but, my sewing machine broke (well, burned up more like it) a week and a half ago.  One minute my office looked like this:

and the next like this:

It was terrible to say the least.  It happened because I bought a new converter, or what I thought was a converter.  I plugged it in, hit the pedal, and poof! there goes my sewing machine.  What a beast!  It was really ironic that this pack of ArtGirlz charms was laying next to my machine when it happened.

Don’t panic!  ok.  Help me!  I immediately ran to the internet to search for possible solutions.  Fuse, yes, I must have blown a fuse.  After removing a kagillion screws, I found the fuse and it looked perfect.  *%#!*! This is where Rocker learned several new words.  I was so discouraged as it’s a pretty nice machine and there is absolutely no where here to have it repaired.  For someone who uses tools like this in their work, this was not good at all and thus the straw that broke the camel’s back as they say.  After I fuss with the machine and eat a whole bowl of grapes while doing it, Mr. S rolls in from work around 8pm and tells me that he got hit by a car earlier that day.  He’s fine, but it’s every wife’s dream to hear that from her husband’s mouth, isn’t it?!?  Especially living in a second wor1d c()untry.  I worry about him every time he has to get into a car to go to a fact()ry here.  Rules of the road….what rules?  Somewhere in the middle I went out shopping in my neighborhood for a machine, but all I could find was an industrial machine.  Surprised?  I didn’t think so.  I know it all could have been worse, but I was pretty discouraged as I had come home from the States with my creative batteries re-charged and some new ideas that required my sewing machine.  And I was pretty tired after the move and re-adjusting to being back in Ch!na.  Even though I’ve been here nearly two years, there’s always a bit of culture sh()ck when I come back.  Hard to explain.  I spent the next day with friends, had a good cry and left it.  On a happy note, one of them knew of a store where they had seen some domestic sewing machines.  Thank God for friends here—we tell each other that often.

And that brings me to today….  My friend called yesterday to tell me she was leaving for 5 weeks tomorrow.  She followed up with, "so we should go to Carefour tomorrow to see if they have a sewing machine for you."  What a pal.  And we found one! 

I took it for a test drive and it works.  It’s a bit rickety, but for $100 (the most expensive one they had), it will work just fine.  Knock on wood.  lol.  I’m not going to sew a quilt or anything, I just need to make small bits and stitch on paper.

So, that’s that.  I don’t normally like to talk about the down side of things, but that was a pretty crummy day and I’m glad it’s long gone.  I’ve learned a lot living here; you have to push on, keep your chin-up (even though it’s hard), keep making your stuff and in the end, it usually all ends up working out. That quite possibly goes for anywhere you live.

Well, a typhoon is coming on fast and furious.  I’ve already heard two loud crashes of glass hitting the pavement with big bolts of lighting in between.  Not good, so I shall close for now and unplug my computer before something else happens!