The freedom to move forward to new opportunities and to produce results comes from living in the present not the past. -Trung Vu

Cheering up myself

When sad, the best way I cheer myself up is to put smiles on my love ones and friends. Thus I will make my Singapore Chili Crab and trying out a new recipe, salmon poke bowl.

Salmon Poke

Hypocrisy...

Hypocrisy;
The higher you preach
The further you fall

Example; Eliot Spitzer and the scandal that lead to his resignation

Diamonds heist of the century

Nicely written article from wired magazine about the "diamond heist of the century".

Would make for a good heist movie.

Improvements...

It's officially been over a week I've been in Vietnam and only a little under a week left before I head back to work, to studies, to B-school applications, to family.

Within this week's time, I've notices improvements;

- Language; Learning (in my case, relearning) the Vietnamese is always better, if the teacher is cute. The better looking the teacher, the more attentive the student is. The more interactive the student becomes with the teacher. hehe...

- A smile and a wink; Easily translates across the majority of humanity's languages.

- Crossing a Vietnamese Street; It was a tentative first few steps, but with more crossings, the more normal the event becomes. Advice, the larger the automobile, the more right a way it has. No sudden movements, nor sudden dash.

- Cuisine; Yes, there is a difference between the Vietnamese food from the homeland and the Vietnamese food in the States. Slightly different, but noticeable. Not a problem, I plan on sampling as much as possible.

- Etiquette/Manners; Having tons of money does not equate to having manners. These two concepts are separate.
My last trip (was my first time ever) back to Vietnam was with my father. I've lost my father to cancer since that trip, but the lessons learned and time spent with him was an experience that vibrated to my soul. That experience taught me the value of culture, heritage, and family.

This trip is filled with different experiences that only another Viet Kieu could understand. Sorry...only another person returning back to the country of their heritage. My travel buddy, Mr. M, this is his first time out of the States and first time back to Vietnam since we fled as boat people back in 1975. We were on the same boat. He is learning a lot. I can see it. I'm excited and happy for him.

Note; Viet Kieu is term for Vietnamese person that fled the communist government and living abroad. Now it has become slang for any expat Vietnamese going back to Vietnam.

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), Vietnam
November 2007

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), Vietnam
November 2007

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), Vietnam

November 2007

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), Vietnam
November 2007

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), Vietnam
November 2007

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), Vietnam
November 2007

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), Vietnam
November 2007

People say; "Character is build not on success, but forged from how you deal with failures."

I would add; "Determination and persistence to over come challenges and failures."

Kim Lan Dragon Boat team captain Gene
Long Beach, CA - Summer 2003

Parts of Team Kim Lan Dragon Boat
Long Beach, CA - Summer 2003

Long Beach Dragon Boat Championship
Long Beach, CA - Summer 2003

Long Beach Dragon Boat Championship
Long Beach, CA - Summer 2003

Long Beach Dragon Boat Championship
Long Beach, CA - Summer 2003

Weddings and it's consequences....(nonMBA)

Did I mention I've gone to more weddings then surf sessions this summer? Say that fast three times.

This passed weekend, I was the grooms man for a good friend. Here's a few notable items;







Weddings: A Marriage Manual!











Weddings: The "Do's" and "Don'ts", after the "I Do".











Consequences;
I can't remember much of the reception, but do remember getting bitten.











Consequences;
I just can't remember who did it. I'm curious as to which girl or which guy it was. Serious. I can't remember which gender left the hickey. hehe...

I know what I did last summer

Hola Amigos y Amigas,

It's the end of September and the summer is done. Not exactly. Living in SoCal, it's pretty much summer most of the time, except for the occasional rainy days during the "winter" season.

In no particular order:

Summer; It's the season for weddings. Sad to say, but I've gone to more weddings then surfing sessions. That will be corrected after B-School matters are settled.

Las Vegas; The unofficial destination for bachelor and bachelorette parities. Never pay them money until the services/goods are provided.

God-Son; It is time. He needs to learn from his own mistakes now. He will always be in my thoughts, but he needs to learn his own lessons and grow into his own identity.

Mother; As long as a parent has the capacity to piss you off, then they are in good condition. The time you start to feel sorry/sympathy/worry for them, then they are not in good health. Unfortunately, there's been more days of worry for my mother then the former. I am trying to cherish what time remains.

