Keeping Up - the catch-up post

Wow, so much has happened since my laptop died. My last post was Memorial Day weekend, when my laptop died and we had another slab leak.

Here's a few things to catch my friends up to date...

Yeah, my work laptop died. I don't have a home laptop, so I've been using Cathy's when I needed one. At work, I have been working on old equipment on an incidental or occasional basis; I may use a different laptop or desktop each day. Ah, well, that's what is good about portable applications like Firefox.

My father's birthday came and went, and I spoke a lot on the phone with my mom. I found out that it takes up to four weeks for a check to clear. So when I sent a check home, it could be five or six weeks before my mom gets the money. And there is a $25 fee on this side and about a $15 fee on the other end. *sigh* Father's Day will probably be hard.

The slab leak was a liability; patching it means nobody will buy it, but re-piping is ridiculously expensive in comparison. Since we'd be on the hook for any repairs if there were another within 18 months, I opted for a 1/2 price re-pipe. That's over $7000 we're in the hole again, so that just about wipes out Cathy's income, which we were using to pay down debt. *sigh* The re-pipe is done but the walls cannot be patched until the city inspects it; who knows when that will be...

Still no buyer for the apartment. We had a lawyer look into the way the loan was originated and he agreed that "shady" and illegal practices were used, but did not know how we could get any relief. We could try to go after the license of the loan officer and broker, but that doesn't help us at all financially.

I have a tenant who just refused to pay rent and told me he was moving. Reluctantly, I started the eviction process. By the time I get the unit rented out again, I'll have missed another month (at least) of payment, so that puts us further behind. We can get a judgment for the rent he owes plus the cost of having him evicted, but I'll have to wait for that to come. Since the relationship has broken down this far, I would rather not have him living here anymore anyway. I hate the idea of evicting someone, but it is unfortunately necessary.

I'm going to post a separate prayer request for Cathy's dad. We found out last week that one lobe (there are five) has collapsed and he has something wrong.

Aside from feeling under a lot of pressure and a little depressed at times, Cathy and I are doing OK. We went to California Adventures this past Friday evening; I wasn't impressed.

If you would, please pray for Cathy's dad, my mom, and for us to trust God's will as we go through this unpleasant period. Thank you.

Laptop dead... argh

My laptop died on Sunday. I got done paying bills online, tried to access a server at church, then... blue screen of death. After a couple of reboots that were sucessively less encouraging, my laptop finally said there was no hard disk installed.

I went to work and plugged my laptop's hard disk into another laptop and was able to boot in Safe Mode and copy my files to a USB hard disk drive. But, my laptop is just not working.

Estimate is $560 to fix. We'll see what my boss says....

First weekend in the RV

So we had our first weekend out in the RV. We got here really late on Friday night. The neighbors were all very understanding; a couple of them helped us back in to our spot and our next door neighbors John and Shannon Williams (full-timers) helped me do part of the hookups. John and Shannon's son is four and is also named Lee. He starts montessori school on Monday; he's a bright and very social. The neighbors and RV'ers we did meet all seemed friendly and social. I could get used to this.

The sewer hose that came with the RV was too short, so I've yet do do my first dump; that will come in a hour or so.

Oh, we slept fine. The RV wasn't quite level, so we slept with our heads sightly higher than our feet on Friday. I fixed that with a couple of tiles Saturday morning. I'll have to pick up some leveling blocks.

Our biggest worry had been the cats and dog. This weekend was a scorcher and we kept the air conditioners off to see what it would be like. We did have the windows open and the vent fan on. There were no problems; though it was very hot outside, it didn't get too hot for either one of us, and the cats and dog seemed rather content, even though it got to 93°F outside.

I like being connected with the outside; all the windows and openness of the RV makes me feel less disconnected from the environment and our neighbors. At night, I can see stars. It feels good and right to sense the rising and setting of the sun, to be part of the circadian rhythm.

The cats' favorite space is under the hideaway sofa; the enclosed space may make them feel more secure, and it is probably 5° cooler under there.

Today we ran the RV's air conditioning, and it is very comfortable. We haven't had air conditioning at home since October 2004, so even adjusted to 80°F it feels great in here.

Well, I need to batten down the hatches and get ready to move. We wants to be home about 16:00 and I still need to dump the RV...

First night in the RV

I'm writing this from our RV, on my laptop. I've got the accouterments (or accoutrements) of geekhood; laptop, PDA, cell phone, Internet access... the lot rental covers the utilities and we're not looking into someone else's RV.

OK, the RV isn't quite level; we'll get blocks in the morning to finish the last bit of leveling. Things are working, which is good. We can do this; we can go RVing.

