In her book titled Mỗi ngày gửi cậu một cái ôm (Each Day I Send You a Hug), Là Trang shares 108 positive, thoughtful messages to the youths to help them navigate through life. Even as an adult, I find her words compelling; therefore, I quoted a few lines and added my own English translation. I created this sample page to share her positive thoughts. For typesetting, I selected Montagu Slab, designed by Florian Karsten.

Gum.mp3’s spacious, electronic style reminds me of The Chemical Brothers. “Spacey” is atmospheric, upbeat, yet calm. My personal favorite track on the album has to be “Deimos,” which showcases Gum.mp3’s skillful blend of Spanish guitar with hypnotic rhythms. Listening to the album brings me to the early days of Flash intros, which combined motion graphics with electronic beats. I also find the music soothing for walking or driving.

Hồi nhỏ lúc còn ở Việt Nam, tôi thường nghe những câu chuyện về thú vật đối xử với nhau rất hung tàn như con này ăn thịt con nọ hoặc bọn nó đấu trí với nhau. Mỗi truyện cho chúng ta một bài học về luân lý, triết lý, hoặc chân lý. Đọc quyển sách này do Vân Anh tuyển chọn tôi mới biết là truyện ngụ ngôn. Đọc cũng thấy vui và để nhớ lại tuổi thơ.

I know R. Kelly, but who the fuck is G. Kelly? From a quick research, Grace Kelly is a saxophonist, composer, songwriter, band leader, and a singer. I came across her latest album, in which she covers tunes from movies and an orchestra backing her up. The album kicks off with the “James Bond Medley” with Kelly’s soaring saxophone. Halfway through, she started to sing. She has a decent voice, but she should have kept the medley strictly instrumental. She introduces “The Way You Look Tonight” with the Charlie Parker flow. It’s a mesmerizing swing cover with the strings behind her. Her collaboration with Sean Jones on “Soul Bossa Nova” reminds me of Bird and Diz. Damn, Mr. Jones got the bebop chops and Ms. Kelly got the swag. Love the call-and-response interactive. Not a perfect album, but very close. Love her, and she’s Korean-American.

Just when I thought I got all the car dramas out of the way, I had to go back to Costco yesterday evening to drop off our 2011 Toyota Sienna. My wife drove over a nail and punctured the rear passenger tire. I brought the car in at 6 pm and they called me at 9:30 pm to let me know it was finished. I still need to pick it up after work today. Did I say I hate dealing with cars? There’s a saying in Vietnamese, “Ghét của nào trời trao của nấy.” It’s true. Whatever you hate, God will give it to you. All these times, I thought God only give me good things.

Dear Đạo,

I am sorry about your phone issue. Don’t be too hard on yourself. It’s fine to experiment with it. That’s how you learn.

You have been asking me for a new phone and I don’t have a problem with getting you a new one. I am deeply concerned, however, when you don’t know how to control your usage.

You don’t like it when I remind you about your education, but you haven’t proved that you can take responsibility for your school work. School should be your first priority, not digital usage. I worry about you, but my words have fallen on deaf ears.

I just don’t know what else to say to make you understand–or you just don’t want to understand. My priority is you and your brothers, but I am not doing a good job as a father. When talking to other parents about digital usage, I had learned that they were able to limit their kids to one hour a day, one hour a week, or none at all. I have not done that and I can’t now. I know the repercussions of limiting your usage.

Now that you are old enough, I hope you will figure out what to do with your life. Your mom and I do anything for you, but we can’t do anything without your participation. It’s still not too late.

Love,
Dad

Thứ bảy vừa rồi mưa cả ngày không đi trượt tuyết được. Nằm trên giường viết vu vơ trên Facebook, “Gọi em là hoa vì anh bị dị ứng nên đành phải sống xa hoa”. Ông bạn nhậu trả lời, “Giỏi lắm, vậy giờ bò qua tao nhậu để xa hoa”.

Đang rảnh mà có người rủ đi nhậu thì sao đành từ chối. Trời mưa lành lạnh thèm thèm hương vị Yamazaki cho ấm lòng. Tôi chạy qua ABC nhưng không có hàng. Thấy em Ohishi cũng dễ thương nên bê em về vậy.

Em được ủ từ gạo trong thùng đảo Islay nên em có chất khói hơi nồng trên môi nhưng vẫn êm dịu khi em nhập vào tôi. Anh bạn nhậu và tôi ngồi cụng ly nói chuyện trên trời dưới đất mà cạn hết chai hồi nào không hay. Mà tôi còn tỉnh táo gì nữa mà hay.

Trọng lượng rượu của tôi rất kém nhưng trọng bạn hữu thì mạnh. Bạn thân tình đếm không đủ trên một bàn tay. Được quen biết nhau, hiểu nhau, và hợp gu nhau là vui rồi. Tôi thì rất ham vui mỗi khi có mồi ngon, whiskey Nhật, và bạn nhậu.

Tôi cũng biết lâu lâu mới vui thôi chứ vui hoài chắc chết cái thân. Uống vài tiếng đồng hồ nhưng phải mất mấy ngày mới hồi phục.

Dear Xuân,

Thank you for telling us about your week at school. I am glad you had a chance to meet Illustrator Alicia Robinson. I must confess that I didn’t know who she was; therefore, I had to look her up online. She is indeed a talented illustrator.

I always appreciated people who can draw. I wish I had drawn when I was a kid. I never liked drawing because I didn’t think my drawings were any good. I have seen your sketches. You can draw way better than me. You have a creative way of creating your characters.

Don’t make the mistake I made. Please continue to draw. Practice makes perfect. The more you draw, the better you will get. Once you figure out your style, you can become even more creative. You can even become an illustrator like Ms. Robinson.

You have a whole lot of future in front of you kiddo! Just enjoy yourself if you enjoy drawing. Talk to you in the next letter.

Love,
Dad

The car maintenance has become expensive and time draining. In the past two weeks, I had been working remotely at auto shops more than at my home office, which is my bedroom.

I dropped our 2011 Toyota Sienna XLE off at Costco for balance and rotation. Then I dropped it off at a Toyota dealer for an oil change. Then I did the same services for the 2018 Toyota Sienna LE. I also dropped the 2018 LE off at the Toyota Collision Center to fix the liftgate. That took almost a week. Then the 2018 LE’s airbag debacle that cost us $1,250.

This morning, I had to come back to the Toyota dealer to fix the door for the 2018 LE. The technician didn’t connect the cable to the latch. The passenger door couldn’t open from the inside. I am now working in the waiting room at Firestone to get an alignment for the 2018 LE. Later on, I have to take my 2011 XLE back to Firestone for another alignment.

Needless to say, I am fucking sick and tired of maintaining these two vehicles. I need to take some auto mechanics courses to fix some of these issues myself. My oldest son will take a course in auto mechanics. I hope he can help fix these damn vehicles.

The days of pop-jazz are gone. Norah Jones has moved on. Visions, her latest album, is a pop-rock album full of life and filled with joy. Even when she’s “Staring at the Wall,” the vibe is energetic. She also takes listeners into a rocking “Paradise.” She’s the “Queen of Sea” who “Just Wants to Dance.” Jones’s smoky voice is aged like fine wine and her keyboard skills are sharper even though her style is still less is more, which makes her collaboration with Leon Michels a fruitful one.