Tour de PCH

The 95th Tour de France starts July 5th thru July 27th, 2008. Cee's dad (my younger brother) did his annual bike ride (LA-San Diego... sort of a mini version of Tour de France) with his colleagues yesterday. An enthusiastic & brave group of three (ten initially signed up) bike riders trailed along the Pacific Coast to San Diego. Then a train ride back to Los Angeles. My brother lives for marathons & bike rides. He even had his wedding ceremony in front of the Sports Arena at the 10th Los Angeles Marathon. Both bride & groom ran the race together (yes - hand & hand) to the finish line. TEEmazing event!!!

A couple of years ago, my bother (Lance Armstrong devotee) did the California Coast bike trail from Crescent City to Los Angeles. What a TEErific & awesome adventure!!! For more bicycle travel and online journals. check out Adventure Cycling Association.

Happy Trails!!!

So What's Cookin'?

It will be a 3-day (July 4th) weekend for most.....so what's cookin'?

Here are some TEErific food recipes & celebration ideas:
1. Star Spangled Fun - FamilyFun.com
2. Backyard BBQ - Better Homes & Garden
3. Grilling Ideas for the 4th of July - Kalyn's Kitchen
4. Feast for the Fourth - Epicurious
5. Healthy 4th of July Recipes - Eating Well
6. 4th of July: The All-American Family Party and Menu - Celebrations
7. Made in the USA - Food Network
8. 4th of July Celbrations - What's Cooking America?
9. All Time Barbecue - The BBQ Pit Boys
10. Summer Entertaining Guide - Real Simple

Whatever is cookin' or not at your house this weekend, happy EATS & have a TEErific celebration!!!

Twilight Dance Series

July 3 FREE CONCERT
One Hawai‘i with Keali’i Reichel, Na Leo, Weldon Kekauoha and Hula Halau. The 50th State celebrates Independence Day on the Mainland!

Where: Santa Monica Pier
Time: 7pm -10pm

Keali'i Reichel - Maunaleo - Beautiful Hawaiian... YouTube video by letstalkaboutstuff

TEE-GIF 4th of July Weekend Fun

ABC7 Weather Forecast: SPECTACULAR!!!

Check out some FUNtastic celebration activities:
1. 82nd Annual 4th of July Celebration at the Rose Bowl -Pasadena
2. Marina Del Rey Annual 4th of July
3. 2nd Annual Seaside Lagoon Independence Day Celebration - Redondo Beach
4. Queen Mary 4th of July Celebration - Long Beach
5. New Movies
- Hancock G
- Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson R
- The Wackness R

Whatever you choose, be SAFE & make your 4th of July weekend a TEErific one!!!

TEE-GIF Weekend Fun 06.27.08

ABC7 Weather Forecast: SUNNY - SUNNY -SUNNY

Check out some FUNtastic weekend activities:
1. 70th Anniversary of the New Chinatown - Central Plaza
2. 7th Annual Russian Style Festival - Plummer Park
3. Long Beach Sea Festival - Long Beach
4. Sawdust Art Festival - Laguna Beach
5. New Movies
- WALL-E G
- The Encounter at the End of the World G
- The Unknown Woman Not Rated
- Wanted R

Whatever suits your fancy, keep COOL & make your weekend a TEErific one!!!

Undersea & Sky Dining

World's first ever undersea restaurant called "Ithaa" was opened at the Maldives Hilton Resort & Spa. YouTube video by kaafulaamu

Dinner in the Sky South Africa at Monte Casino YouTube video by CHADIS28

TEEmazing dining experience!!!

