Tea at a local garden

Restaurant

I just thought I'd show you the inside of a restaurant I went to the other day. I went during non-peak hours, as is the norm for me when dining alone. I think it's beautiful inside with somewhat unexpected decor. This restaurant's specialty is Chinese Sichuan (also known as Szechuan) food, which is spicy and YUM! 

The Sky

One day last week the sky looked like it was on fire. It was beautiful. All these photos were taken from my south-facing balcony. 

Downstairs lobby ain't much to brag about

Thank goodness I have an elevator! Mimi and I use it many times a day to go outside. There's an annoying little lobby at the bottom of the elevator, though, that we have to walk through to get outside. Some neighbors park their e-bikes in the lobby, instead of parking them one more floor down in the basement where they have ramps for easy in-and-out access. We have to squeeze by them to go in and out. There are signs in the lobby that say "no parking," but those signs have been there eight years and no one enforces the rules. In the photo above, Mimi and I have just come back inside the lobby from outside. We entered through a clear glass door that we have a key to.

The lobby is L-shaped, and we've just turned the corner of the L. There's the elevator on Mimi's left side. The lady from the 9th floor lets her brown male poodle pee at the very bottom of the stairs every single day (you can't see the stairs, but they are to Mimi's right side). People walk through the pee because they don't notice it until it is too late. Mimi, on the other hand, swings way out so she doesn't get anywhere near the puddle. 

Two families have first floor apartments. I wouldn't want to be them, with people right outside your door all the time waiting for the elevator.

All my neighbors used to be afraid of Mimi, because she barks loudly at them. Most of them have gotten used to her and laugh at her now. They know she's not going to bite. Maybe they don't all love her, but I'm not really thrilled with all their e-bikes and dog pee either, so we're even. 

In China, public areas like lobbies and stairwells are not well maintained. We have cleaners who come every morning with a wet rag mop. They go up to the 10th floor with the wet mop, and walk down the stairs mopping as they go. They never clean or re-moisten the mop during this routine, and things don't get very clean. The walls are black where the dirty mop slaps them when moving from side to side. 

Even very rich people live in this kind of environment where they have to put up with less-than-stellar public areas. What I mean is, I think the people on the 10th floor of my building, who have two floors and roof garden access and drive BMWs are probably millionaires. They have to deal with the dirt, clutter and dog pee just like us regular joes do. 

Neighborhood outing

My goal is to get out of the house once every day, besides walking my dog, whether I need to or not. I usually go out on my e-bike and roam around, run a few errands, or buy groceries. Last week I took a turn down an alleyway I'd never explored before, and I saw these pretty rusted metal doors, with faded Chinese poem banners, smothered in bright green ivy. I love it.

While I was taking pictures, a girl came up to me and asked, in English, if she could help me. I don't know if Chinese really have an intention to "help" foreigners when they ask this question, but it is a nice way to break the ice, let the foreigner know they speak English, and start a conversation. I found out this "girl," who looks about 18 at most, is 32 years old and has a husband and 8-month old child. They all live with her in-laws. We had a nice conversation and I made a new friend.

Brief updates: weather, friends, TV, movies, transport

WEATHER: June serves up pleasant weather where I live. July and August are unbearably hot and humid, but June's [usually] mild rains, known as the plum rain season, make for bearable temperatures. I'm trying to get out as much as I can before it becomes too hot. Today we had torrential rains instead of mild rains, but that's not common.

FOREIGN FRIENDS: Most of my foreign friends in town are leaving for the summer, but will be back in the fall. Chinese friends will still be around though, most of them anyway.

TV VIEWERSHIP: I get CNN International and Fox News on satellite TV, so for the most part, I hear the same news you do. I usually watch CNN in the morning (Anderson Cooper, et al) and Fox and Friends in the evening. (I'm in a different time zone, remember?) The toxic, argumentative political atmosphere bothers me though, so lately I've had have to turn off the TV often to maintain peace of heart and mind.

