you're gonna like the way you feel, i guarantee it

This past week I've been in finals terror eating mode, occurring nightly at a continuous rate between ungodly hours of 5pm and 5am.

McD's, pizza, pizza, curry, yogurtland, pizza, pizza, chocolate snacks, more McD's, ice cream, burger, milkshake, a stromboli (meatcheese sodium baked in bread soaking in sauce) from Enzo's (first time ever in my UCLA career), McDs...

So if you ever feel sad, just find comfort in knowing that my arteries are far more clogged than yours.

In entirely unrelated news, Dakota Fanning is ridiculous. I realize that most people are love/hate over her, but there's no denying that the little lady is blessed with a gift for acting. I also realize the love/hate over K-Stew. She's fine on screen, awkward off. Both are young and multi-talented; they sing half the soundtrack on THE RUNAWAYS.

I might be one of the few, but as a fan of Joan Jett and the band, I'm looking forward to the film. Dakota plays Cherie Currie and K-Stew, Joan. Oh, they also do cocaine (apparently crushed B-vitamins?) and share an onscreen kiss. Whoa.

"Cherry Bomb", original live 1977

"Cherry Bomb", film 2010

death to finals?

Papers. The blessing and curse of an American Lit. & Culture (a.k.a. cop-out English) major.

While everyone around me has been stressing out of their minds about this final at that o'clock, I've been working hard, convincing them all to take study breaks with me, including but not limited to, watching crappy-B and awesome-A films, Yogurtland and restaurants. 

An hour ago:

9:19 PM Joanne: omg

  lets get ice cream

  jk

  i cant but i want to

  whats wrong with me

 me: AH NOOO u got my hopes up for like half a second...

 Joanne: i'm like falling asleep though

  might just call it quits

 me: ICE CREAM.

 Joanne: mmmm

  ok i'm down

 me: I'll come pick u up

  is RITE AID open?!

 Joanne: is rite aid open?

  OMG

  that would be awesomeee...

9:24 PM me: is it???

  im asking u... if it is i'll cry.

 Joanne: ok let me look it up...

 me: YES

  they close at 11

  i think...unless im reading it wrong

9:25 PM i might be too excited

Oh, by the by, I'm Hong Kong bound in four days!?!

The impulse decision made many months ago, popped up out of nowhere and now that the trip is finally here, whoa, Nelly!

Despite my imminent travel panic, I'm more than excited to explore a new country with Mr. Jeffries. He'll probably be making a fantastic film in photos over the ten days, while I'll be taking as many touristy pictures as possible and trying to expand my stomach.

Also, it helps that I absolutely love traveling--it's great once you know how to take advantage of the experience. I don't even hate on the security checks. Just put your toiletries in a Ziploc and don't wear complicated shoes or have 50 piercings. Love airplane food as well. I'm the person that freeloads off of all the travel knick-knacks in the bathroom and by the kitchen.

Biggest regret: I'll be missing Betty White hosting SNL this Saturday. Hulu awaits after spring break.

ma' and pa'

I'm proud to say that I am daughter to parents who have mastered the basics of texting, gchat, skype (which my dad finds incredibly exciting even though I still don't understand the use) and facebook.

Here are some highlights of the gchats I've had with mother.

Last night:
7:32 PM       me: i'm almost done. i registered for cbest for june not april
                  im gonna go to dinner right now
                  i will call later tonight
                  Samantha: ok.
                  PLEASE eat well/healthy!!!!
                  love mom
7:33 PM       TTYL.
                  Got into a car accident!!
                  me: WAIT WHAT
                  ???
...not to worry, no one was hurt.


                  When my headlight bulb burned out:

8:31 PM       Samantha: are you gonna able to take care of the car problem?                  Do you want us to come over?8:36 PM       Samantha: is there any guy available tomorrow you should go with a boy8:41 PM       I get what dad says.                  You have to do some thing like this on your own in case we're not around.                  BUt I also know that as a YOUNG and woman,                  they will try to initimidate you and rip you off.8:42 PM       Samantha: Grandma might know a place.                  She is always excited about 'referals' - 'they know me'...'I can  get it cheap'....etc8:43 PM       Samantha: oh. That's good AAA is ALWAYS very reliable;                  the business that deals with AAA has to have a good reputation/feedback                  from the customers. Yeah. Do that.8:53 PM       Samantha: call early.                  even private garages (=service stations) might be busy on Saturdays.                  Samantha: doesn't hurt to call and ask how long you'd have to wait.
...I AAA researched, google mapped and called 6 different stations, went to one, fell asleep in their waiting room, then awoke to rain falling on my fixed car. $20. I didn't die, mother was pleased.

The week of the E-40 concert, my status: DEAD (from the show)8:38 PM       Samantha: why does it say 'DEAD'? 8:39 PM       me: from the rap concert this week. i might come home tonight                  Samantha: don't leave so late.8:42 PM       don't forget to bring your glasses.                  me: ok                  Samantha: don't forget to bring your reading assignments.                  me: ok
...I forgot my glasses.

Dad also has precious moments, a treasure trove of witty and corny jokes and remarks that he thinks are gold.

He puts effort into trying to keep up as much as possible with "today's music", though he still believes they're called "Hubbastank" and "Fifty cents".

He also identifies any female voice on the radio as "Beyonce".

