Spring Arrived in Seattle on April 5, 2009

Woke up ear-ly to meet Randy and Erin at the Pancake Carole in Bellevue. Rainier Mountain was out in its full glory. Enjoyed strawberry pancakes, hash browns, and great conversation.

Sun was rising and the air was fresh.

Drove to mom’s and dad’s to meet mom to drive to Mt. Vernon to meet with more family. Mt. Baker majestically silhouetted against the sky. Enjoyed a lovely lunch with Auntie Nadine, Mom and friends. Surrounded in heat as the sun warmed the drive.

Sun was out and it was beautiful.

Drove back home to mom and dad’s. Gave Big Red a bath. She sparkles now. Was a very reflective, thoughtful and productive car washing. I realized I’ve been washing cars from the same brown bucket my entire life. It could quite possibly be the most perfect bucket if there were such a thing. I hope that bucket never gets a hole. Not sure I’ll be able to wash a car without it.

Sun was glowing and warm.

Retreating from the indoors, I crawled into the truck bed of Dad’s Ford. Rolled up the jeans, took off the shoes, removed as many layer of clothes as to remain modestly appropriate should a wild animal came across my path and I need to dart for safety. I basked in the sun. Started a new book. Listened to the birds and felt the sun soaking into my wintered skin.

Sun couldn’t satiate quick enough.

Today was the real first day of spring after a very long winter. I could go on metaphorically speaking, but I mean it as literal as possible. The sun literally tingled my skin. The birds were lively and active. The country fields were colorful and flourishing. I wish there were a grander word for “glorious” that I knew, because that’s the word I would use.

Did I mention the sun?....Glorious.

City Girl

Once the clock strikes midnight I may not turn into a pumpkin but I will be on a plane headed back east to stay on a farm in Western Massachusetts (Petersham) for a week. My flight leaves at 11:30 pm April 15th and I will be off to live a simpler life, even if it is only for a week.

Now, the image of me on a farm even boggles my mind, that I’m sure my loyal followers can’t even imagine. But I love it. This is why I had to laugh when I saw this story today. This is what I think me as a farmer could POSSIBLY look like:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1163641/So-thats-tones-arms-Michelle-Obama-starts-digging-White-House-vegetable-garden.html

This commentary is better:
http://www.slate.com/blogs/blogs/xxfactor/archive/2009/03/22/michelle-rakes-the-world-shakes.aspx


It's like looking in the mirror. You can take the girl out of the city but you can’t take the city out of the girl.

Amen.

The Challenge 2009: Biel Body

In 3 months I will be the maid of honor in my Best Friend’s wedding. In exactly 3 months I need to have the body that rivals Jessica Biel. Here’s how I ended up participating in a wager that could be make this the longest 3 months of my life.

Thursday night I enjoyed an amazing dinner that easily doubled the recommended daily caloric intake. Friday morning I woke up feeling giant as a house. So I made a new commitment to my personal health and fitness level. I turned over a new health leaf, packed my gym clothes and packed a healthy lunch. When I got to work, a colleague jokingly sent me an email asking if I brought my stuff for the gym. I respond with an affirmative, to which he replied, “Ut oh, what happened?” as if the only thing that would get me to the gym would be some sort of emotional/self-esteem crisis (which could very well be true). To which he responded with, “Let’s have competition!” I took the bait and here I am now. I have 3 months to be in the best shape of my life. The loser buys the other person dim sum for the rest of the year. There is a panel comprised of 5 judges who will determine the winner. Those are all the details we’ve worked out so far. At the end of this all….if I win I will post the before and after pictures.

