Middle Of China

Did Rainn Wilson really die?

2012-01-21T09:41:00.003+08:00

According to this website he did.

http://rainn.wilson.mediafetcher.com/news/top_stories/actor_new_zealand.php

Does anyone know if this is true?

Information about living in Xian China

2011-02-21T08:19:00.008+08:00

A reader sent me some good questions the other day and I wanted to pass them and my answers on to anyone who could use this information. If you have any questions about Xian, feel free to write me.

Enjoy this day,

Matt

1- Is there any kind of nursery school? In which language (English, French, Chinese)? At what age? At what cost? We have a one-year-old boy and we might stay in China until he’s 4 or 5.

There are a couple of school options for you. We send our kids to a small community center where they have classes 3 times a week in Chinese. It’s VERY affordable depending on how much your child goes it costs anywhere from 1800RMB to 3000RMB a semester ($265USD - $450USD). Our girls started when they were 2 1/2 , going twice a week.

There’s also an International School here where many foreigners send their children, it’s just quite a bit more expensive (I wanna say it’s like $10,000USD a semester).

2- Is it easy to get a nanny/maid to take care of the house and children? Does she have to sleep at home or is it possible not to have her sleep at home? How much does it cost?

Yes, it is very easy to hire a nanny to watch kids, cook and clean your house. And no, they DO NOT have to live with you. In fact, most do not live with the people who’ve hired them. It’s also very cheap to hire this kind of help. It’s changing a little bit right now, but you can find help for between 10RMB and 15RMB an hour ($1.50 to $2.30 an hour).

3- Are there some activities for little children: parks, other activities?

Yes. We have 3 kids (5 year old, 3 year old and a 8 month old) and we’re foster caring a Chinese orphan (she’s 3 ½) and there’s a lot to do with them. Not only do most of the apartment complexes have playgrounds, but also most of the grocery stores have bigger indoor playgrounds. Cleanliness can be an issue with some of these options.

4- Is it easy and cheap to buy some usual objects necessary for kids (childcare like strollers, car seats, …, clothes, furniture)?

I think it’s relatively cheap. For example we bought a stroller for around $75USD a couple years ago and it’s worked out well for us (and I’m sure there are cheaper options). There are plenty of children’s stores to get these kind of things at. Finding good clothes isn’t always easy. Before you come you should check out a website called taobao.com, it’s an online Chinese store that ships all over China. It’s very reasonably priced and a big selection. It’s in Chinese, but if you use Google Chrome it will translate it for you.

5- Do you both take Chinese lessons? If yes, how and what does it cost?

Yes. Both my wife and I go to school. I go to a private Chinese school and it costs me around $1300USD a semester for 6 hours a week of one-on-one. You can go to a local college to study Chinese for cheaper than that, but it demands more hours. My wife has a tutor -which is helpful for her and her schedule- and that costs 30RMB an hour (around $4USD). Having even survival Chinese can make life here so much more convenient and I would recommend getting even a little if you can.

6- Are there many foreigners living in Xian

Yes and no. For example, in Beijing you will see foreigners pretty often, maybe every time you leave your home. Here in Xian that’s not the case. You could be out all day and not once see another foreigner. But at the same time if you live in a nicer community and apartment complex, there’s a better chance of foreigners living around you. Also, there is a good ex=pat community here. Once you’re plugged in you will find many people to build friendships with.

7- Do I need a car for me to move around the city? Or is it easy to move with buses, subway, little cabs?

You can absolutely live life here without a car. I don’t know any foreigner families here who have a car and all of us use exactly what you mentioned, buses, taxis, bikes, even walking can get you to most of your errand locations. I personally would rather skip the hassle and instead use the public transportation.

Thanks again for the great questions, keep them coming.

12 Tips for Reading to Your Children

2010-12-22T07:21:00.007+08:00

I haven't always been good at taking the time to read with my children. But recently I've turned over a new leaf and am trying to do it faithfully each day (even if it's only for a few minutes). So I came across this list of tips for reading to your children and thought I would like to pass it along. I hope you enjoy it!

When you read together, make sure to cuddle up with your child. Giving this physical touch is a great way to show your child that you love them as well as make them want to read more with you.

Take time between pages to look each other in the eyes. Giving your attention in the moment is incredibly important when spending time with your kids. So between pages or at a break in the story make sure to look into your child’s eyes.

Relax. If your child wants to skip pages or read the same story again, and again (and again), it’s okay. This is a good reminder for me, because many times I take control of the reading time, where it’s better to let my kids lead.

Ask your children to point out things in the picture, “Where’s the balloon?” This interaction will help teach them and keep them interested, reading books should be an interactive time.

Ask your child what’s in the picture and talk about whatever they answer. “What is this?” Then ask, “What sound does it make?”

Use the pictures to teach new words. This is a great way to teach your child about the world around them.

Use the story to start a conversation. Like, “Look at this beautiful butterfly”, “Remember when we saw were walking the other day and saw a butterfly?”

Ask questions about the story. “What are the butterflies doing in this picture?” and let your children make things up and stretch their imaginative muscles.

Act out parts of the story, this will keep your children entertained and wanting to read more. Don’t make reading time dull.

Do you have a long wait while running an errand with your child? Then bring a book along and take the time to read to them.

Talk about the books you’ve read when after you’ve read them. “Look! That squirrel is running up the tree, I wonder if he knows the squirrel from the story we read today”

Use a phrase or word from the book you read throughout the day.

Do you have any tips that help you read with your children? Please share them below!

Enjoy this day,

Matt

Love is the Killer App by Tim Sanders Book Review

2010-11-25T23:20:00.003+08:00

A friend of mine recently lent me this book and I’m super glad that he did. I found it to be incredibly useful as it tackles the most important issue of all, relationships. It’s written specifically from a business point of view and how we can improve our business relationships.

The author makes three main points to improving your business relationships, add knowledge (read books and invest into your wealth of knowledge), add to your network (add people and then connect those people to other people in your network), and finally be compassionate.

I love this approach to relationships. In a world where “More me now” seems to be the dominating paradigm it’s amazing to see someone successful saying that there’s another way. By giving away what you know and championing others you can find success. It was a good read.

I did feel that the first 1/3 of the book was where I took most of my notes and that the rest of it wasn’t as impactful (but that was only my opinion). It’s a short, quick read and I would encourage anyone who’s in the business world, wants to be in the business world, or simply anyone who’s looking for a healthy way to relate to others, to pick this book up.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Vikings at Saints LIVE GAME THREAD

2010-09-10T07:28:00.000+08:00

The NFL season kicks off today! And what better way than a rematch of last year’s NFC Championship game. As a Vikings fan, I have mixed feelings about this game. It makes me nervous to think of Brett Favre getting teed off on all game long, but on the other hand, we lost in overtime AFTER TURNING THE BALL OVER 7 TIMES! If a team can’t put a game away in 4 quarters after getting 7 turnovers, they’re not a good team. So if the Vikes can come out and play their game without the turnovers, I think we can win. My prediction:

Vikings 31 Saints 20

Post your comments below as we follow the game:

SKOL VIKINGS!

One Man’s Wilderness book review

2010-09-01T03:04:00.001+08:00

One Man’s Wilderness is a book about Robert L. Proenneke and his adventures in moving to the Alaskan wilderness. It’s a work of non-fiction, which makes it so much more enjoyable. And although Robert successfully moves to the wilderness and lives for the last thirty years of his life; the book is mostly about the first year of him living there. How he managed to build his own cabin as well as how he sustains life in the wilderness, were things I loved reading about. What makes this remarkable true story even more amazing is that Robert moved to the wilderness and built his own cabin when he was 50 years old!

Things I liked about this book:
The adventure of Robert’s life was such an interesting thing to read about. I also loved seeing a person following their loves/passions even to the extreme measures of living in the wilderness, alone. Hearing how he did it was also something that I found fascinating and knowing that it was a true story made it a real fun read. I think part of the reason I like this book stems from my childhood love of “The Hatchet”.

Things I didn’t like about this book:
A lot of attention was given to building details that I can’t follow or envision so it left me lost. As much as I found it interesting that he built everything by hand, it was hard to follow the writer in his descriptions of the process. Also, not much background was given as to why Robert decided to make this his life’s goal. I really wanted to hear more about his experience and things he learned/gained from being there for thirty years. (Although a lot of this is addressed in a small section at the end of the book)

My favorite quote from this book was “I don’t think a man knows what he can actually do until he is challenged”.

I enjoyed reading this book. But I also realize not many people would enjoy reading about a guy living by himself in the middle of Alaska.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Need Information about Xian, China

2010-08-31T22:45:00.004+08:00

Are you coming to Xian on business, to study or see the sites? Are you looking for more information about this lovely city? Then check out this site http://talkxian.com/, which has lots of information and is a place to connect with local Chinese people as well as expats.

Hope that helps!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Toy Story 3 in 3D Movie Review

2010-08-29T00:26:00.002+08:00

Well. If you don’t know it already, I love all the Toy Story movies. You can read my top ten kids movies list, here and the worst kids movies, here. But I wrote my top ten list before going to see Toy Story 3 in 3D with my daughter. To be honest, I loved this movie and thought it was a great fit with the previous two movies.

But when considering a kids movie -it doesn’t really matter if I liked- what matters is if my kids enjoyed it. And I can say that, yes, my daughter did love this movie. It was especially fun getting to go see it in a movie theater, a first for her. The movie wasn’t very scary which is important to consider when you have young kids and I felt that it was appropriate for her age (She’s four years old).

The only downside to our experience was that it was in 3D. Here’s what I don’t like about 3D. First, it seems super trendy right now, which means that movies that don’t need to be in 3D end up in it, because they have to be. I didn’t see a need for this movie to be in 3D, and would have preferred seeing it without 3D. Second, it’s more expensive. And I know that I’m a cheap person, but it adds up if you have a few people in your family seeing the movie. Lastly, my daughter wasn’t really digging wearing the glasses. She would take them off and we would try to get her to put them back on. Although that didn’t happen the whole movie, it is something to think about when taking your kid to a movie in 3D.

Overall, I didn’t like the 3D, but I loved the movie, more importantly my daughter did and we will have good memories of our time together.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

11 things to do in Xian, China

2010-08-24T05:50:00.002+08:00

I haven't done all of these, but if you're heading to Xian here's a list of some things you can do. In the future I would like to expand on each of these, but for now, it's just a list.

1. Go to the Terracotta Warriors

2. See the Big Goose Pagoda

3. Ride a bike on the old city wall

4. Hit a drum in the drum tower at the center of the city

5. Hit the bell in the bell tower found in the center of the city

6. Eat Pao Mo

7. Walk through the Great Mosque

8. Eat Xian roast duck

9. Shop in the Muslim quarter

10. See the Banpo village remains

11. Come visit me and my family

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Chinese New Year Dates, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019

2010-08-23T21:53:00.002+08:00

I’ve needed this information twice in the past two weeks, which means, that maybe there are others who also need this info also. So here are the Chinese New Year dates and animal signs for the next 10 years. The Chinese New Year is the most important holiday in Chinese culture. It signifies the start of the lunar calendar year.

Chinese New Year 2010-2019
YEAR STARTING DATE ANIMAL SIGN

2010 February 14th Tiger
2011 February 3rd Rabbit
2012 January 23rd Dragon
2013 February 10th Snake
2014 January 31st Horse
2015 February 19th Sheep
2016 February 8th Monkey
2017 January 28th Rooster
2018 February 16th Dog
2019 February 5th Pig

Need a Guest Blogger?

2010-08-19T10:53:00.001+08:00

I’m looking to write a guest blog post for anyone who’s interested. I can write about; travel, China, Xian, Teaching English, Studying Chinese, blogging, or parenting. If you’re interested, leave a comment or email me.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Dieting tips - drink Citrucel

2010-08-17T22:20:00.001+08:00

So I was recently given a weight lose tip that I now fully support (I was a skeptic at first). The tip is that when you’re hungry at night, chug a glass of Citrucel.

Citrucel is a fiber substitute (they call it Smartfiber) that you add to water. The thing is, it turns into a thick jello (If you don’t drink it fast enough you will see if happen in your glass). It’s supposed to help you stay regular, but it also leaves you feeling full.

So at night, when that late night snack craving monster comes around, just drink a glass of Citrucel and you’ll feel full and be able to resist the urge to eat a big snack before bed. Or at least it’s helped me in a big way to do this.

Hope that this tip helps you succeed in losing some weight.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Are Wal-Mart vitamins good for you?

2010-08-17T22:07:00.001+08:00

I recently came by the best deal of my life; a bottle of the vitamin B6 for only $3. Where can you get an amazing deal like this? Wal-Mart. Here’s the problem. I also have a friend, a Miss Jae Van Winkle, tell me, “Not all vitamins are made equal”, or something like that. She told me that the vitamins at Wal-Mart just flush through your system. So does anyone out there have an opinion on this, because I don’t want to take these vitamins if they really don’t do anything for me.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Personally I think my friend is crazy.

My first Guest Post about Xian

2010-08-17T00:26:00.004+08:00

So I was recently asked if I would be willing to write a guest blog post about Xian, China for a travel website. “Of course!” was my answer. I love telling people about my lovely city! So anyways, you can find it on this site:

http://onetravel.wordpress.com

It should be up today or so. Let me know what you think about it. And if you want me to write a guest blog post for your blog, I write about… well, anything, and would love to.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

cheap flights

How to get a visa for China

2010-08-16T00:16:00.000+08:00

So you wanna go to China? Well to get into China you need to get a visa. And there are three types of visas you can choose from. Each has their own pro’s and con’s. So what you first need to do is figure out how long you want to be in China for and what you want to do. Once you know what you’re looking for you can decide which route is best for suiting your needs.

Travel visa - This is the most basic visa for getting into any country that requires you to have a visa. It’s nice because you have no time commitments with this visa (Student and Work visas both have time commitments). So you can do whatever you want, wanna travel to Beijing for a week? Done. Want to check out Shanghai for a few days? No problem. The downside to getting into China with a travel visa is that you’re only allowed to stay in the country for 3 months at a time. So if you want to learn the language, build relationships and study the culture, you’ll find that three months isn’t going to be long enough.

Student visa - Another option is to get a student visa. You do this by finding a Chinese college or language school that you would like to study at and you enroll with their school. When you do this you’ll also apply for a student visa. What’s nice about a student visa is that it’s good for as long as you’re studying at that school. So you can stay in the country for years without having to leave. So it’s nice if your plans are to study Chinese and be there for a while, because with this visa you will be able to stay a while. The downside to this visa is that you’re required to attend the school. This isn’t a huge time commitment (maybe 15 hours or so a week), but it isn’t like you can just travel the whole time and not attend school.

Work visa - This is another option for getting into China. It requires you to first find a job that offers a visa (in most cases this will be a college or school looking for native English speakers to teach) and through that job you can apply for a work visa. What’s nice about this visa is that you can stay in China for as long as your work contract allows you. So if you want to be in China for a while, this is a great option. You can also make a little money while you’re in China, which is nice. The downside is similar to the Student visa, you’re required to show up at your work and teach (usually demanding 12-40 hours a week). So you can’t just pick up and go to Beijing for a few weeks whenever you want.

If you need more information on; China, Xian, teaching English, or living in China, feel free to look over my site or write me your questions. I’ll do my best to answer them. Thanks for reading this.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Tips for losing weight -with kids

2010-08-14T22:57:00.001+08:00

Let me start by telling you my dilemma. I have three kids -all under the age of five- and I’m 50-60 pounds overweight. Well although it might seem obvious what my dilemma is, let me lay it out for you. If I fail in my work life, if I never achieve anything, never have a nice new home, car and huge bank account, it doesn’t matter. If I fail as a Father and Husband… it matters. Raising our children is the most important job any of us will ever have, and part of that job is the responsibility of teaching our kids how to live a healthy life as well as being there for them when they need us.

And how can I teach them how to live healthy and be there for them if I’m not living a healthy life and on my way to an early exit in life? I can’t.

So something needs to change. And it starts with me. But if you’re reading this and nodding in agreement, you also know something else about losing weight while having a family, it’s MUCH more difficult than if you were single and had no responsibilities. I mean, your family needs you and your time and it’s impossible to find the time to exercise.

In fact, I would guess most of us are the same, by the time our kids go to bed all we can think of is laying in bed or on the couch and watching TV. But I have some tips for you and me to implement to make weight lose a reality, while not striping our families of our time/attention.

I’m new to this (dieting and losing weight that is) so my list will be incomplete, but I would love for you to send me your tips if you have the time. So here are my tips:

Eat proper portions - This is obvious, right? Well this becomes even more important when you have a family, because IT TAKES NO TIME TO DO! Why spend hours in a gym working off all the junk food and massive portions we eat, when we can just simply eat smarter. I would guess if ALL you did was this, you could promote a healthy lifestyle to your children and not be away from them at the gym.

Incorporate kids into workout - What’s more important to a kid then your love, time and attention… nothing. So why not make playing with your kids a time in your day when you can also burn some calories? Try doing a push up with a two year old on your back, it will burn. Or how about lunges while carrying your four year old, ouch! Even just lying on your back and lifting them up can get your heart rate going. Make it fun for your kids to be involved and teach them that exercise is important in life.

Walk/Jog with a stroller - This one’s obvious, but my personal favorite. I love getting my kids out of the house (which also provides a great way for them to learn about plants/animals outside that you see as you walk). So when you need a walk, throw your kids in the stroller and bust that walk out.

Don’t drink soda - Again, why work out in the gym what you can work off by simply not drinking it. Soda is a killer and the easiest thing to drop. I LOVE my soda, but after a few weeks of not drinking it, it’s gotten a lot easier to not need. The hardest part (As is with any addiction) is getting through your trigger moments. For me it’s; pizza, burgers, popcorn and a movie, and anytime I’m; depressed, sad, happy or celebrating. OK. That’s a long list, but as you push through those moments without your trusted sidekick, soda, you will begin to not crave it as much in those times.

