frogafish: random thoughts

Post 2: Favorite Animal or Insect

2011-07-19T21:45:00.000-07:00

Living in Thailand, I remember playing and catching all type of insects such as beetles, grass hoppers, ants, etc. One day, I managed to keep a rhinoceros beetle on my shoulder and took it to school with me.

30 Post Drawing Challenge

2011-06-15T21:13:00.000-07:00

Came across this 30 Day Drawing Challenge on Show & Tell and decided to take on the challenge in 30 posts instead.

Here's Day 1: Yourself
Not sure why I kept trying to draw only my head. It's not just about the side bangs, face and glasses.

Later added:
Alright, here's another one. I wasn't completely happy with the first one.

Razor Blade and Car Battery

2011-06-07T10:23:00.000-07:00

Found a razor blade on my car battery. No wonder the battery light has been switching on and off. What the heck?

Halloween is Over Already?

2011-06-02T23:09:00.000-07:00

Just noticed that I never posted this, oops. Happy Belated Halloween. This year a few friends and I was accepted to be part of Gothtober. To view our short film, please visit Gothtober.com and click on the number 18. To read a little more about us, check out the Gothtober blog.

Also joined the local Zombie Pub Crawl and made my own version of Seduce Me —Salmon head piece.

If you have never watched Isabella Rossellini’s online series, Seduce Me and Green Porno, you are missing out on one of the funniest and clever reenactment of how animals and insects reproduce.

My Dad is Diabetic

2011-04-25T19:30:00.000-07:00

About 15 years ago, I found my dad curled up on the ground. His skin was so yellow and he couldn't eat anything. That was the first time I called the ambulance for him. Imagine a young ESL girl, too young to drive and without any relatives in the country to call for help. Yes, it was very scary and still is every time he has an episode now. At that point, I had no idea what was wrong with him. We later found out that he has Type 1 diabetes, which means that he's insulin dependent.

What changed the most after that was Dad's love for food. His weight dropped dramatically. Now I feel he's afraid to eat especially when it comes to sweets, his favorite. He's constantly watching his blood sugar level. It wasn't until this past year that he started having episodes after his new doctor at Kaiser Permanente decided to switch his medicines/dosage every now and then just to see if things would be any better. I feel like his doctor is using him as a human experiment. What will they do when he reacts badly to their new tests and no one is there to help him? Will they take responsibilities?

For the past 12 months, I have already called the ambulance three times. His medicines recommendations turned out to be too strong and he wasn't used to how much food he was supposed to take to balance it out. Luckily one time, his work knew to call me when he didn't show up to work. I instantly called for an ambulance to his place. The police department questioned why I am calling from 360 miles away. You don't know how frustrating this can be. Every minute is so precious at that point. I learned that the police departments in Southern CA is not connected to Northern CA and they don't have a system to look up numbers or transfer you to another location. Most cities only list 911 as their contact number instead of the actually office number.

I ran into a situation where someone near my dad wouldn't call the ambulance thinking that they would have to take care of the medical bills. Seriously? This is completely untrue. When someone's life is in danger and you're wondering about the medical bill, something is wrong with you. I'm just grateful that they at least knew to call me for help. I am very thankful for that.

When my Dad's blood sugar is too low, he will get an episodes of diabetic hypoglycemia. During an episode, he usually makes weird martial arts noise as if he's sleep walking. His eyes were often closed and even if they're open, he will look as if he some how doesn't recognize you anymore. He'll sweat heavily, shake, breath abnormally and act in a drunken stage. If his condition gets any worse, he can get a seizure and lose his consciousness that can lead to brain damage.

I hope that you will never experience this. The feelings that you get wondering about the unknown of your parent's condition is horrible. You don't know how scary it is for me to get any unknown phone calls from his area code.

I hope that whenever you're in a situation where someone needs medical help, that you won't ever hesitate to help. Every life is valuable and helping one person actually helps their family, friends and their entire community.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-03T10:27:00.000-08:00

Hope you had a great holiday celebrations. I recently read Steve Job's commencement speech at Stanford in 2005 and found it to be very inspiring. Hope this will help you when you're feeling unsure about your future or sticking to your gut feeling.

Thank you. I'm honored to be with you today for your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. Truth be told, I never graduated from college and this is the closest I've ever gotten to a college graduation.

Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That's it. No big deal. Just three stories. The first story is about connecting the dots.

I dropped out of Reed College after the first six months but then stayed around as a drop-in for another eighteen months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out? It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife, except that when I popped out, they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking, "We've got an unexpected baby boy. Do you want him?" They said, "Of course." My biological mother found out later that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would go to college.

This was the start in my life. And seventeen years later, I did go to college, but I naïvely chose a college that was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class parents' savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I couldn't see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, and no idea of how college was going to help me figure it out, and here I was, spending all the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was pretty scary at the time, but looking back, it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out, I could stop taking the required classes that didn't interest me and begin dropping in on the ones that looked far more interesting.

It wasn't all romantic. I didn't have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends' rooms. I returned Coke bottles for the five-cent deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the seven miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on. Let me give you one example.

Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy instruction in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on every drawer was beautifully hand-calligraphed. Because I had dropped out and didn't have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and sans-serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can't capture, and I found it fascinating.

None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life. But ten years later when we were designing the first Macintosh computer, it all came back to me, and we designed it all into the Mac. It was the first computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts, and since Windows just copied the Mac, it's likely that no personal computer would have them.
If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on that calligraphy class and personals computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do.

Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college, but it was very, very clear looking backwards 10 years later. Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward. You can only connect them looking backwards, so you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something--your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever--because believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart, even when it leads you off the well-worn path, and that will make all the difference.
My second story is about love and loss. I was lucky. I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents' garage when I was twenty. We worked hard and in ten years, Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4,000 employees. We'd just released our finest creation, the Macintosh, a year earlier, and I'd just turned thirty, and then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew, we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so, things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge, and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our board of directors sided with him, and so at thirty, I was out, and very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating. I really didn't know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down, that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure and I even thought about running away from the Valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me. I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I'd been rejected but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.
I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods in my life. During the next five years I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the world's first computer-animated feature film, "Toy Story," and is now the most successful animation studio in the world.

In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT and I returned to Apple and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple's current renaissance, and Lorene and I have a wonderful family together.

I'm pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn't been fired from Apple. It was awful-tasting medicine but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life's going to hit you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love, and that is as true for work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work, and the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking, and don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it, and like any great relationship it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking. Don't settle.

My third story is about death. When I was 17 I read a quote that went something like "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself, "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "no" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something. Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important thing I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life, because almost everything--all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure--these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

About a year ago, I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn't even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctors' code for "prepare to die." It means to try and tell your kids everything you thought you'd have the next ten years to tell them, in just a few months. It means to make sure that everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.

I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope, the doctor started crying, because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and, thankfully, I am fine now.

This was the closest I've been to facing death, and I hope it's the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept. No one wants to die, even people who want to go to Heaven don't want to die to get there, and yet, death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because death is very likely the single best invention of life. It's life's change agent; it clears out the old to make way for the new. right now, the new is you. But someday, not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it's quite true. Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma, which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice, heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalogue, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stuart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late Sixties, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and Polaroid cameras. it was sort of like Google in paperback form thirty-five years before Google came along. I was idealistic, overflowing with neat tools and great notions. Stuart and his team put out several issues of the The Whole Earth Catalogue, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-Seventies and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath were the words, "Stay hungry, stay foolish." It was their farewell message as they signed off. "Stay hungry, stay foolish." And I have always wished that for myself, and now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.

Stay hungry, stay foolish.

Thank you all, very much.

Mega Millions

2010-09-07T20:48:00.000-07:00

I have never bought a Mega Millions until a few months ago. I know that some people buy it weekly, while others think that they would never do that. I was one of the "never" people. I thought, why waste my money on something that I'm never going to win. Buying a Mega Millions can mean so much more to some people than just a way to gamble. It's about taking risks and maybe for that good feeling inside that you could instantly become a millionaire, an instant dream come true...or maybe not. Having too much money can also bring troubles. Have you ever thought about what you would do if you were that lucky winner one day?

On a side note, do you believe in Vision Boards?

Christening in a Jar

2010-07-29T22:41:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I attended my first Christening for my friend's niece, Samantha aka Sammy. Many people were surprised to know that it was my first time as they revealed that they must have already been to over 10-20 services already. I guess I'm just not very close to many people who attend/hold religious events and that's completely alright with me.

I had no idea that a Christening service could be a community ceremony where many other families and friends are also there to witness their babies on their ways to becoming a Christian. Each baby along with the parents and sponsors aka god parents, all waited in line for their turn with the priest. It was really interesting and educational. The priest even make suggestions of when and where photographers could take pictures.

The babies also had to change outfits and there were even different ways that they can be washed with water, too. This one baby had his legs dunked into the water multiple times, while other babies prefer water to run down their foreheads. Afterward was the reception filled with so many good Filipino food, live band and desserts.

I also came across an old story while reading something from a client called, "Your Life in a Jar" which is something that I have been thinking a lot about lately. Enjoy!

A Professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

So the Professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. The Professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous "yes."

The Professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the space between the grains of sand.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things--your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions - things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else -the small stuff.

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. "Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand." One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The Professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

Donations

2010-05-20T21:27:00.000-07:00

Why is it so much easier to donate clothes that no longer fit me than the ones that I haven't worn in years? They both belong in the unused category, but I just can't seem to say good bye to them. I admit it, I have a lot of clothes. Not because I shop often or anything; I just can't seem to let things go especially when they're in perfectly good conditions. I keep thinking that I'll find other ways to make use of them or find someone to give them to, but I don't. Instead they're hidden away underneath my bed. Must remind myself that my next bed should be very low to the ground, so I can eliminate this hiding place all together.

Last night a high school kid asked me for bus money. I said no, but can't stop feeling bad about it. I have no idea if his reason is true or not. Back in my younger days, I used to walk for hours and have never asked a stranger for money. I don't know what type of situation this kid is in, but I wonder if it's easier for people to ask strangers for things now than in my days.

The last time that I donated money was to this homeless man carrying a sign that reads, "Please Share Just One Quarter." Something about it made me really sad as if people get mad at him for standing near the freeway with his sign. What would you do if you were homeless, have you ever thought about that? Where would you go for anything when you have no one to turn to?

May Day Queer Contingent, Los Angeles

2010-05-11T20:47:00.000-07:00

All I can say about my last two month is "May Day." Here's our press release and pictures below.

A “QUEER” CONTINGENT JOINS ICE DETENTION CENTER PROTEST, MAY DAY MARCH FOR IMMIGRATION REFORM AND IN SOLIDARITY AGAINST ARIZONA’S SB 1070

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Calls For Comprehensive Humane Immigration Reform inclusive of LGBT issues.

