Have a catch?

SW and I had some sorta moment today. He had some time to kill between Second harvest and meeting up with classmates for their project. I suggested getting some fielding practice in and he wasn’t against it – to my surprise. Then he said he wanted to replace his shoes… of course he does. He doesn’t wanna ruin his shoes. So I said… forget it. Deep down I wanted to play, but deeper deeper down, I didn’t want a re-do of the Onitsuka tiger incident where I pushed too hard and creased his shows. This time, they were asics. As I was turning home… he actually insisted. And said it’s ok to get dirty. I triple checked… to make sure he was ok. Perhaps… deep down in HIS core… he wanted to show me how far he’s come since two years ago with his softball / baseball skills.

 

 

510

Senior Night or the last game of the year.  I texted SW during the day and told him he was 14 assists from hitting 500 and suggested he asked the coach to let him reach that pinnacle.  

It's senior night... of course the seniors get to start.  Not only start... the coach kept them in the entire first set.  Throughout the set, I kept looking at the coaches.. the bench.. and there was no movement. We got crushed. 

Then comes set 2....  and in comes SW.  Starting with his first serve... all the way to his set winning ace.  It was beautiful and glorious.  One assist after another... one point after the next... one step at a time... climbing closer to that milestone... 498... 499... and then a middle-tempo to Rocco.  500.  The tables were turned... it was our turn to crush our opponents.  Two sets.  Two stories.  Two endings. 

At the end of the night... SW ended up with 510.  Other seniors started rotating in again... and we started to lose again.  Literally like the stock market... SW comes in, stock rises.  SW goes out, stock crashes.  During the party... one of the parents came up to us, "It's such a pleasure watching Joshua play.  It's such a notable difference when he's in there."  Another parent comes up and says, "Rumor has it, Joshua isn't coming back."

And now... the wait begins.  What sport will he play next year? Will he come back? Head over to track? The team is waiting for him to lead... but will he pick up the opportunity? 

Will you accept my rose?

Every special event... birthday, anniversary, dating anniversary, mother's day... I'll get Joyce a bouquet of roses.  It's nothing too special... but it's a gesture.  Well this year... Siu Wah makes the ultimate move by: 

a) forgetting it's mama's birthday in the morning (thereby setting himself up to...)

b) going to 7-eleven after school and picking up a small little vase with a rose

And guess which one Joyce cherishes more?!?! Hrmphh!!! 

Father Son Time in Japan

 1 of 2 posts dedicated specifically for my son after our Japan trip

Japan happened, partially, because of SW's insistence on traveling internationally.  I'm sure this was inevitable, but he was the catalyst that led to the reaction and action. 

This trip is of course, highlighted by our Bey-hunting trip which I'll try to summarize  But there's so much more to that.  SW... of the four of us... is obviously the youngest and likeliest immature.  And yet, in so many ways, is the most mature of all travelers.  He's easy going.  He knows what he likes.  He goes with the flow.  He's a fan of the "spreadsheet" and will support the person stressing.  There's still more to grow in terms of packing, unpacking, travel etiquette, common sense... but all in all... he's a great travel partner.  His friends, future SO, family... will enjoy traveling with him.  

Now onto Japan...  

Before we went, he'd already set his heart on buying a few things.  1) clothes 2) shoes 3) pokemon cards and finally... 4) Beyblades.  Not just any Beyblades... but the generation he grew up with which is about 10 years ago... old skool Beyblade Burst.

Originally, we didn't think anything of it other than we'll hit Akihabara, the "otaku" side of town with all the anime, manga, electronics, toys.  And this is home of the Beyblades... they're bound to have it.  This is the day after walking to Ueno park... walking to Tokyo Dome... followed by curry that was too spicy and finally... Akihabara.  

We first went to this one store that ChatGPT recommended... saying it MUST be there.  We got there... and there was just one little display of old parts.  No harm, no foul.  We know this is a collectors item so it could be a miss.  Then we found another store... this time... it turned out to be pretty far.  And as we were walking the stores, Joyce and NN were simply tailgating us.  They had no aim.  No goal.  If anything... it was a little annoying.  After a while, I noticed that NN had a little limp.  So I told them... maybe they can go somewhere else.  Or better yet... they can start going back to the AirBnb.  I told them it was so NN can rest... but in actuality... they were slowing us down.  We needed to get going!!  

