I am still alive!
With my last quarter at UCLA winding down, and having my busiest quarter ever... I haven't had much time to do anything. =P But, I am still alive and kicking. I'll start updating this more often over the summer... But then again, I've said that in the past. ;-) I will have my time at UCLA culminate with the conferring of my degree on June 13, 2003. What's next? Hmm... Work, and then I'm going to take the LSAT in October. I might go for an Environmental Law degree in a year or so... Yeah, I'll be a fulltime student until I'm in my late 20s... But as most of my friends have expressed, working fulltime sucks ass, too. =P I also want to congratulate George on finishing Medical School! He is now a doctor... Be afraid, be very afraid. ;-)

5/24/03
Today I went to Hernane's BBQ (thrown because his parents were out of town... =P). We got to hang out, eat burnt ribs (okay, so the second ones were good!), and watch nearly 7 hours of VH1's 80s special... year by year. A-Team, Knight Rider, Transformers, etc... How could you not watch?! Thanks for the grub, Hernane. ;-)

5/16/03 -
Tonight, Pilipinos for Community Health (PCH) had a fundraiser at the Santa Monica Pier. For those of you who know the pier, there is a carousel near the beginning. This area was rented out, and the night of drinking began... You see, the fundraiser part was a $20 fee for access to an open bar. Melody, since she is the Director of Operations, Internal for PCH, told me to invite all of my friends for the fundraiser.Needless to say, as soon as I mentioned "open bar," I got confirmation from Calvin, Christina, George, Hernane, Noel, and Phil. After drinking with the gang, I had to leave early. But, that was well after *most* of them were DAH (drunk as hell). George, I heard, was the pimp of the party... I know, it boggles the mind. =P Phil ended up puking near the carousel... Noel called me up the next morning telling me about his "adventures in the bathroom" for most of the morning. =P I guess my friends will be known as the crazy drunks by PCH and anyone else there that night... Damn straight! ;-)

[ posted by Mike N. on 6:36 PM | link ]

4/27 - 5/2 : Washington D.C.
In completing my Masters in Urban Planning, I have to work on a Comprehensive Project (i.e. Thesis). The comp. project is through a class with 7 other students, where we collectively write an essay on poverty. Poverty, as you all (should) know, is not a small or easy task to cover. However, with the guide of our professor (who is the Senior Human Development Specialist at the World Bank), we narrowed down our focus. Our efforts involve looking at the multi-dimensional aspects of poverty, using 7 countries as background (Cambodia, Guinea, Indonesia, Philippines. Tajikistan, Tanzania, and Uganda). Each person is responsible for one aspect of poverty (or poverty itself). For example, my chapter is on the Environment & Poverty. Others are doing Civil Society, Role of Donors, Conflicts, Health, Governance, etc. In the end, the project/paper will be a synthesis of our coursework over 2 quarters.

But the real beauty of choosing to do the comp. project is a trip to Washington D.C., to meet with representatives from the Aspen Institute, Human Rights Watch, InterAction, Oxfam, USAID, the World Bank, etc. on various topics. After flying out on a red eye flight on Sunday night, I arrived in D.C. on Monday morning... Pooped, but awake and excited to be on a trip. Charlie, Darlene, Ilona, and me went on a trolley tour of the city since that would be our only free day to explore. We saw the Lincoln Memorial, National Geographic Museum, Vietnam Memorial, National Cathedral, as well as other landmarks. The following days were spent in meetings... All day long. =P It was acutally quite exhausting, as the meetings spanned pretty much all day. In the evenings, there was a barrage of intoxication. ;-) Overall it was definitely a fun trip... Business-like, but we still had time on our own. =)

5/5/03 -
On a sad note, I was just informed today that Mike Jendrzejczyk from Human Rights Watch passed away last Thursday. He was our first contact/meeting while we were in D.C., and it proved to be one of the best of the trip by far. He seemed to be a very knowledgable and friendly guy, and was more than willing to help us out with our project. He even insisted that many of us e-mail him so that we could obtain more resources on our particular themes. It's just eerie that someone you had just met on Tuesday would not be here a few days later... My condolensces to his friends and family.

