Another Day Goes By....

A bit better.
My boss came and was annoying again... though this time has asked a 'rhetorical' question..."don't you wish sometimes that you'd kill your boss ?...". I sighed...."Yes, sometimes.... that thoughts came up to mind....!"....ok...ok... I was joking...... but things could be quite discouraging sometimes that often time I needed to remind me the reason and how I was there in the first place. Means, no matter what happened, unless there's a big and clear direction from God, I'd stay.... regardless the situation.

My big boss is there too - only once a week. He's the one who is more encouraging, so yeaah, it's nice to see him again.

Around 3 pm, I left work since hubby and I needed to attend the 'benefit' enrollment meeting at BC. Healthcare needs to be reformed, but I am not sure if the current proposal by the government will solve the skyrocketing health cost. Ridiculous. Even for us, we are pretty blessed to have health coverage under hubby's employment - but still, quite expensive. We have to pay about $ 3,000 per-year for our health coverage, and if we need care, we still need to pay max $ 6000 per-family per-year. That's with insurance, and we are among the blessed ones. The employer has to pay the remaining premium for us, about $ 10,000 per-year. So yes, it's ridiculously expensive to have health insurance. Worst if we don't and face 'catastrophic' problem - like my eye surgeries- that cost me about $ 125,000. Doctor has to charge us a lot also, because he too has to pay a lot for his malpractice insurance - insurance to protect him from being sued. 15 years ago in Arizona, a doctor told me that it'd cost him $ 5000 / year for such insurance - he couldn't afford to have one since his practice mainly targetted low income/poor people who have no insurance. The whole healthcare needs an overhaul, it's already very messy.

Ooops... got to go.... need to work on something else first.....

One of These Days....

Today is one of these days where I feel pretty discouraged. Not too happy at the office.... was feeling annoyed at some situation. Left the office with big sigh.... went to hubby with million words of complains....:-). Poor hubby, he's more like my 'trash bag' - I could just dump all my annoyance at him, and got big hugs from him, as usual (Aaghhh..... always a nice smiley feeling every time I see hubby.... !!) ... oh... and a cup of coffee shake from Dairy Queen. We stopped by there on the way to my mentoring - yuup, I need to be refreshed again before seeing all these annoying kids....:-). Well, they are sweet, though many would really need plenty of guidance.

I know things can be discouraging here and there - but God's grace always find ways to sustain and cheer me up here and there as well. Got a surprise note from an 'uncle' in Spore, with cc: to an ND email address. He asked me to call or stop by at this person's office at ND. He told me that this guy is his' and his wife's good friend - so I need to see his friend as his favorite niece. I smiled reading his email - how sweet and thoughtful of him to do so - just out of the blue. It's always nice knowing more people here - here we can count our friends with our hand fingers actually. Very few. My 'uncle' (we are not related actually, but his family was an angel to ours, through my late aunt - his wife, my aunt, uncle and my parents went to school in Europe together - so more like old family friends.... I am blessed with my family's friends, many are like our extended family already growing up....) is pretty well connected at ND - he used to be in ND board of advisor, and all of their kids went there. Anyway, I was not sure what the AVP means in this guy's title, until I looked him up at ND directory - turns out his buddy that I need to stop by to say hello is the Assistant of Vice President, and the director for international relationship or something like that. I was like... errghh..... ! I suppose I will need to gather my guts and give this person a call one of these days.... the more people we know here, the merrier I guess. I need to thank him for his thoughtfulness - he never ceases to amaze me with his kind act, though frankly, in the beginning, I was more 'afraid' with him..... he could be blunt in his opinion.....

Also, things were nice too at the mentoring place - people seem to be nicer despite my grumpiness...:-). Can't ask for a better day at the mentoring place !

One of these days.....

New Weekend Hobby

A friend of mine told me of this farmer's market not too far from home. Not the big one, but the cozy much smaller one that I have never been there before.

So, after living in this area for 7 years, hubby and I finally went there last month for the first time - and I was hooked since then. The place is quite incredible, lots of varieties of fruits and veggies, mostly organics from local farms. Varieties of sellers too. Some seems like professional farmers, many are the Amish - who have problems with my strange accent....:-) - but some..... well, I kind a suspect that they were just selling the excess of what their family can't eat anymore.... more like a hobby to them - or maybe some are there because they got laid off in the first place; they look more like professionals who used to work in the office but now selling home-made cookies or breads for extra income. Maybe.

There are other products as well, like beautiful ceramics and a small cafe. The place is small - people have to squish with each other, but I think - in the world of individualism - this is what attracts people too..... the warmth of each other. The sellers are super friendly though we were just looking around. It's not in everyday's life to purchase produces and interact with sellers, it's becoming rare and rare these days. Even in regular groceries, they started to replace human with machine in the checkout - we can scan what we want to buy and pay through machine - no need to interact with human anymore. Having this farmer's market with real person interaction could be the reason too.

