Our Portland Adventure

Thursday, December 27, 2007
I didn’t get too many hours of sleep, because I was so excited about the trip to Portland. We departed for the border, and bought some snacks at the duty free. We waited for an hour and a half. The drive down to Portland was exhausting. The sky was dark, the rain and snow were falling heavily, and I was getting tired. We stopped by Arby’s for lunch and made it to the reception at the hotel. The reception consisted of corndogs, meatballs and orange juice. We spent the first night shopping at Target, and we bought soup and pasta for dinner.

Friday, December 28, 2007
We ate egg rolls and peanut butter cookies for breakfast, and headed to Woodburn Company Stores. Woodburn is like the Premium Outlet chain, but bigger and more suited to our tastes. We were impressed with the selection at Aeropostal. We had lunch at a submarine sandwich place, and got a discount because we picked up a coupon book from the office. We had dinner at Chilli’s and we loved the baby back ribs. We tried the honey garlic, the Memphis dry rub, the brown sugar, and the honey chipotle. After a long day of shopping, this was a great tasting and filling dinner. The strawberry lemonade was okay, the mango ice tea was bland, and the blackberry ice tea was the best. We finished off dinner with a strawberry cheesecake shot.

Saturday, December 29, 2007
We ate the continental breakfast at the hotel, and were happy to make our own waffles. We drove to Lloyd Center, which is noted as the biggest mall in Portland. The selection was disappointing, as we could not find as much as we did at Woodburn. Jennie was able to find some clothes at Macy’s, but the only things I bought were from Bath and Body Works. We had lunch at Steamer’s Asian Street Bistro, which serves Thai noodles, Chinese buns, Vietnamese salad rolls and Japanese edamame beans. I think the servers were Mexican. It was a very diverse menu, and it was probably the most interesting food court meal I’ve had in years. We drove downtown, and shopped at Pioneer Place, noted for being the upscale mall in Portland. We spent the majority of our time in Forever XXI, and i.p. We took pictures of the Portland Courthouse, the Portland Courthouse Square, and the humongous Christmas tree. Downtown Portland is very quiet and surreal. The streets are clean and well-lit, but for the most part it is empty. I like Portland. It reminded me of Downtown Vancouver, especially the area around the Vancouver Art Gallery, the HSBC building, and the Hotel Vancouver. We had dinner at Red Lobster. Man, are their portions huge.

Sunday, December 30, 2007
We had a small breakfast at the hotel, and packed our belongings. We checked out, and headed to Washington Square. We thought it would be a smaller mall than Lloyd Center and we were right. What we didn’t know is that Washington Square is cleaner, less busy, and had better selections of clothes. We picked up some items at Forever XXI, and had lunch at Bombay Village. We headed home on the I-5. We rested at the rest stop, and made a brief trip to Walmart. We waited at the border for 45 minutes, and had dinner at Pho Hong. I was so happy to be back home.

Quick thoughts:
I like driving, but I don’t like driving for long distances. I like Portland, but I don’t like driving 6 hours to get there. Chilli’s is my favorite restaurant that isn’t in Canada. Vacations end too quickly.

It was great to get away for a few days. Even though it wasn't long enough, it is still a vacation, and an adventure in a new city. Thanks God, for keeping us safe.

Happy New Year everyone!

The Craving Monologues - Cast Interviews

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I’ve been looking forward to the end of December, because it means that I get to relax and explore.

On Sunday, we presented the Craving Monologues at Burnaby Village Museum. We wanted to present a brutally honest look at what people want in life, whether it is intimacy, destiny or meaning. Over 70 people came to the Monologues. Audience members thought the drama was great, and made them think about what THEY really want. That was our objective going in, and after planning it since August, it feels good to achieve that goal.

The exam was over in early December, and it sure is nice to have that out of the way.

I took a hip hop workshop at Harbour Dance Centre. It’s a fun class and a good workout, and I look forward to learning another partner dance, preferably one of the Latins.

Carolyn presented a slideshow of her medical mission project in Haiti. It was an eye opening show, and I’m glad she got to experience something so different from Vancouver. When someone returns from a third-world situation, they feel guilty for living in a first-world country. Why do some people live in safety and opulence, while others live in danger and poverty? It’s important to remember that everyone must use their opportunity to change their community for the better.

The Christmas party this year was at the Fairmont Waterfront. The food was good, but there wasn’t enough! I went for seconds, and there was barely anything left for me to choose from. The desserts were great. The music was about the same as last year, and at the end of the night, it was mostly CDI employees inhabiting the dance floor.

The last workweek of December was eventful. The HR department had its Christmas lunch at Milestones in Yaletown. The following day, the 6th floor had a Christmas lunch in the office. Chris and I finished writing our Operations Report, and I finished working in the Human Resources department. When the new year arrives, I’ll jump into a year of new work experiences, challenges, and growth opportunities.

We went to the VSO for their Pops concert. The Pops concert is where the VSO plays classics from Broadway musicals. It was great to hear songs that we like, but of which we never knew the origins.

We had dinner at Uncle Frankie’s house. After finishing dinner, we played our family poker game.

I visited Barbara and Jack, and there were others who were also there: Georgina, Scott, Allison, Ed and Anita. It’s always good to see Barbara and Jack around the holidays.

Spend time with your family and friends, and make the most of the last days of December 2007. I sure hope I have an adventurous end of 2007!

Have a Happy New Year!

The Craving Monologues: Longings of the Soul

From the creators of “Lifeboat – the non-musical” come stories about the cravings of our souls. The Craving Monologues explore the deep desires for intimacy, destiny and meaning. Four young people embark on a journey to be truly loved by others, to find success and significance, and to discover truth and a reason to believe.

Erwin McManus writes, “The search of your life is the search for your life. So much of your life journey can be explained by your soul cravings. Your soul knows its uniqueness. And a voice somewhere deep inside you longs to discover it.”

Starring: Evelyn Leung • Jimmy Yip • Leo Chiu • Tim Chan

1pm Lunch (free) :: 2pm Production
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Burnaby Village Museum

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Music provided by "TheBand":
Arthur Kam
Wil Sun
Brett Potter
Andrea Potter
Tim Chan

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The Craving Conversations Series
Please join us as we continue with conversations about our own soul cravings for Intimacy, Destiny, and Meaning. Come dialogue with others on the journey of discovering life.

Dec 30 2-3pm - Exploring Intimacy
Jan 6 2-3pm - Exploring Destiny
Jan 13 2-3pm - Exploring Meaning