Last Day of Vacation

Today, BF had kept his schedule clear of social obligations since it's my "last day of vacation," according to him. (Apparently, weekends don't count. :) However, two nights ago, our baking neighbor invited us out to dinner tonight so we kept our day relatively short of events.

Rewind: on Wednesday, on our way back from site-seeing along the coast, we drove through El Segundo and had dinner at Houston's (instead of Paco's Tacos) and passed by a Pacific Theater. BF said that if we were to watch a movie today, we should try that place out, so we ended up at the Pacific Theaters in El Segundo today to watch "Tropic Thunder." I'm not sure how much of a treat this was...We didn't think the movie was all that (although I liked Jack Black's character/acting...it was reminiscent of Nacho Libre, my all-time favorite movie). Perhaps the bigger treat was actually going to the theater with BF and eating all the yummy junk food (after I had just snarfed down Pringles and chocolate shortbread cookies for a fake lunch). We had a coca-cola icee, the most expensive nachos in the world, popcorn, and peanut M&Ms; needless to say, we ate ourselves silly. On top of that, the last movie I saw in the theater was "Transformers." Seriously, we are so not movie-goers; we are total "make it an On-Demand in my jammies night" people.

We leisurely drove back home and changed into dinner attire as we eagerly awaited for our neighbor to knock on our door. Our neighbor has been trying to take us out to dinner for over a month now, since she finished having beautiful, authentic hand-selected cherry wood installed onto her floors. During the installation process, we kept all of her most valuables at our place and kept an eye out on her place while she was away. We also helped her move and re-arrange her belongings and furniture when it was all done, so she insisted on taking us out to dinner to show her appreciation. Around 6:45, we heard the knock and she whisked us away.

We had no idea where she was taking us, but she's been saying that she knows BF will love this place and suggested we dress "dressy casual." We went all the way up Fairfax and hung a right on Sunset and ended up at Dar Maghreb, a spectacular Moroccan restaurant. We had a phenomenal 8-course meal! We started off by washing our hands at our table. Shortly after, our waiter offered us huge slices of bread and brought lentil soup and "salad" (marinated, cooked veggies served cold with our bread). (I didn't know that BF doesn't like lentils so I kept telling him the soup was really good. He only tasted it and when the waiter came to take our bowls away, he said in what I thought was a tacky but amusing way, "Hey! You didn't drink your soup!") Next, we had a chicken and almonds (and other unidentified ingredients) covered by a flaky pastry shell dusted with powdered sugar. Following, we had quail (my first time! Way for me to be adventurous!) and shrimp skewers. I was stuffed by then but out came two more courses -- a delicious lamb dish and couscous with more marinated and cooked veggies. I was almost delirious with food by then, when they brought out the final courses -- a fruit and nut tray, Moroccan cookies (a crispy pastry glazed with honey), and mint tea.

To add to the dining experience, there was a belly dancer too! Our neighbor had handed us a dollar bill each at the beginning and then said that we would have to tip the belly dancer when she came. I don't know who was more embarrassed, BF or me. (I knew BF would be super-embarrassed.) The dancer came out and when BF tried to tip her, she kept dancing and making it extra hard for him to slip the bill in her waistband. It was funny. :) When it was my turn, she took my wrists and tried to pull me up to dance with her. I was waaaaaay too shy and embarrassed, especially when I know I have no rhythm. For crying out loud, I can't even sing and clap at the same time. When I played the piano, I could never stick to the beats of the metronome. I'm a lot more confident nowadays, but I still prefer not to intentionally embarrass myself. I unintentionally embarrass myself all the time.

Before we knew it, it was 10 PM! We got home around 10:40 and have been kicking back with full tummies since then.

It's been a full week of adventures for this one who doesn't get out much, and I'm looking forward to a full day tmrw as I make my way to the I.E. to visit Gramma. (I have to make 5 - 6 stops before I reach Grammas.)

