The last day of 2008

Just now I was feeling blue, and I didn’t know why. Finally I got know this is the last day of 2008. I accessed Youtube, and watched some videos as follows:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmjQgZPj7F0&e

At seven pm, I went to the party hosted by Mr. Peter Arthur Stanleigh, a Canadian expat living in Wuxi. Last Sunday I gave him a small souvenir from Yixing, a pair of teacups. I guess he had many, ‘cause he’d been living in Wuxi for more than seven years! Much much longer than me. I thought I would no need to pay for the buffet, but I paid. About one hour later, I left alone. Anyway, I talked to Peter for a while, mainly about his business in Wuxi, and I had an idea to conduct an interview about him and published on the MBA magazine. Unfortunately, his company was pretty small, only he and his wife. He also worked for the ArkMedia as an International Sales Director, which was the title on his business card.

I really want to make some close expat friends, and hang out with 'em. I even could help 'em though I am busy most of the time. One day when I sat in the kfc just beside my workplace, an idea suddenly came into my mind when I was looking at the girl with blonde hair. Later I went back to my office and founded a blog called “WuxiVolunteer,” In the preface I wrote:

Too many times I happened to meet a few expat who really needed help, because life is tough, life in China is tougher… Yes, I know China is developing, and more and more open, that’s exactly why you could come here. For many expat, China still remains one of the remotest places in the world, with strange culture and languages. Moreover, the society is designed not for the average, but privileged people, so you will find it kinda hard to do numerous kinds of things here.

People in China usually sit on their emotions, and expat don’t know what they are really thinking. They never thought of providing guide in English, much less did they do. 90 percent of people had learned English in high school or college, but few could convey their ideas in English fluently, no mention the conversation.

English speaking companies in Wuxi

Last night, I enjoyed a dinner at Banana Leaf Thai Cuisine, where I danced with a Filipino woman, and had a nice short talk. Her name was a bit mannish, Jacky. Filipino could speak English pretty well.

I wanna work in an English speaking company asap. Sadly, there’re just a couple of American companies, and most are German's.

I sorted out some this afternoon:

Cummins Turbo Technologies Co. Ltd
GE Healthcare’s Clinical Systems
Caterpillar Component Manufacturing Co. Ltd
Donaldson (Wuxi) Filters Co. Ltd
Wuxi - Atlas Copco Compressor Co. Ltd
WSP Holdings Ltd
Lanxess (Wuxi) Chemical Co. Ltd
Bosch Automotive Diesel Systems Co. Ltd
Siemens Medium Voltage Switching Technologies (Wuxi) Co., Ltd
Krombach Fluid Control (Wuxi) Co. Ltd
Allen Autoparts (Wuxi) Co. Ltd
Wuerth Electronics (Wuxi) Co. Ltd
Putzmeister Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd
Siempelkamp (Wuxi) Machinery Manufacturing Co. Ltd.
Froeteck Plastic Technology (Wuxi) Co., Ltd
Boellhoff Fastenings (Wuxi) Co., Ltd
GAUDLITZ Green Point Technology (Wuxi) Co. Ltd
EPCOS (Wuxi) Co., Ltd.
Dystar Textilfarben (Wuxi) gGmbH
Kongsberg Automotive (Wuxi) Co. Ltd
AstraZeneca China Ltd
Exir (Wuxi) Technology Co Ltd
Timken Wuxi Bearing Co Ltd

This is exactly what I'm thinking

It's better to be in the right place than to be smart and work hard.

In 1963, IBM discovered that about 80 per cent of a computer’s time is spent executing about 20 per cent of the operating code. The company immediately rewrote its operating software to make the most used 20 per cent very accessible and user friendly, thus making IBM computers more efficient and faster than competitors’ machines for the majority of applications.

If we did realize the difference between the vital few and the trivial many in all aspects of our lives, and if we did something about it, we could multiply anything that we valued.

Work Less, Earn and Enjoy More shows how the 80/20 Principle can be used to raise the level at which you are operating in both your work and personal life.

The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.
------ George Bernard Shaw

You have to work out your own uses for the principle: they will be there if you look creatively.

Never read a book from cover to cover, except for pleasure. When you are working, find out what the book is saying much faster than you would by reading it through. Read the conclusion, then the introduction, then the conclusion again, then dip lightly into any interesting bits.
What he was really saying was that 80 percent of the value of a book can be found in 20 percent or fewer of its pages, and absorbed in 20 percent of the time most people would take to read it through.