MOVIES: I don't watch movies much, but I watched the movie "Lion" on the airplane a few weeks ago, and I loved it. It is about an Indian boy who ends up being adopted by a family in Tasmania, where I once lived. The boy arrived in Tasmania the same year I did, in 1987. The movie is a tearjerker.

TRANSPORTATION: Bamboo Forest is opening more and more subway lines, and it makes life easier. When it rains and I have to get out, I stress out trying to plan the best way to get where I'm going and back. Taxis fill up with passengers during rainstorms and vacant ones can be hard to find; e-bike travel is not a great option; I'll get wet walking to and from the subway station, and sometimes at the other end, my destination is too far from the subway station. Buses seldom go where I want to go, so they are ruled out quickly. If you've always had a car, you've probably never had to think about this kind of thing.

Hope you've enjoyed these random updates!

Friends of mine

I had dinner with a few American friends at their place recently. These people are like my overseas family. I'm so thankful for them!

It's been awhile

I'm sitting on my balcony with Mimi, watching the rush hour traffic below on this cool, overcast spring day in the Middle Kingdom. I know it's been way too long since I updated this blog. I don't even know if anyone bothers to check it for updates anymore. 

Since I finished cancer treatment in January 2016 and had surgery later that same month, I've been on the mend. But just when I thought I should be feeling better, I felt worse. I returned overseas according to schedule, but endurance to make it through the day without napping eluded me. I would do my work during the day, then crash before I could make it through the evening hours (when I would normally update this blog). Furthermore, I couldn't catch my breath, huffing and puffing when it didn't seem reasonable that I should be doing so. Doctors checked me out, and even tested me for heart failure due to the gasping for breath. No one could find anything wrong.

But when I went to MD Anderson for my annual check up in February 2017, they did a chest x-ray. They checked my previous x-rays against the new one and realized that the phrenic nerve in my neck had been severed in one of my neck surgeries, and it had paralyzed my right diaphragm. 

(Radiation can also sever phrenic nerves, but two doctors told me they believed it to be a result of surgery.)

A paralyzed right diaphragm buckles, pushing up against the right lung so that it can't fill up with air. There is no medical solution for a paralyzed diaphragm. One just learns to live with it, making sure not to do things that cause shortness of breath, like climbing stairs, jogging to the mail box, or visiting Lhasa. The pulmonologist said I can't run (because I can't breathe), and I can't lift weights (because my right arm can't be raised more than 45 degrees). He suggested walking for exercise and keeping to light housework and office work. Another doctor suggested I take up yoga, but what yoga pose doesn't require the use of your arms to hold you up off the floor? I tried yoga before cancer came my way, and it was painful even then.

So my new normal is to take it easy. I've had a spurt of energy the past week that has kept me awake in the evenings, like normal people, and I hope it stays around for a long time. I'll make every effort to post more bloggy stuff soon, so I hope you'll check back from time to time.

The first day of 2017

I took Mimi on a walk through the neighborhood today. I captured the blue sky with wispy clouds visible behind the stark bare branches of a winter tree.

I used to have a young American friend, Katherine P, who lived in one of those twin towers just outside my apartment complex. She's been gone for 7.5 years, but every time I go on a walk, I see her towers and think of her. 

Mimi was walking on the boardwalk when I started taking photos. She turned her back to me so her face wouldn't be in the photo. I whistled shrilly to try to get her to turn her head, but she knows that trick too. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore and did a fast two-step u-turn to put an end to the nonsense. I caught her in motion. She looks a little uncomfortable, but she's just twisting her body and getting ready to run.

A canal runs through the middle of my very large apartment complex. There are two bridges over it, a walking bridge and a drive-over bridge. Mimi's goal in life is to cross to the other side of the walking bridge as often as humanly (caninely) possible. She enjoys the smells on that side, and she gets more exercise. No one else knows this little secret, but as far as we're concerned, the name of the bridge is "The Mimi Bridge." Shocker, huh?

That's the first day of 2017 here in Bamboo Forest. Have a year full of God's blessings!

