I apologize for the lack of posts in recent weeks. Hopefully you’re still reading. 

I also apologize for the monster length of this post. I think it’s the result of weeks of pent-up, unpenned  (bad writing pun) tension.  I’ve barely had the stretch of two uncluttered hours to put pen to paper, let alone fingers to keyboard.

 And that’s because things are changing quickly in my life. Again.

 Just in time for the anniversary of my father’s slow demise, I’m once again off to start—or restart–my life.

 I think the shift started with the tectonic influence of my mother, a.k.a. Mara, who has been voicing for months now her complaints about my job at the restaurant: its hours, its lack of weekends, the way that my bosses have made unrighteous overusage of my helper-caregiver nature during times of economic distress (“Abbie, can you handle serving the entire restaurant on a Sunday night by yourself? We don’t have the money to hire another server right now.” “Uh, sure, I guess.”  ::Cue the anxiety attack::).  It hasn’t made living at home pleasant, and going to work is even less so.

Ruth can limbo really, really well when she has a stick to knock her head on. And a white tiger-print dress helps, too.

So I made up my mind to allow myself to start looking at other jobs. That was step one, which I took around the time of my last post. Then I made myself stay up later so I could apply for other jobs online—and this step happened about two weeks ago.  This week, I fell into the we’ll-call-you/interview-you-soon-so-stay-tuned stage, which Is like playing limbo without any stick to tell you how far to bend while you try to continue on with your regularly scheduled days.

And on the night of the 19^th, or really, the early morning of the 20^th, I decided to simply quit; to allow myself to just have-it-up-to-here with the hassle of working on back-pay (still no paycheck: this is week two), having no weekends (and hence, almost no dating), working heavy shifts by myself, and being responsible for far more restaurant-running than I was ever contracted to be. 

I wasn’t at work when I decided this; I was actually out with one of my old gal pals in the middle of a screaming, writhing, hysterical crowd of well over 200 people crammed into a movie theatre (out of a full 1200 or so total in the whole building). At midnight.  Awaiting the second coming–of the next installment of the  Twilight Saga¹, not Jesus Christ. But for all the anticipation in the air, you might have thought that we’d gathered there for that.

And I knew, while I was sitting there between groups of babbling fifteenish-year-old  and forty-something women, that I was being BAD. Very bad.

I’d not only worked a full double-shift at the restaurant earlier that day, but I knew I was going to have to work the double-shift the next day, which was a Friday, and to top it off, would be a night when live musicians were coming to the restaurant. I should have been home, sleeping under the fog of sedatives, preparing myself mentally for the coming equivalent of waitressing hell—handling six or seven tables at once, managing chef s’ delays, pacifying upset customers, and making bad tips in spite of how hard I try to make everyone happy—but instead, I was out watching a teenage girl’s epic love drama unfurl itself on the big screen in the wee hours of the morning.

And I couldn’t really regret it; I couldn’t even regret going out for a drink beforehand.  And I felt actually sort of mad that I was going to have to sacrifice a lot the next day in terms of sleeplessness and exhaustion to pay for one night of fun with a friend for the first time in nearly a month of working six and seven days a week—no weekends.  I was seething over the loss of autonomy. I was angry—truly angry—about being caged in a lifestyle that wouldn’t suit a hamster.  It was that anger, I think, that sharpened my focus and brought me to the conclusion that my vocation had to change.

Bella (Kristen Stewart) tries to connect with her reflection in a dream sequence that forces her to face facts about herself in "New Moon." Edward (Rob) stands beside her looking pretty as a dream in a period coat.

And as I watched the film, I relearned some things about myself. Ultimately, I remembered that I had no one to be angry at except for myself. As Edward Cullen commented, it was Romeo who “destroyed his own happiness” in his personal tragedy; he had no one else to blame. I decided that I didn’t want to be a tragic literary cliché—so I needed to quit acting like one.

And I was grateful for the emo soundtrack, the dark, depressive facials of Kristen Stewart’s Bella, the self-deprecating sadness of Robert Pattinson’s Edward, the spunky, no-nonsense attitude and protective friendship of Ashley Greene’s Alice, and the quick-draw tempers of the werewolves. It felt like one massive cathartic experience.  As an audience, we collectively sighed, cried, gasped, laughed, raged, cringed, and felt that curious relief of knowing that, in spite of the strange and unfulfilling ending of this particular book (New Moon is book two of the saga), the ultimate ending for all involved will be happy. 

This seems counter-intuitive, but I love it when movies wake us up to the world of real life.  I love it when they remind us of our part in the God-authored stories we inhabit, stories that are complex, difficult, and sometimes frightening, but that God promises us will at least end well.  I guess the experience restored my faith a little.

So, when my gal pal and I walked out of the theatre at 2:30 AM, only to discover that her car’s battery was dead, we felt no real sense of panic. She called AAA, we returned to the bar from whence we’d started our evening to await our rescue, and we re-encountered the bartender who had flirted so assiduously with me some hours before.   We talked to him and discovered that, lo and behold, he was not only a neighbor of mine, but that he was competent with jumper cables.   He had us safely on our way by 3 AM. Since it was a chance meeting in the first place that led to our deeper acquaintance with him, I felt like we’d experienced nothing short of a miracle in his act of chivalrous assistance.

Ah, real-world heroes.  They’re better than vampire-heroes anyday (sort of).  At least, they deserve a nice kiss on the cheek, if not a bite or two (no biting, I promise).  What a nice ending to our Twilight Night!

So, now I’m off on another adventure of sorts. I’m going back on the job market, this time looking for a position that has a little upward mobility, maybe benefits, and most of all, God’s stamp of direction.  When all of the counselors in my life tell me that it’s time to move on from somewhere, I take that as God’s voice acting through the people he’s entrusted to care about me.  My allotted stint at the restaurant is over, and in good time.  I’ll have my days free to actively pursue other job opportunities, to visit much-neglected friends, and to also have the requisite downtime required to handle the heavy emotional turmoil of the holiday season caused by my bereavement.  November 13^th marked the anniversary of my dad’s “death sentence”–the day when the doctors told him there was nothing left to do but wait for his body to give in to the cancer.  The rest of this holiday season is going to be a landmine of emotional memory triggers from my father’s death, which means I’m going to be doing some heavy grief work in the days to come on top of my job-searching.  Wish me luck.

-Ruth

Notes (Skippable unless you’re a Twihard):

1. “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” beat the opening-weekend records for the Harry Potter films, and it even killed the all-time opening-night record previously held by “The Dark Knight.” This just proves that women are a powerful economic group. Current stats have the audience for the films as being 80% female, 50% of whom are under the age of eighteen, with the other 50% being made up of twenty-somethings and Twimoms. http://movies.yahoo.com/news/movies.ap.org/new-moon-wolfs-down-1407m-opening-weekend-ap  The movie is now the #1 film in the world for this whole year.  Yeah.  I know.          Crazy.  Incidentally, this opening weekend take now makes Robert Pattinson the most bankable actor in the world at the moment. He can have any director, part, script, woman, etc. that he wants. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1230021/Robert-Pattinson-hot-property-Twilight-sequel-New-Moon-breaks-box-office-records.html  If he were anyone else, he would have a head that’s too big to fit in the studio door, but he’s too humble for all that. Like the polite little British boy he is, Rob Pattinson wrote a thank-you note to fans on Twitter on Monday after hearing the news (using the official Twilight Saga account this time, http://twitter.com/Twilight, and not Peter Facinelli’s page), sweetly tweeting,

“Thank you for making NEW MOON #1. It’s very exciting to be a part of something embraced by so many people. . . I hope you are looking forward to ECLIPSE as much as I am.

Just FYI, Rob, here is a paraphrase of what I gathered from the other fans:

Honey, you’re welcome. The movie was awesome. You are awesome. We’re looking forward to the next one, but hope you’ll have some down time to recover and work on other stuff (::cough:: “Bel Ami,” ::cough:: “Unbound Captives” ::cough::). Go home to your family in London on holiday and bask in the afterglow of your fame for a bit. We all think you deserve it.

