And so year 5 begins

It's been a very long time since I posted on this blog. After my dad died, I found it hard to talk, write, work, just about everything really. All but the most important things fell by the wayside. But as I start my fifth year in Taiwan, I feel the need to write about where I am today. 

 It's 8.45am and I have three days left before I go back to work. I am not excited. Last school year was pretty brutal and I finished in June feeling physically and mentally exhausted. Work is full on, all the time. No rest, no break, and holidays used to recover. Hence the reason I'm not excited to go back. My anxiety levels are already at an all time high. I keep trying to reassure myself that this year will be different (I've finally got another assistant), but so far my brain remains unconvinced. Lets hope I can prove it wrong!

 The best part of this past school year was getting married. A beautiful highlight. It was an amazing day, filled with love and joy. I couldn't have asked for much more. 

 My Chinese continues to be pretty basic. I started out with the best intentions but at the end of a the day when I can barely remember my own name in English, studying Chinese just never happens. I did a language exchange for a while but after a year or so it was just too much and I stopped. The girl I was doing it with (who has since become a close friend), is now taking English lessons at work, so she really doesn't need me waffling on at her anymore. I met a lady at the pool by our complex the other day who has decided that her son is going to teach me Chinese. I have to meet him at the pool on Sunday morning at 8am. Not sure how I'm going to weedle my way out of this one! Hoping that the Chinese lessons for staff that they ran at work last year start up again so I have a good excuse to say, 'it's ok I'm getting lessons'. 

 My life seems to revolved a lot around work and recovering from work, but this year I'm determined to change that. I'm tired of having no life outside of my job, and feeling isolated and bored. This year, I need to change that. 

 That's about it for now. 

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