Easy Homework Night

If the homework is easy, it can only mean one thing.... evaluations are coming up! 

I will give the teachers and student life program a good recommendation over all, but there's no way I'm recommending the academic program.  Don't worry, I will be constructive.  I will say that the philosophy is performance oriented, rather than competence oriented; I'll say the homework was inappropriate to a) immersion learners and b) novice/intermediate learners;  I'll say that the orientation of the program is academic to the point that it's a detriment to language learning.  I'll say that text lacks any evidence of the present-day pedagogical theory. 

They will ignore me. 

I will also complain about the ignorasaurases in the DC office, who are all over me about paperwork but can't give me the courtesy of a yes or no when I ask if I can make a payment arrangement. 

So the homework was easy in that they assigned relatively little, and what they did assign did not depend heavily on reading comprehension.  After I was done, I wandered down to the third floor and hung out with C, whose name should really either be J or K, depending on what language you're speaking.  I played his little travel guitar, and we talked about our roommates; how they love Chairman Mao, how they regard the Cultural Revolution as unfortunate (and not a crime against humanity); they talked about how they're Stalin fans, who change the subject when we start to talk about atrocities. 

Just then A comes in and ask us to come to his room to see if it smells like caca.  We oblige, and it doesn't.  Afterwards, C and I go into the neighborhood to get a boredom snack.  I had a crepe, he got some chow mein and some potatoes. 

These guys should blog.  C could tell you about a stupid cab driver; E could tell you about their adventures in Nanjing.  We all have crazy adventure stories; mine are probably the least exotic, as I've spent most of the summer studying and most of my weekends in Shanghai. 

So the Chinese roommates are starting to go a little crazy with gift giving.  I've already received two gifts, and I haven't given any.  In China, everything is inexpensive and plentiful, so you have to be a really thoughtful person to impress a Chinese roommate with a gift.  I'm not a thoughtful person.  Tomorrow is E's birthday, and my roommate asked me what he should get him.  I'm planning to give him pat on the back, and that's about it. 

Tomorrow after class I'm going cell phone shopping.