inside her stuff

honestly, i should probably be in bed right now.  it’s kind of late, and i need more sleep.  but i feel like writing instead of sleeping right about now.

i worked really hard today.  i got like two days worth of stuff done.  i’m pretty stoked on that, even if it meant not fully participating in the ping pong ball madness that was going on all around me.  oh, boys.  haha!  ;)  anyway, i also got involved in two separate, very strange conversations that involved john today.  in one, he asked chris if he was “getting any.”  in the other, we talked politics until john decided i was so liberal that i had come around to conservative.  yeah.  at least he was really entertaining today!

after work, i was off to the gym.  didn’t get a treadmill right away because two women were walking at the speed of molasses (really) and chatting away with one another.  that’s two of the three treadmills occupied by people who burned enough calories to eat a single french fry.  combined.  anyway, so i did 15 tough minutes on an elliptical before going to a treadmill (they eventually got off the treadmills and just stood in the gym talking.  it’s easier, i suppose.).  and then it was sprints and walking intervals.  really tough.  i worked very hard!

and after getting cleaned up, i headed up to the spectrum to celebrate lauren’s birthday with dinner at the yard house.  i know lauren from emmaus.  anyway, i got up there and tried to meet up with her and marke when i discovered i was at the wrong yard house.  i knew i should i have double-checked the location before i left home.  anyway, so i went over to the yard house at fashion island and met up with lauren, three of her friends from college, and 3 emmaus guys (including marke).  we had a really fun dinner together!  everyone there was really great, and i’m enjoying getting to know lauren.  she’s cool.  it was a really good night, i’d say.

i took pch home because it’s gorgeous even at night.  i love it.  and then i discovered a van in my parking spot.  ugh.  lame.  if you live here (which they do because i see that van in a different spot all the time), you know which spot is yours and that you can’t park in the others.  of course, i just washed my car, but it’ll be a mess by the morning.  oh, well.

and now i’m up too late for no especially good reason.  but i’m happy, so it’s cool.  it’s definitely not that angsty insomnia.  more soon…

lacking flavor

isn’t it amazing how someone can just take a moment to say hello and it can totally make a day better, bring a smile?  i love that! :)

work’s been crazy busy for me lately, but i think i’m getting things accomplished.  it also seems like the department is a little quieter, which probably comes both from us all being busy and andrew being on vacation.  it’s still good there, though.  anyway, i’m working hard.

i took a nice drive up the coast tonight up to newport.  i picked up cupcakes at sprinkles, even though i was heartbroken that they didn’t have any peanut butter chip ones left when i got there.  and the drive back was even more gorgeous.  i love living on the coast.  did you know? ;)

it’s a quiet night before a couple busy ones…

nearly forgot!  there was an earthquake in southern california today!  a 5.4.  and it shook the office i was in a lot and for a long time.  plus, i found a few things knocked off shelves when i got home, but nothing’s damanged.  everything seems to be fine, but it was shook me up a little while it was going on.  see what i did there? ;)

keep you

i’ve been so busy the last few days, and i must say that i’ve really quite enjoyed myself.  and i’m ready to tuck into bed early (or at least on time) tonight and start another week.

the second part of my week at work was busy, busy, busy.  i didn’t accomplish enough on thursday, but i managed to make up for it on friday and get more done than i expected.  and all without working more than my regular hours.  that’s awesome news because i didn’t really want to be at the office any extra hours those days.  anyway, it’s going to be another busy week, i think, but things seem to be going well.

