tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47989452535931521482024-02-20T10:26:13.196-05:00FluxtapositionLife is change. Here's to going with the flow.Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-80922977560551439442010-11-26T21:00:00.007-05:002010-12-10T11:52:38.000-05:00Nothing Says ‘Night Club’ Like Monks and Stuffed AnimalsMy first visit to a so-called dance club in Jining was so mind-bogglingly bad that I was tempted to call the search for decent night activities around town a lost cause. Still, I held a shred of hope that maybe my first experience was simply an off night. Surely every night in every club in this city could not be like this hodge-podge assortment of elements that I had just experienced? <?xml:Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-26536354522505843242010-11-13T11:12:00.004-05:002010-11-13T11:30:20.242-05:00Hello, Goodbye, Hello, GoodbyeYes, I know. It's been ridiculously long since I posted. There is a decent reason for that: I moved back to the States.So, is the blog over, you ask? Well, not exactly. When I named this blog, I did so with the intention of it fitting other definitions, other stages of life. Life is change and all that. I'm not sure how sold I am on continuing to write about life here in the States, or whether toSarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-6004192769328674602010-05-13T05:40:00.010-04:002010-06-03T00:16:15.465-04:00Little Things to Smile AboutToddlers with shoes that make dog toy-like squeaks every time they walk. It's like those shoes that light up, only with sound effects instead. I get the giggles when the tykes start running.Cheap veggies.All this for around $8! Eating healthy is actually affordable.The lilies that bloomed in the ponds in our apartment complex, splashing color amongst the gray.The fact that the apartment guards Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-50370010449932620082010-04-27T01:55:00.004-04:002010-04-27T02:59:52.687-04:00Here's the Scoop!My first (and perhaps last) news broadcast for this semi-minor event that I had fun with nonetheless. Gave me an excuse to play with video stuff at any rate! :)And if you're wondering what the hey I am doing at the very end, I was mocking model shoots, because they always use wind machines. ;)Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-75967120114847955952010-04-21T01:45:00.002-04:002010-04-22T03:32:11.772-04:00All Creatures Small and SmallerAll right, ya'll. My last post was loooooong. So, a short one with some photos. And to be a real crowd pleaser, it's all about animals and kids.
We've got a sleeping baby
a pup with questionable fashion sense
kids playing on a modern, metallic bunny
a kid AND a bunny, on a leash, no less
a bird with a disproportionately large bank account
and this cat, who may have, in Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-45656812182414861142010-04-10T01:09:00.003-04:002010-04-21T02:40:59.706-04:00Harbin-gerI don't get my heart set on much. As far as I can tell, the minute I really look forward to something is exactly when it all goes to pot. It's canceled, it rains, I come down with a fever - the usual suspects. My friend Drew would say this is being dreadfully pessimistic and what is the fun in life if not to look forward to things we plan on and get excited about? I get that. Sometimes it works Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-70736292992103867332010-02-08T03:57:00.005-05:002010-03-04T23:23:54.875-05:00The 11 Foreigners You Meet In ChinaThe Newbie It’s intimidating to be one, fresh off the plane and completely out of your element. Once you have been here for a couple of months, however, it’s kind of fun to help out other Newbies. "Zuo gui means turn left," "Don't eat that," and "Never, ever leave the house without tissues in your bag" all prove vitally important to any fresh faces. Any information you have gleaned will probablySarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-60129075758263042462010-01-31T06:14:00.004-05:002010-02-08T03:49:08.178-05:00I have a wok and I know how to use it!Food. We all need it, most of us want it, some of us are consumed by it (har har) and some of us are on an eternal search for the holy grail of our favorite varieties. Myself, I do enjoy food and sometimes enjoy the challenge of making it myself, but other times, I find it a chore. If I'm busy or down in the dumps, I usually find myself irritated at having to figure out, once again, "What am I Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-72512135575796892372009-11-30T07:39:00.015-05:002010-02-08T03:21:44.903-05:00Taking on TokyoIn October, we found ourselves with an unexpected open week on our hands. Where should we go? we asked each other. Being so close to so many places we've never been, it was a little overwhelming to choose. But in the end, we decided to go to the most populated city in the world:Tokyo!Upon arrival, after checking into the hotel, we needed to get some dinner...That's in Yen, right?Now before you Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-7632281866933320142009-11-01T06:36:00.008-05:002009-11-08T23:01:57.355-05:00HalloweenI have always loved Halloween. I grew up looking forward to Halloween each year once the leaves started to change their color and I felt that nip in the air. My childhood best friend also loved the holiday and we would spend time dreaming up the best costumes, watching semi-scary movies, carving the best jack-o-lanterns and most importantly, plotting out our dream haunted house. She had a few Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-17007665805898214502009-10-21T05:58:00.003-04:002009-10-21T21:55:31.913-04:00Hair Cut AdventureDavid and I walked into the hair salon in Shanghai for a hair cut a few weekends ago. I have gone with David to this place several times just to keep him company. He gets his hair cut way more often that I do, so I've always just been the observer. I'm somewhat reluctant to give some poor hair cutter here a chance for me to be really angry with him. It won't really be his fault, but I'd rather Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-61562822388884757712009-10-05T09:38:00.002-04:002009-10-07T00:16:48.729-04:00A Room with a ViewI live on the eleventh floor of a high rise apartment building in Jining. Most days are smoggy and things look much the same from day to day when I look out my windows. This makes me appreciate when something changes, much more so than I ever would have back home. So I take out the camera...when the air clearswhen the sun sets and the colors come throughwhen I can see the crescent moon at nightSarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-51039285297055878612009-09-26T13:58:00.007-04:002009-09-27T00:22:26.470-04:00Fame, Noise and