I don't even know

why I haven't been updating my blog. But now I'm back, so all is well.

The first week of school has been the first sprinting leg of a ninth month marathon. A good sprint, but rather tiring nonetheless. I've realized that I am functional away from my parents, aside from a wee moment of damp-eyes when my friend played my mom's favor

ite Norah Jones song (oh jeez, here I go again). But I am functional. I can eat, exercise, shower, brush my teeth, do homework all without someone telling me. Simple as it may be, it's comforting to know that for some reason.

Yesterday was the school's annual Harbor Cruise. Honestly, I haven't spent much time on boats. I've romanticized them and told myself I'd be a great...er...boat person. I know your probably expecting a story about me vomiting off the port side for four hours, but it wasn't so! I was able to keep my sea legs under me the entire ride, except for a slight bought of nausea at the very beginning (and after I ate an entire cup of fondue chocolate, but that's another story).

And the dancing helped as well. Okay, people at my school can dance. Not just ballet dance and coreography dance. But dance. Even I danced, though not nearly as well and with that awkwardness known specifically to white females who get excited because everyone else is dancing and they want to too and end up looking like an awkward white person. But I had fun. Lots of it. It was four hours of dancing and friends and other such happy things.

My dad wrote me a very touching email yesterday. During my skype session with my parents, I related to them how much I missed them. I always do, but I guess I really did sound pitiful. So a little while later, my dad wrote me a message about the importance of routine in combating home sickness. Taking out the trash, running, going for a walk, doing dishes, doing homework and so on are all good routines to have. I'd been doing those, but on automatic. If I can see that I'm doing that to stay happy and sane (as humans go), I think I'll have much fewer Nora Jones incidences. But it's been great here. The people are great, the teachers are great, and the vegetarian selection is tres bien.

Alors, I must go and start another beautiful fall day.

In good company.

That I am.

Last night, after an ice-cream sunday social with the entire school, six of us gravitated towards the field and proceeded to enjoy two hours of conversation under the stars.

The level of reflection and maturty of the people here is startling. I've not had such an insightful talk with people my own age in, well, ever. And the best thing about it is, we know we're young. We know that over half of what we say will sound like ingenuous drivel in twenty years, but we play anyway. We weren't afraid to play with our minds, and the outcome was amazing.

This morning I skyped with my beloved mom and dad, who are turning out to be quite the honeymooners with their empty nest and all. It is such a relief that they're happy, healthy, and peaceful. As I said before, it would be next to impossible emotionally for me if one or both of them was against this whole shabang. Today we're going to the enormous mall to do some serious shopping. I hope to find some sort of winter coat and some cooler weather styles. On monday we're off to target to buy things for our dorm rooms. I am greatly looking forward to that. Schedules also come out on Monday night, and classes on Tuesday. I can honestly say I have never been more excited for the start of academic classes in mye ntire life. What a world.

I think I'll go to boarding school today.

Right after I...

1. Wake up and bustle about the house with mom and dad.

2. Eat Huevos Rancheros with mom at our favorite Friday breakfast place.

3. Walk Louise.4. Blog this post.

5. Carry three bottles of water up five flights of stairs for my parents.

6. Run to curb some of my excitement.

7. Get my nails done.

8. Try not to cry at all the people and things I am going to miss.

9. Cry anyway because it's healthy and I know I'll be back all too soon.

10. Take a shower and shave my legs.

11. Watch "Deadliest Catch" with my dad. (We are so Alaskan)

12. Dust and vacuum so that my parents have a clean house to mope around in.

13. Eat Thai food with my crazy, wonderful parents.
14. And FINALLY, I will go to boarding school.

It's bound to be a very fantastical Friday.

Cinque Jours.

The countdown is on, folks. There are currently five days standing between my departure and me. On one end of the spectrum, that is a very long time. On the other, it is a heartbeat. We'll see which perspective holds over when Friday gets here.

'Twas a joyous morning of hugs, kisses, and stories as my dad returned from San Diego! He got home earlier than expected so he got to spend time with my mom and I before she went to work. He looks great, sounds great, and smells like an airplane. The conference went well, and I expect that we'll have a very long, amusing story session one of these nights. Although, he said in one of his emails that it would take more than one evening to tell them all. He brought us bars of soap made en Francais. Alors, c'est bien!

