So Michael and I are about 2 months into our Far East Adventures and so far...so good!
There are definitely people and things I miss...but overall I think we are doing better than expected.
I miss my family and I miss my friends...especially with the holidays rapidly approaching. It was be our first time not being with family during the holidays and I have already shed a few tears thinking about it. We feel fortunate though, one of our best friends Brian, will be coming in December to visit us. That is a nice treat. I feel blessed that we have friends who are willing and able to come visit us in China. We will have had 2 friends visit in the first 3 months.
I miss Christmas music on the radio. I am not one of those people who gets annoyed at Christmas music coming on the radio way before Christmas. I really like Christmas music and really don't mind hearing a song or two throughout the year. Surprisingly some of the malls have decorated for Christmas, so that was a welcome surprise. But the weather here is still warm and sunny so that is a bit of an adjustment. It is starting to cool down, but when I look out the window now and see all the green leaves and the sun shining down, it feels more like September than November.
We will be having a Thanksgiving dinner with our friends. Turkeys are few and far between in China, but our friends Pete and Angela scored one at the store and have kindly invited us over....for that I am truly thankful! I think that Thanksgiving dinner is one of my favorite meals of the year.
I have not driven how for 2 months and I miss the independence of being able to drive myself where I want, when I want. But I actually don't mind having a driver. Our driver, Yi, is wonderful. He is kind and helpful and is a very safe driver, which I appreciate. It is hard for me though to get used to just calling or texting him to come over because I need to go somewhere, especially on the weekends or "after hours." During the weekdays it is not so hard because he drops Michael off at work and if I don't need him, he just stays at the office all day until Michael is ready to go home. They have a special room just for drivers at Michael's office. But when we have to use him during the weekend or at night I feel bad because I know I am eating into his time with his family. He does have a wife and 16 year old son. Everyone says I need to get over that because they are getting paid, it is their job, ya da ya da...but it is hard for me because I feel like I am inconveniencing him, ya know?
I miss Guacamole. Don't ask me why I miss it so much, I just do.
I miss Parmesan truffle fries from the Town Tavern. If you have not had them and live in Detroit area, stop what you are doing, do not pass Go, do not collect 200 dollars...just go and get the fries! And ship some to me in China while your at it! ;o)
I DO NOT miss cleaning. I don't think many people would. I have not cleaned one thing in the past 6 weeks. I still do the laundry to try and keep myself a little bit in reality, but Ayi irons it all. The first thing she does when she she gets here is go and open the curtains in the living room, straighten the pillows on the couch, fold the blanket on the couch, go to the kitchen and wash the dishes and clean the counters and stove top, then she makes our bed, EVERY DAY! She then proceeds to sweep, mop, clean the bathrooms, dust, iron, clean the kitty liter and other things depending on the day. She will even stay and pet-sit Coco and Willow when we go on trips. Having an Ayi is a real treat!
That's all for now folks!
There are definitely people and things I miss...but overall I think we are doing better than expected.
I miss my family and I miss my friends...especially with the holidays rapidly approaching. It was be our first time not being with family during the holidays and I have already shed a few tears thinking about it. We feel fortunate though, one of our best friends Brian, will be coming in December to visit us. That is a nice treat. I feel blessed that we have friends who are willing and able to come visit us in China. We will have had 2 friends visit in the first 3 months.
I miss Christmas music on the radio. I am not one of those people who gets annoyed at Christmas music coming on the radio way before Christmas. I really like Christmas music and really don't mind hearing a song or two throughout the year. Surprisingly some of the malls have decorated for Christmas, so that was a welcome surprise. But the weather here is still warm and sunny so that is a bit of an adjustment. It is starting to cool down, but when I look out the window now and see all the green leaves and the sun shining down, it feels more like September than November.
We will be having a Thanksgiving dinner with our friends. Turkeys are few and far between in China, but our friends Pete and Angela scored one at the store and have kindly invited us over....for that I am truly thankful! I think that Thanksgiving dinner is one of my favorite meals of the year.
I have not driven how for 2 months and I miss the independence of being able to drive myself where I want, when I want. But I actually don't mind having a driver. Our driver, Yi, is wonderful. He is kind and helpful and is a very safe driver, which I appreciate. It is hard for me though to get used to just calling or texting him to come over because I need to go somewhere, especially on the weekends or "after hours." During the weekdays it is not so hard because he drops Michael off at work and if I don't need him, he just stays at the office all day until Michael is ready to go home. They have a special room just for drivers at Michael's office. But when we have to use him during the weekend or at night I feel bad because I know I am eating into his time with his family. He does have a wife and 16 year old son. Everyone says I need to get over that because they are getting paid, it is their job, ya da ya da...but it is hard for me because I feel like I am inconveniencing him, ya know?
I miss Guacamole. Don't ask me why I miss it so much, I just do.
I miss Parmesan truffle fries from the Town Tavern. If you have not had them and live in Detroit area, stop what you are doing, do not pass Go, do not collect 200 dollars...just go and get the fries! And ship some to me in China while your at it! ;o)
I DO NOT miss cleaning. I don't think many people would. I have not cleaned one thing in the past 6 weeks. I still do the laundry to try and keep myself a little bit in reality, but Ayi irons it all. The first thing she does when she she gets here is go and open the curtains in the living room, straighten the pillows on the couch, fold the blanket on the couch, go to the kitchen and wash the dishes and clean the counters and stove top, then she makes our bed, EVERY DAY! She then proceeds to sweep, mop, clean the bathrooms, dust, iron, clean the kitty liter and other things depending on the day. She will even stay and pet-sit Coco and Willow when we go on trips. Having an Ayi is a real treat!
That's all for now folks!
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