Baer’s take on customer service: response to every complaint in social media and online forums. The book simply states the obvious and provides examples of companies that do well in customer experience. In today’s business, providing an excellent experience for your customers is not a choice, but a requirement. If you haven’t done that already in your organization, you should definitely pick up this book. Otherwise, it is not that helpful. In addition, the writing tends to be dried with all the business figures.

I am thirty-eight today and I have gout. Both of my feet are killing me. Life is over if I don’t have a loving, supporting family. From diet to remedy, my wife has done everything she could to help me deal with my pain. On top of that, she takes care of all of the boys in the house. My sons are blessed with a wonderful mom and I am super lucky to have a fantastic wife. She is the anchor of this family.

I gave myself forty, but my body is already falling apart at thirty-eight. What’s next? High blood pressure? High cholesterol? Diabetes? Strokes? Cancer? Something is going to take over my body soon.

I used to think that when that time comes I’ll deal with it. Now I feel like it is already here and ready to explode anytime. As a result, I want to spend as much time with my family while I still can because life’s a bitch and you never know when you will go.

Just earlier this week, I already failed my duty. For the past couple of weeks, our daily routine was walking with my sons from our house to the school’s playground. I would push Xuân’s stroller while Đạo and Đán would tag along. Đạo had always looked forward that time after school. I couldn’t do it this week because my gout flared up and it was way too painful to walk. Đạo got upset even though I explained to him the reason I could not do it. Although his frustration is unreasonable, I felt that I had let him down. I need to be physically capable of being with them.

Then again, at thirty-eight I am glad that I am the only one that is suffering. My wife and three sons are healthy. Seeing the kids grow day by day is a joy. My mom and my mother-in-law are doing good. Raising three boys without my mother-in-law would have been extremely difficult. I am thankful everyday for her presence. All the grandsons (five and one more on the way) love her. She had helped raised every single one of them. She has such a loving heart.

As for my mom, she has some health issues, but she seems to take care of herself while helping out my sister and her two kids. I feel guilty for not being around her much these days, but not a second that I don’t think of her.

For my birthday wish, I want nothing more than good health for my little family. I love them way too much.

The gout is now flared in both of my feet. The right started yesterday and is it getting worse.

In retrospect, I had been quite reckless in the past few months. I consumed three jars of salsa I made with ground beef. I also had burgers, steak, phở bò, and bún bò Huế. On top of that I killed a bottle of Tanqueray, a bottle of Belvedere, half a bottle of Leblon, and half a bottle of Grand Marnier.

I am now paying a big price for it. If I didn’t go overboard I might not have build up that much uric acid. I am definitely cutting the beef, seafood, and alcohol out of my diet. According to this article, I will try to donate blood (hopefully I won’t faint like I did years ago when I had a blood test) and brine baths.

I have been replacing Tequila shots with cherry tart juice. I am starting to like it.

I didn’t realize the author of Eating Việt Nam is the same guy behind Noodlepie—a blog on Vietnamese food I frequented many years ago—until I read the foreword by Anthony Bourdain. I am glad that Graham Holliday recounted his experiences in a book, which offers mouth-watering introduction to the vibrant Vietnamese street food including bún chả, bún mắn, bánh mì, and mì hoành thánh. Furthermore, Holliday’s observation on Vietnamese culture is intriguing. I didn’t even know about the story behind the boiled chicken in the north.

For the food that Holliday didn’t like, I understand his sentiment about hột vịt lộn. Most Westerners feel the same way. I even heard the comparison of eating an aborted baby duck. On bánh mì phá lấu (pig’s organ), however, I beg to differ. The sauce that came from phá lấu is the secret ingredient for bánh mì. Without that sauce, bánh mì thịt would never taste superb. That’s why bánh mì thịt in the U.S. is nowhere near the one in Việt Nam. As for tiết canh, Holliday compares it to eating a nosebleed. What the fuck? I only had tiết canh once many years ago when I was in high school. Although I was a bit reluctant at first, I found it to be quite tantalizing and it tasted nothing like nosebleed. I would eat it again if I get the opportunity.