When not pwning today's music, he sits in bed with his laptop, Brookstone lapdesk, Bose surround headphones, Youtubes everything, comes downstairs and enthusiastically shows me his discoveries.

And those are just some of the reasons I love going home. Number one reason is the intense noms.

Olympaholics/Olympiacs Un-Anonymous

I am an addict. I have yet to find someone as obsessed over the Olympics as me. Any and every sport, summer or winter. There's just something about what it symbolizes; excellence, a nation's pride, dreams realized. Plus, they're fun, competitive and everyone wants a winner.



Of course my loyalties are shared for KoreAmerica, but USA wins a lot of everything, so I'm rooting for my roots.

The family and I are all hoping for Korea to finish in the top ten for medal count. Kim Yuh-Na (pronounced yuh, not yoona, but it's too late to correct all the world) will be the most significant victory. She's a skating prodigy, possibly even greater than the greats like Kristi Yamaguchi and Michelle Kwon, but I do worry about all the pressure of having an entire country on her shoulders. S.K. has been aggressively and almost angrily "supporting" her for the gold. We've got some short track and speed skating medals up for grabs as well. Other than that, we'll be done for winter since Korea is not keen on the snow/ski sports and hasn't developed the stamina or endurance for winter marathons.

Also, I'm genuinely glad to see that curling is sweeping (hah!) the nation. I've been following the sport since it was officially added to the Olympics in '98.  The most obvious reason behind curling fever might be that it's the only sport being shown all day, every day. Good times

I've been busy...

...trying to achieve my fancy plan.

False. I've just managed to procrastinate on yet another activity in life, blogging.
Since attempting to backtrack and summarize two months would make me lose all _single digit #_ of my readership, I will try to blog places and events in installments, just like you pay for Netflix or a Disney pass.

Most recently, I've been chillin [out maxin', relaxin' all cool..]  and reading my twitter feed/facebook status updates about how URSA is crashing hard and not allowing anyone to enroll and/or taking 15 minutes to refresh a page. I've decided not to try--haven't been on URSA all day. It is decided that I will be a super senior, at least through next winter.

As sad as the situation sounds, I will have precious time to figure out life a bit better. Friends and others are being decisive, moving on, carpe diem-ing, grabbing life by the balls...or maybe it's horns... They're good motivation.

Speaking of doing things, I did apply for 2010 Census jobs, with extra-low confidence thinking I'd fail the "we want to make sure you're not stupid, can alphabetize, and count in order" test, but I aced that sucker. Got a hopeful call about becoming a recruiting assistant, then never heard back.

I've also registered for the CBEST aka "we want to make sure you're not stupid so you can teach babies" test.  Then bought a CSET study book, just like the wonderful SAT kind so I can teach at a level above infancy.

Teaching is a good place to start if all else fails. Plus, the vacations and weekends will allow me time to keep climbing, slowly but surely, that fancy ladder 'til I reach the top--where one dons Prada head-to-toe while carrying a Prada that houses a rat-sized dog. Nothing screams success more than canine feces in a designer bag.

My London lovelies mentioned that I'm well on my way of being an Asian Liz Lemon. Who wouldn't want to go to there? I'd love to be her. Though I'm far from her wit, success, and general awesomeness, I know that I can compete when it comes to night cheesing. Being Kenneth would be perfectly fine at this point.

I must mention chat roulette. Holy goodness gawd. I won't deny that I've gone on it and seen things incredibly worthy of eyemuffs, but this creation does scare me. Worldwide + body parts + 12 year olds + Interweb = bad news bears.

Lastly, I'll include these with my posts because this is my life.
Recent heart attack: Bison ribs last weekend, Butter biscuits w/butter + Halloween cupcakes + Nutella this past weekend, Medium BK meal + funnel cake sticks tonight.

Yes, ate you. Sorry.

I appreciate you, lone reader.
Reptar signing off.

game plan.

Just to clarify, my five-year fancy plan is as it sounds. I hope to be a fancy person in five year's time. That is all.
You are most welcome to join me in this effort!

goodness, more good-ness!

Adventurous good days continue! 

Friday evening, due to a mishap with the print for our $2 Film,--guy accidentally took G.I. JOE print when he came for FANTASTIC MR. FOX. Brakewater messenger fail--I ended up spontaneously visiting Royal/T with Cakes, Mustardseed, and IlyAngela for the Hello Kitty Three Apples event! 

(Note: I thought my Friday evening was dead upon confirming the cancellation of our CEC $2 movie. Cheers to a confident social life.)

Halloween all over again. This evening's specific theme was a Masquerade, which translates, of course, to slutty. I wouldn't be surprised if the next variation was Hello Biker or Hooker Kitty. Times are a changin'...We simply dressed "cutesy" as Hello Kitty might. After a two hour line, we finally entered shrine kitty. Imagine if Hello Kitty threw up all over Las Vegas and you have it. Shockingly, I only spent $10 at the exclusive HK store, but it was on something really dumb. 

Ended with a most nomsome McD's run; devoured a Filet-o-fish, happy meal, sundae and apple pie. No regrets. 