Can't fight food coma any more...must go to sleep...zzzzzzz

Vons

I really don't like going to the Vons just down the street from us. It is the most super-ghetto Vons/supermarket that I know. I only go out of convenience and if I have to quickly pick up an item. Otherwise, I avoid it at all costs b/c I always come home complaining and disappointed. Last time, I bought 3 cartons of ice-cream b/c there was a spectacular sale...I should have had a clue when more than half of the shelves were empty and the cartons were feeling kind of mushy. When I got home like 7 minutes later and opened one up, it was half melted! Gross!

Imagine my giddiness in stopping by today to pick up some lettuce (Lil F hasn't had lettuce for 6 days b/c Momma keeps procrastinating)...and seeing that they've tore up the entire floor! The renovation is FINALLY beginning!! Yayayayayay! It's about time! All the other Vons I've ever been to -- Lawndale, Rancho Cucamonga, Rancho Park, etc. -- were all renovated at least a year ago. It's about time Mar Vista caught up to the times!

Out on the Eastside

Instead of being woke up at 6 AM by my turtle today, BF was the culprit! He stayed up all night to finish a project and came into the bedroom to ask if I wanted anything for breakfast (aww, how sweet). Even in my sleepy state, I'm uber-indecisive so he ended up getting me all three things. Haha! So I had an early breakfast of french toast, hash brown sticks, and coffee from Jack-in-the-Box. The breakfast of champions.

Afterwards, I fell back asleep for about an hour before getting up to prepare for my date with BSILF. For the past week, her doctor has ordered her to monitor her level of activity but since she's been holed up at home, she was more than ready to spend a few hours out. I got to her place around 11 and marvelled at how little Tanga the turtle is, while she got ready. It's funny b/c BSILF and her hubby can't believe how "big" Tanga is when I can't believe how "little" she is...only b/c my Lil Fawker is like 7.5 inches and close to 3 pounds!

We left shortly after for BSILF's workplace to attend her baby shower. It was so much fun (and made me realize that being a hospital SLP doesn't mean you have to work in an intense, no-nonsense/no-laughter environment). Her two co-workers set up 3 games, the first of which I was positive I was going to win something. Of course I was wrong. I won nothing! (I thought I knew my candies by heart!) For the second game, we had to draw a baby by holding the paper on our head. Mine was so bad that it didn't even make the preliminary round. I wasn't much help for the third game either. We had to come up with songs w/ "baby" in the title and I only came up with one ("Babyface").

Afterwards, BSILF opened up her gifts from her friends and co-workers as we all had a delicious slice of carrot cake. Since it was the staffs' lunch break, we didn't hang out too long in the Rehab gym. ;) We went back to the Speech Therapy Staff Room and talked and laughed some more w/ the speechies. BSILF then told them that we had to take off soon. I thought that maybe she was tired and needed to rest, but she was actually being stealthy! She wanted to have lunch with just me. :)

So we headed back to her side of town and cruised up and down Main Street before settling down at an Indian restaurant for a lunch buffet. It was so good! Indian food is such a rare occasion for me since I have a low tolerance of spicy (hot) foods and also b/c BF is severely allergic to certain spices. (Since he had a traumatic experience with Indian curry...where he almost went into anaphylactic shock, he has never liked nor touched Indian food again. Who can blame him?)

Over lunch, BSILF talked and laughed endlessly about near future plans until we were kicked out. Unbeknownst to us, the restaurant had closed! (We're not talking like 9PM; it closed around 3?) We headed back to her place for a little while before I hopped on the 10 to beat traffic.

As always, it was a real treat to hang out with BSILF and laugh nonstop with each other. Lucky for me, I get to see her again next, next Saturday for her other baby shower!

Mini-Cupcakes!

Our very own J. Martha Stewart neighbor always bakes extra treats to give to us. And we love it! :) We've been neighbors for almost 4 years, but only in the last year and half have we really gotten to know each other.

