Monthly Archives: March 2011

Stay interview – what, why and how

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Qin Tang

I know what a “job interview” or an ”exit interview” is, but I had never heard the term “stay interview” until I read the article “Stay interview: the leader’s role in engaging and retaining talent” by Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans today. … Continue reading →

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Losing weight the natural way

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Qin Tang

If you need to lose weight or are thinking about losing weight, (who doesn’t in this day and age?), the following 10 tips from Dr. Mercola’s article What are the 10 Things that Can Pack on Pounds? will for sure help … Continue reading →

Posted in Health & Wellness | 3 Comments

Academic Triathlon Awards Ceremony

Posted on March 29, 2011 by Qin Tang

The 2010-2011 U.S. Academic Triathlon Awards Ceremony of School District 833 was held today at Cottage Grove Middle School at 7 pm. The cafeteria at Cottage Grove Middle School was packed with USAT participants and their families. Principals or their representatives from … Continue reading →

Posted in Kids | 7 Comments

Is your glass half full or half empty?

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Qin Tang

I like to be around people who are positive and encouraging,  who emanates positive energy and have a can-do attitude, who see glass half full rather than half empty. Who likes to be around people who complain, criticize and put … Continue reading →

Posted in Living | 6 Comments

Poor in wealth, rich in love

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Qin Tang

Today I went to my Pastor Frank Sanders’ retirement and Frank & Kathy’s 42nd anniversary celebration at Lake Elmo Inn and Event Center, sponsored by AmeriPride Services, a company where Frank has worked for 43 years. It was a wonderful celebration. … Continue reading →

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Minnesota transportation funding

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Qin Tang

A reader raised a question in responding to yesterday’s post Let your voice be heard – Minnesota GO: “How can MN build infrastructure with a $5 billion deficit?” I think Minnesota, or  the US in general, cannot afford not to … Continue reading →

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Let your voice be heard – Minnesota GO

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Qin Tang

What’s your vision for the transportation system in Minnesota for the next 50 years? What’s your expectations for transportation today as well as for the next generation? Mn/DOT (Minnesota Department of Transportation) wants to hear from you – citizens of Minnesota. On March … Continue reading →

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Go natural

Posted on March 24, 2011 by Qin Tang

It seems like human nature that we always want something we don’t have, and desire to be different or look differently than we are natually. I am not someone who likes to follow the latest fashion trend in any way. … Continue reading →

Posted in Health & Wellness | 1 Comment

Pothole Repair – Who’s Responsible?

Posted on March 22, 2011 by Qin Tang

An old joke says that there are two seasons in Minnesota – Winter and Road Construction.  Maybe we should add another season – pothole season.   Right now we are in the pothole season. The potholes can be quite annoying.    Last … Continue reading →

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Unimaginable tragedy

Posted on March 20, 2011 by Qin Tang

An unimaginable tragedy happened to a friend of mine 5 years ago that I just found out today.  For about two years (1999-2001), my family lived in a Burlington apartment on Energy Park Drive in St. Paul, Minnesota. One of our … Continue reading →

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Wasteful health care

Posted on March 19, 2011 by Qin Tang

One year ago, I wrote a post about my experience of forced x-ray during a dental visit:  Tough love or over the boundary? Today I had another dental visit for regular maintenance care of teeth cleaning. The same thing happened again. After my name was called, … Continue reading →

Posted in Health & Wellness | 8 Comments

Nuclear Power Plants in Minnesota and around the world

Posted on March 18, 2011 by Qin Tang

The Japan earthquake/tsunami and the resulting crisis at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant brought much attention to the dangers of nuclear power plants. I wondered how many nuclear power plants we have in Minnesota, in the US and around the world. According … Continue reading →

Posted in Health & Wellness, Living | 8 Comments

Where are your treasures?

