Who Dat

So other than trying to recover from the flu bug this past weekend, nothing of too much significance occurred. Well, not exactly true. Some A$$-hole with a trailer hitch backed up into the grill and cracked both left and right turn signal lens of the Camry while it was parked in front of my house. Of course I didn’t discover this until walking back to my car on Sunday after lunch. The only vehicle that could have done it/under suspicion was the Ford F-150 that was parked really really really close to my car on Saturday evening. Even though the truck had plenty of space in front of it, I think the driver and friend(s) went down to the park to drink/party and backed into the vehicle when leaving for the night. That’s the only vehicle that I noticed that parked in front of my house prior to and after the damage was noticed. Luckily the front grill is an all plastic piece held by three bolts to the structure of the car. A new tube of crazy glue and 30 mins later, the "new" grill is back in place on the Camry.

Makes me wonder why I’m even thinking about a new car at times when it’s just gonna get crunched by some irresponsible a$$-hole…

Yeah…life and work have been pretty busy. I didn’t blog about Connor’s 16 month mark and his 17th month mark is about a day late.

So what’s new with the kid? He’s been babbling a bit more and has started to blow kisses at people, when he’s in the mood. He’ll hi-5 you and also give you some love, again when he’s in the mood. He’s also been more interested in the solid foods he’s been eating, preferring to get his hands in the food to take it apart and put pieces into his mouth. Good that he’s exploring…bad because he makes such a mess of himself!

The little guy did get sick yesterday though. Looks like there’s a bug going around. It hit Femmie first, then Connor last night and I’m feeling a bit under the weather at this point in time as well. Connor had a low grade fever last night and lots of phlegm that kept him up all night and well into this morning. Probably why I’m under the weather as well since I really only slept from 4am to 6am this morning.

Other than that, Connor is doing well and growing fast!

Okay…finally got off my lazy butt and also uploaded pics of Connor from September 2007 to the most recent ones we’ve taken. They’re all located at Flick.com and listed in the album Connor Jordan Ng III. Enjoy!!

Yahoo had a small article on Raymond Jacobs. For those of you in the bay area, that name may sound familiar to you. He was a former reporter on KTVU before he retired in 1992. What I didn’t know was that he was one of the last of the Iwo Jima Marines that were in the flag raising photographs. Semper Fi Sergeant Jacobs!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080204/ap_on_re_us/obit_jacobs

I’m four days behind, but Connor and other activies have kept me a bit busy. What kind of activities you might ask? Work for one. It was a busy week last week being the gatekeeper for new escalations.

What else? Well…let’s see…and before anyone panics…Connor had an accident on his 15 month old anniversary. Happened on January 10th, a little past 5pm which is close of business for most people. I went from my home office into the bedroom where Connor was playing. He had gotten a drum set for Christmas and was banging one the drumsticks on the drum. The next set of events happened so quickly, there wasn’t even enough time to tell Connor "No! Don’t do that or you’ll get hurt!"

So what did the kid do? He stuck the drumstick in his mouth, ran three steps and fell onto the drumstick with it still in his mouth. Luckily, it’s not a sharp drumstick ,but one with a round ball blunt end. Still he choked on the stick and I ran to pull it out of his mouth. He was gagging and then puked out his formula and out with it came lots of blood. Femmie called 911 and the paramedics came.

After an examination by the paramedics, he seemed to be fine. Still crying, but the paramedics said that his breathing was clear and that the cut was probably in his mouth somewhere. We weren’t able to see inside because Connor would not have it at all. After the paramedics left, we called his pediatrician to have him seen on Friday, January 11th instead of today, the 14th, which was when we had scheduled him for his 15 month checkup and set of shots.

After a thorough check, the pediatrician said he was fine, but that he did have a cut in his upper palate near his tonsil and that his throat was a little red. But otherwise, no internal bleeding and that the cut was already healing. Soft mushy/liquid diet for a day or two and he was fine again.

And yesterday was his cousin Taylor’s birthday. Connor had a great time on the huge inflatable slide before and after most of the hyper-kinetic kids had come and gone. Poor kid was so tired that he slept through all of last night…which is a good thing for mom and dad. =)

Been slacking as of late. Been two months since my last posting and any updates on pictures of Connor. So…where to start?

Connor’s online photo album has been moved off Yahoo Photos (because they closed down) and migrated over to Flickr (http://www.flickr.com/photos/92964061@N00/). Still need to put up some photos of him since my last posting, but he’s grown big and fast! He’s able to run around now and has started to try and climb onto items in and around the house. He’s also started to open drawers and shelves and getting into all kinds of mischief around the house too. Time to child-proof the kitchen I think. He also likes pounding on the piano keys and has started to play with his MegaBlocks more constructively, other than trying to chew, disassemble and throw the blocks. He’s getting the hang of putting two of them together now. He’s now progressing to being a builder instead of a destroyer! I’ll see when I’ve got some time to pore over some of his more recent pics and post them up as well.

