Posts
Where in the World is D Today?
Feeling less like a Panda?
In my last post I pondered a few aspects of culture shock as they pertain specifically to me.
Being in Missouri the weather, or should I say the temperature, is much more palatable than Chicago and Galesburg. The weather here has been gray and gloomy, much like Taiwan was when I left.
I drove my car for the first time in a year. I actually worried a bit if it could still manage the gearshift without seeming like a beginning. My worries were unfounded. My body remembered the car quite well and it felt like the car remembered me too. It was a very pleasant experience driving my car again. I missed it more than I knew.
My Dear, Dear Friend Lyn gave me a coming home dinner party with my "Obama Buddies", Peter and Ty, Kurt, Lisa and their son Jake, and Charles and Monica. Lefty progressives all! It was fun to talk politics and culture. I was in a room of people who "got" me and I "got" them. Food and drink and lots of laughter. It was shear bliss.
I spent time with three of my former students yesterday, Duane, Dart, and Jerry. Most of the time was with Dart and Duane. I was very close to these guys as a teacher, mentor and role model. We laughed and clowned around just as before. I nagged Dart about his sagging pants and Duane about his smoking, just like before. Just as before, out of respect for me, Dart pulled up his pants and Duane didn't smoke in the car. Jerry was as "thought full" as ever. I always like that about him. A thinker, that my kind of guy!!
I've had a few Chinese moments along the way since being here. My desire to maintain what little ability I have to speak Chinese has prompted me to bold as I would not have been, nor needed to be in Taiwan. I've approached a few people that I thought looked Chinese and spoke to them in Chinese. It was both terrifying and gratifying at the same time. They clearly did not expect me to speak Chinese. And they were so pleased that I did. Most importantly, They Could UNDERSTAND me!!!!!!!!!! Say it with me people.... AWESOME!!!!! I now truly understand what it must feel like to a stranger who approaches me in Taiwan. They want to talk and are genuinely interested, but KNOW their language ability is limited.
My time with Sean and Marcy has been fun. They were at the dinner last night and was able to see a part of my world that they had never really seen been apart of before, me interacting with "my grown up friends".
Things ARE beginning to feel "normal". I still need to get to KC to see the rest of the family and my friend Tracy. There are still many people to see here in Columbia. Time is becoming a factor now. But I am not going to let myself get stressed by it. (Yeah, Right!! LOL)
In the U.S. I'm not so much of a Panda. I know the rules and the culture intuitively. I've always been a bit of an odd nut here. The difference is how I "choose" to be an odd nut here and in Taiwan, I am an odd nut by mere virtue of my existence.
But I'll tell you a secret. I miss my life as a Panda. It is often uncomfortable for me in Taiwan. But, I do have dear and trusted friends and allies in James, Ray, Jack, Will, Claire and my Starbucks buddies. I miss my Taiwan family of May, Ken and Kevin. I miss Even, Hao Ting and my Chinese Teacher Zoe. I miss the adventure of living as a foreigner. I don't love the challenges, but I always manage to get over and around them with the help of my friends. I have a GREAT support system! AND, I miss the food soooooooo much!I've said it so many times since I've been here. Taiwan food is DELICIOUS!!
So, yeah, you can go home. It's familiar and comfortable again, and still a little odd. BUT... I like CoMO (Columbia, Missouri) my friends and family. I remains true as I said in a blog post some months back, America is my home. I will always be her son. Someday I will return for good. In the meantime, Taiwan calls me and I must answer.
Peace
戴格智
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Friday, January 15, 2010
Can you ever go "home" again?
Where in the world is D Today?
Sitting in the Gizmo, the student cafe at Knox College.
Tim is in a scholarship meeting now so I got some time to kill. So I thought I'd share some of my inititial unfiltered thoughts on being back in America.
If you are a traveler let me recommend any airline other than American Airlines. I will never EVER use this airline again. It was a HORRIBLE experience from beginning to end. And more importantly to me, they were not "nice" as I was getting screwed over. There was a serious f u buddy attitude the whole time.
On the Other hand, if you were ever to travel to Taiwan, I Highly recommend EVA Airways! They were gracious, caring and gentle with all of their travelers. I experienced it from the moment of trying to check in to the moment I stepped off the plane.
OK, so much airline reviews....
I've been back in the country for approximately 4 days now and I've found America to be.......... an uncomfortable place to be.
First of all it's physically uncomfortable. It's so cold. There is snow everywhere. I didn't like snow before I went to Taiwan. I really hate it now. Also, I've been bitten by some time of bug all over both of my legs. itch, itch.. scratch, scratch.
