TATAR

We won … my Beloved Detroit Red Wings won 3-0 against the St. Louis Blues.  The Wings came into town today and played an early game at 1130.  It was the St. Louis Blues’ last home game and Fans Appreciation Day.  In the past, there would be drawings for round-trip airfares, next season tickets, party suites and many more prizes.  We were so disappointed.  At today’s game, all we got was a tiny inexpensive towel and a $10 coupon for purchase over $50 at a shoe store.  We bought raffle tickets but did not win.  The pot was over $22K and some lucky fan went home with half of that.

The Playoffs Match-Up was already set, so the game was not important.  But it was always nice when the team you are cheering for win.  The important thing was that we had a great time.

Da Wings will play the Boston Bruins in Round 1 – a perfect Original Six match-up.  The Blues will meet Chicago Blackhawks and that should be interesting too.

Let’s hope it won’t be “ta ta” (farewell) and more of Tatar :>)

HOW DO YOU MEND A BROKEN HEART?

I woke up this morning, got out of bed, even though every ounce of what little energy I had in my body told me to just hide under the cover and stay there until the start of next hockey season!  My beloved Red Wings was eliminated last night in overtime of Game 7 against the Blackhawks.  My husband tried to comfort me saying that the Wings put up a good fight.  Well, that did not make my broken heart feel any better.

I bought flowers and a bag of potting soil yesterday.  I spent the morning planting flowers.  I washed the patio furniture.  I dusted and vacuumed the house, washed and put away two loads of clothes, as I tried to keep busy, but the tears would not stop flowing!!! 

 After the Wings eliminated the Ducks and advanced to Round 2 facing the Blackhawks, I thought the Wings might be swept since the Hawks is the #1 seed (and the Hawks also won all the games during regular season).  The Hawks won the 1st game but the Wings came back and won the next three games.  All the sudden, instead of the nightmare of the Wings being swept, I dreamed of watching "Da Captain" Zetterberg raised the cup, paraded around the ice as the 2013 Stanley Cup champion.    

Well, I never learned my lesson for putting too much hope into something as unpredictable as winning three hockey games in the best of 7 playoffs series.  The Hawks came back, forced Game 7 and eliminated the Wings, once and for all, shattered my short-lived dream.  It was a sunny, comfortable and beautiful day in St. Louis, but how do you mend a broken heart of this Red Wings fan?

HAPPY LIKE TOTA DURING NHL PLAYOFFS

 How do you measure happiness?  Just like in the commercial asking how happy the customer is when saving money after switching insurance company - as happy as TOTA during NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs.  Regular readers notice that I have not mentioned as much about my beloved Detroit Red Wings after the lockout ended.  I was occupied with school plus disappointed with the Wings not playing at expected level at the beginning of the "season" and the last few weeks, I could not sleep or eat (just kidding) worrying because there was a possibility that the Wings might not get into the Playoffs. 

After dropping to 10th place, then struggling just to stay alive in the last playoffs spot, I am pleased to report that the Wings climbed up to 7th place (still embarrassing compared to previous years when they would be the first team to clinch playoffs spot).  Playoffs (Round 1) start tonight with the Wings against Anaheim Ducks so I might not be able to stay up late (puck drops at 7:30 p.m. in California but that will be 10:30 p.m. St. Louis time).  Other interesting match-ups - Toronto v. Boston; Montreal v. Ottawa; Rangers v. Capitals; and St. Louis v. LA Kings.  I finally got my wish - all Original Six teams are in the Playoffs, (Blackhawks v.Wild) including Maple Leafs after so many years of missing the fun!

Today is April 30th - 38 years after the Fall of Sai Gon in 1975.  The day when the Viet Nam war was supposedly ended but a different kind of war began for the Vietnamese people, my family included, living under Communist controlled government.  We escaped by boat in 1979, survived the journey and the refugee camp and began a new life in American (New York City) on January 10, 1980.  I am reminded of how blessed we are to be living in America and grateful for the freedom and liberty we have enjoyed.  God Bless America and those who have served this great nation.

HAPPY DAYS WERE HERE BUT HERE COMES THE RE-ALIGNMENT

I started this post on January 9th writing about how happy I was that the NHL lockout was over.  I also wrote about the Superbowl and my beloved New England Patriots being in the playoffs.  (Of course I was crushed when the Ravens eliminated the Patriots.  But I did not mind that the Ravens beat the 49ers to win the Superbowl.  I heard Kaepernick would have added a new tattoo of the Lombardi trophy should the 49ers won - haa haa.)