Drink water - I’ve always hated drinking water. But a few weeks ago I made a bet with a couple of my relatives. The bet was to see how long we can go drinking only water and nothing else (Not even milk or juice). And it sucks. A lot. But after a few weeks I now find myself craving water. So make a choice today and drink your water. I heard of a family friend who lost 25 pounds by drinking 100 ounces of water a day. And if all you’re drinking is water, that number will become very reachable.

No snacking after 7 - This is obvious to anyone who reads anything about dieting and losing weight, but it’s so hard to adhere to. Remember though, work smarter, not harder. Why kill yourself all day by not eating junk food and working out, only to cave at the end of the night with a snack that stops you from losing weight that day? If you’re hungry, chug some water. Stay strong!

10,000 steps a day - I have a close relative who recently had a doctor tell him to walk 10,000 steps a day and 8 months later he’s lost 40 pounds. To be honest, I hate running, but I LOVE to walk. It’s peaceful and not to strenuous. Like I mentioned earlier, grab the kids, a stroller, and you’re in business.

Nap time - If losing weight is important to you, you will be willing to sacrifice the most treasured part of your day, nap time. Get a workout video going or some free weights at your house to do some exercises when your kiddos are all asleep.

Late night/early morning - Another great time to work out is when your kids are asleep. Get your spouse to stay with them and that will free you up to go to the gym or get a walk in. Make it happen.

Remind yourself of what’s important - Are your kids important to you? Is your time with them and future with them something you think about? Well if it is, keep that in mind as you start to make changes in your diet and time spent, they are our motivation!

Well this is it for now, if you have a tip or comment, feel free to post it at the bottom of this. Thanks for taking the time to read this. Remember that your job as a parent is more important than anything else you do in your life, so live healthy, live long and teach good habits to your children.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Customer Review of www.teflonline.com/

2010-08-14T09:52:00.000+08:00

Hey everyone! How are you doing today? I hope that you’re doing well.

So I wanted to take a moment to share my opinion on the 40 hour course I just took online to get my TEFL certificate (Teaching English as a Foreign Language). I went with TEFLonline.com, which is sponsored by BridgeTEFL. The course was a basic 40 hour one, but you can find many more options on their website. The course costs $185 and certifies you to teach English all around the world.

Here are some things I liked about the website and the Basic 40 hour course I took. First off, the website is designed well and laid out in a very easy to follow way. I can’t stress how important this is, if you’re going to spend 40 some hours on the website, it makes a big difference if you can navigate it well and your eyes don’t bleed every time you look at the site. But hey, that’s just my opinion. I also like that they have instructional videos included with the material they present. They lay out a lot of material that will help you manage a classroom and to teach English in an effective way.

It I had any criticism of this particular course; it would be that it didn’t seem like I learned a TON. I mean, maybe my expectations were to high, but I just don’t feel a whole lot more equipped to teach. But hey, that’s just me.

I do feel like I came away with a lot of resources to help me teach better and help my students. In the end, I’m glad I took the course -I had too- but still I’m glad I did. Getting your TEFL certificate is VERY important when getting a teaching job overseas. If you have any more questions, feel free to comment on here or write me.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

The Other Guys Movie Review

2010-08-12T20:43:00.001+08:00

This movie disappointed me. I say that as a fan of Will Ferrell and most of the movies he makes. I enjoyed everything from; Anchorman, Talladega Nights, Blades of Glory, to Step brothers. I just flat out didn’t think this movie was all that funny. It had a couple laughs, but had a lot of clunky scenes that weren’t funny and we’re just awkward. But that’s just my opinion. If I were you and I were deciding on going to this movie, I would just save my money and stay at home.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

11 Fantasy Football Tips

2010-08-12T02:05:00.001+08:00

As you prepare for the Fantasy Football season, here are some tips to consider. Some of them are more basic, but hopefully some of them help you.

Handcuff your number one RB - This one is a tip that’s been around for a while and isn’t going to be anything new to any long time Fantasy Football gamers. But the tip is this, if you draft a running back, make sure you draft his back-up. Why would you do this? Because if your RB goes down, SOMEONE has to pick up his carries, so make sure you have the running back that does.

Know the depth of each position and draft accordingly - Every draft year is different and one strategy that worked last year, might not necessarily work this year. For example, there have been years where there are TONS of good Running Backs and then there are years where there are none. So if you think “I’ll just wait to get a running back, since that’s what I did last year”, you could be outta luck if the depth at the Running back position is less than the year before.

No RBs after 30 years old - This one is a bit new to me, but seems to hold water. It doesn’t need much explanation, be careful when drafting a RB who’s 30 years or older. Why is that? Because there have only been 4 RB’s that have had more than 1,000 rushing yards in a season after they turned 30. So be careful of the oldies.

Contract year - The old school theory goes like this, if a player is in the last year of his contract he will play harder to ensure his next contract is larger. This is one that has been around for a while and I’m not sure if it’s a lock or not. I guess what I mean is, I wouldn’t let a contract year be a huge factor in deciding on a player, but maybe I would use it if I think both players are even and I need to decide on one of them.

Don’t draft RB-RB in rounds 1 and 2 - It’s an OLD SCHOOL fantasy football myth that you NEED to draft two RB’s in the first two rounds. I just don’t think that it’s a Fantasy Football truth anymore. This is mainly because there are a lot LESS running backs who get the bulk of the carries for a team. So instead of risking one of your top picks on a running back who isn’t guaranteed a lot of carries, instead grab a top wide receiver or quarterback.

Wait on a QB - This is something I have implemented in my draft day strategy. The way I see it is like this, there really isn’t a HUGE gap between the top QB and the 10th one. So why waste a top pick on a quarterback when you can get a solid one in the later rounds? The answer is that you don’t.

Is it a PPR format? - PPR stands for Points Per Reception and is a format most leagues have shifted too. It’s important to look at how many catches a wide receiver gets and not just his yards/touchdowns.

Strength of schedule - This one can make a huge difference. Let’s say you’re looking at two QB’s, you like both of them and their situations. How do you decide on one? Look at the schedule of teams they will face. Sometimes there are teams with a weak schedule, which translates into lots of scoring opportunities. And then there are other teams that face MUCH TOUGHER schedules. I wouldn’t always look at this when determining a player I wanna take, but I would use this to break up a tie between two players I’m looking at.

Don’t even look at bye weeks - For the past decade all I ever heard were people telling you to draft players that have different bye weeks. It hit me about a couple of years ago that bye weeks were the dumbest thing to let determine who you take draft day. Why? Because I’m not going to let my roster that I will use for a 16 week schedule be altered because of one week. It just doesn’t make sense. If half your team shares the same bye week, good, maybe you’ll lose that week, but you’ll have all those starters back the next week.

Be aware of past injuries, but not too aware - This has become less of an issue then, say, 10 years ago. Obviously that’s because of advancements in medicine and rehabbing injuries. So don’t be too worried about previous year injuries. I say that, but you can’t totally write off an injury past. Look at Ronnie Brown, he came off a major surgery last season and tore it up, that’s until he got injured again. So be aware, but don’t let an injury scare you away.

Ride the waiver wire - If you’re not active in the free agent market, you’re not going to win your league. It’s as simple as that. Some of the biggest performers you will have at the end of the season are players that you picked up during the season. Don’t fall asleep on the free agents out there, keep an eye on them.

That’s it for now.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

10 Reasons to homeschool your kids

2010-08-11T00:14:00.001+08:00

First off, I need to say this. There are FAR more important things you need to do for your kids than give them an education. Like developing their character and confidence, as well as, showing them that you love them unconditionally. In my opinion those few things alone will ensure that your kid succeeds, NOT an education. Of course, an education is important to give your kids. So with my wife and I on the cusp of needing to decide how our kids will be educated, we’ve decided to Homeschool. It’s a little scary, but as I sit here I can think of a lot of good reasons to do it and I want to share them with you in case you too are worried about homeschooling your kids. (I should also mention that my family and I are living abroad, in China). So here’s my list of 10 reasons to homeschool your kids.

Time with your kids - Again, going back to what I said when I opened up this post, showing your child you love them is far more important than their education. Not that you can’t show your love to a kid that’s in the public school system, it’s just that, well, kids spell love T-I-M-E, and what better way to spend time with your kids, than when you’re educating them.

Trust the government or yourself to teach your kids? - This to me is obvious. Do I really want a clumsy government be in charge of educating my kids? No. I would rather be the one who decides what to teach my kids, when and in what way. But that’s just me.

Teacher ratio - What makes more sense to you, your child sharing one teacher’s time with 25 students or your student having their very own teacher? Again, in my opinion, I will be able to give far more attention to my child and their needs in a one-on-one setting than a teacher could who’s trying to manage 25 (or more) students.

Specific curriculum - I alluded to this earlier, but here it is in its own category. I would rather be able to help my child with areas they specifically struggle with, instead of, having my child just thrust into a general course that’s outlined by the government. What happens in a public school when your child needs extra help? Nothing. The class moves on to their next subject.

Can focus on their likes - I think that even more important than giving your child an education, you want to give them a desire to learn. As a teacher, you want to make yourself obsolete, not make the student dependent on you. How can you do that? Well when you’re in control of your child’s education you can give extra time to focus on topics that they enjoy. In a public school, it seems like the students are totally dependent on the teacher. Not only that, but if your child has a desire to study, say, geography, they only have a small little time to do that during the school day.

Good memories with your kids - Again, more important than your child’s education is your bond with them. That will mean more and go much further than an education. Homeschooling seems to be a great way to build that bond and fun memories.

Start later in the day, when your kid is awake - One thing that the public school system is lacking is the ability to have a specific schedule for your unique child. How much better would your kid do if they had the ability to start a little later, when they were awake? I would bet that they would do a lot better. So it’s nice to be able to control that with your own schedule and start at 10am or even in the afternoon.

Safety - As a parent one of your jobs is to protect your child. And although you can’t always control that, you can ensure their safety at home as opposed to being in a public school. Your child is in a delicate time of their life, where their views of themselves are being shaped. Do you want that image to be formed by bullies and negative teachers? Or do you think you could do a better job? I bet you could.

Just teach them to read - I think that being overwhelmed is an easy thing when you think of being in charge of your child’s education. But really, what did you learn in school? What did you learn in College? I can’t remember a single lesson or thing that I learned in school. Most of my education has come from my own study pursuits. This leads me to this point, the most important thing you can do for your child is to teach them to read and give them the desire to study. Give them the tools to learn, it doesn’t have to be overwhelming.

Character and Values - I opened with this, but I think that if you can develop your child’s character, you’re already WAY ahead of where the public school system is. In a world where people don’t value things like; honesty, sacrificial love, integrity, sharing, and instead value only selfish pursuits, I think we can do a great service to our kids by teaching them these values. Of course, you can do this while your kid is in public school, but you can also do it as you’re homeschooling your child as well.

So anyways, these are a sample of my thoughts on homeschooling. I know it will be hard and it’s not as easy as just deciding to do it, you need to work at it. But really, everything in life that’s worth something needs to be worked at. Let’s love and teach our kids to be great spouses, parents, friends and contributors to the community and world around them.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Sorry For the Neglect

2010-08-09T22:55:00.001+08:00

Lately I’ve been in the States and pretty busy. My family just welcomed our little boy into the world, Caleb Matthew. We’re now getting ready to head back to China. We’re going to continue studying Chinese and serving Chinese people as much as we can. I (Matt) will also resume teaching English, which I’m really excited for. This time around, I will have a TEFL certificate under my belt which should help. I will be writing more about my experience getting a TEFL certificate in the future.

Well, that’s it for now, I will be adding more content in the months to come. Thanks for stopping by to read this

Enjoy this day,
Matt

A Walk in the Woods Book Review

2010-05-14T12:11:00.002+08:00

I love Bill Bryson, I reviewed I’m a Stranger Here Myself here, and also loved reading Lost Continent. So for my birthday I thought I would continue the trend of Bryson books by picking up both A Walk in the Woods and A Sunburned Country.

I just finished A Walk in the Woods and thoroughly enjoyed it. Bryson has an incredible way of combining elements of; day-to-day observations, wit and humor, as well as historical notes on places and people. He makes the history and significance of the places he’s traveling incredibly interesting. As soon as I began reading this book I found it hard to put down.

The book is about how Bill Bryson decides to hike the Appalachian Trail, which covers over 2000 miles, in total. It is something that demands everything from those who are brave enough to give it a go. After months of planning, Bryson invites friends to come along with him on this adventure. To his surprise, one of his friends, Katz, agrees to go with him.

It’s obvious (Because Bill makes it so) that both of our characters are badly out of place, being out of shape and not experienced in hiking. None-the-less they push on towards their goal of completing the Appalachian Trail. With tons of memorable moments along the way, as well as, memorable people, this is a really fun book to read.

Again, something I love that Bryson does is that he interjects history and science that are relevant to his travel books. It adds an interesting dynamic to his books. I will, for as long as I can, read any new Bryson book that finds their way into my hands. If I were to ever become a writer, I would hope to write with a similar style to Bill Bryson.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Most Beautiful Places in the World

2010-05-12T21:24:00.000+08:00

I've had the joy of traveling to many different places over the past 7 years, here are the most beautiful places. In no particular order they read:

Medellin, Colombia - Medellin, was once a place of terrible drug wars and the home of Pablo Escobar. Honestly, I heard when we were there that only 15 years ago you could have someone killed in a drive-by for like $5 or $10 bucks. I mean that’s crazy. I will never forget driving around the outskirts of this city which is cradled on all sides by mountains, as soon as the city came into view below us, in this naturally shaped bowl, I was shocked by its beauty. And that wasn’t even the most amazing sight. That came late one night when I stepped outside to run and get a Coke or some candy (I’m guessing, but I know myself well) and when I began my walk down the street I looked up to the surrounding mountains to find that they were lit up by the lights of homes that climbed the steep mountain side. It was an amazing site to see. These memories sold me on the beauty of Medellin.

Thailand (To be more specific, an island, but I forget the name of it) - The Thai people are amazing, that can’t be understated enough. There’s a saying I heard once, Thai people have 8 types of smiles, one for when they’re mad, one for when they’re disappointed, one for when they’re sad, ect. Point being, Thai people are friendly. We spent a month in Thailand and for two weeks we had the privilege of staying in little cabins on an island just off of the Thai coast. It was beautiful and the food was amazing. If I ever win the lottery (which everyone does at least once in life, right?) I would have this as one of the places to go.

Colorado - I called her home for 5 years. Living near the foothills of the Rocky Mountains was a real treat. Being able to just drive an hour (if that) and find yourself surrounded by mountains was incredible.

Hong Kong - Hong Kong is a breathe takingly beautiful place. I love getting the opportunity to travel to Hong Kong and experience all this city has to offer. At night, taking the tram to the top of Mount Victoria and seeing Hong Kong lit up by its night lights is amazing. Also, TONS of amazing parks within the city, that are awesome to spend an afternoon at.

Minnesota (only cause my mom will kill me if I don’t mention it) - Seriously if I write a blog post about the most beautiful places I’ve been and I don’t include Minnesota, I’m signing my death wish for the next time I see my mom. To Minnesotans, it’s that serious, that you would end your son’s life, because he didn’t acknowledge Minnesota’s beauty. It truly is a beautiful place though. After seeing more of America since leaving Minnesota I’ve become aware of how much we have that all comes together there. We have trees, lakes, rivers and even the flat farm land that some crazy people enjoy. As a kid my Dad and I would go up north do the Minnesota/Canada border to hike and you would always come away with a fresh reminder of the beauty Minnesota has. I’m glad to call her my home.

Montana (only cause my in-laws will kill me if I don’t mention it) - Again, if I don’t include this one I will have trouble next time I see relatives. I would always tease my wife about Montana being one of the worst places in the world, but then I actually saw Montana with my own eyes and was truly amazed. I think that there are a few different reasons a place would land on this list, but Montana is here because of its quietness and simple beauty. Sitting up on a hill looking in every direction with only the wind against your face as a companion, has a deep value to it, a value not experienced in many other places. I love Montana’s mountains and landscape; the people aren’t half bad either.

Canada - That’s a joke.

Well that’s it, hope you enjoyed reading this, feel free to add your favorite travel locations in the comment area.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Top Ten Movies from the 90’s

2010-05-10T21:14:00.000+08:00

Weren’t the 90’s the best? Let’s be honest, they were way better then the 80’s. I might be a bit biased since I don’t really remember the 80’s. Anyways, I was thinking of the greatest movies from my teen years and decided to put together a list. Add your thoughts, or corrections, at the bottom of this post in the comments section. Here’s to the 90’s, thank you for helping us forget the 80’s and prepare us for Y2K. The list as follows reads like this:

10. Apollo 13 - When you write a top ten list, it seems that number’s 1 and 10 are the most difficult. I had a bunch of movies I could have put here, but settled with Apollo 13. I love a true story (even if it’s only loosely based on a true story) and the drama with this was great. Great cast as well, Tom Hanks crushed in the 90’s.

9. Jurassic Park - Every time this movie comes on I still love watching it. A really creative movie with tons of action and was totally ahead of its time. I still feel bad for Newman getting eaten by that Raptor, but really, he had it coming for trying to steal the Dinosaur DNA.

8. Forrest Gump - Man what is it about this movie that is so appealing? I guess its part of my American fabric that loves to see the underdog do well. Even though this movie is like a million hours long, I still love watching it. One of the great lines of this movie is when Forrest says “I might not be a smart man, but I know what love is”.

7. The Sixth Sense - Talk about a movie that was ahead of its time. The Sixth Sense was great for many reasons, but the twist at the end is what marks this movie as a truly unique and creative movie. Even though M. Night Shyamalan has his haters out there, I love his movies, and here’s where they started.

6. The Usual Suspects - I love twist endings and The Usual Suspects brings it with this one. How great is it when it’s revealed that Kevin Spacey is Keyser Soze? I mean, not only was it a great twist, but they did such a good job with telling it. And do you remember all the stories they told about Keyser Soze in the movie? Well, I heard that it wasn’t until after the movie was done that the writers (or maybe it was the directors) found out that they disagreed on if Keyser Soze’s history was true or not. Interesting.

