On the dopamine I can rely, the dopamine reflects me

Things that have happened!

• Had a birthday, and it was pretty rad.  Went to Lush for drinking purposes - since it was open mic night (even on a Sunday!  Sunday!), the place was packed.  Listening to decently sung 90s music = bliss, especially when I can do so from a bookstore that is conveniently located WITHIN THE BAR'S BUILDING.  Can you believe that set up?  If Rice didn't turn me into an alcoholic, this surely will.  I get to read Palahniuk while sipping on beer and listening to Modest Mouse.  Fuck you, real world.  This is better.
• Started classes on Monday, and had our first day of (real) instruction this morning.  Looks to be pretty boring, but I'm hoping that maybe the fundamentals will get a little more interesting after vowels/consonants are mastered and we begin to learn vocabulary and grammar.  My classmates are all masters and doctoral students in the geosciences, who need to reach a certain level of Mandarin in order to continue with their research for the next few years.  Most are from Africa and Mongolia, and seem to be quite hardworking;  I'm excited to get to know them a little better.
• Got a tattoo of the chemical structure of dopamine.  Experience was one of the most terrifying/exciting in my life, and the process didn't hurt at all.  The artist used new needles, and sterilized all his equipment before the process began.  He also made certain to find English instructions for taking care of the tat, which was considerate.  400 yuan, which is about $60.  Expensive, for China, but I think it was safe, which is the important thing.
• Got a job with the Beijing Forestry University's department of foreign languages.  Director Wang (leads English classes) told me he liked my accent, and apparently I'm to teach some classes of 7-8 year olds.  Need to start developing a curriculum, and the pay isn't THAT great, but this also doesn't seem like a scam - so I'll roll with it.  Also, it's easiest learning the basics of a foreign language from kids, you know?  This will help me with my Mandarin courses quite a bit. 
• Meeting with the ZJMedia people tomorrow afternoon in The Bridge Cafe at 2:00pm to go over my edits / get paid.  Jessica and Jenny are really sweet, I'll be glad to see them again.
• LOL nappy cream.
• The workbooks I'm using for Chinese, in addition to the laoshis, all seem very helpful;  it's just a matter of getting out on the street and actually USING the phrases/words.  I've been told that there's a heavy concentration on learning the Hanzi instead of actually speaking the language, which isn't useful for me at ALL.  We'll see.
• The consulate general for Houston responded to my first "thank you, here's what's happening" email, and told me that I should meet up with his son, if I ever went to Shanghai.  Apparently Director Wang at the Forestry University has a son who's going to go study in the United States.  Chen Laoshi opened up his home, should I ever need a place to stay, and I need to pay him back for dinner, at some point.
• PEOPLE ARE SO NICE.

Love you all, more later -
Paige