The next day, January 10th, I planned to write about the 33rd anniversary of my family coming to America, all the funny stories happened in the refugee camp and when we were "fresh off the boat" at JFK airport, our struggle learning the new language, adapting the New York style of living and assimilating into the American culture, going to school, working, paying taxes and becoming productive citizens.

A series of events took place that made my celebration of the end of the NHL lockout and the Superbowl became small and meaningless.  Just like a balloon running out of air, I could not and did not know how to continue blogging, believe it or not, I did not even go the games when my beloved Red Wings came to St. Louis on Jan. 19th and then again on Feb. 7th.   
This week the new realignment was made officially with the changes go into effect at the start of the 2013-2014 league season.  The biggest change in the realignment, wouldn't you know it, had to be that my beloved Red Wings and (I don't really care about Columbus Blue Jackets) are moving to the Eastern Conference while the Winnipeg Jets are moving to the Western Conference.  The Western Conference has five Original Six teams, Chicago Blackhawks, Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs and my Red Wings while the only Original Six team left skating in the Eastern Conference is my American hometown the New York Rangers.  So what does it all mean to a hockey fanatic like me?  Starting with the 2013-2014 season, my beloved Red Wings will come to St. Louis every other year.  There is a Vietnamese expression that for each day you don't see your "love" equals three long seasons, so how long it would be if you don't see your "love" in three years?

STILL UPSIDE DOWN (HOW DO YOU STOP THE FEELINGS?)

Regular readers (I don't know if I still have any faithful readers and forget about adoring fans - haa haa) know the main reason I have not been posting regularly because I am occupied with watching NHL playoffs games.  Playing Scrabbles is another reason.  My highest score is 468 points and my best word is "waxy" (I don't even know what it means!).    

In previous post, I was not clear with my comments about the new look of my silly blog.  I should have written that the new admin console caused much confusion when I first login.  I have gotten used to it but I still prefer the old format.  Blogger should know that you can't teach an old dog new tricks!  Ok, let's get back to hockey.  My world is still upside down because the Rangers are the only Original Six team still standing.  Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs never made it to the Playoffs.  My beloved Red Wings were eliminated (it's still painful writing about this) and both the Bruins and the Blackhawks did not make it to Round 2.

It has been a very strange 1st Series.  No one expected teams such as the Penguins and the #1 seed Canucks performed (uncharacteriscally) poorly.  I saw the above vanity plate at the Blues parking lot, how appropriate!  Too bad, the Toronto Maple Leafs goalie could not do exactly what he needed to do, "STOPUCKS"!     

ATOT - MY WORLD HAS TURNED UPSIDE DOWN!

My world has turned upside down in more than one way, beginning with this silly boring blog.  I got a big surprise when I logged in a few days ago and found this new look.  Did I ask for this fancy layout?  Did I accidentally click the button where the message "Click here to update your blog to a new look" was?  There might have been another message about the new look in April.  I thought if I continued to ignore it, my blog would still maintain the classic look, the one I am used to and comfortable with the last 6 years.  Well, I did not have any choice.  Someone at Blogger would not let me stay behind.  Does anyone know how to switch back to the "good old look"?  

Yes, you heard it right, my beloved Detroit Red Wings were eliminated from the playoffs by the Nashville Predators in game #5 last night.  The Wings only won the 2nd game and had been struggling since.  I could not stand the pains and had to shut off the television at five minutes left in the third period.  The television has not been turned on today and I did not even look at the NHL website.  (Normally I would check for update at least three times a day, first thing in the morning, during lunch, after I get home and before going to bed.)  My mind could not comprehend that the Wings are the first team to be eliminated.  It is terribly wrong and unnatural.  What would I be spending my time and energy on after a hard day of work?  Perhaps I could start watching the Food Channel and learn how to be a good cook - NOT!!!!!! 

HERE WE GO! (IT IS THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR!)

According to my book, this is the most wonderful time of the year - the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs started on Wednesday, April 11th. There are many great match-ups such as the Blues v. Sharks or the Caps v. Bruins. No home ice advantage for my beloved Red Wings being #5 seed, currently tied the series at 1-1 against the Predators #4. (It still does not sound right for Nashville to have a strong hockey team. Isn't the town supposed to be only about country music?) Already there are surprises with the Kings #8 leading the series 2-0 against the Canucks being #1 while the Flyers #5 won the first two games against the Pens #4 - that just goes to show that sometimes home ice does not guarantee winning.

