Departures …

Are you wondering why it has taken us a week to post another blog entry? Well, if you know either of us at all, then shame on you - you know better than to ask such questions.

No really, as it turns out among the myriad lessons we are learning on an hourly basis, one at the top is certainly “never assume a website is available.” In truth, we have been amazed at how many sites are, in fact, censored. While the social media sites were obvious, others such as our blog, Amazon purchasing, Hulu and YouTube were a bit of a surprise.

But Goonies never say die! So we’ve found some loopholes. Don’t ask questions, suspend disbelief with some post-dated entries and just enjoy.

Our one-way journey to China hit Hannah a few weeks before it hit John. Both during and after her academic years, Hannah made a point of “changing things up a bit” and making drastic “my car is packed and you won’t see me for 4 months” sort of moves. Therefore she was able to recognize the panic that sets in when you realize that you are proactively ending a chapter in your life. In other words – what comes next might be entirely your fault.

John’s travels have moved him around in a slightly tighter radius. Moving from Northville to East Lansing, then up to Ann Arbor and finally to Chicago. Each step was taken piece by piece, a little at a time, to really make sure it was the right move to take; sort of like strategically throwing a lot of stones on a frozen pond to make sure you won’t fall through when you start to run out.

And so today came the day when all of this would come together. MOVING DAY. As with many things in our lives, these process was a soup of invaluable contributions from each other, our beloved friends and family…and of course the nice man at the airport who helped us navigate how to get 9 bags and 2 slightly scared people out of a car and into a terminal.

Together we take what we know we can do because we’ve done it before, and we jump ahead with eyes wide open armed with…

• 7 (yes 7) checked suitcases, each of which could likely fit a person
• 6 Facebook posts (cumulative between us) to say good bye
• 5 teary phone calls to friends in other cities.
• a 4am wake up call
• 3 phone calls home to ensure loved ones that they do, indeed, have doctors and water and food in China
• 2 carry on bags

And one glorious champagne toast mid-air.

(It really deserves a song - insert “Fly Me To the Moon”)

For your viewing delight – we have included pictures of our packing accomplishment. And for those “packaging engineers” in our group…well…what do you have to say for yourselves NOW? :)

Getting Ready...

Following several “fare-thee-well” dinners with friends over the past few days, I have been informed that I am being remiss not to start documenting our adventure IN China with the glories (read: excruciating pains) of actually getting ourselves TO China.

Very well. Our move thus far can be broken down, I believe, into the 5 stages of grief:

Stage 1: Denial – “China won’t be THAT different”

Thinking about moving to China, a culture and a geography that is so foreign and unknown to both of us, is somewhat akin to trying to paint wind. The tools simply do not exist. There are, as of right now, no familiar touch-points or landmarks we can use to guide our expectations or understand of what daily life will really be like in 2 weeks. Therefore – and for those who know Hannah well, this will come as no surprise – we began March with the calm, cool and collected certainty that nothing would really be changing.

Of course, by March 2^nd, we realized that “nothing” actually means “everything from your food to your socks.” How disruptive.

Stage 2: Anger – “No, GoldenEye cannot come. Yes, my shoes can.”

Anyone who has every packed more than 2 apartments in the span of 2 years or less will tell you the same thing. Don’t do it; it is not fun, it is not healthy, and it is not enjoyable for anyone within a 5 block radius of you. One reason for this unpleasantness is that inevitably you and your significant other will have differing ideas about the importance of certain objects, and the necessity of bringing said objects with you to foreign lands. For us, this can be summed up by the following scene:

Hannah: “John, who is going to take all your video games”

John: “Um – why wouldn’t we take them?!”

Hannah: “Because we are supposed to only take the necessities to China. The things we can carry that we absolutely cannot live without for the next two years.”

John: “…..what is your point?”

Hannah: “We do not NEED video games”

John: “Well you don’t NEED all those shoes, but you get to bring those…what is the difference?”

Hannah: “Right. Same thing. Go away please.”

Stage 3: Bargaining – “I will give you $1 MILLION if you will be my friend.”

One of the most overwhelming and nerve-wracking parts of our imminent move to Shanghai is the departure from our family and friends-who-have-become-our-family; those go-to people whom we share wine-nights, wing-nights, game-nights and movie-nights with on a weekly (if not daily) basis.

How to make friends in China (definitely the title of a book at some point) is a scary thought, and we’ve discussed several ways of going about this:

Option 1: Dive into Alumni Clubs and Expat Associations

Option 2: Get involved with volunteer organizations, such as Amnesty Intern’l

Option 3: Go to the bar, tap someone politely on the shoulder and offer them a case of wine if they will have dinner with us every night for 5 days straight.

If you don’t know how that story ends, this blog may not be for you.

Stage 4: Depression – “What do you mean we won’t get Cubs games?”

In addition to leaving our friends, another shock is sure to be the absence of certain familiar traditions: the bleachers at Wrigley Field on a sunny day, a marathon of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Top Chef the following day…these are the things that will make this trip, and the distance from “home,” that much more real for us. Jet lag is one thing, but the real measure of distance will be watching March Madness at 2am on a Sunday.

Stage 5: Acceptance – “We are going to have the time of our lives!”

Without a doubt, John and I are more excited for this step in our lives than anything either of have ever experience, both apart and together. Through all the trials and tribulations, the denial through the depression, we have the clarity and conviction that the next 24 months will change the next 50 years of our lives, making us stronger, wiser, and certainly more humorous, than we possibly could have been without it. 

Granted there have been other highs and lows in our preparation time - including losing both a treasured pet, and a seemingly confirmed apartment - but we stand ready to accept everything that comes our way, and hopefully be diligent about sharing it in turn with all of you! 

And so we'll leave you with a favorite quote, to be our mantra for the next few years.

As for the future, your task is not to foresee it, but to enable it. 

- Antoine De Saint-Exupery.