Meeting People Online

I know a lot of couples who met online and I am quite impressed by most of these couples because despite of many negative things that result from people meeting online, these couples seems to be doing really well in their relationship.

I personally don’t have anything against online dating and meeting people online because based on my personal experience, I’ve met quite a lot of real nice people through the World Wide Web who share the same interests like mine. These people later became my friends.

One of our friends (who is a bachelor) once said that it’s getting more and more awkward to approach a girl in a bar or in restaurant simply because the people in these places doesn’t seem to be “looking for something” or that most of the girls in there are aiming for something else other than a possible relationship. I believe he has a point there. Why not just go somewhere where you can be sure that the people you’ll be meeting have the same interests like yours. In the net where chatting is offered, you’ll immediate know where to go because there are different “Chat Rooms” for different people. If you are a single parent and would like to meet and talk to other single parents, you can go to “Single Parent Chat”. It’s as easy as that.

Soon in Shanghai

That’s me right there in a subway train with my one of my good friends. That was still in Changchun and I think this photo is taken about two years ago. Judging on how I look and on how I dressed up in the picture, one can tell that this is oolllldddd.

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You might have heard already that I made some enemies but that’s okay because I still have my real friends and another exciting thing is that they are coming to visit me here in Shanghai soon. I can’t wait to see my girlfriends!

Growing Friendship

viennas-friends.JPGIn four week’s time, my German lesson will be over and there will be a long break before the next course will start. I am please that not only my German is improving; my social life seems to be getting better as well. Earlier in my study of German, I was somewhat distant to my classmates because they are all Chinese and they just speak in Chinese so I always sort of felt left-out. Now, it looks like everybody is so eager to use what they’ve learned in the course so the conversations are mostly in German. I can now join the conversation and this paved the way for them to know me better—which is cool because some of them find me interesting.

I am glad that I am going out more often now and that I am developing friendship with people other than the colleagues and friends of my husband. In short, I now have my own circle. I don’t have anything against the colleagues and friends of my husband because most of them are really nice persons too and I am glad that we could spend time with them sometimes but having my own circle of girlfriends with pretty much the same interest as mine is different. I really miss my girlfriends back in Changchun and in the Philippines but I am glad that after 5 months of staying in Shanghai, I am starting to really feel at home here.

Inferiority Complex Attack

Emily, one of my Irish friends I mentioned in my earlier post, decided to stay in Shanghai to live with her boyfriend. I consider them friends because we spent a lot of time together in the last few weeks and Emily’s boyfriend is a colleague and friend of my husband. Emily’s sister Tina already went back to Ireland but Emily will stay for a few weeks then she’ll be flying back to Ireland to quit her job. That is just so grand. :)

So anyway, Emily called me and asked if we could have a coffee together sometime because according to her, she really enjoyed my company the last times. That was so nice of her to say but that’s something I didn’t expect. Emily has a managerial position in human resource of some British-Indian company and she is like 54 years old and she often talks about very intellectual things so you can just imagine my surprise when such person display interest in spending time with me.

I am no intellectual. I am just a simple woman who is living a simple life but being married to Marcus also means that sometime, I’ll be going to parties, dinners, and gatherings where I’d be spending time with people who have much wider knowledge and way more eloquent than I am. I always try to talk to these people and not just smile and be pretty (in short, look stupid) but sometimes I can’t help but feel tiny.

Lesson Learned

I was introduced to two Irish women, Emily and Tina, last week and we instantly warmed up to each other. They are sisters and Emily is the girlfriend of Marcus’ friend and colleague, Henry. Henry is British so Tina kept teasing them about how it’s a miracle that they can stay together because Irish and Brits hate each other too much.

flag_of_ireland.jpgTina is like a bird. She can’t stop to tweet and she got this really high pitched voice that can be irritating to hear but I like listening to her because she has a really good sense of humor. So anyway, while we were having our break from shopping, I asked why Emily said something like “I work in UK and I live in Dublin”. Isn’t Dublin a part of UK? Isn’t Ireland a part of UK?

And then Tina, said …. “Oh no,no, no. Vienna, if you have to learn one thing, learn this. Ireland is its own country. Forget everything else but that.” And she said that in a really funny way with all the face and eye expressions. And she kept on and on about how the Brits took a big portion of their land, copied their culture and their language, killed a lot of their leaders, etc.

It was an interesting day with them. I had fun and I learned some things. I do hope I can spend more time with them but they are flying back to Ireland in a few days. They did invite us to visit them in Ireland and I think it would be cool if we can go there someday because Ireland is definitely an interesting place to see.

Something We Should Know About Ruth Parasol

Ruth Parasol, as many of you might have heard, is a self-made billionaire known for being a founding member of the largest online gaming community but many of us don’t know that Ruth Parasol is also a strong believer of philanthropy. ruth_parasol.jpgIn fact, she is the person behind Bonita Trust—an independent charity found on the mission to enrich Gibraltar community. From the time it was founded, Bonita Trust has grown and at the moment it is extending its mission to other countries like India.

Initially, Bonita Trust launched programs of endowments to educational, cultural, health and community projects in Gibraltar. Now, Bonita Trust is making significant donations to give free reconstructive surgery and treatment to underprivileged children in India who have cleft lip and cleft palate. Bonita Trust also has other programs like raising funds for specialist tuition for dyslexic children and for skin cancer awareness campaigns.

Ruth Parasol is among those women who use their success to help other people in need and we can learn a lot from her. We don’t have to be billionaires to reach out and help the communities we live in. I am sure that any kind of help, big or small, from each and every one of us can sum up to great things.

My Thought on Friendship

friendship.jpgA real friend does not only cheer you up when your down, does not only help when you’re in trouble, does not only listen and be there when you cry. A friend does more. A real friend is sincere and frank and may not agree always agree with you. She’ll tell you you’re wrong when she thinks you are. She’ll tell you that you look cheap and stupid in those clothes or with that make up before anyone starts making fun of you then she’ll urge you to change. She’ll tell you that your decision is wrong when she thinks you’re doomed but she’ll be there. A real friend sees and protects your interests and not only hers.

If you are blessed to find one, keep her by being a friend to her just like she is to you. Never let her down because this world full of leeches and you’ll never know if you’ll find a real good friend again.

Making Friends

I have invited two classmates to come over next Sunday. I will cook for them. I haven’t which dish to cook yet but I think I will cook some Filipino food.

My husband thinks it’s a good idea to make friends in my German class. He said that since I refuse to speak in German with him, it would be good for me to have some friends with whom I can be comfortable speaking in German with. I think he’s got a point but I am inviting these people because I think they are nice and because I genuinely just want to make friends.

HuangLi and Becky are both Chinese. Becky can speak good English and the only chance I can speak with HuangLi is if I speak German with her. HuangLi is very young nonetheless; she is obviously the best in class. HuangLi and I used to sit together but the instructor rearranged the whole class and paired us up with a partner who is supposedly better or worse German speaker than ourselves to create some sort of balance in the class. Becky, on the other hand, is an art student who will continue studying art in Berlin. Her English is good but I don’t suppose she’s got so much interest in other languages. Becky and I see German as a completely obligatory thing. We are not learning this language because we want to but because we have to.

They are both nice to me and I think I can be good friends with them.