Quote of the Day:
The French have launched their own version of  called Qaero. 
You just type something in and Qaero refuses to look it up for you. –
SNL Weekend Update 1/15/2006

Today was a pretty shit day for skiing.  I mean we had fun in the
morning, but I have to say it was not the best.  It started out
okl.

So last night we had this other family join us in the House that we are
renting.  Noah’s best friend, Sol, joined us for day 2 and they
were going to learn to do some complex ski moves, which is beetter than
what I can do.

But anyway, we started off with 6 kids and 5 adults having breakfast
under one kitchen.  I eventually became last inline for breakfast
cause everyone woke up before I did.  The bed I am sleeping in is
hard and uncomfortable.  I normally like harder beds but this one
just sucks.  And for a person who was sore all day and night, this
bed just didn’t work like mine at home does.

So anyway, Sol’s family had to run off early to rent skis and stuff
before the 9:30 lesson so they went out earlier in the moring.  We
spent a total of 15mins getting up the hill yesterday between hopping
on the shuttle and getting to lodge.  So we were like ok, lets
give 40mins today cause today is Martin Luther King weekend.

Turns out, it took over an hour to get up there, cause the first
shuttle that arrived was full and we had to wait a full 30mins again
for the second one kinda annoying. 

But the nice thing was that it was snowing this morning, and it was so
beautiful.  I mean I looked out and all I saw was white. 
This is the first White Christmas I have ever had in my entire
life.  Though Christmas is past, the first Winter Holiday with
lots of snow… It was nice.

So anyway, we get Noah to the Ski lodge at around 10:10, but Thank God
his lesson lasts 3 hours.  So he missed some stuff but he still
has over 2 hours of his lesson left so that was cool.  The three
youngest kids stayed at home and the 6th kid had his own group skiing
lesson.

Complex right.  All you had to know was that, the rest of the
Adults got to Ski for 2.5 hours until the kids all finish their
lessons.  But as we were skiing, it started to snow harder. 
It didn’t stop from the morning and it got up to a point where, Vince,
Sol’s Dad was like this is pretty much blizzard.  Which is real,
cause I almost hurt some people, on my way down my fourth run of the
hill.

Yep, I did four runs today and you know what?  I only fell once the last time down.  It was pretty awesome.

But when we all met up it was snowing so hard and the kids were so cold
that we ended up having to go back down and go home.  Which I was
pretty sad about because I was doing so well up unitl that point. 
I even could ski without the poles, and took a video of my going
downhill.  Not bad for my second day eh?

So we head back down, and decided to stop by and get somethign to eat
before we head home.  At the base of the Mountain, there is this
place called The Village, and it is in majoy development, so there is
nothing.  Except for a snobby sit down restaurant and a Burrito
and Wrap place.

So naturally we went to the Burrito and Wrap place.  But you know
what, They fucking sucked.  The food when we eventually got it was
not bad.  It was actually quite good, but we had to line up for an
hour and a half for the food.  They were so slow.  And there
was a large line.  they only had two guys makin burritos, and some
people had multiple orders.

A whole fucking ski lodge and there is only one  restaurant. 
What the fuck? It was the dumbest thing I have ever heard.  I was
like you have to be fucking kidding me.  And then we eventually
found out that the place had only opened today.  Today was their
first day of business.  How dumb can you get.  You mean
before this, there was only one sit down restaurant that noone could
fucking get into.

Whoe the hell designed a Ski resort that had no food.  You would
think that is the firs thting they would think of if they were going to
attract tourists.  And then to top it off, after we got home guest
what.  Ther ewas a fucking staple in my food.  I’m also glad
I found it too cause it was a large staple.  the kind they use to
keep cardboxes together.  It was fucking scary.  If that went
down my stomach I don’t know what I would be doing.

Hell the rest of the day was kinda slow.  We jsut sat around and
watched the NFL playoffs, and I have to say that I am starting to like
that game, though football is far superior sport to me still. 
But, BTW Machester Unted lost away 3-1 at Manchester City… Fucking
Man City…

So this low key night ended well, with a great Korean style Chicken
dinner cooked in part by Me and my Sister.  And then some more TV
watching… All in a ll a dissappointing day but still, it ended better.

