this american is no longer in china... come visit me at my new blog!


http://jev51beta.blogspot.com/

BACK IN THE STATES!!!

things i no longer take for granted:

green, soft grass... that you can walk on.
blue skies.
clean air.
mountains.
national and state parks.
drinking from the tap.
micro-brewed beer.
sunshine.
83 degrees during the day, 68 degrees at night.
driving.
people not staring at me.
walking down the street and undertanding everyone's speech.
pizza.
4th of july fireworks.
driving.
freedom of speech.
freedom of religion.
booking flights ahead of schedule.
hot showers that last for more than 10 minutes.
central air.
new music.
mountain biking.
brew-pubs.
washers AND dryers!!!!

...

greeting old friends and moving along like you were never gone.

i love this country, i love this state, i love this city.

every day here is a priceless gift.

most waking times of most days, i involuntarily and almost reflexively narrate my ongoing life... sometimes in curly-q, thought-bubble form, sometimes in smooth, oval, outloud form.


...


sometimes i use the inappropriate mode and wish i used the other.

...

lately however, the ever-present voice has become mute. i no longer discover myself making anything special out of the random circumstances of my day.

and not for lack of excitement or peculiarity either. for example, yesterday i saw a 4 kilo dog try to bite the backside of a 50-gallon-sized pig as the swine sat upright in a blue school chair. i mean, that was interesting... well, if nothing else it was deeply bizzar, and definately entertaining.

however for some odd reason, i never gave the spectacle a second glance.



i simply passed it apathetically, without thought or word...

why was that? i mean, it was frickin' PIG sitting UPRIGHT in GRADE-SCHOOL chair!


...


sheesh. i think i've been away from the States for too long. you know you've been in China a while when at the arbitrary sight of a white person, or the mention of the Taco Bell menu creates hours of conversation, yet the appearance of a confused pig that thinks it's a 7-year-old Chinese school-girl doesn't even get an indifferent 'eh,' from your tightly pursed, unconcerned lips.

no worries, soon enough i'll have more white people around me than i can count, as well as a stomach full of cheezy gordita crunches...


...


mmm, cheezy gordita crunch...

t-minus 31 days!

only in NanChang, one of the 5 furniaces of China, can it thunderstorm all day and still be 90 degrees and 60% humidity in MAY!!!


oh yeah, and i checked the 'actual feel,' temp. yeah, with the humidity, it's 103...



MAY people, MAY!



gah!





oh man, i can't wait to be back in colorado where my whole day DOESN'T consist of a 24 sweat shower!

i fear for china the same tragic end that befell the native americans as the sun of manifest destiny dawned on the new lands of the americas.

the only difference being, china is going willingly.

day in and day out i experience first hand the social and economic fallout of china's desire to become a world super-power.

even the far suburbs that make up the threshold between the haves and the have-nots are daily reforming into relflections of the west.


...


i went to a part of NanChang a few days ago that i have never before visited.


...


it is the only place i have seen in my 9 months here like it.


...


it was the first time since i arrived here that i felt as though i was finally IN china...
it was trully beautiful.

my online opiate of late has admittedly become facebook.

in the past few weeks, i have reunited with friends of past who's acquaintance i thought surely was lost...

thankfully, the fiber optic deus ex machina swashbuckled gallently onto the stage of my disconnected life and boldly swept me off; once again to rejoin my friends in the global network!

as i read the updates, appraisals and anecdotes of my 'ifriends' that surround me, i am reminded of a quote from my favorite military man: douglas macarthur...

"youth is not a period of time. it is a state of mind, a result of the will, a quality of imagination, a victory of courage over timidity, of the taste for adventure over the love of comfort. a man doesn't grow old because he has lived a certain number of years. a man grows old when he deserts his ideal. the years may wrinkle his skin, but deserting his ideals wrinkles his soul. preoccupations, fears, doubts, and dispair are the enemies which slowly bow us toward earth and turn us into dust before death."



...




i read that, and i am encouraged by all of you. He is doing big things in many places.






...






yet i can't help asking myself...

let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these...

throw this in your eight-track and smoke it!




Sufjan Stevens: 'That Was the Worst Christmas Ever!' - One of my all-time favorite acoustic-chill jams...


anything by 'The Album Leaf.' unofficially my new favorite ambient-electronica group. honestly they're phenomenal! they sound like Sigur Rós on a Radiohead bend... minus the coke and cursing...


and then there's 'Keane' of course... they're my new 'Coldplay,' or 'U2.' The kinda band that after hearing the album a few times makes it almost impossible to find a sucky track...




crank it, blank it and stank it... sucka's!





...





what exactly does what i said above mean?








