No more strangers and foreigners...

This is my friend Mark, who is mentioned here from time to time.

Mark is a foreigner.

He loves our country.

And he's paying us a visit today to tell us some of the reasons that he feels this way.

If you miss me, I'm visiting Jenny's blog today, to tell you why I love America.

Observations on America.
By a foreigner.

In the past twelve years I have traveled extensively in the United States, including several summer driving holidays. In each case I have been delighted with the experience and, if anything, wished that I didn’t have to leave.

Like a lot of good things, my continual return to the US has been more due to good luck than to good planning. My wife is a Filipina, which means that she is “persona non grata” throughout the world when it comes to touring. It seems that every country assumes (as does the US) that she will be trying to immigrate rather than tour. The difference is that once she has established that she is indeed a tourist, the US takes her at her word and generously issues her with a 10-year multiple entry visa. Contrast this with Canada, the country of my birth. Personal visits to the embassy and proof of marriage to a Canadian Citizen only procured a single visit three-month visa. Ironically, while it is easier to migrate to Canada than to the USA, it is definitely easier to be a tourist in the US.

So many things are easier to do in the USA, from renting a car or a motel, to finding food to eat or clothes to wear. All of the above are great value and so easy to do. Besides, the US is perfect for the traveler who likes to be spontaneous.  If I had to put a single word on it, I would call it ‘choices’ or ‘freedom’, and it extends beyond the “trivial” activity of touring. As a foreigner, I have many of the same freedoms that American citizens enjoy while I tour. I can travel freely, but I can also buy and sell property. 

Americans of course probably take all this stuff for granted. This is as it should be. I wish that everyone could live in a country where the freedom to travel extensively, to buy and sell, and enjoy such a range of choices were the same. 

Aside from travelling in the USA I have done a little travel through Asia and the third world. Now that is an eye opener. One is very conscious of deference to one group at the expense of another. I have been both the beneficiary and the loser in the game of ethnic stratification. I have endured the unwanted attention of the hustlers (who are so aggressive at Egyptian tourist spots) as well as the petty corruption of police and commercial discrimination against foreigners. For example, although I am married to a Filipina and have children who hold Philippine citizenship, I cannot own land in the Philippines. Foreigners can only have part ownership in condominiums. But nothing stopped me buying land in the US. 

I live in Qatar and I enjoy living here, but I am not free here. I need my employer’s permission to leave and to return or to buy a car. Travel by car to Dubai, a short 250 miles away requires visas from Saudi Arabia and the UAE plus special documents for the car. This usually takes about three weeks to organize and, of course, requires employer permission.

It is not just the beauty of the Grand Canyon or the California Coast or the east coast hinterland that draws me back to the USA. Next summer I will probably tour the USA again. Perhaps it will be the ultimate freedom of a bike tour. In any case, while I am there I know that I will be treated with dignity and expected to return the same. And in every moment of my stay there, I will enjoy freedom.


Thank you, Mark.
Mark will be re-visiting this topic in future posts.

I am the shadow on the moon at night...

...Filling your dreams to the brim with fright.

I was going to ignore Halloween tonight.

It is, after all, Sunday, and I figured all good Christians were probably doing the same thing.

But what's a gal to do when Woody and Buzz come knocking on her door, asking if she wants to go out with them?

Why, she goes trick-or-treating, of course.

Especially when Woody has such cute boots!

So off we all went, up to the Greens, to the street that decorates for every holiday.

I'm not really into Halloween decor, but this street is truly amazing.

And then...

Oh joy!

It is Jack himself.

Jack Skellington.

And since I am dead

I can take off my head

To recite Shakespearean quotations.

Jon was almost rapturous.

Really.

He was.

Nightmare Before Christmas is one of his all-time favourite movies, so, of course, his boys love it too.

This rendition on the front lawn was quite ingenious, made mostly of duct tape.

Jenny and I could have gone for another half an hour.

Jeff and Jon would have cheerfully gone home half an hour earlier.

A compromise.

I stole one small Twix bar from little Jeff's bucket.

And then we went home.

Curiosities

You know how you get those emails?

Those emails.

The fantastical photos or stories that people just blindly believe and then breathlessly forward them to everyone in their address book.

Mostly, they kind of drive me crazy. 

I check Snopes and then sigh to myself. 

