A Day Trip to Macau

After debating for a few days I decided to go to Macau yesterday. I had to do some laundry first in the morning, but then I grabbed my passport and a backpack and headed down to the pier. I bought my ticket and got on board the ferry which is a Turbojet boat that takes about 1 hour to get to Macau.


Macau is the oldest European settlement in Asia and was settled by the Portuguese back in the 16th century. It remained under Portuguese rule until a few years ago when, like Hong Kong, it was given back to China in 1999 and is now a Special Administration Region (SAR) for China (just like Hong Kong). It is a small "country" but since it is an SAR for China they have their own immigration, etc. As a US citizen I don't need a visa and could just get in using my passport. Let me just say quickly here how wonderful Hong Kong is with its immigration as to get in and out of Hong Kong I don't have to go through the immigration line. With my Hong Kong Identification (HKID) card I just stick it in the machine, put my thumb on the reader and go through. Why can't the US do this? It is so quick and easy. I love it.

Macau was appealing to me because since it was a Portuguese colony the official language was Portuguese (like HK was English) though most people speak Cantonese. But all signs and buildings have Portuguese names which was fun. It is very interesting being in a place where you are surrounded by Chinese people, but everything is in Portuguese. It seems like the ideal place for me as I speak Portuguese and a little Chinese. :-)

Upon arrival I had decided to follow a walking tour outlined in my National Geographic traveller book. It takes you to about 15 of Macau's places of interest and is all done on foot. I grabbed a taxi at the pier and had him drop me off at the Leal Senado (Senate building). Immediately I was amazed at how European (and Brazilian) it looked. The architecture and even the black and white tile streets/walkways reminded me so much of Brazil. A very interesting thing to see in Asia.

I stopped at a street shop and ordered a ham and grilled cheese sandwich and some passion fruit slush. It was dirt cheap and wonderful. The local currency is different, but they also accept Hong Kong Dollars, so I never even used the local currency. I walked up and down to the different places. The first really cool place was the Ruinas de Sao Paulo (Saint Paul Ruins). This is an old facade of one of the oldest churches/cathedrals built in Asia in the 1600s. It is beautiful and has a sense of awe about it. I can't upload my pics, but here is one from the web. When I am able to post my pics you can see some cool things. One is at the top it has carvings of the sun, the moon and the stars. The sun looks very similar to the sunstones on the Nauvoo temple. This was really cool to see a big symbol of Christianity in Asia. From there I went to Fortaleza do Monte (Fort of the Mountain) and some other churches and cemeteries. It was most enjoyable. I also went by the Lou Lim Ioc Gardens which were beautiful. Then Sun Yat-Sen's house and finally Guia Forte which is the setting of the oldest lighthouse in China.



By this time it was nearly dinner time so I hopped on a bus and decided to stop by a place I had seen upon arrival. It was called Fisherman's Wharf. Let me sotp and say that Macau has recently become the Las Vegas of the East. They have opened numerous casinos and most people come here to gamble and do other Las Vegas-like things (e.g. prostitution is legal). I avoided the hotels, though I have been curious to visit the new casino that opened a couple of months ago called The Venetian. It is a huge casino with water all around it and you can take gandola rides, etc. One of the new places they have built is called Fisherman's Wharf and it has a bunch of international places built up. For example there are places that look like China, Germany, Rome, etc. There is a huge Roman Colloseum and a big Volcano that apparently erupts each night. It was quite beautiful. There was also a part not complete yet called Tang Dynasty which was a huge Chinese building that is amazing to see. I am curious to see what is inside of it when completed.



While looking through these buildings I saw a place that looked like a bunch of African huts and smelled divine. It was an African BBQ place called Afrikana. It was an all you can eat buffet type place like a Brazilian churrascaria. Though I am not a huge meat fan nor eat a lot, I thought I would splurge and try it out. I had only spent about $3.00 USD since arriving and felt like I could fork out the $20 to eat there. It was good. They had some weird meats that I tried - some of them were awful. One of them was crocodile but I couldn't remember which one or if I liked it. The best was the roast lamb. In the end it was okay, but fun to try things. It seemed to reinforce that I am not a big carnivore. The best thing I had was from their dessert area which was a peach cobbler type of thing. :-)



I then walked back to the pier (remember Macau is fairly small) and got back on the ferry to head back to HK. I was back in my apartment by 10 PM. I definitely would consider going back - but I'm glad we didn't take the kids. It wasn't very child friendly and not much they would like to see. Maybe when Tevia comes back we can stay a night at the Venetian and check out some more of Macau. When I was leaving was when everyone was coming from HK. Almost all of their tourists come from either Hong Kong or Guangzhou (China). It was a quick, but pleasant trip. I most enjoyed reading the Portuguese everywhere and also seeing some of the differences between Brazilian Portuguese. I think the highlight of the day was sipping my passion fruit smoothie while sitting on a bench looking up at the Ruinas de Sao Paulo and feeling almost like I was in Brazil.

Ellery vs The Stairs

Ellery has been doing this the last week or so... we just wanted to share the fun with everyone! Hopefully I'll be able to log on a bit more for the next two weeks... till classes start up again at least!

Beowolf and Karaoke

The last two nights I have been looking for things to do to pass the time and do things that I normally wouldn't get to do if I were in the US or the family was here. Thursday I decided I would go see a movie. I was trying to decided on three movies: I Am Legend, The Warlords, or Beowolf. In the end I decided to go see Beowolf as it was being shown on an IMAX 3-D screen over in MegaBox. MegaBox is a mall on the Kowloon side (Kowloon Bay) which is really cool looking. It looks like a big "box" as you can imagine. I wish I had taken a picture. To get there you have to take the blue line MTR to the purple line to the green line. So at this point I have been on every MTR route in Hong Kong.

At MegaBox I ran into a missionary couple from Oregon and talked to them for a while. They had been here for 2 months. I then grabbed something quick to eat at MOSBurger, a Japanese burger joint that I learned to like in Singapore. I then headed up to the theater. The theater wasn't very full, which was strange for Hong Kong. I think that is probably because the movie has been out for a while. I grabbed my 3D glasses and went to my seat which I had purchased online prior. I had just seen "The Nightmare Before Christmas" in 3D a few weeks ago, so I expected something like that. But this was MUCH different. The IMAX screen was awesome, of course, but the 3D was amazing. It was 3D the whole movie, not just in a few scenes. It was very cool. The odd thing was that the 3D kinda made the people look fake - almost like computer-generated faces. But once you got used to that it was really cool. The movie itself was OK. The best part, to be honest, was seeing Angelina Jolie all golden on a huge screen. :-) I enjoyed the movie. During the end of the movie my Blackberry started buzzing like crazy. I turned it off after a minute. Afterwards I found out it was my pops trying to contact me. Sorry pops. I then called my mom and talked to her for a while on my way home.

Last night I went with a few people from work to do Karaoke. They have karaoke "stores" where you go in and you get a room that has a TV and some microphones. You then choose your songs and have fun. You can also order food and play games. You can even play Wii with friends or other things. It was a lot of fun. It is very fancy karaoke so you sound really good when you sing as it adjusts for bad tone, etc. We stayed for nearly 4 hours. Sometimes people stay all night long. We also played a dice game which I guess a lot of people play while doing karaoke. It was the dice game from Pirates of the Carribean. Who knew that was a real game? If you lose you have to drink. Since I don't drink they made me do push-ups. But I only lost a couple of rounds. We sang songs from Sean Kingston's "Beautiful Girls" to "Hot Summer Nights" to mandarin songs. Some of the mandarin songs have pinyin so I was able to sing them, too, since I really can only recognize a few dozen characters. I had a lot of fun. I then made my way home and was once again amazed at how crowded some places in Hong Kong are even late at night. It really is such a unique place.

desert trip and spring 2008

we did it! we went ahead and got tickets for Utah! we are hoping the weather holds out, and that some of you will want to go. we are coming in on March 19, a wednesday, and leave the next wednesday. if the weather is too cold for a desert trip, we can all find some other fun thing to do. we can drive all the way down to Zion, or we could go skiing. we will be flexible. we used frequent flyers, so we can always change them. I still plan on going out also after the baby is born, maybe early June, depending on when Jacob and Cari want me to come, and the blessing, and when Kathy and Tom come home, and if they need help driving our car back, etc. We understand that no one else will know if they are going on the desert trip for awhile, but we found a good ticket and took it. we have a big storm coming in tomorrow. I feel so bad for the Cangelosi's. We had all kinds of fun plans for tomorrow, and now everything is getting cancelled. They already cancelled
R S, and she wanted to go see everyone there in one place, like Ilene Angel, Lucky Edmonds, etc. too bad. I hope I still get to spend some time with her before the snow starts to fall.

Losing my mind - IKEA and Tokio Hotel

The last day or so two things have happened that make me think I am losing my mind. The first was yesterday during I lunch I thought I would walk over to IKEA and get an ice cream cone. I've been there a few times and it is like 5 -10 minutes from my office. 40 minutes later (say it in spongebob narrator voice) I was still walking around Causeway Bay and could not find it for the life of me. I couldn't believe it. I went back to my office so frustrated (you know I need my ice cream!) that I looked it up on Google Maps and it was right where I thought it was. I'm not sure if I went through a void or they moved it that day or what, but I could not find IKEA.

