Haizi (Hi-zi [as in zit only without the t] ): Children
Okay this has been a long time coming so. . .IT's a bit lengthy. Take your time...maybe even a few days to see what I have just posted before your eyes. I invite you to partake of the full experience. It will probably have you saying...Dude_or....not...
My first semester at Noble was spent with the Kangaroos.
KANGAROO CLASS
Cc_w: Johnny (holding the tree), Gary II, Leo, Gary I,
Morgan (in red), Charlene, Apple, Judy, (missing Collin)
And yes, I really had a Gary I and Gary II. I tried to use their lasts names instead, but all the kids still said I and II....hee hee. Ah we had a good time. I will try to post our Christmas 2007 skit we created (for the schooL Christmas program) in the near future...future.
...then the next semester I got the cutest kids in all of Taiwan! I got to work with the Whale class! Wahoo!
Here are my little WHALES. . .
Jeffrey knows his stuff. He can be sitting in the back row messing around, but when he sits at a table to do some serious work he brings it! He can be independent, but he's definitely a softie as he likes to cry at any little push, scratch, shove...or look!
Insert from the Communication Books:
Uh when I first read this I thought it was...wasn't real. I thought this was so funny, but at the same time I was thinking to myself...Dude, not only do we hope Jeffrey recovers, but I hope WE recover after he passes it all on to us! Stay tuned for more Jeffrey news via Comm_books.
Pure hilair.
Jason's first show and tell moment was with a huge black and red toy gun. Needless to say these are two paper guns he has proudly made (although here they look like chicken nuggets). But seriously look at that cute face. Truthfully he's a little softie. He really likes Julie and will try to be next to her any chance he gets. He will always say, "I like Julie" and smile real big after he says it. Ahhh young love.
Alex has incredibly good manners that I don't recall ever having at his age. He'll say, "Excuse me" at all the appropriate times and I think to myself...man you have good parents or sometimes I think...are you serious? However, lately he has gone wild! Yup at school he can have manners and be out of control! Wooo! Hopefully I'm not rubbing off on him.
BoBo...his name says it all. He makes a lot of kids cry and so I learn how to deal. However, I love this little guy. You know how people will say, "good girl or good boy"...Well he will say, "You are good Teacher Kathy." Another heart moment happened when we sat down for lunch. He touched my arm and said, "I like your color. You are orange and we are this color". I love him.
Evan started out shy. Now he will dance and sing to the playing music when he thinks no one is looking. He will seriously bob his head, let his arms and feet go wild, and try to sing as he jives to the music. I love it. On another note he has no problem throwing a bit of a tantrum when he doesn't get his way. Most of the time you can prevent all that with a little hug and then he will do whatever you say.
Justin is a darn hoot. He used to have his hair permed and it made him look like...a little piece of broccoli. That's right, broccoli. Eventually his parents got it chopped off and he no longer gets called "Brockery" by the Chinese teachers. He is the youngest of the bunch. He is great at mimicking whatever and I mean whatever you say! For example if I say, "Jeffrey sit down" immediately you hear, "Jeffrey sit down!" then he smiles and laughs. He's very entertaining to say the least.
Leah is just a lot of fun. She has been gone to mainland China most of this semester, but her return has been a fun one. She can be stubborn (who isn't) and won't blink an eye or give a budge until you have truly given her a reason to do something she doesn't want to do...taking a star or no play time becomes her option and that usually gets her to budge. . .a little :] She is most entertaining. After she has accomplished something she will tilt her head to the side, kind of like in this pic, and then nod her head a few times as if to confidently yet comically say, "I know, I know". I love her.
Bryan is the lover of the bunch. If he does something wrong he will say, "I love you" or sometimes it will sound like "I luh you". He will put his ear to your face and put his hands around your head and say,"What did you say?" or he will just randomly stand up while I'm giving a lesson, come hug me and say, "I love you" or he'll just lay across my lap. When that happens everyone else feels like doing the same thing. Cha. That's when I get to hug them back and say, "I love you too! Now please go sit down!" I would love to have this little guy with me forever.
Steven is so darn cute. The Chinese teachers actually call him an "old man" because he is very slow when he does things, especially when he eats. One of my favorite things about this little dude is his laugh. When he laughs I just want to rewind it and play it over and over again. It makes your heart laugh when you hear him. He can be so quiet and somber like, but he is so aware. So when you hear him laugh it is as if he has come alive.
Angel is our very own Chinese Dora the Explorer. She loves Dora. She also loves to wear dresses, have her hair brushed, and look beautiful. I love how excited she gets when she has the chance to wear her little pink tutu for dance class. When she wears it she comes alive! Although we have some good times at school, she would much rather be sprawled out across the floor looking at the ceiling or finding something to laugh about. Can't blame her, I felt the exact same way when I was in school!
Tina is full of life! Just check this pic out! She's very artistic. I love how she mixes her colors when she uses her crayons or does art projects. I think it reflects a lot about her own little personality. So fun and unique. She is imaginative and loves to tell stories. She is also very helpful. Although she only has an older brother, she likes to play the big sister role and really helps me out with the youngins.
Sophia is a blast. Just look at that smile. Her smile is usually the first thing you see when she comes in the morning and the last thing you see when she leaves. Very little will get her down. She is very independent and likes to do everything herself. She looks like a little 2 year old, but she's almost 5. I love to pick her up and twirl her around while she squeals and laughs as if she is being tickled to death. When we took this picture she was also laughing like she was being tickled to death! She's a cutie fo sho!