Lately, she has been knocking on our door more frequently and presenting us treats. It's a great sign b/c 1) she finds baking so therapeutic and 2) that means she is maintaining her health. :) For several months, she didn't have a chance due to health concerns and time restraints, but since she began her new job -- with regular hours and a 15 commute vs. 1.5 hours -- she's been baking once more.

We are so lucky to have such a thoughtful neighbor. :)

Last Week of Vacation

My vacation has been sooooo nice. Didn't go anywhere this past month, but got a lot of R&R at home all day and night. BF also bought me the first two seasons of "My Name is Earl" so we had a DVD marathon earlier this month. I also got to bowl twice and hang out with a bunch of friends. I can definitely tell that this is my last week of vacation as I've been busy and doing some work prep. I'm already transitioning back on my lesser-sleep-routine. I'm sure my turtle will be so happy once I start working; she'll be regularly fed around 6:30 again.

On Monday, I attended an unplanned orientation for the PAU I also service. I wasn't too thrilled about going b/c 1) I didn't find out about it until two days prior. 2) I showed up and I didn't see any other SLPs! 3) It was 98% a waste of time (and it was disappointing to see how obnoxious adults can be). 4) Everyone else was getting paid but I wasn't; my boss said that we only get for days that we actually service kids. The orientation was for the paraeducators and teachers, but us specialists were supposed to attend. Oh, did I mention that the teacher I work with was still vacationing abroad? Needless to say, I had no inclination for going back the next two days...so I didn't.

Yesterday, I intended to go to my BCBA supervision meeting, but since it's my last week of vacation, I ended up ditching. Instaed, I went the gym and got a nice cardio work-out (ran and walked a total of 4.5 miles!) and then walked around the S. Bay Galleria for a bit before going to my last class of my 4th course. Next Tuesday marks the first class of my last course in this program! (I also begin work next Tuesday.)

I also turned in my faux Functional Behavioral Assessment project last night. Rewind: on Sunday, I stopped by CBR's house and our GFs were asking me what I'm studying (now). I told them behavior analysis and that I'm currently experimenting on BF. They laughed...b/c they didn't realize that I was being serious! Kudos to BF b/c he was a really good participant. Although I'm sure I didn't do every step correctly, I actually had a lot of fun and learned a lot in the process.

Today, I'm heading out w/ the BF to do some sight-seeing and then having a late lunch/early dinner at Paco's Tacos, my favorite Mexican restaurant.

Happy Birthday, Kristin!

Happy birthday to one of my bestest friends!

Today, in thinking about Kristin and secretly sending warm birthday wishes, I reminisced about random memories from when we first met. It's gnarly that we've only known each other for almost 3 years, but I feel like we've known each other for longer than that. (After reading her Mortified entries, I totally wish we were in high school together!!) In just 3 years, we've already shared so many great memories and in just one year, I've learned quite a few more random things about her that make me laugh or smile whenever I think of her...

...We went to China together a year ago! I've always wanted to go on a trip with friends and I finally did and it was awesome. :) She loves plain M&Ms and Kit Kats (I love all chocolate!). We both can't clap and sing simultaneously. We prefer e-mail as our main mode of communication (but I win at being the worst with telephone calls). We both order complicated drinks at Starbucks. She is the most organized, efficient, and well-prepared person I know. She introduced me to the very tasty Diet Dr. Pepper. She shared her pregnancy news with me in person! (We don't see each other enough so the fact that she did was overwhelming!) She is my main Pregancy 101 source! She is so reliable, efficient, knowledgeable, and above all, she welcomes my dumb questions. I truly believe that there are such things as a stupid question...but she almost has me believing that there are none in my individualized Pregnancy 101 "online course." She gives the best hugs. Her story about her first date with her husband is one of the best love stories on Earth. We both have turtles. This is the most awesome thing -- she tells me that she loves me.

Those few random thoughts don't capture the essence of our friendship. I was just sitting here thinking only about the past few weeks...and how she has made me laugh and she has made me cry (in a good way) in sooOoOoOoo many more ways than she knows. I am blessed to have a friend that grows another year in wisdom and knowledge but is forever young heart.

