Mouse Trekking

"Hello sweetie. It's about time!"

Sat, 02 Feb 2013 15:31:24 GMT

Without fail, usually when my house goes foster-free, I find my newest 'little' within a few days. Sometimes I find them before my house is foster-free. Knock on fake wood, it's been a few weeks now with no new sad-sacks around.

So imagine my non-surprise today. I had Ruthie in her carrier on the way to the vet (check-up and vaccinations overdue - bad momma) when I saw a tiny shadow dart under the car ahead of me. I put the carrier down, crouched in front of the car and called out softly.

The little bit came hopping out, directly into my arms where he curled up inside my leather jacket and started purring up a storm. "why hello, you," I told him. "I've been waiting for you."

Now clean, Revo'd, antibiotic'd and full of food, he's in quarantine in the bathroom (mild case of ringworm) and he's on a daily dose of meds to treat that for the next month, with a follow-up visit in 2 weeks.

Meet Spitfire - Spitz for short!

He looks much better after a nice bath at the vets today. :)

comments

Remy-Kit!

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 12:56:11 GMT

Hee, I got to see my little schnuzzle bunny today. For I -

BRAVED THE WILDS OF JINSHAN AND LIVED TO TELL THE TALE.

*deep breaths*

Okay see, when I travel to Jinshan (which is way down southwest of Shanghai proper, about 2 hours), it's either by company car or IN the company of a coordinator who knows the area like the back of her hand. *Hats off to Veronica* But today? I did it all by myself!

....okay, Veronica helped. A LITTLE. Seriously.

.......OKAY, so it went like this:

Me: *texts Veronica* "Hi V! Could you please tell me where the long distance bus station is?"
Veronica: *texts back* "Are you going alone?"
Me: "Yes."
Veronica: *silent for two long minutes* "It's near Jingjiang subway station. Show the taxi driver this: *insert address in Chinese*. I've asked in it to take you directly to the main gate of the bus station.
Me: "Aww, thank V. You're the best!"
Veronica: "Call me if you need me to speak to the driver."
Me: "Will do but it should be ok. Thanks V!"
Veronica: "Do you know which bus to take?"
Me: *starts to type*
Veronica: *sends text* "Go to the first window and show the ticket lady this: *insert request for Jinshan bus in Chinese*. She'll point you at the right bus.
Me: *Wow, thanks again V."
Veronica: You can text me any time if you get lost."
Me: Hey now--
Phone: *rings*
Me: Hello?
Veronica: "Are you in the taxi? Do you need me to translate?"
Me: "I'm just flagging one down now. I think I'm good."
Veronica: "Just call me if you need help!"
Me: "Will do." *gets into taxi. Shows address. Taxi driver says the tunnel near it and I recognize it - we're all good.*

*one hour later*
Veronica: *texts* "Are you in JInshan? Did you find L?"
Me: "I'm good! I swear! Thank you for all your help!
Veronica: "Not at all!"

....and people wonder why I adore and cling to my coordinators..... THEY KNOW ME TOO WELL.

Why was I in JInshan, btw? To visit one of my besties, L. She brought Remy to meet me at the bus station - she's got him leash-trained already and he walks so nicely. :) I always find that very impressive with cats, especially young ones. But Remy's so active, regular walks are good for him. :) We had Korean BBQ and did some window-shopping. It was a good way to break the nothingness that I have been doing lately. :)

comments

Quick update!

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 09:12:02 GMT

Not much to post seeing as I have done ZIP in the last couple of weeks (I'm ashamed of myself, I truly am... *cough*), I figured I'd just update with the facts and JUST the facts. :)

Fact #1: It is just me, Ruthie, Sammy and Yuki once again. :) After a year and a half of long-distance commuting for both angel_katchan and the Chibi, she finally decided to get a place of her own in the Qingpu district. Her school is there and so is the Chibi's, so it's completely understandable. :) So yeah, my place is a little emptier, but it also seems so much bigger, so that's a plus. ^^

Fact #2: This doesn't mean that Remy was adopted. *sad* In fact, he is staying with a friend of mine who has become an SCAA foster parent! :) So Remy is enjoying L's company in Jinshan with her own cat Kettingur. I miss my cuddly furball but he's got a good deal. :)

Fuzzy wuzzy babykins. :)

Fact #3: About a month before Kat and Chibi moved out, I found ANOTHER homeless sad sack. He is a unique individual with Scottish-fold ears (a true rarity here, lemme tell ya) and nose markings that resembled a mustache. Actually, with the ears looking like hair curls and the mustache, he resembled Nichola Tesla. So we named him Tesla, Tezzie for short. :) Tezzie is in the process of being adopted by Kat and the Chibi themselves. I would post a pic but apparently I have none of him saved on my computer. >.<;; Picture later.

Fact #4: At the SCAA Xmas Gala party I won a free two night stay at a hotel in Malaysia! Now I just have to book it. April maybe.

Fact #5: in an attempt to figure out what causes my migraines, I underwent a 2-week drug trial and had an ECG AND an MRI done. Firstly - it was confirmed I do indeed have a brain. :) Secondly, it is apparently disgustingly healthy. Thirdly, we still have no reason for my migraines. Fourthly - i am never having an MRI again. I now know what it is like to be trapped in a coffin. Never. AGAIN.

And that's all for now. I have no doubt soon enough I'll have another fuzzy-wuzzy foster hanging around *knock on fake wood* but until then, I'm enjoying the peace and quiet. :)

comments

peeks out

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 12:58:34 GMT

Hey guys... long time no post.

