Keeping it real

**Disclaimer - I'm fine, I'll be fine, life goes on, no one is perfect, no where is perfect, we live in a fallen world among fallen people, don't worry about me, pray for me and I'll pray for you**


I woke up today salty. And not the Matthew 5 kind either. But the newest salty, as in irritable and sort tempered.

I thought of the day that lay ahead of me and quite frankly I didn't want to do it. Period.

I had a dull sinus headache. And my left hip was aching from laying on my side too long.

Then Stephen asked me something and I answered. Not very lovingly. And then I announced my current temperament. And he replied, "I know".

You see, we were told at supper the night before that breakfast would be moved 30min earlier so we could "have a rest" from 7:30-8:00am before the morning meeting. Then people wouldn't be late. I bristled at this. Breakfast being served from 7:30-8:00am wasn't the cause of the tardiness. And besides I wanted another 30min in the mornings at home, not a "rest" at work.

And we found out that we were moving into the new offices today. The ones that don't have HEAT yet. Are you kidding? Why the rush? Why not install the heat and THEN move over there. And so I didn't want to do that nor did I want Stephen to have to do that.

But I summoned my "adultness" and went to shower. Drying off afterward I hit my elbow on the thin pointed edge of the soap dish and cut my elbow. It was in a hard to reach area so I had to summon Stephen to help me clean it up and put on a band-aid. This did not help my attitude.

Not a very good design.

After breakfast, I did some laundry (yay for running water) and worked on some lesson plans. Saltiness started fading. Then we were served pig's blood as part of lunch. I kid you not! Here's the description, "Pig blood curd, also known as “blood tofu” or “blood pudding”, is a popular Cantonese delicacy in Hong Kong and southern China. It is commonly served with carbohydrates, such as noodles or congee." Y'all, no. I just couldn't. Nope. Not doing it. At least not knowingly. Steve is another story altogether.

I spent the afternoon alone, curled under a blanket, reading and sipping a cup of coffee. There's no amazing ending to this tale. Just a day endured. Much like other days endured at different times by everyone else.

"The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases:

His mercies never come to an end;

they are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness."

Lamentations 3:22-23

Snow!

This morning Steve and I were having a typical morning here. Around 7:20am before breakfast at the company at 7:30 we looked out and this was the view that greeted us!

The view this morning from our sitting area at the hotel

To his experienced eyes, Steve guessed we had about 5in of snow. At this point keep in mind that we had researched the weather in Jingmen before we moved. Because of what we read we didn't pack any boots or even much cold weather gear. We were expecting a winter similar to SC - 50s for the highs and 30s for the lows with a couple of crazy days thrown into the mix. So I grabbed the one pair of wool socks I brought and the slippers provided by the hotel and we walked in to work in tennis shoes. After breakfast, I took off my wet shoes and worked in socks and slippers until lunch.

Literally walking in Stephen's footsteps to avoid the deep snow

Tiny hotel slippers on my big ol' American feet!

This culture struggles with closing doors and heating common areas. This morning the factory door was standing open and I could see my breath inside while making the picture below. Thankfully, each office has it's own temperature control so the American offices are quite toasty! However, due to this open window, no heat policy, the pipes in the bathrooms have frozen at the sinks and the washing machine. We'll see how that plays out!

First phrase to learn in class: "Close the door!"

Shortly before lunch I received a message from Lollie, HR Department Lead and the best English speaker. They were heading out to play and take pictures. Steve and I joined them (very briefly). They haven't had this much snow here in about 10 years so there was MUCH excitement in the area. Most of the office/engineering staff are in their 20s and from other areas of China so this was the FIRST time they had experienced snow.

Massive snow ball fight. Thankfully they don't know us well enough yet!

Attempting to sled on a shovel

Starting a snowman

We're guessing it's a dog since this is the "Year of the Dog" in China

The couple below is looking forward to Wednesday when we FINALLY climb above freezing and they have vowed to bring back some snow gear before next winter. At least that way it will be the warmest winter on record!

Crazy is Normal

“Tell us your name, where you’re from and one interesting fact about yourself."

If you’ve ever been in a classroom, you’ve been forced to answer these questions or ones similar. They are my least favorite aspect of my least favorite week of school: syllabus week. Until now. Because finally, in 2018, after completing fourteen years of education and giving many dumb introductory sentences of myself, I have an easy answer to that third question. Thanks to my parents (as always).

