Who Goes to China Now?

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The Answer to the Question

Only a Nainai (Chinese for grandma on children’s dad’s side) and Yeye (Chinese for grandpa, ditto). Our granddaughters Mirah (just 5) and Rivah (2.5+) and their parents, Jonathan and Amy, live in Beijing. The pandemic deprived us of seeing them for two years. They did finally visit in Milwaukee this summer, a taste of being back together that only whetted the appetite for more. Before COVID, when Mirah was a baby and toddler, we made a point of seeing them a lot, between their trips to the US, ours to China, and a few vacations elsewhere. Rivah was a 2020 COVID-era baby, so we missed her progression from four months to over two. 

A Break in the (Great) Wall of Chinese Visa Prohibitions

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Ripped From The Headlines, Part 3 (at long last!): Iraq

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Sooner or later, it’s all about IRAQ! 

It’s been a few months since ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq) became a household word and the debate about what the US should do about Iraq began—again. Then war between Israel and Hamas and the crash in Ukraine of Malaysia Flight #17 pushed Iraq off the front page for a while. But it’s back! With President Obama’s decision on air strikes, Iraq again became the crisis du jour. Or should I say the ISIS du jour?

Ok, Iraq is back in the news, but what makes it a Ripped From the Headlines topic for this blog? 

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