5. The Matrix - I know a lot of people disliked numbers 2 and 3, but I enjoyed the entire series. However, the original Matrix is easily the best of the 3, and I doubt many people would argue that. Action movies where forever changed by this movie. With a super creative plot and incredible graphics/fight scenes, this movie was cutting edge. I love the last half hour of this movie, when Neo realizes he’s the “chosen one”, and then proceeds to crush Mr. Anderson, incredible.

4. Fight Club - I know that many people will find a lot of the things in this movie offensive, but if you can get past that and see the message, it can really open your eyes. I remember going through a phase in my teen years where I watched this movie nearly every day. The message of your identity not being in your possessions and your job really impacted me. “You are not the contents of your wallet”.

3. Braveheart - How great is it when a movie combines a love story with hardcore action/fighting. It instantly becomes the best date movie, both guys and girls win. OK, maybe this one is a little bloodier then most prefer, but the story is amazing. I would be a liar if I said I don’t tear up each time they kill William Wallace as he watches his wife walking towards him… (Excuse me, I will be back in a minute, I got something in my eye).

2. Saving Private Ryan - Remember what I said about the most difficult part of a top ten list is numbers 1 and 10? Yeah, no exception for the top of this list, because both these next two movies are absolutely incredible and could be exchanged. Honestly, I don’t know what to say about this movie, it has action, but also transitions well into deeper and more profound themes. One of my favorite parts of this movie is when all the soldiers are kinda losing it and Captain Miller (Tom Hanks) breaks them up by telling them his life story, I can’t place my finger on it, but that part sticks with me the most.

1. Shawshank Redemption - I absolutely love this movie and have probably watched it no less than 10 times, which is saying something since it’s like 3 hours long (ok, maybe it’s 2 and a half). It’s timeless, I could literally watch it most nights that I want to sit down and watch a movie. I love the deeper topics of this movie of; redemption, hope, friendship, and becoming institutionalized (which I think can be applied to life outside of jail as well). This is an all around great movie. Love it.

Honorable Mentions: Pulp Fiction, Dumb and Dumber, Fargo, Silence of the Lambs, Reservoir Dogs, Terminator 2, Good Will Hunting, The Fugitive, American History X, 12 Monkeys.

Even looking over this list I wonder if I got it right. With tons of really good movies, I’m glad that my teen years belong to the 90’s. If I were to re-do this list I would maybe exchange “The Fugitive” for Apollo 13. What are your thoughts on the 90’s movie scene?

Enjoy this day,
Matt

10 Songs I’m Embarrassed to Admit I Like

2010-05-08T20:55:00.004+08:00

How are you doing today? I hope you’re doing well. Today we’re talking about embarrassing songs. From the privacy of our iPod earbuds, we are free to listen to whatever we want. From this safety we can hide the embarrassing songs we love. You know, the ones we don’t confess even to ourselves that we like. Have you ever had this happen, you’re driving down the street blasting a song you secretly love, and then you pull up to a red light and forget your windows are down and are embarrassed that everyone around you realizes what you’re listening to?

Well today I’m going to take a bold step and share the most embarrassing songs that I like. It was pretty easy to find 10 songs (I actually CUT IT DOWN to 10 songs!) all I had to do was open up my wife’s iTunes playlist.

Why, am I doing this? No, seriously, I’m asking you, why am I doing this?? If you too would like to blast your songs at the red light, scroll down to the comments area below and list yours.

In no order they read like this:

Taylor Swift - Fearless
Taylor Swift - Love Story
Kelly Clarkson - My life would suck without you
Dixie Chicks - Not ready to make nice
Josh Groban - You Raise Me Up
Alcia Keys - No One (I LOVE THIS SONG)
Miley Cyrus - The Climb (it’s encouraging ok!)
Jordin Sparks - No Air
Dido - Sand in my Shoes
Beyonce - Irreplaceable

Well that’s it for now, but I promise you I will add another list down the road, like I said I HAD TO CUT my previous list down to 10.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Top Ten Worst Kids’ Movies

2010-05-07T22:04:00.002+08:00

Hey there, how are you doing today? I’m constantly looking for useful information to post to our blog and today that quest has brought me to posting “Top Ten Worst Kids Movies”. To read the “Top Ten Best Kids Movies” click here. Now it’s a little difficult to put this list together, for example, I put Barney on here, because it makes me want to punch myself in the face each time it’s on, but my kids love it. For that reason I will try and explain why each movie makes this list, hope you enjoy. In no particular order, here they go:

Antz - I can tell you right away why I don’t like this one, it’s a terrible movie. It also has lots of swearing which if it influences your kids, can make trips to Target interesting. Oh, no, I think your mistaken my child would never say (fill in the blank). In the end it’s a cheap version of the mush superior “A Bug’s Life”

The Wild - Poor, poor movie. It’s not interesting and the lines are totally unimaginative. Pass on this one at all costs.

Happy Feet - Weird movie. There, I said it. I didn’t enjoy the fact that it’s like a million years long as well. It has music (which is always a winner with kids), but seriously fails to produce an interesting plot.

Barney - Again, reasons for making this list are varied. Barney makes it, because hearing Barney sing makes me look in the mirror and say “Could I get away with killing Barney?” But it’s not about me, it’s about the kids and kids love Barney and Barney does teach good things.

Barbie - Seriously, there are a million Barbie movies out there, some of them are good, and some of them are terrible. Most of the time Barbie movies are total rip-offs of other much better movies, stay clear.

The Road to El Dorado - Weird movie, not interesting and has themes that seem a bit much for kids. Whatever. Just my opinion.

Shrek 3 - I love Shrek 1 and like Shrek 2, but this one is boring and weird. It’s Hollywood trying to capitalize on a movie franchise and ends up just being a watered down kids movie.

Scooby Doo - Remember, many reasons can land a movie on this list. My wife and I don’t like our kids watching scary movies and for this reason, Scooby Doo is no good. Who wants their kids waking up in the middle of the night with nightmares?

SpongeBob Squarepants- HAHAHA, ok, truth be told, I like SpongeBob and think he’s hilarious. But it’s not about me, it’s about the children (OK sometimes it’s about me, like when I try and talk my kids into watching “Kung Fu Panda” for the millionth time… man, I love me some “Kung Fu Panda”). My wife (and I’ve heard others) oppose SpongeBob based on the fact that some of the jokes/content is more designed for adults. And some people just don’t get SpongeBob, so I guess I should put him on here. Sorry SpongeBob, it’s nothing personal.

The Polar Express - My wife gave me a hard time about adding this one, but she can write her own list if she likes. This movie was Santa worship and I just don’t get into that, nor do I want my kids too. Anyways, that’s the main reason I don’t like it. Also, the movie goes from crisis to crisis in a way that annoys me, sorry.

This was a fun list to make. I hope that it helps you in choosing (Or not choosing) your next family movie.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

The Four Hour Workweek Book Review

2010-05-05T12:44:00.002+08:00

The Four Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss is an interesting read. I liked some parts, didn’t like others, and think that in some cases I probably missed the point. We’ll get to all of that, but first let me tell you about the book.

In the Four Hour Workweek, Tim writes a lot about his personal experience of removing himself from having to work long hours, in a bad work environment, which truly was making his life miserable. He talks about setting up his own company and what it took for him to make the company self-sustaining so that he could enjoy life. It’s full of testimonies from others who have successfully implemented these steps in doing this for themselves. There are TONS of resources and “how to” information for simplifying your work load and being able to do it from a remote location.

I loved Tim’s ideas on productivity, especially checking emails at specific times (and only twice a day), getting your most important task done before 11am (and knowing what it is the day before), and his thoughts on reading the news online. He’s totally right in all these aspects. I also love the ambition that he shows and inspires in the reader, to go out and do something crazy and unique. His book has already inspired me to look at my life and how I can be more proactive in setting up my own business. He also talks at great length about how to make your business profitable and reducing your workload in running it. Great info and I can’t wait to use these principles. And Tim is really a funny guy, which made the book even more enjoyable to read.

In some cases the book felt more like a “get rich quick” scheme, and I was a bit leery of some of its angles. I enjoyed when Tim talked about people getting more time to spend with their families, but I was not interested in hearing about how people just wanted to party in every corner of the world. That’s just not me and it isn’t a strong motivator for me. To Tim’s credit he did end the book talking about how freeing up your time should be used for yourself as well as helping others, and I find that incredibly motivating.

I live in China and this book really reinforced some decisions I have made as well as gave me things to consider as I move forward. It isn’t for everyone, but if you don’t like your job or have big dreams, then you will find value in it.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

How to Save Money

2010-05-02T12:22:00.001+08:00

How are you doing? I found a great way to save money, here’s how it happened:

So tonight my wife and I were preparing to go on a date and we skimmed through a coupon book that was the size of War and Peace. After spending an eternity looking for a coupon, we gave up. All the coupons were to obscure hole-in-the-wall dives, where you fear for your life every time you drive by them. But I was offered a great piece of advice in my time of need. Online coupons.

After two minutes on Google I found and printed off a $5 coupon to Olive Garden. I went to the restaurant, and to my surprise, they took it.

Now I know that some of you reading this could care less about saving $5, but you know what, $5, is $5, and I would rather it be in my pocket, then Olive Garden’s bank account. (Who knows what kinda sketchy and seedy things those people at Olive Garden are up to)

So that’s my tip of the day, save some money and before you go out shopping or dining, check online to see if there is a coupon to be used.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Information on Living in Xian China

2010-04-29T09:25:00.003+08:00

How are you doing today? I had the privilege of having a reader of this blog write me a few questions about moving/living in Xian, China and I felt that it would be good to post the questions and answers. I love to help, it’s one of the reasons I blog. So feel free to write me questions about China, Xian, Teaching English or anything you think I may be able to help you with. Here are the questions and answers;

I have an asthmatic 7 year old and was wondering if China would be a viable choice for us and particularly Xi'an?
Living in China you can definitely tell a difference in the air quality compared to living in America. I have American friends who have lived in China for 7 years and according to them the air quality in Xian has VASTLY improved over that time and I suspect it will continue to improve. Currently though, like I said, the air quality is not that great and is something to consider when moving here.

I suspect Xi'an would be a large industrial city, yes?
Xian is a large industrial city with around 8 million inhabitants and a lot of the commerce being manufacturing. (Side note: this isn’t the case with every Chinese city, for example, Shanghai is a large city, but its commerce isn’t in production and the air quality is better there, in my opinion)

I read your info regarding cost of living and am pleasantly surprised to learn that it appears much cheaper than Beijing.
That is true! One great thing about living in Xian is that it is incredibly cheap compared to other large Chinese cities. (You can read my previous article on cost of living in Xian by clicking here)

Also what does one do to get back and forth from the airport? Taxi? Is there reliable transportation like busses or subway?
There is a bus that goes from downtown Xian to the airport and is very convenient. There are also taxis that will take you anywhere in the city. (I should note that the airport is about 45 minutes to an hour outside of Xian). To get around town you have the option of taxis or busses and both are SUPER cheap and very reliable (granted you know where you’re going and how to properly pronounce its name). Xian is currently building a subway system and within the next couple years there will be at least one line open. They are also building a brand new massive airport.

What could one expect regarding international schools cost and quality wise? In Beijing they seemed to run about 20-25 thousand USD per year!
I don’t know much about the international schools. My children are both younger right now, but my wife and I are also probably going to go the route of homeschooling. This is in part to how expensive it can be to send your kids to the international schools. I want to say that it’s either $10,000 a semester or a year. Sorry, that isn’t very helpful. If I get more info I will post it.

Thanks Andy for your questions! And if anyone has more questions, please feel free to ask me, I love to help!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

11 Interesting Things About The Netherlands

2010-04-28T21:46:00.004+08:00

So this is a tribute to the wonderful people of The Netherlands. I found these facts on the Internet, so they have to be true.

1. The Dutch are the tallest people in Europe.

2. Almost every Dutch person has a bicycle and there are twice as many bikes as cars.

3. There are 1180 windmills in the Netherlands.

4. There are at least 300 castles in the country are open to the public.

5. Holland has the highest museum density in the world, with almost 1000 museums.

6. The Netherlands have the lowest level of lactose intolerant people, one percent.

7. Netherlands means “low country” in Dutch, and a quarter of the Netherlands is below sea level.

8. New York City started as a Dutch colony called New Amsterdam.

9. The Dutch were the first Europeans to discover Australia and New Zealand (Tasmania was named after Dutch explorer Abel Tasman (1603-1659).

10. The Netherlands are the world’s first producer and exporter of tulips.

11. The microscope, telescope, pendulum clock, and the mercury thermometer are all 16th and 17th century Dutch inventions.

Thank you to Nynke (she is from the Netherlands and is why I posted this) for being the first person to buy some of my cards and to help me kick off our project raising money for disabled orphans in China.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

The Writer’s Survival Guide Book Review

2010-04-28T11:57:00.001+08:00

Hello everyone! I hope that this post finds you doing well. Since starting my family blog in 2008 (and this one in 2009) I have had people tell me from time to time that they enjoy my stories and reading what I write. This has lead me to want to become a better writer, and heck, maybe even try and get published someday. So recently I picked up a book to help that dream, The Writer’s Survival Guide by Rachel Simon, to see what I could learn about writing.

What I liked about this book. I think that becoming a writer and writing something that gets published is a huge dream, but Rachel definitely puts into perspective how hard you need to work to achieve the dream of becoming a writer. I’m glad I read that. If you want to become a better writer, it takes a lot of hard work, commitment and sacrifice. I think it’s important to start a journey knowing what you will need to accomplish your goals, and this, like I said, put those needs into perspective.

I also enjoyed the fact that Rachel takes basically a “how to guide” and makes it personal. Although I know nothing about Rachel, I feel that she does a good job at making this book warm and full of her story. Rachel offers a wide range of advice, such as, organizing your time to be more productive, developing a sense of commitment and discipline, choosing material, getting started, handling criticism, overcoming writer’s block and networking. So if you have tons of questions she does a good job at covering a lot of ground.

Which reminds me, I found her suggestions for finding time to write very useful and have already started applying them to my schedule (with success).

There were some things I didn’t like about the book. I guess with any “how to guide” each reader will run into sections that they don’t find as useful as the next person and so from time to time I found myself skipping sections. But whatever.

Well I hope this helps you. If you’re aspiring to become a better writer, checkout my tips section on this blog. What books have you read about becoming a better writer? Do you have any tips you would like to share?

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Tips for Becoming a Better Writer - Maximize Your Time

2010-04-26T02:59:00.002+08:00

How are you doing? I hope you’re well. Well if you're reading this, then I imagine you want to become a better writer. If that's the case then I got something for you. Today I came by an interesting story that I felt had some value and I wanted to pass it on.

What I read was that in the seventeenth century there was a French Chancellor named D’Aguesseau. What was interesting about him is that his wife would show up to dinner each night ten minutes late and it was during that time that D’Aguesseau would take the time to write. After a year, he had written a book that went on to become a best-seller.

As someone who enjoys writing and wants to become better at it, I find the most common advice to get better as a writer, is to, well, write. But isn't it tough to find time to write? I mean, I could write if I had the time, but finding it is what's difficult. I, like most people, have kids, a spouse and work, that I need to give myself to everyday. And here we have this man who wrote a book with simply ten free minutes a day. And that is why I found this story so encouraging, that if I can just find some spare free time, even ten minutes a day, I can use that time to write. I don't need hours, upon hours, just a little slice of the day.

If you're wanting to become a better writer, then write. Find time in the day and do it, even if it’s only ten minutes at a time.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Writer’s Block

2010-04-24T12:48:00.000+08:00

I realized a few things yesterday. First off, I’ve been writing lately for the wrong reasons. I find myself writing for this website only to gain viewers, not to enhance my writing and to challenge myself. I also realized that it’s super hard for me to write column type posts. Just picking a topic and jumping in is a very difficult thing for me to do.

Originally I wrote stories, or rather, re-told stories about my family and our lives in China. People seemed to like it, so I tried to branch out. The reality is, writing is tough and it takes discipline. I will never be able to write novels, poems or song lyrics. I guess that is something that will help me become a better writer though, knowing what I won’t be able to write.

As I get better at projecting myself into these type of columns, I will do it more. But for now I’m gonna try and get back to what I do best (or at least better) and that is talking about my little stories. I will try to bring more substance to this site and not just traffic fishing posts.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

How to Link Your Twitter Account with Your Blog or Website

2010-04-22T09:32:00.000+08:00

Why should I link my Twitter account to my Blog?

When you blog or run a website, the most important thing to do, is to build your brand. To get people to buy into you as a writer or into whatever it is you use your site to promote. You want people to know when you have fresh material for them to read. One way that is great for promoting your blog and new material is Twitter and the best way to get them linked with you on Twitter is a simple advertisement on your blog or website.

This is a gadget that you can add through Blogger in the “layout” section of your dashboard. It is a floating icon that will display on the screen of anyone visiting your site and allows them to follow you on Twitter by clicking it.

How to add this gadget to your blogger Blog

-Go to the “layout” section of your dashboard
-Add a new gadget, look for the HTML/JavaScript one
-Then paste this code into the box;

Twitter Static Badge Generator

Thank you to Allblogtools.com for providing this code! I hope this helps you advertise your blog, your ideas and you!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

I’m A Stranger Here Myself Book Review

2010-04-20T09:32:00.002+08:00

I’m a huge Bill Bryson fan and so when I stumbled upon his book buried in my closet it was an easy decision to read it. This particular book was written by Bill after he and his family move to America after he had lived in England for 20 years. (Bill’s wife is English and their four children had all been raised in England) Originally a friend of his proposed that Bill write a weekly column for a paper back in England and each chapter is one of those articles.

Most of his articles are observations he makes about life in America, our food, the conveniences of life, and differences between life in England and America. Much of his writing also revolves around the area he has now moved to, New Hampshire. He takes time giving historical backdrops to his observations, which I always enjoy.