Anyway, one of the first things I noticed; people are very helpful.
Second thing, very little light pollution; I can see stars!
The third thing, it's quiet! I like it very much.

I hope we sleep well tonight; it was my first time leveling the RV, so we'll have to see.

Up and Down, Up and Down...

Looking back over the last year or so, our lives have been crazy, with lots of ups and downs. Through it all, God has been unchangingly good. Thank God!

• Cathy had Hep-C, but she was healed!
• Then Cathy lost her job, and we found out Cathy's dad had cancer.
• We almost lost Boaz because he swallowed a glass bead. But he recovered nicely!
• Then we got tricked on our refinance into a really high interest rate.
• But, hey, I graduated from seminary (finally)!
• Then we had a slab leak, but the plumber gave us six-month terms.
• And the Cathy's dad was healed! And Cathy got a job!
• Then my father got sick and died. But I went to Taiwan and was reconciled with my mom.
• My dad didn't leave a will, so I've got a small hill of paperwork to fill out to try to get support for my mom. But some fellow Christians (who remain anonymous to me) covered the cost of the trip!
• Now we have to sell our apartment for less than it is worth. We will have terrible credit because we have to do a short sale (where you settle with the mortgage company to pay less than you owe). These days, landlords check credit when you rent, so we'd have a hard time renting. But we were able to buy a RV to live in and plan to use the money savings to pay off debt.

So... an update is LONG overdue.

My Mom: My mom is doing OK. She finally received that 'bereavement package' from the DoD HR department. Dad's bank account has to go through a kind of probate, so mom's not getting that money any time soon.

I've got two forms for her to sign, but it takes so long to mail them back and forth that I was hoping to send them to her as PDF files and cut half the journy. However, nobody there seems to own a printer! Everybody has email and IM (Yahoo! is very popular there) but nobody can print the PDF files. In fact, I had to explain what a PDF file is to several people. Anyway, it is slow going, but it is going.

Cathy: Cathy's job is going quite well, and her boss likes her. That is a blessing. Her health is good.

I'm doing OK. The kitties are cute and the doggy is dogged. All is well, considering!

Selling the Apartment Building

So... we're trying to sell the apartment now. If I had only listened to my wife in 2006 and sold then... *sigh*. But, I wouldn't have met my nice neighbors and I may not have as involved at our wonderful church, and we may not have gotten Boaz and Bubba. Anyway...

So, why? Last year we started refinancing with Purpose Funding. The guy we were working with, Jason, did four refinances in a row with us. In September we started a refinance and he told us to hold off on paying the mortgage as the refinance would take care of it. However, he was slow getting the loan to us and it was almost late by the time he showed up with the paperwork. The rate was much higher than we arranged over the phone, but he promised to refinance it to a lower rate in November and we were stupid/desperate, so we signed. Jason disappeared after that, and when we called Purpose Funding we found out that Jason didn't work there any more and nobody could get in touch with him. So, our mortgage shot up by $2000 and we were in deep trouble. I guess he made a lot of commission or something, but I have a hard time not thinking bad thoughts about him.

We tried to refinance elsewhere, but very few people are able to refinance apartments. Besides, mortgage companies started getting scared about that time. I had called our mortgage company several times since November in order to restructure the loan. So far, no joy. (I didn't realize this, but I must have picked up the phrase from my father.)

The last few time I called, the mortgage company said they just could not restructure the loan. I told the loan company that we are having a hard time paying that much more and we won't be able to make the whole payment; we've used up our savings and even paid a couple mortgages on credit. If it weren't for the extra side jobs I get from time to time, we'd be in really serious trouble. Still, they say they cannot change the loan as it was originated by Fannie Mae and they won't allow a restructure.

So, we have the apartment up for sale with a note indicating it is a short sale. We post what we would like, but the "short sale" note tells potential buyers that we'll take much lower offers. Once the bank approves an offer, we sell and move. If the short sale does not happen, we'll be unable to keep up and we'd face foreclosure. *sigh*

Did I mention I'm back?

In talking to my father-in-law, it became clear to me that I did not tell everybody that I am back in the USA. I came back on Wednesday, 02/05/2008.

I want to say for the record that the trip was under God's care. For example, just getting on to the plane was a feat.

I had found out my need for a plane ticket and passport on Friday night. My passport had expired, so I called for an emergency passport. There is an after-hours duty office in Washington, D.C., and she arranged the next available appointment for me, 7 A.M. Monday.

My father died Saturday morning my time. Still, I needed to get there A.S.A.P. for my mother's sake. Cathy helped me pack, I took time off from work and drove to L.A. to arrive before 7 A.M.

That's when I saw my first clear sign that God was watching over me. The L.A. passport office was closed! It wasn't a holiday; they were closed for training. However, the will-call window would process my passport since it had expired (they would not process new and lost passports for a couple of other people).

