rawr its jess

my brother graduated!

2010-06-11T12:27:00.001-07:00

as of last night, my little brother, Stefan, is a Graduate of 2010! he graduated with a few of his friends, and even though the ceremony dragged on, it was great. my mom had an amazing, fun speech and after giving out diplomas, they played a video of all the graduates answering random questions!

it was cute and my brother was incredibly handsome and amazing! i'm so proud of him!

he wants to be an EMT/Fireman, and he'll be perfect at it, and last night i decided why... one of the random questions asked was, "what is your favorite Bible character?" and Stefan's answer was the most original and meaningful to him: Noah. why? because he was used by God to save people and animals, and that is what Stefan wants to do!

i LOVE him!

on a side note, i'm finally finished with spring semester! my grades are slowly being posted, but so far i'm getting in A in everything, so i'm happy :) now starting this summer semester, i'll be taking classes that aren't going towards my GE or transfer, but towards my actual DEGREE! so when i finally transfer to UCR (or wherever) in Fall of 2011, i'll have all of the hard, boring stuff out of the way :)

so an asian walks into a bar, and...

2010-05-26T12:02:00.000-07:00

so i'm officially 21 now!

it feels so weird, like i have gained a new level of independence, but otherwise i feel the same.
the whole day was just spent relaxing. my mom was in the hospital all day for her surgery, and my dad was with her, so it was a bummer not spending time with them at all on my birthday, but we're going to celebrate later once my mom feels up to it :)

i was bad and ditched my morning classes, and for lunch i went with my brother to Chipotle and met Bri and Ashley. i bought a margarita, but the tequila was pretty strong, so not as refreshing as i hoped for. but still cool because of the fact that i was legally able to order it!

i went out to Cabin Sushi for dinner! all-you-can-eat sushi, and the chefs there think i'm amazing. they even made me a special sushi-rice cake with a candle and everything! i also had a beer, some sake, quail egg shots (they didn't have alcohol, but still gross!) and of course, tons of sushi!

i had my first official beer at midnight from Killarney's, a Newcastle!

margariiiiiita!

sushi cake!

Christin, aka Bo Bo!

Sarah, Bri, me and Ashley!

Kamron!

my brother, Stefan, and neighbor, Daniel!

this guy is pretty cool, even though everyone jokes that he is secretly in love with me because he remembers my face from my debit card. and of course, they got me to take a picture with him.

Lauren!

the owner of Cabin Sushi! he is so sweet!

our table with the chefs :)

the night ended at The Getaway, where i had a couple more drinks and played some pool. i actually sucked, but i made an impossible shot possible! it was awesome. then i guess my night really ended when we were dropping Bri off, and Michael came out with some vodka and shot glasses. i only had one shot, but i guess that was my tipping point because apparently, i would not shut up the rest of the ride home.

fortunately, i did not wake up with a hangover (i actually did not drink as much as it sounds, and alcohol is overrated anyways) but woke up groggy. it's fun having a few drinks here and there, but i'm not planning on getting wasted every weekend like most people my age do.

cheers to good, clean fun with family and friends!

weekend update

2010-05-23T23:15:00.001-07:00

wow, this past weekend has been a blessing in so many ways. for every negative thing that happened or that i felt, there was something greater that pulled me out of it. i can definitely say that during my weakest moments, my prayers were answered and God gave me a nudge to keep my head up.

excuse the long post that i feel may be coming up, but i have a feeling that this post has a lot of personal potential :)

Saturday started well because i was able to sleep in until 9am (trust me, this is big news) and relax until i left for the afternoon. my mom wanted to take me shopping for my birthday and buy me a few outfits for the summer. Kohls was having a sale, and even though i never shop there, i found a lot of great stuff that fits my style exactly! (thanks, mom!)

the rest of the day i did homework, then later that evening watched (500) Days of Summer. it was a lot different than what i expected, but reminded me of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (one of my favorite movies). either way, i still loved it, and it made me cry...of course...but it also made me smile, which is worth it.

Sunday began by myself with the early 9:30am service at my church...inspiring message, and i noticed i didn't say anything all morning until we had our congregational reading from the book of Psalms. it was weird, but when i was reading aloud, it hit me that my first words spoken that morning were from the Bible. it was motivating to know that i absolutely started my day the right way.

afterward, i decided to wander around the mall and found this beauty:

i love it! can't wait to carve some hills.
(i was also able to cross it off as #56 on my list of 101 things to do!)

that night i met my friends Christin and Lauren to hang out with them at the Point, a college-age study group at the Grove. afterward, i went with them to a going-away party for one of the people from that group, and it was cool. met some nice people and had a good time! i'm trying to make a solid effort to find some Christian friends, and i'm glad that God is providing that for me.

like i said at the beginning of this post, i had some weak and emotionally tiring moments. but, thanks to prayer and friends and family, i was able to keep my head up. if i learned anything this weekend, it is that God really does give me strength and blessed opportunities to grow :)

i think you're 14 and took a roofie from a priest!

