Calligraphy Class At Chun-An

We had a calligraphy class at Chun-An this afternoon. I drew about half of the class with my right hand because I thought it was the proper way to do it. When I asked the teacher if it was okay to use my left hand she was surprised. She thought I was doing well with my right hand. It is a lot harder than it looks. Creating the correct proportions is difficult enough, but it also requires a steady and even stroke to create a good line.


I drew these with my left hand.

This is the one I drew with my right hand before I realized it was okay to use my left.

Where Has The Time Gone?

I've been very bad about posting this year. Since I am teaching in Taichung city this year there are many more distractions. I have joined a World Gym, which is something I never saw myself doing, and even hired a personal trainer for a few weeks. I'm playing an open mic regularly and getting some really good feedback. Last week I had a lovely woman say, "I love your voice"  and her gracious boyfriend ask, "What are you drinking?" I'm not sure which I liked better. I'm writing some of my own songs but I also cover music from Beck, The Beatles, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, and others. I'm also trying to learn some Taiwanese songs like Kan Guo Lai http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OxZ4x-mqSg.  I recently I joined a running and hiking club called the Taichung Hash House Harriers. There are 'Hash' clubs all over the country but this is the link to the Hash Club in Taichung http://www.taichunghash.com/. Here are some pictures from my 'virgin' hash last week.

 The beer stop about 6km into the 10km route

 It was a watery trail

Christmas Party In My Apartment Building

 There's piano, Christmas tree, lights, and carols in Taiwanese. It's almost like Christmas in the US.

 This is the outside of my building. I'm surprised they didn't put lights on the 'Thinker'.

This is one of the doormen in my building. He's really friendly guy.

Sports Day At Hui-Lai Elementary School

You should watch this! Have I mentioned how much they love fireworks in Taiwan. This video is a perfect illustration of their love. The tossing of the sandals is funny too.

 Some of my third graders

 More third graders

 This is one of my fourth grade classes

 This is the other fourth grade class

 One of my fifth grade classes

 The mothers cheerleading squad. It's true.

 Some of my fifth grade gangsters

The teachers vs. the parents in tug-of-war. The parents won.

Sports Day At Chun-An Elementary School

All the schools in Taiwan have Sports Day. They dance, play games, and run races. The Sports Day at Chun-An was on a Saturday morning. Parents and teachers compete in some games too. The game I got in on was carry the ping pong ball with chop sticks and run through an obstacle course. They also have a tug-of-war where it's the teachers versus the parents. It's good fun. I think America could use this kind of healthy competition between parents and teachers. Plus, the kids have a blast and they love getting prizes for running in the races. Every student gets a prize, but the classes in each grade also run a relay race for bragging rights.