tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-376960182011-11-27T10:54:05.569-08:00The "Tao" or the "Way" is something that can not be defined or seen, but is present in all things. In its infinite dynamic expressions, the Tao is the balancing force in the universe, and for that matter, all of cyberspace as well.WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.comBlogger2121100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-8229775735419565952011-11-13T16:41:00.000-08:002011-11-27T10:54:05.585-08:00

rain -- and then sunsweeps across the California coastlinethe scent of luminous new growthblows over our backyard hillsideinside a cricket's songin opposition to the full moongarden eggplants, cucumbers, tomatoesface the final diffracting edge of autumndisplaying colors -- purple green redit is a mystery to mefor this world of tranquilitywhy in this life, faith is left behindwhy in this embrace,

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-60355586246336557952011-10-27T06:00:00.000-07:002011-10-27T07:16:30.755-07:00

Stevia Rebaudiana is a natural "zero calorie" sweetener (steviol glycosides). Originating in South America from Paraguay, it's the sweetener for yerba mate (tea). We know the "bad" health effects of sugar, so I thought I'd try growing this herb.Growing it in Los Angeles was an experiment of sorts (for me), but I'm happy to say that the experiment was a success. The plant grew quite nicely in our

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-67848113643780823242011-10-22T21:15:00.000-07:002011-10-27T07:16:47.560-07:00

Way back in the month May (like 150 days ago), I planted a seed for a "luffa" plant, and it sprouted. Little did I expect how it would grow.From a single vine, this plant now in the month of October looks like this in the photo below. Notice the two "fruits" hanging from the fence.The fruits of the luffa plant are edible, and is called "Chinese Okra". In Japan, it is called "Hechima". But in

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-55191636782300115052011-09-10T17:29:00.001-07:002011-09-10T17:51:54.067-07:00

in our nightly dreamssometimes we are gifteda second chance of retrospection --lifting a luminous window of sunshinestreaming vividly into childhood placesfrom my family's backyard of towering treesI see laundry on a line flapping with the breeze&copy 2011 by WEb

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-12927148881988621442011-06-04T18:19:00.000-07:002011-07-10T06:56:20.516-07:00

Earlier this spring, we planted a blackberry plant. So far, the "experiment" is growing well. The photo below is of the delicate white blackberry flower....And the flowers, of course, turn to blackberries!Hikaru ate the first one, and he said it was so good!

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-64992690168318405252011-05-19T20:40:00.000-07:002011-05-20T19:36:49.662-07:00

Does this photo need any other words to go along with it?This is another photo where Hikaru is showing off our cucumbers.

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-92050082399691407232011-05-15T12:07:00.000-07:002011-10-27T07:17:41.764-07:00

This weekend we went to the annual plant sale at the Huntington Gardens, and brought home a couple exotic new family members.Hikaru wanted a carnivorous plant, so we got one. It's a Sundew. The nice thing about this plant is that we don't need to fertilize it; we only need to water it (with distilled water only). It feeds itself by the insects it catches.Daddy got a herb called Stevia

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-31325762380905150042011-05-15T11:03:00.000-07:002011-10-27T07:17:19.765-07:00

It's mid-May now. After a slight break during the wintertime, our backyard solar food generator seems to be at work again. The sunshine has been making the plants grow. The lettuce is ready, so we've been eating lots of salad. Also, we've harvested some of our spinach.The pea pods are this year's hit -- especially with Hikaru who enjoys eating them. He says that the peas are his "favorite".The

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-9954167996328714412011-05-15T09:27:00.000-07:002011-05-15T11:02:26.890-07:00

It sounds as if I'm really bored. But watching plants grow can be quite fun. Yes, really. For me, there's something fascinating about seeing the tendrils of a cumber or pea plant reaching out to grab and wrap around a wire or string. Plants are very much living and moving creatures. This cucumber plant looks like Spiderman shooting out a web.It's also not very hard to imagine tales like "Jack

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-62949459295519695422011-05-15T08:20:00.000-07:002011-05-15T11:01:20.847-07:00

Yesterday, we had our first meeting of a local group of neighborhood residents interested in "green" gardening. We met each other through a sign-up sheet coordinated by Jesse Chang during the Monterey Park Earth Day Festival.We talked about our possible goals. Besides an organic gardening and seeds/plants exchange group, there were more ambitious visions of developing a local community food

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-3055523344818079742011-05-05T20:52:00.000-07:002011-05-05T21:03:26.695-07:00

April 30, 2011sometimes we don't realize the powerin a life of illiteral butterfly flightsweaving inward converging timelines they'll resonate what we're actually here fordented shadows flow under water stridersmiracle walkers of a midwestern streamthe moist earth smells of umber leaveslight glimmers passages between dreamstwo hands scoop up yesterday's fragments-- disconnected memories and

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-73193009706314580372011-04-24T09:09:00.000-07:002011-04-24T12:37:27.475-07:00

