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MichaelZach
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Name: Mike
Birthday: 2/3/1983
Gender: Male
Interests: Lisa, marriage, teaching, Chinglish signs, music.....guitar, piano, chocolate, marmots, very small rocks, birds, mexican food, C.S. Lewis
Expertise: making computers out of doub and thatch, rescuing small lemurs from destructive environments, and dancing in the middle of Inner Mongolia to techno beats
Occupation: Education/training
Message: message me
Member Since:
7/23/2005
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| Dear Friends, I bring you sad news. Access to all xanga sites has been blocked in China, so this post is being updated via a computer in the US. This probably will mean that I won't post as frequently as usual (which isn't frequently enough already). An update: This semester is going well. After beginning the semester, I really thought that I would have a lot of extra time. However, I have managed to fill in some of those gaps (I only teach on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday) by taking a Chinese class 3 days a week. Though I have been here in China for nearly 2 years, my Chinese level is paltry. I can get around, order some food dishes, and occasionally carry on what some people would consider a conversation, but knowing that I'm coming back a 3rd year is incentive enough to want to improve. So I am taking a Chinese speaking class here at the university. The class is conducted only in Chinese, which is great. I wasn't expecting to be required to write in Chinese for a speaking class, but I am also learning the characters. So it's been interesting. Hopefully I won't be left in the dust by the other students in the class who are full-time students! This afternoon Lisa and I enjoyed a birthday lunch with Greg & Rachel at TGI Fridays (yes, they have one here in Beijing). Good times. In other news, this afternoon the smog has lifted after a 3 or 4 day smothering of the city. ~Mike | | |
| Bad news: my class schedule got rearranged Good news: my class schedule got rearranged so that I only teach Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday :) | | |
| Nothing cheers the heart like good food from a distant land *word of clarification: distant land=America | | |
| I'm back.
With mixed emotions. This break at home was so good. I was able to work and make a good amount of $. I was able to spend a wonderful amount of time with my mom and dad and eat the most amazing food ever!!!! I enjoyed being part of my brother Matt's wedding and planning for my own wedding with dear Lisa. And I really enjoyed being in a place where I could freely communicate with everyone around me. 
Now, in returning to Beijing, I feel mixed emotions. I'm looking forward to seeing some friends and students here. I'm going to miss good American food and English-speaking people. I'm happy not to be working at the tax office in the states anymore (lots of stress), but I'm not so happy about the polluted skies of Beijing where the sun isn't even visible. Well, come what may. I'm here and want to make the most of this semester!
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| It's been a while, so I thought I'd send a little shout out to those of you who check this xanga. Tax preparation has been very busy. Last week I worked 45 hours and got some overtime pay which was nice. I'm really enjoying evenings when Mom, Dad, and I are able to eat dinner together (good home-made meals too!) and chat. After dinner I have been cleaning my room and trying to organize those drawers that are filled with things from the past, most of which I will never use, but somehow I can't throw away. Well, I've thrown away more of that stuff. Still, I do find myself looking at an object, thinking "I don't need this" and then deciding "well, I'll put off throwing this away until the next time I purge my closet" :) I've also been talking to my sweet fiancee in the evenings which is great, though I'm not a big fan of the long-distance communication. I'm glad that we'll be together during the next semester. It would totally stink if we were apart for that whole time. Greg & Rachel--I don't know how you did it last year! Dad and I have also been doing a little bit of running up and down our lane--a rare event for me. I'm not usually a big fan of running, though I will say that doing it with someone else makes it much better. I think I was born with small lungs. I can't run long-distance at all, and I'm guessing I wouldn't win at any "blowing up balloon" contests. Peace. | | |
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