another 5am saturday

last week, it was the mediterranean dinner party with lou, ro, betty, johanna and gillie. the dinner started at 8p but i was up until 5a. needless to say, i slept in last sunday until gosh, i think it might have been 4p. i went to the village and had a nice chat with anthony until 1a that night.

this past saturday, it was me and betty with joe and his friend jesse. we were at the village drinking and being merry. but got kicked out by the new manager dan (anthony had gone home) and so we met up with joe and jesse at some dive bar. it was fun. after last call, we hung out in betty's car talking and listening to music. it was quite an adventure actually. not sure what time it was when we started heading over to joe's but i started fading at 5a and that's when we called it a night.

i woke up at 2p on sunday and met up with betty for a late lunch sometime before 4p. i stopped by the village to say hello to anthony. apparently, he'd been running around shopping for me for my "surprise" on tuesday. he said i was hard to shop for. um, ok. i'm dying to find out what the heck it is. betty knows but promised she wouldn't tell. she's good about secrets that way. damn her. (hahah, just kidding betty!) gosh, tuesday is already tomorrow! can't wait...

update

so, what happened last week that made my week so horrible?? well, for starters, one of my students attempted to commit suicide. i'm not sure if i want to say anything else but that she's okay and is going to take a leave of absence. i've been here for nearly five years and in all those years, i've never experienced this sort of thing. it was just too close to home. how does someone in their early 20's, who has her whole life ahead of her, think life could be so bad that it's worth ending? i just don't get it.

otherwise, things have been okay. i may be spending too much time at the village with my friend anthony. anyway, that's it for now...

an angel... sometimes

yesterday, after coming home from work (with a short nap on the train) and seeing my 5 y/o nephew, he says the sweetest thing to me...

you look pretty today.

it totally throws me off because i'm so used to his usual you look funny (accompanied by some giggles) comments about my appearance. since he was being so sweet, i decided i'd spend some quality time with him. so, we go downstairs to my apartment and as i'm cooking up some dinner, he says...

you look like an angel. and later says it again.

children are brutally honest that they really mean what they say. so i have no idea where all these compliments came from. maybe i was having a good hair day, i'm not sure but i know i wasn't used to him saying all these nice things. he's usually driving me up the wall. but he wasn't and it was really wonderful (considering the week i've been having, ugh, i'll post about it later).

he's a great kid and i love him to pieces.

voxtrot... my new addiction

i know i've already ooh'd and aah'd over them but i can't stop. i put one of their songs on my phone/mp3 player to listen to and i keep playing it over and over. this song, the start of something is like a really long smiths's song. you expect it to end half way through but it keeps going and going. it's really energetic and lovely at the same time. it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. and i want to break out dancing. anyway, i was thinking about them and how they have a couple of songs for downloads on their website. they have a couple of more songs to listen to on their myspace page. i listened to all of them, over and over. and can't get enough. so i went and ordered both their eps. i hope they come soon. i really need more to feed my addiction on.

they are so good. it's a bit refreshing. i can't get over how much i like them. it's so rare these days. i know there is good music out there but i'm always disappointed. nothing has made me stop in my tracks like this in such a long time. they seem so genuinely talented.

i wish we had gone to their gig at the bottom of the hill. that would have been awesome. oh well.

the start of something... voxtrot

venue: slim's
artist: elefant, voxtrot and some forgettable opening
who: betty
when: 27 may 2006 (saturday)
doors open at 8p

betty and i saw elefant on saturday at slim's. we were there for the first opening band but i can't even remember them because they were so unoriginal. they sounded grungey. it was very 90's. slim's was actually really packed.

the reason i like elefant is for this song called make up. it's a really sweet and romantic song. and unlike most of their other songs which are on the cheesy side. or, it's the way their singer sings them. he's such a drama queen. he sounds like he belongs in theatre. there are a few other songs i like on the first album but the second one hasn't grown on me yet. they were okay. betty remembered them from popscene ages ago. i don't. that's how it is with most bands i see at popscene, they are all forgettable. it's sad really.

speaking of forgettable, well unforgettable more like, surprise surprise. i found myself truly enjoying the second opening band. they were called voxtrot and are from texas. they introduced themselves as 80's revival which initially turned me off. but with every song they played, i was in jaw-dropping shock the whole time. i liked their entire set. i think i liked them better than elefant. they were just so cool and fun. i'm getting their cds! so, does that mean i like 80's revival? um...

after we heard make up, we decided to leave so we could hit the dance floor at leisure for a couple hours. it was after midnight when we left. we had less than two hours. despite the expected crowd disappointment, the music was still pretty good. and we danced our hearts out. it was so much fun. we always have so much fun.