I loved reading this book because, like I already said, I love Bill and his writing style. When I dream of becoming a writer I would love to have the ability to re-tell stories from my life in a way similar to Bill’s. He’s funny, witty and takes most of his cheap shots at himself.

This book, in my opinion, was not as good as the previous one I’ve read Lost Continent, but it still had me laughing and nodding in agreement as I read through it. Some of the content and observations Bill makes in I’m a Stranger Here Myself are a bit outdated, but this is because he wrote the articles from 1996-1999.

For anyone who enjoys Bill Bryson and his work, you should definitely read this one, but know that he has other books that are better than this one. I look forward to the next book of Bill’s I read, he doesn’t let me down.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

How To Increase Your Website Traffic

2010-04-18T10:26:00.001+08:00

So I read about this idea recently and found it really creative and really shady. At first I didn’t do it, but have since succumbed to it and am glad I did. The idea is simple, set your homepage to your blog or website, but it doesn’t end there. Set everyone’s homepage to your website.

Of course, what this means is that each time a person using that computer signs in, they will knowingly (or unknowingly) be signing into your site. This is good, because blogging is a way of making money and more visits to your site means more money.

I have tried this with my family’s computer and mine, but internet cafes and public library computers (if you can change their homepage) are two other simple examples of computers you can do this with. It seems sneaky, shady, and unsatisfying, but it sure helps your website’s visits.

Do you have any sneaky ideas about gaining web traffic to share? Make sure and do it here.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Exciting New Inventions

2010-04-16T10:18:00.000+08:00

I don’t often get excited about new things coming out, but today I picked up a magazine and found two inventions that will be coming out that got me excited.

sOccket Soccer Ball - This ball isn’t your normal soccer ball. It’s a soccer ball that generates and stores energy as it’s kicked around. After playing with it for 15 minutes you will be able to power a small light for three hours. Now that might not seem like a big deal, but when used in third world nations that can change their entire situation. And that is exactly the idea, each sale of these soccer ball chargers here in the US will go towards helping provide Third World nations with these.

Do-It-Yourself Glasses - These glasses are designed to be self adjusting. Simply turn and twist the dial on the side of the glasses to adjust the prescription. The developer of these glasses has a goal of distributing 1 billion of these sets to people living in Third World countries. There they will make a huge difference as the only pair of glasses a person will ever need.

Like I said I don’t get super excited about things like this, mainly because it seems like you read about stuff like this and never see it take off. But reading about these two inventions got me stoked. To see people using their gifts and abilities to help others is awesome. Both these ideas are really creative solutions to important issues.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

How To Help Orphans in China

2010-04-14T06:41:00.002+08:00

To read about how my family is raising money for orphans in China please click here to visit our family website, http://petersonchina.blogspot.com/2010/04/how-to-help-orphans-in-china.html.

Thank you for checking out our site.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

A Beginner’s Guide to Getting Published Book Review

2010-04-05T13:43:00.003+08:00

So I picked up this book from a used book store the other day and decided to give it a shot. Heck, I might get published! But as I drove home I realized I had made one crucial error in buying it… I didn’t check when it was published. When I flipped to the inside of the cover I discovered that it had been first published in 1990… ummm… suck. But I still gave it a shot and came away with some stuff I will share with you here.

Things I liked about the book. The book did write quite a bit about different ways to get published and although some of the ideas were a bit out dated there were some I would have never thought of. Crossword puzzles, movie reviews, and greeting cards were just some of the ideas that they laid out in this book that I wouldn’t have thought of. They also had good ideas for how to get published, in detail they tell you about writing local newspapers, national magazines and a few other ideas. I guess I would have only thought of writing a publisher and not newspapers/magazines. Also, there were some good tips about becoming a better writer.

Things I didn’t like about the book. The book was extremely outdated and made a lot of the information irrelevant. Also they wrote about a lot of ideas and some of them just didn’t appeal to me and I found myself scanning and skipping a lot of sections of this book because it simply didn’t connect with me.

Well I hope that I find a better book on how to get published. Until then.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs Movie Review

2010-04-03T13:11:00.002+08:00

I really enjoyed this movie. I’ve watched it now a few times with my kids and think it’s one of the better kids’ movies out right now. Not only is it funny it’s also super creative. The movie is about a kid who after failing over and over as an inventor he ends up creating a machine that changes water in the air into food. The machine is accidently shot into the sky and starts to rain whatever food is chosen. It also has a good message to it. I guess having whatever we want whenever we want leads to overconsumption… and I guess that’s bad.

If you haven’t seen it yet, rent it. If you’ve already seen it, sit down with your kids tonight and watch it. You’ll be glad you did.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Law Abiding Citizen Movie Review

2010-04-02T15:09:00.001+08:00

(In sharing my opinion of this movie I will reveal things about it. If you’re not interested in having the movie spoiled, don’t read this)

I really didn’t enjoy this movie. There I said it. I don’t mind violence that much, but this movie had some super graphic and gory scenes in it. If you’re not into gore you will not enjoy this movie. Another problem I had with it was that I really couldn’t “buy into” any of the characters. I spent half the movie trying to figure out who was good and who I should root for and even at the end I was left confused as to who was the good guy. That might not seem that important, but the movie’s theme is good vs. evil, which was ironic sense it didn’t do a good job of identifying who was good.

If the movie had come out and been a more traditional film of revenge I might have enjoyed it more. The fact that the guy who loses his wife and daughter also turns crazy and is pure hatred really sucked. Again, maybe the plot would have been more predictable, but I was left wanting the Dad who lost everything to be vindicated and/or restored. Like I said, he turned out to be a huge creep and destroyed himself, which sucked.

I did like the fact that the movie had a suspense angle and also had some aspects to it that made you try and figure it out on your own. In the end though, it wasn’t enough of a pull for me to say that I enjoyed the movie. It’s too bad too because I like Jamie Foxx (I love the movie Collateral), but I will only remember this movie for how much I disliked it. Better luck next time.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Irresistible Revolution Book Review

2010-03-27T12:58:00.003+08:00

I really enjoyed about 2/3’s of this book…. I love reading stories and I love reading about passionate people doing crazy awesome things. Irresistible Revolution brings those together in an amazing way.

The book is about Shane Claiborne, his beliefs, and what he does with those beliefs. It follows him from his High School and College days, to his trips to work with Mother Teresa as well as going to Iraq. Interspersed with his stories and his beliefs are examples of what the community he’s started (The Simple Way) is doing. I particularly enjoyed reading the stories of what they were doing in their community, because you could see real people meeting real needs in really creative ways.

It’s all too common that we see people who say one thing, but don’t live up to it. Shane really brings it with what he believes and what he does. It’s also cool to see how he’s inspired others to go on and pursue their dreams. Shane seems like a super chill kind of a guy that I could relate too and would enjoy spending time with.

The one thing about it that I didn’t enjoy about this book was that I felt like the Author repeated himself way too much. Going over the same point became a bit draining. But that’s a small criticism of an overall amazing book. I would recommend this book to anyone who’s interested in; community development, social injustice, pacifism, or serving others.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Being Busy for the Right Reasons

2010-03-20T22:32:00.000+08:00

How are you today? Are you busy? How about this, are you busy for the right reasons?

If you’re gonna be a person who’s drawn to being busy, do it for the right reasons. Do it because the work you’re doing is important or it’s something you love. Don’t do it to fill a void in your life. To make you feel important and valuable.

Sometimes our thinking can make the following connections. Important people are busy, if I’m busy I too will be important, if I’m important I have value. And that’s total garbage.

Being busy does not make you important or valuable. You already are important and valuable.

Find what you love to do. Find how you can make a difference in people’s lives around you, and then go to work.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

LaDainian Tomlinson

2010-03-18T07:56:00.001+08:00

It’s a little bit after the fact, but I wanted to write this anyways. LaDainian Tomlinson is an idiot. If he thinks that signing with the New York Jets puts him in a better position to win a Super Bowl than the Vikings, he’s crazy. Seriously, you’re gonna win with a 2nd year QB? Good luck.

I can now only hope that Brett Favre comes back and that the Jets collapse in an epic way. Who are the Vikings getting to replace Chestor Taylor? Is Albert Young a good enough replacement? Can we do enough using the Draft only to improve our team?

We’ll see.

Enjoy this day (unless you're LaDainian Tomlinson),
Matt

Rewarding Excellent Customer Service

2010-03-16T10:40:00.001+08:00

I had to make a phone call yesterday, one I had been dreading. I had to call Orbitz to straighten out some details with my family’s upcoming trip back to the States. I was dreading it, because you never know what the customer service will be like and how much the person helping you will actually “help”. I put the call off for days and finally found the courage to make the call.

And it… was… really good. I was pleasantly surprised at how “Tammy” took care of everything I needed in a polite and respectful way. She even helped me get some phone numbers of the airlines I need to call coming up (which I assume isn’t part of her job). Instead of being drained after making the phone call I was encouraged that good people and good customer service still exist.

So why am I writing this? Because I did something I need to do much more. I asked Tammy if I could speak to with her manager so that I could tell him what a good job she had done. After waiting on the line for another few minutes I got to tell Tammy’s manager how pleased I was. He told me that she would be recognized by her company. What only cost me an extra five minutes hopefully made Tammy’s day and maybe even helped her out with her job.

We as customers need to learn to reward excellent customer service. If we want customer service to get better we need to encourage those who do well at it.

Take a few minutes to help out the next person who helps you out. Make their day by rewarding excellence, you’ll be glad you did.

Thank you Tammy!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Tips for Teaching - Be a Kid

2010-03-14T22:00:00.000+08:00

Well I haven’t taught long, but I have learned one valuable lesson throughout my life when working with kids. You need to be a kid when you teach. Full of life, energetic, fun and not caring what anyone else thinks of you. Nothing will disarm a child more than you being one of them and not just a stiff lifeless teacher.

So you need to be over the top in your expressions. Sing, dance and jump around just as they do. You’ll be one of them and not just some adult punching into his or her job. Forget what others think of you and be a kid when you teach. Make the lessons fun and the kids will be more engaged and retaining more of whatever you’re sharing with them.

Enjoy your time with your students and they too will enjoy the time with you.

(ohh and…)

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Being Creative

2010-03-12T14:02:00.002+08:00

So this morning I stumbled upon the “OK GO - This Too Shall Pass” music video on YouTube. I decided to watch it because I had heard about it from someone else. While watching I got the biggest smile.

But what struck me most about the video was how creative it is. Isn’t it amazing that with how easy it is to share ideas through the internet that people can still make new and creative things? We’re created to be creative, it’s in our DNA and it constantly amazes me. Things will always be produced that are; new, fresh, entertaining, and encouraging… and they will done in ways that no one thought of before.

I need to say it again, we’re all amazing and we’re all creative. It’s not just the hippies who sip expensive coffee, wearing turtle neck sweaters and have names like; LaRouge, Hanz, and Spoon. No, we’re all creative. Even if you’re not as creative as others, you have the capacity to make and do creative things. Trust me.

Like I said, ideas are shared easier now than ever. And instead of that making it more difficult to make new things, I think it can actually challenge us to be more creative. We’re pushed by what others are doing.

It’s difficult to be creative. It takes time and energy to make something… to make anything. But it’s worth it, both for you and for all of us. So let us in, make something new or put a fresh spin on something old, we’ll all be thankful for it.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Here’s the video that made me smile and write this.

Top Ten Best Kids Movies

2010-03-10T22:02:00.001+08:00

As a parent you get used to watching kids movies. In fact, sometimes to the point where you can quote you’re kids’ favorite movies line for line (ok maybe not that much). And you dread the times you ask your kids “What do you want to watch?” because in that moment you could be stuck watching Barney, but… on some wonderful occasions you get to hear your child ask to watch one of these movies. Here are my top ten favorite kids movies:

10. Ice Age 1 and 2 - I didn’t include 3 because I didn’t enjoy it as much. But the first two are super entertaining and provide many laughs. The scene where Sid and co. fight off the Dodo birds for the last watermelon is classic.

9. Horton Hears A Who - This one makes it because it’s funny, I mean common on, Jim Carrey and Steve Carell. Can you go wrong with that line up? I especially enjoy the line “In my world, everyone’s a pony, and they all eat rainbows and poop butterflies.”

8. Madagascar 1 and 2 - Yeah, these movies are both really funny and enjoyable to watch. Great soundtrack with Madagascar 2 “I like’em big, I like’em chunky”

7. Cars - I love Owen Wilson which makes this an easy choice. Very creative movie that I still find enjoyable even after watching it close to 19,000 times (ok not that much).

6. Bug’s Life - To be honest I’m surprised to have this movie so high, but it has too many scenes in it that really make me laugh as well as some good message moments. Funniest moment of the movie is when the class of ants put on a play for the “warrior” bugs where everyone dies and then show them the mural they painted… I still laugh every time I watch that scene.

5. Wall-E - This is on here because Wall-E is a flat out loveable guy. Also, really creative movie and good message about something called “the environment” whatever that is…

4. Monsters Inc - This was a movie I never saw until I became a parent, but I love it. It’s really funny and is also really creative. When Sulley asks Mike Wazowski to make Boo laugh and he jumps in the air and lands in a… “painful” way, only to discover Boo wasn’t watching… makes me smile every time.

3. Shrek 1 and 2 - Some would argue these aren’t quite kids movies and maybe they’re right. Either way they’re really funny and I enjoy the fact that I can watch this with my kid and get some good laughs. I left 3 off because I didn’t dig it as much.

2. Toy Story 1 and 2 - This was a tough call putting this one in 2nd, but it was close. Pixar has a lot of the movies on this list, but these are the best. Tons of memorable lines like "I'm packing your angry eyes, just in case."

1. Kung Fu Panda - Wow! I really love Kung Fu Panda. So much so, that I will try and get my kids to choose this one most times when I ask them what they want to watch. My favorite moment is when Shi Fu asks Po to show him his Karate skills when he first arrives and Po tells him he can punch the punching bag thingy, to which Shi Fu responds “We use that to train kids and to prop the door open when it’s hot”. Favorite line “I love Kung Fuuuuuuu!” (Only because Sydney (my daughter) and I will mimic Po when screams this)

Honorable Mentions - Mulan, Up, Monsters vs. Aliens, Meet the Robinsons, and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

What's your top ten?

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Tips for Becoming a Better Writer - Use Twitter

2010-03-07T07:59:00.002+08:00

OK, so lately I’ve been reading articles on how to become a better writer and a lot of times the advice to cut your stuff down is offered. To be able communicate the most important part of your message in the shortest amount of time is a gift, but it’s a gift that can be developed.

After reading the advice about editing your stuff down I also read someone say that Twitter is a great way tool to help you get better at this. They felt this way because when you use Twitter you’re only working with 160 characters or less so you’re stretched to be creative and to cut unnecessary stuff out. When I first read this I was a bit skeptical. Lately though I’ve seen how Twitter has helped me become a better communicator, here’s how.

Writing headlines to advertise my posts is where I’ve seen Twitter help me the most (with more visits to my site as well!). Like I mentioned earlier, this is because I’m forced to get better at writing with less space.

Twitter not only forces me to be creative, but it also lets me follow the real pro’s at this like Seth Godin who writes really good headlines.

It might not seem like much, but I’m glad to get to use Twitter if only for those two reasons. I’m also glad that someone passed on this advice of using Twitter to help me in my writing, because if they hadn’t, I wouldn’t have taken advantage of it.

I hope it helps you also!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

FREE ESL Games - Guess The Flashcard

2010-03-03T22:00:00.000+08:00

The game: Guess the Flashcard

So most classes you teach will have lessons with a handful of flashcards with one side having a new vocabulary word. After teaching the new words I will hold the cards so that only I can see the new vocabulary word. Then I have half the class as one team and the other half as the opposing team. Each team has one person guess the card, if their guess is wrong the other team gets to guess. Whichever team guesses right gets a point, and obviously the team the ends with the most points is the winner.

Fun variations:

So sometimes I will make it me (the teacher) vs. them (the students) as opposed to half the class vs. the other half. Whichever student guesses the card correctly plays me in a game of paper, rock, scissors… if I beat them I give the teachers a point, if they win I give the students a point. First to five points wins or whoever ends with the most points wins.

Anyways, those are some games I play with my students to get them to enjoy studying English and to keep their attention; these games have worked for me, what’s worked for you?

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Why You Should Use Google Analytics To Help You Blog

2010-03-01T22:00:00.001+08:00

I’ve found blogging to be an absolute blast to do, but today I wanted to share about a tool that helps me a ton in doing it. Well it’s actually a service Google provides called Analytics. Here’s their website www.google.com/analytics. If you write for a blog you need to use this.

What Google Analytics does is tracks the web traffic coming into your blog, but it will tell you incredibly detailed stats about each visit and visitor. It might sound like a simple service, but here are some ways it helps me. Hopefully it can help you too!

Here are the stats I find most useful and why:

Visits - Do you wonder how many people are coming to read your latest post? Well Analytics most basic feature answers that question by telling you how many people are coming to your site. It breaks down by day and you can adjust the filter to show the last month, 6 months, year, ect. This is a really nice feature to have, because knowing people are reading your stuff will encourage you to keep writing (I know it has helped me!)

Where they’re coming from - This is another stat that I find really useful. Analytics will tell you where people came from to get to your site, either by typing in the address, clicking on a link on another site or through a search engine. This is useful because I will put links on my Facebook and Twitter account and it will tell me if people are coming to my site through those sites. So if people are coming through those sites I will continue to post links… if not, I won’t waste my time posting links there. It’s also nice to see what posts have good search engine appeal.

Where they’re coming from - This time I mean what area of the world that they are coming from. And really, I like this feature mainly because it’s cool to see people all over the world coming to my site (ok, no one really comes to my site… I made that up).

New Visitors and Repeat Visitors - It might just be me, but I like to know how many people have come to my site. It helps me know if what I’m writing is good and if people are telling others about it and what not. So to cure this curiosity I look at these stats. It’s also nice to see if people are coming back to your site, because it means you’re writing stuff that’s useful and adding to other people’s lives… which is a good feeling.

