Homesickness

Homesickness is a funny beast that comes and goes as it pleases- often coming during the most stressful weeks at work and going whenever a polar vortex hits Michigan.  The past week has been incredibly stressful work wise, and like everyone when things get stressful, it makes me want to escape. Except I don't want to escape to a tropical beach. I want to escape to my sister's large plush L shaped couch in Grand Rapids, with her across from me, a blanket on my lap, and a cup of tea in my hand. No, make that a glass of Malbec.  

I always assumed that homesickness would get better over time, but I was dead wrong. Every year it comes more often, stays longer, and hits deeper. Every year the things that bother you about a job or a host country or a situation get a little harder to swallow. I know that this week and these moments will pass, that things will get better and the crabbiness will subside, that I will remember that 14 degrees Fahrenheit is actually really cold and stop craving Michigan so badly, but until then it just hurts. 

Homesickness is an illness for which there is no cure. No bowl of ice cream or glass of wine or Skype chat will ever allow my heart to be in all the places it wants to be at once. No airplane can actually take my heart home. So I turn the AC a few degrees lower, pull the blanket up under my chin, and go to bed early. Because some days are just like that. Even in "Australia". 

Adjustments: there's a teenager in the house!

Life with an 18 year old is interesting- some things I knew to expect, others I couldn't see coming. One of the biggest differences between having Robin here verses every other roommate I've had in my life is that for the first time, I am responsible for feeding another human being on a daily basis. You mothers out there will get a good chuckle out of this, but this whole meal planning and grocery shopping thing is kind of crazy. Especially for a girl who has basically lived off a minimart for over two years and grocery shopped from time to time, but certainly not regularly. But somehow, when you're feeding two people, that whole cooking thing and buying food seem a bit more important. 

So here I am, grocery shopping weekly and throwing around words like meal planning. Don't get me wrong, we still eat food from the shops on my street and go out some, but even cooking a few meals a week requires some coordination and planning, especially when you're feeding a pescatarin. 

So I would say food and feeding are adjustment number one. 

Adjustment number two is more subtle, but probably more profound. Awareness. I am suddenly aware at all times of another persons movements, especially the first few days of volunteering at ICS. It's kind if a strange feeling for someone who never really had to think about anyone else before. At first, the awareness was exhausting and overwhelming, but I've gotten used to it and she's more independent around the school now, so it's definitely less intense. But still kind of there- which is a good thing when you're keeping an eye on someone else's child in a foreign country! 

Adjustment number three is that I feel and sound a lot like my mother. There are things she will do and I see myself in her, doing or saying those things to my mom. Not big or negative things, just how an 18 year old does the dishes or talks about their day or walks down a sidewalk. I look at her and smile and understand my mom just a little bit better. 

On skate grabbing in spins

Can I just add that I'd like to see them change the rules for levels in the layback spin? Can we not also give a level four for a perfect classic layback held for a bazillion revolutions (think Alissa Czisny or Caolina Kostner) with a little twist added at the end for extra interest? I for one am a little tired of all the skate grabbing. Very few skaters make the Biellmann spin look attractive. Most look awkward. And those that do it best are often not surprisingly the youngest skaters, increasingly pushing the sport into a girls competition instead of a ladies competition. 

And, as my very astute brother pointed out to me this week while watching- can we not do something to bring back the spiral? 

Olympic Skating Wrap Up

Some things never change. It's 2014 and the skating world is abuzz with judging controversy sending words like "Eastern Bloc" and "Salt Lake City scandal" flying around our ears as we debate the oldest question in our sport: the athlete or the artist, who gets the edge? I don't think many would argue that Adelina's program had more difficulty or that Yuna is a superior skater and artist. The question is, by how much in each direction? And who gets the tie? 