These photos were taken at the April 4th game. Traffic was not too bad so we got to the arena early enough for me to take a few photos during warm-up. The last time the Wings were in town was at the November 2011 game. It was good seeing the "boys" again. Everyone is healthy, ready for the playoffs. The Wings played at the level expected but they still weak on power plays. No scoring the first 2 periods. In the third period, the Wings got a 2-man advantage but were sloppy and allowed a short-handed goal. I love short-handed goals but not when against my beloved Red Wings. When the Blues scored the 2nd goal three minutes later, I was furious and we walked out of the arena.

Well, three minutes after we left, Franzen scored, then tied the game with his 2nd goal of the night. Bertuzzi scored the winning goal at shootout. (My sincere apology to the "boys" for walking out on them and for not having faith that they would come back and win the game. My husband kept saying to me, "Oh ye lil faith!". We thought the Blues would win the President's Trophy for having the most points in the league. I even tried to get tickets for the last home game since it is Fans Appreciation Day and there would be many giveaways that included round trip airline tickets and iPad. We did not get the tickets because the game was scheduled on April 6th - Good Friday. When it comes to faith v. hockey, I know my priority!

TUESDAY TWO - "BO" aka iPad2

I have mentioned many times that I am "a day late and a dollar short" and that has been the story of my life. By now the whole world already knew about "the new iPad" or iPadHD or iPad3. Just last month, I finally purchased the iPad2 Wi-Fi + 3G 32GB White. We have been talking about it for a few years (we were impressed when QQ let us use his iPad when we were in NYC 2010 Thanksgiving) and thought we would get the iPad at Christmas time but never did. More than a year later, February 2012, we were at the Apple store and after the nice young man named "Bo" showed us all the wonderful stuff that we could do, I asked my husband for his wallet, took out CP credit card and say to Bo, "Sold - one iPad for my 51st birthday"!

Thus, it is only fitting that I name the iPad "Bo" after the young man who patiently answered all the questions us geezers asked. (It would have been much nicer if he would also mentioned that we should wait a few more months and get the latest model, the iPad3 instead.) It is also fitting that I write about the iPad2 for this week Tuesday Two post, just in time for the announcement of the new iPad. Of course, there are accessories to go along with the iPad. So far, I have purchased the cover with built-in wireless Bluetooth keyboard, a stylus pen so smudges from our fingers won't be all over the screen and just to be on the safe side, the handy microfiber screen cleaning cloths. I still need a camera connection kit so I could easily see my photos taken during our roadtrips and would not have to wait until after we got home to start orgazining the 10,000+ photos.

When we first brought Bo home, he had a hard time connecting to the wireless network. Bo would be connected then disconnected the next time we used it. After consulting with QQ and search the web to find out what the problems were, we decided that it was time for a new router. And everything worked fine after we installed the new router. We have been enjoying Bo since (QQ thought we returned Bo because we did not say much after calling him for help with the wireless connection.) We already downloaded a few apps, (how about my beloved Red Wings logo as screensaver, pretty cool eh?) especially those that would be helpful to our upcoming roadtrips. The only problem is I have become an addict to playing Scrabble almost everyday. I have gotten pretty good at the game. My highest score is 475 and I enjoy the challenge of not only not leaving any letters on the rack but also getting higher score. Thank you, Steve, for the wonderful things and the joy the iPad has brought to us.

LIFE IS VERY GOOD - TOTA IS VERY HAPPY

Have you heard? My beloved Detroit Red Wings set the new NHL record with 23 straight win at home (Joe Louis Arena in Detroit). The Wings broke the record of 22nd straight win by the Boston Bruins in 1929-30 season. To make it even better is the victory 3-2 against the San Jose Sharks. The Sharks eliminated the Wings from 2nd round in the last two playoffs, so to get the winning record in a game against the Sharks would be "extra icing" on the cake!

How about the beautiful goal by Datsyuk with only 5 seconds left in regulation in the game against the Predators on Tuesday night? You got to love that kid with his dazzling move, carrying the puck like as if it was on a string and shooting into the net where no one thought would be possible.

