Goodbers

The Work Never Ends

2010-01-31T20:39:00.000-08:00

So last week I was just getting back to my old self (nearing 100%). I readied for a productive week with a lengthy list of to-dos and then what happened? As luck would have it, I got summoned to jury duty. A little over a year ago, I had also been summoned. Back then, when I called the night before, I was immediately dismissed; they didn't need me. When I called this time, I expected a repeat. After having been out of the office a month in November and then a week between the holidays, I was eager to get back to full productivity. Wrong.

I was called in to appear the next day. I sat through jury selection the day after, and then bam, I was it. Fucking A. I mean, sure I had wanted out, but at the same time, I wasn't going to lie and insist that I would be biased just so they would eliminate me. So long story short, I was selected as an alternate. And that's all I'm permitted to say about the case. Apparently though, the alternate does all the work without reaping any reward. I'm now "on call" via phone in case they need me to go in. Whatev.

So that's how my week went. Then this weekend-- it was fun. The weather was dry and sunny. This weekend was fun. Tina came over on Saturday, and we started on Martha Stewart's piggy bank project. For some reason, I was convinced this could be done in like an hour. I know, I'm retarded. Here it is Sunday night, and the piggies are still drying. Tina and I will have to resume next week with additional layers, painting, sanding, etc. Geez Martha, your damn videos always make everything look so frickin' easy (not to mention clean)! Oh well, we had a good time being crafty, and I have to admit, piggy is coming along nicely. Meanwhile, John cooked up an awesome beef stroganoff in the pressure cooker (that was in addition to a tasty buttery brioche). Yeah, no wonder I still haven't dropped the holiday weight!

In other news though, I'm getting into the racket sports... yard tennis was a huge hit at work. Last Monday, before I got called into jury duty, my coworker and I hit the foam ball around in the board room during lunch. We worked up a sweat and all! And this is a fun activity to do while watching tv too. John reasons he should get expanded cable now that we're "active" in front of the tv. Nice try, buddy.

Tomorrow night a group of friends are heading over to a new badminton club. John and I have been practicing by hitting around at our usual "skating rink." I love that corpo parking lot-- it's so multipurpose. Seriously, in-line skating, caster skating, dog arena, badminton... who even needs a gym? I was thinking we can even tailgate in that lot! Haha. Guess I'm the only one whose fanatical about my concrete playground though-- my friends actually play badminton in proper facilities and shit. You know, places that have heat/AC, real nets, and super bright lights. Oh well, it's a good training ground for John and me. And boy do I need more practice: seriously, since when has my hand-eye coordination been about as good as a blind person's? John jokes that I'm swinging the racquet like Zorro swishes his sword. Ah well, I'm getting better... guess we'll see how things go tomorrow in public. :)

Yeah, sounds like all play time this weekend. But hey, I'm off tomorrow, so from now until badminton tomorrow night, I'm gonna cross some work items off my list. Need to get the momentum going again by Tuesday.

You Win Some, You Lose Some

2010-01-24T15:03:00.000-08:00

I'm thrilled to report that Powerpill is finally back in action. The cough still persists, but whatever, other than that, I am feeling great. Seriously, "normalcy" is awesome! And now I'm back and ready to tackle the to-dos in full force.

For MLK weekend, John and I made a quickie trip back to Maryland. Since we weren't around during the Chistmas/New Year holiday, this visit was in order. We caught up with a lot of the family-- took a couple nieces to Chuck E. Cheese (and I actually had fun shooting the hoops), then met others for painting at a pottery studio. Later, the whole family (minus 3 people) plus my parents met up one night for dinner. John's sister flew in from Irvine and I gotta say: thank goodness for her. She is a big-time doer. All those activities with the kids? She coordinated and organized. And though I'm not a big fan of kiddies, doing ANYTHING outside the house is so much better than farting around, lounging in the lazyboys chitchatting and watching the mailman run his route. Seriously. Sitting around only makes me more lethargic, so I welcomed my sis-in-law's approach. John would never pull that kind of energy: he doesn't organize activities; he doesn't make phone calls... Both families are healthy and well. I dropped in and visited with the gramps. They're going on a Caribbean cruise this week, leaving out of Baltimore I believe. Dunno how they have the stamina for all this traveling. Dad says they're also planning a trip to Shanghai for the Expo! That's like a 16-hr. flight! And my gramps are in their mid-80s. Insane. I've already started getting soft with just the east-west coast flight.

Speaking of which, we took the red-eye, because I am determined to be able to conquer that flight. You know how there are always those biz types on the red-eyes? Decked out in their suits, with the makeup, high heels, everything done all perfectly? On arrival, they're like the first to get off and it's as if they were leaving the house after a restful night's sleep in their own bed. I dunno how they pull that shit off! I imagine them getting their rental car all efficiently and shit and heading straight to the office for a presentation. I'm not in the corpo world, but I've decided that I need to master that kind of endurance. So before our flight to DC, I read up on jetlag and all the flight secrets. Hydrate. Don't eat. On arrival, DO NOT SLEEP until 11p local time.

Theoretically, the red-eye should totally be doable, especially because I crash on the plane. In practice though, as soon as I get to my destination, I am wiped and I totally crash out. This trip, it took all the strength in the world NOT to fall asleep as soon as we got to his my in-laws' house. John's family was talking about Shakira or something in the living room, and I drifted off into lala land right there on the couch. But that was just a 10-min nap. I don't consider that sleeping. :) Anyway, we did manage to make it to 11, and the next day, we were right on eastern standard time. Awesome. The next few days felt pretty good too. So next time the challenge will be to travel all decked out. Maybe I'll even ask for an upgrade in my suit. People say at a minimum, you'd better be looking spiffy if the airline is going to just give you an upgrade.

