It's been 36 hours and I'm holding up fine, especially compared to last year. I'm quite sure I'm ready this time around. Already the skin tone change is noticeable, especially in the hands. Almost as if it were self-moisturizing.
During the break, I got hooked on the show "Beauty and the Geek". I just caught a preview of some of the contestants on tonight's season premiere. It doesn't look as good as the previous season's but I'm still going to watch.
Change is suppose to be good.....
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Drew BLEW!
I don't know what Bill Parcels sees in this dolt called Drew Bledsoe. The SOB is a football idiot. If anyone saw the game, the Cowboys got lucky with a pass interference call that gave them 1st and Goal with 37 seconds left. On first down, he missed T.O. on the inside slant. On second down, the dumb fuck throws it to an Eagle who races 102 yards for a touchdown. Twice he underthrows T.O. which turned the ball over. The second one would have been a TD if the fuck had tossed it a little harder and into the corner.
Okay, there's got to be some mitigation. Dallas corners got burned a few times and the offensive line did not protect the dumb fuck. Still, the opportunities were wasted when Lady Luck took some pity on DumbFuck Drew.
Drew, if you ever read this (highly unlikely), you suck. Yes, I can't do what you do but you get paid the big fucking bucks and you fucked up. Yeah, I'm a very sore Cowboys fan. Maybe you might talk to Hall of Fame QB Troy Aikman who didn't have the mobility in the pocket and ask for some pointers.
Grrrrrr....
Still, it was a thrilling game.
Okay, there's got to be some mitigation. Dallas corners got burned a few times and the offensive line did not protect the dumb fuck. Still, the opportunities were wasted when Lady Luck took some pity on DumbFuck Drew.
Drew, if you ever read this (highly unlikely), you suck. Yes, I can't do what you do but you get paid the big fucking bucks and you fucked up. Yeah, I'm a very sore Cowboys fan. Maybe you might talk to Hall of Fame QB Troy Aikman who didn't have the mobility in the pocket and ask for some pointers.
Grrrrrr....
Still, it was a thrilling game.
Monday, July 24, 2006
31 Days
On 17 February, I was stupid and slightly egged on by my cousin. I punched the accelerator and shot up to 100mph for only two seconds when, around the turn, I saw Fuzzy. Knowing I was busted, I pulled over and got my ticket. Luckily, I had seen enough of those police chase to know better and cooperated. The officer was kind enough to not lock me up for the weekend.
On 23 June, I pled guilty to the charge to which I was fined and had my license suspended for 31 days. Today, I went to DMV to settle the matter. Though they didn't take my license, I am not allowed to drive until 26 August. That's okay with me since I'll be coming back from my Mexican vacation that night.
The lessons learned here are: (1) there's no need to speed; (2) always cooperate and (3) it's gonna cost you over the medium term. Besides, noone can outrun a bullet or the transmission from the police's radio.
Drive safely y'all!
On 23 June, I pled guilty to the charge to which I was fined and had my license suspended for 31 days. Today, I went to DMV to settle the matter. Though they didn't take my license, I am not allowed to drive until 26 August. That's okay with me since I'll be coming back from my Mexican vacation that night.
The lessons learned here are: (1) there's no need to speed; (2) always cooperate and (3) it's gonna cost you over the medium term. Besides, noone can outrun a bullet or the transmission from the police's radio.
Drive safely y'all!
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Into the Looking Glass
Oh My God! High Definition television is amazing! Last night, I enjoyed my first sporting event in full as the Miami Heat beat the Dallas Mavericks for its first franchise championship. My friend, PastryDad, is probably right that HDTV was made for football. Can't wait.
In the meantime, I'll just blind myself playing Dynasty Warriors on the PS2 connected via component cables. Additionally, I may watch my entire DVD collection again. Note: there is a noticeable distinction between S-video and MONSTER component.
If the price is right, go for your own plasma. Also, I recommend picking up a Terk HDTVa antenna if you live within 20 miles of the broadcast tower. There is no need to pay monthly fees of $60 or more when a $40 antenna will get you over-the-air HD signals. I can understand when the damn cable companies transmit everything in HD.
For now, WOW!
In the meantime, I'll just blind myself playing Dynasty Warriors on the PS2 connected via component cables. Additionally, I may watch my entire DVD collection again. Note: there is a noticeable distinction between S-video and MONSTER component.
If the price is right, go for your own plasma. Also, I recommend picking up a Terk HDTVa antenna if you live within 20 miles of the broadcast tower. There is no need to pay monthly fees of $60 or more when a $40 antenna will get you over-the-air HD signals. I can understand when the damn cable companies transmit everything in HD.
For now, WOW!
Friday, June 16, 2006
Oxy- and Regular Morons
The bank I work for is falling apart and management is still reluctant to acknowledge the fat lady is warming her throat. Their strategy is to avoid risk as opposed to managing it. It is understandable that the banking environment in Asia is quite different from ours but the bigwigs presume that the U.S. should follow their model. Psssh......unleash 1.3 billion people to capitalist forces and lenders can demand whatever collateral and conditions they want. But not here!
