Let's Paarrty!! Part Two, Friday Dinner

After Dave's party, I wasted no time. I went straight home, packed up the remaining family members and headed off to Ray's for our annual hotpot party. I even changed my shirt so I won't look the same in all the pictures (smart huh?) If you look carefully at the photo you'll notice my boys are missing. Oh yes, another worry-free party for me!

An annual tradition for my boys is to spend four days at my sister's house in Los Altos, sorta like a winter retreat. Kathy, being an elementary school teacher, has a week's full of educational and scenic events all planned out. Everyday there is structure (unlike my house). They make gingerbread houses, read, color, and go to all sorts of places like San Francisco, Kelly Park, Intel Museum and shopping. This is literally the most exciting thing about the holidays for my kids. One-on-one 24/7 attention and entertainment and zero TV and video games! She tells me they say this is the best 4 days of the year for them. I say, "Me too!"

So back to the party. The notable people missing this year are the families of Patty, Winford, Kingman, Tom, and KP. The new people are once again, Grace! Grace tells me that she can always count on me to get her "in" to all the parties! Also my mom came along too. Yeah that's right, we needed someone to watch baby so both Chrissy and I could thoroughly enjoy the evening child-free. So while my mom was tending to Justine, Grace was cooking food for my mom in the hotpot. We had to put Grace to work and earn her meal! There's really no true "free" dinner.

Below is a video of Justine chomping on some bread or cake.




Another new addition to the party was the turkey. Ted brought his jumbo deep fryer and fried up a 12 lb. turkey in 30 minutes. Game hens took 4 minutes, lumpia about a minute, and twinkies/cinnamon rolls less than a minute. Oh man, I've never had deepfried twinkies before. I was sooooo good! The cream just drips on your plate with every bite. And just knowing it was cooked with leftover turkey/gamehen/lumpia oil, makes it absolutely the ultimate junk food! With dinners like these, we really took our chances not having Winford-the-paramedic with us. Next year we'll make sure he parks his ambulance outside because next year we're gonna fry up some Snicker bars!

I posted a video so you can see Ted in action.



Below are some more pics including Ted's lovely wife Mary, who is about to give birth any moment now. She is kept on a strict diet of buffalo wings, lumpia and twinkies. With all that grease, the baby should just squirt out!

Let's Paarrty!! Part One, Friday Lunch

It's the holidays and the party circuit has begun. If you were to ask me what's my favorite part of the Christmas season, I can easily say it's not Black Friday, but instead all the good friends I reunite with. Every year we have the same gatherings with the same people at the same places. It's like a ritual.

On Friday I worked half day and joined the gang for lunch. Dave has been hosting us every year as long as I can remember. Here is the picture we took last year. The kids are smaller but I think we still look the same (Dave is still bald). The notable people missing are Goff's family (who'll be coming up next month), and the notable additions this year is Grace's family and a pregnant Jeanie. Oh wait is that right? Jim is gonna be a dad?? Oh man oh man!! Congrats to you both!

And just like last year, I attended solo – which made the party that much more enjoyable! Oh it's sooo nice to just hang out and not have to worry about your kids eating, spilling, pooping, etc. Kids crying, kids fighting, kids smelling... I don't care, because I know they're not mine. True peace of mind. The only thing I had to worry about was pacing myself to not over-eat... because I had another party that evening. :)

More stuff that I do at work

If you get the San Jose Mercury News, this coming Monday, December 31, there will be a special 8-page insert that I created. This is about as exciting as my job gets. I do annual reports, brochures and flyers, but not often my work gets this large of a distribution. My name won't be on it, but it's all mine.

See that picture of the bus? I shot that photo standing directly in front of it... and I lived to write about it! Below is the original photo. The rest is all Photoshop.

A picture-perfect Merry Christmas to you all!

Ah, the beauty of Photoshop. What would I do without it? My family needs it like moviestars need a makeup artist. Here's a foreign website that shows some beautiful celebrities without makeup. Warning: you'll be shocked! Oh man, Jessica Simpson and Eva Longoria never looked so good!

As we searched through our photo library for a nice family photo, none existed. Sure we took many as a family, but none I would mass produce onto cards and pass out. Either Dustin's teeth is falling out, or Colby has some unnatural smirk, or Justine got boogies in her nose, or me with my mouth open yelling at the kids to smile... something's wrong with someone. That's when I decided to just build my own photo. Yeah, forget the stress and realization that your family is dysfunctional, just find a few good individual portraits and fool the world.

Welcome to Photoshop. Yep you guess it, I lifted each child off separate photos and assemble onto one. Then I found all the background images on the web and violá, instant memories worthy of framing. Well, maybe not. But good enough for all you beautiful people out there!

Also this is a great way to get a picture with Santa without standing in line to sit on some old fat stranger. Plus this Santa is cuter than a the one at the mall, and further proof to your kids that Santa is not real. Yes remember, Jesus is the reason for the season.

We wish you a blessed Christmas.

Children's Church performance in the CIBC Christmas Cantata

Dustin sings in the Childrens' Church choir during this year's Christmas Cantata (he's the one with a tie). I couldn't get a seat downstairs so I shot from upstairs where the view was better, but the sound wasn't quite as good. I filmed it with the Canon Powershot S2is.

As you will see, the singing begins before all the kids are up on stage. So I bet you're wondering what happened. I'll tell you what happened. On Saturday at the rehearsal we had 12 kids up there. They timed the music so that all 12 kids would be on stage by the time the music was cued. So today as you can see, by the time the 12th kid got on stage, the singing began, just like it did at rehearsal. I have no idea where those extra 10 kids came from. They definitely weren't at rehearsal! Who are their parents?! This is an outrage!