Julie is a little lover and her little laugh kills me. Her laugh reminds me of all my little nieces/nephews and watching them grow. She is the cute girl Jason likes. She used to like him, but has tired of his overbearing presence hee hee. When he says, "I like Julie" she will immediatly say in a stern voice, "I don't like Jason". Shoot...It's bitter sweet. She will hold on to you forever and never let go. She will wrap her arms around my legs, look up and say "I like Teacher Kathy". Ah I love these kids.
Nicky is hilarious. She is so darn cute and so fun to have in class. She loves to help me and will often say, "Teacher Coffee I like help you". I love it. She also likes to talk a lot at the lunch table and will often open her mouth to show me the remnants within it left to chew. It's a means of showing me that she is working on eating despite the fact that she is still jibber jabbing away. Gotta love it.
Monday_Bushiban (cram school)
On Monday's I go to bushiban to teach these lovely girls. It's a nice change up after a day at Noble. I get to practice the little Chinese that I know with them because they are on a different comprehension level.
L-R: Joyce, Jennifer, Fanny, Joy, Amber, Joanna, Naomi, Wendy, Peggy (hiding), but you can see her in the pic below.
The dynamics go a little something like this: Peggy hates English, but I think she's warming up after lots of praise, stickers, and treats! Fanny (pink sweater) is total serious, but she's likely to know all the answers. Meanwhile Joy and Joyce bounce around the room like monkeys mimicking English/Taiwanese sounds to get the whole class laughing. But not Fanny. She is pure focused. And the others...just gossip. Ah it's a good time with them.
Friday_Bushiban
Aside from the fact that it's Friday, spending some time with these little tykes is always an adventure!
James gettin' his cheese on!
James and Jay. Check out Candy in the background. . . I like what you can find in the background of a pic.
Jerry chewing on some chocolate, stylin' it up with his hair (they had a school performance that day). This kid cracks me up and I just want to squeeze him. He is smart. He will be doing a word search puzzle, pretend to be looking at his school books, then look up as if he's listening and somehow he still manages to understand what's being said. Genius. Who does that? Dang he's cute.
...and the wild adventures begin!
...the blue striped shorts belong to wild little Morris.
The John's Family private lesson: Jessica (12), Kevin (10), Isabella (6)
I love this family. They will invite me to go do fun things. I recently went with them to the Butterfly Museum at Chiayi NationaL University. It was amazingly beautiful. For those who love contrast in all things...this is a must see. NO pics were allowed, but it's etched in my memory. There was a display of butterflies slowly turning (from the ceiling to the floor) forming a DNA helix. Incredible...and the contrast of colors was breath taking. I loved it all so much I went back again and will definitely. . . go again. Anyways they do cool things.
They made these poses on their own. It's kinda like they're the Chinese Von or Van? Trap Family...for reals. There doesn't seem to be anything they won't do or try.
Ahh fur cute.
View from my front door.
Take a step further in and you will get a wider view as you can see from this skewed sun faced shot.
Looking back to the front door. My kitchen. Everyone has propane gas stoves. Yes, I get to buy a little tank every time I need gas for my stove. So far I have only had to replace it...once. I don't cook often.
Across from the lovely kitchen is the ladies room. Rockin the plastic slippers are a must when walking upon this floor. You need them to wade through the puddle that merges next to the tub.
It took a few months before I actually put the shower curtain up. I used the same rod when I had nightwatch duty for those stinky pets (see DRAIN-O Works!). I had to defend myself it was very useful in the matter.
Don't you just LOVE the colors! Below the sink is a drain where I put my DRAIN-O to use. It also gets water broomed down it after every shower. Look for my trusty red broom on the (R). There's a small leak in the floor...I hope it holds up for at least one more year! cool eh.
The shelves...
This is my friend Mandy (interior designer). I asked her if she had any ideas of how I could rearrange to fit some chairs in (besides the ledge of my bed). Check out the picnic table cloth chillin in the background. mmmmhmmmm. 
The only seating arrangement besides the floor. Here are Kelly Huang (L) and Kelly Tsai (R). If you look close, behind the girls, there is a pillow with a putrid green pillow case. Yup. When I first got here I couldn't resist getting the next best thing I could find...that was it. 
I moved the bed and got some chairs. The only original piece is the table. Underneath the table are some small bamboo stools (a common sight in homes). I made the green wall hanging which was inspired by a design from a cup and left over tissue paper from a lantern (which I converted into a light cover to tone down those darn florescent lights). I like it a lot.
My chairs face this lovely ensemble. Good times. OH the best thing is the water heater (silver dude on the L of the shelves) it is perfect to warm up your water for anything! I love it!
My Bed got a make over too. I love the cooler because it makes living up high in this sticky weather bareable. I was really hesitant to move my bed by the sliding doors, but got over it and am just consistent on the roach spray.
I thought I should you know...maybe get in a LIVING mag shot. Aside from it being a little dark and the tip of my desk chair it's not too... bad. Ha. p.s. where are the traps? Hint: there are 2
This is how I like it...organized with a little mixed genre of things like...a stove. A few who know me say I should consider the whole personal assistant thing... maybe when I go into business I'll let you know eh! 
Looking straight ahead from the sliding glass doors. When people say BBQ...they're refering to that little metal pan I got goin on that ledge with a little charcoal brick to go with it.
Looking down from the 10th floor out into the plethora of buildings. Depsite the close proximity of everything my surroundings are...interesting and it's nice to see something different.
NO more coin op unless I need something dry in a hurry. I've only had to replace the gas tank (for bath/kitchen) once. I haven't needed warm water since... June. But by the end of September I will put it back to use. Look for more traps. Hint: there are 2
Looking Right
Looking Left
This is Ben. It's nice to see a little life amongst concrete surroundings.
Today Ben brought a Misses.
