Morning Reading
A morning ritual that I have is reading the Augusta Chronicle while drinking my overpriced Starbucks Via (purchased from Costco so that at least I am ripped off a little less). I usually use half a packet of via for one cup of coffee. It's not as strong, but this way I make it last longer. Then I head to my computer and click on the AUG link at the top of my menu bar. The AUG link leads me to my hometown news paper, the
Augusta Chronicle. After that, I read away to catch up on the latest small town news and leave my comments and thoughts. I'm starting to recognize a few regular online posters who read the chronicle online and comment. I don't know if that makes me cool or a complete loser. Either way, upon reading the paper on the morning of March 26th, 2012, I found a few articles that I wanted 1. to share with everyone ...AND...2. upon which I had comments that were just writhing within me and begging to be blogged out. So here I am, a few days later, finally finding the time to let the words flow. So without further adieu ... here are my wonderful thoughts...
Augusta. One week of the year, Augusta is as popular and pricey as New York, and that week is only one week away!!! Does anyone know what that week is? Well, if you clicked on the link already, you'd know that the week is MASTER'S WEEK! I love being home during Master's week. I feel famous. The Masters is the biggest golf tournament in the U.S., and some would argue the world, and it's definitely Augusta's claim to fame. People come from all over the world to go to the tournament, and a lot of celebrites come as well. It's normal to see famous people around town during Master's Week or to hear that your friends are renting out their houses to some famous person (if you are friends with people who have nice, large, expensive houses). Let me explain that part: You see, the hotels fill up, and since Augusta is semi-small, there aren't enough hotels, so people rent out houses during Master's Week. People get hundreds to thousands to tens of thousands of dollars for their homes for one week...actually, maybe more. I just don't know that many really rich people. haha. So yeah, families will all pile up at Grandmas and rent out their houses, or they'll go to the beach and rent their houses. So the week before is the week you have to clean and get everything ready. There are companies and agencies in Augusta that specialize year round in JUST searching for and organizing Master's rentals. It's THAT big.
As home to the Masters, most people who live in Augusta like golf or play golf. I do not play golf, but my dad and brother do, and my sister and brother and some family members have been to the tournament. Back 6 years or so ago, it was easier to sneak in, and my sister used to sneak in (she'd do that kind of thing. I'm too much of a pansy). High School (and even some Jr. High) get Spring Break jobs at the Masters or with companies who need to hire people to work for them JUST for that week, and during that week, Augusta becomes as expensive a place to be as New York. And I used to think the traffic in Augusta was bad because of the Masters, but now I see it's basically like New York on a moderate day during Rush Hour...but without people who know what they are doing or how to drive in traffic....so then it turns into chaos and you seriously sometimes fear people might bring out their shotguns. Good thing most of the rich 'folk' who come in for the tournament are too sophisticated for that and have 'drivers.' So yeah, even though I'm not there IN Augusta this year, knowing next week is Master's Week excites me a lot. I like it for Augusta when she gets her moment in glory. Have fun Augusta! You deserve it! (Side Note: notice the price for a hotel during Master's Week in Augusta is the price of a hotel during regular times in New York. haha)
Tibet. During the summer between the completion of my undergraduate degree and the beginning of my graduate work, I traveled to Lhasa, Tibet with an English Language program that hired Christian English teachers to teach English and evangelize through relationship-building. The summer was unlike any other summer I spent overseas. The few short weeks I was there in Tibet are weeks that will probably rank as part of the most impacting and meaningful moments of my life. Descriptions of the various things I saw in terms of poverty, religion, politics, spiritual warfare, sex, temptation, everything...are just beyond words. Reading this article brings to mind the volatile atmosphere between the Han Chinese and the native Tibetans who inhabit the area. My class of middle school aged students was split half and half between the two groups, and the races did not interact with one another. They were rude to each other, and when I spoke with them, they each spoke poorly of the other 'kinds' of people. The outward appearance and the lifestyle couldn't be more different when comparing the native Tibetans to the Han Chinese either. It was like two separate planets had dropped into the same yard and were being forced to share the same green grass.
During the time I was there, the city government was just finishing with the construction of a large public park. (Pictured above on the right) It was created to be an almost replica of
Tienanmen Square. That in itself is a little eerie considering what happened there, but what was a little more disturbing was that the location of the park was directly across from the
Potola Palace, the Winter palace of the Dali Lama who is the exiled Tibetan Spiritual Leader. When the park opened, there were many protests. We stayed far away. Anyway, reading articles like this reignites the fire in me for study and learning; it reignites all the intrigue. It makes me kind of want to go back and get my hands dirty. I'm not thinking of living there long term. I'm just thinking short term stints and work, but that's probably selfish of me....right? Wanting to go overseas to work because I'd enjoy it, but only for short term because longer is too hard? It's really hard. You have to give up a lot....a whole lot more than I'm struggling to give up now. HA! And if I think I'm homesick now....SHEESH. But wow, I'm just remembering how much people need the Gospel and need help. And even though I'm back here in the states with all my familiar things, the places I left behind in my photos are still there...still hurting...still fighting...still burning.
New York: And last but not least, to leave you on a positive note, I'd like to say that Jirem could totally do this job. He'd be super good at it. When I come home from the store, he completely knows if the items in my bags are edible or inedible. And when we receive packages from home or amazon, I can also tell WITHOUT opening the box IF it contains something which I can consume or IF it does not contain something which I can consume. His little sniffer and four small paws are quick to inform me. When Dad made me homemade biscuits and shipped them overnight, Jirem nearly demolished the box. I had no idea what was inside, but it made sense after I opened it and found 12 biscuits with cane syrup. Sheesh. And when Mom shipped Girl Scout Cookies, well my dog nearly choked on cardboard.