The flight back was ok, but damn, it was fucking long! Told you, I'm getting soft. The real kicker on this return journey was that I didn't use the lavatory at all. By the time we were in that half hour critical time of landing, I was about ready to explode. And with this new muffin top, sitting in the seat made the pressure over my bladder unbearable. But I was in that special period where no one is allowed to leave the seat. So I just waited and focused on breathing. Well, had we landed on time, I would have made it. Would have been very close, but I would have made it. But no. Thunderstorms, rains, winds-- they forced us to circle in a holding pattern. Fucking A. 30 minutes later and still no word on when we're going to land. And then I thought about all the dumbfucks who poke around while de-planing. Fuck, relief was probably a good 45 minutes out of reach. I tried stretching up and back. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I pictured myself getting UTI and that was it. I pressed the flight attendant button. Dude got out of his ejector seat. I explained that I needed to use the restroom. Yes, it was a goddamn emergency! John said as soon as I got to the aisle, I ran so fast. Whew. Let me tell you... next time, I will use the bathroom mid-way. Jesus Christ.

But back to my jetlag thing... yeah, we made it back to SFO, stayed up til 11p, and the next day, I headed back to the office all well rested and energized. See? I'm finally getting it!

In other news, I did two big activities this weekend. First, I went to that Spanish meetup group, and what do you know, it was awesome! About 8 people-- all with different levels but I found a few in my range and it was so fun. We chatted the whole hour away. And the good thing is, this meetup gets together every other week, so it's going to be frequent practice for me. I'm already motivated to cram so the next time I see them, I can start using past/future tense. Yay, that was such a pleasant surprise.

The second event I attended was the CrisisCommons Crisiscamp at the Yahoo campus. John went with me-- basically, it's a meetup with a bunch of tech people working on various projects to help with the disaster relief efforts in Haiti. The event organization was very similar to an un-conference/coding bootcamp style... a little too unstructured for my taste, but I was happy to do some data entry for their people locator tool. So overall, kind of a dud, but we still were able to help which was good.

Next week, I'm thinking of organizing a group to check out a new badminton club. Need to exercise more in the new year.

Getting Back Up

2010-01-04T22:01:00.000-08:00

You know that lame commercial, the one where the old lady trips and says pathetically, "I've fallen... and I can't get up!"? Well, for about ten days, I was that lady. Yeah, the holidays passed quickly and all the while, I was in a daze. The last day I had 100% self-awareness? Um, yeah it might as well have been like 1984. Seriously, feels like eons ago. Truthfully? I'd say December 23, the last day I was at the office.

I should have known something dreadful was in the air... Around the middle of December, I had stayed home sick-- woman problems and all that inconvenient shit. Then, on December 23, I was starting to feel a bit fatigued, but we were hosting a party that night to celebrate Festivus, so I didn't think much of it. Two days later, I was literally stuck in bed for DAYS! And the damn doctor was right on: around Day 4-5, fever would go away and then come back worse. All those days between Christmas and the New Year, the bedroom was like a germ lab-- we had cranked up the heat turning on the ceiling panels and the heating blanket, but I just could not get rid of the chills. My nightstand was covered with lozenge wrappers and mugs and glasses and the thermometer and Advil, Tylenol, cough syrup... it was a mess. And I actually remember thinking to myself: wow, this is what it's like to be really sick. Like so sick that 24 hours isn't enough time for a day's rest. So sick that I didn't even care about showering, combing, changing, washing, anything. Did the dogs know? I'm sure they knew something was up, because they were getting totally gypped with their walks.

The doctor warned I would be laid up all week through the new year. Through my fever and chills, I scoffed. And then, as I slept the days away one by one, I realized, goddamnit, she knows what she's talking about. I got a few hours of upright time in on Thursday and Friday. With my sudden albeit brief burst of energy, I went for a short walk and then started cleaning... Then, I was pooped again: back in bed. I miss having my full strength. I'm able to get out and about now, but I tire easily. Yesterday, I needed an afternoon nap. Today was better but I still zonked out before dinnertime.

Earlier today, John and I met up with a former coworker who's out in California on vacation. It was really good to see her again. I think our last meeting was 2003. I'd say we both pretty much look the same as we did six years ago, but a lot beyond that has changed, and I was glad to see that both of us had outgrown our former place of employment and moved on to better, more suitable opportunities.

Well tomorrow will be my first day back at the office. I still can't believe I was out for 12 days. Ugh, there is so much work to do. I sure hope I can last the whole day.

Btw, I know: new year, new resolutions. I think I'll be lazy this year and carry over most of my resolutions from last year: language learning, reading, volunteering, cooking... I like breaking stuff up into quarters-- it helps me pace. :) Oh and this coming Saturday, I'm going to a try out a Spanish meetup group. Need to get that shit back on track for real. Ok, body slowing down again. Time for bed. Wish me superpowers on my first day back at the office!

You Ready for This?

2009-12-28T21:10:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone. Hope you had a good Festivus/Christmas/Kwaanza. I'm not feeling very merry these days: I've been out of commission since about Christmas. First it was dry throat, then burning eyes, then wham! fever, cold sweats, body aches, and then I could not get out of bed! Pretty much my entire weekend was shot sweating buckets in bed. Sure, I managed to finish that fourth and final book of the year (a good read) but damn, I was supposed to be raring to go come Monday. You know, finish the year out strong! Well today is Monday, and I was still a goddamn mess. Four days, in bed. Enough is enough.

