Hackmans Abroad

Cocktail Reception On Board the U.S.S. Carl Vinson

2011-12-29T13:09:00.001-08:00

Tammy and I had the most wonderful evening this week as we attended a cocktail reception on board the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Carl Vinson which is in Hong Kong for a few days. If you are follower of Beyond the Pale than you may remember that this is the second visit by the Carl Vinson to the territory this year. In that blog post I chronicled my friend Francis' invitation to the opening night reception and my subsequent (minor) jealousy surrounding that invitation.

I mean, I want to hang out on an American aircraft carrier walking past rows of F-18 Hornets with a drink in one hand and my beautiful wife on the other... but how.

These receptions are public relations events and in this case it means hosting U.S. Consulate workers, American businessmen, Hong Kong local vendors, visiting military guests of the People's Republic of China etc. I don't really qualify under any of those categories per se.

The food was fantastic!

But...as God would have it, He saw fit to fulfill certain desires of the heart so to speak. And just how did God fulfill this little heart desire of mine you ask? Well, I got to know a friend here in Hong Kong who has a little say over who gets invited and lo and behold, I received an invitation a couple weeks ago.

So on Tuesday evening Tammy and I headed down to Fenwick pier on Hong Kong Island where the "water taxis" waited to cart us out to the carrier. The U.S.S. Carl Vinson is really big and as we approached, the serial number "70" was lit up as a beacon cutting through the nighttime sky.

Guests rode the elevator up to the deck

The reception itself is held in the giant hanger bay and the U.S. Navy knows how to do food. People think the huge American defense budget is all bullets and missiles but they forget the shrimp tables and roast beef carving stations. But what I really had my heart set on was the chocolate chip cookies. Yes, you heard me right...

...the chocolate chip cookies. My friend Francis who attended the last reception said, "Seriously though, nobody has better chocolate chip cookies than the U.S. Navy." And you know, he was right! (I had 3)
Besides that high end shrimp and roast beef, it was also nice to have some good old American spicy jalapeno poppers. Darn they were good and when Tammy wasn't looking I snuck another one!

Reception entrance

One of the highlights of the evening was everyone heading out onto one of the aircraft elevators for a trip up to the flight deck. Yes, I got to fulfill my dream of having a glass of wine in one hand and my beautiful wife on my arm as we walked past rows of fighter planes. My childhood always comes back in these moments as most American boys my age wanted to be a fighter pilot at some point as a kid.

Its also fun for us Americans living overseas to have a little "home" turf arrive for a few days. Chatting with some of the officers is very lively and sometimes, although I usually love the diversity of Hong Kong, its just fun to talk in "Americanese" about America with other Americans

The evening ended and we headed back out to the ferries that would shuttle us back to the dock but not before we picked up a U.S.S. Carl Vinson T-shirt for Gabriel and a ship photo for my office.

Your mission should you choose to accept it...

I have to end with a special thank you to our friend Christine and her daughter Claire who kindly watched Ethan George for the evening. This was our first night "out" with a babysitter and knowing he was in such good care allowed us a relaxing evening.

Special thanks to the officers and crew of the U.S.S. Carl Vinson! Thanks for the work you do and for such a wonderful evening!

USA Trip 2011: New Orleans Lousiana & Boulder Colorado

2011-08-10T01:13:00.001-07:00

Just got back from a couple weeks in the United States. When Tammy and I used to visit the States in the 1990's, we split the time between Detroit (my home town) and Louisiana (Tammy's home state). Now though our years in Boulder Colorado has thrown another destination into the mix and with the time I had to be away from work limited, something (Detroit) had to get cut.

Had a great time catching up with family and friends. Some of the highlights included:

The National World War 2 Museum: My dad and mom came down from Detroit to spend a week with us in New Orleans with Tammy's family. My dad turned 70 during the visit so Gabriel came up with the idea of us "boys" taking "grandpa" to something we would all really like: The National World War 2 Museum which you think would be located in Washington DC but is actually to be found in New Orleans Louisiana. It was the PERFECT birthday present for my dad; to walk with his son and grandson through an

amazing display and multimedia presentation of both the European and Pacific theaters of war. On top of that there is an amazing 4D movie, Beyond all Boundaries, narrated by Tom Hanks that should be mandatory viewing for all Americans. What is it about Tom Hanks and WW2 that makes me fight the impulse to stand up and salute?

White Water Rafting in Colorado: My friend Tre had the good idea for his boys and Gabriel and I to go on a daylong white water rafting trip during our time in Boulder Colorado. Actually, we drove about 2 hours west into the Rocky Mountains to the town of Buena Vista and from there hooked up with the Buffalo Joes rafting company for a trip down the Arkansas River through Brown Canyon. We spent the day shooting rapids, diving off rock outcroppings, and enjoying some of the most beautiful scenery God felt fit to place on Earth. For lunch our guides cooked us the most delicious steak, along with corn on the cob and salad right alongside the river. Incredible!

A Colorado Rockies Game at Coors Field: Just before I returned to Hong Kong I had, what is for me, the cherry on top of the dessert; a baseball game at Coors Field. When we lived in Boulder, we spent many a summer night at Coors Field watching the Colorado Rockies. I love baseball and would joke that in going to Coors Field I was visiting "my other church." When Gabriel was a young child he would play on the children's jungle gym while I kept an eye on him, and the game, from the left field foul line. My game last week was wonderful and the highlight was as I was holding little Ethan George in my arms wearing his little # 2 Tulowinski Colorado Rockies t-shirt, the cameraman caught his cuteness and broadcast us on the giant Jumbotron for 40,000 fans to see. It was quite a night.

Some other highlights:

Teaching Gabriel, along with his grandpa and Uncle Trent, how to shoot a gun for the first time
Eating Chipotle Mexican Grill burritos
Hanging out with my brother and his family who trekked 10 hours from Salt Lake City to spend a day with us.
Cajun Fish Fry with Tammy's family in Louisiana
Going with Tammy up to Flagstaff Mountain overlooking Boulder with breakfast burritos and coffee like we did when we lived there
Spending quality time with our church friends in Boulder while drinking Friar Smith's Agent Orange I.P.A.

Spending 3 hours on the tarmac as United maintenance crews tried to fix our plane before my flight to Hong Kong. They were unable to and I spent the night, courtesy of United Airlines, in San Francisco

Well, now I'm back in Hong Kong while Tammy and the boys still have ANOTHER WEEK in Colorado. Yes, one of us has to get back to work...can you guess which one?

Ethan's Dedication & Kingdom Conference with Bill Johnson

2011-02-17T14:05:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday was a busy day! I had to speak at Island City Church in the morning and then race over for the beginning of the Kingdom Culture conference at Queen Elizabeth Stadium...all that while thinking about the 5000 word assignment I had due the day before for which I was granted a small extension. I played the "I had a new baby" card (which is very true) and was granted an additional 72 hours.

The Sunday preach went well (it's always a blessing for me to go back and speak at ICC) and for me the best part was to have everyone gather around as we dedicated little Ethan George to the Lord. There is something powerful that happens when you pray prophetically over a child believing that God is going to impart anointing even on a newborn. For me, to hold Ethan out and declare before the congregation that we will raise our child in the precepts of the Lord is like the vow made before witnesses at a wedding. Gabriel, Tammy, and I did it as a family and it was a special moment.

We then raced over to the conference and were totally blessed. The conference was sponsored by a pan-church organization called City Renewal and was supported by a number of English and Chinese language churches. There are few things Tammy and I get excited about more than church unity and how it can affect a city.

It was great for Tammy and I as we got to connect with some old friends and acquaintances that we knew when we lived in Hong Kong in the 1990's.

And Bill Johnson's teaching? Put it this way. I'm not a big note taker during talks. (Actually if truth be told, I rarely ever take notes) I jotted down a page of notes from Johnson's talk and realized in many ways it reflected the vision we had for Hong Kong when we were here 10 years ago. To identify with the city, to be part of it not outside of it. To create a culture that honors people... and then watch what the Holy Spirit can do...

Of course one funny anecdote, the stadium officials wouldn't let Ethan in without a ticket. Even though he was newborn, he needed to have a ticket (and the ticket was not particularly cheap) Finally the event organizers were notified what was going on and arranged for Ethan to have a complimentary ticket to satisfy the stadium ticket takers. I enclose a picture with Ethan proudly ready to present his ticket at the gate.

Hiking in Hong Kong!

2011-02-04T15:06:00.001-08:00

Folk that don't live in Hong Kong often think of it as a hustle, bustle city crammed full of people, buildings, and cars...and...well it is... but its also so much more. Hong Kong is a pretty big place and what people often don't know is that its more than 50% country park. Get a short hop outside the city areas and you find beautiful ocean vistas, rugged mountain cliffs, and systematically marked trails to guide you through them.

This week is Chinese New Year so on Wednesday I had planned for Gabriel and I to go on a "short" hike. At 8:30 AM Gabriel got up though and fired up the X-Box 360! Something rose up within me as I saw my son about to embark on yet another adventure into the virtual world rather than the real one.

"Get dressed and fill your water bottle...we're leaving in 10 minutes."

Of course I had to endure the initial despise that emanated from Gabriel for the next 60 minutes.

I decided on a nice stretch of a hike on South Lantau Island uphill to the top of the Island where the Ngong Ping Cable car village (and the Big Buddha) was. It was about a 2 - 2 1/2 hour jaunt and I figured we'd have lunch at the top and then either take the cable car or a bus back down.

We took the Park Island bus to Tsing Yi station then caught the MTR to Tung Chung on Lantau. After a little search we found the number 11 bus to Tai O but exited at the Shek Pik Reservoir. Just to the East of the reservoir was the trailhead but it had a large sign and a large brown gate that was chained closed:

"Danger: Due to landside damage this trail is permanently closed."

So I did what most hikers do when they see these things. I went around the gate and started walking.
"Papa, where are you going?"
"On the trail"
"But its says "Danger" Do you want us to get killed?"
"We're not going to get killed...lets go"

As we began to meander up the hill we began to look back and see the reservoir and the sea behind it descending into incredible views from our ever increasing height. Gabriel's attitude softened (as I knew it would) and before long we were having the father-son day I had envisioned. As we trudged along our little "fellowship" covered such conversational topics as God, girls, drugs, and world history.

Because it was a "closed" trail the normal encounters with other hikers didn't happen. The whole morning we passed no one having the trail and the mountainside all to ourselves and finally reaching the top Ngong Ping Village. This is a tourist area of Hong Kong where the largest Buddha in the world has been constructed along with all the restaurants and souvenir shops that inhabit these types of places. We had lunch at Ebeneezers which is an Indian curry fast food chain in Hong Kong. While we were eating I asked Gabriel if he wanted to take the cable car down (expensive) or the bus (cheap)?

"What if we hike the trail under the cable car down?"
" Huh!!" I thought. Was this my X-Box 360 loving son who I practically had to Shanghai to get him out hiking now suggesting we hoof it for another 3 hours back down to the MTR station.

"OK...lets do it"

We finished our curries and headed off for Lantau Hike Part 2. As the cable cars glided over our heads we eschewed such luxury for the thrill of the trail. We quickly discovered though, that although primarily a "decent" back down to the city, the trail went back up at each of the cable car towers so we had a extreme workout of non-stop accent and decent.

Occupants of the cable cars shouted out to us and gave us the thumbs up along the trail no doubt saying, "Look at what those crazy guys are doing!"

About two hours in we ran out of water which made things even more fun! Up....and down....up....and down! This was a lot more than I originally planned but it was now becoming a challenge for both Gabriel and I. At 4:00 PM we finally... successfully...reached the bottom...but then had another 10 minutes to walk before we reached civilization...and a 7-11 where we bought two large bottles of water and downed them while still in the store.

(Gabriel followed it up with a Slurpee)

Anyhow, wish I had a camera, but I pulled a few generic pics from the area off the internet of the area. It was a great day and one we'll do again soon!

Introducing Ethan George Hackman

2010-12-29T14:22:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to pause to welcome my new son, Ethan George Hackman. into the world. Ethan was born 2 days before Christmas on December 23rd at Queen Mary Hospital at 4:13 AM; which means he's been in the world for 26 hours. (OK, it took me a few days to finish this post)

Although I always wanted to have more children, it wasn't happening and you start reaching the age where you begin to accept the fact that you are blessed to have the son you have and to live with that reality. Then, the summer before last we were back in the States visiting our home church in Boulder Colorado and during a time of prayer a prophetic friend in the church said she felt God wanted to give us another child. We thought, "Cool". I mean at the ages of 43 and 38 we weren't exactly Abraham and Sarah, but if it was going to happen, it probably needed to happen soon.

In May this year shortly before our move to Hong Kong, Tammy called me and asked if I could get off work early and meet her at Disneyland. (We live fairly close to Hong Kong Disneyland and have season passes so the request was not THAT unusual) We met at the souvenir shop on Main Street and she handed me a stuffed "Pluto" plushie and said, "Congratulations". I honestly had no idea what she meant until I saw her eyes water up and nod. Yep, she found out that morning and wanted to tell me at Disneyland. (How cool is that?)

