Day 58 - Disrespectful Children

Tuesday, April 5th, 2016

Smog Level: 0/3 Mountains

Last night, I had a hard time falling asleep. Maybe It was from climbing the 13 flights of stairs at 8:30 at night, or having slept in until 10am every day this weekend. Either way, I only got 5 hours of sleep and I’m not feeling up to today.

Neither are the kids. They clearly didn’t study, and aren’t ready to be in class either. The first class has a girl that has told me a couple times “I hate you.” And with that, 2 stars blow up. First time was last Thursday, and here she goes again today. I’m not really sure if she’s joking, and I almost let it slide until another girl heard it and thought it would be a good idea to repeat it. Oh no, two more dead stars thanks to these two girls! One had almost saved them by telling me that she liked me, completely reversing her position. It feels weird to punish them for disliking me, but I suppose they’ve gotta have some level of respect.

The second class was much more enjoyable and well behaved. Some of the former problem children seem to be trying harder, and actually putting their hands up occasionally. Good, at least one of the groups is coming together for me.

Near the Cafeteria

After class, I ate with Aurora. I had called her a weirdo the day before on Wechat and she took it as somewhat of an insult. I explained that, to me, being weird is a good thing. It means being original, and taking ownership of that label. Come to think of it, I haven’t been called weird all that often... to my face, at least. Anyway, she still didn’t like the word weird, so I had to reframe it as “original.” Bottom line: if you’re not at least a little weird, then you’re probably boring.

After lunch, she gave me a couple tea samples, saying she wanted me to try it. Sure! I always like trying new tea. I gather my things as the guys in my office are setting up their new aquarium for their turtles. Ryan and The Director are all about turtles and tanks.

Back in my neighborhood, Shimou and I go to the bank to withdraw money! Wow! I can actually do that! Apparently we had been paid on Saturday, but I didn’t hear about it until last night from one of my coworkers. Oh man, I have a list of things I want to get hooked up with, and not a day too soon.* 

At the bank, I put in my password. Rejected. Try again. Rejected. Once more. Locked out. Goddamn it. I didn’t bring my passport with me, which is the only ID they'll accept. To the apartment and back, then wait at the bank for an hour until we could speak with a teller. They tell me to try my pin, just in case. It works. WHAT?!**

Whatever. At least now I have enough money to live, buy the things I wanted, and to settle all my debts. We got ready, and went to the gym together. Afterward, Shimou made dinner for me, Josh, and Josh’s Mandarin Tutor, Alex.

Despite the aggravation, I feel a lot better about my financial situation.

*When I change for the gym, I find out that my pants had been worn through in more than one spot from all the rubbing while walking. Damn it, those were my most comfortable pair.

**Best guess: the ATM’s number layout is in a different formation than the one at the teller. The teller’s was like a keyboard on a computer, while the ATM was arranged like a phone.

Words of the Day

English - Mandarin [pronunciation]

Time

shí jiān

Busy 

máng

Editing Music
Too Drunk to Fuck
Nouvelle Vague

Pretty sure that's beyond repair...
Also pretty sure I was sitting cross-legged at some point recently.