Mom, Can We Flush the Toilet Paper?

B...aaaaaaaaah...LI!

2010-04-04T15:37:00.009+08:00

We spent spring break in Bali, Indonesia. We'd heard a lot about Bali over the years, but this was our first trip there. It won't be our last. The beaches aren't nearly as beautifl as Phuket, Thailand or Boracay, Philippines, but Bali has an almost magical feel about it. There's art and spirituality at every turn...unless you never leave Kuta, in which case there are bars and probably hookers at every turn!

Ubud Villa

We spent the first half of the week at an amazing villa outside Ubud. We traveled with another family (The Weiss family: Serge, Sally, Westen & Anika) who also had 2 kids, same ages as Aidan & Brenna. Our kids were friends at Shanghai American School. The villa was huge - 3 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, kitchen, dining area, living rooms, a couple of balconies, our own pool, etc. Plenty of room for the 8 of us.

Below: the kids enjoying our pool and that entire house behind them is our villa!

There were a few other villas in the compound. Here's a picture of Brenna helping Devey (a very friendly worker who totally fell in love with Brenna, aka Baby!) put offerings near around the grounds our first morning in Bali:

Here are more pix from the villa and Bali:

I could go on and on about the villa and Bali, but I'll cut to the highlights of the trip...

White Water Rafting

We went white water rafting on the Telaga Waja River. The 2 hour trip was full of class 3 and 4 rapids, waterfalls that we boated under and it ended with a 12 foot drop off a water damn! Very fun!

We had a girls raft and a boys raft:

Westen and Aidan chilling under a waterfall during our half-time break!

Anika and Brenna in the waterfall:

The Williams-Weiss gang riverside:

More pix of rafting:

Surfing in Kuta

On Wednesday we moved to Nusa Dua and stayed in a hotel on the beach. The kids took surfing lessons on Kuta Beach on Thursday. Westen and Anika had already taken a surf lesson in Australia, but Aidan and Brenna were total novices. I was amazed at how quickly all 4 kids picked it up. They were hanging 10 in no time! I have so many pix, it's hard to choose. I'll put a few here and then put a surf slide show.

Aidan catching a wave:

Brenna:

More Surfing Pix:

SAS Reunion

Another highlight of the trip was meeting up with friends from Shanghai. We lived across the hall from Amy, Scott and Blake for 4 years. Well, we only lived across from Blake for about a year and a half, but he was with us in spirit for the full 4 years!!! We worked with Cody & Lynsey for 4 years and only lived a couple of buildings away. They have cute little Ben, who's almost 2. We met up with them 3 times while we were in Nusa Dua and had a great time being together.

Here's the gang:

The 9th floor kids, together again:

Surprise SAS Reunion: It's a Small World After All!
The Williams-Weiss gang met up with the Hossack-Howitt gang on our last night in Bali. We met at Uno, a western Italian restaurant in Nusa Dua. We were sitting at a big, long table, when lo and behold, we see former SAS students that moved to Singapore a year ago January! What a crazily small world. Their son, Michael was friends with Aidan and Westen.

Here's a picture of all 3 of them. (L-R Aidan, Westen, Michael) Apparently they all go to the same barber!

Random Bali pix - coffee plantation, pool time, friends, etc.:

Here are pix from a trip to some temples:

Hanging With my Peeps!

2010-02-07T10:20:00.003+08:00

Last weekend I went to an excellent tech conference at the International School Bangkok. Even better, my peeps from SAS were there! It was fantastic to spend time with them, but I wish it could have been longer. Here are some pix of me and my peeps.

Is That a WLF in our Backyard??? How did that get there???

2010-01-24T20:28:00.000+08:00

If you read my blog a little regularly, you might have read about the humongo snail that Loca found by our front door. Huge snail. Snail on steroids. The snail that ate Saigon. Big.

Well the other morning, Loca was doing a quiet, informative bark. I thought it was her, "I really want to be out in the sunshine" bark, but when I came downstairs, she was at the back door. Hmmm. That's unusual.

I looked out the door and saw...what is that? Could it be? It kind of looks like one, but how did it get in our backyard?

I opened the back door and yes, it was, a weird looking fish! I'm not talking a goldfish from some kid's tank. I'm talking 6 inches long, lots of fins, prehistoric looking thing that is probably served in local restaurants. I immediately looked up to the sky! Why?!? Did I think it was raining fish? Did I think that fish were falling from trees? Not sure, but that was my first reaction. Honest to God.

My second reaction was to see if Weird Little Fish was alive. A little kick and it wiggled its tail. Hmmm. A live fish near my back door and we live far from a water source. There was no water trail, so he didn't squirm his way from the Mekong River. Was it going to be someone's breakfast and it made a run for it? So many questions for 7am on a Sunday.

Our teeny tiny backyard area is walled off on all sides. There's no way Weird Little Fish could have gotten there on his own volition. I think one of our neighbors threw Weird Little Fish by our back door! Ha! Maybe it's a Vietnamese custom for long life and prosperity. I hope it doesn't mean "This fish is rotten! We can't eat it for breakfast. Throw it near the round eye's back door. She'll think it's a symbol of long life and prosperity. Silly round eye!"

So what do you do with a live, orphan fish? I pondered the humane thing to do. I considered a rescue mission, but we don't have a fish tank. Even if I was able to keep it alive, where would I eventually put it? I decided to let nature take its course. Had I came down 15 minutes later, the fish would have been dead. Who am I to mess with his fate?

Sorry, Weird Little Fish.

Herding Ducks!

2010-01-01T12:45:00.001+08:00

We came across a duck farmer herding baby ducks while we were on a quad (4 wheeler) ride in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Brenna shot a video and it's sooooo cute!!!! If it's loading slowly, just turn off the volume, let it ride and then watch from the beginning.

Cambodia - Day 2

2009-12-31T22:49:00.009+08:00

On the second day we went to the temples. So incredible. They're HUGE and old (built between the 8th and 13th century). How did they build such amazing temples without modern machinery? There were so many intricate carvings and big bas-reliefs. Just an awe inspiring place. Wow.

Below are loads of pix. The wats at Siem Reap are a photographer's dream. I just have a Canon Elph point and shoot. I wish I had a digital SLR with major lenses.

In the afternoon we went Quad riding - very fun! Another fun way to see "real" Siem Reap. We stopped at a rice paddy and learned how to harvest rice. It's harder than it looks! Can't imagine doing that all day in the super hot Cambodian sun. The kid that showed us how to do it was 14 years old. We had 3 kids with us - 11, 13 and barely 15. It makes you think. (Ya know, of using your kids for labor. I could be making some money off these slackers.) There are some Night Market pix at the end, including crispy cricket snacks!

Cambodia - WOW!

2009-12-31T17:33:00.010+08:00

I've wanted to go to Angkor Wat since I moved to Asia over 4 years ago. I finally got to go this week and - WOW! - that's all I can say is WOW! Amazing temple ruins and a great town. If you ever get a chance GO to Siem Reap, Cambodia. (I'm going to break this vacation into several posts because it'll be too long and I don't have time to finish it right now.)

On the first day, we went on a long horseback ride. I'm afraid of horses, so I volunteered to ride a horse that barely liked to move. Not a good choice because he kept stopping to eat and generally wouldn't move. I had to keep pulling up his head - not easy! - and kicking him to get him to move - not easy! It would have been easier for me to give the horse a horseback ride! Aidan and I switched horses and I got one that just followed the horse in front of him - easy! I road Rinaldo the rest of the way. My latin lover horse was a good ride, but to be perfectly honest, I don't really enjoy horseback riding. I always think I will, but I don't. I grew up in Jersey, what do you expect? It was a great way to see the back country of Siem Reap. Kids kept running out to the road yelling, "Hello! Hello!"

We celebrated Aidan's 15th birthday in Siem Reap that day (Dec. 27th). We ate at Viva Mexican, which was EXCELLENT, went to the night market and then had birthday ice-cream at The Blue Pumpkin. Hard to believe my cuddly little baby is now a hairy 15 year old!

Our friends from Shanghai, Jeff and Faye, walked by while we were eating dinner! Such a small world! It was great to see them again. :o)

100 Book Challenge Update

2009-12-31T14:32:00.002+08:00

Last January I joined the 100 Book Challenge at J. Kaye's website. I ended up reading 115 books, but that's counting children's books and I'm an elementary librarian, so I get paid to read them! Here's a breakdown of what I read:

32 Novels for adults or older teens (the large majority were adult books)
10 Novels for children (helps with my job so I can recommend books to kids)
72 Picture books (again, for my job, but I looooooove picture books!)

And that adds up to 114. Hmmm. I probably read 73 picture books.

I'm disappointed that I only read 32 "real" books. I really thought I could read one a week, but I also moved to a new country, got a new job and dealt with the decline and death of my father. Not exactly good reading situations. Thirty two books is a lot more than most Americans. According to an article in the Washington Post (2007), 25% of Americans didn't read a book at all the previous year. (Yikes!) The typical person read 4 books. Well, I have most of America beat!!!

I read a lot of great stuff. If you want to see the full list, go back to my original post. The fun aspect of the challenge is that it forces you to keep track of what you've read during the year and your list is in chronological order. I also subscribe to librarything.com (it's free!) and that let's me see all the books I've read. Well, the ones I can remember anyway. That's where I get that cool widget on the right side of my blog that shows random covers of books I've read. Very visual! Very fun!

I didn't write any book reviews or anything. No interest in that. But my favorite books of 2009 were:

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. It won the national book award for teen literature and boy did it deserve it. Amazing story. Great writing. Terrific book.

The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga. I read a lot of literature set in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and that region of the world. I'm finding really great literature coming out of there right now. The White Tiger is an amazing novel about a taxi driver in modern India.

The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller. I don't like nonfiction because I'm all about characters, but this is a terrific book for teachers and librarians. I had to talk myself through it because nonfiction just shuts my brain off. I would say, "Read 1 chapter of this and then read as much of your novel as you want." It worked! That makes it sound like a bad book, but it's excellent, I'm just a bad NF reader. Her ideas about turning kids on to reading made me re-think how I run my library and present myself to my students. If you're a teacher or have children, read this.

