Clutter

As part of this adventure, we’ve taken on a very important task to rid ourselves of clutter (aka junk). Since we are moving halfway around the world, transferring stuff from here to there (and back again) is not a reality. So we embarked upon our “period of enlightenment”; where we turn our back upon the materialistic nature of the human animal and become more in tune with living like the creatures of the forest. Okay, not really anything that idealistic or granola. It’s more of a forced march through the jungle of junk, the landscape of landfill, the waterfall of waste….you get the idea. We’re forced to look at all of our “stuff” and place everything into categories; keep, junk or Goodwill (or perhaps a 4th category, “what is this?”). We started by renting a construction bin and doing a cleansing of the house of all of the “easy decision” stuff. It was go up into the storage area over the garage and start looking at the boxes, bins, etc. A lot of the internal conversations seemed to end with the same basic question…..what the ____ did we keep this for? I mean we had empty boxes of stuff we bought (including shoe boxes) just in case we might need to return it? How about a large box full of cassette tapes that we had not listened to in perhaps 15 years or longer. Imagine how good those tapes would sound after sitting an attic through the Georgia summer heat for all of those years. We found this kind of stuff everywhere and carried it out to the bin. Bent tomato cages…in the bin, old table…in the bin, broken glasses….in the bin. We disassembled furniture (you know the high quality furniture that comes in a box being held together by adding more glue and screws each time it fell apart) and tossed it. We also gave a lot away to friends and neighbors, and to Goodwill. I think towards the end of the year, Tammy was making 2-3 trips per day to get rid of stuff not only from the attic but from all over the house. We must’ve had 40 different coffee cups, it was crazy (those darned kids…hooked on Starbucks). Basically we looked through all of what we had accumulated in our time in the house. For 14 years, we just built up stuff some needed, some not. At the end of the month of renting the bin, we had trashed nearly 2 tons of stuff (now our neighbors did dump some stuff so let’s just call it 1.5 tons just so we don’t look like we have any kind of disorder). 1.5 tons……..think about that, that’s what we threw away. The question becomes, did we need it in the first place? Some stuff, yes but once the kids outgrew their things (like the carseats), we should’ve gotten rid of those but instead they went into the attic. It’s easy now to look back and know that we weren’t thinking when we kept a lot of stuff.

So, Phase I – The Bin was a huge success in getting things out and clearing space. Once we cleared space we took photos of the house with the fresh paint, the new carpet and the clear countertops. We took some time to enjoy that success but then it’s on to Phase II – The Legend of the Bin. We went back through the stuff we kept and took a second look and found yet more stuff to fit into the 3 categories of stuff. Phase I was hard but Phase II is harder on the kids since they have a difficult time sorting through their stuff and thinking, in 2 years will I really want the Captain Underpants books (Captain Underpants….get it at your local Barnes & Noble). I’ve moved several times in my life and moving from one state to the next usually doesn’t result in a reduction of stuff, it’s just a transfer of stuff so this was all new even for me. For all of the Lean geeks out their, it’s a simple 5S exercise but it is kicked up a notch due to the timeline involved (and it’s YOUR stuff and not the company’s stuff). It’s a tough sell for us to think of storing stuff for 2 years, what do you keep and what do you get rid of? Take a walk through your attic, garage, crawlspace sometime and see what you’ve accumulated, I’ll be you’ll be surprised.

I’ll be leaving next week and have moved into Phase III – Stuff the Suitcase. I’ve got to determine what I am going to take with me and how I can fit as much as possible into 2 suitcases and keep under the weight restrictions from Delta for baggage. Clothes, toiletries, some food (okay a lot of food) and some household stuff will all be packed as tightly as possible to make it fit. I’m sure I can find whatever I need there so I’m trying not to over-analyze but it’s tough. Every time I walk through a store I find something that might come in handy but can I fit it into my suitcase? I mean, I still need to be able to pull the suitcase through the airport (do they have a battery powered suitcase?). It’s going to be tough and take several dry runs but it’ll get done because it has to be done. I just hope the suitcase can handle the strain.

Shadow's Big Adventure

This morning began Shadow's big adventure to the great north.  Scott and Warren are driving to South Carolina today, then they will get up with the sun to continue north through Virginia to the welcome center in Pennsylvania.  They will meet up with a long time friend of mine for the big transfer.  Shadow's new family includes seven children and a 13 acre farm.  She will have so much fun!  