Jonathan from Lake Tahoe Out!

Photos from hawaii… Added… You may see photos in their batches on the left hand column.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonleehk/

Jonathan from Lake Tahoe Out!

Wow, I went for to Ski for the first time today, and it kicked my
ass.  I had a lot of fun but it was some serious pain involved for
the first few Hours.

First of all I have to say, Tahoe is one of the most beautiful places
on earth.  I took many pictures and somehow I still can’t get them
onto USB and into my computer, we shall see what I can do.

Anyway, I am having some great times here.  I didn’t sleep to well
last night cause I don’t like this bed.  Shame cause it looks so
soft and plush.  But at the end of the day, it’s just that I
didn’t get much rest and it didn’t translate to a good night.

So I got all my shit together this morning, and we had a full day Baby
sitter for Natalia who went up the slope with us.  And I was like
a Penguin.  kinda walking precariously.  I had a lesson
scheduled for 1:15 am and we were there at around 11:00 so Karen and
Trevor told me to try the beginner’s run.  And you know what, For
a person who has never skied.  I did ok.  With no
lessons.  I fell about 5 times on my way down the rabbit run as
they call it.  It was about 600 feet so I did ok. Ha ha…

It’s pretty cold in the morning, but you know what.  I felt hot in
my Ski Jacket the whole day.  I would have done fine with a Fleece
and a sweatshirt.  I think I will try that tomorrow.

So lunch up at the base of the slope is pretty good.  Very canteen
style, but very good.  Expensive, hey they have the monolopy on
the whole place so they can charge whatever the hell they want. 
There was some guy wearing a No. 7 England (Beckham) Jersey, so that
put  a smile to mny face.

My Lesson was great.  Nancy, my instructor was this woman, who was
like in her 50s or late 40s, but she was an awesome skier.  She
could ske backwards down a slope and upwards… well not relaly ski up,
but she would make her way up a slope quite gracefully. 

Anyway, she taught me everything I needed to know to ski, and withing 2
hours I made my way down the whole slope from way up the mountain, to
the bottom.  Mind you I didn’t go from the the top of the
mountain, but I was pretty damn high up.  Maybe 8000 feet.

The slopes close at 4pm, so I headed home from there, and now I am at
home relaxing.  I am hella tired and I could sleep for days
now.  My body is sore, but I had the time of my life.  It was
a great expereience.

Jonathan from San Francisco Out!

So I woke up to the sounds of kids yelling and coming on to my bed
today.  It was a nice sound contrary to what most people would
think.  Though I did sleep at 1 am, and I was pretty tired when I
woke up, I still felt good.  I think it was the idea that I was
back at home with family again, it is was nice.

Noah was taken to school, so I was charged with the task of taking care
of Natalia and Jonah.  It was fun.  I had some Rice Crispies
for breakfast, which is always nice.  It has been a while since I
had any of that stuff. 

We were going to go to Football practice with Jonah today which would
have been super fun, just for me to see Football and see little kids do
it would have been cool.  However It was canceled due too much
dew on the grass making the surface quite slippery.

At the end we just went to the Shopping Centre to get stuff for our
little ski trip.  I bought some pants, fleece, and some other
accesories. Now I am set to go and roll around on my ass and just be out right sore.

Lunch was at the food court at the mall  That was pretty
good.  I usually go to the Korean place and today was no
exception.  I had spicy chicken and and some of those friend
noodles.  It was soo good.  It was awesome.

Afterwards, we went grocery shopping for dinner and I went to get a
haircut.  Which now is pretty short.  I think a few people
may not like it too mcuch cause it is supershort, but I really like it
and it felt good afteringwards cause I feel lighter and just feel more
comfortable.

We had a quick dinner and then off to Basketball Practice for Noah in
the evening.  that was pretty cool.  Noah is good so that was
nice to watch.  He could get better and better.  I was
talking to Trevor about Jonah being the next Landon Donovan, and I was
pretty excited.  Pretty cool.  I would totally train him and
get into this work.

Anyway, time to go to Lake Tahoe.  I will tell you more when I
arrive over there.  I hope that there is Internet over
there.  Some way or another.  I have a T-Mobile account so
that should be good.