Work has been kicking my ass but having spent the past week doing not much more than sleeping and watching movies (with the odd walk here and there for Ru-Ru of course) I think I may have nearly recovered.

What's new with you?

comments

Animal update!

Tue, 25 Sep 2012 05:42:36 GMT

Well... Remy and Chico did NOT get adopted at Adoption Day this month, but hope springs eternal and there is always next month. Sooo... picture time!

Yuki is not amused. Okay, he never is. But this time, he really is NOT amused.

Sammy, on the other hand, IS amused. This is the closest to a grin I've ever caught him in.

Ruthie doesn't understand why we're playing with the cats when we should be worshiping her.

Hmmmpf! That's more like it!

Kat tries to eat yogurt. The gang finds it very interesting. Counter-clockwise from top: Sammy, Yuki, Chico and Remy

As you can see, Chico's a bit of a slave-driver. He inspects Kat's dish-washing abilities.

That's it for now - work is keeping me insanely busy and all of us are exhausted by the time we get home anywhere between 6:00 to 7:00, depending on the day of the week and how far out I go. Kat and Chibi are usually home by 6.

comments

Xinjiang pics!

Tue, 04 Sep 2012 08:26:58 GMT

Here we go!

Waiting for our luggage in the Kashgar airport. This is a TINY airport but surprisingly well-run.

( first meal, first day )( Candid classroom shots )

Back in time for a moment.

The rooms were nice and so were the beds... after I went to everyone's room and stole the 2nd set of comforters and
mattress toppers from everyone. I'm pretty sure Mel has a pic of me running down the hallway, a mountain of bedding over
my head and trailing down my back like a cape, cackling like an idiot. ^^

A famous - and beautiful - park in Kashgar.

( Kashgar version of central park )

( First night planning session. )

Mel plans her first day.

After a week of non-stop teaching and planning, we were dying to get out. Playing pool in the hotel's connection to the old British Consulate (YEARS ago), helped a bit.

( Pool, drinking games, it's all good. )

That weekend we got our first excursion. It was to a coffee shop.

( Not as fun but it was out of the hotel. )

Our first day trip was to the mausoleums. The temple was gorgeous:

( Watch where you're aiming that camel! )

Then there was the whole Pumpkin-Gate scandal.

( The story of the Pump-kid. )

It was good. Ra-men. :) More pics of the 2nd half of our trip to come soon. :)

comments

Xinjian Province

Mon, 03 Sep 2012 09:36:22 GMT

So it's been one year since our group of 6 teachers became the first foreigners designated, sent and approved by the foreign experts bureau to do teacher training in Kashgar. I've never posted pics from that trip or even mentioned any real stories from it because it was a very conflicting trip. On one hand, the locals were lovely to us, we had beautiful accommodations, the food was out of this world amazing, and the teachers were so dedicated and hard-working - both our team, and the ones we came to train.

( Cut for length, mild over-dramatic tones. Skip at will. )

I don't regret that trip for anything - if nothing else, it made us all a little world-wiser, and we will know what to expect in the future. These are all positive things. If we have the chance, I most certainly WILL go back. But it took a while before I could work out that trip in my head. I suspect my fellow teachers felt the same way - I see several of them all the time and we never have those 'do remember that time in Xinjian' stories... none of them have posted pics online, and a few say he/she hasn't even told her family about the trip. It was eye-opening.

It was also a beautiful place with the warmest people and so many interesting things to both see and do and I've decided to focus on the positive side and start sharing some pics from that trip. I have a 250-page diary filled from that journey that I am slowly typing up and maybe one day I'll share that too.

Pictures to come when I get home tonight. They are taking FOREVER to upload to photobucket.

comments

I have returned!

Tue, 21 Aug 2012 23:23:44 GMT

Back in Shanghai, reunited with my boys, reunited with my Ru-Ru-Bear, and reunited with my office. I definitely have to post pics - I've added a crapload of toys and a glow-in-the-dark star-filled galaxy to my window. Yes, I am having fun.

I left a bag in Canada due to my sheer and utter brilliance. Mom is sending it to me so I should have it in a few weeks. It WOULD be the bag with all the classroom materials and games and prizes I bought. NATURALLY.

Orientation next week. First G1 classes in 2. I am looking forward to this. I am going to use the many, many, MANY Sesame Street videos I downloaded as a regular part of my lessons, not to mention all the toys and props. I will try to take pics and/or video so you can see what I do with all this junk but it depends on who my coordinator is. If it's who I think it will be, she's way too busy to come to my classes on a regular basis. *sigh*

Neither Remy nor Chico were adopted on Sunday despite being among the youngest babies there. Someone apparently expressed interest at adopting the two of them together but balked at the adoption fee (1350 RMB or under $250). Now, I couldn't afford the full adoption fee for Ruthie when I decided to keep her, but I also didn't complain about it. I asked about paying it in 2 installments, and making up for the hassle by doing volunteer work. If the person had done something like that, I don't think there would have been a huge problem. But if you whine about costs from the get-go, I foresee many future times of vet-troubles and ignoring pet pain because of bills. Not a good scenario. I've gone broke a few times paying Ru's bills but I've never hesitated. Something must have told LA that that person would have.

Oh well. LD has Remy for a few weeks for some socializing (more for her cat that Remy - he's already a chill, relaxed little social butterfly) and Chico is still tormenting Sammy and Yuki.

When I picked up Ruthie the other day, she CRIED. Her face was clear when she tackled my feet. I picked her up and she began her high-pitched yapping and hyperventilated breathing. When I put her down, her muzzle was streaked with water/mucus from her eyes. My baby cried. God, as if I didn't feel guilty enough. >.<;;;

comments

I art alive!

