Day 5: Shanghai, Suzhou, & Wuxi

Today, we boarded an early flight from Beijing to Shanghai. I practically ate 3 breakfasts (1 buffet and 2 airlines). We arrived in Shanghai and took a bus to Wuxi. It was by far the most horrendous day in terms of weather. I was 90%+ humidity!

We started the day off in Wuxi by visiting Tai Hu Lake. The Chinese believe that Wuxi has great Feng Shui, which has accounted for much of their prosperity. In particular, this city is known for its advanced economic construction, seafood (fish), rice, and Tai Hu Lake. In Tai Hu Lake, there are over 100 kinds of shrimp and fish, including the silver fish on top of the steamed egg that we had the night before. At dinner the night before, BSILF asked what the little fishies were and I told her, "I think they're called silver fish." When I heard myself say that, I thought, how awkward -- aren't those nasty bugs called silver fish? Apparently that's what everybody else thought, too! But it turns out they are called silver fish! They come only from this lake (so when Ama cooks it up in scrambled egg or whatever, the fish is actually from this lake!). As for the shrimp, Tai Hu Lake produces a white shrimp, or “crystal shrimp” – it stays white even when cooked. Lastly, the lake is known for its limestone. We visited the lake, which is where Turtle Head Isle was located. It was a little anticlimactic b/c I didn’t really see the turtle’s head…and in the story, it is called dragon’s head b/c a turtle didn’t sound as great as a dragon. There, I bought BSILF a souvenir (a turtle “boggle-body” with a hatchling stacked on top; a.k.a. Lil F and Tanga).

Afterwards, we rode on the bus for a few minutes to the Pearl Farm. The local tour guide gave a brief intro about the importance of pearls. He began by saying that Tai Hu Lake also produces 90-95% of the freshwater mussels/pearls. Pearls really became significant because of the Dragon Lady, who ruled China from 1851 – 1908. When she discovered the freshwater pearls, she really believed in its power to keep her face looking youthful. On a daily basis, she massaged crushed pearl power onto her face (a.k.a. (non sequitur) Sheep placenta Cream). When she passed away, people said she looked 18 years younger; hence the belief that crushed pearl powder cream helps a woman retain a youthful complexion. The guide also spoke about how brides wear pearls because they best match wedding gowns, and they represent beauty and elegance.

Other random pearl trivia:

• Many high-end jewelry manufacturers, such as Tiffany’s and Cartier, sell expensive pieces with pearls that have a nucleus of at least .5mf.
  
• Freshwater pearls have a cold feel.
  
• Ocean pearls have a thin luster; they lose its luster after 20 years whereas freshwater pearls keep their luster for at least 100 years.
  
• The Mikimoto pearl is the most expensive pearl; a single pendant of 11mm can cost 300K Y ($40K); (Mikimoto was the first to perfect the cultured pearl process…and then the Chinese refined the process and took over the market). The bigger (and rounder) the better; at 7 mm and above, the price increases significantly.

At the farm, a saleslady told us how to determine the authenticity of pearls.

1. Real pearls will feel slightly gritty when rubbed together because of the layers of nacre that have formed over time. Fake pearls will feel smooth when rubbed together.
2. She breathed on the mirror and quickly rubbed real pearls against it; it created the fine powder that the Dragon Lady once used for her face (fake pearls will not create a powder)
3. Real pearls often feel cool to touch (for the first few moments).
   
4. Imitation pearls often have a uniform shape, color, and size, while every genuine pearl is unique. The luster of genuine pearls have more depth than imitations.

The lady also taught us how to pick good pearls. First is the roundness. Second is its luster. (Third might be color?) BF and I picked out a nice purplish-pink set of a necklace, ring, and earrings for me (and then bro bargained it down from $120 to $80 Y). They also switched the settings for me (with hot water and superglue -- so high tech!). I actually really like pearls a lot; they’re classy but definitely for special occasions and outfits.