No doubt 80 per cent of the money to be had by people of my tender age was concentrated in 20 per cent of the jobs.

It's time to reflect on my goals

Just now I accessed JustinUSA and to my pleasantly surprised, I found two comments and one flower. This is a big breakthrough for this blog, ‘cause almost nobody knows here. So I really want to know where you found this blog. (Hi Rob, how did you know this place?)

I really appreciate the Internet, which helps me get so many info that I couldn’t get before. Google, among them, is the best. It is brilliantly efficient at shifting information from the hands of those who have it into the hands of those who do not. It’s the information age for all of us. Internet has vastly shrunk the gap between the experts and the public. Additionally, I could also enjoy the comments from you an ocean apart.

What have I done these two days?

1. During the weekend, I’ve read a couple of books in Chinese about study abroad, such as How to choose a major, how to select a country, how to pick a grad school, and a city, as well as a prof.
For me, how to select a major and lessons is the most important.
Don’t choose MBA or other kinda administration and management majors. Don’t too keen on financial aids. If the major I choose that will make me unemployed, who cares the scholarships?

2. Be sensible, set up a goal as quickly as possible and more directly. Make the best of Info on matriculation for international students.
It's time that I reflected upon my mistakes, including my current financial crisis. Success depends on details, which I’m very lacking of.

3. Yesterday morning I went to the library and joined the party hosted by Mr. Peter Arthur Stanleigh, a Canadian expat living in Wuxi. I gave him a small souvenir from Yixing, a pair of teacups. I guess he had many, ‘cause he’d been living in Wuxi for more than seven years! Much much longer than me. By the way, he invited me to the New Year’s Eve party at Hotel Ibis.

What have I done today?

1. I found an amazing site could download many English books! (as Justin Linklist shows: esnips)
2. Posted two diaries for previous two entries.
3. Added a few links to my Justin USA.
4. Have downloaded a couple of books, and read 80/20 Principle.
5. Watched Ai Iijima’s Platonic Sex, a semi-autobiographical novel about a young girl who leaves home to escape her parents and ends up as an adult movie star.
6. I can’t remember what I have got from the listening to Bloomberg radio.
7. Undertaken the MBA English test, and taught them at night.
8. Jot down this “what have I done” list. I gotta go home asap!

Diaries for these two days

December 24, 2008

1. The journal needs a serial number when sent out to the public. Not an ISSN, just a CN is enough. But, it’s very expensive as far as I know.

2. The column of “Impression of professor” is a little bit short-term. As the issues goes, the professors in HHBS is very limited. The way is combine it with the column of “Cover People”, which would be the interviews of entrepreneurs. The title of the column should be “Impression of Supervisor.”

3. Lily didn’t take her keys, and she waited in the bar until I was back from Nanjing at thirty past nine Christmas Eve.

Dec 25 

1. Lily and I registered our marriage at Xin Tian Di just near our apartment building. The state of being a concubine is over, lol! 40 RMB for service charge, 9 for material fee, and the joint photo cost us another 40. Finally we got a Christmas Marriage Certificate in China.

2. I went to the new Carrefour this afternoon, and it’s incredible! Beside the supermarket and shopping area, there’re many fast-food restaurants, including KFC, Lou Shang Lou, seven plus seven, Da Niang Dumpling, ect. The Wanda Mall is under constructing. There’ll be all kinds of stores encompass our home.

3. Wuxi ranks third among top 10 best cities in China, according to the 2008 Scientific and Comprehensive Rating Report on Chinese Cities, produced by the China City Development Institute (CCDI). The top two are Shanghai and Hangzhou. Wuxi Surprise:)

My blog description

I changed my blog description today, since the old one “I’m on my way” seemed too obscure. JustinUSA is mainly focusing on my own experience of pursuing a Ph.D. in the United States, but from the beginning I’m seeking information about the Scholarships, Fellowships, Education Grants, Assistantships, Full and Partial Tuition Fee Waiver, and other Useful Educational Resources available in USA. So, this is my description at present.

Find a safe haven during the economic downturn

University officials say enrollment in graduate programs tends to boom in recessions, with some students finding a safe haven in higher education. Students can wait out the economic downturn while earning a degree that could give them an edge over other job candidates.

