In so many words...

My new iPod nano

2008-12-25T22:25:00.000-08:00

Wahoo! My Tootie got me an iPod Nano for Christmas. That was something I initially wanted for my birthday but changed my mind when I realized having my own digital camera was more beneficial. Well, my sweet husband went and got me the iPod for Christmas. So I've been spending the day putting music on it and then I discovered the iTunes store. I've already bought two TV episodes (Numbers and NCIS) for 99 cents each. I really need to not go into the iTunes store too much or there may be some trouble!

(The purple one's mine!)

A great rendition of "12 days of Christmas"

2008-12-23T21:12:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone!

2008-12-02T19:59:00.001-08:00

My cupcake craze

2008-11-03T20:08:00.000-08:00

When I returned from Spain this summer I had about 2 weeks of no set plans and things to do before having to go back into the classroom. I'm not sure how it started but I began baking cupcakes. It's about 3 months later and I'm still going nuts over it. Here is the list of cupcakes I have already experimented with:

1. Chocolate, chocolate chip: Ray's ultimate favorite. This is one of my cupcakes not made from scratch. I've switched from a milk chocolate cake mix to a dark chocolate cake mix and I use dark chocolate chips. I LOVE dark chocolate. Plus, I have a secret ingredient that helps me to make it extra moist. Only a few are aware of this secret ingredient. Bwahahahah.......

2. Coconut: Made from scratch, I got this recipe off one of the couple of cooking/baking sites I frequent. It's a bit dense and being the novice I'm not sure what to do to make it fluffier. The only modification I did was add shredded coconut on the top while it's baking so you get this nice toasted coconut topping. Gives it more texture.

3. Vanilla Almond Cherry: Made from scratch except for one ingredient. This was a favorite but is somewhat labor intensive.

4. Pumpkin Creamcheese: I made this for a Halloween dinner and it was a hit. I think the pecan graham crust made the difference even though I burned a lot of the pecans when toasting it! The frosting was well-received too since it was light AND was made with Splenda.

5. Chocolate chip zucchini: Ray and I give it an "Eh" vote. A little dry so maybe next time I'll use my secret ingredient.

6. Strawberry: I made this for my cousin's fiance's birthday since he loves strawberries. It was a hit with him so mission accomplished! I'm glad since I rushed making it. I bet it would be even better if I took care to do it right!

I should take pictures to make this more interesting.........

Control your dog, PLEASE

2008-10-23T19:25:00.001-07:00

Your dog is very cute. With her floppy ears and that adorable face. I sit there and watch as your dog sniffs mine. Pretty standard. It's a dog park so I know my dog will be sniffed. I watch as your dog runs around looking oh so cute. I watch as your dog barks at mine's. Whatever. My dog's guilty of that. And then, I watch as your damn dog starts barking aggressively and then starts chasing my dog and trying to bite him! Awwww bitch you better control your damn dog! Did you apologize? Nope. You just made stupid excuses.

When you decided to put your dog on the large dog area I thought, "Ok, maybe that's her way of making it right." Not even five minutes go by and your dog is doing the exact same thing but this time it's with bigger dogs so she's being trampled. So after that incident did you decide leave? Nope. You FRICKIN' come back to the little dog area!

So now I'm watching your dog like a hawk. More dogs begin coming to the park and I thought, "Great, distractions." So your dog goes off and plays with the other dogs including constantly taking another dog's chew toy away from it. And then, surprise surprise, 15 min. later your damn dog gets into a fight with ANOTHER dog!

In the end your uncontrolled dog has started fights or attacked four separate dogs and it jumped up and down on a little girl who could be no more than 3 or 4 y/o because it wanted the girl's toy. And what is your method? To just continue to yell and scream at your dog, hold her on her back for a long period of time, and to make excuses. I pray that you don't have children.

Renaissance Faire

2008-10-12T20:44:00.000-07:00

Today I went to my first Renaissance Faire. Ever since I was in junior high I had this mild fascination for that era. Something about knights, kings and queens, mystical beings, etc piqued my interest. That could explain why I love movies such as Lord of the Rings and fantasy-type books. Surprisingly up until now I had never been to the Renaissance Faire. I finally got myself and Ray out there and it was quite enjoyable. We were a bit worried about the wind chill factor that day but the weather there was a lot warmer than in SJ.

Immediately upon entering the grounds there was so much to see and take in. The faire was set up next to Casa de Fruta off the Pacheco Pass. With the many trees dotting the area it was a perfect place to have it. All the shops were set up on a winding pathway and it really made you feel as though you had been time warped into that era. What made it even more fun was that a lot of the faire-goers got into character and dressed during that time. Plus they even talked like the people back then did! I had a lot of "my lady" and "miss" directed at me.

We watched a jousting match, which was cool. Saw a couple comedic performances. The first one by the name of "Moonie" was pretty funny. It was pretty much done without talking and it was still hilarious. The other guy, Broon, was funny but not as funny as Moonie. We walked around a lot and looked at all the different things they had. They had these beautiful gowns that you can imagine during those times and I so wanted one to wear for Halloween but $370 is just not in my price range! The $25 entrance fee killed the spending possibilities. So we spent our meager $$ on food. I had planned on having a turkey leg but after seeing some ppl eat it I changed my mind. It just looked too massive and after the filipino breakfast buffet we had I was not that hungry. I settled for a meat pie which wasn't too bad and had a dessert of sliced strawberries with chocolate sauce.

Overall, I had a fun time. I think it would've been more interesting if we dressed the part to get into the mood but for the first time it went well. I may just go again next year!

I can't take credit for this, but I thought it was great!

2008-10-09T17:11:00.000-07:00

12 Reasons Same-Sex Marriage Will Ruin Society

1. Homosexuality is not natural, much like eyeglasses, polyester, and birth control are not natural.

2. Heterosexual marriages are valid because they produce children. Infertile couples and old people cannot get legally married because the world needs more children.
3. Obviously gay parents will raise gay children because straight parents only raise straight children.

4. Straight marriage will be less meaningful, since Britney Spears's 55-hour just-for-fun marriage was meaningful.

5. Heterosexual marriage has been around for a long time, and it hasn't changed at all: women are property, Blacks can't marry Whites, and divorce is illegal.

6. Gay marriage should be decided by the people, not the courts, because the majority-elected legislatures, not courts, have historically protected the rights of minorities.

7. Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are always imposed on the entire country. That's why we only have one religion in America.

8. Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people makes you tall.

9. Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage license.

10. Children can never succeed without both male and female role models at home. That's why single parents are forbidden to raise children.

11. Gay marriage will change the foundation of society. Heterosexual marriage has been around for a long time, and we could never adapt to new social norms because we haven't adapted to cars or longer lifespans.

12. Civil unions, providing most of the same benefits as marriage with a different name are better, because a "separate but equal" institution is always constitutional. Separate schools for African-Americans worked just as well as separate marriages will for gays & lesbians.

Overwhelmed mothers

2008-10-06T21:11:00.000-07:00

I'm watching an Oprah episode and it's about overwhelmed mothers. Oprah has a guest on the show that lost a child due to being overwhelmed. Her husband wasn't able to take their 3 y/o to daycare so she said she would drop off their daughter. It was also the first day of school and she was a middle school teacher. It was 6 a.m. and too early to drop off at daycare so the mother stopped by the donut shop and went to the school to drop everything off. Her daughter had fallen asleep and with the rush of the first day of school she completely forgot about her daughter. It wasn't until the end of the day when her daughter was discovered. Unfortunately her daughter died of heat stroke.

