Over the past week I have had many repeat customers. The Smiths, the Sherers, the VanderKaays, and the Whipples to name a few. The Whipples have come in almost daily with the whole family, Alfred III, Alfred IV, David and Sara. I learned that the athlete, Mary, was a rower and that today was her big race. I'm sure she's raced previously, but today was the medal race, and it was clear to most that she was going to come home with a medal. As dad put it yesterday, "I just want some hardware for that girl. That's all I want." Well, today dad's dream came true.
Just a few hours ago the Women's Eight won the gold. As I'm told there was never a doubt that they would win once the race had begun. The Whipples are here and just in a tizzy. There's a party going on downstairs for the bronze medal men's rowing and gold medal women's rowing. It's great. The beer is flowing and they are basking in their win.
In fact, when Alfred III brought Mary up to introduce her to me she showed me her medal and very meekly said, "I really like it." It was awesome. So amazing to see the medalist in their moment at the top of the world. It reminds of that day 20 years ago (well, 20 years ago Tuesday) when we won the World Championships. I didn't want to go to sleep, because I knew that tomorrow would never be the same as that moment. It was wonderful to share that moment with her. And...She let me touch it.
I'll update the blog tomorrow with a picture. Sorry, I don't have my cable with me today.
2008-08-17
Meeting Kerri Strug!
It's been a crazy time here at the family center. Lots going on everyday. There is rumor today that Jason Lezak and Cullen Jones will be in today. The publicist is pushing to get Michael Phelps in today, but that is probably not going to happen. He's a busy boy having just won all that gold.
The highlight of my trip so far though, has been meeting Kerri Strug.
She is somehow still sponsored by Bank of America and, because they flew her over here, she has been in to the family center quite a few times. The best part? She is an absolute sweetheart. I had the honor of giving her her first pin of these games. When I walked up to my desk and Courtney said, "Don, have you met Kerri?" I almost passed out! I took a deep breath and said, "Kerri, I've wanted to meet you for a very long time. I'm a huge fan." She stood and chatted for a bit and then I had the guts to ask her for a picture. As you can see it is not the best, but I'm hoping to have a better one taken at some point. I don't know what the camera operator was thinking, but the height difference alone, I felt, called for a portrait format not landscape. :-)
I've met others in the past few days, and you never know when a gold medalist is going to walk in the door. One of my favorites was a speed walker from the 88 games that came in. It was just interesting to meet someone who had done this all before as a younger athlete.
We went out the other night to "Club Bud" and boy did I get in trouble. Never put Heinrich in a dance club AND announce that there is free beer. You all know me well enough to know that I then stumbled to the Taxi at 4 a.m. I was not alone. Four of us from the senior staff were kicked out at last call. Needless to say, yesterday was a very long day. We may go back, but I think the first priority is the Holland House. Same as Club Bud except they charge an OUTRAGEOUS $3.50 per beer. I'm not sure I'll be spending much time there. :-)
Pin tally:
Total Pins: 83
Keeper Pins: 62
Official USA Team Pins: 7 (Volleyball, Swimming, Water Polo, Gymnastics, Athletics, Shooting, Softball)
Unique Pins: Kim Rhode Bobblehead shooting pin (#484 of 500), and of course the Tyson Gymnast Chicken!!!!
Today's coups:
A Water Cube pin, An Embassy Suites Panda Bear, a USA House pin, and a classy silver Beijing Olympics pin.
The highlight of my trip so far though, has been meeting Kerri Strug.
She is somehow still sponsored by Bank of America and, because they flew her over here, she has been in to the family center quite a few times. The best part? She is an absolute sweetheart. I had the honor of giving her her first pin of these games. When I walked up to my desk and Courtney said, "Don, have you met Kerri?" I almost passed out! I took a deep breath and said, "Kerri, I've wanted to meet you for a very long time. I'm a huge fan." She stood and chatted for a bit and then I had the guts to ask her for a picture. As you can see it is not the best, but I'm hoping to have a better one taken at some point. I don't know what the camera operator was thinking, but the height difference alone, I felt, called for a portrait format not landscape. :-)
I've met others in the past few days, and you never know when a gold medalist is going to walk in the door. One of my favorites was a speed walker from the 88 games that came in. It was just interesting to meet someone who had done this all before as a younger athlete.