We separated and then we started going all over the place.  Google Maps is helpful... until it's not.  I'm not the best with using it and my phone was malfunctioning here and there.  We got to the 2nd store... only too realize it's a hole in the wall hobby store with virtually nothing of interest.  SW was so disappointed and down in the dumps.  Since it was a tiny little story... and the shop owner was maybe an early 20 year old... I busted my phone and fired up google translate to type, "Where can I find Beyblades?"  He shook his head.... almost saying, "There are none."  But he gave us a glimmer of hope. He took out his phone and typed in a store's name.  I took a picture of it and we were gone.  As we were running out, he shouted, "maybe.  i don't know!!"  

But that was all we need... a glimmer of hope.  And off we went.  But off.... I really mean off.  Cuz we were off the rails here.  Google maps was on the fritz.  We walked aruond in circles after circles.  I'll admit... i got a little cocky and thought I had a good sense of direction, but I didn't.  And there were times when I thought I can cut through the train station, but it was a dead-end.  We went round and round and round... and finally... we get to this electronics store and try to find the toys section.  Time was not on our side... since they were about to close.  I wasted no time... didn't bother walking around and looking.  Simply busted out the phone and typed in google translate, "Where can I find Beyblade."  The employee aptly pointed us.. and then walked us... to a corner of the store.  Ahhhhh.... finally.  Only... to find out they're the latest generation of Beyblade X.  Siu Wah wanted Beyblade Burst!!!  

At that moment... he felt so crushed.  "It wasn't meant to be."  And with that... we walk home with our tails between our legs.  We get some consolation and find a place for some waygu skewers.  What made it worse... was his brand new Onitsuka Tigers had creases in them.  These are walking shoes for show... not actual walking shoes.  I felt so sad.... I wanted to cry.  What a horrible way to end an otherwise beautiful day.... it was a very quiet train ride back to the Airbnb. 

The next morning... the entire family slept in and I had a chance to go get coffee by myself.  I was still feeling the disappointment from the previous night so I started searching for Beyblades in Tokyo... and I come across these youtube videos of folks from all over the world coming to Japan looking for beyblades... otherwise known as "Beyhunting."  OMG.... it's a thing!!!  I was now a Bey-hunter!!!  All of a sudden... this goes from a little boy's hobby... to a flat out adventure.

I watch videos after videos.  Taking note of where we can go.  We've been to some of these places already.  Then there were two places.  One was about an hour away.  The other... was also an hour away, but on our way to Disney.  After some planning and strategizing... Joyce and I decide to split up.

She and NN will go to Brandi Melville for some shopping.  And SW, whom I now introduced to the term Beyhunting, and I will go do exactly that.  This wasn't without adventure either.  My initial train ride and time was interrupted by the fact I closed Google Maps down to save on data and power.... only get back on Google Maps... but it gave me different directions (unbeknowngst to me).  The 45 minute tirp ended up becoming 1.5 hours.  But no matter.... I was sure we'll find it.  This was a giant toy store in the middle of nowhere.  Tokyo being a destination would have all the inventory sucked up.  Not this place!!!  We finally find it.... just as NN and Joyce sent pics of their victories.  We get into store and it's like a salvation army.  Floor after floor of manga, toys, sports equipment, electronics... everything you can think of... except Beyblade Burst.  Another failure.  Another round of disappointment.  What made it worse... was the hope I gave SW of finding it here, after he came to accept the fact this wasn't happening.  

As a consolation prize... I figure we can get some lunch.  This really was way out in the boonies and there weren't a lot of choices.  Since we haven't had conveyor belt sushi yet, I find a place that's about a 10 minute walk from the train station.  First of all... it took us forever to even get back to the train station cuz the bus lines are so confusing.  I think we ended up walking an additional 30 minutes for no reason... other than I can't read Japanese well.  But those 30 minutes served us well.  We come across these amazing city parks full of cherry blossoms.  Unlike Ueno Park yesterday with all those thousands of people... there was literally the two of us.  And during the 30 minute walk... I got to share my experience with finding 漫畫 at 白田商場。 The initial exuberance we got when we first discovered it in 1992... and the feeling of rediscovering El Dorado the 2nd time we went in 1997.   I kept feeding him hope... when there wasn't much hope to be fed.  