Women today strive so hard to do it all. They don't feel accomplished if they can't say they're doing a million things and can multitask like a pro. If their calendar or planner isn't filled to the max it's like they're not doing enough. Moms were given the opportunity to call this hotline on Oprah and anonymously say how they feel overwhelmed. It's so sad hearing about all the frustrated moms feeling defeated as though their bad moms because their children aren't getting the sort of moms they deserve.

So what is a good mom? Is a good mom someone who stays at home full-time and is always there to tend to their child's every needs? Is a good mom someone who has a career outside of the home to provide for their child? Why is a mother/woman's worth measured by how many things are on their plate? Why is it so hard to say, "Stop! I need to take a break." It's always go, go, go. What's so frustrating that either situation (stay-at-home or career mom) doesn't seem perfect. So what are we to do?

2008-09-17T12:16:00.000-07:00

Our niece is such a beautiful singer! We're so proud of her and wanted to share this video.

In my quest to try out different photobooks.....

2008-08-31T23:50:00.000-07:00

.....my quest has been stopped short. About a month ago I decided to put together photobooks of our worldly travels. I wanted our future children to look through these books (as I did as a youngin') and marvel and what their parents have seen and done. I want to inspire them to travel as well. So I started out at Shutterfly the site that we did our parent wedding albums. I put together our "London, Paris, and Amsterdam" trip. The pictures came out pretty good and I liked the tools they provided. From what I remembered I was able to save my work and return to it on a later date. Uploading pictures was quick and painless.

So for our Spain trip I decided to try out Snapfish. I started on this new journey very excited. I was initially turned off by the uploading process. Not only was there a limit of how many I can upload at one time but I had to sit there and wonder when it would finish. With Shutterfly it actually shows you the countdown and so far I can upload as many pictures as I please. Once I got past that initial annoyance I proceeded to put together the book. The options were decent and it wasn't too hard to navigate. I did notice that even though I could save my book there was no indication that I could log out and come back to it another day. Since I couldn't devote an afternoon to it I just closed my laptop to let it sleep until the next day.

On Day 2 I went back to work. I proudly had reached about 30 pages when I had to print something. I took my laptop upstairs to turn on the printer and print some documents. While returning to the living room I had closed my laptop for easier carrying. When I opened my laptop for some reason Snapfish was saving my book,even though I had done that prior to going upstairs. Next thing I know the site takes me to their homepage. I frantically look around for the book in my account but can't find it. I even had Ray look. I lost it! I am so mad! All that work for nothing. Nothing!

So I say "Screw you!" to Snapfish. I'm back to Shutterfly. Besides, Shutterfly just sent me a coupon for $10 off so even more reason to abandon Snapfish.

Reasons why I love Shirley (almost as much as I love Ray!)

2008-08-12T21:28:00.000-07:00

She thinks I'm:

1. Kind-hearted
2. Hospitable
3. Cheerful
and
4. Well-liked....

....when sometimes I don't think I am!

Food for thought

2008-08-12T21:24:00.000-07:00

"Every time you date someone with an issue that you have to work to ignore, you're settling."

Are you doing that?

To all the ladies who have some damn excuse for every guy they meet!

2008-08-11T14:39:00.000-07:00

So frickin' ADORABLE!

2008-08-01T19:31:00.000-07:00

2008-08-01T16:39:00.000-07:00

Countdown.....

2008-06-29T22:09:00.001-07:00

8 days and counting

Countdown to Spain

2008-06-23T15:13:00.000-07:00

14 days to go!

Some people should not be allowed to own dogs!

2008-06-21T13:21:00.001-07:00

My biggest dog gripe is ppl not cleaning up after their dog. If I can pick up my dog's shit than so can you. Otherwise get a pooper scooper or don't own a dog!

Now I have a new gripe.

This past week a nearby neighbor's dog has gotten loose 3x. Count them. 1, 2, 3 times in a week. And those are the only times we've seen this dog. The first time we came upon that dog he took a liking to our Herc. The dog had tags so we called the number. Turns out the dog lived down the street. So we returned the dog. A few days later I'm home from work and Herc is whimpering by the front door. I open the door and there's the dog again. So we walk him back to his house and clearly said to the mother of the house (I believe it's her child that owns the dog) that this was the second time we've found their dog. She thanked me profusely and that was that. This morning I wake up to Ray shouting from downstairs, "Hey, guess who came to visit?" Yup, it was the dog again and he was in our backyard! So we took the dog back to the house and no one answered. We left a vm right after and waited at our house. We waited three hours and no call back. Once again we walked to the house but no one answered. Please keep in mind that we're in the middle of a heat wave so that short walk feels sooooo much longer than it is! We called the phone number again and finally got a person. The owner (the son, like I predicted) came over and picked up his dog. We told him this was the third time and next time we're just going to call Animal Control. His response, (in a very "whatever" tone) "Uh, ok, well thanks." Yeah, thanks my ass! I hope this guy realizes we're not bluffing. I'm tired of worrying about this poor neglected dog just because his owner doesn't want to take the necessary precautions by either boarding up their fence or keeping the dog inside! It is not our responsibility!

Newsflash!

2008-06-19T21:03:00.000-07:00

Steve Wozniak dines at Cicero's! He's got GREAT taste!

I hate teasers!!!!

2008-06-18T19:58:00.000-07:00

So here I am watching TV minding my own business when a montage of CW shows came on. So I instead of gluing my eyes to my computer I stopped to watch this montage. The purpose of the montage was to give you a glimpse of next season's shows. So I'm watching it when all of a sudden it shows a clip from One Tree Hill. It was a clip of Luke and Peyton coming out of a church in complete wedding garb. AHHHHHHH!!!!!! What does that mean?!?!?! Is it true??? Or, is that a clip from a dream sequence?!?! I hate teasers! They always play with your minds!

He didn't even see it comin'

2008-06-17T13:53:00.001-07:00

June 17, 2008.

Teddy Lim was found in his home last night at 10:38 p.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Police are currently interviewing neighbors and witnesses. Neighbors and family members are devastated by this horrible incident. They remember Lim as being a jovial bear with a lot of zest for life. "He always had a smile on his face as though he had just heard a funny story," said neighbor, Marianne Wilson. "We will miss Teddy very much. We will always loved the hugs he gave us," said cousin, Winnie Pooh.

Police are in search of persons of interest for questioning. Please contact the police department if these persons of interest are located.

"Maxed" Out!

2008-06-14T11:12:00.001-07:00

So here I was on a Friday afternoon thinking I'm going to have a quiet evening with the husband and dog. Around 5ish Eric called and invited us out to Club Max located in the Doubletree Hotel. His friend was in a band called Too Smooth and they were playing there Friday and Saturday night. Since it had been a while since we've gone out like that we were like, "Hey, why not!"

So we met up with Eric, Mayenne, Jane, and Faye at 9:30. The band was already in full swing when we went inside. The club is more of a lounge with a medium-sized dance floor. For a lounge-like club it was a good sizable dance floor. Now I normally aren't into bands of this sort, you know, the kind that go around and play at clubs or weddings. But they were not that bad. They were all very energetic and sang a variety of old and current Top 40 songs. It was interesting to hear Gwen Stefani and Pussycat Doll being played live! The only downfall of our time at Club Max was the DJ. In between sets the DJ would "spin" music while the band members took a break. Now, I put spin in quotation marks because he wasn't actually spinning. It was more like setting up a playlist on his ITunes and letting it run without forming any transitions or mixing. It was HORRIBLE. The music choices were great but were tainted by the inexperience of this DJ. In this day and age there is just NO excuse for that kind of mediocrity.