2010-05-18T15:15:00.000-07:00

i haven't been blogging for a while for several reasons, but i've got the time for it now, so hopefully there will be more posts in the future. maybe i'll explain later, but for now i'll just say that i am waking up every day praying that God will reveal Himself to me and help me grow. it's scary being alone, not because i have been so used to being with someone, but because it is the hardest thing i've had to do for myself. days are still hard, but like i said, i'm praying.

anyways! this past weekend wasn't too bad, i was very artistic and sophisticated! and i got a head start on my homework so i was able to sit around and be lazy, too.

saturday: went to the Riverside Art Museum to check out the UCR Master's of Fine Art's Exhibit, Strange Brew. it was for my Humanities class, in which i'm supposed to write a critique paper on the exhibit itself. it was an...interesting!

sunday: an inspiring message at church, then that evening i went with Ashley, Bri, Sarah, and Sarah's mom to the Redlands Rose Bowl to watch Romeo and Juliet. it was fun! we packed a picnic and had front-row seats on the grass.

(photos courtesy of Ashley)

our picnic was inspired by Romeo and Juliet...well, except for the Costco sushi and KFC, but we also had a meat tray, veggie tray, blackberries, shrimp, lemonade, raspberry ale, and a raspberry/lime champagne mix! we had a ton of food leftover, but it was a ton of fun being able to pick at everything and stuff ourselves :)
this was the best lemonade ever! courtesy of Ashley from World Market

i'm notorious for adding my finger in some of Ashley's photographs!
no, i'm not 21 yet so i wasn't able to drink this legally, but it was yummy!

Sarah was very upset with the young girls that were playing around us, and was very close to chucking our bottle-opener at them!

also, if you're thinking, "wow that is a really weird and disturbing subject line for this post!" then you should watch this, because it provides an explanation. but will probably leave you more feeling more weird and disturbed...

you should see the view when it's only You

2010-05-02T19:58:00.000-07:00

Take my heart, I lay it down
At the feet of you whose crowned
Take my life, I'm letting go
I lift it up to You who's throned

And I will worship You, Lord
Only You, Lord
And I will bow down before You
Only You Lord

Take my fret, take my fear
All I have, I�m leaving here
Be all my hopes, be all my dreams
Be all my delights, be my everything

And It's just you and me here now
Only you and me here now

You should see the view
When it's only You

David Crowder Band
"Only You"

life changing night....

2010-02-10T18:31:00.000-08:00

this night was fun, and not only another goal completed from my list, but one of the most memorable and life changing nights...hopefully for the good, we will see.

time will tell, and God is ultimately in control.

2010-01-30T13:23:00.000-08:00

may my heart always be open to little
birds who are the secrets of living
whatever they sing is better than to know
and if men should not hear them men are old

may my mind stroll about hungry
and fearless and thirsty and supple
and even if it's sunday may i be wrong
for whenever men are right they are not young

and may myself do nothing usefully
and love yourself more than truly
there's never been quite such a fool who could fail
pulling all the sky over him with one smile

-ee cummings

2010-01-29T20:51:00.000-08:00

"i hope you get to where you're going, and be happy when you do."
-jack kerouac, on the road

rainy week

2010-01-21T15:19:00.001-08:00

it has been non-stop rain since Sunday afternoon, which started when i was at Disneyland with my mom and my "niece" Tori. it was fun the first few days with the excitement from the day of thunder and rain, to pretty sunsets and cloud formations. but it is now day five of the great California Rain, and i am tired of being wet and keeping all my things dry. now i love rain (not as much as Ashley...she loves the rain and i mean loves it) but i like to enjoy it when i'm nice and warm and relaxing at home. but the week has been full of me dashing to class and to my car and to work, etc...so i'm tired of being wet.

i was actually fine until today when i felt really bitter and cold about it. so to make myself happy, i did when any normal person would do on a rainy day. no, not soup or hot chocolate.

fro-yo!

now i'm feeling much better, and i can't wait to bundle up with a blanket and my boyfriend to watch The Community and The Office.

Sampaugita and Manila...

2010-01-12T21:27:00.000-08:00

"Tattoo of the Philippines on my lower left back. There’s a heart over my mother’s hometown of Cebu City and the flowers are the same ones that grew in our garden when I was a kid.

Courtesy of Dup at Liquid Courage Tattoo in Omaha, Nebraska :)"

not my tattoo, but found via tumblr

if i ever got the big tattoo that i want and have been thinking about, it was going to have some Sampaguita flowers incorporated into it (the white flower in the tattoo) the Sampaguita is the Filipino national flower (my dog Sam is named Sampaguita, after this flower). although i joke about being the token Asian and "Pacific Asian", i really am proud of my Filipino bloodline and nationality. it would be my dedication to that part of my life.

my Dad is all about hardwork and family...my Lolo (or Grandpa) used to work for President Marcos, an old Filipino president...my great Uncle just retired within the past several years from General of the entire Filipino military.

not only are Filipinos the nicest, most caring and family-oriented people you'll ever meet, but they will fill you up with tons of Filipino food!

the Sampaguita flower :)

some beautiful landscape

my dad can back me up on this, but there are buses like this everywhere in the city! pretty groovy if you ask me

the bright city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines and where some, if not most, of my Filipino family grew up :)

one of my goals is to visit the Philippines someday soon and experience the first hand everything that part of my heritage has to offer :)

tattoo idea

2010-01-11T21:06:00.000-08:00

today in the middle of my class, a random idea popped into my head for a tattoo.

now, i don't have any tattoos and i've always been hesitate to get one. a lot has to do with the needles and pain, but mostly because it is something so permanent, i wouldn't want to get something dumb or meaningless.

well, today i thought of what i could get if i ever got a tattoo...and the more i think of it, the more i want it. but i've given myself a rule: if in at least six months i still want it, then go for it.