Los Angeles, CA—On May Day/International Worker’s Day, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) advocacy groups march for humane immigration reform which protects LGBTQ individuals, their partners, families, and children. Wearing red shirts and carrying gay flags, a large “Queer” contingent include members of The Latino Equality Alliance, API Equality LA, Equality California, Coalición Trans Latina, Gamba Adisa, Sin Fronteras, The Wall / Las Memorias, Proyecto Orgullo-BIENESTAR, Faith for Equality, Asian Pacific Aids Intervention Team (APAIT), Proyecto Igualdad, Asian Queer Women Activists, National Gay and Lesbian Taskforce and other LGBT Groups.

“The gay community supports human rights and dignity in the application of federal immigration laws and policies. The LGBT community is well aware of the harm caused to individuals and families that unconstitutional laws like Arizona’s new anti-immigrant law, SB 1070, which criminalizes the undocumented, and California’s Proposition 8, which denies marriage rights to the LGBT community” said Suyapa Portillo, board member of the Latino Equality Alliance and co-founder of Gamba Adisa, queer women, gender non-conforming, and trans people of color collective. “The LGBT community urges President Obama and Congress to act fairly and swiftly to update immigration laws and policies that are harmful and separate families.”

LGBTQ specific Immigration Reform Action Items include:

Uniting American Families Act. If passed, this law would recognize more than 36,000 bi-national same-sex couples in the United States, 47% of which are raising children.
Support the DREAM ACT for all youth and recognition of LGBT and queer youth. Immigrant youth who are LGBTQ-identified must be acknowledged in the larger fight for education and youth self-empowerment. Many undocumented youth will graduate with honors from their universities and will not be able to contribute to society and the economy because of their legal status.
Support LGBTQ worker rights within immigration reform. Although many workers are covered under LGBTQ laws and protections in this country, these protections exclude non-documented immigrants.
End the 12-month rule to file for asylum seekers. Twelve months is not enough time for LGBTQ immigrants fleeing trauma and violence to obtain adequate resources and representation to file for asylum.
Stop abuse against LGBTQ immigrants, particularly transgender immigrants, in detention centers. LGBTQ people often face physical violence, rape, and emotional and mental abuse in detention. One resounding example is the case of Victoria Arellano’s death in ICE detention; Arellano died marginalized for being a transgender person and cut off from live saving health care.
Stop all forms of militarization and violence at the various borders. Border militarization must cease immediately, particularly biometrics and infrared technology utilized to criminalize immigrants.

Do You Know About Pharyngitis?

2010-04-07T19:31:00.000-07:00

Everyone gets a sore throat, but do you ever look at your tonsils to see how bad they look? My tonsils never looked this bad before and I thought that I could just get some over the counter medicine to fix it. Luckily a few curious minds asked to see them then strongly advised me to see a doctor instead. Three hours later, one nurse and doctor down, I got my first doctor's note to take two days off for Pharyngitis. Did you know that you can't get amoxicillin over the counter in the US? Everything that ends in "gitis" sounds scary.

I learned that I'm now "c o n t a g i o u s." I can cough directly into my enemy's mouth to infect them. In seven days the antibiotics will work its way to get rid of my sore throat, swollen tonsils, body-aches and chills. It's already day 4 and almost everything is gone except for the minor body-aches. Maybe I just need to start exercising at work. I should take small walks during my breaks or something. Do you take a break at work or do any stretches?

Normal Office Activities

2010-03-17T19:54:00.000-07:00

On some Mondays, it's just way too early to share anything about the weekend. I take the lazy way out sometimes with the, "I don't remember" respond. I guess the more accurate thing to say would be "Sorry, it's just way too early for me to recall anything right now. Let's talk later." My co-workers must think that I'm either very secretive or have no life at all outside of work with my blank answer.

Anyways, talking about office life. It's annoying when the last person who finishes the coffee doesn't brew a new pot for the next person. Also when the restroom runs out of hand soap and no one seems to care enough to refill it. Doesn't anyone else washes her hands? Errr...I don't want to think about that too much. There's also the frequent spilling of coffee, sugar, etc. that people don't clean up in the kitchen. Sometimes people leave their dishes over night and not only in one sink where there are already dirty dishes in it, but in both sinks. Yes, please block both sinks so no one else can clean just like you.

No, these are not complaints. I'm only stating the fact of what I've seen before in an office. Is this normal office activities? My work is small, so our custodian only visit on the weekend. In a better world, more people would care and respect their working environment and not leave their mess for others to clean up after them. People would take care of one another and help each other out. Isn't it just common sense and common courtesy? I guess some people just don't have it. Sad.

On another note, I'm loving Neko Case right now. Her voice is always amazing to listen to when I'm happy or sad.

I Need a New Caffeine

2010-02-01T20:11:00.000-08:00

Something is wrong; caffeine puts me to sleep. I love the taste of coffee, but most of the time, I want it for the after effects. What can be new anti sleep-stay awake beverage?

So I stopped drinking coffee about a week ago as an experiment to measure my sleeping time without it. Nothing changed much. It's weird how I tend to stay up later when I'm alone at home versus when I'm out. I caught myself yawning around 11pm the other night, but I can still go home and be up until 3am afterward. So we yawn because we're tired or bored but not that the body is sleepy. It could also be because you're low in oxygen or that you have too much carbon dioxide. Did you know that the fetus can also yawn inside the womb?

"Beautiful Science: Ideas that Changed the World"
The Huntington Library

Celebrations

2009-12-29T21:18:00.000-08:00

Is it that weird that my family and I don't really celebrate anything from xmas, Thanksgiving to birthdays? I feel like most people don't know what to say to me after I tell them this. They instantly become mute and wonder what I'll be having for dinner or if I ever have received any presents. When I was younger, we used to celebrate my birthday with the New Year celebration, since they are only a few days apart. I'm not sure how we stopped doing that but we did. Maybe it was after my sister and I moved away to college.

So my birthday is coming up and I will be getting that day off. My friends are more concerned about it than I am. This is not a complaint and I do appreciate that they care for me. Thank you. You know what I dislike about birthdays the most is when people demand for gifts or expect you to plan things for them. Gifts are not mandatory. Also having a wish list doesn't mean that these are the only things that your friends can get you. I actually don't really like the concept of a wish list, but I can see how it can be useful for some people.

Happy winter! Love this weather.

Morning Driving Thoughts

2009-11-25T19:40:00.000-08:00

Do you have reoccurring thoughts while driving? Or play mind games to make the drive more bearable during traffic hours or on empty freeways? I imagine possible collision scenarios. They calm me down when certain things on the road make me nervous. Id est driving between two big rigs. So this morning while a school bus was on my left and a big rig on my right, I thought what would happen if they were to suddenly merge into one another. Would the top portion of my car get sliced off or crushed leaving me underneath one of them? One of my friend was in an accident a few months ago involving a big rig merging into her lane. Her car horn didn't alarm the other driving leaving her to merge right into the space underneath the big rig. All of the her windows shattered, but she came out amazingly undamaged. I can't imagine that my little Ford Focus would protect me as well as her BMW, but I still would like to know what my possible damage would be.

Rubik Cube and Age

2009-11-11T23:54:00.000-08:00

Current obsessions: Antique wrist watches and Men's shoes. One is too expensive for me to own and the other is too big for me to wear. Nothing ever fits right. That's always the story.

I saw a Rubik cube the other day and fixed the first row, but got stuck on the second. Can't believe that I completely went blank on how to solve the rest of it. It was very disappointing. I promised myself that I would never forget it because one of my friend was doubting me when I was trying to learn how to solve it from a youtube video.

Have you ever heard about the age dating rule of half your age plus 7? It's this rule of the oldest/youngest age that you should date. So if you're 27, you would take (27/2) + 7 = 20.5 youngest age. For oldest age you would take 27 + (27/2) = 40.5 yrs. old. I personally have never been with/dated anyone beyond + or - 5 years of my age. I'm not against the age dating rule, I just have never been in a position where I had to think twice about someone's age before. Is age really just a number to you?

Cuties on Halloween

Quality of Friendship

2009-10-09T01:44:00.000-07:00

What matters to you more, how many friends you have or the quality of the friendships that you have? I hope yours would be quality over quantity. Building a friendship is hard. With some people you meet, it's instant; whereas the rest may need time to grow. Sometimes you meet people who you think are extremely nice to you to find out that they have other intentions. It's hard to weed these out sometimes. It's unfair to both when one feels more for the other, but is there ever a relationship where two people can feel equally the same for each other? How do you be friendly without being too friendly? How do you care for someone without making them feel like you want more? How do you hang out with people because you want to go out, without making them feel like they're the only people you want to be with?

I went to a birthday dinner six hours ago. It made me think about who I'd want to invite if I were to have my own celebration. So many people are so far away. I miss you. I appreciate and am grateful for my low maintenance friends who understand that we're all busy and that we don't need to talk daily to remain good friends. It just isn't necessary and it's not high school anymore. I wish I have a recording of one of those high school days conversations. I don't know what my friends and I used to talk about anymore, but we would be on the phone for hours...or has something happened to me where I can no longer just speak forever and freely?

California Science Center

Taking a Basic Headshot

2009-09-17T20:20:00.000-07:00

Some people just have no idea what to do when they're behind a camera and I know... it's not completely their fault. They just need more practice and some guidance. It bugs me when I get bad headshots from people for any print materials. These pictures are supposed to make you look better not worse. If you're not an artsy type of person, don't go for the weird angle pose. It supposed to represent you and not someone else. So here are a few tips for you to keep in mind if you need it for taking the MOST BASIC headshot.

1) What is a headshot? Remember that it's a picture of someone's head. So don't experiment with cutting off any parts of their ears, neck, head, etc.

2) Lighting: make sure that you're in a well lit place, but not so bright that your subject's forehead is glowing.

3) Size: yes, the size of a person's head matters. Make sure that you're not too far or too close to your subject. You only need the upper portion of the body. If you have more then that's too much. Just from the top of the head to the chest area is enough. Leave some background space in the picture, too. You don't want to make it look like there's no room between your subject and the frame of the image. They need space.

4) Surrounding: make sure there isn't any weird objects behind your subject's head. Try to take the picture in front of an empty wall, but preferably a wall color that isn't the same color as their skin color. It's good to have contrast between the subject and the background color.

5) Eye contact: Focus on the subject and make sure the subject have eye contact with the camera. You don't want them to look lost, confuse, sad, etc. Make them feel confident, happy, and positive.

6) Focus: if you have shaky hands, use a tripod or rest the camera against something.

7) Quantity: always take more pictures than you need and check the image if you can so you don't have to re-shoot later.

8) Image size: most places will ask for 300+ dpi image. If you don't know what this mean, just pick one of the larger size setting on the camera instead of the smallest.

9) Good luck and have fun.

