Skip to main content

a little of this and that

Many mornings in this country start off with the fresh morning breezes of sewage smell.  This morning is no exception.  No one, at least no one I know, is quite sure of the reason.  There's a rumor that fountain water is recycled sewage water.  There are a lot of fountains in our complex but since my girls and I have played in that water, I'd rather be ignorant and think the smell comes from somewhere else.

We have a turkey in our freezer.  Many, many people have not eaten turkey.  In fact, I would dare to say that more people in the world have not eaten turkey than have eaten turkey.  Am I blowing your mind?  Well, most folks here haven't eaten turkey, but they are raised here by some, and have you ever seen a picture of an African eating a turkey leg?  No.  My point exactly.  But, we eat them and so when a friend said the village he was visiting had turkeys running loose, eating whatever they'd like off the land and streets (organic, free-range is the fancy way to say it) and asked if we'd like one, we said, most definitely yes.  So, the once wild and free bird lies cut in half with no guts and no feathers in our freezer.  It came to us quite clean but I gave it a little shower anyway.  Since I don't have the muscles to cut a 16 lb bird in half, our house helper took the ol' gal to the local market and had her chopped in half for us.  We'll eat half soon and the other half nearer to Thanksgiving.

We now have a house helper.  Hallelujah!  Hallelujah!  It makes such a difference.  I think after watching Downton Abbey for two seasons in the States, I had an image of our potential, local, house helper sitting in the basement talking about the goings on of Lord Steiner and Lady Julie.  But, after about two days of trying to study language and function as a sane person, I knew I needed help.  I am so thankful for SJ's help.  She comes for just a couple hours, a few days a week, and cleans or helps me in other ways.  I love it and like SJ a lot, too.  She's a very sweet, happy lady with a lovely 8 year old daughter.

Time to make the daily pb&j for Lady Madeleine.

 

Popular posts from this blog

sourcream

Today I'm making a chicken dish in the crockpot with sourcream. It's actually quite amazing that this is happening. I would never normally have sourcream here because first of all I'd have to make a 30 min trip (not including the prep time to get the bus or taxi) to METRO in HanKou and secondly I'd have to spend a large sum of money for a gigantic tub of sourcream that wouldn't even fit in my little fridge and on top of that Phil doesn't even like sourcream (poor fellow). So how did I get this wonderful gift? The office bought a big tub for a party and they sold the leftovers. So, I'm making something like chicken stroganoff. For those concerned about what Phil will think, he'll like it because it's mixed in the dish. There's a stray dog that's been living on our floor (12th floor apartment) outside of the elevators. She showed up a few days ago. She either walked the 12 flights of stairs or rode the elevator. She's little, blac...

thankful

This morning I spent a wonderful time in my itty bitty kitchen with my little girls. We (I) made 2 pumpkin pies while they snacked on popcorn and cracker sticks. It's not often that I find cooking with 2 little ones underfoot wonderful. But this morning before tackling the job I had pryed for strength, patience and for an understanding that my job is one of the most precious ever. I also knew I had pretty much all day to get 2 pies made so there was no time pressure. This year I already feel in the Christmas spirit. There have been plenty of times in my life (adult life) that I didn't "feel" it. I was glad for it but I didn't have that cozy, let's make cookies and crafts, then snuggle on the floor under a blanket and watch It's a Wonderful Life feeling. Today is Thanksgiving. We'll celebrate it with turkey and all the trimmings tomorrow. I'm thankful for: Having all the spices I need for making multiple pumpkin pies. An oven that fits a 12 l...

moving time

Well my house looks like it did at some point when we moved here about 2 years ago. Boxes lying around, no pictures up, hammers, cleaning rags and tape sitting in random spots around the living room. It's a mess. Another move, more good-byes and mixed emotions. I'm going to miss... ..real CH food whenever I want it for dirt cheap, ..a tailor that made all my curtains and waves to me every time I walk past her shop, ..the little boy who's parents own the light bulb shop and yells, "hello!" every time we pass by, ..all the little kids that very politely say, "Ayi" (Aunt) when they pass me, ..our first friend in Chengdu who owns a local shop and buys birds as a hobby - bird guy, as we call him, ..the best dumpling makers, the steamed bread makers, the shopkeepers that deliver our milk for free and know our address by heart, ..the courtyard of our complex where Maddie can play by herself or with her friends while we keep an eye on her from our 4th floor, ....