… And we’re back

So we have the Internet again at the apartment. Apparently it was reconnected without them telling us – naturally – but it still wasn’t working. So I did some monkeying around with the wires, and it turned out that the phone cord, which is this super, unnecessarily-long phone cord which is taped in several places, had some of the tape come off, and it came unhooked, more or less. So eventually we’ll have a new phone line, which will hopefully keep such a thing from happening again. At any rate, it’s nice to not have to ride the bus into the city to the dorm to look up esl lessons online or something we might’ve had to do had we been without the internet longer.

In another only in China event, we were riding the bus into town today to run some errands – and before I continue, I guess I should say that “into town” means into downtown Nanjing. It is a giant city, and we live on the north side, but we are certainly not in “the boonies.” Anyway, the bus driver seemed concerned with something on the bus, and stopped twice to open up the metal cover to the engine, which he then fooled around with. We made it to the destination, but it’s not often that you see a bus driver open up the engine cover – while the engine is running – to try and fix something.
Oh, China. In two days, we head to Shanghai for shopping.
-Jeremiah

No interwebs… again.

At the apartment we have 150 hours of wireless internet each month. I agree with you, this sure sounds like a lot. However, it seems we have run out and it has stopped working. This probably has something to do with the fact that we have to turn a button off and on to activate service. It’s easy to be online and then the phone rings or the laundry needs hanging and then you start making dinner (or go to sleep or go to work!) and forget to turn the little button in the other room off. We have both returned home to a bright green light announcing that our beloved absentmindedly left home without turning it off. So, until we figure out how to get it turned back on or who we can give 50Y ($7.50) to for unlimited- we’re stuck at the internet cafes again. Yuck.

In other news, I had the bright idea to give our friend Paige fireworks to celebrate her housewarming party. Talk about fun! You can buy them anywhere and they are CHEAP!! We had two big jobbies that threw 12-16 flashes a couple stories into the air for only $3!! It is my new, go-to party starter. This week is mid-terms and all of our classes have, basically, been cancelled. We’re going to Shanghai from Thursday to Saturday to do a little Christmas shopping and have some fun. I’m sure the trip will yield pictures so you can all look forward to that.

love, Missy

Not having the internet is frustrating, to put it mildly.

Hi all,
We got the water delivery service working at the new apartment after only 9 days. Now we’re waiting for the internet. We keep getting anxious emails from you, our beloved friends and family, wondering why we aren’t on ichat or why we haven’t responded to email. This is why. It stinks having to pack up the expensive lap top and ride a bus for half an hour to use the internet which is why we haven’t been doing it early in the morning, which is when we’re able to synchronize our awake time with you. During the day, we’re teaching. Please be patient. We miss you. To hold you over, here is a picture a drink I will never try and one of us at a smaller football match. The Nanjing Yoyo are Division 2 and you can go onto the field after the game. Which means we did- and took ridiculous pictures.

love, Missy

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