Back From Peru

2009-08-19T21:07:00.000-07:00

Peru was amazing! Having a vacation is awesome. It was definitely hard to come back and I didn't really want to. Well, does anyone ever want to leave their vacations? I don't think so...unless you lost everything and really can't come back. Actually, on my back at the airport in Lima, this guy at the counter next to me lost his bank card and didn't have enough money to pay for the airport tax so they couldn't issue him his plane ticket. I wonder whatever happened to him.

I wish I were an explorer or something. Actually, I rather be a world photographer. I just want to travel the world and photograph it. Not sure who will buy it, but that is my dream job. So why am I not doing that? Well, I am kinda...slowly building up my portfolio of pictures from around the world. I think I'm going to go to Italy next or India. Anyways, can't believe I saw a SLOTH! There were also Uros floating islands, Machu Picchu, and the freaking Amazon Rainforest. I can't believe that I was finally there.

We rode this little boat to Monkey Island where there wasn't any type of security at all. We just jumped out of the boat and walked up the sand and into the jungle where wild monkeys were hanging out. We had to rush out after the alpha monkey came out though. You don't want to upset an alpha monkey, you just don't know how they'll fight you. Hmm..what would I do if a monkey were to attack me? I think I would probably try to kick it first, but it'll probably just jump on me, so kicking would be no use. I would probably have to bite it or something. Why am I talking about this?

I am way overdue on all of my phone calls to my friends up North. I'm sorry. I'll call and answer all e-mails soon.

Currently listening to Somewhere Else by Razorlight

Colca Canyon

Taquile Island

Cusco

Madre de Dios

Hola From Peru!

2009-08-06T13:13:00.000-07:00

Right now Im on the 6th floor of a hotel in Puno. Sasha and I arrived to Peru about 5 days ago. I have been taking DMG, one in the morning and one at night, to prevent altitude sickness, but I still get headaches on the back side of my head...or maybe they are from all the bus rides, Im not sure. Sorry for the lack of apostrophes here, the keyboard here is a little bit different and I just cant seem to figure out how to use it.

It seems like most places that Ive been so far always have a square infront of a church. The first day was spent in Lima. Its definitely different to travel with a tour group instead of on your own. Everything is already taken care of from bus rides to here and there, but your time is limited and you are on someone elses schedule instead of your own. People here are very friendly so far, but I have been warned to carry my purse in the front and to watch where Im going.

Already, there are over 600 pictures on my camera. Everything here is so fastinating to me from what people wear to the architecture of each town. Poverty is also very visible here and I cant believe some of the landscapes that I am seeing here, which express how little I know about this country. I wish that I could upload the pictures now, but that will just have to wait until I get back.

So Much Fun at the Hollywood Bowl

2009-07-08T20:40:00.000-07:00

Finally, I was at the Hollywood Bowl or what many Angelenos refer to as the Bowl. It started out with the New Pornographers, Tegan and Sara ( most excited for) then Death Cab for Cuties with the LA Philharmonic. To top it off, they ended the show with unexpected firework. This venue is awesome because it's completely outdoor and you can bring whatever you want to eat and drink there. The weather was perfect and no mosquitos were in sight. I don't know why I waited so long to go here. I love the whole picnic scene before the show.Can't wait to go back. Let's go!

That's Tegan and Sara

Behind Me

Shoo Weird Neighbor, Don't Bother Me!

2009-07-06T19:29:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, one of my guy neighbor started greeting me when he sees me walking to my car in the morning. He keeps asking me the same question about whether or not I fixed my flat tire. And of course it's fixed because my flat tire incident happened about two months ago. He's obviously is not a good listener or has a very bad memory. Ok, I sound mean here and I guess he's just trying to be friendly or wants to get to know his neighbors better or something.

Anyways, the other night I got home quite late around 2 or 3 A.M. It was completely dark and my front light was out. While walking to my door, I thought I heard someone but didn't stop to pay attention. When I got to my door, I heard a guy saying something like, "Oh, it's you. I'm just walking home. What's your name again?" It took me a while to realize that he's the same neighbor, but what the hell? I was so weird out by this.

Everyone should know not to approach a stranger when it's late and dark. Also, it's not like my place is on his way. Why don't people know when it's appropriate to say hello to someone or not? When it's dark and someone is trying to open the door, just leave them alone. I thought I was going to get attacked by someone or something. Man, you don't even know of all the ways I was thinking of how I could defend myself before I realized who he is. But still, I have no idea who he is other than where he lives.

Yummmm
Bottega Louie, Los Angeles, CA

On the Way to Fresno

2009-06-09T22:58:00.000-07:00

The Saturday after the Day of the Decision on Prop. 8 on May 10th to be exact, there was a rally/march in Fresco for the Meet in the Middle 4 Equality campaign. I shared the bus organized by the Latino Equality Alliance (LEA) with 54 other riders from other orgs. (such as Bienestar, The Wall, Love, Honor, Cherish, Somos Familia, Honor Pac, Stonewall Young Democrats, Rainbow Pride Youth, and Gamba Adisa Quilombo). Several people have gone to Camp Courage so they decided to share their amazing stories with us.

So why meet in Fresno? Well, the gap between Yes vs. No on Prop 8: Same-sex Marriage Ban was about 4.4% or 526,095 voters, which is basically a size of a town like Fresno. It was time to unite outside of our safe zone and spread awareness that the queer communities and allies are everywhere and that Civil Rights is not something that people should be allowed to vote on and take away from others. It's discrimination just like how interracial dating/marriage wasn't allowed before, immigrants couldn't own lands or become citizens, womyn couldn't vote, the color of your skin determined where you sit on a bus, taxation without representation, Foreign Miner's Tax, etc. "This Too Shall Pass."

Before that Saturday, I really thought that we would be celebrating in Fresno. On the Day of the Decision, I rushed to work trying to listen to the hearing on the radio, but I was too late. Everywhere online were already displaying the headline "Court Upheld Prop. 8." That made me really sad and upset. I didn't feel like working at all. I am glad to hear that at least the court recognizes the 18,000 couples that have already gotten married, but it's completely unfair how much rights differences that people now have within a year time span.

Sadly, I have waited way too long to share their stories...so all the details are not as clear anymore, but I'll try my best to summarize them.

One man's story was about how he never thought that he would fall in love with someone who's HIV+, but he did. His partner lived in Mexico where HIV/AIDS medicines and resources are not as accessible than in the U.S. Because same-sex couples cannot sponsor their partners to residency, this man wasn't able to help his partner to better medical care here, which would have most likely extended his life. Unfortunately, his partner passed away last year. This is why he's fighting. Please support United American Families Act.

Another man shared a story about how when he was younger, he always wanted to grow up, be happy and get married. His mom always told him that anything is possible in America. Now that he's older, he realized that what his mom told him isn't true because he can't get married. Ok, there's more to this story but the point is that the idea of growing up and getting married is the root to every fairy tales. Why can't everyone have the same rights to express their love in marriage? Why have all of this hate and create barriers between one another?

One womyn shared that her parents sent her to "straight" school after they found out about her. Obviously, it didn't work. Her parents should ask for a refund.

Another person shared his coming out story. At first, he kept waiting for a good time to come so he could tell his mom. But the economy crisis came instead so he kept on waiting. Finally, one day he took his mom out to a casino where she won some money. She was so happy that he though that maybe this is the good time that he has been waiting for so he decided to tell her. His mom said that she knew and that she's happy that he finally told her.

"Hope will never be silent"--Harvey Milk

Traveling with Someone New

2009-05-27T22:04:00.000-07:00

This year, my friend S and I decided to travel together to South America. We have been talking about it since college. Over the weekend, I came into a realization that we had a few differences in our ideas of a vacation. So I advise you to ask yourself and anyone who you'll be traveling with, these questions before you decide to do anything. This way, it's clear from the start what both of you want and expect from the trip.

1) What is your idea of a vacation?
2) What do you plan to do and not do?
3) How do you like to travel? Bus, Train, Walk, Hitchhike, etc.
4) How adventurous are you while traveling?
5) What's your budget for food, hotel, etc.?
6) How much recovery time do you need after the trip?
7) How much time will you have to prepare for the trip?
8) What can you help plan for the trip and by when?
9) Will you have time to help plan the trip?
10) Do you prefer to explore on your own or go with a tour group?

Day of Decision Rally, Hollywood, CA.

Do You Have an Expiration Date for Your Friendship?

2009-04-27T18:23:00.000-07:00

I can still remember that phone conversation clearly. It must have been about 5-7 years ago since then that I felt completely confused and disappointed about a certain friendship.

After being away in college for a year, I made a phone call that summer to an old friend from high school. I knew that I should have tried to make an effort to keep in touch with her sooner because we were quite close before. But a friendship takes two and that was our first phone call. I remember that I happily shared things with her about my first year in college, but when it came time for her to share, she went quiet. She simply said that she felt like I was now a complete stranger and that it would be too much to explain. So what can you say to something like that? I was speechless. I apologized and told her that I'm sorry that she felt that way and how things turned out. Inside I felt like part of me was crushing. I never thought that her idea of friendship would be so different from my own.

Sure, time can weaken a relationship, but I don't think that it can completely erase the experiences and memories with someone into complete strangers. Or at least this is how it is for me. Life takes you to different places and you get lost sometimes with certain people. But when our paths do cross again, these moments make me happy that we've found one another again no mater how long it may have been. And even if our paths were to never cross, I would never think of them as a complete stranger. I would say that was my friend from .....whatever that is.

Maybe I'm just low maintenance when it comes to friendships. I don't need to constantly hang out or talk to someone on a weekly/monthly/etc. schedule. And if you need this from me then it would probably annoy the hell out of me that you'd even expect this unless you're going through tough times or something then I would of course be there for you. We'll talk and hang out when we can.

Friendship in the middle of the Dessert

A Little Bit of Echo Park

2009-04-08T19:46:00.000-07:00

What I saw one Saturday morning in Echo Park, CA.

Office Experiment

2009-03-28T19:33:00.000-07:00

One of my co-worker saw this magic show on TV, where a magician brings a frozen fly back to life, so he decided to see if he could do the same. Later, I found this fly in one of our ice trays (I know, ewww!) and told him that he was lucky because I just found a fly for his experiment. It turned out that he put it there, so I thought, why wait...let's see if it's true.

So he took out the fly and tried to warm it in his hands and fingers. That didn't work. He blew some air into his hands. That didn't work. Then I tried my own experiment and put a paper towel over a cup of hot water to see if the steam could heat up the fly. That didn't work. So yeah, if you have ever been curious, now you know. This is a myth. It does not work!

It's Alive!

Abandoned Car

2009-03-27T19:17:00.000-07:00

What a sight. Found this car in a parking lot near my work today. Everything that could possibly be taken was gone including the seats and stereo. I feel bad for the unknown owner. As the economy get worse, I feel like the increase in unemployment will drive more people to commit crimes and do other things that they may not normally do just to get by. I'm not saying that you have to be unemployed to be a thief, but I think that you're more likely to steal when you can't afford things...other than that, you're just plain greedy.

