My Reason to Vote

Two weeks ago I had the opportunity to go to China for my new job.  While I am not in any hurry to go back, it gave me a better perspective on what is so great about America. 

The first thing I did when I arrived at my hotel was to try to log on to Facebook.  It didn't work, so I tried it again.  When it didn't work the second time, I called down to the front desk to attempt to ask them how to log on to the network.  Did I mention that nobody spoke English there?  They came up to my room and got me on the Internet, but when I tried to go onto Facebook again, it didn't work.  I skyped one of my co-workers and they told me that the government forbids it.  I cried. 

I then tried to log onto my blog, and again it was blocked because I go through blogger.  I could read Dooce.com which has to be one of the most irreverent blogs I read, but couldn't write on my own.  I cried harder.  The feeling of total isolation was overwhelming and more than a little scary. 

When a car is driving down the street, there are flashing lights.  I asked what it was and the driver told me it was a camera taking a picture.  I asked if he was speeding and he said no, it was just the way they kept track of who was driving. 

All of this was odd to me, but the biggest thing that I still can't wrap my head around is the one child policy.  I can't imagine living in a country where they can tell me how many children I am allowed to have.  I am all for fiscal responsibility, but for a family to have a second child, they have to pay the state a fixed amount before the child is born that is roughly the equivalent of what it will cost to raise said child to the age of 18.  Because this is so expensive, few people have more than one child.  I can't imagine living in a world where nobody has siblings.  It was strange to be out in public and you wouldn't see or hear kids at all.  Some of the people I talked to expressed concern about how this generation is going to be able to take care of the older generations.  It is a lot of responsibility for one child to make enough money to support both the family they create and their parents. 

There were some amazing things about my visit to China.  The food was not one of them, but Shanghai is one of the cleanest cities I have ever seen.  Crime is almost non-existent because the punishment system does a great job of deterring it.  The punishment for selling drugs is death.  They are not fooling around.  I felt very safe walking alone at night.  Everyone that wants a job can have one.  There were a lot of people doing jobs that were not the most productive, but they were working.  After a few days I realized that people in China are really just like us.  They are doing their best to live the best life possible.  They have lived under these restrictions their whole lives, and they are okay with it. 

I am not okay with it.  I am happy to have my two children, and am grateful my parents had 4, seeing as how I am the youngest.  I am thankful that I can have a creative, public blog without being shut down, and I can tell my friends that I am doing nothing on Facebook.  I am glad to know that nobody cares where I am driving my car and no pictures will be taken unless I am speeding in a school zone.  This trip to China underlined for me why America is such a great place to live, and why the Constitution is considered a living document.  While I will be happy to go for a year without any political ads, I appreciate that I have a say in how I want my government to be run, and my vote will count in an election that is really too close to call.  Now that I have seen an alternative, I will never take my right to vote for granted again. 

Things to Know for Your First Trip to China, Part I

Have I mentioned that I have a new job that requires a lot of travel?  One of the places that I have gone was to Shanghai, China.  Here are some practical things that I learned about traveling to this area of the world.

1. You need a visa.  It takes a while to get one, so plan ahead.
2. If you are a woman, do some research on Turkish toilets or squatty potties.  You do not want to be caught off guard.  I didn't have to use one, but I was not prepared if I would have needed to.
3. Contrary to many people who assured me that young Chinese people know English, they do not.  Be prepared with a Chinese phrase book and the address of your hotel/destination written in Chinese for a cab driver or for help on the subway.
4. You are not allowed to drive in China, even if you have an international drivers license.  There is a reason for this.  You will get killed.  They have a whole different system that works for them, but it also explains why they are not typically good drivers in America.
5. If someone honks at you in China, it really means, "Hey, I am here, please notice me."  It is intended as a friendly announcement that there may be danger.  Do not take it personally as they honk A LOT!
6. McDonald's fries taste the same no matter where you are.
7. Crime is virtually non-existent.  Do not worry about walking around but still be aware.
8. If you are not right in the city, take a napkin and fork with you as they do not have forks, and napkins are not routinely provided.  For those of us that do not use chop sticks, this can be a messy situation.
9. Social media is banned.  There are ways around it, but I will leave you to find those for yourself.  Also, you will not find American television and Netflix has not come to that area of the world.  Please be prepared for evening entertainment if you like to fall asleep to the television.  You will get tired of the Chinese CNN station which was the only one in English. 
10. Please be prepared to pay cash.  Most places do not take Visa or MasterCard, etc as China has its own credit card.  Most smaller places only take cash. If you do use your credit card, be prepared with your PIN number as it is required, even if you are using it as a credit card. 

