Recently, I’ve had a lot of time to think about what is next. Here’s what I’m thinking….

1. I will work on my website so that it truly reflects who I am, personally and professionally. So far, it has been a travel blog with lots of pretty pictures and a few good stories. My personality does come through after reading/looking at several posts, but if I want this to be a tool for my career and my future, I need it to be more immediate.

2. I will do a significant project on my own. I have been saying I would do an architectural competition for over a year now and I need to actually do it, or something like it. I need to get the creative juices flowing again, and I need projects like this to strengthen my portfolio so that I can accomplish #3.

3. I will work in an architecture office whose work and mission I admire. It will be a firm that I want to grow with and be an integral part of.

4. I will save money. Living life out of two bags and no paycheck for nearly a year has taught me that I don’t need very much stuff or money to be happy. Therefor, once #3 is under way, I should be able to save a much higher percentage of that income than I previously thought possible.

5. I will become a master of a craft. Ever since I took a ceramics class my last year of college, I have been fascinated with what my two hands could create. Since then, I haven’t touched clay because I told myself I didn’t have enough time or didn’t have enough money to invest in a class at the local studios. Instead I taught myself how to knit and sew in the comfort of my home. Eventually, I will go back to the potter’s wheel and I will try working with wood. It has already led me on a path of making things for myself rather than depending on others, and who knows, perhaps others will want me to make things for them too.

6. I will own my own business. Right now, I want to own a bed & breakfast. If I do it right, it will be located in an amazing place that I want to be forever, I will be able to use my interest in craft and background in architecture to make the b&b unique, and I will fulfill my passion of travel vicariously through others. I have also dreamed of owning my own hardware store that won’t be your run-of-the-mill Ace, but it also won’t be as hoity-toity as Restoration. It will be a neighborhood hardware store with a modern twist where you can buy the basics while having the personal attention that you might find at your local knitting shop or used bookstore. I also talked with a friend one night over drinks about opening a design bookstore. It was a fleeting moment, but I still think it would be amazing.

All of this is exciting. I don’t know when any of it will happen, and I’m sure that over time, some of it will change. But as of today, April 18, 2009, these are my personal goals.

Figure it out….then scroll down.

Me neither. Try to figure that one out while you’re riding your bike in a neighborhood you’ve never been to. I had to take a photo so that I could figure it out at home. Pretty lame.

The trick to these signs, which I knew already, is that they typically indicate the NEXT intersecting road, which is super helpful most of the time (assuming you know what road you’re on). But this time I didn’t know what road I was on, and looking at my map did not help. Yishan Lu should have been straight ahead AND to the left. And why did they put Coabao Lu instead of Tianlin Dong Lu? It is times like this that I am glad I’m not a city planner.

On Sunday, Nik and I took a 2 hour bus ride to the Tongli Water town about 80km west of Shanghai that is known for its 40+ stone bridges and 20+ criss-crossing canals. It was a holiday weekend (Tomb Sweeping Day was Monday), so we expected the small tourist town to be overrun with people, and it was. However, out of the 40+ bridges, all of the people were flocking to about 5. So there was plenty of room for Nik and I to escape from the chaos and wander through this well preserved little town of water, bridges, lanes, tradition and grandeur without being disturbed.

Included in our 160rmb bus ticket was the round-trip bus fare, entry into the city itself (typically 60rmb) and admission to several traditional homes that had been preserved and turned into mini-museums. Walking through the streets of the town was definitely my favorite part, but it was amazing to walk through the courtyards, gardens, anti rooms and performance spaces of the once occupied Great Houses. I often wish that wealthy people today would spend their money wisely on significant architecture like this instead of the McMansions we see so much of in America. Don’t get me wrong, plenty of wealthy people do spend their money on amazing homes that will one day be turned into museums, but plenty don’t.

Anyways, here are my photos from the trip showing the not-so-packed areas of town, and Nik has posted several of his as well. This is a perfect day trip. We left the Shanghai Stadium tourist bus station promptly at 9am and returned around 6pm. The ride out passed by several farms that were not yet planted, but were beginning to be overrun with yellow wild flowers. In the city, there are plenty of waterside cafés and snack shops, but there are also several waterside stone benches that are perfect to people watch while eating your own picnic lunch.

On Monday, the actual holiday that happened to be our 3-year anniversary, we stayed in Shanghai. I took Nik to the flower market where we picked out a plant for our apartment, and then we went to one of our favorite outside spots, Zhongshan Park. We found a spot near the bridge that causes a lot of chaos for the little motor boats that people rent to eat lunch, and saw some pretty funny stuff. I didn’t take any photos because we have so many already, so you can look here to find them. The narrow bridge underpass did not disappoint!

After lunch and a few good chuckles, we found a spot smack dab in the middle of the main kite flying lawn and we flew a kite!!! There were three or four vendors selling all sorts of kites, and we picked the smallest one they had. It was just 5rmb (<$1), not too bad for an afternoon of entertainment.

We fly our kite.

Kite flying wasn’t the ONLY thing going on. People were picnicing, playing volleyball, playing with bubbles, reading, people watching, playing badmitton, etc. And we couldn’t go to the park without bringing along our Feather!! Nik and I kicked it around several times, and after a couple hours an actual feather vendor wandered up. This was the first time we had seen a feather vendor at a Shanghai park, so it was quite amazing. We were great for his business, because a few of the people that had been watching us all day ended up buying feathers themselves. The vendor walked over with about 15 feathers in his little bag, and walked away with just 3-4. Not too shabby! In fact, we probably should have bought one because ours is about to die, but we know of a store near the apartment that we can get a replacement for 3rmb.

After the park, we rode over to Itsuki Yakiniku for all you can eat Japanese Tappanyaki and ended the weekend with full bellies and lots of great memories.