Closure in the Huainan Province

Another Day in the books another milestone reached

Today we traveled to the Huainan orphanage where Chelsea spent the first nine years of life.  We were concerned about going and how Chelsea would react.  Early in the week we were fairly certain we would not make the two and a half hour drive. However as the week progressed and Chelsea opened up we decided we would do it. We wanted Chelsea’s last memory of the orphanage to be a positive one.  We had a big breakfast and headed out at 8:45 in the morning. The first thing we discovered is that Chelsea does in fact get motion sickness and two hours is about the limit.  Roughly 30 minutes before we got to the orphanage we had to pull over as she had become ill.  We were prepared for this with extra bags and such.  We got there and Chelsea showed what a trooper she was.    When we got off our short bus Chelsea was so excited she ran to her friends and started talking right away.  Younger kids came out to see her and they immediately wanted to hold her hands, hug her and hold her coattails.  We quickly realized these were “her kids.”  They were the younger children that Chun Tai was helping and watching after in the orphanage. A few of the older girls (who had looked after Chun Tai) were also there to greet us. The entire family was able to see where Chelsea was raised and where she slept.  The orphanage is very poor and the rooms where the children slept would be very cold at night and one would think unbearable in the winter months.  Today the sun was out and it was comfortably warm for us Seattleites.  The girls were all wearing coats for the most part and were eager to show us around their home.  We took several pictures of Chelsea and her friends. 



Some of Chelsea's kids



Chase watches out for his sister, he is never far away



This was Chelsea's bed where she slep with two other kids.
(4 beds to a room, 3 kids to a bed)



Chelsea, one of "her kids" and the Naanny
who looked over her the longest while at the orphanage 



Chelsea and her most recent Nanny

Soon we loaded ourselves back onto the short bus with a few extra riders and headed to Chelsea’s school the “Believe in Me” school is where Chelsea got some of the extra love and attention she needed.  The school was only about a 10 minute ride away.  We parked and Chelsea ran (with one of the older girls that came with us) to the school.  They ran from room to room looking for friends and teachers. Chelsea was doing great, having a wonderfully positive experience.  After about a 30 minute tour of the school and some official business for Myriam, we were back onto the short bus for another trip back to the orphanage. 

PHOTOS OF SCHOOL




Waiting outside Chelsea's Believe in Me School
Chase Sophie Chelsea and one of the older girls who looked after Chelsea



We interupted nap time for the kindergardeners

I few more photos and it was time to say goodbye.  Chelsea got her bag of snacksthat she and her mom had purchased the night before and started handing them out to her friends.  You could tell this was a very important exercise for her.  She was genuinely happy to give a parting gift to her friends.  Finally, it was time to leave.  We told Chelsea we needed to go and like the trooper she is turning out to be, jumped up on the entrance and waved goodbye to everyone and got onto the bus.  The kids waved at us all the way out the gate while Chelsea waved back feverishly.




Handing out candy treats to her friends



We had one more stop to make.  We left the orphanage and traveled about 20 minutes to the Huainan train station where Chun Tai was left nine years ago.  We are not sure of the exact location, only that she was found “outside the gate.” We are not sure if it was the track gate or the gate at the entry to the station.  The area was very busy and we were unable to park. Our driver instead drove by the station very slowly so we could see it and take pictures. 



Huainan Train Station where
Chelsea was left at 1 day old.

There was no place to park so our driver drove
slowly by the station for us







It is hard to believe that just nine short years ago a single event set in motion this amazing story.  A baby, one day old, was left in a public area where she was sure to be found.  She was delivered to an orphanage where she would meet a friend. Her friend would ultimately, through her own astonishing story, be adopted by an amazing family.  She would tell her forever family about her friend she had to leave behind and how much she missed her.  They were bedmates (three to a bed) at the orphanage and soon these two friends will be forever reunited.

We finally made it back to the hotel unfortunately bumping up against the two hour limit for motion sickness, for the newest Avery.  Chelsea has shown how resilient she is.  She is strong physically and emotionally as most of these girls are that come from orphanages like these.  Chaos ensued in the hotel room as Chelsea instigated and all our tickle fest with her new siblings.  She is a total instigator.  After being picked on a few to many times Nolan announced “maybe you should go back into your shell for a little while.  Chelsea has more personality that she know what do to with; and we are a bit concerned that we ain’t seen nothing yet.