Then today something else made me scratch my head. Here in Hong Kong the music we get exposed to is different than in the USA. One group that is fairly big here that I have started to like is a German group called Tokio Hotel. They recently released an English album and I like a couple of their songs. Funny thing is that for the last few weeks I totally thought the group was a bunch of girls. To my surprise, they are all MEN! I couldn't believe it. I've seen a few of their videos and even listening to their voices I would have sworn they were girls. I do recall the first time I saw the video I looked hard to make sure it was a girl, but by the end I was sure. But I was wrong. I think that is so crazy. Are we at a point in society where we can't even tell who is a girl and who is a boy?

You can check out Tokio Hotel on Youtube. You can watch their video "Monsoon" and tell me what you think. :-)

Our Christmas Tree

Jacob and Tommy were ever to kind to go out and get a real Christmas tree this year. After about 45 minutes of driving around Provo Canyon, we found that very cute and small little tree that Jacob cut down with his saw and we brought home. Having never actually gone out to get a tree, this was pretty exciting for me. It might be a little on the Charlie Brown side, but it makes me happy. :-)

Sunday - Deep Water Bay - Romney's Speach

Church was lonely today without the family, especially after church as I headed up the stairs and passed the second floor where I usually go to pick up the boys. Not this week. Instead I went to get set apart and tell them I will most likely be leaving in January. Brother Collins in his Scottish accent said that wouldn't get me out of the setting apart. He gave me a great blessing and blessed me understanding to get through this time of choices and opportunities with my career. He also blessed me to remember my priorities of my wife and children. It was a great blessing. He then shook my hand and winked and said he hoped we would stay. He said you never know what happens and that he'd be pulling for my company to change their mind. :-)

This afternoon I decided I would take a walk along the ocean over to Deep Water Bay. I have passed that bay and beach many times on my way to and from work, but had never really gone there. It was a cool, overcast day and so I headed out and walked along the "seaside promenade" from Repulse Bay to Deep Water Bay. It was a gorgeous walk and a beautiful day. It was probably a little over a mile or so and I continued past Deep Water Bay to go as far as I could go until I ran into Ocean Park. On my way back I took off my shoes in Deep Water Bay and walked in the waves. The water was still quite warm and refreshing. By the time I made it back it was nearly dinner time so I heated up my Thai Red Curry in the microwave and ate. It was such a contrast to my day yesterday which was spent in the hustle and bustle of the city. Here it was like taking a walk at a resort with families and kids riding bikes and people walking their dogs. I wish we had taken the boys down here before. I'm sad that they missed out on this neat walk.

It is very interesting to see so much attention on the church due to Mitt's campaign. I think it has done a lot of good, but it will also cause a lot of backlash if his candidacy continues to be successful. I have tried hard over the past few months to like Mitt Romney. I find at times he seems great, but at other times I have disagreed with his stances and responses. I was excited to see his speech this week. Upon watching I think it came off very well. I agree with the WSJ article (link below) that the first few minutes seemed a little stiff, but he got into his own and more comfortable. I think it was a well-written speech and it would appear that most of the media embraced it. I thought his story about the founding fathers praying together was a great touch at the end. I must say that he won respect in my eyes after this speech. There have been numerous articles discussing his speech. I have linked a couple interesting ones here. They are what you would expect: a conservative response from the Wall Street Journal and a more liberal response by the Times. But both good.

I am excited to return to the States and get more involved in politics at a local level and to see how the Presidential campaign goes. It looks to be a fun race.

WSJ Article here.
NY Times here.

Saturday Alone

So what do you do on a Saturday in Hong Kong by yourself? Well, today I got up and made a plan. I decided to wait around until I knew Tevia and the boys got in safe, which they did, and then head out. I was so happy to talk with Tevia. She seemed happy, though it sounds like Canada Air isn't all that great. I guess I'll get my chance to try in two weeks. Sorry honey!

I got on the bus and headed down to Admiralty. I went through Statue Square where the "black man" statue is. It is some British guy. I then headed for the escalator. This is the world's longest escalator. It was built to help all the people that live in the Mid-Levels which are up the hill from Central. It goes down during the morning and then goes up the rest of the day. I was a little disappointed to find out it actually is not one big, long escalator. It is a combination of many escalators. But it was interesting. My plan was to head up the escalators and then head over to the zoological park.

I had heard that the zoo wasn't all that great and it was true. The kids and Tevia didn't miss out on much here. Certainly nothing like the Singapore Zoo. But it was neat having a large park in the middle of all of the buildings. From there I headed back to the escalator to eat at Taco Loco's which is one of the few Mexican restaurants here in Hong Kong. They weren't open yet so I had to linger around until the opened a little after noon. I ordered a barbacoa burrito and refried beans. It was a little like Chipotle but not quite so fast foody and not as tasty. It was good, though. It was unique hearing Mexican music in Hong Kong. The refried beans weren't really refried, but they were still good. The lime juice was fantastic. It was a good lunch.

From there I headed down the stairs (remember the escalator only goes up after the morning) to the MTR station to catch a train to Mong Kong. I shopped around looking for some little things. I bought a few things, but not nearly as many things as I expected. I did find my shoes that I was looking for, though, so that was worth the whole trip. They have a whole section next to the Ladies' Market that is just stores full of sneakers. I spent most of my time there even though 90% of the shoes are the same in each store. It's hard to understand how they all stay in business next to each other. But it was fun.

After that I headed back to Hong Kong island and decided to take a tram ride to Causeway Bay. Our family had done a tram ride last week, but it was short and at night. I thought I'd try a longer ride and during the day. It was fun as I got the front seat on the top level and got to see a lot. It took quite a while - so the trams downtown aren't nearly as efficient due to traffic. From there I got on my mini bus (#40) back to Repulse Bay. It was dinner time and I bought some food, which buying for one person is more expensive than just eating out downtown. But that's okay.

Now I am blogging and listening to some new music. I really like Simple Plan's new song (Untitled). It is sad. I also very much enjoy most of Britney's new album. Surprising. I tried to watch some shows on the computer using Tevia's one site - but I am too impatient. After 15 minutes and not being downloaded I just give up. I was very tempted to download BSG Razor, but I didn't! I'll wait til I get home. :-)

Until tomorrow.

Christmas Party - Hong Kong

Last night was our office Christmas party. The ironic part of it is that in the US our office is not allowed to have Christmas parties or even "end of year" parties for fear people might think it is a Christmas party. So here in a country where Christianity isn't very big we can have a party and sing Christmas carols about the Savior. In our own Christian USA we can't even have a party. Very odd. There is something odd about being in a bar and seeing 30 or so people singing Silent Night while they hold tequilas in their hands and are drunk beyond recognition.

It was a fun party. I left fairly early (10ish) as it was Tevia's last night and I couldn't rationalize staying out late on her last night. Many people, including our President and the Executive VP were out past 2 AM in Lan Kwai Fang doing jello shots and partying. For one of the few times in my life I actually felt a little uncomfortable not drinking. I think it is just such a part of the culture here. There were about 3 of us that didn't drink, but so many people kept trying to get me to drink. I think in the US people aren't quite so pushy - maybe because we have so many alcoholics that don't drink. We did some dancing (I was one of the few people to dance in the circle) and watched people act like idiots. Sometimes this is funny, but usually not. The odd thing was that the people that were the craziest tended to be non-Asian. They were the caucasions from Australia, Europe, or the USA. Most of the local Hong Kong employees just watched and laughed and took pictures. It was the first time in Hong Kong that I felt like maybe this isn't a town I would do well in. I mean, I could live here easily, but I am not a partier and it is such a big part of this town.

Tevia and the boys left today. I missed them the moment I walked out the door this morning (we were able to start work late today since most people were so drunk it was hard to get in early). I really don't like being alone. There are some things that I'll be able to do since they are not here, but the reality is I would rather have them here. Tomorrow I am going to do some shopping looking for the Adidas I should have bought last month but can't find now. It is pretty lonely here in the big apartment by myself. Maybe I'll go to a movie or something, too. I am just hoping the next two weeks go by quickly. I think they will. Work is much less motivating and so the days have dragged a little, but for the most part I am busy.

Oh, I also won the song contest at our party. We had to guess songs from lyrics and then sing some songs. Of course, most people wouldn't even participate since you had to sing, but I'm not shy. In the end we had to sing Christmas Carols. :-) I won, but they couldn't give me the prize since I am management. LOL.

Flying Home

Today I get to undertake a large task. I get to fly home, by myself, with three small children, halfway across the world. Am I crazy, perhaps a little. If I weren't just a tad touched in the head I would never be able to do this. I am so, so, so , so infinitely grateful that we are flying business class rather than coach. We will get to utilize the business class lounges and have attendants help the kids and I while flying. I think my biggest worry will be when we land in Vancouver and having to maneuver all the luggage(6 check on, two carry on, stroller and car seat) through customs. That will be a challenge, but I have four hours in which to accomplish this task since that is the amount of time for our layover there.

