Cafe There's

"We're here! At There's," says Phil. 

We won, one level at a time. From the moment I saw Alban walk through arrival gate B at Hong Kong Int'l, to the moment I watched him rush to the top of an escalator at Incheon Int'l, we accepted each new adventure and challenge like a new track on Mario Kart.

The Asia Happy & Wild Tour 2012 crossed five borders, consumed countless cups of mocha, sampled several different regional foods, got diarrhea, watched Spiderman and Star Trek, shared the new Beach House and Dirty Ps albums, and most importantly, included all five members of the Estate (counting one brief text message to David, and a one and a half our skype convo with Cody and J).

Among the favorite levels, was our journey to Jinbo, the place where Phil had been getting his Hugh-robes dirty this year. In Jinbo, along with delicious Kim-bop, and Kimchi stew, is the delicious little coffee trough known as "Cafe There's." We can't say much for their coffee, not because it's bad, we're sure it's the best in Jinbo, but because we didn't try it. The sign, the fake trees inside, the atmosphere, the company, and the hip wild-cat-baristas, were enough to keep our dopamine levels full on. Besides, who needs coffee when a place has hazelnut fraps on the menu? We all loved it ... a lot. The above photo shows it.

Among the most difficult levels, was getting my luggage to and from Incheon Int'l. The first time I faced this level, when Alban was busy with the Tokyo Metro level, I wasn't sure I was going to make it. I learned something though, when you're planning on carrying over 150 lbs. of luggage around a busy city to a place you've never been..., plan ahead. The second time I faced the level –– getting the luggage back to the airport for the return flight –– I had Alban with me, which made it much easier. Still, thanks to some dirty kimchi the day before, it was a close call making it to the gate on time. In our hurry, we nearly clothes-lined a few old Korean ladies in the subway stations with our fifty pound duffle. We did what we had to do, and we made it. Excited for the next tour, coming soon. 

Olney / Takoma Park / DC

Sundays are usually my least favorite days.  Especially at the start of the school year it meant working 12 hours writing lesson plans, grading, contacting parents, etc.  They got better, but not much.  The shot below shows break time.  Ash is a canaries fan.  Evan is home on weekends, which is always good.

The drive to Takoma Park from Olney takes about 30 minutes, but can be longer if traffic is bad.  Sometimes it takes over an hour.  If we are in a hurry and traffic is good, 23 minutes.  The drive to work Monday morning is not the greatest since it is hard to sleep on Sunday.  This shot shows New Hampshire Ave.  Sometimes, to entertain myself, I pretend I am in a video game and am trying to weave through traffic.  I am not sure if this is always safe.

On Tuesday, we have campus families.  If we have time, Jenny and I will bake something to take to the kidlets.  Jacqueline's cookies now have a school-wide reputation.  I think there are students who only like me because of these cookies.  Fair enough.

I always feel happy when I have completed Wednesday, since Thursday is one of my favorite days.  It's a little easy to get lost in the hallway midweek, so my classroom has a convenient duck-tape number line sticking out of it.  Plus, you can do graphs on the floor and stuff.

For a teacher, Thursdays are Fridays.  At least, that's what I think.  If we do anything fun during the week, it will be on Thursday evening.  Thursdays are sunny, as clearly shown below.

Fridays are always a happy, short day.  I like the time after school when students are still hanging around.  Everyone is exhausted, but happy.  Exhausted and happy is a good combination.  Once back at the apartment, Evan and I might have a nice cup of coffee, or kick the soccer ball around in the parking lot.

We don't go into DC that often, because it takes about an hour from Olney.   Sometimes we make the trip on Saturday, and we will invariably stop at Peregrine Espresso.  On one such occasion, Brian and Tiffany and I quizzed ourselves and the friendly barista with a Trivial Pursuit book.

Jordy Baby

He's not in the Closet anymore. He's living in Hallmark or something lame like that, butt Jordan Kattenhorn spent a whole year holding down the left backside of the house. Alban and I used to harass him about his sedentary lifestyle. Jordan studied like he meant it, spending much of his time sitting on his tush with a book open. When he wasn't studying, he was cooking in the bottom kitchen, much to Alban's dislike. Not because Jordan's food wasn't good, but because Jordan's food was healthy. He even made a healthy variation of biscuits, that were really more like buns.

Now we know what all that was about, Jordan was just getting ready to bare it all just before he graduated.

Chaos Theory

I recently read an article about Chaos Theory. And Muppets.

The author advanced the theory that most people can be grouped into "order muppets" or "chaos muppets." Chaos muppets tend to be disorganized, emotional and fuzzy; i.e. Cookie Monster, Ernie and Phil. Order muppets tend to be neurotic, ordered and secretly enjoy the weight of responsibility; i.e. Bert or Alban.

Then there are the people who don't classify so easily. Those who seem to purposefully create chaos, but only because they believe it will lead to a more efficient order in the end; i.e. Oscar the Grouch or Cody. These kind of muppets are bookends to the other kind that project order but secretly enjoy the chaos. I'd probably place Tommy here.

Jacque - at times gives the appearance of a tornado juggling multiple responsibilities but secretly seeks balance and order.

Jessi - combines the appearance of an icelandic chaos muppet with the motivated work ethic of a classic order muppet.

Brendan = Elmo

A Life Motto

"Everyone is ticklish if you search long enough."

                             - Jonathan Nickel, Estate member 2010

Berkeley

My life in Berkeley, California is small. I live up the hill from the law school; a 7 minute walk or a 5 minute sprint. And I live only between those two points. Except on Friday mornings, which is laundry day. Then, I drive down College Avenue to Diseasey Central (the washing machines have recently been in desperate need of cleaning).

Nonetheless, this smallness is one of the reasons I'm moving at the end of this week. It's hard to leave, as you'll understand, but the Berkeley Student Cooperative promises to be a horizon-expanding adventure.

These pictures detail the steps between my studio and the law school and the one major detour I've made this year: the Occupy protests.

Self portrait

I watch the sun set from here

And watch bad drivers navigate this corner

The sunset

And you can see the Golden Gate

My street

My path

The view from my path

The view from my porch

A Berkeley classic re-imagined 

Occupy Oakland

Occupy is a family affair

My iconic image from the Port of Oakland

To Create

Shipping soon from xiang gang.