As I see it

Someone left a very kind comment (according to Tim, my in-house Spanish resource) on my photo blog, which inspired me to stay up a bit later and post some new shots. Come check them out!

Back in the saddle

Hello once again from southern Taiwan. We made it back with an unremarkable flight and, remarkably, very little jet-lag. I had a nap the first afternoon home, but otherwise we all three just slipped into local time, sleeping all night and waking at normal times. Unfortunately, I've gone too far, returning to my night-owl ways in the last week, so there will be some adjusting to do once school begins next month. But, we are home and happy to be here.

Last weekend we were hit with a storm (not quite a typhoon), which dumped lots of rain and sent several thunderstorms our way. Nora handled them much better than before, barely even noticing most of the noise, and only making calm commentary on the flashes and booms that did get her attention. Today, Sunday, we are again looking at another storm, this time a full-fledged typhoon, headed straight for the middle of the island. I think it's supposed to hit sometime tomorrow afternoon, which means our Tuesday plans – heading downtown to the science museum – may be off. Typhoons are fickle, though, so I'm holding out a little hope.

Our trip to the States was a good one, and the five weeks flew by. I would have enjoyed perhaps one more week, dedicated to staying on Whidbey and spending time with family there and anyone who was up for braving the ferry lines to see us. As it was, I ended up spending much more time on the road than I had intended. Perhaps next year I will maintain my resolve to travel the 9,000 miles to Whidbey and let everyone else come to me. (Yeah, right.)

I didn't take a camera with me on our trip home (I felt Tim's trip to Beijing trumped my need in that department), but fortunately others took lots of good shots for me and let me borrow their cameras from time to time. We packed a lot into five weeks, thanks in part to some wonderful weather and long summer days. Nora asks often if we can go back to Pop's house, and when I say not until next summer, she replies, "Windy Island is very far away." It is, but thankfully we have a whole store of good memories to tide us over 'til then.

June update

Well, the month has nearly come to a close, and I've had nothing for you since the 11th. Sorry about that. We are three weeks and a few days into our five-week home visit, and the time is flying by. It's always nice to come back, but I am so grateful for this chance to be with my dad especially; he keeps apologizing that we can't do much because of his injuries, but I'm just thankful that he's still around.

We had a great time in Chelan. Our unit was right on the lakeshore, so we had a lovely view of the first night's thunderstorm (not a hit with Miss Nora), as well as brilliant sunshine reflecting off the water the rest of the week. Lake Chelan is fed from snowmelt, and none of us are crazy enough to brave the cold, but we enjoyed the warmer pools, took a paddleboat out for a spin, played a few rounds of putt-putt golf and many hands of cards. The first few nights we built some roaring fires, but the crackle and pop was, again, too much for the wee flincher, so we gave up on them.

This last week has been a bit of a family reunion with my sister, brother, brother-in-law and niece all around. We celebrated my parents' anniversary yesterday and spent today in the garden weeding and lopping--all the things my mom has had to set aside while she's been caring for my dad. Her gardens are always beautiful, so it was a pleasure to help restore them to something closer to her ideal.

Cole and his uncle spent a day this week building a fort in the woods. I'm hoping they can camp out in it next week--once the railing is up, that is. We've also spent some mornings exploring the bay at low tide this week: we spotted lots of crab, clams, geoducks, tiny flounder, a moonsnail or two, and the odd starfish. Cole and a friend built sandcastles and moats, then watched the rising tide melt them all away.

The days have been warm, though cool by Kaohsiung standards; I've only worn shorts once since I've been here. I see on my Weather Underground sticker that the days are hot and rainy back home. The crazy thing is, if you go to the Underground website it says the Kaohsiung high today will be only 84, while at the same time telling you that with the heat index the current 94 actually feels like 104. (This is how weathermen hedge their bets.) Despite the heat, I'm looking forward to getting home. It's been a long time without my Tim, and I look forward to getting back into our routines and having some family time before the school year kicks into gear.

The next week or so will be busy with visits and shopping; I will post again once we're home, and hopefully have some pictures to share.

The other side of the pond

We made it! It's been a week now, so jet-lag is mostly behind us and we're having a great time. It was a huge relief to finally see my dad, and I'm so encouraged by the progress he's made since we got home. We are off to central Washington on Monday, a trip I wasn't sure he would be up for - but he is, and we're all looking forward to some swimming and sunning in Chelan. It will still be another month until he's on his feet, but every day he gets a little closer.