 

 

Taylor Lautner is so obviously thinking, "I wish I was Rob Pattinson. I wish I was Rob Pattinson! I wish! I wish!" (photo credit: LATimes)

 

Today after I picked up kidlet from kindergarten, we jetted down to Ceres for some gloomy day movie cheer. Clue strangely put us to sleep but then Miss D, kidlet, and I watched us the crap out of some Goonies. We watched every single feature it had. Maybe even to our detriment.

One of the features we watched, which I'd never seen before in its … I'm not sure what to call it? totality?, was a two-part music video put together by director Richard Donner, theme songstress and my fantasy fairy godmother Cyndi Lauper, with a cameo by producer Steven Spielberg, to promote the film. I don't even have words for the surreality of watching the video. It was really something. I will not soon forget it. These are my neutral words.

[The video features] World Wrestling Federation pro-wrestlers André the Giant, Captain Lou Albano, Rowdy Roddy Piper, Wendy Richter, The Fabulous Moolah, The Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff, Freddie Blassie; Steven Spielberg; The Goonies cast (except for Kerri Green, Anne Ramsey, Joe Pantoliano, Robert Davi and John Matuszak*); and the relatively unknown Bangles as a group of female pirates. Roseanne Barr appears as the “sea hag”. Lauper’s mother appears as “Cyndi’s mother”, reprising her role from “Girls Just Want to Have Fun”. — (the wiki)

*The lead cast members from the film who do not appear in this video are those playing Andy, Ma Fratelli, and the Fratelli brothers.

The plot runs like this: Cyndi’s folks run a Mom and Pop gas station that is being bought out by villains from the WWF, each attired as a different weird stereotype. Unfortunately, they also have dialogue. Cyndi and her brother? friend? and sister? his wife? are helping Mom and Pop (Cap’n Lou) pack up the ol’ place while the nouveau riche chew up the scenery and generally set up quickie symbols of their wealth such as a Benihana-type joint in the middle of the parking lot, which many consider the international sign of good taste and refinement, some to the point of exclusion. (Do not even try to talk dimsum on rollerskates to them; they will not listen.)

Cyndi discovers a secret cave behind a painting of their grand-ancestor, where she encounters the Goonies, who help her decode a map she lifted off a dead guy — real fuckin’ nice, Cyn — but then some pirates show up, and Roseanne Barr. Oh my god, nightmare combination! The Bangles are there, too, but they do not try to sing. In the chase that ensues, Cyndi stops real quick for some hibachi, creating a prevalent and provocative ongoing theme in the video.

Perhaps this is meant to make us reflect on the marketing of foreign cuisine in America, or on materialism and the ease with which an ordinary item common to one country can acquire peculiar clout in another country. Or perhaps it is merely included in order to set up a joke that is some straight racist garbage: ie, the following picture’s caption.

The pirates and the sea hag enslave the kids at murky tasks like, um, stirring big pots, and force Cyndi to dress like a Floridian prostitute while carrying buckets and singing (they do not allow her to stop singing even once).

Cyndi and her friends manage to overthrow the pirates and get away with some loot from the ship, but the “cheatin’ creditors” will not accept it as payment for Mom and Pop’s debt on the shop. Not even when she repeatedly bites it to prove its value! I know, right? If only she had offered them some fresh, dope funky fun hibachi.

As it is, Cyndi grows weary of attempting to convince the creditors to accept her jewels as payment, and whistles as one only does for a taxicab or deus ex machina. And what is it going to be?

Why, it’s Andre the Giant, and I am pretty sure he is literally still wiping coke from under his nose when he first appears! He beats up and chases away the creditors, which means the debt is legally and officially cleared forever, duh, and the video ends with this triumphant shot.

Oh, my god, I want that to happen to me every day after I die. I believe in an afterlife, unless I am in a particularly foul and doubtful and wobegone mood, and of course Andre the Giant is there waiting for me so we can finally hang out and stuff, and I hope so fervently that every single day when I greet him in Heaven he scoops me up and we cheer and do ’80s fistpumps in the air. It’s gonna be sick.

So here’s the video if after a report on all that insanity you need audiovisual confirmation of its existence.

Finally, my secret crush from this movie may be reported to be Data, because I squeal when he comes on screen, but really deep down it’s actually:

Martha Fuckin’ Plimpton. Her and Jan Brady can come live with me and finally be appreciated the way they deserve.

Yum

Sushi!

I never thought I would like it, but I went out on a limb this weekend and gave it a shot and loved it! We went out for sushi and hibachi for my friend’s birthday on Saturday night and had a grand old time. It was so much more fun then worrying about a Halloween costume and bar hopping. My favorites were: the California roll, the spicy tuna roll and the cucumber roll. Delicious!

Yum

My mom and I went to the mall, on Saturday morning, to find a few birthday gifts. I would not have stopped into Bath &  Body Works had she not been with me, but I’m so happy that I did! Their new fragrance, Twilight Woods, is so yummy! I scooped myself up some lotion, shower gel, body spray and perfume for only $30. Love it!

JAPANESE FOOD AT ITS BEST

If you’re starving and riding threw route 1&9 heading south, make sure you stop at U-YEE SUSHI for an affordable satisfying lunch, name of restaurant is one of spots to hit up in central Jersey. Their lunch special running till 230 can be enjoyed with the chef cooking up your lunch special of choice also called Hibachi right in front of you. The spinning spatulas and flying food is definitely worth the recognition. Entertainment along side your lunch. The Salmon is a Get Wit It favorite. “U-YEE SUSHI HIBACHI” -GET WIT IT

Attempting to look cute to divert attention from the fact that I am stealing the Shock Top beetle.

Dropping roots in North Carolina, I was skeptical of the idea that we might still experience seasons here. Even more skeptical when it was still swimming weather just a week ago.

I’m happy to report: no mas.

Temperatures have made a sharp, downward turn, and although it’s a little late, Fall is most certainly here. We’re finally breaking out the sweaters (never mind everyone back home is breaking out the parkas), burning leaves and shopping for pumpkins.

Admittedly, I’ve been MIA for a couple of weeks, trying to get settled into my new position as the server manager at the hibachi restaurant while simultaneously tackling my grad school application. My workplace is decidedly nutty, at times just plain surreal. But having stuck it out for a couple of weeks, I’m finding it has its endearing moments as well.

It’s the slow season for Wilmington restaurants, the tourists long gone, the patio season winding down. You’ll find this clearly evidenced when you walk into our kitchen to find a hibachi chef with his face submerged in a pot of water attempting to best his own breath-holding record. So the money doesn’t flow as freely as it did just months ago, and the staff is having a hard time staying motivated.

I arrived at this location after just a month at a different one. The server manager at the time was about to bust out to go to South America for a couple of months, and I was the only one with the availability to fill the position. They offered me a raise. Did I mention it’s the slow season? I had to take it.

At first I thought I’d just sold my soul and was paying the price. The staff at the hibachi location are largely young and apathetic, lazy and irresponsible. I fired the first of that breed tonight, and I had imagined it feeling better than it did. I won’t lose sleep over it or anything, but I suppose you hope for one of those shiny movie moments where the heroine finally gets to put her spoiled, self-absorbed counterpart in her place. Instead, I got to leave some meandering message on her voicemail that ended simply in, ”…. we have to let you go, please don’t come in tomorrow.”

And I have to cover her shift on my day off.

Where’s the justice in that? (Don’t start looking, it’s not there). Well, my boss was happy about it, so there’s that. He’s been telling me to fire someone (anyone) from day 1, the idea (his idea) being that this makes me look powerful and will gain the respect (read: fear) of my servers. In the meantime, I can only hope this is the first big step in cleaning up the staff here. I’ve hired two older servers who actually need the work, and not just on weekends. But I’ve never done this before, and I certainly don’t have a manual or anyone sitting on my shoulder telling me how it’s done.

I’ve seen management done well, and I’ve seen it done poorly. And that’s all I’ve got to go on.

