Story to follow tomorrow...

Mrs. Kelly

4/12/2005 Tuesday - First of all, today is Mrs. Kelly's birthday. Mrs. Kelly was my kindergarten teacher. I guess I remember her birthday every year because it is a month after mine and she was my favorite teacher in grade school. She was awesome. I can't remember a lot about kindergarbage but I do distinctly remember Mrs. Kelly taping me to my chair one day. I was a little hyper as a kid (I know, you're shocked) and on more than one occasion Mrs. Kelly had to tape my mouth shut to keep me quiet. Now a days she'd be fired and get sued but back in 1979 it was acceptable. I remember that we didn't have individual desks but big tables that sat 6 kids. There were 6 storage compartments under the table so we could keep our pencil boxes and stuff. I don't think we had our own glue back then. One day I just wouldn't stay in my seat so Mrs. Kelly took her wide masking tape, folded it over to make it double-sided and stuck it to my chair. Then she sat me down and told me not to get up again. I realize I could have stood up but I'm not sure if I knew that back then. All I know is that I was embarrassed and didn't get up for the rest of the day. When we graduated from kindergarten into the first grade, Mrs. Kelly came with us. Fr. Frank (the pastor) joked at the ceremony that one student had finally graduated after 3 years in kindergarten. In the first grade, Mrs. Kelly taught us math. I distinctly remember two things about first grade. One day I got 100% on a math paper (I don't think we had tests back then). Mrs. Kelly sent me to Sr. Lucia's office (the principal) to show her. Sr. Lucia wrote something on my paper in cursive. It was like code since I wouldn't learn cursive for another year. When I took it home, my mom hung it up on the door of china cabinet. Normally stuff like this belonged on the fridge but for some reason this was special. My dad even brought home some kind of plastic sleeve to protect it. That was the first time I actually felt smart. My second memory of that year (oh wait, I just remembered 2 more from that year) was being put in the dumb reading group. Apparently my prowess in math didn't <insert big word here> into reading. [I'm laughing out loud right now because I can't think of the word I need and I'm writing about my poor verbal skills 24 years ago.] I guess it was the best of times and the worst of times. Maybe I'm wired to be better with numbers than words or maybe the good math paper and the dumb reading group affected me for years to come. I guess I'll never know. Mrs. Kelly is dead now. I remember she died when I was in college. I would have gone to her funeral if I had known. I think she had a brain tumor. I remember something in her obituary about an alligator attack or something. God Bless You, Mrs. Kelly.

My other two memories from that year were Mrs. Kelly taking her son, Brendan, into the cloak room to spank him for doing something wrong in class. My second is of Connie Mahnke (sp?) running out of the same cloak room (on a different day) without a shirt on. The girls were changing for gym. I have no idea why she ran out. All the boys laughed and Mrs. Kelly explained that boys and girls at that age are all the same. It was still funny to 6 year-olds though.

