Back in the D

I'm in Motown for a few weeks. Times are tough all over and my company is looking at everything...and I mean everything...to cut expenses. I'm the corporate communications person so they needed me here to help with announcements. This has been one of the hardest weeks ever. I am a wordsmith...not a numbers person. This week has been all about looking at numbers. People are so, so stressed. I will be glad when this phase is over and we can return to producing great publications.

Say a prayer for Dan's Aunt Ellen Jo. She died yesterday in a car accident. I wish I had my photos with me so I could post a photo of this special lady. She will be missed. Her funeral is Monday.

Carnaval!

I've never been to an event where they handed attendees a condom when they arrived. These smiley girls put one in everyone's hand right after you came through the gates. With that good giggle and a sense of protection, we entered Sao Paulo's Carnaval celebration last night.

The four of us went with our friends Prateek and Nandita and their two boys. We probably got there too early (9:30) because things really didn't get rolling until 11:00. We were in the table section so we were able to order beers and food which was really nice. The kids were very into the "beef on a stick" which was delicious.

Everyone warned us to not wear jewelry and to not carry purses because the crowd can be rough. I'm sure there is some of that but I found everyone really nice and helpful. We were a bit stressed out when we found out that our seats were on the opposite side of the dome and that the crowd had to walk counterclockwise around the place to get in since there was no way to cross the parade grounds. So instead of walking 100 yards to the right, we had to walk about 3/4 mile to the left around the outside to get to our seats. The kids loved that! Especially when we had to do it again at the end of the night.

I always thought of Carnaval like Mardi Gras with street parades and things. Not so much. In Brazil, it is a serious competion between the area's samba dance schools. The Sambodromo is a huge parade ground and each school enters with thousands of dancers, floats, drums, singers and the most amazing costumes. It takes 45-60 minutes for each school to go from beginning to end. We learned that the costumes and floats are only used once and that the schools spend the entire next year getting ready for each Carnaval.

What a riot. Some of the best dressed women in the schools are guys. One group had the men dressed in the tiniest of purple loincloths and lots of glitter. The schools of course highlight their most beautiful people, but they also let seniors, children, handicapped and others join in the fun as they march through. Even the clean up crew is part of the show. The crowd is dancing and singing along with the music the entire night. It was cool to see people cheer on the schools like they were sports teams. My ears are still ringing.

We left the area about 3:15 and we only saw four or five schools. I bet it went on until at least 5 or 6:00. We were all exhausted but I am really glad we went.

I loaded a couple dozen photos on Facebook. If you want to see them, click here (even if you don't belong to Facebook).

I even took a shot at posting this video from my camera so you can get a sense of the music. Check out the guy in the white shirt on the lower left. He's not the youngest of dudes but he danced and sang all night!!

Hardworking Students

Hannah and Jackson seem to have adjusted really well to school. Graded is an amazing place. Class sizes are small and the work seems really interesting. Jackson is loving the art. Ro gave a talk to the IB art students the other day about clay modeling and Jackson prepped some clay for the "show and tell" part. (They used my Crock Pot to warm up the clay. I'm glad it is being used for something.) Hannah has done a million things in her English class with the book, "Secret Life of Bees." Last night, she was finishing up a poster on the importance of family. They have no school next week due to Carnival. We're going on Saturday night so my photos should get more interesting by the weekend.

Java is good too! She's as busy as always.

Good News/Bad News

Good News: Daylight savings time ended last night in Sao Paulo so there is only two hours time difference between the D and SP.

Bad News: Ro forgot about it and woke up at 6 a.m. today to take Jackson to baseball, rather than 7.

Good News: He made waffles with his extra time!

Bad News: I'll have to run extra to work off the waffles.

Good News: I found a great park for running. It is called Parque Burle Marx and it is located one giant hill away from the apartment complex. Really nice trails through the woods and over a few streams.

Bad News: Somebody at dinner last night told me to watch out for the monkeys in the trees in that park. Monkeys?! I'll have to pay more attention.

Good News: We went for a fun Valentines Dinner last night with a bunch of the GM crowd to an Italian restaurant called Tomatto. Really nice people. We took a taxi so we could have a few beers.

Bad News: No drinking and driving here. They have breathalyzer lanes all over the place.

Good News: I feel like I know my way around well enough now to venture out in the car (sober of course).

Bad News: I can't get the car out of the garage! Our second remote control to the apartment complex garage gate is broken. So far, we've bought two of the wrong ones. So frustrating.

Good News: We are going to go the Mall AGAIN today and buy yet another remote at the electronics store and then ask the apartment maintenance staff to program it for us.