In the meantime, I’m cool with being nicknamed “OCD” (something to do with my obsession with the napkins being rolled tightly – thank you, Philip, whom I also used to make fun of for this), and with “Grandma” cooking in the kitchen even on busy nights, and with the lone computer at the server station (actually, wait – no, I’m not cool with that, and I’m pushing for another). And I’m starting to really like the chefs and their crazy performances and the busboys and their tejano singing and the weekend hostess who is typically sweet and demure, but can be a lion when she fires up her Chinese to argue with the kitchen manager (and who tells me that from behind I look just like an Asian girl).

It’s not so bad.

One night during my first week, I came home from a particularly busy night and cried. And cried some more. I was convinced I’d made a huge mistake, and that I was going to have to find yet another job and continue to struggle.

I don’t want to wait tables forever. I don’t even want to wait them for another year. But the situation certainly is not as bad as I initially surmised, and it looks like I’m there to stay. For now.

In the meantime, all of this gives me the impetus to work harder than ever on my grad school application. Not only do I need to be accepted, I need scholarship money, and I need a job.  I’ll be wrapping up the first part of my manuscript this week, so it’s just a matter of coming up with another brilliant, cohesive and deeply meaningful 15 pages or so.

Yep.

No problem.

~a

I went to my parents’ in Green Bay this weekend.  I hadn’t been in a while and it was my mother’s birthday.  I brought a used faux fur so that she could patch it up.  She’s going to shorten the length and get new buttons to make it look more modern.  We went button shopping but couldn’t find anything.  I haven’t been button shopping in…ever, but I seem to remember there being a lot more buttons when I was younger.  I guess people must not sew as much anymore.  Or perhaps the internet has somehow taken over the button market.

We all went to a hibachi restaurant for her birthday dinner.  I was a bit disappointed because I thought it was a more traditional Japanese restaurant for some reason.  Then I get there and everyone asked me about how the hibachi was in Japan and I felt conflicted because hibachi isn’t really a Japanese thing.  I mean, there are some restaurants like that in Japan, but they are mostly just for tourists.  The whole phenomenon was invented in the 40’s for tourists.  The food was very good though and the decor was nice.  I did see a few Japanese items around the restaurant that I haven’t seen in a while, and they even had the Japanese toilets with the bidets and seat warmers.  The toilets however were a reflection of the restaurant because, while it had the bidets and seat warmers, it didn’t have the faucets on top or the little buttons that you pressed to make the noise of running water so that people didn’t hear you pee.  It made a really decent effort, but didn’t go all the way.

Mom and I also did the thing where we watched Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters together and talked about it during the commercials.  We did that before I moved out, but since then we’ve had to call each other during the commercial breaks, so this was nice.  I had to work on a cataloging assignment, so I couldn’t give it my full attention.  It was also frustrating when my brother and his friend walked in right when one of the characters was talking with her son about the deep dark family secret.

All in all it was a nice weekend.  I am going back in a week for the WLA conference because the conference is in Appleton, which is only a half hour or so away from Green Bay.  The crazy book cart drill team practice schedule has already commenced.

Opened the fridge and realized I’ve accumulated all sorts of left overs from two different restaurants ranging from all types of cuisine. Japanese, Chinese, American and just plain fat kid food…. Lovely. Hibachi, Shrimp Lo Mein, Pork Dumplings, braised pork belly, chicken wings & etc.  Should i put the stomach to a test or should I commence in a fridge purge. I better just slowly step away.

Fat Kid Action

Oh wait there’s some fruit…. ahhhh thats no fun.

]]> http://mostdefinitelysports.wordpress.com/2009/09/17/hibachi-anyone/ Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:36:23 +0000 L.Calrissian http://mostdefinitelysports.wordpress.com/2009/09/17/hibachi-anyone/ http://promulgo.wordpress.com/2009/08/21/usa-vacation-2009-my-rendition/ Fri, 21 Aug 2009 18:08:20 +0000 promulgo http://promulgo.wordpress.com/2009/08/21/usa-vacation-2009-my-rendition/

It’s been nigh a month since I have written a post, as I’ve been living the sweet life in USA! For those who may be interested, here’s what I did on my vacation – day by day. Please note that I didn’t write in a journal on my vacation, so some days may be hazy in depth.

July 20th – I arrived at JFK airport at 9.30pm, in different surroundings as I flew with a different airline than previous peregrinations. In spite of this, I found my way to passport control easily. I passed through security quickly as I rushed off of the plane, being aware of the postponement which would transpire had I have slacked the pace of my saunter. My suitcase was awaiting me as I made my way to the conveyor belt it was circulating on.

As I made my way outside I sent an sms to my dad, letting him know that I was waiting. However, after a few minutes of waiting I realised that only taxis were passing by. Aforementioned, I was unfamiliar with these surroundings being in a different terminal. A man with a strong Italian accent approached me, asking if I was awaiting the arrival of a bus. With my response annulling this; he redirected me to the pick-up point. Soon enough, I found my Dad and we was on our way back to Greenwich, Connecticut.

Despite the lengthy trip I had endured; spanning over 3,500 miles, I decided that I was witting enough to stop by to see Connor and Casey (step brother and sister, and friends), as it has been eight months since I last seen them. Following this I received the tour of my Dad’s new house (exterior shown below) – I was happy to see how he has settled in.

After a long day of travelling I was ready to estivate to revitalise myself for the vacation to begin!

July 21st – Unsure of the happenings of this day!

July 22nd – I went to work with my Dad for half a day, then later on Stan (a friend of my Dad’s) visited, and my Dad cooked for us all.

July 23rd – I did some work myself! My Dad is a housing manager aswell as working in the construction field. I met his employer, Miss Ogilvy (born as Rockefeller) and she aswell had only recently moved into her new summer residence. She was unpacking boxes and putting them into storage in her basement, with the help of Margee. Eager to help, I moved boxes, then Margee and I went to the dump to recycle boxes and paper. Subsequently we had lunch at a quaint sandwich shop on the Post Road

July 24th – My Dad, a friend of his and I went into New York City to tour The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The MET). It was a truly magnificent day out. The art shows are dumbfounding… their accessions are impressive – most notably to me; the 19th and Early 20th Century European Paintings and the European Sculpture and Decorative Arts. Due to the constraint of time, I did not get a chance to see all of the galleries I wanted to (i.e., Greek and Roman Art). It was a great day out, and I definitely want to go back in the offing to tour other galleries.

A couple, sleeping in the European Sculpture Court!

The MET at night

July 25th – a day before leaving to my second destination on my vacation – Los Angeles, I called my cousin, Lee, who lives there; as I planned to reside with Lee and his wife, Jill for the duration of my stay. My flight to L.A., was a connection flight, as there are no direct flights to L.A. from my Dad’s local airport, White Plains. My connection was in Charlotte, NC., the same location where Lee and Jill were vacationing at the time. I was beyond belief when I realised that Lee, Jill and I were on the same flight to L.A.! Because of this, I made plans to meet them at Charlotte airport before we boarded the plane.

At 11am, I arrived in Darien, to the residence of the Dean family. Residing here is my aunt, Karen; my uncle, Jack; and my cousins, Richard and Adrienne. As soon as I entered Karen was shocked by my height, as apparently I have grew since January 2009! Immediately on entry I was measured – my confirmed height is 5 10″.

After the excitement of my height, we became voracious. Eager to eat, we decided to head forth to Panera Bread, located on the Post Road, Darien. I cannot recall the sandwich I ate, but I recall it being good!

Instead of calling Karen for a taxi service, Richard, Adrienne and I decided to perambulate back to their residence. On arrival we decided to play Risk. Richard and I were the most enthusiastic participants, with Adrienne being more interested with her iPod Touch! The battle was of a high intensity, with Richard occupying the entirety of Oceana and North America, Adrienne occupying Africa, and me occupying Europe and South America. Richard and I verbalised a treaty, whereby we were not to attack on the Central America – Venezuela border and the Greenland – Iceland Border. As the game commenced a Cold War like scenario was present, with growing artillery on the borders where the treaty was present. Richard broke the treaty by invading Iceland, a new strategy which may have left him winning the game, however, the game was put to an end as we were going out for a meal. The game stood as a draw between Richard and I.