Fast forward to night before last. We were watching the Disney movie Enchanted and as usual, I slipped out early to fall asleep. I had just started to nod off when Tammy came in saying her water had broke. We grabbed our things, called a cab, and arrived at the hospital about midnight. At 1:15 AM with Gabriel sleepily installed in the waiting room I entered the labor room with my doctor's garb on and my "Husband" badge displayed on my chest.

When I entered the room, Tammy was already in a lot of pain. We had requested an epidural but they needed to get the blood type thing sorted yada yada yada...so she ended up doing the whole birth on gas and a shot (which didn't seem to help that much). Put it this way, I knew childbirth was painful...but its hard to watch your wife in such agony, and be able to do so little except coach and encourage.

We had not decided on a name having bantered a few around for the last few months. I was tending toward "Ethan" which is of Hebrew origin meaning "firmness". Tammy and Gabriel were looking at the name "George" a lot wanting something more traditional and not the latest "fad" name. Anyhow, at one point when when Tammy was in heavy pain and the mid-wife was encouraging her, she asked what the baby's name was. I looked at Tammy a little and muttered to the nurse, "Um, we haven't really decided on a name."

At that moment Tammy nearly stood up in the saddle in mid contraction to declare, "HIS NAME IS ETHAN!"

I looked over at the nurse, "His name is Ethan..."

The baby came a few minutes later to immense joy. Funny story though...after greeting little Ethan into the world, the nurses rushed him off to be tagged and examined. About 10 minutes later the nurse returned with "Ethan". He looked...different. "Excuse me" I asked. "This baby has a pink tag...is this our child." The nurse looked at the tags and in horror realized her mistake as she scooted out the door.

I guess all us white people just look alike :)

Before I wrap up...I have to mention our Christmas Eve in the hospital. Tammy SO didn't want to be in the hospital over Christmas...but things happen. So Gabriel and I stopped at City Super (market) and got their take away prepared Christmas dinner which for some reason included lasagna and Teriyaki chicken wings along side the Virginia ham (Hong Kong diversity) and brought it up to Tammy's room along with a couple Christmas decorations. We sat together as a family and watched "Its a Wonderful Life" on a laptop enjoying each other and our newest member.

It truly is a Wonderful Life!

Paintball Friday

2010-11-28T14:23:00.000-08:00

Last Friday I and a number of teachers led the Christian youth group from our school, FUSION, to an after school session of "paintball". Paintball is that military style game where you have guns that fire paint bullets (actually a hardened talcum powder) and you essentially run around and shoot each other.

After a 45 minute bus ride we rocked up to the paintball camp which is in a rural area of Hong Kong. As we traveled I thought about how, after all my years in the territory, I am constantly amazed to find little hidden areas of Hong Kong I didn't know existed. At the top of a hill we entered the facility that, at first glace, looked like one of these camps in America where scary militia guys train to fight imaginary enemies. Makeshift firing ranges, guns on racks, military paraphernalia littered the area. These city kids weren't going to know what hit them...

We were given an intro safety meeting and then suited up with camouflage vest, riot helmet, and a very real looking M-16 rifle...the paintball version.

Our first scenario was in a maze of concrete walls and bunkers in the middle of a field. My first "kill" was a 14 year old girl. (Yeah, not exactly my proudest moment) She came out from behind a wall and I fired, hitting her in the leg. I had been told that although the "bullets" were not dangerous, they still hurt and I could tell from her reaction, getting shot was painful.

I turned a corner and confronted a friend of mine who is one of the principals at the school. We both fired...my gun jammed...his didn't. I felt this pain hit my leg and I knew I was "dead". I put my rifle over my head to declare my status and walked out of the scenario. Man, though, my leg hurt. As I write this two days later I have a fair sized bruise at the top of my leg.

That was the ONLY time in the evening I was "killed". We had subsequent scenarios in a "street" setting with cars and other hiding places to find cover in. The sun went down and a single flood light gave enough ambient light to continue.

At one point I was fighting Gabriel's team and I am ashamed to admit it, but I shot my own son. Later he said, "Papa, its like you just came out of the shadows..."

Oh yeah...suddenly all those years watching Arnold, Bruce, and Stallone 80's action movies was paying off. Many a student (and a teacher or two) were added to my 'body count" that day!

We went on to a "capture the flag" tournament which was a lot of fun and then it was time to go home. But the kids were already talking about the next time they would get to come out and, if they were lucky, possibly shoot a teacher or two.

Hong Kong Anniversary!

2010-10-12T14:53:00.001-07:00

This week was a special week for me. On October 5th it was the 20th anniversary of the day I first arrived in Hong Kong. Three days later on October 8th, I was introduced to my wife Tammy for the first time.

1990...It had been a crazy long flight but designed to be as cheap as possible. The travel agent had asked me where I needed a ticket to. "China" I answered.
"Which city?"
"Hong Kong" I replied.
The travel agents tone changed slightly and she said a little gruffly, "Hong Kong is Not China" in a way that sounded more personal than informative, and giving a naive American his first lesson into the geo-politics of the area. I didn't care, I just wanted a cheap ticket. I got it but...

...arrived in Hong Kong on a Korean Airlines 747 after a grueling 30+ hour flight that had me going from Detroit to New York, to Anchorage Alaska, to Seoul Korea, and finally to Hong Kong. I was picked up at the airport by "Toby" the guy that I was going to share a flat with. He dumped me off in an empty reception area of the church I'd be working at until he had time to take me out to my new digs.

As I sat there, blurry eyed with fatigue and desperately needing a shower, a guy came up and asked me if I was busy. I nodded that I wasn't. "Great," he said, "because I need someone to clean the bathrooms."
I thought he was joking...

...he wasn't!

Not only that, he informed me the church was out of cleaner and I needed to go buy some. He took me to the window and pointed out at a mass of humanity that was Mong Kok and gave we directions to a little Mom & Pop shop where I could get the cleaner. He gave me my first Hong Kong dollars, an empty cleaner bottle so I got the right stuff, and shoved me out the door.
Again, I thought he was joking...

...he wasn't!

I came back with the goods after my first (but certainly not my last) excursion into the alleyways of Mong Kok and was promptly put to work by the guy, who I discovered was one of my new bosses. As I sat their scrubbing toilets I felt it was all some surreal dream and I would be waking up at any moment! Being a young kid trying to make an impression I convinced myself that they were testing me...that they were trying to see if I was made of the right stuff. No matter how tired I was or how much I smelled...I was going to show them Jesus in my heart...

Turns out I wasn't being tested...and the boss, well he turned out to, how do I say this polietely, he just marched to the beat of a different drummer :) But that was my Welcome to Hong Kong moment! Incidently, I was at a church service recently where a number of churches got together in celebration. I spotted this guy up on the stage in the worship band. It had been 18 years since I last saw him...

I didn't go up to say hi! :)

Young Couple

Two days later on Sunday morning I was at my first church service and Tammy (my wife to be) walked through the door. My first thought was, "Well, this place is finally starting to pick up a little..."

The next day on Monday I made my first trip into Mainland China bringing Bibles. I was really excited and when I walked into the office to meet "Jeff" who would be leading me in on my first trip, Tammy was working and I was introduced to her for the first time. BTW, I made it in with all my Bibles on that first trip and tried to visit the opening of the first "McDonalds" in China which was on the same day but we couldn't even get close such was the crowd of Chinese eager to get their first Big Mac!

With Gray Hair

This week Tammy and I had an Italian dinner at "Cafe Roma" near our house to celebrate our "anniversary". I asked Tammy if she thought on that day that twenty years later we would be married, living in Hong Kong, and that she would be 6 months pregnant with our baby?

She replied honestly, "Nope!"

Oh well, I still got the girl!

Travels in Italy Pt. 1

2010-10-07T16:54:00.001-07:00

Although we didn’t need to leave for the airport until 8:00 AM…we were up at 5. Why? Because after many delays, we were finally off to our vacation in Italy. The European trip began being put together by my mom and my wife a couple years ago. We were moving to China for a new job and my parents, who have been to China many times already, proposed that they not visit us there but that we meet up for a vacation together somewhere in Europe. That idea gradually morphed into a our Tuscany adventure.

We were supposed to make the trip during the week long Chinese New Year Holiday back in February but my recent job relocation to Hong Kong ended up delaying the trip until now. Yes, we did get some flack for taking Gabriel out of school for this but I figure:

* He’s in the 7th grade…he’ll make it up before university
* Thirty years from now he’ll remember walking around Florence with his grandparents and have no memory, or care, for the school lessons he missed this week!

So, about 7:50 AM we rolled our little suitcases out the door and down to the Park Island airport shuttle for Hong Kong International. Of course, for Tammy and Gabriel a trip to the airport means not only a flight but a visit to Popeye’s chicken. For some reason, Popeye’s is in no other place in Hong Kong save the airport and once clearing immigration both made a beeline for the chicken palace. In fact after scarfing down a chicken breakfast I had to buy a half dozen pieces to go just incase my 6 month pregnant wife suddenly got cravings at 30,000 feet.

Our flight to Rome was on the Russian carrier Aeroflot and was routed through Moscow. I must admit, as a child of the 80’s and of Ronald Reagan’s America, the thought of flying into the heart of the former Soviet Union was somewhat exhilarating for me. After all, while growing up, this was the heart of the “evil empire” and the “iron curtain”. In actually, it turned out rather uneventful. No gulag, Pravda, or KGB stories to tell, just ended up chatting with an American from Broomfield Colorado in the transit lounge. (Ah…the irony!)

The one interesting thing flying Aeroflot was the sudden realization that it was a “dry flight”. When the steward asked me what I wanted to drink I asked for a glass of wine. He looked at me uncomfortably and muttered that they were out. I then asked for a beer to which I found out that there was no alcohol served in economy class of the flight. Now, I’ve been flying Internationally for over 20 years and I have never seen alcohol not available on a flight. Seeing that many of the people on the plane looked like extras in a Guy Ritchie movie, it would appear a tactical decision to keep everyone sober had been made. Scanning my flight companions in the cabin I would say it was a wise decision. I ordered apple juice!

Landing in Rome we headed to the Avis counter to collect our reserved rental car. I admit I was a little anxious. I hadn’t driven in over a year and now I would be driving the streets of a foreign country at night trying to find our hotel…and with a stick shift! The plan was to meet up with my parents at the hotel for a night before departing in the morning for Tuscany and our rented farmhouse. 30 minutes and 2 wrong turns later we arrived at the hotel for our first night in Italy!

Curries, Fried Rice, and Cheeseburgers

2010-08-25T14:25:00.001-07:00

After being back in Hong Kong now for 8 months I can say, "I love it!" And if you ask why, I'll probably say, "something to do with Curry, Fried Rice, and Cheeseburgers!"

What I mean by that...simply... is Hong Kong has everything!

Take for example last week. The teachers at our school decided to head out on a Friday night for drinks and dinner. The evening started at Joe's Pool Hall in Knutsford Terrace. The 8th floor establishment complete with billiard tables, dart boards, and cheeseburgers could be found on any given street corner in the U.S. or Britain....not what one normally associates with Hong Kong, and yet part of the fabric here none the less.

After shooting some pool I was starving as I was purposely holding out eating until we made our way to Chung King Mansions. If you are unfamiliar with Chung King Mansion, wikipedia correctly describes it as, " guesthouses, curry restaurants, African bistros, clothing shops, sari stores, and foreign exchange offices. It often acts as a large gathering place for some of the ethnic minorities in Hong Kong, particularly South Asians (Indians, Nepalese, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Sri Lankans), Middle Eastern people, Nigerians, Europeans, Americans, and many other peoples of the world."

Whenever I enter Chung King Mansion the line from Star Wars where Ben Kenobi says, "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy, we must be cautious" pops in my head.

We settled on the Taj Mahal restaurant and as Indian waiters began unloading platters of samosas and poppadoms (sp?) I was struck by the diversity even at our table; British, Aussies, Kiwis, Hong Kong Chinese, and Americans raising a glass together to toast the new academic year. Pretty soon debates began such as:

* who is the more conditioned athlete, an Aussie Rules footballer or a player from Rugby Union?

* whats going to happen in the South China Sea between the U.S. and China?

* who will win in the upcoming Australian election; Liberal or Labor?

* will David Cameron re-energize the Tories or will his austerity plan cripple Britain?

Discussions like that I could never have with a group of Americans back home hanging out at an Applebees!

Before I left Chung King for the night I stopped by a DVD stall and had the South Asian shopkeeper recommend a couple Bollywood movies for me to take home. Tammy and I have grown to really enjoy Bollywood movies...on occasion :)

Even last year when we were still in Qingdao I was asked why I came back to Asia. I responded, "here we are at the Olympic Sailing Center where my son is learning to sail from a French teacher and a Chinese teacher. I'm sitting here chatting with a Dane on my right and a South African to my left on a dock where an Olympic competition was just held...thats why I'm back."

