The family is having medical checks for our clearances. Lab tests have been run, general numbers taken and now we're having the final steps of being looked over by the doctor.
The only thing anyone seems to care about though is height/weight. All I can remember are weights. Katherine is 67 pounds. Rebecca is 56 pounds. Nicholas is 43 pounds. Jonathon is 35 pounds. There you go!
Saturday, October 23, 2004
Friday, October 22, 2004
A perk with the FPO
I learned today that shipping between FPO/APO and FPO/APO is free to those of us with access.
Why do I know this? A friend of a friend is stationed in Basra. He's recovering from broken ribs and a fire took out his camp. Oh, and there's shooting and stuff going on too.
So I asked for his address, went shopping this morning at Rustans, recycled some amazon boxes and off they went to Iraq care of the Military Postal Service.
He doesn't know me, I don't know him, but shipping out some Pringles and Skittles with some Chocolate Milk to wash it down(amongst other things), just made me feel better. The lady in the FPO kinda sighed and asked if I hadn't had a bigger box, the paper process was bugging her I guess. Actually, I didn't have a bigger one since I don't like storing loads of huge empty boxes in the house. But really, who wants to get one big package when you can get three smaller ones? It's more like Christmas when you hear your name called several times and have to balance a stack back to your quarters.
Have a great day, Ron!
Why do I know this? A friend of a friend is stationed in Basra. He's recovering from broken ribs and a fire took out his camp. Oh, and there's shooting and stuff going on too.
So I asked for his address, went shopping this morning at Rustans, recycled some amazon boxes and off they went to Iraq care of the Military Postal Service.
He doesn't know me, I don't know him, but shipping out some Pringles and Skittles with some Chocolate Milk to wash it down(amongst other things), just made me feel better. The lady in the FPO kinda sighed and asked if I hadn't had a bigger box, the paper process was bugging her I guess. Actually, I didn't have a bigger one since I don't like storing loads of huge empty boxes in the house. But really, who wants to get one big package when you can get three smaller ones? It's more like Christmas when you hear your name called several times and have to balance a stack back to your quarters.
Have a great day, Ron!
Thursday, October 21, 2004
bond classified
Last night we found the PICC, also known as the Philippine International Convention Center.
Not to be confused with the CCP, the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Everything says the PICC is right behind the CCP, but as we discovered, it's actually a block down, a block over and another block down. Well, it wasn't that hot a night, and parking was a breeze. Plenary Hall is rather nice. Laura and Ryan came too and they liked it way better than the CCP Main Hall. I have to agree that we had better and more comfy seats this time.
About the time we discovered Maksim for ourselves, we discovered bond. They are a similar genre, crossing the line between classic and rock, with artists as wild as their music.
bond is a quartet with two violinists (from Perth, Aus. and Wales), a viola player (from Sydney) and a cellist (from Cyprus). I admit it was hard to get into at first because of their garish costumes and hyper movements. With Maxim, he sat at his piano. With these ladies, they were skipping and dancing in tight tops and tutu type skirts with wickedly high heels, all while playing their instruments. Quite a sight.
Once the concert started it was 45 minutes late and the audience was typical Filipino. We've noticed this when attending other functions or watching local concerts on TV, the audience does not react. I can't figure out if it's a sign of respect, a sign of enjoyment or a sign that the population is hard to please, but concert goers don't move. At all. The musicians came out and there was little more than polite applause after their first few pieces. The first violin spoke into the mic and tried to get a response with her "Hello Manila!" and you could practically hear crickets.
We were amazed then that near the end of the concert, one side of the orchestra seats were waving their arms! And then... they stood up! The first violin waved her arms for everyone to get up and some people did... then sat down again. By the very last piece, I was baffled because more of the audience was actually staying up and there was noise while folks clapped and cheered and some people were even moving in their seats. They were dancing!
But you know why people were really getting out of their chairs? Everyone had their phones. And they were taking pictures. From where we were, we could see dozens of little blue screens being held up as bond danced their way to the front of the stage and posed for photos as they played. We joked later that we'd love to get a picture of all the folks taking pictures. It's classic.
My favorite part of the concert was the acoustic set. Watching bond play electric instruments is impressive, but I really feel the acoustic pieces highlighted their true talent. Probably because the sound is much purer, and you can tell how intensely and beautifully they work together. They hopped around the stage with their radically unique electric instruments and we were swept away with the power of their music, but the acoustic really shone their talent.
