shopping

I hung out with my Lifelong friend this weekend. She's getting her doctorate in social psychology and can explain all sorts of behaviors with terms such as "the planning fallacy" and "the endowment effect." I said, "I love hanging out with you!" She said, "yeah, you really learn things getting your Ph.D."

We had a very productive shopping trip last night. You know your closet's too small when you're thinking of swapping out your nice hangers for the cheap wire hangers you get from the dry cleaners :P.

catching up

I've fallen behind on posting. This month has been busy with work and potlucks galore! I've really enjoyed catching up with old friends and making new ones. Rest assured that I'm being well fed. On this note, I'll leave you with a picture from last night's potluck. And, the month's not over yet!

(clockwise from top) italian cheese bread ring, scalloped potatoes, smoked turkey, mixed vegetables with shitake mushrooms, bbq pork, collard greens, chinese broccoli, honey baked ham, green beans

afternoon tea

I was having a cup of tea at Coffee Bean this afternoon when I looked out the window and saw a police officer standing next to his car, holding a firearm. He was focused, staring straight ahead. My friend said that meant the bank across the street was being held up. I said I wanted to take a picture of the cop without him noticing. One of the other patrons said, "turn off the flash." Before I went back to work, the cop drove off and I didn't see or hear anything about the bank.





click on image to enlarge

an artist colony

This weekend, I went to the Brewery ArtWalk in downtown LA. My friend tells me that this place was a brewery years ago, but has since been converted to studio apartments. The high ceilings and large open spaces are perfect for artists' studios/living spaces. Twice a year, the artists in this community open up their homes and exhibit their art to the general public. It was a lot of fun and a chance to see how art intersects with life.






Kevin Flint kindly let me take this picture of his kitchen. He spent the last 2 years redesigning his studio and it's really exceptional. Complete with lounge and hot tub. It was the first studio we visited and definitely my favorite.









a work in progress

getting my hands dirty

I went to The Boiling Crab in Alhambra for lunch today. The line was long, so my friend and I opted for take-out. It is a messy meal but very tasty! Next time I'm going to try the oysters and shrimp (easier to eat).















blue crab in garlic butter and crawfish in ragin' cajun sauce. delish!




















after lunch, my friend and i picked some guava. i got to use this fruit-picking basket contraption. it's harder than it looks. i ended up spearing a few of the guava

cruisin'

I celebrated my milestone birthday by going on a cruise with 6 of my closest friends. We had a great time and there was so much to do on the ship!















lotsa food!















this is the last time royal caribbean's monarch of the seas will sail a 3-day mexican cruise















we docked at ensenada, MX















fish and shrimp tacos















mexican candy, yessss! we had to go through metal detectors to get back on the ship. i said, "oh no, they're going to find the lead in my candy!" :P




















after the towel-folding demo, we made our own monkey for our room




















i won a gold medal for the adult speed climb on the rock wall. it kinda looks like a transformer

the wedding bowl

Another beautiful weekend in San Diego! My friends got married at Cuvier Park, a.k.a. "The Wedding Bowl." It's a grassy cliff overlooking the ocean. The view was spectacular and the weather was everything we had hoped for. The cocktail hour and reception were held at El Cortez. It was a dream wedding. Congrats to the lovely couple.

forest falls

A lot of my free time lately has been spent planning a retreat for members of my church. It all came to fruition this past weekend and we had a great time getting to know each other and building community at Forest Home in Forest Falls, which is near Big Bear. The retreat site is truly amazing. They have miniature golf, volleyball, basketball, frisbee golf, hiking, kayaking, trout pond for catch and release, pool, clubhouse, game rooms, and lots of quiet areas to be silent and still to commune with God and nature. What we enjoyed most as a group was the zipline and climbing wall.

chili

For Labor Day, I went to a bbq in which all they grilled were hamburgers. I try not to eat hamburgers whenever possible, so I abstained and stuck to fruits and salads instead. I was starving by the time I got to my friends' house, but it was all worth it because there they grilled everything but hamburgers ... hot dogs, steak, chicken, corn on the cob, and zucchini.