anyways, the idea was inspired by Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds". i would want just that...three little birds...and i'm thinking on my wrist, for now...location may change. i know a lot of people have probably gotten a tattoo inspired from that song, but mine would have a deeper and more personal meaning for me. it's not only my favorite song, but it's also Doug's song. i never would want to get someone's name inked on my skin, but something like having three little birds tattoo'd on me in memory of him seems like a beautiful idea. also, whenever i'd see it, i would think of those important words..."don't worry about a thing, cause every little thing is gonna be alright"...i wouldn't get every person's name inked on me who has passed away, but for Doug it's different. if people were to ask about the tattoo and why it was for him, i would be able to witness and tell his inspiring story.

anyways, while i should have been studying, i found a tumblr blog that is dedicated to tattoos. i couldn't find a way to credit every person's tattoo, but you could find them via the tumblr blog. and i'm guessing that because they submitted it to tumblr, they've given permission for it to be used.

so here are a few cute/funny/awesome tattoos that i really enjoyed:

finally complete

2010-01-10T13:59:00.000-08:00

two years ago today, my amazing cousin Doug passed away. he fell asleep and didn't wake up. instead, he opened his eyes to see the glory that is Heaven.

he was 20 years old then, but lived a full lifetime worth of happiness and laughter. he also experienced more trial and pain than an amazing man like he should have deserved. at times, he struggled with loneliness, and fell into the addictive grasp of cocaine.

he disappeared for almost a week. nobody could find him or knew where he was, not even his parents. this scared everyone. we wanted our Dougie back, safe and sound. finally, he showed up at his parent's house in tears. he wanted help. he wanted to feel more complete and happy.

they took him to rehab, and he went willingly. he was there for a while, missing a few holidays and birthdays. when he came back, he was okay again. he was clean, he was safe, and he was happy.

everything was fine. he went to school at RCC and spent a lot of time with his parents, family, cousins, and close friends. he cut his ties with his old life and had a fresh start again. whenever i saw him, he looked happy. we would joke, play guitar, or quote movies together. he was the same old Doug, the one who would always try to make you smile and do his best to make you happy.

on Christmas Eve of 2007, i saw my cousins and family. we had dinner and opened presents, just like we have always done with every single Christmas Eve. it was a yearly tradition with our family and cousins. when he walked through the door, he was healthy and bright. he came straight to me and gave me a big hug. i had thought it was odd that he went specifically to me and given me a hug. he had never done that before. i wish i held on to him more tightly that night, because it was the last time i would see him.

on January 10, 2008, he never woke up. it was one of the worst days of my life. i was angry, confused, and in pain. why would God do this to him? when i went into his empty bedroom that night, everything was just as it always was. but i noticed something different - i noticed his Bible laying open next to his bed.

it's been two years now, and i still haven't completely healed. the pain still remains, but the anger and confusion is gone. yes, Doug was clean and healthy again. but he didn't feel that happiness and completeness he wanted. God saw this and knew that although Doug did his best to make other people happy, there was nothing on earth that could make him happy. so God took Doug home where he could finally feel not happiness, but pure joy. where he could feel complete.

among all the other special and person memories i have of Doug, i cling onto that hug he gave me. it always makes me smile when i think of his arms around me. maybe Doug didn't know it, and i didn't either, but that was his way of comforting me when he would be gone.

it's still painful to think and talk about. i miss him and love him so much, but i cling onto his memory and the love he left behind. i thank God for every moment we shared, and i thank Him for giving Doug that joy and completeness he desperately wanted.

this song, "Take my Life" by Shawn McDonald, was found on Doug's iPod in his Most Played list. Doug had the strength and love from his family to change his life on earth, but God finally made him whole in Heaven.

As I'm standing here, staring into the mirror
See the figure of a man trying to take a stand
And live for something more
Integrity is what I need and honor to my soul I feed
To give it up, pack it in, getting rid of all my sin that's weighing me down
Won't You come and fill
I want You to come and make me more real

Take this life, won't You change this life
Come and make me whole
Won't You take this life, won't You change this life
Come and make me whole

In my pursuit of what is real
My heart is longing with a need to feel my soul come alive
I trudge and I step through the height and the death
Of a long narrow as I'm growing old
And soon I will be home

Take this life, won't You change this life
Come and make me whole
Won't You take this life, won't You change this life
Come and make me whole

little letters

2010-01-09T14:36:00.001-08:00

dear speech outline,

will you please write yourself so i can stop being so frustrated? although i KNOW what i want to say, i don't like staring blankly at the screen and waiting for myself to write something intelligent. plus its a Saturday, for crying out loud..

dear headache,
please go away so i can concentrate. i know you're not there because i haven't had soda for 8 days, but because i'm so frustrated from homework and studying.

dear sunny weather,
although it is January, i really like you right now and it makes me excited for surfing summer days.

dear Boyfriend,
i hope you're done with your truck soon so we can play.

xoxo

meet Seagate, my new portable buddy

2010-01-08T13:03:00.000-08:00

today, i asked my dad what he would recommend for an external hardrive (actually, a portable storage unit) and he suggested Seagate. then he said that Costco was actually having a sale, so we drove down there and went shopping.

i found this cute little sucker, and luckily for me it was on sale, as well as had bigger space than what i thought and was super tiny!

after i'm finished with homework, i'm going to start organizing my music and photos then transfer them to Seagate. then eventually i will also clean up my laptop and make it run smoother and faster so i can play dumb games like Sims2 (thanks, Ashley)

oh, and also....