Nevertheless, they have big eyes for the U.S. operations because of how well China is performing as the RMB keeps a-rolling. And cuz they're kind of a big schizz-nizz yonder. But not here!
The GM, who I once respected, is no more than a punk who is so scared of HK that he doesn't have any balls to do anything other than bust chops. I figure his strategy is to push as many people in front of the bus before it's his turn. He talks all beaucoup shit about how the boat is sinking but he won't give us the tools to plug the holes. Frankly, it's like he hands out plastic knifes or wooden chopsticks and sends us off to a gunfight with our competitors. He is afraid to make simple business decisions and defers to HK, which requires a near full-blown write-up.
HK takes it sweet-ass time and asks ten thousand inane questions which then makes us look like fools, half-baked and impotent. I worry that my association with the bank is hindering my jobhunt because the word is out that the bank is a tease, a pump-faker, a charlatan or a MORON.
So I am a moron.
Nevertheless, they have big eyes for the U.S. operations because of how well China is performing as the RMB keeps a-rolling. And cuz they're kind of a big schizz-nizz yonder. But not here!
The GM, who I once respected, is no more than a punk who is so scared of HK that he doesn't have any balls to do anything other than bust chops. I figure his strategy is to push as many people in front of the bus before it's his turn. He talks all beaucoup shit about how the boat is sinking but he won't give us the tools to plug the holes. Frankly, it's like he hands out plastic knifes or wooden chopsticks and sends us off to a gunfight with our competitors. He is afraid to make simple business decisions and defers to HK, which requires a near full-blown write-up.
HK takes it sweet-ass time and asks ten thousand inane questions which then makes us look like fools, half-baked and impotent. I worry that my association with the bank is hindering my jobhunt because the word is out that the bank is a tease, a pump-faker, a charlatan or a MORON.
So I am a moron.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Shot in the Foot
Anyone can imagine the throngs of people trying to get to work each morning whether by train, bus or car. It's packed and some nerves are frayed. I was late this morning waking up and I wait patiently to get on the train because there's soothing music playing on my iPod. As the local train I was on approached the station, the express train came rumbling in as well.
A woman, perhaps in her late 50s or early 60s, dragged her, presumably, granddaughter out of the local train and rushed to the doors of the incoming express. When the doors opened, she forcefully tried to get into the train pass other waiting commuters and exiting passengers. When told by the person she pushed aside to take it easy, she smiled and kept pushing her way through.
I took some angry stares because I fall into the Asian category and the elderly woman was Chinese. For all the progress Chinese and other Asians have made in terms of social progress in America, such actions like this woman's reverse strides as they add or reinforce questionable stereotypes. To exacerbate the situation, she, without malicious intent though unkindly, pushed aside other folks to grab a seat vacated at the next stop. Again, angry stares were thrown my way.
These experiences and actions surely undermine the awareness of the collective Asian contribution to America and the world. Yet, I can also understand why they behave this way as Confucius once said to respect the elders. But didn't he also say or imply that patience is a virtue?
A woman, perhaps in her late 50s or early 60s, dragged her, presumably, granddaughter out of the local train and rushed to the doors of the incoming express. When the doors opened, she forcefully tried to get into the train pass other waiting commuters and exiting passengers. When told by the person she pushed aside to take it easy, she smiled and kept pushing her way through.
I took some angry stares because I fall into the Asian category and the elderly woman was Chinese. For all the progress Chinese and other Asians have made in terms of social progress in America, such actions like this woman's reverse strides as they add or reinforce questionable stereotypes. To exacerbate the situation, she, without malicious intent though unkindly, pushed aside other folks to grab a seat vacated at the next stop. Again, angry stares were thrown my way.
These experiences and actions surely undermine the awareness of the collective Asian contribution to America and the world. Yet, I can also understand why they behave this way as Confucius once said to respect the elders. But didn't he also say or imply that patience is a virtue?
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Poor Paul
Maybe it's because I'm not famous nor notorious and I don't want to be either, I find it somewhat difficult for Heather Mills and Paul McCartney to blame their marriage woes and subsequent separation on the constant media intrusion.
Couldn't Paul, with a reported $1.4 billion net worth, secure his own privacy with his wife and 2-year old child? Maybe Bill Gates does it better because his personal fortune is thirty-five times larger.
Nevertheless, it was reporters X, Y and Z that caused a rift in their marriage. The persistent chase and pursuit for the candid and possibly sordid photos of the couple disrupted essential communication between husband and wife. The machine gun flash bulb firings blinded two lovers into an incapacity to see and work through differences.
Maybe I should release a public statement blaming the lack of media attention to my separation two and a half years ago. It's interesting that I should read this article today as last night's Boston Legal had a case of a celebrity fighting back against paparazzi. In fact, the actress shot the photographer.
What will Paul do now? I'm sure the groupies are ready to soothe his soul with wanton and unabashed sex should he decide to give it a go as the local Fairmont Hotel.