Tue, 07 Aug 2012 16:18:48 GMT

I am back in Welland for the next two weeks. Arrived last night after spending two days with my Auntie Sue in Kitchener for the family reunion camporeee held this past weekend.

I missed the Saturday festivities as I didn't arrive until well after midnight. My flight from Shanghai to Vancouver had been delayed by 2 hours, and so my connecting flight from Van to TO had already left by the time I arrived. Was re-scheduled onto a different flight leaving two hours after I was supposed to. This meant my aunt and my cousin (her navigator) waited at the airport from 10:30pm until almost 2:00am for me. Thank you for not giving me up for lost or dead guys!

Speaking of the flight, mine was overbooked and so for the 11 hour trip to Vancouver, I was in first class. Oh my god, the leg room! I have been spoiled for Economy. I am contemplating upgrading for the flight home on the 19th. It was glorious. Leg room, sound-blocking headphones, no children, and the meals were served like in a restaurant - 1st, the tablecloth and silverware brought out for each person. Then the soup as the appetizer, garlic bread and a sushi tray (part vegetarian, thank god) next, and then the main course - steak (actual steak, not fake-plane steak), mashed potatoes and vegetables cut into shapes. Then the fruit platter, wine and more desserts if you so chose. Breakfast was fresh fruit, pancakes with syrup and toast - warm and toasted, not limp and soggy. I was very impressed. The chairs reclined into beds and had warmers/massagers built in.

......yup. Totally ruined for Economy. I weep.

Sunday was fun, for what little I saw of it. ^^ I slept in until 10:30 and got up for breakfast with the fam who had spent the night at my Aunt Janet's. Early afternoon I crashed though, and only woke up when another Aunt arrived and made me join in. ^^ The big corn roast was Sunday night and then Aunt Sue, Uncle Steve and mineself drove back to Kitchener (Camporee was held in Toronto).

Went shopping yesterday with A.Sue. She takes me to Walmart and Zehr's and laughs at me as I goggle in amazement at the selection and sizes and prices of items. There were jars of condiments and things the size of my head! If you are lucky, sometimes you can buy tiny jars and bottles of the same items in Shanghai at the import stores but you pay three times the price for 1/4 of the product. And selection! I love buying hummus in Shanghai but there's only one kind and in a tiny container. The hummus here had over 30 varieties and cost a fraction of what I pay. I just kept walking up and down the aisles, shaking my head and giggling hysterically. I was damn near tempted to buy like one of everything in the store.

Mom picked me up last night and we went to dinner with A.Sue and cousin Jai at McGullins (real chicken wings! First time in 2 years!) and got back around 8pm last night. I crashed almost immediately, with Gizmo (mom's dog) stuck to my side like a burr for most of the night. Poor guy. I think he missed me. :)

Speaking of missing.. I miss my Ru-Ry bear. angel_katchan, did she make it to Jenny's okay? Does she have all her things? And keep me up-to-date on the boys.

Chico and Remy are going to adoption day on August 19th. I arrive on the 19th (Shanghai's 12 hours in the future) at night so I won't be able to see them before they leave if they are adopted. A small part of me is hoping they WILL be adopted BUT the family needs a day or two to get stuff ready for them. :) I know, not the way a foster parent should think but oh well.

We had a last meeting on Friday before I left Shanghai. We are apparently getting Chongming island and will be sending 10 teachers there in September. Chongming Island is one of the few places around here I haven't been too (it's about a 3 hour drive north but still part of Shanghai) and I'm looking forward to checking it out when I get back. It's supposedly very beautiful, very clean (only a fraction of the population of downtown) and very quiet in comparison to the districts more frequently lived in.

Got on facebook for the first time since last summer. Updated the pics of all the foster animals we had this year - Luca, Eevee, Vince, Cherry, Chico and Remy. I have to update my Tumblr with Chico and Remy...

blithesea, I didn't get the chance to photograph the bags you sent to me and LD because L was in Russia at the time and I left for Canada just after she arrived in Shanghai. We'll be sure to take a pic when I get back and she comes up from Jinshan.

comments

Settling...settling.... Hold yer breath....

Wed, 25 Jul 2012 01:53:48 GMT

So I'm back in Shanghai. *pause for cheers* Thank the gods. I spent a miserable day yesterday in bed coughing and sneezing and wishing for death (while watching Ranma 1/2 season 1 through to 5) and now I'm back at the office feeling almost 100 percent.

I got back from Taicong Friday night with a headache that had started on Thursday. Saturday was spent in a haze of pain until finally, on Sunday, I went with Kat to Dragonfly and had a half-hour head and shoulder massage. The therapist targeted the exact spot in my skull that was sending spikes through it and after 5 minutes of whimpering like a baby, my entire head was numb. NUMB. Blessedly pain-free. I haven't had a headache since, knock on wood. I am so going back there next weekend to keep this going.

As I'm writing this, a package was just delivered to my office. It's from blithesea ! It arrived! And I can't believe it - LD is going to love it! She made me and L matching black-and-purple Decepticon handbags. I can't believe you made these, Liz! They look fantastic! If and when I get to Germany, I am going to glomp-tackle you so hard you will be seeing stars for a month! :)

Speaking of L, she and her friend Kyr stopped by on Saturday for a visit. They left Sunday morning to hit the airport - they're flying to Moscow and taking the 7-day train back to Beijing. Lucky lucky. I am so jealous. :) L will be back next weekend or so, so the bag from Liz will make a perfect 'welcome back' gift for her.

