Car Service Scam

Last Saturday, I took my car to Sierra Honda in Monrovia for routine maintenance. They recommended to clean my car's fuel injection for another $120. A little suspicious, I took my car into Pep Boy's for a 2nd opinion. Pep Boy's told me that it doesn't need fuel injection cleaning till I reach 50,000 miles (I'm currently at ~17,400 miles).

This morning, I took my car into Perfect Auto for a 3rd opinion. They popped open my hood and showed me the fuel injection. It was clean! They said that it normally doesn't need done till 30,000 miles.

I then proceeded back to Sierra Honda and informed them of all of this. They told me that they recommend this for every Honda for every 15,000 miles. They even told me to ask other dealers.

I came home and called Honda in El Monte and West Covina. They told me it needs to be done every 45,000 miles.

Bottom line: Sierra Honda in Monrovia are such scammers! Don't go there.

Random Presidential Comments

In looking at all of the top Republican and Democratic presidential candidates, nobody has my vote so far. A lot of them have lower values than me, which is a big turn off. And, I'm not sure how many of them actually believe how big of a threat Iran and their terrorist regime is.

A lot of Evangelicals are starting to join the Fred Thompson camp (his picture is to the left). I know that this does not have much to do with anything, but when was the last time a bald president has been elected? I guess I shouldn't be posting this because starting a few years ago, my hairline has been receeding.

I think it's time to elect an Asian-American president. Too many of us face a glass ceiling. Where is William Hung when you need him?

No More Donuts

On Monday, I had the worst stomache problem in my life. It all started with my cravings for donuts. Apple-filled bear claws to be specific. Oh, they are the bomb! But, by eating them I laid a few bombs... and them some. Either: (a) the baker didn't wash his/her hands or (b) the food was contaminated. I ended up going to see the doctor. 24 hours later, some chicken noodle soup, and LOTS of rest, I was then fully recovered.

No more donuts. Well, at least no more from the corner bakery down the street. I guess I will start eating at Bearded Papa's or other Asian bakeries from now on.

Choose To Be Happy

This is the title of today's Focus on the Family broadcast where Dr. James Dobson interviewed Barbara Johnson. "Barbara is no stranger to sorrow. Her husband suffered a crippling, blinding injury. One of her sons died in Vietnam, another was killed by a drunk driver and a third became involved in the homosexual lifestyle. How did Barbara cope? The bestselling author learned that, although we can't control our circumstances, we can control our attitude. "As Christians, we have an endless hope, not a hopeless end." - Barbara Johnson"

While listening to this inspirational broadcast, I was touched by Barbara's commitment and faith to the Lord. Despite her tough circumstances, she found the peace that God can only provide.

Burglarized

Last week, one of my neighbors was burglarized. She left a crack open in her garage door and the thief crawled in. And this was in the middle of the day! Nonetheless, this has gotten us and all of our neighbors startled and in preparedness mode.

This is scary stuff. Even though we live in a ghetto city, burglaries can happen anywhere. Several months ago, there was a rash of break-ins in the big homes of Arcadia.

Do any of you or anyone you know have a home security system? If so, which brand and what type of product is it? And, of course, do you like it?

Sometimes Good Things Do Happen

After work, I called Islands for takeout. I ordered a Hula burger, a Toucan chicken sandwich, and fries. I got there and they said "sorry, we do not show your order. We do not know what happened." I was a bit frustrated but remained calm. After waiting for about a minute, the waitress offered me a free drink. "Cool", I thought. Then after 5 minutes, the waitress brought me a free giftcard for $15. Wow, this is so cool. I love Islands now! It rocks!

Dedication to Uncle James Hong

ComicCon 2007




Big Trouble Little China




Blade Runner red carpet interview 2007 (scroll to 1:30 minutes)

My Anniversary

Our 3-year wedding anniversary is coming up on Wednesday of next week. I told that to my cousin last night and he said "3 years, where did time go?" I said, "I know, it flew by so fast!"

Anyhow, here are my top 10 reasons why marriage is so great:
10. I do not have to use my mack daddy moves on other girls who will then in turn give me weird looks (like I left my brain somewhere else).
9. I get to use my mack daddy moves on my wife, who will then in turn give me a look of: "oh boy, here he goes again." =)
8. I really don't have any mack daddy moves, so there's no pressure to obtain them.
7. Which to expand on #8, this saves me time and money. No eHarmony for me!
6. I now have somebody to teach me how to wash clothes (I know, isn't this sad?).
5. I have a companion to watch "America's Got Talent", "Big Brother 8", and "Last Comic Standing".
4. I start singing a random song and then all of the sudden I have a kareoke partner.
3. No more fighting over the TV remote control, we now have Picture-In-Picture. Hooray for technology!
2. We get to use the carpool lane.
1. I love my wife with all of my heart and I devote myself to her! She is the best, absolutely irreplaceable!

Motorolla KRZR

We bought the Motorolla KRZR a few months ago and love it! It is thin both in thickness and width. It plays MP3's. It has a 2.0 megapixel camera. It records video and sound. The battery life is great. It even looks sleek. And, best of all, now that we have the software, we can now send files (i.e. songs, videos, graphics, etc) from the phone to our computer and visa versa! Woo hoo!

My have times changed. I remembered that back in high school I told myself that I would never buy a cell phone. Then, in college, all my phone could basically do is make phone calls and set an alarm.

Memoirs of the Green Book

The Bible that I was given way back in 1990 from my mom's friend has now been retired. Some of you may have seen me carrying this small, green book. It was my companion, my friend. After 17 years, the binding has finally given way. It caused the pages to rip and the cover to separate. On a happier note, my wife bought me a new dark grey/red Bible. I hope that this one lasts at least another 17 years. Printed pages fade away but God's Word lasts forever!

To change topics, I now have a Facebook account. My wife has Friendster, but we both like Facebook a lot more. Just face it, one day you will join and connect with me, your friend.