semi-yay

so i know i've gotten better--but "better" doesn't mean that i feel anything close to good. i just feel like shit.

but the best news is--I GOT MY PATAGONIA PURCHASES on friday afternoon! yay! it was expected to be delivered monday--so it coming on friday was great. the jacket is awesome. lovvvvvvvve it. the color is awesome. it will be my summer jacket. the pants and skirt are a pretty unique and interesting take on capris/skirts. i like it.

on my way home from jersey last friday...i stopped by the carwash place a block from home and got my car officially washed. i had so much crap inside my actual car that i just told them to bypass the vacuuming. i know my car was filthy--after such a messy winter--but i wasn't too impressed with the wash/hand wipe job. i mean, my baby LOOKS great even from close up--all bright and shiny and clean looking--but when you go over it with a fine tooth comb--there was some black grease spots here and there that they didn't wipe off which i later did, and they just didn't do such a thorough job--but as i only payed $5.25 i guess i shouldn't complain overly much. but i swear they did a rather thorough job on all the cars before me! i was watching. they were probably told i only wanted a wash/wax and to not bother expending a ton of energy on a car that isn't making them much money. such foresight. i ended up cleaning up the entire inside afterwards (wiping the dash, vacuuming, etc.) so my baby has been happily pampered.

"exhaustion"

so i was diagnosed with walking pneumonia brought on by "exhaustion" and am on meds and was told to "take it easy" for a few days.

which is impossible of course since this is my jersey week. then i have plans this weekend (BBQ at mae's on saturday) and the hamptons the beginning of next week. i'll rest after i get back from there--and hope that i get better by then!

i'm tired. i think i will sleep early-ish tonight. i can certainly use it. i can most definitely use it!

i just hate the phlegm. i swear to god i am THE GROSSEST sick person anyone could ever meet. no joke. i really mean it. my family will attest to it, i'm sure. i'm not the kind of sick person that engenders "awww, poor thing." i'm the kind that gets the outright looks of disgust or, if the person is remotely polite, the crinkling of the nose.

but everyone shudders and walks a wide berth around me.

and i can't blame them. i just can't blame them. i'd give myself the disgusted look--and often do when i'm sick.

i can't wait for my clothes to come from patagonia!

there's been a lull in the movie industry for me since i saw slumdog millionairre. but there are a couple of movies i want to see (monsters vs aliens and i love you man) and then--the summer movie blockbuster season--TONS of movies i'm dying to see then. so yay!

gahhhh

i need rest. badddd. waking up is horrrrribly hard these days. i just want to be able to sleep an entire night through without waking up for various reasons and noises.

and i should stop traveling and drinking.

starting...2 more months. when i feel like things will start to calm down a little. or not...

i am out for dinner and drinks tomorrow and that's ALL i plan on doing this weekend. then travel for a 1 1/2 weeks.

one of my best friends is coming to visit me again! yay! so at the end of may, angelika will be here for 1 1/2 weeks for a short visit. i am mass excited for this. every single time she visits it's like picking up where we left off. it never feels awkward and i love it. the picture is from the last time she was here visiting.

i also bought a few items from patagonia today...so the following are pictures of nearly everything i wrote about today!

lush...

it's been a long week of drinking which culminated in a torrent of drinking last night...i was up at training all week and that was actually very well worth it. i really enjoyed it and i actually feel like i learned a lot. so that's always good!

i really am not a lush. it just comes in waves. i actually had a pretty busy saturday. met up with terri and joy for brunch (which i showed up a half hour late to) at "friend of a farmer" in union square. went shopping and bought a few things at sephora and ended our afternoon at "republic" in the same part of the city for a not-so-great apple martini. i found the brunch place from "time out new york" in their 2009 eating and drinking special.

i wasn't that impressed actually. i had their pumpkin pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausage, and skillet potatoes. the pancakes tasted good--but the execution was sadly lacking. they weren't fluffy, they were slightly dry, and portions were small.

after that, i went home, rested abit, and got ready for the evening. i arrived an hour late to "calico jacks" and thankfully, mae and gabriel got there relatively late as well--so that was good! 3 of their friends showed up about an hour after that and the party started.

i apparently am completely oblivious. which is hard to picture since i am also strangely perceptive and observant. what people don't quite understand, however, is that, there is really no rhyme or reason to what i might notice and what might, even if splattered in my face, could still go unnoticed.

apparently the lady selling bracelets for 1/2 off drinks had huge jugs. like HUGE. and barely covered, according to all in the party. didn't notice it. at all. she might have been flat as a board for all i saw.