Which leads me to travel in general. I am flying to Toronto on August 4th and will be leaving on the 19th, for those who are interested. Not sure of what I will be doing during that time besides communing with nature, swimming, sleeping and shopping. :) Yes, lots of shopping. I have a list. I am looking forward to a chance to completely recharge. I will miss my baby but she'll be in good hands.

Ruthie meantime has been glued to my feet whenever I'm home. As always, J took fantastic care of her and Ru looked amazing, but she hyperventilated upon seeing me again, crying herself into hoarseness until she couldn't make a sound except for air going through her throat, poor girl. I'm glad I'm home right now so I can spend time with her until I have to leave again.

Whelp... I have doctor training tomorrow so I'd better finish my outline for them.Talk again soon!

comments

Oi Vey.

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 04:11:27 GMT

I blame the pizza last night....

Dreamed last night that my buddy Brent and I went to a local clinic after work. Brent was sick and I wanted to get some cough medicine anyway so I went too. For some reason, despite this being Shanghai, Brent had a car of his own. So, Brent drove his car and I left my backpack inside when we got there.

We went up to the top of the building (via the stairs – it looked like a winding treadmill, no elevator). A few minutes of waiting and Brent was called in. I was nervous about leaving my backpack so I ran downstairs. I searched and then realized Brent’s car had been stolen. I screamed his name and he stuck his head out through the window on the top floor, asking what the hell I wanted.

I told him his car was gone. He didn’t seem too worried. I, on the other hand, was angry and upset because my camera, flash-drives (yes, plural – I have about 6), laptop, money, keys, passport and wallet were in my bag. Local police tried to calm us down but ultimately said it was Brent’s fault for not chaining his car to the bike rack. <-- Don’t ask me.

Anyway, I exploded with rage. A local woman tried to help but didn’t do much except keep laughing at my anger. She also felt the urge to follow me to the bathroom at one point. I was in hysterics because I lost important stuff. Two local guys were laughing at us from their fruit stand and kept pointing in opposite directions when we asked where the thieves had gone. I think they were in on it.

The police wrote a check for 800rmb (what Brent’s car was apparently worth) and gave it to me as a way of apologizing. I was flipping out because that didn’t even cover the cost of replacing my camera (900, on sale no less), let along anything else. Police didn’t know why I was still upset and I screamed about my passport and losing my work visa and residence permit. I was starting to turn green ala the Hulk, snorting fire through my nostrils when suddenly I woke up, wanting to scream my head off.

..... Yes. Pizza. And the fact that Brent spoke of both hospitals and cars last night after work. >.<;;;;

comments

Hmmm.

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 14:19:45 GMT

Well.. I still plan to hang out mostly at LJ but I might dust off my dreamwidth account a bit more often. My username is of course, stormy1x2
and I have a fanworks repository that hasn't been updated in a while but it's still there (and holding a lot of old stuff I forgot I had, WOW).

Adoption Day today. A couple is looking for a companion animal for their spunky young kitten and are really interested in Cougar. They're gonna talk about it and let us know. L did a great job at 'selling' him but then, she's been doing great with him PERIOD.

See, Cougs has been living with L since the end of November. We thought the sheer number of animals and people in the old apartment was causing him to regress - he was getting more skittish than usual and wouldn't let us pet him much. With L, he was cuddling with her, SHOWERING with her, and letting her groom him. We took him back today so I can take him in for his checkup and vaxxes and have him on hand if the couple contacts LA and asks for a home adoption in the next week or so. If he doesn't get adopted, L will take him back next week. So far, he's a bit shy but he's been out exploring. Yuki has been hissing up a storm - and threatening to drain Kat's soul with each evil glare he sends her way - but that's mostly par for the course.

comments

[fic] Tennis Teens for Charity (Prince of Tennis)(KiriKam) parts 1-3

Fri, 02 Jul 2010 04:36:50 GMT

My huge monster of a fic is now being posted. Chapters 1-3 are now available for reading here at DW or at FFNet but the DW posts have fan art within the fic so it's better to read it here. ^^ First three chapters are about 20,000 words (fic overall is hovering close to the 45,000 word mark). Chapter 4 will be up within a week or so (just waiting for my beta-reader to come back from her vacation).

Tennis Teens for Charity

Summary: In an effort to make the youth of today respectable and responsible citizens of the future, the Education Ministry of Japan passes a rule requiring all graduates to complete a number of volunteer hours or fund-raising projects for the charity/organization of their choice. When Kamio comes face to face with a problem he can't fix by himself, tennis players from across Kanto rally to help one of their own.

Story Details:

Pairing: primarily KiriKam but has lots of others inside, some established and some being hinted at. Lots of Rikkai and Hyoutei action plus many other schools as well.

Rating: Overall, PG-13 for language

Warnings: fluff, schmoop, angst, mention of past childhood traumas, lotsa slash and some het.

Timeline: 3 years post-anime. 2nd year of highschool. Akaya/Akira - 16. Sachiko - 10 (near 11). Michiko - 9.

Notes: if you haven't read any of the LGO arc before, you might be a bit confused as to what's going on, but if you can accept that Akaya and Akira are a couple, Akira and An Tachibana now go to Rikkai, and Kamio's raising his little sisters, than you can read the fic with minimal problems. Also, flashbacks hinted at in the fic are being written for a future fic, where they'll be fleshed out in much more depth. You'll see what I mean when you read it.

Tennis Teens for Charity

comments

Wrestling Friday

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 13:46:20 GMT

Live from Saint John, NB, I'm finally posting my update for the ROH event Candy and I went to on Friday. :D I've been too busy to do it before now.