In Hong Kong, the crazy blend of East and West is always display. Even though it is no longer a British colony, the judges here still where white judicial wigs while in court. Police divisions have ceremonial wings complete with bagpipers. Street stalls with very fresh seafood can be just a few blocks down from some of the most expensive designer boutiques in the world. One evening I may be sitting on a rickety stool outside having a bowl of traditional Cantonese claypot rice and the next evening having humus and spicy lamb at a posh Lebanese restaurant.

And while America frets over the building of a Muslim Cultural center in New York, I see how relaxed people here are in a melting pot of religious freedom. On Nathan Road, one of the main arteries in downtown Kowloon, the Masjid and Islamic Centre sits prominently on one side of the street, and across the way is St. Andrew's Anglican church. No fights, no protests, everyone getting along for the most part. The rest of Hong Kong is full of Christian churches, mosques, Chinese temples, synagogues and every other place of worship you might think of. Given the possibly volitile mix, there is a marvolus lack of protest, violence, or bodycount that the residents here I think tend to appreciate.

So what's the secret to all this social harmony? My two cents...Its probably the Curries, Fried Rice, and Cheeseburgers.

Living on Park Island

2010-08-12T19:28:00.001-07:00

When Tammy and I moved back to Hong Kong last Christmas we had a decision to make...Where to live? We had lived for a number of years in different places around the territory from the early days in Fanling near the border with China, to six years living in a mountaintop Shatin village home, to finally ending up down in the hustle and bustle of Hong Kong Island.

During Christmas 2008 we visited Hong Kong from China where we were living and stayed with some friends at their home on Park Island, Ma Wan. Ma Wan for years had been a small Island with a fishing village and not much more. Then the Tsing Ma Bridge was built as part of the new airport project and suddenly this inaccessible section of Hong Kong was connected to the rest of the territory.

It didn't take long before land developers saw the potential and within no time "Park Island" was born. Residential towers, swimming pools, clubhouses, restaurants sprung up from seemingly out of no where and the tiny population of Ma Wan which had previously been a few hundred jumped to over 10,000.

We loved our visit in 2008 so when my new job promotion took us back to Hong Kong, the first place we started house searching was on Park Island. After looking at a number of places, we had our heart set on one flat. 3 bedroom, 21st floor with a seaview and a balcony. 1,075 sq. ft. Understand in Hong Kong, housing sq. footage is like gold and everyone here seems to know at any given time what the market rate is in a particular area.

We had set ourselves a budget of not paying more than "X" for a place and preferring to keep it at "X" - HK$ 2000 (US$ 260). Because of the recent spike in prices due to investment money coming in from the mainland, the landlord of our proposed flat would only agree to "X" + $HK 2000. We hemmed and hawed and Tammy and I pored over our budget plan on Excel to see how we could tweak things to get it.

Of course...we made it happen and for the last 6 months we've been enjoying our "Island" life. The commute is a little long as I have to catch a shuttle bus off the Island to the MTR (subway) and then the train right to Kowloon Tong. Door to door is 50 minutes.

Another plus is the fast ferry that takes us to Central (downtown) in just 22 minutes. I like to be able to live in a quiet peaceful place where cars are not allowed and then in a few minutes be right down "where the action is".

And having a 12 year old, the fact that Park Island has its own beach, 4 swimming pools, 3 clubhouses, tennis courts and bowling ally means there is often plenty to do. There is even a built to scale "Noah's Ark" attraction here.

Food wise in addition to the Chinese restaurants, there are Italian, Indian, German, and Thai and those are all right on the beach. There are few things more relaxing than sitting outside over a fine meal with the sea and the Tsing Ma bridge in the background. True, the Park and Shop supermarket here is not as diverse as Discovery Bay or Central, but having just moved from Qingdao China, its a culinary gold mine :)

Anyhow, we thank God for bringing us back to Hong Kong...and to Park Island!

My "Public" Health Care Experience

2010-08-11T18:31:00.001-07:00

(I am reposting this from my personal blog. This event occured in June)
So much has been debated recently on the health care issue in America especially when it involves the public option. Because of this I want to share with you my recent encounter with "the public option" as it exists in Hong Kong.

Last Wednesday I developed a pain in my side that kept getting worse and wouldn't go away. Finally I realized I needed to get to an Emergency Room. I hopped on a speed ferry (I live on an Island)and zoomed downtown where I took a taxi ten minutes to Queen Mary Hospital. The ER receptionist asked for my Hong Kong Identity Card. As a resident of HK my trip to the ER would cost me HK$100 (US$ 13).

They then sent me to the Triage station and when I told them that I had a heart stent placed last year they immediately performed and EKG to determine if the pain I had was possibly heart related. It wasn't. I was then given a slip of paper categorizing my priority as semi-urgent. No doubt because of the obvious pain I was in.

My semi-urgent status got me in to see a doctor in about 45 minutes and after a consultation had an x-ray and urinalysis done. I was also given an injection & a pill for the pain. There is nothing like the sweet relief of pain killing drugs when you are in agony .

I had to wait a fair bit as I jumped through various hoops at the different stations. After about 4 hours the doctor suspected a kidney stone but was unsure, so I was admitted into the general ward. I was put in a wheel chair and brought to a hospital room with six beds, 4 of which had other patients. A single flat screen TV was on the wall for everyone to use and as I was the lone Englishman, the default channel was Cantonese. Fortunately I had my iPod Nano with me loaded with music, podcasts, and episodes of 30 Rock!

I was eventually taken for a CT scan which immediately identified the painful culprit; a small 2mm kidney stone making its way from the kidney to the bladder. Think of a small BB traveling through a hair follicle. Ouch!

I was immediately transferred to the ward that deals with this area. Of course it was 11:00 PM by this time and as the nurses wheeled me into my new overnight digs they gave no noise consideration to the 3 sleeping patients in my new room...causing me no little embarrassment.

I was monitored the next day and then finally discharged about 6:00 PM. Now in Hong Kong you have a private option as well as a public. Although I have insurance and could have gone private with much nicer personal care and accommodation, in my pain, I simply went to the closest hospital I could get too...which was a public one. Granted I saw multiple different doctors (whichever one happened to be on duty) and my bed sheets, while clean, had a couple small holes and a faded stain or two. I shared a room with multiple other patients and we shared a single, albeit clean, bathroom. The meals were hardly appealing but my nurse allowed me a quick run to the Starbucks in the hospital lobby where a nice sandwich wrap was available.

But the reality was I had:

* an emergency room visit
* an x-ray
* an EKG
* a urinalysis
* bloodwork
* a CT scan
* a night in the hospital
* a weeks worth of medication at discharge

and the grand total I paid: HK$ 200 (about US$ 26).

Now keep in mind...this is Hong Kong. A territory that is so capitalist it makes the United States look like a socialist Eastern bloc country. This is a city where the national past time is to stand around TV's tuned to the business channel to watch the stock price crawls on the bottom of the screen. Arguments about it being "socialist" don't work here.

So it is a relief to know that in this "capitalist mecca" there is a safety net available to me and my family in the event of an insurance problem...or lack thereof. I think many Americans would welcome that relief as well.

Back to Qingdao...for a few days!

2010-06-14T14:31:00.000-07:00

Last week I (Steve) was able to visit both Shanghai and Qingdao. In Qingdao I got to spend a few days at the school we worked at and with the special teachers and students that made our time in that city extraordinary.

What was really good was my timing was perfect as I got to attend the year end staff dinner where a focus is on the teachers who would be leaving. I was able to give a short speech (it always fun to be told these things 5 minutes before you have to do them) and then I was reminded that this was actually Tammy and I's going away dinner as well since we left during the current academic year. Unfortunately, although Tammy and Gabriel had wanted to join me in Qingdao, Gabriel's exam schedule in Hong Kong made it impossible.

Anyhow, the weather was about as perfect as it could be and our old stomping ground, the beach, was as beautiful as ever.

Our time in Qingdao was short (a year and a half) but it was one of the best, most refreshing, times of our lives.

Been busy

2010-05-22T16:55:00.000-07:00

Well, we've been adapting to our new surrounding here in Hong Kong and been having a lot of fun. We've been connecting with old friends...making new friends...and also getting involved with church and what God would have for us here.

Just recently Tammy, Gabriel and I found ourselves at a rugby match where I got to chat to chat with a British couple about the recent elections in England. I though, "This is some of what I missed" Being in a city with people from all over the world working side by side.

I also recently returned from a trip to Turkey where I got to lead 35 middle schoolers on a class trip through the country. Got to see Ephesus and was overwhelmed that I was walking the same street that Paul walked when first preaching the Gospel!

Anyhow...will try to update again soon!

Hiking in Hong Kong

2010-03-09T14:03:00.001-08:00

Most people when they think of Hong Kong think of high skyscappers, lots of people, and lots of noise. Although that certainly is often the case here, those that only visit often miss out on the the fact that Hong Kong is over 50% Country Park with beautiful mountains, hills, and ocean front trails.

On Sat, Gabriel and I joind took the invitation to join on a Father / Son hike with some neighbors and their church. We went to a place called Monkey Hill which, of course, had lots of monkeys.

What was really cool is the bunkers and underground passages that are still accessiable along portions of the trail from World War 2 when the British built defensive positions to stop the Japanese from taking Hong Kong. It didn't work. The tunnels still have the London Street names carved into them such as "Charing Cross".

Some of the passages are REALLY long and I was glad my cell phone has a flashlight as a feature.

Anyhow, it was an enjoyable hike and Gabriel and I had a fun time!

Update January

2010-02-01T23:43:00.000-08:00

Well, after a month in a hotel room we moved into a beautiful 3 bedroom apartment. Its been a challenge as we sleep on the floor using camping mattresses in a flat with no furniture. However, some good friends recently arrived from Boulder and brought our mattress from back home in 3 separate boxes.

Tammy has been looking at the moving sites to buy second hand furniture and has managed to get us a dining room table, a bed frame, a bed for Gabriel, and a TV for some remarkably reasonable prices.

For the mean time though, we are being spoiled by the seaview we have in our new place...

(And thanks Michael for the pics)

What comes 'round...

2009-12-29T12:32:00.000-08:00

In November 1999, as we were getting ready to leave Hong Kong for good, a number of friends mentioned that it was a shame that I was leaving just a few months away from obtaining Permanent Residency Status, which would have made me a defacto official citizen of Hong Kong.

I didn't care...I was America bound and remember joking, "If God ever wants me back, he'll get me another work visa." Well...10 years later, He did...and He did!

We arrived in Hong Kong after a final flurry of activities in Qingdao (which involved a lot of tears all around). School ended on Dec 18...and we boarded a plane for Hong Kong on the 19th. As we began our decent into the city Tammy and I both experienced a flood of memories and excitement. After 10 years away, we were going to live in Hong Kong again!

The airport shuttle took us to the YWCA serviced apartment where we are temporarily staying, and because we were the LAST hotel on the list, had a pleasant Saturday night drive through the city. It was as if we were getting a welcome back tour just for us. Hong Kong was lit up for Christmas and we kept staring out the big bus windows with wide grins, pinching each other and exclaiming, "We're back!"

Anyhow, some of the highlights of the last few days:

* We visited the school where I will be working and where Gabriel will be attending. Gabriel was amazed as he will be coming from a campus with a secondary student body of 18 to one of 700.

* Went to Hong Kong Disneyland which was decorated perfectly for Christmas. What a wonderful day...but I still couldn't get Gabriel to ride Space Mountain with me!

* Spent Christmas Eve with some dear friends we have known in Hong Kong for many, many years! Good food, wine, and conversation made it a special night.

* Spent Christmas Day and night with Island City Church (the church we planted many years ago) at the Noah's Ark attraction. A group of businessmen built an "ark" to the scale found in the Bible which includes conference rooms, hotel and hostel rooms, team-building activities, restaurants, a museum etc. all along the beach. Had a lot of fun with old familiar faces as well as new friends.

* Have to be careful not to gain weight having moved from a culinary desert in China, to a city where every ethnic dish from a Ruby Tuesday's Blue Cheese hamburger to a take away chicken vindaloo is available!! The diet starts soon :)

* Spent a few days house hunting. Have a couple good leads but we'll see. Having to re adjust my thinking that when a housing agent points to a bedroom that is about the size of a closet in America and remarks, "Look at all the space you'll have" that they are not making a joke.

* Had a wonderful Chinese hotpot dinner with and old friend, his family, and co-workers.

Anyhow, that is why the blogging has been sporadic lately. We've been busy...and happy!

Change the Title!!

2009-12-05T12:46:00.000-08:00

OK, I'm writing this from still within Qingdao. Its still 13 days before we move to Hong Kong, but I thought I'd change the name of the blog anyhow!!

We're a little stressed. Hong Kong is requiring our dog to go through 4 months of quarantine since she is coming from China. Its just a little Chihuahua and we're pretty sure 4 months locked in a little cell at an immigration facility is not going to work wonders on this frail little creature.

Tammy is pretty upset about it but we've been praying and we know an answer will be made clear soon.