Second, The people here are so..... BIG! Both in height and girth. I feel very small.
I don't look like a Taiwan person, but I FEEL more like a Taiwan person right now.
I love being with Tim, but it's more and more clear we see the world very differently. That's really ok. Every man must find his own way. But as is often the case with youth, he feels he has all the answers. We are talking... correction, he's talking and I'm listening. Maybe he'll convince we. I am all ears. The kid is smart so it does my heart good to listen to him speak with not only intelligence but passion. Problem is smart passionate young people are not particularly good listeners.
The food tastes funny. I miss Taiwan food. And I want to use my chop sticks. Forks are too awkward. (Haha- I would have never said that a year ago.)
This is so odd, because I am going through a cultural transition in Taiwan, and now I'm going through on here. Is there anyplace I can feel "at home"? Today I feel most home in Taiwan. I'll keep you posted over the coming weeks.
Peace
戴格智
Sitting in the Gizmo, the student cafe at Knox College.
Tim is in a scholarship meeting now so I got some time to kill. So I thought I'd share some of my inititial unfiltered thoughts on being back in America.
If you are a traveler let me recommend any airline other than American Airlines. I will never EVER use this airline again. It was a HORRIBLE experience from beginning to end. And more importantly to me, they were not "nice" as I was getting screwed over. There was a serious f u buddy attitude the whole time.
On the Other hand, if you were ever to travel to Taiwan, I Highly recommend EVA Airways! They were gracious, caring and gentle with all of their travelers. I experienced it from the moment of trying to check in to the moment I stepped off the plane.
OK, so much airline reviews....
I've been back in the country for approximately 4 days now and I've found America to be.......... an uncomfortable place to be.
First of all it's physically uncomfortable. It's so cold. There is snow everywhere. I didn't like snow before I went to Taiwan. I really hate it now. Also, I've been bitten by some time of bug all over both of my legs. itch, itch.. scratch, scratch.
Second, The people here are so..... BIG! Both in height and girth. I feel very small.
I don't look like a Taiwan person, but I FEEL more like a Taiwan person right now.
I love being with Tim, but it's more and more clear we see the world very differently. That's really ok. Every man must find his own way. But as is often the case with youth, he feels he has all the answers. We are talking... correction, he's talking and I'm listening. Maybe he'll convince we. I am all ears. The kid is smart so it does my heart good to listen to him speak with not only intelligence but passion. Problem is smart passionate young people are not particularly good listeners.
The food tastes funny. I miss Taiwan food. And I want to use my chop sticks. Forks are too awkward. (Haha- I would have never said that a year ago.)
This is so odd, because I am going through a cultural transition in Taiwan, and now I'm going through on here. Is there anyplace I can feel "at home"? Today I feel most home in Taiwan. I'll keep you posted over the coming weeks.
Peace
戴格智
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
2009 a year in review
Where in the World is D Today?
Being his typical reflective self. Because that’s what Panda’s do.
It’s been almost a full year in Taiwan. Some of it has been really great. Some of it….. not so much. Let’s take a look back.
January 5, I get an email from Jack, not motorcycle Jack, Dewey Education Services Jack. Dewey services the contract for the Taiwan government. BTW Jack is a very common English name for Taiwan men. The short version…
“Do you still want to teach in Taiwan?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Can you be here February 1?”
“?!?!?!..... Ummmm… Let me see what I can work out.
Yes, I will come.” *gulp!*
A lease is signed to rent my house. (This is a subject I have said absolutely nothing about on my blog. But those close to me know it was easily my worse decision of 2009. It led to the collapse of a friendship, the pre-mature selling of my house and HUGE, we’re talking 5 digits, financial loss for me. Not to mention the shear emotional and mental stress to deal with some 7700 miles and weird time zones. What can I say, it seemed like a good idea at the time.)
My first 24 hours in Taiwan, is a series of comical miscommunications. Some of which I have yet to figure out “why” things happened the way they did. And I end up with Josh as my roommate. Josh and I are totally incompatible as roommates. And I end up getting my own apartment. I will say that I am very happy to report, that now that I don’t live with Josh, we get along quite well. I’ve watched him grow this year. He’s a decent fellow with a good sense of humor. And from what I can tell, he’s a good teacher. I’ve watched his rapport with the kindergarten kids and it’s pretty cool! I would have never guessed at the beginning of the year. Two thumbs up Josh!!