...






eh, who cares!


check ya later!

the calm before the storm...


it's the time of year where everything just kinda falls into place.

we all have a job to do, we know how to complete it, and, as the nike people say, we 'just do it.'

whether it's work, school, the insanity of fundraising $20,000 to come back to china full-time, slackin' off, whatever it is, we've been at it now for at least nine months, we're no longer rookies, and we're finally in the groove.

what it is so easy to forget at junctures like these, however, is that the storm of transition is quickly approaching. but like the quiet pitter-patter of rain against a pane of glass we are lulled to sleep by the ease and steadiness of the task at hand.

fortunately, a reminder fell into my lap yesterday in the form of a 100 degree and 85% humidity day... nothing like sweating out quarts of fluid in a matter of hours serving as an abrupt 'WAKE UP, IDIOT!'

so, to all of us who know the storm is coming but just don't want to admit it yet, a heads up: the forcast is calling for heat, humidity, fast days and faster nights. don't forget to cross your 't's' and dot your 'i's' a tad ahead of time, time flys when you're not counting down!

well, i officially just committed myself to China for the next two years.


...


holy crap i'm freakin' out!

but not really in a red-eye-flight/nails-to-a-chalk-board way...


...


more like when michael jackson freaks out in thriller when the ghouls surround him and his girlfriend and then he turns into a ghoul himself and his girlfriend starts shrieking 'cuz she thinks he's gunna gut her or something grotesque like that but instead he leads the ghouls in like a dance-off, not against one another, but against the world, ya know like they're almost saying 'hey, ghouls are people too!' and somehow they all know the same choreographed moves, which is highly improbable, but not impossible, and finally everyone realizes that everything was just a scary dream, but not totally because michael jackson's eyes are still ghoulified, but now it's cool 'cuz that's who he is now...

kinda like that...

anyway, if anyone has any fundraising ideas, i would be stoked to hear them, 'cuz i'm already behind...


smooches.

geez, where do i begin?

i feel as though i have experienced more over the past month than the combination of the last 2 years spent at the Glen.

to quote my journal, i "have seen the simple but abounding life of Indian tribal communities living hundreds of miles from the nearest black-top. i have tasted the rich and flavorsome local foods of delhi, agra, jaipur, bhubaneshwar, bangkok, chiang mai, koh tao, shen zhen and hong kong, each mouthful presenting a new aspect of its city’s full and vibrant history and culture. i have felt the heartwarming and curious smiles of people so removed from modernity that the sheer idea of a man whose skin was as white as mine was nearly inconceivable; and i have heard the Word recounted in their own tongue because of a Believer who happened upon them hundreds of years ago.

yet i have also seen these same tribes uprooted and supplanted by the government because their land happens to fall on lush soil, perfect for growing tobacco. i have experienced the severe and sickening poverty that fills the streets of calcutta. i have smelled the stench of death mixed with human waste that lingers around every turn at 'the house of mother teresa' where those too poor to afford either heath care or burial come to live their last hours. i have felt a gut-wrenching sorrow for the thirteen-year-old thai girls sold into a life of prostitution because their own families needed a way to provide for their four other starving children."

i ate with my fingers.
i drank palm juice.
i saw the taj.
i smelled exotic incenses and purfumes.
i tasted masala chai.
i heard french, spanish, italian, english, german, cantonese, mandarin and portugese all within 20 meters of one another in the heart of hong kong.
i drank the water in india.
i was also hospitalized after my pancreas, intestines, stomach and liver became severely inflamed and infected and shut down. (i'm better now mom, no worries)

and that doesn't even scratch the surface of the individual experiences i randomly had!

no my friends, i think this trip is better recounted in a few months when i see you over a cold beer and pizza.

but, for now, i leave you with pictures!



hong kong!



hong kong at night.



the taj!




local folk...




visiting the tribal people...

i'm alive.



in bangkok international airport headed for hong kong.

it's about 1 am and i can't even check in 'till 5.

internet's sketchy, but it works... kinda.

hopefully be back to my apartment in 2 days.



one thing traveling does is make me miss you.

i hope you are doing well.

i miss you.


more soon... hopefully.


i need some sleep.




...




smooches.

whew, it's been a while.

intentionally or otherwise, i've become a clerical superstar in the past 2 weeks. of which, in the way a fine jeweler gently pores over the delicate inner-trappings of an elegant watch with skill, care and craftsmanship, i have been meticulously consumed with end-of-semester grades.

i begin by opening an excel spreadsheet, and let me take this opportunity to share that i loathe microsoft for creating such a complex and unintellegible monstrosity that is not only missing rationality, in any form, but also standard, comprehensible mathmatics. not to mention in which the life blood of satan himself runs...

i then type the id# of a student, consisting of 12 digits, then their name, in english and chinese, their attendence, of which i dole out either an 'x' or a '-' for the 18 weeks of class we have had so far. next i type in their score for the oral presentation, journal writings, homework assignments, final exam as well as a participation grade. and finaly i calculate a final grade for the semester.

and then i move to the next student.





