recap of this weekend...

so on friday i went to a nice dinner party at joy's. it was basically her roommates, me, andrew and a friend of one of her roommates--errr...6 of us. it was really nice. i love her roommates. they are just the best situation. we had a relatively traditional lao meal--lettuce wraps with some herbs and veggies and either sauteed shrimp or sauteed beef. i made 3 sauces--a peanut sauce--but--instead of peanuts--i used almonds. it was ok. everyone seemed to like it--but i think peanuts taste better in that incarnation.

then, we watched will and grace while drinking cosmos. now--no tolerance--and an early morning=whoops!

i swear to god i set my alarm. unfortunately, it didn't go off and we were supposed to be at union square at 10am on saturday. i spent the night at joy's cause i have a permanent "sucker" written on my forehead and we woke up at 9:30am. she lives on 109th and union square is on 14th--for those who need some visual. we cabbed it--but even then--we got there a little late--but it was ok. from there--we got into a packed van and headed to flushing/bayside/glen oaks, queens.

joy failed to mention to me what we were doing--but i guess when you have "sucker" written on your forehead--it doesn't really matter what it is you do. haha. anyhow, we get there and it seems we will be going door-to-door to see if the registered voters there would vote for jim gennaro instead of frank padavan. thanks joy. thanks. actually--it wasn't so bad--just the rude awakening was. it's abit strange going door-to-door hungover talking to people about politics when your head is pretty muddled.

then--today, sunday--another rude awakening at 10am--this time to meet up with one of my coworkers for a halloween costume shopping expedition at ricky's on 79th--AFTER all you can eat brunch at blockheads--3 mimosas later--we headed off to the ricky's on 79th. i had no clue about what to dress up as--but of course--ricky's has only 3 kinds of outfits--whore, whorer, or horror. i came out with black nail polish, and a rather cool looking white wig. i am going to totally rock this costume. i figure--it's a vision of a ghost--or something. i figure i'll pair the white wig with extremely pale skin, bright blood red lipstick, black nail polish, heavily kohled eyes, black shirt, black leggings, and black boots--and call it good! not skanky, but hopefully scary in a good way!

i think i'm ready for halloween in boston! i must say--i'm rather stoked about the wig. i love wigs.

tomorrow--off to the hamptons. life is going by way too fast...

i might be a high junkie. i'm not sure what to do with down time. but i love sleep. i love laying around doing nothing--just--not when i don't want to. i'm not sure what to do with myself for my vacation. i'm thinking of a road trip--but i haven't contacted anyone in the areas i'm thinking of driving to. i think i'm sort of listless. after the incredible highs and busy-ness of last week--and earlier this week--now it's settled down abit. and that's probably a good thing because i have 2 trips in a row starting monday.

and then there's the planning for vacation and 2 work trips. i'm not sure why i'm writing. just that i'm writing because i need to and it's been a few days since i last wrote. i feel awkward. oh well. tea is ready.

so on deck:

a saturday social work event thanks to joy
a sunday brunch/halloween shopping expedition with meagan
hamptons beginning of next week
boston end of next week/weekend

i guess maybe it's good that i have a little downtime inbetween what's to come and last week's excursion in boston.

i want january!

that's when the craziness should settle a bit. that's what i want. january. i have way too much to do and way too little time. it's nearly 8:30pm and i have finally finished what i deemed the "must finish by the end of today" list. and it took this long because most of my day was spent doing what i normally do--and then--about 30 emails and calls scattered throughout with too many people for too many things. yay. but i think--it should all be taken care of now!

as if the week in boston wasn't hard enough--now i have to deal with the residuals of everything from that week, the things i missed doing last week--and the stuff i have to be doing this week as well. and then--there are the trips...the trips i have yet to take this month that are coming up that haven't been booked or planned indepth very well yet. ugh.

