Christmas

Now that's more like a Christmas tree Charlie Brown.

Christmas up in the hills has come and gone. The weather has been incredibly warm during the day and insufferably cold during the nights. I've been out in tshirts most days and have to bundle up with a fleece, scarf, and hat whilst I light my bukari during the nighttime hours.

To be honest, the holidays just haven't been the same for me for a while now. Christmas is a great time to be a kid when you get all of those toys and games and you can sit around the tree admiring your loot. Once I stopped getting the toys I think that Christmas just sort of lost the luster it once had. Things were only made less lustrous when mom died with Christmas being her favourite holiday and all. That being said, in recent years I've really tried to just treat it as any other day. Of course, being in India and away from family, it was still difficult to treat it as such.

I was fortunate enough to be invited by one of the families still on the hillside over to their house on Christmas Eve. We sat around talking and drinking mulled wine. One of their visitors plays accordion semi-professionally, so I chatted with him a bit and promised to bring the accordion to the festivities the next day. That night, two English teachers and myself went to the local Catholic church for Midnight Mass. I primarily went out of tradition and was expecting all of these familiar carols and the typical stuff like that. However, I stepped into the church and literally felt like I had entered a chapel in Las Vegas. There were blinking lights and gaudy decorations all over the place. Also, I did not realize that the service (and most of the carols) would be in Hindi. I was able to follow along via the motions and everything but I had no idea what the sermon was about. It was nice to go and see how a mass is done in India and now at the very least I can say I've gone to a Hindi Midnight Mass.

I didn't bother getting up early the next day since nothing was going on until after 12. Since so many of us were still on the hillside during Christmas we decided to have a progressive dinner. I had done this once before in high school and I was looking forward to it. We started off down at the bottom of the hill at my head of department's home. It was just snacks. Crackers, cheese, etc. We then headed up the hill past my place and up to the home of one of the social studies teachers. We had soup there. I had been craving chili for a while now and when I heard they had some there I immediately jumped on it. The next stop was down to one of the math teacher's place for the main course. We had ham, sweet potatoes, corn and peas. It was prepared nicely and tasted great. From there we climbed up the hill to one of the counselor's homes to have some dessert. It was here that we busted out the guitars and accordion and sang some carols. Afterwards a few of us made it to the end. The last stop was just coffee and light snacks to round out the evening. We were going to watch a movie but got into just talking instead. We had a young couple here that eloped over the break so we toasted to them and wished them all the best. Afterwards, we all parted ways I lit my bukari and put on some Bing. Overall, it was a good day and I was glad I was able to spend it with so many people.

Here's some photos I took. I'm not the best about taking pictures (I usually forget I even have the camera.) but I tried.

The accordion was a big hit (duh); everyone wanted to give it a go.

Chatting it up with the newlyweds.

Carols. Notice the accordion. Notice it's not me playing it. I've only recently gotten a chance to play with it and I still am not comfortable at all with my left hand.

Singing.

A few views of the mountains from the top of the hill.

Seeing these always reminds me of Eurythmics.

Apparently, this house is for sale. For a pretty penny too.

This would be your view.

Louis

I had to share this video. Chris Cooke, our head of highschool showed it at the last school assembly of the semester before the kids left. There were lots of teary goodbyes and what not. I must admit, I was kinda miffed. I had planned on using the song as one of my devotions for next semester.



The semester is officially over and people are scattering from the hillside. I'm still figuring out just what exactly I will be doing. I'll let you know when I do. Expect some updates in the next few days. I have to cover activity week and I was going to recap my first six(ish) months in India.

Update

So it's been a little over a week. Neglect, I know, but technically, I'm still doing better than Becky. (There are too many commas in that last sentence. Meh...) Having Matt post on her blog does not count. Here's a few to throw back as an update.

I'm not sure if that even means anything.

Anywho,

The first semester is officially over. The kids have left. Well, most. Not the day scholars and the Koreans, Bhutanese, and a few others are still around until tomorrow. I only had a few setbacks with grading but everything got done and on time.

I got my accordion straps today. They were made by one of the local cobblers. They're adjustable and seem to be pretty strong. I'm pleased as punch that I am actually able to play the accordion now. We'll see about a performance.

