Yankees win!

I was a bit torn throughout, but I think my heart was leaning towards the Yankees all the way... sorry to all my friends who are Phillies fans...  one thing I forgot about was when I was 8, 9, or 10 or something, my friend Nancy and I were the two girls who were CRAZY about baseball.  I mean, we traded baseball cards with each other, created our own fantasy league teams (without actually officially playing), and would look up all the player stats on Prodigy... back way when.  We even created our own company... recently I unveiled a business card that Nancy and I must have put together for our company... Metankee.  I loved the Mets. Nancy loved the Yankees.  Mets + Yankees = Metankee.  Yes, we were strange children.

Anyways, I'm amazed at how international the Yankees are.  As the players were getting their moments on camera, they all spoke with accents. And how cool was it to see Matsui win the MVP, speaking in his native tongue, using a translator.  How cool is that!!!  Seeing and hearing the team reminded me of the diverse country we live in.  Another cool thing... there are so many Christians on the team.  I don't mean just the traditional periodic church goers, but devout believers who get the Gospel.  I read some commentary that you'd often see Rivera reading his Bible in the dugout... and that he wants to be an evangelical pastor after he retires... and there's Teixeira, Pettite,... and others...  and what's really cool is that they got up to the mic and boldly thanked God... not in that generic way, but you could tell there was something deeper there...

Anyways, didn't turn the game on until the 6th inning because my roommate and I had some friends over who share a similar heart for social issues and social justice.  Really great conversation over an awesome thai curry that Jenny, my roommate made. Yummy...  alright... need some sleep... desperately.

Phillies vs. Yankees... a major dilemma for some

For the most part, I won't talk about this publicly for fear of... well... Philly fans.  Those from Philly or know of Philly sports fans know that sports are taken extremely seriously in this town.  I mean - throw out any attempt of being respectful or to that matter... even civilized.  Philly teams are the one and only.  Everyone else... well, I think Philly sports fans would say... they suck.

Honestly though, having grown up in central Jersey, I was a hardcore NY Mets fan, with the Yankees pretty high on the list.  I didn't like the Phillies - I liked the Phanatic, but at the time, the Phillies were quite bad.  I remember I used to always want to go to Mets and Yankees games, but my dad would never take me because he hated driving into the city; so periodically he'd take my brother and I to Phillies games.  Still fun, but usually I'd be rooting for the other team. 

I must admit, having lived in the Philly area for the past 4 or 5 years, the Eagles and the Phillies have grown on me.  I mean, I'm no die-hard sports fan in general - I love playing sports - but as far as following - not nearly so much.  I like the Phillies, but I also like the Yankees.  The question now becomes, which one do I like more... enough so that I would root for one over the other.  It's a tough question, especially when all my close friends here seem to be pro-Phillies all the way.

So who really cares and why is this on my mind?  Well, I'm comforted by a NY Times article posted today that shows that I'm not the only one torn up on this issue.  The article is about my tiny hometown, and how it's smack dab in between NY and Philly.  Now, you see... the reason why I'm struggling with this goes much deeper... it goes down to my roots...

October 29, 2009 

Living, and Torn, Between Two Cities

If any spot could be torn apart by the World Series, it would be the town of Cranbury, N.J.
As far back as Colonial days, its Cranbury Inn served as a popular halfway stop on the two- or three-day journey by stagecoach between New York and Philadelphia, and these days both Yankees and Phillies rooters can be found at the inn’s bar.

“We swing both ways here because we have so many connections to both,” said Gay Ingegneri, who with her husband, Tom, has owned the inn for the past 14 years. “We’re definitely on the fence. Our emotions seesaw a lot.”

Exhibit A for this quandary of allegiance is Mrs. Ingegneri herself. She grew up in a small town in eastern Pennsylvania and spent four years living in Philadelphia when she was training as nurse, so she roots for the Phillies when they play any other team except the Yankees. But as the teams prepared to square off in the World Series opener Wednesday night, a childhood memory nudged her heart toward the Bronx.
....
But geographically speaking, there is no town that more capably serves as a midpoint between Yankee Stadium and Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

The town of 3,200 people is in both cities’ orbits, about 50 miles from both New York and Philadelphia, and residents travel to both by driving 15 minutes to the Princeton Junction station, which is on the Amtrak and New Jersey Transit lines. The town also gets television channels from both New York and Philadelphia.
...
for the full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/29/nyregion/29midpoint.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion

Today, over 25,000 children died around the world

Doing some research on poverty issues... came across an article from March.

