strike, I have a feeling its days are numbered.

Meanwhile, I hope this whole shooting off fireworks thing doesn't last all night, because I'd really like to get some sleep.

Talking about the weather

2011-09-06T17:47:00.000+08:00

Ahahaha.

If you are from a high-latitude country, you can leave your winter coat behind when coming to Taiwan and enjoy the pleasant warmth of the sun. If you'd rather experience the carefree sensation of healthy beads of sweat running down your forehead, then you should visit the beach at Kending (Kenting) in the southern Taiwan where it is summer all year round. The country is surrounded by oceans, and the ocean breezes, which are the reasons for Taiwan's humid weather, will surely make you completely forget the dry cold back home.

Sometimes I want to know when it's going to finally cool down, so I Google Taiwan's climate. That's when I find gems like the one above.

I am actually going to Kenting this Saturday after class. Here's to hoping it's a great vacation! Meanwhile, I'm busy trying to finish up progress reports before we leave, being that they're due next Tuesday. I'm about 80% done, and should be able to be 90% done by the end of the day, hopefully within the next two hours even.

Teaching = My Life

2011-09-04T19:38:00.002+08:00

So, for those of you who do not keep a blog or who do not use Blogger, well. Blogger recently changed their interface, and I'm not so sure I like it. Change is hard. This may take some getting used to.

Anyway.

Life has continued to be crazy busy, but for the most part I am doing well. You may or may not remember that there was a "typhoon" on Monday that cancelled classes for us. That was awesome, except for the one part where it meant that I wasn't able to get all the testing done that I needed to do in my elementary class. We will continue testing tomorrow and will hopefully be able to get caught up to where we need to be in another day or two.

Speaking of my elementary class, there is some good that comes from voicing concerns and complaints about students. Starting tomorrow, two of my students are going to be transferred out of my class into a brand new class that Gerald is creating. Sara (lucky girl!) gets to teach this class; I hear it will have about students in it. This change should make my class a lot easier to teach. I hope.

Also happening tomorrow, we will have three rotations in AK instead of 2! Currently, we have 20 students in AK which we've been splitting into two groups of 10. With this third rotation, we'll have two groups of seven and one group of six. I am also moving to a new section tomorrow and will start teaching Self and World Exploration. I better take a look at my lesson plans in the morning, because I've already forgotten what I was planning on doing... pray for me, yeah? I'm pretty nervous about "starting over," but at least this time I already know all of the kids. I'm also glad to be done teaching games. Kitchen wasn't so bad, but I think it will be good to get away from that one, too, for a while.

And now, this. For Halloween, the school is putting on this big production. I need to dress up, and I also need an activity (or two? I'm not real clear) to do with several different age groups. Any ideas? I'm drawing a total blank here. Halloween is totally not my thing.

Good news

2011-08-30T18:09:00.000+08:00

This is how I was feeling about 10 minutes ago when I received two pieces of Very Good News.

Then I learned that for these next two Fridays I'll be teaching for 9 hours instead of 7, and that kind of put a damper on the celebration. Still. One piece of good news far outweighs the semi-bad news.

Although, Jessica's face when she heard the "bad" news is making me really nervous, so, we'll see how this goes.

Another Alma Svithe

2011-08-28T18:20:00.000+08:00

I've been slowly typing all of my notes up onto my computer, but it's taking a while. Even after spending a good 40 minutes on this, I'm still way behind.

(74) Alma 41:2 “I say unto thee, my son, that the plan of restoration is requisite with the justice of God; for it is requisite that all things should be restored to their proper order. Behold, it is requisite and just, according to the power and resurrection of Christ, that the soul of man should be restored to its body, and that every part of the body should be restored to itself.” The Church, in a way, can be seen as being resurrected. For a time, it was no longer on the earth (dead), but it has now been “restored to [its] proper order,” or “resurrected.”

(75) Alma 43:50 “And they began to stand against the Lamanites with power; and in that selfsame hour that they cried unto the Lord for their freedom, the Lamanites began to flee before them…” When we pray to the Lord for strength against or freedom from temptation and the devil, He will help us as long as we have been living our lives in accordance with His will.

(76) Alma 46:18 “And he said: Surely God shall not suffer that we, who are despised because we take upon us the name of Christ, shall be trodden down and destroyed, until we bring it upon us by our own transgressions.” Isn’t this comforting to know? The only way we can be destroyed is if we bring it upon ourselves.

(77) Alma 47:3-6, 18 “And now it came to pass that the king was wroth because of their disobedience; therefore he gave Amalickiah the command of that part of his army which was obedient unto his commands, and commanded him that he should go forth and compel them to arms. Now behold, this was the desire of Amalickiah; for he being a very subtle man to do evil therefore he laid the plan in his heart to dethrone the king of the Lamanites. And now he had got the command of those parts of the Lamanites who were in favor of the king; and he sought to gain favor of those who were not obedient; therefore he went forward tot eh place which was called Onidah, for thither had all the Lamites fled; for they discovered the army coming, and, supposing that they were coming to destroy them, therefore they fled to Onidah, to the place of arms. And they had appointed a man to be a king and a leader of them, being fixed in their minds with a determined resolution that they would not be subjected to go against the Nephites… And it came to pass that Amalickiah caused that one of his servants should administer poison by degrees to Lehonti, that he died.” Notice that there is no neutral ground between good and evil. In verse 6, these Lamanites did not want to fight the Nephites, but they would not join them, either. I suspect that if they had joined the Nephites, they would have been offered some protection. Instead, their newly appointed king was “poison[ed] by degrees” and died.

(78) Alma 48:7 “Now it came to pass that while Amalickiah had thus been obtaining power by fraud and deceit, Moroni, on the other hand, had been preparing the minds of the people to be faithful unto the Lord their God.” The devil tries to tempt us into claiming a false power whereas when we rely on God, it is then that we are given true power, as long as we live righteously and only use that power to act in His name.

(79) Alma 56:8-9 “But I would not suffer them that they should break this covenant which they had made, supposing that God would strengthen us, insomuch that we should not suffer more because of the fulfilling the oath which they had taken. But behold, here is one thing in which we may have great joy…” God will not make us to suffer for keeping our covenants. IN stead, he will find ways to strengthen and protect us. It is in keeping our covenants and the oaths that we make to God that we find great joy.

(80) Alma 56:46 “For as I had ever called them my sons (for they were all of them very young) even so they said unto me: Father, behold our God is with us, and he will not suffer that we should fall, then let us go forth;” I really like this reminder that God does not and will not set us up for failure. If he asks us to do something and we go forward in faith and righteousness, we will succeed.

(81) Alma 56:47 “Now they had never fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.” My mother has tried to teach me this, too.

(82) Alma 57:21 “Yea, and they did obey and observe to perform every word of command with exactness; yea, and even according to their faith was it done unto them; and I did remember the words which they had said unto me that their mothers had taught them.” It is good to remember that with faith and complete obedience we can be preserved.

