::: THIS HUMBLES ME AND WATERS ME DOWN...EVERY SINGLE TIME I HEAR IT :::

I came across a service called 'truthcasting' and signed up to watch my church from Hong Kong.

This link is what they sent me when I was having trouble accessing their MAC OSX player. They are fixing it. Yay.

Click on Irving Bible Church, then on Sunday Sermons, then choose When Being Right Is Wrong. This might be the best message I have ever heard...stress the 'I' part there folks. I still haven't recovered from it. It has shaped me.

Check out truthcasting when you get a chance...basically it is a collection of church video podcasts but not on iTunes.

It would be better if they just loaded it up to iTunes as a video podcast though. Then you could take it with you if you wanted.

::: DANGIT :::

Bring on the asses.

Let me tell you, this is the second time I have been overseas during an election season and the liars, I mean candidates, are already making asses of themselves internationally. And that is in no way a shot at the Democrats or their choice of a mascot. The United States of America is an equal-opportunity ass-making-of-yourself nation, as we have seen over the last few years, and I love it.

But, could you just duke it out sometimes and save us the lies and terrible news reporting? I mean seriously...I need a nap already.

You think it's bad being there for it? You should see it from afar! Where else do we give people a bunch of money to go out there and have a lie-off, pay for them to make fools of themselves in a playground he-said, she-said, and then give them control over the most powerful economy and military in the world?

Only in America. Land of the Free





to make an ass out of yourself, and subsequently our nation.

::: IT'S COLD :::

It was as warm as 69 today.

But inside, it feels like about 50. IT'S COLD ALL THE TIME. It is always warmer outside than in our office, and in our home. For some reason, the windows are always open in our office too. MAKES NO LOGICAL SENSE TO ME!

Nose = cold
Toes = cold
Hands= cold

I am = outta here for the day!

PEACE...

::: SCOTTIE CRISSEY, YOU ARE TODAY'S BEST PHOTOGRAPHER :::

That would be Cheryl and I walking away from the DFW International Arrivals Terminal after my arrival. And...hand in hand...all is right in the world!





* The award of "Today's Best Photographer" expires at midnight due to the overwhelming number of great photographer's in the world. Gotta share. All entries are chosen by secret ballot, and are audited by the accounting firm of Coopers & Lybrand. No animals were harmed in the taking nor, the editing of this photograph.

::: SOMETHING I SAW TODAY :::

No comment. All I am saying is that I saw this today. That's all. Nothing else.

























pretty sure I know a few people that should get on that bus! CRAP! I DID IT. I DID'NT MEAN TO. UGH! I TRIED SO HARD!

::: FROM THE TOP ROPES IN HK :::

An entry showing what happens when a foreigner does not blend well with the non-formal, and at times illogical ways of foot-trafficking in Hong Kong. And I don't mean the buying and selling of feet.

Please read, have a good laugh at the cartoons, not at Mr. Leung's demise.

If you are going to drive on the left...wouldn't it make sense just to walk on the left as well?

Logic would say so. But again, logic hasn't quite made it over the Pacific just quite yet.

::: A PSEUDO-ENTRY :::

For some reason, these three dorks came to Hong Kong to see if my story was good enough to tell anyone. Here are a few pictures from one of their blogs that they took while visiting!

*** These three dorks are really cool guys!

::: FOR ALL THE GIRLS I LOVE :::

Well, part of living overseas is that you put your family and loved ones in the trust of God because there isn't anything you can do from 10,000 miles away. That thought hit me one night while in bed living in Brasil. And, it led to me trusting God in a whole new way...pretty much changed my life.

So, to all the girls I love who are afraid of your cell phone starting a fire at a gas station, or think that leaving the engine on while pumping gas will blow you up...I submit the following video for your watching.




NOTICE:

:: If you clicked the video link, I did not name the video. That would be get me into trouble with my sister, my girlfriend and depending on the month, my mother.

:: The fire didn't start until AFTER the pumping began, thus giving time for just enough fumes to build up near the handle.

:: The girl was wearing a sweater...likely had cloth seats in the Jeep. Recipe for static electricity to build up with each move she makes.

:: Notice she never touched the door or any other metal surface after she got back out of the Jeep to stop the pumping. Rendering her 'charged' when she went near the pump handle, and thus the fumes.

:: If she did you would have seen her jump just like you do when you touch a door handle when getting out in the first place getting that nice little jolt that usually happens most when you wear a sweater in colder weather.

:: No jump means that she is fully charged. Fully Charged + Fumes= Messy pants.