We went out the other night to "Club Bud" and boy did I get in trouble. Never put Heinrich in a dance club AND announce that there is free beer. You all know me well enough to know that I then stumbled to the Taxi at 4 a.m. I was not alone. Four of us from the senior staff were kicked out at last call. Needless to say, yesterday was a very long day. We may go back, but I think the first priority is the Holland House. Same as Club Bud except they charge an OUTRAGEOUS $3.50 per beer. I'm not sure I'll be spending much time there. :-)
Pin tally:
Total Pins: 83
Keeper Pins: 62
Official USA Team Pins: 7 (Volleyball, Swimming, Water Polo, Gymnastics, Athletics, Shooting, Softball)
Unique Pins: Kim Rhode Bobblehead shooting pin (#484 of 500), and of course the Tyson Gymnast Chicken!!!!
Today's coups:
A Water Cube pin, An Embassy Suites Panda Bear, a USA House pin, and a classy silver Beijing Olympics pin.
2008-08-11
Team USA!!!
It is day 5 at the Bank of America Hometown Hopefuls Family Center. So far there have been some amazing happenings around here. This morning, Natalie Coughlin (Go Bears!) won a gold medal. Yesterday The Men's 4x100m Relay won the gold, which they were not expected to do. In the afternoon Cullen Jones, a member of that relay team and a BofA sponsored athlete, came in for a press conference. I don' think I've been that close to a gold medal before. Evidently while he was here and I was helping his mom with her computer I actually bumped into him. Literally.
On Day 2, something I couldn't blog about before, George H.W. Bush was in for the grand opening ceremony. It was pretty cool. He wasn't here for very long, but he did give a speech and he did shake some hands. Besides, The Bush sighting means I have now met, seen, and/or been in the same room with all of America's ex-presidents. Not Bad. Not Bad.
As I've mentioned earlier, the pin trading is in overdrive. I've acquired a backstock of trading pins and am slowly improving the overall quality of the collection.
Recent additions have included the hysterical Tyson Chicken Gymnastics Pin:
Because I am closely involved with the athlete's families I've naturally amassed a collection of team pins. Each parent trying to outdo the others. Sports presently represented: Gymnastics, Men's Water Polo, Women's Water Polo, USA Shooting, Field Hockey, USA Swimming, Official USA Team Pins for: Swimming, Water Polo, and Softball. When I get out of here on the 15th I'll have a short chance to do some shopping. So far though, I'm saving money because I'm never awake, and not working, when stores are open.
We have worked 14 hours a day for the last 7 days, and I'm starting to feel it. Seriously, if my ticket weren't for the Gymnastics Women's All-Around competition I would consider sleeping in and just staying at home. However, I wouldn't miss this event for the world. Sadly, my request for tickets to any locker room was not honored.
There is a rally going on downstairs for the Women's Field Hockey team, and they are making lots of noise!!! Those girls are loud!! It's awesome. The entire team is here and right now there are some speeches going on. Oh. Speeches over and they are playing "Eye of the Tiger"! Nice.
There's a great vibe here and lots of great people. They, of course, all want to show me pictures of their children. It's like some sort of Kaffeeklatsch in here sometimes. "Now this is my Michael at the PanAm Games." "This is my Mary at the World Championships." It's a bizarre Kaffeeklatsch, but a Klatsch nonetheless.
Speaking of which Zenaida Coughlin, Natalie Coughlin's mom (GO BEARS!), was just here and asked if I had heard that Natalie has won a Gold, Silver, and a Bronze so far. She was beaming. As would any mother. (Dayton, Julie, and Rob, I sent her heartfelt Cal Congratulations.)
Aside from pin trading and shoulder and wrist injuries caused by lifting laptops all day - I wish this place was stocked with Macbook Airs- there isn't much to report. Lots of stories from families. In addition to this I occasionally feel as if I am trapped in some sort of bizarre Chinese prison where everyone speaks english and wears red white and blue.
On Day 2, something I couldn't blog about before, George H.W. Bush was in for the grand opening ceremony. It was pretty cool. He wasn't here for very long, but he did give a speech and he did shake some hands. Besides, The Bush sighting means I have now met, seen, and/or been in the same room with all of America's ex-presidents. Not Bad. Not Bad.
As I've mentioned earlier, the pin trading is in overdrive. I've acquired a backstock of trading pins and am slowly improving the overall quality of the collection.
