Cross-Cultural Adjustment
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This is from a package that my old school was/is handing out to all newly-arrived-in-China FTs. I wish I could take credit for writing it, but I can’t, and I have no clue as to who the author is.
Which stage are YOU in?
The Four Stages of Cross-Cultural Adjustment
The Honeymoon Stage
The honeymoon stage is characterized by feelings of exhilaration, anticipation, and excitement. You are fascinated with everything that is new. You may feel eager to please the people around you. You display a spirit of cooperation, and show an active interest in others. Because you want to please others, you may nod or smile to indicate understanding when in fact you have not understood. When the misunderstandings mount up, you move into the second stage of cultural adjustment, the hostility stage.
The Hostility Stage
The second stage of cultural adjustment is characterized by feelings of frustration, anger, anxiety, and sometimes depression. You may feel weary of speaking and listening to Chinese daily. Sleep patterns may be disrupted. You may suffer from indigestion and be unable to eat. You might react to your frustration by by rejecting your new environment. The internal reasoning might be, “if I feel bad, it is because of them”. At this point it is likely that you will display some hostility towards Chinese culture. Some of this hostility is transformed into fits of anger over minor frustrations, mistrust of Chinese, lack of interest, lack of motivation, and, at worst, complete withdrawal. Many work-related problems begin during this stage.
The Humor Stage
The third stage follows when you begin to feel relaxed in new situations and begin to laugh at misunderstandings and minor mistakes that mould have caused major headaches during the hostility stage. You will have made some friends and feel able to manage your new life.
The Home Stage
The final stage occurs when you not only retain allegiance to your home culture, but also “feel at home” in China. You have successfully adjusted to the norms and standards of your workplace and this country. You should be commended for the ability to live successfully in two cultures!
(Be prepared to continue experiencing culture stress even after you reach “the Home Stage”)
The only ones around here
The only ones around here who have reached the "home stage" seem to be Doc Tempest and Bob C. All power to the Panda Huggers! ;)
Then, there is the 'Cycle of Funk'/Sinocidal stage that says it's time to move on...
Took me five years to get there. The last two have been spent waiting on a green card. Hooray.
I must be somewhere between
I must be somewhere between stages 2 and 3.
I still get angry when I nearly get run over by a crazy taxi driver with his horn blaring as he turns right and blows through a red light while I am in a green cross walk. But today I actually shook my head in amazement and laughed as a driver cut across oncoming traffic to turn left only to discover that the street he wanted to go down was blocked (guess he should have looked first, ya think?). What did he do? Tried to back up against the oncoming traffic to make a u-turn so he could wait for a space to enter the road. This was on Jingshan Lu no less, not a small side street. Major blockage and MAJOR hornage ensued. Hilarious.
Don't get me started on hornage....
And I used to think there was nothing worse than a woman driver talking on a cell phone. But there is.....it's a Chinese woman driver talking on a cell phone.
I wouldn't hug a Panda if
I wouldn't hug a Panda if you paid me. [dirty smelly things they are]
Sometime I feel 'at home' so to speak especially when I'm abroad and get that can't wait to get back feeling. But when I'm here it's a roller coaster of dips and turns wich take in all four stages and often on a daily basis.
Love and Hate, Admire and Despise, all at once... and all in a single utterance :-p
regards,
T. Tempest. DCA
____________________
"I'd love a thousand words in a foreign language." Tang Yuchuan
All welcome to visit my homepage http://www.kong-xi.com/doc.html
Doc, I must protest! Having
Doc, I must protest! Having actually hugged many pandas I know them to not be dirty smelly things. And when they hug you back there is such an urgency in their arms and eyes that one wonders why pandas have such a hard time breeding. They certainly knew how to seduce me....
I think after living in China for two years I have reached stage 4. I feel very much at home here. And like a good 'Chinese' daughter I am going to spend the Spring Festival with my my parents in my hometown (London). ;-)
You are most certainly
You are most certainly welcome to protest.
Clearly, my nose works different to yours.
What really put me off, the ones I came across, where the crawly things in their fur.
But I guess that's the nature of the "China Experience" it's hard to predict and different for each person.
Peace.
regards,
T. Tempest. DCA
____________________
"I'd love a thousand words in a foreign language." Tang Yuchuan
All welcome to visit my homepage http://www.kong-xi.com/doc.html
I didn't notice any smell,
I didn't notice any smell, but hey, after two years in China I think my nose has grown so accustomed to some 'strong' smells that it takes a lot to offend my nasal senses these days....
