Leigo | Blossom

不就是小學嗎！

2011-09-29T01:12:00.003-04:00

Ever since labor day, Rice Ba and Rice Ma have embarked on a torturous journey of school search for Nana. So far, we have:

written essays
met with school exmission expert
edited our essays
attended a few open houses
discussed strategy
charted out a list of schools in tiers - very competitive, competitive, and safty
considered lying about our address to get in to a better public school
attended parent interviews
attended playdate interviews
registered for ERB
registered for hunger
the list goes on....

We visited a handful of very impressive independent schools in the city. Some are single sex, some are co-ed, some are traditional, and some are progressive. Many of them have long standing tradition, one of which even have history longer than this country. We also met many inspring educators with vision and genuine kindness. Education nowadays is very different than our own experience thirty years ago. It's individualized and experience driven. Division between subjects is no longer clear cut. Grades are no longer handed out for younger children. Kids in these schools are lucky to be surrounded by these top caliber educators. Not sure what's the outcome for us. In a way, it's torturous yet inspiring. We went for our first play date today at Avenues. A handful more events to come. Sigh... Parents.....

無常，好近

2011-01-31T19:38:00.009-05:00

麥克，一個樂天派嗓門大的愛爾蘭男生，是工作上的夥伴，最近因為業務的需要，會常常打電話給麥克，前一陣子有一個工程要發包給他，結果種種原因，給了別家，這幾天又開始談另一個工程，在這個說大不大說小不小的圈子裡，我們有很多共同的朋友。

今天早上一到公司，太家喧喧嚷嚷的，就在這個週末，麥克突然心髒病發作。四十五歲，還留下兩個幼小的女兒。才說要回電的，看樣子現在不需要了。

無常，好近。

無常，又好遠。

Alvin Alley

2009-07-31T19:43:00.003-04:00

那妮是個幸福的紐約寶寶，在大師級的地方學跳舞。

From Alvin Alley Tiny Steps

Nani's Second Birthday

2009-03-16T23:43:00.001-04:00

Bermuda 10/5/8 ~ 10/12/8

2008-10-15T17:39:00.011-04:00

第一次聽到百慕達這個地方是小學五六年級, 旁邊坐了個胖胖的小紳士, 家裡很有錢, 常常帶一些小牛頓, 科白尼類的兒童科學雜誌. 那時候小胖跟我講述了一個叫百慕達三角洲的地方, 神神祕秘的, 老是有人間蒸發的飛機, 輪船之類的事件. 好像那時我說, 將來千萬別去那裡. 若干年後, 居然帶著一家老小去了叫百慕達的小島. 出發前跟酷公公報告, 酷公公還要我們還要我們留遺囑, 說房子要留給他之類的話... 有夠哪個的.

米家五人老弱殘兵, 是在10/5 紐約港出發, 上了一艘叫Norwegian Dawn的大船, 10/8到岸, 在島上海灘玩了三天, 10/12回到紐約. 出發前其實是一丁點的期望都沒有, 結果...... 還真不賴. 每天吃吃喝喝, 上健身房, 跟nana玩, 曬太陽, 跳跳舞, 看書. 值得一提的是百慕達的海灘好美. 連米爺爺奶奶在海灘都玩的很瘋. Liked: Horseshoe Bay, breakfast at Blue Lagoon, dinner at Le Bistro, Big Band night, Bernie Martini Piano Bar. Improvement: Should get a room with balcony.

建議有老有小的大家庭可以參考遊輪路線. 四肢健全的年輕人可免.

恐怖的事件

2008-08-01T11:20:00.004-04:00

Nani, 馬麻帶你去餵鳥鳥好嗎?
好~~~~
馬麻餵鳥, 玩的不亦樂乎..... 忽然聽到.... "蹦"一聲
幾呎外, 有一個翻倒的娃娃車, 一個中年男子正在慌忙的安扶寶寶.
馬麻心想這麼會有爸媽哪麼不小心, 太不像話.
诶, 好巧, 那個娃娃車怎麼會跟我們家的一樣....
轉過頭來找Nani... 不在.
OMG, 那個哭的寶寶是..........納妮.....
馬麻驚慌的跑過去抱抱,
好險只是一點擦傷... 實在太大意了.....
下次不敢了.

Visiting Matawan

2008-07-14T17:18:00.002-04:00

這個週末帶Nani去了趟大姑家, 筋疲力盡....

Hudson Valley 7/5/08

2008-07-06T01:14:00.009-04:00

第二天同胖胖叔叔, 阿姨到Philipsburg Manor和Kykuit. Nani好喜歡大公雞和牛牛, 對有錢人的城堡就不太感興趣. 中午到一個叫Blue Hill的農場, 晚餐在Terrytown的河邊吃海鮮.

Hudson Valley 7/4/08

2008-07-06T01:11:00.008-04:00

好久沒在這裡寫寫東西. 在上班和Nani之間, 似乎沒任何喘口氣的時間. 每天等Nani睡著了, 馬麻也差不多癱瘓了. Nani快十六個月了, 上個禮拜全家出去小玩了一下. 紐約其實美的地方還蠻多的. 大力推薦Storm King Art Center. http://www.stormking.org/. 就在Dia:Beacon的附近.

Grandpa's visit to nyc

2008-06-11T01:33:00.000-04:00

Mama fly high

2008-04-16T18:15:00.003-04:00

Happy Birthday Nani

2008-03-28T16:08:00.000-04:00

向大家拜年 - 祝安康

2008-02-05T22:20:00.000-05:00

中央公園滑梯梯

Saturday morning routine - a trip to neighborhood diner

像不像小姑姑?

Happy Holidays

2007-12-24T13:29:00.001-05:00

12/05/07 Eight Month

2007-12-05T00:11:00.001-05:00

7 month!

2007-10-14T20:55:00.001-04:00

Highchair

2007-10-12T22:41:00.001-04:00

新聞發佈

2007-10-10T23:06:00.000-04:00

女士們先生們, 讓我們歡迎海協會副會長,張明清先生.

