None of the tracks on Quang Tuan’s Bai Tinh Ca Trong Chieu (Tinh Khuc Thanh Trang Vol. 2) sticks. The cheap-ass productions are the main problem. Thanh Lam is not only an unimaginative producer, but he also seems to work in a studio that has not been upgraded since the 80s.

The title track jumps off with a hideous cha-cha drum loop that was popular in the mid to late 80s. “Mua Thu Ve Tham Me” features a smooth saxophone tone that would send you right to bed. Even the jazzy vibe on “Sai Gon Nho, Sai Gon Thuong” is so wimpy and lazy that it makes you think why bothered? Just let Quang Tuan gets his a cappella on. Wait, that would be boring still.

Quang Tuan has a warm, tender, somewhat guttural voice. He is a very relaxed singer and doesn’t like to show that he would break a sweat. Like Quang Dung, Quang Tuan is a productive machine without a bad track. Every song he sings is just about right. He barely gets out of his comfort range or rubs the notes the wrong way (as if it is sacrilegious to do so).

After listening to four of his albums straight (Gui Nguoi Em Gai, Huyen, Canh Hoa Duyen Kiep and this one), I am just yearning to return to Tuan Ngoc for some deep soul searching and octave skipping as well as Duy Cuong’s masterful orchestrations, especially on Pham Duy’s “Ky Niem,” Doan Chuan and Tu Linh’s “Gui Nguoi Em Gai” and Tu Cong Phung’s “Nhu Chiec Que Diem.”

Let me show you a snake that isn’t scary.

Wanda Sykes hits it straight on: “If you don’t believe in same sex marriage, then don’t marry someone of the same sex.”

Fresh Air‘s Terry Gross conducted a very interesting interview with professor Irene Pepperberg and her unique relationship with Alex, an African gray parrot who could speak, understand, count, identify colors and develop emotion.

Five weeks ago we put in a contract for short sale property with a price above what the seller was asking for. We’re the highest offer and the only remaining buyer of the house. Both the seller and the banks have approved the price, but the short sale agent refuses to close the deal with us. She is negotiating with the second lender to lower its net so she could get more commission.

From what I understand, the owner goes into short sale to avoid foreclosure because he cannot make the payments. The banks don’t want to go into foreclosure either because it would cost them more money. In this case, it is the seller agent who is dragging on the contract because she is not getting enough commission. If she keeps dragging this out, the house will eventually fall into foreclosing.

So the increasing number of foreclosures isn’t necessary the owner’s fault, but the greedy agents. Has anyone have any experience with short sale? Is the seller agent allowed to do that even though both the banks and the seller accepted the price? Is there any regulation?

I am not a circus guy, but I enjoyed Cirque du Soleil‘s KOOZA. It was quite entertaining. Highly recommended.

The title of Kevin Smith’s new film tells it like it is. Two best friends, Zack (Seth Rogen) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks), make an amateur porn flick to pay their bills. They turned an acting scene into lovemaking romance on camera. Zack and Miri Make a Porno is thin on the plot but thick on profanity and soft pornography. I lost track of how many times the F bomb is dropped in the movie, but I would estimate one every five minutes. Sure there were boobs and dicks whipped out on screen, but the real deal is in the amusing dialogues and the race jokes. While the porn-turned-romance concept is creative, the film turned wearisome, predictable and unconvincing trying to make the transition from sex to love.

The special slideshow dedicated to the children of Agent Orange is finally released. The project, motivated by Dana to help raise awareness of the affects and donation for the victims, actually started back in July but was on hold due to the lack of imageries.

Although Justin Maxon was kind enough to allow me to use his photos, I didn’t have enough to complete the whole song. So I decided to work with what I have. The good thing about working with limitation is that I have to be precise when choosing a musical track to convey the message.

After going through my collection, Thuy Tien’s soul-searching rendition of Trinh Cong Son’s “Xin Cho Toi” stood out. The solo piano accompanying the painful but hopeful vocals sets the right tone for the photos. The lyrics of the entire song do not fit with content, but one particular part is spot on, so I decided just to use that segment.

Even though the clip is short, I am satisfied with the result. It’s concise and straight to the point. The music, the lyrics and the photos fit well together to bring out the message.

I just read the entire site and signed the petition. Keep on fighting friends.

The new Change.gov is finally up. The tremendous traffic might have caused the site to hiccup all afternoon.