Snacks at Work. Good or Bad?

2009-03-21T18:24:00.000-07:00

I think that it's great that my work provides snacks and occasional lunch and desserts. To me, it's a way for the company to show their employees that they think of them. These may not be the healthiest things to munch on while you're at work, but they can't cater to everyone's personal diet. Besides, you're not forced to eat them. So if you do gain weight then it's all your own fault for lack of discipline.

Would You Snack on These?

Less Traffic + Jaelyn

2009-03-16T18:37:00.000-07:00

Driving to and from work has been so much more enjoyable these past couple of weeks due to the decrease in traffic. It's quite sad actually if you were to really think about it. Less people are driving now because they're out of a place to drive to for work. I also noticed that when I was at the store the other day, most people were only buying the essentials like toothpaste, shampoo and detergent and not so much of things like clothes and books. People are saving more because they're running low on cash. There are now more people holding signs along the streets in clean and dirty clothes. The recent layoff waves is effecting everyone without any discrimination. You can be a top designer or the teacher of the year and it would still doesn't matter. I'm scared for my friends who are without jobs and have bills to pay. I wish I were a billionaire so I could help them out. I feel a little bit guilty sharing ideas of going to places when I know that they can't join me. I'm sure that many friendships must have been broken by now between the haves and have-nots.

On a brighter note, Congratulations to one of my best friend, Mong, who recently gave birth this morning to a healthy baby girl, Jaelyn : ) Welcome to the family. You'll have so much love in your life.

9th Month

In Less than 90 Days...

2009-03-08T22:27:00.000-07:00

I don't understand how some people who preach for freedom can have such strong drive to still control the way others live their lives. I can see how someone can be pro-life even though I am pro-choice, but how can someone not allow someone else to get married? It's already hard enough to find love and to have it reciprocated, but now you have to worry whether your own government will recognize it, too? This is ridiculous.

A civil union is not the same as a marriage and if you were to say that it is then why don't we get rid of marriage all together? So in less than 90 days, we will find out the real result of Prop.8. If you missed the oral argument from 3/5/09, you can watch it on The California Channel. No matter what the outcome is, know that the struggle will continue.

L.A. Pride

Great Deals

2009-02-15T19:33:00.000-08:00

Found two antique watches in a box of old jewelry at the Rose Bowl flea market the other Sunday. Everything was $4/each, but the seller ended up giving them to me for $5. Score! Found out that one of them is actually a winding watch that I would have to wind daily. For some weird reasons, this idea excites me.

Love the Elastic Band
I used to have a watch with the elastic band like this back in high school, but someone stole it. So mean!

Insert Happy Music Here

2009-02-02T19:01:00.000-08:00

What a good weekend I had. No, it wasn't because the Steelers won, since I didn't even know who they were up to about two weeks ago. One of the highlight was just connecting with different people without that weird vibe that they just want to get with you. So I marched with the API Equality group at the Chinatown Lunar New Year Golden Dragon parade this year (I know, what a long name). About one hundred people were expected, but two hundreds people actually showed up. What was amazing about it was that a bunch of non API LGBT groups like Love Honor Cherish also came out to show support. There was definitely a lot of love all around and there wasn't any booing from the spectators at all. One of the funniest thing that happened there was that many little kids would scream out "Yeah, rainbow!" as we walked by and I could see the faces of some of the parents looking a little bit worried right afterward.

Also got myself a new plant for my room, free breakfast at Ikea, a gift from a friend, and a possible new place to hang out at.

I love duck meat
Thanks P for ordering this delicious dish

I Want

2009-01-30T01:30:00.000-08:00

A homeless man asked if I like poetry, so I told him yes. He was happy because he said that I was the first person that day who told him that. He asked if he could write me a poem in exchange for some type of donation and I agreed. He asked me what I would like him to write about, so I told him to write about whatever he wanted. And this is what he wrote to me:

Poetry for Bus Fare
Did you know that it costs $60 for a monthly bus pass now?

What is Frogafish: random thoughts?

2009-01-25T21:22:00.000-08:00

So someone recently asked me what my blog is about and there was no better way to describe it other than that this is the place where I share some of my thoughts, usually reflecting on my recent activities. I definitely don't share what I do each day and there's no rule to what I need to share here except that everything here is something that I don't mind sharing with the public. So yes, this blog is not me, it's simply a part of me...like all other blogs out there.

I met a lot of friendly and interesting people this weekend. Mingling is definitely something that I'm not good at, but I can do it when I have to. It helps when you look kinda friendly so people won't just walk away from you when they see you coming. I really appreciate those people who go out of their ways to make newcomers feel welcome to their groups of friends. Thanks!

Here are some long overdue pictures that I have been wanting to upload:

Would you like a cup of tea?
Rose Parade

Castledoor

Earl Greyhound

The Queen Mary
Free admission to CA residents for the month of January.

Let's Go Yum Cha and Stop the War

2009-01-10T22:28:00.000-08:00

I wonder what others' experience with Dim Sum is like, but for me it's something that I used to do every Sunday morning with my Dad. We would go "Yum Cha," which means "Drink Tea" in Chinese. Sunday was family day and back then it was my Dad's only day off for the week.

We always get only hot tea and never cold water. Never any fried food and only steamed dishes. No jello or anything that has bright colors and the only dessert is usually between the egg tart and the custard bun.

The oldest person there always start the meal and we used to go really early in the morning to avoid the crowd and like my dad used to tell me, Yum Cha is breakfast.

Anyways, there was a rally here in LA today to stop the war against the Palestinian People. I wanted to go, but have already made prior plans, so I didn't. For those of you who have ever been to a rally, I support and thank you for your passion to go out and express what you believe in. It's good to have passion and stand up for something. To be able to feel and be moved. And for those who have never been to a rally, it's never too late and yes, I know, there are other ways to show support, too. And it doesn't mean that you're less passionate about it or anything, it just mean that you couldn't go.

So where do I stand in this rally, for or against the war? Well, I'm against the war of course. But I fully support the fight against any oppressors of the innocents, people who can't choose what they look like, what religion or living environments they were born into, people who are not in the right condition to protect themselves and especially people who does not want to fight, but are forced to live in constant war and fear. I wonder if we'll ever see the time when there will be no such thing as war. It will be something that kids would have to look up in their dictionary or something.

What frustrates me the most is how I can't understand how someone who have seen their people or know of their ancestors, who have been oppressed by someone else before, can later become the oppressors themselves or support oppression on someone else. Did they simply forget what that was like?

I hope that the LA rally was peaceful today. There's no need for it to turn into a smoky riot because that is what we're fighting against.

Guess Who?

A Free Day

2009-01-05T22:14:00.000-08:00

Did you know...Disneyland is free on your birthday? I didn't let this go to waste of course and went to California Adventure for the first time, yesterday. It's basically a smaller version of Disneyland, but with shorter lines and more space around you. There were definitely enough rides and attractions to keep you entertained for the entire day. So Yeah! I made the right choice.

Happy New Year by the way.

Top 5 rides:
Tower of Terror (Twice!)
The new Toy Story ride (What a hand sore.)
Soarin' Over California (Mmmm...the smell of oranges and the ocean.)
California Screaming (You have to ride this one at night, the view is amazing.)
and ...

The Orange Stinger
Reminds me of the playground where I used to played at when I was younger.

P.S. Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday. It was fun.

Cooking for One

2009-01-03T19:07:00.000-08:00

I find myself cooking less these days now that I'm only cooking for myself. Most of the time, I don't even cook anything fancy anymore and when I do, it's always way too much. I feel tired after work and just want to prepare something quick for dinner. One of my roommate cooks the best damn tomato soup that's really sour and she made some today. Yeah! I've also been drinking more Coke than usual, but my rule for soda is to only drink it when I'm out and never buy then store them at home. My current favorite drink right now is a nice cold glass of chrysanthemum tea that you can buy at most Asian markets.

Anyways, I hate fakers. Please don't ever pretend to be something that you're not to impress someone. It's sickening.

Stupid Screw

2008-12-29T22:01:00.000-08:00

Got a flat tire today. Didn't find out until I was driving out of my work parking lot. Boo...stupid screw. It's so damn big just look at it.

Going Home

2008-12-24T14:35:00.001-08:00

I'll be flying home in a couple of hours. I need to check in a bag and I'm hoping that most people are out of town by now and that the airport will be slow like usual. I hate going to LAX and I'm so happy that I live close to the Burbank Airport. I'm going to get a rental car for the first time and I'm anxious to see what small car I'll get. My very good friend is hooking me up with a great deal for the week. Yeah, thanks! They better not upgrade me to something big like a Ford Taurus though because that car is a giant. Can't wait to see everyone
: )

View from a Window at the Old House

Light Festival

2008-12-20T12:40:00.001-08:00

Took a walk at the DWP Holiday Light Festival for the first time the other night with some friends. It was a cold night, but I was prepared and the sight was worth it. I mean, it wasn't the best light show of my life or anything, but if you live in LA, it's something that you should definitely check out once. It's something about seeing these lights display and being able to tell what/where they are in LA that made me happy.

Enjoi!

I Love Magic!

2008-12-14T20:54:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my magician co-worker, my work holiday party was at the Magic Castle this year. Everything about it from the food, magic shows to the architecture was awesome. As a guest, you must have dinner then you're free to walk around and watch any shows that available throughout the castle. We even got to meet Milt Larsen, who's the creator of the Magic Castle. Too bad that I can't show you any pictures of the inside, but maybe it's for the best so your own experience won't be ruined by them. For the big magic show, we got to see Ed Alonzo (The Misfit of Magic). Ahhh, magic.

Magic Bunnies
By the time the party ended, these lights and the fountain were actually turned off. Thanks to the connection, he got them turned on for me to take this picture. Yeah, best holiday party ever!

SantaCon at Hollywood & Highland

2008-12-10T21:44:00.000-08:00

Watch Out! Santas Coming Through
Glad to have my camera with me that night. What a great unexpected sight to see.

Oasis

2008-12-07T16:15:00.000-08:00

Oasis gave a great performance the other night at the Staples Center. They played all the right songs like Champagne Supernova, Wonderwall, Slide Away, Song Bird, and Don't Look Back in Anger, that got everyone to sing along. I just love when the audience do that. Also took the Metro there for the first time and have been taking it a few more times since then to avoid the stress from driving.

"Don't Look Back in Anger" after Encore

Here's One with Liam

Beach in the Winter

2008-12-03T21:22:00.001-08:00

I went to Venice beach the other day as part of being a good friend even though I was dead tired from already a long and busy weekend. My friend ended up hating the weather wondering what happened to the nice blue sky and the hot sun that she came to see. I, on the other hand was enjoying every bit of the cool breeze, gray sky, and an empty beach. It was a perfect recipe that made me instantly miss home and the places where I used to hang out when I was younger.