大家好,我是張明清.首先發佈一則有關於部落格和言論發表方面的消息: 紐約, 有一位小馬麻, 平常喜歡在個人部落格發表生活點滴, 比鼻照片, 和遊記趣事. 據情報顯示, 這位小馬麻的政治傾向可能偏藍. 今天, 這小小的部落格, 慘遭匿名人士的攻擊, 霹靂啪啦的連續寫了許多帶有人身攻擊的留言. 小馬麻受寵若驚, 沒想到部落格會受到如此激烈鄉民的青睞. 為避免無謂的煩惱, 今後所有的留言將經過管制, 有所不便, 請多包含.

我們為這位愛罵人, 愛台灣, 但不敢留名的人士, 掌聲鼓勵鼓勵!

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "歹誌大條了": Can't believe the degree of ignorance until I came across your blog...wow... glad you are out of Taiwan, did you bring a lot of people like you when you left? Taiwan will be much better off with people with wisdom, you know? Please do not ever visit Taiwan or claim you are part of Taiwan in any way... that will be a disgrace!!

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "He lied, but won't step down.": He lied? Wow... and how do you know about that for sure? Be careful, sending aweful messages out can get you some interesting karma in return. Next time, don't assume the world out of your limited zone! Perhaps it's time to look inside instead of looking out and pointing fingers all the time! If not because of him, you might have the freedom of speech - but then, according to the stuff you are saying.... I wonder if you should have such freedom...

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "阿扁都不知大陸的競爭力有多驚人...": I suppose it would be hard to ask the monkey or Chinese to be responsible for all the competitive lead toys and killer products! Don't let money drawn your head or you might find it hard to scream out "help"!!

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "心痛": If Taiwan belongs to China just because China once had some "people" over in Taiwan... well, I suppose nearly the entire Europe should be part of China... Use your head sometimes, it does not seem to work too well. Seems to have lots of "knowledge" but definitely extremely low wisdom came out of it....Want to practice Buddhism? Well, why not start looking at yourself! If you aren't a perfect being, don't ask others to be one. That will make you look sooo bad........

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "倒扁?挺扁?": Well, don't ever say you are an American because your ancestors came from China... what kind of logic is that? If you really love Taiwan - then have some common sense and put yourself in his position.

Nana 坐坐和把拔玩

2007-10-08T21:52:00.000-04:00

露點寫真

2007-10-07T23:09:00.000-04:00

坐坐

2007-10-07T00:24:00.000-04:00

nani最近開始會坐坐, 但三不五時還是會小小的短路, 突然往前或往後傾. 大意的馬咪讓nani跌了兩次, 被奶奶知道的話, 會被罵死. nani坐坐時喜歡玩圈圈, 邊玩, 還會邊高興的尖叫. 對顏色好像也有喜好, 偏愛綠色, 老抓著綠色圈圈不放. 呃....... 是泛綠的嗎??

快樂的小魚

2007-09-20T21:56:00.000-04:00

昨天帶nana去游泳, 下水後, 兩隻肥胖的小腳拼命踢啊踢, 好可愛. 還被教練抱去當示範寶寶. nana, 好勇!

註: JCC 的設備好屌, 小朋友游泳池的水位可隨時調整, 猶太人太海了.

More Nana Pics

2007-09-17T09:18:00.000-04:00

Took this picture using grandma rice's mac computer. Just uploaded a bunch of pictures to Adorama. http://www.adoramapix.com/rice

6 months

2007-09-14T12:00:00.000-04:00

I can't believe Nana is turning 6 month today. Another milestone. Yesterday, we were marveling at her old photos. Baby changes so fast that I can hardly remember how she looks like when she was a newborn. Brought Nana to do yoga yesterday, she was tumbling all over the place on my yoga mat. Next week, we will be going to her first bubbling baby swimming class at JCC. Kind of excited. I bought her a swimming suit for 18 mo baby, hope that it will still fit.

坐地鐵, 去聽Eu姨唱歌

2007-07-13T23:35:00.000-04:00

恩恩啊啊

2007-07-13T23:21:00.000-04:00

Nana and her 1st friend

2007-07-09T13:06:00.001-04:00

This weekend, The Rice family went to picnic in Central Park with the usual suspects. Nana finanally met up with Little Apple for the first time.

接奶奶，吃西瓜，上山和下海

2007-07-05T21:24:00.001-04:00

"The two most precious gifts we can give our children are roots and wings." - A Jewish saying

「機器女孩珊珊」紀實片

2007-07-03T16:14:00.000-04:00

一個好勇敢, 好努力的小女孩.
See her documentary video.

Nana看書書

2007-06-25T22:14:00.000-04:00

好快, 胖小姐三個月了

2007-06-21T11:42:00.000-04:00

Nana, Nana, and more Nana

2007-06-01T01:35:00.000-04:00

納納吐吐

Anjojo姨拍拍

把拔唱歌，納納好用心聽

Eueu姨抱抱

久違了

2007-05-26T10:38:00.000-04:00

這兩個月在家孵蛋, 忙的不可開交,
到了晚上筋疲力盡, 倒頭就睡,
所以久違了, 部落格!
我們家的米nana已經有兩個月半,
是個愛吃, 愛笑, 愛放屁的健康北鼻,
在短短的兩個月半, 衝,衝,衝,
從6.5磅衝到13磅,
體重是同年齡的 96 percentile
連醫生阿姨都說要少吃點,

秀氣一點啊.....

