I know I am old when my little nephew who I used to hold in my arms is now in 10th grade and taller than me. I know I am old when the little boy who used to live next to me and my mom has a son older than my son. I still remember him wearing his diaper running around our apartment and now he’s changing his baby’s diaper. How crazy is that? Now we can talk about fatherhood to each other.

Dana told me that yesterday marked her 17 years living in the States. I then realized that I have been here for 19 years, even though I can’t remember the exact date. Although I have been here for almost two decades, become an American citizen and changed my name to Donny, I never once feel like this is a permanent place. Somehow Vietnam still holds on to me like the color of my skin, which hasn’t get any lighter over the years, even though childhood memory is the only part of me that belongs to Vietnam.

I have changed and so has Vietnam. My relationship with Vietnam is like my relationship with my father who hasn’t been around me all these years. We are connected by blood, but the gap is unbridgeable. We love each other, but we are distanced. I can’t live with my father just like I can’t live in Vietnam. We’re in two different worlds and our lifestyles have changed. My life is better here, but I still don’t feel a sense of home. I don’t yearn to go back just like a kid who grows up and doesn’t want to return home.

When I look at the older generation like my mom and my parents-in-law, I wonder how do they feel? With their limited English, this is definitely a temporary place for them. How do they live on and adapted to the environment that is so foreign to them? Was it because of the hardship in the past that give them the strength?

Often times I see myself living here temporarily for the rest of my life and than die on this land and that’s it. Don’t give me wrong. I love America and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world, but here. It just that Vietnam is also part of me. When I am in this sentimental mood, Trịnh Công Sơn’s “Ở Trọ” comes to mind and his words help me get through: “Tôi nay ở trọ trần gian / Trăm năm về chốn xa xăm cuối trời.” Even life is just an interim and you will go somewhere else after this. So live this short, impermanent life to the fullest so that “Mai kia dù có ra sao cũng đành.”

“I’m the sickest emcee,” a Viet kid rapped on a track called “Vietnamese Noodle Soup.” I concurred. His nursery rhymes make me sick. He compares one of the hottest Vietnamese noodle soups with his lame-ass sex boost: “I’ll cover you in white stuff, yeah I got a lot.” Worst are his ad-lib vocabularies including “un-pho-gettable,” “pho-nominal,” “pho-gettaboutit.” Don’t you want to smack the pho out of him? It’s embarrassing. (via khongcoai)

The each motion piece is now in its own directory. CSS elements are rewritten to place the Flash piece in the center of the browser. I also switched to YouTube’s embed style for much cleaner and simpler codes.

The info page is now featured a “What clients and colleagues say about Donny Truong” section. I have wanted to add this feature a while ago, but never got around to it until a formal colleague at Vassar writes me a nice recommendation on LinkedIn. I will update it as more testimonials become available.

Last month, I converted Visualgui.com’s markup to HTML5 and now my site is featured on HTML5 Gallery, a showcase of sites using HTML5 markup.

Friday evening Dana and Duke picked me up at the Metro. We drove to Lotto for some Korean food and picked up two big-ass jackfruits (36 pounds each) before heading to Lancaster to visit my mom for the weekend. About ten minutes on the highway, we had to bust an exit because Cu Dao was crying and his mom couldn’t stopped him. We changed him, drove on for about fifteen minutes and he started to scream again. We stopped at McDonald’s for the dollar-menu sundae. Dana took over the wheel and I tried to entertain Duke in the backseat. I made him laughed out loud until he was exhausted. I gave him the bottle. He knocked it out and slept the whole way through. Am I good or what?

Duke got up when we arrived around 10:30 pm. He wanted to play to with grandma and didn’t go back into bed until midnight. The next day, Duke, Dana, my boy Nate and I went to the outlet to do some shopping before heading to Eric’s birthday. Duke has so many cousins now and two are just a year or two older than him. My cousin who has three 3 kids advised me not to hold Duke too much or else he would get used to it.

The thing is I am not trying to spoil him. I am more like making up to him. On weekdays I don’t get to spend time with Duke too much. I get home from work around 6:30 pm, take a shower and get to play with him for half an hour before supper. After doing the dishes, it would be around 8:30. Dana and I would give him a bath and then send him off to his crib. The next morning, I get to play with him for another half an hour before leaving to work. Therefore, I really want to spend time and hold him whenever I get a chance and usually the weekends are the best time to do so. I am just hope that he won’t be too spoiled.

Our our back to Virginia, Dana drove and I played with him until he fell asleep and he did the whole way through. Watching him sleep makes me realized that what people saying are true. Cu Dao looks so much like his dad, but much cuter and much more handsome than his dad. My cousin even said that he looks “ngầu hơn” his dad because of his striking eyebrows when he does his serious look. All I can say is that Cu Dao is so far my best achievement in life.

Nowadays many young singers cover classic ballads, yet hardly any of them could give new life to the old songs. They either sound mad lazy or extremely uninspired. So far, Duong Quoc Hung is the exception. On his debut Chot Nho, Duong Quoc Hung actually sounds passionate as he breathes fresh air into the timeless tunes with the help of Nhat Trung.