trip to Tianjin

4/10/2005 Sunday - Chris and I decided to head to the cultural Mecca of Tianjin. Chris got the name of two places to visit and we grabbed a taxi at the hotel. The doorman asked us if we wanted to go on the meter or off. Not knowing what was better, we went on the meter. The car was a Volkswagen Santana which is a small to midsize car. It's the standard size (maybe only size) taxi in Shanghai but here in TEDA, it's a big, expensive taxi. I say expensive because 5 RMB ($.60) will get you going in a small taxi but it takes 10 RMB ($1.20) to start in a Santana. TEDA is so small that most drivers don't even start the meter. They just charge you 5 RMB and that's it. If you have a far away destination, they will start the meter. For example, to get to the OCC (operation and control center for the light rail) from the hotel it takes 10 RMB in a small taxi or 15 RMB in a large one. Anyway, our drive into Tianjin was mostly benign. As we approached the city, it got more crowded and more dirty. That's the China I know and love! All of sudden, we had cars coming at us on a 4 lane highway. It was insane. Apparently the people than need to get from some place on the right side of the highway to the left side of the highway will just drive across the road, then proceed in the wrong direction to get where they are going. I guess it was nice that they all headed for the far left lane but damn, that's nuts!!! The driver complained a bit in Chinese then just laughed it off. TIC I guess. Luckily he's got mad skills and we got through the on coming traffic unscathed. As we got closer to the heart of the city, we noticed a building being demolished. The road snaked around the demolition site and we were now between the site and a new highway being built. It was like the road went from 4 lanes down to 2 and drove right through a construction site. When we came around the building, we noticed the sign said "Tomorrow Hotel". Chris joked about someone showing up with a reservation and expecting a room. I joked that the second line of the sign probably said "Will Be Demolished". <insert laughter here> Anyway, we got to our destination and the driver wanted to know if he should wait for us. We told him to go because we didn't know how long we would be there. Looking back, we should have had him wait. We paid 160 RMB ($20) including tolls for a one way trip. I remember PS hiring a car for the day to take him to Tianjin, drive him around the city then bring him back for 400 RMB. Again, we should have done that. Our destination was a shopping street. I think it's called the Golden Street. Not bad. Just a bunch of Chinese souvenirs. Kinda like Yuan Garden in Shanghai but much smaller, much cleaner and much newer. OK, not so much like Yuan Garden. We found some good deals the best of which being these scrolls on which this guy would write your name in either Chinese or English for 15 RMB. That's less than $2. I think the paper alone would cost more in the States. There was a guy from Arizona buying about 20 of them. He says every time he comes back his friends all want one. After that we headed to the local McDonald's so I could grab a quick snack. Shut up. It was 5PM and my sustenance so far comprised of a banana. After Mickey D's it was time to head home. We started looking for a big taxi. No luck. I saw a big Audi sitting front of a Chinese hotel. I asked the driver if he would take us to TEDA and he waved me off. Either he wasn't for hire or didn't want to make the trip. Chris noticed a small taxi but this one was gold instead of red like every other taxi around. This must make it better, right? We negotiated a price of 150 RMB since we knew how much it should cost. I didn't want her getting "lost" and charging us a fortune. Yes, the driver was a female. I haven't seen many female taxi drivers over here but they don't seem any worse than the male drivers. So I compact myself into the front seat with Chris in the back with our loot. The drive out of Tianjin seemed similar to the drive in but as we left town, the road didn't look the same. As it turns out, she decided to take the regular road instead of the new highway. There isn't much difference but there are a few more intersections on the regular road. As we got close to home, the driver asked me a question. Of course I didn't understand a freakin' word so I showed her the hotel card. She promptly stopped the car and got out. Notice I didn't say "she pulled over". That's because she didn't. By now Chris had noticed she didn't have her lights on. This is typical in China because they want to conserve power. On the surface that makes sense until you remember a little invention called the alternator. It charges the battery as you drive! Somebody should start putting those things in cars. I bet you'd make a mint. Anyway, lights off, Ms. Driver stops the car in the right lane and gets out. On the shoulder was a stopped taxi and we could have easily got in front of him. Up on the side of the road was another taxi that she went to for directions. Chris and I sat there waiting for the inevitable rear end collision that would send us to the best Chinese hospital in all of greater Tianjin. Luckily Ms. Driver returned while Chris and I were still whiplash-free. She proceeded down the road with a new sense of purpose. She was no longer a lost taxi driver but a woman with a plan and even a destination! Within a few kilometers, she got flustered and stopped the car. She started talking Chinese again and Chris was the first to figure out that she had missed the exit. You see on most of these roads, there are 3 - 4 lanes in each direction. Every so often there is a break in the divider where cars/trucks/bikes/pedestrians can cross over or even make U-turns. At this intersection though, there was actually an off ramp which connected to a bridge overhead. Now any normal, sane, reasonably conscious person capable of breathing without thinking about it would have driven to the next intersection and either turned around or got off and taken a different route. Do you think that happened? Come on dear reader, TIC! You smart folks are probably thinking you know what happened next. You're probably wrong. She didn't drive to the next intersection. She didn't even pop it in reverse and back up down the shoulder like I've seen on occasion in Europe or even America. No, she whipped a U-ey right in the middle of a 3 lane highway! I kid you not. So as we proceeded down the highway in the wrong direction with the lights off I secretly wondered why I wasn't shitting myself. We arrived at a the ramp after passing a few cars that didn't seem to care or maybe they didn't even notice us. Talk about scary! She whips another U-ey up the ramp and back into the normal flow of traffic. Since I'm writing this you know I lived and you'll have to trust there are no skid marks on the highway or in my drawers.