It was hard to say goodbye to her this morning.  I got up at 7:15 to give her medicine to her and then WE got back into bed.  That's when my brain started....  We've had her for six years and she really became a part of the family.  I know that she is "just a dog" but anyone who has had a dog knows that they are so much more.   She would always welcome us at the front door and race around the house being silly.  Then go to the back door hoping that someone would go out back to throw the tennis ball to her, sometimes to fetch, sometimes just to see us go get it.  We will all miss that stupid dog.    

What is she going to do with 5 more kids??

She is (was ~ that's so past tense) a sweet, loyal, crazy family dog that will make the new family very happy.  I know that she is going to a really good home that will treat her like we did.  I even heard that they might even spoil her a little bit!  I am thankful that I was given the chance six years ago to bring her home from the breeder, even though it was me who wanted a Lab ~ Scott "convinced" us to get a Boxer.  

she could never be a show dog even though she comes from a line of best in show champion dogs!

I consider this post a little bit of therapy for me.  I know that it will be hard for us (me) for the next couple of days, as this is a part of the "grieving" process.  It's also part of the relocation process and I'm glad that it has happened now and not later.  

I've posted a couple of videos to our YouTube channel (see the link on the side of this page) of the dog and her last few minutes here.  If you listen closely you can even hear her talking..........

Thoughts on TSA

I’ll preface this post by stating that I understand that all of the measures are taken for my protection. As everyone is aware, there are much tighter restrictions for flying than ever, the list of prohibited items is very large and includes liquids in containers larger than 3 ounces…..3 ounces!?! Anyone who has flown in the past knows that on the airplanes the air is drier than a popcorn fart and that having water with you is a way to compensation and prevent dehydration on the plane. In the past, they used to give out small bottles of water when you asked, now they only hand out cups of water (I’m sure it’s a cost cutting move). Now the airlines try to do a very good job of walking up and down the aisles every 30-40 minutes offering cups of water. That will work to keep me hydrated but it’s awfully tough to place the cup of water in the seatback for later drinking or to slowly drink on the flight as needed. A little turbulence and that cup of water is going all over you, your computer or your neighbor so you’ve got to drink it quickly to prevent spillage.

You can purchase water once through the airport security checkpoint so there is an opportunity to take water on to the flight with you…..at least that’s that way I thought it worked. Of course, you’ll pay through the nose for that drink since you they control the supply and therefore the cost. The odd thing is that on the return flight from Shanghai to Atlanta, this cannot be done. I went through customs, then through the security screening process (thanks to the nice female security agent that gave me the physical patdown and “wanding” when I set off the metal detector. I think we’re engaged now but I’m not certain). So I’m through security and off to the gate area. I purchase a blue Gatorade to carry on to the plane for the flight. Off topic for a moment, in Frankfurt, I selected the clear Powerade and discovered that the clear was the Lemon-Grapefruit flavor, oh yeah Lemon-Grapefruit, mmmmm (not so much). So back to Shanghai, during the boarding announcement for my flight I discover that we’ve got to go through a TSA screening before boarding the plane, no liquids....Huh!?!? I’ve already gone through the very thorough screening and x-ray process so I’ve been cleared according to the airport. However, TSA figures it’s now time to search every bag (much like heading into a ball park, open the bag and they’ll thumb through all of the stuff) before you can get on the plane. I’ve got to dump the Gatorade since I can’t take it on the flight. I don't understand, I can clear customs and the security screening, shouldn't everything from that point forward be okay. It’s nothing to do with the cost of the Gatorade, it’s just the oddity of now having to get TSA’s blessing to get on the flight. Alright, it’s their rules so I just shut up and board the plane hoping they’ll serve plenty of water on the flight (but I'm gonna grumble about it).

