storytime

Wow. It's been over a month since I updated? My bad.

I'm doing the Thanksgiving storytime at my library on the Wednesday before (Nov. 26) at 11:30am. I'm doing it all by myself because the librarian who usually does it will be on vacation, so if you wanna check it out and come and support me, feel free (would probably be good if you came with a kid too....hehe). :) It'll be my first ever storytime!!!!!!!!! It's rather nerve-wracking, but exciting. I just found out on Monday that I'm gonna be training to do a storytime in Mandarin too. Yikes! I might pass my broken Chinese onto unsuspecting little children.

I'm discovering more and more what a major home body I am. I seriously get rather discontent when I don't get quality home time to just vege in front of the TV or read or something. And even if I do the same very chill stuff somewhere else, it's just not the same. Tonight I enjoyed Obama's speech & The Jane Austen Book Club while eating dinner & sipping a glass of wine with some chocolate. It was very very satisfying. :) But oops! I just realized I forgot to do my weekly, getting-ready-for-the wedding, beautifying facial mask... My bad. I'll have to make it up tomorrow cuz I've already skipped a week and I think it's made a huge difference (my face has been breaking out like mad this past week without it).

One final note: I hate ants.

SATC: the movie

I just finished watching SATC: the movie with N & P tonight. Yay! It was really nice to have a semi-spontaneous girl night. :) But man, I'm so glad I watched it on the small screen...so much gratuitous sex/naked scenes! It was Waaay too graphic & over the top for me. yick. But great SATC. It really was just like an episode.

Anyhow, the movie and its theme of hurt & forgiveness really got me thinking (a la Carrie)...why is it so hard for me to forgive? I totally got Miranda. That's exactly my reaction whenever I get hurt. I cut the other person out of my life and carry that grudge alone even past the point of my hurt. Or like I cling to that hurt as justification for hating the other person and being spiteful, etc. Even when part of me wants to let it go. Even when the one in the "wrong" has tried to apologize and make things right. There's just part of me (oftentimes the stronger part) that won't let go of the hurt, and thus, the anger/punishment mentality.

Recently, I've come to realize that it's pride that holds me back. Because to let go of "You hurt me" means I lose my hold over that other person. Or I lose out on the debt that I believe That person owes me. So then even though it hurts me to not forgive, I believe that it'd hurt me to forgive as well. And I think that is the lie that I'm supposed to believe & follow. That instead of mending the cracked relationship and making it even stronger for its flaws (like a healed broken bone), it's time to just get rid of it and start fresh with someone new, someone who hasn't hurt me...yet. Heck knows, that's certainly my first instinct. Flee! But I'm coming to realize that anyone I'm involved with emotionally is bound to hurt me. Just as I'm sure I do my share of the hurting as well. It's part of caring and it's part of having assumptions/expectations...it's part of being human. (Though it's funny...cuz until Steve spoke up about his hurt from Miranda's brutally cold shoulder, I had barely stopped to consider his side! hehe Guess that goes to show just how self-centered I am by default. Carrie sure is mature to realize her part in the Big fiasco all by herself.)

And it all comes back to God. (Yes, dear reader, sorry for sneaking the G word into this post but it seriously does all come back to God! And how grateful I am that it does.) Anyhow, when I think about how God forgave me so easily of all my trespasses against Him. With no poutiness and no grudges...without even making me work for it. I'm just too amazed and in awe and blessed beyond measure. That's how much God loves me, and I...I make the people who I "love" suffer and yet still I won't forgive. But I don't want to merely condemn myself and chastise myself to try harder either, because that's not the point. I desire for a heart change so that I'll be better able to fight against the unwillingness to forgive.

And the final thought I'll leave you with:
Samantha certainly has it right when she characterized a relationship with someone else...or loving someone else...to be when you're more concerned about them & their well-being than your own. Obviously, I don't think she was talking about the unhealthy kind of dependency where your life revolves around the other person...but genuine, pure love that, I would hazard to guess, we all long for. And I hope to grow in the ability to love so that I'm less self-centered and less prideful and more true. And I pray to be able to love God (& Bob) the way He (& my future husband - or mfh) loves me.

Who knew SATC could get me get me thinking so much? :)

Less than 4 months to go!

So last month...I pretty much was just getting used to work again and being tired from work and recovering from work. :) So though we started research and worked on a few wedding stuff, we didn't actually book/settle anything. Add to that, a week or so ago, we found out that we won't be able to have our ceremony at our church, so we're scrambling to find another alternative now. *sigh* But we have managed to book our honeymoon. 6 nights all-inclusive in Jamaica with a whirlpool & stocked bar in our suite....I can't wait!!!!! :) On the agenda this month (to make up for the fact that we didn't finish anything last month) = book church, book florist, book bakery for cake, order invitations, start getting photos for slideshow, book hair/makeup...and ooo! i need to find a tailor for my dress!!

