Another adventure of Anh

I want to see my family in Vietnam again. That’s what partly makes me to screw myself with two-and-a-half jobs since last semester. I also had to give up visiting my other family – the one in the Boze. Yeah, most of you already know, the rest just don’t care. I am simply telling the reason why I had been bugged strongly with the fact that I would not go back to Mt. Consequently, sending cards to my Sukut family should be the very least thing I should have done to… “redeem” my responsibility (I am using words unseriously so please don’t take it serious).

On the 21^st, I finally got the mailing address of the Sukuts (no, I am gonna use a lot of the word “finally” so I should just say, “I got the address”). At that night, I found out an astonishing fact: there was not any single Christmas card in my room, and I had to buy some really soon. The only place to get cards that I knew was Walmart, and it was miles away. I didn’t have a car, nor any of my friends around. At that night, I – mysteriously – failed to catch the bus, which was really painful. Next day, things didn’t get any brighter and no car or bus or plane or ship came to my life. So after trying all the possible plans I could possibly make (and failed all), I decided to just walked to Walmart. (Well no, I did think of standing at the crossroads with a piece of cardboard but I preferred not to do it).

So I walked to Walmart. Some times like this makes me want to be smarter (so that I would at least come up with walking early) and to be in wonderful places like Narnia (so the weather would be sunny and warm and nice). Unfortunately none of these happened, and I started walking to Walmart at 10 pm and the temperature was about 5 F. (And no, I am definitely not praising myself or doing anything of that sort. This IS a story of mine, and you should simply read it just like a lame article on a random newspaper). It was not so warm to me and walking right next to cars in the dark was pretty adventurous. Well, finally I got to Walmart and was so thankful. Another “I survive” was said.

So basically I got the cards. The next step was to write them and send them. So on the 23^rd, I had to send the cards at any cost in order to get them reach Mt hopefully on time. However, things just got more and more hilariously unfortunate. I somehow finished writing the cards at 4: 40 pm, and the post office would close at 5. When I saw my watch, I realized a terrible thing: it was actually 4:50pm – 10 minutes later. Any second in such situation is critically important, so I didn’t even have time to be stunned but rushed my best to the post office.

One wonderful thing about Warrensburg was that it could get awesomely cold, but still rained like out of nowhere. And when the raindrops got to the earth, it froze to ice. I hadn’t seen anything that slivery in Montana, so even though I tried Holden’s Judo row, I fell on the street. My basketball shoes were totally useless and there was a “curly” bridge for me to go through. So I literarily used both arms and legs to move, and yeah, I got stuck there for at least five minutes. After that, the road didn’t get any less slivery but somehow I could run and jump and row with out falling again. And here we go, the post office!

It was 5:07. I stood in front of the closed door and couldn’t think or do anything. And since crying was still inappropriate for a man, so I ended up shaking my head and laughed.

The next day, the 24^th, I went to the post office right after I woke up, and yeah, it was before 5:00pm so the cards were finally sent. “They will reach there on Saturday”, the woman said. Ok, whatever.

So yeah, that’s my story. It is too late now for a Merry Christmas wish, but the whole world is waiting for the new year to come. So this time I’ll say,

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

The extreme of randomness

When English wasn’t complete, there were two friends hanging out at the field. One of them was self-claimed to be a knowledgeable person who knew a lot of vocabularies. Suddenly his friend pointed toward the sky and asked:

- What is that?

Without any hesitation or even looking back, the so-called wise guy answered:

- It’s the sky.

However, his friend didn’t seem satisfied and said:

-Uhm… really?

- Yeah, the sky. – The smart guy started to be annoyed.

- Well, I don’t really think so… - His friend continued.

Now the smart guy reluctantly looked back.

- Yeah, that’s the sky! The sky, man!

Still pointing upward, the friend said:

- No, not the sky. That.

Really fast the smart guy said,

- Yeah, it’s the sky…

But this time he saw the strange thing that his friend was asking about, flying up high in the sky. So…

- It’s… sky… er…ky… tk…! – He started messing up.

- “Kite”? – His friend asked again, still looking at it amazedly.

- Yeah, it’s a "kite". Nice, eh?