Poor Paul
Couldn't Paul, with a reported $1.4 billion net worth, secure his own privacy with his wife and 2-year old child? Maybe Bill Gates does it better because his personal fortune is thirty-five times larger.
Nevertheless, it was reporters X, Y and Z that caused a rift in their marriage. The persistent chase and pursuit for the candid and possibly sordid photos of the couple disrupted essential communication between husband and wife. The machine gun flash bulb firings blinded two lovers into an incapacity to see and work through differences.
Maybe I should release a public statement blaming the lack of media attention to my separation two and a half years ago. It's interesting that I should read this article today as last night's Boston Legal had a case of a celebrity fighting back against paparazzi. In fact, the actress shot the photographer.
What will Paul do now? I'm sure the groupies are ready to soothe his soul with wanton and unabashed sex should he decide to give it a go as the local Fairmont Hotel.
Poor Paul
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Befuddled
A woman in my department is way too funny.
Yesterday, I asked what she'd do if she won the lottery. She said that she would work hard to find a better return for her money. I clarified and asked what she'd do if she had $500,000 pre-tax a year as a result of the lottery, a sort of perpetual don't-need-to-do-anything salary. She said that she would research mutual, stock and bond funds to make at least 10% on the money because that paltry 5% on $10 million principal in the bank is too low for her. I asked her why wouldn't she just enjoy the free time with her kids (2 and 1 years old) and oversee their development. She said that she wouldn't be a positive role model if she didn't work because her kids would ask why other families are different because their mother didn't work. She added that having fun all the time would be boring and that she'd be tired from traveling so she'd need to work. Then she brought up something about playing video games, being with friends and doing nothing as a remedy to boredom from having too much and that the richest people in the world continue getting richer because they keep going.
HUH? If someone understands her message, please explain it to me.
This morning, another co-worker was rubbing his eyes because his allergies were kicking and I asked if he was okay. When I told him that I didn't have allergies, he jokingly cursed me to have multiple allergies in a few years. Ms. I-Need-To-Work-To-Be-A-Positive-Role-Model, who sits behind Mr. Allergies and diagonally from me, chimes in that allergies are genetic. I said "probably" but it doesn't explain how a woman I know has a billion allergies and yet there is no history of allergies in her family. Ms. Bored-From-Having-Too-Much-Fun replied that it explains how the others don't allergies and that she can be ignored. I asked her if the majority appeared correct, should the minority be ignored or discarded? She said "of course, only the majority matters". I asked if that means she discriminates against the minority. She says that the tiny percentage doesn't matter because only the majority does.
I've suspected this woman was quite an "in-the-box" person but not to this extent. Whoa....
Here's a conversation I had with her back in December 2005:
Her: Have a bun, Xxx bought them
Me: No, thanks
Her: They're delicious
Me: I know. I'd take a bite and have to throw the rest away
Her: Throw it away? Don't waste it, give to someone else
Me: Who'd take it?
Her: Then give it to someone else
Me: Okay, I'll take a bun, take a bite and give to someone else
Her: Yes, you should do that
Me: I'll give it to you
Her: Me? NO! I don't want your bun
Me: Why not?
Her: Because you took a bite out of it
Me: But you told me to give away my half-eaten bun
Her: Yes, but not to me
Me: Aren't you someone else?
Her: Give it to your friend or a....dog
Me: I don't have a dog
Her: You can get a dog
Me: Hmmm, get a dog? I suppose I could get a dog just to have the rest of the bun
Her: Yes, you can do that
Me: I'm not sure if the dog would like this bun though
Her: Dogs eat anything
Me: You sure?
Her: Yes
Me: Do you have a dog?
Her: No
Me: Have you ever had a dog?
Her: No
Me: How do you know a dog would like this bun?
Her: I don't know.....don't give it to the dog then, give to someone else
Me: Okay, I'll give it to you
Her: I don't want your half-eaten bun
Me: Why not?
Her: I have my own bun
Me: Don't you want another one?
Her: No, give it to someone else
Me: You said that they're delicious
Her: They are, I could a whole bunch of them
Me: How about half of one?
Her: No
Me: I couldn't possibly finish one
Her: Then throw it away
I'm going to have a bun, only one bite. Who wants the rest?
Yesterday, I asked what she'd do if she won the lottery. She said that she would work hard to find a better return for her money. I clarified and asked what she'd do if she had $500,000 pre-tax a year as a result of the lottery, a sort of perpetual don't-need-to-do-anything salary. She said that she would research mutual, stock and bond funds to make at least 10% on the money because that paltry 5% on $10 million principal in the bank is too low for her. I asked her why wouldn't she just enjoy the free time with her kids (2 and 1 years old) and oversee their development. She said that she wouldn't be a positive role model if she didn't work because her kids would ask why other families are different because their mother didn't work. She added that having fun all the time would be boring and that she'd be tired from traveling so she'd need to work. Then she brought up something about playing video games, being with friends and doing nothing as a remedy to boredom from having too much and that the richest people in the world continue getting richer because they keep going.
