Day 551 Friends weekend

I must remind myself, that in the midst of feeling blue, I am surrounded by good people- good students, good coworkers, and good friends.  While I long for the days with my family, this close knit group of people "us Westerners", from all parts of the globe, have become my surrogate family.

After two frustrating weeks of China blues,
VPN blues, and computer blues, my hiking
buddy Hank suggested we go to dinner on
Friday night for some delicious Indian food.
Had it not been for him, I would have returned
my silent apartment once again.  We had a
lovely dinner at my favorite restaurant,
Ganges.  They got our order mixed up and we
ended up with more food than we could manage!
Thank you, Hank, for coming to my rescue :)

On Saturday, I went and ran errands, got groceries
and such. Though there is still a chill in the air,
seeing fresh pineapples being sold on the streets
lets me know that spring will eventually arrive.

Next up, I must share with you my friend, Robert.  He and I have a 'Keys connection', as he is from Key Largo. We can commiserate about the cold weather, and the pollution, and dream of better days that include palm trees, beaches and salty smells in the air. Robert is a music director here, and we share a love of music.  His last name is Sax, and his instrument of choice is the saxophone :-)  He has tried several times to get me to pick the trumpet back up and sit in with his jazz band.  I have yet to acquiesce. He also is a whiz bang with anything technologically related.  When my iPhone does stupid things (not me, mind you- it's the iPhone's fault!) he never makes me feel stupid with his superior knowledge.  He quietly fixes the issue, and makes it all better.  In the midst of the VPN and computer catastrophes, he came to my rescue more times than I can count.  He brought me his laptop to use the first weekend I was without one.  He made sure Skype was working from his computer so I could call my momma.  He put a second VPN on my phone as a back up, since Astrill was shut down by the governmental meetings. He even came bearing cheerios, chocolates, and a shoulder I literally cried on when I was in the midst of the storm. He does this all with patience, and kindness, and grace in ways that words cannot adequately describe.  He knows I am not one to easily ask for help, so he offers it readily when he senses that something is wrong.

Simply put, HE GETS ME.

I will forever feel indebted to Robert for his friendship to me.  We shall remain friends for life, long after our time at BNDS is over.  He is just a beautiful human being.  

This is my friend Robert...we were
being ridonkulous over something
that tasted or smelled (or both)
absolutely fabulous.  It must have
involved chocolate, though now I don't
 recall.  We had a good laugh about it!

Robert, God love him, is the crazy cat lady, and I
say that in the most loving way possible.  I admire
his mission to rescue feral cats, first in the Keys
and now in China.  He nurses them to health,
domesticates them, and tries to find suitable homes
for them.  This beauty hit the jackpot in allowing
Robert to enter her life.  I did, too.

In the midst of two weeks of frustration and chaos at school,
Robert came to my rescue on multiple occasions.  He then
kindly invited me to join him and the Engler family (also
a Keys connection- small world!) to see a Sunday afternoon
matinee of Zootopia, in 3-D.  It delivered just the laughs I needed :)
The Chinese translation of Zootopia was called "Crazy Animals"

As I stepped out of Wanda Plaza in the late
afternoon sun, the temperature had warmed
to a balmy 58 degrees.  It was the first hint of
spring in the 'jing!  The plaza was a carnival-
like atmosphere full of families and little
children playing games and riding rides. Like
me, they were shaking off the winter blues
and enjoying the sunshine and clean air.

I took a few extra minutes to soak up dem
Chinese babies and their cuteness...

...and to watch ma ma and er zi play a
gigantic game of Hungry Hippos :)

As I waited for the bus to take me home, I
took a moment to admire the red Chinese New
Year lanterns against the gorgeous blue sky.
In spite of a difficult start to the second
semester, I am one very blessed girl.

I really am trying to work my way back to the happiest girl in China :)

G'nite, y'all!