Then there was another difficulty. I only had a Chinese death certificate. The agent dissappeared with my dad's death certificate and came back less than 10 minutes later; it just happened that one of the employees (who they did not expect to be there) is Chinese and could read the certificate.

Next hurdle; they wanted a ticket to show proof of travel. I explained that I did not want to buy a non-refundable ticket that weekend (and, given that they were not actually open, they said they understood). The agent was so very kind; she gave me her cell phone number so I would not have to navigate the phone system. So, I was able to call China Airlines and got a ticket faxed to me, and I got my passport in time, before the passport agency closed at 11:30.

Getting the governent to renew an expired passort when they are not open for business? That's a acti of God. :-)

So, what's with the cops?

Every day, when I get off work, I expect a call from my wife. We both get out of work at 5 PM, so one of us will call the other. This Friday, Cathy went home and her phone was on "buzz." Instead, my neighbors called to tell me the cops were at the apartments.

As it turns out, my mother-in-law (Rhonda) had slapped her ex-boyfriend (let's call him Guy#1, who is also my tenant in #3) and he called the cops. They were dating, but broke up during the week I was in Taiwan; it wasn't a tidy breakup. The breakup was over another man who was attempting to court Rhonda. Apparently, Rhonda used Guy#1's computer, and someone either Guy#1 or his daughter read some correspondence with Guy#2, and things fell apart from there.

The reason Rhonda slapped him, however, was because somebody (don't know who) wrote to Guy#2 and told him some lies about Rhonda. Guy#2 stops writing Rhonda, she finds out why, and she slaps Guy#1 as he gets out of the car; she slaps him hard. He, in response, shoves her on her butt and calls the cops.

Anyway, nobody pressed charges, but things have been tense around the apartments. *sigh* My life is a soap opera.

Georgia and Back

Several friends have noted that I have not been keeping up with the blog and emailed their concern. Thanks! Some of you have noticed that we went to Georgia and came back without blogging about it. Part of that is due to the business surrounding that trip, but that was a month ago now. So, first...

Georgia.
I bought a ticket for $146 and flew out to Georgia on 10/17. Cathy met me at the airport and we happily drove back to her dad's house together. We attended Cathy's sister's wedding on Saturday. I got to preach twice (Sunday and Wednesday) and generally attended morning Bible studies and tagged along with Cathy's dad, Al, as much as possible.

Al's cancer had progressed much like a faith journey; there was a spot on his brain scan, and on a re-check the spot had dissappeared and been replaced with another one. Each health chalenge is met by God's grace, and new challenges come along, another opportunity to trust God. Al's health is in God's hands, and we all think that is a good place for it. The doctors are convinced it is a matter of time; Al thinks God is not done with him yet, and it is a matter of His time.

I have received a great deal of education which should prepare a pastor for a position of ministry. I look at what Al does, though, and know that education along is insifficient to do what he does daily. Rather, God's grace alone is sufficient for the task, for which Al says he does not measure up, and for which I would see myself falling far short of acheiving. When I first met Al, I thought that what he does is admirable, but something I could not do. Later, I found it admirable, and would consider helping on occasion. Then, I considered the possibility of being an assistant pastor, but I decided that I could not lead such a ministry. And now, I know for sure such a ministry is beyond my power, but would willingly labor in it.

The church campus is large to me, sitting on 22 acres, most of which is undeveloped. I looked around and saw great potential. It is in this context that I heard God's call, to my surprise and no small distress, that He wanted me to serve as Al's successor. As I already stated, I am unable to fulfill such a task on my own power, and my own inability terrifies me. It was Friday evening that I knelt with Cathy and prayed, and accepted in my mind that Al was going to ask me to take his place; not long thereafter, Cathy's dad did, indeed, ask me to do so. By faith, I have accepted what we each believe is God's will. Since then, I have come to a peace that God, in His sovereignty, will provide and direct.

I was unable to preach on Sunday before we left because I wanted to see my longtime friend and brother in the Lord, Ted Chandler. Saturday came surprisingly quickly, and we left early on Sunday in order to drive up to Indiana and see the Chandlers. Ted & Angela encouraged us in our decision and ffter sharing a meal at Cracker Barrel we pressed on. We stopped at St. Louis (MO), Denver (CO), St. George (UT), and got home. We were very happy to see my kitties and doggy again.

I had previously inquired about a transfer to Georgia but I was told that there is no room right now; payroll in Georgia is already full. That means the company is needs to either make a lot more money, or someone in Georgia would have to retire or quit. *sigh* God will work it out. So, that's the update on Georgia.

