My baby brother

I went to see my baby brother today. He's so tiny, like little tiny little. He's 1 month and 5 days old and he looks grumpy, angry little baby. Dad gave the baby to me and i was like "ehh!" Awkward!! I am so freaking afraid of holding a baby. One time i was trying to hold a puppy and i hurt him, and people were like "hold him like you're holding a baby". What? I dont know how to hold a baby. I can't even hold a puppy, don't give me that baby.
So i didn't hold him, that's a good thing. Dad said he rarely cries, he just eats and sleeps (and poops?). I'm just gonna sit and watch him and maybe hold his hand, that's it, no more. I bought him this little Tennessee baby bottle, show some school spirit here lol. Really hope he'll get to use it. My cousin is about to give birth to her 3th child, omg baby everywhere.

I'm reading The Fountainhead and really can not put the book down. I have this really weird feeling reading this book, a very different feeling as if I'm physically there watching everything. I read every word and understand everything, it's magical haha. No, but really it's very different, it makes me nodding along, marking stuff here and there, it's just awesome. I wonder if Dwight Schrute was an architect what would he be? The modernist? No, he would probably be the Renaissance one, or the Gothic. But really, Roark reminds me of Dwight, very rigid, very unfriendly, very architectural (if that even make sense). I can't decide if I like Roark at this point, i have to keep reading and see.

On my way home for Xmas

I'm home again for Xmas. The trip was 28 hours total and i was completely exhausted. I guess just being annoyed and unhappy for 14 hours really wore me out, i was falling asleep in Narita waiting for my next flight.
So the flight from Dallas to Narita was terrible. You know there are days when you just want to be alone, not talking to anybody, just want to read or do some thinking. Yeah, that's what i usually do on the plane, that precious 14 hours to think (usually about crap haha i am not a thinker), to read and watch movies, and sleep and not have to talk. But I sat next to this crazy korean woman and she wouldn't stop talking.

"Fountainhead? It's a good book. I don't have time to read. I go to Harvard."
"Do you play sudoku? What level do you play? Oh good i only play hard so you can have all my medium ones."
And there's a voice in my head saying "tell her to shut the fuck up"
"Oh oh Elf, you should watch Elf. Have you ever seen it it's really funny."
"Hey you should watch this movie it's very funny, it's The Women." Excuse me i'm in the middle of watching something else.
"You see that blue area over there, that's a lake" _ I guess i'm not smart enough to tell that it was a fucking lake.

She wouldn't stop interrupting me while i was watching movies just to tell me "this is very funny you should watch this next." Over and over. And over and over.

Narita was crowded as usual. I would normally go into those tiny store with only 2 feet between aisles, but i was in a pissy mood so... The flight from Narita home was nice, japan airline plane was super clean and the food was good, i slept like a baby and it was so hard to wake up (and the japanese guy sitting next to me doesn't talk).

Anyway, that's how my flights were and that picture of narita airport is from google.

Sep 15

Sáng nay Knoxville rùng mình trở lạnh. Chưa thấy lá vàng, chưa thấy nắng hanh, nhưng đã thấy phải khoác thêm áo ấm và hít căng lồng ngực vị gió nồng nồng ẩm ướt. Kính xe mờ vì hơi nước, mưa vẫn níu kéo trên bậu cửa sổ. Chắc là mùa thu đến thật rồi.
Thắp một ngọn nến, co ro dưới lớp quần áo được treo ngay ngắn, bật nhạc thật to. Nến lung linh mờ ảo, thứ ánh sáng léo lắt đấy khiến người đang vui mấy cũng chợt lặng người, thở dài và lục lọi nỗi buồn. Những nỗi buồn có tên mà không dám gọi, có với tới mà không dám chạm vào, sợ đánh mất nỗi buồn cho dằn vặt. Những nỗi sợ có thể gọi tên.
Ngày qua ngày, lặng lẽ trôi, khẽ khàng như ai đang dạo bước. Từng nhịp chậm rãi, đôi lúc lại dừng chân mệt mỏi, và lại chậm rãi đi. Nếu như con người cảm thấy cuộc sống của mình thật tẻ nhạt và lê thê, có lẽ phải nhìn lại chính mình. Bắt đầu cuộc khám phá về bản thân, đi tìm sở thích, tạo ra vô số những bận bịu để không còn thời gian thở dài.

Đi tìm niềm đam mê...

