After a lengthy blogging hiatus, I would like to bring you a brief message about my latest athletic aspirations. Here is the trailer for a film that I saw at the Banff Mountain Film Festival last year about snow kiting. Apparently the Camas Prairie in south central Idaho has ideal conditions for this wind-powered snow sport. I'm really hoping to take some lessons this year. Check out the trailer for last year's BMFF snow kiting video.
http://snowkitefilm.com/art.asp?id=52
Doesn't that make you want to fly through the air into some fresh powder? *sigh* I can't wait for winter!
Monday, November 17, 2008
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Maybe There Could Be a Free Lunch
Sometimes Mike and I carpool to work. Friday was one of those days.
Over the past year I have learned that Mike likes coffee. I have also learned that it's a good idea for the coffee to be obtained within a few hours after the hateful duties of the alarm clock have been performed. The coffee shop of choice for non-bus days is a little drive-thru on the way to HP. Most of the baristas know his coffee order and can typically take the mug, fill it up, hand it back, and snatch the dollar in about 30 seconds. It's a streamlined operation.
On this particular morning we pulled up behind a green Suburban, and as we waited it quickly became clear that this was not a simple order. I was still working my way through the various stages of waking up at this point, so I don't really remember how long we sat there or precisely what happened in the meantime, but eventually the Suburban drove off and we pulled up to the window. The barista looked down at Mike's empty mug, held up a $10 bill with a slightly quizzical look on her face and said, "This is for you today...so get something fancy". The best we could figure afterward is that the anonymous suburban driver had left it for us.
We're still not sure exactly what happened or why, but it was one of those happy mysteries that comes along every so often and reminds me that not everyone is completely self-centered and sometimes people do nice things just because they want to. So I got a complimentary chai latte to start the day, along with a smile and a bounce in my step. It also encouraged me to "pay it forward", so I'm keeping my eyes open for opportunities.
Over the past year I have learned that Mike likes coffee. I have also learned that it's a good idea for the coffee to be obtained within a few hours after the hateful duties of the alarm clock have been performed. The coffee shop of choice for non-bus days is a little drive-thru on the way to HP. Most of the baristas know his coffee order and can typically take the mug, fill it up, hand it back, and snatch the dollar in about 30 seconds. It's a streamlined operation.
On this particular morning we pulled up behind a green Suburban, and as we waited it quickly became clear that this was not a simple order. I was still working my way through the various stages of waking up at this point, so I don't really remember how long we sat there or precisely what happened in the meantime, but eventually the Suburban drove off and we pulled up to the window. The barista looked down at Mike's empty mug, held up a $10 bill with a slightly quizzical look on her face and said, "This is for you today...so get something fancy". The best we could figure afterward is that the anonymous suburban driver had left it for us.
We're still not sure exactly what happened or why, but it was one of those happy mysteries that comes along every so often and reminds me that not everyone is completely self-centered and sometimes people do nice things just because they want to. So I got a complimentary chai latte to start the day, along with a smile and a bounce in my step. It also encouraged me to "pay it forward", so I'm keeping my eyes open for opportunities.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Home and Away
Mike and I spent the last weekend of April in Seattle visiting college buddies of mine and attending a Mariners baseball game (my first time at Safeco Field). After wandering around Kirkland on the beautiful Saturday afternoon, we made about 300 potstickers for dinner. Too bad Molly isn't eating solid food yet, because we could have used some help eating them all. I have missed you guys! I enjoyed the boba smoothies and playing with sharks at Microsoft.
More Pics from Lewiston and Seattle
This past weekend I flew down to Lake Tahoe with one of my musician friends to stay with another friend at her condo on the north side of the lake. On the way to the airport I found out that there had been some recent earthquakes in the area and there were warnings for more to come. But thankfully we didn't feel any rumblings, except for a particularly intense subwoofer during one of our hikes! We took full advantage of the beautiful spring weather to do some bike riding, hiking, and eating on the deck with the blue jays (it turns out they like cheddar cheese).
