Thoughts

SNOWBOARDING
Karena is in love ... with snowboarding. It's amazing! She's going for the second time in less than a week! Too bad I'll never snowboard again. It would have been fun to go with her. But, in all honesty, I don't miss it.
But when I play basketball or when my knee hurts, I do feel a little bit bitter and cheated about my knee injury.

GRANDMA'S 90TH
Saturday night was a festive night for the Shen family because we had an opportunity to gather together to celebrate my grandmother's 90th birthday. In all honesty, this grand birthday kind of snuck-up on me because she's in such good health and still very mentally sharp. Most times, when you think of a 90-year old, you think of words like "really old" and "senile." But that is not the case with my grandmother at all!
We had about 60 people gather to celebrate with her at Empress Pavilion. The food was good and it was great to see extended family from San Diego, the Bay Area, Seattle, etc. come just to mark the occasion. Some beautiful words were also spoken on my grandmother's behalf by my grandfather's sister, my uncle, and my brother. As for me, I managed to catch the whole thing on video. But if I were given the opportunity to speak, I would speak about her fondness for keeping me well-fed at all times (a Chinese person's best way for showing affection) and for her genuine love and concern for me from as far back as I can remember.
It was truly a time to celebrate. Afterward, I let my dad and my uncles know that they did a great job in organizing such a successful event.
My grandmother truly looked happy. And in the end, that's all that mattered.

AARON'S BIRTHDAY
A huge turnout was present to celebrate Aaron's birthday this past Friday at Universal Citywalk's Saddle Ranch Chop House. The allure of that place is not the BBQ food and steaks, but the mechanical bull riding. Aaron was able to attempt twice for free since he was the birthday boy. While enduring much harassing and trash-talking by everyone (especially yours truly), he managed to hang on for a while. And even Tyrone, Judy, and Judy's UCLA friend Kelly got into the act. It turned out to be the perfect atmosphere for celebrating a birthday and for bringing a bunch of old friends together.
I think we all had a good time and Aaron had a good birthday.

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
So far, I've been having a great Thanksgiving weekend (minus having to work on Friday, as mentioned in the previous blog). I've enjoyed spending time with family and friends, shopping, and, of course, eating.
But as we all over-eat this weekend, I want to remind you to follow in Luong's footsteps and eat slower and chew more often.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

SUCKS
Working on the Friday after Thanksgiving sucks. That's the bottom line.
It prevents me from sleeping in (the turkey affects me big-time!). It keeps me from getting good deals at Best Buy (like that $500 laptop). I did manage to go to Robinson's May this morning (which is my yearly tradition). It's the only store where I can go, shop quickly, and still make it to work on time.
Still, I had absolutely no desire to be at work today and the effort I gave was pretty sad, especially because my whole body was sore from playing basketball the day before.
I apologize to the patients I saw today.

MORE QUICKIES
1. Boston Red Sox centerfielder and Jesus look-alike Johnny Damon is featured as one of People Magazine's Sexiest Men Alive.
2. My favorite Canada story from Nathan is when he bought milk from the market and was able to leave it in his car all day without it spoiling since the temperature outside was as cold as his fridge. Just image on days when it's colder than his fridge. When he opens his fridge, hot air comes out. No wonder I always think of Canada as being backwards.
3. We used to always go to my Auntie Cindy's house for Thanksgiving (Allison and Jonathan's mom). And after dinner, I would always fall asleep on their leather couch. We haven't been there in about 5 years so I've been deprived of my post-dinner leather couch nap. But tonight, we're headed back there again and I can't wait. I think I'm getting sleepy already.
4. Creative geniuses Raymond, Jason, and Nathan devised a plan to play basketball at church and hold a fantasy basketball draft featuring ... us. We draft our own team and keep stats and at the end of the day, see who won. Very imaginative! All I know is, I'm not going to draft myself.

QUICKIES
1. My co-worker was making small talk with a patient:
"So, are you getting ready for Thanksgiving?"
"No, we don't really celebrate it."
"Really? Why not?"
"Well, I'm Native American. So, for us, it's not something to celebrate. Thanksgiving? It's more like 'Thanks a lot!'"