I thought maybe I had strep, because my throat hurt like hell. I was drinking so much tea with honey and lemon, I was peeing on the hour! Then I was hot, then cold, then hot, then cold. Fucking A! So I got an appointment with the doctor this evening. No, not strep throat. I have the fucking swine flu!! Can you believe this shit? Goddamn H1N1 in my house, in MY body! I'm so sick of my body letting me down, and boy has it disappointed this year. Seriously. First, I had random skin allergies, then I got food poisoning right around my friend's wedding in June, now swine-fucking flu. Meanwhile my doctor was this preggers lady, but she's still seeing sick people like me! Why can't I have that level of toughness? I'm sick of this bullshit. I mean, I exercise regularly, I don't do drugs, I hardly drink, I don't smoke... what more am I supposed to do to optimize? I'm pissed. So the doctor says going into the office is out of the question the rest of the week. I just hope my body permits me a few hours of normalcy per day so I can get SOME work done from home. We'll see though. Can't have high expectations anymore. How's that for new year's resolutions?

Pre-Xmas Road Trip

2009-12-21T22:39:00.000-08:00

The weekend before Xmas (and before my illness), John, the pups and I drove south for a couple days. We went to Hearst Castle, met up with some friends in Pismo Beach, stayed night in Santa Maria, then checked out Solvang, Ballard (Lake Cachuma), and Santa Barbara. I enjoyed the road trip, but it was probably just a tad too long in the car for me...

Oh December!

2009-12-13T10:19:00.000-08:00

I've been back about two weeks now... my re-assimilation is mostly complete. I was surprised to learn that despite my month-long habit of eating late dinners (past 9 p.m.) in Spain, I had only gained a few pounds or so. Guess all that walking to/from school helped me burn off that bread, cheese, and fried meat. Of course, since then has been a whole other story. Seriously, I just cannot control myself with Bubbey's cooking. It's like when my brother was in college, he participated in this week long Outward Bound-type of activity. His body felt so starved during the week that after he returned, his body just couldn't stop eating. It was like stockpiling for the next bout of hunger. I kind of feel like that-- I had gone so long without that coming back to homemade French bread, pretzels, fried rice, HK milk tea... I sort of went crazy. I think I've piled on about 5 lbs. I know, normally whatever, it all comes out in the wash, but my pants/jeans are getting tight and well, to be honest, the muffin top is extremely uncomfortable. Think I'll go board skating a bit today. It really has been ages.

So I have finally started my fourth and final book for the year. I know, I can see my bookworm buddies rolling their eyes right now. You don't have to tell me: I'm pathetic. But hey, give me some credit for trying to finish the year out strong. I have two weeks to cram this final read: Waiter Rant. I finally cracked the shit open this morning... I swear I am the world's slowest reader (probably because I do it so often, right?). I think I read like two chapters in an hour. But I just finished my first mug of milk tea. Man, if I ever found a substance on which I could grow addicted (besides internet, of course), I think it would have to be milk tea. John has truly mastered it's making, and since I normally consume very minimal amounts of caffeine, drinking this crack is like giving me superpowers. I get a whole new wave of energy-- Powerpill Amplified! Fucking awesome. But I don't like the concept of addiction, so I think I'll have to cut it back. Seriously, I'm that much of a control freak. I have to know I can cut it off just. like. that. So I'll have one wave of superpowers today but after that, back to Powerpill regular. Boo.

What else. Work has been insanely busy. While I was away, I still did some work and checked my email and shit (surprise, surprise), so actually, when I got back at the beginning of December, I was mostly caught up. But damn, December is full of project milestones and I'm just busy-- budget planning, newsletter production next month, videos... I do love this job though. Seriously, everyday, I thank my lucky stars for this miracle. I continue to be amazed. And I look forward to Christmas week when the office will be closed, but I'm going to go in. It will be so quiet. I'm so happy thinking about all the shit I'll get done. I know, I'm a workaholic. But don't worry about me: John and I are staying in town, and I'll still be off on Christmas eve and Christmas day. That's plenty of time off for the holidays. Bleck!

In other news, we're heading to San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara next weekend with the pups. I sure hope this recent wet weather takes a break. I could use some sunshine, because the weather's starting to influence my mood. :)

Oh by the way, the verdict on my new boots? Fucking awesome. Love them. Of course, since they are my priciest shoe/clothing purchase EVER, I'm wearing them 24/7 now-- gotta lower the price per wear to something I can tolerate, you know? :) Just kidding but boy, what a relief to finally have comfortable AND stylish shoes. Who the fuck knew this was possible? Like to this level of comfort, really. Plus they are waterproof and have awesome grip--I'm Wonder Woman in these suckers!

Speaking of clothes/shoes, remember Esprit from back in the day? Can't believe they are still around. I randomly came across them through some Google Adsense link... a little young but not bad for ideas! See what I mean? My brain is practically on crack with this milk tea shit!

Flying Out

2009-12-01T13:52:00.000-08:00

Another restless night in Spain... since I had to awake before the crack of dawn this morning, I went to bed early to ensure a full night's rest. No such luck. The street outside my hostal was quiet compared to the cacophony of Saturday night, but I was simply too damn excited to sleep. It's been 3.5 weeks-- seemingly long and yet still kind of short. I should say, I was surprised that my taxi ride was freaking 40 euros for about 20 minutes. That's the downside of Madrid-- no decent mode of transportation to/from the airport, particularly outside the metro/airport bus operating times. I suppose it's easy money to get the tourists. But just a minor annoyance.

Last night, I skipped dinner and grew so hungry dreaming of all my favorite foods-- Thai, Indian, California, Chinese, pizza... I couldn't decide whether right off the plane in SFO I would grab an In N Out burger or pizza. I gotta give props to all the doner/kebab shops-- they provided welcome respite from salty, heavy tapas and bocadillos. I actually had a salad with a dressing other than oil and vinegar!

