Happy Halloween

This year was Hikaru's very first Halloween to go trick-or-treating at his preschool. Hikaru is the brown "monkey" with the big yellow ears and long tail. Yes, we just sewed some ears on his jacket hood.



They went door-to-door and collected a bag full of goodies. His classmates were Mini Mouse and Snow White.



In the photo above, Hikaru checks out his bag and shows a box of juice.



Fellow classmates are Mickey Mouse, two Darth Vaders, a Banana, and Tinker Bell.



In the photo below, Hikaru is being carried by Totoro, the teacher.



This is the classic "monkey stance" well-known in the martial arts world. Hikaru took off his shoes because this is the gym where they also practice kendo.



Below are Hikaru's teachers -- Lady Bug, Totoro, Pirate, Cat in the Hat, Mermaid, Japanese Performer, Hula Dancer, and Doraemon. What a cast of characters! Isn't school a fun place?

Countdown to November 4th

The November 4th elections are coming soon. This is a photo of the Democratic Headquarters on Garvey Avenue in Monterey Park.



It's time again to look over and make some major ballot decisions this coming weekend -- and to participate in our civic duty on Tuesday.

Japan America Kite Festival

Today we took a trip down to Seal Beach, California to attend the 12th annual Japan America Kite Festival. It's the first time we've attended.



The kite below is an Japanese rokkaku (hexagon) kite which is very stable and can fly without a tail.



As you can see, there were many kite designs of all shapes, colors, and sizes. A "Hello Kitty" kite and "Curious George" kite were also flying in the air.



Wow! This string of kites certainly had a significant "wow" factor, and it just hangs in the sky like a huge dragon's tail. Click on the photo for a larger view.



One of the kites below looks like a jellyfish, and another looks like an old sailing ship... if they could fly.



We had tons of fun, and it was right by the beach too, so Hikaru almost forgot about all the kites -- and went for the sand and waves instead.



In the photo below, Hikaru and Mommy are trying to catch a wave.



And finally, this is a photo of Hikaru's new seal friend on the Seal Beach pier.

Foo-Foo The Fish

Meet "Foo-Foo". He is a betta fish. Auntie Yu-Ying gave Hikaru this fish for his birthday. We asked Hikaru what name we should give this fish, and he said, "Foo!" So we call him Foo-Foo.



We like watching Foo-Foo swim. Hikaru comes home from school and says, "Hi Foo-Foo!" And he gives the fish a hug, or rather the fish tank.



Hikaru enjoys feeding Foo-Foo who eats about 4-5 pellets of fish food at every meal.

The New Library

The brand new Alhambra Civic Center Public Library opened last week. Hikaru was very excited. We went to investigate.



At the entrance to the children's section is a tile mosaic that includes rockets, planets, and stars...



And of course, there were lots and lots of books! There were even books written in other languages, like Chinese, Japanese, and Spanish...



Hikaru might have been one the very first people to press the power button on these new computers.



The bricks in front of the library have the names of various donors. One can donate $100 and have your name engraved on a brick.



Note that someone named "Ghandi" was a generous library donor. He says that, "The deepest truth of existence is that we are all one." We are "three" now, so does that mean other truths could be just as deep?