With Ted Cruz dropping out, Donald Trump secures the Republican nominee. Just the thought of Trump becoming our president sends chill to my spine. If Clinton becomes the next president, the next four years will be predictable. Some issues will be accomplished and some won’t. If Trump wins, only God knows what will happen.

The president election alone is important, but the more crucial matters are the replacement of Supreme Court Justice and the control of the Senate and Congress. I understand these significant issues, but I also know that my one vote doesn’t matter much; therefore, I can’t take politic too serious. It is simply not good for me.

If nothing else, this election has taught me that politic is just an entertainment. I’ll just live through it. I made it through eight years of Bush. What’s more can be worse? Whoever will be our next president, I will just have to accept him or her. The most I can do is voting for the candidate that I believe in. My one vote doesn’t make much different, but at least I can vote with my own mind. From what I have witnessed so far, I doubt that Trump will change my mind.

This general election will be extremely nasty. My only hope is that Clinton will stay positive and not going down the rabbit hole with Trump. I will be voting for her. If she wins, that will be great. If she loses, ain’t a damn thing I can do.

Just added random background to this site. Some images might cause readability issue. I simply got tired of the clean solid background. Need to spice things up a bit for my personal blog.

Just learned a new word: “uxorious,” meaning “excessively attentive to one’s wife.” I am sure my wife doesn’t want me to be uxorious. She would rather be left alone.

Baby Xuân is growing up too fast. He smiles every time we talk to him. Love it.

Took Đán to daycare this morning and couldn’t find a parking space. He said, “See daddy, there’s no space. So I don’t have to go to school.” Nice one, buddy. As we walked to the front desk, I said hi to his friend’s mom. He asked me who’s that. I told him she’s Natasha’s mom. He said, “No, Natasha’s mom has different head.” I think this kid will be a comedian. Just the other day, he wanted to drink some Pedialyte, but I told him that Pedialyte is only for when he gets sick. He should drink the lemonade I made for him instead). He replied, “No daddy, lemonade makes my cu [penis] worse.” I was speechless.

A fascinating profile of Melania Trump in the New Yorker. Lauren Collins writes:

Melania is the ultimate embodiment of Trump’s bargain with the American electorate. If the Obama promise was that he was you, the Trump promise is that you are him.

She concludes:

The Trumps’ marriage, in business terms, might be thought of as a limited partnership, with Donald as the managing partner. His woman view is his world view: no reciprocity, no exchange, a one-way flight.

Nữa phần đầu của sách về bệnh khớp tôi không đọc. Chỉ đọc nữa phần sau về bệnh gout. Bác sĩ Lê Anh Sơn giải thích rõ và gọn về lịch sữ bệnh gout và những cách điều trị qua thuốc Tây, Đông y, và đặc biệt là sản phẩm mới của Hoàng Thống Phong. Bác sĩ Lê Anh Sơn viết:

Gần đây, trên thị trường xuất hiện một sản phẩm có nguồn gốc hoàn toàn từ thảo dược như Hoàng Thống Phong được coi là một dấu hiệu đáng mừng cho bệnh nhân gout. Hoàng Thống Phong là loại thực phẩm chức năng (thực phẩm thuốc) có tác dụng hỗ trợ điều trị và phòng ngừa gout.

Hoàng Thống Phong là sự phối hợp của những thảo dược: Trạch tả, nhọ nồi, ba kích, hạ khô thảo, thổ phục linh, nhàu, được sản xuất theo bản quyền công nghệ của Fuma Natural (Mỹ).

Hoàng Thống Phong không chỉ giúp bệnh nhân giảm đau đón gây ra bới đợt gout cấp mà còn hỗ trợ phục hồi chức năng chuyển hóa của gan, thận, tăng cường tuần hoàn máu lưu thông, aciđ urique không đọng thành các tinh thể urate ở khớp, cơ và dễ dàng được đào thải qua thận cùng dường tiêu hóa, qua đó phòng ngừa tái phát các con gout cấp, hỗ trợ điều tri bệnh gout. Đặc biệt sản phẩm này đã được sử dụng rất phổ biến ở Mỹ với tên gọi gout well và cho hiệu quả rất khả quan sau một đựt người bệnh sử dụng từ 3-6 tháng.

