School Days

I am officially a student again. Today was my first day of class ....it was a good day......the teacher did not yell at me and none of the big kids teased me or pulled my hair.

I am taking a class to learn how to use Adobe Illustrator. My big accomplishment so far.....I installed the program on my computer!!! I confess I had to ask Tim a few questions but basically I DID IT MYSELF! BooRah!

And now like all good students.....I have to go do my home work.

Happy Birthday Darren

My older (much much older) brother

Ahhh...he was so cute back then

I made a scrapbook for our parents 50th wedding anniversary about 5 years ago. AND...the benefit of that.....I have lots of "blackmail" pictures on my computer now......ha ha ha

And here he is again....back in the day.....

I think he made this cake in Cub Scouts. It seems so appropriate for his birthday photo : )

Buying a new Cell Phone

It is Tuesday morning. Hmmmm.....what's on the agenda for today? Tim is working at home today so that means I have a lunch date. I have to procure some software for my Illustrator class that starts tomorrow....which requires a trip to electronic hell (EH). That is my new name for the computer store/mega shopping building. Ah...which reminds me that I wanted to buy a new cell phone.

I am simple cell phone person. I just want to call, answer, text and it has to look "cool". I don't really care about storing music, playing games, using it as a GPS (although that might be helpful the next time Mr Zheng gets lost in Puxi), or watch movies or TV on that tiny screen. I would enjoy the email feature...if that is possible. If we were in the US I would buy an IPhone and call it a day. The kids could be my "help line" and eventually I would learn to use 10% of it's features and feel good about that accomplishment. The IPhone in China has mixed reviews....some people buy them in the US and have them "broken" or "cracked" at electronic hell so they work here. Some people have had success with that and some not so much.

Last weekend we went to Best Buy to buy a new phone. We went there to avoid EH and so the options would be a little less and there would be someone that might speak English. Well....the options were enormous, most of them were "locked" ie...you could not actually see or use the features of the phone. After a very slow, language challenged search I did not find a single phone that I wanted...Really......I AM NOT THAT PICKY. I finally narrowed it down to one that was a possibility and guess what??? They said those dreaded words...Mei You...which means...they don't have it. WHAT? Why do they have it on display if they don't have it?????? Okay...so I take some responsibility for the "cool" factor. They had this phone displayed in three different colors....brushed stainless grey, pink, and another shade of pink. Sorry...but pink does not meet my "cool" requirement. No grey...no deal! So...after all that....I left without a new phone and decided to use the one I have for a while longer.

Get Well Soon!

We are sending speedy recovery wishes to Tim's dad who had back surgery this week. Please keep him in your prayers.

Tibet Day 3

More from our trip to Mt. Everest....

We left Lhasa at 6:00am as we prepared for a long drive to our first camp site. We had to be in Shigatse by noon to file papers and get permits to enter the Mt. Everest area. The road between Lhasa and Shigatse is speed regulated. There are many check points where we are required to stop. At each stop they gave our driver a piece of paper with an "official" departure time. We could not arrive at the next check point until our allotted time had expired or the driver would get a fine. If you are very bad they will make you return to the last check point and repeat that section of road again....and believe me no one wants to make this trip longer than it already is.

We stopped for breakfast about two hours outside of Lhasa.

We pulled off the main highway and stopped in front of an old monastery.

Monastery

Prayer Wheels

Our driver (left) and our guide (right) got "to go" (actually they say "take away" in China) breakfast. We each had a slice of bread, a banana, and tea.

Eating breakfast

While we were eating breakfast two little puppies appeared on the roof of the building we were standing next to.

We walked up the steps to the prayer wheels and found that the puppies were actually in their "pen'. The top of the building had a short wall all the way around the roof. The puppies were placed inside the wall so they could not "escape". It was a puppy jail. The only way they could get out was to jump and it was a long way to the ground. They seemed very happy with this arrangement but they were also happy to see us. We sneaked some of our breakfast to them and they were even more happy.

