Farewell, 2014!

A two part blog. 
Part 1: very short so here it is. 

It's that time of year again. New Years is right around the corner. Gym memberships are up and produce stands can't keep enough veggies and fruits in stock. Everyone makes themselves, or others, promises of doing better or starting over. Well, I don't make New Year's resolutions. Never have and I most likely never will. I don't need to wait for 365 days to end to realize I need to get something on track; be it my weight, my health, my job or whatever it is people make resolutions about. 
I need to write. I am a writer. Or so I say. Writers write. Period. I use writer's block as an excuse often, but no more. Even if I can't think of something "artistic" to say, I still have a million thoughts running through my head at any given time. Stephen King says you have to dedicate your time to writing. At least one hour every day. Just sit and write. So, that is what I will do from now on. It won't be the same time every day because my schedule doesn't allow that much routine, but it will be an hour, and it will be every day. Maybe it will be a blog, maybe a journal entry or hopefully, the beginnings of something worth publishing. 
I know I am to write a book before this life of mine ends and now is the time. I don't know what I will write because every time I start something I run out of flow. But, I know I have something to say. I just need to figure out how and what. And I'm going to start today on December 17. I could wait until January 1st, but how many great ideas will slip by me in two weeks time?
I went to an impromptu theatre thing last night. I'm not really an art person. I respect the creative and I am all for the arts. I just usually don't get it. However, the first performance was a girl talking about writer's block and sitting at a computer screen and type, type, typing then backspacing it all. The piece was about staying creative in whatever way you can. I understood something artsy for the first time so I guess the least I can do is apply it. 
So, whatever it is you need to do, start today. Start now. Quit using life as an excuse. We'd never accomplish anything if we ran on life's time. Life has a way of getting in the way sometimes so we need to take our own initiatives. 



Part 2: A recap of 2014
I want to recap the last year. Just to show how much can truly happen and how much 365 days can be. 
When I told my family and friends I was moving to China to teach they asked a million questions, but the biggest one was, "For how long?" At the time, one year did not seem so long. I'd just lived the best year of my life and it flew so quickly. I told everyone, "It's only a year. If I love it great. If I don't, then it's only a year." 
I'm now approaching my sixth month in China. It feels like year three some days. I was talking with a friend from home the other day and he asked what I like most about China and what I miss most about home. Answering both questions was quite difficult. Of course I miss American food, but I love Chinese food, too. I miss the calmness of small town life, but I love that I see or experience something completely new each day in Beijing. Of course I miss my family and friends at home, but I have a family here as well that I can't imagine leaving. Not to mention the 100-plus students I have grown quite attached to. 
I'm at the age of truly growing up. It's physical, emotional, and intellectual. I'm just developing in all sorts of ways. It's a strange state to be in and it's really difficult most days, but then there are the days that it all makes sense. 
No one ever said growing up would be easy and I'd give my life to have Kindergarten nap time back on most days, but this is how it works. It would be easier if we could all be Benjamin Button and start life old and get younger. Instead we have no choice but to grow up and get it together. It's different for everyone and most days I feel really behind, but then I remember how many memories I have and that beats a master's degree or a family any day. 
Last week when I thought I was dying from my kidney infection I was miserably homesick. Aside from my immediate family, I've heard from few people back home on a regular basis. I'm 14 hours ahead and they are 14 hours behind. It is not easy to schedule FaceTimes and Skypes. Distance and time is never an excuse for me, though. I try my damnedest to speak with my family at least once a week. Even messaging is hard when one is rising and the other is going to sleep. Waiting for a text message is often at least a six-hour wait. However, this is something I chose. It doesn't mean it is easy and pain free, it's just the way it is. I feel guilty for being unable to communicate and interact with the people I love regularly and for running to a life that is an ocean and several countries away. Luckily, I know several other people here who have done the same thing and my boss tells me not to feel guilty because now my family has braggin' rights and an excuse to visit China if they want. Also, that it takes a certain kind of person to do what I'm doing. Somedays it's a toss up between whether or not that certain kind of person is brave or insane. 
All that being said, start things immediately; stop procrastinating. Secondly, make memories; big and small. I have done incredible things and seen unbelievable places, but sometimes it's the small things we remember most. Lastly, and most importantly to me, in the words of Sinatra, "You can laugh when your dreams fall apart at the seems and life gets more exciting with each passing day... For as rich as you are, it's much better by far to be young at heart." : )

Happy early New Year, y'all! 
Here is my year in photos (mostly)!

Brought in the New Year with snow in Central Park

Tobogganed in Times Square for the 2014 Super Bowl

I worked as an intern for my first magazine in NY!

 I blew out 24 candles on Little Debbie cakes for my birthday :)

Had a reunion with all of my girls! <3

Spent the summer with my cousin who'd been gone for some years

Watched my best friend of 12 years marry the love of his life, and my dear friend <3

Fell in love with my first kid! Somethin' about her! <3

Fished with my Daddy! :)

Spent months at home in the season of my favorite wildflowers. The South will always be my favorite place.

Spent my last night in LA with my 3 favorites! 

Met my Chinese soulmate, Jazzy! :) 

Played soccer on the shore of the Pacific Ocean :) 

Met 15 strangers on the same journey! 

made a family of co-workers 

My first class to graduate! 

