Day 366 - Hike

Thought of the day: I can't believe that today is already my birthday. A year flew past since I started my blog. I learned a lot by doing this blog and enjoyed it tremendously. Of course, there were days, and even weeks, when I had to force myself to keep going. It was particularly challenging when I was sick, busy or traveling. For the entire year, I had my backpack and camera next to me pretty much every day and I constantly reminded myself to pay attention to what was happening around me and to see and capture the extraordinary moments in the ordinary daily life. This year long journey has not only taught me to truly appreciate the beauty and uniqueness of our experiences on earth, it has also taught me something about patience and perseverance. Now, it's time for me to sign off and move on. A big hug and thank you to everybody who has followed my journey and sent me encouragements along the way!


Photo of the day:

Taking a hike with a few people this morning. There was no better way to celebrate a birthday than sitting on some big rocks, drinking coffee, eating a surprise birthday treat and looking out at the beautiful Boulder valley opening up in front of you. That was one of the most memorable moments that my wonderful friends helped me create throughout the day. There will be challenges and uncertainties, but I feel so grateful today to be living in this community, this world and on this day.

Day 323 - Cafe

Thought of the day: Jasmine's swim team is having an outdoor lesson today.  She loves it, in spite of the air that is already getting a little chilly. We're so lucky to have perfect weather today and I'm glad that we can spend a couple of hours outdoors and enjoy the last bit of the summer warmth and have some good fun in the sun.

Photo of the day:

Inside a cafe this morning. It's good to be able to take a break there for a couple of hours during the day when both girls are in school. The cafe keeps changing the wall exhibitions and the theme of this month is T-shirts with prints. Changing of interior decorations keep the space interesting, just like changing of seasons and rhythms keep life interesting.

Day 262 - Water Play

Thought of the day: It was a summer day spent near water under the sun.  Too much sun, perhaps, as Jasmine ended the day a shade darker than when she started it.  She had her first swim meet in the afternoon.  It was more fun than competitive and she didn't care a bit what kind of ribbon she got as long as she got one. Whether it was a first place ribbon or a 5th place ribbon, she would accept them with equal giddiness and delight. I wonder when the spirit of competitiveness will eventually kick in.  I hope it won't be for a long, long time so she can enjoy the sport for the beauty and joy of the sport itself and won't be tormented by a singular desire to win.

Photo of the day:

Lila played with water in Lafayette's YMCA when Jasmine had her first swim meet this afternoon.

Day 256 - Grill

Thought of the day: This is the July 4th weekend and we had a perfect weather to grill.  We hosted a small party in our backyard and spent some fun time outside.  Summer outdoor BBQ should be a simple and easy affair but it's actually amazing how many little things could go wrong.  Lucky for us, we had good temperature, little wind and no nasty mosquitoes, pesky flies or June bugs to deal with. Everything was as perfect as it could be and I sure hope it would stay this way for the rest of the summer!

Photo of the day:

Grill time!

Day 211 - Fireplace

Thought of the day: Recently, Jasmine's class sent a scrapbook to a Chinese class in Beijing.  In the scrapbook, every child wrote something about their lives, hobbies, pets or school and attached photos of themselves and also photos illustrating what they wrote about.  This week, they were very excited to receive a similar scrapbook back from China as the response.  As I translated the Chinese writings to English, I had the opportunity to go through the book in detail.  For me, it was very interesting to read what the Chinese kids had to say about their lives in their own words.  Their lives revolved around their families, pets, playgrounds, parks and their school.  Some of them listed hamburgers and ice creams as their favorite food.  They liked to raise pets and fly kites.  They played piano, soccer and ice hockey.  Really, their lives and hobbies didn't seem to be much different from Jasmine's classmates.  I did notice a few subtle things, though.  Many of these kids demonstrated remarkable self-confidence, which was probably a result of being raised as a single child, as most of them were, doted on by the parents and grandparents and cheered on by the teachers. Some of the kids had already travelled widely with their parents, but not a single kid mentioned hiking. When I grew up in China, "hiking" was considered a necessity that transported you from one scenic spot to another.  Now that the tour buses were readily available to take you anywhere, perhaps this mode of transportation was just forgotten. Nobody mentioned "skiing" either. Over time, I am sure that many of these "western" leisure activities like hiking, skiing, camping, backpacking, climbing, river rafting, etc, will be gaining and expanding their footholds in China.  Take an example: traveling.  When I was growing up in China, traveling was so cost and inconvenient that it was pretty uncommon.  Now people in China travel routinely - the rich frequently travel abroad and the "normal" people frequently travel domestically.  It's liberating and exhilarating to be able to travel so easily.  However, it does put a lot of stress on the culture and the environment.  Some ancient cities are completely transformed to accomodate tourism and lost much of its original charm in the process.  The effect of commercial tourism on many of the places I visited in the past years made me sad.  It's the same for introducing other leisure activities to the large population - a liberating lifestyle, a huge economic opportunity, and a risk to the nature and the environment.  No wonder today's China attracts the bold, curious, and ambitious - the opportunity and the challenge are abound.  It would be very interesting to see how China progresses in the future years as it will not only have a bearing on the Chinese economy and environment, it will have a global bearing as well.