“Hi, my name is Maria, I’m from Greenville, SC…and my interesting fact is that my parents moved to China over Christmas.”

Boom. Drop the mic. Students everywhere bow as one of their own conquers the dreaded task.

Ok, I’ll cut the drama. But I’ve said that sentence (with minor variations) about six to seven times over the last ten days, and it always gets a reaction.

No, people don’t start singing The Sound of Music to me (although that’s happened *rolls eyes*).

Instead, they look at me like I’m crazy. And I get it—I know the Juttons are definitely a minority when it comes to the choices we make and the opportunities we take. But what others consider crazy or risky is pretty much our family’s normal by now. That’s why when my parents and I had our weekly video chat in July during my second month of being in Botswana (remember, crazy is normal) and they casually dropped the fact that my dad was looking into overseas job options into our conversation, I knew they’d end up far away, very soon.

After people stop giving me the “that’s insane” look, they typically have asked me how I felt when I found out my parents were moving and how I felt when I dropped my mom off at the airport and watched her walk away and how I feel now and…you get the picture. People are curious and concerned and I’m fairly logical and mostly hate talking about feelings. So I figured I’d answer those questions now, but keep in mind the whole crazy is normal thing, so you understand where I’m coming from.

I had three main reactions when the China job offer was officially accepted: betrayal, intense jealousy and delight.

My first reaction, betrayal, is probably not what you’re thinking. You see, when I decided to go to USC, my parents and I made a deal: they would not live anywhere cooler and more exotic than Columbia, SC (see, I always knew they might move away again). Listen to me: THEY BROKE THAT DEAL. Read any and all of their previous posts for proof. Jingmen, China is WAY cooler than Columbia, SC (sorry, gamecocks). Also, I reminded them of that deal and they IGNORED me. Anyway. Betrayal.

Second, intense jealousy. You people who think we’re crazy, as in “why would they ever do that, they’re insane and what about the SAFETY” won’t understand this. But I was bitten by the proverbial adventure bug at the tender age of six, when we moved to Romania. It kills me to hear the daily escapades that go along with living life in another country and see all the amazing, sweet friends they are making. But in the end, the third reaction trumps the previous two.

Delight. I am so excited for my parents as they start this new chapter of their lives. I cannot count the number of times we’ve talked (jokingly and seriously) about what they would do after I went to college and eventually moved away. They always remind me that they had a pretty great life before I came along (and I counter this with statistical evidence to the contrary with which I shall not bore you) and of their hopes to continue that life in these years.

It’s going to get a little sappy here, so bear with me. My parents are literally my goals. They have taken and are continuing to take opportunities that most people would be too scared to consider. They are a picture of what I hope my own 40s contain: a strong walk with Christ and a marriage filled with dedication to each other, adventure and laughter. They are a true representation of one of my favorite Scripture verses, 2 Timothy 1:7, which says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

That’s about all I have; sorry for any rambling. This literally popped in my head last night as I was about to sleep and it’s more fun than reading textbooks. Sorry professors. 

It encourages me so much to see so many people’s comments on all my parents’ posts about China and how much support they (and I) have. Love you all!

-Maria, whose parents moved to China and left her all alone

Sometimes it's the little things

This afternoon as I walked back to the company I saw the cafeteria assistant busy gathering green onions that in fact did end up in our supper tonight. She greeted me warmly with a huge smile. She tries to wash my dishes for me and I attempt to bring them to the kitchen when she's busy so I can help and wash them myself. And when I succeed she laughs and jokingly scolds me in Chinese. I snapped this picture of her from the window after I went inside.

When we left the building after supper, we could see some of the guys playing ping pong. I told Steve he should join them, that it didn't matter to me if he stayed for a bit to play. So we ended up both going in and I even played a game against Steve (he plays left handed against me so I have a chance), then against Lollie, HR director, since I won, and finally against Miles, technology department. Miles beat me though so my turn was over. Then he took on Stephen.

