Urkidding

I took it again today when I was less tired and got a 75. I got 59.something! And I call myself a guitar player. Hmmph Awww don't worry! I did too! Me thinks the test is skewed anyway.

You know what us old programmers always say - "if it anint broke, then don't fix it" - Unknown programmer

Just don't give em' away free! http://youtu.be/JQ7_HPP9J2Y This guy gets arrested for giving hugs away free in the end!

This is pretty neat... I thought I had heard it before but maybe not.

Year 2013 - Here in America, most buildings do not have a 13th floor because its a superstitious thing. but did you know that In China there are no 4th floors...because the number 4 sounds like death in their language. Have a great 2013!

Yep and the smiley "Show All" is out of order compared to what they use to be...

Yea Thanks... I would have helped ya but I was busy...

But how would they know that you kick the bucket if you don't tell them you did...? or maybe if you stop paying thier bill!

Of course hand made noodles are made differently and I am sure taste differently too but here's a video on how to make noodles - manually. By Chef Danny Yip http://youtu.be/VzHtPyqUll0 I'm starting to get hungry!

Does your wife make a lot of homemade food like dumplings, soup and noodles? Mine does with the exception of the latter. Whenever I want to impress my American friends I have my wife whip up some homemade dumplings in various styles – Pork, Shrimp, Vegetable… fried, steamed and they are all good! Yum Yum especially the wonton soup style. Now there’s this new inventor in China who is changing the way noodles are made. He’s deployed robots around the city to create the perfect noodle every time. Kinda reminds me of here in America when robotic technology started in our factories to cut down errors and increase productivity. I’m wondering if China really needs these robots considering China it has 1.3 billion people who need jobs! But listen to what the owners have to say and it really does make sense. The video has English sub-titles so you can understand what they are saying – Enjoy!

I had to look back at these and laugh...because we still practice a lot these at home - 13 years later! And YES David, she still wears slippers on a tile floor otherwise the cold will travel up to your brain - Look at me! (I'm not responsible for any of my actions here) You know what they say, you can take the girl out of China but you can't take the Chinese out of the girl! I wouldn't want to any other way because I still smile when she does her Chinese thing.,.

Yea...but if you open a brand new account on yahoo, park yourself at Micky D's or Coffee Cabano... you can send out a whole slew of e-mails, post to boards etc... and leave in an instant. It only will fall on the owner of that IP address. Mostly true. ...but there are cameras everywhere these days and if the offense is egregious enough, they'll probably find you. Hell, they were waiting for a guy here in Eureka who found & picked some pot about 20 miles into a wilderness area. They walked up to him as he was re-fueling after coming out of the woods. Of course, this is a border area, but ... just sayin' You're right - Big Brother is watching everywhere...even at my house!

Yea...but if you open a brand new account on yahoo, park yourself at Micky D's or Coffee Cabano... you can send out a whole slew of e-mails, post to boards etc... and leave in an instant. It only will fall on the owner of that IP address. "That's why it's very import to protect your wireless connection with encryption so that no one can piggy back onto your home wireless system, if not you open a whole can of worms... But, if the intruder is illegally downloading music, movies or child pornography, the result could be more serious. A criminal who does not want to be caught can use your unsecured internet connection to commit crimes because when it is traced back to the source, your connection will be reported as the scene of the crime." Just make sure that you have your wireless router protected - no matter what!!!!!

Don't worry DOugie... I have to call Mikie every so often and just to check and make sure he didn't beat me to it! I guess I need to put you on my list too! We Texans need to stick together.

Most of you are nearing or already reached your retirement age and can start drawing on your Social Security benefits. Some of you will put it off and continue to work until you die! But we all really understand the benefits for our new wives? Have you looked into it throughly and planned your early retirement or just said "I'll wait until it comes to me". Wel, you may me be shocked to learn a few things especially what benefits are available to YOUR EX-SPOUSE! Read on: If you are divorced, your ex-spouse can receive benefits based on your record (even if you have remarried) if: Your marriage lasted 10 years or longer; Your ex-spouse is unmarried; Your ex-spouse is age 62 or older; The benefit that your ex-spouse is entitled to receive based on his or her own work is less than the benefit he or she would receive based on your work; and You are entitled to Social Security retirement or disability benefits. If you have not applied for retirement benefits, but can qualify for them, your ex-spouse can receive benefits on your record if you have been divorced for at least two years. If your divorced spouse remarries, he or she generally cannot collect benefits on your record unless their later marriage ends (whether by death, divorce or annulment). If your divorced spouse is eligible for retirement benefits on his or her own record we will pay that amount first. But if the benefit on your record is a higher amount, he or she will get a combination of benefits that equals that higher amount (reduced for age). your divorced spouse has reached <a href="http://www.ssa.gov/retire2/retirechart.htm">full retirement age and is eligible for a spouse's benefit and his or her own retirement benefit, he or she has a choice. Your divorced spouse can choose to receive only the divorced spouse's benefits when he or she applies online and delay receiving retirement benefits until a later date. If retirement benefits are delayed, a higher benefit may be received at a later date based on the effect of delayed retirement credits. If your former spouse continues to work while receiving benefits, the same earnings limits apply to him or her as apply to you. If he or she is eligible for benefits this year and is also working, you can use our earnings test calculator to see how those earnings would affect those benefit payments. will also receive a pension based on work not covered by Social Security, such as government or foreign work, his or her Social Security benefit on your record may be affected. </a>