蟲蟲飛

慈濟 "tea party"

38 weeks

2007-03-08T18:37:00.000-05:00

倒數計時六天。今天又去了醫生ㄚ姨那邊檢查，開了兩指。
米家小姐的頭已經低低空降落，而馬麻的妊娠紋也是加速的變本加厲。

醫生ㄚ姨問：會不會陣痛或不舒服啊？
馬麻：不會ㄚ！應該會痛嗎？
醫生ㄚ姨：頭那麼下來，都快出來了。不過每個人對痛的承受度很不同。應該是會痛，大概你沒察覺吧
馬麻：喔...
醫生ㄚ姨：星期三之前陣痛的厲害要趕快打電話，然後去醫院ㄛ。

哎呦，真糟糕，馬麻神經少半根，真怕....
快生了還沒知沒覺，會很難看耶。

1cm dilated

2007-03-01T14:53:00.000-05:00

哇靠，我們家的米小小還真是急性子，媽媽今天看醫生，發現已經開一指了，還有十二天啊，撐著點啊！隨著時間的靠近，很奇怪，心情反而比較不會緊張, 還蠻平靜的。

For self-reference:
醫生阿姨 office 212.319.5535
醫生阿姨 pager 212.774.1456
米把拔 Cell 917.476.6601
米奶奶 Cell 917.476.6120

It Seems the Fertility Clock Ticks for Men, Too

2007-02-27T11:46:00.000-05:00

By RONI RABIN / NY TIMES
Published: February 27, 2007
Mounting evidence is suggesting that as men get older, they face an increased risk of fathering children with abnormalities. [continue reading]

36週

2007-02-26T12:04:00.000-05:00

禮拜五去醫院照超音波, Rice Nana 已經有六磅半, 是個好動的胖美眉. 怪了, 明明馬麻和把拔都是瘦子, 怎麼女兒會這麼胖? 像舅舅嗎?! 恐怖噢~ Nana麻體重127磅, 共重了25磅, 本來是個好動的馬麻, 但現在肚肚大大, 整天只想睡覺和吃飯. 這個週末, 把拔和馬麻把Nana該要的東西都買好了, 也把Nana的衣櫃清理乾淨. 一切就緒, 準備倒數計時.

老照片

2007-02-22T23:25:00.000-05:00

新年期間, 米家族興起了一陣尋找家譜的風潮, Leigo的大舅提供了這張珍貴照片. 照片中的比鼻是Leigo的外公, 抱外公的年輕人是Leigo的阿祖. 好久遠的年代啊! 大概有九十年吧!

在新的一年綻放

2007-02-20T18:09:00.000-05:00

今年的農曆年,過的緊湊.

除夕的早上替Chris叔叔帶班Open House, 之後殺到美華吃最後的排骨便當，把拔剪了個頭髮，回家大掃除，晚上到米奶奶家吃團圓飯，打電話給台北的酷公公拜年．和三小朋友玩二十一點，還在米奶奶家住了一晚．

初一早上，到慈濟找師姑，跟大家拜年，還順手牽羊的帶了好多菜．之後到超市買了些零食飲料，坐金馬車回家．晚上和慈濟幫眾姊妹，江南四大痞子，和桃園三結義，在chez rice開了個新春轟趴．多謝大家提供的美味伙食：有黑加崙的yakisoba，水黎妹的squash casserole，龍眼媽的老婆餅，桑椹妹的年糕跟baked pasta，榴連和情人果的火鍋，MD&PD的鳳梨酥，LL&IC的蘋果派．可惜沒有照像，僅以此文留念．

大年初二，Nana拔麻在家休息孵蛋，Nana麻有感而發，覺得身邊的朋友，包括自己在內，都在轉變，不管是畢業，工作，戀愛，成家，買房，生子，大家都一步步的走下去，平穩自在，感覺很好！

誠心的祝福大家都能在新的一年，順心，綻放．

Bei Wedding Pics

2007-02-20T16:44:00.000-05:00

Bei Wedding

很喜歡這張照片, 因為生命中最重要的男士(除了阿弟以外)都在裡面, 真不是我在老王賣瓜, 兩個實在都帥呆了!

三十五週

2007-02-15T09:23:00.000-05:00

今天帶Rice Nana到醫生阿姨那邊做例行檢查,
醫生阿姨看了馬麻的肚肚,然後驚訝的說,
"Wow.. the head is really low!"
看樣子Nana是蓄勢以待,已經準備好起跑的動作了,
Nana不要太心急啊..拜託拜託.
把拔和馬麻都還沒有準備好啊!

歷史上的今天

2007-02-14T17:18:00.000-05:00

十二年前在紐約東村一個小小的理工學院,
那時馬麻有到肩的長髮,把拔有密密的捲髮(有點像周華健),
馬麻十九歲, 把拔二十歲, 是兩個口袋空到不行的窮學生.
馬麻喜歡把拔很久了, 卻一直難以起口,
把拔是個有名的木頭人, 感覺木訥, 行動遲鈍.
好不容易等到情人節, 馬麻放了張卡片和一顆巧克力在把拔的信箱,
卡片好像說了些無關緊要的屁話...
之後....
把拔和馬麻就常常在一起做功課 (因為太窮沒錢約會),
吃dollar sandwich, day-old-bagel, st. mark pizza.
之後....
把拔和馬麻相繼畢業了
之後....
把拔和馬麻結婚了
之後....
把拔和馬麻有了Rice Nana
之後....
Rice Nana會出生, 會長大, 也會碰到喜歡的人.

說這個故事,馬麻是想要讓Nana知道,
有大大的可能, 幸福是不會從天而降, 尤其是喜歡上木頭人,
有時候幸福是需要積極爭取, 也需要用心維護經營的.

更祝各位叔叔阿姨情人節快樂!
要積極爭取自己的幸福, 加油哦!

後記:
十二年後...
馬麻問把拔: 如果當年我沒行動, 你會不會來追我?
把拔堅決的說: 不會.
馬麻: 啊, 好殘忍... 為什麼?
把拔: 你太恰北北了!
馬麻: ^^|||

豬年快樂

2007-02-14T16:58:00.000-05:00

大米, 小米, 和小小米,
先在這邊給大家拜個早年,
祝新的一年大家都能
平安, 健康, 發大願, 成大事.

再跟大家分享一句靜思語:
不求身體健康，只求精神充足、智慧明睿；
不求事事如意，只求毅力、勇氣；
不求負擔減輕，只求力量增加. ~證嚴上人

3rd Ave and 14th St

2007-02-13T19:24:00.000-05:00

每次經過那個熟悉的街口,
總會抬頭往二樓的窗望了望,
那個叫2K的小窩.
從大學到結婚, 八個年輕飛揚的年頭啊,
停下腳步, 想起那時的好朋友,
大學的日子, 和青澀的過去,
嘴角會不自主的泛起暖暖的微笑.
繼續走下去,
下個街角, 何嘗沒有不同的風景和心情.