Afterwards, we went to the Silk Weaving Factory. It was really neat to see the actual cocoons being unspun. I got to touch the thread from a single and double cocoon. In the morning, they drop cocoons in hot water (to kill the silkworms) and then they mix it around w/ a little stick brush to pick the cocoons up and start loosening the threads to stick on the machine. For the double cocoons, a lady would pick the 2 bugs out and soak the silk in water and then stretch the silk out over wooden stands. Eventually, the double silk strands would be stretched out for comforters and stuff. FBIL, BSILF, and a few others stretched out some silk for a comforter in the next room over. Since it was government owned, no bargaining was allowed, so we went upstairs to the “department store.” There, BF bought a silk scarf for Tita Flower and Tita Pina (210 and 140 Y); we got a small coin purse as a free gift.

After lunch, we got on the bus for our 2.5 hour drive to Hangzhou, but we stopped an hour in. We were supposed to stop after 30 minutes or so b/c Lynnie really needed to go. The tour guide, didn’t respond very nicely; he said, “I told you to use the wash room before we left.” Poor Lynnie responded, “I did, but I had a lot of beer.”

Eventually, we got to Old Town and walked the “Chinese 3^rd Street.” Guh bought the Dragon Mustache candy that Ama used to buy him all the time when we were little! We saw through the windows how they hand-made it all. We also walked to McDonald’s; BF had a large vanilla shake (which is our medium), I had an ice-cream cone (250 Y), and Bro ordered a pineapple pie for FBIL. We even crossed a big street! That was a crazy moment; BF was quite scared. (Now we understand why San Gabriel Valley drivers are so bad! It's genetic!)

We got to New Century hotel around 9 PM. It was the best hotel we have stayed in yet. I met part of the group downstairs in the lounge for about half an hour. BF bought Cuban cigars with one of the Cholitas, who stealthily informed him of how to bypass customs with that stuff.

We were all bummed about not staying at this hotel longer. It truly was 5-star. The bathroom even had an electronic roll-up partition for the window separating the bedroom and bathroom. BF suggested we take a (romantic) walk around the streets after the lounge, but I was too exhausted. :( It was a real shame to spend a night in such a beautiful hotel for just a few hours. Still, it was worth it!

Day 2: Welcome to Beijing!

It's been a marathon getting to China! I didn’t sleep much the night before. Bro and I went out to SM around 9PM, after we picked Aunty of Genius Cousins up, to go to Dentist Aunty’s to greet them as they came home from Taiwan for Grampa’s funeral. We went out to MVP to eat dinner until about 11:30 PM, where the aunties described Grandpa’s funeral and their trip. From pictures, it looks like the ceremony was beautiful, restful, and peaceful.

Bro and I didn’t get home until about 1:30 AM, whereupon BF & I finished packing. I got about 3 hours of sleep before it was time to wake up. The morning was hectic! I dropped keys off to Fun Van, who is turtle-sitting. I already miss Lil F so much! BF and I drove to my bro’s office, where his friend picked us 3 up and dropped us off at LAX around 10:45 AM. We checked in relatively quickly and found the others. BF and I checked out the fancy Duty Free shop and then had McDonald’s before we entered security. When it was boarding time, we herded in with a chaotic group of Chinese people. We each sat in pairs along the left-side of the plane; BF and I sat at the plane wing behind Tita Dina and Shell and in front of Bro and FBIL.

The plane ride was soOOooOoo long. I thought I’d be alright, but it was hard man! BF had bought me a crossword/activity puzzle book so that kept me occupied along with Voyage of the Sea Turtle and my Chinese textbook. I took quite a few naps, too. The ride was difficult b/c the air was soOoOo dry and stuffy, and it would get cold and then hot. To top it off, wearing my contacts to preserve my vanity was so not worth it; I’ve never put so many eye drops before. The meals were alright. For the first one, we had a choice of pork noodles or beef stew with rice. I kinda had both since BF and I switched (this would become an ongoing airplane ride occurrence). For a snack, we had half a veggie sandwich and a ham and cheese sandwich. Unfortunately, lunch and/or the snack ruined BF’s stomach. For dinner, we both had rice with seafood (hot pot) and broccoli with fruit. We landed around 4 AM in Shanghai for a layover and took a long walk around the very quiet airport to get through security/imports and our gate. Bro got me a Sprite for 6 RMB before we boarded the plane around 8:20 PM and departed around 8:50 PM.