Recent additions have included the hysterical Tyson Chicken Gymnastics Pin:
Because I am closely involved with the athlete's families I've naturally amassed a collection of team pins. Each parent trying to outdo the others. Sports presently represented: Gymnastics, Men's Water Polo, Women's Water Polo, USA Shooting, Field Hockey, USA Swimming, Official USA Team Pins for: Swimming, Water Polo, and Softball. When I get out of here on the 15th I'll have a short chance to do some shopping. So far though, I'm saving money because I'm never awake, and not working, when stores are open.
We have worked 14 hours a day for the last 7 days, and I'm starting to feel it. Seriously, if my ticket weren't for the Gymnastics Women's All-Around competition I would consider sleeping in and just staying at home. However, I wouldn't miss this event for the world. Sadly, my request for tickets to any locker room was not honored.
There is a rally going on downstairs for the Women's Field Hockey team, and they are making lots of noise!!! Those girls are loud!! It's awesome. The entire team is here and right now there are some speeches going on. Oh. Speeches over and they are playing "Eye of the Tiger"! Nice.
There's a great vibe here and lots of great people. They, of course, all want to show me pictures of their children. It's like some sort of Kaffeeklatsch in here sometimes. "Now this is my Michael at the PanAm Games." "This is my Mary at the World Championships." It's a bizarre Kaffeeklatsch, but a Klatsch nonetheless.
Speaking of which Zenaida Coughlin, Natalie Coughlin's mom (GO BEARS!), was just here and asked if I had heard that Natalie has won a Gold, Silver, and a Bronze so far. She was beaming. As would any mother. (Dayton, Julie, and Rob, I sent her heartfelt Cal Congratulations.)
Aside from pin trading and shoulder and wrist injuries caused by lifting laptops all day - I wish this place was stocked with Macbook Airs- there isn't much to report. Lots of stories from families. In addition to this I occasionally feel as if I am trapped in some sort of bizarre Chinese prison where everyone speaks english and wears red white and blue.
2008-08-09
Pin Collecting, Pin Collecting, Pin Collecting
It has been an absolute frenzy today!!! I actually had to part with a particular favorite pin in order to guarantee a later trade that will be well worth it. A gymnastics mom wanted my gymnastics pin-fuh wah gymnast.
In exchange I received a USA Gymnastics Beijing 2008, and a Team ASAC Beijing 2008-Team ASAC is Alicia Sacamone. Pretty awesome trade!!!! And she's working on finding me a Romanian Gymnastics team pin. I can't wait for that one. I will have to add it to the Eastern bloc pins I have collected, i.e. 1980 Russian Speed Skating, 1984 Sarajevo. Not to mention the Romanian Gymnastics Dynasty.
She was here with a group of friends and for several minutes my desk was a bees nest of activity while we negotiated fair trades.
When it comes to pin trading my general fondness is for things of interest to me, i.e. gymnastics, figure skating, diving, olympic teams, and some corporations. One of my favorites from Salt Lake City is the Pilsbury dough boy, as well as Lithuanian team pin and the Thailand Team pin. Because of the duration of gymnastics competition I should have little difficulty getting ahold of more gymnastics pins, although the hopes of a Hamm autograph are dashed! I felt like I had been told Santa Claus wasn't real when I heard that Morgan had dropped out. I was so hoping to meet him and/or....... Furthermore, now that Morgan has dropped out, Paul is no longer on the guest list for the center. Thus dashing my hopes and sending me home empty Hammded.
I digress. Today's pin coups include the gymnastics pins as well as a Chicago 2016 candidate city pin, a promise for a better Water Polo team pin, and the piece de resistance--it's not a pin, but--The U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service medallion minted for the Olympics!!! Way cool!
More later
In exchange I received a USA Gymnastics Beijing 2008, and a Team ASAC Beijing 2008-Team ASAC is Alicia Sacamone. Pretty awesome trade!!!! And she's working on finding me a Romanian Gymnastics team pin. I can't wait for that one. I will have to add it to the Eastern bloc pins I have collected, i.e. 1980 Russian Speed Skating, 1984 Sarajevo. Not to mention the Romanian Gymnastics Dynasty.
She was here with a group of friends and for several minutes my desk was a bees nest of activity while we negotiated fair trades.