A couple years ago, in 2009, in the midst of the world economic crash, we started our raised garden bed. We learned a thing or two in the process, and we are very grateful. One source of personal satisfaction is to operate in the active mode of a producer rather the ordinary consumer of food. A large farm could be nice, but a small urban backyard (like ours) could work for a family too.Our

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-65963516874764258542011-04-24T08:39:00.000-07:002011-04-24T09:03:32.888-07:00

We took a family hike at Eaton Canyon. Five-year-old Hikaru was preoccupied with mostly two items on his mind -- poison oak and rattlesnakes! He points out where the poison oak is located, and we carefully make sure not to touch it.I haven't taken a close look at poison oak lately, but it's actually quite a beautiful plant. Almost makes me tempted to take it home. Just kidding.As for the

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-34503334310029660472011-04-24T08:07:00.001-07:002011-04-24T08:35:27.922-07:00

April 24, 2011if we could give words to the impossibleit rises from scorching fires of annihilationinside a heartbeat transforming newclutching only a mere fragmentwe return with dreams that ignite the souland once comfortable worlds are no moreendurance is the soldier's duty for peacewhere conventions fall to verdant lanesdiscovering what truth our unity will grasp&copy 2011 by WEb

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-80111492590744960362011-04-10T07:14:00.000-07:002011-04-24T08:19:45.121-07:00

Compost makes me think about life's basics. Compost is decomposed (waste) plant matter. It's in the dirt under our feet. We wouldn't be alive, of course, if the soil couldn't sustain us -- to grow the food we eat.Common sense may say that if one takes stuff out of the soil (for growing food), then one should put something back in. If nutrients in the soil (food plants need) are depleted, then

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-78092038366428942212011-04-08T06:27:00.000-07:002011-04-24T08:20:13.222-07:00

There could be a certain symbolism to watching a sunrise in the desert. It's the beginning of "something"; it's the spring; it's the dawn of a new age. Whatever. Or it could be just the reality of everyday nature on Earth that we have lost touch with.We took our annual camping pilgrimage to Joshua Tree National Park. In the coolness of the morning, I woke up early to make a run from the tent

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-10167249097246309162011-03-17T07:47:00.001-07:002011-04-24T08:20:27.866-07:00

With the rain this past winter, the grass in our backyard is growing like crazy. Here's a photo below...I was looking for a "tool" to help me clear this grass. Yes, in Southern California, there are fire regulations to clear hillsides -- even though, the green grass looks quite nice to me.In Little Tokyo (downtown Los Angeles) at the Anzen Hardware store, I found a solution that I couldn't find

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-11303395105923678272011-03-17T07:14:00.000-07:002011-04-24T08:20:51.884-07:00

There could be a poem I could write about the beauty of the peach blossoms on our tree after a California winter rainstorm, but maybe a photo will do instead.Sorry, I haven't been posting much on our blog lately, but as you know, sometimes life gets busy. However, I've been doing some backyard work lately, so hope to add some new items.One new addition to our backyard is a blackberry plant. It's

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-30186386688361770092011-02-19T18:52:00.001-08:002011-04-10T06:25:37.520-07:00

In our fast-paced modern culture, people want everything "fast", but the best things in life take time. We finally tasted the persimmons (kaki) that were hanging and drying in our kitchen window for the last two months. It was so good -- and the best we've ever had!There are two basic varieties of persimmons... The "non-astringent" persimmons (Fuyu), one can often eat right away when it's ripe

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-250702489762046692010-09-26T18:56:00.000-07:002011-02-20T10:02:14.883-08:00

We harvested our first "kabocha" (Japanese pumpkin) from our garden. I read somewhere that kabocha originated from Cambodia, then and brought to Japan by the Portuguese in the 1500's. But we were happy to know that it will grow quite well in southern California.The kabocha plant started out as seeds. After eating one for dinner one day (in late May), we stuck a few seeds in the soil. I was

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-26145887913778390992010-08-08T08:27:00.000-07:002011-04-24T08:21:22.795-07:00

Just posting a few more photos from our vacation trip to the Mammoth Lakes area. On the second day, we hiked inside the boundaries of the Devils Postpile National Monument.The first portion of our trip was a mandatory shuttle bus ride from Mammoth to Reds Meadow. Costs $7 bucks for the ticket. No one can just "drive" into the park (to reduce the motorized vehicle traffic). It was an

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-7181957061670644002010-07-25T21:52:00.000-07:002010-07-28T22:49:19.101-07:00

We took several days off from work to visit Mammoth Lakes located in Mono County, California in the Eastern Sierras. This is Uncle Paul's "vacation house" (as Hikaru calls it).After being somewhat homebound for the last couple years, it was a super nice getaway. Has anyone has noticed a lack of "real vacation" photos on our blog. :-)Mammoth is usually known for its snow and skiing, but in the

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-5208237310741357012010-06-18T06:35:00.001-07:002011-04-24T08:21:39.002-07:00

They were the "best" peaches we've ever tasted! This week, we tried the first peaches from our newly planted tree. Maybe it was due to the care that went into our peach tree or the Southern California sunshine, but they were so "good". Hikaru gobbled them up.We counted 27 peaches on our very small tree. And Hikaru helped to pick them.In the beginning, we wondered whether or not our peach tree