Saturday was a delectable day. Rach drove Jeffries, Conor, George and myself to Westfield Topanga for Jeffreezy's participation in a real-life pie contest!! He entered his banana creme pie among 149 others and stood out in a sea of desperate housewives and ladies who'd probably been baking since childhood with their grandmothers. This was great, though, good publicity as the LA Times reporter followed him around. The contest itself was entertaining. There were legitimate judges, such as Chef Mark Peel, deciding within various categories: cream/custard; savory; interpretive; fruit & nut. The best part...sampling afterward! No shame on being aggressive in the pie mosh to get as many samples and as much variety as possible. 

Today, Rach and I discovered a Hollywood gem. Space 15Twenty on Cahuenga. Not only is it a 13,000 square foot Urban Outfitters (the most gorgeous, fanciest one you can imagine), but it's also a collaborative space with other brands, with pop-up space, galleries, performances, a monthly vintage flea market, one street over from the Hollywood Farmer's Market and other unique events. Dont judge me on this next part. 

Today was the last day to "take additional 50% off all Women's SALE items", thus, I went crazy. I couldn't get the deal out of my mind, especially since it was he last day. There was also the Spike Jonze book launch/Q&A/signing event nearby so I ended up going back to Hollywood with Danny. We had a great time at the signing--ran into Dongyi, Priscilla and friends in line. It was held at FAMILY books, a charming hole-in-the-wall, curated book shop that carries unique and limited print, art, music, dvds. Spike was equally charming, a bit absent-minded, but that pays compliment to his creativity and imagination. Continued my shameless day by asking if he'd come speak at UCLA. Promising!

Back to UO at 15Tweny. In total, I spent $209 on 21 pieces. I KNOW, but I believe that's probably one of the best deals on clothes I've ever gotten, especially at UO. Don't worry, I'm letting the clothes sit in the bag as I stew over everything for a few days. I will review my purchases and most likely make returns. To delude myself, I'm considering today's damage as one stipend check, money I never had and simply won't see.  Also, if you laid out all my purchases, it would look like a tea party for elderly ladies and the matching wallpaper in their nursing home. So worth it. I'm building more and more toward my fancy plan.

Director's meeting and Yogurtland/Nijya trip capped off the night. I've promised several people that I'd try to make it to bed before sunrise, and more specifically, before 3 am. I'm cutting rather close, so goodnight!

three day mid-week-end

Exactly as it sounds, I've enjoyed a 3-day weekend this Tuesday-Thursday. Much gratitude to the veterans.

Tuesday was my day for running errands and tying up loose ends. At night we screened THE ROAD, a beautifully made film full of stark but gorgeous cinematography and a stellar performance by Viggo Mortensen, who carried alongside other equally amazing support. I've never read Cormac McCarthy's novel of the same name, but having seen it brought to life, I'm all the more anxious. Q&A with producers Steve and Paula Mae Schwartz was actually one of my favorites over the years. The Schwartz's were most charming, insightful and attentive and eager to answer the students' questions--which were also surprisingly thoughtful. They had a great time and returned the compliment; this screening and Q&A was one of their favorites.

After the CEC sneak, we had a full-blown girl's night at Ali's place. Enjoyed some hilariously fun times baking the weirdest mix of funfetti and red velvet cupcakes, regular and mini, then using the leftover blood batter for a curdling, unappetizing in appearance, cake. Vanilla frosting to top it all off plus kettle corn accompanied our own screening of LOVE ACTUALLY just right. I also did a number to my stomach by eating 3 frosted cupcakes and a whole bag of kettle corn. We'll just call it preparation for next-day eats instead of the dumb idea that it actually was.


The holiday.
Rach and I went on an exploratory adventure of the Hollywood and Mid-Wilshire area.
We started off at Susan Feniger's Street

Rach's Chocolate Mint Rooiboos Tea

My beef brisket Reuben. The extra zing was that they used Jarlsberg Cheese! Excellent!

A neglected, underrated color. All the pictures had a pumpkin glow, but the variations on orange were a pleasant surprise.

 

I'd go back for the quirky ambiance and good food, as well as an "extensive tea menu". Our waiter and all the servers were extremely nice. Proves that good service really makes a difference.

We then got lost trying to find the Miracle Mile. Sadly, we realized that we hadn't really explored all of Los Angeles that has been so close to us all these years. Also, all the "cool stuff/sights" that you seem to drive by on the way to somewhere less exciting, is impossible to find when that's what you're looking for.

Finally we ended up on La Brea where a crazy open antique/garage market was sitting out on the corner lot. I love going to these and being surrounded by the most amusing and bizarre mix of furniture and knick knacks.

That was one of the....classier? pieces of furniture among the sea of leopard and zebra print ottomans, couches, armchairs, chaises, you name it. There was also a solid collection available in red velvet fit for King Tacky of Ed Hardy castle.

Did some more wandering. Over 3-4 hours, we covered maybe a block? Pathetic. We couldn't help ourselves from stopping in every store, browsing, creating magical if-we-won-the-lottery wish lists in our heads. I gave in $30 at one place for a fancy candle and matches to match!. By the way, my five-year plan has a name now; I call it The Fancy Plan. My goal is to become a fancy person by the time I'm 25. This doesn't necessarily mean stinking rich, though that would be nice. Mainly, I want to be able to afford weird things according to my naturally strange tastes (like any one of those treasures above), but then be able to appear fancy and put-together in my clothes when I go out to eat at nicer, non fast food places where I'll hopefully meet a fancy beau.

