10.28.04, Thursday:October 2004
10.28.04, Thursday:
[08:58pm] Happy Birthday Auntie Rosa! =) I dropped off the prettiest bouquet of flowers that I assembled after work, hee hee. One broke off...so I got to keep one! ^_^ Happy Birthday to Ian too, though I doubt he reads this, hee hee. He's one of the Tai's at church - a group of elaborately intelligent and yet cool household of people, hee hee. I like them. ^_^
And wasn't this the week of birthdays? Giang, Amy, Simon, Ian, Auntie Rosa...and finished off with Femi's birthday. Wow! A Wonderful Week! ^_^
Besides that, it's been a long week at work and at home. At least I only have a bruised calf when the easel fell on me at school, at the end of 2nd period, and nothing else. =P Other than that, classes have been going fine, with lots of science. ^_^
There was a total lunar eclipse last night! Did anyone see it? I didn't get to...too wound up, grading papers! =( I didn't even know about it - must not be so cut off from outside world! But yeah, Yahoo Photos has the neatest picture for it. =)
Besides that, I also found this thing called "Spy School". Oooo. Sounds fun! Only it looks like it's scheduled for people who don't work - like it's an actual full-time course load. And it's far away too. =P
No bear costume...so I think I shall be a kung-fu fighter again! Hiiii-yaaa! ^_^
10.25.04, Monday:
[09:30pm] Apparently, I do have the support of my parents. Wow! Hee hee...my dad wanted that clarified. ^_^ (Yes, he does read this!) ^_^
[06:18pm] Yay! I'm completely out of that pit I was in the past few months. This is what I get, for denying myself something that is as natural as apple pie. No wait. Apple pie, a la mode, I mean. =) Okay. That was corny, but this is what happens when you finally arrive at shout-it-on-the-rooftop news, right? =) I mean, for months, I had become frustrated, because I didn't have the support of my family, due to one reason, and probably still don't, fully...and that was probably my main reason for holding everything off. But I've thought things through, prayed about it, explained things to my mom, and God is telling me in more ways than one, one simple, clear message that I can't ignore: "Go for it homegirl!" So here I am. =)
For my dear, dear Special Someone...I couldn't figure out what it could possibly be, that you got me at Wal-Mart, even though I forbade myself from going there, hee hee...and after reading your email, I thought and thought, and couldn't think of anything until I was putting my hair up this morning. Could it be? Those hair ties? Is-it-is-it? It's the only thing I could think of! If it is, yay! If not, still yay! Thank you for still thinking of me! ^_^
Oh yes. I DO have a Special Someone. ^_^ Is it officialized? I don't know. But I'm quite happy. Head over heels happy (except that that phrase doesn't make sense. Shouldn't it be "heels over head"?) even. At least he DOES know about it, unlike how Jet Li was my hero and what-not...umm, except that Jet Li didn't really know anything about it at all. ^_^ Wanna know who? Muah ha ha, my dear friends, you should already know who! And if you don't...well...you'll find out in due time. =)
10.23.04, Saturday:
[08:42am] Two "staff" things in the past two nights, hee hee...Thursday night was book club, out at the Loma Linda area. Far far away...but blessed with Indian food from Bombay. And Mmmm. We had samosas, among other delightful treats! I think I must make some of my own one day. =) Friday night was the staff party at Lynda's. I wasn't going to go, but was tempted by Heidi - she wanted to go to Trader Joe's and then get some Mango Snow Bubble. How could I not??? =) So off I went to to explore all the wonderful foods at TJ, and then Tapioca Express for snow bubble. I was so hungry, I had to get the spicy chicken things - LAST time I got those, I ordered the most spiciest level possible, and almost DIED eating it, hee hee. Remember? ^_^ So I just asked for Mild...and it was mild and spicy, still yummy, but not as deadly as that other one. =) Mandy, from a "small town in Michigan", who had never tried Indian food and did the night before, also had her first boba drink, hee hee. ^_^
In both events, I still feel really young, and don't say as much, though I have things to say! I think it's just the culture thing, heh heh - it's instilled in me and well...that's the way it is. I still enjoyed the time there, but yep. Actually, though I know that those who know me can know me to be one to talk and lead or what-not, I think I'm generally a quiet person around larger groups. Heh heh. ^_^
I had a nice dream last night. =) I won't put it here - too long to explain! But it wasn't AS weird as my usual weird dreams (no flying monkeys, CGI dolphins, or RPGs blasting evil monsters), except that I was Indian (I think because of the book we were reading for book club) and brahmin somehow, though I wasn't in India or anything, hee hee. Books take you everywhere, I guess. Even in your dreams, ha ha...=)
10.20.04, Wednesday:
[04:45pm] Rainy Day for Middle School Kids in Southern California
Always an event, as we don't get much here, eh? Rain was crazy today at school - I heard that the kids were making little boats, and floating them in what we all started calling "The Lake". It was all cute and fun in one sense, but Tony, our wonderful custodian, had to spend a lot of time trying to unclog the drains, only to find handfuls of paper boats crunched together into one big accident. =P
"The Lake" was very big. More than knee-deep for most kids. One girl decided to cross it in the morning, thinking it wasn't that deep, but ended up tripping and diving face-first, right in the middle of it. That was only the start - the rest of the day included a few kids who tumbled or were pushed into ponds, and many who had no umbrellas and were cold and soaked to the skin.