On the church front, I think we have several options. It's taken quite a while to get in touch with people, especially since Labor Day just passed and many people were out on vacation. Plus, most of the churches on our first round were unavailable (thank you, Jeremy for doing the checking for us). We have 1 definite possibility right now and several others in the works.

Whoa! Cakes are so much more expensive than I ever imagined. But we have 2 cake-tasting appointments so far with some more affordable options that are still well-reviewed. We were thinking of doing cupcakes originally, but after booking such a nice photographer (and getting cake-cutting fee waived), we decided a cake would look much better! hehehe Here's a pic of what we're thinking of having, but only 3 tiers...

Florists. I've met with 2 so far and am waiting for an estimate from one of them. I keep changing my mind about it. I have no idea about flowers, so I'm really scared about whether it'll come out looking nice!! I have a color scheme in mind, but I haven't been able to find any example pics of it in any of the magazines/websites I've searched. Arg! Hopefully the florist I choose will know what she's doing and just make it all look good!

Hair & makeup...just trying to book a trial now. We're going to go out for a nice dinner afterwards too. YAY! Mainly cuz I'm obsessed with trying foie gras before it becomes illegal to import it in 2009 (or so I hear)!

Oh yeah! And Bob & I have decided on a wedding invitation design. Just need to figure out how many we need, book a church, get the wording right and order!

All in all, I'm pretty confident we can get most of this stuff done this month! But man, am I glad that I'm only working p/t right now...I can't imagine trying to plan this AND be working 8 hrs/day. Everytime I think about how much (or little) time is left, I get a little stressed. Ack!

PM Update: Wow! Today alone I've been so productive. I've done my laundry, dropped my sis & her family at SJC, booked 2 cake tastings & called several others, set day for hair/makeup trial (and thus made dinner reservations), called our all-inclusive to give our room location preferences, got in touch with 1 church to confirm availability, scheduled a few tutoring lessons, wrote a blog post and rescheduled work for next week. Whewie! Time for a break.

Quick update

• VBS week...waking up before 7am everyday. UGH! Plus, preschoolers have a lot of energy = I'm so tired.
• Work...week of intense training is almost over. YAY. I'm so looking forward to the weekend
• Photographer almost booked. Wedding rings done & ready for pick up... Researching florist, hair/makeup and cakes.
  Wedding planning is not so fun. I might actually enjoy the logistics more than booking people. While booking people, all I can think about is how expensive everything is. And needing to compromise desire with reality/practicality. *cry*
• Dark Knight was good. I liked it better than Batman Begins actually.
• New favorite froyo place! Tartini next to Le Boulanger at Stevens Creek & De Anza. It's self-serve like Yogurtland, but better quality of yogurt PLUS mostly tart flavors (though I've only been there once). More expensive than Yogurtland, but worth it imo.
  
  I tried practically everything they had too (only like 6-8 flavors). I especially liked the Raspberry Tart. The lychee tart would be good if you like lychee. In general, all their fruit flavors taste really fresh, not at all artificial. I wanted to try Green Tea Tart, but it was out of order at the time. :( They also had Pomegranate & Honeydew as the sweet flavors, which were also good & real/fresh-tasting, but too sweet for my preference. Yummmmm. Can't wait to go back. It's a lot smaller than Yogurtland, so hopefully it doesn't get too crowded...
  

a productive few weeks

I can't believe I've only been engaged for a little over 3 weeks...we've already gotten so much accomplished (imo).

• wedding date...pretty much set...will need to send out save the date cards soon
• ceremony site...selected & in progress of booking
• reception site...booked (thanks to bob)
  
• wedding gown...done
• veil...done
• shoes for wedding gown...done
• bridesmaid dresses...done
• flower girl dresses...done
• photographers...in process of interviewing

I think I deserve a weekend off! :) Of course, that's easier said than done, because wedding planning always seems to be at the back of my mind these days. So even though I went to LA primarily for vacation...my last girl trip with my mom, sis & niece before work starts and stuff...it ended up being quite the business trip cuz we were in the fashion district for 2 out of the 3.5 day trip (of which 1 day was spent driving) making wedding-related purchases. The 2nd day in the fashion district was really supposed to be just for fun after we picked up the orders from the day before, but I couldn't get wedding shopping off the mind and kept looking for wedding-related stuff (like the shoes). But don't worry, I made some purchases just for fun as well. :)

The LA trip also included a 1-day excursion to Catalina. I'm so glad we decided not to stay on the island, because we were bored in about 3 hours. The shopping area is really not that large, nor is it very interesting. And with the baby, it would've been too much of a pain to hike or do any of the many water-related activities. So we ate & strolled around and then caught an early boat back to Long Beach.