The club itself was a hit or miss. The decor is like your typical hotel lounge but since it was a hotel lounge it attracts, yep, hotel guests. So there was a wide range of people there. There was a bachelorette party (really? There wasn't anywhere better for you to go?), people our age as well as people my parent's age. The drinks were decent and regularly priced. I did like that it lacked the "hoochie" factor which can get a bit annoying after a while.

The band played from 9:30 to about 1 a.m. with breaks in between. It's very interesting watching how women react to live bands. The lead male singer would occasionally go on the dance floor and dance with the "single" ladies while he sang. One particular lady he danced with provided us with much entertainment. Earlier we saw this lady dancing with a guy and the way they carried themselves we assumed they were dating or on a date. Eventually when the singer came on the dance floor the lady totally ditched the other guy to dance with the singer. She was totally all over the singer. The poor rejected guy ended up dancing with this F.O.B.-like woman and he was clearly not having a good time. She would try to freak him and such and he would just stand there and "dance" with his hands, if you know what I mean. There was a point where the "freaky" woman was getting down with herself on the ground and her legs couldn't hold her any longer so she fell. It was so funny! Eventually once the set was over the rejecter and rejectee separated. We then assumed they were probably not together but maybe the guy latched himself on her. Maybe that was her way of getting rid of him!

Towards the end Ray and I hung out with Eric out in the pool area. Eventually the others joined us as well as John, their friend that's in the band. By that point we were all hungry so we headed over to Denny's for a late-night meal. John joined us as well as the rest of the band but they sat at another table. We were seated by the door, which led to some very interesting incidents. As we were sitting there waiting for our food a young girl, probably in her late teens, came in and sat at the "Waiting" bench that is right behind our booth. A few minutes later I looked over my shoulder and saw a guy walk into the restaurant. Thinking nothing of it I turned back to the table. Within seconds I heard a SMACK!, I could feel a burst of air run through my hair, and a girl scream. When I looked back the guy ran out the door as well as the girl. According to the others who were facing in that direction the guy came in an smacked the girl hard in the face. Some of the Denny's employees ran out to see if the girl was ok. They brought her inside and had her sit in the back while she waiting for her ride. I thought they should've called the police. For a guy to have the audacity to come into a public space and abuse someone without hesitation does not say much for his character and it shows what he's capable of.

Although our meal began with all that DRAMA it ended a lot better. Our night ended at 3 a.m. We were so tired but it was a lot of fun. We hadn't done something like that in a long time.

The BEST strawberry ever!

2008-06-02T21:52:00.000-07:00

Ray and I went to the Santana Row Farmer's Market on Sunday. Our goal was to buy bread and some fruits & veggies. So when we saw the strawberry stand we couldn't resist. So we bought a pack of strawberries along with our other groceries and went our merry way. When we eventually got home from doing other errands I was feeling a bit hungry. So I decided to dip into the strawberries we bought. I took one bite from that juicy red fruit and I was in HEAVEN! It was so sweet and juicy! I swear these strawberries grew in a vat of sugar. Mmmmmm good! I'm making sure we take another trip there next week and we're definitely buying more than one pack!

Happy Anniversary!

2008-05-27T20:45:00.000-07:00

It is our first wedding anniversary. It is AMAZING how fast the year flew by. It still feels like yesterday! Ray was so sweet. He sent a bouquet of flowers to my work. It was such a nice surprise. Since we decided to stay in for the evening I asked him what he wanted for dinner. His request was meatloaf, mac 'n cheese, and peas & carrots. He LOVES meatloaf so I wasn't too surprised. I decide to try this recipe by Billy Joel's wife. I saw her and Billy Joel on an Oprah episode and the meatloaf she made looked pretty good. So I thought I would forego the meatloaf dry mix recipe and use this recipe. Ray requested bacon slices on top so that was the only deviation from the recipe. The meatloaf was sooooo frickin' good! Made from scratch and it was so easy to make. Ray literally licked the plate!

For dessert we thawed out the top tier of our wedding cake. For those who fear the worst of year-old cake fear no more. The cake was not as moist as I remembered but the chocolate mousse was still absolutely fabulous even after a year! We had to tell ourselves that it's not appropriate to eat more than one slice! Initially I didn't give a rat's ass if we froze our cake. I wasn't planning on doing that but the caterers had packed it away for us so I was like, "What the hell." Well, now I'm glad I did it because as the very last remnants of a wonderful memory I get to once again relive that day. Yes, it's just cake but it's so much more to us.

Carmel-by-the-Sea

2008-05-25T21:20:00.000-07:00

"Odd" Carmel tidbits:

* The entire town does not have any traffic lights
* Residential areas do not have sidewalks or street lamps
* The entire town does not have addresses. As in 1234 Elm St., Carmel. So if you want to know where a shop or hotel is located it is written as "4th St. between San Carlos and Ocean."

GREAT Carmel tidbits:

* Dog friendliest town in the world!

Friday

We arrived at Svendsgaard's Inn in the early afternoon. It was a cute little inn that could remind you of a motel due to it's size but it had better hospitality. And, dogs are welcomed! After settling into our room we took a self-guided walking tour of the town. It was nice to see all the cute little courtyards they had and see areas that we may have glossed over if we didn't go on this tour.

After spending about 2 hours around the town we rested for a bit before heading to dinner. We dined at Portabella on Ocean Ave. The biggest plus was that it was dog-friendly. We were seated in an enclosed heated back patio. Herc was allowed to roam free since it was enclosed. There were other diners with their dogs so he got to sniff other dogs. We dined on paella and seafood pasta. It was quite good!

Saturday

Our day began at 8:00 a.m. Upon our door mat (Yes, we have a doormat!) was a little cooler with a newspaper tucked on the outside of the cooler.

And what was inside that cooler, you ask? BREAKFAST!!! We enjoyed a bagel, yogurt, cut fruit, cereal, and juice. There was also a banana and a slice of blueberry loaf but we saved that for snacks.

After having breakfast we headed off to Mission Trails to do a morning hike. The trail was very beautiful. We were surrounded by tons of trees. The weather was cool which made the hike a lot more enjoyable. What was even better was that good-behaving dogs are allowed to walk leash-free. Herc did a great job of walking alongside of us or at least responded when we called him. (Remember that tidbit for later on!) We hiked for a little over an hour. The trail was located across from Carmel Mission so after the hike we took a self-guided tour of the grounds. Unfortunately we couldn't go inside the church due to a wedding.

Afterwards we headed back to the main part of Carmel to have lunch. With the day being cold and a bit gloomy we had a craving for some clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl. It took us forever but we found a restaurant that served clam chowder in a bread bowl. Unfortunately they didn't have patio seating. Fortunately their sister restaurant was across the street with outdoor patio seating so they were willing to accommodate us and send the chowder to the other restaurant. Great, right? Well, the chowder wasn't the greatest. It wasn't as creamy and the potatoes were chopped instead of chunky.

After lunch we headed to the beach where dogs are allowed to run around leash-free! It was freezing out there but we had fun walking along the shore as Herc bounded all over the place. Of course when he started running excitedly towards other dogs while ignoring our calls we had to put him back on the leash. What a bum! And we thought he was doing well!

Once our toes and noses were frozen we decided to go to The Mall for some hot chocolate. Before leaving the beach I came across my dream home. *sigh*

We enjoyed some fancy hot chocolate at a Coffee and Cocoa Bar. Ray had a Ghiradelli dark chocolate and I had a Scharfenberger dark chocolate. Yummy! After enjoying the hot chocolate at one of their many outdoor tables we walked around a bit. Herc made friends with a horse, I mean dog, and we shopped at Coach. Herc even got a dog biscuit from a nice Coach salesperson!

