New Format Crew Doormat

I've decided to make updates about the family on this site, to go along with the writing and hockey silliness. I hope that you will come back every week to see what we've been up to. I plan to let you know about it, every single week. That's a promise. If I don't update this thing every week, then it's free!!!

PS. I made it possible for non blogger people to comment on my posts. Just click on 'comment' and comment away! And be sure to check the quote of the week at the bottom of the page.

Lately time has been pretty spacious. Because of Chinese New Year 春 节 we language students have had, basically, all of 2009 off so far. This has left me feeling unmotivated and kind of bored. To pile on top of that the fact that the family and I will be flying out of here on April 15th for six months and you can understand why studying language is far from my mind.

Anyways, I will get back at it with a tutor starting at the beginning of March and (hopefully) go hard for about a month and a half.

Aside from that, Miles has been keeping us busy these days. We think that he'll soon be sprouting up a nice, new, shiny tooth. This little tooth develops quite a painful look on the face of the little guy, along with a lot of whining. We're not annoyed or anything, but it is a little bit of a change from the usual always laughing and smiling little Miles guy. Welcome to parenthood, I guess.

Barbara's belly is continuing to explode! I say this only because she is continuing to be pregnant. Due on June 2nd, this baby will be a boy and will be a lot of fun. I'm looking forward to going into this whole thing again, especially with the little experience that I now possess.

I've been thinking that having kids is a really great thing. I think that a lot of people believe that having kids is the end of fun. I understand what they mean because we need to get up early every morning now, but other than that, I enjoy most of the experience. New fun, I guess would be a good perspective. Today, while Miles and I were watching his favorite video, I could feel his little heartbeat through his back pounding into my chest as his excitement grew for the upcoming 'spider song'. Such innocence. It's really fun to watch him grow from a little baby into a little guy. I recommend kids.

Our house mate's mother is visiting for a few weeks from the bay area in California. Her husband and son are huge San Jose Sharks, so there was quite an uproar when I took a photo of her grandson (Seth) in an Oiler's jersey. Needless to say, they have struck back with all kinds of Sharks memorabilia. Not only does Seth have a brand new teal jersey, but now his dad is outfitted with a new Shark's shirt, and he doesn't even really care about hockey! My mom has a saying that she made up; "When it rains, it pours".

Stay tuned!!!

New NHL Season revisited.

I have realised that this blog is mostly an outward processing device for myself. In any event, here it is...



This morning as I fed my son a bowl of oatmeal I realized that the hockey game would probably still be on the Internet radio. A few moments later and there I was, spooning oats to the boy as the sun had yet to poke its head out from the mountains and the Oilers late in the 3rd period with a 2-1 lead!

The boy with the oat face.

Being in China during hockey season leaves me a little out in the cold (sorry for that one) but I manage to spend way too much time paying attention to the ways of the league anyways. The reasons for this might include the fact that this year, for the first time in 3 years, I will be home for the playoffs. This is what drives me to the hope that my team might slip in to the 7th or 8th spot, as usual, and I might get lucky enough to snag a ticket for one of those 2 games where the Wings destroy the consistently inconsistent Edmonton Oilers on home ice.

Anyways, the Oilers won last night (this morning) in a shoot out. That's 2 wins in a row, hot stuff! After the game I remembered my blog at the beginning of the season that I wrote containing some advice for the average fan regarding the upcoming season. Lets take a look back...

(Scroll down if you missed it)

-Things to look forward to-

1. Peter Forsberg's retirement. I just heard that he scored a goal today in some Russian league. I still in hold onto the hope that he breaks his ankle again. Ol' Green Eyes needs to end it. It's nothing personal, I just don't like guy, mainly for the reason that he is annoyingly good and usually plays on Colorado. And personally, I just don't like the guy.

2 Fantasy Hockey. I currently sit 6th in the Yahoo! league with a whole bunch of underachieving superstars ie. Crosby, Zetterberg, Backstrom, Kane, Pronger, Souray. Seriously, how am I in 6th? In the "Kateri" league I am in 1st and I plan on staying there. That league is closer to my heart than the Yahoo! one so I am happy about those standings.

3. Patrice Bergeron coming back from taking a concussion from a Philly Flyer's dirty hit. I think Bergeron came back for a while and then got hit again and missed a bunch more games because of another concussion. It's really sad to see someone so talented be limited by this kind of thing. Hopefully he can battle through it.

4. Speaking of concussions, Jarret Stoll is still engaged to Rachel Hunter. I think they bought a house for 3 million dollars. I am dead serious, I really DID look that up.

5. On January 25th of this year Chris Chelios turned 47 years old. He was drafted in 1981 by the Montreal Canadiens, about a month after I was born. I hear he's not getting much playing time, though when I think about it, I guess my dad isn't getting much playing time either.

6. Eklund's crappy rumor blog is still a crappy blog full of dumb rumors. Tabloids for hockey fans.

7. This next one hurts. Erik Cole on the Oilers.

Stats I predicted for this season: G 32 A 38.