I AM STARTING A DEAF COFFEE NIGHT!

i've got fliers printed and a Facebook group going, so hopefully our first meeting will be on the 22nd. i'm really nervous and excited at the same time! hopefully i will see some familiar faces so i won't feel too awkward or shy.

i hope everyone has a good weekend! mine is probably going to be spent doing homework and organizing my computer with Seagate :)

public speaking

2010-01-05T15:45:00.000-08:00

my professor can pass as Seth Rogen's twin brother.
there is a boy named Franklin who likes to walk around campus completely barefoot.
there is also a boy named Miles who is striving to fulfill the definition of white-gangster.
there are two girls who are already on my "i dislike you this much" list because they have brainless conversations while kicking the back of my chair.

this are some of the people from my speech class...

2010-01-02T13:34:00.000-08:00

yesterday was not only the first day of the new year, but my starting day. it's been about 37 hours since i've had my last soda, and i've had headaches come and go. no fun! yesterday it was worse, because i had a headache all day, but today i woke up and was fine.

yesterday i also started my Project 365. i'm not sure if i want to take a self-portrait every day, or actually be creative and just take a photo of anything/anyone i please. but it would be interesting to see how much i'll change and change again within a year.

here i am, January 1, 2010.
a plain, 20 year old, California girl

years and years ago, my mom gave me this book called Prayer, Praise & Promises. it's a daily devotional through the book of Psalms, which is also one of my most favorite books of the Bible. one of my greatest weaknesses as a Christian is that i never bother to find time to spend in prayer and reading my Bible. i plan on making it a priority to find time :)

i hope everyone had a fun, safe, and memorable New Years Eve/New Years! i spent mine with my family, movies, pizza, and my boyfriend :)

hello 2010

2010-01-01T10:43:00.000-08:00

2009 was a good year for many reasons, mostly because:

San Francisco trip with Bri and Ashley
i bought my first car all by myself (Matrix 2010)
my 20th birthday party, which technically was my first since i was a child
i finally discovered what i want to do with my life
lots of surfing and beach trips
i didn't lose my job, despite the economy
my best friend, Bri, got married and expanded our family of friends
dressed up for Halloween for once
Lake Powell with Ben, family and German friends
i became closer to my family
i became closer to my friends

2010 will also be a great year, because:

my cousin Ed is finally marrying Renee
my cousin Kathryn is finally marrying Monte, too!
i'll be seeing my amazing Kempf cousins in North Dakota
i'll possibly be going to Michigan with my boyfriend's family
i'll be closer to my goal of becoming an interpreter with a psychology degree
more surfing/beach trips
21st birthday!
i'll visit Ashley in Portland a lot

and who knows what else :)

memories of 2009

2009-12-30T20:27:00.000-08:00

the last days of 2009 are quickly coming to an end. there was a point in my life where i was always angry and afraid of the coming new year. i thought it would replace all my old memories with family and friends.

well, i was young then, and after several long years of experience, i know that my

memories, family, and friends

will never be replaced.

now i look forward to the coming new year. it makes me feel excited and adventerous. i am still young and have many more people to meet and places to travel to with all the time in the world!

i cannot wait to make new memories, meet new friends, and become closer to my growing family!

so with that being said, here is an ode to the memories of 2009:

christmas time pt. 2

2009-12-25T16:08:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
"For God so loved the earth that He gave His one and only Son, so that whoever shall believe in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."
- John 3:16

Christmas this year seems to have snuck on me so quickly! but now that it is here, I am so happy and joyful. this time of year always reminds me of how much God has blessed my life by giving me such amazing family, friends and loved ones. that is really the only gift i can ask for.
so, here is another post of how i have been celebrating this Christmas season :)
[warning: this is just as long, if not longer, than my previous Christmas post]

wednesday:
after work, Ben and i met everyone for dinner at Mimi's to celebrate Christmas together. [everyone = a lot of my favorite people, such as Bri, Michael, Ashley, Sarah, Charissa, and Charissa's boyfriend Ryan]
afterwards, we went to Ashley's house to exchange gifts and play games. everyone had the most creative and thoughtful gifts, it was so fun to see what everybody gave and received!

Bri, Sarah, Charissa, me and Ashley :)

Ben and me :)

Ashley, stealing presents? maybe...

my best friend, Bri, and her new husband Michael with their first Christmas decoration

Ashley and Sarah, BFF's

Will Smith and Audrey Hepburn, AKA Ryan and Charissa

Playing Taboo!

i seriously love these girls with all my heart. they're the sisters i've never had, and look at all the amazing things they got me!

yes, lots of funny Asian-inspired gifts (and no, Mom, i'm not tired of it yet!) and lots of thoughtful and creative gifts! i almost feel bad for not being as creative as them, but with a small budget its a little bit hard. nevertheless, thanks again everyone!
[edit: the movie Be Kind, Rewind is not present because i'm currently watching it :P]

Thursday (Christmas Eve):
i worked a few hours, which wasn't so bad because my boss was going to take us all out to lunch at the Panda Inn. it was a delicious lunch and we all had fun. my boss even gave us our Christmas bonus, which i am going to save for my plane ticket to Michigan. and being the funny law office that we are, we toasted to "Health, Happiness and Bankruptcies!" altogether it was a fun "work" day.
and that night, my aunt, uncle and cousins came over for dinner. it was really good seeing everyone, and we just hung out and ate good food. i love my cousins, and it was nice having us all under one roof.