Let's not forget Franzen "the Mule", hard at work as ever. Next game is Tuesday, Feb. 21st in Chicago against the Blackhawks then back to Joe Louis Arena on Thursday, Feb. 23rd against the Canucks. This is almost as exciting as the playoffs because this kind of winning record only happens every 8 decades. Anyone says otherwise would be "unsportmanship"!

TUESDAY TWO - HAWKS AND WINGS

These photos were from last year when we attended a Chicago Blackhawks v. Detroit Red Wings game on December 17th at United Center in Chicago. The Red Wings lost 1-4. The tickets were an early Christmas present from my husband. A year later, I still have not accomplished my goals to attend the Boston Bruins, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens homegames. (I have been to the other three of the Original Six - New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks.) There have been major setbacks and my piggybank is currently empty, so I just have to try again in 2012. Hopefully the sky won't come crashing down anytime soon!

Most of the Blackhawks fans in our section were rowdy but typical behaviors of being hockey fanatics. (Please note that I am not saying that all Blackhawks nor hockey fans were bad people.) It just happened that two individuals in the row behind us were spilling out "really stinky vocabulary". After 5 minutes of listening to the loud, almost screaming foul language, my husband turned around and said, "I am asking you to tone down your language. Maybe you are not aware that there are a couple of kids in the row in front of us. So please watch your language." What shocked me was a female voice and her comment, "This is hockey - the kids need to learn real life lessons." Only then, the father of the kids, a boy and a girl about 8-10 years old, turned around and tell these rowdy fans, "Shut your mouth or I will call security." The father then turned and thanked my husband. I questioned why the father waited until my husband, a stranger, stepped up before he being the father should have spoken up first being that those were his kids. The rowdy people quiet down and either they were removed by security or whatever happened, they never came back when the 2nd peirod started. The arena was loud and lived up to its name "the Mad House" but we had a great time, except a victory by the Wings!

DA WINGS IN ST. LOUIS (MERRY CHRISTMAS, FATHER RICH)

These photos were taken at the December 6th game. The Wings lost again, for the 2nd time, to the Blues. My husband was able to get off work early, and we got to the arena enough time for the warm up. Last time, the game already started when we arrived. So, the Wings could not blame me for being a "jinx" since they lost whether I was there watching and like my husband said, "blowing kisses" to the boys while they were warming up!

The day after the game, I saw Father Rich after the 8:00 a.m. Mass. Before I could say hello, he said, "Well, the Blues beat your Wings again." (Father Rich saw us at a Blues v. Wings game and since then he gave me a hard time about being a Red Wings.) I thought since I already planned to go for Reconciliation before Christmas, I might well say what was on my mind. "Yes, Father, I am sure you will enjoy it more when the Blues finally won their 1st Stanley Cup." Father Rich did not have anything else to say because my response reminded him that the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup 11 times. Merry Christmas, Father. Remember that when it comes to hockey and my beloved Red Wings, don't mess with me!

TUESDAY TWO - FOOL ME TWICE, SHAME ON ME

I sort-of temporarily ran out of material for Tuesday Two posts so this photo captured at 2:06 in the 2nd period of the 2nd visit (Tuesday, December 6th) by the Detroit Red Wings to St. Louis, will have to do. Notice that I left out the word "beloved" when referring to the Wings. They lost again 1-2 to the Blues. Must be too much milk and cookies! They fooled me in the 1st period when they "seemed" to play well but somehow could not score on power-play and too many turn-overs. At one point, the Wings could not clear the puck out their red zone and they looked more like players that just came up the minor! The next game is in April 2012. Will I be fooled again? The 3rd time (if the Wings losing the game) will be a sham, not a charm.

DA WINGS IN ST. LOUIS

We went to the first match-up game of the 2011-2012 season between St. Louis Blues v. my beloved Detroit Red Wings. It was Tuesday (November 15th) evening so we did not get to the arena until after work. The City Hall parking lot (across from the arena) was full when we got there. We had to wait for the attendant to remove the barricade to open up more parking space. We missed the warming up, not that I did not already take enough photos of "the guys" from previous games.

I knew it was early in the season and there are many changes in the line-up with "old guys" being replaced by the "new kids", but the Wings' power plays were terrible. In the first period, the Wings could not score even when the Blues got a 5-minute penalty for personal misconduct (late hit from behind). Second period was not any better, the Wings passing was lousy and so many turnovers in the neutral zone. Even when #5, 13, 40, and 93 were on the ice, there was no scoring! The Blues had more shot-on-goal than the Wings in the third period. The Blues won 2-1 .

