Happy Singles Day!

Today is an "unofficial" holiday in China. Due to the abundance of ones in today's date (11/11), the younger generation in China has dubbed the day as "Single's Day"--because being single is something to celebrate. There was not a hint of sarcasm in that last statement. OK, maybe there was just a little bit. I might feel differently if I actually received gifts on the day.

Anyways, to celebrate the holiday, one of the local restaurants (that is owned by an independent foreign teacher) decided to host a party. At the party, all of the foreign teachers were auctioned off for dinner "dates". The money raised by the auction is being given to the orphanage. The idea of being auctioned off like a piece of meat was slightly repulsive to Sarah and I, but we also wanted to support the orphanage. Our solution was to be auctioned off together. Really, who could pass up the opportunity to discover your net worth? Plus, we were offering the added bonus of two girls for the price of one. Apparently, Sarah and I (together) are worth 27 RMB (about 4 dollars). Wow, that amount looks even sadder when I convert it. :) The foreign teacher, not surprisingly, with the highest net worth was Vance, bringing in over 40 RMB. We tease Vance about being the newest Mr. Halligan/heart throb on campus. Sure enough, there was a gaggle of giggling girls ready and eager to bid on him.

I also celebrated the holiday by giving a culture lecture tonight. My topic was pets in America, and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to talk about my first love, pictured below.