Busy Busy Busy
This is the beginning of a new stage for me I think. Today D and J put on their new school uniforms. J looked like little girls always do in a new uniform - cute and smart and grown-up. D looked remarkably like he did in his old school uniform - plain scruffy. How do boys do that?
All four of us walked to the main gate to wait for the school bus. It arrived 5 minutes late. It was a small mini-bus, fitted with seat belts, and the seats covered in pristine white cotton. There was a friendly lady bus driver, and an Ayi in attendance to look after the children and make sure they were securely fastened in. There were three children already on the bus, all sitting seperately. I couldn't say what nationality they were, Korean maybe, none of them looked older than 6 and they all looked quite forlorn. J and D clambered aboard, very excited, hardly nervous at all, with J particularly looking forward to Maths for some reason. When we'd waved goodbye to them, S went off to work in a taxi. I went back home.
And now it is 8.40am, I have a whole day ahead of me. The Ayi has already washed up, put the first load of washing in (or item of washing I should probably say - we couldn't possibly have created a load in the 12 hours since she last did any washing) and is now busy ironing. I could of course spend the day playing Puzzle Mania on my new Sony PSP, but instead in true working-from-home pretence, I have brought all my bits and pieces up to the study on the top floor - a pile of papers, cards, brochures and leaflets that I have accumulated over the last week and now have to read and put in some sort of order.
I have the Learning Chinese prospectus from the Shanghai International College of Culture. I study this and see that there is a course that starts later this week. I decide that the one starting at the end of May is a better bet. I have several new flashcards to sort through (these are small cards that contain key locations in Chinese and English, for use in taxis). I have a brochure from the Medical Centre in Hongqiao, ready to be filed away under 'Hope I Never Need'. I have a large fold-out tourist map of Shanghai, a map of the Shanghai Underground and Bus Lines (yeah, right), and a "Home Delivery Shopping Service" brochure ("Goods are delivered in perfect condition - we accept the order through phone fax and email"). As well as all this, I have brought up my Guide to Customs and Etiquette in Shanghai, my Mandarin Phrase Book and my City Guide to Shanghai. I am ready - my pencils are metaphorically sharpened, and my work laid out in neat piles in front of me.
Now, where did I put my PSP?
All four of us walked to the main gate to wait for the school bus. It arrived 5 minutes late. It was a small mini-bus, fitted with seat belts, and the seats covered in pristine white cotton. There was a friendly lady bus driver, and an Ayi in attendance to look after the children and make sure they were securely fastened in. There were three children already on the bus, all sitting seperately. I couldn't say what nationality they were, Korean maybe, none of them looked older than 6 and they all looked quite forlorn. J and D clambered aboard, very excited, hardly nervous at all, with J particularly looking forward to Maths for some reason. When we'd waved goodbye to them, S went off to work in a taxi. I went back home.
And now it is 8.40am, I have a whole day ahead of me. The Ayi has already washed up, put the first load of washing in (or item of washing I should probably say - we couldn't possibly have created a load in the 12 hours since she last did any washing) and is now busy ironing. I could of course spend the day playing Puzzle Mania on my new Sony PSP, but instead in true working-from-home pretence, I have brought all my bits and pieces up to the study on the top floor - a pile of papers, cards, brochures and leaflets that I have accumulated over the last week and now have to read and put in some sort of order.
I have the Learning Chinese prospectus from the Shanghai International College of Culture. I study this and see that there is a course that starts later this week. I decide that the one starting at the end of May is a better bet. I have several new flashcards to sort through (these are small cards that contain key locations in Chinese and English, for use in taxis). I have a brochure from the Medical Centre in Hongqiao, ready to be filed away under 'Hope I Never Need'. I have a large fold-out tourist map of Shanghai, a map of the Shanghai Underground and Bus Lines (yeah, right), and a "Home Delivery Shopping Service" brochure ("Goods are delivered in perfect condition - we accept the order through phone fax and email"). As well as all this, I have brought up my Guide to Customs and Etiquette in Shanghai, my Mandarin Phrase Book and my City Guide to Shanghai. I am ready - my pencils are metaphorically sharpened, and my work laid out in neat piles in front of me.
Now, where did I put my PSP?
posted by Linda at 9:41 AM
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