Hmm, interesting. I'm actually catching a British Airways flight (not Iberia) into London. Yay, that means free pillow, blanket, food, and drink. The Brits are living it up, I tell you. I was so focused on scoring my max legroom seats on the long haul, that I totally skipped over getting good seats on the 3-hr leg to LON. Duh. Oh well. Hopefully, I'll just crash either way.

A Look Back

2009-11-28T04:35:00.000-08:00

I just arrived in Madrid. My dig camera is out of juice (the battery sure doesn't last long), so I'm catching up on blogging while charging the cam and airing out the room (which smells of wet dog). Unfortunately, I was slow on the draw when reserving my hostal in Madrid, so I ended up having to resort to an alternative travel site, Venere.com for reviews (Usually, I go with my travel guides + Tripadvisor). Needless to say, the location is very good (super close to Puerta del Sol) and who can resist free wifi, but well, its a tad dingy and I won't even say what was on the bedspread. Cringe.

Last night, I didn't get a good night's rest in Salamanca. I dunno, my mind has just been so restless lately thinking about continuing my Spanish, traveling more, earning more, just doing more. I look back at my resolutions for 2009, and I think I've done fairly well considering in my mind, I assign the items different weights, but still, in the simplest evaluation, I've done maybe only 6/10 or so. I dunno, I'm just manic or something. On one hand, I'm super happy with this immersion program. I think I learned maybe 500 or so Spanish words, and my evaluation came out mostly positive. On the other hand, I met so many people who speak like 3-4 languages, and it makes me wonder what I've been doing with all my time? Where did it go? What new skills did I learn? Ugh.

Oh well, in the very least, I think this trip was a good self test. Honestly, I am amazed how much Shanghai taught me in terms of traveling and figuring out new systems. Like the other day, I was in Carrefour in Salamanca, and when I bought fruit, I knew that I had to remember the produce number, put the items on the scale, and print out a price ticket. Seriously, what consumer in the US has to do that much work? You just bag the produce and the cashier weighs/prices it out. And now I know all about skirting ATM withdrawal fees and international credit card fees... And I know about purchasing a prepaid local SIM card. And I can figure out taking public transportation... I'm not bragging, I'm just saying that past experience makes traveling so much easier now. Like I don't have to be a full-blown tourist taking taxis everywhere and needing to be handheld, you know?

That said, I have committed some interesting faux pas in the last three weeks:
1. Even before I arrived in Spain, I had trouble keeping "want" and "have" straight in Spanish. In Spain, they charge extra at the supermarkets for plastic bags. Since I took my backpack with me everywhere, I never needed a bag. Well, early on in Salamanca, I went to the market and I kept telling the cashier, "No tengo una bolsa." I had meant to say, "I don't want/need a bag," but I was saying the opposite: "I don't have a bag." She kept trying to offer me a bag, and I just kept firmly repeating my line. It wasn't until I left that I just laughed. So retarded.
2. After that horseback riding escapade with my friend Inke, I thought I had a great story to tell my host family. So I said Inke's horse kept misbehaving. After several attempts to throw her off, Inke got very scared. The word for fear is miedo. But I thought it was mierdo (with the r) and a verb instead of a noun, so I conjugated it for 3rd person singular. The result? "Inke shits." Mierda is the word for shit. I should have used "Inke has (tiene) fear." And of course, I only know present tense, so please bear with me... Anyway, I didn't make any sense, but through my hand gestures, I suppose they got the picture.
3. On paper, I'm pretty good with verb conjugations. In regular conversation though, it takes a few more seconds and I sometimes still think "yo" means "you" instead of "I." So the other day, the lady told me to ask her hubby if he wanted soup with dinner. Simple enough. So I go into the living room and say, "Quiero soupa?" He says no. I got back to the kitchen and realized I just asked him, "Do I want soup?" Fucking A, right? So then I go back and ask him properly, explaining that my earlier question was incorrect. Same answer, but god I felt dumb. Ah the joys of speaking a new language on the fly.
4. There was this Japanese dude at the school, who lived with the same family as one of my classmates. Ok, so both students are Japanese, and Yusuke only speaks Spanish and Japanese. Nevertheless, every time I ran into him at school or at the internet cafe, I started speaking to him in Chinese and then for some bizarro reason, I kept saying goodbye to him in English. And not just "bye" but like, "catch you later" and shit. Yeah, exactly. Muy confusa, I tell you.

Btw, did you hear? It's supposed to SNOW on Sunday in Salamanca. Holy shit. I need to get out of this cold weather. And in Madrid, the forecast is calling for rain and temps in the 40s!! Eek. I hate the cold. I'm gonna have to pull out my second set of thermals and double up!

Ok, so what's on tap my first night in Madrid? It's only 2pm right now, but I'll probably head out shortly to walk around and then tonight is the flamenco show. Hope it's not too crazy.

Stupid Kids

2009-11-26T05:39:00.000-08:00

Ugh, I'm so glad that tomorrow's my last day... I mean, I wouldn't mind staying at the school, but my classmates are really starting to irk my nerves. Yesterday, this daddy's boy in class complained that one of our former teachers used to spend the whole class talking, like talking to ME... uh, excuse me, but I actually study and know my shit so sorry if I actually have real questions that can't be answered just with the dictionary. It's not my problem you don't care about learning grammar... it's not my problem you still can't distinguish 1st, 2nd, and 3rd person. And it's not as if the professor and I were just chitchatting, we were actually talking about usage, like when to use muy vs. mucho. Pay attention, and maybe you'll actually learn something. Ugh, so annoying. Seriously, fuck off.

As for the others, everyday the same group of kids skip out on the cultural class. Today, this one kid who had been absent the last few days returned with a monster black eye and the left side of his face all scraped up. Are you fucking kidding me? Yeah sure, people do stupid things when they're young. Still, is getting sloshed to the point of getting your face all fucked up really necessary for an authentic adolescent/young adult experience? Juveniles.