Summer Travel FUN

TEE Tips for Summer Travel:
1. CNN Money 7 Summer Trips...That Won't Break the Bank
2. Fly Away Cafe 7 Family Vacation Destinations that are Fun and Educational
3. ABC News Top Five Off Peak Destinations for Summer
4. Traveling Mamas Top 10 Simmer Adventure Travel Destinations
5. Smart Travel Top 5 Bargain Destinations for Summer

And for the adventurous & "strong stomach" travelers check out Top 10 'Weird Activities" around the World. Very TEElarious are The Modern Toilet Restaurant in Taipei, Taiwan and the Cabbages & Condoms Restaurant, Bangkok, Thailand. Loved to soak in the Green Tea Spa in Hakone KowakienYunnesun Spa, Hakone, Japan.

Read Foreign Policy - The List: Top Tourist Spots Americans Can't Visit

Wherever your travels may take you, be safe & make it a TEErific one!!!

GOLF is my cup of TEE!!!

No matter how many times I watched this video clip of Tiger Woods' 18th hole putt (check out The San Diego Traveler blog), I still jump for joy on this TEEmazing play. In my younger days, tennis was my game and golf was the most boring sport on the planet. Until 1990, I met this TEErific golf instructor (also PhD, Realtor & one of my awesome BFFs) by the name of Marilyn Cohn. She took the sport to a higher playing level (pun intended) and I had the most FUNtastic time ever. She will be teaching a class at Los Angeles Harbor College (schedule page 13) this coming September. TEE time with Marilyn will be the best COOL time spent ever!!!

Let the SUMMER FUN begin!!!

Check out ABC7 and the ABCs of a SAFE Summer.........For information about the L.A. City Department of Recreation and Parks, cooling off sites, programs, pools and parks, the public should call 311 or visit the website http://www.laparks.org/. Also call your local parks & recreation department for more info on keeping cool this summer.

Other TEE tips for a COOL summer:
1. Stay hydrated. Try out some COOL fruit juice & smoothie recipes - SmoothieWeb, AboutReceipes , AllRecipes, Better Homes & Garden. Finally, I will get to try out the Magic Bullet I bought last year. Here a how to video (TEElarious) - if this child can do it, I guess I can - Yes I can!!!

2. WikiHow.com on How to Cool Yourself without Air Conditioning and How to Sleep Comfortably on a Hot Night.

3. MSN Money on 25 Cheap Ways to Keep Your House Cooler.

4, Check out some COOL places to visit - Explore Your America @ Recreation.gov

5. Enjoy the indoor air conditioned mall window shopping, people watching, food court or take in a movie (double feature maybe).

Whatever keeps you COOL this summer, make it a TEErific one!!!

HB Sgt Major

Remember this picture? Grandpa Juan was a very important person in your early childhood. You were his sidekick & his world. Everywhere he went, there you were right by his side. This is one of those many photos of just you & Grandpa.
Your eyes light up just like Grandpa when you talk about your grand twins. Your grandsons are very blessed to have you there caring for them. So big brother, enjoy your birthday & many more special times with your family especially with your grand twins. You got a lifetime of memories to share with them.

TEE-GIF Weekend FUN 06.20.08

ABC7 Weekend weather forecast: HOT - HOT - HOT

Check out some FUNtastic weekend activities:
1. Mariachi USA Festival - Hollywood Bowl
2. LB Bayou Festival - Long Beach
3. Dept of Beaches & Harbors - Marina water activities
4. Great American Irish Fair & Music Festival - Irvine
5. New Movies
- American Girl G
- Get Smart PG-13
- The Love Guru PG-13 (4 Tee Stars)

Whatever suits your fancy, keep COOL & make your weekend TEErific!!!

CAP

Having car problems with the smog check or repairs? Need help? California Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR) has the Consumer Assistance Program (CAP) that offers qualified consumers with repair assistance or vehicle retirement.
It is a TEErific program worth considering especially if your old car fails the smog check inspection. Repairs can be very costly.

Be safe out there and DriveHealthy.com!!!

CTAP

California Telephone Access Program Who benefits?
Californians who are deaf, hard of hearing, speech disabled, blind, or who have low vision, cognitive impairments, or restricted mobility, are eligible to receive equipment with certification by a medical doctor, a licensed audiologist, a qualified state agency, or a hearing aid dispenser. No charge (yes - FREE) for the equipment to eligible consumers.