Real stats? G 12 A 10.

So, that means that he needs to score 20 goals and 28 assists in the next 27 games. That is not going to happen. Half of that is not going to happen. A quarter of that is not going to happen. My apologies.

8. Pierre McGuire is still Pierre McGuire.

9. Joni Pitkanen is having a decent season. That makes the Erik Cole debacle that much harder to swallow, along with 2 of the Oilers' best defensemen out of the lineup with severe injuries.

10. The Oilers still might make the playoffs. And my imagination still rules!

-Things to Avoid-

1. Again, just to be clear, I don't like Peter Forsberg. It looks like we won't see him in the NHL this season. Woot!

2. Does the CBC still show hockey games? I don't know, I live in China.

3. Mikey Comrie and Hill Duff were spotted in the Bahamas this past January so we know that they're still together. She's so Disney.

4. Mats Sundin signed with the Canucks for a gazillion dollar contract. He will probably help them make some noise in the playoffs. Then they will lose and he will probably retire or sign with Detroit for 2 gazillion dollars, or a lot less because, "Hey, who doesn't want to play for Detroit?"

5. I don't know about you but I've managed to avoid the awkwardness of Ryan Smyth this year. Praise the Lord!



6. Todd Bertuzzi. I was a little more accurate with my predictions this time. Lets take a look:

I said: 37 goals and 33 assists
Todd's hockey stick says so far: 14 goals and 27 assists.

He's actually doing amazing, and for a million bucks a season can the flames go wrong?

7. My wife and I have made some pretty decent chicken wings over the last few months. The secret ingredient? Hot sauce. Shhhh, don't tell anyone about that secret ingredient... and don't eat chicken wings at a hockey game.

8. The only name I would put on a Jersey?


If I had to pick another guy it would be Oli Jokinen, but things would need to change because I will never buy a Coyotes' jersey.

9. Don't wear a jersey unless you are playing hockey, are at an NHL game, or are a dufus.

10. I still don't like the leafs (Leaves?), but I think that I like them better than the Canucks. And I used to have a problem with disliking the Flames but now I am back to not liking them at all. Looks like it all evened out, didn't it?

So, there you go, Brett.

"This town has the best noodles in all of Tibet" - A Taste of Xia He (Labrang)

The Great Wall. Tiananmen Square. The Forbidden City. Yes, every traveler aims for these popular tourist spots while overlooking the mysterious and culturally rich choice: The Tibetan Plateau. Yet every hopeful plateau traveler, even the Chinese tourist, always seem to come back to the same question: where to begin? My advice to you is to begin in Gansu Province in the small town of Xia He, famous for it’s Labrang Monastery.

Only a two-hour flight west of Beijing, Xining City is the starting point for many people to begin their trip to Xia He. Located along the ancient Silk Road, Xining has helped travelers find there way across the great Tibetan Plateau for centuries.

The Tibetan Plateau is an elevated area that stretches across 5 different Chinese provinces before rising into the Himalayan mountain ranges of China and Nepal. With a total land area larger than California and Alaska combined, is it any wonder why someone would be confused on where to begin exploring? Xia He is a town located just inside the western border of Gansu province, on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau, and a great place to start. It is to this small town that I traveled to this past spring with a friend of mine...

-A fictional take-

Stepping of the dusty bus, I cough up 7 hours of second hand smoke. What a ride! Though it wasn’t always comfortable, it was an experience I will always remember: a bus full of Tibetans, my friend Derek, and myself. It really was a lot better than the Land Cruiser rental option I had back in Xining. Better and cheaper. The bus ticket was only 50 RMB, just over 9 Canadian dollars. It probably would have been more comfortable in the Land Crusier, with a lot less smoke, but I didn’t come on this trip just for sightseeing; I came to experience the culture. In any event, I am very glad to finally be off the bus.

Derek, a friend of mine who had lived in this town a few years ago, tracks me down in the crowd, with our backpacks in hand.

“Tough ride, huh? Here, I got our bags from the roof rack.”

“Yeah, thanks man. I think the guy in front of me never stopped smoking the whole trip.”

“Yeah, I guess it’s a lot easier to get addicted to those things over here since their only 3 RMB a pack.” he chuckles.

Derek is a good friend. He has lived in this part of China for over 5 years working with an NGO doing research on the plateau. He speaks Chinese and Amdo Tibetan very well, which are just a few of many reasons why I’m glad that he agreed to accompany me on this trip. He hasn’t been here in a few years and he says he’d like to catch up with some old friends.

After checking into our hotel, we set out for the town’s main attraction; Labrang Monastery. The monastery is one of the largest running monasteries in all of China, home to over 1500 monks of the Yellow Hat sect. The Yellow Hat sect has been considered the ruling sect of Tibetan Buddhism since the 1400s. An offshoot of the ancient Bon religion, the Yellow Hat monks practice a religion that is far less animalistic, and is what many followers would consider “true Buddhism”.