So we land in Atlanta and there’s yet another treat waiting from TSA. Now, you’ve got to clear customs and then go through security screening again. Yes, that’s right, I have to go through the security screening process AFTER I’ve landed in Atlanta. So, a 14 hour flight, wait in line for customs, then wait in line for security screening. In the security line, the TSA agent tells me to take off my belt…my belt? Really, I wonder if they understand the purpose of a belt, especially on me. But, what’s my option, I take off my belt and just hope they don’t have to wand me so I can hold on to my pants (otherwise there’s no telling if they’ll hold in position or if I’m about to provide the answer to boxers or briefs to 150 or so of my closest friends….think about the poor kids scarred for life). Okay, I’m through security and right there you can wait for your luggage. Finally it arrives and you pick it up off the carousel and you’re still not done (oh heck no). Now you take your luggage over to another TSA agent who scans the luggage ticket and points to another line (how efficient). Ahhh, of course, now you have to place your luggage on a conveyor belt and head for the Baggage Claim area in the Terminal to pick up your bags again. Is this making sense to you? I’ve been screened by the Chinese airport security, then screened again by TSA in China to get on the flight. I’ve been screened again upon arrival in Atlanta and once I get my luggage, I’ve got to give it right back and then go and wait for it again in the terminal. Again, I understand this is for my own safety but exactly what am I being protected from at this point? My plane has arrived, what am I going do now….hijack the moving sidewalk? It’s too much! I don’t even know that I understand why they screen folks that are making connections upon arrival in Atlanta. Think about it, everyone was screened twice to get on the plane to fly to Atlanta…should they be screened again before boarding a plane to Greenville (or wherever)? What exactly are you going to find now that you missed before? Granted the Delta food could be considered a WMD but that’s more self-inflicted pain and discomfort. It’s not like they use more sophisticated equipment or techniques in Atlanta (you ever see a TSA agent look even remotely interested in what they were doing?). There’s just something with the logic that escapes me regarding TSA. I can appreciate that this is all designed for my safety but c’mon, this is what happens too often with a government program; it starts with good intentions but ends up with poor logic & execution in an overblown, bureacratic nightmare. You wonder why these corporations purchase jets with the taxpayer's money....maybe they have a seat available, I'll bring my own water.

Thoughts from the airport

So I sit at the Shanghai airport waiting for my flight. It’s delayed so I’ll write and see if I can get a post from here. It is about 1hr, 45 minutes from Suzhou to the airport. Interesting tidbits;

• The receipts here have 2 stamps, one from state and one from local govt. They added a scratch off at the bottom of all receipts with a chance to win 5, 10, 20 or more RMB (allegedly). This was done to prevent business’s from not reporting income, everyone now asks for a receipt and therefore the taxes have to be paid. Before, no receipt might mean the transaction was invisible or under the table. Big brother wants their cut.


• The books we read about China all indicated the Chinese will hack, spit, belch, etc. anytime and anywhere. It’s true. I walked by a woman on the street and she belched and no one blinked and eye. In a restaurant you will encounter Mr. Mucus and it takes a lot to keep from finding out where the loogie man (or woman) is sitting. As long as they are far away from my table.


• There are some large gaps between the lower income people and others. Driving to Shanghai, you will see some of the older, small villages with gardens being grown. Typically these areas are surrounded by power lines, and I mean surrounded. We’re used to seeing one large line going around, imagine 6 distinct lines. It’s crazy, you see them all over the outskirts along with major power stations belching forth “steam” into the sky.


• I’ve realized that speaking to people in their native tongue is a bad thing, not for me but for them. When I speak my limited words, they will respond in English or if they hit me first it’s “Good Morning” not Ni Hao. They make it easy for me to get by without Chinese, it’s detrimental to me. I tend to respond in kind to what is spoken (if I understand) and when they speak English, I respond in kind and then want to kick myself for doing it. If you want to assimilate, it will require more work unless you force the issue. I’ve got to get into Chinese mode.


• No tipping in China. Nope, pay the bill and no more, it’s not expected.


• The Chinese are always commenting on the price of something, that’s very expensive and so on. I mean it is very common, sit down to a meal and invariably there is a comment about the prices. I guess they are still getting accustomed to Western thinking; soon they will all have credit cards and be up to their eyeballs in debt for crap they really don’t need, just like the US.


• I’ve been told I need to be aggressive for everything, polite but aggressive. Gary is very laid back and a mild guy, the other day on walking street he hailed a cab. 4 kids were waiting on a cab and when it stopped they were moving to get it. Gary moved right in front and took the cab. I wouldn’t say he was rude but the kids were surprised. He figured he hailed the cab and it was his, period. I’ve been told to always be that way. The Chinese don’t see the need to queue in a line, they’ll jump to the front (or slowly push) of the line in many situations. What we consider rude, they don’t see it the same way.