I will definitely not be too proud to ask for help, and I am sure I will need it. I have prayed mightily that my kids will be on their very best behavior and be very helpful. I have faith that all will go well. I don't feel nervous, just excited and anxious.

I was sad to have to say good-bye to Bret this morning. We all traipsed down to the apartment lobby with him to bid him farewell, and then I stood on the balcony and waved good-bye to him until he got on the bus. I know he will be sad and lonely because he will be all alone. I will have the kids and then someone with me at least until the 17th. So I will be fine.

I can't wait to see my sister at the airport. My heart leaps with anxiety just waiting to see her there waiting for us. I will get to see my family and then all of you guys (except for jake and millie boohoo, sniff sniff) in the very same month. I am so lucky!

Well, here is to seeing you all on the flip side. Much love to all of you...

My December

It is hard to believe it is December. The year has gone way too fast, and even worse, our time in Hong Kong has seemed to fly. It is crazy that Tevia and the boys already leave this week. Then two weeks later I will be back in AZ for Christmas. After that, who knows. It has been somewhat frustrating dealing with my company the past few weeks. As I work in the relocation industry, I am very much aware of the issues that arise with international assignments. The truth is, a large percentage of people leave their company within a year or less upon returning from an assignment. The reasons are varied, but the biggest reason is that while they are on assignment they tend to be given larger responsibilities and opportunities. Upon returning to the their home country they tend to go back to a job they may not even want and certainly have less responsibility. That seems to be exactly what is happening with me. Here in Hong Kong I have had much more responsibility than in Phoenix. Now that my time to return is approaching, the thoughts of where to put me begin to come up. It is amazing that companies are willing to spend so much money on an international assignment and then don't manage the repatriation. My coming here was a huge advantage to my company. I was able to bring stability and leadership in a time of major unrest and distrust. But while I was away there were many changes that took place in Phoenix. Opportunities that may have presented themselves for my future development in Phoenix have come and gone while I didn't even have a chance to apply for them. The company didn't know what to do with me as they had an idea that maybe I would stay in Asia. The reality is that I would love to have stayed here, but not as a local hire. With three kids that would be way too expensive. So when coming up with something for me to do when I get back to Phoenix my name comes up for many projects that need some leadership and experience. The problem is that these are not ideal career paths and may further disrupt my growth at my current company. And so, like many expats returning to their home, I feel unwanted, forgotten and uncared-for. It isn't true - I know that many people do care about me and do want to see me grow in the company. But so much of growth in a company comes from timing - and by being away for 6 months I have missed out on some of those opportunities.

That isn't to say I haven't had opportunities. This assignment in Hong Kong has given me great chances to learn new skills and things that I would never have learned in Phoenix. It will look awesome on my resume and truly be representative of a great growing opportunity. And it was something I wanted. I asked for this - and was fortunate to receive it. So isn't it ironic that after having received this great opportunity and my company investing so much in me that I now wonder about my future with them? As a relocation company this should have been handled so much better. I mean, I still don't know when I will be going back! I thought I did, but then all of the sudden some things came up relating to my next project in Phoenix where they are now asking that I go back sooner. I remain patient but it becomes ever more frustrating as I am unable to make plans for my return. And so now I may be working on an exciting project, but at the same time not taking of my best skills which is motivating and leading people. It is amazing how often this takes place.

So hopefully we will find out more this week. But I am not optimistic. And for the first time in my career with this company I feel like it might be time to move on. Once again, I find it ironic as I love this company and have enjoyed the people so much. But at the same time I need to look out for my career and make sure that I am doing what I like and being rewarded for what I can bring to a company. I would love to make that happen with my current company, but if not then I will make the jump. It has been a crazy ride lately. 6 months ago I had no idea I would be living in Hong Kong at this point. And certainly had no idea that in 9 months I would most likely be back in Phoenix doing something altogether different. Hopefully it will all work out.

I will miss much of Hong Kong. It really is a great place to live and work. I love my employees here and the work I am involved in. I enjoy many aspects of life here. I love the church here. The one thing I really miss is basketball and working out. I'm sure if we stayed here longer I would find ways to play basketball or develop habits of playing other sports, but for now I just seem to work and eat and that combination is not good for a waistline. In that respect I do look forward to Phoenix.

Snowing! and Christmas Around the World

Well, it's snowing in Provo. :) It's not the first snow of the winter, but it looks like it'll be the first snow that sticks. And it seems fitting somehow to wake up to snow on the 1st of December. And now, if only I could sleep in past 8 am on a Saturday. Ugh.

Jacob and I went on a date last night. Novel, I know. We got tickets for the BYU Folk Dance Show, Christmas Around the World. This was one show we'd never been to before, but we really enjoyed it. They did dances from about 12 different countries. I think the ones I liked the most were the dances from the Philippines and Slovakia. Really cool. Jacob LOVED the band they had playing for most of the songs. They were extremely talented. Made me want to play an instrument again. Probably not enough to actually start playing again :) , but it was still really cool.

Bret's Deezer

Okay, so I recently have been hanging out online at the site that Bret likes for music called Deezer. He generally finds all these sites online and at first I scoff at them and then eventually I give in and check it out and then I become a super advocate of it and find myself loving it. Deezer is a case in point. I LOVE this site and have been creating quite a creative Christmas play list. There are so many different versions of all the Christmas songs by so many various artists. I was totally laughing this morning cuz as I was browsing through the songs I came upon "It's Christmas at Ground Zero" by Weird Al and was laughing at all the memories this song brought back!

So it has been fun adding songs to my play list from artists ranging from Wham to Eartha Kitt to Barry Manilow to Manheim Steamroller! And of course I put Weird Al in there. There is a fun version of Frosty the snowman by an artist I have never heard of, but it is cute and very different from the version you hear on the radio. So fun!!! I will keep building my play as it really gets me in the Christmas spirit!

A Modern Tower of Babel

I watched a show on Discovery Channel this last week on the Burj Dubai - which will be the world's tallest building and man-made structure on Earth when completed next year. Click the link to check it out on Wikipedia. It reminded me of the post on the Tower of Babel a little while ago. Dubai is really getting pretty cool. With the developments of The World and The Palm Islands along with this it sounds like a really cool place to visit.

On a separate note, in our Elder's Quorum meeting (after dropping mom and pops off at the airport express) we had a few General Authorities in our meeting like we often do. In fact, it was funny because one of the talks the teacher had to discuss was the talk "Do It Now" by Elder Hallstrom . The teacher joked that he had never given a lesson based on a talk with the person who gave the talk in the class (as Elder Hallstrom was in our class). Elder Hallstrom also spoke in Sacrament Meeting and gave an excellent talk. I was glad mom and pops got to attend the meeting and hear his talk. Anyway, in our meeting one of the other general authorities (whose name I can not recall) told an interesting fact. We were discussing Elder Oaks' talk "Good, Better, Best" and this man said that he had been in SLC during conference and had been able to see the teleprompter of Elder Oaks during the talk. He noticed that near the end of his talk Elder Oaks skipped a bunch of his talk and ended his talk. When the Ensign came out he noticed the talk was the same as in conference and had not included the skipped parts. With Elder Oaks in the region a couple of weeks ago, he asked Elder Oaks what was at the end of his talk. Elder Oaks mentioned that he considered adding the ending to the Ensign but left it out to be consistent with the audio and video conference. He had ended early to give President Hinckley more time for his talk. He said he was to end it something like this:

It is good for a man to be moral and try to follow Christ and if he does so he will be rewarded with a place in the Terrestrial Kingdom. It is better for a man to make covenants with God and live to be like Christ and he will be rewarded with a place in the Celestial Kingdom. It is BEST for a man to be sealed to his companion in the temple of God and that man will be rewarded with Eternal Life. This evening at dinner we spoke about this as a family. We always say in our family that "family" is most important. I added to that this bit of unspoken revelation that at an individual basis there is one high priority above all other. It is the "best" we can do. That is to marry in the temple of God. I thought this was a great ending to his talk and so thought I would share it with you. :-)

Hong Kong hilites

We are having a marvelous time. everything is going well, and we have done such fun things every single day. we did nature things as well as city type things. we started out feeding turtles and fish, and walking along the beach. we went on a tram all the way up a steep incline to the highest point, Victoria Peak. we made it to the temple, Bret's work, and saw downtown. we got to see the fish, bird, jade, and flower markets. Here, they take a bunch of shops, like all their pet stores, and put them all in one area of like a few blocks or more. (picture china town) I don't understand why, because every shop basically sells the same thing. So, the fish markets were pet store after pet store, full of hundreds of fish tanks and fish in plastic bags, hoping someone will buy them. The bird shops were the same, amazing. Hundreds of birds, all kinds and colors, in little cages and boxes, even babies being fed by hand. Pretty cheap, too. and beautiful bird cages.
The flower stores were also amazing, full of all kinds of beautiful flowers, arrangements, plants, etc. Very inexpensive. Malik bought me gorgeous peach-colored roses. we bought Tev those sweet smelling lilies. Kathy would love the jade market. our guide told us that most of it was not real jade, and there was no way to tell which was which, but there was also tons of jewelry, all handmade, and very inexpensive and beautiful. I actually bought myself a necklace made of black lava stone, coral stone, and onxy. Big and bulky, not like me at all. I felt I wanted something different to remember Hong Kong by.
Tuesday we went to Disneyland. Tev blogged about it on her other blog. we enjoyed it a lot, being with the kids. Lots of adults were there, by themselves. Dad and I found this funny. We wouldn't see the fun in going there without being with the kids. Kathy would have liked it. Tom would have been bored the entire time.....
we also went on a ferry and saw the city by night and a cool light show, where many of the buildings flick lights on and off, all colors, and all different shapes; it was really pretty.
Bret and Tevia's apartment is great, comfortable and spacious. we love looking out their huge windows at the bay and boats. there are usually people swimming, and always huge boats coming in to the harbor.
We also love watching Enok walk and dance and smile. Malik and Jarek are always fun to be with.
so are Bret and Tev!