HUH? If someone understands her message, please explain it to me.
This morning, another co-worker was rubbing his eyes because his allergies were kicking and I asked if he was okay. When I told him that I didn't have allergies, he jokingly cursed me to have multiple allergies in a few years. Ms. I-Need-To-Work-To-Be-A-Positive-Role-Model, who sits behind Mr. Allergies and diagonally from me, chimes in that allergies are genetic. I said "probably" but it doesn't explain how a woman I know has a billion allergies and yet there is no history of allergies in her family. Ms. Bored-From-Having-Too-Much-Fun replied that it explains how the others don't allergies and that she can be ignored. I asked her if the majority appeared correct, should the minority be ignored or discarded? She said "of course, only the majority matters". I asked if that means she discriminates against the minority. She says that the tiny percentage doesn't matter because only the majority does.
I've suspected this woman was quite an "in-the-box" person but not to this extent. Whoa....
Here's a conversation I had with her back in December 2005:
Her: Have a bun, Xxx bought them
Me: No, thanks
Her: They're delicious
Me: I know. I'd take a bite and have to throw the rest away
Her: Throw it away? Don't waste it, give to someone else
Me: Who'd take it?
Her: Then give it to someone else
Me: Okay, I'll take a bun, take a bite and give to someone else
Her: Yes, you should do that
Me: I'll give it to you
Her: Me? NO! I don't want your bun
Me: Why not?
Her: Because you took a bite out of it
Me: But you told me to give away my half-eaten bun
Her: Yes, but not to me
Me: Aren't you someone else?
Her: Give it to your friend or a....dog
Me: I don't have a dog
Her: You can get a dog
Me: Hmmm, get a dog? I suppose I could get a dog just to have the rest of the bun
Her: Yes, you can do that
Me: I'm not sure if the dog would like this bun though
Her: Dogs eat anything
Me: You sure?
Her: Yes
Me: Do you have a dog?
Her: No
Me: Have you ever had a dog?
Her: No
Me: How do you know a dog would like this bun?
Her: I don't know.....don't give it to the dog then, give to someone else
Me: Okay, I'll give it to you
Her: I don't want your half-eaten bun
Me: Why not?
Her: I have my own bun
Me: Don't you want another one?
Her: No, give it to someone else
Me: You said that they're delicious
Her: They are, I could a whole bunch of them
Me: How about half of one?
Her: No
Me: I couldn't possibly finish one
Her: Then throw it away
I'm going to have a bun, only one bite. Who wants the rest?
Friday, April 14, 2006
Hong Kong 2006
March 26th
We arrived around 830PM and were quite tired. We took the Airport Express train into Central where we caught a cab to the Cosmopolitan Hotel located between Wanchai and Causeway Bay. After checking in, we unpacked, took shits, brushed our teeth and showered before walking over to Times Square in Causeway Bay. We slightly confused but figured out that “Subway” meant an underground pathway to get the other side of the road. The first foods we ate were sticks of siu-mai (without much meat) and curry fish balls. I washed mine down with a mango drink. We walked around a bit and found a restaurant where we ordered beef chow fun, mushroom yee-mein and Portuguese chicken noodles along with two Cokes and a Coke Light (their version of diet). Food coma set in slowly as we headed back to the hotel. Not much was on the television as the three of us pushed the two tiny twin beds together and slept perpendicularly across the beds.
March 27th
I awoke at 658AM, followed shortly by M and eventually by T. We just chilled thinking that we could ease up on the jet lag. We showered, dressed and headed to Central to meet T’s cousin for dim-sum. We ate at a restaurant in Melbourne Plaza on Queen’s Road. The food was good and we stayed there for a couple of hours. It’s nice to be able to smoke practically anywhere in Hong Kong. Afterwards, I headed up to my company’s head office to get a phone number. I met with the guy who came from the New York office and eventually oversaw the company’s overseas branches and their development. We walked around Central a bit before heading up to Lan Kwai Fong as we were going to T’s cousin’s place in the Mid-Levels. We rode up the world’s longest escalator system only to get lost. We ended up walking up and down the hilly part of HK before finding the apartment building. Her address is 11 Bonham Street; across the street is 60-something Bonham. Strange, eh? The renown egg custards we bought were now cool but we had a good time as the pregnant hostess served tea and caught T up with her life. They have a nice flat with a decent view of Victoria Harbor, were it a nice clear day. We left around 1830 to head back to the hotel amid a misty rain. As we were tired from the trekking, we decided to eat at the hotel restaurant. Another strange thing: the waiters/waitresses would change T’s and my plates but not M’s. So we joked that they didn’t serve the servants even though it was the servant’s fictitious birthday and this dinner was her treat. In the room, we showered, bullshitted some more and got ready to two separate trips into China.