Anyway time to go see you all later.

Jonathan from San Francisco Out!

I’ve left Hawaii and gone to California.  And you know what. 
I am kinda ready to go.  Though I would love to stay longer in
Honolulu, I really wanted to go and see the kids.  Cuase that
really was the intention of my holiday anyway.

This morning, was nice.  I woke up to watch and take pictures of
the sunrise.  That was really nice.  I also went to Autie
Mary’s Cafe, Wailana Coffee House.  The food there is amazing, but
I went today more cause she had a Stroke a few months ago and is
fighting hard, but it doesn’t look good.

I will miss her if she is gone, but she has led a great life too. 
I hope that someone can take over Wailana well… It will be a shame,
there are so many good people there and so much history in there.

Auntie Sylvia took me for Lunch and a Local Cafe and the food was Damn
good.  I had meatloaf, a very normal and usually nothing special
dish, but it was gourmet.  So good.

Then I headed over the airport where I spent about 70mins getting
through checking, cause a good half of the island was checking in on
inter-island and to the US mainland flights.  But I fainlly got
through, Got some magazines, and read my way till the flight.

For the first time, I sat next to a guy who was cool.  He was this
40 something guy who played guitar and loved watching Football… The
real kind (Soccer to you Americans).  It was so cool.  We
talked bands, drums, guitars, music… cover bands… It was
nice.  Then I slept for about 2 hours and we arrived.

Now I sit in Karen and Trevor’s newly renovated home and things are
super cool.  It is so much bigger and nicer now.  Not that it
was nice before.. I will try and post some pictures this week of my
trip and all that.

Jonathan from San Francisco Out!

I spent the whole morning sleeping today.  And it was great. 
I was up all night on the phone but I slept just as the sun came up and
woke up at 1pm.  I really wanted to get to the beach this morning,
for the Sunrise but I didn’t get the chance.  I was too snuggled
into bed, that I didn’t want to get out and well I only have one last
chance to take pictures of the sunrise and that is tomnorrow.

In the afternoon I will head over to california to see my sister and
that will be pretty cool.  I cannot wait for that cause I really
miss seeing my Trevor and the kids.  It has ben way too
long.  That being April.

I finally did all the shopping I needed to do today.  So I feel
pretty happy.  Since this is not the first time I have been to
Hawaii, I decided that I would get food and candy this time, cause I
think my friends have all the keychains and Necklaces they need.

*sigh*

So I went to the beach this afternoon, and you know what it was
fun.  I feel darker and tanner, and you should see me now.  I
think I am determined to lose some weight in time for Hong Kong beach
Season, if I ever make it that far, cause school may kill me first.

Anyway, i finally got all my shit submitted yesterday, and things are
cool for now.  When I get back to Hong Kong, I really need to
start thinking about the work and all that.  Getting my interviews
set up and just figuring shit out.  That would be pretty tough
cause there is so much that I have to do once I get it all started.

Anyway, the beach was nice.  The sun was definitely out and I
spent about 90 minutes there so it was nice.  I got some sun in,
in between the little fits of clouds.  But it was blue skies all
the way today.

Did some of my own Quicksilver shopping so now my Holiday in Hawaii, is
all set and I am super Happy about this holiday in terms of shopping.

Well, anyway, tonight is going to be a good dinner and It will be nice
dinner wtih Auntie Sylvia and a bunch of people my mommy knows
here.  Lots of good Food, I think Chinese, and then a little
joy.  See you all soon….

Jonathan from Honolulu Out!

I finally took my butt to the beach today, and it was ok.  For
about 10mins, then all of a sudden it got overcast.  I woke up
this morning, and I felt like that I was in fraeking Hawai’i and I
needed to get out of the house and take advantage that I lived near a
beach.

Anyway, So I spent totally 15mins in the Sun and it was quite
nice.  I think I will be getting some sort of a tan.  So it
should be nice.

Hopefully I will be all nice slight brown shade it will make me
HOT!  heh heh… yeah right, the only time I’m hot and I’m sitting
in the Sun and sweating, and I mean tempereature hot.

