october national holiday

All of china gets about 5 days off for the national holiday, which yesterday was the 59th anniversary of the founding of the people's republic of china.

My company gave us 5 days off, but made us work saturday and sunday. It's been insane, managing a project that shipped monday, and finally glad to be over with it!

not to grumble or anything, but my manager took off for his motherland, without telling me about several other products I was in charge of shipping. Also we didn't have an appt person to ship our million packages, b/c they thot I was supposed to do it. And I was like, "1, I am a designer. 2, I don't speak or read chinese so I couldn't call DHL if I wanted to!" Yeah. that went over well... besides when the printer says they'll deliver at 5, they actually mean 7. Talk about chinese time! I managed to get home by 10pm, and slept very well.

Monday I spent talking to my folks back home, family and friends, tons of laundry, then caught pinapple pork for dinner with my friends and we headed out to the french apt for the evening. We were sitting around the coffee table eating chips and drinking. One my friends is an avid cyclist, and he took his visiting gf on a cycling expedition earlier that day... and anyhow she lost her voice entirely, and was forced to whisper all night. So she starts saying something, but the french music is going and we're like, "What? what? I can't hear you-" and she's attempting to yell, but only a whisp of air comes out. "the tv is on fire!" and we turn around and the tea light holder has all but gone up in flames, and we all try to put it out, and its burned right thru the plastic and in the inside is flaming and one guy poured his beer on it, yeah... It smelled terrible so we all decided it was time to leave.


Tuesday I had yet another wonderfully lesuirely morning and then went out with my friend Nicole to check out Qipu lu, a famous shopping street in Shanghai. Its the place where all the chinese go for deals, and big variety. Boy, it was a madhouse. ALL of shanghai was there, and you could barely move and it was huge and crazy!!!! All clothes, men's women's for every season, and many strange awkard things I would never bring myself to wear. we didn't buy anything and proceeded to go home.

Wednesday I went grocery shopping and made chicken pot pie- which was totally awesome smelling and I love the grocery store! I never get to cook during the week, so i was glad to do something rewardingly productive.