Seven Reasons Why I’ll Win:

1. If I know I CAN win as something I WILL…I am fiercely competitive when it comes to things I can control and have extraordinary will-power. C’mon, I’m a Virgo.
2. I think people think that I’m not at fit as I actually am because I still wear clothes that I wore when I was 30 lbs heavier so I look larger than I actually am. I certainly have a ways to go but not an unrealistic amount.
3. He is cocky and has no fear of the underdog. That is motivation enough…call it the Rudy-syndrome.
4. I think it’s easier to tone up and lose weight than it is to muscularly lean down, which is what he has to do.
5. My eating habits are way better than his. My natural food allergies and abstaining from alcohol gives me a leg up.
6. I really want to look slammin’ for Melissa’s wedding. I’m training for the Seattle Half Marathon in June and the Seattle-to-Portland in July. Besides my vanity, the reason for doing this is also so that I survive both events.
7. Aristotle said, “Probable impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities.” It is a probable impossibility that I could actually pull this off.

So, Biel-body, here I come. Judgment day is June 12. All encouragement and prayers are needed and welcome.

On that note: I had a really tough workout yesterday and can hardly raise my hands above my head. This makes getting dressed and sneezing very painful. Today was a day of rest and tomorrow is cardio and a short strength circuit. I will do my best to keep you posted, oh devoted readers.

Stay tuned.

The Sabbath

It’s Sunday. Three things I love about Sunday: 1.) waking up, turning on 103.7 The Mountain Sunday Brunch Broadcast and enjoying a breakfast at my own pace; 2.) Church – the opportunity for fellowship, worship, centering myself, practicing perspective, gratitude, reverence, humility, etc; 3.) Sunday nights with friends and watching Big Love.

I woke this morning to snow, giant snow flakes falling. My heart sung because I thought it would be the perfect excuse not to go to church. Bad, I know. My feelings about the church in general are for completely different post. I had spent the morning with pops and really had no reason not to go. Even though I really didn’t want to go but I found myself getting ready and thinking to myself that if I went for the first hour I could always leave.

I wanted to participate in the Sacrament which is really my favorite part of church. The sacrament centers me and allows me the uninterrupted opportunity to express my gratitude for all things I have been blessed with. I pray for many things, all things from the farm, my family and friends, complete strangers, guidance for myself, the world, and alike.

In Relief Society, a girl introduced herself to me which isn’t unusual, they are a very friendly bunch. Her name was Hope. There was something about her presence and energy that embodied the very definition of her name. We got to talking she shared that she is a nurse having worked at the UW hospital, Children’s, and now at a nursing home. She spoke with a gentle kindness and brightness that was so sincere it wasn’t unnerving like nice people usually make me feel.

“You cannot be too good. Patience is heavenly, obedience is noble, forgiveness is merciful, and exaltation is godly,”…we read this today and it really resonated. I hope I can take this to heart this week.

For some time I’ve had a really hard time forgiving someone. I’ve been harboring hurtful feeling towards someone who I felt had done me wrong. As I have been working on forgiveness, we read a scripture that I think speaks towards how to forgive. It reads, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one anoth. But this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if you have love one another.” - John 13:34-35. I’m still working on it.

I’m glad I made it to church today. It wasn’t overly “church-y” but it was very fulfilling and calming. There was Hope, there was love, there was beauty.

I close on this Sabbath day with this prayer: Dear Lord, I pray that we might be a light in a very dark world, that we may open our hearts and respond to those in need of compassion, a gentle smile or an extended hand. I pray for eyes to see and ears to hear the opportunities You give us to be better people. I pray for my family, friends, and those around the world who are restless, hurting or afraid. May they find some peace tonight. Amen.

Family Ties

On June 6, 1976, a family from China immigrated to the US with hope of opportunity and a better life. Shan and Choi Wong, along with their three daughters, Joanne, Joyce, and Jennifer touched down in the land of opportunity. Shan Wong is the son of my grandfather, Gar Wong, Sr. My grandfather had two families, one family through an arranged marriage in China of which he had two sons. (Believe you me, the ironic reality that my grandfather may have been a polygimist is not lost on me.) He had "traditional" American family here in the states. And by traditional, he had 4 kids in 5 years with my grandmother and then the divorced after the youngest (my mom) over unknown reasons (perhaps the other wife and kids back in China had something to do with it).

