A distinct voice

 COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 177

"And your number please?"
"408-XXX-XXXX"
"Henry?"
"Yes"
"Ahhh... I recognize your voice."

About once a month...we'll order Sushi, to-go, from our local Korean ran, Japanese restaurant.  Never would I have thunk the owner, take-out picker-upper, would recognize my voice.  Then again... we've been ordering from this place since 2005.  But of all the hundreds and thousands of calls they get... especially in the midst of the pandemic, she recognized me.  For better or worse. 

Never underestimate the power of your voice.

不如我一萬句

COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 177

Last year, it took all of my charm, sweet talk and father authority to get NN to run a “10 minute mile.” And she promised she was done. The End. Fin. Today... she asks ME to go running because she wants to get to an “8 minute mile.” Why? Cuz her friends can do it... talk about peer pressure. 

It occurs to me...

  COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 176

It occurs to me... that when we tell our kids to "Do the dishes..." all they'll know is to rinse the dishes and put them in the dish washer.

Performance Review

 COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 175

Got my annual performance review today. Of all the things my boss told me... he said “you have a great sense of humor!” Finally... someone who recognizes my talent!!

Cathartic Cleansing

COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 172

What started with deleting recent school emails on my phone email app... ended up with me deleting all my old emails in my G-mail account. Emails dating back to 2006!!  I may have deleted some emails inadvertently which I'll surely regret in the near future.  But for now... I went from ~6000 emails down to ~2000 emails.  

Ahhhhh....... 

願魚上釣

COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 171

For two years... I've been wanting and hoping that I can take my kids fishing and they can catch an actual fish.  Time and time again...we've gone.  And every time...we've failed.  Until this Sunday.  When I reluctantly took a walk with the family to a local trail and we came across a dried up lake.  Dried up!! How???  It can't be a drought because the adjacent lakes were still full.  

Upon research... which didn't turn up much... it looks like county lakes go through siphoning and recycling to enhance the "retention period" so the water doesn't sit still if there were pollutants.  Another reason can be they're trying to retrofit parts of a nearby reservoir and in order to do so... they have to empty all the water.  Whatever the reason... we came upon a lake that was left with a pool of water that was filled fish.  Not just any fish... the very fish we wanted to fish for.  The fish we wondered if they even existed.  Fish that was easily 6-7 lbs in weight and the size of my torso.  

We saw a bunch of people braving the sticky mud and walking to this pool to grab fish....bass, trout, carp.  Some took them home.  There were a bunch of 20 year olds rescuing the fish. Putting them in fishing nets, or Home Depot buckets or even hand carrying them and bringing them to the nearby lakes.  

My little SW braved the elements, rolled up his pants and did his own fishing.  He finally caught his first fish.  Not with a rod, line and bait as I had planned.  But ultimately... he caught a live fish!!! 

*Side note: Posting his pic cuz he's masked up and completely covering his face. 

遙距居家令風雲

COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 170

2021 嘅新春晚會又告一段落. 新人仕，新作風，新嘗試！ 得唔得、冇緊要。 最緊要放膽去做！I love being able to raise up new talent... and give others a chance to try.  Ohhhhhh..... but after this 3rd round of celebration... I think I'm feeling it a bit.  Wonder what it's like to just join, watch and enjoy?? Hmm.....

This time was a bit different.  Unlike the past 4-5 CNY's... I wasn't directly in-charge.  This freed me up to "do stuff."  That "stuff" was a reflection of Fellowship Life over Zoom.  I could've called it quits with a a simple virtual play - which took so much creative juice and thinking in it of itself.  Some would say that's probably more than enough.  But why stop there...when I can 終於稍為達成我其中一個夢想...  

• The dream - 用rap嘅形式作套歌劇。(as I penned back in July)
• The cast - I had a wide pool of talent... but not necessarily the right talent for what I wanted.  Y'know what they say, "You get what you get, and you don't throw a fit."  But I love my bros and sis ohhhhh soooo much. 
• The script - This was actually the easy part... wrote it in one night.  
• The music - There are many different styles of rap and hip hop.  The one that Lin Manual Miranda used had a lot of freestylin' with no apparent beat or rhythm.  But as chaotic as "Alexander Hamilton" seemed to be... there was still a certain set of rules and theory it adhered to.  It's not obvious initially... but if you get it wrong... it's louder than a trumpet in an empty church.  
• The lyrics - words, words, words. This was literally a clean slate - changing an English song into a Chinese one.  Unlike the Two Lost Sons where I had some words to go by... I think this is as close as writing lyrics for a song just on composition alone.   