If I had seen the crawly things in the panda fur I think, even I who adore pandas, would have refrained from kissing the black and white bears!
you guys must have had more
you guys must have had more luck than I, the memory of it still makes my skin crawl.
as an aside, don't you just love the travelogues and tour guides with their lovely pics of misty mornings at the fresh market or near some breakfast vendors?
Makes you just wanna go and see it and experience it right?
Funny how they almost always miss commentary about 'grey water' being sluiced across the footpath or the compost of vegetable scraps and meal leftovers rotting in the corner amongst various forms of paper and plastic detritus. Now those are challenging nasal conditions!
:-)
regards,
T. Tempest. DCA
____________________
"I'd love a thousand words in a foreign language." Tang Yuchuan
All welcome to visit my homepage http://www.kong-xi.com/doc.html
"I think after living in
"I think after living in China for two years I have reached stage 4. I feel very much at home here. And like a good 'Chinese' daughter..."
Well, um....YEA! Being Chinese here certainly has its advantages.
Another take on cross-cultural awareness:
http://www.chinalawblog.com/2008/01/chinese_cultural_awareness_sim.html?
Canrun, I am not Chinese! I
Canrun, I am not Chinese! I wrote 'Chinese' because although I am not Chinese in a biological sense, I feel over the last two years I have taken on Chinese culture as my own that I could be considered an honourary Chinese. Heck, most Chinese people often comment that I am not like other Western girls....
Scandal, I envy your outlook
Scandal, I envy your outlook on life. I personally found that two years was the tipping point for most folks around here. If you've passed that-congratulations! That being said, talk to me in another two. The Pandas may not seem quite so cuddly. What a difference 730 days makes...
Getting to 4 doesn't stop
Getting to 4 doesn't stop you still experiencing the 1-3 though. I just had a week back in Melbourne Australia and i found it so different going out on to a reasonably major street during the day and not seeing a sinlge person walking about. I gues that is the big difference in coming from a country whose total population is about the same as Shenzhen/Donguan combined!
I think coming from London
I think coming from London has helped me settle into China life. London is heavily populated and the streets are always crowded whatever the time of day! Also it is very rare to actually hear people speaking English on the buses and other forms of public transport. Many of my foreign friends in Zhuhai often find it strange not being able to understand what the people around them are saying on the bus, but for me it is just like being back home!
Canrun, talk to you again in 730 days....
Stage 4, for the better and
Stage 4, for the better and for the worse!
JJ
Ummmm... Where do you go to
Ummmm...
Where do you go to hug a panda... Even if they smell, I still want to hug one... is it far? Does it cost an arm and a leg... do you need special "gaunxi" like know the head of zoo's in China or somthing...
Wolong Panda Preserve in
Wolong Panda Preserve in Sichuan Province is good place to go if you want to hug a panda. Five minutes with a panda costs 1000 yuan. In that five minutes you can play, kiss, cuddle etc. with the panda. In May you can pay 5000 yuan and get to spend five minutes with a six month old panda cub. :-)
Wow the country is really
Wow the country is really pimpin out the panda's huh? 1000 for 5 Minutes.. that is basically an arm and a leg to the locals!! Is this what you did scandal? Is that where you went and what you paid? Is your picture the panda you hugged? I mean for 1000 for 5 min, did they make him stop eating bamboo during that time? Was the Panda pimp that got your cash wearing a polyester suit and a hat with a feather in it and a stop watch? What if you hug the panda and you go over the five minutes and you feel you need some OT (overtime)?
Can you hug the panda "IN" a panda suit?
How many of these questions can you answer?
That Panda in your pic sure is cute though!!! I think that is a Chinese cigar sticking out of his mouth... His eyes are telling me: "You know you want the my big Panda ass!" "Bamboo isn't cheap... and my pimp takes 80%"
If I had a daughter, I'd pay the 5000 for the 6 month old... But I would get a Birth Certificate first... anything over 6 months and I would want a discount...
There are five stages to
There are five stages to culture shock; the last being re-entry culture shock (life back home is too easy/boring/the place is the same but you are different etc). Ever notice how many fts go home only to turn up a couple of months later working in a new school or different city.
Scandal
Those kind of comments landed Morrissey in big trouble ;-)however i agree with and would say the buses in China are a joy compared to the tube at rush hour.
"Was the Panda pimp that got
"Was the Panda pimp that got your cash wearing a polyester suit and a hat with a feather in it and a stop watch?"