We went to a Japanese restaurant (I cannot remember the name of the restaurant) with a family friend of Karen, as it was her birthday. The restaurant was an experience, that’s for sure! The chef was cooking at the table; hibachi style. For the majority of the time smoke was in my face, and I was persuaded into catching a piece of chicken in my mouth as he flung it from a utensil. It was a bit too lively for a restaurant in my opinion, but overall it was drollery fun!

Adrienne (Richard in the background)

July 26th – I left White Plains Airport, connecting in Charlotte, NC. then arrived at my final destination – L.A. I met with Lee and Jill in Charlotte, which was a momentous occasion, as the last time we seen each other was in December 2006. There was only a short wait before our flight, but we very nearly didn’t get on the plane, as the flight was overbooked, meaning US Airways was offering $400 to any three people willing to give up their seat. We pondered on it for a few minutes, but then decided against it sue to the eight hour wait until the next flight into L.A.

When we arrived in L.A. we stopped by a shopping parade to purchase groceries and a movie, also we bought some very tasty burritos! When we arrived at Lee and Jill’s residence we all felt fatigued, so we decided to watch Watchmen, an intersting DC Comics movie which I thoroughly enjoyed.

July 27th – Jill went to work, so Lee and I decided to visit some close by beaches before picking up my aunty, Jeanette from the airport. We visited Zuma Beach, Santa Monica Pier and Venice Beach.

Lee at Zuma Beach

Lee and I at Zuma Beach

Zuma Beach

Santa Monica Pier

Jeanette arrived at 1.45 pm, flying in from Las Vegas after participating in a business convention. We drove back to Lee’s residence for Jeanette to drop-off her luggage, then we waited until Jill finished work. Working in Show-business, Jill is the coordinator for a group of artists which create outfits, facemasks, props et cetera for movies… interesting stuff! Before going out for a meal, Jill shown us her workplace, where I wore an upper layer outfit which a moviestar wears… it’s very tight and uncomfortable! We then drove into the Burbank Hills to eat a the Castaway Restaurant. Images below.

Jill, Jeanette, Lee and I

Lee, Jeanette and I

Jill and I

Jeanette and I. Jeanette said "pull a sullen face", I chose not to!

July 28th – Jeanette bought me an awesome camera – the Samsung HZ10W. Thank you very much, Jeanette! I highly recommend this camera, it has a great 10x zoom and a wide lens, also great manual features, which you will see with my photos from July 28th onwards.

As I’ve never been to L.A. before, I was given the tour! Aforementioned, yesterday I seen the beaches, and on July 28th; Jeanette, Lee and I toured Hollywood. In spite of not being a movie buff, I found Hollywood to be an interesting part of L.A., as I enjoy busy urban areas. We only stayed in Hollywood for a couple of hours, as there’s not really that much there. But here’s some photos of what there is to see in Hollywood!

Hollywood sign

Chinese Theatre

Jeanette, Marilyn and I!

After Jill had finished work for the day, we all headed to Yamashiro, a Japanese restaurant located in Hollywood, 250ft high. Images below.

View from Yamashiro

Jill in the garden court

Jill, Jeanette, Lee and I

Night-shot view from Yamashiro

July 29th – Lee, Jeanette and I decided to take the Warner Bros. VIP tour. We had a great day jaunting around the studios! We visited the Warner Bros. forest which has been used for many movies and tv shows. This is the only forest which is in the possession of a film production company, thus meaning it is often used by other production companies too, for example Universal Studios. We then visited another outdoor set, a small street with real houses, which doubles up as offices. As Warner Bros. doesn’t want these buildings to look the same in different movies/tv shows, the facades can be painted to look brick or wood built!

All of the office buildings in the studio vicinity have no signage. The reason for this is so every building can double up as a movie set on the exterior.

We visited another set, which hosted the atmosphere of an urban scene. The second left photo shows part of this set, where Rachel from friends was hiding in a back street when Monica asked Jeane-Claude Van Damme if he was interested in Rachel – The One After the Superbowl. This street was very interesting to me; the entire street is fairly new, but they gave it an aged look. On the sidewalk they made chips, and tar was dotted in places to look like chewing gum.

Below are the photo highlights from the tour.

Jeanette, Lee and I

Friends scene, mentioned above

Movie set, facade of building

Warner Bros. water tower

Jeanette left on the evening of 29th July, flying back to Florida. It was great seeing Jeanette, our family visits are too infrequent!

July 30th – Robin (a good friend of mine who lives in L.A.) and I decided to watch to new Harry Potter movie and play pool. Both Lee and Jill were at work, and so was Jill until 2.30pm. Because of this, I had nothing to for half of the day! However, as Jill is a Harry Potter maniac, she has all of the previous DVDs. As I had only watched the first two movies, I decided to devote my day to watching Harry Potter! Robin picked me up at 3pm and we made our way to Burbank. Before going to see Harry Potter we had a late lunch at an Italian restaurant. We decided to see Harry Potter in iMax, however we were disappointed that it was only the first 15 minutes. I quite enjoyed the movie, however both Robin and Jill have said that it could have been better as it doesn’t live up to the book. We played pool; the first time both of us had played in several months, thus meaning our first two games were of a poor standard overall. The thirsd game was much better though. The final score was 2-1 to Robin… if we would have stayed for longer I would have beaten her!

Subsequently, we made our way back to Lee and Jill’s residence to play Wii, which was a lot of fun. Photos of the day are below.

Robin

Robin and I

Lee and Robin, Wii boxing

Lee KOed Robin!

July 31st – Before Lee and I headed to a tour of the Simpson’s office block, we stopped by a small car museum, hosting a few famous movie cars – most notably – the first Batmobile!

As the Simpson’s is animation, there is no ornate studio, just office cubicals where the artists conduct their mastery! We were met outside by Lee and Jill’s friend, Nikki Isordia. We walked the floor and met a few animators and a colour coordinator. I found the experience provocative; to see the people who make the Simpson’s a reality was a truly awesome experience!

I am currently awaiting a poster which is situated in the Simpson’s office block, asking for the artisans to sign their name/draw a Simpson’s character.

Homer and Marge on the wall, and I

Itchy and Scratchy animator

Nikki and Lee

August 1st – Robin and I took the subway to downtown L.A. It wasn’t as busy as I was expecting! At least not the areas of downtown which we visited. First we stopped by the Walt Disney Theatre to get some photos, then we made our way to Olvera Street, part of the Mexican district of L.A. Here we took in some culture and had lunch… Mexican of course! Next, we perambulated to Chinatown, then headed back to Studio City.

Me outside of Walt Disney Theatre

Robin!

Me

August 2nd – Jill worked 9am-5pm, Lee worked 2pm-10pm. Lee and I played on the Playstation before he went to work. In the three hour gap with no-one else home I watched movie, however I cannot recall which movie!

August 3rd – Robin stopped by for a couple of hours to play Wii with me, then we said our goodbyes!

August 4th – I cannot recall what I did in the day. In the evening I said my goodbyes to Lee, Jill and L.A. before flying back to White Plains. I caught a red-eye flight, and as the name suggests, I returned with red eyes! I managed to get a couple of hours of sleep, arriving in White Plains on August 5th.

August 5th – I was on a connecting flight, with a two hours wait in Washington DC. I used this opportunity to eat breakfast and purchase some merchandise, in spite of not touring Washington DC! I arrived in White Plains at 9.15. When I got back to Greenwich I wasn’t feeling tired, so I helped moved some more boxes for Cookie Ogilvy.

August 6th – I have no photos from the day, so I’m unsure to how the day transpired. I most probably spent the day at work with my dad. The evening, however, I do recall. My Dad, a friend of his and I went out for a meal at a restaurant which overlooked the Long Island Sound. I recall eating New York strip steak, and I recall it being good! Photos below.

Dad

Dad and I

August 7th – I cannot recall what I did!

August 8th – My Dad, a friend of his and I spent the day in Central Park… it was my first time there! I really enjoyed the park; the tranquility amazed me, it’s the polar opposite to the streets of Manhattan! Before visiting the park, I was already aware of some of the astounding geographic features – glacial erratics and the grooves in rocks which were parlty eroded by the last ice age’s glaciers. We spend most of our day here; walking the small paths, taking in the serene scenery. My feet were in dire distress, as my new sandals caused the obtainment of blisters on my toes! In spite of this, we walked 18 blocks to a restaurant on Columbus Ave and W77th street – Issabella’s.