it seems like i'm complaining alot right now--but i have to relieve the stress somehow, right. oh--on saturday evening when i caught the cab from penn station to the parking garage i left my car at--i am driving it out--and the "low tire pressure" light comes on and i'm like...great, i just want to get home and i can't because now i have to make an extra trip to put in air to my tires. so i go and do that. then, on monday morning--after driving 5 minutes--the light comes on again--which sufficiently alerted me enough to get it checked out. i was actually on my way to get my oil changed and tires rotated at the dealership anyways--so now i figured something else to add on. anyhow, because it came on when i was still closer to my house--i just went to the nearby auto shop and had it all done there. i paid about $70 bucks for an oil change, tire rotation, and flat tire fixing. it seems there were 3 nails in one (front driver side) tire. wooo!?

late november--i'm taking a vacation! i haven't planned what to do and where to go or anything fun--but i'm going to do it because--well...use it or lose it!

on the fast track to senility

i am so damn tired.

i originally planned to do some work and blog on the train ride back from boston to nyc--but i got on, did a couple of work emails--and got tired and decided to nap it up a little. now--2 hours after the fitful naps you get when you're cold and uncomfortable--i am up, feeling none the fresher, and blogging.

(the following is to be read/heard in your head by cate blanchett's character's voice from the lord of the rings--galadriel)

expo east kicked my ass. hard. it threw dirt at my face too (in the form of the new capital city of zitopia and her suburbs on my chin and right cheek. it kicked my ankles and singed my soles. all my preparations were futile. dansko--that capital city of heavenly shoes was the first to fall. i should have banked on my nothinz. they have never let me down. my sanity--clearly still being audited--never had a chance. however, with great hope and expectations--comes great success.

(stop hearing cate blanchett's voice now)

1. i definitely made a nice impact on order goals and i am hoping--that i won both contests. i know i won the volume contest. i had to have. i had to. i would be EXTREMELY surprised if i didn't. i am hoping--that i also won the amount of orders. i am too tired to cross my fingers and will kindly ask galadriel to do so. i am sure that when i next come to peruse this post--i will die laughing of embarassment at myself. for the time being--i'm too tired and numb to realize it fast enough to stop the train wreck that is occurring. thus--it will continue.

2. we had an order goal of 75--and i'm pretty sure we at least got to 80--so the entire cast of our crew got double call credits--which is awesome, and especially lovely for me--since i happen to be the only one that hasn't taken any vacation yet and now--can ensure that it won't negatively impact me too much.

3. every single time i've ever bowled in my life i have gotten the EXACT SAME SCORE. mind you it hasn't been much--but it's been 6 times. i only remember this--because for some reason--i could never cross that hump. but. for the first time in my life--i surpassed it--twice. for the 6 times i went bowling--my score every single time--was a 56. (i'm a little worried that one of the team leader's seems to think it should have been a 66--afterall, add one more 6 and you get...yeah).

the score that is about to be written isn't anything to boast about--but considering the low number of what occurred 6 times previous--it's a freakin miracle.

game 1--68.
game 2--96.

i feel like i would have broken that 100 barrier if it hadn't been for the newbie recruit ruining my last 2 attempts (more about that newbie soon).

anyhow, it's been a very long and exhausting 5 days. and the days leading up to it have been ultra busy as well. but i'm happy. really happy with life overall. things are going well and they seem to be getting better and better. i haven't felt so settled and at peace in awhile. actually, to be honest, i'm not sure i have ever felt this good in my life. the constant battle to just survive takes its toll when you have to do it every single day of your life since birth from immigrant parents. i'm not complaining--just reflecting.

it's nice to feel like now i can go past the survive mode--and thrive a little. no need to explain to friends why i'm different and have to be. no explanations for how come my parents aren't around for events and no need to lie about who i am and what i believe.

freedom feels nice.

it is now 14 hours after everything i wrote just above this line and i have decided against reading what i wrote prior because i would probably delete everything. and that might be abit of a shame. even incoherent feelings based on immediate reactions are important, right?

but--to sum up my week in boston:

1. tiring as hell. i can't remember being this tired--since my summer in alaska.