Tomorrow is my Land Use Law final. I hope I don't fail... ;-)

[ posted by Mike N. on 11:36 PM | link ]

I saw the movie Better Luck Tomorrow (BLT) with Melody today. I actually thought that this movie was pretty good, and presented thought-provoking issues. Being an Urban Planner (*snicker*), I have learned all about the woes of suburbanization and cookie-cutter PUDs. The general apathy and malcontent that these places invoke due to sterile and boring surroundings really came through in this movie. I could also relate, thinking back on my TPD days, of living in Irvine (Orange County) and seeing how familiar the surroundings were in the movie and in my own experience. Now, college didn't present the exaggerated lifestyle of those pesky Asian high school kids (heh)... But it presented a side of the Asian American experience that has not really been covered before. Melody, on the other hand, didn't like it... ;-)

[ posted by Mike N. on 11:56 PM | link ]

Mazda Rev It Up

Today Calvin, Christina, Noel, Phil, and me attended the Mazda Rev It Up event (with Dolly and Hernane meeting us later). After grabbing a quick lunch (or two in Phil's case), we headed south to the former El Toro air base to start our day of driving Mazdas. For those of you that don't know, it's a nationwide competitive driving event. In the competition/driving clinics, you drive an auto-equipped Mazda6. As long as you had a valid driver's license, you were allowed to test drive a variety of Mazda vehicles in a makeshift (albeit slower) course. The clinics included slalom, braking + turning, and driving line. Our competition group was pretty much towards the end of the day, so we had a lot of time in between to goof off. We test drove an Mazdaspeed Protege, piled 7 of us into the MPV and bumped the radio, and almost hit a moose once or twice! ;-) There were also cars on display including the upcoming RX-8, free video games, and expensive food/drinks. =)

Our competition came and went, and I think I did okay for my first time on an autocross course. Some more seat time would have definitely been welcomed... Also, I found it strange that the cars in the clinics were stock, yet the competition runs were modified with Eibach springs and a Bosal exhaust. Shouldn't they all be the same? In regards to the clinics, they were too short (err... well... the lines were long?) and the information was pretty much everything that I've heard/learned before. Overall, though, you can't beat the $39 price for the day to beat up on some Mazda cars. =P I had a good time driving and hanging out with friends.

Here are some pictures;




Quote of the Day : "Rookie mistake..." - What the start-off guy said to Noel after he stalled the Mazdaspeed...

Sound of the Day : Phil starting up the car in two different clinics... when the cars were already on.

[ posted by Mike N. on 8:01 PM | link ]

My good friend Dave was in town the past week... Dave is someone I've known since high school, but after graduating from UCLA last year, he decided to go on a spiritual quest (I might be making that up) which took him to Asia. After a brief period in Japan, he is now residing in Thailand and attends a major university there (for his masters in international business & finance). So, on his one week back after being gone for nearly 1.5 years... We did plenty of drinking (Margharita Monday, Baja Cantina), saw a comedy (Bringing Down The House), and just chilled with all of our friends. It was a great reunion of sorts, and most of us couldn't help but reminisce... It felt like no time had passed at all, and that's one thing I've noticed about good friends. You don't have to talk to them for a while, but once you do again, it's always just like before. In a strange twist of fate, we even ran into another old h.s. friend at Baja Cantina that night. But, the week was definitely too short... I mean, he and his car were used in the infamous chicken statue and fake sub sandwich heist from Albertson's (archives will be back up soon, or so I'd like to believe)!

