Days of My Life

Last night, J and I slept at 5 a.m. because we talked from 3:15 to 4:30. Though we both were extremely sleepy, it was a nice talk that we hadn't had in a while because we both have been so busy with our own things. After about six hours of sleep, we woke up at 11. Half an hour later, we went to FEAST (what a pretentious name) for lunch, only to come back to sit around (and eat more), then go to the Westwood Library (which isn't as nice as I had hoped it would be) to pick up a book for my English 141 research paper. Lastly, we went to University Presbyterian Church for the "Woman and Man of God" conference. After two hours, we had (Thanksgiving) dinner there and came back. If it sounds like I didn't do anything academic today, it's true! At 11:30 p.m. we started watching "1408", which I whimsically borrowed from the Westwood Library. We actually finished that movie a while ago, but then I decided to watch one episode of "Gossip Girl" to calm...

It has been way too long since I last blogged. Talk about a hiatus! An unusually long one... Sadly, the fact that I haven't been writing for anything other than academics has begun to shine through my English papers. I'm so rusty with verbs, (written) puns, and even parallelism. Even worse, my T.A. pointed out not just one, but TWO, grammatical errors in my first paper, which I got a disheartening--but well-deserved--C+ on. We turned in our second paper last Wednesday, and should be getting the grades back this upcoming Friday. At least I got 37/40 on my English 141 midterm essay... That was comforting in that I wrote it in 30 or 40 minutes and seem to have done okay on it. Currently, I'm waiting for the last load of laundry to dry, then for dinner with all the cousins at the cousins-next-door's home because J is returning to Washington tomorrow (after a two-week break) to go to Afghanistan at the end of the month. When I think about it, I don't think I ever really ...

Apparently, I'm an emotional driver. I'm sure it started only recently, when I started to have to endure traffic on a regular basis and my sleeping hours diminished as working hours piled on. I thought I would be happy to have a job (or two), but I admit it: I'm miserable. It's been only one day of working two jobs at once, and two nights of thinking about quitting one, and I am an emotional wreck. And it doesn't help that the water turned off in the middle of my shower and that twice in one week I almost hit another car (neither time my fault)! And then, people stop at a red light on a two-lane road and don't signal left until the light turns green, leaving the non-turning driver behind to have to wait or go to the right lane--in which case waiting might still be required. Impatience most likely plays a huge role in this. I was doing so well with developing better patience, too! So I haven't written in about a month, and I haven't read (for pleasure) in...

me: I love you. him: I love you, too... me: But...? him: But only on Wednesdays! me: Okay. ...But you loved me yesterday, which was Tuesday, and the day before, which was Monday. And you loved me all last week! him: Oh, yeah. me: Does this mean every day is Wednesday? him: Yeah! me: Hmm, okay.

I downright miss Shanghai. Initially, I hated it. I hated the weather, the people, the city itself. But then I got used to the humidity, I tolerated the people, I grew to love the city. My heart has warmed up to Shanghai, and Shanghai has warmed up to me (in so many ways). My first week in Shanghai went by excruciatingly slowly because I was so bitter. Week two was amazing, from 朱家角 water village to 车墩 film park. At the end of that week, we decided to cut back on spending, so the third week wasn't too adventurous, though the three-day class field trip was spectacular enough to make up for the beginning of the week. 横店影视城 (Hengdian World Studios) and 杭州(Hangzhou) composed the hottest weekend I have ever experienced, but the trip was, again, spectacular. 西湖 in Hangzhou (Sunday, 7/24) Hello Kitty Cafe in Hangzhou (Saturday, 7/23) 横店影视城 (Friday and Saturday, 7/22-23) 徐家汇公园 (Tuesday, 7/19) Like the last days of anything else enjoyable, the last week of my Shanghai trip was bittersweet. ...

Currently, I am in the VILI International Hotel in 广州 (Guangzhou) for my official last night in China. My mother is snoring away even though it is barely past 10 p.m. Meanwhile, my stomach cramps are eating away at my spirit. I could say that guys have it so easy (Oh, look, I just said it!), but I'm sure there are things that bother them that don't bother us girls, too. Yesterday, my flight out of 上海 (Shanghai) was delayed by three hours due to unsuitable weather conditions on the route. I had already waited in the airport for three and a half hours before the original flight time because I had left the Jiao Tong University Faculty Club earlier than planned since everybody else seemed to be leaving, too. About the delay, I couldn't complain because 1) I had nobody to complain to, and 2) the weather was nobody's fault. So I just sat there... Finally, we took off from 上海虹桥机场 (Shanghai Hongqiao Airport) at 7:28 p.m. For the first half hour or so, witnessing lightning from ...