We were able to obtain a brand new wireless land line phone for mom due to her restricted mobility & hard of hearing. What a TEErific state mandated program!!!

Learn CPR & Be RED CROSS Ready

American Red Cross Greater Los Angeles is having a $10 Super CPR (4-hour Adult CPR course with full Red Cross certification) this weekend. Morning and afternoon classes available. TEErific lifesaving course.

Prepare for disasters before they strike. Be Red Cross Ready. American Red Cross has a checklist to Build a Disaster Supplies Kit.

Celebrate Life!!!

Bought this greeting card at my TEEfav store Trader Joe's - thought I'd share the profound message....
"If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it."


Card design by Richard Shaffett, Florida
distributed by Trader Joe's

Congratulations!!!

June is a month of many celebrations (birthdays, graduations, weddings & last day of school). School was out for CC last Thursday.. And her final report card is in - all straight A's. WooHoo!!! To celebrate her promotion to the 7th grade, her mom & dad took her to see Kung Fu Panda. CC gave it 4 Tee stars.

Tee Movie Reviews: (5 Tee stars means it had my attention to the very end which is a very COOL thing)
5 Tee Stars - Iron Man PG-13
5 Tee stars - What Happens in Vegas PG-13
5 Tee stars - Sex & the City R
4 Tee stars - Forgetting Sarah Marshall R

Tomorrow, Ashley will be graduating from high school. She is the daughter of Liz (one of my awesome BFFs) & Steven. Liz used to work with me when I was in real estate back in 1988. We have been the best of friends ever since. Julia, their youngest daughter will be also graduating from elementary school this week. Ashley & Julia - Big CONGRATULATIONS and enjoy your special event. The proud parents Liz & Steven own IMP Professional DJ & MC company.

Loved the cake Ashley had for her quinceanera in 2005.

HB UBB

This morning, Mom & I were looking over your journey album Dad put together. WOW - What a showcase of your childhood to adulthood memories. We are so blessed & proud of YOU. You have grown into a magnificent, brilliant & mature gentleman.

May you continue to be blessed & be a blessing to others. HB, UBB!!!

Happy Father's Day

We honor & celebrate all fathers today, the 3rd Sunday in June. It has been 3 years since Dad passed away, however, his legacy as a father lives on. I see Dad in my brothers when they are gardening, working, cleaning, fixing the cars, cooking & just having a fun time with their families. Thanks Dad for always knowing what to say when things do or don't go the way we plan. For encouraging us to pursue our dreams and be adventurous in everything we do. His words of wisdom would always be a cliche, he always said, "nothing ventured nothing gained". For instilling family pride & values. For believing in God, humanity & nature. For teaching us to make our money the old fashion way - by earning it honestly. For being the family storyteller and showcasing all our memories in journals & photo albums. For loving us unconditionally. And for being our wonderful Dad & hero. I pay tribute to you & all family & friends who are fathers on this day.
This is one of Dad's favorite photos taken in Beijing, China June 1987

My Unusual Travel Eats

Korean black chicken soup uses the Ogol chicken or Silkie chicken. Check out the NY Times write-up on this Korean delicacy. In Dec 1992, I went on a FamTour to Seoul, Korea on Korean Air Lines (round trip business class, meals plus 2 nights @ Seoul Hilton for only $250 - a TEErific find!!!). KAL representative took us to this restaurant where we sat on a heated floor. We were served Korean black chicken soup (recipe). It was very tasty despite the skin color of the chicken. On our way back to the hotel, we stopped and sampled some of the street food displayed by the various vendors. Unfortunately I used a disposable camera at that time. My photos are not as good as the one from Fatman Seoul. From the time I boarded the plane until my return to USA our group was always served some form of ginger. With all that ginger beer, ginger tea, ginger candy, pickled ginger, ginger this and ginger that... I was really looking for more kimchi instead.