I went down to Dehra Dun today with Maureen and Jane, two of our 'more aged' staff members. I wasn't looking for anything in particular but if I was able to find something to get for Christmas gifts I'd pick it up.

All I got was this damn tree.


It cost me Rs.100 or about $2. It's very Charlie Brown-esque. That's why I just had to have it. I saw it there, small, lonely, and I could just envision placing one red ball ornament on it and it would sag right over. That tree needed me.

I should start working on xmas presents in the next day or two. No promises, but I may document the process. I've chosen to be somewhat ambitious this year. Now, I've made lobsters before so I'll let you guess how ambitious I am. It promises to be frustrating.

I'm not sure, but I could be rambling. Probably has something to do with the amount of sleep I've had recently. I haven't slept a full night in about a week. Woke up at 3 this morning. Gotta love it.

yup

What can one do in MS Paint?


Ahh... Those were good times up at da tech.

I've been thinking about making up something similar for my (mis-)adventures here in India. I just haven't really had time or a whole lot of inspiration.

On another note, a music teacher friend of mine found a book of Christmas carols for the accordion. I haven't had much a chance to do anything beyond looking at it but maybe we'll see about a video post in the future.

On an other nother note, it's finals week. I'm stressing out students with my super tough finals (I made up the keys in about 15 minutes, I dunno what they're moaning about.) and stressing out a bit myself about getting grades in on time. I'll be fine. Everything will get done.

For Jill...

...because she felt left out of my post about the Christmas ornaments.

I find this one reminds me of her.

Jill

On another note, only 64 more hours until I'm done actually teaching for the semester. I'm not counting down or anything.

And on another other note, check out the new title background. I finally got up to the top of the hill when it was clear out. I headed up for lunch on Sunday with Megan and Jeanne. I found my new favourite place to get good, cheap, unhealthy garlic chicken (and sour straws).

A few on Friday

• I'm absolutely knackered after this week.
  

• There are only four more teaching days left in the semester and I'm not entirely sure if I'll get through everything I need to.

• It's also that time of year when the kids freak out and all want to come in for extra help. Nevermind I've had to be writing comments for all of them, grade OLD assignments, grade tests, write tests, write exams, write answer keys for all of that.

• Yesterday was Thanksgiving. I went to a friends place for dinner and we had some chicken, stuffing, the works. It was all really really good but I definitely paid for it that evening. My stomach wasn't used to food that rich and let me know it.

• I got my ticket to Hong Kong today. Should be a good time.

• I've finally gotten a carpet 'installed' today. I came home to find everything shoved around and completely disorganized. I'm a little less than thrilled about that, especially with the last week of school coming up and all that jazz. Thanks hospitality for being so... what's the word? Hospitable.

• I also attended the fall play this evening. It was Neverland. It was student directed and student run. They actually did a pretty bang up job, and I was quite impressed. It was a little hard to follow at times because of awkward script cuts and the audience cheering when their friends came on stage, but it was enjoyable.

• There were attacks on Mumbai this week. It's been all over the media and any time I've actually had a chance to even look at the news that had been what they were talking about. Apparently there is still some stuff going on. And don't worry, we're pretty much nestled in a relatively quiet corner. As my boss put it, we pump enough money into the economy that the shopkeepers would probably through up a bunch of barriers to protect us.

• Now that it's the day after Thanksgiving I can actually break out the Christmas music and not be ashamed.

• I've been rereading my favourite book: Zorba the Greek. My copy is totally falling apart. If only I had a fresher copy... *sigh* I really like it because it's not really about anything in particular, just life. And the entire time you never find out the narrator's name. He's just referred to as 'boss.'

• Just wanted to share one little story: Last weekend when I was in Rishikesh with my friends Jeanne, Jennie, and Megan we were walking back to meet our taxi. As we passed a rather holy looking man in robes a man turned to us and, at least I felt, rather mockingly said, "konnichiha." I couldn't help but laugh because Jeanne is, I think, Taiwanese and Megan is Korean (Jennie is a tall white girl that sticks out like the chest bursting alien). Talk about Americans being ignorant. I'm sure he just thought all Asians look the same.

Nostalgia

Decided I'd take a little break from exam writing to put a little update up for my adoring fans.

