Short on money but I’m long on time…

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After looking through my pictures from Japan and living in this less-than-minimal apartment, I came to realize one of my favorite things in life is to LIVE BIG with less money (please no credit card). That’s something you don’t go around saying because everyone kind of thinks you’re crazy. You don’t live BIG because of what you own, you live BIG in your head.

I remembered in my trip to Japan which was three weeks long I brought only 700 dollars in spending, transportation and food. My sister brought had 2,000 dollars to spend and this girl that came along with us had 2,000 dollars too. So three weeks and fourteen cities later I still had some yen and I spent the last of it at the airport in the last city, Osaka because they could not convert coin money to USD. The other girl who brought in 2,000 dollars who bragged she was on a shopping ban for 6 months to save up for the trip ended with nil two days before leaving. I remembered me and my sister suspected that she stole 10,000 yen (that’s 100 dollars) from my sister one night but wow…how on earth did she end up broke before the trip? Even though she took 100 dollars sometime during the trip she still was broke? I remembered I offered her some noodles I got at the 100 yen store (dollar store) because she had no money and she said “god, you and your 100 yen” and left to used her credit card to buy a dinner at Outback Steakhouse. Really? Did she go all the way to Japan to get Outback?

Let’s just simply leave it at I will never understand how she blew 2,000 dollars before the trip ended. I had 700 dollars and I bought food, I bought wine, same items in different colors, models of special monuments, clothes, subway tickets, plates, bike trips and I bought another suitcase to fit all my souvenirs. I ended the trip satisfied despite how little cash I brought with me. People commented I probably wouldn’t be doing much since I did not bring much. Maybe I just knew where to go like the 100 yen store–you really have to make the effort to look for those stores because I remembered all the places me and my tour group went, we did not see a 100 yen store until I did my own exploring. Usually tour groups take you to most expensive parts of the city/town.

I actually want to get back into that attitude of living big on little money again. It’s more of mindset though–like I get high out of it…not so much about the stuff you get but the experience out of something. I look at my souvenirs, they’re pretty cool and they look good in my room but it doesn’t compare to the memory when I rented a bike for the afternoon or watch a tea ceremony performance.

You kind of don’t go around saying that that because everyone goes “what are you talking about? Everything revolves around money!” Yes it does, but it’s not necessary that I dined in the nicest restaurants and bought the most expensive souvenir to get the best experience from my trip(s) or anything. Maybe I’m rambling about this because I grew up with people who praise material things and the latest greatest things. I felt like I had to buy myself into that belief because I have a job and I felt maybe I’d more liked I guess if I had a nice purse. But then I learned a couple things like I really don’t like talking about money and lifestyle with anyone related to me because we’re going to almost always clash. And that buying a designer top is not worth the money if no one is ever going to see it because you can’t wear it to anything or what-a-shame they can’t recognize that you’re wearing blah blah blah. Sure I’d like to own a Chanel 2.55 bag or an Hermes scarf someday but I won’t make it my life. There are even some people who work to buy designer things but willing to skip food and a social life. Also another thing is that there will always be something bigger and better than version A, B, and C so I don’t see the point in competing in who has the latest greatest things.

So anyways since people liked my pictures from Tokyo, I got some more (and more and more in future posts). This set are pictures from my bike ride around Kyoto. I rented a bike that afternoon (Click on the thumbnails)

Lost in Translation

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Lost in Translation came out when I was in 7th grade I believe and last week I watched it for the first time. I don’t think I’d understand or appreciate it when I was 12 but I sure do now at 22.

Also after watching this movie, I’d like to show some pictures when I was in Tokyo back in 2007. Unfortunately I was only in Tokyo for two days which isn’t enough!

view from Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building

Let’s revisit

Sometimes it’s not only the bad memories that make you sad..but also the best ones which you know will not happen the second time around.

So my ex-roommate got back with her (cheating) boyfriend.

I know…why am I blogging about that? Well it’s my blog, I can write what I want.

A couple months back my friend was asking if his coworker can have a place to stay because she found out her boyfriend was cheating on her and she wants to move out. So me and the roommates agreed. When I told people I got a new roommate and how it happened, people like to turn to the subject of  ”how did he cheat on her?” and I go “what do you mean?” and they go “was it emotional or was physical?” and I go “what?!” After explaining to people how she found out, that was how I learned what emotional cheating was. And it sure hurts a lot more than physical cheating.