Yup, and that’s how we have the word “kite”. The end.

The story is true, can you believe it? Well, except not, I just make it up. Never mind.

Anastasia is actually alright!!!

It was a rainy evening, and I just came back to my room from work. As usual, I checked my e-mails, and here I saw the most surprising thing I could ever think of: a message saying that a person in Myspace wanted to add me, and it was… Anastasia. ANASTASIA!!! Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness! I looked at her last name, and it was really hers. And the profile picture, it was her right there. It really was Anastasia, at last…!

How long was it? One year or two years? No, it was forever, since the day she left. Oh my, what a great joy! What a great pain!

Surprisingly, thinking of her still makes me hurt deeply even now. And just like any other time I did, memories just come back to me all at once…

-Anastasia, when you disappeared I was so confused. No one told me anything - any single thing! And I was just nobody but a powerless exchange student. So I just randomly heard Nam asking Chelsea: “Huh, her (some one) died?”, and assumed that it was your brother. And the next morning I asked Petra people to pray for him. (And it was actually Maria’s grandmother who died). Knowing the story, Mr. Baker said, “Well, then keep praying.” How amusing! Painfully amusing indeed.

-Anastasia, the Battle-B team and me had a break-dance show in the end and it was fun, though we screwed up a bit.

-Ana, we did our presentations about the Civil War, and we did really well. I presented mine while drawing a portrait of “Stone wall” Jackson, and it was ok.

-Ana, our house Pendragon have fought splendidly with Avilion that year, thought we lost in the end.

-Ana, we had the Renaissance Fair, and it was awesome. I got second place in drawing and singing with Nam. And my costume too, I made it with some sticky tape…

-Ana, we went to Helena to visit The Houses one day, and the trip was really nice. Everyone was observing and learning things, while I kept looking at the crowds for nothing.

-Ana, we played volleyball in the end of the spring, and it was fantastic.

-Ana, we had a play about Tom Thumb, and we did well in the play and people loved it. Oh, and I was the bailiff…

-Ana, I got only one B (in Mr. V’s class) and the rest were A’s. I graduated in the end, Ana, with a speech that even made some people cry.

-And Anastasia, I became a Christian! I am a Christian, you know, just like you. Oh God!

NO! I don’t want to tell you like these. I can’t. I only wished you had been there, if only you had! Now I don’t even know what to start to tell you with. Days and months have passed by, and things have changed so much. Now you have someone you love, and I am going to have mine. I don’t even know what to start with. We are just strangers now, Anastasia. But you know, the little nerve crush of a high school boy two years ago was just too clear as the sky of the day you left, and too deep as the last look I had from your eyes.

I ran out to the rainy night. The sky was crying.

Thank You, my Lord, for that what I have been praying is fulfilled. She is alright after all…

Spinning Halloween

Here is was I did on 10-31-2008:

12:00 am: I was home after work, and started reviewing for the tough finance test.

2:00 am: I felt quite hungry and made some noodle with egg. Tasted good.

3:00am: I finished eating and studying, I went to bed.

I slept.

8:15 am: I woke up, thinking how early I could possibly wake up like that.

I looked at the clock, realized that I forgot to press the button before going to bed.

I put on my shirt.

I changed my pants.

I ran straight from my room to the class. About half of the way, I felt exhausted and started walking.

I arrived. The test had started 15 minutes before.

9:00am: I gave my paper to the professor, and ran to work at the office.

10:30am: I am done working.

I came home, wrote a short essay for my scholarship application.

12:00pm: I sent my scholarship application, and headed to the cafeteria for lunch.

Then I ran to the library to finish my research for my Composition 2 class.

I realized that my backpack was opened, and my binder was gone.

It was at the office, so I ran there and take it.

3:00pm: I am done researching. I printed it and ran to my instructor’s office to put it in her mailbox.

3:15pm: I arrived at my workplace, knowing that I was 15 minutes late.

My friend called, telling about the Halloween party. Shoot, I didn’t have a costume. What could I possibly think of…?

Many of my co-workers were gone for parties, so there were only two people there. I did the work of several people at once, while my boss was messing with Facebook.

7:30pm: I was done, finally.