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-34746619544806250632010-05-18T08:01:00.000-07:002010-05-20T01:03:14.018-07:00

In the desert, springtime comes once during the year, so we did an overnight camping trip to Joshua Tree National Park. Through the eastern side of the park, the creosote bushes glow with yellow...And the spidery ocotillo cacti blooms with red.At the Jumbo Rocks campground, we pitched our tent. Hikaru called our campsite "home", and in many ways, shouldn't "home be where your heart is" -- as

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-53832952548600143922010-04-22T22:25:00.000-07:002010-06-18T21:04:47.687-07:00

One nice thing about living in Southern California is that we can plant carrots in February, and have them on our dinner table by April. We picked our first carrots from the garden, and we ate them about 5 minutes after taking this photo below.In our mind anyway, these are the best and sweetest carrots we've ever eaten -- and 100 percent "organic" too! I can just feel that beta carotene and

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-21631560575768177602010-03-08T20:56:00.000-08:002010-06-18T06:35:01.048-07:00

Early this winter, we planted a peach tree in our backyard. It flowered for the first time...We'll see how it grows!

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-86306026660900624862010-01-16T18:14:00.000-08:002010-01-16T19:14:22.389-08:00

As our backyard garden update, we planted some romaine lettuce, and it's been a nice healthy addition to our meals. From a gardening perspective, the good thing is that the bugs don't seem to like it.Forget buying instant grocery-store salad in a plastic bag. We take a few fresh leaves off each plant for as much as we need, and it grows some more...As for nutritional information, dark green

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-804015806319725882009-11-21T07:02:00.001-08:002009-11-21T08:18:36.972-08:00

We celebrated "Mommy's Day" by spending a quiet afternoon relaxing at the beach. Of course, it's mostly about Hikaru, so he said that he had lots of fun too. In this video, Hikaru enjoys playing in the sand and scooping up water from the ocean.One wonderful sight was that of the whales off in the distance. From the shore, the whales appeared like geysers in the ocean. As they came up for breath

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-32860079597707358302009-10-13T21:53:00.000-07:002009-10-13T21:56:16.637-07:00

It's amazing that the wolfberry plant is still alive. And even more amazing is that two years later, there are finally a few berries!So it seems like the fruits appear in early October for the Los Angeles area. I'm surprised it could survive the hot weather (the 90 degrees F temperatures) we experienced in August and September.

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-85392369207183199682009-09-05T19:34:00.000-07:002009-09-05T19:55:07.526-07:00

September 5, 2009what is freedom for?when our brainwork can't even rememberhow we arrived to where we are?our delusions could be in another mindsaddened by death and rejoicing in birthfalling without grounding out completelyleading the right side of a 5.6 climbcaressing currents in crescent-moon twilightfor an insignificant mass of moleculesbeing alive is a wondrous feelingstanding at the focus

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-69476010365913181242009-07-09T05:49:00.000-07:002009-07-09T06:32:58.609-07:00

Yes, it's been quiet on this blog. Life's been busy at work and home, but still here... Since March 2009, I finally gave into some peer pressure from friends and joined Facebook.com. That's where I am at the moment. Come and join the party!What do I think of these social networking sites? It's different. Interesting. With a couple hundred of your friends, you can know immediately what they ate

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-321909264092126562009-03-17T23:02:00.001-07:002011-04-24T08:22:01.002-07:00

A few plants around our yard seem to be growing well. This orchid (cymbidium) bloomed for the first time since arriving at our house several years ago. It grows outside in a container that gets watered about two times a week.These garlic chives (below) also seem to be doing just fine. We chop off a couple and eat them with our eggs in the morning. I'm often surprised by how "bug free" and

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-46066436796015501242009-03-13T21:39:00.000-07:002010-01-04T07:36:58.599-08:00

It's good to know that I still have a job on Friday the 13th. Today driving back from work, I listened to the AM radio news about the fluctuations of the stock market, the uncertainties of an economic recovery, the increase in the jobless rate, the increase of home foreclosures. Continuing to listen, the news report added a shooting, a murder, and some kids getting ill from drinking wiper fluid.

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-15395370121060849112009-02-08T22:27:00.000-08:002011-04-24T08:22:17.022-07:00

On the weekend after Chinese New Year, we made a spontaneous visit to see "Grandma" and "Grandpa" (as Hikaru calls them). The weather was nice, and it was Super Bowl Sunday, so we hit the freeway.Both Grandma and Grandpa are retired, and they live in an age 55+ community. Hikaru likes their small park, and recreation center.And we enjoyed having a lunch with pizza... And for the very "first"

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-37134450927196515682008-12-30T22:46:00.000-08:002009-01-02T19:23:23.110-08:00

I've only owned two televisions in the past 15 years. One is a portable 9 inch TV, and the other is a 21 inch TV set. A friend felt so sorry for my 9 inch "big screen" TV that he gave us his old 21 inch. So now we have two TVs at home, but unfortunately both are analog TVs...On midnight February 17, 2009, all the analog TV broadcasts will cease; and it will be 100 percent digital. We don't