As for the Fashion District. It was fun shopping there. It totally reminded me of taiwan night market shopping. :) I pretty much wiped out my entire cash supply there. In addition to the wedding purchases, I also got a few cute purses for myself and a pair of skechers. YAY! I also learned that my sis can be quite the bargainer (much better than me) and that it's very important to check over your purchases carefully before making full payment, because the sales people are much less motivated to fix problems or make exchanges after you've paid. *sigh*

We also saw my uncle & cousins while in LA...we had a feast at their place the first night and then since we got back early from Catalina, we went over to their neck of the woods again and took them out to Versailles (a cuban place). yum yum. lots of good food. On the food note, we also went to Auntie Em's on Thur before we headed back up to SJ to try their famous red velvet cupcakes. They also have seasonal fresh salads which were delish (and the only veggies we really got on the entire trip). Their cupcakes were alright..the choc one is probably my fave. But they put way too much frosting imo. I'd like to try Sprinkles cuz my sis says those are way better...and after all, we're considering using cupcakes as our wedding cake, so a little research is required. :)

I've also received all the things I bought online while I was shopping for bridesmaid dresses, so I need to try on that stuff too and decide if I'm keeping any of it. =P I think Bob's getting scared that I'm becoming a shopaholic..hehehe

Ah yes, for those of you who don't know already, I have a job as a p/t librarian with San Jose Public Library, the Pearl Ave. branch (near 85 & Almaden Expy) that opens in early August. I start work July 28 though, so only 1 more week to enjoy my unemployment!

Next up for wedding planning, photographer, cake & florist...I should make an appt with the tailor to get my wedding gown bustled and wat-not as well I think.

a bunch of randomness

Somehow my days are filling up with so much random stuff to do! And whenever I go bridesmaid dress shopping, I end up getting stuff for myself as well!!! arg....this is not going to be good for my savings account. hehe But I'm getting my annual shopping over with I guess. At least I'm still enjoying it so far. And I like how getting new stuff (more professional stuff) for work is a good excuse for getting clothes/shoes that I would probably normally deem too expensive. =D

I found a super cute children's story to do for my interview Monday. I really like it. I think it'll be my go-to book if I ever have to read another one for an interview. It's called My Lucky Day by Keiko Kasza in case any of you are ever looking for a book to read with a preschooler. :) I tried reading it to Ariel too, but she got distracted by the pages & wanting to eat the cover, so I gave up. =P Btw, Ariel crawled yesterday! I wasn't there to see it, but my sis left me a v/m about it. But I can't wait to see the video!!!

Big news (the details)

Bob & I are engaged!!

It started out as a normal day. I had to get up earlier than usual because I was tutoring a new kid at 10am. That went ok and I headed over to my sister's place around noon because she'd asked for my help with Ariel (my adorable niecey) for the afternoon. I got there and as she was changing baby, the doorbell rang. "I'm expecting a package from amazon...Can you go get it for me?", she asked. So I went downstairs and opened the door...and there was Bob! And I knew that today was the day. :)

According to him, my eyes got really wide, I made a little noise and hand motion, and he'll never forget the expression on my face. I have no idea what I looked like, but I was definitely totally surprised. HAHA

Then he told me to use the bathroom cuz he was taking me somewhere. He blindfolded me and led me to the car (I almost tripped in the process! It was a test of my trust in him) and off we went! He'd gotten a smoothie for the ride and even had a special playlist going on his iPod, but he refused to tell me where we were going no matter how hard I tried to get it out of him!! He even said that the day might be just a decoy for the real deal. hehe We finally arrived (and boy was I glad, cuz I had to pee again), and he led me a short ways up some stairs to some place where I was instructed to sit while he got some stuff from the car. I sat there wondering where we could possibly be (I guessed Berkeley, but wasn't sure where exactly in Berkeley we could be that would have a grassy area so close to parking. When he removed the blindfold...I instantly recognized where we were (even though I still couldn't see cuz I wore my glasses that day and they were still in the car!). It was the lake in Golden Gate park! We'd been here last summer and we were in the exact same spot!!

Then he gave me a dozen red red roses, got down on a knee & proposed. Even though I guess I was expecting it by then (or really should've been, right?), I was still a little speechless and all I could think to say is "Yes". People are so poised & eloquent in the movies. Ah well. We had a light picnic lunch by the lake, enjoyed a time of worship & prayer to God before heading back to the South Bay where we hurriedly changed & got ready for an early dinner.