2. i was up by 6:30am everyday and up until 2am everyday as well. 4 hours of sleep for a busy week is very little. in fact, i woke up earlier than i wanted to today because i was famished and couldn't ignore the pains in my stomach.

3. the new dc/maryland/delaware/philly rep is hilarious. i think he'll fit right in. and i think he'll do really well. very personable, engaging, observant, and considerate--which are great qualities overall--but necessary for this industry.

on thursday night we hosted a dinner event for some of the key players in our major accounts. the restaurant we booked was about a 10 minute walk from the sheraton hotel where we stayed at. i was part of the last group to depart the hotel--waiting for one of the new accounts i just acquired to meet me and a few other reps in the lobby (i met her earlier in the day and invited her last minute to the dinner event). anyhow, she was slightly overweight (to put it mildly) and we were running late. so most of the reps were booking it pretty fast to the restaurant--and as much as i wanted to, i, of course, took my time, pretending it was me that wanted to wander the streets (in the cold with no jacket on), rather than her pace/speed. i was really impressed and touched that the newbie recognized that enough to join the two of us--helping me make light conversation with someone i barely knew...because as anyone knows--making conversation that is both genuine and politic with a virtual stranger is straining and when you can tag team it--so much the better!

anyhow, i just think it shows alot of insight, consideration, observation, and character. and i totally appreciate that sort of thing when veterans couldn't be bothered to show the same. so unless he balks it up major--he's got my support!

4. the boston rep took me to south station to catch my train back to nyc and we got to talking. it made me feel rather bad. i mean--i believe her when she said she was totally happy for me that i did so well this past week--but that she just felt really bad that perhaps it made her look really bad since it was in boston--and she didn't perform as well. i tried to reassure her that couldn't possibly be the case. i mean--if i was a team leader i wouldn't leap to that conclusion. she's a great rep and does a tremendous job. not taking away anything from my own accomplishments--but i feel like i had a little bit of luck as well. and there's no way that i could possibly duplicate this performance next year.

5. i loved every tiring minute of it. i would totally do this again. i came away with some awesome goodies--and the best part--i didn't have to wander around to get it at all! some of my key accounts went and grabbed stuff for me! i love the fairway folks. they're just way too sweet and good to me. i do think that next year, i should spend a bit more time wandering like everyone else did.

6. i managed to finagle a deal with the director of our sales team--due to my performance--that he, and all the team leaders, had to sing karaoke for us--the next time we were all together. :) now that, should be hella funny!

religulous

i am sitting on the acela headed to boston so i have time to blog before i get abit of work done. what better way than to mull over religulous (since i did just see it last night with the lovely joy).

this shouldn't be too much of a spoiler for those who have yet to see this film. and it's not that he's atheist. he is just of the agnostic crowd. perhaps that is one reason that i love him. he is such a passionate ball of furious indignation, doubt and skepticism blended with a curious confidence that it's hard not to love him (or hate him i suppose). and i suppose--that's a lot like me.

bill maher is a god. ok. he isn't. i mean...who would think they are the 2nd coming of jesus christ? funny enough. there are many that probably do believe this.

a puerto rican minister named jesus--that's who. he has over 100,000 believers too. he also doesn't believe that anyone is capable of sinning since christ died for our sins already. by that logic--i suppose he's right.

the mormons kicked maher out of their grounds and would not grant him an interview--so he interviewed 2 ex-mormons instead.

he wasn't granted an interview in vatican city either--there was some tumbling and darkness--nice effect--although maybe he was literally booted from the hallowed halls. who knows?

he did get to meet with the resident phd in the dome of the rock (currently of islamic residence).

the thing i love is the comical bent to a serious topic. it is definitely something i can relate to.

as always--asians were left out. no interviews of buddhist monks, hindu holy men, not even a sikh. my sect might not believe buddha was a god (raised theravadan--which is why you may find many asians that call themselves buddhist as well as christian so there's no conflict of interest) but there are other sects that do believe buddha was a god--some forms of chinese buddhism, mahayana buddhism, etc.)