Tôi thiết kế một khu vườn yên tĩnh. Có cỏ cây, hoa lá, có dòng suối nhỏ chảy quanh và cả tiếng chim hót. Có ánh nắng, có ánh trăng, có lấp ló chú chim sâu nhỏ mải mê hót. Khu vườn của tôi được bao quanh bằng 4 tấm kính, bí bức, ngột ngạt, nóng nực và tất cả đều là giả tạo. Chiếc máy bơm nước được giấu dưới tảng đá bằng nhựa, những chiếc đèn mắt trâu làm ánh nắng mặt trời. Chú chim sâu không thể hót, và cỏ cây hoa lá sẽ chẳng bao giờ già. Có lẽ cái Zen của chính tôi cũng nhân tạo như vậy, nó không có thật, nó khiến con người ta cảm thấy yên bình khi nhìn vào, nhưng nó không có thật. Hãy ngồi đây, uống trà đạo, bàn bạc chuyện đời, bên cạnh 4 cây đèn được chọn lựa kĩ càng với cái giá có thể mua được hàng trăm ngọn đèn bình thường. Cuộc sống vật chất khiến cho khoảng yên bình trong tâm hồn cũng trở nên vật chất. Người ta có đủ tiền để mua một khoảng yên bình vật chất.

Cái đích của niềm đam mê của tôi là bán cho con người khoảng yên bình vật chất.

Và vẫn cứ đam mê cho đến khi không còn ai nghĩ rằng có tiền là mua được tất cả.

This is AWESOME: Sex and Calories

(Credit to my baby, he found this article/blog)

How much weight do we lose during sex?

Diet literature explains calories burned while jogging, playing tennis or golfing, but similar information concerning sexual activity has, until now, been unavailable.

Yet, a survey of 206,000,000 people indicated that 96% devote more time and effort to sex than jogging, tennis, or golf, and we felt that the time was right for a new type of sex manual.

EXAMPLES:

1 hr. intensive foreplay burns off: 1 slice (large) chocolate cake.

25 min. nonstop lovemaking burns off: 2 slices of pizza with cheese & mushrooms.

53 min. of kissing partner burns off: 1 cheeseburger with 14 french fries.

53 minutes kissing yourself burns off: Christmas turkey with all the trimmings.

PREPARING THE BEDROOM Includes setting the snooze alarm and dimming the lights: 42 (calories burned)

ADDITIONAL LAST MINUTE PREPARATIONS Hiding the sex manual: 3; Decanting the wine: 4; Without a corkscrew: 268

MAKING THE FIRST MOVE If you are shy: 15; If you are anxious: 43; If you beg: 100

SEDUCING THE PARTNER If you are rich (cash): 5; If you are rich (credit card): 15; If you are poor: 200

INITIAL BODY CONTACT Fumbling: 4; Casually rummaging around: 7; Seriously rummaging around: 42

REMOVING CLOTHES With partner’s consent: 12; Without partner’s consent: 187; Removing socks by violently shaking feet: 418

AROUSAL AND STIMULATION Blowing in partner’s ear: 15; Blowing in your own ear: 2,512

DISAPPOINTMENT (after seeing partner undressed) Partner looks better with clothes on: 10; Partner wears corrective underwear: 15; Partner turns out to be of wrong sex: 100; You don’t mind: 0.25; Partner wearing elevated socks: 50

DOING IT FOR THE FIRST TIME Fumbling around: 4; Desperately trying to put something somewhere: 18; Completely missing: 126

POSITIONS Italian (man on top; woman on bottom): 26; German (facing each other, but in different beds): 48; English (woman on top; man hiding): 15; American (both on top): 1,243

AFFLICTIONS Leg cramp: 36; Making believe you don’t have a leg cramp: 612; Sneezing (during intercourse): 7; Sneezing (during orgasm): 588

ASSORTED ACCIDENTS Toupee slips off (if your partner knew you wore one): 5; Toupee slips off (if partner didn’t know): 72; Extinguishing cigarette (in ashtray): 1; Extinguishing cigarette (in mattress): 17; Extinguishing cigarette (in partner’s leg): 133; Calling your partner the wrong name: 50

ORGASMIC INTENSITY SCALE Shoes flew off: 15; Expression didn’t change: 0.5; Room turned purple: 4; Face turned purple: 78; Earth moved: 30; If Earth actually moved: 1,234,588; Moaning in Turkish: 506

THINGS OFTEN SAID AFTER SEX “I am so grateful”: 15; “It must have been something we ate”: 15; “Was it good for you?”: 15; “Are you finished?”: 15