Lunching with the ladies

Playing an ice-breaker game before we eat lunch.

I'm back overseas, but while I was away, some of my American friends had left. Returned home! Imagine that! 

Other American friends have been gone for the summer. So I decided I need to find some new expat friends. I love my Chinese friends, but it's helpful at times to be able to talk to people who relate to your background and upbringing. 

I went to the international church in town last week, and they announced a women's potluck luncheon the following week. So I went. It was held in the home of a couple who are here on an "expat package." I suppose that most foreigners here are on that type of support package. That means they generally have a huge, expensive multi-level house with a yard, a full-time maid, a chauffeur at their beck and call, and for those who have kids, tuition paid to attend the international school in town. All costs are covered by their employer.

For the luncheon, we met at a villa. It is unlike any other kind of housing in this country, so it really stands out.

It was a far cry from my usual life, but it was fun anyway. The lady of the house was humble and said it wasn't really her house, they were just tenants. One lady said she didn't like having a driver because she misses her independence and the ability to come and go as she liked. 

These particular ladies really seem to have no idea how the rest of this country lives, but it is their reality. It's certainly not their fault they have an easy life.

The pastor's wife, from South Africa, told me she was raised a Baptist, and they always had potlucks in South Africa. I laughed. Isn't it the same in the U.S.? She quickly realized that asking people to bring dishes of food in this country was rather inconvenient. A few had carried their dishes by subway, a few by foot. I brought mine across town by e-bike. The rest got their food there by chauffeur-driven vans. 

I met ladies from the Philippines, Brazil, South Africa, other parts of Africa, Germany, U.S.A., Malaysia, Taiwan, and I forgot where else. 

The Chinese government doesn't allow Chinese to attend the International Fellowship. Only foreign passport holders are allowed to attend. Many foreign Christians live in this city. Who knew?!

"He was asking for it," says Mimi

My dog bit the groundskeeper this morning. I was trying to talk to him and I was holding her usually tight leash a little too loosely. She must have not liked the look or smell of the guy, because she went right for his ankle, a move she tries on every person and dog that comes too close that she doesn't take an immediate liking to.

I think Mimi thought in her own little brain that she was playing with him, because she didn't try to kill him or anything. She just got her slobber all over the leg of his trousers, like she was teasing him to come chase her or something. He pulled up his trouser's leg to see if she broke skin, and though we could detect a little redness, she hadn't broken his skin. The groundskeeper is such a good sport though; he laughed it off and said "mei shi," no problem.

Mimi was all smiling and everything. She looked at me for approval and wondered why the game ended before it ever got started good. If only we could find a game for her that didn't involve her teeth and "mouth water" as they call it here....

I understand the groundskeeper's initial fear. In this country, rabies are a big problem. If you get bit by a rabid dog (which Mimi acts like sometimes, but is not), you have to go to the hospital and pay a couple of hundred dollars for a series of rabies shots. If you don't, you may start foaming at the mouth, bite people and die within a few months. If Mimi had seriously bit this guy,  I would have had to pay for his shots, and rightly so. I know, I must remember to keep that leash tight, or else pick her up and throw her over my shoulder like a baby when I stop to talk to someone!

In America, Mimi and I would walk and walk and walk and never encounter another person. But in this most populated country of the world, we can't walk more than five seconds without passing someone or some group of people. I'm usually very careful to keep her leash pulled tight so she can't lunge at anyone.

I told the guy Mimi has had her rabies shots and cannot carry the rabies disease. But no one here believes that story, although in my case it is true. Even if you showed them your pet's rabies' certificates, they would assume they were forged. Lots of people try to save money by not getting their pets vaccinated, and some find fake certificates to use. But my dog really did get rabies shots, in Texas in December. So she is really good.

And when I say good, I mean bad. Mimi is really bad to be biting people. She has a bad master who could never figure out how to train and restrain this notoriously off-the-wall doggy breed.

On the other hand, her behavior works great for her watch dog status, and I always feel very safe with her around. If the delivery guy tries anything funny, Mimi will have him for lunch.

