Goals: Checkpoint Two Months

We have been in China for two months now. And that means...it's check-in time on the goals I posted on August 22. I just don't want a year to slip by and then at the end of it wonder: what on earth did I do with my time?!

1. Acquire some basic Mandarin language skills!
Well, I still speak Cave Man Chinese as in Me. Want. This. (cue: pointing finger) But I have hired a Mandarin tutor and practice as much as I can (to the chagrin of my pre-teen son who is mortified every time I speak and Chinese people cock their heads at me as though I'm channeling some foreign language. Which I am.)

2. Write my next novels!
I finished 5 weeks of plotting my YA fantasy series and I am officially starting the rewriting process. YAY! This took much, much, much more time than I thought it would. Hopefully, this prewriting exercise will pay off in the long run.

3. Throw myself into the China experience!
I've set aside every Friday to explore the city and I'm gadding about town...although at a slower pace than before. My big dilemma is this: I started my Shanghai turnSTYLE project where I committed to interviewing 100 cool people here. I'm well on my way with that goal. But...I see a novel idea formulating. I wonder if I should abandon turnSTYLE (weep) to focus my interview time... I hate not completing projects. But my time is limited. (Note to peeps: THOUGHTS? Advice?)

4. Take exquisite care of my family, friends, and self!
I am exercising every single day--whether it's running or biking or popping on the elliptical. I've decided that driving an hour to yoga each way wasn't worth the bliss. Every Friday night is Pizza Night with the fam where we plop in front of a movie and chow down on pizza. And, yup, I have committed to being the writer-in-residence at an international school in Shanghai. Lucky Son, he gets to live with one of his teachers. Hee. And best of all? I've reinstated date nights with my hubby.

So...for those of you who made 2008 New Year's Resolutions, how are you doing with them?

China, Jai You!

Whatever language I had been faithfully practicing every day in my car to prepare for this move, it was clearly not Mandarin. People have been staring blankly at me, head cocked to the side in a mixture of confusion and amusement and irritation, whenever I've tried my few words and phrases. Embarrassing.

After the deafening cheers in the stands during yesterday's kayaking races for the Olympics, I turned to the Chinese guy next to me and asked him what he was yelling: "Jai you!" He said, "It means, go!" Last night, I asked my friend, Alex, what it really meant, and he explained, "Literally, it translates to 'add oil.'" When you want to win or go faster, you need to add a little fuel. I love that.

So while my family slumbers on this morning, I thought it was about time that I committed my personal resolutions for the next year in China in blog. Here's how I want to add a little fuel for myself! Justina, jai you!

• Acquire some basic Mandarin language skills! While it's impractical to think that I'll be fluent in Mandarin after a year, I'd like to be proficient enough to have a real conversation. Not just a transaction of information: where is the bathroom? I would like two orders of these dumplings. You know what I mean. Exchange ideas. And really, it would be absolutely amazing to get fluent enough that I could speak with my mom. Have a true conversation with her.

Translation: hire a Mandarin tutor, make sure to get out of my expat compound and practice the language with real people!

• Write my next novels! So my agent kicked me in the rear end when I saw him in L.A. a few weeks ago, telling me it was time to Get Back to Work. The truth is, after my last book tour which lasted almost SIX months, I was burned out. Absolutely and completely burned out. I took the entire summer off of writing. That's one long dry spell, longer than any I've ever given myself. Even when I was launching readergirlz with Lorie Ann Grover, Janet Lee Carey, and Dia Calhoun, I was writing--and even finished North of Beautiful during our most intense time. As my writer-friends have assured me: I have just been filling my creative well. I think they're right. Now, I am yearning to get back to the empty page and spend hours writing. I have four (count them, four!) book ideas that I've been ruminating over the past year or two.

Translation: commit to writng 3 full days a week and 2 mornings a week.

• Throw myself into the China experience! My year in Australia with my husband flew. Absolutely flew (except for the first few months when I had to adjust to all the racism...). So I know my time in Shanghai will be fast. I want to get to know the city, the quirky neighborhoods, the secret places to eat and shop. I want to travel in Asia (and have already booked our trip to Bhutan!). And I want to meet the cool, creative people who are changing the face of China now: the architects and designers, the directors and producers and writers and artists, the entrepreneurs.

Translation: set aside a day a week to explore the city. Pick out the places we want to visit in China and Asia. And interview cool people. This is all about feeding my creative well.

• Take exquisite care of my family, friends, and self! And of paramount importance to me, I want to make sure my family is safe and happy. So I want to do what I can to help my kiddos acclimatize to their new home. (That might mean volunteering at their school as a writer-in-residence since my eldest still--so far!--doesn't have a problem with me being onsite with him. I realize this will change sooner than I like.) One of my very best friends from college lives 10 minutes away from me now in Shanghai! I definitely want to devote some great quality time with my girlfriend. And finally, the big 4-0 has proven to me once and for all that my metabolism is slooooowing down. Must work out. Every. Day. Or I will take on the shape of a round Shanghainese dumpling.

Translation: breathe.

And take new exercise classes: try out tai chi! fencing! heck, racewalking!

Geocache with my family! And just have fun.