There are some family members that you see every week, and others that you see every year, and others that you catch up with during weddings, bar mitzvahs and funerals. And then there are the family members who live in China, who are not present for any of those solemn events, but who are thinking of you, nonetheless.
Our first niece was born this week. Little Kathryn Rose came into the world on December 7th. We missed it. We have also missed two weddings (Congratulations to Patrick and Misty, Masha and Paul!) and one funeral (Aunt Rose, for whom KR is named). And next spring we will still be in China for my cousin Ian’s bar mitvah.
We miss the routine family events, too. We have seen pictures from the holidays, but we have not been a part of them since we came to China last February. Now that another Christmas-Hanukkah is just around the corner, we will have to find away to celebrate far from our friends and family.
Luckily, we have found our way into an expat community where everyone is in the same boat. We celebrated Thanksgiving with an actual turkey at the home of some friends. Beijing Duck would have been adequate, but there is nothing like real, stuffed Turkey for Thanksgiving. And we will may spend Christmas with the other teachers here, since we all have Christmas Day off, but our winter vacation doesn’t start until two weeks later.
Some of the Korean tachers in our building already have a Christmas tree. We will probably design a metaphysical Christmas tree, like we did when we lived in Washington. The trick is to arrange lights and decorations by hanging them from the ceiling. From the window, it looks like a tree, but in reality, no tree is there.
In 2006, it is easier than it ever has been to stay in touch, even from the other side of the world. We read the same newspapers, listen to the same radio and even watch the same TV shows as we would in America, all through the miracle of the internet. We can talk on the “phone” as much as we want to, although our “phone” is really Skype, and it runs through our computer. We are lucky to be in China now, when we can bring so much of home with us, and it is all so easy.
But sometimes it feels just like the meta-tree. All of the details that make a home are there, but it lacks the substance underneath.
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If you’ve been using Skype to make free phone calls, hold onto your wallet - because starting in January, Skype is going to charge a $29.95 annual fee for calls to U.S. and Canadian phone numbers. In a masterful act of spin, executives at the eBay (EBAY) subsidiary managed to convince USA Today that this was an exciting new promotion, not a fee increase imposed on a service that Skype had offered for free since May.
PC-to-PC calls made to other Skype users are still free; it’s calls made from your PC to regular telephone lines - a service called SkypeOut - that will soon require a paid subscription.
At VOIP Watch, the usually insightful Andy Abramson was taken in, too, calling the plan “an early holiday present,” and noting that if Skype users sign up now, they can get a reduced rate of $14.95 for a year’s worth of calling.
Granted, paying $1.25 a month for unlimited calls anywhere in the country is a pretty good deal. And Skype had to start charging eventually. But let’s not pretend that paying for calls is somehow better than making them for free.
Ignoring Skype’s spin, though, this is still bad news for Vonage (VG). Take SkypeOut for $30 a year, and add SkypeIn, a service which assigns a regular phone number to your Skype account, for another $40 a year, and you’ve got the equivalent of Vonage’s $25/mo. Internet phone service for $230 less a year. And let’s not even get into what AT&T (T) and Verizon (VZ) bill customers for the privilege of making unlimited phone calls. Skype may be trying to overhype its decision to charge - but it’s still way cheaper than the competition. (Story from CNN)
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I think CNN miffed this one. If I remember correctly, SkypeOut wasn’t free. It had a per minute rate. It looks like they’ve just bundled the per minute into an unlimited use subscription.
We just use the PC to PC (which you have to try). But we should think about signing up for the annual subscription so we can chat with our nephews on this happy day.
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We miss you, we miss you…but you are always with us, n’est ce pas? Toujours, toujours mes enfants, ma famille, mon coeur. Tus sont toujours dans mon coeur, n’est ce pas? xoxoxoB&B
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Oh Em,
Your entry is so beautiful and heart felt. We miss you & Joshua so much, esp when we look at KR and she makes funny faces and we wish you could see the faces and smell her newness. If its OK we would like to read your entry at KR’s naming on the 22nd.
We cant wait to hold you & Josh in our arms and give you both hugs and kisses! We miss you terribly but could not be happier or more proud of you both and your adventure. We support you and love you and encourage you to pursue this adventure and all adventures to the fullest. We, nevertheless, are eager to smother you with affection upon your return.
XOXOXOXOXO-M,B & KR
PS- Bill has been puked on a few times which is pretty cool and today KR made a huge poo at the end of a diaper change! Betty is loving this!!