Central Park

Bethesda Fountain

Me, on Belvedere Castle

Aptly named - The Lake

August 9th – My Dad and I toured midtown Manhattan, an area I’m becoming very familiar with! I wanted to visit New York Public Library, however, we discovered that it’s closed on Sundays. As we passed through Bryant Park; on our way to times Square, we heard loud music, and our ears directed us to the source. On the Avenue of the Americas was a parade! A Dominican Republic Parade! I was hoping to embed a video into here, but it costs $60! So instead, I’ve posted a video of the Dominican Republic Parade onto youtube, you can access it through this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUZYGvzQEEA

We didn’t really do much in NYC, we just perambulated. Nonetheless, it was a fun day out, as the last time I walked the streets of midtown Manhattan was July 2008.

Me, at the train station in Greenwich

Lion outside of NYPL

Empire State Building

Times Square

Statue of Atlas

GE Building

St. Patrick's Catherdal

August 10th – I cannot recall!

August 11th – I cannot recall!

August 12th – I cannot recall!

August 13th – I think I went to work with my Dad, then in the evening we watched the movie Valkyrie.

August 14th – I toured NYC on my lonesome! I had a ticket to use the subway, however, I chose to saunter. I walked in total over seven miles! Eager to go inside New York Public library, it was my first visitation. The architecture was astetically pleasing; it was congenial with my architectural partiality. As I was walking through the halls, I found a door which had inscribed “Cartography Room” – could there be a better room?! However, the door was locked as the Cartography Room didn’t open until 1pm. I wanted to wait, but I had so much else planned for my day in the city.

My next stop was downtown. I walked south on Fifth Avenue and walked around Greenwich Village, stopping by in Washington Square Park. Yet again on another voyage to NYC, my feet acquired blisters! This time the causation was sneakers, and the blisters were sourced on the balls of my feet and my ankles! I had lunch then proceeded on to downtown. I decided to walk the Brooklyn Bridge, as I wanted to get a shot of both the Brooklyn Bridge and the skyline of downtown Manhattan. This was my intention, however, my plan did not transpire. Following the 1.2 mile saunter, I found myself quite far into Brooklyn, and I was too tired to walk to the park adjacent to Brooklyn Bridge just for a photo! So, I walked back… another 1.2 miles! Aforementioned, I had blisters when I was in Greenwich Village!

I perambulated to Federal Hall on Wall Street, as I wanted to take a tour of this building; so rich in history. On previous visitations to Wall street, the facade of Federal Hall astounded me. The interior was magnificent, as are the artifacts within! I was given a tour by a learned gentleman, I was rejoiced by his level of intellect! After the tour I was suffering from severe discomfort, so I asked a gentleman working for Federal Hall where I could find the closest pharmacy. Thankfully, there was a Duane Reade Pharmacy located a convenient one block west.

After relieving myself from the pain of walking on blisters by applying blister band-aids; I started to walk north east, with the destination of Chinatown. On my way, I walked past New York’s Court House, then I stopped to culture myself on the African Burial Ground on Duane Street. In the period of African slaves in New York, over 15,000 were buried on this site.

I briefly walked through Chinatown before journeying to Broadway, with the destination of midtown. I was hoping to get back in time for the New york Library to be open, however, I was too late. I arrived at 6.10pm, just ten minutes after closing time. As my train ticket was off peak, I still had some time left in the city. I sat for a while in Bryant Park; attempting to understand the complexities behind my camera’s manual mode.

I left Bryant Park at 7pm; knowing that trains were still in their peak period. I walked East, passing the Chrysler Building, then on to the United Nations Building, hoping I could take a brief tour. However, the gates were closed, so I headed back to Grand Central Train Station. I had a 30 minute wait until I could catch a train which was off-peak, so I took photos of the interior of Grand Central. Photos of my day are below.

Me, at the train station again!

Inside NYPL

Washington Square Park Arch

Brooklyn Bridge, from Manhattan

African Burial Ground

Federal Hall columns

NYSE

Grand Central

Photos by Jordan White August 15th – Both my Dad and I went into the city, for an expedition downtown. However, before we navigated south, I had the desire to go back to New York Library, with the intention of jaunting the cartography room. It was a truly awesome room… so many maps… old maps! Some maps were 200 years old!

Once we were finished in NYPL, we walked south on Park Avenue. We perambulated through Greenwich Village around the New York University Campus before visiting Ground Zero. The entire block is fenced off with plywood; thus meaning we were unable to see the progress of the new towers.

Subsequently, we walked through Battery Park, then took the Staten Island Ferry for a view of the Statue of Liberty. As the name of the ferry aptly suggests, the ferry stops at Staten island, New York City’s fifth borough. We didn’t look around Staten Island, instead we got right back onto the next ferry. The reason for this is because much of the island is residential.

On our journey northwards; back to Grand Central, the night sky edged in, resulting in some awesome night-time photos! Photos of my day are below.

Cartography room, NYPL

Quaint street in Greenwich Village

Statue of Liberty

Downtown skyline

Union Square

Empire State Building

Chrysler Building

5th Avenue

August 16th – I went to work with my Dad in the day. In the evening my Dad, a friend of his and I went to a restaurant on the Hudson River – Red Hat. I recall having salmon, and it was good!

Subsequently, we perambulated around a local park at dusk. Photos below.

August 17th – My date of departure. My flight departed at 8.40, meaning I still had a large proportion of the day to spend in Greenwich. I went to work with my dad for the morning, then we returned home so I could pack my belongings. We stayed in the house for a while, then left for the airport at 3pm, and arrived at about 6pm.

I had a meal at the airport; for two reasons. One – I’m not too fond of aeroplane meals. Two – I intended to sleep on the flight. After eating I found the line for security to gain entry to my gate. The queue extended the length of five store facades! Somehow I began talking to the people behind me; an American family, the children flying to England, the mother staying back in New York. In the queue I suddenly remembered that I wanted a neck pillow, and also a New York Times. I was unsure if there were shops on the other side of security, therefore I asked the American woman behind me if she could hold my place in the queue. Delighted to do so, I stepped lively to the World News Store. I stepped out to find the American woman waving her children goodbye as they had crossed through security. Puzzled and feeling slightly peeved, I sauntered to the back of the queue, which was longer than it was when I first joined it! However, after just a couple of seconds of waiting, the American woman found me, and said “You don’t have to wait in the queue again, I’ll tell security that you’re my son and your siblings have just passed through security!”. True to her word, she got me through security without waiting in the queue once again!

Subsequently, I sat by my gate reading Stalin, an Autobiography. I tried to sleep on the flight; I got three hours at most.

That people, was my summer vacation of 2009!

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed living it!

I would like to thank everyone who made my vacation so wonderful!

The photos herein are only a few of the photos I took. I’ll be adding more onto facebook soon – so those of you who are my friends on facebook… keep a look-out!

This is keeping me happy…

Messy, huh? This place will NEVER be clean for long periods of time {the most would be a couple of days}. Then I’ll start pulling out paper and embellishments and tools and work on a project for days… Messy, definitely but it’s good for my soul.

Pretty excited to show the project tomorrow {yup, you heard me right. Reveal is tomorrow! }. If all goes well, a few will be finished in the next few weeks and I hope they will be loved as much as I love making them.

And to celebrate Jasper’s 16th birthday we had Hibachi dinner {always fun to watch them cook the food in front of you!}. Chiara’s not too happy at first {she’s afraid of the fire and the guy throwing the utensils around }. See her covering her ears? Funny girl.

Charlize on the other hand is engrossed. It’s like watching TV, you have to call her more than once to get her attention. Another funny girl.  She loves watching people cook and sometimes, asks me if she can help cook dinner… soon, little girl, soon {for now you’re too little to be cooking}. Thank God she did not take after me when it comes to the cooking arena! {lol}

To save Jasper the embarrassment of our out-of-tune singing, we sang the Happy Birthday song in the car, on our way to the restaurant. I can hear him sigh in relief!{lol} Even Chiara’s cute renditionof the song is not enough to make it “public-worthy”… teehee…

Here are some more photos. I regret not taking some photos of our photographer. The poor guy is the only one not in any of the photos…. Sorry, Dear.

