A new remix of “My President Is Black” featuring Jay-Z, Young Jeezy responds to O’Reilly’s recent comment on the Factor. He rhymed: “Bill O’Reilly eat a dick, nice try, you’re really being a racist asshole in a nice tie/and tell Dennis Miller his show suck anyway, and I’d rather watch Jimmy Kimmel anyday…”

I have a cousin who is a month older than me. Technically, she’s my niece, but we’re more like cousins. She lived next door to my house in Viet Nam and so we hung out together. We fought and we made up. She scratched me and I pulled her hair. When we were five, we crossed many big streets to go to the park far from our house to use the playground. I could still remember the shock on her mom’s face when our family was searching all over town for us.

In kindergarten, my cousin left Viet Nam to go to America. I came to class the next day and all I did was cried because she wasn’t there. The teacher made me stood outside of the class. I climbed out of school and went back to the playground. I missed my cousin. When I went home, my mom whipped my ass. I didn’t hear anything from my cousin for a while until I received toys, gums, chocolates and letters from her. I was so happy that she still remembered me.

Six years later, we moved to America. I was anxious to see my cousin again. When we finally met, my cousin had changed. She no longer spoke Vietnamese. We didn’t talk much. She had more conversations with my nephews than me. I felt left out. The good thing was we reconnected again when my family moved to her grandma’s apartment. I remembered ordering pizza, eating instant cup noodles and watching TV together.

Then my cousin moved again to a better school district. She went to white school and picked up the whiteness. I stayed back in black school and picked up the blackness. She was into pop-rock music while I was into hip-hop. Despite our differences, we hung together occasionally. My cousin didn’t know how to ride a bike until she was a little older. One time we were riding downhill, she lost control and slammed into a parked car. The lady who was the owner of the car cajoled us into calling her mom and made her mom paid for the little damage.

In college, we went our separate ways, but somehow we both ended up on the creative field. She took up graphic design and I took up web design. We both graduated at the same time, but she never became a graphic designer. Now I am married and about to become a father, yet she still enjoys her single life. That’s my cousin.

A time lapse video of a baby playing with his toys. Almost four hours packed into two minutes.

Lunar New Year to many Vietnamese abroad is simply just another day. Many of us can’t be around our family to celebrate. To many of us, Vietnamese New Year only exists in our memory. The good old spirit that could never be forgotten. We can’t expect to get the same vibe we had in our childhood anymore. In fact, I don’t expect much anymore. As long as I could be around the love ones and could think about those from afar, I am satisfied. Although I really don’t know all of you who come to Visualgui.com, as long as you’re here, you are visiting my house. So I wish you all a happy, prosperous Vietnamese New Year.

Albert Lee, my college buddy, hosted a clip highlighting the hot spots in Philly’s Chinatown.

Check out the history of Chinatown and shopping in Chinatown (Long Life is my mom’s favorite herbal store).

After finishing up the newsletter, I went out for a jog. The weather was so beautiful that I didn’t need my heavy jacket. I tuned into Hong Nhung’s Doan Khuc Thu Ha Noi for an accompaniment. Not sure why I have been returning to this album again and again like reaching for a bottle of water. Her version of “Ha Noi Mua Vang Nhung Con Mua” gives me nostalgia even though I had only been to Ha Hoi once. It has to be that effortless flow.

Tim did it again. Nice Web Type, “one place for web typography, using our collective knowledge for the betterment of typographic style and practice,” gets a bold, new gray look. Check out his latest work for Vassar too. This guy is unstoppable.

Stopdesign gets a new design for the new year. The layout has some similar features of SimpleBits.

My buddy Tim redesigns his web site. The set of photos added a personal touch of to the layout. Nice job, Tim.

Collection of striking photos from yesterday’s historic event.

Jay-Z’s “My President is Black“:

My president is black, in fact he’s half white
So even in a racist mind he’s half bright
If you have a racist mind you’re alright
My president is black but his house is all white
Rosa Park sat so Martin Luther could walk
Martin Luther walked so Barack Obama could run
Barack Obama ran so all the children could fly
So I’ll spread my wings you can meet me in the sky.

Check out Jay-Z’s “History” too.