It's the Little Things...

Step 1. Open up the pumpkin and pull out the guts. The pumpkins here are much much drier than our US pumpkins. Their "meat" is tougher and thicker, so a big pumpkin yields far less "guts" and seeds.

Step 2. Put the guts in the fridge with a note asking Xiao ayi to clean off the seeds. This in no way resembles my ayi, who is very sweet and funny. I guess I should get an actual picture of her. I bet she'd run away if I asked her, though.

Step 3. Toss with oil (I used sesame) and sprinkle with salt and sesame seeds. Pop 'em in the oven and roast until lightly browned (or in our case, until they start to pop like popcorn).

I really loved coming home and having that bowl of nicely washed seeds sitting on the counter. I loved it so much I collected the guts from 2 different classrooms today and I'm bringing them home for ayi to work her cleaning magic on--DeLiSh!

Booooooooooooooo.

Halloween is coming, you know. It was not a "thing" in Tanzania -- it's basically an American holiday, so the Europeans don't get into it, we had a lot of missionaries whose faith beliefs didn't include Halloween, and a general suspicion and distrust of anything related to witchdoctors meant that witches and ghosts would not be treated lightly-- but here it's kind of a big deal. Not on an American scale, and with a Chinese twist. Last year our goodies included shrimp-flavored candy, Hall's cough drops, and liquor-filled chocolate balls. At several houses Ava and her friend Bella had to go through the house to the kitchen to get their treats. After our candy ran out, we shut the door and pulled the shades, the accepted message (at least in MN) that we were closed for business -- here the kids just got their ayis to pound and pound and pound...and then pound some more on the door. We had to get the kids ready in the upstairs closet in the dark because the fact that we had a light on in the house was a clear signal to just knock til Judgement Day. And ask for more candy. I mean, if I'm holding a basket of candy it must all be for that one kid, right?

Maybe that's what prompted this missive in the mailboxes today.

For "Trick or Treat" those family would like to be "Knock on the Door" by other children on October 31st (usually on the day or evening). You are advised to prepare some sweets and candies for giving away. Those residents participate in thie TRICK OR TREAT activities will usually decorative their front door to identify themselves. The decoration can be a simple ghost mask on door or pumpkinand with ghostly items. Please pay attention about your dog when the children coming.

Good Lord, I HOPE they don't come knocking when I put out my decorations -- this weekend -- and they just better not come knocking too early. They may face "re-education".

I Miss My Mommy.

We had a great 2 weeks with my mom here in China. She really is amazing -- she walked miles and miles on this vacation because that's what you have to do to see anything here. She used squatties at her age on a repaired hip -- although the good Lord saw fit to place quite a few "sitties" along the way. She ate whatever we ordered. I miss her and I wish she could stay for weeks and weeks and weeks. Although she's probably ready to be rid of our noise and chaos for awhile.

Ava just came into my classroom and was very sad to remember that Grammy was not going to be there when she got home. My kids are not very affectionate to their extended family, probably because they just don't see them very often, but they do talk about their relatives, look forward to seeing them, and miss them when they're gone.

We're not very sentimental and not into sharing our feelings much. This picture seems to sum it up. She's got her legs stretched across the beds in the train comparment, but when I rotated the camera it looked she she might be hanging from the ceiling--and maybe her hands are tied. It's more obviously not in this pic, but in the camera I laughed so hard I almost peed my pants a little.



On a slightly more morbid note, though, I'm starting to worry what will happen between now and when I'll see her again. I have an old mother (sorry, Mom, but a spade's a spade). It's more of a realization that time is passing while I'm so far away than a wondering if she might die or something. And if time is passing...then I'm getting old which means my kids are growing up and...sigh.

Right now she's rolling her eyes andsaying, "Oh, good grief."

What?!

So I'm a bit behind the times, but I did actually see (and get a bit tired of all the reporting on) the Obama Nobel Prize. I was slightly encouraged that many people that I know to be strong Obama supporters (a couple bordering on rabid) were just as puzzled as non-supporters.