Today (CHRISTMAS!):
all of my family slept in except for my mom, who claimed she was up since 7am and waiting for us. pretty funny! we opened our gifts and got exactly what we wanted, along with a few surprises. i had gotten exactly what i asked for, which were black frames for my Rolling Stone magazines dedicated to Hunter S. Thomspon, but my mom went a step further and got them professionally mounted and framed! i was soo excited! it looks really good in my room. i haven't hung them on my wall yet, but that's the color of one of my walls plus the headboard of my bed. they're framed with museum glass :)

now i'm going to finish cleaning/re-organizing my room then hopefully i'll get around to finishing my lits of 101 Things to do in 1001 Days before Christmas dinner...that is if i'm not distracted by some of the other toys we have :D

342 movies in 7 minutes

2009-12-23T14:01:00.000-08:00

Must-Watch Mashup of the Day: 342 movies + 12 months of production + 7 minutes = The best seven minutes you’ll ever spend watching the result of a year’s worth of assiduous labor cramming 342 movies into a single massive mashup looking back at 2009 in film, guaranteed.

christmast time pt. 1

2009-12-21T21:31:00.000-08:00

so far, this past weekend and this week has been full of family, friends, food, and parties. (the best part is that it's not even Christmas yet!)

warning, this post may be long...but only because i've been so busy, i haven't been able to update and write individual posts like i was planning on.

friday:

ben and i decided to exchange our gifts (i'll explain why later) so i came over after work and we got our gifts out. he opened mine first. thanks to quite a few people, i was able to purchase a group gift and buy him a PS3. i also bought him a video game and the remote control. he had opened the smaller gifts first, and when he saw the PS3 symbols, he started smiling and laughing. when he finally opened the PS3, he kept laughing. he said he felt "embarrassed". it was actually pretty cute, and i really loved seeing him like that. then i got my gift, an iPod! i was so happy...my old one had broke, and i had been living for a few months without my music.

he felt bad because i got him such an awesome gift, and he got me something "small", but i reassured him that i really didn't care. he loves video games, i love music, so it was a win-win situation. i was extremely happy with the iPod, and honestly the PS3 and the iPod are almost matched in price, it's ridiculous.

saturday:

i had to go to work for a few hours, but afterwards i hung out with Ben and played with his new toy. then afterwards we went to my aunt and uncle's new house where they were hosting their annual Christmas party. it was so much fun, and there were a ton of people! but i recognized a lot of old friends and i loved catching up with them. they were people that i grew up with along with my cousins. it felt really good hugging them tightly and sharing a glass of wine or two.

sunday:

sunday afternoon, Ben got his new 42" LCD TV calibrated by a professional sent out from BestBuy. that was the reason why i wanted to give him his PS3 early, because they'd be able to incorporate it into the changes with the TV. then later that evening i went to my friend Ashley's house because she was hosting a "Make and Bake" party. it was extremely fun. there were tons of snacks, cookies and sandwhiches. we never got around to the "baking" portion, but we mostly were making hair accessories. i really don't wear things in my hair, but i still made a few small things. either way, it was really nice hanging out with everyone around the table and sharing some laughs. Ashley had a similar party last year, but this year there were more people, which is always great!

today:

i didn't really do anything Christmas-y today, but i did have the day off from work. i spent time just relaxing and visiting with my aunt, uncle, and cousin (they live in Washington) who were staying at my grandma's house. then later i met up with my old buddy Guillermo at my old work, Jazz-n-Java, and hung out. it was cool because i also saw some other old friends who were working, along with some old co-workers that randomly stopped by. then Ben met us, and the three of us went to Cabin Sushi for dinner. so good! i seriously want to learn how to make my own sushi, so if anyone knows, please show me :)

so yea, like i said, there have been a ton of family, friends, food and parties to fill my time. it's a nice change of pace from my constant school-work-sleep-school schedule. i can't wait for the following days, it should be fun too. but more on that later... ;)

san francisco...

2009-12-16T17:58:00.000-08:00

it's weird to think that only 5 months ago, i was just walking through this city with a few of my best friends.

i want to go back again so bad.

the return to blogspot (or, first post pt. 2)

2009-12-16T12:43:00.000-08:00

so i've drifted away and have been using another blog on tumblr (which you can check out here) for the past few months. i don't feel too bad though because i haven't really been "updating" it, just reblogging funny pictures that i've seen. because of this, i've decided to keep it, but use this as my official blog (so yes, my friends, you can re-update your blog lists. yaaay!)

[edit: i'm going to be doing some blog-remodeling soon, so if this looks like a lame blog now with lame posts, just wait because it's gonna get a lot better soon!]

in other news, i finished my last final for the semester this morning. it was pretty exciting. there is nothing like the feeling of finally turning in your last test/paper and walking out of the classroom for the last time. it's only disappointing when i really enjoyed the class and will miss the professor (like my philosophy class, my sign language classes, my psychology classes), but it doesn't matter when it's a class you don't like. the only reason i will miss this class is because my sociology professor was really funny and easy to get along with, and i learned a lot from him. but i will definetly not miss waking up at 5:30am to get there at 7am...

cookin

2009-06-16T18:13:00.001-07:00

this past weekend was pretty chill, saturday evening i helped cook at a BBQ at Bri and Ashley's house, then later we watched Harper's Island...hoooooly crap! i seriously cannot wait until next episode...

then Sunday was a pretty relaxing day. went to church, had a nice patio lunch with the boyfriend, then later we spent the day watching movies and playing Resident Evil 5. later that night we even cooked dinner for my family...yummy chicken alfredo with homemade alfredo sauce, along with some brocolli and garlic bread. it was amazing. gotta say it's pretty nice having a chef for a boyfriend...everything was yummy :)

i even tried to re-make it tonight for my mom and i, but the sauce didn't turned out the way i wanted it and the chicken refused to cook the way i wanted it to...oh well, it was still good, but it would ahve been better with some professional help, hahaha. i wanna start cooking more often, so this is a good step for me.

well, gonna go catch up on some "I'm A Celebrity: Get Me Outta Here!"

