"Sins of a Sino Empire" (RTS)

Updates and such!

Yesterday evening, I met with Director Wang and Amy at the Beijing Forestry University in order to have sort of an "audition" to tutor two small children.  Did I know my pupils were small children, and did I know that it would be an audition, in front of my pupils' parents?  Nope.  Did I know that the little girl would have the most severe case of ADHD that I've ever witnessed, or that the little boy would put his hands over his ears, refuse to talk, and bawl uncontrollably until his mother or father placated him with chocolates? 

Why, no.  No, I didn't.

Needless to say, that was a bit of a disappointment, and was seriously considering breaking off all contact with the foreign language children's school - until tonight.  And, Christ, these other kids?  They're ADORABLE!  One of them, whose name is Sissy, looks and acts almost identically to a kid I took care of at the Cheyenne River Youth Project.  She's chubby, but not overly so, and constantly hungry - her mother's purse must have had six different kinds of sweets and snacks inside.  Sissy gave me a sticker at the end of the teaching session (a bear in a party hat), and I almost melted.

The other two children, Angel and Jason, were shy, but actually participated in the lesson and seemed excited about learning - which is refreshing.  All were about 4 years old, though Jason might be closer to three.

Tomorrow afternoon at 2:00, I have an interview with a professor at Tsinghua University regarding a tutoring position for two high school students.  (As per usual, the entire situation is sketchy - his email was written in hard core Engrish, and I was asked to send in multiple pictures of myself - which I denied, primarily because he already had a copy of my head shot.)  Immediately afterward is a party for the international scholarship recipients at the China University of Geosciences.  I'm guessing that I should dress up, but haven't received much instruction on the matter at all.  Just kind of playing everything by ear, and hoping for the best.

Spoke with Daniel a bit last night about the ease of making contacts in China, and of finding work, if you're qualified, white, and have a nice resume.  Compared to the United States, everything is so much more simple!  I don't have to worry about working my way up a corporate ladder, or of wining and dining to get a placement, even if I'm more qualified than the next guy.  Everything's like one giant chess game, or a real-time strategy computer game - it's fast-paced, and intellectually exciting.

"Sins of a Sino Empire".  Coming to a Pajj-life near you.  All I need is an epic soundtrack, and the proper steps to beat the bosses.


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