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John Mayer! and no Houston Hair.

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John Mayer

October 3, 2010

How do you spell John Mayer?   I bought a CD by him today.  I realize it is pirated because my dyslexic mind saw the title John Marter and never realized it was misspelled.  The picture was of John Mayer but it is a Chinese copy.  I am laughing at this minute looking at the CD cover and listening to the CD.  It’s fabulous, with a DVD of him as well…. And I paid 10 Yuan for it.  I have a feeling I will be in the disc store more than anywhere now.  John Marter, wonder if the John Lennon was Jon Lemon?

Filo and Colina which they pronounce Fin-o and Cole-leah-a accompanied me shopping today.  Does anyone understand the way Chinese spell in English?  We went to Aqua City and had a great time looking at clothes and shoes.  H&M is my favorite shop.  Sam got me hooked on this place when I was in Boston.  Sam I found some really cute skinny legged jeans that bunch up at the ankles for 149 Yuan ($22.50) OMG they are so cute, even the girls liked them.  Shoes, well that was another thing, they are so different than in the US, much more fashionable and unique, but cost more than in the US.  So no shoes today!  Can’t pay $50-80 yet…..  I like DSW in the states and $25 shoes.  Got a toaster oven, yeah now I can “sort of” bake!  Found Kenya coffee in the Starbucks and it is the same price world wide, but you know me and a good cup of java!  KENYA is best, I could thank Kyle for that lesson.  Patti, I found this little gadget at IKEA to frappe warm milk into froth.  I can now make a real latte without a coffee maker.  I found coffee filters and use them to drip my African coffee.  I am getting milk from the milk lady on a daily basis at 6:30 am for 59 Yuan a month.  Someone tell me how cool is it to have milk delivered to your door?

The sun was out all day, with a nice cool breeze.  It was lovely.  I mentioned to the girls I was having a good hair day, because my curls were still curly at 3pm.  It is so humid and damp here or hot and sweaty that my hair ends up damp and sticking to my head like when I lived in Houston.  (Remember “Houston Hair?”)  I told the girls we need to curl their hair, cause no one has curly hair here.  Little did I know that it is unacceptable to have curly hair in China!  They told me that Chinese only have straight hair and if they curled it that would be against the rules at school.  So am I going against the rules?  Yes I guess I am, but I am a teacher and they said that was ok.  Would they look too much like a western girl?  Interesting, so I guess I need my “Free Tibet” shirt and curly hair and I would be a real rebel!  Someone make me a Free Tibet shirt, I am feeling like I need to be a hellion today!

During this beautiful clear afternoon I took pictures out my penthouse balcony windows and realized I could see the furthest point of the Yangtze Bridge.  Wow, it is really far, there are many mountains way off in the distance and countless high rise buildings, and apartments.  It’s amazing how much you can see out my windows, just miles and miles of skyscrapers with people in every window.  China has a huge population and I just never realized what a large place this is.  You can see it all from my window.  I love my view, it is amazing and fascinating.  Fireworks go off almost every hour all over the city and they are spectacular from my view.  I love it here.  China and Chinese people are fantastic.  Americans thought this was a black hole, but I have news for you it is really a red nation of lovely warm friends. Red, yes the color is everywhere and on everything.   I actually feel tall here!  Sarah how do you like that, I can call people here “little ones” like you call me.  Wait till you get here, they will really stare at you, probably more than me!  That makes me laugh, “tall one!”

Jenny and Lynn are thinking I need to date!  Lynn thinks he has some professor friends at Nanjing University that he might set me up with!  OMG!  Dating again, I don’t know!  All my American friends said I would come back with a Chinese guy, I don’t know!  I just don’t think so!  Do you think there is anyone out there that can actually care for me?  I am such a hand full. Jenny is so cute, she says husbands should take care of their wife’s, why would you marry one if he didn’t?  Duh, I did!  Let me count three times I believe!  Women here presume not only should men take care of you, but they should provide a home for you as well.  Like purchase land and a house for you.  Well somewhere I went wrong, and did not get this message in America!  What was I doing working three jobs and paying for it all?  Hello!  I am in China and learning my lessons!