It was a great evening. Ryan and Laura hosted us for dinner which is always a treat and bond plays amazing music that and you can't help but start dancing. One of our favorites is "Explosive". If you watch a video channel, you might catch it there. It's a little odd involving military men storming an empty building, but the group is a little odd all over.
The one thing I would have changed from the evening (ok, two things, but only one from the actual concert) was the spotlight guys. They were AWFUL. Terrible. Miserable. Dreadful. Spots would forget to come up. They would cut off heads. They wouldn't follow the women. When the musicians were lined up, three spots would come up but the fourth would be napping. We weren't the only ones who noticed, so don't think I'm nitpicking. It's distracting when the lead instrumentalist is in the dark.
The other thing I would have changed... I would have taken tylenol as soon as I got home. Go ahead and say I'm just old, but the loud music and the excitement came back to bite me during the night. One thing I really hate is waking up with a pounding head and fumpbling around in the dark for tylenol.
Ok pain aside.... Buy the CD. Or all three.
Not to be confused with the CCP, the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Everything says the PICC is right behind the CCP, but as we discovered, it's actually a block down, a block over and another block down. Well, it wasn't that hot a night, and parking was a breeze. Plenary Hall is rather nice. Laura and Ryan came too and they liked it way better than the CCP Main Hall. I have to agree that we had better and more comfy seats this time.
About the time we discovered Maksim for ourselves, we discovered bond. They are a similar genre, crossing the line between classic and rock, with artists as wild as their music.
bond is a quartet with two violinists (from Perth, Aus. and Wales), a viola player (from Sydney) and a cellist (from Cyprus). I admit it was hard to get into at first because of their garish costumes and hyper movements. With Maxim, he sat at his piano. With these ladies, they were skipping and dancing in tight tops and tutu type skirts with wickedly high heels, all while playing their instruments. Quite a sight.
Once the concert started it was 45 minutes late and the audience was typical Filipino. We've noticed this when attending other functions or watching local concerts on TV, the audience does not react. I can't figure out if it's a sign of respect, a sign of enjoyment or a sign that the population is hard to please, but concert goers don't move. At all. The musicians came out and there was little more than polite applause after their first few pieces. The first violin spoke into the mic and tried to get a response with her "Hello Manila!" and you could practically hear crickets.
We were amazed then that near the end of the concert, one side of the orchestra seats were waving their arms! And then... they stood up! The first violin waved her arms for everyone to get up and some people did... then sat down again. By the very last piece, I was baffled because more of the audience was actually staying up and there was noise while folks clapped and cheered and some people were even moving in their seats. They were dancing!
But you know why people were really getting out of their chairs? Everyone had their phones. And they were taking pictures. From where we were, we could see dozens of little blue screens being held up as bond danced their way to the front of the stage and posed for photos as they played. We joked later that we'd love to get a picture of all the folks taking pictures. It's classic.
My favorite part of the concert was the acoustic set. Watching bond play electric instruments is impressive, but I really feel the acoustic pieces highlighted their true talent. Probably because the sound is much purer, and you can tell how intensely and beautifully they work together. They hopped around the stage with their radically unique electric instruments and we were swept away with the power of their music, but the acoustic really shone their talent.
It was a great evening. Ryan and Laura hosted us for dinner which is always a treat and bond plays amazing music that and you can't help but start dancing. One of our favorites is "Explosive". If you watch a video channel, you might catch it there. It's a little odd involving military men storming an empty building, but the group is a little odd all over.
The one thing I would have changed from the evening (ok, two things, but only one from the actual concert) was the spotlight guys. They were AWFUL. Terrible. Miserable. Dreadful. Spots would forget to come up. They would cut off heads. They wouldn't follow the women. When the musicians were lined up, three spots would come up but the fourth would be napping. We weren't the only ones who noticed, so don't think I'm nitpicking. It's distracting when the lead instrumentalist is in the dark.
The other thing I would have changed... I would have taken tylenol as soon as I got home. Go ahead and say I'm just old, but the loud music and the excitement came back to bite me during the night. One thing I really hate is waking up with a pounding head and fumpbling around in the dark for tylenol.
Ok pain aside.... Buy the CD. Or all three.
Monday, October 18, 2004
Braunohler hits Iraq
A classmate of Ian's from his A100 class has landed in Iraq.