Bad Joke, but it was worth a try.  If I didn’t need explanation
for the joke, then it might have worked better, but that is still a
stretch.  Ha ha, whatever.

So I went swimming here too and it was cold.  The weather is about
15 degrees (for you non metric users, caltulate it yourself).  So
that is not too bad weather wise, but it is cold waterwise.

BBQ dinner tonite was so good.  We had Korean Ribs, Fried Rice,
Fish, Salad, and lots of Brownies.  It was fantastic I had three
helpings of food, and things were good.  I was pretty happy
allround.

Jonathan from Honolulu Out!

“God Made the Earth Round so that those apart can meet again…” – Japanese Requiem

Jonathan Out

Church today…

I’m hella tired.  I tried talking on the phone but it didn’t
last too long.  I am super jetlagged and today begins the arduous
process of staying up all day to sleep at night.  I will see if I
end up dying or not…

The Sun came out this morning and it was a great day.  The
weather still a little cool for Hawai’i's standard weather, but you
know it was great.  Still dry and beautiful.  I took lots of
photos and I will post them up once I get into California cause I will
have internet there.  Instead of having to use internet in a
business center, and have a time limit like it’s prison.  Sigh…

Gonna shop a lot today hopefully and just pick all you guys some souveniers… Lots of cool stuff here…

Since the Jet Lag has totally kicked in today and I am trying my utmost to
stay awake so that I can adjust to the time change. So how have I tried to remedy the situation?
I have done nothing.  And it hurts the brain.  I tried to
watch some TV and all that but it is not working.. My brain is fried.

I gotta say, I watched the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra today and it
was an amazing concert.  Thr acoustics in the concert hall are not
the absolute best, but I have to say they played great.

The main piece was accompanied by an 80 strong amatuer men’s choir
from Japan and a little boy singing soprano, who couldn’t have been
more than 10 years old.  And he was amazing.  There was a
standing ovation at the end, but I think it was mainly for the little
boy.

I did my best to stay away for the less exciting first half but it
was tough.  I did get some icer-cream during the half and that
kept me up (and fairly wired) for the second half.

I’m going to try and finish some of my home work now… being my Masters Project Title submission…

I’ll talk to you all tomorrow…

Jonathan from Honolulu Out!

I’m in Hawaii Ladies and Gentlemen.

It is a wonderful thing.  Though I am here alone and on my way
to California, i felt that I needed to stop by.  Since I have not
really had time off for a while, I decided to take this
opportunity.  Houwever it being just a few weeks after the 18th,
it is going to a be a test of my mental resolve.

Belinda has left Hong Kong for good, and Solomon has left for a
month to pack up, and so it was time for me to go.  I had some
time before school started, so I set off for California.  Though I
am going to miss a few parties, shows, and some concerts (I gave up
Dreamtheater for this) I hope that Franz Ferdinand, and Oasis can make
that up when they come to Hong Kong.

Anyway, I had a pretty shitty flight over here.  Between the
kid who was coughing and kids making noises behind me (couldn’t tell if
they were laughing or crying) It was not great.  Though
service/food/and flying comfort were excellent, so I had to make some
sacrifices.

I watched my new Volume 2 DVD of Star Wars Clone Wars and that
was pretty good.  The animations is amazing.  I had seen it
already (courtesy of Erik) but then to watch it again in one go, on my
Powerbook 15″ was pretty exciting.

After arriving at 6am and deciding nothing was going to happen here,
I went to breakfast and slept for a few hours.  That was a nice
nap considering I didn’t sleep well on the plane.

I spent the rest of the day eating and shopping, but I have to say
that I didn’t buy anything other than a holder for my cellphone, and
Lunch and Dinner…

I need to get all those souvenier shopping done today so I can buy
for myself.  ha ha… I found Honolulu’s Quicksilver shop, so if
you know me, you would just probably make fun of me.  I didn’t
enter the shop at first sight, though I will go in eventually before I
leave.

But to save my own wallet for it’s imminent death that Quicksilver
with bring it, I decided to wait till my last day here and see how much
I have left before I go…  Let’s see if that works out…

Jonathan from Honolulu Out!