I know I have been remiss in posting lately...well more than lately as someone pointed out I hadn't posted since the first day of Summer and here it is nearly a month into Fall.
A lot has happened since my last post...some mundane...some large life moments...here is a relatively quick summary. The plan is to elaborate on a few key ones...but for now this will have to do...
1. Travelled to Vancouver for work and to visit family.
2. Worked, worked, worked.
3. Enjoyed wonderful time with my boyfriend.
4. Came out to my parents.
5. Bought a nearly new car (new to me!!).
6. Travelled to San Fransisco for a week's vacation with my boyfriend. In doing so visited world landmarks including the Golden Gate Bridge, Castro Street, Sonoma and Napa Vallies.
7. Travelled to Beijing for work. In doing so visited another world landmark - Tiananmen Square.
8. Worked, worked, worked.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Friday, June 22, 2007
First Full Day of Summer....
is turning out to be a fun one. I just spent 5 minutes watching the rather cute neighbour sun himself in a speedo while doing some stretches and a bit of yoga. So that was good. I'm busy arranging a few things for a week in the Vancouver area...a few days for a conference and a few days with family....the closest thing I will have to a summer vacation. I'm also preparing for a good friend's wedding this weekend. It should be fun as it gets my group of straight friends together for a couple of days to send yet another friend off into marital bliss. It will also be fun to see how two very different cultures come together...the groom and his family is Chinese and the bride is Baptist....at the very least it helps me as an usher in knowing where everyone goes. This wedding will leave myself and only one other of our core group of friends single....a rare breed these days.
I've discovered the past couple of weeks that I have been off work...that the days seem to belong to the senior citizens of the the world. Seniors are everywhere...shuffeling...wheeling...blocking me from anywhere I want to go. I find this to be true in both Regina and Moose Jaw. Makes me kind of grateful for my day job.
The neighbour is back outside....
I've discovered the past couple of weeks that I have been off work...that the days seem to belong to the senior citizens of the the world. Seniors are everywhere...shuffeling...wheeling...blocking me from anywhere I want to go. I find this to be true in both Regina and Moose Jaw. Makes me kind of grateful for my day job.
The neighbour is back outside....
Monday, June 11, 2007
It's been a while...
OK OK OK...it has been a while since I've posted...I've been somewhat busy...recovering from China...catching up at work....work has been busy...been busy with a few other things...some very good and fun things. I'm hoping things slow down a bit now that I'm on my last bit of holidays for our holiday year (July to June)...I'm off for a couple of weeks..then off to a conference..and off for a couple more days...and then it's July.
My time off started great...went to Moose Jaw for the weekend with someone special...we had a great time...shopping...eating...touring the tunnels...eating some more...gambling....relaxing....etc. A very good weekend and a great way to start holidays.
No real plans otherwise...odds and ends...relaxing...a few events to attend....including a wedding for which I'm an usher...but other than that...just some down time.
My time off started great...went to Moose Jaw for the weekend with someone special...we had a great time...shopping...eating...touring the tunnels...eating some more...gambling....relaxing....etc. A very good weekend and a great way to start holidays.
No real plans otherwise...odds and ends...relaxing...a few events to attend....including a wedding for which I'm an usher...but other than that...just some down time.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Surreal Moment of the Weekend...
OK...Saturday consisted of two surreal moments...both related to shopping. I am now in a pant size I haven't been in since at least high school (I don't really remember exactly when)..and I can now shop at Eddie Bauer...who knew?!?
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
China...
Day 1 – the day that wouldn’t end. 9a.m. Regina time…depart. 2.5 hours later arrive in Vancouver. 2 hour stop over…eat a bit…read a bit…converse with the boss I’m traveling with…on a plane bound for Beijing. 11.5 hours later arrive in Beijing mid afternoon the following day. 2 hour stop over…pick up luggage…go through immigration…transfer terminals… wait and board a plane bound for Changsha, Hunan. 2 hours on domestic Chinese flight. Very clean plane…very bright….very friendly…somewhat bilingual. 2 hour flight includes Chinese airline food….I was too tired to try it, but the dessert was good…a very light and fluffy cake. Arrive in Changsha and be greeted by our hosts in Changsha. They whisk us away to check into our hotel and then off to dinner. I have now been awake for more than 24 hours. Dinner consists of my first experience of real Chinese food…of course it has to be in Hunan, known for it’s spicy food. I ate it. I ate spicy beef, spicy pork, a vegetable that has no English name, some rice, a few other non-descript dishes, fish fin soup, complete with fins still attached, and a dessert that looked like eye ball soup. I ate it, it stayed down with no gagging. I went to bed at 11p.m China time….finally…mmm pillow.
