At the very beginning

Here is Sally as she sat down and began to move things from the China cabinet. It is the first moments of packing again. Let's see if she still has this enthusiasm on the last box!

Perpetual Cycle

The circle goes on and on. Once again, we are packing up our house. We found out yesterday, after talking with the folks at my office, that we will need to move out of our apartment since we will be gone for 9 months and the apartment will be rented out. We will need to find a new place to live when we return. We weighed this out and decided it was in the best interest of our family to do this, even though we lose our 'huge' apartment.

So, we brought some boxes home yesterday and this morning, we packed all of our China and crystal. We have all culled our clothes closets and Audrey and Emily are going through their toys. For only the first day of work, we have gotten off to a great start. We moved the hide-a-bed into the living room, behind our other couch to give us a "storage" room to stack our boxes in. I'll post some pictures when there is something to look at.

Sally says it seems like all she ever does is either pack or unpack!

Big Day, Big Changes

This is to let you know that we have changed our departure to the USA to March 16, instead of June 2! Grandparents have been notified and are standing by with Gem Donuts and trips to Wal-Mart.

You can keep track of how long to departure in the little blue box in the upper right hand column.





Yeehaa!!! Time for the "Happy Dance!"

18.6 pounds and counting

I've lost just over 18 and a half pounds in 5 weeks.

Ask me how!

Less than 4 months to go

We have less than 4 months to go before we arrive in Oklahoma for a 7 month stay. We'll be staying in the home shown above which is right next door to my Mom and Dad in Ft. Gibson, OK. It is right on Ft. Gibson Lake. Dad has a couple of docks and boats and hopefully, we'll get our fill of fishing.

We will be arriving in TUL on June 2 at about 9:45 pm. We all can't wait to see our family and friends!

Disney Pic

Here is a copy of a picture we had taken at Hong Kong Disneyland last year. I've intended to post it, but thought that now was as good as time as any to post it.

Sick Kid

Poor little Emily. I got a call from the school yesterday to come and pick her up as she was running a fever and had a bad headache. I did. She came home and went to bed. I knew she was sick when she went to bed without asking.

She crawled in bed with us this morning, just burning up. So, she stayed home again today. She slept most of the day. Sally took her to the doctor and he said she has the flu! She was running 104 F this afternoon. It didn't respond to the Tylenol. The fever finally came down, but never really "broke".

Hopefully, she'll feel better tomorrow.

Flickr Update

I've recently added photos to my Flickr account. You might enjoy looking at them.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rboyne/

Two in a row!

For the second year in a row, a beautiful Oklahoma girl has won the Miss America Pageant! I'm not much into beauty pageants (or scholarship contests a la Miss Congeniality), but for crying out loud; an OKIE won it again!

God Bless Oklahoma!

Watch out for the "Wintry Winds"

From the Hong Kong Observatory:



COLD WEATHER WARNING

THE COLD WEATHER WARNING IS NOW IN FORCE. THE HONG KONG OBSERVATORY IS FORECASTING COLD WEATHER IN HONG KONG DURING THE OVERNIGHT PERIOD AND TOMORROW MORNING.

AS HONG KONG IS BEING AFFECTED BY A COLD WINTER MONSOON,PEOPLE ARE ADVISED TO PUT ON WARM CLOTHES AND TO AVOID ADVERSE HEALTH EFFECTS DUE TO THE COLD WEATHER. YOU MUST ALSO ENSURE ADEQUATE INDOOR VENTILATION.

IF YOU MUST GO OUT, PLEASE AVOID PROLONGED EXPOSURE TO WINTRY WINDS.

IF YOU KNOW OF ELDERLY PERSONS OR PERSONS WITH CHRONIC MEDICAL CONDITIONS STAYING ALONE, PLEASE CALL OR VISIT THEM OCCASIONALLY TO CHECK IF THEY NEED ANY ASSISTANCE. MAKE SURE HEATERS ARE SAFE BEFORE USE, AND PLACE THEM AWAY FROM ANY COMBUSTIBLES. DO NOT LIGHT FIRES INDOORS AS AMEANS TO KEEP WARM.

WHATEVER THE TEMPERATURE, PLEASE ENSURE THAT THERE ISPLENTY OF FRESH AIR IN YOUR ROOM WHEN YOU ARE USING ANOLD-TYPE GAS WATER HEATER.

DISPATCHED BY HONG KONG OBSERVATORY AT 16:20 HKT ON 29.01.2007

PS: The cold temperature forcast is supposed to be 53 F or 12 C.

Gettin' Ready

Yep, Hong Kong (and all of Asia) is getting ready for Chinese New Year, locally known as the Spring Festival. All kinds of decorations are being sold at staionery and junk stores all around town.

Taxi TV

OK, so this isn't the greatest picture in the world, but I was in the back seat of a taxi in Shekou, China, and the guy had a TV in the headrest! I couldn't believe that THIS PARTICULAR TECHNOLOGY has manifested itself in China (of all places!). The driver was so proud that he could provide this for his passengers. I really didn't like it, as I always prefer to look out the window. I took the picture with my camera phone.

Atkins Update #3

At the end of three weeks on the Atkins Diet, I have lost a total of 14 pounds! I will stay in "Phase 1" for at least one more week.

Thanks for all your prayers!

The Van

Our office has one vehicle that we can use from time to time. One of my colleagues goes to the same church as us and we often go to church together in the van. Here is a pic of the girls and the van this morning on the way to church.

Too Many Languages

I am not really bragging; more of complaining.

I have just taken a test in my 7th languge (and passed it, by the way). Over the course of my life, I have now studied (and been tested in): (in order)

English (well, Okie)
Spanish
French
Cantonese
Pular
Thai
Mandarin

I actually took a year of high school French before I lived in Africa, so that is why it comes in as third. I'm really only fluent in Okie and French. I could probably polish up on my Spanish and be fluent with ina few weeks, but it has been a loooong time. In fact, the last time I had a serious conversation in Spanish, the muchacho I was talking with just quit responding to me. I mentioned this to Sally and she said, "Well, you switched to French 5 minutes ago!"