...




for 485 students.





...




sucks.

but, as i said before, patience is being heaped upon me, not by my own strength, but by His.

and, through this orgy of numbers, formulas and check-marks, i have learned to appreciate a finished, well partitioned spreadsheet. not for beauty, of course, but because it reminds me i am another step closer to ceasing the madness.

in 4 days i will be on a train to hong kong to begin my journey through india, and thailand. a welcome and exciting time that will be!

until then, my communique will be all but cut off. i wish you all well for the next month or so! i'll catch you on the flip side!



grace and peace.

christmas, china style!

the sun came out today in nanchang...



...




...




if all of you out there aren't freaking out, now is a good time to start.

you see, the sun hasn't come out here once in the last 2ish months, so really, for me, especially because of living in colorado for the past 6 years, this is a big deal.

honestly my first thought was that the apocalypse was in full swing... and my second thought was that if the horsemen of the apocalypse are really en route, then i need to go eat that last brownie in the fridge from yesterday.

fortunately, for both me and the brownie, which by-the-by i just consumed with a lucious glass of cold, chinese, 3.5% milk, it wasn't the apocalypse.

when i opened my curtains, staring at me in the face was a dazzling sun and exquisitely halcyon blue sky.

i threw on some christmas tunes, rinsed off in the 'shower' (the sink), and was off.

across the street from my apartment, there is a series of new, unfinished, and derelict warehouses just kinda... hangin' out. so, i thought this morning would be a good time to sneak over the fence with my camera and check 'em out.

honestly, at first i was a tad anxious because i had a feeling the fence was meant to keep people out, not the other way around. but, one of the things i enjoy photographing most is foresaken and forgotten buildings, so i figured i could always play the 'i didn't know, i'm just a stupid foreigner,' card, which, more often than not is simply comprised of a severe dumbfounded look and much theatrical handwaving... almost like a trained porpoise you would see at 'sea world.'

...

works every time...


anyway, i was quite pleased with the outcome, really for two reasons: first, the pictures turned out much better than i thought they would, and i enjoyed myself thoroughly, and second, because this is really the first time i have produced anything of photographic quality since i have been here.

i finally got the chance to get a little time to burn on a passion that, due to the level of busyness my current position necessitates, has unfortunatly fallen by the way-side.

oh, and on a side note, i found out not too long ago i am being published in B&W Magazine in their annual 'single image contest'! i have been an avid reader for about a year now, and made it my goal last year to make it into the next issue, and guess what? another blessing i don't deserve!

anywho, here are some of the pics from today, enjoy!

some days are days of contemplation.


...



some days are days of rest and musing... days that are best spent in repose with a hot cup of tea and a journal. white pages staring at you, reflecting the brilliant white of the sun into tired and dim eyes.

steam drifting heavenward from the calm and mirrored surface of the piping drink.

the first sip, almost too hot to swallow, sends chills down your arms and back and a billow of misty breath from your suprised lips.

the glass, warming your hands, preparing them for the work ahead. decompression and rumination is best done slowly, and with intentioned ease... the only time keeper being the inertia of your head and heart.

miles davis, coltrane, mingus, bill evans, all at beck and call. simply waiting for the signal, for the the sign to begin their part. they clear occlusions, stabilize ebb and flow, and most importantly, syncopate themselves to the rhythm of your heart.

so, hands warm, mind calm, soul heavy, you begin the task at hand...



...



gah.




...




it occured to me the other day as i stared at my computer screen blankly like a lid-less manequin that i haven't had a day like this in months.


...



and it hurts.



...



and it shows.

WHAT'S A VARDAR?

i had my only class of freshmen today. i love 'em. unlike my sophomores, their English learning experience has yet to be tainted by an entire year of teachers droning on and on about something many of them couldn't care less about (due to the fact that in China, your parents determine your major, not not you. so, many students not only not care, but hate English.)

nope, my freshmen are just what the name implies: fresh. they come to class every week, all smiles, eager to learn, easy to teach, and open and ready to participate. they're like little tabula rasa's just waiting to be formatted!

this week we talked about jobs. and one of the first exercises i had them do was to name off all the jobs they could think of. after about 3 or 4 minutes, most of the job names they knew in English were exausted, so they turned to their books and dictionaries.

students once again bagan shouting differing occupations at me which i would then write on the board.

one of girl students, a small and shy girl of about 5'1" (with shoes), with a sweet and diminutive disposition to match, half shouted and half spoke and occupation from the back of the room. since she doesn't really talk much, i decided hearing and writing her job idea on the board would be a great opportunity for her to see how much she could contribute to the class if she wanted to.

so with that in mind, i steped off the platform in the front of the classroom (which makes me look like a basketball player, especially contrasted to my already small students) and walked back to her desk to have her say the word again to me, only a little louder this time.

again she spoke almost in wispers and i had to ask her a third time to say the word.

she said it again, and it sounded like she was saying 'vardar.'

well, as we all know, other than a random river in Europe, 'vardar,' ain't a word.

so, i asked her again what she said. 'vardar,' she replied once again.

many times, when i have students who have a fairly low speaking level, i have them spell the word they are trying to say for me... or sometimes i just smile, agree and move on... but this time, since i needed to write the word on the board, i didn't really have the smile jovially option.

so, i had her spell it. 'w-a-r-d-e-r,' she said, and then looked at me again desperately hoping that i finally understood her.

