Student stationery!

Move over Kate Spade, I've found a better, local creator for personalized stationery. MY KIDS. Don't be dismayed and condemn me of using child labor. The Congratulations cards were made for them to think about what students can celebrate with each other. The pandas holding balloons, my idea. In my eyes, each card that I'm showcasing is great for different reasons, shall I count the ways?

Creative lettering, awesome flowers, slightly human looking pandas, with just okay bamboo. B+.

Clear letters in different colors with a large panda in focus with tree like bamboos. You can see the erasure of the first CONGRATS, which was just fine. B+.

Electric CONGRATS, with two pandas, one self described as a tiger panda by the artist, and the other, looks kind of like a rat. The balloons resemble lollipops and the panda eyes look like they are tripped OUT. Great bamboo detailing. B+. Do you see a pattern?

Great symmetry! Four pandas, in a world where I believe that the more the merrier, the flowers are well placed and the balloons are different colors. A.

Nice attempt at the big word. I like the shade of blue the artist colored the bamboo. B+.

I have laughed all day about this one. The combination of the wide eyed panda, the goofy smile, the parallel bamboo, the in-motion bullet and the sniper that is in perfect position to shoot the panda in between the eyes. Hilarity. Strange. Above and beyond what I expect CONGRATULATIONS to mean. But, it's true. If my friend had shot a panda, I'd send them this perfect card, before they were carted to Chinese jail. A+.

REPEAT: Water Flinging Festival

Last year's Water Festival was awesome, so we had to do it again. But this year, we invited everyone, wore waterproof clothes, and bought our own buckets. At the end of the night, we ate Justin's smoked meats. 

 Instead of being picked up in a white van empty handed and being trucked up to a random village, this year we walked with buckets in hand, eyes wide open and fully expecting to get SLAMMED with water. Instead, we got water guns to the eyes and a crazy fort full of water manned by young, preteen boys.

STILL fun. We capped off our water fight with a shower, costume change and lunch. While we sat, Caitlin helped French braid my hair and we enjoyed , posing for photos and realizing that many of us were sunburned.

Awesome tan lines? Thanks. Later in the night, Monica and I pose after eating tons and tons of BBQ. Our smiles are genuine and so happy! We also played a lot of beer pong. These are our resident champions:

Don't be fooled by their feminine sorority squat poses. Tom and Gareth coordinate with one another in their dress and dominated our Beirut tourney. 

Lucas and I were both rueful in not being able to best G and T, but we somehow managed to NOT pose for this picture.  Several flip cup and Bananagram games later, this boy, Peter Brown Matthews, 

walked me back to my hotel where I took a blistering hot shower. Great day.

Call your girlfriend

and tell her we should do as Taran Killam on SNL did and learn how to dance to this Robyn song.

This side by side vid is incredible.




These people are living the dream.

Swamp Stomp womp womp

Tengchong has become a popular destination for Teach For China fellows because of its swamps. Technically it may be a marsh, but it's not as fun to say it's a marsh mash. Despite of what we as Americans have learned about preserving the environment, it's strange and delightful fun to be able to slide your feet into some rain boots and run around on top of a marsh.

Yes, my legs are that slimy. 

Last Monday, John, Mon, Sam and I awoke and stumbled into a car at seven in the morning. Our driver had swanky printed LV seats and dropped us off at a restaurant on the edge of the marsh. When the guards of the marsh arrive for work at 8 am, it becomes impossible for us to enter on the side entrance, thus if we arrive an hour earlier, it gives us plenty of time for the local guides to lead us deep into the marsh where the guards cannot impede out stomp fun. The good parts of the swamps were where the vegetation made the surface squishy and springy. A natural trampoline that would have otherwise been protected if it was in America. On the scary parts, I stepped, then in a moment of strange stillness, my leg fell straight through the vegetation and is immediately sucked into mud that is slimy and resists me as I try to pull it out. There were a lot of scary parts and as I'm comically clumsy, the guide had too much fun at my expense.

This is what Jon, Mon and Sam saw a lot. Me, climbing out of zee swampz.

John Kuo took a waay too much pleasure in my sinking. In this moment, all three of us are stuck in the mud. Monica would come closer, but she can't. Tricky tall dead grass.

Filthy fun. What I love at Teach For China. Sure, I was very inappropriately dressed. I was planning on going to Shangri-la where it was freezing. I didn't bring shorts. Also, I find that a silk blouse is pretty multi-functional. After the swamp stomp, the mud came right out! Tengchong. Another experience that I probably wouldn't have sought out on my own but it was well worth the stretch.

I've read 50 Shades of Grey and it is just okay.

After reading this article on NYmag about romance novels, specifically 50 Shades of Grey, I feel spurred to write a short ditty about this romance novel,  romance novels in general and my not-so-secret love for them. The fact that there is a more mainstream recognition of the popularity of romance novels and how it is a recession proof 1.5 billion dollar industry just makes my love of romance novels seem not so much as an anomaly. The fact that I was also awaken by my friend Koby, who is currently in med school in Grenada asking me if I've read the book made me realize the penetration of popular romance novels and how everyone assumes that I've read them. Well good news guys, I have!

As you may know, I live in rural China and am very far separated in distance from the taste makers and trends of American popular culture. I stay abreast in pop culture by trying to read books that are trending online as well as religiously downloading top 40 music. But that's neither here nor there. What I found the most surprisingly about 50 Shades of Grey was how simply it's written, and how it's a BDSM novel. What does BDSM stand for? Bondage and discipline/Dominance and submission/ as well as sadism and masochism. I just looked on Wikipedia, so you know it's true. Yeah, Google, search me now!

The main characters are a college senior named, Anastasia Steele and a 27 year old ultra successful business man named Christian Grey. Christian Grey embodies all that is smoldering and sexy. Anastasia doesn't know her own appeal and is inexperienced in almost every way. The book is an exploration into the very limited world of BDSM that Christian Grey seems to need. Three things stood out to me in the books. The first, is the use of the term itchy palms. If you've read the books, back me up on this, the itchy palms term made me laugh in the way that it was so seriously used. Second, the over-usage of email signatures in their text message and BBM conversations. Who uses email signatures with friends? Who modifies their email signatures with friends? and the third, and this is just a personal note, is that Anastasia's mom lives in Georgia. I love Georgia references in fiction and this is yet another one of them.

The book is the first in a trilogy, 50 Shades Darker, and 50 Shades Freed are the sequels. The stories are un-realistic and fantastic. Also, if you can believe it, apparently 50 Shades of Grey and its sequels are loosely based fan fiction from the Twilight series. Since I've never read the Twilight series, but I have been forced to watch the first movie thanks to my friend Meghan, I'll just assume that the idea is cringe worthy that Anastasia is Bella and Christian is Edward. At least this book has no vampires. Good bye undead trend, hello BDSM. BDSM for everyone!

The characters don't have very much emotional depth but there are a lot of sex scenes. 24, according to NYmag. I like romance novels that are more story and less sexy time! But.... feel free to go to Amazon.com and read the reviews of 50 shades if you are curious. It wasn't the best read but it was quick and fun one. Happy reading. If you want to read a beautiful romance novel, you should probably read into this one.

Photo highlights from Cherry Blossom Gorge

 樱҉花҉谷҉：

No cherry blossoms. Great waterfall.

Tengchong!

So far, on this Qingmingjie vacay, I've gone horseback riding up a mountain, zip-lined in a gorge and gone swamp stomping. What a delight!

:) More details soon!