A friend in Xi’an sent me a great book to read. I started reading it a couple of days ago and i absolutely cannot put it down. It’s an amazing and compelling story of how one man saw a significant need and had the drive and motivation to fulfill the need and fulfill a promise he made. It’s inspiring to say the least. It’s an encouraging example of how our lives promote peace and we can stop relying on governments to make peace because they never will. It’s called “Three Cups of Tea” by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. Maybe you should pick it up. Or have you already read it?

This is a little off subject for this website because it’s not about China too much… but it is about our lives.

I’m just curious as to what you think our role should be in politics? The one extreme is to keep our hands out of it completely… the other extreme is to be so overly involved that you find yourself with one set of friends (either democrats or republicans). Where’s the balance? Where do you think Christians belong in the political world?

And then one last thought: When was the last time someone said, “I loved people more and made a bigger impact in my community and in the world because so-and-so was president”?? I think politics matter, i’m just wondering how much… and i’m wondering how much it plays into my day-to-day passion to love people.

Seriously, speak up on this one…

I have a secret project that i need some help on. You have to live in Auburn to help me on this and it would be beneficial if you are a college student (but not required). I’m going to bring the whole biscuet.com world into the “secret” later, but for now i need your help.

So, if you live in Auburn and want to help me out, here’s what to do: Leave a comment saying you want to help out and use a legit email address in the “E-mail” part and i will contact you ASAP to give you details. **Don’t put your email address in the actual comment! That’s the best way for you to start getting bombarded with spam from random people.

Of course you can always back out if you decide you don’t want to participate after you hear the details. I think it will be a lot of fun and it will help me out a ton!

When asked what they want in the future most of my students would say, “To have a happy life.” I know that sounds simple, but i think it sounds simple because they are saying it in their second language. Sure, we all want a happy life. Raise your hand if you want a miserable life…… that’s what i thought…. no one.

Now we must figure out what brings happiness. Money? Success? Fame? Approval? Vacation homes? Helping people? Pouring ourselves out for those who have less? Giving? Loving?

I’m still a young guy with a lot to learn, but i’m increasingly gaining an understanding of the idea that giving ourselves away means we gain much joy. I’m still in process, but my quest for the abundant life always leads back to the truth that there must be less of me. Less of my selfishness, less of my arrogance, less of my agenda, less of me and more of Love.

It’s probably not a good thing to get on the bad side of police officers in China. Actually, that’s probably not a good thing anywhere in the world. How is it that i managed to break the law and find myself painfully bored at the police station today?

Apparently there is a law here that says within 24 hours of receiving a new visa you must go to your local police station and get a new residence permit. I barely know how to order a meal so, as you can imagine, i’m not too up on my Chinese law. All i know is that last Thursday i got the new visa and my foreign affairs officer told me that it’s cool if i go on Monday to get the new residence permit. So, there i sat for two hours waiting for the boss to come from who-knows-where to tell me all that i did wrong. Fortunately, she spoke a little English and was able to scold me in a language that i understand. She told me it was my responsibility to come in to get the residence permit and i told her i only do what my foreign affairs officer tells me to do because i don’t know the laws.

I ended up filling out a form that explains that i broke the law. I had to write a short paragraph explaining why i broke the law. Then they showed me another form that they filled out and told me that it explains everything i did wrong and explains that this time i have a warning. If i stay in China one day later than what my visa allows then i will be fined 500 yuan (about $70). The boss lady took my picture (probably for her scrapbook) and then they went on with filling out the form for my residence permit.

Total time sitting around in the police station instead of being productive at home? More than 2 hours.

Lesson learned? Read a book on Chinese law and brush up on my language skills.

This kind of story is never good. If you’re new to living or traveling in another country you can start taking notes now and try to avoid an afternoon like mine. I’ll just dive right in.

I was in Beijing today enjoying a relaxing morning at Starbucks and then spent some time in the afternoon shopping for a few much needed winter clothing items. After this enjoyable day in the city by myself i decided it was time to go home. The process of going home is something like this:

Step 1: Walk out of the mall and flag down a taxi.
Step 2: Politely ask the driver to take me to Liu Li Qiao Dong because that’s where i need to catch a bus to get home.
Step 3: Get out of the taxi, double check to make sure i’m at the right bus stop by reading the signs and then wait for bus 917.