• The older people rarely speak much English, the younger ones do but not in all circumstances. I find myself speaking in broken English when speaking to the Chinese just to avoid using words or complicated phrases that might confuse them. You can tell when they don’t understand, they may not indicate it but if you watch their face you can read it. It’s the same face I have 95% of the time.


• KFC is huge here, don’t ask me why perhaps it’s because they were the first to come into China.


• They work very hard to keep the cities clean (at least the grounds). You’ll see workers everywhere cleaning the streets, getting weeds from the flower beds and stuff.


• Educational opportunities here are very limited so there is a lot of competition. If you get low test scores, your lot in lift will be determined at an early age. I guess late bloomers here are just out of luck.


• Lays Stacker flavors here at the airport, Green Cucumber, Crispy Chicken, Braised Pork, BBQ and regular.


• The Chinese love juice, local restaurants offer a lot of variety, melon, white melon, orange, pineapple, grapefruit, mango, lemon, carrot and even more. It’s like a juice bar but it’s good for you (is it mixed with tap water?)
  

This airport is HUGE. I was able to find my way but the gates are in one long hallway. Okay, I’m going to shut down now and close the post from Shanghai. I’m eyeballing the Burger King stand……12 RMB (less than $2), I’ve got to find out what that is all about. I was online and going to post but I noticed that there were laptops showing on my computer trying to get access to my computer for Internet access so I shut down and held off the post.

I'm back in the US now and very happy to be home. Keep checking in, coming up...my thoughts on TSA and being back home.

Last Day

Tomorrow I head back home, thank God! I’ve been on gone for 11 days (or perhaps more since I’m traveling in time) and am ready to be home again.

Today I went with Gary to the city center and did some sightseeing. Gary is the first Press guy hired in China and is Chinese. It’s interesting that some Chinese create a Western name for themselves, instead of their real names they have an English name (it’s not the equivalent of their Chinese name in English). Imagine that, you can re-create yourself with another first name during your life. Some do it but it’s uncommon for the States but it is commonplace here. It makes me wonder, why did he choose Gary? Typically the names are short and simple, Gary, Leo, Jerry….

Okay, back on track. We left and stopped for lunch at a coffee shop, New Island Coffee. I took a chance and ordered their special fried rice for lunch, I figured what could go wrong, it’s their specialty. So while we wait, they bring us some water…strange, the glasses look like they just came out of the dishwasher. It turns out that they serve water warm during the fall/winter and cold in the summer. Alright, I can buy that but where is the water coming from? I’ve been told don’t drink the water, just bottled water. Well, I’m thinking no problem but how do I know where this water came from, and should I trust the orange juice, was it mixed from a can or did it come from the carton. What about the lemon juice I ordered to drink (lemonade), how did they make that? You can’t walk around in a hazmat suit so I try not to think about it but I didn’t drink the warm water. So the fried rice shows up, it has a fried egg on top…jackpot. Wait a minute, what is that, looks like lumpmeat crab…are those tiny shrimp and what’s these pink cubes and those thin cylinder looking thingys. Crap, it’s some kind of seafood fried rice and I believe it was squid pieces and some kind of fish. I ate as much as I could but the voice in my head kept saying “you’re going to pay for that”. Typically I eat very safe before I fly just to avoid any potential for “discomfort”. I stop in the restroom before we leave and there it is….I found it, squatty potty (see picture). We’ve read about this in the China books but I didn’t expect to see them. Even in a relatively new restaurant, they have squatty potties. Imagine looking for a toilet and seeing this. I know, one of the pictures I post from China is of the restroom…..calling Anthony Perkins, your mom is on the line,
Gary takes me to center city and shows me the shopping area. People everywhere and this wasn’t even crowded according to Gary. Shops upon shops, everything you can imagine. We looked at the clothing stores and they had everything but the prices were still crazy for stuff like Nike shoes (I hate Nike, they don’t make shoes they market shoes and charge 2 times the price for a swoosh, gimme a break, won’t buy them, won’t wear them….ever!). We stopped in 2 of the local food stores. It wasn’t a market like you would see from Andrew Zimmerman, they sold nuts, candy, cookies, bakery items and local foods (I can’t tell you what they were because I couldn’t read the label, round, square and other). Right in the middle of the length of this street, there’s a temple. We stop in and I watch as people purchase large pieces of incense, light candles and incense and go to the front of the temple to present their offerings for good fortune and luck. There were several temples here but some required tickets to go inside, I guess the god of sales is worshipped there. We walked through the remaining area, going in and out of shops. The local work is amazing, the silks and crafts, it’s tough to walk through those shops and not get something. The shop keepers had unique English, “Hello, just looking?” Since the Chinese language has a lot of tones incorporated, they might not be aware that it sounds more like a question than they intend. There were many “salemen” that came directly to me showing me brochures of watches, bags and other trinkets. I was an attraction and felt a little out of place like a small boy at the Vatican. It’s something you have to accept, I’m in the minority here and will always be. I didn’t feel afraid, just a little intimidated. On the weekend Gary says it is very crowded, great. It’s not my thing anyhow so I won’t be back on the weekend. I still have sights to see rather than shops to find.