Thankfully, my new housemate is a serious language learner. The dude is only 19, but he really is quite precocious. Like he gets that he has to work to pay for his travels around the world. He gets that when he stays at a friend's house when he travels, he has to pay for groceries and help with cleanup. I share the bathroom with him, and he's so clean. Plus he helps with food prep, setting the table, cleanup... I'm amazed considering I know several people in their 30s who still don't get this. And then of course, these other jokers in class are crybaby brats. Haha. Just one more day of class. I'll try to get pics of my profs. They're awesome.

In the Homestretch

2009-11-25T08:06:00.000-08:00

I'm in the homestretch now... 2 more days of classes and then I'm off to Madrid. Although I'm a little bummed about leaving my little island of learning, I suppose it's time. Time to get back to Bubbey, the pups, my homies, California, and all that jazz. Tomorrow is Thankgiving, and I'm missing out on my favorite holiday of the year. Originally, I had packed a box of Trader Joe's corn bread mix to share a little something something with my host family, but yesterday, when I brought up using her oven, well, let's just say, it's not going to happen. So no delicious corn bread on November 26 for me.

Honestly, I cannot wait to get home to eat vegetables and fruit and cereal!! I've had so much bread and meat here... And I gotta get me some Mexican horchata too. They make it here with tigernut instead of almonds and ugh, not good!

So my plans for Madrid are mostly done. I've booked my bus ticket, my hostal, and my ticket for a flamenco show. And I've got it all down in the calendar when I need to check-in for my flight online so that I score a killer seat. Back in my room, I'm tempted to start packing the suitcase already... I know, I'm always just busting at the seams. Ah well, I will control myself.

This week in Salamanca is noticeably colder than last. They say this is what the late fall/early winter in Salamanca usually feels like... I still prefer the warmer temps, even if they are an anomaly and a sign of global warming. I don't like having to wear a gabillion layers and dragging my gloves and coat with me everywhere.

Well I'm getting cold and tired here in the classroom. Think I will head home early today. Maybe do some studying in bed. Like a true nerd, I whip through my homework during class breaks, so I get those done and out of the way very quickly. Maybe tomorrow, we'll have a test. Who knows. I'm not stressed. I've learned a lot, and I can finally say in full honesty that that really is all that matters. But my friends, I'm giving you heads up... start plotting where we'll do the next Spanish immersion...

Last Sunday in Salamanca

2009-11-23T06:09:00.000-08:00

Salamanca II

2009-11-21T09:13:00.001-08:00

Craziness at the Internet Bar

2009-11-21T04:06:00.000-08:00

So after dinner last night, I headed to the nearby internet cafe. I ended up catching up on "work." The eblast application we use has been bugging out lately... not sure what it's about but it's really thrown a monkey wrench into things. Anyway, there I was working away, and some dude suddenly ran into the cafe, shut the door, and asked the shopkeeper to lock it. Through the window, I saw another dude coming up and pounding on the door. I don't know if this was thug activity or what, but the guy was breathing super hard, as if he were running for his life! Then the shopkeeper got on the phone and in a matter of minutes, two cop vans pulled up and tons of people poured into the streets. Across from the cafe, cops interrogated two men... I tried to ask the shopkeeper what happened, but I couldn't really understand him, so I just asked short questions like, "maybe the guy (being interrogated) was drunk?" They had a "problem?" It was really kinda scary, because I had no idea what was happening.

Plus, the internet cafe was near closing time, so there was only one other guy using the computers-- and he was totally engrossed. Anyway, it was a weird experience. When I left for home, the cops were still questioning the guys and canvasing the neighborhood streets. I just scurried home as fast as I could. Didn't want to hang around and press my luck.

So far, today has turned out to be a real bust. I walked all over town searching for a cafe with wifi. I even went by the McDonald's. In the end, I crashed at a cafe near the school, nursed a cup of thick hot chocolate, did some more work, and then headed off to meet my new Chinese friend Shu. Just my luck, I totally misunderstood her on the phone yesterday. I thought we were meeting to hang out/eat at a cafe. Nope, when we met at 4p, she had already eaten and she had planned to take me on a tour around town. Meanwhile, I've already been here two weeks, and I've seen plenty of places... I asked her where to buy good nougat, and she didn't know so she took me to the Carrefour??! When we got out, it started raining and neither one of us had an umbrella, so she suggested meeting next Friday!!? I have no idea why we couldn't just go sit in a cafe and talk, but she just didn't seem interested. So I went home in the rain, and now I'm at the internet cafe again. Totally lame Saturday. I mean, at least I got some studying done earlier, and now I can update my blog, but still...

Week 2: Done!

2009-11-20T05:34:00.000-08:00

Well it's been another busy week. I'm still ramping up my vocabulary, learning a shitload of new words. Since I started this immersion program in early November, I've been trying a new system to organize my notebook: I write word lists in the back and categorize them by parts of speech. So far, this has worked wonders for my memorization. I'm pretty psyched about it: my class is full of youngsters (whipper snappers in their late teens and early 20s), but the words aren't sinking in for a lot of them. Maybe they're out partying every night... who knows. I'm just happy to keep up.

Man, today the teacher went off on the Taiwanese student in our class who always says "Si" but never really understands what the teacher is saying. I always see her in the school after class, but I don't know if she's just surfing the web or what, because she doesn't understand AT ALL. Whenever the teacher calls on her, it's the most uncomfortable next few minutes. Poor girl. I tried to tell her yesterday in Chinese that the teacher doesn't want her to say "Si" if she doesn't really understand but today, it was the same thing all over again. So the teacher asked her, "Comprendas?" which means "Do you understand?" And the girl just kept throwing out words trying to guess what the teacher wanted. I think maybe she needs private lessons, because she's already been here at least a week longer than me, AND she says she wants to major in Spanish!!