China is heaven!

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September 4, 2010

Just got in from a night on the town, ok it is 10:15 pm and that is late for me, but I did have dinner and hit two bars with my colleagues.  We met up at McDonalds, the Aussie Peter, Brit Michael and youngster Brit John (he has lived here six years and is the one married to a Chinese woman) plus my American friends Daniel, Paula and their little sweet daughter.  We had a lovely Chinese dinner across the street from the University for 141 RMB, not quite $20 for seven of us!  Dinner was served family style in a private room, red walls and gold chairs and a gold table cloth.  Only chopsticks are allowed!  Got a proper lesson on how to hold them from John, the bottom stick doesn’t move only the top one!  Since John is Vegan, life if good for me, as he orders in Chinese and most all we have to eat is Vegetarian.  Michael says that the Chinese will eat everything that has four legs except the table!  E-gads…. Gad I am vegetarian.  I see chicken feet, turkey necks and all sorts of meat products we would toss in American, that are scrumptious morsels here in China.

After dinner we head to the Youth Hostel for a beer.  Just the guys and I go; Paula has to put the wee one to bed.  A Snow beer 2.5 alcohol content, and tastes like a girl beer from Texas with bubbles!  So this is really nice for me, the guys hate it.  Then after one beer, John wants to move on to another bar.  Off we go, this time to a college hang out, have a lager, and listen to the cute Chinese girl sing hits from the Carpenters!  That was eerie!   Played pool with the guys, felt like I was 19 and in college.  Had a few lucky shots, but let the Aussie and Brit win!  Yes I am good at pool, but guys need to win!  Then about 10 pm decided it was my bed time and they all walked me back to the hotel.   Someone tell me where I went wrong in America?  These guys actually care about my warfare.  How delightful is this??   I so love China, John told me I would never leave, I fit in so nicely.  It is a really unusual feeling, like I belong here.  Someone told me I must have lived a past life here, duh….. I think many past lives.  I am so comfortable here, everything makes sense.

During the afternoon I looked at an apartment near the school where I teach.  It was perfect… 27th floor about 2 blocks from campus and will be available in a couple weeks.  It is more than the school allotment provides but it will be wonderful for me.  All the appliances are so not typical American, very “old school” Chinese, but hell with a pent house view

who cares.  It is something like 100 meters square, God what size is that?  It has 2 bedrooms, a kitchen and a living room and a bath and a half.  Total cost 38000 RMB for one year… about $519 a month…. And the school will pay 2/3rds of that. I am so ok with a penthouse view. (It is really not a penthouse, I am just calling it that and it is split level) Too cool for this American Art girl.

What is a”Carrefour” store?  Went to one of those today and found green olives, hot damn!  I am in heaven, plus a jar of Pesto!  (Patti, it is really good, almost as good as I make!) OK don’t laugh too hard, but I had McDonalds French fries too!  Tasted just like the states!   And they had ketchup, yew haw!  Motor bicycles are 1299 up too 1899RMB which is about $200+.  Someone tell me how cheap that is!!!!  Peter is going to buy one and I will ride on the back.  I don’t think I have the nerve to drive one with all the traffic!

Stopped in a tea shop and sat down at a tree truck table, with a Buddha carved in it.  Ok that was the best Karma ever.  The guy boiled up some Oolong tea, oh my god, best I ever drank.  I sat there looking at his little Buddha clay trinkets for sale and found one with a frog on it.  Yes I have this frog thing going now.  He sold it to me for 30 RMB ($4) then he took it and soaked it in water and it somehow filled up!  Next he poured boiling water on it and the frog magically spit water out its mouth.  Omg, I started laughing so hard, I could hardly stand it.  Then he had a water buffalo figurine and he poured boiling water on him and low and behold he turned red!  I thought I was in magic heaven!  I am so going back to this place and having tea during school lunch break.

China is heaven!