Ilya's award

Ilya earned this award last Friday. Just thought I would share it with you all.

Jacob Have I Loved

I was going through some books on Alex's bookshelf and came across a book that we have ordered long ago. It is called "Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson. I read it and I really liked it. As I was reading the book, I wondered many times when the character "Jacob" would enter the scene. I was two-thirds through the book before I figured out what the title "Jacob have I loved" meant and who Jacob was. If any of you are familiar with the Bible, in the old testament, Isaac had twin boys, Jacob and Essau. Everyone including God favored Jacob. And that's how the main character, Sarah Louise Bradshaw, felt about her twin sister, Caroline. Everyone's attention was on Caroline since the day she was born. Sarah Louise went through a great deal to overcome the jealousy turmoil she had for Caroline. When she finally did, not only was she happier but also had a very successful career and a happy marriage.

I guess jealousy is just part of human nature. As a parent, I do my best to be fair to both Alex and Ilya and yet, to them, I may not always handle things the way he/she had expected. It is up to the one feeling unjust or less loved to overcome this feeling. They may not feel this way, but I love them both just as much. So, if either one of them is grumbling about my not being fair, I would just tell them to think and be thankful for what they have and not what they don't have.

This book has won the John-Newbery Medal. If you haven't had the chance to read it yet, drop by the local public library some time and check it out. I hope you will enjoy the book as much as I did.

What service!!

We left for Taiwan on May 16. We had a lay over in Narita before the flight back to Taiwan. On the way out to the terminal, there was a Japan Airlines agent standing by this sign.


What service. Other airlines just put the stroller on the side and you have to remember to pick it up. We had a good time but flying back was too tired. 9 hrs to Japan and another 4 to Taiwan, then 2.5 hours car ride back home.

Modern Art in China Town

套句許多年前阿公在日本看完藝術美女秀

的名言：“每一個都那麼美，真不知要看哪

一個？”哈！哈！照片當然不是我照的，

是

阿達啦 ！

1995 BMW M3

Darren's favorite car

Alex and Ilya

These are pictures of Alex and Ilya taken during the year of 2007-2008. This will be my last post before I leave for Taiwan since there is a lot to do before that. Haope you all have a great summer.

A Funny House in Hawaii

Posted by Darren

千萬別錯過好文章與短片，每個連結網站都是好讚站

如果您在踏入這個部落格時，以為沒看到新文章就

“一走了之”的話，那麼您會錯過一些好文章或短

片等喔！請往下查看一好部落聯結，如“心靈充電

區”裡，我常常更新的是心靈雞湯短片、心靈週刊

及每日佳文。雖然不是我的作品，可是我花心思找

來與大家分享的。

在影音休息站裡也有宏觀電視﹝有國、臺語連續劇，

目前有舊情綿綿與亂世豪門正在播放中﹞，這是網

路錄影儲存，隨時都可以看，一個星期才會全部更

新換掉舊節目，在國外能夠看到免費國片，應該是

很幸運啦！如果您喜歡古典音樂或流行音樂等，請

試一下網路影音站，裡頭有許多台灣電台，如台北

愛樂，還有中廣古典網、中廣流行網‧‧‧諸多好

聽的電台。

總之，這個網頁看起來只有留言板，可是也“暗藏”

許多好讚的好站喔！可千萬別錯過啊！

2.0: simplicity revisisted

So, if you didn't notice -- I pity you if it isn't obvious to you already -- I've put up a new layout for the blog. I was getting annoyed by the lack of flexibility in the original layout (partially my fault, for it was the result of my attempts to put together a website in a single day). Thus, I've taken more time (ie. a grueling 21 hours of coding) to fix up something that would be easier to edit and a little easier on the eyes. And of course, in the spirit of an overachiever, I feel it displays my abilities a little better than that last layout.

Just a few things to note about this new layout. Click to expand for details, which is also a new feature!

Tags: I've gone through the trouble to add tags on all of the posts that have been on this website so far (of course, I appreciate those who have added tags to their posts already!). I don't have the time to do this for each new post, but I think it would be something good to keep up. Below the Compose window when you are writing your entry, there should be a box that allows you to enter "labels" for the post. On the far right, all these labels that are assigned to your posts are compiled into a master list, making it easier to sift through past posts based on keywords. So the next time someone wants to read all the past things about 台灣, you can just click the "台灣" link on the sidebar. Simple enough, right?

Search bar: I don't think we'll use it much, but I thought it would be neat to include for future use.

RSS Feed: This is a relatively new thing these days. I'm not sure if any of you are familiar with it, but the RSS Feed (featured on the most right bar, at the bottom) allows you to pull up the latest news announcements for whichever site that you would like. I have just used MSNBC.com since they provide the most "interesting" news. I originally put up the RSS Feed for my favorite science research magazine, Nature, but I quickly realized that the general population probably don't really care about the β-adrenergic signaling in heart failure patients. But I could be wrong.

Links: The links section is a monstrous mess. What I originally intended them to be was a collection of links that we use everyday (news websites, radio stations, school stuff, etc). I left my mother to handle that section so I don't really know what's going on with it anymore. I'll attempt to clean it out these next few days, but if anyone has any requests for links that they would like to be put up, please feel free to send me a message.

