Dirty Laundry

You may as well paint a scarlett letter on my chest. I have cheated in the worst lanundry way possible.

At the bottom of my building is a laundry man. He washes clothes and says hello to me and has an adorable 2 year old daughter who takes off her pants and runs around the building. I like this man. I like his presence and his cheery smile and his laundry hanging out in the street in the mornings.

For the last few months I have gotten myself into a laundry routine which does not involve this man. I take my delicate washing to a place where you pay per item and my normal washing to a place where you pay per kilo. I don't know why I do this. I have no explaination. It is just the way things have happened.

4 TIMES this week the building laundry man has seen me entering and exiting with my dirty laundry (both shifts) and now my clean laundry (both shifts.) Each time his smile becomes a little terser, his daughter doesn't wave to me anymore, and he glares at the laundry with a hate and scorn I have come to fear.

It has gotten so bad that tonight I attempted stuffing my clean clothes inside of my shirt, and yesterday with shift one I loitered for an extra 10 minutes on the corner waiting until laundry man was gone and I wouldn't be spotted with my sullied washing. He still glared at me looking to my clean clothes and then to my face with questioning eyes. And the thing is I don't have an answer. I don't know why I've cheated on him in the one way that could possibly hurt. I don't know why I walk around the corner to drop of my clothes instead of just going downstairs to his shop.

Tomorrow as a peace offering I will give him my bedding to wash. I can only hope that the promise of my flowered blanket will wipe away the memory of my ironed contraband.

The Bed Channel

Channel 52 on my television is a station that I have come to fondly refer to as the Bed Channel. A four-way split screen yields black and white scenes of four different beds. A close up on the bed to be percise, and generally 1-7 sleepers in the bed. The first time I stumbled upon this time-suck I myself was in my bed and became positively convinced that the footage of the screen was me tucked under the covers, silently glancing around the room to find the hidden camera. Days later I am almost certain it is not me on the Bed Channel although I am unconvinced that those faithful sleepers are not other occupants of my building. While in America a channel devoted to nothing but beds usually holds the ripe promise of porn here it is quite the opposite.

"What are they doing in the beds?" Jason asked, when I informed him of my discovery.

"They're just sleeping."

"Of course they are."

I tune into the bed channel quite often these days. Checking to see if the people are still sleeping, who's sleeping, how many people are in bed. At my grandmother's apartment building they have a similar pasttime found in the Lobby Channel. My grandmother settles into her La-Z-Boy and watches security footage of the happenings in the lobby, always instructing people to wave on their way in and out of the front door and waiting for those exciting moments when someone she knows comes on the screen. A million miles away I find myself doing the same thing. Settling onto my own bed and turning immediately to 52, thoroughly entranced in the nuance and drama of the bed channel and waiting patiently for the exciting moment when someone I know may flit across the screen.

With Love from China

I had my Chinese students write mock letters home to tell their families about their study abroad experience. The lovely part about being an American in Asia is that everyone thinks you are mind-numbingly attractive even when you're not. The following quotes are either how the Chinese students see me or how they think they will be able to get good grades from me. A +'s for everybody!

"Our teacher's name is Elena. She is very nice and very good teacher. She just only 22 years. She is very very beautiful teacher."

"In our English class we have a good-looking teacher. She comes from America and her eye is very beautiful."

"She is high and thin. She just only 22 years old just like my sister. When we at her class we always feel free and happy."

"She's very beautiful and lovely. We love her very much."

"She gave me a good English name, which calls Julia. I admire her because she has herself work she can makes money by herself."

"I like her voice."

At the end of their letters the students all address their parents in just about the cutest ways possible.

"Dear parents. don't worry about me. I will study hard and take care myself. I hope you can take care yourself too."

"I've got used to everything here now. And whenever i take difficulty, my classmates will extend their warm hands to me. So don't worry too much about me. I can manage myself. After all, I'm an adult now."

"At last, I hope you keep healthy and work with smile every day!"

"I know China is cold so you must be careful. Health is very important."

"I will try my best do everything. I believe everything is possible. I believe I can create the miracle. I will success. Please believe me."

"The last, I will give you my best wish."

My best wish.