Puddles were left all over classrooms. At least I had a bucket for wet umbrellas/jackets, and towels (being a science classroom) for a few soaking students! I only had two puddles by the end of the school day in my classroom. =)
And it was a perfect opportunity to demonstrate condensation when the classroom windows (and if you've not been to my classroom, there's a whole wall that's made up of nothing but windows!) started fogging up! Of course, rain in itself involves condensation too! Yay! Science at its best! ^_^
[06:05am] This rain is insane! It woke me up at 4am. I looove it! =) The big winds, pouring rain...I woke up and looked outside to see huge gusts of wind pushing rain in all all directions, like waves in the ocean, one succession after another. It was neat. =) And then I had a dream where I looked outside and our street was like a river, and water was swooshing over in REAL waves, arching about ten feet into the air before slamming back down onto our driveway...THAT was a little scary. Anyways, back to reality - rain is scheduled all day today. Woo hoo! =)
Just drive carefully everyone!
10.18.04, Monday:
[06:30am]Another one of these morning posts, hee hee...so...good morning all! ^_^
Thursday - a wonderful day! Although I had planned to take Monday off (which I now can't!), Thursday was refreshing! I went to Kaiser, got antibiotics for that scary, venomous infection, and then went to B&N for a few hours. I had lesson planned for this next week, which is awesome! Wandering around there, I bought The Nanny Diaries! The hardcover was for only $7, hee hee...Yay! After, I meandered around at Target and picked up some things I needed for my students.
At home, I did all my work, read from The Ladies' Coupe for Book Club (Heidi, you'll be happy to know that I finished the book!!!), and simply relaxed the rest of the day away reading! DVD showed up after his interview to check on my bro, only he wasn't here...he showed up later, so DVD had dinner with us! Congrats on your interviews! Although now, you gotta make a decision if you're going to take the job!
I wish I could take today off too! It'd be nice! Even with the rain. How I LOVE this rain!!! It's so refreshing and clean...and there's more expected for this week! Yay! =)
Friday was school, and some classes lost the lab because of their horrendous behavior with the sub; instead, we did worksheets. After work, Junko and Angela and I went down to the Starbuck's to simply chill. It was neat - Junko's Japanese, Angela's Samoan, and I'm Chinese. Diversity is growing in our teaching staff, hee hee, and it was nice to just talk about things other than work, away from work! =)
Saturday - Governing Board meeting in the morning. Because my seat had a nice window view of the back, I could see people at the Church Clean-Up working together. There were so many moments when I just wanted to snap a picture! Theo and this new guy at church holding giant tumbleweeds and moving them out to the back, followed by little Asa, holding his own tumbleweed, and little Leah, holding what looked like half of a small one. Or when Paul was in the back, using a big rake, making a giant pile of tumbleweeds that were so much bigger than him. Or when Theo and the new guy were pushing the big trash container (you know, those big ones that the trash trucks pick up with hooks?) full of tumbleweeds, with Asa sitting on top at the helm. Tumbleweeds - so ghetto and funny, and yet, they allowed for great pictures of people working together. =)
In the evening, we went down to the Ten Ten Seafood Restaurant down in Artesia, for my Auntie #2's 70th birthday dinner! Mmm. Stuffed with great food, including crispy giant scallops, honey walnut mayo shrimp, lobster, shark fin soup, peking duck, longevity noodles, and all that good stuff. Not to forget that we had four - yes, FOUR! - types of desserts! Crispy, flaky green tea pastries filled with sticky sweet red bean...egg yolk (cooked and sweetened) wrapped with mochi and coconut flakes...the little butt-buns (hee hee...they're buns made into peach shapes, made pink on one end to look like a peach. Only it also looks like a butt. ^_^ And they're filled with red bean inside, so if you squish it out just right...ewww...!), and one giant "butt-bun" for my Aunt (which, unfortunately, was not filled with red bean! hee hee...), and some Taro paste birthday cake (the taro paste was rather thick, and not so yummy...so Joanna built a giant "Tower of Taro!" on her plate with all our leftover taro paste, hee hee...). Enough, I'm sure, to feed a small army. =)