Yesterday I took a little trip down to Rishikesh, a famous holy city on the Ganga known to the west as the place the Beatles went when they got into their less poppy and more trippy phase. I went with three other teachers, all girls. They primarily wanted to get some good food and massages. I was down with the food but not so much the oily rubdown so I brought along a book. It just so happened that the massage parlour was just upstairs from the cafe we wanted to eat at. So I claimed a table, ordered some masala chai and cheese toast and nestled into early twentieth century Greece with my good buddy Zorba. I waited for the girls for about two hours. We had lunch afterwards which took another two hours. I had ordered spinach and mushroom lasagna and, instead, received spinach and mushroom musaka. By the time we were finished eating we were supposed to meet our driver so we left. I didn't get to see much but it was nice to get away from school for a day.

Anywho, on to what I was really meaning to write about. Thanksgiving is in just a few days and after that the Christmas season is upon us. Well, those of you in the states... it's been upon you for at least a month now. I hadn't really thought much about it until I put my itunes on shuffle and ended up hearing a few Christmas songs. A little Bing, a few from the trans Siberian Orchestra, and some other random artists. The one that always gets me though is Peter Paul and Mary's A Holiday Celebration. And you know what? It's not even a Christmas song that does it. It's Hayo Haya, the one all about Antiochus, the Maccabees and Hannuka. Not so much the material and the music itself and the way it was sung. It's the one that really got to me that first Christmas after mom died. I ended up putting out the lights, lighting a few candles and just listening to that entire cd. Maybe I won't be such a grouch this year around Christmas... who knows?

Then tonight I came across a link to Hallmark's ornaments for this year. We used to get at least one every year so I thought I'd take a gander and see if they had any worthwhile ones. I used to get all the Star Wars ones. The ones this year kinda suck. However, I was looking through various ones and they reminded me of various peoples.

Mike
Charles
Becky
Matt
Kaylee
Mike again
The Old Man
Mrs Maybarry
Mom

If I had the money I'd know where the bulk of my Christmas presents would be coming from. As it is, you can expect me to be rounding them up after school is out and sending them off probably in January or February (whenever I finish up (i.e. start) with the stuffed animals).



Oh, and dad, fair warning. My buddy T said that he was going to be making a trip to the midwest over break and was going to stop by the house to snag your pipes from the attic. So, if a 40 some year old Indian guy stops by the house claiming to know me, that's why.

Whoa

Just got on here and looked at that little thingy on the side that tells you where people are visiting from. There are two visits from Jakarta. Now, I realize this is a 'global' blog with me being in India and most of my readers back home in the US. Heck, Camber's in Hong Kong and checks the page out once in a while. I even have some friends in Europe and South Africa that read from time to time. But who is in Jakarta? Is it just some random person? Did dad and Cindy move there and not tell me (in the midst of remodeling the brown bathroom no less)? Life is full of mysteries. Mayhaps this one will be solved. Who are you Jakarta person?

SHOW YOURSELF!

[Edit: So, I figured it out. I delved into the depths of the bowels of the tracker device and it told me that this person from Jakarta arrived here via the Woodstock website. See, they put a call out for blogs so I gave the go ahead to use mine. And as I searched I also found others that had come across the blog from WS. Must be looking at international teaching positions.

If you're a science teacher, come, love Woodstock. It's a great place and the people are wonderful. Besides, I really don't want to end up prepping the grade eleven chemistry next semester when Sue leaves for Australia.]


Anywho, compose yourself.


k


So, I've meant to give a good update with activity week and all but things have come up and it's been neglected. I have about 75 pics from that week I want to put up but I've yet to find the time. See, I've been sick. I'll spare you the messy details (believe me when I say messy) but let's just say it's good to be back on 'solid' ground.

Just a quick update sans pictures:

There is only three weeks left of school before exams start. The pressure is really on. I'm only a whole chapter behind where I'm supposed to be. It's ok though, the entire department is. To top things off I have a huge stack of papers in need of grading. Not only that, but I also have to have my final exams written by Monday so that they can be reviewed, copied, stapled, placed in folders, and given to the principal by next Friday. Don't expect a real update anytime soon.

Last week we had a visitor, Dr. Bunhead. He's a great guy. It's too bad that he was only here for a day. He gave a show to each of the schools. The old head of department said it was the first time she had seen liquid nitrogen here at WS. There was lots of wee and booger (or bogey as he calls them) jokes. Let's not forget to mention the launching of a hamster from a cannon, blowing up a hot water bottle, making freedom fries with a tennis racket, and igniting his head on fire. All in all, a stellar show.

