write this. There is a very good chance it won't work, and I will
walk away from the computer after 15 minutes of sending, reloading,
and sending again without any hope of success. It is SO frustrating
to not be able to get online, especially when my free time here is
limited. I just spent an hour re-writing what is quite possibly the
worst essay ever written in the Chinese language. For real. We never
had to write anything at FSI, so honestly I never wrote anything while
I was there that wasn't in outline form. Having to string coherent
thoughts together is a real challenge!
The real interesting news from today, though, is that I may be heading
to Harbin this spring instead of continuing on here in China. My
Chinese is a lot better than I thought it was, and if I stay here I'll
just be getting a lot of grammar (which I don't need), while if I go
to Harbin, I'll be able to do a one-on-one project with a Chinese
professor, which sounds a lot more interesting. I still have a lot to
do in terms of organizing the change in plans (complicated
significantly by the fact that I can't really email anyone, let alone
get on websites), but the plans are just starting to take shape.
We're allowed to choose any topic we want to research (as long as it's
not Taiwan), and I think I'm going to focus on intellectual property
rights - a very interesting topic in China right now. I have this
idea that someday I might work as an independent translator, and
having some kind of background in Chinese legalese might not be a bad
idea. Hopefully it won't be too awful!
man... my brain is starting to shut down. Time to head back to the
dorm, make some homework corrections, and get some sleep. Tomorrow I
have a review quiz, and then Saturday morning we head to the GREAT
WALL!!! can't wait. more later!
