Xmas In West Coast Peavine

Holiday in Review

Well we hope you all had a wonderful holiday and got everything that you wanted. We would like to thank everyone for the great gifts that were bestowed upon us from UK as well as East Peavine. We went over to Teri's on Christmas Eve and had another great time. It's always good to see them and the boys and their families. We had tamales and enchiladas and rice as well as sandwiches. Lots of good food. Then it was time for the carnage. The kids had to wait until Christmas morning for Ethan to come over before they could unwrap their gifts. We then had the King's parents over for lunch and everyone had a good time. It's now back to our routine and starting to think about next year's gifts. Sorry I wasn't able to make it back for the football game but I'm sure everyone had a greet time and that no bones were broken. Hope you all enjoyed your gifts from us and that it is something you can use.

Basketball Tourney

Well another weekend has past without any major incidents. We spent this past weekend attending a basketball tourney that Crysta's team was in. It involved teams from the San Mateo are with Lincoln being the only team from San Francisco in it. The girls ending up winning the tourney after a few close games. Our girls are very good and very quick and all of the other teams are very tall. We will always be the smallest team. The King and I spent yesterday shopping for Xmas gifts for both the family and for work. My company is having their Xmas Party tomorrow and I have been responsible for buying all of the raffle prizes we will be giving away. That's a lot of prizes. You have to figure out what you think 400 people other than you might like. Well this year they are going to like what I like. I will then spend the next few days passing out candy the kids sold for their Dragon Boat Team. They didn't actually sell any themselves. They were required to sell $50 dollars worth and they hoped they sold $100. Together they accounted for about $1000 which I get to distribute now. It all comes back to haunt you. I remember giving Dad my really crappy candy to sell for me at work, and now I know how much he hated doing it. It's the parents curse.

Yes Kids, There Really Is A Glen!

Well Glen finally came out for a visit after saying he was going to for the last five years. The King and the kids had always heard stories about him, but had never seen him. Sure they had talked to him on the phone but still assumed he was just a myth. He arrived on Thanksgiving day and we then sat down with the King's parents and all of the kids for smoked turkey and pink turkey. We then spent the next few days watching football games and then seeing the sites after the games. He has been here before but never spent much time in the city as we did this time. We fed him lot's of Chinese food that he loved and the King cooked a few wonderful meals for him as well. I really think she enjoyed seeing someone enjoy the food as much as he did. The kids just kept laughing at the sounds of enjoyment he made as he ate. We then took him out for his first taste of Sushi which he loved! We also spent a day in Chinatown where we took him for Dim Sum. The King made him eat with chopsticks the whole time he was here and would get onto him if he tried to use a fork. It was really great to have him here and for the gang to meet him.

West Coast Weekend

Well I hope everyone is ready for the holidays coming up? I guess the King and I will go get our pink turkey today. Not sure what else we will have. Not too much happened this weekend. I watched football while the King and the kids went to the eye doctor for new glasses. We then went to Crysta's first basketball game which was a preseason game. Her team won 20-3. They have about 16 girls on their team, but they look like they could be good. Yesterday we went to a new place for dinner since the kids were hanging out with their other grandparents. We took the King's parents to a new Chinese place by our house. It was pretty good, but her Dad and I probably liked it more. It was Szechuen style cooking, which is a much spicier style than what the King is used to. They had a really good spicy calamari that really had a kick. We might have company for Thanksgiving but I'm not holding my breath. Glen keeps telling me he is coming out, but he has told me that before. I told him if he called from the airport then I would come get him. We shall see. It would be fun to have him here and watch football games with him. He's a little more of a fan than the rest of my crew. Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving and I will talk to you then!

More of the Same

Well this past weekend saw me finish my gate project, getting the final of 5 coats of paint on and then covering the top with Plexiglas to keep the rain out. I then took 5 boxes of old paint to the recycler to clean out the garage. I then worked on the plants out back for a while and finally got the grill working again. I then went inside to watch the OU game. The king went to a concert on Saturday night to see Alan Tam who is a big artist in Hong Kong. She was in a very happy mood to see that. Yesterday we went to her friend Anna's house for a birthday party for her daughter. We are getting the torsion springs on the garage fixed today which have been broken for about 4 months. The garage door won;t open without someone helping it along. Aside from that it's life as usual, Crysta has basketball practice every day and they both have Dragon Boat practice about once a month. Aside from that, not much to report. Later!

What's Going On

Not much to report out here the past week. I spent all weekend painting our front metal gate. Scraped of all the old paint I could and then put on 2 coats of primer and 2 coats of paint. Hope I don't have to do it again. I then cleaned the aquarium in time to sit down and watch the game on Saturday. The King did what she does best and went shopping. Crysta has made the JV basketball team at her new high school with practice every day after school. So much work to be done around the house that aside from OU games, I plan to do nothing else on weekends until I get caught up. I figure sometime in June should be about right. Hope everyone is doing well!