We went to La Fondue where we were stuffed silly on alligator, ostrich, buffalo (#1 fave of the night), swiss chicken (#2 fave), tuna & scallops...as well as a huge salad, cheese fondue and chocolate fondue (not in that order)!! Bob had to run out to the car to get me a Lactaid pill...hehehe Afterwards, we strolled around downtown Saratoga to help the digestion and savor our new status alone together for a little longer. :) But we ended the night sharing the news with his family & mine.

It was the best day of my life, and it was planned by the most wonderful fiance in the world!! I can't quite believe how lucky I am. Through our relationship, I've learned so much about myself (i.e. my personality, my love languages). I've also acquired some more experience in communicating and working out conflicts healthily (no more freezing him out...or at least trying not to). But even more importantly, I feel like I've gained a better understanding God (i.e. waiting for His timing, depending on Him alone for my satisfaction in life, as my heavenly Father - running into His comforting arms, etc.). I'm truly blessed because I'm now able to look forward to spending the rest of my life on earth with someone who gets me so well that he can tell just by the look on my face how I'm feeling, who is my best friend, who shares a lot of my values & yet is different in ways that we can complement each other, who challenges me to be a better person, who is so adorably nerdy/geeky/dorky that he makes me roll my eyes & chuckle appreciatively at the same time, and who points me to God in his own pursuit of holiness. I'm overwhelmed with a soaring heart full of praise & thanks.

July 1 update: Check Bob's blog for his side of the story & more pics...

unabashedly absent

I'll be the first to admit that I've been grossly behind in terms of blogging. I will blog the highlights of my trip eventually. But to catch you up, in case you don't already know...I've graduated! Wooo Hooooo!! After 2 years of pretty intense, full-time school, I now have a Master's in Library & Information Science. Now what do I do?

Well, I took a 2 week vacation to Tokyo/Taiwan. Now I'm back, a bit recovered from some minor stomach issues with the food and feeling the effects of jet lag (just slept 11+ hours, hehe). I'm currently blissfully unemployed and enjoying the time I have to slowly readjust to reality.

The weirdest thing happened to me last night. I was sleeping, but I was totally dizzy. Not dizzy in my dream or anything. Actually dizzy, which also made me nauseous. It felt like I was in vertigo or something. So I woke up and then went back to sleep. But it happened several times! sooo weird. Is that even possible?

O-M-G!

Ok. Di linked to a youtube video in her post that I have to post here as well....



Ok. That is one part of the Tokyo culture that I really don't have to experience. I mean. Seriously, the latecomers actually look like they still want to get on the train!!!

On an unrelated note, Earth Day's coming up (April 22). Here are some ideas of how to celebrate. :)

Can someone just tell me?

Tipping is such a confusing custom! I mean. I get the whole restaurant service 15% thing..that's pretty ingrained now. But services are still kinda fuzzy for me. Like...I hear so many things, I totally don't know what's what anymore. I think I'm pretty confident that tip is needed for all American service providers (hair stylists, etc.), but what about Asian ones? Like the nail salon...my hair stylist? This post is prompted by a recent reminder that I really still have no idea what's accepted tipping behavior. It's even worse when I don't have spare 1s to give tip without having to ask for change (AWKWARD), on top of which, clear communication is crippled by our mutual shaky grasp of each other's native language!

I've heard that for Asian hair salons, you don't need to tip. Or you don't need to tip if your stylist is the owner...Or you don't need to tip as much..maybe 10%. Is that TRUE? I really wish I could just ask outright and somehow not come off as a cheapo or something. Then I'd know for sure if I'm offending by not giving a tip...or if one is totally not expected...how much is acceptable/generous...or what! I really don't mind giving tip. I just want to know for sure if I'm supposed to or not & how much. Does anyone know the right answer??

Tokyo & Taipei...here I come!

So...i just booked my Tokyo & Taipei airfare. YAY!! It's finally a reality!
Even though I still don't know where I'm staying in Tokyo...I figure it'll be ok. One way or another, I have to go while my friends are still there and if I have to get my own hotel room, then so be it. So I'm leaving Fri, May 16 and returning Thur, May 29. It came out to only a little over $1000 too! YAY!!! And Bob (who's only coming for the Taipei part) actually got the same flights as me for the last 3 legs of the trip, so we'll be able to travel together for most of it. Yay! I won't be totally alone (cuz I hate traveling alone).

I really hope my professor is on the ball so that I can finish my final before I leave....it's not officially due till Sun 5/18, but I'm sure he'll post it at least a week before, right? I'll just have to be really on the ball and ready to take it the minute it's available.