What a GREAT line! The Panda Pimp. Don't forget the Aquarium platform shoes! ;)
Actually, the Panda Pimp was probably wearing a black polyester shirt, ill-fitting black trousers, silver belt buckle (with belt 10 sizes too big), white Playboy socks, black slip-on loafers with a crocodile, Rolex watch with a pinky fingernail six inches long, hairy mole and chain-smoking Baisha cigarettes. Oh, wait! That's a Guangdong official! :0
Ironically, I recall this
Ironically, I recall this article from when I was helping Chinese graduate students at the University of Vermont adjust to American culture. It seems that what goes 'round really does come 'round when you picture those frustrated newcomers trying to find chicken feet in Burlington and shouting "Ta ma de!" when, using their "bye-bye signal" to hail a taxi, the passing drivers merely wave back.
The irony is that it was written for foreigners going to America and not westerners coming to China. And so, in a sense, it brings us all closer together, doesn't it?
To be fair, there are two
To be fair, there are two reserves that deal with pandas in Chengdu. One is the zoo, the other is the Panda Reserve. The funds raised are used to ostensibly pay for the day to day running costs for the centers. This is no different to zoos around the world offering up Animal adoption to help pay for the upkeep and feeding of their charges.
In similar vein, many of the once wondrous, build-it-and-people-will-come ideas that led to the building of museums, art spaces, zoos, aquariums, etc., all suffer the same fate several years down the track, lack of funding, low level pedestrian traffic, and zero (or absolute minimal) maintenance resulting in the degradation and devaluation of an otherwise worthy public asset. In end effect, it becomes an ugly space that people avoid because everything has been neglected and the cost of entry far excedes the value of the visit.
But don't take my word for it, why not pay a visit the Oceanarium in Wanzai, or the Museum in Jida and see for your self. Were the lights on? the exhibits accessible? Could you paint your name in the dust on the glass? Was it worth your time? How well kept was the garden or the entry/exit areas? Were the staff pasty-faced from their whole-day slumber or jubilant and welcoming?
regards,
T. Tempest. DCA
____________________
"I'd love a thousand words in a foreign language." Tang Yuchuan
All welcome to visit my homepage http://www.kong-xi.com/doc.html
Wait wait wait..... For 1000
Wait wait wait.....
For 1000 to 5000 for 5 min...
All 1 panda cub has to do is let someone play with it for 30 minutes and I think 3 months pay for all the staff and whole facility would be paid for....
don't tell me that place is run down....Is it?
And for that kind of money... they could invest in some Fabreeze huh Doc?
That may be, and now it's
That may be, and now it's not 'run down' but how many people do you know would readily and willingly spend up to 5k to hold a panda.
fabreeze?? don't know that one.
regards,
T. Tempest. DCA
____________________
"I'd love a thousand words in a foreign language." Tang Yuchuan
All welcome to visit my homepage http://www.kong-xi.com/doc.html
oh, hello lawrenceyep! and
oh, hello lawrenceyep!
and Doc!
have you guys thought about that Pandas may attack people!
i didn't mean panda hugging is bad,though!
For 1000 to 5000 for 5
For 1000 to 5000 for 5 min...
It makes me wonder about the aggregate supply and aggregate demand of panda hugs in China!
According to CNN news in 2006,China has more than 180 pandas living in captivity.
A 2002 government census found there were 1,596 pandas lefe in the wild. But Us state media has said a Chinese and British has found there might be as many as 3,000.
YEP, HWO MANY PEOPLE HERE WANT TO HUG PANDAS?
OOPS! How could this slip my
OOPS!
How could this slip my mind?? I forgot to mention that our Pimpus Officialus would of course be wearing a key ring holder big enough to open every door in Attica and have at least the two requisite mobile phone holders clipped to his much too large black belt (one for the wife and one for the 2nd milk) ;)
@Doc
I agree 100% with what you said about zoos and museums in China. Truly a soul-sapping experience.
@ Deborah
I usually prefer to slay Dragons...
Yep, Canrun I love the
Yep, Canrun
I love the feeling of this song~~
Title:Slay The Dragon
You've got ashes on the tip of your finger
You've got secrets in the back of your mind
You've been searching for the meaning of evil
'Cause you're attracted to the darkness of life
You've been playing with the words of a liar
And you're tired of the war that you rage
You've been hanging on the edge of the fire
And your pride has got you locked in a cage
You, you got to find the peace of mind that you've been looking for
You, you got to fight to have the life that you've been searching for
You gotta' slay the dragon
Running through the night trying to feel alright
And it's time you want to burn
You gotta' kill the beast
Carry all the weight of your love and hate
Will the tables ever turn?
