Eyes closed; bureaucrats; The Beatles

We took Joanna to a local photo shop to get her passport picture taken. But Joanna refused to wake up and open her eyes. No open eyes, no passport photo. We put ice on her feet and face to get her to wake up. She whined a little, but didn't open her eyes. I held her upside down, and she opened her eyes. But she closed them and went back to sleep the moment I held her right-side up. Amazing. Joanna slept through everything we tried, so we returned home. As soon as we got home, Joanna opened her eyes and stayed awake. Phuong snapped a quality photo with her phone and Phuong's mom took the phone to the photo shop. And got the wrong-sized pictures printed. They printed 1x2 for a Vietnamese passport. The U.S. passport size is 2x2. We paid extra for the correct size. That's typical. Everything related to documents, records and bureaucrats here has been, well, difficult and challenging.
We almost had Joanna's birth certificate last Tuesday, but there were a few problems. My name became Michael John Millman and Joanna became a boy and my U.S. zip code was close but not quite. And my street name was wrong. These were "copied" from a document we gave them. But the bureaucrat argued that my name was Millman John Michael on my passport so it should be blah blah blah.  I won't even dignify that argument with an insult or explanation. The birth certificate was to be retyped Wednesday. When you haves tons of bureaucracy, you're going to have tons of mistakes. Guaranteed.
For example, we went back to the house of  b-crats Wednesday to get the new birth certificate, but Phuong and her dad were told the person who fixes mistakes and retypes documents had to leave town. This same crap happened with our marriage license. So just like our marriage license, we have to wait another week to get a document that was promised to us but not delivered on the day it was promised. What did I say about bureaucracy?
I've lived here a little more than 3-and-a-half years, and I had my first street vendor donut last week. It was loaded with caramelized sugar and it was flat out good. There's a catch: This is the first time I've ever seen street donuts like these and odds are I won't see them again. I'll remain optimistic, try not to be Mr. Complain, and look for the donut lady from now on. But four other trips on the same street at the same time this week produced no donut lady ... or donuts. I did buy a sweet, greasy bread that wasn't bad, but it wasn't a donut, either.
Phuong's family had a wonderful get-together to celebrate Joanna's one-month birthday. We had a huge lunch of Vietnamese food, including lots of great chicken. A very nice gathering. Joanna slept through much of the lunch. She's relaxed ... what can I say?
There has been a reincarnation of The Beatles in our house, especially late at night. After my last class of the evening followed by dinner, Joanna will eat and get ready for bed. That's where The Beatles come in. I'll hold my daughter and dance to songs from Abbey Road, and after three or four songs, Golden Slumbers usually fill her eyes. I know she's too young to distinguish different groups and types and music, but she honest-to-god seems to relax to The Beatles. If Abbey Road doesn't do the trick, we'll keep on dancing through The White Album and finish with the song Good Night, which has become a household favorite. Phuong is even mildly impressed with how dancing to The Beatles seems to relax Joanna.
By the way, I'm one of those guys who still likes both The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. I don't have a favorite, although I'm a little partial to the Stones these days because they're still having children. I can relate
The folks on my walk are nicer and nicer to me. I buy a 6,000 dong raincoat each day from a shop owner who always points to the sky -- and laughs -- when she sees me. I get my 20,000 dong coffee that's awesome. I smile and chat with the Hu tieu girls. Some days I'll get duck, a real treat here. I shake hands with the car wash guys, who used to shout at me through my headphones. In a few months, Joanna will join me on the walk, making it even better.
I only taught one class a day this week, so life is pretty relaxed. My school has hired a bunch of younger types -- in their mid-20s, I would guess. An old White/Gray Monkey isn't a hot commodity here -- where the emphasis is on youth and good-looks --  but I still really enjoy the students, and I hope they tolerate me. I love teaching and I want to continue doing it indefinitely. We'll see what the future brings.