I Have My (Z) Work Visa

Two days ago I travelled for a second time to Houston. I arrived at the Houston Consulate after taking a wrong turn, but it was still morning time there. It took maybe five minutes to acquire my passport with the newly adhered Z Visa in it. The Z Visa looks awfully official. I feel honored that I will be accepted into China on such noble status, a worker, a teacher, and a candidate for residency. That means I can open a bank account, get benefits, and travel and live in China for work. The residency permit is something I'll have to do when I arrive in Yantai, so I won't speculate on the extent of the privilege.


Bar studies are going well. I am currently reading Texas Law in Layman's Language, by Charles Turner and Ralph Walton.

I have been researching Yantai, Shandong, China. Through MySpace I found one of the fellow teachers from America, teaching at Ludong U. She answered my outstanding questions about preparations to take. There is a Walmart in Yantai, a KFC, and several Western style restaurants and hang-outs. Clothes in my size may be difficult to find. Western Union provides an easy way to pay overseas bills, like student loans. Power Converters are under $20.00 US. My point of contact is a nice and great person, who shows dignity and respect for the foreign experts. These are all great things to know.

I am looking into the internet laws in China. I know that there will be restrictions, just as we have some restrictions here in America. Apparently, China has the most sophisticated internet content monitoring systems in the world. At least if the sensors go off, I can expect them to be more likely accurate than elsewhere. I prefer accurate censorship, because often it is the case that I come across things I either don't want to hear, or would rather not know, given they could be mere opinion, or just insulting to our intelligence.

I have hope and faith that I can make productive use of the resources available there. I like to play some online simulator games, as well as listen to music, and watch videos over the internet, rather than television. From what I read, it appears that not only will much of what I use will be available, but that there will be a chinese substitute for things like google, secondlife, itunes, and many more useful online resources.

On the other end of that inquiry is a serious interest in the laws governing the use of information. It occurs to me that protecting the common good with censorship, and creating an environment where a productive offering can be made will be a nice ancilliary compliment to my experiences in the USA. So I am looking forward to comparing the laws and the effects of the laws in my life in China.