(83) Alma 58:35 “Behold, we do not know but what ye are unsuccessful, and ye have drawn away the forces into that quarter of the land; if so, we do not desire to murmur.” I learned two things from this: sometimes you just really don’t know why things are happening, and, secondly, it is not murmuring to ask for help.

(84) Alma 59:9 “And now as Moroni had supposed that there should be men sent to the city of Nephihah, to the assistance of the people to maintain that city, and knowing that it was easier to keep the city from falling into the hands of the Lamanites than to retake it from them, he supposed that they would easily maintain that city.” It is easier to remain on the straight and narrow than to fight your way through to get back on it after you’ve strayed.

Taipei Round Two

2011-08-28T18:12:00.000+08:00

Attention: This is another picture-heavy post. Enjoy, especially since I didn't take any pictures last week and since these are the only pictures I took this week (which is a real shame, actually, because in AK we were playing pin the ___ on the ___. Monday was pin the nose on the pig, and I told the kids they had to tape their pig noses to their faces before they could have a turn. I am SO SAD I didn't have my camera with me that day!).

Yesterday was our Stake Temple day. Because I had to work in the morning, though, I wasn't able to leave Feng Yuan until after all the other girls who were going up to Taipei. This meant I was traveling by myself! Was I worried? Yes. Very. I can't even begin to tell you how anxious I was feeling. Kylie gave me a ride to the UBus station on her scooter, though, and then I was off on my own! Thankfully, Jenny had written me several very detailed instructions on how to get to the temple so that I wouldn't get lost. Because of that, it was a piece of cake! There was only one part when I wasn't sure which direction I needed to head, and that was when I first got to the MRT station (the MRT is like the BART in the Bay Area or the Subway in NY). I was able to spot a couple of guys wearing MRT uniforms, though, so I just went up to one of them with my MRT map in hand and pointed to the stop where I wanted to go. He spoke enough English to direct me to my platform, and I was set! The last session at the temple on Saturdays starts at 3:00, and it takes quite a while to get up to Taipei by bus. So by the time I got off of the MRT, I was a little pressed for time. I practically ran past the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial to the temple. It's a 15-minute walk from where the MRT lets off to the temple gates, but I made it in 7 minutes. And I was dying by the time I got there, but it was fine! I also took a few pictures (as I was running) so that I had something to refer to if I started to question myself about the direction I was heading when I left the temple.

The MRT station: The According Man was there ALL DAY. Heather said he was there when they arrived in the morning (they would have gotten there around 10 or 11), and he was still there as we were leaving last night (at about 7:00). He was kind of amazing. I cut him out of this picture, but there was a guy video-taping According Man at the same time I took the picture.

Then there were a bunch of random pictures on the wall, so of course I had to keep record of the cat pictures. I didn't have time to read what they were all about (yes, there were signs in English).

Running past part of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial

Don't worry. Still running past. Also, that building in the background is where I was going to meet the other girls.

I had 10 minutes to get dressed before the session started; I don't think I've ever changed so fast in my life! ALSO, Jenny was still there! She told me later, "Rachel, I've never been so happy to see your face!" She was pretty worried I might get lost somewhere, too (there are valid reasons for these worries; even though it's been two months -almost to the day!- I still don't know where I am half the time when we go out). Anyway, it was a very nice session, but also very full. They actually had to bring in 2 or 3 extra chairs because there weren't enough seats for everyone. A lot of prayers have been answered for me this weekend, and I'm very grateful for my Heavenly Father's ever watchful eye.

After the session, Jenny and I bid each other farewell. I was supposed to meet with Heather, Kaylee, and Jessica at the main Chiang Kai-shek monument at 5:30. I left the temple at 5:00, but I took my time getting there. First I took a few pictures of the temple. There was a little family there taking pictures of their son, too, and it was kind of adorable.

The backpack is mine. I was too lazy to lug it around the temple grounds with me.

Pretty sure this is the smallest temple EVER (OK, I haven't checked the statistics; there might be smaller temples, but it's by far the smallest one I have ever been to), but I think it is still by far my favorite place to visit in Taiwan.

I wish I would have written down what this sculpture was called. It's kind of pretty (albeit very abstract), and there's even a waterfall!

Ginger plants grow in a planter on the sidewalk. I love the purple in this one.

Then I saw this building. Alright, so most of the buildings in this part of Taipei look kind of run-down. This one, though, was extra special. Can you tell what's on the roof? Here. Let me enlarge it for you:

Yup. Statues of Buddha. I don't even know.

So, the grounds for Chiang Kai-shek memorial is HUGE. There are botanical gardens and a park, and just all kinds of gorgeous scenery. I wanted to make sure I got to the top of the monument at least fairly-close to our meet-up time, so I didn't spend very long walking around. I did, however, take a few pictures before I got to the actual monument.

A cat, just taking it easy. There are stray animals everywhere in Taiwan, but most of the ones you see are dogs.

A really cool tree

Some purple flowers growing on some type of vine (I know; I'm great at this description thing!)

And the monument itself. There are 89 stairs to the top. Yes, I counted all of them. Also, I learned that the stairs and the fact that there are 89 of them is supposed to be in representation of how old Chiang Kai-shek was when he died in 1975. It sounds like a lot, but it really wasn't any worse than climbing up the stairs here at the school from the first floor to the fourth, which we all do several times a day.

Heather and Kaylee made it! I was so happy to see them. Jessica showed up shortly after.

I just bought this skirt on Wednesday. It's very light-weight and I love it, even if it isn't the skirt I was planning on buying.

The ceiling of the monument

Please look carefully at these next two pictures. Inside of the monument, there's an exhibition hall where they have a diorama of the monument.

Did you see anything wrong with those pictures? You may have to click on them to enlarge them. Don't worry. There are two dead people. One of them, it appears, fell down the stairs and is lying on his back (see the first image). The second dead man is lying face first, so I think something very dramatic and violent happened to him, but maybe he just had a heart-attack. Kaylee took a picture of this, too, using my red-eye light (or whatever it's called; I'm drawing a blank right now) for dramatic effect. I'm hoping she posts it on her blog, because it was hilarious.

The man himself. You only thought he was dead! (Seriously, this thing is very realistic. It's actually kind of creepy. You keep expecting it to move, but, thankfully, it never does.)

The exhibition hall closes at 6:00, so we made our way back outside to go sit on the steps. It was a perfect evening, though. There was a slight breeze, and the sky was so blue! We couldn't have asked for a better day.

They did a flag ceremony as we were sitting on the steps enjoying the sunset. Some guards marched out to the flag, they played the national anthem, and it was very patriotic. If you look closely, you can see a man saluting. He is near the center of the frame with his wife and two kids.

Folding the flag (on 20x zoom, so it's kind of blurry, but we were sitting quite a ways away)

See? Gorgeous sunset!

And a final look at the promenade as we were leaving.

Meanwhile, there is a Typhoon warning for all of Taiwan. WE REALLY WANT THIS TYPHOON TO HIT! There may or may not be school tomorrow. Because we live in the central western part of Taiwan, we are pretty well protected by the mountains and everything, so don't worry about that. Also, we all kind of want to see what these legendary typhoons are like, since there haven't been ANY since we got here!