The kids traveled well, and both are having a good time with their grandmas and grandpas, although Nora is pretty sure she'd like to go back home now, anyway. She has had this idea that we should just get a different airplane, ever since I told her ours won't be ready for a few weeks yet. She was thrilled when we drove past the Boeing factory - those triple-7's were calling her name. It wasn't pretty when I drove right by, though (I mean, it was a shopping trip, for crying out loud - couldn't we even stop and browse?). I'm not sure if she's more interested in actually getting home, or just getting back on a plane, where Donald-Duck-on-demand beams down from the seat back in front of you, and pretty xiaojie's come calling when you press the right button.

Cole is enjoying himself, having discovered great troves of books to sink into. His Grandpa Marc took him clamming this morning in Dugualla Bay - which reminds me, I think there are some gifts of the sea in Cole's pocket I need to deal with.

I am enjoying myself, too. I find I am less irritated by - well, by America - than I was four years ago when I came home after our first year in Taiwan. Yes, the people here are huge; yes, everything is too expensive; yes, people still think I live in Thailand. Still, it doesn't bother me like it used to. Maybe I dealt with it all that first visit home, and it's not a shock anymore. Or maybe I feel less defined by American culture now, and therefore don't suffer the same pangs of disenchantment. Either way, it makes for a pleasanter visit, and for that I'm grateful.

Tomorrow is a busy day, with a low, low tide, maybe some sun breaks, and two kids who could use some tide-pool adventures. We're happy to be here. I hope you are having a good summer, too, wherever you are.

Busy times

Sorry to go so long without posting... and this one's going to be short. The kids and I leave tomorrow morning for Seattle (hooray!). Our bags are packed, but not very full, so I'm a little worried about stuff shifting around. I'm fighting the urge to throw in more sweaters.

My dad is doing better every time I talk to him; not on his feet yet but getting there. I'm very relieved to be headed home so I can just be close to him and my mom. This last month has been a challenge.

Tim is off to Beijing to start his graduate studies next week. Cole will be a fourth-grader after tomorrow. Nora may have preschool on her horizon once we're back, and I'm looking at a theology program through University of London for myself come fall. It's going to be a busy year ahead!

Taiwan continues to thrill and amaze. That is perhaps one of the reasons that it's so addictive (many people who leave find themselves back here within a couple years). Never a dull moment, either inside or out: it's not just the cultural differences, but how you adapt and grow because of them. The most dramatic landscapes are those which are beaten and thrashed by natural forces, and that describes, if a bit violently, the effect of living in such a foreign environment. So it will be good to be home – as much as one can go home. That's a whole other cultural adjustment for us now.

I will post a bit while we're back in the states. Hoping to see a few of you while we're there.

Green butterflies

The massive typhoon that swept over the Philippines last weekend, killing dozens before heading towards Hong Kong, took a right turn as it neared the China coast and started moving up our way. We ended up with nothing worse than some gusty winds and heavy showers on Wednesday and Thursday, but it was a reminder that typhoon season is upon us and we need to get the house ready (especially since it will be sitting empty while we travel next month).

After a typhoon passes by we get to enjoy, with some guilt, unusally clear weather. The improved visibility is like having new eyes. The mountain that is the focal point of our view is reduced to a little pointy hill because there's no haze to give the impression of great distance (and therefore greater size). Bamboo groves stand out in sharp relief, leafy trees suddenly reveal the shape of their greenery, and the gilded temple behind us gleams and shows off its colors.

I talk about the weather a lot, I think because it is a barometer of my foreigness here. In Seattle I know what to expect; depending on the month, the hour, and the direction of the wind, the sky can take on many different shades (of grey), and I read them unconsciously. But here I am often caught by surprise, more so when I am indoors and don't have other clues to tell me the weather is changing. It's a matter of time, I suppose, and experience. The other day as I was washing dishes, I was startled to see a bright green butterfly flicker by my kitchen window. In a flash I realized it was no butterfly, but a leaf, caught up in a gust that sent it four stories high. Within the hour, wind was whistling through our windows and echoing mournfully in the stairwell. Green butterflies are now filed away as harbingers of a typhoon. Now if I could just get used to leaves falling in the spring.