This is what the Nobel website had to say: In selecting him, the Norwegian Nobel Committee...appear to be endorsing Obama's appeal for greater multilateral cooperation aimed at tackling the thorniest global problems; conflict, nuclear weapons, climate change. They highlight his efforts to strengthen international diplomacy, and the new climate of dialogue and negotiation that Obama is promoting. Emphasis is also placed on renewed US commitment to international organizations, in particular the United Nations.

The section of Alfred Nobel's will detailing the creation of the Peace Prize states that it should be awarded "to the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses." In answer to questions during the announcement press conference about how early in Obama's Presidency the award was being made...the Committee wanted to demonstrate its support for the approaches he is taking towards global problems.

Contrary to most American's popular beliefs, news from the US is not generally the top story world-wide...I don't hear a lot about things going on in the US via CNN and I admit to not being very diligent about reading online news. I did learn alot more about Obama's stance on disarmament by reading around as a result of the award. However, since the nominations window closed a mere 11 days after he took office it seems far too premature to award him anything. He ran for the prediency on a platform of hope. He believes in conflict resoluation and that those resolutions can be found in the values and commitments that are universal to all people. I applaud that sentiment heartily.

People who have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, however, have often devoted decades, often their entire lives, to their cause (Jimmy Carter,2002, Mother Teresa, 1979). They are experts in their field (Norman Borlaug, 1970, Linus Pauling, 1962). They have risked their lives for what they believed in (Martin Luther King 1964, Nelson Mandela, 1993). They are ordinary citizens thrust suddenly into situations in which not acting becomes impossible (Betty Williams and Maired Corrigan, 1976). They have survived unspeakable horrors (Elie Wiesel, 1986). They have stunned the world, doing something that no one thought possible (Yasser Arafat, Shimon Peres, Yitzhak Rabin, 1994).

I hope with all my might that he fulfills his promises. I pray that the work he is starting, both at home and abroad, continues in a direction that makes both our country and the world a better place. His election, I believe, changed our country and our world. He opened a door and stepped we across a threshold into new possibilities. We are not the same and I could say that confidently even if I was not an Obama supporter.

I just can't put President Obama in that category--yet--even with the power of the election. I think the Nobel Peace Prize should be awarded for achievements, not the possibility of achievements, for a life dedicated to a cause that fundamentally changes the nature of our world, not for an election and a few days of promise. Read the stories of past Nobel Peace Prize laureates (click on the person, then on the right side of the page on "presentation speech" to read a summary of the person's accomplishments) and you will be inspired and strengthened and renewed by the people who have given so much of themselves in so many ways for the betterment of our world and our future.

The BURNING. The HACKING. The HORROR.

We had bad smoggy weather the days leading up to October 1, but National Day dawned warm and sunny and clear. Rumor has it the powers that be manipulated the weather to ensure perfect conditions for the big day.

Unfortunately, all good things come to an end. This is this morning's "weather". For the first time, it was hard to breathe. There was a definite odor and an acrid feel in my throat when I breathed in. I'm standing about 50 feet away from the parking guards in the second picture, and about 200 feet away from my car in the first shot. Not that you can see my car--it's that blank space to the right of the 2 white cars. Seriously.

Terra Cotta Warriors...21st Century

One of the more fun things we did was visit the factory where the terra cotta souvenirs are made--and sold, of course. The soldiers are made from clay in the area that can be used basically directly out of the ground. The sections are made with molds and fired in ovens, not kilns. Prices depend on the size (yes, you can get life-sized ones--only $2500 including shipping and insurance to the US, if you want one) and the detailing--some are hand carved, others just popped out of the mold. We almost lost Samantha the sea otter to a particularly fierce guard. Look at him--does he look like he's messing around?

Here's an interesting guy. He stood out like...well, a white guy in a crowd of Chinese. He was instantly recognizable as very different. When I asked the guide about it, he said that Kofi Annon (the former head of the UN) had visited the factory--which was true, they had pictures--and suggested they make some warriors that weren't Chinese. First of all, don't you think that's a funny comment to make? I mean, he's visiting a CHINESE site. CHINESE culture. CHINESE history. CHINESE in CHINA. Why on earth would they make non-Chinese replicas of Chinese artifacts? Although we did pass a shop that could photoshop your photo onto a photo of a warrior, which did make me think it might be cool if they could somehow figure out how to get a person's likeness on an actual statue.

