On May 29th Carol and Jack Goodwin, the parents of my best friend all
the way from High School, came to town. It was so nice to see
them, and also very normal. Walking around Shanghai
together, chatting about their recent travels, we could have been in
Westfield, NJ. It was really wonderfu and Carol said to me,
" I knew you would stay." She said I seemed really content.
It felt so good to hear that from her.
A future perfect is the name of a really yummy restaurant, with a really great
vibe. Brunching off Huashan Lu, with good friends, in a quiet
alley is the best way to spend any Sunday.
Eating again, outdoors off Huai Hai Lu at a restaurant called Element
Fresh which is common fare for foreigners throughout Shanghai.
The view from my window, and I need more Spirutein.
There was a giant ball of hardened calvin klein jeans outside Jing An
Temple that I took a picture of on the way to work one morning. Also on
my
way to work, I maneuvered around a group of women exercising with
swords along the same passage.
Linda fixed my hair for me on Friday which inspired a Grecian photo shoot.
Mike sent me a picture of his lunch, so I decided to take a picture of
mine. A little girl decided to come and check things out with her
grandmother. After getting a glimpse of her beautiful little feet I
decided that I'd rather nibble on her toes.
A book shop on Fuxing Lu advertising Bill Clinton's book, " My Life".
The sign also indicates that its a very popular book in China, and I just like seeing Bill Clinton.
Somtimes I walk around, vibrating with ahhh. This scene on Wuyuan Lu was just
perfect. There is a hotdog next to the lethargic, old, or
potentially dieing cat. Given too much thought and the scene
looses it's luster. At first glance..it was a perfect composition.
The little shop where the tailor who calls me 'Ke li si ding' works.
Lots of birds in wooden cages in Shanghai.
Linda and the tailor simply known as Ayi.
The chandelier at the spa. I promised pictures, but was quickly
thrown down on the floor, hands tied behind my back, as they stripped
me of my canon digital. Actually, Melanie and I decided to have a
visit the night before her birthday. Everyone needs to try out
their birthday suit on their birthday. Interestingly enough, my
birthday suit came in stretchy turquoise...her's was straight up
flesh. We were scrubbed, patted down with shredded cucumber,
drenched in milk, massaged, cracked, and made young again. So
relaxed after 3 hours of relief, we hopped in a cab so I could pick up
my bicycle and she could head home. When we arrived at the street
where I left my bicycle at 6 pm, it was nowhere to be found.
Theft is common, and it was 1am when we finally went to retrieve it, so
I calmly accepted that it was gone. Surprisingly as Melanie
recalled, I didn't even curse ( "because Kristin likes to swear"). I instead mossied home, limp and
glowing from our escapades. The next morning, visiting the site
of the alien disappearance, my bicycle gleamed before me. She
had reappeared, and my luck twinkled.
Melanie's 33rd. We drank 33 bottles of wine at Gemma's massive apartment.