Finances
Cathy and I are looking to refinance the triplex so we can afford it. After all, we're expecting God to provide a means for us to move East. My original plan involved being bi-vocational, essentially getting a transfer and working at the church with every spare hour. Now, I don't know, but the first step is to make living more affordable.

Cathy is still looking for employment; we joke about working at Starbucks, where she could get inexpensive coffee. She is thinking about a mailing place, though, as well. We'll see how that works out.

Cats
The cats are all doing OK. Boaz is very much himself and seems nonetheless for wear since his surgery; the only difference with Boaz is his increased affection for us. Bubba just got his nuts removed today, but male kitties recover so soon that you would think they didn't notice being at the vet at all.

Graduation
I graduate the second week of December. Thank God.

There are a few other things, like Cathy's car getting keyed, but God seems to be teaching us to be less attached to material things, so we're not looking to get that fixed immediately. We went to Disneyland as we had two passes which were expiring, and we stayed Big Bear for a timeshare sales pitch and $75 (free money!). On the way back from Big Bear, Cathy and I discussed and debated passages about Satan whether we give him too much credit; what a suitable wife for me!

Backing Up Into Cars

This past Sunday we backed into another car on Sunday, at church.

I was at church early, and Cathy came a little late. Parking is scarce at church, so I told her to meet me in front, and I would park the car while she got a seat. She thought she saw a parking spot in the alley next to the church, which led to the events in which we hit another car.

I say "we" because Cathy although was driving, she thought I was guiding her, and I don't blame her for thinking so. She could not park in the alley and began to back out between the wall and the other cars. At one point, I warned her that she was getting close to the wall, and she thought I was guiding her the rest of the way out. At the end of the alley, we hit a red car.

So, we hit a red car parked at a bend at the end of the alley. It wasn't too bad, but it was a light scrape. I put a note on the car, sent Cathy inside, and parked the car. While I was waiting for a spot, I prayed with an elder, and on my way down the hall to the sanctuary I prayed with another elder. By the time I was in my seat, I was finally O.K. with it.

After the service, we waiting around for someone to call. Unfortunately, there was a lunch event associated with our missions events. Asking around, the senior pastor said, "I think that's Jim's car."

This Jim, as it turns out, is the man I report to for my IT stuff at church. Sure enough, I found him at the lunch and confirmed it is, in fact, his car. He said he'd look at it and call later. I offered to pay for the damage and went home.

Honestly, we don't have the extra money, what with the impending mortgage crisis. It was a real blessing, then, when Jim called and left me a voicemail indicating, "never mind, fergetaboutit." He indicated he was parked illegally anyway, and it wasn't too bad, it'll be unnoticeable after a car wash.

Thank God, and thanks to Jim. That was very gracious of him.

Nice weekend

We had a very nice weekend. OK, it was also a busy weekend, and Cathy felt that I had over-committed myself, but it was a good weekend, nonetheless.

On Saturday, I got up and worked on the computer a bit, and Cathy woke a little later and kept me company. We lounged around the house until I had to leave for the church to do tech work for a Luau and concert.

The Luau and concert was great. We had somewhere between 200~240 people attend, with five responses from first-time guests to our church requesting a follow-up. The music provided during the worship was fantastic, led by Imua Garza (YouTube videos), his wife Tiffa, and his brother-in-law Eric. They were great! As a request from our youth pastor, he did his Super Mario guitar solo (embedded below). That guy is really good! They also played Sunday morning and evening (when we had the youth event).

On Sunday, along with the Hawaii-themed worship, we heard from Dr. Eric Theonnes, a pastor from another EV Free and a professor at Biola. He spoke on the glory of God and how it should impact our lives and missionary work. It was truly fantastic, with a cogent message, good delivery, and a consistent, coherent theology firmly grounded in the Bible. One thing that struck me deeply was his reference to Isaiah seeing the Lord enthroned (in chapter 5), and he was undone. I pray for such an undoing of my self.

That evening, my loving wife convinced me to find someone else to cover the worship service and spend time with her. She was right; I was spending too much time away from family, even for such a good cause.

This night (Monday) we attended a missionary appreciation dinner at the Disneyland Hotel sushi restaurant, Yamabuki. Each table got to sit with one of our missionaries and spent quality, quantity time with them. The couple we sat with have been involved in L.A. inner city missions since 1981 and has a similar target at Cathy's dad's church. I was already asked by a pastor to visit his ministry to help out, and this conversation confirmed so much more. I am looking forward to my first visit.

Well... it is late, and I have a Hebrew test tomorrow, and I am having difficulty staying awake...

Returning to normal

Well, life seems to be returning to normal for me.

Do you know that feeling, if you take a vacation, where you have difficulty relaxing for the first few days after a stressful time? It's August, and I'm beginning to feel like a normal human being again.

