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The last few days in Sisley were a bit depressing. With most of our furniture moved/sold, it looked vaguely similar to the home we first moved into almost 2 years ago...

Sleeping on the floor isn't much fun =(

I’m really thankful to be back home in Calgary. My trips to and from Australia in 2009 have been rife with delays, missed flights and unexpected overnight stays in a hotel, a friend’s couch and the airport. Still haven’t experienced lost luggage, a plane crash or a DVT so I can be grateful for small mercies. I feel extremely lucky for the opportunity to fly home for Christmas each year to be with family and that’s something to keep in mind – delays or no delays.

This time around, I arrived at the airport at around 9:45am alongside my friend Jamesy. We decided to grab brekkie and, since I had a bit of time ‘til my 12:05pm departure, we decided to do so at the airport. We got to the check-in counter and discovered that my flight was going to be 12 hrs delayed. The 747-400 for my flight had just left Los Angeles on route to Brisbane and would not arrive for another 14 hrs or so. Apparently they had some sort of mechanical problems that needed to be fixed. I printed off my itinerary that morning but I didn’t check the flight status online (I think some passengers did check and it wasn’t updated).

It turned out okay though. I stuck with James, got to see a few guys in the arvo, and then made my way back to the airport in the evening. Finally left Brisbane at around 0035 on Dec 10th and arrived in Los Angeles at around 1930, Dec 10th after an uneventful flight. I watched the ‘Time Traveler’s Wife’ and some really terrible war-related movie called ‘Hurt Box’. The rest of the time I slept. I had the aisle seat in a row of three and a girl named Devon (sp?) occupied the window seat. Luckily, the middle seat remained empty and we took advantage of the extra space. I made a bit of small talk with her, found out she was studying at JCU in Townsville on exchange from Northern Arizona University for a semester. She had managed to hit up New Zealand and even Indonesia/Bali and planned to return to Australia to see everything else in the future. I did not envy her travel situation as she had spent the last 60 hrs going from Indonesia to Sydney; then up to Townsville to grab the rest of her things; then down to Brisbane for the delayed flight to Los Angeles; and she still needed to grab a flight home to Phoenix. In hindsight, I should have told her not to hesitate to wake me up if she needed to get up at any point during the flight. I would wake up for meals, watch a movie and then fall right back to sleep. Each time I woke up she appeared to be busting to get to the toilet.

Thankfully, Qantas put many of us up at the Hilton for the evening which included meal vouchers. I was able to enjoy a nice sleep in a massive queen/king sized bed that sure beat sleeping on the floor during our last night at Sisley St.


I've caught up on HEAPS of sleep. I think that's what I've been doing mostly. Had a chance to play some floor hockey on Sunday which was awesome! I have a feeling this break is going to fly by really fast...

My dad in front of the Real Canadian Superstore. You can see my mom running off in the distance trying to get inside because it's -25ºC and she didn't want to stand there for a photo.

Regular Kraft Dinner that's not the microwavable kind...

Dad and bub getting ready to head out for an evening walk so that mom can get a bit of sleep

Emily is 3 weeks old.

Dad says that he misses sleep but they've decided that she's a keeper =)

Who's that strange looking fellow?!?

This is what driving on the right side of the road looks like for all those Aussies. So far, no incidents of driving on the wrong side...

Goodbye Bak Bak

When people ask me if I speak Chinese I tell them no because for all intents and purposes, I don't. One thing I do know is that there are specific titles for older relatives in Chinese culture. Everyone has a very specific title that tells you if they're maternal or paternal for example.


My great-grandmother, whom I call "bak bak", passed away earlier this week at the age of 99. Not many people could say they would be seeing their great-grandmother in the near future - and prior to this week I was very proud to be one of those lucky few. Ninety-nine! The more I think about it, the more incredible it seems. Just even thinking about the history she would have witnessed first-hand: both world wars, the great depression, the rise of communism in China, the start and finish of the Cold War, and the emergence of Facebook! (No, she wasn't on facebook but it would have been cool to have my great-grandma on my friends list...)

The last time I saw her was at her 99th birthday dinner back in January '09 before I left to head back to Australia. Every year, my mom's entire extended family including children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren (and this past year a great-great-grandchild!) would meet on Saturday morning/afternoon to have dim sum. It was traditionally my bak-bak's treat to take everyone out for tea and she would always come around to each table and encourage us to eat more... "You're a growing boy! Eat more shrimp dumplings!" (in Chinese of course) Then later in the evening, we would all reconvene at the same restaurant for a massive 12-course banquet style dinner. It was a pretty huge gathering of extended family with something like 5 or 6 large tables at one of the larger Chinese restaurants in Calgary. Just having so much of my extended family from my mom's side all living pretty much in Calgary is pretty cool. I think I've always taken that fact for granted over the years and being in Australia makes me realize how much I'd miss all my family if I were to settle down somewhere far from home.

I wish I could be back home to pay my respects at her funeral this weekend. I still remember the first funeral I went to. It was for my bak-gung (great-grandfather) back in 1990. I would have been six years old at the time and I remember it was the only time I've seen my poh-poh cry. If my memory is correct, it was held down at the current Chinese Pentecostal Church down in Chinatown right behind my bak-bak's apartment (which she still lived in by herself up until she passed away)...

Thanks for all the great memories bak-bak. You spoiled us great-grandkids every opportunity you had. Even when you weren't feeling well and were in hospital, you would give us candy and lay-see when we came to visit you. You will always be remembered and I'll miss you.