So yes, last Friday night, we were in Toronto for an ROH (Ring of Honor) event, Some of you may recognize the name from the movie 'The Wrestler' - the wrestlers from the film are all in the ROH, and yes, we saw Jerry Lynn. :D

Back up, let's start from the top. I flew in from Ottawa Friday morning, hopped the express bus from the airport to the subway, rode the subway to Main street, and then walked ten minutes to the Ted Reeve arena. The arena was old and faded (desperately needs a new coat of paint, to say the least), and there was a huge makeshift dump in the back of it (set up there for the duration of the strike going on in TO) but none of this mattered, for Candy had tickets for the Bret Hart autograph session. :D

Candy and I have had a crush on Bret Hart since our teenage years. I was more a Shawn Michaels girl, but as Bret was Canadian, I adored him as well. :D I've actually met almost every WWE wrestler several times over (we used to go to events, after parties, schmooze with the security staff, and one memorable day, even got to watch matches from the safety of the tented area with Earl Hebner, the man formerly known as the 1-2-3 Kid, and Aldo Montoya). Hell, I even had Triple H flag down Michael Hayes (Dok Hendrix) who then stopped an entire parade just to get me over to him so he could sign my Fabulous Freebirds poster. Yes, we have lots of memories.

Anyway, we met a lovely girl, Suzanne, outside and she hung around with us for the rest of the night. The autograph session with Bret was like any other, 30 seconds to chat with the Hitman, but when everyone else only got one autograph, I got two (I seem to be lucky this way - this has happened many times before). He's old and grey and wrinkled, but underneath he's still the same guy I used to scream at to beat everyone from Ric Flair, to Yokozuna, to Mr Perfect (King of the Ring '93, best match EVER).

Candy had a memorable moment. Before we got into the line, we had to find a bathroom (it had been a LONG wait outside). We checked the one side and only found the mens washroom. All 'He's'. Meh. Candy wandered through the rows and then whirled around, thrust her hand into the air and shouted, 'I found a 'SHE!' She ran up the stairs, cutting someone off and hit the bathroom.

....she had no idea that she had screamed that in front of Bret Hart, who was behind the table right next to the ladies bathroom, and had watched as she cut off a fan heading towards him for an autograph in her haste to reach the bathroom. Naturally, I couldn't resist telling her this, and then we (myself and Suzanne) spent 5 minutes trying to convince her to come OUT of the bathroom. :D Bret had been grinning, so he couldn't have been too angry, right? :D

The event was actually pretty good. I saw moves I'd never seen before, including some modified hurricanrana's that showed off just how much gymnastics has become a standard part of wrestling. To our shock Lance Storm and D-Lo Brown were there as well (old time wrestling fans will recognize these names) and I got lots of great up close shots of the match. Also, this happened to be a taping for an upcoming documentary and there were signs posted everywhere about how by purchasing a ticket, you were agreeing to be filmed and no compensation would be paid. Small arena, tall girls, yes, Candy and I are reasonably certain that should they show parts of the matches, we have a good chance at seeing ourselves in the documentary. Candy swore everytime she turned around, the camera was pointed straight at us. :D While I was taking pictures, Candy and Suzanne found out where the after party was - a bar called the Champion's Den on Danforth ave (not too far from the arena).

The afterparty was awesome (and easy to find). We went in, had a couple of drinks, and got pics taken with D-Lo (big cuddly Teddy Bear who apparently has an extreme fondness for Grey Goose vodka), the ROH Champ (tiny but sexy), and a 6'5" chisled god with long blond hair whose name escapes me, but I could care less. ;D

Tons of fun - Candy and I didn't make it back to Welland until almost 4AM. I slept until noon and then went directly to my storage unit - took me four hours (in a freaking DOWNPOUR) but I got it emptied out completely. Had enough time to pack, and then Sunday morning, mom drove me to Toronto again so I could fly here to NB where the entire family picked me up, but I rode back to the city with dad on his motorcycle. :D

Yes, it's been good thus far. And dude, I forgot how much fun wrestling events are to go to. They're even more fun when you're not worrying about being carded because you're underage in a bar, or being propositioned by wrestlers who think you're legal when you're not. ^___^

As soon as I can, I'll post pics. I have, however, lost the sacred camera cord for my digital camera. Candy downloaded the pics to her computer, but I'm gonna try to get to a Shopper's to get them put on a cd so I can upload them. :D

comments

So I learned a few things today,

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 06:43:03 GMT

1. If you start to cook something, REMEMBER you are cooking it.

2. Steamed dumplings very easily turn into cooked dumplings.

3. The wooden bamboo steamer CAN burn, despite the water.

4. And will continue to burn after you turn the heat off.

5. A pot that has boiled dry STINKS. And won't come clean.

6. My apartment has no smoke detector.

7. I should have bought a 2nd pot earlier. Now I have no pot. *is sad* But I still have a wok! *perks up*

comments

Grade 4

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 03:53:48 GMT

( Not as image heavy as the 5's but lots of stories! )

comments

Ze yearly departure check list!

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 03:32:15 GMT

This has become a habit over the past few years. So here we go again! As I complete each task over the next 48-72 hours, I will check it off here, in an effort to stay organized and keep myself on track:

~~- finish decluttering living room~~
- dust tables, ~~tv and desk~~
- ~~sweep floors~~
- wash floors
~~- wash dog blankets~~
~~- wash couch blankets~~
~~- clean toilet~~
- clean shower
- ~~wash towels~~
- scrub kitchen cupboards
- clean stovetop
- ~~do dishes'~~
- empty fridge
- pack ruthie's things
~~- pack hermione's things~~
~~- drop off Hermione at Emma's~~
- drop off Ruthie at office
- last minute meeting re: summer camp

comments

VINDICATION!!!!!!