Day 2 – up early for breakfast with boss and travel to the University for meetings and presentations. Morning meeting allowed me to taste a Chinese cherry…very good…wish we had them in North America. Lunch at the University consisted of more spicy Hunan food, including “Chinese sandwiches”, pork with skin still on, lotus root, various other dishes, I was quite excited to see a whole pineapple come to the table. I quite like pineapple and could use a familiar taste/texture. It was hollowed out to make room for the real dish. I asked what it was (I know I shouldn’t have asked but knew I had to eat it anyway)…the response was “pigeon”. Yep…you got it…I ate pigeon. In fact, I ate it quite readily...a) I had no real choice…and b) I was hoping that if I ate it it would shut some people at home up about my picky eating habits. After dinner we climbed a mountain in our suits before presenting to students. Dinner that evening consisted of more spice…a duck fish (mouth/bill on plate)…some gifts…and a Chinese foot massage. More on this later. The picture is of a temple on the mountain.
One of the many sights on the mountain!
Day 6 – up early to have another western breakfast before the market in Hohhot. We both wanted to go to the market where you could bargain, however, our hosts took us to a mall. I still found a few things and it was fun. Then off to the airport and back to Beijing. The in flight meal was a Chinese hot dog...I’m presuming it was beef. Once in Beijing my boss continued onto Canada and I into Beijing for one more night. Our hosts in Beijing had arranged for a driver to take me to the Forbidden City, Tianemen Square and to the Silk Market. Parking was a bitch so I skipped the Square after the Forbidden City and headed to the market. Two hours in the market and most of my RMB gone I headed back to the hotel to change and head off to the Canadian Charity Ball for which our hosts had invited me once they found out I was going to be in Beijing an extra night.. This black tie event was attended by the Canadian Ambassador to China and featured a Canadian menu of beef, potatoes, asparagus, carrots, amongst the Caesar salad, red onion soup, and the butter tart and Nanaimo bar dessert. I must say that the food got progressively better and the trip went on.
Day 7 – up early to yet another western breakfast (I’m not sure if I would have survived the trip without the “western” breakfasts…and then off to the Great Wall made possible by the driver. The great wall was great and a wall. Very steep. Back to the airport to make my way through the gauntlet that is the Chinese customs and immigration bureaucracy.
Day 2 – up early for breakfast with boss and travel to the University for meetings and presentations. Morning meeting allowed me to taste a Chinese cherry…very good…wish we had them in North America. Lunch at the University consisted of more spicy Hunan food, including “Chinese sandwiches”, pork with skin still on, lotus root, various other dishes, I was quite excited to see a whole pineapple come to the table. I quite like pineapple and could use a familiar taste/texture. It was hollowed out to make room for the real dish. I asked what it was (I know I shouldn’t have asked but knew I had to eat it anyway)…the response was “pigeon”. Yep…you got it…I ate pigeon. In fact, I ate it quite readily...a) I had no real choice…and b) I was hoping that if I ate it it would shut some people at home up about my picky eating habits. After dinner we climbed a mountain in our suits before presenting to students. Dinner that evening consisted of more spice…a duck fish (mouth/bill on plate)…some gifts…and a Chinese foot massage. More on this later. The picture is of a temple on the mountain.
One of the many sights on the mountain!Day 3 – up early to fly to Shenzhen. Same airline as before…good plane. Breakfast was mystery meat on a bun with lots of mayo, some cucumber and a slice of tomato. Ok enough. We checked into our Shenzhen hotel (Holiday Inn)…with the morning off to catch up on emails, rest and eat. We were there early enough to still have the breakfast buffet on the executive floor (very cheap upgrade to get internet, free mini bar, and same day laundry service)…it was a western style breakfast!!!! Jackpot!!! Meetings went well…presentation went well. Dinner was proceeded by a Chinese theme park and “cultural show”. Both were ok. On the way to the show, our host suggested we stop for snack as dinner was in a few hours. We stopped at the 7-11 (gotta love a Chinese 7-11) and he runs in for our snack. Keep in mind that it was incredibly hot and humid so when he came out with three plastic dishes with scoops of something in them, we both naturally assumed (hoped) that it was ice cream and was quite excited at the prospect of ice cream. It wasn’t ice cream. It was fish balls! Who thinks that 7-11 sells fish balls?!? We ate a few and left the rest (with the blessing of our host). Dinner was a farmer style (i.e. casual) at a local restaurant that apparently never sees Caucasians. I didn’t notice it but my boss was conscious of being stared at. We ate goose, sweet potatoes, water celery, corn, and fish. Was ok…better than Hunan food.