期待

2007-02-12T15:49:00.000-05:00

久違了, 部落格!
這兩個月工作有點小忙, 有幾個從天而降的新客戶.
挺著小肚肚帶客戶跑東跑西, 保守估計, 大概看了不下一百個房子吧.
一個本來就要談成的生意, 因為某些意外, 付諸於水.
難過了幾天, 不過也看開了, 業務的本質也就是這樣.
前一些日子太順了, 起起伏伏是應該的.
小小米在一個月就要出來和大家見面,
該收收心, 工作放一邊, 在家多休息.
三月十四日早上十點半, 小小米會準時粉墨登場.
很期待, 也很緊張......... 祈禱一切都能順利.

迷失的白雪公主 (轉貼)

2007-01-29T18:13:00.000-05:00

迷失的白雪公主一開始，我以為她就跟我以前教過性情安靜的孩子一樣，沒什麼特別，如果不是因為那天她拿到作文簿時的反應，我想我永遠沒有機會進到她心裡。

她那次的作文改寫了白雪公主的故事，說白雪公主因為貪吃，誤吃了巫婆的毒蘋果，從此之後就變成了一個又醜又噁心的巫婆，再也不可能是白雪公主了。我在文章後有這樣一段評語：「白雪公主不是故意的，她的心既不醜也不噁心，她只是不小心。我想，她的心仍一直是個純潔又天真的公主吧！」

她拿到作文簿之後，一直哭一直哭一直哭，哭到說不出任何話，我望著泣不成聲的她，覺得自己的淚也要跟著掉了下來。後來，我沒有再問她任何事，也沒有跟她說任何話，只留了一張字條，寫下我的電話和電子郵件信箱，拍拍她的肩膀就去上下一堂課了。 To continue reading...

The Producers

2007-01-05T23:40:00.000-05:00

Went to see the Producers tonight. Thanks for NYTimes, we got 1/2 price tickets online. Liked the humor a lot. Tony Denza is not really a Broadway material, but everyone else has superb performance. Very entertaining and enjoyable. The last time we saw a Broadway show..... was four years ago with Adi... long time ago. When Nana joins us later on, our chance for a night out will be slim slim slim. Two more months to go!

Banana muffins!!

2007-01-05T23:30:00.000-05:00

Baking usually does not come natural for me. Today, for the first time, I have baked something good for a change. This is the recipe I used. Nana Ba, and the doormen all liked it. Tears going down my cheeks....

Year 2006 in review

2007-01-01T22:18:00.001-05:00

First, we are expecting a little baby girl. The baby kicks around often, and we began to feel her presence in the family. We are excited and look forward to see her in person this coming spring. For sure, life will be different from now on. And, here are the rest….

Early this year, Lei resigned from her eight-year tenure as a construction manager at Bovis. She later started a business, which ended shortly. In fall, she moved into real estate, got a license and joined Corcoran. Since then, she was able to successfully completed three sales transactions, which is a pretty good start.

July marked Jimmy’s tenth year with Credit Suisse. Returning to work after last year’s sabbatical, he managed a new project to completion in May within very aggressive deadlines. Over the course of the year, Jimmy hired two people in New York and Raleigh and relocated one person to Singapore.

In May, Lei and Jimmy participated in the 42-mile NYC Bike Tour for the third year in the row. Lei was brave enough to finish the tour despite a bad fall. We attended a 10-day meditation retreat in Pinebush, New York in June. During the summer months we kept busy with various weekend projects for our favorite non-profit organizations. Exciting news of our baby-girl-to-be was announced in the fall to our family and friends who responded with warm wishes and lots of advice! In December, while Lei was in her second trimester, we traveled to Taiwan and Singapore, which was probably our last grand trip as a twosome for many years to come.

Although 2006 does not seem very eventful, we feel that there is a lot to be thankful for. As we are about to march into a different stage of life, we started to look back our life since graduating from college. We were really blessed in so many different ways, either professionally or personally. Lei is especially grateful to her mother-in-law for being so caring during her pregnancy. We thank you all for the friendship and love, and wish you a very healthy and successful 2007 to come.

Jimmy and Lei

短篇小說：《遲暮》

2006-12-30T09:23:00.000-05:00

米果‧第十二屆府城文學獎短篇小說：正獎《遲暮》
Good read, enjoy.

Design Life now

2006-12-29T09:24:00.000-05:00

Went to Cooper-Hewitt museum the other day with Hiuyan. Quite an exhibit. They currently have the National Desgin Triennial 2006. Saw a bunch of cool designs in the exhibit. Flatpak is a modern prefab house system. Ooba's baby crib has a modern look that's a rare find. Blik has kick ass wall paper alternative. Kidrobot is fun looking with an evil twist. Worth a trip.

鬆餅，莫札特，奈良美智

2006-12-26T14:40:00.000-05:00

回到紐約ㄧ個禮拜整，
還在調適落差，
還在掛不下老爸和ㄚ弟，
看來，家人的牽絆將是一輩子的，
被血緣緊緊的繫著，
何嘗不是一種幸福。

早上跟大米哥煎了幾個味道不這麼的 pancakes 吃，
邊陪 rice nana 聽莫札特，
邊看了本奈良美智的自傳。

下午去游泳，動動吧。

12/2 and 12/3 台北

2006-12-03T18:54:00.000-05:00

再不寫下來，恐怕就馬上忘記這兩天發生了什麼...

回台灣的第一天，老爸和阿弟早早就到機場接我們，班機延誤，讓他們等了好久。到旅館 check in 之後，直接到基隆老家，是爺爺的忌日。ㄧ家老小，坐的整個屋子都是人，加上嗓門洪亮的大姑也在，好熱鬧。到了三點，leigo and riceman 開始逗孤，回到台北為了忍著不睡，跑去吃了一籠鼎泰豐的小籠包，度小月的切仔麵，到了八點，再也撐不下去了.... 第二天，三點就睜開眼睛。

第二天到四嬸家玩，嗓門大的黃家老小又全到齊了，看了一部無裡頭的國片“國士無雙“，有ah-ken再裡面，有夠無裡頭的電影。大家聊聊天，打麻將。晚上到ㄚ媽家，沒到八點，又開始逗孤。

今天七點起來，看樣子時差快克服了。

Our new cell in Taiwan

2006-12-02T08:37:00.000-05:00

We couldn't get the old cell phone working. Our new number in Taiwan is 0916.516.422. Ate so much today that my little tummy is about to explode. So sleepy....

