Hello! This is my special day at Walt Disney World!
See http://livinginsocali.blogspot.com/ entry to view video....
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Donny & Marie in Las Vegas
We are in Las Vegas again celebrating Thanksgiving with my parents. This has been annual thing. This time we were able to get tickets to see "Donny & Marie" at The Flamingo. Wow what a show! 90 minutes of putting it all out. It was fun, like when they were doing their own show, years ago in their 20s, except without those skits. For being around 50, they look fantastic.
It was a self-effacing homage to themselves, but that's what their fans wants to see and it was done tastefully.
Each had their own individual segment, presenting each stage of their lives, she's a little bit country, he's a little bit rocknroll. Both have been Broadway, both are exploring new stuff...and Marie is even into Opera!
They ended with their "country and rock" segment, still tease each other, and sang their hits, including ending the program with "It Takes Two." Actually they ended the show with, of course, their signature closer ...
May tomorrow be the perfect day,
may you find love and laughter along the way.
May God keep you in His tender care,
'til He brings us together again.
Good night, everybody!
They were renewed for two years .... so it would be worth coming back. Both are excellent at improv, so there will be something fresh and new each time you see their show.
It was a self-effacing homage to themselves, but that's what their fans wants to see and it was done tastefully.
Each had their own individual segment, presenting each stage of their lives, she's a little bit country, he's a little bit rocknroll. Both have been Broadway, both are exploring new stuff...and Marie is even into Opera!
They ended with their "country and rock" segment, still tease each other, and sang their hits, including ending the program with "It Takes Two." Actually they ended the show with, of course, their signature closer ...
May tomorrow be the perfect day,
may you find love and laughter along the way.
May God keep you in His tender care,
'til He brings us together again.
Good night, everybody!
They were renewed for two years .... so it would be worth coming back. Both are excellent at improv, so there will be something fresh and new each time you see their show.
A French Connection by Kenneteh C. Davis
From New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/26/opinion/26davis.html?th&emc=th
Op-Ed Contributor
A French Connection
By KENNETH C. DAVIS
Published: November 25, 2008
TO commemorate the arrival of the first pilgrims to America’s shores, a June date would be far more appropriate, accompanied perhaps by coq au vin and a nice Bordeaux. After all, the first European arrivals seeking religious freedom in the “New World” were French. And they beat their English counterparts by 50 years. That French settlers bested the Mayflower Pilgrims may surprise Americans raised on our foundational myth, but the record is clear.
Long before the Pilgrims sailed in 1620, another group of dissident Christians sought a haven in which to worship freely. These French Calvinists, or Huguenots, hoped to escape the sectarian fighting between Catholics and Protestants that had bloodied France since 1560.
Landing in balmy Florida in June of 1564, at what a French explorer had earlier named the River of May (now the St. Johns River near Jacksonville), the French émigrés promptly held a service of “thanksgiving.” Carrying the seeds of a new colony, they also brought cannons to fortify the small, wooden enclosure they named Fort Caroline, in honor of their king, Charles IX.
In short order, these French pilgrims built houses, a mill and bakery, and apparently even managed to press some grapes into a few casks of wine. At first, relationships with the local Timucuans were friendly, and some of the French settlers took native wives and soon acquired the habit of smoking a certain local “herb.” Food, wine, women — and tobacco by the sea, no less. A veritable Gallic paradise.
Except, that is, to the Spanish, who had other visions for the New World. In 1565, King Philip II of Spain issued orders to “hang and burn the Lutherans” (then a Spanish catchall term for Protestants) and dispatched Adm. Pedro Menéndez to wipe out these French heretics who had taken up residence on land claimed by the Spanish — and who also had an annoying habit of attacking Spanish treasure ships as they sailed by.
Leading this holy war with a crusader’s fervor, Menéndez established St. Augustine and ordered what local boosters claim is the first parish Mass celebrated in the future United States. Then he engineered a murderous assault on Fort Caroline, in which most of the French settlers were massacred. Menéndez had many of the survivors strung up under a sign that read, “I do this not as to Frenchmen but as to heretics.” A few weeks later, he ordered the execution of more than 300 French shipwreck survivors at a site just south of St. Augustine, now marked by an inconspicuous national monument called Fort Matanzas, from the Spanish word for “slaughters.”
With this, America’s first pilgrims disappeared from the pages of history. Casualties of Europe’s murderous religious wars, they fell victim to Anglophile historians who erased their existence as readily as they demoted the Spanish settlement of St. Augustine to second-class status behind the later English colonies in Jamestown and Plymouth.
But the truth cannot be so easily buried. Although overlooked, a brutal first chapter had been written in the most untidy history of a “Christian nation.” And the sectarian violence and hatred that ended with the deaths of a few hundred Huguenots in 1565 would be replayed often in early America, the supposed haven for religious dissent, which in fact tolerated next to none.