I can't wait!!!!!!!!!! It'll be my first time out of the country since I started library school. I'll be able to visit friends AND revisit my fav spots in Taipei. Oh the excitement can barely be contained!!

In other news, today, at the light rail station, on my way home from work (downtown SJ), I saw a guy getting arrested on the platform...for allegedly selling drugs I think. There were like 3-4 cops there. Two were horseback riders and 2 were like from the sheriff's office or something. They had different uniforms. I don't really get the difference between all the different law enforcement agencies...but anyhow. That was definitely unusual. I feel like my world has been broadened since quitting the engineering field...especially in terms of the kinds of people I run into now....really all sorts! I guess it's good preparation for working in a public library!

grrr

Dude. I think Singapore's onto something with their chewing gum ban. I personally don't like gum at all...I don't get the point and I hate how gum gets all hard & waxy after a long time...and it loses it's flavor quickly too. I don't get the attraction. But if you must enjoy your gum, please learn how to throw it away properly!!!!!!!! GRRRRRRR. I hate it when I'm minding my own business and I step in someone else's gum that they've carelessly left lying in the middle of the sidewalk or wherever. Then I get a whiff of that sickeningly sweet gum smell and am horrified to discover yellow goo marring the tip of my sneaker. THEN, I get the pleasure of trying to get that sticky gunk off my shoe (and out of the crevices/treads) for the next 30 mins or so. GRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!! I don't chew or enjoy gum, why do I have to live with the consequences of it? geesh

my hands-free headset broke for my cell phone. :( I don't know what happened, it just suddenly came apart and I'm not sure how to put it back together again. I mean, I guess I can still talk & hear thru it, but it's rather disconcerting to have wires dangling about. I wonder if it's time to get a new cell phone (and commit to another 2 yrs with verizon)...

Bye Bye childhood home

I alluded to this in an earlier post updating my list of stuff...but yup. My parents have sold my childhood home and have left CA. It was a bit of a whirlwind, in fact, I think I'm still reeling from the suddenness and all the activity it generated. It was really pretty crazy.

It went down like this:
I had breakfast with my family on a Saturday in late Feb (I think it was 2/23) where my parents mentioned that they were going to start looking for an agent to sell the house with the plan that they would probably list the house in about a month or so after they cleaned and moved out or something. Then on Monday (yes, just 2 days later), they called to tell me the house was sold and the new owners needed it by March 15! I was pretty shocked, and I couldn't believe that I would have to go through the moving process all over again! Yes, I was definitely not looking forward to more cleaning, packing & unpacking. arg. And since my parents weren't going to be taking much with them, everything had to go! So in a matter of 2 weeks, all the stuff that's accumulated in our house for the last ~20 years had to be dealt with.

Crazy, right?!

Anyhow, the last two-ish weeks have been a little stressful as I tried to squeeze in the latest development with all my previous commitments, but I've somehow survived it. The big move (of furniture, piano, refrigerator) happened last Monday (3/10) and then some more cleaning, and I also had to meet the new owners so that if any mail was sent to us there (though there shouldn't be much since we forwarded our mail), I could go pick it up. Then, I dropped my parents off at the airport early Wed morning (they're going to travel the world for a little bit before deciding where to settle down). And now I have a bunch of new piles of boxes to sort through at my place. hehe

A lot of people have asked if I'm sad that my childhood home is gone, but really I've barely had time to consider that. I mean, it's still pretty unreal to me, and I'm not sure if/when my brain will catch up to reality. It was definitely a little sad when I walked out the door for the last time, but that's about it for now. In the meantime, there's more unpacking to do, and I've gotta catch up on school work and get going on that job hunt... I hope I can enjoy some peace and quiet now... I could certainly use a relaxing vacation!

Ultimate is back!

Yesterday marked the beginning of ultimate season for 2008. Yay! It was great to run around and get some exercise again. But man, I got out of breath so easily! Today, I'm a little sore, but that feels good because it means my muscles are getting ready for the season. :) I'm looking forward to many more Thursdays to come.

Kooza

Bob took me to my very first Cirque du Soleil performance on Thur in SJ as part of his bday gift to me (along with a very sweet mix cd of "our" songs). Yay! I've been wanting to see a cirque show for ages! It was pretty amazing & fun. :) He sums it up very well on his blog. I really enjoyed sitting behind 3 little Vietnamese girls who struck up a convo with us throughout the show. I think they made the show more special. And yeah, my favorite act had to be the wheel of death (see his blog for full description)...it was crazy when they started doing stuff on the outside of the wheel! There were plenty of moments throughout the show when I gasped/cringed in fear that someone would fall...but the performers were all really great! It was fun to watch the juggler too because, at least for the most basic stuff, I could see how he was doing it but knew there's not way I would be able to imitate him! Also, he did a LOT of tricks. Way more than any of the other performers. As for the clowns who provided entertainment between sets, I sorta just endured their performances and felt like they were maybe more for the kids than the adults. But one of the clowns was really good! He did a lot of slight of hand stuff and was quite funny. It was amusing to watch them involve the audience, and made me grateful that we were in the back! :) hehe

