Funny Chinese Signs (part 2)

This is my favorite sign of them all. It was at the bottom of the Great Wall. It is worth clicking on so you can read it.

My favorite parts...

1. You can't carve arbitrarily on the wall, but I guess if you have a distinct plan for your carving you are welcome to do it.

3. I love the "laugh and frolic part". People certainly obeyed well...I didn't see any frolicking while I was on the Great Wall.

5. I like the transition to the past tense and the use of the word "leaded".

* Notice that on the introductory paragraph they get the apostrophe in "others'" correct while many people who know English get this wrong. I've got to give credit where credit is due!

It just kind of makes me wonder...was there not one person available who knew English enough to do a basic job of editing?

Favorite Chinese Signs (part 1)

I thought I'd share a few of our favorite signs from China. I liked this one on a road at the university where my friend teaches. The top circle obviously designates the speed limit as 20 mph. The bottom circle communicates "no taxis". The third circle certainly looks like tuba players are prohibited from entering the campus. I don't know why such aversion to tuba players! (Okay, maybe it means "no honking your horn", but my tuba player interpretation is much more interesting.)

It is the second circle from the top that I find interesting. What exactly does that mean? No nothing? No breathing the air? Is it a prohibition against Nihilism on this college campus? Hmmmm....

Spamalot

Last Friday night tickets went on sale for the spring showing of the Broadway show "Spamalot" that is coming to DeVos hall. Knowing my secret admiration of Monty Python's "Search for the Holy Grail", Stacey sent me to purchase tickets for us. Tickets could only be purchased at the Grandville D&W starting at 5:00. So at 5:30 I figured I could walk in and get my tickets. Boy was I wrong! The place was a zoo. I waited in line for an hour and all of the really good seats were gone already. Who would have figured that so many people would be that interested in Spamalot!

Luckily, they provided entertainment during my wait -- people dressed in "Holy Grail" gear acting Pythonish and challenging us with trivia (they started avoiding me since I knew all the answers!). They also gave out free prizes. I don't know what I like better, my $10 gift card to the movie theater or this cool collector's edition can of spam. For all of you who wish you were collectors of spam, I took pictures of the can for you to enjoy the Monty Python humor.

My Next Job

I've decided that my next job is going to be as a terracotta warrior. These guys in Beijing were just great to hang out with. Their job was really easy. They just stood guard at the base of the ancient drum tower in the center of Beijing. If anyone tried to get in without authorization, they...well, they just watched them go by. Not a bad gig. Very little pressure. The hours were pretty bad (7 days a week, 24 hours a day) and losing an arm over time is one downside to the job that I wouldn't really like. And these guys needed to learn to loosen up a bit and enjoy life more. I think I could be a good influence on them.

Brant hung out with us too and tried his hand at the job and really seemed to enjoy it. When they told him he smiled too much he quit.

Erin preferred the job of playing these HUGE replicas of the ancient drums they used to play. There were probably two dozen of them that ringed the top of this tower. We wanted to get her permission to actually play them, but we couldn't.

Trip to the Mall

Today was a big day at the Meyer home. We made a family trip to the mall to get our daughter's ears pierced. I took a picture just to prove it!

While at the mall, we also witnessed a serious brawl between two cell-phone kiosk workers (and they even worked for the same service!). Between the brawl, long lines, huge numbers of people and less than helpful employees, Stacey and I both asked each other why we come to the mall. I guess one trip a life-time to get my daughter's ears pierced is a good enough reason!

Images of Earth

Who says God isn't an artist! Take a look at some of these satellite pictures of earth. They are pretty amazing! I especially liked the image of these retreating glaciers (#3 shown here). Click here to see all 11 pictures and vote for your favorite!

Prayers for my Brother

For those of you who don't check out my sister-in-law's blog linked here to the right ("mostly poetry"), please do so that you can pray for my brother Dave. He had a stroke yesterday and lost feeling and movement in his whole left side. He has regained a little bit, but please pray with us if you are willing that he will keep getting more and more movement back!

Thanks!

Gas Prices Around the World

Just to make you feel better when you fill up at the gas pump, here are gas prices around the world. Now you can smile as you drive away from the gas station! (Unless, of course, you live in the Middle East!)