:)

Holiday lovin' from the Sarge

Sorry for spreading coals during this time of year, but this story is so incredible I just had to share.

Last week the Sarge (my boss' boss – you know, the one that makes 140K and charges us $20 for the Christmas party) wins a free luncheon for 15 people at a restaurant. Being in the Christmas spirit she opens up the invitation to the staff on a first-come first-serve basis. A bunch of people (including myself) accepts the kind offer and sign up.

On Monday the Sarge tells us that we'll be obligated to listen to a "short" sales pitch about financial planning at the restaurant. OK, no problem.

Then on Tuesday the Sarge emails us saying that since this is not a company-sponsored event, any time beyond our normal one-hour lunch would have to be charged to vacation time – Huh? Oh and I must mention the restaurant is 25 minutes away near Almaden. So essentially we'll have to charge 50 minutes of travel time and 15 minutes of presentation time to our vacation time in order to get this "FREE" lunch.

In a normal world this would be deceptive and two-faced. But where I work, this makes perfect sense.

Needless to say, people were dropping like flies off the sign-up list. What seemingly started as a nice gesture has turned into an ugly outrage. The lunch was today and although the mood around the office was a little hostile, we enjoyed the peaceful two hours while the managers were gone.

Oh and one more thing:
This morning we get a memo stating that everyone is "required to work a full day" on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve and there is no early release. If you want to leave early, you must charge it to your vacation time.

Like I said, this makes perfect sense.

Now do you pity me??

Was there ever any doubt?

As I've said before, in between the naps, the blogs, the daydreaming and the eating... in my spare time I can be downright productive! Take this green logo contest I was fretting over back in September. Just when I thought it was a big joke, I come up with a design that beats out everyone else. Now I hear the natives are grumbling because they feel the designers have an unfair advantage.

Yeah, what can I say? I'm a trained professional and they're not. Sure it's unfair, but that's life. Do you think the world was happy in 1992 at Barcelona when the Dream Team entered the Olympics? Nope. But by 2004 at Athens, the once-undefeated USA team finished 5-3 with a bronze metal. So although now I'm doing some decent work, come 12 years later when I'm stressed out from raising teenagers and paying college tuition, no doubt I'll be relegated to designing bus signs and installing decals on trains.

In basketball you can train yourself to be a great shooter. But if you lack mental toughness and can't get into the paint, you will never shine. Same way with design, you can excel in all the software but if you don't have an eye for design, you'll struggle to say the least.

But even with a good eye, there's a lot more. Just like any other profession, you can only do great work if: 1) You're motivated. 2) You enjoy the process, and 3) You feel rewarded. This is what amazes me about the logo. I really had none of the three! Maybe I took it as a personal challenge to prove my bosses wrong – that I really do care (even though I really don't). Well whatever. It's done.

Here is a project that I applied all of the three factors. A couple weeks ago a friend emailed me a photo of their recent Hawaiian vacation. It was a beautiful family picture with the exception of a few "non-photogenic" people floating in the background. They wanted me to make the picture perfect. Knowing the husband, I originally searched for a picture of Bo Derek running... but alas, I settled for something more family-friendly. Click on photo for larger view.

Then last week another friend asked me to paste her kid's teacher on the body of Captain Kirk (um, okay. I don't need to know why). Oh yeah, and she wanted same-day turnaround. So although I'm a professional designer, in reality I'm just an online Photo-Mat for friends.

This is a heads-up before anyone else sends me a picture for alteration. Depending on my mood, I will edit as I see fit. It may also show up on my blog or maybe somewhere else. Who knows? You've been warned.

So back to the logo. If you're wondering about my prize for winning the contest, well I'm not expecting anything. Really I'm not. Remember this is a public agency where the directors make 6 figures and charge the staffers $20 for the Christmas party. Actually I'm lucky, I have a very kind and generous boss, unlike my buddy upstairs who works for Dr. Cheapomoto. So maybe I'll get a comp meal or maybe I'll get to go home half-hour early on Christmas eve. We'll see.

There's "Hope" for cheap family entertainment

If you've never seen the annual Christmas program at the Castro Valley Neighborhood Church, you REALLY need to see it!! Last night I took the boys to join Mr. Al's and Arthur's families to see "Hope is Born." We arrived one hour early and got some decent aisle seats.

I don't know how long the show's been running, but I remember seeing it over 20 years ago, and the feeling still hasn't changed. I was as amazed last night as I was back then (and all the years in between). Every year is a little different, but you can always count on the magnificent backdrops, the live animals, and the crying baby Jesus.

It's hard to describe how stunning it was so I posted some clips I took with my cheapy camera (sorry no zoom). Hopefully this will give you a taste of the magnitude of the entire production. Again, you REALLY need to see this in person! And it's all FREE!



For those of you wanting to go. We've already assembled a small group to go for Friday's 7:30 performance. To be safe, show up 45-60 minutes early to get good seating, otherwise your family of four may have to sit apart or upstairs. The entire program is close to 2 hours and they do offer childcare for 5 and under. Dustin survived the whole program but Colby started to fade after an hour. Prior to the show I would recommend bringing books, Gameboys or other entertainment for the kids while they wait, because they will get restless real fast.

Also, here's a tip if you want to enjoy the show: Don't sit in front of young kids. I felt bad for the folks in front of our kids last night. Even though it was unintentional, our kids would occasionally kick their chairs. Man do I hate some squirmy kid sitting behind me! So look for us on Friday and we'll understand if you don't want to sit near us :)

For more information and upcoming showtimes, please visit their website: www.3crosses.org

See you Friday!

