Commerical Classic: Mortal Kombat II. Still pumps me to play MK2 (Old post that didn't get published)

Does anyone remember this commercial? Back in the day, it was a big deal to bring MKII to the home systems. Makes me think of the days of SEGA of testing all day and then playing MKII to the early hours.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3va6exog8fw

Watch and enjoy.

What's making us happy? - End of School, Steve's nomination, and tasty treats!

It's been another crazy week in the world. Again, seems weird to say what's making us happy. It's the right mindset we just need to keep the faith. The Wongs are keeping the faith, but not a walk in the park. The current outlook is that we are in this Covid state for a bit longer. We hope you all are all safe and sane. So, what's making us happy?

• End of School! Davis is now a 6th grader and Olivia is now a 2nd grader! Now, what to do with them during the summer?
• Just Do It nomination - I have been nominated for the annual Nike award. There is still a big pool of nominations as there's a lot of Nike people. We will see where I land, but feel good being nominated.
• Dole Whip - There is an ice cream shop down the street that now serves dole whip. Took the kids there to celebrate end of school. Meant dad got to get one too! Was tasty. 

One thing I do want to pose to whomever is reading this in the now or in the future, how do we elevate the Asian voice? Fully support the Black Lives Matter effort. My hope is that is doesn't stop there. All races and minorities need representation. 

What's making us happy? - Bidet install finished, firepit setup, and Roblox!

Week two of making this blog a habit. :) It's been a very emotional and eventful week for the US locally, nationally, and worldwide. Locally, the kids had a drive by at their school to see their teachers one last time this year. School ends next week. Nationally, there was protesting in various forms that shook the US. Worldwide, oh by the way, Covid is still around changing how we will live going forward. You are asking, as I am thinking, what are the positives of the week? Here are three from me. If you have your three, would love to hear them. :)

• Bidet install done! At the beginning of Covid, all were concerned about toilet paper. Installed a bidet, but the connector to the hot water was through the front. Finally drilled the hole, and now I can check that off! (See below) 
• Firepit setup for Kristen. It was a mother's day gift. Been sitting in the living room for a couple weeks. Olivia and I set up and tested it. Now we are waiting for a sunny evening to try it out. 
• Roblox - Seems to be the game of choice for the kids these days. Safe enough for them to play with minimal supervision and common enough to find friends to play. Who would have thought we would spend so much time being an events coordinator. :)  

Here's a picture of their end of school year dinner and the bidet installation (hole in cabinet).

What's Making us Happy? - Rocket Launch, Asian Americans, and Commencement Speeches!

Hello all,
Almost 4 years since our last post, but felt compelled to write needing to keep a focus on what's making us happy. There's enough out there to not keep us happy at this time, day, and period (i.e. Covid).  Will always keep to a minimum of three items as there is power in three...

• NASA Rocket Launch (Watched it live. Very cool)
• Asian American PBS series (Great update to the Chinese Americans documentary)
• Commencement Speeches (Cheerful and Inspiring) 

It's been an interesting time with Covid and the new responsibilities of parents to be workers, parents, teachers, activities coordinators, and counselors to our kids. We are in the norm that we are challenged and exhausted at the end of the day. We have faith and will not only survive, but thrive! Okay. Off my pep talk. A couple of happy things about the fam this week:

• Olivia learned how to make doughnuts online
• Davis perfected his Hawaiian fried chicken wings (version 2)
• Kristen has made another version of face masks. Gets better each time.
• Steve completed the virtual Idaho potato Half Marathon under 2 hrs! Was supposed to be in Idaho this weekend.

Will start this as a weekly thread unless the kids want to post earlier. 

What's making us happy? - Montana!

We decided to do something different for the 4th of July. We went to Montana! Cuz Angie invited us to spend the hoildays with them and it was a blast! The things that were great:

• Spending time with family and friends - Davis and Olivia got to spend lots of time with cousins Kyle and Lily. More than the couple hours when we visit California. Also, met David's family and friends, and connected with my college friend, Eunice. 
• Fishing - David took Davis and I out creek and river fly fishing. It's been years since I really fished and this was my first time fly fishing as well. Taught this old dog a new trick and I caught 4 trout. The 1st 3 were cut and release, but the last one we did keep. I also learned how to clean, gut, and cook trout. Thanks Mr. YouTube! Davis was there for all of them. I think Dad got some respect after that. I will take any street cred I can get. :)
• Great scenery - Didn't think that Montana as so beautiful. "Big Sky" was very cool, especially when rafting and fishing down a wide river. I also ran a 10K on the 4th around a lake. It was pretty scenic!
• AirBnB - Was a little concerned when renting out, in advance, someone's house, but it was a very pleasurable experience. We enjoyed the space and the ammenities than a typical hotel room. 

We will be back to Montana someday, and will definitely do something with the Crawfords again. Hopefully, we can reciprocate the hospitality. Hope you all had a great 4th.

What is making us happy? Our future athlete...Davis

This is a combination of the last two weeks. Both accomplishments for Davis. Proud dad saw him run his first race. It was a 1 mile run around Nike. He started a little too hot, but came around and made a solid finish. It was to promote Marathon Kids to get kids to start running. He wants to run with daddy. I told him it's a start. The distances that I run sometimes are 13 times to the frozen yogurt shop and back. He said he will work on it.