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-9827626324698036822008-12-28T16:25:00.000-08:002011-04-24T08:22:52.820-07:00

Well, the year 2008 is closing down, and the new year 2009 is approaching! The rainy weather finally cleared, and the weather was beautiful today. We went for a hike nearby in Pasadena. The following is a short video documenting our walk. Please click on the image below to view it...The hardest part of the hike were several stream crossings, and it wasn't so easy hopping over the rocks with 30

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-76821995363243885602008-12-24T22:13:00.001-08:002008-12-24T22:52:40.356-08:00

Last week, we had a storm system pass through Southern California. It dropped around 3 additional inches of rain in the valley, and much snow in the mountains. It caused a few weather-related headaches...But boy, after the sun comes back out, the white snow gleaming on the San Gabriel Mountains is quite beautiful. I had a camera in my car, so I took these photos below on my commute to

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-87235679735370740572008-12-24T19:21:00.000-08:002008-12-24T22:04:10.170-08:00

It's difficult to teach kids these days about food and responsibility. They grow up thinking that if you want an orange, you just go outside and pick it. "Geez, do you think oranges grow on trees or something?"When we think of wintertime in California, we think of oranges. This year, we counted over a hundred oranges on our two dwarf Satsuma Mandarin (Mikan) trees.In the summer time (while the

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-62103851664834474012008-12-24T18:59:00.000-08:002008-12-24T19:13:45.983-08:00

The other week, we watched a B-2 Stealth Bomber make several passes over Pasadena/Los Angeles. Hikaru said that it was a "paper airplane".Doesn't it look like an origami plane?

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-91899063288595124762008-12-21T23:14:00.000-08:002008-12-21T23:35:35.751-08:00

Today Hikaru performed "on stage" with his classmates at preschool. It was his first time. We went to the end-of-the-year "Oseibo" program thanking the staff for their service during the year. The kids danced to tunes like "Insey Winsey Spider" and the "Chicken Dance".To view the video, please click on the image below...

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-75225750004826781102008-11-30T21:28:00.001-08:002008-12-02T16:50:52.576-08:00

When we arrived at "Travel Town", every other person there seemed to be a kid, including a bunch of kids in strollers. We even met my co-worker's daughter (and her parents). LA's a small town.Travel Town is great place for kids, and who hasn't heard of Thomas Train? This train below doesn't have a "face", but with a little imagination, you can almost see it smile.Hikaru was looking forward to

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-26026280799754546662008-11-30T18:13:00.000-08:002008-11-30T20:45:30.131-08:00

We took a short hike at Griffith Park in Los Angeles. We parked the car, and walked up the trail. It went up and up and up, and we weren't quite sure where it was going. Hikaru enjoyed the view...We passed a big water tank, and after an unexpected turn on the trail, we came across a nice garden with benches. For Hikaru, whenever he sees benches, it means that we're going to sit down and have a

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-81577266424680046382008-11-30T17:51:00.000-08:002008-11-30T18:06:13.372-08:00

There was an beautiful alignment of three bright planets this evening -- the crescent Moon, Venus, and Jupiter. This photo was taken on this Sunday evening at around 5pm Pacific Standard Time.It was a wonderful way to end the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. If you click on the images, you can see a slightly larger view.

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-51817912966366462412008-11-10T06:40:00.001-08:002008-11-10T06:53:39.895-08:00

Sometimes it's easy to walk by a pond and not notice all the lifeforms lurking just under the surface. A couple photos taken yesterday... If you click on them, you can get a slightly larger image.

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-21212918833721476862008-11-01T08:37:00.000-07:002008-11-01T17:49:35.186-07:00

As everyone knows, Los Angeles is a zoo. There are more people than animals here. Hikaru was talking about wanting to go "see and touch the animals", so he got is wish. We met other friends at the zoo for a parent outing.We haven't seen "Space Chimps", but we know that chimps were the first hominids to go into outer space. They are some of the residents here.In the photo below, Hikaru gets his

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-19006148633692243132008-10-31T22:58:00.001-07:002008-11-01T07:59:09.011-07:00

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

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-12935152664319340362008-10-31T21:38:00.000-07:002008-11-01T00:10:51.997-07:00

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.

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-8290514350520809922008-10-05T22:53:00.001-07:002008-10-05T23:54:54.705-07:00

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

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-81995515079744163382008-10-04T10:54:00.000-07:002008-10-04T21:20:23.620-07:00

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

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-51511458836764987832008-10-04T09:57:00.000-07:002008-10-04T11:57:43.452-07:00

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

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-36824388571679518402008-09-29T07:41:00.000-07:002008-09-29T07:47:05.813-07:00

Early this morning, we were greeted by some rain falling on the rooftop. Looking outside, we saw a rainbow -- or rather a "rain arc". It was a "double" rainbow. Note that the colors of the secondary arc go in reverse order from the primary arc...