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout. Won the Pulitzer and rightly so. The writing is amazing. It's a collection of 13 short stories that are somehow connected to the main character, Olive Kitteridge. Olive isn't your typical protaganist that you fall in love with. She has short comings. Many, frustrating short comings. I often confuse my opinions about a book with my opinions about the characters. For example, I used to say that I didn't like The Corrections, but in reality I didn't like the characters. It was so well written that I transferred my dislike for the characters to the book. Same with Olive Kitteridge. I wanted to shake her at times to open her eyes. The author said she wrote it in 13 short stories where Olive is sometimes in the background because she didn't think the reader could take a full novel centered around her. That sums it up for me. That being said, Olive has some very good qualities, as well. She's not all bad. She's human.

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. I know I'm a little behind the ball on this one. I loved The Kite Runner and this is another amazing novel by Hosseini.

I read other good ones, too, but those are my stand outs. I'm going to do the 100 Book Challenge for 2010, too. It starts tomorrow. My goal is to read more than 32 adult books and to read more than 10 children's novels. I encourage you to sign up. If you read more than 4 books, you're doing better than most Americans!

I have a pile of books next to my bed for my vacation. I wonder what I'll start with.

Christmas '09

2009-12-26T17:06:00.005+08:00

This year we were HOME for Christmas. By home, I mean our townhouse in Saigon. This is the first time in 8 or 9 years that we weren't somewhere else on Christmas Day. I can't complain because "somewhere else" usually means a beautiful beach like Pukhet or Koh Samui, but it was terrific to be home for the holidays! I'm heading to the airport in about an hour, but I wanted to post some Christmas pix. (We're going to Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Sooooo excited!)

Happy holidays from our fam to yours!

Mike went to Bali in November for a school trip (tough life!) and brought this awesome guitar mirror for Aidan.

Brenna really, really, really wanted a camera. Santa heard her!

We are lucky to have Mike's brother Dan and his daughter Hannah with us during the holidays. Aunt Lisa and Uncle Andrei sent Brenna and Hannah a fun karaoke gizmo for their iPods!

Aunt Lisa and Uncle Andrei sent Aidan a strobe light, some fun drum stick pencils and these awesome things you stick on your walls and then you can write on them. If he doesn't put them up within the week, I'm totally stealing them! He really wanted a strobe light! Who knew? Apparently Aunt Lisa! We tested it out several times - very cool and very seizure inducing!!!

Grandpa relocated to Sun City, Arizona this summer and sent Arizona State t-shirts for all 3 grandkids. They're styling!

Hannah loves CSI New York and CSI Miami, so we're sending her home with both series for her viewing pleasure. (Que The Who theme music...)

Santa brought Aid Skullcandy headphones. Trendy, but great sound. Those big, Princess Leah headphones are sooooo back in style.

What do you give a teenager who's growing up in Asia? American junk food, of course! Brenna gave Aidan Doritos, Pop Tarts and an AW Root Beer for Christmas. Uncle Dan and Hannah added to the collection. He was a happy boy!!!

Vacation: Intrigue, Deceit and VICTORY!

2009-12-25T08:13:00.000+08:00

I can't believe I forgot to post this picture in my first vacation post. Brenna loves to play Spy Alley and I stink at it! Spy Alley is a game where you pick a card that tells you your spy identity - which country you're from. It's a secret, of course. The object is to gather up spy items (passwords, keys, codes and disguises) and make it to your embassy before someone correctly guesses what country you're from. You make decisions to throw people off, etc.

Here's a typical game for me:

1. I randomly pick a card - Germany - and NO ONE sees.

2. I pick up the die to roll for my first roll of the game. I have an empty board and I'm still on Start. I shake the die in my hand like a pile of salted peanuts.

3. Before I even roll the die Brenna says, "You're German!"

4. Now I have to play it cool and not show the shock and disbelief on my face, so I reply with, "Yup, I'm German." or "Why don't you guess right now?" - If a player makes an incorrect guess, they're out. What I really want to say is, "For the love of God, how do you ALWAYS know my identity???"

5. I make it through the game until Brenna lands on the safety spot. This is where players can guess the identity of another player and if they guess incorrectly they stay in the game. Brenna excitedly blurts out, "Mom's German!" and I hand over all my money and spy items to my 11 year old Spy Alley whiz kid.

6. I ask Bren, "How do you always know what I am?" She replies, "I can just tell!" Huh? "You just look German." What does that mean??? Makes me a tad suspicious. Is my sweet, fun daughter a Spy Alley cheater? I don't think so. I've kept control of the spy cards and shuffled and made sure everything was top secret and she still guesses correctly.

Tuesday, December 23rd was a good day. The sun was shining, the air was clean, something magical was in the air and I WON AT SPY ALLEY!!! I was playing with Hannah and Brenna and here's the victory photo I took. As you can see, my opponents were not thrilled with my victory!

Vacation: Part 1. So Far, So Good!

2009-12-22T22:01:00.005+08:00

Our 3 week winter break officially began at 12:30 on Friday! Woo-hoo! Mike and I started our vacation with lunch at a local pub with a bunch of other teachers. Then Mike went to get a haircut which includes 45 minutes (or more!) of an incredible head massage/shampoo. I went downtown with 3 friends and got a foot, head, arm, back massage at Royal Foot Massage. It ended with an awesome back massage that looked painful, but felt great. Ahhh!

Left: Long row of massage gals giving foot massages. 70 minutes of bliss for $7. Nice!

On Sunday night, my friend Laura from SAS came to spend the night. It was so fantastic to spend time with her! Luckily she enjoys playing card games. Brenna is a card game addict and she taught Laura a couple new games. Laura then beat us at most of the games. Geez! We played A LOT of games!
Left: Brenna teaching Laura how to play Rat-a-Tat Cat on our rooftop terrace.

Left: Laura heading back to the airport. She loooooves Vietnam, so hopefully this wasn't her only stay at Chateau Williams!

Last night (Monday night) Mike's brother Dan and his daughter Hannah arrived close to midnight. I thought they would be zombies today, but they were amazing! We went to The Gourmet Shop for breakfast (left).

After a leisurely breakfast and of course a stop at the smoothie stand, I took Brenna and Hannah to get our nails painted. The girls had a lot of choices to make. What color?? What designs??

They watched TV while being pampered. Not a bad life for an 11 & 13 year old!!!

The final result! Christmas trees, snowmen, wreaths, snowflakes. Soooo cute and festive! :o) I got french tips with a Christmas tree on each thumb!

In the afternoon we went downtown. We walked around the backpacker area, shopped at Ben Thanh market and went to an early dinner at Quan An Ngon, a delicious restaurant with very local food. The owner took the best street stall cooks and created a restaurant. They all work in their own area. The menu is extensive with both food and drink and it's very cheap. Mike and I love the vermicelli with friend spring rolls and it's less than $2.00.

Steroid Snail Update

2009-12-10T20:38:00.000+08:00

Well, I found out that gigantic snails leave gigantic....poop. Hmmm. Not really sure what to say about this. Anyone?

The Snail That Ate Saigon

2009-12-09T22:35:00.000+08:00

Yes, Loca is a territorial, yappy dog. But since we've gotten here she's grown accustomed to our little front yard and all the happenings in the hood. She generally doesn't bark when she's out there. She barks when someone right at our gate. This morning she was barking and barking and barking. I looked out the window and she wasn't by the gate. I started to think that maybe someone was IN our yard so I went downstairs to take a look. She was barking at a snail. Ha! What a whimp! Barking at a snail! But this was no ordinary snail, this was a snail on steroids! This was Super Snail! It was huge. Vietnamese people are the smallest people I've ever seen, but damn, they grow BIG snails! I took a picture and held my sunglasses to give it some perspective. I'm not sure it does it justice. From the tip of its head to the tip of its tail, it was about the length of my sunglasses. I've never seen a snail the width of my face!

Terry Fox Run 2009

2009-12-06T22:35:00.004+08:00

This morning we did the Terry Fox 5K Walk. Terry Fox was an amazing young guy from Canada who lost his leg to cancer and then ran a marathon, EVERYDAY for 143 days across Canada to raise awareness for cancer research. He wanted to run from the Atlantic to the Pacific, but after 143 days he had to stop because the cancer was in his lungs. What an incredible person! There are Terry Fox runs every year around the world. We've participated in them in Venezuela, China and now Vietnam.

Mike, Brenna, Loca and I did the walk. Aidan wouldn't get out of bed. Geez. Below are pix from the day. Big crowds!

Hot dog! Loca walked for most of it, but petered out about 5 minutes from the end, so Mike helped out. Poor little thing!

Foxy Family!

We went out to breakfast at The Gourmet Shop cafe after the walk.

Expats in the Hood!

2009-12-02T20:33:00.003+08:00

I really like our neighborhood. We live in a townhouse less than a mile from school. It's a straight shot to school - we go out of our complex and go down the street until we hit the school, no turns, no bends in the road. But the street we go down is my favorite part of this whole area. There are cafes, restaurants, smoothie stands, massage places and more. It just has a cozy, fun, vacationy feel.

The other night Mike and I were having a little date night. While walking home from the smoothie stand we stopped in to The Tavern to listen to some live acoustic music. A female singer and 2 guys on guitar playing Aerosmith, The Beatles, etc. I love having all this right outside our door.

Below are some pix from our hood. Our little corner of the world that we call home right now.

Mike talking to the smoothie stand folks. We're regular customers!

The friendliest smoothie stand lady. I think she smiles at us so much because she wouldn't have a job without all our smoothie purchases!

One of the many cafes on our street. They hang lights in the trees. It looks festive every night!

Another cafe.

This is one of our favorite restaurants. It's called Vegas and has good food and an awesome salt water fish tank. I'll have to take pix of the tank the next time we go.

Just so you know we really live in Vietnam - here are some grilled chicken feet! Yum! They're a favorite in Vietnam, China and probably other Asian countries. I think I'll pass, thanks!

Another Tournament, Another Championship!