Reminds me of Half Moon Bay

Thanksgiving with Me

2008-11-27T20:45:00.000-08:00

Today started out with a wake up call from Lihwa, who got to my place earlier than expected b/c no one else was on the freeway. We ate breakfast from Porto's then headed to Echo park to volunteer at the Echo at an event called, Gobble Gobble Give by 9:40 A.M. We both wanted to work as part of the food conveyor belt and the clean up crew, but more people showed up earlier than expected, so we were asked to wait outside : ( Instead, I appointed myself to be part of the documentation/pr crew and started taking these pictures, since I always have my camera with me anyways. It turns out that it was a good thing that it was too busy inside b/c it felt nicer to work outside in the fresh air and to also see and give things to people.

Anyways, after taking a few photos, I noticed that there were other things that you could help out with that were non food related. There were clothes and toiletry that needed to be sorted and bagged for drivers to take with the food to be delivered to people. I realized that we were low on plastic bags and got my self to two groceries stores nearby to ask for bags donations, which turned out to be a success.

Got back to the Echo and started helping out with the clothes area until we actually ran out of clothes. There were some clothes that were wet, which I'm not sure how that happened, but some people took them anyways. Saw a few celebrities there who actually volunteered, but I won't say who b/c Lihwa thought that one of them was someone who's homeless.

So more volunteering and cleaning time past then we left and headed to the House of Pie for some food. There was a long line there of course, but luckily it was the to-go line. We ate and caught Twilight afterward at the theater across the street from there.

It was my second time seeing the movie and my opinion of it is completely different now than before. I must share that I don't usually watch the same movie twice at a theater, but I feel like my first viewing experience was such an unexpected let down. I concentrated too much on every little thing that wasn't the same as the book, so that distracted me from really enjoying it as a movie alone. Also with the audience being mainly young girls, I felt like their loud emotions may have muted my own movie experience. I hope that makes sense.

Then this time, I completely enjoyed the movie. This theater was much smaller and everyone was very quiet. I didn't really have to worry or be anxious about anything anymore b/c I have already seen what would happen. So yes, I do like the movie and hope that it will only get better from now.

Next destination: Monterey Park for dinner then home.

Love This Weather

2008-11-26T17:45:00.000-08:00

I don't usually like the rain when I have to drive somewhere, but without it I wouldn't get the After the Rain weather that I love. The sky somehow seems brighter and the streets definitely are cleaner. Plus, I get a free car wash and save $15 instead of having it cleaned at work.

I want to go to the Roxy tonight, but this weather makes me feel sleepy. Hmmm. Wanna dance?

Leaving Work
Not the cars. Look at the bright yellow mountains in the background.

Last Night at the Echoplex

2008-11-25T13:58:00.000-08:00

Went to see a few bands at the Echoplex last night for the first time and the space is amazingly beautiful. It's nothing like the echo. This place is much bigger with more places to sit along with accents of red lights everywhere to give whatever mood that the color red gives you.

Both The Rosebuds and Lemon Sun were awesome as expected. A surprisingly another good band, Dazzler, performed last in front of a smaller crowd a little bit after midnight. I should've taken a picture of them, but I don't like to sometimes when there's a performance at a really really dark place. I didn't set my LCD screen to off earlier, so I didn't want to suddenly have this white light shining at people. Why do I think about these things? So if you have never heard of Dazzler, imagine a bunch of mixed matched musicians, with all different instruments from a keytar, vocoder, percussion, to other rock band instruments. There I stood thinking how could everything fit, but after they started playing, they were right on and the crowd started dancing. Aside from good music, it was pouring outside.

Rosebuds from North Carolina

Lemon Sun with my Old Boss's Nephew as the Lead Singer

The Entertainers between the Shows Who Biked from Glendale

Volunteering with Kids

2008-11-19T23:56:00.000-08:00

Last night I volunteered to play with kids at a housing center. It's supposed to be the only housing center in L.A. that accepts families with teenagers. The kids that came out last night seemed to be around the age of 3-12 yrs. old. We gathered into the play/library/art room where there were 2 tables, a bunch of little chairs, a couch and a big T.V. that doesn't work anymore.

I recognized some of the kids from the last time that I was there, which was way back in May. It made me so happy to see how much they've grown and how some of the kids even recognized me from last time. We played Thanksgiving Bingo where instead of numbers there were pictures of things related to Thanksgiving. Before the game, we introduced ourselves and shared one thing that we are grateful for. One little girl was so honest and sweet. She shared with us how happy she is to have her Mom in her life b/c she knows that her Mom always tries very hard to make her happy and keeps her company when she is lonely. Other kids mentioned families, friends, cousins, and toys.

I also read a couple of books to some of the kids there and they just loved the attention. I'm not sure how much attention these kids are getting, but I can't imagine what their families are going through right now. I'm just glad that at least there's a place like this housing center that will help people who are in need. This Thanksgiving I want to volunteer at a soup kitchen, since I won't be going home until Dec., hopefully. If you know of any places that will be doing this, please let me know.

LOVE not H8

2008-11-15T17:37:00.001-08:00

Honk to Support Same-Sex Marriage
It was a good day to be out. So much love and support everywhere.

Observing L.A. Drivers

2008-11-14T19:42:00.000-08:00

On my way to work this morning, I noticed this woman in the car next to me. She was drinking something hot in a to-go cup, while tailgating. I could see her frustration, but doesn't mean that it was right for her to cut me off so she could pass who ever that was in front of her. A few seconds later, we all stopped at a red light and I wondered if she still thinks that it was worth it to do what she did. I'll see something like this everyday here in L.A. and I guess anywhere else where there are slow drivers vs. fast drivers, too.

I'll admit that sometimes, I am one of those slow drivers on the freeway. Well, if you count the time when I wanted to stay below 65 mph so I could save on gas. But then there are other days when I'm feeling like everyone is moving like a turtle and instead I was the fast driver.

I especially hate it when I have to change lane, but I'll be stuck in between two slow cars where one is in front of me and the other one is right next to me. Can't people tell when someone is in their blind spots? I also dislike when people change more than one lane at a time without pausing to check their blind spots each time. I mean, if the freeway is completely clear then go ahead, but don't do it when you see a bunch of cars behind you. You're just asking for an accident. Sometimes, I wish that I have an old beat-up truck so I can just let people run into me.

Sneak Peek of October

2008-11-08T11:28:00.001-08:00

Taipei Metro

Wow, it's empty

National Palace Museum, Taiwan

Night Market,Tainan

The Wisdom Path, Hong Kong

Taoist God, Taiwan

Dragon and Tiger Pagodas, Taiwan

Halloween at Disneyland, Hong Kong

What are You Doing Here? Go out and Vote!

2008-11-04T09:31:00.000-08:00

Take advantage of your rights. Please vote today if you can!

I waited in line for about an hour this morning to vote in Burbank. Usually I'm an absentee voter, but this time I really wanted to feel the whole experience of waiting anxiously in line, casting my vote in a booth and walking out with my "I Voted" sticker. Yeah! I'm so happy right now. Obama better win or something crazy is going to happen here.

Shorter line than this morning. Grrr!

Back in the States

2008-11-02T22:58:00.000-08:00

A preview of the trip to Taiwan and Hong Kong will be posted soon. I had a great time filled with temples, night markets, crowds, and street food all in the 90+ weather. I'm back and super tired. The flight back wasn't as comfortable as the flight there, but I'm very thankful for the extra hour that we gained here.

P.S. Finished The Twilight Series before the trip. How could I not? I probably almost missed my flight because of it, too. Well...not really,but I slept less than 3-4 hrs. every night until I finished it. I also read the partial draft of Midnight Sun. Ahhh Edward!

Hooked

2008-10-12T10:49:00.000-07:00

Two of my co-workers were talking about books that they're reading and the name Stephenie Meyer came up. I felt like an idiot not knowing who they were talking about when I have been seeing the poster of Breaking Dawn (her recent book) in front of about every bookstores for the past couple of months now. I always thought that the cover art was interesting and that was how I figured out that they are related some how. As soon as one of my co-worker mentioned Vampires, I knew that it would be a book that I should check out.

So I got myself to lapl.org and within all the zeros in the Copies in Library column, I spotted one number one. Lucky for me, it was at the branch that is the closest to my work. I quickly drove there during lunch and when I thought that it was already taken, I found a copy of Twilight. The info. guy said that I was really lucky because any of Stephenie Meyer's books were hardly available. I just smile not knowing how I would spend my Friday night. As soon as I started reading it, I was hooked. It is just so romantic and who doesn't like to read about vampires?

It's Sunday now and I'm craving the next book, New Moo n. I may have to just go out to buy it because I don't think that I can wait any longer to get it from a library. They're all unavailable, plus it's Sunday so most libraries are closed. I just want to know what will happen next. This is exactly how I was after reading one of the Harry Potter book...but it's worse because I know that there are more that I can read and don't have to actually wait for them to be published. What to do...what to do?

Have you heard about the movie?
See twilightthemovie.com

Tough Time

2008-10-09T19:42:00.000-07:00

Lately, it seems like people have been dying left and right because of heart attacks around one of my co-worker. This morning, he dropped his car off at a dealership for some minor services. He just got back from there and shared that he found out that one of the service guy that he saw there today just dropped to the floor from a heart attack. All three people that my co-worker knows of who recently past away were 56 years old. Isn't that strange?

People have been going through a lot of tough time lately because of many things like the economy, relationships, jobs status, lack of supplies, weather, etc. Things have been difficult for me, too. But I know that there are many others out there, who are in worse situations than I am and I'm going to try to help anyone, especially my friends, when I can. I may offend someone who may not welcome my help, but I think that it's better to take risks to offer someone a hand than not do anything at all and just wonder. I've lost a part of me and in a way, I'm trying to be happy that because of such, I'll gain something new in myself that I have never experienced before.

On another thought, I tried Papa John's Pizza last night for the first time. I had The Works and spicy buffalo wings. Did you know that they don't do the whole "Take and Bake" thing anymore? I feel so ancient or maybe it's just about time that their marketing campaign needs to step it up a notch.

Spotted in Burbank, CA

Sarah Palin Please Sit Down

2008-09-30T22:34:00.000-07:00

I'm so glad that McCain chose Sarah Palin as his running mate because watching all her videos is just so entertaining. I especially like Katie Couric interviews with her on Day 1, Day 2, and this. It just shows how sheltered Palin is and her lack of exposure to popular issues that she should definitely have a clear understand of and position on. Anyways, I would like to see how far she could go if she were to be on a TV show like, Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? How could she not even name a single source of news if she only relies on books and newspapers as her way to explore the world? This is ridiculous. You could tell that even Couric was getting bored. She didn't even have to try hard to get to the juicy part. Palin just keeps talking and eventually she will just start making stuff up when she's clueless. Can anyone really support her after watching these? Wake up people.

Vote Obama.