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-90957580400537145792008-09-28T23:27:00.000-07:002008-09-28T23:46:21.664-07:00

Here are a couple works of art by Hikaru at age 3 years old. The first painting is of "Mommy". The depiction is somewhat abstract, so we were not exactly sure which way to orient this painting...The second drawing is "Rainbow". Hikaru only had a blue and green felt marker, but this is his rainbow (at least that's what he says)...All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-40300441726988536072008-09-14T19:14:00.000-07:002008-09-15T07:52:22.339-07:00

"Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" has been one of Hikaru's favorite songs ever since he was baby. Before going to bed at night, we always go outside to "see stars". On this day, Hikaru was very excited because Uncle Paul asked us out on a star date at the Griffith Observatory.Hikaru points and says that the "moon is broken", and this informative exhibit shows how the moon gets "fixed" every month.We

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-17240270898952809112008-09-14T07:21:00.000-07:002008-09-15T08:03:37.105-07:00

Well, Hikaru is three years old! Three years seems like a very long time, but time just flew by. For our hard three years (and nine months), we should at least get graduate degrees in life or something... like putting initials M.D. (Mommy and Daddy) after our names.We held Hikaru's birthday party at a neighborhood park. Relatives and friends dropped by to help celebrate. Hikaru was mostly doing

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-11174903436483584762008-09-14T07:04:00.000-07:002008-09-14T07:20:39.100-07:00

We didn't go anywhere, but things were really "busy" this summer (family visitations, incidents, work, in addition to Hikaru-care), so we didn't post much on the blog lately... But hope to post a few photos soon, and Hikaru is three years old now!

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-90255258977601140442008-07-06T06:55:00.000-07:002008-07-06T20:20:17.605-07:00

On the Fourth of July, we took a family trip to Joshua Tree National Park. It was a new moon and a mild 100 degrees, so the conditions were perfect! After locating a good camping spot, we set up our tent and settled in...In the photo below, Hikaru is surfing the channels on our big rock TV. The reception quality is often poor and only the movie was Rocky VI, but that's not the reason why we came

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-44579214197050965802008-07-02T07:28:00.001-07:002008-07-02T15:54:44.346-07:00

After a long stressful day at work, it's wonderful to take a walk in the park. LA has a cozy population of 4 million people, but we're fortunate to have a large city park nearby -- Griffith Park with 53 miles of trail.Yesterday evening I went for a hike with the "hiking club". I really needed to "de-stress". As the sun turned orange over the hills, there were some wonderful trail views. But it

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-4340358152592627722008-06-21T04:20:00.000-07:002008-06-25T15:17:28.442-07:00

Hikaru likes to read (pictures). Every couple of weeks, we go to the library. Some of his recent selections include such literary classics as -- Chato's Kitchen, Frog and Toad Together, Big Bear Ball, and I Like Stars...He took the books with him to Pau-Pau's (grandmother's) house. Pau-Pau enjoyed reading "Chato's Kitchen" to Hikaru -- translated into Chinese. Here's a short excerpt of some of

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-32968974018099699522008-06-19T07:47:00.001-07:002008-06-20T07:56:19.823-07:00

Our "baby boom" at work continues... The other week, we held a potluck and a baby shower for three expectant co-workers -- Janet, Silvia, and Colleen. Just thought I would post a few photos.Hikaru still talks about the party and says, "Hikaru like baby shower!" The dog, Jasper, was one of the main highlights...In the following photo, the two-year olds Tomie and Rockett go a little crazy in

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-37627190950846739852008-06-11T02:06:00.000-07:002008-06-20T08:00:49.417-07:00

The fascination of Thomas the Tank Engine is something I'm trying to figure out, but then I'm not a child psychologist. What is it about this train engine with a happy face?Two-year-old Hikaru recognizes Thomas, so it only makes sense that it's a great marketing ploy... We were browsing through the candy section at our local Japanese supermarket, and saw these "Thomas and Friends" Chocolate Pocky

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-12969998737938724552008-06-10T07:07:00.000-07:002008-06-11T01:01:52.341-07:00

Hikaru likes going to school. He says, "Hikaru like teacher. Teacher nice." He goes to a public-school-sponsored "Mommy and Me" class held at the neighborhood church.On the first day of school, Hikaru took off his shoes after coming inside. He was the only one, but now he's more familiar with mainstream customs. They sing songs, do arts and crafts, eat a snack (Hikaru's favorite part), and play

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-66300003592185453532008-06-06T22:48:00.000-07:002008-06-06T23:02:28.585-07:00

The wolfberry plant that sprouted from a seed last year is now one year old...It even had a couple flowers!