阿拉斯加

2006-12-01T07:21:00.000-05:00

在阿拉斯加停一小時，這次帶 Rice Nana 坐飛機有一點小累，居然吐了。羅文嘉也在同一班飛機，本人很矮。謝謝魏媽媽大力相助，坐了兩個特好位。好了，台北見。

Sample Sales

2006-11-17T21:43:00.000-05:00

Kate / Jack Spade
http://www.katespade.com/category/index.jsp?categoryId=2130331

11/16–11/19 Clothes for both genders are represented at Steven Alan, where Mayle, Rogues Gallery, and the house label are 30 to 75 percent off. Isabel Marant pants are now $55. 87 Franklin St., nr. Broadway (212-343-0692); Thurs. and Fri. (8:30–8); Sat. (noon–7); Sun. (noon–5).

Thanks to Chris for the info.

武昌新村

2006-11-17T13:41:00.000-05:00

最近把部落格移到blogger beta 版本, 順便分門別類把這兩年的posts整理一下. 再看了其中幾篇關於家人和童年的文章, 聯想起童年,嘴角不經意小小得揚了起來. 童年的一大半, 是住在台北東區的四摟公寓, 很普通的那種. 一樓有個紅色帶鏽的的大門, 門的右邊是個對講機, 共六個玲, 代表有六戶人家, 公寓的外牆是灰色的小碎石, 沒電梯, 沒中央空調, 家家都有陽台, 有些人種花, 有些人會把陽台加蓋, 變成室內的一部分. 回想起來, 整體上算是蠻平民化的房子, 或入骨的說, 沒美感的的房子. 不過, 在台北小巷子裡這樣的公寓很多, 大家都是住這樣的公寓, 況且小時候, 美醜似乎不是問題. 我們住的那個社區叫武昌新村, 有一個橫行的巷, 巷子的沿路有各式各樣的小店, 和菜場, 縱行有十來個弄, 這樣子的巷弄, 型成了一個自足的小社區. 社區的小朋友都是讀同一個小學. 我們家住在四弄, 班上有一個同學叫葉x芸, 住在八弄, 是個漂亮會唸書的小女孩, 她媽媽開了一個家庭式的美容院, 社區所有的媽媽都在那裡洗頭, 八卦. 葉x芸的成績很好, 每次月考都是滿分, 她媽也超愛炫燿的, 每次老媽去洗頭都會被問, “哎喲, 偶們家葉x芸哦, 月考又考滿分, 啊你們黃蕾呢?” 如果我走狗運, 考得不錯的話, 我媽也會炫燿回去, 如果我考糟了, 老媽就會灰頭塗臉的回來興師問罪, 這樣子的routine居然可以維持好幾年, 一直到我們搬到新加坡. 那時候, 真是很不爽那一對母女. 二十年過後, 小時候的朋友還有聯絡的也只有零星的一兩個. 幾年前回台北, 到舊家看看, 發現那個美容院還在, 好奇的想知道後來葉x芸長大變成什麼樣子? 但後來我還是沒進去, 笑一笑, 繼續往前走. 祝福小時候的玩伴.

大肚婆的一二事

2006-11-15T18:41:00.000-05:00

It's been three months since I became a broker. Lifestyle is slowly sinking in. I go to the office about 2 to 3 times a week, and show apartments also about 2 to 3 times a week. A much more flexible and relaxing schedule compared to life at the construction site. The first deal went very smooth, expecting to close in two weeks or so. Client and his family are very happy with the service; most likely we will remain to be friends. Just had the year end review with my manager, she seemed to be happy about how the progress.

Recently, also joined the Equinox gym around the corner, have been actively swimming for the past two months, except for a short hiatus due to skin rash. Most of the time, I got the whole lane to myself. It felt very relaxing. Last week, I dropped by the Chinatown office to learn calligraphy. Lin S/B is the calligraphy teacher, he is quite good. I can't recall the last time I hold a brush, must be more than 10 years ago. My dad used to make my little brother and I write calligraphy at home all the time. It felt good to be back to this old ritual. In the past few days, I have been writing at least half an hour everyday. Almost felt like meditation.

Well, went to check up on Rice Nana this morning with Mama Rice. Everything is fine. I started to feel her moving around, in fact, quite often. Have gained around 10 lbs since pregnancy, start to show a little. Roger and over.

He lied, but won't step down.

2006-11-06T20:15:00.000-05:00

TAIPEI, Taiwan, Nov. 5 — President Chen Shui-bian admitted Sunday that he submitted false receipts for reimbursement from public funds and lied to prosecutors about how he spent the money, but said he had done so in the interest of national security. [continue reading on NY Times]

鞠躬也太晚了吧, 想當初不A就好了.

歹誌大條了

2006-11-03T17:10:00.000-05:00

"Taiwanese prosecutors said today that they had enough evidence to bring corruption charges against President Ah-Bian, a development likely to increase pressure on him to resign....." 聽到這則新聞很驚訝, 沒想到台灣的司法居然是獨立的, 本來以為國務機要費一案, 一定會被政治壓力蓋住. 真相大白, 大塊人心. 該是下台三鞠躬的時間了吧!
NY Times Article
聯合報文章

是個好動的小女生!!!!

2006-10-30T17:42:00.000-05:00

We went to Lenox Hill today. Nano is a little girlie! (80% accurate) Little girlies are cute, smart, and most importantly they don't play basketball. They play soccer instead! Yeah.... Leigo is happy. Grandma still thinks it's a boy, despite what the ultrasound says . Riceman... hm... he said he is happy.... I wonder if that's the true feeling.... wuhahah..... Anyway, the baby moves like crazy again when we see her through the ultrasound. This will be a very active baby. Luv it!