No Gmail at Work

2008-09-29T19:28:00.000-07:00

My work joined the line of putting web restriction to any web mail and social networking sites on Monday. It was something completely unexpected because I thought that there was this silent trust that as long as you get your work done, something like this just wouldn't happen. I know that by blocking these sites, maybe more work would get done, but there are definitely some down side to this too.

Access to personal e-mails help keeps the number of phone calls down. What if there's some type of an emergency? With e-mails, you can multitask without bothering your co-workers, but when you get a phone call, you definitely would need to step out of the office. What if you're going through some difficult time or your friend is? Little emails here and there during your breaks to and from your friends can help you stay positive. So how does this affect your work? Well, if someone is in a good mood then they're most likely to work more, but if someone is stress or unhappy then they would most likely not get any work done anyways. But then again, it could work the opposite way as well.

I know that I definitely needed access to my personal e-mail on Monday. I had some work done on the weekend and because my work email can't receive any files larger than 10 MB, I used my Gmail instead to send the work to myself. After finding out the hard way that Gmail was blocked on Monday morning when the project is due that afternoon, I had to waste time driving home to get the file. I used yousendit.com to send the file to my work email address and luckily also added a copy to a memory stick. After I got to work, found out that yousendit was also blocked. Isn't that ridiculous?

Anyways, I completely understand why companies choose to do this, but it just sucks to know that if I really needed to check my email then I can't anymore. So for some of you who understand what this feels like, you might want to read this: Ten Things Your IT Department Won't Tell You

Updates: It turned out that whatever the IT guy have been doing at work, something went wrong and that's how all these web restrictions started. He had no idea, but everything is fixed now so we're back to normal. Yeah!

Thai Cultural Day

2008-09-22T18:31:00.000-07:00

Attended my first MeetUp event at the Thai Cultural Day in Hollywood yesterday. I have never been to Barnsdall Park before, but have always wanted to visit the Hollyhock house that was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

Working Saturday

2008-09-20T11:35:00.000-07:00

Today at 12:30 PM is when my very first working day on a Saturday will start (For this company, not in my entire life). It's not a new work schedule or anything (Yeah!). It's just for this weekend because there will be a big BIG meeting with a new potential client on Monday and it'll just be awesome if they fall madly in love with us. My boss is going to bring in lunch from Porto's, which will be awesome. Alright, I have to go now, but will continue this topic later.

...

It's now 2:26 AM. No, I didn't just get home from work. Anyways, I just wanted to share that I feel lucky that I'm one those people with a Mon.-Fri. work schedule...at least for now anyways. I know many people who work all the time and rarely take any vacation, so compared to them, one working Saturday is nothing. My first job out of college was 6 days per week and the schedule was insane (7:ooAM - 6PM). I can't imagine working like that now and I'm not even that old. And that's just the office hour, so it doesn't even include the time that I actually have to be there by or how much longer I have to stay afterward to close up the office. Ahh, I need sleep now. Good Night.

Work Parking Lot

Today in Pictures

2008-09-13T23:22:00.000-07:00

Miso Ramen at Hokkaido Fair
Inside of Mitsuwa in Torrance, CA.

Wilson and Pearline (W+P)
I didn't get a picture of them today, but they were the one who invited L, K and I to the fair for lunch. We also went to see Burn After Reading afterward, which was funnier than expected.

Water-Saving Dual-Function Handle at Symantec
Isn't this awesome?

L at Moon Festival in Chinatown

Via Cafe for Dinner

K in Black

459

Yeah, I Don't Have to Cook!

2008-09-09T21:13:00.000-07:00

There are some days when I just hate to come home and cook. It's when I just feel like shutting down after a long work day. Cooking should never feel like a chore though especially after a successful turnout of a new recipe. I can't remember the last time that I made anything new from my Indian cook book. I remember getting it about almost three years ago and I'd try to make something new almost every week. Now, I would like to be better at baking. So far, I have only baked cupcakes and different type of bread.

So the point of all this is that L's brother, K, is staying with us for a week. Last night, he made us dinner then we had a tea ceremony with desserts. Yum. All fresh and organic!

Mmmm
Thanks, K.

Don't Want This Cold

2008-09-05T18:38:00.000-07:00

It sucks to have a cold. It started with a sore throat three mornings ago. Does it always start in the morning? Now it's full on with sneezing and stuffy nose. I hate this. I'm constantly going to the restroom because of all the water that I'm drinking. I'm probably secretly known as the "Bathroom Queen" by now. Some sites recommend drinking cold water to help the sore throat feel better, while others suggest warm water for when you have a cold. What to do...what to do. All I know is to have extra soft tissue paper ready and face lotion for my nose. Yesterday, I felt like my nose was going to fall off : ( My trash can that is usually empty is almost full with tissue paper. If it can look any better than it sounds, I would take a picture of it, but it doesn't. I'm glad that my work has tissue paper for us to use, but too bad that it's not the super soft kind that I like, so I had to bring a box from home.

On a brighter note, I'm going to see Nada Surf tomorrow at the Troubadour.

One of my co-worker is going to be in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. How exciting!

Me Familia
On a good day with good health.

Help Democracy Now!

2008-09-04T13:59:00.000-07:00

Please help to clear Amy Goodman's and other journalists' of illegal charges.
Read more from DemocracyNow.org

A Week of Family Fun in Los Angeles

2008-08-26T22:51:00.000-07:00

On Sunday evening, I said goodbye to my family: dad, PB (older sister) and A (brother-in-law), after a week of them visiting me for the first time in Los Angeles. They got along extremely well with L, who drove us everywhere on the weekend. (Thank You, L!) I did my share of driving on Wed.-Fri., since my work gave me some time off. The week was both fun and tiring because we did so much from morning until night. Hanging out with them made me realize how much I really miss being with my family. We crave the same food and speak words that can't always be translated to English. Both my dad and PB were especially excited about Thai Town, which we visited almost everyday to pick up more desserts for their trips back to the bay area. Here are a few pictures from last week:

Chinatown

Grand Central Market

Bradbury Building
Have you seen Blade Runner?

Caltrans District 7 Headquarters

Vacation in Autumn

2008-08-17T01:20:00.000-07:00

So some of you already know that L and I will be going to Taiwan and Hong Kong in October. If you have any recommendations for anything, please email them to frogafish@gmail.com or leave a comment here. Thanks!

Out of all the things in the world other than family and friends, I wouldn't be able to say that I've lived life without traveling. If I could keep squeezing in at least 2 vacations per year, I would like these places to be my future vacation destinations for the next few years:
India, Peru, France, Italy, Cambodia, and Brazil.

Peace!
I love Carnival. Found one on the way home on Sunday night. I didn't ride or play anything, just love all the bright lights and snacks.

Enjoying the Olympics

2008-08-13T23:30:00.000-07:00

Ever since the beginning of the Summer Olympics in China, I have been glued to the TV. I enjoy watching the swimming, synchronize diving, and gymnastics the most. I know, it's a lot of TV time, but I'm usually doing other things at the same time like answer e-mails, visit web sites, design work, etc. Once in a while, I'll get a phone call, so it's only normal to pick it up. Well, I think Lok caught me doing all of this twice recently when he got home and he thinks that it's all too much to be doing at the same time. But is it really?

So I picked up the phone b/c I wanted to talk to the caller. If I can tell that it's going to be a long call then of course I would turn the TV off, but at both of those times, they weren't. Then I muted the TV because I still wanted to know the score of whatever game that I was watching. The laptop is still on because I'm just not done using it. Is this really too much when you're home alone after a long day at work? What if I were to add that even though I'm doing all of this, dinner is usually cooked and all the dishes are clean? Should it make a difference?

Love the Bright Colors!
I took this image almost exactly one year ago. Can you guess what it is or where it was taken at? For more colorful images, check out This is Why We Dive.

Thai Slush

2008-08-10T20:03:00.000-07:00

Lok loves Thai slush and it's just so overpriced at almost every restaurants. We finally stopped by one of the local Thai market to get all of our favorite toppings today.

Ingredients for Thai Slush
That's the shaved ice machine that we use on the top right corner.

The Search is Over

2008-08-09T23:45:00.000-07:00

For a long time now until yesterday, I have been using Lok's old college computer desk. Why? Because the one that I want at Ikea is always sold out and I just never seem to be able to agree with the design + price of other ones.

Well, the search is over and thanks to Goodwill it was only $10! Luckily, I went to pick up Lok while he was waiting for his car oil change. We decided to go to the Goodwill that was across the street because I like thrift stores. As soon as I saw it, I knew that I had to have it. I even told Lok to stand next to it while I go pay. He got all like, "No one is going to get it. Don't worry." Well, he was probably right because people walk past good things all the times and they don't know it. It was actually $20 at first. I had something else that was 1/2 off and the cashier just ended up giving me 50% off for everything. Sweet!

Love the Drawers!

The Metro!

2008-08-04T11:27:00.000-07:00

Our metro system looks quite fancy. I have to say that I didn't imagine this fancy underground interior at all. Just look at it. I'm sure that not every station is like this, but isn't it amazing how much we can do to an underground space?

Hollywood and Highland Metro Red Line Station

My First Five Point Four

2008-07-29T12:31:00.001-07:00

About 60 miles away from the epicenter close to noon, I experienced a good long earthquake, finally. It was big enough to feel like I was sitting in a slow moving train, but hopefully small enough to not have caused any severe damage to anyone anywhere. I was at my desk at work at the time and asked my co-worker if we should go underneath our desks. It didn't feel extremely big and dangerous, so we kept talking, while trying to see how long it would be. Maybe that wasn't such a good idea because you just never know when an earthquake will get bigger. I found out later that half of the company, who were closer to the back door, were actually all outside as soon as they knew that it was an earthquake.

One co-worker said that he was in Peru last year during the 3 minutes earthquake, while another experienced the big one in Guatemala back in the '70s.

For more info on this earthquake, visit USGS

Glow + The Dark Knight + Korean BBQ =

2008-07-20T16:29:00.000-07:00

To sum up yesterday into a equation would be something like this:
The Dark Knight + Korean BBQ + Glow = Long Saturday

The Dark Knight was awesome especially in imax and that is all I'm going to say about it.

I don't know how I came across the Glow web page last week, but some how thought that it was just going to be like any other small, free and fabulous event in LA. The idea of hanging out at the beach from Dawn-to-Dust was hard to miss. It turned out to be the event of LA last night as probably thousands of young and old, families and friends, were there. Plus, parking was free, but I'm not sure if we would have been so lucky if we were to leave before 2 AM.

Usman Haque's Primal Source
more picture at frogafish: see

Lotus Festival in Echo Park

2008-07-13T12:05:00.000-07:00

Lok and I went to the Lotus Festival last night in Echo Park. It was very well organized with many arts & crafts, food, live music and other entertainments. We ate my favorite, Isan sausages with Som Thum (papaya salad). The night ended with fireworks that scared all the ducks in the lake to all hide in this one corner of the lake. Poor duckies.

