A Great Day (Vegas Trip Report Part 2)

A few days after I arrived in Vegas, Perry allowed me to come to work with him for the day. He is a second grade teacher in the public school system in Las Vegas. I spent the day with a remarkable group of students at Hollingsworth Elementary. Hollingsworth is located in one of the rougher areas of the city and the most of the kids come from less-than-ideal home environments. Perry told me that quite a few of them live in the weekly-pay hotels in the neighborhood.

It takes a special kind of person to manage a group of kids with such challenges. The students are lucky to have Perry. I have known him for about 12 years now and I have never seen him happier than when he is leading this group. He has a great system set up in the classroom and the children seem to enjoy and thrive in it. It was tons of fun going through the steps that constitute a day in the life of a grade-school teacher in the U.S.

Below are some of the photos I managed to take that day.

A good view of the kids from Perry's desk.

Perry leading the charge. The children respond well to him. I think the classroom is the perfect environment for him.


I was especially impressed by how well disciplined the kids are. They have a set schedule throughout the day and follow it to a "T".

They never missed a chance to mug for the camera. Kids throughout the world love to be silly when the camera is pointed at them.

Towards the end of the day, they get a few minutes of play time.

Thank you Perry for allowing me to attend school with you. It has given me a lot to think about regarding my future. I took away nothing but positive thoughts regarding teaching in Las Vegas.

Las Vegas (Trip Report Part 1)

After a grueling day in the air, about 14 hours, I finally arrived at McCarran airport in Las Vegas. Waiting for me there was my best buddy on the planet, Perry. We quickly retrieved my bags and headed out to see the wonderful house that he and his wife Andrea bought this past year. The fact that they are homeowners is mind-boggling considering it seems like yesterday when we were struggling college students living in crappy old apartments.

I was pretty wired by the time we got to the house. He showed me around the place and we hung out for a little bit while waiting for Andrea to arrive. After she came home we headed out to the micro-brewery at the Main St. Station casino. This is one of my favorite places to nosh in Vegas because they have a killer meatloaf and tasty beer. After dinner, we strolled down Freemont Street, otherwise known as "old" Vegas or downtown. As far as I am concerned, this is the best part of Vegas. The strip is waaaaaaay over-developed and unfriendly. Downtown Vegas is much kinder to the $5 gambler, like me. After gambling and losing money for a few hours, we headed home.

The following are some photos I took while in Vegas. This trip wasn't so much about sight-seeing and taking photos as it was a chance for me to visit with my friends and talk about a possible future in Vegas. I did manage to snap a few. I hope you enjoy them.

Speeding around the city on the freeways is a whole lot more enjoyable with this view.

My best friend's house. It's a great place, very comfortable. They live on the outskirts of the city. This fact may not hold true for long because Vegas is growing like a weed.

Perry and his new truck. He has been so successful these past few years which should not come as a surprise to anyone who knows him. He is one of the brightest, kindest and hard-working people I know...only outdone by his wife!...lol

Running errands with Perry. I just can't help but snap photos of the mountains, they are amazing.

I really enjoyed this trip because I got a chance to just hang out with Perry & Andrea. Not do anything all that special, just the day-to-day stuff.

Belated Thanks

I don't think I made it clear how thankful I am to everyone for putting up with me on my trip home. Everyone, including mom, the sisters, and the Sundbergs. They all went out of their way to make me feel comfortable and I am truly thankful.

Perry & Andrea carted me all over Las Vegas. It was lots of fun. I hope they find that perfect house soon.

Mom really knows how to make me happy...she cooked me all of the foods I only dream about here. Also, she was there to help me make a few decisions all the while knowing that being home is an emotional thing for me. I spent a good bit of the week on an emotional roller coaster and mom knew I needed to work through some things. She gave me my space and I was able to deal with them effectively. Mom is such a stabilizing force, although she denies it...

I didn't spend near enough time with the sisters, I never do. I suppose I was a bit selfish with my time and, looking back, I regret not seeing more of them.

One glaring absence during my visit was my youngest sister, Sydney. I guess she had a bit of a falling out with my mom. They haven't spoken in months. What a shame, I would've enjoyed seeing her. We have had a pretty tumultuous past but I love her just as much as the other sisters. I certainly hope she can patch things up with mom. All of us need mom in our lives.