I came home.

People were gone for the bonfire. I was late for that.

So I didn’t have to get a costume, I thought.

7:33 pm: I sat down. Done.

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BONUS:

The haunted house in Kansas City

Truly is scary

But since there is hope

Surely there is peace

As I can see…

Warrensburg, Oct 31, 2008

A "blast"

What happened last week was - as Richard would really likely to say - a blast, only this time it was really a blast literally. Here goes the story:

There was an indoor-soccer tournament in UCM (University of Central Missouri, my college), and we Vietnamese formed a team of five and joint it, and I was the goalie. The other team was all Americans, which had two characteristics: they were huge, and they didn’t play soccer much. So as a matter of fact, we had to face big guys who were playing kick-ball, which was bad, especially for the goalie. So for the whole game, I tried my best to cover the wide goal desperately. When I caught the ball, the American attackers still tried to kick the ball, so I got kicked and fell many times pretty painfully. (The referees were also Americans, and they didn’t know the rule well neither, so there was no foul.)

When the game had only 25 seconds left, it was a tie: 5-5. I said to my self that I would not let them score anymore, even if it’d cost my life. And this was where I had “the blast”. In the very last second, one huge guy from the other team managed to get the ball through everyone, and before I knew it, the ball went straight to my face, one spectacle of my glasses got pulled out, and the metal part of the glasses was bend and cast away. I got totally knocked out as an epic loser. We lost.

Right after the game, I had to get to work, and there I acknowledged a new dimension of harshness, while walking under the freezing rain, with my glasses bended, my legs sore, and my right thumb broken.

Well, what can I say now, I survive!

An entry on 10-18-2008

I don’t remember how but, while watching the debate between McCain and Obama, suddenly I thought of the cute little Shadiah. She has been taught all the stuffs, including many things about American presidents from the beginning. But one day when I randomly asked her, “Shadiah, who is the current president of America?” .She hesitantly answered, “Abraham Lincoln?” I laughed, so she turned a bit shy and answered me again really softly, “Is it ‘Teddy’ Roosevelt?”

Well, it’s a bit surprising when she didn’t know who the current president was, while she probably knew many other presidential facts than I did (tales, maybe). She was a little girl anyway. This leads to a more interesting thing: what would a little girl likely to remember would be the things which are significant (like A. Lincoln), and things which are somehow related to her (such as a teddy bear). Things should be similar to little boys also, and if parents and teachers can take advantage of this, well, they can somewhat control what they want the children to learn and believe – useful though scary.

It’s Chelsea birthday yesterday, so, happy birthday to you, my dearest sister! (maybe she doesn’t even know about this blog, how amusing… ^^)

I am back.

It’s me. It’s Anh. I know, I have not posted anything here for decades. And I surely have been feeling terribly sorry. Excuses? I suppose I have some, since lives change, and my life has changed surprisingly since the new semester started. But as Mama Sukut said, “The busiest person I’ve ever known is Mr. Gianforte, but he still blogs.” Therefore, no excuse is sufficient. Most people don’t accept lame excuses, but unfortunately I like giving explanations. So here is it.

For every single weekend I have been thinking, “I have to post something up there! I have to post something up there!” But then, just like T. Coraghessan Boyle describes how a murder response to a detective’s question “What happened next?” in his story Greasy Lake, “I don’t know, something came over me. Exactly.” Exactly. And failing to keep my promise takes away my courage to read others’ blogs, and things get only worse.

Because of that, couple minutes ago, I said to myself I had to fix this as soon as possible. And so, trying to forget all the tests and works and stuffs for a moment, I am typing something for this blog right now. Yeah, I am back.

Things need to be changed a bit. I can’t really blog every weekend as I wanted, so I’ll change to …Mr. Koenen’s solution, which means I will blog here whenever I do. Secondly, I will sadly change my purpose of blogging in this page. I will not always be “composing” here, but instead will do what Richard has suggested, “telling what happens”. Hopefully this will make things easier.

This sounds like a sad stuff, but I have to go now. I am being late for my job. Hopefully I’ll be able to get some to eat before working. So yeah, I will read and comment your blogs later. Good to be back again.