whew, it's been a while.

intentionally or otherwise, i've become a clerical superstar in the past 2 weeks. of which, in the way a fine jeweler gently pores over the delicate inner-trappings of an elegant watch with skill, care and craftsmanship, i have been meticulously consumed with end-of-semester grades.

i begin by opening an excel spreadsheet, and let me take this opportunity to share that i loathe microsoft for creating such a complex and unintellegible monstrosity that is not only missing rationality, in any form, but also standard, comprehensible mathmatics. not to mention in which the life blood of satan himself runs...

i then type the id# of a student, consisting of 12 digits, then their name, in english and chinese, their attendence, of which i dole out either an 'x' or a '-' for the 18 weeks of class we have had so far. next i type in their score for the oral presentation, journal writings, homework assignments, final exam as well as a participation grade. and finaly i calculate a final grade for the semester.

and then i move to the next student.





...




for 485 students.





...




sucks.

but, as i said before, patience is being heaped upon me, not by my own strength, but by His.

and, through this orgy of numbers, formulas and check-marks, i have learned to appreciate a finished, well partitioned spreadsheet. not for beauty, of course, but because it reminds me i am another step closer to ceasing the madness.

in 4 days i will be on a train to hong kong to begin my journey through india, and thailand. a welcome and exciting time that will be!

until then, my communique will be all but cut off. i wish you all well for the next month or so! i'll catch you on the flip side!



grace and peace.