good times...

it was a night of dancing non-stop (for me & betty, anyway) and vic trying to catch up with us. at the dna lounge last saturday in the city. the night was popscene vs. new wave city. the big dance floor was all 80's and the small room upstairs was the indie/brit pop room, which was a lot more crowded than the big room. they played oldies like send me an angel by real life and unbelievable by emf. aside from the gross 40 y/os and gigantic 6+ foot woman, we had a grand time.

afterwards, we got crepes from the crepe-a-go-go place we try to frequent after nights at slim's. it was yummy and the guys working there were hilarious. they wanted us to join in their dance party in the truck but we decided to have our own dance party out in front while waiting for our savory crepes. i didn't get home until after 3 and didn't go to bed until 5a as i was still buzzing from all the fun we had. my legs still ached yesterday from dancing but it was all worth it.

thanks for the memories (& the pics), vic!

observation

now that the sun has come out, sort of, open toe shoes (sandals, what have you) have come out. one thing though ladies, please, please, get out those callus stones/shavers/filers and home pedicure sets because if you are going to show off your feet, make sure they are presentable! trust me, people do look at your feet! and they are disgusting. sorry to break it to you but someone's gotta say it.

annual body scan...

my body scan for my thyroid cancer was this morning. i've been on a low-iodine diet since last saturday. and i think i've dropped at least 4 lbs. all i eat is fruit and veggies. i'm allowed up to 5 oz of meat/day. i'm always hungry. it sucks, i'm dying for a big piece of brie with crackers. ugh.

so here's what the scan entails:

early april, i see my endocrinologist with results from a recent blood test for my thyroid hormone levels just to make sure i'm ok in the medication department. then we schedule appointments for my thyrogen injections, I-131 pill and then the body scan. and i have to start this low-iodine diet 10 days before the scan.

22 april, i start my low-iodine diet. i buy a big container of fresh, pre-cut fruit from costco. then i pick up some fresh and frozen veggies from trader joe's. one thing, i can have alcohol! woo hoo!!

26 april, first thyrogen injection in the right upper butt cheek. i know, eek. but first, i get weighed and since the last time i was weighed (early april, see above), i'm 4 lbs lighter. i think it's the diet. i've cut out all processed foods. anyway, i go in to see my endocrinologist but i don't see him. i see him the next day so i don't have to pay my copay until the next time. nice. i have to stand on one leg and they inject the thyrogen in the side of the butt cheek of the leg i'm not putting pressure on. it hurts a bit and is sore for a while.

27 april, second thyrogen injection in the left upper butt cheek. so, i get these injections to trick my body into thinking i have no thyroid hormones in my body. that way, when i have the body scan, it doesn't detect the hormones and confuses it with cancerous thyroid cells. previously, patients were required to be taken off of the meds and went through hell. at least that's what i'm told. i never had to go through it. thank goodness.

28 april, 131 iodine pill. thyroid cells are the only cells in your body that absorb iodine. this body scan is specifically for thyroid cancer as it scans for iodine cells. basically, the iodine is like a dye that gets soaked up by thyroid cells. getting the 131 pill requires to fast starting at midnight the night before. oh and i had to go in for a blood test before the pill.

today, 1 may (can't believe it's already may), the whole body scan. i went in at 8a. they give me sour candy (lemon drops) to stimulate my salivary glands. then i lay down on the scan which they set up nicely with pillows and blankets. about 45 minutes or so, the top of the scan, which has these cameras in it, comes down about an inch from my body and scans my whole body very slowly. since i'm not allowed to move, i fall in and out of sleep during this time. after the body scan, my neck is scanned for about 10 minutes, then they put this plate beneath my head and scan me for another 5 minutes. finally, my nuclear medicine doctor reads the charts and tells me if i'm okay or not.

and today, i'm okay! two more years until i am cured! yay!

destroy everything you touch

venue: mezzanine
artist: ladytron
who: betty, lou, rich, ro, quyen, jen & jonathan
when: 28 april 2006 (friday)
doors open at 8p

this was the second time i saw ladytron live. the first time was at bimbo's during their first album tour. it was with pretty much the same group sans betty. i felt almost the exact same way... on a few hours of sleep from going to popscene the night before and dying because my heels were killing me. and it being very late. ladytron didn't come on until midnight or so. we left a little early and that was close to 1am. i was dead tired and glad i wasn't driving...

i forget who the opening band were, but that pretty much says it all. they were forgettable. that's better than saying they sucked, right? which they did. i would have so skipped them had they come up on my online radio station i subscribe to.

