boo! did I scare you?

Hello blogger followers! I apologize once again for the long lapse in time since my last post. I assume you are all able to follow me on Facebook and so many other things are offered to me here in busy Taiwan that I can spend my time on rather than bloggering. :D Since last I posted about my new shiny red notebook, I am still very pleased with it! I've finally joined all the high tech people with their fancy little tiny notebooks that sit in coffeeshops and look all busy and cool. :D My old laptop was so chunky and large, it didn't haul it around to any coffee shops. However, I have yet to become so hi tech as to get myself an iPhone. If people really want to get ahold of me, they can call my normal little Samsung. I don't need 24 hour access to Facebook or my email. :D Although having 24 hour access to Google maps might sometimes come in handy, but not at the cost of $30,000 NTD (about $1,000 USD for an unlocked iPhphone. Although it also might be fun to play Angry Birds or Bejewelled whilst encountering situations that require me to wait, like at the doctor's office. But again, not at the cost of thirty thousand NT. Anyway, that was my little personal vent about iPhones and me not bending to all the peer pressure "ooooh Oooh get an iPhone! or at least an off brand..something like an iPhone!" I'm quite content with my spiffy little notebook and my old little samsung. Although I have to say, there have been situations when I've been very glad somebody I was with had an iPhone with Google maps, or.. just Google... THAT said, on to better things, like what's the goings on these days. Hm. *thinking in progress* *40% complete..* *60% complete* *80% complete* *100%!* Ok. Well, to start with, the school year is almost over! Two more months until the end of June! While I'm very excited to have some time to complete all the projects that are quickly filling up my "To Do This Summer" list, I'm also realizing how much I'm going to miss my students. Yeah, it's a lot of work to prep for all the classes, and they can really try my patience sometimes (ok, a lot), but I love those little guys. I can be overwhelmed with all kinds of personal life struggles and emotional issues, but when I walk into the classroom, it all kind of disappears for 50 minutes while I am absorbed in giving my students my full attention. They make me smile! They make me feel like everything is going to be ok in the world. And I get to show them love and acceptance and tell them what a great job they're doing and point out all the good things about themselves they might not see. Being a teacher is the best Job Ever! This summer I have a couple of months free before I go back to school in September. I still haven't heard about whether I got a scholarship or not, but regardless I will be taking full time Chinese classes next year. I'll be working a few nights a week at Jackson Five, but it won't be anything like the full time afternoon load I'm doing this year. We haven't heard about any new ITPS teachers coming this year. Samson's huge. He's a Monster. He's the biggest cat Ever. And since I got him fixed, he's becoming steadily nicer and nicer. I'm glad. We've started a women's Bible study in our house on Monday nights, and we decided to start with the book "Lies Women Believe" by Nancy leigh Demoss. I did this study a few years ago in Alaska, so I'm excited to do it again. Hm, what else. Well, if you follow me on Facebook, you already know the last few months have been pretty rough on me emotionally, as I went through the breaking of a relationship I had with a guy for over a year. It's getting steadily better and better, and God's been using this to teach me a lot of things. I realized also that I have a great community here who're ready to help and pray and support me through whatever life brings me. So, it's late now and I will leave you with a list of prayer requests, if you don't mind: -Please pray for a friend of mine who lost his wife a few weeks ago. He's going through a very difficult situation with the in-laws and needs support of prayer. He has a small baby girl. -Please pray that I would be accepted for this scholarship. It will make it possible for me to devote more time to study. -Please pray for the possibility of me devoting more time to ministry next year at the same time as I am a student. I'd like to volunteer with a program for disadvantaged kids on my free afternoons. -My brother David is getting married this July. Tickets from here to North Carolina are ridiculously high, and the only way I can go is if God provides from somewhere unseen to me! So you can help me pray for Him to make a way for me to buy a round trip ticket. -Thanks for prayers for me! I'm so thankful for each of you who read this blog and those of you who take the time to pray for me here. God's doing great work here in Taiwan, and I can see the way He's touching the lives of those around me daily. He's teaching me so much about Himself, and I'm really excited to see Him changing lives. Zai jian!