In place of hope though... we had to feed our tummy and went to a local conveyor belt sushi place that was simply heavenly.  Not even the blue fin, but just the medium fatty tuna, melts in your mouth like butter.  And they have an option of regular or less rice to not fill up your belly.  But the part that really brought it home was horse sashimi.  Ewwww.... one would say.  SW was like, "Why not??" He's so adventurous.  Certainly makes for a great travel 

partner.  

After filling our bellies... we rejoin the girls at Ginza for the Uniqlo flagship store - the infamous 12 stories of shopping.   Any and all disappointment, was washed away.  SW went to town!!! Down-town!!!  He bought soooooo many clothes.  But proud of him for saying, "Yeh yeh and mah mah gave me all the 利是錢 I can finally spend it."  That... he did.  

On the side... I never gave up Beyhunting.  I found two Ginza stores that might have Beyblades.  While SW as shopping and NN was soooo done with shopping, we snuck out to look for them.  Once again... big foot eluded us.  We ended the night at the Shibuya crossing.  Oh you bet I did... while on the train ride to Shibuya... I was looking up possible places for Beyblades.  So after taking the compulsory "run to the middle and jump" photo at the Crossing...  SW and I venture off once again on our own while the girls headed home.  

It took us forever to find this one because it's not only hidden from plain sight.  The external of the building is the name of the toystore, but google map says it's on the 5th floor.  Took us forever to find the elevators... but those lead to the 8th floor movie theater.  We had 30 minutes left before the store closed and we weren't even sure if this was the place.  I busted out my handy dandy google translate app to check the directory and there it was... bright as day... the name of that hobby store.  But how to get there??? I was so desperate I was looking for stairs to run up.  Time and time again... the elevators had people pack in and pack out... but all going to the theater... and as we turned away to look for another entrance, there it was, a sandwich board that read "Take left elevator to the 5th floor for XYZ store."   We waited and waited... but nothing came!!!  And time was ticking.  So I thought about taking the elevator to the 8th floor and riding back down.  We got to the top.... got to the theater and made a U-turn to get back in.  Only to realize, it was a 1 way trip to the lobby.  There was just one elevator that stops at the 5th floor.  We got back down to the lobby and patiently waited... with like 15 minutes left... the elevator finally came.  We found it!!!  This hidden, underground, behind the wall, nobody knows, but elevator was packed hobby toy store.  They must have it!!!  Failed.  Once again.  They only had Beyblade X.  SW was finally able to let go... sorta.  Because there were two Shibuya stores and one was closed.   And then, there was that one final store on our way to Disney.  The train ride home wasn't as bad... as SW had a great day at Uniqlo.  

Next day... Joyce and I find another excuse to go back to Shibuya before heading to Disney - to find that OTHER store that was closed the night before.  Both kids wanted Omirice... and of course, I favored my searches towards that direction.  Plus it was sorta/kinda on our way to Disney.  Needless to say... the tomb was empty.  The Beyblade gods were against us.  This was not meant to be.  Let the beyhunting happen on eBay (eBey??) or some future Japan trip he takes.  Over lunch... NN laid the smackdown.  She kept saying, we'll find it.  If we prayed. Part of me thinks she was kidding... but part of me started praying silently.

The storm came.  It wasn't any rain, it was a borderline typhooon.  So wet.  So windy.  In the midst of the storm, we were caught in the eye of the hurricane.  This last and final store was out in the middle of nowhere.  We got off the train stop and had to walk another mile in the rain,  while dragging our luggage.  (Why we didn't rent a locker, I'll never remember). When the clouds covered the sky and humanity was at the brink of extinction... we walk into the final store.  The last chance.  The end of the road.  

Pass the manga.  pass the anime.  pass the models. Then pass the girls stuff.  The dolls.  The cutsie toys.  Now it was the kids toys.  My heart sank.  There's no more.  It's all baby toys from here.  