2009-12-01T20:01:00.001+08:00

Today was the MS basketball city tournament. It was held at our school. It started at 1:00, but I had to teach, so I only got to see the championship game and WE WON! Again! The girls (and boys!) went undefeated - AGAIN - and won it all - AGAIN! How fun is that! Brenna was really excited, as you can imagine. Afterward she ran over to us and said, "We won 2 championships in 3 days!!!" Nice! SSIS MS basketball rocks! (That's my number 4 in the front, on the left.)

The championship game came down to SSIS vs. the Taiwanese school for both the girls and boys. The Taiwan school beat both our teams during the regular season - they're really good. SSIS girls beat them twice today. The championship game wasn't even that close. I think it was 22-12 or something. The boys game was very close. We 22-18, but it was 18-18 with less than 2 minutes to go. Great games!

We are the Champions, My Friends!

2009-11-29T21:55:00.001+08:00

Brenna returned from Cambodia at 1:00 this afternoon. Woo-hoo! When we got to school the bus had just arrived and we anxiously peered at the group of MS kids all wearing the same blue tops, trying to find our special basketball player. Then we spotted her! She looked so happy! She waved and ran over and gave us a hug - a great mom moment! She ran back to the group and the coaches did one last cheer before we were able to take her home.

Her team went undefeated! They won everything and walked away with the championship! What a great experience for Bren. It's fun to go to a tournament, but let's face it, it's even more exciting to win the tournament. This was the first time the SSIS MS girls won the MRISA tournament. Mike and I were teasing her that they just needed a little Brenna action in the mix to bring home the gold! There were 7 teams in total, from Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. She said she didn't realize how exciting it would be win a tournament! Our boys team also went undefeated. SSIS had a great showing this year. Go dragons!

After we got home, Bren told me all about her trip. She said, "I thought it would be fun, but I didn't think it would be SO MUCH fun!" She thought it would be all basketball all the time and very serious. She didn't realize the social aspect of school sports trips.

Her host family was terrific. They had 2 houses(!), 4 cars and a at least 1 driver. The girls went to the mall and the arcade and got ice cream at Swenson's. Yum! Three tiny, skinny girls shared a huge bowl of 10 scoops of ice cream!!! She brought home 2 photos from a photo booth and there were 6 girls crammed in the pictures! Four of the girls were from NISC (the school sponsoring the tournament), plus Bren and another teammate, Sae Eun who was her roommate. How fun to get to hang out with kids from another school!

They had a dance for the teams on Saturday night. Bren loves to dance and my Shanghai friends and I were excellent role models for her with our crazy dance parties. Bren and her friends danced together, not with boys. Phew for me! She said the dance wasn't long enough. She and her friends wanted to dance longer. Good job, grasshopper. I have taught you well!

As I sat there listening to a very excited 11 year old talk about her trip, I felt so fortunate that both my kids have had such terrific experiences lately. Aidan had an amazing time on a school trip to Thailand and now Brenna's tournament in Cambodia. Such unique experiences that make memories of a lifetime.

Thanksgiving Saigon Style

2009-11-28T22:06:00.002+08:00

We had to work on Thursday and Friday, so we celebrated Thanksgiving today (Saturday). My vice principal and his wife invited everyone to their house for a pot-luck dinner. And boy did I get pot-lucky. He had a sign-up sheet outside his office where you chose to bring a salad, side dish, dessert, etc. I forgot to sign up until the very last day. I thought I would have to bring a couple of roasted turkeys at that point. I went to the sign-up sheet with dread only to find that all the food items were already chosen and no one signed up to bring BEER! Wow! I was immediately thankful for that stroke of great luck! Mike and I bought a couple cases of Heineken last night and stuck them in the frig. Adam had garbage cans full of ice ready and waiting for the beer when we arrived. What a stress free Thanksgiving! I should have taken a picture of us putting the beer on ice! Darn!

Brenna missed the celebration because she's in Cambodia for a middle school basketball tournament. Mike, Aidan and I enjoyed the food and the company and then afterward we went downtown to Saigon Square, which is an indoor market. Actually we might have been at Saigon Square 2. We think the original is outdoors and the newer one is indoors, but we're not sure. In any case, we did some shopping there and at Ben Thanh market. Aidan was looking for skate jeans, skate shoes, and X-box games.

Below: Elaine, Stacey and I enjoying turkey and pumpkin pie.

Below: Aidan checking out the selection in a shoe shop.

Below: A friendly lady with a food stall. Not sure what she sold.

Below: A Vietnamese Santa and a hot little elf!!!

Aidan's Incredible Trip to Thailand!

2009-11-22T15:55:00.003+08:00

Aidan got home last night, after a week in Chaing Rai, Thailand. (No, he wasn't in Chaing Mai where the elephant refuge is.) Usually when you ask Aid how his trip was, he'll respond with, "Yeah, it was fun. Can I go out? My friends are hanging out." We picked him up at school last night and it was so good to see him. Just to look at him. You don't see your kid for a week and you just enjoy looking at them.

I was expecting to have to poke and prod him for information. No need! He started talking about it in the cab on the way home. When we got home 2 minutes later, he was drawing the layout of the place where they stayed and going through the trip day by day. He was so enthusiastic about everything. He had an AMAZING time!

He was at a resort that also caters to schools and conducts outdoor education activities. It had a climbing wall, pool, beach volleyball set up, ropes course, high ropes course, jungle area, and more. The great part was that everything was so right on the premises - the majority of their time was spent doing activities, not being transported around. The week sounded like a perfect blend of team building, free time to play, and community service with a local school.

He talked about a confidence course that was over a body of dirty water. Most people fell into the water, but Aidan was able to make it though. He said it was really difficult, but he pulled it out in the end! The course included walking across on a lose chain with lose ropes to hold onto and other, monkey bars, rings and other balance type of activities. Apparently it was funny to watch everyone fall in! I'm a fan of the TV show Wipe Out, so I can totally relate to that!

They also had jungle survival and he had to create a shelter that could withstand a fake hurricane! He had to make a cup, bowl and chopsticks out of bamboo! He had to start a fire by striking metal against magnesium. It was Aidan vs. Wild! Another fun game was where they wore all black, went into the jungle at night and had to get all 10 team mates from one lighted hut to another one that was about 200 meters away...without getting caught by two flashlight toting counselors. I'm afraid of the dark, so this sounds petrifying, but they had a great time.

He actually raved about the community service part, which isn't always the case. Sometimes that part is awkward and forced. The SSIS kids painted a mural at a local school, taught lessons (Aidan's group taught about weather!) and played with the kids. The little kids loved the SSIS kids so much that they visited them after school everyday. The admiration was mutual and the big and little kids played until curfew time. He said some of the little kids were crying when the older kids left on Saturday. It's so great that the kids connected, regardless of their very different lives.

Apparently the counselors were awesome! You can probably picture them - granola, bohemian, 20-21 years old, having the time of their lives in a Thai jungle! Their cool factor was not lost on my son. He loved the last night when they had a big bonfire, guitars, singing (cool songs like Coldplay and Linkin Park), laughing, bonding. Good times, good times!

As a mom and a teacher, this is exactly the kind of experience I want my children and my students to have. He was challenged, both physically and mentally, he had opportunities to bond with his classmates, local kids and some really hip counselors, plus he found the value in helping those less fortunate. I couldn't ask for anything more.

P.S. I forgot to mention that he had to make his own raft that he than paddled down the river. He learned how to tie a bunch of knots during this activity. His raft didn't sink! They also had a cooking class and he made Green Curry Chicken, which is a favorite for me and Mike. Yum!!!

Mike's Home from Bali!

2009-11-21T14:45:00.003+08:00

Mike got home from Bali, Indonesia last night. It's great to have him back. He looooooved Bali and said it was the most cultural place he's ever been. That's saying something since he lived in South America and Asia. He said that art is such a part of their lives - you see it everywhere. He was also amazed by the amount of ritual in the Balinese culture. Everyday families create an offering. They weave baskets and fill them with flowers and food and put them outside their homes and shops.

The group stayed in Ubud, which is the cultural center of Bali. The trip had an art focus, so he painted, made a batik t-shirt and had other art experiences. We didn't get to see his paintings, but they'll be displayed at school next week. This will be Mike's first art exhibit! Ha ha! They also saw Balinese dances, went to an active volcano and biked through the countryside. Not a bad week at work!

He brought home some presents from his trip and also saved some more for Christmas. That's a win-win for us! Presents now and presents later! You can get some really cool looking craft things in Bali. It's not really cultural, but Aidan is going to love that little guitar!

He got Brenna a wooden statue of 3 giraffes. It's not painted, so Brenna can paint it herself. She's painting it right now! Here's the before picture. I'll add the "after" picture when she's done!

I thought Aidan was getting home last night, but he gets home around 8:30 tonight. We can't wait to hear all about his trip to Thailand!

A Week Without Testosterone!

2009-11-20T07:50:00.003+08:00

This week was Week Without Walls for SSIS High School. Mike is in Bali and Aidan is in Thailand. Both are traveling home today. Brenna and I are excited to see the boys again, but we've had a very fun week together. Here's what we did while the alpha males were away:

Went out for dessert - one of those chocolate cake type things where chocolate oozes out! (Like the Chocolate Nemesis at Berry in Shanghai - YUM!)
Watched My Sister's Keeper on a SCHOOL night! Pass the tissues. Why did they change the ending from the book?
Ate salmon and greek salad on our terrace. We usually have Terrace Tuesday and order pizza, but we made it more civilized.
Played countless games of Slap Jack. I won most, or maybe even ALL of them.
I taught Bren how to play Gin Rummy. (No gin or rum was used.)
We went to see Whip It at the theater on a SCHOOL night. After it ended we snuck in to watch the end of This Is It. That Michael sure can move.
After the movie we stopped at the arcade, aka The LOUDEST Place on the Planet, and watched some Vietnamese teenage boys dance on one of those dance pad games - they were amazing! Then we played several games of basketball shoot-out.