TRYING AGAIN If woman is ready: 5; If man is not: 563

ROLLING OVER AND GOING TO SLEEP After sex: 18; During sex: 546; While parking car: 212

SLEEP Real: 5; Faked (a good way to avoid sex-craved partner): 74

TAKING A BATH TOGETHER In a bath: 5; In a sink: 150; In a jacuzzi: 15,269

MAKING THE BED With partner still in it: 44 (indicates either a neatness obsession, a severe optic disorder, or a partner who is very tired). With you still in it: 97 (suggests extreme withdrawal and profound dissatisfaction)

KEEPING A JOURNAL Maintaining your own record of sexual activity will be helpful for keeping track of weight loss. You needn’t go into detail, just list the activity and the number of calories burned. A typical entry in a woman’s journal (for example) for a pleasant low-key sexual experience might read as follows:

December 1st: Sex with Harold:-

Explaining how: 12; Suggesting something different: 3; Calming terrified Harold: 40; Encouraging him to at least take off his socks: 8; Foreplay (a little of this; a little of that): 56; Intercourse (standing position): 22; Intercourse (holding Harold up): 10; Intercourse (urging him on): 5; Orgasm: not sure; Thanking Harold: 3; Waving bye-bye: 1; Total time: six minutes (taxi waiting); Total calories burned: 160

So, what are you waiting for…?

(Ever wondered why I’m eating so much? *lol*)

Source: http://lifecruiser.com/archive/sex-and-calories/

Things to do before you turn 30

Just for fun, let's see how much I have accomplished so far...

1. Go traveling: Check. But I really want to travel more and more, especially to Europe and the Mediterranean.
2. Get something published: I got a few articles published in a teen newspaper back in middle school. Not very proud of them but oh well, check!
3. Watch these film: It's a long list so i'm just gonna list movies that I've watched
The Star Wars Trilogy: I was forced to watch it, so.. ok check
Godfather parts I and II: My mom watched it all the time when I was little, does it count? I really hate to watch it.
American Pie: YES!!! Check!
The lord of the ring trilogy: Well... don't want to
Fight Club: Yes. Check.
Back to the future: check. Stupid movie
Jaws: Check
The breakfast club: Yes
The outsiders: Yes

4. Live in the capital: Born and grew up in Hanoi.
5. Learn a second language: I speak 2 languages. This should be: learn a third language.
6. Run a marathon: Hell no.
7. Drive the CA coast: Oh i really want to
8. Have sex: (in public?)
9. Go to a music festival: Well.... if Sundown in the City counts.
10. Try different food: I'm not afraid of trying new food.
11. Get on the property ladder: Technically there is a house under my name so technically i do own a house.
12. Test yourself: does roller coaster count? If not, then well i need to do something. But no skydiving. But roller coaster is something that makes me step out of my comfort zone, so it counts.
13. Visit Paris: Someday, I want to visit Venice first
14. Blow 500 pounds in 1 night: on gambling, see I just turned 21 and haven't been to vegas since, and i don't like gambling
15. Get a saving account, and use it: Maybe this summer when I make more money and can actually save up some
16. Do something for charity: I recycle. I donated clothes and money.
17. Get yourself on tv: I was in a movie for a good 2 scenes, so check haha.
18. Eat at a very fancy restaurant: Yish, done that, especially when I go eat with my dad hehe.
19. Quit your job: I will in 8 months when i graduate college, i will quit my pop corn popping and cleaning job
20. Go to a live sporting event: Football games, basketball, soccer games.
21. Have a weekend in New York: I've had so many fabulous weekends in New York.
22. Read these books: I won't even list them out but i've read: Harry Porter. That's it on the list haha. But i've read some famous books too so.. this can't be checked.
23. Own a convertible: I own a very old ford taurus
24. Buy something really expensive: Laptop???? Car???
25. Buy wine worth more than 50 english pounds: maybe a glass of wine???
26. Sign up on facebook: Haha
27. Record your family history: I know some
28. Sing karaoke: Love it love it, I go karaoke a lot when I'm at home
29. Have a complete health check: every freaking year
30. Climb a mountain: If mountains in vietnam counts as mountain. Check

So far I have 18 out of 30 things that I've done. I have 9 years to go yay!!!! I'm so bored

