So Much To Do With So Little Time Left

It is a rainy and cold day in Wolfeboro. Just perfect for setting the mood for flying halfway around the world. Spent most of the day making sure the office and staff are going to be OK while I'm gone. Also had our computer consultant in setting up my Acer notebook for the trip. I wanted to be able to access our constituent files from off campus.

Here is a photo of Dr. Michael E. Cooper, Head of School, Brewster Academy, along with Raylene Davis, our ESL and International Student Programs Director, and me as we took time out to discuss the upcoming trip.

We Are Off In Three Days

Just before heading off to a Thanksgiving with Ann's sister and other members of her family, The Asian contingent got together for a nice evening of getting to know each other better over a wonderful Chicken Marsala prepared by Ann.

Pictured here are Raylene Davis and her good friend, John, along with Ann in our kitchen.

What with all the preparation for the upcoming trip, it was nice to take a breather by going down to Yonkers, NY, for a family gathering with Ann's relatives at her sister, Susan's, apartment for a great Thanksgiving dinner.

The next day, we headed up to Stattsburg, NY, to Susan's "country house" for a relaxing afternoon touring Rhinebeck's shops. Picked up a few very nice bottles of wine highly recommended by Robert Parker.

I have no idea where we stopped for a glass of wine, but it was right on the eastern side of the Hudson River where I caught this wonderful structure that crossed the tracks of the Amtrak RR.

Here's Ann listening intently to something my sister-in-law, Susan, had to say. Ann is inside the spot on the Hudson that we stopped to sip the grape for a small amount of time. Just a lovely afternoon with the wind building up a chop on the river and the sun setting in the West. Fun, fun, fun!

Saturday found us heading back to New Hampshire. Wind all the way home.

Sunday was devoted to putting together the suitcases. Spent all day on clothing, maintenance sundry items, charging batteries, downloading a movie and music for the

trip, etc.

I think I'm ready.

Thai Scholars During Summer

Little did Ann and I know this past summer that our weekend hosting of two of the 60 plus Thai scholars spending their summer with us at Brewster Academy as part of a joint program between the Academy and the Thailand government would serve as a pre-cursor to what I would be experiencing later in the year.

Here's a picture of Ann with our two guests up on the top of Mt. Washington, here in New Hampshire. Its the tallest peak east of the Mississippi. "Pete," on the right, is at the University of Michigan studying chemical engineering and "Ton," on the left next to Ann, my wife, is now down in Atlanta at a prep school preparing for next year's entrance into a college or university.

One Week And Counting

Although it is Thanksgiving week, my thoughts are focusing on the upcoming trip to Asia. I've got my passport, my sleepaid gels, my anti acids (for the strange food I will probably have to eat), all my shots including seasonal and H1M1 flu shots, medical evacuation insurance, etc.

I've learned a good deal about the geography of Korea. I know what a -dong, -du, -go, and -si are. A dong is a neighborhood. What is amazing is that right now, it is 41 degrees in Seoul and 70 degrees in Bangkok. So two types of wardobes are going to be needed.

We will be visiting Seoul first, then on to Taipei, and then over to Bangkok.

Back from Boston

Well, I'm now fully informed on social media and mobile communications. Did you know that more than 50% of the mobile media devices are controlled by Apple's iphone, itouch, and RIM's Blackberry. Google's Android is making inroads. All others are losing share.

I'm now on facebook, tweetering, and blogging.

Just finished a meeting continuing the planning of our Asian trip. We leave December 2nd.

Hello

This is my first blog. I'm inspired by Zack Lehman at Gould Academy and by my experence at the Stamats Social Networking Conference this week in Boston.

I hope my blog can be helpful.

I'm preparing for a trip to Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand for the purpose of meeting with parents and alumni.

More later.