Over 25,000 children die every day around the world.
That is equivalent to:

• 1 child dying every 3.5 seconds
• 17-18 children dying every minute
• A 2004 Asian Tsunami occurring almost every 1.5 weeks
• An Iraq-scale death toll every 16–38 days
• Over 9 million children dying every year
• Some 70 million children dying between 2000 and 2007

The silent killers are poverty, hunger, easily preventable diseases and illnesses, and other related causes. In spite of the scale of this daily/ongoing catastrophe, it rarely manages to achieve, much less sustain, prime-time, headline coverage.

The continuation of this suffering and loss of life contravenes the natural human instinct to help in times of disaster. Imagine the horror of the world if a major earthquake were to occur and people stood by and watched without assisting the survivors! Yet every day, the equivalent of a major earthquake killing over 30,000 young children occurs to a disturbingly muted response. They die quietly in some of the poorest villages on earth, far removed from the scrutiny and the conscience of the world. Being meek and weak in life makes these dying multitudes even more invisible in death. - A spotty scorecard, UNICEF, Progress of Nations 2000

Rest of article: http://www.globalissues.org/article/715/today-over-25000-children-died-around-the-world

THIS IS NOT OK.  How can we sit here and eat, drink, play?  I ask myself that as I comfortably sip my coffee in what could be described as a luxurious coffee shop (Cosi's) in downtown Philadelphia...

Just in awe of the perfect conductor

This weekend... I was reminded of how amazing God truly is.  This Saturday was our church's first ever interchurch parish women's flag football tournament.  We have been practicing and playing hard for this one day of playoffs and games.  I was literally on weather.com every day of the week (multiple times a day), and praying hard that God would change the course of weather that meteorologists were predicting... that is... rain, rain, and more rain... all day.

I started the week praying in confidence, believing God would come through; but I have to admit, by Friday night, I was starting to lose hope.  I still prayed He would change the course of the weather, but at the same time, realized that it's His call when and if He wanted us to be on that field.  Before I went to bed on Friday night, the situation looked worse than before... with a 90% chance of rain and thunderstorms!

So Saturday morning, I wake up at the crack of dawn because I was volunteering and running a 5K, and to my surprise, it's not raining.  They sky is gray, but not horribly dark -- a glimmer of hope we might play! It drizzles a bit on my drive, but not too bad.  I help out with registration and videography, and then at the last minute decide to run it (totally regretted it after i started as i thought about playing football all day and my body being tired...)... and then I bolt to the field where we're playing.

As I drive, there's some drizzle, but not horrible.  At one point, the sky actually looked like it was clearing.  As we warmed up, there was even sunshine... and I just stood there utterly amazed.  I was humbled by how big, how amazing, how gracious, how in control He is of everything.  I was reminded of how small we are; but at the same time; how much He cares and hears our every prayer.

Every day is given to us graciously by Him; but honestly, I tend to forget.  Yesterday, for me was so powerful.  I really felt how real, how mighty, and how awesome He truly is.  It ended up raining on and off throughout the games, but it was never a constant heavy heavy downpour, until we finished all the games and were packing up to go home.  Literally, as we began cleaning up our stuff and packing up our cars, the thunder began to rumble. 

AND, during one of the games, the downpour was heavy enough to cause a rain delay, where both of the teams, as they stood there getting soaked, had the opportunity to bond and get to know each other as sisters of one church.  It was a much needed time of fellowship for the sisters on the field as that game was getting pretty intense... perhaps overly aggressive.  But because of the sudden rain, it forced the 2 teams to come together as one... introducing each other... getting to know one another... and come 2nd half... it was a completely different dynamic.  Yes, it was still competitive, but it a very different attitude on the field.  You could see it.  Girls from opposite teams supported each other... It was a touching moment.  ONLY He could have orchestrated that... 

