Randomness

I read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo cover to cover a few nights ago, staying way past my bedtime to finish it (didn't sleep until after 1am).  Was it that good?  Yes!!!  But it was also due at the library the next day and I couldn't renew it.  Yes, I know I had the book for 3 weeks and yes, I did wait until the night before it was due to read it!   So the next day we went to the library to return and pick up some items...and lo and behold, The Girl Who Played with Fire was available!  Started it immediately...but it got really dark and goosebumpy so I had to put it down halfway.  I finished the other half yesterday.  Sooooo good.  Since there's only 1 more book left in the trilogy, I think I will take a break and read some mindless fluff.

Today I walked into the oral surgeon's office intending to only have one wisdom tooth removed as recommended by my dentist.  Instead I was told I should remove all 4.  Ouch. :(  Bright side- I was completely knocked out and didn't feel a single thing.  In fact, the only thing I remember is getting strapped down and then Jerry walking me to my car.  Bright side #2- the entire procedure including xrays and anesthesia cost me $285!  Yay for insurance.  I'll have 3 more days to recover which is fine by me cus it's Carmaggedon anyway.  Let's see how long I'll have to drink my food...

As we were driving to the surgeon's office today, I happen to see a Nordstrom Rack opening along a street (Hawthorne Blvd) that I frequent quite often if I need to get some shopping done.  Needless to say I'm really estastic, NR is one of my fave stores.  Grand opening is Sept 1!  Hawthorne Blvd is one of my favorite shopping streets- we bought our mattress and my wedding gown from there- and it's home to 3 Macys, 2 TJ Maxx's, 2 Marshalls, a Ross (although I don't shop at Ross anymore, haven't bought anything there in a long time), there's 2 Targets, a Sprouts, TJs, brand new Ulta, and not to mention 2 malls, and so many furniture/home stores etc etc.

Last night Jerry and I went to MB Post- a new restaurant quite close to us.  Most of the dishes we ordered were quite delicious!  There were a couple misses, but I think that was because Jerry is not a fan of fatty dishes and I can't handle spicy food that well.  But they had these cheddar bacon chive biscuits that were to die for.  I can't wait to go back and try other things on their menu.  Finally no more driving to downtown or west LA for decent non Asian food!  

I'm really liking Google +.  I know it's not really FB's fault, and more due to the type of people that I've accepted friend requests from since 2004, but I gotta say that I've gotten really tired of many posts and status updates over the years and even gotten to the point where I've had to just hide them from my feed.  You know- the kind of people who mundanely update "it's Tuesday" "it's hot in this room" "I just woke up", those who seem to think that being lovey-dovey on the internet will validate their relationship in real life "i love you love you love you love love kiss kiss kiss kiss honey!" "you were sleeping when I left the house, babe!" "sweet pea happy 14 monthaversary plus 11 days!" (one such offender was my cousin and I point-blank told him that I was going to start blocking him so if he needed to get in touch to email me instead haha).  And don't get started on pseudo sports fans who instead of watching the game seem to spend their time updating the score on FB instead.  And I surely don't mind when people publicizes their check-ins every now and then into a cool place.  But umm...checking into the freeway, then checking into a fast food chain, and then an auto-shop, then a bank, then a grocery store, and then checking into their house?  I know that some ppl like checking in for more points or badges, that's fine, but they don't have to link EVERY check in to facebook!  And then there was a FB friend who decided to check into every Disneyland facility there was- yes even the parking lot and every ride.  Ahhh folks seem so normal in person when I added them on Facebook over the last 7 years.  Who knew their online persona was so...TMI to put kindly?  Hopefully G+ will be a fresh start!

Chivalry is pretty dead, at least on my commuter bus.  I had to stay at work later so I was stuck on a crowded bus that was standing room only.  Now normally, I wouldn't mind standing but this was a bus that didn't have the rope-ish handle hold off the bar.  In fact no bar, you had to hold onto the plastic top where there's luggage storage (my bus is not a regular bus, it's similar to a motor coach).  Being short, I couldn't even reach the top to hold onto.  There were quite a few men seated around me and no one offered their seat.  So since the ride is quite bumpy, I had to hold onto the arm rest with my right hand and the head rest with my left hand.  It was quite awkward because the woman on my left was extremely overweight so her fatty arm/shoulders spilled into the aisle.  You might ask why I didn't move forward or backward, but to be honest, the bus was so packed that I had a backpack in my face and another guy like 2 inches behind me.  The guy to my right wasn't fat but he wasn't skinny either so basically I forced him to hunch his shoulders in cus my hands were on the armrest.  All I can say is that thank goodness no one had BO.  Seriously guys unless you are injured, offer your seat to children, women, and elderly.  It's the right thing to do.