I'm anxious to see Mike and Aidan this evening, but I'll be sad to say goodbye to Girl's Week. This was the first time Bren and I have ever spent this much time alone. I hope it's not the last.

4 People/3 Countries

2009-11-18T21:42:00.000+08:00

Well this week the SSIS High School is having their Week Without Walls trips. Mike is in Ubud, Bali on a trip that focuses on art. I got an e-mail from him yesterday and he said Bali is amazing and art is everywhere in their culture. He also said he's tapping into his artistic side, which is a really cool opportunity that you don't get everyday. We're visiting Bali in March, so now I'm even more excited to go!

Aidan is in Chiang Rai, Thailand. I haven't heard from him at all, but I'm not surprised. I'm not sure if he has access to e-mail or if he's having too much fun to write his mom! It's a very outdoorsy trip where they're going to build their own raft and do ropes courses. I'll post more when the boys return.

Brenna and I are enjoying our Girl's Week! We've played a lot of card games, watched a few movies and last night ate grilled salmon and Greek salad out on our terrace. (No, I didn't cook that, it was take-out!) It's special to have the time alone with her.

So, we're a family of 4 in 3 different countries! Next week, the boys will be home and Brenna is off to Cambodia for a basketball tournament. Then Mike and I can enjoy time alone with Aidan. We don't get that opportunity very often. The week after that we'll all be on common ground, back home in Saigon.

Facebook Blocked in Vietnam?

2009-11-17T21:01:00.000+08:00

I haven't been able to get on Facebook for the past 2 days. It was dodgy last week, too. Facebook has been blocked in China for a long time and maybe Vietnam has decided to join in the fun. Ugh. This is my 5th year living in a communist country and 99% of the time I can't tell the difference....but when big brother starts monitoring my Internet usage, it's a massive bummer. I'm not sure if this is permanent. I really hope not.

So...if you don't hear from me on Facebook for awhile, it's because I'm in the communist vacuum.

Saigon Snapshots

2009-11-12T19:43:00.003+08:00

The bike repair guys on the corner, one of the many conveniences of living in Saigon. They're always on the major intersection between home and school. Today I needed air in my tires. 25 cents well spent!

They haul anything on their motorbikes! In this case it's 14 tires! This was taken last weekend in downtown Saigon.

A Mother's Duty

2009-10-30T17:21:00.006+08:00

Today we celebrated Halloween at school. Brenna went as a hippie. She wore the same costume she wore in 4th grade - she loves it, it still fits and no one has seen it, so why not?!? They had a costume contest and she took 2nd place for the 6th grade. Woo-hoo! She got beat out by a boy dressed as Lady Gaga. It's tough to beat an 11 year old boy in a wig!

She excitedly told me about her day. Her English teacher gave candy to all the kids that dressed up. She said, "He gave us this really delicious candy with chocolate and caramel inside. Milk Way or something" I replied, "Milky Way!" "That's it," she said, "They're really good!"

It's little moments like these that remind me that although Brenna is a native English speaker, was born in the US, spends every summer in Wyoming, and holds a US passport, she's not your typical American pre-teen. She just doesn't have the same experiences and background knowledge as her American counterparts. I laughed at her discovery of the Milky Way and told her it was Oma's favorite chocolate bar.

Where did I go wrong? I am a total chocoholic. My daughter is 11 and just tried a Milky Way for the first time? Have I been depraving her? What other delicious chocolate treats have been neglected? Surely she's had a Snickers and Reeses, but what about Twix? Has she experienced the cookie crunch?!? Baby Ruth? Mr. Goodbar? Butterfinger? I have definitely found a teachable moment. My mission is clear. My daughter needs to experience her home culture. It's what any good mother would do!

Looks Like Vacation, But It's Just Home!

2009-10-25T15:25:00.000+08:00

To commiserate the end of our Fall break, we went out for breakfast at one of the local cafes. There are a bizillion to choose from, but we went to The Gourmet Shop for some yummy omelets. The nice thing about living here is it really feels like we're on vacation - nice weather, outdoor pools (Brenna and I played underwater charades in the pool yesterday!), cafes, massages - it's all good!

I had a tomato and onion omelet. Delicious! I didn't have the guts to try the Omellet Mixed Her Cheese. Not really sure what that's all about!!! Hmmm, maybe next time...or not!

Our Trip to Hoi An, Vietnam

2009-10-23T12:09:00.001+08:00

Yesterday we returned from the quaint town of Hoi An in central Vietnam. The old town is a World Heritage Site with streets of cafes and shops full of artwork and handicrafts. And tailors. Lots and lots of tailors! We definitely supported the local economy and bought our share of lacquerware, a quilted wall hanging, a t-shirt, refrigerator magnets and even a painting.

The cafes were delicious and cheap and the town just had a cool feel to it. Our favorite restaurant was Good Morning, Vietnam. They had excellent Italian food. Vietnamese food is delicious, but we can get it anytime we want. Getting good Italian food is not easy for us, so we ate there 3 times! Bring on the pasta, pizza and risotto!

We didn't need to have any clothes made, but the kids discovered that they could get shoes made. We're not talking patent leathers, we're talking whatever shoe is in fashion right now. Aidan was super excited about it all and had a tough time deciding what to have made. He finally chose a wicked pair of black and gray high-tops. Brenna designed a funky pair of slip-ons (like Vans) that are purple and green with peace signs embroidered on them! Aidan got his shoes less than 24 hours later, but they messed up Brenna's peace signs and actually made Mercedes-Benz signs instead! Waaah! They're going to deliver the shoes to Saigon within the next couple of days. We plan on returning to Hoi An during our winter break. I'm sure the kids will have a bunch of pictures of shoes to have made. The tailors also make jeans and whatever else you want, so I have a feeling that we'll hit a couple tailor shops as well!

When we first arrived, it downpoured for about 36 hours straight! We would wait for it to slow down and then run to the next shop. The water in the street was to our ankles at times. It was amazing how much water could fall from the sky! We still were able to walk around, but it wasn't very pleasant. We were much relieved when the weather changed on Monday and we hit the beach. (I didn't take too many pictures in the rain, but check out the one on the right.) The beach was nice, but the undertow was very strong. It was still a great day.

On Tuesday we booked a tour to My Son ruins with Hoi An Motorbike Adventures. Very fun! Mike drove a Russian Minsk motorbike with Aidan on the back and I drove a scooter with Brenna on the back. We drove down country roads and sometimes just paths, through villages and rice paddies. It was a fantastic way to see "real Vietnam". Waving kids ran to the side of the road, yelling, "Hello! Hello!" I'm sure they don't get many tourists back in those areas! The ruins were interesting and our ultimate destination, but the real thrill of the day was seeing another side of Vietnam.

On Wednesday we scootered and walked around the old town, played pool and ate at Good Morning Vietnam one last time. It was a fun trip, but it's always nice to get home, too.

So Why the Title?

2009-10-07T21:50:00.000+08:00

Unless you're writing about plumbing, "Mom, Can We Flush the Toilet Paper" is an odd name for a blog. So why did I name it that? Well, it reminds me of when my kids were little and just brings a smile to my face every time I see it! Although we're American, my family and I have lived overseas since the kids were 3 and 6 years old. (They are now 11 and 14.) When we lived in Venezuela, we couldn't flush the toilet paper because the plumbing there couldn't handle it. Whenever we'd fly somewhere, inevitably we'd have to go to the bathroom in the airport and my daughter would always ask, "Mom, can we flush the toilet paper here?" It always made me chuckle! It also made me realize how different my daughter's childhood is from my own. Things I took for granted, she has to learn. Things I didn't know existed, she has experienced.

The other question that always came up was "Do they speak English here?" That conversation always included, "You can't talk about people - they may actually understand what you're saying!" We didn't generally go around talking about people, but when a 5 year old sees a huge mole on the face of the girl working at the ice cream shop, she's going to say something! That incident had us stifling huge laughs after my daughter imitated Austin Powers, saying "Moley, moley, moley"!

So, "Mom, can we flush the toilet paper?" sums up our life of adapting to different countries and cultures and doing it as a family.

New Blog Look! New Blog!

2009-10-07T21:29:00.000+08:00

I was never truly enthused about my blog. I wasn't sure what to write about and I was certain that no one wanted to read it. Well, I'm still not sure who wants to read, if anyone at all, but I think I know what I want to write about. Stuff. Regular stuff. Everyday stuff. Family stuff. Travel stuff. School stuff. I'm not going to try to impress anyone, I'm just going to write it to document my thoughts and what happens in my life. So we'll see how it goes.

My Favorite Things From Our Trip to Saigon

2009-04-29T19:43:00.004+08:00

Not in any order, although the townhouse is probably my #1 favorite thing:

Our townhouse - fantastic layout and fun, convenient location (photo above)
Our new neighborhood - cafes, restaurants, smoothie stands, only a short walk to school
Our new director - super nice guy!
The other librarian that I'll be working with
Taking a cyclo ride in downtown Saigon (photo below)
Coconut smoothies at our school
Sunshine
Movie theaters
Pho 24

Visiting Vietnam

2009-04-23T21:15:00.002+08:00

Tomorrow night we leave for a trip to Saigon. We're taking a long weekend to check out housing and see the school and area. The weather will be warm and sunny...ok...sweltering HOT and sunny. I'm very happy about that because my hands are always ice cubes. Mike, on the other hand, will be sweating buckets. But he sweats buckets in an air conditioned room, so whatchya gonna do?

We're going to check out apartments and townhouses and hopefully sign for a place. We won't move in until August 1st, so I'm not sure if they'll want to hold it open for 3 months. At the very least we'll be able to tell the school what complex or area we like. I've heard it's a renter's market, so they may help our cause.

We want to mix pleasure with business, so we'll try to see some sights and have some fun. I'll take loads of pictures and will post some here.

I can't wait to see Saigon!

Old Friends, New Again

2009-04-01T18:31:00.003+08:00

The other day I got on Facebook and my best friend from elementary school, Mark Altamore, was asking me to be his friend! Holy cow! He was my friend when I started kindergarten and I cried when he moved when I was in 6th grade. Now I have the opportunity to get to know him again.