Beggar's Chicken The NY Times recounts the Chinese tale. In Hangzhou, China (1997) I was fascinated with the story about the beggar's chicken that I wanted to try it out. It had a wonderful aroma and was absolutely delicious. A side note, I was amazed on how popular KFC franchise was in China. The Chinese people had their own version called CFC (Chinese Fried Chicken).

Check out Gadling's The Weird Things People Eat Around the World. Happy Eats!!!

Countdown to DIGITAL TV

Are you ready for February 17, 2009 switch to Digital TV? DTVanswers.org as the name implies has answers to the DTV switcheroo in 2009. On this site, you can order a discount coupon (limit 2 per household) for the purchase of a digital converter box for your analog televisions - boy do we have many!!! Now UPI is reporting that the Digital switch could face a glitch. So go figure, is it more cost effective buying new digital TVs or buying the converter boxes? With the rising cost of gasoline, watching TV maybe the most reasonable price of entertainment.

Good Health is a COOL Thing!!!

Not seeing the doctor......is it just a guy thing? I know we had the hardest time convincing Dad to see a doctor regularly & also when he was in pain. He would always try to endure the pain and take it like a man (his generation & culture had a major play in his health decisions). He would find some unusual & strange alternative remedies to ease the pain that we dubbed him the quack doctor in our household. In his latter years, he developed diseases that might have been prevented or minimized the growth of the disease in his body if he had sought earlier medical treatment & had regular doctor visits. Lesson learned - we are now making all health decisions for our 82 yr old mom. She is in good health now and sees her doctor every 3 mos. We as family have been more proactive in health issues since she suffered a stroke just a couple of months after Dad passed away in 2005. Her right side of her body was paralyzed but through our family cohesiveness & active participation we have overcome many health challenges. She is walking, exercising, talking, & eating on her own but requires more assistance in personal hygiene & dressing. She is one HAPPY & HEALTHY camper!!! 6/12 - just saw her doctor and he gave her a good clean bill of health. He was amazed with her progress. Way to go, Mom!!!

Check out CNN Advice to Men: Don't wait to see a doctor . That good advice should be given to all. Be good to yourself. Be healthy & happy!!!

What a COOL KID!!!

Congratulations ABC7 Cool Kid Lance Manzon ...we think you are a TEErific person doing that for our Marines. He is the son of Susan (one of my awesome BFFs) & Rob. We met them when CC 'O Kalani (my darling niece) was taking hula at Halau 'O Lilinoe with Lance's sister Tianna six years ago. OMG, how beautiful and wonderful to see them grow up!!! Both CC and Tianna are honor students and still have time to DANCE and play sports. You are all COOL KIDS in my book.

Got the munchies?

Looking for something different than the usual munchies (chips, cookies & ice cream). Try these for a change. Not only are they healthy snacks but they do taste TEErific!!! Here are my three favs:

Crispy Apples< from Crispy Greens. Only 35 calories per serving (1 pouch). They also have freeze dried apricots, pineapples, peaches and pears. They have a very crunchy texture just like potato chips and with less calories. You can find these at Whole Foods Market or Wild Oats. My youngest brother sold me on these snacks.

Quaker Oats granola bites cinnamon flavor. Also in chocolate and peanut butter flavors. 90 calories per serving (1 pouch). Cinnamon flavor is the hardest to locate. Found them at Albertson & Walmart. Big MAHALO (thx) to Mel (Courtney & Kiara's mom and also one of my awesome BFFs) for introducing this great snack to me. Courtney and CC 'O Kalani (my darling neice) were hula-mates at Halau 'O Lilinoe.

Sharon's Lemon Sorbet - 75 calories per serving (1/2 cup). It contains absolutely no fat, no cholesterol and no dairy. Absolutely yummy!!! Found them at Trader Joes. Read some outstanding reviews plus I love lemon sorbets!

The Night MEEKO came to visit...

