Wet and Windy

      

We're watching and waiting as Typhoon Megi makes it way over the East China Sea.  We had a little preview last night during a quick flash flood that turned our rice paddy paths into rivers, sent trickles down our walls, and fried our Internet router with a lightening strike.  We haven't had that much electrical excitement since we tried to plug in a few gadgets without power converters when we first arrived in Vietnam (remember the smoking Xbox?).  Personally I think a "typhoon day" off from school would be kind of fun - preferably with my Internet and electricity intact thanks.

While we anticipate our first real storm of the season, we're making the most of our glimpses of the sun.  We squeezed in a quick river tour over the weekend to see Hoi An from a different perspective.  Nolan got a chance to captain the boat along the way.

        

Brianna enjoyed the fruits of Vietnam with a manicure, and we all took full advantage of the pirated DVD industry.

      

And of course, there was the puppy.  Still nameless (although there is a strong leaning toward Coconut) at present,  she continues to wiggle her flea-bitten little way into our hearts.  We have fun walking around town and trying to figure out who her mother might be, and what she will look like when she grows up.  For now, she looks "just like Marley" in everyone's opinion.  Given that we have not seen a yellow lab anywhere in Vietnam, it's more likely that we'll have a stubby-legged, long-bodied, mutt-dog on our hands when the growing is all over.

                        

                       

John continues to spend his days getting lots of experience in the practical side of living in Vietnam.  The little ladies at the market take good care of him and give him something resembling local prices.  Today they had two bags of "chao" (rice soup that serves as our puppy food) waiting for him when he arrived.  He also got the tasks of figuring out how to buy a new WIFI router through pantomime, and landscaping (or should I say coordinating the landscaping of) our "back yard" (patch of dirt behind our house) to be a puppy-friendly outdoor space. Then, because he doesn't get enough practice gesturing during the day, he decided to padlock the house as we left for dinner with the keys inside.  That would be the padlock that we purchased to ensure that no one else had keys to our house.  It seemed like a good idea at the time, but when you're locked out...not so much.

When gesturing failed, it took a phone call to Saigon (to the restaurant owner's daughter who speaks passable English) to explain what he had done, and what he needed (a bolt cutter) to fix the situation.  It took about ten minutes to get the message across and about two seconds to secure a bolt cutter from our next door neighbor.  So, there you go.  Why padlock when the bolt cutter resides next door?

Next up for John?  The vet. I would love to be a fly on the wall when he uses sign language to convey the message that we need flea powder now and would like to schedule a spaying appointment in the future.  Just the thought of the gestures involved is enough to keep me amused for a very long time.