Other than that, the packing is in full swing in and amoungst the Christmas preparations at the school. Its going to be a busy journey for the next couple weeks as we prepare to leave but we're very excited...

cuz we're moving to Hong Kong!

Some catching up

2009-11-30T04:03:00.000-08:00

Been busy here. Sorry for not writing more. We'll only be in Qingdao for another 2-3 weeks and then we're off to Hong Kong for good. Its been a good last few weeks though. Gabriel ran for Student Council and after a couple of good speeches that his parents were very proud of, he won a seat. Of course he only gets to sit on the council for a few weeks until he leaves but we're excited he won!

Tammy is busy getting our personal belongings all together. Her biggest challenge is getting Libby to Hong Kong which is proving to be a little difficult. Seems no airlines are going to let her be in the cabin as she was on the flight over here.

Mmmmm...Oh, Gabriel had an overnight trip to another school to play soccer last week. The whole secondary student body (all 17) went to Yantai together, which is a coastal city about 3 hours away. They had a night in a hotel and then played 4 games against 2 other schools. He had a great time...but forgot his cell phone!

Well...this may be our last post from Qingdao. Hong Kong...Here we come!!

International Day 2009

2009-10-31T04:12:00.000-07:00

This is the second year Tammy, Gabriel, and I participated in International Day at our school in Qingdao. Its a great day as the children are divided into various countries and then go around to different stations that have the kids participate in cultural aspects of that country.

Tammy was part of the China team and Gabriel was in Egypt. I was running the U.S.A. station and for 45 minutes the children at my booth got to participate in an American Bar-B-Q. We made cheeseburgers together, watched a baseball game, and just hung out...American style. Later we played a baseball game and the day was capped off with tug-o-war matches. A good time was had by all...and only 7 more weeks until we move to Hong Kong!

Hong Kong: Its Official!

2009-10-15T15:04:00.000-07:00

Well, its really official now! In about 9 weeks we will leave China for Hong Kong to take up a new position as Head of Christian Education at Yew Chung International School. In affect we are going "home"!

We left Hong Kong ten years ago to plant a church in Boulder Colorado but for the last few years though we pined for our lost home in Asia. Its funny because Hong Kong often drove me crazy but after a while both Tammy and I just missed the "crazy". Sometimes you don't appreciate things until it isn't there anymore.

In 2005 we returned to the city to visit Island City Church, which was the church we founded, on the occasion of it's 10th anniversary. On our first morning there while walking the busy streets Tammy was almost giddy! She finally just turned to me and said, "Lets come home."

I was pretty sure then that we would be back in Hong Kong one day. Of course there was a long haul between then and now.

In 2008 I flew to Hong Kong to explore some job opportunities. In a nutshell after a week I had a couple of possibilities that would allow us to relocate back to the city but nothing "felt" right.

Increasingly though we were feeling God's tug and I responded to a friend's suggestion that I apply for a Dorm supervisor position in Qingdao China. I was very reluctant. One, I didn't want to be a "Dorm Parent" and two, I knew Tammy would not entertain a move to China. But we argreed to an interview and, lo and behold, it was the best interview I had had in a while. I knew that the Dorm Parent position would be a foot in the door to both a higher position and a move back to Hong Kong and I was given every opportunity and encouragement from the school. In the last year I assumned many other duties including secondary teacher and campus coordinator while Tammy has assumed the Dorm Supervisor role as well as teaching art.

Last month I received a call from the main office in Hong Kong indicating that the Head of Christian & Moral Education (who is a friend of mine) would be resigning and offering me the position. Wow!

God does have his ways. We followed his leading even when it didn't always make sense and now He is leading us back to the place where we had started.

Hong Kong is so special to us. Its the city where Tammy and I met and fell in love. Its the city where as a young couple we spent years doing missionary work and eventually pastoring a church. Its the city where our son was born.

So, I don't know yet what He has in store for us as He brings us home to Hong Kong but we are ready...older...and hopefully a little wiser :)

Down to Hong Kong

2009-09-19T01:55:00.000-07:00

10 years ago we left Hong Kong for America leaving the church we had planted, Island City Church in the very capable hands of Paul & Camilla Ellis. During those 10 years Paul & Camilla have faithfully ministered in the church by teaching and preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ and shepherding the people that God had placed in their care.

Now Paul & Camilla have felt the season for their leadership there is over and will be moving back to New Zealand with their 3 children and turning the pastoral responsibility over to another special couple, Tung and Helen Lee. Gabriel and I had the chance to fly down to HK for the farewell of Paul & Camilla.

Granted, I never need to much of an excuse to get down to Hong Kong, but on this special occasion it was all the more meaningful. We got to enjoy a farewell party on Sat. evening followed by a final Sunday morning service with Paul & Tung sharing the leadership.

As someone who was instrumental in the birth of the church it was especially meaningful for me. When you watch the fruit that has been born I appreciated in just a small way, the feeling Paul the Apostle felt when he learned that the churches he had planted had held firm in the faith in the midst of hardships.

Gabriel & I's time in Hong Kong was much to short (40 hours) but...that may change soon...more details to come :)

Qingdao International Beer Fest. 2009

2009-08-30T01:41:00.000-07:00

One of the major events in Qingdao every year (being that it is famous for its beer) is the Qingdao International Beer Festival which runs for 3 weekends in August.
As a school we had a staff outing to the fest as everyone is pretty frazzled with the mad rush of a new academic year.

Many of you know our school has two campus's on either side of the Qingdao bay so being as we are on the "far side" our "beer fest" adventure began with a 1:45 minute mini bus ride around the bay.

The beer fest is a beer event mixed with carnival rides, games, entertainment etc. After a few minutes at the fest though, one realizes including "International" in the event's name is a bit of a stretch. My guess is that they think that if you have some Heinekin and a couple German beers available as well as a few Chinese minority groups grilling kabobs over a grill, it becomes "International".

Ah..no..

Each of the different beer tents had music blaring so loud that a conversation is all but impossible. It might be forgiven if it was good music...but its not!

As you approach the toilets I nearly stepped into some vomit that no one seemed to be in a hurry to clean. The toilets themselves were not so much "International" as they were...mmm..third world prison. The urinal "trough" was loaded with vomit and the smell was pungent. You turn around to see not toilet "stalls" but a another trough with no doors or walls where a row of guys are doing their "# 2 business" staring up at you.

That ain't right.

A fellow teacher with me just said, "Ah, if I had the guts to snap a picture...no one would believe this otherwise"

We did have an enjoyable evening though and the "meat on a stick" kabobs we're delicious. Gabriel went around playing carnival games and a good time was had by all...mostly!

Back in China

2009-08-19T14:05:00.000-07:00

(Sorry, wanted to include some pictures but a major internet cable was severed in the ocean near Asia and internet speed has slowed considerably. I tries to upload pics but they just wouldn't upload. Will add some later)

Had an amazing 2nd part of our trip to America but, as we expected, it ended all to soon. We arrived back in China on Aug 8 at midnight and were back to work on Aug 10.
Tammy is assuming all the duties related to the boarding program as I take on a full time teaching load. To add to my new found position, I've also been asked to be "campus coordinator" which acts as an administrative position for the school. I become the person everyone goes to with a question...which essentially means I can't get my other work done...but I'm learning alot. This year I'm teaching Travel & Tourism, Information and Communications, ESL, and even couple PE classes.

Gabriel was the family member who did NOT want to return to China preferring for us all, "to stay in Colorado" but he has gotten right back into the swing here. His Chinese language skills continue to improve and he really helps me out when I don't understand something.

We did get the disappointing news that 2 boarding students we thought would be joining us are not so that means the school year starts off with just having 2 students in the dorms. That should make Tammy's job easier but she has elected now to cook dinner every night rather than have the catered, and sometimes depressing, restaurant food.

Anyhow....we're back for year 2 in China and I know its going to be a good year!

Catching Up

2009-07-14T02:47:00.000-07:00

Hi all, We're back in the States and will try to catch you up on what we've been up to. The last day of school was June 26th and so we closed up the house the next day and boarded a train for Beijing. Beijing is amazing these days...We actually toured an indoor / outdoor mall with movie theaters and all the types of shops we would see in the States. I watched "white" people all over the place with cups of Starbucks in their hands milling about and thought, "Well for years there was Chinatown in San Francisco, now there is a "Western" town in Peking."

Upon landing in Seattle, I was struck by the sheer amount of STUFF even in the airport. Perhaps this economic downturn will help Americans see that they don't need to have quite so much...crap! Anyhow, we landed in Boulder and were picked up at the Denver airport by our friends the Cates and immediately went to one of our favorite "haunts"...the rooftop of the Rio Grande restaurant. Sitting up there and viewing the foothills of the Rocky Mountains was heaven.

After a great week in Boulder (where we also got to connect with our beloved church family at Origins Church) we hoped in the car and began our trip out to Detroit with a few detours along the way. Namely Mt. Rushmore & Crazy Horse. When I was a kid my family and I used to drive out "west" and saw all of the history that part of the country had to offer...and I wanted a little of that for my family now.

Crazyhorse is amazing! They guy who started sculpting the mountain began in the 1940's and he died in the 1980's. His wife and 4 of his children are continuing the work which, impressive as it is, is far from done. It is a sculpture of the Ogalala Indian Warrior Crazy Horse who was stabbed in the back under a flag of truce. When you tour the American Indian museum at the site you realize this nation really owes the Indian population BIG!

Mt. Rushmore was wonderful and we had an amazing time as a family touring the monument with the audio tour provided. The engineering facts are really interesting and I was amazed to find out that although their were some injuries during the project, no lives were lost. I found that hard to believe when you see the film clips they show you of guys dangling on ropes over the side of the mountain with drills in their hands!

But as a baseball fan, nothing hit me as much as travelling through Iowa and stopping at the site where they filmed the movie Field of Dreams. Gabriel and I played catch and took turns walking out of the cornfield. It really is my picture of heaven. One day I wanted to have a baseball game in heaven with the farmhouse to the side, the sounds of children's laughter in the background, hotdogs cooking on the grill, and Ernie Harwell calling the play by play!! Anyhow, thats what we're up to.

Sorry for the delay

2009-05-24T13:25:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

Sorry for the delay in posts but as of 12 days ago, the country where I currently reside has censored Google Blogger. Two months ago said country shut down Youtube which limited some of the fun things I can add to the posts...and now this.

It is very frustrating not being able to access your own blog. I am currently using a proxy server to submit this post but do not have the option to post any pictures or media. My brother is going to make some posts on my behalf so I can include some pics.

I'm hoping this is a short term measure in response to a certain book being published so close to the 20th anniversary of a certain event. If you don't know what I'm talking about, thats OK, you probably don't follow the politics of the country I am living in :)

Anyhow...we'll see how this "text only" post looks...

Chinese lessons Pt. 2

2009-05-14T14:54:00.000-07:00

Well, I continue to plug away at daily Chinese lessons as a student of Shi You University. I have moved up to the next higher class or B ban but not so much because of my great Chinese ability but because half of the class are not such good students. That's a polite way of putting it.

I vacillate between being distressed that I am never going to learn this language and I'm just wasting my time and the sheer joy of realizing, "Wait, I just understood what that person said." My teachers are very encouraging although one insists on calling me, "Mr. Steve" because she says I am as old as her father. "Gee thanks! Makes my day...really!!"

I've gotten to know the local Catholic priest who is in the same class as I. He's Korean and ministers to the foreign Korean population in the city. I've also gotten to know a group of Pakistani students who are rather...mmm..."colorful" in their speech. They are pretty funny guys and genuinely looking for friends. I recently took them to lunch at a local restaurant which served a decent curry. They responded by inviting me to the Muslim cafeteria on campus for lunch.

Well...I keep plugging away at Chinese. I'm a fairly intelligent guy but languages just do not come easily too me. I find though its like working out or running...if you just "push through" at that moment you want to give up, you reach a new level.

Problem is, I have a LOT more "pushing through" to do... :)

Don't I Have Something To Say?

2009-04-21T18:51:00.000-07:00

Steve has been after me to contribute to our 'family journal'. I managed to get things started back in Boulder, with the help of Kelly Nelson, to show family and friends where we would be moving to - but I have not done an entry since we arrived here in China.

Maybe I'm overwhelmed? Maybe I have stage-fright? Maybe Steve seems to be handling things just fine?

Let's see... I've gone from just hanging around and settling in the 1st month we were here, to the fall semester being asked to co-teach Kindergarten & 1st Grade along with 4 secondary art classes a week plus evenings with the boarding students, to my current schedule since Jan., 2 art classes a week and evenings at home with the boarding students.

Since Steve has started his classes, I've been given another chunk of time all to myself. From 8 am-12 pm, I have the house to myself. What to do... As any lady of leisure could tell you, 'there just aren't enough hours in the day.'

Seriously, I have begun to devote myself to the study of the word and to prayer. Sounds like a simple objective, but I tell you there are so many distractions trying, waiting, in line to fill up my time in the morning. I've had to learn to put off making my SKYPE calls, to ignore an untidy room (or 2), and to just be honest with God about where my mental state of mind is - and He takes it from there.

