Random Public Thoughts #10: Scattered Family, Separate Lives
I have a million things to do but don't feel like doing them! We are going to Costa Rica in a few weeks and I need to finish up the travel arrangements (we've booked air and hotel but I need to book transporation between airport/hotels etc.). I need to finish our kids' tax returns (one going to college & one going to grad school; the middle one is in his 3rd undergrad year). Our house is a total mess. And I promised Xmas newsletters (!?! February is nearly over!?!) to several people!!!
However, I really enjoyed re-reading my blogs so I'm going to be self-indulgent and write another one.
My previous blogs were about movies and the past. What about the present?
Our family is scattered... I live in the Chicago suburbs, but my hubby moved to Shanghai last September. Our oldest daughter is working in LA and our son is at U of I in Champaign. Our youngest is still at home but she hopes to get into a school far away (she'll probably hear from colleges in late March or early April).
I recently returned from visiting my hubby in Shanghai and our daughter in LA. I came away quite comforted with their comfortable lifestyles. The last time I visited our daughter, she lived an impoverished student life in an absolutely awful apartment. Now she has a good job (she makes more than me, and I'm a CPA and have been working for over 8 years!?!) and a nice apartment in a convenient neighborhood.
My hubby has an even more conveniently located apartment in a very nice part of Shanghai. He leads a simple life: he walks to work (about 15 minutes), and he can do all his errands en route. Bank, haircut, supermarket, bakery, restaurants, clothing - you name it, it is on the way. If you like Chinese food, you will be in the midst of culinary heaven. If you like cheap, your wallet will be in heaven, too. But with all these material temptations around him and unbelievable prices (divide prices by 8!), my hubby buys nothing and eats very healthily. He buys soup from a restaurant that specializes in slow-cooked, rich-brothed soup, and pre-washed veggies from the supermarket (he could get veggies for much lower cost if he'd shop at the local open market, but as he said, the food is so cheap anyway, so why bother?). His dinner, then, is the veggie heated in the soup for a minute until it is cooked. His breakfast is bread bought from an excellent bakery. He usually eats lunch out with his colleagues - for less than $1. He says he LOVES living in Shanghai because it is SOOOO convenient and so cheap!!!
When I looked at my hubby's apartment possibilities last August (2005), I wasn't too impressed, but I must have been looking at the wrong places. Also, I was only there for a few days in August and felt very disoriented. It was miserably hot and humid, too. This time, with my hubby showing me all the great places to shop & eat near his apartment, and with the brisk winter weather, everything somehow seemed to make more sense.
My hubby took a day off and we went to see some of the Suzhou gardens. They were VERY nice!!! The cold weather kept the worst of the crowds away, along with it being mid-week. The gardens are designed to feel like you are constantly seeing new vistas wherever you go, framed by round doors or lacy wooden window screens. They don't look like much from the outside - typically they are surrounded by high walls. But when you get inside - WOW! And this was winter, when many trees and plants were still dormant!
And now I am back in the Chicago suburbs again. We don't know how this separation is going to work out, but so far it seems to be OK. My hubby is very busy and travels a lot - even when he was based here in Chicago, he was gone half the time, and worked long hours when he was home. I get very absorbed in my own work, too. Our youngest daughter drives and is quite independent so we all lead our separate lives. Although our son is "only" a 3 hour drive away, he only comes home for major holidays: Thanksgiving, Xmas, Spring Break. He stays in Champaign during the summer. Our oldest hardly ever comes home, though she'll come back for her sister's high school graduation.
Someone at work said he can't conceive of living the way we do. However, so far this seems to work for us...
However, I really enjoyed re-reading my blogs so I'm going to be self-indulgent and write another one.
My previous blogs were about movies and the past. What about the present?
Our family is scattered... I live in the Chicago suburbs, but my hubby moved to Shanghai last September. Our oldest daughter is working in LA and our son is at U of I in Champaign. Our youngest is still at home but she hopes to get into a school far away (she'll probably hear from colleges in late March or early April).
I recently returned from visiting my hubby in Shanghai and our daughter in LA. I came away quite comforted with their comfortable lifestyles. The last time I visited our daughter, she lived an impoverished student life in an absolutely awful apartment. Now she has a good job (she makes more than me, and I'm a CPA and have been working for over 8 years!?!) and a nice apartment in a convenient neighborhood.
My hubby has an even more conveniently located apartment in a very nice part of Shanghai. He leads a simple life: he walks to work (about 15 minutes), and he can do all his errands en route. Bank, haircut, supermarket, bakery, restaurants, clothing - you name it, it is on the way. If you like Chinese food, you will be in the midst of culinary heaven. If you like cheap, your wallet will be in heaven, too. But with all these material temptations around him and unbelievable prices (divide prices by 8!), my hubby buys nothing and eats very healthily. He buys soup from a restaurant that specializes in slow-cooked, rich-brothed soup, and pre-washed veggies from the supermarket (he could get veggies for much lower cost if he'd shop at the local open market, but as he said, the food is so cheap anyway, so why bother?). His dinner, then, is the veggie heated in the soup for a minute until it is cooked. His breakfast is bread bought from an excellent bakery. He usually eats lunch out with his colleagues - for less than $1. He says he LOVES living in Shanghai because it is SOOOO convenient and so cheap!!!
When I looked at my hubby's apartment possibilities last August (2005), I wasn't too impressed, but I must have been looking at the wrong places. Also, I was only there for a few days in August and felt very disoriented. It was miserably hot and humid, too. This time, with my hubby showing me all the great places to shop & eat near his apartment, and with the brisk winter weather, everything somehow seemed to make more sense.
My hubby took a day off and we went to see some of the Suzhou gardens. They were VERY nice!!! The cold weather kept the worst of the crowds away, along with it being mid-week. The gardens are designed to feel like you are constantly seeing new vistas wherever you go, framed by round doors or lacy wooden window screens. They don't look like much from the outside - typically they are surrounded by high walls. But when you get inside - WOW! And this was winter, when many trees and plants were still dormant!
And now I am back in the Chicago suburbs again. We don't know how this separation is going to work out, but so far it seems to be OK. My hubby is very busy and travels a lot - even when he was based here in Chicago, he was gone half the time, and worked long hours when he was home. I get very absorbed in my own work, too. Our youngest daughter drives and is quite independent so we all lead our separate lives. Although our son is "only" a 3 hour drive away, he only comes home for major holidays: Thanksgiving, Xmas, Spring Break. He stays in Champaign during the summer. Our oldest hardly ever comes home, though she'll come back for her sister's high school graduation.
Someone at work said he can't conceive of living the way we do. However, so far this seems to work for us...
posted by Gaye Marasaki | 7:02 PM
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