Where are you and what are you doing?

Hi Li Fu! Nice to hear from you. After about 14 yrs in China, you probably have lots of things to tell us. Any photos of your daughter that you could show us?

Been gone for a while.

At the end of July 2017, Mrs Casey, daughter Lexi ,then 4 going on 5 and myself finally left China after seven years abroad and settled back in Kerrville, Texas.

The main reason we decided to return was because daughter was approaching school age and despite being half Chinese she wasn't eligible for Chinese public school because she was a US citizen. But even if she was eligible, Mrs. Casey would've refused sending her to a Chinese school. We also determined that international schools were beyond our means, so I told my wife that we were going to return to the US and put Lexi in school in the US.

That was when my wife countered that schools in the US were more expensive than schools in China. I told her that that may be true about private schools, but public schools were not the case. I started to laugh when, cringing as she asked me how public school was going to cost, only to look up at me in surprise at me when I said to her, " that because US public schools are taxpayer supported, it was.......FREE." So therefore, starting September last year my daughter went to pre-K and this year is in Kindergarten.

For me I re-applied and was rehired by the VA hospital, so I back working for the US government.   

Nice to hear from you CaseyOrourke and to get an update on you and your family. Glad to hear that you got a job back at the VA Hospital. Do you deal with the patients in a Nursing capacity, or do you do clerical or other work?

Still in China, enjoying the things we are to enjoy in China.

redoctoberblack, what do you do in China?

So I went back to England last year for an extended visit, had summer teaching in Vietnam again and back to China for university teaching as soon as the visa is through

Thought on Vietnam. I'm really going to miss the nature, you are never more than a 30 minute ride from a piece of amazing greenery in. Even in Hanoi
Everyone there is like, 25
It really makes you realise how advanced North Asia is. For the old timers on here you will probably get a bit of China nostalgia for the electrics done with duct tape and 'f*CK it I'll just build my own car' mentality
Maybe that's still in China, I was in Shanghai and Suzhou and there wasn't much 20th century stuff left

Kitano, you're still alive!  I thought you'd died of boredom listening to Brexit News back in the UK.

Which Chinese Uni are you coming to?

Kitano, you're still alive!  I thought you'd died of boredom listening to Brexit News back in the UK.

Which Chinese Uni are you coming to?

I'm surviving.
As for Brexit it's probably the same as Trump for you guys, I just tuned out eventually. I'm nearly 40 and the news has been predicting the end of the world my whole life lol

The uni is in Taizhou, Zhejiang. It looks like one of those educational colleges but you never know until you arrive what it's like. I have worked at one good college but my second favourite job was super low ranked.

I took the long way home via Saudi and Mexico. Now, I'm thinking about returning to China. This time I'm interested in a uni job teaching oral English in Guanzhou or thereabouts. Can anybody point me in the right direction? (Mods - Is that OK to ask?)

It's OK to ask but I suggest that any reply might be better given in an Upstairs thread, or a PM


Welcome back

Thanks for the tip Amonk. It's good to be back.

Been a year since I posted and took me a while to find a place to put my bullshit on. Hope I got it right.
I've been writing and making vids and generally doing stuff, while here in the land of Oz. I tried teaching Australians English but for some reason they are antagonistic to the general idea. Maybe they don't understand my accent. After all, I wasn't born here.
Up until covid, was going to China 2x a year, back to my old hometown there, and teaching kung fu at my school there. My kung fu school. The uni I worked for keeps asking for me back, or to open a branch in Oz, which I would do only in preference over instant death or a long period of torture, but little else.
My latest book went to top ten in Amazon in it's category (fat tall strange white guys teaching kung fu, in Europe where I don't live), and generally I am doing fine, except for the depression, alcoholism and degenerative diseases of the soul.
The only thing I like about the year of the Ox/cow/bullock is the potential for an entire year of running gags.
Hoping to go back to China soon, I miss the bloody place, weirdness and all. But not to live. A couple of months a year is enough, after 10 years of the place.
Cheers, guys.

Good to hear from you Mr. Nobody...
grab a drink on EL's tab

Hey Mr. N!  Glad to hear you're still alive and ornery!

Here, have an extra large glass of . . .  whatever this glowing green stuff is.    Sorry, the label seems to have burned off, but the bottle is engraved with something about Fukushima Energy, so it's probably a really good imported variety of sake with plenty of extra caffeine.

Invite those students to a cookout.  Once you throw a koala on the barbie, they'll love you.

Hurry up and get jabbed.  Soon enough, that will be the ticket to exemption for mandatory quarantines.