From: Higher education's safe haven

But my wife told me a phenomenon as follows:
During the financial crisis, people prefer to buy potatoes instead of soil, therefore the price of potato become higher than before.

That’s exactly why the American colleges and universities begin to charge higher tuition and fees.

Pursue a Ph.D. directly with B.A., bypassing M.A.

These two days I was digging at the stuff, some of which were conveyed in Chinese, about studying in the U.S.A., and to my astonishment, American colleges encourage the students to pursue PhD so hard that it’s available to pursue with BA directly, and have more opportunities to gain scholarship and fellowship. Is it true? 

Justin USA: Everybody wants to go to American colleges and universities

Justin USA: Everybody wants to go to American colleges and universities

I had added a post about the Robert Gates interview, and he said that everybody wants to go to study in the United States, "Even those who hate us the most wear American college sweatshirts, and want to go to American colleges and universities." To a great extent, I agree with him. But the United Kingdom is also a fierce competitor, both for China and India. Last time, I'd mentioned China, just now I found the relevant figure from The Times of India:

More and more Indian students are preferring the UK for higher education, and many of them are from South India. The

British Council on Tuesday said 11,126 student visas were issued in September from the southern states, marking a 63% increase over 2007.

A seminar on student visas was held at British Council library, Kasturba Road. It aimed to assist those who have secured admission for the January/February 2009 intake, and highlighted requirements for visa applications. The minimum qualification for students is to clear the IELTS examination.

Around 44% of UK student visas issued from the country are from the four southern states. "The number of student visas issued from South India in September 2007 was 6,846. The number has shot up by almost 5,000 this year. Almost 31,000 Indians are studying in the UK," L Dhanasekaran, head, Education UK (South India), said.

Preferred courses include MBA, IT, engineering, biotechnology, microbiology, pharmacy, physiotherapy, social science, law and journalism. A 20% increase is expected in the number of Indians going to the UK in 2009.

Traditionally, students prefer foreign universities for post-graduate programmes because the one-year course entails lesser expense in terms of fees and cost of living. A new law in the UK allows international students to work for up to two years after their education.

WHy I chose the USA to study

Today, a student approached me, “Mr. Chen,” He asked, “How do I become as talented as you? How can I get the knowledge?”

I walked with him to the beach, and when we reached the ocean, I pushed him under the water and held him there with his head. The student pulled himself out, gurgling for breath, and I pushed him under again. Again he surfaced, and I pushed him under a third time. Finally, when his lungs were nearly bursting and he was on the verge of passing out, I freed him and he lay there, gulping for air. I stood over him and said, “Man, when you want knowledge as much as you just wanted air, you’ll get it.”

----------------

Well, relax.... I'm kidding. The truth is I'm going to show you a letter from an international student in the United States:

Hi, Justin!

I'd like to tell you why I chose the USA to study and why I chose my university.

My story might be very different from any other international student, due to the fact that I came to the USA at a much younger age than the age at which most students plan on coming here. When I was a child there was a civil war in my country of Rwanda in 1994, and I was one of the survivors. At the end of the genocide, the few family members I had left and I decided we had to get away from the bad memories of our native land. It was just too chaotic and being in Rwanda simply ached our hearts forevermore. So what better way to change environments than to choose a country that is far away from Rwanda?

After dealing with the challenges of learning a new language at age 15 in the largest high school in Northern Indiana; I was ready for more challenges because I knew it was only the beginning. I spent all of high school learning not only about American culture, but also the cultures of the many nations that are represented in the United States. Also, one thing that I probably never thought I was going to encounter in my lifespan was living in a community with people of various colors. When I was still in Rwanda we were all “Brown People,” as I like to call it. So, being part of this diverse population was another awesome experience.

I am glad that I was younger than I am today because all of these situations were exciting, a thrill, and a craving. However, today I look back and I can simply say that those were some of the heaviest rocks I will ever push in this adventure called LIFE. I look back and I can tell that those were obstacles, but I am glad I did not feel the pain when they were in effect.

One thing I can say, however, was the loneliness I felt from time to time. It was really hard to fit in as much as I tried. So I spent most of my free time caring for my siblings, doing a variety of chores, and really going the extra mile on my homework. Another thing I tried was joining a variety of extra-curricular activities (after school activities). Originally, I had plotted out that these school clubs were going to help me meet more people and help me practice my English. Later, I developed a mission to make friends from these various activities so that they could show me around the city, teach me more about the USA and maybe we could do things together in our free time. For reasons unknown, only international students were interested in me and in making friends with me. Out of frustration and loneliness, I gave up and I stuck with the international students which was not what I had originally wanted because we all had a similar struggle with the English language and so there was nobody to help us.