thursday night i was off to emmaus once again.  i’m really enjoying this group of people a lot, and i feel like i’m also getting so much out of the lessons (not sure what else to call them).  and i even went out to in-n-out with a bunch of people afterwards to just hang out.  it’s interesting to get to know these people and feel like i’m being welcomed into their group.  on saturday night (i’m jumping around but it makes more sense this way, i think), i went to oral history night with the emmaus group.  it was a potluck dinner at someone’s house, and after dinner dave (the guy who seems to run emmaus) interviewed this girl jamie about her life story.  beginning to end.  it was really, really interesting to hear someone’s life story like that: gathered with about 20 other people in a living room while she just sat and talked right there.  it really does build a strong community to have people share their stories like that.  i’m sure i could learn something new from any one of my closest friends if they just sat and told me their life story.  and this community is really growing on me.  i was talking to this girl allison, and she was telling me how much she likes being with these people that genuinely care about one another.  there are lots of different sorts of people there, but they care about one another.  it’s really cool.  and unique, i think.  anyway, the point of my rambling is that i’m so glad i found emmaus.

on friday night, i picked up adam from the airport and we came back here and just hung out and watched “psych” and did nothing.  it was very us, and i enjoy having him around a lot.  but the reason he came to see me this weekend was so we could go to huntington beach to watch the honda u.s. open of surfing presented by o’neill.  so saturday morning, we picked up donuts at the local shop and headed up there and staked out a place on the beach.  theresa and her boyfriend, chris, met us there, as well.  and the 4 of us hung out on the beach and watched surfing all day long.  of course, there were lots of booths and sponsors and other activities going on, as well, and so the others walked around a lot and enjoyed that, too.  as for me, i prefer to just lie around on the beach all day.  and watch surfing.  so that’s what i did. :)  theresa, chris, and adam all came back to my place after the surfing was over for the day.  they enjoyed downtown san clemente and fisherman’s while i was at oral history night, and then they all crashed here.  and this morning, we were up bright and early once again to get up to hungtington again.  we hung out on the beach there some more.  it was really fun and just relaxed.  and we left in the early afternoon so the others could get back up to la.  it was really wonderful to see everyone for the weekend. :)

i decided to take my time getting home and drove pch the whole way from huntington to san clemente.  what a lovely drive!  and i might have stopped to pick up a treat at sprinkles, since it was totally on my way! :)

this afternoon, i went to the 5:30 mass at st. edwards.  i’d never been to that mass before, but i am really, really glad i tried it today.  i loved it!  the singing was great, and i like this new priest a lot.  good mass.  i’m happy. :)

and so i’m just preparing to watch the season premiere of “mad men” and then crash.  hope you had a good weekend, too!

boosh!

tonight i finally feel like i have a moment to sit down a really think and write.  i’m trying to go ahead and put a bit more of myself here, and that also requires a bit more thought.  so here i go.  birthday weekend.

saturday morning i was up bright and early.  i found a place downstairs to continue with my routine of morning yoga before getting on with the rest of my day.  and then it was time to get cleaned up and ready to head out.  dad, adam, and i took the train up to the city and then walked the two blocks from the train station to at&t park.  i like to try to get to at least one giants baseball game each season.  that park is really awesome, the food there is great, and it’s fun to see the giants play.  no matter how rough a season they’re having. :)  so we sat way up in the nosebleed seats and relaxed, watched the game, and had amazing garlic fries.  i’m sure i still smell like garlic a little bit!  ;)  it was a great time, and i love hanging out with dad and adam.  even the train ride home was fun.

and saturday night was my time with the girls.  meg, mel, kath, and i got together for dinner at bj’s, which was really fun.  the service was kind of poor, but we didn’t mind at all because (1) the waiter was particularly handsome and (2) we were in absolutely no hurry at all because we had plenty to catch up on with each other.  given the opportunity, i think we could just hang out, eat, and talk forever.  i love those girls.  also, i shared a bit more of myself with them that night than i might have previously.  see, when you’ve known people since you were 5 years old, sometimes there are subjects you just don’t talk about with each other.  things that are more grown up.  that night, it was about going to church.  and you know, it’s kind of funny we rarely talk about religious topics because we spent 13 years going to catholic schools together.  anyway, it was a great night out with them, and i’m so thankful for those long friendships.