So yes, this article made me smile. It also made me wonder how I ever got all my Hong Kong diet cokes smuggled back into the states. I guess LAX doesn't have custom-scanning-puppies like JFK does. I even brought back all the cute little Chinese snacks my kids gave me as presents and that I didn't eat back with me. I didn't eat those snacks 1. because they were memories and 2. because I don't really like Chinese food and the kids would never know that I didn't eat them since I would take them home with me. I specifically recall Titus, my then Team Leader, always telling us just to declare only like $100 of souvenirs or something when we filled out those little sheets of paper on the plane. I'm sure that's what someone from the organization told him to tell us to do. I say that because later when I was a TL that's what someone over my head told me to tell my team to do. haha. Needless to say, if you drive to my house in Georgia and go to my room, you will find a collection of unopened Chinese soda cans, a full assortment of different kinds. I'm saving them....FOREVER.
Ok my friends. That's all for now. I hope you enjoyed your afternoon (or evening, or morning...or whenever you read this) skim through the Augusta Chronicle. They should pay me a small commission for my free publicity...but I suppose then, it wouldn't be free. :) Happy Thursday!
Augusta. One week of the year, Augusta is as popular and pricey as New York, and that week is only one week away!!! Does anyone know what that week is? Well, if you clicked on the link already, you'd know that the week is MASTER'S WEEK! I love being home during Master's week. I feel famous. The Masters is the biggest golf tournament in the U.S., and some would argue the world, and it's definitely Augusta's claim to fame. People come from all over the world to go to the tournament, and a lot of celebrites come as well. It's normal to see famous people around town during Master's Week or to hear that your friends are renting out their houses to some famous person (if you are friends with people who have nice, large, expensive houses). Let me explain that part: You see, the hotels fill up, and since Augusta is semi-small, there aren't enough hotels, so people rent out houses during Master's Week. People get hundreds to thousands to tens of thousands of dollars for their homes for one week...actually, maybe more. I just don't know that many really rich people. haha. So yeah, families will all pile up at Grandmas and rent out their houses, or they'll go to the beach and rent their houses. So the week before is the week you have to clean and get everything ready. There are companies and agencies in Augusta that specialize year round in JUST searching for and organizing Master's rentals. It's THAT big.
As home to the Masters, most people who live in Augusta like golf or play golf. I do not play golf, but my dad and brother do, and my sister and brother and some family members have been to the tournament. Back 6 years or so ago, it was easier to sneak in, and my sister used to sneak in (she'd do that kind of thing. I'm too much of a pansy). High School (and even some Jr. High) get Spring Break jobs at the Masters or with companies who need to hire people to work for them JUST for that week, and during that week, Augusta becomes as expensive a place to be as New York. And I used to think the traffic in Augusta was bad because of the Masters, but now I see it's basically like New York on a moderate day during Rush Hour...but without people who know what they are doing or how to drive in traffic....so then it turns into chaos and you seriously sometimes fear people might bring out their shotguns. Good thing most of the rich 'folk' who come in for the tournament are too sophisticated for that and have 'drivers.' So yeah, even though I'm not there IN Augusta this year, knowing next week is Master's Week excites me a lot. I like it for Augusta when she gets her moment in glory. Have fun Augusta! You deserve it! (Side Note: notice the price for a hotel during Master's Week in Augusta is the price of a hotel during regular times in New York. haha)
Tibet. During the summer between the completion of my undergraduate degree and the beginning of my graduate work, I traveled to Lhasa, Tibet with an English Language program that hired Christian English teachers to teach English and evangelize through relationship-building. The summer was unlike any other summer I spent overseas. The few short weeks I was there in Tibet are weeks that will probably rank as part of the most impacting and meaningful moments of my life. Descriptions of the various things I saw in terms of poverty, religion, politics, spiritual warfare, sex, temptation, everything...are just beyond words. Reading this article brings to mind the volatile atmosphere between the Han Chinese and the native Tibetans who inhabit the area. My class of middle school aged students was split half and half between the two groups, and the races did not interact with one another. They were rude to each other, and when I spoke with them, they each spoke poorly of the other 'kinds' of people. The outward appearance and the lifestyle couldn't be more different when comparing the native Tibetans to the Han Chinese either. It was like two separate planets had dropped into the same yard and were being forced to share the same green grass. .jpg) |
| Potala Palace: Previous Winter Home of Dali Lama |
 |
| My teammate and me in the park, across from the Potala Palace. |
New York: And last but not least, to leave you on a positive note, I'd like to say that Jirem could totally do this job. He'd be super good at it. When I come home from the store, he completely knows if the items in my bags are edible or inedible. And when we receive packages from home or amazon, I can also tell WITHOUT opening the box IF it contains something which I can consume or IF it does not contain something which I can consume. His little sniffer and four small paws are quick to inform me. When Dad made me homemade biscuits and shipped them overnight, Jirem nearly demolished the box. I had no idea what was inside, but it made sense after I opened it and found 12 biscuits with cane syrup. Sheesh. And when Mom shipped Girl Scout Cookies, well my dog nearly choked on cardboard.
Ok my friends. That's all for now. I hope you enjoyed your afternoon (or evening, or morning...or whenever you read this) skim through the Augusta Chronicle. They should pay me a small commission for my free publicity...but I suppose then, it wouldn't be free. :) Happy Thursday!
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