It's been tough getting back into the swing of things here. It's strange how just a few weeks away can turn things upside down. I think the other teachers did a fine job in my classes...it's just tough to reconcile the missed class time. I am just now feeling like I am getting back in the groove.

Not sure when I'll be heading back home again. I hope the next trip is every bit as good as this one was.

Back On The Island

Sorry for the long stretch between posts, didn't have time for blogging during my stay in the U.S..

I had a great trip. It was great to see everyone. Here are some of the highlights of my trip...

I flew out of Taipei on Friday night on Singapore Air, a freaking fantastic airline. The flight was about 11 hours to L.A.. The misery of the long flight was lessoned by the great service on the plane which included bigger seats than the normal economy class fare, hot wash cloths prior to eating the fantastic food, an extra pair of socks, a toothbrush/toothpaste, unlimited free drinks/cookies/chocolate bars, and a TV screen with an insane amount of free movies/TV shows/video games included in every seat. Amenities like these make traveling such a long distance tolerable.

I arrived at about 10pm in Las Vegas. Perry & Andrea greeted me with their usual silliness. It was excellent to see them. Life is a whole lot easier knowing that you have such wonderful friends. We threw my bags in the trunk and went to get some dinner at a great little brew pub inside the Main Street Station casino. After eating the scrumptious meatloaf, we headed over to The Plaza casino to play a little poker. We sat at a $2-4 Hold-Em table until about 4am...I was feeling pretty shaky considering I didn't sleep on the plane. I think I may have been down about $60 for the evening, which included an unsuccessful run at a 1 cent Addams Family slot machine. Time for bed.

Over the next few days we ate some terrific meals, gambled a bit, and talked a lot about my potential move to Las Vegas to start a teaching career in Clark County, NV.

*They took me to an excellent Italian restaurant, the name escapes me, but it was awesome.

*I had a chance to meet Cletus, the newest member of the Sundberg household. He is a cute, slightly slow, little feline. I can't imagine Cletus having a better home.

*Andrea introduced me to the latest version of the Wheel of Fortune series of slot machines. It's a penny machine that has a wheel nearly as big as the one on the game show...lots of fun. I managed to win about $250 playing it over the course of my stay...not too shabby.

*Played some Pai-Gow poker. As usual, not much profit or loss. Pai-Gow is a great game if you want to play cards and not lose you wallet.

*Perry & I discussed my joining him for a day at his work. He is a 2nd grade teacher in Vegas. He explained that it would be cool if I would shadow him for a day and see what teaching there was all about. I agreed.

*I simply had to have some good Mexican food while I was in Las Vegas. Willy & Jose's was the spot. Had some killer flautas drenched in guacamole...good stuff.

Time flew and before I knew it it was time to board the plane for Cleveland.
Arrived in Cleveland 6am Monday morning.

*Mom picked me up at the airport and drove home in the nasty cold and snow.

*Mom had some beef stroganoff waiting for me and I ate until I was about to burst.

*I spent the next few days chasing Bubba & T-Bone, my cats, around the house. They both seemed very happy and in good health. Mom spoils them.

*I managed to sort through a lot of my stuff and found a bunch of things I could use here. Mostly clothes and books. Found a few pair of shoes that seemed well suited for my time here. I think the best thing I did was I managed to whittle down all the crap I had stored in mom's basement. She may be moving in the not-so-distant future so I tried to organize my stuff to make it easier to throw in a storage facility if need be.

*Got to spend some quality time with the family. Everyone seemed to be in pretty good spirits considering how miserable and gray the weather was. It was great to see the Hallinans, thanks for coming up to see me you crazy people!

*I barely slept during my time in Ohio. Got to see the sun come up on several of the days I was there...ugh.

*Mom was just doing her thing...she's a tough cookie.

*Made several trips to Marc's & Target to buy stuff to bring back to Taiwan. I was like a kid in a candy store. Walking through the aisles and wanting to buy EVERYTHING! I knew I had a limited amount of space but I was determined to utilize it fully...more on my stash later.

*The Sunday before I left mom threw me a party. I was shocked to see about 20 people showed up to say hello. The food was outstanding and it was great to see everyone. It's cool to know I have so many people back home supporting me in this endeavor. Aunt Janet & Uncle Pat came to the party and they looked great. Grandparenthood is good stuff. They couldn't be more proud. A bunch of the nephews and nieces were there, it's shocking to see how they have grown up. Chris Snyder, a great family friend stopped over to chat. He is a really cool guy that is a valued member of our extended family...always good for a few laughs. The party was a great success thanks to the efforts of my mom and sisters.

