Checklist for the Immigrant Family

I was talking with my friend Cathy the other day about how we were stuffing all our luggage with gifts – used clothes, candies, toys and games – to bring to Vietnam and distribute among our family members.

She nods in understanding, “Hah, my family does that too. Immigrant families.”

This is how the luggage-packing ritual goes.

In the weeks before leaving for Vietnam, we slowly sorted and gathered all the clothing we had outgrown/were no longer wearing. We proceeded to transport (and abandon) them in their new home: our basement. We went all over department stores – Walmart, Sears, etc. looking for toys and games on sale, things that the kids might like.

On sale specifically, because my family is big. Really big. When the shopping list is for some 16-odd kids, their parents, their parents, and the odd extended relative, the cost of all those gifts quickly adds up. (And as we all know, the rule is: if you buy something for one of them, you have to get something for all of them).

Anyways, once we had gathered everything we wanted to pack up in the basement, we sorted the items out to see if each family member had at least one gift. It became a sort of mad, desperate Christmas-like distribution. (Oh, oh, did we buy something for Mei? Do you think Yuen will be able to wear this?). Once we had double (and triple) checked that we had everything in place, we re-sorted the items, to be grouped together by family units/households.

Now if that wasn’t already stressful enough, here came the hard part: fitting EVERYTHING into our luggage. Welcome to 3D Tetris. Multiplied by 12, for all the luggage, suitcases, carry-ons, and over weight items we were bringing. Did I mention how many times we had to weigh everything to make sure they weren’t over the limit?

Suddenly, I’m debating which of my essentials I can leave behind for a month. The argument in my head sounds like: “Is this an essential essential, or a non-essential essential? Hm, guess that’s one less shirt or pair of pants. I guess I can buy that stuff when I get there. I hope their clothes fit.” Good grief, I sounded crazy.

But after many weeks of work and planning, it was done. And, success! We weren’t charged for extra weight at the airport!

Let’s hope we don’t lose anything on the way…

So, what’s your packing session like before a big trip? How did your last one go? Have you ever (cringe) been charged for going over the weight limit, or lost luggage on the way?

Sometimes, there just isn’t enough space

Photo Credit: Rob Faulkner

Related articles

• 2 kids + carry on only = madness? My tips on traveling with carry on luggage only Part 1 (mumsumsum.wordpress.com)

On Pets

While I was in Vietnam, a neighbour’s dog was killed after being hit by a motorcycle. It was a hit-and-run: the motorcyclist just sped away. It happened so quickly, I don’t think the dog’s owners even got a license plate number. Even if they did, I don’t know if it would have made a difference: I’m not exactly sure what the laws regarding animal rights are in Vietnam (if any). Perhaps if any litigation occurred, it might be classified under “property.”

Could this have been prevented? You might wonder why the dog wasn’t being supervised, or at least put on a leash. It’s just not common practice in Vietnam. In the same way you might let your cat wander the neighbourhood, both dogs and cats are left free to roam. There are some wild cats and dogs that wander the streets, too. They walk by the roadsides, looking for scraps to eat.

Pets aren’t always taken care of the way they are in Canada – that’s just how it is. Even at my uncle, who owns a cat (that would be New Orangey, see Sad Tale of Kitty), doesn’t take care of it the way we might in Canada. The cat is free to wander the neighbourhood and isn’t given a food bowl – it eats food scraps left under restaurant tables, or in our kitchen at home.

As far as I’ve seen, there aren’t any vets around (I know they’re somewhere, they just don’t seem well-advertised and are difficult to find). There’s no pet food sold at the major supermarkets either, at least from what I’m aware of – again, the animals can eat scraps from dinner, or look for something on the streets.

 

Why the lack of animal rights?

I heard a story of a rich lady who lived nearby. She owned a dog and would feed it expensive cuts of meat (not dog food, meat). That would already be pretty expensive in Canada, so who knows how she could have afforded that in Vietnam? When beggars went to her house, asking for food, she would refuse them. My cousin was describing the situation like a big joke. How could someone choose to feed a dog over a person?

I guess the mentality is: if there are so many people around you who are poor or starving, how can you afford to care 100% for a pet? (Oh, PETA would have a heart attack). At the same time, Vietnam’s pet industry is growing. Dogs are seen as symbols of wealth and status, and the demand for imported pet products continues to increase. Even discussions on owning a pet in Vietnam is growing: check out these blogs, Pet Industry in Vietnam and Vietnam Pets, on the challenges faced by pet owners in Vietnam.

Don’t get me wrong – I love animals. But should their needs take precedence over people? Your thoughts?

Panic Attack

Oh. My. Freaking. Goodness.

It’s the end of the semester and I am way behind. 7 posts behind to be exact. But it’s not my fault.

Throughout the past two months, I’ve been writing all my posts fairly regularly – they just happen to be saved in my “drafts” folder. So, why haven’t I published them yet?

You see, I don’t like putting out posts that are in any way incomplete. Once it’s out, it’s done. As in: 1) no typos, 2) all links included, 3) all pictures inserted and properly formatted.

 

Herein lies the problem.

Yes, I have a stockpile of nice neat articles in reserves. All done. Ready to go. But where the heck are all my pictures!? I’m searching through my desktop. Not there. Ok, ok, it doesn’t have to be that picture, just a picture. Any will do. Oh hey, I know, there was that one at the restaurant… or maybe the one where…

Man! Did my usb just decide to swallow up every relevant picture I’ve ever taken? All that’s left in my folder right now are those shaky-blurry-ugly pictures I should’ve deleted as soon as I’d taken them (and now it’s even more junk I have to sift through).

Hm, anything on the internet? Nope, that site needs money. That one needs a subscription. Copyright… Argh, maybe I’ll just take a random picture right now and use that. That might work.

Why oh why oh why did I leave all the pictures until the end? Now I have to go through my entire monster library. Why didn’t I just organize all my photos from the get-go to make my life easier? I was so naive.

The clock is ticking.

December 3rd. 6pm. Doomsday is fast approaching.

Why Me?