Dude, that was the looooongest plane ride ever! I fell asleep shortly after we took off but woke up after 20 mins just to see that only 20 mins had passed. That must have happened like 2 or 3 times when in total only an hour had passed! The next 50 mins was painful since I had to use the lady’s room, and I kept thinking we were descending. Plus, the stewardess came on 2x to say that we were descending. What’s the big idea!

When we got off, it was about 10:45 PM and we took a super long bus ride to get to the baggage claim. At the baggage claim, I went with BSILF to the restroom. I went into the first stall and boy was I in for a surprise! It was a squater! I mean, Cousin Gnat had warned me, but I still wasn’t ready for it. I wondered if BSILF next door was popping a squat. Turns out only the first stall is a floor urinal. Holy snikeys, man! We picked up our luggage and met our tour guide, Lee Wong, who gave us a verbal itinerary for tomorrow and the day after, during our half hour drive to Loong Palace.

I was giddy with glee when we arrived at Loong Palace hotel! It is a beautiful, ornate, and huge hotel! We are next door to bro and FBIL. We dropped off our luggage and then a few of them went downstairs to the Tropicana Lounge. I had to use the restroom, where a lonely mosquito flew out of the john. That cracked me up b/c my bro’s been soOoOoo paranoid about mosquitoes. Afterwards, Bro and I headed down to meet BF, FBIL, Lynn-Chan, & Gabe. BF and I came up first so we could settle down and prep for tomorrow.

They say not to use tap water even to brush our teeth so I boiled some water. (As a non sequitur, I use the bad tap water to wash my hands before taking my contacts out.) I took a nice shower while BF packed our day pack and then he took a shower and crashed. So far, it’s been a long journey to get here, but we are here!

I think it’s interesting that I am so used to landing in LAX, where the city is so brightly lit. When we arrived in Shanghai, there were hardly lights in view. Both airports were soOOoOo quiet and empty that it was almost creepy.

I am really excited about tomorrow! We’re hitting the floor running tomorrow. Should be tons of fun. It’s noon LA time but 3 AM here. I’m waking up around 6:30 AM to get ready for our first buffet breakfast! It’s supposed to be both American and Chinese breakfast buffet. Yummers! FBIL and I are going to go; hopefully, Bro will wake up, too.

I’m really happy to be here. As we landed and got on those walkways, shuttles, buses, and routes, I kept wondering if this is exactly where Dad was. I wish we could call him. I know God is watching over us and protecting us, too. Pastor Aunty prayed for us while they were on their drive up to San Jose (when we were taking off from LAX). I am really glad that I am here with Bro, FBIL, BF, BSILF & Hubby. Tomorrow should be a wonderful day, despite the thunderstorms and humidity.

Birthday Shout Out to BSILF!

Happy Birthday, BSILF!

Over time, I've come to realize that my best friends are the ones that I instantly connect with -- the ones that I feel like I have known for a long time, even if it's only been a month, year, or a blessing of 10 years. Irrespective of time, we have so much to share, laugh, remember, and cry over. Just as sweet is projecting into the future together.

This is only the second birthday that I get to "celebrate" with BSILF, but it feels like we have known each other for years.

33 things about BSILF that I love, know, and appreciate:

1. She gives great hugs (and firm handshakes).
2. She makes great (white) chili, brownies, Vita-mix smoothies...everything!
   
3. She is the best cheerleader/pep-talker!
4. She makes awesome scrapbooking albums and cards.
5. She writes the most thoughtful cards for special occasions and "just because."
6. She is incredibly smart.
   
7. She is so down-to-earth.
8. She asks the most thought-provoking questions.
9. She is such a caring woman with a HUGE heart. She is always the first to think of charitable acts. This goes very well with #3.
   
10. She is just as Hollywood star-struck as I am.
11. She prefers e-mail over phone calls (too).
12. She is an excellent SLP.
13. She tells her husband "I love you" at the end of every phone call.
14. She is the most eco-friendly person I know.
15. She is a very simple, practical, non-superficial woman.
16. She is Lil F's Aunty.
17. She loves pizza.
18. She is the hugest nerd! :D
19. She is extremely creative.
20. She will be a wonderful mother (should she have children ;).
21. If anything happens to me, I have first dibs on being her client.
22. She always gives great advice -- whether it's for a simple scenario or a complex life-changing situation.
23. She is so responsible; a natural-born leader.
    