Photo of the day:

Jasmine in front of the fireplace at Alfafa's. She was exhausted after a day of school and the after school activity - a strenuous hour of training in a swim team. I heard that the Chinese kids are often as busy as she is, if not more.  The academic pressure is building up in elementary school already in China - kids study hard so they can be accepted by a reputable middle school. Jasmine and her classmates are not under the same pressure. So it's not surprising that the Chinese kids are able to demonstrate excellent math in the scrapbook.

Day 208 - Lila

Thought of the day: May is statistically the wettest month here and the past few days really showed it.  By this morning, my friend and I were so ready to get out and take a break in the sun that we did it even though we both had a long list of things to do.  I think we made the right decision as the girls couldn't be happier.  Yes, a happy smile is worth much more than a checkmark on the todo list.  A list can be postponed but life can't.

Photo of the day:

Lila playing with her friend in downtown.

Day 205 - Hike

Thought of the day:  It was finally a sunny day and I took a little hike with Lila on a trail next to our house.  Lila was very excited about the hike - she packed her own snack bag, put it in her backpack together with her little water bottle, put on her sunglasses, hat, boots and kept herself busy on the trail with fascinating discoveries that were typical on a hiking trail: little stones, branches, dandelions, butterflies and such.  She even scaled a small rock all by herself and was very proud of it.  We had our snacks on top of the rock.  After holing up at home for two days, I was glad to spend a morning under the sun.

Photo of the day:

Lila running down the trail.

Day 202 - Playground

Thought of the day: I just finished reading a booked titled "How Doctors Think" by Jerome Groopman.  It was highly recommended to me recently by his niece.  I couldn't recall how or when I met her but the book was definitely worth the recommendations.  Dr. Groopman explored the unusual subject of how a doctor's thinking can adversely affect the diagnosis of a patient.  With 15% of the medical diagnosis being inaccurate, this subject is definitely an important one.  Doctors are only humans and their thought process can often be influenced by the past experiences, the emotional state, the affinity with a particular patient, the fear of litigation, the subtle and not-so-subtle financial incentives, and the pressure to think and act quickly under a time constraint often imposed by the insurance companies.  No matter how skillful or experienced they are, they can make mistakes in their thought process and make a wrong diagnosis which may severely affect the outcome of a patient.  I really admire the honesty and courage of Dr. Groopman for exploring this thorny subject, especially considering that he is a physician himself, as I am sure few physicians would admit or even realize that he is fallible due to his own weaknesses.  Many of the issues he raised in the book don't really have good solutions.  However, he did take away some of the mystique surrounding physicians, and he made a few suggestions for the patients to take more control of their own care and to steer the physicians away from some of the pitfalls in the thought process by asking pointed questions.  The book opened my eyes by offering a physician's angle of view on medical diagnosis and treatment, but hopefully I will not have to make use of any of his suggestions any time soon.

Photo of the day:

My girls playing in a Lafayette playground after Jasmine's music lesson.  I am so glad that they are healthy and capable of enjoying life in its full glamor.

Day 201 - Pearl St

Thought of the day: We spent the day on the Pearl St.  College graduation was finally over and many students already left town together with their families so the pedestrian mall was a far cry from how it was on Saturday.  It was a more relaxing experience but no less interesting.  The extra space allowed me to take a lot of photos with Lila and her friend, pedestrians, and street musicians.  It was a good day.

Photo of the day:

Lila and her friend walking on the pedestrian mall.  They got quite a few comments from passerbys on their bright dresses and sunhats.

Day 200 - Obstacle Course

Thought of the day: It's Mother's Day!  This morning I did a 9.9km race together with a friend of mine at the Boulder Reservoir, while rest of the our families played at the sand beach.  It was only my third run this year and I had a lot of trouble keeping a steady pace.  At the end of the run, I felt quite exhausted.  However, I am glad that I did it.  The view of the reservoir and mountains in the last kilometer or so was just stunning and that alone made the run worthwhile.  I can't imagine a better way of celebrating the Mother's Day for me.

Photo of the day:

Lila in the obstacle course at Boulder Reservoir.  It must be the favorite Mother's activity for the kids today, judging from the length of the waiting line at the entrance of the course.