the night was supposed to be pretty interesting... ro and quyen who stopped speaking to rich and usually don't agree to go anywhere he'll be. but they did this time, so it was interesting how everyone would mesh. at first, ro didn't really acknowledge rich but later, they said a few words at each other, not necessarily to one another. i'm not sure that quyen said anything to rich. i didn't see anything interaction between them. it was a little disappointing but a good start, i suppose.

ladytron was good. there were two extra people on stage. betty mentioned she didn't know there were 6 people in the band, i thought there were just 4. apparently, they were from a different band on tour with them... or something. it was the first time for us at the mezzanine, bigger than we expected it to be. it reminded me of this club i went to in LA with joe & eric over halloween weekend last year. they did evil, that was a highlight. but i can't seem to remember the rest, aside from the overall exhaustion and my feet ablazed with pain. the show was pretty good but i prefer the smaller venues with seats and stuff.

betty's baaaack!

my partner in crime is back from china! i saw her at the gym last night and said enough omg's to pass as a 14 y/o (that's how old my gym instructor told me i looked but i'm sure she was joshin' me).

omg, omg, omg! i'm so excited! we're going to popscene tomorrow. i know i just went dancing with my sister the other night, but it wasn't popscene and popscene is in a category all on its own. besides, it's my cardio for thursdays. heehee.

come dancing...

i called my sister on friday to see if she wanted to come dancing with me in the city. she accepted and we caught up with each other. it was really nice. i realize how much i need her. she's my little sister after all. we were so close at one point, it's really sad that we started to grow apart...

tonight, we went to the fragrance fair at nordstrom. she hadn't seen our cousin debbie in a while so that was a nice mini reunion as well. we had a good time shopping.

yesterday, i started my low-iodine diet. for those who know me, i am having my annual body scan on may 1st for my thyroid cancer. i didn't have to really do the diet last year but i did it for the first year. the thing with being on a diet is, when you are restricted to certain foods, that's all you seem to crave. i am not allowed dairy products on my diet amongst many other things. but i so want some brie and cheddar. i've been eating so much fruit, i'm not sure it's good to have so much. luckily, i can have wheat bread (no white) of which i really enjoy. i've been eating wheat toast with egg whites. sounds yummy, doesn't it? i have 7 more days on this damn diet. good thing, alcohol is allowed. i'm still buzzing from the pinot grigio tonight. heehee.

so i keep going back and forth with the ex thing. i miss him but i don't and not in a pathetic way if at all. i'm leaning towards not. but my heart still flutters a little when i see a picture of him or when i hear his voice on the phone. it's funny, he told me once that my taste in music was so rare in a girl. i seem to be finding the same thing being rare in men i meet, which seems to be one of my top ten if not my top non-negotiable trait. oh well, moving on...

which transitions to the next topic very well. usually, i'm an optimist. and even an incurable romantic, if i do say so myself. but after going to happy hour with a work colleague and discussing life over a few drinks, he brought up a very interesting point. what exactly is love? as a romantic, it's something of passion and is unconditional. when you know you can't live without someone. that's love. but as i've experienced, you can pretty much live without anyone and everyone, but yourself. love seems to be a very misconceived notion. i think many of us want to believe that you can just live on love. but that's not so. you really have to work at it. if you don't, you don't have love. you get hate. and some other unnecessary evil emotions. i've always thought that if i really loved someone, we could always work things out. but it just doesn't work that way. it's a two way street. if one of you don't want to work things out, the relationship is doomed and love is non-existent. rafal (my work colleague) makes a very interesting argument. he says...
i know how it feels to like someone
i know how it feels to really really like someone
i even know how it feels to hate someone
but, how does it feel to love somone?
it's something that people like shakespeare created in his stories and poems.
despite being an eternal optimist, i couldn't help but agree with him. maybe one hopes that they know what it is to love someone. maybe it's something that slaps you in the face. or, it might be something that creeps up on you. i know that i feel love and i don't know if i can explain it. i just know i feel it. well, i hope that i do because i don't think i could really be myself, without feeling love for my life and my surroundings in which i am more than thankful for.

one last thing, to my partner in crime... happy belated (yesterday) 31st birthday betty!! miss you tons!

missing my pisa

i don't think i've really spoken to her since before her birthday in december...

swansongs

i've been listening to a lot of polak lately. i recently purchased their first album (out in 2000), swansongs. i got their second album when it came out in 2002 (i got it in 2003) and absolutely was addicted to it. the singer from polak was in the band adorable. he's got this really sexy voice. it's a little raw and a little dark. it's hot. and the songs are really deep and melodic. i loved adorable and still do. i always love polak. there are so many underrated bands out there, adorable and polak are two of them.