~It's my thesis...sorta

Just wanted to invite you all to peruse progress of my e-Portfolio (= my culminating project = my "thesis" = what I need to complete in order to graduate and get my master's). It's not really a thesis in the traditional sense of like this hugely intense research paper. But I've been calling it that cuz it's just easier than explaining what I really have to do. :)

So what I actually have to do is prove that I have met my school's competencies, the skills/knowledge they've determined all librarian & information professionals should have. This involves writing essentially 16 short papers and compiling all the work I've ever done (school work, work work, life, personal projects, almost anything's fair game) in order to serve as evidence of my competency for each point. It's been an interesting process so far. Not nearly as horrendous as I thought it would be when I first started, but I find it a lot easier to write the papers if I have a day or so to mull on the competency and work out what it really means to me. It's surprising how much I have to say about each competency...such deep thoughts I didn't even know I had!

Anyhow, I guess I'll let you guys take a gander at my work as it progresses. I only publicize things that have been reviewed & approved by my adviser so there's work there that you can't see yet. So yeah, take a look at what's consumed so much of my time for the past 1.5 years. And for those of you who were involved in the active online participation survey I sent out a few months ago, you can see the results of that under the evidence for Competency L. It's a research paper, but there are charts that are nice on the eyes. If you really don't wanna see my paper, then you can just look at the unanalyzed data. :) Thanks again for all your support during this whole process. I can't wait to graduate (and then again, I'm in no hurry to start work either *grin*).

And if you want to take a look at my Guide to Taipei website, it's back up for about 6 more months! If you want to listen to soothing sound of my voice...I've also made a podcast and a screencast (but click on the link to watch the original screencast in 640x480 because the embedded one is incompatible with the latest versions of Flash so I'll sound like a chipmunk..which may appeal to you as well)...

Do you have...?

Update: after inheriting a bunch of stuff from home (my parents sold the house) and a few other donations/gifts (thanks!!!)...my list of needed items has greatly dwindled. YAY!

As I'm setting up my new digs, I'm coming across things that I need. Some of this is physical stuff, but some is just a need for advice/suggestions on how best to set up/organize the stuff I have.

For the actual stuff, in the interest of reuse/recycle, I'd like to see if you want to get rid of any of these things first. :) So, if you have any of the following items and are willing to sell/give, please let me know! They're listed in order of importance.

Needed Items:

• letter paper sorter (the upright kind cuz I don't have much desk space)
• a laundry basket
  
• paper shredder
• laundry basket (darn it! I forgot to get it from home when I had the chance...)
• pant/skirt hangers
  
• shoe rack/hanger
  

Needed Advice:

• a way to insulate the window in front of my desk so my fingers don't freeze off on the cold nights...
  
• how to store shoes for convenience & space saving
• how to organize closet...by seasons? by color? by tops/bottoms? by usage?
• how to hang pants/skirts
  

(List will be updated periodically to reflect new needs & acquirements.)
originally posted: Feb. 6, 2008 at 12:11am

Thanks everyone!

I feel very spoiled today with all the well wishes. Thanks to everyone for remembering my bday. :)

I had a delightful brunch with Bob at Southern Kitchen in LG (mmmMMMmmmmm...country fried steak & apricot french toast=heavenly!) and then we walked around a bit (I bought a shirt at Life is Good - my FAV store!!! I can't wait to wear it tomorrow!!) and finally (after waiting long enuf to feel like more), we stopped at Cafe Delatti for Pinkberry style fro-yo (delish!). :) It was super yummy. I recommend the original flavor (there's also mango=more sweet & blueberry=more tart) w/captain crunch. I especially like that they have lots of fresh fruits to choose from too. Their mochi balls are ok, but too soft for my taste.

Then we came back and I got to work on hwk and other stuff I've been putting off/too busy to do. Kind of a sucky way to spend my bday, but at least I got to be productive with someone very special. ;) =D Yup...unfortunately, since we had that big brunch at 2pm, we didn't really feel like having dinner till really late as well and Bob's plans of making me ribs will have to be postponed. But I can't wait!!! I LUV ribs.

Next will be a long string of celebrations lasting all the way till mid-March! hee hee I love my birthday. But man, so hard to pick things to do! :)

Spontaneity achieved!