Happy birthday, BSILF!

Humble Victory

Today, I went with Bro to Small Claims Court in Santa Monica. Evidently, he had sued his previous apartment owners for not returning pro-rated rent money. What an experience! I had never been to court and suspected that "Judge Judy" was nothing like the real thing, so I went along for the ride. It was a very intense experience for me...despite the fact that I wasn't even part of the case! (Actually, the Defendants kept trying to pull me into it since I once lived at that apartment, but I just let my brother handle his own.) I didn't realize what a prop I was until the Defendant said in an accusatory tone that I was an attorney. I almost LOL'd b/c it clearly says in the documents that you cannot bring an attorney to Small Claims Court unless it is an appeal process. Then again, I can see why he thought that; for the entire time, I sat next to my brother taking notes (like I usually do) and the speaking Defendant kept staring at me. When I stared back, he'd quickly shift his glare to my brother. All in all, I was extremely impressed with how quickly and logically my bro refuted the Defendants' arguments. Sparing details, it ended up with decent results as both parties presented their evidence and agreed on losses. I actually missed the real drama (i.e., the decision) because I had run out to feed the meters. Phooey! My bro is right -- I always miss the good parts!*

*Explanation: I can't count how many times in my life I've been with my brother (usually in the car), and he tells me to quickly look in a particular direction to see something phenomenal. I always miss it to which he always follows up with, "Mei, how come you never look in time? You always miss the good parts!" Welp, I've never been proud of my slow reaction time....

Afterwards, we went to celebrate Bro's humble, small victory. After visiting his friend at a nearby ad agency, we went a short distance to 3rd Street. We walked into a few stores, and he bought FBIL a nice, funky shirt from Urban Outfitters that met "all the criteria" [1) funky, bright colors; 2) plaid; 3) unique patterns/details/embroidery]. We eventually walked all the way down to Monsoon for happy hour. It was delicious, especially my mango lemonade! We sat outside and had the scallop tempura roll, a sashimi roll (with 3 kinds of fish), spicy eggplant, Thai popcorn chicken, California roll, and maybe one or two other dishes. We probably ordered almost everything on the menu cuz that's how we roll when it comes to happy hour. Bro and I got there around 4 and then FBIL joined us around 5:30.

Afterwards, Bro and I made a few more stops in stores and then called it a night around 7:30. After all, it was quite a full day of excitement with lessons learned.

Mini-UCSD/Roomate Reunion

Tonight, BGF, pre-Dr. Friend, and I met up in Downtown Culver City to have dinner at Tender Greens. BGF came over after a few detours and a stop by a local shop and we hung out for a bit, talking about fun stuff and not-so-fun stuff (I got a personalized 15-minute consulations on how to choose/diversify my 403(b) portfolio).

Around 6 PM, we headed out to dinner...this time, I got both of us lost (don't ask), but we quickly found our way to the restaurant. Mini-review ~ This dive is quite the happening place! I am no longer amazed at how packed a place can be on a weeknight in West L.A. (or weekday at Costco in West L.A.). Maybe it's just the locale, but there are certain areas that are always alive with energy, regardless of it being a Saturday afternoon or Monday night. I ordered a Tuna Nicoise salad b/c I had seen pictures on their website, and it looked really tasty (I don't like sashimi but I do liked seared fish). The vinaigrette was a bit too sour for me but overall, it was delicious.

Pre-Dr. Friend got there around 6:45, and we quickly caught each other up to speed over the happenings since we last met. I can't believe she's already graduating from medical school next May! Mainly for professional reasons, I was very excited to hear that she will be specializing in pediatrics. (In grad school, I had some interest in specializing in the birth-to-3 months population, but for now, my middle schoolers are giving me a good challenge.)

Our time was all too short, but it was wonderful to catch up nonetheless.

P.S. I no longer have reason to feel embarrassed about getting whipped cream on my nonfat sugar-free Starbucks drinks. At Tender Greesn, I saw tons of people having beer with their salads.