I sat through several matches and then decided to head home. Steve opted to stay for another 30 minutes or so. Not a big deal since we can see the hotel from the company. As I walked outside it was dark and we don't have street lights but that didn't bother me since I grew up in the country. I could vaguely see someone across the courtyard walking the same direction as I was going. I heard the person start to run to catch up with me. I looked over my shoulder and realized it was the cafeteria lady. She caught up and linked arms with me. And we walked that way to the road while chatting about the weather and if it would snow. Or at least I think that's what we were talking and laughing about (she doesn't speak any English)! But we laughed and parted ways at the road. And I walked away with damp eyes because friends are everywhere if you're willing to look for them.

Go Big or Go Home

Our family enjoys experiencing different cultures. We believe that when you're in another culture you should "go big or go home", meaning... eat native as much as possible, take the public transportation, and live life alongside the locals. So that's exactly what we set out to do on our day off.

Steve studying what we would discover are inaccurate bus routes

We headed out mid-morning to catch the bus to the smaller mall, do a little shopping, eat lunch and catch the bus back home. Steve checked the bus route online to the best of our ability, grabbed our phones with Google translate, snapped a quick picture of the front of our hotel (in case we needed the name in an emergency).

Best picture I took ALL day. Read on to discover why!

Then we walked to the road and watched for the bus. We are in such a rural area there's only ONE bus so no confusion there. There's no real bus stops out here either so you just flag down the driver.

Here comes the bus!

We flagged one down and boarded to the shocked stares of the locals. We may just be the first foreigners on their bus.

Yes we even took a selfie on the bus because we have no shame.

Once we reached the town area we had to switch buses. We switched onto what we thought was the bus line that would take us to the mall. We rode and rode and finally the bus stopped. We were the only two people left on the bus. The driver looked at us and started asking questions...in Chinese. Google translate to the rescue! We were NOT on the correct bus but he told us the number of the bus that would take us where we needed to be. Yay! So we sat on the bus while he took his 10min break and rode with him to the correct stop for the other bus.

All alone on the bus. Whoops!

Smooth sailing to the mall. At the mall we walked around some and checked out the grocery section. We had quite a few stares and some of the younger people tried out their English on us. We bought a few snacks and some drinks.

Entrance to the mall

Chip flavors that we didn't choose

Soy sauce selection

Then we ate lunch in the mall. Again the translate app was a great tool and we quickly ordered everything we wanted and a bowl of soup that we didn't know we ordered but was quite tasty so no big deal.

Then we went out to find the bus back to the hotel. We got on the first bus and looked for the stop to change to the rural bus back to our new home. We exited where we thought it should be, crossed the street and walked to the bus stop. Nope, not our bus. So we had to decide which direction on the street to go for the next stop and hopefully our rural bus. We chose the direction of the hotel and started walking.

And we walked.

And we walked.

Then we walked through a construction area and a farmers market where no white man had ever set foot before (at least that's what it felt like based on the stares).

Then we walked to the yet another bus stop that still wasn't our bus. But we were heading toward the hotel so we reasoned that eventually the bus would come back to this road.

Then the sidewalk ended and we walked along the main road.

Yes, we were basically walking along a highway

And then we walked some more.

And then Steve spotted a place called The Villas. There is a hotel there and we reasoned that we could find someone to just call us a cab.

So with The Villas looking like a mirage in the distance we walked on.

Once at The Villas we found some people and with the help (yet again) of Google translate we thought we called a cab. Turned out the man that was calling was really just calling his military buddy. He showed up in his car and we all piled in. I showed them the picture of the hotel I had thankfully snapped on our way out. Off we went with much laughing as we talked back and forth through the phone app.

They drove us straight to our front door. We definitely overpaid by Chinese standards but it was well worth the $17 to us!

Back in our room Steve pulled up a map and figured out we walked 4.2 miles from that last bus stop to The Villas. We had almost 5 miles to go! Then he began to figure out what we did wrong and what we'll do different next time. Because that's how we roll.

So at the end of the day we certainly went big and thankfully we went home too!

Lunar Baby Celebration

It is a custom in China to celebrate the one month birthday of a newborn baby.

You can read about this tradition HERE.

One of the managers at the company has a newborn son. The ENTIRE company was invited to the celebration. It was amazing to see all the employees included from the heads of departments, administrative assistants, cafeteria staff and janitors.