Napa Valley

Well this past weekend I was stuck with a very emotional dilemma. On one hand I had the OU/Texas game to watch. On the other hand, one of my very good friends and his wife from New Orleans was in town. The King and I took them out to dinner Friday night at Fisherman's Wharf and really had a good time. They were asking us whether it was better to take a tour of Napa or just try it on their own. You have no idea how long and hard it was for me to utter the words' We would love to take you". In the end, I made the right choice. We really had a good time and I only thought about the game a few times. My friend did tell me later in the afternoon that we had lost, but we were having a good time and I didn't dwell on it.

Happy Birthday to the King!

Would like to wish the King a very Happy Birthday. Long Live The King!

Crysta's Birthday

Here is the gang celebrating Crysta's Birthday at BJ's Brewhouse. It was her idea to go there. Honestly!

Dance Workout

For Crysta's birthday, Mom got her a Playstation 2 game called "Dance revolution SuperNova" It's a really cool game that you mimics on a dance pad that you get to go with it. The kids had been playing it and we decided to get a second mat so that you could go head to head with two people. It is really fun plus you are getting a workout. Here is a picture of the two of them playing it.

Dragon Boat Races

Yesterday was the 11th Annual International Dragon Boat Festival held at Treasure Island here in the city. We awoke before the crack of dawn and delivered our race contestant before the sun ever rose. We then proceeded to spend the next twelve hours next to the bay under a perfect sunny day watching dragon boat races. We were there to cheer on Elijah and Lincoln High School where he and Crysta go to school. Lincoln has three teams and Elijah's team are the first year group. The other boats have been doing it longer. Traditionally Lincoln and Lowell High School are the top high school teams in California as well as the U.S. They had races to determine the seedings and in the first race they were up against the top team from Lowell and held their own. From there they went into the semi finals which determined their class. They were then in the "B" class finals. They started off very good and led throughout the entire race. It was so nerve racking hoping that another boat would not catch them and pass them at the end, but they didn't. They won the Class "B" division and won themselves gold medals. The top ranked Lincoln team won the "A" Division as well. The King and I are both very proud of him for doing this. We had no idea that he wanted to join the team. He didn't tell us until after he made the team and then he looked forward to every practice. He was always totally exhausted after each practice but really enjoyed every one of them. It was really great to see all of their hard work pay off. And all of those days that I had to take him and pick him up from practice and wait for him was worth it to see him so happy when they won. It was a good day!

Give em Hell and Get Well!

All of us here at West Coast Peavine wish UK a very speedy recovering from his ordeal yesterday. It is certainly no surprise to any of us that this happened, only that it doesn't happen more often. We are very happy to hear that it's not anything serious and that G-man is alright as well. Being over there and seeing the way they drive it's no surprise that the locals saw nothing wrong with it, that's how they are. Sorry you had to find out first hand, but are proud that you stood up for yourself. Never thought you would be the one the Day Officer had to bail out! Remember to look all 4 ways when crossing the street!

Autumn Moon Festival

This past weekend was the Autumn Moon Festival. In the Chinese culture it is very similar to Thanksgiving. The King and I took her mother up to Chinatown for the event. We first went and had Dim Sum at our regular spot there in Chinatown. After that we went and bough Moon Cakes. They are a type of cake that is usually about 3 x 3 and have different fillings in them. The King really likes the ones that have what I call dried egg yolks inside of them. I could do without those. After making our purchases we walked along the streets and checked out the hundreds of vendors selling all kinds of good stuff as well as performers doing there thing. We will probably eat Moon Cake for a few days now, trying different ones each night. It was a beautiful day here and we had a good time.

Week of Caring

Every year Chevron has their United Way campaign to raise money for non-profit organizations in and around the Bay Area. I have been on the core team of that for years but in the last few years I have been in charge of my OPCO's campaign. Each year we also have what is know as Week of Caring where people volunteer for different projects to work at. Chevron had over 2600 people that volunteered for different organizations. I worked at The Habitat For Humanity building houses for low income families, which here in the Bay Area would include me, but I digress. It was very hard work and it was a very hot day, but worthwhile in the end. Also as part of the same week, Crysta's ROTC group cleaned up the beach near the Cliff House for a few hours. She said they picked up a lot of trash except for the dead seal they found. This is me hanging inside a window. They asked who was not afraid of heights and I raised my hand. I got to work on putting up the roof. Did I mention it was hot! The smart ones were all working inside the house

Giants Game

Well I have been really bad and haven't blogged in a while, so I will do my best to catch you all up. A few weeks ago we got to go see a Giants game with some people I work with. Only this time we got to sit in the Chevron Suite. Since Chevron is a major sponsor of the Giants they have their own suite behind home plate. It is very plush with all of the food and drink that you want right there. There are sofa's and chairs inside if you want to watch on the plasma screen. But we sat outside and had a blast. If you wanted anything to eat you just called the kitchen and they brought it up to you. I think even Crysta got a little sick from all of the food she ate. The Giants won the game and we all had a really good time. I do think we are spoiled now and it will never be the same to just sit in the stands.

