Eve of Christmas Eve

An airport run in the morning. But first, had to dig out the White Rabbit from under a foot of snow. I used my snow brush as a broom.

Afternoon trip with Lim Jia and Jake to Grand Rapids for dim sum. A two-hour trip became two-and-a-half because of traffic. Turns out the restaurant only has dim sum till three, so we ordered some main dishes - roast duck, steamed tilapia and sauteed scallops. Not bad at all. The last of the dim sum dishes - taro buns, which were excellent. The highlight was probably the duck, and we noticed that the duck fellow was chopping them up non-stop. People kept ordering it as take-out dishes. We also conversed with the owner, a Malaysian who arrived in the US in 1997. He was in Indiana for three years before moving to Michigan. Turns out they sell about 30-40 ducks a day and about 2-3 roast pigs too. During the holidays, they sell 13 pigs. When he found out Lim Jia and I are from Singapore, we got some free treats. We later relied on Jake to help us finish the food.

On the way back, we talked about his adventures with his dad who is a vet. Horsey patients are the most volatile - Jake was left with bruises all over his back once. Another interesting patient - a hermaphrodite cat. Jake and his dad love vehicles too, and driving - they have a collection of about 12 motorbikes. I fell asleep after gazing out at the moonlit fields. It was particularly beautiful because of the layer of snow spread across the land.

Back in Ann Arbor, we rushed into Hill Auditorium for their friend Chris's organ recital. This isn't the little electric organs you get in Yamaha music appreciation courses. The organ is linked to a row of huge pipes (124 ranks and 7,599 pipes) and has an amazing number of buttons and stops, two rows of pedals (which require the player to don special shoes) and four keyboards (which require plenty of finger alternation). Organists have plenty of job opporunities, especially in churches. Lim Jia told me jokingly about how there are so many jobs out there that if anyone knows how to find the power switch for the organ, he'd get a job.

Later, we climbed onto the stage and fiddled around with the organ. The sound is just incredible - loud, majestic. Chris certainly looked like he was having fun during his recital. And I could see why. Lim Jia played a little Bach and we stood there in awe. For just a couple of seconds, I stood in the spotlight and faced the empty chairs. This is the same stage on which Hilary Hahn and Dave Brubeck and Harry Connick Jr. performed. It was surreal to be standing in the same spot.

Before they sent me home, we had a few donuts in the empty blue parking lot on North Campus. Jake floored the gas, locked the wheel of the Buick, and across the snow-covered lot, we spun and spun and spun. It was fabulous. He actually practices doing these tricks. You have to do it in a controlled situation - know where the poles and pavements are, make sure no cops are watching. Best vehicles for donuts - manual transmission, rear-wheel drive cars, and no ABS brakes.

Posted by Monoceros at December 23, 2004 10:29 PM