new crush

so, there's this new guy at work. and apparently, we have similar taste in music. my manager told me stuff about him before i actually met him. i also corresponded with him via email and phone before we met in person. so, i had an idea that we listened to the same type of music. which is one of those non-negotiables for me...

he's sooo my type, which is actually really very bad. plus, he's a work colleague. i figure i could use him to get new music. kinda like how i want to use will.

anyway, i'm not so sure about dating these days. i think i just want to be single for a while ...

what was i thinking?

this may be a little mean but i prefer being brutally honest. its always so comforting to me when after a relationship goes wrong that the ex turns into this disgustingly gross slimeball of a human being and that his new girlfriend is just as repulsive.

i don't know what in the hell happened to him but i'm glad i'm no longer with him.

yikes!

happy 30th ben gibbard!!

venue: the greek theatre in berkeley (sold out)
artist: dcfc
who: betty, cousin lam & nina
when: 11 august 2006 (friday)
show starts at 7p

ok, i'm back dating. i wouldn't really be up this early on a saturday morning but i haven't been online for a while...

the opening bands were spoon and mates of state. i think we missed spoon but made it to mates of state. they seemed a bit 80's rock to me. but i've listened to some of their stuff and it's actually not bad.

i took pictures with my camera so i'll upload them shortly. the stage had props that were really visually appealing which we didn't get at the last show. if you've ever been to the greek in berkeley, you'll know that the acoustics is awesome. anywhere you sit gives you a pretty good view of the stage. there are tall trees surrounding the theatre so it feels really enclosed. they had these two little houses and these trees in the background that almost looked 3-dimensional. with the lights, it gave the impression of being in a forest. kinda.

the great thing about death cab is that they are just awesome live. it's almost flawless. and ben gibbard with his swaying. he really got into it too! he looks like he's shed some pounds. midway through the show, his band mate (don't know their names) announced that they were in the bay area 10 years ago on ben gibbard's birthday, 10 years ago that day. and that it was his 30th birthday! it was really a nice touch and for some strange reason, made the show even better.

lam & nina hadn't seen dcfc before and i know nina loves them. so, it was fun to go with them. great show. great company. awesome time.

rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

congrats aileen & billy!

on saturday, i went to aileen & billy's wedding in redwood city. since my cousin debbie was doing aileen's make-up, i came along to get ready with the bridal party so i can get my hair & make up done too.

it was a lovely wedding. i got most of the ceremony with my canon powershot sd450. my hand was a little unsteady and tired and the video looks a little like the wedding version of the blair witch project. hopefully, people won't get nauseous when they watch it.
aileen is friends with my sister lisa. lisa was one of her bride's maids. but i also know aileen from ucsd. we all went to college together. it was like a mini-reunion. with almost the same small group of friends at hao's wedding last may.
after the ceremony, there was an open bar and appetizers. i had plenty o' bubbly. i was seated with bryan and kay as well as thao and her sister lily. much to my delight and surprise, the food was pretty good. and the dancing was highly entertaining.

i still remember clearly at lisa's birthday dinner in 2003. it was after dinner and we were at this bar/club. when aileen wasn't there, billy said to me that she was the one. and that he planned on marrying her. i love hearing that sort of thing from men. i think it's so rare that men are vocal about romance and love. and the fact that he followed through. it makes me really happy for aileen and billy. there's so much love in that relationship. as it should be. ♥

eye probing - graphic details

yesterday, i had my eye intubation surgery. the same one i had done last year. i didn't go into detail previously but perhaps i should have. i suppose i didn't think i'd have to go through it again so i didn't feel the need but in case you get queasy with details, i recommend you stop reading now...

they actually called me to come in earlier than scheduled since they had a cancellation. so i got there an hour earlier. i figured, i just want to get it over with. i didn't really think of it as surgery since it happens at the eye clinic as opposed to a hospital and i'm in and out in about an hour. i guess it's more like an out-patient surgery.