At Che Dun today, I accidentally ordered alcoholic coffee. Last week, one of my friends had ordered what he said was Irish coffee from KFC, and it was delicious--iced coffee with a lot of vanilla ice cream on top. So today when I sat down at the cafe at Che Dun, I asked for that, expecting the same thing. Then when it arrived, my friends said, "I thought you didn't drink. Why did you order that?" So, apparently, Irish coffee at any other place is coffee mixed with scotch or whiskey or whatever else, depending on the place. NO WONDER THE DRINK WAS SO EXPENSIVE. It was weird, but good. I was disappointed that the white part wasn't vanilla ice cream, though. It was whipped cream.

Initially, I loved the city for its beauty and hated the people for their rudeness. Two weeks have passed since I arrived here, and I love it now. I have learned to ignore crazy drivers and just walk when the light turns green for pedestrians, to ask what a dish is when I know that I ordered something else, to ask taxi drivers for tips and places, and so much more. Each day of the past two weeks has been an adventure, and to add them altogether equates to about $400 worth of spending, which I suppose isn't all that bad, because it's all in the name of exploration and fun. I feel so much more cultured now, though I am certain there is much more to explore and learn. I'm so excited to go on more adventures in the upcoming (and last) two weeks here. Here's this week in pictures: Saturday: Our film class went on our second field trip to Thames Town and Che Dun. Thames Town, an imitation of the area around Thames River (it sounds like that, anyway) is so beautiful that it ma...

Since Sunday, June 26, I have been on the other side of the world in the ridiculously hot and humid, massively overpopulated country of China. After the 14-hour flight, during which I hardly slept because China Southern's seats are so uncomfortable, I was surprisingly not tired, but full of energy. However, the wave of humidity and heat that attacked me right when I stepped into the Guang Zhou International Airport was just not a good first impression, especially at 4:46 a.m. It was also pouring outside. Never before had I experienced such a strange weather condition. Immediately, my skin started feeling sticky and I started sweating. It was nasty. My mom, sister and I were supposed to check into a hostel quite far away from the airport, so we needed a taxi. But China has all of these people who station themselves at airports and pretend to be taxi drivers and lure you to their cars so they can drive you to your destination to earn money. I suppose that could be a respectably legit...

In four days, I am departing to China for one week of frivolous fun followed by four weeks of "school," which, according to the tentative agenda, seems a lot more like the former anyway. But I'm not complaining. What I am currently not looking forward to, however, is packing. My mother and I finally went yesterday to buy travel luggage--which is shockingly expensive even at Ross but is a bit cheaper at Target--and none of the three of us have yet to start packing. I sense trouble and panic looming. Right now, I am feeling resentfully unsettled. This morning, I woke up before 10 to go to 24-hour Fitness in Monterey Park (got a 7-day pass since I'm leaving the country soon anyway), and I had expected my first workout in three weeks (aside from the 6-mile run last Tuesday) to be fun, but it obviously wasn't. At least I know I got an effective workout because my arms are nearly numb from benching (a weak 45 pounds...) and dead-lifting (60 pounds, but apparently shamef...

For the first time in a long time, I actually had a breakdown. Like, not because I was over-thinking or over-analyzing anything or anything. But just because people made me so mad in so many different ways all at once, and it was just so overwhelming. Surely, some of this came from something I've been trying to suppress or replace, but it just erupted. And I didn't know what else to do but cry. And now I feel much better, although my eyes are extremely dry and my head is starting to hurt. But Hershey's chocolate and worship songs are helping me calm down. I'm going to get Late Night in about an hour because one of my suitemates gave me a coupon for a free combo meal from there. So I'll be having two dinners, yay! That's acceptable only because I finally did go to the gym today, albeit for only an hour, as opposed to the usual, ideal hour and half. I don't know, I think I just ran out of things to do. Should have stayed on the treadmill for longer. The treadm...

I just found out to how type Chinese on the computers here, and I am immensely intrigued! You would think that at the College Library, people would be using the computers to study or do homework, but the guy to my right is checking NBA stats and watching basketball clips and the girl to my left is watching a show fullscreen. And now I am just blogging! The entire day yesterday, I waited to blog because Blogger was under maintenance for considerably longer than expected. I had so much to say! And since it is now 12:35 p.m., I have about 20 minutes to share before I head off to English discussion, which is about two minutes away. ...if that. I'll start with what I have been wanting to share for a while now but have not yet (obviously). Recently, in English, I learned that there is no such thing as happiness. The same week, I learned in anthropology that there's no such thing as standard English. The following week, I learned ALSO in anthropology that double negatives are, in fa...

I know I promised a post about Relay for Life, and although it was only five or six days ago, I hardly remember anything about it, other than that nobody on my team stayed the full 24 hours. Altogether, we probably just did 11 hours, but it's okay. It turned out considerably better than any of us had bitterly expected; in fact, it was even quite fun albeit the sunburn. Everybody got the t-shirt, too. And you know me. I love "free" event t-shirts. My stacks of such shirts just keep growing, and I do not mind it one bit. While putting on my retainers a few moments ago, I realized how many times I have recounted my whole third-grade best-friend experience and its impact on me. But then I remembered a friend I had met in seventh grade (and she was in eighth grade). We didn't start talking until around May, when we were put in the same group in orchestra. I didn't even know her name until then, actually. Now that I reflect on it, I'm so glad we were in the same gro...

