reyes-chow :: FAITH

Crazy women in my life

[image: official jabc site]

On a recent trip I watched the movie The Jane Austin Book Club.  Yet another movie filled with beautiful and talented Hollywood.  Dramedy escapism at it's finest.  I actually loved the archetypes that were represented, kind of like the church or family.  On their own, they might not get together, but bring them around one thing and maybe, just maybe . . .

It also tangentially reminded me of my own background and how I was raised.  While there were some great men in my life, I think I was pretty much raised by crazy women.  I can't imagine it any other way.  For so/too many of the major events in my life "The Committee" was brought in to help make decisions.  Kim, Joyce, Peggy, Cherita - and others I am sure - and my mom would huddle up over a bottle or three of wine and decide my fate.   Whether it was driving, little league or girls, they were all up in my business.  Each subsequent sibling also had their "Committee" to help make decisions for their lives as well and by this time, Joel was given membership ;-)  It is a tradition.

If you talk to the Reyes siblings, it all started with our Grandma Reyes (AKA Grandma Acoba).  Lady was caaaaaraaaaazzzzzyyyyyy with a capital CUCKOO!  But in a good way.  I have learned much from all my grandparents, but Gma Reyes taught us . . .

• Be passionate
• Wear what you want
• If you are going to be in the game, be all the way in the game
• Take care of your friends
• Eat good food
• Be there when you are needed
• Pretend to be crazy
• Laugh

If Gma were here today, she would point out when I was being a jerk and would make sure I don't turn into total schmuck.

I think I have continued to surround myself with this archetype
Crazy women that is.
I am not naming names, I am not an idiot.

You know who you are.

Thank you!

Glimpses of God at the "Happiest Place on Earth"

As I am writing this post, I am sitting on the couch watching the first season of Speed Racer while sitting next to a post-vacation sick child.  So sad what a 100+ degree temp does to a normally cheerful kid.  Sometimes all we can do to make the day a little better is to cuddle with them, make sure they drink plenty of fluids and watch cheesy cartoons.  I am so grateful for the ability and resources that allow me to stay home when needed. 

As much as I do know the sinister nature of the marketing that goes on by Disney, the fiscal privilege that allows us to take trips such as this and the totally controlled environment that is Disney, I must admit, it was a pretty special trip.  And not to gush too much about the time and my kids, here are a Godly aha's that we experienced on our first non-church related family vacation in years.

Joy like a child - There really is nothing more moving than the pure joy that comes from the body of a child.  As we approached the park and began seeing signs that we were about to enter the land of a million dreams, the girls could not contain their squeals of delight.  "We're here!  We're here!"  Priceless.

Change is hard - Transitions are hard, no matter the age, but for those moving from little girl to tweener to teen, tying to find one's place is even more difficult.  Disneyland gives permission to once again wear silly ears, ride the Snow White ride and otherwise stay young if but just for a few more moments.  One child, however, was concerned that her friends might see her parents singing along to the HSM2 show.

Every child is different - Vacations certainly give an opportunity to see the differences in personalities between family members.  Some are the roller-coaster riders, some are ready for bed at 9:00 each night, some like to schedule everything, and others just want to just hang out and see what's next.  Trying to get agreement on what we were to do and when we did it required deft negotiation skills. And while cause for some frustration at times, these are reminders of the complex and diverse ways that we also connect with God.

You got Skilz - I have always admired the gifts of performers.  Disney has seemed to be able to make what would seem like a pretty cheesy performance opportunities and gather really talented folks to pull of well done productions.  From the 45-minute mini-musical of Aladdin to the various street performers, the abundance of gifts that God has given were evident.

Simple Pleasures - Smoked turkey legs, Cotton Candy, Water Rides, Cheesy Pictures and Pirates.

So . . . nothing overwhelmingly profound from our time away other that an a deep appreciation to God for the ability to create such an experience and memory for our family.  I guess that is profound enough.

And oh, yes, the Force is Strong in this one . . .

Happy Birthday Hon!

Happy birthday to Robin!  Feel free to leave a comment here for her.  Alas, no blog or Facebook for the R'ster as of yet.

A house is not a home, or is it?

Luther Vandross' "A House is Not a Home" - if this is on your iPod, you ARE old, cool, but old - has been the soundtrack of the moving saga.  Today as we moved into our next stop for the next 10 days, Abby was reflecting on how this was the first time she has EVER moved.  For the most part the girls have done pretty well - we have raised them for adaptability - there has been some sadness about leaving the only house the two little ones have ever know. 

As we talked about today, Abby asked me how many times I have moved.  As I recounted, the memories come flooding back.  Far too many to recount, but for those who have walked with the Reyes-Kim-Gibbs-Chow families, some of these places may bring back some memories . . . and hey, help me fill in the blanks as my memory is indeed fading fast.

1. 1969-70'ish - Somewhere in Stockton
2. early 70's - Some apartment around South Sacramento
3. mid 70's - Rosedale Duplex off of Fruitridge, Sacramento
4. mid 70's - Branwood Way, Greenhaven area of South Sacramento
5. late 70's - Northlight, Greenhaven area of South Sacramento
6. late 70's-80's - Roeder Way off of Seamas
7. 1988 - 1 Year Housesitting in Carmichael
8. 1989 - Port Trinity w/Uncle Mike
9. 1990 - Port Trinity in the family home
10. 1990 - move to SF, lived @ 167
11. 1996 - First home purchase @ 179
12. 2000 - Sold 179, bought 503
13. Now - In some serious transition
14. Sep 1 - 169, yep, just below 167

Wow . . . 14 places in 38 years, and I probably even left some places out.  Not sure if it means anything or if it has effected my perception of stability, but there has been one constant, family.  My family has always been around, caring, cooking and a lot of laughter.    Even these past few days as we have been back at mom's place for a spell, it was a joy to just hang out as a slightly larger family unit.