Day 4 – up early to eat the western breakfast buffet and fly to Beijing. No meal on the plane…but a very rough descent into Beijing. The combination of the large breakfast and the plane caused for an upset stomach all day…and my Pepto Bismol was packed away in my bag that I couldn’t unpack as we weren’t checking into a hotel until the end of the day. Arrive in Beijing to be taken to a Japanese restaurant for a “light” lunch before starting with tours and meetings. I have never been to a Japanese restaurant as I’m a food wuss at home but once we got past the sushi course it was good…with beef…tempura shrimp…mmm mmm good. Dinner this night was a combination Chinese, Thai and Malaysian meal. I will be the first to admit that this food kicked ass. A good variety of meat, veggies and the best mango salad I have ever had (insert obvious jokes here about never having a mango salad before). The meal also included some singing and dancing that clearly falls within the realm of “What happens in China stays in China”. After dinner we were treated once again to a Chinese foot massage. Really…we had no choice in either massage…for the good of working relationships, they had to be done…we had to take one for the team as it were. The picture is of me dancing - what happens in China stays in China.
Day 5 – up early to catch a flight to Hohhot Inner Mongolia (IM). No one ever knows what to expect of Inner Mongolia. We were greeted by a great/sweet guy named Walter. Walter was funny, personable and despite his decent yet limited English was able to communicate quite well. We checked into our hotel (Holiday Inn – and the nicest hotel on the trip) and Walter treated us to a western style lunch at the hotel, before being taken to the university we were visiting. Meetings, meetings…presentation. Dinner was a crap shoot as we didn’t know if it would be formal or not. It was somewhere in between. We were kept waiting for the President of the university…as we were waiting a number of dishes arrived in preparation…nothing out of the ordinary or what has become ordinary on this trip…until the chicken dish arrived…complete with chicken head on the plate. I found it fun…but one of our hosts didn’t. He discretely left the room with the server and his colleague...and next thing I knew the whole chicken dish was removed. It was very considerate of him to know that it may be odd for us to see a chicken head on a plate and to arrange to have it removed. It was this consideration and hospitality that has endeared me to IM. I found it to be a very pleasant place with very good people. Anyway dinner included fruit salad, salmon, all the usuals with a few exceptions…what I and my boss consider eatable gold…it’s sesame seed and sugar covered cheese that is then deep fried. OMG…it is soooo good. It will kill you in a week..but it’s soooooo good. The other exception was the liquor…a Chinese wine..and a Mongolian liquor…both used for many many toasts that included “gombay!” – bottoms up. And when the president says gombay…you gombay. Gombay ended up in a few songs being sung and once again “What happens in China stays in China” After dinner the boss and I went wandering the streets of Hohhot…and a back alley…don’t ask. The walk included the irresistible stop at an Inner Mongolian McDonalds. Lesson for that day…a Big Mac is a Big Mac the world over…well at least into the Chinese world. The only difference at this McDonalds is that you can have corn instead of French fries. Go figure.
Day 4 – up early to eat the western breakfast buffet and fly to Beijing. No meal on the plane…but a very rough descent into Beijing. The combination of the large breakfast and the plane caused for an upset stomach all day…and my Pepto Bismol was packed away in my bag that I couldn’t unpack as we weren’t checking into a hotel until the end of the day. Arrive in Beijing to be taken to a Japanese restaurant for a “light” lunch before starting with tours and meetings. I have never been to a Japanese restaurant as I’m a food wuss at home but once we got past the sushi course it was good…with beef…tempura shrimp…mmm mmm good. Dinner this night was a combination Chinese, Thai and Malaysian meal. I will be the first to admit that this food kicked ass. A good variety of meat, veggies and the best mango salad I have ever had (insert obvious jokes here about never having a mango salad before). The meal also included some singing and dancing that clearly falls within the realm of “What happens in China stays in China”. After dinner we were treated once again to a Chinese foot massage. Really…we had no choice in either massage…for the good of working relationships, they had to be done…we had to take one for the team as it were. The picture is of me dancing - what happens in China stays in China.
