Like Father, Like Son

Felt like making home made Italian meat sauce today. So, I went to the market, picked up all the ingredients that I needed. I found the parmesan cheese, picked up chicken breast so I can make chicken cutlets and even found.....French bread. Not the semolina bread that Tony and Matthew love so much...but then again, you gotta make do with what you can find.

Matthew returned from school and left for a playdate with his friend Alasdair. I told him to be home by 6:30 PM for dinner. I spent two hours on the sauce, made the cutlets and was cooking the pasta. Tony walked in from work and Matthew returned from his playdate. Tony proceeded to cut the bread while I walked out of the kitchen for maybe......30 seconds.

I returned to find both father and son dipping the bread into the sauce and eating it. Forget about the pasta and the chicken cutlets. I could have just made another huge pot of sauce and picked up more bread. They made a meal out of the sauce and bread alone.

So, Matthew's bread dipping into the sauce technique is definitely his father's. When he eats Asian....it's from me.

The Alto Saxophone Player

Matthew came home today with his instrument from school. He's learning to play the Alto Sax and he's quite enthusiastic about it. He's been practicing the notes he's learned today....over and over again. He can't wait for his Dad to come home so he can show him how to assemble the saxophone and play the notes he's learned. I'm glad that he got the instrument that he wanted. It's mandatory for all children to learn a musical instrument in the fifth grade. The choices were the violin, cello, flute, clarinet, alto sax, tenor sax or the trumpet. Of course, you can't have a whole orchestra playing the saxophone...so it was a matter of lottery. Luckily, Matthew got his first choice.

He's excited and he will be gearing up to perform at the Winter Festival in early December. I'm sure he'll be practicing the same songs...... over and over again until that time comes. Lucky me.

First Day of School

Today was Matthew's first day of school. He left enthusiastically at 7:45 AM for the walk over to the bus stop. He literally slid the back door open and crossed the grass to meet the bus. Less than sixty seconds. I have never seen him so excited about going to school. Last year, it was the moaning and the groaning of getting up at 5 AM for the 6:20 AM pick up. It was difficult for him but he was a real trooper. Today, he got up on his own at 6:30 AM and got ready. He even packed his school bag and double checked that he got everything..including his cell phone.

It was really nice that he had a great day at school. He had a reunion with some of the kids from Pudong. He met all his new teachers. He's been assigned to an instrument for music- the alto sax and he's quite excited. Looks to me that he will be determined to learn the theme song to "The Simpsons" and be like Lisa Simpson playing the sax in his spare time.

The best was...... he was home at 3:20 PM and hit the kitchen counter for some homemade brownies. He was able to have a snack, take his scooter out and go for a ride over to the clubhouse and hang out at his favorite "bar stool" to watch some TV. He kept to his curfew and was home by 6PM for dinner.

Nothing like a great first day at school.

Now, I just have to get my act together and resume my language lessons........maybe later.

School's Back In Session....YEAH!!!!

Matthew and I went over to the Puxi campus today for orientation. He saw some of his classmates from the Pudong campus who have transferred to the Puxi campus as well. One person, in particular, a girl named Honey transferred from the Pudong campus as well. At last look, Matthew told me that Honey was his girlfriend. That was as of the end of the school year in June. Today, he didn't feel like talking to her. Hmmmm. He's looking for different fish to fry?

We met his new teacher, Mr. Timber Monteith and Matthew's very excited. Matthew even saw Daisy Liu- his Chinese language teacher from Pudong. She's teaching at the Puxi campus now and she'll be his teacher again. Something that I am really grateful for since he really likes her and she tells me that he's one of her best students.

So, tomorrow Matthew will board the bus at 7:50 AM for his short 5 minutes ride to school. Which means, I'll get to run loose all over town until he gets home from school at 3:20 PM. Big difference from his three hour a day commute to/from school last year.

This looks like it will be a great school year for Matthew.

Back In The Groove

I got over jet lag pretty quickly. Less than one day and I'm back in business. Matthew is having a hard time adjusting to the time difference. However, he doesn't have a choice. He starts school next Wednesday and he's got to get back into the swing of things.

I've been putzing around, running errands and grocery shopping. I'm going to start my enormous project of printing out the pictures from our trip back to the States and of course, start my schedule for continuing my Mandarin lessons. I may decide to back down and just have it once a week now. I've gotten lazy since my sabbatical in the States. Nice to know that I haven't lost all the lanaguage during my absence from Shanghai.

Matthew will be entering the fifth grade and it's hard to believe that a year has flown by. It didn't seem like that long ago that we left to move to China and yet, our return to the States for vacation seemed so seamless.

I have a ton of things to do, doesn't seem like I have any time to complete our projects and yet, I want to plan a trip to go somewhere like...Tibet or Singapore. The October holiday week is fast approaching and I know that I am behind the eight ball to plan anything at this time. The trips have all been booked and I am so far behind. We can't decide whether to go to Tokyo for Christmas and spend the time in Disney in the COLD or just hang out here in Shanghai and just pull the covers over our head.