Back on the road again....only about a million more hours to go....The car sick people got middle seats...

and the three of us sat in the way back seat. It was very cozy and very bumpy. The two side seats had belts but there was not belt for the middle seat. And...we had to have the driver slow down several times because we were literally coming out of our seats and bumping our heads on the roof of the van....

We stopped several times to walk around a bit...meaning we were a little to fast getting to our next check point and needed to kill some time. So....we took pictures of things...like these flowers

At this stop there was actually something to see. We walked down to a creek bed and watched the water powered hammers that were used to make incenses.

The water turned the wheel that made a large wooden hammer looking thing rub against the rocks.

Little bits of the wood rubbed off the wooden hammer head and created a watery paste. When the paste is dry it makes a powdery substance that is then molded into incense sticks.

There were many of these along the creek. When the wooden hammer head is rubbed down to a small piece they replace it with another chunk of wood.

More of the creek

People at the creek

Back in the car......the packaging of our cliff bars are starting to expand because of the altitude.

We made it to Shigatse in time for our papers to be processed and enjoyed lunch at The Third Eye Restaurant. We ate at this same restaurant the last time we were in Tibet.

On this day we were all feeling a little bit like the cliff bars....not so good. Altitude really does have an effect on your system. Headaches, stomach issues, and the feeling that you just ran a marathon , loss of appetite ......to name just a few symptoms. Tucker too the medicine but it seemed that it made the rest of us sick....as in throwing up....so...most of us stopped taking them.

The ceiling in the restaurant

Decorations on the walls

Outside the restaurant

Back on the road again.....this is what we saw...for miles and miles and miles....sort of looks like eastern Washington and eastern Oregon

Yup...we are still in the car.....

Are we there yet? Not even close...but we are 5000 km from Shanghai. There is a monument to prove it.

When we stopped at the 5000 km sign these little kids came running to greet us.

They were very cute and needed a good scrubbing. Yup...that's snot...this was the first of many snotty noses that we saw while in Tibet.

The last time we were in Tibet the little kids asked for Bi...which means pen or pencil. So this time we were prepared and had pens and paper to give the kids.

They loved them!!! I thought about all the pens and pencils we have laying around our house and how much we take them for granted.

Still driving....we went up and down in elevation. At the top of the mountains there were prayer flags.

They are really spectacular when the wind is blowing and there are thousands of them.

We stopped at this guest house to us the "facilities". This is the door into the guest house. The "facilities" were down a hallway. The men's and woman's were separated by a wall. Each small room had two holes cut through the concrete floor which exposed the ground below. Very simple, very smelly, and I could not wait to get out of there!!!

Back in the car.......More scenery


We stopped at the top of one of the tallest mountains (I think it was about 16,ooo feet) to look at the view. There were a few people there and we gave the kids pens and paper. There were one or two adults there also...and they wanted the the same....so I made the mistake of giving them each one and then suddenly there was a mob at the van....I don't know where they came from but it was a bit frightening. After that we said we would only give them to the kids.

This is one of the women that came to our van

More prayer flags

and more....

local transportation

Oh my gosh! We found something that said Mt Everest. We were soooooooo excited. But...Are we there yet......no! Back in the van for more driving......We have some serious TB by this time.

And then...after a very very long day (13 hours in the car) we arrive at our camp site in Old Tingri. Thank heaven we can get out of the car!!!

Now this is my way to camp!

Our tents were already set up, we were greeted by our cook with tea and hot water for washing our hands and faces. And...look at that beautiful blue sky.

Our dining tent....also ready for us along with our first "outdoor" meal. By the time we finished eating it was dark and cold and windy....but we did not care because we were out of the car and ready to start hiking.

The next morning our guide told us that we had another three hour drive to our "start the hike here" location. ARRRRGGGGG!

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad

Today is my parents 55th wedding anniversary.

Hope you have a wonderful celebration

Abi's new ride

Shortly after moving to Bellingham Abi bought some new wheels. Tucker put gas in it for the first time last week. What a good brother! He said it cost $2.50 and he figured she was getting about 93 miles to the gallon. What a deal!!!

I guess she is well prepared to ride in Bellingham after her experience with Shanghai traffic.