I just joined Technorati, and I am excited. The first step to making this blog really live, I think. I want to use this blog to explore my switch in careers, my experiences in going to night law school, and just maintaining a personal life! So a little bit of everything will be thrown in here.
Today I met my Taiwanese language partner for breakfast. We were paired up at the business school we both used to be affiliated with, and for nearly two years we have been meeting at least once a week for coffee, and sometimes a meal. We both signed up for a program that paired native and non native English speakers to let the students practice their English and more importantly to learn American slang. It turns out that many of them know formal English but would get stymied when they were out and about and someone threw slang at them, such as a server in a fast food restaurant. They would not understand what was being said to them. So learning slang and American popular culture is part of the goal.
I really have enjoyed getting to know my partner and being involved in this. At first, I was worried I wouldn't have enough to offer an international business student (I was a staff member at the business school), but we quickly fell into a nice routine. It turned out we were one of the more successful pairings. I also benefitted from our get-togethers. I didn't attempt to learn Mandarin Chinese in the time we were together, but she did tell me about Taiwanese customs and lifestyle. We will only get to meet one more time before she moves to New York City for her new job. I will really miss her, but she has invited me to come visit her and I definitely will!
I think doing things like this is good for a career in business. Many people seem to be afraid or dislike globalization, but I think it is exciting.
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