Met my first friends in Starbucks. I call it Ground Zero for the beginning of “life” in Taiwan. Coke was the first, then Timmy. Followed quickly by Shaq, Pie and Cindy. Who would eventually me the greatest Chinese name EVER, 戴格智 Then I got to know the staff and they got to know me. Winnie, Sylvie, Bryan, Elma, Dolphin, Rain, Eddie were my life-savers. These folks were my first up close experiences with Taiwan culture and Chinese language. For a long time I was as come to Starbucks as coffee. This is also when I first begin referring to myself as a Panda.
Discovered the sheer joy of KTV in April. Laughing, eating, drinking and singing. It doesn’t get better than that! KTV is a 24 hour a day deal. Going to KTV at 3 am is normal.
I experience my first Earth Quake ever at 2:00AM in June. This is a very bad way to wake up! Tears and vomit ensue. It was probably one of the most insecure moments of my life. My body and nerves where thrown completely out of whack. I’ve been through other earthquakes since. I still HATE them, but I don’t freak out either. There was a “big one”, by Taiwan standards, the week before Christmas. I was having dinner with friends. It would have extremely serious for if I would have been in my 14th floor apt.
Experienced my first Typhoon in August. I’d have to say it was a bit anti-climactic for me. Here in Jhongli, it was pretty calm. But unfortunately in the south many people died. It was quite horrible down there. And news reports had friends and family on high alert in the U.S. It’s nice to know people care if you live or die.
The food in Taiwan is simply delicious. Unfounded worries of me losing weight because of the food. If anything I’ve gained weight.
I began seriously with Chinese lesson in the summer, July. My Chinese is well, not very good in my opinion. 我覺得中文很困難. But the things I can say, I say very well with a decent Taiwan accent. I, like everything else in my life, have taken a more difficult path in learning Chinese. I am learning Chinese in a way that children in Taiwan learn Chinese. I am learningㄅㄆㄇㄈ , a phonetic system for learning sounds in Chinese. If I don’t understand a word when people say it, they can write it this way and I will understand better. Or at the very least add a new word to my vocabulary.
I joined a gym in March. Love the showers. Hate the number of men that walk around naked. The staff is cool, but not as cool as Starbucks. I do a body combat class twice a week to mix up my workout. I tried a step class… twice. I sucked both times. Step class is Taiwan is WAY different from the U.S. The routine just builds and builds. It seems you start with step one. By the end of class you are on step 37. It’s one long continuous routine. That’s fine. I am good through the first 5-6 consecutive steps, then I get very confused. The steps are much more difficult AND the instructions are in Chinese. I don’t feel too bad, because there are Taiwan people who can’t figure it out either..and they speak Chinese!
Found a church in the summer. It was definitely an answer to prayer at the time. I don’t attend as regularly as I did before. The language barrier is to great. 2010 will have a search for an English speaking church.
The fall led to the discovery of Thai Massage. Please resist the temptation to attach something sexual to it. It isn’t. Trust me when I say I there were, I sure as heck wouldn’t tell the whole world on my blog. It’s just a great massage. And by U.S. standards is super cheap. $1000NT for 2 hours, that’s about $34 US.
My latest adventure is riding Brutus, my motorbike. My friend Randy Rook once said God protects drunks and idiots. I’m not a drunk, so that only leaves idiot. I have felt that protection from time to time. I am beginning to ride more like a Taiwan person. I don’t know if that is necessarily a good thing, but it is certainly critical for survival on the streets of Jhongli.
All in all, it’s been a good year of growth. I still feel very much like a man in transition. There is much I haven't written about, but I think you get the point of my life. I re-signed my contract, so I will be in Taiwan another year. I am hopeful at the possibilities. I am hoping to become a better teacher, a better speaker of Chinese and maybe…. just maybe, I can find a girl friend. Wish me Luck.
Peace.
戴格智
Being his typical reflective self. Because that’s what Panda’s do.
It’s been almost a full year in Taiwan. Some of it has been really great. Some of it….. not so much. Let’s take a look back.
January 5, I get an email from Jack, not motorcycle Jack, Dewey Education Services Jack. Dewey services the contract for the Taiwan government. BTW Jack is a very common English name for Taiwan men. The short version…
“Do you still want to teach in Taiwan?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Can you be here February 1?”
“?!?!?!..... Ummmm… Let me see what I can work out.
Yes, I will come.” *gulp!*
A lease is signed to rent my house. (This is a subject I have said absolutely nothing about on my blog. But those close to me know it was easily my worse decision of 2009. It led to the collapse of a friendship, the pre-mature selling of my house and HUGE, we’re talking 5 digits, financial loss for me. Not to mention the shear emotional and mental stress to deal with some 7700 miles and weird time zones. What can I say, it seemed like a good idea at the time.)