Starting with those massacred French pilgrims, the saga of the nation’s birth and growth is often a bloodstained one, filled with religious animosities. In Boston, for instance, the Puritan fathers banned Catholic priests and executed several Quakers between 1659 and 1661. Cotton Mather, the famed Puritan cleric, led the war cries against New England’s Abenaki “savages” who had learned their prayers from the French Jesuits. The colony of Georgia was established in 1732 as a buffer between the Protestant English colonies and the Spanish missions of Florida; its original charter banned Catholics. The bitter rivalry between Catholic France and Protestant England carried on for most of a century, giving rise to anti-Catholic laws, while a mistrust of Canada’s French Catholics helped fire many patriots’ passion for independence. As late as 1844, Philadelphia’s anti-Catholic “Bible Riots” took the lives of more than a dozen people.
The list goes on. Our history is littered with bleak tableaus that show what happens when righteous certitude is mixed with fearful ignorance. Which is why this Thanksgiving, as we express gratitude for America’s bounty and promise, we would do well to reflect on all our histories, including a forgotten French one that began on Florida’s shores so many years ago.
Kenneth C. Davis is the author of “America’s Hidden History: Untold Tales of the First Pilgrims, Fighting Women and Forgotten Founders Who Shaped a Nation.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/26/opinion/26davis.html?th&emc=th
Op-Ed Contributor
A French Connection
By KENNETH C. DAVIS
Published: November 25, 2008
TO commemorate the arrival of the first pilgrims to America’s shores, a June date would be far more appropriate, accompanied perhaps by coq au vin and a nice Bordeaux. After all, the first European arrivals seeking religious freedom in the “New World” were French. And they beat their English counterparts by 50 years. That French settlers bested the Mayflower Pilgrims may surprise Americans raised on our foundational myth, but the record is clear.
Long before the Pilgrims sailed in 1620, another group of dissident Christians sought a haven in which to worship freely. These French Calvinists, or Huguenots, hoped to escape the sectarian fighting between Catholics and Protestants that had bloodied France since 1560.
Landing in balmy Florida in June of 1564, at what a French explorer had earlier named the River of May (now the St. Johns River near Jacksonville), the French émigrés promptly held a service of “thanksgiving.” Carrying the seeds of a new colony, they also brought cannons to fortify the small, wooden enclosure they named Fort Caroline, in honor of their king, Charles IX.
In short order, these French pilgrims built houses, a mill and bakery, and apparently even managed to press some grapes into a few casks of wine. At first, relationships with the local Timucuans were friendly, and some of the French settlers took native wives and soon acquired the habit of smoking a certain local “herb.” Food, wine, women — and tobacco by the sea, no less. A veritable Gallic paradise.
Except, that is, to the Spanish, who had other visions for the New World. In 1565, King Philip II of Spain issued orders to “hang and burn the Lutherans” (then a Spanish catchall term for Protestants) and dispatched Adm. Pedro Menéndez to wipe out these French heretics who had taken up residence on land claimed by the Spanish — and who also had an annoying habit of attacking Spanish treasure ships as they sailed by.
Leading this holy war with a crusader’s fervor, Menéndez established St. Augustine and ordered what local boosters claim is the first parish Mass celebrated in the future United States. Then he engineered a murderous assault on Fort Caroline, in which most of the French settlers were massacred. Menéndez had many of the survivors strung up under a sign that read, “I do this not as to Frenchmen but as to heretics.” A few weeks later, he ordered the execution of more than 300 French shipwreck survivors at a site just south of St. Augustine, now marked by an inconspicuous national monument called Fort Matanzas, from the Spanish word for “slaughters.”
With this, America’s first pilgrims disappeared from the pages of history. Casualties of Europe’s murderous religious wars, they fell victim to Anglophile historians who erased their existence as readily as they demoted the Spanish settlement of St. Augustine to second-class status behind the later English colonies in Jamestown and Plymouth.
But the truth cannot be so easily buried. Although overlooked, a brutal first chapter had been written in the most untidy history of a “Christian nation.” And the sectarian violence and hatred that ended with the deaths of a few hundred Huguenots in 1565 would be replayed often in early America, the supposed haven for religious dissent, which in fact tolerated next to none.
Starting with those massacred French pilgrims, the saga of the nation’s birth and growth is often a bloodstained one, filled with religious animosities. In Boston, for instance, the Puritan fathers banned Catholic priests and executed several Quakers between 1659 and 1661. Cotton Mather, the famed Puritan cleric, led the war cries against New England’s Abenaki “savages” who had learned their prayers from the French Jesuits. The colony of Georgia was established in 1732 as a buffer between the Protestant English colonies and the Spanish missions of Florida; its original charter banned Catholics. The bitter rivalry between Catholic France and Protestant England carried on for most of a century, giving rise to anti-Catholic laws, while a mistrust of Canada’s French Catholics helped fire many patriots’ passion for independence. As late as 1844, Philadelphia’s anti-Catholic “Bible Riots” took the lives of more than a dozen people.
The list goes on. Our history is littered with bleak tableaus that show what happens when righteous certitude is mixed with fearful ignorance. Which is why this Thanksgiving, as we express gratitude for America’s bounty and promise, we would do well to reflect on all our histories, including a forgotten French one that began on Florida’s shores so many years ago.
