I Went Running!

Yes, it's true!

This evening, even though it was still quite warm, I went for a RUN.

And it was great. I started slow... but ended FAST!

At first, I didn't know if my legs were going to cooperate. But once I got to the park, they were moving quite well. And since I had time, I went for 13kilometers!

At 8pm, there were still plenty of people out, running or biking.  It sure was fun!

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2017 Calendar!

I sit and write each day, wondering how can the day have gone by so quickly?

I had to get my scooter tuned up. So, I went there after my morning physical therapy session.

I came home and finished the set of test and got all the sample pictures picked. So, the files were sent off by noon today.

My front tire was completely flat, so I had to get that fixed. The miracle was that a new bike shop opened up near my house. When I say near, I mean about a 15 minute walk. So, I pushed the bike down there and got it fixed for about 8US$. While waiting for them to change the inner tube, I looked around. And the most expensive bike in there was 500,000NT$! That's almost 20,000US$ for a BIKE! After getting it fixed, I went to the park and had a nice bike ride. It was quite hot, which was why I didn't want to go for a run!

I did housework and went off to tutor.

This evening the MRT wasn't running. So, it was quite interesting picking up two kids with my scooter. I had to make two separate trips, meeting each kid at a different location!

And yes, I also went and bought the 2017 calendar! We're only a day away from October and three months away from the new year!

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Another Typhoon Day

In my opinion,Taipei City Mayor Ko made the right decision to take this day as another typhoon day, even though the typhoon had blown by.

I think I should write a letter to commend him on his decision.

Here are the reasons why:

Many households had no water starting at 4pm yesterday afternoon. Our household was one of those. We had stored water, so it was not a major problem. But this morning, we could not take a shower or wash our hands. So, if we had to go to work, it would have been a little weird. Plus, the schools might have been without water.

By having less people on the roads, it really helped with the clean-up efforts. Trucks were blocking lanes as they had to remove a tremendous amount of debris and branches. They were also parked along roads to cut off hanging branches. It would have been quite dangerous having pedestrians walking around while they were trying to do this.

People were able to be more relaxed in cleaning their own home without having to worry about going to work.

Overall, it was a great decision!

I had to tutor but the kids and Alan had a day to play some tennis and do some homework.

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Typhoon Day

Well... what a surprise!

Today was a typhoon day. The kids and Alan did not have to go to school.

At first, we thought it wasn't going to be a big deal. Alan went out for a run in the rain, and so did I. But for me, it wasn't really a run! I tried to run to the park. But the park was all locked up. Several stairways were opened. So, I was able to get in. But without any buildings, I could not run. The wind was so strong. I ran for ONLY 1 kilometers and went out of the park. By the time I did, the wind had picked up. On several occasions, I had to stand behind a light pole so that I didn't have things blown on me. The rain pelted my face. Trying to walk against the wind became more and more difficult. I didn't last more than 50 minutes out there!

By this evening, the rain and wind both got stronger. Many households lost electricity and they might cut off water as it can't be processed or cleaned fast enough since the water has become very muddy. There is even rumor that classes might be cancelled tomorrow!

For now, we have water and electricity.

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No Time To Bike or Run

Yes, it's true.

I stayed home and worked on a set of test!

Then Abby had asked me to do a DIY Food Event for her school fellowship!  It was a lot of work to get all the ingredients and to plan it as the church had no oven or stove.

They had a total of 15 kids and we made chicken and cheese tortilla rolls and snowballs.

I thought everything worked out really well!

The most difficult part was getting everything there and back on my scooter and in the rain. Next semester they might want to do this again!

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Love Your Enemies!

Are you ready for the truth?

That's what I spoke on today for House of Praise!

Jesus calls us to be different. We are to be a peculiar people. We are children of God. We have a new identity. God has lavished his favor, his forgiveness and his fruitfulness upon our lives! We are called to be kind as our Father in heaven is kind.

Luke 6: 27-36 has such amazing foundational revolutionary perspectives. Jesus closes the chapter with Luke 6: 47-49, instructing us to live out these truths. If we do, we would be building our lives on the rock and stand firm in the storms of life and the world would be so changed by the love of God.

Next Sunday: Do You Have Jesus' Eyes? Luke 8: 27-39!

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Family Core

We had a fantastic Family Core. About 30 people came.

We had billiard, ping pong, board games and card games.

Each family brought food to share.

Our next Family Core would be the annual White Elephant Gift Exchange Party & Potluck!

The whole day whizzed by... And I think this whole year is whizzing by quite quickly, too!

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Passport Picked Up; Shopping Done

We drove and picked up the kids' passports!

It was quick!

Then we went to the local shopping mall for lunch, just before the crowd came.

Since we have a weekend filled with activities, we needed lots of goodies. I had three separate lists.

At RT Mart, I found Marie Callendar's cookie mixes for 20NT$ a bag. I bought all they had on the shelf.  So glad we had the car!

At Costco (these stores are right next door to each other), it was again a mad house. We tried to get in, get what we needed and get out!

Abby had a shorter day today, so we were able to pick her up at around 3:45.

We then all headed to the park. I did a short run and biked around as I had to rush back to attend our community meeting.

Alan and Abby played basketball and tennis and baked cookies the rest of the evening.

Isaiah had to be at cram school.

It was another fast day!

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Dinner Out with James

My brother James is in town. We always enjoy having him around as he takes us out to the nicest and most expensive restaurants.

Tonight we met up at a Thai restaurant and the total bill was more than my weekly food budget!  And he even ordered two extra orders for me to bring back home for Alan!

He is only here for a week...

He also brought us a camera and a new iPad! WHAT????? Needless to say, my kids are thrilled.

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