I LOVE LUCY

Without saying, my readers know that this entry is not about the popular American television comedy starring Lucille Ball aka Lucy Ricardo and her Cuban-American husband Ricky (Desi Arnaz). This is about Lucy van Pelt, a bossy, crabby little girl in the comic strip Peanuts. The drawing below reminds me of the time when my little brother VL forgot to bring chalk to class. It was in Viet Nam and all first graders practiced writing using white chalk on a small black board. VL had to rush out of his classroom to get to the 2nd floor where my classroom was. The policy was that students were not allowed outside the classroom once the classes started. Some kids gave VL a hard time when he got to my classroom and that was too much for VL. He was so upset and terrified. I gave VL the chalk and watched to make sure he got back to his classroom.

Like Lucy, I was good at making up stories when I was a child. I often told other kids outrageous misinformation and beat up those who dared to say otherwise. My favorite strip is when Lucy pointed at something on the sidewalk and informed Linus that it was a butterfly from Brazil. After Linus pointed out it was just a potato chip, Lucy still insisted that it was a potato chip from Brazil. Now and then my husband and I would point at something on the ground and claimed that it was from Brazil, like last Christmas when I took photo of a piece of gum from Brazil on the street of New York (hah).

I remember the time when I was riding my bicycle around the neighborhood and ran into a little girl who came out of nowhere as I turned around the corner. I decided to take the little girl back to her house and told her father that some kids knocked her down and ran away. Since the little girl could not yet speak, my story was completely unchallenged. The father was so grateful that he thanked me and also gave me a bag of sweeten dried fruit for being a Samaritan.

I read a few self-help books about relationships and how men and women are different when it comes to being happy in their marriages. The books are written by both male and female authors but I also read in a magazine article that the majority of people who purchase these books are women. Men don't run to the bookstores or library to read books so they could understand why the woman got so upset because her husband forgot what she just said five minutes ago. Men don't read books so they could understand what works or not working in their relationships or how to fulfill emotion needs of their wives. Men don't read books such as "Smart Women Foolish Choice" or "Too Good to Leave, Too Bad to Stay - How to Know When is the End of Your Marriage" or something like that!

I over-analyzed too many little things or delved into the details of the person behavior instead of chalking it up as mindless or ignorance. Another favorite strip was when Charlie Brown told Lucy that he felt life was just passing him by and that he did not fit in with the rest of the world. Lucy started with her lecture about how big the world is with all the people living in it and it is the only known world, then Charlie Brown flipped over when Lucy yelled out "WELL, LIVE IN IT, THEN" and demanded "Five cents, please" for her service.

In Vietnamese/Chinese culture, a party is held at the completion of the baby one-month old. It is the time to introduce the baby to the entire family and in America, to announce the child's Chinese name. Red-dyed hard-boiled eggs, symbolize fertility and good fortune, are distributed to the guests. To foretell future of the child, the parents would place about five to ten objects, allowing the child to select two to three items from the selections. Of course, parents would not include a broom (sanitary worker) or items that would not be symbols of highly respected occupations. Based on whichever the items picked by the child, the adults would interprete the child's future occupation. The usual items include a book, a pen (a teacher, writer or educator) money (banker or gambler), toys such as hammer, knife, (trade person) musical instruments, ruler, mirror (beautician or vain) or medical device as most Asian parents have high hopes and ambitious desires that their children would become doctors.

According to Mother, I picked a book, a pen and a mirror (that is the reason for posting a drawing of Lucy holding the mirror). There you have it, I am a vain person who loves to read and write.

Generally I am a happy person and somewhat content with my current condition. I don't remember if I ever was so happy that I would dance like Lucy. Actually I don't know how to dance. I did a few steps now and then when I slowed dance with my husband. I was pretty good at the Duck Dance at weddings. I don't watch the show "Dancing with the Stars" but I do admire people who really know how to dance, especially the classic elegance ballroom dance. There were a few times at social/business functions, male acquaintances asked me to dance and I always responded that I would only dance with my husband. Of course, I expected the same that my husband not dancing with another woman. I know other people don't mind and think it is harmless when the spouse dances with someone else, as long as dancing does not lead to something else. As they say, different folks different strokes!

The drawing of Lucy on top of the football is how content I am when watching my beloved New England Patriots played on Sunday or Monday Night Football. There are so many things that I read differently now compared to when I first read the Peanuts more than 25 years ago. For example, I now appreciate the strip when Schroeder corrected Lucy that it was Johann, not Johnny Sebastian Bach. Lucy then decided that she would write about Bobby Orr. Of course, I did not know back then about Bobby Orr, a defenseman of the Boston Bruins, and one of the greatest hockey players. The drawing below is Lucy's famous excuse for not catching the ball because the sun got into her eyes. Often people make up execuses, blaming someone or circumstances, and not willing to accept responsiblities for the mistakes. It is the government, society, the school system, the company, the co-workers, not our own incompetence or attitude that contribute to the failures.

THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS

When the dog bites, when the bee stings
When I'm feeling sad,
I simply remember my favorite things
and then I don't feel so bad!

Borrowing from the song "My Favorite Things", a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music, when Maria sang with the von Trapp children during a thunderstorm, these are a few of my favorite things when I had to stay in door because of the freezing temperature and slippery roads.

My husband loves to tell the story how he saw an old locker about to be discarded, thrown into the dumpster at work and asked if he could have it. He took it home, fixed the broken lock, painted it and it became our Red Wings locker. We keep ticket stubs, game notes and sports related items in the locker. The plastic boxes on top of the locker contain my husband's hats. CP has over a hundred hats as he always adds more to the collection from places we travel to. The hat on the side of the locker was from Alaska, appropriate look of the wilderness. Next to the locker are the ticket holders which are to be used with appropriate sports, Hockey Hall of Fame or Detroit Red Wings when we go to the hockey games, Superbowl XL when we go to football games and World Series when we go to baseball games.

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes

Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eye lashes

Silver white winters that melt into spring

These are a few of my favorite things!

There were no girls in white dresses but plenty of snowflakes and freezing temperature when we waited outside Ford Field Stadium in Detroit for Superbowl XL. We were so excited because it was our first Superbowl and for poor people like us, it would be once in a lifetime experience. We still laugh about a man in the seat next to us that he looked like "Tony the Fist" from the Godfather.

The above Yao Ming jersey was an attendance prize from a conference I attended in Chicago with my sister back in 2005. When the raffle number was called for a prize of Yao Ming's shirt, I did not pay much attention. Then my sister CH looked at the ticket and told me that it was my number. Thinking that it was just a lousy t-shirt, I was pleasantly surprised that the prize was actually an autographed jersey, with certificate of authentication of Yao Ming signature. A person at the next table tried to offer me $150 to which I responded, "Bidding starts at $1,000". The next day I checked Ebay and found that similar item was sold for $350. I had a photo of me wearing the jersey but it was so long that it looked as if I was wearing a dress!

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens

Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens

Brown paper packages tied up with strings

These are a few of my favorite things!

Here is another example of my husband's handiwork. We purchased the reproduction of the new Busch Stadium for only $15 (original price was $75) because the right bottom corner was a bit dogeared. CP found the frame for $20 at an estate sale. We had to purchase the two small frames for the tickets, the first World Series game in the new Busch Stadium. Added the two pitcher's helmets, blue from the Detroit Tigers and red from St. Louis Cardinals, the total cost was just a little over a hundred dollars.

Cream colored ponies and crisp apple strudels

Doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles

Wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings

These are a few of my favorite things!

Well, I don't have anything that has flying wild geese on it. The elephant below was a gift from my brother VL when he went to India on a business trip. Look closely inside this elephant, you will see a smaller elephant and another smaller elephant. All three elephants were carved from one stone. I would love to see how it was done. It is sad that people who have such talents could only peddle their art works to tourists for a few dollars while a handbag with the name of a famous designer printed all over (no artistry there) would sell for hundred of dollars.

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

Last weekend we finally put away all the Christmas decorations. We also tried to re-arrange the storage space in our basement. We gathered two full boxes of items to donate to Goodwill Thrift Shop. While going through the containers, I found these old pairs of prescription glasses that I used to wear before contact lenses. I put the glasses into the collection box sponsored by the Lions Club. I think the donations would be given to people, mostly in underdeveloped countries, where prescription glasses are considered luxury items.

I still remember an incident that haunts me to this day. It was during one of the stages in our refugee life in Indonesia when we moved from Berhala Island to Kuku Island, as we were getting off the boat, my Dad handed me his jacket as he had to carry someone who needed help. I accidently turned the front pocket of his jacket upside down and there went his reading glasses into the water. I don't remember if we tried looking for the glasses or the water was too deep to attempt such task. Dad did not yell at me or express any anger over my carelessness. I tried writing to Uncle Ping who was going to sponsor our family to America. I don't remember what I wrote that caused Uncle Ping to respond with a nasty letter. Uncle wrote that how dared I asked him to send my Dad a pair of reading glasses while Uncle already had many expenses as part of the sponsorship. Uncle then went on with his ranting that the family was never kind to his parents and that my family only contacted him now as we needed his help but did not care that he even existed when we were in Viet Nam.

When we finally came to America, my parents pretended that we never received that letter. I think Uncle realized he shouldn't have written that letter and had tried to make amend.

I read somewhere that majority of Asians as an ethnic group are nearsighted. That is true in my family as all four of us (my three siblings and I) are. Last year I learned that my 6-year old nephew would also need glasses. My sister CH commented that she was angry at the adults who did not tell her not to sit too close to the television. I did not say anything at the time, but I thought even if someone told CH not to, would she listen? As children, we often rebeled and ignored warnings from adults. Only when we grow up or something terrible happened, then we regret why we did not obey.