24. She wears the funnest watches and socks.
25. She is young at heart (and she looks really young, too).
26. She has been happily married for over 10 years, but she and husband are still in their "honeymoon-phase." :) That is true, inspirational love.
27. She is very adventurous, from non-peanutty foods to travels.
    
28. She is always the last to say "bye" at the end of a phone call (even when she says "bye" first, she will say "bye" again after I say "bye").
29. She is so technologically hip and savvy.
30. She is the first friend that I am traveling internationally with.
    
31. She is unbelievably organized.
    
32. She is a great mother to Tanga, baby distant relative of Lil F.
    
33. She is a wonderful friend!

I could go on and on, but I want to call her now to wish her a happy birthday!

(34. She knows that when I call, it is a rare moment b/c I hardly ever make nor pick-up calls!)

2.6 Miles

This morning, BF woke me up at 6 AM again. This time, it was b/c he had woken up around 4 AM due to food poisoning. :( Poor boo-boo. We had some delicious home-brewed Sbux coffee and then we just relaxed a little bit before I called FBIL up to see what the AM haps was.

Shortly after, FBIL picked me up to go hiking in Temescal Canyon. We actually did the reverse full hike of the Full Moon Hike, which is 2.6 miles! We did it in about an hour and five minutes...but I seriously thought I wasn't going to make it. That mofo is intense! It's literally 30-35 minutes of steep incline hiking. I thought I was about to get a heat-stroke so I had to sheepishly ask FBIL to stop for a few seconds so that I could catch my (heaving) breath and quench my parched throat. So much for thinking I was relatively healthy, despite my 50-min cardio sessions (maybe b/c my frequency is too low! In addition to low endurance).

It was still a very nice hike with the cool breeze, warm sunshine, and gorgeous view of L.A. at the peak point. I thought it was especially pleasant that 99% of the hikers we passed greeted us (or responded to our greetings). It stood out to me because when I go for walks around the hood here (and it's not like the Hood), people don't make eye contact and/or ignore my greetings. It's bizarre. (Do I look like a criminal?)

After that, I came home and chillaxed with the BF. By this time, he was convinced he had E. Coli (from something I bought him yesterday -- not something I cooked!) so he made me look up treatment. I was really glad that an antibiotic we have in our cupboards can be taken. Actually, I was so relieved and anxious to give it to him that when I exclaimed, "Do you want some now?" he quipped, "No! I can't take it on an empty stomach! OMG, you're trying to kill me!"

Holy snikeys, talk about Drama King! He's much better now, though (thank God, for reals). I am seriously so nervous about his well-being as we embark halfway across the world next week. All this time, I'm IMing Younger Genius Cousin, who is like, "Wow, you must have a lot of discipline to work at home." That made me wonder, do I really have ADD or am I just too distracted? (Or is that the same thing? Shoot, I guess it could be considered the same thing.)

Thank goodness BF doesn't read my blog. =P

YIM

I just had my first Yahoo Messenger IM session w/ my dad. I can't believe how excited I am about it. Dad totally rules!

I IM'd him first:

Me: hi daddy! What are you doing?
Dad: waiting for your call.

That cracked me up b/c whenever I call him and ask what he's up to, that's exactly what he says!

At the end, he said:

Dad: i am going to sleep, good night.
Me: ok, daddy. Good night! I love you.
Dad: bye
Me: Bye Daddy! Talk to you tomorrow
Dad: i love you.
Me: I love you.
Dad: call me tomorrow. bye.
Me: okay, bye Daddy

Well, that's pretty much how our phone conversations end, too. Lots of repetitions and false good-byes. My bro knows that my dad often says good-bye twice and then will be like, "hey! Wait!" and then ask a burning question.

I can't believe I was IMing w/ my Dad. That is so cool. :)

(I am such a nerd!)

The "We Made It!" Party

Dude, I cannot say this enough -- summer vacation rules!