About half of the people at the party

We went to a local restaurant where there was an entire room set up for us. We sat around these large circular tables. The middle circle rotates and you just spin it around to what you want and serve yourself. Everyone added money into a red envelope for the host.

During the meal I noticed two of the female employees at our table looking at us and giggling. They told me that Stephen is much happier and relaxed now that I'm here. They said they could see how much we love each other.  So sweet.

We even had goodie bags to take home. They were full of cookies (plain little butter cookies) and chocolate (tiny little Hershey bars).

Afterward we went back to the new Father's house and met his wife, newborn son and 2 year old daughter. It was fun to be included!

A Day in the Life...

Several people have asked me what I'm doing, what I'm eating, where we're living - and the list goes on and on.

With that in mind I decide to chronicle my day today!

I started the morning off with a shower while Stephen finished sleeping. Our hot water is in a tank above the shower and you can see the temperature of the water drop as you use it. It takes a while to heat back up so we stagger our showers. The water is about 75 degrees Celsius at first and drops to the 60s (for Dana) or the 50s (for Stephen).                                                             

Hot Water Heater

This is the sink area of our bathroom. It is the only mirror in our hotel suite. Sadly there isn't an outlet in the room.

I've had to improvise and use the flat screen TV to see my reflection as I dry my hair each morning. It works pretty well since I'm not very picky!

After my shower, while I'm waiting on Stephen to wake up I have my quiet time and this morning spent some time messaging with Maria.

When Stephen gets up he makes us some coffee. We have a hot water kettle in our room. Coffee is hard to find here so I brought back these single cup filter style coffee makers and some coffee. Last night we walked to the little rural community down the road and found some milk and sugar.

Coffee Station

Our suite consists of two rooms. A bedroom and bathroom and the sitting area. Thankfully it's fairly spacious as it appears our home is several months from a move in date! The Chinese believe that after a home is built it needs to "air out" for 3 months. I'm working on that.

Once we're both ready we head across the street to the company. Breakfast is served at 7:30am in the company cafeteria. This morning the offering was a red bean and rice porridge, hard boiled eggs, a pastry that had a slight pizza taste and a pastry filled with vegetables. There are also two communal dishes. So far we've had peanuts, bean sprouts, and leftovers from dinner the night before. Breakfast has been my favorite meal so far.

After breakfast we attended the morning meeting and then we both went to Steve's office. (My office should be ready soon). Steve did some design work and I started my lesson plans. I'm not sure when my classes will start but I have a better feel now about the proficiency of our co-workers.

Lunch is at 12 noon. Almost everyone eats at the company cafeteria for the mid-day meal. I forgot to take a picture, but lunch (and dinner too) consists of rice, a meat and veggie stir-fry, a side vegetable, soup (which is more like herb infused broth) and fruit for dessert. Also, everyone is responsible for washing their own dishes after the meal. 

The Chinese don't drink a beverage with their meals. The soup provides hydration. They realize now that Americans like a beverage so at breakfast they put our OJ in our place (I think they may be Baptists since it's assumed we'll sit in the same spot for every meal) and water is waiting for us at the other two meals.

Jutton spot at the end of the table next to the wall

After eating lunch we rest in our suite since lunch is 1.5 hours long. Work starts back at 1:30pm. Today we went over to the new offices and factory with our boss Abraham to see where my classroom will be located.

In the time remaining before dinner I helped Stephen organize his office a bit. It's looking better and we'll post more pictures in the days to come.

The common areas (hallways, meeting rooms, bathrooms) aren't heated at the company. Due to the temperature of the one western toilet seat I have begun using the Chinese stalls. Besides it's a great quad workout too!

It's amazing to see the Chinese engineers and Stephen figure out common ground and overcome the language barrier. Our co-workers are a fantastic group to work alongside.

The factory is ridiculously clean. This is the factory floor from the hallway outside Steve's office. It is mopped EVERY day. Everyday. By hand!

Dinner is at 5:30pm. This was tonight's meal. I'm not a big fan of some of the meats. They don't worry about bones. They just spit them out as they eat. I pick and choose my pieces. I don't like bones in my mouth. All the vegetables have been wonderful though.

After dinner we made a trip to Walmart for a few things. And basically Walmart is as crazy here as home. What's funny is that we're the weirdos that everyone is staring at in amazement!