100

Can you believe this is my 100th post?? Back in January when I started this blog, I was worried I wouldn't have any content for a second post. But here I am 99 posts later. Wow! This is truly a milestone.

A heartfelt thanks to my original test audience of 10 friends from afar. You've suffered through 99 blogs and you keep returning! By far you have been my most loyal and resilient bunch! I would like to think that I'm still friends with most of you.

To the friends I see every Sunday, thanks for providing content for my blog. If it weren't for our interactions, I wouldn't have such interesting characters to write about. And if you haven't been mentioned on my blog yet, your time will come.

And to everyone else (whether I know you or not), I'm honored at your presence around my virtual soapbox. Whether it be boredom, devotion or just curiosity, I'm feeling the love.

You see, blogging helps flush the mental blockages out of my head (because my head can only hold so much). It's like that big bucket of water at Great America. It slowly fills up until it tips and spills tons of gallons over everyone. Some people await and enjoy it. Others are shocked but still find it amusing. And then there's a few that are angry for getting wet. Yeah, that's my blog. It affects everyone in different ways. Just don't say I didn't warn you.

Who knows how much longer I'll be blogging, but so far I haven't gotten tired of it. I have to admit, blogging can be hard work, but through it I've become closer to many of you – for that alone, it is clearly worth the effort. Also I've become closer to Chrissy (after finally allowing her to read mid way). In addition to our emails and text messages, my blog now fully completes all our communication needs. So the time we save not having to talk to each other we spend yelling at the kids!

I've written about this before, but I'd like to share this article again: 10 Reasons to Keep a Journal. I would like to encourage any of you itching to start a blog to give it a try. Treat it as a new year's resolution. You don't even need to share with anyone, just write as it comes. Have you read Stu's blog lately? He's been blogging since 2004 and only has 3 readers! And he don't care! Dude, I'm inspired big time!

And what about Mr. Al Young's Blog? Thanks to him, my money is spread among 8 bank accounts and 7 credit cards! You should read his blog while it's still authentic, because someday he'll be so rich he'll be paying someone else to blog for him!

And people like Patty and Dave who only blog twice a year... That's ok too. I'll be looking forward to next summer when they update again.

So thanks again for reading. And thanks for being a part of my life. The holidays are upon us and I'm hoping I will see many of you... because I'm always in need of content. :)

No more excuses

I hope you didn't line up for one of those $400 peecee laptops on Black Friday. You may have saved some money up front, but you'll be paying in other ways, such as mental anguish and lost productivity.

Here is a great deal on a decently-equipped brand new Mac mini. It's only $475 delivered from a trusted seller on ebay. A similar model currently sells at Apple for $599 + tax. The current 1.83ghz model has more ram, but this one has a superdrive (dvd-r). This is really a great deal. But act fast because the auction ends in 6 days or when his supply of 38 units sell out. The only thing I would add is some more ram ($23). Of course you can use your existing usb keyboard, mouse and monitor too.

Due to my blog, SO MANY of you have asked about getting a Mac this past month (and even this past weekend). You're frustrated at your peecee and just don't enjoy your computing experiences. I won't name any names but here's what I've heard from all of you (see if you can identify your statement):

1. My girls need a cheap computer to play on.
2. My wife's peecee is crashing nonstop.
3. How do you convert a dvd movie to mp4?
4. My daughter took my Mac and I don't want to share with my wife
5. I have video editing software but it's not user friendly
6. Dude, can you do a newsletter template for me... in Word?
7. How do you copy a dvd movie?
8. I don't know how to attach a photo to my email
9. How can I do a simple slideshow?
10. Will my Office files open on a Mac?

Dear friends, my heart bleeds for you. I'd love to help you, but we must first establish some common ground. We need to speak the same language. So go get your Mac and then come see me for the hookup. Say goodbye to viruses and pop-up windows and say hello to newfound freedom and productivity. Start organizing your photos, making home movies, and backing up all your dvd movies and stop installing drivers, service patches and the latest virus protection. The new Leopard OS is intuitive and user-friendly. You'll be amazed at all you can do. I've been using Macs for 18 years and I'm still discovering little neat tricks. At this price, this really is a no-brainer.

Stop the hacking

It started a few weeks ago with baby. Then the boys got it, and now Chrissy has it. Everyone in the house (except for me) is hacking. It seems like at the end of a cold, the coughing just lingers on and on forever. And of course they still continue to eat ice cream, oranges and ice water. Last night I told Chrissy that I read about a better cure for coughing. She asked what it was and I told her to be sure to read my blog tomorrow!

With the recent warnings about cold medicine and young children, we've been a bit reluctant to give our kids much of anything. We just let them suffer. As for the adults, my mom loves the DM, Chrissy the CF and I love the Guaifenesin with codeine. Dustin hates all medicine, but Colby loves it. He think it's candy.

So I was thrilled to hear about a product proven to be a better alternative to cough medicine – Honey! Read article here. That's great news! No need to worry about overdosing and forcing them to take it. It's something they already like. Now my only question is where to find buckwheat honey. Trader Joe's maybe?

The study, published Monday in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, found that children who received a small dose of buckwheat honey before bedtime slept better and coughed less than those who received either a common over-the-counter cough suppressant (dextromethorphan) or nothing at all.

This study is making big news. If you Google the story, you'll find a ton of articles about it. They say a tablespoon of honey 30 minutes before bedtime should do it. For me I prefer a bowl of honey with a bucket of Popeye's chicken :p But I suspect that would worsen the cough.