There will be more to follow, as well as the story about me missing my shuttle bus in the rain. 

My New Excercise Routine

I have started a new job.  I am not going to tell you anything about it except for the following things:

*I work in an office building instead of my house for the first time in about four years.
*I am starting this office from scratch and currently work alone in said office building.
*I am alone all day and only really talk to a woman named Pam who is the person who works in the main office for the building.

Can you tell I am kind of lonely in my new office? 

The first thing I found out about this building is that I have to park really far away.  I mean really far.  I will be walking in with several people, but nobody talks to anyone.  I started to count how many steps it is to the building from where I have to park my car.  Guess how many it takes. 

Go ahead and guess.  I can wait. 

Okay, twist my arm, I will tell you.  350.  350 steps one way to my new office that I affectionately call The Palace. 

There is one bathroom on the floor.  I am lucky because I work on the floor with the women's bathroom.  The men's room is on the next floor up.  Guess how many steps it is to the bathroom.  I won't keep you in suspense any longer.  It is 65 steps one way.  That is 130 steps round trip and that is a little less than 1/3 of the way to the car in the parking lot. 

The elevator takes forever because so many people are lazy or can't walk up and down the steps to get to the respective bathroom, so I tend to walk down the steps when I need to get downstairs.  I am on the 7th floor and there are 22 steps for each level plus three steps to get around the landings.  That is an additional 175 steps each time I need to descend to the bottom.  Sometimes I do this just to see what is going on with Pam. 

The weather has been really nice so I have gone out for lunch.  Since I am now working downtown I have gone to Subway quite a bit.  I know what it is, it  doesn't cause me undue intestinal distress, and  it  fits into my very meager budget.  It is roughly 3000 steps round trip. 

All told I am walking about 4500 steps just to get around at work. 

With this information I have come to the conclusion that the recommended 10,000 steps a day is a ton of steps.  I also think that we better hire our second person soon or I may just lose my ever loving mind. 

Step Aside, Julia!

I few months back, my friend Ruth told me about a cookbook that she said changed the way she cooks and thinks about food.  Ruth holds a degree in restaurant management and often tries to teach me better ways to feed my family.  In the past she has chuckled when I have asked her if the cookbook comes with pictures.  I like to know if my version matches what it is supposed to look like as I go along.  In short, I am a visual learner.  This book does not have pictures but her website does.  (www.kathleenflinn.com). 

I was at the library and happened to come across the book she had mentioned and decided, what the heck, I would give it a try.  I have a bit of time on my hands these days, and I read about a book a week, it was a library book, so I really had nothing to lose. 

Seriously, you need to check it out.  Check it out so you can read the real directions.  Kathleen is so much more elegant than I am. 

 

 

In the interest of full disclosure, Kathleen Flinn doesn't know I exist, let alone is she compensating me for this post.  I am not sure she will want to be associated with it since I am not sure I do it exactly the way she says to but it is working for me.   This book is based on an experiment that she conducted with about nine volunteers wherein she took self-professed cooking disasters and turned them into competent cooks.  She found that the art of cooking is dying out and things that were considered common cooking knowledge are mysteries to people like me. 

 

My first foray into trying out her ideas was in making bread.  A loaf of bakery bread at our local store is almost $4.00.  When I found out how easy it is to make it myself I feel like I have been robbed.  I was almost angry.  I can make it better myself for about $1.00 a loaf.    Here is all there is to it:

 

 

Mix 3 cups of lukewarm water (at least 100 degrees) with 2 packages of dry yeast.  To that mix 1 tablespoon of kosher salt (I am still not sure what the difference is between regular and kosher, but I went with it.  When I called Ruth from the store, she assured me that it was worth it, and I really should not be cooking with anything else.  Who knew?) and then 6 1/2 cups of flour.  I have found that the bread flour works better, but both do pretty well. This dough will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks in a tightly sealed container. 

 

Let that sit loosely covered for two hours at room temperature.  It will fill up a 4 qt bowl. 

 

Here is where it gets kind of tricky.  Once it has risen for the two hours you can scoop up about 1/3 of it and form it into a loaf shape.  Put it on some parchment paper that has been covered with corn meal.  If you don't do this it will stick and you will never get it back off without it getting mangled. Also, cover the thing with flour or it will stick to your hands which will also leave you with an ugly, mangled mess.  I speak from experience here.   Let it sit on the parchment paper for about 30 to 90 minutes and then slit the top a few times or else it will erupt in the middle.  You need to preheat the oven and the pan you want to cook the bread in to 450 degrees.  Also, you need to have some sort of oven proof container that you can add water to to create steam while it is preheating.  I use a pie plate.  (I have never actually made a pie, so it is about time I put that wedding present to work. Have I mentioned that I have been married for 16 years?)

