Google in Charge

Sun Chips Green Bag

Have you seen the new Sun Chips eco-bag?  It’s the one that makes a ton of sound whenever you touch it.  I had a hard time eating the chips, because every time I tried to eat my neighbors would stop by and tell me to “knock it off!”

In all seriousness, I love the idea of eco-friendly bags.  There is no reason that everything known to man needs to be wrapped in plastic.  If you really think about it, half of our landfills are filled not with things that are broken and don’t work anymore, but the packaging for all of our new stuff.  So, I enthusiastically support Sun Chips in their effort.

In case you aren’t aware of exactly what I’m talking about, here is a crash course from the Sun Chips people, themselves.

So, being the really scientific guy I am, I decided to conduct my own experiment.

I have my own compost bin at home.  So, gathered up some of the compost, and put it in a plastic tub.  I’ll be checking back with the bag each week, and showing updates.  We’ll see if the bag is really gone in 12-14 weeks, as they claim.  Here are pictures of the bag, and a short video showing the start of week 1.

Here is the video of me setting up the experiment.

Happy Mother’s Day

As I have prepared for Mother’s Day this year, my thoughts have turned to flowery gifts and cheesy cards.  But in a way, the whole Mother’s Day card idea seems to be both a little impersonal, and overly discrete.  We buy a card with a flowery picture where some guy in an office has written something that appeals to the broadest audience possible, but we are supposed to pretend it is the sentiment of our innermost selves.  Often times we say something like, “I read this, and it captured my exact feelings for you.”  These are great for those who don’t have much of an ability to express themselves.

At the same time, we share these “deep feelings” with only the mother we are so proud of.  So the card that says, “I want the whole world to know how special you are,” is sealed tightly in an envelope and addressed only to that one Mom that you want the whole world to know about.

So, this Mother’s Day I want to do something a little different: instead of buying a card and sending it off for only my Mom to read, I’m going to do my best to capture my thoughts for my Mom in my own words and leave it out in the open for the whole world to see.  From this point on, I’ll be addressing my Mom directly in first-person, but everyone is invited along because I believe that my Mom is truly worth celebrating.

—–

Mom,

When I think back to all of the formative moments of my life, you are always there, front and center.  Every award, every performance, every skinned knee, you were there.  When I fell down, it was you who picked me up.  When I lost my course and aim, you helped me turn.

I remember you at every band performance, musical, and sports game.
I remember your strength in moments where it seemed like you and I against the whole world.

You taught me that if you lie about something, you might not get to go to the Halloween party.
You taught me that there is nothing much better than sitting on the counter on a Saturday morning and making breakfast together, and that
Bugs Bunny is always funny no matter how many times you’ve seen it.
You taught me that there is nothing more healing than the song “You are My Sunshine.”

You helped me see that amazing wonders of nature like Giant Sequoias are more than just trees.  They are the very fingerprints of God.

Through the good times and the bad, you’ve always been there and always persevered.  You’ve taught me everything I know, and I am proud to be your son.  Everything I have and everything I am is because of you.  I’ll always love you. Thank you Mom.

Just as a fun little bit from history, I was able to get an old picture of my mom from some of her professional dancing days.  She has always been really light on her feet.

Our New Throne

I never win anything.

The last thing that I won was a Super Nintendo on the night of my High School graduation.  And as the students in my youth group like to point out, that was a long time ago.  Since then–nothing.  No prizes for Ryan, although my wife wins stuff all the time.

That is why the events of 2 weeks ago were so surprising to me.  It started out with me doing the dishes after having our friends Andrew and April over for dinner the night before.  I turned on the under-counter radio in order to keep me company.

As I did the dishes, I was reminded of a problem with our kitchen sink.  We noticed some time ago that the sink in the kitchen seems to take 10 times longer to get hot water flowing than any other faucet in the house, and when it does it is never quite as hot as the others.  I don’t think about this often, except when I do dishes and have to wait several minutes before getting any hot water.

This information is worth noting, because as I waited for my water to warm, the radio was saying “You’re listening to Chris Miles on House Talk, and today we have with us Steve Hatcher, the owner of Steve Hatcher plumbing.  We’re taking all of your plumbing questions this hour.”

So I called.

It took a few calls before it all went through and I almost gave up, but eventually the phone rang.  After only a few minutes of waiting they put me on the air and both guys helped troubleshoot my problem.  But then the real fun began.

It just so happened that Steve Hatcher was giving away a free Toto toilet with free installation to someone who called that hour.  About 15 minutes after I hung up, still doing the dishes, Chris Miles announced my name on the radio.