Yes, school starts in a few weeks. But, frankly, I'm feeling ready for it, finally.

Cathy just had her birthday, and we went to Las Vegas for a time-share vacation (I'll post on that later). I bought her a really nice set of knives (don't laugh) -- she threw the set we got after our wedding into the trash about three weeks ago out of sheer frustration; they were 10 years old, I suppose.

We had a good time in Las Vegas, but I keep feeling like I'm forgetting something really important, like a birthday... but I think I was just nervous about Cathy's birthday going well. Still, I've got this nagging feeling...

I've written my parents a few times; it is no secret that I struggle with being a good son. I've offered to send some money home, but I have not heard back from my parents. I am growing concerned, but I do not yet wish to call them on the phone; my last conversation did not go well, and I yelled at my mother. I regret it, but I feel my apology would be insufficient. Perhaps that is why I have not heard from them.

Work is good. I am still hoping and praying for a transfer to Georgia. I'm looking forward to serving in Cathy's dad's church, along with whatever else God has planned for me.

Oh, that's right! My pastor called while he was on vacation and told me there's an opening to preach as a guest in L.A. for a ministry we support there. I'm looking forward to that, too.

Cathy took a few really nice pictures of Bubba, our new adoptable kitten. Man, is he cute! I suppose I ought to post a picture... later. I've got a wedding to get to!

Cathy's Georgia Trip

So, we had a relaxing Independence Day. (I always feel like there should be an "a" in independence.) Basically, we went to a coffee shop in a bookstore to escape the hottest part of the day, bought a drink and read our diet books in the air-conditioned store. Then we sat on the front lawn and watched neighbors light fireworks before retiring for the evening. I'm very glad to have Cathy home.

While on her trip, Cathy saw some neat stuff. She pull over in Utah and saw these pretty rock formations. While driving through Illinois, she passed the Air Force base my father was stationed at when I was born. There's an obligatory picture of my cute nephew (that's Cathy's new car behind them). And, finally, Cathy got a picture of the Cross on the High Plains.

Cathy also checked out my employer's Georgia office... it would be nice to get a transfer.

Now that I am out of school, I find myself busy with church work. Oddly, I'm at my least talkative and more pensive. Go figure. Oh, my knee is getting better.

Bricks, Bees, Knees, and Cathy's 10-20

Today, our church voted for new elders and approved the budget.. We had one service instead of two and our topic was about building and pitching in, drawn from the book of Nehemiah. It was a good message, encouraging our church members to help in the building of God's vision by picking up a metaphorical brick. Our pastor makes great use of props and visual aides. He is hitting on all cylinders and doing everything textbook right with great timing in terms of leading the church through change. It is a pleasure to behold.

My "brick" , as it were, is to try to make ministry possible, or as easy as possible,through the use of technology and by coordinating the front line ministries. I get paid for the first objective but no the latter. that is fine, as I see the former as logically prior to the latter anyway.

After lunch, I came home and began cleaning Cathy's office, which I share but have rarely had opportunity to use during Sophie's convalescence and the nursing of her kittens. It took me a while to clean it up; five kittens can make quite the mess!

While I was outside cleaning the litter box, I got stung by a bee! I've never been stung by a bee before, and it didn't hurt as much as I had imagined. I got stung on the tip of my right index finger and was able to remove the stinger quickly, perhaps minimizing my discomfort. Poor bee; I wish he hadn't stung me and died.

While moving around the furniture for vacuuming, I think I tweaked my left knee somehow. It's stiff and it really hurts if I bend it much. Fortunately we do not have stairs to climb.

Cathy is in New Mexico (not California, the other New Mexico). She should reach Arizona tonight and be home tomorrow afternoon. I had got it in my head that she would be home this afternoon, so I was quite disappointed last night when I realized she'd be gone another day. Well, that gives me one more day to clean up around the apartment.

She has some nice pictures which I am looking forward to sharing!

Finally, we're back!

Well, finally, I am back from summer school. I must admit, I'm not making the best use of my time... and I have been so busy I have no idea what's going on it my friends' lives. I'll have to read some blogs and get caught up.

Some stuff to update...

First, Cathy's in Georgia. She was looking for a good reason to visit Georgia and to see her dad. Father's Day seemed like a good enough reason. There were two choices, to fly or to drive. Tickets weren't cheap, and Cathy doesn't like to drive rentals, so for the slightly increased cost but guaranteed freedom of movement, we opted for the drive. More about her trip in a bit...