Janice is a bitch, Spencer is crazy, and i want Sanjaya to be my jungle friend...

TOMS

2009-06-10T15:56:00.001-07:00

i bought these last night, i'm so excited.

but i got an e-mail this morning saying that

it was on back-order and would be shipped by July 7th.

hopefully i'll have it before then, because i'm leaving for San Fransisco

on July 6th and i wouldn't mind having a nice pair of shoes

(comfy walking shoes, too)

apart from my sandals that i wear constantly.

either way, i bought this for me and in doing so there is another

pair of shoes being sent to an adorable child in Africa. so

who cares if i don't have it by July 6,

they'll have their new pair of shoes too :)

"summer time and the livin's easy"

2009-06-09T21:00:00.000-07:00

first off, i just spent the past hour looking at blogs as well as working on my own. geez, i think spending all that time with ashley when she's checking out her blogs is rubbing off on me. no worries though, i've found some pretty neat blogs that i find fun/cute/funny, and you can find them on the new list i entitled "stuff."

today i had my last final, which i'm 99.5% i aced completely. i'm excited to see how well i did. same thing with my ASL class, hopefully i got an "A" because that would be super sweet. i worked hard this entire semester, ignoring the fact that i dropped out of a class which was ridiculous. too bad i never blogged about those experiences from classroom 212, but whatever, i wouldn't want to re-live those dark times anyways.

but yes, summer is officially here for me, and i can't wait. i've had such a productive week/weekend, which even began last monday. school was a breeze, and the work day hasn't felt as long. plus, today i did laundry/cleaned my room/hit up the gym. i'm hoping to go to the gym a few nights out of the week, since i'm not swamped with homework anymore. it'll be good.

but yea, i'm going to use this summer to have fun, relax, and make some great changes in my life. i don't want drastic change, but i want a more productive routine instead of coming home after a long day of work, napping til 7-8pm, then watching TV/movies til late at night. i want to start hitting up the gym more, i definetly want to read more, and just be more social. not that i'm a loner with no friends, but i like having spontanious plans with friends. or family. or the boyfriend. or even my dog.

anyways...maybe i'll read some Thompson right now. i wanted to go to Borders to buy myself a notebook, but maybe i'll do that tomorrow during my lunch break at work.

oh yea, PS:

sushi = bomb

2009-05-19T21:59:00.001-07:00

so earlier this afternoon at work, my bestfriend Bri (aka bestieeee) and i were talking about how hungry we were. then i said we should have a sushi day for work. THEN i was like hey, wait, why don't we just get sushi tonight after work? so we did, we met up at this awesome place called Sushi Station and chilled for a bit. and let me just say, it was BOMB food! i love sushi sooo much, it was amazing. i got two rolls, some california rolls and orange rolls, which happened to have fish eggs on it. it was...strange, but whatever. it was BOMB.

i'm in a really good mood, and it's because i'm just plain happy. on sunday i went to church with my boyfriend, then monday we went to Newport and saw dolphins. the remainder of this week will just be filled with school and work, but this sunday is my birthday party! i'm so excited, i can't wait to have all my friends together and just hanging out.

then this coming monday will be my 20th birthday...wow...i can't believe i won't be a teenager anymore! but it's all good, i'm super excited to be "growing up" because i know that no matter where i go and who i'm with, i'll always be "that one kid who won't stop goofing around." but yea, i plan on having a early morning at Disneyland, then an afternoon at the beach, then an evening at Anchos with family and boyfriend.

so great.

now it's time for me to prepare for my ASL presentation tomorrow, because i'll most likely be one of the few people who volunteered unwillingly to go THIS week instead of NEXT week.

oh well :)

this is the title

2009-04-04T16:52:00.000-07:00

i'm lagging behind in the blog life, but there's been a lot of work, school, and good times with friends to make up for it. i barely have time to write here, right now. actually that's a lie, i'm just tired and want to take a lazy Saturday afternoon nap.

quick update:
school is great, this semester doesn't suck like the previous 2-3 semesters. i'm only taking a few classes, but it's well worth it and i'm enjoying them, especially philosophy and sign language. i hate my creative writing class. too many weird people, or people i want to openly make fun of.

work is work, crazy stuff happens there or boring stuff, but i'm glad i can share everything with my pals. and bug them too when i'm bored.

been hanging out with my friends a lot more lately, which is great because i need a break from homework. that's all i do: work, school, homework, sleep, repeat. but yea, fun stuff for sure.

and now that i'm thinking about it, i can't believe it's already April. we're almost halfway into 2009, and it seems like yesterday that it was new years eve. doesn't matter, there's a lot of stuff i'm looking forward to this year, big and small:

20th birthday party
trip to San Diego for Deaf day at SeaWorld
random hang-out sesh with my good friends
beach days
surf days
classes towards my RN goal
small trip up to North Dakota, hopefully
Lake Powell trip with family, cousins, and Ben

i'm totally excited but the last one. and this is all stuff that's just going on during the summer, who knows what else could pop up.