start of trip to Hong Kong

I guess it is easiest to document this trip on here for now. it started today at 2pm when daddy got home from work early, smiling and happy, and announced, "I'm on vacation!". We went and picked up a rental car, packed, talked to Bret and Tev, went over the details, and we are finally ready. Dad is watching a movie, and I am going to read. I don't think I will be able to sleep much, as I am excited and nervous. Kathy called to say goodbye. That was sweet. The house is clean, I feel very caught up, and David Cotter is staying here to watch Daisy and the house. Stacie and Jake will also be coming in and out during the week, as the Hettingers home is crowded for the holiday. Yikes. What have we done?! The chicken part of me is saying I wish we would have let Kathy and Risa go. I really don't know what I am scared of, but I want to see Bret, Tevia, and the boys enough to adventure across the sea. I want to thank Bret and Tevia ahead of time for this opportunity to grow and experience another part of the world.

Singapore - the rest of the trip

On Tuesday I started the day off early with a trip to the office on the MRT (subway). For lunch I went out with Calvin Chin who is one of the few people out here in Asia who has been with the company for a few years. I have known him for some time and find him to be great. We went to a local little joint and he suggested I order the Mee Goreng which in Malay means fried noodle (like chao mian in Mandarin - which is where we get Chow Mein). It was fantastic. It was very spicy (love that) and so good that I actually went back there by myself the next day for lunch for the same dish. At this place you actually pay for your meal before you eat which is also common at some of the food courts in Hong Kong.

That evening Cal promised to take me to see the "real" Singapore and to try some of their famous Chili Crab and Pepper Crab. So after work we took a taxi to a local place called "No Signboard" restaurant (the no "signboard" is a play that it really doesn't have a name). Here we tried the chili crab which is famous in Singapore. We actually had the chili lobster as the crab is very messy and we were dressed up and Cal didn't want us to get stains on our clothes. We also had an appetizer that was like deep-fried squid with a sweet sauce on them. They were tiny squid (about the size of a grasshopper) and were very crunchy. I loved them. The chili crab was also very spicy and fantastic. Cal also ordered the White Pepper Crab for our main dish and it was amazing. I absolutely loved it. It was quite messy as we had to break up the crab and fish out the meat, but the taste was spectacular. We ate all this with a yummy coconut where we sipped the coconut water out of the coconut.

The restaurant was in an the red light district of Singapore. Most tourists don't know much about this area nor even realize they have a red light district. This comes from the history of its place in military strategy as many military people came to Singapore for shore leave and would look for a good time. The government eventually took control of the situation and now the places are registered by the government and they try to keep control of the industry. In this area they also serve durian, which is known as the king of all fruits. It is also highly known as being "stinky" and tasting awful. I remember watching a show on the discovery channel where a guy goes around tasting "odd" things and when he tasted the durian (after nearly throwing up from the smell) he couldn't really finish it. At our office in Hong Kong - where they also have a milder durian - the people in the office won't even get around it let alone eat it. It is banned on all planes and many hotels. So when Cal suggested we try some durian I was excited. We found a little shop (that you could smell long before you could see it) and we picked out a durian. They were surprising expensive - which could also be due to the fact that they were out of season. It was about $10 USD for a medium sized one. Cal picked one which they opened. He touched the fleshy yellow interior and decided it wasn't ripe and asked for another. They took another and after touching this one Cal thought it was perfect. We then headed across the street where they have tables set up with stools and a garbage can to toss in the seeds. It was like a little durian cafe. And there were several people there already sharing their durians. By this time the smell no longer bothered me. I had been given many different adjectives to describe the taste, so I was ready for anything. I took one of the fleshy yellow pods and it felt like slimy mud. It was very slippery and messy. I took a bite and to me it tasted fairly mild and a little like custard. It certainly was a different taste. I wouldn't say I loved it, but it wasn't nearly as bad as I expected. I at my entire seed - or at least the flesh on the seed. I didn't try another one. Cal ate the other three or so. He loves durian. I can say that the taste lingered all night. Even the next morning I could taste it after having brushed my teeth a few times. That night my stomach was a little weaker than usual and rumbled somewhat. I'm not sure if this was from the durian or my lunch or from traveling, but my mind certainly attributed it to the durian since that was mostly what I could taste.

The rest of my trip went fairly normal with trips to clients and reading my book. Thursday afternoon I got on the 747 to go back to Hong Kong. I sat next to a fairly rude couple and tried to ignore them by reading and watching movies. I started Live Free or Die Hard but was unable to finish as we landed. It was actually really good and I look forward to finish watching it at some point. I got home very late and was happy to see Tevia. Once again I loved my visit to Singapore. I'm not sure it is a place I would ever go as a tourist, so I am even more grateful to have been able to go these two times. It is a unique place and has a great feeling about it.

Singapore - my return - day one

I arrived in Singapore on Monday afternoon (Nov 12). The first time I arrived in Singapore I was with Tevia and the boys and we were greeted by a brilliant sun and the beautiful landscape. This time it was overcast and grey. This downplayed the beauty of the drive to downtown, but I still found the place wonderful. I checked into the Suissotel The Stamford and went to my room on the 53rd floor. It overlooks the Singapore River and was a sight to see. I had a call and then afterwards set out to explore. My first stop was the Taco Bell we had found on our last night in Singapore. We hadn't gone in to eat, but I was craving some good ole american tacos so I walked down there. They had a limited menu with no beef options (I am guessing to please the Indian population). I ordered the gordita with chicken and sat down to eat. It was good - not as good as in the USA. The chicken was dark meat, which was a good touch. They even had Fire sauce - and actually it was the only sauce they serve.

I had planned to go down to Clarke Quay but saw a patch of green that I felt I wanted to see. It ended up being Fort Canning Park. This was the original place where the kings and later governors of Singapore lived and ruled. It was lush and green and I could hear many loud bird calls. There were huge trees with large vines hanging down and green moss growing all over them. It was still cool as the sun was behind the clouds and it had a feeling of tranquility. It was also very empty - I felt like I had the whole park to myself. I read a lot of the signs and from the hill you get a good view of the city.

I then went down to the river and through Clarke Quay which is a trendy spot with night clubs and bars. I walked over the bridge and along the river as the sun began to set. It was just a great experience to see the boats on the river taking tourists around with their chinese lamps and lights. At one point I sat down on the river's edge and just looked at the area. Somebody had put some incense on the bank near me and the smell brought such a sense of a foreign land. It was amazing to think I was sitting in Singapore miles from my homeland. It felt so calming, exciting and exotic at the same time.

I finished the evening with the walk back to my hotel where I went down to the mall (remember, most hotels out here have malls in them) and had some sushi and a salad. Salads are rare in Asia, so this was a nice change. I then went to the bookstore and bought the next book in the series by Stephanie Meyer (New Moon) and went back to my room to dive in. I missed my family and boys, but couldn't help enjoying such a neat location. I snuggled into my king-size bed and went to sleep.

The Tower of Babel

This is really not that difficult. We had a Seventy this last week do a devotional in our area for our temple workers. I guess these things are annual affairs. Anyway since I am a veil worker, I got invited with Karen. So we really just slipped in there with barely an invitation. Anyway this meeting was great. At least Mom and I felt that we were taught like we had not been taught for some time. Likely we are just too proud, but that is another story, back to the Tower. So this Seventy apparently had a different take on the Tower story. I personally had always thought it was very strange that the people would try and build a structure that would get so high that they could reach heaven. Their total skills at the time were likely only 4-5 stories, and they could see the Sun and Moon and stars, not to mention the mountains. They must have been dumber than a sack of hammers. I think that all our early ansestors were just as capable as we are brain wise they just did not get taught the theory of relativity or the Bohr theory of the atom in HS. So very unlikely that they would actually do something so utterly stupid. Well if you go back to the version in the KJ and look at it much more carefully, he thinks, and I and mom agree with him, that a different, far more believable story is being told. You also may want to keep in mind the words in italic in the KJ are added words by the translator to make things sound better but were not actually in the original Hebrew (or the Greek for the NT). What ever the bad folks were up to, it was not at all pleasing to God. Think about it from a temple corruption perspective. After all there is more than one way to "get to heaven". Especially the "name" thing. After considering it, I doubt they were ever trying to build a really tall building at all. What do you think?

