Monday, March 15, 2010

i took a bite of the apple...

twitter.com/awkwardinchina

...and it tasted good. so good.

Sunday, March 14, 2010

dorm parties and military time

oh man. i sincerely apologize for my lack of posts. surely a habit i intend to break.  it's been a crazy few weeks, though, but, i am happy to report that i am now beginning to settle down. i have been in xi'an for two weeks and have found a gym, multiple supermarkets with impressive import selections and an apartment. well, i haven't moved into the apartment yet, but hopefully i will at some point this week. if you cared about me at all, you should be wondering: maeve, i'm worried. where have you been sleeping? and i would say, oh you crazy so and so, that's sweet. but it's ok, i've been crashing in the student dorms.

hm, i should probably quickly described what i am doing back here anyways. essentially, i am a college counselor for chinese high school students trying to study in the states or the uk. i help them 1) navigate the complicated application process, 2) get involved in some extra-curriculars and community service projects to beef up their apps and  3) partake in my english reading club to advance their language skills. thrilling, no?

back to my living situation. my current abode is an on-campus apartment. here are some sweet visuals of my bedroom, bathroom and 'kitchen'—i use quotations because this state of the art kitchen comes with ah mini-fridge, ah sink and ah microwave. oh, and the only place i get internet is on top of the mini fridge. so right now i am standing in the corner of my kitchen with three bars of wireless. cool.

notice the single blanket and pillow. the best.

the internet corner mini fridge


anyways, the dorm is certainly an interesting place. every night between 2240-2300 (military time rules!) the same, peculiar events have been unfolding. usually at 2240 or so a group of voices emerges in the hallway, which is creepily similar to the hospital in halloween II. they then hang out for about ten minutes while somebody rearranges furniture in the room directly above me. then, boom! the voices dissipate from the halls. i have no idea where they go, because there is no influx of bodies above me. but, at this point, a pungent smell permeates through the walls and into my room. finally, at around 2300 everything goes away. whhaaaat? so confused, yet so intrigued. i have been watching a lot of dexter (not the laboratory) recently, so my imagination has been running wild. perhaps a group of students with sudden urges to kill are 'taking out the garbage'. i just do not know. maybe, before i move out, i will muster the courage to join the mystery party… until then, however, i'm cool socializing with the microwave and pirated online tv.