Oh, but wait, there are about a dozen 917 buses that all go to different places so i must be careful to pay attention to the small Chinese character next to the number so that i am sure to get on 917专 (Zhuan). I patiently wait for about 10 minutes while i see all the other 917’s go by. There are swarms of people staring at me and i must resist the temptation to put in my iPod and ignore everything. Finally, i see my bus whiz by and get back on the main road. Darn it! I missed it! Now, as the sun is starting to set i have to glare directly into it to look for the next 917 Zhuan. 15 minutes later i see it. I rush to the right place and wait for the door to open. A handful of people get off which is perfect because that means i’ll actually get a seat. I’m the first one on and i find a perfect seat in the front row. I put in my iPod to continue a book i’ve been listening to and i think to myself, “Next stop, home.”

Wrong.

We cruise for a little while making a stop here and making a stop there. A few people get on and a few people get off. This is great. I’m still happy knowing that my stop is the very last stop before the bus pulls into the station so it’s impossible to miss. After about 30 minutes of riding we stop and i notice a lot of people have decided to get off. Then the bus attendant lady tells me i have to get off too. Everyone must get off. I said to her, “What about going to Liang Xiang?” She laughed and pointed across the street. So i get off the bus without a clue as to where i am in the middle of Beijing. I literally said outloud, “Uh oh.” So as any semi-intelligent person would do, i follow the crowd. I follow the crowd until we met another massive crowd. There were so many people standing on the street that i thought surely there must be a concert going on. Nope. It was about 1,000 people or more waiting in line to get on the 917 bus. I have no idea why we rerouted, kicked everyone off, and then picked up the people waiting in line. It made absolutely no sense to me. I looked for the right line for the bus i needed, but i quickly discovered that the line literally wrapped around the block. At this point i decided that i am no longer concerned about what is economical, i flagged down a taxi and asked him if he wanted to take me to Liang Xiang. He nodded and so i hopped in. About two minutes into our hour long drive he turns around and says, “JA;LKAJDF;JKLADF?” My response was that i laid my head back on the seat and closed my eyes and thought, “This is not allowed to ruin my day.”

After giving my driver a few directions along the way i finally arrived at home about an hour later.

The moral of the story? Always have enough money in your pocket to pay for a taxi home.

I’ve concluded that sitting in Starbucks in China is about a million times more relaxing than in America. Why? Because the first thing you have to realize is that in China there is an overwhelming amount of crowds and noise. There’s always a crowd, and with every crowd there’s always noise. Horns honking, people shouting, cell phones ringing, babies crying… it’s chaotic out there. But then you step into a Starbucks and it’s like you were instantly transported to an oasis of quietness and awesomeness. There’s usually only a handful of people in Starbucks at one time. There’s jazz music and there’s free wireless internet. I can people watch, get work done, relax, and sip on my hot caramel macchiato. Thank you Starbucks for giving me an oasis of quietness and joy.

Below are just a few random photos i found on my camera from the last few days in and around Beijing.

The front gate to where i teach, the Beijing Institute of Technology

I went to the Summer Palace the other day in Beijing. It’s a popular tourist spot.

This is the view on my way home from school the other day.

This is from that same walk home. I felt like this same scene could have been in Colorado.

Tuesdays are long days. Very, very long days. I am awake before the sun comes up and out the door by 7:30 to start teaching at 8 a.m. I teach back-to-back classes until noon and then come home to get a bite to eat and think about all that went wrong in those first two classes. After frantically revamping my lesson and regrouping my thoughts i leave home at 3:30 to go teach a 4:00 class. I finish at about 6 and then finally stumble into my apartment at about 6:30. It’s dark when i get home. I don’t like getting home when it’s dark outside. Now, i’m preparing to host a team meeting at my apartment in about 30 minutes. After that? Maybe some dinner and some more work. Oh, Tuesday, you hate me. And i hate you.

-Biscuet

Today is my Dad’s birthday. Since i’m nowhere near home, the closest thing i have to home is this blog so it’s a great place to write about how cool my dad is.

A Few Cool Things About My Dad:
1. He was the first to teach me about being excellent at what i do. I learned this from him by watching his life. If he’s going to do something then it is going to be excellent. Most of you know how much i value excellence.

2. Me living in China is probably far harder on him than he’ll ever admit, but i’m confident he wouldn’t have it any other way.

3. He believes in me. This one is simple. Whatever i put my energy into he is always first in line to stand behind me and push me forward.

4. Family first. He works hard, but he’s always been there for his family.

5. He has always taught me about honesty and integrity. I value those lessons.

6. He’s coming to visit. That alone will be worth owning a video camera. I can’t wait to video my Dad eating cow stomach and fish eyeballs.

I’m forever grateful to all that he has taught me about life. The older i get the more i realize that quality father’s are few and far between. Thanks, Dad, for everything you’ve done. I love you!