So yeaaah, I have been going there almost every Saturday mornings. It's my routine now.... wake up early.... go there around 10 am (ok...ok... 10 am is not early, but hey, that's weekend....), buy all varieties and colorful fruits and veggies for the rest of the week. Maaan, there are so many things I could buy.... all the meats, eggs, and cheese are organics too. No pesticides.... I even found some worms on my veggies ! Sometimes they have food in cafe, I'd go and grab that too. Other times, some 'farmers' sell their produce that looked 'uncompetitive' compared with the others - I can't help to grab it as well; I need to stimulate the local economy considering we are among the top in the worst hit place in the nation, with so many layoffs and companies closing down here. I am pretty much hooked to this place, and I think I am becoming 'friend' with some of these Amish farmers as well since they start recognizing this strange sounding person as their regular customer...:-).

Here's what my fridge look like on Saturdays:That big carrots - they are 5 for $ 1.75, big pepper 2 for $ 1 or less, napa cabbage for $ 1.... and more veggies for salad that they pack themselves - more expensive than in groceries, but a lot fresher and nicer.

My goal is to cut going to regular groceries by buying fresh local produces in this farmer's market, but not sure if they will have more veggies in the winter. We'll see....

Nyaaam....!

A Time in Life

A reminder of God's grace as I walk to work in one misty and foggy morning.....Kind a interesting when I took this picture. As I was walking on the side of the road and wondering when or if I could cross the street to take picture, an elderly gentleman in his nice car called me out, told me to walk and stand in the middle of the road - to take this picture - with his car protecting me "Just make sure you get good pictures....", he smiled.I thanked him gratefully for his kind and considerate gesture. A nice way to start the day !

The week has gone by quickly, still trying to keep my mood afloat. Winter is around the corner - poor hubby, he still has a pile of leaves to work on. He did for few hours today, glad the neighbor lent him a hand when the blower (to blow the leaves) broke. May need a new one....*sigh*, seems like we only had it for 3 years, not much used yet. Errrghh.....! Poor 'unfit' hubby, he feels sore all over his body now, and I was like "oh c'mon...." - he's such an indoor guy indeed.... he does need to exercise !

At least it's a more fun week. BC had faculty & staff dinner this week, it's just nice to see some friends there again while enjoying the yummy dinner and had great fellowshipping with one another. They did a great job in doing the programs - we all enjoyed it. And the foods too, oh my.... seriously, I think I ate more than hubby - got a big fried herb chicken, ham, carrots, stuffing - skipped pie, but opted for coffee instead. Strange, no one else was drinking coffee in our table - that's the thing I noticed at BC, even from a long time ago. Only faculties coming from out of state (like California, or States in the east ) drink coffee - most don't. I always wonder about it. Unfortunately, my habit of drinking coffee kicked in again once I started to work - most at ND (who come mostly from other states) drink coffee (and liquor too - the later I stayed away) but I limit it to less than a cup a day.

I was about to take my 'kid' for 'trunk and treat' yesterday at a school not far from church. The church where we have mentoring program was sponsoring it - by having decorated cars with candies and the kids could go from car to car to collect them. I planned to go there but it was raining pretty hard, they cancelled the event. But I was sure my 'kid' really wanted to go out, so I told her mom that I'd just pick her up for dinner, and ice cream afterward. Had a great time too.

Other than that, we have good news from the lawyer which we have been praying harder for it in the past 2 weeks. Feel sorry for the boy also as his situation was in limbo - we heard nothing from the immigration except for another mishap in the financial part. As usual. The lawyer took care of it, and heard nothing. If we haven't heard from the immigration or the lawyer this week, we'd contact with the lawyer to see if there are other things we can do. The whole process has been longer than we anticipated. We started it in Jan 2008, almost 2 years ago, just to bring the boy back here.... it's just incredible dealing with immigration - really hope we need not deal much with this after this. By God's grace, we got the news last Friday, that he's scheduled for an interview - the final step - at the Embassy on Dec 9. Pheeew.... just need to keep praying that all will go well - he needs to return and continue his study, which I hope he'll keep it in mind and use every opportunity for his own good and future - not something to be taken for granted anymore. So much for goofing around, time to grow up and focus on the future - don't spend much time on other distracting things. It's been hard to bring him back - let's just make use of this opportunity well. So yeaaah... time to move on now.... I need to start looking for other information here. It's amazing that there are many opportunities for second-chances, like there's a junior college nearby that allows those above 18 who haven't finished high school to take college classes while working toward GED (equivalent to high school diploma), as long as the person can obtain GED in one year. Otherwise, after a year, they will need to focus on GED only first, which is good policy - we will be looking more into that direction.

Hopefully I can learn how to manage my time when he's here, which I am still not sure how. But we'll manage, he's a grown up now... needs to do more of his parts.

A long week indeed !

'Dead'....

I am not too happy with my schedule right now, I get pretty exhausted. Instead of enjoying the weekend, I am using it for catching up with the work I couldn't finish. I feel like I am being pushed to do more and more.... and I am at the point where I just need to stop.