 

Michael decided to take a short walk to Starbucks; it is as if he has a sixth sense to find them. He took Nolan and Sophie with him.  The thought process was to let Chelsea calm down, get a little quiet time, and relax. When he returned about an hour later Chelsea was as wild as ever.  Her and Chase have bonded so well, she really likes to be with him and looks for him constantly. Apparently the two of them had been having a blast.  It turns out that Chase had been practicing sight words with his new sister and she was already starting to speak English.

The family went down the block to have what turned out to be one of the best dinners of the trip so far.  We are amazed by Chelsea’s “ninja skills” with the chopsticks, not to mention that amount of food she can put away.  The things she likes she devours and the family loves helping her.  It is also funny to watch her wait patiently while we try to help.  Soon enough she tells us no and does it herself even putting food on our plates.  I am sure she is thinking “Hey the sooner these white people get outta my way the faster I can eat.”

A little more play time, showers, and PJ’s and we call the day…a day.

Tomorrow we wrap this leg of the journey as we will head for the airport and leave Hefei behind.  This quiet little town of 5 million will not be forgotten.  It is now a part of the Avery family lineage. You cannot get to Huainan without first going to Hefei.  We will fly to Guangzhou in the Guangdong province tomorrow.  This leg of the journey we will get Chelsea’s visa.  We will be in Guangzhou for four days before heading back to Beijing for more sightseeing as a family of six. For now we are all looking forward to dinner at Lucy’s an American style burger joint that just about anyone who has adopted from China knows about.  Cheeseburgers and fries for dinner.  Let’s see how Chelsea handles things when the tables are turned ;)    

A New Common Language

The beginnings of the new norm.

We woke up this morning, some earlier than others, which is becoming a problem for the others who have adjusted (at least somewhat) to the time difference.  A few are still waking at 4:00 AM and not going back to sleep.  Instead I-pods and I-pads are the norm from 5:00 to 6:30’ish.  Mornings are spent like most families getting ready fighting for bathroom mirror space and complaining about who drained whatever battery is dead on the device of choice.  Two I-Pads, two I-Pods, three cell phones, two laptops and at least two mobile charger units’ means lots of charger cords, charger converter plugs and I don’t know what else is not in the right spot plugged in properly or whatever! Everything is either dead or charging including the six of us.  The only person getting stronger is Chelsea.  She loves the half charged electronic devices and playing patty-cake, fist bumps and high fives.

We had to go back to the government office to complete the adoption process here in China.  A few more document signatures, a promise to always take care of her and love her and as far as China was concerned Huai Chun Tai (we can use her name now because she is ours.) AKA Chelsea is part of an American Family with the last name of Avery.  We took the bus ride back to the hotel where Jane told Chelsea that the family would return to her orphanage tomorrow to say goodbye to her friends and give them gifts. Jane was careful to reassure her that everything would be OK and that after she said goodbye she would return to her home (hotel) with her new family.  She nodded OK but really has not spoken much at all.

Chelsea has decided her brothers are pretty cool and want to hold both Nolan and Chase’s had everywhere we go.  She is bonding quickly with her siblings and as expected they are figuring out the communication faster than mom and dad.  We walked to the mall area about 10 minutes away from the hotel, dodging bicycles, mopeds, scooters and cars.  We have said several times there is no rhyme or reason to navigating the traffic in China only a rhythm.  One you understand that it gets easier.  I actually think Hefei traffic is worse than Beijing but Chase is having a bit more success here we have only been in the crosshairs of an oncoming bus once and standing our ground (no high value target panic moves please) the bus navigated around the group of funny looking Americans. We made our way to the outdoor mall much like Westlake in Seattle but nothing like Westlake in Seattle.  Here dogs get to run free and the occasional monkey is walking alongside his owner on a leash.  We passed on the “food court” as it was really just an open air market with all kinds of items on a stick (no jalapenos sorry.) We had ventured outside our comfort zone for that last 4 days and decided it was Chelsea’s turn so pizza was the order of choice.  Actually we ordered Chelsea and Sophie Spaghetti which comes with mushrooms and bacon here.  They split it and Chelsea ate every last bit except the mushrooms, a girl has gotta draw the line somewhere and mushrooms are as good a place as any.  We ventured back to the hotel this time walking with traffic to show how brave (or stupid) we Americans are.  On the street corners we slowed and watched through wincing eyes the ear cleaners of Hefei.  Yep come to Hefei and you too can sit on a small stool and have a stranger strap on a headlamps and stick sharp instruments in your ear; for a small fee of course, ear pickers gotta make a living right? Chase made a comment that if you were not a good ear picker you got demoted to an area slightly south of the ear and in the middle of the face.  But I will leave the job title to your imagination.

