Conversation Partner: Meeting #4

Today, WeiRan and I met at the bookstore to talk. Originally we were to meet on Tuesday, but he had an emergency. The minute I got the email saying he had an emergency I became concerned, but suspicious as well. WeiRan's emergencies usually mean he made other plans and forgot we were supposed to meet. Today when I met him, my suspicions were justified. He had gone to Dallas.

WeiRan has a love for Dallas that I will never understand. He thinks Dallas is a wonderful city. Fort Worth pales in comparison to Dallas. He looked nervous when he told me his real "emergency." He said "I forgot I told my friend two weeks before that I would go with him." I chuckled to myself. Why would I be mad he went to Dallas? I am no teacher. His obligations to meeting me are minor.

Our subject turned to school. He became nervous that TCU would be hard once he got in. I reassured him that it is challenging, but he would do well. He's a smart kid. He just hates English. He skipped his class twice this week. He says he stays up until 4:00 a.m. playing a spaceship game on the computer with his roommate, Chris. I'm dumbfounded. He says his reason is he does not like being on American time. He stays on Chinese time, which is why he is too tired to make it to all of his classes.

I began to question WeiRan on how his parents would react if he did not pass the course. He shrugged, "I do not know." Maybe it's my own expectations, but I assumed he would be a driven student. WeiRan's apathetic responses confuse me. I wonder if it is because he does not look forward to the career his father has chosen for him. He does not want to be an engineer. If I had my life planned out for me by my father I probably would not be driven, either.

The conversation moves back to California. WeiRan and his roommate, Chris, wanted to move to San Francisco, but not anymore. He explained that two Chinese people were recently murdered. Now he considers San Francisco too dangerous. TCU appears to be his home for the next 6 years or so. I think he likes it here, but is homesick. He began to talk about his excitement to return home. "What is the first thing you will do when you get home" I asked. He said hanging out with his friends. He brightened up at the thought of being back in Shanghai. I would be extremely homesick, as well, if I lived in another country.

Next, we discussed his prospects if he graduated with a degree from TCU. I tried to tell him about how we are a selective university with great colleges, but it did not translate well. I kept trying to explain it to him, but with few results. We finally gave up on trying to understand each other upon the subject.

The conversation began to dwindle. Plus, I needed to take my car to get inspected. It is not smart to have a 3-month expired inspection sticker. We parted ways and agreed to meet again next week.