After a nice nap we headed to dinner at Bahama Billy's. I would provide a link to the restaurant but their website isn't much to rave about. Luckily the food does not reflect the quality of the website! We shared a sampler appetizer of fried coconut shrimp, ahi tuna, ribs, and jerk chicken wings. We also had filet mignon (med.-rare), lobster, veggies, and mashed potatoes. For dessert we had a chocolate ganache cake with vanilla ice cream. The patio seating was very nice. Anywhere you sat you were within reach of a fireplace that kept us warm. Herc loved eating the bones from the ribs as we dined on our dinner!

Sunday- Last Day

We spent the morning driving the famous 17-mile drive. Herc loved the drive around the points of interest. We saw some really cool points of interest. It took us about two hours to go through the whole drive. Afterwards we had lunch at Monterey's Fisherman's Wharf. The clam chowder at Old Fisherman's Grotto was absolutely delicious! Totally made up for yesterday's clam chowder. We also had an appetizer sampler with calamari, a crab cake, and steamed balsamic artichoke. We ended our wonderful Carmel getaway with a scoop of ice cream at the sweet shop next to the Grotto.

Thank you to Handsome for a great weekend!

N-A-S-T-Y!

2008-05-23T11:02:00.000-07:00

Watching an Oprah episode about OCD camp. One guy is obsessed about germs and won't even use his bathroom at home. Part of the OCD camp was getting the guy to touch the toilet seat. Ok, I would do that. But, then the doctor (after running his hands over the seat) licks his hands! And he encourages the guy to do the same. And then, the doctor got the guy to put his hand inside a city trash can, run his hands through his hair, and lick his hands! I'm sorry but I don't have OCD and I wouldn't do something like that. I feel sick just thinking about it! Talk about EXTREME therapy!

2008-05-11T14:12:00.001-07:00

Accomplishment

According to Dictionary.com, accomplishment is defined as:

Something completed successfully; an achievement.

According to yours truly, accomplishment is defined as:

Finishing 3 1/2 seasons of How I Met Your Mother in one month and catching up to the current episode!

HIMYM

2008-05-09T21:40:00.000-07:00

I SO want a bright yellow umbrella!

My crazy-ass schedule

2008-04-11T22:01:00.000-07:00

My schedule for the next couple months. Please make sure to book me at least a month in advance:

- Jon's hockey game
- BBQ @ our house
- Mom Lim's mass
- Lunch w/ the girls @ our house
- Sexy mama's bday bowling MANIA!
- Kim's visit
- Herc's bday party
- Ly's bday
- Billy's wedding
- Our one year anniversary!!!!!

Colin Farrell sucks!

2008-04-06T20:50:00.001-07:00

Saw the movie, "New World," or at least part of it because it sucked! I'm so glad we didn't invest too much into it, otherwise we would've felt obligated to finish it.

Silver lining:

We switched and watched "Akeelah the Bee." It was a great movie! So heartwarming and inspiring! It definitely made up for Colin Farrell's craptastic movie!

Laptops Beware

2008-03-26T16:32:00.000-07:00

I have a subconscious hatred for laptops. Long ago I kept tripping over my laptop's power cord to the point where part of the power cord snapped inside my laptop. Apple store employee fixed it for me and I bought a new power cord. Recently I tripped over my power cord AGAIN and this time the entanglement caused my laptop to fall off the ottoman. So not only do I face resistance when I plug the cord into my laptop but the fall had bent the metal surrounding the area where the cord plugs into my laptop.

Maybe laptops aren't for me. Maybe I need the new powerbook with the magnetic power cord. Maybe I'm just a klutz.

Vote for hope and change

2008-03-24T12:41:00.000-07:00

YES WE CAN

2008-03-22T23:39:00.000-07:00

heheheheh....Can you tell that I've just started figuring out how to post images on my blog?

I'm with the artist

2008-03-22T23:33:00.000-07:00

A couple weekends ago Ray and I went to Big's unveiling of this mural that him and another artist did in SF. It was amazing!! We are so proud of him!

2008-03-22T23:31:00.000-07:00

Coincidence? I think not!

Yes we can

2008-02-29T16:20:00.000-08:00

"...in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false, about hope."

www.dipdive.com

Did you get your red envelope today?

2008-02-10T22:57:00.000-08:00

Chuc mung nam moi!

Gung hay fat choy!

Happy New Year!

And it's LUNAR New Year, please! The Chinese aren't the only ones who celebrate it!~

The COOLEST indoor swimming pool ever!

2008-01-27T21:47:00.000-08:00

So Liz decided to have a joint bday with Matthew, Ray, and Chak. The plan was to have a pool party. At first I thought, "A pool party in January? WTF?!?!" Then I heard it was an indoor pool and I was like, "Ok, that sounds better but I'm still feeling cold thinking about it!" So we go to the community center in Fremont that has the indoor pool. We go into the lobby and are trying to figure out which way to turn when to our right we see this huge window and beyond that window was the COOLEST indoor swimming pool I have ever seen! There were three different pool areas. One was your traditional rectangular-shaped pool that had a bball hoop and a goal post. The middle pool was a lazy river with two water slides in the middle of the river. The last pool was the kiddie pool. They had a playground structure in it as well as a sizeable pool area for the kids to wade in. AND, the temp in the pools and the room was very warm. I loved it! Entrance fee is pretty decent too. It is definitely worth a repeat visit!

Goodbye my feline friend

2008-01-24T20:11:00.000-08:00

How could it hurt so much?
You're just a cat.
How could I miss you so much?
You're just a cat.
How is it that everywhere I look I start to cry?
Because,
You're just cat.
And yet as you lay in my arms and I watched you take your last breath
I can't help but feel my heart breaking
Because,
You were MY cat.

Goodbye beloved paper chaser.
Goodbye bed warmer.
13 years of great memories.
I love you, you little stinker.

Stinky Nguyen
3/95-1/23/08

3/95-1/08

2008-01-23T21:00:00.000-08:00

I'm really sad......

2008-01-21T16:59:00.000-08:00

Just had my preconception counseling. Took some tests and got my prenatal vitamins. *breath* *breath* Ok, here I go!

Conflicted feelings

2008-01-05T22:36:00.001-08:00

Do I want to go back to work?

I guess you shouldn't blog while watching TV

2008-01-04T11:37:00.001-08:00

"It's not against the WINDOW...."

And I thought I was a great multi-tasker! Thanks for the correction Ms. Jou!

Doing its job too well

2008-01-04T10:38:00.001-08:00

We finally got curtains for our bedroom. We got tired of having the sun shine in our eyes when we're trying to sleep in just a bit on the weekends. So we got textured chocolate brown curtains and we also moved our bed to the window. It's not against the wedding so there's actually some space b/w our bed and the window so the curtains can close. Unfortunately the curtains are doing their job so well that we end up oversleeping this whole week!

2008-01-02T21:28:00.001-08:00

That last entry didn't work out like I hoped it did.......

2008-01-02T21:25:00.001-08:00

sloth <slawth or, esp. for 2, slohth)

1. habitual disinclination to exertion; indolence; laziness

2007-12-25T11:21:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone! I hope these past few days are filled with love and laughter and not pain and tears. Start gearing up for the new year. I've got my resolution picked out!

Relief

2007-12-25T11:20:00.001-08:00

Holiday dinner with a few friends: Done

Holiday luncheon at work: Done

Family-in-law Christmas party: Done

I am actually tired of planning. *gasp*

And now off to nurse my cold........

What is your someday?

2007-12-09T21:56:00.001-08:00

A few weeks ago I proposed a question to Ray. "What is your someday?" For example some of my somedays are:

Someday I......