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:52:05 GMT

Ten years. OVER TEN YEARS. I and a large group of loyal fans have been swearing up, down, left and right Rictor and Shatterstar, of X-Force fame, were a couple. So many hints dropped over the years (hell, I even did a writeup for them over at ship_manifesto) and then the books dropped the whole angle. Shatterstar disappeared and Rictor.. well, he went through a whole lotta hell in a handbasket. But then last month 'Star made his return, and over at ricstar , guesses went up over what this could signify, what would happen to old dropped storylines etcm etc, and then the wonderful, fabulous zully posted this page scan from (V2) X-Force #45:

( OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!!! )
!!!!!!

(am still not a fan of the artist 'cause he makes everyone look ugly, but WHO CARES?!?!?)

Because I'm on a proxy system, I'm having a hell of a time posting links from proxied sites like LJ, so all credit for the scan goes to zully, who has made the day of all ricstar fangirls. :D

Ten freaking years we've been saying it, almost 12 eally, when you think about it.... I am so hoping this revitalizes the fandom and we see a new crop of fanficcers get out there and DOCUMENT THIS! :D

I have other things to post, I know, but I just had to do this first. :D

comments

Final class on the final day of my final year at my school.

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 06:57:58 GMT

Grade 5 pics and stories:

( Image heavy, memory-laden SAP under the cut.... )

Grade 4's and 3's to be posted eventually.

comments

Idle thoughts...

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 13:25:30 GMT

I still haven't quite wrapped my brain around the fact that my classes are finished. Partly because I still have my Qingpu class tomorrow, the KE classes on Sunday, and a business meeting/trip to Hangzhou on Monday (office called and told me about it today). But my actual classes, my 'bread-and-butter' so to speak, are finished. Kaput. DONE.

I've had those kids for 5 years. They're MINE and now they're gone. Some of them I'll see again on Saturday mornings next year, but not all of them. I've watched them grow from teeny tiny grade 1's and now they're almost teenagers and dude, see, I don't need to have kids 'cause I've already gone through the parenting experience vicariously through my job. ^_^

They're different too. They're not shy, or timid, like other Chinese students. They don't nod blindly when told something - they question and push for more answers. They're sarcastic in a country that doesn't know what sarcasm IS, and I know that all of this is due to having me around every week day for the last 5 years. Of the 20 I had, at least 14 of them are going to go on to do great things. They're too sharp not to.

But at the same time I see how much like me they are in attitude, it's little things like what happened today that reminds me that they are still different, still Chinese at heart. Things like eating the cupcakes I baked and gave out today. All of them loved them, and all of them looked wide-eyed at me and asked 'how could you make these things?'

I said I baked them, and the light still didn't go off in their heads. Happy explained that to them, someone who makes cupcakes, or cookies, is someone who has gone to school for it (a baker or chef) or is working at a restaurant. As I am their teacher, I am obviously not a restaurant worker, and so they were completely astounded that I could do these things.

It's different from cooking. Cooking, they get. but baking - actual baked goods that we grow up around, is something foreign in concept and in practice. No one here grows up sneaking cookie dough from under mom's watchful eye; no one squabbles with siblings over who gets to lick the stir spoons, or who gets to scrape the last bits out of the bowl. They've never mixed food coloring into icing, trying to see if it really will turn black if you mix all the colors together, and they've never put sprinkles on sugar cookies. I gave them all the recipe because they asked, but only 3 of them have small counter-top ovens in their homes, so they won't really be able to try it out. I can't even imagine my childhood without these things.

Still, they were happy to know the process, and of course, even happier to eat the end result, so it all works out. :D

I had a few cryers, a few snifflers, but it was all in all a very quiet finish. I received lots of small gifts from my students that I hauled home with half my classroom stuff (need to go back tomorrow after Qingpu for the rest) and on June 28th I fly to Canada for a month of vacation. Then it's back here to get ready for my job I start on the 17th, as the Supervisor of all the foreign teachers. It's official - H even called me today to verify my information for the business cards the office is having made for me. J has mentioned working on an office for me. I am officially in charge.

Freaking scary thoughts, no? :D

My fiend Dawn - <lj user="silentmyriad"> was here from Hawaii for a few days (she rejoined her group Wednesday afternoon and is now off to Yellow Mountain and then to Beijing) and I have pics to post from her time here, but I'll do that later. I need to finish lesson planning for tomrorow's classes and then go to bed. ^__^

comments

Stupid evil people are STUPID and EVIL.

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 14:12:49 GMT

You know, I had to actually stop myself from writing this earlier. 'Cause anything I wrote was gonna be tinged with an angry red haze, and well, my language kinda hits the gutter and keeps going down when I'm less than happy with the general world.

Yesterday's demo? Went off without a hitch. Which, in my mind, is some kind of goddamned miracle considering it took an hour and a half to coax my terrified kids into coming along. Were they scared of performing in front of 200 people? Well, if I go by their enthusiastic response from the day before, then no. They've done these kinds of demos a thousand times. They've done them on TV, in front of crowds OVER 200, in front of photographers, family members, government officials and foreigners from all over the world.

They were terrified of their teacher. Specifically, their Chinese home-room teacher.

We were supposed to leave at 1:00. I was outside waiting, they weren't. I got a call from H at 1:15 and she told me there was a problem and she was coming down to discuss it. When she arrived, she told me that the demo was still on, but now the kids didn't want to go to it. Frankly, I was stunned. These kids LOVE to perform.

"Mandy," J added, looking troubled. "Kitty and Happy were crying."