2. Billy Graham is a life-long Democrat.

3. Our potluck at work today featured 4 pumpkin pies.

AIRPORT
I've mentioned previously how I love picking people up from the airport. Today, I managed to make it to LAX and Burbank to pick up Nathan and Raymond, respectively. The day was filled with eating Armenian food, catching up, playing cards, sitting in traffic, watching TV, and listening to the new U2 album. We were fortunate enough to also have Jason join us for the festivities and to bring the creative flava that only he can bring.
As is customary for Nathan whenever he comes to our place, he spent some time watching the NASA channel. As is customary for Jason anywhere, he got hooked on some snacks and couldn't hold back! And as is customary for Raymond, he cracked a lot of jokes.
Throw in a dentist appointment smack dab in the middle, and the day proved to be extremely exhausting.
And yet, somehow, perfect.

FINAL THOUGHTS ON BILLY GRAHAM CRUSADE
1. The traffic was horrific, but seeing 70-80,000 people there each night made it worth it.
2. There really are no words to describe what it looks like to see 2-3,000 people accept Christ each night. Even after it took us about 5 minutes to reach the field, I could still look up and see the aisles completely crowded with people still trying to make it down to the field as a public declaration of their acceptance of Christ.
3. Karena and I counseled 5 people each. And even though it was really crazy (as in way more people than counselors), it was a great experience. At one point, I just whispered to her, "Enjoy this. Cherish this." For once in our lives, we didn't have to club people over the heads with the Bible like we have to do in the real world. Instead, these people willingly came to us to hear the Good News.
4. Billy Graham has a great sense of humor. He's funny. He's intelligent. He's still got a very sharp mind. I was grateful to see firsthand how God uses him for great things.
5. Jars of Clay wasn't so great. The Tait Band played mostly dc Talk stuff (I didn't mind one bit!). But Third Day was by far the best that we saw. I was almost brought to tears by their song, Psalm 36 (which is one of our favorite songs, that's why we asked Si, Dan, and Roo to play it in our wedding).
6. Finally, after all the counseling was done, I have to admit that it was fun to run around on the field, stand in the endzone labeled "Bruins" and think about all the epic battles and great players that stood on that very spot. And even though the UCLA football team hasn't been a very successful program lately, on these four nights, the Rose Bowl was no doubt filled with winners.

BILLY GRAHAM ON THE FIGHTS
The world of sports say two major brawls that could be considered near-riots within the last two days. One was in Detroit where players foughts fans and the other was in South Carolina.

Billy Graham alluded to both and said (loosely paraphrased), "I saw on the television the two fights that occurred. Tonight, I hope we can show the media that there is a different type of young person in this world. One that is loving. One that is kind."

That is my sincere prayer for all, especially Ron Artest, Stephen Jackson, Jermaine O'Neal, Ben Wallace, and Detroit's fanatical fans.

U2 ON SNL
If you're a U2 fan, check out their site to hear their new album, which comes out on Tuesday. Also, they're on tonight's Saturday Night Live so don't miss them!

DAVID
It's pretty typical for a bunch of us to have lunch together on Sundays after church. But this Sunday proved to be different. We met David, an 18year-old Marine who was in training at Camp Pendleton and would be shipping out next month to parts unknown.
He was a graduate of Mark Keppel, a good looking guy, tall and thin. But that's not what you noticed. Instead, you couldn't help but stare at the seemlingly impossible juxtaposition of Marine fatigues with boyish youth. Something wasn't right. When you think of a Marine, you think of strength, strong will, determination. Sure, David had all those things. He was full of integrity and interacted EXTREMELY proper when talking with people, even us! And we are his peers!
But it just didn't seem right to send someone that young into military training, let alone giving him a very probable ticket to Fallouja or Baghdad.
But that just got me thinking that those are EXACTLY some of the guys we have over there now, fighting on our behalf. So, I shouldn't be so shallow or so insensitive as to skip over the obituaries page of fallen military or change the channel. These are our BOYS out there. So, thank you.
Good luck, David. We are praying for you.

SUSHI
I think it's cool to enjoy eating sushi. It's trendy. It's beautiful. And it tastes good.
But after spending $90 ($45 each) Sunday night, I've decided that I just don't need it. I enjoy the style of the whole experience, but I'll be just fine without it. (Sorry, Mike).
Maybe sushi loses some of its luster with me because Karena doesn't like it and I have to use the back of my chopstick to poke out the avocado every single time. When I'm done eating, all that's left is a mountain of avocado slivers and some soy sauce (not the most appetizing thing to look at after dinner).
Besides, I'd rather drop that kind of money on a nice, juicy steak.