Carved my 1st turkey (in China) :)

Fell in love with a South African named Jake and a Brit named Gurpreet so now we live together! :) 

Saw the Great Wall of China

Spent 9 days in the south of China with one of the most beautiful souls and friends I made in China <3

 Was held hostage by a Hani local in the rice terraces in YuanYang, Yunnan Province, China! :)

Spent Christmas in Beijing, China

Day 6 & 7: Where heaven meets earth

Day 6:

Day six began in the night bus back to Kunming from Dali. This trip of sleeping was extremely uncomfortable. I'm 5'9'' and the beds are probably 5'7'' so I slept with bent knees all night or with my legs propped against the window. Not the best, but not the worst. We both woke pretty cranky but we had to jet because we had another bus to catch at the other end of town to Dali. We managed to make it to the station and onto the next bus within our allotted time frame. Once on the next bus we uncomfortably dozed off and on for the next five hours.

We arrived in Dali around noon. We were in the new town of Dali, however, and wanted to catch, yes, another bus, bout a half hour north to the ancient town of Dali. This is the place to see.
We semi figure our way to the bus station but decide eating food is first. We have the day to make it to the old town. We eat one noodles at another hole-in-the-wall then find a bus stop. We follow, yet another, Chinese couple that speaks little English. About 2:00 we finally arrive in the right area. We make our way through the streets trying to locate the hostel. We use a man selling cotton candy to speak to the hostel and then give us directions. Surprisingly, this is the first time we manage to find our hostel within 15 minutes.
We check in, change clothes and head back to the city center to explore. We had no plans on this day so we spent a few hours wandering through the shops of handcrafted Chinese knick-knacks, scarfs and bags. We spoiled ourselves to a Western dinner and several drinks. We made it back to the hostel and crashed by 10.

 
Day7 -
8:30:
-Wakeup.
-Drowsily shower.
-Dress.
8:50: Western breakfast and coffee at the hostel, The Jade Emu, which I highly reccommend.
9:30: Walk toward the center of the old town to rent bikes to ride around Erhai Lake. The lake is 96km around so we decided we'd just go halfway and turn around since we couldn't make it around in one day.
The weather app predicted rain, but it was a sunny, clear blue sky kind of day from start to finish. We actualy got sunburnt. It was a perfect 70 degrees.
We rode through about 20 small villages as we followed West Erhai Ring Road; the main road that circles the lake.

 

Along the lake we nearly wrecked multiple times while staring at the scenery. The mountains sketched the background and the clouds cast shadows on them and the whole view was reflected onto the blue of the lakes surface. Flowing directly from the mountains above, I was certain this was the cleanest water to be found in China.
Hand-carved wooden boats, up to eight feet long, filled with fishermen, scattered the waters. Lilypads lined the coves near the banks.
The lake sat directly along West Erhai Ring Road. I don't exaggerate. If someone took their eyes off the road for a moment, they'd be in Erhai Lake.
To our right was the lake and the mountains in the background with all of it's beauty. To our left were more mountains. We're in a valley, afterall. But below the mountains, on the left, were countless villages accompanied by fields of crops that were full of farmers. The ethnic group here are the Baizu people. Similar to the Hani we'd seen in Yuanyang, these farmers were all aged by the sun and hard labor they've endured.
The women carry baskets of harvested goods through the fields and streets and the men hoe and till the gardens.

1:30:
We stopped to check the map and see how far we'd gone. We wanted to reach the village of XiZhou because it was supposedly larger with restaurants and such. According to the map, we had long passed XiZhou and ended up in TaoYuan Port. This place was ultra touristic and had ferrys to take people to and from each side. We turned around for the three-hour journey back toward the hostel. We needed to be back by six for showers and catching the last bus to the new town of Dali by 7:00.
2:00:
We stopped for lunch in a small village called SanCun where we ate some fried rice with greens and eggs. I also took paparazzi pictures of these two adorable old women. 

 

 
2:30:
We put our headphones in and rode in peace most of the journey back. Although we took the same route, there was so much more we hadn't seen. I really struggled to find the right words to describe anything I saw on this trip.  This was another day. I especially tried to just take in everything I was seeing; near and far. I was in a really mellow place this day. I remember feeling homesick and wanting to be on the lake fishing. Even the temperature was accurate to home. It's amazing how no matter where we are in the world, and no matter what we're doing, a part of home can always be felt. 

 

  

"Look Ma, no hands!" 

I was dead on my feet by sunset. My bum is not accustomed to biking for eight hours. We made it to the train station around nine and tried to locate somewhere to eat for dinner. For whatever reason, in China, they don't have restaurants surrounding bus, plane or train stations like Westerners are accustomed to. We settled for some bread in a bakery inside the station. I was too tired to eat anyway.
A quarter past 11, it was finally time to board the sleeper train. Being 5'9" in China is not always easy. Many Chinese are no more than 5'6" and small in build, therefore, most things are designed for a smaller population. There was about two feet between my bunk and the roof of the train. Getting situated with all my belongings was quite a chore. Finally settled, and too tired to notice the uncomfortableness of the bunk, I fell asleep to wake in Kunming train station at 6:45 a.m.