We're expecting relatives from Hong Kong to visit next month and that will start the procession of visitors. Tony is supposed to visit in November. Gus may come as well or he may come in October for Formula One. Then again, there's the Chinese New Year holiday and Easter. Nevertheless, we're back in business in Shanghai and it's as if we never left.

Horray! Missing Luggage Has Been Located

Matthew and I went to bed pretty late last night. We were wired from our flight from Tokyo. He got up at 6 this morning and was busy making himself breakfast. Here's a kid who knows what he wants. I found several bowls in the sink. Today's menu consisted of some ramen and some cereal as well. He's definitely got the Asian part with the ramen and the American with the cereal. I know, weird combination, but he was hungry.

Tony decided to take the next two days off to spend some time with us and just work from home. After looking into the refrigerator and pantry, I decided it would be a good idea to take him to the grocery store with me since there wasn't any FOOD in the house. Since Tony has returned to Shanghai, he hasn't gone food shopping. Let's just say- the boy just became creative with any canned goods he found or...in most cases, he just didn't eat dinner. I wished I could exercise the will power not to eat dinner.

We got home and unpacked the groceries when I got the call from Japan Airlines. The luggage had been located and will be delivered tonight. YEAH!

All six pieces were delivered at 9PM. The driver was a very heavy smoker and the luggage reeked of cigarette smoke. I've just finished unpacking everything. That doesn't mean that things have been put away.

The luggage will now sit out for the next day just to air out before I put it away. Who knows, maybe it will stay out and I'll just take another side trip somewhere. As long as it's not through Chicago!

Here We Go Again

Matthew and I left on Sunday, August 5 at 5:30 AM for the airport. We breezed through check in and security and even boarded the plane. Then the announcement over the PA came...."Due to inclement weather conditions in Chicago, we will be delayed by one hour." WHAT??? We're going to miss our connection to Shanghai. This is not good.

OK, I decided to stay calm. Nothing you can do. I'm trapped on the runway and I was hoping the pilot can make up the time in the air. We landed in Chicago and of course, all the other flights were delayed with the exception of the Shanghai flight. I started to think...does this mean that Matthew and I have to stay in Chicago for a night without any clothes AGAIN? Not if I could help it. I wasn't going to have a repeat of what happened to us in June.

I called American Airlines and they were able to get us on a flight to Shanghai via Tokyo and we would arrive Monday night at 9:30 PM in Shanghai. OK- no choice. I either take that or have to stay the night in Chicago. Wait....what about my luggage? The American Airlines representative told me "I requested that your luggage get pulled and you can rest assured it will arrive into Shanghai when you arrive." Gee, thanks. That was easy.

Matthew and I ran for the plane and fourteen hours later, we arrived at Narita Airport in Tokyo. I had to straighten out the mess about our boarding passes and I even inquired about our luggage again. I was assured by the representative at Japan Airlines (the plane we were transferring to) that the luggage will arrive in Shanghai. We spent two hours killing time by wandering around the airport and we were very happy that our flight left on time for Shanghai.

Matthew and I were waiting by the carousel ready to pull all the luggage, when we realized that there weren't any new pieces going on the belt and many people had already left. That meant NO LUGGAGE FOR US. I had to break into my Mandarin and ask where I would file a report about the six pieces of missing luggage. Luckily, I was able to dig deep into my brain and make it work again since it's been two months since I've had to use it. Filed the report, had a reunion with Tony at the airport and we were well on our way home. Total time for the journey to Shanghai from door to door: 29 1/2 hours. Priceless.

Matthew's Last Supper

Our last day here in the States. Matthew and I headed into the city for brunch with my mother, great aunt and sister Sheila. Matthew grazed through dim sum so quickly, he practically inhaled the bamboo steamers. It was funny watching him stalk the women with the dim sum carts. He definitely knew what he wanted....all his favorites. Ranging from the steamed pork buns to the sticky rice wrapped in the lotus leaf. We did our final parade through the streets of New York and headed back to Bayside where I spent the afternoon resorting and finalizing our luggage. My mother-in-law prepared Matthew's favorites for his last supper here in the States. It consisted of spinach ravioli with fresh marinara sauce (come on....did you really think she would do something out of a jar????), homemade meatballs and of course, fresh cannoli's for dessert.

Matthew throughly enjoyed his last meal here. Watching him sprinkle the freshly grated parmesan cheese on his ravioli with marinara sauce and then mopping up the residual sauce with fresh semolina bread. Who said this kid isn't half Italian? He eats like his father. Literally. There isn't any denial on paternity on Tony's part when it comes to Matthew's eating habits. They both love pasta with a passion and fresh semolina bread. The fresh semolina bread is something that we can't get in Shanghai. So, we achieved our goal by eating our favorite foods these past two months. We'll just have to remember our dining experience here in the States.