GO!
Billy Graham Crusade
Thurs Nov 18-Sunday Nov 21
Rose Bowl
www.billygraham.org

This is your absolute LAST CHANCE to see one of God's most faithful preachers. And this is such a great opportunity to bring family and friends to a non-confrontational outreach meeting.
Somehow, seeing thousands and thousands of people accept Christ just moves you the way nothing else can in this world.
Just go!

BUSY WEEKEND
What a fun, but busy, weekend we had!
Friday night started out with a bang in terms of getting a good Bible study going. Each group member was given one passage related to being a Christian at work. It worked out well because it made everybody dig a little deeper into the Word (including me). Afterwards, we spent some time hanging out with everybody at Jesse and Tammy's.
Saturday was spent mostly in class with the chiropractor and with some of my co-workers. And since we were already in Reseda, we just drove a little bit more to do some shopping at the Camarillo outlets. We didn't have enough time and as we were driving home, my thoughts were still with two caps from the Nike outlet that I wanted, but didn't have time to buy. But, I decided it was a good lesson in letting go. After all, I didn't really need them anyway.
We drove back in a lot of traffic, but still made it in time to have dinner with Karena's family. We were fortunate enough to have her dad cook his juicy porterhouse steaks. So good!
Sunday, of course, meant church and eating out for lunch. But this Sunday also included the membership meeting and counting the ballots for me, since I'm on the nominating committee.
Then, we left early to drive to Hacienda Heights to attend Jonathan's chamber music concert. It was a really impressive performance and I managed to hold my video camera up for the 23 minutes he played.
Afterward, it was a quick dash home before heading out with my co-workers to Chatsworth for sushi. After A LOT of sushi (yellowtail, salmon, eel, soft shell crab, and others) and two full cups of sake, I was done. We came home exhausted.
Then, at 5:45am, we were up and at 'em again.

WAY TO GO, RAYMOND (PART II)
Check out these pictures:

http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=4370&BIB=2124&S=230&PWD=
http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_photo.asp?EVENTID=4370&ID=11666208&FROM=lost

CONVICTED
One of my favorite bands from my college days was DC Talk. I always found traditional contemporary Christian music too watered-down musically speaking. But I loved the edgy sound they had. I pulled out their "best of" CD recently and was again convicted by some powerful words by Toby McKeehan:

"The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians ... who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and get on with their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelieveable."

VETERANS' DAY
It's too bad that I had to work today. It doens't feel like Veteran's Day at all to me. In fact, the only reason why I even know that it's today is that we didn't get any mail and ABC's is showing "Saving Private Ryan."
And I'll have to admit, that this day usually just goes by without me taking much notice. But with so many people fighting in the war against terror, I would be remiss if I didn't stop and pause for them. Whatever your political views about the war, we should stand united in standing up for our troops.
Thank you for your service and for providing the very blanket of freedom under which I sleep at night.

WHERE IS THE LOVE?
I was off in dreamland when suddenly I began to dream about a helicopter. And before I knew it, I was rudely awakened by the sounds of an actual helicopter almost directly over our house. It was 5am.
After unsuccessfully trying to tune it out and go back to sleep,I got up to look out the window. One of the Glendale Police Department helicopters had his spotlight on looking for somebody lurking VERY close to our house. I tried to go back to sleep, but to no avail.
And just my luck, when it was really time to wake up, the helicopter took off.
Anyway, while driving to work, Karena and I finally saw what all the fuss was about. A car had veered off the street and crashed into the front yard of a house less than a block away. There were about 12 motorcycle cops there to block the street and about 5 cop cars too.
That left me with these three thoughts:
(1) What a waste of taxpayers money to have all those cops there. Is that really necessary?
(2) Glendale drivers must really suck.
(3) Hey, we had a car plow into our yard too (nearly hitting our house) and we only had one motorcycle cop come out (and ended up having to pay for the damage ourselves). Where were the helicopters, motorcycle cops, and all the fuss. Where is the love?

WAY TO GO, RAYMOND!
My brother Raymond finished a triathalon this past weekend, which is pretty amazing for multiple reasons. First of all, there's the obvious: it's hard. It includes biking, running, and swimming (in the San Francisco Bay, no less -- too bad the Giants aren't playing, he could have caught a Barry Bonds home run ball). His goal was just to finish and he did.
And just for that reason alone, I'm really proud of him.
But wait, there's more.
Let's not forget that he's a Shen, and with our genes, comes some major physical problems. Between his bad knees, weak ankles, painful back, he's literally the walking wounded sometimes.
And he's still only 17 years removed from two major surgeries to remove a growth near his spine that caused him to collapse multiple times without notice. This is a guy who literally had to learn how to talk again ... twice.
And while he was doing the triathalon, I was sitting back on the couch, watching TV, and eating chips. How sad am I!
Today, Ray, I'm encouraged and inspired at your perseverance, your determination, and your heart. Thank you.
I'm taking my lazy, fat butt to the gym.