More Pics from Lake Tahoe
Just before leaving town on Thursday, I found out that the owners of the condo I am renting have decided not to keep it as a rental any more. By the time I returned on Sunday night there was already a lock box on the door and my cell phone number posted on the MLS listing. After struggling through the initial surprise and disappointment (I love the location and had great plans for the summer months), I'm now trying to figure out what to do when it eventually sells. While jogging around the north end tonight I took a few detours to check out "for rent" and "for sale" signs in the area. My current neighbors are very friendly and enjoy giving me advice on life; one of the ladies tried very hard this evening to convince me that buying one or more homes is the best thing I could do with my money. I'm still not sure whther I want to own real estate yet, but I suppose I should consider it sooner or later.
This past weekend I flew down to Lake Tahoe with one of my musician friends to stay with another friend at her condo on the north side of the lake. On the way to the airport I found out that there had been some recent earthquakes in the area and there were warnings for more to come. But thankfully we didn't feel any rumblings, except for a particularly intense subwoofer during one of our hikes! We took full advantage of the beautiful spring weather to do some bike riding, hiking, and eating on the deck with the blue jays (it turns out they like cheddar cheese).
Just before leaving town on Thursday, I found out that the owners of the condo I am renting have decided not to keep it as a rental any more. By the time I returned on Sunday night there was already a lock box on the door and my cell phone number posted on the MLS listing. After struggling through the initial surprise and disappointment (I love the location and had great plans for the summer months), I'm now trying to figure out what to do when it eventually sells. While jogging around the north end tonight I took a few detours to check out "for rent" and "for sale" signs in the area. My current neighbors are very friendly and enjoy giving me advice on life; one of the ladies tried very hard this evening to convince me that buying one or more homes is the best thing I could do with my money. I'm still not sure whther I want to own real estate yet, but I suppose I should consider it sooner or later.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Taking the Baton
We have a new conductor! The Boise Philharmonic announced last week that Robert Franz has been hired as the new music director for the orchestra, starting with the 2008-2009 season. He spent a week working with the orchestra in preparation for the January concert and demonstrated a great mixture of musical precision, personal rapport, and contagious excitement. Here's a sneak peek into his story.
The Philharmonic is holding a press conference on Thursday to present the new music director in person and to announce the concert programs for next year. At first I was excited at the idea of attending, but then Mike reminded me that I'd probably have to dress up and suddenly it seemed a bit less fascinating. There is a lot to be said for jeans and hoodies. And socks...I love my job. :)
The Philharmonic is holding a press conference on Thursday to present the new music director in person and to announce the concert programs for next year. At first I was excited at the idea of attending, but then Mike reminded me that I'd probably have to dress up and suddenly it seemed a bit less fascinating. There is a lot to be said for jeans and hoodies. And socks...I love my job. :)
Looking Around
After taking a long hiatus from non-required reading, I picked up a book last month about the Chinese Cultural Revolution. It was fascinating to read a first hand account from the perspective of a young girl who lived through it, and I found myself gaining more interest in Asian history. It also helps to have family members living in China and to be planning a trip there myself. Mark, I can't wait to finally see you! How strange that our first meeting in 9 months will be on another continent.
After devouring Red Scarf Girl in less than I week, I started into a book about the Vietnam war that begins by describing the history and culture of the country and the events that triggered the long and bloody war. It's called America and Vietnam: The Elephant and the Tiger, by Albert Marrin, and so far it's a painful and captivating read. My experience seems to be corroborating the idea that history becomes more interesting with age. In the past it all seemed very far away and irrelevant, but I'm coming to understand that history is full of real people with complex motives that lead to tangled stories with fascinating and unexpected turns. I guess since most people don't really seem to understand what happened in Vietnam (or why it happened), it also feels like someone is letting me in on a secret. And who doesn't love a secret.