Until... I saw some hot wheels.  Toy cars.  There might be more... maybe??  And then.... as the sun rose on the 41st day after the storm... and the rainbrow crept up over the horizon... We saw it.  4-5 glass cases of beyblades.  Not only that... little baggies of the used beyblade bursts that people trade it.  

Nivana.  This was heaven.  This was.... Sw's version of 白田。 皇天不負有心人！ 踏破鐵鞋無覓處!  Don't know how many stores... how many steps... how many disappointments... to culminate in this moment.  Perfectly captured in this one picture.  And after that I gave him a big, fat embrace!!  We did it!!

And throughout all this... Sw was always smiling.  My boy.  My son. Super Sweet Siu Wah....forever engraved in my memories of Father Son Time in Japan. 

Another proud parent moment

 Huda thunk... that one of the proudest moment for SW... will be for athletics and not academic.  HA!! 

Slipping Through My Fingers

Had a wonderful dream last night... we were in some home and Joyce tells me there's a spider in the bedroom.  I grab a slipper about to fulfill my husband and fatherly duty... when a 4 year old NN comes out and a 2 year old SW comes out and gives me a hug.  NN then repeats Momma and calls me 老公。 Then SW mimics NN and says the same thing... then gives off his signature SW chuckle.  I give the two of them a giant hug.   One of the best dreams I've had... in recent memory.

[Chorus]

Slipping through my fingers all the time

I try to capture every minute

The feeling in it

Slipping through my fingers all the time

Do I really see what's in her mind?

Each time I think I'm close to knowing

She keeps on growing

Slipping through my fingers all the time

40 Days of Prayer and Fasting

After a weeklong holiday full of tension and angst... we've decided to come together to pray and fast during our 40 Day Prayer Journey. 

Day 3... and we've settled to praying together after dinner at the dinner table. The kids don't resist... it's almost like those days when we prayed as a family during advent.

As for fasting...  SW is fasting Crash Royale.  NN is fasting Tik Tok, Youtube, IG, and her favorite game Rock Blast.  Joyce is fasting Royal Crush... a mobile game she's been playing for over 2 years.  And me....I'm fasting speeding.

Not even 6 hours into day one... NN started to regret overfasting.  And now on Day 3... they've re-neg'ed.  SW is now fasting social media but he can play Crash Royale.  NN still fasts Rock Blast... but she's changed her fasting to doom scrolling.  She can still watch long videos.  

Heh... let's see how long this lasts.  

My boy is growing up...

 In one of the most heartbreaking yet much needed revelatory talk I had with my son... he announced to me that one of the biggest regrets of his life, was when neither momma or Bah B was present when he received his NJSF certificate.  Joyce and I, together, can count, on one hand, how many of his performances or events.  And yet... the one event... the one seemingly insignificant to us, event, turned out to have left the biggest void in his life.  He values, above all, his own academic achievements.  And we... as parents, both failed to acknowledge that.  

He was bursting in tears.  And it took all my 40+ year's strength... to hold back my own.  My boy... all grown up. 

1 v 1

 On a day the WiFi went down... SW wanted to go shoot some hoops.  No rebound 1v1.  

I easily took the first game... and he caught his groove in the second game.  Third game... I started to find my rhythm and you can tell he was gassed... his legs weren't there and his 3's were consistently off.  Ended the battle by sinking a 3... nothing but net.

Then it got to pickle ball and it wasn't even close. 

Today... I'm paying for it.  So sore..... but oh so worth it.

Crashing Out

 Something that deserves a post of it's own... how each family handles stress and conflict.

Both NN and I crash out... and crash out hard.  Ruining the experience for the family for a short period of time, whether justified or not.

Momma, also crashed out, but it took her all of 5 minutes to snap out of it, and reset herself.  Very little damage done.

But the greatest of all... is Sweet SW.  In spite of all the stress, the lack of sleep, the hunger, the cold, the waiting, the "name your triggers", he was happy go lucky the entire trip.  He is the true champion in this family.  Bah-B applauds you!!!

Next one up...