Back to the hotel room for a little down time and for Chelsea to reacquaint herself with her new found electronic devices.  She is really turning into an American girl in front of our eyes.  We call her name and we consider ourselves lucky if she looks up and acknowledges.  The transformation has been so fast.

But one thing has broken, no shattered the ice. When we decided to break out the soccer ball Chelsea practically leap off the bed to start passing the ball with her new siblings.  This quickly led to belly laughs and goofy dancing. As I had said in a previous post the Avery family rarely goes anywhere without at least one soccer ball.  China is no different.  Nolan found the ball and decided to see if Chelsea could learn to pass the ball.  Nolan and Sophie stood about 4 feet apart and passed the ball back and forth about three times.  They then passed the ball to Chelsea and looking up from the I-pod just long enough she poked the ball back to Sophie. Around and around this went for about 2 minutes.  Nolan told Sophie to step back and make the triangle (it is really the only shape a true soccer player knows) bigger. Sophie moved and that was it.  The shell has been broken and Chelsea was out.  She leapt off the bed and started kicking the ball with surprising force. She even stepped over and stole a pass from Sophie (and Sophie never loses a challenge) and sent it careening back to her big brother.  Chased joined in to form a diamond, which is really only two triangles put together and balancing on a corner; It is not a square, those have no place in soccer.  Chelsea was in heaven.  Soon she was laughing, jumping and throwing herself around the room in minutes she was sweating and asking for water.  She is tough slapping high fives so hard hands hurt.  It is now apparent that once again Myriam has missed the mark.  She always wanted a little girl who was quiet and could just sit and color quietly; sorry looks like we have a high energy active nine year old on our hands who just might like soccer.

Appropriate that the most popular sport in the world speaks volumes in different languages

It may be a small sided field but note the perfect triangles - Makes a coach proud 

Tomorrow we will go to the park and challenge the local team!!

Nolan who has been just amazing this trip commented on the sudden and dramatic change.  He commented that I was never concerned about the adoption.  How we found out about her, how her friend is adopted by our good friends, everything just fit into place.  And what just happened there with the soccer ball that just goes to show you Chelsea was meant to be with us.

Out and about near the mall and open air market


 

Yes I know it is your device but right now I need some screen time.



Skyping with Friends

 

And Then There were 8 (Hank and Hudson are eagerly awaiting our return)

Welcome to Hefei  - Chelsea milestone reached

Our daughter is out there somewhere.  Actually Chelsea is from Huainan about two and a half hours outside of Hefei, the capital city of Anhui province.  The city boasts a population of 5 million and is considered a small city by Chinese standards.  We started our morning as usual around 3:00 AM, then 5:00 AM when everyone was awake.  Breakfast was at 8:00 where we dined on a large buffet breakfast on the 29^th floor.  The view would be impressive if it were not for the smog and enormous amount of construction.

Next we went back to our room and prepared for the next milestone, meeting Chelsea for the first time. We cleaned up the area grabbed some cameras, I-pads and gifts and headed for the bus. A quick fifteen minute ride brought us to a non-descript building.  The Avery Horde went inside and began filling out paperwork.  We had been there for about 45 minutes when Chelsea walked in.  We immediately recognized her from the pictures.  She may have as well because she turned and told her escort she wanted to go back to the orphanage.  Now!  She was scared, terrified to be more exact.  She knew she was coming to meet us and the gravity of it all was just too much.  The tears began to flow quietly at first then it turned to sobs and eventually bawling.  Chelsea was not about to allow anyone to hold her.  Any touches were rebuked by a hand pushing the attempt away.  Myriam was able to stroke her hair and wipe her tears but nothing more. Eventually the time came to separate from the orphanage official. This required Michael to pick her up and pull her away from the official and turn and literally run into the next room. 