And then--IF that was an actual conversation, why make a white guy? Wouldn't they have wanted to honor Kofi by making an African soldier? Or did they just figure that a Euro-looking one would sell more? And if so, then why only one? Very curious.

The Terra Cotta Warriors of Xi'an.

The terra cotta warriors were constructed around 260 BC as the army that would protect the emperor Qin Shi Huang (the first emporer of China) into the afterlife. They were discovered in 1974 by a farmer digging a well. Each warrior is life-sized and each one has individual facial features and hairstyles. The uniforms are very detailed according to the rank. It's estimated that there are 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, most of which are still buried. The pit below currently holds about 1,000 soldiers.


When the pits were opened, all the soldiers had been smashed by a subsequent emperor. All the soldiers that we saw have been pieced together. In one area, partially reconstructed soldiers stand, waiting to be placed back in their ranks. In other areas, the broken soldiers wait their turn.

Within a year of the uncovering, all the paint had eroded away. Despite official denials, scientists say that the human presence (carbon dioxide), mold, and air pollution are also causing the actual statues to decay quickly. In one of the pits they have excavated, but left the clay/dirt "ceiling" on so you can't see the soldiers in an attempt to protect them until they can figure out how to preserve them.

The size of the site is Egyptian in its scope. It was truly awe-inspiring. The emperor was 13 when construction started and an estimated 700,000 workers labored on the project. Nearby is a very large flat-topped mountain--the emperor's tomb. Our guide told us that all the feng shui and information makes them believe that it would be very bad luck to open it, so it has remained unexcavated. I don't buy that for a minute.

Anglophile Advice, Please!

In Beijing all of the videos we have access to are pirated. The shops are illegal so the good ones open and then get closed down and have to move until they can open again. The good one re-opened near our home and HALLELUJAH! They have a whole wall devoted to BBC programming. INCLUDING Dickens and Austen.

Those of you who love BBC programming and those authors, I need recommendations. Mark is leaving this weekend for a 10 day trip to the States--it's the perfect time to indulge myself in all things British. I can't wait--I just need to be pointed in the right direction to get started!

Thanks!

Faces in New Places.

Food on the Road

I decided not to give a blow-by-blow account of our time in Xi'an and Pingyao. Instead, how about some images that made our trip memorable...

Like these pomegranetes that were everywhere. Stalls on both sides of the road for at least a mile. Every table, every booth, every person had pomegranetes for sale. Back home they were a delicious Christmas treat. We may have eaten far more than our fair share.

Nut brittle. Made on a tree stump and pounded with a huge wooden mallet, folded with a wooden scraper, and pounded again. So delicious, we didn't mind remembering we saw a few bees on the sticky mass before the pounding began...

If it's fall, it's time for candied fruit on a stick.

And finding a place where noodles were served everywhere was heavenly. Kneaded, sliced, boiled, and mixed with unknown ingredients, it was a bowl of wonderful.

Pulling candy that is sweet sweet sweet, yet has no sugar. Just honey. It tasted like those Bit-o-Honey candies I used to toss out after trick-or-treating.

Dried fruit wagons in the Muslim Quarter offered up a treasure trove of sticky sweet (and yet healthy) treats.

No need to actually try everything you see, though. Some sort of...bun, I guess, filled with...something, and then steamed...just too many ellipses in that sentence for me to give one a try.

Maybe a cracker like thing instead. Made on a beautiful carved mold, they're sold as-is or filled with a mixture of sugar and sesame seeds and then baked on a griddle. Yummy? Well, not a lot of taste, but cheap and excellent for tiding you over until the next great thing...

Celebrities on Parade

Cameron was not the only celebrity on our trip.

Seems Rin-Tin-Tin and Lassie were also guests at one time.

Memorable China

So we just got back from Xi'an and Pingyao and had a great time. What was the most memorable? Thousands of terra-cotta soliders? The ancient walls surrounding Pingyao? Biking on bumpy Chinese bikes along the walls of Xi'an? Winding through the Muslim Quarter, peering in tiny booths? No.