At SW's tournaments the past two weeks... you can clearly see the importance of the "next one up" mentality.  Their team's middle block is a rookie to the sport.  He's tall and athletic but not even close to being a volleyball player.  He goes to every practice... works hard... goes to every tournament... cheers for his team... but gets zero playing time.  Up until... the starting middle gets hurt and it's next man up.  All that hardwork as paid off.  All that sitting and observing... is coming into fruition. Always be ready.  The coach can call your number at any time.

On the flipside... SW has been the starting lib all season.  To a point where the backup lib gets zero playtime.  It's not every fair.  We feel bad for their parents who has to go watch their kid ride the bench every single tournament.  And then this weekend... the script was flipped.  SW starting crashing out.  Whether it's because he was sick or because the other team exploited him.  He was just not there.  Not passing it.  Not digging it.  Not playing up to par.  And he finally got subbed out... and not subbed back in.  

That's the way life rolls sometimes.  Ride your rapids and there'll smooth waters ahead.  Or beware of the smooth waters cuz it could be a water fall around the river bend. 

還是覺得你最好?!

3 months ago... I blogged about "the split." And then today... when we watched Sherlock Holmes the High School Play... SW and XXXXX were sitting together, on their own.  What happened?!?!?!? 

Ohhhh my booooy!!! WOOT WOOT!!!

Why so serious??

An off the cuff comment about SW running for StuCo... and how he would flourish because he's very nonchalant actually became prophetic.  Later in the evening, we played Scattegories.  First of all... I crushed the entire family.  I may not be the fastest.  I may not have the best reaction time.  I suck at Clue, Catan, and other board games.  But when it comes to non-sensical creativity, I'm still king.  SW.... who has really come into his own... is actually moving up the ranks into 3rd if not 2nd.  In a family of 4.... if you come in 3rd or 4th... face it... you're coming in last.

At the end... it was boys vs girls... and while the boys were goofing around and having fun, the girls got pissed off at us for not being serious and worst off... winning.  We weren't cheating or anything... it's just how the chips fell.  Sigh... it's just a game? Why so serious?? (Says the dad who crashes out every time the Niners play)

No suave

 SW and I walked into Happy Lemon... and he acted very 蛇𠺌.  And seconds... milli-seconds!!! after ordering... he snuck out of the shop leaving me standing alone.  Turns out... SHE was also there.  Aiiiii.... 仔啊!!! Like a duck swimming... you needa be calm and cool after water even if you're frantically kicking underwater.   Now you totally... 露咗隻低牌. No suave. 

New Year's Resolution - attained.

A week after hitting the 9 minute mark... SW told me he'll pace me so I can hit 8:30.  We went to the track and with some trepidations, I started pacing him.  And every time we turn... I can feel him speed up.  He was cheating.  We weren't just hitting the 8:30 mark..... and that was confirmed when we crossed the finish line.  7:56!!  I PR'ed (in my 40's). 

Pacing... and passing

SW actually wanted to go running with me today.  Started out fine... he wanted to push me.  Then he was pacing me.  Then.... he blew me away and left me in his dust.  Haha,..  

Cross Country

This Semester... SW flipped a new page in the Leung family history.  He competed in his first Cross Country Race... in San Francisco Golden Gate Park no less.  Never been to a XC meet before... quite eye opening.  And boy are the runners fast!! And athletic!!  And fast!!  Best part of the race... and I think only King's Academy did it.... is what makes us stand out amongst the rest (perhaps). 

好心分手

好心一早放開我 重頭努力也坎坷

統統不要好過 來年歲月那麼多

為繼續而繼續 沒有好處還是我

若注定有一點苦楚 不如自己親手割破

My poor baby 😣 

Painful realities - SW version

 The reality is... both my kids are not physically built for volleyball... the one competitive sport they love.

SW has always had a giant heart.  Sweet Siu Wah.  Always looking out for others.  Never talking back.  Loves reading Garfield, but his first comment will be, "I feel bad for Odie." Life was never easy for him... but he's a fighter.  And I tried to arm him with all the tools needed to fight.

I purposely trained him to be a setter cuz that's a coveted spot regardless of height  And yet... it's still not good enough with setters these days being 5'8 - 5'9.  So he goes and tries out for lib... a position he's never played.   Last weekend... each of his friends and former teammates slowly got offers during the pre-tryouts.  Yes... they're good, but not great.  And one at a time... the numbers increased while SW just sat and wait.  

