A day off! It has been a long week, for some reason. I am exhausted. I finished work at 9, bought some fruit on the way home, and got home just before ten. I tried quickly to get ready for bed, because I had planned with a friend in Italy to Skype around 10. I went online while I was still changing into my jammies, when the Skype melody chirped. Good thing it wasn't a video call!
He is thinking of coming to work in China, so he updated me on that. Not looking good.
Shortly after we hung up, Tim Skyped. He lives about 40 minutes north, here in this city. He is a talker, has been here about a month, from New York City. Another call came in about ten minutes into our conversation.
I had tried to call Deb, in Saudi Arabia, after my talk with Michael in Italy, but she wasn't on line. I left her a note on Skype. She called me back! I don't know how to do the 'call hold' thing you do on phones when another call comes in, so I just added her to my call with Tim! He got the message, and went off to do his dishes while I talked with her; he hung up.
Deb's father has cancer, is terminal, so she is spending her summer break in Texas with the folks. She needed to talk about it. But it was time for prayer in Riyadh, so the reception was bad. She said that usually happened at prayer time. Our call was dropped and reconnected a few times before we decided to just end it.
I called Tim back, and he kept me on the line for 1 1/4 hour. It was past 1 a.m. when I finally broke off the conversation.
On the one hand, I needed my sleep. On the other hand, I desperately needed to talk with other westerners.
I stayed in bed this morning until 8, though I woke at 6:30. Tired, but it's a new day. So, to treat myself, I made a special breakfast.
It may not sound special to you people with American kitchens, but I can guarantee you that the average ex pat living here would drool with longing.
I made pancakes. Big, fluffy big-holed pancakes. I used fresh unstarched runny lumpy yogurt (sweetened, since I didn't make it myself) instead of milk. I thinned it with a little milk in the end. Fresh butter, cinnamon and a grating of fresh nutmeg. They came out thick and fluffy. I drizzled a little honey on top, then spread them with fresh crushed strawberries that I bought the night before. Just-picked Changzhou strawberries.
I ground some coffee beans (not the freshest, but they had a decent taste, Blue Mountain) to wash down the pancakes.
I was thinking, maybe this could be a way to thank my Chinese helpers once I'm in business. For those who won't accept payment for their information-gathering services. Have a special breakfast gathering once in a while on Sundays, and serve them western treats like that.
OK, time to get moving. I'll experiment with a biga today. Usually I do a poolish sponge for my bread flavor. A biga sounds so much more practical, so I'll see what it's like to make one and use it. More on that, and the breakup, next time.
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