Dad's saga

It's been a crazy couple weeks. Every time I called home to see how my dad was doing, the news just got worse and worse: released from Harborview, but unable to keep anything down for two days; admitted to Whidbey General, where they discovered a skull fracture (way to go, Harborview); back to Harborview for infection (seems no one put him on antibiotics after putting two titanium rods in his leg); water on his brain; gout in his good foot; total exhaustion and no end in sight.

So yesterday, 12 days after the accident, I finally got to talk to my dad. What a relief! I had heard from my mom that he was doing a bit better the day before, but to hear it from him – just to talk with him – lifted a huge burden off my heart. I have been praying (as have many of you – thank you!) which is exactly what he needed; but I've wanted to do more and have felt a little helpless. I am so glad to be going home in two weeks. I just want to sit out on the deck with my mom and dad, watch the deer and take in the mountains. That's my dream vacation. ( If there was a bowl of raspberries within reach, that would be icing on the cake.)

Remember to tell someone you love them today. And thank God for the blessing of friends and family.

The hard part

My dad was in a motorcycle accident last week; my sister called to tell me, but I haven't been able to talk with my mom yet. His leg was pretty badly injured – he'll be recovering for the next month or two – but thankfully other than that he's all right. Still, I hate that I can't be there right now. Maybe I'll feel better when I can talk to my parents; for now, though, I just want to go home.

That's the worst part about being here, knowing that bad things happen in this life, but being unable to bridge the distance when they do. At church we often have prayer requests for sick or dying family members back home, and those prayers are always extended to the people here who feel helpless so far away. It's a small world in many ways, but physically, my parents are 9,000 miles away.

I can't wait to see them. Twenty-six days to go.

Easter break

We had a good break over Easter; sorry for the long spell between posts, but with camping, recovering from camping, and now the busy-ness of spring, I've gotten out of my routine.

On our trip, we traveled with two other families down the west coast of Taiwan (south of Kaohsiung city, towards Kenting), and then cut across the island on highway 9. Across is not the right word, as it implies a somewhat straight line; we curved our way over the mountains, keeping one eye out for people passing from behind, and the other eye on the oncoming traffic they'd be face to face with. It was not a bad drive overall, though – scenic vistas of lush forested valleys, and the blue-green waters of the Pacific were refreshing, as was the clean east-coast air. We camped near Taitung, at a well-appointed campground that was entirely deserted except for ourselves. The sandstone formations that make up the shoreline there are striking, almost sculptural. (You can see some pictures here.) Just up the road we found a wide sandy beach, covered with litter but otherwise, again, empty of people. I found a small cove for the kids where the surf wasn't so rough, and we spent a long morning digging in the sand and playing in the waves.

On our way home we stopped at a water park, stopped for lunch, stopped to buy ice for someone's sunburn, stopped to use the bathroom at a roadside Karaoke bar, stopped for ice-cream at 7-11, stopped to use another bathroom at a small roadside restaurant, stopped to buy onions (and use the potty) at a roadside stand, and finally made it home at dinner time. (I had wanted to stop for steamed water chestnuts, but thought better of it.) At one of our bathroom breaks we spoke with the owner while the kids were taking care of business. She has a daughter who's gone off to Belgium, and recently gave birth to a little boy. She's eager to see her new grandson – she doesn't even have a photo yet – and seemed pleased to have our company and share her news. She also looked happy to have our kids play on her tire swing. Her restaurant is fairly remote, with no other buildings within walking distance that I could see; it would seem a lonely place, but then she gets a lot of visitors like us, so maybe it's not so bad. Like most Taiwanese, she was helpful and friendly, and asked us to come again.

We've had some beautiful weather lately, brilliant blue skies with real clouds, the kind that look like something if you use your imagination. Such a nice change from the usual cap of haze. We've had a few rainy days as well (today is one, with even a bit of thunder this morning, but Nora's handling it better). I think that will be the pattern for a while now, until things are turned up a notch and we get into typhoon season.

We are down to four and a half weeks of school left, so the calendar is filling up. It's a busy time as teachers wrap up the year, and it's also when you start to realize how little time is left with the departing staff. I will be sorry to see them go, but it's exciting to know that they're moving on to new chapters in their lives. And their leaving means new arrivals, as people we've yet to meet prepare to start their Taiwan adventures. Lots of changes ahead.