My grandparent's courtship was somewhat unusual given the circumstances. Grandma was a mere 18 years old (had already been married and annuled once, so the story goes). Gar was in his early 30s. The Japanese had bombed Peal Harbor, and in the minds of American, anything that looked Japanese was Japanese. At a dance hall one night, my grandma and good friend of hers went out in the international district (the story goes that they were the only white women there). Gar approached grandma, asked her to dance and she swept her off her feet.

Meanwhile, while my grandfather and grandma were busy having a family here in the US, the Wong family back in China was being raised by a single mother. Gar Sr.'s lives were literally worlds apart.

Over 57 years later, the results of their actions gathered around a table enjoying dim sum, sharing stories and reminicing of times gone by. I sat around the table watching the definition of family evolve. I watched as generations tried to piece together what happened, what were the motivations, how difficult it was to leave Hong Kong, listen to stories of growing up very different lives.

Our family history on the Wong side is something out of The Joy Luck Club, maybe even more salacious and titilating. I think about opportunity, pioneering, and the American dream as all members are citizens raising families and living generously here in the states. I think about the struggles they faced, lives they have built for their families and the opportunities On all sides of the family there as been a violation of probably every one of the 10 Commandents handed down to Moses, some of them multiple times. But I can't help but believe that they did the best they knew how.

These past few months have been very extendend family-intentsive. With two deaths in very large extended families, and the reunion of the other families, I can't help but think about the definition of family. In chinese culture the definition and provisional responsibility is very much based on blood lineage. In Western culture its very much based on a neat nuclear concept. But, as we attempt to define what is family in modern Americam and who belongs to whose family, I look at my extended family, and sit in awe and amazement. We are separated by culture, age and even language, but the familial energy and the eagerness by every to learn about each other was amazing to witness and be a part of.

We live in a culture that wants to define the family as a man and a woman, who have children, raise them, who then grow up to be coupled and procreate. Repeat. Perhaps, the Western definition of family is what complicates our relationships and prevents us from reaching out a helping hand, or begin a healing process, or establishing new families when our blood ones deteriorate. It permiates our legal system, our religious structures, our commercial structure, all the while, including and excluding people from belonging. Once we define boundaries of who and who does not belong in a family, people allow themselve the excuse of, "oh, that's not my responsibility, that's someone else's kid," further removing ourselves from each other and pushing more toward insular, small lives. There is a larger social issue at hand in the last statement that is much larger than this space, but I hope that acknowledging that the nuclear family in today's American society is at the very least a partial contributor to the status of our nation's swelling numbers of foster children, broken homes, single parents left to fend for themselves and depend on government assistance, etc, helps to identify where we can start to solve problems.

Don't get me wrong here, I love the notion of the nuclear family and when it works it works really well. I have been blessed with goodly parents who have loved, raised and provided for me well. I hope to have one of my own one day. But when it doesn't work for some people, the definition of the family excludes those whose nuclear family has failed them. I have no solution but merely wanted to acknowledge that beyond family, I believe we have a responsibility to one another that crosses blood and familial lines. I believe we are called to care for one another, provide for one another, give to one another, and learn from one another and forgive one another as families do. I can't help but think that my family, with all its excentricies, would not be what it is if it weren't for people who openned their hearts and homes and accepted them as family.

There are countless stories of generosity that have ensured my family's survival and success. To all those who reached out and provided, I thank you.