so, i get there and they are preparing me for the procedure. the nurse puts in drops of anesthesia in my left eye. it's already taking it's effect by the time the doctor comes in. then i lay down on the operating table. he sticks this tools into my left nostril (which apparently keeps it open to work in) and stuffs in this huge blob of cotton that's soaked in some sort of anesthesic fluid which goes down my throat a bit. it's really gross. and here is the part i didn't remember from last year, he gives me two injections in my eye!!! the nurse puts her hand on my arm, either to comfort herself or me, i wasn't quite sure which. now, everything is ready and he just has to put the tube through both tear ducts and tie them together. the tube goes into my lower tear duct just fine. it's really smooth. i can feel something being pulled through my eye & nose but it wasn't bad at all. however, the upper tear duct didn't turn out quite so simple. the tube got stuck somewhere. and he's pushing and shoving this tube through my eye. and he can't figure out why it's stuck. but all the pushing and shoving gives way and it goes through but then, he can't find the tube in my nose. after fiddling around with a q-tip in my nose, he sees the tube and ties it up. the last time, it was too tight so he's taking extra time to make sure the tension of the tube is just right. finally, i'm done and good to go. until my post-op follow up anyway.

the nurse hands me some dressing for my eye. i should of course, expect bleeding in my eye and nose. sure, people get bloody noses all the time, but i very much doubt it's as common for people to bleed through their eyes. it's really quite disturbing to see bloody tears. and if you haven't experienced it, i don't recommend it.

i also got some antibiotic drops for my eye. he says to put a lot of drops in today since my eye went through a lot of trauma. ugh. trauma in my eye. yikes.

i got home and couldn't do much despite the excitement of the kiddies to have me home all day. i took my nap around the same time they did. they woke up from their nap earlier than i did. they came back later and saw me emailing sometime before 7p. i hung out with them until 10:30p and crashed again. ugh, what an ordeal!

over and over...

venue: the independent (first time!)
artist: hot chip
who: betty
when: 01 august 2006 (tuesday)
doors open at 8p

last night, betty and i went to see hot chip at the independent off of divisadero. parking was horrendous. we couldn't find anything for the longest time. and finally, score! only one block away! it was almost rock star parking for that area. heehee.

after playing real-life frogger to get to the independent, we found the venue to be very charming. it was big but small. bigger than venues like cafe du nord and smaller than slim's and gamh. the first band... um, fabulous something, sucked. they had these two bimbos on stage with matching platinum wigs as well as voices and cheap dance moves as a poor distraction to their awful music. it was like a storm. random and noisy. the music was bad. the songs were bad. the lyrics were even worse. the band was just bad. next was some bobby something's solo set. while he was a lot better than the first opening, after two or three of his songs, we'd had enough. he was like a cartoon character. he had a great voice, reminded me of sondre lerche. but his style seemed better on a tv jingle than live before a band like hot chip.

i wasn't sure what to expect when hot chip came on. there were 5 guys and a ton of instruments on the stage. i couldn't really see, as usual, so i ask betty, who the heck is singing? just like the good friend she is as well as brilliant, she suggests i sit on top of the railing by where we were standing. my first attempt at hopping (it was pretty high up) was pathetic and a little embarassing. so, i put some effort into the next jump and made it! and what a difference! to be able to see a band like them. it was amazing. there are two singers, alexis taylor and joe goddard. alexis does most of the singing. he's amazing. he's the short one, looks really young and kinda cute and is crazy on the keyboards and guitar. joe is older and a bit of a fatty but his voice is deeper like damon albarn and compliments alexis's soothing vocals very well. they were so lively on stage. it was refreshing to see such energy. which of course was contagious. i looked down at the crowd and almost everyone is dancing! it was just like a dance club.
i'm listening to the warning right now and it's great but hearing it live is no comparison. everyone there felt the energy. they were gorgeously amazing.


rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ (i've decided to start rating the shows with hearts. 4 ♥'s means i loved them and would see them again!)