Rat in Review
January 1st is the day everyone says, “From now on, I won’t…” January 2nd is the day everyone says, “Okay, seriously, from now on, I won’t…” So on and so forth. Let’s make this easy for ourselves. Let’s go by the Chinese new year, which gives us a few more weeks to indulge in our vices. Because, even though China recognizes the calendar new year and gives almost everyone the day off, it’s Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival, that really matters.
But then, as far as I’m concerned, the year of the rat is already over, and I’m well on my way to breaking every resolution for the ox’s year. Okay, so I gave up on the practice of resolutions a long time ago. I found it to be as useful as making a “things I would buy if I was filthy rich” list. It just doesn’t do me much good, though it would be nice to write something like, “I resolve to study Chinese harder,” and actually follow through on it. Ha! Follow through. That’s a good one.
I don’t mean to sound negative, though. The year of the rat ended up being pretty eventful, after all. I finally got my bachelor’s degree, held a steady job as a web developer, and moved to China, where I’ve been working as an English teacher for six months. Yikes. That number is starting to get a bit big, and yet I’m only at the halfway mark of my one-year commitment. I’m a little embarrassed by how little money I’ve managed to save, too, though I can’t really complain, because work has been fairly easy.
In fact, my winter vacation is already underway, while the rest of the country won’t get their start until the 19th. And that’s good news for me. This means I can travel somewhere (Harbin, to be specific) and avoid the crowds. Once Spring Festival starts, or any festival, it’s like a dam breaking. There are so many people packed shoulder-to-shoulder everywhere you go. Even the crowds on January 1st were enough to drive me crazy. And when you’ve spent this much time teaching children in a remote school in China, it doesn’t take much to set you off.
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