First Week at Hy-Lite

Well, it's been a fairly quiet week here in Wuxi.  I started my summer job in earnest on Monday.  I had 19 hours this week; some days had three hours, some had five.  Each day has about the same content.  It goes something like this:

I take the bus and arrive sometime around 9 a.m.  Sometimes, especially if I have extra time, I go to a local café and get a drink, and perhaps a pastry.  I'm starting to like mochas, but a hot drink just doesn't make sense most days, and an iced mocha is mostly ice.  I'm also getting into the red bean mochi smoothie.

My schedule is on a little desk in the shared office.  My first class always starts at 10:00 a.m.  I need to look at the schedule, get the lesson plan binders for the classes I will be teaching, and make sure I have everything I need.  The class sizes vary from 1-8, and the content varies, but basically my job is to have a conversation with them in English for 55 minutes.  Occasionally, I run out of discussion questions, and  then it's really a trick to make stuff up to fill the remaining time.

For lunch, I just go out to a local restaurant.  (With what they're paying me, I can afford it.)  The trick is to find one where I don't need to be able to read or speak Chinese.  Picture menus work well.  So does cafeteria-style service, which I've seen at two places downtown so far.  On Friday, I found that I didn't have enough cash because I had taken a taxi home the previous night.  (Only way to get home from that location.)  So, I had to go to the Bank of China (main Wuxi branch) to get more.  (The bank building is very impressive.  I'll post a picture sometime.)  When the ATM ate my card after giving me the cash, that took some time to resolve with the bank staff.  (Key:  Find someone that speaks English.)  After that, I didn't have a whole lot of time left for an adventure in Chinese dining.  So, I headed straight back to the school.  On the way, I saw this:

Citibank sign with Chinese characters

Clearly, Citibank has (or will soon have) a branch in Wuxi.  Well, I'm told Bank of China has five branches in California, including one in San Francisco.  (Can anyone confirm this with pictures or an address?  Google's not helping me today.)  I know Chase has a branch in Seoul, South Korea.  But I have no experience with any of these locations.

Because of my limited time, I decided to just get something quick, easy, and relatively cheap.  Accordingly,

Fries, a Big Mac, and a Coke

this was my lunch.  I know, not very healthy, but it was quick, easy, portable, and familiar.  I can also report that they all tasted just like they do in the U.S., although perhaps the Big Mac had slightly less sauce.  I was surprised that there were no shakes or pies on the menu.  Oh, well, that's China, I guess.

Prayer Requests
I have a praise report, but it's private.  If you're on my private distribution list, or you know someone who is, then please include that praise in your prayers for me.

I got an e-mail from Jane on Friday.  She told me that they might not have enough math classes for me next semester, because several students are leaving the school for family reasons, or for studying abroad.  She thinks it might be a good idea if I found another job, maybe a full-time job at Hy-Lite.  Well, that won't happen.  I told her as much, and politely expressed that I would be willing to teach English classes if there was not enough work teaching math, but that I expected to be paid my full contract salary for the remainder of the contract term.  Jane replied back that she would find me some oral English lessons to do at the adjoining public school, but that it would be OK if I chose to find a better job elsewhere.  She would, of course, write a good letter of recommendation for me.

Well, all that is to say that, although I don't believe I'm in immediate danger of unemployment, I may not have the option to renew my contract at the end of this year.  Now, this school is not the best place I've ever worked, but it does have the virtue of being here in Wuxi, where I've made some friends, and have a potential romantic interest.  I'd hate to have to start over again in a new city.  Please pray for me, that God would show me His will in this area, and do it soon.

Now I've mentioned romance, something that you're all probably dying to hear about.  Unfortunately, this is a public blog, so I'm not sure how much I can say without risking hurting anyone.  I've mentioned two different Chinese women in this space, both of whom are in contention for Sean's Favorite Woman in Wuxi.  One, the newcomer, is definitely playing to win.  Subtlety is not her strong suit, but reading subtlety is not mine, so that works well.  She's also very beautiful.  The other I have had more time with, and she has done me some nice favors, but I'm not sure where she stands on our relationship.  She has offered to invite me to her family's new apartment after they move in.  I'm not sure how long that will take.

Then there's the job issue mentioned above, which means that I'm not sure how long I'll be able to stay in Wuxi.  And the fact that I have almost zero experience with dating or romance of any kind.  I had a question about having a girlfriend today, and I had to say, quite truthfully, "It's complicated."  That's putting it mildly.  So, please pray that I would handle the situation wisely.

It's late, and I have church tomorrow.  Thanks for reading, and thanks for praying.  God bless.