Everyone loves a joyride

There was a bit of excitement today at work. Can you believe some kids actually stole one of our 40-ft. buses for a joyride? No one has a clue as to how it happened. They're not even sure which bus yard it came from! But come tomorrow, they'll be looking for someone to blame. For sure the fecal matter will be hitting the spinning blades big time! Be sure to ask Sam about it when you see him this weekend. But don't mention my blog, he doesn't know about it. Shhh.
Click here for the full story in the Mercury News.

This incident brings back memories from 1973 when I, Jimmy and a few other family friends were playing on a tractor on Beaumont Ave. in Oakland. The road was being repaved and the tractor was left parked on top of the hill (on the corner of Park Blvd.). As curious boys, the five of us climbed aboard and started playing with the knobs and switches. Someone released the brakes (not me) and the next thing you know, the tractor started rolling down the hill. We all jumped off and I remember being afraid of not being able to clear the moving treads. So there we stood watching helplessly as the tractor headed for the parked cars below.

Crash! as it hits the first car, a Dodge Colt. Then crash again as it pushes the Dodge into a beige Mercedes. Then a third crash as it pushed the two cars into a Corona. And the final crash as all three cars smashed up against some big American sedan. By then the tractor was all the way down to E38th Street. All the neighbors came out and the police arrived. One by one, each of us had to submit to a police report. Man oh man, I was freaked out of my mind!

A couple weeks later we were getting sued by the car owners and I was interviewed by an attorney. In the end, the construction company accepted all blame and I was able to resume life as a 6 year-old. Somehow I can't imagine girls ever getting into this kind of trouble... To this day that experience is ingrained into my soul with images that are as clear as yesterday. It's true, some things you just never forget.

Now THAT's what you call a joyride!

Keep your eyes on the prize

Black Friday started at 3:15 a.m. when my alarm went off. I left the house at 3:40, following two other cars on my street seemingly headed in the same direction. Chrissy sent me to Mervyn's to get a set of pots, a set of frypans, and a blanket. Here's the plan: be the first 250 customers, get $10 giftcard. Spend $50, get another $10 GC. My list added up to $55. Perfect. So I thought.

As I arrived at Mervyn's at 3:55 a.m., there must have been 150 people lined up at each of the three entrances. As we move toward the door, a group of 6 women just cuts in line to join their friend. And of course, they run out of gift cards 5 persons in front of me! Arghh!!

Once inside, I go straight for the kitchen wares but cannot find the pot set nor the frypans. I grab the closest salesperson to inquire about the pots and she says, "Oh, those didn't come in." What??!! Okaaaaay, how about the frypans? "Oh those must've sold out already. I say hello, excuse me, it's 4:08 and it's sold out??!! A stinkin' T-Fal frypay? How many did you have?? Sensing my frustration she called the mother ship with her transponder and authorized an additional 20% off any frypan of my choice. Thank you. Now I won't have to hurt you.

So I get my frypans, but without the pots, I don't have $50! Should I buy 6 blankets to make up the difference? Yeah, that's exactly what retailers would want you to do, but I resisted and went straight to checkout with just two items. I get in line the same time (if not just a split second faster) as this women with an arm full of 12 boxes of toys. She glares at me and says, "Excuse me but I was here first." "Um, no you weren't!" There I stood behind her for 20 minutes fighting the urge to whack her in the back of the head with my frypans. But then I realized that if I get detained by security, I would miss the Staples opening. Yes, I needed to focus on the bigger prize ahead.

I arrive at Staples at 5:00 with 40 people already ahead of me. I lined up behind Joel from CIBC. He wanted the Navigon also (great...). While in line I get a call from Winnie, she was there earlier and essentially tells me my chances are slim and none. Also no more good video games at KB. Then I get a call from my coworker who lined up at the San Leandro Staples for me saying all their Navigons are gone. Then Karen called saying that Andy ordered one for me online! Then I get a call from Machella saying that Wenna wants a Navigon too.

When the Staples employees came to me passing out tickets, all the front page doorbuster items were pretty much gone. But they were not passing tickets for the Navigon. And they confirmed there were only 10. Well it's like 50 degrees and I have no place better to go, so I decided to just try in case my online order gets canceled. Plus they were serving donuts.

As we filed into the store, everyone just swarmed in on the electronics counter as if Barry Bond's 756 ball was there. I was trying to count how many Navigons were being handed out but it was too crowded. I quickly befriended this lady in front of Joel. I asked her to get me a Navigon since she wasn't getting one herself. Amazingly there were still a few left so we all scored. I'm probably the only person to walk out with 2 Navigons! You're welcome, Jerry!

After Staples I visited Kohl's, Target, Old Navy, and Best Buy only to walk back out because of the insane lines. I met my friends at Toys R Us where I stood in line for them. The checkout line was 50 minutes long. The line to just get into the video game section was over an hour. I offered to share my cart with the lady behind me and in returned she monitored and pushed our cart along freeing us to shop. After finally getting into the video games section, we find out all the good titles are gone. At around 9:00 my knees begin to wobble from sheer exhaustion. Time to go home.

So this is what Black Friday is all about. Can you believe this was the first Black Friday I ever shopped? Ever? Really. It was exhilarating, stressful, tiring and a sorta fun in a demented way. Although if I came home empty handed, my views would be a lot different. I'm already looking forward to next year.

Here's what I did right:

1. Ordered my LCD monitor from BestBuy online Wednesday night after 9 p.m. (midnight EST). $10 shipping. I went to BestBuy at 7 a.m. and EVERYTHING good on the ad was gone.
   
