March 23- March Madness!

It is Sunday after a party that Jody and I threw for ourselves since we share the same birthday (weird huh?).  I have just watched Tom Hanks in BIG (I will forever love this movie and laugh always at the mini-corn scene at the fancy cocktail party) and thumbed through an issue of Real Simple one of my friends gave me as a gift—oh how I have missed sitting around Sunday morning drinking coffee and reading a magazine!  I am moving a little slow and so thankful I have a housekeeper coming in on Monday (and in exchange for the extra work- I can give her two days off this week since we will be in Bangkok).  I made a dent in the damage after a couple of hours, but am thankful I do not have to take out trash (I have yet to find where it goes) and wash dishes (no dishwasher and limited counter space make this an arduous task) and you do not even want to know what the kitchen floor looks like.  All in all, I think it was a good party. People came and went in waves, but all together there were about 50 people. I will back up to yesterday and then discuss my trip to Malaysia. 

So Jody and have been sick off and on all week. She started Sunday and then it hit me on Wednesday. She has a sinus infection and I have, well everything- fever, stomachache and all that goes with that.  Needless to say, thinking about a party is not in our mind. So Friday we both decide that antibiotics are in order. She walks up to the local pharmacy, tells the pharmacists her symptoms and gets a prescription (scary it is so easy!) and I find my pills my doctor gave me as a precaution for when I first arrived and was trying to get use to the food and sanitation practices (or lack there of).  I go to sleep at 7 (or rather I go to watch half of this season of The Good Wife my friend downloaded for me (dang it was a great season!!) and walla- the miracle of modern medicine prevails. I feel human again; Time to grocery shop.  I call my new friend, Mr. My Mine, the taxi driver, and we go shopping. I think he is going to just wait for me, but he parks and comes in and is a great help.  From this I learn I should not buy chicken from the store but rather call him and his wife can buy, clean and butcher a chicken like no tomorrow much cheaper and fresher than the store. You might ask why I am buying chicken- well… we have a grill and kabobs are on our party menu!  Yes- BBQs are in our future. Of course it is not like the “pull behind your F250 pick-up truck Texas pits”, but it is fine for us. We finish shopping, unload and of course I invite my taxi driver and his wife to the party (after they had been here awhile that night, he informs me this is his wife’s first party).

And we start making food.  After about four hours, Jody and I have made mango salsa, Ranch Dip and Ranch dill dip (made with Greek yogurt), Roasted red pepper salsa, guacamole, bean dip, samosas (bought), sushi (had delivered- 12 packages of 6 pieces for $12.00!!!), fruit salad in a watermelon bowl, Kahlua cake, rosemary cashews, spicy crackers (these did not really turn out because I have yet to find a cracker that does not have s sweet taste), cheese and crackers (no cheese to be found so I improvised and undid twelve laughing cow cheese triangles and called it a day). Abdul came with beef for the kabobs and I had chicken marinating all day.  Yummo

The food, the music provided by Courtney “if I have to make the party playlist we are dancing” Brainard, combined with the full bar and keg and a good corn-hole toss game made for a fun evening. Between messages from afar and students and new friends here, I had a great birthday week. Just two more hugs and it would have been perfect. L

Malaysia:  I do not know who I think I am.  What I found out most from this trip is that I do not like traveling alone.  Ok- I said it.  I know it is suppose to be enlightening and easy, but I found it daunting. The first day I lose several hours due to plane delays.  I guess you get what you pay for is true, and I tried to go budget. The good news I spend my time in the airport talking to some interesting people who had been traveling around Myanmar; I love hearing their take on my home away from home.   The first couple I speak to were lawyers from Holland and then I meet a group who were from Canada. So interesting.