1. Will stay in a Bed and Breakfast.
2. Want to have a hair makeover
3. Want to get myself to Hawaii
4. Swim in an infinity pool
5. Have a couples massage on/by the beach

What is your "someday?"

My Day-to-Day in Phoenix, Arizona

2007-12-09T21:52:00.001-08:00

Thursday: Happy birthday, Daddy Lim

We landed in PHX Wed. night. Thursday morning was spent visiting Grandpa Glen and Grandma Francis at their assisted living home. They live in a pretty cool place. I actually want to live there when I get old! We stayed to have lunch with them. Man, do they eat well! I had a tomato and basil soup, cheese enchiladas with rice and beans, flan, and ice cream. They have the cutest mini poodle named Baby.

In the evening we had dinner at a Chinese restaurant for Daddy Lim's birthday. Many ppl that I've met before were present as well as new faces. We had cake from Wicked Bakery, made famous by Oprah and Gayle. We got the tiger cake. It was alternating layers of white and chocolate with a mix of choc. and vanilla cream after each layer. It was VERY good!

Friday: Caroling

Spent the morning walking around. Ray's dad went to a memorial and we decided to burn off some Chinese food. We walked to the nearby supermarket and many other stores. Watched a mini-marathon of Monk. (Go USA Network.) We then headed over to a holiday party where Ray's dad and his friends had formed a caroling group and they were going to sing. They sang pretty good and it was fun listening to them.

Saturday: Too early to wake up for nothing!

We were supposed to go to mass at 7a.m. We arrived at the church a couple minutes before 7 and discovered that mass was at 8. AHHHHHH!!!! So it was off to Judy and Rich's for breakfast at 8. We had some yummy rice, eggs, and longanisa. Washed it down with a bit 'o Starbucks. Apparently that was the only Starbucks within 5 miles of where they live. How do ppl live like that?!?!

After breakfast we headed over to the Filipino Senior Center for lunch and a holiday show. It was interesting watching old ladies in red leotard tap dance and sing. After we had our fill of holiday cheer and food we headed over to a branch of Desert Dragon Pottery on Shea Blvd. As part of Daddy Lim's bday celebration we decided to take him to do something fun. That fun was in the form of a potter wheel. We paid for 2 hours of pottery instruction. It was a lot of fun. My french-tip nails got all jacked up but it was well worth it. We were able to make 4 bowls. Daddy Lim has serious lead foot. For one project he was going so fast the clay fell off and he was left with a lovely plate!

Once we were done making pottery we went home for a break before heading to yet another holiday party. It was actually a birthday party for a 13 year old but you know how it goes. It was a grownup party in disguise of a bday party. Once again, more food and more caroling.

Sunday: Home

So happy to see Herc! I missed him SO much!

(Too lazy to edit so deal with it.)

Only one person can read this so go practice!

2007-11-11T22:01:00.001-08:00

Don Don Ka Don Don
Don Don Don Kara Don Don
Ka Don Ka Don Doro Don Don
Doro Tsuku Doro Tsuku Su Ka Su Ka
Don Tsuku Don Don Su Ka Ka

2007-11-04T19:59:00.001-08:00

Life is good when you get two ice cream cakes within 2 days of each other.........mmmmmm......

Life is even sweeter when the first ice cream cake came about because your loving and attentive husband remembered a conversation months ago at a Baskin Robbins where I said I would like to have an ice cream cake for my birthday.

The cure for the smell

2007-10-31T20:57:00.001-07:00

So our garbage can has been stinky for a while. It's not because we always have stinky stuff being thrown in there. I was starting to believe that the smell was premeating into the plastic and taking up residence. I can picture these green and brown balls of beings with eyes and hands doing the Roger Rabbit dance on the sides of our can.

We've cleaned it out and bleached it. And everytime I reline the can I spray the inside of the can and the lid with Lysol as well as the inside of the garbage bag. None of that seems to help. Sometimes I get the funk with a mix of Lysol. Blech! So I decided I just need to get one of those stainless steel trash cans. My theory was if it's stainless steel than the stink will slide right off. So we went to Macy's, they didn't sell trash cans. We went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond and found the stainless steel cans. Surprise, surprise, the outside looks metallic but the inside is plastic! Argh! We're checking out the different styles, sizes, and prices. Oh good golly miss molly was it pricey for a trash can! Ray convinced me to give our old can another chance. He had read somewhere to put a dryer sheet at the bottom so we tried it out and.......................................................................

3 days later and it still smells goooood! Yay for Ray!

A reason why I teach

2007-10-26T18:41:00.001-07:00

A friend whom I also worked with a couple years ago called me a couple nights ago. She is also no longer teaching at the same school but still keeps in touch with the other teachers. One of the teachers called my friend and told her that she had some of my former 3rd graders, who are now 5th graders. One day they had a writing assignment. They were to write about a happy/favorite memory. Did they write about their Disneyland trip? NO. Did they write about getting a PSP console or the latest video game? NO. They wrote about their time with me in 3rd grade!!!!!!! *tear*

More classic than the shoe shopping story

2007-10-18T18:21:00.001-07:00

Teacher: Hey student, where were you yesterday?

Student: My dad didn't want to wake up.

Teacher: *disbelief* Uh, your dad didn't want to wake up?

Student: Yeah, my dad didn't want to wake up.

Teacher: Well, you need to say to your dad, "Dad, I have to go to school!"

UNBELIEVABLE!!!!

Wedding mania

2007-10-16T17:59:00.001-07:00

Saturday, Oct. 13th: Bugs, sinking heels, and a beautiful bride

Went to Ray's friend's wedding in Saratoga. It was an outdoor wedding overlooking the valley. The setup was very pretty if it wasn't for my heels constantly sinking into the dirt and bugs flying all over my face. The wedding was beautiful though. We had a nice buffet dinner (the prime rib rocked!) and were seated with some of Ray's friends.

Sunday, Oct. 14th: Late start and Trangquest on duty

Went to Ray's cousin's wedding in Milpitas. It was on a golf course which made for a very pretty setting. We had a little lake in front of us with rolling hills. Unfortunately the bride was an hour late so the ceremony didn't begin until 1 hour and 15 min. after the announced time. No one's really sure what happened. The ceremony went well. Another buffet dinner. Dancing was fun. I ended up having to navigate Ray's cousin who was super-late and super lost!

A little too late

2007-10-16T17:53:00.001-07:00

April 10, 2007
I emailed this loan program that helps pay my student loans if I work in low-income areas. I emailed them a question regarding a payment I should've received for credit my first year teaching.

October 16, 2007
I received their response. I gave up on a response, sucked it up, and paid off my loan three months ago!

The places I've visited

2007-10-09T19:23:00.001-07:00

So many more to visit.....Spain 2008 here I come!

create your own visited country map
or check our Venice travel guide

Why do people do that?

2007-10-03T19:44:00.001-07:00

My doctor and I were having a conversation about work, family, etc. She gives me a smile and says "Don't get offended but it must be pretty nice to get off work at 3 every day."

To my knowledge, teaching seems to be the only profession that people feel they have the right to downplay and degrade. One minute they'll say education is so important and without education you will not succeed in life. And the next minute they turn around and talk about how teachers have it SO easy with all that vacation time and early days.

Yes, we do get holidays and summers off. But you may have so quickly forgotten that most teachers barely get paid enough to even own a decent home on their own. If we don't want to live paycheck to paycheck we are sometimes forced to get summer jobs to help compensate. Do you have to always look for another job come June?

Yes, we are contractually finished with our workday around 3:00 (depending on school and district, of course.) Unfortunately most teachers only have an hour a day of paid time to prep for class. Some districts don't even provide a prep hour for teachers! That means that most teachers have to come earlier and stay later than what they would be paid for. Some come in on the weekends. Some just take work home.