Kenneth C. Davis is the author of “America’s Hidden History: Untold Tales of the First Pilgrims, Fighting Women and Forgotten Founders Who Shaped a Nation.”
Monday, September 29, 2008
$700 billion
$700 billion is a tremendous amount of money. The issue is complicated because the economy is complicated.
It is frustrating that businesses would speculate on the home mortgage market to engage in such a risk. Sure for awhile there were buyers who would buy the home when the mortgage owner could no longer support the mortgage payments.
But that speculation keeps growing upward and begets itsself. Houses became more expensive, the mortgages became more riskier but on the thought that if the house was sold, then the money could be recovered.
By taking over the morgages, can the government survive? We cannot sell these mortgages to some holding company on the stock market. Will the government still foreclose?
What a vicous cycle. The equity in the homes, based on a perceived value of the home, is invested in consumable goods - people bought things with the money instead of long-term investments.
Sure homeowners could stop buying consumable goods - which isn't healthy for our nations' retailers. So we are going back to being broke all over again.
The fix is temporary and arbitrary. There are deeper issues that we as a nation must take care of. $700 billion is a lot of money - we could be investing in things instead of homes. We don't have to take care of the foreigh companies that are providing the real capital, do we?
We do need jobs...so will the $700 billion go towards creating and keeping jobs? No, not really. What would happen if we invested that $700 billion in jobs? Public works? We all could use a mass transit system. It will provide jobs and income for people, who would then buy a house that they can afford, instead of speculating. They will buy goods that they need, not just what they want.
It is frustrating that businesses would speculate on the home mortgage market to engage in such a risk. Sure for awhile there were buyers who would buy the home when the mortgage owner could no longer support the mortgage payments.
But that speculation keeps growing upward and begets itsself. Houses became more expensive, the mortgages became more riskier but on the thought that if the house was sold, then the money could be recovered.
By taking over the morgages, can the government survive? We cannot sell these mortgages to some holding company on the stock market. Will the government still foreclose?
What a vicous cycle. The equity in the homes, based on a perceived value of the home, is invested in consumable goods - people bought things with the money instead of long-term investments.
Sure homeowners could stop buying consumable goods - which isn't healthy for our nations' retailers. So we are going back to being broke all over again.
The fix is temporary and arbitrary. There are deeper issues that we as a nation must take care of. $700 billion is a lot of money - we could be investing in things instead of homes. We don't have to take care of the foreigh companies that are providing the real capital, do we?
We do need jobs...so will the $700 billion go towards creating and keeping jobs? No, not really. What would happen if we invested that $700 billion in jobs? Public works? We all could use a mass transit system. It will provide jobs and income for people, who would then buy a house that they can afford, instead of speculating. They will buy goods that they need, not just what they want.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Kumano Road - Old Japan and a World Cultural Heritage Site
The Kumano Road traverses the mountains of Southern Kii Province, modern-day Wakayama Prefecture. The road is part of the pilgrimage path from the ancient capitals of Japan to this sacred part of Japan, in fact it has been recorded that the Japanese Imperial families have done this pilgrimage.
What makes this area sacred? Its mostly rugged mountain and coastal area. The tallest waterfall in all of Japan can be found here, and thus many Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples were founded here. Not far from this area is the Grand Shrines of Ise dedicated to Amaterasu, the founding god of Japan and the Mt. Koya complex of Buddhist temples.
There are deep gorges and tall mountains and because of the shrines and temples, logging was kept to a minimum so the old growth forests here go back hundreds of years.
In addition, there are many hot springs although the volcanoes have long been dormant. A few hours by train from Osaka, Kyoto or Nara can bring you to this area.
The three Kumano shrines are the area's main attractions. The symbol is the three-legged crow, which is also the the bird of Amaterasu and is mentioned in the Kojiki. However, it is not mentioned in the Kojiki as three-legged but is depicted as such. The symbol for the J-League (as the founder is from the Tanabe area) is a three-legged crow.
In Shinto Japan, rock formations have a spirit as there are various unusual rock formations in the area. Doro Hatcho, or Doro Gorge is also in this area and is accessible by flat bottom boats.
The coastlines are very rugged and also have unusual formations, from pirate coves to hot springs. The Japan current runs closests to this area bringing the world's fish just off the coast.
The Kumano Road has been designated as a World Cultural Heritage Asset, and can still be traveled today.
It will take about a week to cover most of the road and to enjoy the sites along the way. The pilgrimage includes all three shrines and the shrine at Nachi Falls, the highest in Japan. It is a very leisure walk with many stops and the elevation is not difficult.
http://www.tb-kumano.jp/en/
for more information.
What makes this area sacred? Its mostly rugged mountain and coastal area. The tallest waterfall in all of Japan can be found here, and thus many Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples were founded here. Not far from this area is the Grand Shrines of Ise dedicated to Amaterasu, the founding god of Japan and the Mt. Koya complex of Buddhist temples.