This past Saturday was JSB (Junior Senior Banquet). Basically, it's the equivalent of a prom or matric dance. The theme was the Oscars and the tenth graders I advise did a bang up job of decorating and serving throughout the night. I showed up in my suit and bowtie claiming to be the maitre d'. I only wish I had brought my tux shirt with me. Que sera sera...

Ok, so I lied. One picture:

My indie rock album cover.
(And don't freak out, the cigarette's only a prop. It's not even lit. Besides, I have a pipe.)

To satiate your thirsts...

Update coming soon...

However many I feel Like on Saturday

1- The week has been insane. Every teacher was giving tests which really stressed out the students. They in turned stressed me out. Somehow, my stack of papers to grade tripled this week.

2- Tuesday was Diwali. It's been described to me as the Hindu equivalent of Christmas. There's lots of celebrating and gift giving. T and I went down to Gargi's to relax and have some dinner. I took down the accordion and we sang 'Diwali Carols.'

3- The 12th grade boys spent Diwali protesting. They had some points that were good (poor living conditions, etc) and some that were not so good. There's been lots of talk this week about 'intangibles' here at Woodstock. The boys feel like they're being taken away from them.

4- I fixed the broken reed in the accordion. I'm good at stuff like that. I just need to figure out how to remove the bass strap so that I can get it replaced. I also need to find a pattern for shoulder straps so I can get them made as well.

5- Tomorrow I'm leaving for Sarab Talla (I think that's how you spell it), a village about 3 hours away, for activity week. I'll be with two other teachers and 12 ninth graders. Basically, we're learning about the culture of the villages and giving the kids a bit of an eye opener.

6- If my life had a soundtrack it would be predominantly Vince Guaraldi. The man's got a way with the piano that is nothing short of amazing. I think the main track would have to be 'Cast Your Fate to the Wind.' If ever there were a piano piece I wish I could play...

7- I have a headache that just won't go away.

8- The weather's getting colder and colder. I'm kinda dreading/excited about spending this next week in my tent. Don't worry, my sleeping bag goes down to 30F and I packed some underarmour and a skimutze. And big fuzzy socks too. The same kind of socks that are great for making sharfins out of.

9- I'm about to start payments on my student loans. Here goes my paycheck for the next 15 years.

10- I still haven't gotten up to the top of the hill to see the snows yet. Hopefully I'll get up there when I come back from the village. Definitely expect pictures of that.

11- I was doodling and accidentally drew a picture of dad. He's yelling, "An Ammonia Leak!" For some reason, that's usually what I think of when I think of him.

12- Yesterday was Halloween. We turned one of the old dorms into a 'haunted house.' Well, I didn't. I've had my fill of haunted houses with APO. Haunted houses are dumb.

13- Indian candy involves boiling milk a lot and then coating the top with a thinly beaten sheet of silver. Nothing says sweet to me like heavy metal poisoning.

14- It's November. I like November.

15- Finally decided that I'm going to Hong Kong over my winter break. Camber is working there teaching English and acting. She invited me for Chinese New Year and to stay for as long as I want. Dad and Cindy aren't coming. I told them not to unless they're going to spend at least two weeks here. That goes for everyone else too. I'm not going to have a bunch of people come visit me and the only thing we ever do is go to the Taj and see Delhi. BORING!

16- Beckers is preggers again. Just means another damn stuffed animal for me to make.

Am I ever going to be able to come back home?

Today I took a little trip into the bazaar. I was supposed to go down to Dehradun and hang out but I've been sick all week and have a pretty well established cough right now. Anywho, I woke up this morning and kept coughing. I canceled the trip and slept in.

Eventually, I got up and made my way to the shower and off to lunch. The Indian version of anything has some amount of spice and kick to it. Their fried chicken is no different. I'm getting off topic though. Have I even been on topic yet?

Whatever.

So I head into town. I need to pick up some items like speakers; headphones; and, most importantly, toilet paper (remember, I've been on one roll this entire week, not a good thing to do in India, especially when you're sick). It was an open bazaar day so it was simply crawling with little Woodstockers. Quite a few stopped me to say they really enjoyed the staff talent show last night.

