Sweet Victory for Two Fisters: July 6, 2013 will go down in history for this year’s women tennis champs! Congratulations to both Hsieh Su-Wei and her partner Peng Shuai who brought home the trophy by winning this year’s Women’s Doubles Championship at Wimbledon, the oldest tennis tournament in the world since 1877. Peng and Hsieh have been friends since they were about 13 or 14 years old, winning their first of their five tour titles together in 2008. However this year’s Wimbledon win is their first Major Women’s Doubles title win together. Similar to legendary women’s champ Monica Seles, both ladies hit the ball using two hands on both sides (Peng doesn’t change hands but Hsieh does). Hsieh Su-wei was born January 4, 1986 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. As of April 2013 she was ranked No. 38 in the WTA Tour singles rankings and is the highest ranked Taiwanese women’s singles player ever. Hsieh’s Wimbledon win makes her the first person from Taiwan to win a Grand Slam title of any kind. She was introduced to tennis by her father at five years of age. Peng Shuai was born days after her partner on January 8, 1986 in Xiangtan, China. As of June 2013, Peng is the 2nd ranked Chinese women’s player (out of 3 in the top 100). Peng began playing at age eight when her famous tennis coach uncle in China introduced her to the game. At age 13, Peng overcame heart surgery to become the champion she is today. This year’s women’s champion Marion Bartoli, is also a two fister from France. This was Bartoli’s 47th Grand Slam tournament, the most ever played by a woman before earning a championship.

It Pays to Be Bi-Lingual: July 4th weekend is all about fireworks, BBQ, and watching lots of movies on TV. Because I’m a fan of Jason Stratham and action movies, “Safe” caught my attention and I was duly impressed with young Catherine Chan, the young mathematical whiz kid who is caught between Chinatown Triads and the Russian Mafia in NYC. Chan made her big screen debut opposite Stratham and Triad Boss, played by the infamous James Hong, who also doesn’t disappoint as he speaks to his young ward in Mandarin. The 12 year old star says her mother thought she would be a natural as an actress because she always “had a lot of expressions on my face.” Read more:http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/catherine-chan-12-feels-safe-making-debut-action-movie-jason-statham-article-1.1068167#ixzz2YWSgsYEb and it’s true. I see great roles for this newcomer!

Contract Worker by Choice: There’s nothing that Ms. Kim cannot do…matador, salsa dancer, mechanic, bus driver, midwife, chef, judo master…. Whereas everyone in South Korea longs for a permanent, fulltime, stable job, Ms. Kim is the Temp Worker extraordinaire who works for 3 months and disappears until her next temp assignment. She never works for free, doesn’t work any extra hours or do anything that isn’t in her contract; She’s a Superwoman who can do any job better than anyone at any office. She is a woman of mystery, has a certain tough-love-charisma who can’t lie and doesn’t hesitate to put all the men, especially “Mr. Cabbage Patch Head” in his place. She is after all, THE Queen of the Office, a popular Korean TV Drama on Monday nights. And the show is addicting…my friend Francine Castanon from Oxnard told me about Ms. Kim and how her family doesn’t miss a weekly episode even though they have to read the subtitles: “We love her ability to solve all problems and she always finishes her task; she doesn’t let small things stand in her way. She is the Korean Wonder Woman!” Ms. Kim rocks!

Dysfunctional Developments: Alone the characters seem a bit off the wall but together they fit together like a tightly fit puzzle who subscribe to the “7 Deadly Sins” mantra. “Arrested Development” is a comedy that follows a wealthy but estranged family in Orange County; the show has won 6 Emmys and 2 Golden Globes in the past 10 years and is still going strong. In May, Netflix released 14 thirty minute episodes all at once and one can sit and watch each episode easily, one after another. The longest appearing Asian American actor has been Justin Lee who plays Annyong Bluth, adopted by the lady dowager Lucille mid-way through the first season to make her appear more compassionate. “Annyong” means hello in Korean, and so the family called him that since he kept saying the word every day. Raised in Mission Viejo, California, Justin Lee was born in Los Angeles to two Korean immigrant parents who strongly supported Justin’s extracurricular activities whether it was acting, playing musical instruments or competing in all sports (he’s a Mixed Martial Arts expert). “I wanted to act since I was 4 years old. My parents were more supportive than most Asian immigrant parents, but it took them a while to accept that I didn’t want to be a lawyer,” says Lee. His motto: “Life is a series of moments, love every minute, love every second.” Fans can look forward to seeing the Bluths up close and personal on the big screen.