There are deep gorges and tall mountains and because of the shrines and temples, logging was kept to a minimum so the old growth forests here go back hundreds of years.
In addition, there are many hot springs although the volcanoes have long been dormant. A few hours by train from Osaka, Kyoto or Nara can bring you to this area.
The three Kumano shrines are the area's main attractions. The symbol is the three-legged crow, which is also the the bird of Amaterasu and is mentioned in the Kojiki. However, it is not mentioned in the Kojiki as three-legged but is depicted as such. The symbol for the J-League (as the founder is from the Tanabe area) is a three-legged crow.
In Shinto Japan, rock formations have a spirit as there are various unusual rock formations in the area. Doro Hatcho, or Doro Gorge is also in this area and is accessible by flat bottom boats.
The coastlines are very rugged and also have unusual formations, from pirate coves to hot springs. The Japan current runs closests to this area bringing the world's fish just off the coast.
The Kumano Road has been designated as a World Cultural Heritage Asset, and can still be traveled today.
It will take about a week to cover most of the road and to enjoy the sites along the way. The pilgrimage includes all three shrines and the shrine at Nachi Falls, the highest in Japan. It is a very leisure walk with many stops and the elevation is not difficult.
http://www.tb-kumano.jp/en/
for more information.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
"Plant Life in the World's Mediterranean Climates"
Earlier I was on an errand and near the Bookstore. So I went in the Bookstore to find my textbook for my class. And THERE IT WAS! Finally a shipment came in and there was one used (but good condition) book. I picked it up and a notebook and went downstairs to pay for it.
When I got to the cashier, I realized I was on an errand and left my wallet in my office! They couldn't hold it, so I went back upstairs and hid the book! So I was able to go back later, find the book in my little hiding space (actually - I just put in behind other textbooks in a different place) and was able to purchase it.
When I got to the cashier, I realized I was on an errand and left my wallet in my office! They couldn't hold it, so I went back upstairs and hid the book! So I was able to go back later, find the book in my little hiding space (actually - I just put in behind other textbooks in a different place) and was able to purchase it.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Collected Works of Shonin
I have two weeks between class to catch up on readings that I had planned to do but couldn't find the time for all the reading assignments for my class.
I'm reading "The Collected Works of Shinran." Its not easy, and the book is heavy to prop up read in bed. The only thing I have nothing to discuss about what I'm reading because I just started. Its 704 pages of translations.
Its ambitious and more so, since I spend a lot of time watching the Olympics on TV, like handball, wrestling, field hockey, etc.
I'm reading "The Collected Works of Shinran." Its not easy, and the book is heavy to prop up read in bed. The only thing I have nothing to discuss about what I'm reading because I just started. Its 704 pages of translations.
Its ambitious and more so, since I spend a lot of time watching the Olympics on TV, like handball, wrestling, field hockey, etc.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Anniversary
Tonight we celebrated our 23rd Anniversary by having dinner with some friends at the Vineyard Room at Disney's California Adventure. It was great food, some good wine that went along the Prix Fixe dinner I had. We were able to watch the Pixar Parade from the second level of the Vineyard area.
This is what the place setting looked like.
It started with a Butter Romaine salad. It came with w Riesling from Sonoma.
The second course was a Lamb Shank with pickled cabbage and apricots, over a bed of Seven-vegetable couscous. This was accompanied by a red wine from Malibu. Yes, up in the Santa Monica mountains there is a vineyard and winery.
And the desert was a Panna Cota in blueberries with a pistachio biscotti. This was accompanied with a sparkling wine from France.Great food and wine.
Besides myself, another friend also had her birthday last week, so it was a triple celebration. As well as welcoming back a returning USC student from Detroit area.
We wanted to go to this restaurant and our minds were made up sooner than we wanted because the restaurant will be closing next month. It took seven years. Disney's California Adventure is undergoing a minor transformation as it becomes WALT Disney's California Adventure, reminding one of the days in the 1930s in California, when Walt Disney actually arrived in California.
Now for some Olympics...
Thursday, August 14, 2008
2008 Beijing Olympics
Every four years, I get hooked on Olympics. I watch everything and anything. The swimming has been exciting, not only Michael Phelps but all the swimmers. Rebecca Soni not only beat the champion Leisel Jones but the world record and the Olympic Record of Amanda Beard. Soni is also the first individual gold medalist for USC. Earlier two Trojan alumni men swimmers won gold as part of a relay team, making it the consecutive Olympics since 1912 that a Trojan has won at least a gold medal.
I think it is great that Phelps has now won six gold medals, all new world records.
I think it is great that Phelps has now won six gold medals, all new world records.
CERT Certification
Now I am certified as a responder in a disaster situation. We had a real-like situation with volunteers made up as victime and we need to split up and do a seach-and-rescue and triage.
Then we were outside in a firehose drill. The third componed was lifting-and-cribbing.
We have a Safety and Preparedness Fair that the Staff Assembly is organizing in September and prepping for the Southern California Big Shake Up drill in November.