Watching the Wings skating around the rink (they sure did not play hockey the way I expected - blaah), the players looked like they already ate too much Thanksgiving turkey and stuffing. I am glad we did not spend our hard-earned money on the tickets. Last year we purchased club seats that included food/drink and a hockey stick to be autographed by the Blues players after the game. This year we just bought "cheap" tickets. Actually the seats are center-ice and just right below the suites level. Or I finally reached a point in my life with an attitude, "been there done that" - how much food could I eat or how many more autograph sticks do I really need?

Next game is again on Tuesday, December 6th. I just hope the guys don't play like as if they were stuffed with cookies and milk!

WHO IS AFRAID OF NUMBER 13?

Since I don't have a photo of a black cat or a tall ladder, this butterfly named Great Mormon from Southeast Asia, will have to be. When I made arrangement for the trip back from Atlanta, I wanted to spend an extra day (Saturday) with my sister and also to make it easier for my husband to pick me up, so I booked the returning flight on Sunday, November 13th.

I don't consider myself to be a supertitious person. I say things like, "knock on wood" while gently knocking on my own head, just as a joke. I broke a few mirrors but I never became paranoid that something bad would be happening for the next 7 years of my life. I just found that it was a funny coincidence when I got to the Atlanta airport while waiting to go thru security checkpoints, the agent tried to get things moving by telling the passengers to go to a shorter lane. I was directed to lane #13.

Mind you, I was not at all concern that I am flying on the 13th and now I stood in lane #13 and getting on an airplane to my seat #31E. As I was waiting at the gate (21A), a small question came to my mind - should I be worry? Not at all because there are many people, Qaptain Qwerty included, was born on the 13th and there were many times that his birthday fell on Friday the 13th. My Godfather birthday was also on the 13th. Hockey players are known as the most supertitious in sports, and many of them wearing #13 (like Pavol Datsyuk of the Detroit Red Wings) on their jersey and that is considered good luck. So who is afraid of #13, definitely not TOTA ;>)

I AM SO HAPPY I COULD CRY!

I am so happy I could cry because hockey season started, no NFL (football) lock-out and the Cardinals not only made the playoffs as a wildcard but advanced to the National Leage Series. (Ok, I was sadden that my American hometown team the New York Yankees were eliminated by the Detroit Tigers, my 2nd American hometown.) Above critter is not the famous squirrel that ran onto the field and then dashed across the home plate at Busch Stadium when the Cardinals v. Phillies game on Wednesday, October 5th. The Cardinals won the game and the squirrel became fans' favorite. (Some of you might remember the above was the squirrel that made holes on our plastic patio furniture a few years ago. We finally got a set of iron table and chairs. I would love to know what that squirrel told his dentist as to what happened to his front teeth after trying to take a bit out of our iron furniture.)

Not being much of a baseball person, I am glad that St. Louis Cardinals made the playoffs. It is good for the town. I am sure businesses in downtown St. Louis are grateful for the additional income. It would be interesting if the Cardinals and the Tigers meet again for another World Series. The Cardinals won the Championship over the Tigers in 2006.

I love the commercial with Christmas music playing in the background and the people are smiling, looking so excited while they are decorating their homes before the games. A voice came on, "It is like Christmas for football fans", that is so true! I was so happy when the lockout did not take place and the 2011-2012 NFL season started. A very nice friend who has season tickets is so kind to sell us tickets for the Rams v. Saints game on October 30th. How about them Detroit Lions, eh? After all the years being the joke of NFL, on the currently standing, the Lions are 5-0 being one of the two teams that are undefeated. Greenbay Packers is the other team also 5-0. The Rams are again struggling but I look forward to seeing Drew Brees when the Saints marching in to St. Louis on October 30th.

Of course, the most wonderful time of the year is when my beloved Detroit Red Wings come into town. Because the Red Wings always draw big crowd so the Blues v. Wings games are usually scheduled on weekdays and not weekends. Normally the weekends would have better attendance. NHL schedulers know that fans will attend the game if they schedule top teams on weekdays. October will be a busy month with baseball playoffs, football on the weekends and hockey games every other day - I am so happy I could cry!