2. Ordered my webcam from Circuit City online Thursday. Free shipping
3. Met up with friends and made friends with strangers. It is extremely difficult to shop by yourself. Being stuck in line is like being stuck in traffic, a strong sense of helplessness sets in.

Here's what I did wrong:

1. Get out of bed. I should've just ordered all electronics items online. Staples started accepting online orders at 1 a.m. with free shipping. Sure enough, my order got canceled because it was placed too late (2:55 a.m.), but everyone else I know got theirs delivered already. And need I mention someone's greedy brother that ordered 6 (yes, six) Navigons??!!
2. Think even for a moment that I can beat the crowds. You can't. You would need to line up immediately after dinner.
3. Get angry. Does you no good (although I did get that extra 20%). Be friendly and offer to help others if possible. You may even get rewarded. Either way you'll go home feeling much better.
   

Black Friday Strategy Guide

It's been a busy 3 days IM'ing people to plan out our Black Friday shopping ventures. I know where I'll be and who I'll be with and where my buddies will be. It's like Ocean's Eleven. Amazingly, I've narrowed my list to just ONE item I absolutely must have, this $99 GPS at Staples. This week I've been researching GPS units and comparing the models of what's become the hottest item this holiday season. Just 2 years ago, GPS units cost $400-1000. Now they're under $100.

So what makes this Navigon 2100 so great compared to the others? From what I've read, this particular model (only at Staples) has live traffic built-in, which is normally a $99 option. With my sticky commute to San Jose, those traffic alerts will come in very handy as I look for alternative routes to get around. To me, that feature alone doubles the value of the GPS in terms of real-world usage. The live traffic feature is usually only found in the top-of the-line Magellan and Garmin models, costing well over $400. But Staples has it for only $99. What a killer deal!

And if the Navigon turns out to be crap, I can easily list it on ebay where it's selling for around $200. So buy two (if you can), sell one, and it will pay for the other. Can't lose.

Reminder: if you participated in the Amazon Customers Vote, be sure to check tomorrow to see if you've won the chance to buy a $79 Wii. And if you do win, be sure to thank me and invite me over for dinner :)

Lastly I just want to share this Black Friday Strategy Guide I found online. Some good tips, like buying online first, looking for secret bargains, and avoiding junk TV's and extended warranties.

So Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. Be thankful for all that you have. Be thankful for your family, your friends and your health. And when you're tearing through the stores on Friday, remember it's better to give than to receive.

Black Friday, Next Friday

The biggest shopping day of the year is just around the corner. I'm so excited! Thanks to the internet, we no longer have to wait for the Thanksgiving paper to see and plan our shopping ventures. Nowadays, all the print ads are leaked online weeks in advance. There are a bunch of different Black Friday websites, but this one, tgiblackfriday.com is my favorite. It's simple and categorizes all the items. So for instance you're shopping for a new digital camera, you click under "Electronics" and then "Digital Camera" and it will list all cameras from all the stores. Super convenient for price comparison, and sure beats getting your fingers dirty flipping through newspapers.

Many of these early-bird bargain items will be on limited supply, so you may need to show up at 5 a.m. depending on how bad you want it. I have these 3 wonderful friends that split up and hit ALL the stores at the crack of dawn every year. Armed with a fully-charged cell phone, they're able to snag all the deals for everyone. What a great plan! I'm gonna have to invite myself into their little club (or at least have their phone numbers handy–heehee).

Another option is on Thanksgiving day (Black Thursday), some stores (Staples, Circuit City, BestBuy) will let you order the deals online. This may exclude "doorbuster" items and shipping may apply, but it's a good alternative in case you eat too much Thursday and can't get up Friday. Here is a handy Black Friday calendar for when the ads are officially released.

Nintendo Wii for $79?
This year Amazon is again having a special "Customer Vote" promotion. You vote on an item. If the item wins, you MAY get offered to purchase it at a ridiculously low price. This year there are 6 rounds of voting and they're selling a Wii for $79 to 1000 lucky voters. (Disclaimer: If any of you win instead of me, you'll be obligated to buy it for me :0) The rules are listed. Good luck to you (and me).

Stan's Top 10 Bargains:

1. KB Toys: All video games, Buy One Get One Free (4 games max.)
2. KB Toys: Free $10 Bonus Buck for $50 spent
3. Staples: Maxtor 500gb External Hard Drive $79
4. BestBuy: Envision 22" LCD Monitor with Speakers $149.
5. BestBuy: Envision 19" LCD Monitor $99
6. BestBuy: TomTom One GPS $119.99 (also at Staples For $124 + $20GC)
   
7. BestBuy: Dynex 100-pack DVD-R $6.99
8. Circuit City: Logitech Quickcam Pro 5000 $9.99 (after $30 rebate)
9. Babies R Us: Value Pack Diapers $10
10. Sears: Nikon D40 DSLR $449
    

Oh and I can see Daniel waving goodbye...

Those are the lyrics from the Elton John song "Daniel." If you attended the special appreciation dinner for the Kims last Saturday, you would've learned that Pastor Jason's first name is actually Daniel (Jason being his middle name). Also that he never leaves his house without his fishing pole (although now with the oil spill, that may change).

The Kims will be shipping off to China next year so the evening's theme was All-American red, white and blue. Dinner consisted of prime rib, ham, potatoes, apple pie and vanilla ice cream (no ethnic food except rice). Thanks to the Fongs and the Chans for the great food. And thanks to Ken for the photo.

If you would like to download the full resolution photo (1.4mb), click here.

