Yak Attack

Boys and their Toys

Having trouble getting the video in -- please come back soon!

SS: Disconnected

I have felt really disconnected lately -- so many sites are blocked these days, no team, and many of my long-term friends have moved on.  Now that I have found a way 'around' the blocks, I hope to get 'reconnected' with my blog!!! 

Happy Mother's Day!

A friend recently shared this story, and for some reason, I thought it appropriate for Mother's Day.  So, I hope you enjoy reading this true story, especially all the Mothers who read it.  Happy Mother's Day!

Cup of Tea ~ One day my mother was out,  and my dad was in charge of me. I was maybe 2 1/2 years old. Someone had given me a little 'tea set' as a gift, and it was one of my favorite toys. Daddy was in the living room engrossed in the evening news when I brought Daddy a little cup of 'tea', which was just water. After several cups of tea and lots of praise for such yummy tea, my Mom came home. My Dad made her wait in the living room to watch me bring him a cup of tea, because it was 'just the cutest thing!' My Mom waited, and sure enough, here I came down the hall with a cup of tea for Daddy; and she watched him drink it up. Then she said, (as only a mother would know), "'Did it ever occur to you that the only place she can reach to get water is the toilet?"

Cigarette Smoking Encouraged (what's this about?)

Chinese ordered to smoke more to boost economy

Local government officials in China have been ordered to smoke nearly a quarter of a million packs of cigarettes in a move to boost the local economy during the global financial crisis

By Peter Foster in Beijing
Last Updated: 7:45AM BST 04 May 2009

The edict, issued by officials in Hubei province in central China, threatens to fine officials who "fail to meet their targets" or are caught smoking rival brands manufactured in neighbouring provinces.

Even local schools have been issued with a smoking quota for teachers, while one village was ordered to purchase 400 cartons of cigarettes a year for its officials, according to the local government's website.

The move, which flies in the face of national anti-smoking policies set in Beijing, is aimed at boosting tax revenues and protecting local manufacturers from outside competition from China's 100 cigarette makers.

In total, officials have been ordered to puff their way through 230,000 packs of Hubei-branded cigarettes worth £400,000.

China's government has ordered massive government spending at both national and provincial levels to prop up the economy following plummeting demand for Chinese exports abroad, however imposing a cigarette quota is unusual.

"The regulation will boost the local economy via the cigarette tax," said Chen Nianzu, a member of the Gong'an cigarette market supervision team.

China has 350 million smokers, about a million of whom die each year from smoking-related illnesses. Despite anti-smoking campaigns, cigarette taxes form a major component of China's annual tax-take at local level.

Local authorities in Gong'an county are taking the cigarette quota seriously and have established a "special taskforce" to enforce it.

According to a local newspaper account, a teacher from a village middle school said officials burst unannounced into the school at around 3pm one afternoon and started sifting through the ashtray and bins in the staff-room.

Three "non-compliant" cigarette butts were discovered by the "cigarette marketing consolidate team" which informed the teacher he had violated the related civil servants "cigarette usage rule" After some negotiation the school was spared a fine, but subjected to "public criticism" for "undisciplined practices".

SS: Celebrate

What have you got to celebrate?

Thoughts on returning to China First off, I returned to China after a 17 month absence, and 19 months after being attacked by a Tibetan mastiff. I had many fears – can I handle this country and the ruggedness of where my heart wants to live? Will I be able to get clean water? What if the pain comes back? Am I ready to return? etc., etc. 

My fears dissipated very quickly, as I was warmly received by my local and foreign friends. Walking down the streets I saw many familiar places, and was reminded of the smells of Asia (some good and some not so good). The main center of town, Da Shi Zi, used to have a huge circle of cement above the street intersection. This was a great central place to meet people, and a well-known landmark. But after the Sichuan earthquake of May 2008, they took it down, said it was not earthquake proof. Now, they have torn up the center of town and are building an underground circle, so pedestrians won't obstruct traffic. A little inconvenient for now, but will be nice when it is finished.

I love to walk, and am so thankful that I can walk again. It was in November 2008 when I could only stand for 4 minutes before I had to sit because of the pain. Now I go walking through the streets every day, and last week walked for 3 hours! As I take my walk about, I am reminded...

… of how the children love to say “Hello” to foreigners. I love this!
… of Asian throat clearing, like no other place on earth.
… of forgotten words, proverbs and local sayings.
… of how I am so used to seeing black hair every day, and the comfort in that consistency.
… of how horn honking is to tell someone else that you are there, not as an emergency.
… of how much I have missed living in another culture.
… of how much I have missed my Tibetan family.
… of how much I have to be thankful for, and can celebrate today that I am back.

It is great to be back in China. What have you got to celebrate?

Clean start!

The 15-day celebration of Chinese New Year has just finished! Whew! However, fireworks and firecrackers are still occurring every evening. When people in China prepare for Chinese New Years, they clean house. I am still in the process of cleaning house, mainly because I was gone from my apartment for 1-1/2 years, so there is lots to do. I am also working on cleaning out my computer -- the inbox, the desktop, dumping old files, etc. I even cleaned my computer screen -- inside and out. For the outside of the screen, I use a special cloth that the computer company gave me. For the inside, my cousin gave me this to try. Try it yourself... it is a great idea!

Medical Clinics in Cambodia

Make a Smilebox slideshow

SS: Pilgrimage

I just went on a Pilgrimage, one I have wanted to do for a long time -- through the Mekong Delta, and up the Mekong River to Cambodia. It was really great! I really enjoyed the Mekong Delta and would love to go through more of it. There is so much life hidden in the small channels and waterways. I just posted photos of this trip, so I will let you look at them. This is a trip that I will never forget. I hope to do it again someday, and spend even more time exploring the Mekong Delta. Two years ago, I did a short river trip on the Mekong River in Laos. And I have been near the headwaters of the Mekong in Qinghai Province of China. What a truly amazing river this is, and even more amazing is all the different ways that life is lived along the Mekong, and all the activity that takes place on it.

Mekong River Trip

Make a Smilebox slideshow

First snowfall of the year

"When I no longer thrill to the first snow of the season, I'll know I'm growing old." - Lady Bird Johnson