10 Things I'm Grateful For 2016

1. The year I started calling my dad daily
2. The year I started mindfulness and compassionate meditation facilitator training
3. The year I started therapy again
4. The year I started visiting my parents more   
5. The year Cheryl and I celebrated our 22nd year of marriage
6. The year we celebrated my in-laws 50th wedding anniversary
7. The year we went on a cruise with Cheryl's family (all 13 of us)
8. The year Cheryl and I biked around San Francisco for four days
9. The year I read a lot of books beyond comics again
10. The year I continued to be blessed with the work of helping students thrive

10 Reasons I'm Grateful For The Biking Trip To Carpinteria

1. Accomplishing a physical challenge
2. Affirming I have my boss' support.  I asked her if she was cool with me taking the afternoon to go on this bike ride with colleagues.  She gave her approval and acknowledged it was also networking, strengthening social connection, and a good timing to do it. 
3. Experiencing my friends' generosity (One friend provided tea and coffee on a break; the other friend paid for drinks at the end of the trip)
4. Savoring the spectacular ocean, islands, and sunset views 
5. Spending quality time with my atheist friend. People can have different values and still be great people who I respect and admire for their positive impact they have on others, including me.  
6. Riding my 26 years old bike without it breaking down
7. Taking the Amtrak train back to Goleta station
8. My bike light worked well
9. Watching my friends from three different time periods of my life get to know each other better
10. Being proud of my friend who had a heart attack a year ago bike 27 miles

10 Of My Favorite Lin-Manuel Miranda Songs

1.   Breathe (In The Heights Original Broadway Cast Recording) 
2.  Enough (In The Heights Original Broadway Cast Recording) 
3.  I Wrote My Way Out (The Hamilton Mixtape)
4.  It’s Quiet Uptown (Hamilton Original Broadway Cast Recording)
5.  Non-Stop (Hamilton Original Broadway Cast Recording)
6.  Satisfied (Hamilton Original Broadway Cast Recording) 
7.  The Money (21 Chump Street Original Radio Cast)
8.  What the Heck I Gotta Do (21 Chump Street Original Radio Cast)
9.  Where You Are (Moana Soundtrack) 
10. You’re Welcome (Moana Soundtrack) 

10 Reasons This Is The Greatest Gift Ever

Video by Cami Takahara

1. STAR WARS wrapping paper
2. The Beatles are my favorite group
3. Yellow Submarine is an amazing movie and cartoon
4. It was a surprise gift from Mark and Tyler that delighted
5. Lego was my favorite childhood toy
6. Lego Beatles Figures (John, Paul, George, Ringo, Jeremy)
7. Awesome illustrated box
8. Awesome Lego instruction book 
9. Family time building Lego 
10. Cami / Daddy time - working with Cami to make this video 

10 Quotes I Have Collected

1. Don’t e-mail others messages you wouldn’t want to receive yourself. - Christopher Peterson

2. Walk a mile in another man’s moccasins before you criticize him. - Native American proverb

3. I am a Muslim! And a Hindu, and a Christian and a Jew. - Gandhi

4. Although I have a regular work schedule, I take time to go for long walks on the beach so that I can listen to what is going on inside my head. If my work isn’t going well, I lie down in the middle of a workday and gaze at the ceiling while I listen and visualize what goes on in my imagination. - Albert Einstein

5. If I were to let my life be taken over by what is urgent, I might very well never get around to what is essential. - Henri Nouwen

6. Tears are the noble language of eyes - Robert Herrick

7. Teacher is the engineer of the human's soul - Chinese saying

8. Show me your friends and I will tell you what you are. - Spanish proverb

9. Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one getting burned. - Buddha

10. *Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced. James Baldwin

10 Podcasts I Listen To

1.  This American Life - https://www.thisamericanlife.org
2.  Codeswitch - http://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/
3.  Invisibilia - http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510307/invisibilia
4.  StoryCorps - https://storycorps.org
5.  Decoder Ring Theatre - http://decoderringtheatre.com
6.  PW Comics World: More To Come - http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/podcasts/index.html?channel=2
7.  The Positive Psychology Podcast - http://positivepsychologypodcast.libsyn.com 
8.  The TED Radio Hour - http://www.npr.org/programs/ted-radio-hour/
9.  Southeast Christian Church - https://www.southeastchristian.org/sermons/
10. The Loveumentary - http://loveumentary.com/podcast-episodes/

10 (The Last) Books I Read In 2016

1. Wonder Woman: The True Amazon by Jill Thompson

2. The Sleep Revolution by Arianna Huffington

3. Muhammad Ali by Sybille Titeux and Amazing Ameziane

4. A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn

5. When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

6. March: Book Three by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell

7. Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

8. Hamilton The Revolution by Lin Manuel-Miranda and Jeremy McCarter

9. Strangers in Paradise Omnibus by Terry Moore

10. The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett

10 Things I Like About Japan

1. Comics 

2. Japanese films, especially by director Yasujirō Ozu

3. My dad's immigrant story

4. Value of group over individual

5. Appreciation of nature

6. Studio Ghibli

7. Furo and onsen

8. Kaisek 

9. Temples and gates

10. Vending machines

10 Games I Like to Play With Others

1. Backgammon
2. Connect Four
3. Cribbage
4. Fluxx
5. Hearts
6. Magic: The Gathering
7. Pictionary
8. Spades
9. Ticket to Ride
10. Yahtzee