Pages visited and how long they’re staying - Both of these stats help me by answering this question, are people enjoying what I’ve written enough that they stay and read more of what I’ve written? Again, it might just help me, but it’s encouraging to know that what I’m putting time and energy into is being read by someone. If no one is reading it, why am I gonna spend time writing it?

Well these are only a few of the features Google Analytics provides, but they’re the ones that help me most. If you blog, I encourage you to use this service.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

What things have helped you blog? Do you have any questions I can help you with?

Funny Chinese Translation

2010-02-28T22:00:00.001+08:00

So today I was shopping at my local Chinese supermarket. I needed some plastic cups so I made my way to the kitchen area. When I got to the aisle I saw some lovely purple and orange plastic cups with some leave print design. That's not all that was on the cup though, it also had a little inscription. I took a closer look and this is what it read "I want to make you happy because seeing you smiting makes me happy". Ummm...

As soon as I read it I laughed and got the biggest smile (then I bought 6 of them). Thank you China, you provide me with some great moments and cheap plastic cups.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Video of a Chinese Wedding

2010-02-26T22:07:00.000+08:00

Here's some video I took of a Chinese wedding in a village I recently visited.

Enjoy this day (and video),
Matt

Read about my trip here.

How to Improve The Amazing Race

2010-02-24T22:00:00.002+08:00

So I’ve written about how much I love Biggest Loser and about my problems with the show here. But today I want to write about another show that I would like to make a suggestion to.

The Amazing Race is an awesome show and my wife and I love it. Here’s what they should do to change the show up:

1. Only poor or middle class people can compete on the show. This was my biggest problem with the show last season. Do you remember the lawyer siblings that won it? Well, I couldn’t get into that team, because they had so much to fall back on. What’s a million dollars to them? Not as much as it would be to a middle class family or someone working at McDonalds. I think there needs to be some sort of income threshold for contestants on this show and really any reality TV show. Then I could really be happy for them when they won, knowing it would change their lives.

2. Have an all hillbilly amazing race. All the teams being made up of two “rednecks”, I mean really, why not do this? My wife and I are only two episodes into the current season and already are rooting for the hillbillies. Last season, we loved the father and son from Montana. A season before that the married couple that were farmers were so entertaining to watch. (Even though they were sent home early on…) The people who’ve never traveled and don’t know much about other countries, I can get into watching this. So that’s my second suggestion, all hillbilly amazing race. The Amazing “Redneck” Race would be an excellent title.

3. Stop punishing teams for being successful. I get so bummed when a team works hard and gets a couple lucky breaks only to have the show halt them with some “pathway opens at 7am” sign. Why compete if you’re just gonna penalize the team that’s successful?

4. Not knowing the true timeline. I guess there isn’t an entertaining fix to this problem. I just get bothered when they show two teams in a “heated” race to the finish line and then when the second team gets there it’s dark (ok, that’s an exaggeration). Again, I don’t think you could find a solution to this. Because what’s the alternative? Showing a team finishing a task 4 hours before the next team even gets there? Not really. I just wanted to write this so that the show knows, that I know, that they ain’t foolin ‘ole Matt (and with that I will gladly apply to the Amazing “Redneck” Race).

That’s it for now, I will step off my soap box.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

How to Raise Your Blog Catalog Page Rank

2010-02-22T10:01:00.000+08:00

So your BlogCatalog page rank, might not be of major importance to a lot of you out there, but nonetheless I thought I would post about it. Actually, part of the reason I’m posting about it is because I had no idea how to raise my BlogCatalog page rank and why they would adjust it. So for those of you who are interested in getting your page rank up, here you go:

(Before I begin I should clear up this one thing, the HIGHER your page rank is, the better. It’s a little confusing to know if you should be aiming for a 1 or a 100, but just to make sure you know the higher the better)

Complete Your Profile - In the advice I sought, this was one that people said was the most important. Finishing your profile (including picture and what not) as well as joining groups seemed to be one of the best ways to help your page rank.

Adding a BlogCatalog widget will increase you page rank as well.

Add relevant tags to your blog - This will make it easy for others to find your blog, but make sure your tags are relevant to your blog!

Blog a lot - This is good advice even outside of BlogCatalog because it impacts your viewers and the amount of people that will find your site through a search engine. Blog a lot because it will also help your page rank on BlogCatalog.

Rating and Reviews - Get people to rate and review your page is one thing people suggested in helping you get your page rank to go up as well.

I also read that getting more people to come to your site and what not helps your page rank, but that’s something all of us bloggers are already trying to do, so nothing new there.

So that’s about all the advice I found on this subject, I hope that it helps you in getting your page rank up as well as getting your blog out there!

I love BlogCatalog and find it to be a fun and great way to get my blog out there. So being active on this site is a good idea. Hope that this helps you Bloggers out there.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Is there anything else you know to increase your BlogCatalog rank?

Lining up in China

2010-02-20T22:00:00.001+08:00

We hate them. But we need them. Without them it’s just a mass of people pushing to be first. Everywhere we go in America we are lined up and it’s; fair, just, and orderly. In America the line is important, it symbolizes who got there first and, who, in turn gets to be helped first.

China is nothing like this, or I should say, many times it’s not like this. When I first moved to China, I would be lying if I said that people cutting in line wasn’t one of the more difficult things about living here. For example, I would be shopping for groceries (like all tough and confident men do) and I would pull my cart around to the checkout counter. I would be there for a few minutes when from the corner of my eye a “creeper” would appear. Slowly they would walk towards my line, pretending not to see me and my cart already there and then all the sudden they would move their cart in front of mine as if I wasn’t there.

The first few times this happened I felt violated. Wasn’t I here? Am I not a person? Who gives you the right to cut me off?

It can be even worse when you’re waiting for a taxi outside in the cold or rain. Someone will walk up to where you’re waiting for a taxi, also wanting to catch one. But after a minute of being there they slowly slip away down the street closer to oncoming traffic and also in a better position to catch the first available taxi. Jockeying for taxi position or “taxi hoping” (as I like to call it) can be maddening. The best is when you out do them and just walk even further down the road then them (or as I will now call it “regaining the lead”).

But my point is this; line cutting is a violation of the human spirit. (Is that too over the top?) OK, maybe that's a bit extreme.

When I first moved to China and I would have a person cut me off in line, I would get so furious, so upset and so angry. But China has its way of breaking down even the toughest of men (even the kind that go grocery shopping). After a while I just began to realize that, you know what, there’s more important things in life then getting upset about a line jumper. Some days I forget that, but most days I can tell my attitude is changing, which is good.

If you’re planning on coming to China a word to you is this, beware of the lines!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

What are some of your pet peeves?

Inspiring Quote of the Day

2010-02-18T22:20:00.000+08:00

“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives”
Jackie Robinson

It was just recently that I came across this quote and I found it incredibly impacting. I tried to write my little two cents to add onto it, but it felt forced and detracting from the impact of this simple and powerful quote.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

P.S. Who know besides tearing down racial barriers, Jackie also dropped truth bombs?

Chinese New Year - The year of the Tiger

2010-02-16T22:36:00.000+08:00

I’ve never experienced a culture celebrate a holiday quite like how the Chinese celebrate the Chinese New Year. The best comparison we have as westerners is to compare it to Christmas, in fact, many Chinese people will say this to foreigners.

But for the most part Christmas is celebrated with your own family, in your own home, celebrating with your own traditions… Not, for example, everyone in your nation of 1.6 billion people buying enough fireworks to destroy France (or at least Paris) and then setting them off throughout a two week period.

That’s another thing, in America, we don’t have any holidays that last more than a day. Right? Am I missing one? But the Chinese New Year is celebrated over a span of two weeks. With people going out and meeting with friends and family, eating tons of delicious food and spending lots of money (or so I’m told).

This is interesting, because the Chinese are conservative spenders by nature, but when it comes to the Chinese New Year no expense seems to be too great. Like I said each person buys a boat load of fireworks, but they also buy clothes, food and give money away to their relatives kids (I think someone told me this…)

Lastly, it starts of a different day from year to year… That’s right, it doesn't always start on the same date. This is because it follows the Lunar calendar and so for example; last year the holiday started in January, this year, February. Crazy! The most important holiday for a nation of 1.6 billion people doesn’t even fall in the same month from year to year. I’m aware of Easter and Thanksgiving also being like this, but again, the magnitude of this holiday just adds a different dimension to it.

Celebrating the Chinese New Year is truly an amazing thing to be part of (even if it is just you hiding in your apartment from fear of a million fireworks going off at once). Either way, thank you China! My family will grow up with this being part of our memories and for that I’m grateful.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Giving, Getting, and Growing

2010-02-14T08:47:00.003+08:00

For me coming to China was a dream come true. Why? You may ask. Well, I love the adventure of it, I love change, I can’t stand doing the same thing in the same place too long (unless it’s challenging me) and I love getting to know the Chinese people around me and sharing my life with them. It's my desire to help them in whatever way I can... I mean, I have so much to offer (that’s a joke).

Since literally the first month I lived here I’ve had a close Chinese friend in Lawrence (whom I’ve written about on my other blog http://petersonchina.blogspot.com, from time to time). When we first met I was excited at the possibility of getting to know him and also investing in him, I mean I have so much to offer and all (again, that’s a joke).

But what I’ve realized is that I’ve need Lawrence far more then he’s needed me. I’ve learned a lot about being friends from him and I’m continually blessed by his friendship.

It’s funny when we think we’re gonna give someone something or help somebody out who’s “deserving” of our time/efforts… and find out that it’s them who’s giving to us.

We can never allow ourselves to stop learning and growing. We need to humbly accept each lesson that comes with life. If we stop doing these things we can never fully reach what we could become. I know I have a long ways to go.

Like I said, I can’t stand being in the same place doing the same things too long, but maybe I should also realize I don’t want to be the same person too long. May each day grow us and continually shape us and our talents.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

What do you think? Add your comments below.

FREE LIVE STREAM Super Bowl

2010-02-08T02:00:00.003+08:00

To watch the game online, click on one of the links below.

Saints vs Colts Live Link (1)

Saints vs Colts Live Link (2)

LIVE Super Bowl game stream

2010-02-06T23:07:00.001+08:00

I will be posting the Super Bowl on my site for those of us who will be watching it online.

Super Bowl Prediction

2010-02-06T23:06:00.001+08:00

First off, as a Vikings fan I have no desire to watch this game… which is nice since I live in China and won’t be able to watch the game anyways. It would be hard not to imagine what it would have been like to have Favre in a Vikings uniform playing in a Super Bowl.

But the game will still be played, even without the beloved Purple and I think it will be the Colts who win it. No one can hang with Peyton Manning… fact. He’s too good and he’s got enough talent around him to ensure that the Colts will be the winners this Sunday. I like Brees though, and I hope he has a good game, but in the end the Colts will be too much for the Saints.

Colts 31
Saints 17

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Travel tips for Hong Kong

2010-02-06T19:44:00.003+08:00

So I've been to Hong Kong a few times and wanted to pass on my tips for traveling to and in Hong Kong. I hope this helps you plan your trip. If it does or if you have any suggests, please feel free to leave a comment at the bottom for me.

Use the trolleys - It’s a fun, convenient and cheap way to travel around Hong Kong. Let it be part of how you travel around.

Stay anywhere (this is specifically for Hong Kong Island) - Don’t worry about the prime places downtown which can be WAY more expensive than comparable locations that are a little ways away from the downtown area. With all the conveniences of public transportation (taxis, buses, subways, and trolleys) it makes no sense to have to be downtown and spending tons of money for it. Save the money for doing some fun things or eating out and instead stay somewhere a little ways away from downtown.

Visit the sites I wrote about - You can view them here.

Fly to Shenzhen instead of Hong Kong (if coming from mainland China) - This is only advice for those coming from Mainland China. It saves you a lot of money to fly to Shenzhen (or Guangzhou) and then take a bus to Hong Kong (which from Shenzhen is only one hour and only costs about $15 a person). When flying directly into Hong Kong you can expect to spend a lot more.

Use a baby backpack - Not a stroller if you can avoid it, because there are so many stairs and getting in and out of taxis can be a little exhausting.

Grab a hotel business card - You might wonder why you would do this, so I will tell you, you do this so that each time you climb into a taxi you can show them where you’re staying and the taxi driver will know exactly where to take you.

Use my bartering tips when shopping - You can read them here.

Money exchange - Find a place with a good exchange rate, because they’re not all the same. You can try; the airport, your hotel, and street vendors. Again, they’re not all the same rate, but you can save yourself a little money by trying a couple locations to see what the best rate is.

Power and outlet converters - OK so as I’m writing this my computer is about to die, because I can’t charge it in the unique outlets found in Hong Kong. So next time I will make sure to bring an outlet converter.

Outlet converters at the hotel front desk - So in relation to the tip above this one I tracked down an outlet converter at my Hotel’s front desk, so if you forget your converter (like I did) ask the hotel front desk… maybe you’ll find one!

Baby crib to use - So traveling with a toddler isn’t ever easy, but something I found out recently (and far too late in life) is that many hotels have cribs that you can use. How nice is that!? So instead of lugging your own around, you can instead simply call ahead and have the front desk reserve one for you.

Explore! - Some of the best things we found on our trip came simply because we put the map down and just walked the streets looking for interesting things. So get out there and make your own adventure!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

For a list of restaurants in Hong Kong click here.

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson Book Review

2010-02-03T21:56:00.003+08:00

Simply put, this was an amazing book. Here are a few reasons why. So many books we pick up to read are out of our minds as soon as we’re finished with the last page. But reading Three Cups of Tea left me with a different impression, the impression that long after I’ve closed this book it will continue to impact me. I guess we call that inspiration, if so, this book is very inspiring.

This story is about a man named Greg Mortenson who travels to Pakistan with hopes of climbing K2. He fails to summit K2 and on his way down from the mountain ends up in a small Pakistani village and his life as well as many, many more are forever changed. As Greg surveys the condition of this particular village he sees an incredible need for a proper school and teacher to give the children an education. And with that simple but powerful revelation he begins his quest to build them a school. As Greg builds this school he finds that there are many more needs and villages that are desperate for their children to be educated.

Time after time his work is threatened by powerful enemies and difficult situations. These accounts were incredible to read about and time after time we see Greg emerge with even more of a passion to educate people in the Pakistan area (and later Afghanistan).

In an interesting twist Greg’s story begins to be intertwined with history as it unfolded in the events leading up to and after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. In what starts as educating children to fight poverty (and the struggles associated with it) also ends up being about fighting terrorism through hope and peace. Giving kids books in this region would end terrorism better than any amount of bombs is one of the many conclusions Greg comes to… and I would agree with him.

This was an incredible book and I would suggest it to anyone. I also look forward to reading Greg’s next book about his continued work in Afghanistan.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Cost of living in Xian China

2010-02-02T07:36:00.001+08:00

Recently a reader wrote me because she’s going to be moving here to Xian and asked some questions about the cost of living and what not. Well this made my day, because I had written this info before, but realized it would be good to post it here. I hope this gives a clear picture to anyone moving to Xian and to you at home wanting to know more about life in China. Enjoy!

I should note that all prices are in US dollars ($), but I also add the Chinese currency of RMB… if you’re in to that.

Monthly Expenses

Average Monthly rent - $150-$440 (1000 - 3000 RMB) Obviously depending on size and location you have some difference, but this is the general price range for apartments here.

Electricity - This is about $60 (400 RMB) a month, but obviously it’s different depending on how much you use and what not.

Gas - $15 (100 RMB) every month (or so), this is your gas for heating your water and your gas stove.

Water, Garbage removal, Elevator fees and Guard fees - Are all included in one monthly fee which is about $50 (300 RMB) a month

Drinking water - $15 (100 RMB) a month is what you can expect to pay for your drinkable water. It’s set up like the Culligan water system, where you have a dispenser and when your water runs out you call the company and they deliver a new bottle of water to you.

Monthly cell phone fees - In China you don’t sign a contract with your cell phone company to use your minutes, it’s all pay as you go… This is about $15 (100 RMB) a month, but can be more depending on how much you use your phone.

Internet - This is can also be pay as you go (or a standard monthly fee), depending on how much you download and what not. But $20 a month seems to be a pretty standard amount to spend.

Taxis - For me to go to 90% of the places I normally travel to in Xian I can expect to spend on average $1-$4 (6-24 RMB) that includes the downtown area.

Buses - If you ride the bus it’s about $.12-$.25 (1-2 RMB) to go anywhere on that particular bus route. There are TONS of bus routes and you can get to a lot of places using the buses, it’s just crowded, uncomfortable and you need to make sure no one steals from you. Besides that its great!

Basic Chinese meal - noodles or rice is as basic as you get (and very good) and they come in at about $1 (6 RMB) per meal. NOT BAD!

4-5 dishes and rice - When we eat as a family and have people over we order about this much and it’s usually about $7 (50 RMB).

Nice Chinese meal for two - To go out and eat Beijing Roast Duck (SO GOOD!!!!) it’s about $15 (100 RMB)

Eating Western fastfood - To give you an idea it’s about $3 (21 RMB) for Big Mac meal (no refills on soda however… sad face)

Eating Western Pizza - This is important for anyone who loves pizza to know. So for a large pepperoni pizza you will spend somewhere between $11-$17 (Papa John’s is the most expensive)

Average total fees I counted about $500 (averaging the apartment) a month. But that doesn't include food and transportation (only because that is totally different for each situation, but I left the prices above for you to add up and include), this total also doesn't include some things that you need to consider that aren't part of your monthly expenses, which are located below.

Non monthly expenses to know about

Deposit on your apartment - It should also be noted that (at least here in Xian) you need to put a deposit on your apartment down of a month or two’s rent (I can’t remember now what it is).

Real estate agent fee - Also to be noted is that when you get an apartment through a real estate agent you need to pay a month’s rent as your fee for them helping you. Most of the time (unless you know someone wanting to rent a home) you need to go through an agent to get an apartment here.

