Tuesday, May 13, 2025

Ngon Quá Foodie Blog: Red Ash Italia (Anniversary Edition)

For the 26th anniversary of when we first met, which was in 1999 at the University of Texas-Austin, my wife and I decided to celebrate with a fine-dining experience at Red Ash Italia (https://www.redashgrill.com/). I actually made reservations for us back in February because they book up fast and far in advance. Our reservation was at 6:30 but they were able to seat us right as we arrived around 6:15.

We had a table in the upper loft in the corner that gave us a great view of the dining room below. The atmosphere was really quiet and romantic until. . . a large party arrived and it got noisy real fast. Thank goodness we had the table in the corner because the woman that was seated next to the large party had to move. Our servers were very attentive and the food came out at a good pace that allowed us to enough the meal in a leisurely fashion.

 
We toasted 26 years of friendship and love with an old-fashioned for me and a moscato for her.


As an appetizer, we had the special of the day and it was delicious. These are risotto balls that are deep-fried. Inside are lobster and crab meat cooked perfectly.


I had one of my favorite Italian seafood dish - frutti di mare - and it did not disappoint. The clams and mussels were so fresh and cooked so well. The shrimps were fantastic and the lobster tails were so sweet and delicious!


Theresa had the cold water lobster tails "Scampi style". Not only did she enjoyed that dish but she kept putting her generous portion of lobster tails onto my plate. I was not complaining at all.


We wrapped up our dining experience with a generous serving of their house made gelati & sorbetti. It was amazing and went well with their coffee. They comped us dessert because it was our anniversary. So sweet of them!

We enjoyed our dining experience at Red Ash Italia. The staff gave us a card for anniversary. It is certainly a special occasion restaurant, though, because of the costs. We might return in 4 years for our 30th anniversary. Bon appétit!
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Monday, May 12, 2025

Homily for Monday of the Fourth Week of Easter (Year C - 5/12/2025)


Yesterday, we celebrated Mother’s Day. Pope Leo XIV said that “one of the most wonderful expressions of the love of God is the love that is poured out by mothers, especially to their children and grandchildren.” There are so many reasons why mothers are so amazing. Their kisses heal our “booboo”. Their hugs make us feel safe and secure. Most of all, they listen with a loving heart to everything their children have to say. Saint Theresa of Lisieux wrote that “the loveliest masterpiece of the heart of God is the heart of a mother.” It is no wonder that when children hear their mother’s voice, they listen and they follow. 

In today’s Gospel, we hear Jesus say: “. . .the sheep follow him, because they recognize his voice. But they will not follow a stranger; they will run away from him, because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.” Now, you may recall from yesterday’s Gospel that Jesus said: “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish” (John 10:27-30). In the same way that we, as a child, recognized our mother’s voice, we too can hear and recognize the voice of God speaking to our hearts in prayer, his love for us, his desire for us, and what he is calling us to in life - our vocation.

In reflecting on the Gospel for Good Shepherd Sunday, Pope Leo XIV encouraged us to search for our vocations together, saying: “All of us must search together. First and foremost, by giving [a] good example in our lives, with joy, living the joy of the Gospel, not discouraging others, but rather looking for ways to encourage young people to hear the voice of the Lord and to follow it and to serve in the Church.” The Holy Father continued, saying: “Listening is what allows us to enter into true dialogue. . . We have to know how to listen - not to judge, not to shut doors as if we hold all the truth and no one else has anything to offer. . .”

My sisters and brothers in Christ, whether it is during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass or in our personal prayer time or in our day-to-day activities or in the beauty of his Creation around us, God is always speaking to our hearts and calling us to Himself. Our only response to God when He speaks to us is for us to open our ears in faith to hear God’s voice and listen to Him. However, this can be a challenge for us because we live in a very loud world that is  continuously bombarding us with noise, noise that drowns out the voice of God and makes us deaf to Him. And so, it is important for us to spend time in sacred silence with God (whether it is during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass or in Adoration before the Blessed Sacrament) to hear his voice and have the courage to follow him. After all, we are the sheep of his flock and he is the Good Shepherd who came so that we “might have life and have it more abundantly.”