What if…. I hate to be a “Naysayer” but what if you died tomorrow and your candle was extinguished. Would anybody here know? Would your spouse or significant other know enough to log into Candle and tell us? Are you good enough friends with others to pick up the phone and see why your friends are not posting? I found out about our friend and Brother Bobby had died when his wife called to inform me. It was tragic accident (heart attack) and no one was prepared for what had happened, not even his wife. There was another Candle member here (Skibum) who died of cancer, however he was preparing us for the worst by announcing it and letting us all know in advance. Back in the “old” days we even put together fund raisers to help each other by sending flowers or money that was needed. My point is in the past we all got together and had picnics, parties and fun times over the holidays. We all exchanged phone numbers and called each other offline to chat. I still do this with many of you here on Candle and will continue to do it in the future. We are all brothers in one way or another and we all share the same type of bond – Chinese wives. I will also see about setting up another Houston gathering so the we can all come together and share stories and have good times like we did in the past. Post some pictures and enjoy each others company. I would also hope to see the same across Candles’ membership in the east and west coast so that we can all keep in touch with each other – and keep the flame going. Just a “What if” thought. Andrew

Happy new years to everyone, especially those who are snakes. For those who are not, did you know that there are different types of snakes. I found this out only because I have relatives who are snakes. Here's how they break down. 4 February 1905 – 24 January 1906: Wood Snake 23 January 1917 – 10 February 1918: Fire Snake 10 February 1929 – 29 January 1930: Earth Snake 27 January 1941 – 14 February 1942: Metal Snake 14 February 1953 – 2 February 1954: Water Snake 2 February 1965 – 20 January 1966: Wood Snake 18 February 1977 – 6 February 1978: Fire Snake 6 February 1989 – 26 January 1990: Earth Snake 23 January 2001 – 11 February 2002: Metal Snake 10 February 2013 – 30 January 2014: Water Snake 29 January 2025 – 16 February 2026: Wood Snake 15 February 2037 – 3 February 2038: Fire Snake So with that said and done, if you were born in the year of the snake, which snake are you? HAPPY NEWS YEAR all you Snakes!

sending you http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/rr144/Conejo26_2008/positive.jpg hang in there!

Just think... if you lived in England you are supposed to register your TV. Grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence

eeyore... I love to read about stories like yours. We have been married going on 13 years. See the ups and downs and all arounds. Been here for some time too! Hope to hear more about your adventures too!

I remember one time coming back from Greece and my grandmother wanted me to give my mother some homemade oregano that she had made. When I was asked to open my case the officer paused and then looked and me and asked "Oregano?" I nodded my head and he let me go with it. If it wasn't for the strong smell I'm sure he would have thought it was something else. On another note, we have received a wire transfer from China of a large sum of money that was delivered to BOA without any problems here.

Mikie They do not take pictures at the consulate. They do have a walgreeens next door that they may send you to. If you follow the standard guidelines for passport photos, they will accept them. I just did the wife's and son this last summer usining my HP printer w/ semi glossy paper and they accepted them with no problems. Someone else will have to answer the fee questions.

Kool Pictures! It looks like Santa forgot to eat his cookies when he left his presents! Tradition here is we leave cookies, milk for Santa and carrots for his reindeers. Crumbs are left over and empty glass of milk along with a few pieces of carrots. I'm afraid this year will be the last for our son (9 years old) for believing in Santa. Merry Christmas to Y'all in China!

Many Chinese have wanted to come here and start a new life but have you ever wondered about the Chinese that wanted to go back to their roots. Not the ones that came here originally from China but the ones that are ABC (American Born Chinese). Most ABC runs into a major culture shock when going back to China. The language, clothes, and other habits. Listen to the voices of those who ventured back to their roots to see the walls that they have found going back to heir parents homeland. When asking my son if he is Chinese or Greek, he will tell you that he’s an American. Great answer but listen to those ABC that use the same answer and get different responses from the Chinese mainlanders.

Dr. J. Bevil is my son’s violin teacher. We are so fortunate to have him teaching our son and having a Chinese wife who gives him 100% approval makes it even better. There is a line Chinese momma’s in our community who want him as their kids teacher. I ran across this piece in YouTube where Dr.Bevil is playing a musical instrument that he made himself. After discussing the video with him he explained to me that this is a Crwth instrument that was very popular in Walsh Scotland. Its has used in Wales since the Roman times. Anyone with a Scottish background may be familiar with the sound (Gaelic) of this instrument. As a side note, the doctor showed me a website (Score Exchange) in which scores of music has been uploaded and shared be him and others that they made. I never heard of it until today! I posted a score from a Chinese girl playing her guitar. Even comes with the music. Enjoy!