Here and There Blog

As we get all the photos from the tsunami, I want to take a moment to put these images in your head of what the islands look like on a normal day. The contrast of these images as compared to what we are seeing now only shows the stretch of the devastation. The thing is, parts of the islands still look exactly like this as other parts are gone. A strange contrast. I watch the Pago Pago harbor and put the devastation in context of how I'm used to seeing it. When the national park service talks about their visitor center being gone, I know how far in the water went. I think about everything in terms of the people there. Family and friends missing, homes gone and lives disrupted. I think in irony now how everyone knows where Samoa is and from now on when I mention I'm going there, people will not have to ask me where it is. Instead, tsunami will be the topic. People can finally pronounce Pago Pago correctly. To everyone there right now, I and many others are thinking of you ...

The weekend started early with Guinness (although not 250 th ) at Hooley's and Irish music on Thursday. Really, this has to be one of the best ways to start anything! Follow that up with movie and beer with friends on Friday, and a play (Speed the Plow) and pizza at Basic with Mondo on Saturday. 3/3 fun filled events! Now being a Sunday, I'm happily watching TiVo (and blogging) and drinking a Stone Ruination IPA. I might have a second. I've exercised, installed Illustrator CS4 for work, uploaded the new AOL to the Vaio (which did not correct the email error) and done laundry. Tonight is my last night in my home before I hit the road again for a week. (Boring - work trip to Carp and to STL ) Thoughts go out to Sher-bear, her mom, and Grandfather as they are having a tough weekend. I hope you have all found some peace today.

In the restroom at Ion Theater

"It could have been better." That was the consensus last night after watching Bruce Willis save the planet in Surrogates . The newest entry in the genre of 'beware technology', Surrogates shows us how awful the world will be if we all are plugged in and living life through a console. Robots now double as the outside face so only perfect looking faces and bodies are considered socially acceptable. The real life people are fat, unhealthy, and living in pajamas in their homes with shades drawn shut. Sounds pretty good to me! The premise is that robot selves are bad, but so are the rogue humans who refuse to have anything to do with robots and live in human only reservations. I don't know why all these rogue humans look like they came from the swamps and want to lynch everyone but they do. Against these odds, I'll take the robots. Bruce Willis misses his wife (side story over drama of losing only child) and wants to see her, not her robot self. Caught up in the d...

One of the least favorite vehicle tasks since the inception has to be the Smog Check. I've had plenty of vehicles not pass and had to pay for repairs. The truck has to be the exception and for the second time since I've had it, the emissions test was passed the first time with admiration from the techs. No one expects a 92 truck to only have 43K miles on it but this one does. I drive it maybe 600 miles a year if that. To make sure, I took it for an oil change, tire inflation on Sunday. So $81 for the smog, $93 to the DMV , and once again I'm clear for a couple years!

Homer spilt the undrinkable beer.

Jackhammers, cranes, cement trucks, and all the sounds of subway contruction accompanied me to sleep everynight in Shanghai. Last night at home was the most quiet and best night sleep I've had since leaving. In fact, Carlsbad was almost too quiet. I didn't realize how much Shanghai differed in region from home until this morning when at 6am, it was still dark but in the hotel the room would have been full of sunlight. It's good to be home.

Sundayafternoon was slow so it was decided that I was going to get the Bund/Nanjing Road walk in. The Bund is covered with construction and the famous view obstructed. The Pearl Tower is the highlight photo. Suhaimi was careful not to put the tower coming out of my head but I decided I wanted a photo of my tower head. We were laughing so hard that an American, Malaysia, and Chinese-Singaporean caught the attention of some Chinese tourists from one of the provinces. Being the first foreigner that was accessible to this woman, she grabbed my arm in a tight grip and wouldn't let me leave until she had her photo with me. Her friends were laughing, mine were laughing and all the time, my name tag is still on! It was a fun moment. Then we had to make sure Suhaimi had the tower coming out of his head too!

4:00 pm on a Saturday is probably the worst time to walk/shop Nanjing Road East. Every tourist and local in Shanghai converges at this time. Above, the city is decorating everywhere for the upcoming Golden Week and National Day in the first week of October. I took these photos in a less crowded area of the street. Walk back one block behind me and the crowd was doubled. This is the only street I've seen where the police enforce the traffic light to the full level of strictness to order. Pedestrians could not even place one foot in the cross-walk when the light was red.

And if I do, I think I will leave China on Tuesday without going insane.

And I can't figure it out since yesterday was the day I dug into the cooler, the kitchen and got completely coated in food. For as much as I've commented on what's wrong with China, I'm amazed to sit in the hotel and listen to China talk from a pure tourist point-of-view. I'm a down-right local compared to them! Today, I even heard my voice switch to a Shanghai tone with the yell and the look when I said something. It was freaky. Why do I smell like chicken? It's really bugging me. Guess it's second shower tonight or the dreams will be crazy. Like a couple nights ago when I was so freaking out on no seats in the restaurant I dreamed that Chinese were moving and taking seats on the airplane and I had no place to sit on the way home. And by the way, Mondo, I had a dream about freaking dancing cow keys and I don't know where that came from. I think it was the night that I emailed you late and vented China. Too funny but I remember being fascinated in my ...

Lucky day here in China. This logic is baffling since last year in China it was 8-8-08 so I can only guess that next year 10-10-10 will be the day and so on. Lots of weddings scheduled for today. Don't know if that will make a dent on the crowds but my bet is on zero dent. This is a lucky day for me since it means one week from now I will be back in Carlsbad! As always, when the blog gets slow, work is keeping me busy and putting in China labor hours! At least I'm busy.

The old city consists of the buildings that used to be part of the fortress but are now the last of the two story shop/homes. This is where the crafts are along with trashy trinkets and everyone ends up here to shop even locals. This is early morning before crowds. At 3:00 pm you can't even see the sidewalk. Always look up in China. There's always a guardian on the roof.

The good news is the restaurant is finally open! Yea! I think (hope) I've worked my last 13+ hour day for the rest of this trip. Yea! I even have hope of sleep in a few days! So Shanghai's turnout for the new CJ has been pretty good, not a record breaker but busy enough to keep everyone running around. I'm at the point where I'm forgetting where I am since life consists of the short trip to/from hotel to work and then inside a building all day. Behind - I know my checkbook is unbalanced, movies have come out that I'm missing and baseball season will be almost over when I'm home. On the other hand, I can now say I've been to China and cross another country off the list.

My trip is extended out a week due to the late start that we had. I was pretty much prepared for it so now I have the opportunity to wait for the less smoggy day and go up in the tower one morning and hope for a view. I've got the walk/subway trip to/from work down and know where to sprint fast and where I can relax as I walk. The actual return to work means that my photos have run out and I'm not sure when the next batch will be taken. Now while you all love the photos, the lead poisoning cases here are at least a new incident of 100's to 1000's every two or three days, the rain really is toxic (wash up when you can) and the vegetables are so toxic that you are advised to rotate around so you don't absorb too much of one chemical and your chances of getting sick are reduced. And this is the local paper reporting! That doesn't even count the constant police/security monitor of not taking photos (even in the mall) not eating in places and surprisingly, the no-s...