introduction to Chinese drivers

OK, I had been trying to write everyday but now I realize that is foolish. First of all, I don't like writing that much and second, my days are sometime (often?) boring so why should I subject others to my misery. Here is my last crappy post for a while.

4/5/2005 Tuesday - Spent my first night in the executive suite. Not bad at all plus I had a day off waiting for others to finish their work. After sleeping in I decided to take a walk to the store and get some water and sundries. When I turned on the sink in the bathroom, I got brown water from the tap and a lot of air as well. I figured it was caused by the road construction so I ran the water for a while before taking a shower. I just realized this is probably quite boring so I'll cut to the chase. They are digging up the street and the sidewalk up and down the entire street. My walk to the store became an adventure. I had to cut behind some buildings and then when I made it back to the main road I had to walk across the entryways and jump some gaps in the walk. At the end of the road, everything was torn up and I had to walk across the construction. TIC. On the way back we drove through a traffic circle. I'm not sure who decided they needed a traffic circle there but it was a mistake. Traffic circles are based on yielding and following traffic laws, two things extremely rare in China. In fact the other night in the same circle, our taxi driver made a U-turn by going the wrong way in the circle. I do like the traffic lights in TEDA. They have a sort of progress bar that diminishes as the light is about to change. Good design. The funny thing is that at night, all the lights flash yellow in all directions. Think about that for a minute.

4/6/2005 Wednesday - I realized today why I make fun of the Chinese drivers. I'm jealous. I wish I could run red lights, cross over the lane lines, cross into oncoming traffic, turn whenever and wherever I want. These people make an art of it. Americans all think Chinese are bad drivers but I see very few accidents. Apparently a fair number of people die on the highway between Tianjin and Beijing but they've got to control the population somehow, right? Joking, joking. I saw the ultimate move a few days ago and it was repeated today. When leaving a parking lot, the taxi driver drove on the sidewalk and down the pedestrian ramp to the street. Again, I'm jealous. Oh I almost forgot about the proper hand position when driving. In the States we have the classic "10 and 2". In China, it's all different. One hand on the steering wheel, one hand on the horn, one hand switching between the tea bottle and the gear shift. Yeah, I know that's three hands. No wonder they have problems!

boring (you have been warned)

So I started this log a few weeks ago as a place to jot down notes. I had the dumb idea that other people might want to read it and created this blog. As I reread these entries I realize how boring they are. In a few years, they might make me laugh and since I already wrote them, I'll post them anyway. I warn you that this post it boring but they are getting better. Again, you have been warned.


4/2/2005 Saturday - I slept in today for the first time all week. It was great. Even though my room is really warm, I seem to be sleeping OK. I had a quick buffet lunch and headed to the local store to see what they had to offer. On the way, I stopped at a Bank of China branch that I had seen earlier in the week. Luckily, it gave me a cash advance on my Corporate AMEX. I'll have to tell the others. I went to what I thought was the friendship store near the "center" of town. Not sure why I think it's the center but there are a couple hotels there and it seems to be the main bar street. They also have a big sculpture in the roundabout that looks like a kid's toy all stretched out. It's got 4 colors, one on each side: red, white, blue, yellow.