Yesterday, my bro brought FBIL and I down to the Del Mar Race Track to see some horsies and have a nice Sunday lunch. We ate at the Veranda Cafe...but it was pretty wild up in there. Apparently, "The highlight of the race season is the 17th running of the $1 million Pacific Classic. This Grade 1 race features the nation's top horses competing for a $1 million purse." I kept hearing talk about a million dollars, but unfortunately, we walked away with nothing but a nice, refreshing lunch. Oh! And an awesome giveaway! We all got a fleece pullover! We said hello to some of my brother's friends (former co-workers) and then made our way back to L.A. (with a brief stop at Ikea for some frames for my bro's rabbit posters. :)

When we got back, we went to Downtown Culver City for some Coldstone Creamery (coffee with Twix. So goooOOoOooood!) Afterwards, we chillaxed a bit back at their apartment and then headed to 3rd Street to watch "Transformers," since FBIL hadn't seen it yet.

BF asked if watching "Transformers" again was just as good as the first time. I still enjoyed it, of course, but when the crowd is not as lively or reactive, it kinda kills the energy. My mind even wandered a little bit during the movie...but the main thoughts were, "summer vacation rules! What an exciting day I had!" Dude, I even got home at 1 A.M. and slept at 3! It is awesome to not be a student any more. :D

This morning, I went to school to get my TB results (negative -- phew!) and complete my Livescan for Calif. licensure. I was a bit perturbed at how long everything took (I get so cranky when it is 100 degrees or more.) What can I say -- I had an important party to attend!

CHK hosted the "We Made It!" party at her lovely home. Their home is truly fabulous -- complete with gorgeous gardens, 2 wonderful doggies, and a beautiful mini-grand piano! Of course the best part was the company (and the decadent lunch). We had a wonderfully relaxing afternoon just chatting and eating. We even played some games!

Which brings me to 2 embarrassments of the day:

1. We played Taboo and dude, I know I suck, but holy snikeys, I didn't know I sucked that much. I was truly embarrassed. When it was my turn to describe "knot," "won ton," and "scenery," I failed at knot and barely helped my classmate get the last two...while people were getting like 7+ points in the same time. How sad! It's things like these that make BF tease, "You embarrass me!" (Truly, it is not meant in a mean way. At least I think...It's just that he knows me all to well!)
2. When we were leaving, I asked CHK how much piano lessons run these days. When she said b/t $30-70/hr, I was astounded at how "cheap" lessons are. I said how mine used to be $125 waaaay back in the day. After 5 minutes of unnecessary confusion, I realized that I paid $125/month. Duh!

I have a theory as to why those embarrassing moments happen. I blame it on the heat. For reals, I think my brain gets fried when I am exposed to 90 degrees + heat. It's like my brain cells get burned and I can't think right. Of course this doesn't explain other "duh" moments, but I definitely feel out of my element when my brain has been overheated.

Thank goodness I don't get heat strokes any more. I just get Fried Brain Syndrome. :(

ADD Confirmed

I just made some low-fat peach fro-yo and was scraping off the remains from the cooler thingamajiggy in front of the TV ("summer vacation" rules!). BF was channel-surfing and deciding b/t two movies, when he concluded that we could watch one On-Demand later. He switched back to Godfather II and said, "You haven't seen this movie, huh?"

I had a deer-in-headlights-expression because I was embarrassed that he has discovered yet another classic that I have not watched.**

He said, "You haven't! Because you have an attention span of a two-year old!"

=O My ADD is no longer a secret in our relationship!

Just this AM, he was asking me why I always fall asleep during movies. I am beginning to think it is a hereditary thing. When we were younger, my gramma used to always fall asleep to movies. Now, I totally do.

**My bro read me some of his old journal entries a few nights ago from when he was in Japan. One night, he wrote something about how it's nice that BF & I are together now because we watch more movies. Hahahaha!

Update: BF just said, "I know why you can't watch Godfather...because you need subtitles!" Yet another secret that is no longer a secret! I missed about 60% of dialogue in "Shooter" b/c Marky Mark mumbled about 80% of the time he spoke. Yet I understand KidSpeak. Nice.