I won a toilet!  I needed a toilet.  Peichi and I did the Dance of Joy.

The wheels of progress began to turn, and gained some quick momentum.  Mere minutes after my name was announced on air, Chris Mile’s assistant called to congratulate me on winning.  She seemed genuinely almost as excited as I was.  Shortly thereafter, Steve Hatcher’s assistant called to congratulate me as well.  She seemed just as excited, and told me that they would be calling me back again soon to schedule the installation.  During that second call we scheduled the job for Thursday afternoon the next week.

I called my friends and family with glad tidings of great joy…at least for me.  I also promised them all that they could do their ‘business’ in my new toilet once it was installed.  My friend Paul said he would be excited to do just that, and that I couldn’t say “I never win crap” now.  His joke.

When Thursday came around, Peichi and I were giddy with anticipation, and a little bit weighted down, after “saving up” so as to be able to fully experience our new toilet once it was in place.  We waited, staring out the window at every passing truck and van, inspecting them for plumbing ads on their doors.

The only imperfect part of the whole experience was that the plumber didn’t technically show up at the time we were told…but they did call us twice to let us know this, make sure it was all right, and inform us that Steve, himself, would be coming out to supervise. I told them both times that it was all OK by me.

Let me take time out for a second to say this: As a home owner and a person who works a busy schedule, I often have various people who have scheduled to come and do some work.  The phone, Internet, security, electric company, all have come at one time or another.  They seldom make the window they have told me in advance.  This is insensitive to me.  But in this case, they called several times just to keep me apprised and to make sure that it was all OK with me.

First of all, of course it is OK, I am getting a free toilet.  Second, I am almost always flexible when someone lets me know what is going on.  If more companies would do what Steve Hatcher plumbing did in that case, more customers would be satisfied with their service.  Most people know that plumbing jobs (or insert Internet, electrical, etc.) can take longer than a technician would have assumed by hearing about the problem over the phone.  Most people are also willing to be accommodating if the company would just let them know.  Steve Hatcher plumbing did this.  Even if my toilet hadn’t been free, I would be happy with that level of service.  It showed me respect.  Now back to the story…

Steve and Sean (one of his plumbers) showed up and began to get things going.

Everything went pretty smoothly.  They replaced my toilet, the mounting flange, fixed the water line to the toilet in a different bathroom, and even looked at the sink I called about in the first place.  Total cost to me $0.

But almost equally pleasing to me was that everyone was super nice, and fun.  Essentially, Steve was giving me his time, his employees time, his company’s money, and a free toilet.  He could have just thrown the thing in, charged me for the flange (or refused to install it until I had it done), and then gotten out quickly in order to make some real money.  But that isn’t what they did of course, or how they made me feel.

We talked about radio, the plumbing business, all the cool info about my new toilet, and played guitar.  When they finished, Steve even checked out my neighbor’s sink, free of charge.

Oh, and the toilet…Primo!  It is a water saving, super-eco throne.  It uses less than half the water of a regular toilet, while flushing with the power of one of those airplane jet toilets.  It is ADA compliant, which means for me that I can sit and read without my legs going to sleep from sitting so low.  Truthfully, I use it as often as I possibly can.  I get a little bit excited every time I have to go.

My point in this is not to advertise a plumber.  But I am the kind of guy who will let a manager know if my service was bad.  At the same time, I believe that when service is above and beyond expectations that should be recognized.  That is the kind of experience I had with Steve Hatcher Plumbing.  When I have a plumbing problem in the future, they will be the first, and probably the last ones I call. 

-Ryan

Below is a slide show of the pictures we took during all of this.

Thoughts from Taiwan -part 6

Peichi’s Amma must have decided to put all of the events I mentioned in my last blog entry behind her, though, as she was very welcoming to me as we showed up for Chinese New Year.  She didn’t even keep much of a watchful eye over me, as I might have expected.  I cannot be sure that she hadn’t carefully noted the home’s entire inventory and each item’s place prior to my arrival.

Amma and I hit it off quite smoothly this time, with few rough patches.  The most difficult breach of protocol for me to handle is regarding the “house shoes” that each family uses in Taiwan.  Most people know that Asian households require one to take off his shoes on entry.  In Asia there is an added step.  Each family keeps an armada of house slippers on hand just inside the doorway that each guest is expected to use while inside.  You may not opt out of this deal.  Yes, the shoes might not even come close to fitting your American-sized feet.  Yes, one probably will accidentally slip off halfway up the stairs and leave you to hop back down to find it again.  But make no mistake, they must be used.