This is the birthday kid trying to catch the “flying shrimp”… when the chef’s finished cooking, he has some shrimps cut into bite sizes that he flips in the air in your direction and you are supposed to catch it with your mouth. Fun! Jasper caught all 3 {or was it 4?} and me? got only one out of the 4… . Viven I think only missed 1 or 2? And Charlize was too shy to try… no surprise in that.

Alrighty, got to go clean up my messy table… hmmm…. clean up a bit so I don’t waste time “hunting” down my supplies! {lol} Have a happy day everyone!

Well, folks, prophesy fulfills itself, especially when you post it in a blog that you’ve invited God and everybody to read (Seriously. God gets tagged as a category on these posts!).

In a post from earlier this summer, I wrote about my lack-of-a-job situation and about the time a waitressing position (almost) fell in my lap.  Then I got all English-major-y and quoted from Jane Eyre. I think I selected some passages about Jane’s humility in accepting a “pud” job, reasoned that I shouldn’t be too proud to take such a position, and mused, in a self-comforting way, that my career-focused skills “will keep” until a later, more economically fruitful time.

Well, I now have a job. ::Gasp!:: And, as chance would have it, it’s in no way related to my English major, my publishing experience, or my little forays into journalism.

Instead, it’s drawing on the experiences I’ve had that I thought were worthless.  In three days  at my new gig (two spent training, one spent working), I’ve drawn on my multi-colored backgrounds in stagecraft, group psychology, ballroom dancing, opera, improvisational comedy, Spanish (language), Chinese (language and culture), coquetry, Google-searching, touch-screen technology, child care, advertising consultation, and even my short story writing to learn the ropes of this job, to navigate those ropes without getting too tangled up, and  to endear myself to my fellow restaurant staff members.

That’s right, readers. I am a waitress (PC term: server) in the entertainment dining industry.  I’m at a restaurant not three miles from my home, working for a family of dreamers that I adore, and having an exhausting, hilarious time.

God, himself a fan of family-run businesses, is matchless in his irony.  He really surprised me on this one, but then again, his ways are higher than my ways and his thoughts are much, much higher than my thoughts.

Some of you may be wondering why I call this a God-given thing. Allow me to explain.

Those familiar with my personal theories on theology know that I believe that the best, highest, and most artfully-arranged comedy to be found can only come from God.   Seriously. Read the gospels and look for Jesus’s wit.  He’s hella funny, but his kind of humor is extremely sophisticated and layered.  Many times, his witticisms go way over the heads of us modern readers who don’t understand how first-century Jews would have understood and responded to his jokes. But there are some jokes that Jesus uttered that we can understand better at the second millenium than the first-centurians could.  One of my favorite ones of those comes from the last chapter of the Gospel of John, when the resurrected Jesus gets peppered with questions about when he’ll be back for the final reckoning.  The disciples all hope they’ll live to see it, but Peter, being a consummate pragmatist, looks at the youngest disciple, John, and asks Jesus if Johnny-the-Kid will live to see the Second Coming.  I can picture Jesus smiling to himself when he responds,

“If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?” (Jn 21:22).

John, of course, grew to become the visionary prophet who eventually got to write the entire book of Revelation concerning Christ’s return.  Jesus kept John alive, though aged, weak, and in exile on an island, so that Johnny could get a good glimpse of the upcoming epic spiritual party before he shuffled off his mortal coil to await the actual show with the rest of us.

Funny?  Yup.  Jesus is a real crack-up who knows an inside joke when he foresees one.

But Satan, like any beautiful and self-absorbed bimbo, remains in the narrow but omni-present realm of low-brow comedy, also known as the gutter.  His jokes are simple, flat, tasteless, and usually found on Comedy Central.

The comedy–heck, the divine irony–of my particular job search is too complex for a punchline and avoids reference to sexuality or any scatological themes.  Hence, it’s too high a form of wit to be anything but God-granted-and-delivered.

Here’s the story, laid out for laughability:

I’d just gotten a lump of disappointment stuck in my throat in the form of the fourth turn-down/brush off from the publishing company I’d been pining after for a job all year. I’d flunked the editing test (not surprising since, let’s face it, a slight acquaintance in college with, and a six-hour study session of, the Chicago Manual of Style doesn’t compete with the several years of experience that the other candidates had under their belts).  They told me to try back again in six months and keep a lookout for other positions at the company that weren’t involved in the copy-editing process.  I thanked them and went out for a strawberry daiquiri with my mother at the local Mexican restaurant. Not to drown in my woes, mind you.  Just to get my feet under me and a sense of hopeful, glass-half-full (literally) optimism.

As we got out of the car, I noticed that the new Asian steakhouse/sushi joint was open for business. It had been under construction for the past several weeks. I wondered if they were hiring.  I decided, on some wild impulse, to inquire within and see.  Turns out, yes, they were, and would I like an application?  Sure thing.

After a quick interview the next morning in which I outlined my very skimpy serving qualifications (“Do you have any experience working in a restaurant?” “No, but I’m experienced with customer service because of this one job I had filling work orders for property maintenance.  Oh, and I’m comfortable around people.  Children included.  I was a substitute teacher and a nanny, see?  I’m also used to public speaking and acting chipper even when I don’t feel like it. And I had a lemonade stand, once, too.”), I was asked if I could report for training on Saturday. I reflected on my interview interaction with the manager, who I’ll call Mr. X, and I decided that I liked Mr. X’s personality and felt like he was a warm and hardworking person; his wife, who had fluttered around during the interview session and occasionally added her two cents, had a maternal presence and no fear of her husband, just a lot of respect that went beyond the usual Asian norm for the marital relationship.   With these thoughts in my mind, I committed myself to the job and, with that,  to the young couple that is attempting to build a life for themselves around their baby restaurant.

And just like that, after three months of looking, someone took a chance on me and hired me.  And all because I was willing to take a chance on them.  That it happened to be a waitressing position made good on the change of heart that I had when I met Donna (see July 16 post).  And, of course, it’s as far away from anything English as it could possibly be.  Not the language; not even the food.  However, it was right under my nose:  just three miles away from my house, and right next to the place where I was going to sip the blended nectar of my woes.

God sure is a laugh-riot.

It’s been three days, and nearly twenty-three hours of work and training on my tired feet, and I’m not sorry for it yet.   I think it’s because I finally have a kind of calling.

I’ve come to like my employers as people, and I’ve even met their super-supportive family, whose members flew across the country and the world to help staff and finance the business.  Mr. X himself works two jobs: full-time restaurant manager/chef, and schoolbus driver.  Our head waiter, Ricky, told me that Mr. X sleeps maybe three hours a night.  Mrs. X does all the accounting and hostessing and will even cover tables as needed. She’s the fast-fluttering, uncatchable butterfly of the restaurant, and just as beautiful, as only women from Asia can be in their delicate way.  Mr. and Mrs. X have two children, who are often at the restaurant after school and in the mornings, as their age dictates, but they are quiet, shy, and often serious, even in their silliness. Mr. X’s brother, a cheerful Hongkongesian named Felix, just flew back to the Pacific Northwest after working full-time as the head chef at the hibachi from opening night onward.  Mr. X’s mother, who I’ll call Grandma X, is still helping out when and where she can, even though her tiny vocabulary of English limits her.

Inside all of this mountain of effort to keep the restaurant running are its miners, the cooks and servers.