As we got home late, and couldn't sleep because we were so full, my mom never got up in time for church the next day, hee hee. So it was just my dad and I (um. Nobody woke up my bro, hee hee. He didn't go to the dinner; he just slept. He was getting better, but now, he's sick again! Malaria??? j/k...though I certainly hope not!) going to church. After church, we had praise practice - man, that group is getting humongous! It's neat, because a violin will be thrown in for a song here and there. Thomas is doing an awesome job leading it! =)
CCF was down at Mello's, where we celebrated Megan's bday...but had a cake for Mello's bday too! Woah! So yay...good food (thank you Ma's!), good fellowship and Bible Study, and always a good time to hang out with lovely friends. =) For Bible Study, we discussed about the Curse of the Snake...it was really interesting, and I scribbled down all kinds of notes in my Bible. I love writing in my Bible and filling it up with new things! ^_^
There's a lot to pray for. I won't share them here, because they're several people's own private request, but know that I'm praying, my friends, and know that He will take care of things in the end...!
Monday...off to work I go...!
10.14.04, Thursday:
[11:35am] In celebration of Megan's birthday today, hee hee...I'm home. =) J/k. I'm not working for other reasons. Gross reasons...! O_o
10.11.04, Monday:
[06:25am] Happy Columbus Day! ^_^ Too bad schools don't get it off, hee hee...
Anyways, here's something I got from Calvin, who is finally back at RCAC with us! =)
create your own visited states map
or check out these Google Hacks.
create your own visited countries map
or check out these Google Hacks.
Hmm. Of course, airplane stops and transfers don't count. I need to visit more places! ^_^
10.10.04, Sunday:
[09:26pm] When will this madness end??? I was up till 3am this morning, grading papers. It was almost a 12 hour grading marathon...! No more, ever again...though next weekend will be similar, because their final essays are due this week already. Dang it! Heh heh. I do have "mandatory breaks" - a GB meeting on Saturday (it was cancelled today, due to too many that were out, including my sick bro. =( ), possible bday dinner for my auntie if I can make it, subbing for Youth Sunday School, and CCF at Mello's (combo w/ Megan's bday celebration, yay!).
Me at the end of October --> O_o
Despite intense grading, it was still a nice weekend where I got to chill and relax. I did a bunch of house cleaning things on Saturday, including making my bro open my little dirt devil, where I knew a great, big, ugly spider was lurking inside (I had vacuumed it up the night before, because it was the handiest thing around at the moment to get rid of it). So he opened it up, and out popped that giant spider, running all over the place, until I saturated it with Raid, muah ha ha...=) My weird shoes came in the mail today too...I will wear them - at least they will make me laugh, right? Actually, they're quite comfy and soft on the bottom, and I think I've acclimated to their weirdness already...oh no! ^_^ Shelton came over, and I made him be my TA - he graded all the tests, and then made a word search for my class, ha ha. =) My mom took me Costco shopping after church, where I saw a student from last year (I see a lot of students at Costco. Every time I go, I run into one!). And of course, we can't forget after-dinner entertainment: throwing grapes up in the air and catching them with our mouths! =)
Ooo! B&N and/or Starbucks sound good. I have a gift certificate too for Starbucks!! (Yay for Mello and August Bdays, hee hee...) I can grade, and be energized with that IZZE sparkling grapefruit drink that I like. Ha ha. I mean, what else can I entertain myself with, right? =P My best bet is Friday evening though!