This part was not the problem for me.  The problem is that each household has a place where you are supposed to take off your outside shoes and put your house shoes on.  In Japan this is clearly marked by the presence of bamboo mats. In Taiwan, this place is marked by some sort of sixth-sensed hoo-bah, that I apparently do not posses.

I would enter the house from the screened in porch via the stairs, leaving my street shoes outside.  At some point after the doorway I would cross the invisible battle line of germ warfare where my “safe” shoes were supposed to come on.  I would usually miss this line somehow.  When the process was reversed and the house shoes made it past the line, sirens would go off in Amma’s head, and she would come after me, gently rebuking me in short vocal bugle blasts.  She was very gracious.  I don’t mean to imply anything less.

My most exciting story with the house shoes was when visiting a household outside of the family.  As I came in, I started to take off my outside shoes and was informed that this would not be necessary at this place.  I looked around for some sign of where the hoo-bah was.  It was invisible as usual.  I asked to use the bathroom and was told it was down the hall.  I gingerly advanced, pausing with each step in case this time would be different and I might actually sense the hoo-bah.  They laughed and told me that I would not need to remove my shoes there either.  I felt safe.

A few minutes later, I went to view the kitchen and again was told that it was safe.  I was very confused.  I had never made it this far without using house shoes before. I did not know how to act.  I shrugged and enjoyed my good fortune.

After viewing the kitchen, I was ushered to the seating area where there was a plate of fruit.  Every Asian household I am invited to has prepared fruit.  It is expected.  It is wonderful.  Americans need to start doing that.  I eagerly went to take a seat and eat some fruit.  Everyone lunged at me noisily. I had crossed the hoo-bah.  I didn’t know.  There was not even a pile of shoes.   Nothing.  I retreated and apologized profusely.  They still let me eat the fruit.

Thoughts from Taiwan -part 5

In Tainan, I met Peichi’s grandmother for the second time.  “Amma” is “grandma” in Taiwanese, which is exclusively spoken in most of southern Taiwan.  It is far different than Mandarin Chinese, sounding a lot like Thai would if it weren’t nasal.  Short staccato sounds punctuate each word.  Peichi and her immediate family of origin speak both languages fluently.  I don’t.  I barely speak some Mandarin, but know only a couple of Taiwanese words.  I have very few occasions to speak it at all.  Amma speaks no English and very little Mandarin.  This means that we cannot communicate at all without someone interpreting.  I often say, “Two people can always communicate if they want to badly enough.”  Amma is a slightly different story.  In some ways it doesn’t seem that she recognizes that I am not developmentally disabled, but just speak a different language.  I’m not saying she isn’t bright.  She is Peichi’s stock.  She must be.  She is just from a world that is much smaller than mine in some ways, and the idea of what happens so far away must be unimaginable to her.

The occasion of our first meeting was at Peichi’s and my engagement party in Taipei.  She came in and sat down at our head table as part of the bride’s family.  She is an adorable old lady.  She is only slightly above four feet tall, if even that much, and she looks exactly like you would picture an Asian “amma” should look like.  Just looking at her makes me want to simultaneously bear-hug her and show her great, gentle reverence.

She plopped down right next to me, with her purse set behind her on the chair, the way some Asian ladies do, both to prevent someone from stealing it and so as to not forget it is there.  It seemed to me at the time, that was probably not quite the most appropriate for the situation, and thought I would endear myself to her by being helpful.  Big mistake.

I patted her on the shoulder, smiled, and reached for her purse to hang it from the trestle on the chair back.  Her eyes grew wide and she reached for it as well, holding it in a death grip.  We played a brief game of tug-of-war as I tried to calm her.  I lost.  The purse was returned to its location.

It was a busy evening, and I was never able to revisit the situation with her.  But somehow I am sure that she was convinced I was trying to steal her, Peichi’s Amma’s purse at my own engagement party.  She must have been thinking that all of the rumors about these Americans must be true.  We are all uncouth charlatans and thieves.

Thoughts from Taiwan -part 3

In Tokyo, I got lost at a major Shinto temple at closing time.  Peichi ended up at the exit we were supposed to be at, and I ended up on the opposite side.  It is easier to do than one might think, with surrounding tall trees, and darkness encroaching.  The guards would not let me go back in to find Peichi, and made me wait while they chattered into the walkie-talkie. They finally did give me directions to the other side of the park from outside streets.

By the time that I got the security guard to let me go, it was 20 minutes after closing.  He said that it was a 20 minute walk.  I was worried.  Both Peichi and I knew how to get back to the hostel where we were staying, so I wasn’t worried that one of us would be scared and lost.  But we did have many plans for the rest of the night that did not include 30 minute trips back to our room.  So, I ran.

My legs were already tired from walking all over Tokyo.  My knee had been recovering from some strange pain that I acquired weeks ago, and I was generally exhausted from the trip.  I ran anyway, not wanting to worry Peichi, or miss her.  I arrived out of breath, to a generally unhappy wife, but relieved that tragedy had been averted, or so I thought.

As I regained my composure and we began to walk down the stairs into the subway at Harajuku station, I felt a strange clicking in my knee, and a wonderful explosion of pain with every step.  Walking hurt, climbing stairs was excruciating, but I grinned and bared it.

The next day (the day of our afternoon flight to Taipei) my knee felt the same.  I was beginning to get worried, but I was determined not to let this cause too much disruption to our trip.  I did my best to keep it to myself, although of course Peichi knew.  All of this is important back-story to events in Tainan.

P.S. To alleviate anyone’s fears, while the clicking remains, and there is still some pain, I am confident that I will get over it in time.

Thoughts from Taiwan -part 2

We came to Tainan after a very long trip through the island’s mid-section, waiting in long lines of traffic.  Tainan is in the southern section of Taiwan and Taipei, where a huge proportion of the people actually reside, is in the very northern tip.  While Tainan is one of the largest of the handful of cities in Taiwan, it is decidedly rural.  It was raining.

Peichi’s grandmother, spinster aunt, and unmarried uncle live among a clan community in one of the more…um…I guess “suburban” is the right word, parts of Tainan.  Life in all of Taiwan, and particularly the more traditional and rural areas is communal and clan oriented.  Traditionally, when a woman gets married she comes to live with the husband at his family home.  This almost always includes his parents and often some aunts and uncles.

To Western eyes this seems ridiculous.  On the whole it has both positives and negatives.  First, Taiwan (like almost all cultures I’ve witnessed) is a patriarchal/matriarchal society.  The Father typically does no work inside the house, but works a job to bring in money.  His after-work time is spent playing gambling games, chatting with the other men, drinking, and smoking.  The wife often does not hold an official outside job, but is responsible for the care and keeping of the home.  This means that she also by default makes most of the real decisions.  Men think they’re in charge, but the women really have more say.

Clan life brings with it a sense of community.  It also brings shared resources.  This cannot be overlooked.  Grandmothers and grandfathers can help take care of young children while their parents work.  Conversely, children can take care of their parents when they reach old age.  There is also a sense of history and life cycle that is shared in clan life that is missing and often leads to larger societal problems in much of Western culture.

On the other side, clan life lessens social mobility.  Children often forgo opportunities out of a sense of obligation to the elder relatives.  Money is also never kept for oneself or immediate family, but shared with the larger family, which mitigates much of the possible benefits of new wealth, particularly when it gets spread to those in the family who have little financial responsibility. Further, because of all of this, ambition is not generally seen as a positive trait, as it is in the West.

Whether positive or negative, clan life is central to every aspect of Tainanese culture.  Even houses are constructed around clan life.  Traditional Taiwanese houses were built as more of a complex, intended to house 4 or more family units within a single building.  Each compound was built in a C formation, with a big courtyard in the middle.  The courtyard existed as a family meeting place, the location for bathing, and an entryway into the main sections of the structure.  In the center of the building was the family idol, where the family worshipped both Taoist idols and their own ancestors.

These homes started falling out of fashion only about 20 years ago, when because of space restrictions, different buildings were built.  The new buildings still incorporate much of the same concepts as the old ones, but with each family unit dwelling on a different level of a multi-story structure.  Each floor has two or three bedrooms and a bathroom, and the ground level contains the kitchen and common areas.  Families still gather outside for fellowship.  The family altar is usually on the ground floor at the entrance, or on an enclosed roof patio.

Some pictures from Taiwan

Tokyo part 1

OK, here’s just a teaser from the beginnings of our Tokyo trip.  There’s more on the way, but I don’t have time right now.  It is 6:30 and we’re off to see the fish market and have some Sushi for breakfast.

This is our plane descending into Narita airport, and our first views of Tokyo.  Of course, like most other major airports, Narita airport is not in Tokyo itself.  The first views are of farms, which are not Tokyo-like in the slightest.

This is from the train ride in.