Yeah, my team lost in the finals, but it was so fun and so amazing to see His body come together through competing against each other.  Sounds almost contraindicative but it did indeed bring new and old sisters together, across parish lines, across ages, across occupations, across all boundaries.  What brought us together was a desire to play outside and get to know new and old sisters; but what ultimately bound us together was a love for Him, and that was indeed an amazing thing to see week in and week out.  I pray that this season was glorifying to Him, and that seeing His daughters playing and His sons coaching on that field, brought a smile to His face.  I know it did for me every day... and I'm thankful for the opportunity to be part of it.

I am just so in awe of Him...  how can I not love Him... how can I not believe how real and how in control He is.  Rain and all... it was a perfect day...  the season in general... was just such a blessing from Him. 

human trafficking thoughts from the spring...

I had typed up this blog post while awhile ago after I returned from Taiwan this past spring, and I guess I never actually posted it.  But since drafting this... I've learned that the young woman who worked at my grandparents left - not sure why although my family speculates due to her husband coming over to Taiwan and her wanting to be with him?  I'm not really sure though.

Also on the topic of human trafficking, I recently read Somali Mam's story in her autobio: The Road of Lost Innocence.  Oh man what a powerful story that gives a personal account of her experiences being trafficked and forced into prostitution.  I highly recommend the read.
.........................

This topic has been on my mind for awhile now, but the concept of trafficking beyond what I used to relate it to – sex trafficking of women and girls – is something I’ve become more and more aware of with what I saw in the Delhi airport.  I think I blogged about it then: ….

So it’s a relatively common practice both here in Taiwan and other countries around the world for the wealthier to hire women from the Philippines, Indonesia, and other less wealthy countries to be their live-in maids, nannies, etc.  I had heard about these women who come over to work and make money, but never thought much of it, until this trip to Taiwan.  My grandparents have lived in the US for most, if not all, of my life, up until a couple years ago when they moved back to Taipei.  They still had a house there so they are now living there on their own. They hired one of these young women who is from Indonesia.  She is my age and has a young son in Indonesia.  She is great!  My grandmom is not the easiest to handle, but she does a great job with both her and my grandpa. She’s super cute, an awesome cook, and just a very thoughtful, considerate, and caring person.

So the big thing that irks me is that she was hired through an agency that takes a 50% cut of the amount my grandparents pay each month.  I mean, this agency probably takes care of her transport here, working visa, etc., and she doesn’t have to worry about housing or food because she lives here and cooks and eats with my grandparents, but it just feels wrong that for all the work she does, she gets so little.  It may go far in China and some other Asian countries, but Taiwan is not a cheap place.  She left her family to come to Taiwan to make money and send it home.  Maybe this is a lot of money relative to what these women can get in their home countries, but in my mind it just doesn’t feel right.

It just made me think of those men who were boarding that plane in Delhi to Riyadh to work on construction projects.  Is this any different?  I’m not sure how the contracts work for these women but I sure do wonder.  What happens if she breaks it and goes home? Was her passport confiscated when she got off the plane, just like the men heading to Riyadh? I have no idea – I’m totally speculating and perhaps thinking about this in a very Americentric way and perhaps I should not be.  Who am I to say that our way is right and their way is wrong.  I guess my point is that there is no my way versus their way.  I just feel there is a simple standard of treatment towards all humans that defines more of the “right” way – I don’t care where they are from or where they are going. Give people what they deserve, not what they are used to receiving based on where they hail from.  Help them help themselves – empower them to succeed.  What can we do to help?  How about start a competing agency that does it “rightER”? An agency that makes money but helps these women at a more fair standard.

Venturing Beyond the Corporate Walls… 2 inches at a time.

So what is the next step for Tammy Wang? Well, I’m still in utter shock that I’m old enough to be working, and have somehow been with Lincoln for the past 6 years of my life! I can’t believe it! Granted I have had 4-5 different roles in those 6 years, but am still shocked I have stayed in corporate America, in financial services for so long. I always knew I’d jump back into a focus on social issues and helping others. That’s always been my passion, and I knew joining Lincoln out of college that my journey through Lincoln would be purposeful, deliberate... intentional. I mean... I won't go into details now; but as a senior in college, I had narrowed my job decision to two options: 1) Lincoln; or 2) IVCF staff. Seemingly opposite extremes... but... not really. Anyhow, with much prayer, advice, and thoughtful consideration, I joined Lincoln. I knew I was there for a reason, and one of those reasons was to equip me and prepare me for a future "something" geared at the heart and passion that He's given me.

