“Oh my gosh” is how I feel about our ride back to Taiwan.

The wedding turned out great. Emily spear-headed the programs, favors, and kicked butt in general being the sister leading up to the big event. She was literally awesome and I’m not just saying that because I’m her husband. I was a gofer. I think the job suited me. My favorite jobs were the ones to help Chris. Being a recent groom myself I remembered a few things that, if remembered, add a lot to the day. It was also great to see and hang out with extended family all the way up from TN and FL in addition to the usual suspects. We are so blessed to have such wonderful families and it’s so wonderful to be able to be with them.

After the wedding day we had a great time at church and then a few days down visiting with my family. I can’t say how great it was to hang with my littlest sister, even if it was just a few days. Emily and I were even able to go to The Strutt for open mic night and hear the ghost of Johnny Cash. It was rad!

I must also mention the goodness of beer in the USA as compared to Taiwan. While in Michigan I was able to enjoy Bell’s Two Hearted (Thank you Chris) and Short’s Huma Lupa Licious (Thank you Dan). Is it wrong for me to enjoy good beer so much that I include it in blog posts but leave out how good it was to have ‘future plans’ conversations with my dad, mom, and sister? Anyways, those are two great beers and I thoroughly enjoyed each sip! If you have never had a good IPA then I suggest these two.

So Wednesday we went to DTW to fly away. No problems. We sat next to Brent, a very interesting and interested guy. We had quite a good conversation on our flight to DFW and I hope he enjoyed it as much as we did. It’s not everyday that you sit next to the guy who wrote the code for Alltel’s cellular instant-messaging service.

Dallas is where the trouble started. We took off okay but Emily and I both started to feel gross as we flew to LAX. When we landed we were tired and pretty much zombies. However, we woke up as we walked to the international terminal. Why it was freezing in SoCal but not in Michigan is something we should all be pondering. We got all checked in and to our gate. However, it was freezing there too as one of the other departure gates had their door to the outside open forever. I’m sure the two of us freezing, gross, and zombie-like, sitting and waiting for our departure time made for the ideal picture. Unfortunately we didn’t take any.

Now is where the story gets strange. The “boarding” started for our Malaysian Airlines flight. We walk out the boarding door onto the tarmac level and got put onto a bus. Bear in mind it’s the middle of the night and we had already been flying for five hours. They drove us along the tarmac way out into the fields of the airport and pulled up at this little “one-gate” terminal building. Our airplane was parked at it and all the normal service vehicles were scurrying around it. We walked into the the building at the ground level and trudge up the ramp, which accounts for the entire building, up to the airplane walkway thing. We boarded and it started to feel like a normal flight. It was so weird though. We were already really whacked out and then we rode a bus into the fields of LAX to an airplane parked at a tiny little building? I wish there was a function to get incredulity written into these words. If I was a conspiracy theorist I would start thinking they were loading the plane with weird, secret stuff and wanted to do it way far away from the normal planes or something.

So we settled in for the fifteen hour flight and Emily and I both pretty much just zonk out. I woke up as the steward was serving a meal. He kindly asked me which choice I’d like and I just stared up at him in a daze not comprehending what was happening or what I should do. After waiting a moment he moved on and I went back to sleep without a meal. Emily never even stirred. And then, the turbulence. Oi vei it was the worst turbulence I’ve ever experienced on a flight. It would come on and the captain would hastily squawk over the PA for the “cabin crew to be seated” and then the plane would start doing crazy stuff. It felt like we were diving sometimes and other times like we were being pushed back and forth by giants. At one point Emily and I heard something crash in the galley. And it would only stop for a little bit and then come on again. It seemed to go on like that forever and I became glad I hadn’t eaten dinner. Nausea with an empty stomach is better than with a full one right. During the turbulence it also got extremely warm in the plane. I would be all bundled up in my blanket and hat and sweatshirt and then shed them all during those bouts of craziness. Finally, it let up and Emily and I were able to enjoy the next meal and a few movies before landing at TPE.

Our friend, Wally, was so kind to pick us up. He drove Emily to her school for her test (yes, Emily went to class for a test straight from over 20 hours of transport) and then took me to our apartment in Taipei. We were so grateful.

Now? Now we have to deal with jet lag and homework before classes on Tuesday. It’s good to be home.

Tonight is a perfect example of the random wonderfulness that is the “expat-lifestyle.”

