CIBC Thanksgiving Slideshow

After Martin's party, we rushed home, rested for 30 minutes, and then off to the annual CIBC Thanksgiving banquet. There were over 500 people in attendance and as always, the food was very good. Unfortunately we couldn't eat much because we were still recovering from our food coma at Kincaids. After dinner, the video above was presented to reflect a year's worth of thankfulness. Even in these tough economic times, we are indeed blessed.

In the weeks prior to this, I was sharing with a fellow carpooler that I was up late every night working on a slideshow. He wondered why it took so long and asked what version of Powerpoint I was using. I'm like "riiiight." Sensing my sarcasm, he further says, "You know you can do some really nice things in Powerpoint..." Really? You don't say!

That's one thing I notice most about most peecee users. They think Microsoft is the only way to do things. They use Powerpoint for slideshows, Word for newsletters, and didn't know what a PDF was until Word added the feature. Granted if you've never used Mac OSX, then you won't have any idea what incredible programs come with it (iMovie, iDVD, iPhoto, Garageband, etc.). Yes, these are already included in OSX. And iWork (Pages, Numbers, Keynote) costs only $99 and will open/convert all your Word/Excel/PPT files and well as export back.

When you buy a cheap peecee and you factor in all the additional productivity and anti-viral software you need to purchase, it'll get rather expensive quickly (while still remaining a cheap peecee).

Below, fittingly is my favorite "I'm a Mac" commercial.



Christmas Newsletters
If any of you are fortunate enough to be on the Christmas list of a certain Fremont family with two girls, you'll know that every year they produce hands down, the most professional looking newsletter. At first glance it had me scratching my head wondering why an amazingly talented designer such as myself can't even come up with something this nice. I mean this family isn't extra special. They're just an average family with average intelligence (stay with me here...). How could they excel in something they have zero training in? That's when they told me they just used a free, pre-existing template included in iWork Pages and voila! Aha! That explains everything!! So this is proof positive that using a Mac can make the average family exceedingly above average (and in my opinion, most special!).



If you're on our mailing list you'll notice our "newsletter" is getting smaller and smaller every year. Actually, I wouldn't even call it a newsletter anymore. It's just a 5x5 piece of paper with some pics and some ramblings. I don't know how you all find so many things to write about that it will fill up both sides of a page when I'm struggling to fill even a 5x5 space. Maybe because we don't travel. Or maybe because we don't do anything fun. Or maybe because we're just raising a bunch of under-achievers... who knows. So don't expect too much from us this year. But my advice to you all: More pictures and less text. Because by the time people are done reading my blog, they'll be too tired to read anything else. Haha!

Until then, I wish you all a safe and Happy Thanksgiving. I'll look forward to your 'upgraded' newsletters and hope to reunite with you in the coming weeks. Let the parties begin!

50

This past Saturday was another double-header Saturday with back-to-back events. The first was Martin's surprise birthday party at Kincaids (today is his actual birthday). Hard to believe my friends are starting to turn 50. But Martin is not your typical 50-yo guy. I still play tennis with him regularly because that's the only sport I can beat him in :) He's better than me in volleyball, bowling, roller-skating, all things snow and water... not to mention I'll be risking a heart attack trying to catch him biking! If he's turning 50, then I'm the one feeling 60.

It was nice to attend an adult birthday party for a change, and eat grown-up food instead of pizza. Unfortunately, unlike kids, grown ups only have parties every 10 years. My only other two adult parties this year was my mom's 80th and my wife's 40th. Next year I know a few readers that will be turning 40 and 50, but I won't mention their names. And unfortunately because of this blog, chances are I won't get invited :(

I'm sorry, but a day like today deserves something much better than Hallmark.

Kobe meatloaf with bacon, potatoes and cabbage. (real gassy)

King crab and artichoke sandwich missing the top slice.

It was a surprise. He thought he was going to someone else's party.
The older you get, the easier it is to fool you.

If Justine grows up to be like Ashley, we would be so thrilled and so proud.
Only problem is that I'll need to somehow double my income.

We were there over three hours! The Nintendo DS is the greatest invention ever.

Martin, you are a lucky man. Happy Birthday!