Round Two: Random Thoughts of the Day

• The West Wing may have convinced me that prostitution is a perfectly legitimate way to pay for law school and that the 19th amendment (ERA) is completely unnecessary. I’m sure that’s not right.
• I’m reading about Carl Jung right now and it ironically makes me head want to explode.
• Reading exercises your mind but not your body…thus, actually making you fat. Weird, no?
• I miss meat….particularly sliced ham.
• I really can picture myself living on a farm one day. At least in a farmhouse style home with a small organic garden in the backyard. Canada would do nicely. Or I’ll be traveling the world. One or the other.
• CCR has a song, “Put a Candle in the Window” which is beautiful and is my theme song right now. This could change at any given moment.
• I read a statistic that says 45 % of American between the ages of 18-34 would like to like in New York City. This means, 45 % of American between the ages of 18-34 are clinically insane, completely impractical, suffer from the SATC syndrome and/or delusional.
• This article makes me never want to leave Seattle: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/17/opinion/17brooks.html
• I’d like to go to law school not because I think I’d be a good lawyer but because I think I’d be a good law school student. Of which I told a friend and she replied that was the stupidest thing I could say about going to law school.
• Life is too short to play it safe.
• It is approximately 2,854 driving miles from Seattle, Washington to Durham, North Carolina and would take approximately 40 hours to drive costing $193.61 in gas.
• "Baby Jesus is smiling at you. Have faith." (not my random thought but particularly apropos)

Are You Ready For This?

I got this email from a friend yesterday who knows that I’m going through some stuff. She always knows what to say and again, she didn’t fail. I thought it inspiring enough to share. May we have the heart to respond.

*******
I am going to urge you (ok, more like beg you) to join me in being brave.

Keep your sensitive heart intact but otherwise be ballsy, made of
titanium, fear nothing.

Join me in living life at the highest level.

We have to do this. There is no other way to help our great nation
regain its firm footing.

You can cry, you can eat wheat once in a while, you can wish for all
sort of things, but I want you to wake up knowing you are strong and
loving and that no one will stand in our way.

Are you ready for this?

I hope so.

********

My response to her is a whole-heart, I am ready. Today is a new day to be strong and loving. Today is a new day to forgive and have heart and to rejoice. Today is a new day to right the wrongs, to open our hearts and respond to our callings, and be fearless in spite of or because of the fearful.

I woke up today wanting to be strong, loving and fearless. One day, in the very near future, I will be.

My Weekend Escape - Day 3

Rain and snow mix fell this morning as I lay in bed. The rain was heavy, persistent and perfect. I again, grace Owen and Nadine with my morning pleasantness and we have a lovely breakfast of omelets, watermelon and hot cocoa. We lounged around for a bit and then made cookies (my favorite chocolate chip ones). Nadine made roasted vegetable soup from last night’s casserole which we had for lunch along with focaccia sandwiches. It may seem like I focus a lot on food here but it’s because my aunt really is the best cook I know and I am one of the best eaters that I know. I believe that's really why we get along so well.

The rain continues to fall. I keep "stoking the fire" (a new phrase I learned meaning adding wood to the fire) trying to keep the room has hot as possible without heating my aunt out of her own home. Not much noteworthy has happened today and that I am grateful for. Nadine and I have had a great visit and solved most of the world's problems in the course of a couple hours. We'll have a lovely dinner and watch some West Wing.

On that note, my weekend escape will comes to a close. And to that end, I close.

Namaste.

