A Year of Change

A day or so ago Jag and his group visited the largest Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital in Kunming. Then I think yesterday they were at at school. We get bits and pieces via their blog and texts but all are having an excellent time. Here’s more from Jag in his own words.

After already spending a day in China, we had the opportunity to visit the Champion Learning School. While we were there we were able to have conversations in both Mandarin and English with the kids. During our time there we did introductions in each-other’s languages, hoping to reach a more extensive cultural understanding. Yet, a reoccurring trend with all of the kids was asking us if we had a WeChat. For those of you that do not know, a WeChat is a type of Messaging Board System that most people in China use to communicate, when something such as iMessage does not exist. This enables them and us to continue to express one of V.M.S.’s own principals, community. This philosophy is very significant to V.M.S.’s Intraterm and Where There Be Dragons because it continues to illuminate our purpose by showing how it can be done through technology. As it has continued to become more apparent in our lives, it gives us the choice to work towards bettering relationships between people on the other-side of the planet. Even as our trip continues to progress, and we get closer to our departure we will still be able to talk to our new friends; as they have already started messaging us, we can only hope that this will continue in hopes of progressing our understanding of the Chinese people and their language.

So not only is this trip life changing but also educational. As far as I know, no one in our family except for Mom and Dad and Lori, have set foot in China, and none to the extent of immersion that Jag has. We’re proud of him and are sure he’ll come back years older. Luisa who works for me said yesterday that Jag has an old soul meaning he’s much wiser than his years. That pretty much sums it up.

Ty too is wired the same way yet different. He’s emerging as a leader among his classmates with a small crowd of kids all ages following him out of school each day and telling him goodbye. It’s sort of funny like a scene from a movie. We’re lucky we have good boys as there are a lot of questionable characters out there making questionable or down right bad decisions.

Lori and I worked and had uneventful days which I guess is good. Her head has been bothering her and we’re hoping a recipe of 80 degrees and a beach will cure her.

We have a busy day, again, so time to run. Hope all’s well, GB. Here’s more from China below,

Traditional Chinese Medicine is widely practiced throughout China. We had the chance to visit the largest TCM hospital in Kunming. At this hospital they utilize acupuncture, massage, herbs, and moxibustion. We were fortunate enough to see treatments first hand. After experiencing this form of traditional medicine, we saw how Western medicine is being coupled with TCM to strengthen the medical practices as a whole. X-ray may be paired with massage to further diagnose.

One of the patients we saw during our time at the hospital was diagnosed with Bell’s Palsy. Acupuncture was used to stimulate the nerves in her face. Over ten needles were placed around her face, on her arms, and even on her ears. This shows how TCM can help to target a problem through a wholistic approach. They treat the whole body, not only the affected area. We were told that repeated treatment would continually improve the nerves and restore movement to her face.

This wholistic approach to treating any medical need is economically beneficial and has also been shown to provide better results in the long term. The World Health Organization has deemed TCM the medicine of the future.

This was a new experience for all of us and has helped us to better understand the Chinese culture. We are so glad this was part of our trip and hope to continue learning about Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Types of TCM:

Acupuncture – It wakes up and stimulates blood flow and helps to stimulate nerves.

Cupping – Helps to release toxins by reducing pressure and allowing inflammation to subside.

Massage – It combines a western chiropractic practice with physical therapy and massage therapy.

Herbs – Different combinations of herbs to naturally treat and relieve symptoms.

Yesterday after washing the car, our windshield cracked from top to bottom right in the middle on Lori’s Suburban. With the week ahead, I need to get this fixed right away. So this morning, in about an hour, I’m off to Alameda and Wadsworth in Denver for a 9 am appointment. Then I need to run to Cherry Creek and then Arvada before heading back up the hill. Wednesday I’m back down picking up Lorenzo and Jen who arrive from New York. Then we’ll have 4 busy days up here before going to get Jag and dropping them at the airport on Sunday for their flight home.

