Henry Chung Esquire

So long, DC! I'll be back in two weeks.

HK here I come. Beware.
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Ringo Starr - The least musically gifted member of the Beatles. Mediocre drummer. But constantly getting royalties without having to work one more day of his life. Plus, he's alive and happy, unlike John and George, who are not here anymore.

Mark Hammill - The most unattractive lead in movie history. Did minimal on screen. But due to the popularity of the Star Wars trilogy, he doesn't need to work one more day of his life.

Art Garfunkel - The whitest guy in the world with an Afro. Tagging along the genius of Paul Simon and first appeared with Simon as "Tom & Jerry." Never wrote a song while in Simon & Garfunkel. Just sang chorus vocals and still getting crazy royalties.

Clarence Thomas - First Supreme Court Justice appointed by affirmative action. Has never written a single coherent, thoughtful majority opinion. Even less meaningful concurring/dissenting opinions. Falls asleep at hearings. The laziest Justice ever. This reaffirms the belief that if you are a black man in America and want to get out of poverty, join the Republican Party.

Keanu Reeves - Perhaps the most horrible actor ever existed. But hey, the Matrix trilogy saved him.

Nicole Richie - Born to a rich father and became accidentally famous due to a stupid TV show, even though most attention fell on her co-star Paris.

Haylie Duff - Tagging along the success of sister Hilary. Can't even sing, or dance. However, I gotta say I was thoroughly impressed by her noteworthy performance in "Napoleon Dynamite."
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Jeff Conlin is alive. He recently posted a very inspirational piece on the two music giants who just passed. Worth a read and then some.
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One memorable things about "The Office" is the now famous Brent dance, which he categories as "Flashdance fused with M.C. Hammer shit." There isn't a better description of what it is, which makes me think that my life is recently similar to that fusion.

Met this Brazilian hostess at Palena (which I've come to frequent a lot these days because my good friends Roger and Kate always return the favor of coming to see me play at Toulouse). To my surprise, she went to NMH and graduated in 2001. Can't believe it. The world is small. Of course we talked about our teachers, stuff that is nightmarish. She even shared a tale where she and her friend cruised on the Mount Hermon football field after dorm closing where they had to duck to avoid the flashlight from the security guards. In my time, no one had balls to cruise, let alone hide in the football field. She said she'd grown to love NMH, even though it's ex post facto.

Now I can sense that NMH bond so easily. When she told me she went to a boarding school in Massachusetts, I immediately knew she went to NMH. NMH people have the following in common: well-read, well-traveled, articulate, and speak English with a minimal accent. And when I told her I went to her alma mater, she said she could tell from the moment I spoke. I had a similar experience with a guy in Syracuse. He parked his car in front of this dinner on M Street and I saw his NMH sticker, and we chatted like we were old-timers, though he graduated some 15 years before me.

This week has been nothing but good to me. Tuesday I had the single most amazing conversation with a very special person at U-Topia (more about that later). Wednesday was my reunion with the incredible Band of Blue and Gene Meros and we played a kick-ass set together. And it wasn't loud. Thursday night I went to the pier in old town, Alexandria and started writing in my journal again, something I hadn't done since I came back from New Hampshire (which got me nostalgic too). And then the Palena incident...

All of the above leads me to wonder how my philosopher buddy JEFF CONLIN is doing. Jeff, if you're reading this, please leave a comment below to let me know you're alive. We at the Chitlin Circuit miss you.

Life is nothing but "flashdance fused with M.C. Hammer shit." Better yet, do what the Stephen Stills song suggests, "Love the one you're with."
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Not to sound sentimental, but Keter's death and Jamal's eloquent and heartfelt speech made me think of this Louis Armstrong song:

If we never meet again,
I'll have a rose to remember
The snows of December
Will bring you back to me.
If we never meet again,
I'll fall asleep in the flowers
Dream of the hours
We spent in ecstacy

The leaves in the fall
Will wreak of the beauty
I found in your eyes
The birds in the spring
When they sing
Will tell me that love never dies

If we never meet again,
As sure as heaven above you
Forever I'll love you,
If we never meet again.

The leaves in the fall
Will wreak of the beauty
I found in your eyes
The birds in the spring
When they sing
Will tell me that love never dies

If we never meet again
As sure as heaven above you
Forever I'll love you,
If we never meet again.

Lately I've been in a good mood, but am also feeling sentimental. I feel that I'm after all a very lucky guy. We had a full house at Bohemian Caverns and all my dear friends showed up. Even my good friend Jonathan drove 5 hours from New Jersey just to come to see me play. What else could I ask for?