At night we all went out to celebrate Danny's 22nd. Ate well at Urth, then bought desserts to go and devoured them while sitting in a circle on the sidewalk of a local park/rec center. Everyone enjoyed the low-key evening, all in agreement that a smaller, more intimate hang out with good company is a much better time than a loud, crazy party any day. Then again, the lot of us are all old, over-the-hill seniors that have grown out of the fratmosphere or never enjoyed it to begin with.


Thursday was a bum day. Bummed around like a bum. Mind you, I never failed to send a ton of gmails over my 3-day mid-week-end. Aside from that, I woke up, slothed, showered, then found my mission awesome of the day: take advantage of the Coffee Bean 12oz. Winter promotion. Wandered to the Gayley/Weyburn and tried a free Peppermint White Chocolate Latte. Now, I've always hated coffee, the smell, the bitter medicinal taste and am thus ridiculously sensitive to it. But I will say that I barely noticed whatever coffee-esque component (because I'm completely clueless about what the heck goes in these mysterious drinks) was in this latte. Great for me, crap for coffee lovers. I made my way to the CEC office, did some office errands, then met up with Rach and Danny for milk-the-free-stuff-for-all-its-worth part deux. Got myself a Winter Dream Tea Latte--another sugary sweet delight! Kudos, Coffee Bean! Your plan worked and I'll be frequenting your shop for these.

The night was FANTASTIC MR. FOX. Wes Anderson is a cinematic mastermind, as are all the actors who voiced. I won't say much more. Everyone go see it.

a good weekend.

That is was. You can bet that this is a 360 turn in tone from my last post and much needed. Please excuse the length. An epic weekend calls for an epic post.

Saturday...well, I can't quite remember what I did during the day. What's worse is that I'm trying to backtrack on my tweets to remember my activities. But Saturday evening I was able to catch LMFAO on their Party Rock Tour since I missed out during Bruin Bash. The lineup was entertaining and I will describe them to you because what else am I gonna write about on my blog?

Space Cowboy: himself was weird and you could tell he had the low budget backup dancers. I couldn't really figure out what he was...a European Sean Paul to describe it best? Put on a fun set, though.

Paradiso Girls: Spice Girls + Pussycat Dolls. Thoroughly enjoyed them. Good eye candy for the boys as well.

FM (Far East Movement): Like, love, gotta have. They're amazing live and I'm proud that this group of four Asians are dropping hot beats and competing with the best of all the hip hop/EDM/rap music out there.

Shwayze: Wasn't entirely their fault, but I had a bone to pick with Shwayze during their set. Changes took forever and their set was an hour, maybe more, of basically an eclectic Uncle Kracker + Fresh Prince rap duo singing/rapping about everything illegal to tunes that sounded like tracks you'd hear on Kidz Bop. The length and the fact that they were a bit of a buzzkill after FM's far-too-short set and before LMFAO, didn't sit well with me.

LMFAO: They really do know how to party. I wish I could've seen them during Bruin Bash with thousands of UCLA students, but this Palladium show was a fine consolation. You can't go wrong when you wear metallic pants and drink booze from a bottle covered in rhinestones. So much more epic live as well.

The Palladium: This was my first time seeing a show here and I loved the venue. It had a bit of a lounge-y Vegas feel, circular inside, very open, but still small and intimate enough. It's a good compromise between the detached stadium atmosphere and the hole-in-the-wall alley club.

The crowd: Apparently this was an all ages show. Of course, I despised and looked down upon the kids who looked like they were 10 years old as well as the kids who were actually 10 years old. Seriously, those parents belong on TMZ. To give you another mental picture, I thought that the ground had a sunken floor because there was such an obvious dip in height about halfway back from the stage where our group started. Of course, that height difference was due to the fact that everyone excited and energetic enough to crowd the stage and halfway back was probably between the ages of (give or take) 10 to 17. This also made me feel like a creepy soccer mom, but I reassured myself that I was age appropriate among babies and the elderly, who should not be at the hot pants Party Rock Tour anymore, mid-life crisis or not.

Sunday morning also escapes me. I'm still clicking "more" at the bottom of my twitter homepage in a desperate attempt to fill in the blanks. With every click, a part of me dies, while my social networking life may or may not live on.

Epic music weekend culminated on Sunday night with the UCLA Jay-Z concert. Here goes:

Wale: Insulted that he was first to perform to a half empty Pauley Pavilion. To me and other loyal followers (such as his No.1 fan, Kid Freezy), he's rap/hip-hop's next big thing. I'm baffled at how long it's taken and that it's taking for Wale to really explode, but I'll be so glad when he picks up. Oh and uhm HE RAN UP OUR SECTION AND RAPPED RIGHT IN OUR AISLE...YEAH WE JAMMED WITH HIM, for maybe 20 seconds, but they were magical.

J. Cole: I was biased because of my intense love for everyone else performing that evening. Apparently he performed, but I honestly don't remember J. Cole's stage time at all. Perhaps being sandwiched by Wale and N*E*R*D wasn't the best for him, regardless, I think he did a song or two. I'll download and give him due listening time later.

N*E*R*D: Another jackpot. I'll be changing my name to Mrs. Pharrell Williams down at the courthouse. Also, we got to LINE THE END OF THE STAGE AND JAM RIGHT UP FRONT during their whole set. No big. Amazing. Lupe Fiasco also made a guest appearance.