Back to the routine

The other night when I came home from work and found Malik having difficulties breathing, it reminded me of another time he was like that and we had to take him to the hospital. I knew at that point that I needed to pack him up and get him to a hospital. I wasn't worried, but calm. We had been through this before. I remember my first week in Hong Kong when I was alone looking for the nearest hospital knowing that at some point we may need to know this crucial piece of information. Every day on the way home from work I passed the Hong Kong Adventist Hospital and so I always knew I could go there. So that is where I took my son. I left my wife in tears in fear and asked Jarek to take care of her. Tevia really struggled with this. I think there was a lot of fear about taking Malik to a hospital outside of the US. I prayed for her to be strong and took Malik to the hospital.

Most hospitals I have been to in the USA (which isn't many) always seem crowded. I was expecting this one to be worse. But in fact, it was quite dead. It was around 6:30 PM and we were immediately admitted. The "urgent care" room was small and they hooked Malik up to oxygen and I showed them his charts and gave his history. Their English, though not perfect, was understandable and didn't seem to cause any issues. A little later a woman was admitted who was in undeniable pain. She was doubled over and was speaking in English though she looked Asian (couldn't see her face). She asked for pain medication and moaned. I was glad they got us out of there quickly so as not to frighten Malik.

I was asked the type of room I wanted - which was surprising to me. I could choose from a "private" room, or one with 2 people, or one with 3-5 people. Each had a different price, and so I had to choose. I chose the private room. In the end I probably could have chosen the 2 person room and still had a private room as the pediatric section was fairly empty, but I'm glad I chose the private and so we were really in our own little world. The room was large and had a bed for Malik and one for an adult. There were two flat screen LCD TVs and DVD players as well. We had our own bathroom and a table with chairs and some windows with a beautiful view over the area of Hong Kong called "Happy Valley."

The service was great and I never felt scared or fearful of getting a disease (which I usually do in hospitals). I think this was mostly because we were in our own room and felt completely separated from the rest of the hospital. Malik had wires and tubes everywhere so he couldn't do much. He had an IV in his left arm, an oxygen reader and heartbeat monitor on his right big toe and was usually hooked up to oxygen with a mask. He, as usual, stayed in good spirits. He didn't cry when they gave him the IV. I told him it would hurt and he looked at me as they did it. He flinched and grimaced and then said to me with a little moisture in his eyes, "well, at least I didn't cry." It was nice to have him be so strong. It helped me.

Being in a hospital room for a day and a half wasn't nearly as bad as I had expected. I was fasting the first day, but the food we could order looked good and Malik liked it. The second evening Tevia and the other boys came and we had dinner together. I ordered curry fried rice and it was great. Jarek ordered the very typical meal of noodles in soup with beef and it was awesome.

I prayed a lot that first day. I wasn't worried Malik would die or anything, but I wanted to get him home. I felt guilty that I had dragged my family here to Hong Kong and was causing pain for my son and wife. I knew deep inside that this can happen, and has happened, in the USA, but I prayed a lot to God to calm my wife and make the rest of our time in HK like the last couple of months. The reality is that our family has been super healthy since arriving here - which has been a little surprising to me. With the pollution, a new country, stress, and different food I was expecting a few more coughs and colds.

One positive thing of the stay in the hospital was I was able to start the book "Twilight" that I have wanted to read for so long. We had purchased a copy here a couple of weeks ago. Tevia loved this book (and I believe Cari and Tevia's mom did as well). I absolutely loved it and finished it in the time I was there. It was also refreshing to know that this book was written by a member of the church and yet it wasn't preachy or anything. Just good, solid reading and a wonderful story. It is about love and what we will do for love. It made me think of the love my wife has for me for being willing to come out here with my boys and stand firm by my side. Though I am sure she wanted to come, I don't think she truly anticipated the sacrifice from her side. She is with the boys all day long since they aren't in a school and though she has enjoyed homeschooling, she still gets little break from them. I come home later than usual and so she sees me less. She has no friends to talk to and can't get around easily with the boys. She has shown her true love for me by coming here and standing at my side. I love her so much for that.

We are now back together at home. It almost feels like it was a dream and didn't really happen. The boys are back playing Nintendo; Tevia is reading her books. And I am grateful to have this. To be together as a family. Life is so fragile. Things do go wrong. But we must go on and thus take advantage of every moment we have together with those we love. I try hard not to take that for granted. I am excited to see my parents in a week.

is it too late for Donovun?

The things I see and hear in the schools, I should write a book about. I think I will. so today, I was subbing for a special ed teacher. I had a self-contained class with about 9 students. for 7th period. some of these students go to keyboarding. I have been in this class before, as a TA. I had complained then to Don as to why they needed me. there were again today, 5 adults in the classroom.
I was asked to work specifically with Donovun. he was over in the corner, looking at Utube, and the teacher asked me to have him stop going on other sites and try to get him to do his work.
I took a deep breath, and went over, pulled up a chair, and smiled at him.
It would take a long time to describe the entire 45 minutes.
short version- he said, ( hard to believe everything he said), he was 18, school was bull----, it was a waste of his time, he was on parole, he lived with his aunt, he hated his parents, his 12 year old sister was raped last week, he had to buy his own clothes and food, but couldn't get a job cause of school, etc.
He was good-looking, and said to me, when I asked him to do his typing, "I'll do it for you." he continued to hit on several times, saying, "are you married? would your husband let you?", what are you doing later? can we hook up?" so funny. I told him I was a happily married woman and a grandma, and he said, "so?". but he let me teach him how to use the tool bar, and he started typing as we chatted. I asked him if he ever went to church, and he said no, but I'll come to yours, (with his smiling glimmer).
later, after he left, the computer teacher teacher told me good work. he had gotten 3 paragraphs typed. she said he never does his work, and she said it was good that I got him to do it. she told me he did live with his aunt, was on parole, met with a judge weekly, and had a hard life.
driving home, I prayed for him. what can people do? the teachers at RCK try, but little gets thru. he meets with counselors there, and says that is bs. he has no guidance, no church, no values, no goals. he lives in wappingers. where has society failed him? who is left to help him? I told him to look after his sister, and asked if I could help. he said the cops didn't even care. I told him it was his job as her big brother to talk to her, watch out for her, and tell her not to ever go anywhere alone.
he said that he would try, but that she was 12 and acted like 21.
he asked if I could come back, and I said I would try. I told him the other teachers cared too, and he said that he didn't think so.
poor kid. how do we fix things like this? where is he headed?
when we left, I told him to finish school, and that he owed it to himself to be somebody, and that he couldn't do anything without finishing school.
oh how I wish I could do more to save the world.

Malik coughing = Tevia stressing

I know you all have heard it before, but i just have to say once again, I really get so stressed and worried when Malik has this stupid cough. He is on treatments and it is now twice as stressful for me because we are in another country. He is miserable which makes me irritable because there is not a lot I can do but wait it out. Bret says that everything will be "fine" which is true, but the waiting till it's fine part really is very hard. I know it is super hard for Malik too since he is the one that is having a hard time breathing. He doesn't move much because he gets winded and he is dizzy if he tries to stand too long. It is so hard to keep him drinking too, which is what he needs to keep his body hydrated so it can try to fight this off. Anyhow, I know this is very boring for all of you, but it helps me to get it out of my system. If you don't mind sparing a few prayers for him, it would be very much appreciated. Thanks guys!

teaching special ed at kinry

Yesterday was the first time I had the opportunity to teach at kinry, a 3-6 grade school that my kids attended for only 6th grade. a really nice school. I had signed up to TA for 4th grade, but when I got there, they desperately needed someone it the self-contained special ed class, because the TA there had just called in sick, and the teacher could not do that class alone. I agreed. it was 5th & 6th grade mixed, only 9 kids, and 2 were absent. the teacher has it hard, having to switch subjects and levels all day, with kids going in and out for different specials. the kids were extremely good for that day, according to her, so it was not difficult for me. I fell for each student, immediately, and they bonded to me right away. there was a boy, short, skinny, no socks in oversized tennis shoes, dirty hands, dirty jeans, long, unkept hair, a hole in his shirt- you get the picture, who seemed nice enough when he first came in. now, I am never told what reasons these kids are in this self-contained class. I can guess some. as the morning wore on, he got more and more uninterested in class. he refused to work, put his head down, and spaced out for 15 minutes at a time. the teacher or I would go over and calmly ask him to participate. he would just sit up and look bored. at 11am, the kids get snack time. he had none. he put his head down. I felt so sad. the other kids had juice boxes and gatorade and twinkie type things and candy from Halloween and bags of popcorn. then it was science. the teacher asked me to see if I could get him to do his paper on his own. I kept saying I would help him. he said he hated science, and would just stare ahead, and not give me eye contact. I tried 3 times. I almost gave up. then I went over one more time and gently persuaded him to do one question, just one. I struck up a conversation about what he likes to do. he has no bed time, and plays computer games all night, or so he claims. He asked me to guess what game he plays. I told him if he did 2 more questions, I would. he did, and I guessed Diablo, and he laughed. and we were friends the rest of the day. after lunch, he returned with more energy, and participated more. he smiled more. he had to stay in for recess because he owed work. I would have let him out to play. I would teach differently. last night, I felt sad that I couldn't really be a teacher. my little moments of effectual teaching are few and far between. after praying and dreaming about people on welfare, I am wondering if maybe after this year, I will change my field and go up into Poughkeepsie and work for social services. right now, this job is perfect.
tomorrow I work at Ketcham in English. I like the variety and hours of choice.