It was the mother letting her 3 year old PEE in the very modern airport. On the floor. 200 feet from a bathroom. AND THEN NOT CLEANING IT UP. OMG.


Stay tuned for pictures of our actual trip. I've stopped taking pictures of that kind of crap. (hee hee, see what I did there?)

Check Me Out.

I've had a lot of people tell me that I should write a book based on the things that we've experienced. I think there's great material in our lives--I don't believe that the talent exists to convert that to publication. I do wish I had more time, however, to be more intentional about some of the writing, I've done. When I've been able to be reflective and purposeful about what I wanted to say, I think what I've written has been much better.

Anywho...I regularly read a blog called The Women's Colony and that's when I realize I'm not ready to really write. It's funny, irreverent, sometimes too liberal, but always entertaining and thought provoking. When you visit Mrs. G's site, make your first stop "Origin Myth." It's near the top on the right and it's hilarious--and oh-so-true. Then, visit the Passport room where our family was profiled as part of their "wild people who don't live near home anymore" posts. I think there are some really good writers over there, so it's fun to be included, even if just for a Q-n-A, in their company. Take some time to glance through the different rooms and don't feel too guilty if the Cabana becomes one your new favorite time-wasters...seriously.

My Response to the Ayi Post.

Some people asked what I posted in reply to the previous post about ayis. In my defense (or to my credit), I think I was very restrained. It is a very public forum and around here a small community in terms of talk. I do feel like I represent the school I work for--unattached and I would have been much more direct about the TONE and the sense of ENTITLEMENT and SNARKINESS and...well, you know.


I am sorry, but I simply do not understand the tone of this. You are upset because ayis want more money--in a job situation where families dismiss ayis for all sorts of reasons not at all related to job performance, where families leave, often on short notice, leaving ayis without work, where job security can be neglible? You are upset because an ayi does not want to work on a Saturday--an ayi that may have her own family to raise and care for? You are upset because an ayi, who has learned marketable skills, takes them and advertises herself as a skilled worker to better her economic condition? What constitutes "stealing"? If I need an ayi and I find one that matches my qualifications, I'm not supposed to hire her if she already has a job? How many of us would apply any of these parameters to jobs that we or our spouses have?


Yes, people often pay too much for services. Yes, there is job-hopping amongst ayis. Yes, as an employer I believe I have the right to have what I want in terms of schedules and duties, etc. I wonder what they think, though, when they work for families where a wife/mother does not have a job and the ayi spends more time at that home than she does with her own family. When they see our material things and our lives and what many of them go home to.


Often, my Western idea of loyalty is that--Western. I found that African had a very different definition of loyalty when we lived in Tanzania. We would call it opportunistic, to the point of leaving jobs, or sometimes stealing--getting what they could at that time, even if it meant trouble later. It was a cultural and economic necessity of their lives. We are lucky to live in a country with "help" but when I read about people wanting to know how little time they HAVE to give their ayis off at majorChinese holidays, when I read or hear about ayis working 60 hours a week, when I know how most of us spend the equivalent of their monthly salary on our recreational or social activities on a regular basis, then I have to wonder.

I know a number of people who have had their ayis for more than 5 years. I know families who set aside money to help their ayis with tuition or health expenses. I know families who visit their ayis at home and send gifts for their children and families. I know families who talk to their ayis about the best way to accomplish something so that the ayi feels validated. We brought an interpreter in twice last year so that our ayi could talk to us about the things that troubled her. She was so suprised and pleased that she could tell us what was hard for her and have us make some changes that helped her--and us in the long run.

Of course there are challenges and trials. I'm sorry the tone of this post paints a large group of people with a very negative tone.

One person agreed with me. One person (so far) posted this:

I agree with your point of view or let say experience 101 %. I have teh same problem. it takes a lot of energy to teach them the way we clean our house especially when they cannot speak a word of english.

In my MOST SNARKIEST moment, it occurs to me that the above poster could use a few English lessons herself. sigh. I guess this is the negative crap you hear about ex-pats and living. How dare people live in a country, get a middle-school education and not speak a word of English?! Really. The nerve of 1.3 billion people.

