First Day At Work - End of the Housewife

After we got married last year, Jo convinced me in pure Machevellian fashion to be the only breadwinner while she stayed home and relaxed. Of course, out of ignorance and love, I agreed. Actually, it worked out pretty well and even Jo was shocked that she kinda liked being .......drumroll...... an actual housewife (since Jo's character is one that feels staying home is like staying in a prison - unlike me).

But all good things must come to an end and today is the first day of her new job. She is bummed.

Actually, the great thing is that it is not a normal job. Since we opened our company and doubled its size recently, we also acquired an office and some workers, so Jo (and all of us in our company) are working for ourselves now. In fact, she is managing the entire part of the children's financial department, and it is bound to be interesting. I, on the other hand am the one who has to create all the materials and - at least for right now - have convinced everyone that I work better at home (so I am at home "working" most days). It is a very different feeling than working for someone else, so that is a motivating factor.

However, I know that even though Jo likes to be out and about and doing challenging things, she really just wants to take more time off and clean our house (which I sincerely try to keep up with....), drink our very good coffee, listen to music and do her Sudoku (which I have absolutely no interest in).

Maybe in the near future, she will get her wish again!

Until then, you may want to send Jo a note to cheer her up!

I have to get back to "working" now.....


Jeff & Jo

New Year Gambling Stats

Well, the holidays are over and the New Rat Year is finally beginning.

To bring in the new year, Jo's family did what they always do - gamble as much as possible over the holidays. Actually, this is not only Jo's family, it is most Asians. In fact, I will assume that many overseas Chinese also take a few days holiday during the Chinese New Year time and gamble away.

Of course, high stakes gambling is frowned upon, especially since family and friends are playing and winning a large amount from someone often brings large problems, but small stake gambling with friends and family (in the range of NT$10 - NT$50 - or about $.25 to $1.00) is exciting and interesting.

Yes, I am hooked.

Basically, there are many ways to take and give money to your family and friends, but the three main ones here (or that we play) are

• Ma Jiang (or Mahjong, Mah Jhong)

• Shee Bala

• Big Ol' Two

I am not going to go into the ins and outs of how to play, since especially for Ma Jiang it is too complicated, but the main point is that after playing with Jo's family for about 15 hours (over a few days), our coffers went up and down like the tides.

And our final tally is that we ended up in the red about NT$20 (or about $.70). At the high point, we were up about NT$400 bucks, but that quickly faded when we started playing Ma Jiang - although I have to give Jo credit - twice at the very last round (of MANY rounds) she got the best situaiton or "Zi Mou" (where you pick the tile that will make the perfect match) and that is when you rake it in. So that was cool.

But damn, Jo's mom is almost 70, but as sharp as a knife and won many times - at everything!

So we consider ourselves lucky to loose only a little bit - the other siblings lost about NT$200 to NT$500 to their mom!

For myself, I had a good run at Shee Ba La - the dice game - where absolutely no skill was required.....sigh....

Anyway, in this year of the Rat, things are looking pretty good!




Best Wishes in the New Year!

Jeff & Jo

Some Current Mocha Shots

I have some time now (due to CNY), so I can post a few more things between computer games and board games.....

So, here are some current shots of Mocha doing what he does best - waiting for food.

And since the best place to get food is near a table, Mocha's spot is under Mom's chair since that is the only chair he was allowed to chew on (much to the chagrin of Dad....).

He has almost bitten through that one leg so I am not allowed to sit on that chair....sigh....Jo is ok, though

Another place he can get food (if he is nice), is his "home" which is his cage. All we have to do is say that exciting word, and he is inside immediately, expecting something. Often times, it amounts to a crumb or some teeny leftovers, but he is always hoping.....

Mean Daddy fooled him again with "rabbit food" (some vegetables) but he ate it all the same and will continue to I assume.

That last picture is him trying his best to "Lie Down"

We have also taught him not to eat anything unless we say "Eat!" so we try our best to see how long he can last before there is a puddle of drool on the floor. The longest time is about 15 seconds..... Course, we have purposesly tried to get it longer and longer and once Jo gave him food, said "Stay" and then forgot she gave him anything. After about 3-4 minutes, she turned around and Mocha was still staring holes into the little piece of meat with a little pool of spit right under his mouth. But he did not eat it, so that was good!



.
Hope you enjoyed the pics!

Jeff & Jo & Mocha

Happy Chinese New Year (of the Rat)!

We are celebrating the Chinese New Year by resting and eating - just like Xmas holidays back home for most Westerners. Today was our first day off of six, so it should be a good rest break. We both need it since the last month especially has been hectic (course, when has it NOT been hectic....I can't remember).

Anyway, it is just the three of us here since Pei Ying (Jo's neice went back home for the vacation). Just a few hours ago, Jo made a Hot Pot full of simple but tasty and good things to eat for lunch and we were stuffed. However, we plan to eat and snack all vacation (also just like the West), so that is good.