My Weekend Escape - Day 2

I woke up this morning to the sound of Nadine's voice in the kitchen. I was still feeling tired but more lethargic. It's Saturday which means I go for a run but I really didn't want to go this morning. I lay in bed debating with myself, "To run or not to run." The blue skies told me it would be worth it. So I graced Nadine and Owen with my presence which is always a treat for everyone. Nadine has already made focaccia bread (from scratch) and to dough is rising on the oven. Owen is gearing up to make blueberry waffles (from scratch) and I want to go for my run even less at the thought of all this food. But none the less, I go for my run down to Sargent's Bay just a mile or so from the house. Sargent's Bay is a small provincial park that is as peaceful as it is beautiful and the trip is never complete unless I make it there. There is a piece of large drift wood that jets out the bay that has been there since I've been coming here. I like to lay there and ponder about the life. Today was no different only in that, frost covered the shaded sides the wood and which made lounging on it cold and wet. But I didn't mind. I listened to the waves lap along the shore and marveled at the clarity of the waters and simplicity of it all. I ran back home ready to dive in the waiting blueberry waffles with real Canadian maple syrup. Obviously, I had just been on a good run so justifying eating 2 waffles was very easy. There really was no second thought. We finished breakfast, put the focaccia bread in the oven to bake and went about getting ready for the day. We had a very busy day planned of errands, cooking and eating.
Nadine and I headed out to pick up a few things, including for me, the world's best granola for Wheatberries Bakery, which I make a purpose of picking up every visit. It is $8.00 for a 600g bag but worth every cent. Nadine and Owen were off to a dinner party in the evening and we needed to get dinner on for them to take. After our errands we made it home to start on the Roasted Harvest Vegetables Casserole, peeling and chopping a variety of winter root vegetables. Carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, potato, zucchini, turnips, broccoli and cauliflower, mixed with olive oil, rosemary and other herbs, the casserole is ready to go in the oven. Next, the hummus. Nadine whips up a batch of curried hummus (from scratch) which is the best hummus you'll ever have. Nadine and Owen head out the door with casserole in hand and the evening is mine to myself. The fire to roaring downstairs, my casserole is in the oven and the solitude and stillness is welcomingly palpable. I prop myself in front of the fire which brings me to now. I am more content than I have been in a very long time. I've had a day with the family, eaten great food, spent the morning sitting by the ocean, broke a good sweat, slept a good night's sleep, and been at peace with a lot of things. My heart is quiet, my mind is wondering at a leisure pace. I am in my element of heat by the fire and quiet solitude. The roasted harvest vegetable casserole, fococcia with curried hummus and smoked Gouda cheese made for a lovely dinner. I'll have a bowl granola for dessert and revel in the blessing that this day was.

I write about this weekend which presently seems inconsequential, but in the future, I want to remember this weekend. This weekend I was better than just ok. These days I had warmth, food, family, saw beauty in the trivial, took time to just sit by the water, cherished the time I had with my family, and created new memories. Because, I worry about those days where I won't remember these moments and their just become lost to the hustle and bustle of daily life. I always want to remember the smell of home baked bread with the slightest hint of rosemary lingering in the kitchen. I want to remember the sound of laughter at the stories Auntie Nadine and I share as we go for the long drive on country roads. I want to remember to warmth of the fireplace on my back, the feel of vegetables doused in olive oil, and the softness of clean sheets as I crawl into bed. I want to remember because I am very aware of the fleeting characteristics of life. I am aware that times changes, and we won't always have the opportunities to do what we want when we want it, so do what you want when you want now. Tomorrow, I will do just that, but for now, I'll bask in this moment and wait for tomorrow to come.

My Weekend Escape - Day 1

I live by the firm belief that there are two ways to deal with problems. You can either face them head on OR you can run far far away as fast as possible. I often choose the latter which explains my lack of confrontation skills and inability to cope with conflict. It also explains why I spend lots of time not at home. My go-to retreat is a lovely home on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia. My dearest Auntie Nadine and Uncle Owen call this place home where as I call it my personal B&B. Their home is a safe haven for me where I can just relax, be me, and leave all my worries 176 miles away. It’s just a short drive, ferry ride, and another drive away. From beginning to end, my weekend escapes inevitably are blog-worthy, so here I go.

My Weekend Escape - Day 1:
I hit the road after leaving work around noon. Headed north, I made a quick stop for lunch in Mill Creek and continued on. There was little traffic and I was making good time. I quite enjoy the drive to the border. It’s all very picturesque with the fields and mountains and trees and lakes as it reminds me that country really isn't too far from the city. I passed the time with a phone date with Stacy and eventually reached the border.