Okay. I stormed past them and headed upstairs with my entourage of office people/ The kids were brought out and we went into another room to discuss what was going on. Apparently, their Chinese teacher had THREATENED and INTIMIDATED them into saying they didn't want to go.

The Chinese staff from the office went first and talked to them calmly. Kitty was sitting off to the side, tears pouring down her face. She was dead white from fear. I told her to come sit with me and she grabbed my hand like it was a freaking lifeline. what the hell happened?

Apparently the teacher had yelled at them, threatened them with negative marks or comments on their end of the year reports, all because they were going to miss her class for the day. And for what? Because MY classes are nothing, because this demo was all about making money for the company, and apparently nothing at all to do with the fact that they are our star students and their PARENTS were THRILLED to have their kids go along.

I was livid. And the office person wasn't helping - using a gentler approach but essentially still guilt-tripping them - "We really hope you can come, we planned this for you, we need you," etc, etc. I cut her of and told everyone to get out. The kids were discussing it amongst themselves, and we - the office - were going to talk to the Headmaster again(who apparently had no idea what was going on) and we offered a private tutor for them to make up the classes they would miss (using my class time tomorrow and on Monday).

I almost left too but the kids asked me to stay and talk to them. They were scared - absolutely terrified that their teacher would take it out on them if they chose to go. Apparently she said that if they went, they would not be welcome in her class anymore. Emotional blackmail for the fucking win, y/n?

Long story short, there was more tears, many comforting hugs offered, reassurances given, and my personal assurances that nothing they chose to do would ever make me upset. If they decided not to go because of their teacher, then they would stay behind with my full support and blessing. To hell with the company and everyone else.

These kids are under intense pressure and this was just one more thing added to the pile and I could just THROTTLE their homeroom teacher. The parents had given the trip the green light. The headmaster had originally said yes when we told him about it 3 weeks ago. The kids wanted to go. The office wanted it. Everyone was in full support except her, and she punished THEM for it.

The kids had nothing to do with it. WE were the ones who arranged the whole thing. If the homeroom teacher was 'so concerned' for her students as she claimed, she should have made her complaints to ME or the company, or the headmaster. You. Do. NOT. Emotionally blackmail CHILDREN for something over which they have little to no control. Only VERY STUPID PEOPLE do this. And if you are exceptionally stupid, well then, you do it in front of ME.

The kids talked it out together - a brainstorming session that astonished the people there (H told me later she was stunned at the way they were talking it out together and working out a solution they could all live with. She said she could definitely see bits of ME in their speech (Chinese, but still) and that usually Chinese kids just do as their told, not negotiating like they were) and mutually decided to do the demo, have the catchup sessions with the tutor, and basically stand together against her.

In LinAn they had a good time, they beat the high school students in their verbal tennis match, and their debate was a tie, which made me very happy. I didn't see them today, but I will tomorrow, and I intend to make sure that their teacher hasn't done anything to them.

I can't get over how pathetically SAD this situation is. I had a few teachers I didn't particularly like in high school (especially the one that made the snide comment about me apparently having no life because I like to read history books), but never EVER did I fear any of them - especially at the level I saw yesterday. Teachers were always at the back of my head as a safe haven - if you needed help as a last resort, or even as a first resort if you were so lacking. What I saw yesterday both enraged me and broke my heart.

But you know, as much as I want to drop kick Miss Pang off the side of the school building, a very small part of me wishes to thank her. After what I saw, I solemnly vow I will never, EVER put my students into a situation like that. I will strive not to guilt-trip or blackmail them and will encourage them to always do what they think is best for themselves first. And I will NEVER hold it against them if they are pressured by others to do something negative to what I say or do - at the very LEAST, i want to be someone they can confide in, and make sure they know there is at least one teacher who is always on their side.

I will be seeing most of these kids in my Saturday advanced class next year, but even those I don't have, DO have my email address. What is common for us in North America - being able to go to an authority figure for help - is something very lacking here. Parents exact huge amounts of pressure for their kids to be the best. Teachers threaten them. The police don't give a damn. I didn't think much of Kitty coming to me and grabbing my arm as hard as she could - I was upset at the sight of her trying not to bawl in front of the group - but again, apparently students just don't do that in China, and the fact that my kids felt so comfortable with me that they were able to let down their guard (even with strangers there) was just unheard of.

Which explains why teenage suicide rates are still so high here.

I think I still have a lot of work to do here.

comments

[illustrations] for work.

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 16:01:18 GMT

So my life is hectic and crazy enough right? Nope. Let's add in some additional work.

Office: "So we want you to illustrate the new textbooks. We'll pay you XXX amount."

Stormy: "Uhhh... I'm already doing this, that and the other thing."

Office: "What about XXXX amount?"

Stormy: "When do you want them?"

Turns out they need 28 specific sketches by Tuesday. Around meetings, lesson prep, teaching (every day, yes, including Saturday AND Sunday) AND getting ready for the demo/show this Wednesday, I've been doing sketches for them and yes, I'm posting them here for some feedback about whether or not you can recognize what each picture represents easily. If you can't, neither will the kids. ^^

( Pics under the cut. )

comments

Videos!

Sat, 30 May 2009 07:15:51 GMT

Finally started getting some more videos uploaded to Facebook. ;D

Shaoxing: Videos taken during the time of the Demo from Hell (TM).

Video 1 - we're in the car, the kids are insane, and Hallen tries desperately to convince us she's actually going to do better than last place in her video game. Which, for the record, has never, and will never happen. :D

Video 2 - on the pedicab with Happy! Happy is always fun to chat with, especially when you're being cycled around town.

