I've been feeling a bit under the weather the past few days. No complaints here, though. I haven't had so much as a sniffle since I've been back in Taiwan this year. Back in that previous life, working with small children, my work life was fraught with little kid germs. It's not nearly so bad with middle school kids. I just hope I'm over whatever it is by the time we step onto the plane in four days.

The school is nicely decorated with secular Christmas. There's no worries that you'll offend anyone because here the holiday is not a religious one at all. I think it's just an excuse to buy sparkling things and decorate your home. Here's what the lobby at school looks like.