Up to this point, while having the time of my life, I'd uttered, "OMG", "I'M DYING", "WTF" and general unintelligible noises like "WAHHH" "EEEE" GAHHH" at least 10-15 times. Yes, I'm 21 and not 12, music just gets me going. Then came the man and multiply my noises by 100.

Jay-Z: J-Hova, Hova, H.O.V.A.! Words cannot describe how brilliant his performance was. I know this sounds like a gross exaggeration and you who turn your nose up to "mainstream rap noise" are completely insulted, but there is no doubt that this man put on a SHOW. As dlv noted, Jay-Z brought with him a 10-piece band and truly lived up to his D.O.A. (Death of Auto-tune) stance--criticizing it's overuse and abuse as a gimmick and "crutch" for emerging artists. I also couldn't take my eyes off of his amazing soundstage and visual screen setup. That fact that Jay-Z wanted this concert and so exclusively for UCLA students made it all the more unique. Hova, I wouldn't worry about losing a young audience just yet. You're not going anywhere for a while.

The crowd: This concert was one of the best I've ever been to not only because of it's 100% epic ranking, but also because I enjoyed it with ten lovely CEC friends. We danced the hardest and sang the loudest...so much so that there was an obvious buffer of space that formed around our seats. Our flailing arms and bounce definitely needed space, and you know what, to everyone who attended and to those who decide to go to fun shows only to SIT through them, please re-evaluate your idea of fun. That's like standing during a chair-testing conference or something. (That was a horrible analogy, but you get what I mean).

I doubt you enjoyed reading this as much as I loved writing and re-living this one, but hopefully it stirred up appreciation for some fun, dance music and the notion that there is good rap out there, not all of it's crap and "noise" as my dad likes to call it. He obviously comes from a different era and is more particular. When I get to one, I'll post about some butt-kicking indie/alt/folk show, though you'll probably get a post about how much I love Disney music first.

perspective

For the first time, got to see the filmsie noobs staffing solo and they were lovely! Fumbled around a bit, as they are new, but in the least cheesy way possible, their noob-innocence was so thoroughly refreshing. I miss that. It's only a year or two in age and/or experience, but the difference is there. Being a director and dealing with the extra responsibility that comes with it, definitely takes its toll. This is just one of many heavy, thought-provoking topics that has occupied time and space in my senior year and unfortunately leads to the heaviest of topics.

Got a text from my dad during STAR TREK that my Uncle Bob had died of a heart attack that very evening. Of course the fact of his passing hit me, but not as hard as the fact that I hadn't realized how much time had passed since I'd last seen him. Commence family history-flashback...

Uncle Bob and Aunt Hyun lived together in Florida--that's where they've always been since I can remember. Their first house was on Apopka Lane, which I'll never forget because I loved that it sounded like popcorn. I still do. Their slight name discrepancy has reason. Aunt Hyun, my mom's sister, married, did you guess?, Irishman Uncle Bob. Imagine a typical, large, rosy-flushed face, Kris Kringle type, but with a hot-blooded Irish temper--he was the "scary one" in the family, but only when provoked. Together, Hyun and Bob had five beautiful happa children, one of those obnoxiously perfect families. I say that with utmost love and respect, spent a good chunk of my childhood with them all. They're the ones that got me swimming! Sad thing is, I was the least close with Uncle B. Nevertheless, tonight something clicked with my dad's text.

I've been lucky enough thus far not to have suffered any close deaths in the family, but this summer with my mom extending her stay in Korea because of my grandparents deteriorating conditions, and now with Uncle Bob's sudden passing, I'm terrified. Just terrified in general of life and death. I never talk to people about it, but I do ponder it to myself every once in a while just to keep myself in check and appreciative of what I've got. I know I've been fortunate and that people have already suffered losses much earlier and much worse than I have at this point. Right now, I'm still unsure how to cope and what the best way to deal with these very real and substantial situations. The worst part is that both my grandparents in Korea and Uncle Bob are so far from me and that I've been rather detached since childhood.

Mom's flying out Thursday for the funeral service. Uncle Bob is to be cremated--another random weighty topic I examine when engaged in life thoughts and conversations. I wish I could console the family and give them closure in this time of confusion and grief. Bottom line is that he was only in his 60's with a clean bill of health. In this day and age, only is certainly appropriate to say. I can only think of how my mom, who became Christian later on in her life, is questioning things. But we also know that heart attacks are malicious; they can happen to any one at any time, for various reasons, regardless of how healthy one might be. I've just been forced to think about all these things at once now..life, death, God, what I believe.

I know that I'll be dealing with Uncle Bob's passing and the reality of my grandparents' conditions little by little, everyday. I'm not jaded or trying to purposely distract myself, but I can't just break down in the middle of fall quarter...that's already pretty much happened. For my sake, I have to handle it in my own way (whatever that means) but keep it together and finish the quarter. There is plenty to do, I have the greatest of company to keep me sane, and for those things I am forever wealthy and grateful.

On a side note, I realized that my compulsive, comma, usage, ailment, has yet to go away. I'd like to think I make up for that by being a snooty stickler for proper grammar in all other aspects of the system. Please count them and let me know where they are unnecessary, thanks.

don't bring me down

ELO - DON'T BRING ME DOWN

Apologies for a potential double muzak attack. You can turn off my player at the bottom.
ELO is a mom 'n' pop and childhood fav. Love the shift at 1:00. Lynne is actually saying "gross", not "Bruce", but due to so much misinterpretation, he kept the name.