He's actually the one who told me to update this shiz, because he was getting tired of reading the same 'ol crap that I've had posted since the last month or two (I know you're reading this!). ;-) Anyway, I hope you're doing well bro... We miss you on this side of the world! I can't handle Vic's craziness alone... haha =P

[ posted by Mike N. on 1:07 AM | link ]

3/21 - 3/23
Well, it was time for another weekend in Vegas! We can always count on Noel for suggesting the idea, and then actually following through on it... After all, he is the addict. ;-) We left Friday night with a caravan of myself, Calvin, Christina, Dolly, George, Hernane, Mike, Noel, and Phil. After lots of food, gambling, and fun times, we called it a weekend. =P Here are some highlights, and not-so-highlights;

• _oe_ is a reckless driver (name omitted to protect that crazy bastard)... Mr. Cut Off A BMW 5-series While Avoiding The Big Rig In Front Of You In A Ford Windstar! =P
• George and his nifty iPod with FM modulator made the trip... uh... music-filled.
• Interaction of the evening; "Where are we going?"-me "I don't know... Calvin told me to turn right."-Chris "She's just being a woman... Doing what the man tells her to do."-Mike
• What the hell is up with our hotel's casino (Tuscany Hotel), which doesn't have slot machines that actually accept coins?
• Did Dolly wake up at 6am as usual? I don't know. She was in the other room...
• Mmm... Mandalay Bay buffet...
• Screw you, Palms casino!
• Hernane gets mad that we leave a Sam Woo that has a cute hostess... He claims he told them to set the table already. We don't believe him. ;-)
• Harassed by the workers at a Chinese restaurant to eat there, Noel bargains with them for the VIP room and cheaper food (Chinatown, not China)... We left and got pho.
• Mmm... Boba... In Vegas...
• Hello Kitty!
• Noel wins $400 from a slot machine in 5 minutes. He wins another $100 at the machine to his left in even less time.
• Click here for what we found in the Paris fountain (*warning* mildly disturbing).
• To find out what Phil finds under his bed (yes, he does other things when he's not on the phone with _i_h_l_e... It's like hangman!), click here (*warning* extremely disturbing). He says it isn't his... But I find no such item under my bed?
• Mmm... Japanese/sushi buffet...
• George... Stop pedophiling (is that a word?). =P
• With a $5 chip on the number 30 in roulette, I hit it. Phil follows suit after I tell him number 23 will come up next, and it does. w00t!

Overall it was definitely a fun weekend! I would have had more fun if a certain someone went... But Mel ditched me for San Fran. ;-)

[ posted by Mike N. on 11:20 PM | link ]

Today had to be the worst snowboarding conditions I have ever ridden in. Not only was the base depth only 12" or so deep at Mt. High, but it was windy and pouring rain and wet snow (which obviously was melting when it hit the ground)! I went up with Melody, her brothers, and their friends for her cousin Gellan's birthday. Since it was his birthday that day, he rode for free... After about 2.5 hours of boarding, I was totally soaked. At about 1pm, they closed the mountain down due to the wind/snow. The drive home was quite exciting. It's always a thrill watching Southern California drivers manage their way through our city streets/highways when it rains. People followed too closely, locked up their brakes while going fast and through deep puddles, and just didn't drive... safely. Oh well. My AWD wagon did just fine. =) Aside from the freezing cold and wet weather, I did have fun. There was hardly anyone on the mountain, and I got Mel to go on the upper mountain with me. ;-) Since it closed down early, my 6-pack was also refunded. =P I just need to re-waterproof my gear...

[ posted by Mike N. on 9:40 PM | link ]

Anti-War Walk Out - 3/5/03

Here's a photo from the anti-war walk out/protest that occurred on the campus of UCLA;


Drift Showoff @ Irwindale Speedway - 3/2/03

I woke up early (okay, really early - 5am) to participate in a car show with my Subaru buddies (Benny, Don, Jenny, and Thien). The drifting action was hot, as three professional Japanese drivers tore up the make-shift track. They were drifting within inches of the barricades, and two of the cars eventually hit one wall or the other. Since this was the first car show that I competed in, I wasn't quite prepared for the hours (upon hours) of just sitting around. However, thanks to the drift entertainment, I wasn't too bored. Here are some photos;





[ posted by Mike N. on 12:16 AM | link ]