Happy Birthday Jeanne!

Jeanne, we hope you have a wonderful birthday!

Labor Day Camping

Well I hope you all had a great Labor Day holiday. We went with some friends of the King camping at a YMCA camp just outside of San Francisco. It was really a beautiful place in the woods. We went horseback riding which was the first time any of them had ever been on a horse. We also went canoeing which was really pretty and peaceful where they had it. The kids played a lot of basketball with the other kids that were in our group. We also made soap! All in all it was a pretty good time and the people we were with are all really nice people. I did feel like I was back in Hong Kong with 20 people all staying in the same cabin.

Happy Birthday Nate!

All of us out here on the West Coast would like to wish Nate a very Happy Birthday! Hope you have a great day and we look forward to more stories about your football team.

Labor Day Weekend

Well I hope everyone has a great Labor Day Weekend. We are going camping with a group of the Kings friends an hour down the coast. Still have not decided if I want to drive home on Saturday to watch the OU game. What would here friends say or think? It's only an hour away. I should probably stay there and watch it when I get home. Seems like the right thing to do. Well whatever you have planned I hope it's nice and safe!

15 Seconds

They say everyone get's 15 minutes of fame. Well this past weekend I had my 15 seconds, which is really all that I need. The local ABC station out here did a piece on volunteer work. My company is the largest volunteer company in Northern California. While we were at the local Food Bank volunteering, ABC was there filming for the episode. They say the camera adds about 10 pounds to you. Well they must have had about 10 cameras on me, and the glare from my head was blinding. They tried to interview me but I was to quick and had moved on before they could catch me. Please, no autographs!

After the Garage Sale

Well we had our garage sale this past weekend and got rid of some stuff. Not nearly as much as I would have liked but a very good start. I will give the rest to Goodwill and haul of the rest to the dump. We cleared around $700 for the 2 days. The King & Crysta made very good sales ladies, as they worked the crowd. I remember what Jeanne said about the people. We did have a few strange folks come by. There was the guy who had to have everything shown to him about how it works. We wanted him to leave, but the King just kept showing him stuff. Then there was the lady who was a little confused. She would come by and by some of the kids Pokemon cards. Just grab some and random, pay and then leave. An hour later she would be back after changing her clothes and get some more. She came back a few more times, each time in different clothes where she started buying golf balls a few at a time. Somewhere she is sitting with some really bad Pokemon cards and about 5 golf balls. It was also a really great way to meet the neighbors who came by. You always see them and wave, but now we actually know their names and their kids. I gave all of my old clothes to our day janitor at the office. She takes them and gives them to the people in Mexico. Next time I'm in Mexico I will probably recognize everyone or at least their clothes. I 'm getting closer to my dream of a house without unneeded things!!!

Garage Sale

We spent Sunday pulling stuff out to have a garage sale next weekend. It is amazing how much crap you can accumulate over time. We were able to empty out a room with so much stuff to get rid of. I know we won't get rid of enough to make me happy. The King seems to hang on to everything she has ever had. I am willing to part with a lot of my stuff. Only keeping things that have sentimental value, of which I have about 4 boxes and she has about 40 boxes. Hopefully the sale will go through and be a big success.

Back To Chinatown

It has been almost 3 months since we were in the SF Chinatown. We went sometime in May before we left for China and have not been since we got back. The King had not cooked Chinese food since we got back. I think that was because all we had on the trip was Chinese and she was paying us back. We went to Chinatown on Saturday to buy some groceries to get back to our old routine of eating Chinese food. I had begun to miss Chinatown, but quickly realized once we got there that I hadn't. It's funny, I really miss the China that we visited. Everyone here is pushy, rude and spits all over the place, plus it's just dirty. To me, it was just the opposite in China. None of that stuff went on like it does here, it probably has a lot to do with the consequences they face in China. Spitting will get you 2 years in prison over there. So I have decide that the Chinese that come to the states are like the kids from divorced families, they go live with the parent who will let them get away with stuff. All of the Chinese that don't want to follow the rules or deal with the consequences of their actions move to the states. I know things are tough in China with little or no freedom, but I'm having trouble finding fault with that. We might have a little too much freedom. Ride a bus or the subway in China then ride one here. I would pick theirs every time. No one eats or drinks or plays loud music over there. You want to kill half the people here for being a**holes. Enough of my rant, that's just how I felt after going back to our Chinatown.