I suppose I should take a little tangent to explain that. You see, the staff puts on a talent show for the students each year in the fall and the students are then to put their own on come spring time. When the call first came for acts I was quite reluctant. I eventually signed up for the staff Bollywood finale. Just imagine 30some teachers up on stage doing a multitude of Indian dance moves (Think Benny Lava) and a good majority of them are white. I did Signal Signal with one of the elementary teachers. There is going to be the actually talent show on youtube sometime soon. I'll link when it is. Soon after I signed up for that I got roped into making a guest appearance for the female staff's Evolution of Dance sequence. I popped out of the side during What is Love? wearing dad's old yellow cardigan and a bowtie. I was promptly kicked off stage. Not before I recieved wonderous applause and cat calls though. The night before the talent show I got roped into the skit "The Enlarging Machine." Jared, the middle school science teacher, and I, being the men of science that we are, created an enlarging machine to help alleviate some of the shortages we experience here on the hillside. First went a piece of a broom because if you've ever been to the dorms you'd think there was some shortage by how filthy the rooms are. There were others like a water shortage where Jared spits into the machine and gets a glass of water in the face. The punchline was that there is a huge teacher shortage going on (we need to hire soemthing like 6 I think) and Jared decides to throw me in. There's screaming and Dave, a guy about a head taller me and probably twice as wide, comes out wearing the same outfit and my glasses and chases off Jared. The last thing I got roped into was literally just before it. It was the skit with people fishing and one guy in the middle is the only one catching anything. We all ask him what his secret is and he just mumbles. Eventually he spits out whatever is in his mouth and says, "The secret is, You have to keep the worms warm." Ba-dum-dum. It was a good night and the kids really enjoyed it. I promise to post the video when it gets put up.

So, back to my story, I was in the bazaar getting things I needed. I picked up some speakers for my laptop so that when I brought it in to school to show movies for my new exploratory block, Cult Movies, I wouldn't have to use my laptop speakers. I have 15 kids in the expo block and showed them Spinal Tap on Friday. We didn't get to finish it but I think they enjoyed it. I think next week is going to be The Gods Must Be Crazy. It was a warm day in the buzz today. I wore jeans and a light hoodie and was still sweating. I trudged all the way through the bazaar amidst innumerable students who all stopped to say, 'Nice dancing Mr Rice' or 'Funny skit.' There were even a few elementary students who asked if I really turned into Mr Boven during the enlarging machine. Oh the wee ones...

I made my way all the way to the other end of the (useful, i.e. non-touristy) bazaar and trecked into the Cambridge Bookshop. I had a list of books I was hoping to get priced. Most were graphic novels or some of C.S. Lewis's non-Narnian works. Unfortunately, he told me he wouldn't be able to get any of them. Sad day, but not like I don't have enough to do/read as it is. I picked up two books I had eyed last time I was there and hiked back.

And this is where I've been going with this entire thing. As I was walking down the hill there was a dog walking up. The dog suddenly stops in the middle of the road and proceeds to give birth to her litter of puppies. I casually keep walking. This is not something completely out of the ordinary around here. I'm sure if it happened back home that some mother would probably be outraged by the fact that her story she told her children that they were brought by the toothfairy and not spurted out of her birth canal was just utterly shattered. Lawsuits would be had and I would be saddened even more.

But things are just different. When the power goes out, people scream and then get scared and upset. Here, no one misses a beat. You're having dinner, the power goes out, you still eat. The other night was pooping and the power went out. I finish my business and wipe my butt in the pitch black. Of course, as soon as I gird my loins the power comes back.

...

There are other things. Getting used to living with giant spiders (it's just not ok when they're inside my shoes in the mornings...). Monkeys. Trust me, they're not cute and just get annoying.

Then I think how much do I really miss it? Not a whole lot. There are a few people I miss but I wouldn't see them that often even if I was in the states. I did think earlier today about how much I miss the UP. I'd love to go back there and spend some time. I'd love to go back for the turning of the leaves and Winter Carnival.