Now that I am a satisfied college student majoring in Finance at Indiana University of South Bend, I am glad that I responded positively to the invitation of friendship with the international students. I cannot imagine what I would have done without their humor, kindness, and open-mindedness that carry me to this VERY day! I have learned so much about them and where they come from including two other languages very fluently (French and Spanish). I have learned from their examples to embrace myself, to clarify my identity and to stay true to my inner conscious. Without their open hearts, I would have been a long lost child by now.

Now, I can tell you about the personal choice I made to attend Indiana University of South Bend (IUSB). It took a tremendous amount of thought, energy, and research. I concluded that my undergraduate studies could not have taken place any better institution than IUSB. Some of the reasons why I chose this university include its location, its tuition fees and its educational programs.

LOCATION
IUSB happened to be the best location for me because it is located near the friends I had struggled to make. It is located in the city I was starting to get used to. It is located ten minutes away from my family’s apartment, which is very convenient for me as far as driving back and forth considering the rising gas prices. Also, I have the privilege of family and friends’ support as I face my studies. I have the privilege of free homemade meals, with free shelter, transportation and much more. I also did not want to have to undertake a new environment in my life. I felt like it was about time to decrease all of those fluctuations for my well being. It is very important to research the location of the school you would like to attend. For example, I am also very supportive of small college cities as opposed to, for example, the location of Northwestern or Columbia Universities. Those universities do not attract me because I have a hard time imagining myself being studious right in the middle of the most active/vivid cities in the world- Chicago and New York respectively. Plus, it is easier to feel right at home when the city is more manageable (smaller per se).

TUITION and FEES
IUSB, being a public school, is very affordable. Scholarships are available for international students and jobs are offered on campus to international students first because IUSB keeps in mind that international students are usually not allowed to work outside their school campus. Even though an international student pays twice the amount an American citizen pays, it is worth it. Despite the double price tag, it is still probably one of the least costly American universities.

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS
At IUSB there is a very unique program called the SBEI (South Bend English Institute), which provides International students with 9 intensive months of learning the English language in its entirety. Upon acceptance, you pass a test which places you in level 1 to 9, depending on how your English is. Once level nine has been completed, there is a small graduation ceremony and certificates are distributed. The benefit of this program is that as an international student if you are interested in attending IUSB, the university will automatically give you a student visa. Also, if you are not yet in the USA, once you apply to the English Institute and you are accepted, they will immediately provide you with all the papers you need to request an immediate student visa to the USA.

SBEI facilitates your adjustment in the new environment and also the university will not require the international student to take the TOEFL exam in order to be granted admission. However, if you do not have an SBEI certificate you will need to score decently on your TOEFL exam as part of the application process.

In addition to the SBEI, IUSB really tries to make its school more pleasant for its students. There will be more campus housing as of fall 2008. There is an extensive international club and various other student clubs that certainly will incorporate one or two things you might be interested in.

Sincerely,

Gisele Elise Iliza

Overseas study during the financial crisis

Frank told me he got sick, not homesick, and was going to back home soon or later. I'm praying that his life will be easy.

Just now a Jap woman toured around my office, and finally she talked to me. She could follow Chinese if I speak slowly, and was glad to hear that I was teaching English here.

After that, I have read this:

The long-harbored dreams of many Indian students to pursue higher studies abroad may remain a dream for some more time in the wake of the global financial crisis.

A few education destinations are already feeling the meltdown heat. Experts say that countries like USA, Australia and New Zealand, which have always been high in the priority list of students, are likely to take a major blow in the coming months.

The student population had already diverted to other destinations ever since the Australian government tightened the immigration rules in September this year. Now, the newfound destinations are engulfed in uncertainty. With the intake time for universities in different countries approaching, the shrink may double up, feel experts even as Visa consultants remain hopeful.

Jaideep Mukherjee, business head of Equinox Education Management Group that assists in visa assistance for students going to the UK, said that in most cases, the finances are planned quite early. Students start the process of obtaining visa by September-October if they have to go in January, he added.