Our 2003 Honda Civic badly needed a tuneup, especially if it is going to make a 5,000 mile trip. So, on Friday the 8th we dropped off the car at the dealer and got its maintenance done. I picked up Cathy in our 1990 Civic, which prompted tried to overheat in the parking lot. It also refused to start. I had been dealing with car trouble, and figured I would have to sink two or three thousand into the 1990 Civic for it to be a reliable car once again. I was hoping to nurse it until my graduation in December, and perhaps sell it and get a transfer to Georgia.

Well, we retrieved the 2003 Civic, and since we were at the dealer we checked out the newer cars. As you have likely guessed, Cathy drove home in a 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid, and I drove home in the 2003. Our 1990 Civic has been a very good car for the last 12 years. I must say, however, that I am enjoying having air conditioning and a CD player, and I felt better about Cathy drive cross-country in a new vehicle.

So, we got a new car, and Cathy drove out to Georgia to see her dad. We've driven across the country on the I-10 and the I-40, so this time Cathy took the I-70 to Nashville, and then down into Georgia. I miss her, but she is enjoying her time with her dad, and I finished my class. It is good that she got there before Father's Day.

Ah yes, the class! Darrel Bock is a world-class exegete, and his commentary on the Gospel of Luke is the gold standard work. Bock comes to California as a visiting professor at our seminary each summer, and I greatly enjoyed thinking through the Gospel of Luke. It was two weeks of stimulating and thoughtful handling of Luke and, where appropriate, the Synoptics. I gained much from it, and hope to preach or teach through Luke some day. Just one more class in the Fall, and I'm done!

While Cathy is out in Georgia, I pretty much have the place to myself and the pets. I didn't really notice for the first several days, since I was still busy with the Luke class. But now that the class is over and I'm back at work, I'm starting to feel lonely. I wish it were possible for us to both be there right now.

Cathy likes it there a lot. So much so, in fact, that she would like to move there. There's a Starbucks in her dad's town now, so she feels even better about moving! As it turns out, the company I work for has an office north of Atlanta, so I asked my manager if I could get a transfer. I just asked today, although both my manager and the VP already know I would love to move there. Cathy's dad's church is praying that I will get the transfer - the really like me for my previous visits. If we do move to Georgia, I hope I do not disappoint them.

Let's see... there's the kittens. We had Sophie and her babies, and then another batch of orphan kittens. We almost lost Sophie a couple of times, but she and all five of her girls are healthy now. One of her girls, Marcy, is now named Boots and lives in apartment three. The other four are ready for adoption and are staying at the shelter with Sophie.

Of the other litter of orphans, I'm sorry to say we lost all but one of them. Cathy found hard for their survival, but they just couldn't digest any food. The vet indicated that it was likely a birth defect, and that none of the litter had a good chance. But the one Cathy named Bubba did survive. He's small for a six-week old kitten, but he's growing fast! It's almost like he's a couple of weeks behind on his development. I wonder if he'll be slightly under-sized?

I suppose that is about it for now. Going back to work was pretty difficult. I got into the habit of taking an afternoon nap, and I was soooo tired this afternoon! I better hit the sack.

To all our concerned friends...

Hi everybody! We haven't dropped completely off the face of the earth. But, I did get really, really behind on homework and spent a couple of weeks studying to catch up. Classes end May 24th, so I'll probably post a lot of backlog at that time!

In the mean time, Cathy and I both caught colds.

Sophie & babies are doing very well (wish I had time for posts).

Thanks for all the "how are you" emails. Sorry to worry you! We'll be back at the end of the month.

Quick Update

Keeping Up

Another month has gone by and my life is crazy-busy. I've got a Hebrew Exam on Tuesday and I've not done Hebrew in a week. Eek!

Today, I got a tetanus shot. Sophie bit me while I tried to pick her up. Let me explain...

I got up late today, having stayed up until 2AM working on the church technical budget. As usual, I checked in on Sophie. I found her lying in the middle of the room -- nothing unusual there, but then I noticed that she had made a mess, lost control of her bladder. She was not responding well to me, just barely acknowledging my presence. I saw she had diarrhea at some point, and I woke Cathy. I got the carrier, and, trying to lift Sophie gently into it, discovered that she was in a great deal of pain.

Sophie communicated her suffering by nipping at my hand near her face. When I persisted in moving her, she nipped harder, and tore some skin on my thumb. She wasn't trying to hurt me; the wounds are shallow and are scratches more than bites. The vet told Cathy later on that Sophie is hurting a great deal from a mammary infection, the poor thing.

Anyway, I got a tetanus shot today. Oh, and I got new glasses yesterday -- they have magnetic clip-ons for the sun. I like it.

Cathy's doing well, and is beginning to make jewelry again. I should take a picture or two... she's going to start selling them for some income.