So...on Tues, I was suddenly possessed with a strong desire to go boarding at least once this season. So I emailed a bunch of known boarders/skiers, but imagine my surprise when all my old slope buddies were unable to ditch work (when did we ever let that be our excuse?!) and join me!! Unfortunately, I couldn't pass up the golden opportunity I have as a student to go on a weekday when there are no crowds/traffic, so I had to ditch my workaholic friends (sorry all!). After much vacillation, I finally decided to go up on Thur with Bob, Chris (his roomie) & my bro. That's as impromptu as it gets for me folks! As it was, we only decided on Wed after Bob & Chris were able to secure the day off! Then, we had to work out all the logistics of car, rentals (for Bob & Chris), food, etc.!

It was sooooo worth it though!!

Beautiful weather, good snow (packed powder), no lines, and great company. It was wonderful and I'm so glad we went. The day trip wasn't even that bad either. Of course, I'm in no rush to do it again anytime soon. But I was surprisingly awake & energetic throughout the day (but crashed for about 1.5-2 hours on the car ride back). We kinda went crazy with the no lines thing and didn't really stop for lunch (had trail mix on the lifts). So we got in a good 10-13 runs! And I'm not too sore either (tho a little burnt). All in all, a very satisfying boarding experience. Enough for this season I guess. :)

Never here

I love my place, but I'm never here...at least I'm never here when my roomie's here. Monday was the first time we've ever had dinner together. Our schedules don't seem to have much overlap. She's up early & sleeps early....and I'm up....late....and get up....late. :)

But I've been unusually busy these last few weeks, so hopefully things are calming down. I've submitted some stuff for my culminating project, so I'm eagerly awaiting feedback from my adviser. But I'm also scared to find out how badly off the mark my attempt was. In the meantime, I should be continuing on with it, but I've been unmotivated this week. I should be catching up on my other class (which I've neglected for a week), but...there's nothing actually due. hehe In fact, today was a super nice and relaxing day where I did practically no work all day. I went to play with my niece, went grocery shopping with my sis, worked out (and listened to part of a lecture), came back & made dinner which I enjoyed while watching CSI on DVD with my roomie, washed dishes, looked through some ads (Safeway, Lucky, etc.), talked on the phone with Bob, updated some expenses on my spreadsheet and now, typed up a blog. It was a wonderfully low-key day. It was so refreshing and, I think, just what I needed. *whew*

Oh and the latest thing I've discovered about being grown up is what a hassle eating is and having to figure out what to eat for lunch and dinner each day. Ugh! It's been a pain (but still, a welcome one). I'm also going to have to keep better track of my groceries because I had to throw out some stuff that went bad AND when I go shopping, I forget what I've got and end up getting stuff I don't really need! So yeah...no more grocery shopping for me for a while...but stocking the pantry does take a bit of effort at first. The other thing about food is that I don't really have a good gauge on how much I actually eat, so I end up getting a lot more than I need and on top of that...I don't really snack much (or maybe I just don't have snacks I really like yet?)...so I don't think I'll be able to buy much snacks cuz they'll go bad or I'll get sick of it before I finish them. Or else Kittoe (Bob's place) will be seeing a lot more of my half-eaten stuff. :)

Setting up my place is lots of Fun!

I'm having lots of fun setting up my new place. It's so great and feels so grown up too. Anyhow, I was inspired last night and I've pretty much unpacked all my boxes except for 2 left. Now, I actually have space to walk around my room and get to the closet. I can even open & close the closet doors without obstruction. YAY! There's something very satisfying about emptying boxes and moving things around so it looks/works better. And at the end of the work, you can sit back and see the difference your work has made.

It's weird. I wasn't really that tidy a person when I was living at home, but I've been pretty darn tidy here. I want to wash the dishes after cooking/eating to the sink is clean, and I'm more aware of untidiness in my place as well. Maybe it's cuz everything's so neat & tidy already and I want to keep it that way? I don't know, but I've never been so inclined towards tidiness before so this is weird. And there's a bunch of things I want to reorganize & clean out (shoes, clothes, kitchen cabinets). So I'm trying to figure out the best way to organize things...which is kinda fun.

But yeah. I think, for now, it's enough that the boxes are almost gone. I think it's time to get back to school work (definitely not as fun)... =P

Moved!

So I moved to my new place on Saturday (Feb. 2). Some friends from my community group (+ Dan) came to help me out for which I'm very grateful! :) Here's some of the boxes that got brought over (the picture below is missing about 13+ more as well as the bed, dresser, bookshelf & desk that were also moved...hehehe). But it went surprisingly quickly. The guys took care of the furniture & boxes and the girls helped me move all the clothes in my closet as is (to save me from additional unpacking).

