Hi Everyone, drop box

Hi Everyone,
I'm at Auntie Candice's and Sarah's going to need the comp soon...so drop!

1) I can't bear to say "ni hao" b/c in America it's so silly. So here, I say "Hi" - and that makes me a foreigner...

2) which is great b/c today and every Sunday it's good to be a foreigner, then you can go to foreigner's church instead of state church.

3) church has really made me realize that even here, God is working for the good of those who love him, and there is movement towards acceptance of some level to him.

4) Yesterday two friends and I went into the city. We walked through Tianamen and posed by the comm. statues in similar poses. Fortunately we were taken down by tanks or arrested for mocking the country.

5) we went to Silk Street, the tourist trap. Got some good estimates on gifts. Like for MY's neices, the tsi pow, got an estimate of 40RNB each (close to $6). Just need the colors and sizes.

6) I do feel a bit guilty about shopping there, and here over all. The sweatshop images just really stick with me and I feel bad.

7) saw a car accident b/w a car and a scooter. The guy on the scooter, his shoes were knocked off. But he was standing, though holding his head.

8) I'm feeling a little bored here in the internship, and I'm trying to find what God has meant for me here. It's a great cultural experience, maybe this is a set up for the future? But I feel like the work I do here is of little use, and my Chinese is so bad, even other non-Chinese people kind of internally shake their heads.

9) But I'm beginning to make friends (Thank God). Three of them are going back home or on to another internship in a week, but it's been a blessing to be able to come back to the apartment and hang out. The assistant director is also very kind and patient. Those are understatements.

10) I ate McDonald's yesterday. It's true! In Asia, there are four different sauces (Thai Chili, Sesame, Wasabi, and Ketchup) for chicken nuggets. And Strawberry sundaes (mmm...)

11) so I caught the bus into the city from ring 6 (outer rings of BJ) into ring 3-4...by myself :)

12) I'm a little nervous about going back to the internship tomorrow, I miss the action, though it is tiring.

13) I usually go to the same Children's House Unit (10-12 kids), we have 4 units. I'm no good at names, but I recognize each baby now. I don't have favorites, but somehow I end up holding some more than others :)

14) I wonder about how everyone is doing.

15) I talk to my parents every day :)

16) I'm kind of sleepy.

17) When I'm away from the internship, and with Auntie Candice, I feel like I'm not in China. In the internship, venturing out of the apartment complex myself, is scary. I have postcards to send, but I'm scared of the post office. So lame :)

18) Not sure what else to say. I miss talking to everyone in the same time zone, no thinking about courtesy.

19) I miss M. Contact is off and on, and honestly, I drift b/w "out of sight, out of mind" and "absence makes the heart grow fonder"(or w/e that is).

20) I think about the kids and wonder who their parents are. Some are really young, and I wonder if their parents are really negatively impacted by giving up their kids.

21) I find that when I think I understand, I seriously don't.

22) I miss home, I miss back massages, I miss driving to Woodmans, I miss MY kids on the northside and at church - but sometimes I feel it's ok here. When I come back, I'll be applying to jobs, and trying to get one. I heard that Janesville just suffered a plant closing, thousands out of work. So they might come up a little, and I'm not crazy about working, but I'm a little concerned about getting a new job.

When I get back, I have apprx a month of vacation left... I'm kind of excited. But then job search. BUt english! and familiarity :)

ok, enough drop.
hope everyone is well. Comment with how you're doing! I'd love to know.