New Orleans
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my ole friend, I come to talk with you again. We all know the tune. That which resonates and recalls of years past. The familiarity against the unknown. Familiar darkness, receding into that comfort zone, the cocoon. Farthest corner would be that mother’s womb: where it all began. Rocking motion, complete safety and insulation. That’s…
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According to Vietnamese legend, the Mountain God showed up early to ask for the Princess’ hand. The Sea God was half a step late. Hence, anger turned tsunami, Katrina, Fukushima etc…. Vietnam Central region always stands in the way of major storms. To endure and overcome natural disasters, people fabricated tales to assuage their own pain. Kids,…
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One of my first guitar solos was House of Rising Sun. Chu Van An High School music room, with two electric guitars, one bass guitar and a drum set. Long was on bass, Son counted the beat and Hung, son of a dancing instructor, played rhythm. And one, and two: Am, C …. And so we…
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It’s time to celebrate. Harvest time. City folks here in Vietnam go home where beer and Banh Chung (Bean Cake) are waiting, while country folks truck in their flowers and fruits in the opposite direction to sell in the city. This year, we don’t see the return of H5N1. So eat on. Chicken and ducks. A…
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The news of Premier Nguyen Cao Ky passed away brought back a long time passing. In my youth, the sound of hovering helicopters was as common as street vendors’ chants. On the war’s last day, ambassador, flag, ground-keepers, pilots and anything that moved, tried to get out to International Waters . Buses, barges and yes, choppers. Lone…
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Infrastructure improvement could cost billions. Kids need to drive someday. And as Mr Buffet wisely put his investment dollars into railways since containers need to be offloaded to the Wal-Mart near you. Those who travel recently can recall “boarding by zone”, “e-ticketing”, etc.. All sorts of gimmicks , except for the limited runways and slots allowed…
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The LA Times, August 15th issue, ran a story about a Vietnamese fisherman in New Orleans. He has faced enough trial and tribulation a man can afford in one life time: boat people, legal immigrant life, Katrina, and now Gulf oil disaster. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-0731-viet-fisherman-01.jpg-20100816,0,4824071.photo Captain Nguyen is no ordinary captain. His boat has seen no Treasure…
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This guy, Thomas Huang, went searching for a chocolate eclaire in Saigon, and ended up having his article in the Dallas Morning News http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/travel/thisweek/stories/DN-vietbread_0711tra.ART.State.Edition1.4fb9c7b.html I sat next to a business man from Dallas on my recent trip to Vietnam. He and his partners were into real estate. And the amazing thing was, while his partner…
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Carl Jr, Starbucks, Hard Rock Cafe, KFC, BK, MacDonald, Circle K, Domino, Pizza Hut. The age of franchise bull run. When I said I had been to 40+ cities in N America, I actually meant, I have been to only one. The one with MacDonald, Starbucks, Walmart, Target etc… You got the idea. The funny…
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If you need to be motivated as I do, watch the Winter Olympics. You will share peak emotions, peak performance and peak mountain spots of Vancouver. Everybody loves a winner, and the winner loves to savor and share that moment . We empathize with their struggle, their trial and triumph. In a word, we self-project.…
Thang Nguyen 555 