Browse Month: November 2007

Waiting and More Waiting

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Yes, I’m still using my Gen One iPod mini.

I’ve been known to have a lot of patience but I think I’ve been pushed to my limit this week. On Monday, I got to MacArthur BART station in record time but had to wait 20 minutes for the hospital shuttle. On Tuesday, I waited at the Muni station for an extra 20 minutes before getting on the last leg of my commute home with the train car packed in like sardines. On Wednesday, I stopped at the bank after work and had to wait a good 30 minutes for my turn with customer service. Yesterday, I got to Embarcadero BART station and had to wait 30 minutes for my train because there were mechanical problems 6 stops down. Today went a little smoother but I was just so burnt out that I was ready to pull all my hair out.

With all this waiting and train-riding, I decided to take some photos. I thought that I might as well since I spend about 2 hours per day going to and from work everyday.

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Here’s what’s in my Timbuktu…apparently the official bag of San Francisco.

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I bought this book two years ago at an airport in Florida. I didn’t think I’d ever be so attached to this thing but I am now. I was too braindead this morning to do Level 5. Perhaps I should have taken a few more sips of my coffee.

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It was a good thing I packed my Strawberry (no icing) Poptart on this day. I was starving. My fingers are all chapped from over 20 handwashes per day at work.

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The sun sets just before my train enters the TransBay Tube every evening.

Special Thanks to Kevin and Bean. I listen to their Podcasts every morning and they sure do make time pass. I was literally giggling to myself like an idiot on my way home today. If I saw a girl cracking up at a Sudoku puzzle, I’d think she was a little insane.

Published again!

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I got an iStockphoto email today from the designer for Mammoth Sierra Magazine. She purchased my photo for a whoppin’ 96 cents and used it in their January/February Issue.  I was asked for my full name for the photo credit (check out the left side of the photo in the article) and she sent me a copy of the article. The funny thing I noticed is that they smudged Johnny out of the photo. Haha.

So, that makes it two whole photos that I have published! Yay me!

Friends & Family

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. The best part of the holidays is seeing all your friends and family. That is certainly what I did this long weekend. I had just about every meal planned and it was awesome.

On Thursday, we had our Thanksgiving Feast in Buena Park. Johnny and Joy joined us but my parents couldn’t come because my mom was sick in bed with a really bad case of the flu. Poor Mommy. The turkey was super moist and everyone, including Jes’ dad, played Wii.

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On Friday morning, I slept in and then had lunch with the Suminos. We had sushi, which was something I had been craving since moving to SF. Brother and Joy also met up with us. In the afternoon, Jes took a super-long nap while I went to visit Patty and Johnny. I got to finally meet their little girl, Zoe, who is just a happy little doll. For dinner, I went out for Korean food with Patty, Holly, and Patti. That really hit the spot since it was another something that I was craving for a while. Afterwards, Jes and I met up with Huy and Jimmy for drinks. Jimmy and I also planned our Saturday morning, which will involve playing a round of 9-hole golf. Woot!

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On Saturday morning, Jimmy picked me up and we played 9 holes at IronWood. It was Jimmy’s very first golf game and I hadn’t picked up a golf club in about 2-3 years. We had a great time and lucked out with no one paired up with us and no one waiting behind us. Jimmy did great and I think I got him hooked on the game. He was a little worried since we didn’t have time to warm-up at the range first but he jumped right in a made a beautiful shot from the tee, over the lake, and onto the green at the 9th hole. Nice! For lunch, I met up with my old co-workers/friends and was happy to hear that Anahita is now 5 months pregnant! Wow!!

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Saturday’s dinner was the best part of my weekend. My mom was feeling much better and prepared her famous Thai BBQ chicken, Korean Kalbi, and peanut sauce. She taught me how to make sticky rice and I got the secret mango/sticky rice recipe from her. Yes!! It was great to be back in the Magical House with my family. The old peanut jokes came back out and seriously, it never gets old. After dinner, we went to the Cerritos Mall to walk off dinner. I ended up getting a pair of shoes and tried my first Starbucks Peppermint Mocha. Yum! Cerritos Mall still has the same vibe with a few upgrades in their decor and stores. This truly was a homecoming weekend for me.

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On Sunday morning, I woke at 4 am and we left the house by 5 am. The drive was smooth with absolutely no traffic. Koa did a great job just chillin’ in the backseat and we were home by 10:30 am.

What a great weekend. Here are just a few of the photos I took.

Dinner: Impossible

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Jes and I prepared Thanksgiving Dinner at his parents’ house with just a few gadgets that I remembered to bring down from SF. These included the fat separator, gravy boat, timer, and meat thermometer. However, we did not pack our knives and wooden spatulas, which would have come in handy. Cooking in my MIL’s kitchen is quite an adventure. With the time constraints of preparing a Thanksgiving Feast, odds and ends for cooking utensils and pans, and a pantry filled with spices and herbs that could be 10 years old, it felt like an episode of Dinner: Impossible. But dinner was completed on-time, the turkey was moist, and we all went to sleep with our tummies full. Dinner: Accomplished.

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In other news, Koa also spent the afternoon with Zooey. It’s funny that they seem to remember each other from those summer days together when we used to dog-sit for the parents for a week at a time. I guess the old man still doesn’t mind having the little whipper snapper running circles around him.

Home for the Holidays

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It’s been a while since I’ve had to make a trip home for Thanksgiving. We drove home on Wednesday afternoon with the dog in the backseat. Getting out of the Bay Area was not pleasant but once we were on Interstate 5, it was smooth sailing.

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Before heading over to Jes’ parents’ house, we met up with Huy and Johann at Fridays. Ah, it’s nice to be home again. There’s nothing like sharing some buffalo wings with some old pals. Huy’s back from Iraq and he had lots of stories to share. I’m glad that he’s back in one piece.

Today we’re cooking turkey and all the fixins. It’s smellin’ purty tasty in here.

Phew.

I gotta say that it’s great to be back.  I gave myself a little scare last night when I decided to upgrade WordPress and everything broke.  But it’s all fixed and I cleaned up my part of the server a bit.  All is backed up and my old stuff has been taken off and archived.