So, if that all still sounds SO easy and you are now contemplating quitting your difficult and intensive career you can always downgrade and try teaching.

Don't forget that you will have parents in denial who think you're the problem and not their child, students that think it's ok to throw chairs at you or choke classmates, and the expectation that you are to remain happy and upbeat for 6 hours straight.

Don't forget that you may have to spend your money on supplies once the supplies the school gave you runs out in two months and crackers for the kids who are too poor to afford a lunch or snack.

You will become adept at asking friends to gather supplies for you from their workplace.

You will no longer have shame once you start asking every single place you go if they offer teacher discounts or if they can donate supplies for a classroom project.

And lastly,

You will become accustomed to the lack of respect people give you when they hear you're a teacher. Because, as impressed as they may look when you first say you're a teacher, ten minutes later they'll be making the same comment as my doctor.

Frustrations

2007-09-26T21:35:00.001-07:00

Sometimes it can be extremely frustrating teaching an afternoon class. You don't get the same respect as the morning class. I feel like my class is just the "layover." The place where people go before they head off to better places. It's kind of a blow to my teacher ego when a parent is constantly asking if there's an opening in the morning class. I understand that parents have work obligations and such that make having an afternoon class a big inconvenience, but still. Spare me the pain of feeling like my class is not at the same standards as the morning class and bring your questions to the office. Ugh. So due to overflow in the district we've had to open up another K class starting tomorrow. I am losing 5 students tomorrow. I got a new student yesterday. And I've been promised another new student very soon. UGH!

2007-09-24T17:49:00.001-07:00

Little sister's moving in! Yikes!

Eyes WAY bigger than the stomach

2007-09-05T19:38:00.001-07:00

I had to fast all day before getting some bloodwork done. I stopped eating at 9p.m. last night and it wasn't even much of a meal. I didn't have my next meal today until 4 p.m. I don't know how people can starve themselves. I was so irritable. I felt bad for the kids. Unfortunately I took my hunger madness out on them. Once I got ahold of food I basically "stuffed" my face. I tried to go on the bike once I got home but all that food weighing down in my stomach made me die out in 20 min. I'm not even going to go into detail on what I ate. I'm a bit ashamed........

Mamma Mia!

2007-09-04T20:41:00.001-07:00

Spent the day in SF on Monday. While we were in Europe this summer going on various tours we realized that we've never been on a local tour. You always see tourists visit the Bay Area going on tours and learning about this place that you've lived almost your whole life. We decided we wanted to be tourists for a day. We booked a double-decker bus tour along with an Alcatraz add-on. We also visited the Wax Museum, which neither Ray and I have been to. It was quite interesting and a bit creepy. It was really cool going on the bus tour because we learned little bits of information that I've never heard before. Like at the Palace of Fine Arts there's statues of women on top of the columns looking inward. They are supposed to be crying over the lack of culture in America. Or the statue in the Union Square park. The statue was made based on a young woman living in SF during that time hundreds of years ago and she became the most sought after woman because of that.

Another highlight of our day was dinner at Mona Lisa 3 in North Beach. During our bus tour the guide pointed out this restaurant and said she really liked it. We decided to give it a try. The inside (and outside) were gaudy. It reminded me of Buca di Beppo. The waiters had great italian accents (whether it's real or not I don't know!). But the food. Oh....my.....God. Ray's four cheese tortellini was so frickin' good. If you like cheese you would LOVE this dish. I had a clam risotto that was very yummy. And the tiramisu! Words can't describe! I hate amplifying things all the time but it was very good. Our waiter was totally friendly the whole evening. I enjoyed it immensely and I would definitely come back. Now if only the prices were a bit cheaper.....

Missing entries

2007-08-27T15:55:00.001-07:00

So for the quick-witted and those who actually read my blog, you may have noticed that it's been an extremely long time since I've blogged a "real" entry. After our honeymoon I just haven't been in the blogging mood. I promise though that once I get out of this funk I will play catch-up. But until then enjoy the 3-D world that's out there!

First day of school

2007-08-27T15:53:00.001-07:00

I am SO tired.....

In one week I went from 15 students to 23 students to 26 students and finally back to 23 students.

I have a student who is accustomed to taking naps at noon.

I have a student who doesn't seem to understand what I'm saying but I swear she can understand English.

I have a student who won't shut up!

I am so FRICKIN' tired.......

For Shirley

2007-08-20T18:50:00.001-07:00

This
is
my
blog
entry

We're baaaaaccckkk!!!

2007-07-12T09:01:00.001-07:00

And still suffering from jet lag. How much does it suck trying to stay awake until at least 10 p.m. and then waking up at 4 a.m. completely wide awake! It totally sucks! More on the trip later.

Honeymoon countdown

2007-06-19T23:12:00.001-07:00

9 more days left and we are off to beautiful Venezia! This may be my last entry before we leave. You may not hear from me for a good 3 weeks. Maybe that's a sigh of relief for some although I don't know why. No one's making you read this! :-P But, if you really love me and want to know what's going on in my life I may find a minute or two as we're cruisin' to send an email here or there. So, don't be shy and worry that you're interrupting. I'm already committed to emailing Main Squeeze #2 so it doesn't hurt to shoot me an email for quick and dirty updates that may put you on the up-and-up. You may get exclusive, firsthand accounts! Don't be the last to know!

2007-06-19T23:06:00.001-07:00

The school year is over and yet I'm sad and excited at the same time. I spent nine months molding, influencing, and caring for these little people. I've watched as one child got thrown into the foster care system and another one come to me already deep in the system. Many times I've had to hold back my frustrations for the child with the drug addicted parents. And sometimes I haven't held back those frustrations. I have also listened as many of my Spanish-speaking kids sit there and read a Kindergarten-level book to me as though English was their first language. I have seen these kids write sentences when at the beginning of the school year they could barely write their names!

With the day-to-day struggles of having students who may understand 75% of the things you say due to language barriers it's worth it when he/she successfully reads a decodable book. With the day-to-day struggles of having students with behavioral problems because of the chaotic environment they call "home" it's worth it when he/she finishes an activity.

A lot of times when I tell people what grade I teach my response is usually met with a shocked look on their faces. Whether it's the thought of having to deal with 20 five year olds or the fact that I choose to deal with 20 five year olds I don't know. What I do know is that I can't think of any other grade that has this much impact on a child. Ultimately a Kindergarten teacher is a child's first official schoolteacher. Their Kindergarten teacher is the one who not only teaches him/her how to read some, write some, and occasionally do some addition and subtraction. He/she is the person who shows the child how to be a student, a citizen, and in many ways, a person. He/she is the person who may be the first stable person that this child may have had in a long time. He/she is the person who shows the child what a teacher is suppose to be like. As important as every other grade level teacher may be, the Kindergarten teacher is the person who sets the tone for the child. As daunting of a task as this is, I gladly and wholeheartedly accept this role. I am so ready for next year.

Took her long enough

2007-06-10T16:07:00.001-07:00

My mom finally asked the question that I thought would come earlier than it did.

"So will we have a baby boy or girl next year?"

2007-06-08T19:04:00.001-07:00

5 more days.......

Another reason why I teach

2007-06-02T21:50:00.001-07:00

When your students look at you so innocently and oh so cute as they ask, "Do we call you Ms. or Mrs.?"

2007-06-02T21:48:00.001-07:00

I can't believe it's already been a week. It's CRAZY! We've been spending this week going from one thing to another. From two family functions on Monday to finishing up "24" to gorging at Hometown Buffet. Today was the first day that we actually were able to sit down and breath!

