It's inevitable ... autumn has arrived

Where did the summer go? The speed at which my summer flew by was most likely directly related to having 3+ jobs and moving twice. Actually, I'm glad it's over! The hectic craziness that has been life for the past 6 months since I returned to Boston is finally winding down. Hence the long overdue update. Returning to the states was a tough adjustment. My time spent in Canada made the transition easier, but returning to Boston is always more of an adjustment that I expect. I'm not sure when the city I used to call home started feeling more like where I'm from instead. Nonetheless there have been lots of exciting developments in the past few months. I'm most excited about Yoga Teacher Training at The Yoga Loft in Wilmington. This awesome studio was on my list of places to check out and when I saw a LivingSocial deal I bought it. Two weeks later I was starting their ten month teacher training program. As some readers may know already, I debated doing my teacher training in India when I was traveling in Asia. Although a bit more pricy in the US, it's totally worth it. I don't know how I could have absorbed all of the information in the one month intensive course style most shalas in India opt for. Currently, I'm assisting occasional morning classes at the Yoga Loft, and loving it!

Vendors at the Boston Local Food Festival

Recently I attended the Boston Local Food Festival and the Boston Vegetarian Food Festival. I was a vendor coordinator at the Local Food Fest and had a great time at both events!

Next week I start up glassblowing again at the NOCA Glass School. It's been years since I've done any hotshop work but I'm psyched to start again. In Taiwan, I focused on drawing and painting because instruction and materials were so affordable there, and I was never able to make a connection with or even locate any local glassblowers. I'm hoping that once the crazy hectic schedule that took over my summer slows down I'll have more time to work on some of my unfinished pieces from Taiwan. Also on the list is a visit to Paint Bar! Has anyone been there?

Oh, and I can't forget to mention that I just started listening to my first audio book! This was the obvious solution to being bored an average of two hours a day sitting in traffic and having no time to read. I'm listening to Born To Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen by Christopher McDougall. Although I'll probably always prefer the old fashioned method of reading books with actual pages you can turn I will take listening to an audio book any day over the radio. Born to Run is totally inspiring, it was recommended multiple times after I'd mentioned to both avid runners and readers that I liked Murakami's memior What I Talk About When I Talk About Running.  I started listening 3 days ago, I'm already about 3/4 of the way through. Which do you prefer, ebooks, audio books, or good old paperbacks?

During Nicole's birthday celebration we saw Mighty Mystic, local reggae artist :) 

Super Fun! Starring Yours Truly

We are fostering two very photogenic cats :)

This weekend I filmed an educational series with Melody Publishing (the company that owns my preschool).  It was a good experience, but it was really hard!  Twelve hours of filming is not easy on the feet haha.  Actors definitely have their work cut our for them, and I am most certainly not cut our for the field (I was terrible at memorizing my lines).  But all and all it was fun, and I got paid to do it :) I'll be bringing a copy of the DVDs home with me so you'll all get a chance to have a good laugh.

Lulu and Momo

I'm still working at a preschool and an after-school program, but my afternoon school has changed. The place I used to teach at, Shane Schools was really terrible.  I won't bore you with all the details ... but being a foreign worker can be problematic and difficult sometimes and some schools just make it worse.  The biggest problem I had with working for Shane was that the management was awful and they were completely disorganized.  But, I like my new school a lot, and it's closer to my house!

Our new roommate Adriana also moved in this week.  Now there are three of us girls living in the apartment but I think things will go smoothly because we all get along really well.  Sophie and I each have a friend coming to visit at the same time so January will be a busy (and crowded) month.

I've also just started reading a book a friend sent me, Ishmael by Daniel Quinn.  It's an amazing book and I haven't been able to put it down.  You can find it on Amazon here.  Highly recommended!!

Weekend Adventures

I have been completely neglecting my blog. The good thing is that I'm having too much fun to spend any more time on the computer than I have to.  -_-   I've started working at a preschool in Dalaio (in addition to my after school classes) which is about 45 minutes away from my house on the MRT.  I dont really mind taking the train everyday because it gives me a lot of time to read.  I've finished some great books in the past few weeks and here are my reviews:

Little Bee,  Chris Cleave - A novel about a Nigerian refugee seeking asylum in England.  I couldn't put this book down!

Dead Aid, Dambisa Moyo - A very interesting book about the economic situation in Africa and the negative effects of foreign aid. Highly recommended for anyone interested in international economics or who has or is thinking of donating money or traveling to Africa.

Blessed Unrest, Paul Hawkin - A collection of information about the "largest social justice movement in history", an inspirational story worth reading - especially if you work in the field of social services.

The Memory Keeper's Daughter, Kim Edwards - Not a happy go lucky novel, but I really liked it.

Bel Canto, Ann Patchet - I really enjoyed this novel.  The writing style is unique and you definately get drawn into the characters lives and feelings.

Happy reading!  J


I'll be home for Christmas in just a few days and I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone.  Hopefully I will have time to post some more pictures of Taiwan.  I have taken a few weekend road trips with my friend from Canada, Adriana and another one of our Taiwanese friends.  We've been to Tainan, Ja-yi, Taichung, Sun Moon Lake, and Alishan Mountain.  It's been lots of fun!  Melanie will be coming to visit for a month so there will be lots more trips coming up!  I'm tutoring a lot now but luckilly I have Saturday nights - Monday afternoons off :)

Sun Moon Lake