Find peace, Grasshopper

David Carradine, star of the 1970s TV show “Kung Fu,” which mixed Asian characters and influences with a Western setting and “Fugitive” story arc, apparently killed himself in Thailand this week. Carradine, who beat out Bruce Lee for the part, played a half-white North American, half-Chinese Shaolin monk who fled China to escape imperial authorities in continued to pursue him and find U.S. family members in the Western United States. His character’s name was Kwai Chang Caine.

Along with “The Rockford Files” and “Barney Miller,” this was the favorite show during my two years of heavy mid-1970s TV viewing. I probably identified with a rare Asian character on TV: a character who was, like my sister and I, half-Asian and half-white (we even shared a family name). The final episodes of the third and final season – particularly the series finale, “Full Circle,” which I’d love to watch again (along with the “Miami Vice” series finale) - even more directly tackled issues of racism, interracial romance, and violence against Asians and Asian Americans.

The show de facto showed that Asian immigrants were not new to the United States and dealt – usually delicately – with racial issues when black-white issues were still at the forefront and North America’s contemporary new immigration (partly of Asians, Africans, and Latin Americans) was just beginning in earnest.

Another favorite actor of mine, Bruce Lee, fled Hollywood after losing this part (to a non-Asian actor) – after allegedly developing the series idea – and began filmmaking in Hong Kong. There he produced several hit movies – including the extraordinary “Enter the Dragon” – but apparently stayed bitter about Hollywood racism and ultimately died young.

“Kung Fu” – which promoted an ethic of justice and personal serenity (always starting with flashbacks in a Chinese monastery – where Master Po calls Kwai Chang Caine Grasshopper) - and ending with a fight that Caine feels forced to get involved in (Caine as a somewhat standard circuit-riding do-gooder – a la “Quantum Leap” or “The Pretender”)) - probably both reflected and contributed to North Americans’ interest in martial arts and Asian culture and religions. (Before Jackie Chan and “Kung Fu Panda,” it no doubt also helped inspired Carl Douglas’ disco smash “Kung Fu Fighting” (even though the show had its own great theme music): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhUkGIsKvn0.)

Alas, Carradine enjoyed little professional success after “Kung Fu,” despite a short revival in a mediocre mid-1990s version of “Kung Fu” set in a modern-day U.S. city, except for a recent recurring role in Quentin Tarantino’s ultra-violent “Kill Bill” movies. (Penny and I did serve in a Hollywood test audience for a mediocre movie with Carradine and Stockard Channing that became “Death Race 2000.”) Carradine, 72, was in Thailand filming a new movie. He apparently hung himself in his Bangkok hotel room.

A revamped movie – a la the new “Star Trek” movie – is apparently in the works.

-- Perry

Ohio update

Grandpa Beck grew up with two brothers and a sister. His sister, Mildred, who I visited in Mt. Vernon in December, is up at the Cleveland Clinic, where she will have thyroid surgery today. His two brothers, Loren and Ronald, have been living in Outlook Manor, a nursing home near St. Ann’s Hospital in Westerville. Loren, who left his Delaware County home after his wife died, has dementia. Ronald was a wealthy engineer for the auto industry in Detroit. But he was estranged from the rest of his family, his wife died a number of years ago – until Loren went up about 10 years ago and rescued him. He was rich, alone, and dealing with behavioral health issues. Although Grandpa has four stepdaughters and many adoring grandchildren on our side of the family, Mildred has just one son and one grandson and Loren has just one adopted daughter, Jeannie, who we visited in Marietta some 15 years ago.

Ronald died early in the morning Thursday. Grandpa, Aunt Sandy, and Uncle Don had visited Loren and him this weekend.

But only Jeannie was around Thursday morning at the nursing home, as Aunt Sandy – out of sick leave from helping take care of Aunt June – was in the hospital in Marysville with Uncle Don, who was experiencing heart problems earlier this week, on top of other health problems. Sons and daughter-ins-law on Don's side of the family were keeping an eye on Grandpa in Don and Sandy's absence - a role I may take on for a few days later this summer. Later Friday Sandy took Grandpa, who already sees through only one eye, to the opthamologist - substituting for Don, who usually takes him.

