Get the Party Started!

Summer 2009 has been really good to me. A lot of great friends, food, sports, dancing, and TV.

Friends
Phil is in Texas for the summer and for the first four weeks he was here, I saw him probably 25 out of the possible 28 days. I guess I had to make up for lost time because I didn't have the chance to see him at all last year. I doubt you read this buddy, but have a safe trip back to China and have a great year; hopefully it won't be two years until the next time we run into each other! During the last month or so, I've gotten to stay at Titus's and Andy's, Koller's, Josh's, Phil's, and Timmy's (I even got to crash at Johanna's place before going to the airport the next morning (thanks for being my only reader)). I've seen tons of people this summer and it has been a blast. Summer 2009 is definitely up there in my books.

Food
There is a small Texas town in the middle of nowhere called Lockhart, and it is known as the barbecue capital of the world or something close to that. Anyways, I have eaten at a restaurant called Smitty's Market in Lockhart 4 times in the last 5 weeks--talk about obsession. I will admit that the meat is downright amazing and it puts Saltlicks to shame; however, the one downfall other than the drive is that the meat is not very consistent. One day the prime rib might be the best thing and then the next day it might be the brisket and so forth, so it's hard when you are trying to win a newcomer over. I also have to mention the King Kong nachos that Hao, Timmy, and I shared in San Antonio at a place called Chachos. We all agreed that the dish had close to, if not more than 10,000 calories and it was probably meant for 6 people but boy was it worth it trying to finish the whole thing between just the three of us. Not only was the thing astronomical in size, the quality of the nachos was second to none, there were so many different types of cheeses, sauces, and meats. I am going to recommend these two places to anyone who is in Lockhart or San Antonio. Just be ready to experience some major food comas afterward.

Sports
I've played the most tennis over the past month (4 times) than any other time since when I was on the tennis team in 11th grade. Of course I destroyed Mok 6-1, 6-0 in singles after he foolishly challenged me to a match... you got some work to do son before challenging me again. A few nights after that, Josh and I beat up on the Hsu sisters 6-0, 6-3 in doubles when we visited Angela's new house. Not only did I get to play tennis while I was in Sugar Land, I played some darts at the Chui's residence as well. Let's just say the Mah and Nguyen families were both very proud after we dismantled Timmy and his Dad in team 301 on more than one occasion (in their own home; ouch). Last week when I was visiting Josh in Dallas, a few of us went over to Dshaw's place and we had a little ping pong tournament and it got pretty intense, which is not surprising when you have alphamales together in one room. The final standings are gold medal = Josh, silver medal = me, bronze medal = Dshaw; Phil and Larry unfortunately did not earn a spot on the medal podium, better luck next year suckas! And I am looking very forward to football, basketball, and volleyball on the beach when I visit California (have to take advantage of the weather)!

Dancing
For those who haven't heard, I went on a dancing splurge during the last night at the lake house and I guess the momentum of that night is still going strong. When I visited Houston, a bunch of us went out to a lounge called Sammy's where the band, Spazmatics play their popular 80s music routine every week. I will be honest with you, I was already a little buzzed before we got to the place so apparently when we did finally get there, I left the group behind and rushed to the front of the stage... by myself. Head bopping to the music... by myself. And of course dancing... by myself. Who knew I had it in me? I guess Albert Brennaman is just coming out of his shell. Anyways, I went out on 6th street a couple weeks after that and danced a little bit that night as well. I am mentioning all this because for 24 years or so, I never really went out--I mean I could have counted all of the times on one hand. It is a very rare occurrence to see me out partying. Only if a close friend is visiting from out of town or something of that nature would I pick going out over watching ESPN or Travel Channel on a Friday night. But, I'm just trying to get all this in before law school starts. I can't wait to go out a couple times in LA, Entourage style! We just need to find a movie star, or we can pretend that one of us is one... whichever one is easier.

TV
Speaking of Entourage, Phil got me hooked on this show when I was crashing at his place. I started the pilot episode at around 3am one night and haven't looked back ever since. It is without a doubt my second favorite show on TV, just behind Lost. The characters are hilarious and of course with all the girls, money, and cussing--you know it was made for me. True story, when I was on 6th street the other night, I pretended I was Vincent Chase and was strutting from bar to bar, and I made sure I was walking in the front of the group at all times as if I was the leader. I am awesome.

Misc
Congrats to Andy Yu on getting into the police academy. You've been waiting for awhile now, I'm glad it's all working out for you.
Congrats to Titus, I'm glad that you're happier and that the ratio will be much more acceptable.
Everyone should visit Hao and I in San Antonio; We have Sea World, Fiesta Texas, the Riverwalk, etc. You know you want to.
I will be in California from August 6th through August 19th. Titus and Josh will be joining me during the second weekend, it's going to be an awesome time.
I just saw Timmy for 10 days in Texas, now another 14 days in California... too much or not enough?
8min abs is over for me, it was fun while it lasted gang--the truth of the matter is I found something better
School starts on the 24th, kinda nervous and excited. By the 25th, you will probably hear me say how much I hate it.

Titus told me that I should link all my pages together if I want to be on the first page when I search "Albert Nguyen" on google, so here it goes:
Albert Nguyen Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/alnguyen84
Albert Nguyen Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/alnguyen84
Albert Nguyen LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/alnguyen84
Albert Nguyen Yelp: http://alnguyen84.yelp.com

Make lots of memories and don't forget the joys of life.

Faith and trust in Him,
Albert Nguyen