In addition to the glasses, I also found this ancient cleansing and disinfecting system. When I first obtained contact lenses in 1985, it did not work out too good. I experienced irritations, uncomfortable, and my eyes were red most of the time when wearing the contacts. Once a week, usually on Saturday night, I would go through the routine of disinfecting the lenses. First, I put a tablet into the tube filled with solution. Once the tablet dissolved, I would place the lenses in the holder (catalyzing disk), on both sides. I had to make sure to place the lenses in the correct side, the left marked with the letter L, as my left eye had higher prescription. The lenses would remain in the tube overnight. I must remember to take the lenses out of the tube, rinsed thoroughly. The best way would be to place the lenses in the case for a few hours before putting them in your eyes. Otherwise, the chemical in the tablet would cause a burning sensation to the eyes. The first pair of contacts lasted only about six months. When I found the lenses a year later, they looked like pieces of dry skins. I finally gave contact lenses another try in late 1986 and it has been working out pretty good since. Currently I am wearing extended wear soft lenses but I take them out at night. I feel it is unhealthy to keep the lenses in while sleeping. I have thought of lasik surgery as in the last few years, the procedure has proven effective, safe and affordable. Personally, I am unsure of the potential risks and at my age, it might not be worth it.

I have thought of donating this ancient cleansing and disinfecting devise to Bausch and Lomb for their museum. Is there such thing as Museum of Glasses and Contact Lenses? Thanks to the wonderful world of Internet, I found information on Medical Museum at University of Iowa. Under the title "In the Eye of the Beholder: Sight, Illusion, and Disorder", the website provided history and display of items such as trial lenses and frames in 1890, a Chinese version of folding spectacles with case around 1800, and the most important statement "Spectacles have been valued as a mark of intelligence, social status and style since their invention in 13th-century Europe." I feel so much better about wearing reading glasses (or older people glasses) in addition to contact lenses.

FIRST LOVE

I do remember being a bully when I was a little girl growing up in Viet Nam. I would punch and pound the kids in the neighborhood who used to tease me that my eyes were "as big as the bowls" (Mat bu nhu cai to). I specially remembered beating up my cousin, let's call him Harmony who was the 3rd child of my 2nd uncle, a brother of my mother. Harmony was the same age but for some reasons he never fought back. There were two most memorable incidents of how I mistreated Harmony and tried to cover up my crimes.

The first incident was when Harmony cried after I slugged him, I ran to the corner in front of the store. My grandfather (Che Cung) saw me crying and asked what happened. I told Che Cung that my Dad was going on a business trip with his young brother, Uncle Strength who was a gambler and a womanizer. I was terrified that my Dad would follow Uncle Strength and neglected Mother and us kids. "What happened when Dad lost all the money gambling and had to sell the house, we will be hungry and have no place to live", I continued while Che Cung tried to comfort me that such thing would never happen as Dad was a good man. Harmony never had a chance to report my crime and I was off to the market to buy candy with the coins Che Cung just gave me.

The second incident was a favorite story Mother still loves to tell. Che Cung asked me why Harmony was crying as we were playing in the backyard. I told Che Cung that an American helicopter just flew by and threw down some candy specifically just for me. Harmony cried because the Americans did not give him any candy. Che Cung laughed so hard at my unlikely story. That time I did not get away. Later Che Cung told Mother but I don't remember how I was punished for the crime.

Fast forward to the year when I turned 14 years old when I spent the summer in Cai Tau Ha (Ship Bottom). Harmony and his parents live in a nearby village called An Huu (Peaceful Retirement). That summer, for about three weeks, Harmony was sent to Cai Tau Ha to help Che Pho with her planting and farming. In addition to the fruit garden, Che Pho also raised chickens, ducks and a few pigs. Whether it was caused by teenager hormone or the summer heat, I was stung by the love bug the minute I saw Harmony. The little skinny boy that I used to beat up had turned into a tall, muscular handsome young man. Unaware of my thoughts, Harmony would squeeze my shoulder while laughing and commenting that the last time we saw each other we were little kids. Harmony continued to tease me whether I would beat him up again. Harmony did not realize that my red face was not caused by the sun but it was the beginning of my infatuation.

The next three weeks I would follow Harmony wherever he went and spent much of my time bringing drinks, food and doing whatever Harmony asked while pretending that I was just being helpful. No one included Harmony suspected that I had fallen in love with my first cousin, except Che Pho (a woman's instinct). There were a few times when Che Pho would assign different tasks to keep me from being around Harmony. As in most cultures, first cousins were considered brothers and sisters of the same parents. In Vietnamese culture, my infatuation without any physical actions was already considered incestuous. My first love and I had committed incest without even having been kissed!