Now, my quiet times are usually not very quiet. I've found a poorly edited worship time from a 2007 conference that took place in Hong Kong and dance around my tiny apartment like nobody's business! (There is construction going on in the apartment next door and I've caused them to go silent many a time, probably trying to figure out what the foreigner is up to now.) God puts things on my heart to declare aloud and prayers that bring heaven to earth for me.

I've been listening to the most freeing podcasts on God's grace. (If you're interested, I can give you the sites to find them.) My mind has been a playground for the enemy for far too long.

Yikes, I'm getting a bit too heavy for our family blog. I'm going to back off from there, and tell you 'I'm having a good time'!

We enjoy the staff we're working with here and the people we've met at the International Fellowship - but we sure do miss all of you back home. The countdown to summer has begun... 9 weeks til school's out!!! See you soon. ~Tammy

Book Week & Golf

2009-04-17T15:23:00.000-07:00

This week at Yew Chung International School has been Book Week. It is a whole week focused on literacy and week is capped off with all the students dressing up as a literary figure. Gabriel, of course, wanted to be someone from The Lord of the Rings so Tammy worked with a local tailor in town here to put together an appropriate "hobbit" like guise. Complete with "ring" necklace and hairy feet, Gabriel spent the day as Frodo Baggins. He then went on to win various contests including trivia questions on Star Wars. :)

After the school day, a number of teachers got together to take advantage of an offer to go and hit some golf balls and have a lesson at a local 9 hole golf course. It was a fun opportunity for all of us and they even had some left handed golf clubs for Tammy. After an hour of hitting golf balls we headed into the club lounge to have a beer. We ordered 4 beers and the waitress informed us they only had one beer. This was strange as we were looking at the fairly diverse beverage list. We said if they only had one beer (not one type, but literally 1 bottle of beer) left, then maybe we could get some coke or soda. She said they were out and had only water.

You have to live in China to appreciate the moment. No apology, no explanation. Just matter of fact, "Do you want the one beer or water?" Well, we took the one beer, split it among 4 glasses and had a good laugh.

Hey, the golf was good!

"The Embassy" otherwise known as Starbucks

2009-03-30T15:21:00.000-07:00

There was a time when I used to avoid Starbucks. Partly because I didn't like the coffee, partly to avoid the bandwagon everyone was jumping on, but mostly I was fundementally opposed to an organization that seemed to have three franchises in site from any rooftop.

Over the last couple years as I regularly met at Starbucks in Boulder with friends for prayer and worked at a business that had its own Starbuck, my stance softened until I too capitulated to the love the rest of humanity seems to have for Starbucks.

Living in Huangdao China, my love for Starbucks has grown even stronger. In previous posts we explained how Huangdao is an "up and coming" development area across the bay from Qingdao proper. Its beautiful here but there is a sense of being "cut off" from some of the amenteties of the city across the bay.

Fortunantly there is a "Starbucks" here or as westerners refer to it, "The Embassy".

Starbucks is the one place where you can almost feel like you are back in the West.
The artwork, decor, and product is all exactly like we would have in the States.

Huge comfy chairs, relaxing music, and overpriced java create a "we're home" feel. Now, don't get me wrong, we love living in China, but sometimes...you just need to take a break and Starbucks offers a relaxing calm from the cultural storm that swirls around it. Recently a local man came in talking loudly on his cell. He sat near us and talked at a decibal that seemed to have the cups rattling. Tammy leaned over and got his attention and then motioned for him to "zip it". I was surprised by her boldness and that the guy really did quickly get off the phone. Tammy simply said, "He can talk as loud as he wants anywhere else, but he can't disturb the peace of The Embassy."

Huangdao does not have a huge foreign population so you end up seeing everyone in there at some point. I like nothing more than getting a large mug of black coffee and curling up with my video ipod to watch a downloaded episode of Meet the Press or This Week with George Stephanopoulos

Of course, they play Christmas music in March which is a little weird. And I can almost imagine the conversation that goes on behind that decision, "The White people like Christmas...give 'em Christmas."

Anyhow, Starbucks has become our place to chill and where everyone does seem to know your name.

Chinese Lessons

2009-03-24T04:00:00.000-07:00

I'm a college student again and its keeping me pretty busy.

Both Tammy and I want have been wanting to learn Chinese and Gabriel is learning it everyday as a part of his curriculum. Well, one of the teachers who I work with here has a daughter that enrolled at the local university to study Chinese and mentioned that I may be interested in it.

Now studying Chinese as a college student is a lot more intensive than hiring a tutor or attending a Chinese lesson a couple times a week. As a student now of China Shiyou University I attend class Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM - 12:00 noon. The classes include not only spoken Mandarin (Putonghua) but reading and writing as well.

The university has over 20,000 students and the campus is not unlike what you would see back in the USA. On the first day after class I wandered around to get my bearings and discovered a bank, post office, cafeterias, barbershops and salons,as well as all types of shops and stores. The students who live on campus would never need to leave if they didn't want to.

I'm in the beginning "A ban" class and students proceed up through B ban, C ban etc. as they progress in their proficiency.

I may be in A ban a while...

...Academic studies have always come fairly easy to me but not so with Chinese. The teacher will often say to me, "Mingbai ma?" (Do you understand?) and I reply, "Wo mingbai." (I understand) but when I am asked to speak, my mind freezes up as it tries to translate concepts to Chinese from the English going on inside my head. What adds to the frustration is the teachers are teaching Chinese, in Chinese. That can expedite the immersion experience but can be very frustrating when trying to ask a question.

My class is pretty diverse too. There is one other American, three Koreans, a couple guys from Nepal, a guy from Somalia, and another from Kenya as well as a few guys from Pakistan and Kazakhstan. The guys from Kazakhstan are pretty funny. They are nice kids and always come up to shake my hand but studying Chinese is not their priority. They arrive late, leave early...and are not always entirely sober :)

They remind me of students I had in my class when I took a similar program in Beijing in 1991. The children of the Venezuelan ambassador were in my class and I would on occasion go out with them in the evenings. They were nice guys but were in a whole different league of "party" than I so I would insist on being dropped off back at the dormitory around 9 or 10 in the evening. They would then go out all night and sometimes arrive the next morning not even having gone to bed yet. As they slipped into classroom slightly glassy-eyed, I would nod at them and they would smile back and whisper that I missed a good time. Being a Christian and attempting to honor God I'm pretty convinced I hadn't missed a good time, but I would smile and nod nevertheless :)

Anyhow, I am really blessed to have this opportunity. This term I am doing a lot less teaching and that allows me to be able to go to classes in the morning. Undoubtedly I will be teaching much more in the fall and will not be able to continue but I'm hoping to lay a foundation in the language that I can build on in the future.

Weekend Away!

2009-03-16T05:49:00.000-07:00

One of the yearly events the expatriate community living in Qingdao look forward to is the annual Pantomime or "Panto". It is a traditional British stage play with an emphasis on farce, song, dance, audience participation...and cross dressing???

In a city where one is hard pressed to find English language culture, a local play like this takes on far bigger appreciation. Being on the "other side" of the bay most of teachers at our school rode over on the school bus together and spent the night in a hotel in Qingdao.

The panto itself was a much larger production that I anticipated with elaborately designed sets and costumes. The acting was a little hit or miss but most of the performers were surprisingly good. My main complaint was that the show was performed in the auditorium of a large Chinese Middle School which lacked heat. At the end of three hours I was literally freezing. Thankfully the shows refreshments served hot "mulled" wine to keep the blood circulating.

After that we had a pizza night with some of the other families and then, when our wives were distracted with chit chat, the husbands snuck off to the DVD store around the corner. Seems I am not the only husband who gets in trouble for buying DVDs by the armful from the store. I scored on this visit walking out with the complete collection of the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles .

Another reason we like to occasionally spend the night in Qingdao is to be able to arrive to church early on Sunday morning. (Which was kind of important since we had volunteered to be "greeters".) This week was our first week in our new location at the Intercontinental Hotel. The hotel is 5-star and really rolled out the red carpet for us. They even offered a highly discounted special lunch in their restaurant after the service. Even with the discount though it was pretty expensive, BUT, it sure tasted Gooooood!! :)

Anyhow, it was a fun weekend...too bad its Monday again!

International Maths Day

2009-03-04T14:14:00.000-08:00

Every year in an attempt to bring focus to maths (only in America do we use the term "math" which makes the plural "mathmatics" singular) schools around the world celebrate World Maths Day.

At our school the school split up into teams by age and grade and convened on the field outside. Stations were set up around the campus and the "teams" all had to move as a team by holding on to a single hocky stick and then run as quickly as they could from check point to check point.

At each station there were fun problems or situations set up for the groups to solve or play as a team. They then get their team passport signed and they then move to another station trying to complete all of the math challenges before the others.

I watched Gabriel have a blast as he joined in. Enjoy the pics!

Baseball 2009

2009-02-16T04:11:00.000-08:00

When Gabriel had his final baseball game with the South Boulder Little League "Lugnuts" last year, the coach asked by show of hands who wanted to play with the same team again next year. Gabriel didn't raise his hand explaining that he'd like to but that we were moving to China. I must admit, I was a little depressed when I heard that. Most people know I'm a pretty big baseball fan and Gabriel was really enjoying playing Little League in Boulder. Here I was, coming face to face again with the fact that I was pulling my son away from the anchors of his childhood.

Fast forward to Christmas time. We are in China and working at Yew Chung International School. The head of our Extra Curricular Activities asked me if I would be willing to run an after school program in the spring.

I smiled and said, "Yes...baseball"

Rather than a full on varsity program, we are starting as a 10 week after school activity. Because the school is still quite small we opened baseball up to everyone from Age 10 through high school ( so Gabriel could play ) and I was pleased to see 12students signed up.

We had our first practice today and it was a lot of fun. We don't have a proper baseball field so we walked to some open park space near the school. The plus is that its right near the ocean as you can see from some of the pictures.

Most of the kids were pretty new to baseball so to compare them to the Bad News Bears would be to disparage the Bad News Bears but they played with a lot of enthusiasm and I saw some diamonds in the rough. I just wished we could delay for another couple weeks as the middle of February is still pretty cold here.

We're in the process of ordering some baseball jerseys from the States and my goal is to contact a couple other International schools in Qingdao to see if they are up for a little inter school competition. This may be just a extracurricular activity for now, but my hope is to lay the foundation for a future varsity program

It won't be easy to develop baseball in the middle of China, but we'll have some fun trying.

Chinese New Year

2009-02-07T23:59:00.000-08:00

Well, Chinese New Year is just wrapping up and it has been good...and loud!! Fireworks are pretty much legal in China so there is an incredible amount of high octane explosives that go off next to and over our house on a regular basis. The official reason given is that the fireworks ward off the evil spirits.

But I have another theory...

When I see all the young guys setting them off, I figure they are no different than any other guys on the planet...they like to light things on fire and watch them explode:) And like the 4th of July in the States, Chinese New Year is a great excuse to do it!

At the school here we had a Chinese New Year celebration at a local banquet hall. The various classes did different Chinese performances including a dragon dance, songs, and Tai Chi.

Gabriel has a Chinese name now and we are calling him by that name more frequently these days. He is Ao Fei which literally means Flying Proud.

Tammy and I were very proud of our little Ao Fei as he performed Tai Chi with his class. As I watched all of the kids performances I was reminded how blessed we are to be in China at this time and how faithful God has been to us.

So from the Hackmans in Qingdao...Happy New Year!!

Hong Kong Pt.2 : Disneyland

2009-01-27T23:27:00.000-08:00

In 1999, just as we were packing to return to America from Hong Kong, the big news in the territory was the confirmation that a Disneyland would be built. When we arrived in Hong Kong at Christmas time I knew one of the things I really wanted to do was to take Gabriel there and experience Disney in Asia.

I had been warned by friends before going not to get my hopes up, that it was "small" and did not have any thrill rides apart from Space Mountain. Thats OK though, I thought. I love all things Disney so Gabriel and I headed out to the park a couple days before Christmas.

Hong Kong Disneyland has the look and feel of Disneyland in America except with some subtle differences to appeal to the Chinese local. In addition to cheeseburgers and french fries, one can get Kung Pao chicken or Sweet and Sour pork. But on Dec. 23rd it all looked like Christmas.

I did get into trouble with Gabriel briefly by getting him to go onto Space Mountain when deep down I knew he wouldn't like it. He did it, but I pretty much assured that he wouldn't try a rollarcoaster again for the next 10 years.

People had said we would be finished with the park after just a few short hours. Not so for Gabriel and I. We arrived at 12 noon and stayed until after the park closed at 9:00 PM. We rode things two or three times, ate, shopped and just enjoyed each other and the park. Whether it was the Jungle Cruise or Winnie the Pooh, we just enjoyed the fusion of Disney and Christmas!