Sometimes I send a polite email to the perpetrator, gently reminding them to check their sources. 

Sometimes I don't bother.

It seems that the hoaxes are diminishing in number lately, so maybe my job is done. There have also been some astounding stories coming down the pipeline. Things that send me to Google to research the topics further. Some of which I am about to share with you, my lucky, lucky readers.

First, let me introduce you to sinkholes.

The topic of the email was political, the mood was witty and sarcastic, but I was fascinated with the photos. 

Here is the latest large sinkhole to appear in the world. It is in Guatemala City and appeared suddenly on June 1st, swallowing a three-story building. This sinkhole is 60 feet wide and 300 feet deep. 

This photo is from the National Geographic website and you can see photos of more sinkholes from around the world here.

True sinkholes are usually caused by eroding of the bedrock, causing a Swiss-cheese-like effect that eventually collapses into itself. Mining can also cause similar holes. Apparently, a lot of Guatemala City is built on pumice landfill, which tends to erode in times of excess drainage. This faux sinkhole appeared in the midst of a tropical storm and, surprisingly, no one was killed. As scary as it looks, the casualties of the storm died in landslides, not here. 

Another sinkhole in Guatemala City appeared a few blocks from this one in 2007 and was caused by a burst sewage pipe. Don't think I'll be moving there any time soon.

Next, we have a heart-warming story about a humpback whale.

Get out the Kleenex.

I'm a little late to the table on this one, because it was in the San Francisco Chronicle in 2005. 

A humpback whale was spotted by a fisherman off the Farralon Islands. It was entangled in hundreds of feet of crab pot lines, which are weighted down every 60 feet. At least 12 crab pots, weighing 90 lbs each, were also hanging off the whale. The whale was barely able to float high enough to keep her blow hole out of the water. 

Within a few hours, a rescue squad of divers was in the water with special curved knives, cutting her free. It was a dangerous job, as the whale weighed about 50 tons and one swipe of her enormous tail could kill a man. After working for an hour, the divers had freed the whale. According to the divers, she nuzzled each diver in turn, as if thanking them. 

To read the entire story, go here, which is also the source of the photo.

Now that, my friends, would even beat swimming with the dolphins!

The last thing I am sharing has made me aware of how much plagiarism occurs on the internet. I received this in an email a few days ago and I have had a heck of a job finding the original source for the photos, because it is everywhere. It turns up on blogs as if the blogger was the original author. I think that this is the true source, because it has the actual name of the area, but who knows?

This is Lexiaguo, a remote area in the Yunnan Province in China. It is very hard to reach, so it is not on the tourism radar. It is 2,600 feet above sea level and has a bright red soil. Every inch of the land is planted in crops. If you go to the source, there is a series of lovely photos, along with a commentary. I highly reommend that you do, because it is a visual feast.

That's enough thrills for one weekend.

It is, after all, Halloween tomorrow, don't want to overdo it.

Is facebook a verb?

Sometimes I find myself spending too much time on facebook and I think to myself, Self, maybe your detractor friends are right and it's just a big fat waste of time.

But then something serendipitous (you know that's my favourite word, right?) happens (read former post here) and I am hooked again.

Like last week, when Ellen, of The Other Foote fame, delivered this little treat to my door. 

Ellen, in case you didn't know, is one of my favourite people in the whole world. 

I'll bet she didn't even know that! 

She's probably holding back a tear or two as she reads these words. 

Anyway, Ellen posted a quote from West Side Story and I commented that I had never seen it. 

Viola!

I haven't watched the movie yet, but we ate the cookies!

A couple of months ago, one of the cute young moms at church posted late at night that she was desperate for some chocolate but couldn't find a single morsel in the house. 

Well, you know me and my chocolate stash!

She lives quite close, so I raided my stash and took her a bar of Scharffenberger, hoping she had discerning taste buds. She was suitably surprised and delighted and I got a huge kick out of being her chocolate fairy.

Then, I had a cold about three weeks ago and was whining about it on facebook. 

Right at dinnertime, my little friend knocks on the door with some adobo chicken and rice.

My turn to be surprised and delighted.

She had sick kids last week.

I know, because I saw it on facebook.

So I took her a loaf of apple bread.

And I was glad to see that her Mom went and helped her out for a day.