For me, the overwhelming emotion at the end of the event was sadness, despite my delight for so many beautiful skates from Mao Asada, Ashley Wagner, Gracie Gold, and Carolina 

Kostner, not to mention Queen Yuna and the gold medalist, Adelina Sotnikova. It was a night of redemption for some of my favorite veterans, Mao and Carolina. It was a night when the American ladies proved themselves, each with their own thing to prove, each getting it done. But it was also new names to the same old story. 

And not only because my favorite skater just missed the gold. I don't feel bad for Yuna's silver, and I don't really think she does either. She has a gold at home, and an Olympic silver medal is never anything to snuff at. It's more because once again emotion and excitement was passed off as artistry and given the nod over the complete package. It also feels like déjà vu that the favorite faltered. The immense pressure of ladies Olympic skating means that aside from Yuna in 2010 the favorite hasn't won in ages. Like late 80's or early 90's. Which just makes what Yuna did in Vancouver all the more incredible. 

It was close. I'd have given it to Yuna, the judges gave it to Adelina. That's life. I like Adelina's skating, but it's just not as mature, not a polished, not as moving. 

I am glad of several things: 

1. Carolina medaled and shared her exquisite program with all of us, on the world's largest stage, to the best of her ability. 

2. Mao skated brilliantly. And she's not done. Going to compete at worlds. 

3. A strong showing from all three American ladies (not to mention the men, pairs, and dancers who were also terrific). Looking forward to watching Gracie, Polina, and Amber Glenn battle it out in the years ahead (yes, I do think she will follow in their footsteps and make a splash on the senior scene). 

4. At the end of the day the US got the medal it came for: ice dance gold. And they deserved it. Scott and Tessa skated brilliantly, and it's tough to do that and take silver, but you never heard a peep out of 

Meryl or Charlie four years ago, so Moir can go sit in his sour grapes. 

5. At the end of the day, the best man won, the best pair won, the best dancers won. And the best lady smiled and waved politely and goes home to hang her silver proudly next to her gold. 

Kanchanaburi

This past Friday was a Buddhist holiday and thus a Thai holiday, so Robin and I headed to Kanchanaburi for the long weekend. Kanchanaburi is in the West, not far from the Burmese border. It's a beautiful province known for it's mountains, waterfalls, jungles, and WWII history. We took the bus there on Friday and had a relaxing time at the pool in the afternoon to recover from the ride. Then we walked to the War Cememtery and the night market before dinner. We rose early on Saturday for a day tour that included a trip to the seven steps of there famous Erawan Waterfalls, a ride on the Death Railway (the Japanese used POW's to construct at rail link from Thailand to Burma during the war- hard labor, malnutrition, and disease lead to the deaths of thousands of Allied POW's and tens of thousands of SE Asian forced laborers, a total of over 100,000 casualties), and ended at the Bridge over the River Kwai.  On Sunday we had a leisurely morning and went to the Thai-Burmese Death Railway Museum before taking the bus back to Bangkok. It was a trip I'd been wanting to make since I moved here, and it did not disappoint. 

Photos from the Kanchanaburi War Cemetery

While the hike at Erawan was beautiful,  stopping on the way down to swim was definitely the highlight. Not many pictures since we were in the falls, but Robin did get this one of me. Such a cool feeling under different types of falls. 

Death Railway pictures 

Bridge over the River Kwai- I love history, especially US history, especially 19th century history and World War history, so this was a huge highlight for me. 

Great weekend after what is every year,mthe most stressful week of work. 

My Olympic Predictions

My thoughts and predictions for who I want to win, and who I think will win :) 

Pairs: so the short program is in the books, which makes predicting a touch easier, but I think the Russians will hold on for gold, and I also believe they deserve it. I would love to see one of the Canadian teams make the podium, and the Germans collapse. I don't like their attitudes. 

Men: I want Patrick Chan to win- he is simply the best pure skater in the field. I want Plushenko to get the PCS scores he deserves, which is to say, much lower than what he got in the team event. I predict Chan will take the gold. Jason Brown will skate well and be loved by all, as always. Top ten finish. I don't have high hopes for Jeremy Abbott. 

