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lab (experiment)

gary opened up his own non-profit dj studio to teach anyone, especially local shanghainese, how to scratch 'n spin. you can read more about it on smart shanghai.

he & shannon had been scouting for places for months, and found a space right down the street.  they transformed an ugly 4 cubicle office into an amazing glass enclosed, concrete walled dj studio/living space with a 4,000 square foot new-york feeling roofdeck.  they never cease to amaze me.  the job was done in 2 months.

the launch party had a "yang chaur" (lamb skewer) guy they paid 300 kuai to feed everyone that came.  it's become a place where musicians love to hang out, practice spinning, and there's been talk of shanghai's first hip-hop music flea market. 

it's also where me, shannon and vivian are taking our fashion classes and trying to work out our entrepreneurial dreams.  shanghai's next maternity wear?

the english name is lab, but the chinese translates into "experiment."  which i think pretty much sums up the spirit of things here in shanghai these days.

san-YA!

with my 3rd trimester going full force, i had the all-you-can eat buffet down cold.  nah, i'm not really pregnant, just ate a big breakfast.  fear me!  chomp chomp

i got 2nd degree burns because i was am an idiot and try and tan my un-tannable pasty white tofu legs sans sunblock.  and apparently, preggers women are more succeptable to sunburn.  they almost had to wheel me out of the pudong airport, and i was off my feet for 2 freaking weeks.  i won't explain how i used the restroom, i just survived watching a lot of new wave and dassin movies.

but here a photo of a very pregnant angie during our very first resorty-type vacation at yalong bay (he's in there!):

these days

calvin's new nightly ritual:  looking at his spreadsheet and excitedly pointing "look how many days until we meet him!". brushing his teeth, he'll think over which book to read to him, and before he begins, he'll tap my tummy like it's a mic and say, "hello?  it's dad!" and i feel squirms and kicks of recognition.  since calvin is so busy lately, story time has easily become my favorite time of the day.  the top of calvin's head resting on my tummy, i listen to him imitate voices and act parts in the hopes the little guy will be amused.  i'm probably the most disappointed of all when the story ends and it's time for to close our eyes for bed.

i've been getting a lot bigger (we've built him with ice-cream, we joke sometimes).  i can definitely feel his legs and feet when he's pushing with them at the top part of my stomach.  when i showed calvin by touching the top of my belly, he said i was tickling him!  that also means it's getting harder for me to sleep (and walk, and move) but since friday was my last day at work, i've been able to take little catnaps if i don't have a lunch date, art class, or too many errands to run.  trying to enjoy this time, and not stress out about fitting the grandmas into our tiny place, what i'm going to do professionally after he makes his debut, or who he'll fall madly for, and will he/she like us?

calvin's been great trying to help me however he can, as usual with his extraordinary cooking, and i've been forbidden to do certain activities (he knows my penchant for rearranging furniture).  he even bought me a portable dvd player last week, which is like a little pet that i lug around with me, and so vittorio de sica and henri-georges cluzot keep me company when i can't fall back asleep after the upteeth pee break.  how well doth this man know me. 

one wierd thing too - i'm now a weepy mess.  i've been on this high since the beginning, and really, haven't experienced any of the typical symptoms of pregnancy.  he's been amazingly easy on me, and a tough little guy considering the pollution and daily stress i probably put him through living here, flying all over the place, and the swirly taxicabs.  but somehow, it hit me last week - bam! the waterworks.  first it was just this unsteady/anxious feeling about the future, but then it became crying because something fell on the floor. 

we've met some amazing couples with kids out here, eugenia & bennet, mae-ling & alan, introduced to us by our friends arthur and jessica.  they've really helped us see how we can handle being parents in shanghai, encouraged us, and given us lots of great reading and all-around support. i've also started hanging out with sylvie's french-vietnamese friend, josephine, who is 6 months pregnant.  we have guilt-free ice cream fests and go to the fabric market with her driver, which has been so nice to chat about having our first child.  venturing out into mommy land.

this morning colleen and dirk stopped by with max before their trip to guiling.  a chubby, delicious, smiling max who reached out for me to hold him when they were at the apartment, i think because he can tell how much i love him.  i can't believe that one day (soon!) we'll be like them, parents to this adorable, amazing little person.  if i love max and sean so much, i can't imagine how much i'm going to love this little guy.  i've been charmed by the little boys we've met here in shanghai too.  but i have a feeling i know who will be my favorite!

pregnant in shanghai

i ping pong between loving and hating it ...

have you ever noticed how chinese people just stare?  like, have their finger shoved up their nose, and stare you up and down? or my recent favorite, in the elevator, just turn around to give you the once over, invasively drinking in everything (usually wearing a tight perm, unwashed pajamas with pointed pleather shoes).  against calvin's warnings, i've won every single stare-down contest.  am i keeping track?  today i am.

my regular 45 minute walk to work, mostly down nanjing lu, has become quite a different experience, let me tell you. i get a lot of stares like i must be insane to even be outdoors. especially since i'm not wearing my special radiation proof apron/tent (but the people who got it for me, however, i love) but just my maternity clothes which show my belly as something that is definitely a new part of me, it isn't obstructed, and is plainly visible. 

maybe people are right, it is somewhat insane to be outdoors.  with the pollution, crossing the street like frogger, and just the sheer number of people washing about, i can't say that i'm not happy to be at home, air purifier on, fresh-squeezed carrot juice (thanks, cal!) where i can actually feel him kicking about as opposed to avoiding bicycles carrying washing machines or bamboo rods.  and when i come home, ayi has cleaned everything in the our tiny apartment, hung and folded the laundry, dishes and bathroom are sparkling, which would be an unaffordable possibility in the states.   

sorry to be so whiny.  i wish i could be pregnant with some of my close friends back i the states, i suppose.