So how does one describe this “something”? Well, I’m not really sure, but I’m ready to embark there. In about a week, I will be switching to a 3-day work schedule at Lincoln, giving me those 2 other days to focus on that “something”. So a quick summary of how this panned out – I try to get “let go” but fail. I stick around for a couple months, and then decide I indeed needed to go. I inform my boss that I would resign at the end of the summer. Fast forward to, well, the end of summer. No replacement yet but plenty of work. Part-time gig. I wasn’t sure of the plan at first, but as I thought about it, and as my boss reminded me of my active, somewhat adventurous lifestyle, hinting at my need for medical benefits, I figured it might be a good transition strategy, both for Lincoln and for me personally. A couple extra days to focus on the “it” while also still having some income and benefits. I figured the worst that could happen would be to quit if the schedule wasn’t working out.

I’m excited to get focused. I have some business ideas and models in my mind, but not sure exactly how it will all work out... but I'm learning to trust Him. Looking back, it's so obvious how He has been revealing it piece by piece to me through conversations and experiences He's given me. Gotta pray more about it... So I guess right now, I’m not totally stepping out of the boat and onto the water. It’s kind of like stepping out of the boat, but with a life preserver I guess?

Which reminds of an interesting conversation I had with my parents when I told them I wanted to leave my job. The amazing thing was, for both my parents, it started out very poorly (i.e. me in tears sitting in my car in a starbux parking lot, on my cell phone with my parents), but within an hour, God totally changed their hearts. It was amazing! Not to say they are total fans of me quitting and stuff; but they seem to be more understanding of me doing this... so the conversation with both my parents went something like this: “what? What do you mean you want to quit? What happened?..." so both my parents thought I got yelled at or something happened at work that would cause me to rashly decide to quit... and then them not understanding why I would leave a stable, "good" job... and then as my dad and I finish up our conversation since both of us had to go to meetings, he started talking to me about horses and ponys.... as we're having this serious conversation with me in tears in the starbux parking lot.

Dad: "Tammy, it's just that it's easier to jump from a moving horse to a moving horse"
Tammy: "What? What are you talking about?"
Dad: "You know... while you are working at a strong, moving company, you look for another strong moving company while you are still working, and you jump to that new moving horse if that opportunity makes sense."
Tammy: "Oh... but dad, I want to jump from a moving horse to a pony".
Dad: "Okay... well, that's better than walking."
Tammy: "But sometimes you have to jump off the horse to nurture the pony".
Dad: "Umm... ok, let's talk about this later."

Then my mom leaves me a voicemail while I'm in a meeting that she supports my decision but asks if I've thought about asking for a leave of absence, and in Chinese says: "and mommy can take you for a walk"... travel together and stuff... counseling from mom.

and then I get an email from my dad:
.......................
hi Tammy,
thank you for sharing your thoughts with me this morning. i respect your decision and am 99% supporting. the 1% concerns are:

1. catching a horse (even pony) is easier if you are riding one than on foot.
2. ...
....
8...

in short, you get my support (so is mom's) and good luck. as always, we put your welfare before ours.

love, Dad
.........
I'll save you from the other 7 points that add up to the 1%; but anyhow, it was really awesome to have their support, even though I definitely still get push back from a practical sense...

i'll share more as things progress...

Current Events – Triathlon, Vick, Kennedy

Indeed it has been awhile since my last update, but it’s not that I haven’t thought about updating. I have – but I guess when it came down to putting it in writing, well, then life just happened. Things I’ve been thinking about but clearly just passing thoughts since after a day or two, the subject passed or was replaced but the next compelling subject or current event. I guess I do have A.D.D.

I wanted to write about doing my first triathlon – no, I did not drown and yes, I still cannot float, but I did survive. Actually, we, doing it with my girlfriends, all survived. It was so fun training together, and every training session was a reminder of the Christian walk. It requires discipline, dedication, and focus. I had to keep reminding myself to “find the cross”, whether I was running down a sidewalk, on a treadmill, swimming in a pool or lake, or biking the road or spinning in a gym class. The cross is everywhere, and when I focus on it, He sustains me. The simple act of discipline in training and not giving up is so minute compared to the suffering Jesus went through for me. He didn’t give up for such a grand task and responsibility – I surely can handle the physical and mental challenge He’s given me the mind, body, and heart to conquer.

