Nicki Chen's Blog, page 13

Remembering & Celebrating UN Day

United Nations Day, October 24, was the big holiday for my children. No other holiday made sense for the children at the Makati International School and then the students at the Manila International School where they studied. Teachers make good use of the opportunity, celebrating all week long. They invited parents to share a favorite […]

The Green We Need

Sidewalks are handy. Roads are useful. But nothing beats a beautiful green scene. The above scene was one of my favorite front yards. It’s the view from our veranda in Vanuatu. I read somewhere that the most pleasing view and the one most prized for a house is to be on a little hill looking […]

Staying in and Going Out

As I write, the sky is blue with a sprinkling of clouds, and the air quality is great. I can almost forget about those seven or eight days earlier this month when our air measured “hazardous,” the worst on the planet. I’ll admit, those days were difficult. We were advised to stay inside and run […]

Happy Hours and Smoke

Vanuatu, a Country with no COVID-19

I haven’t lived in Vanuatu since 1993. Most of my friends have also moved away. But now and then, I do like to check in on the country and see how things are going. Good news! As of September 7, there have been no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in all of Vanuatu. The country hasRead more

My Grandpa, the Assistant Postmaster

My sister and I called him Poppy. Our grandma was Nan. From our vantage point, he was the mild, dependable one (reliable like the post office). Nan was the lively, bold one. When they got married right out of high school in 1916, they were both eighteen years old. Poppy found a job, a starterRead more

A New Cover for Tiger Tail Soup

My novel, Tiger Tail Soup, was first published in 2014. (How time flies!) People bought it and read it and wrote reviews. And then–surprise, surprise–the publisher went out of business. What to do? I could do nothing and allow it … Continue reading →

Sounds

I live in a quiet neighborhood. If I wake up in the middle of the night, I can sometimes hear my heart beating. During the daytime, though, there are always some sounds. Today I woke up early enough to hear … Continue reading →

Goin’ Out of Business

This week one of the restaurants in town announced that they’re going out of business. We were warned this would happen, which doesn’t make it any less sad. It is less surprising, though. About fifteen years ago, my favorite Edmonds … Continue reading →

Flags & Roses

On a misty Memorial Day, I parked a few blocks back from the Edmonds waterfront and walked down Sunset Avenue. I knew the roses would be blooming, but I wasn’t expecting the flags. They’d been placed all along the way, … Continue reading →