'warder?' i asked. 'is that a job?'

'of course mr. Jev,' she replied.

finally i couldn't take it anymore and looked at her English book to see exactly what was going on. and guess what, there it was in plain print: 'warder: the chief administrative officer in charge of a prison.'

WARDER!


...


FREAKIN' WARDER!


'oh! warden? oh! no, no, no, sorry, this is spelled wrong! it's W-A-R-D-E-N!'

needless to say, she felt silly for not knowing, which she shouldn't, and i felt silly because some moron in the States can't spell 'warden' correctly.


if i ever find that guy, i'm givin' him a knuckle sandwitch for China, me, and my sweet, confused student...







...







warder... idiot.

MMM, SO HANDSOME...

so, you know those photos you need to get for getting visas, passports, travel documnets, and all that stupid crap?

in the States, it's just a butt-paddling in terms of how much it costs and the amount of time and procedure one needs to follow to make the pictures what the need to be to get done what they are supposed to get done. i mean, background color, face size, whether the photo is on 'passport' paper, the number of shots you need, which direction you are looking, etc., etc., etc. not to mention the price and location of 'passport photo station's.' i mean seriously, frickin' rediculous.

so, i'm going to be doing a little traveling over the break this year, and i need to get 6 photos for the different visa's i am applying for.

and originally i said to myself: 'self, this sucks, what a pain!' however, it seems the red tape and bureaucracy of the US stays in the US.


...


here in NanChang, China, the middle of the poorest provence in the entire country, i got 18 pictures, perfect size, perfect proportion, in 4 minutes, for less than a dollar...


...


America, you suck sometimes.


anywho, here it is.



mmm, so handsome! it's actually very ironic that i write this because no one in China has actually ever said that to me. however, they say it to my roomate about 6 times daily... but, he is handsome, so of course!

instead of handsome, i get 'crazy.'


...


sometimes 'strong,' which i later found out is a synonym for 'fat,' so i don't really know whether or not i am actually being complemented...

it's just better for my self esteem if i assume they're complementing me... so i'll just do that...

MORE THANKSGIVING CHINGLISH!

so, i did the same thing Ryan did last week, only i had them trace thier hand, write what they were thankful for, then decorate said hand. and man, i almost don't know what to say... other than FREAKIN' HILARIOUS!

oh man, i love my students, i mean, they're awesome! but i tell ya, thier grammar is atrocious!

most of the ones i post are really funny, but the last one is kind of a treat. it's actually really poetic... i mean, in a poorly written sense. nevertheless, it was still really cool to read.


enjoy!

WHOA! THE IRON-CLAD FIREWALL OF CHINA HAS LIFTED!!!


well, at least for a while... i randomly was able to get onto my blog without trouble today... for who knows what reason! some days, things are seriously so patchy, i feel like i never know whether sites are blocked intentionally or by random accident!

either way, and whatever the cause, i'm pumped! all the sneaking around was really getting to me... not my conscience, but my watch. stinkin' web-based proxies take forever to load pages! I DON'T HAVE THAT KINDA TIME!!!


plus, i needed to get on so i could quickly post this newbie: i found some 'indoor,' shoes that are flippin' awe---some!


as some of you might know, here in China it is both polite and customary to take ones shoes off and put on 'house,' or 'indoor,' shoes when entering someone's abode.

and, incidentally, it is also polite to have a couple extra pairs handy for guests... the water guy came over the other day with two new water jugs for drinking and as soon as he entered he slipped off his muddy shoes and looked at me for about 15 seconds wondering where his pair of indoor-guest shoes were... i ended up giving him my pair of chaco's from back home, and they were about 4 sizes to big, so he just kinda flopped around the apartment for a couple minutes like a pinguin until he could take it anymore and just wore his socks...

since then, i have purchased some house shoes, not only for myself, but also some for guests... just in case!



the guest ones are nothing to get excited about, but my personal ones... oh man, dee-freakin'-vine!




lay your covetous eyes on these bad boys!




oh yeah, that's right, i can almost hear the green-eyed-monster frothing at the mouth!




...




hey, don't hate the player, hate the game! ... what can i say? i love puppies.