Anyway, in other news, I went horseback riding with Inke yesterday. My teacher helped me find an equestrian center online, then Inke and I spent like 30 minutes talking to the school coordinator, asking if he could call to get more information. Finally, we mapped it all out: taxi to bus station, bus to the small town on the outskirts of Salamanca. All was great. On the bus there, we met a Chinese lady who's studying Spanish at the University of Salamanca. She's about my age, and is from Shanghai! Isn't that amazing? I go to Spain and meet someone from Shanghai! Of course, she speaks a gabillion languages: English, Chinese, German, Italian, and Spanish. So jealous! So the riding started off well... but then my horse started doing this sudden run/stop thing. One time, I squealed and in turn, I think that made Inke's horse nervous. So then her horse kept trying to buck her off! It was crazy! And Inke's riden for like 10 years. The first few times, no big deal, but then after like 8 times, she started getting scared. Inke and Shu (the Chinese girl) switched horses but the same thing happened. Unfortunately, the leader couldn't switch his horse with anyone because it was only for advanced riders. Long story short, we ended up having to dismount and walk the rest of the way back. We were in the middle of a tree orchard (I think a place where they grow trees for logging?). It was beautiful but then it started getting dark and cold. By the time we got back to the ranch, we'd missed the bus back to town. Eventually, the next bus came (like 30 minutes later) and we made it back to Salamanca, but my god, we were cold, dirty, and hungry. And I had planned to get my picture taken after our ride-- but because of our incidents, it ended up being way too dark and by then, the mood had soured. Bummer.

Thankfully, I made it back to my family's house in time for paella. Delicious. I ate so much last night-- and in record time. Tonight is spaghetti. I also spotted a Dominos down the street from school today... could be a dangerous discovery! I'm craving food from home big time!

Eeeek, Slow Internet!!

2009-11-17T07:41:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the long silence... internet connection at the school is super sketchy-- at times the connection is so good I can do Skype video with Bubbey. Other times, the wifi just cuts out and uploading my photos takes ALL DAMN DAY.

So last weekend was quite busy. Stuart, my housemate (who I just learned today is 62 y/o—nearly as old as my father!) rented a car and was kind enough to shuttle a few of us out of town to Segovia and Madrid. I mention his age, because he’s amazingly mobile for a senior citizen (well, he is!!). I mean, every morning he books it to school so fucking fast, I’m practically running to keep up (and I’m a very fast walker as it is!). He used to lead safaris in Africa, and he mountaineers too— I think that’s the term for it. He’s been to Nepal eight times already. Definitely a Lewis and Clark type if you know what I mean. Anyhow, thank goodness I brought my Dramamine, because we rented this little Corsa car (similar to a Civic hatchback) and the winds were so strong, the vehicle flapped around the whole way there and back.

Overall, I’m enjoying Spain. One nice thing is that all the places I’ve visited feel very safe. And because of the siesta and late late dinner, people are out and about past midnight. I really love the architecture too— crazy old buildings and then in the same place, ultra modern public transportation options... it’s a cool mix. The only downside is that most of the old buildings are religious edifices. To me, that’s such a waste of brain power and manual labor... wouldn’t it be so much better if these buildings served more useful purposes for more people? People here tell me that, particularly after Franco, the role of religion has decreased dramatically. That makes sense, because all these beautiful places are nearly empty! Ah well, regardless, I must admit it’s quite amazing to stand inside something that was built in the 13th century. People back then must have been so damn brilliant!

Let’s see: what else. Oh, my host family asked me the other day to use less hot water. Mind you, I took a 10-minute shower, and the reason I was in there a few minutes longer than usual was because I was also laundering my underwear!! Anyhow, she explained that there a large tank of hot water that serves the 43 families in the building. She claims I used up all the hot water... Needless to say, I’m now down to a shower every other day and it’s 5 minutes tops PLUS I turn off the shower when I lather up. I told you I’m camping for three weeks!

Day Trip to Avila and Segovia

2009-11-15T10:24:00.001-08:00

Salamanca

2009-11-14T10:28:00.000-08:00

Barcelona

2009-11-11T10:21:00.000-08:00

Hola de Espana!

2009-11-10T09:19:00.000-08:00

Hello, hello! Yup, can you believe it? I made it to Spain safe and sound. The journey to Barcelona last Wednesday was a rather long one (SF0-LON-MAD-BCN)-- 20 hours door-to-door, but the important thing is that most everything went according to plan. I even managed to bump up my flight (using my broken Spanish) and get into the city an hour or so earlier than expected.

Barcelona is amazing! It's a rather compact city, so I was able to see plenty in just two days. Plus, everything is very clean, tidy, and public transportation rocks (always a plus in my book). Man, before my trip, I had gotten myself all freaked out about petty theft and such. I hardly saw anything sketchy. I don't know if maybe the city started becoming more aggressive about combating pickpockets or what, but seriously, I noticed way more sketch in Shanghai. Yes, the morning after I arrived, I procrastinated for a good thirty minutes before working up enough courage to go outside and roam the streets. But once I got out there, it was totally fine... Really, I felt like I had gone way overboard splitting out my money and documents into three separate places, etc.

Now the part of my trip that totally bombed? My fucking shoes. It's ALWAYS the shoes. Had I known Clarks (Privos!) would fail me yet again (strike 2), I would have just worn my goddamn Sketchers man-shoes. You don't even want to guess how badly my feet are fucked: mondo blisters (which I punctured at night)... maybe the lesson here is simply that my feet are abnormal. I have no idea what the problem is: maybe my feet are too wide for Clarks? I dunno. I just have deformed stubbs now. It's a true shame, because I had even painted my toenails. Ah well, I can't get it all right. So the status now is: I think the shoes are BETTER... granted, I had been wearing them nonstop for 10 days BEFORE the trip started (I probably should have known then, but I was in denial) so they have come a long way. But still... they aren't the same as my beloved Birks.