Then Michael Vick signed by the Eagles? How funny is it that the days after the announcement, my company angry calls and emails against what “we” did. Yes, we have branding rights over the stadium, but our relationship to Eagles management? Anyhow, I was thinking about the Philadelphia “welcome” of Vick to the Eagles – typical angry fans, Philly style. I don’t really follow sports – I just really like playing them – but as I thought about the negative reactions the public was expressing against him and the Eagles for signing him, I couldn’t help but think of me, a wretched person who does horrible things daily, whether it’s expressed publicly or just in mind and thought, and yet my Heavenly Father still accepts me and welcomes me with open arms. Vick served his sentence and seems to be truly sorry for what he did. Who am I to judge? That sin thing really sucks.

And more recently, just this past week, the passing of Senator Teddy Kennedy. Can’t say I personally knew the man, but I surely do have a lot of respect for him. Yes there were poor decisions along the way with Chapaquick and other things I’m sure, but again, who am I to judge? To see and hear his “foes” from a political standpoint get teary eyed about his death is a testament to the skill and dedication of this man.

I used to say to my family that I wanted to become the President so I could change things – make things right – fix everything that’s messed up. Yes, idealistic but I guess that's how I'm tuned. Yesterday they were showing replays of Kennedy’s speech back in the 70s, relinquishing his fight for ever running for President, and instead, committing to serving the American people through his Senate seat. I couldn’t help but ponder whether I too would one day enter the political spectrum. I claim that politicians are not effective and government itself is just too bureaucratic and inefficient. But as I was listening to them playback some of the success of Teddy Kennedy, I was impressed. The things that he fought for and won are real actions that have affected me… title IX for example. One day, we’ll see. I don’t think I could be the President – I’m not such a fan of debating. But then again, politicians debate and argue a lot too, but we’ll see where life leads. Well, right now at least, live day by day... learning to follow His lead.

Empowering young people to create social change

Other thoughts I had during my Taiwan/Japan trip this spring.  There are a lot of young people and there are a lot of elderly people.  In just spending time with my grandparents, I see how bored they are daily.  They hardly ever leave their apartment.  What if we could create a program that brings young people in from high schools or universities to run programs for these older people, such as teaching them English or computers, or something.

Are young people helping already? Yes, here and there.  What if we could provide them opportunities?  What if we could help them see the opportunities and needs, and provide easy ways for them to engage?

Youth empowerment is something I’ve been passionate about since college.  With this recent presidential commission on youth work that I’ve been working on, it has been on my mind a lot lately.  A couple opportunities I see right here during my week in Taiwan…

Programs for the elderly – they hang out in packs in public parks, apartment/housing courtyards…

Advocacy campaigns to encourage environmental stewardship... saw way too much trash in the public beaches/parks in taiwan... although they do have really intense recycling programs in the cities...  more strict then US standards.

In Japan - I also went to Tokyo for a couple days... a grassroots movement starting with young people and multinational companies to stand up for worker's rights!  My friend was sharing that there is a major "over-working" culture and really, what I felt as he shared, a major public health problem.  Not based on actual research that I've done, but based on what my friend was sharing... people, both young and old, are dying of work-related stress and pressures, suicides...  my friend's cousin for example.... who btw is younger than me!  In a city that has 24 hour comic book cafes where folks can sleep in lounge chairs - yes, some go to use the internet and read books; but others simply missed trains going home due to work and stay there for a few hours and then pop back into the office. The concept of "family" seems to be lacking.  This generation needs to stand up for themselves and fight for their rights.

AHHH... ALGAE!

I'm training for a triathlon in August. It's fair to say it's my first triathlon. I did a DUathlon, that I had also done 2 years ago, this past weekend - run, bike, run. For the tri, the addition of the swimming is an added dynamic that makes for an extremely challenging event. Don't get me wrong - the duathlon is challenging. They say that the DU is actually more physically demanding because it's basically all leg strength and endurance; but running and biking... I can push on through that. Swimming... swimming just freaks me out.