And I think it all ties into how I feel things have been going so far since August. Am I enjoying teaching? Sure, it has it's ups and downs and it is only the first semester of my first year. Will I stick it out? Fer sure. I plan to definitely stay at Woodstock for my two years and we'll see how I feel about the profession after that. Lately I've been going back to play with the idea of being a real lab chemist. Of course, I do plan to get my masters so maybe I'll get some engineering or something like that.

Ok, I made my point ages ago and rambled into other things. I'm just going to sit back and try to enjoy my pipe.

Edit: I also just wanted to say that Ben Fold's album Has Been with Will Shatner is amazing and would make an amazing Christmas gift for anybody. Especially expats.

Update

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Let's see how long it sits in Delhi and how many (extra) pieces it's in when it gets here.

Touch wood.

By the numbers

Because I'm sick ... here's the best you're gonna get:

2- the number of boots I got made in the buzz

47- the number of kids that bailed to camping with me this weekend (that was all of them)

1- number of leopards I'm pretty sure I saw about a week ago

8- number of hours I spent in the sun getting burnt last Friday attending the mandatory sports day

2- boxes of apple juice I've gone through since this weekend

6.022 x 10^23 - number of atoms/molecules/formula units in one mole of substance (Mole Day's coming up folks)

0.5- how I'm feeling right now on a scale of one to ten

2- the number I saw in the 'optical illusion' ... colour blindness tests do NOT count as optical illusions...

1- rolls of toilet paper I have left in the house

5- the number of classes I should be prepping for

1- number of freakin' rad elephant head mugs I've made in the clay centre

4- number of winter hats ('tooks') I've busted out of hibernation

1- prototypes of elephants I've made

1- the number of accordions I have in the mail right now somewhere between Delhi and Chicago

The year is one fourth done

Already! Hot dang. It's really gone by quite fast. Tomorrow I have parent/teacher conferences in the morning which should be fun. I'll write something a tad more reflective later this week when I'm not so tired. What you really want is pictures and I happen to have a few of those.

So, each quarter we have a break. Fall and spring breaks are relatively short; days off plus a weekend. A group of us decided to go down to Delhi. I was originally planning on going camping but decided that I would give Delhi a second chance after the nightmare it was when I first got here. My buddy, Saahil, has a house there and offered to take us and let us stay there since his parents are in London.

We took the train down right after school and got in around 11. A friend of ours, Kapil, picked us up and we ended up crashing as soon as we got to Saahil's place. The next morning we got up bright and early and headed to Agra, home of the Taj Mahal.

Part of the Taj. This is the main gate to get to the main part. It's full of symbolism. The king built the Taj for his wife who died in childbirth with their fourteenth child. The eleven bulb-like things on top represent the eleven years it took to build. The designs around the archway are actually Arabic script for the first fourteen books of the Quran, for the kids. The tiny things are people.

Just a more direct shot of the gate.

Up the gate.

First view of the Taj.

Majesty...

Group Shot.
(Front Row: Me, Jennie, & Megan
Second Row: Saahil, Megan, & Nan)
We were supposed to be cheesing it up, but, apparently, I'm the only one who got the memo.

This is the mosque that is to the east of the actual mausoleum. There's an identical building on the other side that they kept referring to as a guest house. Kinda creepy to have a guest house if you ask me.

Heading into the Taj. No photography inside so this is as far as you get. You can't go down to the actual tombs but the builder (a Turkish guy) had the sense to build a replica above. The walls are all inlaid with precious and semi-precious gems. It's a pretty stellar sight to see.

One of the four towers. They're actually built with a ~2 degree tilt outside so that in the event of a natural disaster they'll fall outward rather than on the Taj.

The Red Fort. The king who built the Taj was almost immediately overthrown by his son as soon as the Taj was finished. He was then imprisoned here where he could just see the Taj. We didn't get to go here because we ran out of time. When dad and Cindy come in December I think we'll hit this first and then go to the Taj at sunset.

Close up of the script.

Tourists lounging. Almost immediately after taking the photo two guys came up to me and asked for my picture. You get that a lot around here, "OOOO a white person! Let's get their picture!" It's even worse for Megan since she's a redhead.

A view of the gate and gardens standing in front of the Taj.

The gate to Akbar's tomb. He was a Muslim emperor. We went here since we couldn't get to see the fort. Indians are really fond of these huge tombs. Delhi is covered with them.

Akbar's actual tomb. This place wasn't quite as touristy. In fact, it was rather dead.