the Power of Toll HouseQuick facts about my life:At any point during any day, I can look out our window and see at least two bright white welding flashes. I try to think of them as friendly fireflies, but can't stare too long. Avert thine eyes, lest ye go blind.There is a rooster in the area on permanent dawn mode. I am not amused.There is someone renovating the apartment next door. They are on permanent "sanding mode"Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-62561117403525607912009-08-29T08:05:00.001-04:002009-08-29T08:08:36.451-04:00Light My FireDavid and I were coming back from dinner on my electric bike Wednesday night and saw what appeared to be flames in the air. Balls of fire the size of a fist were floating upward in the dark skies. After a few moments of bewilderment, we determined the flames were in a balloon of some sort. We walked to the square to check it out and discovered the little fires were indeed at the base of colorful Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-14940423868658810122009-08-26T04:32:00.005-04:002009-08-26T06:47:29.363-04:00Total Eclipse with Chinese CharacteristicsSo there was a total eclipse in July. Longest total eclipse for at least a century or more. The path went straight through Shanghai. What are the chances of having clear skies on that morning in Shanghai, you ask?Well, pretty slim. Actually, I think a snowball lost its battle in Hell that day.But here it is, our total eclipse experience in all its glory!Rainy day...Rainier...Is it getting darker?Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-25134310879849408462009-08-21T22:29:00.005-04:002010-04-21T02:04:24.528-04:00A Day-Long Journey to the Wall of GreatnessAfter a long search for the bus terminal, a mind-numbingly loud lady on the bus's sound system delivering jabbing Mandarin to our eardrums for over an hour straight, a stop at some sort of wax museum and a definite pass on the included lunch in the Mess (with a capital M) hall, we made it to the Wall! Upon surveying the premises we concluded it was indeed quite large. Great even. In the end, Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-25182461633406459842009-08-15T02:27:00.004-04:002009-08-15T02:41:05.878-04:00Censors SchmensorsMao is watching....But I have found a secret passage...And...we're back!Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-44144298477714811802009-06-19T13:28:00.008-04:002010-04-21T01:48:30.712-04:00Two months later....Well, you see, it's like this. China has this thing with the internet, see. They have all this control and they like to block information. From time to time they go a little nuts. Back around March, they blocked YouTube. I didn't realize this would affect me until I found out how much stuff is on YouTube. So it was frustrating, but what are you gonna do? Just go with the flow.
Until....
They Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-79268847798650491352009-04-15T13:31:00.007-04:002009-04-15T15:20:49.431-04:00A Little Less Conversation"Good morning."I thought for a second, confirmed in my mind that it was definitely 2pm and then returned the greeting to the young guy who had appeared from behind me in the train car."I am from Hangzhou," he declared. Pause. "Where are you from?""America," I said, not really wanting to get into too much detail with this stranger on the Metro. No one ever talks to me on the subway."What stop are Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-71055916536227761962009-04-02T03:00:00.014-04:002009-04-07T22:18:08.766-04:00Day Trip to HangzhouFor the first time since we moved to China, we had a visitor! David's good friend Gil came to town, partly for business, partly to see us! It was great to see him and host and play tour guide. It's a strange experience sometimes when you realize what you have gotten used to and what others notice when they come here. Gil travels a lot and has been to Asia several times, so not much was too Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-21875755115423065942009-03-31T07:43:00.005-04:002009-03-31T22:35:43.947-04:00Flora FotosWell, Spring is on its way. Things are blossoming and making the world feel like new again. I've been out and about with the camera and thought I would share some of the little things that bring me joy. And just because I like the picture, some men playing cards in the park.And another non-flower park picture. I call this one, Escape. The "bird" is actually a kite.To see larger, just click on theSarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-51436849376712618062009-03-04T12:27:00.007-05:002009-03-08T04:58:32.229-04:00The Name GameFirst of all, I would like to say that I will never write about being lucky again. A few days after my last post I was struck down. Yup. Ladutza. Fever, stomach cramps, the works. Lost a kilo. To top it off, David got sick too, so we were pretty much worthless this past weekend. I did a lot of reading and tea sipping though. Second order of business, to all my faithful readers, are you having Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-47879183148908310932009-02-24T03:54:00.007-05:002009-02-24T05:48:44.594-05:00The Writing Is On The PillSince it took me a month to get that last post up, I figured two in one day would be a good way to redeem myself. Essentially, I was working on the post, trying to craft some nice words for you folks, when my computer did that stupid hibernate thing. I lost half my post and frankly, it royally ticked me off. Before I could brush myself off and make my way back to recreating what I lost, I got Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-48642457734312360782009-02-02T04:49:00.004-05:002009-02-24T03:50:24.719-05:00Joyful ApocalypseWe've seen it all before. We stuff our faces all evening with freshly grilled hamburgers and potato salad and maybe some corn on the cob and if we're lucky, apple pie. Everyone gathers on the blankets with an ice cold coke and light sticks and then we wait, eyes to the darkening skies. Then a tell-tale silver streak makes its way from the horizon to above the tree tops and then explodes in a Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4798945253593152148.post-39802462438261515332009-01-30T16:41:00.004-05:002009-01-31T11:59:47.871-05:00When in YanzhouJust 3 days after making the trek back to Shanghai, I found myself on a train bound for Yanzhou. For the second time in as many days I was running like hell in public, with luggage, to catch my departure. I made it on the train, but found myself on car 13 when I needed to be on car 5. Insert heavy sigh here. Nothing quite like squeezing through several crowded cars, startling young children with Sarah Groomshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01322739783842897799noreply@blogger.com3