Week In Review

Nothing very exciting happening out here. The weather has been very nice in the city, usually around 68 during the day. Elijah has joined a Dragon Boat team and has been practicing. For those who do not know what Dragon Boat racing is, please check out this site http://www.cdba.org/aboutdragonboat.shtml. He really seems excited about it and they practice 3 times a week for 3 hours. Did a little back to school shopping this weekend and then went to dinner with the King's parents and her brother Wing's family. After dinner their two kids came over and are staying at our house until they get bored or 4 kids is just too much for us. They have been no problem and they all seemed to be getting along and having a good time. Yesterday we went and bought a new bed for Elijah and that just got me started on cleaning up the place. We did a lot of cleaning with so much more to do. We are planning on having a garage sale the weekend of the 26th. Looking to unload a bunch of stuff. I smoked some ribs for dinner (I'm getting much better at it) and we ate. All in all not much excitement but life in general. Later!

Candy Dulfer Concert

Well this weekend we went to the Rodney Strong Winery in Healsdburg to see Candy Dulfer in concert. Not sure if you all know who she is, but she is a terrific jazz saxophone player who plays with people like Prince and Van Morrison when she is not touring on her own. She lives in The Netherlands and rarely tours in the States. So suffice it to say that I was very excited she was playing a show out here. We had really great seats and enjoyed a VIP wine and food tasting before the show. There was a group called Brain Culberson and Eric Darius that opened the show and they were both very good. Candy played after them and she was great. After the show we were able to get everyone's autograph. It was a good day!

Silver Oak Winery

The King and I went up to the Sonoma Wine country this weekend to see a concert. We stopped off at the Silver Oak winery where they were having their Summer Release Party. The winery only makes Cabernet and they were releasing the 2002 Cabernet. It was a huge party with a lot of good food and some great wine. We really had a good time.

Happy Birthday's!

Happy birthday to both Mike and Terri! Hope you both have a great day! Not too much going on here except the heat. I know it's not anywhere what you are having in Oklahoma, but it's pretty warm. Especially when you don't have air conditioning. We went to a Giants game last Saturday and saw them win. Sunday I fired up my new grill for the first time. We got some shark steaks at the store and grilled them. They were very good! I was on Jury Duty most of this week, but have done my civic duty for at least another year. Last night we went out to dinner with two of the families that were on the China tour that live near us. It was really good to see them again. It brought back some nice memories the first time the kids went "ewww" This Saturday the King and I will head up into the wine country to see a concert at the Rodney Strong Winery. We are going to see Candy Dulfer who is a jazz saxophonist that I have liked for a long time. Mike may know here as the girl who plays on Princes' albums. Glad to hear everyone is doing well and UK made it back safely from Guam. Till next time, Later!

Where's Your Mom?

Keeping track of Mom to make sure she didn't wonder off and avoid getting those calls from the front desk.

The King Says Hello To A Local

Our Tour Group

Update

Well it's been tough having to work a whole week. Sure do miss the days in China where you didn't even think about work. Not much going on here, kids are just hanging around the house while the King and I work. Bought me a new grill the other night, so I will probably test it out this weekend. For those of you waiting to see the pictures, be patient. I have been working on them this whole week when I could and I have about a third of them cleaned up and labeled. I would like to thank UK for putting up with us and for being a top notch tour guide, it was really great to see him. I find that I really miss having someone salute me when I walk by, oh well I got to enjoy it for a little while. Later!

For Mom this year, her birthday fell while we were in Hong Kong. We went to Macau that morning, taking a 1 hour boat ride over to the island. We then spent the day seeing the sights in Macau and then took the ferry back to Hong Kong. My mission was to get Mom some American food for the evening. We had some wonderful Chinese food the whole trip, but every once in a while you need something different. Truth be told, we were looking for a KFC when we stumbled across the Hong Kong Hard Rock. We went inside and proceeded to have some of the best nacho's we had ever had. Not really, but they were the best at that moment. We then scarfed down some cheeseburgers. They started playing the Beatles "Today is your Birthday" on the sound system, and then they put on the monitors "Happy Rockin Birthday to Layanda!" Mom wondered who Layanda was until she turned around and all of the staff from the Hard Rock was right behind her. They asked her to stand on the chair, which she politely refused, and the whole place sang Happy Birthday to Layanda. It was pretty cool!

Hanging in the Forbidden City

On the Great Wall

Mom eating eels in Nanjing

We Are Out of Here

Well the day has finally arrived and I can't wait for it to be over. I am not looking forward to the 12 hour flight to Beijing. Last night Crysta graduated from Middle School and then a party after with her friends. I have had 4 hours sleep but seem surprisingly awake. Hope I go comatose on the plane. Well we probably won't be able to update until we get to UK. We will let you all know how we are doing as soon as we can. Maybe we will find an Internet Cafe in Beijing. Later!!