Oh, I just found out that I can not snack so much, due to something called a 'gut'. So I will have to make other arrangements (I have hid some things in the computer room, so I think I am safe for the time being).

Anyway, here are some pics of all of us eating, which will be a common theme for most people here in Taiwan....

Even Mocha was lucky

More posts to come....Have a great CNY or Feb 6th!

Jeff & Jo

Some Mocha Shots

Updates Before Chinese New Year

Hello!

It has been awhile since we have....yes....been busy. But here are some updates.

• Jo's neice Pei-Ying has been staying with us for the past week and will stay for another month or so, since she wanted to get some job experience in a larger city and to visit with her unique aunt and uncle. We are very happy to have her here!
  
• Jo and I have been SUPER busy preparing for a very important meeting we had this past week for our company and it was a success, so things are starting to roll (more on that later).
• Mocha has been getting better at playing with Hali, but still 'loses' quite a bit - although he is nipping more and more which drives Hali mad.
  
• Jo has convinced me to join a very nice gym here starting in Feb, so I can get fitter and to work out with her.
• We are nearing our first year anniversary and that is always exciting!

It does not look like much, but there has been a lot of action in the last few weeks!

Hope to post more later,

Meet us in Facebook!

Jeff & Jo

(Another) One Year Anniversary

Jo and I will be celebrating our 1 year anniversary on Feb 3rd!

True, we were officially married on Oct, 11th and that is the date we will carry through and exchange presents for, but Feb 3rd is when our families met over here and is also very special for us.

So to celebrate, we will have a very nice lunch at a place called Little Italy - one of the best Italian restaurants here in Taichung. This is also to celebrate the fact that we can actually EAT something this day, since we did not have a chance to eat anything at our own wedding - we were too busy attending to guests and playing silly games (go to last year's posts about our wedding for more).

So, wish us a Happy One Year Anniversary (again)!

Thanx!

Love, Jeff & Jo!

Facebook!

I am on Facebook and am enjoying it quite a bit.

Cuz Steph invited me and I am part of the Facebook world. Of course, for my addictive personality, all thos apps are half driving me mad and half truely absorbing.

And the cool thing is that it is another way to stay in touch with friends and family.

Are you there? I know I am late to this, but it is interesting....

http://www.facebook.com/home

See you on line

Mocha and Hali

Mocha keeps on getting cuter and even Jo has had to admit that he is much better than before (gets into trouble much less).

Perhaps one of the reasons is that his best friend Hali is only a floor away and they often spend time together fighting, nipping, pushing and rolling around - all things that dogs (and boys) love.

Here is a quick vid of Mocha and Hali (named after Harry Potter in Chinese) playing on our roof. Zak, my friend and neighbor is Hali's owner. He is from Chicago and loves it when Taiwan gets cool. Yes, this was last week or so in January.





Here is Mocha trying not to be greedy, but failing. There are 3 balls and he wants them all. Hmmm, how can he get them all? Opposable thumbs do come in handy here....




Just some posts to catch you up with Mocha. Hope you enjoyed them!

Jeff & Jo

Welcome to Jeff & Jo's Abode

All of you are most welcome to come to our abode.

When you do come, you will notice our new sign that Santa got for us this Christmas, which was hand made by the slave-labor....I mean hard working elves.

Anyway, it is cute and wanted to take a picture of it.



Plus, Jo wanted to take a pic of her new Snoopy that Santa also was able to procure for her....



Have a great one,

Jeff & Jo

New Year's Goals

It is the New Year upon us and while I have never liked New Year Resolutions, I have always been a firm believer in New Year Goal Setting.

Thus, I hope to look back on this and see what actually transpires.

Here are my and Jo's hopes for the upcoming year.

Jeff's:

• I want Jo and I to be the parents of an adorable smart and healthy baby (or babies) by year's end

• I want Tiny Tycoon$ to be able to thrive beyond our expectations

  • I want to go full time for Tiny Tycoon$ by August, 2008, earning at least double what I am now per month

  • I want to have at least 25 schools using our curriculum by Dec 2008

  • I want my books and games to be an international success through great marketing

    • I want to finish the entire levels of Tiny Tycoon$ by April 15^th

    • I want to be able to publish the board game by early May

    • I want to have created at least 4 new board games to compliment the teaching system

  • I want to continue to find the best people for our company, increasing our team's potential

    • I want to find at least 1 other person for marketing and 1 other person for web site design

    • I want to create a passionate team of 2-3 people for game and curriculum development

• I want to start going to the gym and to get my weight down to 90 kg (198 lbs)

• I want to end my investment with N company and have my entire capital plus stated profit paid back by my birthday

• I want to increase my board game collection to over 85 games by year end (50 more)

• I want to take Mocha out for more walks – at least twice a week

Jo's

• Have a successful business, making over $2,000,000 NT by year's end

• To be healthy and have a healthy baby

• Have another dog

We shall see!