Our sushi chef is an artist, and works full-time, with no nights off. The under-chef is learning from Mr. X  how to take Felix’s place in the front as head chef someday. In the meantime, our under-chef and the assistant cook help us servers do the dishes and get orders out to us as fast as they can.  The majority of them are Mexican and appreciate it when I clarify a complicated order by peppering it with details in Spanish.  My fellow servers include head-waiter Ricky, his wife Hillary, and a third girl named Kayla who only comes in on weekends (I think).  Ricky trained me, and is an unstoppable force when he’s got several tables to see to.  Charismatic, physically strong, and underserved by life, Ricky is barely twenty, if that, but is already a father.  But he and Hillary are trying to offset the upset of their late-teenage pregnancy by balancing their work schedules so that someone is home for their little girl. They both work like crazy–and do it with a kind of pride.  They know it’s what’s keeping them both from falling out of the bottom of the middle class, and they’re holding onto their respectability like it’s sacred.  I admire them for trying to make a good life for themselves and their daughter.

I think you can tell that I like them all immensely.

And wonder of wonders, they’re starting to like me back.  Ricky, of course, liked me after the first time I astutely anticipated his orders and bussed a slew of tables without complaint.  The cooks decided that they liked me as soon as they found out that I spoke Spanish well enough to compliment their work.  The X’s children decided that they liked me the minute they caught me dancing in the kitchen before the restaurant opened for dinner and I teased them for spying.  Mrs. X decided she liked me when she saw how often I smiled at customers, how carefully I took Ricky’s orders, and how hard I tried just in general. (“You have a great work attitude! Good job!” she told me Saturday.)  Mr. X was won over mostly by his wife–I think–in my favor, but he told me just yesterday that he was observing Ricky and me from his spot at the grill and noticed that I “move like the girl from that movie Enchanted. What’s her name? Amy Adams.  You have a little dancing walk!”  Mrs. X chimed in, “And cute [read: expressive, Caucasian] eyes!”  Even Grandma X smiled at me yesterday when I thanked her for her assistance with bussing a table in her native Cantonese, then followed that up with a question in Mandarin, which is more comfortable for me, and easy enough for her to understand.  She told me she’ll teach me more Cantonese, which I think means that she wants to keep me.

So I’m where I feel like I’m supposed to be, or at least where I belong, right now.

Only trouble is, these people all keep bringing me food. Again, God is the ultimate comedian:  by making sure that my fears about going hungry are laid to rest, he sends me to a place where all the people want to do is stuff my face.

Addendum (added after the original post in a slap-happy moment):

Here’s more proof that God wants me to be happy.  Hugh Jackman (my fav actor and all-around performer, who is an amazing family man and just generally awesomely talented to boot) will be in a movie next year with Robert Pattinson (my fav eye candy and a constant source of comic relief.  Seriously, the stuff that man says!).   The movie will be called “Unbound Captives” and also stars Rachel Weisz, a wonderful, darling, adorable actress in her own right.  In addition to this wonderful news . . .

Oh hai! How you been? Still goooorgeous, I see.

Oh, the hugging is difficult. The Man-Love is too handsome to look at.

This delightful moment of starry-eyed reunion and recognition, in which both HughJax and RPattz seemed to both be thinking– Oh, hai, you! We’re going to be in a movie together, and I remember you from that karaoke bar in Japan where we sang together, and the plane ride back to LA, and then the Oscars!–was captured at the Teen Choice Awards this weekend and reported on some online newsreels frequented by girls who care about the Twilight franchise. It seriously made me very happy, just because they both look so darn cute and excited to see each other.   I think a few of my readers will enjoy this, too.  Let me know–leave a comment!

There are certain things that you love as a kid that you look back on with bewilderment, “what was I thinking?” The Teppanyaki steakhouse is one of those for me. Growing up in the South meant, until recently, that Asian food meant heavily battered General Tso’s and sushi was scoffed at as something you would rather find in a tackle box than a plate. Even now, my friends gape when I tell them how good a slab of fatty raw tuna can be. That was what I loved about Hibachi food growing up. It seemed exotic, maybe a little dangerous with the knives, yet still safe enough to enjoy. Imagine being a suburban kid and entering a place where they cook, in front of you! Onion volcanoes! Knives flying about! It introduced me to Asian Food outside of a La Choy Chow Mein can.

But when I treated myself to lunch at Fujisan  recently(8411 Brier Creek Pkwy # 105, Raleigh, NC 27617-2008), well… Don’t get me wrong, there are redeeming qualities about Fujisan; the atmosphere is warm, the chefs performing are skilled, the waitstaff is attentive. But when it comes to the food, the thrill is gone. Granted, Teppanyaki in American is pretty westernized, just like we’ve taken seemlingly scary, pungent, or previously unappetizing foods and “Americanized” them, we’ve taken the clean flavors of Japanese food and poured gloppy shrimp sauce all over it.  I’m sure there are food snobs out there who would decry this review when there are tons of good Japanese restaurants and Sushi  out there. But sometimes you have to say screw authenticity and give in a little to pandering. It’s ok once in a while, but it’s better if you have at least tasty food to justify it.

Which brings us to Fujisan. I’ve only eaten lunch there, so perhaps the dinner meal holds a bit more pizazz, but lunch is an under seasoned and underwhelming mess. An offering of iceberg lettuce  with a carrot shaving or two with heavy, marmalade-like dressing was the first course. The fried rice was brought to the table in a bowl rather than prepared fresh, so the resulting dish was a clumpy, dry mush. The main course of steak and shrimp lacked the salt and citrus respectively needed to bring it alive. The worst part was that while the chef performed admirably in front of us, twirling his knives and focusing on entertaining us, the combination of oblivious diners and mediocre food made it hard to appreciate his show.

Maybe I expect too much, you can’t go home again and all that. But maybe I just expect a little more, shouldn’t we all? Shouldn’t a good meal mean more than a flaming onion? I think the problem is that Fujisan hides behind the theatrics. If they focused on the food, maybe this could be a place to bring future foodies in to introduce them to something beyond chicken nuggets. Until then, I’ll take my dinner and a show separately.

~Julia

I’ve been to some of most fanciest, upscale, expensive Hibachi Restaurants. Nothing compares to Japan Inn. It’s a little cheesy and kind of a hole in the wall. But their Hibachi is simply the best you’ll ever have. Everybody who knows me knows I only care about Awesome Food and don’t care about atmosphere. And I go long distances just for good food.

Japan Inn – Plantation

• SW Corner of Sunrise & University
• Huge Hibachi Lunch is only $10-$12 M-F.
• Too much food
• Amazing Ginger Sauce
• Each chef has his own style and new tricks

Rollin'

What we tend to think of as “grilling” is virtually nonexistent here, but there is a form of Taiwanese grilling that’s done on small Hibachi grills. The general idea is the same, but instead of hamburgers and hotdogs, they grill shrimp, squid and thinly sliced pieces of beef and pork, which are brushed with soy sauce and other spices. Instead of pasta salad they have noodles. Instead of beer and whiskey they have Taiwan beer and Kaoliang.

As usual, my good pal Grant wanted to go big for America. This fourth of July he opted for the more American form of grilling and rented a proper gas grill to host a barbecue at his pad. I had to work eight hours on the 4th, but I powered through and headed over to his place around five o’clock.

My roommate, Trevor, and I split a bottle of Absolut, some Sprite and some cranberry juice for mixers. Grant had also rented Top Gun and Independence Day to play in the background of the party to set a certain rhythm to the whole event; a special ambience is required for this holiday when you’re far from the shores of your home.

***

Sometime later I saw my Taiwanese friend, Melvin, in the living room watching Independence Day.

“Have you ever seen this, Mel?” I asked. He said that he hadn’t. “It’s a great movie. It’s actually the story of the American Revolution,” I drunkenly explained. “It’s an allegory, you see? The aliens are the British.”

He just nodded and looked at me like I was crazy.

“Bill Pullman is like George Washington,” I went on.

“Who’s Paul Revere?” A kid whose name I can’t recall asked. I looked at him incredulously.

“Hell yeah, we have Pullman here,” I answered, looking around for Grant— Bill Pullman just so happens to be Grant’s second cousin. “It’s the fourth of July!” I said. “Of course we’ve got a Pullman!” I didn’t see Grant anywhere. “Ah… he’s around here somewhere,” I explained, genuinely concerned that I couldn’t find our Pullman.

“No, I said: Who is Paul Revere,” he clarified.