Weekend Recap

Well, I hope that everyone had a nice and safe Memorial Day weekend. We spent some time on Saturday morning at carnival Street Fair in the Mission District. From there we went to the East Bay for the King to do a little shopping. Later that evening we went to see the new "X-Men" movie, which was pretty good. Sunday we got up and went to see the Giants play the Colorado Rockies and to see Barry Bonds hit his 715 homerun. It was really cool to be there and see something like that in front of a home crowd. It was wild! Yesterday the King got her haircut and so did Elijah in preparation for our trip to China. It's getting closer and I guess it's about time to start getting ready for it.

Our Champions

This past weekend Crysta and her basketball team played in the Championship for her league. It was a very exciting game, but the girls fell just a little short losing by 2 points at the buzzer. The girls were very disappointed but played their hearts out and that is all that matters. We were very proud of Crysta. After the game the parents decided to take the girls out to Chevy's a local Mexican chain to celebrate. This was the last game the girls would play together after 4 years. They will all move on to different high schools next year. They all quickly got over the disappointment and had a great time. They sat at one table raising hell and the parents sat at the other one drinking margaritas. It was good to see them really enjoying themselves.

Mother's Day

Well I hope all of you lovely ladies had a wonderful Mother's Day. It was a beautiful day here in WC Peavine. I got up, wished the King a Happy Mother's Day and let her watch her Chinese shows in bed. I then went down and washed our 3 cars. It's times like that I don't like having 3 cars. The the King got to do her favorite thing and go shopping at Ross. When she returned from her outing, me and the kids took her to her favorite Vietnamese place in Oakland, Le Cheval. We had a very nice dinner and the company was very good.

Art Show

Last week the King and I went to the sophomore Art Show at Ethan's school. Each year they have a show and the students submit pieces for the show. Of those pieces the teachers pick the ones to showcase. This year Ethan had a drawing and about 3 digital photo's that were displayed. His sculpture met with an untimely demise. It was held at the gallery at his school. Food and drink was provided for the guests, but the kids ate it all before the guests could get to it. This is the drawing that he had submitted, which I thought was pretty good. The parents were all encouraged to buy the pieces, but Ethan chose not to sell his. I don't think he is ready to go pro.

Weekend Update

The King and I enjoyed the day on Thursday at the Giants afternoon game against the Chicago Cubs. It was a perfect day and the Giants beat the Cubs pretty easily on the day. It was really exciting every time that Barry Bonds came up to bat. 42,000 people would all stand and hope to see him send one out of the Park, but to no avail. We then spent Saturday up in Chico which is a big college town about 3 hours north of SF. We took the King's mother to visit a friend she has known since her childhood in China. After that we went and had lunch at the Sierra Nevada Brewery which you know I really enjoyed. The food was really good and the beer was great as well. That evening we went for Malaysian food in Chinatown which turned out to be very good. My favorite dish was one called Lady Fingers sauted in garlic. For those who do not know what Lady fingers are, me included, it was okra.

Looking down Columbus Street

It must be noon somewhere?

Sunny Sunday

Well yesterday was just a perfect day to be outside. We had gone out to dinner on Saturday with some of the King's friends for the Hong Kong Alumni Association. There was good food and dance lesson's that the King took part in. We awoke to perfect weather yesterday so we took off to enjoy the day. We first went to the Ferry Building which sits at the end of Market Street. They had remodeled it and I wanted to see it. It was full of gourmet and organic shops of food and everything you can imagine. We had fresh baked bread and homemade marshmallows that were so good. We then went to North Beach & Chinatown where we had some good Thai food and then went over to the Pacific Brewing Company so I could have a beer and sit out on the sidewalk and enjoy the weather. Then it was off to Ross so the girls could get in a little shopping. After that we went home and grilled some of the specialty sausages we had bought that morning, including lamb and duck sausage. The duck was better than the lamb for those who are keeping score.

Happy Birthday April!

All of us here on the West Coast want to wish April a very Happy Birthday! Wish we could be there to celebrate with you. We Love You!

Visa's

Well I took yesterday off and waited in line to get our Visa's for China. It was a pretty long line but moved pretty quickly. I will go back and pick them on Friday. Tomorrow they are coming back to finish fixing our refrigerator. Sure will be nice not having to run downstairs when you need something. Later!

Early Mother's Day

Sunday here was just perfect! It was about 70 with not a cloud in the sky. The King and the kids went to Dim Sum with Elijah's paternal grandparents so I had the day to myself. I spent 6 hours working in the backyard, pulling weeds and just cleaning it up. I could barely move by the end of the day. Then later that evening we went to dinner with the King and her family to celebrate an early Mother's Day. It's not always easy to get everyone together. We went out for the typical 10 course meal. We tried a much different dinner than we normally do. We had a crab, I'm not sure what type it was, but it was huge and provided about 3 of the dishes. I have enclosed a photo of the bad boy. Seems like we have to take before and after photo's of our food. Still not sure on why we do that, but we do.