Không biết thuốc này có tin được không? Bạn nào thử rồi xin góp ý. Ngoài thuốc này, tôi sẽ làm theo những sinh hoạt bác sĩ đề nghị như ngâm chân nước nóng pha muối mỗi tối, tắm sông, tắm biển, và dỉ nhiên là chế độ ăn uống. Tôi cũng sẽ thử nước có bicarbonate để thải bớt uric acid ra ngoài.

Bạn nào bệnh gout nên tìm đọc sách này.

A hilarious speech from Obama at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Great commentary from Vinson Cunningham on Obama and Wilmore whose speed was also fantastic.

First my gout flared up then the washer broke. I tried to fix it and I screwed up the water level pipe. The water overflowed. Fortunately my mother-in-law discovered it before the water flooded the entire basement. I spent Tuesday night vacuumed up all the water.

On Wednesday, we decided to get a new washer because the current one makes rambunctious noise when it spin. The delivery came this morning, but could not fit through the laundry room. For some reasons, the previous owners had extended the wall a bit after they already had the washer and dryer in. This weekend, I have to cut the wall in order to get the new washer through and the old one out. What a pain.

Speaking of pain, my gout is somewhat under control. I have been eating healthier. I am avoiding red meat, seafood, as well as alcohol. Mad props to my wife for taking great care of me. That’s real love. I am definitely a very lucky dude. I am very appreciative of having a loving family and I don’t want to take them for granted. I want to spend as much time with them as I could.

In addition to eating healthier, I have been trying to sleep better. I go to bed the same time the boys go to bed. The iPhone is now out of the bedroom at night. I don’t even open up my laptop after work, which means no more late night blogging, tweeting, Facebooking, working, freelancing, or learning new technologies. I also deleted both Twitter and Facebook off my phone.

A week before my birthday, I deactivated my Facebook account simply because I don’t want to get any birthday wishes. My birthday had passed, but I still haven’t reactivated my account. Maybe I don’t need to any longer.

I am still obsessed with reading. I have been visiting the public library frequently to get my hands on new nonfiction books. I guess I won’t be reading much this weekend. I have to cut the wall and mow the lawn. I hate doing these chords. I rather take the kids out on the weekend and drive them around during nap time. So many responsibilities when you own a house and I have never been a handyman. If I have the luxury, I would hire others to take care of those things for me, but I don’t so I must do it.

• “The Secret History of Tiger Woods” by Wright Thompson
• “Meryl Streep’s Twenties, and My Own” by Michael Schulman
• “The Feed Is Dying” by Casey Johnston
• “When the Powerful Cry ‘Bully’” by Heather Havrilesky
• “Dead Man’s Sperm” by Jenny Morber

Một bài nhạc mới mang âm hưởng Huế của nhạc sĩ Võ Tá Hân phổ thơ của Cao Nguyên. Nhạc phẩm được Diệu Hiền trình bài đẹp và thơ mộng. Mời nghe.

Our Fios Internet has been slowed and dropped constantly the past few months. I was hoping the router would fix itself so I don’t have to call Verizon’s customer service, but the problem has not been fixed and my wife kept pressing me to call so I did yesterday. I dialed 1-800-837-4966 and managed to get a representative after selecting some options. After taking down my account information and the issue, she transferred me to tech support. Again, after taking down my information and issue, anther representative transferred to Fios department. Again, after taking down my information and issue, anther representative transferred to Fios tech support. Then the Fios tech support transferred me back to the the same original options I first got when I dialed the 1-800 number. Wasting 45 minutes, I was led to nowhere and all I simply wanted was a new router.

• “Prince, Cecil Taylor, and Beyoncé’s Shape-Shifting Black Body” by Hilton Als
• “Cruel Optimism: The daunting ambition of Anohni” by Hua Hsu
• “Beyoncé’s “Lemonade” Is a Revelation of Spirit” by Carrie Battan
• “Weeding the Worst Library Books” by Daniel A. Gross
• “Madness: In Florida prisons, mentally ill inmates have been tortured, driven to suicide, and killed by guards” by Eyal Press