We hope your New Year is great and has many pleasant surprises!

Love,

Jeff & Jo

Merry Christmas to Everyone!

Merry Xmas All!


Jo and I would like to wish all of you a super bunch of holidays - Christmas, New Year's, Chinese New Year's - no matter which ones you are currently celebrating, we hope that you are happy, healthy, wealthy and wise, let alone can score lots of presents or red envelopes!

In a Snoopy style Christmas (Jo loves Snoopy):


Jeff and Jo

Jo's Trek to Taiwan's North Pole

Jo and I love hiking and mountain climbing, but we have very different ideas about what a good trip conists of.

For me, I would prefer to take a few days off work, don my backpack full of stuff, head to the mountain head and start hiking for - oh, say 4-5 hours is good. Then when we get to a nice scenic spot, set up a tent or things and either rest up a bit or make little treks around the campsite. Then head back after filling up with fresh air and great views. Of course, after this trek, you need about 1-2 days recovery to get back in to the working groove....

For Jo and most people in Taiwan, "hiking" is basically a full day of hiking, to rest a few hours, to wake up early enough to watch the sunrise and then hiking to another mountain about a day away. Then they return on let's say a Sunday and then go to work on Monday. Basically, I call it masochism, but Jo does seem to think it is 'fun.' Actually, to be fair, she openly says you either LOVE it or you HATE it (with like many things here).

I know I would fall into the HATE it category, but I am eager to test this theory, since I would love to see more of Taiwan.

And in honest truth, Taiwan is such a damn beautiful country that hiking through it would be great (however, I will also openly admit that Jo's stamina is most likely better than mine right now....).


Anyway, Jo recently went to Nan Hu area to hike in for 4 days. Basically, they hiked about 50 hours of the 96 total hours there! And even though exhausted on some parts, she and her group still had energy to take pics and enjoy the scenery (before crashing).

I really wanted to go, but I had to......work. Yes. Really. So while Jo hiked around Taiwan's North Pole in early December, I was hard at work on the computer....and such (but we won't get into that).

Here are some pics of her adventure!

Jo is in the Yellow Jacket

Anyway, I can't wait for my own trek to Taiwan's peaks. It may not be the ideal setting for me, but the scenery can't get much better.

Plus, I am a bit of a masochist myself!

Keep on trekkin'

Jeff & Jo

We Are Puzzle Geeks

I will now admit that I am a puzzle geek, mostly because Jo is one too!

I have completed about 8 puzzles (over 1000 piece) by myself in the time I have been in Taiwan and while it is not so many, it is a feat to juggle that and my computer games.....

Jo has also completed 10 (which surprised me - I thought just 2 or 3 - she really IS a puzzle geek!).

Anyway, for our anniversary we exchanged gifts and mine was a great old map puzzle - I am even MORE of a Map Geek, but that can be another post. Anyway, we recently finished and it was a fun geeky way to pass time.


So, THANX Jo for getting a great puzzle!

We will most likely have many more in the future....

In Geekiness,

Jeff & Jo

Our First Home During Xmas

We are excited to celebrate another Christmas (our second) together, but this one is special since we have our own house now. It does feel different. Just last year, we had moved into what I thought was a great apartment (with the jacuzzi), but that fell through due to the landlord screwing us, and then we moved into the apartment that the parents and Wendy saw when they were here, but that was also not to last long (for a much better reason - we bought this house!).

And finally we are here and it does feel like home, especially since the tree is up and some decorations are up (mostly from parents - thanx!).

Anyway, here are some pics of our first night after the setting up of the Xmas Tree.




Hope Everyone is having a great Xmas Prep time!

Happy Ho Ho!

Jeff & Jo

HAPPY FIRST ANNIVERSARY!!

Well, it is official!

Jo and I have been married for our first year! We got married in court a year ago today and then had the wedding dinner in Feb. to coincide with my parents coming, so today was a BIG day!

We both took off from work and just planned an easy day. Basically, exchanged some gifts and went out to eat at one of our favorite restaurants (Little Italy) and had a great meal. After that, we walked around both in and out and decided to head back home to relax and contemplate how we got this far....actually we saw a movie.

After that, I had to take Mocha for a walk since he was bouncing off the walls (literally) and then we just relaxed and sipped wine and chatted about the past year, our plans and hopes.

It was (and still is) great and I am so lucky to be the husband of Jo!

Here's to many more!

Jeff & Jo (and Mocha)

Well, we are in the middle of a pretty big typhoon now - bigger than others.

As I write wind is billowing all around us, the sky is grey and rain is going in seemingly every direction but down.