Heating - During the summer months in most cases you need to pay for your heaters to come on. It’s all regulated by a company and you can’t turn it on and off as you wish (in most cases). It can be pretty spendy coming in at about $400 (2700 RMB), but depends on the size of your apartment.

Cell phone - You get what you pay for and you can find pretty much anything here. You need be careful of fakes so trust who or where you’re buying from, but you can expect to spend $30-$1500 (200-10,000 RMB). And yes you can buy ridiculously expensive $1500 phones here.

Visas - This also needs to be mentioned as it can be spendy (especially for a family) to get new visas every year. I won't put the price because it changes so much and you will need to find the price when you decide to come. If you're moving here as a family you should know that only your spouse needs to either work or study for them to get a visa, then you can and your kids can get temporary resident visas. This means that both spouses don't need to be enrolled in college and/or both working. Just a side note for all you families.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

P.S. Please email me or leave a comment here if you have further questions I can help you with!

The Vikings and my broken heart

2010-01-26T07:40:00.003+08:00

I tell myself that it will get better, but it simply won’t. Being a Vikings fan has to be one of the dumbest things to support. They (the Vikes) provide some amazing moments, do you remember Greg Lewis in the back of the endzone as time expired? Or what about BOTH games against our hated brothers from Wisconsin? Or last week’s pummeling of Dallas? Yes, it’s true, the Vikings do give its fans some great moments. I mean I could be a fan of; the Lions, the Browns, the Bills, or the Bears, any one of these would be far worse.

But instead fate has aligned me with the Vikings, and although they do give us the moments I mentioned above, they also give us goodies like; the ’98 NFC Championship where we also lost by a field goal, the ’99 NFC Championship where we were embarrassed to the point where we block this game out of our memories, and finally the gem we witnessed this past weekend.

Not to despair, but how can we improve? We had all the pieces, mainly Favre, and will not have this talented of a roster next season…. So what hope do we have of another Super Bowl run? This was our moment and we missed it. I hope it’s not another 10 years before we’re in the NFC Championship again, but if we are, I should expect it to end much like this season’s did.

Like a boyfriend who’s been betrayed I promise myself I won’t go back to her (the Vikings), and I swear I won’t get wrapped up in her upcoming life (the draft and free agency), but who am I kidding? I know that when next season starts I will faithfully be by her side ready for whatever, supporting her like I have all these years. I just hope that she treats me well and that someday we can enjoy a Superbowl win together.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Hotels Hong Kong - Hotel Jen

2010-01-25T22:24:00.002+08:00

I wanted to write a hotel review of the hotel my family and I just stayed at in Hong Kong, the Hotel Jen. I’ve been too Hong Kong twice recently and both times the Hotel Jen came up as the cheapest hotel to stay at. The first time I didn’t stay at it because it seemed to be too far away from the central area of Hong Kong Island.

Well this past trip my family and I stayed at the Hotel Jen and I’m happy to say that we loved it! And I wanted to pass it on to all of you who are planning a trip to Hong Kong. I discovered that my original fears of the hotel being too far away from most things in Hong Kong, to not be true. With public transportation making traveling around Hong Kong incredible easy, it was no problem to be a little bit away from the Central area.

What’s nice is that you can save a TON of money by staying at the Hotel Jen and never even really notice the difference between staying directly downtown.

The room my family and I stayed in was the standard room they offer. It’s small, but if you’ve traveled big cities in China you will know that most rooms are small. The room however was very nice. Great TV with some channels (although not many) as well as clean and new. The non-harbor view was not great to be honest. You looked down mostly on rundown buildings with only a sliver of the mountain being visible.

The Hotel Jen also has a nice lobby area, restaurant, bar, pool and gym. Unfortunately for us it was slightly cooler when we last went so we didn’t get to enjoy the outdoor pool which is located on the roof of the Hotel. Also, the hotel staff did a great job, very friendly, and they spoke great English.

I can’t think of much more. Overall, we loved the hotel and would recommend anyone to stay there. Seriously, save yourself a ton of money by not staying directly downtown and spend it elsewhere. It’s easy enough to get around that location isn’t that important (in my opinion).

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Hong Kong Attractions

2010-01-24T22:19:00.005+08:00

So you're heading to Hong Kong and you want to know what to do? Here's a list of the things my family and I have done and what our experience were from the past couple times we were in Hong Kong. I hope this helps, if you have questions feel free to leave a comment and I will get back to you.

Going up the tram to The Peak of Mount Victoria - To be honest this is my favorite thing to check out in all of Hong Kong. Getting to see the city from the peak of Mount Victoria is spectacular to say the least. It’s an incredible way to see Hong Kong in a different way and will leave you breathless. The only thing is this… once you get there maybe you take 15-30 minutes to snap some pics and take in the view and then you head back down, so it’s not an outing you need much time for. However there is shopping and restaurants at the top also.

Victoria park - My family and I had a really fun time walking through Victoria Park, exploring all it has to offer and stopping at many of the playgrounds and parks throughout it. If you’re traveling with kids this is a great place to spend time as a family. I would suggest it to my closet friend (and my farthest enemy???)

Ferry ride across harbor - My 4 year old daughter LOVES taking the ferry and when we’re in Hong Kong it’s a must do thing. I think that it’s fun because how often in our normal lives do we take a ferry? And along the same lines as the peak, the ferry ride presents a different way of seeing Hong Kong. If you’re not sold yet, it’s also super cheap.

View of the harbor - Along the peninsula (Kowloon) there are some areas setup to view and snap pictures of the famous Hong Kong skyline which is a fun place to stop and do such. It doesn’t take long to do this and you can do it as soon as you get off the Ferry making it super convenient. Then afterwards every time you see the Hong Kong skyline (which is the view of the harbor) you can turn to the person next to you and say “I’ve been there”, which is deeply satisfying.

Walk around the downtown area - My family and I seem to do this each time we’re in Hong Kong which is fun and helps us to get out and get some exercise. All you do is head to the Central area and just start walking and see where you end up. There are TONS of skyway ramps connecting a multitude of malls that are fun to walk through and explore as you shop for a souvenir to take home. There are also lots of coffee shops and restaurants to make this an even more enjoyable thing to do.

Eat good food - Weather eating new and unique ethnic food or just enjoying some good western food, Hong Kong offers it all. In addition to food from; Nepal, Thailand, China, Australia, Italy, India, Vietnam, Egypt, France, and many more places, you will also find; TGIF, Outback Steakhouse, Fat Angelo’s, Spaghetti House, Burger King, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Duke’s Deli and other western cafes and restaurants. Click here for my review of the restaurants of Hong Kong!

Day trip to Shenzhen - If Hong Kong doesn’t offer enough for you to do or you have some time to kill, take a day to head into mainland China by way of the city Shenzhen. Each time my wife and I go through Shenzhen we usually say something like “Why don’t we live here?” or some other variation. We say this because Shenzhen is; a really nice, beautiful, and unique city. I don’t know much about the city, but maybe you can go and find something you like as well as discover somewhere new. To get there by bus you will pay $15 or 100RMB.

Take one of the trolleys - Not only is this a cheap and convenient way to travel, it’s also a fun, nostalgic way to go around the city and see the different parts of Hong Kong. My family easily got on and off the trolley and it seemed like they came very often. It was nice also because they would take us directly downtown. It was especially fun to ride on the top level of the trolley to get an even better view of the passing buildings.

Visit Hong Kong Park (and Aviary) - Ummm, it’s safe to say that this park and how much we enjoyed it surprised me. First off, my family kinda stumbled into the park as we were looking for things to do, and I was so glad we did. It was actually an incredible contrast to be in a lush green park with streams of water (and even a waterfall) surrounded by tall trees, and to look just beyond the tree tops to see the modern sleek buildings of Hong Kong behind them. As we strolled through the park we also came to 5 or 6 levels of kids playground areas. It was a fun place for the kids to burn off energy. Lastly Hong Kong Park also has a Bird Aviary, which is a large enclosed bird area. We spent about half an hour going through the Aviary and loved looking at each of the birds. Our four year old loved it and it was FREE!

Day trip to Macao - Truth be told I didn’t actually do this while in Hong Kong, but did see Ferries offering to make the trip. If I had the time and it was only my wife and I, I would have loved to make the trip out and back. Again, this is just another thing on a long list of things to do in Hong Kong.

Disneyland - OK so my family and I didn’t go to Disneyland, but it seems like a cool thing to do. Of course you need ridiculous amounts of money to do this though.

Giant Buddha - We also didn’t get to visit the world’s largest sitting Buddha, but if you had enough time to do it, it would be cool to see.

Well I hope that helps you as you plan for your trip. If this was helpful, let me know by leaving a comment.

(Sorry to end this list with a few things that we didn’t do, but I thought that if you were going to Hong Kong you might want to visit some of these sites.)

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Reggie Bush?!

2010-01-24T21:19:00.002+08:00

I'm so sick of hearing about how well Reggie Bush is playing! Give me a break. He's had what... one good game, last week... in a span of three years, ummm, hardly noteworthy. To be honest Reggie Bush has been one of the biggest disappoints (as far as hype to delivery ratio) in recent NFL history.

And guess what, that will only continue with his game against the Purple in the NFC Championship. Then all the Reggie lovers out there will fall back down to reality.

Another thing I'm sick of is no love for my Purple and Gold. We were an after thought in the Cowboys game and guess what... we came out and destroyed the 'boys. Same story this week with no one thinking the Vikings have a chance. Are you kidding me? What do the Vikes need to do to get some love around here?

I'm out!

Restaurants in Hong Kong

2010-01-24T20:23:00.000+08:00

So in my traveling to Hong Kong I’ve decided to post about the restaurants I’ve eaten at. Granted the ones I’ve eaten at are all Western (mostly) chain restaurants, but I thought I would write about them anyways. If you’re wondering why I haven’t ventured out much while visiting Hong Kong it’s because my wife and I live in China and eating at these restaurants is a real treat. So hope this helps you plan your trip.

Here’s a list of some ethnic food you can find in Hong Kong; Nepali, Thai, Chinese, Australian, Italian, Indian, Vietnamese, Egyptian, French, and I’m sure many more.

But you will also find; TGIF (Fridays), Outback Steakhouse, Fat Angelo’s, Spaghetti House, Burger King, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Duke’s Deli, Subway and other western cafes and restaurants.

In addition to writing what places we know about here I also wanted to add my two cents about the locations we’ve eaten at. So here it goes:

Outback - My family and I loved eating at Outback Steakhouse. It was great food with all the favorites you can get in the States as well as a great location. The service was awesome and the prices were very good. Also, you get the free bread just as you would in the States.

Duke’s Deli - This was a fun little place for us to stumble upon. My wife had been craving a simple sandwich and she found it here. I got a piece of pizza and really enjoyed it also. It’s a deli and it’s in Hong Kong so it’s a little expensive but not too bad.

Fat Angelo’s - My wife and I would have to say that this is our favorite restaurant in all of Hong Kong. Great food, great service and they hook you up with a bunch of free bread that is pretty tasty. Its prices are typical for Hong Kong. If you’re craving some Italian food while here, this is the place for you.

TGIF - Ummm, this is the real reason I decided to write this article, because TGIF’s is not that great of a place to go… which is really disappointing. In Beijing my family and I love going to TGIF’s, but here it just doesn’t cut it. And it’s not like we just had one bad experience (that could be excused) it seems like the past couple times we went we were left spending A LOT of money and finding the food just average. Pass on TGIF’s and hit up Outback, you’ll be glad you did.

Pizza Hut - I know it may seem stupid to have a “review” of Pizza Hut on here, but the truth is that when you’re eating American fast food overseas you never know what you’re gonna get. Sometimes the restaurant is exactly like it would be in the States and other times it’s REALLY NOT. Well Pizza Hut I’m glad to report is the same good ole Pizza Hut you would eat in the States. If you don’t like to venture much, then Pizza Hut is a good place to eat.

KFC - This is an example of a restaurant in the States NOT being the same overseas. KFC is really not good at all. I haven’t eaten at one in Hong Kong so maybe it’s slightly different (I’ve eaten at KFC in China… unfortunately). I wouldn’t eat here if someone was paying me too.

McDonalds - MCD is the same as it is in the States with some added Asian dishes. One bonus here is that you can order breakfast food all day… Am I in Heaven? Iowa? Oh, it’s still Hong Kong.

Burger King - I love BK and will till the day I die. Hong Kong’s Burger King was no different than the States and was great to eat at.

Subway - Truth be told, I didn’t eat at Subway while in Hong Kong, but when I’ve eaten at them in China I’ve found them to be the same and good.

Well this may be short, but I hope it helps you to have a better experience to know what there is in Hong Kong as well as what to expect.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Vikings vs Saints NFC Championship game

2010-01-24T13:02:00.003+08:00

Well it's almost upon us, the NFC Championship game. As a Vikings fan I feel good about this game, a heck of a lot better then I did the Cowboys game. I think that we gained a lot of confidence crushing the Cowboys last week and I think we can take some of that steam into this week. It bothers me that so many people write the Vikings off in this game (similar to the Cowboys game), which is fine by me, put the pressure to win on the Saints.

I think that the Vikings have to do two things to win this game. First, get pressure on Brees. I know that it's obviously a good thing to pressure the opposing QB, but if our front four can keep him from making his passes it will be a long day for the Saints.

Secondly, we need to keep the Saints defense from hurrying Favre. Again, it's simple, but if we can get him the time he needs we could be in the Super Bowl.

This game will be won and lost in the trenches (I suppose most games are), but nonetheless it will be a good game with two great QBs and two fascinating teams. I'm looking forward to this game, actually I'm in Hong Kong right now so watching the game will be me and my Dad Ron huddled around a computer in a hotel room. I'm pumped, should be good.

Final Score Prediction
Minny 31
NO 28

It will be a tight game, but I think the Vikes can win it!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

FREE ESL games - Hit the target

2010-01-18T23:52:00.003+08:00

Well if you are teaching English as a second language then you know better than anyone that finding a good teaching game is life and death… ok, it’s not that extreme, but it definitely helps the flow of a class (especially with younger kids) when you can get them playing a game. Of course teaching isn’t just sitting around playing games though, it’s about teaching content through your games. So here’s a game that’s helped me a lot lately and has been a blast to play with my students.

Hit the target is the name of the game. To play this game you will need a ball. A tennis ball works, but I also use a slightly bigger ball as well. What I will typically do with my classes (grades 1-4) is if I have a list of 6 or so new vocabulary words I will write them on the board (this is also good if I don’t have flashcards) and from the board we will practice pronunciation and reading. I usually space the words out evenly across the board.

Then after we’ve spent enough time practicing how to say the words and the students are comfortable with the new words, I will go to the board and draw a square around each word. To make it easier I try and make the square pretty good size. Then I split the class into two teams and have a student from each team come up, one at a time.

When the student gets up to the front I have them stand behind a line 7-10 feet away from the board (or whatever you can manage in your classroom). I then hand them the ball. Once they’re ready I call out one of the vocabulary words and then they take the ball I’ve given them and try to hit the box with the word in it. If they hit it, they earn a point for their team. Afterwards, I have a student from the other team come up. We do this for a little while and eventually the team with the most points is declared the “winners”.

So it’s pretty simple, but simple is good when it comes to teaching games. If it’s too confusing the kids won’t understand it and will sit there with a blank stare that shakes even the most confident of teachers.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Vikings vs Cowboys game recap

2010-01-18T05:07:00.002+08:00

I was shocked to say the least by this game. Of course, I was pleasantly surprised (which let’s be honest, is the best way to be surprised). The Vikings played an almost complete game and it’s been a LONG time since we have. To see our defense completely control a good Cowboys team was great. Ray Edwards played easily the best game of his career and the Favre to Rice combo was efficient. It would have been nice to see our running game do better, AD particularly didn’t see much light. On a side note, I love Chestor Taylor and hope we can do whatever we need to, to keep him.

I’m left with another thought as well, does Chris Kluwe look pretty creepy? I felt like each time he came out of the field he looked more like a computer geek then an NFL punter… but I guess, what do punters look like? Maybe Chris Kluwe looks normal in the world of NFL punters. Either way, he kicked an incredible game and was a big part of us keeping our momentum as well as keeping the ‘boys in check.

Glad to see us get tons of turnovers and to not give any up. Holding the 'boys to 3 is pretty unreal and hopefully sends a statement to the Saints.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

P.S. I wrote this recap with about 7 minutes left in the game… just shows how well Minny controlled it.

Vikings vs. Cowboys game thread

2010-01-17T22:15:00.005+08:00

This is gameday Matt. Pretty vicious stuff.

Well we're just about to kick off and I'm pretty nervous. This game worried me more as the week went on. I don't know if I read a single analyst who picked the Vikes to win this one. That might help us in the end by taking the pressure off of us and putting it on the Cowboys... we'll see. We haven't lost at home, so let's hope the trend continues!

So I'm going to be adding comments on this post as the game goes along. If you want to talk smack or chat about the game I would like to invite you to join in.

Final score prediction: Minnesota 24 Dallas 17

Enjoy this day,
Matt

10 blog directories to submit your blog to

2010-01-17T00:53:00.005+08:00

OK, so you started a blog and now you want to get it out there. Truth is, if you took time to start a blog, then you should take time to advertise it so that others can enjoy what you're sharing. A blog directory is a place you can submit your blog so that others can find it as well as a place for you to connect with other bloggers. It's a great way to build those bridges to get your name/blog out there. Here are ten blog directories to submit your blog to.

Technorati - This is a great site and probably the most popular and recognized. If you want to advertise your blog this is the first place to go.

Blog catalog - Personally this is the one I enjoy the most. It has a great area for people to share about their blogs and find others willing to help them.

Blogged - I enjoyed Blogged, it was one of the first blog directories I joined and I see my site getting traffic from it. So it’s definitely worth the ten minutes it will take to submit your blog too.

My Blog Log - This is another fun site that I enjoy, it’s a great place to meet other bloggers and get your name and site out with.

