First week of classes in Suzhou

This is the nameplate on my office door.  ( I share an office with Mr. English.  How's that for an excellent name for an English teacher.)

Life in Suzhou is well under way.  After two weeks of getting settled in and attending orientation at school, I felt ready and excited to meet my students last week.  The first week of classes is now behind me.  My students are very respectful and eager learners.  I am teaching 4 classes of freshmen with 20 students in each class.  I meet them twice a week.  I am very excited about the program here at Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University.  Click on this link to have a closer look at the school:  www.xjtlu.edu.cn

This area where I am living is quite different from Wuhan.  Sometimes I forget that I'm in China.  Everything is new in this area of town.  The only thing around this neighborhood are universities.  There must be 10 universities within a 10 mile radius.  This pocket of Suzhou city is called "Higher Education Town."    

There are lots of nice teachers in our teaching department.  Every day several of us walk across the street to the food court for lunch together.  I have to be at the office when I'm not in the classroom, so that is different for me, but I don't mind it.  I get my work done there and don't have to bring it home - mostly. 

Ying and me in 2005

During my first week of orientation with all the new teachers at the university, a young Chinese lady come up to me and said, "Ann, do you remember me?"  I recognized her face but could not recall from where or how I knew her.  After she reminded me, the fog started lifting. She was a student in Wuhan that I knew from 2004-2005!  She has since gotten a PhD in the UK and is starting a new teaching job here.  What an amazing connection.  I hadn't seen or heard from her since Wuhan 2005.  We were both so excited to have an old friend in this new place.  God is so good.

Fruit stand

The church in Suzhou

my apartment building (the tall one in the background).  I'm on the 8th floor (count down 8 from the top because there are 16 floors)

my office

What's next

Daisy and Gao Laoshi see me off at the airport






Below are various send off dinners by good friends

Fish head hot pot - really delicious

Teachers send off dinner

Softball club final dinner

As you can see, with my blogging it is either feast or famine. I haven't blogged for 7 months, and now I have done 3 posts in one day. I need to bring you up to speed on what's going on in China and my teaching.

First of all, I just finished my 6th year with Teaching Abroad at Wuhan University of Technology. It was a great year, and a very busy year. I had about 120 students in the second semester. I taught a new course second semester - Intensive Reading. I dreaded having that course, but it ended up being my favorite class. Since it was my first time to teach it, there was a lot of trial and error to figure out how to teach it effectively. The students were willing to try just about everything I threw at them, except for a 15 page article online. Admittedly it was a tough article and too long, but I wanted to challenge them.

I made a decision early in the spring not to return with Teaching Abroad again next year. It was a tough decision to make, but I felt like it was time to move on. Let me assure you that I have no problem at all with Teaching Abroad or with my school - Wuhan University of Technology. I love them both. I started looking for and applying to teaching jobs in the States, and I was getting no responses at all from my applications. I began to get discouraged and wondered if I had made the wrong decision. I kept on and I actually expanded my search to schools in China that pay salaries competitive with those in the U.S. I found a couple programs of "joint venture" schools with China and western schools, and I applied. I got an interview with Xi'an Jiaotong (China) - Liverpool University (England). I asked some friends and family to pray for the interview process. I was very nervous - I have not interviewed in years, and never for a teaching position. Despite my prayer warriors, I felt like I had a terrible interview. However, an hour after the interview, they informed me that they were going to check my references. I thought that might just save me. Well two weeks went by and finally they emailed me to say that I did not get the job. I was disappointed and relieved at the same time. I was content to return home and continue looking for jobs. In preparation to come home, I had to get 6 years of collected stuff into 2 suitcases. Impossible. I gave away and donated bags of clothes, shoes, books, etc. Three days before I was to leave China I got an email from that school informing me that they had had a resignation and were offering me the opening. This time I was excited and nervous. I had to wrap my head around totally changing gears. And I had given away all my stuff! I had to let them know my decision.

So, I will be returning to China to the city of Suzhou (near Shanghai) in mid August. I will be teaching at Xi'an Jiaotong - Liverpool University in their English Language Center. http://www.xjtlu.edu.cn/ Suzhou is said to be a very beautiful city. There is a Chinese saying that says something like: Above the sky there is heaven, below the sky there is Suzhou.

The good thing is that I can still visit my old friends in Wuhan and they can visit me. We will be about 5 hours apart by train. I will be closer to Shanghai and my cousins there.

I'm sad to leave TA, but they have 3 new teachers joining them and three returning teachers - they are in good hands. I have really loved my experience with TA.

On another note, my last supper in Wuhan was with the softball club the night before I left. We had a great time together. I have really grown to love the softball players. They are are great group. I'm sorry to say goodbye to them. Although we never actually played a game, we practiced almost every week, and the skill level of the players has improved greatly.

So there you have it in a nutshell. You will still be able to read about my new adventures in Suzhou on my blog as I post at a snail's pace.