Elephants and bumblebees

We had a gorgeous couple of days early last week: really blue sky, billowing white clouds, warm breezes and sunshine. It was perfect. The winds brought with them a change in the weather, though. Thursday's mugginess turned to leaden skies, and by midday the first thunderstorm of the season was upon us. Nora and I were returning from downtown and had a great view of the approaching storm from the elevated freeway. As we pulled into the school the first flash of lightning arced just beyond our campus walls (or so it seemed), so I hurried to prepare Nora for the thunder. I told her that we'd be hearing a big boom-boom-boom, but not to be scared; it was just like elephants walking around. Immediately the thunder rolled over us, and Nora buried her head in her hands: "I don't like elephants!" We made it home, getting drenched in the short walk from car to door. The storm lingered for several long, rumbling hours. Nora hid her face at every flash, but was as brave as she could be. We pulled the blinds and put on loud music to keep the scary stuff away.

The weekend brought cool days, lots of rain, and nothing but grey in every direction. It made Easter feel a whole lot like Easter in the Northwest, though, so it was rather homey (I even wore a sweater). Now and then, though, Nora would peek at the drizzling skies and say, "Elephants are scary," or, "I don't like bumblebees." This last part is a puzzle. Maybe it's how she's remembering the word thunder, or perhaps it's an association with lightning. Whatever it is, I'm afraid she'll be off bees and pachyderms for a while.

We also had a little excitement underfoot. Easter morning, about 6:40, Tim and I were shaken awake by another temblor, same location as before but not quite as strong (6.2). And again this morning, about 9:30, a weaker but nearer quake (4.8, in Chiayi) gave us a little jolt. I suppose it's good to release the built up pressure in a series of quakes like this, but it is a little unnerving. If the weather cooperates we plan to go camping in Taitung with some friends this week, so any more quakes will be right under our noses. I think, though, I'd rather be in a tent on the beach than just about anywhere else.

I didn't feel these last two quakes coming, by the way. I guess my career as a human earthquake prognosticator is dashed. Not a job I really wanted anyway. Too much pressure.

Photo update

Some time back I promised to post some pictures from the New Year's market; I finally got to it last night, so you can check them out here. I published them under the date they were taken (January), so if you go to the Formosa Fix page you have to scroll down a little to see them. (And remember, you can click on an image to see it full-screen.)

If you haven't stopped by in a while, come take a look!

Good Friday

Perhaps it's the influence of my German Lutheran roots, but Good Friday is becoming one of my favorite holy days. No Hallmark cards, no candy, no gifts – well, one immense gift (salvation), but no attempt to reduce that to a human level by wrapping up trifles in Good Friday paper bedecked with nails and thorns. It's a day that humbles me and restores my focus; it's a day I feel my insignificance and wonder at the love of our God.

I hope you all have a blessed and peaceful Easter.

River Town

I've been reading Father Brown for ages – that's what I get for starting the complete works, I guess. I haven't made much headway with Answering God, although I like it. But it needs to be read at a table with a Bible and journal and pen at hand, and I've been trying to read it in bed. I've picked up River Town again, a favorite of mine that I'd lent out and just got back. If you're looking for a peek into life in China, which bears some resemblance to life in Taiwan, I recommend it. Of course the political situation is not the same, but many of the other social traits are intact in the Chinese population here. It's a very funny book, covering two years in the life of a Peace Corps volunteer in an isolated Sichuan town – his reaction to the people, their reaction to him, his struggles with the language and culture. It's excellent; I'd love to see a sequel. The author, Peter Hessler, had an article in a recent New Yorker about life in Beijing, so I'm hoping another book is in the works. I'll have to look for it this summer.

Hungry?

Just wanted to plug my cooking page. I've got a few recipes to choose from now, so check it out!

Loud neighbors

I don't know what the event was, but something was going on next door today. I was startled out of my seat when a string of firecrackers was thrown on a burn barrel in front of the warehouse across the street. Cole very thoughtfully ran to Nora's room to see if the noise had awakened her, while I ran for my camera and headed out to the balcony. There wasn't much to see, though, but the preparations of a party. Tables were being set, basins of water and baskets of fruit were laid out; and amid the bustle one woman walked slowly around the tables with long sticks of incense in her right hand, rapping her left hand with them in a steady rhythm. Evil spirits were being warned away, the ones that hadn't heeded the round of fireworks.

We went downtown soon after, so I missed the rest of the evening's festivities. I don't know if there was a wedding, or if perhaps the farmers were having a banquet for their laborers. As we pulled out of our gate, which faces this building directly, a couple men leaning against their truck looked at us and smiled. I waved, and they waved back, but that's as far as it went. They didn't invite us to their party, and we didn't expect them to. I'm kind of sorry we went out, though. I would have had a great view of their festivities from up here.