As for me, just been busy with the household chores and maintenance while my dad and step-mom are in China visiting friends and relatives. Also been working on paying off all the big bills that like to come in at the end of year like property taxes, house insurance, car registration, etc. Be nice if the Fed had actually cut interest rates down a bit more, especially when they were stating that they’d take aggressive measures in light of the mortgage bust.  Be nicer still if JAVAD went up over $24 a share…could sell some stock and pay off a large chunk of my credit card bill and still have a little nest egg for a rainy day. Guess I’ll just wait it out for now.

The family also celebrated Thanksgiving here at my home for the first time! The main reason was that my Uncle Robert had a liver transplant and rather than burden my Aunt Daisy, who’s traditionally made the Thanksgiving feast for the family, the kids decided to do the cooking and change the venue so my aunt and uncle wouldn’t be too stressed out. It was a nice big family feast and a big thanks to everyone who helped out with food, hosting the annual bingo game and for taking leftovers with you on the way out!

Other than that, it’s been work work work. Gonna be able to take some time off come Christmas and New Years this year. By product of working it last year and taking none of the earlier vacation days in the calendar year. Be so damn nice to catch up on some rest and sleep.

Happy 1st Birthday Baba!!! =)

Connor turns one year old today!! And what a great ride it’s been so far! He’s no longer this little floppy football size being, but a 20lb+ back breaking, crawling, walking, babbling, touching everything and anything, pulling, tugging, smacking, climbing, sleeping dude!

I’m sure I’m preaching to the choir for those of you who have kids, but at times it’s trying and tiring taking care of your kids.  But as I look at him asleep in his crib, holding his favorite stuff animal Pup-Pup, it brings me a sense of contentment and happiness.

I’m just very glad that he’s happy (most of the time!), that he’s has enough food to eat that help him grow big and strong (oh my poor aching back from carrying him around!!), that he’s clothed (although he likes to run around in his diaper or preferrably naked), and that he’s got enough toys to keep him entertained and that little mind of his exercised.

So happy birthday Connor and may all your wishes and dreams come true and may you have health, happiness and prosperity in your life!

P.S. On another note, a big Happy Birthday to my good friend Ron Ward, the man with the big heart, who was kind enough to share his birthday with Connor. And yes Ron…if I’m still playing fantasy football by the time Connor makes the draft, you have dibs on him.

Okie doke…someday the drama will slow down a bit more. I’ve resigned myself to the fact that life is never devoid of drama of some sort and that the day the drama ends, is the day my life ends.

So how have things been? Busy!!! Where to begin…

My nephew Dylan is in the hospital with pneumonia. He’s been in there since about Friday and things aren’t getting any better for the little guy. He’s got bacterial pneumonia and the anti-biotics don’t seem to be doing him much good. His appetite is still low to non-existent and the CAT scans of his lungs still show fluids in there. Doctor’s are discussing other options at this point, but are still hoping that the anti-biotics will be able to work.

Femmie’s uncle Tito Adong in the Philippines ended up the hospital and had to undergo emergency dialysis. Not sure what else happened, but somehow he ended up in a coma. Femmie’s mom flew back to the Philippines on Saturday to be with her brother and family. Luckily, he woke from his coma after a day. Still not too clear on whether there’s any lasting damage at this point though.

My uncle Robert just got out of the ICU at UCSF. It’s not as bad as it seems, but it’s actually good news that he was there. He’s had liver cancer for about 10 years now and he’s been able to control it thorugh chemo. He got the call over the weekend that there was a suitable donor for him and he had his transplant operation on Sunday. Everything went through great and successful and now he’s recovering.

Little sister Marisa’s car was involved in an accident. Just found out earlier this evening that the cops were chasing another car and that her car was one of the ones that were damaged during the chase. Glad she wasn’t in the car and that it was parked outside the place she’s living at. Now all she has to do is figure out who’s going to pay for the damages.

Grandma Hong is doing a lot better and recovering very well. She’s on a regular dialysis regimen now and she just had her stitches from her fistula removed yesterday. She’s gotten stronger and her sense of balance and ability to walk around is greatly improved.

As for me, I’m anemic again. Going to see a specialist Oct 23rd and see what’s going on. Started up on my iron pills again. Other than that, my physical came out good and strong so I’m good to go for another year, with the exception of my anemia.

The only good news is that I’m first in my fantasy football league. Surprising? Yeah, especially to those who know me as one of the least sports inclined guys around. Most of the people in the league I play in are hardcore football fans and keep up to date on the latest news on the players. And what’s even more surprising is the fact that I wasn’t able to attend draft day and let the Yahoo bot pick for me. Huh…guess that wasn’t so bad after all. But it’s only been 5 games out of 17 so far and I think I’ve lucked out a few times because after watching some of my players get knocked out of the game early, I though for sure I had lost the week. But leave it to the other players to pull through and score me enough points to win the week. I swear I’ll have to get shirts printed for the league that say "I can’t wait for <insert favorite basketball team here> to win the SuperBowl!" if I win at my third year of fantasy football.