Within a few days I was friends with his brother and 3 of his sisters! Wall posts and e-mails were flying! Most of them started with "OMG!" or "Wow! What a blast from the past!" We immediately reminisced about playing kickball and stickball, Monopoly games that lasted several days, tag in the pool and roasting marshmallows over a round Weber grill! It's so great to be in touch with people who were a significant part of my childhood.

(I was going to post a picture of us when we were kids, holding wiffle ball bats, but I can't find it anymore. I'll keep searching.)

What I'm Looking Forward to in Vietnam

2009-03-17T19:40:00.004+08:00

1. Sun!
2. Warm weather
3. Greenery
4. Cheap street food
5. Good baguettes
6. Walking or biking to school
7. Cool things to see in the area
8. Maybe getting a moped
9. More sun!
10. More warmth!

It's Not Where I'm Going, it's What I'm Leaving Behind...

2009-03-15T18:53:00.003+08:00

I couldn't figure out why I was more emotional than usual. I could cry at a drop of a hat. I thought maybe I was hitting early menopause or going a tad crazy. About a week or so ago, I figured out that moving is hitting me full on in the face. I've moved many times before and I always leave feeling good, thanks for the memories, keep in touch!

But this move is much different.

I'm excited about moving to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam. I've heard terrific things about the country, the people, the food and the climate is exactly what I need. Being in a warm environment, living a more outdoors lifestyle is right up my alley. I'm ready for the change.

But it's what I'm leaving behind that's throwing me for a loop.

My friends here in Shanghai are funny, supportive, kind, crazy...the kind of people I want to spend time with. I've had so many hysterical times over the past 4 years. Just eating lunch in the Food Court can be a riot! I laugh everyday, many times a day! It's good medicine! It's difficult to accept that my time with them is limited.

Once I figured out why my emotions were on overdrive, I felt better about it all. Just identifying what was going on always helps me deal with things. I'm the type of person that has to talk things out and I finally knew what I had to talk about!

So my solution is to enjoy the next 4 months and leave with no regrets. I feel fortunate to have worked with such an amazing group of people. I know I'll be a mess when I leave in June, but that's just a testament to the friendships I've made here in Shanghai.

Chris Crutcher Can Visit Anytime!

2009-03-04T21:37:00.004+08:00

This is Visiting Author week at Shanghai American School. A lot of work and preparation go into arranging for an author to travel to China for almost 2 weeks and do 32 sessions with students and teachers. It's an exciting week!

This year the high school visiting author is powerhouse young adult author Chris Crutcher. When I was trying to get an author, the middle school librarian suggested Crutcher, saying she saw him at a library conference and he was terrific. My reply was, "As if! Why don't we just try to get JK Rowling!" I had read many Crutcher books and his titles are on a unbelievable number of "best of" lists. He's a huge name in teen literature. When his assitant responded positively to my e-mail, I was floored.

So a year of planning went by. Contracts were signed, airline tickets purchased, Chinese visa obtained, hotels arranged, schedule created. The moment of truth, aka Chris Crutcher, arrived in Shanghai at 3:00pm on Monday. This is when the rubber hit the road. Visiting author week is a fantastic experience for the students, but to be quite honest, it can be less than fantastic for the librarian! If the author is a poor presenter or high maintenance, the end of the week can't come soon enough! I was a little worried about Crutcher because of his elite status in the literary world. He could be a demanding egomaniac and it would be justified. I wouldn't enjoy it, but at least he had earned it.

Crutcher is the visiting author trifecta! He's an excellent writer, fantastic presenter and he couldn't be lower maintenance! So far he has done 7 student presentations and 1 staff presentation and they were all engaging, sincere, funny and thought provoking. He enjoys making a real connection with people and takes the time to have honest conversations. Today he read a short story by David, a senior at our school. Chris then took the time to talk with him in the hall and encouraged him to continue writing. I could tell David was shocked and proud. This afternoon I received an e-mail from a mother who told me that Crutcher spoke to her son's class yesterday and he gave rave reviews. He then checked out a bunch of Chris' books and was going crazy over them. This is what visiting authors week is all about. Mission accomplished!

On a personal level, Chris is the perfect match for this librarian! He's easy going and funny, someone I like to spend time with. That makes my week so much easier and enjoyable. I would pick him out of a crowd to be my friend. He's happy, goes with the flow and even played basketball with the staff after school today! After basketball we went to a local place for dinner with my 5th grade daughter, Brenna and all three of us had a great time. He writes for teens, but was totally at home eating cabbage and noodles with an elementary student. (She's an incredible elementary student, but that's another blog!)

Sometimes at the end of visiting authors week, I'm relieved to say goodbye. Not this year. I feel like I'll be saying goodbye to a friend.

Bad Writing

2009-02-19T20:51:00.013+08:00

My college friend Jenners has a terrific blog called Life With a Little One and More.... Right now she has a contest going called Bad Writing. Even though I'm a librarian, I wasn't a bookwork or writer as a kid. I shied away from history and English classes and much preferred math and science. I wanted a right answer, not my interpretation of some major world historical event or storyline of a classic piece of literature. How could my thoughts be anywhere near correct or even interesting? I was 16 years old and most of my intelligent brain cells were occupied with weekend plans and getting concert tickets. One time my sister and I waited more than 24 hours (yes, we slept on the sidewalk) to buy Springsteen tickets and all we walked away with was a shoe. Who waits in line for concert tickets and then goes home wearing one shoe? To add insult to injury, it wasn't even our size. See, I just got totally off track. I rest my case.

For the contest you have to write a really bad opening sentence for a fake book. Bad Writing is write up my alley! ha ha! The novel can be any genre. Hmmm. Here goes:

I sat at my computer, willing my brain to come up with an awful sentence, yet nothing came. --From: How I Lost a Writing Contest, But Gained Some Free Time

I sat down to the dinner table, not really hungry, but there was food in front of me, so I ate anyway. --From: Food: Take It, Never Leave It.

There are days when I think to myself, "Is this really my life? How did I get to this exact spot? Where were the major turning points?", but this morning I thought, "Plain or peanut?" --From: Life Truly is a Box of Chocolates

She gazed at her daughter, an image of herself at a younger age, stroked her long, chestnut hair and asked, "When was the last time you took a shower?" --From: Unhidden Thoughts

An owl swooped through the dark night and delivered a letter to a boy that lived under the stairs, but this book isn't about that boy. --From: Cousin Dudley and the Kidney Stone

In the beginning there was Bob and Bob begat Michael and Michael begat Aidan. --From: Biblical Beginnings, My Short Family History

Hey! This was a fun activity! I think I'm darn good at bad writing. I better go check to see what the grand prize is. I'm soooo gonna land that prize.

When Do You Just STOP?!?

2009-02-11T19:41:00.005+08:00

It seemed everywhere I turned the title The Life of Edgar Sawtelle was appearing. When I went to book blogs, Amazon, and magazines there it was. It's a New York Times Bestseller. It's an Oprah Book. I was dying to read it. Now I'm dying to just get it over with. I'm 400 pages in and it's just not working for me. Perhaps the hype killed my experience. Perhaps now is not the time for me to read it. Maybe I'd love it four months from now. I don't know why I don't like it, I just don't.

So my question is, when do you give up? I feel like I can't stop since I've invested so much time into it. On the other hand, I feel like I'm throwing good time after bad and time can be more precious than money. My rule of thumb is 50 pages. If I'm not hooked by page 50, I don't continue. If I stop earlier I don't feel like I've given the author a chance. What do you do when you're at page 400 and have almost 200 pages to go and a stack of other titles that you're anxious to read?

Well, my solution is to scan and browse. I never do this, but I'm stuck. If I were on page 120, maybe I could wave the white flag, but no way can I do it on page 400. So I'm zipping through the pages. Dog training - scan - naming puppies - skim - conversation betwen Edgar and his mother - read that section - more dogs - browse... I'm I getting the story? I'm sure I'm not, but I guess I'll find out at the end. The literature isn't enough to keep my attention. I thought I craved dialogue, but Life of Pi is one of my all-time favorite books and most of it took place when he was lost at sea.

So, I should crank out the next couple hundred pages soon and then can move on to another book. If the ending blows me away, maybe I'll read it properly at another time in my life. For now, I'll skim my way to the end. Not very satisfying, but it does the job.

**Update: I finished it this morning. I didn't realize that it was a retelling of Hamlet, until someone pointed it out to me. Duh! Now I'm on to New Moon for my YA Book Challenge.

The Internet Effect

2009-02-08T21:13:00.005+08:00

I just discovered WIRED Science and the most current article just happened to be Digital Overload is Frying our Brains. I just blogged about how my brain slowed down when I didn't have wireless at home and I've blogged about my "Adult Onset ADHD". I call it the Internet Effect and apparently I may be on to something. The whole concept scares me and I'm not sure what to do about it. Perhaps I need to concentrate on NOT multitasking. How do you do that? Maybe I need to cut back on my screen time.

I think I need to ask advice from my friend Ginny. She's an extremely talented artist and amazing person who values connecting with people and the creative process. We've had many conversations about technology's affect on society, both good and bad. She believes that every person has creativity, they just need to find it. She'll slow me down and get my creative juices flowing in no time.

Living in Shanghai

2009-02-08T09:54:00.004+08:00

The Best Things About Living in Shanghai:
1. My friends! :o) Gotta love my peeps!
2. Living across the hall from fantastic people with a cute baby!
3. Massages
4. The food
5. Amazing fireworks all year long!
6. Convenience to everything from my apartment
7. My library
8. DVD sellers on the corner
9. The Metro (subway, not warehouse store!)

Not So Great Things About Living in Shanghai:
1. Lack of nature
2. Overcast weather
3. Bus ride to work
4. Air Quality
5. Can't get out of the city easily

Technology Woes

2009-02-07T12:13:00.003+08:00

We've been without wireless for almost 2 months. I've tried to fix it with 9 other routers. No joke, 9! In the beginning not having wifi really bugged me, but then I got used to it. Without the lure of the Internet, I have more free time. I barely got online during the Chinese New Year vacation, but I cooked with Brenna a lot. It was really nice to just enjoy time with my daughter and the rest of the family. On the other hand, I missed all the birthday wishes sent to my friend Paul on Facebook and then totally forgot to go to his birthday party. Not good. Of course, had I written the party on the calendar in my kitchen, I would have remembered. I shouldn't need wifi to ensure that I attend parties!