4/4/2005 Monday - Chris from the Cab group arrived today. Had lunch at the hotel again. Good buffet again but I haven't seen the Thai green curry again. I need some of the good stuff. On Friday afternoon, we spoke to Michelle Li from the sales office. She said she could give us a contract for a better room price. I moved to a junior suite today. Not bad, it has a living room with an extra TV as well as an additional half bath. As soon as I got to the new room, I plugged in my laptop to get some work done. I got one hell of a shock from the Ethernet port. I thought my computer was broken but I checked another outlet and I didn't have any problems. I called the desk and they sent up an engineer as well as the assistant to the Director of Rooms (Lutz Mueller my old buddy). After some testing they determined that the wiring in the entire room was bad. They moved me to an Executive Suite that has a kitchen instead of the half bath. Not bad at all. It is on the front side of the hotel which means I get a better view but I also have to deal with the sun. With the A/C under repair, it may get real hot in here. Anyway, I'm in here for at least one night. I'll figure it out tomorrow where I'll be for the rest of my stay. Apparently there is a big group coming in on the 20th that reserved all of the suites. I'll have to check out of my room and into a regular room at that time. I just spoke to Lutz and he says he's going to make it all right. I suggested he give me vouchers for food or laundry, let me stay in the Executive Suite, or give me discounts or free rooms for future Marriott stays. We'll see what he comes up with. Now I have to get some work done before Pittsburgh wakes up. I just heard back from Michelle in Sales. She said that Chris and I can each stay in our current rooms until we checkout. Have I mentioned how painfully slow the internet connect here is? It's as bad as dial up and it seems worse at times. I've been spoiled by being in civilized places in the past. This little town is really getting to me.

second rant deleted

@#$%!!! I lost a post! The technical wizard here screwed up the cut and paste and I lost my second rant. Now I can't even remember the topic. If it was good, hopefully I'll be able to rant again.

my first rant

3/31/05 Thursday - Got a call from the desk. One of my colleagues left something for me. It was my sign. Sweet! Went to a Japanese restaurant with PS and Marat. You'll never guess what they ran out of . Rice. Can you believe it? I've never heard of an Asian restaurant that had no rice. I'm afraid a rice famine is starting to rival the Irish potato famine. Just kidding. We got there late (21:30) but still. No rice? Make another pot! Anyway, the food was good and pretty cheap. About 240RMB ($30) for three of us. The waitress told me they didn't take AMEX so I used my MAC card. I left my other credit cards in the hotel room. That reminds me, I need to get those. Anyway, as we were walking out, we saw the AMEX logo on the cash register then again on the door. They apologized but there was nothing we could do. When we left, we had to dodge some of the toughest panhandlers I have ever encountered. These women are pretty amazing actually. They seem to work in packs. I wouldn't be surprised if they share their booty. It is a Communist country after all. There are about 3 women in each pack. They hang out in front of the places where business travelers (esp. Westerners) frequent. When they see you coming or going, they start running after you. It's not a quick pace but you can't get away from them at a normal pace. They all have a bowl or cup of some sort. Some have walking sticks but I swear they are for intimidation more than balance. Most of these women seem quite Reubeunesqe so the begging business must be profitable. Marat says a good job around here pays 1000RMB per month. If they can get 30 RMB per day begging, they do pretty damn good. I imagine on a good day, 30 is no problem. Part of me wants to give these women some money but I never do. I don't give to panhandlers in the States either. I know what Jesus said about giving to the poor and "what so ever you do to the least of my people you do unto Me" and all that but I don't want to perpetuate the problem. I mean if panhandling becomes profitable, why would anyone try to get a real job? I've seen all sorts of beggars in China: kids, women, women with kids, old men (although very few abled bodied men I might add), people with arms and/or legs missing, blind people, everyone. WTF?!?! This is a Communist country. Chairman Mao and all that crap. Cradle to grave care from the government? It's all a fucking lie. Maybe there was a time when that was the case but that has ended. It's now every man for himself over here. If you get old or sick or lose your job, you're screwed. Good-bye, thanks for playing. For your consolation prize, you get an old soup bowl and your very own street corner. Most of the women I've seen have a metal bowl or cup with a handle. In Shanghai they just use their hand (unless they are blind or have no hands then they have a cup of some sort). One woman in TEDA actually had an orange, disposable plastic bowl that you get from 3RMB soup in the local convenience stores and supermarkets. BTW, I haven't seen any 24 hour stores in TEDA, these people must actually sleep unlike Shanghai.