speaking of God, adam and i got up early on sunday so that we could make it to 9am mass at st. charles.  that was always the mass that all my friends and their families went to as i was growing up.  it was the big mass.  it was pretty quiet this sunday morning, though.  after attending lots of different services since i left san carlos, it’s interesting to think about what i like and dislike in each place’s service.  for instance, i don’t like the music at st. charles because it’s impossible to sing along with (too high) and doesn’t add much to the mass.  still, there’s something about going to mass there that feels like going home.  anyway, i’m glad i went.

saturday afternoon, we had a big party at the house with lots of family and a few friends.  it was catered with italian food!  this is huge because it has taken me 25 years to get the family to accept that i’d rather have italian food than filipino food.  of course, there was also plenty of filipino food, as well.  but i had more than enough italian food to fill me up.  it was quite delicious!  and it was really, really good to hang out with the family a bit.  i miss them when i’m here.  they’re not constantly online or on facebook or whatever, like my friends are, so i don’t always talk to them as much as i’d like.

also, at this party i received a very, very nice gift from my parents.  honestly, i wasn’t expecting anything at all from them for my birthday because there wasn’t anything i asked for or really needed.  but they bought me an amazon kindle.  it’s a new electronic book reader that is just really, really well done.  the display looks like the pages of a book, and it allows me to download new books anywhere i am wirelessly.  basically, it’s really, really rad, and i’m totally loving it.  i’ve already downloaded a few books that i’m working through.  i’m enjoying “girls in trucks” right now.

and sunday night, it was back to the airport so i could get back to (this) home.  it was an uneventful flight back, which is good news.

this week has been so busy at work.  i’m feeling a bit overwhelemed with all i have to do, but i’m just trying to stay focused, keep my nose down, and work through everything bit by bit.  plus, there are people in from out of town making the office feel a bit crowded.  last night, john invited everyone over to his new house for a housewarming get together.  it was really fun to sit and hang out with some people i don’t always talk to a lot.  also, the house is absolutely gorgeous.  i think it was a good evening, even if it made for sort of a long day.

and tonight i was sort of tired.  i read and napped and took a long walk after work, which was all great.  i even gave myself a nice, pink manicure while watching “so you think you can dance.”  it was just quiet and relaxing and nice.

tomorrow, i’ll be back to a busy evening, between the gym and emmaus.  anyway, i’ll be back soon with more.

weekend soon

so i’m behind on the writing, but i need some sleep.  an update from last weekend is coming soon, but for now, birthday celebration photos are on flickr. :)

a thankful heart

well, well, well.  twenty-five years.  i can hardly even believe it, quite honestly.  i often still think i’m 17.  or sometimes it’s 19.  nineteen was a particularly good year.  anyway, i’ve apparently now lived 25 years.  they’ve all been wonderful, and i’m more excited than words to see what my 26th year has in store for me.

tonight i write from an airplane, something i don’t do so often.  first of all, i don’t really like flying.  or really being stuck in any other mode of transportation, either.  it’s nauseating for me.  anyway, as you probably already know, that doesn’t stop me from flying all the time.  see, i love being in lots of different places, even if i don’t always love the actual act of traveling to those places.  and so i tend to like to go to sleep while i’m in transit.  i never get much sleep, so taking advantage of a plane ride often seems like a good idea.  and if i decide, for some reason, that i’m not going to sleep on a flight (or if i can’t get to sleep), i like to read a book.  i love reading books, and i don’t take enough time out of my regular life to do so.  but without an internet connection or someone interesting to talk to, it’s easy to sit and just read for a few hours while at 35,000 feet.  but tonight, my eyes are tired (more on why coming up), so i’m falling asleep reading (i just started “this side of paradise”).  and i don’t want to go to sleep because i’ll do that once i get to the house.  i don’t want to make sleeping there more difficult for myself by having napped on this plane.  so the point of all this rambling is that i pulled out my computer and am composing this journal entry to post as soon as i can get back online because it’ll occupy me for the hour or so i’m here.

so my birthday.  that’s what i really want to get to writing about tonight.  yesterday, i turned 25 in wonderful fashion.  i was busy for about 20 hours straight.  i haven’t had an actual birthday day that packed with stuff in a long time, i’m sure.  it was awesome!

