Happy New Year and a Happy New House

Things have been going well since I made the decision to settle down. However, in November I found out my home insurance would be cancelled if I didn't get a new roof. So I hurried and called my uncle to see if he and his roofing business could help. There was a lot of destruction before the new roof could go on because the house had three layers of shingles (including the old wood shingles from when the house was built). The next project was painting the inside bedrooms. Originally I wasn't going to do this for another year or two, but as I looked around everyday I got so tired of the bland lack of color inside. Also, one of the reasons I wanted my own place was so I could decorate it the way I wanted. So I spent a few weeks deciding what colors to paint.

Sometimes I realize what a hippie I am when I think about the colors I want to surround myself with. I chose a dark purple that the guy at Lowes matched with my bedspread. Here's a shot just after I started. Then I had to add on the fern leaves, geckos, frogs, and butterflies. It was fun not having anyone tell me what I could and couldn't do with my walls - except my brother who said I'd have to paint over it if I ever want to sell the house. But that was the real estate agent in him speaking.

Then I painted the second bedroom blue and got it ready for a new student coming from Korea. She arrives today so I hope she likes it. I had Lin from China stay with me for a month in November, but she moved out and is continuing her studies at the community college.

My two English teaching jobs have been really rewarding. My night job is teaching immigrants and refugees who live here in Salt Lake and I hope I am helping in some small way to make their transition to living here a bit easier. At the end of every two month session we have a little party so I got some pictures with some of my students.

My morning job is teaching foreign exchange students who are mostly university age and come for some intensive English courses with some Utah fun thrown in. Sometimes I can't believe I get paid to just go have fun with the students. (Of course I put in a lot of hours with them in the classroom, as well.) On this day we took a drive up Provo canyon to see the fall colors.

Then in December we got to play in the snow. This was the first time cross-country skiing for all of us. Everybody fell down at least once (including me - but only once!)

So lately life has been very content for me. It was so nice to be home for the holidays especially when I think about my lonely Christmas last year alone in Southeast Asia. I still think about traveling from time to time, but I'm starting to favor shorter trips when I can come home to my own bed and not have to pack everything up. So that's about all for now!