 

Once it is preheated, take the pan out of the oven and add the dough.  REMEMBER TO PUT YOUR OVEN MITT BACK ON, BECAUSE THE PAN WILL STILL BE 450 DEGREES EVEN THOUGH IT LOOKS LIKE IT WILL BE COOL. TRUST ME ON THIS AS IT WILL BURN THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS OUT OF YOUR SKIN! My kids learned some new language that I am not proud of because I had to learn this the hard way.  My hands have healed now, except for the scar on my left pointer finger.  It matches nicely with the scar on my thumb that required seven stiches, but that is a story for another day.  Suffice it to say that I also learned quite a bit from the knife skills chapter.   

 

Make sure you put about 1 cup of water into the steam pan.  This will help you get a crispy crust.  Cook it for 30 minutes, and then take it out and enjoy.  This is what you should end up with.

 

 

My next project is cooking a whole chicken.  It is in the oven now.  I have to tell you that it is not for the weak of stomach, and I had to use some gloves so I didn't have to touch it, but it smells amazing. 

 

 



What Not to Wear - The Kennywood Adventure

I know that I am no Stacy London or Clinton Kelly, but I do know enough to wear clothes that fit, and for God's sake, cover up things that nobody else should have to see.  Last weekend we went to Pittsburgh to an amusement park called Kennywood.  What is it about these places and county fairs that bring out the craziness of people's wardrobes.  Because I can't make this stuff up, and because nobody would believe me if I told them, I took some pictures. Out of the many that I took, I narrowed it down to the best (or should I say worst) three.  I ask you, do these people not have mirrors?  Do they not have loved ones that have the guts to tell them they look ridiculous?   I will apologize in advance because once you see these, the image can not be erased from your minds.  Fair warning, if you are faint of heart, turn back now.  I am saving the best for last.  I promise it will be worth it, and might just give you nightmares for days. 

The problem here is not that this man's shirt is pink, it is that it is mesh.  Yes, I said MESH!  I ask you, where does one buy something like this?  I have never, in all my 41 years, seen a mesh shirt, much less one that had buttons on it.  Here is another problem with mesh shirts in the heat.  If you have deodorant fade out, there is nothing to stop it from being shared with your fellow people in line.  It is even better when you have a 7 year-old with no filter who said "WHAT IS THAT SMELL, IT SMELLS SO BAD, LIKE BAD BBBBBBBBBBBBBBOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OR REALLY STINKY FEET!!!!!!!!!!"  On one hand, it really needed to be said, and I wished I could have said it.    On the other hand, I tried to pretend that he was not my child while simultaneously clamping my hand over his mouth.   My sister Laura and I have decided that they should have deodorant stations and they should be mandatory every hour, or every time you come off a water ride.  It would make this whole experience bearable.  I should be thankful that the next man was not wearing this mesh shirt...

I like to call this a Sasquatch sighting.  This man is extremely hairy.  I am not sure why I felt it necessary to point this out.  Many men suffer from this condition, and since I have not gotten my eyebrows waxed in over a year because it hurts, I do not expect this man to wax his back for my amusement park enjoyment.  I would, however, like to recommend that he wear a collared shirt.  I was longing for the mid 80's when the mock turtleneck was in style. 

Here is the grand finale of this slide show of horror:

First, let me point out that this is her back.  If you suffer from back cleavage, which I have never actually seen before, COVER IT UP.  DO NOT WEAR A SHIRT THAT SHOWCASES THIS FREAK OF NATURE!!!!!!  I would also like to tell you that her earrings say "SEXY".  I assure you that there was nothing sexy about this. This woman had teenage kids.  What person of at least late twenties or early thirties wears plastic earrings that say anything, much less sexy? It was even more horrific in person. Trust me when I tell you that you do not want to see these jeans from the front. 

I am not much for roller coasters anymore.  The lines were long and it was hot and crowded.  I am not in any hurry to go again, but the cotton candy was fresh and the people watching was fantastic.  It was a great day spent with my family, and that is really all I can ask for. 

Is it Still a Tree House if There is No Tree?

One of the first activities the kids did this summer was to add on to the tree house at my parents house.  About five or six years ago my dad built a tree house for the kids in an old apple tree.  The rule was that you had to be at least five years old to climb into the tree.  It was a platform with some railing, and you had to climb the tree to get in and out.  It is about six feet in the air and was about 5'x10', big enough for the five oldest kids to get in and move around a little bit.  Over the years it gained a tarp roof, and then the tree died and my dad cut it down leaving just enough of the trunk for the kids to still climb in. 