It is always hard for the child, especially an older child, to separate from what they know to what they do not. The orphanage staff is accustom to this and knows the best way to do it based on the child.  Soon Chelsea, not seeing anyone from the orphanage turned toward Jane (our Chinese guide for the area) and Myriam.  Shortly after this Jane withdrew and Chelsea has been by Myriam’s side the entire time.  She has not looked at Michael much, probably plotting her revenge for the initial extraction process.  She has not smiled yet but has come close. Chelsea appears to be warming up to Chase especially

We returned to the hotel where we quickly skyped with friends that knew Chelsea.  Her best friend was first then others who had taken care of her in the orphanage that had also been adopted.  The distance seemed to fall away as she first waved at her friend with a few fingers.  By the time we were done skyping with everyone a full hand and arm movement was needed to say goodbye.

Technology has proven to be a wonderful universal language for us.  She likes the I-pad we showed her and enjoyed playing with our phones.  Google translation works when you type the words in so communication has improved somewhat.  We have also taught her a few sign language hand motions that she picked up immediately.  She has decided that one of the I-pads is hers.  When Chelsea walk into the room she picks up the I-Pad immediately and begins touching and playing with it. Now she will hold anyone’s had (except for Michael) as she feels the need.  Tonight she let Sophie brush her hair before bed. Meals have gone well, she picks out the food that she wants and especially likes fruits and vegetables.  It is 8:00 PM now.  We have had Chelsea for almost 9 hours.  We have gone from her being terrified to our guide telling Chelsea that she would be spending the night with us.  She told Jane she understood and has not shown any sign of tears.  We will see what happens tonight.  Keep your fingers crossed.

We go back to town tomorrow to complete more paperwork that will eventually pave the way for us to get home.  We will go to a part about 10 minutes from here tomorrow to walk and play.  (Yes we brought a soccer ball) Our goal tomorrow is to get her to smile and maybe even capture it on the camera.

Chelsea Chun Tai Avery
waiting for her first meal with her new "forever family."

 

Off like a Musket Shot

Our three hour tour turned into a four hour journey through the Chinese countryside and many mountain tunnels.  I would not exactly call it a bullet train more of a well-directed musket ball hurtling down the tracks.  It was impressive at how smooth a ride it was and essentially nothing but silence from the tracks themselves.  The Avery horde was once again the center of attraction.  As we left the hotel and loaded the bus we garnered a few more looks.  As we got to the train station we collected a few more.  When the porters saw the amount of bags we were toting three came running with their carts at a full sprint smiling and talkative.  We settled on one porter and watched as he loaded the bags onto his cart.  We removed the bags from the second porter’s cart and started collecting our backpacks as the first porter finished loading his cart we removed the other bags from the second perter cart again…and again.  Our porter was very nice as everyone in China has been.  He went through security (for what it is worth) with us.  Michael was wearing a steel knee brace that went off in the metal detector.  This prompted a wand down and a move along gesture.  Nolan also set off the alarms, the same procedure was repeated and we all moved along as told. The Beijing train security detail as it seems did not want to be bothered by Americans traveling with so many bags. We departed Beijing on track nine leading the train out in first class; the equivalent of about $120 US per person.

The four hour train ride took us through some pretty countryside.  Miles would zip by with very little in the way of civilization to be seen.  Then out of nowhere and for no apparent reason a small town would come into view.  Homes that looked similar to rectangular concrete bunkers left above ground would lead to the larger part of town.  This would be followed by farmland then a larger city.  With only a few exceptions these small cities each had what appeared to be a nuclear power plant. With no exception did it appear that any were functional. It appears that China is preparing to convert from coal to nuclear power in these towns.  Every single town had at least one coal plant if not two and those plants belched smoke high into the sky. It is somewhat ironic that while we were in Beijing a city of 21 million, the weather was nice and the smog was non-existent; you we would have to travel to the countryside to see smog close to the levels shown on our news at home.

China does not embrace individuality.  I was struck by the similarity of each building.  It would seem that once they decide on a design there is no need to change.  Building after building is identical in size and shape.  When you get to the next town the design may have changed from the previous but the outcomes is identical buildings.

A bunch of American traveling approximately 1,000 KM away from Beijing gathered more attention.  A little girl became infatuated with us and her mom was very eager to practice her English.  The little girl who was wearing a shirt that said Ella of all things made frequent trips to see Sophie and the group.  Upon arrival in Hefei we bid goodbye to our new friends.  We will never see them again but they will not be forgotten.  The people in China have so very little that is their own but as Nolan has commented they seem genuinely happy.