I even watched movies. I made it through about 4 movies, which is unprecedented for me. Some of them were even really bad movies, but I stayed awake and focused. Not having wifi seems to slow down my brain to a less frenetic pace. I could focus on a movie without having to multi-task. The "Internet Effect" seems to be reversible for me. I like that!

I still don't have wifi up and running and I kind of know how to solve the problem. Shhh. Don't tell my family! I'm dragging my feet because I enjoy not having the computer compete for my time and attention. But maybe now that I've seen how else I can spend my time, I'll resist the computer. We'll see.

YA Book Challenge

2009-01-08T21:23:00.012+08:00

OK. I'm going to double dip. I just discovered the Young Adult Book Challenge. You have to read 12 YA books in a year. I can definitely do 12 and I'm going to count them in my 100 Book Challenge. This is a good way to encourage me to read teen lit. I really enjoy YA books, but I always have several adult novels I'm dying to read, so the YA books get pushed to the bottom. I look forward to mixing in some fun teen reads! I'll definitely be reading Chris Crutcher books, since he's our visiting author this year. I'll list the titles on this post.

Young Adult Book Challenge:

1. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
2. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
3. Whale Talk by Chris Crutcher
4. Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

5. Flight by Sherman Alexie

100 Book Challenge

2009-01-03T19:31:00.056+08:00

My friend Jenners told me about the 100 Book Challenge over at J. Kaye's Book Blog. I read about a book a week, so 100 books in a year sounds like a good challenge. Plus you can count children's books and I will be an elementary librarian in August, so I'm sure I can easily clear 100 books. Right now I'm a high school librarian, so I can't plow through 20 books in a week!

I will list the books I read here in this post. I read 4 and a half books on vacation, but 3 of them were before January 1st. Bummer! Oh, well. What can you do? Keep reading, that's what!

100 Book Challenge for 2009:

1. Skylight Confessions by Alice Hoffman
2. Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
3. You Shall Know Our Velocity by Dave Eggers
4. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
5. Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris
6. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski
7. Shredderman 1: Secret Identiy by Wnedelin van Draanen (children's novel)
8. The Story of Thomas Alva Edison by Margaret Davidson (children's biography)
9. Kate Vaiden by Reynolds Price
10. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
11. The Gathering by Anne Enright
12. In the Country of Men by Hisham Matar
13. Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant by Daniel Tammet
14. Whale Talk by Chris Crutcher
15. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
16. The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh

17. The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga

18. Flight by Sherman Alexie

19. Body Surfing by Anita Shreve
20. Sea Glass by Anita Shreve
21. Good Faith by Jane Smiley
22. Do NOT Open This Book by Joy Cowley (picture book)
23. Dog Breath by Dav Pilkey (picture book)
24. The Napping House by Audrey and Don Wood (picture book)
25. Piggies by Audrey and Don Wood (picture book)
26. Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
27. I Took My Frog To The Library by Eric Kimmel (picture book)
28. My Little Car by Gary Soto (picture book)
29. The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller
30. Goldilocks retold by Janet Hillman (picture book)
31. Goldie and the Bears by Diane Stanley (picture book)
32. Mud Walk by Joy Cowley (picture book)
33. Duck's Key: Where Can it Be? by Jez Alborough (picture book)
34. Varjak Paw by SF Said (children's novel)
35. Moonbear's Pet by Frank Asch (picture book)
36. Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin (picture book)
37. Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
38. The Riders by Tim Winton
39. Magyk by Angie Sage (children's novel)
40. Diary of a Spider by Doreen Cronin (picture book)
41. Growing Frogs by Vivian French (picture book)
42. Stick by Steve Breen (picture book)
43. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamilio (children's novel)
44. Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
45. Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho
46. Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen
47. Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah
48. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
49. Jack Adrift by Jack Gantos (children's novel)
50. Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathman (picture book)
51. No More Cookies! by Paeony Lewis (picture book)
52. More Spaghetti, I Say! by Rita Gelman (picture book)
53. Mount Count by Ellen Stohl Walsh (picture book)
54. Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman (picture book)
55. The Perfect Pumpkin Pie by Denys Cazet (picture book)
56. Froggy's Halloween by Jonathan London (picture book)
57. Mouse's First Halloween by Lauren Thompson (picture book)
58. Los Gatos Black on Halloween by Marisa Montes (picture book)
59. Canoe Days by Gary Paulsen (picture book)
60. Where the Big Fish Are by Jonathan London (picture book)
61. Froggy Plays Soccer by Jonathan London (picture book)
62. Baby Radar by Naomi Nye (picture book)
63. The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkin by Barbara Kerley (picture book)
64. Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina (picture book)
65. Nine Ducks Nine by Sarah Hayes (picture book)
66. Mouse Count by Ellen Stoll Walsh (picture book)
67. Anno's Counting Book by Anno (picture book)
68. A Small, Tall Tale From the Far, Far North by Peter Sis (picture book)
69. Pumply, Dumply Pumpkin by Mary Serfozo (picture book)
70. It's Pumpkin Time! by Zoe Hall (picture book)
71. Bumpy Little Pumpkin by Margery Cuyler (picture book)
72. The Water Hole by Graeme Base (picture book)
73. The Librarian Who Measured the Earth by Kathryn Lasky (picture book)
74. As the Crow Flies: A First Book of Maps by Gail Harman (picture book)
75. White Water by Jonathan London (picture book)
76. Ruth Law Thrills a Nation by Don Brown (picture book)
77. One Duck Stuck by Phyllis Root (picture book)
78. Duckie's Ducklings by Frances Barry (picture book)
79. Cha-Cha Chimps by Julia Durango (picture book)
80. Round Trip by Anna Jonas (picture book)
81. What the Sun Saw/What the Moon Saw by Nancy Tafuri (picture book)
82. My Year of Meats by Ruth L. Ozeki
83. No Talking by Andrew Clements (children's novel)
84. Midnight on the Farm by Stephen Eaton Hume (picture book)
85. Ten Little Sleepyheads by Elizabeth Provost (picture book)
86. Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen (children's novel)
87. Love That Dog by Sharon Creech (children's novel)
88. Alistair and the Alien Invasion by Marilyn Sadler (picture book)
89. Lullabyhullaballo by Mick Inkpen (picture book)
90. How Do Dinosaurs Eat? by Jane Yolen (picture book)
91. Dinosaurs, Dinosaurs by Byron Barton (picture book)
92. Sleep Tight, Little Bear by Martin Waddell (picture book)
93. Good Night, Baby Bear by Frank Asch (picture book)
94. A Dozen Dizzy Dinosaurs by Calvin Irons (picture book)
95. The Piggy in the Puddle by Charlotte Pomerantz (picture book)
96. Drumheller Dinosaur Dance by Robert Heidbreder (picture book)
97. 100 Days of School by Trudy Harris (picture book)
98. The Tale of Pale Male: a True Story by Jeanette Winter (picture book)
99. Caillou Learns to Skate by Marion Johnson (picture book)
100. Julie & Julia by Julie Powell woo-hoo! My 100th book of 2009!!! November 30th.
101. The Children Who Smelled a Rat by Allan Ahlberg (children's novel)
102. The Boy Who Saved Cleveland by Andrew Clements (children's novel)
103. Oh! by Kevin Henkes (picture book)
104. In the Snow by Sharon Phillips Denslow (picture book)
105. Froggy Gets Dressed by Jonathan London (picture book)
106. Duck at the Door by Jackie Urbanovic (picture book)
107. The Stinky Cheese Many and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszka (picture book)
108. Robert's Snowflakes by Grace Lin (picture book)
109. Geraldine's Big Snow by Holly Keller (picture book)
110. Froggy's Best Christmas by Jonathan London (picture book)
111. When Cows Come Home for Christmas by Dori Chaconas (picture book)
112. The Snow Child by Harriet Ziefert (picture book)
113. Little Children by Tom Perrota
114. The Twelve Days of Christmas Dogs by Carolyn Conahan (picture book)
115. The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields

Library Thing with Grade 7

2008-12-16T19:05:00.003+08:00

If you've read any of my blog, you probably know that I'm crazy about Library Thing. Yesterday I finally had a chance to show it to some classes. I taught 2 sections of 7th grade Humanities classes how to create their library and put Library Thing widgets on their blogs.

The beauty of Library Thing is that it's sooooo easy. To register, you just create a username and password. You don't have to give an e-mail address or any other information. It's super simple. I showed the kids my library and the Library Thing widget on this blog. They quickly joined Library Thing and added books to their library.

My favorite part of the whole process was listening to the kids talk about reading. One boy yelled out that Tunnels by Roderick Gordon is the best book ever written! Everyone was remembering books they've read and giving impromptu reviews. It was fun to witness an enthusiastic discussion about reading that just happened on its own. If we had tried to orchestrate this type of conversation it probably would have been stilted and lackluster. Somehow the sight of the book covers spurred on a natural discussion about literature.

Next the kids browsed the different styles of widgets and added one to their blog. They looked really good! Lastly, we created a Group so they could see what the others in their class were reading. The classes can have online discussions about reading and literature.

The Humanities teacher and I really enjoyed the experience. It seemed like the kids did, too. It was a simple way of combining literature and technology and to promote and celebrate reading.

Is Technology Rewiring my Brain?

2008-12-07T16:59:00.005+08:00

I used to be able to watch a movie without falling asleep. Not anymore! Just sitting and watching a movie or TV zonks me out within 15 minutes. In fact, I'm blogging right now while watching Eagle Eye. I decided to watch it in the afternoon to hopefully make it through the movie. I thought I could do it. I wasn't tired when the movie started, but about 10 minutes in, I started nodding off. Brenna knows the solution - give me a laptop so I'm doing something interactive. It works every time. Right now I'm surfing the net, chatting with my sister in California on Facebook and writing this post while watching the end of the movie. Mission accomplished!