we're the most populous race existent--and somehow--are always forgotten in major topics. i'm not sure if that's a blessing or an insult.

anyhow, back to religulous...definitely worth seeing. it wasn't as great as it possibly could have been--but it's worth a look regardless.

stay tuned...

i am leaving in about a half hour to go see "religulous" and then i wake up at the crack of dawn to catch the train to boston until late saturday evening. hopefully--i won't be too tired to do a little blogging about the film and about boston this week...otherwise--it will be a very long post come sunday afternoon...

the 2 p's and an f

events that occurred in the immediate past:

on friday night i met up with an old college friend and his girlfriend (only the 2nd time i've ever met her). we went to a bar had a few cocktails, left, then went across the street to another bar for some more cocktails--and karaoke (we did not know that upon entering). now, i know it's a cliche for asians to karaoke--but to my defense--the two of them are only partial asians.

i was suckered into performing by myself and unfortunately--my version of hashpipe (weezer) did not do so well with the crowd that chose broadway theme songs, r&b, madonna, and 80s glam rock. oh well. i don't think i tanked it too badly.

it was fun. she seems like a great girl and it was good to see someone from my former life.

events that have occurred enough in the now enough to be called present:

i am a procrastinator and now--it's crunch time. i am trying to find someone to go watch "religulous" with me within the next 2 days because on wednesday--i jet off to boston for the remainder of the week. so it's now or never!

i love bill maher. and he's in it. he is possibly the first person (outside of my father) who really evoked an interest in politics for me. i remember staying up late watching politically incorrect when it first came on--yes this dates me--and thinking--this guy is sharp and witty and unrepentant and i love him.

if it wasn't for bill maher--i might not be as appreciative of jon stewart and stephen colbert as i actually am. for me--he was the grandaddy that came before all of them.

events still to come in the future (and by future i mean for the month of october):

work for a couple of days, "religulous" inbetween, boston for the remainder of the week, "dirty jersey" for a week, the hamptons for 2 days, boston for a weekend--all to be completed before october ends. yay?

unbelievable...

literally. a few hours after an article comes out informing us that AIG sent a few of their executives to a $400,000 resort FOUR (4) DAYS AFTER BEING BAILED OUT...

THE GOVERNMENT GIVES THEM NEARLY 40 BILLION MORE DOLLARS.

wtf?

i mean really. WTF.

they were "chastised" and then given more money. i am just...utterly disgusted right now. DISGUSTED. to think millions and millions of people will have to pay for this extravagance when most can't even afford healthcare is beyond me.

i'm sorry--but this is why i can't stomach believing in "forgiveness" and "it's not our place to judge" and "they'll be judged in the afterlife."

1. these people were corrupt and were bailed out for being corrupt. 4 days after being bailed out--they send their executives to a resort that costed $400,000. THEY DON'T DESERVE FORGIVENESS. in fact. what they deserve is for the money to be rescinded, to be fired, and to be publicly humiliated the old-fashioned way. tomatoes thrown at their faces come to mind. and that's mild. spit wouldn't be mild. maybe both.

when the collective retirement loss is around 2 trillion dollars...DID NO ONE STAND UP AND SAY--guys...this might be a bad idea...i'm morally opposed to this...

2. hell yeah it's our place to judge. why else are there judges. laws. societal values. values in general. god-given ability to reason. etc.etc.etc.

3. we should all be judged here and in the afterlife if it exists. i'm flawed. i'll get mine. and because i will get mine--i want all those sinners to get theirs as well! why should justice have to wait? what good does it do the suffering now? the people that were harmed or affected negatively do not get any satisfaction. and i believe they should.

i hate this. i am so...ugh. this is just despicable. i am going to find out every single government official who gave them this additional money and write a letter chastising them for this. i swear to god.

~~~
i am going to be in boston next week. that will be rather tiring. but the nice thing is--the atlanta rep will be there and i love talking politics with him. and it will be fun to see everyone else as well. it's a great group of people.

