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Family

Bangkok, Day Two

My impressions of Bangkok haven’t changed much since yesterday, but feelings toward the city have grown richer and more nuanced. Today was a strange mix of the sacred, the profane, and the humorous.

The day began with a visit to New Beginnings. This small ministry does wonderful work with girls and women who leave the sex industry. I say “small ministry” because they have committed themselves to growing deep, not wide. That’s something to applaud in this world of hyper sized ministries (and egos to go with them).

The folks at New Beginnings befriend girls and women in the sex …

Family, The SOLD Project,

Bangkok – First Impressions

The last 24+ hours have been spent in airports, giant aluminum tubes that fly, and traffic. But in the midst of all that … some first impressions.

Bangkok is big, busy, and tropical. The weather — even some of the architecture — reminds me of Honolulu. There’s an old feeling to the city. The people are incredibly friendly and willing to help aging white guys like me (as I was recently called by a colleague).

As with all free and globalized cities around the world, there are strong commonalities. Starbucks, Toyotas, and McDonalds are the most obvious types of things. …

Family, PathLight, The SOLD Project, Wine Reviews,

Learning From the Poor, Elephant Rides, and Ranch Hands

About twelve hours from now I’ll be boarding a flight to Hong Kong, and then from there heading to Bangkok. I’ll be connecting with my daughter Thailand. She runs The SOLD Project, an effort in Northern Thailand that keeps kids out of the sexual slavery world. My time will be spent learning about this filthy side of the human experience, hearing the stories of those who have been caught up in it, and reflecting on how best to respond to the social, spiritual and economic structures that allow this to happen.

I’m really looking forward to seeing Rachel in …

Family, Goble Properties, Junkyard Management,

Call Lloyd

My friend Lloyd retired last week. He didn’t really want to retire. What he wanted to do was go on vacation and never come back. Which I guess he did. He’s on vacation now in Kauai, where he plans to stay for the rest of his life.

Lloyd has worked for my family for about 30 years. From the junkyard to the warehouses, he fixed, swept, repaired, tuned, tweaked, oiled, overhauled, or patched just about everything we’ve owned. Lloyd was the guy I’d call when I had something I couldn’t figure out. Windshield cracked? Call Lloyd. The toy railroad track …

Book Reviews, D'Oliva Olive Oil, Family, Random Thoughts, Uncategorized,

Family, Blogging, and Links

I have several links for you to click today…trust me, you’ll have fun with this…

A lot of people who read this blog were supporters of my son when he went to Thailand last year. Jedd was there to create a video for The SOLD Project, which combats child prostitution in that country. Well, here’s the awesome news: Jedd was given the Volunteer Service Award by the Bay Area Professional Videographers Association!

What this means is that his work was so good it deserved recognition. And it means that those of you supported him are seeing great dividends because …

Family, Random Thoughts,

Christmas Eve Blessing

This night is born Jesus,
Son of the King of glory.
This night is born to us
the root of our joy.
This night gleamed sea and shore together.
This night was born Christ,
the King of greatness.

Though laid in a manger,
He came from a throne;
on earth though a stranger
in Heaven he was known.

How lowly, how gracious
His coming to earth!
His love my love kindles
to joy in his birth.

From “When Wise Men Came Seeking” by Richard Slater, Salvation Army Songbook.…

Family,

Christmas Letter

Dear Friends & Family,

In case you missed it in our Christmas card, I’m posting our family letter in this format as well.

For our family, memories of 2010 will revolve around Thailand. It began in January when D’Aun joined Rachel and Kevin for a two-week tour to see the work that Rachel’s organization SOLD does in the country. It deepened when Rachel and Kevin, not yet even married for a full year, moved to Thailand in May. Then as autumn approached, Jedd headed to Thailand for seven weeks to help SOLD film a video. The whole family will complete …

Family,

The Smartest Decision I Ever Made

It was 1975, and for my 17th birthday I received two tickets to see George Carlin at the Circle Star Theater in San Carlos (here’s more about that story).

But who to invite? There was this girl in high school that I’d known for a few years. We had first met in junior high when we represented our schools on a committee to choose our school colors, mascot, etc. I had long admired her — she was gorgeous, popular, super friendly, and always had a smile. Even though we ran in the same circle of friends, she seemed way over …