Fast & Testimony Mtg - Happy Birthday Sis!

Today was fast and testimony meeting and as usual it was great here in Hong Kong. But the testimony that touched me most was near the end when a young man dressed in jeans and a button-up shirt got up. He had arrived a little late for sacrament meeting with another young man and I wondered if he was a tourist. He got up and told everyone he was a Marine based in Okinawa and was here on a short leave. He bore his testimony and it was a sweet and sincere testimony. My heart was touched as he bore witness of the truth and talked about the temple and how excited he was to go to the temple soon with his wife as it was a big goal for them.

It was obvious for me to think of Jimmy even though I have never met him. I thought here was a young man defending our country and looking to improve himself. His testimony touched my heart and I found myself in tears. I turned to Tevia to see her in tears as well. Even Tevia's mom was crying. I made it a point to talk to him afterward and thank him for his testimony. His friend actually had been based at Hawaii some time ago. They were amphibious reconnaissance and here in Hong Kong for a couple of days. I gave them both my business card and told them to call me if they wanted to do lunch or dinner. The one was not a member but had come with him since you have to be with a buddy to go on shore. Reminded me a lot of a mission. After church many members went up and shook their hands and thanked them for all that they do. It was interesting because I couldn't imagine that happening in the States, but here in Hong Kong there were many Americans grateful for what they do.

On another note: Happy Birthday Sis! Though technically it is not your birthday where you are yet, it is here! I miss you.

Our Scant Halloween...

We didn't do a big Halloween celebration this year. No costumes, no trick or treating. Bret did get a bunch of candy at the store and let the kids gorge on Halloween night. We didn't carve our pumpkin until the day after, but it was still fun. Malik chose the mouth, Jarek chose the nose and actually carved it out, I picked the eyes and Jarek created the eyebrows and Bret carved those out. We didn't have a candle so we used a flashlight to light up our pumpkin.

A visit from the Webbs

Tevia has posted much of what we have done with the Webbs, but I thought I would recap with my perspective. I haven't seen Tevia so excited in years as we waited on our balcony watching each car and van turn into our apartment driveway. It was like me at Christmas. She was so happy to see her parents. It has been fun seeing them look in amazement and unbelief at everything around them - trying to believe that they are actually in Hong Kong. Monday at the nunnery and gardens was wonderful. I particularly loved the nunnery and garden. I enjoyed talking with my boys about the different gods we saw and explained to them that even though they aren't the true gods and we don't worship them that we respect the beliefs of others and that all religions have some truth in them. I loved watching the people come by and do their short little bows. One man was chanting in a low chant that sounded like I have seen on TV. Even for me on days like these it is hard to believe I live here. I just adore the architecture and marvel at the beauty.

Disneyland was awesome. I had been told by many that I would be so disappointed by Hong Kong Disneyland as it is not as big. But I loved it. Some of the rides I even thought were better than Anaheim. The fact that the park was not crowded was so nice and many times we had rides or areas basically to ourselves. I truly felt the magic of Disney here. I look forward to going back in a couple of weeks.

It wasn't fun going back to work, but work has been busy and so that makes the days go quick. I look forward to Tevia's parents returning from Nippon and taking them to some good chinese restaurants and some other places. It has been fun for the boys having them here as well.

On a side note, for the past year or so I have been looking for a good music player to use on my computer. I have used Rhapsody and iTunes and many others. This last week I picked up WinAmp after they did a major rehaul and love it. But the reason I love it is mostly due to a little add-on they have called minilyrics. Basically it finds the lyrics to the song that is playing and then shows the lyrics scrolling and highlights the line that is currently being sung during the song. It works for almost all songs. As a person who loves music lyrics, this has been awesome. I think mom would love it. So as I listen to Simon and Garfunkel right now I can see the lyrics and sing along. It is almost like having a karaoke machine. Try it out. It's free.

Here's one of the whole fam! Millie found my costume in the child's section at Target... can't believe it fit! :)

Halloween Picts!

Just some Halloween Picts! Jedi, Leah, and a puppy! Millie carved the Tigger pumpkin! GOOD JOB BEAN!!! :)

Crawling Stink Butt

Been meaning to get this out for a while now... so here it is! The lil turkey pumpkin head is crawling now!!! :)

Teh Podcast becomes Live!

The first podacst is now live on the site! It really is just an introduction and some background, but its here. Check it out and get feedback to me asap! We are launching podcast 2 on Tuesday and podcast 3 probably on Friday featuring Glenn BECK! His schedule may change but he has agreed to help us out:-) Stay tuned and go check out the site!

http://www.internetsafetypodcast.com/

Reflections

I am sitting here listening to an old "The Cure" album (from deezer.com) and it has brought back a flood of memories and brought me to contemplation. Life is such an interesting thing. I can not imagine how people go through this life without a sense of understanding or belief of why they are here. Here I am sitting in a highrise in Hong Kong. Working with people from all over the globe. Living where English is not the main language yet it doesn't really matter. I eat foods from other cultures every day. I get around in taxis and buses and subways and can't even remember what it is like to drive a car. I work with huge corporations and lead a large group of people who barely know who I am. I put together proposals for potential clients and determine pricing that we should offer. I watch my children living in a place that most of the people I know have never been and it isn't weird. I think of old friends from high school and college and wonder where they are and what they are doing. Are they living down the street from me here in Hong Kong? Do they have children? What keeps them busy during the day? I read about so many people that live in countries plagued by war and famine and poverty and hunger and yet here I am living in complete comfort while Ferraris and Porsches drive by regularly. I see a new view of the USA as the world looks at it and assumes it is going down the tubes. The economy is suffering and I think countries are ready to stop idolizing America and do their own thing. But can they? Is the US bound to lose its hegemonic status or will it really continue to dominate the global economy? Will our dollar continue to fall?

People spend so much time worrying about things that in the end are so trivial. I had a boss once tell me it didn't matter what changes are happening in the workplace. Even with new bosses, new directions, new strategies - we still know what we are supposed to work on that day. So if we shouldn't worry about these things, what should we worry about? How do we get happy? A recent article discussed how money does not buy happiness (unless you are in poverty). That once you reach the middle class the amount of money you make - be it $50,000 or $5,000,000 - doesn't affect happiness. Of course we all believe this on the outside, but I think most people don't really believe this deep down. So they focus so much on their careers trying to make more money instead of enjoying their job. They spend more time at the office than at home to bring in more money. But if they really want to be happy they'd be at home with their family or friends. The study finds that these things bring happiness. Of course, this is what the gospel also explains. So what do we do? Well, if we want to be happy, let's focus on each other.

Halloween COokies

Thinking of all of you as the wind blows the leaves all over the air and throughout the backyard. Daisy sits on the back porch. I have the radio blasting, a diet coke, and all my colored sprinkles, toothpicks, etc. I miss you all. I wanted to make some of my best cutout cookies for the kids dad home teaches; yes, he still does the Ligaris. and for the women I visit teach, and for the boys next door. they came out yummy and cute. I am remembering all the times we decorated cookies together, and the interesting ones each of you decorated. Bret, I remember you and me making these same exact cookies when you were 2 and 3. I don't really like cookies anymore, but I have to say, I did give in and taste one. I made ghosts, pumpkins, and leaves. the leaves are tiny ones with orange, yellow, and green sparkly sugars on them. so cute! El otonon es mi estacion favorita! Now I will go take Daisy for a walk through the leaves. the trees are at peak, and absolutely gorgeous. Tonight we are home teaching, then taking some cookies over to Brian Angel. I have one of dad's favorite meals in the oven, a perdue oven stuffer. fun day! love to all.

Surprise surprise

Well im back in utah... good old snowy cold dry utah. did i say good? because i shouldnt have! I miss hawaii!! I miss the greenery with all the tropical flowers and plants and the sun constantly shining and the rainbows that appear all the time and the ocean and the sound of the waves and so much more. The truth is that i fell more in love with hawaii this time. For some reason i found it to be much more beautiful. It really is a spectacular place. It is the coolest thing to be driving on the highway and have the ocean right next you the whole way. It is so pretty. Also the way the mountains are and the different flowers and textures of plants. I noticed things so much more. It really would be fun to live there for a couple of years, especially because all the people are really like they are in the movies... everyone is so laid back. It is so relaxing compared to say, new york where everyone is in a rush and tense. Hawaii everyone lets everyone go in front of them and will open doors and everyone talks to each other like they are best friends. And the style, there is no rich snobby style. everyone is usually dressed down and just like whatever. So i like that about it a lot too especially since i get stressed easily. It calms me down.