What is useless Jeopardy knowledge for $5.00?

mmm pretty.

Friday = Star Trek baseball cap, black velour sweats, GAP men's sweatshirt.
Oh, tack on a bluetooth earpiece and combat boots. I...am...spart--soccer dad.

This outfit was most favorable on the drive back to LA today. Skipped the morning rush and drove straight through, sans traffic. K-EARTH 101 was playing the coolest medley of songs. Naturally, I sang my heart out to each one, with a quick Tay Tay on KOST interlude, then switched back to The Rascals, Beach Boys and Jackson 5. During the drive, I was in a genuine state of sublimity. Dropped the kids off at the pool, put the groceries in the fridge...

Who's living the dream? This here lady.

I, soccer motherfather, am the antithesis of mod man. For real fashion, please reference ++.

I'll attempt a 360 for tonight's Diplo show. It's all ages, but I'm sure they don't need a creepy 80-year old there.

reasons I don't need drank

5. It doesn't taste delicious. Wine = Dimeatap. Everything else = rubbing alcohol or flaming Dimeatap. Do not want.
4 1/2. Takes up precious stomach space which I'd much rather fill with awesome food.
4. Beer bellies, alchy gut. Not want.
3. Drink stink or drank stank. No want.
2. Naturally forgetful, don't need to black out.
1. Already drunk off life.

Also, I prefer provoking the plastered (only the right people, of course, who are joyous when inebriated), then being a historian for them and filling in their porous stories and comforting them in their mornings after.

my worst nightmare

Spent this past week in a living nightmare: not eating.
?!, you may wonder to yourself. I'm thinking it was just a stomach flu I'd caught last Sunday, but I basically could not keep anything down and went through the week in a constant state of nausea and the most disturbing diet of so much Hatorade and hate-saltines. Basically, for the first time in my life, I fasted.

On top of that, week five and six are my intense midterm weeks and the past consisted of the most ridiculous series of CEC events that had me up all night, every night.

I will say that whatever happened, it was definitely a reality slap in the stomach for me about said atrocious diet.
Don't fret! I, Reptar, am fairly back to normal eating habits. I have yet to go medium at Carl's, but I've already had an In N Out burger so...same difference--reluctant to use that phrase because it's been one of those mystery phrase pet peeves ever since it's conception.


Halloween was somethin'. Rach, Matt, Robby, Yaz, Danny, Jenny and I all got ready together. We did each other's makeup (gents included), crafted and constructed things, used so much hair spray that my apartment and all of our heads were on the brink of bursting into flames. We had a heck of a time at Jeffreezy's--saw some creatively cool costumes, then the usual un-creative but spirited, slutty ones. The night winded down with a most perfect Friends + tea sesh back at Rach's. Far too many moments that made me laugh 'til I cried: Julia Roberts turning tricks again, stockings down, lollipops, fixing up a most happy Wall-E with handy whore tape, the cheeriest clown, and our fav bay area reppin' with some moves, to name some.

Then I realized my old age can't take the insanity of Halloween anymore. Slept right through Hello Kitty's birthday bash at Royal/T 'til 1pm the next day. Even YLC at 11:30pm that night was an exhausting venture. "All I need in this life of sin"....is a cup of tea, PJs, and some Golden Girls. Fin.

Oh yeah, and it doesn't hurt that Jay-Z's coming up and I'm crossing my fingers for the girlfriend.

Shut down

It finally happened. The body had its last straw. This could very well just be a 24-hour stomach flu that I caught, but I'm taking the current shut down as a cold, hard sign that I need to take care of myself better. The vampire/LMFAO sleep-all-day-play-all-night lifestyle isn't working for me anymore.

The worst part, aside from the constant nausea, is the fact that all I can keep down are saltine crackers and Hatorade. No, I'm not knocked up, but definitely being forced to a diet of one who might be.

Many thanks and much love to my friends who were graciously willing to drop me off at the med center in response to my depressing text this morning. Knowing that there are people out there who wouldn't want to see you die, besides mom and dad, is a huge deal. I say that with any sarcasm removed.

Dad came on-call to visit me today, thus resulting in awkward family story #1834. This time he felt the need to tell the waiter at the Ramen place that "she's having stomach problems so can you make it less greasy and oily?"  Awesome, possum. I already looked and smelled unpleasant, but I know everything they do is out of love.

Oh, and props to Ashe Center for being surprisingly unshady. The doctor who examined me seemed very much together and on top of her game. Gotta love exams. It's like getting asked your very own Inside the Actor's Studio questionnaire, except instead of "What's turns you on" and "What's your favorite curse word" you get stuff about bowel movements and family medical history. I left with a can of Gatorade with a STRAW! Felt like a kid.

This is the worst time to get sick with all the events and midterms coming up. Hopefully I'm good to go for tomorrow night.