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Friday, May 9, 2025

Prayer for Mother's Day (5/11/2025)

My prayer for all mothers. . . 🙏🕊❤️

Lord Jesus Christ, send your Spirit to strengthen and protect all mothers. Help them to know in their hearts that they are seen, appreciated, and, most of all, loved by their families, not only for all that they do and the sacrifices that they make for their families but, above all, for who they are - your beloved daughters.

Strengthen by your love, O Lord, a mother is the rock of her family. She is the glue that holds everyone and everything together. Her kisses wipe away tears. Her hugs heal the broken-hearted. Her love fills her home with warmth and joy.

In times when the cross that mothers bear becomes too heavy, help them to know that they can yoke themselves to you because your yoke is easy, your burden light (Matthew 11:30). Bless all mothers that their hearts become ever more like the Immaculate Heart of your Mother Mary.

We ask all this through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary as we pray. . .

Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.

Amen. 🙏🕊❤️



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Reflecting on Conclave and Pope Leo XIV as the Successor of Peter (May 8, 2025)


Growing up, I knew of Pope John Paul II from the news but it was not until I become a Catholic in 2008 that I truly appreciated him as Pope. With Pope Benedict XVI, I was starting to discover my Catholic faith but I did not really pay attention to what he was doing until I entered Diaconal Formation and started reading his writings. However, I thought it was pretty cool that the La Sang Sisters were able to get us a Papal Blessing for our marriage. It was towards the end of Pope Benedict XVI's papacy, as I was discerning God's call to me to the Diaconate, that I started to pay more attention to the hierarchy of the Catholic Church.

In a way, I guess you can say that Pope Francis shaped the formation that I received to become a deacon, because we focused a lot of healing, evangelization, and what it means to love our neighbor and be merciful as God is merciful. Pope Francis also challenged me to go to the peripheries to help those on the fringes of society, something that I strive to do in diaconal ministry with some challenge when it comes to certain aspects. It was hard to watch Pope Francis struggle with his health towards the end of his life but it was also inspirational. He always preached how the elderly members of our families (our grandparents, etc.) have so much wisdom, knowledge, and love to share with their families, and Pope Francis was an example of that to the end for all of us.

I was deeply sadden when I learned that Pope Francis returned home to the Father the morning after Easter Sunday. This was the homily that I shared that morning: https://dcnphuc2019.blogspot.com/2025/04/homily-for-monday-in-octave-of-easter.html. Also, this is the message that I shared with the Catholic Daughters of America (CDA) and Knights of Columbus (KC) in my brief homily during the May Crowning and Living Rosary on May 3, 2025: https://phucphan.podbean.com/e/why-do-we-pray-the-rosary-a-reflection-on-mary-and-pope-francis-532025/. 

Theresa and I were in Corpus Christi for the Knights of Columbus State Council Convention and we set our alarm clock to wake up at 2:30 A.M. CST to watch the funeral Mass of Pope Francis. It was a moving and beautiful ceremony, yet still captured the simplicity of how Pope Francis lived his life that shared his papacy. For us in the Diocese of Austin, it was strange not to be able to hear the name of the Pope or the Bishop of Austin in the Eucharistic Prayer. And so, as we mourned the death of Pope Francis, the Universal Church was also preparing for Conclave, which started on May 7, 2025, to elect the next Successor of Saint Peter, the Vicar o Christ, the Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church, and the Bishop of Rome.

This was the third Conclave in my lifetime but the first one that I really paid attention to and, with livestreaming available, it make Conclave accessible for all of us on our devices. It was actually quite fun to watch the coverage of Conclave even if it was just watching a live image of the chimney on the Sistine Chapel, waiting for the white smoke. I dare say, "Watching the chimney live is like watching grass grow but much more exciting. . ." Ha!