Here's hoping!

More of those crazy kids

2011-08-24T11:34:00.000+08:00

Yesterday I spent pretty much the whole day laying down in bed because every time I moved, I felt really sick. Jenny was kind enough to substitute for me in AK; I'm glad it was a Tuesday that my body decided to be sick on, because luckily I only had AK to teach yesterday. Apparently Jenny told Amy (one of the secretaries) that my stomach was bugging me, because this morning she came in and Amy had given her some stomach medicine to give to me. I haven't tried it yet (am feeling quite a bit better), but if this sick-to-the-stomach pattern continues, you can guarantee I'm going to give it a shot. Even though I'm sure it tastes revolting.

Anyway. More pictures of the small children that suck away all my energy. Jack took most of these pictures (I told him he could help me, but only after I got one of him).

Here is Jack.

Tiffany.

Oscar

Danny and Derrick

Candice (in the back) and Daniel, being... you know. Clueless. Vincent and Danny being goofy.

Mia's face is the one that's only half there, Kyran is in the back to the left, Candice, Immy (pink), Vincent, and Peko who jumped in last minute

Mia didn't want to be in this picture, but she didn't get out fast enough. Kyran being... pretty normal for him, really.

Kids say (or write) the darndest things!

2011-08-19T12:24:00.000+08:00

"Mango is a healthy fruit, but if you eat too many, it is not good to you."

How true that is.

A short note

2011-08-17T09:50:00.001+08:00

Hey, guys. Just a quick note letting you know Kendra has posted a bunch of pictures from Ershui, including a picture of one staircase going up the mountain (one out of many). Check it out if you're interested!

For the record

2011-08-15T10:53:00.000+08:00

Mosquito bites here, they don't just itch. They really hurt, too.

This is even after practically bathing myself in bug repellent. Last count? 48 mosquito bites. A long ways off from my record, but still notable.

Hey, hey, we're the Monkeys

2011-08-15T10:46:00.001+08:00

On Saturday, a few of my fellow teachers and I headed out to Ershui because we heard it was awesome and that you can see wild monkeys there.

True?

All of it.

We took the train there, and the ride lasted for about an hour and 15 minutes. At one point, an old lady got on with two huge baskets attached to a pole that she carried. She smelled strongly of fish. After she sat down next to me, I could see why. In one of here baskets were 2 or 3 live eels! They were really gross looking. She also kept falling asleep... on my shoulder. That wasn't awkward at all.

When we arrived in Ershui, we took the opportunity to use some Western-style toilets at the train station there, and then we headed over to the bike rental agency that was located in the same square as the station. There, we rented 4 bikes, and then we headed on our way towards Monkey Mountain (I don't know what it's actually called, but I liked the alliteration).

Kendra and Kaylee rented a tandem bike. My memory of attempting to ride a tandem bike at girls' camp one year is not good, so I opted for your regular, one-seater bicycle.

After one or two wrong turns and being pointed in the right direction by a man on a scooter with limited English, we managed to find the right road to the monkey trail. (There were also a bunch of old men outside a store on a street corner that, when they saw us, got kind of excited and yelled "Monkeys! Yeah, yeah!" and pointed us up the road.)

Our group, minus Jenny who was taking the photo. Jessica, me, Kendra, and Kaylee

We took the path on the other side of this bridge on the way back down the mountain, just for a change in scenery. Bad idea. Why? The stench! OH MY GOSH IT WAS HORRIBLE! There was also a stray dog that was acting really nervous about us. We think maybe she had her puppies nearby. Stray dogs are, sadly, extremely common here. It's hard to go more than 5 seconds without seeing one when you're outside.

Speaking of stray dogs... this one was taking a nice nap in the shade.

Everything was so green in Ershui! And by everything, I mean the water, too.

I'm curious as to what the "correct ways to play" are.

First monkey sighting! They were doing flips, jumping to and from trees, screeching at each other... it was pretty amazing.

There were also these huge, polished rocks everywhere. I am not sure why, but it was fun to take pictures on this one. Don't even worry. I already had at least 10 mosquito bites at this point, and that's with bug repellent.

Loved the colors of these plants.

That is a butterfly, I promise. It landed just as I was snapping the picture.

Speaking of huge bugs, check out this spider. These nasties were everywhere.

Also, that black smudge on that giant leaf? Another spider. I told you! Everywhere!

A couple was there with their dog (not a stray!). The dog really liked the monkeys.

And then, as I was about to take the picture below, this little fella jumped into my frame. I am pretty sure he/she/it did it on purpose. Check out that stoic face.

Monkey family!

How many monkeys can you see in this picture?

Tianna, I took this for you. Wandering Jew seems to be native to Taiwan and was sure doing the wandering thing really well.

"Formosan macaques (Formosan rock-monkeys), belong to a specific wild and endangered mammals, come and go unexpectedly alongside this trail. Their appearance would be your most fortunate moement. Then if you wouldn't mind stop for a while to watch what they are doing, you will certainly find unexpected rewards and surprises." The "Note" is not as interesting, so I'm not transcribing it here.

Finally, the top of the mountain! My first look into the valley below

I was the last one to make it up all those stairs and I was definitely huffing and puffing the whole way. There were some Taiwanese people at the top watching me climb and one of them started cheering me along, "Jaiyo! You can do it! Jaiyo!" He asked us if we had come all the way from the bottom (yes) and how long it took us (about an hour). They all seemed to be very impressed, but I'm not sure why because we weren't the only ones coming from the bottom of the mountain... Maybe it's because we're Americans and Americans are lazy.

Jenny and I were thinking that this must make some pretty impressive waterfalls when it rains.

The temple at the top

There was a road back behind the temple and tons and tons of shops selling mostly tea. We explored for a little bit, and a few of us purchased some more water bottles, having completely finished off the ones that we'd brought with us.

We found this awesome statue. Jessica, Jenny, Kaylee, and Kendra

After we got back to our bicycles at the bottom of the mountain, we decided to ride around for a bit and explore Ershui some more. There is this wonderful bike path that we took for quite some distance (about 4 meters round trip). There were a lot of rice patties near the trail and, therefore, a lot of bugs (I don't want to go into it, but it was really gross and we had bugs in our eyes), but it was also very beautiful.

Cranes in the rice patty! I tried zooming in more, but they kept putting their heads down. I'm guessing they were eating.

Formosan Sunset

And, finally, "Watch our the incoming vehicles"

Ershui was such a cute little town. It was nice to get away from the city for a bit. We were all glad to get home, though, where we could take showers and get some rest. I don't think I have ever sweat so much as I did on Saturday! Very gross. But well worth it. Despite all the mosquito bites that I have that make it hard for me to even sleep.