Ian forwarded Walter's website where he's always kept a pictoral log and this time is Iraq is no different. Walter curtailed from his tour in Bangkok to do a tour in the "greenzone", after spending some time back home and then going through security training.
The images are there. Some will see a silly guy. Some will see a scary place. Some think "cool!" when he shoulder's a weapon almost as big as he is.
For me, the danger Walter has put himself in is palpable. I want to laugh at his funny captions but instead find myself holding back a tear. To think that thousands have put themselves in the same (and worse) position he has, to be on the front line. People who have pulled themselves voluntarily away from fun and often cushy jobs to take to a trailer in a steamy desert. People who have seen what is happening and feel they can make a difference.
With folks like Walter on the job, how can we not succeed?
Walter's Photos: http://www.braunohler.net/walter/album/index.html
Ian forwarded Walter's website where he's always kept a pictoral log and this time is Iraq is no different. Walter curtailed from his tour in Bangkok to do a tour in the "greenzone", after spending some time back home and then going through security training.
The images are there. Some will see a silly guy. Some will see a scary place. Some think "cool!" when he shoulder's a weapon almost as big as he is.
For me, the danger Walter has put himself in is palpable. I want to laugh at his funny captions but instead find myself holding back a tear. To think that thousands have put themselves in the same (and worse) position he has, to be on the front line. People who have pulled themselves voluntarily away from fun and often cushy jobs to take to a trailer in a steamy desert. People who have seen what is happening and feel they can make a difference.
With folks like Walter on the job, how can we not succeed?
Walter's Photos: http://www.braunohler.net/walter/album/index.html
Saturday, October 16, 2004
Another busy Saturday
Katherine had her second swim meet today.
For some reason they had her listed twice, once under ISM and once under the European International School, and they gaver her times under the Euro and called the other one a no show. Oops. By the time we left they'd fixed the freestyle score, so hopefully they'll catch on for the rest.
The meet was quite a bit smaller, with three teams participating: Brent, ISM and Euro. Brent was still the overall winner by shear numbers. So many heats were all Brent swimmers and since points are awarded to the 16th place it didn't take a genius to figure out that if ISM won the top 3 and Brent won 4th to 16th, we still lost overall. Since I never received a copy of Katherine's times from the first meet, I can only go by what was on the sheets today for back stroke. She cut 2 1/2 seconds off her race time! The funny thing was that we'd been telling her to stop looking at the other swimmers and that the person she was racing against was herself, to beat her own time. We told her to imagine that the pool was empty. With the backstroke, it turned out that the other swimmers for her heat weren't there so she swam alone and did have the whole pool to herself. Of course was first in her heat. Once I get her times, I'll put them all up and you can see how she's improved.
She opted out of the butterfly this time. I think she would have done great, but we had another engagement to get to by 2 p.m.
We departed Brent and went to Greenbelt 1. I never knew it before, but upstairs by the movie theater is a stage theater. We saw the musical "Pinnochio". The lead was played by an ISM student and a CCD kid, and the proceeds were going to support the San Antonio CCD program. By 3:30 it was done and the boys were fascinated by the whole thing, following the story and definitely knowing who the bad guys were. Nicholas didn't want to go meet Pinnochio afterwards. Seems he didn't like the fact that He was played by a She. "I think he's a girl, mommy," said with a quizzical look. The cat (you know, the fox's sidekick) kept pawing Jonathon and he was none too pleased with that either.
We ran into Meg and Tierney at the show with their parents, so on a whim I suggested Katherine invite them for a sleep-over tonight. Meg decided she really didn't want to, but would come over to play for a bit so we invited her little sister, Katie, as well to play with the boys. We ordered in KFC and made a big pot of mac&cheese, and all were happy. Once Meg was here though, she changed her mind and asked to stay. Ian drove Katie home after dinner and picked up Meg's things, and now the girls are messing around downstairs in their sleeping bags. I told them they could have until 10:30 but then it was time for sleep. We'll see if it works.
This is Katherine's first sleep-over having friends over. It's obviously a first for Rebecca as well. There's been a slight clash with who is who's friend, Katherine didn't want Rebecca around, the other girls said that wasn't being a nice big sister, some tears were shed, one of the girls announced Rebecca was annoying, etc.
I sure hope they go to sleep soon.