Secondly, he achieved a level of Junior warrior black belt. Truthfully, I think the qualifications are a little loose for this black belt, but he's been doing it and we are proud. He's taking a break from TKD for the summer and taking swimming for two months. Definitely doing more in his 7 years than we did as kids. Wong 2.0 is going strong!

Finally, a bonus. The cousins came up to visit so we took the opportunity to take a group picture. As they don't see each other much, we are doing our best to keep them connected for when they are older. :) Here's the picture. Hope you are enjoying the heat.

What's making us happy? Young Capitalists

Two weekends ago, it was our neighborhood Garage Sale. We didn't sell any of our worldly possessions, but what we did was teach the kids about making a product, selling a product, and reaping the rewards of the sale.

Davis helped mom make the cookies and rice crispy treats. They helped color the signs. We encouraged them to say hello to everyone who came by and wave at all the cars that drove by. The friendlier that we were and made a connection, more cookies and treats were sold. Cause and Effect, in full effect. It does remind me of a story from H White about what his mother told him... "You let that be the last time you ever walk by somebody and not open up your mouth to speak, because even a dog can wag its tail when it passes you on the street." This was a totally different  and positive situation. After that, they waved and said hello more.

They made $21. More than enough for yogurt with all the fixings! They did good!

What makes you happy... "Ready player One..." and the joys of summer

Week 3.

I wasn't sure if I was going to have something happy to think about, but working out today, I heard Matt Damon's MIT commencement speech. It was funny and inspiring to them and me. He was describing that we may be a be a cosmic simulation and his response is "you need to do really interesting things, important things, inventive things, because this world has some real problems that this world needs you to solve." and "turn towards the problem and face it head on...". Inspiring.. If you needed a pep talk, like I did, take a look. "Ready Player One, Your game begins now". I am going to search for other commencement speeches.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9nU5oKtFyo

The weekend was hot. Very hot. And what did Davis do? He spent 3 hours in the pool at a birthday party. He had a great time while I met his classmate's parents. Isn't that what life is about? Enjoying the simple things and making connections? If that's what this summer is like? I'm all in.

Hope you all are finding your things that are making you happy.

What's Making Me Happy... New Cyclist on the street

What is making me happy this week? Davis has broken away from training wheels and is a true cyclist! He'd been working on the balance bike and said he was ready for his real bike. Within a couple minutes, and a cut on the leg, he was pedaling away. The next day, he and I rode around the block, not once, not twice, but three times! He's proud of himself and so are week. 

What also is making me happy is something called... Summer hours! A very nice perk for Nike employees, From Memorial Day to Labor Day, if you've finished your 40 hrs, you can leave at noon on Friday. Finishing 40 is not a tough ask for the majority, so we get to a little longer weekend. Something, that I am happy about!  Happy Summer hours!

What's Making Me happy.. Old Sega Test

It's been a little while since we blogged and about time to start this up again. I am plagiarizing with pride from a new podcast that I am listening to called "Pop Culture Happy Hour" and at the end of the podcast, they go around and tell what is making them happy. So, this week, what is making me happy is.. Sega Test Training Video. It's an old video of my days as a game tester. If you watch closely, near the middle, you see me testing. It's been 20 years and fun to think about the old days. This video has sparked a facebook stream from the testers. Those were the days when I would study and do job interviews by day, and then test at night. Fun times... Enjoy.     https://vimeo.com/166472288

Also, since I missed last week. What made me happy was seeing both kids be a part of Mook-lan's wedding. Davis the ring bearer, and Olivia the flower girl. They did the Wongs proud!

Tropical Turkey Vacation with poke and spam musubi! (Thanksgiving 2014)

What's Thanksgiving like in Hawaii? We were determined to find out... and it was great! The weather was warm and with the exception of a couple restaurants (Denny's for Thanksgiving dinner & Zippys) we had great meals. Davis' favorite part of the trip was Auntie's clubhouse at the Aulani. For the three days we stayed at the Aulani, he stayed there practicallys 9am-9pm. Kid paradise. Click on the link ( Hawaiian Thanksgiving 2014 ) to see our pictures or enjoy the ones below.  Aloha!

Davis has great onstage presence! - Davis' Christmas Performance

Davis' class has been practicing for a while now for the Christmas party. He did great on stage with his classmates. Keep an eye out for his future performances!

Davis and Olivia's Summer activities

We had a busy weekend of fun. It was in the 80s and 90s so we did a little inside and little outside. Davis and I started by watching the Guardians of the Galaxy, the kids and I went to the zoo on Saturday, and Sunday we divided the kids: Kristen and Davis went to PDX Playdate and Steve & Olivia hit Munchkin Playland. We (the parents) are exhausted and ready to go to work to get some rest.

LA Trip to Disneyland

We had a great time with Dina, Welly, Ryan, Jen, and the kids. They went to a pumpkin patch and then to Disneyland the next two days. It's a totally different experience with infants and preschoolers. We spent more time in the bathroom and child care center than on the rides. Davis loved the Lightning McQueen and Mater ride. Olivia had a great time on the It's a small world ride. We just liked seeing Disneyland through the kids eyes. Here's a couple pictures. Click on the link to see the rest. Link to pictures

Halloween Fun

We had a festive Halloween. All had a costume and gave out treats to the trick or treaters. Olivia is a great Yoda!