family and food

Yesterday was the first time we have not had our whole family together for our traditional Thanksgiving Day meal. Our oldest son could not get off the Army base so we are going down there to see him today. For the last week we had hoped he would be able to come home, but on Tuesday night we learned that no one was able to leave. Our next to oldest son is in California and everyone left in the house talked to him by phone yesterday. He was going to try to have a meal with those in the school who remained, one from Pennsylvania and one from Michigan. He is so out-going that life is an adventure for him, of which this is yet another one.

This year we decided to deep fry a turkey. We first tried doing it ourselves two years ago and it was the best turkey we ever had. It is messy and a bit expensive but the oldest son in house suggested we do it again. Last time we followed Alton Brown's recipe and it worked out for us. It is really very easy to do as it just takes some patience. We even followed his directions on how to build a turkey derrick. But this time the turkey derrick did not fly as my son told me "that is for 60 year olds". I guess after being two years older he had not gained wisdom but had become more daring. All went well without the turkey derrick as we did not have any exploding turkeys to report or old burns. We have read stories of people trying to deep fry turkeys that were still frozen and they shoot out of the fryer, literally exploding. This year after the 35 minute frying had been completed, we decided to do a couple of tests after turning off the propane flames. We threw a frozen chicken nugget in the 350 degree peanut oil. When it did not shoot out, we tried throwing in a frozen bread biscuit. The chicken nugget and biscuit popped up to the top of the oil after a couple of minutes. When we still did not get the affect, we threw in 5 ice cubes. Suddenly things got really interesting. Previously the oil surface was quite calm but now it starting bubbling profusely. So ice definitely is a bad idea with hot boiling oil. Our last experiment was putting in ice cream as we had heard that at the NC State Fair they offer fried ice cream. Apparently there is a science in getting that to work as throwing it n just made the ice cream melt right away. This sounds like we wasted a lot of time playing around, but after removing the turkey from the hot oil, you have to let it sit for 30 minutes to finish cooking and that is when we messed around with the oil.

A final word about our meal. In the morning my wife spent hours preparing the food. She did comment that it did seem odd to spend so much time on food that is finished off in minutes. I told her that some people actually enjoy the act of cooking in itself. I just like how our family gets together around the table and sits and talks. Something that is not natural for teenagers! My wife took hours to make from scratch the following foods : bread stuffing, cream corn, sweet potatoes, cranberry relish, baked apples, pumpkin pie and sweet potato pie. What a wonderful cook I married. All of that and she did not feel very good as she had a cold. It never fails to amaze me how she can cook when not feeling good and it always tastes perfect.

Mumbai mess

Having watched hours of news coverage on the Mumbai 9/11 terrorist attacks in the past couple of days, it is so sad to see how a few crazy people can cause such pain and grief. I don't like my idealist view of India being manipulated by people with no brains. We recently watched several Bollywood movies on terrorists in India as it is a hot topic even before this disaster. I still think the best way to deal with such horrible situations is to not allow terrorists to force us to change our lives as that makes them win.

stationed in South Korea

We found out this morning that our oldest son will be stationed in north of Seoul, South Korea for his first year after his training completes in January, 2009. This is really interesting news since my wife grew up her whole life in South Korea! We would have never imagined that our son would go there to live. Here are some links to Dongducheon, South Korea for Camp Casey, where he will be living:



Map of Army bases in South Korea
Map of Army bases near Camp Casey
West map of Camp Casey
East map of Camp Casey
Bridge outside Camp Casey
Weather at Camp Caasey
Map of Dongducheon
Details on the area
Subway to Seoul

wallyball

Yesterday during lunch I ventured into the exciting world of wallyball. That sounds very close to volleyball when you speak it in public conversation. I had heard about it for several years and finally found someone who would let me play. We played two-on-two inside a racquetball court with the next tied to the walls at the half way point within the court. At first I had no idea what to expect after I had the rules explained to me. Besides the fact that a racquetball court echoes like crazy, I was not sure I heard the rules correctly. Once we started playing it was pretty obvious how I should be playing, but it was another thing all together on how to actually do it. The ball has a rubber outside and is slightly smaller than a volleyball and bounces like a huge racquetball. I quickly learned that I should not try to block shots at the net as that left the court wide open for my teammate, which was too large an area to cover for one person. It was hard hitting the ball just right so it bounced off our opponent's side walls but not our opponent's back wall. This was especially true of serving. The surprising thing to me was how quickly I was sweating and I got a great work out. This is an interesting video that shows how the best people play wallyball.

