Snowboarding

Alvin and I are in Lake Tahoe, CA, this weekend with our Los Angeles friends. We are going skiing/snowboarding for three days.

I have only been snowboarding once before this weekend, but I told Alvin I would try snowboarding at least one day. So on Friday, I went snowboarding and Alvin was my teacher. We were a little scared that we would be frustrated with the learning process. The first day was difficult. I ended up falling every time I tried to turn. Not only would I fall, but I would fall hard. I kept hitting my butt, and then after I hit my butt, my head would swing back and hit the floor too. The falls and getting back up really took the energy out of me. Man, snowboarding is really hard. Yet, I really appreciated Alvin being there for me and being so patient.

On Saturday, I said I wouldn't give up and went snowboarding again. By the second run, I was actually getting it. I still fell, but not as much. By the 4th run, I started to enjoy it. When I did fall, it still hurt, but not as bad as last time. This time I fell more on my knees. My knees are all bruised up now. I'm glad that I went the second day, or else I would have hated snowboarding all my life.

Even though I finally enjoyed snowboarding, tomorrow, I will go skiing.

I Heart Computer Programming

I don't know if people know this, but I some self-employed web development work on the side. This helps keep me (somewhat) sharp as a programmer and a problem solver. I've also been benefited greatly by working more closely with The Captain on these projects over recent months. Considering aspects such as code quality, personal integrity, and idea creativity, I have found that working with someone else has been well worth it.

Some weeks are busier than others, depending on projects and deadlines. My hours are flexible, which means if there is work to do, then I try to set aside time here and there to do it. This has its advantages and disadvantages. One advantage is that I can take off a whole day and just... goto DL with my wife for her birthday.

But one disadvantage, I'm finding, is that my life and sleep schedule can be thrown totally out of whack, simply because I ♥ Computer Programming. That is, when I get into the zone, I can sit down and write and debug code for 6+ hours without standing up to drink, eat, or go to the bathroom. Dangerous? Probably not. Obsessive? Maybe. But I really do enjoy it that much.

Which leads to the schedule problem. Because what if I get into the zone at... 10PM? Then, it's quite possible that I can sit there, in the dark, and just... code. Until... 2, 3, 4 in the morning. Even though it's a super-productive time, that can throw me off body-schedule-wise for two days. Even tonight, I sat down at about 12:45AM just to debug some stuff on a small project. Was going to spend... 15 minutes, put it away, and goto bed. But I got into the zone, and didn't want to put off until tomorrow (oh wait, it's already tomorrow) the things that were going through my mind which I could just do right now. So, before I know it, it's 2AM.

I am finding that my most productive hours are usually the AM hours. That could be 7AM-11AM. Or... that could be 12AM-4AM. I think that the former is preferable, for my sanity, my physical health, and my marriage.

I Heart DL

On Tuesday, I went to Disneyland to celebrate my birthday. I already found out that Disneyland is free on your birthday.

But there were many more neat gifts!

First, when I got to the Low's house, Abby and Jenn had a surprise for me. Last time, Abby, Jenn, Isaac, and I made up a "I Heart DL" cheer. So this time they made "I Heart DL" shirts for Alvin and me. DL stands for Disneyland, not Dan Low or Dave Lau or Dennis Lee.

The back of our shirts have our names in Mickey.

The second surprise was when we met the DL polka band. Jenn asked them to play Happy Birthday to me. Then one guy shouted, "say hi to Darren Lieberman for me!" Haha.

I also wore a Happy Birthday button that DL gave me. More than 30 people, and not just Disney cast members, told me Happy Birthday!


The last surprise was that we ran into two women that got us right into the front of the line of Its a Small World. By the way, I think the new additions to the ride are great!

Here were Alvin and my tour guides: Walt (Jenn) and Mickey (Abby). Thanks! You guys were great. You make DL superfun!


Lastly, thanks to Alvin for coming to celebrate. Thanks for wearing the shirt and also not complaining the whole day.

Goodbye Tour (Part I)

I know I have already written about how hard it is giving away some items. When I was giving away clothes, I put them through the goodbye tour. I would wear an article of clothing, and at the end of the day I would take it off and put it in the donate pile or the laundry pile. Most clothes "didn't make the team" and were cut. Some reasons clothes are cut is: doesn't fit properly; it is so old and I don't wear it, but back in high school it had sentimental value; too low (for jeans and shirts); or too fancy for overseas living. The too fancy clothes usually went to CWang. I notice that she is very much enjoying my clothes. Now most of my clothes have been given away, the goodbye tour for clothes is pretty much done.

