Conversation Partner 5

Conversation Partner 5

On Monday, November 25, I met with Kevin for the fifth time. We decided to meet at the library and sit inside the bistro area because of the colder weather. When I saw him we both talked about the snowstorm that was supposed to come through but really never did. I told him I was excited about it because in Texas it rarely snows. And because it rarely snows, school can be cancelled for even only a little bit of snow. He laughed and realized where I was coming from.

I asked him about any plans he may have had for Thanksgiving. He said he wasn’t sure about anything on the books yet but said with the extra time off he might try and find something to do or somewhere to go. He asked me what my plans were for the break and I told him that I was going home to see my family. I also told him that I was bringing some friends with me and he said that sounded like a lot of fun. I told him how excited I was to finally get home and said he wished he could be saying the same thing right now. He still misses his family and is excited to see them again in the future. For now, he’s still here in Fort Worth.

He asked me about the holiday of Thanksgiving with some curiosity. I told him it’s a day every November where everybody takes school and work off to be with family and give thanks for everything they have. I explained a little of the history, how the pilgrims who settled America started it, and how its continued on all the way to today. He liked the idea of Thanksgiving and compared it to some other holidays they have in China.

He asked me how my semester was finishing up and I told him I’m doing well but can always be doing better. I asked him about his English classes and how he’s progressing and he also said he’s doing well. He feels like it’s getting easier for him to speak and have conversations in English.

Kevin asked me about the Frog’s football team. He isn’t totally familiar with the sport yet so I had to explain to him that we aren’t very good this year. It was disappointing, I told him, to have to watch a team as bad as they are. But, there’s always next year.

Conversation Partner 4

Conversation Partner 4

            On Friday November 8^th I met with Kevin for the fourth time. We decided to meet this time over a cup of coffee at Einstein’s but then changed our minds and went to Café Brazil to sit outside instead. The nice November weather was too much to pass up.

            I asked Kevin what he had been up to lately. Sure enough, he said, not too much. Being an IEP student, he says, there really isn’t that much going on all the time. He takes his class and other than that he doesn’t have too much structure. He said all of the free time he has can be great but that sometimes it gets to be too boring. To fill some of his time up, Kevin works out, hangs with friends, and looks for ways to see more of America.

            I asked Kevin more about his upcoming trip but he still didn’t have much to give me. He wasn’t sure exactly where he was going, or when, or with who, but just knew he was taking a one-day hiking trip in a few weeks. I thought this was a bit humorous because to me, it showed that Kevin is just really excited about seeing new places in America. He signed up for a hiking trip in another state without even knowing when or where it exactly is just because. He wants to see our nation and I thought it was cool at how anxious he was to sign up for the first opportunity he got.

            Kevin asked me if I had any plans for the weekend and we got to talking about Dallas again. I told him about my invitation to the Stars-Blackhawks hockey game on Saturday night and how I would be heading to Dallas around the same area he was in only a few weeks ago. He didn’t really know too much about hockey (and frankly, neither do I), but he was interested and said he would like to see a game sometime while here in the States. His true dream though, as he has already mentioned to me, is to see an NBA game, preferably the Houston Rockets.

            I asked Kevin what he was planning on doing this weekend and he told me that him and his friends are all going to go to dinner on Saturday night at their favorite Chinese restaurant. There is a little place, supposedly by TCU but I can’t seem to fin it, that him and his friends really like. Kevin says the food is somewhat Amicanized but overall isn’t that different from the food he is used to back home. I told him I really want to find out where this place is at because I’ve been looking for a nice little Chinese take-out place for a long time!

            Kevin and I then started talking about our families a little bit. He asked me what my Mom or Dad does for a living and I explained to him that my dad is a CPA and does a lot of work in business. He thought that was very cool as he will be going into business next year when he starts taking classes. He told me that his father was in business as well (although I think he may have mentioned this to me in our first meeting) and I thought that was great. He said his dad is in real estate, something I may want to try out at some point in my life.

            Kevin and I finished up our coffees and parted ways. Our fourth meeting went pretty good. I plan on meeting up with him next week and the week after. Then, the semester will be coming to a close.