Dysfunctional header tab thingys: I am still working on trying to get those to work. I'll fix them later, when I'm not feeling lazy and eating ice cream. I swear I thought they'd be cool to add in ... but now I don't really know how to make them functional. The fact that I had to code this all in XML for maximum Blogger compatibility leaves no space for full-fledged customization.

Enjoy! I'll be back later with a real post. Maybe.

PS. The show/hide function is a bit of Javascript and HTML involved. Feel free to ask me if you'd like to learn how to use it. As of now, I'll just throw it in posts that I feel might have extraneous material that can be reduced, and expanded for further interest.

妹妹's Birthday

I have no time to celebrate Yvonne's birthday yesterday, but I bought a cake for her, everyone were happy celebrating with her.

二 姐 夫 的 new car? The new Ferrari California.

More pictures ...






What a beautiful car. I think someone deserves this piece of artwork. Rumored to be under 200k. Dare I said affordable for such an exquisite machine.

-seven-speed twin-clutch transmission
-a 454bhp@7500 rpm 4.3-litre V8
- a folding metal roof and space for four
-0 to 62mph in under four seconds

What more can you ask for?

Happy Birthday to Yvonne

Dear Yvonne,

Happy Birthday to You

With Love,
From all of us

May 14, 2008

四叔出殯

今天是四叔的出殯日，除了少數幾人幾乎都到齊了。原本以為生老病死是人生必走的路，看到父親凝視著四叔的遺照，默默無語，從他的眼中看出了他不捨這個弟弟將永遠的離開陳家，我不禁的流下了眼淚，必境四叔在家庭中也佔有一席之地，家中少了這麼一個有特色的叔叔，真的有點奇怪。晚上我打電話安慰爸爸，我問他會不會累，他很堅強的說：「四叔又不是二媽生的，一點都不累，總是親兄弟，過去的事就不要再提起，還好他的孩子都很成功，他應該會很欣慰。」爸爸這句話又再度了提醒我們兄弟姊妹要彼此相互照顧，雖然你們都在遙遠的美國，至少我們心需永遠的同在，因為我們流著的是一樣的血。看看這相片已經少了多少人了？GO! GO! The Chens.........

There's someone in the house...a burglar? What was that noise? It was Alex.

I heard some noises out in the living room and kitchen at 4:30 this morning. The clanking and clinking really scared me. Then , I saw there was light coming from the hallway. I thought our house was being robbed, but before I woke David, I decided to take a peek myself first. The light in the hallway came from Alex's room. Then I thought Alex woke up early because he was hungry so I went back to bed. But, the noises out from the kitchen kept me awake and I just couldn't help myself but to go in the kitchen to see what he was up to. When he saw me, he seemed relieved. First he asked why I was up and haven't I seen the note on the bedroom door. I said no. Then he asked me how to turn on the range. He was trying to prepare breakfast all right, but it wasn't for him. It was for me, a Mother's Day gift for me. My 12 year-old son woke up at 4:30am to prepare breakfast for me. I was deeply touched.

Beside the plate of breakfast he prepared for me which included toast with sesame spread (tahini) and honey, scrambled egg, and 3 slices of bacon, there was a packet of gifts. Inside the packet there were six items: a rubber band, a piece of candy, a tissue, a band aid, a penny, and the serenity prayer. This is what it said in there:

Dear Mother,

This package of LOVE contains six items to show you how much I care about you.

First, a rubber band: to remind you of the tight hugs that we share.

Second, a pice of candy: because you are the sweetest person that I know.

Third, a tissue: to dry your tears.

Fourth, a band aid: to heal any hurt feelings that you may have.

Firth, new penny: to give you hope for a shiny tomorrow.

Sixth, the serenity prayer: to help you get through every day.

If you will always keep this special gift nearby, you will alway have my LOVE to hold.


I cried of happy tears when I read this. Even though this was a gift that his teacher has taught them to make, my Alex has grown up and he is much more mature than I think he is.

母親節快樂！媽媽！

Happy Mother's Day

(To Dear All Too)

May 11, 2008

There is no love like a mother's love.

Thank you for being there for us and for all your love.

Mommy, You're the " Bestest" !

With much love,

Darren, Janice, & Christina

來自Santa Rosa 的祝福

親愛的二妗和二舅，各位表姊表弟表妹大家好，

很榮幸被二姐邀請上妳們的部落格。發現五月五日是二妗的生日，在此也祝福您生日快樂!

田中店口是我童年最甜蜜也最快樂的回憶。秀琦、自諒、文文、惠津我們年紀最靠近，是最要好的玩伴。最美麗的二妗這樣愛護我，接待一個小女孩在那裡度過快樂的寒暑假，使我長大以後也學習著要像她一樣來以愛心對待小孩子。

今年春節回去田中省親，我特地要求二妗讓我進去看看那些我度過無數快樂夏日時光的房間。印象中的房間是很巨大的，今日看起來並沒有變化，但並不是我想像中的那麼大!走過走廊，似乎還可聽見秀琦、自諒、自毅的笑聲。每一間房間對我而言都充滿了意義! 說來好玩，我還記得自毅出生的那一天，(他好像是在家裡生的) 許多大人在廚房後面的房間忙碌，不准我們進去看呢! 我也記得自毅常常不能離開他的小棉被和"阿姑"。我是那麼"羨慕"我的cousins，我該叫自毅的Nanny 阿姨的，自己竟改口叫她"阿姑"。現在居然連小自毅都是兩個孩子的爸爸了!