After “Walking Street”, Gary took me to a park. I assumed a greenspace area for playing, walking, etc. It turns out it was the Humble Administrator’s Garden, one of the most famous gardens in China. I had asked Gary where we were while walking through this park (I had no idea what it was), I guess I didn’t understand him because to me it sounded like he said Hangbo Park. Later that night when I asked him again to tell me where we were (I looked everywhere and could not find this park on a map), that’s when he said the full name and I understood. It didn’t matter I was impressed and I finally looked like a tourist taking a ton of photos. In a couple of photos you will see a pagoda in the background (one photo with me in front). It’s something they call “borrowing a view from afar", which enables you to see a much wider sight within a limited space. The pagoda, which seems to be in the garden, is actually a km away from the garden (Paying Debts Pagoda). I’ll let you see pictures since that will best describe this garden.

Click here to see the garden photos.

I’ve also posted many more photos for your viewing (and yes, it means I finally figured out how to do this).

Click here to see the temple photos.

Click here to see the Le Gong Di & Jinji lake photos at night.

Click here for the walking street photos.

I’ll stop the post here for today; the next post may have to wait until I am home although you never know I may get bored at the airport waiting for my flight. I appreciate the thoughts and prayers while my family and I are going through this transition. It’s been a long 11 days and I’m looking forward to being home. Keep checking in, I’ll have the post trip wrap up show coming up after this message from your local sponsors.

Almost Over

Look to the sky, find Howard Johnson’s and I can find my way back to the Chateau. Believe it or not the HoJo’s here is a top rated hotel. Things have sure changed since I was a kid; I remember the orange roof Howards Johnson’s that we would stay at when we were kids on a family trip (I’m sure they were thrilled to see the Dudley family pull up front and the six kids unload from the station wagon, I’m sorry I mean crossover). I don’t recall the 5-star accommodations. Today was busy with a medical exam and a look at apartments.

The medical exam was again eye-opening (I keep using that term). First we had to drive to South Suzhou to the International Travel Health Care Clinic, so I was taken through another section of the city I had not seen. This was obviously not a Western part of the city and it was just interesting to look out the windows and see how the city changed as you moved through it. Gone were the new high rises and instead there were still tall buildings but much older and fewer of them. The first floor on every street was lined with small shops on both sides for blocks. It is an older area and probably is more the real China than the area I am living. So we get to the Clinic and it was very confusing. Luckily, I had Eva on my side. She is a young lady from the company that knows all of the passport/visa rules and regulations and has been extremely helpful to me on this trip (she is the “indispensible person that every company has). As with many of the women in the front office, she’s tiny, probably less than 5’ tall but I’ve come to realize that here you don’t judge by the size. She “pushed” through to the check in counter and guided me through the paperwork, the 4 stages of processing to check in to the Clinic and then on to the testing. I had a flashback to the age of 17, joining the Army and going through the MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station) before heading to Basic Training. Essentially it was a main room with smaller rooms attached; each with a singular purpose, you could hit any of the “stations” in any order but you had to hit them all (check all the boxes and win a prize). Draw blood, eye exam, dental exam, EKG, blood pressure, height, weight, x-ray and even an ultrasound for your liver & kidneys. Each station was brief but it was just strange and comical at the same time. As I worked through this I realized just how much you have to trust basically strangers with everything. Gin, our driver, had to get photocopies of my passport while I was being tested due to new regulations. He takes it and off he goes, 15 minutes later he’s back. The passport is my ability to get out of the country and go home; it’s your driver’s license on steroids. You could take this information and do just about anything. Here I am handing it over to a man I just met, Eva taking me from stop-to-stop and working me through this maze of confusion. It’s very hard to not be in control for me, I don’t like to rely on others but here there is no choice. It’s truly a team effort, without them, I would still be standing there in line wondering what I had gotten myself into (if there is any question, I am the weakest link).