Still Growing

Introducing Lil F at 3 years and 8 months! She's a whopping 7.5 inches and 2.5 pounds!

Last week, BF had a client over for a meeting and at one point, the guy said to BF, "Dude, check out your turtle. I think it really wants to escape..." This was the first time that she REALLY tried to climb out of her tank. I told BF that this is a definite way of her telling us that she needs a bigger tank. (Sorry, my little green baby, Momma needs to get paid first!)

When she's feeling bold, she'll climb up there, chill, and then dive into the water.

She's also been splooshing like crazy (at 6:30 AM still and onwards). Yesterday morning, she was going berserk even after I fed her a lot and let her walk around. When the craziness continued, I turned to BF and said, "I think she's trying to tell us something through Morse code with her splooshing sounds."

This is what wakes me up every morning between 6 - 7 AM. It's amazing that she and I have trained each other through behavioral principles.

Mini 11-year H.S. Reunion with the M.A.S.H. Contestants

Facebook update:

1. I've been officially off the fb-addiction as of sometime last week, when I deleted the appln from my iPhone. It was slowing my phone down too much (no, it wasn't b/c I was constantly on fb).
2. FB rules! My GF Sarah found me on FB and immediately suggested a few of us get together for a little M.A.S.H. reunion. What an awesome idea!

Back in HS, Sarah, Michelle, Cindy, and I were on the school newspaper staff. Those were very, very fun times. During senior year, Michelle was the powerhouse chief editor, while the rest of us were page editors (i.e., roles with less responsbility). Cindy and I ended up with the Features page...which meant laying out dance pictures every few months (pre-Photoshop days) and writing random articles of interest (or what we thought was interesting). When we weren't gobbling up Hershey's kisses and Oreos or taking walks around campus 4th period, we were playing M.A.S.H. with each others' fate in hand. Talk about Sarah's selective memory passing onto me, I totally don't remember the choices we gave each other. But Michelle sure reminded us today!

We ended up meeting for lunch at Din Tai Fung, a very famous dumpling house in San Gabriel. It was my first time eating there, which completely shocked the ladies (how can I call myself Taiwanese?). We waited outside in the sweltering 93 degree heat for about 40 minutes before we were seated. Since I was a newbie, I let the ladies do all the ordering, and they made excellent choices! We had a variety of dumplings, shrimp shau mai, pork fried rice, pork chop (cutlet), and veggies. It was all soOoOOo delicious...and it secretly made me reminisce about our China trip a year ago, when my bro bought me a very fresh and huge crab dumpling.

We started lunch around 1:16 (I only remember this b/c the waitress writes the time you order on the ticket; apparently), and we didn't leave until close to 3! I had such an awesome time catching up with my wonderfully nerdy friends!

Contrary to what our MASH fates declared, no one is married to a Jiffy Lube mechanic (according to the girls, that was one of my favorite jobs for their potential spouse), no one is driving a Wienerschnitzel mobile (another one of my favorites), no one is working at Hot Dog on a Stick, and no one is married to any HS classmates...To no surprise, they are doing big and wonderful things.

It's awesome times like these that remind me what friendships are about...and how much I miss my friends.

Steeeeee--rike!

Summer vacation's been awesome. I'm still waking up kinda early, but getting lots of R & R. Today, I worked on some personal administrative stuff in the morning. Afterwards, BF and I ate a late lunch at home and then headed off for $9 All-you-can-bowl at the bowling alley.

Last Thursday was the first time I've bowled in over a year. Way too long of a hiatus in my opinion! We bowled 5 games each last week and my weak arm and wrist was sore for a few days. Today, we bowled 4.5 games, but I was a lot more focused and worked hard at crafting my whole thing with the help of BF's "backseat" coaching. During our games, I kept thinking, I'm having a lot of fun. It's nice to have these days where it's just BF and I having a really good time.