I stumbled upon this in my google reader: http://thefamilyroom.marthastewart.com/2011/07/12/citrus-gelatin-fruit-slices/
As a huge fruit and jello lover, I can't wait to make this when we have kids!  Jerry actually suggested that we try this with watermelon.  Hehe.  

Looking Forward To, Summer Edition

I guess it's safe to say that I gave up on the photography challenge.  Work got super busy and I just didn't have the time or energy!  Since my last post I've had to work in Chinatown, Claremont, Cerritos, downtown, San Gabriel, and Hermosa Beach, and this week I'm slated to be in Santa Monica, Sierra Madre and Monterey Park.  If you are familiar with LA you'll know that some of these cities take forever to drive to...whew!  I'll be glad when this week is over because it means 9 days off in a row for me!  Here's what else I'm looking forward to this summer:

My in-laws are coming to town this weekend and will be spending 2 weekends with us.  We have an awesome lineup of places to visit and things and eat including the Godmother sammie from Bay Cities Deli, desserts from Churros Calientes and Sweet Rose Creamery, and the most amazing chicken pasta from Hurry Curry, etc, etc.  I even made reservations for afternoon tea at the Bazaar, one of my favorite places in LA!  My SIL J and I will get some peaceful chat time while the guys and kids visit the Petersen Automotive Museum.  :)

In between the LA fun-filled weekends, we'll be going on a short cruise to Catalina and Ensenada via the Carnival Paradise.  I'm super excited as this is my first cruise, and we'll also get to spend quality time playing with our niece and nephews.  I can't wait to just relax and not be bothered by email or phone calls!

This summer I'll finally be able to check out the the Renegade LA craft fair.  I just stocked up on goodies at Unique LA in December, but I can't resist stopping by to browse through more crafty goodness at Renegade.  Plus it's free admission, versus Unique LA which charges 10 bucks pp. 

I'm planning a family camping trip at Crystal Lake, Azusa (part of the San Gabriel River (formerly Mount Baldy) District of The Angeles National Forest).  Many of my relatives have never been camping before...so this will be interesting.  I'm hoping that my cousins will catch the camping bug and go more often with us!  Jerry and I looooove camping and we go several times a year.  I can't wait to have kids and to take them camping. :)

My old college roommate C and I are going to see Much Ado About Nothing this summer as part of the Shakespeare by the Sea series!  Around 4 years ago, we picnicked at the Shakespeare Under the Stars in San Juan Capistrano and watched The Compleat Wrks of Wllm Shkspr (abridged).  I don't remember what it was about, but it was funny!  Can't wait to have another picnic again.  :)

We're also going to Lake Tahoe this summer along with Jerry's family- about 13 of us total- but instead of camping we've rented a cabin for the weekend.  It'll be my first time to Lake Tahoe so I'm excited!  Since our truck is now freed from camping gear, we're gonna bring our bikes. :)  In addition, my SIL L and I are going to this concert at one of the casinos:

Not many people I know are into Chinese pop music anymore so I'm happy to share this experience with her!  My dream is still see Faye Wong live...but not sure if that will ever happen.  I don't know any of the new singers nowadays, so I don't know who's hot or good.  I'm actually so out of touch that I had no idea that these guys formed the Big Four.  All I know is that I LOVED William So's music back in the day and I can't wait to hear him live, and as a bonus I also get to see Andy Hui!!  This is so geeky of me, but it would also be awesome of Sammi (Andy's gf) made a surprise appearance.  :) 

My first time to Chicago!  Our plane tix ended up being around $140 RT for a Thurs-Sun during peak travel season.  Ridiculous huh??  I was one of the lucky folks to nab this Groupon, and Virgin America had introductory rates of $99 each way.  I had been waiting for VA to launch at ORD, so it was just a waiting game.  The groupon deal made it even sweeter!  (A great way to get travel deals is to watch for new launches- when VA launched Toronto I used a coupon code via Twitter to get 50% off introductory fares, so only $250 RT, and right now Jet Blue is launching flights to Alaska, so you can fly for just $300 RT out of Long Beach!)  Anyhoo, I am excited to eat my way through this city, admire the architecture, and explore via boat and bike.  Speaking of eating...