what "Knopp" means to me

Some events in your life are memorable for a very long time and some you want to forget as soon as they happen. For me, the recent passing away of the patriarch of the Knopp family helped bring back so many wonderful memories. I can honestly say that my whole life would not be what it is today without knowing the Knopp family.

My life was a constant downward spiral for many years after my parents got divorced at my young ripe age of 14. When I had no where else to turn, I forced myself on a couple who attended church at the Knopp's house. At the lowest point of my life, I decided to take a chance and attend the Knopp home church. I had very long hair, which for me was definitely a sign of rebellion that I wanted to portrait to others. I had no idea what to wear to their church or whether I would be accepted with my long hair, but I was desperate enough to try and see what happened. I mainly went because I had just finished reading a book by Haralan Popov and he was speaking at the church that day. The primary reason Popov appealed to me was I had recently read The Painted Bird by Jerzy Kosinski and was fascinated with how communism destroyed people. It is interesting how events just seem ordained to happen sometimes. It felt pretty strange attending a church in someone's home and even more odd that I did not know them at all, but desperate times lead to desperate measures. That very afternoon I decided that the way I was running my life was not working out very good for me and that I needed divine intervention. I really had nothing to loose as I was pretty miserable, so I was willing to take a chance. It is the best decision I have ever made and it changed my life forever. For me it was a miracle.

For that entire summer I attended church either at the Knopp's or with my mother. I quickly felt like the Knopps were a family I had always wanted to have but never had. I remember eating lunch at the Knopp home on several Sundays and observing the family interactions. People were always more important than possessions or time. It seemed like I could stay as long as I needed to - just like a home. Before I left to go at VaTech I had a bond that is hard for me to put into words with my adopted Knopp family. To be accepted for who you are instead of what comes out of your mouth or what you look like is such a great thing. I had no reason to be loved by this family as I had nothing useful to offer them. Sounds like the definition of true love to me. After completing my first full year at VaTech, I wanted to actually do something with my life to help others instead of how I had lived my first 20 years only for myself. The Knopps helped support me the whole two years I was in India, which is yet another reason I am eternally grateful.

When I returned from India, I had no idea where I would stay upon returning to VaTech. Yet again the Knopps came to my rescue. At VaTech, I roomed with two of the Knopp sons where we shared an apartment together. I could not have asked for better roommates as we had a great time together. We had a common hobby in playing basketball and we spent many fun hours every week enjoying ourselves and getting exercise. I met my wife to-be early in that school year and when we secretly got married in February, my perfect roommates graciously allowed us to live with them temporarily. They also helped force us to find our own place to live, which was the best advice they could have given us.

The best memory I have of Papa Knopp was on a visit to their home after we got married. Over lunch I asked Papa what his secret was to raising such great children as I needed advice before we had our own kids. He looked at me and said it was the only the grace of GOD. At the time I was really disappointed as I wanted "the" secret. After having five children and two of them already gone from our house, I fully understand what he meant. Some people who seem to have it all together have all kinds of problems with their kids. Other who have terrible families, somehow the kids rise above the horrible conditions and make something out of their lives for the good of others.

The second best memory I have of Papa Knopp was told by his sons, my college roommates. When I asked them what they thought made him a great father, they told me of a time when Papa lost his temper as the nine sons were getting a bit wild on a long road trip. He pulled over the car and apologized to them all immediately afterwards. Just two weeks ago when I talked to Papa Knopp one final time, he told me that so many good things had happened in his home but he could only attribute it to him being a willing servant and nothing more.

The most lasting impression I have of the Knopp family is how every time I visit their home I feel more encouraged upon leaving than when I arrived. Some people become old and crusty with age, but Mama and Papa just seemed to get better over time. I have to attribute it to their positive attitude of finding the good things that GOD has done for us. If only I could do the same.