So why is this happening? I have a difficult time focusing on one task. I'd much rather multitask. It kind of bothers me that I need more stimulus in order to focus. It doesn't make sense, but it's my reality. I don't remember being like this when I was younger, but maybe I was. My husband is less of a techie and he prefers to focus on one thing at a time. He has a difficult time reading with the TV on or any other distractions. Is there a relationship between

being a techie and having to multitask?

I've read a little about digital natives and how kids' brains are different now because of technology. I'm 42. Has technology rewired my brain? Is this a good thing? Today I was talking to Amanda DeCardy and she has the same experience. She needs more stimulus to focus on one thing, otherwise her brain wanders. I feel your pain, sister! However, we can both read and get totally absorbed. Why? We think it's because when you read, you get immersed in the characters, you are taken to another location and you're also creating a movie of the book in your mind. Reading is more interactive for us.

Recently I've wanted to do a little experiment. I'd like to test how much I grasp in a meeting where I can't multitask. No doodling or messing around on a laptop. Then test how much I grasp when I can multitask. I feel like I remember more when I have more going on, but how do I know what I'm missing?!?

Does anyone else have similar experiences? A couple years ago I jokingly started calling it Adult Onset ADHD, but maybe it's more that. Maybe technology is changing how I process. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Maybe it's neither. Maybe it just is what it is.

Mother/Daughter Views on Blogging

2008-12-05T18:59:00.005+08:00

I just helped Brenna put links to Youtube videos on her blog. (Please visit her blog and leave a comment! You'll totally make her day!) She wrote a brief post about animal abuse as part of her "free choice" homework assignment. So instead of her teacher being her only audience, she sent it out to the world. An authentic, motivating experience for her. What a big difference from when I was in 5th grade! I would have turned in a couple of paragraphs to my teacher who would have given it back to me with the usual grammar and spelling corrections. Authentic? No. Motivating? The "free choice" aspect would have been a little motivating, but definitely not exciting.

I asked Brenna what she liked about blogging:

Brenna: "I'm always excited when I get comments from people I don't know, people around the world. And also, when I go to someone else's blog, someone out of the school, then they comment back and that's cool. I like blogs because they're like your own website and when I get comments that means people are coming to my blog and reading it. You don't know the audience, but their comments are usually positive. It's cool seeing other blogs and what they write about. Usually when you go to someone's blog you get to know their personality. You can also get your ideas down and people can come to your blog and tell you they like your ideas and then help you."

And people from around the world ARE coming to Brenna's blog! I'm not sure why strangers are interested in what my 10 year has to say, but they are! She's had visitors from China, the US, Canada, Hong Kong and the Netherlands. Authentic? You bet! Motivating? Absolutely!

Although I've been a techie for a long time, I didn't embrace blogging at first. Jeff Utecht, now a tech integrationist at International School of Bangkok, introduced blogs to our school 3 years ago. Kids wrote about trivial things, like playing four square at recess. I didn't see the value. Yes, they were writing to the world, but no one was commenting and do you really have to tell the world when you win at foursquare?

Now, 3 years later, teachers have discovered how to use blogs as an effective educational tool. Both of my kids have blogs that are used in almost all their classes. They even have posts written in Chinese! The only thing I can read of Brenna's Chinese post are the words Bobby and Benny. I have no clue what Bobby and Benny did, but 20% of the world's population can read her post!

Blogging has changed my children's education for the better. It's exciting to think what's next! I predict it's going to be social networks. Google Docs (social desktop publishing) is already happening and I think teachers will soon grasp the concept of using nings. I'm definitely not a technology visionary, but I'm going to watch those in the forefront to see how they use the latest technologies, especially nings. I need to remember how blogs evolved to be a very effective educational tool in a relatively short time.

If I see a Four Square Ning, I know we're on the right track!

Griffin Evolve Speakers are Revolutionary!

2008-11-24T19:39:00.004+08:00

My iPod speakers rock! If you haven't seen the Griffin Evolve speakers, check them out. No, the cube speakers don't float in the air, like you see in the picture! You put your iPod in the dock and then you can pick up and move the speakers around the room - they're wireless! It says you can have them 150 feel away. The speakers have an internal battery that charge while they're on the base.

I put them to the ultimate test on Saturday night. My friend had a girls' night party which ended with crazy dancing. Her apartment isn't huge, but my 2 speakers rocked the house! I had them at about 3/4 volume, which was plenty loud and the quality of the sound was crisp.

I had one speaker on top of the cabinet directly above the dock, about 6 feet high. The other was on a low table that was maybe 2 feet high. I worried that the speaker on the low table would cut out because there were a lot of people between it and the base. When I placed the speaker it cut out a couple times for a second or two. During the dance bonanza I went over to the speaker to check on it and it was always playing. If it did cut out, I didn't know about it and I don't think anyone noticed. My theory is that if it does cut out, it only happens for a very brief time and then finds a signal. In any case, they worked great.

If you're in the market for iPod speakers, give the Griffin Evolve a listen. We got ours at Target in the US this summer. The sound, convenience and size make it a fantastic buy.

Flipping Over Flips!

2008-11-21T19:35:00.011+08:00

Big news! Flip has now come out with the Flip MinoHD! Woo-hoo! It weighs 3.3 ounces and holds 60 minutes of HD video on the internal hard drive. The original Flip is about the size of a cell phone and this once is thinner and lighter. Nice!

If you work in a school that doesn't have any Flip video cameras, beg, borrow (but don't steal!) to get one. Creating videos used to require a higher level of hardware, software and tech skills. Sure you might be able to check out a video camera from the library, but does your computer have a firewire port? Do you know how to capture the video? Flip video cameras take the hassle out of all that, so you can focus on the real reason you're using it in the first place - to use video as a learning tool.

I was talking with Brenna's 5th grade teacher, Scott Hossack. They were doing a reader's workshop and the class was divided into 3 groups. He worked with one group and the other groups used Flips to record their sessions. He is going to watch the tapes and can then meet with those groups and give feedback. What a great use of technology! He was able to focus on the group he was working with, knowing that he wasn't missing the other sessions.

Flips are so easy, it's crazy. I've shown even the most techphobic teachers how to use these babies and he intimidation factor is practically at zero. Power on - press record - zoom in or out - press record to stop. That's easy, but really getting the video onto the computer is generally where it all falls apart. That's where the Flip shines. A cool little USB plug flips out the side and you just plug it in your computer and drag the file to your computer. Done.

How Do They Compare?

Quality

I recorded the 4th adn 5th grade production of Romeo & Juliet on a Flip and on a Sony Handycam (traditional miniDV digital video camera). I thought the quality of the Flip video would pale in comparison, but it was the same. I couldn't tell which video came f

rom which camera.

Speed

I dumped the 40 minute production of R&J on my computer in about 3 minutes with the Flip camera. I dumped the 40 minute production of R&J on my computer in at least 40 minutes with the Sony Handycam. Yes, it captures at real time. Also, I accidentally forgot to uncheck a box and the video was broken into 3 minute segments. Not what I wanted.

Zoom

You do sacrifice on zoom, though. The Flip only goes 3x optical, where traditional cameras go higher. I'm not sure how much they'll be able to improve in that area because you need a large lens to have a better optical zoom.

Size

3.3 ounces? Size of a small cell phone? Hello! You could pop this in your pocket and take it with you everywhere. Also, I recommend spending another 22 bucks on a Gorillapod tripod. You can put it on a table top or bend it around a street sign or, apparently, a surf board!

I hope Santa puts one of these under the tree for my family this year!

Library Thing Obsession

2008-11-19T18:37:00.006+08:00

I've already blogged about Library Thing, but that was when I first discovered it. Now it's become somewhat of an obsession. My library is up to 108 books, but I know I'm missing quite a few. Dang! I wish I had kept that book diary like I always said I would!

Today out of the blue I remembered a title that I read 3 or 4 years ago. I was so excited to get home and add it to my library. It's such a simple concept, but I'm hooked! I've also started looking at libraries of other people that have read some of the same books. While browsing their libraries I've found titles I've already read and can add to my library. I also see lots of great books that I want to read. I really need to get my hands on The Magician's Assistant and The Alchemist.

There's something about seeing all those covers. When you read a book, you make connections with the characters and even the author. You experience other places and situations. Seeing the cover brings it all back. A friend described it well when she said, "It's like seeing old friends!"

Hey! I just thought of another title! That makes 109!

Stupid Box Jellyfish!

2008-11-17T21:06:00.004+08:00

So I was really excited for our trip to Phuket next month - beautiful beaches, sunny weather, Thai food - paradise! I was also really excited to discover an e-mail from my sister-in-law in my Facebook Inbox. Hey! A message from Lisa! Rock on!

Then it all changed...

Apparently there's an animal called a Box Jellyfish. Lisa told me that the intriguing looking boxies (see photo - gorgeous, eh?) are deadly and on the move. Well, the stinking boxies are already vacationing in Phuket. I guess they heard about the beautiful beaches, warm weather and Thai food, too. Who can resist green curry chicken? The deadly, gooey animals are on the east coast of Phuket and we'll be staying on the west coast. Do I want to spend my vacation worrying about a deadly swim? No thanks! I better get a plan B in case the boxies don't head back home to Australia or where ever else they normally hang out. Great. The one year I plan out our winter vacation early, it totally backfires.

Stupid Box Jellyfish.

Sexy Technology

2008-11-09T22:08:00.007+08:00

For some people it's blogs and wikis, Twitter and Thwirl. Sure I like all those things, but I have to admit sexy technology for me is Adobe Creative Suite! I'm all about layout and typography! Bring on kerning, tracking and leading, transparent color boxes and multiple layers. Give me free transform and the quick select tool any day!

Adobe Creative Suite 4 is out and I'm dying to check it out, but I can't afford it. I just signed up to be notified of when the trial versions are out. I'm sure it'll take me forever to download the trials with my slow Chinese Internet. Oh well. It's worth the wait.