Buy this!

Last year I suggested the Navigon GPS was the one thing to buy. This year my pick is the Lego Imperial Star Destroyer 6211 (1366 pieces) for $59.99 at Target on Black Friday. Buy 2 if you can. Not interested? Well if you see it, then please buy it for me :) Seriously.

So why do I want it so bad?

This Imperial Star Destroyer is already selling on ebay for about $90 on average. See LINK. And if it follows the trend of other large Star Wars ships, in a couple of years it will be worth over $200.

How do I know this?

Three years ago on Black Friday, Chrissy was at Target buying me the Lego Millenium Falcon 4504 (985 pieces) for $49. She called from the store asking if I wanted 2 of them. I said no. I'm regretting it now. Currently on ebay, a new one sells on average of $200. Even opened and assembled ones are selling for $150. See LINK. Yesterday one sold for almost $300 (w/ shipping)! Not too shabby huh? No other toy will let you open and play with it and still make a huge profit, even used!

Lego Star Wars ships, especially the larger ones, are huge collectors items. Once they are retired, all the hard core fans are willing to pay top dollar for them. And unlike Beanie Babies, the fan base has proven its growth and longevity by being trans-generational. It's amazing, but my boys love Star Wars as much as I did when I was their age. No other genre of toys carry that same loyalty. And being Lego further reinforces its timeless value.

This item most likely will not be available online, so now I'm debating whether or not to join the crazies out there... Sigh. In case I don't make it out there (or even worse, come back empty handed). If any of you are planning to hit Target anyway, hopefully one (or two or three) of you can get this for me. I would be most grateful. And please make sure the box doesn't get damaged. Thanks :)

Black Friday Preview

Black Friday is in four short days. Many of you have asked me if I've heard of any good deals. Yes, there are plenty of deals depending on what you are looking for. So I will just direct you to the same great preview site as last year, tgiblackfriday.com. There you can browse all the major store ads and prepare your Friday game plan. Everything is well listed and organized by categories. A great resource!

On their front page you'll notice a lot of peecee laptops under $400. To those I only have one word to say to you, RESIST! Sure you'll save a lot of money up front, but in the course of it's lifespan it'll cost you in other ways in terms of time and frustration, not to mention your soul.

I have one friend who succumbed to a tempting cheap vista laptop last year. Now after experiencing my Macbook for the first time, she really wants one too! But in order to justify buying another laptop in a year, she's going to try and dump off the peecee on her mother. Now imagine if she had just gotten a Macbook to begin with. She could buy a faster one this year and then lovingly pass on the older one to her mom. Now imagine how much stronger that mother-daughter relationship would be. You cannot put a price on that.

For me, I plan to stay home this year. The three friends I met up with last year are either missing, sick or on vacation. And considering many of you successfully shopped online for electronics last year, I think I'll do the same. Good time to start surfing is 9 p.m. on Thursday since then it will midnight in the east coast. Not all places will offer free shipping, but before you start to gripe, consider the shipping charges your luxury tax for not having to drive and sit on the freezing pavement for hours hoping to get your item.

If you're shopping for clothing, toys or household stuff, online is not an option. You'll have to get your butt out the door. Based on my experience last year, here's my one and only recommendation for you: Do not go alone! Having a buddy to alternate standing in line/shopping will save you tons of time when a minute could make the difference between getting and not getting that last item off the shelf. A buddy can get you a snack when you feel like you're going to pass out or watch your stuff in case you get into a fight. Black Friday can easily be a day of high anxiety.

Lately I've found the best deals on ebay using the live.com cashback. It's been holding steady at 25% for the last few weeks. If you're not taking advantage of this great promotion, you're really missing out. 25% off is huge for stuff like Macbook, iPods, Wii/Wii Fit, PS3, DSLR camera, and other pricey electronic items that are either hard to find or never go on sale. Also no sales tax and it gets delivered! For directions on how to use it, please read my two previous blogs about it.

So good luck on your Black Friday adventures and be sure to read about my last year's adventures for lessons learned.