This BOONDOCK SAINTS II Sneak and Panel is a big event in terms of complexity to arrange. My gmail thread with the mPRm rep is now at 70 exchanges and counting--T.G.4.GMAIL. Fairly certain I've covered everything: tech checks, studio reps, talent, LA Times & Variety press, and all arriving at different times of course, arranging their parking passes, extra guestlists, limited and still fluctuating seat count, formal panel (which I'm supposed to moderate for a bit..die), print canister lock codes?, arranging delivery/pickup, but it's always down to the actual event and anything can happen. I hope for the best! I would also like to have some Yogurtland afterward. Yeah...that would be nice.

Amusicality

The past two days have been greatly entertaining and musical. Thursday manifested itself as most epic nrb/karaoke night ever, thus far.

Crowning moment was everyone witnessing Ty's first time, during which he stole the show for a good 5-6 song block with magical gems like: "Umbrella", "Roxanne", "Part of Your World". Doesn't remember a thing. Amy and I reached the point of laughter where sounds don't even come out but tears do.

We tried a new place, though Feel has always been good to us, Soop Sok Music Studio offered a steal of a deal. Our group of 17 earned us a majestic and spacious room, perfect dance floor, tambourines that lit up like those sneaks you wore at four years old, rotating ceiling colored disco balls, a stage, large LCD, small screens all around. Most nice Korean NRBs are this equipped, but I'd never been able to take advantage of the larger rooms 'til now.

The party continued on Wilshire Blvd. all the way back as we actually took part in an immature, but so freakin' fun windows down, side-by-side, radio-blasting extravaganza. Of course Rach and I abided by the law at all times, stayed buckled, under limit. Late-night In N Out topped off the night perfectly.

This was only the beginning of epic karaoke. Mo' F'sho'.

Friday evening, I caught up with Mustardseed. Had a deeeeelicious NY Reuben at Urth, then wandered Beverly Blvd. a bit.  The night winded down and back up at Amy's with epic Rock Band, Uncharted the movie/the most engaging "video game" I'd ever witnessed, then a most welcome run to BCD on Wilshire.

It's been a good way to let go after a stressful and busy few weeks with papers and the less pretty side of CEC. Being a director definitely holds its perks but there's always the burden of responsibility. Despite all the obstacles so far, I appreciate the experience. Been dipping into the world of leadership, money management, negotiation, delegation, team dynamics, professionalism on a larger, college-level scale. Movin' up and movin' on from student council and ASB days!

Plus you can't beat the people. Love the people.


Week 5 and 6 might end me before 2012.
Three papers, two midterms, Boondock Saints II screening and panel, CMF judging, CMF finale, two $2 movies, Halloween? (least of my worries). Safe to say that I will be relieving major stress November 7-8. Two amazing shows, can't wait, though part of me would love to spend that weekend at home.

Now, with bruised hands from playing the karaoke tambourine and rock band enthusiastically, here goes...

Now's a good a time as any

Revive blog. Go!

I dabbled around wordpress and tumblr, but realized that I settled in nicely chez blogspot, so I'm stickin' with it. I've grown accustomed to it's face and options and html-ness.

But! I bought a flickrpro account….last week. Surprise, I actually did take pictures while I was studying abroad in London, and with pop's fancy DSLR. The art of photogr—picture taking has always been more is more with me. Can’t help it. Ever since I was a youngin’, I’d always take the arts & craft project one bottle of glitter glue too far, one sticker too many…on the tv. On my ten day East Coast trip in eighth grade I took a whopping 600. So you can only imagine how many I took on my ten-day trip to France in high school.

Bit difficult to explain the reasoning behind such excessive snappage. It lies in a sense of fear and urgency, the what-if worries that “I’ll never come here ever again. Every single thing/moment here needs to be captured”, plus that strange bit of me that finds something worth capturing in the most ordinary, uninteresting things. I'd like to think that over the years I’ve refined and edited my eye and judgment for what’s worth capturing. Still, I took a crapload of photos in London, some in raw the rest still in high pixels so it’s taking forever and a day to upload these. Top and bottom player images are a sneak peek. You’ll just have to wait an indefinite amount of time for the rest.

In regular news, I'm still maintaining the world's fastest-way-to-premature-heart-failure diet, aka the Reptar. It's got a nice ring to it like Atkins or South Beach, except with entirely opposite effects.

I've also kept my insomnia in perfect condition, accomplishing the following in a series of all-nighters and sunrises:
--Weeding out the recyclable pages from my Sunday LA Times
--Cutting and saving coupons from redplum and saver inserts. I'm practicing for when I turn 85 in a few years.
--Hulu-ing the first season of Arrested Development for old time’s sake, then
--Engaging in a Tobias quotes-filled twitterstream with @neochoa
--Updating my iCal
--Going through my monthly “If-I-had-a-buttload-of-money-I’d-go-to-these-20some-concerts-which-I’ve-opened-up-in-my-tabs” thing
--Revamping this thing
--Being the ultimate human gmail
--Living and breathing CEC 24/7
--Living and breathing
--Freaking out after PARANORMAL ACTIVITY and FOURTH KIND and after educating myself too much about 2012. Damn Mayans.

The sun and I should be greeting each other shortly.
'Til the next post, hasta.

well, hello there

I know, I know. Fail at blog. London recaps ARE coming, promise and with visual aids.
I think I'll revamp or get a new blog at some point. The tumblr seems to be a world of magic for everyone now.