On Top List - This is a free site that will also help you to build relationships with other bloggers. Great place to start building those important connections that will help you get your site out there.

Blog Flux - A very well organized and visually pleasing directory (a lot of directories aren’t).

Blogrankings - This is a great directory and a lot of bloggers use it. They will rank your page and place your ranking on your blog if you so desire.

Blog top sites - Straight forward directory, very easy to navigate.

Top blog area - A nicely made site for you to submit your blog too. Again, it never hurts to submit your blog to many of these sites to help get the word out about you.

Blog ratings - Lastly, this is a site I enjoy. Add your blog here and continue to find directories to add too!

Well I hope that this helps, if you have questions or other directories to submit, leave a comment below.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

FREE ESL games - Bombs

2010-01-15T23:33:00.004+08:00

Part of the reason for me creating this blog was so that I could use it to serve others. And one way I would like to serve others is by passing on useful teaching resources/games that come my way. So here’s my first attempt at sharing a simple ESL game:

The game is called Bombs (I made up the name since it really doesn’t have one)

I play this game with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders with the class sizes usually being 50 or so students. What you need to do first is divide the classroom up into two teams. It’s easiest just to split the class down the middle with the left side being “team one” and the right side being “team two”.

You can then make a score sheet on the board to track which team scores the most points. Keeping track of the points also helps keep the kids interested.

Next you write a list of the last 4-6 vocabulary words you’ve been teaching them (I think you could do more words with an older class, but with younger classes this amount seems good). Then you draw a bomb next to the words.

After that, you draw an arrow from the bomb to one of the vocabulary words on the board. Explain to the kids that saying the word with the arrow pointing to it will make them blow up (and lose the game). Then you shout out one of the other vocabulary words at random and have the students repeat the word after you. Saying the words faster makes the game more interesting (I found this out the hard way). Then after 6-10 words you say the word with the arrow pointing to it and if the students repeat it after you, they lose.

(Example: If you're teaching them the numbers 1-5 and 3 is the word with the arrow from the bomb, you might call out, 1, 1, 4, 5, 2, 2, 5, 2, 3! Each time you say a word you wait for the kids to repeat it. Then when you say the word with the arrow from the bomb wait to see which students say it.)

Ideally only one or two kids would say the word, but that’s not how it’s worked with me. I usually award the team that had fewer students say the word with a point.

Then you erase the arrow and pick a new word. It’s super fun, you get the kids interested and get them saying the words you’re teaching them which is great.

Any other good games out there to share with the rest of us? If I didn't explain this game well, let me know so I can clarify. Thanks.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

10 things that make Canadians proud

2010-01-14T08:48:00.005+08:00

I’m really excited about this post. I asked my friend Brent (who happens to be Canadian) to stop by and share 10 things about Canada… To be honest it seemed like a daunting challenge, mainly because I figured maple syrup and hockey would be the start and end of the list. But Brent came through on a full 10 and wrote a great post. So before I let him share I just want to say thank you to Brent for taking the time to write a post for us and I encourage you to check out his blog at http://blog.brentmanke.com/ and to follow him on Twitter @brentmanke. Brent you have the floor.

As a Canadian having lived the past six years in the USA and in the spirit of Matt's cross-cultural blog, I thought I would tell you a little bit about what makes our "neighbors to the North," the Canadians, proud to be Canadians.

1. Not being American. I know, I know, for all you American readers, and I'm not doing a great job building any bridges here. But if you want to understand Canadians, you must first understand that in this North American family, Canada feels like a younger sibling to the USA. We're family and there's no escaping our ties, but at times we feel picked on, and feel the need to make every opportunity to establish our unique identity. Nothing makes Canadian blood boil like the comment, "Oh, aren't Canadians pretty much the same as Americans?"

2. Hockey. From the Canada vs. Russia classic of 1972, to our frequent success in the Winter Olympics, to local teams and backyard pond hockey, Canadians are proud of their sport.

3. Tim Horton's. This coffee shop's warm red sign can be seen on as many street corners in Canada as Starbucks is in the US, and is just as popular. Known for its regular brew and also its donuts. Timmy's (as its affectionately) known, has even made significant contributions to Canadian language, with such phrases as, "Roll up the rim to win!"

4. Eh? While this has been a joke for some time, many Canadians have taken on this lingual reputation with pride, along with our unique words, such as "toque" and spelling it "neighbour" (along with others in the Commonwealth).

5. Cultural Diversity. Canada prides itself in being a "mosaic" of cultures, and claims the highest immigration rate per capita in the world!

6. International Reputation. Legend has it that even some Americans, looking to receive favor while traveling internationally, have sown a maple leaf onto their backpacks. And speaking of maple leaves...

7. The Canadian flag. I guess every country is proud of its flag, but is it just me, or have Canadians taken flag-patch and red-white-and-leaved clothing wearing to a whole new level? But I do like our flag. So simple, clean, unique.....

8. The scenery. Canadians are proud of their vast and diverse landscape. Stretching from "sea to sea to sea," Canada is home to beautiful mountains, lakes, prairies, and coasts.

9. Resilience to cold weather. When we were visiting Canada recently, many took pride in asking my (Dutch) wife what she thought of the cold, then said, with just a touch of smiling superiority, "You get used it." We also enjoy, when anyone else complains about the cold, to tell about how it gets down to -50 and how we plug in our cars so they start on cold winter mornings (really).

10. The snowmobile. Of course, who else could have invented a snow machine? But Canadians are proud of our many inventions that have blessed the world. If you get the chance, ask a Canadian about who invented basketball....

Well, I hope that helps you understand us a little better. Give a Canadian a hug today. And if you haven't seen it yet, this commercial helps capture the essence of Canadian pride. Watch it.

Peace.

Thanks again Brent for stopping by and sharing with us. If you enjoyed this you can get more of Brent on his blog at http://blog.brentmanke.com/ and on twitter @brentmanke.

Do you enjoy Canada? Why? Leave comments below.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Mark McGwire did what?!

2010-01-12T22:39:00.002+08:00

Mark McGwire confesses to using steroids and in other news the Pope confesses he’s catholic. Even though I was a mere fifteen years old I can still remember the ’98 baseball season. Well, specifically the race to break the single season homerun record between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa. What a joke.

Even as a fifteen year old it was obvious to me that something was a bit fishy about the whole thing. I mean, for nearly 40 years NO ONE came close to touching the single season homerun record…. And then in one season two guys are both chasing it. How did we even buy into this? Of course, they were cheating!

And you know what, baseball desperately needed the players to cheat and draw interest back in its flailing sport, because after the ’94 lockout most people had moved on from baseball. He cheated and he confessed, but Mark McGwire may have single handedly (well not technically since Sosa was also needed) saved the sport of baseball.

I do feel bad for McGwire though. Its easy to write something from the comfort of my computer, never having had to live with the pressures he has had to face. I do hope that with his admission he's able to unload the burden he's been carrying. I also hope the best for you Mark!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Tony Romo may you fail once again

2010-01-12T07:36:00.003+08:00

Well we're less then a week away from the Vikings matchup with the Dallas Cowboys. I think this will be a great game or the Vikings will get blown out... but it WILL be one of those two. The Vikes haven't lost at home all season and before the debacle of December we looked to be one of the strongest teams in the league. Living in China, I don't get to see the games the way I would in the States, but it sounds like the Cowboys are legit. They're a hot team that absolutely destroyed a GOOD Eagles team the past two weeks.

I said it last week and I will say it again, let Brett throw the ball. The Cowboys can stack the box and stop the run all day, who cares, especially when we're completing high percentage short passes (like we did for the first 12 weeks of the season when we were dominating). It should be a good game, and maybe the difference will be special teams where the Vikes have been amazing (thank you Percy Harvin and every team before us who didn't draft him).

To be honest I'm scared of this game. I don't know what it is, flashbacks of '98, or the simple truth that Minnesota sports fans have nothing to ever be excited for... either way I'm not confident in this game, but I know that we're a tough team and a tougher team in our Dome. If we win this game I'm not worried about either the Saints or Cardinals, because we will be coming off a solid win against a solid opponent. Let's put the pain of '98 away...

On another note I'm so happy the Packers lost, that was one team I didn't want to have to face. I'm also happy because I hate the Packers and only wish loses and poor drafts on them.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Tiger Woods, Power, Money and Fame

2010-01-10T22:43:00.001+08:00

So there’s this guy named Tiger Woods…

You may have heard of him. I guess he’s been in the news a lot lately. And I know what you’re thinking “Isn’t it a little late to be writing about Tiger?” And if you are thinking this, you’re absolutely right… but I didn’t have this blog then.

Actually this post has less to do with Tiger and more to do with priorities. Not just priorities, but the priorities we have as Americans. Striving for things like; money, power, fame, and climbing the corporate latter in this country are insane. These pursuits put an incredible pressure on us all. Sometimes to the point where we are working for things that really don’t even matter to us.

And in Tiger we see what all our pursuits can get us. Because Tiger had it all; a family, wealth, fame, popularity, and being the best at what he does. Can you imagine if you made hundreds of millions each year just for some company to use your face? Can you imagine being one of the most recognizable people in the world? Can you imagine being the VERY best at whatever you do?

And you know what… it wasn’t enough. He wasn’t satisfied with simply having it all, he needed more. How many of us thought it would be great to be Tiger Woods? How bout now? This is not a judgment coming from me on my high horse, no that looks like this…. Just kidding. It’s simply something we need to realize, having all that we’re told we need and that will make us happy, will fail us. It will never be enough and it certainly will not fill our lives with what truly matters. All the proof you need is Tiger.

If this comes off as judgmental, that isn’t my heart and please forgive me.

What do you think about this?

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Enjoying Dinners... with kids and without

2010-01-08T22:52:00.001+08:00

How’s your day going? I hope it’s going well.

It’s not uncommon for Heather and I to have friends over for dinner. Most of our friends also have kids and so it’s a great time to connect with others and for our kids to have some play time. Last night we had a family over and I was once again reminded that dinner with friends didn’t always include; getting up 80 times to help your kid before getting to enjoy your meal, trying to break up fights that started over a toy, making sure that uneasy quietness isn’t accompanied with something horrible, cleaning up spilled food and/or drinks, changing diapers, shouting over loud kids and getting prepped for bedtime.

Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I just like to reflect from time to time about what dinner with friends used to look like, without kids. The kind of dinner were afterwards we all sit around chatting, breaking out cards, dice, and/or Balderdash. It’s quite. And disaster free. Again, don’t get me wrong, even though life’s crazy with kids, I enjoy it thoroughly. It’s just a different kind of enjoyment.

Truth be told, I enjoy the chaos, you heard me right. I didn’t always and each day I embrace it more and more, but chaos comes with family and friends… and both of those things are good things. It’s one of the reasons I’m excited about our upcoming arrival of our third baby. It will ensure that our home won’t be quite/stress/crisis free for the next... well… long time.

Any thoughts about this?

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Thank you… but I don’t trust you

2010-01-06T13:05:00.002+08:00

I usually don’t plan what I’m going to write. Since starting this new blog I’ve had moments during my day which have sparked the articles you’re reading. Recently I had a moment like this. I was reminded of one of my all time greatest pet peeves and reminders that we instinctively don’t trust others. (Or at least people don't trust me... which I guess is fine, and rational)

As I was walking into my apartment building today, I noticed someone behind me. Trying to be the type of neighbor that would put Mr. Rogers to shame, I waited for the person behind me as I held the door open for them (It’s important to note that the door I was holding open was one that would shut on its own if I wasn’t holding it). Then as the person passed through the door they did something subtle that SHOUTS.

They put their hand on the door (to insure I wouldn’t let the door shut on them). That’s it. I know, petty isn’t it? This is one of those things I find myself noticing all the time. Because what the person is saying, without saying it is, “Thank you… But I don’t trust you”.

What does the person sliding their hand along the door as I’m holding it for them think I’m going to do? Let it go to slam on them? I love waiting for people and holding the door for them then letting it shut on them, get’s ‘em every time!

Sorry if this is a bit random, but I bet that you too will now notice this next time you open the door for someone.

What’s something petty that bugs you? Leave a comment at the bottom of this post.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

One thing I hate about "The Biggest Loser"

2010-01-05T14:10:00.003+08:00

Biggest Loser is about to start up another season and I'm so excited. The show is so well done that I can't help but tune in each week (which for me here means downloading it or watching it online). But on the Eve of this wonderful event I have a bone to pick with the producers of "The Biggest Loser" and have written them a letter. I hope you enjoy.

Dear Biggest Loser,

Listen, you have an amazing show. I personally love your show. You’re saving lives and giving hundreds of families across America more time to spend together. Not only that, but they’re enjoying their lives like never before and not ashamed of their health. You’re making money hand over fist; between book deals, workout stuff, and the show… you’re doing fine. And it’s because of all this that I can’t stand this one part of your show.

The corny… fake… see it from a mile away… product placement ads you do on every episode. I can’t tell you how belittled I feel when you try to pass off these “natural” moments between the trainers and contests, when they aren’t even close to that at all.

That’s why I want to tell you this. We’ve bought into your show. We tune in each week to see our favorite contests, the challenges you setup (which are awesome) and the results… you don’t need to hook us with your ads, we’ll watch them, it’s fine. Just have Bob, Jillian or one of the contestants come out and say “Chewing Extra long lasting flavor gum helped me lose 48 lbs in 2 weeks…” or whatever.

Please, stop the “natural” ads.

P.S. If you don’t stop the ads I will still love your show and tune in each week.

If you agree, disagree, or hate that I took a post to write about this, let me know on the comments section.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Week 17 Recap and looking towards the Playoffs

2010-01-04T09:03:00.002+08:00

As a Vikings fan, this week was exactly what we needed. Now remember I’m in China so I can’t watch the games, but from what I read it sounded like the Vikes came out and played incredibly. Granted the Giants had nothing but pride to play for, which seems like less and less of a reason for NFL players to play. It seemed like we ran a pass heavy first half which is exactly what we need to do from here on out. When we were winning it was because of Favre, not Peterson. We “preserved” Favre for this stretch of the season, I doubt he will come back next season, so let the man throw the ball 40 times.

But also it was awesome to see a few NFC playoff teams struggle this week. I know that the Saints didn’t start everyone and it seems like the Cardinals didn’t either, but either way it feels good. The Eagles however got rocked by the Cowboys which is great. That’s great because I hate the Eagles. Green Bay is still looking impressive and the Cowboys are shocking everyone with their late season run.

In the end the Vikes get a week off and one more in the Metrodome. I’m not sure at this point who I hope we get to play. We know it WILL NOT be the Eagles, because if they do win they will play New Orleans. Each team at this point is a scary team on any given Sunday… but the Vikes are no slouches either. I’m glad to have this win to put the past few weeks even more behind us.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

16 things I accomplished in 2009

2010-01-03T13:39:00.005+08:00

As we move into this next year, I wanted to take a moment (or a post) to write about some things I accomplished in 2009. Not as a way to brag about myself but as a way to remind myself of the wonderful year I was blessed with. As you read this think of things you’re proud of accomplishing in 2009 and add a comment at the bottom of the post.

Pregnant with baby number three (not me, silly)- If you had told me at the beginning of 2009 that we would be having a third baby I would have pointed at you and laughed. But as the year rolled along my wife and I made the decision to jump into the pool of three kids… we’re nervous, but not one day passes that I don’t get more excited about it.
Continued my studies of Chinese- I would have guessed that this would be accomplished, but honestly life is unpredictable and I don’t want to take for granite that I was able to spend another amazing year studying Chinese.
Continued my blogging- This has become a love of mine and like most things I obsess over, they fade… fast. But blogging has held on and that makes me happy, because I’m able to include all of you wonderful people in our lives. I look forward to continuing this trend.
Started a new blog (this one)- It became more and more clear to me that there were things I wanted to write about that didn’t fit into our family blog. That’s not to say that I’m going to neglect that one, because I love writing about our lives. But, I’m very excited about this blog as a place for me to grow as a writer and add (hopefully) to those who come and visit.
Went on an amazing trip with my brother (thanks Wifey and Jenny)- This was a wonderful gift given to my brother and I by our equally wonderful wives. A memorable trip to an amazing place, Beijing. Glad this was something that we got to do in 2009!
Was able to see the great wall- I don’t want this to seem like an exaggeration, seeing as how I live in China, but of all the things I’ve seen in my traveling, the Great Wall is easily the coolest thing I’ve seen. I really can’t fully explain how awesome it is.
Visited The Forbidden Palace- The size of this place was the thing that caught me most off guard. I always thought it was a building and courtyard, not an actual CITY! It was fun to check it all out.
Stood in Tiananmen square- Umm, this doesn’t touch the wonder that accompanies the Great Wall or the Forbidden City, but it has TONS of history. And there is an awe that comes with standing in the place of history.
Started teaching English- I’m really enjoying teaching English and I’m glad that 2009 was the year I got started in it. I’m not sure how long it will last, but hopefully I can do it for a while.
Started to tutor- Again, I wouldn’t have guessed that I would have started this in 2009, but it too has brought a level of joy and satisfaction to my life that I’m grateful for.
Went to Shanghai for the first time- Shanghai is an amazing city and really it’s the city of China’s future (sorry Beijing). The architecture (which I normally wouldn’t notice) was unbelievable. In America most buildings are built to maximize functionality, but in Shanghai a lot of detail is given to aesthetics. A great city! The people however…
Finished two home projects, the playhouse- Heather and I had the idea of building a playhouse in the girls’ room. Usually with us that’s where the road ends. I’m terrible at finishing projects. I hope to get better as I get older and took the first step by actually finishing something. It turned out great and we’re happy we followed through with it.
Finished two home projects, (nearly) the kitchen table- I have ideas I’m excited about and never follow through with and one of those ideas was to build a gigantic kitchen table. Our old one was small and not easy to have people over for dinner. We hope to have a warm and welcoming home for our friends and getting a dream kitchen table was important to me. And again I surprised myself by (nearly) finishing it. I say nearly because it will officially be done in 2010, but who’s counting.
Had an amazing visit from my mom- It was so fun showing my mom around our city of Xian. As well as showing her our lives here. I hope that she comes again as well as other friends and family. Thanks again for coming mom!
Saw the Terracotta Warriors for the first time- This was really a cool experience. It was hard to imagine that this site was only discovered 20 years ago. The guy who discovered it signs books and pictures and is kinda a local celebrity. When I saw him get up from his table (where he was signing visitors stuff) and go to the bathroom, I followed him in so I could say hi when he came out. He was in there for a while. But I did pick up his pipe that he had set on the counter near the facet, that’s as close as I came to the legend.
Put together a weeks’ worth of lecture material- This was another project that I wanted to finish. As I write this I’m seeing that I did follow through with a lot of things I started, maybe a new tread has already started. I hope to share this in the future (my lecture content), maybe you will see it on my accomplishments next year?