March 28th
I woke up at 630AM and found it strange that I was up so early. We eventually got going around 730 and caught a cab to Tsim Sha Tsui where we dropped off the bulk of our luggage at the place we were going to be staying the rest of the trip. We had breakfast at this diner-like restaurant across the street. DAMN, the rice noodles were awesome! M and T took off on their trip as I walked around TST since my train to Guangdong (aka Canton) was scheduled at 1315. I walked down to take pictures of Hong Kong since it was a sunny and clear day. Around 1130, I went to see the tailor who made me suits and shirts when I was last in HK. Around noon, I walked over to the MTR (their train system) for a quick hop over to KCR East Station for the ride up to Guangdong. As breakfast had passed, I was slightly hungry and grabbed McDonalds. I tried the new gimmick called Faan-tastic (note “Faan” was written in Chinese to denote rice). The gimmick involved either beef with onions or a chicken patty between two rice cakes. I rate it a 1.5 out of 10 and, luckily, I had gotten myself a sausage McMuffin. The ride up to Guangdong was uneventful as I was jamming on my iPod and getting busy with the Sudoku book. My cousin picked me up at the station and we went to his place where we chilled on his balcony drinking tea. They took me to the same place two years ago for dinner. Various live seafaring foods were available for dinner. The strangest was seeing a 4-foot (tip to tip) crocodile with his mouth plastic-wrapped waiting to be an entrée in the large tank as the other fish huddle together away from it. I thoroughly enjoyed the scallops in a half-shell with garlic and cellophane noodles. The vegetable in garlic sauce was nice too. We had goose and boiled shrimp as well. Afterwards, my cousin’s wife set up a mahjong game and it had the weirdest rules. We didn’t finish until 630AM despite initially wanting to end it at 230AM. I used my temporary cell phone to call a cousin in NY so that this hosting cousin could speak to. In 3 minutes, I burned HK$77! The Chinese cell companies are robbing folks left and right!
March 29th
I got up at 1130AM and chatted with my cousin’s wife for a while before heading out to lunch at a western styled restaurant a few blocks away. Despite the abundance of staff, none were effective and they all seemed clueless. Later, I realized that they don’t like making decisions and would rather be told what and when to do things. Commies! The food was so-so. I caught the 1655 train back to Kowloon and met up with M and T who had already gotten back. We went shopping for bedding mats as that would be our beds for the remainder of the trip. Our other two cohorts were at the apartment when we came back with the mats, extra sheets and towels. Everyone grab a drawer and a few hangers to claim as their own. The gluttony commenced about 90 minutes later as we walked around TST to get a fix on our position and noted where restaurants were. We hit a noodle store and pounded it: dumplings (two kinds), tripe, beef cubes, noodles (thin and wide), iced and milk teas. Stuffed and getting comatose, we headed back to the apartment.
March 30th
Q had to go to work so the four of us had lunch at the diner across the street. Afterwards, we diddle-dallied at the apartment a bit before T headed to HK island and M, C and I walked north to check out the famous Ladies Street. We hiked up Nathan Road and checked out various stores. C bought a business card holder at the China Arts and Craft store. Along the way, we checked out pricing on hair straightening as M’s hair was subject to the humidity kryptonite. We stopped to buy a mango and papaya drink, the mango tasted better. We found the street flea market in the middle and made our way up to the northern end. Cheap imitation jewelry, designer bags, watches, sneakers, shirts, etc. The vendors were aggressive and willing to negotiate as only the suckers paid what they asked. It should be noted that any guide/tour books recommend haggling with the vendors. Upon reaching the southern end of the flea market, the pungent and foul aroma of HK’s infamous Smelly Tofu was in the air. Luckily, an uncertain breeze moved the funk away but I was ready to try it. We ordered other foods and the moment came when I chomped on the Smelly Tofu. Tasty though it was overcooked a bit. We lugged our take back to the apartment. I don’t know what we did afterwards.