The Last Supper

Matthew and I met with Tallini, Tony and Gus (aka "The Guys") one last time for dinner tonight. Stephanie, Gus' girlfriend came as well. We met at London Lennies. It seemed appropriate since it is one of my favorite restaurants and it's technically our last supper here with The Guys. Matthew was busy tormenting his Uncles as usual and it seemed like it was just yesterday that we arrived. We dined on the usual- steamers, fried calamari and I got the last taste of red snapper before we head back. Looking back, we've had a great time seeing all our friends and family. There are some people that we didn't get to see in person but were able to at least speak to on the phone or catch up through email.

We'll be packing up and leaving early Sunday morning for our journey back home. Tony is anxiously awaiting our return. The past month has been hard on him. Though we speak on a daily basis, it's just not the same when the house is empty.

So, we'll return armed with excess luggage and the noise level in Shanghai just won't be the same.

The Gang's All Here

Matthew and I left East Hampton this afternoon only to be stuck in traffic for almost two hours just to get off the island. We had dinner plans with my former colleagues from International Paper at Andrea's house for 7PM. Needless to say, once I was in the clear of getting pulled over for speeding, I did my best to make up the time. Factor in the normal rush hour traffic and the whole journey took almost four hours. It was insane but we were pretty happy when we arrived at Andrea's house. Matthew took off with Andrea's daughter Ally to bounce on the trampoline in the stifling heat while the adult were busy drinking margarita's in Andrea's fabulous new kitchen. It was really great to see all of them after a year. So much has happened to each of them. Mary is now with Pitney Bowes, Charlie is with CIT, Deborah is with ATMI, Melinda is with Factset and Andrea is General Counsel for GlobeOp. I am still the domestic goddess extraordinaire living in a foreign country overseas.

It seemed like it was just yesterday that we were leaving International Paper to move onto the new chapter of our lives but, it was two years ago that the transition plan was announced and our lives have changed along with it.

The week is drawing to a close and the reality of Matthew and I returning to our home in Shanghai is sinking in. I've been busy redistributing the items in our luggage over and over again but it doesn't seem to help. I can't figure out where all the stuff came from. Ok- I know how it happened but I can't seem to recall it being that much. I am now considering leaving things behind with my in-laws to store in their attic until we return. I've even considered shipping things but realize that it will be way too costly to ship the items overseas- even if I used the cheapest way to get there. Then there's the...we're not sure if it will arrive factor. We've had packages that were sent to us by family and friends not arrive. We don't know where it goes. I have a theory but, not one that I would dare print. You get the picture.

So, tomorrow will mark my final meal with my friends and family. We'll start fasting afterwards so that we'll lose all the weight we've gained these past two months. Unless, I can get Tony to agree to pay for plastic surgery which would allow me to stay here longer. Hmmmmm.

East Hampton

Matthew and I arrived last night to have dinner with Margaret and Nicholas in East Hampton. East Hampton is a very popular spot for many New Yorker's. I must warn you that if you decide to travel out to the Hamptons, you MUST adhere to the speed limits posted. If you drive a little above the speed limit, you will be pulled over and handed a ticket. That's what happened to me the last time I was out here. I had to live with the consequences with my car insurance company for almost four years.

We arrived and the kids immediately started playing with Nicholas' collection of Star Wars figurines and cars. We had to pry them out of the house in order to get dinner at a local Spanish restaurant. Ok- I have to admit, I am a bit prejudice when it comes to clams or shrimp in a green sauce. The best that I have experienced was at The Spain in New York City where Margaret and I dined on the best clams in green sauce. We agreed that the food last night in Southhampton, was mediocore, at best. We are a tough crowd to please. We do know our food and we have very high expectations.



We survived the dinner and found our way home in the DARK. The kids played until 11:30 (way past their bedtime) and Margaret and I stayed up to chat and recall the memories of our childhoood in Brooklyn and our trip to China many moons ago. That trip to China bonded our friendship. We knew going into the trip that it would either make or break our friendship. We survived our trip and would often recall the funny moments of that trip with roaring laughter.

We'll be heading to the beach this morning before Matthew and I depart for our dinner this evening with Andrea, Melinda, Deborah, Mary and Charlie- my former colleagues from International Paper.

Sadly, the week is drawing to a close and we'll be heading home on Sunday morning.....armed with an excessive amount of luggage and carry on. Tony will be in for a surprise when we arrive. Someone will have to be strapped to the roof of the car....and I know it's not going to be me or Matthew.

Justin and Johnny

Matthew and I went to see Justin, Johnny and my cousin Dinah one last time before we leave on Sunday. We had lunch together and the kids were busy hanging out in front of the XBox 360. Johnny and Justin had two friends over as well, Gianni and Nicholas. It was nice to have the kids play together while Dinah and I had a chance to catch up one last time before we leave.

Hopefully, Dinah will try to make the trip out to Shanghai before we return back from this assignment. Justin wants to visit and Matthew would be thrilled to be able to take his cousins around Shanghai and guide the tour.

We'll be heading out to East Hampton this evening to have dinner with Margaret and Nicholas. We have another dinner scheduled tomorrow evening with my former colleagues from International Paper. It's the never ending eating orgy.