This is only my list, but I wanna hear about you. What did you accomplish in 2009?

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Getting a recommendation for a job in China

2010-01-01T22:56:00.001+08:00

The longer my family and I live in China the more we find out about the Chinese culture. From time to time we come across an interesting difference between our two cultures. Recently a friend gave me this analogy to explain one particular area of “losing face” or “shaming” someone. I found this really interesting and wanted to pass it on. Here it is:

So in China let’s say there’s a guy whose specialty is computers. One day he goes to find a job and applies at a company that’s in his related field. When he applies he has a letter of recommendation from Bill Gates. The company sees his recommendation and they give him the job.

It doesn’t seem all that different from what would happen in America, right? But what’s interesting is that although the person would get the job regardless of him being in America or China, why he would get the job is different.

In America, he would get the job because BILL GATES one of the biggest names in the computer industry recommended him, so he must be qualified! We would look at Bill Gates ability to judge talent and trust his opinion.

But in China it’s not the same. He would get the job as well, but he would get it because the company wouldn’t want to shame (another way to say this would be, to embarrass) Bill Gates by refusing a person he recommended. In China, shaming someone or causing them to lose face is a very serious matter. You can do much harm here by embarrassing someone even if it’s done unintentionally… which I’m sure I do nearly every day.

Interesting, huh? What do you think? Leave comments below.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Missing things I never cared about

2009-12-31T15:27:00.003+08:00

So Culture Shock is a term for what you experience as you move to a new place. It can be feelings of; loneliness, depression, or even anger towards your new situation. When you move overseas it can be really intense for the first couple years. It can break you down mentally and even cause you to give up on your new life in your new environment.

It also can make you miss the most random things. It’s funny because when my mom mails us packages she always tucks some candy in with whatever she’s mailing. Sometimes it’s candy I never would have bought in the States, but as soon as my eyes see the candy in those packages I instantly hide it so that my loved ones won’t find it. (OK it’s not that intense, but close)

In Beijing you can get Root Beer (you can’t in Xian). And in the States I liked root beer, but not that much. Well when I get my hands on one here I enjoy it as if it’s the most expansive and sought after drink in all the world… and… its just root beer.

It’s interesting to me that some of the things I enjoy most here are things I could have cared less about in America. My day is made when I get to eat/drink something I walked past a million times in stores scattered throughout America.

What would be something you would miss if you moved overseas? Leave your comments below.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

“Same kind of different as me” book review

2009-12-30T14:15:00.007+08:00

Books that are true stories are amazing to me, they pull me in and don’t let go. “Same kind of different as me” is a true story that pulled me in. The book is primarily about a homeless black man named “Denver” and a wealthy white couple, “Ron” and “Deborah”. The book details the upbringing of Denver and Ron as well as key stories that shaped both of them as people. Eventually Ron, Deborah and Denver’s paths cross and the book continues on telling their story from each side.

I don’t obviously want to give away too much of the book, but reading about Denver’s childhood was particularly interesting. He was raised in a family that worked on a cotton plantation and to see that their situation is no less then modern day slavery was a harsh reality. So often we hear of slavery as part of history or some other countries problem (like child sex trafficking), but to see how it still exists under a different disguise within our own country is something that needs to be brought more into the light. And this book does an incredible job of exposing this problem, putting names and faces to this issue will touch you more than any stats you could read on slavery or poverty.

Also, seeing the passionate lives of people who give themselves fully to serving others is incredible, as you find with Deborah. It’s refreshing to read about men and women of passion, because it in turn, stirs us. The dreams and things they (Ron and Deborah) do to serve the poor in their community is inspiring. Again, it’s a needed thing to read about passion and lives that reflect it, because it will push us in our own lives.

On a last note, Denver shows an incredible; depth, wisdom and love that shocked me. I guess I too wrote him off as being uneducated and not being able to contribute in certain ways because of that. But over and over he drops these amazing lines of wisdom and displays a radical love for those he’s loyal too. It was humbling to read.

I would encourage people who are interested in issues of social injustice, poverty, slavery or serving others to pick this book up and give it a read. Again, the fact that it’s a true story also gives the book a depth and personality that makes it hard to put down.

Same Kind of Different as me is written by Denver Moore and Ron Hall

Any of you read any good books lately? Leave a comment at the bottom of the page and let us know.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

P.S. I just read that they are going to be making this story into a movie, with Samuel L. Jackson playing Denver Moore. Should be worth a trip to see.

Vikings Bears game recap

2009-12-29T21:59:00.002+08:00

Really I could leave this post blank and that would correctly sum up how I feel about my beloved Purple. At a complete loss. I don’t get to watch games here in China (which was a good thing this week), but when I opened my computer I got on NFL.com and saw that the Bears had just recovered a fumble in OT. A short few moments later and we had lost.

A month ago I was really confident that making it to the Super Bowl was possible, now I’m not sure we will make it out of the first round of the playoffs. We’ll see.

I do think we need to just let Brett, be Brett. Have him throw the ball 40 times a game, it’s his last season (I’m guessing) so let’s put the team on his shoulders. We might not get the chance to again.

Brett Favre and December

2009-12-28T14:01:00.006+08:00

It pains me to say this, but was green bay right about Brett Favre? It’s December and we’re falling apart. Brett went from a serious MVP contender only three short weeks ago to all of the sudden re-enforcing all his critics. We’ve had two bad losses, one to the Cardinals (which are a completely respectable team), and another to the lowly undermanned Panthers. Luckily, the Panthers just blew out the Giants and Matt Moore (the Panthers backup QB) looked good, which helped the Vikings pride level a little bit.

But bad loses this late in the season can be either really good or really bad. They can help humble a team and get it refocused, or it can crush the momentum and confidence that is needed heading into the playoffs.

This week is a big game (vs. the Bears), we need our defense to step up and we need Favre to be the Brett we saw weeks 1-12. And a lot of this has to do with Peterson getting some big gains early on.

And as much as it pains me to say this as well, I sincerely hope we don’t have to play the Packers again. Playing a division rival 3 times in one season and winning each game is a tough challenge. It would be a highly emotional game against a very hot Green Bay Packers team...

On another note, it’s great to see the Saints also falling apart. Come on Viks we can do this!

Enjoy this day,
Matt

7 tips for shopping overseas

2009-12-26T23:33:00.003+08:00

(First let me say that these rules; aren’t fair, not always nice, and hard to master. But they will help you when you’re shopping in another land. Here’s an example of an unfair rule, “go directly to jail, do not pass go, do not collect $200. I mean no trial? Can’t I at least see my lawyer? But just like the “go directly to jail” rule, follow these)

This post was inspired by my recent trip to Beijing. My wife and oldest daughter were at the hotel sleeping and so my youngest daughter and I headed out to face whatever the hard streets of Beijing could throw our way. We actually stumbled into (what I think was) a section of the famous Silk Market. From the moment we entered we were hounded by people selling clothes of all sorts of natures. It can get a little stressful if you’re not prepared. So here are some tips.

IF YOU REALLY AREN’T SHOPPING

Don’t make eye contact with the seller- I told you these rules weren’t always nice. But in the end it’s best for you and the person trying to pawn stuff off on you, if you just don’t meet their gaze. When you do you become personally connected. And it’s harder to avoid a person who you’re looking at or have looked at. I prefer the oldest trick in the book of pretending to be completely engrossed in something in the exact opposite direction.

Don’t answer their questions- As innocent as the question may be. “Where are you from?” is a popular one, and for good reason, we love to talk about ourselves. But they don’t care where you’re from, you could make a place up and it wouldn’t make a difference. This method is often step two for a seller when you avoid eye contact. So pretend you don’t speak whatever language they’re using.

Walk, and walk fast- If the eye contact doesn’t happen, if the questions are ignored then sometimes people will stand in your way, block you from an exit, or grab your arm all in the name of a sale. And in the end I can’t blame them, they’re working for a family just like the rest of us, but you need to walk and walk fast if you aren’t shopping.

IF YOU REALLY ARE SHOPPING

Know your price- This can’t be stressed enough. Period. Period. (see how I added another period to emphasize my point) Because this is what typically happens; “You want to buy this shirt?” sure you’ll say and you’ll add “how much?” to which they will reply “How much will you pay?” or some variation of this depending on their level of English. If you haven’t thought this through, it can be an awkward moment as you try to do mental math of how much A dollars is equal to B dollars. Be confident.

ALWAYS go lower then what you’re willing to pay- Bartering is a dance, if you don’t know what you’re doing you’ll fall down and everyone will point and laugh at you. So when they ask “How much?” you already knowing what you’re willing to pay, so counter with an offer less then what you’re willing to pay. It is the absolute worst feeling in the world to have your initial offer accepted .2 seconds after you offer it. Because what do you do then? Tell them the price you said and that they agreed to is too high? No. It might seem like common sense, but go less then what you are willing to pay.

Get all your stuff or souvenirs from the same person- This helps so much with your bargaining power. If a person sees a $50 sale walking out the door they will be much more willing to come your way, as compared to say… a $2 purchase.

Walk away, even if you want it… seriously- All too often we just settle when bargaining. If you really want to get the price you’re asking for, walk away. As you are leaving the door the seller will be much more willing to bend on his price.

I remember once when this really didn’t work out for me though. I was buying a dresser (or something like that) from a stall in Xian that sells used furniture. The lady wasn’t budging on the price so I started to walk away in an attempt to get her to follow me and lower the price. After about 30 feet my wife was walking towards me and I quickly mumbled this question to her “Is anybody following me?” to which she replied “No”.

I learned that day that sometimes even these rules don’t work. What works for you? (Add a comment at the bottom of this page)

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Thoughts on Christmas

2009-12-25T23:07:00.003+08:00

Remember when you were a kid and you made those paper link chains and each day left until Christmas was represented by a paper link? How going to bed was almost a treat because it meant that you could wake up and tear off one more link in the morning… that Christmas, was one day closer.

It seems like forever ago. When you’re a kid, Christmas revolves around you and it’s amazing. The rituals of where you go, when you go and what you get, all laid out each and every year. It’s magical.

But then you get older. Christmas stops being about you. Stops being about your presents, your expectations and your schedule. And it starts becoming about; your spouse, your kids, and your friends. Instead of counting down the days till Christmas with each day taking years to pass, Christmas sneaks up on you like a thief.

If you're not careful it can lose it's luster. But I don't think it has to be that way. We can still enjoy it.

Of course, it takes more discipline to enjoy Christmas as an adult and a change of expectations, but it’s worth it. It’s worth it to allow the attention to drift off of you and onto someone else. To share a gift with someone and to just do something nice for someone else. I know I need to learn this more and practice it even more then that.

Also, I just finished my paper link chain till the next Christmas… took me forever.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

How much money do you make?

2009-12-22T08:42:00.002+08:00

“How much money do you make in a month?”
“How much is your rent?”

These, as well as many others, are questions about living costs we get here in China quite a bit. And you may be thinking to yourself “OK with a friend, it’s not that big of a deal” and you would be right, if it were a friend asking you this. But in China that’s not the case.

A common conversation with a stranger may include the above questions. Here’s a quick scene that plays out here nearly daily. I’m talking with a cab driver and within minutes it turns into “What do you do here?” and I say “Oh I teach English” which is immediately met with “How much do you make?” And the reality is that a lot of strangers have no problems asking you this.

It’s funny because China isn’t a direct nation in their communication style and America (for the most part) is. But an American would typically not ask another American how much he made or what he pays for rent or any other living expense for that matter (especially not if the other person were a complete stranger). We’re just not open about money.

And to be honest, I don’t (at this point) have a conclusion for why this is. Why is it that we will be direct about so many things, but money isn’t within the boundaries of most social interactions? Why are the Chinese so indirect about so many things, but have absolutely no problem asking a complete stranger how much he makes? It boggles me.

Its questions like these that excite me. I live in China and am able to grow as a person as I see flaws in my own cultural systems and learn about someone else’s. Like I said I don’t have answers, only observations. And only a warning for anyone traveling or moving to China to get used to questions they normally wouldn’t be faced with.

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Why goodbyes are a good thing

2009-12-18T23:22:00.001+08:00

I love goodbyes. Here’s my case for why. Typically you hear people say “I hate goodbyes” which isn’t to say they hate saying goodbye at end of hanging out, but rather the goodbyes that are followed by not seeing the other person for a long time. And that is the kind of goodbyes I’m talking about, the ones that leave you desperately leaning on; Facebook, Twitter, Skype and email just to communicate simple things with good friends.

I wanted to write about this in light of my own life. My wife, daughters and I, over the past year and a half in China have gotten close with a friend of ours here, Lisa. Tomorrow she leaves for America and will be out of our day to day lives. It sucks. It hurts. But you know what, I love it.

Saying goodbye to someone you’re close with is never easy. But would it be better if you never cared enough for someone else to care about saying goodbye? It sucks and hurts because that person meant something to you, because they are part of your life and in turn, part of you. Again, if you never got close to other people, then goodbyes would never be hard, but is that a good alternative? Would you want it any other way?

You could sum it up like this “let there be pain, because it means there was life”.

Of course, the argument could be made that if no one ever left you, you wouldn’t have to say goodbye. Really though, that isn’t even close to being reality, because our lives are always in transition. As each of us pursue our passions, loves, and goals, we, inevitably end up on a different road then we have been traveling on. And isn’t that something we should champion in those around us, pursuit of what’s next?

This my friends, is why I love goodbyes.

What do you think?

Enjoy this day,
Matt

Why relationships are important

2009-12-17T22:45:00.005+08:00

So for my first official blog post I wanted to write about relationships. This post comes out of a time when I shared with some friends here about relationships and wanted to pass on what I shared. This is new territory for me since I'm used to writing stories. So, I hope you enjoy it and please feel free to write me and tell me if you liked it or hated it.

(Author's note: When I talk about relationships I don't mean boyfriend/girlfriend... I'm not in high school anymore. What I mean is your friends, family, the guy who works at the gas station or the girl who makes your coffee at Starbucks. People who are important in your life and people who are part of your routine.)

I shared a couple of main points; one of them being that time is a thief. We can never get seasons of our life back. Once they’re gone, they’re gone. And with that we never know who we’re going to impact through our life. Don’t neglect even the smallest relationship in your life, because that might be the most important relationship for making a difference.

In my life I saw this in a guy I met after living here only a month or so. He’s a Chinese guy (Brian) and we would occasionally bump into each other. Each time we would exchange hello’s and get caught up on how the other is doing. But it would have been easy for me to avoid him when I saw him or ignore his calls. Well I chose not to and as a result of building a relationship with this guy a great opportunity has opened up to me.

He (Brian) called me a few months ago to ask if I would like to tutor a girl in her English. Tutoring this girl has become a great way for me to spend my time and grow in my teaching gift as well as serving her family. I would never have envisioned myself doing this and it has been a pleasant surprise. And it came as a result of having this guy, Brian, in my life. I’m not saying that friends are only there to provide us for opportunities, I am however saying, that building relationships opens doors to do great things and grow as person.

We also don’t know what will impact people and should never neglect even the smallest area of life. But instead we should regard all of our life and all of our interactions with others as important. I recently had a Chinese friend tell me that when he was at University he had a foreign teacher who taught him English. And what my friend said is that this teacher was dedicated to his work, came to work prepared and was in general a hard worker. My friend went to him and asked why he was like this and the teacher began to share his life with my friend.

This student is a completely different person because of this teacher’s influence on his life. All because this guy was a hard worker and devoted to his students. And what I told my friends while sharing with them is that; “though we never know what will impact people, we do know we won’t impact them if we don’t share our lives.”

Lastly, I want to share a proverb from an old book that reads like this, “An empty stable stays clean, but no income comes from an empty stable.” When I first read this proverb I had no idea what it meant, later I read another person’s interpretation of its meaning and he said this about it, “The only way to keep your life free of people problems is to keep it free of people. But if your life is empty of people, it's useless.” Relationships are messy, they add stress to your life and make things more difficult, but they’re worth it. It’s so important for us and others that we share our lives, we are the most valuable thing we have to give to others. You can keep your life easy by not investing in relationships, but is that the point of life? Let’s get messy and get to know each other, growing, learning, and sharing in each other’s joys and difficulties.

But these are only my thoughts, what are yours?

Enjoy this day,
Matt

What This Blog Will Be

2009-12-17T20:51:00.003+08:00

So here's the story. I've been blogging for close to two years about my family and our life here in China. Blogging has been an unexpected blast. Recently I've pondered what it would take to become a better writer and what I found inspired me. Most people said that to write better, you need to write more. Just like an athlete will practise his sport, a writer must practise his skill also. This inspired me to share more then just stories about my family in China (which I love to do and will continue to do), but to also share my thoughts on life, China, maybe through in some interviews, book reviews, sports stuff and anything else I feel would benefit others.

I didn't want to flood our family blog with all this new content that really is geared more for a different audience anyways. So my wife gave me some good advice (which she does a lot) and suggested I start another blog. So I'm launching this blog! I hope to have some useful stuff on here and I also hope it adds to you, the reader. So that's what this blog will be.

So what do you want to hear about?

Enjoy this day,
Matt