My 11-year-old Mimi is so sweet, calm and loving when she is home inside with me with the door closed. My neighbors who share the elevator with Mimi wouldn't believe it. I've told them as much, and they are like "are you kidding me?"

Anyway, she's my sweet little wolf, and I'm keeping her.

Looking back

Well, here in Texas things have been a little rough during February with chemo, hospitalization, blah, blah, blah. So I began looking back at some of my old photos and realized there are quite a few stories I never told you about from the Middle Kingdom. I'll try to post some as I can.

Last summer, the dean of one of the top music conservatories in the country asked me if I would teach English to his music professors. The very talented musicians could participate in more international music exchanges and competitions if they could speak English. He wanted me to give them a test at the beginning of our class to determine their level. The poor lady in the navy dress above hardly knows a word of English, and she felt humiliated. I even gave her an easier test with pictures on it. I felt sorry for her. She's a musician, not a linguist, and she's not used to being bad at anything. She grew up when English was not a part of the school curriculum. The younger teachers had all studied English before.

I asked the teachers not to look at each other's papers, and you can see from looking at the photos above that they conscientiously followed my instructions. "Exam" and "not cheating" just don't seem to go together well in some places around the world. Fortunately, this was not intended to be a serious accredited English class.

While they were cheating, I figured I might as well look out the window and take some photos. The university is on the outskirts of town in older buildings near the elegant green mountains. It was beautiful to me.

The teachers were all very kind and warm-hearted. I knew it was going to be a great experience and that I was going to establish some excellent new friendships.

Their placement exam took place right before summer break. I was supposed to actually start teaching them in September in two different classes (one for beginners). But life changed around September and I never got a chance to teach these classes. I put the conservatory in touch with someone else who might be able to help them. It was all I could do. I hope I get to visit those teachers again some day. 

Friends

Some friends came to see me before I left town. I love these families and these adorable little kids, Angela and Lucas (the kids speak excellent English). The boy has a funny look on his face in these photos, but he is a happy hilarious little boy in reality. The kids are both 5 years old, even though the girl is small for her age.

Outing

Before I returned to America, one of my last outings on my e-bike was to a lake in the city where I live. It's a beautiful area of town. It was hazy on this humid summer day, but I hope you'll enjoy the photos anyway.

My veggie market

On the alleyway where I live is a small vegetable market. It is owned by a young man, but he hasn't been there much lately. His dad has been running the shop most of the time. The grandpa looks older in person than he does in the above photo. He's taking a breather here while his son takes over for a few hours. The elderly chap is quite friendly in a low-key kind of way.

The little shop technically ends where the shelving ends, but they have baskets of other veggies extending out onto the sidewalk.

 A view of the veggies up a little closer.

Across the street is a fruit market. I don't eat much fruit, so I go here less often.

Photography day

If I didn't go outside until all my work was done, I'd never see the light of day…I'd never see the moon either, come to think of it. So today I decided the work could wait. I needed an outing. So I took my camera (which is technically part of my work) and headed out.

 Here is part of the city skyline; the photo was taken from atop the old city wall.

 Canals run through the city.

 Skyscrapers, rivers, and many, many bridges

A lonely little tea shop atop the city wall had no customers, just two pet birds sitting out in the shade and breeze.

 Thank you God for making so many flowers pink! I truly love them.

Water, rocks, trees, flowers, humongous goldfish, pagodas, tea houses -- a little slice of Chinese paradise.

 Pagoda -- I can see this from the balcony at my apartment.

 Rooftops

A steaming cup of green tea to quench my thirst at an outdoor tea shop ends my outing in the best, most relaxing possible way. Thermoses like the ugly blue one pictured are the world's most superb thermoses. Ask anyone who has been to China and they'll confirm. Anyway, the tea shop gave me a cup with green tea leaves and a thermos. If I wanted, I could sit there all day and refill my cup with the thermos's steaming hot water.

I really must find a way to do this more often.