10 Songs I Like To Sing And Play On Guitar

1. All My Loving by The Beatles
2. Cemetery Gates by The Smiths
3. Closer to Fine by Indigo Girls
4. Forever Young by Bob Dylan
5. If I had a 1,000,000 by Barenaked Ladies
6. Mosquito Party by Dana Lyons
7. One of These Days by Neil Young
8. Poor Man’s House by Patty Griffin
9. Thank You by Dido
10. The Wedding Song by Michael Takahara

10 Toppings I Put On My Oatmeal

1. Apples
2. Bananas
3. Blackberries
4. Blueberries 
5. Eggs
6. Ground flaxseed
7. Kaki (persimmon)
8. Oranges
9. Raspberries
10. Strawberries 

Why I Eat Oatmeal Every Morning

10 Things I Like To Do On Sundays

1. Be with my community at church
2. Shop at the Goleta farmers' market and see our farmer friends there
3. Play guitar and sing
4. Write
5. Make Cheryl and my lunches (salads) for the week
6. Read a comic book, listen to a audiobook, podcast, or music
7. Help Cheryl prep for her work week in her kindergarten classroom
8. Walk around the neighborhood
9. Take a nap
10. Call my dad

10 Reasons I Love Clouds

1. Reminds me of my childhood room's clouds wallpaper 
2. Can be bigger than any mountain
3. Sprouts imagination and creativity as I see animals, people, objects in their shapes
4. Movement: floating, dancing, and sailing across the sky
5. Constantly changing, reminding me that nothing last forever
6. Makes beautiful sunrises and sunsets
7. Make the sky interesting
8. Cools the temperature
9. Rain
10. I love walking in the fog

10 Memories Of My Mom

1. Reading Genesis and 1 Samuel to me.
2. Playing Helen Reddy's Greatest Hits record to gently wake me up each morning
3. Taking me to see The Wiz musical
4. Asking me if I was okay with her going back to college to earn her BA because she didn't want me feel like "a latch key kid"
5. Always welcoming my friends and feeding them dinner
6. Taking me on the Japanese subway to visit a ninja museum I wanted to see (it was closed)
7. Teaching me how to cook shrimp tempura
8. Telling me that I was a good listener
9. Telling me that she told my dad that "Cheryl would make a good wife" the first time she met Cheryl (and Cheryl and I weren't dating yet)
10. Telling me she loves me the last time I visited her

10 Benefits I Get From Meditation

1. Awareness of my physical body
2. Awareness of my feelings
3. Awareness of my thoughts
4. Less negative self-judgment
5. Less rumination 
6. More self-compassion
7. Developing self-discipline to show up every day
8. A sense of accomplishment
9. Recognition that thoughts and emotions don't last: they rise, peak, and then fade
10. Each moment is new opportunity to start anew 

10 Comics I Am Reading Monthly

1. Wayward by Jim Zub, Steven Cummings, and Tamra Bonvillain
2. Usagi Yojimbo by Stan Sakai
3. Superman by Peter J. Tomasi, Patrick Gleason, Mick Gray, and John Kalisz
4. Patsy Walker A.K.A. Hellcat by Kate Leah, Brittney L. Williams, and Rachelle Rosenberg
5. Paper Girls by Brian K. Vaughan, Cliff Chiang, and Matt Wilson
6. Ms. Marvel by G. Willow Wilson, Mika Andolfo, and Ian Herring
7. Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur by Brandon Montclare, Amy Reeder, Natacha Bustos, and Tamra Bovillain
8. Black Panther by Ta-Nehisi Coates, Chris Sprouce, Karl Story, and Laura Martin
9. Batgirl by Hope Larson, Rafael Albuquerque, and Dave McCaig
10. All New Superman by Gene Luen Yang, Viktor Bogdanovic, Richard Friend, and Hi-Fi

10 Albums I Played 50+ Times

1. A Song For You - Carpenters
2. Jesus Christ Superstar - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
3. The Flat Earth - Thomas Dolby
4. Some Great Reward - Depeche Mode
5. Let It Be  - The Beatles
6. She's So Unusual - Cyndi Lauper 
7. Les Miserables - Original Broadway Cast
8. Living with Ghost - Patty Griffin
9. Accidental Thief - Matt The Electrician
10. Hamilton - Original Broadway Cast Recording. 

10 places in Santa Barbara I like to take visitors and family

1. Goleta Butterfly Grove
2. Goleta beach
3. Knapp's Castle
4. SB Courthouse / Clock Tower
5. Chase Palm Park
6. Inspiration point 
7. Lil' Toot Tugboat (especially with young kids - they get to drive the boat).
8. McConnall's ice cream (Mission Street Ice Cream & Yogurt)
9. SB Mission and Rose Garden
10. SB Zoo

10 Sides I Like to Eat

1.  Tabbouleh salad
2.  Macaroni salad
3.  Potato salad
4.  Cheese and crackers
5.  Hummus with pita bread
6.  Kimchee
7.  Tofu with shaved bonnet flakes
8.  Miso soup
9.  Chinese green beans
10.  Chinese broccoli with oyster sauce