Going to take a little time off starting October 10 through 12. Why do you ask? See the blog entry above…

It’s been six years now since the 9/11 attacks and I remember that day clearly. I had been driving to work in the early morning after leaving my wife snoozing happily in bed to get down to work at SUN Microsystems down at the new Santa Clara campus.

I remember listening to the Doghouse on my car radio when they announced that an airplane had smashed into one of the Twin Towers. I had been thinking that it was a small plane and maybe the pilot got disoriented and that the weather was cloudy that day. About 16 minutes later, the Doghouse reported that another plane had crashed into the the other World Trade Center tower. At this time, I’m thinking that something isn’t right and my worst fears were confirmed when it was broadcast that these were big jets that had crashed into the buildings. A little less than an hour from the first reported crash, it was reported that another jet had crashed into the Pentagon. Foreign terrorists had struck in the United States.

So in retaliation, we went after the countries that had been harboring Islamic miltants and terrorist groups. We went into Afghanistan to remove the Taliban from power and into Iraq a second time under the pretense of finding weapons of mass destruction that could be used against the United States.

So…where are we now? Osama bin Laden just put out another video thumbing his nose at our government and way of life (if you convert to Islam, then you’ll be safe!). American troops are losing their lives and limbs on a daily basis in foreign lands. Iraq’s infrastructure is still unstable and there is still religious infighting and insurgents attacking our troops and Iraqi police officers, goverment officials, soldiers and, this is the best part, (note sarcasm) Iraqi civilians. Yes, we’ve managed to go after and take out some leadership in al Qaida and other militant groups, but what does this gain? Like the hydra, it sprouts a new head and keeps on going.

Some thoughts…insurgents are fighting for the US to leave Iraq and want to vanquish the western crusaders. The US wants to leave as soon as things are stable. But the insurgents/Islamic militants are making the area unstable with their IED’s, car bombs and ambush attacks via guerilla warfare. Hmmm, I wonder who the idiots are in this scenario. I wonder what would happen if these militants/insurgents/idiots stopped their attacks and allowed peace and order to return? Wouldn’t it be better to stop the attacks, especially on Iraqi civilians and law enforcement infrastructure, so that things stabilize and US troops aren’t needed anymore?

Another thought, I know we’ve identified a lot of lower level players in militant groups and are using them to get to leaders. But the concept of a cell is that they’ll operate independently for days, months, years without contact with their leadership. Instead of hitting the leaders and watching them sprout back, any thoughts on hitting the low level guys? The ones that do the actual attacks? Why hit the leaders and give them high profile martyrs vice a lowly foot soldier who’ll be forgotten in the long term? That type of tactic seems to be working against US troops. And it’s not really fair to compare a US soldier to a militant either. The US soldier is a professional who clearly identifies who he is and that he is a soldier, whereas a militant is a coward using remotely detonated IEDs and hiding amongst civilians and killing non-combatants.

And before everyone starts jumping all over me, there will always be those that remember who an individual US soldier is. I’m not putting down the importance of the individual soldier (being that I was one myself for 11 years), but family, friends and colleagues will definitely remember you for the rest of their lives and in their hearts. But will the rest of America? My only fear is that those who’ve sacrificed their lives to help democracy take root in other countries will not be remembered for who they were…that they’re just another name or statistic lost in the war.

Another thought…is America any safer? You’d think so, but like any type of shield or defense, there are weaknesses. Not all cargo is scanned at shipping ports and our borders are still porous enough to allow people to bypass our border guards. Even our watch lists are not infallible. It’s up to each and every one of us needs to be diligent and not leave the responsibility to others. It’s everyone’s responsibility to help keep neighbors, friends and family safe. We need to come together as a united team of Americans to protect this country and the ideals it represents. Not be divided by our differences, but united because that’s what gives our great country it’s edge. The fact that we are a great melting pot of ideas, thoughts and expression. And that we can take the best that each and everyone of us has to give as an individual and culturally, to give to the greater whole to help inspire and motivate others to learn more and do better.

Happy 11 months old Connor! Little guy is growing up fast and he’s progressing in his motor skills! He’s crawling like a maniac around the house, able to go up the stairs from the first to second floors and has been trying to take his first steps by himself. He’s able to manage 1-3 steps before falling on his rear, but it’s a start! Femmie’s also been teaching him to try and spoon feed himself (mixed results) and he’s kinda given up on drinking out of the sippy cups. What Connor has been learning to do is drink from a straw. He thinks it’s a game at times and spits out the milk, but most of the time he sips some of his formula and drinks it. Now to work on his language and communication skills.

And apologies ahead of time in regards to not posting new pics of the little guy. Been busy (as noted in previous blog entry) and Yahoo Photos is closing down end of September. I’ll be moving his photo sets and will post a new link to the Flickr.com site when Yahoo has moved them over for us.  Depending on how things make it over, I may wipe them out and repost the pics.