Friday Fun

It's Friday and yeah I'm bored as usual. Here's a Retail Alphabet Game I found that's kinda fun and challenging (and a great way to kill half an hour). As a graphic designer I have a trained eye to see details in design elements, but even with that, I still only managed to get 19 correct. If you're still bored, there's an even harder one below with no answers available (unless you pay them). But you can pay me instead :) because for once, I have all the answers.

Halloween Past and Present

I dug up this photo taken in 1985. At that time all three of us worked for Safeway. A few of my current readers also worked at Safeway during that time (Al, Linda and Patrick). And Burt is still there this day! Back then that was the dream job, making $4.75/hr. bagging groceries and pushing carts while getting full medical and dental coverage. But I think half my paycheck was going to auto insurance and car stereo upgrades.

That picture was taken on the 3rd floor at CIBC. We were dressed up for Halloween at Ichthus. As you can see, even Uncle Harry and Wingate participated (yes, that really is him!). I don't know what our church policy is now, but back then we treated it just as a night of dress-up. The next year I was dressed up as a heavy metal headbanger with crazy hair and eyeliner (unfortunately I don't have that photo – we had gym night at Mills College if any of you remembered). I even won the prize for most originality!

So last week my anti-Halloween friend emailed me (she reads my blog). She said that I got them all wrong. They DO celebrate, sort of. They won't let their kids dress up or go out, but they do stay home and pass out candy (so their kids won't eat it). They say it's better to give than to receive anyway. I say good response. And like every other loving wife, she blames her husband for all the rules in the house. (BTW, I enjoyed all the comments received. But for those of you who asked about their identities, I'm not telling. So stop asking. They're nice people. Really they are. I'm not kidding. Really...)

Then I have another reader that always comment to me via IM because he wants to stay anonymous. We'll just call him Matt :) Anyway, he says Halloween is an opportune time to pass out tracts and get to know your neighbors better. I think that's a great idea! Unfortunately we have too many unfriendly Asian buddha-lovers on our street that don't talk to anyone. Not that I'm using that as an excuse, but um yeah, I am.

My ancient Chinese coworker says this is how you can tell if your buddha-loving neighbor hates you. They will install a little mirror facing your house, that way all the evil spirits will bounce off theirs and into yours. The way you counter is to install a bigger mirror facing back at them. The ultimate deflector is to install an actual wok. That's what he said...

Back to Halloween. Colby was Superman this year. Unlike last year, now he's actually tall enough to ring the doorbells so I can just wait by the sidewalk. Here's what we do. I carry an extra bag to empty out his candy because it gets heavy fast. Then when he shows up at the door, they see his empty bucket so they give him more! Score! Works all the time!

Dustin no longer joins us. He's a big second-grader so he goes out with his buddies straight after school. I didn't even get to see what he wore this year. Hopefully the other parents took photos. Colby went with a classmate from his preschool so he had a nice companion. At this age he still doesn't mind hanging out with girls. We'll see what happens next year.

Club 40

Today the last and final holdout from the Class of '85 turned 40. Welcome to the club, Goff!

(Photo: CIBC Praise Dinner, 1985)

Trick or Treat?

On Sunday a friend asked me if I allowed my kids to go trick or treating. Their family does not celebrate Halloween at all. They say to start them young. If you never let them celebrate to begin with, they'll never miss it. After all, we are Christians and we should not glorify a holiday that clearly has satanic overtones.

In a way I agree with them and wished that my boys were as mature as their kids, willing to refrain from such tempting secular traditions and peer pressure. But Dustin attends a public school where Halloween is a big deal – complete with parade – so it would be unnecessarily cruel to not let him participate with his friends (plus since we both work, we would need Mr. Al Young to take him home). On the other hand, Colby's preschool is run by one of the biggest Christian churches in the bay area and they celebrate also. They may not call it Halloween, but kids are dressed up and I'm sure he'll come home with candy. Their only requirement is that the costumes should be of biblical or positive characters. Colby is dressed as Superman this year (we'll see if he gets sent home early).

So are we bad parents? Are we tempting our children down a path of darkness disguised with fun and candy? Are we blessing an activity that reflects poorly on our judgement? Honestly we've had this debate when deciding whether or not to pass out candy.

I think it's much more than just Halloween. We need to have faith in our children. We need to trust that they will make the right decisions in life and to discern right from wrong. To be selective of what friends to have and to know what is acceptable and non-acceptable in the eyes of God. But of course to do that we must constantly fill them with biblical teachings, honesty and love. Fortunately for us, our boys really love church and cherish the friendships they've developed. And Colby especially loves to pray and sing everyday. Unfortunately, this won't last forever. As they get older, they will be exposed to much more of what's evil in this world and neither I or Chrissy will be there to monitor them. So for now we can only steer them in the right direction and hold them accountable for their actions. This will train them toward a more independent life which we pray will carry on to adulthood.

So back to Halloween. I've been searching the web and 90% of them say Christians should not be celebrating it at all. They suggest offering "alternative" celebrations such as Harvest Festival but I know of none around here. Also these people warned more about embracing parties focused on wickedness, rather than just little kids dressing up to get candy. As you know on the web, views and beliefs run the full spectrum, but for a more contemporary viewpoint for our own situation, I'll end with a quote from Dr. James Dobson of Focus on the Family:

Whereas it can be argued that Christmas is a Christian holiday with Christian origins that has suffered the effects of growing secularism, Halloween can be traced to distinctly pagan sources. It is reasonable, then, that many believers would find some aspects of its celebration disturbing. I agree with them in that regard. The traditional emphasis upon the occult, witches, devils, death, and evil sends messages to our kids that godly parents can only regard with alarm. There is clearly no place in the Christian community for this “darker side” of Halloween.