He further said: “While there has been a dip in the number of students going abroad, it is not quite a substantial one, as only 3 to 4 per cent students going to the UK depend on odd jobs.” Mukherjee admitted that the coming months are likely to witness a major shrink with the competition for odd jobs increasing, “as more and more people are being sacked”.

Amit Rao, the managing director of Rao Overseas Consultancy that assists visa applicants to countries like Australia, New Zealand and those in Europe, pointed out that the shrink is from “country to country”.

“The visa approval in the US has gone down from about seven out of 10 earlier to nearly four. European countries and New Zealand are seeing a major shrink. The trend will continue in the intake season of each country. Many worried parents are already thinking of not sending their children abroad or fit them in lesser known institutes,” Rao said.

-----

OK, I need a nap, really.

What I had done yesterday

Yesterday I didn’t make an entry. Busy, busy, and very busy! I wrote a news story about the MBA party, which was held on Saturday night, and posted on the college website. Besides, I had to complete a plan for the MBA Journal as quickly as possible.

In the evening, Lily and I went out for a short tour, and saw a new KFC was founded beside our home. Additionally, the new Carrefour would be open tomorrow. On our way to the garden with Chinese traditional style, we’re talking about the great plans for the national Chinese holidays; we plan trips to Nanjing and Beijing, and she had booked the round-trip airline tickets and even the hotel beside Yonghe Gong (Lama Temple) .

I got the truth finally

'Cause I could not find any practical intro from the internet about Going to MIT from Fudan IMBA in detail, I asked the IMBA office through the phone, and got some info much clearer than their official website. The girl, who was going to MIT, I talked to on Saturday night, seemed to be cheated, since going to MIT is much more expensive than she'd known.

It’s much less attractive to me now, although the collaboration between Fudan and MIT is true. If you want to pay 130,000 rmb ($19,010), you gotta stay in China for two-year long, and get a singe MBA degree from Fudan, and just a certificate, not degree, from MIT. I don’t care the certificate or degree, what I need is learning, learning and leraning. If you want to go to MIT, you have to pay much more than that.

The exchange program? Only excellent academic performers are given the opportunity to study in overseas business schools.

Shot at MBA party

I went to Changzhou, a city located between Wuxi and Nanjing, on December 13. There’s a party the MBA center hosting for the students, one of whome shot me as follows:




The words beside the logo on the white board were "MBA Education Center of Hohai University", and the cursive cripts were some names of MBA students.

Going to MIT from Fudan?

Though almost nobody knows my blog, I still have the obligation to add a post everyday. Yesterday I had no chance to surf internet, and now I’m going to make an entry for it.

I went to Changzhou, a city located between Wuxi and Nanjing, yesterday morning. There’s a party the MBA center hosting for the students, and I took some photos which I’ll update tomorrow.

The main point I want to jot down here is the information from the talk with a student. She was going to the international MBA center of Fudan University, which would only cost her 130,000 rmb ($19,010) for two years, one year in Fudan, and another in MIT. She told me that she could get double degrees of MBA, both Fudan and MIT. I never dreamed of going to MIT to study MBA, since it would cost me $137,000 according to its official website. It sounds too good to be true, and I'd been thinking that it's time to consider another way to study in the United States, even the Americans should come here to take this kind of IMBA program. I'll seek more info about that.

SHE in China: How important is it for a foreigner to be able to speak/understand Chinese when doing business in China?

SHE in China: How important is it for a foreigner to be able to speak/understand Chinese when doing business in China?
Jonna Wibelius's question reminds me the worried words from Wesley, Professor at University of Dayton:

I’ve lead a semester-long study abroad to Asia for several years that of course included China so I speak from experience on the ground. The reality is that the Chinese know about us as Americans while we know virtually nothing about them. More importantly, the knowledge that the Chinese have developed about Americans helps them to understand us while it’s equally plain that our lack of knowledge about the Chinese means we don’t have a clue about who they are as a people and as a culture. Today’s educated Chinese are proficient in spoken and written English; few Americans have equivalent skills in Mandarin and therefore, lack equivalent understanding of the Chinese.

American students are quite surprised (and pleased) how easy it is for them to be in major Chinese cities because of the prevalence of English. However, the ease with which they travel and order food is a direct result of China’s national focus on the mastery of English, and this ease masks the more important reality — the Chinese are developing a strategic advantage because they understand Americans while Americans are perfectly content to remain ignorant of the Chinese.