So, to me, facebook has become one more way to take care of each other. 

Yes, I sometimes waste a little time on it, but the benefits to my mental health far outweigh the disadvantages.

The other big plus, for me, is that I can keep up with the lives of my friends, both near and far.

Remember my Canadian friend Mark from Doha?

He joined facebook at the behest of his grown children. 

Like me, he is a sucker for nostalgia and enjoys reminiscing with old high school friends, which facebook has facilitated like no other genre. Because of our facebook connection, we took a fun trip to Utah together, which you can read about here, here, here, and here, should you be a new reader and also a devil for punishment! It was one of the highlights of my year.

So, think what you will about the evils of social networking.

As for me, I will continue to facebook to my heart's content.

P.S. Ellen, there's your link back!

Strawberry Shortcake lives on

Here's a blast from the past.

When Bethany was two years old, I took a cake decorating class, possibly at this store. I had such fun, learning a new skill and also getting a night out every week!  I was feeling pretty clever, so for Bethany's birthday I borrowed a pan from an upstairs neighbour and made this Mickey Mouse cake. I was pregnant with Annie at the time and I remember staying up until midnight to finish it, cursing myself the whole time. I had very bad edema in my legs and standing for long periods was the worst. 

Fast forward a year to Oregon and Bethany's fourth birthday. Strawberry Shortcake was all the rage, remember? I must have been feeling really clever by now, because I bought the Wilton pan and did another midnight stint to come up with this creation. Seems like I remember some cursing on this occasion too, but at least I wasn't pregnant!

Fast forward a couple of decades and a bit more.

Strawberry Shortcake is all the rage again.

This is what we ate for dessert last night at Natalie's birthday party. 

And no, I didn't burn the midnight oil on this one.

Bethany informed me that it took her about an hour to frost it.

Which kind of ticks me off and makes me wonder what I was doing wrong all those years ago!

It was very delicious.

Too bad I only got one little piece.

Not that I'm complaining or anything.

Somewhere, there exists a photo of the same cake at one of McKenzie's birthday parties.

I wonder who will get to use the pan next?

Saturday savings

Here is my latest large quantity buy.

One hundred and seventy two rolls of good-quality toilet paper.  

So, I'm picky about my toilet paper, what of it?

There were some good buys at Safeway and Fred Meyer this week. Combined with some coupons from those little dispensers in the aisle and some from my coupon wallet, I paid $4 for some and $5 for the rest. I've been a little worried about my t.p. supply, only staying a couple of packs ahead of demand. Now, I think I have about a year's supply. In case of a national emergency, my bum is going to be happy. You will probably look for excuses to visit me so that yours can be happy too!

If you live in my area, the Cottonelle is on sale at our local Safeway. The coupon dispenser is right next to it and has coupons for another $2 off.

You can thank me later.

Chocolate works.

See how I am?

My house was one busy house today.

Take a look.

Bethany and Samantha, shooting the breeze.

Charlie and kids, playing Skipbo in the living room. 

And again. 

Miss Natalie, going solo. 

Working on applesauce.  

Bethany's going to complain about her double chin in this one.

What can I say?

It's hereditary.

There's no way I could crop it out.

It's a chin, for Pete's sake!

The finished product.

And then I was mean and made Bethany clean up her mess.

Charlie signing up for Rosetta Stone.

He's learning Spanish.

Did you know active military  can get it for free?

And Josh eating his lunch.

Pistachios. One raspberry. A carrot. A cucumber. And Quaker rice cakes.

Gluten-free makes for an interesting diet.

My third loaf of apple bread in two days. 

Daniel playing "Somewhere My Love" on the piano, follow-the-lights style. 

Three kids playing chess.

Papa came in later and coached them. 

Bethany's tired feet getting a Shiatzu massage.

Natalie's feet waiting hopefully in the wings. 

Samantha's bible.

She and Charlie spend a lot of time with their noses buried in it. 

Daniel doing his music theory and getting a Shiatzu massage.

Some people have the life, don't they? 

And getting ready to sleep in the rec room with Charlie.

Eagerly anticipating the early-morning fishing trip with Papa, Charlie and Sam. 

Add a couple of grandchildren piano lessons, homemade pizza for dinner, and me watching Lark Rise to Candleford, and you've just about got it.

Happy weekend.