Elijah's Birthday

Well Saturday was a pretty busy day for us. First of all it was Elijah's birthday, secondly it was Freshman orientation for Crysta at her new school for next year. She will be going to the same high school as Elijah, which is Lincoln High. It's only 2 buses away versus around the corner. She had to go for placement tests and to meet counselor's. Then later that evening Ethan and his girlfriend Stephanie came over and we took Elijah out to dinner for his birthday. It was a nice dinner at BJ's Brewhouse and then we went back home so he could check out his prizes.

Enjoying the Sun

Not much to report this weekend. The sun was finally out and stayed dry this weekend. Been a long time since that has happened. Spent part of Saturday cleaning the house and working out in the back, repotting some stuff. We then cooked out on Saturday night, invited the King's parents over for some steaks. Took the King to Ross on Sunday and then cooked burgers out for her parents again. Getting ready to head back home to meet the Sears guy. Seems our fridge is having problems and needs repair. Till next time.

Happy Birthday Edge!

All of us out here on the West Coast would like to wish the Edge man a very happy birthday!!

We love you buddy!!

I Feel Your Pain

Well after this last weekend I can certainly sympathize with Greg and Jeanne. We spent two days looking for a dress for Crysta. She will be having her 8th grade graduation luncheon where they all get dressed up. It was a whole lot easier with Elijah. Just got him a shirt and tie to match his slacks. We hit several malls and traveled over 200 miles in search of "The Dress" We finally managed to find a few that she liked, she now just has to decide which one she likes best. She tried them on and we took photo's of each so she could look at them later. Sorry no photo's for the blog. She made me promise I wouldn't put any up yet. She looked so pretty and grown up, she's never allowed to date. The King and I have decided at least not until she is 21. Other than that we just tried to stay dry. It keeps on raining here, but it may have stopped for a few days, at least until maybe Friday. The kids were on Spring Break last week, and with it raining every day they were pretty loopy by the end of the week since they were inside the whole time. Hope everyone had a nice Easter and that the kids (Mike & Greg) enjoyed the egg hunt. Loved Edge's doo rag! Till Later!

Still Kicking

Well another weekend has come and gone without to much fanfare. Crysta had another game and her team won again. They are doing pretty well this year. Didn't do much this weekend. The King and her family went to visit a relative of her mother's on Saturday leaving me and the kids at home. We watched the OU women play softball and then watched the OU Spring game on ESPN. We then went out to dinner when the King got back at this new Chinese place that was pretty good. Got up yesterday and went to Chinatown so the King and her Mom could do their grocery shopping. We went for Dim Sum while we were there. Once we got home The King and the kids made wonton for wonton soup. It was pretty good. Looks like rain here again today, which has been happening a lot lately. I can only remember about two days that it hasn't rained in the last month and a half. Until next time!

Water Logged

Well this weekend we loaded up and went down to Great America amusement park and rode roller coasters all day. That was in between the rain showers. In the month of March here, it rained 25 days of the month. It was a record. When we left Saturday morning it was raining pretty hard and everyone was looking at me like I was crazy. But by the time we got there the rain had stopped and we were able to enjoy the day. On Sunday we went to the cemetery for the Chinese ritual of the families going to the graves and having a picnic. I'm sure their is a more technical name for it. The entire family gets together and takes all sorts of food and drink to the graves. Incense is burned along with candles. Wine is poured on the graves for the ancestors to enjoy as well as leaving food for them to enjoy. Fake money is burned, so that they will have money in the afterlife. It must have been the last day of the celebration because I have never seen so many people at a cemetery in my life. Plus it was raining. After the rituals were completed we packed up all of the food and went back to the King's parents to eat. As we start another week out here they say it should rain for the next two weeks. Oh well! On another note: Auna you were simply stunning.

Karaoke Anyone?

Well this past weekend was the ever popular and always highly anticipated Tam Family Association Dinner. In the Chinese culture there are family associations which are like little clubs. They can be for a family or for a village in a certain area of China. The King's uncle is one of the leaders of the Tam Association. The evening is a chance for friends and family to get together enjoy a typical 10 course Chinese banquet and to catch up on what's new. But the highlight for me has always been the Karaoke part of the evening. Through out the evening, some of the more mature people get up and sing their favorite Chinese tunes. But wait it gets better. They really enjoy doing Chinese Opera, which sang by the best singers in the world is still a little like hearing a cat get gutted. And we always seem to get a really good table by the speakers. It's a night to remember. The King and her parents really seem to enjoy the evening and that's all that really matters. On another note, Crysta's basketball team had another game and notched another victory. They are now 4-1 in league play. She had a few points plus a couple of really wicked passes. Till next time!

Fries with that Shake?