For some reason they had her listed twice, once under ISM and once under the European International School, and they gaver her times under the Euro and called the other one a no show. Oops. By the time we left they'd fixed the freestyle score, so hopefully they'll catch on for the rest.
The meet was quite a bit smaller, with three teams participating: Brent, ISM and Euro. Brent was still the overall winner by shear numbers. So many heats were all Brent swimmers and since points are awarded to the 16th place it didn't take a genius to figure out that if ISM won the top 3 and Brent won 4th to 16th, we still lost overall. Since I never received a copy of Katherine's times from the first meet, I can only go by what was on the sheets today for back stroke. She cut 2 1/2 seconds off her race time! The funny thing was that we'd been telling her to stop looking at the other swimmers and that the person she was racing against was herself, to beat her own time. We told her to imagine that the pool was empty. With the backstroke, it turned out that the other swimmers for her heat weren't there so she swam alone and did have the whole pool to herself. Of course was first in her heat. Once I get her times, I'll put them all up and you can see how she's improved.
She opted out of the butterfly this time. I think she would have done great, but we had another engagement to get to by 2 p.m.
We departed Brent and went to Greenbelt 1. I never knew it before, but upstairs by the movie theater is a stage theater. We saw the musical "Pinnochio". The lead was played by an ISM student and a CCD kid, and the proceeds were going to support the San Antonio CCD program. By 3:30 it was done and the boys were fascinated by the whole thing, following the story and definitely knowing who the bad guys were. Nicholas didn't want to go meet Pinnochio afterwards. Seems he didn't like the fact that He was played by a She. "I think he's a girl, mommy," said with a quizzical look. The cat (you know, the fox's sidekick) kept pawing Jonathon and he was none too pleased with that either.
We ran into Meg and Tierney at the show with their parents, so on a whim I suggested Katherine invite them for a sleep-over tonight. Meg decided she really didn't want to, but would come over to play for a bit so we invited her little sister, Katie, as well to play with the boys. We ordered in KFC and made a big pot of mac&cheese, and all were happy. Once Meg was here though, she changed her mind and asked to stay. Ian drove Katie home after dinner and picked up Meg's things, and now the girls are messing around downstairs in their sleeping bags. I told them they could have until 10:30 but then it was time for sleep. We'll see if it works.
This is Katherine's first sleep-over having friends over. It's obviously a first for Rebecca as well. There's been a slight clash with who is who's friend, Katherine didn't want Rebecca around, the other girls said that wasn't being a nice big sister, some tears were shed, one of the girls announced Rebecca was annoying, etc.
I sure hope they go to sleep soon.
Friday was a day for home time.
Friday I didn't leave the house. I can't recall the last time that happened.
That doesn't mean that we didn't do anything. The boys didn't go to preschool, because the preschool came here. It was Visitation day for the class and they came to spend the morning playing, doing crafts and eating at our abode.
There are 11 kids in AmeriKids and since 2 of them are mine, we expected 9 to show up. Two ended up being ill, so only 7 came. Only 7? Yeah, I think it was the adults who took up more space than the kids! They played with a plethora of toys I'd brought out from the toy closet and from the boys' room. Even the car mat came down to the living room floor. Snack time, then they painted papier mache' pumpkins. I think Teacher Nympha had imagined wonderfully orange pumpkins with black stripes, except that I'd bought a rainbow of colors and not one of them turned out orange. We have purple, red and green pumpkins instead. Thankfully I'd had a brainstorm in the morning and taped down several large black plastic bags to the second kitchen floor so there was little effort for clean-up. Perfect for me. We all went to the playground for a bit and then it was lunch time. Once they'd finished eating trays of homemade pumpkin shaped sugar cookies were pulled out and the kids decorated with M&Ms, raisins and sugar.
It was time for everyone to head home. One of the drivers either forgot the time or got lost, so we had time to pull out some puzzles and letters, and read some stories. Five kids seems like nothing after nine kids, and they were all the older ones so the dynamics had definitely changed. It was fun.
All in all, I think it was successful day but I was still worn out by the end. I know the boys had a good time. They had been asking for weeks when their friends would come over, and upon waking they'd asked ever 10 minutes when their friends would arrive. They were happy and even while I was nervous and had spent the week before cleaning up and organizing and planning, it was worth it.