Actually, it is pretty cool, but I say that from my safe abode in Taichung, which usually never bears the brunt of a major storm (except once about 15 years ago, and coincedentally, I was studying in Tung Hai University at the time).

I usually work on Saturdays, but we only had half a day, thankfully. Driving home was interesting since I kept having to rebalance myself on the motorcycle from the winds.

Anyway, things are well here and now it is officially "Fall" season here and last night was the first night we did NOT use an A/C. And with this typhoon it should really cool things off.

Have a good day, where ever you are,

Jeff & Jo

Fun with Mocha

We have been having fun just being with Mocha and he with us.

He is quick to learn, but like most Huskies, is easily bored and needs a lot of stimulus. We usually play with him as often as we can and bring him up to our roof or out for walks, but we do admit that since we are busy, he has to find ways to enjoy himself.

So he usually bites everything that he can get his teeth on and even though in the beginning, we naively bought 'chew-toys', thankfully the cheap-ees are best - rinsed out plastic bottles, old socks and towels, and tennis balls taken from the land around tennis courts. He is gnawing on the leg of my computer chair as I write this, which is ok - it feels like I have a vibro chair now. Plus, about 2 weeks ago, he lost almost all his teeth and needs to get used to these big ones that prove he is a big dog now!

Anyway, here are some photos and vids of our big boy...

We have blocked him access to the living room - since he blessed the rug with an "angry" poop ( we think he was angry and purposely pooped there), so he now tries to be with us by hanging out on the sides of the sofa. When he is older, we will perhaps let him back in to watch movies with us, but he is quite content to rest on the cool tile floor instead of our rug.


This last one is a pic of Mocha's mom (on the left) and one of his sisters (on the right) - it was a litter of 9 pups in total. We think that Mocha will get pretty big - perhaps as big as the mother! He does indeed look like the mother.

This is a vid with Mocha and I playing.




This one is teaching him to stay.

That is all for now from our house!

Jeff & Jo

Mid - Autumn Festival in Wu Ling Park

Hi all,

Jo and I decided to get back into the woods over our 4 day holiday here called Mid-Autumn Festival. We decided to go to Wu Ling Park, about a 5 hours drive from Taichung on windy switchback roads through some of the most gorgeous mountain ranges anywhere and we just got back a few hours ago.

We did not go for 4 days since there was another typhoon warning, we figured at least a 2 day excursion would be enough and it was. Below are some of the pictures we took (the good ones are prolly Jo) with some write ups.

Mid-Autumn Festival or "Zhong Chiu Jie" is the most important holiday after Chinese New Year here and many families and friends get together to BBQ and hang out. We did our own little BBQ with some friends and then took off to Wu Ling Park. We can't wait to go back!

We are on our way to Wu Ling Park - a 5 hour trek through some of the most beautiful scenery, yet coupled with some of the most dangerous roads to drive on (at least for me - Jo loves it). Anyway, this is a shot from the car about an hour into the trip.

See that little line up the mountain there? That is our road and while you can see for many miles, you can also fall for many miles if the little girders didn't work. Course, I have to keep telling myself - look up! And it is weird since I am not afraid of heights, but while driving, it is different. Anyway, that cloud just rammed against the side and kept floating up!




Here is a vid of the area above.

This is a pic of another Cloud Sea since we moved above and below the cloud line on our travel.

This is a lake called Bi Hu that we saw after coming out of that cloud sea....(we are not even there yet and it is so cool!)

AH! We arrive at Wu Ling Park Recreation Facility, which has been in operation since the 50's. It was clean and comfortable and since we were the only people there besides another couple, we had a great time! (We purposely went on the last day of the holiday to beat the rush and took off another day as well! Great idea!)

Here is our first walking trek - up to a waterfall about 2 hours away. We arrived around 2 pm and did the trek to return just in time for dinner. Was a nice time to spend walking and communicating with the birds along the path. Oh, plus the waterfall was nice, too!

Here we are in front of the waterfall.

And here is a Vid of the waterfall (so fresh!)

We trekked a bit more the next day and just absorbed being surrounded by trees (and bugs) and very few people! Such a nice change from Taichung!

Just breathe...

In and .....


Out......


And the coolest thing of the whole adventure was seeing the moon on our night walk. I mean, that IS what Mid-Autumn Festival is for - to mark the Autumn Equinox when day and night are equal times (and just another time to eat lots of food!).
But imagine a crisp clear night punctuated with so many bright stars, plus the brightest moon that we have ever seen! Holy Cow! It was so bright we could see our moon shadows!
Jo did a great job taking the pics!

Ok, that is our newest news. I will try to get on more to upload vids and pics of Mocha, who is now almost 35 pounds!

Here's to wishing you all a great Full Moon Festival!

Jeff & Jo