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-45202706526573614062008-05-25T18:52:00.000-07:002008-06-11T00:47:31.645-07:00

my first memory was sunlightfalling through motes of dustpatterns merging from shadowsinside reaching outif time is seamlessly roundthen it could just bemy last memory will be starlightrising though desert airtransparence touching spiritoutside reaching in&copy 2008 by WEbPhoto Credit: Galaxy HUDF-JD2 From the Hubble Ultra Deep Field (NASA,ESA)---I wrote this poem for Memorial Day, and it's

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-12931618679886466502008-05-24T00:24:00.000-07:002008-05-27T06:29:42.333-07:00

We've been getting a little sick and tired of getting sick and tired. Last Friday, Hikaru got sick with a high fever. Three days later on Monday, Mommy got sick and so tired that she couldn't stand up or keep her eyes open.And finally Wednesday afternoon was Daddy's turn to go down, and he was even on jury duty. However having a hundred degree fever, headache, sore throat, and diarrhea isn't

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-42225512598547030162008-05-14T18:47:00.000-07:002008-05-14T19:05:30.336-07:00

If any relatives and friends are wondering about my workplace, and what we do there, here's a short video on YouTube. I work at the Little Tokyo Service Center in downtown LA. Just click below to watch...

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-79956448740618876452008-05-13T06:59:00.000-07:002008-05-14T19:03:53.024-07:00

The previous weekend, we explored the westside of LA, and took a walk around Venice, California. Back around 1904, there were about 16 miles of canals dug in this area. Today some of these canals still remain. We noticed that many of the residents along the canal seem to have a boat.This is a view from the Venice Beach pier. However, Hikaru was anxious to get off the pier and putting his feet

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-46104167385373909772008-05-13T05:44:00.000-07:002008-05-13T17:51:03.994-07:00

We personally think that "every day" should be Mother's Day (and Grandmother's Day), but we had a family gathering at an Italian American restaurant to celebrate this holiday. Parenting is a rough job, and it's really nice to have grandparents. Pau-Pau is one "super woman" who takes care of three grandkids during the day while we go to work -- Hikaru, Marcus, and Sarah.All of our family

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-26527926668435907222008-05-08T07:21:00.000-07:002008-05-23T18:41:20.860-07:00

Hikaru is presently undergoing his "training" and he goes "poo-poo" in the toilet. He flushes the toilet, and wonders where the poo-poo goes. "Go follow poo-poo!" he says. We respond, "The poo-poo went to the ocean."A random question that came to me was, "Where are we going?" That is, what determines our path in life? It all goes somewhere, right? After a little thought, I felt that that

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-54539937473803689702008-05-02T05:39:00.000-07:002009-11-12T18:49:53.798-08:00

gentle vibrationstouching shimmers of the windwaving in sunlightgrass from winter rainsgreen to translucent in springglowing from the earthconnecting with skyspeaking every upward grainreaching for stories(sorry, excuse the pun on walt whitman's "leaves of grass" :-) )[link to more poems]

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-30722595157979666932008-04-27T13:44:00.000-07:002008-05-02T06:27:12.804-07:00

We visited a Chinese garden at the Huntington in San Marino. It was completed this year. The garden is named "Liu Fang Yuan" or the "Garden of Flowing Fragrance".There's a great deal of symbolism and meaning in each of the garden elements, including references inspired by Chinese literature. However a few photos might best describe the garden for now...Additional information about the garden can

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-78225665916723909932008-04-26T23:35:00.000-07:002008-05-02T06:28:00.672-07:00

Today we went to the Earth Day Festival in Pasadena at Memorial Park and the Armory Center for the Arts. Hikaru had so much fun that he was in a good mood for the entire day. He couldn't stop talking about his first experience riding on this "green and clean biofuel machine" -- a horse.There were community booths of all kinds from "Saving the Orangutans" to the "Pasadena Water and Power".

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-58680527229221091092008-04-20T18:51:00.000-07:002008-05-02T06:28:25.247-07:00

We spent an afternoon going merrily merrily along the stream. Hikaru was very focused on throwing various-sized rocks into the stream, and seeing the water splash.We watched the water striders gliding effortlessly on the surface of the stream, and tadpoles wriggling underneath at the bottom. The spring flowers were also blooming...Yes, Hikaru could probably sit there by the stream all day --

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-20687195354956575072008-04-03T07:33:00.000-07:002008-04-04T07:27:52.736-07:00

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-15767912118402439482008-04-03T07:29:00.000-07:002008-04-04T07:27:27.335-07:00

A few photos of the words on the wall along Azusa Street at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in Little Tokyo...

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-32737812962665045432008-03-30T17:49:00.000-07:002008-04-02T03:18:41.431-07:00

Hikaru was looking forward to his usual walk to the park this afternoon, but he said, "No swing." His usual first destination is the swing, but he would much rather see the kite fly. There was a change in the weather today, so there was wind.Our kite looks like a butterfly. Kites made out of silk were flown as early as 2800 years ago in China, but this "modern" one is made out of nylon. There

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-23362059526601330492008-03-30T13:40:00.000-07:002008-03-31T08:37:30.752-07:00

Every other Sunday or so, we like going to the Alhambra Farmer's Market for our weekly groceries. It's a Certified Farmers' Market -- eliminate the middle man and support the small farmers. Hikaru likes to check out some of the farm-fresh produce.Boy, look at the size of these melons! Hikaru was pretty impressed.These daikon looked pretty good, and he's making sure that it's 100% organic and

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-65621611065208535772008-03-24T05:27:00.000-07:002008-11-25T19:46:31.067-08:00