------

Yesterday I gave a talk in church on Baptism and Covenants. Mom, Dad, I'm going to mail it to you (probably) instead of putting it up here on my blog. Jenny Phillips was in our branch and sang a musical number for us during Sacrament Meeting, too. She is doing a tour around Taiwan and a fireside last night in Taichung. After church, Sister Chang asked me to her home for some lunch and offered to let me take a nap in her spare room before taking me to the fireside. She also invited Kaylee along. Of course I accepted! (It was something of an answered prayer, because I knew I would be so tired Sunday and then still be tired today. Because the fireside was at the Stake Center, it would have been inconvenient for us to go to church and come home just to have to leave again, so we teachers all planned to stay in Taichung for the whole day.) Dinner was nice and we had a delicious chocolate cake roll for dessert. Also, I learned that nice beds do in fact exist in Taiwan, as Sister Chang's spare bed was almost as comfortable as the bed I have at home. I think that was the best nap I've taken since getting here!

The fireside was very good and very crowded. There were not enough seats for everyone! Luckily we got there when there were still a couple rows of seats at the back of the room, but there were several dozen people standing around us for the whole thing, too. Kaylee and I left a little early because Sister Chang was worried about getting her children to bed and wanted to take us to the train station, which was extremely kind of her. We ended up getting home an hour before the other girls, despite the fact that the fireside was almost over when we left.

At the train station, Kaylee and I met three high school girls that wanted to talk to us. They have apparently seen us before at the train station in Feng Yuan, and on looking back, they did look a little familiar, so I believe them. When we arrived in Feng Yuan, they wanted to take a picture with us. So, somewhere out there, probably on two Taiwanese Facebook profiles, there is a picture of me that I'll never see. Awesome. Talk about feeling like a celebrity.

Well, another week of teaching begins. In another two weeks, I won't have AK on Tuesdays as Summer schedule will have finally ended. Now, if only the heat of summer would end, too...

One Month... again

2011-08-08T20:55:00.000+08:00

It's another 1 month anniversary! Exactly a month ago today was the first day of teaching. Now I am feeling a lot more sure of myself (not sure about everything, mind you, but better than a month ago) and I know pretty well what to expect behavior-wise from most of the kiddies. I'm finally beginning to establish my routine!

Also, today in AK Christina took a few pictures of me with some of our students. When I gain access to those pictures, I will let you know. I'm sure they're amazing!

Also also, HAPPY FATHER'S DAY! I know, you all thought Father's Day was in June, but here it is on August 8.

Also also also, I finally managed to make it to the post office. The worker actually spoke some English, which was fantastic, and it only cost me $.90 USD to send two letters. I hope those letters actually get to their destination, because that feels a little bit like too good of a deal, especially considering the cost of air-mail stamps in the States...

Another weekend gone!

2011-08-07T21:48:00.000+08:00

Yesterday was my first Saturday teaching. I know, right? Well, it wasn't too bad, except I could hardly get the student to talk to me. I think she maybe said all of 5 sentences the whole hour and a half we were together. Since tomorrow is Father's Day here in Taiwan, we wrote a letter and made a card for her dad. At first she was really struggling in the creativity field, but then she wowed me with her drawing skills. All of these kids here are amazing artists, even the kids who are only 7 years-old.

Anyway, so yesterday afternoon a few of us decided to find the Jade market in Taichung. Unfortunately, by the time we got there they were slowly beginning to close up shop, so we have every plan to go back sometime earlier in the day... also after we've actually been paid (I just don't feel OK about spending my food stipend on things that are far from being edible- well, unless it's transportation. I'll spend food stipend money on that, too).

And here is Kaylee's face upon finding the Jade market. Yes, we were excited. Something about having found it by ourselves with no one who had been there before.

The Jade market

Then today after church on our walk home from the bus stop, Kendra noticed this cactus growing over a wall. Check out the cool dangly plant!

And just because she's so gorgeous, a picture of Kendra, too.

Thoughts on Alma (continued)

2011-08-06T23:03:00.000+08:00

It's been way too long since I last updated this "segment" on my blog. I am way behind! Hopefully I can get caught up and it won't take me very long. Here are just a few thoughts that I've already managed to type up.

(66) Alma 34:4 “Yea, even that ye would have so much faith as even to plant the word in your hearts. That ye may try the experiment of its goodness.” Remember that another name for Christ is “the Word.” Therefore, it is Christ what we need to plant in our hearts. Is there anything in this world that has more goodness than the word of Christ?

(67) Alma 34:26 “But this is not all; ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness.” Another definition of wilderness is a position of disfavor, so when things are seemingly not going in our favor, or when we have fallen out of favor with God, we should cry unto him in prayer.

(68) Alma 34:35 “For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance even until death, behold, ye have become subjected to the spirit of the devil, and he doth seal you his; therefore, the Spirit of the Lord hath withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you, and the devil hath all power over you; and this is the final state of the wicked.” I think this makes it pretty clear why “deathbed repentance” is such a bad idea. When you procrastinate repenting, you do lose the Lord’s Spirit, and so you will also lose the desire to repent and to make peace with God. Once that desire is fully gone, you will already belong to the devil.

(69) Alma 37:8 “And now, it has hitherto been wisdom in God that these things should be preserved; for behold, they have enlarged the memory of this people, yea, and convinced many of the error of their ways, and brought them to the knowledge of their God unto the salvation of their souls.” Reading the scriptures and the word of God enlarges our capacity to remember many things.

(70-72) Alma 37:41-42 “Nevertheless, because those miracles were worked by small means it did show unto them marvelous works. They were slothful, and forgot to exercise their faith and diligence and then those marvelous works ceased, and they did not progress in their journey, therefore, they tarried in the wilderness, or did not travel a direct course, and were afflicted with hunger and thirst, because of their transgressions.” Before now, I had never thought of not being faithful as being slothful. What does it mean to be slothful, anyway? Some dictionaries define it as being “disinclined to work,” which to me suggests that being faithful requires real work. So, when we cease to exercise faith and diligence, we are no longer able to grow and progress in our own journeys back to the Lord. Not only is our progression stunted when we become slothful, but our spirits are also afflicted with “hunger and thirst” when we transgress the laws of God.

(73) Alma 40:3 “Now, I unfold unto you a mystery; nevertheless, there are many mysteries which are kept, that no one knoweth them save God himself. But I show unto you one which I have inquired diligently of God that I might know…” I’ve noticed something of a trend where people ask a lot of “speculative doctrinal questions” and I think it is just silly and a waste of time to ask and spend any time or energy about questions to which no one except God has the answers to. It is important to note that God has given us all the answers and information we need, pertaining to our salvation and bringing souls of others unto Christ, he has given us enough information that, if we were to spend all our times and energies understanding this information, this true doctrine, and implementing that knowledge and wisdom with action, then we would find immortality and eternal life right there before us, ours for the taking. We should therefore seek after those things which God has revealed and, when needful, ask for guidance in understanding those things which maybe haven’t personally revealed themselves in our hearts.

Meet the Students (Part one of... who knows)

2011-08-04T17:28:00.001+08:00

Yesterday I took my camera to AK class. My first group were being little pills, so I didn't take any pictures of them, but I did manage to snap a few of my second group. I kind of think I should have taken the camera again today, because today it was the other way around. You just can never guess who will be having a good day and who will be having an off day! It's also more interesting in AK now because on Monday our class literally doubled in size. Supposedly we have one more student that hasn't come yet, but maybe they dropped out... One can only hope, right? (Truth be told, I actually do love these kids. They wear me out more than I would have expected, but they are cute. Even on their bad days, they're still cute.)