( More video under the cut. )

comments

Shaoxing Demo, May 22, 2009

Wed, 27 May 2009 12:44:10 GMT

The demo may have been from hell, but the kids are always fun. :D

Am having trouble with the lj-cut. Forgive me.

( Read more... )

The end. :D

comments

Okay, gotta rant.

Mon, 25 May 2009 01:53:25 GMT

This past Friday, we had another teacher-training demo in Shaoxing, a very old city about three hours south west of Shanghai. This was the second demo P and I were to do, so one would think it would be even more of a success than our first one.

Yeah. Right.

How these demo's work, is P explains the theories of why and how to teach something (don't even get me started on present-continuous what-EVERS) and then I demo games that make it easy and interesting to teach these concepts. Back and forth, that's how it went during the first one, and we had a great time, with a great response. It was fun, the teachers got involved, my kids were awesome, and we got lots of great feedback.

Cut to this past Friday. For starters, my students and I could have stayed freaking HOME for the first hour. P took over the whole thing, talking for almost the entire time, and only asking me to demo a few sentences - not games, just have my kids stand up and repeat back a few questions and answers. It was POINTLESS. Then, for the last twenty minutes, he turned it over to me saying *I* was going to explain the last few things, and then basically sat back and stared out the window (he didn't even pretend to pay attention - I had to say his name to get his attention TWICE).

Excuse me? I have no problem explaining things, but you have to tell me IN ADVANCE. There is a huge difference in explaining teaching techniques to foreigners who speak the same language, and Chinese English teachers - most of whom had never even MET a foreigner in real life before, much less listened to one lecture them. It takes precise, clear and structured formatting - none of which I had ready. I *know* i heard a few in the back going 'xi miensa' (bad pingyin, going phoentically) which means 'What's the meaning' or 'what the hell is this lady talking about?'

And my kids? Did pretty much nothing. it was BORING for EVERYONE.

But let's not stop there. We had planned this to be a day trip. The kids - Happy, Hallen, Kitty and Jerry - had been disappointed that they couldn't see more of Lin'an when we were there last month, so this month, we decided they would get to do a bit of sight-seeing before we headed back to Shanghai. This was planned weeks ago, and we were all in agreement this was a good thing. The idea was to head back to Shanghai at 7pm.

P tried joking about it as soon as we were done lunch - "If you guys (being H, who was in charge) wanna cancel the site-seeing, I'm sure no one will complain."

Um, I would. So would the kids, and I told him that. So he sulked the entire time we were biked around the ancient city on these little pedi-cabs, grumping and basically ignoring us the whole time. Jerry had sit with him in the pedicab and apparently P wouldn't talk to him. Can we say immature? And P is in his early 60's!

But the final straw? It was about 6:35 when we got back to where the van was. The kids wanted to make one last trip to the little stores nearby. so H and I took them. Then, at about 6:45, we were heading back, when H and I both realized we'd better hit the restrooms before getting into the van for a 3 hour drive. We turned to head back to the restaurant, and that's when P braced himself against the guardrail along the river and screamed at us: "SO WILL WE BE GOING BACK TO SHANGHAI ANYTIME TODAY OR WHAT? LET'S GO!"

The kids froze, thinking it was their fault. I was PISSED and yelled back, 'We're going to the frigging bathroom P. You really think I'm gonna ask your permission for that? Just. Freaking .WAIT.'

Well, needless to say he was pissed off even more, and refused to speak to any of us for the 3 hour ride home. Big surprise.

Look, I get that he has a 3 month old he's anxious to get back to. I realize he has to work the next morning. But damnit, so did I - in fact, I had it worse than him 'cause I had to be up by 6 to be out the door for 6:45 to get to my Qingpu class. And H had to work at 9am too, so it's not like he was the only one who would have a rough day.

AND HE *KNEW* we were doing sight-seeing. HE *KNEW* we'd leave at 7pm. This was NOT sprung on him. In fact, it was supposed to be a 2-day trip and we cut it back to one because he complained. To shout at us like that was like treating all of us as children. Don't you DARE do that to me. I don't give a DAMN if you're old enough to be my father - I am your CO-WORKER, and you WILL treat me with respect.

Usually my conscience gives me a twinge when I shout back at people, but I refuse to feel guilty. He obviously had problems about being rude and obnoxious - I refuse to feel guilty about being rude in return. In fact, we have a meeting tonight about a new demo, and I ain't doing it unless we get a couple of things straight about proper behaviour, how you address issues you have with the itinerary (i.e, discuss it like an adult instead of screaming like a fucking two year old having a temper tantrum), and going over in detail HOW we are going to do this damn thing. I am so sick of his attitude.

(and while I hate to throw my weight around, if it came down to it, it ain't me who'll be let go due to problems working with each other. You've got LOTS of complaints against you P - some of which I even defended you against, which you don't know. Not anymore asshole.)

comments

Mouse Trekking

"Hello sweetie. It's about time!"

Remy-Kit!

Quick update!

*peeks out*

Animal update!

Xinjiang pics!

Xinjian Province

I have returned!

I art alive!

Settling...settling.... Hold yer breath....

Oi Vey.

Hmmm.

[fic] Tennis Teens for Charity (Prince of Tennis)(KiriKam) parts 1-3

Wrestling Friday

So I learned a few things today,

Grade 4

Ze yearly departure check list!

VINDICATION!!!!!!

Final class on the final day of my final year at my school.

Idle thoughts...

Stupid evil people are STUPID and EVIL.

[illustrations] for work.

Videos!

Shaoxing Demo, May 22, 2009

Okay, gotta rant.

peeks out