You gotta' slay the dragon
Running down the road with a heavy load
Trying to leave the world behind
You gotta' kill the beast
Listen to the voice 'cause you have a choice
And it's time to draw the line
When you've reached the end of the road
And you find a hole in your soul
I believe it's time to slay the beast
Slay the beast
Slay the beast
You're still counting on the change of the seasons
You've been waiting for the passage of time
While your loneliness has taken you hostage
You've been hiding in a circle of lies
You, you got to find the peace of mind that you've been looking' for
You, you got to fight to have the life that you've been searching' for
You gotta' slay the dragon
Running through the night trying to feel alright
And it's time you want to burn
You gotta' kill the beast
Carry all the weight of your love and hate
Will the tables ever turn?
You gotta' slay the dragon
Running down the road with a heavy load
Trying to leave the world behind
You gotta' kill the beast
Listen to the voice 'cause you have a choice
And it's time to draw the line
When you've reached the end of the road
And you find a hole in your soul
I believe it's time to slay the...
[solo]
You've got ashes on the tips of your fingers
You've got secrets in the back of your mind
You've been searching for the meaning of evil
'Cause you're attracted to the darkness of life
You've been playing with the words of a liar
And you're tired of the war that you rage
You've been hanging on the edge of desire
And your pride has got you locked in a cage
You gotta' slay the dragon
You gotta' slay the dragon
You gotta' kill the beast
Hmmm....I think you and I
Hmmm....I think you and I have a very different interpretation of my statement, but I gotta say you're a cool girl! I've never heard that song, but judging by the lyrics, you're not the kind of girl who mindlessly sings "Wo ai ni, aizhe ni...." Blah Blah Blah while waving a green stick. Rock on! :)
By the way, I'm a HUGE 崔健 fan. Maybe you're too young to have heard much by him... :(
I am a cool girl! Everyboday
I am a cool girl! Everyboday said so, what's more, i am also a very serious girl who is in love of debating.
May i ask do you mean that we have a very different interpretion about Panda hugs thing or "slay the dragon"?
You know what? When a girl is madly in love, every girl would mindlessly sings "Wo ai ni, aizhe ni...." to this regard, i admit that i am the kind of girl who mindlessly sings
"i believe I can love
You give me your loving care
I believe in what we are
I don’t know where I would be
Without you staying with me
Sometimes, I’m lost in misery ..."
And about "panda hugs" thing, My ex-boy friend blamed the government official almost every day when he was with me. When we were in Kongkong travelling, we didn't visit Disneyland but prefer to visit the Ocean Park. Cost visiting DisneyLand in Hongkong is not worth the money Blah Blah Blah...
Ps.崔健may be a great star to my Daddy, cos i remmember when i was really little, i heard he singing 南泥湾好地方，好地呀方，. 好地方来好风光，好地方来好风光. Even now when we KTV at home, he must sing this song!
Come to think of it, I'm
Come to think of it, I'm most certainly in the "Panda hedgers" camp. I like that phrase. It's young (sorry, have to say it) Chinese females like yourself who give me great hope for your country's future. Too many male 愤怒青年, though, I'm afraid. You're a sharp girl, Deborah. Wish I'd had you in some of my classes...
"There has long been a debate in Washington on how best to address the rapid growth of China's economy and geopolitical influence. The so-called "panda huggers" believe China can be a force for stability in both East Asia and the world and should, therefore, be constructively engaged.
On the other side are the "dragon slayers," who believe China's growing economic and political power directly threatens U.S. interests and must be contained.
The president, the secretary of state and some others have adopted a third way. Call them the "panda hedgers." They argue privately that China need not be actively engaged or forcefully contained because Beijing has already set in motion economic processes that will eventually force China to accept a more liberal and open political system."
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/10/04/opinion/edbremmer.php
Thank you Canrun! "You're a
Thank you Canrun!
"You're a sharp girl, Deborah. " I take it as a compliment to me.
Previously you and i did have different interpretation about panda hug things, but now I understand "panda hugger","panda slayer" and "The Panda Hedgers."
As i am now reading the book" Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins" during this Spring Festival Vacation. I am interested in chatting with you here.
by the way, do you think i would also be one of those愤怒青年?