We made it to the train station (Hefei) and were the last passengers off the train.  We found our guide and walked through a sea of people, all looking at us in a most peculiar way.  It was the first time everyone felt a little uneasy.  A 7 minute walk through locals, rough roads and chaotic traffic eventually got us to our bus. The ride through Hefei was a bumpy one at dusk and the smog has enveloped this city with no intention of release.  Every city and town in China has large skyscrapers.  In fact over half of the world’s building cranes are in China building these gray rectangular monoliths.  Hefei is no different. We are at a 30 story holiday inn on the 16^th floor.  When we look across the city the larger buildings disappear into the smog generated by, I am sure, nearby coal plants and the vehicles below.  Everything that can have a motor attached to it has one which makes the vehicles the locals travel in the more individual thing you see here. 

Tomorrow a year long journey hits another milestone.  We will get to see Chelsea for the first time.  Keep those fingers crossed and stay tuned for updates.

Porter #1 and Porter #2
 

 



First class on the bullet train.  I think I was expecting the Concord on rails.  Still it moved us from Beijing to Hefei, 621 miles away in 4 hours.  That is roughly 155 MPH or seattle to Frisco in 4 hours.  Not bad for the price.

Our Forever Friends from the Musket Train

Track #9 at the Beijing Station

 

Beijing Day 2 First Leg is a Wrap

The time change is proving to be difficult.  It is very common for Michael or Myriam to be up between midnight and 4:00 AM.  Unable to sleep we toil away attempting to access the internet.  Myriam seems to have better luck accessing her company e-mail.  It would appear blogging and uploading photos is a competitive event in China.  Facebook and most Google functions such as Gmail and Google Translate do not work over here.  The internet appears to be much more restrictive now than when we were here in 2006 getting Sophie.  Speaking of Sophie she is sitting here quietly playing Bingo with herself at 4:30 in the morning wide awake with nothing to do for at least another four hours.

Today we will take the bullet train to Chelsea’s province.  It is one step closer to our goal.  Nolan is going to miss Beijing.  He gives it 10 out of 10.  He has decided that he will live in a big city when he is older.  He loves the hustle and bustle the activity and the organization mixed with chaos.  Sophie also liked Beijing giving it 9 out of 10.  Had we done more shopping I am sure she would have upped her score.  Sophie does not feel the need to live in the big city.  She would be happy just living at the mall.  Some of the bigger ones have bedding stores so she would have a place to sleep and new shopping adventures every day.  Now Chase...  Chase likes Bonney Lake, Specifically our house in Bonney Lake and more specifically his room in our house in Bonne Lake.  The crowds, noise and smell do not exist there; although I am certain I have caught a whiff of the latter of those three emanating from his room in the past. Chase does not like to be bothered...with anything.  He handled the locals taking pics of him pretty well.  Not sure he smiled but they were not fascinated with his teeth it was the fair skin and blonde hair that caught the eye.  His afternoon was a struggle.  One of the first intersections we encountered (sidewalk and alley street) we warned the kids to watch because cars do not stop.  Chase saw his opportunity with the green flashing pedestrian and made a break for it.  As I have said earlier running in Beijing only makes you a higher valued target. A car had to quickly slow and a bike screeched its tires and Chase made it across the street.  That incident rated Beijing a 1.  As we moved closer to the square and the crowds increase Chase’s sore dropped I think to a low of 0.4.  By the time we made it back to the hotel we were upping the score with every successful street crossing.  At the end of the day we had made it all the way to 5; essentially saying eh I can take it or leave it.  That is a monumental move for Chase.

Moving on today via the bullet train will without a doubt bring more challenges.  Our driver can take us to the train station but is not allowed to help us with the bags.  So 15 – 17 bags will be divided up between the 7 of us and off we go for a three hour ride.  I am just assuming the internet will be even spottier in the rural parts of China but time will tell.