This weekend as the official tryouts... wasn't even worth going.  The whole weekend... driving from one gym to the next trying to maximize opportunities to shine.  "Coaches aren't even looking.  Whenever they're on my court, I'm in line."  The one club that all his friends want to play for... nothing.  The worst part is... the 3rd string setter from his old team made it.  3rd string!!!! SW is the setter-1.... and he got relegated to the 15-2's team.  Horrible.  Then on Sunday night... he and Kyle tried out for one last time.  SW told me he got an offer 15 minutes into the tryouts - which is great!! Someone recognized his talents.  But he turned it down... cuz the other players were bad.

Later that night... Kyle also turned down the offer thinking maybe his friend will come back to his original club with him.  Only to find out... Kyle is joining the rest of his friends at that new club.  I didn't know about this until the next morning when Joyce texted me and said, "SW was super sad last night."  I was completely drained.  Couldn't pay attention in the meeting.  Just sank in my seat and stared into space.

Why.... why do my kids have to go through this punishment??? Aren't they too young for such disappointment? Can't they form teams and play with their friends?? Why can't I have a bigger influence and sway... make my voice be heard in the volleyball community?? I hate this.  I hate the fact the kids have to go through this.  Yes... this will make them stronger.  Yes... eventually they'll have to face this.  And yes... they'll probably have a chip on their shoulder now which they can use in life in other ways. 

The silver lining is... SW did make it back to his old team and he'll probably have good playing time.  While most of his friends went to the new club... I'm confident SW can make new friends.  And there was also another TKA friend who recently discovered love for vball... .that has zero offers.  Those parents are going through what we went through 2 years ago.  And I get to advise them on next steps.  So hopefully... there'll be a happy ending for everyone.  But right now... that knife in my heart simply won't go away

Tough pill to swallow

 Day 2 of the Norcal Tournament…. And the boys were clearly hitting their stride.  They went back to their original rotation, with SW as setting and Rishab as middle.  We didn’t have any problems with the 1^st set of the 1^st match…. Playing a team that we’ve always played and never lost to.  We were up comfortably and needed one more point to win…. When SW decided to showboat (or play up) and served a topper to the top of the net.  Much to the dismay of all the parents, “Why!?!??!?!”  Luckily… that one little mishap didn’t turn into bad happenings.  We ended up beating Aspire Ninja handily… which goes to show how much the team has improved.

But in the finals of the Bronze bracket… after winning the 1^st set without breaking a set… everyone started fooling around.  The Coach played with the lineup to let other players play.  And after it went back and forth… back and forth… it started looking like this might not go our way.  One of the bystander parents even said, “Looks like this might go to 3.”  For some reason, we just couldn’t pull away.  Until… we finally did.  We were up by 3… and had all the momentum.  Then… one of the players decided to showboat, like SW did, and serve a topper.  His serve not only didn’t make it over the net… it actually hit one of our own players.  No worries.  We were still up by 2.  And then… things started unraveling.  One point after another… we kept messing up.  Simple, stupid mistakes.  The momentum… suddenly swung.  Even after a couple of couldn’t stop the avalanche.  23-25.  Lost the 2^nd set. 

No worries… we were clearly the better team.  We just need to hunker down and play like we played in the first set.  We got this.  For the 3^rd set… set went with our “3^rd set rotation – where we go 5:1.”  And within a blink of an eye… we were down 0-8.  Horrible passes.  Miscommunication between SW and the middle.  Ill-advised plays.  Everyone was just going the wrong way.  We eventually tied it at 11-11 and thinking… our experience can take us over the hill.  Not this time.  Not with the showboating.  Not with the series of bad and missed-calls from the refs.  The deck was stacked against us… the final score was 11-15.  One of the worst losses of this team’s history.  Almost as bad as being up 10-0 against MVVC and throwing it.  This was worst.  This was against a clearly worse team.  It was painful… it sucked…. And the boys had to wear it.  May it be a lesson learned in life… foot on the neck.  Strike first.  Strike hard. No mercy.