I was unable to eat or drink for 12 hours before the testing so I was “fading away to nothing” (short trip) after the testing. We returned to the Chateau where I met one of the manager’s who was to tour me through the various apartment options. Eva informed her that I wished to get something to drink (I was thinking an orange juice just to get something), the next thing I know she takes me to the dining room and brings over a waiter to get my order for something to eat. It feels strange but it’s their way, they had just finished the breakfast service and here was this skinny American ordering food. It was awkward but I went with it and ate (very good choice, you’ll find out why) a sandwich. They waited and talked while I ate (away from me so I was by myself eating…again awkward). The tour started with the fitness center, the men’s changing room/locker room (we walk in and Hello! naked Chinese man, 12 o’clock, and I mean no towel just standing by the sink checking his hair. Turn around, another buck naked guy……what planet am I on, get a towel dudes!), the pool and sauna. Then to the apartments, all much nicer than the single bedroom I am currently occupying. There are 3 different options, basically big kitchen, smaller rooms or small kitchen and bigger rooms or small kitchen and bigger rooms with carpeting in the rooms (I’ve been warned about the carpeting, there is some is some question about if they have a vacuum cleaner). The bigger rooms are the preference since the kitchen doesn’t need to be big, it’s not like we’re cooking huge meals now and need all kinds of counter space (empty space = place for clutter). The odd things are that in one layout, the refrigerator was in the living room, for some layouts the washer/dryer (yes, it’s one small unit that does both things) was out on the balcony/deck. I’ll be in the single bedroom while I am by myself and then we’ll move into a 3 bedroom. Although this is one of the oldest complexes in the area (meaning it’s been around for more than 4 years) and the rooms aren’t perfect, the service is what sets them apart. I’ve had one issue with my door swipe card where it wasn’t working well. They had 2 housekeeping people, 2 doormen, 1 supervisor and a maintenance guy all checking in to see the problem was fixed. They were all very apologetic but it wasn’t a big deal to me. Fix it and let’s move on.

So after the guided tour, it’s back to the plant just in time for lunch. As I walk to the cafeteria and open the door, BAM!!! Okay, I had a sandwich an hour ago, I’m good! I found out it was fish day; there’s something about that odor that just penetrates and sends you in the opposite direction. I don’t know how they handle it, if you get take that AND eat, you can use pepper spray like Binaca (breath freshener spray just fyi). To quote Fat Bastard from Austin Powers, “even stink would say that stinks”. I saw birds flying over the plant that were falling out of the sky because they were holding their nose instead of flapping their wings (they made the right choice). Lucky me, the Press office is right directly over the lunch room…can’t wait to see how that works out. So 2 out of 3 days, I was able to eat at the plant. Still, the odds are in my favor….we’ll see what awaits me tomorrow.

I was taken out to eat by another colleague to a place called Li Gong De, it’s an area with Outlet shopping and many, many restaurants along JinJi Lake. It’s very interesting to see the city at night; I can only say it’s a little Vegas in China. The buildings all have some neon lighting that twinkles, flows, moves, etc. There’s one high rise that has a Tetris theme, blocks of different colored lights fall down the building and build up like Tetris. It’s like that on many of the new buildings, something different to see on each one. We went to Mario’s Pizza, a very nice place obviously frequented by Westerners. Along the way I heard kids playing and understood them (hey English), it was kids who were at Mario’s for dinner. Quickly I realized this was a curse and not a blessing as I watched the kids run around the place making a racket and the parents were absolutely oblivious. It was a group of 3 families and you would’ve thought the parents were by themselves. The kids went to the table when the food arrived but until that time were a general pain-in-the-butt. I was embarrassed to think that these people were from the states and giving credence to the spoiled American image. I wanted to walk over and slap them but I tried to ignore it. We may not be the best parents but we would never allow our kids to act in this fashion. I’ve never seen kids so out of control in an eating establishment (I’ve never been to Chucky Cheese). It was a nice place with good food, although it was expensive even by Western standards. It’s supposed to be the best pizza in Suzhou so I ordered the lasagna (don’t ask me why). Tried the Tiger beer, a Singapore beer, very good very much like an American lager. I walked back to the Chateau on my own, I’ve got to get out and capture some photos of the lights at night. It’s very nice to see but by the time I reached the Chateau, the lasagna kicked in and I decided to just hang out. I promise to get photos; Tammy has been asking I just forget to bring the camera. I keep telling her that you’ll see for yourself but I should be better. If I don’t get them this time, definitely when I get back in March when the weather will be warmer and the training wheels will come off.