Then we were outside in a firehose drill. The third componed was lifting-and-cribbing.
We have a Safety and Preparedness Fair that the Staff Assembly is organizing in September and prepping for the Southern California Big Shake Up drill in November.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
CERT Final
The final for my Campus Emergency Response Team is next Tuesday. We will practice extricating victims and triage, like we've been training for the last 6 weeks.
I could be more nervous about it, but I was the class demonstrator for triage, and I was sweating bullets then...this time it should be a piece of cake.
July 29, 2008 our training ended with an earthquake. A moderate-size one and a real one. About 15 minutes before our class was to end. Our final is also an earthquake, but a fake one.
We learned out to use crow bars and wedges to untrap people. We at least learned how to walk with our goggles, green vests and helmets on.
I do hope my leg gets better by then...
I could be more nervous about it, but I was the class demonstrator for triage, and I was sweating bullets then...this time it should be a piece of cake.
July 29, 2008 our training ended with an earthquake. A moderate-size one and a real one. About 15 minutes before our class was to end. Our final is also an earthquake, but a fake one.
We learned out to use crow bars and wedges to untrap people. We at least learned how to walk with our goggles, green vests and helmets on.
I do hope my leg gets better by then...
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
ouch...
oops....I slipped on a palette while in the process of pushing off another palette into the refrigerated trailer we were using for the Obon Carnival. My left leg found the opening and slid through.
Slid all the way through since that palette was on a forklift and off the ground. What stopped me was my thigh...we'll it was only one leg, I wasn't about to go all the way through.
All I could remember afterward was that I was still holding on to the palette that I was trying to push on, so I finally let that go. Then I fell on my butt. It was keeping me balance for whatever reason.
Wood palettes are heavy, so I'm not sure how I managed to hold on to that palette and suspend it in midair.
Kyle helped me off...it took awhile to unwedge myself. I was scraped up but not badly (I thought). Everyone else said it looked bad, its looks red (part of that was sunburn), I could get an infection...did I break anything.
I was more embarrassed than anything...so I walked it off.
Later, I dance Obon dancing but before the half was over, I quit since my leg was hurting...this time it really swelled up. So I thought I better go home, the first time in 12 years that I've left the Obon carnival early.
I rested and iced most of the night...only to wake up at 2am to unlock the temple and social hall for sushi making. But I stayed out the activities, icing my leg, staying off of it most of the rest of day. I snuck in a little nap during Obon Dancing after my little welcome speech by hiding out in the Hondo.
At what was the end of the dance, I could hear Johnny N. let somebody in and saying that there is no one in here...I guess in the darkness I couldn't be seen. So I woke up to be around cleanup and then went home to sleep somemore.
I did go see my doctor on Tuesday. He didn't think anything was broken or fractured, nor signs of infection...but he brought up even more frightening possibilities, like, the artery could be compromised by the swelling of the muscle and cut off circulation, or that a blood clot could be formed and then that is not good.
Ok we ruled out the arterial stuff since the swelling has gone done since Saturday. We did an ultrasound to make sure the veins were flowing as usually and they were. So the result is just one big bruise and a little gimpy.
Just keep it elevated and iced.
Slid all the way through since that palette was on a forklift and off the ground. What stopped me was my thigh...we'll it was only one leg, I wasn't about to go all the way through.
All I could remember afterward was that I was still holding on to the palette that I was trying to push on, so I finally let that go. Then I fell on my butt. It was keeping me balance for whatever reason.
Wood palettes are heavy, so I'm not sure how I managed to hold on to that palette and suspend it in midair.
Kyle helped me off...it took awhile to unwedge myself. I was scraped up but not badly (I thought). Everyone else said it looked bad, its looks red (part of that was sunburn), I could get an infection...did I break anything.
I was more embarrassed than anything...so I walked it off.
Later, I dance Obon dancing but before the half was over, I quit since my leg was hurting...this time it really swelled up. So I thought I better go home, the first time in 12 years that I've left the Obon carnival early.
I rested and iced most of the night...only to wake up at 2am to unlock the temple and social hall for sushi making. But I stayed out the activities, icing my leg, staying off of it most of the rest of day. I snuck in a little nap during Obon Dancing after my little welcome speech by hiding out in the Hondo.
At what was the end of the dance, I could hear Johnny N. let somebody in and saying that there is no one in here...I guess in the darkness I couldn't be seen. So I woke up to be around cleanup and then went home to sleep somemore.
I did go see my doctor on Tuesday. He didn't think anything was broken or fractured, nor signs of infection...but he brought up even more frightening possibilities, like, the artery could be compromised by the swelling of the muscle and cut off circulation, or that a blood clot could be formed and then that is not good.
Ok we ruled out the arterial stuff since the swelling has gone done since Saturday. We did an ultrasound to make sure the veins were flowing as usually and they were. So the result is just one big bruise and a little gimpy.
Just keep it elevated and iced.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
CERT
After learning about Triage last week, this week's training was on fighting fires. Well in the disaster situation CERT members will not take out a fire, but prevent the fire from spreading by making sure the neighboring buildings are wetted down.
