Weekend Recap

Well, I hope that everyone had a nice and safe Memorial Day weekend. We spent some time on Saturday morning at carnival Street Fair in the Mission District. From there we went to the East Bay for the King to do a little shopping. Later that evening we went to see the new "X-Men" movie, which was pretty good. Sunday we got up and went to see the Giants play the Colorado Rockies and to see Barry Bonds hit his 715 homerun. It was really cool to be there and see something like that in front of a home crowd. It was wild! Yesterday the King got her haircut and so did Elijah in preparation for our trip to China. It's getting closer and I guess it's about time to start getting ready for it.

Our Champions

This past weekend Crysta and her basketball team played in the Championship for her league. It was a very exciting game, but the girls fell just a little short losing by 2 points at the buzzer. The girls were very disappointed but played their hearts out and that is all that matters. We were very proud of Crysta. After the game the parents decided to take the girls out to Chevy's a local Mexican chain to celebrate. This was the last game the girls would play together after 4 years. They will all move on to different high schools next year. They all quickly got over the disappointment and had a great time. They sat at one table raising hell and the parents sat at the other one drinking margaritas. It was good to see them really enjoying themselves.

Mother's Day

Well I hope all of you lovely ladies had a wonderful Mother's Day. It was a beautiful day here in WC Peavine. I got up, wished the King a Happy Mother's Day and let her watch her Chinese shows in bed. I then went down and washed our 3 cars. It's times like that I don't like having 3 cars. The the King got to do her favorite thing and go shopping at Ross. When she returned from her outing, me and the kids took her to her favorite Vietnamese place in Oakland, Le Cheval. We had a very nice dinner and the company was very good.

Art Show

Last week the King and I went to the sophomore Art Show at Ethan's school. Each year they have a show and the students submit pieces for the show. Of those pieces the teachers pick the ones to showcase. This year Ethan had a drawing and about 3 digital photo's that were displayed. His sculpture met with an untimely demise. It was held at the gallery at his school. Food and drink was provided for the guests, but the kids ate it all before the guests could get to it. This is the drawing that he had submitted, which I thought was pretty good. The parents were all encouraged to buy the pieces, but Ethan chose not to sell his. I don't think he is ready to go pro.

Weekend Update

The King and I enjoyed the day on Thursday at the Giants afternoon game against the Chicago Cubs. It was a perfect day and the Giants beat the Cubs pretty easily on the day. It was really exciting every time that Barry Bonds came up to bat. 42,000 people would all stand and hope to see him send one out of the Park, but to no avail. We then spent Saturday up in Chico which is a big college town about 3 hours north of SF. We took the King's mother to visit a friend she has known since her childhood in China. After that we went and had lunch at the Sierra Nevada Brewery which you know I really enjoyed. The food was really good and the beer was great as well. That evening we went for Malaysian food in Chinatown which turned out to be very good. My favorite dish was one called Lady Fingers sauted in garlic. For those who do not know what Lady fingers are, me included, it was okra.

Looking down Columbus Street

It must be noon somewhere?

Sunny Sunday

Well yesterday was just a perfect day to be outside. We had gone out to dinner on Saturday with some of the King's friends for the Hong Kong Alumni Association. There was good food and dance lesson's that the King took part in. We awoke to perfect weather yesterday so we took off to enjoy the day. We first went to the Ferry Building which sits at the end of Market Street. They had remodeled it and I wanted to see it. It was full of gourmet and organic shops of food and everything you can imagine. We had fresh baked bread and homemade marshmallows that were so good. We then went to North Beach & Chinatown where we had some good Thai food and then went over to the Pacific Brewing Company so I could have a beer and sit out on the sidewalk and enjoy the weather. Then it was off to Ross so the girls could get in a little shopping. After that we went home and grilled some of the specialty sausages we had bought that morning, including lamb and duck sausage. The duck was better than the lamb for those who are keeping score.

Happy Birthday April!

All of us here on the West Coast want to wish April a very Happy Birthday! Wish we could be there to celebrate with you. We Love You!

Visa's

Well I took yesterday off and waited in line to get our Visa's for China. It was a pretty long line but moved pretty quickly. I will go back and pick them on Friday. Tomorrow they are coming back to finish fixing our refrigerator. Sure will be nice not having to run downstairs when you need something. Later!

Early Mother's Day

Sunday here was just perfect! It was about 70 with not a cloud in the sky. The King and the kids went to Dim Sum with Elijah's paternal grandparents so I had the day to myself. I spent 6 hours working in the backyard, pulling weeds and just cleaning it up. I could barely move by the end of the day. Then later that evening we went to dinner with the King and her family to celebrate an early Mother's Day. It's not always easy to get everyone together. We went out for the typical 10 course meal. We tried a much different dinner than we normally do. We had a crab, I'm not sure what type it was, but it was huge and provided about 3 of the dishes. I have enclosed a photo of the bad boy. Seems like we have to take before and after photo's of our food. Still not sure on why we do that, but we do.

