A New Walker and I'm Not Talking About Luke Skywalker

I can't believe how much time has passed since the day of Dylan's birth and the inception of this blog. It seems like yesterday when we first brought Dylan back from the hospital and only yesterday when he learned to roll over to his tummy. Now he is officially a walker. Before I know it he will be at Justin's stage of age 4. I'm sure a lot of you have watched the movie AI. If you remember the little teddy bear...think about it as you watch this clip. You will notice a lot of similarities. It is very endearing to watch Dylan move around and seeing the world from a fresh perspective. Everything is wonderment and amazement. Enjoy the clip.

Cake and Goody Bags

The next following day is Justin's actual 4th Birthday (8/21). We bought a Baskin Robbin's Ice Cream Cake for Justin's daycare class. I am lighting up his candles right now. The night before we made goody bags for his classmates and that was an entirely different ordeal. I have come to realize that most kids do not become popular because they are cool...they become popular because their parents help them to be cool. Unless the kids are genetically beautiful...then the parents can generally be whatever. Even at a young age I realize how much of our efforts as parents can mold the the status of our children's popularity. For instance...I have had parents of Justin's classmates come up to me asking if I was Justin's Dad. I thought these parents wanted to just introduce themselves because our children play together, but it turns out that their kids talk quite avidly about me at home. "Justin's Dad does this..." or "Justin's Dad does that..." I take Justin to school pretty much 99% of time and pick him up as well. While there I converse with the kids...act silly at times...or read them a book or two before I take off. I never really think about it, but I guess the kids like me for that. I have this one kid named Larry who used to bite Justin...one day I get fed up with it and I talk to Larry about it...I asked him if he was friends with Justin which they were...and I asked him nicely to use his words instead of biting because friends don't bite each other...for the next 2 weeks I would ask him if he bit Justin...for the most part he didn't, but one day he did and he lied to my face denying it. I told him I knew he did and that he should say sorry...he was so stubborn and didn't want to apologize...so I told him, " I know you bit Justin and I'm not mad, but I am disappointed that you lied to me...but you know Larry...I know you are a great kid...so when you are ready you tell Justin you are sorry." It turns out that the next day he went to Justin and apologized. The funny thing is for at least 2 weeks everyday we would come up to me smiling and tell me that he didn't bite Justin today. To this day...every time I see Larry he runs up to me with a big smile and gives me a big hug and says, "Hi Justin's Daddy!" Where am I going with all this? I'll tell you near the end. Right now let's get back to Justin's Birthday at school. Here I am bringing over Justin's Birthday cake over.Here we are all singing Happy Birthday to Justin.

And Justin blowing out his candles. Lastly, his classmates and his teacher Angela applauding after he blew out his candles. I guess Nancy took this picture of Dylan chilling while all the festivities were going. He likes Justin's school because there are new toys that he hasn't played with.Coming back to what I was talking about earlier. Well...this morning (the next day after his b-day at school)...I guess it turns out that everybody in his class is still talking about Justin's Birthday because of the goody bags. As I walk Justin in...all the kids say, "Hi Justin's Daddy!" and then a couple of the girls in his class come up to Justin and say, "Thank you Justin for the goody bags...I really liked it." Now make notice that Nancy put some effort and thought into these goody bags. These were goody bags that Nancy said she would love to get...assuming she was a kid. Then the boys in his class got involved by saying that the Nascar cake tasted really good and looked cool. Even the teachers talked about how his ice cream cake tasted good. We had half of an ice cream cake left over...so we left it at the school and told all the teachers to have a slice. Nancy picked out a good tasting ice cream cake. Anyways, because of our actions Justin was really popular for that day. What is the moral of this story...Be involved in your kid's life as much as possible. Do it not to make your kids popular, but know that your actions may change their destiny on the social ladder. It goes the same in relationships...you can make your significant other shine like a star or stink like moldy cheese.