We actually connected hoses and turned on the fire hydrant.
We actually connected hoses and turned on the fire hydrant.
Goodbye Olympic Grand Auditorium
What I remember the most about the Olympic Grand Auditorium in Los Angeles that it was the home of the Thunderbirds Professional Roller Skating Team, and countless of wrestling matches from the TV in the 1960s.
The Auditorium still exists however it is reincarnated as the Glory Days of Jesus Christ Church, a Korean Christian Church.
The Auditorium still exists however it is reincarnated as the Glory Days of Jesus Christ Church, a Korean Christian Church.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
2nd Session of CERT
The second session was the first of two parts in saving lives techniques. We are being trained to respond in a disaster situation or a mass capacity. CPR training is not part of the curriculum, because the rule in CPR is to continue with it when you start it. This will not allow you to spend any time with any other victims. Triage is next week, but we learned about splinting and stopping bleeding.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Campus Emergency Response Team - First Day
Today was the first session of the training campus emergency response team at USC. This year its at the Health Center Campus. There are about 13 of us from the University Park Campus and two from Marina del Rey.
We covered earthquakes today.
The CERT program was developed in Los Angeles by the LAFD and is sanctioned by FEMA and Homeland Security. When we finished we would be able to join last year's group and assist the emergency team at USC in a crisis.
We covered earthquakes today.
The CERT program was developed in Los Angeles by the LAFD and is sanctioned by FEMA and Homeland Security. When we finished we would be able to join last year's group and assist the emergency team at USC in a crisis.
Monday, June 23, 2008
June 14, 2008 - Las Vegas - Marumoto Family Reunion
I accompanied my wife and her family to her father's family reunion. Since most of them are from Hawaii, it was held in Las Vegas at the California Club.
We had a great time. Originally it was a family reunion for a group of siblings of one family since they were scattered all over the country. Then they invited cousins, and soon almost all of them came, including my wife's brothers and sisters, and her aunt.
It was a lunch and we took about four hours...for most of them, there were a few that they did not know. We met a few of the cousins in Honolulu a few years ago, and when one of the great uncles passed, my wife and her sister met a lot of them.
My daughter met some cousins who were close to her age. They had shared email, facebook, aim, cell phones, etc.
There were pictures - like when my daughter's grandfather when he was around 5, just before World War II sent him and his family to the Mainland to an internment camp. The other cousins did not, and missed the time to know him since he never traveled back to Hawaii after that.
But now that connections are made and emails exchanged, there will be more opportunities for the family members to re-meet and share experiences.
It was really a short trip for me. After taking some of the kids to the Outlet for some shopping, and since I had to drive back the next day, I went to sleep!
We had a great time. Originally it was a family reunion for a group of siblings of one family since they were scattered all over the country. Then they invited cousins, and soon almost all of them came, including my wife's brothers and sisters, and her aunt.
It was a lunch and we took about four hours...for most of them, there were a few that they did not know. We met a few of the cousins in Honolulu a few years ago, and when one of the great uncles passed, my wife and her sister met a lot of them.
My daughter met some cousins who were close to her age. They had shared email, facebook, aim, cell phones, etc.
There were pictures - like when my daughter's grandfather when he was around 5, just before World War II sent him and his family to the Mainland to an internment camp. The other cousins did not, and missed the time to know him since he never traveled back to Hawaii after that.
But now that connections are made and emails exchanged, there will be more opportunities for the family members to re-meet and share experiences.
It was really a short trip for me. After taking some of the kids to the Outlet for some shopping, and since I had to drive back the next day, I went to sleep!
Toy Story Midway Mania
On Friday, I was finally able to get on the new attraction at Disney's California Adventure, Toy Story Midway Mania. An attempt earlier in the day to ride it failed since the attraction was down. After a couple of hours, it reopened. The new line slowly snaked its way around the queue. Mr. Potatohead, the queue entertainment was not on.
I couldn't count how many midway games were part of the ride. It was fun! Such a small space with so much in it. Traveling between games got me dizzy, 'tho, because the cars would spin around and those 3-D glasses didn't help either.
My score wasn't that great. My arm was getting tired, then I remembered it would be easier on my left than my right. The 3-D effect was cool.
The commercials on tv says this is "Toy Story Mania" and it doesn't mention Disney's California Adventure, but Disneyland Resort. That's something for the trivia books.
My score was a dismal 117,800.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
All-You-Can-Eat Korean BBQ
Wow did I make a pig of myself. Or was that a cow?
To celebrate a colleague's birthday, our staff went to an all-you-can -eat Korean BBQ, I did the cooking at one of the grills - we were a large enough party to have three grills going. I think I kept up and still ate lots. In fact too much...I think I had enough beef to last a while.
