TO LACE THE NECK

You will rarely see me wearing jewelry -- earrings at most. But here are some of my favorite pieces.

• Love wire
• gold handcuffs
• military "dog tag"
• kissing couple silhouette
• gold bow
• Old English script A
  

A TASTE OF HOME

I get really homesick sometimes even though my homehome is less than an hour away and I have awesome friends down here that are like family. This homesickness is not just a yearning for the physical house that I grew up in, the familiar streets of Los Angeles, or the company of my mother, father & sister. I miss the times of back in the day. Being cooked for all the time, depending on my parents for everything that requires money, eating dinner with the family around the dining table which is begun by saying grace.

A major symptom of this homesickness is my ever frequent cravings for Filipino food. Eating Filipino food can connect me to my childhood, family life, and home, instantly warming my heart & tummy. My favorites are halo-halo, beef caldaretta, palabok, sinigang, kare-kare, and pinakbet.

Well, at first I was pretty discouraged when I realized there was no Filipino restaurant within the official boundaries of Irvine. However, there is one only 2 exits north of me off of the 5 freeway.

It's called Manila Groove, in Tustin. The neatest thing about this place is that is has an online menu that is updated daily. I find this very helpful because with a point-point-joint that has a small selection, you can't rely on a fixed menu. I've been going there regularly lately. They don't make their palabok the way I like it - sauce is baked on and dry, not puddly. The caldaretta is bomb (not as bomb as my mom's) but $3.49 for a scoop which contains about 5 pieces of beef. 50 cents per scoop of rice, but it is to-die-for mushy & melty-in-your-mouthy. OH GEEZ, and they serve breakfast all day! I had longsilog the other day for the first time in my life! :) Okay, the end.

WWW.MANILAGROOVE.COM

DIE HARD

And it's been this long because I'm always thinking that next time will be better.. but nothing's changed & everything's changed. Sadly, I know I will still be here/there when no one else is left. There's this side of you that has yet to come out, or that at least I have yet to see for myself. It's a side of you that I know exists or can exist. And everyone has lost hope in it except for me. And I feel that of all people, I deserve to see it.. after all the time, heart, and effort I've put forth.

NICKELS & DIMES

At the beginning of this summer, I was financially screwed. I had been unemployed for almost 3 months, was applying to jobs, and wasn't landing anything. Then I got hit with some financial obligations I had neglected to consider - rent, Tiffany's bridesmaid stuff, and all the fun that summer brings! I hate to depend on my parents for money if it's not for school or survival, even when my options aren't looking too bright. I was so desperate that I almost resorted to selling my clothes, helping my "lil brother" sell goods in Irvine, taking paid online surveys, working at Panda Express again. Haha..

Well, with persistence and patience, sometimes you get what you want & need in the right way. I got a job with a random company in Irvine but the position is legit. No bitchwork. I love my bossboss, but I am annnnnnoyyyyeeed with my higher-up. Pay is good, work environment is relaxed and autonomous. Balancing work & school is the toughest part, though, because I have to wake up at 7am and most people have known me as a morning monster... meaning I am grumpy and unpleasant before the sun rises to its highest. I drive about 25 miles a day to work, school, & home, so that's killer on my gas. But you can bet I get a good night's sleep and I sure as hell appreciate every minute of it!

This was a small struggle I overcame, in trying to maintain a sense of independence from my parents and feel like I have a purpose in life. "Work hard, party hard(er)" is a cliche that never gets old. After all that, go to the dollar theatre and pay with your jar of coins that is mostly pennies! Make them count that! Just never forget where you came up from.....

FINALLY

"It's not always rainbows & butterflies,
It's compromise,
That moves us along."
-Maroon5

CATS

I have always had a stigma about cats. Throughout my childhood, I had dogs for pets. Our next door neighbor had so many cats all over the place, I bet she had no idea how many there actually were. Well, they'd wander into our yard and poo so much that my dad decided to have this ugly chain-link fence built around our property. Associating cats with this eyesore to our otherwise cute family abode, made me hate cats even more. Once in a while I'd also see cats laying dead in the middle of the street, or my dad and uncles would just straight pop them with a BB in the backyard.

Two people in my life that I specifically remember having indoor cats were my seamstress and my cousin. Everytime I'd go to their houses, my eyes would immediately start watering up and I'd sneeze incessantly. So I decided I was allergic to cats, but maybe also because I just hated them so much.

Well, this year I am rooming with a girl who has a cat named Nemo. It is a Tabby cat with short hair & orange stripes. As far as appearance, I like that its stripes look like wood grain and its eyes change color throughout the day. I am not allergic to it, thank God. And surprisingly, I think I kinda like it. It doesn't make noise, isn't violent, and it seems to be very attentive and smart. Like the other day, Nemo kept staring at me so I gave it the middle finger, upon which he widened his eyes and looked so shocked like he knew it was a bad thing. He also likes to fucking watch me in the shower through the glass door, like he is amazed by the human anatomy... but shit, what a pervert!

NEWTON'S FIRST LAW

The Law of Motion, or the Law of Inertia, says that bodies in motion tend to stay in motion, and bodies at rest tend to stay at rest.

Whether bored or busy
Whether alone or in company
Whether single or seeing someone
Whether with or without you
Whether drunk or sober
Whether far or near
Whether past or present
Whether none or several in between
still.

YOU CAN'T DO EVERYTHING RIGHT ALL AT ONCE

I'm a fatass today, double time, because I skipped my usual Step Aerobics class & Abs/Thighs class. That's actually Annika's fault because she's usually my workout buddy but ditched me for Disneyland. To make it worse, I ate 4 bad things from America's favorite golden arches because it was fast & cheap, which caters to my currently busy & broke lifestyle.

To make myself feel better after such a guilty consumption, I usually drink a cup or two of hot herbal tea. Vanilla Chai black tea is my new favorite.

This week is gonna be a little bitch, thanks to Child Clinical Psychology class. Ughh.. Now I shall study at the dining table of my new house which has recently been flea bombed, steam cleaned, and organized. My roommates are cool :)

SUMMER 2008

My first summer down here in Irvine can thus far be summed up in a perfect alliteration:

Bug Bites.
Beach Bum.
Busy Bee.

and most especially,

Beer Belly.




(hover over pictures to see captions)


BOTTOMS freakin UP! But now I shall take a *shot* at sobriety. At least from recreational drinking, permitting only celebratory drinking!

MORNING ROAD RAGE

I guess I subconsciously have an internal radar for your car, knowing that we work in the same area and take the same way to work. And I thought I'd be excited if I ever happened to see you on the road. Well yeah, cutting you off on the 5 South this morning was the highlight of my day!

Followed by a paycheck and a nice, sweaty Step Aerobics class at the ARC.