:: Never take the handle out while it is on fire. True, it seems to work in this instance. Hit the emergency shut off button on the pump (front or side) at the sign of flames...then run.

:: Change shorts.


And now, barring any negligence on the part of the girls I love...I should be able to sleep at night not wondering if I will be attending the crispy funeral of one of them and feeling tremendously guilty for not sharing this public service announcement. It's good to be Italian.

::: THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS :::

Hong Kong is very cool.

And...three of the five of my favorite things that...if someday...I was forced to own would put a huge smile on my face, are here in Hong Kong also.

So, here are..."a few of my favorite things"...as inspired by one bad looking mini I saw on the way to school today.

AS if we needed another song lyric,

" If I were a rich man...

























































And...as if that wasn't enough...here is what I learned today...call it a blending of three of my interests...Italians, Airplanes, and Vespas.

::: NOTHING TO REPORT, EXCEPT BREAD POISONING :::

Well, it's been almost a week and a half since returning back from the Christmas holiday.

I was walking from the minibus to the MTR station on my way to work and as I thought about how long it had been since my last real posting, I thought, nothing seems too out of the ordinary here anymore. Nothing to report really. I get up in the morning and I go through my routine. I see the same people, do the same things and expect the same things...

Then, I read the paper.

This article was in the South China Morning Post a few days ago. I read it while eating a Krispy Kreme and enjoying a cup of coffee as a mini-treat for not running Cheryl off these past 6 months. Yay for me.

150 years ago in Hong Kong, the colonial British were just really setting into Hong Kong and were on the verge of losing her to the enemy who was encroaching on all sides. During this time the people of Hong Kong ate very little bread and the need for a bakery was purely for the Colonials. Well, if you do not like Colonials, that would be a great way to get rid of them. And thus, someone tried. The largest and most famous bakery provided just about all of the breads to the Westerners and was owned by a locally-famous, um, local.

Poison was added to the dough and the bread was baked as normal. Unsuspecting Colonials went about their days picking up their breads and taking them home for dining throughout the day. But, the taste was not as invisible as the smell was and as soon as many took it into their mouths, they spit it out, thus rendering the poisons not fatal. Many did fall ill though and even the Governor's wife fell ill. Justice was pursued and arrests were made. Trials were had and the baker was called before the bench. In the end the poisoning was the end of this man's career in Hong Kong, and there was not enough evidence that he had knowledge of such a scheme. Turns out that two of his employees skipped town right after their shifts. But, even still the baker was run out of town. He did manage to rebuild his reputation outside of Hong Kong and regain his businesses albeit not in his hometown.

The Governor's wife never did fully recover and would be dead within and year and a half.

This place is fascinating to me!

::: UM, DOES IT REALLY SAY THIS :::

Ok. This has nothing to do with Asia either, but as a Christ follower, headlines dealing with the Church catch my eye. This one catches my flak as well. Are you kidding me?

Does it really say this?

From the New York Times:

A Church’s Challenge: Holding On to Its Young

I believe that has been the major problem of a certain type of church for the last 100 years or so!

I digress.

::: STILL STANDING :::

Well, I am still here. My apologies to the faithful who have asked where I have been. Between the sleeping, and the visa issues, I am wiped out! But the good news is the energy is coming back and we should have a real deal post tomorrow! Thanks for sticking in there with me!

By the way, I will update some Christmas stories on another blog being that it has nothing to do with Asia. Much love.

The Mold.

::: BACK IN THE SADDLE :::

So...at 2am, I rolled into my house. After one destroyed piece of luggage made it and one other is still in Seoul, Korea...I was finally home for some rest. An extra hour and a half chasing visa issues and luggage reports put me in pretty late.

I left Dallas at 1pm Saturday and arrived into Hong Kong at 8.45am the next day Dallas time. It was a beating. Dallas to Seoul was a long 14hr45 minute flight...so long that my butt actually fell asleep at least a half-a-dozen times. Imagine me standing at the back of a plane full of Koreans hitting myself on the cheeks to wake them back up. Nothing like getting stared at while you slap your own butt awake.

I laid down at 2.45am and woke up at 5.45am exactly...45 minutes earlier than I had planned. But, so far at 12.36pm our time, I am still trucking along with good energy...but not creative.

So, I bid you a farewell for a few hours. Perhaps tomorrow a video posting with my new video camera.

::: GOOD TO BE HOME :::

Well, as if I wasn't excited to be home enough, there was a large earthquake in Taiwan this week and it severed the underwater cables that carry the internet to Hong Kong.

