Mint Gum and Ginger Beer

do not mix.

what a self-destructive weekend...feeling totally miserable on this fine monday.  why did i do it?  why not?

What's in a Name?

off to tokyo in two weeks time!!!  i am severely claustrophobic right now in hong kong and it is time to get out as it is now pushing on 5 weeks without reprive.  i booked my flight using american airline miles on cathay (which is awesome because i have about 130k on aa, they are so hard to use on aa but a breeze on cathay) but just talking to an american was SOOOOOOOO nice.  i did not have to spell my name.  nor did i have to say, "no, my name is not ezmerelda."  the other day, we did some delivery and the girl asked for my name.  i just said, "no, its just too long - i dont want to give it."  and she just went, "ok."  haha.

here i come, toe-key-yo!!!!!!!!!

Vent

i am sorry but chinese people irritate me sometimes.  as someone much more tolerable than me said, "they just dont have a western sense of politeness."  um, ok, i would hope treating fellow humans with general courtesy would be a global theme but i guess not.

i did my own little experiment the other day.  after having lunch with a friend and hearing her complaints, i dropped her off at her building and walked the 5 (if that) minutes to mine.  i thought, "i will walk and not move my path and just see."  i got nailed in the shoulder and thigh 5 times.  and i do not mean lightly grazed, i mean smacked.  if i had a cup of coffee in my hand it would have been empty after the 3rd hit.  and the best bit is nobody says sorry, nobody looks back.  thank you, thank you very much.

western or eastern, i dont care, its not cool.  and i need a break from asia for a bit.

and i found some other people addressing this topic on yahoo answers and even on a chinese website about culture shock...
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080525133126AALVBKy
and
http://www.chinese-culture.net/html/china_culture_shock.html
and here is the former president - although it would be better if he were shoving someone or spastically pressing the "door close" button in the lift...

"Oh, Baby do You Know What That's Worth? Oh, Heaven is a Place on Earth"

samui...wow, its like heaven on earth.  four seasons...huge room...great food...oh baby.  take a look at pictures as words just wont do.

a few below and all here:  http://picasaweb.google.com/erowlinson/TripToSamuiWithSandra?authkey=Gv1sRgCKLH9OGr6ZGMQw&feat=directlink