March 31st
Q went to work again and I met my cousin who arrived the Wednesday night. I was prepared to meet her out in Kwun Tong but she had already come over to TST with her friends for dim-sum and down the block from the apartment. She was there with her co-worker, his sister and their niece. I thought the girls were local gals until I heard them speak American English. They’re from California and were psyched about their impending trip to Bangkok and Phuket. It was interesting that neither one of them could speak Chinese but were Vietnamese Chinese. The oddest thing was my cousin (whose a FOB) asking me how to say “soy sauce” and “oyster sauce” in Cantonese. And I’m the worst Chinese speaker of all! My cousin had an appointment with a hairdresser around the block but the guy was late so we talked a bit. When he arrive, I took my leave and met up with my co-troublemakers at the apartment. We strolled over to Harbour City but I wasn’t in the mood to shop; neither was T. The girls got lost in the Bazaar which offered up to 80% off on various designer stuff. So we had Starbucks coffee and chatted downstairs about the differences between Asian and American Chinese. When the girls were done, we headed over to the Peninsula Hotel for High Tea. There were (i) ham sandwich quartets, (ii) cucumber sandwiches, (iii) mini-omelets, (iv) mini-mushroom rolls, and other stuff that I don’t’ remember (truffles, cakes and rolls). T and I returned to the apartment because the girls saw an Espirit outlet and went nuts. That night, we went to the Mid-Levels to meet up with T’s friends (Lynn, Linda, Ally and newcomer Carly aka DC or Dumb Cunt as those first three girls would call her). We had Italian cuisine which was decent given the locality and Miss Linda was a riot. She’s Chinese from Scotland and she got a bit of a mouth. After dinner, we headed down to a massively packed LKF as the ex-pats, non-Chinese and other imported personnel were drinking it up. Do note that HK was hosting the Rugby 7s that weekend and LKF was PACKED! We walked around a bit because I hit them with a shot of Jack Daniels each. The main artery of LKF was so crowded it took me about three minutes to go 10 yards to get a half-yard of Carlsberg. Upon our return, we lost the girls. We couldn’t hear anything on the cell phone but they eventually found us. They were 20 yards away from where we were and they were groped making their way around but left it at that. We did a bunch of shots and headed back to TST around 0030 because the MTR shuts down by 100. Thoroughly buzzed, we met up with Q and her co-worker J at a karaoke bar near the apartment. We drank some more for the next few hours before M, T and I staggered back. C and Q got back later around 530.
April 1st
Perhaps hung over but without the headache, we had a late lunch as everyone got up around 1300. I returned to the apartment as I needed to do some laundry. The others went for a walk and to shop. T and M came back shortly thereafter and we did about six loads of laundry. The building had a laundry room on the third floor alongside a terrace for residents to chill or to rent for barbeques. The washers and dryers are small but was cheap at HK$15 which included detergent, softener and drying time. We started around 5PM and didn’t get done until late. The other girls came back around 1800 and we gathered at the apartment for a bit before heading out to dinner. We walked to Temple Street to check out that flea market and had a late dinner at one of the notorious Dai Pai Dongs. We picked up the rest of the stuff in the dryer and showered up once again before retiring and looking forward to Stanley Market the next day.
April 2nd
We got up and running around 1100 to prepare for the group’s first dim-sum fest in HK. We went to a local restaurant down the block where I had previously gone with my cousin. We were all hungry and looked forward to dogging some serious dim-sum. And we did! The local patrons were shocked as we had towers of bamboo containers and dishes feeding our gluttony. Thirty-two stamp marks on our ticket including two other dishes. At some point, we had to ease up on the carbohydrates to finish as much as we could. In the end, we wasted one dish and took home four dishes and the rest of the noodles. Amazingly, the bill was only HK$623 or around US$81 for five hungry but now stuffed and satisfied Americans. We dropped off the doggy-bags, hit the bathroom and then began our adventure to Stanley Market on the other side of Hong Kong. The bus ride from Central took about 45 minutes as it was quite the view going up near Victoria Peak and down to Repulse Bay. Many luxurious cliffside homes were spotted and it would have been more picturesque had it not been foggy and humid. The first thing purchased was two stone stamps bearing my Chinese surname before we proceeded through the shops. The girls found heating pads, a feng-shui compliant drawing, a statue of Guan Yu on a horse, clothing for kids and other knickknacks. At some point, we got hungry and ate at Wildfire. Their drinks weren’t so good as my heavily liquored Long Island ice tea kicked me in the butt but the buzz wore off within an hour. I passed out on the ride back to Central but awoke when we were in Wanchai. We got off before the station and the girls went into Louis Vitton to check out bags, wallets and all things LV. Q bought a wallet while M mused about this blue handbag that was cute and certainly not yet available in the U.S. However, the gold/brass plate on the face of the bag screamed for a mugging to happen so she opted not to buy it. We walked around a bit before buying some pastries and heading back to the apartment. We had dinner at a Shanghai restaurant in TST’s LKF because Q was swayed by the fake dishes on display when we walked by the previous Wednesday night. We retired to the apartment afterwards.
April 3rd
The girls wanted to go to Wong Dai Sin to make prayers to various deities and get their fortunes told. Upon ascending from the MTR, we were mobbed by several elderly ladies hawking their various incense and offerings to the gods. As T and I weren’t into the rituals, we went along with the simple prayers and had a smoke outside the temple. We hit a shopping center across the street and grabbed some snacks before heading back to the apartment. It was hot and humid that day. I don’t recall much of what we did later that evening other than getting a whole bunch of street food for dinner. Also, Q and I had business meetings the next day.