I'm such a snoop.

Spring forward

It's 8:30 p.m. and 80º. Where did spring go? It's like we reset our season while you were resetting your clocks. Time to put my sweaters away (again).

Rock 'n roll

Not sure if it made much news where you are, but on Saturday a 6.4 quake in Taitung (about 60 miles from here) had our building shaking for a good long while. There was a little damage on the 6th floor: new cracks in the plaster, some broken pottery. But except for some kitchen drawers askew, we had nothing to show for it two floors down. It was pretty unnerving, though. All four of us were home, and once we realized that the quake was getting stronger we headed for doorframes. We now know that isn't the safest. Next time we'll lie down next to an inside wall or next to a couch or bed. Hmm. Next time.

The unsettling part for me is that, once again, I felt it coming. All of March I'd been thinking we were overdue, though if I gave it a little more thought, I felt like it was not quite time. On Saturday morning, as I sat at the computer, the thought came to me again, and I felt strongly enough about it that I considered blogging it. But then I shook off the idea and went about my day. The quake was at 6:00 that evening. Weird, huh? Next time I'll follow my impulse and we'll see how accurate I really am.

For you foodies out there...

Against my better judgment, I've started another blog, Wonton Woman, all about cooking in Taiwan. The recipes will be mostly western-style, chosen primarily because they can be made with locally available ingredients. No promises on how often I'll post, but I hope at least once or twice a week.

I've started with a recipe for microwave polenta. Suggestions are welcome. Please take a look!

Catching you up

It's been a busy week since I last wrote. I was sick Friday (it had been creeping up on me all that week) and slept all day Saturday. Sunday morning we walked over to the school for the Bilingual Community Church service; the quarter-mile walk was pushing it, though. I was really wiped out.

Monday was a day for staying home, not because I was sick, but because the air was thick with Mongolian dust. We were warned to stay inside if possible – according to the local EPA report, we were well into the red zone of unhealthy air. Cole and his classmates spent their recess times playing board games in the lunchroom. Tuesday was not much better; the winds were supposed to shift to the east and southeast, but stayed put and kept blowing the particulate our way. The dust cloud from China was an anomaly, but poor air quality is the norm, especially here in the industrial south: factories, truck traffic to and from the port, and of course fires – burning fields, burning garbage, burning ghost money. It all adds up.

Wednesday morning I had my Chinese lesson. I learned how to say maybe, probably not, and definitely (each of those requires a different suffix added to whatever the verb is in the initial question). Very useful, but if I don't practice it I'm going to forget it.

Thursday I helped chaperone Cole's class trip to the Leopard King Safari Zoo. We had a great day for it, not too hot and not too overrun with Chinese students (who travel in packs of fifty and a hundred). Still, it was a bit depressing – an old-style zoo with not a lot of room to roam, and a demeaning monkey show to boot (I wasn't sure who was less pleased with being on stage, the monkeys or the handlers). The kids had a good time, though, watching the pig races, petting a penguin, mimicking the whooping calls of the gibbons. We also got to walk among the mountain deer, the only extant deer species in Taiwan. I've eaten it, but had never met one before. They're about the size of a dog, which surprised me – I don't know if I would have found them as tasty, knowing how small they are.

Friday was business as usual, lunch with Tim at school and then an afternoon of catching up on my housework. I took Cole out later to buy some in-line skates, and he's been busy learning the finer points of not falling down ever since. Yesterday was a girls' morning out as a handful of us from staff housing headed downtown to check out some new stores: Muji (Japanese housewares and clothing, much of which is overpriced – but still fun to look at), and Jason's grocery, also overpriced, but where you can buy things you can't find anywhere else (prosciutto, artichoke hearts, and Quaker Oatmeal Squares). No chutney, though. I don't know why I can't find it here. I guess I'll have to make it myself.

So that's a week in the life of. Not terribly exotic, perhaps, but different enough; it grows on you.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

This morning as Cole was getting dressed (green shorts, orange tee) he said his teacher, Mrs. Dunn, told the kids that they should wear green, but underwear didn't count. I said, "Well, sure, because nobody can see it." And Cole said, "They would if you didn't wear pants."

If you forget to wear some green, pinch yourself for me, will ya? (But if you forget to wear your pants, I don't want to know....)