After over 250 phone calls between the two of us (redialing over...and over...and over) Jerry finally managed to get through and made reservations at Alinea!  It's currently the #1 restaurant in North America and #6 in the world.  I am especially looking forward to this trip because I just finished the chef/owner of Alinea- Grant Achatz's book Life, on the Line: A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat.  It's one of the most insightful and well-written pieces of non-fiction that I've read in a long time.  I highly, highly recommend it.

It's going to be a great summer full of firsts.  My entire summer last year was consumed by wedding planning and crafting.  As proud as I was of all my DIY projects, I am REALLY glad to have my weekends back now.  Jerry and I are sooooo over anything wedding related!

Action

I just got home from work (a city council meeting, pictured above)- yep- it's been a loooooong 13 hour day.  This picture represents a specific kind of action: community action.  It is always a great thing to see youth involved and speaking in front of city council members.  When I was their age I sucked at public speaking so I really admire them for stepping up to the mike to promote positive healthy changes in their community. :)

For more info on the June Photography Challenge, visit here.

Someone I Love

Husband. <3

For more info on the June Photography Challenge, visit here.

Childhood

I was a voracious reader as a child.  I still love to read these days, but not with the same appetite that I had in the past (probably because it's now being fulfilled by Google Reader).  I read anything and everything growing up.  These gorgeous classics pictured above were some of my favorites that were re-read over and over.  I want the whole collection eventually (I received those as wedding gifts!), including these:

I generally don't buy spankin' new books from the publisher (instead I prefer vintage versions found in used bookstores and library sales) but I can't resist the prettiness that are these cloth bound editions!

For more info on the June Photography Challenge, visit here.

Silhouette

A day behind again- I'm going to skip today's challenge which was sun flare.  We're having a major bout of June gloom in LA so I didn't even see the sun all day!  Although I did take a nice afternoon nap so maybe that's when the sun came out?  After a delicious dinner of chicken/sausage/shrimp paella (my first attempt!) and waffle fries we went for a bike ride to a local park.  Now it's time for a nice shower and then some snuggle time with a good book.  Ahhh just 3 more weeks of work until 9 days off in a row! Summer...come soon.     

For more info on the June Photography Challenge, visit here. 

Colorscope

What's your Colorscope?  I was immediately drawn to Persimmon.  The corresponding description is pretty accurate I'd say. :) 

Animal

I know- I missed a day!  Didn't have an opportunity on Friday to take any pics of animals.  This is our friends' doggie Darwin.  Such a well-behaved pet. :) 

For more info on the June Photography Challenge, visit here. 

Fresh Fruit

I woke up with a tickle in my throat and now it hurts to swallow :(  My default feel-better beverage is either hot tea or hot water with a squeeze of lemon and a squirt of honey.  I hope I feel better soon, we're leaving tomorrow night for the Camp Pendleton Mud Run that is taking place this wknd! 

For more info on the June Photography Challenge, visit here.

Sunset

Now bear with me- this isn't what you'd picture a sunset to be right?  Well to be honest, I didn't make it out to take a sunset picture today.  I could have, but I felt like being lazy and decided to watch a bunch of Nikita episodes.  Instead, this is a picture of a meeting turned retirement celebration (most of us had no idea when we showed up!) for a colleague who had held her position for 16 years.  (16 years doesn't sound like a long time, but she was active and working since at least the 60s!)  Complete with a slideshow, beautiful flowers, cake and speeches, it was a very lovely tribute to her career and contributions to our field.

The way I see it, sunset doesn't mean that the day is over- it merely means that the night is young and that there is still plenty of time to enjoy life.  And that's how I see retirement- it's not a goodbye, but an opportunity to still enjoy what lies ahead! :)

For more info on the June Photography Challenge, visit here.