I have a dream

Sunday afternoon, I'm sitting here doing a little research about firms for my summer internship. There are thousands of firms across the country, small and big, local and national, and even international firms. They are all different, each has their own philosophy that sparks my interests. They have offices overseas, Shanghai, Tokyo, Dubai, London, you name it. Wouldn't it be awesome to be able to go somewhere else other than Seattle, Washington DC, to work and meet new people?
I won't be able to go home this summer because of the internship, which really sucks because I already made plans for Hanoi. Maybe this is just a silly dream, but I dream of being able to work for a Gensler, a Perkins and Will, a HKS in Hanoi, to be able to go home and still have a job that I worked hard for.
I was disappointed with my job last summer at home. Yes I didn't realized that until a few weeks ago when I started business class. I worked for a small but well-known firm, worked on high-end projects, charged people huge amount of money.... I should be happy. But no, I worked as a decorator, specifying wallpaper without any knowledge of it whatsoever. I spent hours looking at a floor plan with tons of odd arrangement and yet I was not allowed to fix anything. Why? There is a quote I read somewhere a few days ago that I don't remember exactly what it said. But the idea is that architects sometimes call themselves interior designers, that is unacceptable because they never had the education, they are only interior decorators. I dream of a day when architects realize that they better focus on their job and not try to do other people's job. Stop being so arrogant.
My point is that I was so disappointed with my internship at home, that i'm afraid I will never be able to find a real Interior design job at home. I will always be the interior decorator who struggles with not being able to move any walls or drop a ceiling. I will always be the one who people call to "please repaint my room, please redecorate my living room". That is not my job.
Working in the states is the only way I can do what I really went to school for. My dream is to convince my firm to open an office in Hanoi, for me to be at home, for them to open their opportunity to the world. Is it so hard? If Hanoi was like Dubai, with millions of opportunities, fast growing and constructions everywhere, then is won't be so hard. But for now, my dream is to work for Gensler, the number 1 architecture and design firm in the US.

Hanoi Xmas 07

It was short, it was low key, but it was wonderful.

Banh cuon

This is Banh cuon, one of my favourite food. It's a northern dish, but sometimes can be found on the street of Saigon. Banh Cuon originally is from Thanh Tri district, just outside Hanoi.
To make Banh Cuon seems simple and easy, but it actually requires good skill. You'll need a steamer, a ladle, ready made rice flour mixed with water. A ladle full of the white mixture is spread across the skillet of the steamer covering the surface. It is then covered for 30 seconds or so. And the mixture turns into a kinda like cooked noodle pancake, very thin and clear. This is why you need the skill to not tear the Banh Cuon's flimsy rice film when trying to stuff it with mashed pork, mushrooms, prawns.
It comes served with mixed nuoc mam (fish sauce), maybe cha lua (mortadella), sliced cucumber, beansprouts, mint... You will also need a delicate touch to eat the dish also, by using chopsticks. (I sometimes can't handle it)
Here is the video of Making of Banh Cuon
http://noodlepie.typepad.com/blog/files/making_banh_cuon.MPG
Back in my country, whenever I went to my dad's hometown for a visit, I and my cousins, even dad, uncle, grandma... would go to the Banh Cuon place right across the street very short after we arrived. They made really really good Banh Cuon and my dad often had to stop us from eating too much, because we had to have lunch later. Banh Cuon is not expensive, by 2000dong (about 15 cents) you can buy a big dish, and 2 dishes is enough for lunch.

Dry beef salad

Dry beef salad! Oh my god, one of the best snack ever. Just look at the picture, isn't it so delicious?
The best place to eat this (it's called Nộm thịt bò) is Hồ Hoàn Kiếm street, the shortest street of Hanoi. It's only, what, i dont know but very very short. Maybe it takes about 2 minutes to walk from one end to the other. A special street for the best snack. Yummy.
I've never tried to make it, there must be some secret process but it seems really easy, just put everything on the dish and pour mixed fish sauce on.
The first layer is green papaya and carrot sliced really small like thread. On top of it is spices like mint, basil and some other leaves. Then the layer of dry beef. The Vietnamese dry beef is not smoked, they sun dry it somehow, so the beef is not too dry, but tough bit and chewy. It tastes kinda sweet, salty and spicy, and just irresistable (especially when you squeeze lemon juice on it). Along with the dry beef is buttery smashed peanut.
Maybe the secret of Nộm thịt bò lies in the fish sauce mixed with vinegar, water, sugar, chili... The sauce has to be salty enough to eat with the dish, but not too salty so we can drink it after finishing all the vegetable and meat. Anyway, this is one of the best snack ever ever ever.

Dear Hanoi

Dear Hanoi,
I miss you already. Be good and take care. We'll meet again soon.