Stupid Facebook

Last night around 11:00 PM, I took a break from the computer left Facebook open as I usually do and went downstairs for some ice cream. Came back to my room and noticed that my screen said that my log in expired. Went to log back in and the screen said my account had been disabled due to violations with their code of conduct. I did no such thing. Why was my account disabled? There goes all my contacts and photos. I don't know what to do.

Is back at it again.

Hi everyone, Sorry that I haven't written for a long time, been awfully lazy. Yes I admit it, I haven't felt like writing much lately. Been spending way too much time on Facebook, becoming a zombie like everyone else who are out of work. Has been taking a break from looking for another job to looking for a house to buy for my mom. Not much luck, everything we have looked at either needs alot of work or is too small.

There are alot of activities coming up that I would like to report on. O'bon season is coming and I would like to hit as many as I can this year. The more I dance, the better I should get right? Been trying to find things to do to get out of the house, like new places to volunteer my time. My wife and I might volunteer with the, Chinatown Historical Society if we can find a way to do so. I wanted to get back to volunteering at the Japanese American National Museum, but no one has replied to my Volunteer application, I turned in awhile back. Has a feeling, they don't want me back. =(

Other news, I have found some friends on Facebook that I haven't seen or heard from since Graduating High School, and Family friends who surprised us with actually signing up for Facebook. To other personal things, like me turning 38 and noticing that I am slowly going bald. Can't afford rogaine and I have to remember that all things in life are Impermenant including my hair. To other frustrating things like our Zune conking out on us, and made me wipe its memory to start over again.

Ok thats enough rght now til I can figure out more things to write, now back to veging out on facebook...lol

Job Search and other BS

Wow, noticed I stopped blogging back in November. Been busy trying to get my Paranormal group going, and looking for a job. Job Hunting has been so hard, I apply to places and then get turned down. Sometimes I wonder if I am either too qualified or just too old to find a job. Its like my CA School of Culinary Arts degree isn't worth crap in the real world. All the hospitality jobs I applied to probably see the school on my resume and then decide on someone else. I wish I knew how bad the school was before I went there, would've saved me alot of pain looking for a job. .Oh well, back to my job search

Please Help Save Little Tokyo, it may be lost forever...

Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, The place I grew up going to every weekend since I was little. At age 16, I started attending the Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple, and started volunteering at the Japanese American National Museum. Now 21 years later, after making my name known in Little Tokyo, from the various Organizations I have volunteered with. Now all that we love about Little Tokyo may be gone forever.

It all started years ago when the Yaohan Department store and Market closed down and various places in the Yaohan plaza closed down, the Little Tokyo Bowl and the movie theatre. I recently heard that some Korean investors bought the plaza and started to evict the Japanese Businesses to replace with Korean stores. I am appalled at the idea that non Japanese are buying up all the properties in the Lil Tokyo area and destroying the feeling and look one of the few last remaining J-towns in the America.

Then there is the eyesore of the Office Depot that moved from Alameda to 2nd and Central. Expensive condos are popping up in every available space left. What else is going to disappear, The Fire Tower, all of our favorite Japanese Food places? You know things are going downhill when a Starbucks, Subway and Johnny Rockets show up in your town. Sunday I read in the Los Angeles Times, about the third week in a row our town was in the paper. There was an article about how MTA wants to build a train connection through Little Tokyo. Not the Gold Line that just opened last week, a connection I think to the Blue Line to Union Station.

What can we do to save the town that we all love? Who can we turn to? JANM, JACCC, and of the Temple's. Is there even a Little Tokyo Historical Society, if there is where the Hell are they. If they exist how come I can't find them online? Hopefully someone will step forward to Protect the last remaining parts of Little Tokyo. Will there even be a Nisei Week Celebration years from now, when the Japanese culture dies in our town. Now I am depressed with all that is happening so fast. Trying to hold on tight to my memories of the past.

If you have any thought or comments on this subject, please comment here or join my Friends of Little Tokyo Group on Facebook.

Is anyone even listening to me?

