Monthly Archives: March 2010

Connecting through chatting

Posted on March 31, 2010 by Qin Tang

A friend called me today to talk about an upcoming event. Pretty soon our conversation wandered off to something totally unrelated. We ended up spending some time talking about her husband’s family and siblings. Being the kind of person who … Continue reading →

Tagged , | Leave a comment

Hallelujah Health Tips

Posted on March 30, 2010 by Qin Tang

I have been reading Hallelujah Health Tip by Rev. George Malkmus for a few years now. To read his latest article Maintaining Health Is Our Responsibility – Not Government’s, please click here.  More Hallelujah Health Tips are available here.

Tagged | Leave a comment

The Edge: Soul of the Cities

Posted on March 29, 2010 by Qin Tang

The Edge: Soul of the Cities is one of my favorite magazines. I loved it since I first discovered it a few years ago in the building where I work. I make sure that I get a copy every month. … Continue reading →

Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Back to China

Posted on March 28, 2010 by Qin Tang

This summer, I will be going back to China to visit my parents in Suzhou. The last time I went back to China was in 2005 for my 20 year college reunion. I had a great time. China has changed … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Case for Saturday School

Posted on March 28, 2010 by Qin Tang

Like kids in China and many kids from Chinese immigrant families in the US, my son and daughter go to school on Saturday. They have been going to Saturday Chinese school since they were five years old. They spend about … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Getting Past No – book Interview

Posted on March 26, 2010 by Qin Tang

I recently interviewed Deb Ledvina, a Mn/DOT employee since 1992 and an attorney who was appointed by Commissioner Sorel to serve as Mn/DOT’s first ombudsman in September 2008. We talked about the second book in the Commissioner’s Reading Corner Book of … Continue reading →

Posted in Book, CRC book interview | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

All about business

Posted on March 25, 2010 by Qin Tang

I have lived in Woodbury for almost 10 years, but have never been to Woodwinds Hospital which opened 10 years ago in 2000. It’s the only hospital in Woodbury and in the southeast Twin Cities metro area. Today I had … Continue reading →

Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Everyone is a leader

Posted on March 24, 2010 by Qin Tang

Are you a leader?  If I ask you this question, my guess is most people might say no, especially if you are not in a management position in any organization. But according to James Kouzes and Barry Posner, authors of Leadership … Continue reading →

Tagged , | Leave a comment

Respect is earned, not demanded

Posted on March 23, 2010 by Qin Tang

Parents often demand respect and obedience from their children by being authoritative: “You have to do what I told you to do, because I am your parent.” Period. Likewise, some bosses demand respect and obedience from their subordinates by being … Continue reading →

Tagged | Leave a comment

Lead with heart

Posted on March 22, 2010 by Qin Tang

A few weeks ago I randomly picked up a free issue of Minnesota Women’s Press. It’s one of the several magazines and newspapers in the free publication section in my office building. I walk by it all the time, but … Continue reading →

Tagged | Leave a comment

Procrastination

Posted on March 21, 2010 by Qin Tang

I often tell my kids: “Get your homework done early. Don’t wait till the last minute.” I wasn’t happy that my daughter Amy didn’t get her social studies homework done today. She had the weekend to do it, but she … Continue reading →

Tagged , | 2 Comments

Sustainability and Landscape Workshop

Posted on March 20, 2010 by Qin Tang

City of Woodbury 12th Annual Sustainability and Landscape Workshop, used to be called the Environmental Landscape Workshop, took place this morning at Woodbury City Hall. The workshop was sponsored by the Woodbury Environmental Advisory Commission, a volunteer group that advises … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Academic Triathlon Regional Meets

Posted on March 19, 2010 by Qin Tang

My son Andy is part of an Academic Triathlon team made up of six 6th graders from Lake and Woodbury Middle School. Today the SWCS Area Regional Meets took place in eight schools in Woodbury. My son’s team along with … Continue reading →

Posted in Kids | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Meet the local media

Posted on March 18, 2010 by Qin Tang

As a writer and someone who cares about the local community, meeting with editors and publishers of the local media and learning about what they do and how they do their jobs are of great interest to me. I am … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Nominate your favorite teacher

Posted on March 17, 2010 by Qin Tang

Want to show your favorite teacher a little appreciation? Then help him/her win a FREE 8-meal session from Let’s Dish by nominating him/her for the 1st Let’s Dish! Teachers of the Year awards. Nominations are accepted through April 2nd. The … Continue reading →

Tagged | Leave a comment

Feng Shui and intentional living

Posted on March 16, 2010 by Qin Tang

           Today I attended a brown bag presentation on Feng Shui and the Power of Intention by certified Feng Shui practitioners Caroline Lehman, Karen Hollingsworth and Mary Conley. They talked about The four principles of Feng Shui The five elements … Continue reading →

Tagged , | Leave a comment

Why scanning documents?