i seem to get into these phases... i am so in my polak phase right now where i just want to find out anything and everything i can about them. unfortunately, they don't have much out and i've got most of what's out there on them. bummer.

mee's going away

last saturday, april 15, i had my first dinner party in a really long time. i love to cook, especially for friends & family. i used to have these theme dinner parties during the mlk days. i almost forgot how fun it is.

the menu started with caprese. then there were three main pasta dishes, lasagna (of which the sauce i'd started making since noon and finished at around 4 or so), pesto, and carbonara. i used ground turkey in the lasagna and turkey bacon with turkey sausages in the carbonara. so, it's a little leaner than if i used the regular stuff. i also made some garlic bread. and for dessert, i made tiramisu with khalua, as always.

jackie is my former boss. she actually hired me. and connie is the one who convinced her to. so, i have the both of them to be eternally grateful to. they are also great friends to me. i no longer work with them but this is what we call our ips gang. jackie is married to rob. spiro & mee are former ips students back when jackie was the ips administrator, my previous position. anyway, the lot of them brought me flowers and ate my food with a full appetite. i could not ask for better guests. even little cena (she's 2!) was a gracious guest. may is her lovely mother and also expecting another little one.

mee is finishing up his phd in political science. he will return to thailand and work for their ministry of foreign affairs with his good friend netty (who was also part of our ips gang but finished up last year). i have known both mee & netty since i started at stanford nearly 5 years ago. it's hard to believe that mee is leaving. on the one hand, it's great for him and thailand. on the other hand, he will be missed very much. he's been a great friend to me over the years. i suppose i will just have to go to thailand to visit them both!

my goddaughter, hopefully...

this is kelly's beautiful little girl, emily. she is 5 months old and one of the sweetest babies i know! everytime i visit her, she's always smiling at me. she was so good when i watched her. even though it was only for about 30 minutes. her cheeks are so jiggly and she makes me giggle!

she's going to grow up to be such a beauty! she's already a darling...

behind in postings

kelly's surprise birthday

on april fool's day, my best friend's husband decided to surprise her by planning a surprise party the weekend before her 32nd birthday. he offered to fly me down to burbank but i couldn't take him up on it and since i was planning to visit her for her birthday anyway, i booked my own flight. i had a voucher so it didn't cost me anything. and surprised she was! seeing her speechless and confused was so wonderful!! i was so happy to be part of the occasion!

we decided to take her out on an all girls' night out to asia de cuba in west hollywood at the mondrian hotel. joanne and karen drove up from san diego to also surprise her. gail, her landlady and friend was also in on it. kelly's husband stayed home with their 5-month old daughter. i was told that everything at the mondrian in white. the staff/waiters are all dressed in white. when we pulled in, it looked like there were a bunch of house painters in spotless uniforms. it was really posh and fun. apparently, there are celebrity sightings at the mondrian.

we didn't actually see anyone but had tons of fun. the food was so good. it was an asian and cuban fusion. i'd had asian fusion before but not with cuban food. we had 3-4 appetizers and 3 main dishes. it was family style and more than enough food for the 5 of us. i had a pineapple mojito which was their specialty (they also had mango mojitos). i'm not a big mojito fan but it was delish!!

we started with lobster potstickers, grilled pesto shrimp, fried riceless sushi rolls, butter fish, pan-seared ahi tuna on top of wasabi mashed potatoes, and a cuban chicken dish thai coconut sticky rice steamed in a banana leaf. it was all soooo good.

we all had a lovely time and kelly felt like a regular person again, being out and about. happy 32nd kel!! xoxo!

day five - monday, march 27th

for my last day in chicago, i decided to see the sights. i had planned to go up either the sears tower or the hancock observatory and then spend the afternoon at the museum of contemporary art. so i headed back to the magnificent mile and walked along the street. my first stop was the hancock observatory. it cost me $11 to go up 80 miles. it was pretty cool. this was straight down from the top.

next, i decided to check out the museum of contemporary art. in the back of my mind, i was thinking... hmm, maybe i should check if they would even be opened. many museums close on mondays. and as luck would have it, they were closed, of course. i decided that i was done with seeing the sights, so i went shopping. across from the john hancock center was this lovely presbyterian church.

i shopped until mien got off of work. i got two new belts at filene's basement. we met up at marshall fields. she bought me some of their signature mint chocolates. it was quite yummy. we decided to have dinner before my flight. we walked around and stumbled upon this place... she'd never been there but was curious. the bistro 110 was good. they gave us a card with my name on it and a recipe for oven roasted garlic. they served it with the bread. i'm going to have to try it sometime.