April 4th
I was up and about at 1100 and got suited up to meet my company’s counterpart in Kwun Tong, about 13 stops further inland and east. The woman took me to a Chinese restaurant in the building’s complex. She ordered fried bean curd rolls, chicken with peanut sauce over noodles, spinach with bean curd paste, spam Chinese-style and something else. She took me up to her department as I wanted to meet her boss (aka Grim Reaper because whenever he emails us, the proposal is pretty much dead). I was amazed at how low the cubicles were; perhaps, because the Chinese are short people. The Reaper wasn’t there and I left after thanking her for lunch. I met up with Q who was one MTR station away at her HK office. Her co-worker J cracked me up when I walked into their office. She gave me the eyes-popping-out gesture when she saw me as I was in a suit and not grungy like the past Friday night. Q and I took a cab back to the apartment where we chilled. I don’t recall if what we had for dinner as we got ready to go clubbing that night. That Tuesday night was big for the locals as the next day was Ching Ming, I call it Chinese Easter. We got to Club Edge around 2215 and waited on the queue, about 20 people were in front of us. The other folks on the line were drinking beer so I went to the 7-11 down the block and brought back a six-pack of Carlsberg. Upon our return, they started letting people into the club so I chugged my beer and the extra can. Still, we had to wait and the buzz was full-on. A guy asked to cut in the line with us (the girls thought he was cute) and I allowed it if he bought me a drink. He did, scotch and red bull. Club Edge is friggin small. The word was that they sold only 500 tickets (which explains the HK$480 price) but it was unlikely that it could hold 300. We found ourselves a nook at the end of the bar and just stayed there. As the partygoers came it, the place got really hot and damp. Then, Tiesto came on and rocked the house. Being drunk, I made my way onto the floor and was grooving with this guy and his lady friend since I was slutting him for drinks. I don’t how long I was there but when I got back to the bar, T told me that the girls left because C was starting to black out from the heat. The place was just jammed as people were rubbing up against even though I was thoroughly self-marinated. I was enjoying myself when I met these women from Venezuela. One of the seem to be plying her mojo on me which I thought was cool. I thought I was going to get lucky and my freak on. After Tiesto finished his set, I asked them what they were doing later. They said “sleeping”, so T and I went back to the apartment. DOH!
April 5th
I got up late and didn’t want to do much of anything. I showered up and started eating whatever was saved in the mini-fridge. The girls went to do more shopping and T met up with his friends in HK. I stayed in as I was caught up in James Patterson’s book Big Bad Wolf. I took a nap around 1930 and was awaken at 2100 to meet up with the girls for dinner. We had the boiling buffet at a restaurant on the sixth floor overlooking Nathan Road and Austin Street. It’s interesting how restaurants and bars in HK aren’t necessarily on the ground floors of buildings. T met up with us later and we turned in early because we were heading to Macau the next day.
April 6th
We had trouble getting to the ferry terminal despite knowing where the building was (on the other side of Kowloon Park). We just missed the 1200 ferry and got tickets for the 1300 ride. We caught a quick lunch at the terminal. The ride wasn’t bad and seemed very quick though I did fall asleep. Within 10 minutes of being at sea, a woman runs to the back to hurl her lunch. It was humid and hazy when we got to Macau. Unsure of what to do, we hired a hatchback to take us on a tour. Our first stop was a store selling various cookies and beef/pork jerky. Next, we took pictures of the Lotus which symbolized the return of Macau to China from Portugal. We stopped at the Oon-Yum temple for more pictures. The guide drove around for a bit before taking us to a church offering views of the newer and older parts of Macau. Then, we cruised along the streets from the southwest end to the northeast end before stopping at yet another temple. On the second to last stop, we stop at another church and saw what looked like Macau’s LKF. The girls bought a dozen of the famous egg-tarts and other knickknacks. I told the guide to drop us off at the Sands Casino. There really wasn’t anything that interesting to see in Macau. The casino was interesting though. All packages are to be checked in before entering the premise through metal detectors. We figure the security was tight because of the history of unscrupulous gangsters. I thought about playing only blackjack but saw that they adopted the same style as the casinos in Puerto Rico: dealer does not get two cards like everyone else; they get it after all the players have stayed or busted out. The place was crowded with mostly mainland Chinese. We tried finding a Portuguese-styled restaurant but we had to get to the pier for the 1900 ride back to Kowloon. We hit up a dai-pai-dong at the pier where we ordered five pork chop sandwiches, two Portuguese chicken rice plates and a curry squid. We were put in the front of the nearly empty boat and practically froze our asses off. Once back in Kowloon, I went to see my tailor for final fitting and adjustments since I missed my appointment Wednesday night. We gathered at the apartment and the packing started. Q and C went nuts as did M with the shopping. T and I watched them sort out their wares. Around midnight, we got hungry and T and I went out to get some grub as Q already had her black-peppered drumstick.
April 7th
We had an abbreviated dim-sum, compared to the first outing, at the famous Shamrock Hotel. They went to do final shopping and I went to get another Bolo luggage for my suits. As the suits wouldn’t be ready until 5PM, I walked around a bit looking to see what DVDs I could get. Not finding what I wanted, I went back to the apartment and chilled out. I picked the Bolo and suits at 1730 and packed 95% of my gear. We got ready for dinner at 900 in Causeway Bay but Q wanted to get some group pictures from those Japanese cutesy photo booths. On the way back from the photo shoot, we stopped at Ichiban and Q went nuts buying snacks of all kinds. We met up with C’s sister and Q’s co-worker and had Indonesian fare. After dinner, I was still on a mission to find part two of the move Royal Tramp. Within seconds, M and I lost the group so we decided to head back to the apartment to finish packing. The group met up with T in Wanchai and have a few drinks. I was amazed at how much stuff I had bought but was content.