Election Jitters

2008-11-04T18:58:00.005+08:00

I've never been so nervous about an election before. I've also never been so disappointed and disgusted with an American President before. Thinking back to the 2000 election, where Gore got the popular vote, but lost the election, I can't help but think how that had a major impact on America and the world. The war, the economy, the divisions in the country...what would everything be like had Gore taken the ticket? I imagine it would be better than it is now, although unfortunately that's not saying much.

Well, it's 7:30pm here, which makes it 6:30am in New York. In the next 14 hours I'll find out our future. I hope it's a good one for me, my family, America and the world. I hope it's change we can believe in.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Good!

2008-11-03T20:21:00.004+08:00

So I figured out I'm a Jonathan Safran Foer fan. I read Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close in a few days, which is my "vacation reading" speed, but I'm not on vacation! Was it better than Everything is Illuminated? I haven't decided yet. I liked some aspects of it more because it takes place in New York City and I grew up in New Jersey so I was comfortably familiar with the setting and some of the personalities.

Foer wrote another original novel with an interesting plot and a cast of unique characters. Books are all about the characters for me and Foer creates people that I want to watch, listen to and learn more about. I find them very intriguing and enjoy learning about their lives.

This afternoon I started The Rug Merchant by Meg Mullins. It must be good because all I want to do is finish this post and read!

Everything is Illuminated

2008-10-26T21:21:00.006+08:00

I just finished Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer. Wow. Truly wow. I haven't read such an orignal, interesting, intriguing, thought-provoking book in a very, very long time. It's not the type of book that flows easily, in fact at times during shot-gun dialogue where the main character was translating between English and Ukrainian, I was confused as to whom was actually speaking. The time period also changes causing me to make a mental shift. However, it's one of the few books that I will eventually read for a second time. This is the type of writing that will make other books seem ordinary and droll.

Part of the book is written by Alex, a Ukrainian teenager, whose English is unconventional and I'm sure he always writes with a thesaurus nearby! Passages made me laugh out loud! It was fun to figure what words he really should have been using. "It was rigid to converse." Huh? Oh! "It was hard to talk about it,"!!! He is also a funny, compassionate character, bragging about his nonexistent sex life and showing such pride in his younger brother, Little Igor.

But the book isn't just a comedy, it weaves in family history, love stories, heart-wrenching decisions and Nazi invasions. At times it got so intense, I had to put it down and take a little break.

The thing that really got me about the book was how raw and original it was. It was like listening to a very early Springsteen song - passion and energy pouring out in his voice, lyrics, his person. Foer was only 24 when he wrote Everything is Illuminated. Raw talent full of passion. It's amazing that someone that young can write like that, but maybe only someone that young can write like that. Springsteen is much more refined now. He's still passionate and full of energy, but it's different. Experience and maturity has changed his style.

I haven't read Jonathan Safran Foer's latest book, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. I'm curious to see what affect experience and maturity has had on his writing. I hope time and experience haven't polished his edges and muted his imagination.

Korean Pride!

2008-10-24T21:06:00.005+08:00

Today was UN day at school. My 10 year old daughter Brenna was really excited about dressing up in her American garb. She also wanted to wear something Korean, but we didn't have much - a We Are Reds bandana was about it. On Wednesday a Korean mom and friend, In Young, came into the library. I asked if she had anything Korean that Brenna could borrow for UN Day. I was thinking maybe a T-shirt or Korean flag earrings or something.

This morning she brought in the most beautiful, traditional Korean dress and GAVE it to me for Brenna. I was stunned! She had it custom made for her daughter, but it doesn't fit her anymore. In Young picked out all the fabrics and she still remembers her daughter getting measured for the special dress. The dress was obviously very special to In Young and I was honored to be the recipient of such a special present.

Brenna is very proud of being Korean. She loves Korean food, even though it doesn't contain bacon!!! When I showed her the dress her eyes lit up. She couldn't believe it was for her. She opened the box on the bus ride home to get another peek. She showed it to friends on the cramped elevator. She tried it on and proudly looked in the mirror. She happily smiled for pictures. She tried it on again when her Korean father got home and walked across the hall to show the neighbors.

The dress is much too big for Bren right now, but both she and the dress are gorgeous. How fantastic that she has such pride in her heritage and how generous of In Young to give her such a special present.

Facebook Spreads Like Fire

2008-10-21T21:15:00.004+08:00

A friend of mine finally set up a Facebook account. She not a real techie and was one of the last hold-outs from my group of friends. She joined at 6:29 and already has 11 friends. Her list of friends includes family and friends in Canada, along with local friends here in Shanghai. In a matter of about 2 hours, she connected with people on 2 continents - writing posts on walls, chatting, adding friends.

I bet she'll double or triple her friends in the next couple days. I'm sure she'll see loads photos of her nieces and nephews in Canada, her friend's wedding this summer, another friend's baby in Colorado, photos of a trip to Europe...the list will be endless. I wonder how many chats she'll have in the next week?

I didn't join Facebook right away because I was just too busy to add one more "thing", one more obligation to my life. I heard people at work talking about poking people or getting slapped with a fish and that didn't interest me at all. Actually, it still doesn't! I rarely do those gimicky apps on FB. I don't play super hero games and send people digital plants. I'm actually a Facebook dud, in that regard. (Although I did send my husband a Slurpee gift since we used to go on Slurpee dates when we were poor college students!)

However, I'm a Facebook diehard now. For me, Facebook means connections. I login and quickly know what people are up to, just by looking at their status. I can view pix and comment on them quickly and easily. I recently became Facebook friends with a friend of mine from high school. We both graduated from The American School of the Hague. She's Australian and we hadn't been in touch in over 20 years. I just looked at her photos from her trip to Phuket where she put a snake around her neck! Now that I have time for!

(Hey, she just got another friend! That's 12 and counting. Not too shabby for a tech novice!)

Tweet me!

2008-10-09T20:28:00.005+08:00

I recently got a Twitter account. Then, of course, I had to install Thwirl so I could get tweets all day long. I've entered the world of twittering, twirling, tweets. My mother would be so proud! She'd be totally confused, but proud nonetheless!

I started following people with similar interests - mostly librarians and tech people. I follow colleagues and friends, too. I love getting tweets from my peeps! People started following me. Most I know, some I don't. Twitter makes it really easy to network, in an almost creepy kind of way!

My tweets pop up with a gentle "bing" sound, alerting me that someone has something really important to say. Something they have to share with all their followers. If they've written it and sent it out, it must be worth my time. "Just had a cup of coffee. Needed the jolt." Hmmm. Not what I expected.

Hence, I have a love-hate relationship with Twitter. I have to sift through a lot of useless messages to get a golden tweet that actually has good information. But they're there, if you're willing to sift through a little digital chit-chat.

I joined Diigo because of tweets. I watched a video about school reform and checked out a virtual library when people I followed sent informative tweets. Twitter was invaluable during the Learning 2.0 conference. When someone would create an "unconference", they would send a quick message with the details. "Librarians unconference at 11:30. Meet in front of the MS building." Twitter is the perfect tool for this situation. Excellent use of technology.

The golden tweets keep me coming back for more. I guess I'll keep sifting out the coffee talk!

Single Mom and Cell Phones

2008-10-06T18:44:00.006+08:00

Well, Mike went to Chengdu on a school "China Alive" trip. He'll be home on Friday evening. So I'm a single mom for the week. Not as fun as it sounds! The morning dance of getting everyone ready for school is different without a dance partner. But modern technology keeps everyone in touch. I texted him this morning to grumble when the school bus didn't show up and he texted me before he went for a spicy dinner. I'm sure he'll text "good nights" and "I love you's" to me and the kids before the day is done. How nice to be able to stay connected so quickly and easily while we're far apart. :o)

Library Thing!

2008-10-05T20:53:00.004+08:00

I was reading TLC = Tech + Library + Classroom where I learned about Library Thing. What a cool sight! You can add books you're reading and have already read and they show up with the cover of the book. You can get recommendations and reviews for similar books or connect with other readers with similar taste. I'm obsessed with adding every book I've ever read! My library continues to grow and grow. I'm not sure I'll use the chat feature, but I'm already reading reviews and recommendations for book that I want to read. Great site! Thanks, Tara!

How Life Can Turn Upside Down in No Time At All

2008-10-05T14:01:00.003+08:00

Jolly

Sometimes life shows you who's in charge and, no surprise, it's not me. I often discover this truth when things don't go my way or turn out the way I anticipated. Life is unfair. I've heard that since I was a little girl. My parents weren't trying to be mean, they were just stating facts. Most of the time, the unfairness is annoying, but tolerable. Last week "unfair" took on a whole new meaning.

Jolly was my library TA for 3 years. She was fun, positive, intelligent, hard working, kind, helpful - the list of positive adjectives can just go on and on. She smiled and laughed more than anyone I know! She was fantastic to be around. We never had a disagreement or even an uncomfortable moment. If we had a problem, we brain stormed solutions and picked the best one. Problem solved.

Jolly passed away 2 weeks ago, very unexpectedly. It doesn't seem like it's been 2 weeks already. Just by coincidence, I've been out of the library for much of the 2 weeks. I had Critical Friends Group training and then we were on vacation. Being out of the library and keeping my mind on something else has helped me through. Tomorrow I'm back at work, in the library, without Jolly. It'll be a tough day. Grieving isn't a fun process. I hope that time really does heal.

Blog Dilemma

2008-10-05T13:32:00.001+08:00

I can't figure out if I should be creating a personal blog - talking about my life, my family, what's important to me - or should I stick with professional topics and talk about books and technology. Who's really going to read this? Will I have an "audience" that anxiously waits for my every post? Probably not. I should assume I'm writing for myself, as a form of express and cheap therapy!

If I'm writing for myself, I don't want to box myself in, so I'll make it a personal blog. I can write about books and technology in a personal blog, but I can also write about the funny things my kids do or what's happening in my life. There! My first blog decision has been made. I feel better already!

I can send the links to my family and friends and see if anyone has the time to see what I have to say. Do I have much to say? I guess I'll find out!