Playing with Bill Heid was heavenly. It's like having angels on my back. It's a combination of paying my dues, learning riffs, and sitting on a comfortable couch. Just like Bill speaks of Keter Betts, cozy as hell. I regret that I never had a chance to perform with Keter, but I sure had the pleasure of playing with a lot of people Keter performed with. That's how this music grows.

I've also started to overcome my shyness again. I was in the shell for about two years. I used to be quite chatty to strangers, but I'd been a reclusive as of late. No more, dear. I've just started to open up and embrace life and people a little more. I learn a philosophy lesson or two each day.

One more dear friend of my family passed away: Sami Shiu. My prayers to his family, especially his son Ricky. Sami was my boss when I was working as a summer intern at Poryan Group. He was nothing but good to me. We spent many hours at lunch shooting the breeze, talking politics, and discussing life. He was a mentor to me. I miss him.

Last but not least, I may feel sentimental now, but I'm embracing Lloyd Dobler's attitude. It's a full-time job to love. Thanks for a great conversation. Thanks for a great night. The Troggs had a cornball song called "Love is All Around." But it ranks with Chad & Jeremy's "A Summer Song" and Mungo Jerry's "In the Summertime" ("You've got women and you've got women on your mind" - Pure genius!) as three of my all-time summer favorites.

Off to my journey to sophistication (which could also mean "precision", but that's a loose translation)...
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Keter Betts, bassist extraordinaire, age 77, passed. A true master and a music icon in the nation's capitol.

Jamal Muhammad from WPFW says, "I called up Hank Jones and told him Keter passed. I called up Barry Harris and told him Keter passed. I said if I don't see you again, I want you to know that I love you. I did, I do, and I always will."

Ditto that.
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Check it out here!

Do do do do do do
Mahna mahna
Do do do do
Mahna mahna
Do do do do do do
Do do do do do do do do do do do do do do do do

Classic!

P.S. My condolences to Peter Jennings, Little Milton & Luther Vandross.
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Life is short; we've got to be sophisticated. We're not doing it to impress people, but to experience life a little bit. For example, driving a luxurious car, eating a truly prime steak at a classy steakhouse, drinking a bottle of vintage red wine, and listening to Mozart live at the Kennedy Center, etc. Of course, one needs to have firm financial foundations before one can do it. But you can always tag along with rich friends. As I have mentioned before, class comes with taste which comes from life experience. Why not let you life experience be a little richer?

Also, a meticulous mind is a thinking mind. Most people are workaholics these days. They work long hours and then go home and watch Jay Leno. No time to think, re-think, ponder, consider. I always reserve a time for myself to think things through. I do it at the pool, when I'm running, when I'm reading, etc. Sometimes you get much more deep thoughts out of drinking a cup of coffee and people-watching than sitting in front of the computer all day trying to churn out the best accounting solution.

Einstein longed for two things in life, "simplicity" and "straight-forwardness." They're not mutually exclusive. But Einstein had a lot of love for the world. The more I live in DC, the more I grow to hate some people, especially cab drivers. It's a tough duty to share the love. That is a lesson that I am still learning. At this moment, I am at the point where I "love those who deserve to be loved." Einstein even loved those who didn't deserve it.

There are a lot of new, state-of-the-art items that confuse people: Aveda body wash, mini iPods, shiatsu shampoo, 50 Cent ring tones, long distance phone plans, organic vegetarian meals, plasma TVs with five different remote controls. When you buy a DVD, there are even five different versions to choose from: full screen, widescreen, hearing-impaired, Director's cut with the director's comments, Director's cut without the director's comments. Or special edition vs. non-special edition.

Why does life have to be so complicated?
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My condolences to my good friend Enrique and his family. His sister Montserrat and her boyfriend Eduardo died in a freak car accident on Friday. A truck lost its brakes and crashed them to instant death. Please keep Enrique and his family in your prayers. This has been more than a year since Adam's death. I still miss my friend.

On a more positive note, Michele's Mom's condition has improved at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital. According to a neurology expert, this hospital is well-equipped for neuro-related diseases and my friend's mother is in good hands. Michele's Mom is slowly coming out of her coma, and is talking, sitting up, starting to eat soft foods, etc. I'll keep my fingers crossed. In the meantime, this is very encouraging news.

My NYC visit was a nice one. I'm going to embark on a new chapter of my life. Regardless of what happens, this new chapter is going to begin. I came across this book in a bookstore called "From Sophistication to Perfection," a book I used to read over and over again, but in the past two years, I've totally forgotten about it. So I picked it up again and started reading it and realized I have forgotten a lot of its teachings. It's a book in Chinese so the title is a translation. The word "sophistication" in the book's context really means "detailed and meticulous." I'm slowly going back to that phase; I need to appreciate life's most detailed aspect in a meticulous manner.

Good taste does not come with a college degree, but with life experience. My life experience has just begun.
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