How Soon Is Mao?

(I know I look stoned in this photo, but I'm not...I'm just sick...and I'm holding a 50 RNB note that our friend Sally gave us)

We're leaving for China in like, 8 hours! We've been busy trying to tie up a buncha loose ends...our friend and co-worker, Carol, came over the other day to meet Nilla...she'll be house/cat sitting for us while we're away...





...and wouldn't you know it? A couple of days before we depart to China and me and Missy get SICK. We've both got terrible colds (Missy got it first, then gave it to me). Sore throats, congestion, fevers, chills, body aches...the weeks' worth of various vaccinations must've weakened our immune systems just enough so that something like the common cold could just breach our defenses and kick our asses...as if we didn't have enough to worry about anyways. Missy felt so ill that she went to go see her doctor on her lunch break and he ended up prescribing some antibiotics. We left work early and headed over to ADD DRUG to get her medicine:


(Missy waiting for her fix in the ADD Drug waiting lounge)

While Missy rested at home, I ventured out and got myself some things for the trip...like some new clothes! I found this really great button-up shirt at OLD NAVY with these cool epaulettes...I like it because it makes me feel like I'm some sort of fashionable "commie"...or some 80's throwback wannabe?



And hey! I FINALLY joined the iPod generation. Hooray. I thought that it would be a good idea to get me one of those new-fangled iPod thingamajigs...so I got a little silver Shuffle (he's called AutoPhil). I'm keeping it in this little pouch that Missy got me a while a go at a craft fair...it's shaped like a vinyl record! So, I may be listening to an iPod, but I'm still reppin' the old school...





My personal soundtrack for China was culled entirely from Trojan Records and Warp Records...so I'll be listening to a lot of reggae, old school ska, dub, electronic, blip-hop, and ambient music...just stuff to chill me out. As for Missy, well she pretty much has her whole record collection on her iPod sooooo....I dunno. She'll probably listen to a lot of Belle & Sebastian, The Decemberists, and Bjork...

Anyways...besides being sick, we also had to contend with the fact that we were going to China for WORK. So, when it came time to pack, work stuff had to take priority over everything else...like luggage space! Besides laptops, catalogs, reference materials, art supplies, etc. etc. etc....I also got saddled with a bunch of plush samples that we have to return to one of our factories:



...to be exact, it's EIGHT plush elephants, a week's worth of clothes, a couple of week's worth of "snacks", two bottles of water, and all my toiletries that I had to cram into my tiny suitcase. And I actually managed to make it all fit! I credit years of touring with RED PONY CLOCK with helping me become such a good packer...there would be like, EIGHT band members crammed into a van with a marching band's-worth of instruments - with space being such a premium, we were each allowed only one backpack full of clothes and personal belongings for each one-to-two month tour. In a way, touring in a cramped van has totally prepared me for this moment...

As for this blog...well, I don't know if we'll be able to blog from China. I heard that certain parts of the country restrict portions of the internet. So RANCHO COCOA might be shut down for a couple of weeks. Both Missy and I will be keeping travel diaries to keep us occupied (plus, we'll have TRAVEL KITTY to help us stay entertained)...you might have to wait until we get back before we can share our adventure with you...

...and I guess it goes without saying (but I'm going to say it anyways) that Missy's website and Etsy shops will be shut down for the duration of our trip. If you absolutely have to buy a little sumthin' sumthin' for yourself or a loved one, then click on over to COPACETIQUE...they carry a bunch of Missy's handcrafted goodies as well as my own EXTRA CREDIT CRAFTS...and MORE!

Thanks everyone for reading RANCHO COCOA! We've been blogging for a month straight now and it's been a lot of fun. If you don't hear from us soon, then please check back in a couple of weeks to hear about our mild-mannered escapades in CHINA!



(remember those sketches of the neck pillow that Missy wanted to make for the plane ride, from a couple of posts ago? She *just* finished it! It's so long!...I asked her if it was going to fit in her carry-on and she said, "I think so?")