草莓的紅拂夜奔

2006-10-23T12:10:00.000-04:00

This post is written by Just Crystal. The content is a little rated R, but it is such a funny read.
紅拂夜奔〈上〉
紅拂夜奔〈下〉

好康到相報

2006-10-22T22:44:00.000-04:00

Leigo and Riceman plan to visit Taiwan and Singapore around end of Nov and to mid Dec. Every time we were in Taiwan, we did very little exploring. Maybe because we felt too much at home. This time, Leigo hopes to do some planning ahead of time and perhaps explore a bit than usual.

Any good suggestion? Food, destination, shop, quaint bed and breakfast, boutique hotel, club.....???

7 for all mankind.... REALLY!

2006-10-17T23:34:00.000-04:00

其實偶也不是很敗家啦. 除了對牛仔褲比較挑之外, 對其他的要求不會太嚴格啦. 有了這樣的開場, 接下去會比較好敘訴...... 今天米媽來曼哈頓陪我們看醫生, 之後小米想去買一條孕婦穿的牛仔褲, 現在的幾件實在是有點緊. 其實, 對買孕婦裝這件事一點都不期待, 想像不出來會有什麼好貨. 逛啊逛的, 居然發現7 for all mankind有出大肚款, 這個新大陸實在太震奮人心. 試穿了幾件不同牌子, 連勤儉持家的米媽都覺得7比較下真的好看, 有米媽的endoresement之下, 小米閉上眼, 狠心的把卡刷下去. 啊.............. 雖然物質不是一切, 但所帶來短暫的快樂, 還是很爽啦!

小女生還是小男生?

2006-10-16T19:09:00.000-04:00

明天媽米要帶小Nano看醫生, 應該就可以知道Nano是個小女生還是小男生. 米奶奶很好奇, 也要來參加明天的謎底揭曉. 米奶奶猜是小男生. 台灣的酷公公也猜是男生. 媽米和把鼻猜是小女生. 下注請快, 買定離手!

嘴巴帶著身體走的一天

2006-10-16T18:48:00.000-04:00

嘴饞的大肚婆今天讓嘴巴牽著身體走了一天.
下午上了一個無聊的課,
下課後先到東村的日本麵包店解嚵,
麵包還沒吃完, 又想到唐人街的潮州粿條,
殺到唐人街, 買了粿條,
又想到昨天在wholefood沒買成的當季的石柳,
找了好幾家水果店才看到滿意的石柳.
鳥為食亡, 人為食忙........

More pics of Rice Nano

2006-10-03T15:13:00.000-04:00

Week 6

Week 9

Crane accident

2006-10-03T12:42:00.000-04:00

Few days ago, a four-ton steel section of a crane's rigging snapped loose and fell onto a taxicab at 110 Third Ave, East Village. Luckily, no one was dead in this near miss accident. Back then when I was working in the construction field, things often fell down from the sites, some will get caught by the horizontal nets, and some will not. On a winday day, if we see a construction site ahead of us, we often take a detour. Urge you guys to do the same. [Curbed Link]

可愛的洋蔥頭

2006-10-01T23:09:00.000-04:00

前幾天跟老弟網上聊天, 抓下好多可愛的洋蔥頭...

http://blog.yam.com/onion_club/archives/cat_109038.html

The Jewish Way

2006-10-01T21:47:00.000-04:00

最近分別讀了兩篇關於猶太人教養小孩的哲學, 頗有共鳴.
猶太人真有他一套的!
1. So the Torah Is a Parenting Guide?　- NY Times
2. 以色列教育孩子的方式值得學習 via email from San San S/G

The toughest critics are also the smallest

2006-09-30T16:13:00.000-04:00

There is an article in the Sunday NY Times real estate section - about real estate and kids in Manhattan. Very interesting read. As we are about to bring a new life into this world, I wonder what should we tell s/he about wealth and the way to look at wealth.... [Link to article]

母親像月亮一樣?

2006-09-28T15:47:00.002-04:00

我必須承認,老娘不是一個很有女人味的女生, 也不是哪種充滿母性光輝"照耀我家窗前"的準媽咪. 目前身體的變化還不大, 除了腰圍寬了點, 咪咪大了點之外, 實在感覺不到北鼻的存在. 所以三步五時常常會忘記自己是個孕婦, 偶而想到自己已經懷孕了, 再想到以後生活的不便, 還會覺得很X! 目前比較確定的是, 我不想自然生產, 痛的老半天, 還要埃一刀, 想到就雞皮疙瘩掉滿地. 天啊... 再繼續講下去我真的覺得自己是一個差勁自私的媽咪.... 糟糕...

First Deal 好爽

2006-09-28T15:28:00.000-04:00

祖上積德! 小女昨天成交了生平第一筆生意, 雖然說跟賣方仲介對分, 再跟公司對分, 再分紅給介紹人的情況下, 所剩不多, 但精神上卻特滿足的. 這筆帳付我們年底回台北的機票應該是足足有餘, 搞不好還可以買升等卷. 爽斃了! 小米今年在家當米蟲好一段時間, 終於生產報國了.

Great penmanship

2006-09-21T12:07:00.000-04:00

Introducing Rice nano

2006-09-19T13:46:00.000-04:00

1000 dreams. Impossibly small. Coming spring 2007.

A great movie - Ikura

2006-09-14T00:23:00.000-04:00

We saw a great movie today - Ikura. Directed by my all time favorite Akira Kurosawa in 1952. A black and white movie with no stunning effect nor femme fatal. It's a movie about a simple man facing death, his emotional conflict, revelation, and transformation. Quite moving. The way Kurosawa shot this film reminds me of Citizen Kane, yet another classic.

Lei and Corcoran

2006-09-05T23:52:00.000-04:00

My new professional photo is up.... Sent out the annoucement today. Some of you will get emails, or post cards. Anyway, got mixed comments about the photo. Some said it was nice, and some said it was too much make up. My cousin hated it, and asked me to change it immdiately. He is the nicest and honest guy existing in this planet. Hm.. But... What's done is done. Corcoran hired a professional makeup artist and photogrpher to do this. Too late to change it now... I think the photo is OK lah.
www.corcoran.com/lhuang

怪夢

2006-09-05T13:05:00.000-04:00

昨天沒睡好, 胃不舒服, 翻來覆去的, 老做一些怪夢.
今天起來, 打杯水果奶昔喝喝, 又是好漢一條.
下午去趟辦公室吧....