Elijah's Birthday

Well Saturday was a pretty busy day for us. First of all it was Elijah's birthday, secondly it was Freshman orientation for Crysta at her new school for next year. She will be going to the same high school as Elijah, which is Lincoln High. It's only 2 buses away versus around the corner. She had to go for placement tests and to meet counselor's. Then later that evening Ethan and his girlfriend Stephanie came over and we took Elijah out to dinner for his birthday. It was a nice dinner at BJ's Brewhouse and then we went back home so he could check out his prizes.

Enjoying the Sun

Not much to report this weekend. The sun was finally out and stayed dry this weekend. Been a long time since that has happened. Spent part of Saturday cleaning the house and working out in the back, repotting some stuff. We then cooked out on Saturday night, invited the King's parents over for some steaks. Took the King to Ross on Sunday and then cooked burgers out for her parents again. Getting ready to head back home to meet the Sears guy. Seems our fridge is having problems and needs repair. Till next time.

Happy Birthday Edge!

All of us out here on the West Coast would like to wish the Edge man a very happy birthday!!

We love you buddy!!

I Feel Your Pain

Well after this last weekend I can certainly sympathize with Greg and Jeanne. We spent two days looking for a dress for Crysta. She will be having her 8th grade graduation luncheon where they all get dressed up. It was a whole lot easier with Elijah. Just got him a shirt and tie to match his slacks. We hit several malls and traveled over 200 miles in search of "The Dress" We finally managed to find a few that she liked, she now just has to decide which one she likes best. She tried them on and we took photo's of each so she could look at them later. Sorry no photo's for the blog. She made me promise I wouldn't put any up yet. She looked so pretty and grown up, she's never allowed to date. The King and I have decided at least not until she is 21. Other than that we just tried to stay dry. It keeps on raining here, but it may have stopped for a few days, at least until maybe Friday. The kids were on Spring Break last week, and with it raining every day they were pretty loopy by the end of the week since they were inside the whole time. Hope everyone had a nice Easter and that the kids (Mike & Greg) enjoyed the egg hunt. Loved Edge's doo rag! Till Later!

Still Kicking

Well another weekend has come and gone without to much fanfare. Crysta had another game and her team won again. They are doing pretty well this year. Didn't do much this weekend. The King and her family went to visit a relative of her mother's on Saturday leaving me and the kids at home. We watched the OU women play softball and then watched the OU Spring game on ESPN. We then went out to dinner when the King got back at this new Chinese place that was pretty good. Got up yesterday and went to Chinatown so the King and her Mom could do their grocery shopping. We went for Dim Sum while we were there. Once we got home The King and the kids made wonton for wonton soup. It was pretty good. Looks like rain here again today, which has been happening a lot lately. I can only remember about two days that it hasn't rained in the last month and a half. Until next time!

Water Logged

Well this weekend we loaded up and went down to Great America amusement park and rode roller coasters all day. That was in between the rain showers. In the month of March here, it rained 25 days of the month. It was a record. When we left Saturday morning it was raining pretty hard and everyone was looking at me like I was crazy. But by the time we got there the rain had stopped and we were able to enjoy the day. On Sunday we went to the cemetery for the Chinese ritual of the families going to the graves and having a picnic. I'm sure their is a more technical name for it. The entire family gets together and takes all sorts of food and drink to the graves. Incense is burned along with candles. Wine is poured on the graves for the ancestors to enjoy as well as leaving food for them to enjoy. Fake money is burned, so that they will have money in the afterlife. It must have been the last day of the celebration because I have never seen so many people at a cemetery in my life. Plus it was raining. After the rituals were completed we packed up all of the food and went back to the King's parents to eat. As we start another week out here they say it should rain for the next two weeks. Oh well! On another note: Auna you were simply stunning.

Karaoke Anyone?

Well this past weekend was the ever popular and always highly anticipated Tam Family Association Dinner. In the Chinese culture there are family associations which are like little clubs. They can be for a family or for a village in a certain area of China. The King's uncle is one of the leaders of the Tam Association. The evening is a chance for friends and family to get together enjoy a typical 10 course Chinese banquet and to catch up on what's new. But the highlight for me has always been the Karaoke part of the evening. Through out the evening, some of the more mature people get up and sing their favorite Chinese tunes. But wait it gets better. They really enjoy doing Chinese Opera, which sang by the best singers in the world is still a little like hearing a cat get gutted. And we always seem to get a really good table by the speakers. It's a night to remember. The King and her parents really seem to enjoy the evening and that's all that really matters. On another note, Crysta's basketball team had another game and notched another victory. They are now 4-1 in league play. She had a few points plus a couple of really wicked passes. Till next time!

Fries with that Shake?

Well not too much going on here today, other than the 9 little earthquakes we have had in the last hour and a half. Most of them have been pretty small where you hardly notice them. There was one that was a 3.7 that you could just feel rolling in and then right on by. It was pretty cool. It's funny to watch peoples reactions, some get very excited and the other half just don't care. Oh well, that's it from here for now.

Weekend Update

Well there is not much to report here in West Coast Peavine. Crysta's team had a basketball game on Saturday in Half Moon Bay which they did not win. The probably should have, but there were a lot of mistakes they could not overcome. Spent the rest of the weekend doing a little house cleaning and watching a lot of basketball on TV. Again, Happy Birthday to Auna and hope that she had a great time!