Living in a glass house
This evening I showed Cici and Ping the traffic numbers on Alexa for our little place on the web. Our website is so new that it hasn't even been recognized as existing, let alone have a traffic ranking.
Today, for the first time, we broke into the rankings. The three month average (misleading since we haven't even been on the web for three months) is an impressive ranking of just over 12 million. The one month average (this is meaningful because we have been on the web for over a month) is a ranking of just over 6 million. The one week average is about 2.4 million. And yesterday, the traffic rank was 601,217.
Maybe not really a glass house, but someone is peeking.
This discovery about our positioning on the web came on a day when Cici had told me that her Asian friends at school are asking her why the teachers and school administrators have made such a big deal of the fact that she became a U.S. Citizen. So what, they told her. You are still Chinese. Some even expressed resentment about the ceremony where everyone stood and sang the National Anthem for Cici.
I am not going to come between Cici and her friends, but it sounds like a touch of jealousy to me. Not over the publicity, but because she is a U.S. Citizen and they are not. Most of them are just here on an education visa, so they are not on a path that necessarily leads to citizenship. Some of them are permanent residents, though, but if they are to become citizens they must do it the hard way, through naturalization.
I also wonder if this sudden peer pressure might also come from the publicity about our book signing event and the school's recognition of Cici as student of the month. Whatever its source, Cici would just as soon remain hidden in the pack insofar as school is concerned, she told me. So we agreed that we won't publicize anything else about our book and our story at her school.
Today, for the first time, we broke into the rankings. The three month average (misleading since we haven't even been on the web for three months) is an impressive ranking of just over 12 million. The one month average (this is meaningful because we have been on the web for over a month) is a ranking of just over 6 million. The one week average is about 2.4 million. And yesterday, the traffic rank was 601,217.
Maybe not really a glass house, but someone is peeking.
This discovery about our positioning on the web came on a day when Cici had told me that her Asian friends at school are asking her why the teachers and school administrators have made such a big deal of the fact that she became a U.S. Citizen. So what, they told her. You are still Chinese. Some even expressed resentment about the ceremony where everyone stood and sang the National Anthem for Cici.
I am not going to come between Cici and her friends, but it sounds like a touch of jealousy to me. Not over the publicity, but because she is a U.S. Citizen and they are not. Most of them are just here on an education visa, so they are not on a path that necessarily leads to citizenship. Some of them are permanent residents, though, but if they are to become citizens they must do it the hard way, through naturalization.
I also wonder if this sudden peer pressure might also come from the publicity about our book signing event and the school's recognition of Cici as student of the month. Whatever its source, Cici would just as soon remain hidden in the pack insofar as school is concerned, she told me. So we agreed that we won't publicize anything else about our book and our story at her school.
I will agree, it is likely a touch of jealousy. Citizenship opens a lot of doors. Cici will always be Chinese (can't change that), but now she is an American. Don't forget to get a passport and Chinese visa for her visit next summer
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That will feel strange at first, Craig. Cici and I have joked with Ping about how Cici and I will be treated differently when going through immigration in America.
I have the N-600 filled out and ready to send in for Cici's Certificate of Citizenship. We are just waiting for the Clerk's office to have certified copies of the Adoption Order available so we can attach one to the N-600. We won't apply for her American passport until she turns 16 on August 10. That way it will have an expiration date of ten years and not five years from issue.
When the Certificate of Citizenship is ready to issue, we will be required to return Cici's green card. In the meantime, it is legally useless, since her U.S. citizenship happened automatically by operation of law when the judge signed the adoption order.
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That would be a good idea, especially since it might put more pressure on her, than need be. I will for easier if she can decide when, or even if, she wants to be a "celebrity."
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Probably never the way she talks right now, Smitty. I think she has Ping's advice, or the old Chinese saying, solidly ingrained. It is something along the lines of, "most of the trouble we face in life is created by words that come out of our mouth."
Sounds like advice I should follow.
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I think it's too late for me! I added it to the Quote thread, hope you don't mind!
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Lee,
just my opinion...
I don't think her friends are jealous of Cici becoming US citizen. They are most likely very proud of their nationality (korean, vietnamese ...?). That's an assumpstion to say that they are jealous of Cici's citizenship and citizenship opens many doors ... etc.
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You may well be right, and we appreciate your comment. Ping is also reluctant to believe that jealousy is involved, and Cici doesn't believe it plays a role.
We hope the students are proud of their nationality, and we have emphasized with Cici that she should always be proud that she is Chinese.
When classmates who purport to be friends of Cici make hurtful comments that they know Cici can hear, but they are not talking with her when they say them, it raises my personal level of suspicion that there may be some jealousy involved. I readily acknowledge that I may be wrong. I also readily acknowledge that my protective instincts went on the alert when I heard about this, so that probably colors my perception.
But we are on the verge of summer time, and fall will bring a new school year and faded memories. I suspect the whole thing will blow over without lasting effect.
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Cici has a posse out here! People better watch out, or we'll come out when called and teach those whipper snappers a thing or two!
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