RECORD HEAT

On Monday, the water main broke. We came back from Whidbey Island, visiting my trading buddy Viet Ly and his family....Angie and Sasha. The hot weather caused the water main to break. How hot was it?

It was so hot Panera Bread ran out of food at the Northgate Mall. We did go to the new Regal Cinema complex. We say "The Ugly Truth". When we got back, there was a power outage. The only way we could get back in the house was for me to crawl through the front window. I did it. Thank God I lost weight.

FYA 50TH

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Torchlight '09 marks the 50th Anniversary of the FYA drill team. This version is unique in the complex quality of dance, percussion and coreography. However, I still like the old school version. In any case, congrats...siga, siga, FYA.

SEATTLE...SEATTLE

4:30AM. Norfolk Airport Shuttle was on time. What was even more surprising was the stretch limo that pulled into our parking lot. The start of the vacation obviously went well. I was able to upgrade our flight into first class. The trip to Detroit was flawless. The airport has really come a long way since I used to be a smoker. There was at least an hour delay because of weather. We had to wait in line...10 deep before taking off. Once in the air, we had a tremendous flight. Had the last omelete which pissed Edwina off...but she got an extra bagel.

Briana and JR picked us up. We then ate lunch at Simply Tai. The restaurant is located in a swelling Southcenter. I didn't even recognize the area. The food was okay...but relatively cheap.
Got home...went to Puetz to hit some balls. I also purchased some new wedges...Vokey. Hit balls horribly.

Went to Cy's and had dinner at Duke's...near Greenlake. The weather the entire day was simply gorgeous. Had the Alaskan salmon cobb salad...with extra bacon. It was awesome. The service was a bit slow...but the quality atmosphere...family...and the feeling of home over-rode any complaints. I really miss home. Good to be back home.

PYC ROCKS!!!

Edwina and I attended the Pampango Youth Club (PYC) induction program held at San Lorenzo. The evening started with dinner....chicken marsala, pasta, garlic bread and salad. The food was simply outstanding...which comes as no surprise as the people from the province of Pampanga, Philippines are know to be the best cooks in the whole country. As the evening wore on, this particular youth group performed at many of our events since 2004 with the book launch of "In Our Aunties Words". The entire program consisted of dance routines they performed over the years....Jitterbug, Little Anne, Viva Las Vegas...all coreographed by Ludwig himself. I did the induction by swearing in the officers. All in all, we had a great night. I really feel blessed to work with these great young people.

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OBAMA SPEAKS

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NEW YORK - President Barack Obama on Thursday traced his historic rise to power to the vigor and valor of black civil rights leaders, telling the NAACP that the sacrifice of others "began the journey that has led me here." The nation's first black president bluntly warned, though, that racial barriers persist.

"Make no mistake: The pain of discrimination is still felt in America," the president said in honoring the organization's 100th convention.

White House aides said the President had been working on the speech for two weeks. Obama urged African-Americans to be realistic about some of the difficulties they may face, but to remember that "your destiny is in your hands."

"We've got to say to our children, Yes, if you're African American, the odds of growing up amid crime and gangs are higher. Yes, if you live in a poor neighborhood, you will face challenges that someone in a wealthy suburb does not have to face. That's not a reason to get bad grades, that's not a reason to cut class, that's not a reason to give up on your education and drop out of school," he said. "No one has written your destiny for you. Your destiny is in your hands - and don't you forget that."

"No excuses. No excuses," Obama added, verging off his prepared remarks. "You get that education. All those hardships will just make you stronger, better able to compete. Yes, we can."

Happy ANniversary

We spent the entire day reveling over living over half our lives with each other. We went to the 5:30PM mass at Holy Family. It was unusually crowded. Later, we found out the Church was hosting the state Knights of Columbus meeting. I recognized the uniform of the Knights. I immediately began to think about Dad. More specifically the time Ray Ramos and I drove Dad, Uncle Alex and Mr. Acena all the way down to Portland. Ray and I hit it up at the track on Styway's Mistake...a 9-1 shot. Meanwhile, Dad's meeting didn't go too well. They were not recognized at the meeting. That act still leaves a bitter taste...however, I do forgive their ignorance for they do not know what they have done.

Ate dinner after mass at La Marinella. We ordered martinis. Had the fried matzarella for appetizers along with picacii bread. The main course we had linguinine with clam sauce and eggplant parmasean. Desert, had this nice strawberry cake that reminded Edwina of our wedding cake. The waitress gave us a shot of champagne for our anniversary. All in all, it was a great evening spent with my one and only love...Edwina. Life is great!!! I am a lucky man.