The fireworks were amazing and as we began walking back up Main Street USA for our departure, a Disney produced "snow" began to fall creating a surreal "Dickensian" like Christmas scene.

At one point Gabriel asked, "Papa, is this a little like heaven will be?"

"Yeah," I replied, "but this is just a glimpse."

Thanks for your prayers!!

2009-01-20T20:44:00.000-08:00

Back in October I was running along the beach when I realized I was experiencing some pain in my chest. The more I ran, the worst the pain got and when I stopped, the pain eased. I convinced myself it was gas or indegestion.

Problem was everytime I ran, it occured. Finally last week I went across the bay to the International Clinic in Qingdao. They ran an EKG and x-ray. Everything was OK. They sent me to the cardiologist that afternoon who ordered a stress test. There was the pain and the doctor confirmed it was a blockage. Said I needed angioplast and that they could admit me into the hospital right then. Ouch!

I called Tammy, then I called our insurance company who said that the top hospital in Beijing was covered and that I should consider going there for the procedure. The English GP at the clinic suggested it would be a good idea. So I said to him, "So I should do this before Chinese New Year". He answered, "Mr. Hackman, you misunderstand, you need to be on a flight to Beijing tonight or tomorrow morning"

I never made it home. From the clinic I met Tammy and Gabriel at the airport and we caught a 8:00 PM flight to Beijing. The Beijing United Family Hospital is a top hospital in Beijing offering high quality United States level of care (at United States prices...in fact I wouldn't even put on the pajamas until I knew for certain our insurance was covering it)

The tests showed I had a single blockage and for this procedure I would be sent to a local hospital that specialized in angioplasty. They bundled me up and sent me by ambulance. The local hospital lacked some of the frills that we in the West are used to. Chipped paint and plaster dotted the halls and ceiling, dim lights lit all but the operating room, waiting family members sat on rickety chairs outside the surgery area in a cold narrow hall. I sat and waited for the guy's procedure in front of me to be finished.

I had been told that I would not "be out" but that would be given sedatives and something for the pain...NOT! They probably gave me something going into my artery (which they do through the inner thigh) but it wore off because about 45 minutes later when it was over the doctor said, "Now you will feel some pain but DON'T move your leg."

My leg exploded!!!

Or seemed to. As they stapled my artery shut a wave of heat rushed through me and I broke out in a sweat. I looked around at all the nurses and staff and told myself I was not going to cry out. 5 seconds...10 seconds...

I screamed out!

15 seconds...20 seconds

While I was on the table in that moment I realized the notion of long term resistance to torture was useless. Looking around the room for a split second I felt like I was in the Hanoi Hilton and I would tell them anything they wanted to know...if they would just stop the pain.

40 seconds...45 seconds...

And then it was over. The pain started to subside and the next thing I knew I was being transported back to Beijing United with the state of the art room and first class nursing care.

Anyhow, I'm back in Qingdao and all subsequent tests seem to say they heart is good and I'll be back to 100% in no time. God has been faithful yet again and I do appreciate all your prayers.

Now if you excuse me...Tammy is bringing me some carrot sticks :)

Christmas in Hong Kong Pt. 1

2009-01-11T00:57:00.000-08:00

For the last three years working at Barnes & Noble I usually had to work on Christmas Eve, have Christmas Day off, but then have to be at work at 6:00 AM the day after Christmas to facilitate a special breakfast for the employees. Now, as a teacher, I had from Dec 20 - January 5th off. WOW!!

Although we wanted to head back to the States for the holiday, we decided it was more fiscally responsible to spend the time in our adopted home of Hong Kong...and from the moment our plane touched down in the territory, we felt like we were home. Many of you have heard us talk of how we missed Hong Kong over the years. Tammy and I met there, fell in love there, our son was born there, and we spent the formative years of our married life there. Yep, its safe to say we had big smiles on our faces.

And as much as we have enjoyed being in China and count it a blessing to us, we were quite happy to take a break from it for a couple weeks. Standing in the taxi queue at the airport Tammy beamed at me and motioned around us, "Can you feel it?" I looked at her a little puzzled. "It's order " she exclaimed (Order being sometimes a bit of a challenge on the Mainland)

We stayed the first couple nights at the Salsbury hotel near the waterfront. Because of some visa issues for the new teachers, the school had to pay for all the teachers to leave China and then re-enter the country. Because of this, the school informed us they would reemberse us for our airfare as they had to send us to Hong Kong anyhow, and then paid for two nights hotel. Can I hear an AMEN??!! Hallelujah!

Staying those first couple days downtown was a blessing. Right near the hotel was the Ocean Terminal mall that has the largest Toys R Us in Hong Kong. Those of you that know Gabriel know that he LOVES Star Wars. However, Qingdao has a distinct lack of quality toys, especially Star Wars, so our first night in Hong Kong was spent mainly in Toys R Us watching Gabriel run to all the Star Wars toys like he was celebrating a family reunion.

After the first couple days, we moved into a friend's apartment in the Park Island area of Hong Kong which is a new self contained residential area. It was pretty posh and Gabriel said the whole time, "When we move back to Hong Kong, this is where I want to live!"

Anyhow, I realize I want to write a lot more about our trip to Hong Kong so I'll leave this as the end of part 1

Santa: It's a Kind of Magic!

2009-01-05T05:14:00.000-08:00

Sorry, for the delay in posts but I just returned from Christmas holiday in Hong Kong.

And what was special about this Christmas? Well, it's the last Christmas (most likely) that my 10 year old son Gabriel (Who just turned 11 this week) will be looking to Santa Claus to bring his presents.

Granted, he has had his doubts the last year or so. But something magic happens at Christmas...and he wants to believe. A couple days before Christmas, we went to Disneyland. When Gabriel saw the Santa Claus there and the long line of children waiting to sit on his lap, he said, "Papa, that's not the real Santa Claus." I thought, "Wow, he really does believe."

On Christmas Eve Tammy and I were with a group of friends enjoying a wonderful dinner party with good wine and good conversation. About 11:30 PM my son came up and tugged on my sleeve, "Papa, we need to get home or Santa is not going to come to our house." I told him he was right and we soon made our way by cab across Hong Kong to our lodging. Gabriel kept looking out at the Hong Kong skyline (which is one of the most beautiful in the world) looking to see if Santa's sleigh filled the moon light.

We were staying at a friend's apartment while they were away in South Africa and Tammy had arranged a small Christmas tree on the kitchen table along with some stockings and decorations. The cab arrived at the apartment complex and I hurredly paid the driver and rushed with Tammy and Gabriel to get to our temporary home before Santa did. (It's so cool that Santa always knows where we are).

Gabriel had been sleeping on the couch but tonight we insisted that he sleep with us in our bedroom as he couldn't be out in the living room when Santa came.
I watched Gabriel carefully prepare the plate of cookies and milk for Santa not forgetting a carrot for Rudolf.

And then it hit me...

This would be the last Christmas my son would go to sleep knowing Santa Claus was on his way. Yes, he was 10 years old and had begun to question the notion...but tonight was Christmas Eve...and at 10 years old there was just a little magic still left in the air...and because of that, tonight, for one last time

... Santa Claus was coming to town!!

Christmas Party in the dorms

2008-12-18T14:46:00.000-08:00

Our last night in the dorms before the Christmas holidays was a fun one. Two of our dorm students will not be returning when school starts again so we decided to do something special for Mike and Tom on their last night with us.

The meals in the dorm are prepared by a local restaraunt and although enjoyable, can get a little routine. The boys love hamburgers so we decided to do a "hamburger bar" party with all the fixings. I cooked up bacon, we had different cheeses, and our regular restauraunt provider sent over a huge tub of potato salad.

Afterwards we had card games going and good fun. Tammy and I felt a little guilty as we are still getting used to having a live-in maid or ayi who provides all the cleaning. We feel a little spoiled having a big party and someone else doing the dishes afterwards :)

Sailing Race

2008-12-15T14:02:00.000-08:00

Gabriel had his first sailing race as part of the sailing club he is in. Although it's getting pretty cold, we were blessed with a sunny day. It was a lot of fun but I have to admit to being one of "those" dads who was getting frustrated when Gabriel got stuck at one point.

"In irons" it is called when the wind comes head on and is difficult to catch. I was yelling instructions to Gabriel (who was to far out to hear me) and needed to calm down...and did with a "nudge" from Tammy. Gabriel came in 4th overall and he really loves sailing so we look forward to his continuing in the spring.

Anniversary

2008-12-09T14:32:00.000-08:00

I'm going to take a break from our stories in China to mark a special anniversary for Tammy and I. It's not our wedding anniversary, or one of our birthdays. No...on Dec. 8 1991, Tammy and I fell in love. Our relationship went from a friendship to realizing we were going to get married.

We were at a mutual friends wedding in Chicago. Perhaps it was the romance in the air...but we kissed...then prayed and asked for God's direction and blessing. One week later I flew down to Louisiana and asked her to marry me.

We never dated!. We literally went from being platonic friends to engagement. Would totally recommend it. I married my best friend.

Seventeen years later, we're still here. Loving God, loving each other, loving others!

So for all you guys or girls who secretly pine for that "friend". There is hope! :)

Beijing with Gabriel

2008-12-06T13:38:00.000-08:00

I needed to return to Beijing to pick up my passport. Gabriel has been begging to visit Beijing sometime so although I would only be there a short time, my little boy came along. We had SO much fun!! After leaving the embassy (Gabriel thought it was so cool we were on U.S. soil) we went to Tiananmen Square.

It was SO cold!! The wind was howling and sliced right through our clothing. Despite that there were many people out on the square. Not much had changed since my visits there many years ago other than you now have to pass through a security point to get onto the square. From there we went to the Imperial Palace, otherwise known as the Forbidden City. We chose to take the audio tour so as you walk around this immense city / palace the audio device picks up where you are in the city and begins explaining in your ear the different details and history.

Because much of the Forbidden City is outside, we kept ducking into souvenir shops to have hot chocolate and escape the brutal cold. We then paid a cab to take us to a shopping center but it turned out to be a motorcycles with a two seat, jury rigged, passenger area hanging out the back with a little metal box over you to break most of the wind. We must have looked funny zooming through the streets of Beijing on the back of this contraption.

Beijing has changed so much since I was a student there in 1991. Back then if you wanted western food you needed to go to a hotel and the food was "hit or miss". Either that, or there were three Kentucky Fried Chicken's in the city. Now, there is a plethora of familiar names such as Hard Rock cafe, TGIF's, and Outback Steakhouse. I was all for Outback but when Gabriel heard there was a Papa John's Pizza, that ended the discussion.

We stopped at a special grocery store with imported groceries from the U.S. and Europe. Won't bore you with the details of all the "Oh my gosh, they have..." moments other than to say that when Gabriel saw A & W rootbeer I thought he was going to lose it. He started hugging a can right in the aisle and muttering, "I love Beijing, I love Beijing."

When we got to security at the airport they stopped Gabriel who had a can of A & W in his back pack. They wouldn't let him through and were going to confiscate it. Obviously they have never dealt with Gabriel. He took the can, opened it, and starts chugging it down on the spot. He downed it so fast that a huge involuntary belch erupted out of him. I know its bad, but I could not stop laughing.

In the end, Gabriel and I had a great father - son bonding time.

Thanksgiving

2008-12-01T01:45:00.000-08:00

Unfortunately for us, the International School we work for is not American based so the Hackmans had to work on Thanksgiving. We were a little jealous of some of the teachers from church who work at the American International School as they DID have the day off for a big feast.

However, a newly opened Western restaurant here in Huangdao advertised that they were doing Thanksgiving dinners complete with turkey, pork loin, stuffing, mashed potatoes, candied yams, and pie. Because our responsibilities require us to be with the dorm students on weeknights, I got the OK from the school to take them all out with us for a "cultural" experience.

Before the dinner, we all took turns going around the table saying something they are "thankful" for...and then we plowed in.

When we asked for out pie, the waiter replied, "no". Living in China you learn that hospitality standards are...a little bit different. To be fair, you can't go from the Cultural Revolution to a "service" culture without hitting a few speed bumps. When we explained that pie was included in the price of the meal he said, "No, you must pay more".

Don't worry, the Scottish manager came over and sorted us all out with fresh peach pie and banana fosters.

The only thing missing for our Thanksgiving, besides our families :( was a little football!

Beijing

2008-11-19T13:56:00.000-08:00

My passport is going to expire in March and with a Christmas planned in Hong Kong I thought I'd better get it renewed. Ten years ago I could not get checked in to a flight for Singapore because I needed six months left on my passport and I only had five. Was not going to let that happen again!

Unfortunately, I needed to go to Beijing, where the U.S. Embassy is located. This involved flying there, taking a taxi into the city, dropping off the passport application, taking a taxi back to the airport, and flying home. Lots of fun!