Sometimes the adult mind can get a little boring -- numb and asleep. We don't spend enough time watching the sky and listening to the mountains. I can't explain it, but if you close your eyes and listen very carefully, one can hear a very low humming sound.The mountains become a part of your being -- resonating, and you can hear it. It's easy to forget, though. It's almost like forgetting your

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-63028078512854244982008-03-22T02:17:00.001-07:002008-03-31T08:38:27.508-07:00

Earlier this week, in the semi-dark silence of 5 am, I was walking down an apartment hallway. I was inside one of LTSC's affordable housing projects. A thought was emerging (or rambling) in my mind, but it was difficult to define... Life goes with the flow.Making my way up to the building's rooftop, I was troubleshooting a wireless network problem. People have been complaining that the Internet

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-43385546329414151022008-03-08T20:30:00.000-08:002008-03-31T08:38:10.080-07:00

In this photo Hikaru shows how the Universe began with the "Big Bang" about 14 billion years ago -- and it's been expanding ever since...Hikaru's been spending some time here at the California Institute of Technology contemplating the future. Like predicting the path of a moving particle, the principle of quantum mechanics introduces some uncertainty.Where will we be in the next twenty years?

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-34624638683452379142008-03-03T23:38:00.000-08:002008-03-04T09:07:32.353-08:00

We still haven't posted many of the photos from our trip to Hawaii (back in November), so here are more to share. This set of photos represents a very mysterious element from ancient Hawaii. The Big Island has one the largest concentrations in the Pacific of symbolic petroglyphs etched onto the rocks of the lava beds. What do they say? They seem speak to us from the centuries, but in a language

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-48394690271207547132008-03-02T19:05:00.000-08:002008-03-05T12:55:47.439-08:00

As you might guess, it never snows in LA, so "snow" isn't an experience common to Angelenos, except maybe for shaved ice...My childhood winters in Ohio consisted of shoveling 150 feet of driveway after every snowfall, building snow forts and snow monsters, skiing and sledding. Hikaru won't see quite the same amount of "winter fun", but maybe he can get a little...Right now, Hikaru's favorite

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-13208691400457493372008-02-24T15:57:00.000-08:002008-02-24T17:08:07.859-08:00

The past several weeks during Chinese New Year involved lots of eating. It's again time to work off a few calories and get back into shape. Yesterday, I went hiking at Griffith Park with members of the hiking club while Mommy and Hikaru went to Travel Town.We did a three hour hike from the Travel Town parking lot to Mount Hollywood and back. The weather was perfectly "not too hot" or "not too

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-64331159425825046762008-02-24T09:21:00.000-08:002008-02-24T17:02:00.748-08:00

Chinese New Year begins with the new moon and ended with the full moon last week (that included a lunar eclipse). Hikaru received lots of "hong bao" from relatives -- or red envelopes with "lucky" money for good things like happiness, health, and fortune.It must really be working, since Hikaru's been waking in a good mood. The past couple weekends, we've been staying healthy and free of colds,

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-62095792476908478072008-02-10T17:10:00.000-08:002008-02-11T07:12:26.896-08:00

Happy Lunar New Year! One of the nice things about living in Southern California is the beach -- especially in the wintertime!Yesterday we took a family trip to "Point Dume" near Malibu -- also called "Zuma". The name comes from an old native village called "Sumo" (meaning "abundance"). This is the land of the Chumash people.Hikaru enjoyed scooping sand into various containers. He could do this

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-9541850238711095842008-01-21T08:38:00.000-08:002008-02-10T21:33:07.295-08:00

Hikaru's been sleeping in the same bed ever since he was a newborn infant. However he used to have "sleep problems", and slept in our bed most of the time. Now he's able to sleep "on his own", and asserting his independence, so we thought it was finally time for a "new" bed. Yes this is a major life transition.The photo below is Hikaru sleeping in is bed (crib) a week after he was born...

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-34287418512707666132008-01-15T07:09:00.000-08:002008-02-10T21:32:42.977-08:00

People don't usually associate Los Angeles with snow. But after a major storm, we can often appreciate the beauty of the snow-covered San Gabriel mountains. I just had to take this photo the other week before I left for work.Note: If you click on the photo, you can get a larger view.

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-11173619765065691032008-01-01T13:24:00.001-08:002008-01-01T22:52:15.728-08:00

Welcome to the new year 2008! It feels much like the old year 2007, but we learned a thing or two over the past year. Our symbol of hope for this coming year is the "rainbow". Hikaru is singing his new song called "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", but right now he only knows the first line.Our past year was a year of transition. We do appreciate Hikaru a great deal, but there was a downside in

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-75679326476557506512007-12-23T18:25:00.000-08:002008-01-11T16:53:31.714-08:00

Welcome to the second day of winter (and we have snow in the mountains). Happy holidays everyone! Hikaru is two years and three months old today. In this video he sings a popular "winter" tune called "Jingle Bells". To view the video, please click on the image below.Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2008!