Welcome to the Parrot

3/30 - Noticed Motorcycles Control Room sign at one of the stations. It should have read Train Control or Station Control or something. Something got lost in the translation. Marat "liberated" for me. Went to the Parrot for dinner. Nice place. The guy I took for the owner is actually the head chef or as his card says, "Food & Beverage Director". Mike Dority is his name. Originally from NC but lived in TX and Alaska as well. He's having a pig roast on Friday night. I can't wait. I asked the only obvious question "Carolina or Texas style?" (Those are 2 of the 4 major BBQ styles in the U.S. for you uninitiated.) He laughed and explained it to me something like this. When he first did a pig roast about 6-8 months ago, he went on the web to do some research. He took some ideas from the Cubans and some from the Alabama rednecks. He calls it a Cuban Redneck Chinese pig roast. I'm salivating already.

kimchi and a present

3/29/05 Tuesday - Went to Korean restaurant with PS. Pretty good stuff. All sorts of different kimchi. Who knew? Marat came late and said he had a present for me. I thought it would be something silly or work related. He produced 3 Havana Cohibas. Not sure of the exact size but they looked to be big coronas or possibly Churchill's. I'll have to look them up later. His friend got them from Cuba. Hopefully he can get more for me next time.

PS - Not post script but a coworkers initials. He's Korean. Apparently a bunch of the Korean guys go by their initials.

Marat - Crazy Russian American. Drives me insane over email but hysterically funny in person. He's been in China since 1999. Not sure how he handles it.

on to TEDA

3/28/05 Monday - Met my ride at the hotel. Took mini bus from Beijing to TEDA. 5 guys plus driver and about 6 huge transformers (I found out later they weighed 65 kg or over 140 lbs.). They laughed after I got in because I balanced the weight of the transformers. Apparently they were riding lopsided before they picked me up. I had my own seat and needed all of the room. The two hour trip was interesting. Aside from being smashed in the seat, it wasn't bad at all. They were doing major construction on the highway and for most of the trip, only one side of the highway was open. We were headed east but riding on the westbound side for a good part of the trip. In the states they would have one lane open in each direction. Not sure where the traffic was rerouted. Apparently the trip is 3-4 hours when the highway is closed. I really hope they reverse the traffic on the way back or else I'll be miserable. On the way I noticed a few things. First of all the air is atrocious in Beijing. I guess I first noticed that at the hotel. Much worse than in Shanghai. I guess the amount of industry close to the city center contributes. Also, the dry air and the surrounding desert to the northwest also contributes. They had better clean up this place by the 2008 Olympics. I also noticed the area around the roadways is filthy. There is trash everywhere along the road. In places there was trash right up to the crops and farm animals. I did see a sheep herder with about 20 sheep on a path in one big pack. That was pretty neat. I wondered if there was a pecking order to who gets the view and who has to sniff butts. Anyway, there were piles of trash, lose trash and just general crap everywhere.

arrived in Beijing

3/26/05 Saturday - Arrived Beijing 21:30. Met driver at airport. 45 minutes to hotel. No regular rooms available. Upgraded to suite. Nice room - living room, 1/2 bath, bedroom, full bath w/ separate shower. Crappy view. Construction site.

3/27/05 Sunday - Jet lagged. Slept most of the day. Only 2 English channels - CNN and HBO Asia. Breakfast was OK, nothing to write home about (LOL). I just realized why the hotels over here usually have cooked tomatoes and beans on the breakfast buffet. A full English breakfast! Now it all makes sense. Not that I really eat that stuff too much but after my vacation to England, I sorta got used to it.

Introduction

Currently, I'm working in TEDA, Tianjin, China. TEDA stands for Tianjin Economic and Technological Development Area. Basically, the Chinese government took a big swarth of land and decided to build it up. I'm here working on the light rail system to get people from the city of Tianjin to this area. I've been to Shanghai 12 times working on a similar project. Hopefully my thoughts aren't too boring.