Spring things

I know I haven't posted in a while. That's because nothing much has happened.
I haven't gone anywhere interesting, even in Shanghai. I've been eagerly awating and experiencing bits of warm weather. Spring is definitely the best season in Shanghai. Fall was short and rainy, winter was bitter cold, and summer will be a scorching humid mess. Ahh, this is nice.

Remember being a kid and when the sun started shining more and the end of the school year started approaching how crazy you got? Well, that's been interesting. The kids are CRAZY. Always yapping through the whole lesson and excited from having just run around outside. I'm hoping I have about three weeks less until I can enjoy a bit of unemployment to hang out in Shanghai.

Soon my father comes. He thinks he's ready for the weather due to Florida, but that's not a giant city with a smog blanket. Kindly, my long-term tutoree's family has offered to cook us dinner as a good-bye. It will be great for him to experience a Chinese family and traditional dinner. The grandparentts will be sweetly insisting him to eat more and talking to him in Chinese even thgouh they know he doesn't understand (this always happens!). William speaks great English for a 2nd grader (especially if it is about Soldiers, Monsters, or Plants vs. Zombies). The parents speak decent English.
I've picked up extra tutoring which limits my social life and free time but enlarges my wallet which is what I am most interested in right now.

I did enjoy going to an outdoor music festival the other weekend. Some beer pizza sun and good music and I thought longingly of Oregon.The warm weather makes Shanghai so much more attractive to live in. I've started telling co-workers and parents that I won't be returning to Shanghai. They are making it absolutely heart-wrenching. They beg and they say "Please Rachael, we love and need you!" and send heart and flower emoticons. So so dear. Sometimes they give the nicest compliments I think without realizing it. One of the more recent hilarious ones was "I showed her a picture of you [this is a new tutors' mother] and she said you are so beautiful and that her husband likes beautiful women." Awkward laugh, "well...I think I'm a little young for him"

Goodbyes are starting. Gosh they are difficult. One of the main girls in my posse has moved south to another city. The others are planning their goodbyes to separate corners of the world: Australia, Canada, the US. Thankfully, as the travelers we are, I have faith we will see each other again somewhere. And we've made such connections with each other as we are each others' daily lives here, that I know I now have friends I can visit in new places and that is very exciting. I also won't be in the US for long...

Big news! If you made it this far in my post, you get to find out! I accepted a job in Santiago, Chile teaching Business English starting August 5th. I'm so excited. Getting a break from kids and enriching my ESL skills, returning to Chile, exposure to Spanish and the culture, and another few months to think about my next steps. I'll be traveling to different companies throughout the week teaching one-on-one or groups of 2-4. I hope to see old friends and re-establish my Chilean accent.  My tutor's mother told me that they would all visit me there.

Well, Oregon and Oregonians, I will be in Eugene July 4. You've got  me until August 1st. Let's make it count, eh?