first up for the day was going to work.  it’s a busy july and this is a particularly busy time of this month for us at the office, so there was no taking the day off.  plus, what would i have really done with that day off?  i’m not sure.  it was more fun to go into the office and hang out with the boys whose company i always enjoy.  but just to make it a little more special, i wore this really cute purple dress that i’ve had for a while but don’t wear too often.  it’s dressier than what i usually wear to work (jeans), but not entirely inappropriate for the office.  anyway, i wore that.  it was lovely. ;)  and work was lovely, as well.  the boys (minus andrew, who is in brooklyn right now playing volleyball with the avp like the rock star he is) kept me thoroughly distracted from actual work all day long.  we went and bought the “batman begins” dvd and some toys from the 99-cent store at lunchtime.  then we took the projector from the conference room and set it up in the art department to project onto one wall, and that’s how we watched the movie.  we even had pizza delivered while we watched, which made for an especially delicious lunch.  it was pretty awesome.  we will definitely do that again!  :)  and we played with all our new toys–which include ping pong paddles and balls, safety goggles, badminton rackets, a plunger, a basket, and lots of other strange odds and ends–throughout the day, as well.  yes, they let us get away with a lot at work!  haha!  it’s so great, especially on my birthday when i really didn’t want to have to accomplish too much.  also, i’m now the only person in the company with a birthday in july, so we had a cake and some ice cream just for me as a company.  everyone sings “happy birthday” terribly, as that is the company tradition.   and the candles on the cake were the kind that re-light themselves, unbeknownst to anyone.  after i blew them out twice, i didn’t really know what to do once they re-lit themselves.  i mean, i am only going to blow on a cake for so long; otherwise, no one would want to eat any of the cake.  so anyway, that was a fun little company tradition. :)

next up, i headed home right on time.  i changed and went directly up to the gym for a run.  and it was my fastest time ever.  awesome!  i’m feeling good about this lately, and it’s nice to start out my 26th year feeling like i’m on the road to being physically fit. ;)

then i raced back down to my apartment, showered as quickly as i could, and got dressed and headed right back out again.  no time to waste!  i headed to emmaus.  right now, i’m just remembering that i haven’t really talked about emmaus here before.  emmaus is a group of people in their 20s and 30s who gather at zoe (marke’s dad’s church) on thursday nights for worship and a message.  yes, i think that’s an appropriate description.  i’m sure as i continue to write about it in the coming weeks, you’ll get a better understanding of what it is.  anyway, i went for the first time last thursday and enjoyed it a lot.  the people there are really cool, and i like the way their speakers present a message about the scriptures.  there are a couple main reasons why i am going there.  first of all, the message is a great addition to the catholic masses i usually go to.  it’s of the same faith — christian — but presented differently.  for me, that means a great contrast and more for me to learn.  secondly, i am really liking becoming part of the emmaus community.  my life’s a bit lacking in community sometimes, and it’s something i’m trying to work on.  so anyway, i should get back to yesterday.  i went to emmaus yesterday evening.  it was awesome, and dave (the guy who seems to run things) presented a great lesson on communion.

this is where the plane starts landing, and i realize how long-winded i’ve been thus far.  time for me to shut down.  more writing when i’m back on solid ground. :)

okay, i’m all the way to san carlos now.  sitting at the dining room table while dad and adam watch “monk.”  this is very us.  now, back to my birthday celebration.  i can’t believe you’re even still reading.

after emmaus, marke and i hung around a while to talk with everyone else there.  that’s kind of part of it, actually.  community, like i said before.  so i met some more people there, which was cool.