One of our roommates, Phil, recently went to Hong Kong on a visa run. While there he met a Hong Kongese dude named Jacky. Jacky showed Phil a good time and took him around and stuff. Earlier this week Jacky called Phil and told him, “hey, I’m coming to Taiwan for the weekend.” So Thursday night Jacky showed up at our house and Phil has been taking him out and showing him around Taipei with Jacky sleeping on our couch in between.

Earlier this evening Jacky cooked us dinner…he used to be a chef, but the head chef in the posh restaurant he worked at didn’t allow the use of any machines – so Jacky hurt his arm whisking egg whites all day, every day…now he works at some internet company or something (actually I’m not exactly sure). So anyways it wasn’t only us at dinner. Phil invited this girl he’s been out with a few times. Jacky invited this other Taiwanese girl he had met in Hong Kong (him being the out-going, fun-loving guy he is) and she brought along her sister. Plus, Jacky invited these three South African guys he had also met and shown good times to in Hong Kong, but who live here in Taiwan. Rachel, our friend, also happened to be here this evening as well.

So now the scene is set. A Hong Kongese guy, who happens to be here at our house for the weekend and used to be a professional chef is cooking dinner for us: an American couple (Emily and I), Rachel our American friend, Phil our American roommate, three Taiwanese girls, and three South African guys here at our house in Taipei. He cooked us Foie Gras on top of vinegar-pickled apple slices as the main course alongside a Greek salad. Next came scallops and sea bass covered in garlic mayonnaise sauce, followed by pasta with white sauce and bacon. And lastly, eaten slowly and with savor, a cheese platter of bleu, brie, and camenbert cheeses eaten on top of slightly fried french bread slices. Can anyone say yum?

I wasn’t sure how I’d like duck liver but now I have to say I have drank the cool-aid and am a big Foie Gras fan. Thank you Jacky!

What a great life it is to be a foreigner. Where else do I get to be a minority and reap the benefits of minority fellowship with a whole bunch of other foreigners displaced and in need of community?

Well at the beginning of the summer I meant to make a point of doing more blog posts about our summer break than I did last year but alas, September is at hand and I did not make that point a reality. Another thing I wanted to spend time doing this summer was studying Chinese. ‘I’ll have so much time’ I thought. No tests or other classes to distract me from adding a ton of verbs and nouns to my Chinese vocabulary was what I envisioned my summer months to hold beforehand. Now in summer’s twilight I must again say alas. Alas, alas, I am an ass. I have not opened my Chinese book let alone taken steps to actually imprint any Chinese onto my brain.

We are back from our road trip and we had a wonderful time. In total our odometer clicked over 2300 new miles before we arrived back at the house in Lansing. After Florida our trip to Chattanooga, TN was great. I got additional chances to get to know more about members of Emily’s extended family and burrow my way deeper into their clan. My days as the new kid on the block are also numbered as one of Emily’s cousins recently became engaged. Before I know it I’ll be the ‘ole fart member of a whole hoard of ‘in-laws’…that’ll be weird come to think of it.

Owensboro, KY was next on the agenda and it proved to be a very good visit as well. Sadly, Emily’s grandma had been injured and was in an assisted living facility while she recovered while we were in Owensboro. However, this proved to be a blessing in disguise as it provided Emily and I a chance to sit and visit with her grandma, who still was not able to walk, for several hours at a time without the normal bustle of visits with everyone in perfect health. Emily said it was one of the best times she’s ever had with her grandma just getting the chance to talk and talk and also to listen and listen. I really enjoyed it as well. Not only that but we got some great time in with Emily’s grandpa and Aunt Winnie at the house too! Driving around Owensboro I got the impression that its probably a really nice place to live. It just has this feeling of goodness about it.

After that it was back up to Lansing where we are now enjoying a few weeks of work-free visiting before we go back to being Taiwaneers.

“The man who finds a wife finds a treasure, and he receives favor from the Lord.”  -Proverbs 18:22 courtesy of www.BibleGateway.com. I am one of those lucky guys who found a treasure. Emily and I just marked our two year wedding anniversary and I am remembering how much more fun it is to be on this side of that day. Not only that but getting the chance to think again about how crazy it is a bum like me ended up with a babe like her.

Sunday, August 9th, I led the Bible discussion at the church meeting in Sturgis on John 9:1-5. It had been a while since I’d done any Bible research and I had a blast diving into it. For some reason, up until now, I’ve never used Bible commentaries but I saw The Matthew Henry Commentary on the bookshelf in my parents’ house and read what it had to say on the passage. It was great! The actual leading of the discussion was interesting and fun as well. I like Jesus!