~~~
snl live tonight!!! i can't waitttttt!

insanity prevails...

everywhere.

--the uk is contemplating whether or not to sue iceland because it has to protect itself because...

--iceland is teetering on bankruptcy. (imagine--an entire country that was at the top of affluence teetering on bankruptcy.

--the debate last night was ok--and i'm glad that although it wasn't a ko--obama did do better than mccain--no bias could truly negate that.

--boston for nearly a week next week...and i'm not feeling 100%...so time to stock up on emergen-c.

--the stock markets will continue to "fluctuate" (haha) for a few more weeks according to the experts.

--i thought my modest retirement was doing too well considering everything that's been going on in wall street--and now i'm finally starting to see nearly $200 of loss a day from it...i was told not to check--but i can't help but check daily now.

--which leads me to really feel bad for those people who have invested so many more years and money into their investments. i have a lot of friends who are nearing retirement that i care about deeply--and this is just--really disheartening. they are good people and i hope they are seeing my sort of loss--rather than the larger part of the 2 TRILLION the government says has been lost.

--palin truly does exist and is not, unfortunately, a figment of my overactive imagination.

--it's the navy vs whales...and i am rooting for the whales. get rid of the extensive sonar use.

--stranded penquins.

--citigroup and wells fargo fighting over wachovia...perhaps i'm overly cynical--but i think they want to get larger because there's no way they can lose if they get larger. if it helps them--great. however--i'm banking (no pun intended) on the fact that they are only trying to land themselves a federal bailout when they fall. the precedent has been set--and the larger the company--the harder the fall. they can't lose...

--which means just another spa trip ala aig to a resort that 99% of us will never in our lifetimes get to visit--paid for by us--the taxpayers.

thank you greed, irresponsibility and entitlement that has bred the likes of paris hilton and britney spears.

i just couldn't resist...

it's WAY past my normal bedtime as those who know me--know this well...but i just finished up some work and had to add this clip to my palin shrine...

6 feet under...

dear lord...

this is the level we have sunk to in the united states. we have lowered the bar so much that it is 6 feet under. and because palin managed to stay at 6 feet under instead of sinking lower--she was deemed as having done "well" (and did you see the cnn scorecards???) i mean...really guys. really. since when is expecting to get an f grade and successfully securing that f grade a good thing???

god. shoot me. or at least someone bitchslap her...and the annoying girl that was at the debate party last night. and did anyone else notice what a complete BITCH she was being to biden? i mean, have some class. have some professionalism. some dignity. something to say "yes, i don't know shit, but at least i can behave." and it's so pathetic that those same silly hillary voters would allow this double standard--because had biden been anything but the gentleman he was--they would have been calling sexism. idiots.

she DID NOT answer any of the questions posed and when she was really faltering--would say...

1. "can we just revisit that energy policy a bit"

let me tell you about your stupid energy policy. it's not something to effin boast about when your only thing is to DRILL ANWR. and it's pretty sad if you think that you are an energy expert based on that. and it's even more stupid of america to repeat this insane idea that she seems to think she has. that is not energy expertise--IT'S WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING EVERYWHERE ELSE FOR YEARS AND YEARS. drill baby, drill.

2. "john mccain and i--we're mavericks. we're mavericks. we're mavericks."

they are NOT mavericks and STOP USING THAT WORD IT IS REALLY GETTING ON MY NERVES. i mean really...how many times am i supposed to stomach that word without vomiting...and it's always followed by...

3. "wink, wink"

someone slap the tick out of her. for all you silly, ridiculous hillary voters who think you are "feminists"--
it is NOT feminist to vote for someone just because they have a vagina.
it is NOT feminist to resort to winks and "look at me look at me i'm just a pretty little country gal" strategies.
it is NOT feminist to make women look like silly high school cheerleaders.
it is NOT feminist to demean yourself, degrade yourself, and disgrace yourself to win a vp slot. it is completely turning back everything that so many true women work so hard everyday of their lives fighting for.

