this week in lee

October 16, 2007 at 1:55 pm · Filed under teaching, china

For those of you who are wondering what happened to my flickr pictures, I tried to change some things and managed to lock up my widgets and lose the flickr one. Here is the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/leephotozone.

Also, in my lessons, I am teaching the question: “What’s in the box?” and I put pictures of peaches, grapes, pencils, turtles, and birds in a box. The kids go wild and also try to cheat by looking as their peers take the stage as the host.

related posts
my first day of teaching was less than a success but more than a suckcess
first two weeks in review
Now, instead of lessons, I plan rap songs
walmart, i like you better in china

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Money Update: Still unfinished business

October 16, 2007 at 11:07 am · Filed under wuhan, china, stories

Yesterday I went to the ATM to see if my account gained the US boost of money I was hoping for weeks ago. It had been approximately 1 month since the transfer began (given an approximate receiving time of 3 business days). I go in and as usual I get depressed as I see no new money.

However, as I went to leave, the security guard who I have not been able to talk to many times before, signaled for me to come inside. This seemed odd, as the gate had been lowered and it was after 5pm. I went in, to be surrounded by tellers of no English knowledge just talking to me about my bank account while I said, “Is my transfer here?”

Finally, a teller approached me and spoke some English. This man knew a bit and was able to tell me that my money had come in and was in Japanese Yen, which I knew. He told me it was in my account, but not viewable. Also, they could not convert it to Yuan there.

Tomorrow, I will venture out to a larger branch in hopes that they can help me.

May my journey end soon.

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i have a bank account with no money
My journey to the hospital
my first day of teaching was less than a success but more than a suckcess
Accosted by ‘tutes

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Now, instead of lessons, I plan rap songs

October 15, 2007 at 4:08 pm · Filed under mini-raps, wuhan, china

This beat is hot and so is the weather
Then its cold, put on a sweater
A kid named Tiger, a kid named Snake
Some students ask, “Can you bake a cake?”
Living in China, every thing’s foreign
Life is crazy when you’re mei guo ren

Life is crazy when you’re meiguoren
Life is crazy when you’re meiguoren
The amount of people is alarmin
Life is crazy when you’re meiguoren

Yi Ar San is one two three
Yu Cai Primary is the place to be
On the playground they play basketball
Walking up the stairs, Colette will fall
Teach a lesson where “cob” is starrin
Life is crazy when you’re meiguoren

Life is crazy when you’re meiguoren
Life is crazy when you’re meiguoren
Life is crazy when you’re meiguoren

Meiguoren means “American” where Yingguoren would be “English.” This song was influenced by my life in Yu Cai and some recent events. I am expecting to continue writing mini-raps like this and possibly recording them.

If you want to do a Li Yi (that’s my Chinese name) and Aha mashup, go for it.

related posts
chicago bar and the bars of the river side
my first day of teaching was less than a success but more than a suckcess
walmart, i like you better in china
first two weeks in review

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blue sky cafe is weird

October 10, 2007 at 12:45 pm · Filed under wuhan, china, stories

Most of the people I talk to fairly often have heard about this place. It’s a weird so-called western-style bar, which I think means to the Chinese that it is less fun or just more expensive, one of the two. Anyway, we go because we have become pretty friendly with the bar keeps Josie, Elva, Mary, Anny and Colette’s fav Frowny. This bar stays open until 4 and at 12 they have a happy hour, which provides bogo (buy one get one) drinks. The food here is western style and the menu is pretty good, serving spaghetti, pizza, hamburgers and pretty delicious french fries.

This bar has 2 TVs with better channels than my TV so I get excited there when they put on ESPN. Also it has an oddly shaped dancefloor with terribly loud, bad dance music. Every time we go, I ask for hip hop and they ask me to wait while they play a 30 minute set of reggaeton and a few choice Spice Girls songs. Recently, I brought a thumb drive to school and gave them some mp3s in hopes that it would rock the house hard. However, only Colette and I went nuts for “Hypnotize” and Girl Talk songs. The Chinese here dance very tight-armed and stiff and go nuts for the moves that we throw down. The scene is also set with their disco light-laser pointer hybrid that bothers me all night.