Hi everyone, Just wondering is anyone actually reading my blogs? If I do have a audience here, Please comment on my postings. So I know that I am not just talking to myself here. I have alot to talk about now...

Taking a lil Break

Hello all, I will be taking a little break blogging. will be back soon with more stuff to post. Don't give up on me yet.

A New Name and A New Hobby

First off, The last 3 weeks, I have been changing things with the Ghost Hunting group. I changed the name from JL & Associates Paranormal Investigations to Little Tokyo Paranormal Research Society. The new name sounds more professional, and easier for people to remember. The email has also been changed to liltokyoprs@gmail.com, there will be a new blog site and possibly a website.

Second, Phuong and I have started a new hobby. We started bowling each week at the Alhambra Bowling Center with one of our friends from the Temple. Got my old bowling ball re-drilled, the one I bought years ago at the Little Tokyo Bowling alley. (The one that was on the third floor of the old Yaohan plaza.) We even bought our own shoes so we wont have to wear those disgusting ugly rental shoes. We both got Dexter shoes, she got the slip ons and I got the one named Jeff with a cool red and white design. these feel like regular sneakers, really comfortable, unlike those stiff rental ones.

Good Girl Dinette

Hi Everyone, Phuong and I finally had dinner at the Good Girl Dinette in Highland Park. They may be the first Vietnamese Restaurant in Highland Park that I know of. Its located in the Old Masonic Temple building on Ave 56 and Figueroa. Phuong and I both ordered the Grandma's Pho, which was pretty tasty. I don't usually drink the soup whenever I eat Pho, but their Pho chicken broth was really good. I even had the home made Pop, which was good too. Unfortunately they were out of Pies or the dessert that we wanted. So next time we will go earlier in the day. The owner Diep Tran was really nice too. I would recommend this place for anyone who love's Pho.

Nisei Week

This past weekend on Sat August 15th, Phuong and I were special volunteers at the Japanese American National Museum's 11th Annual Courtyard Kids Festival. We worked in the Lily Pond game booth. Its the game with the small swimming pool full of water with glass bowls floating on little donut shaped lily pads. The object of the game is to throw a ping pong ball into the bowl. It was a fun game for little kids, not the adults. Adults had trouble getting the ball to stay in the bowl. The kids were winning like crazy since we had Boogie Boards for the main prize if you got two balls in the bowl. Phuong and I had fun, but now we are both really sore after running after ping pong balls all day.

Last night we went to the Nisei Week Parade and this is the first time we actually staked out a good spot. Note to self for next year, get a spot on Second street. The spot we were in across from JANM's historic building was at the end of the parade this year. It took forever to finally get around to us, and when the end hit it got really cold out and alot of people were freezing. My highlights of the parade were, Our Temple's Taiko group Bonbu playing on the back of a a truck, the Nebuta Float from Japan, The Mikoshi and seeing my friends in the parade.

So hopefully next year, Phuong and I will most likely be real volunteers for JANM, we should be out of debt by then, to have some free time to help out in the community. Other news, we have started going to the Tuesday Night Cafe's outside East West Players (EWP), which is on the first and third Tuesday of the month. Its kind of like a Asian American Variety show, with Music Bands, Spoken word artists, open mic, and other community presentations. Well, this is it for this weeks update. Next weekend is we are going to try to dance in Nisei Weeks Bon Odori street dance, which closes the week long festivities.

Back to Blogging

Hi everyone, I am back to blogging after a short vacation. Summer has been hectic, trying to go O'bon hopping, and working my Temple's O'bon Festival. Haven't been ghost hunting for a while, since one of our members is in a play for a few weeks, and one member was away in Hawaii for the month. We will be starting everything up again soon and I will also go back into my research of Little Tokyo's history for both books we are working on.

Phuong and I saw two movies today, Julie & Julia and The Proposal, Both were great movies. Julie & Julia was about both food and blogging, and it inspired me to start blogging again. I wonder if anyone is even listening to my rants here, or am I talking to myself? Well this is the start of me writing again. I may not write everyday like I said, but I will try to update this blog at least once a week, so don't give up on me yet.