The view from my apartment yesterdayThe same view, before the air pollution got too bad I’m slowly getting a handle on the research work I am trying to accomplish while I’m here in Mongolia. Instead of getting course relief to do research, I am doing it on top of teaching four completely new courses and … Continue reading Making sense of Mongolia’s environmental issues
Thanksgiving in Mongolia
Potluck dinner in the dorm's student kitchen For the record, Thanksgiving has never been my favorite holiday. Growing up, I did enjoy the food, but once I became a vegetarian surrounded by omnivores, I lost interest, mainly because of my family’s insistence on the turkey-centered meal. More recently, after my parents died, my brother started … Continue reading Thanksgiving in Mongolia
Loss from a distance
About five minutes before I was leaving for the office this morning to teach my 9:20 class, I found out that a friend of mine had died. Well, not a friend, exactly. More than that. One of my main supporters, mentors, sounding boards, cheerleaders. Since January 2017, I’ve been working with a business coach to … Continue reading Loss from a distance
Where is home?
This is my home: My daughter drawing on the sofa shortly after we bought it. When I lived overseas before, I was in my 20s and 30s. Each time, I packed up my apartment and moved out, leaving whatever I wanted to keep in storage and giving the rest away. My parent’s house would become … Continue reading Where is home?
Do they really recycle here? Waste disposal in Mongolia and around the world
Throwing trash away is more complicated than it seems, especially when you move to a foreign country. True, garbage is not the most appealing topic, but since most people generate a significant amount of garbage in their daily lives, it’s an important one. Living in an environmentally progressive community in southern California, I got used … Continue reading Do they really recycle here? Waste disposal in Mongolia and around the world
Being vegetarian in Mongolia
I feel like I’ve been blast into the past. It’s 1985, and vegetarianism is still a little unusual, unheard of in some places. Most of my friends are not vegetarian and have never encountered vegetarians before. They think it’s weird, and some of them give me hard time about it. I try hard not to … Continue reading Being vegetarian in Mongolia
Winter is coming
Lately I’ve been waking up at about 3 am to the smell of smoke. After living in southern California so long, I always think Wildfire! Then I remember where I am, and what it really means. Ulaanbaatar has a couple of distinctions: It’s the coldest capital city in the world, with temperatures dipping down to … Continue reading Winter is coming