i also didn't notice the guy that was dancing in my face. but mae had a nice time regaling about it sometime during the night. i vaguely remember some guy asking me to dance or asking me where i was going and/or why i didn't stop to hang out or something like that. to be frank, i just didn't care enough to really listen or pay attention. i didn't spare a glance at his face or anything else. the biggest thing i remember was answering "beer. i'm going to the bar for some beer." mind you, i wasn't drunk at this point. i only had 1 beer in me prior to this encounter. i'm not sure why i'm like that sometimes. but i honestly didn't mean it in a "get the hell out of my way" way or anything rude or anything. i just couldn't be bothered.

i was later told that he was in a red shirt. you'd think i'd notice a red shirt. but i didn't. i just skirted my way around him while i answered and was on my merry little way.

maybe this is why in my later years i am perpetually single? am i just missing all the cues and clues being thrown my way? am i really that oblivious or do i just not really care? maybe that's why i appreciate guys that just ask me straight up to go out or something. just say "i'm interested in you." otherwise--i miss it. i don't have the patience to sit there and pine around asking those "does he like me, does he not" questions. if i don't know right off the bat if you do or don't--i move on or just don't bother pursuing something. there's no point in wasting time. it's inefficient and i'm not invested enough to do it.

i did a lot of dancing and drinking last night though. my neck hurts. sore from bobbing my head around and doing some head tossing dance moves. i know. isn't dancing with your hips? no. not for me. if i flash my head around no one has to notice that i have no coordinated dance moves to speak of! deflect. deflect. deflect.

good night. got home at near 4am and crashed till about noon today.

might do a couple of cocktails for st. patty's day...but i might be good too. i feel like i should be good after this past week's excess...or really, mostly last night's excess...

funny. i actually had a guy try to hold my hands and steal a kiss on the dance floor. at this point, i was plastered, but, regardless of how uninhibited one gets...i'm not that girl. nice guy. he apologized. i was drunk enough to be gracious and that was that. no need to kick the guy when he's down. just gloss it over and move on. it wasn't like he was aggressive about it. he was actually very gentle in how he tried to go about it. a jerk would have gotten a jerk reaction back. i'm not the nicest person.

i just wasn't interested. probably because i have other interests. and i don't think he was all that interested either. personally, i think he was totally into mae. but regardless, i have no desire to hurt someone's ego in public and in front of their friends...unless they deserve it. and he didn't. but, i did get a great laugh at "what's a cute asian girl like you doing without a boyfriend with her" and "you're definitely a contender." buddy. i don't care if i'm a contender. you're not.

love mae's fiancee. they're totally cute together and she's an awesome person. one of the best people i've met and she deserves someone great. so it's good to see she's got it. he seems considerate and honest. 2 qualities i value highly. oh. and he's had lao sausages before! really. when you think about the vastness of the world--how many people outside of lao people really have had lao sausages before???

i'm hitting the sack. the new work week starts up...and i have a lotttt to finish this week...

trippin on up

it's been a really longggggggg day.

it was raining all the way up from nyc to boston. then from boston on up to maine it decided to turn into snow. i think i might have scared my passenger a little with my driving--he's from atlanta. they had their first snow the other day so i don't think he's used to it much. i'm not much used to driving in snow either though so i shouldn't talk.

after having a really late lunch at 5pm with neil and kelly--kelly and i met up with rachel for dinner at 7pm. i know, right?

but i was pretty good. just an island salad with grilled chicken and a cup of new england clam chowder for the first meal, and mussels, a pomegranate martini, and half a scoop of maple ice cream for the second meal. all in all--i didn't really eat all that much i don't think.

tomorrow dawns bright and early. we have to be at the conference site at 8am...gah.

i have a headache. at first it was a starving to death sort of headache but it's morphed into something else. it's 10pm though. so i really should just hit the sack.

somehow, i got hooked up with the best room offered here--a 2 room suite. i have to pay more than the others--but whatever--the company booked us a certain amount and i'm fine having the best room! it's not on me anyways!

current obsessions...

1. american idol--i'm not obsessive of the show per se...if i manage to catch the first few episodes in a season--i usually make sure i tune in to the rest of the season...but have i seen every season? no, in fact, i have only seen maybe 2 or 3 seasons since its inception--and it's now in its--heck...i don't know...8th? but i'm liking it. though the guy i really liked never made it through the hollywood rounds. he reminded me of pharrell.

2. which leads me to it's first winner and her latest single...



