two calls in one night

thanks to those who called to talk today. it was great to hear old voices. especially jimmy. what started as an innocent contact phone call turned into a 40 minute conversation...hey,thats long for married guys!

it was also really great hearing Grace and Audrey. too cute. our littles.

this week is Monthly exams week. Mai kao said it best, "Monthly's are like the midterms for Midterms." yeah, its pretty funny. we arent stressed at all, but we are definitely working a lot. lots of deadlines and teaching.

teaching is a challenging job. its probably been the most dynamic job i have ever had. between the motivating and disciplining and the constant lesson planning, it never ceases to surprise you with all its twists and turns. maybe it has to do with the age group we are working with...or maybe it has to do with working with people in general. i'm sure people like Judy, Mao and Kong, anyone who works with the betterment of people are chock full of funny and weird stories.

next week mai kao and i are going on a one week vacation. this upcoming week is golden week in china and apparently, everything but service industries close down and goes on vacation. for this one we are going with some friends to Xi'an. its far out west (actually a 20 hr train ride!). xi'an is home to the terracotta warriors! yes folks...the mummy 3. its going to be super cool. mai kao's like,"i've already been there...blah,blah,blah." but i'm psyched. also, we'll be visiting natural hot springs to bathe, a town called Luo Yang (the largest concentration of shaolin monks in the world - where thousands of Shaolin Monks do kung fu every day in the court yard.) yes...shaolin. i hope i get to see different kung fu techniques, like iron fist (the one where you plunge your hand into flaming hot coals repeatedly) or various animal techniques.

its gonna be a blast. i hope.

josh out.