Thuong Vuong-Riddick’s The Evergreen Country came in the mail yesterday. The author sent me the book in a return favor of using “Bonjour Viet Nam” slideshow for a presentation. I am reading it and here is the translation of the proverb we all know by heart:
Father’s work is like the mountain Tai Son
Mother’s dedication is like a spring running water
With the same heart we must worship Mother and respect Father
To accomplish this is a son or a daughter’s religion.
“Pretty girls can do anything, but ugly girls have to do everything.” -Jack Sheldon from Benny Goodman’s Live at Carnegie Hall: 40th Anniversary Concert.
Pitchfork gets a clean, organized layout from Tangible Worldwide.
Truong Ky, host of VOA‘s “Nghe Si va Doi Song,” passed away yesterday morning at 64. Quite a shocking news. RIP.
As a fan of Nat King Cole, Louis Armstrong and Sarah Vaughan, Tung Duong will perform standards like “The Girl From Ipanema,” “Fly Me to the Moon,” “Misty” and “When I Fall In Love” in his upcoming intimate-style concert in Ha Noi. I am not sure if he can pull it off with his English barrier, but it sounds like a promising show.
A sharp piece on Jay-z at BestLife:
Staying true to yourself might stand as a succinct summary of Jay-Z’s philosophy of success. The notion goes back to Shakespeare’s “To thine own self be true,” and further back than that to the Greeks. But for Jay-Z, it has an urgently contemporary meaning. Even, or perhaps, especially, in recessionary times, amid the thousands of entertainment and lifestyle choices consumers have available to them, what separates winners from losers is a commitment to a single proposition: You are the product. If people believe in you, they will believe in what you create. Jay-Z understands this and is down with it.
A sketch based on Chris Brown and Rihanna’s descriptive report.
Doug Bowman stopdesigns Google:
When I joined, I thought there was potential to help the company change course in its design direction. But I learned that Google had set its course long before I arrived. Google was a massive aircraft carrier, and I was just a small dinghy trying to push it a few degrees North.
The commencement page for the School of Business has been updated with latest information and new slideshow.
I don’t know anything about The Friends other than the group is founded by violinist Luan Vu, but I have admiration for concerts they had put out. If I live in Cali, I would love to come and see their show. However, I just came across a vicious attack on The Friends regarding to the missing of Ngo Thuy Mien, Tu Cong Phung and Vu Thanh An on their recent show called “Du Doi Cho Nhau.” I am skeptical the credit of the source, but want to put it out here to see what others have to say about it. Here is what Dao Nuong Hoang Duoc Thao said:
Chương trình ca nhạc Giữ Đời Cho Nhau, dùng một tên bản nhạc của nhạc sĩ Từ Công Phụng làm chủ đề, bán vé với giá $60, $50, $40 và $30. Dưới giòng chữ ghi giá tiền vé vào cửa, Đào Nương tôi lại đọc được một một hàng chữ nhỏ: Sẽ trích một số tiền vé thu được vào quỹ đào tạo tài năng âm nhạc thiếu nhi hải ngoại. Nhưng đây không phải là lần đầu tiên Đào Nương tôi nghe than phiền về sự kiện “công tử” Luân Vũ lợi dụng tên tuổi của nhạc sĩ Từ Công Phụng, trước đây, khi nghe tin có sự hiện diện của ông, Đào Nương tôi có mua vé đi xem. Đến nơi, ông Luân Vũ cho biết nhạc sĩ Từ Công Phụng… không về kịp vì đang ở bên Houston hay Dallas gì đó mặc dù vẫn nhận lời. Sau này khi có dịp gặp nhạc sĩ họ Từ tại Cali, ông cho biết ông không hề được mời hay nhận lời xuất hiện trong buổi nhạc của ông Luân Vũ.