Yours truly,
Thien Phu aka Viktor Lassley
Link: Thien Phu on Twitter
Sunday, August 30, 2015
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Yours truly,
Thien Phu aka Viktor Lassley
Link: Thien Phu on Twitter
Saturday, August 1, 2015
Seems Like Old Times
Last night out of the blue, I was delighted to receive a phone call from one of my adoptive big sisters I hadn't seen in a while. I'm referring to Bebe Hoang Anh. To many members of the Vietnamese community in the United States, you might have seen her name listed in the credits for her photography work in magazines, Vietnamese popular music compact discs and DVDs and calendars. And many of you might also be familiar with her as being the beloved wife of the late Vietnamese-American columnist, singer, songwriter, Asia Productions music video live show master of ceremonies, political activist and Vietnamese-American radio broadcasting pioneer Viet Dzung, who happens to also have been one of my adoptive big brothers that I've been quite fortunate to have in my life. I'm always delighted to hear from her. We are like family. We've been friends for so long, seen and done so many things together, Bebe to me, is nothing short of a gem in my book.
When I answered the phone, I hear Bebe's sweet voice speaking to me in what I call Vietlish, a combination of Vietnamese and English. "Thien Phu, where are you, brother? I'm here with another one of your sisters, Julie (Julie Quang). We're at The Crab Kicker Restaurant on Magnolia and McFadden. Get your butt over here right away. I miss you."
Well, with an invitation like that, who can refuse? Right when Bebe was calling me I was still at work. Despite how I had tried to get off from my shift as soon as I could, it wouldn't be for another hour and a half before I would finally arrive at The Crab Kicker to join my two big sisters, Bebe Hoang Anh and Julie Quang. I was perspiring heavily during the drive from my work to The Crab Kicker. I kept thinking to myself, "There's no way that they could still be there at the restaurant waiting for me. How long does it take to eat crawfish? They're probably long gone by now."
What made it worse was how these two big sisters of mine are the way they are. For instance, quite typical of Bebe's style, she doesn't answer her cellphone. I dialed her number repeatedly so I could find out whether I should even bother to head on over there or not, but I had no such luck in reaching Bebe. And as for my big sister, Julie Quang, who is notoriously famous for never carrying with her her cellphone wherever she goes, that just added to my stress. It was already ten o'clock at night. But since I have really missed seeing the both of them in such a long time, I just figured I'd take my chances and just make the drive anyway. Luckily, they were still there when I arrived.
Our reunion last night, although brief since by the time I had gotten there the restaurant was near closing time, was just like old times. Julie and Bebe had come there directly from attending singer Phuong Hong Que's mother's funeral. Accompanying them was another old acquaintance of mine, Tiffy Tien Bui. We laughed, talked, and even cried a bit, all four of us. I don't know if it's my imagination. But it seemed like out of all of us, I'm the only one that has aged. Bebe and Julie still look the same.
During our reunion, there were bits and pieces of emotional moments. After a little bit of alcohol in her, Bebe started to get a bit emotional as we reminisced about Viet Dzung, understandably so. I let Julie and Bebe know about my own personal tragedy recently with the passing of my father. Julie shared with me about her son, Kennedy, who had recently been hospitalized. Wow! So much has happened in our individual lives. There was so much to catch up on, yet so little time. We'll have to have another one of these reunions soon. After all, they are my family.
When I answered the phone, I hear Bebe's sweet voice speaking to me in what I call Vietlish, a combination of Vietnamese and English. "Thien Phu, where are you, brother? I'm here with another one of your sisters, Julie (Julie Quang). We're at The Crab Kicker Restaurant on Magnolia and McFadden. Get your butt over here right away. I miss you."
Well, with an invitation like that, who can refuse? Right when Bebe was calling me I was still at work. Despite how I had tried to get off from my shift as soon as I could, it wouldn't be for another hour and a half before I would finally arrive at The Crab Kicker to join my two big sisters, Bebe Hoang Anh and Julie Quang. I was perspiring heavily during the drive from my work to The Crab Kicker. I kept thinking to myself, "There's no way that they could still be there at the restaurant waiting for me. How long does it take to eat crawfish? They're probably long gone by now."
What made it worse was how these two big sisters of mine are the way they are. For instance, quite typical of Bebe's style, she doesn't answer her cellphone. I dialed her number repeatedly so I could find out whether I should even bother to head on over there or not, but I had no such luck in reaching Bebe. And as for my big sister, Julie Quang, who is notoriously famous for never carrying with her her cellphone wherever she goes, that just added to my stress. It was already ten o'clock at night. But since I have really missed seeing the both of them in such a long time, I just figured I'd take my chances and just make the drive anyway. Luckily, they were still there when I arrived.
Our reunion last night, although brief since by the time I had gotten there the restaurant was near closing time, was just like old times. Julie and Bebe had come there directly from attending singer Phuong Hong Que's mother's funeral. Accompanying them was another old acquaintance of mine, Tiffy Tien Bui. We laughed, talked, and even cried a bit, all four of us. I don't know if it's my imagination. But it seemed like out of all of us, I'm the only one that has aged. Bebe and Julie still look the same.
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| Julie Quang, Bebe Hoang Anh, Tiffy Tien Bui and Thien Phu |
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