After the first day we just relaxed and actually slept in for a bit. We went to one of the markets and met up with Kapil and Teeran who had been doing there own thing. We had lunch with them and then spent the evening at Kapil's. He lives outside of Delhi and has his own factory making gaskets. Without going into too much detail, there was lots of fun there. Finally, on Saturday we just lounged until the afternoon. We were heading in to the city to go to another market when Kapil's engine literally dropped out of the car. It was a rather interesting experience to go through being stranded on the side of an Indian highway and all. The last thing we did was go to a place called Dillihaat. It's a huge outdoor market with booths clustered together from all parts of India. It was cool to see the stuff but really too touristy for me. We all got up early this morning to catch our train back up and we had a relatively uneventful trip up. I've just been unpacking, going through emails, etc.

Guess I should do something productive before it is actually Monday and not Sunday anymore.

About a month's worth of pictures

Ok, so it has been a while since there was a substantial blog post. Give me a break. I'm on my first job, we're just wrapping up the quarter and I have better things to do than attend to the every little of people half a world away. You know there was a reason I moved so far away.


Ok, so this week I spent most of my time writing comments. We have to write a substantial, at least three line comment about each kid. That would be great if I knew all my kids yet. Granted, I know most of them but some of the Koreans I just can't get. Hopefully by the end of the year.

What else have I done? I'm getting boots cobbled. I got two new pants made. These ones are even more swank than the others. The button on the fly has Mickey Mouse on them. Awesome.

Things are getting colder and colder around here. Monsoon came back this week too. It rained for about 30 hours from Wednesday to Thursday and it still comes and goes. I busted out the sweaters this week. Went to the local watering hole last night wearing a cardigan and one of the older staff members that came with us told me he thought I was 30 or 35 this entire time. I just felt distinguished, like an intellectual.

So anywho, what you really want is pictures.

Some of my advisees over at my place for some dinner and games. "Oh, Mr J, (They call me Mr J) you're so full of shenanigans!"

The other half of my advisor group.

Playing charades, can you guess who?

More of the bazaar.

One of the numerous textile shops. This isn't the one I go to though.

Some playground/hangout place. No one can tell me who the bust is of there in the center (centre?).

The hillside from the middle of the bazaar.

Clocktower. Thusly named because there is a clocktower there.

Ram Chander, my grocer.

Fruit carts out in the street. The guy gave me a really dirty look for taking his picture.

The Woodstockmobile.

Just a couple of chums playing cards.

Birthday dinner at the Tavern.

The other half of the party. The guy in pink is Prakash. He's the second biggest metrosexual I know. Can you guess the first?

Birthday libations. Indian vodka tastes like CH3CH2CH2OH.
(For reference, the stuff you're supposed to drink is CH3CH2OH.)

Dinner. The stuffed chicken sizzler! Sounds kind of like an amusement park ride.

Hockey game. These kids were running around trying to scare people with the mask. This guy put them in their place.

The WS boys' teams waiting to play. We had three guys' teams and three girls'. I think they won one game all day between the six of them. Granted, they only formed the teams three days before.

Spectators.

The temple next to the hockey rink.

The statue in front of the temple.

Inner school cross country. The kids in front of Kellogg Church. My house (the Merlins) won the day's events.

Cheering on the runners as they pass by.

Staff being boring and waiting around for someone to break their leg or get run over by a car. We ran in the streets and had no way to stop traffic so it was a real danger.

I've been skyping beautiful, young women and men with large proboscides.

The group of kids and visiting teachers we took on a hike up to Benog Tibba last weekend.

Pics of the old pump house. How the hell they got these huge things down the mountain is beyond me. There's people living here now.

Taking a break part way through the day at the wheelhouse. The guy puffing out his chest on the left is Darab, our outdoors guru.

Break time by a valley stream.

The hike's final destination. There's a shrine at the top of Benog Tibba.

A kind of natural shrine just below the real shrine.

Darab and Niranjan (the physics teacher) walking up to the shrine.

You're supposed to ring this bell to help drive away evil spirits. Darab was telling me how there has been studies that show the vibrations actually kill some harmful micro-organisms.

The visiting teachers perched on the observation tower. It was foggy as all get out so there wasn't a darned thing to see.

Grubby Caterpillar.