My good friend here in Taiwan told me that she has a friend at my school in the ballet program. Being the skilled facebook stalker that I am, I looked her up and befriended her. She is incredibly nice, sweet, and eager to be friends and help out. If everyone is half as nice as she is, I am in for an amazing three years at boarding school! This weekend my mom bought me a new green suitcase for my travels. I've heard horror stories about people bringing six to eight bags to college and high school, so I am going relatively lightly with a green suitcase and a duffle. I don't think the gravity of my leaving has really settled on me yet. Of course it has about my parents. We've had our teary moments. I'm just glad that both my parents are as excited as I am. It would really put a damper on things if one or both of them didn't want me to go or had reservations. Not these two. They are as spasmodically excited as I am and I thank my lucky stars every day.
And I promise my posts will get more interesting once I'm acually at school. At the moment it's all about the lead up. Once the journey commences things are going to get interesting.

Slumming with my Mother.

I have most amazing parents. Since my dear dad is having a blast in San Diego (body surfing, attending a cool seminar, leaning how to play Sudoku from random people on the plane), my mom and I are toiling away the hours in a most enjoyable manner. She's the kind of mom who is perfectly happy just sitting and reading with me. She watches all my favorite movies that I get from blockbuster, even though she has a) seen them or b) hasn't seen them and has better things to do.

Yeterday we went to the world cup volleyball tournament with her fellow coach and some of her team. I am not one to go out of my way to watch sports, but it was very fun. The players (all women) were absurdley tall and gorgeous. Think modelesque amazon women. We watched for a couple of hours in mesmerized happiness, and then went out for Mexican food. And my guts seemed to have settled nicely with the paella dish I had, so I am pleased. Today I think mom and I are going to brunch/coffee (we are quite the enabling pair of caffiene addicts, and then go for a run. All and all a great day to be had, provided we don't melt into slushy puddles of human when the Taiwan sun beats down on us for too long.

Also...FEED THE MODELS!

This is sort of a sub-post having nothing to do with the initial title or purpose of today's blog. I opened up my web browser this morning and saw a story on Tyra Banks condoning alarmingly thin models in the newest cycle of America's Next Top Model. Now, I watch the show, and Tyra seems very supportive of plus sized models and happy to promote health and wellness. She doesn't outrightly say that models that strive to unhealthy lengths to be thin are bad, but she seems to be health oriented enough. Furthermore, she is a big name in a swim-or-sink industry. She has to be diplomatic, even if it is to the eating disorder promoting modeling agents.

I myself have experienced the brutal expectations of the modeling industry. When I was about fifteen, I got a call from my agent for a casting. Happily, I went. To my slight dismay, the clients and casting agents were snappy and impatient, and barked at all the models, then rebuked me for not having the right shoes ('tis always good to have heels for runway castings!), and so on and so forth. So, I was in a small, narrow room with three tired, crotchety agents, three tall, emaciated Russian models, and two male models who would not speak to me (though they were American). We were asked to do our runway walks. They called me up first (of course) and I walked. Upon completing my walk I heard the woman casting agent say rathed loudly to her companions that I was Tai ai, tai pang. Keep in mind, we are in Taiwan. I know Chinese, so I was shocked to hear her say that I was Too short, too fat. Granted, I am thin, even thinner then. So, I got the pleasure of sitting and waiting for all the death bed models to slump down the 'aisle' with their hungry shuffles while I conte,plated being "tai ai, tai pang". All and all, not a very wholesome industry. Fortunately, I pulled out of it not long after the runway incident. At least writers have more liberty with their looks.

Inventory.

Just to get a picture of where I'm at on this day, August 19:

Days before I leave for school: 15

Books read over summer: 9 1/2

Days my dad is in San Diego: 11

Days my mom and I will miss him: 11

40 lb bottles of water I must carry up five stories: 3

Hours of sleep last night: 9 1/2

Suitcases I'm bringing to boarding school: 2

Miles to go before I sleep: Unknown

Well, there you have it folks. My life in numbers.

Ils me manquent.

I will miss them. Them, who?