Well not too much going on here today, other than the 9 little earthquakes we have had in the last hour and a half. Most of them have been pretty small where you hardly notice them. There was one that was a 3.7 that you could just feel rolling in and then right on by. It was pretty cool. It's funny to watch peoples reactions, some get very excited and the other half just don't care. Oh well, that's it from here for now.

Weekend Update

Well there is not much to report here in West Coast Peavine. Crysta's team had a basketball game on Saturday in Half Moon Bay which they did not win. The probably should have, but there were a lot of mistakes they could not overcome. Spent the rest of the weekend doing a little house cleaning and watching a lot of basketball on TV. Again, Happy Birthday to Auna and hope that she had a great time!

3-0!

Crysta had her third game this morning. The team they were playing are all much taller than our girls. I told the King that it would probably be very ugly. But to our amazement the girls played the best game I think either one of us has ever seen them play. They ended up winning by about 20 points. Crysta had a few plus some nice steals.

Hail Yes!

Well it wasn't the same as Peavine, but we did get to go outside and play in the hail storm last night. It's beginning to look a lot like Xmas.

Another Win

Crysta had her second game last night and they won that one as well. They are now 2-0 with their 3rd game tomorrow morning. Woke up this morning to what I thought was a very heavy rain. But then I remembered that sound and looked outside. The ground and all of the cars was covered in hail. It blanketed everything. There is a big storm that is due to come in with very cold temperatures this evening. They are predicting snow on the mountains around the city including Twin Peaks where we have gone for a view of the city.

Will you call me later?

Well, I finally went yesterday and got a physical exam. The last one I had was in 1981. The King has been after me for a while to get one. Well boy's just so you know, we are at that age where we get the old one finger salute. I wasn't expecting it, which is probably a good thing or I would have been stressing about it. I do find it funny though that they put you in the fetal position when they administer the test. In case you want to sob uncontrollably afterwards I guess. It really wasn't that bad at all and whatever he was looking for was normal. Sorry there are no photo's to accompany this blog entry.

Booked

Well, we have booked our trip to China and Crysta has her official birth certificate. We applied for her passport on Saturday. She also had her first game of the basketball season on Friday night and they won. After we applied for her passport on Saturday, we went to Chinatown and finalized our trip. We then went shopping at a local mall while my car was being looked at. Greg would have enjoyed the mall on this day. They were having a memorabilia show. Lots of tables with people and all sorts of cards and memorabilia. I bought a few autographed cards of OU players. Later that evening we took the King's parents to my favorite place for beer and pizza. So maybe I was the only one who had pizza, but I think they enjoyed it. Spent yesterday just watching TV, it was a cold and rainy day here. Showed my boss the picture Jeannie had of the Big Daddy and he was asking if it was really as big as it looked. Sure would like one now.

Passports

Well we finally got around to getting our passports this past weekend. Well, I should say everyone but Crysta. Seems she did not have the "Official" birth certificate that is required to get your passport. Even though it said "official Document" on it. The King and I will need to go to the Health Department this week and get her an "Official" one. We will then go back on Saturday and get her wrapped up. We are waiting to hear from the one tour company to see if they can get the flights we want back from Hong Kong. If they can't we will go with the first agency that we had. Last night we had our family dinner for Chinese New Years. This included all of the King's family. That's about it for now, it is raining pretty bad here today and looks like it might for the week. Later

Monarch Sanctuary

The Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary in Pacific Grove. If you look closely at the branches you can see they are still sleeping in.

Pacific Grove

Well this past weekend, the King and I went down south to a town called Pacific Grove. It sits between Monterey and Carmel. We stayed at a place called Asilomar that used to be a YMCA retreat. It was a very nice place on the ocean and nestled in the woods. We stayed at what's called Deer Lodge, because there were deer lounging around outside and sleeping by the front door. We went down and she let me play in the tide pools for a while, checking out all of the starfish, anenomes and nudibrank. It was very cool. We then went down to Big Sur and watched the sun set. In between we ate at some very nice places that we had heard about. For breakfast I had 3 blueberry pancakes that were the size of the plate. I could not eat it all, but they were very good. We went to the Monarch butterfly sanctuary before we left the next morning, but the butterflies were still sleeping. We then drove home up Highway 1 all the way back home where the kids were glad to see us. It was a very nice getaway that the King had arranged and the weather was perfect for it.

Yard Work

Well, I took a few hours in between the OU basketball game and the Super Bowl last Sunday to work on my never ending project in the backyard. I got up early and went to my favorite store Lowe's to purchase some more plants and bricks. Carrying those bricks is always a treat. They weigh 65 pounds a piece and I have to carry them upstairs. Since it had been raining a bit, the ground was pretty easier to dig in the usual. I planted 10 new plants and trimmed the grasses and will probably plant some more until I have used all of the space out back. It's a lot of work but I do enjoy it.

Say Cheese!