Glad I missed the rollin' n' tumblin.

Connected. It's a good thing.

::: DA PLANE DA PLANE :::

This will be my shuttle home for the second leg, Seoul to Dallas.

HL7531, a Boeing 777

::: I'VE GOT SEOUL :::

Sorry...that was pretty lame.

Well, we arrived at 4.55am local time and I headed for whatever was open. They have a Transfer Lounge for those making...well, transfers. They rent out rooms for 6 hours at a time, and I have 7...I could see this working.

But all the cheap rooms were sold out so I sold out. Headed to the gate. Slept for three hours on the seats here until the Filipino Rudeness Tour Group showed up. Having loud music in your car is one thing...thumping down the road as you drive, trying to make a statement (which usually is HEY EVERYONE I AM AN ASS!). But, in an airport terminal playing the dang MP3's at high volume on speakerphone while 10 people around you are sleeping at 5am is just wrong. And, you deserve to be shot.

Ok. Maybe a little extreme,...but,only just a little. Back me up here Chad.

After my rude awakening, I went to the restaurant that Clayton, Frankenfield, Sean Kerr, Leah, Scott and I ate at on my first trip to Korea. I had an American Breakfast with some poor excuse for bacon, two fried eggs (no choice to how they were cooked...almost well done, my least favorite) and a cup of coffee. But, there were three other things on my plate that weren't so "American" that I would pair them with the title "American Breakfast." Kimchee, which I love...pickled cabbage with hot pepper paste, a root of some kind-probably a palate cleanser, and...New England Clam Chowder.

Weird. Not right or wrong but, just different.

Never in my life would I imagine myself enjoying a meal pairing coffee and clam chowder.

I digress.

::: ABOUT BOARDING TIME :::

This airport rocks...free wi-fi.

I just got off the phone with Cheryl, and Dad, and Jo Anna. I am sitting at the gate and this is the very beast about to bring me to Seoul for a super early in the morning arrival.

Mayhaps they'll have free wi-fi too...and I can update again.

Cheers!

::: MOLD HAS LEFT THE...UM...WAIT...ASIA :::

The 24 hour trip home begins at almost 1am my time, and concludes 10am Dallas time.

Here goes the longest December 21st I've ever had!

Hong Kong to Seoul, Seoul to Dallas. If you want to track the flight, click on the leg you want to see, after 12.40pm EST

::: THE ARRIVALS TERMINAL :::

I can be pretty emotional sometimes.

Earlier this year, I was kicked in the face by how many weddings I was honored to be a part of. There were plenty of others who deserved the humbling honor of standing with these men as they made their vows. Supporting these men, as they take on the most privileged and sobering reality of leading and nurturing a family as a husband. And, being up there, I was also making a commitment to their wives. I was stating with my participation that I would ask these men the tough questions about their husbandry for the rest of my life and theirs, to make sure these guys are doing their jobs.

The weddings were all in a span of a few weeks, and they all were just as I was trying to figure things out for this little adventure I am on right now. Sorry to say I didn't give them the 'once in a lifetime' attention that they deserved...I was a little preoccupied and selfish. Sorry to those guys if I came across distracted.

BUT...the reasons I am telling you this is not that I suck...we know I do! But, I am getting to the point. Being the Best Man signs you up to pick these newlyweds up from the airport after the honeymoon too! I had this opportunity twice.

While sitting and waiting at the International Arrivals terminal at DFW, I noticed something. I was getting emotional. I was choking up at the people meeting people. Homecomings, reunions, first time to see baby, funerals, vacations...all in one place.

Maybe that's why I like aviation so much. The romance of it. I think of my grandfather who was stationed in England during WWII. I think of him coming home...and basically moving into my Great Grandmother's house, taking over my grandmother's room and basically kicking her out of her own room! (his house was only 15 minutes away). But, I think he did it because he loved my grandmother. Maybe in a way that we as onlookers may never comprehend. His way.

I think of a time when people actually dressed up to fly. When flying was an adventure, something unfamiliar. Something...that was...well...exciting!

Tomorrow I leave to come home for the holidays. For the first time, there is someone other than my family who longs to see me. For the first time I am anxious to see those International Arrival doors open and I have no idea how I will react. But, I like to think this holiday movie says all of the above and then some...

::: IT'S TIME :::

Tonight I will go home and do my last load of laundry before heading home. Tomorrow after school, I will pack, grab my things and have them ready by the door for Wednesday morning.

Christmas parties at school, trip to the bank, and I am on my way.

Been waiting to post this...