Before leaving for the hospital, Sandy asked by e-mail for prayers for June. June goes for throat cancer treatment five times a week. But doctors say she has less than a year to live and Sandy says she seems a little depressed. June will find out on Saturday, June 20, whether her tumor has been shrinking and - by extension - whether treatment will continue (yes if yes; no if no). Sandy asked for prayers for daughter Diana too.

Son Dustin receives Supplemental Security Income checks and lives by himself in an apartment in Lancaster.

Ronald’s body is being cremated and family members have not yet scheduled a memorial service at a funeral home in Westerville. Click here for a tiny bit more information: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/dispatch/obituary.aspx?n=ronald-d-beck&pid=128029688

We’re planning to see another family members who’s been fighting health problems, Grandma Mary, at a surprise 40th anniversary party for one pair of Stephanie’s uncle and aunts (Marvin and Pat) back up in Mt. Vernon late Saturday afternoon. I’ll hope to get a chance to watch or listen to the Belmont Stakes during the party. Go, Mine That Bird!

Lots of folks could use prayer in our family, but among them: Jeannie, Loren, Mildred, Grandpa (Marston), Don, Sandy, June, Diana, Dustin, Barb, Grandma Mary, Marvin, Pat, Bobby, Terree, Bob, and Nancy.

Ronald’s life and death also remind us of people’s struggles with behavioral health issues: from the musician whose story we watched last night in “The Soloist” to our friend Brant to close family members (including our son).

Ronald also reminds us of the specter of growing old and sick with no one around – something we fear if we have no more kids since we don’t know if Vincent will be a “dutiful son,” Stephanie is an only child, and I only have one sister, brother-in-law, and nephew who we aren’t able to spend a lot of time with. Koreans traditionally expect descendants to visit their graves – this is something that my first stepmother June, when she was very ill, feared would not happen – and, if our bodies or ashes are buried at Concord Cemetery or elsewhere – it’s hard to imagine who would do this regularly if at all.

-- Perry

Very early June update

We did not end up going to the baseball game in Columbus this weekend. Saturday I went to a training on how to approach visiting sick church members. Stephanie mowed and clipped the front lawn and tended to some more plants. Our landlord’s air-conditioning repair people replaced the house’s central air-conditioning condenser outside.

We also took a nap and went somewhat inadvertently to the movie “Lymelife," a tale of Lyme disease and 1970s suburbia that reminded me a bit of Ang Lee’s somewhat edgier “Ice Storm.” It featured among others Jill Hennessy from “Law and Order” and “Crossing Jordan,” Alec Baldwin from “The Hunt for Red October,” and - from another 1970s tale of suburban woe - Timothy Hutton, from “Ordinary People.” (One of the two Caulkin brothers in the movie, Baldwin, and Hennessy in the movie pictured below.)

Sunday was our church’s big annual outdoor Pentecost Sunday service plus potluck. We weren’t able to talk Vincent into going to that – they honored graduating seniors and gave them a cake. But Vincent pleasantly surprised us by going to the annual end of the year church youth group picnic and swim (another potluck) at the Jewish Community Center (with parents too). He had basically not been to a youth group event since the start of the year Deam Lake event (see “Deam Lake”). But his girlfriend’s parents have put her on a diet of two visits with Vincent per month. After a late night out with Vincent and her older sister’s former (?) boyfriend Seth, Samantha was also on a cell phone ban. So, cut off somewhat from her Vincent went with us to the pool party and then went out for some more food with Stephanie, his former prom date (Jessi), and her mother and a friend of Jessi. Afterwards, somewhat manic Vincent came home and had a somewhat long, interesting conversation with Stephanie, which I didn’t catch all of.

The background for the late night and Samantha diet (he had still been walking her home from school almost every day, evading her parents’ ban in that respect) includes him urging her to resist her parents’ wishes more and him starting to hang out with Seth, a 20-year-old with a car who apparently also lives with his parents and has no job and is not going to school (all like Vincent). Seth supposedly has a kind of trust fund, was the youngest KY elected official (serving on the Moorland city council), and plotted last year with two 14-year-old girls to kill one of their friends. To learn more click here:
http://www.wlky.com/video/15979277/index.html

At the youth group picnic we learned that a church family knows the would-be victim.