Well I finally got everyone together to go get their passport photo's taken this past Saturday. We went to a place in Chinatown where the King knows the people. It was kind of amusing. The King had us all get dressed up to go take our pictures. I was wearing my usual OU t-shirt which I know I will wear on the plane as well as anywhere else we are in China. But NO... that was not good enough. So after finally compromising on a shirt, off we went. We all took our pictures, but no one was as primped as the King. I tried to look like I had just gotten off of a 15 hour flight, but I looked a little to perky. Everyone was happy with their photo's except for the King. She was most unpleased because her hair was out of place and considered a retake. We talked her out of it and it only cost us $20 for all 4 of us. Next I will have to force them to go get their passports, which is tough because most of the offices are only open until 4 during the week. We will have to get the kids out of school.

Hair of the Dog

Well we had our traditional Chinese New Year's meal last night. Evidently this is the meal you have on the second night of the New Year. The main dish is the one with dried mushrooms, dried oysters and the black moss that looks just like hair. Hence Hair of the Dog. We also had a whole chicken and when I say whole, it was. I think that I will declare now that Cinco De Mayo is a week long event. I have added some photo's so you can experience my joy through your eyes. Please don't worry, I have saved some for all of you!

Year of the Dog

Well the Year of the Dog has arrived in all it's glory. I can only imagine what Pizzaman must be experiencing in Shanghai. It must be 10 times more festive than it is here. We did the house cleaning on Saturday and finished before nightfall. The King and I then took her parents out to dinner for New Year's eve. Everyone had to wash their hair on that day because you do not wash your hair on New Year's day in fear you will wash away any good fortune. You also are not allowed to do any work on New Year's Day. I'm cool with that one. We then went o DimSum on New Year's Day with the rest of the Asian community here. Everyone wearing their new clothes and wearing red. It wasn't to hard for me to find something red to wear. The kids then went to visit all of their grandparents so that they could get their Red Envelopes, which are filled with crisp new bills. The King and I went out for dinner while the kids were counting their money and I just had to go get a steak, I had plenty of Chinese food for a few days. Tonight we will have the traditional New Year's meal that has one of my favorites.....Not! It's a black seaweed that looks and taste just like hair. Can't wait for that! That's it for know from here. Gung Hei Fat Choi!

American Idol

Well it's our favorite time of year again. That's right American Idol. The kids and I really enjoy sitting down and laughing our heads off at all the these people who think they are the next Idol. I like the ones that say they always win Karaoke contest and their friends say they should enter. Every Karaoke bar I've been to, people are usually really drunk by the time they get up to sing and so are their friends that are there. Last night they were in West Coast Peavine, how embarrassing!

New Year Preparations

Well you can see that it is getting closer to the Chinese New Years. The Flower Festival was this last weekend and I'm sure a lot of overpriced flowers, fruit trees and flowering tree branches were purchased. It's funny, our flowering plum tree out front always seems to get pruned this time of year by someone. You would pay about $50 for a branch at the Flower Festival. The girls went out on Sunday and got their New Years haircuts and I gave one to Elijah. We will now put our Pomellos and our tangerines along with the New Years candy and leave it until just before it rots.

Winchester House

I was in meetings all of last week in Concord. On one of the days we did a Team Building activity and went to the Winchester House down in San Jose. It was owned by the widow and heir to the Winchester Gun company. The lady was told by a phychic after her husband and child had died that she was being haunted by the spirits of people that had died at the hands of a Winchester gun. And to keep the spirits away she would have to keep building on her house. She kept workers busy 24/7 for 34 years. There are stairs that go into the ceiling, windows in the floor. You could easily get lost in there. It was really pretty interesting, but very spooky.

And So It Begins

Well this past weekend started off pretty wet, which actually gave us a chance to take down all of our Christmas decorations. Then it was time to work on the rest of the house. I cleaned out some of my drawers and am amazed at how many clothes I have. After thinning it out a bit we then went out and had dinner with some of Elisa's oldest friends at a really nice Chinese resturant in South San Francisco. The food was really good and her friends are really nice people.
Sunday was a beautifull day with plenty of sun. I started out by cleaning out the aquarium and then watching football games. Elisa went to Dim Sum with her Mother and brother Wing, and then on to her favorite sport... SHOPPING! Last night we had the first of many family dinners to celebrate the Chinese New Year which is in 2 weeks. That was about it out here on the West Coast.

Sac Town Gathering

Well the West Coast Peavine group gathered this past Saturday for Brandon and Estela's wedding. It was a very nice event with some great mexican food at the reception that followed. It was nice to see that the family cleans up very well and we look respectable when we need to. We then spent the day on Sunday enjoying the food in the Bay Area with family and friends as we tried out two new Chinese restuarants. Afterwards we spent the rest of a nice winter day hanging out at the zoo and taking in the sun. Looking forward to seeing pictures of Pizzaman's new abode.