No, I didn't take pictures of everyone in this group. I only took pictures of those who said they wanted their picture taken. Maybe next time I just won't give them the option?

This is Derrick. He is new this week. On our roster, we have his name down as "Cerrick," but I must say that I prefer his actual name to the one that we thought it was. He's quiet, but pretty smart. I am pretty sure that is Oscar next to Derrick, but it might be Vincent... I keep getting those two mixed up! Christina, can you tell?

Here is crazy Nick. This kid is a genius, I swear! I actually think he should probably be in the next level up instead of AK. Nick has tons of energy (sometimes too much) and he bores easily if the dialogue is too simple. Behind Nick is Immy. She's only been coming for about 2 weeks now. She does pretty well during games, but she hates snack time because she hates food. I think she is a pickier eater than me, and that is saying something (I mean, seriously, who doesn't like bread? Oh. that would be Immy. Immy doesn't like bread. Or ham. Or cheese. Or crackers. Or yogurt. Or granola. But she does like mangoes.)

Tiffany, Candice, and Mia. This picture captures the essence of their personalities to a T. Tiffany understands quite a bit, but she can't really communicate verbally in English. She's very good at charades, though. She loves to give Christina and I hugs, and every time she sees us in the halls we will hear her say "Teacher!" Yesterday I kept hearing her little voice call out "Teacher," even when I was upstairs. In my room. On my bed. I could hear her. Kind of like when you get a certain song stuck in your head, you know? That's what it was like. Candice. Candice likes to be silly. She keeps telling us "Me home have a nake," so I am guessing that means she recently got a pet snake. Also, I'm pretty sure she and Nick have a little crush on each other. On Monday I had them drawing pictures of their family and she drew a picture of her mom, dad, sister Amy, Grandma, Grandpa, and a snake. Mia is also fairly new, and very quiet. Somehow she knows Jack, but we found they are better off not being in the same group because Jack is either too protective of her or starts teasing her incessantly. She's very good at parroting things, but she can't typically verbalize on her own. At least, not in my classes.

The Botanical Gardens and National Museum of Science

2011-07-31T21:45:00.000+08:00

Yesterday we spent the day in Taichung. Besides hitting up Costco, we also went to a botanical garden and a few of us explored the National Museum of Science. Of course I took a million pictures, but I also finally managed to get three whole pictures of myself on my camera!

These tiles were really cool. You can't really see the picture that they form until you look in the mirror in the center. Jenny pointed it out to us as a little side-trip on our way to the botanical garden.

Can you see the picture? Butterflies!

This is a clock. There were a lot of people looking at the clock. We didn't really take the time to stop. (haha)

Another giant butterfly! And me. I really am here in Taiwan!

Kylie and Kendra.

Veronica and me

Biggest durian (I think that's what it is... Felix?) Ever.

Me again. Just in case you've forgotten what I look like.

Giant fish!

More of the giant fish! The biggest one I am pretty sure was bigger than me.

And this catfish reminded me of the ones at SeaWorld in the Manatee Rescue tank.

A ray for my sister

Dr. Harris, these dinosaurs are all for you. (Just ignore the date and time stamp; brand new camera and I, of course, did not read the manual so in playing with the settings, I somehow turned that feature on and didn't notice until a few pictures later. Fun fact: I actually set the date a day ahead on accident, so it's not completely accurate, anyway) The shirts say "Discover the Dinosaur" and are Chinglish free!

Some cute coconut pigs. I almost bought one because I think they are adorable, but I decided against it. The hot glue on this one makes it look like it is crying. Poor, sad pig.

I don't know. All the signs and exhibits were in Chinese, but I think it probably has something to do with the aborigines that first inhabited Taiwan.

Dandelion Fluff in a glass ball! I thought it was cool.

This was very ironic to my life for reasons that I can't really explain. But, hey, lanternfish! And other light-up sea creatures.

Kyle, this one is for you. You're welcome.

One exhibit that we were able to fully understand, even though everything explaining it was in Chinese. You know you've got a good illustration (can I use that word to describe our little water-filled friend here?) when it makes sense to people that can't understand your language.

A "nake" skeleton (Almost all of my AK students say "nake" instead of "snake." It's not actually adorable anymore.)

These dinosaurs moved. I actually took a couple videos of the moving dinos. They were awesome. Also, remember how I said all of the exhibits were in Chinese? That was totally true... until we came to the dinosaur exhibits! Then they started to be in Chinese and English, and it was fantastic. Most of the exhibits from here on out had English.

I took a picture of this feathered, flying dino (I'm sorry, I forgot the name. I am a terrible student.) without the flash, and then I took this one with flash and found the flash made it a lot creepier. I would not actually want this to come after me. That would not be awesome.

This giant beetle is chasing an elephant. I don't actually know why or what was going on with this display because it was one of the few in this part of the museum that was still only in Chinese.

Also, I thought this was disgusting. They have a display showing, basically, the circle of life. This dead bird is being eaten by maggots (they're not real, at least).

Anything can happen in Taiwan. Here, pigs fly!

I kind of loved the various archaeology related displays. Don't even worry, there is a mummy further on.

Can you see the number? It was constantly changing. At 3:42 PM in Taiwan on July 30th, 2011, the world's population was approximately 6,907,601,327 people.

They had this fun thing that you could do (same wall as the world population display) that showed about how many people had lived and died since you entered the museum. You enter in however many minutes you think you've been there and it does the calculations. In 30 minutes, it was estimated that 7,380 babies were born and 3,240 people died.

Sara, Me, and Heather. It sensed your body heat or something? I don't really remember very clearly. I was getting kind of tired by this point.

The real, dead mummy!

I want to go back sometime so that I can see the rest of the museum. It was HUGE and reminded me of some of the museums that I went to on my LA art trip this past semester.

Christina, Veronica, Kendra, Kaylee, Kylie, and Jessica. Jenny was on the phone and we were just waiting for Heather and Sara to finish looking in the final museum gift shop.

Also, for you, Mom. My first Taiwanese souvenir! I can't believe I went a whole month without buying anything souvenir related, but this was a real orchid, not too expensive, and I just couldn't pass it up, especially since it is tiny and should therefore be easy to take home.

Kids say (or write) the darndest things!

2011-07-27T10:53:00.000+08:00

My 5G class can be a real challenge, but reading their writing assignments is so entertaining.

The writing prompt: Amelia helped Larry Daley. Imagine you are Larry. What person from the past would you like to help you and why? How could that person help you?

Most of the children had really well thought out answers that were very sweet. Some of them, though, cracked me up. Like this one from Jacky: "The dead cockroach can help me because it will help me to be happy, because I can use slippers to hit it and he is dead so it will help me... My teacher is not dead, but the cockroach [is]."

Funtimes and a Birthday!

