Step 16 - Snip Snip

I know, I know, it's been awhile since my last post. I'm having a hard time pacing myself, often wanting to post too soon, and then putting it off for too long. I'll work on improving my regularity.

Poop joke

Huh, maybe someone could make a poop joke about that...

Just going to draw a few things to your attention before getting to the gooey delicious centre of this post - I've added a few things to the sidebar of the blog. One of them is obvious, which is the 'Entertainment' block, which I'll keep updated with what my current favourite listening is, and my most recently consumed TV series/movie. The 'Wallpapers' block is a little less obvious - I'll keep this updated with pictures/images that I'm using as wallpapers on my laptop. Handily, Windows 7 has an automatic wallpaper change function built in, with my wallpaper currently changing every 6 hours. It's a nice little feature that I didn't ever feel was done very well by third-party applicatons. Anyway, the vast majority of the pictures are from my time in China, if you see one that you like and want to know more about it, or want it at a higher resolution, just let me know.

Alright, so to update on the latest happenings... not a great deal. I missed too much class last week, without finding myself feeling very guilty. When I asked people what I missed, invariably the answer was, "Yeah, still nothing. The class was boring, we just read the book, didn't learn anything new". Still, this week I plan on making an effort to attend every class. We'll see how long my fortitude lasts.

...some thermal underwear type gear...

The weather has been much cooler this past week, hovering between zero and ten. The inevitable counter to this colder weather was a shopping trip - on which I acquired a new heavier coat, gloves and a scarf. I also recently bought myself some thermal underwear type gear, and that has made the biggest difference. Of course, it appears the weather is going to get a bit warmer next week. Still, I'll be ready next time.

Speaking of next time, I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before but my parents are going to be coming to China just after Christmas, and I'm going to spend around two and a half weeks traveling around with them. We'll be hitting up Shanghai (上海), Chongqing (重庆)/3 Gorges, Xi'an (西安), Beijing (北京)and Harbin (哈尔滨), in that order. I'm really looking forward to spending time with my parents and seeing some new sites, as well as revisiting some old places. I'm not exactly thrilled about returning to Xi'an, I've already seen the Terracotta Warriors and I don't imagine they'll have changed much since last time. That said, I've got a friend studying in the city, so maybe I'll let my parents go on that tour on their own...

My plans for next year have grown hazier, instead of clearer. While initially my plans had been to stay in Chengdu for a year, that evolved into going somewhere else, probably Beijing, and studying in a university there. I have a friend currently involved with a university there and it'd be good to be with him. But this got me thinking, why be in a university system at all? Currently my biggest 'problem' in China at the moment is that I really resent getting up for 8.30am class. I'm really not a morning person, and it shows. This influences the effectiveness of my learning in class, which kind of negates the entire reason for going to class. Anyway, I'm looking at studying outside the university system - getting a professional/decent tutor for maybe four afternoons every week, and doing my own study outside of that.

I've been enjoying this new resource, though it'll never replace a dedicated language textbook

To that end, I've purchased a subscription to Chinesepod.com. This is basically short Chinese lessons established in a format ideal for studying 'on the go'. What's available is a wide range of short lessons on topics generally more targeted to everyday situations and conversations, presented in a format you can easily view on your computer, or on your iPod/Zune/similar hand-held device. I've been enjoying this new resource, though it'll never replace a dedicated language textbook. Why? The depth in textbooks is that much deeper, especially in sections regarding grammar and so on.

The problems I'm considering about being outside of a university system are as follows. Firstly, Visa status. I'll no longer be able to call myself a student, so I'll probably move on to a tourist visa. I'll need to discover how long I can get one for, and how many times I can renew it. Also - where from? A friend mentioned something about not being able to renew your Visa from within China, though that sounds strange/wrong... Still, a lot to work out there. Secondly, accommodation is no longer obvious. I wouldn't be living on a university campus, so I'd have a much broader range of options, though at a much greater cost - especially in Beijing which is one of, if not the most expensive city in China.

There are exciting possibilities though - if I was to be sharing a house/apartment with Chinese people, I imagine my language would improve out of sight. It's pleasant in some ways living in the university dormitory, but everyone speaks English. I even feel awkward sometimes, thinking that if I try use Chinese I'll look like I'm a tryhard? Wow... in my head I knew that didn't really make sense, but writing it down, it looks even stupider. More likely would be that people would laugh at my relative inability to speak the language. Anyway, with Chinese housemates I'd probably not have the easy English option all the time.

Blast ye Apple

All food for thought - On a change of topic and a computer related note, I've noticed that whenever my iPod Shuffle is plugged in, all other flash/thumb-drives and external hard-drives basically stop working. Navigating folders takes minutes to progress from one level to the next, and forget doing transfers or streaming media off the device. All while, to my knowledge, there's no activity on the iPod. Blast ye Apple, blast ye to Hell and yonder!

Keep it real, people... If that is your real name.

PS, I got a bit of a haircut. It's kind of... yeah... Never saw that coming though...

After some sleep, I think the outcome is much better. But that's for everyone else to decide. I've had one Chinese girl tell me it's a very fashionable look...