That's the problem working in the community and academic environment. For the community, they need help here and there, more in voluntary basis. That's the nature of NGO.... they don't have money nor resource, they depend on people's volunteering their time. There are 2 places I am volunteering at right now, one is unhappy for I am not putting much time at all. For the academic part - somehow I am into the 'publication mode'. At least there are 2 professors hoping to publish - one is my big boss, and the other one is hubby's colleague - and they need my skills in spatial analysis. On the other hand, I am also taking 1 online class, and another 'live' training on database to keep up with the skills. Technology changes so fast and so much, I do need to keep up with it, but somehow my brain is getting very rustic.... or perhaps I am just surrounded by smarties. Maaan, kids these days are really fast - they have bright people at ND that it's hard for me to keep up with them. Oh, and I am doing work at 2 places too.... not doing well at both.

So yeaaah, I am somewhat in 'unhappy' mode..... unhappy cause I can't really take a break in the weekend. Pretty exhausted, and seems like I don't progress much at all - or the others are just moving a lot faster than I am. I can barely stop, think and smell the roses these days.... I miss chatting with friends.... I miss sitting down and zipping SB with hubby - no time for all those !

Hmm... I am complaining too much, eh... this is just one of those days. Maybe as the sky is brighter, my mood will be brighten too - but then, winter is coming soon..... it'd be gloomier and gloomier....

Maybe I need to stop and reflected few years back, when I longed to do more than just sitting and wondering around. Yeaaah.... one of those days.

After this year, I think I need to say no to several requests..... that'd be my New Year's resolution. I need to concentrate more on what I'd enjoy more, than doing here and there because of obligations.

I need to rebalance my life..... one of these days.....

Back and Alive !

Hubby and I had a great weekend. The trip was wonderful - we enjoyed being together on the road, annoyed one another (though hubby never admitted that he could be annoying.... hahaha..... I think he's right.... usually it's a one way thing...:-).... ), while laughing at each other's stories or jokes. Hubby was such a good 'entertainer'.... he can tell stories... he can sing..... :-) (this reminds me of my niece back in our other home - she loved it when hubby was singing in the bathroom. One time I found her sitting in front of the bathroom just to listen at his singing... and when he stopped, she was disappointed... so I 'yelled' at hubby in the bathroom to keep singing.... huahahaha - hubby is indeed a great bathroom singer !!).

Yes, the trip itself was wonderful, though the scenary was not as I expected. The color is rather dull, too much dark yellowish instead of bright yellow or red. No wonder I was told that New England or Quebec is the best, since obviously, not really Michigan. Or perhaps we were on the wrong side - hubby's colleague told him where to go next time. We need to do it in better timing next time, this time is rather late. Frankly, it's nice to go in the weekends, we get great deal in rental car as well. No, I don't really want to go with our unreliable car especially to the unknown area - better rent a car and enjoy the trip fully. Besides, for $ 20/day for a nice car, it was pretty good deal.

Aha.... somehow dad's habit gets into us now..... everytime we saw churches, we'd take pictures ! We went about 6 hours up north of Michigan until crossing the bridge to get into Upper Peninsula. Here is the area in the north, the trees are starting to change its colors, though not too bright.

Here are more pictures. Enjoy. For more pictures, you can check my facebook....:-).


Oh... and that's hubby in front of the Park & Rec poster. Just can't help it... :-) . While waiting for my immigration paperwork, I was volunteering my time in biology group studying invasive species. My task is to plot where they are located. Later on, I got pulled into immigration policy research center.... where I am plotting where immigrants are, which often people would perceive as non-native invasive species. They have pretty much 'similar' characteristics. In fact, there's a book that talks about both - translating the study of invasive species into immigrants..... kkk....:-). This is supposed to be a 'touchy' subject.... but oh well.....:-)

Definitely a nice weekend..... a nice bday weekend indeed !

Getting Ready for A Road Trip

Yuuup... hubby is having his 2-day Fall break this weekend while ND is having its whole week break next week. The latter doesn't mean anything for me actually since I am not taking class this time - but the situation at the office will be more like in holiday mode, so hopefully things are getting slower there. Been trying to catch up some work while taking online class, doesn't work too well.... I was lacking of sleep.

However, decided to take a break too this weekend. We reserved a place up north in Michigan for 2 nights, to explore the Fall colour - if the leaves are still intact. Not sure, but we'll see. I just need to cool off my head a bit more here. We'll leave on Friday and return back on Sunday - with rental car since we need to treat our cars carefully. Good thing we get a pretty good deal, for $ 20/day - at least I don't have to worry that the car will break down on the road.

Another possible road trip.... well, still not sure. My colleague is pregnant right now - she used to go all over the country to do interview with hispanic community for different projects. Early next year she won't be available, so they are wondering if I'd like to do so. Well, as long as it's in english I could do it.... though there are other spanish speaking people in our group. If they think I'd be fine to do the job, they will let me go... so we'll see. This one could be quite exciting as one of the place will be in..... Tucson... with another in LA..... aaarghhh..... even if they don't pay me but just the airplane ticket, I'd still do it !! But it's still up in the air, since they may be hesitant to send this 'weird looking hispanic' into their community...:-), though one time, one of the person I interviewed here thought I was hispanics. No kidding ! Culturally, they are pretty much like Indonesians.... it's just the language I don't have much clue about....

But first thing first.... Michigan, here we come.... ! I'll be back with plenty of pictures.... maybe just 'tree skeleton' though.... errrghh !