To celebrate a colleague's birthday, our staff went to an all-you-can -eat Korean BBQ, I did the cooking at one of the grills - we were a large enough party to have three grills going. I think I kept up and still ate lots. In fact too much...I think I had enough beef to last a while.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Locovore
http://travel.nytimes.com/2008/06/01/travel/01e
xplorer.html?8dpc=&pagewanted=all (put both lines together in your URL box)
Explorer | Sonoma County, Calif.
If you could read this New York Times article (June 1, 2008 in the Travel Section), it is very interesting about an idea in Sonoma County on sustainable living. We live in a global economy whether we want to or not, but in Sonoma you could make an attempt on sustainable living, living off of resources within 100 miles of your home. Of course, it is not possible to be 100%, especially in Sonoma, but the county in California does have the resources to make it viable. Locovores, consuming locally produced products, are what they call themselves.
It reminds one of living off the land in our distant history - probably 80 years ago. In addition to the wine industry, Sonoma is selling itself on agrotourism, so any visitor can have this opportunity in sustainable living.
Of course, anything is good with a bottle of good wine, which we know is plentiful in Sonoma.
xplorer.html?8dpc=&pagewanted=all (put both lines together in your URL box)
Explorer | Sonoma County, Calif.
On the Trail of a Sustainable Feast in Sonoma
If you could read this New York Times article (June 1, 2008 in the Travel Section), it is very interesting about an idea in Sonoma County on sustainable living. We live in a global economy whether we want to or not, but in Sonoma you could make an attempt on sustainable living, living off of resources within 100 miles of your home. Of course, it is not possible to be 100%, especially in Sonoma, but the county in California does have the resources to make it viable. Locovores, consuming locally produced products, are what they call themselves.It reminds one of living off the land in our distant history - probably 80 years ago. In addition to the wine industry, Sonoma is selling itself on agrotourism, so any visitor can have this opportunity in sustainable living.
Of course, anything is good with a bottle of good wine, which we know is plentiful in Sonoma.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Indiana Jones and the Ultimate Quest
On the History Channel, I was watching "Indiana Jones and the Ultimate Quest." http://www.history.com/shows.do?action=detail&episodeId=295858 The show explained some of the myths explored in all four of the Indiana Jones movies. Could some of it be real? Apparently, some of the stories explored are also stories explored by today's archaeologists. George Lucas did not necessarily set the stories in the geographical areas that they can be found.
The show had interviews with many different archaeologists. I read somewhere that there is a brief increase in interest in archaeology that could be due to the attention that the character Dr. Henry "Indiana" Jones, Jr., have brought.
I remember thinking about what fun that would be...I also thought it would be fun to be a paleontologist, too. I guess it was the adventure and the possibilities of a new discovery that was appealing.
The show had interviews with many different archaeologists. I read somewhere that there is a brief increase in interest in archaeology that could be due to the attention that the character Dr. Henry "Indiana" Jones, Jr., have brought.
I remember thinking about what fun that would be...I also thought it would be fun to be a paleontologist, too. I guess it was the adventure and the possibilities of a new discovery that was appealing.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Memorial Day, 2008
In remembrance of all who sacrificed everything for all of us....At Green Hills Memorial Park today was one of the largest Memorial Day services in the country. The guest speaker was Captain Charlie Plumb, who was POW from the the Vietnam War. Until nearly the end of the time of his service, Capt. Plumb flew 75 missions, 74 of them were successes. He was captured, imprisoned and tortured for six years alongside fellow prisoner, John McCain.
There were presentation of Color by various honor guards. including the a horse-drawn carriage honoring POW-MIA.
Flyby of C-14s, a Black Hawk helicopter, and biplanes were part of the ceremony.
Also this year, there was the Vietnam War Memorial Moving Wall. Even though I've seen it in Washington, it still an emotional experience to see this. I have seen lists and honor rolls, but this design still stirs up a lot of emotions. The Moving Wall is a half-size replica of the original in the Mall in Washington DC.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Indiana Jones
He's back and he has a funny feeling about this...
It is 1957 and ten years later than "... And The Last Crusade." However, "...The Last Crusade" was released in 1989 and Harrison Ford is now 65, and you do the math. On the other hand, we last saw Marion Ravenwood in "...Raiders of the Lost Ark" in 1936, and sometime before they broke up before they were to get married, Marion gets pregnant and hen later married Orville Williams 3 months after her son was born.
Mutt needs Indy's assistance to help his mother Mary Williams who was kidnapped and taken to Peru.
Needless to say, this Indiana caper takes place up in the Andes, and the opening scenes take place in Area 51.
Outside the MP outpost, you see a diner, "Atomic Cafe." There could be a real Atomic Cafe in Nevada, but any flm student from the 70s and 80s knows that this sign is from Nancy's Atomic Cafe in Little Tokyo. I think the sign is with the Neon Museum in Los Angeles. George Lucas and Frank Marshall and friends may have eaten at this 24-hour cafe.
Indiana is taken to a warehouse to find something he left there years ago. No, it's not the Ark of the Covenant, however, the Ark does show up in the ensuing chase around the secret military warehouse.
