Journal of a Sabbatical

October 20, 2000

wish i were a toon

Today's Reading: Coming Home Crazy by Bill Holm

I'm less mystified by forks now but my sleep is still several time zones off. They tell me it takes a day for each time zone so I've still got a ways to go. But I'm functional - capable of driving, providing high quality child care, eating pizza (no forks required), and watching the Friday night TV shows with the kids.

I brought the kids goody bags full of trinkets from China, Tibet, and Japan: bookmarks with their names in Chinese characters, Chinese money, necklaces from Tibet, stuffed sheep from Tibet (the cutest stuffed sheep you ever saw), and empty tea cans from Japanese vending machines.

Last time I was with them before I left we were talking about Japanese vending machines (I forget why) and I told them about buying hot tea and hot coffee in cans from the machines. They demanded that I bring them the cans, so I saved a couple and put them in with the carefully chosen souvenirs. Somehow it hadn't occurred to me that they would expect the cans to be still hot. They're smart kids after all. Anyway, the cans are decorative.

Elizabeth thought the sheep were really cute. Andrea thought the necklace was really cool. Both of them got a kick out of the 2 Yuan note and the 5 Jiao note I gave each of them. The Chinese folding money has pictures of ethnic minorities on it and for whatever reason the 2 Yuan and the 5 Jiao showed only women. Andrea wanted to know if all the money had only girls on it. Umm, nope. There's a 100 Yuan bill with Chairman Mao on it instead of the ethnic minorities (though there's also a 100 Yuan bill with ethnic minorities - a man and a woman).

They wanted to know why I didn't bring them things to eat. Like what? Should I have brought them ma po tofu? Half-cooked potatoes with green chilies? Pickled lotus root? Yak butter? Tsampa? No, like candy bars. Oh. I told them the Chinese are not real big on chocolate, nor am I.

Later in the conversation I asked if there was anything they especially wanted to know about China. Elizabeth asked "Why didn't you bring us a Kit Kat bar? My teacher brought a Kit Kat bar?" Well, that stumped me. The only place I saw any candies was at the Beijing airport and what's so special about Chinese Kit Kat bars anyway? Memo to self. Next time bring home candy.

Elizabeth was playing The Sims. She showed me how you can furnish the house, even buy a piano. I asked if the piano came with a teacher and an aunt to drive you to the lessons.

Andrea was watching Pokemon. Ash was leaving home for Joto to catch some special Pokemons or something and Andrea wanted to know where in Japan that was. I'm not aware of its being a real place - Pokemon aficionados can correct me on that - but I got the globe down and showed her Tokyo and Kyoto and other cities in Japan. Then I tried to show her Beijing, Chengdu, and Lhasa - places I'd just been. She was already sucked back into Pokemon. I asked her if my adventures would be more interesting to her if I were an animated TV show. She gave me the thumbs up! Darn, I wish I were a toon.