So . . . take a listen to Luther's song.  While a house can be part of a home, even be part of creating or holding back the creation of home, the house is not the home.  It is the love that is in it.  Drippy, cheesy, but oh so true.

A few pics to share . . .

The last load to the dump from 503.  Man what a ton of crap we have!

The sweet view from our HOME for the next 10 days.  Yes, we are RIGHT there!  I could get used to this.

20 Freakin' years already?

Class of '87, wow! 

Yes, about 20 years ago I graduated from the Academy of Math Science and Engineering at Luther Burbak High School in Sacramento California.  I am part of the planning committee for our 20th Reunion taking place in September and it has been quite interesting reconnecting with folks.

I went to our 10th and it was wonderful.  Our class was pretty tight and with so many folks who's lives were cut short, there was a real sense of rejoicing that those where were there are still alive, doing well and is many ways thriving.

As part of the cheese, we fill out this survey, always worth a chuckle.

1. Hobbies?
   Motorcycle riding, blogging, softball, reading,
2. What is something interesting that has happened in your life since we graduated?
   Other getting married right out of high school, moving to San Francisco, getting arrested at at peace rallies, having three kids and working for Jesus . . . not much ;-)
3. What is your current occupation?
   Pastor at Mission Bay Community Church in San Francisco
4. When you were in high school, what did you plan to be when you grew up?
   Attorney
5. What was your favorite TV Show in the 80’s?
   The Cosby Show
6. Who were your favorite musical artists/bands in the 80’s?
   Lakeside, Con Funk Shun, Dazz Band, New Edition, Earth Wind and Fire, Beastie Boys, KRS 1
7. What is your favorite high school memory?
   Open lunch and Der Weinerschnitzel and cutting school to play pool at The Jointed Cue
8. What is your worst high school memory?
   How Burbank was portrayed as a center of violence, regardless of the truth
9. Who was your favorite teacher?
   Pretty much liked them all.
10. Who did you date at Luther Burbank?
    Tina C., Imogen F., Annoel Y.
11. Who was your best friend in high school?
    Kevin T., Craig P., Eric J. and Jason V.
    

The Move Update

Ahh the calm before the next storm before the calm before the next storm.  As I type this the two little ones and I are watching Scooby Doo at the Embassy Suites in Burlingame just before we head out for a swim in the pool.  After a few crazy days of packing, moving, church and life in general, we took a few days to decompress before the next round of crazy.

So here is where we are at this point . . . all mixed in with finding local Wi-Fi, keeping up with church stuff, yada, yada, yada . . .

• Today E is a Summer camp, A & A are hanging with Dad for most of the day while R does some end cleaning.  We move to Mom's for a few days.
• Tomorrow the deep cleaning happens at the old place, utilities get disconnected, R starts teaching again, and I get my butt into gear to finalize some Fall plans.
• Summer still has one more week of Soccer Camp for Ab and An starts pre-school on Monday. Ev. will have one week of decompression before starting 5th grade.
• Future - Thanks to some AWESOME people in our lives we will move back into SF sometime in the next week to the Lofts at One Powell.  It will be fun to live in this part of the city for a while.
• September 1 is the hoped for date that we will be in our new place, unpack the pods soon after and then party! If you need to mail something I just posted our new info on our Personal Blog - you'll need the login info - or just eMail me and I'll send it.

That's it for the boring details.

Moving Complications

It has begun . . . .
After 7 years in a current location we are renting out our house and moving to a smaller apartment here in San Francisco.  Better neighborhood, fiscal benefits, yada, yada, yada.

The complexity of this move is just too funny.  Our grand plan was to move from our house into the apartment - which R's family owns - with nary a glitch in the transition.  Not to be.  Turns out we are now sans home for THREE friggin' weeks, one of which being the first week of school.  Oh joy. I guess we'll be commuting about an hour from my mom's and then the girls will be living the Suite Life for a couple weeks as we try to settle in for school.

So today, the short term storage pods from Song Storage were delivered - not the pretty pink ones in the ad, but great service and prices - and the kitchen has been packed up.  Office is packed, the girls rooms are almost there, I guess we are REALLY moving.  No time to grieve, just enough time to pack so when friends/family come this weekend help load the pods, we'll be ready.

No grand learnings of reflections at least not yet.

Congratulations Beadle and Lauren

This past weekend I was privileged to officiate the wedding ceremony between my little sister, Lauren, and some guy ;-)  I am sure Lauren will blog about the day soon as I am sure their HI is totally boring ;-)

It was of course a great day and a wonderful beginning to their new life together.  I was particularly impressed that the wedding was truly theirs.  From the sophisticatedly casual atmosphere to the laughter to the  communal nature of the entire experience the day reflected who these two have been and are!

Congratulations you two!

More wedding pics HERE.

Families that go ALL IN together

No comments about gambling please.  Here is a picture of the First Annual 4th of July Chow Family No-Limit Texas Hold'em Tourney.  With a $2 buy-in and winner take all, grandpa showed no mercy in taking out his very own grandchildren and when he was down, simply "borrowing" more chips from the nearest big stack.  In the end, he big stack belonged to uncle Rob, who was crowned King!  Don't go blowing that $18 on anything frivolous.

The Simpsons, RCP Family Style

Here is the RCP Family as seen through they eyes of the Simpsons.  I will admit that I have never really gotten into the Simpsons and may not understand most of the references  in the movie, but after reading The Gospel According to the Simpsons, I will some day take the time to get to know the crew.
If you want to waste a few good moments of your life and create your own Simpsons Avatar, just head over to the Simpsons Movie Page.

h/t: mi cuz