Tribute to Papa Knopp: http://sites.google.com/site/papaknopp/

Josh Hamilton

Last night my wife and I went to see Josh Hamilton and his wife speak at Hope Community Church. It was really more like an interview than him speaking the whole time. He was not feeling well so his wife spoke more than half of the time. It was pretty amazing to hear of his wife standing behind him through all of his drug addiction problems, which he finally overcame two years ago. My wife bought me his autobiography Beyond Belief: Finding the Strength to Come Back. I opened it at 10am this morning and read it straight through, until I finished it at 4pm this afternoon. Having read a couple of books by ex-drug addicts, I must say that this is my favorite one. It is one thing to overcome addictions and it is another to thrive and do something useful with your life.

I am not really a huge fan of baseball as it was my least favorite sport when I was growing up. In my first job out of college, my best friend was a huge Houston Astros fan, so I would often watch games with him when they were on TV. Other than that I seldom watch baseball on TV now or even read about it in the newspaper. A couple of years ago when the Astros made it to the playoffs, I watched with my youngest son just for old times sake. The real reason I wanted to go see Josh Hamilton was that I had read parts of his story in the local newspaper. Also one of his early little league coaches worked with me by testing the code I wrote for work purposes. He would tell me stories of Josh's greatness as he saw him in his youth. Another reason to see him was that I had heard he had fallen for a drug addiction for many years and finally gotten out of it the last couple of years. During lunch at work one day, I heard about his great home run derby feat during all star weekend this year, so it was a great transformation that had taken place.

family matters

We saw an Indian movie that we really liked last night called Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, which means "Sometimes happy, sometimes sad". It is about how a family interacts with each other. A son obeying his parents and when he does not, how the consequences affect everyone for many years. His father setup a marriage for him and he decided to follow his feelings of love for a "common" woman that broke up the family. Such great family values that apply half way around the world to our family. It never ceases to amaze me how such a different culture has so many applicable wonderful traits that are valuable for us as a family. I don't even have to try hard to favor Indian culture as it just comes naturally somehow to a Virginia country boy like me.

diwali #2

Last night we attended our company wide Diwali festivities at the local Hindu temple. In past years it was held in the temple hall, but this year because of a scheduling conflict it was held in the main hall that could hold at least 1000 people. The sound system was absolutely amazing and the Indian music sounded wonderful. The event started at 6:30pm and we arrived early at 6:20pm. For all of the times I have been in India and knew better, still for some odd reason I forgot Indian Standard Time. When we got there, a good friend of mine who was the master of ceremonies for the evening was the only one there! At least I got to talk to him for a good 20 minutes as we are always too busy at work for a relaxing conversation like that. At 7:15pm there was but a hand full of people present, a couple of them I knew so there was plenty of time to talk. This event for me is all about talking to friends from work, some of which I never get the chance to talk to about non-work related things. Two of the people I talked to are in my own group and I seldom get any time to talk to them. That is sad, but I took advantage of the time last night and had a great time.

teenager notice

TEENAGERS!
Are you tired of being harassed by your parents?
ACT NOW!

Move out,
get a paid job,
& pay your own way
while you still know everything!

it's all about family

This has been one constant driving trip for me this weekend. First we all drove to Columbia, SC as a family and then I drove to Dayton, VA to pick up my mother who was visiting my sister. On the way to Dayton I stopped in Staunton, VA to see the family of my roommates from the good old days at VaTech. Driving through the orange colored Blue Ridge mountains, I wondered if anyone would be home at the Knopps or if anyone would remember me. I feel like they are my family for many reasons. There are nine boys in the family and two of them were my roommates. These roommates saw my wife and I get married and helped us so much those first three months. We had so much in common as we loved to play basketball for hours at the VaTech gym and at home when we were together in Staunton. They were the rock strong family when my family was falling apart at the cracks. When I needed support, they were always there for me. With Mama Knopp close to 89 and Papa Knopp close to 95 and it is hard to tell how much longer they will grace the earth with their presence. I mean "grace" as that is the absolutely best word for them. You just want to be around them in hopes that something will rub off! Mama's body may be falling apart but her mind is simply amazing. If I had just half of her memory at 70 I would be a happy camper. Lastly, it is not that the whole family of 9 boys, 20+ grandchildren, 20+ great-grandchildren are perfect, it is how they are constantly learning how to be more like Jesus Christ as a family. Simply amazing to me.