Ladies: I think the gold comes down to Julia Lipniskia and Yuna Kim. If they skate well, no one can beat them. That said, I hope Yuna gets it. She is a much better skater than Julia. I'd love to see Carolina Kostner and/or Mao Asada on the podium.  And of course, I do love Gracie Gold. If she skates well, she's in the mix, but others will have to make mistakes for her to medal. And Ashley Wagner and her 'tude can just go home now. She has a shaky triple-triple at best when all the top girls have at least one solid triple-triple. Wagner is just not all that. At the press conference for the team event she referred to her team bronze as a "warm-up". Well honey, it's the only medal you're getting. Gracie quickly chimed in that she did not feel that way and that the team event meant something to her. Go Gracie. Also, I predict Polina Edmunds will skate clean, get fair PCS scores and do decently well, but she's not in the conversation with the big girls yet. I'd love to see her place ahead of Wagner, actually...

Dance: This is Meryl and Charlie's event to lose. And I hope they skate the way they have been every single time for the last two years. Every single day I read another interview with them and they grow classier with each one. The only thing out there as good as their skating is their sportsmanship. No one classier since the Kween herself.  I hope Tessa and Scott skate their best to make it even close, but I hope/think they are in for silver. Bronze will likely go to the Russians, but I like the French team better. I put Chock/Bates in 7th or 8th and the Shib Sibs in 10th. I'd be pretty happy with three American teams in the top 10! 

Mentors: all in the family

I have had a lot of great mentors in my life: youth leaders, coaches, professors, veteran teachers, and mighty women of faith. In the past few years I have come to specifically appreciate a special group of mentors who continue to stick around in my life: my aunts and uncles. I have a lot of them and there are few topics I could ever need advice on that would force me to look outside this group. 

Growing up, my aunts and uncles humored us in our play, watched our dances and musical performances, had us for sleepovers, and were generally a wonderful presence in our lives. But looking back, it's my teens and early 20's where they really stand out because in those years they allowed us to become adults. Not all families do this, allow the younger generation to grow into full fledged members of the family, but ours did. We were talked to (and listened to) as real people. Our opinions and experiences were valued. We weren't sitting at a kids table at holidays, rather we were able to listen in on the dynamic and always interesting conversations at the adults tables. We were given jobs to do- it wasn't all play and no work. No one walks away from a family holiday without contributing in some way, unless you're a guest or the family Matriarch or Patriarch. I loved learning how to properly set a table from my Gramma (and often wish she were here to remind me because I always get the silverware mixed up) and even young kids have to help clean up in some way. I don't think it's any coincidence that all of my adult cousins have grown into interesting, responsible, articulate people, even the boys, who did eventually grow out of their grunting years. Even now, when I'm in the States, my aunts and uncles are inviting me to dinner, meeting me for breakfast and generally expressing a desire to continue to be a part of my life even when I live far away. 

Behind us there is a younger group of cousins, once known as The Cool Kids Club, who are not kids anymore. In the last six years as they have started graduating from high school they too have become adult members of the family. I love it when they join the conversation and we all get to know them as they forge their adult identities. I feel like I've missed out on a lot with this group, spending nearly six of the last seven years overseas, so I am always delighted when I get to spend time with them. 

Next Friday, one of them will come to Bangkok to stay with me for a few months as part of her gap year between high school and college. She's going to volunteer at my school during the weekdays and hopefully run into plenty of fun and adventure the rest of the time. I am excited to get to know this witty creative cousin of mine in deeper ways and to walk with her through a small piece of this time in her life. Will it be work? Yeah. But it will also be completely worth it. 

Side note: personally, I believe there should only be two requirements for graduating from the kids table. One, a desire to sit with the adults and two, a low probability of knocking over somebody's wine glass at dinner.