Kittens

Sophie is recovering, and the kittens are growing. They've really started exploring -- Linus is a particularly brave one, and he's taken to following Cathy around. Lucy and Marcy are absolutely adorable. Lucy was the first, I think, to drink water, and Linus led the way in using the litter box. Sally and Charlie are the largest kittens, and very playful.

Random Thoughts

I had to write up a technology budget for my church. It is interesting, because I had a need to replace a laptop, so I'm spending my first bit of significant cash. But here's the interesting thing... I also got my quarterly giving report. Looking at the money we've given back to God, and looking for a replacement laptop for a pastor helped me crystallize something I already believed in: stewardship. You see, when I make a purchase or plan a budget, I'm not just spending "God's money" (which is difficult to quantify), but also "your" and "my" money -- money worshipers have given faithfully to God. As such, I must spend it carefully, judiciously, as a good steward.

I already believed in good stewardship, fiscal responsibility, and fiduciary trust. However, getting my tithing report at the same time I needed to purchase a laptop helped me truly incorporate that belief.

Warning: Long Whining Post

Warning: long whining post.

Yesterday was Chinese New Year's Eve. We went to a 99 Ranch Market (an Asian American supermarket) to pick up a few items yesterday. New Year was getting close, and I think it triggered some cravings for traditional foods. Anyway, we were in line, and I knew that New Year's Day was close, so I asked a woman when Chinese New Year was this year. She says to me, "除夕是今天" (which means "New Year's Eve is today." So I made plans to call my mother for the traditional exchange of greetings.

Normally, Chinese New Year is the biggest event of the year, and all the family gathers together. The celebration of the New Year holiday season lasts 15 days. I suppose it is similar to Thanksgiving and Christmas for Americans in that way. Some Chinese even pick out a plum tree. Anyway...

I haven't received a letter from home in more than five(?) years now. When my dad needs to contact me, he calls (which is why my cell phone number will not change). My mother may have stopped writing to punish me; I am not sure, although she told me exactly that one time. It doesn't make sense to me. Anyway, my mother wants me to write more often. I quit calling because my mom tends to tell me what a disappointment I've been and how I need to be a better son to her. We just don't know each other, as I've explained previously. So, I don't call home often. With no letters back, I don't write often, either, although I have good reasons to change that.

My sister in law calls regularly. She encouraged me to reach out to my parents with regular letters, and I agreed that was a good idea. This last letter, I asked Cathy to write a little note; Cathy didn't think my mother cared to hear from her, but she wrote anyway. Well, my sister in law emailed me and told me how happy my parents were to receive that note, and how they were looking forward to my planned summer visit to Taiwan. With all that in my subconscious, I called home.

It took me a long time to get through on the phone. I use a phone card to save money, and I tried off-and-on for almost 90 minutes to get a connection. Sometimes, the phone would ring once, pick up, and hang up. Sometimes I would wait 30 seconds and hear "all circuits are busy." I'm sure hundreds of thousands of Chinese were also trying to call Asia, so getting through was more difficult than normal. Either way, I finally got through and was able to greet my mother with both the wish for prosperity as well as the simple "Happy New Year."

I was expecting neutral and pleasant small talk. That ended after 10 or 15 seconds, and my mother started telling me again (in Chinese) what a disappointment I've been. "You're less familiar to me than a stranger," she said. "Everyone else can talk about their wonderful sons who moved to America, but I'm afraid to open my mouth," she said. "Are you even my son, or were you born from a rock?" she asked.

I tried to interject, to apologize, but she just got louder. I tried to tell her that I am just trying to... Well, I guess I don't know what I was trying to do. I just wanted to call my mother and wish her a Happy New Year. I'm not sure what I said next, but I yelled it. It was something like I didn't call to be yelled at. I told her I had to try a long time just to get through, and I didn't call to give her a chance to hurt me. Who does that? I told her I just wanted to wish her a Happy New Year, and that I was going to hang up. She told my dad that her son didn't want to talk to her, so my dad and I spoke for a bit. We talked a little, and I hung up.

I called back later (it didn't take as long to get through) and apologized to my mother for yelling at her. She told me some more things I was doing wrong as her son (nothing I can understand, unfortunately), and I just absorbed it.

My father and I spoke for a bit, too. He advised me not to plan on visiting anytime soon (he said it would be a waste of time, whatever that means). We also talked about providing for my mother, since he may not live for too many more years. *sigh*

Anyway, I feel kinda like my mother manipulated my sister in law. She seems to want me to figure out how to be a good son but won't tell me how. She wants me to be the son she wanted to rear (but didn't). I cannot become a better Chinese son, because I'm only "so" Chinese. I'm much more American than she realizes. Cathy is trying to help me decipher the clues my mother gives me... there must be a way to understand the "I'm a bad son" messages so I can determine how to be a good son to her.