Before we separated, Harmony and I promised to write letters to keep in touch. We did. The following summer, I begged my parents to let me spend the summer with Che Pho again, hoping that Harmony would be there. Three long weeks after I arrived in Cai Tau Ha, Harmony came but only for a few days. I wrote in my diary how I wished we could be together everyday and how I could find the way to tell Harmony that I loved him. I dreamed of being told that I was adopted so that I could marry Harmony as we had no relations. I did not get a chance to be with Harmony as Che Pho kept him busy with many tasks. Then Mother found my diary. Mother explained while crying that she could not believe that I have committed such terrible act. I still remembered Mother was shaking so badly that Che Pho had to hold her while also crying. She asked how I could even have such thoughts towards Harmony who was like my own brother. Mother ordered me to stop writing or having any contact with Harmony. I cried, apologized to Che Pho and Mother for dishonoring the family and promised to forget about Harmony.

I often wonder what could have taken place if Mother never found my diary. Would Harmony and I commit the terrible crime of incestuous of marrying a closely-consanguinious blood relative? Or would my infatuation for Harmony go away? It did as at the start of the following year, a nice young man offered me a ride to and from school. We went to a few movies with a group of friends and usually played ping-pong after school. I was told later by my cousin, Rose that she was assigned the task to keep an eye on me to make sure that I would not make any attempt to contact Harmony. Rose told me that she also guarded me in case I tried to commit suicide (to redeem myself for dishonored the family) or run away.


Just like Charlie Brown's love for the little red-headed girl, Harmony never knew about my unrequited, unknown and unreturned love for him.
Looking back I am so glad and thankful that Mother found my diary and put a stop to what could have been a shameful situation for the family.
This entry is about that happy summer and the sad ending of my first love.

ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW

The title of this entry is the same title recently posted by my brother, Qaptain Qwerty where QQ wrote about a few new things he learned while playing Yahoo!Games Daily Crosswords. QQ also referenced a book by Robert Fulghum's "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" which is also one of my favorite books.

This entry is about the Peanuts Comic Books and some of my favorite characters. I am sure I am not the only reader who share many traits with the characters in the Peanuts gang. When my family was completing U.S. Citizenship applications, we discussed adding an American first name as well as keeping our Vietnamese first name as middle name. My parents and brother TL decided to keep their given Vietnamese names. My sister CH chose a name of a British queen. I made a sign that read "Welcome to St. Louis, Your Majesty" as I greeted CH at the airport when she visited St. Louis a few years ago.

My brother VL selected an American name from a character in the Peanuts. The name fits VL perfectedly as in real life, VL is smart, reserve, fun-loving with gentle manners and a kind heart yet at times stood up for himself when necessary, just like Linus often defuses his older sister, Lucy's temper with clever logical comments or genuine affections. VL also suggested that I should take the name Lucy as I was also such a crabby and bossy person! No, I did not slug VL for his outrageous suggestion.

Like Lucy Van Pelt, I was the first born. While Lucy wanted a little sister, generally treats her younger brother Linus like dirt and made no secret that she would rather be an only child, I have always wished that I had an older brother. I never had much thought of being the only child or whether I should have a sister or a brother. In future entries, I will provide details about as a baby I was also a fuss-budget and one time sent the entire family into a panic trying to figure out why I was crying hysterically. Like Lucy, I was a bully. From the stories told by my mother, I used to beat up other kids, mostly boys, specifically a cousin whom I later fell madly in love with. (More about this in the next entry entitled First Love). I had only one doll but I broke the neck of the doll after playing with it, probably setting up a wrestling or boxing match. I had no interest whenever my female cousins tried to get me to play house, cooking or setting up doll houses.

Unlike Lucy, I adored my little brother VL. I had fond memories of driving around the neighborhood in a tricycle with VL sitting in the back seat. I still remembered the time when I felt so rejected because I wanted to hold VL but he would not let me. My Dad told me to wait until VL was tired of walking, then he would need me to carry him. I don't remember we ever fought or exchanged verbal arguments. I never stole the crayons from my little brother. Actually it was the other way around. One time I came home from school with a bag of cookies. I put it down on the kitchen table. After I washed my hands, as I came back for my cookies, VL took the liberty and already distributed the cookies to others in the house. No, I did not slug VL for his generosity with my cookies.

Another time was when Mother left VL alone in front of the house with a large tin can full of cookies. A group of older kids came by, started taking the cookies while VL looked on without making a sound or protesting. Talk about sharing spirits in such young age!

