San Diego: A Photo Diary

San Diego was much more low-key than my other trips with coworkers … but that was precisely what we needed: a chill weekend. It was nice to get out of LA and have a change in scenery. And of course, the 8 of us (Ali, Tiffany, Bernice, Neil, Stephen, Steve, and Ham) never fail to have fun. : )

 

Our poolside view from our room in Hotel Solomar!

I loved this mirror in our room.

Night 1: Altitude. You can see the Padre stadium from the rooftop.

Possibly the favorite part of the trip: comp’ed breakfast at J6. Four of us ran up a $110 tab.

Neil and Stephen at PB.

Back at the pool in the hotel.

Night 2: The crew at Ra Sushi.

View from Stingaree rooftop. You can see our hotel in the background.

 

Fun weekend friends!

Grim Times

Wow, this is surreal.

Wamu just got seized by the government; this is by far the biggest bank failure in US history. In shock? You should be. There goes our Wamu accounts. JPMorgan Chase it is.

Although my understanding of this crisis is still limited (the complex structurings of CDOs and MBSs can spin you in circles), I know that “financial troubles” is a euphemism for unprecedented financial chaos. Companies are collapsing everywhere and my job is surely affected by this, too. Grim times for everyone, but especially those living in New York. I wonder what the unemployment rate is in that state right now.

And the bailout plan didn’t get pushed through the House either, which means the market is going to plummet tomorrow. Our generation is fortunate in the sense that we don’t have retirement savings with these banks, but I guess it could also be argued the other way. Who’s going pay for all these huge bailouts? NPR mentioned that it would cost $10K per American family in additional taxes. 

Scary.

 

On a lighter, more irrelevant note: San Diego tomorrow! Time to visit Paula and Amy.

 

 

Update: What a terrible night. I feel so sad. Cmon trojans!!!!

I need to read more.

After visiting Jason’s apartment in downtown, I realized that I need to update my room from a tween to a twentys lifestyle. I’m tearing down all the high school photos taped to my wall. Hopefully I can start putting up all the posters I’ve bought from Cambodia/China. I need more color in here.

Anyway, I decided to clean my bookcase, which is overflowing with books. Just look at how many I’ve bought and haven’t read:

That’s definitely over $300 in investments.

All my other books that I’ve read:

Do not let me buy anymore books.

Current read: White Teeth, as recommended by Ms. Zhong. I still need to return Atonement to you, btw.

A Little Tokyo Adventure

Decided to be less boring today by meeting up with Christina, Jiesi, Darin, Shawn and Connie for some serious sushi business and relationship talk at Sushi Gen in Little Tokyo. SAVORY, both in conversation and food! Ha. It makes me happy to be seeing such good college friends again … even if it’s to harp about our careers and the depressing economy. (We really shouldn’t be complaining … at least we have jobs, right?) It was a nice reunion; as Shawn puts it, “We should do this more often … not just once a year.” It’s somewhat reassuring to know that we’re all in similar positions, all seeking adventure and something new.

A few things:

• It’s back to my two favorite tv guilty pleasures: HOUSE and THE COLBERT REPORT. I just bought Season 4 of House on Tuesday and I’m already through 6 episodes. Holla. I need to catch up ASAP so I can start watching Season 5 and discussing each show with Allen and Steve. This should keep me busy up until busy season. And Stephen Colbert … well, he’s just genius. I love him – I hope he wins an Emmy!
• I broke my diet yesterday and today (I know Steve would be disappointed in me) but I’ve been very good at working out almost everyday. I bought the {please don’t laugh} Biggest Loser workout DVDs and they are super difficult workouts! I’ve never sweated so much in my life before. Feels great though. I’m not losing any weight, but at least I’m becoming more toned. Achieving some progress … slowly.

So who wants to come see Lady Danville and Tyrone Wells with me on Nov. 14?! I am SO excited and have become such a huge fan! I haven’t been to a concert in ages so it’s about time that I start appreciating live music again. I’m also a big fan of Bon Iver but they don’t have any tour dates in the West Coast. Sad. Bring them to LA!

Tomorrow: bridesmaid dress fitting (again), lunch, mani/pedis with crey, possibly gym and some LA adventures*!

*boba required.

Find Me

can you find me in this broken city -

i’m

wedged in between financial, jewelry, fashion districts

in between pavement cracks, unprotected lefts, and Joe’s parking lots.

i brush against so many people on the streets,

see their badges flap against their crisply pressed black slacks,

sense the coffee swoosh in grande coffee cups.

be careful not to spill.

did you lose me in this maze

of professionalism, corporate ladders and career aspirations?

i’m still here incase you forgot.

do you ever listen to me anymore?

it’s all about happy hours, face-time, and traffic.

to me it’s all the same: excuses.

where’s the pen and paper that you promised.

when’s the last time you visited just to be free?

i only ask because i care

because i want you to find me.