*This trip home wasn't so much about visited family...it was more about tying up some loose ends. It helped me better see where I am headed and what I should be doing. It showed me that my life in Ohio is pretty much over. I can't imagine a scenario that would require me to return to living there. There is very little opportunity in Ohio. I love my family as much as the next guy, but I simply don't think I could thrive in that environment.

*After a tearful goodbye to mom, I boarded yet another plane to head back to Vegas for a few days.

*A late arrival in LV on a Tuesday night was not the best plan considering that both Perry & Andrea had to work the next morning. Sorry about that goof, it was purely unintentional.

*The following day they both had a rather hectic schedule so I just hung around their apartment during the day while they did the work stuff. It was a good time to do final preparations for my big flight back to Taiwan. I had an unexpected charge flying out of Cleveland...one of my bags was a few pounds over weight so they charged me an additional $25...ugh. I wasn't about to dig through my stuff at that point. Therefore, I set about on Wednesday to remedy the problem by shedding some unnecessary stuff. I gave a book to Perry and transferred some of the weight from one of the big bags to my carry-on.

*Wednesday night was fun. We went out to a really great Mexican restaurant. It was very tasty. Everything tastes great when you know you won't have anything like it again for quite some time...lol. After the meal, we made our way over to the Sunset Station casino for some more Wheel of Fortune and Pai-Gow. This time I made about $80 and decided to stake Perry & Andrea with $20 each at a Pai-Gow table. They are working hard towards saving money in order to buy a house so I knew they weren't too anxious to spend their money in a casino. I told them that they could pay me back if they doubled their money. I had just won the cash so it really wasn't a big deal. We played for a few hours and Perry managed to come out ahead...Andrea couldn't catch any good cards. Perry & I spent much of the time discussing our teaching exploits. The next morning I was going to go to school with him...pretty psyched about that.

*Thursday morning was an early one. It was going to be a looooong day. I woke up at about 6:30 and quickly got ready to go to school. We arrived at the school and Perry showed me around. Nice facility. He took me through his daily routine. Due to the exploding population, his classroom is in a portable located next to the playground. Although the school is just a few years old, they don't have enough room to support all of the students. The school is located in a rough area of town but you'd never know it once inside. I think it's a very good environment for the kids. His class was simply adorable. About 20 little 2nd graders...cute as could be. They really seemed to like Teacher Perry. It was quite evident from the get-go that Perry is where he belongs. He is an excellent teacher. His room was well put together and the kids seemed very well adjusted. Watching him lead the group was inspiring. These kids all come from less-than-ideal home situations and they need a stable force like Perry in their lives. It didn't take long for me to feel like one of the group...the kids seemed to take a liking to me and I had lots of fun.

*The school visit helped solidify my belief that I am a teacher. It felt good. I think, eventually, I will join Perry as a teacher in Las Vegas. Not sure when it will happen, but it will.

*After the final bell rung, we grabbed some food, headed back to the apartment, and prepared for my departure.

*Sadly, I didn't have a chance to say goodbye to Andrea. I didn't realize that I wouldn't see her on Thursday. She is very busy. Her career is taking her places. Seeing what she is doing is very inspiring. Every time I talk to her it seems like she is doing bigger and better things...

*After saying goodbye to Perry I proceeded to the USAir check-in counter. I got a nice surprise from the friendly check-in counter attendant. After weighing my bags and realizing that somehow they were still too heavy, she decided to do a little magic. I mentioned to her that my final destination was Taipei and she asked me for my itinerary...moments later she informed me that USAir has a "baggage agreement" with Singapore Air. This means that she could tag my bags to Taipei and I would qualify for the international weight allowance, 20 more pounds than is allowed on domestic flights...yahoo! What a relief, I wasn't about to part with more of my stuff. Also, this meant that I wouldn't have to deal with baggage check-in at LAX, a big headache.

*The three-hour layover in LA was a drag. What a zoo. I managed to bide my time by reading a few magazines and perusing the over-priced shops.

*The flight from LA to Taipei was grueling. The flight path back is very different from the one that goes from Taipei to LA. Taipei to LA is about 11 hours, LA to Taipei is closer to 14...ugh.