Ngo Thuy Mien’s “Ban Tinh Cuoi” has been sung as a duet countless of times before, but Duong Quoc Hung and Phuong Trinh managed to make it their own. Phuong Trinh’s slightly husky, sultry vocals is a perfect match to Duong Quoc Hung’s soulful voice. They have done a superb job of supporting each other. I can’t ask for more. On Truong Sa’s “Xin Con Goi Ten Nhau,” Duong Quoc Hung maneuvers his flow effortlessly around Nhat Trung’s straight-forward, intoxicating bossa nova groove. “Mot Mai Em Di,” also by Truong Sa, gets a surprisingly pleasurable tango flavor. His version of Dien An’s “Vet Thuong Cuoi Cung” is refreshingly fervent and his rendition of Lam Phuong’s “Phut Cuoi” is so damn mesmerizing without having to belting out like diva Bang Kieu. Trinh Cong Son’s “Ru Em Tung Ngon Xuan Nong” would have been fantastic without Nhat Trung. I just want to bitch slap the dude for singing like a spineless bitch like, “ru maaai ngaan naaam.” He should have just stayed behind the board and not in the booth.

On the two newer tracks, Nhat Trung’s “Chot Nho” and Le Quang’s “Loi Tu Biet Tinh Yeu,” Duong Quoc Hung’s poignant delivery came through. He seems to make very wise choice in his song selections. Every tune was successful executed and each one displayed his range. This debut shows tremendous potential. Let’s hope he won’t fuck up.

Cam Ly is apparently not a very exciting singer. On her new release, Em Khong The Quen, she gives an oral report instead of singing Minh Vy’s mundane, Chinese-inflected songs. She hardly pushes her delivery simply because her range is as wide as a virgin’s ass. She sounds consistently flat throughout the album. “Cafe Miet Vuon” is the only tune she switches up her tone to mimic a jealous wife—something Minh Tuyet would have made more convincing. In fact, Minh Tuyet covers most of the sister’s songs with much more success. This one is going to be a Minh Tuyet’s record as well.

The other night I heard a high-pitched voice while sleeping. I mumbled to Dana, “why are you playing Bang Kieu’s songs in the wee hours?” About a minute later, the voice jumped an octave above Bang Kieu’s highest falsetto. I woke right the hell up and there was Cu Dao soaring out in a voice that I have never heard him cried before. I thought he was doing that “neu ngay nao tinh ta daaaaaaaaaaa phai” in Bang Kieu’s rendition of “Phut Cuoi,” although I don’t recall letting him listening to any of Bang Kieu’s recordings. I am still not sure where it was coming from, but I am so glad that he hasn’t pull that shtick again.

Our online venture, Simplexpression, has been neglected ever since we welcomed a new important member into our lives. Now that Dana has a bit of time, more pieces will be added soon. You now can follow us on Twitter to see the latest pieces. I also tightened up XHTML/CSS a bit for better performance and easier to update.

Big shout out to my man Tim for copping the Puppini Sisters necklace on the grand opening day. He gave it to his wife/college sweetheart on the moment they welcomed their lovely daughter into their world. Tim, thanks for making our product part of the special event of your life. I still have to learn a great deal from you on how to be an ideal husband.

This debut release marks the emancipation of Hoa Mi after twenty years on hiatus. Through the test of time, the nightingale’s soprano shows no sign of deterioration. She still sounds sensational and sentimental on classic songs like Ngo Thuy Mien’s “Ban Tinh Cuoi,” Lam Phuong’s “Mot Minh” and Trinh Cong Son’s “Ru Ta Ngam Ngui.” Unfortunately, Bao Chan’s lackluster arrangements aren’t doing her ageless voice the service. Even on his own tune, “Ben Em La Bien Rong,” he brings nothing but a smooth, snoring flavor that is perfect for airplane restaurants.

The nice thing about a grand-opening restaurant is that the people are very passionate. Hoa Vien Quan opened three weeks ago in Eden Center across from Hai Ky Mi Gia. From the server to the owner, they treated us with careful attention like finding a good spot for Cu Dao’s stroller and asking us if we liked the food.

We started off with the server’s recommendation: stuffed escargot (oc nhoi). Buried inside the meat, the escargot was hardly distinguishable from the plain stuffing. I had shaky beef with steamed rice (com bo luc lac) and it was not so bad although I prefer a simpler version with just beef and watercress dipped with salt, pepper and lemon instead of soy bean. My rice dish comes automatically with a bowl of soup, something I have to ask for at other places and even get charge for it. My mother-in-law had grilled pork with vermicelli (banh hoi thit nuong) and she liked it. Dana had Hoa Vien noodle soup (hu tieu Hoa Vien). The soup looked clear and tasted a bit plain, but she also liked it.

The common dishes don’t stand out, but they aren’t horrible either. So if I crave for a Vietnamese dish at one in the morning, I can still get it at Hoa Vien Quan since it opens from 9am-2am. The space is small, clean with simple decorations. The red and peach painting makes the place a bit “sen.” There was also a karaoke machine and it was a good thing that it didn’t turn on while we were eating.