I arrive in Kuala Lumpur around five (I think I lost and hour or two because of time differences), go to my hotel, and just sink into the comfy bed.  Then like any good woman, I head to the six-story mall I have heard so much about.  Talk about culture shock.  It is so overwhelming that I do not even know what I need and leave empty handed- well that is not true- I leave with this little piece of heaven bread thing (pictures to follow), and some Famous Amos cookies (sweets in Myanmar are not so hot). Back up- before leaving- I eat at a restaurant recommended and order some Malaysian food. It is chicken curry, some pickled veggie salad that is wonderful, a couple things I cannot describe and choose to leave behind and some rice- always rice. I people watch as I eat (because dang it, I am not use to eating alone and forget the “I am not alone, just busy” I pad security blanket.  Satisfied, I try to shop. Defeated, I walk back to the hotel in the dark, on a secluded road clutching my bag on my shoulder that is not close to the road because of all the warnings around town about motorcycle purse snatchers- yes- I am a little scared and yes, this is reason number two why I do not like traveling alone (reason number one is eating at a restaurant and having the host say table for one and give you the sad face look).

And then I Skype- beautiful, non-garbled, no feedback, no “Can you hear me?” questions- just easy conversation. I do not know if Malaysia is first world, second world or third world, but for my technology limitations- and me it was my wonderful world at the moment. I get to hear all about my friends seeing the Myanmar band, Side Effects at their SXSW show. The band has an inspiring backstory and worked hard to get to Texas. I am so glad to hear that my friends enjoyed the show and were even asked to a private party at the home where the band was staying. One has to love social media for reasons like this. Next on the agenda, is the wonderful two-spray shower I have looked forward to for months.  All I will say to this is that someone needs to tell these builders to pick a color and stick with it.  Red should mean hot water and blue- cold water.  I wait for ten minutes for hot water and end up taking a cold shower.  I get out and call, they send up maintenance and I am a fool for not being patient enough when the knob was on blue because wonderful hot water comes streaming out or the wall.

On Saturday, I set out for the Bird Sanctuary, not because I love birds but rather because I did not want to go to Kuala Lumpur and come back and say all I did was stay in my luxurious hotel room and go to the mall (which really would have been fine with me!). I try to negotiate a cab, let one go and then end up paying a higher price. I am really not good at getting these taxi drivers to go lower.  I have been screwed several times in this area of my “adventure”.  Bird pictures later. I thought about going to the Islamic National Museum, but talked myself out of it (reason number three I do not like traveling alone- you can talk yourself out of things easily), but instead tried to find the on-off bus, but got a taxi instead and headed off to Central Market, a huge three story “mall” of little shops with Malaysian crafts. I love my new friend the taxi driver; from him I learned much. He drops me off, reminds me how to haggle and I am off to find batik material or paintings.

A crowd draws me over to what looks like a hot tub, only to discover it is a pond of fish in which people put their feet. Upon closer observation, I find they are not just cooling off, but rather getting a pedicure from the Doctor fish.  Peer pressure and my “damn, this will be cool to write about” attitude gets me to sit on the edge, roll up my leggings and plug in my feet.  Well, the whole mall probably heard me scream because I was not prepared for what happened. These little fish surrounded my feet and started nibbling-and kept at it until someone finally told me to move my feet around and they would back off (yes- I wish they would have told me that sooner- or I wished my common sense would have kicked in because it was much more enjoyable after that).  I will say it was a bit embarrassing that so many of them loved me- or my feet that is!

I go into an Asian place to eat, see a girl alone, start to walk past and then instead stopped to see if I could join her. It ended up being a pleasant lunch with a very interesting girl from China who had just quit her job and was traveling South East Asia. Now doing that (asking someone if I could join them) was something out of my comfort zone.  I would not hesitate to ask someone to join me and friends, but I have never done this.

I continue shopping and I guess I am use to being overseas because my shopping bug is dulling. I find some beautiful artwork that cost way more than I want to spend (and a nice lady that after five hours of shopping tells me I have my dress on inside out--reason number four I do not like traveling alone- no one is there in the morning to stop things like this from happening). I manage to find a few pieces of batik material but really am looking for something bigger, so I give up and head out to the streets.  It is hot-not Las Vegas dry heat hot, but Louisiana humid drenches your clothes hot and we all know how I love humidity!!!  So after a while of trying to locate the free around the city bus, I duck into a McDonalds for the counterintuitive diet coke and French fries order and sit down to cool off.  I sit next to two Muslim girls who have what looks like shopping bags of material and I ask about a fabric store.  I head out in search of a bolt of pretty batik.  And I walk, and I walk and go in and out of stores in search of cotton, only to find other material that I have no idea why it exists and even a harder time understanding why woman who have to cover up so much choose such hot fabric. I finally score and catch a taxi back to the hotel.

