A Day in the City with Uncle Tony

It's me, Matthew. I am writing about the great day I had in the city with my Uncle Tony. He took me to New York to see the "Soul of Shaolin." It was awesome. We had front row tickets and I met one of the characters that was in the play. The play is about a child named Hui Guang, who was separated from his mother when he was just a baby. He was rescued and raised by the monks of the Shaolin Temple and taught the ways of Shaolin Kung Fu. Years later, he was reunited with his mother. One of the scenes that I loved the most was when one of the monks threw a needle through a very thick piece of glass. Seeing this play makes me want to study Kung Fu again.

After the play, I talked Uncle Tony into taking me to Times Square to visit the largest Toys R Us. I have been bugging my parents to take me every weekend and they tell me to wait until the weather gets warmer. (Not going to happen!!!) I think it was because they were afraid I was going to go crazy in the store and want to buy everything. After visiting Toys R Us, Uncle Tony took me over to the M&M's World. I met Yellow (the Yellow M&M) and I wandered around all three floors and loved everything in the store. The store was amazing. The weather in New York was cold but it was really nice to spend the day with my awesome Uncle Tony. Thanks Uncle Tony for the great day! We'll do it again soon!

Lock Down

We all know that kids would rather play then study. I feel the same way about work but we all have to do what is necessary. So we wake up at 5:00 am, commute in traffic, get beaten up by bullies and play dodge ball. On occasion, we actually argue with ourselves, "Should I go in or should I play hooky"? We've all done it so don't deny it. 

Anyway, Matthew is starting his mid terms exams next week. So like all students his age he is contemplating, "Should I study or play with my Wii"?  It was a real struggle but he decided to study. To make sure that he would not be distracted, he handcuffed himself to the table. I am not lying. He locked his hand to the table, threw me the keys and said, "Don't give me those keys no matter how much I beg"  and then proceeded to study. Five minutes later he's asking for the keys. Well at least his intentions were good and he did have to pee. So he relieves his bladder, hopefully washed his hands, and went back to work. Fifteen minutes later, you guessed it. This time it was something to eat. 

As kids we all found it difficult to stay in on a sunny day and study. I am not exactly sure when we decide to give in and work rather then play but it eventually happens, kind of sad really.  In case you were wondering, they were toy handcuffs so not having the key was not really a deterrent.  Although, the handcuffs didn't work at least he's trying.  Maybe I should use the handcuffs at work or maybe I should just just play the Wii.

Fat Bastard

Okay, so for the past two years in China, Susan was a "Tai Tai" which means women of leisure, boy she hates that expression. Anyway, she basically stayed at home and did laundry and cleaned, you know, fun stuff. You see, Susan has been working since she was 13 years old. At first, I thought not working was going to drive her crazy but then she made some good friends and she was never at home again. In fact, she would wait until I left for work in the morning and she was out the door with her friends, shopping, getting her nails done, eating at the best restaurants and only God knows what else. This was fine because she was able to focus her energy and time into something she enjoyed.

Susan is like a hamster, she can't sit still for more that a couple of seconds at a time. Luckily, she found some friends or I would have had to install one of those wheels that hamsters run in just to calm her down. Well, we are back in the US and she is still not working. The job market is in the crapper and there are not many jobs to be had right now. So she needed a new outlet since her friends are now 8,000 miles away.



The outlet, my friends, is cooking and baking which she does very well. "So what's the problem?", you ask. Well you see I am like a dog. I will eat until I explode if someone didn't take the plate away from me. So everything she makes, and I mean everything, I eat. As a result, I am now a quivering mass of fat, like jello in plastic wrap. Even my lunches are a gastronomic delight. I am the envy of the lunch crowd at work. The three courses of food, the anally retentive way she wraps each individual piece of lettuce and tomato in plastic wrap so they stay fresh to the two desserts she packs. God I hope she gets a job soon so I can fit into my pants again.