We spent the morning enjoying some tamales at the Tamale Festival in E. San Jose. We're proud to say we only spent $18 but that's only because that was the smallest bills we had aside from the "benjamin" Ray was carrying! Afterwards we swung by Valley Fair to have the Apple folks fix my baby. Spent $76 for a new power cord that I will promise to never trip over again! Afterwards we went home and organized all the wedding gifts, assembled our new wine tower (whee!!!!!), and trying to organize the downstairs to look like a home and not the city dump! It still looks like crap but it doesn't help that we don't have a dumpster we can go to. We'll have to be creative......

2 more weeks of school left and 4 more weeks before we go on our honeymoon!!!!

Word of advice to wedding guests

2007-06-02T21:43:00.001-07:00

PLEASE buy off the registry! Not buying off the registry isn't always cute and creative unless you REALLY know the couple. So risky!

2007-05-29T08:54:00.001-07:00

I now pronounce you husband and wife!

2007-05-17T16:56:00.001-07:00

Why do people who don't know me like to get in my business? This is the second comment I've received from people I don't know. I understand this is posted online but that doesn't give you license. If you don't know me and don't have anything nice and positive to say than mind your own business! When friends do it, I know it's out of love and concern. When strangers do it that just means that person obviously doesn't have much of a life. They have to live through other people's lives and try to be a part of that!

Too much anger

2007-05-14T19:11:00.001-07:00

I just skimmed my most recent blogs and realized there's a lot of anger coming out of these blogs. So, I think I need to send out a more positive blog. Here are the highlights of my weekend.

1. A friend ready to date accepted our help to get started on internet dating. It was a very successful evening and we had a lot of fun with it!

2. Had my wedding hair trial and I LOVE the style my hair stylist did for me! It's exactly what I want!

3. Enjoyed a rather loud evening watching arena football with my man and Johnny.

4. Saw the joy in my parent's eyes as we gave my mom her Mother's Day gift (probably the best one in the 30 years that she's celebrated it) and especially in my dad's as Ray and I put together his new porch swing as his early Father's Day gift.

5. Visited my future mother-in-law.

6. Saw my cousins and ate a lot of food!

GRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!

2007-05-14T19:06:00.001-07:00

STOP TOUCHING MY THINGS!!!!!

A letter to a stranger

2007-05-09T16:38:00.001-07:00

Dear Mr. Allen Wu,

In response to your comment on one of my recent blogs....step off. In case you don't know what a blog is, it is a personal online journal/diary. A diary is defined as a writer's experiences, observations, feelings, attitudes, etc. Typical diaries are private but some are not as private. Regardless of the diary entry's venue, it is still the writer's personal thoughts, which may include times of joy, pain, and anger.

So, if in my daily rant or vent I end up misspelling a word or if my writing contains grammatical errors who gives a shit. I don't plan to submit this to a newspaper or to a university. Why does it matter to YOU if it's "whose" or "who's." Has it ever occurred to you that when a person is angry or annoyed he/she may not pay as much attention to details in their writing? He/she is just using the diary to lay it all out as a way to keep from blowing up on others.

What's even MORE annoying is that you don't even know me. If you want to "school" people do it with people you know. But then again, your comment could be evidence that you're a cowardly fool who only bugs people he doesn't know so he could hide behind his computer and stay somewhat anonymous. So the next time you decide to be a smart-ass be a REAL MAN and do it to your friends and family and not strangers who can't say to your face to STEP OFF!

You are incompetent

2007-05-04T21:59:00.001-07:00

From the moment I met you I knew you were incompetent. Just from watching afar I can see what an absent-minded, bumbling fool you are. It's bad enough watching you waste these poor kid's time with your idiotic ways. But now, you, here helping me because she's out for the day. I give you a packet to collate and staple. Something so simple and brainless. And yet you manage to f@ it up! And now I have to waste MY time going through those damn packets to make sure you didn't mess up the others. Next time, I'd rather spend that extra 15 minutes after work to do it myself than let your crap-ass hands touch them!

2007-05-04T18:30:00.001-07:00

Now that we finally got our coffee table I can bash this damn furniture store that's had me in a pissy mood for the past 2 months. Instead of being happy to have new (non-craigslist) furniture I get mad! Here's the yelp review I wrote for this place. If anyone knows of any other review sites let me know because I want to spread the word. If they were truly trained in customer service they should know that one satisfied customer tells five people. But, one dissatisfied customer tells ten people!

My
opinion of Home Life started out positive. came into the store not
really planning on buying anything. just wanted to window shop.
went through the ENTIRE store and we found THE couch. was so
beautiful and had everything we were looking for. were assisted by
a gentleman that was your typicl slick salesman, but he wasn't too
overly slick. got us a great deal. got the couch and a coffee
table with matching ottomans that fit under the table.
the table was not in the showroom and we only saw it in the catalog.
guy assured us that if it didn't work out he would let us make an
exchange. left that store on cloud nine. was ready to buy our
bedroom AND dining set there.

couch arrived at the
estimated time (2 weeks ) but we were informed our table would be
another 2 weeks. problem. 1/2 wks go by and we finally get our
table. turned out to be too big. matter how we rearranged our
couch the table couldn't fit. immediately called the store about
the situation and right away the woman we spoke with refused to give us
an exchange. decided to go down to the store and discuss the
situation. our "guy" happened to be there and remembered us.
helped us pick out another table (ugh, through the catalog) but we
checked the dimensions before agreeing! were told 2 weeks, again
and all we needed to do was "help his guys" that will deliver the new
table.

so here we are waiting another 2 weeks. a total
of 1 1/2 months now. weeks almost go by and no phone call so we
decide to call them. out they forgot to put the order in!
tell us it'll be there that following Wed. and we'll need to bring the
other table back. absolutely refused. wasn't about to risk
damaging the other table! protested and pointed out that we were
promised delivery of the new table. claim that they're not
supposed to do that (then why are your employees telling us this?") so
we would be charged $45 for delivery. whatever.

A
week and a half go by and we don't hear from them. finally call
them and it turns out the table was out of stock. for telling
us! we had to come in the next day and look for ANOTHER table.
this time almost 2 months have gone by and I'm absolutely pissed.
talk with who I assume is management since our "guy" was conveniently
on vacation. pick out another table and after ANOTHER 2 weeks we
got our table.

So, if you got lost in all this talk here is
my evaluation of Home Life Furnishings on Stevens Creek Blvd. near
Valley Fair Mall:

1. employees are inconsistent with policies.

2. Their employees will say ANYTHING to make a sale and cross their fingers that nothing goes wrong.

3. They are NOT on top of things. do I have to be the one always calling to find out what's going on?

4. is a ghetto-a@@ furniture store.

had reservations about buying from that store since I don't always
like to buy from "asian-owned" stores. asian and I know that
things can be a bit shady sometimes. am NEVER going back to this
store again. the first month of waiting I vowed to make sure
that everyone I can reach hears about this place and be forewarned.
take my experience and watchout.

Whose the parent here?

2007-05-03T17:45:00.001-07:00

Parent: Sorry my child wasn't in school yesterday. She just couldn't get it together.

Teacher: She couldn't what?

Parent: Get it together. She just kept moping around and didn't want to get ready.

Teacher: Oh, ok. Thanks. (Translation: What the f@$#?!?! Whose the parent here? You or her? Grow some balls woman!)

Trang's new pet peeve

2007-04-26T22:04:00.001-07:00

Some people just love to bitch about something or try to push their opinions and agenda on others. And yet when it comes down to actually doing the work they disappear.