My first 24 hours in Taiwan, is a series of comical miscommunications. Some of which I have yet to figure out “why” things happened the way they did. And I end up with Josh as my roommate. Josh and I are totally incompatible as roommates. And I end up getting my own apartment. I will say that I am very happy to report, that now that I don’t live with Josh, we get along quite well. I’ve watched him grow this year. He’s a decent fellow with a good sense of humor. And from what I can tell, he’s a good teacher. I’ve watched his rapport with the kindergarten kids and it’s pretty cool! I would have never guessed at the beginning of the year. Two thumbs up Josh!!
Met my first friends in Starbucks. I call it Ground Zero for the beginning of “life” in Taiwan. Coke was the first, then Timmy. Followed quickly by Shaq, Pie and Cindy. Who would eventually me the greatest Chinese name EVER, 戴格智 Then I got to know the staff and they got to know me. Winnie, Sylvie, Bryan, Elma, Dolphin, Rain, Eddie were my life-savers. These folks were my first up close experiences with Taiwan culture and Chinese language. For a long time I was as come to Starbucks as coffee. This is also when I first begin referring to myself as a Panda.
Discovered the sheer joy of KTV in April. Laughing, eating, drinking and singing. It doesn’t get better than that! KTV is a 24 hour a day deal. Going to KTV at 3 am is normal.
I experience my first Earth Quake ever at 2:00AM in June. This is a very bad way to wake up! Tears and vomit ensue. It was probably one of the most insecure moments of my life. My body and nerves where thrown completely out of whack. I’ve been through other earthquakes since. I still HATE them, but I don’t freak out either. There was a “big one”, by Taiwan standards, the week before Christmas. I was having dinner with friends. It would have extremely serious for if I would have been in my 14th floor apt.
Experienced my first Typhoon in August. I’d have to say it was a bit anti-climactic for me. Here in Jhongli, it was pretty calm. But unfortunately in the south many people died. It was quite horrible down there. And news reports had friends and family on high alert in the U.S. It’s nice to know people care if you live or die.
The food in Taiwan is simply delicious. Unfounded worries of me losing weight because of the food. If anything I’ve gained weight.
I began seriously with Chinese lesson in the summer, July. My Chinese is well, not very good in my opinion. 我覺得中文很困難. But the things I can say, I say very well with a decent Taiwan accent. I, like everything else in my life, have taken a more difficult path in learning Chinese. I am learning Chinese in a way that children in Taiwan learn Chinese. I am learningㄅㄆㄇㄈ , a phonetic system for learning sounds in Chinese. If I don’t understand a word when people say it, they can write it this way and I will understand better. Or at the very least add a new word to my vocabulary.
I joined a gym in March. Love the showers. Hate the number of men that walk around naked. The staff is cool, but not as cool as Starbucks. I do a body combat class twice a week to mix up my workout. I tried a step class… twice. I sucked both times. Step class is Taiwan is WAY different from the U.S. The routine just builds and builds. It seems you start with step one. By the end of class you are on step 37. It’s one long continuous routine. That’s fine. I am good through the first 5-6 consecutive steps, then I get very confused. The steps are much more difficult AND the instructions are in Chinese. I don’t feel too bad, because there are Taiwan people who can’t figure it out either..and they speak Chinese!
Found a church in the summer. It was definitely an answer to prayer at the time. I don’t attend as regularly as I did before. The language barrier is to great. 2010 will have a search for an English speaking church.
The fall led to the discovery of Thai Massage. Please resist the temptation to attach something sexual to it. It isn’t. Trust me when I say I there were, I sure as heck wouldn’t tell the whole world on my blog. It’s just a great massage. And by U.S. standards is super cheap. $1000NT for 2 hours, that’s about $34 US.
My latest adventure is riding Brutus, my motorbike. My friend Randy Rook once said God protects drunks and idiots. I’m not a drunk, so that only leaves idiot. I have felt that protection from time to time. I am beginning to ride more like a Taiwan person. I don’t know if that is necessarily a good thing, but it is certainly critical for survival on the streets of Jhongli.
All in all, it’s been a good year of growth. I still feel very much like a man in transition. There is much I haven't written about, but I think you get the point of my life. I re-signed my contract, so I will be in Taiwan another year. I am hopeful at the possibilities. I am hoping to become a better teacher, a better speaker of Chinese and maybe…. just maybe, I can find a girl friend. Wish me Luck.
Peace.
戴格智
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