Well, by now Ronghua and I should have been half-way to China. Unfortunately, where we are is sitting around a room at the Comfort Inn on Tyvola. Needless to say, things haven't went according to plan.
Originally, we were supposed to leave Charlotte at 8:24 PM for a two-hour flight to NYC. In New York, we had two hours to make our connecting flight to South Korea. When we first got to the airport, our departure was already delayed by about half an hour. Still plenty of time for the connection. At about eight o'clock, it was changed to departing at 10PM. This was really tight for our connection. I explained the situation to the guy at the desk. He immediately called the office to start working on contingency plans for us.
The problem seemed to be a storm front in the midwest. Our flight was coming to Charlotte from Columbus, Ohio. Because of the storms, the plane couldn't depart Columbus. When the plane finally left Columbus, our departure was changed to 9:45PM, still workable for us. Then disaster struck. US Airways decided to use our scheduled aircraft to carry different passengers to a different destination; our new aircraft would be arriving from KC with a scheduled departure for us of 10:50PM. So we were stuck.
About this time, the woman from the office arrived with a couple of options for us. One was to leave Charlotte Wednesday morning, go to Chicago, Seoul (where we would have a 14 hour layover!), and on to Tianjin at 10:30 Friday morning. The second was a Wednesday afternoon flight to LAX (with a 7-hour layover), then to Beijing, arriving at 5:20 AM on Friday. With either choice, she would comp us a room at Comfort Inn. We chose the second option.
I really do appreciate the hard work that the woman from USAirways put in to creating this new itinerary. She said she tried her best to get us to Tianjin on Thursday, but she was just stonewalled at every turn. USAirways only responsibility was to get us to NYC. They could have just dumped us there (albeit late) and let us fend for ourselves. But Kimberly L. went the extra mile and made sure we at least had a workable itinerary, even if not ideal.
Hopefully, the next post will come from China!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Last Day
Well, the big day has finally arrived: my last day to be a resident of the US. After today, I will only be a visitor. Everything is pretty much done. I need to take the Camry for an oil change and inspection this morning. I also need to pick up a couple of last minute items from Wal-Mart. That should pretty much do it.
My wife got some bad news last night. Her father had been diagnosed with terminal cancer a couple of months ago. All along, it looked like there wouldn't be any problem with her seeing him when we went to Daqing on the 15th. But last night her sister called and told my wife that their father had slipped into a coma and wasn't expected to live very long. Now she is very upset that she might not get to see her father before he dies. So we have changed our travel plans slightly. Now, instead of spending a few days in Tianjin, we will have about 4 hours in the Tianjin airport before we fly to Harbin. One of my wife's nephews will meet us there for the 90 minute car trip to Daqing. We will stay there through the 23rd, then fly back to Tianjin.
We had a fun couple of days with the grandson. Thank goodness for the Wii, though. I don't know how I could have kept him entertained without it. I am constantly amazed at how well he can maneuver through the various screens and the different games. He got an eagle on TW'08! We were supposed to do dinner with the kids last night, but the news about Ronghua's father caused us to cancel that. Booger's Uncle Josh came and picked him up and said his goodbyes to Ronghua and me. We will see Ryan, Heather, and Booger tonight when they take us to the airport.
My wife got some bad news last night. Her father had been diagnosed with terminal cancer a couple of months ago. All along, it looked like there wouldn't be any problem with her seeing him when we went to Daqing on the 15th. But last night her sister called and told my wife that their father had slipped into a coma and wasn't expected to live very long. Now she is very upset that she might not get to see her father before he dies. So we have changed our travel plans slightly. Now, instead of spending a few days in Tianjin, we will have about 4 hours in the Tianjin airport before we fly to Harbin. One of my wife's nephews will meet us there for the 90 minute car trip to Daqing. We will stay there through the 23rd, then fly back to Tianjin.
We had a fun couple of days with the grandson. Thank goodness for the Wii, though. I don't know how I could have kept him entertained without it. I am constantly amazed at how well he can maneuver through the various screens and the different games. He got an eagle on TW'08! We were supposed to do dinner with the kids last night, but the news about Ronghua's father caused us to cancel that. Booger's Uncle Josh came and picked him up and said his goodbyes to Ronghua and me. We will see Ryan, Heather, and Booger tonight when they take us to the airport.
Friday, August 7, 2009
It's All About the Money
Yes, friends and blog followers, I have sold out my blog for the almighty dollar. My blog now has ads down the side and following the posting. I hate the look of it, but if I can make few bucks, what the heck. Now I just need to somehow become so witty and entertaining that millions of people visit my blog each day. Who knows; maybe I can become the Donald Trump of blogs and give up my day job!
Time Is Getting Short
Wow, where did all the time go? It seems like only yesterday I had two weeks left. All of a sudden, I wake up this morning and there are only five days left. There are still so many little things to do. Plus, all of a sudden I have friends calling and wanting to get together this weekend. I hate to tell them no, but my weekend is already planned out.
Yesterday was kind of a messed of day. I took the Nissan into the Charlotte dealership for an oil change and inspection. That took an hour and a half. I had to drive from there to Monroe, and I got caught by construction near the HT distribution center. I think I was an hour just going from the light at Indian Trail Bi-Lo to the light at the new Lowes. I had to go see my insurance agent and sign some papers, but he wasn't in the office (after telling me to just drop in; he would be there all day!) The receptionist called him on his cell phone. He said he would be back in ten minutes. Twenty-five minutes later, he comes in through the door. After that, it was off to the license tag office for a new sticker, and we all know how much fun that can be. I finally made it home sometime late afternoon. Hopefully this won't be typical of my remaining days.