Posted on March 16, 2011 by Qin Tang

Watching the following videoes about the Japan earthquake/tsunami was terrifying. It was also very humbling. Against the powerful and mighty nature, human beings looked so helpless. Everything man created looked so small. Buildings, ships and vehicles were swamped away by gushing water in seconds, … Continue reading →

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Better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away

Posted on March 14, 2011 by Qin Tang

When I got home from work today, I found one of the front tires of my van was making a noise like air was leaking from it. I could hear ”Hiss” loud and clear. A few minutes later when I checked back, the tire … Continue reading →

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Mixed feelings about the Tiger Mother book

Posted on March 14, 2011 by Qin Tang

I finally read the controversial book “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother” by Amy Chua. Actually my daughter was very interested in reading the book after she heard about it. I borrowed the book for her to read during the coming spring … Continue reading →

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Life Lessons – free eBook

Posted on March 12, 2011 by Qin Tang

In January I wrote a post titled 10+ life lessons I have learned. I am happy to announce that my contribution was included in the newly published ebook Life Lessons—The Best Self-Reflections From 108 Bloggers by Abubakar Jamil and Farnoosh Brock. Check it … Continue reading →

Posted in Book, Living, Writing | 1 Comment

Survey Monkey

Posted on March 11, 2011 by Qin Tang

I needed to do a survey. Today with the help of a coworker who has used Survey Monkey, we created the survey on Survey Monkey. I have to say Survey Monkey is really an easy-to-use web-based survey tool. I was quite impressed by how … Continue reading →

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What do you hate about your job?

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Qin Tang

I know it’s not correct to use the word “hate” here. “Dislike” is probably a better choice.  Personally, I don’t hate my job. There are just certain tasks I don’t like or care much but I have to do. If I … Continue reading →

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Teach simplified Chinese at schools

Posted on March 9, 2011 by Qin Tang

Yesterday an article in the WoodburyPatch Daily Newsletter – A World Experience Brought to Woodbury caught my attention. Actually it was the photo that caught my attention first. The photo showed the familiar Tiger Hill Garden from my hometown in Suzhou, … Continue reading →

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Free images to use on your blog

Posted on March 8, 2011 by Qin Tang

I like to read “Questions & Quandaries” by Writer’s Digest columnist and blogger Brian A. Klems. In his column in the print magazine and in his blog, he answers readers’ questions related to the usage of English language and also shares very helpful … Continue reading →

Posted in Photos, Writing | 1 Comment

The sorry state of gifted education

Posted on March 8, 2011 by Qin Tang

Today I went to a parent meeting on gifted education at my son’s school. We learned about what school is doing for the gifted and talented students. Then the parents were asked to participate in a survey. The main question is: “Do you … Continue reading →

Posted in Kids | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Toxic food dyes

Posted on March 6, 2011 by Qin Tang

Do you know what Blue #1, Red #3 or yellow #6 on the food labels mean? Food dyes are in all kinds of processed food, beverages, and consumer products, such as candies, cereal, baked goods, ice creams, drugs, cosmetics, etc. They … Continue reading →

Posted in Health & Wellness | Tagged | 1 Comment

Reconnected with my host family in Germany

Posted on March 5, 2011 by Qin Tang

From 1986 to 1991, I was a student at the University of Heidelberg in Germany. I received a scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) via the Chinese government. During my 5 years in Heidelberg, I lived with a German family … Continue reading →

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Reading Rivalry and AT competitions

Posted on March 4, 2011 by Qin Tang

I went to my daughter’s 5th grader Reading Rivalry Competition at Middleton Elementary School today. It’s an annual event. Last year Amy participated and her team got the 3rd place. This year, her team did better and won the first place. … Continue reading →

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Another year, another birthday

Posted on March 3, 2011 by Qin Tang

My kids love birthdays. They look forward to their birthdays every year, often counting the days before the big day arrives. For me now, birthday is neither so exciting as in a child’s mind nor to be dreaded. Birthday is simply a … Continue reading →

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When work is no longer work

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Qin Tang

I had a great day at work today, doing something I really enjoy. We celebrated the one year anniversary of the Commissioner’s Reading Corner at Minnesota Dept. of Transportation. We kicked off the first book discussion of the second season with Commissioner Tom Sorel leading the discussion … Continue reading →

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Food label

Posted on March 1, 2011 by Qin Tang

In the US, organically grown foods are labeled. Since organic food is healthier and more expensive, every producer will make sure that their organic produces are clearly labeled as such. But it is a different story with genetically modified food. Genetically modified food is not … Continue reading →

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