But back to Barcelona. I can't speak much for the food-- I went to a few places but eh, not particularly memorable. A bit salty for my taste (I've been craving Bub's food actually). But the city itself is very very nice. Really great architecture, some funky architecture (more creepy, freaky than anything else), and then just a little bit of everything in terms of geography: mountains, beaches, city, parks, marina, and the weather was quite good. I can really soak up that Mediterranean sun.

I arrived at my host family's flat on Sunday night. I'm staying with a retired couple in their late 50s (but they remind me more of my grandma, who is in her 80s). But it's very much like staying at a grandmother's house: they turn off all the lights, the chandeliers are missing most of their bulbs. The bulbs that ARE there are CFLs. The handsoap is majorly watered down... it's pretty funny. I consider myself pretty conservationist, but uh, grandmothers are a whole other level. Yesterday, the apartment was so dark when I got home that I rammed into an accent table (luckily, nothing was broken) in the hallway. Now I have a monster bruise on the hip. Another student is also staying with the couple. He's an older Brit who has lived in Germany for three decades. He's a lively chap-- very chatty, and since he knows German and French, he just spews all the words out in trying to communicate with Senor and Senora. I kind of just keep quiet, but I'm trying to talk more. It's a little intimidating-- and a bit unexpected. Anyway, we eat breakfast and dinner (9 pm!) at the house. In between, I kinda just stay on campus or walk around downtown. The days are long that way, but there's no cell connection or internet at the house (they don't even own a computer!), so you know me... need to stay connected for as long as I can.

The classes are going really well. At first, I was bummed about not testing out of basic basic, but it's ok. I'm making good progress. They are not kidding about immersion... it's full on!

Ok, well the school is closing in about 15 minutes and it's getting dark outside. I should pack up and get going. I'll try to update again tomorrow and post some pictures.

Hasta manana!

Dr. Phil, Tell Me the Answer!

2009-11-02T22:35:00.001-08:00

John turned me on to Dr. Phil recently... Yeah, I know, Oprah gave her seal of approval years ago way before he had his own show; my only explanation is that I'm always about 10 years behind on pop culture. Seriously. Felicity, Sex in the City, Entourage, and many more I'm sure. Anyway, my exposure to Dr. Phil comes at a good time considering that I placed a call to the counseling hotline just this past weekend. In short, I'm fed up with my depressed friends. I don't know what it is, but I'm like a magnet for miserable people. I've tried so many things with so many of them... but as I have been told before, change has to come from them. And I have to stop trying to find the answers.

Long story short, the phone counselor suggested two things: 1) stop the endless research for resources 2) don't suggest anything 3) ask what they intend to do about their unhappiness 4) try to reconnect in common areas. So 1-3 is actually a different method for me, so I should give it a try. Maybe it'll be less frustrating, because I won't feel like I have wasted my energies thinking up options. Number 4 is going to be tough... especially since two decades have passed since we were in the same state. I don't know what we have in common anymore.

But back to Dr. Phil. He's pretty direct, and I like that. But in tonight's episode, I didn't get his position, backing a 21-year old mother (instead of her own very organized mother) in keeping custody of her 2 kids. The chick had issues: I mean, she dropped out of school, she was hanging with some ex-con dude who chain smoked around her kids, she had horrible relationships with her family even though her parents were raising her kids now... God, she was just a fucking mess. Sure, she deserves a chance to get back on track, but why should her kids have to hang around waiting for her to get her shit together. Either have your shit together or your kids should be cared for under more stable conditions. Anyway,the episode is to be continued, which means I'll never know what happens.

But Dr. Phil made an interesting comment. He said many of his clients ask, "How do you know who's a loyal friend?" His answer? Loyal friends come through the door when everyone else leaves. Then he said, you don't have to agree with everything someone does in order to support them. So now I'm totally confused. Which is which? On one hand, change comes from within, so if someone doesn't want to change, what can I do? On the other hand, if I feel I've done all that I can and I decide to just lie low, am I being disloyal? Ugh. Too much emotional drama.

I should be cramming my Spanish...

Halloween

2009-10-30T23:17:00.000-07:00

Trip Prep to the Max

2009-10-26T11:27:00.001-07:00

Since returning from my trip back East, Spain trip prep has become a full time second job. Seriously. But I think I have all my shit in order, including ATM/Credit cards without international fees (Go Schwab!), a travel adapter, my safety whistle, and gifts for the host family. Most importantly, I've whittled my shit down to just one carry-on luggage, which is AMAZINGLY minimalist for me. Three weeks, remember? Yeah, I rock.

This weekend was another packed couple of days. John and I hosted our first annual chilli cook-off. I was convinced ours was near the top of the list, but I dunno, guess our taste buds are totally different from everyone else's. We were dead last. What a bummer. But the party was still fun, and I got to see a bunch of people whom I hadn't seen in ages. Then today, we went to a monster pumpkin patch south of HMB-- Arata's. They also had a crazy maze and petting zoo (goats!!) which was cool. Have you ever noticed that goats have the strangest body shape? From map view, they are diamond-shaped because their abdomen area is so oddly bloated. Very weird creatures. The wonky eyes really freak me out actually. They would be cute otherwise... Anyways, we carved our pumpkin. The design was John's idea (something he had seen on a TED talk or something?) with my handiwork. I thought it turned out pretty adorable.

