What does Kara do?

I just checked the weather. According to Accuweather.com, Beijing is currently 88°F and feels like 106°F. It's sunny, though, with shadows appearing and everything, so I'm content. Don't worry; we have air conditioning. Personally, I've decided to try the Beijingers' habit of taking umbrellas around to block a bit of that sun. I'll let you know how that goes.

Sunblock is amusingly difficult to find here, at least for decent prices; most people here just wear clothes that cover their extremities because they don't want to risk getting tan. That's actually been a treat for me: paleness is beautiful here. There are all kinds of skin-whitening creams, and every once in a while people will tell me how great I look because I'm not the slightest bit tan. It's a nice change from the tan-obsessed US, especially for someone with skin as light as mine. Maybe that's the secret to self-esteem: move to a country where they value whatever you look like currently.

People have been curious about what I do here, other than taking care of Matt's injuries. Because he has the job, I'm doing the very housewife-y thing these days, cooking and cleaning and grocery shopping every other day. All of these things take more energy here, so it's been a challenge. Cleaning is difficult because dust and grime comes through the windows and window cracks from the air outside. Cooking is a different experience because apartments rarely have ovens or more than two burners. Plus, cooking requires shopping for ingredients, which can be tough because the stores (obviously) carry very different things to some extent, and the produce must be washed properly after being bought. Those of you who know me well know that I'm not awesome at the housewife thing to begin with, so moving here has forced me out of my comfort zone in a lot of ways.

Speaking of these duties, I should probably be working on them. I hope you enjoyed a little taste into my world. As the internet allows, I will try to be more specific in my stories. Those of you in places where it feels like less than 100°F, enjoy it!