I could use some prayer on that front...

Update since our Anniversary

God is good to us. Let's see... what are some things I have not shared recently?

On Feb 8th, the day after our 10th anniversary, I dropped off Boaz (our new Russian Blue kitty) to have him neutered, and I dropped off Oliver for a minor surgery to correct what appeared to be a hernia. Boaz came home that night oblivious to the fact that he no longer had those cute little balls between his legs; he was as playful and active as if he had never left the house. Oliver, on the other hand, was pretty drugged up. It turns out the little bump we thought was a hernia was a non-cancerous growth. He pulls hard on that leash, and sometimes Oliver charges off and gets caught short by the leash, so I thought he had hurt himself that way. Well, it was a fatty growth of some sort, about the size of a grapefruit! It's been a week, and Oliver is back to his happy, yappy self.

On Saturday, February 10th, Cathy confessed to me that she felt awkward about the new ring. Apparently, people thought she was engaged instead of married. The new ring has no "wedding band" and Robbin's Brothers is a engagement ring store, so I suppose that makes sense. We went down and I picked out a thin, diamond eternity band for her that didn't steal attention away from her ring.

We got out of church Sunday and Cathy felt that we were spending too much on the ring, so she convinced me to go back to Robbin's Brothers to get something less expensive. We traded the eternity band in for a smaller wedding band, and we ordered the same ring in Palladium instead of Platinum. That saved a sizable sum and covered the difference in purchasing the new wedding band. So, Cathy will have the same center stone mounted in a different ring eight weeks from now.

We had a discussion about rings one night. Cathy wanted to know if I wanted another ring; I do not. To me, the very material that comprises the ring is what is, to me, the symbol of our love. For Cathy, if every component of the ring was gradually damaged and replaced, so that seven years later the entire ring was composed of material not present in the original ring, it is the same symbol to her. For me, the material and the symbol are related. For Cathy, the form of the symbol does not matter much. We compromised on the ring changes by keeping the center stone. I only hope the channel diamonds are as good as what Cathy has now.

The day before Valentine's Day, Cathy took the day off to get some lab tests done. She's probably taken 10 tests in the last month. The test taken on Tuesday the Thirteenth includes her final Hepatitis C test; Kaiser has to cultivate the RNA so we will get the results in two weeks. (Finally!)

The day Valentine's Day was uneventful, although I did take Cathy out to dinner.

Our Anniversary Dinner

Cathy had heard about the Summit House Restaurant a long time ago. I think she first mentioned it when we were newlyweds living in Fullerton; we had visited the E.V. Free Church in Fullerton and Cathy pointed it out as we drove past the restaurant. Recently, some of her friends at work reinforced her desire to eat there by raving about the food and experience.

They take reservations. I had Cathy convinced that I was unable to get a reservation for our anniversary (ostenstively due to the restaurant's popularity). I told her I found an alternative in close proximity to Summit House called "Charlie's" (I even made a fake map on Google). I printed out the real menu from the web site to make sure Cathy could eat there without worrying about her allergies. Well, she believed me.

So, last night we got ready for dinner, got dressed up, and headed out for "Charlie's" in Fullerton. I explained that it was in the same area, gave her the map, and had Cathy direct me toward "Charlie's" by following the directions. If you look at this map link, that green arrow is at the top of a hill in the road, so I pulled in as though I had turned too early for "Charlie's." Cathy was helpfully pointing out that I could legally merge with the main road when I turned into the ramp for Summit House. That's when she realized I had misled her. Cathy likes surprises, and she was pleasantly surprised!

The restaurant has valet parking, and so it felt like we arrived in style. I had previously stated during my reservation (and confirmation) that we would be dining on our anniversary. We were seated indoors in a small dining room overlooking the patio. I had planned to give Cathy her ring after dinner and before dessert, but we exchanged gifts after the appetizers instead. That actually worked out very well.

I do not have adequate words to describe the moment, but it was very good. I felt very blessed, and Cathy... (sorry, I paused here for a long while writing this) ... Cathy makes everything beautiful. It made me cry. She was all smiles, the way she looks when everything is right with the world, and she is joyful. The ring looks good on her. I asked her, and in Cathy's own words, she was giddy and happy.

Dinner was excellent. It isn't just the atmosphere, but also the food. You know how, when you are hungry, things taste better, but when you're full things taste OK? I was getting pretty full, but dinner never stopped tasting great! Even dessert was excellent.

We spent two-and-a-half hours there, just enjoying each other. God has been very good to us. We came home and found a gift basket from Cathy's mom, with a note indicating she would be home after midnight. :-)

Cathy spent a good portion of time today showing off her ring, like she did when we got engaged. Next time you see her, she's going to want to show it to you!