Mom and Dad's 50th anniversary

Mom and Dad's 50th went off wonderfully. A big shout out to so many who helped pull it all together:
Sis-in-law Elizabeth for organizing housing and food and general pulling it all together.
Sister Beth for doing the visual display.
Brother Scott for helping Beth and doing set-up and tear down.
Brother Ted and Sis-in-Law Amanda for making it there with three kids including a brand new baby.
Niece Tess for singing.
Niece Bailey for being my emcee assistant and singing.
Nephew Tyler for kid entertainment.
Nephew Bennett for singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.
AND....
Aunt Hazel and Aunt Gloria for being our legs in Ohio while we planned from RI and China and buying much of the food and supplies.
Aunt Hazel for making the delicious cakes.
Patty Lou Levering for helping to serve and organize the kitchen
Linda Robinette for helping to serve
AND...
those of you who came or sent wishes to my parents to honor them for their 50th

It was a great party. We were very glad that so many friends and family attended, and some from great distance. It was very meaningful for my parents. Their actual anniversary date is August 5 - we are keeping our fingers crossed that they will stay together until then, or we will have to rescind the party.



This is almost the whole family. We are missing my nephew Zach who could not attend because he is serving in the USAF.

Summer is here 2011

I love the summertime. This summer I am staying in Newport, Rhode Island and getting to spend time with my family here. Newport is beautiful and a popular vacation spot in the summer, so I am blessed to get to enjoy it for a few weeks. Imagine sailboats, rocky coasts, sandy beaches, and everything New England - that's "Noopawt" (as we say here).




I am trying to pick up some temp work this summer to make a little cash. I have found great success on craigslist. Last week there was an add for a costume character and an escort. Sounded interesting. So, I replied and got the gig. I was the escort for this very famous someone that you might know (as he was called in China: not round trousers ocean bottom fungus):

This week's gig is not as exciting, but still good. I am working as a laundress at a beautiful home on Ocean Drive. Somehow doing someone else's laundry in a gorgeous house over looking the ocean and sailboats is much nicer than doing my own laundry.

One gig I did not get was for a deckhand on one of the tourism sailboats in Newport harbor. I emailed and told them about myself and why I would be a good deckhand. They replied asking for more information about my sailing experience. Sailing experience? Umm, does going down the Mohican River in a canoe last week count? They never called me back. Maybe I should have mentioned that I teach English to young men in China who will be sailors.

Christmas wish 2010 and Happy 2011

Though these wishes come late
There is no debate
That my heart is sincere
in wishing Happy New Year!


Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Thank you for your many kind thoughts and prayers!

Thanksgiving Thoughts

Here are some Thanksgiving text messages I received from students last Thursday:

THANKS GIVING DAY _TAYLOR

Happy Thanks Giving Day! Give my best wishes to you ，my American teacher! Happy to know you! Charles

你好，我是肃肃。Hello,l am Samuel.May you have a happy day,and l thank you heartfully.

Ann,Thanks giving day Frank

Thank you,my dear teacher.thank you for teaching us last year;thank you taught us the truth in life;thank you because you are envoys of friendship between china and united stated.happy thanksgiving day !

Hello!Miss Ann,thanks for your teach!My spoken English have improved a lot because of you,and I will memorie the thing happened yesterday.It's the first time I talk to foreign people.Just cool!I'll remember it forever!Thank you again.Happy Thanksgiving Day!"^_^" ~Duke, Marine Engineering, Class 1004

Hi,Ann!Today is Thanksgiving Day.Thank you for your excellent teaching to us,hope you are happy everyday~Eric

Hello teacher Ann! happy thanksgiving day ! i hope you are happy in china ! daniel

Hey,Dear Ann,happy Thanksgiving Day.Hope you a nice day! (don't be homesick ^_-)

And I did have a real turkey dinner. Mmm mmm good!

Softball club is underway

We even have some girls on the softball club. This helps in our recruiting efforts.

This was club recruiting day on campus. We were one of many clubs recruiting new students to sign-up with us.

Our first club practice.

Two of the club leaders, Gabriel (L) and Devin (R).

This fall when I came back to China, I brought a suitcase full of softball equipment. I think I had 15 gloves, about 12 softballs, and 1 bat. Thanks to the many generous donations from many friends and family back home. Some of you gave up your favorite glove that you've had for years (thanks Bob Miller) :) I can't tell you what a blessing it was to be able to give an abundance of equipment to the students here.

The first club practice was about 4 weeks ago. We had 23 students show up! Guess how many gloves we had? 23! Isn't that awesome. We've been meeting each Saturday afternoon and we run through some drills and then play a scrimmage. Two weeks ago we had our first catch of a fly ball in the outfield. I think the outfielder just closed his eyes and stuck up his glove, but he caught it! Everyone was so amazed and excited. I'm looking for another team that we can have a real game against, but I haven't found one yet. That's ok, because we really need a lot more practice before we are ready to challenge anyone.

The fall has been unusually beautiful - warm and sunny, I've actually seen some blue sky. Today the weather turned colder and fell to about 55 F for a high.

This semester I have about 300 new students - freshmen boys! That means I have about 800 students on this campus all-together including the previous two years. When I meet them on campus, I have difficulty knowing if they are from this year, or last year, or two years ago. Both they and I are surprised when I can recall their names - which is about 10% of the time.

This week my students will be giving speeches about a hobby that they are unfamiliar with. It should be interesting!