Good eats

I’m not sure if PLAN 110 is working, but I’ve been going to the gym 4x/week for my second straight week! I’m quite proud of myself. All I needed was a bit of motivation; ironic how it comes from the most unexpected sources.

I’m also trying to eat healthier by packing salads to work. But I end up craving food at weird hours. In fact, I made myself a delicious avocado and ham sandwich half an hour ago at 11 pm. Too much temptation. FOOD = HAPPY.

One thing I must mention is Robek’s Acai Bowl. This is something that Steve introduced me to a while ago and its one of the best things I’ve ever had. THIS IS NO OVERSTATEMENT. And it’s healthy! And better than Pinkberry. YES, I dare say that I think it’s better than Pinkberry.

But you have to get it blended! I think I’m gonna get myself one tomorrow morning … YUM!

 

 

Listen to Lady Danville – Tired Magician

“I paid my dues …”

Spicy.

I looked nice today. I’m usually not narcissistic, but oh, what the hell. Every girl deserves to feel pretty once in a while. Had a nice dinner at Luna Park … thank you, kyi! The poke, banana foster, mac&cheese, and mojitos were delicious!

Overall, a very pleasant day.

Tomorrow: language exchange partner then art exhibit with the hawaiian boys.

Nonsense

1. I love Stephen Colbert. I’m officially addicted to his show. His interviews … I can’t stop laughing.

2. Went to the gym three days in a row but I’m not losing ANY weight. In fact, I’m gaining weight. I need to control my lunches and dinners again. Back to S&Ss my friends … sandwiches and salads. Tried out a steps class today and nearly died from exhaustion. And this was a “basics” class. What the hell is going on. I took a step aerobics class at USC and it wasn’t nearly as difficult. God. I’m getting old and fat. I think tomorrow I’ll just stay at home and do pilates.

3. Tomorrow is Van Damm Friday! Yesssss.

Season Premiere

There’s a Chinese saying that when the current zodiac year falls on your birth year, it’ll be a difficult one. This superstition definitely lived up to its hype because it’s been a challenging past 9 months for me. According to the lunar calendar, I’m 24 this year. Twenty-four and battling busy season, loneliness, and unrequited efforts was no fun. I don’t even want to know what’s in store for me the remaining 90 days of this year. Hopefully, I’ll pull through.

This weekend was no exception with its ups and downs. I learned some things that I should’ve realized long ago, but that’s okay. No regrets, right? Ironic how this happens right as all the primetime shows come out with their season premieres. I always argue that time and place never work out in my favor, but I guess in this instance, it does. It is my time and my place to focus on ME and nothing more. So, like the season premiere, it’s out with summer and in with fall.

To mark this new beginning, I accomplished a lot today on my day off (yes, I extended my long weekend ). I had my annual physical and was happily surprised to know that my liver is okay. The doctor also gave me some topical antibiotics for my acne so that better go away soon. Afterward, I went to the dentist where I had my first root canal but it wasn’t nearly as painful as I thought. The dentist did a great job and hasn’t charged me anything yet – I’m hoping everything is covered by my insurance and I won’t come home one day to a fat billing. 

The most exciting part of the day was my workout at the gym! I finally, FINALLY used my membership and checked out the new LA Fitness on Fremont. I haven’t been to the gym since college so I’m in embarrassing shape. Since I’m going to be my aunt’s bridesmaid in a month, I figure I’ll have some motivation to shed some weight. (We’re getting fitted for our dresses this weekend … oh lord, I’m not sure how I’m going to squeeze into it when I weighed about 6 – 8 lbs less in the original fitting). Anyway, I hit the ellipticals, treadmills, and stairmaster burning 500 calories. Holla. It felt so good and healthy to have a strong workout. I’ll definitely be hitting up the gym again tomorrow night so holler if you want to join.

Finally, David Kiang finally messaged me back on facebook which makes me really happy. Now I’m off to write him an email …

 

Edit: Hugs to Paula and Hamilton for the very, very late night conversations yesterday. Thank you guys so much!

Someday, a Sunday

 

Went to Guppy’s in Hacienda Heights with Judy, Paula, Allen, and Ken. I was totally dressed to go work out at the new LA fitness on Fremont BUT the plan was completely foiled so I did the opposite of working out: eating super unhealthy food. It was delicious … until we kept forcing down the super shaved ice. Good times … thanks friends for cheering me up!