Tonight Lori has a board meeting for Canine Companions and tomorrow I have one for the school gala coming up this November. Jag’s doing well and is on an overnight train up country to a small village where they will all stay with a family. I think they’re close to Tibet. All’s good from his texts. Below are a couple pictures of breakfast. Not sure what all they’re eating but they seem to be enjoying it. Have a great day and week and God Bless.

It’s Sunday, which means tomorrow is Monday. The weekends go so fast. We did a few things around the house but it’s still so cluttered, you don’t really notice. Today I’ll try to get into Jag’s room and see if I can make a dent in the mess. Ty was at his friends most of the day in Glenwood. They went swimming at the hot springs pool earlier in the day before we met theme halfway and picked them up at Costco. We then dropped his friend and younger brother at their dads house in Edwards before heading home.

Ty’s lobbying hard to go to Battle Mountain High School instead of VMS. We’re open to listening to him but still think he’ll get a better education at VMS. It will cost us $5,552 a month though for both boys to go, ugh. That’s a big pill to swallow but we’ll see. I told him if he can show us he can get all A’s and a few B’s this year, we’d consider it. It is understandable though as all his friends from this year, which are more than he had at VMS, are going to BMHS.

Lori was hoping to get her hair colored today but hasn’t heard back from Jeannie. Jag is having fun as far as we know from group posts. They’re about 16 hours ahead of us so it’s almost bed time there right now. Still hard to believe he’s in China and has been there for 3 days. What an experience.

The snow has stopped but it was a good snow. It looks like the foothills in Denver had a good shot too. It’s supposed to warm up a bit this week. That’s it for today, hope everyone is well. GB

Jag and his classmates are on the way to China. Best guess is they’ll land in Beijing about 2 in the afternoon our time. They then have I think a 6 hour layover until they catch another flight to Kunming which is in the southern part of China. Kunming is in the Yunnan Province and has about 8 million people, a small city by China standards. Beijing on the other hand is about 22 million people, wow. So more to come. I figured it out last night that the next time Jag will wake up in his own bed, it’ll be March 1st! Also a week from Monday, or 10 days from today, we’ll all be on a plane for Maui. So you can see we’re busy busy.

Ty was home yesterday as when I was driving him to school he had a bad cough and we diverted to the doctor to make sure he didn’t have the flu. The doctor said keep him home yesterday but thankfully, no flu. The test involved a long Q-tip stuck all the way (about 2 or 3 inches) up his nose! We should keep him home again today but with his concussions, he’s missed too much school so he’ll have to suck it up.

Yesterday we left school around 2:15 for the airport yesterday and I dropped Jag and Matt about 4:15. With Denver traffic, I then made it home around 6:45. We talked to him when he was in Los Angeles around 10 pm. It’s now 7:19 am and time to get moving. Hope they’re asleep on the plane and having a good time. I think they land about 5 am. What an experience for him and his classmates. Have a great day, GB.

Today’s the day, Jag leaves for China, we hope. Two kids out of ten are sick. One we think is not going and another that has been in bed for two days and is on Tamiflu. Jag had a sore throat and came down during the night for some Alka Seltzer. We’re waiting to see how he’s doing this morning. Of course if a kid could get sick, it’d figure it’d be right before they go on a trip! You don’t want your kid to miss the trip of a lifetime but with the flu, you can’t mess around. Lori told me last night one of the surgeons at work is also out with the flu. So far I feel ok from my trip but I wiped down literally everything I came in contact with while gone. One girl who was riding down with the girl who is sick, is now riding with us. I’m getting some masks from the hospital for the kids to wear on the plane, ugh.

I made it home by noon after landing in Denver a little after 8 am. I stopped at the dry cleaner and grocery store on the way up the hill. Today at 2 I’ll grab three kids and drive them to the airport in Denver which should put me home around 6:30 or 7 depending on traffic. This means Lori again will have to get Ty from school.

Time to run, lots to do, have a great day and GB.