A 40 RMB fee gets us a ticket and a guide. As we make our way to the first building, my thoughts are quickly drown out by the persistent hum of chanting. Looking over I see a monk sitting cross legged in the dust, holding a book in his lap. Upon further inspection I see that there are about a dozen other monks around the corner joining him in this ritual. The constant drone overtakes the entire monastery grounds.

We are swiftly marched through each building. Most of the rooms contain different variations of idols, alters, paintings, drapes, and books. The dense smell of incense floats from wall to wall. A pile of old fruit rots at the foot of a Buddha. All of the rooms are poorly lit so it’s hard to get a good look at anything. I mostly just feel like I’m intruding. Our guide speaks a little English, but he doesn’t say much. I’m not exactly sure how I feel about this tour. I wouldn’t mind just roaming around on my own, but the guide is sure to always keep the group close together. With the guide unaware, I am able to snap off a few photos behind his back.

Leaving the Monastery I notice a lot of people outside. Many of them seem to be praying.

“Derek, why aren’t those people in the monastery?”

“Oh, they’re all doing a “Kora”. It is custom for the Buddhists to walk slowly around the monastery, clockwise, while kneeling to the ground and falling prostrate in succession. As you can see, they repeat this act after each step. Some of these people will walk this way around the monastery all day. They do it because they think it will help their Karma and keep their family safe and healthy. Whether you believe it or not, one thing is for certain; they are a very committed people.”

As the sun rises overhead, Derek and I are on the move. He wants to take me to his favorite noodle shop.

“This town has the best noodles in all of Tibet.”

These simple little shops are owned and run by Muslim families. Muslims are famous in China for their noodle dishes. We order 2 large bowls of Gan Ban Mien, similar in style to chow mien. It’s a very simple dish: long noodles, hot spices, sliced up vegetable and lamb, and a traditional sauce. It’s quite oily, but delicious. It reminds me of a spicier and tastier Hamburger Helper.

After eating, we head back out onto the street. Derek is hoping to run into one of his old friends, but so far no luck. Across the street I see a young woman carrying a large coal stove up the road. Her husband follows close behind.

“In this culture, the women do a lot of the work. It’s just kind of the way things go here. It takes a while to get used to it. I always want to stop and help them out, but if I did it would embarrass both the women and their husbands.”

After a few minutes of strolling through shops, Derek and I run into one of his old friends. Jako is a taxi driver. He and Derek met a few years ago when Derek needed to take a group of friends out to the grasslands for a day trip. Jako is a tough looking guy. His face is as leathery as a baseball glove and all of his teeth are bright white except for the gold-capped one that rests right in the middle of his smile.

“What you guys doing tonight?” he asks in broken English.

Derek responds in Tibetan and they continue back and forth for a few minutes. From the look on their faces I can tell that they are working out some plans. Finally, Jako smiles, brushes back his hair and shakes my hand.

“Okay, see you tonight,” he says.

He is off, back up the road, soon to be lost in the crowd.

“Okay man, it’s all set.”

“What do you mean?”

“Jako’s uncle wants to have us over tonight. He says that we must come and see them. They are very excited to have us.”

“But we haven’t even met them. How could they be excited to meet us?” I ask, confused and curious.

“Don’t worry man, it’s cool. It’s just the way they do things here. They are very hospitable. Jako and his family have always been good friends of mine. Their door is always open.”

Later that night we make our way up the main road, through the monastery, and out into a nearby village. Jako’s uncle lives in a traditional mud house. I find out later that the “mud” is mostly yak dung.

The house is one main room and a small little kitchen at the back. There are about 10 people in the house and I’m pretty sure that they all must be related to Jako. In the centre of the room is a table full of food. Everything from soda, to yak meat, to sunflower seeds, to homemade yoghurt is spread out in front of us. It’s possible that every edible thing available in the house is sitting on that table. Hospitable is the understatement of the day.

While Derek chats it up with the family, I sit in silence. My only way to relieve the awkwardness is to continue eating. The yoghurt is amazing. It’s so fresh that I occasionally came across a yak hair or two. Its thickness kind of reminds me of Brie cheese. I was hesitant at first, but after a few spoonfuls I am all in!

My other favorite is the tsamba. Tsamba is a combination of four things; barely flour, yak butter, yak cheese, and tea. The first step in making tsamba is to put all of the dry ingredient into a small bowl. Next, you spoon in some slightly melted butter. After that, pour tea over the whole thing. Then you take the clump of mush in your hands and mix it all together into a ball. I am reminded of when I was young, making cookies with my mom at Christmas. Then I look up and remember that I’m on the other side of the world with a room full of strangers. They laugh at my rookie moves with the tsamba, and with my hands full of gunk, I soon join in with them. It becoming clear that this room full of strangers is quickly turning into a room full of good friends, despite the language and cultural barriers.

After hours of food, laughter, games, and songs, Derek and I say goodbye and head back to our hotel. It’s past midnight and we have an early bus to catch back to Xining. It was only a small taste of Xia He, but a taste that will most certainly bring me back for more.