Our hero finds himself in a test blasting site for an atomic bomb, and runs into a fake 50s town. I didn't check to see the license plate of the bel air convertible to see if it reads THX 338 - but it did have a resemblance to the one used in "American Grafitti."
Strangely, Indy speaks Mayan, even though the location is clearly Incan. But in the storyplot, they could be related.
The film is exhausting as it reaches its climax. It exsplains everything and nothing, as you shall see in its storyplot.
Before the film, Indy had lost his father, Henry Jones, and the College President, from the earlier films.
And should "Mutt" or Henry Jones III come back to take on the new adventures? Why not?
Knowledge is treasure.
It is 1957 and ten years later than "... And The Last Crusade." However, "...The Last Crusade" was released in 1989 and Harrison Ford is now 65, and you do the math. On the other hand, we last saw Marion Ravenwood in "...Raiders of the Lost Ark" in 1936, and sometime before they broke up before they were to get married, Marion gets pregnant and hen later married Orville Williams 3 months after her son was born.
Mutt needs Indy's assistance to help his mother Mary Williams who was kidnapped and taken to Peru.
Needless to say, this Indiana caper takes place up in the Andes, and the opening scenes take place in Area 51.
Outside the MP outpost, you see a diner, "Atomic Cafe." There could be a real Atomic Cafe in Nevada, but any flm student from the 70s and 80s knows that this sign is from Nancy's Atomic Cafe in Little Tokyo. I think the sign is with the Neon Museum in Los Angeles. George Lucas and Frank Marshall and friends may have eaten at this 24-hour cafe.
Indiana is taken to a warehouse to find something he left there years ago. No, it's not the Ark of the Covenant, however, the Ark does show up in the ensuing chase around the secret military warehouse.
Our hero finds himself in a test blasting site for an atomic bomb, and runs into a fake 50s town. I didn't check to see the license plate of the bel air convertible to see if it reads THX 338 - but it did have a resemblance to the one used in "American Grafitti."
Strangely, Indy speaks Mayan, even though the location is clearly Incan. But in the storyplot, they could be related.
The film is exhausting as it reaches its climax. It exsplains everything and nothing, as you shall see in its storyplot.
Before the film, Indy had lost his father, Henry Jones, and the College President, from the earlier films.
And should "Mutt" or Henry Jones III come back to take on the new adventures? Why not?
Knowledge is treasure.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Food, Fashion and Furniture: Commodities in the Global Economy
Tonight was the first class for the Summer. Not only is it about the globalization of economy but also how it impacts things like the environment. It should be an interesting class. What does "made in China" mean? What does the transnational companies do?
We also decided to move our class to start at 5:30 pm, instead of 6:00 pm. I know I will forget if I don't make that change in my calendars...
We also decided to move our class to start at 5:30 pm, instead of 6:00 pm. I know I will forget if I don't make that change in my calendars...
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Walt Disney's California
The future revampment of Disney's California Adventure is something to look forward to. Originally developed as a 'theme park' of California, which wasn't a bad idea, but if you live in California why not see the real places? Instead, presenting California as Walt Disney found it makes sense. It is that atmosphere that led to the development of imagination as we see today.
It also helps provide a thematic environment that California Adventure needed.
It also helps provide a thematic environment that California Adventure needed.
Monday, May 19, 2008
The Heat Got To ME!
On Saturday, I wasn't prepared for it but I ended walking the Armed Forces Day Parade with the Saxon Regiment - they, looking sharp in the new uniforms, I, well, had on whatever.
What happened was I was on uniform detail, having been the uniform manager for the Trojan Marching Band may have qualified me for this job, and there was a group that performed earlier as the #10 Tin Can Band Steel Drum Band from North HS and they ended up returning to the school without their uniforms to aboard the Regiment busses. So we were able to get them on a separate bus, but it meant finishing putting their uniforms together on the bus. So there I went.
I must have had something from the day before, and because of the heat and the sun, I was really six later at home and the next day. So today, I spend the day at home to recuperate.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Commencement at USC
Congratulations Graduates! Today is USC's commencement exercises and I'm in my office working. Its quiet since many are not here.
Today starts the Graduation Season.
I was thinking that typically one is graduated, which would means one completes on level, as in education, and embarks on another level. At the same time, I was thinking that the word as used as in "graduated cylinder" does not mean the same, yet are similar. True a graduated cylinder as markings for different levels and is uniformed to be used as a measuring device.
Does graduating from college or high school is the same? Could it be used as measuring device? Everyone talks about starting a new beginning, but what does graduating measures? Ok, you have to qualify to graduate, but what does it mean?
Today starts the Graduation Season.
I was thinking that typically one is graduated, which would means one completes on level, as in education, and embarks on another level. At the same time, I was thinking that the word as used as in "graduated cylinder" does not mean the same, yet are similar. True a graduated cylinder as markings for different levels and is uniformed to be used as a measuring device.
Does graduating from college or high school is the same? Could it be used as measuring device? Everyone talks about starting a new beginning, but what does graduating measures? Ok, you have to qualify to graduate, but what does it mean?
Monday, January 14, 2008
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