Then, on May 8, 2025, we had white smoke! It was so funny. . . one of my co-workers poked her head into my office to let me know that we have "white smoke" because she received notification on her phone. You got to love technology! As Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, emerged from the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica, I teared up. Not because he is the first American Pope but because we are no longer sede vacante. A dear friend of mine, who faithfully attends 6:30 A.M. Mass with me at Saint Mary Cathedral, talked about how weird it was not to have a Pope and how all is right with the world again now that we have a Pope. #HabemusPapam!

[From Vatican News: Here is the official record confirming that Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost accepted the election canonically making him Supreme Pontiff and the name he has chosen. The document was drawn up by the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations, Monsignor Diego Giovanni Ravelli, acting as notary. Written in Latin, the name Leo XIV appears in red.]

The first words of Pope Leo XIV were "Peace be with you" (see link below for the text of his first speech). I particularly love this part of his speech:

God loves you all, and evil will not prevail!  All of us are in God’s hands.  So, let us move forward, without fear, together, hand in hand with God and with one another other!   We are followers of Christ.  Christ goes before us.  The world needs his light. Humanity needs him as the bridge that can lead us to God and his love.  Help us, one and all, to build bridges through dialogue and encounter, joining together as one people, always at peace.  Thank you, Pope Francis!

Then, this morning, Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass with the Cardinals who took part in Conclave. Below are excerpts from Pope Leo XIV's first homily that moved me:

Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God: the one Savior who alone reveals the face of the Father.

In him, God, in order to make himself close and accessible to men and women, revealed himself to us in the trusting eyes of a child, in the lively mind of a young person, and in the mature features of a man (cf. Gaudium et Spes, 22), finally appearing to his disciples after the Resurrection with his glorious body. He thus showed us a model of human holiness that we can all imitate, together with the promise of an eternal destiny that transcends all our limits and abilities. . .

In a particular way, God has called me by your election to succeed the Prince of the Apostles, and has entrusted this treasure to me so that, with his help, I may be its faithful administrator (cf. 1 Cor 4:2) for the sake of the entire mystical Body of the Church. He has done so in order that she may be ever more fully a city set on a hill (cf. Rev 21:10), an ark of salvation sailing through the waters of history and a beacon that illumines the dark nights of this world. . .

Even today, there are many settings in which the Christian faith is considered absurd, meant for the weak and unintelligent. Settings where other securities are preferred, like technology, money, success, power, or pleasure.

These are contexts where it is not easy to preach the Gospel and bear witness to its truth, where believers are mocked, opposed, despised or at best tolerated and pitied. Yet, precisely for this reason, they are the places where our missionary outreach is desperately needed. A lack of faith is often tragically accompanied by the loss of meaning in life, the neglect of mercy, appalling violations of human dignity, the crisis of the family and so many other wounds that afflict our society. . .

Today, too, there are many settings in which Jesus, although appreciated as a man, is reduced to a kind of charismatic leader or superman. This is true not only among non-believers but also among many baptized Christians, who thus end up living, at this level, in a state of practical atheism.

This is the world that has been entrusted to us, a world in which, as Pope Francis taught us so many times, we are called to bear witness to our joyful faith in Jesus the Savior. Therefore, it is essential that we too repeat, with Peter: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16).

It is essential to do this, first of all, in our personal relationship with the Lord, in our commitment to a daily journey of conversion. Then, to do so as a Church, experiencing together our fidelity to the Lord and bringing the Good News to all (cf. Lumen Gentium, 1).

I say this first of all to myself, as the Successor of Peter, as I begin my mission as Bishop of Rome and, according to the well-known expression of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, am called to preside in charity over the universal Church (cf. Letter to the Romans, Prologue). Saint Ignatius, who was led in chains to this city, the place of his impending sacrifice, wrote to the Christians there: “Then I will truly be a disciple of Jesus Christ, when the world no longer sees my body” (Letter to the Romans, IV, 1). Ignatius was speaking about being devoured by wild beasts in the arena – and so it happened – but his words apply more generally to an indispensable commitment for all those in the Church who exercise a ministry of authority. It is to move aside so that Christ may remain, to make oneself small so that he may be known and glorified (cf. Jn 3:30), to spend oneself to the utmost so that all may have the opportunity to know and love him.