Even here, however, there is a place for some harmless fun. Kids love to dress up and pretend. If the Halloween experience is focused on fantasy rather than the occult, I see no harm in it. Make costumes for your children that represent fun characters, such as Mickey Mouse or an elderly grandmother, and then let them go door-to-door asking for treats. This side of Halloween can be thoroughly enjoyable for the little ones.

Let me add, again, that I’ve given you my personal opinion. I realize that the topic is controversial among committed Christians, and I’m sensitive to the reasons for their misgivings. My final word to parents on the subject would be “Stay true to your own convictions.”

Fastest Vista Notebook Ever

According to PC World. And just in time for the holidays!

Free Taco today

At Taco Bell today only between 2 and 5 pm. A bit inconvenient for hard working folks like myself. But great for you moms after school and before soccer practice.

Freaky Friday

This will freak you out. Click on this link. She smiles when you hold your mouse over her nose. Yeah I know, I AM bored. Have a nice weekend.

Can't Stop the Music

I've owned an iPod for three years now and my iTunes is filled with over 3,000 songs. It's really nice to have your entire music library with you at all times. Because of my long commute (and sleepy job), I'm listening to music over 10 hours a day... Monday through Friday... Three years straight. Truth be told, I think I'm getting a little tired of the same 3,000 songs over and over again...


Recently my coworker introduced me to Pandora.com. Pandora is an internet radio where you create your own radio stations based on your personal tastes in music. The music is commercial-free and uninterrupted. You can create as many stations as you like. And it's all free!

Set up requires an account and minimal effort. You start by entering your favorite artist or song to create a new station. For me it's Michael Jackson (haha, not really, but why not?). First it will play one of his songs, then other artists that share the same "r & b influences, danceable grooves, vocal harmony." For the MJ station, the next few songs came from Hall & Oates, Prince, Whitney, Janet, DeBarge and others.

As the songs are playing, you give it a thumbs up or thumbs down to further fine tune your playlist. You don't necessarily have to vote, but voting will help weed out the lousy songs. You can also just skip the song but you cannot go back and replay a song.

From what I've experienced so far, the library is quite deep and chances are you'll discover a lot of new music you actually like. There's also an impressive amount of contemporary Christian and worship content available too. Just create a station like Avalon or Jaci and you'll start seeing lots of familiar names from your Christian bookstore. And unlike on-air radio, you'll know right away the song, artist, and album. In the song icon there's even a menu link to iTunes and Amazon for immediate purchase.

So try it today. It's a great way to discover new music when you're at a loss to what to listen next – even when you have 3,000 songs.

Free Candy

LEGO Cakes

So the kids are at school and you're all alone. You stare at your exercise machine knowing you SHOULD be on it, but you'd rather just lay on the couch. Then you think to yourself, "what's the point of exercising if you don't stuff yourself with junk food first? Where's the balance in my life?!"

As the holidays quickly approach, you'll be attending all kinds of gatherings. Wouldn't it be cool show up at the party with this awesome cake? All the kids will love it! Real simple but very clever. Give it a try. And of course, I'm always available for a taste test ;)

Ingredients:
1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® cake mix (any flavor)
Water, vegetable oil and eggs called for on cake mix box
Tray or cardboard, 15x12 inches, covered
2 containers (1 lb each) Betty Crocker® Rich & Creamy vanilla frosting
Red, yellow and blue paste food colors
12 large marshmallows, cut in half crosswise

The complete recipe is found on Betty Crocker.com.

5% cash back

So did you all get your free Play-Doh yesterday? I got mine.

Today I found this great credit card offer for the Citibank CashReturns Card. It offers 5% cash back for ALL your purchases for the first three months. After that it reverts back to 1%. Normally I'm not too attracted to credit card deals but this one is worth getting.

5% is a great deal! All you have to do is consider the upcoming Christmas shopping season. You know you'll be spending a lot more on gifts, decorations and food. And with the price of gas going up, you'll be spending more at the pump too. And need I mention property tax is looming December 10? (Update: You CAN charge your property taxes, and although there is a 2.5% surcharge, you'll still come out ahead.) Either way, wouldn't it be nice to get something back for free? Wouldn't be nice to know you're getting around 16 cents off a gallon of gas? Yep, free money. And the cash back is real cash, not some lousy point system to redeem for gift cards. You'll automatically receive a check whenever you exceed $50.

If you charge $5000, you'll get $250 back – that's enough for a Wii! And after the 3 months are over, just cancel the card and have your spouse do the same for another 3 months of 5%. Cha-ching!

Free Playdoh or Crayons

One Year Old

Today is Justine's first birthday. It's amazing how one year just flies by so quickly. People always ask me if raising a girl is any different than raising a boy. Well at this point, not really (except for diaper time). At this age, they all act the same. And she's on track to walk next month (like the boys) and also stay around the 25 percentile (like the boys).

In some ways she's easier, but that can be because my mom is now around to help. In other ways it's harder because now I have two other troublemakers to deal with – plus homework. So life gets both easier and harder at the same time. You just have to learn to adapt, pick your battles, and be prepared for anything (if that's even possible).

Another question I often get is "are you guys done?" Well as much as I would love to have a 4th child, it is rather unlikely because Chrissy says no. Perhaps if we were both younger... and nicer... and if our boys were better behaved... Again, unlikely.

The above picture was taken last week. Colby is missing because all of a sudden, he no longers knows how to smile. I can't begin to tell you how many pictures he's ruined because of his weird facial expressions. I've spent many hours in Photoshop trying to fix his face, posture, etc. Strange kid. So now the easiest thing to do is just exclude him from family photos. It's ok. That's the benefit of having three kids, you can get rid of one and still look like a complete family.