WORSHIP LEADER
I have the privilege this month of being CEFC's Sunday Service worship leader. My main responsibility is to read a passage of Scripture and say a prayer on behalf of the entire congregation. Here is an open look into some of the thoughts swirling through my head today, both before, during, and after my first Sunday as worship leader.

"Hmm... yeah, this suit looks good. And I have to wear a red tie -- you know, shows happiness.

Remember to lift up the mikes and stand up tall. No slouching.

There are 200 pairs of eyes staring at me. Why am I so nervous?

Remember to look up while reading.

Smile!

Should I read what I already wrote down for the prayer part, or just speak from the heart. Speaking from the heart is better. Nah, too nervous. Better go with what I wrote down already.

Speak slowly, and add some dramatic pauses.

Wait, stop thinking about all this. You are the WORSHIP leader. You should be worshipping, not worrying about all these stupid things.

Praise God."

HIGHER LEARNING?
The other day, we were watching ER. This used to be one of my favorite shows, but I honestly haven't seen a single episode since Dr. Greene (Anthony Edwards, aka Goose) died on the show. Now, the Indian girl from "Bend It Like Becham", the guy from "A Walk To Remember" and "Once and Again", and the daughter from "Roseanne" are all on the show. When did that happen?
Anyway, the point is that they had a guy on this episode who was only interested in doing research and uncovering the chemical reactions that were going on the body, even while they were working on a trauma victim. As expected, the doctors got upset at the questions about "drawing an oxygen molecule" or "write out the chemical reaction" and instead opted to treat the patient without worry about it.
But Karena and I realized that after some thinking, we WERE able to draw an oxygen molecule and we DID understand the chemical reaction he wrote out because we were forced to take so many classes on biology, chemistry, and biochemistry. But honestly, we NEVER, EVER use it in real life for our profession. What a waste of time!
But I guess it makes for good fun at parties! Um ... yeah.

OVERWHELMED
Today, I'm feeling overwhelmed with all my responsibilities at work, at home, at church, with my family, as a citizen, as a Christian, as a husband, as a brother, as a son, as a friend, etc. But hey, maybe that's a good thing.

GOOD SONG
The song of the moment that makes me say out loud, "Good song" when it comes on the radio is Nelly and Tim McGraw's "Over and Over." That is the smoothest song I've ever heard, even though it's a little repetitive.

GOOD LUCK, W
George W. Bush has been declared the winner of the 2004 Presidential election. That, of course, means that 49% of the country is upset today.
My sincere prayer today, whether you voted for Bush, Kerry, or Nader, is for unity for this country. A nation divided stands alone.

THE LAKERS AFTER SHAQ
Today starts the new NBA season. And for the Lakers, it's the first day of the rest of their lives. No more Shaq. No more Phil. No more Karl Malone, Gary Payton, Rick Fox, Derek Fisher, etc. No more drama.
Now this is Kobe's team, for better or for worse. As I was reading the LA Times Magazine today about Kobe, I couldn't help but feel sad and angry at the same time. It's funny, but I get that same feeling when I see Britney Spears on the cover of magazines too: "You are soooo stupid!"
The Kobe story is a very sad story. And the way he brought down his image, his reputation, and his status over the last few years just goes to show that he was never the guy we all thought he was.
Does that make it hard for me to cheer for him? Definitely. But I am still a Lakers fan. It's going to be a conflicted season.

WELCOME BACK!
I always hated when athletes (Michael Jordan for example) call it quits and then call off their retirement and return. My thoughts are, hey, if you say you're retired, you're retired.
But I'm going to be like Mike and return to Koinonia core and small group leading. I am definitely excited about the whole thing. But I have to laugh too.
See, this whole thing is all too familiar.
Six years ago, I was asked to assist in a small group in the newly formed Koinonia. I agreed only after being told I wouldn't have to do much except attend the meetings and help call group members. But a month in, the small group leader left and I was placed in charge of the small group. And that started off my 5 year run in Koi core and small group leading. And now, after things didn't work out in our current small group, I'm back at it again. But, like I said, I'm really happy about it and am confident God will use me to help encourage group members and to help foster an environment where we can all learn to be more Christ-like in our daily lives.
It should be good.