I am looking forward to what God has in store for the papacy of Pope Leo XIV. I found it interesting, but not surprising, how people have already started to comment and speculate on what kind of a Pope Leo XIV will be. God will always give the Church and the world the Pope that we need. Come Holy Spirit! For our part, I believe all we need to do is pray, pray, pray for our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV. In the immortal words of Pope Francis: "Pray for me. I am praying for you."


Links:
Great pictures of Pope Leo XIV with Saint John Paul II, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, and Pope Francis. The Spirit of Father has prepared Pope Leo XIV for this moment in time to lead the Catholic Church of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

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Monday, May 5, 2025

Exult, let them exult. . . (Easter Vigil 2025)


I had the blessed opportunity to chant the Exsultet (Easter Proclamation) at the Easter Vigil again this year. It is the third straight year that I have had this blessing. In the first year, I prepared on my own by listening to a recording of the Exsultet on YouTube and sang along with the music sheet from the Roman Missal. Last year, my second year, I practice before our Music Director-English, Ben Batalla, and opened myself up to his guidance (you can read more about in my blog for 2023 below).

This year, taking Ben's advice following last year's Easter Vigil, I started working with Liliana Herrera, our Music Director-Spanish, back on August of 2024. Ben noticed that I had voice fatigue toward the end of the chant and suggested that I work with Liliana to help with my breathing. She and I met once a month, on the first Sunday of the month (only missing a few times for various reasons), to practicing breathing exercises, doing vocal warm ups, working on my posture, and when to breathe and when not to breathe during the 10-minute chant.

While working with Liliana, who is an amazingly talented vocalist and I am so blessed that she set aside time out of her busy schedule to work with me, I grew in two significant ways. First, I sang in front of another person (a professional vocalist) and thus opened myself up to critiques. Second, I started to record myself and listen to the recordings to self-evaluate. Both of these things I never thought I would do because I do not like to listen to my own voice on recording and opening myself up to critiques takes a lot of humility. However, Liliana was so gracious and gentle that any walls or barriers that I had were gone and I welcome her advice and suggestions. As a result, that Tuesday evening of Holy Week, I had the courage to practice in the sanctuary, with the microphone on, and, in a way, serenated the crew that was cleaning the church, along with other people who walked in and out of the church.

Moreover, whereas the previous two times, I held onto the binder with the music sheet, this time around, I had the binder on a music stand. (I did not even have the binder with me during the Lucernarium by the "roaring fire" outside. "Jesus, I trust in you" because before, I feared that I would get to the ambo and my binder would not be there.) By putting the binder on the music stand, this allowed me to be more expressive and paved the way for me to look at the people when I chanted, which was exactly what I did at the Easter Vigil.

Finally, Liliana encouraged me to feel the flow of the Exsultet with my spiritual and prayerful senses, and that was when it all came together for me. I invited the Holy Spirit to help me share this story of salvation with the people of God in a way that helps them to feel God's love for them. The Holy Spirit filled the sanctuary that evening, I could feel his loving presence in my heart, no doubt about it.

I am so grateful to Liliana for her time and effort in helping me prepare for the Exsultet. She is such a blessing to our parish. Now, if I have the blessed opportunity to change the Exsultet again next Easter Vigil, then I might attempt to memorize the lyrics. . . however, I will still have my binder with me just in case. . . Come Holy Spirit. . . Jesus, I trust in you. . . 


Here is a link to my reflection from the Easter Vigil in 2024:

Here is a link to my reflection on being Catholic for 15 years:

Here is a link to my reflection from the Easter Vigil in 2023:
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Friday, May 2, 2025

Trial Preparation: A Reflection on the Call of Saint Matthew

[Photo of trial team (left to right): me, Brooke (litigation support), Sara (attorney), our client rep, and Eli (attorney)]

For all the cases that I work on as a paralegal, I always want the cases to settle before we have to take them to trial - jury or bench. For me, when the case settles, it means that the parties have listened to the reasoned counsel of their attorneys and reached a mutual agreement on how to best resolve their differences. From a biblical standpoint, this is what Jesus teaches us to do, saying: "Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison" (Matthew 5:25).