I recently found this helpful link: Improve Your Photos in 60 Seconds. It lists quite a few basic and useful ideas on getting the best content and composition in your pics. Unfortunately, no tips on getting your over-active children to properly pose for a group picture :(

And if you need more memory for your camera, here's a great deal on a 2gb SD card for only $14.95 and free delivery. Remember, a 2gb card will get you 16 minutes of high-res video. Also during the checkout process, you will also be offered a free magazine subscription or a $10 rebate. Get it while it lasts.

I am not alone

Ha! And you thought I was the only one! Well according to this revealing article, there's quite a few of you out there (of course I'm only talking about the sleeping part of the survey). In a follow up to my previous blog where I talked about how napping will prevent heart disease, I would just like to re-emphasize how popular this pastime really is. Below is my favorite quote from the article:

Across all professions surveyed, 45 percent admitted to having fallen asleep on the job. And nearly two-thirds of government workers -- 64 percent -- admitted to falling asleep on the job.

And as for the other 36 percent, well they're probably lying.

As for the kissing part, I have no comment :) Honestly I don't know why this was included in the survey because it's not even remotely related – unless of course you're dreaming of kissing someone... But I can safely say that there is no one here I would want to kiss. And based on today's finding about how 20 out of 33 lipsticks contain lead, I think we all should be rather careful kissing anyone. Eww.

Top 10 Ways to Sleep Smarter
I think there are many reasons why I'm always tired. One is because Justine is still not sleeping through the night and I'm in charge of the middle-of-the-night feedings. Second is because my cube is so quiet and tucked away so no one knows I'm here. And third because I eat a big lunch everyday (hey with both my wife and mom cooking, we always have plenty of leftovers).

Here is an article I found that lists 10 ways to sleep smarter. I've listed a few below that applies to me.

10. Reduce Screen Time Before Bed
Stop checking your email or watching TV just before bedtime and you'll sleep better. A recent study shows that people who consume electronic media (read: stare at a backlit screen) just before bedtime report lower-quality sleep even when they get as much sleep as non-pre-bedtime screenheads.

8. Eat to Enhance Sleep
Some foods are more conducive to a better night's sleep than others. You already knew about warm milk, chamomile tea and turkey, but Yahoo Food lists others, like bananas, potatoes, oatmeal and whole-wheat bread. You find yourself fighting off afternoon droopy eyelids at the office? Here are some pointers on eating a less nap-inducing lunch.

7. Master the Power Nap
Slowly but surely, the benefits of the classic, 20-minute power nap are getting more recognition, with big companies installing sleep pods at the office and more software applications like Pzizz helping to set the right power nap aural scene. Here's how to get the perfect nap from the author of Take a Nap! Change Your Life, and more on how and why power naps work.

Well today being Friday and raining, I'm sure I'll be passing out just about any time now. So have a nice weekend and nighty night.

Jim, you lucky dawg!

I don't know too many wives that would not only throw an extravagant 40th birthday bash for their husband, but also be the star performer of the event! To borrow a line from INXS, let me say to Jeanie, "Your moves are so raw, I've got to let you know!"

Also let it be known that all this planning happened within 3 weeks from their wedding! Jeanie, you're amazing! And having known all of Jim's former-wannabe-Mrs. Lau's, I can honestly say that none of them can compare to you! Jim, you need to pray to God every day thanking Him for your wife. You will find none better.

It was an 80's-themed party, fully decorated with silver and black balloons and movie posters from that era. The movie Beat Street was showing on the big screen and there was even a fully functional Atari 2600 for the kids to play. Among the 100 guests, people were dressed like Run DMC and other 80's fashion. We ate Hawaiian BBQ and listened to the Fixx, Bowie and Dexy's Midnight Runners, among others. The highlight of the evening was the dance performance. The back up dancers are Jeanie's brother Alan (dressed like Wham) and her ex-boyfriend Mark. Hey, how come Jim wasn't allowed to invite any ex's?? Oh yeah, room capacity! D'oh!

Anyway, for those of you who missed it, the awesome video is below. (This time I used Blogger to host video because the quality is better. But I also posted this video on YouTube.)



Click below for the rest of the photos.

Jim's 40th Birthday

Free Night of Theatre

My sister-in-law just called me to tell about Free Night of Theatre at theatrebayarea.org. Here's what it says:

• Theatres all around Northern California are offering up thousands of tickets for FREE!
• Free Night of Theater events will take place on or around October 18, 2007.
• Reservations for Free Night of Theater will begin on Tuesday, October 2. Join us in Union Square at 10am for the chance to reserve tickets before they go live online at 6pm.
• Reservations will be taken until midnight, Tuesday, October 16.

Here's the list of the Free Showings. The theatres listed are all over the bay area and even Sacramento! The colored square will indicate if all the tickets are "Gone." If not, click on the "More Info" button and you can reserve 2 tickets. At the time of this writing there were quite a few family shows available such as James and the Giant Peach in the San Jose area.

All in all quite a huge list to pick from. Great idea for a cheap date. So hurry and get them while they last! Now if we can only find a sitter...

Free Nintendo Wii Remote Jacket

From the website:

Nintendo is now including the Wii Remote Jacket for the Wii Remotes in all new hardware being shipped. For Wii owners who purchased their systems prior to this addition, we are offering to send free Wii Remote Jackets for their existing Wii Remotes. If you would like to request a Wii Remote Jacket, please start by completing the information form below.

There'll probably be a ton of orders in the days to come, so get yours now. Be sure to order 4 even if you don't have 4 (for future purchases).