Also about a month ago I decided that I wanted to be more informed about national and world events. In an attempt to discourage my personality from getting in the way, I set a goal of reading one article per day. It seemed like a very reasonable goal, and now it allows me to feel like an overachiever if I manage to read more than one. Sadly enough, the primary result of this venture is that I now have a more complete mental list of the places in the world where people are killing each other. Oh, and I know who the president of Zimbabwe...was...is...might be?
For as long as I can remember I have been drawn to stories about WWII, particularly from the perspective of people who had to choose between doing what was safe and doing what was right. However most of my focus has been on the German/European side of the world, with only a cursory knowledge of the war in the Pacific. Recently I watched some movies with Mike about WWII (Das Boot and Letters from Iwo Jima) that depicted the lives of ordinary men who became soldiers and lost their lives in defense of their country, on opposite sides of the globe. These pictures of real war conditions reveal a startling tendency to view people as numbers, especially by leaders making the most important decisions for the fate of their soldiers. Do they think twice and find no other options? In some cases the leaders of countries and armies seem to view the situation with the idea that thousands will inevitably die and the most important thing is to protect the cause or resist the invader. Never mind the fact that each soldier has a family that will be scarred forever when he doesn't come home. From watching these films I'm also amazed and stunned by the horrific physical pain that human beings are capable of inflicting on each other. It's weird how people can so completely lose sight of the humanity and individual significance of others when blinded by a cause that seems more important. And probably some causes are more important, but are they really so prevalent as world history would lead us to believe?
After devouring Red Scarf Girl in less than I week, I started into a book about the Vietnam war that begins by describing the history and culture of the country and the events that triggered the long and bloody war. It's called America and Vietnam: The Elephant and the Tiger, by Albert Marrin, and so far it's a painful and captivating read. My experience seems to be corroborating the idea that history becomes more interesting with age. In the past it all seemed very far away and irrelevant, but I'm coming to understand that history is full of real people with complex motives that lead to tangled stories with fascinating and unexpected turns. I guess since most people don't really seem to understand what happened in Vietnam (or why it happened), it also feels like someone is letting me in on a secret. And who doesn't love a secret.
Also about a month ago I decided that I wanted to be more informed about national and world events. In an attempt to discourage my personality from getting in the way, I set a goal of reading one article per day. It seemed like a very reasonable goal, and now it allows me to feel like an overachiever if I manage to read more than one. Sadly enough, the primary result of this venture is that I now have a more complete mental list of the places in the world where people are killing each other. Oh, and I know who the president of Zimbabwe...was...is...might be?
For as long as I can remember I have been drawn to stories about WWII, particularly from the perspective of people who had to choose between doing what was safe and doing what was right. However most of my focus has been on the German/European side of the world, with only a cursory knowledge of the war in the Pacific. Recently I watched some movies with Mike about WWII (Das Boot and Letters from Iwo Jima) that depicted the lives of ordinary men who became soldiers and lost their lives in defense of their country, on opposite sides of the globe. These pictures of real war conditions reveal a startling tendency to view people as numbers, especially by leaders making the most important decisions for the fate of their soldiers. Do they think twice and find no other options? In some cases the leaders of countries and armies seem to view the situation with the idea that thousands will inevitably die and the most important thing is to protect the cause or resist the invader. Never mind the fact that each soldier has a family that will be scarred forever when he doesn't come home. From watching these films I'm also amazed and stunned by the horrific physical pain that human beings are capable of inflicting on each other. It's weird how people can so completely lose sight of the humanity and individual significance of others when blinded by a cause that seems more important. And probably some causes are more important, but are they really so prevalent as world history would lead us to believe?
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
A Little Pause
Tonight I was supposed to come straight home after work and practice for our concert this weekend. It's my one night off from rehearsals and my only chance to work on any sections that aren't going as smoothly as they should.