Echo Park at Night

The Last Show

Care Package + Crazians!

2008-07-12T02:35:00.000-07:00

My sister sent me a care package to my work today. It was a great surprise. I just love how she managed to reuse everything that she has from the little containers that she used to put my gifts in, the colorful tissue paper, hand cut little note paper that she wrote on to the box that she put everything into. Thank you, Pebo!

Stopped by Crazians (a group art show) @ World of Wonder on Hollywood Blvd. Thanks to Scratch who told me about it. Here's a couple of images for you to see for those who are not around here. I should have taken more pictures. Damn!

Mari Inuaki

Taiyo La Paix

Wild Parrots at the Window

2008-07-10T23:31:00.000-07:00

The last time I visited my sister and her husband in San Francisco, I was woken up by a few parrots outside the windows. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I've been to their apartment many times where I've spotted many type of other birds, but never thought one would be a parrot. The view from their apartment is quite amazing actually. If you're up early enough, you could see different type of birds occupying the top of certain buildings. Then when it gets around maybe close to 8:30 - 9:00 AM when the city begins to get louder, they would all fly away. I tried to take picture of the parrots, but I wasn't fast enough. To learn more about them, you can watch The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill.

View from the apartment

New Street, New Beginning

2008-07-08T10:30:00.001-07:00

Getting to work today was interrupted by over sleeping. It was really hot this morning, so I moved to the living room where I could sleep on the couch in front of the Vornado fan. The couch + fan combo is an instant sleeping pill for me. It didn't help that by the time I got to work, the city was repaving the street so I had to park on a different street. It wasn't like I couldn't use the walk or anything.

Squeaky Wheel Gets the Grease

2008-07-07T22:18:00.001-07:00

About a week and a half ago, Lok and I went to a free screening of WALL-E at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank. At first the gate security guard said that our names weren't on the list and told us to come back later in case something opens up. She also said that they were over booked and even though we had the invitations with us, she said that it didn't matter. How lame right? What's the point of telling us to come back later then tell us that they're already over booked? A few minutes later, we found out that the same thing happened to one of Lok's co-worker, but they just kept arguing with the guard, who eventually let them go through. After we found that out, we went back to do them same and Voilà!, we got in.

One interesting thing about the theater were the black leather sofas right behind the sound controls. No one dared to sit there of course during the screening.

We thought that maybe after the film, we could wander around the studios, but no luck there. As soon as it ended, there were a few security guards blocking nearby paths other than the one that leads you back to the parking lot. I wasn't even sure if I would be allowed to take a picture, but it would have been really silly if they stopped me. I mean, I could have just taken this picture from the street if I wanted to.

Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, CA

La Brea Tar Pits & LACMA

2008-07-04T23:30:00.000-07:00

Today was a good sunny day to be outside. Lok and I ended up heading to the La Brea Tar Pits and LACMA, which is basically right next to one another. It's a deal to go on a Friday night after 5 PM when admission is FREE plus there's also Friday Night Jazz at 6PM.

Lake Pit

Rickey Woodard Sextet
The saxophonist Rickey Woodard have played for many famous musicians such as Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Ernestine Anderson, Benny Carter, and Horace Silver.

Chris Burden's "Urban Light" sculpture

Outside of BCAM (here's a map)

Yummy Innards

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

Chicken special heart, liver, gizzard, skin, tail, and small intestines might be things that make you turn your face when they're offered as food, but you don't know what you're missing until you try them Yakitori style. Eating liver, skin and heart has always been in my mom's side of the family whether they'll be in our soup or some stir-fried dishes. Growing up, I didn't like the taste of liver and heart as much as my sister and my mom, so my choice was always the skin. Chicken tail was actually one of my favorite for a very long time until I was around 6 years old when my grandmother told me what it was. I haven't eaten anymore of that since then and I can't imagine how I could have liked the taste of that lump of fat all by itself back then.

Yakitori Chicken Meatballs @ Kokekokko

I Won the Wicked Lottery!

2008-06-29T23:13:00.000-07:00

Lok and I went to see Wicked today at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood. The performance was awesome! I have been wanting to see it for a while now and was going to buy tickets through an online discount site until I found out about the Wicked Lottery.

So if you haven't heard about it, basically before any show, you can go there 2 1/2 hrs. before the show to enter your name in the Wicked Lottery. Then wait for 30 minutes for them to call out the names of the lucky winners. There will be 26 seats available, and each lucky person can buy up to two tickets with cash only for $25/ticket. I thought that this meant that they would pick 26 people, so remember that it's 26 SEATS not people and all of them would be for the front row A seats. I some how thought that it was going to be for the center front area only, but no.

My strategy was to go for the earlier show on Sunday thinking that maybe most people would prefer to sleep in or something. Well, it didn't work and my name wasn't called. After I got home to tell Lok, he suggested that we should give it another try for the night show and this time he would come along to increase our chances. Well, they ended up calling Lok's name and we were so excited. It feels great to win plus I have never sat in Row A for a musical before. (Wicked seating chart)

So here are the pros/cons of winning the Wicked lottery and sitting in the front seat depending on your preferences:
- cheaper tickets
- can't pick your seats
- really close to all the performers & music
- can see some of the back stage crew members and the sides of the stage
- during group performances, when performers move too close to the front of the stage, they'll block the view of the back of the stage

Pantages Theater, Hollywood
View from after the show.

To Drive or Not to Drive?

2008-06-26T12:22:00.000-07:00

It used to cost me about $30 to fill up my gas tank, now it's a little bit over $50. My commute to work right now is about 36.6 miles/day and I usually need to fill up the tank about once a week. That's about $200/month and $2,400/year not including driving to anywhere else, but work.

One of my co-worker start taking the Metro to work, so I thought that I should as least calculate how much I could possibly be saving if I were to do the same. Yesterday at the gas station, it cost me $4.69/gal. My commute is about 96% highway and my car gas mileage is 22/28. I'm just going to use 26 mpg, since it's mainly highway. So 36.6 miles/26 mpg = 1.40gal/day. So the total cost for gas/day for me is $4.69*1.4 gal = ~$6.56/day not counting car wear and tear. It takes me about 20-30 minutes each way to get to/from work depending on the traffic.

The Metro day pass is $5/day. I calculated my route and I would need to be at the nearest bus stop about 2 hrs before work.

So money wise, I would save ~ $1.56/day. Time wise, the 1 1/2 hours time difference per way is definitely not worth it for me. So to drive or not to drive? I'd definitely drive for now.

If I could save $5+/day then I will probably consider taking the Metro. That would mean that gas would need to be at least $7+/gal.

How much are you spending per day for gas and how much would gas needs to be for you to take public transportation?

LA River
View from Amtrak window, while heading South.

A Busy Day at the Design Department

2008-06-23T18:56:00.000-07:00

Work today was definitely hectic. It was one of those days where there were project after project that was due throughout the day. First was this 4 pager publication by 1:30 PM, which I found out around noon that it was actually due at 1 PM. Just designing it isn't enough. This 1 PM deadline means that it needs to have already gone through the Editorial department for copy edits then back to Design for final correction then back to Editorial to make sure all the corrections are correct then back to Design to be exported into PDFs for the client.

Second, media kit mock-ups that need to be designed and printed by 5 PM. Luckily, we have people who will come pick them up to overnight them to our clients by tomorrow morning. My boss created the first design and I had to design the second one. Around 4 PM, I found out that there are actually two separate clients that will need to get the mock-ups. One hour may sound like plenty of time, but each mock-up has three print outs that need to be cut and glued. And some how the printer just started to print slower and slower. Sometimes the printer will make weird sound while printing. The whole time I was thinking "It better not run out of paper or ink." Along with this, it didn't help that there were millions of flies that came out of no where. They were extremely annoying and gross. Some were so weak that they could barely fly or maybe it was because the AC was on, I'm not sure. I thought that flies don't like AC. My head felt like the smoke in the picture below. I got headaches because I was hungry, but the thought of eating with the flies while working, just didn't seem appetizing.

Not everyday is like this of course. By the end of the day after all the projects were done, I actually felt good that I finished. Not as best as I hoped for, but it's definitely better than not making deadlines at all.

LA Fire
View from Franklin Ave. and Bronson Ave.

Steel and Taking Risks

2008-06-20T19:03:00.000-07:00

What would our world look like today without steel? How high would the tallest monument be? A couple of days ago, my co-workers and I visited one of our client in the steel industry. It was pretty awesome seeing how things run and the type of machines they use to create their products. We went to two facilities where the workers were mainly men. The only woman there was the receptionist, who I think has to be pretty gutsy to be there all by herself.

From one of the owner of the steel company, I learned that there are two methods to selling steel. First is called Broker, where the sales associates will try to sell what they don't have then get the product later after the sale. Second is called Inventory, which is when they only sell what they already have in stock. It's hard to predict which product will be popular or not, so from a financialist's point of view, Broker would be the best way to go, but it's definitely more risky.

Are you a risk taker? It's interesting to hear what people say when I ask them about what things they would like to do/accomplish before they leave this place. Many people often will think of outdoor activities and places to travel to. Only a few will mention academic success, character improvement, and ways to help others. Why is that?

Doesn't it look like it could be something from Transformers?

Short Film Extras

2008-06-18T00:21:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend, Lok and I were extras for a short film called Hector. It's not done yet, but the film teaser is quite awesome knowing that Gary (Lok's co-worker) is doing all the CG himself. This is another reason why you should live in LA if you love movies and the process of making them. Where ever you may hang out, you're bound to see some type of filming crews and trailers, film studios, musicians, and TV stars. You will make friends with PAs, sound engineers, and young directors, who can share and sometimes show you what it's really like to be behind the scene. They may inspire you to work harder toward the art that you want to perfect or make you want to get away from all of this "Hollywood" stuff even more. Still, it's an experience that's completely unique to Los Angeles.

Eastern Columbia Building

Go Thunder Warriors!

2008-06-13T09:20:00.000-07:00

My work hosted a Summer Bash yesterday at a private Lake for all employees and their families. We were all broken up into the A-Team and the Thunder Warriors. Some how, most of my co-workers got chosen for the A-Team, while a few and almost all the guests for the Thunder Warriors. The week before the event, fliers started appearing in the office with headlines like, "The A-Team, Born to Win" eventually, "Win" was crossed out and replaced by "Lose." The "Go Thunder Warriors!" flier with a picture of some of the team members was later transformed into faces of clowns instead. The A-Team did a lot of talking about winning, but in the end, the Thunder Warriors won.

Here are the games + results:
Kayaking: A-Team
Canoe Tipping: Thunder Warriors
Hula Hooping: Thunder Warriors
Horseshoe Pitching: Thunder Warriors

Canoe Tipping
What you are seeing here is the Thunder Warriors Team cutting the A-Team before winning.