Random Thoughts During the Average Work Day

2009-01-14T12:43:00.000-08:00

I really need coffee right now. Like, really, really need coffee. I will take straight shots of espresso if needed...(ahhh, good old memories of working at the coffee shop, taking shots of ice cold espresso at 5:30am until 12pm)...if I don't have any caffeine, I'm pretty sure I'm going to fall asleep at my work desk.

Chipotle Wednesdays are so awesome, and even though I had my mind set on a chicken salad at first, I could not resit the tasty smell of the amazing carnita burrito. I love it.

At work we have a mini-kitchen with its own fridge, and the entire office shares it and takes turns stocking it up. Well, there was one can of "Lipton Brisk Iced Green Tea" with apple flavoring. Ashley was telling me about her "first time" story (haha) about drinking this canned tea, as well as Bri's reaction. She said that I should try it too, and since I admit I was a tad bit curious, I did. I opened the can, and took a quick sniff from the opening, and HOLY CRAP. It smelled like jolly ranchers, lollipops, and just plain sugar was turned into liquid form and poured into a green can. Then after taking a quick sip, I immediately had to wash my mouth out with my Diet Coke that I luckily had on hand. It tasted HORRIBLE. It was entirely too sweet and sugary, was well as something else that I can't quite use words to describe. And like I said to Ashley just now, "it was like I was drinking cancer". Now I warn whoever thinks that it may be fun to try, or experiment for a while. NO! I advise that you drop acid instead, or get hit by a car if you really want a thrill. Anything would be better than drinking this crap.

Right now I'm watching/listening to Ashley try to figure out a certain name for when you "ask a question, but it's really a statement that sounds like a question". She asked me, and I said rhetorical, but apparently that's a question that you don't expect to be answered. She then began calling other people. Her mom gave her the same answer as my own. Bri said she knows what she's talking about but can't think of the word. This is actually amusing watching her journey to finding this word...hahaha....(edit: she just asked her dad, and we were almost certain that he'd have the right answer. his answer? RHETORICAL. haha, i win!)

I have a feeling that my desk will collapse one of these days. I put it together with some help from Bri, but I have a feeling we missed something...the keyboard stand is very unsturdy and shakey, and has actually fallen once. Then just a few weeks ago I found a random bolt, that I'm 99.5% sure belongs to my desk...we'll see how this goes.

I should have gotten coffee. I'm so tired, and cannot wait to take a nap when I get home...my homework can wait an hour or two....

Box Springs Hike

2009-01-10T20:18:00.000-08:00

Today I went on a hike up Box Springs Canyon for Doug's one year anniversary. It was one of Doug's favorite local places to hike, and it was my third time hiking up "his path" towards the large yellow "C". It was one of the most memorable times that I've had with my family and friends. The weather was perfect, not too hot and there was a nice breeze most of the time. There were some old friends of mine who are basically childhood friends, and we're all like family because we grew up together...Garrett, Daniel, Kamron, Bryan...there were some other friends too, like Adam, Robert, and Arhman. Together with my brother, my cousins, and my aunt and uncle, we were there for Doug. We hiked up towards the "C", which is always an achievement because Doug's path was one of the more difficult paths up the hill, but it was really fun and a good feeling knowing that Doug had been there just a year before. We finished hiking towards the top of the hill and a little beyond to plant some wildflowers, which hopefully will be visible from our house (or at least the freeway when we drive by). If not, each time we go up to hike, we will see our garden.

It was a great time to bond with my family and friends, and there was lots of laughter and smiles and talks about Doug. Going up the hill, it was basically just me, Amy, and Bryan in our group a little behind the others because we "preferred to take it slow". Haha, that's what we called it. It was an amazing chance to bond with my cousin, who told me some great things about Doug and a dream she recently had. I'm actually going to post what she told me because it was such a relief to hear, and it made me smile and remember that Doug is okay where he is now and is as excited to see me as I am to see him some day.

Amy was in line to see this beautiful house. She was waiting with hundreds of other people, both youg and old, but Doug came and said he would take Matt (my younger cousin) to see it ahead of time, since Doug had already been inside. So Doug took Matt by the hand to go inside and take a peak at the house. Later when they returned, Matt was telling Amy how amazing it was inside, and Amy told Doug that she wanted to go too. Doug said, "no, you need to wait because it's a surprise, but you'll love it."

The house was heaven.

I almost started to cry, it touched me and made me feel so relieved. I'm not one to dig too deep into my feelings for all to see, especially on a blog, but I'll admit that lately I've been hurting. A lot. I miss Doug so much, but after hearing about Amy's dream and remembering how happy Doug must be, it helped me feel more calm and peaceful.

Anyways, it was an incredible morning. Afterwards we all went to California Pizza Kitchen, and that was way too fun for words. I loved being at the same table with my old childhood friends. Yeah we hang out, but rarely due to work and school, but it's always great to catch up with everyone, especially since we're all "adults" now. It's funny thinking back when we were all just kids playing hide-n-seek in the street, or swimming in each other's pools. Amy's friend joined us, and she handed out CD's that she and Amy made of Doug's top favorite songs. They used his iPod to see which songs had the highest play count, and based their playlist off that. I've been listening to it all day, and it makes me smile. If it was one major thing that Doug and I had in common, it was music and the guitar.