LINK: Last year's Black Friday

LINK: 30% Cashback

LINK: 35% Cashback

LINK: TGIBlackFriday.com

The Cocopuff Girls

Meet Bubbles, Buttercup and Blossom – the Cocopuff Girls. The shady character is Mojo Jojo, their #1 arch nemesis. Oh, and the pretty boy in the pic is just there for show. He was absolutely no help whatsoever. Actually I take that back. He unknowingly helped Mojo by confusing the smartest Puff with a bunch of made-up words. Haha.

My original name for these lovely ladies was The Danville Darlings. But due to the protest of Buttercup, who lives just a mile outside of that snobbish town, they suggested something Coco... for Contra Costa. So being the creative genius that I am, they entrusted me to think of an appropriate name :)

Mojo and the Puff Girls have been duking it out on Facebook Scrabble for the last two months – which BTW, they now love Facebook, and have like 90+ friends, and they all have to thank me for 'forcing' them on. Anyway, last Saturday was our first game face to face with real tiles, no online dictionary, and full-blown after-dinner onion breath.

All through the game I was surprisingly nice and patient and only had to yell at Bubbles twice to hurry up! Everyone played tough and the game was incredibly close at all times. With only two tiles remaining to draw, only three points separated first and last place. These Cocopuff Girls are good! But that's when it happened...

It was my turn and I laid down all seven tiles to a chorus of gasps! Playing all seven tiles is called a bingo and you get an additional 50 points! That's when I realized what I've been missing while playing online – hearing the groans and seeing the panic in their eyes! Haha. And here's the irony: The word I played was INFLATE, which instantly caused all their collective hopes to DEFLATE! Hahahaha! I'm such a gracious winner, ain't I??

We've already started another game on Facebook and now they're out for blood! I already sense the heightened hostility in the chat box. I may never win again, so I'm going to cherish this one as long as possible. Because beating them in person feels 100x sweeter!

That was our first Scrabble night. Once they get over their bitterness, I'm sure we'll have another. There was something else going on that night too, but I can't remember... I think it was some kid's birthday... Whatever. That night, Scrabble was all that mattered.

Cocopuff Girls, thanks for a wonderful evening!

Welcome Zachary Isaiah

Zachary Isaiah Cheung

Born November 3 at 6 lbs, 14 oz., 19 in.

On Saturday we got to meet Zachary for the first time. This brave family has now caught up to us. Methinks in a couple of years they'll surpass us. Just look at Winnie, still so young, so vibrant, so fertile... I tell you, all you parents out there won't know a real challenge until your kids outnumber you. Yes, welcome to the world of zone coverage. For us, three is good enough. It's a good number. So one day when we're old and laid up at a retirement home, we're guaranteed a visitor almost every other day!

Don't let the looks fool you. That cake was good!!

Don't let the looks fool you. That girl is brutal! Haha!

While munching on chow mein and pig's feet and ginger, three of us had a virtual online, in your face, game of Scrabble. The game is through Facebook and lately I've been playing against friends all over the nation. It's quite addicting. So armed with our Macbooks, we decided to start a game. (Oliver is sitting on the couch because the island couldn't support his peecee brick). And it's so much more fun to talk smack in real life rather than type it in the chat box! But as much fun as this game was, it was really just my warm-up game for my real test later that evening...

Oh yeah, one more thing. Remember back in December at Meghan's Birthday Party I blogged about rear-ending a bald Chinese guy in the parking lot? Well that guy was there! I was right next to him in the kitchen while we watched the Cal game. Obviously he didn't recognize me, maybe because I no longer wear glasses. But I sure remember him. Whew!

Friday Freebie

Update: Coupon expires tonight but deadline for redeeming order extended to November 22. Due to overwhelming demand, delivery is 3 weeks. Shipping is $6.99. > LINK

*This offer is only good for one standard 20-page 8" x 11" custom-cover photo book per household. Coupon dispersal ends at 11:59 p.m. PST Friday, November 14, 2008. Free photo book must be redeemed by 11:59 p.m. PST Sunday, November 16, 2008. Offer does not include customary shipping and handling changes or additional pages. Offer applies only to mail-order delivery to U.S. customers. Offer cannot be combined with other coupon codes. Coupon cannot be resold or otherwise transferred and is void on the earlier of redemption or the offer end date.