One more day and then I go back in time as I head east (from the Far East…not sure if that makes sense since if I’m headed east does that mean I’m going to the Far, Far East) to home.

Tuesday

Day 2 or is it 3? It’s difficult to remember it is 13 hours difference (no daylight savings in China) between home and here. I’ve kept my computer on US time so I can look there for the time. So in reality I’m coming to you from the future (1.21 gigawatts !?!).

The air quality is not good here (surprise). It’s like your high school lab experiment with sulphur dioxide, you could still smell it even after it was done. It’s never overwhelming it’s just there. Mix in the cigarettes, smoking is common here and you can smoke just about everywhere. When you walk into some places, it’ll be overwhelming at first but you eventually get past it. These are just things to get accustomed to, you have to take the good with the bad and make more out of the good and less out of the bad.

The lunches at the plant aren’t as bad as I have been told. So far I’ve eaten both days without too much of an issue (I know something bad is coming). I have noticed that there’s a lot more fatty tissue & gristle in with the meats. They don’t cut off the fat, it’s cooked along with everything else. I went out to dinner with the Press guys to a Hong Kong style Chinese place. Everyone orders and shares their food. I ordered the barbeque pork (wimp) and then we got all of the rest of the food, small shrimp (all of it, heads & veins included), spicy vegetables, curry beef, bean paste with lotus root soup, mushroom soup with tofu, and steamed dumplings served 2 ways. I would say it was mostly good but my chopsticks could use some work (I don’t know how Ralph Macchio caught that fly). I was doing okay eating until I hit the fat chunk of “beef” in the curry beef. I guess the fat came from a cow but it wasn’t really beef (where’s the beef?) Stevie Wonder must’ve been the butcher (my “Part Time Butcher”?). I had to spit it out into a napkin…there was just no way to get it down, it was either that or lose the entire meal. No one seemed to notice but it ended my evening a little early. Luckily this dish was late in the meal and so I acted full and drank more beer. I’ll have to find out if they have a high calorie beer to keep my weight up (can you mix protein powder in beer?) or I’ll be wearing suspenders to keep my pants up since I don’t think I can find a smaller belt in the adults section. I guess the rainbow belt with the power rangers would be okay but not real professional.

After dinner two of us broke off from the group and we walked around to see more of the local flavor (although I have no idea where I was…I think it was a place called lost). We walked around and went to get a foot massage (only the socks came off……remember when your mom told you not to wear holy socks; well kids, listen to your mom). Very odd but nice, it actually took 1 hour from start to finish. It’s something people do here very regularly and they believe it helps them for health, body, mind, spirit; their Chi. It only costs about $10 US, so it’s very affordable although there are some of the higher end parlors that cater to Westerners that are more expensive. Of course there are the other spas here as well, but that story will have to come from someone else’s blog (paging Victor Hill). I’ve got to start some fancy book learnin’ and get more language skills if I am to survive here. The Chinese seem very friendly and eager to help so I should try to get some basics down and see where it leads me. Rosette Stone doesn’t work well for me, it’s all picture based. It’s easy enough to figure out some of the stuff like milk, bread and such. It’s the photos with people doing things and multiple people that could mean many things that make it hard. If they just had some English underneath the characters to indicate what was being said, you might understand better. I think I’ll have to take a hit on Michael Phelp’s bong, heck it worked for him right!?! The fastest way to learn Chinese ( Cheetos)….I don’t think so.