So, now instead of going over to Samantha’s family’s house every night or walking her home every day, Vincent is riding around town with this accused murder conspirator who ironically ended up pleading guilty to the charge Vincent originally earned (making terrorist threats).

Monday, I remembered, was the fifth anniversary of my first day at the Presbyterian Center (June 1, 2004), and in the afternoon I remembered to bring in some treats.

I have been discovering with my new position (especially administrator of the Presbyterian Panel) I am more responsible for bringing in my own paying clients. Click here to see my first product as new Panel administrator (I wrote the summary based on results of a survey we take every three years – my predecessor wrote the survey and there is no client for this once every three years survey: http://www.pcusa.org/research/panel/summaries/08fall-summary.pdf )

It’s remotely possible that without such clients someday someone could decide to end the Panel, which might also involve cutting my position. Having some of this in mind made meeting all of these researchers in government and especially in the private sector (Gallup, Nielsen, Arbitron, etc.) at the conference in Florida more interesting.

Monday was the last day of school for students in Stephanie’s school district. Stephanie has been winding down for a while, since she has stopped pulling students. Wednesday was a second annual International Festival which she helped organize and got a front-page article in the local paper (lunch pictured): http://www.news-tribune.net/archivesearch/local_story_148134641.html

Monday Stephanie kept on eye on 5th grade students who had not earned a trip to Holiday World in southwestern Indiana.

Tuesday and Wednesday Stephanie has planning, grading, and clean-up days (though grades were due back on Friday). (We weren’t able to get Vincent up to work on his classes on the faster computers in her room.)

Next week she’ll substitute tutor for a couple of days. Then summer school will take place 8-12 for the final two weeks of June.

-- Perry

Rachel's out!

The relatively new owners of Preakness winner Rachel Alexandra have decided not to run the horse in the Belmont Stakes next week. Recall that Louisville jockey Calvin Borel rode Rachel to an easy win in the all-female Kentucky Oaks in early May and the next day rode long-shot Mine that Bird, a male, to a strong win in the Kentucky Derby, bringing Mine that Bird back from dead last. When Rachel was sold and the new owners thought she was OK not race against males, Borel picked her over Bird – the first jockey to win the Derby on one horse and then switch to another horse even though the Derby-winning horse was still in the Preakness. Borel rode Rachel to the lead and then the victory in the Preakness. But Bird – ridden by another jockey – again came back from dead last and almost caught her at the end. Borel who in half a dozen previous wins had not had to push Rachel, did so to get the Preakness win. I wondered in a previous blog entry whether Borel might have won on either horse, since the new jockey had a harder time getting Bird through traffic than Borel had had in the Derby.

Bird’s owners thanked Rachel’s owners for letting them know quickly about their decision – they said that the Preakness had taken too much out of Rachel and they wanted to let her rest more. Bird’s owners said the decision was probably good for them, but bad for racing, nipping another Rachel-Bird showdown in the bud. Borel thanked Bird’s owners for being patient with him. The jockey who rode Bird in the Preakness was already committed so they were without a jockey, but waited to find out if Rachel would run, partly figuring that Borel would be available if she did not. And so Borel will be back riding Bird for the first time in a race since the Derby.

One thing to keep in mind is that the Belmont – at 1.5 miles – is the longest of the Triple Crown races, and, if Bird can close like he did in the Preakness, and have more time and distance to catch the leaders – though not now Rachel – he might win. They’ve already called this possibly the Calvin Crown, instead of the Triple Crown, because Borel could become the first jockey to ride two different horses that – collectively won the Triple Crown.

One interesting sidenote: Perhaps the fourth most famous U.S. horse race is the Travers, in August, usually on national TV, and this is run in Saratoga Springs, in the first of my two research sites, where one of my Albany area informants used to hang out to follow the races. Rachel may already be lined up to run another race in lat e June. But, if both Rachel and Bird race in the Travers, this could elevate this race’s profile – and that of Saratoga Springs.