4. "soccer mom"

she is an unsuitable, disgraceful mother. she is an absolutely horrible mother. and if i were a soccer mom--i'd be spitting. how do i come to this conclusion?
--i'm pretty darn sure you shouldn't be flying anywhere to give speeches when you're ready to pop out a new life. but--that speech was more important than the child with down syndrome.
--i'm pretty sure that had you been around to instill some values in your daughter--she wouldn't be a pregnant teenager. and yes--children make their own decisions--but quite frankly--as a parent--if you've instilled any values in them and been there--they are more likely to make good decisions.

as for the annoying girl at the debate party--why is it always the loud, gregarious ones that talk the most? do they understand they sound like idiots and they're annoying? while there are exceptions to any rule--if you don't know the simplest facts like how many vp debates there are and how many presidential debates there are--don't expect me to think your arguments have too much validity--especially when those opinions you offer--have no substantive facts to back them up--only your crazy beliefs. if you truly are this passionate about your beliefs--shouldn't you have done SOME research? shouldn't you be up enough on current events? enough to at least know the simple facts? it's like discussing advanced mathematical theory with someone who doesn't even know the answer to 1 + 1.

to that--i say--hillary supporters--bitter white women between the ages of 30-39--(yes, campbell brown, i'm looking at you and your sort) go slap yourselves with a big, rubber you-know-what. you aren't feminists. you're the sort that give us a bad name. you know--the same ones that parade around in next to nothing on a daily basis (whose jobs do not require it in some way) because you're "owning" your sexuality. you may be owning your sexuality--but you're losing a hell of a lot of class and dignity. and those jeers you're getting don't tell me it's a response feminists want. however, it definitely isn't "asking to be raped" either.

anyhow, i'm getting off topic slightly. for you bitter hillary clinton supporters who think you're feminists--and you bitter hillary clinton supporters who are feminists and racists and you bitter hillary clinton supporters who are just plain racist--let me just tell you a few things--

biden led in the creation of the violent crime control and law enforcement act (vcclea) and the violence against women act (vawa). biden's office drafted the vawa, which was passed in 1994 as a section of the vcclea. If his office drafting vawa is not reason enough to believe the pivotal role joe biden played in this--here's something that might. the vcclea is also known as the BIDEN CRIME LAW.

i also thought it was interesting that palin thought cheney's interpretation of the "vp's job" should be expanded even more...

how's that for greed. mccain did choose someone just like him. he chose her to win bitter hillary voters instead of choosing one that was qualified--cause he obviously doesn't care about this country enough to think about what happens to it after he dies...and she wants to be vp so badly--because she knows he'll die soon enough to make her president--that she is willing to do anything it takes.

greed is why wall street is in trouble.
greed is why americans are in trouble.
greed is why cheney expanded his job description.
greed is why mccain chose palin.
greed is why palin doesn't care what she has to do to win.

see a connection of some sort here?

~~~
on a side note--i finally switched over my washington state driver's license to new york's...let's hope the curse is over...

the curse--of course--is that--anytime i've switched over my license--i have had to pick up and move within 3 months...cross your fingers--i knocked on wood...i don't really want to move anywhere right now--i'm pretty happy here in brooklyn...

whoa...

so our company's tech guy ordered a new handheld for me at about 4pm yesterday--and i received my new handheld TODAY--it came all the way from fort worth, texas.

i'm pretty darn amazed. i know. it is probably a silly thing to be so amazed over--but i love efficiency. just love it. i'd marry efficiency if i could.

that said--i have been plugging in my newest territorial duties...and maybe it won't be so bad. maybe.

but it looks like i will be gone about 2 weeks of every month. that's alot. and when you think about the insane rent here in nyc...it's a lot of time to be gone for the amount i fork over each month!

so that's annoying. to pay that much and not be there to enjoy it 2 weeks every month. which basically works out to be about 6 months out of the year...