Some interesting things happened along the way. First of all, I could not believe how much Beijing has changed. I lived there in 1991 for 6 months and have not visited there since 1994. First of all the airport had transformed from a hick, backward structure to a 21st Century ultra modern facility. The airport even had a Burger King. I don't eat much fast food anymore but after 4 months in Qingdao, when I saw it, I wanted to cry. Great Wall? Been there (13 times). Forbidden City? Been done... Tiananamen Square? Have led tours. Not one of those things could be as fulfilling in that moment as a Double Beef Whopper with Cheese, Fries, and a Coke made my way . :)

The city has also transformed from a city that gets around by bike, to a city that gets around by car. Huge new roads and avenues ring the city but that still didn't stop me from getting stuck in traffic as heavy as any L.A.freeway.

Because my flight was not until later in the evening, I had a chance to visit an old friend of mine who runs a business outside of Beijing. Because of the company's Christian roots they also operate a children's foster agency called New Day Foster Home. The foster home takes in children who are "special need". Often the children are abandoned because of their handicap and the fortunate ones end up at New Day. I heard the stories of many of these precious children which often involved many life saving surgeries to repair hearts, stomachs, deformities and the like. My heart went out, not only for these precious children, but for the many volunteers, and to the parents who adopt these kids into their home. Jesus' quote, "Whatever you do for the least of my brethren, you have done it for me" was never so appropriate than in this foster home.

The trip to Beijing lasted less than 12 hours but my time at New Day will be with me much, much longer.

Poor Libby

2008-11-15T15:28:00.000-08:00

When we were making the decision to come to China, whether or not we could bring our pet Chihuahua was a big factor. When I was interviewing for the position in Hong Kong back in April I knew I had to broach the subject. The interviewer asked me to hold on, made a quick call, and then replied, "Yes, you can bring the dog." It was THEN that I knew that this job was a possibility.

A couple weeks ago Libby was in "her time" and got out. When she was found she had a new "friend" who was 5 times bigger than her. The idea of having puppies is not something we want to deal with here so we decided to to take some advice from Bob Barker and "have our pet dog spayed or neutered."

Last Sunday Libby made the trek to church with us (sleeping quietly in her little purse bag) and then had an appointment for a little operation after. The vet put her out. Gabriel was very nervous and was "praying to Jesus" a lot more than usual. As a parent you think, "Hey, whatever gets them praying..."

Libby came through it OK. She was kind of out of it for a couple days but was treated like a Queen in the Hackman household. That lasted until last night when we came home and found she pooped on the kitchen floor. Now she's just back in the "doghouse".

Gabriel Percy Shelly Whitman Donne Tennyson Longfellow

2008-11-03T04:03:00.000-08:00

In October, Yew Chung School participated with other schools around the world for International Poetry Day. Each of the students, regardless of grade, was required to produce a poem on that day with the theme being a haiku. A haiku poem is Japanese in origin and consists of three phrases of 17 syllables. The first line is 5, the second 7, and the third 5. Gabriel produced the following haiku:

It's Homeworkzilla
It's terrorizing my desk
NO! It's 10 o'clock!

The English teacher that coordinated the event told me that she and the other judge had picked Gabriel's poem as a winner in the Primary grades. I was pretty proud and I had to keep it to myself until the winners were announced this week.

Wish I had brought a copy of Dead Poets Society with me. I really want to watch that now...

International Day

2008-10-25T15:28:00.000-07:00

One of the big "days" at the school we are working at is International Day. Every year the school student body is divided into different "countries". The kids learn about the various countries they are assigned to as well as designing an outfit native to that country. Tammy and I were the "German" team leaders and spent Thursday afternoon sewing suspenders and outfitting hats to create a team of Barvarian students. (My initial thought to outfit them as stormtroopers and have them go as the Nazi "youth league" was vetoed by Tammy. She was probably right, educators have no sense of humor on those things :)

On Sat. morning, the children initially came to school with a costume from their home country. Tammy and I threw on some baseball attire while Gabriel dressed as a cowboy. After a parade around the school grounds we retreated to our classes to put on our "Barvarian" clothes. Then, I led my "team" every half hour to a different station where they got to learn about, and participate in, activities from Canada, Thailand, Mexico, Kenya, India, and Korea.

After an International "potluck" lunch, we went to the open field where we had tug-o-war contests and other assorted games including baseball. As you can see from the pictures, I too dressed kind of silly. I promised the older kids that I would not ask them to do anything that I, myself, were not prepared to do. But a good time was had by all.

Sailing Pt 2.

2008-10-19T17:35:00.000-07:00

Ok, this is not so much a new entry as a chance for me to throw up more pictures of Gabriel sailing. They were sent to me from the instructor. Gabriel came back from his second Sat. sailing more on fire than the first. He also said, "My two instructors are from France and China. They both have cool hair and wear funky clothes. They look like they came from Boulder."

"C" List Celebrities

2008-10-17T18:47:00.000-07:00

One of the things you have to get used to being Caucasians living in China is the fact you are a celebrity. A "C" list celebrity granted, but a celebrity none the less.

I am actually surprised how after twenty years of China being opened to foreigners the presence of a non-Chinese can draw such attention. It is not uncommon for people to stare, wave, or give you a "hello". Standing on the street it's interesting to see people pass by and some times do a double take. I like to pretend they're saying, "Was that Tom Cruise?". Other times, people come up and just want a picture with you. Gabriel gets this and sometimes its from young girls. The first time it happened he just looked at me in astonishment with a "What do I do?" look. (I've included some pictures from these encounters)

Some of the more adventureous want to engage in conversation. We will be relaxing on the beach when someone will drop down next to us with a big grin and a "Where do you come from?" I think its funny because the question that always comes up is, "How long will you be in Qingdao?" When I answer, "I live in Qingdao" there is often a look of astonishment as if to say, "Impossible, no white man has EVER lived in Qingdao". Which is unusual as these days it is quite common to see foreigners out an about, especially in the major cities.

In most cases we welcome the intrusion. It gives us a chance to interact with local people and perhaps practice our Chinese. The people are usually very gracious and often just curious about foreigners.

Another interesting aspect to living in China is the reaction you get from other foreigners. Some see you and give you a small nod. Some come up, introduce themselves, and start talking just to have a conversation in non-broken English. The funniest are the foreigners who have "gone native". They prefer to ignore you because your presense reminds them that they are not, in fact, Chinese...and that makes them sad.

For us, we're trying to learn Chinese. Then maybe we can move up to the celebrity "B" list.

Gabriel the Sailor

2008-10-11T16:52:00.000-07:00

At Yew Chung International School we offer a number of after school extracurricular activities. Each child is required to to take at least one course and each teacher has to teach one. I am running a Bible club on Monday afternoons and assisting with the Film Making club on Thursdays. I have 9 students in my Bible Club and we are studying the Book of John. In American public schools, students can have a Bible study, but a teacher is not allowed to lead it. I am able to lead one here and consider it ironic that I have to come to China for some religious freedom :)

Gabriel has chosen to do sailing on Saturdays. Yesterday was his first day and he was picked up promptly at 7:00 AM by the school van. He traveled across the bay to the Olympic sailing center where he will go every Sat. for the next 10 weeks. For 6 hours yesterday they learned knot tying, capsizing, and balance.

I was a little nervous because he left at 7:00 AM and was not returned until 6:30 that evening. Its a long day and being that the course wasn't cheap, Tammy and I were afraid he'd come home overwhelmed and we would have to spend the next 9 weeks forcing him to go to recoup our investment and develop his commitment.

No Worries!! He came through the door wearing the sailing shirt and hat they gave him as well as the biggest smile. "I LOVED it!" he exclaimed.

National Day Vacation

2008-10-02T16:56:00.000-07:00

With are double duties here at school, Tammy and I were looking forward to the National Day holiday here in China where we get a week off. National Day celebrates October 1st, 1949 when Mao Zedong stood at Tiananmen Gate and proclaimed the establishment of the People's Republic of China. It's the U.S. equivalent to the Fourth of July.

We decided just to explore our home territory a bit and get out on some bikes that we have at our disposal. There is a long boardwalk along the beach that goes about a mile or more and we spent one day riding up and down it. There were a lot of activities going on for the holiday so we stopped occasionally and had something to eat or would take a brief swim in the ocean

Yesterday we went into Qingdao for one of the cities most famous events. The 18th Annual Qingdao International Beer Festival. Before we got to the festival we explored one of the city's biggest bookstores hoping to find a few books in English or a newspaper. Inquiries of foreigners living here on where to buy an International newspaper have been met with blank stares reserved for Rod Taylor by the Eloi (bonus point if you got that cultural reference). Well, there were no newspapers or English books but they did have something that stunned me. On a computer screen they had an episode of Deperate Housewives playing. Next to the picture, the text was scrolling in English and next to it, in Chinese. As the actors spoke, the text would be highlighted. It was software to help you learn English while watching American TV shows. Learning English by watching Desperate Housewives???...Oh, someone help me, say it ain't so.

After that we enjoyed an evening at the beer festival. There were rides, cotten candy, carnival games...and scorpians on a stick! Yep, just like at home!

What are we doing?

2008-09-24T04:25:00.000-07:00

I've been asked a number of times what we are doing in China so I thought I would devout a blog entry to that very answer.

Tammy and I work for Yew Chung International School in Qingdao China. Yew Chung is a network of International Schools based out of Hong Kong with schools in various cities in China as well as Silicon Valley USA. The school in Qingdao is the newest school and is in its 3rd year of operation. We are temporarily housed in a set of residential "villas" while our new campus is being built. The school is geared toward the children of foreign business expatriates working in China. Because of the proximity of Qingdao to South Korea, many of the school's student body comes from Korea

Tammy and I were initially hired to run the boarding program at the school. A small number of the students live at the school in "the dorms" (which are actually very nice apartments) and Tammy and I's job is to be the parent, teacher, mentors to the kids while they are staying at the school. On Friday afternoon after school the kids go home to their homes for the weekend and return to the school on Sunday nights.

However, the Year 1 & 2 teacher (what in America we would know as Kindergarten and 1st grade) position has still not been filled so Tammy and I have been asked to step in to that position as well. We share the duties with the class' Chinese co-teacher (every grade gets taught in both English and Chinese so that the children develop fluency in both languages).

In addition to that Tammy teaches secondary Art and I teach secondary Citizenship as well as Information Technology. (Again, for those in America, Secondary is what we would call middle or high school. Primary is elemenatry) Although the work load is pretty heavy between the two jobs, Tammy and I are excited about the new skills and experience we are receiving. Teaching secondary Citizenship...wow.. am I in my element. (Just asked the kid who in the last class asked me what the difference between a Democrat and a Republican was)
Likewise Tammy has REALLY enjoyed researching and teaching her secondary Art class.

Oh, and things are a little more formal and professional than what we were accustomed to in Boulder. As a teacher, I wear a tie to every class

Steve at 42

2008-09-16T05:17:00.000-07:00

Last week I turned 42!! For the last couple years we have had an outdoor movie in our backyard to celebrate the occasion. When I turned "40" a couple years ago we watched City Slickers. Lets face it, there is nothing funnier when you are turning 40 than watching a movie where Billy Crystal is turning 40. Last year, in the midst of the Colorado Rockies making their historic run for the National League Championship, we watched Field of Dreams.

This year we had hoped to start the outdoor movie tradition now that we are in China. Especially with the new LCD projector we were given by our friends at church before we left. However, the typhoon of activity at the school while getting ready to start the new academic year meant our outdoor movie premier will have to be delayed.

As busy as everyone was at the school, Tammy still wanted to do a little something for my birthday. She organized a bunch of refreshments and rented a couple of tables down by the beach. As the sun set, we sat with new friends and co-workers and raised a toast in my honor to another year...this time in another land.

First Visitor

2008-09-14T14:25:00.000-07:00

Yes, the waiting is over. The red carpet has been rolled out and the envelope has been opened indicating who is the first friend to come visit the Hackmans since their journey across the ocean 7 weeks ago. And the winner is: Michael Mann.
Michael is a good friend of ours from Boulder and we have been part of the same church together for the past 3 years.

He was on business to Shanghai and our hope was to get down to see him. Rumor has it there is a Toys R Us in Shanghai and Gabriel is begging us for a trip there. Seems there is a chronic shortage of Star Wars action figures on the streets of Qingdao.

Well, we've been having visa problems that the school is working on (as well as all of the new teachers) so we were not able to get down to Shanghai. "Never mind," says Michael, "I'll come up and see you all"

We've had a good time together the last couple nights. Yesterday, Michael got to see what our two hour church journey involves. Afterwards, we took a trip to the bootleg DVD store. Everyone who visits us has to experience it. You knock on the door and they peek and let you in. Inside there are all local Chinese Dvds and music Cds. You ask for English movies and then they point to a written piece of paper that asks in English, "Are you a reporter?" After a "no" they slide away a bookshelf revealing a small door into a VERY small back room...filled with the latest English movies and TV show seasons selling for a fraction of the cost of normal retail.

We take advantage of our Sunday afternoons in downtown Qingdao as it has a few more things for expats than where we live in Huangdao. One of those advantages is a local Mexican restauraunt Michael was happy to help us find. Our searching was rewarded with some pretty decent chips and salsa and although the burrito I had would never challenge Chipoltle, in the middle of China, it was delicious.