Anyways.... your probably wondering what the title is referring to and that is that me and jimmy decided not to get engaged this Christmas. A couple of weeks ago i started praying about marriage because jimmy and i have gotten to a very serious point, well i immediately felt so happy after even the first day and had such a warm and happy spirit. I began to think that maybe this was my answer but i personally wanted a little stronger confirmation. .. so i still waited and prayed more...hoping to get a better confirmation. well around the same time that i started praying about marriage, i was driving home from work one night when i felt such a strong prompting that i needed to go to Hawaii. Now me and jimmy had this idea in mind but it was no where near definite and we were actually leaning more towards not having me go because i was going to see him soon for christmas and it was a lot of money. But i felt then so strongly that i needed to go so i called jimmy as i was driving home and told him that i needed to go and actually started crying. I had no idea why i was being such a "girl" about it when usually im fine and it really wouldnt be a big deal to wait until December. Anyways being the guy that jimmy is he said he would think about it but not to worry. The next day we decided that i was going.

This week showed why i had to go. It truly was God's way of giving us our answer and i am sad but grateful for this opportunity. After just Monday i felt and saw that jimmy just wasnt "ready" to be engaged not because of anything else other than the fact that he wasnt where i would want my fiance to be with the gospel. He is getting there and even close in many ways but hes not there and he felt this too. So on Tuesday afternoon we had a long talk with many tears but peaceful hearts that now wasnt the time to get engaged which was heartbreaking because i was looking forward to this for a while. I planned on getting engaged for christmas and having this romantic experience blah blah blah. But the Lord has surprised me yet again dealing with marriage. I mean 10 years ago i thought that i was going to go to UCLA, meet some hott rich surfer guy and get married and live in cali. And about 3 years ago i thought i was going to marry the infamous boomer. However, i think this time im more correct in my predictions because i was so happy praying about jimmy to be my husband and felt the spirit so strong... i just think or basically know that this was the Lord's way of telling us... you two can very well get married... its just not the right time. And i know that even though its hard because me and jimmy have to slow down a little that everything is going to be okay.

After that talk me and jimmy had the most romantic week that i have ever had EVER! we danced on the beach at night and played tag, we went horseback riding in the mountains and by the beach coast, we made smores on the beach, we drank hot chocolate on the roof of his car by the beach, we took walks, we went snorkeling, we went kayaking, and we just played and had so much fun. There are things about jimmy that are so unique and special and i just loved and love being around him! He is so stress free and just makes everything fun. Like when we went kayaking he would sing silly songs and try to tip the boat or when we would go out to dinner he would order me a surprise fun drink. I just LOVE him! And he is still coming for christmas so dont worry you'll still get to meet him (for those who havent). =)

Well to sum up I love hawaii and i do think i want to be married there. The way im thinking now is that next fall i will go to BYU hawaii and then maybe who knows, next fall we'll get engaged and maybe around christmas time we'll be married in hawaii. So just keep that in the back of your heads. Until then ill be stuck here in the cold with lots of homework to do... lol JK it will be fun and i look forward to the next year! i still am SO happy and am ready for whats to come!

What is the EDD???

Hi Cari, did you get and estimated day of delivery for your little munchkin? We are all wanting to know when to expect the newest member. Also, how did your appointment go? Do tell!!!!!

desert trip and spring 2008

Yes, I know, I am the only one crazy enough to be already thinking of this. It is just cheaper when we buy our tickets way in advance, and lately there have been some good prices to slc.
so: here's the thing.
Easter is really early this coming year, March 23rd
that would make it a pretty cold desert trip weekend.
Then, dad and I thought we would stick around and go to General conference, but, alas, it is not the next weekend, it is April 5 & 6.
Then, BYU graduation is April 24 & 25, so if Jacob wants us to come down for graduation, we probably wouldn't come down in March and April, so we would have to pick.
and of course, I will want to see our newest member of the Wall clan, which may be in May, but I wouldn't want to impose right away, but maybe in June? or July? or should I wait until August and go to BYU education week? which I have always wanted to go to, and Olivia and I are going for sure together, maybe....
or I could just stay in Utah from March 18th to August, but dad wouldn't like that very much.
If we come out for graduation, we could help someone drive the car back here, if we want to do that. It may be smarter to leave the car there for the summer and cheaper to fly Kathy home, or she might just stay for spring semester.
The last day of BYU school is April 16, and exams until April 23.
Tom has a free ticket to use to come home one-way up until May 14th on American.
Who knows when Bret will get back from Hong Kong,
and if dad will still be working here...
As you can see, planning this spring will be incredible crazy!
the good news is that dad and I have 2 frequent flyer tickets, which, if we book soon, we can always change for free or $25., I forget which.
right now, all of March and April flights are open.

do you think anyone will want to do the desert trip later, since very few people have little kids in school anyways? usually they pick Easter weekend because the kids are out on the Friday before.
Tevs, what days will your kids be off?
I will also eventually ask around dad's family for input, but they will think I am nuts to ask now.
:)
I guess they already know that.
and will Cari be up to going on the desert trip being 7 months along?
so many questions....
love to all

Bugatti

There are so many fun parts of living in Hong Kong. Today we went to Mongkok market as a family and got to get some of the cheap stuff you hear about in China. It was a lot of fun. I could spend a whole day there looking at things and buying little things. But one of the fun things this week was when I woke up on Friday morning to go the bus stop. I had looked out the window from our room and saw two sports cars in covers sitting in the parking lot. I made it a point to go by them. At this point I am not too fascinated to see hot cars like Ferraris or Lamborghinis since I see them so often now. Also, I'm not a big car freak, so it's not like I see these cars and say "ooh, let me take a picture." So as I walked down the stairs and past the two cars I peaked to see what cars they were. I was expecting a Ferrari. When I saw the grill and it said "Bugatti" I was shocked. For the first time in my life I got giddy over a car. Well, actually, two cars since there were two. They were both Bugatti Veyrons. For those of you who don't know much about high end sports cars (which I really don't know much) these are the fastest and most expensive high end, street legal sports car you can buy. Each one costs USD $1.3 Million. Yes, MILLION. They have 1,001 HP. I was so excited I wanted to tell some of my friends back in the states. Instead I called Tevia and told her to go see them at some point during the day. She didn't.

On the way back from work I was walking up the stairs and a security guard stopped me and said to wait. "A car is coming" he said. I looked and can you believe it? Both cars drove down the lane a few feet in front of me over to some press release. I was so shocked I forgot my Blackberry has a camera. As I walked up to my apartment I once again felt this need to go back down and just look at the cars. From our apartment I could see them showcasing the cars to rich Hong Kong residents and taking pictures at the event. I talked Tevia into going down to get something from the coffee shop (not coffee!) and to glance at the cars. But they were far away and Tevia didn't want to take a picture. So after our yummy Coolatta-like drinks, we headed back up. Then I looked down and they were moving back to where they were parked in the morning. I grabbed the camera and ran down. There they both were, again just feet in front of me. The driver told me (with a very French accent) that they were there for a press opening as they are opening the Asian market here in Hong Kong. He looked at me and said not many people would ever be able to see two Bugattis at the same time in the same place. One was yellow and black and the other was black and gray. They really were gorgeous cars. I was able to take a few pics and have posted a couple here. I'm not sure why I was so "starstruck" by a couple of cars. I'm really not a big car guy. I guess it was more knowing that each car was a million bucks sitting there within my reach. Why anyone would pay so much for a car is beyond me, but I guess if you want the best, you pay for it. I thought it was an interesting feeling to feel, this boyish desire to be close and see them. I guess somewhere inside there still is that little boy inside of me. ;-)

How is everyone?

I know you all are very busy with life, school, work and play, but it would be nice to know how you all are doing. By you all, I mean Jacob,Cari,Kathy and Tommy. (I recently got to chat with Webb, Millie*but you still have to email me Millie* mom and dad on line, so they are off the hook)

How is school going Jacob? Are you going to graduate in April? Mom said something about you walking in April then finishing up then. Have you started applying for jobs or are you going to start you own business? How are classes? Are you being nice to Cari? :)

Cari, how are you feeling? What things make you sick to your stomach? What things do you crave? When about are you due roughly? Is Jacob being nice to you or do I have to kick his butt at Christmas time? How is work going for you? What do you want me to bring you back from Hong Kong?

Kathy, how is school going for you? I loved when you blogged about your job. I am glad that you will be able to be a good influence in that family. Are you still liking the job even though it is a long drive? We are very excited to meet Jimmy at Christmas. Would you mind telling me what things he likes to eat and I will cook up a good meal! And what do you want me to bring you back from Hong Kong?

Tommy. Oh Thomasina! How are you enjoying BYU? Are your classed easy or hard? Do you like your schedule? Are you finding a bunch of hot chicks to date? Where do you think you will get called to for your Mission? I bet you go foreign. That is just my guess. :) Are you being nice to Cari? :)

Anyhow, I would love to hear from all of you. Also, it would be helpful if everyone (this includes Jacob and Millie, Mom and Dad and Bret) would please start thinking of meals they would like while you are all visiting in Phoenix. That way I can start thinking about the things I will need to shop for. And also, Christmas lists would be nice. Just give me a few ideas of what you would like for christmas, or else you will all just get cell phone charms from Stanley Market; and some of you , okay only a few of you don't even have a cell phone!

We miss you all and can't wait to see you in a few months.