I can now call this My Starbucks since I was here in 2006 and 2015

 

Sophie outside one of the gate to Tenamen Square

Standing just outside the foriden city

A much deserved cookie and drink at Starbucks after playing Dodge Car

Beijing the City and the People (we the people)

Wow what a day in Beijing.  It started for us at about 4:00 or 5:00 AM thanks to the time change.  We tried to sleep more and made it to about 6:00.  We just tried to relax in the hotel room until about 8:00 as we knew we had a full day ahead of us.  At 8:00 we all went down to breakfast.  Breakfast in the hotels in Beijing is an eating event.  Full on American breakfast fused with a traditional Chinese breakfast allows you to eat freshly prepared eggs, wonton soup, cereal, rice, juice, green tea or American coffee or espresso.  You name the combination it was probably there. 

We are about a 15 minute walk from Tiananmen Square.  So we walked the distance.  It was a Saturday morning for us Friday afternoon for you and the square was bustling with tourists, and locals.  It did not take long for the Avery family to become a popular distraction.  As we would stop and take pictures, the Chinese would stop and take pictures of us!! Several stopped Chase individually with his seriously blonde head of hair.  He took it in stride and allowed the occasional photo-op.  Ron was a spectacle as well with his pure white beard he was the center of attention from the old man smoking a pipe to the teen girls who would sneak a picture then walk away giggling.  It was quite funny.  Some would come up and just stand next to you and take a picture.  Others would casually pan the area stop on us briefly and take another picture “sneaking” a candid photo. 

The intersections here are massive typically 4 lanes going each way.  This means 16 lanes coming together in the middle.  Nobody has the right away.  There is a rhythm to the movement.  If you see you are running out of time to get across the street the last thing you want to do is run.  You just become a more valuable point target.  Instead you stand your ground; maybe moving backwards or sideways eventually moving forward and getting across.  Think 1985 “Frogger” with double decker busses and you are the frog.  Now you get the picture. Tiananmen Square is massive and Nolan enjoyed it.  Although it does not hold the same value to his generation as it does to ours he was still impressed with the size and monuments.  

From Tiananmen Square we moved east toward the Emperor’s Avenue shopping center, a version of time square without all the light.  It looks fairly new and we suspect it was put in during the 2008 Olympics as we do not remember seeing it in 2006 at our last visit.  We did get back to our Starbucks from 2006 and stopped to have a drink and rest.  We made the walk back to the hotel where we took a brief break before venturing out for Peking Duck around 5:30.  That gets us to a 12 hour day.  After dinner we made it back to the hotel where everyone essentially collapsed at 8:00.  Tomorrow we have another big day.  We leave Beijing and head to Anhui province where Chelsea is at.  We will have our driver take us to the train station where we will take a 3 hour bullet train ride.  If flying “in Country” in China was interesting last time loading 7 people and about 20 bags onto a bullet train for a 620 mle train ride should not disappoint.

It is very hard to blog from here.  At times we cannot access the internet.  Other times it is so slow activities time out.  Finally our failsafe (e-mail stories and photos home and have friends post is proving to be just as difficult.  In many cases we cannot access e-mail to send info.  We will keep trying Stay tuned.



Peking Duck Preperation

 

 

If you find this happy duck outside, you will find Peking Duck inside

 

We are Here

We made it to Beijing. Our plane in at SeaTac was given away to Hong Kong after everything was loaded. So we waited until they unloaded everything moved it over 1 gate and let us get on. We pushed back about 90 minutes late. The only causality was Nolan's Beats by Dre. The framework broke when he pulled them out of his carry-on. A freak accident but they still work. However, for a moment my 13 year old boy who was getting ready to get onto an 11 hour airplane ride the only music in is head was ...."It's the end of the world as we know it...."

We settled in for a mighty long airplane ride. Seats were good had the bulkhead row so the extra legroom was nice. For Chase and Sophie it was a bit long but they persevered. We got into Beijing about 8:30 Friday night, made it through immigration and found our driver. We got on our own private bus...Yes it was the Avery short bus, in case you were wondering. By the time we got to our room it was pushing 10:00 PM. We settled into bed about 11:00 and all but Myriam are up and at it at 5:00 AM. It is going to be a long day. Today we go to Tiananmen Square. Myriam may have us on the Chinese Subway before our time is up here, that may require a seperate seperate blog all together and maybe a quick check on the life insurance exceptions. We received a few more pictures of Chelsea but working around the internet here is a bit tricky and take a bit of time. We will post more when we figure out how to get them out of the Gmail account. Apparently Gmail is not well received and everything involving it is blocked.