GMAT; If you hit the books long enough, something is bound to stay. Even the imprint of the book on your forehead counts. My date is Oct 23. Dun Dun Dum~...

Lessons Learned;

-Time is a valuable commodity. At our stage in life, our free time is more valuable then money.

-Smiles from a baby, transcend all the lost sleep.

-The most torturous sound of the universe is a screaming baby. The most heavenly sound of humanity is the laughter from a baby.

-Condoms have expiration date. Don't play Russian Roulette with your future.

Downtown Disney Entertainer







Downtown Los Angeles






Random club on Top of Vegas

Surfer to Surfer

Look not at our skin color nor who we worship. Look at our common love. Love has bridged many differences. Such is the love for surfing. Jewish surfer to Palestinian surfer. Surfer to Surfer.

Dorian Paskowitz, the American surfer credited with introducing the sport to Israel in the 1950s, returned this week with a new idea: using donated surfboards to bring Israelis and Palestinians together.

Remainder of Los Angeles Times article here.

Moreno beach, Northern California
Aug, 2005

Cliff overlooking Del Mar Beach, Southern California
June, 2006

Huntington Beach Pier, Southern California
June, 2006

Only can be said at Texas Hold'em game between male friends...(nonMBA)

You're going to be known as the fruitcake around the office!

We're going to send you back to grade school because of your math.

No more K-Mart shopping for you.

Damn~...kick him some more while he's down.

Your mojo is strong tonight.

Punk-Azz...you sucked out on me!

Angels vs Dodgers - May 2007

Angels vs Dodgers - May 2007



Angels vs Dodgers - May 2007

Southern Wisdom...

Some country music to set the tone. Keith Urban - An Australian singing American Country and he's quiet popular. BTW he's married to another Auzzie, Nicole Kidman.




Alabama Wisdom;


You ain't got control, if you got not self control. -Frank


There's two things that will piss a man...his car and woman. Screaming and yelling ain't going to fix either. -Franks Grandpa

Cabin @ Mammoth, California
March, 2007

Sierra Mountains
Bishop, California
March, 2007

Sierra Mountains
High Way 138
March, 2007

Words

Courtesy - Regardless if you are entitled to it, remember to say please first and and thank you afterwards.

Old Tower
Prague - Czech Republic
June 2003

Prague Castle
Prague - Czech Republic
June 2003

Morning Arrival
Bratislava - Slovakia
June 2003

In Remembrance
Bratislava - Slovakia
June 2003

Government Building
Budapest - Hungry
June 2003

MBA: Higher Standards of Integrity

When we were children, life was simple because everything was black and white. Now as adults, the black and whites are smugged and things become gray. Unfortunately, the older we get, there are more gray issues then black and white. I've seen, heard, and experience enough gray issues in my life to learn valuable life lessons. Hopefully I will continue to learn more life lessons.

At work, I would rather face the backlash of my integrity/honesty, instead of participating in questionable/gray issues.

At home, I would rather face her (future girlfriend/wife/etc) squarely in her eyes and answer, "You look simply beautiful. No that jeans/dress/etc does not make you look fat", then the backlash of telling her otherwise.

An excerpt from an article on higher stands of integrity below. Full article here:

CEOs aren't the only ones being held to higher standards of integrity these days. So are M.B.A. applicants and graduates. They are being scrutinized more closely than ever by both business-school admissions officers and corporate recruiters. At the front end, more schools are checking the accuracy of applications to weed out cheats. The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania hires an outside firm to do background checks on every admitted student. If a dishonest student manages to escape detection at that stage, he isn't necessarily home-free. Wharton recently expelled a second-year second-semester student after it belatedly discovered falsified material in the individual's application.

Words of wisedom from this past weekend

Sacrifice - Placing the concerns of others before yours'

Strength - Not using your superior physical attributes upon a weaker person

Integrity - Knowing that you will get away with it, but still not doing it

Class - Not saying hurtful things to the other person and/or situation

Character - They did you wrong and you rightfully can unleash your anger, fury,...but you don't lose your control. You don't lose your character

Buy flowers for others, to brighten your day...

When feeling lousy, try to cheer up other people so you don't have to think about your problems. Sounds weird? Try it. Next time you feel bad, buy flowers for another person. Their reaction will put a smile on you. Thus, I submit something that will put a smile on your face, so it will put a smile on my depressed face.