It's not that I don't know how to swim - I just stink at it. I'm the girl who in college where all students must pass a very short swim test in order to graduate, waited until senior week to complete it. Yes, I was stressed but luckily I survived and passed.

But, I have been training, albeit in the comforts of a chlorinated but clean swimming pool at my gym, with a large black stripe that guides me across the pool. But today, I went with some of my girlfriends who are also doing the tri with me to a local lake in New Jersey where the USAT hosts weekly open water swims there, and can I just tell you how absolutely disgusted I was? What was I thinking!? Swimming in a lake... I don't even like swimming in the ocean - at least the ones along the east coast of the US. So my friend Jenny, as we step into this lovely murky water, comments, questioning why this other lady next to us has so many freckles all over her body.... then the next thing Jenny says... oh my gosh, why are they wiping off? it was algae!!! It was all over her... and well, it would soon be all over us. I WAS HORRIFIED.

Anyways, we sucked it up, did 3 laps... felt like I was going to die from my inability to swim and the fear and disgust over the algae, but it was great. Really glad to get in that practice swim, and really need more of it! Sort of wish I had a picture of us after the fact, but I think it might make me vomit. :)

Learning to let go and letting him take control

Heal The World
Make It A Better Place
For You And For Me
And The Entire Human Race
There Are People Dying
If You Care Enough
For The Living
Make A Better Place
For You And For Me

I remember watching the 1993 Superbowl halftime show where Michael performed this song with a bunch of kids and the audience was all engaged with flashcards and stuff. Even back then, the lyrics spoke to me and inspired me. As I look back, I realize how God has really geared me to want to "heal the world" and "make it a better place". I thought that my interest in global issues started with my trip to China with the SmileTrain and iEARN the summer my frosh year of college - my first ever business trip... probably the best biz trip I've been on. I befriended young people from all over the world there, in particular, a 15 year old boy from Uganda and an older boy from Sierra Leone who shared their stories of the lives they live in war-torn and conflict-ridden countries. Their stories humbled me, made me so ashamed of myself and my lack of knowledge and lack of awareness of the world, and led me down a completely different life/career track. I had read what was going on around the world, but meeting people my age who were going through it personalized it and made it so much more real.

I went back to school making the shift from a biology, pre-med track to something completely different and something uber-challenging for my more science geared mind... I decided I needed to learn about the world and switched tracks to political science and international politics. I was so lost, but I am so thankful I went through it. I have to admit, sometimes I do sit and think where I would be today if I continued down that medicine track - I loved medicine so much (still do) and was so sure I would be a doctor... a sports doctor. All my friends thought I would go that track. Oh well...

Anyways, as I think back to that Superbowl half-time show, as a young kid, to hurt for this world and desire that "healed" world could not have come from my limited experiences growing up in the comforts of America and in my sheltered Chinese-American bubble. It is only God who could have planted that desire in me, crafting for His purpose. The experiences he's given me are beyond any expectations I could ever have. I'm learning to follow Him. I've said over and over that I want Him to take control of the steering wheel but it's so hard to let go, but it's time to grow up and commit. Do I believe or don't I believe? He knows me more than I could ever try to know myself. From before the 1993 Superbowl, He has known. From before I entered my mom's womb, He's known. I can't be in any better hands. So why be so stressed...worried...scared... trust him, love and adore him.

Human trafficking?

Just something on my mind over this trip that I will share more about later. Don't let me forget.

Oh... and empowering young people. What if we could... because we will, and we must... empower them to act on the issues of this world. They care... or they might not care because they are not aware... in a world of what if's... let's change it to a world of let's do it... together... as one global community.

Somewhat out of the blue, but this is where my mind goes... will right more later. The cafe I'm in is closing now!