Lauren and William have grown out of it, but Claire, Matthew, Cara and Ryan grew into it, and the kids deemed it too small.  Over the winter, whenever we gathered at my parents house, the kids would go into the basement and plan for the addition.  There were elections to see who would be in charge of the project, and Colin was selected to give "the pitch".  They drew up some plans, and when the time was right, they sent Colin in.

They had two things going for them.  Laura's family was going to be staying at my parents for a few weeks while they were moving, and Colin is irresistible.  It helped that he had the backing of all of the other kids, but mostly, when Colin turns on the charm, you really have very little defense. 

One day when Mom, Laura and I had gone somewhere, Dad took Andrew, Colin, Cara and Ryan to the Home Depot to gather the materials.  The people at Home Depot about had a heart attack when the kids were pulling the wood off the piles.  Colin dropped one of the planks on his toe and it is still damaged two months later.  Dad told them they needed some 2x4's for the deck part and Ryan found some, but they were untreated.  Dad, in his infinite wisdom told him that those wouldn't work because they needed the yellow ones, you know, the ones with poison.  Ryan had a conniption.  POISON, I CAN'T TOUCH THAT, IT HAS POISON!!!!!  NOBODY TOUCH THAT, IT IS POISON.  This went on all day long.  Ryan must have washed his hands about 30 times that day.  Finally, Andrew threatened him with bodily harm if he talked about it once more, and I am pretty sure that he had Dad's approval. 

Once they got through the Home Depot they had to get the stuff home.  While everyone fit into the van comfortably on the way to the store, they didn't anticipate how much space it would take to get it all home.  Colin and Andrew had to double buckle in the front seat.  Just as Colin had finished saying, "I hope we don't see any police", one drove by.  Both of them ducked. 

For the rest of the week, they worked on the tree house.  Ryan continued to worry about the poison wood, although he didn't say anything about it around Andrew.  I think we have since convinced him that it is only poisonous to bugs. 

This is the old side of the treehouse:

This begs the question though, how many of my family members does it take to build a tree house that does not have a tree? 

This is the new tree house.  You can see the old tree stump, and the new addition of the ladder to enter and exit. 

Hours of fun have been had by all, but much to my relief, the sleepover they were planning never took place.  They are still planning on putting on a roof, but time ran out before Laura had to move on to her new house in Philadelphia.  There is always next summer. 

Bent, But Still Unbroken

Here I am again.  I would say sorry that it has been so long since I posted, but that would be a lie.  I needed some time to catch my breath since I am now, once again, a stay-at-home mom.  So far this summer we have completed swim season (our third year of being undefeated!), done two sessions of coach pitch baseball (certainly this must be one of the circles of hell) , and survived the eight hottest days of the summer without air conditioning (forget the circle, that was hell).  I have also gone to Philadelphia in the back seat of our Camry with my two blessings from God, aka my kids.  A trip to the chiropractor was needed to make my hip useable again, but it was so worth it to spend two days with Laura and to see her new home. 

I has not been our best summer ever since our style of living to which we have become accustomed has been drastically reduced.  It has been a good summer in that the kids and I have had a summer of endless days stretching out before us with nothing in particular planned, nobody that we need to see, and nothing that absolutely has to be done (short of me finding a new job, of course). 

One of the things that I have done this summer is read.  I have been reading a lot, like about 20 books.  The books have ranged from the compulsory "Fifty Shades of Grey" series (don't waste your time) to the most recent book called "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand.   This was just the book I needed right now.  It follows the journey of a man named Louie Zamperini who would have been the first man to run a four-minute mile if it had not been for World War II. He ends up in the Army Air Force where he fights in huge battles in unstable planes, gets lost at sea for over 40 days, then captured to spend almost three years as a POW under horrific conditions. Finally, it covers  how he copes with the aftermath when he eventually gets home. Don't worry, there are no spoilers in that description. 

What this story is really about is how your attitude will make all the difference when life throws you a curve ball.  It is about patriotism, which is especially poignant since we are watching the Olympics.   It is about humanity, and how circumstances can cause people to do ghastly things, and how some people can rise above these same circumstances to maintain their dignity.  In short, this book put my issues back in perspective and reminded me that even though this setback is painful, my family is safe and healthy, and we will stay that way together through the good times and the bad.  This is time that I need to enjoy for what it is, not what it could have been.  That this too, shall pass, and what is on the horizon might be something great.  I just need to take one day at a time and keep my head up.  God will take me where he wants me to go.