This holiday season has been quite exciting despite having only Christmas and New Year Day free from the office. My sister appeared and disappeared, SB and I began an active housing search, I roasted a 10 kilo turkey, and brought fire to someone's home.
I will start with the sister. A few days before the holiday season I received a phone call from her. She had been laid off from her job as a nurse practitioner at a university in California, the latest victim of the state's enormous budget cuts. This was in July, around her birthday. She took it in stride and decided to pack her belongings into storage and take an extended vacation. She left in late August to visit Morocco, Spain, and then several parts of SE Asia. And then she would visit SB and me and stay with us for a bit while she figured out her next plan.
Well, months went by and there was no word from her aside from the occasional email answering my queries of "are you alive?" with "Oh, sorry, I won't be in HK next week as I planned because I am in Laos/Cambodia/Vietnam/Thailand/Indonesia. I gave up on waiting as she appeared to be having a great time.
Then a few weeks ago I answered the phone to hear her chirpily telling me that she was going to be in HK in two days so that we could spend Christmas together. I looked down at the red and white fake fur/dental floss, fluffy nothing I had just purchased and realized that SB would not be getting his Christmas ho ho ho this year. It was going to be a family holiday.
She arrived late at night with her large backpack of dirty laundry and dark tan. It was wonderful to see her. She stayed to spend Christmas on the beach with 30 of my favorite expat loners and as quickly as she appeared, she disappeared. As I was in the office on Wednesday I received a text message from her. She was flying out to Vietnam for New Year's eve with a Russian man she had been traveling with for the past month and then she was off to go see some Gibbons.
I remember when she was the responsible one. Now I work all day and night, wake up early on most weekends, and bake cookies for my teammates. I fold SB's t-shirts and socks lovingly and make plans in advance. And meanwhile the good sister is chasing monkeys with some Cossack. At least now I can chase SB around in my Christmas ho ho ho costume.
I will start with the sister. A few days before the holiday season I received a phone call from her. She had been laid off from her job as a nurse practitioner at a university in California, the latest victim of the state's enormous budget cuts. This was in July, around her birthday. She took it in stride and decided to pack her belongings into storage and take an extended vacation. She left in late August to visit Morocco, Spain, and then several parts of SE Asia. And then she would visit SB and me and stay with us for a bit while she figured out her next plan.
Well, months went by and there was no word from her aside from the occasional email answering my queries of "are you alive?" with "Oh, sorry, I won't be in HK next week as I planned because I am in Laos/Cambodia/Vietnam/Thailand/Indonesia. I gave up on waiting as she appeared to be having a great time.
Then a few weeks ago I answered the phone to hear her chirpily telling me that she was going to be in HK in two days so that we could spend Christmas together. I looked down at the red and white fake fur/dental floss, fluffy nothing I had just purchased and realized that SB would not be getting his Christmas ho ho ho this year. It was going to be a family holiday.
She arrived late at night with her large backpack of dirty laundry and dark tan. It was wonderful to see her. She stayed to spend Christmas on the beach with 30 of my favorite expat loners and as quickly as she appeared, she disappeared. As I was in the office on Wednesday I received a text message from her. She was flying out to Vietnam for New Year's eve with a Russian man she had been traveling with for the past month and then she was off to go see some Gibbons.
I remember when she was the responsible one. Now I work all day and night, wake up early on most weekends, and bake cookies for my teammates. I fold SB's t-shirts and socks lovingly and make plans in advance. And meanwhile the good sister is chasing monkeys with some Cossack. At least now I can chase SB around in my Christmas ho ho ho costume.
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