Yesterday was a good day. Lots of work and a drive to Portland, then a meeting and a great dinner at a great French restaurant. I left Seattle around noon as I was told it’d take me 4 hours to drive to Portland with traffic. Turns out I made it in 2 1/2 hours. It was a nice drive as years ago when I lived in Seattle I drove it often and driving down, I remembered a lot. Once in Portland I met up with Kristin who has worked for us since the beginning.

We dropped my rental car and headed downtown for a meeting with our Oregon distributor. I had known this guy for years through many many phone calls but had never met him in person. It was finally good for both of us to meet face to face. After a successful two hour meeting, we went to pick up Kristin’s boyfriend Tommy. They’re having a baby in about a month and own a restaurant. We headed downtown to a French restaurant that is owned by the chef who is partners with Tommy in his restaurant. 5 minutes after arriving Antonio met us as he just made it to town earlier in the day.

The food was great. Before our main course, the chef sent over this fresh cod collar which is basically the neck of the fish, (see below). It was great and filling. By the time our main course arrived, we were stuffed. I made it to my hotel by 9:30 and was asleep by 10 which is good, as I woke up at 2:30. I have a 5:15 flight so time to get moving. I should be back in Denver by 8:30 this morning and then head up the hill. Have a great day and GB.

Long day, long flight. I landed about 2:30 in the afternoon and was at the office an hour later. We then worked until about 10 pm before heading to our place to stay. It’s a great place with an unbelievable view of Seattle which I’ll post below.

Lori and the boys did well and are up getting ready. It’s 6 here and I’ll be at the office by 7:30 and then will leave to drive to Portland at noon. I have a meeting with my distributor and then will have dinner with Antonio. Tomorrow at 3 in the morning I’ll get up and head for my 5:15 plane. Time to go, have a great day, GB.

I’m off to Denver to catch a plane to Seattle and the boys have school while Lori will be at work. She’ll have to leave to pick them up early and then go back to work for at least another hour. Tomorrow Jag has to be there at 7:15 so she’ll be up early again. Then on Wednesday Ty has late start and Jag has early release but I should be back in time to pick him up.

Jag’s taking a dose of Typhoid pills which can give you an upset stomach and yesterday didn’t disappoint. He has two more pills, one on Tuesday and one Thursday when he leaves. Better safe than sorry.

Good game last night as far as Super Bowls go. Lots of offense and no defense until the end and thankfully the cheater Patriots lost. The commercials were good too. Now we have about 11 weeks until the draft. This is the true off season but hey, we’re in first place!

I’d better get moving so I can get the boys moving. My flight is at 11:15 or so. Thankfully I’m flying First Class so I should have lots of room. Germs are everywhere, I’ll be wiping down my seat, tray table, arm rests and just about everything else like the seat belt trying to avoid the flu. I even take latex gloves, ha.

Have a great day and week, God Bless.

Today is the big game. It doesn’t really seem as important as ones in the past. In other words, we don’t really care about it. Take all the protests by players this year against the flag plus the fact the the Patriots are in it, again, and it’s like who cares. I’m sure we’ll watch it, sort of. We like the commercials more than anything.

Yesterday Jag headed to Grand Junction for two games while Lori and I headed to Denver. We had a nice lunch with friends after her appointment and stopping at the mall to buy a few things for Jag’s trip. Jag shot 60% from the field and his coach said he’s a great player and a great kid when he dropped him off last night. It seems one of our other guys got a technical foul and was sort of a downer on the whole team. That was Jag’s last game for the season although he might make practice a day or two before he goes to China.

I’m off to Seattle and Portland tomorrow so today we’ll need to get Jags stuff laid out and ready to pack. We’re excited for him, what an experience! Who gets to go to China anyhow, WOW!

Time to run so I can head out to the gym. By the way, have you that get a paycheck noticed your check went up under the new tax plan? Lori’s did about $4000 a year! For me, what I pay in taxes went down about $6000! That’s a big deal for us. We’re pretty happy with it as it’s the first time in our lives that taxes have ever went down! Just saying.

So, go Eagles! (We’re cheering for Philadelphia), have a great day, GB.