However as I started my 2 mile walk home from downtown, I was not at all in the right frame of mind to concentrate on finger drills. Instead I found a new building to explore, stopped by Goody's for some chocolates, played on the swings in the park, and climbed the camel's back on my way home. The sky was beautiful tonight. After following the progression of colors during my walk, I reached my door just as the moon finally wrestled the baton away from the sun. Sometimes I long for a slower pace of life with fewer commitments and expectations.
My latest favorite pastime is exploring cool buildings downtown after hours. I like to see how high I can go and what kind of interesting things I can find. Today I found a mail chute that goes from the upper floors all the way down to the mail drop box on the first floor (don't put anything fragile in those envelopes!) And it's right next to Congressman Levi Sali's office. There's also a fancy men's clothing store just on the other side of the elevator, which seemed very random indeed. I love the way old buildings get turned into a mixture of retail stores, restaurants, apartments, private office space and who knows what else.
Mark has encouraged me to start blogging again, which encourages me that people actually read my blog. So stay tuned for a slightly more steady stream of randomness and seriousness to follow. :)
However as I started my 2 mile walk home from downtown, I was not at all in the right frame of mind to concentrate on finger drills. Instead I found a new building to explore, stopped by Goody's for some chocolates, played on the swings in the park, and climbed the camel's back on my way home. The sky was beautiful tonight. After following the progression of colors during my walk, I reached my door just as the moon finally wrestled the baton away from the sun. Sometimes I long for a slower pace of life with fewer commitments and expectations.
My latest favorite pastime is exploring cool buildings downtown after hours. I like to see how high I can go and what kind of interesting things I can find. Today I found a mail chute that goes from the upper floors all the way down to the mail drop box on the first floor (don't put anything fragile in those envelopes!) And it's right next to Congressman Levi Sali's office. There's also a fancy men's clothing store just on the other side of the elevator, which seemed very random indeed. I love the way old buildings get turned into a mixture of retail stores, restaurants, apartments, private office space and who knows what else.
Mark has encouraged me to start blogging again, which encourages me that people actually read my blog. So stay tuned for a slightly more steady stream of randomness and seriousness to follow. :)
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Christmas in Mexico
For the first time in 26 years I did not wake up at home with my siblings on Christmas morning.
After deciding to postpone my trip to China until the spring, my remaining options for family togetherness became few and small. Our office closes for the entire week of Christmas, and the prospect of waking up at home alone, without any of my siblings, was more than I could bear. Fortunately Mike also had to take the week off and excitedly collaborated in some vacation scheming. We ended up spending a week in Puerto Vallarta, taking pictures of palm trees and listening to mariachi bands, with periodic snack breaks for mangoes and fresh tortillas.
Our peaceful days and interesting adventures helped tremendously to offset the sadness of missing my dear family on a holiday that we have always celebrated together with hugs, warm flannel, teddy bear bread, and a camel walker.
Some highlights:
More pictures to follow...
After deciding to postpone my trip to China until the spring, my remaining options for family togetherness became few and small. Our office closes for the entire week of Christmas, and the prospect of waking up at home alone, without any of my siblings, was more than I could bear. Fortunately Mike also had to take the week off and excitedly collaborated in some vacation scheming. We ended up spending a week in Puerto Vallarta, taking pictures of palm trees and listening to mariachi bands, with periodic snack breaks for mangoes and fresh tortillas.
Our peaceful days and interesting adventures helped tremendously to offset the sadness of missing my dear family on a holiday that we have always celebrated together with hugs, warm flannel, teddy bear bread, and a camel walker.
Some highlights:
- Sitting on the rocks by the crashing waves at sunset
- Bartered in Spanish with the street vendors and shop owners
- Fresh orange juice on the beach from a guy named Arturo
- Riding the buses with all the locals
- Playing catch on the beach in shorts and t-shirts
- Eating delicious fruit, drinking limonada, finding authentic and tasty restaurants
- Making coffee for my boyfriend
- Being serenaded in Spanish on the beach on Christmas Eve
- Receiving Christmas greetings via text message from my dad in China
More pictures to follow...
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