Love at first taste

2007-04-18T18:32:00.001-07:00

I met my new favorite Starbucks drink today. I am absolutely in love with the dulce leche latte! Add in my usual idiosyncratic needs: iced, decaf, nonfat, no whip, thank you very much!

Beyond ecstatic

2007-04-16T16:30:00.001-07:00

I will be able to see my current students next year because.....I just signed my contract to work at the same school next year!!!!! Woo-hoo! One more year and I'll finally be tenured. I can finally breath easy.

A shower of love

2007-04-15T16:07:00.001-07:00

Yesterday:

Shirley and company threw Ray and I a wedding shower. It was so beautiful and creative! The theme was Old Spaghetti Factory. There was even a Spaghetti Factory sign outside with a "Private Event" sign. The inside of the house was decorated with brick walls, wedding decor, and posters of "creepy" kids (hehehehehe......) Lots of friends showed up and we played really fun, gender-neutral shower games. Despite the rain the day began and ended on a high note. Thanks to everyone who was involved in this beautiful day!

Today:

Took Shirley to have dim sum and surprised her with a bday lunch. Family and friends were present. Ray and I made her a little video filled with stuffed bras, Bring it On outfits, and memorable pictures! Watching her expression as she watched the video was priceless and definitely worth it.

Went swimsuit shopping for the honeymoon. Ray helped, of course! I ended up getting two suits that I'm very satisfied with.

Close call

2007-04-10T21:43:00.001-07:00

Hercules ran into the street right after a car past by to bark at some neighbors across the street. I literally had a heart attack.

2007-04-06T15:26:00.001-07:00

Yay! I'm on Spring Break!!!!!! Woo-hoooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-04-04T16:11:00.001-07:00

Mmmmmm.....I LOVE cheese. I love you, Shirley!!!

If you have nothing nice to say......

2007-04-04T11:02:00.000-07:00

Teacher #1: You guys are really smart!.....some of you....

Teacher #2: *Gasp!*

My welcome into the 30's

2007-03-28T19:18:00.001-07:00

I have white hair........

What a weekend.....

2007-03-19T17:14:00.001-07:00

Saturday:

Took the bike up to Oakland for the Barack Obama rally. It was about 30 minutes before the speech and Ray and I were just hanging out when a lady approached Ray. She apparently was a rally volunteer and invited us to sit on the grandstand located behind the podium. We jumped at the opportunity and got to sit up close and personal to where Obama was going to speak! We got to shake his hand and listen to his empowering speech.

After the rally we headed over to Marie's for her Murder Mystery dinner. I was assigned the character Bogus Fortunatas and Ray was Harangus Adnauseum. It was a fun and interesting evening. We enjoyed some "lasagna," spinach dip, soup, and ginger cake. And, I was not the killer! Woo-hoo!

Maturity Revelation

2007-03-15T21:48:00.001-07:00

As the years went by I started to realize that I don't need a million people surrounding me to make me feel whole or important. I can remember five, eight years ago when I would do things solely to make others happy in order to keep them around. I used to measure my worth by how many phone numbers were in my phone or how many "friends" were on my friendster profile. I prided in being the center of attention, the "it" girl. Although I still have a bit of those feelings left inside of me, I now have the maturity to truly understand that I'd rather have a few genuine friends that lift me up and make me a better person.

In the past few years I have slowly shedded "toxic" or "useless" people in my life. Toxic as in I go through more downs than ups with that person. Useless as in I'm not learning or gaining anything from the friendship. There is not one person but many that I have found through the years have not been a real friend or just not the right friend. It's taken me a while but through this maturity I am finally getting to that point in my life where I can look at the people around me and smile. Now, when I look around I see friends that I know will last a lifetime. Friends that I consciously make an effort to nurture and love. So, to end on a positive note. I want to make a shout out to my homegirls you know who you are!

It's so bad to say this, but I will.....

2007-03-13T12:49:00.001-07:00

One of my lowest students with the worst personal issues is transferring!!!!!!!!!

Running around, running around......

2007-03-10T21:47:00.001-08:00

....thoughts keep running around in my head. Every quiet moment I have I'm constantly thinking about the wedding. And while I'm thinking about a certain detail I start to think about another and another and another. Next thing I know I have the internet, Word, Excel, and my wedding book all in front of me and now I have to try and remember what I was thinking about! Argh!

I had decided to do a bit of gardening today. I got sick and tired of the wildflowers that were wildly (go figure!) growing in the front so I hesitantly pulled them all out. I have pain that I caused them pain. And I began planting lilum, gladiolas, and many other pretty flowers. This long, arduous activity helped keep my mind away from wedding-related stress. Who knew that I would find gardening somewhat enjoyable. Considering the fact that I've never thought much about gardening and always boasted about having a black thumb! Well.....get back to me on the black thumb comment in a month or two and we'll see!

Finally!

2007-03-07T18:07:00.001-08:00

Our couch is finally here! I can kick my feet up and get lost in the squishy pillows!

That's not how we count

2007-03-05T10:34:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry but if you don't actually say the number 110 like this, "one-ten," then don't teach the kids to say it that way!

Oh happiness......

2007-03-04T21:17:00.000-08:00

Went to the bridal shop to drop off my dress to get the bustle attached. Found out I had lost enough weight/fat to require alterations. Woo-hoo!

Take it between the legs

2007-03-04T09:09:00.000-08:00

Saturday afternoon and evening was spent in SF. We first started out at our photographer's to pick up our signing board. Looks good! We then met up with Shirley, Winnie, and Lorena at the Nordstrom mall. Had lunch at the new addition to the mall and ran into Lucille. The food court area had a store there called Bristol Farms. Although there were picketers outside against this store (looked like they don't have union workers working there) the store was great! There was a huge selection of food. Hot food like mashed taters, meatloaf, asian stuff like rice bowls and sushi, salad bar, ahi poke, and a variety of soups and sandwiches. We eat well!

After lunch we did a bit of shopping, but by 5ish we went to a street corner and sat on the sidewalk to watch the Chinatown New Year parade. It was my first time watching the parade in person. It has some goods and some bads. Goods were the "drumline-like" band and the piglets. Bads were the long stalls and people in cars that you don't know waving at you. Two of Winnie's friends met up with us and Marie came along halfway through the parade. We bailed around 8 to head to dinner in N. Beach where we met up with Rick and his friend. Had dinner at Panta Rie Cafe. It was very loud and very fun. It was some girl's bday so they did the usual bday singing. The only difference was that she was pulled up onto the bar as they sang, was fed cake by one of the waiters, and took a shot of something in between the waiter's legs! Or, at least I assume they were waiters. The waiters reminded me of these guys that worked at a pizza place in Brindisi, Italy when I was last there. Very loud and passionate.

Food was good and the company was great. I wish we could do this more often.

My worst nightmare

2007-02-25T09:18:00.000-08:00

I had a dream about my wedding. First of all, I didn't realize it was the day off. My dress was red with a white, long jacket that went over it. I was already freaking out about the dress since it wasn't the one I picked. My dad kept reassuring me that I could wear my other dress during the reception. Another problem was my veil. Every time I would put it on it felt like a huge weight on my head. At the last minute I had to cut it in half. Also, none of my bridesmaids were nowhere in sight and I didn't have any flowers to hold. The ceremony began and I was already feeling like this was a disaster. When it was my turn to walk I didn't even walk down the middle aisle. My dad led me down the side aisle! We then sat to the side and all of a sudden Ray comes down the middle aisle in total Hawaiian style. There were all these dancers in hula skirts and such. I watched my dad's face changed to absolute horror because one of his main things was to be informed of any non-vietnamese traditions. I was so angry at Ray for pulling this little stunt without discussing any of us. Once he reached the altar I went and joined him.