Catching Up

2009-10-25T21:36:00.000-07:00

Eeks, it's been ages. Busy, busy. Honestly, I don't know where all my time goes. September ended with a bang (as you know). After receiving endless tweets about cheapo flights to Europe, I finally took the plunge and booked tickets to Spain for a 3-week immersion program in Salamanca (west of Madrid). Leave it to the end of Q3 to push me to action. Yeah, I even finished Gladwell's book, and it was terrific. I'm ordering the Chinese translation for my parents. Anyhow, for some reason, the book gave me an extra push to do more.

After the thrill of reserving my Spain trip wore off, I got down and dirty with a whole other list of todo's. In mid-October, I went to visit the family. Got so much shit done in a few days, I felt like a real superstar: took parents to check out Charles Town, WV (casino and horse racing). Checked out Harpers Ferry (neither parent is outdoorsy but boy was dad excited about his $10 lifetime senior's park pass). Saw the beautiful fall leaves turn along Skyline Drive in Virginia. Met up with my Reston house property manager (was good to put a face to a name). Visited with my college roommie. Lunched with the in-laws. Visited my grandparents. Called a bunch of plumbers regarding a nasty sewage backup at the grandparents' house (yeah, I have a pretty tough tummy, but I almost hurled!). Researched health insurance options for the gramps. Purchased new tires for my mom... Yup, I was worked to a nub back East. The good news is my family is mostly healthy and well. I also discovered a kickass crab cake at Bonefish Grill (of all places). Super meaty, no filler. Delish.

The trip home was a good reminder/reality check. I just thought about all the things my parents have done for me, and all the things they do for their parents... and I just realized that yeah, it's a lot of work but I just need to shut up and do it. Because honestly, if all this crap (e.g. health insurance research) is confusing for me, it must be ten times worse for my parents trying to understand all the complicated mumbo jumbo. Plus, I see that they are starting to slow down. Aging just sucks. So anyway, I just try to put things back into perspective. It's not easy, because I do enjoy my bitch/woe-is-me sessions, but enough is enough. Suck it up and move on.

By the way, I thought my parents were going to flip about me going to Europe alone (without John as my chaperone), but then I realized, as long as I put the educational spin on it, I'm golden. And what do you know, they were totally supportive. My friend Pamela is so right... it's all about the angle (and the spin).

Ok well I gotta head into work now. Check out my recent pics though.

Ugh

2009-09-29T22:55:00.000-07:00

Traffic was an absolute bitch today. I think it took me about 2 hours to get home, and I was trying to hurry too so that I could book my Spanish immersion program. You see, the school was running a special and well, I wanted to catch it before it ended. And who knows what the cutoff is really, right? I mean, is it September 29 Madrid time, Pennsylvania time (HQ), or my own time? Who the hell knows, so just to be safe, I wanted to get in with some buffer. Of course, after I finally completed the online registration, I realized I hadn't see the prompt for a promo code, so it was all for fucking nothing. Seriously, I HATE when places run promos and don't just automatically apply it at checkout. Especially if the promo is pretty widely publicized like all over the homepage anyway... honestly, don't be a procedural tightass, just apply the discount to everyone who meets the stipulations! Anyway, major pet peeve, and now I have to call them tomorrow to try to negotiate the discount. What a fucking pain.

I swear, my days really can go from superb to shitty in a flash. Yesterday, I was all psyched about this project we're doing with the Goog. The mainstream news was going to possibly interview me about the partnership. Then, after like 3 hours on site, they never even interviewed me. Nothing was promised but still, they were on OUR lands. What a letdown, because I had really prepared. And it wasn't really that I was denied my 15 seconds of fame or anything, I just felt like the news dude wasn't very friendly, wasn't genuinely interested, and just plain didn't give a shit about our side of the partnership. But whatever, I got over it by the next day (today). And today went relatively well. Had some good meetings, made good progress on my work but then the drive home turned me into a sourpuss. My eyes were dry, I was starving, the wind was howling, the sun was in my face, and people drove like crap. It was just one thing after another.

Then tonight I tried to calm myself down and watch the Ken Burns series but I just could not get in the mood. I could not sit still. And now it's almost time for bed. Game over. Gotta wait until tomorrow to start it up again. So frustrating!

Q3 Wrap Up

2009-09-26T20:53:00.000-07:00

I'm back in the saddle again... Thank goodness, because the funk was such a goddamn drag!

Guess it helped that I recently celebrated my 2-year anniversary at work... The job is still rocking my socks off. Boss approved a couple of training requests I had for learning new skills AND he just okayed over THREE WEEKS off in November. I swear, dude is the most lax boss I have ever had. It makes all the difference. So yeah, my lengthy vacay in November is gonna be Spanish Immersion Take 2. Given the cheap airfares to Europe, I upgraded from considering opps in South and Central America to researching programs in Spain. Yup, doing it deluxe. I am still in the process of figuring out which school and which city but at least I have the tickets nailed. This will be my first real solo trip (not to mention my first time to Europe), so I'm a little nervous but also super psyched. Of course, special thanks to John, who is always supportive of my goals. He's happy to dog sit while I go off on my European jaunt. I just hope I make good progress learning Spanish.

Looks like my New Year's resolutions are mostly on track. I am supposed to finish reading my 3rd book of the year though (Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers), and I'm getting down to the wire here...

Oh man, I am beat. Today John and I went down to Watsonville to participate on a farm day at our CSA's farm. We hand-sowed lettuce seeds, milked goats, picked tomatoes, made marinara sauce, baked pizzas, etc. We weren't even that productive given we were there all damn day, but the sun is so f-ing strong that 8 hours felt like forever. Tomorrow is another busy day. Farm tours in Sonoma County. Gotta hit the sack early. When is John's infatuation with farm life gonna end??