The Searchlight of Insight

Tess is a SUPER MOM!

I, of course, have know this all along but now the media are in on it!

Happy Valentine's Day

Yes, Valentine's Day is a big thing in Hong Kong. If you want a restaurant in this city for tonight, one had better book it well in advance... at least two weeks to get any restaurant. Perhaps months in advance to get the establishment of your choice depending on its popularity. Tess and I stayed in tonight on purpose... I made Tess her annual laminated Valentine's Day collage (click on the pic at left and give it a moment to load) and told Tess that I had a surprise for her. When I finally made it home from work, (I was delayed,) I set-up my computer. Tess still had no idea the nature of her surprise but soon concluded it was something to watch. Thanks to our good friend Paul, we watched the latest episode of Lost - something we've been waiting for since the last episode aired in late November - while sharing a big bowl of popcorn. Now we're settling in for the night but I unfortunately have a late night conference call and won't be going to bed until about 1 AM.

Generally things are going okay in our household. The kids are battling mild colds and Jasper's asthma has been terrible thanks to a sudden increase in Hong Kong pollution. Sela & Carys start morning visits to Small World Christian Kindergarten tomorrow to familiarise themselves with the place before starting full half-days on March 1. Fortunately a five-day weekend is just around the corner thanks to Chinese New Year. This will be a welcome break when we can all get caught-up on sleep. Famous last words...

Final Audit: Tess' List

Many of you probably remember a few weeks ago Tess made mention of her "list" that I was supposed to complete while Tess was away this summer. On the eve of my departure back to Canada, here is a progress report on The List.

1. Sell Baby Jogger, two high chairs. Done.
2. Return bottle steriliser. Done.
3. Paint bathroom walls where peeling. Done.
4. Buy Sebastian new school shoes. Done
5. Download/print Seb's school application. Done.
6. Enroll Sebastian in fall Drama Classes. Done.
7. Enroll Sebastian in fall Swimming Classes. Done.
8. Print digital pictures from Nov 2001 onwards - printed and labelled digital pics from Nov 2001 to April 2004. 2200 pictures waiting to go into photo albums.
9. Have contractors fix kitchen ceiling. Done.
10. Re-paint bathroom wall. Done.
11. Find Max and Jane's DVD power cord. Turns out we didn't have it. Done.
12. Fix door latch on Tess' chinese wardrobe. Done.
13. Go through MBA notes and throw-out. Done.
14. Throw-out or remove Charles' books. Done.
15. Go through old clothes and throw-out unused ones. Done.
16. Go through old papers and throw out papers and magazines. Done.
17. Delete large files on web site server. Done.
18. Update Tess' blog while she is away from computer/e-mail. Done.
19. Save seatbelt from old orange stroller and then discard stroller. Done.
20. Contact Jetsetter to find out due date for next story. Done.
21. Contact China Staff magazine to find out due date for next story. Done.
22. Download Tess' e-mails and delete spam. Done.
23. Fix seatbelt on Baby Swing. Done.Throw out old suitcases. Done.
24. Buy new suitcases (large) bring to Fintry empty. Done.
25. Contact Tess' grandmother and set-up times when we will be back through Vancouver on way to Hong Kong. Done.
26. Get out, meet with friends, don't be a loner. Done.
27. Sell Baby Swing. Not Done.

I am sure there is more, but right now I cannot remember. (There was also a long list for Mila and De to complete.) It is 5:45 AM in Bangkok and I arrived an hour ago from Bangalore in transit to Hong Kong. Two more hours until I leave for Hong Kong.

Happy Mother's Day, Tess

The top twenty things about Tantalising Tess that make her a terrific mother, wife and friend… (not in any particular order):

1. Great conversationalist – much better than I am at parties and on the playground.
2. Creative writer – thinks of things that never cross my mind.
3. Incredible ability to observe – whenever we are out on hikes, Tess sees and points out things that I would have missed for sure. (Like unusual snakes and spiders and bugs.) This is also great for kids.
4. Educational mom – Tess is always doing things with Sebastian or the triplets – puzzles, reading books, drawing, games, singing songs – which they love and are typically not in my automatic repertoire.
5. Socially sophisticated – in other words Tess will tell you one minute into a movie, who will sleep with who and probably the ending of the story. This applies to real situations, too. Therefore, if you meet Tess at a party and have your eye on someone, well, Tess will have read your mind by that point. I, on the other hand, am incredibly naïve and still mulling over whether or not Daisy and Jay slept together in The Great Gatsby… even after seeing it twenty-five times.
6. Tess speaks her mind – Tess is never afraid to speak her mind to people who step out of line – such as taxi drivers who take circuitous, long routes or waiters/waitresses who ignore us at restaurants or farcical people who missed the point somewhere along the way.
7. Forgiving – any time Tess and I encounter conflict in our relationship, (“now, now… conflict is our friend” – spoken like a true HR professional!) Tess is a master at processing the situation and forgiving me for whatever misdeed I committed.
8. Appreciates fine things – like diamonds.
9. Incredibly thrifty – Tess thinks she spends too much money. In truth, she hardly spends a cent. (Maybe she knows I am saving for the diamonds.)
10. Pragmatic – Tess likes practical, useful gifts. Not really into flowers and the like. Lots of our family decisions are oriented around being pragmatic. (Not at all influenced by our current circumstances! Ha!)
11. Loves a good laugh – the more laughs the better and preferably multiple laughs. Not into ridiculous, slapstick humour – has to be the clever stuff.
12. Excellent cook – including making tempting, tasty things for Sebastian and the triplets… even if the Terrific Trio have to have everything puréed.
13. Into down time – especially with the events of the last two years (including the OHSS) Tess recognizes the value of chilling out and taking it easy.
14. Supportive of work – I work for an incredibly dynamic, high speed Nasdaq Darling. In April alone we bought three companies, including closing one in under five days. In the last two to three weeks I have had countless late night conferences calls with the US Acquisition Team. No complaints from Tess.
15. Tess has a great family. Very easy going, fun to be around and like giving me massages!
16. Tess is incredibly loyal… not only does she stand up for herself; Tess also stands up for her friends and family.
17. Tess is thoughtful… always writing thank you notes, or sending cards, gifts or e-mails to friends and family no matter where they may be on the planet.
18. Tess plays a mean game of Scrabble… reportedly undefeated. In any competitive situation, Tess on your team will exponentially increase your odds of winning.
19. Off the beaten path – not only is Tess fun to be around, she also loves to do unusual things. In our relationship we’ve never been in a rut of partying every weekend or doing the same thing over and over. Tess is always open to trying out new things and places.
20. Beautiful – downright gorgeous.