However, when a case does go to trial, I know in my heart (through prayer) that our Lord has a lesson that he wants me to learn during my experience at trial. Most of all, Jesus is teaching me to trust in him. "Jesus, I trust in you" continues to be what I live by when it comes to my personal life, professional life, and ministerial life. Our Lord has answered my prayers in so many ways thus far this year, particularly in the month of April. Back in February, I had three (3). . . yes, you read that right, three (3) trial settings in April.

The first trial setting was from April 14-18. . . yes, Holy Week! Both me and one of the attorneys on the case (who is a Catholic) were relieved (to say the least) when the case settled. The second trial setting was from April 21-25. . . yep, trial starts on the Monday after Easter. As a Catholic, I firmly believe that to truly close out Lent and enter into Easter in the right spiritual mindset, we must experience Holy Week to the fullest, particularly the Sacred Paschal Triduum - Holy Thursday of the Lord's Supper, Good Friday of the Lord's Passion, and the Great Vigil of Easter. Then, go to Mass again on Easter Sunday. Thankfully, April 21-25 trial setting got moved to May 19-23 because the lead attorney on our trial team had another trial in Miami.

The last trial setting was from April 28-May 2 and, while this trial setting did not conflict with Holy Week or Easter, I did have the Knights of Columbus State Convention, in Corpus Christi, the weekend before trial was set to start. I brought this to my attorney's attention months ago and I am grateful to her for being okay with me attending the convention so I could fulfil my role as the Assistant to the State Chaplain for the Knights of Columbus Texas State Council. Being able to get away and spend time with our Lord Jesus Christ and with my brother Knights was what I needed spiritually to prepare me for trial. It was physically exhausting but I am glad my wife drove to and from the convention so I could relax.


I always believe that every trial that God lets me experience, He has something that He wants me to learn and gain from my trial experience. In this case, it has been eleven (11) years since my last out-of-town trial so, from a professional standpoint, God wanted me to have this opportunity once again (but this time, I did not have another paralegal with me). I worked with our client's people to book the meeting room for us to use as a mobile "war room" and our hotel rooms at the Fairfield Inn & Suites - Georgetown. Then, I worked with our folks to prepare the mobile "war room" with everything we needed for trial - from snacks to a printer to trial supplies, etc. There were a lot of boxes to transport and set up but our attorneys had everything they needed to represent our client in court, so we accomplished our goal (see below for my "thank you" to all involved). It was a great experience for me as a paralegal to prepare for an out-of-town trial and I am grateful to God for the opportunity.

From a spiritual growth, as I listened to our attorney present our client's story to the judge (not jury because it was a bench trial), I thought of the call of Saint Matthew (9:9): As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post. He said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. Matthew was a tax collector who was despised by the Jewish people because they felt that he was working with the Romans against his own people. In a conversation that I shared with one of my trial members, I said that we all need to make a living and provide for our families. I will not get into any more details but wanted to share that that was what I felt God wanted me to learn from this trial experience - love and compassion toward our neighbor. It is a God-incidence that all of this happen a week after the Holy Father was called home to the Father. Pope Francis' papacy was focused on love of God and love of neighbor - that is the Joy of the Gospel and how to live lives of mercy towards others as God has mercy on us.

As a sidebar, one of my responsibilities as a paralegal during trial is to keep track of admitted trial exhibits and work with the court reporter and the paralegal across the aisle to ensure that all admitted trial exhibits are in the record. The court reporter gave me one of the best compliments ever. She said that I kept good detailed records of admitted trial exhibits. I pointed out a couple of trial exhibits that she did not have on her list as being admitted and was able to point her to which witness testimonies that exhibits were offered and admitted.

It was a good week in court. Now, on to the next trial. . . which starts on May 19th. . . I am excited to see what God wants me to experience next. . .

. . .Addendum. . .

