What this Man Wants

It’s Sunday night after a nice weekend of getting none of my main tasks done.  I did however get my Nook Color rooted with great, easy to follow instructions from Maurine Mongeon.  That was an accomplishment only because it took quite some time to write the .img files on the microSD card.

But that’s not really why I’m writing.  As I await my household goods patiently, I think about the things I look forward to most.  They are not the things you might think a person who recently moved continents and left all friends and family behind might pine for.  What are they?

First, a bit of back story, the shipment was originally supposed to arrive in Hanoi around 19 May.  I headed back for a wedding on the 13th of May, so I had arranged for delivery of my stuff on the 24th.  Incoming folks get a ‘Welcome Kit’ which includes stuff like a TV, sheets, silverware, etc.  My sponsor recommended getting the Welcome Kit packed up and shipped out before my stuff was delivered because it just makes it easier to keep track of whose stuff is whose.  I thought, that’s a great idea, so I had the folks pack everything up on the 13th, I went to sparring class, got beat up, showered, and hopped on the plane bound for Tokyo/NYC.

I arrive back on 23 May, read through my emails on the morning of 24 May only to find that there is no delivery of stuff for the 24th.  As a matter of fact, the container is in Singapore waiting for more crap to fill it up.  Hmm … now I have an empty apartment with no plates, no silverware (but I do have really sharp knives!), no pots, etc.  At least I have amazing sheets.

As of this Thursday (2 Jun), the container should have arrived on Friday and I should have my stuff perhaps by Wednesday (the 8th), or so.  Just another part of the game, right?  Ship and wait.

So what am I missing?  In order of descending importance, or read another way the item at the top of my list would produce the single largest decrease my overall level of annoyance by not having it.

1. 

   I Need a Garbage Can

   A tall garbage can – though the one we got for the wedding won’t fit under the sink and will look out of place in the kitchen, it surely beats the current arrangement.

2. Any other sized garbage cans – so I can occasionally through things away in the bathroom without having to walk to the kitchen.
3. Dish drying rack – as you can see, a pasta strainer works well … until you need to strain pasta.
4. Bath mat
5. Tripod – I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wanted to take photos on my balcony that require the rock steady stillness that only a tripod can provide.  Tonight is a good example.  There was awesome lightning in the sky that I could have captured, maybe, but the crazy safety and balancing system I put together on my balcony ledge was a little too precarious and slip shod to trust for the length of time I would need for a good shot.  Instead, this is all you get (see below).
6. Mustard – I haven’t wanted to buy it here because I know it’s on the way.  Nothing else tastes as good on a sandwich of dark bread, tomato, and cheese.  Though the chili fish sauce is good, it’s just not the same.
7. Pepper grinder – one of the Vietnamese guys on the soccer team brought pepper from a family farm for folks.  I can’t wait to use it.

I Need a Dish Rack

Anything stand out as a shocker?  Perhaps nothing on the list is that shocking.  Perhaps it’s just that when Marjie put the garbage can on the registry, I wondered “why the hell do we want garbage cans on our registry?”  She was very persistent about wanting them, and very excited to get one.  Now, I’ll be excited when that silly garbage can arrives.  Oh how life’s pleasures change over time.

To make myself feel better about being excited about a garbage can and dish drying rack, I will say that I brought the stuff I care about most with me, which includes all the electronics crap, camera, address list, and good pens.  If I didn’t have the computer and regular Internet, I’d be crazy right about now … or I’d be insanely smart from having read a lot of books.  Or I’d be brain dead from watching River Monsters and Man, Woman, Wild because those were the only shows that ever seemed to be on TV.

All I got from the crazy storm and lightning show today …

Front of the Front

Lightning

The video below isn’t really all that great, but you can see the wind suck the curtains right out of the apartment. When I step outside, you can’t see anything, but you can hear the ‘howl’ of the wind and rain if you have your volume up.