Today has been a struggle for my family, especially for my cousins and aunt and uncle, but being together makes us stronger. That's what I love about my family; through good and bad, we are all here to pick each other up.

Tomorrow I'm going to the beach to watch the sun set and have dinner. It will be a fun day, and I can't wait to see what Doug can show me tomorrow.

Generation of Swine

2009-01-01T21:51:00.000-08:00

Well crap, I've finally gotten this thing to work the way I want it to. Damn blogs and all of their gayness. It wouldn't let me edit, then it would be really slow, then my computer flipped me the bird. But like I said, I finally got this damn thing to work. And because I need some way to keep excercising my writing ability, I'm putting up with it. But I also think this blog will have some cool potential; I'll be able to look back on stuff and laugh.

Alrighty. I'm going to mention really quick that there is a "Palm Centro" commercial that has a very gay, "young and hip" Santa Claus that is playing as a DJ at a party. So retarded.

So it's the first day of the new year and I'm pretty excited about what 2009 has in store for me. So far, I know that this year I'll be buying my own car and proceeding through college life towards my degree and career. Hopefully there will be a few vacations and trips, such as visiting some family in North Dakota and spending a week at Lake Powell. I'm anticipating a lot of beach/surf trips over the summer. Other than that, every day will bring a new surprise.

I spent New Year's Eve with Ben after he worked, and we ate some adobo (filipino food) that I "cooked" and watched a movie. Very fun night, and I'm glad we started 2009 together. Then today I just chilled, then took my brother to the plaza so we could have lunch and spend some christmas money. I bought two books: Generation of Swine and Songs of the Doomed, both by the amazing Hunter S. Thompson. They're volumes II and III of a collection of his called The Gonzo Papers, which are basically some letters/articles he had written over the years. I'm excited to start reading them. I don't read anymore, so I'm planning on changing that.

"Always keep your objective in mind with the tunnel vision of determination on the assigment, the job. If you do that, everything else will flow from it."

-Hunter S. Thompson

Mahalo.

In the Time of Your Life, Live

2009-01-01T09:39:00.000-08:00

In the time of your life, live - so that in good time there shall be no ugliness or death for yourself or for any life your life touches. Seek goodness everywhere, and when it is found, bring it out of its hiding place and let it be free and unashamed.

Place in matter and in flesh the least of the values, for these are the things that hold death and must pass away. Discover in all things that which shines and is beyond corruption. Encourage virtue in whatever heart it may have been driven into secrecy and sorrow by shame and terror of the world. Ignore the obvious, for it is unworthy of the clear eye and kindly heart.

Be inferior to no man, or of any men be superior. Remember that every man is a variation of yourself. No man's guilt is not yours, nor is any man's innocence a thing apart.

Despise evil and ungodliness, but not men of ungodliness and evil. These, understand. Have no shame in being kindly and gentle but if the time comes in the time of your life to kill, kill and have no regret.

In the time of your life, live - so that in the wondrous time you shall not add to the misery and sorrow of the world, but shall smile to the infinite delight and mystery of it.

William Saroyan.

First Blog (aka The Greatest Moment of Your Life aka Filipino Superstitions)

2008-12-31T15:28:00.000-08:00

Dun dun dunnnnn....well, it happened. Against everything I thought and believed in life, I have succumbed to a blog. I blame Ashley, if there is any credit to be passed around. But yeah, I probably won't keep daily updates, or write about everything in my interesting life, but I'll write enough to amuse the audience and produce deep, cognitive thought.

Anyways...first post. No idea what I should write about...hmmm....OHH, it's time for Interesting Moment of the Day:

I have the joy of working with my best friend, her future husband, and her crazy sister, at a law office. My title is Administrative Assistant. I'm the Token Asian in the group called "The Chipotle Sluts and the Token Asian". We have clients come in daily, and sometimes we will privately yet professionaly discuss these said clients amongst ourselves. Amusing times. Anyways...today, Ashley and I were keeping to ourselves until my Asian Friend (aka the Filipino Client) comes in to sign documents so we can file his case with the court. BUT, he makes it very clear that he would like to file before the new year of our Lord, 2009. For some reason, the date "January 5th" comes up. Instantly, I google "January 5 + superstitions", "January 5th + Philipines". Nothing comes up, nothing bad happened in either US history or Philipine history on January 5th, and there aren't any specific superstitions that happen on January 5th. Finally, I just plain google "filipino superstitions", and much to the entertainment of my co-worker and myself, we found some filipino superstitions, which are as follows;

If you bbq or fry food on Good Friday, you will get black freckles on your face.
Don't go to a baptism when pregnant or the two kids will be enemies.
Don't clip fingernails at night or you will have a fight with your parents.
If you see a monkey when pregnant, your child will be wild. Seeing or hearing about any animal will make your child resemble that animal.
All houses and vehicles must be blessed by a priest or they will be destroyed by the devil.
Pink eye can be cured with breast milk or with the first urine in the morning.
Say a special phrase "Porya Gaba" when throwing away discarded rice or you will lose all your money and never have rice again.

Being a Filipino native myself, some of these are pretty hardcore, but nothing scares me more than the very last one...my worst nightmare is losing all my money, and therefore not having rice ever again.