In the evening we use our VPN and a laptop to watch the news and maybe a show from the USA. We have quite the set up in the entertainment area.

And for right now an early bedtime for me especially, as I'm recovering from jet lag.

Love you all!

Freezing and Malling

Chinese and their (non) use of heat.
The weather here in Jingmen is closely matching the deep freeze in South Carolina.  For the last 3 days, the daytime high temps have struggled to get to 32 deg F.   In this area of China, if you're not sitting in the room continuously, you can assume it's not heated.  For example, the hallways, lobby and other common areas of the hotel are not heated.  The hotel receptionists have their winter coats on all day.  Keep in mind, these buildings are concrete block style with little (or no) insulation.  With the company cook, Mol, on a break, I took breakfast this weekend at the hotel restaurant, a free standing building next door which is completely unheated right now. 

Since it's obviously not tourist season, I've dined alone (everyone feel bad for me now - ready...go), with the poor cook dressed like an Eskimo prepping food in the back.  The goal is to eat before your hands freeze.   The factory, which has been shut down all week is the same way.  Only the offices are heated.  The hallways and factory work areas are not - I feel bad for the production guys!  It's kinda nice for ping pong though, since you can play without getting sweaty :-)

Painting the town
When the going gets tough, the tough go to the mall.  After lunch on Saturday, my driver Sam deemed the roads to be passable for a trip to the Walmart, and the mall it resides under.  I needed some supplies as well as to pick up the laundry.  A couple of young guys tagged along with us.  Maybe they felt bad for the old foreigner, but more likely they just wanted something to do. 

Sam (driver), Mol (cook) and Peng Chong at the Mall

Most of them live in 1 room apartments near the factory.  At least a couple I've met have their families in other cities.  Since this is a startup company (and high risk), they haven't made the complete move until the company really gets established.   When the weather is like this, there is not much to do in the immediate area which is several miles away from downtown Jingmen.  Several of the guys come to the factory and just hang out during off days.

Tofu Pudding - don't knock it till you try...ok, just don't knock it.
After picking up some random supplies at Walmart for my room, we explored the entire 5 level mall.  Of course, I was most interested in the food court level, so we spent more time there.  I noticed a couple of booths serving some kind of sweet so I took a close look to check it out.  I thought it was ice cream.  However, when I got closer, I noticed it clearly wasn't. 

Tofu pudding station

The Chinese generally do not eat rich, heavy sweet stuff like the USA and other western countries.  Maybe in the big cities like Shanghai where there is more western influence (I have yet to see another non-Chinese besides myself anywhere), but not here in the heartland. 

My concoction - I saved time and let the guys choose for me.

At the tofu pudding station, you chose from 3 or 4 different colors of tofu.  Then you add toppings, which include fruit, nuts, seeds and I think some beans.  Since I had no idea what many of the toppings were, I let the guys pick mine for me.  Then they add...yes...hot water.  The hot water begins to melt the tofu and you get a kind of soup that is warm and sweet, but not near as sweet as a typical desert of ice cream or gelato. 

Movie and Dinner
So we finished up the afternoon at the top level which contains the movie theater.  I asked if they had The Last Jedi (I had yet to see it) out of curiosity, and the next showing started in 10 minutes.  So, we made a snap decision to go watch it in 3D.  The cost for the movie was 23 RMB (about $3.50 USD).  The movie was in English with Chinese subtitles.  I have a feeling Dana and I will take in more movies than we normally do while we're here.

Finally, we headed out for Dinner.  Sam drove us to a dumpling restaurant somewhere in Jingmen.  I couldn't find it again if my life depended on it, but it was great.

Dumpling assembly line!

Dumplings have become one of my favorite foods here and they have many different kinds.  Some stuffed with meat, some stuffed with veggies, some fried, etc etc.   The restaurant had plenty of other stuff too. 

For the record, pig tails are not that bad - they're not that good either

So, if dumplings aren't enough, and you're really craving a couple of pig tails or chicken feet, you can get those too. 

The biggest slippers I could find at Walmart, fit my big feet just barely

Well, that's all for now.  I just enjoyed a relaxing Sunday mostly at the hotel keeping warm, venturing out only for meals, a run and to play some ping pong at the factory.  My first real work week is about to begin.