Yesterday was kind of a messed of day. I took the Nissan into the Charlotte dealership for an oil change and inspection. That took an hour and a half. I had to drive from there to Monroe, and I got caught by construction near the HT distribution center. I think I was an hour just going from the light at Indian Trail Bi-Lo to the light at the new Lowes. I had to go see my insurance agent and sign some papers, but he wasn't in the office (after telling me to just drop in; he would be there all day!) The receptionist called him on his cell phone. He said he would be back in ten minutes. Twenty-five minutes later, he comes in through the door. After that, it was off to the license tag office for a new sticker, and we all know how much fun that can be. I finally made it home sometime late afternoon. Hopefully this won't be typical of my remaining days.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
The Last Piece of the Puzzle
The last piece of needed paperwork, the visas, arrived by FedEx today. Now everything is set to go. I am about 80% packed, I probably won't finish until Tuesday, right before we leave. What a hassle it is trying to predict what type of clothes I will need and still trying to be under the airline's weight limit. I never realized how many clothes I had until I tried to fit them in suitcases! Even at 80% done, I still have a closet full of clothes left. And I haven't even begun to pack toiletries, books, and all the other things I may need. I don't know how I will do it, but I guess I will find out. There really isn't any other choice. I may have to limit my wife to whetever clothes she wears so that I can use her suitcase, too!
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
A Pleasant Surprise
When I went into work on Monday, my boss called me into his office and closed the door. He told me that because of my 24 years of loyal service to the company, management had decided that I did not need to finish out my notice. They would still pay me through August 6, but I did not need to go to work. He took my keys and my password, told me how much he enjoyed working with me, told meto take as long as I wanted to say my goodbyes, and wished me luck.
It really kind of shocked me. Of course the extra time to take care of the myriad of little things that keep cropping up is appreciated. And being able to spend a little extra time with my sons and grandson is great. But I can't helpthinking that there must be some ulterior motive. It may be that they felt I would somehow undermine the selection process for a new supervisor. It could be that they thought I might talk badly about the company or some individuals within the company. There is also the possibility that they are at least considering the chance that, instead of teaching English, I am going to China to work for a competitor. Or they may in fact be acting out of kindness and consideration. Either way, I have two free weeks before I need to leave.
It really kind of shocked me. Of course the extra time to take care of the myriad of little things that keep cropping up is appreciated. And being able to spend a little extra time with my sons and grandson is great. But I can't helpthinking that there must be some ulterior motive. It may be that they felt I would somehow undermine the selection process for a new supervisor. It could be that they thought I might talk badly about the company or some individuals within the company. There is also the possibility that they are at least considering the chance that, instead of teaching English, I am going to China to work for a competitor. Or they may in fact be acting out of kindness and consideration. Either way, I have two free weeks before I need to leave.
Friday, July 24, 2009
I'm almost ready!
Well, I guess it's safe to say that I have reached the point of no return. All the paperwork is just about complete. I have my passport. I have had my physical examination. I have turned everything in to the people in China that they required. The contracts have been signed. I have received my letter of invitation and work permit. The only thing I lack at this time is my visa, which should be here by the first of August.
I turned in my notice at my full-time job on Wednesday, July 15th. I think it caught both my boss and HR by surprise. Not that they didn't think it would ever happen (I think it was a well-known fact that I wasn't particularly happy in my current position), but just that I actually did it. My last day at Charlotte Pipe & Foundry: Plastics Division, the place where I have worked for the past 24+ years, will be Thursday, August 6.
Today was my last day at Food Lion. Leaving there was perhaps the most difficult. Other than an 18 month stint as a waiter at a buffet restaurant, I have been at this store since the summer of 2000. I met a lot of wonderful people there, both customers and coworkers, people who I will miss. My last day at my other part-time job will be Sunday, August 2. I leave for China on Tuesday, August 11.
People have been asking if I'm excited about getting ready to go to China. At this point, I'm not really feeling all that excited about it. I think this is mostly because there is so mush to do before I leave. I think at some point, though, I will be able to say that I have done everything I needed to do. Then I can relax a little and really look forward to the future. I think that is when the excitement and anticipation will start.
The purpose of this blog is to keep family and friends updated with what is going on, especially once I reach Tianjin and start teaching. It will save me from having to compose multiple emails and answer the same questions over and over again. It will also provide a forum where I can share pictures of my experiences.
I turned in my notice at my full-time job on Wednesday, July 15th. I think it caught both my boss and HR by surprise. Not that they didn't think it would ever happen (I think it was a well-known fact that I wasn't particularly happy in my current position), but just that I actually did it. My last day at Charlotte Pipe & Foundry: Plastics Division, the place where I have worked for the past 24+ years, will be Thursday, August 6.
Today was my last day at Food Lion. Leaving there was perhaps the most difficult. Other than an 18 month stint as a waiter at a buffet restaurant, I have been at this store since the summer of 2000. I met a lot of wonderful people there, both customers and coworkers, people who I will miss. My last day at my other part-time job will be Sunday, August 2. I leave for China on Tuesday, August 11.
People have been asking if I'm excited about getting ready to go to China. At this point, I'm not really feeling all that excited about it. I think this is mostly because there is so mush to do before I leave. I think at some point, though, I will be able to say that I have done everything I needed to do. Then I can relax a little and really look forward to the future. I think that is when the excitement and anticipation will start.
The purpose of this blog is to keep family and friends updated with what is going on, especially once I reach Tianjin and start teaching. It will save me from having to compose multiple emails and answer the same questions over and over again. It will also provide a forum where I can share pictures of my experiences.
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