2011-07-26T11:45:00.000+08:00

Kaylee, Christina, and I went to see James last night after I was done teaching. Kaylee had brought pictures of her family to show him, and James started commenting about her hair. Then he turned to me and said, "Your hair is dark, like Asians." "Umm... I dye my hair. It's not really this dark," I told him. And he looked absolutely horrified and shocked that I would want to have dark hair! I told him I will bring him pictures to show him what my hair really looks like, because he couldn't picture my natural color. I am not sure I can even picture/explain my natural color any more because it's been almost 2 years since my hair was its natural color. This means I need to figure out how to print pictures here, because I didn't actually bring any hard copies with me (of course not, I was trying to pack super light).

While we were waiting for the other girls to meet up with us for Jessica's birthday dinner, Christina and I decided to go check out the inside of McDonalds (because it is 3 stories, and what McDonalds needs to be 3 stories? Only in Taiwan). Kaylee said she would watch out for our bikes while we were inside. As Christina and I were coming back down the stairs to leave, I totally caught a guy trying to sneak a picture of us. We're starting to wonder just how many "covert operation" pictures people have captured of us.

Finally, we had dinner at a place called Style that seems to be open 24 hours. Jenny called it the Denny's of Fengyuan, but the food was about a million times better than anything I've ever had/smelled at Denny's. Also, there were English menus, which is always a plus because then you don't have to guess about what you're getting.

Don't worry, Dr. Harris. Even though they did have 1000 yr old eggs, I didn't get any.

Heather, the Birthday Girl (Jessica), and Kaylee (who was trying not to be in the picture, but my camera was acting up so I couldn't actually tell what was in the frame and what wasn't)

Kendra

The fruit waffle I ate. SO GOOD!

Christina got some sort of duck dish because she wanted to be daring. She did not love it, but the flame was cool!

Kendra taking pictures of her fruit honey toast

Inside of it was stuffed with delicious bread

The first bite

And what we fondly began to refer to as "The Beak" oranges.

Kylie with Jessica's surprise birthday cake (sorry it's blurry. I DON'T KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON WITH MY CAMERA! IT'S NOT LIKE I DROPPED IT OFF A MOUNTAIN ONCE OR ANYTHING!)

The Magic Trick

2011-07-25T12:12:00.000+08:00

Saturday in Taipei

2011-07-24T22:44:00.001+08:00

Yesterday President Baclayon rented a bus for our branch to take a trip up to Taipei to go to the temple. When I say the "branch," though, it basically ended up being the ILP teachers, the Listons, and President Baclayon himself. Small crowd (but then, that's half the branch right there!). I have been looking forward to this trip ever since our first Sunday here in Taiwan when we found out about it.

a building in/on the way to Taipei (I slept for most of the bus ride there, and this is as we were about to get off the freeway, so I think we were in Taipei by then)

A river. I know, thrilling.

More buildings we sped past

Taipei 101 in the distance

Jessica, me, and Jenny in front of the Taipei Taiwan Temple after the session

It was a really good session at the temple, but the temple is TINY! It is smaller than any other temple I have every been in, and I have been in a few of the smaller temples! They do have clothing rental, but Jessica and I brought our own clothes with us, so we didn't have to worry about that. We were supposed to go to the 1:30 session, but there weren't any men there for it, so we had to wait until the 2:00 session. The endowment room only holds 30 people and two temple workers. The session itself was pretty full, though. By the time it started, there were only 3 empty seats! Weird part: there were actually more men then women, and I don't think I've ever been in a session where that was the case. Of course it was all in Chinese, so we got to wear the cool translator head-sets. All of the temple workers that I came into contact with could speak English, and that was fantastic for me. We met the temple Matron and President Horner, too. They seem to be like the nicest people ever! I can't wait to go back and spend another day at the Taipei Taiwan temple. It is such a blessing to me to be a part of a religion that is the same world-wide. Everything about being in the temple was familiar to me. There have been no major surprises in our little English speaking branch (other than the investigator that came last week and had a bottle of beer in his bag, but we all loved him anyway; I even saw him again today, and he looked much more with it, but I think he attended one of the Chinese wards this week.

What my first sighting of the temple looked like, but taken after as we were waiting for the bus to come get us again

A cool-looking building

Another neat building

After the temple, the bus dropped us off at Taipei 101, the second tallest building in the world. President Baclayon, Jenny, and I went around the block to eat dinner at Chili's (hey, sometimes you just really need something familiar to eat!), and then we spent some time hunting down Coldstone. I tell you what. Best. Ice cream. Ever! (Well, best ice cream since I got here.)

Taipei 101. Can't even see the top!

Veronica, Heather, Kylie, Christina (Sara behind Christina where you can't see her), Jessica Stoker, Jenny, and Kaylee waiting for the bus outside of 101

While we were waiting, this guy was walking around with his camera crew talking to people. Then I saw them (the guy and his crew) notice us, and they kind of huddled up and started talking. I was pretty sure they were trying to muster up their courage to come talk to us. Sure enough, a few minutes later they came up and asked Veronica where she was from, then he asked her if she had NT$100. He wanted to do a magic trick for us. I kind of loved him! I want to be his best friend (because he speaks English and can do cool tricks!) Kylie got a video of the whole thing, but I can't get it to load to Blogger. I'll try to put it on Youtube tomorrow and I'll stick a link or embed it here on my blog when I do. For now, it is off to sleep!

Next and final question before I do anything incredibly weird. For those of you that have had experience with this ambien fun stuff. You wanna share some fun stories?

Jessica came over and started talking to me and I don't know what I did. I thought I'd just looked her normal, you know, trying to decide If the ambien hit enough that I could go to bed, She have me this weird look and not real sure why.. Maybe it has something to do with the weird faces I keep giving the screen. It's really hard to type, though, when your left eye is deciding to focus at a different distance than your right eye

Man this stuff. Pair it with the right bedtime toons, and you've got an experience you won't remember but night like to, especially that whole trying to finish up a blog post thing that normally only takes 3o seconds and this one took closer to... 30 minutes.

The Miscellaneous Files Part 1

2011-07-21T21:21:00.001+08:00

This is part one of an indefinite series. Theoretically I'll be posting just small thoughts/events/adventures that happen to me here in Taiwan (small being not long enough for their own post) in the Miscellaneous Files.

First. It has been three weeks and one day since we landed in this country. Do I still have my bruise? Why yes, I do! BUT it is almost faded! The lump is not any smaller yet, though... I wonder how long until that goes away.

Also note that red dot. See it? Yeah. Step outside for not even 30 seconds without bug repellent and this is what happens. I have two nearly identical bites on my arm. I am surprised that I don't have a lot more, but I guess I have been remembering to put on my bug repellent about 90% of the time. It is those impromptu trips outside that get me. (Actually, today's was not so impromptu; it was pretty well-planned, I just forgot about it.)

Second: Kindergarten students are gross.
Exhibit A: Yesterday Jay, the new boy, was caught picking his nose and eating his boogers during Opening. SO GROSS!
Exhibit B: DON'T ask me how I figured this out (it was by accident and not something I wanted to know, ever), but one of our little boys does not wear underwear. I MAY BE TRAUMATIZED FOR LIFE!! Especially since he sat on my foot. Umm...