Day 198 - Lila and Tent

Thought of the day: This afternoon I walked home with Jasmine and a friend of hers from school for a play date.  It was a very leisurely walk as the girls climbed rocks, took detours and played games along the way while Lila napped in the stroller.  It took a while to get home but it was just the right pace for a fine spring afternoon.

Photo of the day:

Lila in Gunbarrel at an outdoor gear and apparel sales event this morning.  Not sure it was the best way for Lila to spend a fine spring day but she had a lot of fun checking out the tents and jumping on outdoor camping beds with her friend.  Good quality outdoor product sales are very hot in Boulder.  Even though this event was not as well publicized as some others, it was still packed with people. 

Day 197 - Sunrise

Thought of the day: Today I did an early morning run with a few neighbors and friends.  It's certainly unusual for me to get up this early so I took this precious opportunity to snap a few photos.  Boulder faces a wide open eastern plain so we can count on a glorious sunrise pretty much every morning as rainy or overcast days are few and far between in Boulder.  It's great for early risers but, unfortunately, doesn't do much good for night owls like me.  I've considered and even attempted, at least for a few times since I moved here, to change my sleep routine so I can catch the first lights of the dawn and do something meditative before everybody wakes up.  Regrettable, my biological clock wasn't ready to cooperate yet so I inevitably gave up after trying for a few days.  Getting up early to run, on the other hand, is something different.  The outdoor air and movement wake me up and get me an extra bounce for the rest of the day.  Things that I have done and don't regret afterward are usually good things for me.  Running at the crack of dawn is one of those things - it's good for me, and I will keep doing it as long as my body can keep up.

Photo of the day:

View of sunrise from inside the house.

Day 195 - Lila

Thought of the day: Lila had some pretty wild mood swings since I picked her up from preschool today.  The cause was pretty obvious: lack of sleep.  Her preschool set aside only half an hour for the kids to rest in the afternoon, which was way too short for Lila to take a proper nap.  As a result, she had been taking irregular naps since she started the preschool.  On some days she would skip it altogether, with disastrous effects on herself and the family.  And today was one of those days.  I have been routinely taking her out early so she could nap at home.  However, sometimes my schedule just wouldn't allow that.  The good news is that we're taking her to a different preschool in the fall, where she could get a proper rest.  Of course, by that time she may have already naturally outgrown her need for an afternoon nap, but even if she does, having some downtime to do quiet things is still way better than keeping going all day long without a real break.  I know it would be hard to convince a toddler that getting bored at times is better than getting overtired, but I wish her preschool had known better and had respected the kids' need to rest as much as they had respected the kids' need to play.

Photo of the day:

Lila in a residential neighborhood at Lafayette.  She was at a high point of her mood swings when I took this picture.

Day 194 - Lila

Thought of the day: We have out-of-town visitors staying with us for a couple of days.  Today was their last full day so we took them to Chautauqua as a trip to Boulder seems incomplete without at least a brief stop at Chautauqua.  Lila and I were both a little under the weather but we tagged along anyway (why waste a day inside when you can be out and about?).  We had a good time.  The part I particularly enjoyed was when Lila and I made our way slowly, I mean slowly, from the ranger cottage to the playground.  If you ever take pictures of kids, you may have noticed that coming down to their eye level is often the most important first step.  That's when you can establish rapport and see things the way they're seeing them.  It's exactly the same when you play with them.  You need to first bring yourself to their level and into their world.  In that world, a stick is not just a stick - it's a magic wand; a stone is not just a stone - it's a priceless jewel; a pine cone is not just a pine cone - it's a sea shell from far away; and of course, it's so silly to rush from one place to the other when you can have so much fun just exactly where you are.  Bringing yourself to their level is so important for developing your understanding, compassion and patience towards kids.  It's equally important for developing your relationship with adults who are different from you, which includes pretty much everybody in the world.  I love spending time with my kids.  In a way, they teach me more than I can ever hope to teach them just by being who they are.

Photo of the day:

Lila at Chautauqua - it was a little chilly today and even snowed a bit when we were there.

Day 190 - Tackle

Thought of the day: Our neighborhood has now a photo club!  It's nice to be able to hop on the bike or walk to a photo club meeting in a neighbor's home.  In the meeting tonight, we showed some of our recent photos to each other and then spent the rest of the evening talking about some random things.  For those of us who do photography as a hobby, or maybe even as a profession, you know that it's a labor of love.  But unlike a "normal" group activity where you get constant feedback from each other,  it can be a lonesome pursuit.  You can be taking photos for years without knowing whether you are really making progress or not.  You can be sending albums to friends and family for years and getting little feedback other than an occasional "This is great!" which, unfortunately, doesn't tell you much or help you much.  I wonder if the feeling of loneliness is shared by individuals laboring in different areas of arts, for example, painting, writing, composing.  Other than the occasional recognitions you may receive when you are really good or get really lucky, you mostly labor in the dark driven by nothing more than the love of doing what you're doing.  In fact, it's probably true in any field that requires you to work on your own for a long stretch of time - astronomy, biology, basic science research, you name it.  The feeling of loneliness is pretty much inevitable and it may even be a necessity for us to develop into who we are.  However, we are primarily social beings and we need support from each other to break the monotony, and that's when something like a photo club comes into play.