Nevertheless, Eating Việt Nam is a good read for people who are not familiar with Vietnamese authentic cuisine. Holliday’s detailed explanations, like his love for the the herbs, will draw you in. I am happy to see that he uses Vietnamese words with diacritics even though I spotted a handful of errors including “phổ” (in the foreword) instead of phở and chí (page 178) instead of chị. His editors obviously don’t know Vietnamese and didn’t bother to check.

For the design of the book, the text face is Myriad Pro. Even though I am not fond of a san serif typeface for reading—Minion Pro would be my preference—Myriad Pro holds up quite well. I didn’t mind it at all.

The gout seems to subside today. I popped 4 pills of Tylenol yesterday, ate some steamed mung bean, and drank lots of water. Today a reader sent me a remedy for gout by mixing Apple Cider Vinegar with Tart Cherry Juice. He said it worked for him so I’ll definitely give it a try tonight even though it sounds pretty sour. I might mix it with some whiskey to help with the flavor. Just kidding.

Speaking of liquor, I still have unopened bottles of Hennessy Cognac XO, Patrón Silver Tequila, and Corralejo Blanco. What am I going to do with them?

• “Sorry, You Can’t Speed Read” by Gray Matter
• “In Campaign and Company, Ivanka Trump Has a Central Role” by Jonathan Mahler
• “Taylor Swift As You’ve Never Seen Her Before” by Jason Gay
• “Godmother of Soul” by Kelefa Sanneh
• “The Fight for the Future of NPR” by Leon Neyfakh
• “Secret Rules of the Internet” by Catherine Buni and Soraya Chemaly

The foot doctor was right. I definitely have gout. The attack started a couple of days ago and it got worse yesterday and today. I took two Tylenols this morning and it seems to help with the pain. I hope it will go away in the next couple of days because I am not going back for another Triamcinolone Acetonide injection. The shot was fucking excruciating.

On the negative side, I have to give up steak, seafood, alcohol and many pleasurable dietaries in life. I am now forced to be responsible what I will be consuming. On the bright side, I have no choice but to eat healthy and quit drinking. Life will be healthier but suck. There’s always a tradeoff.

With her latest release, Bản Nguyên, Hà Trần proves that she can fucking rock too. The album begins with “Đêm (NYX),” a subliminal rock-folk that was written by Dominik Nghĩa Đỗ and Hoàng Quân with Hà Trần’s eccentricity and flexibility in mind. She sings, glides, screams around the electric guitar. While “Hoan Ca (Joys)” continues the rock theme, but with a mixture of Vietnamese folksy, “Trầm Khúc (Sadness Lullaby)” explores the hip-hop-folk-rock territory and shows off Hà Trần’s unmistakable style. Nevertheless, Bản Nguyên is a concept album that must be experienced in its entirety.

I have yet to read Gilbert’s biggest-selling Eat, Pray, Love, which is mentioned constantly in her latest book. Big Magic is Gilbert’s guide on creative living—or bringing out your hidden treasures. Her advice is simply to do what you enjoy. For Gilbert, writing is what she does, but you can do anything as long as you enjoy doing it. Your enjoyment doesn’t have to do with making a living, although it wouldn’t hurt. Big Magic is an inspiring book for anyone who is looking for a creative journey, but is it a helpful guide to students and newcomers in the field of design.

In last night’s debate, CNN’s Dana Bash asked Bernie Sanders to give a specific example of Wall Street donations has influenced Hillary Clinton’s political decisions and he could not named one. Then again, when Bash pushed Hillary to release her transcripts, she ducked with the same lame-ass excuse.

If she’s going to be a leader, why does she need others to do their part? Why can’t she just step up and release hers first? The transcripts must have things that she doesn’t want the voters to know. I am skeptical as well. If she is truly transparent and trustworthy, she should release them.