It also just occurred to me that I have two more weeks before work begins! BF and I may squeeze in another mini-trip before I hit the floor running with my bigger-than-last-year's-huge-caseload. Right now, I'm looking at 66 Special Ed kiddos and 9 with severe autism. On the bright side, I finish my ABA courses in late October. Woo-hoo!

Caution: Rated R Verbal Cat-Calls

Time after time, I vent about how much I hate it when I get cat-calls, honks, and verbal cat-calls. (I'm not sure what to call obnoxious comments yelled at me; I wouldn't call them pick-up lines. Hence the term, verbal cat-calls to me.)

(Do I have a case of neologism? I'm always making up words or phrases.)

My bro recently reminded me of one of the craziest verbal cat-calls I received. I was in Downtown, walking across the street during my lunch hour, when a man rode his bike past me and asked, "Hey beautiful; how's your pu$$y doing today?" I was floored! (Much later, I laughed about it when I was retelling it to my brother).

Today, I was out and about. I usually don't like running errands in the area around Venice and Washington Blvd. and Place. Those few blocks just look and feel so ghetto. BF asked me to stop by his bank (which is super-ghetto). When I exited the bank and was in the parking lot, there were two guys yelling and honking after me, "Hey! Hello! Hey sweetie!" trying to get my attention. I ignored them and the farther I walked away, it changed to, "You F-in $lut!" My heart was beating so fast as I speed-walked to my car. I jumped into my car, seriously ready to run a mofo over if anyone came up to my car. Thankfully, I arrived home safely.

I don't live in the hood or anything, but I can't help being a chicken. :(

Happy American Birthday, Gramma!

Although Gramma "Pearl" is an official U.S. citizen, she usually doesn't plan on celebrating her "American" birthday since we always celebrate her Chinese birthday (which took place in June this year). However, us Americans in the family usually do a little celebration anyways. :)

We had dropped Gramma off at Aunty's in Torrance on Sunday and then my brother and I agreed to go back out on Tuesday. Before I headed towards the South Bay, I stopped by Angel Maid bakery to pick up a strawberry cake (their special mango cake has to be pre-ordered a day ahead!), a box of cream puffs, some macaroons for FBIL, and cookies for BF. I dropped them off at Bro's office before I headed to my BCBA meeting.

Of course I was the only one at the BCBA meeting. I'm pretty used to it since this has been the case since mid-July. It's like getting free individualized tutoring that's typically around $75-100/hour. I'm sure I've surpassed my need for individual supervision hours so I'm that much closer to finishing this program and taking that scary exam.

After the meeting, I made my way to Aunty's house (stopping by two stores beforehand). I lollygagged with their adorable, nappy-furred sheltie, Cookie, until my Genius Uncle, Genius Younger Cousin, and Bro got home. Shortly after, we went to King's Hawaiian Restaurant.

I have never been there before, but you know I love those King's Hawaiian bread rolls! The bakery case was full of delicious treats! We passed on getting any since we had cake and cream puffs at Aunty's house. Dinner was delicious as expected; we had King's Hawaiian bread rolls to start (Gramma and I had 3 each!) and I had a macadamia-crusted mahi mahi.

Afterwards, we headed back to Aunty's house. Since we were too full, we sang happy birthday to Gramma twice (once in English and once in Chinese), and packed some cake to go. :)

Happy 82nd birthday, Gramma!

Sad News

Yesterday, BF and I were happily on our way to a diner for lunch and then to the adjoined bowling alley, when we received extremely sad news.

Moments before, I was filling BF in on our lovely neighbor's unfortunate medical history and the breast cancer she overcame five years ago this week. That prompted BF to think of a friend also battling breast cancer. Not ten minutes later, BF's best homie called with the news that our friend recently underwent a double mastectomy...but the cancer had quickly spread and fluid had flooded her brain. She was recently declared brain dead and relying solely on a ventilator for life. Parents are pulling the plug this weekend.

Sandy's only 36. A wonderful, sweet, vibrant young woman. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her, her family, and friends. We will truly miss her.

Me, Sandy, and BF's best homegirl.