I took all four boys to thee theater to watch Inside Out 2. I loved the first film, which released 9 years ago, and I was hoping that the sequel would be as good or better. I was not let down.

In the first film, Riley, the main character, had Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust. As she hit puberty in the second, more characters showed up such as Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment, and Ennui (Boredom). Nostalgia showed up too, but they shooed her away.

I loved the ice hockey actions. The animations were well done. The story was also well-executed. The line that almost brought tears to my eyes when Joy said, “May Anxiety is right. As we get older, we feel less joy.”

Giọt hát của Lều Phương Anh ấm áp và truyền cảm thích hợp với giai điệu blues jazz. Cô covers “Niệm khúc cuối” (Ngô Thụy Miên) rất lả lướt, nhất là tiếng đàn dương cầm, qua phần hòa âm bossa nova. “Bao giờ biết tương tư” (Phạm Duy) được phối theo dàn sang trọng và dây êm dịu. Rất phê với giai điệu Latin cho ca khúc “Sang ngang” (Đỗ Lễ). Hơn đáng tiếc là phần saxo solo hơi bị ngắn. Tuy nhiên, đây là một album tình khúc Việt theo phong cách acoustic jazz đáng thưởng thức về đêm.

A while ago Pooja Saxena reached out to me about a project she was working on. She was doing research “to document different models of handwriting that are taught to primary school students around the world.” Unfortunately, I couldn’t help her with that. I referred her to someone else. I am glad to see some information on handwriting education in Vietnamese.

A year ago, we licensed a commercial CMS ($21,500 annually) and a cloud server ($11,000 annually). We also paid almost $200,000 for the design, development, implementation, and migration. A year went by, the new website has gotten nowhere. Yet, we need to pay $32,500. This is super wasteful, but it is what happen when someone has no experience in web technologies take charge of the website. I have nothing to say. I just do my part and go with the flow.

It’s already been 12 days and my gout flare is only getting worse. I could barely walk yesterday. Last night, I was in so much pain I couldn’t sleep. Aleve doesn’t do the trick any more. I am still limping around the whole day today. This is my worst gout flare yet.

I haven’t done any physical activities in the past 12 days. I am going to spend my weekend resting—both my foot and my mind. I can’t be stressed out anymore. There’s no point in putting myself under stress. Whatever happens let it happen. I can’t control anything.

I need to get over this gout flare. I also need to think about my lifestyle. The food I eat and the alcohol I drink. I am getting older now. I really need to take things easy. I will be much more careful in the winter. I can’t afford getting attack during the skiing/snowboarding season.

Làm Đĩ is a novel about prostitution written by Vũ Trọng Phụng. Although it was published in 1936, the book is still a refreshing read. Vũ Trọng Phụng was such a great writer who was ahead of his time. Even though I only read it in recent months, I loved the book so much that I decided to create a sample page to preserve it. For long-form reading, I chose Job Clarendon, by Bethany Heck and David Jonathan Ross. For headings, I selected Albula Pro, by Silvio Meier. For the book title, I wanted a whimsical vibe; therefore, I went with Mireille, by Anita Jürgeleit.

Even after all these years designing and developing websites, I still suck at JavaScript. I have read a number of books on JS and have yet done any JS programming on my own. In the past few days, I decided to pick up Nick Morgan’s JavaScript Crash Course. I refreshed the basics and understood the use of DOM. Unfortunately I was not interested in the projects. I didn’t want to create a Pong game. I need to figure out what I want to do with JavaScript and then learn by doing it. Nevertheless, this is still a good book on JavaScript for beginners.

After 9 days, my gout attack hasn’t gone away. I am still limping on the right foot. I missed rollerblading at the skatepark and practicing snowboarding in my basement. It is such a drag.

After 14 days, Ourisman Toyota has found the root cause of the airbag warning light. It will cost over $3,000 to fix the issues. I am waiting on our insurance coverage.

Our home has become funereal after I created the Wifi schedule. The kids are upset with me. Even my wife is not happy. In fact, she hasn’t been happy in a long time. I am deeply concerned.

Just when I thought we were heading in the right direction, things begin to derail. The last few weeks has been stressful, but I have to keep moving. I can’t let money holding me down. I can’t let stress holding me back.

I can’t make everyone happy, but I just have to continue to do all I can for this family.

As she sends sixth graders off to middle schools, the Laurel Ridge Elementary School principal encourages students to limit their screen time. Check out her short, inspiring message.

Đạo has brushed off his blog, gave it a new look, and kicked off the summer writing challenge. He has to write at least 500 words each weekday, which he doesn’t seem to sweat. He’s not only a fantastic writer, but also a promising 3D artist—something I didn’t know about until he shared it on his blog. I also love that he has the space to criticize his parents. Bring it on, son!