Zen Park

2011-07-19T10:43:00.000+08:00

Last night a few of us decided to ride our bikes to the Zen Park (the one with the maze that we went to our first day here; did I post about that?) because there is a path you can walk on that supposedly massages your feet or something? I don't know. I hear it hurts to walk on, though, and I wasn't too keen on taking my shoes off outside and walking around, especially not in Taiwan. Unfortunately, it was getting pretty dark, so the few pictures I took are not very good, but I figured I would share them, anyway!

First, the giant beetle I found. I had Christina point to it so you could see just how big it was.

Kendra, Heather, and Jessica attempting to walk on the path. Kendra was the only one that made it all the way to the end.

The statue in the center of the park is well-lit at night.

There were tons of guys playing basketball. I don't know how well you can see them through the trees. Maybe I will go back some day and take a better picture of all the basketball players! There were also about 5 ladies in uniforms doing a dance to some traditional sounding music. I am not sure what that was all about, but it looked fun!

And then Christina saw this humongous snail as we were walking back to where our bikes were parked. I threw my keys in for perspective.

But then we decided we needed to move the snail to better light. Except then it got scared and went into its shell (as best it could; it was too big to fit all the way), so I convinced Christina to jump in there to add more interest to the photo.

Coming out of its shell

I promise there are photos of me around here, just not any on my camera. Maybe I can convince someone to do a photo exchange (*cough* Christina? *cough*)...

July 14-17

2011-07-17T19:34:00.002+08:00

Alright. Thursday. I didn't forget. Unfortunately, neither has my arm forgotten. It has felt like it is on fire ever since I got that ridiculous shot. Anyway, Charlene (one of the secretaries for the school) is the one that took us to the hospital. We were there for 2 and a half hours! We had to wait a long time to see the doctor, and she asked us some questions and was surprised when we told her we had already had our MMR. Then we had to go pay somewhere else (it was about $25 USD, give or take). Then we had to go get the vaccine at the medicine distribution counter. After that, we had to walk across the street to the emergency room, which is where they give you the shot. Almost they gave mine to me standing up, even after I told them I would probably pass out, but I asked if I could at least sit down first, and they said yes. It hurt almost as much as the Hepatitis shots. I had to sit there with my eyes closed for a few minutes because the room started spinning on me, but then I was OK (sore, but OK). After that, we had to go back to the doctor to pick up some more paper work, and then finally we had to go get our papers stamped by the government officials (I think?) that are at the hospital. THEN we got to come home and I just stayed on my bed for 2 hours until it was time to go to AK.

And a picture of Christina and her ow:

Friday I was very busy. I worked on my lesson plan for a good 3 hours before class, and that was even after having worked on it 3 hours the night before. Turns out I prepared too much to cover, but more on that later. Fridays are also my really long days; I teach from 1:30-8:50 without any breaks (well, I've got about 10 minutes between each class, but I always spend that time setting up or running upstairs just long enough to use the bathroom). Frances came into my 5G class yesterday as it was starting and rearranged the way I had the desks set up and also my seating chart. Jenny says this is normal Frances behavior. What bothered me is that she didn't say anything to me at all, she just started shouting at my kids in Chinese and seemed really angry. She was in my class for about 10 minutes arranging things and shouting in Chinese the whole time and never even looked at me until she was leaving and she told me "This way is better," and that I needed to keep my eyes on George and Eric (which I have already discovered for myself), and then she left. I don't mind the way she changed things (in fact, I actually really like the new arrangement for the desks), I just minded the way she handled it. I felt kind of embarrassed and belittled because I had no idea what was going on and my students kept looking at me. We actually did end up doing the exercise rotations, we just didn't use the weights. (The exercise rotations are part of our DPVE's, which I don't remember what that stands for right now, but it has to do with verbalization things. We were trying to teach them new vocabulary based on muscles and exercise and how they felt after exercise, as well as get them to use their muscles because children here aren't really used to that sort of thing. Wednesday a child got hurt using the weights, and so we thought we weren't going to do them anymore.) It was absolute chaos and I am glad we are not doing that any more, especially since I didn't have time to get through even half of my lesson (we barely had time for the spelling test, and I still have not graded all of them). I actually had to make one class just sit at the desks without talking to anyone for about 5 minutes because they were all being so rude, and then I asked them if they were willing to try again. The last group of kids I had in rotations I took one downstairs to the secretaries because he was very much so not listening to me. He was running around in circles around the room and wouldn't stop, and then he just laid on the floor and wouldn't get up. Finally I just grabbed his arm, forced him to stand, and marched him out the door. He was in Heather's class, and when her students were going back to their room, I heard Heather asking the only girl where the boy was. The girl said "He made the teacher really mad and she took him downstairs. Teacher was really angry!" I hadn't realized I was angry, but I guess when the threat to take a student to the secretary becomes a reality, that is the way the teacher is perceived as being, namely ANGRY.

Christina and I then walked to Amart because Jenny told us we should probably have our own toilet paper and at least one gallon of water to be prepared for the typhoon, worst-case scenario. (Oh, yeah. There was a typhoon warning for Saturday, in case you didn't catch my tweet on Twitter about that.) I bought another pillow there (now I have my fortress of pillows! Yea!) and decided to buy a lot of instant noodles, too, hoping that they will be good (the one that I've tried so far is SO GOOD! I will have to get some more).

As we were approaching Amart, though, this guy (probably in his 20's) was walking the other direction and he just stopped dead in his tracks and stared at us. Except, neither one of us could really tell if he was staring at us or behind us, but he looked like he was thinking really hard, like maybe he had forgotten something and was trying to remember. We had almost passed him when he said "Excuse me!" Do to the look he had on his face, I thought he was going to ask us how to get somewhere or if we knew where he could get something... I was so confused how he thought we would know what he wanted, but turns out that is not it. "Where are you from?" When we told him America, he got really excited and asked, "Are you study Taiwan?" (Translation from the Chinglsih: do you study in Taiwan?) We told him no, that we worked here at a school and he asked us which one. Please note that we were also wearing our school shirts yesterday (which mine is ginormous and could almost be a dress) so we showed him the logo and he said "Oh! Teachers! You teach [children]?" (Instead of actually saying "children," he held is hand out at waist-level.) Then he wanted our phone numbers, but we don't have a phone. So he asked for the school's phone number, but we don't have it memorized (I know. Every child knows they should memorize their phone number, but I don't even know how the phones work in this country!). In final desperation, he asked us if we had Facebook and if he could add us. Christina wrote down her name on the back of one of his business cards, and I started to write my name, but it finally dawned on me that he had mentioned "Facebook," so I told him that I don't have Facebook. His face fell momentarily, but then he asked "MSN?" Yes. I have MSN. I haven't used it in well over a year, but I do have it. So I wrote down that email address for him. He has yet to email me/add me to his contacts. He also gave each of us one of his business cards, but not until after he had written down his English name (Kelly) and put a check mark next to his phone number. I don't know that either Christina or I will ever call him, but who knows, right? It was really amusing and not at all creepy like it would have been at home in America. He just seemed so excited to have met someone that spoke English that he desperately wanted to keep in contact with us to practice his English.

