Singapore reflections
I've completed my first ever vacation entirely on my own. It wasn't my first choice, but I'm glad I did it. My first choice would be to have these experiences with someone else. Not just a girlfriend, wife, or partner, but friends. I had specific moments where different people that I care about would have really enjoyed parts of this trip. Steve and Brian would have loved the night golf. Marni would have loved the Skywalk. Daisy would have loved the Cloud Forrest. Nancy would have loved the dining next to the river and this bridge.
Seriously, I thought of Nancy every single time I crossed this bridge next to my hotel. Ted and Tony would have loved the hawker centers and pulsating heartbeat of Chinatown. I was lonely at times, but I'm still learning to find joy on my own. Other people can't make me happy. I have to find joy on my own and then perhaps share that joy with someone else.
I could never live in a place like this. The humidity would just kill me. Being covered in sweat all the time would be awful. This was also a problem on the golf course. I felt like I could wring my glove out from all the sweat that was soaked into it. That was an uncomfortable feeling, and I take my glove off all the time when I can. I don't leave it on the entire round.
I'll get into Hangzhou very late tonight. I'm expecting just a couple hours of sleep before I wake up super early (around 5:00am) to watch the Seahawks playoff game. I fully expect Seattle to get throttled. San Francisco has a great defense. I think the only chance Seattle has is if they can play straight up man defense in the backfield and pressure the crap out of the rookie QB Brock Purdy. That's just not a Pete Carroll type of thing. If they get beat, they'll get beat playing their game. They'll try to stop the run (try is the important word there) and keep everything in front of them. Nothing allowed over the top. In related news it sounds like the weather for this game will be awful. Not sure if that's good or bad for an underdog. I would guess it favors the team that can run the ball, and that's SF.
Watching day five of the Chili Bowl Nationals on my laptop. One of my favorite drivers (Daryn Pittman) just won his heat race. He recently retired from racing, but this event pulls people from all over the place. I believe they have 365 drivers at the event this year.
I just got my email letting me know that my Covid test was negative. China will take me back now. I'll have a couple of weeks before I have to get back to work. Well, sort of. I have a bunch of papers that I have to read, grade, and annotate. About 150 pages worth. My twelfth graders had to submit a fifteen page paper on a topic of their choosing. It has to involve mathematics at the DP level (statistics or calculus). To receive a higher score they have to not just explain or describe, but investigate deeper into something new and/or original. It's going to take some time to get through them.
Standing in a long line at the airport. The absolute worst thing for a bad back is standing in one place for a long time. Ugh. On a positive note I believe I'm getting a first class seat for my two flights. Not bad. Didn't plan on that, but I'll take it. I've only had a first class seat once when I flew down to see my buddy Phil in El Paso. Being able to lay down flat and sleep on a long flight was awesome. The first class seats also came with an invitation to a premier lounge. Free food and some comfortable seats? Sign me up.