Yesterday, I took a road trip with Melody to Santa Barbara. Since it was proposed to be in the 80s all day, I decided that spending it in my house or her apartment would be boring. After gassing up, we made our way up the California coast (highway 1) up to Camarillo/Oxnard. Then we hopped onto the 101 west and headed to S.B. Once there, we took a walk around the pier/wharf. Mel was pretty much falling asleep (due to her having an 8am class earlier that day), so we decided to head back to the car and drive to the Santa Barbara Mission. After a brief tour of the mission, we were once again tired (heh we're like old people). Then we headed back to L.A. so I could get a Philly cheesesteak from JITB. ;-)

[ posted by Mike N. on 5:02 PM | link ]

1/10/03

Happy anniversary honey!

[ posted by Mike N. on 12:30 PM | link ]

Mele Kalikimaka!


Another Christmas on a tropical island in the Pacific... ;-)

[ posted by Mike N. on 12:21 PM | link ]

One year after the first day that we met, Melody and I spent the evening at my company's office party. There was a casino room where we kicked butt on the roulette table, open bar, and even dancing. =)

[ posted by Mike N. on 12:26 AM | link ]

12/11 - 12/12


Melody and I took a road trip to San Diego... It was actually a spur of the moment event, as we decided to go on Thursday night at about 7pm. =P After packing, we took off on our adventure. Our first stop was at a Carls Jr. to re-fuel our stomachs. We finally reached S.D. around 9pm or so and drove around downtown for a bit. Then came the arduous task of finding a hotel... err... make that an affordable one. First we drove back towards La Jolla, because Melody had seen a Hyatt Regency. Turned out that it was actually a Hyatt Resort near Sea World, and they wanted $180 for one night! =O After calling a couple of the other namebrand hotels and driving on the same stretch of highway back and forth, we decided to head back to the downtown area. There, we found a Best Western (I think?) that only wanted ~$40/night. After looking at the accomodations, area, and parking lot I decided to pass on that. I'm not *that* cheap. ;-) We finally made our way to a Hamptons Inn. They wanted ~$70/night, but the hotel looked nice and clean, had a gated/covered parking garage, and even a complimentary breakfast!

After a good night's rest, we woke up bright and early (~9am) to capitalize on the included breakfast. I ended up taking an extra bagel that I never got around to eating. Darn. =) First we went to Seaport Village and walked around. I even got a lefthanded notebook! Word. =P Afterwards, we drove back towards La Jolla. We went to the Scripps Aquarium, and looked at various fish, crustaceans, and sea horses. =) Finding ourselves hungry after all of the walking, our next idea was to try and find some Mexican food (how can you go to S.D. and not have any?!)... Well, it proved to be somewhat difficult. We called up Richelle, Mel's roommate, and she didn't really know how to get us to where she gets carne asada fries. Undeterred, I eventually took an exit off the freeway and just headed... west. ;-) Finally we found a restaurant off of the exit. There, we had some really good food... They had handmade tortillas that were awesome! Full, we headed back to L.A. and got stuck in traffic. Doh.

[ posted by Mike N. on 10:01 AM | link ]

Where is all the snow?

Well, El Nino has officially sucked thus far. Yes, I know that El Nino doesn't necessarily bring about an increase in the frequency of rain/snow, but it is supposed to bring heavier snows when a storm does go through. So far, I am not impressed. The mediocre rainfall that we have received in our local (SoCal) mountains has pretty much amounted to little more than a hill of beans. What's worse is that the last storm's snow levels were so high that the rain ended up melting most of the snow from the previous one. I'm probably more peeved, because by this time last year I had gone up to Mt. High at least a few times (even going for free on my birthday!). This season, I have yet to go... My class schedule this quarter was great, seeing as I only had class on Mondays and Wednesdays. Next quarter I'll have real classes and a full schedule. Darn. As bad as it is, I'll probably head up to the mountains next week (finals week is wonderful without any real finals! =P)... Anyone want to come? ;-) This is your weather man (person to be p.c.) reporting...