mien took the train with me to the airport. we talked the entire way. it was so nice to see her and chat in person. we've caught up over the years on the phone but there's something special about being able to see emotions and expressions. she watched me go through security and didn't leave until she could no longer see me as i headed towards the gate. i had so much fun. i can't wait to go back when the weather is warmer.

buenos dias!

hola!

i'm taking a beginning spanish class, so expect some spanglish in the coming posts...

me gustas la clase d'espanole. heehee. that's probably wrong huh?

day four - sunday, march 26th

sunday was the day before my last day in chicago. mien and i took the train to chinatown for dim sum. unfortunately, when we got to triple happiness, everyone else in chicago was thinking they'd have some dim sum too. so we went down the street for lunch. not dim sum but good and cheap. afterwards, we walked along the main chinatown drag. went into a few stores and i bought some ergo candles that are made out of soy and burn faster than wax candles. the scent is called trio. i've actually bought this candle in a different size. the scent makes me think of my childhood... ah, the memories.

we got boba before leaving chinatown. i had a papaya milk tea with boba. it was huge and cold. they mix papaya with milk tea and ice so it's more like a shake. i could barely hold it in the brisk cold weather. we got back on the train and were off to armitage, an area of chicago that's really quaint and cute. there were victorian buildings with bay windows and it made me think of san francisco. it was really charming. mien and i did some shopping at the lush store there. i got this lemony flutter stuff for my cuticles, elbows and feet. i love products! especially multi-functional products. i've been using it every night.

after lush, we had some hot chocolate at the ethel's chocolate store a block up the street. i think this was one of the best cups of hot chocolate i have ever had. it was rich but not too rich and sweet but not too sweet. usually, hot chocolate makes me sick and my stomach churn. but this one didn't. i wanted more. the two of us had a lovely chat while sipping our hot chocolates. it was so nice to just lounge with a cozy cup of hot chocolate. mmm...

so recently, mien and i had one big thing in common. we both had younger musician boyfriends. hers was 24 and the epitomy of a rock star, tatoos and all. mine was 25 and looked like more like a business student. anyway, they were younger, hotties, and fun. that was two years ago, since then, we've lost our rock star boyfriends. mien took me to hear her ex-rock star boyfriend sing in wicker park. this was where they met. it's a piano/jazz bar called davenport's. the bartender made us this drink called a rootbeer float, it was soooo good. i could've had 3 more. the music was good. i was impressed by her ex. who knew his voice would come out of someone like him. big voice but looks like a kid. and plays the piano like a pro.

we didn't stay too long. we went for some dinner before it was too late. so we headed up the street and found this wine place. we were still full from the chinese food earlier so we just had some appetizers. since i was in a wine café, i decided to have wine. i think there were 6 different pinot noirs in the flight i tried. they were closing so we stayed a short time.

we cabbed it home for facials, incense burning (mien purchased the same place i got my candles), and a chick flick. we put in under the tuscan sun, i'd only seen it once and it was a while back so i was up for seeing it again. it was one of those films that help pick you up from a bad relationship. sort of to give you an ounce of hope that there are good times to come. like spending time with an old friend you haven't seen in nearly five years in a city that's brand new to you.

day three - march 25th (continued)

dinner at rinconcito sudamericano was with mien's doctor friends camille, cliff, julie, tyler, and hoang. there were two others but i didn't meet them and they left early.

it's interesting to have dinner with lawyers one night and doctors the next. conversations always seem to be work-related. a little boring if you aren't in the field. we had dinner at this great peruvian restaurant. it was really good. it was a little funny because they brought their own booze. the restaurant provided glasses for us to drink our booze in.

afterwards, tyler (julie's boyfriend) had to go home because he was on call the next morning. so the rest of us were off to have some drinks. cliff and hoang were in front, while us girls (me, mien, camille & julie) squeezed in the back. we're lucky we're all small asian women. we went downtown to this bowling/billiards place called xxx strike. it was a cool concept. bowling alleys, billiards, and lounges to just sit, chat and drink. i thought, why don't we have any of these in california? i spoke too soon, there's one in hollywood.

it was a lot of fun. we just lounged, drank, and chatted about life and love. camille and julie got hit on while mien and i chatted away with cliff (camille's fiancé) and hoang (their single guy friend they seated across from me at dinner, thanks mien). it was mellow but still a lot of fun. i definitely did not want another night to end at 5a. this night ended sometime around 11p.