Let the caning begin!!!

Family,

And a good evening to you from across the globe after a GREAT DAY in the Lion City. Welcome back to the blog, loyal followers! It's geat to be back, and whilst (that's right, Big Cat, read it - literally - and weep) I don't have pictures today, it felt wrong to not start with a Singapore post vs. resuming the postings with a catch-up blog. However, rest assured that the catch-up blogs are coming.

So the catch-up blogs will take you up to Tuesday morning at 9:03 AM, which is the point Sammy the Bull bit farewell to the Old North State and the QC to head for the Sing (which is clean, incidentally). All started well - we even landed early in Chicago. However, the wheels started to come off when, trying to be a nice guy, offered my seat in the departure lounge to a fella escorted in by a skycap and his wife.

Don't get me wrong, these were some very nice people...even if, about 20 seconds into meeting him, he asked, "Are you a Mormon?" I was, well, taken more than a little off guard; I mean, HOW OFTEN IS THAT THE FIRST QUESTION YOU GET IN CONVERSATION UNLESS YOU'RE DEALING WITH THE LEADER OF A CULT?

I told the guy no and then, eaten up with curiosity, asked simply, "What gave you that impression?" His response? "You're drinking water and it's all I've seen you drink." Muffin - this guy would have thought you were the second coming of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young all rolled into one.

I made polite conversation, despite the fact that I REALLY wanted to read (Mom and Steve - the new kindle = EXTRA AWESOME - I LOVE IT!!! THANKS SO MUCH!). Seriously, twice I made the clear "I need to read this" move, and each time I got, "Excuse me - sorry to bother you..." And again, all this would have been fine, had the plane NOT SUDDENLY BEEN 2 HOURS DELAYED.

But again, no complaints, as the flight was super easy. I watched 2 movies: Clash of the Titans (THE DEFINITION OF DONKEY TRASH) and The A-Team (SUPER entertaining, AND Bradley Cooper is HOT), and, believe it or not, I actually slept 8 HOURS!!!! Now THAT was life changing.

We landed in Hong Kong smoothly - the only problem being that I met my buddy again who, completely unprovoked and out of the blue, asked me, "Are you sure that you didn't used to be a hippie?" Seriously - WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT EVEN MEAN? So we then proceeded to roll a J and smoke a fatty...just kidding.

We landed 90 minutes late, and the final surprise was my driver NOT showing up at the airport. After calling the condo, they just told me to take a cab (so courteous), and I rolled up to our new home at 2:30 AM. I hit they hay at 3:30, but I couldn't sleep, and so at 7:15 I got up, showered, shaved, and even IRONED (I know, I know - this is serious), getting me into the office at 8:45.

The work day was good and steady, if not a bid overwhelming, as a) I'm in a new culture, b) I don't know what time zone I'm in, c) for the first time in 6 years, I'm in a role outside project management, and d) my MUFFIN PUFFIN isn't here! 16 days and counting!!! No Frumpies!

A few observations about Singapore so far:

1. I feel confident in saying that I'll be able to count on 1 hand the number of times I board the metro and there's someone on there taller than me

2. Tom Yum Soup for $3.50? AMAZING

3. Sugar Cane Juice for a buck? MORE AMAZING

4. Dragonfruit for dinner because you're too lazy to go back out after the gym? Adequate...

5. I haven't figured out who goes through doors first yet. Is it me if they are holding it? Is it any girl in the group? Is it the dude in front of me if I'm holding it? So many rules...

6. People will ONLY hand you something WITH BOTH HANDS. Seriously - it's freaking me out. I think I'm going to start yelling "BOW TO THE SHOGUN!!!" every time it happens and see if that changes people's behavior.

7. Singapore is a city that is more beautiful at night. I walked home from the gym this evening, and I was BLOWN AWAY by the colors and lights. JT - wait until you see the view from the pool at Fitness First after dark - SENSATIONAL!

8. The words "respect" and "eloquence" came up a lot today during conversation. Since I have neither of those, I've decided to respond to all future escalations by saying, "I'm the Juggernaut, @#$#%!!!" and then hog-tackling the messenger. Stay tuned for the results.

A few other good stories from today, but not everything is for public consumption. But to the VFF now in the Land of the Red Sun, no confirmation on any of your items today. However, fret not, as I am "not concerned..."

Oh, and whilst I won't be giving you the blow by blow of my workouts (not yet, at least), you should all know that I signed up for the Singapore Sundown 1/2 Marathon in May. Tonight I only logged about 2 miles (insert Dinger running past me yelling "Suck failure, freak!"), but given that I haven't really slept or eaten, I considered it a victory. And speaking of, it's time to finish this dragon fruit, brush my teeth, and call it a night.

Before I go, however, 3 things:

1. Pattie Ruth - WAY TO GO ON TUESDAY!!!!! SO PROUD OF YOU!!!!

2. Steve - HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Make sure mom takes you somewhere good to eat this weekend.

3. KJ - Good luck, and fingers crossed!!!!

Okay, that's all the news that's fit to print. Chat tomorrow!

Love,

Sam and (sitting at her desk and LOVING some V-lookups, I'm sure) Jenny