On my way up the Shenadoah valley to see my sister, I saw the Mennonite region of Virgina as that is where my sister lives. Huge dairy farms with black horse and buggy's outside each home with some homes having many bicycles park along the barns. You could see horse dung on the road as I weaved along the curvy country road. Occasionally I would see someone on a bicycle. These are not racing bikes but simple bicycles with baskets on both sides of the back to hold groceries. As a kid I could remember going through the country side around Harrisonburg and seeing the mennonite people, so I got used to seeing them, but after many years it was odd but brought back good memories.


On the way back home with my mother, we stopped to see a childhood friend of hers who had been her playmate since being in the same crib. She had just turned 80 and mom wanted to see her. That is amazing to see someone remain friends for 80 years. They did not dwell so much on the past as just wanted to talk about each other's family and what was going on now. They had both been through much adversity and had the battle wounds to show for it, but knew they would be friends to the end of their life on earth.

On the 5 hour drive home, one of the conversations between my mother and I was about her brother Claude, since he had served in the military for 30 years. He had joined the Marines when he was 16 years old and served in WWII, Korean War and Vietnam. He retired after 30 years of service, most of the latter years as a chef for officers. I remember visiting him many times as I liked to spend the night with them and eat some of the best food that ever entered my stomach. He smoked like crazy and drank tons as well, but was the nicest uncle I could ask for. The last time I saw him, he was on the verge dying of cancer and was really a skeleton with skin draped over his bones. It was a very sad time for me. I remember going to his funeral and crying for a very long time. It is the only funeral I have attended so far.

proud Army parents

It certainly was an emotional two days watching our boy become a man. Maybe he should have become a man sooner or learned lessons the easy way, but for now all we can say is that we are proud parents of our new man. Sometimes it is just too hard to put into words how we feel and this is just such a case. We told him how proud we were of him and he said that we were not as proud of him as he was of himself. He said he did things he never imagined he was capable of completing. His master drill sergeant told him they could quit any time and the final night before his graduation, he told them he was on a mission to make someone not graduate. One of the fellows completed his physical training on the morning of family day (our son told us this fellow's first two mile run on entering camp was in 29 minutes and he had to complete it in 16 minutes to graduate) and if he had not completed it he would have not graduated and would have had to tell his parents to not come. He did graduate by the way! There were people from all over the USA there to see this manly sons. I knew almost nothing about the military when we went to Columbia, SC this weekend. I dislike war and cannot imagine having to kill someone, but I have to say that having seen my son turn into a man was the highlight of my life as a father so far. I really like the Army values and creed as they are great values for anyone to have. The regiment commander read these out loud at the graduation ceremonies and all 460 of the graduates yelled the creed in unison at the end before parading off the field - also quite and emotional experience. Our son is part of the 165th infantry brigade, 3rd battalion, 34th infantry regiment, company "B". The regiment is called "Rock Force" and his company is called the "Hell Hounds".

Army Values

Loyalty - Bear true faith and allegiance to the U.S. Constitution, the Army, your unit, and other Soldiers
Duty - Fulfill your obligations
Respect - Treat people as they should be treated
Selfless Service - Put the welfare of the nation, the Army, and your subordinates before your own
Honor - Live up to all of the Army values
Integrity - Do what's right, legally and morally
Personal Courage - Face fear, danger, or adversity (Physical or Moral)

The Soldier's Creed

I am an American Soldier.
I am a Warrior and a member of a team.
I serve the people of the United States and live the Army Values.
I will always place the mission first.
I will never accept defeat.
I will never quit.
I will never leave a fallen comrade.
I am disciplined, physically and mentally tough,
trained and proficient in my warrior tasks and drills.
I always maintain my arms, my equipment and myself.
I am an expert and I am a professional.
I stand ready to deploy, engage and destroy the enemies of
the United States of America in close combat.
I am a guardian of freedom and the American way of life.

I am an American Soldier.