My hilarious awesome OCD sweet supportive parents:

The weather and beautiful walking places:

The hiking trails in abundance(though I hear there are a lot of trails where I'm going):
My friends (of course):
REAL Chinese food (No, Panda Express does not constitute as Chinese Food):And now, perhaps the thing I will miss most...the cause of my most bitter tears...
Uli's Mashed Potatoes:

In retrospect, I realize how much of the 12 years I've been in Taiwan I spent bemoaning it. For some reason, I felt unfortunate to have missed out growing up in the States. Don't get me wrong, I've always loved it here. It is my second home to Alaska. My first and most dear home, in some ways. In the past couple months, on the brink of my departure, I realize how very lucky I am. Taiwan is a wonderful, safe, cultural, crazy, crazy-hot country. I love it. Mayhap I've just matured that last iota to make me see the truth in my fortune. Go figure it would happen in my last few months here. There are many more things I hold dear and will miss dearly, but I'd better give my blog a break for the night. Until next post.

Commited Hitherto.

I woke up, ate my breakfast, made some coffee, turned on the computer, and found myself at my blog. Thus far, I am committed!

Ballet last night was good. I wasn't as wretched as I thought I was going to be, though a summer of non-ballet related activities made for some pretty sore hammies. I'm still hobbling around. And to make things all the better, my dear friend who just moved back to Taiwan is doing the class as well! It is rather awkward walking around the halls of the school. I attended it from the first grade to the eighth, and then quit. I was homeschooled for a year and a half (3 semesters) only to reenter the second semester of my tenth grade year (though they put me in ninth grade for whatever reason!). So, you can maybe see how that would make for some awkward hall wanderings. And then you get the people who think I'm still going there, and I must explain that I'm leaving (again), though boarding school is easier on their ears than homeschooling. I don't blame anyone. I am hard to keep track of.

On a lighter note, my parents will most certainly be visiting me in the states over Christmas break. That way they can see the school, the snow, and we can all have a low-key vacation with just the three of us. My mom and I were talking last night about the school. We're both extremely excited (as is my dad), but we are all going to have to adjust to missing one another. I said that if the school was in Taiwan I would be happy to just stay. But my mom pointed out that part of the draw is the school's east coast location and beautiful weather. 'Tis true. Maybe I'm more ready for semi-independence than I think. Maybe I just don't want to think about it too much.

Today's front holds another ballet class, updated my mother's sadly outdated iPod, and reading reading reading my last required reading book. I think I have selective literary attention problems. If I like the book, no problem, give me fourteen hours. If I'm not so excited, well, pitch a tent. This one is called The Golden Gate by Vikram Seth. Quite well written. Endearing characters. I have about 100 pages left. Wish me luck, dear readers.

Bienvenue to my blog!

Hello. This is not my first blog. I just had to get that out there.

If all goes well, and I can exercise some sort of commitment, it will be my last. I intend to update this regularly, since a lot in my life is about to happen that is worth blogging about. At least, in my humble opinion. In less than a month's time, I will be moving from Taiwan (my current home) to Boston.

No, I am not going to college. No, I am not being sent to military school. I will be attending a boarding school for the arts. The school offers five tracts in the arts: Musical theater, music, visual art, ballet, and writing. I shall enter into the writing tract to read, write, and hopefully increase my brain power by some meaningful amount.

It truly amazes me the reactions my family and I get from the news. My parents have always been amazingly supportive of my endeavors. They were excited when I wanted to be a doctor (age 6-11), they were very gung-ho show business for the four odd years I was convinced I was going to be an actress (11-15), and now, at 16, I want to write. Maybe I won't just be a novelist, but definitely something that involves a large amount of writing. Screen-writer, novelist, journalist, psychologist...I feel like I have a lot of options. But I digress.

So, about 4 out of 10 of the people we inform about my "leaving the nest" gasp in horror. Their faces contort and they wrinkle their noses up. Charming. Apparently they are afraid of independence. Though it makes more sense not to care what people think, I wish more people would see this as an amazing opportunity. Of course I'll miss my parents. Of course they'll miss me. We've accepted that. Anyways, the majority of people are excited for me. Maybe I'm just investing too much thought into this. If I put energy into it being awesome, IT WILL BE AWESOME!

Sorry for the inherent roundaboutness of this first post. I hope to use this blog as an outlet for writing energy, as well as to update the blogosphere of my soon-to-be new life at Boarding school.

Peace and love,
Kaiyuh