We topped the evening off by coming back to Huangdao and taking a lesiurely stroll along the beach. Thanks Michael for being a familiar face in a new land.

School Starts

2008-09-09T06:35:00.000-07:00

We have had a whirlwind here for the last few days. Our job here at Yew Chung International School is to be the Boarding Supervisor / Teachers. The school has a developing program to deal with what it feels will be an increasing amount of kids who live at the school Sunday night through Thursday night (and go home to their parents on the weekends). In addition, we are required to teach up to 4 hours a week as needed. Presently Tammy is covering for some Art classes and I am teaching Citizenship for secondary. However, the school was not able to get a year 1-2 teacher (what Americans would call Kindergarten and 1st grade). In the interim, Tammy and I are now Primary (elementary) school teachers as well. We are in a flurry of activity cramming years of needed schooling and experience into a number of days.

Well, school started yesterday and we are still alive...barely! Gabriel in the mean while is haveing a great time...as well as some struggles. He is the only native English speaker in his grade which is making it hard to connect with his classmates. They all speak Korean and Japanese. However, he does have some "western" friends that are a couple years older than him. Also, the five boarding kids we have (all Korean) are older (15-16) and have started to take him under their wing. (teaching him to play ping-pong really well) Gabriel also has a private Chinese teacher at the school and we are thrilled that he is getting to learn Mandarin at such a young age.

As for me...I'm going to bed now or I'm going to fall asleep at the keybooaooxodd zzzzzzz(snore)zzzzzzz(snore)

Getting Settled / Learning Chinese

2008-08-28T15:12:00.000-07:00

I'm so glad we came about 3 weeks before work started! It has really allowed us time to get settled. Part of the adventure is trying to find the things that we need (or want) when we don't speak the language...yet! We realize how easy living in Hong Kong was as an English speaker as opposed to living now in mainland China. In Hong Kong you didn't need to learn Chinese. English, as an offical language, was prevelant everywhere. If someone didn't speak English, there would be someone right next to them that did. Not so in Qingdao...Gabriel said on our first day here, "We'll have to learn to read Chinese".

So we've had fun trying to learn necessary words quickly, and being the adventerous type we have made great strides in getting decorations and fixtures for the apartment. Tammy found a plant shop and after buying a number of large plants, realized they wouldn't fit in a taxi back to the house. By using a handful of words and playing charades with the vendor, she negotiated for a motorcycle with a small transport bed attached. Of course she had to ride in the back with the plants and she phoned me saying, "I'm coming home in the back of a motorcycle / pick-up thing...run down and bring the camera."

We had a similar situation with the delivery of a couple of chairs for our balcony. Gabriel BEGGED me to ride in the back of the pick up on one of the chairs. Since it was a short distance, I finally gave in and let him do it all the while thinking, "If I was back in Boulder, I would be SO arrested for this," Forget the police, in Boulder I would have been stopped or honked at angrily by other drivers. In China, the Chinese kept passing us laughing, pointing at Gabriel, and giving the "thumbs up" sign. Picture a 10 yr old white boy (in the middle of China), sitting in the back of a pick up on a LAWN CHAIR shooting down the road. All he needed was a can of cheap beer and a shotgun to complete the picture.

I have pictures of Tammy's ride but didn't have a camera for Gabriel's. In this country I need to carry a camera EVERYWHERE because you have NO idea what is going to happen next.

Goodbye with Friends

2008-08-20T23:04:00.000-07:00

Allow me again to hit the "rewind" button and submit an entry I have been meaning to do. The Saturday night before we left for China, our closest and dearest friends, Tre and Jen Cates threw us a special going away party. It was a wine and cheese affair that was the perfect sendoff for us. The house was decked out with a Chinese theme complete with fortune cookies for the guests. Lights and torches were set outside creating a relaxing ambiance and the mix of good friends, good conversation, a buffet of cheeses, and plentiful amounts of wine made for a memorable evening.

As a going away gift, Tre and Jen arranged to have a black and white portrait of the Boulder Theater (a city landmark) out on a table with all of our friends signing the border with farewell messages. Thanks Tre and Jen and all of our wonderful friends for that special (and emotional) evening!

Olympics Pt. Deux!

2008-08-19T23:03:00.000-07:00

We had no idea, even up until 4 months ago, that we would be living in China when the country would be hosting the Olympics. In America, the Olympics are pretty important but are only really a "big deal" in perhaps the host city. Here, the Olympics are a "big deal" everywhere. The logo may say Beijing 2008 but make no mistake, China is the host country.

Everywhere you go banners are displayed, gardens are created, and public jumbo-tron televisions are set up to celebrate the Olympics. On a recent trip to the local mall I was amazed at a few hundred locals watching China play in a basketball game. Everytime China scored a deafening roar would erupt from the crowd. I found it fascinating, and was caught up with the others beginning to root for the home team.

It really is more than a series of sporting events here. It is China's way of showcasing themselves and making a public step onto the world stage. What is intriguing is how the people here often know how many gold medals China and America have. A taxi driver told us at the end of the first couple days, "China has 8 gold medals, America only has 3".

As an American, I really haven't felt a specific "rivalry" since the demise of the Soviet Union. When the U.S. Hockey team beat "the Russians" in 1980, I remember the national euphoria that was felt and the personal pride I experienced at the time. No such rivalry exists for us now. We all want Michael Phelps to do well and break the "gold medals won at an Olympics" record, but the passion to beat "the Chinese" just isn't there...at least not yet. Much to some of the locals disappointment.

Street Food

2008-08-14T21:20:00.000-07:00

Street food!!! Mmmmmm. The very term conjures images of both scrumptious delights and intestinal nightmares. People often warn when you go to developing nations not to eat from street vendors. But I would say unto you, "Go and seek out such delights. For those that do so will be richly rewarded."

When I was a student in Beijing (a long time ago), I used to live off street food. My favorite was a local fare called a jiang bing. It was basically a plain crepe cooked up on a cart with a cast iron griddle powered by a gas tank. The 'chef' cracks an egg on the crepe and spreads it around, then flips the crepe over and spreads on plum sauce & chili sauce - if you like it hot! The filling is then added: a crispy wafer, some lettuce, a sliced hotdog and green onion. Voila! When its finished it looks like a big burrito...but tastes much different. Tammy spotted a jiang bing vendor the other day and after a fifteen year sabbatical, I was able to once again devour one of these unique Chinese delicacies. I realized that the depressing changes to the body's metabolism from a 23 year old student to a wise old man of 41 mean I won't be able "live off them" anymore (or at least if I desire to reach 42) - but they will serve as an occasional treat :)

On the subject of street food. We had some street Bar-B-Q the other day with some of the other teachers from the school. Sitting around a cheap folding table on plastic stools we were treated to a buffet of skewered lamb, pork, vegetables, and bread covered in a delectible blend of spices and cooked on an open flame. It is a fun atmosphere and the whole street is lined with little vendor / restaurants covered in criss-crossed twinkle lights. Everyone is sitting outside enjoying the aromatic breeze from the grills. Wonderful!! And the fringe benefit is the price: 7 adults and 3 children, eating their fill, as well as beer and soft drinks came to a grand total of $22 USD.

Of course, you realize after your second bathroom trip later that evening that there was an additional surcharge. :)

Going to Church

2008-08-11T21:13:00.000-07:00

We had been told that there was an International Church meeting in Qingdao so one of the first things we did was connect with other Christians in the city. One of the members of the church was kind enough to meet us at an easy to find supermarket and walk us to the meeting. In fact, I needed to call him and lacking a cell phone, asked the first foreigners I saw walk by if I could use theirs. Turns out it was the coach and a team member from the Argentina Olympic sailing team. They were kind enough to oblige us the use of their phone and I was able to call our new friend.

Going to church is a little more difficult for us here. Tammy and I are technically in Huangdao, which is across the bay from Qingdao. Huangdao has far less "foreigners" so we have to travel to Qingdao to attend the International Church. (The interesting nature of the country dictates that only foreign passport holders may attend the International Church). After a couple weeks now, we're starting to get the hang of it.

So Sunday morning goes like this:
1) Eat a big breakfast because it will be a while before you eat again
2) Go to the bathroom because you don't want to have to use a public restroom between home and destination (TRUST ME ON THIS!!)
3) Walk out to the street and hail a cab to take us to the ferry terminal
4) Arrive at ferry terminal and realize you just missed the boat that you see pulling away from the dock and will have to wait 30+ minutes until the next one
5) You wait in line as the crowd for the next ferry begins to press in all around you with very lttle respect for the the foreign concept of a "line" or "queue". As the hot humid August sun beats down on you and sweat begins to pore through your shirt, you have to decide what Ipod tune is going to put you in a better mood, Hosanna's worship song "Holy Ground" or Ted Nugent's "Free for All"
6) Enjoy a relaxing 45 minute ferry ride across the bay as the cool ocean breeze cools both body and temper.
7) Disembark and grab a cab for a nail biting 25 minute ride across town as you narrowly miss pedestrians, vendors, and other cars. Think Disney's "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride" without the safety rail or the assurance of reaching the end in one piece
8) Arrive at church, worship with the Saints, and feel the presence of God. Easy!

The Beach

2008-08-09T00:03:00.000-07:00

Adapting to life in China can be challenging! For pampered Americans it is especially difficult...There is no cable TV, no English signs, no taste in furniture, and no Oprah to hold us and tell us everything is going to be OK!

When Tammy gets moderately depressed about not having this, or the unavailability of that, she likes to remind herself, "Hey, I live at the beach now"

One of the best things about our new location is that the ocean can be seen from our apartment and "Golden Beach" is a mere 10 minutes walk away. It has been our haven and place of refuge. For Gabriel, who is missing his friends from Boulder greatly, it has been a welcome diversion and one of the "cool" parts of living in China. The water is wonderfully warm and he can literally body surf until exhaustion.

So for the Hackmans, when things get us down or get under our skin, we just look at each other and say, "The Beach."

PS: I had to include a picture of the men's showers at the beach right up against the urinals. Gabriel says, "I can shower and take a pee at the same time" :)

Jonus Brothers

2008-08-08T19:25:00.000-07:00

Ok, I have to backtrack some blog entries that I have been meaning to do but the whirlwind of leaving did not allow.

Those of you that know Gabriel know that he loves all things Disney Channel. After Miley (Hanna Montana) Cyrus, the biggest thing going in that world is The Jonas Brothers. (If you have no idea what I am talking about it means you don't have a child between the ages of 9 and 15).

I have always been proud of my son's musical choices, but when he announced one day that he liked the Jonas Brothers (the 2000's equivalent of Hanson) more than Queen (arguably one of the most musically respected rock bands in music history) I went into a depression. Was it me? Was it my parenting skills? What could cause this breakdown in musical taste? "It must be Tammy's fault" I thought.

Anyhow, I started checking out The Jonas Brothers (or Jo Bros for those in the know...insert fist bump). Found out they are 3 Christian teens whose father was a minister...good there. They pray together as a family before every concert...better, and wear fidelity rings...Ok, they're in!

Well, I found out they were going to play at Fiddler's Green in Denver 2 weeks before we left for China. I went online and bought tickets but didn't tell Gabriel. We told him we had to go to a dinner in Denver and that he needed to come along...until the last minute when we showed him we had tickets for the Jonas Brothers and that we were going to the concert that night. Thought he was going to have a seizure right there. We made it a men's night as Gabriel and I along with our best bud's Tre and his two boys Trevor and Preston.

Fiddler's Green was packed with thousands of "tweeners" and I soon found out that teenage girls can scream at a level that can literally shatter eardrums. To their credit, The Jonus Brothers themselves are pretty musically talented and I enjoyed the concert much more than I thought I would. Large screens showed close-ups of the boys (and their fidelity rings...which I assume that the large number of questionably dressed girls would have loved to put to a test).

Anyhow, in the car going to the concert I asked Gabriel, who seemed lost in thought, what he was thinking? He said with a smile, "I was thinking how cool my dad is." Yes I Am!!

New Blog / New Country

2008-08-08T17:23:00.001-07:00

Well after a week of trying to access our blog at wordpress to no avail, we've decided to start a new blog here at Blogspot.

We've been here a week now and it has been great! (Well...mostly great...I don't want to get carried away)

Right now we are relaxing on a Saturday morning with breakfast and coffee after an evening of watching the Opening Ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics. It was one of the most amazing spectacles we had ever seen. The rumor here was that it was going to be something incredible, but as we sat watching it on TV last night we were awed by some of the performances. The one English station was unable to broadcast the event because of copyright regulations so we watched it in Chinese.

The last time I watched the Olympics in mainland China it was during the 1992 games in Barcelona. I was in a hostel in Urumuqi (a city in the far west desert of China) watching the events on a cheap broken down TV with a group of guys I had traveled there with (and pineing for my newlywed wife back at home). Watching the Opening Ceremonies last night, I was struck by how far China has come in 16 years. We consider it a real privilege to be here during this exciting time