I remembered within a few days of this new girl moving into the apartment, she told me that her and her “ex” were talking about and things are getting better and she might move back with him. Awkward. I told her that I didn’t recommend it because he’s an ex for a reason and then she tells me “but he’s having such a hard time paying the bills!” Gees…love sure doesn’t mean anything anymore unless you help pay bills. I didn’t really want to comment anymore but wow, you don’t need to do favors for an ex.

I remembered one night when I was in kitchen to get some water, I saw her and her ex in the living room. And when he came to visit, I couldn’t help but roll my eyes every time he came by. Sorry for the regressive behavior, just watching them talk there made me revisit some bitter memories of me and this one guy I dated when I was in 3rd year of college. Actually this spanned in a course of about three years. I met this guy when I just started college and I was attracted to him and from there was on-and-off again dating throughout those three years. I remembered the part when we dated December 2007 to May 2008 but I did not see him for three weeks in between. When I finally saw him again at May, we were on our way to the movies and then his ex-girlfriend tries calling him several times and he finally picks up. I asked what was that all about, why does she need to talk to him. He told me that him and his ex were suppose to get married for certain reasons. And I asked him “when was this?” and he tells me a few weeks ago and it made me sick because it explained why I didn’t see him for a long time and why he never picked up my calls or responded my text messages. He even told me how he was planning on proposing to her at Disneyland and would like to have his niece and nephew with him but then it all fell through because she didn’t want to get married to him anymore and have that dream proposal at Disneyland like she demanded. God! It killed me listening to this! This makes not like Disneyland very much either. I don’t care if he didn’t propose to her, I just I did not want to see him again after that night. I just did not want to stick around where we’d be together for a few months and then he disappears or something like that, but whatever–nothing good would come out of it! I was sick of this on and off again relationship. I never met this girl before but I kind of felt…cheated but except I didn’t like talking about it because people would say it was not. I guess why we kept coming back all those times was when that I do remember meeting him for the first time at 18 and everytime we started dating each other reminded me of that moment in particular and I felt being 18 years old all over again. At 20, I hope he would treat me differently because at the time I thought “I’m no longer a teenager” and I changed in those two years (like most people do) but he still treated me as the same crazy 18 year old and never took me seriously. It didn’t matter to him how well I behaved or how I dressed, to him I was still the same. Even though I didn’t want to see him anymore after that night, I had a hard time finding closure but that’s fine. I think not trying to find closure is the best way to put it aside. I believe just do whatever you need to do, grow up and closure will find it’s way.

Looking at my ex-roommate and her ex-boyfriend in the living room just reminded of me and the guy I dated back in college. I know everyone is different–maybe her coming back with her ex might be better and won’t end up like me–but I just can’t help but feel that way.

Flashback: At Takayama

The view from my hotel

The headboard of my bed

Out of all the hotels in Japan, I’d say the one in Takayama was my favorite and it’s also one of my favorite towns I visited while I was in Japan because it was so relaxing. The town looks really charming and had this riverside marketplace on the weekends.

Anyways here are a couple pictures of the hotel I stayed in. It was so big, there was even a separate room for a dining room/living room (pictured above). There was also a public bathhouse upstairs too; if you don’t want to have a whole lot of people in the bath house go in at 6 am when it first opens.

Flashback: Silence

This picture was taken a few days after graduation at Magic Mountain. I’ve known this friend ever since the third grade. I remembered a few months later in my first semester of college she passed away. This week is the anniversary of her death-day and it’s been 5 years. It made me think about lots of things like how I hate all the people who fish for attention saying “I had a bad day because (fill in blank)–I want to kill myself” on their myspace bulletins, facebook notes, etc and all that attention goes to that person who say that. I hate those people because they never go through with it and they’re wasting people’s attention like they were kidding–like a joke–it’s just so so so selfish. I know some people who were truly seeking help but for the other people, it’s not a laughing matter nor a way to get attention. They need to realize that after a while, people are going to get tired of being fished.  For her…she never said anything. Nothing at all…

HopeLine

 

Flashback: Graffiti

I’ve been playing violin ever since I was in 4th grade all the way until the end of my high school days and I’ve also been performing in Cal Arts (California Institute of the Arts) around that time too for various functions such as school orchestra, took some classes at Cal Arts (even learned a couple new instruments), and Wine Tasting events. Anyways I remembered there I would also like to wander around the the campus before classes start. This is the bottom floor of CalArts also known as the graffiti hall (taken at 2005). It’s pretty cool because every inch of the wall is drawn on and there’s layers and layers of graffiti on the wall. Check out this other blog entry too on the graffiti hall. I have to say, the hall has quite changed since then.

