Sunday, November 19, 2006

More "Firsts" as We Head toward Thanksgiving

Halloween is well behind us and Thanksgiving is THIS WEEK! I can't believe it's been a month since my last update. Here are a few of the highlights from the last few weeks.

Since the kids' Halloween costumes accidently went via ship rather than air and didn't make it across the Pacific in time for trick-or-treat, we got to shop for new costumes here. Halloween is surprisingly big in this part of Taipei, and the department stores rolled out costumes, candy and decorations. Our apartment building had a trick-or-treat night, and Barret's school had a massive parade through the buildings for all the children in costume. To quote our friendly neighborhood Spider-Barret, "It was the best Halloween ever!" Of course, last year he had a barfing stomach virus, and it poured down rain, so the bar was set pretty low. We enjoyed going from floor to floor with a mob of little goblins and fairies. I carried my high-heeled Princess Caroline down several flights of stairs since her shoes, though pretty, were not exactly functional. Later, we had some good laughs trying to figure out the identity of a few strange food items in the kids' buckets. It was a great way to round out our first month in Taipei.

At the beginning of November, we kicked off the kiddie soccer season. McLeod calls it bee-hive soccer: imagine a swarm of 4- and 5-year-olds chasing a ball through other kids' games, across the track, and into the weeds every few minutes while parents yell, "Come back! Come back!" The children's jerseys have corporate logos all over them - think: NASCAR drivers - and the jerseys are at least 2 sizes too big so the kids look like they're in dresses. There are no goalies. Players keep running off the field to eat pizza, drink juice or use the bathroom. It is adorable and hilarious.

McLeod opened, closed, and re-opened a local currency bank account. The bank initially opened the account at the wrong branch--a fact that he pointed out to them almost immediately. However, in order to change to the correct branch, he had to first complete the entire process for opening the original account, including having his picture taken for an ATM card, so that the account could then be closed and a new account opened at the correct branch. And yes, he had to have his picture re-taken for his new ATM card. We just laughed.

We are in the midst of our first sniffley-snuffley family cold plus one sinus infection (mine) that sent me dragging into the family doctor last week to get medicated. I was pleased with how easy and inexpensive a doctor visit was--a big relief since at some point I will have to take one of the children in for something. I called at 9am, was scheduled for 11am, and was finished before noon. The only thing that was a bit unnerving was that I didn't actually see what any of the doctors or nurses looked like. When I arrived for my appointment, I was greeted by a receptionist wearing a surgical mask. After filling out a brief intake form, I was given a number and asked to be seated. Within a few minutes, my number flashed on a screen and a mask-clad nurse escorted me into the exam room to see the doctor, who was also wearing a mask. Are you starting to spot a trend here with the masks? It's a bit like interacting with a mouthless puppet. We talked symptoms, and he checked my nose, breathing, etc. and agreed with me that I had a sinus infection. He prescribed 4 different medicines, and though he was a bit muffled-sounding behind the mask, I am quite sure he told me to wear a light jacket in this unpredictable weather and perhaps consider wearing a mask in public places.

A related "first" was my trip to the pharmacy just a few doors down from the doctor. When I arrived at Whale Drugs (their slogan is "Whale wish you always well!"), my prescriptions were already prepared for me. I am having a tough time describing the packaging so I'll refer you to the picture. Each segment in the long paper strip contains one set of pills. For each dosing session, after each meal in this case, I simply tear open a package and take what's inside. Since I also have a set of pills for twice-a-day rather than three-times-a-day, they are packaged separately in a tiny ziplock bag. All in all, a very efficient way to dispense medicine; however, as another expat recently warned, better not try to board a plane to the US with them. Afterall, a plastic baggie with instructions sort of scrawled across in Sharpie marker looks a bit suspect. I was also somewhat alarmed when Caroline pointed and said, "I want some candy." The meds are definitely on a top shelf now.

In the midst of Sinuses Under Seige and the Creeping Congestion, we were able to pull off a birthday party for the kids. We opted for a joint party with a Cars/Incredibles/Bob-the-Builder theme since it was unbelievably difficult for me to find the themed birthday party kits on which I've always relied. I unearthed a package of Bob the Builder invites from my stationary box, and we hand delivered them to our friends. Barret and I decorated a chocolate cake with red, yellow and green M&Ms and two of the Cars characters (Caroline's "Sally" car and Barret's "Lightning THE Queen" car, as he calls him). I made a giant birthday banner to hang in the room we reserved at the apartment complex. I also had the good fortune of discovering two ladies at a craft fair who make and sell pinatas--their buisness cards are printed simply, "Pinatas and Latin Food," followed by their phone numbers. They sold me their last in-stock item, a massive Incredibles orb that looked a bit like a big red and black bomb. It was fantastic! I was, as usual, scurrying around in a panic to get everything pulled together. We'd even had to change the time at the last moment because I didn't realize we had an evening dinner engagement for McLeod's work. But when the party guests showed up, when little kids began chasing each other and sneaking M&Ms, when other moms jumped in to help with serving and clean-up, I calmed down enough to realize something important: We actually know some people now. Maybe not well yet--I'm not even sure of some last names--but at least well enough to laugh together at Caroline's chocolate-cake-beard and Barret's attempts to break the industrial-strength pinata. It's really quite nice.