-- Perry

Surprises

Vincent surprised me by putting away most of his clean laundry, doing most of his chores, and cleaning some of his room prior to the slated arrival of his girlfriend (which was conditional on fulfilling these responsibilities). The air-conditioning repair people may have unpleasantly surprised our landlord – but not really surprise us – by concluding that our (rented) house needs a new (central or forced-air) air-conditioning compressor. They’re supposed to come back Saturday with one (perhaps like the one pictured).

-- Perry

Late May update

Vincent also had an appointment with the psychiatrist that ultimately prescribed medication for him, which we got to late enough today that we had to reschedule it for the end of the month. Last time Dr. Knox said the medication he's currently on has enough side effects that he can't be on it forever. So now - at the end of June - she'll decide whether to try a new medication or have him go cold turkey. Since he's now 18, there's a little bit of ambiguity now as to whether we should be going in with him to speak with the psychiatrist and what happens if he really doesn't want to keep taking medication. The court order said he must keep on with counseling and medication unless behavioral health providers say it’s OK to quit. (It's over in Jeffersonville, IN, so maybe Stephanie and Vincent will go next month and not be late like Vincent and I were.)

Mom went to the orthopedic doctor and got an X-ray. The doctor is sending her for an MRI, recommending focusing on posture and taking hourly breaks to do back exercises, and pooh-poohing physical therapy or chiropractic medicine. They did not talk about surgery, which Mom isn’t enthusiastic about. Mom knows there are several things going on – back problems, knee problems, general health problems, also posture (and she says that sitting all day hunched over a computer is probably bad for her posture also) – but she is unsure how disciplined she can be about posture and daily exercise. The doctor, who is rather old, said that one reason he’s in this area is that he too has faced similar issues. Mom canceled her PT appointment. Doing more assessment first may be good, but I’m not a big fan of no PT or other kinds of treatment. Going in to PT at least forces you to do the exercises a couple of times a week, and to get additional instruction, which is better than nothing. Cost may be an issue here too (plus the time to go to PT – though Mom might do it on the way to or from work). This seems look progress on some fronts, but not others. (I’m not sure how much retiring would permit Mom to attack these challenges more effectively.)

(Mom said that Florida Governor Charlie Crist – hot off of announcing a run for the U.S. Senate – today vetoed a pay cut for state workers, who have not gotten a raise in four years. Pay stability restored and MRI scheduled, Mom will lead an induction of new officers for Tallahassee’s American Association of University Women branch tonight.)

Stephanie’s father will face another court hearing after Tuesday’s. His tenants are apparently suing him for allegedly changing a handicapped ramp. He can settle for a small amount or go to trial and potentially get settled with a much larger dollar amount. Stephanie urged him to settle and then sell the property. Most of his 3-4 remaining properties seem to Stephanie to be more trouble and expense than they’re worth, especially given the state of the Central Ohio economy, which means that most tenants can’t really afford to pay rent and the pitfalls are many (thieves ransacking empty apartments, tenants suing, etc.). Part of what Stephanie’s father is probably doing is carrying on a family business and like my mother resisting retirement.

(Pictured above is the Columbus South End’s Buckeye steel plant, where Stephanie’s father once worked, which – like the West Side General Motors parts supplier factor that Mom and I also drove by this past weekend - is completely shuttered now – endemic of problems with Ohio’s manufacturing economy.)

-- Perry

More appointments

Tuesday was a big day with Stephanie’s father in Franklin County court over a landlord-tenant issue that has been brewing for some time, and Stephanie’s mother and my Aunt June back to chemotherapy treatment. Then today my Mother was off to the orthopedist for the first of appointments with doctors and physical therapists about her back problems that her regular doctors just recognized a few weeks ago. Today I went back to work for the first time in two weeks and Stephanie’s school had their second annual International festival, which Stephanie helped organize. Tonight is our final Children’s Fellowship, which may be inside (thanks to the rain). Sunday is an outdoor Pentecost worship service (weather permitting) with me serving as head usher for the third and last time this month, after our final (bilingual) Sunday school class of the school year. I am tentatively slated to go to a training for hospital visitation at church Sunday morning and at least Stephanie to a Columbus Clippers baseball game with some former high school classmates Saturday night at the new Arena district stadium (pictured above) between downtown Columbus and Goodale Park. We’ll see which of these work out. Hope confronting medical and legal issues this week is going OK for our family members.

-- Perry