How are you? Have you had a good week? Are you enjoying your weekend? I do hope you have and you are.

After traversing for 25 hours ( from Shenzhen - Hong Kong -Chicago - Springfield, MO), I reached my destination in USA at 9:43pm, Sep 12, 2013 local time.

Now I am writing to you in my apartment room within walking distance of the campus of Missouri State University. And I would really like to share something I have experienced and felt.

First of all, I do feel: what a lucky graduate of Missouri State University I am! So that I have gotten so much considerate help from the school.

Can you imagine? There was only 3 days, I should set off, but I had not found a suitable place to live in Springfield yet. I had written to many friends, some of them did many jobs to help me, however, I wanted to rent just for 3 months, the time is too short for the landlord, so that things were very difficult. No way, I tried to write to the Sales Manger of University Plaza and Convention Center – Ms. Leigh Anne Garren and the Associate Vice President of Missouri State University – Mr. Stephen Robinette. Quickly, Ms. Leigh Anne Garren reserved a room for me in her hotel; Mr Zhang Peng – a staff of Missouri State University found an apartment for me as well. Suddenly, I had two good choices.

Then, it was Mr. Zhang Peng to pick up me at the airport and I lived in the University Plaza in my first night in Springfield.

Next morning, by the efficiency work and help of Mr. Zhang Peng, I signed a Lease Contract with Jefferson Avenue Apartments, LLC and moved into a new apartment before 12:00am. This way, after reaching in Springfield for just about 14 hours, I have had my own clean, quiet and comfortable living place. :- )

Do you know what was the most impression of mine when I rent the apartment? It was their wonderful management.

-- When I saw the 14 pages’ deal contract, I could not help thinking of the contract that was surprised me before I had the tooth extraction in Springfield 5 years ago.

The 14 pages include:
6 pages’ Deal Contract, there were 41 items in it, its words were 6 or 7 type size, on the 6 paper with the size 22cm x 35.5cm (8.66 inches x 13.97 inches );
2 pages’ Inventory and Condition Form;
2 pages’ Community Policies, and Regulations Addendum;
1 page’s Mold information and Prevention Addendum
1 page’s Addition Special Provisions;
1 page’s Apartment Internet Information;
1 page’s Insurance for Apartment Residents.

Instead of signing the deal contract with me simply, a clerk Mr. Tony Martin explained every thing for me seriously and gave me a quite good help.

After I signed the deal, got my room key and gate card, I just found they have fixed every one in the same apartment different entrance password and different internet password. Then I met two firemen came to check the electro-record as soon as I came my room;

Maybe you would be surprised why I took the photos of the bathroom and showed them here? Because, I am really impression on their considerate and detail management.

Do you know how many desk drawers or shelves in my bed room and bathroom? Totally 15. there are 4 drawers under the high bed, 5 drawers in the bathroom; 6 shelves in the two rooms. Plus the ones in the kitchen and laundry, even though a student stays in the school for 4 years, she or he would have room enough to fill their things.

Except there is one chair and one table in the bed room, there are also tables, sofas, TV, refrigerator, washing machine, direct fired dryer in the public room. Even though I am share an apartment with another 3 students, I do have my own private room enough, do not feel to be bothered at all.

Via what I have seen and experienced, I did touch a part of the management level of an advanced country.

With so much respect, I asked Tony copied all of these documents for me and I took these photos before I opened my suitcases. I really feel there are too many things worth us to learn and to study.

With so much appreciations to the university, instead of asking help from my old friends, I called a taxi and went to buy a new American cell phone, bedding, painting tools --white china dishes, adhesive tape, colored paper, notebook, sketch book, and a bunch of flower alone. I would really like to directly touch the local people as many as possible, to learn their culture and to improve my English level. So, when I met my Chinese compatriots Zheng Yining and Xu Kun in my apartment, I tried to speak with them in English. After all, if I still spoke in Chinese in America, there would not be meaning for me to come here. Right?

Do you know? When I bought a new cell phone and opened the network of At & T, I could not help smiling to myself. What a big change it is! Just in the same store at the similar time 5 years ago, it was Mr. Gong Xiaoou – my former private tutor when I was an international student of Missouri State University drove me there to buy my first American cell phone. At that time, I did almost not understand what they were talking. But now, I have done all of the things by myself. :- )

Then in Wal-mart, instead of just choosing something I needed in a hurry as I did 5 years ago, I paid more attention to everything I did not understand and I consulted the local American people, and I got the extremely patient and friendly help: Mrs. Cisely Teverbaugh ( the lady on the 10th photo ) taught me the words Spray Gel, and how to find it in the hair care section; Mrs. Marleen Bryan (she is on the 11st photo) taught me something about unit price and detail price; Mr. Jeff Dexter taught me not only about unit price and detail price, but also how to choose the cheaper goods by checking the content and the nutrition, if two goods’ content and nutrition are same, then we should choose the one there is the words Great Value, instead of the one there is a name brand on it; a young boy I forgot to ask his name taught me the word Clamp.

