Where has November gone?

It's been a whirlwind this past month and I haven't gotten around to posting a new blog. Has it really been 3 weeks since my last entry? I haven't written anything and concurrently haven't read anyone else's blogs neither. Sorry I have neglected my duties. So here it goes, let's see if I still have my blogging mojo. Since today IS Thanksgiving Day, I will list the Top 10 things I'm most thankful for.
#10
I'm thankful for having great friends. One of my best friends Doug finally came to visit me in Taiwan this past week. I've known Doug since the 4th grade so we should get some sort of medal just for keeping in touch. Anyway, it took the fool 11 years to finally get out here and lucky for him, cuz we were about to reach the 12 year grace period for visitations before I cut off all friendly communications. Anyway, he made it out here and all we did was eat which is pretty much the national sport here. Taiwan would sweep the medals at the Olympics in Beijing next year if eating was event. He brought his wife Yen and their two kids, Darren(more about him later) and Sarah. I think collectively they gained at least 25 pounds which makes me feel good cuz it means I did my tour guide duties well. Just for a visual reference of 25 pounds, it is 100 Quarter-Pounders at McDonalds. Just imagine a table with 100 Quarter-Pounders on it! With the 4 of them here, including the 4 of us, my house was a like a circus which brings me to the next thing I'm thankful for.
#9
I'm thankful for The Wiggles. If you don't know who The Wiggles are then it means you're not a dad so you should do as Depeche Mode says and "Enjoy the Silence." Every morning at around 7am the little people in the house would slowly trickle out into the living room and the noise level would slowly rise. By about 7:30 it would be maddening. The only thing comparable in my 35 years of life is the 5 street intersection coming out of the JR Station in Shinjuku, Japan where there are a million people waiting to cross the street in a gazillion different directions along with cars, motorbikes, skateboarders, cyclist, and wheelchairs. If you've been to this intersection then you've been in my living room this past week. If you haven't, go and find 3 kids, I don't care how you do it, either have them naturally(but this will take time cuz you must let them grow) with your other half or borrow them from friends or relatives. Just make sure all of them are between the ages of 16 months and 4 years old. Throw them in your living room(which must also be small) with 5 adults, including yourself, and enough toys for everyone. Bam! You're in Shinjuku! It's 7:30am and I'm going crazy everyday. That's when you pull it out, the secret weapon, yup THE WIGGLES. I pop that DVD in and my eyes begin to tear. I swear it's that beautiful. It's like a perfect sunset to adults, you can't stop but watch. The kids stop dead in their tracks and the virtual babysitters on the screen just captivate them. This is the image you see.
They just stare and drool...as if real aliens just landed in my living room. It's nothing short of amazing. I'm about to go out and spend a fortunr buying every Wiggles DVD that's available. Doug said these guys made $93 Million last year. I'm telling you these guys are gold, they could literally name their price and every father would pay. We parents are at their mercy but...read the next entry.
#8
Thank god for piracy, bit torrent, and $1 DVDs in the streets of every Chinese city. Otherwise the Wiggle dudes would've made $193 billion last year. So what if DVD case says The Waggles, I can live with the spelling mistakes if it saves me $20 per DVD.
#7
I'm thankful for mosquito racquets. The guy who invented this bug zapping device should be a millionaire. I've bought like 8 of these things already for myself and for friends. It's mosquito season and there is no greater feeling than zapping the crap out of a mosquito who just bit you. I'm not a violent guy but mosquito bites are almost worse than LA Traffic.#6
I'm thankful for Poh Sin Oil. Jax has been sick the past couple of days and she has a really bad cough. I rub this camphor/menthol oil on her and it's amazing. Not WIGGLES amazing but close. It helps her breathe and it keeps the coughing to a minimum which allows ME to sleep. This would be ranked higher except for the fact that it's called Poh Sin Oil. It looks and sounds soooo close to PoiSon Oil it freaks me out. Why would you name it that? It's like Tylenol changing their name to Cyanide. PR nightmare.#5
I'm thankful for Notre Dame football. I'm soooooo glad they suck this year. Up until last week, they had ONE win and that was against us, UCLA. Which means the crappiest team in America beat us so our athletic director HAS NO CHOICE BUT TO FIRE OUR HEAD COACH KARL DORRELL. UCLA deserves better than this guy.
#4
I'm thankful for Coach Ben Howland. I'm SOOOOOOOOO glad UCLA football is almost over so we can turn our undivided attention to basketball cuz that's our money sport. Coach Howland is the best coach in America and he's going to take us to the promise land this year. Me and Ryder are soooo excited. Especially after we came from behind to beat Michigan State yesterday on a 3-pointer with 28 seconds left. Me and Ryder cried tears of happiness, cuz there's something about this year's team. I had that same feeling in1995 when UCLA won it's last NCAA championship. Coincidentally that was also the year I was put in a jail trying to scalp UCLA basketball tickets!
#3
I'm thankful for the my health and also the health of my family members. My dad just had a major operation and he is recuperating very nicely right now. But it's definitely one of those jolting wake-up calls for everyone. I saw my dad as indestructible when I was small and I'm sure Ryder will look at me that way in a couple of years. But my dad is human, and like him, I will get older. I'm just thankful that all the people we love are in relatively good health. We must all fight to stay healthy because that allows us to spend more time with our family, and what's more important than that?
#2
I'm thankful for Ryder and my wife Jax. They are definitely the color on my canvas. If you're a regular subscriber to Ryder's World then there's really no point in me elaborating any further, you know what they mean to me. They are my world.Ryder just learned to say "cheese" when taking a photo. He squints and literally yells "Cheese!!!!" which is just too cute. How can this not be the #1 thing I'm most thankful for?
#1
Because this is...Yup, the #1 thing I'm most thankful for is 9:30pm. Cuz that's when Ryder goes to sleep. Which means I can kiss him goodnight and have quiet time. That's when I can return my emails, read the news, and write this blog. Don't get me wrong, I love him equally when he's awake or asleep. It's just that when Ryder's asleep, I love myself more cuz I seem to be a little more sane.

Happy Thanksgiving to all. Wish you and your family well.