By Way of an Introduction

Writing, like all forms of language use, is inevitably social. Even when I am writing only to myself, I am bound to others by a common tongue. However, uncertainties concerning audience have made it difficult for me to begin writing here. I imagine that the friends and family to whom I send the link will eventually grow weary of what I’m posting here, and I will ultimately be writing only for myself. This leads me to wonder why I don’t simply keep my thoughts to myself in a Word file as opposed to posting them in a blog on the World Wide Web. I don’t have an answer to my own question.

I will be in China for ten months teaching English at Suzhou University, making some attempt to learn the language, and exploring as much of the country as I am able to see. I invite you to share the experience through the entries I post here. I will try to give you a sense of what it is like to live here and my impressions of the people and the culture. Hopefully, I can occasionally make you laugh as well.