Stranger than the dancefloor, music and lighting is the clientèle that this bar has on a regular basis. It is always filled with late 50’s scary European men that all know each other. What’s worse is that they all bring their late 20’s Chinese girlfriend who don’t look that happy to be with them. Also there is a french family that brings their 7 year old into the bar and they get drunk while she makes fake calls on her fake phone. She is afraid of me. It seems that the population of the bar gets older every week and that makes my fun get lower on a directly related correlation. I will still likely go for a long while as I am pretty comfortable there.

related posts
chicago bar and the bars of the river side
driving is nutso
Now, instead of lessons, I plan rap songs
sneak reviews or how the firetrucks came to save me

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This song is dedicated to friends

October 8, 2007 at 12:54 pm · Filed under teaching, china

My friends are your friends.
Your friends are my friends.
His friends are her friends.
Her friends are his friends.
Our friends are their friends.
Their friends are our friends.

I taught this song to my 2nd graders last week. I invite your analysis and guess what they were supposed to learn with this lesson.

related posts
chicago bar and the bars of the river side
my first day of teaching was less than a success but more than a suckcess
first two weeks in review
Now, instead of lessons, I plan rap songs

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chicago bar and the bars of the river side

October 8, 2007 at 12:52 pm · Filed under wuhan, china, stories

During my holiday, known as Golden Week, I spent a lot of time cheers-ing or gan bei-ing if you’re familiar at the River Bund clubs. Before attending a “traditional” Chinese club, I never imagined just how crazy it would be at Chicago, still unsure of the name because it has nothing Chicago-ey about it.

With crazy Linda (look for a full description of her very soon) as our tour guide we headed off to the river bars. Her friends were at Chicago bar, but she told us they had a cover charge so we decided to try elsewhere. So, we went to some place called MAX, which was a packed-to-the-brim-with-hotties discotheque with loud club music and no space to walk. The people inside danced around their tables and on any empty space. We were shocked and impressed and immediately enamored.

We walked through the crowd to the back where we found the bar or more just the booze distribution. When we got there, Colette attempted to order a Gin and Tonic and we were turned down. We soon found out this bar had a 400 yuan minimum, which would triple our highest spendings up to date. We left.

We took a cab probably 2000 feet to Chicago.

Site Map Linda called her friend and she took us in to the bar, not saying much of a hello. I think they were shy just like us as soon they opened up to us with cheers and questions of our residence in Wuhan. It was there that I met Tina and Vivian who invited us to a similar club later in the week called RETURN 97. We cheersed with them many times and other people who couldn’t communicate with us through the language barrier. Then new friends Punky (yes, Punky) and Randy came up to us wanting to see our crazy dance moves. It was then that I realized the dance floor was like a trampoline, but less bouncy, more like a very bouncy hardwood floor. Randy taught me some high-flying moves that I have now in my artillery and it was a ridiculous night.

Chinese know how to throw down.

related posts
blue sky cafe is weird
driving is nutso
Now, instead of lessons, I plan rap songs
This song is dedicated to friends

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driving is nutso

October 5, 2007 at 5:15 pm · Filed under wuhan, china, stories

Chinese drivers are nuts. Have you ever dreamed about painting dotted lines down the street just to ignore them? Have you ever considered the possibilities of passing a car using the other side of the road? Well look no further, I see this everyday in lovely Wuhan.

Taxi drivers pass each other and buses and buses pass each other and cars and its an all out race for space on the road. Then the space disappears as huge double-decker buses sit at traffic lights on top of each other and cars and bikes. Oh yeah, and sometimes, the traffic lights are meaningless and the taxis just sorta pause and continue their path.

We take the bus around Wuhan most of the time, unless it is after 10pm when the buses stop running. Bus 509 has the route to Blue Sky Cafe, our normal western-style bar that I will have a post on soon. It is a double-decker and we sit on the top towards the front to see how scary close we get to cars and bikes and people and walls. It’s a cringing type ride everytime.

People frogger their way across the street. Colette and I are often not too prepared for the street crosses as many streets are six lanes full of eight lanes worth of cars. Our friend Linda considers crossing the street not on a crosswalk the “Chinese” style, but I guess thats because she hasn’t left China ever.

related posts
chicago bar and the bars of the river side
random tidbit
Everyday is a good day for hoops
blue sky cafe is weird

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