Yesterday was a pretty boring day. I had to get up early for a special "Planning meeting" where we all thought we were going to get trained on making lesson plans, but no. Baptism by fire yet again. No training, just jump right into it! I just kind of clicked around the folders in the network for a good 15 minutes not knowing what I was doing when Gerald finally came over and tried to help me. I finished around noon, but realized that I forgot to do my DPVE (ie horrible sports project/activity) for Elementary around 7:00 tonight. Oops. After planning, I made lunch (a cup of instant noodles that turned out to be a very delicious tomato soup type thing that DIDN'T MAKE ME SICK) and then contemplated taking a nap. I didn't, but I did just stay in my room until around... 4? Something like that. At that point, Sara came in and asked if we wanted to go somewhere, anywhere. We did. We didn't leave until after 5, though, and about 5 of us just rode our bikes down to Amart again. I decided I wanted some more junk/snack food because I didn't have any left (didn't buy it yesterday, and I need my sugar fix!), and Christina wanted the same. I am not sure what the other teachers were getting, but I think some of them needed actual groceries. While we were walking around the store, I suddenly heard in a very clear "American" accent "I want lychee fruit." My head whipped around because it was not a voice I recognized, and there were 3 or 4 Asian girls speaking in native English! We saw them again a little later by the junk food, speaking English again, and I couldn't stop staring at them. I suddenly know what it is like to be Taiwanese and not be able to look away from the "Foreigners," except the reason I couldn't look away was because I was in shock at being able to understand someone that wasn't a teacher speak in public! I told Christina that I couldn't stop staring because I could finally understand someone and she said, "It's the gift of tongues!"

We came home and dropped off our food stuffs, then Jessica, Christina and I rode our bikes down to the Pochinko's aka Orange Chicken restaurant. It is right across the street from Night Market, though, which takes place on Saturdays, so it was CRAZY TRAFFIC! Don't worry, we made it safely, but it was a little nerve-wracking. We had to wait for our food forever and we had to get take-out because they were so busy that they didn't have any seats left inside (and there are no seats outside).

Entrance to Night Market while we were waiting for our food

Crazy traffic, but mostly I was taking a picture of the sky/buildings in the background. You just can't avoid cars when taking pictures, though. Still waiting for the foods.

To demonstrate why we had to wait so long, but also to show the way people park here. There aren't really sidewalks, and people just park in the street. Not on the side of the road (I mean, you try to park on the side of the road, but there's not much of a shoulder to park on), so then cars just park in the road. It makes the whole driving/riding-your-bicycle thing very interesting.

When we finally got home, we took some chairs and plates up to the roof and ate up there. Jessica went in before Christina and I because she was getting eaten alive; Christina and I came back in around 8:30.

The typhoon never hit. It didn't even get close to us. It only rained for maybe 45 minutes on Saturday (and that's being generous), and then it cleared up and got sunny again. I was kind of upset because, had we known that would have been the case, we would have gone to Taichung to shop at Costco and get some real, familiar, American food. Now it will probably be another 2 weeks before we are able to go because next Saturday is Taipei Temple Day.

Today has been another nice, quiet Sunday. I had the "opportunity" to play the piano for Relief Society, but it didn't go very well. I think the problem was two-fold: 1. I haven't played the piano in about a month, so I am out of practice; 2. I haven't played out of the hymn book much in nearly a year. There is a piano on the third floor in the Big Room here at the school that Gerald said we can use (when the school is open), but I am not sure if there are any hymn books to practice with... We might just have to start playing top hand only for some hymns if I keep playing for the RS.

Other fun thing that happened today, Stake Choir practice! The Wuchuan 1st ward asked our little branch to combine with them or the choir. We will be singing "The Iron Rod" in, wait for it, Chinese! It was quite the experience. I think it's going to be fun, though. Luckily, Stake Conference isn't until October, so we have a little while to practice. One of the ladies in our Relief Society is going to try to find some time to help us to practice pronunciation and stuff.

Now for my not so subtle hint (for those of you still reading despite the lack of pictures). I haven't heard from hardly ANYONE yet, and it is making me sad. JUST BECAUSE I LIVE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD DOESN'T MEAN I'M DEAD!

Google Maps and Hospitals

2011-07-14T21:53:00.000+08:00

I found where I live on Google Maps! It took such a long time. For those of you not in the know, Pinyin is... uh... not universal. There is basically no set standard for it. So spelling changes like... all the time. Finally I was able to learn what my District/ex-City looks like on a map, though...

and I was able to find that, too!

And finally I found that place where I spend most of my time! With a street view and everything! (Also, if you move the little man to look in different directions down the street, you can see people on their scooters stopped at the light. Creepy!

Ok. Done wasting time. Now I need to put together a spelling test for my 5th graders tomorrow and figure out what we are doing for the other hour and... 45 minutes that is not spent on the spelling test. Thankfully it is Friday tomorrow (even though that is my super long day!), and Saturday Gerald is teaching us about lesson plans. Next week, though, lesson plans start being due on Thursdays. If anyone has brilliant ideas, PLEASE SEND THEM MY WAY!

Next time I will tell you about my latest trip to the hospital, which has resulted in my arm feeling like it is on fire all day and the muscles being all spasmodic every 10 minutes. Feel free to remind me if I forget.

The Rain Gnomes; Wordless Wednesday Edition

2011-07-13T22:18:00.000+08:00

2011-07-12T16:54:00.000+08:00

Peggy said it best. She came into our AK classroom as Christina and I were doing closing exercises and said, "I'm sorry. I have bad news for you." Please note she was also holding our paperwork from the hospital. My mind immediately thinks (and so did Christina's) "Oh no! They're sending us home!"

That is not the bad news, although part of me would have preferred that news to what I got instead.

The bad news is that our MMRs we got as small children no longer show up in our blood. Having my immunization record with me doesn't even help my cause. So on Thursday morning we will be taking a trip back to the hospital, and then again in a month. Peggy remembers how badly I did with the blood test. As she was leaving the room she said, "It's OK! Trust the nurse. Will be so fast!" I know she was right last time, so I am hoping she will be right this time, too. Am I surprised that this is happening? Not at all. I kind of expected it every since I read a previous teacher's blog saying that she had the same thing happen to her. My only fear (well, outside of the needle itself) is that, after the last several shots I've had since the end of May, I have had a fever after every one. And I have to teach that day. Thankfully I will only be teaching AK and the adult tutoring class and I have a two hour break between them.

Teaching itself is beginning to come along much better. Gerald came in and helped me for one of my game rotations today. The kids behaved pretty well, too, and I only had to give 3 warnings (as opposed to yesterday where I actually sent a child to the secretary in the hall). In about an hour and 40 minutes I will have one more "class." This is an adult tutoring session, and no one really knows how that is going to work. I guess I just show up in the library and wait for the parent(s) to show up with their materials...? This may or may not last all semester.

Sorry, no pictures today. I was unable to even go outside yesterday until after it was dark, and I think it is still raining right now.