Career-after-career

This morning, I got a nice fruit peel facial. During the treatment, I decided that I'd like to be a cosmetologist/aesthetician for my alternative career or career-after-this-career. Dude, mixing fruity goop to put on people's faces, then washing it off, and charging a ridiculous amount? How easy is that?

Well, I guess that could also be said about my first career ("So lemme get this straight -- you just play games with children and get paid a ridiculous amount?" -- "Well, no; I am enhancing their communication abilities through structured interactions for language development.") On the real, this career is much more than that. (I didn't painstakingly make my way through grad school just to describe my call of duty in simple terms.)

Anywho, this afternoon, I went into the HR office to sign my benefits package for my new career. Yay! Free medical, dental, and vision! I am (once again) tempted to elope so I could get BF on my plan ASAP. It's kind of funny, though, that I haven't signed my employment contract yet I am already signing my benefits package. Pretty sweet. :)

K.I.T. with Dad

I love when my dad leaves me random voicemails (i.e., "If you go to a party and you set your drink down to go to the restroom, don't pick it up to drink again.").

Today, my dad impressed me once more with his technological advancement. He e-mailed me, "Mei: please set up your yahoo messenger, my messenger id: _______." Holy snikeys! Dad's on IM!!

So I got all excited thinking we could IM and stuff, but he actually telephones me on Yahoo messenger. I don't even know how to do that. I don't even have a microphone thingy to do that! So what did I do? Call him up on my cell to tell him that.

He tells me, "Oh, you can easily get one from Best Buy." When did Dad start going to Best Buy?? What in the world is going on? Haha. :)

Dad totally rules.

DONE!!!

I can't believe I'm finally done with classes and exams! It's all so surreal! (Well, it will all finally be over when I turn in my business plan...which is hopefully by Monday. Preferably sooner)

We took our last exam together and then had a little party afterwards. We even had a special guest -- K3 made a cameo!! That was such a wonderful treat!! She is totally a missed celebrity. Everyone's been asking moi (I feel so honored) how K3's doing, and I act as her publicist, making statements like, "Oh, she is fabulous." "She is very busy." "Oh, I cannot comment on that." "You have no evidence that she was there that night wearing that; she has alibis." j/k :)

Dude, we're done!! K3 and KGRoo are planning/hosting a "We Made It!" par-tay on Monday. Yeah! A real party with no books to study, reports to write, etc. Freedom! (Until I begin work.)

In honor of me finishing, BF ordered a cell phone ear piece and laptop battery pack...since I broke both of mine. (He asks me every other day, "why do you break everything?").

Welcome home, FBIL

FBIL came home on August 9th! :)

FBIL has been in Ghana for a little over a month. Amongst other things, I've missed a month of, "Hi Mei! (Here's your brother...)" phone greetings. I am glad and relieved that he is back (for his sake and my bro's sake) because I can only imagine all the things he has experienced. Every e-mail update I've been fortunate to receive from him has made me weep. He wrote about the poverty, the violence, the social outcasts (due to physical illnesses) they counseled everyday, and the love and appreciation received from the professionals and clients. I am always in awe and admiration of people like FBIL who do the things that I want to do...but lack the courage to do.

FBIL brought home a gift for me, too. He said, "I know you don't cook much...so maybe you can wear this when you are cleaning your turtle's tank or playing with her." The "history" behind this apron is that FBIL visited an area where a young, retired prostitute sold her products to make a new living. This apron was made and decorated with tie-dye turtles by her. :) Even though I am cooking more often, I don't intend to use it. It is too special.

P.S. We went out for Pinkberry afterwards and I had the shaved ice for the first time. :)

Happy Birthday, Gramma!

This year, we celebrated on Gramma Pearl's "real," "American" birthday. :)

...which totally threw me in for a loop. We typically celebrate Ama's Chinese birthday (where she is a year older than her American-self) so when BF asked me how old gramma is turning, I did the math and got all confused.