Boomers and Bangers

Just two days after I blogged about wanting to get invited to your parties, we get invited to a birthday party at Boomers in Livermore. I say be careful what you wish for.

Last night Dustin and I survived the most awful birthday party ever. I couldn't tell if we were in Livermore or at the Eastmont Mall. I'm gonna rename this place Bangers, as in gang bangers. Because that's the environment we were in, complete with their offspring and baby mamas.

Bangers is like your typical party destination for families, complete with miniature golf, go-cart racing and arcades that spits out tickets to buy one-cent garbage. I checked out their deceptive website and can honestly say I saw zero white people there (not counting the people in our party). My first clue to its danger was when I first drove up. There were four thuggish teens loitering on the front steps waiting for their 'ride.' I dropped off the kids with another parent and quickly went to Costco to fuel up the getaway car. (Gas was $2.32, btw).

Upon entering Bangers, I noticed the place was a big warehouse that was unusually dark and cold. The party area was just some random tables thrown into a dark, fenced-off corner. A very un-party-like atmosphere. It kinda reminded me of those indoor swap-meets in LA that sell fake Luis Vitton purses. And unlike Superfranks or Pump-it-up, we ate pizza/cake first, and then the 'fun' began.

The special event that was sponsored was Laser Tag. Yes, it sounds cool and exciting, but here's the problem: they only allow 6 kids in the room at a time. Maybe because the room is too small. Or maybe because Bangers is too cheap to buy more than six vests. Our party had 14 kids, so they had to go in three separate groups. Once they get suited up, they go in for instructions. After their briefing, they get to play for a whopping five minutes. FIVE minutes?! At Superfranks you get 30 minutes for dodgeball. Here you get only five minutes for laser tag. Man, I've spent longer in deep thoughts upon my Toto! Speaking of which, their bathroom was freezing! They had the AC pumped to 30 degrees it seems. Spend too long in front of the urinal and you'll risk frostbite!

So while we're waiting for Laser Tag, the group of future-criminals behind us start getting restless. They were about 10 years old but each weighed about 120 lbs. They decided to start battle-royale wrestling. All four were piling all over each other while the attendant who's thinking, "I don't get paid enough to deal with this crap," looks the other way. It wasn't until one of the 120-lb. sweat-masses got body slammed onto two of our kids (not mine), that the employee and horrified parents finally spoke up. Kids were crying. Everyone started checking their clocks hoping to leave... Nothing could save this party now.

The arcades were a rip off too. I started to play Deal or No Deal and after dropping a token, it said I needed 4 more. Five tokens to play one game! A few of the other nicer games also required 4 tokens each. What a rip! There was a silver lining though. The sooner we exhausted the tokens, the sooner we could get the heck out of there! But then we couldn't even redeem the tickets because 3 of the 4 redemption machines were broken. We had this one kid who won 1000 tickets but the machine only spit out 150 because it ran out. And all through the arcades you had unsupervised animals running around and everywhere you looked you just see the greasiest, sleeziest, and scariest tatooed gangsters and hoochies hanging about. Hmm, maybe that's why it's dark. They should film Prison Break here, or Mad Max.

As we were leaving, we noticed all our friends were nowhere in sight. We figure they either escaped early, or they're out back being held at gun point. I said let's scram! And if you're wondering why there are no photos, it's because I was afraid to pull out my camera. How would I possibly explain to my boss that I got robbed at an 8-year old's birthday party? The party started at 5. Everyone gone by 7. Shortest party ever! Any longer and I may not be sitting here typing this.

In hindsight, I'm thinking, "Hey isn't this supposed to be a popular family place? I've heard of Bangers from friends before. It can't always be this bad, can it?" Maybe it was just last night. Maybe something special was going on. Maybe it was "Back-to-Juvey Nite" or "Ghetto Friends & Family Day" or a "50 Cent Lookalike Contest" or maybe a rap concert just let out across the street... Either way I'm not taking any more chances. We're never going there again. And good thing I didn't bring the whole family, because only me and Dustin can run fast!