eventually, though, it was time to get going to the movie theatre.  it was about 10:30 when marke and i headed over there, stopping for coffee at the bookstore before meeting up with chris and mallory, who were already in line.  in line for what?  in line to see “the dark knight,” of course!  in case you live on mars or something, the movie opened last night at midnight.  so we waited with all the other crazies to get into the theatre so we could stay up all night watching a movie.  anyway, it was really awesome.  the movie was so, so, so, so great!  i can’t even believe it!  a few months back, marke talked me into reading a batman comic book, the long halloween, which was part of the inspiration for this movie.  i’m glad i did.  it made the movie even more interesting, i think.  anyway, i love love love loved going to see a midnight movie with a few friends.  it was a perfect way to wrap up a great birthday.  :)

and then the alarm went off this morning at 7:30, 4 hours after i fell asleep.  i did alright at work today.  it’s a good thing it was pretty chill there, though, because i know i couldn’t have done anything super complex on that amount of sleep.  ;)  the boys were so funny today!  they’re such great entertainment, i swear.  and good friends, too, in the quieter moments.

and after work (i snuck out a little bit early), i headed for the gym.  have to keep working out.  then i got cleaned up and packed and everything and headed for the airport.  and after that flight i mentioned before, now i’m here with mom, dad, and adam.  i really am excited about this weekend.  it’s pretty packed full of fun activities.  i’ll try to keep you updated…

one more candle

i had an a.m.a.z.i.n.g. 25th birthday, but my alarm clock will go off in about 4 hours, so i need to get to bed now.  more soon. :)

useless

yes.  this is very much me.

sunset man

so it’s sunday night, i’m relaxing watching the last few episodes of season 1 of “mad men,” i have fresh polish on my toenails, and i’m content with the weekend i’ve just had.  feels pretty good. :)

i’ve been walking lately.  my back has been acting up a little (it’s just tight, nothing too bad), but the walking helps loosen it up without making it worse.  anyway, this neighborhood provides quite the views in the evening.  the sunsets both last night and tonight were simply spectacular.  just amazing.  tonight, i sat for a few minutes on this bench with a particularly good view.  it was lovely.

after mass this morning, i picked up lunch and headed to work.  it was a really productive afternoon, and i finally feel like i actually accomplished something.  and it’s nice to do really creative work when the office is all mine.  i played my music nice and loud, i walked around without shoes, and i could just be very, very focused.  but then again, i’m trying not to make working on the weekend a habit.  :)

i bought myself some really, really quality new music yesterday.  i went to get the new album that’s a collaboration between willie nelson and wynton marsalis called “two men with the blues.”  it’s spectacular.  they’re especially great together, and listening to the album makes me really want to listen to jazz.  i rarely do listen to it, but i enjoy it a lot.  and while i was out, i also picked up some bluegrass, as that’s been an interest of late.  i found a chris thile album i didn’t already have, “how to grow a woman from the ground,” which is really quite a work.  it definitely shows him about to get to punch brothers.  and i also picked up an album from the infamous stringdusters.  i’d never listened to them before, but i’m enjoying it thoroughly.  really, really good music.  really.

anyway, it’s time to get ready for a busy week.  i’m off for now… :)

balls in midair

marke and james decided it’d be an awesome idea to both hit foam balls with golf clubs at the same time so that the balls would collide midair.  (yes, in the office.)  they figured it’d be a bit of challenge, much like trying to hit a foam ball into the lamp is quite difficult.  instead, on their first attempt, they succeeded.  and it’ll never be attempted again, i think.  so awesome and so hilarious!  these are the boys i work with.  (minus the cussing.  they do that, too.  a lot.)

work’s been so crazy busy that it makes me even more grateful for these hilarious bits of craziness.  :)

in other news, my life continues to be interesting, despite me not being particularly straightforward about sharing it here.  i’m really being stretched right now, but in a way that i feel like i can handle and that is forcing me to both learn a lot about myself as well as grow tremendously.  i’ve tried new things and met some new people.  i’ve figured out that there are some things i never talk about.  i’ve also figured out that it can feel really good to just explain what’s going on in my head to someone.  and i’m trying to become more trusting and confident in people around me.  anyway, things are really good, and i am pretty certain they’re getting even better.

and one more note: there are only 6 days until my birthday! ;)