Christmas Letter 2005

2005 has brought many fun and exciting things to my life. Please see previous postings to read about some of them.

October marked one year for me as the assistant manager of the Mills Music in Redmond, WA. It was a good year, and I learned alot about music and the retail business--partly that I didn't want to work in it anymore! So, because I wanted to leave on a good note (while still sane), my one year anniversary seemed like a good time to turn a corner. I debated, hesitated, questioned, whined--oh, and did a little research--and decided to move out of the country again to teach English, this time to South Korea. Fortunately, Park English had no problem finding schools interested in me, and I decided to go with a little school called LCI Kids Club in the northeast coast city of Gangneung. I worked full-time through Christmas Eve, played the piano for three Christmas Eve services, and still managed to have my apartment cleaned out and my car packed for my drive to Idaho. Experiencing only minor problems concerning my visa and departure date, I finally have everything ready to go and will be flying out on Friday, January 6th from Boise to Seattle, Seattle to Tokyo, and Tokyo to Seoul, ending with an express bus to my city. Stay tuned for updates on that crazy journey.

Thanks to everyone for your support and prayers--here’s to a fantastic 2006!

Erin's Wedding

My good college friend Erin Dorsing got married to Jordan Whitt on the 13th. They had a gorgeous wedding in eastern Washington on her parents' farm. It was a lovely weekend, and it was great to see my college roommate Heather.

Black Butte

This year the Newman/Schuh, Sawyer, and Allen families all met for a big reunion in Black Butte, Oregon. Some of us hadn't seen each other in years. Highlights for me were taking my nephew Dieter swimming and hiking with Emily, Dad, and my cousin Tyler on Santiam Pass. Alot of biking, tennis playing, and running also took place. I got very sunburned, but that was not a highlight. On the way home, John, Emily, Dieter and I drove over to Bend for one more night. We enjoyed dinner at the Deschutes Brewery and took a nice walk around town. On my drive home, I was unknowingly re-routed due to some construction (read: I took a wrong turn and almost got lost), but the alternate highway proved to be a lovely and scenic piece of road. I'd say the week was an overall success.

Mills Music Martin Day

Our Martin clinic was a huge success! Larry Barnwell of Martin Guitars talked about Martin, did free re-strings for all, and brought three special edition Martins worth over $200,000 combined. What a treat. They even let us wear jeans and Martin t-shirts for a change from the normal dress clothes.

May 2005, Dad's 60th Birthday

Mom flew me down to Idaho for a day for dad's 60th birthday. Boy, was he surprised! Since I was there, he knew something was up but pretended not to notice as we brought in loads of tables and chairs and decorations. That evening family and friends came for a special fish-fry presented by longtime family friend Gary Nichols of Oregon.