Earlier in the day, I thought I had completely forgotten what year Gramma was born in. I could have sworn she was born in 1926, so wouldn't she be turning 81? But, we did NOT just celebrate her 80th birthday last year. (Defying Asian stereotypes, I know my Math is bad, but is it as bad as my memory?) So I started doubting myself, thinking maybe she was born in 1924. After discussing with my bro (who confirmed Ama was born in '26), we remembered that last year, we celebrated her 81st Chinese birthday (or 80th American birthday) at the restaurant where I was set-up by my family with a dorky guy.*

*I am sparing the mortifying details, but let's just say that that day also included my first and only car accident (and FBIL blew out his transmission, as him and my bro jammed over to meet me).

We celebrated Gramma Pearl's birthday at Manna in K-town. All the SM and PV relatives showed up as well as Lawyer cousin and *new* laywer BF (first time meeting him) and Pastor Aunty. Although some may beg to differ, I thought it was a great place with great food and accommodations (except for the lack of A/C and fly control).

This is my favorite pix of the day b/c:

1. Gramma purposely posed with pink bubbly in mid-action.
   
2. Modelesque Cousin has a great pose, too, doing what "she does best," according to a cousin stand-by/commentator.
   
3. (Best reason) My dad jumped in at the last second w/ a goofy smile. He never smiles like that, much more hijack a picture! That is awesome. :)

Happy 82nd birthday, Ama! Happy 81st birthday Gramma Pearl!

Bad Case of Procrastination

Again!

I just went into my bedroom to look for ear plugs...and ended up finding some ancient origami paper. I spent probably 10 minutes testing my rote memory on how to fold an origami swan.

I didn't find any ear plugs, but I'm back trying to study...and blogging instead. Ooh, so close to being done. :) The challenge is also whether I can finish my final project by Wednesday. I thought I was all original when I came up with a name for my hypothetical private practice for my final project of a business plan...but of course I'm not. Who was I kidding? I'm never original! (Correction: when I am, it's in bad taste.)

Other news: I broke something AGAIN. My laptop battery pack/adapter! :( But, my classmate's just broke, too! I am beginning to think that HP/Compaqs give crappy adapters. The same thing happened to me with my previous laptop.

1 Vanilla Bean

My bro reminded me on Sunday that I have not yet made ice-cream for him with my new ice-cream maker. (Well, not new; it was a Christmas gift from FBIL.) I completely forgot! I bragged about how I (only) make mint oreo ice-cream and then I asked him what flavor he wanted. "I want real vanilla bean ice-cream."

So today, as I planned my errands list, I IM'd one of my classmates -- who just got engaged on Sunday! Congrats to Yoyce! -- where does one find one vanilla bean? We both thought that it wasn't a common supermarket item, so she suggested I try Gelson's or Whole Foods.

Instead, I stopped by Pavilions (conveniently located next to a Rite-Aid I went to) and I asked the clerk, "Excuse me; can you please help me find a vanilla bean?" She asked me about 2-3 times, is it just like a bean? Yes, I think so (imagining they look like coffee beans). She kindly went to inquire about it and came back to the spice section and said that another clerk confirmed that it should be there. We looked and I found it in alphabetical order under "Vanilla."

I picked it up and asked in astonishment, "This is it?"
Apparently so! The girl busted up and said, "You told me it looked like a bean!" "That's what I thought it looked like!" We were both laughing. :)

I walked down the aisle gingerly carrying this one expensive vanilla bean. This ice-cream better taste really good.


**Update: I sent the recipe to my bro and he exclaimed, "5 eggs? Gross!" So I'm not sure what the status of the ice-cream making will be.

Conversations

Today, our residence had a potluck in the courtyard. I thought it was a great idea since BF & I have been living here for 3 years, and we only know about 5 residents. Bro came over to teach me how to make empanadas; we went wild and added cheese to two (which BF & I briefly consumed). I also made Cocoa Krispies treats, which were a total hit. Ha! :) BF & I met a few residents and got to know several a little better.

It made me think of how people can always find something in common to talk about (granted people have decent conversation skills). That realization came about because I read a forum post yesterday, about a male SLP grad student feeling depressed since he feels isolated and has nothing in common to talk about with his female classmates (except SLP-related stuff). I feel bad for the guy b/c I think about how much I love hanging out with my classmates. We always have so much to talk about and only 10% or less is SLP-related. Maybe it's b/c girls have 10x more things to talk about?