When it comes to pin trading my general fondness is for things of interest to me, i.e. gymnastics, figure skating, diving, olympic teams, and some corporations. One of my favorites from Salt Lake City is the Pilsbury dough boy, as well as Lithuanian team pin and the Thailand Team pin. Because of the duration of gymnastics competition I should have little difficulty getting ahold of more gymnastics pins, although the hopes of a Hamm autograph are dashed! I felt like I had been told Santa Claus wasn't real when I heard that Morgan had dropped out. I was so hoping to meet him and/or....... Furthermore, now that Morgan has dropped out, Paul is no longer on the guest list for the center. Thus dashing my hopes and sending me home empty Hammded.
I digress. Today's pin coups include the gymnastics pins as well as a Chicago 2016 candidate city pin, a promise for a better Water Polo team pin, and the piece de resistance--it's not a pin, but--The U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service medallion minted for the Olympics!!! Way cool!
More later
2008-08-08
Greetings from The Family Center!
I'm sitting right now listening to the opening ceremonies on TV. It's an amazing show, and I'm seeing it long before you. It's quite fantastic. If you get the chance, watch it! The local staff are absolutely mesmerized. It's really, really fun to watch. The Olympics are great source of national pride for them. During the past week I have been handed no fewer than 6 Chinese flags on the streets of Beijing. The staff are so excited just to be here. It must be a little conflicting for them to be working so hard to make our center a great place for the Americans to hang out, while they are also wanting to root for their Chinese favorites.
I must say it is quite fascinating to me to see the president of China at the opening ceremonies. Such a delight after all of the fears and paranoia in the US following 9/11.
It's been amazingly busy around here getting the place ready for all of these guests, and it looks fantastic. We have received a lot of great compliments on the look. We are always left wishing they had seen the place a week ago. I swear, one evening I did nothing but move plants for 3 hours. And I thought I had a lot of plants. It was an interesting lesson in the Chinese lack of symmetry. Or, shall I say, a perceived lack of symmetry. I moved plants from here to there and everywhere just trying to establish a sense of balance in each room. It was absolutely awful. I'm not kidding this place must have 50 plants, and, quite frankly, they were all in the wrong place. Once they were in place it was time to water. And the drama went on.
Now we are open and having a great time. The place is just buzzing with the opening ceremonies. There has already been a frenzy of pin trading. And I'm sure you are aware of my fondness for that. Today's coups include: USA Water Polo, USA Swimming, ARD/ZDF (German TV), and an NBC pin. I definitely keep team pins. The system is worked out, so that I always know what I'm willing to give up. Trading is a complicated deal and the intricacies are, to me, very fun. The bad news is that someone hooked me up with olympinclub.com. Dangerous. Very Dangerous. If I have to be bailed out of a Chinese brothel you will know it is because I sold my soul to buy more pins.
Aside from working here at the family center for the last several days, I've not much to report to you. One of my tasks yesterday was to buy lanterns to put on tables here. While at the market I managed to buy an oil painting (pictures to be posed on Flickr) and a bust of Chairman Mao. I don't really know how it happened. I was shopping for lanterns one moment and moments later I was walking home with a bust.
At the close of day one, I just want to say that I love the energy of the family center. There is just so much activity. It makes a 12 hour day with two twenty minute breaks seem so acceptable. Of course, there is down time. After all I am blogging now and we are still open. The families are great, the athletes are great, and the vibe is fantastic.
As for the food, that may have to be the topic of its own post once I've had a minute to organize some photos. "Meat Patty Explode The Stomach" was a dinner to remember, and I'm pretty sure I'll go back as soon as I'm allowed to dine out on my own.
More to come soon.
I must say it is quite fascinating to me to see the president of China at the opening ceremonies. Such a delight after all of the fears and paranoia in the US following 9/11.
It's been amazingly busy around here getting the place ready for all of these guests, and it looks fantastic. We have received a lot of great compliments on the look. We are always left wishing they had seen the place a week ago. I swear, one evening I did nothing but move plants for 3 hours. And I thought I had a lot of plants. It was an interesting lesson in the Chinese lack of symmetry. Or, shall I say, a perceived lack of symmetry. I moved plants from here to there and everywhere just trying to establish a sense of balance in each room. It was absolutely awful. I'm not kidding this place must have 50 plants, and, quite frankly, they were all in the wrong place. Once they were in place it was time to water. And the drama went on.