Living in Luxury with Househelp.

I have long since learned not to comment on having a housekeeper. It is a luxury, I freely admit, a luxury that most anyone would want. What was surprisingly difficult to learn was that it's a lot more work to have someone in your house than you might think--obviously not more work than doing the work yourself, don't get me wrong. But it is a challenge. It takes a LOT of time to train someone to the way you like things done--it's not an automatic assumption that raw chicken and apples shouldn't be cut with the same knife, or that toilet paper is not the best thing to use to clean a toilet--and when the "right" way is a way that is not something they experience or believe or do in their own culture or lives, it does take time to get that settled. Even if the ayi has been working for other Western families before.

If your ayi cooks Western foods (as ours does--I had tons of recipes translated into Chinese), she is never cooking food that she herself eats. You think you're coming home to a delicious meal, only to find out that an ingredient was substituted, or she forgot that 30 minutes is too long to cook pasta, or 1/2 cup of milk doesn't cut it when 2 cups were needed. We have a great ayi, but sitting down to dinner can be a surprise once in awhile.

Virtually all ayis clean like fiends--seriously, you can do surgery on my floors and that's with 3 kids and 2 pets! But when things get put away...it can be a challenge to locate them. Where would Xiao think was a logical place for that permission slip? Most of them are very good at laundry, too--although laundry often gets put away in different people's drawers. Every couple weeks one of the boys has NO socks or underwear. Mark's belt goes missing for several days. Where is that t-shirt? It all turns up--eventually.

Many ayis are hired to do primary child-care. Raising Chinese children is VASTLY different than raising an American/British/Australian, etc. child. Imagine trying to communicate all of that without speaking Chinese.

My point being (and I'm not whining) is that you give up a lot of control in many ways, and (unlike what I thought initially) I can't ever really give up monitoring things. But still, I pay an honest wage for an honest day's work. Our ayi works from 10-6 Monday through Friday. She shops for all household products and vegetables. She cooks dinner every night. She takes care of the dog walking. She cleans and does laundry and calls for repairs when needed. She is available for 2 nights a month and 4 hours on a weekend to work without getting paid extra (which we hardly ever use). She has a high school daughter and a 3 year old and a husband. She earns about $300 per month. Most ayis working for families with kids have a Saturday as an automatic day and are on call at anytime. She gets the days off per Chinese law and the days off when we aren't working. She does have to work in the summer to take care of the pets.

So I found the following post on the local e-group to be so bitchy and snarky. There is a problem with wage escalation, with ayis pitting families against each other and job-hopping. Those who have been here longer don't like newcomers who don't know the going rate and pay too much.

I think about what I would be doing in the States. I think about what I spend $300 on in a month (my ayi's salary). I think about my house, my possessions, my car, my vacations, and wonder what Xiao and other ayis think. I think about stay-at-home wives who have 2 ayis. I hope I don't run into this woman. But I hope she does respond to what I posted about her note in the e-group! I'll leave it to you to judge...

I have been in Beijing many years and I noticed the Ayis are getting spoiled by the day. They are always asking for raises and refusing to work on Saturdays. I work full time, I have very little time overlaping with the Ayi during week days. I want my Ayi to work Saturdays so we could go over some issues... They will leave you whenever they hear an offer that's 100 or
200 RMB more than you are paying. When new family arrives and looks for Ayi, it becomes
an oportunity for all of them (including the ones who are currently employed) to take the job. They always ask you: "How much you are willing to pay?" Normally the new family will offer at leat at the mid level to the higher end. Sure enough, the ones at the lower end will seize the
opportunity and jump ships leaving the current employer hanging. It is a bad cycle,the Ayis are always wating for the next offer. The wages keeps going up, they could leave anytime
unless you are wiiling to keep up with their greed. I am tired of training them, teaching them my great cooking skills. Instead of being grateful, they brag to other new familys about the dishes they can make (learned from me) and negotiate for a higher pay. Of course, the
new family is never told that they are actually taking an Ayi from someone else. My last Ayi left me to work with another family a block from my house.

Right now, I am on my 3rd Ayi, she only works 3 days for me. She does only cleaning for me and insists on leaving at 6:00pm. I cook when time permits, she helps prep sometimes. Fine, no more free cooking lessons from the Master Chef here!