While perhaps only an interesting anecdote today, this difference in cultural understanding may well be the fulcrum of change for world prominence, power, and more importantly, influence when extrapolated over the next 30 to 40 years, that is, within the working life of today’s university student. As a matter of national policy, America should focus its attention (and its funding) on understanding other cultures, particularly China. However, if past is indeed prologue, our attention to the link between understanding another culture and our national and economic security will come only after it’s too late. Clearly, the Chinese already understand this link.

Everybody wants to go to American colleges and universities

Last month, when I riffled through the Newsweek, the article most captured my attention was the interview about Robert Gates, who has been widely praised for his pragmatic stewardship of the Pentagon.

During the interview, he talked about one big surprise he’d had since he was the secretary of defense. He said, “I haven’t found a single country that didn’t want a stronger, better relationship with the United States, and that did not think the U.S. was still the key player. I’ve probably traveled to fifty countries now. Not one – Indonesia, India, Russia, China, the Middle East. Places where I kind of expected to get beat up, places where, when I traveled when I was DCI (director of Central Intelligence), in some ways there was a more negative attitude toward the U.S. then than now. For all of the criticisms, all of the mistakes that we’ve made, we’re just kind of there. To a considerable extent we are still the only multidimensional superpower – political, military, economic, cultural. I mean, American culture? Even those who hate us the most wear American college sweatshirts, and want to go to American colleges and universities.”

I'm not sure whether Robert Gates exaggerated a little bit, 'cause I know some rich Chinese parents prefer to send their children to gain further or higher education in the UK. They may think the United States is the kind of place full of temptation. Anyway, there’re more opportunities to win scholarships, fellowships, and grants in the United States, many students from the average family background are determined to go to the USA.

Add "About Me" and a daily post

Just now, I laid out this blog, added an “About Me” page, and arranged the elements. I chose the Archive Frequency as Daily, and qualified everyone, including Anonymous Users, to add comments.

In case the change in future and forget the original, I'd better to add "About me" here over again:

Welcome to JustinUSA! During my college time, I loved philosophy with a fever, and learned German for two years. I really wanted to go to Heidelberg University at the time. But lately, after working for almost five years, I’m changing my objective, which nowadays is to study business in New York. Now I’m working at an MBA Education Center, located in

 Wuxi, a city very close to Shanghai. In addition to teaching English here, I also take charge of an MBA journal as a chief editor. Everyday, I jot down my goals on a blank sheet of paper, and carry it everywhere. The paper I carried read: “My objective is to pursue a Ph.D. in Stony Brook, and I’ll accomplish this by December 4, 2011. My one-year goal is to score 8.5 in IELTS on 25/04/2009. My five-year goal is to publish a book written in English. I’m willing to give up German and French." Feel free to leave a comment or contact me via email: ebuyesell at Gmail dot com :)

The photo I updated on “About Me” page was snapped in December 2005, the first year I got here. The girl I cuddled, as my gf at the time, is my wife now. We got married on Oct 18 this year, and had a wedding party in Chinese style.

The ceremony was recorded in my diary like this:

The wedding ceremony was held at the Kowloon Gulf Resort, and almost all the guests were waiting at the hall when we finally got there. We didn’t need to greet them anymore, and went upstairs directly. After a short while, we returned downstairs when the MC started speaking. We walked a red carpet, and the music started. She wore a beautiful white dress, without the glasses. All the people were staring us. There’re some 200 people watching the ceremony, and I smiled to the audience when we’re walking on the stage.
　　
Our witness spoke first, my father-in-law next, and my aunt last. The following was giving three bows, first to our parents, second to the guests, and third to each other. Then we interchanged our rings, drank with arm-crossed, and poured the champagne in the glasses tower from the top one.

Finally, the ceremony finished with the great nosh-up.

Over the past 15 years, I kept a diary every day. I’m going to add a daily post here too.

The first post

Welcome to first blog posting, of which I hope there will be many many more, on my striving and coming achievement of studying in the USA.

Since my old blogserver in China often modified, hided even deleted my posts, I had to abandon my old blog and found a new one. Since I’d decided to go to the United States, I tried "JustinUSA" for my new blog. Yes, I was pleasantly surprised that this domain name was still available.

After blogging for more than three years at a single blog, I’m not used to making here. But a fresh start excites me, and I hope my life is having a fresh start too.