Now we are open and having a great time. The place is just buzzing with the opening ceremonies. There has already been a frenzy of pin trading. And I'm sure you are aware of my fondness for that. Today's coups include: USA Water Polo, USA Swimming, ARD/ZDF (German TV), and an NBC pin. I definitely keep team pins. The system is worked out, so that I always know what I'm willing to give up. Trading is a complicated deal and the intricacies are, to me, very fun. The bad news is that someone hooked me up with olympinclub.com. Dangerous. Very Dangerous. If I have to be bailed out of a Chinese brothel you will know it is because I sold my soul to buy more pins.
Aside from working here at the family center for the last several days, I've not much to report to you. One of my tasks yesterday was to buy lanterns to put on tables here. While at the market I managed to buy an oil painting (pictures to be posed on Flickr) and a bust of Chairman Mao. I don't really know how it happened. I was shopping for lanterns one moment and moments later I was walking home with a bust.
At the close of day one, I just want to say that I love the energy of the family center. There is just so much activity. It makes a 12 hour day with two twenty minute breaks seem so acceptable. Of course, there is down time. After all I am blogging now and we are still open. The families are great, the athletes are great, and the vibe is fantastic.
As for the food, that may have to be the topic of its own post once I've had a minute to organize some photos. "Meat Patty Explode The Stomach" was a dinner to remember, and I'm pretty sure I'll go back as soon as I'm allowed to dine out on my own.
More to come soon.
2008-08-05
Photos Online
I have posted some photos to Flickr from Beijing. I'll continue to work on editing them. For now enjoy the view and imagine why I might have taken the photo.
The link to the photos is "Vagabunt Photo Album" on the right side of the page.
The link to the photos is "Vagabunt Photo Album" on the right side of the page.
2008-08-04
15 Hour Days
As you have most likely noticed the posts have slowed way down. Yesterday's 15 hour day is one of the reasons. We were told in the morning that we needed to be "camera ready" at the family center by this morning. Getty Images is coming in today to take pictures on behalf of SportsMark and we needed to have everything looking nice. This is not usually an issue, except that we don't actually open until Friday. Anyone who has ever opened a restaurant before knows that the place is an absolute mess as much as 24 hours before opening. Well, we had to clean that mess 3 days early.
That isn't entirely bad. After all, once it is done, it's done. However, now we have a lot of time to kill while we continue to train the local staff and finish out the week before we open on Friday.
The center is absolutely beautiful with some great sculptures, lots of signs, a bar that was built just for the games, cabanas outside, bathrooms outside (also built just for the games), and the rooftop tents. It's great.
Speaking of bathrooms. I've never seen anything like this. I haven't asked yet whether this is at all normal, but the pipes in this place can't handle any paper. NONE. I think you understand. This means that next to every toilet sits a garbage can (with a motion sensor lid opener) where ALL paper must go. It's one of the more disgusting things I've ever seen in a civilized country. The upside is that there will be three employees whose only job will be to empty those garbage cans.
I'm also learning that the Chinese are a very service oriented people. So far they have been very friendly, even though we don't speak their language. Last night I was having some drama involving a bonsai tree and its placement near the front door. Not so difficult you say? Well, here's the tree:
It is way too big to put on a table, because the ceilings are rather low in the entry way. I finally found some granite stepping stones that I could stack up and make a makeshift table out of. When I went to haul them in to the center the security staff insisted on helping me. In fact, they insisted on doing the job themselves. Think about that. The security people did something besides their job. This seems to apply to everyone. 3M was in yesterday installing some items (can't tell you what for security reasons), and they were also helping us move tables, plants, all sorts of things. It is a concept that we no longer understand in the states, and I'm sure I'm just as guilty as the next guy. "Oh that? Not in my job description."
We are all very excited to open the family center. I wish I could give you more details, but there are some seriously VIPs expected to come in during the games. There was a bombing in China this week, which has a few people more than a little nervous, and we are all trusting that the security contingency plans that are in place will be enough. Because of all of these, I will not be able to share any photos of the center, nor can I tell you about any of our special guests until after they have gone. I'm most excited about the fact that Paul Hamm is still registered and because he previously won a gold medal they might still allow him full privileges at the center. I have promised to give him the full VIP treatment. ;->
That isn't entirely bad. After all, once it is done, it's done. However, now we have a lot of time to kill while we continue to train the local staff and finish out the week before we open on Friday.
The center is absolutely beautiful with some great sculptures, lots of signs, a bar that was built just for the games, cabanas outside, bathrooms outside (also built just for the games), and the rooftop tents. It's great.