The drawing of Sally Brown crying reminded me of the stories Mother is still telling even to this day about how difficult I was as a child. Mother said that I was such a pain that the barber and the dentist asked Mother not to take me there. Mother said that I used to scream from the top of my lung as the barber raised his scissors ready to cut my hair. One time after a bloody scream, I kicked the dentist so hard, causing him to almost knock down the tray of instruments. There was a male neighbor two doors down from our first home in Cau Nhi Thien Duong (Double Paradise Bridge) who always hugging and kissing my female cousins who also lived next door to us. The first time this neighbor put out his arms about to hug me, I let out a loud scream that he never tried again. The man had the nerve to complain to Mother that I was such an unlikable (kho ua) child. I wonder how many people would recognize that this kind of behavior by an adult male towards little girls could have been child molestation.

The Peanuts were the first American comic books we saw at Jackson Heights Branch library and immediately fell in love with Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy, Sally and the gang. (My brother VL corrected me as I previously wrote that we went to Elmhurst library which is way over on the other side of Broadway. This is the reason why I love blogging, more than just recording what took place but helping us stay connected.) We enjoyed so much that we took all the copies and the librarian had to tell us that each person could only check out ten copies at one time. So we divided the books and checked out as many copies as we were allowed for that day. We started to use words such as Blockhead, Good Grief!, Sweet Babboo, and excuse such as The sun got into my eyes or when being challenged, "I give you five reasons" trying to threaten the other with a fist like Lucy. My brother VL gave me a copy of Peanuts A Golden Celebration - The Art and the Story of the World's Best-Loved Comic Strip. Over the years I also acquired a dozen or more different copies. No matter how many times I read the strip Peanuts, I still giggle or have a good laugh when looking at the drawings. All I Really Need to Know I learned from the Peanuts to be like Charlie Brown and his endless determination and hope that one day his team will win a baseball game with him pitching, that Lucy will not pull the football away to allow Charlie to kick the football and to remember that he is a lovable person no matter what others said.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Whenever my husband commented about having born on Christmas Day and that he should get two presents, I would respond by asking that I should also get extra present for celebration of the Lunar New Year. I was born on December 12th in the Lunar calendar, yet when I was only two months old, I was considered two years old as everyone grows one year older at the start of the new year. Talk about being mature before my age!

One of the customs observed by traditional Chinese is serving a whole fish at dinner, head, tail and even the eyes! When one side of the fish is done, the entire fish must be turned over in one motion. Breaking the fish would be considered bad luck (similar to a boat being capsided). The pronunciation of the word Fish sounds the same as Surpluses. I thought the above photo showing the golden fish would be appropriate for this entry about the Chinese New Year.

The embroidery was a gift from my mother and it was a special order from Vietnam. My husband purchased the frame at an estate sale for about $40. My Mom told me it cost her about $175 to get a smaller framing done in New York. In a perfect world, St. Louis would be an hour drive from NYC. Each weekend I would come over to spend time with my nephew while my husband would help my brother with minor repairs. Or my mother would visit us and cook delicious food with plenty of left over for lunch the following week. We would go to estate sale or garage sale so my mother could comment about how people were foolish to spend money on knick-knack instead of saving for rainy days.

My brother wrote that he loved the fruit garden when he visited Che Pho (material grandmother) during a few summers before we left Vietnam. I too remembered fondly how much I looked forward to visiting Cai Tau Ha during the summer and also at the new year. The week before Tet, the helpers would be busy giving the house a thorough cleaning, Che Pho would be busy with food shopping, merchant dropping off fresh meat, and all major cooking would be done before the new year arrived.

I remembered the red laterns lighted, displayed at the front door of Che Cung (maternal grandfather) drug store. Each child received new clothings. Che Pho owned a fabric shop and she would tell me to pick out an extra set of clothing. She told me not to tell other cousins as they might be envious. Of course, we all looked forward to receiving the red packets (lai shi or hung bao) which contained money given to the children by the adults and elders. Because Che Cung was a prominent businessman, we had a lot of visitors paying respect during the new year, so in addition to lai shi from my parents and relatives, I made sure I was nearby to receive lai shi from the visitors as well.

There were lion or dragon dance performed around the village, in front of businesses as a symbolic ritual to chase away bad spirits and welcoming in good luck. Most of the children from my second uncle would have deck of cards in their shirt pocket, trying to get others to gamble. I usually play a game or two of rolling the dices. Most of the time I was busy eating the sweet snacks, watermelon seeds that had been dyed in red and trying to keep my clothes from getting wrinkles.

This is the start of the Year of the Rat (4705 in the traditional Chinese calendar) but I thought a photo of Mickey and Minnie Mouse would look nicer than a rat. The Chinese character below means happiness. Here are my wishes to all my adoring fans and anyone who reads my blog - May you enjoy many years of happiness, filled with love, good health and prosperity.

THE IMPERFECT STORY

I am now just getting over the biggest upset in NFL Super Bowl history - congratulations to Eli Manning and my hometown team New York Giants for defeating my beloved New England Patriots. It was a tight game and will be the most puzzled, talked about sport event for many years to come.