Kaohsiung & Kenting - Beaches of Taiwan

We just returned back from a nice relaxing trip, first to Kaohsiung and then to the Southern coast of Taiwan - Kenting. My cousin moved to Taiwan last year and started a test prep'ish school (more than just test prep but you get the gist) in Kaohsiung. We jumped on the bullet train from Taipei and arrived in Kaohsiung about an hour and a half later, hung out and got a taste of his life. We went to Modern Toilet for dinner that night - twas quite entertaining. I mean, while you eat, you sit on a toilet and depending on what you order, you are likely going to eat out of a toilet (or a sink), and well, if you don't for whatever reason, you eat ice cream that looks like poo from a squatty toilet. Yes, it was quite wonderfully disgusting? How else do you describe it. It was fun though. We had a great time. The kind of humor my family enjoys. Then we played some guitar hero at his place, and I introduced the wonderful game of blokus to my cousin.

The next morning a driver came to pick us up for a day long drive down and tour of the Kenting area - the Southern coast of Taiwan. It was prettier than I expected. My dad had set my expectations low reminding me that it's not Hawaii or the Caribbean. I had Jersey shore in my mind, so I was pleasantly surprised. We stayed in Kenting for a couple of nights, vegged at the pool and beach for one of the days, and the next day went hiking through some national forest with lots of interesting trees and caves that we wandered through. Then headed back to Kaohsiung where we jumped onto the bullet train back to Taipei.

pictures to come....

Taipei - nonstop eating...

Wow it sure has been a whirlwind, super busy trip so far. After we all arrived in Taipei - mom first, then my brother, then me, and then dad - all arriving on different days and from different cities - our crazy days of meeting with friends and family, constant eating began and continued for what I feared might be never ending. Now, you might think - eating - Tammy loves to eat so she must love that. Well, I do love to eat, and while in the US, I usually say "I eat anything". Well, that's not totally true. In the US, I am pretty comfortable eating anything "American" or international foods that are "Americanized"; but I know myself well enough to know that in Asia, I definitely do not eat everything - in fact, far from it. In Taiwan, it's always hard because we're constantly meeting up with family and friends who tend to invite us to "nicer" meals - meaning, no beef and broccoli or general tso's chicken, but fancier seafood dishes - some of which are quite normal and really nothing to be afraid of, but I'm quite strange when it comes to certain sea creatures, and well, also some body parts hailing from some land creatures as well.

Anyhow, in an effort to not look like a totally uncultured Chinese-American kid, I try my best to try as much as I can, but quite frankly, some of it just makes me gag. Over the years, I have learned to discretely sneak food from my plate to my brother sitting next to me, but that can only get you so far. Strangely, eating can be quite a tiring and stressful times.

But anyhow, literally, our schedule everyday for a few days was: wake up, eat breakfast, head out to town, meet with some family friend for a nice lunch, hang out in the city, snack more, meet with another family friend for dinner, hang out, maybe hit the night market for some more food, head home, sleep... repeat the same the next day.

Lots of eating... lots of walking... very tiring...

Oh... don't get me wrong... there's awesome food here too. I love the street food here, and the pastries, and the coffee and milk tea and interesting fun drinks like bubble tea... it's just the "complicated" stuff I'm a bit tired of.

Enroute to Taipei!

It's been awhile since I last posted. I think I owe an update on life the past couple months. Here are a handful of things (in no particular order at all)...

1. I entered the world of twitter. Still trying to figure it out and all, but somehow I got it to connect to my facebook status (which btw I never used to update...so if you're wondering why all of a sudden I am... that's why). That's also why I have not replied back to any responses you may have sent on facebook - sorry but thank u for the responses - I do appreciate them!
2. StartingBloc Social Innovation Competition has occupied a lot of my time the past couple months and this past weekend, 1 of the 18 teams was crowned the winner! All the teams did an awesome job - I'm very proud of them... and gives me confidence in the future of our world - that there are a generation of people who not only want to, but can effectively collaborate and innovate and tell/sell a story around why we must change whatever it is we need to do to create a more sustainable future. A lot of work leading it but very rewarding as well.
3. My family is really cool and I love them.
4. I'm snowboarding and attempting to play sports on my knee again - the knee itself doesn't feel great but playing outside makes me feel really great and energized!
   
5. SmileTrain won an oscar award for Smile Pinki! Maybe I'll blog about SmileTrain another time, but I would say my experience interning there opened my eyes up to the world and to the issues our world faces... so the organization means a lot to me!
6. Gmail Offline capability... is great. On my flight, I was able to delete and respond to a bunch of old emails... going from (literally) over 3000 UNREAD items to 628 total emails!
   