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-89551097555841287532007-12-15T18:25:00.000-08:002007-12-23T18:56:28.120-08:00

A few months ago, if you asked Hikaru what color is an orange, he would have said "green". But he knows that things can change. When the oranges are "orange", that means that our Satsuma oranges ("mikan") are ready to eat!In this photo, Hikaru shows off the very first oranges that were picked from the tree this season. These are "dwarf" orange trees, so they are at Hikaru's level.Hikaru helped

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-53125814337602119012007-12-09T18:16:00.000-08:002007-12-23T19:29:26.546-08:00

It's hard to believe that it's December already -- and fall is almost winter. Today we took a morning hike at Eaton Canyon which is about a 30 minute drive from where we live. Los Angeles doesn't have drastic seasonal change, but it was a cool and crisp day. It was great to be outdoors, and a welcome change after a hot and dry season.Hikaru was mostly interested in watching the other people on

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-26009955430534325182007-12-04T06:58:00.001-08:002007-12-11T05:15:09.295-08:00

Photos from Oahu continued...Every Saturday morning there's a farmer's market at Kapiolani Community College sponsored by the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation. In addition to picking up "lunch", we had a great time!The following are a few random photos from our wanderings about the marketplace, including this photo of us (below). When you have someone else take your picture be prepared to lose

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-27721940323331533552007-12-02T17:52:00.000-08:002007-12-08T21:38:56.617-08:00

Yes, we found love in Chinatown -- in Honolulu, that is... We went to Oahu to attend a wedding, but we were now also making up for our own "postponed" Hawaiian honeymoon.In Hawaiian, the word "aloha" means love in all of it's different forms -- affection, peace, compassion. This adds an extra meaning to our hellos and goodbyes.On the island of Oahu we stayed with our friends Pensri and Roy who

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-13519342043748172352007-12-02T07:19:00.000-08:002007-12-03T07:19:21.039-08:00

Imagine a sunny island beach with gentle waves crashing on the shore. A perfect wedding location might look like the place in the photo below. Our reason for going to Hawaii (Oahu) was to attend Raymond and Maria's wedding -- but of course, what a great excuse for us to leave the mainland!Weddings are special and happy life moments. At this particular moment in time, our extended family tree of

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-24709235670579523142007-11-30T07:58:00.000-08:002008-03-05T03:47:06.086-08:00

Blown by the wind, a large coconut leaf came crashing down a few feet away from us as we walked. Perhaps this was a sign that we should be cautious in our journey, or if we might have accidentally violated some ancient kapu.A few weeks ago, we were walking on the black lava of the Kona Coast of Hawaii. This is the same coast where Captain Cook, the first European to be discovered by the native

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-38481822721691593272007-10-24T23:28:00.000-07:002007-11-14T15:40:11.052-08:00

With Santa Ana conditions, the air has a distinctive smell associated with the low humidity -- actually, it's probably smoke. Wildfires are still burning through the mountains of southern California. Even though we're quite lucky in the city of LA, one can only see the smoke in the distant mountains.The photo below was taken the other morning (looking east). The red sky is not fire, though, but

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-18430018346351827382007-10-20T07:45:00.000-07:002007-10-20T21:33:50.715-07:00

Someone asked me the other day, "Who was Ellison Onizuka?" If you walk around Little Tokyo, you'll see a "Space Shuttle" memorial to Ellison Shoji Onizuka on a street also named after him.It's rare to see monument for an aerospace engineer, especially for someone from Kona, Hawai'i, and Japanese American too! He was a USAF test pilot and a NASA astronaut -- a mission specialist on the tragic

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-5212310519459633412007-10-16T23:06:00.001-07:002007-10-20T09:33:35.383-07:00

Walking around Little Tokyo today, it seems like mochi ice cream isn't the only "cold dessert" in this part of town. Have you noticed all these places?

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-10081323781189096122007-10-16T22:31:00.000-07:002007-10-16T23:22:47.329-07:00

These photos speak for themselves. Change (and gentrification) is happening in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles. Will Little Tokyo (and other "Japantowns") as historic ethnic neighborhoods survive? Or will it merge with the mainstream? Some of the issues that the new construction raises were discussed [here] at the Ties That Bind Conference in 2005.

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-26627569431692595712007-10-12T06:20:00.000-07:002007-10-12T19:34:56.514-07:00

Someone was calling this website "Hikaru's blog", and "it is" and "it isn't". It was never meant to have one fixed topic. So maybe I should change the topic to "computers"...One common question that I receive is, "What kind of computer do I use?" By "computer", people often refer to the operating system software (OS) environment (usually Windows or Macintosh). The answer for me is Windows,

WEbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04512519647617149334noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37696018.post-85130696215029829732007-10-11T04:33:00.000-07:002007-11-14T15:39:43.829-08:00

Today, we had a box filled with items to give away to a friend who is expecting a baby. Hikaru found out that we were giving those things away, and he clutched his musical mobile. He wouldn't let us take it. Since his first week out of the womb, this mobile hung over Hikaru's crib. He watched it spin around and around over his head. We took it down almost a year ago (half a lifetime for

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