I love chili dogs. I showed someone this picture and this was the conversation that followed:

J: you overdid it with the chili
Me: oh, that's not my plate
J: who's plate is it?
Me: chili
(pause)
Me: oh, i mean [actual person's name]

raw eating

I went to my third raw restaurant with high expectations and was sadly disappointed. Planet Raw in Santa Monica is like the other ones in that nothing is cooked, but it just wasn't as good, in my opinion. A couple of our dishes were served warm because technically they can be warmed up to a certain temperature so as not to kill the helpful enzymes and still be considered raw. But, everything looked great.




















dessert is served first--strawberry parfait, coconut cheezecake [sic], caramelized fuji apples















pesto deep dish pizza















zucchini lasagna














flaxseed nachos



















strawberry mango smoothie with cherimoya and almond milk

blue & gold

I went to a wedding last weekend and these were the party favors. Whoever arranged them is a genius!

cardboard

For the last 3 months, I've been spending my Saturdays at church building the set for our Vacation Bible School. The theme was Trading Places and kids from age 5 to 15 experienced a little of what life is like and how God is working in the following countries: Democratic Republic of Congo, India, Poland, Vietnam, and Lebanon. It concluded last Sunday in a Finale where all the sets were moved into the sanctuary, the kids sang and danced, and we ate tasty foods representing all five countries.

The Travel Log has been uploaded to YouTube. See if you can find a glimpse of me in one of the pictures.

seaport village

I went down to San Diego for a co-ed bridal shower this weekend. It was a beautiful day and a great fiesta!




it was windy enough to fly kites


and sail





the taco bar was a hit!


the wind did make it hard to make churros outdoors, but that didn't stop us!


pinata

LAX

After a fun and relaxing day at the park, I went to pick up my dad from the airport. As usual, the parking security was yelling up a storm.

I pull up to the curb. The security guy is across the street and his view is blocked by the van in front of me.
PS: That area is for loading [passengers] only!
Me: My dad is right there!
PS: Does he see you?!
Me: Yes!
PS: Then why doesn't he walk over to you?!
Me: He has a broken foot!
PS: Okay, you're okay

wrestling

It was a weekend of firsts for me. I played "Rock Band" for the first and second time this weekend. So fun! I told my brothers if they wanted to get it, I would pay for half.

I also went to a friend's family picnic. When my friends and I showed up, we were ready to eat, but the hosts said we had to wrestle first. We climbed into these sumo wrestler suits and they inflated the air bladders inside. My opponent and I waddled over to the circle-shaped mat and went for 3 rounds to knock the other person outside the circle. They told us not to head butt one another, but other than that, we didn't know the rules and moved mostly by bouncing around. People said we looked like we were dancing. I went 3-0 :). My other friend had a different technique. He charged at his opponent, throwing his whole weight at him. It's a good thing he hit his intended target because after that, he was left lying on his stomach, arms and legs flailing until people helped him up.

After some food, we participated in a race where each team consisted of three people standing in a line with their left feet attached to one plank and their right feet attached to another. We had to move in unison and walk around some cones. I was going to go with my friends, but the organizer decided to mix up the teams. My team rocked and won with time to spare! The secret is to have all three people chant in unison instead of just one person calling the shots. Also, don't fall :P.

I'm the oompa loompa in red. I think the two kids were there to keep us from falling backward

scooting along

Hooray for long weekends! I enjoyed 3 nights and 3 days in the bay area without taking any time off from work. I visited with friends and met a couple of babies for the first time. So cute! I also got to ride an electric scooter like this one, sans helmet and basket. Wow, those things are expensive, but really really fun to ride!

itching

I've been eating a lot of loquats lately. I've also been itching a lot lately. I'm afraid I might have developed an allergy to these tasty fruits. I'm so sad :(.

babysitting

We spent the day at the Long Beach aquarium.

strawberry picking

$11 for that large bucket, though we managed to stack it higher than that.

following the leader

I almost forgot to post about last weekend. It was very busy/stressful, but there were a couple of highlights. First, I organized a tennis day in which people of all levels came out to play matches, rally, or develop their skills in the clinic with instructors. I had the most fun leading the warm-up lap. There are dividers between the courts, so we were weaving in and out around them. I felt like a mama duck with 30 baby chicks carrying tennis rackets (hehe, I made them run with their rackets).

Later that evening, I went to a dinner party with a tropical theme. There was so much good food. I definitely hit the third stage of fullness. Painful. Pics below.

the police station

I went to the police station this afternoon to contest a parking citation. While at the window, I was looking at the employee nameplates and saw one with the name of a girl I went to high school with! She wasn't working at the time, but she has a very distinct name, so I wrote a note saying hi and attached one of my business cards. We'll see if she contacts me. We were in different years and didn't know each other very well. Maybe she'll wonder, "Who is this girl and why was she at the police station?"

**edit**
the girl never contacted me, but i got my ticket dismissed, "one time only" hahaha.

LA

Work and other obligations have me running ragged, but the bright spots keep me going. Last Thursday, I went to a Clippers v. Lakers game at the Staples Center.