Speaking of bathrooms. I've never seen anything like this. I haven't asked yet whether this is at all normal, but the pipes in this place can't handle any paper. NONE. I think you understand. This means that next to every toilet sits a garbage can (with a motion sensor lid opener) where ALL paper must go. It's one of the more disgusting things I've ever seen in a civilized country. The upside is that there will be three employees whose only job will be to empty those garbage cans.
I'm also learning that the Chinese are a very service oriented people. So far they have been very friendly, even though we don't speak their language. Last night I was having some drama involving a bonsai tree and its placement near the front door. Not so difficult you say? Well, here's the tree:
It is way too big to put on a table, because the ceilings are rather low in the entry way. I finally found some granite stepping stones that I could stack up and make a makeshift table out of. When I went to haul them in to the center the security staff insisted on helping me. In fact, they insisted on doing the job themselves. Think about that. The security people did something besides their job. This seems to apply to everyone. 3M was in yesterday installing some items (can't tell you what for security reasons), and they were also helping us move tables, plants, all sorts of things. It is a concept that we no longer understand in the states, and I'm sure I'm just as guilty as the next guy. "Oh that? Not in my job description."
We are all very excited to open the family center. I wish I could give you more details, but there are some seriously VIPs expected to come in during the games. There was a bombing in China this week, which has a few people more than a little nervous, and we are all trusting that the security contingency plans that are in place will be enough. Because of all of these, I will not be able to share any photos of the center, nor can I tell you about any of our special guests until after they have gone. I'm most excited about the fact that Paul Hamm is still registered and because he previously won a gold medal they might still allow him full privileges at the center. I have promised to give him the full VIP treatment. ;->
2008-08-01
Wo Jiao Don
Yes folks, I'm learning a little Chinese while here. Two incredibly important words are Ni hao and sia sia (hello and thank you). Our apartments seem quite fancy in that we have a doorman that doesn't like it when we open a door ourselves. His job is to see us coming and to open the door. Then he runs ahead and opens the next door for us. This equates to Door 1: Ni hao, Door 2: sia sia. The local staff at the family center will also be teaching us some words. One a day, in fact.
So when I get home I'll have some torturous tourist Chinese under my belt. It's great though being able to say hello when entering a store, because it is so important to them to say hello in that situation.
Local staff: So as part of running this family center for the athletes, we always hire local staff who work for us for about 3 weeks. It's been very interesting here, because so many people in China are doing such massive amounts of volunteer work to make sure the games go well, that Clair had a tough time convincing the workers that they would be paid for their work. They are great. They are all very excited to have us in Beijing, and have already been working very hard to make this a great place.
Today we assembled about 1000 of the 3500 gift bags we have to put together. Every guest at the center receives a backpack, a poncho (oh so comfortable in the Beijing humidity), kleenex, a memo clip, a cap-n-t-shirt combo, and a water bottle. It's a lot of work putting them together, and of course we don't have storage space for them all. So, it's been a logistical nightmare. However, we'll figure it out and get it all together.
The internet cafe, where I will be working, looks like some sort of space-age departure lounge. I may need to go back and buy leisure suit just to fit in there. :)
Well, I'm exhausted and needing some rest so I'm going to head to bed. More tomorrow.
So when I get home I'll have some torturous tourist Chinese under my belt. It's great though being able to say hello when entering a store, because it is so important to them to say hello in that situation.
Local staff: So as part of running this family center for the athletes, we always hire local staff who work for us for about 3 weeks. It's been very interesting here, because so many people in China are doing such massive amounts of volunteer work to make sure the games go well, that Clair had a tough time convincing the workers that they would be paid for their work. They are great. They are all very excited to have us in Beijing, and have already been working very hard to make this a great place.
Today we assembled about 1000 of the 3500 gift bags we have to put together. Every guest at the center receives a backpack, a poncho (oh so comfortable in the Beijing humidity), kleenex, a memo clip, a cap-n-t-shirt combo, and a water bottle. It's a lot of work putting them together, and of course we don't have storage space for them all. So, it's been a logistical nightmare. However, we'll figure it out and get it all together.
The internet cafe, where I will be working, looks like some sort of space-age departure lounge. I may need to go back and buy leisure suit just to fit in there. :)
Well, I'm exhausted and needing some rest so I'm going to head to bed. More tomorrow.
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