Lesson of the day--cold weather drains the power of a battery-operated three wheeler! We found this one out the hard way today. I took the kids to the International School library and playground this morning before lunch to get some new books and play for a (very!) short time out in the cold. We did get the top put on the three-wheeler, which makes it more usable in the cold (at least for the passengers in the back, if not for the mom driving up front!), but also (as I discovered today) makes it much heavier. After lunch I took the older two to our homeschool co-op group, again on the three wheeler. The power gauge was still reading that we were in between High and Low, so I thought we would be fine, but by the time we arrived at the house where the co-op meets we were pretty much only sputtering along. The ladies there told me that the electric bike batteries just don't hold their charge very well in the cold weather. And I think that our Dungeon Master friend (the woman who lives in and runs t
he underground parking for the electric bikes and three wheelers) wasn't expecting us due to the cold--so our bike wasn't as fully charged as it normally is. At any rate, I was really thankful that the host of the homeschool group happened to have a three wheeler with a compatible charger, so we got it a little bit juiced up before heading home.Unfortunately the juice wasn't quite enough, however, so after I dropped off the two kids and one other mom who were on our route home, I ended up pedaling us the rest of the way back! I am soooo thankful that we opted for the three-wheeler model with the pedals (there was one we looked at that didn't have that option!)!! As I huffed and puffed up to our apartment complex's entrance, quads getting their work out of the year, the "electric" part of the three wheeler would kick in every few seconds and give me a burst of power that would help me to at least make it over the speed bumps. I'm prettty sure we will be the talk of the town (as if we aren't already, with how we seem to stick out wherever we go!), due to my pedaling the large three-wheeler and looking rather silly in the process. Oh well, we did make it home. Luckily, the ramp for the parking garage was downhill; otherwise, we would have had NO chance! When we got back to the dungeon, Karis gave our Dungeon Master friend some beads that she'd made and we took a picture there with her.
So I guess I need to be sticking more to taxis now--or at least charging the three-wheeler a little longer--but am slightly intimidated to spend a huge amount of time in the taxis alone. We have been encouraged to take advantage of a captive audience, and practice our language skills (or lack thereof!) when we are riding in one. So yesterday when I was in a taxi alone, I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and started trying to communicate. Of course the problem with this is that the drivers usually get excited that a Westerner knows any Chinese, so they start chattering away at break-neck speed--well, at least in sounds that way to my rookie ears! My driver followed this pattern, and I found myself trying to break in to state in my well-rehearsed Mandarin that "I speak only a little Chinese." I was of course flustered in the process, and ended up telling him that "I speak only a little China." He kind of smiled and grunted, and I realized my mistake, but only a while after exiting the cab. Kevin and I did have fun laughing at my folly later that night when I relayed it to him. One of my many verbal blunders these days! (Kevin's favorite is how I keep trying to say "y" (pronounced "ee") for "and" like you do in Spanish. Of course "yi" in Marndarin (also pronounced "ee") means "one" in Mandarin--so basically I'm confused and confusing others everywhere I go. Oh well, we're pretty sure we'll get there someday. . . :)