I don't know how to stop this bad cycle! I know all of us want to have a good domestic
helper and are willing to compensate them well for their work. But by constantly rasing the wages only promotes the greed, and unwillinness to settle among them.

Does anyone has a good solution to better screen the Ayis? And also to make sure that we are not stealing someone else's Ayi!!!

PS...all spelling errors in the italicized portion are the author's, not mine. I refuse to accept responsibility for the paragraphing and spacing, too. I'm just grateful to have Blogger in China (she chants over and over as she vainly tries to insert spaces).

The Hillmans at Play.

Cameron played a little rugby in Tanzania. He's never been one for team sports: a little soccer when he was in kindergarden, a little baseball, but his heart was never really into it. He's a great athlete when it comes to individual non-ball activities--hiking, skiing, etc. but not much for team sports. We were surprised when he announced that he was going to play rugby this fall instead of auditioning for the play. A decent role in the play was a pretty sure thing--a role on a team sport, not so much.

We are so proud of him! He plays on a 2nd string JV team, which is where a kid playing team sports for the first time really should be. He has attended every practice, run 3 miles a week on his own, and sat through a weekend rugby tourney in his team suit (as in tie and coat) without playing. We were disappointed that the games yesterday were cancelled due to the terrible air quality (at a certain level all outdoor aerobic activities have to be cancelled) and he didn't have a chance to play. It's another one of those things that make you proud of your child--willing to take a risk to try something new at a period of time in his life that would probably considered relatively "late" sports-wise. We pray that he has inherited his father's speed and agility--he certainly has inherited his father's build, and he's noticeably slighter than many of the other players.

Really, rugby is a fantastic game to watch. If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend it. Like hockey, there's TONS of action--hits, tackles, pileups. Like hockey, the clock almost never stops. People assume that it's wild and brutal, but really it's not. Unlike American football, the focus is not on the tackling and hitting. It's much more fun to watch, I think, than football. It's no wonder that it's so popular around the world.

Sometimes I think America needs to get up and get interested in other sports that are (gasp) not football and basketball and baseball. Except for cricket. There's just no explaining that game.

Our elementary school has the BEST phy. ed. program. Brooke and Tim run the most dyanamic and amazing programs--kids clamor to be a part of them. One of the most popular is Jedi Jugglers--kids progress through juggling balls, rings, batons (including fire batons) to a spot on the Jedi Council of jugglers and a big all school show in the spring.

The other very popular event is Great Wall Runners. Kids show up twice a week after school to run laps. Prizes are awarded at the end for kids who reach marathon status (50 km) and ultramarathon status (70 km). Kids run on their own as well and have the opportunity to rack up a few kms during recess.

Ava was nervous about commiting but she's gone once a week all fall, running 6-7 laps each time. It must have paid off, because that hard work (and natural talent) earned her a medal. Look closely--it's GOLD. Ava was the first girl to cross the finish line in her 2K race. Good on ya, Ava!


Wild Noah is off to a great year. Wild Noah is NOT a risk-taker. Yes, I know I can record the events of his life in the scars on his body (boils, tree falls, barbed wire) but he prefers a life that is orderly and predictable and risk-free. Last year he had a hard time settling in--when he made friends, on e of his closest friends was an outstanding athlete and juggler, his place well-fixed at school. Noah definitely saw his place as behind him. When Joe moved to Guam over the summer, Noah saw the opportunity to move into his "spot". He's been running about 10 miles a week the last month. That amount of exercise, plus a very finicky eater, makes for a very skinny kid.

It also makes for a very fast kid. He definitely has his father's genes for speed! He won 2nd place in the 5th grade boys' race, running 4K.


Ho Sun, Ian, Jonathon, and Noah are all in 5th grade and all live next door to each other. They all also played basketball together and have a pretty good time hanging out.

Noah has been very passionate about soccer. This year, he and Ian started playing Little League World Series on Wii and are now lugging bats and gloves everywhere they go. All of my kids have always looked for a "best" friend and Noah has been lucky enough to find one wherever he's lived.