3. my bed and lying in it

4. the new season of heroes, 30 rock, ugly betty, coldplay in my car

5. new chances, fresh beginnings, and happy endings (no, not the kind you can get at some massage parlours)

snow day!

no one on the east coast team went out today. hilarious.

but the weather really was hideous.

i bowed down to mother nature's beautiful white fury and just decided to do the other million things i needed to do! i did make 3 attempts too. but short of using the sad broom to literally sweep at the pile of ice and snow blocking my car from the other side of the street (thanks mr. plowman) i was shit out of luck. i should have stayed parked on the other side the night before. but i thought i was outsmarting the plow-person. last time i parked on the other side--he swept it all on that side and i couldn't get out of there for a few days. this time he switched sides and the pile of crusted, caked up ice and snow was literally as tall as my car--no joke.

i should go and purchase a shovel but i won't. something about that really bugs me and i can't quite put my finger on it.

i had a vietnamese style iced coffee (homemade) and just did as much as i could--and at 8:30pm am finally finished--well. for now.

it's been a really good day though.

yay!

i am home for an entire week! in my own bed! with my own food! and in the city i love!

just in time for the new neighborhood market to open up too! i shall have to take a walk there in the afternoon and see if there is anything good. it used to be a mexican type of grocery store--which i lovvvved because they had the jarritos tamarind soda that i am so fond of and the coconut soda as well--but now it's been through an entire overhaul. i am hoping it is just a nicer looking, cleaner version of the same store.

who knows though. i am thinking i should try and be frugal with my money as well since nyc wants over 1k from me in back taxes. so maybe it's time to relearn restraint? especially with all the traveling i've been doing and the traveling still to come!

anyhow, i am LOVING marinating at home at the moment. i feel like i want to glue myself to my neighborhood, my apartment, my room, my bed--me. it's so nice to just be able to relax at home. i don't care how dorky that sounds. i haven't seen my bed in far too long and i want to make use of the high rent i pay!

funny, half of this was written yesterday but i couldn't figure out what i was forgetting to blog about so i left it unfinished. sadly enough, it must not have been that important because i still don't remember.

i'm over it!

"let's see how long we can keep him before he runs out screaming. i'll pretend to have mild dementia, and you can complain about your sciatica in german. we'll try to beat our personal market-researcher containment record of two hours and twelve minutes" --thursday next first among sequels

why am i so darn busy?

oh yeah.

cause i took a long weekend and went to visit family and friends in seattle!

gah. plus my timing is all warped now. i slept until 10am yesterday. then slept until 11am today and i'm stillllll tired. plus i've been doing stuff nonstop. wiping up the dash in my car, vacuuming my car, doing some much needed laundry, eating my mom's specially prepared lao food, and doing a ton of WORK (conference calls, spreadsheets, miscellaneous account management, answering calls, meeting preps, solidifying new accounts, handling miscellaneous important and/or urgent pleas for assistance, updating account files, etc.etc.etc.) and traveling non-stop.

my hectic schedule has included:

02/02 - 02/03 : northern jersey
02/12 - 02/17: seattle
02/18 - 02/20: the hamptons
02/23 - 02/27: dirty jersey
03/09 - 03/13: boston and maine
03/23 - 03/27: dirty jersey
03/30 - 04/01: the hamptons
04/09 - 04/13: san francisco

pretty quick turnarounds if you think about it. but i am hoping that the summer will be less hectic. although i think i've been saying this for awhile...

that said--i am watching shaolin soccer. I LOVE STEPHEN CHOW. and this movie is definitely one of my faves--if not my favorite comedy.

it makes me happy when i need it. whenever i need a pick-up in spirits. i turn it on and my mood immediately lifts. it's a much needed balm at times. and it has never failed in its potency. it has never ceased its swift and miraculous impact on my spiritual recovery.

who needs religion when you have shaolin soccer?

updates to come

of my lovely trip to seattle.

i saw my incredibly adorable new nephew (who seems to have inherited his mother's sneakily clever ways) and the rest of the family as well.

a ton of food eaten and a ton of food in a checked luggage (a complete luggage full) has me completely stuffed to the brim. i really can't imagine a time when i've been so full in recent years...

i loved seeing some of my closest friends as well. that was really nice.

i saw slumdog millionaire--which is INCREDIBLE. i have to say. thus far, every movie i've seen at the theatres has been well worth it.

i finished life of pi on the plane over.

i ate every single type of food i found disappointing in nyc (thai, vietnamese, mexican, dim sum).

it was a visit with many revelations that i could have lived without ever happening to the people i love.

but it was a great visit with the perfect amount of time (sort of). not much of a resting period--and little turnover time, but it all worked out ok.

i missed seeing a few important people to me and that sort of sucks. but i am hopeful that there will come a time in the near future.

more later!