Flashback: Welcome!

No, I was not giving birth to this little baby. That’s my little sister! This picture was taken June 24, 2007 and I was 19 going on 20. Also on June 24th was the day me and my sister came to Japan (oh I’ll post some pics on this blog in the future). As soon as we arrived in the airport we went straight to hospital to catch up with our mom and dad. Isn’t she so cute? She’s now two and she looks lovely as ever!

Flashback: Static

Once in a while I’ll post an old picture just because digging through my myspace, old facebook albums, photo bucket — I thought maybe I should revive some old pictures and reminisce.

Anyways this picture was from June 2005–my high school graduation. Looking back, I feel I’ve gone a long way going from truck town USA to UCLA to starting a career in San Diego. When I came back to truck town from UCLA for a little bit I forgot how it was like. I forgot how a lot of my friends I knew since middle school were already married and had kids–it just felt so alien to me because I was in LA for long. Sometimes  look back wondering how things would be if I stayed back in truck town USA. For a very long time I always said “this is so not my town.” I didn’t know what I meant by that but I knew I was right and I felt it.

All I can say is without elaborating too much is thank god I didn’t stick around for the next best thing otherwise I’d be miserable and restless  wondering why all my friends are settled with their family and place and not me. And also if I stuck around, I don’t think I would’ve gone as far as I dreamed of or even thought of. I mean I would have never thought to have gone to UCLA and meet so many different people from all walks of life and finally be comfortable with myself–that can’t be done by staying in truck town USA–no not at all. I think what compelled me to write this entry was looking back to my neuroscience graduation, at the end of ceremony it said “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” I guess from the past four years, the process I’ve gone through all started as a dream and I did anything it can for it to happen:  Leave the little town and pursue bigger and better things that was the plan. I didn’t want to let it get in the way and I didn’t want to let people change it and have them determine what my life was going to turn out. The only change I’ll let to my plan is if its going to get better and holding back plans does not make things better.

I knew life after high school to me did not define as settling down and thought “I love this person more than anything and he’s going to the military–I must marry him” or “I must marry him because I’m not making enough money and I want to move out of the house” or be a people pleaser .  So I’m done rambling.

If you stayed where you were, how do you think your life would’ve been?

Internet: The Not So Great Equalizer

Does social class mean social divide?

Actually I didn’t think about it really. Over the past year I’ve been spending more time and logging in Facebook more than I have Myspace. Times I even thought about deleting my Myspace but then I just had some of my reason not to. I’ve only used Myspace whenever I came back to my hometown just to say “hey I’m back, we should hang out” and also I use it to keep in touch with friends from high school and my old college and those who are still staying back there. I guess at some point a lot of my life was there on Myspace because I had that since high school–a lot my old pictures are there and I don’t want to delete those.

I just started using Facebook more when I started going to UCLA but not as much as Myspace because I kept making contacts or trying to make every effort I can to stay in touch with my friends from back home while I was away from school. But later on, my friends back home started to relate less to me and I had the impression that the friends there didn’t understand where I was coming from and just weren’t very supportive. To them, they saw the fact that I went to UCLA was the be all, end all. All problems should be solved because I went to school here. But because of those reasons and the fact that they couldn’t understand me was when I converted to Facebook. I felt being at Facebook was like “College is almost over–why am I wasting my time trying to fix things back home when I should really be meeting new people you know.” So that was why I converted.

Reading this article was interesting, I didn’t really see this as “social class.” In fact I would like to avoid the word “social class” because I feel it associates to being snobby or being better than someone. l felt it just so happens that the people I knew perimeter wise from classmate, roommate, and labmate all were conveniently were on facebook.

Day 15: Go vikings

Valencia High School (go 2005) memorabilia sold at Rite Aid. High school was so long ago.