[ posted by Mike N. on 12:39 AM | link ]

Thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate my birthday tonight (Ann, Ansen, Clarissa, Geraldine, Hernane, Juan, Kym, Mark O., Mark P., Noel, Patrick, Richelle, Tess, Young Jin... And an even bigger thanks to my honey Melody for setting it up. Hope you guys had as much fun as I did! =)

[ posted by Mike N. on 1:08 AM | link ]

Yay, happy birthday to me! =P

[ posted by Mike N. on 12:18 AM | link ]

Hello out there... err... Is anyone still there? Yes, I know it has been a great while since I've blogged. While I can't come up with any great excuses other than being a lazy s.o.b., just know that I'm back. For how long you ask? I guess until I become lazy again... ;-)

So what now? This quarter is winding down... Hard to believe that I'll have my masters in about 7 months! I'll also be 24 in about 6 days, so unfortunately I'm getting older. =P Other than that, I'm just spending quality time with Mel, my family, and friends. The only thing I need now is some snow on our local mountains... ;-)

[ posted by Mike N. on 10:18 PM | link ]

Happy Halloween! The night should be filled with either a party or a trip to WeHo's annual Halloween Festival (with all the freaks). Spooky, isn't it? ;-)

[ posted by Mike N. on 12:04 AM | link ]

Thanks to my parents, last night Melody and I went to see The Lion King at the Pantages Theatre. It was a great show, and the costumes/set were fantastic! I'd recommend seeing the musical before it leaves for Chicago. =)

[ posted by Mike N. on 1:20 PM | link ]

Happy birthday Ellen!

Last night -
We (Alice, Melody, and I) took Ellen to BJs Pizza in Westwood in a vain attempt to stall her (and eat dinner!) so everyone else could setup the suprise party for her back at their apartment. Her sister, Jobe, even drove up all the way from Irvine for the festivities. After the surprise and cake, we enjoyed a drama-filled game of LIFE (they have minivans instead of cars... what crap!). The two non-college graduates ended up with the highest salaries at the beginning of the game... Just goes to show how school is not cool. ;-P After the majority of the people went home, the phone rang. Now, this might seem to be a normal occurrence... Afterall, isn't that part of the purpose of a phone? However, when Richelle answered it, she received a muffled collect call from someone at a state prison. Freaking out, she quickly hung up the phone. A minute passed by and the phone rang again. After some hysterical screaming, they forced me to answer it. It was the same muffled collect call from a state prison, except that this time they asked for Richelle by name. Instead of accepting the call, I had no choice but to hang up. Interesting night that was... =P

Today -
I went with Mel to Century City and saw the movie Sweet Home Alabama. It was a (dare I say) cute movie, but I always wonder what happens to the person they break up with to be with their true love? I mean, that just sucks... For them, anyway. Later on in the evening, I even picked up these nifty lefthand drive STI headlamps. ;-)

[ posted by Mike N. on 10:40 PM | link ]

This weekend I went to help out with the booth for PCH at Pistang Pilipino. It was held at St. Genevieve's in Panorama City. Billed as a trade and tourism event, there were various crafts, goods, politicians running for office, and even this nifty toilet spray washer thing! ;-) There was even an import (*cough* rice *cough*) car show right in front of our booth. We handed out health-related information and gave free blood pressure screenings. However, we noticed that there weren't as many people as we thought there would be... Probably due to the $10.00 admission price. It seemed as though the most people (on Saturday) came while we were all packing up to leave. =P Sunday pretty much was a repeat of Saturday... Right down to my food selection. ;-) Well, except for the fact that it was over 100-degrees farenheit in the Valley! Melody and I escaped from the heat for a bit by going to mass... When it was over, I didn't want to leave the air-conditioned church! =P I even got to see/hang out with Pauline for both days, as her parents were on the organizing committee for the event (thanks for the free water). Kat was even there today, on a trip down south from the Bay Area. But I ask this... Why did it have to be so hot today?!

[ posted by Mike N. on 4:07 PM | link ]