NPR presents “The Birth of Rap: A Look Back” with Kurtis Blow and DJ Grand Wizard Theodore.

With $100 a month for her parents, you could married a beautiful Vietnamese wife according to The New York Times‘s “Korean Men Use Brokers to Find Brides in Vietnam.” Now that we’re done with the Taiwanese men, we’re down with the Koreans. The report actually sounds more happy than abusive.

I’ve been rocking my neck to Ngoc Khue’s “Trai Lang Toi” all morning. The beat is so hot that it would blow Jim Jones’s “We Fly High” out of the club. Pump this joint in the spots I am sure boys and girls would bounce with it.

My late night routine for the past few days has been munching banh bia (can’t get enough of that durian flavor), sipping hot tea, watching Xa Dieu Anh Hung Truyen (Legend of Condor Heroes), and drifting off to sleep.

I also had a savory bowl of bun rieu last night. Someone must have read what I wrote yesterday.

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Although the snow has melted and the sun has shined, Poughkeepsie is still a place where, “Pho nui cao pho nui day suong / Pho nui cay xanh troi thap that buon,” just like what Pham Duy has described in his lovely “Con Chut Gi De Nho.” Plenty of time I feel like Poughkeepsie is not a place for me. I need to be surrounded by my Vietnamese community so I could have a bowl of Pho, a dish of rice or a loaf of bread whenever I crave for one. What I truly miss are just the simple greetings between the Vietnamese folks. Somehow hearing my own language warms up my heart. Although Poughkeepsie has none of that, “May ma co em doi con de thuong.” When Nguyen Khang pours his heart out on, “Xin cam on thanh pho co em / Xin cam on mot mai toc mem,” I definitely feel that shit. Thanks Khang, I owe you a cig for that.

“Mambozart” is literally a Mozart’s “Symphony No. 40” arranged in a Cuban’s mambo style. With that in mind, I am sure those classical heads could figure out what “Afrolise” and “Carmen Cubana” supposed to be. Classic Meets Cuba, a joint between the Klazz Brothers (German musicians) and Cuba Percussion, is a classical album I don’t mind listening to even though they have taken the dead music out of its original context. My favorite resuscitations are the soothing, grooving rendition of Monti’s “Czardas” and the brief but hypnotic “Flight of the Bumble Bee” from Rimsky-Korsakov. I once spinned this album to an eighty-year-old man (who plays some classical piano, but remembers all the tunes by heart) and he was not humming to the classical melody, but also jamming to the beat and naming all the pieces’ title. I was like, “Damn, I hope I’ll still be that sharp when I reach that age or if I’ll reach that age.”

While I was away, Auto Elegance (recommended by dealer and charged like dealer) put my baby back into her original condition. With two grants, which were over what Geico had estimated, dropped, I felt like I was driving off with a brand new baby. She was clean and polished in and out. Elegance sure lives up to its name.

Even though I was not planning on attending the Vietnamese New Year (Mung Xuan Dinh Hoi) concert in Virginia, I hopped along at the last minute after seeing Nguyen Khang and Ngoc Ha on the poster. The show hosted by Trinh Hoi and Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen with performers including Y Lan, Vu Khanh, Cardin, Manh Dinh, Bang Tam, Hong Dao, and Quang Minh, and supported by “de nhat” band Phung Quan.

Y Lan kicked off the show with Pham Duy’s “Gai Xuan” to give the audience a vibe of New Year. She then covered Trinh Cong Son’s “Nang Thuy Tinh” in a pseudo-blues style. At the break the keyboardist played the imitating saxophone keys that sounded perfect for a memorial service. It was so bad that Y Lan had to cut right back to the song to illuminate the keyboard-sax solo. In Vu Khanh’s performance of “Co Lang Gieng,” I lost count of how many times the band sped up and slowed down the tempos to catch his singing. It was also the first time I heard Trinh Cong Son’s “Nho Mua Thu Ha Noi” played in a cha-cha beat. During a bathroom break, I heard a perfect comment from a guy who said in Vietnamese that the band played one direction while Vu Khanh sang in another.

After Cardin, Manh Dinh and Bang Tam performances, Ky Duyen complimented how well done the band had played. Sure, to accompany Manh Dinh and Bang Tam, all they needed to do was playing that robotic bolero repetitively. I am not sure if Ky Duyen meant what she said or it was part of her job to say what she had to say, but it sure hurts her credibility every time she comments on something deafly like that.

At least Nguyen Khang and Ngoc Ha didn’t let me down. Nguyen Khang performed two songs. He did quite nicely with Vu Thanh An’s “Anh Den Tham Em Dem 30” with his authoritative voice. If the band could swing up his rendition of “Falling in Love with You,” it would have been refreshing to hear. When Ngoc Ha was speaking, she was shaking and nervous, but when she sang Pham Duy’s “Tinh Hoai Huong” and Pho Duc Phuong’s “Ho Tren Nui,” she was in full command. Even the band was surprisingly good when backing up her powerful vocals on “Ho Tren Nui”; therefore, they deserved her recognition for “climbing the mountain” with her.

Too bad I couldn’t stay for the second half of the show, but Nguyen Khang’s performance of “Anh Den Tham Em Dem 30” and Ngoc Ha’s presentation of “Ho Tren Nui” were worth the price of the common-class ticket.

Still hanging around Virginia for Vietnamese New Year. Bumped into my boy from Lancaster yesterday at Eden Center. Hommie’s now a frequent drummer at Diamond Night Club. There goes my free admission to the joint. Caught up with him for a bit before heading into Viet Royale for the worst seven-course beef ever. How could such a fancy restaurant fail the simplest dish that requires only fresh beef and vinegar? The beef was as good as McDonald’s patties. Why the rare beef with lime (bo tai chanh) was cooked is beyond me. The suppose-to-be fatty beef (bo mo chay) tasted like American sausage.

Friday, had a chance to meet up with my men HmL and Ducster. These guys are off the hook. With their friendliness and down-to-earth attitude, look them up if you’re in the area. Brother Ducster has all the connections (including free Krispy Kreme doughnuts and Vietnamese hoagies) you need. Thanks both for the lunch at Viet Bistro. It’s a nice place to hang out, but I must confess the bun bo hue wasn’t good. The beef was so chewy that I felt like I was eating beef jerky with broth. Maybe I should have tried something else. Still, it was a great pleasure to finally meet my two big brothers, and you know I am going to be down there more often now. So don’t even try to hide from me. Next time we’ll be chilling in Cafe XXX.