That doesn't mean that we didn't do anything. The boys didn't go to preschool, because the preschool came here. It was Visitation day for the class and they came to spend the morning playing, doing crafts and eating at our abode.
There are 11 kids in AmeriKids and since 2 of them are mine, we expected 9 to show up. Two ended up being ill, so only 7 came. Only 7? Yeah, I think it was the adults who took up more space than the kids! They played with a plethora of toys I'd brought out from the toy closet and from the boys' room. Even the car mat came down to the living room floor. Snack time, then they painted papier mache' pumpkins. I think Teacher Nympha had imagined wonderfully orange pumpkins with black stripes, except that I'd bought a rainbow of colors and not one of them turned out orange. We have purple, red and green pumpkins instead. Thankfully I'd had a brainstorm in the morning and taped down several large black plastic bags to the second kitchen floor so there was little effort for clean-up. Perfect for me. We all went to the playground for a bit and then it was lunch time. Once they'd finished eating trays of homemade pumpkin shaped sugar cookies were pulled out and the kids decorated with M&Ms, raisins and sugar.
It was time for everyone to head home. One of the drivers either forgot the time or got lost, so we had time to pull out some puzzles and letters, and read some stories. Five kids seems like nothing after nine kids, and they were all the older ones so the dynamics had definitely changed. It was fun.
All in all, I think it was successful day but I was still worn out by the end. I know the boys had a good time. They had been asking for weeks when their friends would come over, and upon waking they'd asked ever 10 minutes when their friends would arrive. They were happy and even while I was nervous and had spent the week before cleaning up and organizing and planning, it was worth it.
Wednesday, October 13, 2004
Of Trias and Apricots
Jasmine Trias (of American Idol fame) is coming to Manila. The streets are lined with Smart ads (the cell phone company) with her face plastered on them. I realize she's a Fil-Am, but really, should they be so proud of someone who really can't sing? Oh who am I kidding, I've heard enough local radio to know she's fits right in.
On another topic, I gave the kids dried apricots in their lunch today. How did I not know they had the same effect as prunes? Pardon... dried plums. Poor Jonathon.
Oh, and want to know what my day is like tomorrow?
0745 Pick up Katie
(15 min drive)
0800 Exit med exam for boys
0830 Drop off kids at preschool
0900 Exit med exam for me
(15 min drive)
1030 Dental visit for me
(10 min drive)
1130 National bookstore for finger paints
(15 min drive)
1300 Pick up boys
(30 min drive)
1415 Pick up girls
(30 min drive)
1500 Exit med exam for girls
(15 min drive)
1600 Dental visit for Katherine
In the evening I need to clean up the main floor and prepare for Friday when the kids from AmeriKids are coming over for the morning to do an art project and play at the playground. That's what I need the paints for. I also wanted to get sugar cookies prepped for them to decorate, but who knows if I'll get my act together.
Saturday is Katherine's swim meet, followed by a production of Pinnochio, followed by a potluck at Seafront. We're still debating about the last one, depending how the rest of the day goes.
Sunday will be blessedly quiet.
Oh, one last thing, promise! I bought a cookbook yesterday called 1001 Recipes with 4 Ingredients (or less). It's perfect for me.
On another topic, I gave the kids dried apricots in their lunch today. How did I not know they had the same effect as prunes? Pardon... dried plums. Poor Jonathon.
Oh, and want to know what my day is like tomorrow?
0745 Pick up Katie
(15 min drive)
0800 Exit med exam for boys
0830 Drop off kids at preschool
0900 Exit med exam for me
(15 min drive)
1030 Dental visit for me
(10 min drive)
1130 National bookstore for finger paints
(15 min drive)
1300 Pick up boys
(30 min drive)
1415 Pick up girls
(30 min drive)
1500 Exit med exam for girls
(15 min drive)
1600 Dental visit for Katherine
In the evening I need to clean up the main floor and prepare for Friday when the kids from AmeriKids are coming over for the morning to do an art project and play at the playground. That's what I need the paints for. I also wanted to get sugar cookies prepped for them to decorate, but who knows if I'll get my act together.
Saturday is Katherine's swim meet, followed by a production of Pinnochio, followed by a potluck at Seafront. We're still debating about the last one, depending how the rest of the day goes.
Sunday will be blessedly quiet.
Oh, one last thing, promise! I bought a cookbook yesterday called 1001 Recipes with 4 Ingredients (or less). It's perfect for me.
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