“Oh,” I laughed. “I thought you asked, ‘Is there a Pullman here?’ Well, Revere has got to be Jeff Goldblum then,” I explained. “Think about it, he’s driving like hell from New York to D.C. to tell everyone about the alien invasion. The aliens are coming! The aliens are coming! Bill Pullman is Washington,” I told him.

“No way,” he said, “Pullman is Jefferson. Will Smith is Washington.” I thought about what he said for a moment.

“You know, you’re right!” I agreed. “He’s out there flying jets and spaceships, crossing the Delaware and taking the surprise attack to the aliens on their own mothership. Will Smith is definitely Washington.”

I looked back to Melvin. I could see he didn’t truly understand the weight of this revelation, but it didn’t matter. The important bit was coming up. Like some kind of strange social-magnetism, the twenty plus people at the party gravitated towards the living room just as Bill Pullman began his epic predawn speech at the climax of the film:

“Today, we celebrate our Independence Day!”

The crowd raised their glasses and cheered at that moment. I didn’t quite catch the reaction of the various German, Taiwanese and Canadian people that might’ve been at the party, but really, it didn’t matter. After all, this was our day.

When the movie ended, we trickled outside to light sparklers in the park. I was anxious and took the lead, lighting mine with some difficulty, then using it as the catalyst for others. Before long, the park was illuminated by the twinkling wands of white light. I thought of my friends back home and what I’d be doing had I been there. I thought of the fourths that have passed, drinking and eating with good friends; finding someone sober enough to haul a van full of us down to the University football field to watch the fireworks; laying on my back in the grass as the incandescent bursts lit the sky, sending an artificial thunder across my small town. I missed those days.

But celebrating America’s independence as a weary expatriate, in a country that has various factions struggling for its own freedom from China, was a unique experience. Then, of course, there was the inevitable meditation on what freedom really means— true freedom— a thought that came to me as I strolled down the street with a beer in my hand, hopped into a cab with an open container, and set off down the road, heading for the bar. But that’s a meditation for another day.

Today, in this year of two-thousand and nine, I was proud to be an American.

Here is an update from Rich and the staff of the U.S. Explorer!

The Westcoast Blogger

Three days into our US Explorer trip and it already feels like we’re family! We started out at the LaGuardia Airport Hotel on June 29th where we got to meet our 47 campers, who have already exceeded our expectations. Evan S. was the winner of our very first Trip #9 in ’09 program, and was given the title of the “Rock, Paper, Scissors Champion of trip #9 in ’09.” Everyone got to take part in our first of many name game icebreakers and were able to share and learn creative characteristics and fun facts about their new friends.

After our drive north and a nice break for lunch, we arrived at the Cornell University Dorms in Ithaca, New York and so the trip begins! As a group we got to enjoy a handful of great icebreaker games to get to know each other even better, and then it was off to dinner at Cornell’s cafeteria. We chowed down on great burgers off the grill, a little taste of Italy with delicious pastas, and all kinds of salads and fruits and even ice cream treats for dessert!

Ice Breakers at Cornell

Our first evening program was bowling and everybody had a blast. After all the strikes and spares were done, we headed to bed to be ready for a fun filled day at the ropes course on Tuesday. Who knew that Jodi Z. could show off her varsity bowling stripes and Ben G. could throw so many strikes in a row!

T9 in '09 Bowling

T9 in '09 Bowling

Everybody got a chance to take part in low ropes initiatives and then the best part of the day- HIGH ROPES! The energy and enthusiasm was contagious, even in the light drizzle, and everyone took part in amazing challenges on the course. On the Flying Squirrel we had Jodi Z, Talia G, Sherilyn G, Haylee M, Jessie B, Lindsay W, Ross S, and Max H.  Madison B. tried out the Catwalk, along with Joey S., Cassidy S., Dan S., Robby C., and Daniel A. The Leap of Faith was mastered by Noah W., Cassidy S., Mitchell K., Evan S., Zach A., Jordyn S., and Suzannah D. Adam G., Andrew S., Evan R., Jake M., Becca M., Allison S., Jillian G., Nicole W., Adam D., and Alex R. had a fantastic time trying out the Wild Woozy.

We're Not Afraid of Heights!

It's A Bird, It's a Plane, It's WCC Campers!

Ilana D., Rhianne V., Jack M., Kyle L., Byrne H., Ben G., and Austin Z. were daring and tried out all of the different courses available, and Jesse F. and Melanie B. did a great job of encouraging and cheering everybody on!

After a great hibachi dinner, we divided up into our different groups ready to perform our newly choreographed music videos and Noah W. did a great job with his rendition of MJ’s Thriller, impressing us all with his fancy moves.

Hibachi Dinner

Performing Choreographed Music Videos

More Singing and Dancing

As we celebrated Canada Day on our way to Niagara Falls, we are all brimming with excitement to continue our journey cross country and will keep on updating you with all of the fun details of our trip! We hope that everyone is enjoying their summers so far, and aren’t too jealous of our great adventure!

Swami, Frances, Johanna, Christina, Shaun, Matt

Virginia hip-hop duo The Clipse breakdown the unhealthy goodies they eat while touring and living on the road. It seems pizza, hamburgers and chicken wings are all you need when you’re out there grindin’. Plus Malice and Pusha T reveal to Plato Putas that strapping on an apron to impress the ladies is highly overrated. According to these two, all you need is a ride to the nearest Hibachi restaurant and an unlimited number of Mai Tai cocktails. Food may be the way to a woman’s heart, but when you’re Kinda Like A Big Deal, clearly you have other ways to get there.

The Clipse’s next album, Till The Casket Drops, is set to drop in September.

Photos and videos! Whoo!!!
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Men's Warehouse poster right here.

Asian smiles, everywhere.

Rest of the photos are right here!

Japanese home decor is a little bit more than plain decorating a living space. It is about achieving a feeling of balance in the universe. This process is known as Zen, which is essential in true Japanese home decor. With minimalism in furnishing the Japanese home decor embraces space, and uses it as a way of balancing the Yin and Yang.

Oriental paintings and wall art are another popular way to add Eastern decor. Some of the most popular images include mountains in mist, animals such as horses and the Japanese images of the ocean waves. There is an image to suit almost any taste, and these images and designs are timeless in their beauty and appeal. You can use them as a single image, or a series of images, especially if they are smaller items that go together.

Next is the central feature of a Japanese-style bedroom – a futon or platform bed. In Japanese design, this bed does not have a footboard or, sometimes, a headboard. It has an extended platform on which the mattress sits in the middle. It usually does not have box springs. It sits low to the ground and sometimes well away from all walls. Use all silk bedding in a single rich color to continue the Japanese theme (and to pamper yourself). Add several silk pillows to your platform bed to complete the effect.

Japanese decor also uses water. As the bowl of water with a single flower in it illustrates, water features do not have to be fancy or large, but they should be included to create the overall balance that is inherent in the Japanese decorating style.

If you have the room, and would like a larger indoor water feature, consider including a pond in which you can add a few koi (a colorful, decorative Japanese carp) and water plants. Koi do not grow larger than their environs can support, so you do not have to worry about them outgrowing your pond.

If you search around the internet for a few moments for some Asian style furniture ideas, you can often find a dresser with tea cups on top of it. Or maybe you glanced at a futon acting as a bed. This is a very notable feature of Asian interior decorations. Maybe you could place a dresser next to your door with a bonsai plant on top. Using the dresser as a shoe holder will make the room seem that much larger.

Room divider screens can be used in almost every room of the house. What makes them an outstanding home furnishing investment is the fact that they can be moved from room to room at a moment’s notice.

Their versatility as well as beauty make them attractive and well within a person’s budget–a best price home décor “must have.”

Continue this earthy motif to the living room. There you’ll find coffee and end tables carved and polished from the black and white, orthoceras-filled matrix that comes from Moroccan deserts. Plaques of specimens come in all sizes and include specimens ranging from ancient trilobites and brittlestars to polished ammonites and orthoceras. Prices have a wide range, too, so watch out! If you take the time to shop around, you can find some great deals!

Read About Find Tips Also Read About Maintaining Fresh Flowers and
Japanese Home Decor