Debora, If you like reading
Debora,
If you like reading financial “adventure stories”, I can recommend one titled “The Ugly American”. It is the true story of a young man who nearly destroyed the Asian futures trading market, and in the process, managed to put scores of millions of dollars in his own pocket back in the early 1990s.
I think that it is especially interesting in light of the recent stories of the young stock trader in France who, through some unethical, but not necessarily illegal, market trades cost the second largest bank in France over 7 billion euros in losses.
I have a hardback copy of it that I will happily loan to you if you would like to read it.
Deborah, After teaching
Deborah,
After teaching more than 4,000 Chinese, I am afraid to say that ALL young Chinese run the risk of becoming 愤怒青年 (fen qing, or 'angry youth'). Since 19-9 the Chinese government has created what is called "patriotic" education. This creates a sense of (possibly false) unity among young Chinese, but it also blinds many of them with nationalism so that they will forever be "frogs in the bottom of the well." I think it is wonderful that you are chatting with foreigners on this site. Please continue! Try to find out as much about the world as you can. Travel. Make foreign friends. Ask questions!! Disagree with your teachers---AND your parents!! (Not easy, hehe.)All of these make for much less fen qing and much more "harmony." (To quote someone the fen qing love...)
Wow, 4,000. Perhaps a few of
Wow, 4,000. Perhaps a few of them learned something. Did they vounteer or were they hijacked, like this thread, by canrun pontificating from the bottom of his well?
i.e., volunteer
i.e., volunteer
good...this will give me a
good...this will give me a breather !
John, I read your musings in
John, I read your musings in the Zhuhai Daily Propaga-whoops...and yep...Gotta add you to the list of Panda-Hugging 'pontificators.'
Now, on that note...please tell me how I have:
A. Hijacked this posting (to which my opinions obviously have nothing to do with cross-cultural adjustment). I would have thought the people who commented about literally hugging a panda did that.
and
B. How I am wrong.
I await your enlightenment, oh China Hand.
When the wick is wet, the
When the wick is wet, the candle cannot be lit.
Thanks, Grasshopper...I
Thanks, Grasshopper...I think.
Anyhow, I don't want to get into anything with you, because I'm sure you're a pretty good guy. We'll agree to disagree and leave it at this:
John: Sinosplice
Canrun: Sinocidal
Selah.
Teacher, learn.
Teacher, learn.
At the risk of changing the
At the risk of changing the subject, back to the subject ... I would imagine every one goes through different stages - probably depending on whether we are leaving something old (and unwanted) or coming to something new and exciting. For me it's a bit of both, and it's taken ages to adjust to the pace at which the Chinese don't work ... but somehow they always get there in the end. A new found degree of patience.
After being here a year and with a local girlfriend to keep one warm on these cold nights I though I was pretty much aclimatised. However a month back in OZ recently, and it brought home how much I miss blue skies, and warm dry air. Now the re acclimatising will need to start over again.
Mostly I would choose to
Mostly I would choose to keep silent when i disagree with teachers and parents and friends, just to avoid meaningless agrument with them.
Some people will just never understand you,i believe! I am just stuck in the live and let live sayings, i guess.
I have a close friend, really close kind of friend from HK. He told me that he really hate his mother for many many historical reasons, such as beating him since he was very small or never care or understands him blah blah blah... i have never heard a good word from him about his mother.
Say there are three Stages of Cross-Cultural Adjustment in my story:
The Honeymoon Stage
My friend shared his unhappy family relationship with me and i totally agree with him that parents mostly have gaps with their children and not understand what they really need.
The Hostility Stage
This above mention friend of mine keep complaining about his mother alomost for evrything and i started to wonder has he ever put himself into his mother's shoes for consideration about their relationship? I said he is such an ungraceful guy and he laught at me naive thinking that all parents love their child, may be just in the wrong way of showing their love and thus arose gaps.
The silent Stage
Obviously i am not in title to get comment to anybody's parents' ways of care to their Child. Parents are wrong in giving order to their children and value their scores of test in school too much. But nobody is right about yelling at their parents on the phone using dirty words.
To conclude, We "Youth in the 1980s", are longing for love all the time , but at the same time feel scared of sacrifice for love. Parents care for us too much which makes us feel the weigh of burden.
Well said, Deborah. Maybe
Well said, Deborah. Maybe this teacher could learn from you.