An Ingredient for the Perfect Couple

2008-06-08T18:15:00.001-07:00

Maybe there is no such thing, but it's an interesting idea. This weekend, Jennie aka Nie Nie and Lok told me about this theory that I have never heard of before. Well, I'm not saying that it's the main ingredient to create a perfect couple, but it's definitely sounds like it helps....or maybe we were just thinking too much.

So they said that in a relationship, say between Jane and Jack. It would work best if one of them is the oldest sibling, while the other is the youngest. So lets say if Jane comes from a family where she's the oldest sibling in her family, then her perfect Jack would be from a family where he's the youngest. Get it? So why does this sound like a good idea? Well, I would think that most oldest sibling would tend to be more giving, while the youngest would be more of a taker. But a good relationship will have to be both giving and taking of course. I'm not sure what the middle child or a single child person would do. Sorry.

Agedashi Tofu

Wake-Up Call

2008-06-04T18:18:00.000-07:00

If it hurts to imagine your life without someone, then make time for them. Set your priority straight and treat those who you love the most instead of strangers, the best as you can. I swear that it's hard to do, but they're worth it.

The Americana at Brand (see )

What Happens at a Premier

2008-05-30T15:37:00.000-07:00

Last night, I attended the Kung Fu Panda premier for DreamWorks employees. The night started out with the screening of the animation at the Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood. You could feel the tight security from the entrance to the inside of the theater where they stood around the entire seating area until the film started. There were complimentary popcorn and drinks, which was great because it was close to my dinner time and I was beginning to get hungry. Before the film, there's usually a little introduction by Jeffrey Katzenberg, but this time he was at the Lakers' game. I did see him later at the entrance of the party though. Some lady actually asked him if he works for the hotel. I think she was trying to get into the party or something. I should have jumped in and said something clever like, "Don't you know who this is? This is Jeffrey Katzenberg. Looks like you won't be partying here after all." Unfortunately, I didn't. I thought that the DreamWorks employees around me would have, but people kinda just smiled and walked away. Now all I can do is wonder what might have happened....a friendly "thank you" from a another famous person.

After the film, everyone walked across the street down to the next block to the party at the Roosevelt Hotel. We were blocking the streets because there were just too many of us to actually fit the sidewalks and the crosswalk. If someone were to yell out something like, "Power to the Peaceful" it could have been an instant peace rally. The party overall was good. There were enough food and drinks to keep everyone entertained. There was a dance floor, but not that many people were dancing. Maybe they just weren't drunk enough, yet. I wonder if the hotel or DreamWorks get some special deal with Voss water because it seems to always be their water choice. I don't know what is all the fuss with this water other than how it's in a glass bottle. One thing that I really like about this party is that they also provide parking tickets and free taxi ride home if you need it.

Mya back in the days @ Tanglewood
She's so cute. She fits perfectly between the distance from the wall to my bed. I have no idea why she loves this spot. Maybe it's the tile and carpet combination.

I Love to Watch Films

2008-05-26T21:48:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I can be a big couch potato because I can watch film after film. I especially love horror films and constantly looking for something that will give me some good goosebumps. I have yet to find anything that will give me a good scream. I envy those who are easily frighten. It must be such a thrill to go watch a scary film at a theater and leave the place feeling satisfied.

Last night, I watched two films from the Masters of Horror series: Cigarette Burns and Fair Haired Child. They are both good, but still no goosebumps. You can find your own reviews on them if you're interested.

Today, I'm very happy that Lok treated me to the screening of Up the Yangtze. He has been dying to watch this ever since he heard about it on Democracy Now! The film is about the effect of building the Three Gorges Dam on the people who live there. You should watch it. It'll be good for you, no matter how much you're aware of the issue surrounding the Yangtze River.

Astronaut Ellison S. Onizuka Street

Runyon Canyon Park

2008-05-25T01:03:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I went on a short (1 hour) hike today, but I took a lot of stops to take pictures and enjoy the view. From the top, you can see the skyline of LA, Hollywood sign and the Griffith observatory. It's great for beginners and experts to walk, run and bike (if you dare to). I must warn you that the entrance from fuller ave. kinda smells like dog shit because it is dogs friendly. Don't worry if you didn't bring your own water because they do offer that and snacks at the entrance through the honor system. Isn't that great? Parking can be hard for some people if you can't parallel park well, so good luck to you if you need it. Some people will let their dogs run loose, so if you're afraid of that, then it's probably not a good place for you.

I'm glad that it didn't rain today. It was such a good day to be outside and enjoy the city. Last week, I was thinking about going to Joshua Tree National Park for the three day weekend. Because of the recent rain forecast, that idea kinda just went down the drain. Booo... I want to take more mini road trips just because it's fun to explore and why not do it while I still can, right?

Sometimes, I miss those college days when I didn't have as much responsibilities as now, so I can just take off somewhere with friends. Those nights or should I say early mornings, driving on the freeway with our windows down and screaming lyric of songs we love. Hanging out in Castro on Halloween night then driving to Berkeley for food and seeing our chefs dressed in nude as their costume. That was freaking awesome.

Runyon Canyon Park, CA (see)

Not in My Backyard!

2008-05-21T17:33:00.000-07:00

In college I learned about the Oakland base organization known as the Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN ). They gave a presentation at the school's coffee shop, which UCD people would know it as the CoHo. They talked about Environmental Racism, which continues to effect us everyday.

The environment of where you live, work and play affect your health. From the air that you breath from the toxic underneath the floor that you walk on, the water from your sink that you may use to wash your food, body and drink to the dirt where you may use to grow your food or let your children play in. These poisons are not always visible, but it's there and many people of color live in these places. Why?

Do you know what's in your neighborhood or where the nearest polluting facilities like landfills, oil refineries and power plants, are at? Maybe you even live on a Superfund site right now. Don't know what that mean, maybe you should look it up.

Somewhere between CA and NV

The Kooks and the Flies

2008-05-20T11:38:00.000-07:00

The Kooks last night at The Wiltern were awesome. They brought along great energy and music. I was up on the balcony and there were times when I thought, "Man, everyone is dancing so hard, we're going to break this place apart." I could actually feel the floor bouncing up and down. It was crazy. The lights were fantastic as well. If I could have a side job, I would love to work backstage. I'm sure that it's a lot of hard work, but I've always wanted to learn how to manage the lights and sounds. The only downer was that they don't sell any food other than hot dogs and drinks, so I was starving. The wait was worth it though because of the tofu house nearby. I just love Korean food.

So at the tofu house, the people sitting next to me were Germans, I think. Anyways, the moment they got a hold of the waitress, they just kept asking what everything on the menu was. It must have been very annoying for her, but it was good to see people trying out new food. I think that you should try everything that you don't like to eat at least twice or three times to be sure that it's not for you. I used to hate the taste of tuna sashimi until I tried it in Japan. That was some awakening.

It looks the kitchen at my work has turned into a fly cemetery when I got there this morning. I just don't know where they come from. It'll be fly-free for months then one day, it would feel like an entire clan just hatched in there. One of my co-worker, who works right next to the kitchen, would get so annoyed by them. He would then go into a fly swattering mode which ends in all these dead flies, laying upside down with their little legs in the air, all over the floor. I should take some pictures actually, but I left my camera at home today, so I'll just leave that to your imagination. I'm not sure if anyone else cleans them up, but I hate dead things underneath my shoes. I don't mind though. I'm doing the easier part.

The Kooks @ The Wiltern, CA (see)

The Saddest Festival Ever!

2008-05-18T15:13:00.000-07:00

There were three festivals in the LA area this weekend: Strawberry Festival, Guacamole Festival and the World Fair. Because of the distance and cost, Guacamole Festival was the clear winner.

Guacamole Festival...imagine colorful booths filled with unlimited guacamole for you to try. Some places that were so crowded, you could only taste the smell. Guacamole with mango, apple and chili. In one corner is the guacamole eating contest and in the other the best guacamole contest. Kids running around laughing and singing. Well, this is what I had in mind, but it was no where close to the real thing.

There must have been a maximum of 15 booths there. The closest thing to guacamole was this one booth selling avocado near the entrance. It was just so sad. No wonder hardly anyone was there. The greatest thing there was probably all the carnival rides for kids. Just see for yourself. These pictures basically show you the entire festival. It definitely shows that they need more support and work to make next year's more successful. I just hope that all the booths at least made enough money to pay for the cost to be there. I'm not sure how that works. Maybe they pay a percentage of their profits? I don't know.

Broadway and Griffin

Reading Online Blogs

2008-05-13T18:05:00.000-07:00

I visit about 5-10 blogs daily. The content range from world news, design, fashion, music, art to random strangers who just talk about everything. Every once in a while, I'll run into blogs of old friends, or friends' friends, and when the contents are interesting, I'd bookmark them for later visits. The weird part is what do you do when you actually run into them in person? Do you confess that you know them more than they think you know, or do you pretend while trying to separate what you know from the real person vs. the blog? When you really agree with a blogger, do you leave comments and introduce yourself, or do you stay as the secret ghost reader?

I have left a few comments here and there and I wonder what those bloggers think of me. Why do some write back, while others don't. This is just the nature of "Commenting." It's not like an email or something that should requires a formal message back. Many times after commenting, I thought that I shouldn't have said anything. I never want to give them the wrong impression that I want anything more than just to leave a comment or give a friendly, "Hello." Or do you not believe in that? The purpose of your blog would play a big role in how you interact with your reader. This blog for example, is here as a place for me to share with you whatever random thoughts I may have. So I welcome comments because I would hope that something here would influence you to think about something new or remind you of your past experience.

Alright, I almost forgot to say the one thing that I wanted to share when I started this entry. I read certain blogs like they're stories from a book. I'm sure that I'm not the only one who feels this way.

Peruvian Ceviche (see)
Have you tried it? It's yummy if you like raw seafood.

My Mother's Day

2008-05-09T12:42:00.001-07:00

This week has been filled with Mother's Day related conversations and advertisements. Just today alone, three different people asked me what I'll be doing for my mother this weekend. I blankly replied, "Oh, nothing" as I realized that it was a conversation stopper. I imagine that they're wondering why and other possible things they might be thinking of such as "Oh, No. Is her mother dead?" "Maybe she's a single parent child?" "She hates her mother? She doesn't seem like the type," etc. Anyways, the real reason is that I'm just not very close to her. I would like to be, but it's complicated. She's at least 8267 miles away right now. We haven't been within 3 ft. of one another for almost three years now. Unless I can count the distant between her voice from my phone to my ear then I guess we would be really close.

Renaissance Pleasure Faire, CA (see)

Hi, this is Frogafish: random thoughts

2008-05-07T17:06:00.000-07:00

Is writing your first post harder than your later posts? I thought hard about what would be a good first post. Should it be something significant or just another random thoughts? Should I introduce myself and explain the purpose of why I started this, or should I just let things unravel through each post? What is the perfect beginning or is there such a thing? Why did I even have to think about it? This page in space is just for me anyways.