*Thankfully, I had some great food and movies to keep me from going insane. Little Miss Sunshine is an incredible movie, I highly recommend that all of you see it.

*After paying too much for a fancy Mercedes taxi to take me from the airport to my apartment, I arrived home at about 7am Saturday.

*Exhausted, I spent about an hour unpacking some of my bags and then crashed. I slept for about 10 hours and woke up tired...lol.

This has been the never-ending post...sorry, my mind was racing.

My Next Opportunity?

As I mentioned earlier, I am taking a trip home in January. Part of my journey involves a stop off to visit my favorite couple of crazies, Perry & Andrea. I'm gonna be spending a few days with them in Las Vegas, their home. Anyhow, Perry & I Have been discussing the possibility of yours truly becoming a teacher in Vegas. It's the hottest market in the country for teachers, they are paying very well and the demand is sky-high. The school district there has many options as far as alternative licensing is concerned. I am confident I could do it. As far as I can tell, it's about an 18 month program. From everything Perry has told me, it looks like I won't have any problems getting a full-time teaching gig once I get the license.

I love my job here, but I have to seriously consider the long-term picture. I have had nothing but good things here and I think I need to see if I can parlay my good fortune into something more concrete in the States. I don't believe I'll ever have an easier set-up then I do now but it is just not something you do for 20+ years. I am well aware that teaching in the U.S. is a very different experience then over here, I think I can handle it.

The thought of leaving my kids here is heart-wrenching. I know it's a cliche', but many of the children I teach are MY kids...the attachment runs deep. If this Vegas teaching opportunity happens, it's gonna be a tough transition. I have had plenty of shifts in my life, but most of them came as a result of dissatisfaction with what I was doing at the time. This one won't be quite that simple. I am very happy with just about every aspect of my life here. This move will be driven by my need to shore things up in the distant future.

I've got lots to think about in the coming months.

Perry is on Easy Street!

A few days ago, I got an email from my best buddy Perry. I think he may have got the best Christmas present he could imagine. As many of you know, he has been an Associate Professor at UNLV and doing some substitute teaching in the local school district in Las Vegas. As long as I have known Perry, he had his heart set on teaching at the University level. Well, after a few months of substituting in the grade schools in LV, he had a change of heart. He put his efforts into landing a full-time position teaching little ones. Since he didn't have traditional teaching credentials, he had to be creative. Long story short, he managed to befriend the right folks and recently landed a job as a full time teacher in the Clark County School District. I am so proud of him. He is going to be the best teacher in the district...those kids are going to be taught by someone with far superior skills than the average teacher.

Congrats Perry!!!

25,000 Pennies! & Chillin in L.A.

I have arrived! This past week has been crazy!

I spent 3 days in Las Vegas with Perry & Andrea prior to flying over here. It was great. I needed an opportunity to vist with them. As usual my time with them went by waaay to fast. It was a blast. I managed to win about $250 on a penny slot machine...amazing.

I flew into LAX on Saturday afternoon, that's when the insanity started. Anyone who has flown knows that you have to show the ticket counter person the credit card that you used to purchase the ticket. Well, i bought my ticket from LAX to Taiwan several months ago and since then my bank decided to issue new debit cards. I bought my ticket with the original card and the number changed...not good. They tell you to cut up the old card, I did. So i was in a bit of a pickle. The folks at the ticket counter made me rebuy my ticket on the spot...ugh. Thankfully it was only about $100 more than the other. The only remaining issue is to make sure that the airline properly refunds my money for the original ticket. It wouldn't be that big of a deal but dealing with the bank from overseas is a headache.

Not soon after that silly situation they announced that the plane was overbooked. They offered me $400 cash, a free hotel room, a $20 meal voucher, calling cards, and a pass to the airport V.I.P. lounge if I'd be willing to wait and go on the next flight, which was in 7 hours. Of course I took it. What a deal. I hung out in a very nice hotel for the afternoon and eventually made it back to the airport that night. The flight was uneventful, long, but uneventful.

I arrived in Taipei Monday morning at about 5am. What a crazy city. It's hot here. Thankfully the hostel is air conditioned. The hostel ("Taiwanmex Guest House") is great. A cool mix of folks from all over the planet. At only $13/night it's a steal. I am about 5 minutes from the subway and the main train station. It is about 4:30am local time as I am writing this...jet lag.

Time for me to attempt to get some sleep. I'm gonna do my best to keep this thing updated as often as I can.