HP New Year's Party

We had our annual HP site New Year's party on January 11th. No, they didn't celebrate it late... Chinese New Year, the biggest holiday of the year, is actually on February 7th! It was a fun evening, and more than a little stressful as I was expected to help provide entertainment for a group of about 300 people. I was asked to play guitar and sing (solo!) a traditional Chinese love song in Chinese. I was accompanied by a colleague playing an instrument called a Guqin (pronounced Goo-cheen). Later in the evening I was in a quartet singing "Get Around" by the Beach Boys. A memorable evening!

Merry Christmas!

Shengdan Kuaile! (Merry Christmas!)

What a treat to have the twins visit us this Christmas in Shanghai! In this photo we're modeling our tailor-made clothes (suits and tuxes for less than $60 each). Elaine also bought a "prom dress".

Yesterday we helped lead music at church, and singing Christmas carols is putting us in the Christmas spirit. I hope all of you enjoy a time of peace and renewal.

Anniversary in Suzhou

Mark and Luke helped us celebrate our 32nd anniversary in Suzhou, a scenic city a few hours from Shanghai.

Art in Zhu Jia Jiao

With Elaine visiting family and friends in Boise over Thanksgiving, Ben decided to take a trip to Zhu Jia Jiao, a water city one hour west of Shanghai known as the "Venice of Shanghai".

Traveling solo, my expectations weren't too high...I thought I'd just stay a few hours, look around and go home. But on a boat ride I met some nice art students from Shanghai University. We ended up having lunch together, then sketching by river until dusk. What a pleasant surprise!

Cobbler Tale

Today Elaine and I went for a walk to the neighborhood market. I had my backpack since I planned to do some work afterwards. Sadly this favorite backpack had a torn handle, and in the US would have been headed for the trash.

On the way home I saw a cobbler, and (using sign language) asked if she could fix it. She carefully disassembled it, made some modifications, then restitched it with her manual sewing machine. It's better than new! I came back for the photo of her shop on the street, but she was too shy to have her photo taken.

Washing Windows at Shimao

Here's how they wash windows on the 23rd floor of our apartment...