Restaurant review - Cafe Gray

2006-09-05T01:06:00.000-04:00

Cafe Gray is one of the restaurant collections at the Time Warner Center. Riceman and Leigo went there this weekend to celebrate an anniversary and a birthday. The restaurant has a gigantic open kitchen near the windows. We requested a table near the kitchen, and watching the chefs at work is a spectacular event by itself. For first courses, we ordered the VEGETABLE RATATOUILLE (coulis of two tomatoes and pine nuts) and RISOTTO with mushroom fricass?e. The ratatoulle is a cool summer dish with two vibrant colors that Riceman totally enjoyed. Leigo felt that the Risotto was nicely presented but a little heavy for summer and it tasted a little too salty. For second course, we had SHORT RIB OF BEEF with soft grits and meaux mustard, and wild see bass on top of a sea of chopped heirloom tomato. The short rib dish was their signature dish, for the first few bites, it tasted great, but it became too heavy after that. The sea bass was good, but not dropping jaw awesome. For dessert, we had CHOCOLATE - PASSION FRUIT SOUFFL? with pineapple gratin. It’s very nicely done with a crispy outside and melting hot inside. The passion fruit syrup was a great compliment with the rich dark chocolate. The dessert was the best compared to other dishes.

In short, we find the food OK, the service SUPERB, decoration GREAT. In Zagat rating system, this is what we would have given Caf? Gray: Food 21 / Service 28 / D?cor 24. One suggestion, when making the reservation, got to request a seat near the kitchen.

施主席的轟趴 - 笑死了

2006-08-31T21:34:00.000-04:00

台灣之子 - 依沒藥醫

流浪228

One year later after Katrina

2006-08-31T19:00:00.000-04:00

One year after Katrina, only 1/2 of the pupolation came back to New Orleans. The population before the storm is 485K, and now 217K. Of those who came back, mostly white. After one year, only 29% of the schools are up and running. The numbers are quite shocking. See more numbers on NPR's report: New Orleans by the Numbers

Shop till we drop

2006-08-29T13:22:00.000-04:00

This Sunday, we went to Woodburry Common with the Hsu family. What a day! These are what we bought:

Rice:
1 pair of jeans from Diesel
1 pair of dress shoes from Barneys
3 t-shirts
4 socks from Banana

Leigo:
1 wind coat from Barneys
1 sweater from Barneys
1 shorts from Puma
1 shirt from Lacoste
2 long sleeve shirts from Jcrew

Chien Chien
1 suit from Hugo Boss!
1 khakis from Jcrew
1 sweater from Jcrew

Didi
1 jacket from Barneys
2 wallets from Jcrew
1 pair of shoes from Puma

Mei Mei
1 sweater from Polo

Joy of shopping, priceless. For everything else, you have master card!

倒扁?挺扁?

2006-08-24T07:04:00.000-04:00

An article by 龍應台:

我怎麼上「陳水扁」這一課一個「甘犯眾怒」的微小聲音

我承認我一直在上課，像個小學生一樣在上公民課。這一課的題目就叫「陳水扁」。課文特別令人「拍案驚奇」，但是附在課文後面的測驗題，艱難的程度，超過我的預期。

http://news.chinatimes.com/Chinatimes/Moment/newfocus-index/0,3687,9508240061+0+0+171204+0,00.html

八卦

2006-08-14T23:10:00.000-04:00

李亞鵬在博文寫了一篇關於小女兒兔唇的文章．一個爸爸的心聲，蠻令人感動的！
[link to article]
[Wiki Cleft]

久違了

2006-07-29T17:51:00.000-04:00

好久沒有在部落寫東西，最近實在是忙到不行。七月初開始在corcoran受訓，假日的節目也排得滿滿的。
七月的第一個禮拜－大米到莊嚴寺講課， IC & LL 結婚
七月的第二個禮拜－頒發慈濟的獎學金，小米策劃，大米主詞
七月的第三個禮拜－法鼓山夏令營
終於有個喘口氣的機會，今天在家死睡了ㄧ天！

Bad Pirates

2006-07-19T21:40:00.000-04:00

Let’s start with a few numbers. At Rottentomatoes.com, a Web site that quantifies movie reviews on a 100-point scale, the aggregate score for “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” stands at a sodden 54. Metacritic.com, a similar site, crunches the critical prose of the nation’s reviewers and comes up with a numerical grade of 52 out of 100. Even in an era of rampant grade inflation, that’s a solid F. [From NY Times]

Mad funny monkey

2006-06-28T18:09:00.000-04:00

forwarded by Magpie

改板換面

2006-06-22T01:28:00.000-04:00

把部落換了個招牌
願自己的人生
像花
認真的綻放盛開
黃蕾願綻

Corcoran

2006-06-20T19:12:00.000-04:00

After one week worth of interviews.... I have landed 5 job offers. I guess it's kind of easy to get into the real estate market. The challenge is yet to come! I took a job with Corcoran's west side office, and will be starting in a few days! As I was typing this, just realized that Lincoln Center's mid summer night swing is officially here! From the loud speaker, I can hear a Spanish gay voice shouting out "five, six, seven, eight". Riceman and Leigo love going to those things, but we never pay to get into the sardine packed dance floor.

心痛

2006-06-20T18:51:00.000-04:00

心痛。四維
最近的台灣政壇實在是亂，弊案，罷免，澄清，倒閣...
種種新聞聽了都... 讓人很煩，心痛,
我們怎麼會把自己的家搞成這樣？
我是姚師伯的忠實讀者，我想他也是有感而發。

All I have to do is dream

2006-06-15T22:44:00.000-04:00

http://www.elliman.com/Listing.aspx?ListingID=783073

Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream
When I want you in my arms
When I want you and all your charms
Whenever I want you, all I have to do is
Drea-ea-ea-ea-eam, dream, dream, dream

ah... dream house!