Chuck E Cheese's

We knew our schedule for Justin's actual birthday would be hectic so we decided to celebrate Justin's birthday the day before. He picked Chuck E Cheese's. I remember the first time I went to a Chuck E Cheese's when I was a kid and I thought it was one of the greatest places. Now as a adult...I kind of can't stand the place. Plus, I don't remember the food tasting so bad when I was a kid. I just kind of find the place to be ghetto. Anyways, we went to the one in Eagle Rock and I'm sure that didn't help the ghetto factor either. I can't believe how quickly Justin has grown. I was just grateful that we were able to celebrate his birthday. Justin had come down with a virus that his daycare said was called the "Summer Virus." He was sick for about a week with a fever that just would just not break. His fever hit 104 degrees at one point and had us worried. Here is a clip of us singing Happy Birthday to Justin.

If you are wondering what the heck is in front of Justin...it is a giant cinnamon bun...it is actually one of the better tasting things they sell there.
Dylan enjoyed Chuck E Cheese's as well. In fact...I think he had a blast. I would say he gave it a big smiles up. Here is Dylan riding with Barney. Notice they both have big bellies. Dylan enjoyed the kiddie slide as well. If you look carefully he looks like he has some sort of uni brow, but what it actually is a scratch that we think he got from rolling under the bed or maybe he did it himself. You have to be super careful with kid's fingernails because their fingernails are like razor sharp. Dylan is growing up sooo quickly. He will probably be able to walk comfortably in about another week or two. He pretty much walks across a room. Soon he will be chasing after his brother and our home will become even more hectic. As crazy it will be...nothing beats the sound of laughing children having fun. Who knows...Nancy and I were talking about having my 35th birthday at Chuck E Cheese's next year as a gag birthday. I hope not though, but you never know.

8/13/07-Nancy's Birthday

Today Nancy celebrated her birthday. I'm not going to tell you how old she is because one thing I have learned over the years is that a woman does not like to talk about her age after a certain age. Nancy wanted to keep things low key. She actually had not planned on having friends over, but at the last minute she had some of her close co-workers come by to see Dylan and spend her birthday with her. Her former co-worker Cecilia is going off to law school and had wanted to see Dylan before she left. We originally were planning to go out to dinner with her, but Nancy's sister Annabelle called and offered to bring by a cake and dinner so we changed it to a home gathering.From left to right is Liz, Cecilia, Nancy, Sarah, and her sister Annabelle. Annabelle had just finished swimming...hence her wearing a bathrobe. Here is a clip of Justin singing Happy Birthday to Nancy and helping her blow out the candles.

And here is Justin ready to attack the cake. And Justin enjoying his spoils of conquest. I think Justin thinks everybody's birthday is somehow related to his. He definitely enjoys the fact that he gets to eat cake. He says, that is the best part of birthdays...it's his favorite.

8/10/07-Cruising the Blvd.

Gees...I cannot believe how time flies. It seems only a little while ago when Dylan was born and even less when he learned to roll over and crawl. Well, he is definitely on his way to walking very soon. Here is a short clip of Dylan cruising on his brother's Buzz Light Year push ride. This is for my Dad who didn't get to see Dylan and Justin last time. If I'm not careful...next time I blink Dylan will be Justin's age. I love the age of 1. Anyways...enjoy the show.

8/7/07-Glimpse Into The Future

I don't know about other kids, but Dylan has some sort of addiction for fax machines. Not just ours at home, but any fax machine he sees and trust me he seems to know a fax machine when he sees one. So all time I have to fish him out from under my desk and away from my fax machine.On this particular day Justin volunteered to get Dylan out, but before he did I took this photo and I realized that this is what my kids might look like in the future if they opened a business together in front of their fax machine. Of course by then...the fax machine would probably be as obsolete as the rotary phone...remember that one you old people.