Don't believe my review? Read what others have said:

Link: Customer reviews at Yelp

200: Meet my readers

Hard to believe I've made it past another milestone. It didn't seem that long ago when I hit 100. But thanks to the many interesting folks in my life, I'm never short of content to post.

Actually this is post #202. I apologize, but I ran into some snags trying to locate the above photo. You see, I just HAD to post this photo. So what is the significance of this photo you may ask? Well this photo is the perfect representation of my four reading demographics.

Group 1: My most loyal readers. Some of the folks in the photo are my favorite bunch. They subscribe. They comment. They enjoy my insights and nothing I could say can ever surprise them. They send me reminders when I haven't updated in a week and often chat with me online. Thank you, you are my greatest joy and the reason for my cyberspace existence! You are my biggest fans and I am yours!

Group 2: My closet readers. Some of the folks in the photo read occasionally. This is mainly because they are married to one of my most loyal readers. They like looking at the photos and find my blog mildly amusing, but then they'll feel guilty or shameful afterwards. They can't understand why their spouse has such devotion and pretend to be indifferent.

Group 3: My anonymous readers. They visit all the time but I'm not allowed to post their photos or mention their names. They like reading about other people, but not about themselves. Some of them I don't know and will never meet. I've gotten return visitors from Napa, the midwest, east coast and even Japan! This is amazing because I purposely avoid using keywords to make my blog less searchable. So whoever you are, I'm honored by your presence here.

Group 4: My non-fans. They think this is juvenile and say things like "you have way too much time on your hands" or "I barely have time for my life, let alone have time to read about yours..." Yes, actual statements. Ouch. They use the internet the same way they commute, point A to point B, never stopping off to go shopping or pick up a donut. They don't own an iPod and listen to news radio. The only way I'll EVER get them to visit my blog is if I posted a picture of them – which brings us back to the significance of this photo :)

So which one are you?

Regardless of who you are, I'm grateful for your presence here. And to you non-fans, I listen to news radio too on occasion :) But like the photo, I hope this blog brings a smile to your face and brightens your day if even for a moment. (Disclaimer: I don't think any of the people above are really non-fans)

Just last week, a fellow blogger's mother-in-law whom I just met, came to me to express her joy in reading my blog. She liked the Blue Angel photos and have forward my post about Toto toilets to her friends. Also, she's awaiting her free GPS because of me! Isn't that awesome?! And all along I thought my only senior readers were in Redmond... :o

So thank you all again. If I haven't featured you here yet, your time will come. If I haven't offended you yet, again your time will come. Until then, send me your deals, be nice to me, and most of all, be sure to invite me to all your parties. :)

Stay healthy and have a wonderful weekend.

America has chosen a new president

Sorry, I just don't see or feel the "hope" that everyone is talking about. Instead, what I do see is "change" – as in a change in our abilities to discern right from wrong. Nowadays it's all about rights, choices, privacy and tolerance – and as promised, our new president will be leading the charge, as well as the "change" on all those fronts. And I beg to differ, Mr. President, but living in the bluest part of the bluest state, I can truly say there IS a liberal America and there IS a conservative America. Unfortunately as history has shown, it's a lot easier for the conservative to become liberal rather than the other way around. But regardless of how I feel, he is now our president. He is now my president. So whether you voted for him or not, please remember to pray for our new president.

I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.
I Timothy 2:1-4

Below is a commentary that should prepare you for the days to come. Click on link to read entire article.

LINK: America Has Chosen a New President

Given the scale of the Democratic victory, the political landscape will be completely reshaped. The fight for the dignity and sanctity of unborn human beings has been set back by a great loss, and by the election of a President who has announced his intention to sign the Freedom of Choice Act into law. The struggle to protect marriage against its destruction by redefinition is now complicated by the election of a President who has declared his aim to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act. On issue after issue, we face a longer, harder, and more protracted struggle than ever before.

Without doubt, we face hard days ahead. Realistically, we must expect to be frustrated and disappointed. We may find ourselves to be defeated and discouraged. We must keep ever in mind that it is God who raises up nations and pulls them down, and who judges both nations and rulers. We must not act or think as unbelievers, or as those who do not trust God.