Afterwards, I was given a general direction and the option of a taxi or walking. I chose to walk home and see if I could get across the street without becoming “splat the cat”. It was actually good to take a walk on my own even for a relatively short distance (about 4 blocks). I got to think as I walked and consider how I could get by on my own. I know when I return there will probably be less outings with others since I will become a “local”, the walk was helpful to gain some perspective. It will be different but it can be done; the new Dudley family motto is “suck it up”, we all have changes and transitions to make so get ready mentally and don’t create obstacles out of the little things. Change we can believe in……crap, I can’t believe I wrote that, it’s just wrong. We stopped in a Western market, they have all of the staples, a good deli, cereal (although the names are different), mac-n-cheese and everything to feed the western fix when needed. It’s not huge but it has enough to get you through until you can find local products, if you choose to make a switch.

That’s it for today, another day down and one more day closer to home.

Suzhou - Day 2

Another day gone by in Suzhou and I’m still trying to adjust. Waking up every morning at 4 am isn’t helping the adjustment very much. I hit the wall in the afternoon and just can’t seem to get to even half speed. I can fall asleep okay but when 4:00 rolls around, I am awake for some reason.

I was taken to Bar street last night to an Italian place. I figure I would enter the Chinese food thing a little at a time; lunch was enough for one day. The food for dinner was good, not the same as say Olive Garden, different cooking techniques but both good. I ate at an Italian place in Germany which was very different from any Italian place I’ve ever been, all 3 Italian….all 3 different….all 3 good. Anyhow, I’m about 10-15 minutes by taxi from bar street (not the true name) and it’s only about 15 RMB for the cab ride so it’s very cheap. Along the way you get the thrill of an amusement park ride. Describing the taxi driving is difficult but I’ll just say that it’s almost like we’re trying to escape from a ticking time bomb that will go off and destroy everything within 100 km of the blast. The rules of the road are mere suggestions, we’ll blow through red lights, pass in the oncoming car lane, drive in the bike section of the road, pass using the turn lane…whatever it takes. It’s like these street racing video games were based on driving here. The kids will probably get a kick out of it; it scares the heck out of me. Bar Street is a long street of bars (duh), shops, restaurants, etc in the old part of the city. It’s got something for everyone and we took a short walk to look around after dinner. Some of the Chinese craft shops had some pretty amazing stuff, all for a cheap price. There was a DVD store with every movie you can imagine even some that are still in the theatres (Grand Torino). The clothes shops had the latest stuff all for much less than in the States, this place is like crack for shopping addicts.

There are 5 channels for TV in English. CNN (ugh), BBC News, CNBC, National Geographic and finally HBO (without the late night, um, mature shows just the family fare shows you know with the bad language and excessive violence). Sorry, 6 channels, there is a local news channel in English, just found that one. For the first time in my memory, I didn’t watch the Super Bowl. Too bad the Steelers won but my brother will be happy. Tammy gave me the play-by-play text by Skype for the last 3 minutes of the game (still better than Al Michaels). It’s very strange, I’m a football nut but somehow I didn’t miss it that much. It’s more about being home, the pizza, wings (or even better the Buffalo Chicken Dip), beer and sitting with the family to watch the game. Jacob has become a football junkie this year, he would watch any of the college bowl games just to see football. He’d drive me crazy asking questions, why, how, why, why, why, how, who, why, why, but he’d sit there and watch (and critique like all other fans but then he'd tell me the play he would run on Madden that would've worked). If he saw it when he was surfing, he’d stop and watch it. Even I had to tell him enough with the football (there’s just something wrong with that blue turf).

The good thing about being outside of the US is that I don’t have to watch the 24 hour daily love fest with Obama. Yes, yes, I know he’s the President, okay I get it, history, change, blah, blah, blah, enough already. I pray the decisions that he makes will be the right ones and things will begin to turn a corner. American has become so celebrity worship crazy that if that a washed up, old boa-wearing wrestler ran for Governor, of like Minnesota….……uh, nevermind. I was always taught to look at a person's actions over their words but that lesson is not being taught much anymore (last word on this, sorry). The internet is the lifeline; I’ll surf the web for while and pick up the news and then I’ll do something else. By the time I call home on Skye, it’s bedtime anyhow. I know TV withdrawals are coming, perhaps that is why I’m waking up at 4 am (turn on the tv, turn on the tv, you know you want to).

Stay tuned as another day unfolds....