With this way, I have known 2 Taxi drivers, I did not realize that I should ask the first one’s name, but he taught me not ask a Taxi to wait for if I wanted to stay somewhere for a while, but try to call when I wanted to go back, it would save much money for me. Yes, after I bought the new cell phone and went out of the store of At & T, the fee of Taxi has met $44; but when I came back home from Wal-mart, the fee was just $10. And the time to wait for a taxi after I called, was just 5 to 10 minutes.

The second Taxi driver Tony told me there is no any special meaning of a chrysanthemum, even the white and red and purple chrysanthemum as I had bought in American culture.

Secondly, I do feel: what a lucky writer I am! Just because of the far-sight of Jinan University Press, I have not only published 5 books by them, but also, I was given a topic to write a book about America for Chinese readers. What a wonderful opportunity it is for me to learn both of American culture and language!

With a grateful heart, I gave my new book a title My American Stories and listed 61 people whom I would like to have an interviews with on the airport. Also, I have started to made my data with photo and practicality. You can see a part of my practicality date on the last photo with this letter.

Thirdly, once more, I feel: what a lucky Chinese art student I am! So that I has gotten so much help, support and looked after from the local people, organizations and public schools in USA. Except the 37 organizations and so many friends who had helped and supported me in the past 5 years, now:

-- Ms.Anna Brashers who was my tutor and a guard angel of Chinese students has recommended a hotel and offered the connection style for me.

-- Mrs. John David Lawson who works in a church and a mission school and helped me with his missionaries when I was a student in Missouri State University, not only have helped me to find an apartment with much time, but also, he helped me to get my mails of books, paper and album of paintings from China (now the first 2 have come already).

-- Mr. Qiu Xiao has carried a part of my books and album of paintings from China. He would like to send them to me soon.

-- Dr. Weirong Yan-Schaefer, the Asian Arts and Letters Coordinator of Modern & Classical Languages Department at Missouri State University, whom I have not met yet, but had helped me on my last book as my English tutor, would like to offer a 50 minutes’ lesson time for me to offer a Chinese poetry or Chinese Painting lessons for her students. She would also spend her time for me and have a talking with me.

-- Mrs. Wanda Nava, the art teacher of Seymour R-II School has gotten her school's approving and support, they would like to offer me for 1 week to have Chinese poetry lessons with singings, pictures and recitations and traditional Chinese painting lessons for her students.

Even though Mrs. Wanda Nava itself is a wonderful artist already and she got the art reward in Missouri State in 2012, she still came to my demonstration in Springfield 2009, and she invited me to her school to offer 5 lessons for her students in May, 2010. And then, I was just a spare time art student. As many local American artists had done, Mrs. Wanda Vana still came to learn something from me. What they had done really has touched me so much and it really let me realize how America is a nation of multi-culture and know a part of the reasons, why America become could the strongest country in the world within the so short time after II World War.

-- Ms. Caryl, the president of Art Guild, MO, whom I have not met yet, have started their promotion for my events that they would be my sponsor for the event...

lastly, I truly feel: what a lucky Chinese daughter I am! So that I have gotten so much support from my own motherland.

Before I started my travel, especially, I went to see Mrs. Gong Min (she is on the second photo) – A Nurse Head and a senior nurse of the Second People’s Hospital, just because of her good help, I could be offered two important checks, during the checking, one of them was changed a surgery. Because the two checks were made under the situation of general anesthesia – usually, even though a hospital patient, if we had no any family member to accompany, the hospital would not do the checking or surgery for us, and my family members are in Sydney, Australia and Wuxi, China. It was her to arrange some nurses to looked after me specially by phone calls when she was in Guangzhou.

Just for the good help from Mrs. Gong Min the doctors, I could re-stand up and come to USA once more.

And just few hours ago, in Beijing, a senior reporter from Xinhuan Agent would like to help me to open a column on some media to publish My American Stories.

As usual, always was my work partner Mr. Charlie Quanzhang, who is a director of a national newspaper, came to pick up me at 6:30am and sent me to Hong Kong.


To be honest, before I came here, I did worry whether the 3 months would be too long, but, now, especially after I made a list of the people whom I knew and I would like to visit and to make interviews. I could not believe my eyes. If I can just make appointment with 1/2 of people, time will be tight. Right?

Ok, it is not early and I have worked for whole of the night already. Mrs. Wanda Nava and her husband would like to pick up me at 1:30pm. And all my email needs for about 4 hours to be sent to you and my 11000 register readers. Therefore, I can only stop here and I have had no time to check it again. I really hope you do not think it is too long and excuse me for any thing wrong in the letter. :-)

How about you? Do you have anything special to share?





I am just a student on Arts of Painting, Music, English and Management, to work on the web site in my free time. I would really like to do somethings with what I have learned to make this little web site to be an Electronic Bridge of Cross - Culture and Comprehensive Arts Exchange, Chinese Culture and Language Learning & Friendship Making. To help the others while to improve myself.

I would like to appreciate you for your understanding, directions, supports and help.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, you are welcome to write to shirley@ebridge.cn or leave your message on Message Board.

Shirley Yiping Zhang
Sep 14 2013 (American Time)