Piggies

  When Z, S, and I went out to get siding from Shawna's old house a while back, we got to see piggies!
I remember being excited to see them but it was sad at the same time.
Looking back at these pictures makes the memories of that sunny day seem much more dark.
Most people don't agree with me but I think it is sad humans still think they need to slaughter animals to survive.  It's not about being at the top of the food chain or "these animals were given to us by god to do with as we please", or even about being healthy, it's about compassion for another living, breathing being that feels pain just like you and I.  It's been almost 15 years.  It is such a part of me that I don't think about it everyday anymore and I am not dropping banners from any fast food chain stores or bridges during thanksgiving anymore but my conviction hasn't wavered once.

Piggies!

What's over there?

This one actually looks like he is smiling a little.

Sad eyes.

Bonus:

Elephants!

Good cold ride.

32 degrees.

Splitting lanes like I wish I could on my motorcycle.

Brought me back to life tonight.

Reminded me of loner late nights in Tokyo shooting photos.

I might need to build a bike this winter.....and I'm not talking another motorcycle.

Thanks Tim and Jason.

Bicycles.

Some of my earliest memories at the house my parents sold when I was 7 are of riding a white BMX bike off hand made jumps with my brother. 

 I have missed late night riding in Bloomington since I moved to Indy.

These last two weeks have rekindled that fire.  

Best view of the city?

Elephants never forget.

勤労感謝の日

While I am not exactly excited about the roots of this American holiday, I do understand the need to reflect on who we are thankful for in life.  In Japan this is celebrated as 勤労感謝の日、or labor day thanksgiving.  Though the name and date changes during the occupation of Japan after the war, it originally was a celebration of the first harvest of rice.  

It is easy to get caught up in our everyday and take those around us for granted.  I am thankful this year for that realization, even though it came at a great cost.

Mom's vegan pumpkin pie. 

感謝！！

My dad finally retired. 

So I put him to work.  

I look forward to being able to spend more time with him.

Door demo!

Still need to trim the inside, caulk and paint.

Some people say that sometimes one door has to shut for another to open.  

I replaced the whole damn door.  

So what's next?

Dark days.

  

I hope I made you feel less alone through this dark time in your life.  Even though I knew it would probably come to an end and you would cut me off again, it was the least I could do after putting your through what I did years ago.  I owe you so much more and can only dream of being able to get a chance to make it up to you.  

I am thankful I had one last chance to feel close to you, to hear your voice again. 

Your warm embrace.  

I am grateful to have had the chance to let you know exactly how I felt and know that you understood and believed me.  

To know that I did everything I could have possibly done.

Being able to talk to you lifted my spirits for a couple of days.  

Lifted the pain and made me feel lighter.  

Free again, almost like when we were together.  

I am no fool though, I saw it looming above.  

Casting it’s shadow the whole time. 

Only you had the strength to lift it off of me for that short time.  

Some day I will be able to do move it on my own.  

But not today.

Building blocks

 In life each one of us is building a home.  Things we love, the activities we participate in, the people we surround ourselves with are the materials we use.  We are always building, rebuilding, and repairing.  It's something that none of us can completely control, even if we put all of our energy into it.  People and animals come and go.  Unexpected life events, good and bad, shape our buildings.
They fill our homes with love and build our foundations stronger.

Sometimes there is a person that you meet along the way that becomes more of a part of the building than anyone else.  That person becomes so much a part of it that before you know it you are the same structure.  Life events, people, animals all pass through and it effects you both equally.

You are the same structure.
You have the same roof.
You have the same walls.
You are one.


Then that person leaves. 


The structure won't stand on it's own anymore.
It's not like it got split down the middle either.

A wall from this room, a piece of foundation here, the wiring from just the second floor.
The entire east wall and most of the kitchen.
So many fragments missing that the whole thing just collapses.
There is no patching or repairing, just piles of rubble.

It doesn't hold off the rain or the snow, there is no roof.
Cold winds freeze everything inside.

Life's good events are a fog and the bad ones are intolerable.
Anything that gets built up gets knocked down by even the weakest wind.
All the pieces scattered around.
An impossible puzzle.
And the builder knows that even if he tried it's only half there at best.
He knows it can't be rebuilt.

It can only ever be half a building.

And the motivation and passion for building anything fades.
The only thing left is the memory of the other half.
And a flicker of hope, always at great risk of being put out,
that the other half will come back again.

Moyou's birthday month

  So first a new bed and some toys.

Now a lathe.  Look at how happy she is!

Thanks Tim's brother.

I hope everything works out for you.

Madrid

I was in Madrid for three nights right at the beginning of our recent trip to Spain and Portugal. It’s a city which doesn’t seem to sleep much at night. They must have unique body clocks though one thing they do have in common with Vietnam is the afternoon nap. The only difference is that the people in Madrid have their siestas later than in Vietnam. The shops and businesses open again late in the afternoon. 

But I love the idea of starting dinner at about 9pm and partying until 5am even though I’m getting a bit old for that kind of timetable. I suppose people in Madird just get used to it. I stayed at the Francisco Hotel located in Sol district, a vehicle free area with lots of public squares, shops, restaurants and night clubs. Every evening, the locals come out for a walk before heading to restaurants to eat and later to bars and nightclubs to party. The noise happens when they go home in the early hours of the morning. I could hear them very clearly. They take a long time to go home! This may have been the reason why I wasn’t able to adapt to the timezone that quickly this time. I kept waking up. One night, I fell asleep at the table and my friends woke me up. How embarrassing!!!!!

 My drink of choice in Spain was sangria which is great for a hot day, a bit sweet but not quite as strong as bubbles and prosecco. I drank sangria almost everyday – even at lunch – as well as a few glasses of cava every now and then. 

 I can't complain about the food in Madrid as most of the local places we ate at were great and not that expensive. Pickled octopus, prawns and mussels in vinegar and the jamon ham was the best. I love them all. One dish I especially remember was a brilliant baby mushroom stir fried with ham, yum!!!!! 

I used the hop-on, hop-off bus to get an overview of Madrid and then we walked for the rest of the time. The architecture in Madrid is fabulous with impressive old squares, early 20th century buildings along the Gran Via Street. There is a great feeling of space here which is very different to the big cities in Asia.

In the next episode, I visit Salamanca to the west of Madrid.

Operating room and Moyou's birthday

The lift needed new cast iron wheels.  

Bought them close to size and turned them out.  

Thanks as always Ryan....

Slightly larger....

Moyou, "When will we get one of these, dad?"

"When you start paying rent."-Me

November is Moyou's birthday.  It will be 2 years since I adopted her in February.  

A new elephant, chew toy, and bigger bed.  

The american apparel stuff is on it's way.  Shh...she doesn't know yet.

I finally framed in the windows....almost done.

Baby blue racing stripes?

The first patient in the OR.  

Thursday bike night tear down?

Rice.

Veggies.

  Might have to rename this blog to rice and veggies for life.  Sustenance.