Thank you, Adam, for covering for me last Friday and weekend and getting everything Sara needed while I was in Corpus Christi. Also, many thanks for helping me move into the mobile “war room”.

Thank you, Tyler & Jake, for getting us all set up in the mobile “war room”. Everything was great! We had everything we needed.

Thank you, Angie & Adam, for working together to order us lunches daily, helping with filings, etc. Thank you, John, for pulling together the supplies. Thank you, Melissa, for delivering the additional supplies to us.

Thank you, Tyler H., again, for being there yesterday afternoon to tear down the mobile “war room” and helping us bring things back to the office.

Thank you, Tyler G., for your quick research into legislative materials for Eli yesterday.

Of course, thank you, Sammie, for covering for me during trial. Hopefully, it was not too crazy but, then again, I have pretrial deadlines for the trial starting on May 19th.

Thank you, everyone! It takes a village for out of town trials and I am glad you guys are my village.
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Tuesday, April 29, 2025

Prayer for the 50th Anniversary of the Fall of Saigon (4/30/2025)





Hello, this is Deacon Phúc Phan, from St. Albert the Great Catholic Church, and I am joined by my wife, Theresa. Thank you for joining us for this time of prayer and reflection as we commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon.

April 30, 2025, will mark the 50th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon in 1975. This date, also known as ‘Black April,’ marks the end of the Vietnam War and is used as a day of remembrance to honor the lives lost. The aftermath of the war left many families vulnerable and prompted hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese people to flee the country. Many were welcomed as refugees in the United States.

Personally, my family immigrated to the United States in 1983, 8 years after the fall of Saigon. My parents braved the perilous journey so that their children could have a better future in America. I am grateful to my parents for their courage in the face of uncertainty and, as I reflect back on the stories that my parents have told us about their “escape” from Vietnam, I thank God for protecting us.

Dear friends, on the 50th Anniversary of the Fall of Saigon, let us pray that the Lord may bless our beloved homeland Vietnam with lasting peace and prosperity, and grant its people the grace to live in true freedom founded on justice and compassion. 

We pray for our community, especially here at St. Albert the Great Catholic Church, that we may be a source of healing, hope, and compassion for one another, and that we may work together to build a more just and loving world.

We ask that the God of All Families, Cultures, and Nations teach us to hold one another in love and respect. May He help us to welcome and appreciate each other in our parish communities. 

In a spirit of deep gratitude, we ask the Lord to pour out His abundant blessings upon the nations and peoples who welcomed and cared for Vietnamese refugees and immigrants, allowing them the opportunity to live in peace, and to contribute in return to the flourishing of their second homeland.

And now, let us pray the Prayer to our Lady of Lavang, Patroness of Vietnam and the Vietnamese people, first in Vietnamese and then in English.

Lạy Mẹ Maria, Thánh Mẫu La Vang, Mẹ là Thánh Mẫu Chúa Trời, cùng là Thánh Mẫu loài người chúng con.  Cúi xin xuống phước hải hà, đoái thương con cái thiết tha van nài.
Xin cho chúng con tấm lòng từ bi nhân hậu, đại lượng bao dung, cùng nhau bồi đắp nền văn minh tình thương và sự sống.
Xin Mẹ phù hộ chúng con, luôn sống đức hạnh, đầy lòng cậy trông.  Và sau cuộc đời này, xin cho chúng con được về sống bên Mẹ, hưởng vinh phúc trong Chúa Ba Ngôi muôn đời.  Amen.


O Mary, Holy Mother of La Vang, Mother of God and our most loving Mother, pour out your abundant blessings upon your children who earnestly implore you. Give us a heart of compassion and charity to build a culture of love and life. Help us to live lives of virtue and hope, so that we may enjoy eternal life and the happiness of the Trinity with you for all eternity. Amen.

The Lord be with you. R: And with your spirit.
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Ngon Quá Foodie Blog: Red Ash Italia (Anniversary Edition)

For the 26th anniversary of when we first met, which was in 1999 at the University of Texas-Austin, my wife and I decided to celebrate with ...