Having Your Own Trailer

In my previous blog I shared how I booked a Mountain Dew spot. So I thought I would try to show everyone what a typical day on set is like. Last last Saturday I had to show up on set at 10am...this is actually a good call time...normally I get the 8am call times which means I have to get up around 6am. Another bonus was the set was located in Downtown. I ended up walking there which took about 20 minutes. When arrived I met the 1st AD (Assistant Director) and he took me over to my personal trailer. It's always nice to have a trailer...it makes you feel special. Here I am being a total retard and pretending to be on an important phone call. Being able to work on set always makes me a bit giddy and silly. Here I am with Erica...she was the wardrobe stylist. I'm wearing some shirt she had me try on...luckily I didn't have to wear it...it made me look very retarded immigrant French. I know that is not a proper description, but it works for me.Here I am with Patrick...he was also a principal talent. He played the German gamer. I would go more into detail, but I'm not sure if I have some confidentiality thing that I have to abide by. This picture is with Akie...he also was a principal actor who played the Japanese gamer. There were a bunch of different ethnicities that represented different gamers around the world.This last shot is me trying to be the artist. I took this picture off the hub of a big rig. I wish I had the camera with me during lunch because I would have been able to take pictures of lunch which is definitely one of the best parts of being on a full scale production. You always get fed well. I even had a linguistic coach, but I didn't take a pic of her because I didn't have my camera on me. Next time I will try to be more diligent in documenting my day on set. Well, until next time...see you all on the red carpet.

Joining SAG (Screen Actors Guild)

I recently booked a National Mountain Dew commercial. So I had to finally join the actor's union SAG. I have been eligible to join SAG for about 8 years now, but I have been putting it off due to the fact that it would reduce my auditions by 70%. Being an Asian Male actor is probably one of the hardest jobs to succeed in and by not making myself available to non-union jobs makes it even more difficult to work. The deal is that for me to work this Mountain Dew commercial I had to join SAG to be cleared to work this past Saturday. So I did. I took Dylan with me last Friday to the SAG office off Wilshire and Bronson and shelled out a whopping $2345 to join. Ouch...honestly...I didn't have the cash so I had to pay by credit card. Thank goodness I have great credit. I had been saving for this day and I had the cash before, but life's necessities called here and there...poof...it all disappeared. Hopefully, when the commercial starts to run I'll make my money back and a little extra to put into the bank. Either way, praise God for blessing me with a commercial.

Lunch With Kate

Finding time to meet up with friends is always a challenge. Work schedules...family schedules...just the typical ins and outs of life make it harder and harder...when push comes to shove one must just make time and make it a priority...otherwise jobs or whatever will always get in the way. Last Thursday Nancy, Dylan, and I met up with one of her law school friends at the Downtown Standard to grab lunch. She was planning to reschedule due to her workload, but she decided to make her lunch with Kate a priority. It was good to see her. She was looking good. I had not seen her for about 2 years...last time I saw her was at her wedding. Anyways, the decor of the restaurant was kinda hip, but annoyingly yellow. The service was a bit on the slow side, but maybe they were understaffed. Nancy's chop salad was refreshing and I would recommend it. I had some kind of steak sandwich...it was okay, but I think I'll try something else if I eat there again. Ask for some white bread though...very fresh...crusty on the outside and pillowy soft in the inside. Overall, it was mainly good to see Kate. I think Dylan gave his "this place is just okay" score for this place.

Downtown Ralphs

Last Tuesday Dylan and I ventured out to the new Ralphs in Downtown. I have to say it's pretty nice, but since I've lived on the Westside before I didn't find it any nicer than some of the Gelson's or any of the fancier supermarkets in the nicer parts of Los Angeles. I really liked the brand new shopping carts. They felt untainted and since everyone of the carts were brand new they all rolled without any problems. It had a sushi bar and a decent cheese selection, but I would have to say the carving station was the most impressive if I had to pick something out. Dylan is big fan of cheese...he gave his smile of approval at the selection. Also, the prices on the items were generally more expensive than other Ralphs. The vegetables and fruits were nicer looking and they had some nicer selections of items. For example, they carried Chantrelle mushrooms. Dylan and I had decent time trying out samples. I like the fact that it wasn't very crowded and the employees were pretty friendly. Dylan got his very first helium balloon at Ralphs. I think he really didn't know what to think of it. Overall though we enjoyed our experience.