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Semi-random tangent: I think I'm a decent conversationalist. It's actually really hard for me to NOT continue a chat, but I'm getting better at it. I.e., I HATE when people talk to me when I'm at the gym. Today, I was on the treadmill when a dude tapped me and said, "Do you also work out at the Spectrum?" What I wanted to say a-la-Cherelle was, "Why in the world would I have TWO gym memberships? That's ridiculous!" And more importantly, "Can't a woman sweat in solitude?!" What Cheryl said was, "No." Younger/Airheaded Cheryl woulda continued on, "Which Spectrum are you referring to?" but more mature Cheryl actually stayed silent. "I coulda sworn that I've seen you at the Spectrum." No, man, I've never seen you in my life. "Well, what are you working on today?" "Cardio." "Hm, lemme give you my card. You're not working on anything else today?" "No. I'm leaving in 3 minutes." I can and can't believe I actually said that. That was awesome (yes, I'm giving myself props). He fiddled around looking for his card (supposedly) and then said, "I'm just gonna go get my card; I'll be right back." At least I kept my word...and left exactly 3 minutes later as planned.

Seriously though -- if someone tells me one thing, I could carry on a whole conversation based on the one content word or words said.

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So bro was still over when BF came home from paintballing (he got shot in the head, which made me all anti-TBI neurotic!). Bro left shortly after for his fundraising event, and we went down for a few hours to shoot the breeze. Unfortunately, BF retreated a little earlier since he wasn't feeling so great.

Then he made me go on a Wendy's run. I was so embarrassed so when I got into the garage, I emptied my bowling bag and put the goods inside, just in case I ran into any of the potluck attendees (sometimes, my dorkyness astounds me). Well worth it, though, b/c I got a large chocolate Frosty (which I promptly snarfed down) and a small Vanilla Frosty (we shared that one) (my reward for doing a Wendy's run).

This ice-cream binge is getting out of hand. OMG, I wonder if I'll get my ice-cream fixes when we're in China. Or do they have shaved ice?

Beach Bumming

Five years on the Westside, and I haven't been to the beach so much until this summer. Funny b/c when I had lunch with BGF yesterday, she asked if I go to the beach a lot.

Today, I met my bro at Santa Monica, where he did the rings. I passed on the opportunity (I get performance anxiety) and instead, went down to the ocean to wade around a little bit, since I haven't done that in years. Dude, I was soOOooOOOoo grossed out! I waded around for about 10 minutes, before the fluorescent green tides got the best of me so I went back to watch my bro at the rings. :(

Since when did the ocean turn fluorescent green? It was funky.

Afterwards, we went to Costco and picked up a new bookcase for bro. After ~3.5 hours of work, bro rewarded me with BOTH a Diddy Riese ice-cream sandwich AND Pinkberry for dinner! My bro totally rules! :D

Feedback

(Waaaay) Back in the days, it was the highlight of the last few days before school to get cool messages from classmates in our yearbooks. In elementary school, the messages were pretty generic, "Have a cool summer!" Junior high got a little more personal and even cooler with the acronyms, "It was fun being in the same math class. See you next year. K.I.T....F.F." High school is when it gets competitive -- how many messages can I get that are: 1) long; 2) personal; 3) positive; 4) not embarrassing?

Sometimes I feel like the grown-ups equivalent of yearbook messages are feedback from buyers or sellers. Just recently, I sold a bunch of stuff on eb@y, and I check my feedback compulsively. The moment I see that I received feedback, I scrutinize the comment. And I lamely get all excited when I get something like, "Highly Recommended! A++!" A++? That's better than any grade I've received since elementary school!

Dude, when did I get so dorky? (That is a rhetorical question.)

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Thanks to the new feedback system, you can now view what purchases I've made (and what products I've sold). I told BF the other day, "How embarrassing! What do people see? What bras I bought...and the size." So much for privacy.

Almost Normal

I met BGF for lunch in Westwood again. :) I totally look forward to hanging with BGF, especially since it's been so rare since college. Hopefully, now that my life is slowly returning back to normal, we will have more opportunities like this. Her life hasn't quite returned back to normal yet as she awaits construction to finish on her and hubby's new home. I can't wait for them to move in already!