妳們家移民到美國，是我童年時的一大損失，記得那時送自諒到機場(不知為什麼，孩子裡只有自諒？)，心中真是無比的傷心。看到文文理直氣壯的說:她也會和妳們一起去。你們家對我們的愛，令我們都以為我們也是這個家的一部份呢!但當好不容易盼望你們回來度假時，我已進入變成一個怪怪的teenager了!

願這個美好的部落格的發明，能再度拉近我們彼此時間、空間的距離。雖然自己也步入中年了，但看到舅舅阿妗，在自己心目中好像自己還是個穿梭在親族中間的小孩子，他們還是從前那些能幹的、熱情的大家庭支柱。在我心目中，是的，二舅二妗永遠不老!祝你們青春永駐!

季霓

Happy birthday Mommy

祝Mommy生日快樂!!

Happy Birthday Mommy!

Today is mom's birthday. Happy Birthday!! We wish we could be in Taiwan to spend time on this special day with mom. Justin, Katelyn, Theresa, and I wish you a very happy birthday.

媽媽，祝您生日快樂！

親愛的媽媽：

今天是台灣的五月五日，也是您的生日，只可惜遠在異鄉的我們無法 在您身邊與您共渡這個既特別又重要的日子，深感抱歉！不過，請接受我們這雖遙遠卻是最摯愛的祝福，
在此祝福您

生日快樂！ 心想事成！



With all our love,

Darren, Janice, & Christina

Flying kites at Ala Moana Park

Today was not the best day to fly kites as the wind was unusually calm. But nonetheless Justin and Katelyn had fun. Justin was flying his handmade kite from school. We plan to go back to Aiea to fly kites at Nahele park, just like when I was a kid. Hopefully the winds will pick up.

Thank you 哥哥

Today is Saturday, May 3. Ilya didn't want the usual granola cereal for breakfast. She wanted something with rice in it. I looked in the refrigerator and something just popped into mind. I remembered 哥哥's famous after school soy sauce egg fried rice. I told them about how Uncle Willie would always make this kind of fried rice for me and Uncle David whenever grandma was late coming back to Taichung from Tienchung. I really miss that kind of fried rice. I may not make it as good as 哥哥's but I sure got a lot of applauses from everyone including David and Katie. Thank you 哥哥 for cooking for me and for always looking after me.

天下沒有不散的宴席

....在家雖然四叔對某些事處理的作風較有爭議，可是他也是家中不可少的一號人物。聽到他去世的噩耗，不禁的覺得心酸。回台灣已經25年了，看到已往家族的氣勢一天一天的衰退，不禁的告訴自己要再更努力。雖然我們是大家庭的小孩，可是我們卻沒有想像中的團結，陳家需要靠大家來再造，再造的前提需要我們五個自己先團結。爸媽或許因為我們自己個性的不同而對每個人的態度不一，可是他們對每個人的愛都一樣。爸媽對孩子的愛都很多，只是他們無法像美國人一樣的用言語表達出來。我曾經對他們有誤會，可是現在我感激，因為爸爸若對我的人生沒有這樣的安排，我再怎麼努力都沒有用的。我對很多的事情都能放下，我與大姊間的一些不愉快也化解了，身為弟弟的我不管如何都該尊重大姊。我希望大家要互相鼓勵，手牽手一起共渡未來的五十年。

Carpal tunnel, anyone?

So this is a little sidetracked, but I am currently working on a research thesis for my biomechanics class (it's calculus, physics, and physiology clumped into one ... translation: nightmare). I've decided to examine the pathologies of carpal tunnel syndrome, since there is still a lot that we don't know about it. In this day and age, with technology on the rise, it is no surprise that carpal tunnel syndrome is a big problem. While it is often associated with injury from repetitive actions, researchers have had no empirical data that can link it to typing and computer usage (mostly because it has more to do with the pressure changes in carpal tunnel than actual damage to the medial nerve). I find this very strange, and so I am trying to pull together a correlation between keyboarding habits, wrist elevation, and carpal tunnel syndrome.

To make a long story short, I've set up a simple 14 question survey that shouldn't take too much time. I need as many people to fill this out before my thesis proposal is due (on the 5th). So I was wondering if you guys could help me out by filling it out! It is open for all ages and completely anonymous. The information collected will only be used as data for my research. Here is the link:

https://catalysttools.washington.edu/webq/survey/cw487/54678

I thought I would put this up here since my data is horribly skewed at the moment. While my friends have greatly helped me with answers, all of them are mostly in the 23-30 age range. So please feel free to share this with as many people as you can as well. I would greatly appreciate this =)

四叔與世長辭

今天中午四叔去逝了，唉!