Day 5 – up early to catch a flight to Hohhot Inner Mongolia (IM). No one ever knows what to expect of Inner Mongolia. We were greeted by a great/sweet guy named Walter. Walter was funny, personable and despite his decent yet limited English was able to communicate quite well. We checked into our hotel (Holiday Inn – and the nicest hotel on the trip) and Walter treated us to a western style lunch at the hotel, before being taken to the university we were visiting. Meetings, meetings…presentation. Dinner was a crap shoot as we didn’t know if it would be formal or not. It was somewhere in between. We were kept waiting for the President of the university…as we were waiting a number of dishes arrived in preparation…nothing out of the ordinary or what has become ordinary on this trip…until the chicken dish arrived…complete with chicken head on the plate. I found it fun…but one of our hosts didn’t. He discretely left the room with the server and his colleague...and next thing I knew the whole chicken dish was removed. It was very considerate of him to know that it may be odd for us to see a chicken head on a plate and to arrange to have it removed. It was this consideration and hospitality that has endeared me to IM. I found it to be a very pleasant place with very good people. Anyway dinner included fruit salad, salmon, all the usuals with a few exceptions…what I and my boss consider eatable gold…it’s sesame seed and sugar covered cheese that is then deep fried. OMG…it is soooo good. It will kill you in a week..but it’s soooooo good. The other exception was the liquor…a Chinese wine..and a Mongolian liquor…both used for many many toasts that included “gombay!” – bottoms up. And when the president says gombay…you gombay. Gombay ended up in a few songs being sung and once again “What happens in China stays in China” After dinner the boss and I went wandering the streets of Hohhot…and a back alley…don’t ask. The walk included the irresistible stop at an Inner Mongolian McDonalds. Lesson for that day…a Big Mac is a Big Mac the world over…well at least into the Chinese world. The only difference at this McDonalds is that you can have corn instead of French fries. Go figure.
The bright lights of Hohhot, Inner Mongolia!
Day 6 – up early to have another western breakfast before the market in Hohhot. We both wanted to go to the market where you could bargain, however, our hosts took us to a mall. I still found a few things and it was fun. Then off to the airport and back to Beijing. The in flight meal was a Chinese hot dog...I’m presuming it was beef. Once in Beijing my boss continued onto Canada and I into Beijing for one more night. Our hosts in Beijing had arranged for a driver to take me to the Forbidden City, Tianemen Square and to the Silk Market. Parking was a bitch so I skipped the Square after the Forbidden City and headed to the market. Two hours in the market and most of my RMB gone I headed back to the hotel to change and head off to the Canadian Charity Ball for which our hosts had invited me once they found out I was going to be in Beijing an extra night.. This black tie event was attended by the Canadian Ambassador to China and featured a Canadian menu of beef, potatoes, asparagus, carrots, amongst the Caesar salad, red onion soup, and the butter tart and Nanaimo bar dessert. I must say that the food got progressively better and the trip went on.
Day 7 – up early to yet another western breakfast (I’m not sure if I would have survived the trip without the “western” breakfasts…and then off to the Great Wall made possible by the driver. The great wall was great and a wall. Very steep. Back to the airport to make my way through the gauntlet that is the Chinese customs and immigration bureaucracy.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Don't worry...
Have no fear I have returned...I am back in the Queen City...I have returned from the largest Chinatown in the world...China itself. No jet lag while there...but the first day back I can barely function...will write more when I can think again...
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Mom...
As Mother's Day approaches and as I realize that I will be away from my mother on Mother's Day my mind wanders to mom and the love I have for her.
Like any gay man I have an odd relationship with my mother. It's close in some respects...and distant in others. I'm trying to close the distance but it's a long haul for many reasons.
Like any son I've often taken my mother for granted. For this I'm ashamed and working toward truly appreciating her.
As I grow older I begin to realize the extraordinary strength it takes to be a mother. I don't ever think I will ever completely realize the sacrifice she has made for me and my brother. The example of sacrifice that most comes to mind is when I was about 10 or 11 and the exhibition was in town. As was our tradition, we would go on "all you can ride" day back when it was only one day of the week the exhibition was in town. This particular year my mother rearranged her work schedule so she worked an early short shift (most likely starting at 6a.m.) so she could be off in time to take my brother and I to the exhibition by opening time. She then schleped my brother and I to the exhibition all day and most of the evening...only to head to work the next morning. I'm not sure I would be able to do that...I'm not sure how she was able to do it just physically...not to mention the monetary cost.
I am grateful for my mother and love her with all my heart.
Like any gay man I have an odd relationship with my mother. It's close in some respects...and distant in others. I'm trying to close the distance but it's a long haul for many reasons.
Like any son I've often taken my mother for granted. For this I'm ashamed and working toward truly appreciating her.
As I grow older I begin to realize the extraordinary strength it takes to be a mother. I don't ever think I will ever completely realize the sacrifice she has made for me and my brother. The example of sacrifice that most comes to mind is when I was about 10 or 11 and the exhibition was in town. As was our tradition, we would go on "all you can ride" day back when it was only one day of the week the exhibition was in town. This particular year my mother rearranged her work schedule so she worked an early short shift (most likely starting at 6a.m.) so she could be off in time to take my brother and I to the exhibition by opening time. She then schleped my brother and I to the exhibition all day and most of the evening...only to head to work the next morning. I'm not sure I would be able to do that...I'm not sure how she was able to do it just physically...not to mention the monetary cost.
I am grateful for my mother and love her with all my heart.
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