Today, I spent a considerable amount of (free) time listening to RnB songs on YouTube and stumbled upon my former love, Frankie J. I added several songs of his that I had never heard to my playlist, and I just spent more time listening to mellow music. My love for Frankie J.'s music began in sixth or seventh grade, a bit before the release of "Obsession", which I was, of course, obsessed about. I listened to his songs again and again, and no matter how many times I listened to whichever album (I actually bought two of them, but lost both the CDs), my favorite songs were always "Don't Wanna Try" and "How to Deal". They still are today! I really wish I hadn't lost both of the CDs, though. :( Anyway, I also listened to Mike Posner and Trey Songz. Somebody commented on one of Trey Songz's songs something along the lines of, "We should take a census at the end of the year to see how many babies were conceived to Trey Songz's songs....

In so many more ways than one.

Maybe I just need to stop being ignorant and start putting on sunblock. Today, I woke up at 7:30 to go with K to line up at the central ticket office for Spring Sing tickets. We got there around 8:15, and the line went from the beginning of CTO all the way around to the bus stops at Ackerman. Obviously, we were not part of the first 400 people who would get the Spring Sing 2011 t-shirt. We sat and waited under the sun. The line got wider more than it got longer, and when CTO finally opened at 10, the line didn't even move until 15 minutes later. Long story short, we stood under the sun for hours, and at 11:30, I decided to return to the room to get my stuff so I could at least try to get to class on time later. En route to Hedrick, I saw JQ (going to try using initials now, since I recently noticed how many J's there are in my life) toward the front of the line--thank goodness for that, because long story short, I wouldn't have made it in time for class or gotten tickets if...

My keyboard is dirty, and it bothers me. I woke up to the loud squawking of a bird and the burden of bothersome thoughts. When the bird stopped making noise, I heard people conversing (quite loudly, I might add) on the sidewalk downstairs. I wonder if my walls (and the windows on them) are really that thin, or if people really just talk that loudly. Maybe it's a combination of both. I tried to make myself fall back asleep, considering that I hadn't even had six full hours yet, but then couldn't, because apparently, I'm stubborn against myself... Sigh. So here I am, blogging because I don't want to read and because I hope it will make me feel better by the time I'm done. I must admit that I'm disappointed it isn't sunny and warm like it was yesterday. Although it was shockingly hot, it was a beautiful day. Yesterday, I woke up a lot earlier than anticipated because I had a nosebleed--first one in years--and after taking care of that and washing the blood ...

Remember in elementary school, when every time we returned from vacation or break, our teachers would ask us to write a paragraph or essay about our time off, indicating what we did and all that good stuff? Well, here's mine! Excuse the tardiness, please. (Google images) Friday : Dim sum, "Rango", and Half and Half with P and K.L. Wonderful girls' morning/ afternoon out; Din Tai Fung with N for dinner--ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS, worth every minute of wait. Saturday : Last-minute decision to attend Clippers-Cavs game, thanks to Craigslist and a dude who couldn't go because of work. Beautiful seats, close game, wonderful time. Accompanied by pre-game Porto's breakfast and one last trip to Glendale Borders even though I didn't need anything... (Google images) Monday : Lunch with N, start of "The Last Song" on Netflix, Costco with mother dearest. Tuesday : Doctor's appointment at CHLA,; dim sum with N; 24-hour Fitness, where I benched for the second t...

I must be crazy. It's nearly 2:30 a.m. and I am still awake just to blog. I didn't fall asleep until almost 3:30 last night, either... About half an hour ago, I finished my final English paper, and began to just listen to music (I had been listening to rap while writing, so I decided to change genres when I was done). Both of my roommates have been asleep for a while now. I'm awake because, well, I chose to do my paper so late at night when I could have done it at any time during the day. But I have somehow convinced myself that I write best/ most effectively late at night, so I spent my day reading and creating a written study guide for the objective portion of my English final on Tuesday. I really need to start studying chem, too... But tomorrow will be a continuation of English objective material. In addition to a however-long review session for linguistics... Oh, gosh. Do I really not care about chem anymore?! I think so. Regardless, I WILL study for it. Study study stu...

So, it's nearing the very end of week 10. In other words, I ought to be studying my brain out right now--or filling it to the brim with information I'll forget immediately after finals--but here I am, because I feel full from the butter croissant I just ate and because I feel like I need a break after a mere hour of studying. I suck, I know. I just feel that in the midst of this constant studying (on other people's parts, of course), I should enjoy my time FOR them. Just kidding. It's all for myself because I'm an idiot who doesn't know how to effectively study and therefore just ignores the concept entirely, thinking that finals won't be that bad, only to end up with a mediocre grade because I neglected the importance of studies and the purpose of my presence here at UCLA. Just slightly kidding there. Although, no joke about the studying (or lack thereof, really) part. The vanilla latte today isn't that good. I think I'll go back to caramel. Oh, let...