A Mormon President

This great article was referenced on LDS.org this week. A very good read from a non-Mormon perspective. It is a little long, so set some time apart.

http://www.christiancentury.org/article.lasso?id=3594

hard monday

everybody has a hard day once and awhile. they can't all be happy and perfect. (Kathy had a flat, Tom had a low test grade and had to help Kathy, and Jake had a hard day at school).
I have had so many good days in a row it makes me nervous to think that something bad is coming! :)
last night we went to the church to do some genealogy for FHE. Dad is working on his calling. I always find a new name when I put the time in! wow! I now have the genealogy bug! I stayed up till midnight, and even then, I couldn't sleep, I was just so excited finding new stuff on Google.
When I first started putting the name Pylick in, there were 10 or so hits. now there are 60,000!
so cool! Jake, if you ever have a spare minute and want to help me, call me about looking this one guy up on google.
fyi- last year we found out that 2 Pylicks had patents. they are both on google. now I found out that 2 of my dad's aunts were also famous. one was a teacher and she wrote a book. one has 15 pieces of art in the Cleveland museum of art.
you guys come from a good blood line!
smart and motivated!
advice to boys in UT: get more sleep. it helps your brain. really. truly.
Kathy- good luck on your test!

Callings

Well, today while we were at church one of the branch presidency counselors came up to us and asked if he could meet with us for a few minutes during priesthood/RS time. We said sure. I was late to the meeting because I was down in the mothers lounge chatting with the other mother that was feeding her baby (I was getting Enok to take a nap) and lost track of the time. Anyhoo, Bret was looking for me and then we headed up to the third floor to meet with brother Collins. (He and his wife are from Scotland and are so nice)

He started out somewhat nervously that the presidency wanted to talk to both of us together in order to extend a calling. My first thought was that one of us was going to get a big time- consuming calling since it is generally the practice to ask for the support of the other spouse before they actually extend the calling. He said that they had been trying to fill this calling and our names kept coming up, but they kept thinking that it wouldn't be a good idea because we had small children. But our names still kept coming up so they figured that they would chance asking us. Well this really got my brain going. Maybe they were going to be calling both of us to big callings.

So he was very nervous as he told us that there were a lot of good youth in the ward and that they needed a teacher for them. He then asked how we felt about team teaching the course 13 (12 and 13 year olds) sunday school class. I laughed inside and was very happy about it. Outwardly we both agreed that this would be absolutely wonderful for us to do. We told him that we had taught sunday school together before and that it shouldn't be a problem. He seemed genuinely relieved and was thrilled that we would take a calling like that. I was amazed that he felt like it might be a problem. Maybe Bret can expound upon these thoughts as he has more insight as to why bro. Collins would be so relieved that we would do this calling.

I think I could even pawn Enok off during sunday school because there are so many women here (as well as the youth) that love to take him from me. Even at the ward social I didn't see Enok much the whole time. All the young women kind of just passed him around. It was great.

Anyhow, we are excited for this calling and look forward to getting to know the youth here.

Ice Cream Social in Hong Kong

Tonight we went to our ward's opening social, which was an ice cream social. Like most things in Hong Kong, it started late and ended late. I think we ended up getting home around 10 PM. It was an interesting social. I did get to meet quite a few people. But 20 minutes of the night we watched a slideshow of people in the ward set to music by Inside Out. But the ice cream was good and it was good to get to know some more people in our ward. One of the things we did was write letters to missionaries, so as I was saying hi to missionaries I don't know I heard the woman next to me saying something to her son in Spanish. I asked her where she was from in English and she told me she didn't really understand. So I asked her in Spanish and she is from Peru. She has been here like 8 years or so. It must be really tough for her not knowing English that well or Cantonese. Afterwards we took the double decker bus 260 back to our home. The boys and I sat in the front seat on the top deck to see all the brilliant lights in Central. We met a girl who has travelled most of her life and lived in Peru, Saudi Arabia, Khazikstan, the USA and now Hong Kong.

Today I had a talk with my boss about my role here. She had asked me to make an appointment after I sent her a note telling her the days I would be in the US for Christmas. I assumed it would be about my assignment here so I had spoken with Tevia and was prepared to be straightforward. She asked what my thoughts were and I was open and said that if for a long term plan they wanted me to go local that I was absolutely not interested. So we decided that we will keep this a short term assignment and will end in February - with perhaps a couple months tacked on if necessary (though I would probably have Tevia go back in February). So we will be back in the States in 2008 - which means more basketball, perhaps a desert trip, and more time with y'all back there. I am so happy for the time I have had (will have) here. It will be a great time in my life. Now we'll see what they have me do when I get back to Phoenix. :-)
In the interim we can't wait to have our parents come out. Mom, we'll work on your tickets this weekend.

Some random things about Hong Kong that I find interesting:

- McDonald's has a Shogun burger that is pork with teriyaki sauce on it. It rocks! Limited time!
- People tend to walk the way the streets are set up. Since the streets drive on the left here, people also tend to walk to the left. It is the opposite in the states.
- I think many of these sayings are true to the UK as well, but if you want food "to go" you say "take away." An "exit" is often "way out." A bathroom is a toilet. Water to drink is "still" water, which is "flat" water when I was in Europe. Otherwise they will bring you bubbly water.

trappers

I guess I would have been a great pioneer after all: I have now successfully trapped a skunk, a ground hog, and an opossum. I looked opossum up in wiki, and found out that people actually used to trap them to eat them, and used their fur for brushes. this one trapped himself twice. dad went out last evening and opened the trap so it would leave. at 11pm, he was still curled up and playing dead. in the morning, he was re-trapped. dad said he must not have clipped up the door hatch well enough. so dad had to kind of shake him out of the cage this morning to get him to leave. opossums are much uglier than ground hogs.

My other blog -The Hope Chest

http://hopechest.blogspot.com/

Well, even though its just for a silly class, if you get bored and want to read my ramblings about current events and church related to technology, feel free to head over to my other blog sometime and peruse its offerings.

P.S. My new Internet Saftey Podcast lauches next week! Stay tuned!

News from Nicole

Here's a copy of Nicole's blog, for everyone's information:

"December 15
Mount Timpanogos, Utah"

"I don't want to hear any complaints about not being clear enough. That's about as explicit as I can be."

So they've finally got a date and happily enough, it doesn't interfere with Christmas in AZ. I'm excited!

poor daisy

ok, this should get some responses. Daisy is really missing Tom. and I am working and gone a lot now. and she is lonely. and we like our new freedom, so every time we go away for even one night, we have to pay Logan Mongelli $10. a day. we just paid him 50. in august, 35. last weekend, we will have to pay him 70. for thanksgiving if we go to HK or cleveland, and another 70. or 80. at Christmas time. then, 50. more for the desert trip. Now, I know that we can't measure everything in money value, and I love Daisy.... but, on days when my back is sore, or my leg is numb, the thought of going all the way down all the stairs is really bugging me. So we are seriously thinking of giving her away. I would put an ad in the paper that would say, Beagle free to a good home. I would not give her to the pound ever. If any of you seriously object to this, please let me know.

Goodbye Singapore

Today is National Day in China - so all of our offices were closed - even Hong Kong. But I am a diligent worker and went into the office one last time here. My trip to Singapore was productive and I think well worth the time and money. The people in the office here are just yearning for a leader. I wish I could be it for them. I will give them what I can, but I know that is not my job - at least not right now.

Singapore itself has been heavenly. What a beautiful country. In contrast to Hong Kong it is very sunny and slower paced. Many people have been moving from Hong Kong to Singapore and even a lot of companies have been making the switch - many of them citing the pollution problem as the reason. The drawbacks to Singapore are that it is an island - and the only way to really get off is on a plane. So I can see that people might feel trapped here. But until that time what a great place to live.

My favorite things we did this week were our trip to the zoo and to the island of Sentosa. The zoo was just the right size and similar to other parks outside the USA they aren't too worried about lawsuits so you actually get to be closer and more interactive with the animals. And the animals were active! It was a great few hours spent with the family and looking at animals. Tevia already posted a bit about the zoo.

Sentosa was great as well. Tevia had already gone with the boys, so when I went we made the trek back over on the subway and then on the monorail. I think this was my first time on a monorail. The island is just south of Singapore and connected by a causeway. The first thing that stood out was the breeze. There isn't much of a breeze in Singapore, but there was here. It also had such manicured lawns and bushes. Just sitting down on the lawn and listening to the soothing music being played was worth the trip. We went up to the butterfly park and, similar to the zoo, you have much more opportunity to interact with the butterflies. So you could touch them and the caretakers would put them on you for photos. It was great. I saw so many and a few that were outright huge and gorgeous. I loved the time there and could have spent quite a bit more time there. But the family was ready to move on and so I obliged. Jarek was not a big fan of this part as he does not like bugs.

We then went on a small nature hike on the "dragon trail" where we found dragon bones and read legends about dragons. It was quite fun. We then headed back to the city and left the beautiful island of Sentosa to the rest of the tourists.

I am very happy to have been able to come here. Tomorrow we head back to Hong Kong where life speeds up a bit, pollution is a little more obvious, and the sun doesn't shine quite so bright. But the Chinese spirit is bright there! Tonight they are doing thousands of fireworks over the harbour which we are missing! I am ready to get out of our one room hotel and back to our larger apartment with the wonderful view. But if I ever get the chance to come back down here - I'll take it!