And here's my bed in my new room! It's a little funny looking cuz I set the timer on 2 sec so I had to jump. (You can't see much of the room, huh? ah well, guess you'll just have to come over some time!) But yeah, unpacking's a slow process and it's quite a struggle to juggle that on top of catching up with school and having to go to work too. *sigh* Vacation is really & totally over for me (not that I was vacationing while I was cleaning & packing, but it was nice to use that excuse to postpone school work). :( Here's what my boxes look like in my new room right now. Look nice, don't you think? Like I should just keep it that way...hee hee You probably can't tell, but that's actually better than what it was when I moved in cuz I've actually done some unpacking...
And after ~7 hours of installation trouble-shooting, and technical support frustrations, Janet (my roomie) and I are FINALLY able to connect to the Internet wirelessly from our laptops!! YAY!!! (Now, I really have no more excuses for not doing homework anymore....) And I'm making my first meal at home tomorrow (steak & potatoes)!! So exciting! And my car's really loving the garage.... :)

cleaning progress

omg! I'm so not enjoying cleaning/packing up my room. ugh! I've sure accumulated a lot of stuff over the years. And I have to look at every little thing and decide if I should keep it or throw it out. If I keep it & it's some sort of information, would it be better to transcribe it and just save it on my computer? I spent all of Monday cleaning and I was soooo drained. On the bright side, I've made a dent in my room. Now, I'll need to look at the closet and my clothes...

But today, I got a break from cleaning in order to deal with applying for financial aid. I talked to a financial aid advisor (finally!) and got the scoop on all the stuff I needed to do to start the LENGTHY process. She was nice and very helpful, but the amount of paperwork I've gotta fill out is *such* a pain.

It also turns out that I didn't have a letter proving my termination from Intel that I'll need, so I had to call and then get put on hold and routed to a 3rd party (apparently this function was outsourced). I was put on hold again, routed a few times (with more holding in between). Then, I was finally told I couldn't be helped. They don't give written confirmations directly to me. So I had to call back to Intel employee services, find out there's a special term I need to use to get the info I want (in the process my call was dropped and I had to call back, get put on hold and explain the whole thing to a new person!!!). THEN, I called the place again, struggled to get the option to talk to a person since I don't have some code I needed and got stuck with their automated operator in a long cycle of frustration till I wanted to kill the thing & the stupid person who designed the system to be so hard on users!!!! Was put on hold again, and finally....FINALLY reached someone who told me I'd need to print out a form, make copies of my driver's license & some proof of address (thank goodness I'm still living at the same place!!), fax it in and wait ~15 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*cry*

Moving day set & school starting

Booo! I can't believe break's already over! :( It officially ends on Wed (the first day of instruction), but since I had to go to campus for an orientation of the culminating experience class (equates to the master's thesis I need to graduate; see the handbook - which I've gotta read soon - for more info on what this is and here's a basic example of what I'll have to do, I'll probably post my progress periodically), I count it as over. No longer can I ignore the impending assignments for school stuff. *sigh*

I'm moving in on Feb. 3! I'm getting soooo excited!!! I dropped by the new place to check out my room again and figure out where I'd wanna place things. I'm totally cleaning this week and then I've gotta pack next week. I'll post pics of my new place & room once I'm settled. Oh!! And if anyone has an extra hairdryer, scale, plunger, toilet bowl brush, dirt devil-type thing, full-length mirror, etc. they wanna get rid of, please let me know! I guess I'm gonna have to do some household-y type shopping.

I'm still working on getting the financial aid too. I finally got a hold of a counselor who will answer my questions, but since today's a holiday, I'll call her tomorrow. I hope the info needed is not as detailed as it sounds cuz that'll be such a pain!

I'm gonna start budgeting this year as well. I started in Nov actually and made an excel spreadsheet for the purpose, but silly me, deleted the whole thing (which took hours of pouring over old credit card statements, receipts, check book, etc. for 2007) in order to make the template for 2008. Cuz I forgot to save it under a different name first. *sigh* All that time & energy down the drain. I'd backed up an older version of it, but I probably won't go back to fill on 2007 again unless the financial aid app really needs that detailed an account of my expenses!! I think I should get one of those budgeting softwares because that'll make things so much easier.

Ok. That's my update. Hopefully, I'll really keep this better up-to-date this year.

Happy New Year & more changes for me

Wow. It's been a Looooong time since I last wrote. I wonder if I'll be keeping this blog at ALL this year. Hrm. Must think about it.

Anyhow. news update from me is that I'll finally be moving out of my parent's place! I can't believe it. I'm totally dreading the packing & cleaning & moving part...but it's exciting to be living on my own (well, with a roommate). I'll be moving to Campbell probably at the beginning of Feb.