7. I'm sure there's other things, but that's it for now... but last update - I'm headed to Taiwan right now to hang out with family and celebrate my grandpa's 90th birthday.
   

So here I am, sitting in Narita International Airport for my connecting flight to Taiwan. In addition to Taipei where my gramms, gramps, and other family live; we're supposed to travel around the country a bit...

Thought I might share about my eventful (or not so eventful but nonetheless memorable) journey thus far. So my flight this morning left from Philly at 5:35AM. Horrible time of the day. Since I would have had to be there around 3'ish, I figured I might as well just go earlier when I could con someone into driving me to the airport (thanks Jenny). I was also worried that I'd snooze away my alarm and miss my flight entirely. So I arrive at the airport around 1:30AM or so, thinking I'd be able to go through security at least and hang out by the gate. That was a negative. It was so eerie because the airport was so empty - void of cars and people. A couple of airport workers and a handful of passengers similar to me; but not much else. The security checkpoint area was closed apparently until 4AM, so I took over a nice, soft bunch right outside the checkpoint. Not having passed through security, I was a little less comfortable with completely zonking out... but I did end up getting some shut eye here and there. I mean, I was pretty bored out there, and tired. I started taking pictures of myself (how vain of me) and my sleeping quarters. Here a couple of (glamorous...hehe..) shots. Umm... yeah, I was very bored and delirious.


So here was the next challenge that I was somewhat stressed about. Because I am cheap and was using miles and points to get to Taipei, I had booked 2 completely separate flights - totally unconnected. I was concerned I would have to go through customs and all in Tokyo, and then re-enter to get to Taipei. I had this whole luggage strategy in my mind which in the end, got all taken care of during my layover in Houston. Too boring to explain. In Tokyo, I did not have to go through customs and I was able to follow a group of other folks who were traveling to Taipei and squeeze myself onto their shuttle, and, well, here I am, getting ready to board my next leg to my final destination - gramms and gramps in taipei.

Signing off until the adventures truly begin in taiwan!

...and the Oscar goes to... Smile Pinki!

Lots has happened since my last update (I'll update y'all later). Congrats to the SmileTrain, an organization that I am quite fond of as I spent quite a bit of time with the organization during my college years. My experience there gave me the passion for helping the less privileged and poor... and the Oscar they received last week... is so well deserved. I'm so proud of them. Here's the (mass) email I received from the founder...

................................................................

Hi,

I got back from Hollywood at 2am last night and my ears are still ringing from Sunday night when they announced…

…“And the Oscar goes to… Smile Pinki!”

You could hear the deafening roar and wild cheering from Hollywood to Bollywood and everywhere in between. This is a great moment for all of us who are part of Smile Train… and the “cast” of The Smile Train consists of more than a million people. It’s a great moment for our incredibly hardworking and dedicated, TINY staff of 43 people who do the work of 200 people! For all the members of our Board of Directors, Board of Governors and Medical Advisory Boards who have spent many years keeping The Smile Train on the right track. For our 1,200+ partner hospitals that are on the front lines every day providing more than 300 free cleft surgeries EVERY SINGLE DAY! For the 5,000+ surgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists, speech therapists, dentists, orthodontists, social workers and other healthcare workers who through their hearts and their hands give each and every one of our patients the safest and highest quality care possible. For our 1,000,000+ donors and supporters who have been so generous and kind and loyal. None of this would have ever happened without their donations.

Most of all, this is a great moment for the millions of children in the world who are suffering with clefts. Waiting and wondering when and if anyone is ever going to come along and help them the way we helped Pinki.

With all of this massive publicity and exposure, good will and good wishes, we will be able to help MANY more children MUCH FASTER than we ever dreamed. And we aren’t just going to help MANY more children… we are going to help ALL of these children.

To all of you who have helped make The Smile Train possible I say thank you, thank you, thank you. This Oscar is for you. And for all those millions of kids with unrepaired clefts out there who are waiting for help, I say hold on.

The Smile Train is on the way.

All the best,

Brian
Co-Founder/President

P.S. To see the Smile Pinki trailer, please check out our web site http://www.smiletrain.org/.