This past Friday we pulled our last corn tassels of the summer. It was a good summer job but its nice to be done with the six-o’clock mornings for a while. That evening we also got to spend some time with my brother, his wife, and their girls! If anyone is ever in Kalamazoo I recommend Schwarma King…you won’t be sorry. Over the rest of the weekend we were able to have a wonderful visit with one of my best friends, John, and his wife and daughter. John introduced me to mountain biking. I can see why people get into it! Emily and I had a great time chilling out with them, eating lots of good food and catching up on life….one of those things ya gotta do when you leave for a year at a time and when you come back your friend has a one year-old that you’ve never even met.

Yesterday evening we took off to head down to Florida where one of my other best friends, Marty, is stationed with the Navy for a visit. After sleeping in a parking lot for a few hours south of Nashville we hit the road again this morning and arrived safe and sound to his Huckleberry Finn paradise right outside of Pensacola this afternoon. So far we’ve kayaked around his bayou, shot bottles out of the water with a .22 and toured the area complete with Marty warning us of where the cops hang out and stories of his escapades talking his way out of tickets. Can’t wait to see whats next.

Its crazy how fast the summer is wrapping up. I’m a little bummed I wasn’t able to go camping up in Ludington with my 2nd family but I guess that’s life. After we’re done here in Florida we’ll swing through Tennessee and Kentucky for visits with Emily’s extended family. It has been a while since I’ve had a good, long road-trip and so far its been awesome!

A week ago today I discovered free money. Well actually its not quite free money but its pretty stinking close. I went to CSL Plasma in Lansing and sold them my plasma.

I had heard of getting money for plasma before but the thought of doing it myself came to me only recently after reading Scratch Beginnings by Adam Shepard. My mom suggested that I’d enjoy the book and I really did. Its about this guy who wants to find out if the “American Dream” of being able to move up the socio-economic ladder was still possible. One of the things he does in the book is sell his plasma, which, got me thinking!

Well I found CSL on the internet and decided to go in the next time I was in Lansing. It was weird at first in there. There was a front desk with medical looking files all stacked behind it like a doctors office and a waiting area and everyone was wearing doctors coats and stuff. To the left, unlike a doctors office, there was a wall of glass where you can see the “donation” floor. A bunch of bed-chair things with people in them with tubes of blood flowing out of their arms, into machines, and then back into their arms minus the plasma. “Wow, this is like a human factory or something” I thought to myself.

After declaring my desire to become a “new donor” one of the first things they did was check the inside of my elbows along with another guy who wanted to be a “new donor.” I passed but the other dude had a ton of needle marks and the lady told him he couldn’t “donate” until “that cleared up.” Its so sad to come face-to-face with human suffering, especially when its self-inflicted.

Anyways I then underwent a series of questions and a physical. Throughout this process me and the lady who put me through it had great conversation. At the end of it all it was determined that I was exactly what they were looking for and filled the “new donor” job requirements perfectly. In fact it was determined that I had ‘grade A’ plasma and would be receiving the top tier of reimbursement out of three. Each “donation”, which I can make up to two times every seven days nets me $35. Thats $280 a month! Crazy right?

I was also marked as having “yellow” veins. Each new donors’ veins are inspected and labeled as green, yellow, or red. Green veins are large and easy to stick. Red veins are small and the phlebotomist has got to have mad skills. Even though Sam, the very nice lady who put me through the physical, said I had super great veins she said it would be better to mark me as having “yellow” veins because then nobody that was a crappy sticker could stick me but that I wouldn’t have the difficulties of red vein people. She explained to me red vein people sometimes have to wait forever for the really talented stickers to make it to them when there are lots of “donors” that need sticking all at the same time.

I could literally go on and on about the experience it was so interesting to me. Suffice it to say I went out to the “donation” floor, got stuck and hooked up, and had wonderful conversations with the technicians and other “donors” throughout the duration of my “donation.” At the end I was given a slip of paper with a four number code on it and Sam showed me how to work the “reimbursement” ATM in the lobby.

What a great way to get money that I can then give away to the missionaries we support, the Student Statesmanship Institute (an organization that we support), and the Couple to Couple League (another organization that we support). Actually at $280 a month I might need to find some more! I hope I don’t sound prideful about making charitable contributions. I’m really just excited about finding a new way of getting money that I don’t need myself and can instead give away.

For those of you who have questions about “donating” plasma I’d be happy to tell you more about my experience. I was really impressed by the system that CSL had set up. Needless to say, after learning about the process, I wasn’t worried that my blood would mix around with bad blood (you know what I mean) and somehow cost me my health.

I’m looking forward to my next trip to Lansing so I can “donate” some more plasma and donate some more money!