Now, a quick word about the border. I quite enjoy going through because 1.) I'm so close to Canada I can see it, 2.) Without fail, I get asked the same questions (where do I live, purpose of my trip, destination, duration of stay, what do I do for a living, where do I work and is the car mine?) so I'm never really nervous like some people get and 3.) I'm always interested about what border patrol officer I'll get. I find that occupation so fascinating I wish I could talk to a border patrol agent and just quiz about crazy stories. As I approached the booth I saw the border patrol officer was a rounder, 35ish gentleman with a friendly yet serious and dry disposition. He asked the purpose of my trip to which I replied, "visiting my aunt." At the end of the standard questions, he threw in the "What will you and your aunt be doing?" I inadvertently chuckled out loud and response with, "You never know." He handed me back my passport and with a sly smile said, "Lucky aunt." I nervously smiled back and drove away. As I'm pulling away, I think, "Did that border patrol agent just hit on me?" And the answer is yes. God Bless Canada. That totally makes up for the homeless guy that called Chester and I "Skanky Bitches" in the tunnel not 6 hours prior.

Onward to the ferry, through Vancouver, and to the terminal. We had a smooth sailing, minus the late departure. I have great memories of that ferry ride but it is also the part of the trip when you realize you are so close yet still have a bit of a ways to travel before getting to the final destination. Since the ferry left late there was a weird timing situation with Auntie Nadine and Uncle Owen and getting me fed (clearly very important). Nadine is kind of a big deal in town so she phoned MaMa's (A little restaurant in town) and asked if Paulette (the owner) would stay open for me as the ferry was late and I hadn't eaten. In true coastal hospitality she stayed open until I arrived just in time to scarf down a Panini and run off to the evening's festivities.

We head over to the Artesia Coffehouse/Art Gallery (which oddly enough wasn't serving coffee, only herbal teas and apple cider) to have an evening watching local musicians perform. I sipped on hot apple cider and partook in the evening of music and revelry. The line up started with Metomorphosis, a trio of young ladies (still in high school I presume) who did great renditions of "Warwick Avenue" and "Strawberry Wine." They were followed up by a French Canadian guitarist and vocalist, Gaetan Begevin, has a vague likeness to Gerard Depardieu with longer thinning hair and his shirt unbuttoned one button too far. Nonetheless he was a good vocalist and guitarist who did a great cover of The Animals, "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood." The third act consisted of 2 soprano saxophonists who felt the need to "improvise" for 15 minutes, of which sounded more like barnyard animals wailing on New Year's Eve, but then again, I prefer music that generally has rhythm, a melody, a harmony, or any other such "generics." I'm sure they are very talented. Lastly, and the best was definitely saved for last, was this great 5 person band called "Sweet Cascadia." Consisting of a guitarist/harmonica player, bass cellist, banjo, and couple folks on the percussion/back-up vocalists - totally rocked the house in the calmest tree hugging, granola-eating-sustainable-resource-using way. They sang about second-hand bikes, Wal-Mart (and keeping it out of their town), kingfishers, and they encouraged the audience to sing (which I heartily participated). They even got an encore which they seemed so surprise at that they were a loss of what to do with themselves. When all the acts where done, we helped clean up the place, put the chairs away and socialized with the locals, then headed home to call it a night.

At this point I've been up since 5:30 am, traveled several hundred miles and its now 11:00 pm. I'm exhausted but relaxed and calmly energized. Shockingly (ha!), Nadine and I always find the energy to chat and laugh more so we gathered in the living room and talked about music, French Canadians, learning languages, plans for the next day and other such irrelevant topics. Midnight roles around which obviously means one thing in this house: snack time. Owen runs down to the fridge and unwraps this smoked Gouda cheese (from the Okanogan in Washington) which tastes like bliss and we all chowed down on a midnight snack of cheese and rye bread. It was delicious and the most pleasant way to wrap of a lovely evening. I made my way to bed so excited to crawl in, read and fade into sleep.