Now I am giving the goodbye tour to other sentimental value items. I gave away some of my art pieces already. To remember the pieces, I will give them a goodbye tour on the blog. But I will spread it out over many posts so it will not overwhelm one post. Here is the first art piece I have given away. The lucky recipient was AWong. Goodbye pink tulips.

The other goodbye tour is currently happening in Los Angeles. That is, the goodbye tour of my KitchenAid mixer (it will be lent to my sister-in-law). I couldn't part with the mixer without at least baking a couple more items. So on Saturday morning I baked a cheesecake. It didn't look too good, but tasted ok. Alvin laughed and said that he didn't want to take a picture of it. Then I knew I couldn't go out on that cheesecake, so I made another. I think it tasted pretty good. Here is the picture:

I am planning to make some more items with the KitchenAid mixer to truly say goodbye. Although, I just heard about a friend overseas who just got a KitchenAid stand mixer sent to her. Oooh!

I Love My Wife. 2 Days to BDAY.

Her birthday is on Tuesday. Shh.... don't tell her that I told you. We're planning a huge surprise birthday party with thousands of people. I've been able to rent out 85 acres of land out in Anaheim. I'm going to set it up with rides and attractions, and we're even going to have a parade. Then I've hired some people to do this nighttime performance show on a small island, packed with fountains and laser lights and everything. It's fantastic. I also hired out a bunch of people to wear these giant cartoon costumes and just walk around all day long taking pictures with people. The place we rented out is so huge though... I've asked them to install a monorail.

You're totally invited to come too! I couldn't fit everyone on an evite, but there's room for you. We're just asking people to chip in about $70 for the food and the decorations. You can just pay when you arrive.

Visiting Family and Friends

This past week we have been visiting with family and friends in LA. We have had the wonderful opportunity to play with our six nieces and nephews on Alvin's side.

Here is an attempt at a group picture.


We also have had the opportunity to meet up with some friends. On Saturday, we had fondue with two of my old roommates and their spouses and child. That was super fun and yummy.



Here is Milton the Superhero of Love (bear) and Evan. Evan and family has graciously agreed to adopt Milton.



On Wednesday, we went to the Aquarium of the Pacific, located in Long Beach. The funniest is part is when the 3 year old asked us after staring at the aquarium, "hey Uncle Alvin, remember when we ate fish?"

We had a fun time at the aquarium. We also ran into two Dallas friends, RSnyder and ESnyder. Crazy! When I first saw RSnyder in the bathroom, I did a double take and thought, "wait, what city am I in?" But the weird part is that this is not the first time Alvin and I have been visiting a museum outside of Dallas with his sister's family, and then ran into friends. When we were in Portland, we ran into Brad and Laurel that we met at a training in Colorado Springs.

Pop quiz: What is the name of the ducky pictured in one of the group pictures?

Look My Age

On Sunday afternoon, I ran into someone at a SBUX here whom I had not seen in over 4 years. That's what happens when you go to SBUX's in the hometown where you grew up.

After a little bit of chit-chat and catching up, he said to me, "Well, you sure look like the world has been pretty rough on you in the last few years. But you've still got a good smile, so you must be doing ok."

After I process his statement, I immediately think about the last time that I looked in the mirror. It was maybe... 6 hours earlier. Come on, did I look that bad? What does it mean when someone tells you that it looks like the world has been pretty rough on you? Especially if I don't really feel like the world has been pretty rough on me...

Am I getting old? And showing the signs of getting old? Maybe 3 years ago, I would have conversations with people and joke about me and Bethany being kids, and we still get mistaken for being high-schoolers, and how we even get carded for buying apple cider and root beer. But umm... maybe I won't have those conversations anymore. Maybe I actually do look 30.

Though not necessarily in stressful ways that would cause accelerated aging, these last 5 years of my life have been eventful and tremendously pivotal in my own formation as a person. Married life. Theological education. Challenges in brokenness and grace. And having close friends that have journeyed and will journey with us... forward and overseas.

So yes, I guess I am getting older. And maybe my face is starting to show it. Bethany says I need to wear sunscreen. But even if the world has been pretty rough on me, at least I've still got a good smile on my face, because He is always good.