I Skype again, shower again and head down to see what the hotel concierge has in mind for me for dinner.  He has nothing so I go back over to the six-story mall and start looking. They have tons of places; I want something that does not come with rice and choose Italian- to go.  While I wait, I ask for a mall brochure and find that this place has over 120 places to eat- dang that is a lot of food. Had I walked a little further I would have found my craving- a burger at TGIF. There is always tomorrow.

I Skype again, shower again and sleep.  I wake up Sunday ready for breakfast and find that not one of the five places that have in the hotel are open (I am leaving at 2:30 so I figured I would lay out by the pool day)—so I head on over to—you guessed it—six-story mall. I soon discover it is raining so my pool day is compromised, but the burger sure was good. My cab driver picks me up (yes, it is the same one from yesterday) and we start talking. I explain my frustration with the information provided (or rather lack of information) He asked if I had been to ________, I say no and he says we have time; I’ll take you. It was right next door to my hotel (if i had only turned right instead of left) and had the cutest things.  I rush through several of the shops, bought a couple things and am off to the airport. On the way he explains what is happening in Malaysia now and what has happened in the past, and his former job.  We talk about the plane crash and politics. I leave after recording his contact information so I can pass it on.  Thirty minutes after he drops me off at the airport, his face pops back up and he hands me my I pad.  I hesitate to tell anyone this, but really think it is a great example of the type of people that have been placed in my path. I was far from where he had dropped me.  He had to park his taxi, and search for 30 minutes to find me and yet he did not give up. What a blessing.

Reflections so far:

1.     I think a person’s mind adjust (and stomach) to what it does not see.  The first pictures I took in Malaysia was of this wonderful shop making these decadent bread rolls that just fascinated me- we really do need these shops in the US. It is a strip of bread rolled around a metal cylinder, baked, slathered in butter or honey and then the customer chooses the rest of the order. I had mine with Nutella and nuts and yes- it was well worth the calories! My point is- I am not eating much bread.  It is abundant at fancy restaurants, but I try to limit how much I go out to eat at fancy restaurants.  What I noticed is that I do not think about missing bread until bread is all around me.

2.     As the school year’s end nears, I realize how ready I am to come home.   It is going to be a hard two months and I am so thankful I have a couple more trips to distract me. I have boys to hug, a new great nephew to meet, and extended family who although I did not see a lot every year, the fact that I can’t see them makes it hard. And there are always my friends.  I have some really good friends who comfort me, know me well and seem to know when I need a boost.  Everyone has been so encouraging, but I have been rather selfish and cannot really return the favor.  I will have a lot of listening to do this summer and I am ready.

3.     I need to throw more parties!

4.     I had a friend drop by today (probably because there was more keg beer to be had) and he saw another snake.  I think I would rather not know.  I walked to the mall twice in Kuala Lumpur with no hesitation and then read the notice in my hotel room about the purse-snatching ring.  I found myself scared, looking over my shoulder, and not trusting. Not that I want to be ignorant, but I also do not want to walk through life (or through the gate in my driveway) scared.

5.     Life is precious and we need to make sure we appreciate those we have in our lives while they are still here. My niece, Rachel, would have also been celebrating a birthday this month but she left us all way too soon. She had a wonderful spirit about her and made everyone laugh. I am so glad she was in my life, but I wish I had told her that more, called her more and listened to her more.  All I can do now is share those desires. As my teacher friends in their 30’s try to make decisions about their next jobs, I just want to tell them that their parents will not be around forever and they need to remember that.  I think I would be very sad if my kids chose to be out of the country for years on end and I only got to see them for two weeks a year. On one hand, I admire their tenacity and sense of adventure; one the other hand, I hope they do not regret not checking in for a year every so often.

Internet too slow right now.  I will post pictures tomorrow.