Sunday, June 22, 2008

Squeaky Shoes
















Well, it is the end our Sunday here in Guangzhou. Melissa is on the couch giving Luke his bottle, Shelby is reading, and Cole and Piper are playing “Hearts” with Bill and Linda. I hope that you are all doing well and that you are heading to church soon. We awoke early, me especially so, as I spent most of the night hacking up my last good lung. Luke and I have both had little colds but they seem to be clearing up today. Somehow the morning slipped by quickly enough that we ended up scrambling to get downstairs for breakfast. It was another ho-hum meal of eggs however you like them, light as air French toast, and dragon fruit, which is apparently supposed to be a natural laxative. Cole and Bill hurried off to play their squash tournament and the rest of us strolled the shopping on the main level of the hotel. Cole and Bill played four games and finished even. I came and played Bill in another four games and we also finished even. So, Bill held his own against the Nicholson boys. The reality is that Cole feels fine, I can barely walk, and Bill cannot make a fist or otherwise tighten his forearm. However, the tournament resumes tomorrow and Piper is in the mix. We spent most of the afternoon by the pool. Luke just loves the water and is constantly plunging his face in and beating the water with his hands. He and I came upstairs—he to take a nap and me to work a bit. Shelby also came up to read and to make sure that I gave Luke a proper bottle and nap experience. Around 4:00 we all loaded up to stroll the “shopping” around the island. If you have been to Wisconsin Dells or to Myrtle Beach then you understand what I mean by “shopping”. It is pretty much knick-knack items that are all but worthless. We were thinking of Jenny Hatfield the whole time because she is pretty much the queen of souvenir shopping. The best was that at one store Cole paid about 210 RMB (about $30) for some items and Bill paid about 280 RMB (about $40). Of course, they were told it was “best price”. Well, about two blocks later we found Cole’s item for about 75 RMB (about $10) and an entire set of Bill’s item for 140 RMB (about $20) with a display case. Cole felt somehow wronged. I told him that with his curly blond hair and Ray-Bans that they probably thought he was rock star who could afford the premium. The big purchases of the day were several pairs of “squeaky shoes”, so-called because they make an annoying squeak every step that a small child makes. They are just part of the China experience. You can also see from the photos that we were stopped by a group of school children (7 and 8 year old boys) who were practicing their English by asking for names, home states, and credit card numbers. They were super nice and Cole pumped my ego by telling me “Dad, they think you look like Lance Armstrong”. So, I signed lots of fake autographs. By the way, the credit card reference was a joke. We strolled and shopped until about 6:30 and then had another great meal at a barbecue/grill/Brazilian buffet along the river. Cole says it is as close to Ruth's Chris as I am going to get on this trip. It was insanely hot but the food was good and Luke and the kids did very well. Melissa also did okay. Bill and Linda and I were perfect as always. You can see the neon signage of a ship in the background of one of the dinner photos. On that ship was an Arab leader being hosted by the mayor of Guangzhou. The Arab was representing the Asian Games and was here to help celebrate the fact that Guangzhou will host Asian Games in 2010. Very large entourage with red carpet rolling through the hotel and out to the boat, which happened to be 20 feet from our seat. So, a fun night for us. Things have wound down now. Luke is in bed, as is Melissa. Cole and Piper have returned from cards and they, along with Shelby, are slowly getting settled for bed. Luke is doing really well. He is walking more and more, although quite recklessly. He walked right off the bed just a little while ago. He eats superbly, enjoys long strolls, fine dining, and just seems to fit right into the mix.

Wherever you are, enjoy the day the Lord has made.

Blog Archive