Photo of the day:

Little kids tackling a soccer ball.  It's certainly more fun for kids to play with others than playing a ball on their own!

Day 189 - Tree and Bike

Thought of the day: Today I went out and shot some of my favorite flowering trees.  They didn't come out exactly the way I'd like, but at least it was a fun experience.  After all, what's a better way to spend a sunny day then spending it outdoors?

Photo of the day:

This is one of the flowering trees that I shot this morning along the Broadway bike path.

Day 187 - Lamp

Thought of the day: It was a fun day for play dates and spending time on the Pearl St.  Lila played "baby and mommy" games with me using some branches and small stones on a path.  Of course, I was the baby and Lila was the mommy.  Otherwise it would not have been nearly as much fun!

Photo of the day:

Glass lamps near Pearl st.  There surely are some fascinating objects in downtown and I seem to discover something new every time.  I was probably as excited finding these lamps as Lila discovering the "baby and mommy" game.

Day 186 - Girls

Thought of the day:  PBS Newshour is broadcasting a 6-part series called Autism Now reported by Robert MacNeil.  Robert came out of retirement to do the series because his grandson had autism so he had seen the ailment and the impact of it on the family first hand.  The story of his grandson was told in part-1 of the series and it was deeply touching. Autism is definitely on the rise.  It's now affecting 1 in every 110 children in America - that's a large number of kids every year - and it has been declared a national health emergency.  One part of the series explored the plausible causes of the rise of autism.  Only a small part of could be explained by a better detection and reporting of this disorder.  The main plausible cause for the rise lied in the toxicity of the environment - the 70,000 commonly used chemicals, some of which used directly on our bodies, could have an accumulative, unexpected effects on our health starting from the moment we were conceived, and in some cases long before that.  The long term effect of Agent Orange on Vietnamese kids is one dramatic example, but there could be many other not-so-obvious interactions between the environment and our body that we're not aware of.  One expert attributed autism to a genetic predisposition triggered by chemicals in our environment that broke down or overwhelmed our immune system.  The same thing could likely explain the rise of allergies, asthma, food sensitivities, multiple chemical sensitivities, infertility, cancer, and other ailments that we hear more and more of every day.  Our individual genetic make-up is playing a Russian roulette with the chemicals we are exposed to every day - it's scary to think about it this way but I don't see any positive way of describing the situation.  We can try our best to protect ourselves and our families and push through environmental regulations.  However, there's a lot that we don't have control of at this point in time, and the consequence is a human cost of development that is just impossible to bear.

Photo of the day:

Girls on the bike on Greenbriar.  Lila was napping on the bike seat.  The concern for our children can turn each one of us into an environmentalist like nothing else can.

Day 163 - Hammock

Thought of the day: Tonight I found more evidence that Jasmine had a pretty good taste in arts and music.  I don't think my taste was nearly as sophisticated as hers at this age.  Of course, she is exposed to a lot more arts.  It's an important part of her daily life.  She loves making arts at home and her school is also putting a lot of emphasis on it.  Come to think of it, my kindergarten and elementary school education was vastly different from hers.  It was all about academics - in a way, it was geared towards making engineers and scientists, but it limited the development of kids who were more artistically inspired.  My sister, brother, and I had very different interests but we all went on to major in science and engineering in college.  If the education system were different, the paths of our lives could have been very different from the ones we are on right now, for better or worse.  I am glad that Jasmine would not have to face similar artificial barriers so that she can develop her potential in whatever field that suits her the best.

Photo of the day:

It was sunny and warm in the afternoon - time to take out the hammock and enjoy some fun time in the sun!

Day 161 - Boys

Thought of the day: Today I re-discovered a shopping village in Boulder.  I had been to some of its stores, including a few well-known local stores, many times in the past but it was never on my short list of places to go if I had a few hours to spend.  After hanging out there for half a day today, it occurred to me that it's actually a perfect destination village.  With a coffee shop, lunch place, kids area, natural food market all within walking distance to each other, it's a good place to relax, meet friends, and entertain the kids.  Little villages like this one make a town a more friendly and livable place.  I love my home, but I'm also always looking for homes outside of the home, and I'm glad that I have found another one today.

Photo of the day:

Two boys riding in Lila's preschool in front of a colorful assortment of lunch boxes.  For these kids, this place is their home outside of the home as they spend so many happy hours there every week.