In the meantime:

Leicester, is pronounced Lester. Not Lie-ches-ter or Lie-ster or Lei-ces-ter as it's so spelled.
Why the "i"? I dunno. Then again, Lecester is not at all an improvement or easier to pronounce.

Shire is pronounced sure, but with a crisp, short vowel.

Warwick is Warrick...don't dare pronounce that second dubya.

Edinburgh is Edinburgoodnesstheyarepicky. Ok, for reals: Edinburh/buruh (as softly and subtly as possible).

Oral Exercise. Pronounce:
1. Gloucester
2. Warwickshire

Extra Credit: Loughborough, Leicestershire.

Thank gawd I didn't have to go there.

According to one of Stratford-upon-Avon's Royal Shakespeare Company's actors, a lovely American he once met pronouced it LugaBaruga. And that sounds perfectly perfect to me.

running around...

like chickens with our heads cut off. That's how LA would look if some catastrophe blackout occurred.

What a day!

11am. To LA. Smooth sailing until the 10 past downtown when traffic just slowed down for no reason AT ALL. Hate that.
12pm. Picked up Joanne. Drove her to a few errands.
1pm. Lunch @ Clementine's. Delish. Like Urth Cafe but with a slightly different demographic of fancy yoga mom's in their yoga mom groups (a little annoying, but the food trumps).
2:20pm. CEC office. Key card access + the start of my 102931029 Waiver Pool forms, mass organization of films posters + free crapswag (a new word I am coining) while watching Netflix Instant: Made of Honor on the lovely 20" mac screen.
6:30pm. Walk back, park car, quick breather at the apt.
7pm. Make pickup rounds: Jenny, DLV, Joanne, then off to Sawtelle
7:30pm. Power outages everywhere. Substantial wait, then ate Asahi Ramen in darkness.
8:45pm. Walked to Sawtelle mini-mall, YL closed, power out, sadness. A trying drive back to Westwood among barbarian Los Angelenos. I realized that if a power outage of a larger area would ever occur, the world would end because people are crazy, impatient, and apparently revert to childlike rashness and incompetency (for the most part).
9:30pm. Finally back to apt.
10:30pm. Cool, evening walk to Westwood Yogurtland, then smiles to frowns. Rach and I were grumpy from the get-go. Firstly, the crowd: summer at UCLA is happenin' but rather annoying with 12-year-olds, 12-year-olds in cheer squad groups, belligerent foreignors, etc... Then a mix of these at the tiniest YL with a horrible layout with people who don't know what they're doing. Strange yogurt coming out of the machines, empty topping containers, no yogurt chips, tire-tasting mochi that apparently dissolved on pavement after ten minutes. We reserve the right to be this critical of YL since we are quite the loyal and frequent customers [YLC], t-shirts and all. Most likely boycotting the Westwood location.
11:40pm. Heading home. WTH freeways?! 710s closed, 60E left lanes closed, right lanes closed, left lanes closed, 7th exit closed...

Now. HBO On Demand and Costco fruit bars. Home sweet, sweet home.
Tomorrow will be an errand and O.C. day--my first beach bonfire, ever. I know, how sad.

Note to self

Buy more professional clothes.

I am not one to assume stereotypes and immediately pass judgment, but I will admit that Compton was quite the experience. Here go the series of incidents that composed my jury duty fail today:
Fail 1. Way back when I postponed the date to now, I forgot to transfer it from Compton to my home area, where the most hullaballoo of a case would be a parking ticket by an elderly driver.
Fail 2. Didn't complete the online orientation by the 10-days-prior-to deadline, thus had to leave home at 7 A.M. to report by 7:45.
Fail 3. Parents probably placed the brochure elsewhere, but all I had was my summons in the envelope and wasn't aware of any type of attire requirements. Thus, I wore rubber flip flops and shorts because it was basically high 80's, then heard the announcement that such inappropriate attire = must postpone. I must now report back first week of September.
Fail 4. While waiting for dad to come back to pick me up from the courthouse (bless him, he insisted on driving me there and back for fear of my life and car), I walked a block to McD's, Compton. Bought myself the awesome and disgusting deluxe breakfast platter and dined quickly as there were three crazies shouting loudly to the whole place, as well as some unwanted creepy stares from others.
Win 1. Sitting on a bench while waiting for dad, I rendered this cute house that sat across the street:
The reason it is unfinished is because the scent of a homeless man nearby became quite prominent while I was drawing the gates, so I had to stop and smell the roses elsewere.
Also, I doodled that in the little notepad that came from the LAFF gift bags from the filmmaker reception this year, which brings me back to the film festival and to my postponement on that recap because I am trying to organize my thoughts to avoid an unnecessarily rambling post...and run-on sentences like this one.

Soooo, basically, I need more professional clothing. The lack of information on the summons only carries partial blame. I should've known better to wear something more appropriate for a courthouse. When we got home, dad also informed me that I need to start thinking about my presentation, now that I'm getting older. Flip-flops and sweats don't get one very far up the professional ladder.

When I dress professionally, I tend to veer toward the 75-year-old lady look rather than the 20something Vegas girl. A happy medium would be great, but I have yet to figure out the mystery of fashion. It's okay, though, Rach is my 80-year-old soulmate in clothing; kudos to skirts, sweaters, and florals. In a related note, not only do I enjoy watching The Golden Girls (R.I.P. Bea), but their styles must have also been imprinted in my brain. Win.