Since I could not get tickets this time, I thought of posting photos from the 2006 Super Bowl XL in Detroit, Michigan would help ease my pains. How was I able to get the tickets? Knowing the right person, I guess. During a meeting, I mentioned to a business acquaintance that I have family in Detroit and would love to attend the Super Bowl. He told me that his neighbor was a line judge and he would be able to get me tickets at original cost. And he did. My husband and I drove from St. Louis to Detroit, stayed at Brother JP house and attended our first Super Bowl. The Rolling Stone performed at half time. Two weeks earlier, we also saw Mick and the boys in St. Louis.

On the way back on Monday, while driving at 65 mile an hour on I-70 in Illinois, about an hour from St. Louis, we had a flat tire. I was driving and my husband was asleep in the passenger seat. Luckily no other vehicle was next to us and I was able to pull over without problem. Two highway troopers stopped to check on us but we were able to put on the spare tire and went on our way. Also, we were fortunate that it was cold but wasn't snowing and there was still daylight.


As I have previously stated that I would cheer for both teams, Patriots v. Giants; deep down I wanted my beloved Patriots to win, to make history as the second team with a perfect record, 19-0. But of course, life was never perfect. The Giants won 17-14. It was an imperfect ending for the Patriots.

There were so many people who did not want the Patriots to win. St. Louisians have not gotten over Adam Vinatieri's 48 yard field goal taking away the championship from the Rams in 2002. The 1972 Miami Dolphins rejoiced over the Patriots' defeat so they would remain the only team with the perfect season and the championship. Fans from other teams wanted revenge and cheering for the Giants was the only way they could get over the humiliations.

The Patriots defense was good enough to keep the Giants from moving the ball and no touch down the first three quarters. Offensively, the Patriots fell apart as there was no protections for Brady. TB kept getting sacked, rushed, causing him to throw too many imcomplete passes. I knew it was over when Eli Manning instead of being sacked, escaped and threw a pass to Tyree, with one handed catch, secured the ball by his helmet and held on to give the Giants much needed 1&10.

These are the photos taken from our seats. According to a news article, some people were willing to pay more than $3,500 for a ticket compared to the original cost of $700-$900. The demand was specially brisk this year, averaging about $4,300. When we purchased the tickets in 2006, we had to submit our names, home address, promised to use the tickets and not to resale for profit. Whenever I stand in line at the ladies room, I would casual comment that the only time I saw men standing in line to get into the restrooms was at the Super Bowl.

The Steelers celebrated their victory over the Seahawks.

The photo below was the presentation of quarterbacks from all the teams that won Super Bowl championships. It must be a wonderful feeling for Olivia (what a lovely name) Manning, the proud mother of Peyton Manning (the Colts won last year Super Bowl) and this year, Eli Manning and the NY Giants. Until next year, here is to the New York Giants and a well-deserved championship.

YOU CAN'T GO HOME AGAIN

There is a saying, "Houseguests and fish stink after three days", and that was how I felt after staying (sleeping on the pull-out sofa) at my brother's house last Christmas. I am sure it was not too pleasant for my brother and everyone else in the house either. The day after Christmas, my husband was sick with a cold (mainly coughing and running nose). The pull-out sofa in the living room was comfortable but not for resting during the day when there were activities and people walking around. I did not get much sleep at night because of the coughing, and to make matter worse, each morning, my mother would be in the kitchen, next to the living room, re-arranging pots and pans, then the whistle sound from the pot of boiling water as my mother made a fresh pot of tea and packed lunch for my brother.

Later while my husband rested in my mother's room (after she insisted that he should), my mother would comment about her back pain or feeling weak from not being able to have her afternoon rest!

After the third day, one early morning I decided to get out of the house and went for a walk. It was raining and very windy but I needed some fresh air and just being by myself. I went to an Italian bakery shop at the corner. With a cup of coffee and a blueberry donut, I sat and listened to a conversation of three old men sitting at a nearby table. I could not understand what topics they were discussing. All I heard was "Forget about it" in English and "Mama Mia" with the rest of the conversation in Italian.

Perhaps I finally recognized that I can't go home again, just like the character of George Webber in the novel by Thomas Wolfe. I began to see New York City through the eyes of a visitor. Like a typical tourist, I took the photo above showing the Chrysler building and the flag of New York Public Library. Or the sign below showing the subway trains which I never paid much attention since I was too busy and too tired from rushing to work, to school and coming home at night. It has been more than 19 years since I moved away. New York was a chapter of the beginning of my new life in America and where I learned about love, hope and sorrow with the passing of my father. Leaving New York was the beginning of another new life, leading to the larger paths to the world beyond tall buildings, the subways and crowded living space.

The #7 Flushing line carried me for many years of living in NYC, from Elmhurst, to LaGuardia Community College, then to Hunter College, to my job as data entry operator at CIT and later with the insurance company at 666 Fifth Avenue. The Queens Center shopping mall where I used to go shopping had undergone major renovations. According to my brother, it is larger and completely different that I would not recognize the place.

We walked around Flushing while waiting to meet up with my friend, MW and her family for dinner. The last 10 years, Flushing has been flourished with Asian businesses and became a second Chinatown. Unlike Canal street in the other Chinatown in lower Manhattan, Main street in Flushing provided more walking space, crowded yet less suffocating. We went to a Thai restaurant for dinner. As I watched MW and her husband, KL, their 19-year old daughter and 15-year old son, I imagined that could be my own family. I often wonder whether I would be happy with a Chinese husband, fulfilled my duty providing grandchildren to my parents. Would I be happier living near my family, seeing them on the weekends, sharing holidays, birthday celebrations and being of help to my family that a good daughter/sister supposed to be?

The above photo is a view from the rooftop in my sister's building. On a clear day, you could see Statue of Liberty and all the famous buildings in lower Manhattan. My husband looked forward to watching the fireworks on New Year Eve but the building management people decided that the rooftop was off-limit as it was not safe to have too many people up there (drinking while celebrating the New Year). I took the photo below when we stopped by Owl's Head Pier. It was very cold and windy that day. My brother dressed up as Santa Clause and he received various comments from typical holiday greetings to a kid saying, "I know he is not the real Santa", to which VL responded, "No presents for you, young man".

IT TAKES A VILLAGE

We received the Annual Report from the School District this week. The report listed the cost of $9,144 to educate a student per year. There are 22,332 students in the district. The total operating costs stood at $186.9 million dollars for instruction (teachers' compensation) at 71%, 13.2 % for building maintenance, 7% for school support, 4.6% for transportation and 4.2% administration. Now I know where part of our tax dollars have been going, to educate future generations. Hopefully these students will have jobs, pay taxes to support social security I hope to collect in my retirement.

Whenever my husband and I saw a young person with purple hair, four earrings on each ear, pierced nose, lips, eyebrowns, a horror thought would come to our minds, "That could be our kid!". My husband usually commented, "We would not allow that because our children would be brought up correctly." Easy said than done. Within each family, there are many situations where we thought we did everything correctly and yet, the kids turned out to be major disappointments.

When we first got married, GN (a niece from my husband's family) was a 10-year girl, always smiling, helping around the house and bringing home report cards with good grades. Somewhere along the way, GN made the wrong turn, got pregnant at 16 with a young man who was involved in auto thef and drug possessions. At 18, GN married this young man, RO and had another child. Two years later, after a third child was born, GN divorced RO when he was again in jail for the same crimes. Currently, they got back together, had another child and living in a small apartment while RO trying to support his family as a delivery trucker. GN with only a high school diploma could only find work that pay minimum wages. Where did we go wrong? Why didn't someone in the family counsel GN and provided guidance before she made the wrong turn? We could only hope and pray that RO and GN will stay on the right paths as their children's future depend on what they as parents do.

I understand that it is not easy being parents. There are many outside temptations, threats and so many worries. I watched how my brother taking care of and providing for his son. Besides clothing and feeding the child, there are Tae Kwon Do classes on week days, Boy Scouts, Chinese school and music lessons on the weekends, all these activities are at additional cost. My brother reads bedtime stories to JL each night, together father and son shared laughters while riding bicycles or setting up a member-only clubhouse.

When we first got married, my husband and I planned to have a son named Andrew and a daughter, Paulina Victoria. We knew exactly how to take good care of Andrew and Paulina. Our childen would received excellent education and participate in many activities such as swimming, organized sports, music and foreign languages. Andrew would learn to be a handy person and about automobile (T-birds and Mustangs) from my husband, but Paulina would have to learn cooking from Grandma as I don't cook. Both kids would be sports fanatics like their mother. We would not have to worry about funding college as our children would receive full scholarships and graduated with honors. That was our dream, and that is what would always be, a dream that never came true as after many years of trying, we were not able to have children.

It takes a village to raise a child. Each parent loves and provides the best way for the children. I am grateful to have loving parents and thankful for everything Mom and Dad provided as a strong foundation that we the children build upon and passing on to the next generations.

WARM THOUGHTS

The last few days the bitter cold temperature and cut through the bone wind chill prompted me to post these photos taken last August on a sunny, warm summer day in Grand Haven, Michigan. We walked along the pier and watched the people fishing while a few young men jumping off the pier into the cool water. Like many of the towns along the lakes, Grand Haven has its famous red lighthouse and well known as one of the summer destinations. There are campgrounds nearby that provide affordable vacation for families on limited budget. Plenty of summer cottages and luxury condos are also available to tourists with deep pockets. After a swim in the lake or a walk on the beach, a light lunch at Pronto Pups, then a banana boat ice cream would make a perfect summer day.

The menu, a Pronto Pup and a small soda, is the same as in 1947 when Mr. Chuck Nelson started the business. The 7 by 9 foot stand was an inspiration from a similar hot dog stand Mr. Nelson saw in Florida. The hot dog on a stick in deep-fried dough was only 15 cents in 1947 and a small drink was 5 cents. As shown in the above photo, in 2007 it is $1.50 for the corn dog and 50 cents or a dollar for the drink. The stand is open for business during the summer, usually from Memorial Day to Labor Day weekends. Our typical order would be two pups for each of us, mine with a little of ketchup on both sides while my husband loves heavy mustard on his.

My husband mentioned that as a child he had a toy of exact model as the above boat. We saw the boat while walking along the boardwalk. We did not realize that the owner was on the boat until we got a little too close to look inside. We apologized and complimented how nice his boat was. The owner smiled and began a lengthy conversation with my husband about the boat while I stood by, pretended to listen but could not understand any of the technical terms in their conversation.

My husband and I have another tradition that whenever we visited Grand Haven, we would listen to the Phantom of Opera music while driving along Lakeshore Drive (photo below) to Holland, Michigan. (Holland is famous for its Tulip Time Festival.) Matured trees line the roads, providing romantic atmosphere during the fall when the leaves change to bright bursting orange and red colors. The homes are on wooded lot and there are many summer cottages, some with rustic looks tucking in between McMansions owned by wealthy corporate executives from Chicago.

My sister, CH and I dipped our toes in the inviting cool water after a walk around the Dunn's River Park in Jamaica. It was one of the ports on our 7-day Western Caribbean cruise in 2006. We connected in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, after CH's flight from NYC and mine from St. Louis. Thank God for the technology of cell phones, otherwise we would have a hard time finding each other as our flights arriving at two different terminals. The next day, we sailed to Key West, Cozumel, then to Grand Cayman, Ocho Rios, Jamaica and back to Ft. Lauderdale. We are planning our Annual Just the Sisters trip. Not sure where it would be, just to get away and spend quality time between the sisters. The photo below was me in Grand Cayman showing my snow white arms and legs.

IT'S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR!

"Couldn't get that Christmas song off your head?", my husband asked when he heard me singing the tune "It's the most wonderful time of the year". My husband forgot that his wife is a sports fanatic and my excitement had nothing to do with Christmas. Actually, it's one of the most wonderful times of the year because the NHL All Star is scheduled on January 26-27. The following Sunday, February 3rd will be the Super Bowl XLII with the New England Patriots trying to capture their 4th Super Bowl victories and Eli Manning of the New York Giants trying to get his first Super Bowl ring.

Since I could not attend the NHL All Star, the above photo I took during practice when the Red Wings came to St. Louis, would have to do as four of the Detroit Red Wings players were selected to be on the Western Conference team, Lidstrom, Datsyuk, Osgood and Zetterberg. Perhaps next year we could plan a trip to the NHL All Star weekend to celebrate my birthday. That is a wonderful idea!

The Super Bowl is a re-match between the Patriots v. the Giants from the game on December 29th. It was supposed to be a meaningless last game of the season but turned out to be the most watched (more than 79,000 fans packed into the Giants stadium for the finale) and special televised sport event because the Giants fans would love to see their team stopping the Patriots from closing in on a 16-0 season. I was in NYC at that time and after dinner with my sister CH, we went back to my brother, VL's home. VL graciously let us have complete control of the television in the family room so we could watch the game without interruption. I was so nervous when the Giants took a 28-16 lead but calm down when the Patriots cut the deficit to 28-23 on Brady-Moss 4-yard touchdown pass. Brady two-point conversion was good but it was a risky move.

There'll be parties for hosting
Marshmallows for roasting

And caroling out in the snow

There'll be scary ghost stories

And tales of the glories

Of Christmases long, long ago

OK, so there are no marshmallow for roasting or caroling out in the snow since the Green Bay Packers were eliminated by the Giants. The Packers fans frozen in the stands (it was 3 below at the start of the second half) when Lawrence Tynes nailed the field goal in overtime to send the Giants to the Super Bowl. Just hope Aaron Rodgers will have a chance to start next season for the Packers. Nothing against the legendary Brett Farve, but let young Aaron proves his skills on the field. Let's forget about the ghost stories of the 1972 Miami Dolphins. The new chapter is about the New England Patriots with 18-0 record, with 1 more to go on February 3rd to complete the greatest story in the NFL history.

It's the most wonderful time of the year
With the kids jingle-belling
And everyone telling you
Be of good cheer
It's the most wonderful time of the year

For now, I will not make any predictions or how many points will be scored between the two teams. I'll just be of good cheer, for both my beloved New England Patriots and my hometown team New York Giants. Whatever the outcome, my heart will be glowing watching the Super Bowl from the comfort of my living room.