Bob-O-Meter

Well, I've just return from yet another business trip and I'm starting to feel like a nomad. I've slept in more hotel room beds than Heidi Fleiss and it's getting a bit old. Coming home seems like a vacation so hopefully, I'll be here a while.

There is a milestone that is rapidly approaching that saddens me. The retirement of a good friend, Bob Cz. Bob worked for me at Duracell and he was just one in a group of people that I considered my extended family. My crazy, illegitimate, cigarette smoking, mayonnaise eating, toothpick chomping Uncle, if you will, (he's the guy on the left of the picture). I care very deeply for my previous group and miss them all very much. I don't think that I will ever have the opportunity to work with such creative, funny, positively crazy people again. But I digress. Bob, you see, will retire soon. I found him living the good life in Florida when I hired him and now he wants to go back, what nerve! I'm sure I will not be the only one who will miss him. Bob is one of those guys that no matter how mad he got, and he had plenty of opportunities, would never curse. It drove me crazy. It got to the point where I would intentionally try to push him over the edge but he would never crack. He is also well like by everyone, incredibly knowledgeable and funny as hell.

The guys in Duracell created the Bob-O-Meter that is steadily counting down his remaining days. The last time I checked it read 47 work days, not that Bob is actually "working" these days. Maybe the meter should show the remaining "lounging around, doing nothing but smoking" days left. My biggest regret is that I won't be there to attend his retirement party and to say good bye to him in person. I may have to pay him a visit in Florida when I'm back in the US on business or vacation. He can never escape me!

The Giving Tree

During the holiday season, the international school community participated in The Giving Tree. The Giving Tree is an organization that was formed four years ago to help the underprivileged children of Shanghai and nearby provinces. When the organization was first formed, only thirty children were part of the gift program. This year, with the help of the international community, 2,700 children received gifts of new clothing, shoes and toys.

On Tuesday, Matthew's school and the children from the Yew Cheung International School attended the final distribution ceremony. We arrived at the Dong Jiao State Guest House to meet the children. We didn't expect a big elaborate affair. We were very surprised to find an agenda that included an opening speech by the director of the Giving Tree, the presentation of Recognition Certificates for the two international schools and song and dance performances by children from the recipient schools.

After all the formalities, it was time for the children to present their gifts. It was quite nice to watch the children line up to meet their Giving Tree donor. The gifts of clothing, shoes and toys will be used for the upcoming Chinese New Year when a new outfit and shoes are often purchased to usher in the New Year.

Often times, it saddens me to see the level of wealth and poverty in Shanghai. During my walking excursions, I see the two extremes. The extremely wealthy who are driving their BMW's, Porsches, Mercedes Benz and Ferrari's and the extremely poor who are riding their bicycle with a cart picking up things to turn into the recycling area, or sometimes, children begging on the streets for food or money.

It was nice to know that there are many in the international community who contribute to The Giving Tree. Tony and I have always contributed to charitable organizations. We have always supported the local food shelter, the battered woman's home and various children's programs. Over the years, we have taught Matthew the same principles. We felt it was important to continue this tradition while we're in Shanghai. Matthew realizes and understands that not all children are as fortunate as he is. Many times when he sees someone begging on the streets or on the train, he will give money from his pocket. This is something that we are really proud of.

Matthew and I will never forget the look of the little boy's face who received his bag. We hope that many will continue to give to this worthwhile organization to help the number of children in need.

Best Buy

Well, another American staple has shown up in Shanghai. Best Buy. We went by the other day and found it crawling with expatriates. We're thrilled that there is a place we can go to pick up the things we need....and most of all, they have a Return Policy!!!!

In China, anything you buy, is yours. Absolutely no returns. Exchanges - maybe...and only for the same exact item. When you buy something, you better make sure it's the right item. Otherwise, it'll wind up sitting in a closet, taking up space. This applies to everything.

We're so happy that there is a Best Buy here. It offered more selection than the local stores. About a month ago, we were looking into purchasing a DVD recorder. We went to Yolo, a local store that sells appliances, televisions and other household items. The selection was limited to two styles only by Philips. At Best Buy, there were about 20 different brands to choose from in all price ranges. That's what I call a selection!

So, we picked up a new computer at Best Buy because we figured, if there's a problem, I wouldn't have to deal with the local computer place. I can call Best Buy and they send the Geek Squad (yes, the Geek Squad is here in China too) to solve the problem. They even speak ENGLISH!!! Horray!!! This is definitely a major improvement to our lives.

The Holidays

Well, we're back from Hong Kong where we spent the Christmas holidays with members of my family and Tony's college buddy-Tony. Matthew had a wonderful reunion with Uncle Tony and it was great to see a familiar face. It was our first holiday away from home. Usually, we're the ones who are hosting the Christmas bash at our home in Connecticut. Last year, we were preparing dinner for 25 guests, complete with turkey and all the fixings. This year, we spent it in Hong Kong. The weather was beautiful- a fabulous 68-70 degrees and sunny. We spent several days at Disneyland (a very small version compared to the real thing in Orlando, Florida) but, Matthew managed to keep himself busy by hopping the rides several times.

We did the usual tourist things. We visited Ngong Ping Village, which is where the Big Budda is and watched Shao Lin Monks perform kung fu, rode the 360 Cable Tram (which is the longest cable tram in the world), visited Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, rode the tram to the Peak, visited Stanley Market, Repulse Bay and spent a day at Lamma Island.

Lamma Island is where my father grew up and some of my relatives still live there. Matthew got to see the house where my father was born and together, we paid our respects to my grandparents. Even with all the constant running around, endless breakfast, lunch and dinner dates, we managed to even find time to visit Macau. It was Matthew's first experience on a hydrofoil boat and he did really well. The boat trip out was very smooth but the return trip, was an entirely different story. We dubbed the ride The Vomit Comet because of the continuous vomiting of passengers due to the rough waters. Uncle Tony had to leave his seat because of all the vomiting and we weren't sure if he was going to toss his fortune cookies as well.

We ushered in the New Year on Nathan Road with thousands of others. I doubt very much Matthew will ever forget where he was on December 31, 2006. We spent New Year's Day with an old family friend and took a boat ride to Sok Ku Wan, a town on Lamma Island for a seafood dinner. Matthew even had a chance to drive the boat and he was pretty excited about that. We ended our evening by watching fireworks off Victoria Harbor from the boat.

The holidays drew to a close with a very sad farewell to Uncle Tony. We're really looking forward to seeing him again either in Shanghai or when we return to the United States for our home visit this summer. We returned to Shanghai reluctantly only to be welcomed back with a temperature of 45 degrees and rain. In fact, it's been raining every single day since we returned. Quite a change from what we had in Hong Kong. I'm now looking into our next getaway...... perhaps Sanya Bay. It's an island off of Guangzhou which is located in Southern China and close to Hong Kong. I heard it's quite beautiful and it's considered the Hawaii of the East. Surf's Up Big Kahuna!