Posted on March 15, 2010 by Qin Tang

One of the things I always wanted to do was to scan all of my important paper documents onto computer. Well, I finally did it today. I took out a binder that contains important documents such as ID cards, passports, … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

A day refreshed in body, mind and spirit

Posted on March 15, 2010 by Qin Tang

What a nice day we had today! It was sunny and warm. With a record-high 64 degrees in the Twin Cities, it felt like spring or summer, though there were still chunks of ice here and there on the road. … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

LMS won 2nd and 4th in Math Masters

Posted on March 13, 2010 by Qin Tang

  Two teams made up of ten 6th grade students from Lake Middle School participated in Math Masters Regional competition held at John Glenn Middle School in Maplewood today. They won the 2nd and 4th place in team competition. Each team … Continue reading →

Posted in Kids | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

EXCO – Free, community-led education

Posted on March 12, 2010 by Qin Tang

Learning is a life long process. I believe everyone should continue education no matter what state they are in their life. Nowadays, many ways and opportunities exist out there that help us continue the life-long learning. If you don’t care … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Education opportunities in Woodbury

Posted on March 11, 2010 by Qin Tang

Education was the topic of today’s session, the session six of Woodbury Citizen’s Academy, held at Woodbury High School. The following school principals and administrators from local schools gave presentations about birth to adult education, school choices (public, charter, private) … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Reading Rivalry at Middleton Elementary

Posted on March 10, 2010 by Qin Tang

Reading Rivalry Competition was held at Middleton Elementary School in Woodbury today. The 3rd, 4th and 5th graders had separate competition at the grade level. I watched my daughter’s 4th graders competing. Amy’s team got the 3rd place. They lost … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Winter band concert at Lake Middle School

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Qin Tang

Today the 6th grade band students at Lake Middle School performed the winter concert, their second concert in the school year 2009-2010. Their first band concert took place on Dec. 3, 2009. About 150 students participated in the performance in … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Making comparison – cause of trouble

Posted on March 8, 2010 by Qin Tang

Yesterday I read a biography about Michelle Obama. It was one of those books I checked out for my kids to read, but I ended up reading it myself. Michelle grew up in a working class neighborhood on the South … Continue reading →

Posted in Health & Wellness, Living, Personal development | Leave a comment

False, yet still has truth

Posted on March 7, 2010 by Qin Tang

Last week, I got a forwarded message with the subject: A Must Read – John Hopkins Update. Since the text doesn’t look so official and professional, I went online to Snopes.com to check its validity. According to Snopes, the message … Continue reading →

Tagged , , | Leave a comment

DI Tournament and Award for Principal

Posted on March 6, 2010 by Qin Tang

My daughter Amy and I spent more than half of the day today at Harding High School in St. Paul for the 2010 Minnesota Destination ImagiNation East Metro Regional Tournament. Destination ImagiNation is an after-school educational program for students from … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Lessons from hot chocolate

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Qin Tang

I want to share a message I received from a friend. It is such a nice story. I don’t know who wrote it. A group of graduates, well established in their careers, were discussing their lives at a class reunion. … Continue reading →

Tagged , | 1 Comment

Learning about Woodbury history

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Qin Tang

Learning about the history of the community we live in and hearing older generation talking about what life was like in the old days are fascinating. That’s just what we did today at session five of Woodbury Citizen’s Academy, held … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Self introduction

Posted on March 3, 2010 by Qin Tang

Since today is my birthday and I have never really introduced myself to the audience of this blog, I thought it would be a good idea to post my self introduction article from 2006. That initial article launched my career as … Continue reading →

Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Touched by adoption

Posted on March 2, 2010 by Qin Tang

One thing that often touches me more than anything is reading and hearing about people who adopt special needs children. This past Sunday [02/28/2010], Pioneer Press had a front page adoption story titled “Just a little more perfect.” It’s about … Continue reading →

Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Don’t be intimidated

Posted on March 1, 2010 by Qin Tang

To teach my son financial responsibility, I helped him open a savings and a checking account over three years ago. So he could save his money in his bank account instead of keeping and spending all, and learn to use … Continue reading →

Tagged , | Leave a comment