Category Archives: Books
Portuguese Igloos
I gave my students a writing warm-up exercise today. A lot of my students come straight from work, or from picking up their kids, etc. and I thought it would make a good transition into English class. And it rewards … Continue reading
Academic Triage
Some of my students will learn English whether I’m a good teacher or not. They are the most fun to teach, and they ask the most interesting questions, but I spend most of our class time on the middle of … Continue reading
Everyone Forgets Lepidus
There are so many great things about being back in the US. Seeing Harry Potter 6 with other English books, instead of being the English book. And Dunkin’ Donuts. Wow, I love Dunkin’ Donuts and their amazing French Vanilla coffee. … Continue reading
Looking Into The Future
I know what’s going to happen. In a few weeks, I’ll be back home and living with Stick (Stick’s mother has asked me to please stop calling it Shacking Up). “My apartment in China,” I’ll tell him sometime when he’s … Continue reading
Tragically Unhip
Most days, I don’t feel like an adult. I think that’s because I play games all day. As the teacher, it’s even more important to spit out my gum before class, and I have to remember to confiscate cards instead … Continue reading
Why Travel In China Is Like Being the Protagonist In A Fantasy Novel
Andrea just sent me a bunch of fantasy books and I’ve noticed a certain similarity between my reading matter and my life. Some of the reasons overlap with Sinoplice’s brilliant “Why China Is Like An RPG”. Travel in China, like … Continue reading
Salvatore, Shakespeare, Stephen King
My cousin Andrea sent my a huge books of books! Mostly fantasy novels, because those are her favorite. I really like a lot of fantasy novel, as long as they’re light on the Renn faire accent. She also sent me … Continue reading
RPG Withdrawal
I watched Lord of the Rings the other day, and I started to really miss my D&D group. That’s a nerdy compliment to my RPG friends back home. And then Dave came by with Superman Returns, and even though it … Continue reading
Presents From Home!
Yesterday I was in the office and Will says “Meg! I have to talk to you!” Briefly entertaining fantasies that this conversation would involve my school-sponsored bar tab, I followed him. “Who do you know called Katherine?” he asked. I … Continue reading
Six Years Later…
I’ve been corresponding with my old roommate, Ruth. She’s working in Washington, DC now, and she dropped words like “senator” and “security clearance” into her letters. She said something along the lines of “six years ago, if someone told us … Continue reading
