Being an observer

After being shortlisted, new teachers have to 'pilot teach' and then they will sign a contract and become full time teachers at university. As vices, we are responsible for observing their teaching. Honestly it is really hard and boring work but we learn something from watching others. Some explain too much unnecessary things, some speak with a terrible voice, some look too serious and some make careless lesson plans. In the photo, Mai and I are on duty. We are busy for the next several days.

Summer 2012 to come

Summer is coming. These days in Hanoi the temperature is getting higher and higher, not much drizzling and the lower floors are sweating. Signals of hot and dry weather. No more heavy coats or jackets. Spring and summer dresses and skirts are being prepared. I was considering to change my hairstyle to suit summer weather but I never succeed. :-) Some time ago I once talked about my hair. I am quite faithful to it.

My summer should have been started with my holiday in Halong and NhaTrang. Pity that we could not. Sometimes unexpected things interrupt our life. My accompany suddenly had a pain in the back some weeks ago and more serious last week and now in hospital for surgery. It will take at least 6 weeks to be able to sit again. So the plan was cancelled. Perhaps I will choose another way to spend my 3 day public holiday alone from 29 April to 1 May. :-)

New Carrier

Our small rental flat has got one more Carrier air conditioner, raising the number of conditioners to 3. Too many for a small flat. :-) But we must have 3 for 3 different rooms. The new conditioner is a nice gift. We decided to choose the same model as the old ones. As a result, I searched for the old company who relocated a couple of years ago. The choice reflects one of my characteristics: always want nice things and the living place is a uniform of furniture... I will use the new convenience thing in about one month when summer comes to Hanoi with its heat.

I feel I am lucky to be able/decide to enjoy my life although so many difficulties are ahead of me.

Born to be a woman

By incident I was born to be a woman. Emotional, romantic, caring, always thirsty for loving and being loved, proud, jealous and lack of practicality :-).

I like caring for my family. I want to do housework myself and always do it as well as I can. Home must be nice: cozy and clean and well-organized. Meals must be simple and cooked from fresh ingredients. I do not belong to the kind of women who like cooking too many complicated dishes - so pity. My three sisters and two sisters-in-law are better cooks than me. Whenever we have parties or family gathering they are chefs.

As a mum, I am proud to say that I spent a lot of time with him when he was a little child. I did not work much to earn money but stay home to look after him. During his early years, I did not have much savings. I like picking up him from his kindergarten. Really happy when I saw his smiling face at the end of his school day. And in my eyes, my son is the best. Now my son is a teenager, he is quite independent, so I have more free time for myself.

In love, I used to be faithful. But I made a mistake. I demanded to be number one in my partner's eyes. I set some limits I did not want him to go beyond. I thought my love for him was enough to keep him with me. I am wrong. Sometimes we can keep a man's body by our side but we can not keep his soul and heart. I explained what I wanted and what I wished. Nothing was taken serious. We can share so many things in life but there are some things we can not. Selfish. And I stepped out of a love which used to be fancy in my friends' opinion.

Life still goes on without you wanting or not. Love comes and goes, which is natural. As a woman, I can not resist my destiny: happy and unhappy tears still remain in my life. Love and pain and loneliness and love in my life ...Is it natural? I was born to be a woman, and have to live to the end of a woman's life.

3.3.3.3

3 years, 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days. Today is a special day for me, so special that I name my blog entry 3.3.3.3. What does it mean? It marks the period of time I have known a person who turns out to be my soul mate. From the time we first met we felt there was something special between us and until now that feeling is still the same. Life always brings us surprises and he is one of the nice surprises I have received in my life.

Redecorating the flat

"Are you happy?" "No" "Do you want to be happy?" "Yes" "Change something". And we decided to change "something". Something in my case is my bedroom and my study. In the photo, I am in my 'new' study with a different background painting. It took me 3 days to rearrange the flat. Tiring work. But the result is perfect. My brother and cousin came to give me a hand with moving some furniture. I bought some artificial flowers to put in some places to make the flat nicer (However, I prefer fresh flowers). On special occasions, fresh flowers will appear in the living room.

I read somewhere that your living place reflects your life (and your personality). A nice, neat and cozy place makes you you feel happy. I once said to my friends that I did not have a house/flat but I have a home. I hope that a little change in the flat will make it "homer" and will bring me more happiness.