I've adopted a pet too! Only it doesn't make any sound. The monkey I got at camp last weekend was named Maxwell, and I like it - it doesn't sound preppy to me, but more of...well...have any of you ever seen Get Smart? If yes, you must have heard of Maxwell Smart. I think of THAT when I think of "Maxwell". Thus, I like the name, and it can be an alternative to "Oscar" if I ever get a dog (I like daschunds. Oscar Mayer Weiner. Get it? ^_^). Anyways, as for this very cute pet penguin...try not to bully it please, hee hee...^_^
| adopt your own virtual pet! |
10.08.04, Friday:
[07:59pm] Friday...at last...! The weeks have been busy, and I have been drained. Yesterday and today, I stayed till almost 6pm, helping students out. I think this is what I get, for passing out grades every two weeks this year, instead of once a month. At the same time though, it's at these times that you really get to know them, which is nice. =) Overall though, the week went well, and I'm tired. I'll start my Extreme Weekend of Grading Essays sometime tonight. I won't have much time on Sunday, because of the Governing Board meeting.
Yeah...I shouldn't take a day off to grade...it should be to play...but to do what? And where? I have no ideas right now...too consumed with grading. This is what happens whenever school starts, every year. =P
I owe so many emails to so many people! Oy!
I'm more uppity today. And I got myself a big flower hair pin/clip, ha ha, that reflects how uppity and at peace I am at right now. If you come here, you must see my big flower. Hee hee. ^_^ It's peaceful-looking, like how my 8th graders were calmed down by the Shaving Cream lab this week. After the lab, like at the last 5 minutes, I let them practice their "wax on, wax off" moves on my tables, so they could clean them, and at the same time, show me their artistic talents. Many were concentrating on their pictures and writing all over the place. They were so at peace...! Hee hee...it's cute in a kiddy-way because they're little kids still, but trapped in these big bodies...! But aren't we all like that at times? Most of the time? Ha ha...only my body stopped growing a long time ago...some may even call me some type of dwarf...=)
Did I mention that I got my APLE payment in the mail this week? APLE paying off school loans for me is a wonderful thing! =)
Last night, I drove straight from work down to Rosalyn's. We went to eat for her bday down in downtown Fullerton, a cute and happenin' place on Thursday nights, hee hee...kinda like our downtown Riverside Wednesday nights, where there are vendors, farmers market, and music and what-not. We ate at Chomp Rockin' Sushi and Teppan Grill. That place was SO much fun!!! Fun music and atmosphere...I enjoyed it tons! Our chef was throwing bits of rice, and we had to catch it with our mouth, hee hee...I missed my first one (I couldn't reach it!), but nabbed the second one. =) We were stuffed silly with food, hee hee...but it was all good...! ^_^
10.07.04, Thursday:
[06:05am] Bleah. =P
Gas prices are so high...! I drove by the one place that's normally a bit cheaper, and it was at $2.34! I got gas at Vons though, for $2.20. Oy.
Thursday already? Week is finally going faster...heh heh...October is a long month...maybe I should take a day off soon...so I can grade essays at B&N, hee hee...^_^
10.06.04, Wednesday:
[06:12am] I decided to go camping this weekend, and had fun. =) Yay for camping! I'd like to go again, hee hee...with my tent...it'd be fun to have gear for cooking, one of those air mattresses, and even a fishing pole to catch yummy catfish, but I haven't gone camping enough to do that just yet. Hee hee...I'm starting at Level 1 - A Tent. ^_^ Though I was dead tired, we still had fun playing old school classics, like jump rope (the parents too!!! That was hilarious!), scavenging and bartering food (all I had were some almonds and gummies...) with the other families, climbing a big rock, hiking and wondering if we were lost, and all those wonderful things that make camping with good people fun. =)
There were but two moments of injustice. One, I hope, will never happen again. I had a talk with some people, and yeah...the victim, so to say, of this injustice, has a good, strong heart, and he made it sound like a good thing, when I know it must have hurt him somewhere. I talked to him after, and he appreciated it, and that was nice to know. =) Another, well, that was something that happens at times, and feeling underappreciated is never a good thing. That kinked itself out over time, though it was great that Shelton helped out with this case. =)
I missed Sally's Goodbye Party and Ros' Birthday Party, because I was so pooped out upon return! But I called, hee hee, and so...bye Sally! I'll miss you! Keep in touch homegirl! ^_^ Yesterday was two people's birthday as well: Happy Birthday Lorie!!! ^_^ Happy Birthday Rosalyn!!! ^_^
Monday and yesterday were busy as expected. Points to bring up, I suppose, include: