Freckles in a Foreign Land - Kellie's Guest Blog 1

We at Ledga's Ramblings strive to bring you, our valued audience, the best in entertainment. We've decided that from time to time we'll enlist the services of a free-lancer, or GUEST blogger to fill these pages, and your hearts, with merriment.

So without further distraction - here is our first such entry, from one Ms. Kellie:

Chris has been asking me to write a guest blog since the beginning of this journey, but I have to say it’s a little intimidating.  I often hear from friends, and friends of friends, how much they enjoy reading Chris’ blog and how funny he is.  How can I compete with that?  But now that we have been living in Singapore for 3 months (Crazy, right?!?), I have finally agreed to write my experience down.

It’s true. Timing could have been a little better.  If it has just been a few months earlier we wouldn’t have bought the house or booked a venue for the wedding… but I didn’t think of those things as “deal breakers.”  At least I hadn’t bought new curtains or invitations!   I remember how nervous I was to call Chris to ask him if he wanted to move to Singapore.  I was right to feel nervous.  His first answer was a flat out NO, but each conversation after that got much better.  It was a little easier to tell my family.  The conversation went more like this: “So, Mom, Dad and Steve, I have a great new work opportunity, but it is in Singapore.” Everyone looks at me with a blank face and says “WHAT!”, Kellie: “I know it’s a lot to take in, but it’s something we are really thinking about”, Mom: “You should absolutely do it, but where the heck is Singapore?”  That’s how it all started for me, and I can’t believe how far we have come and all the things I have learned.

Today I looked back on my 90 Day Plan that I wrote for work before coming to Singapore.  I have made a lot a progress, but the whole section I had about changing the world hasn’t worked out yet.  I have been humbled with how much I still have to learn, but excited about the changes I can bring to the region.  The office here is bright and clean.  My new desk is small and the main decoration is my framed sheet of 4 Basic Revenue Recognition Criteria that made the shipping cut… Go Rev Rec!!!  Here the break room has a great view of the city, and when I think about looking out over the parking lot in Hopkinton, I realize it’s definitely an upgrade.

Since coming to Singapore I have been racking up the airline miles.  I traveled to Ireland, Manila and Bali.  After our trip home in July, I will be a platinum flyer!  I never understood why Chris was always concerned with his “status” with an airline, but I am starting to get it.  I long for the day when I have enough points to book a first class ticket on one of these long flights. 

Here are a few other things I have learned:

·          Flights under 10 hours now feel like a quick trip.  However, I don’t know how people made it without the mini tv’s on the back of the seats.  I have watched more movies in the past 3 months then I ever imagined.

·         I used to complain about always having Winnie Duty on Saturday mornings, but I now realize how much I loved my and Winnie’s routine.  How did I not appreciate a little puppy kissing my feet as I started to walk out the door?

·         People here do not like it when you try to cross the street when the walk sign is not lit… and I am not talking about drivers, I am talking about the other people trying to cross the street… but sometimes my inner-Bostonian gets the best of me and I can’t help but go for it.

·         The friends we have made here already feel like they have been in our lives for years.  We are all in the same boat, and I didn’t realize how strong a connection could be created with new friends.

·         A budget?  I don’t remember what a budget is?  We are constantly spending money on food and beer….. and we need to start saving since we have added a few people to that already too long wedding list.

·         Instead of planning my commute based on where I want to get my coffee (Dunkin vs. Honey Dew), I now have to plan it based on what I need to carry and how much sweat I can handle… Not fun! 

·         I didn’t think I would ever say this, but I actually miss being able to drive to the grocery store.

·         I am getting better with trying out new food.  Quite frankly I don’t have much of a choice; for some reason the hawker centers don’t have a lot of baked chicken on the menu…

I am excited for our trip in July.  I find it funny that 2 things on the top of my list are Il Forno Chicken Parm and a beer at the Elks.  How did a small town girl from Clinton end up 10,000 miles away in a huge city in Asia??  It’s been a very eventful year for us.  I am still not sure how all of this has happened, but I can say I am enjoying the ride. I am incredibly thankful and lucky that Chris agreed to take this Singapore adventure with me.  He is my home in this new place.  He always keeps me laughing, and I am amazed at his ability to make friends anywhere.  I am glad that he was willing to write this blog to keep our friends and family laughing too.  In the words of my father, “Good Luck”