Bad News: It will probably be the wrong one again. Boy, I need to get better at Portuguese.

Good News: I'm one week into lessons with my new teacher, Regina. I have classes in the apartment on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 8:30-10 a.m.

Bad News: I haven't done my homework for tomorrow yet. So tchau!

Brazilian Softball

Brazil is all about soccer. My boy Jackson is a hardcore baseball player. He is on a really good Japanese baseball team down here that plays on the weekends. At school, they only have a guy's softball team. Most of the kids have never played baseball or softball before. It drives my "oh so intense" son nuts....but he is playing anyway. I like that he is on the school team. They have to wear ties on game days so Jackson gave his bud Sunny a lesson the other night which cracked me up.

Graded played Pacca yesterday. Let's just say they showed a lot of potential. Here are a few snaps. Hannah had fun with her girlfriends during the game too. She is on the volleyball team.

Saturday Mornings!

In Detroit right now, a group of hardworking, creative and inspiring women are walking into Mollie's class at CCS for a morning of weaving, gossip and baked goods. I am doing the same thing here in Sao Paulo (although I only have coffee). My loom left Detroit in late September. As much as I like being reunited with my family, the loom is a welcome site! We parked it on the sunporch so I get to look outside as I weave. Makes me happy.

Random Observations

With just a few days here in Sao Paulo, here are some of my first observations:

1. Someone calls me everyday at 9 a.m. and asks me a question in Portuguese. I have no clue what they want yet they call everyday.
2. The roaches (in the street, not in the apartment) are HUGE. Hope they stay outside.
3. I love listening to WDET on the computer.
4. Java is mighty freaked out at the sight of the peacocks that roam our complex.
5. Driving should be interesting but it is time I did it. Maybe this weekend.
6. Sao Paulo students (not the international school that Hannah and Jackson attend) only go half days because of the number of people.
7. There are A LOT of maids that arrive everyday at 8 a.m.
8. Working without makeup while wearing shorts and flip flops is the bomb.
9. The rainstorms here are fierce and brief.
10. I am looking forward to going to Carnival at the end of the month. Ro is getting tickets for us to the Sao Paulo celebration. Schools are closed for a week and Ro has time off. Unbelievable.

Super Bowl--Southern Style

I was curious how American football would go over on Brazilian TV. We watched the big game yesterday at Nandita's on ESPN Vivo (with a great Indian meal...yum!) No American commercials and a weird 10 second delay that made Faith Hill, Jennifer Hudson and Bruce Springsteen appear to be doing a bad lip sync version of their tunes but all in all we caught the spirit of the game. And of course Dan and Jackson were thrilled that their Steelers won.

There was a weird Volkswagen commercial with a fish-dog so I guess I got my fix of funky advertising. To watch it, click here.

I went for an energetic one-hour walk with two friends this morning through the hills around the complex. They go out everyday at 7:15 when the kids leave the house for school. It will be a nice routine to get into. I don't have to really start working until 11 a.m. (8 a.m. Detroit time) so it is a good way to get the day started.

We've had wacky power issues since I've been here. (Jackson said it is my fault.) We had no power most of the day on Saturday and none this morning. Thankfully, it is back on now. They were doing some demolition work in front of our complex so maybe they cut a line and that caused the problem. I just hope it is done now. A woman needs coffee in the morning!!

D Departed

Oi Sao Paulo. I am finally here. It wasn't easy but I departed the D as scheduled on Friday. We had to have one more going away party Thursday night (that sneaky Lynne). It was great to see all my friends but I think they're ready for me to be in Sao Paulo so they get to quit saying goodbye to me. They'll have to find another excuse to party now. My friends are amazing. Sure hope they make it to Sao Paulo sometime.

After a few too many glasses of vino at Lynne and Dan's, I had to pack up the last of the house. I finished at 2:30 and then got up at 6 to fill my three suitcases. After a quick brush through work for a department meeting, I was on my way.

Sao Paulo Airport was its usual chaotic self. I got through the passport line no problem but then the line after you got your luggage snaked all around. People were cutting in and causing problems. Of course, I had the world's worst cart so I couldn't make any of the roped turns. It was pretty comical. It took about an hour to get through that mess.

Java is here with me. She got to the apartment about 5:00 yesterday afternoon. She is sleeping on her new bed and acts like nothing is different. Oh to be a dog. She is panting a bit though. The switch from 10 degrees to 85 is quite tough on the system.













It is great to be a family again. Now if only I can get Ro to give up some of the closet!