Real Estate

2006-06-14T17:38:00.000-04:00

Real estate has been good to Leigo and Riceman in the past few years.... With all the buying and selling, it seems natural that Leigo should get a real estate license... well, so she did. (Why am I speaking on a third person's tone? Hmm... ) Anyway, I took the 45 hour course at Hunter (what a pain), and passed the state test recently. Just had an interview with Bellmarc and Elliman today. And will be seeing Corcoran Downtown, Corcoran Westside and Citihabitat later this week. Bellmarc has an attractive training program. Elliman is very close to home. Corcoran has good name. Hm... choice, choice, choice. Anyway, so I will be starting very soon.... if you guys need help in buying, selling, renting, or you have friends or co-workers who need help. Let me know, I am really good at this!

News clippings

2006-06-11T22:54:00.000-04:00

Read this story today in New York Magazine. Next time, when I go to East Broadway and see the Fujianeses on street, I think I will feel differently about them.

Branding and education.... HBS?! Got to admit, I have a complex of wanting to be an Ivy League. Not for the pursuit of knowledge but for the shallow reason of branding. Oh.. well... maybe next lifetime.

這幾天.....

2006-06-11T20:35:00.000-04:00

好快，禪十回來有ㄧ個禮拜！本來打算要寫一篇禪十感言，但隨著ㄧ些體會越飄越遠，文章開了頭，可是怎麼也接不下去了。“老師說：打鐵要趁熱！有沒有聽.....? 沒有嗎！.... 要趁熱！要趁熱！要趁熱！“

前幾天，和姍姍師姑到一個中文學校三年級的小朋友家關懷，台灣家庭，在美國待了數十年，沒身分，沒保險，爸爸身體不舒服，檢查後居然是癌症末期，醫生也不開刀也不化療，樂觀的可也說是採用自然療法，事實上也可以說是醫生束手無策。幾次和師姑看個案的心情都很無助，面對無常，人真的很渺小。

禮拜五，和大米哥去吃馬來菜，點了印度麵包，想起以前在新加坡的學校(TKGS)，餐廳有個印度老爹，整天在空中甩大餅，中午一到，一群群穿著綠制服的小女生嘰嘰咂咂的排隊買大餅，哇，想起來那時後好幸福。言歸正傳，離開餐廳之後，突然下了場大雨，大米小米沒傘，拼了命的跑，之後看了Da Vinci Code，但娛樂效果還沒在雨中跑步來的快樂!

禮拜六中午去了米爸米媽家，姊姊和小鬼也在。米媽神通廣大，不知道去哪裡弄來了八十年代悲到不行的八點檔“星星知我心“，就是講那個身重病的媽媽把五個小孩送走的故事，大米在旁邊睡到不醒人世，米媽和小米是哭到不能自拔。晚上到小朋友家跟慈濟幫的眾兄弟姊妹們鬼混。

今天去找 B&C 和他們家的豆豆玩，豆豆是一個很可愛很可愛的一歲小男孩，不哭不鬧，眼睛又大又亮，超可愛的（到底要講幾次可愛！不過實在是太可愛了。）本來以為可以看到 G&M 和小小（另一個北鼻），可惜不巧的他們ㄧ家老小都在發燒生病。這兩個年輕的家庭都住在 New Port，是個很適合小孩很 sterile 的高級住宅區（又想起新加坡）。之後大米到 Chinatown 找他那個萬能的理髮師父，街道整潔的對比還真強烈，但，解釋不出來，對太整齊, overly designed 的地方會有點不習慣，覺得沒人味（難道是習慣髒亂嗎？有可能！）。如果有選擇，如果經濟不是問題，如果有ㄧ天.... if we started a family one day, I hope we can continue to be Manhattanites. 還有，下午在 City Hall 前，看到電影公司勞師動眾的在拍 Spiderman II. They used three cranes, had a rigid cable hanging from the top of an adjacent building, and have a surveyer making marks around the site. All these hassels so that they can insert the animation in the right angle, matching precisely with the site. Hm... very high tech.

好，報告完畢，就醬！

謝天謝地！

2006-06-10T11:11:00.000-04:00

康康安全迫降，
好險沒事。

轉貼

2006-05-26T00:19:00.000-04:00

Ah-Moon 是大學時代的好朋友，
開了個新鋪，寫了篇有點關於大小米的文章。
名筆出手，轉貼一下，分享閱讀。
[Click Me!]

這幾天會失蹤一陣子，打禪十。

OK Bong

2006-05-26T00:01:00.000-04:00

Forwarded by Papa Huang. Thanks!

唱唱歌吧

2006-05-23T17:34:00.000-04:00

【慈濟-讓愛傳出去】
愛是看不見的語言
愛是摸不到的感覺
愛是我們小小的心願
希望你平安快樂永遠
愛是仰著頭的喜稅
愛是說不出的感謝
愛是每天多付出一點點
雙手合十不在乎考驗
讓愛傳出去它像陽光溫暖我和你
不管有多遙遠
總有到的那一天
讓愛傳出去那怕前方漫漫人生路
有你的祝福沒有過不去的苦

[MUSIC 歌手版]
[MUSIC 兒童版]
[MUSIC 歌手兒童版]
[MUSIC 飛越地平線∼唱上癮了]
記得ㄛ，有你的祝福沒有過不去的苦∼

選擇

2006-05-19T18:10:00.000-04:00

最近迷上了，一個在香港鳳凰台，叫“鏘鏘三人行“的節目。主持人竇文濤是大陸同胞，加上兩位來賓，通常是一台一港，話題呢，都很有意思。前天，他們討論了關於人生的選擇。上一代的人，也許沒太多的選擇，但一切的錯過，都怪於時代，不見的可憐。這一代的人，有太多選擇，但不見的是一種幸福。有時間聽聽看，對於現在在抉擇間徘徊的幾位小朋友，也許可以有小小的啟發！Click Here

Do not use ReNu MoistureLoc

2006-05-17T10:04:00.000-04:00

Bausch & Lomb said yesterday that it was halting worldwide sales of its ReNu With MoistureLoc cleaner for soft contact lenses because tests showed that its misuse could leave consumers at risk for a potentially blinding fungal infection.... [MORE].