Remember the movie Pocahontas and her pet raccoon named MEEKO - well that MEEKO came to visit us a couple of nights ago in May. Hard to believe a raccoon was in our backyard but it was caught on tape. A HUGE beautiful wild animal - where did MEEKO come from? Must like the city life. On the third night visit. our loyal & territorial dalmatian, DAHLIA, was on night duty outside and scared MEEKO away. We haven't seen MEEKO since.

Used a "Point & Shoot" camcorder known now as the original FLIP VIDEO to capture the raccoon's visit. The camcorders were disposables back in 2005. They were costing $30 plus DVD copy. Loved its' simple & convenient features (no fancy fine tuning). When the introductory price was than $100, I purchased one. Disposables were a thing of the past. Only drawback is that it records only 30 minutes. All in all, it is a COOL THING. Will post the video as soon as I figure how to upload it. Finally, I did it - Here's MEEKO:

CA headset law effective 07-01-08

For more information, please refer to the CA DMV website.

Watched ABC7 and they reported that FreeHeadset.org is offerring FREE (yes-FREE - only pay shipping $3.94) headsets for your wireless phones. Sounds like a TEErific deal - ordering mine tonite.

Be safe out there!!!

Happy FREE Doughnut Day!!!

What a TEEsweet celebration - a FREE doughnut at Krispy Kreme today, June 6th.
It is National Doughnut Day and Krispy Kreme is offering customers a FREE doughnut of their choice in participating stores throughout the U.S. So, stop by and celebrate National Doughnut Day and have a doughnut on them!!!

Have a FUNtastic weekend!!!

Seven Wonders of the World - WOW

Do you remember the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World? It is truly sad that out of the 7 Wonders, the Pyramid of Gaza is the only wonder still in existence.


On 07-07-07, the new 7 Wonders of the World by the 7Wonders Foundation were announced. I had the great opportunity (b'day gift from Mom & Dad) to travel to China in 1997 and toured one of the new 7 wonders, the Great Wall of China. It was an awesome and challenging STEEP climb to the top and back. It was breathtaking to see the vast scenery and the skills of the people that built the Great Wall. In Xian, I stood in awe when I visited the burial site of Terracotta Warriors. Marveled at the beauty of the site. Mom & Dad were in China & Russia 10 years before and came back with lots of FUNtastic stories and photos. We all brought back lifetime of "aha" & "wow" memories from our TEErific travel experiences.

The 7Wonders Foundation has a new project of selecting the New 7Wonders of Nature. The foundation has 77 nominees and has a online voting site 7Wonders Live Ranking to cast your vote until December 31, 2008. I am proud to say that the Philippines has 4 in the top 10 wonders of nature. Maricar from Filipina Soul has a TEErific write up & videos on the sites.

Go ahead, wow yourself when you travel. There's a lot of TEErific places in our world that will leave you in awe. Happy Traveling!!!

Take your iPod for a swim...

Just started my water fitness at the Y. Finally found a great exercise that is easy on my knees. Defying gravity is a good thing when it comes to exercising for me. Indoor pools can be very very noisy & distracting. This waterproof iPod case I bought at waterproofcases.net - helped drown the noise (LOL- excuse the pun) and best of all it is waterproof.The website has various waterproof cases for cameras, phones and etc. It is a COOL THING to have if you are planning summer fun near the water. I am blind as a bat without my glasses so I found aguagoggles.com that sells presciption goggles at a REAL affordable price. Surfs up!!!

Grads, Dads, Brides & BBQ

June is surely a TEErific time for celebrations. Grank up the BBQ for some fun grilling. Check out the BarbecueWeb, Dani Spies & AverageBetty YouTube videos for spectacular recipes. Still adding COOL THINGS to my blog. Y'all come back now - ya hear.......

WHY BLOG?

Why not......another way to communicate with friends & family. I will attempt to blog often and share some of my TEErific Finds. So stay tuned.......