• The regret - As much as my dream came true with a hip-hop/rap song... I think that the song that didn't make the final cut was actually better.  It's a Canto-pop song, so the transition is a lot smoother.  It also told a better story.  As the stars aligned (or not, in this case), this song will forever be buried in the confines of "Never to See Light." Too bad... too too bad.  

So what's next???  I'll assume that I achieved my dream of a Hamilton Style musical, sorta, kinda.  What's next...is of course... what I originally wanted to do as written here: "My new dream... a self produced, self directed, original soundtrack musical...."  趙琛敏， 準備好未？Let's do it!!!

Father Follies

COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 169

Starting a new series called Father Follies... mistakes I make as a father that... by God's grace... isn't overly damaging, but when we look back...will bring barrels of laughter and relieve. 

Decided to take both kids biking... but didn't want to redo the Los Gatos Bike Trail.  Found the Quicksilver Bike Trail which looked promising.  Outdoorsy... 10 mile loop.  The only problem is there's an initial grade that's considered "intermediate."  

When we got there... and I saw the trail... it was full of rocks and pebbles.  I started to have some doubt this will be too challenging.  But I willed myself forward.  The grade was as steep as those San Francisco hills I've had to climb.  I could barely get up there on 1st gear... let alone two kids with 100 lb bikes.  So we decided to push our bikes to the apex.... and once we get to the flat part... we can enjoy the ride and scenery.  Hill after hill... bend after bend... I keep telling them we're almost at the top.  

As we're going up... we see these mountain bikers zip down and smile at us.  After about 0.5 mile... what felt like 5 miles... I busted out my phone to re-read the website's description.  Only to see that the initial steep climb.... is 3 miles!!!!  That's when I waved the white flag and called it quits.  Not today...  ain't worth it.  

Since we made the climb... why not ride our way back down?? On slippery, pebble-ridden paths, with dips and holes.   We gave it a try... but I heard too many slipping tires.  They don't know the first thing about left hand / right hand braking.  And I certainly can't carry two injured kids and 3 bikes back down the hill.  Yeah... no.  We ended up trudging back down the hill to the van.  

The day ended well.  We stopped by another park on the way home and rode a quiet, flat, well paved path for about 5 miles.  But no one will remember that path.  We will always talk about how Bah-B almost got them kill... because he couldn't read the internet correctly.  

A tough conversation

 COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 167

Had a 2 hour long conversation with big bro tonight... all in all... he went around a dozen circles to tell me to tell my kids to get off the device and spend time as a family.  He didn't lay it into me... and he softened the blow as much as possible... but ultimately, that's what it comes down to.  

He has this delusional fantasy that our families will get together like American sitcoms and everyone will enjoy each other's company when spending quality time together.  But alas... those just mere moments stuffed inside a 24 minute episode.  Our families are just not built that way.  The age barrier.  The language barrier.  The culture barrier.  The fact that we only get together 2-3 times a year - there is simply no bond to build on.  To his credit... he's still trying to hang-on to his wishful thinking.  If he gives up... like me... then there really is zero chance.  

Last night... I saw Jeremy Affeldt post on his IG a picture of his son engaged in a deep battle of Risk with his grandfather.  One on one.... and during that battle... maybe, just maybe, Grandpa Affeldt was imparting life lessons to his grandson? Or Grandson was schooling Grandpa on the latest trends and pop culture? Or maybe they were debating how the Niners need to go all-in with the salary cap being where it's at? 

Am I jaded? Did I throw in the towel already? Has reality or pessimism settled in where I think it's not a battle worth fighting... it's not a hill worth taking.  And what if I lay down the law and force it 2-3 times a year??  What if that further makes it more distasteful for the kids... where the best part of the day... is when it ends.  Relationships can't be forced. You can't prime Christmas gifts or pass out red envelopes and expect "to be a tight knit family."  Families are not formed during special events and get-togethers.  It's from those lazy Sunday afternoons when there's nothing to do.... we're hanging out in the living room... not saying a word... and simply living.  Cuz if you're not living.... then you're dying.  Hmmm... that blog post took a dark turn.

怎去猜想惡夢會變真 - Part 2

COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 166

Been spending so much time on the CNY video that I'm even dreaming about it!  Horrible... absolutely horrible.  And yet.... I love every second of it.  

大年初四

COVID19 - School Closure - Day 157  School Reopens - Day 165

Dad came in to 開年 today and it turned out to be a very special day. Got to spend time as a family together. And even got to hang out with just dad and big bro over a cup of coffee. Dunno when was the last time it was just the three of us... if ever.