I am so relieved that orrin
I am so relieved that orrin posted this message of cross-cultural adjustment. Since I've been back from the X-mas holidays, I have very hostile feelings and feel really shameful for having them! The other day I was shopping for a heater and everybody was cutting through and shoving, and this was all to just get a peek at the heaters on display! It angered me to see such disorder. I've been beating myself up for feeling that maybe I'm some racist bigot, which I never would've imagined that I would ever be in this position about other cultures.
I'm just relieved that there is light at the end of the tunnel and can't wait to reach the 3rd stage of humor.
It's very natural Whatup.
It's very natural Whatup. You will have good days and bad days and going half-mad days. I have to say the more trips you make "back home" the harder it gets to re-adjust to living in China. As you have seen from my (off topic-natch) comments elsewhere, I have mostly come full circle. I envy fully (and also am bewildered by) the Peter Hesslers and John Pasdens of the world that can permanently call China home.
Here's how I look at life in China...to quote Martin Sheen in 'Apocaylpse Now':
"If you're gonna get out of the boat, you' better be goin' all the way..."
Here's a good take on the matter:
http://www.amityfoundation.org/page.php?page=494
Searching for heaters ....
Searching for heaters .... now you have rung a bell. Had exactly the same experience as whatup the other day - although for me it was frustration at the slowness it was all taking. Once I got home I realised I needed to take a long breathe and relax to their pace. Went for a (cold) walk with the girlie and her unbelievably slow girlfriend and tried to go even slower. Was kinda fun in the end. Agree with canrun, going "home" isn't neccessarily a good thing.
I have to definetly say that
I have to definetly say that visiting home while living abroad, has made me appreciate my country more than I ever could have imagined. It's funny to see people back at home bitch about our country and yet they have absolutely no idea good they got it and I wouldn't have known w/o this experience. It's bitter-sweet. However, even though it was good visiting, I did find myself in moments where I'd miss my in home China (authentic Chinese food) so I haven't completely to dark side about China.=[ And it's not like I'm crossing out RED X's on the calander 'til my next visit home or anything. I think maybe I just need to push myself more by getting out and putting on a positive cap(as cheesie as that sounds), maybe I'll reach "enlightenment" when I'm standing at the ferry booth as some china woman cuts in front--to shove her money before me.
I have to definetly say that
I have to definetly say that visiting home while living abroad, has made me appreciate my country more than I ever could have imagined. It's funny to see people back at home bitch about our country and yet they have absolutely no idea good they got it and I wouldn't have known w/o this experience. It's bitter-sweet. However, even though it was good visiting, I did find myself in moments where I'd miss my in home China (authentic Chinese food) so I haven't completely to dark side about China.=[ And it's not like I'm crossing out RED X's on the calander 'til my next visit home or anything. I think maybe I just need to push myself more by getting out and putting on a positive cap(as cheesie as that sounds), maybe I'll reach "enlightenment" when I'm standing at the ferry booth as some china woman cuts in front--to shove her money before me.
Go New England Patriots!!!!!
We have all experienced the
We have all experienced the "cut in from of you" routine. Partly because westerners seem to like a bit more personal space and we give them the oportunity, but I must say I don't quite understand the mentality of such behaviour. I seem to have 2 approaches, the common one is to just smile and shake the head at the rudeness of barging in ... and those around witnessing it often nod in approval. The second and less common approach is when I am not in the mood for such, and I "grab" them and send them to the back of the line. Those around still nod in approval.
Deborah and Canrun... I
Deborah and Canrun... I would love to spend an afternoon or evening listening to the two of you. I am not sure what stage I am in as I near my third anniversary here. I am not gifted with Deborah's writing abilities and CanRun's opinions but I know I had to open my mind and be humble more than I probably have in my life when I came here to live. I do laugh at the driving here and the way you get jostled around in line sometimes but that is the way it is. For myself I just learned to accept it. Having a bad knee has taught to hang near the back of the bus lately and people kind of look at me like why aren't trying to get up too. It is funny in a way but a kindly Chinese Gentlemen noticed my predicament trying to get on the ferry and carried a bag for me.
I must be in stage 4 as I don't care if I live in my hometown ever again. I miss a good steak and family but I see some of them more now that I live half a world away.
Deborah and Canrun both of you stimulate the brain cells!!!! As well as everyone else on this post.
And damn it is cold even for a Northern Wisconsin Cheesehead.
Cheesehead!? Where you hail
Cheesehead!? Where you hail from eberhoozen? I'm from sparta.