April 8th
We were up and about by 1000. The apartment was cleaned up by 1030. We headed out to the airport at 1200. After checking in, Q, T and I had Burger King while C had congee and noodles and Q had chicken and shrimp fried rice. We meandered around the various stores at the airport before boarding. At 1515, we left HK.
We arrived around 830PM and were quite tired. We took the Airport Express train into Central where we caught a cab to the Cosmopolitan Hotel located between Wanchai and Causeway Bay. After checking in, we unpacked, took shits, brushed our teeth and showered before walking over to Times Square in Causeway Bay. We slightly confused but figured out that “Subway” meant an underground pathway to get the other side of the road. The first foods we ate were sticks of siu-mai (without much meat) and curry fish balls. I washed mine down with a mango drink. We walked around a bit and found a restaurant where we ordered beef chow fun, mushroom yee-mein and Portuguese chicken noodles along with two Cokes and a Coke Light (their version of diet). Food coma set in slowly as we headed back to the hotel. Not much was on the television as the three of us pushed the two tiny twin beds together and slept perpendicularly across the beds.
March 27th
I awoke at 658AM, followed shortly by M and eventually by T. We just chilled thinking that we could ease up on the jet lag. We showered, dressed and headed to Central to meet T’s cousin for dim-sum. We ate at a restaurant in Melbourne Plaza on Queen’s Road. The food was good and we stayed there for a couple of hours. It’s nice to be able to smoke practically anywhere in Hong Kong. Afterwards, I headed up to my company’s head office to get a phone number. I met with the guy who came from the New York office and eventually oversaw the company’s overseas branches and their development. We walked around Central a bit before heading up to Lan Kwai Fong as we were going to T’s cousin’s place in the Mid-Levels. We rode up the world’s longest escalator system only to get lost. We ended up walking up and down the hilly part of HK before finding the apartment building. Her address is 11 Bonham Street; across the street is 60-something Bonham. Strange, eh? The renown egg custards we bought were now cool but we had a good time as the pregnant hostess served tea and caught T up with her life. They have a nice flat with a decent view of Victoria Harbor, were it a nice clear day. We left around 1830 to head back to the hotel amid a misty rain. As we were tired from the trekking, we decided to eat at the hotel restaurant. Another strange thing: the waiters/waitresses would change T’s and my plates but not M’s. So we joked that they didn’t serve the servants even though it was the servant’s fictitious birthday and this dinner was her treat. In the room, we showered, bullshitted some more and got ready to two separate trips into China.
March 28th
I woke up at 630AM and found it strange that I was up so early. We eventually got going around 730 and caught a cab to Tsim Sha Tsui where we dropped off the bulk of our luggage at the place we were going to be staying the rest of the trip. We had breakfast at this diner-like restaurant across the street. DAMN, the rice noodles were awesome! M and T took off on their trip as I walked around TST since my train to Guangdong (aka Canton) was scheduled at 1315. I walked down to take pictures of Hong Kong since it was a sunny and clear day. Around 1130, I went to see the tailor who made me suits and shirts when I was last in HK. Around noon, I walked over to the MTR (their train system) for a quick hop over to KCR East Station for the ride up to Guangdong. As breakfast had passed, I was slightly hungry and grabbed McDonalds. I tried the new gimmick called Faan-tastic (note “Faan” was written in Chinese to denote rice). The gimmick involved either beef with onions or a chicken patty between two rice cakes. I rate it a 1.5 out of 10 and, luckily, I had gotten myself a sausage McMuffin. The ride up to Guangdong was uneventful as I was jamming on my iPod and getting busy with the Sudoku book. My cousin picked me up at the station and we went to his place where we chilled on his balcony drinking tea. They took me to the same place two years ago for dinner. Various live seafaring foods were available for dinner. The strangest was seeing a 4-foot (tip to tip) crocodile with his mouth plastic-wrapped waiting to be an entrée in the large tank as the other fish huddle together away from it. I thoroughly enjoyed the scallops in a half-shell with garlic and cellophane noodles. The vegetable in garlic sauce was nice too. We had goose and boiled shrimp as well. Afterwards, my cousin’s wife set up a mahjong game and it had the weirdest rules. We didn’t finish until 630AM despite initially wanting to end it at 230AM. I used my temporary cell phone to call a cousin in NY so that this hosting cousin could speak to. In 3 minutes, I burned HK$77! The Chinese cell companies are robbing folks left and right!
March 29th
I got up at 1130AM and chatted with my cousin’s wife for a while before heading out to lunch at a western styled restaurant a few blocks away. Despite the abundance of staff, none were effective and they all seemed clueless. Later, I realized that they don’t like making decisions and would rather be told what and when to do things. Commies! The food was so-so. I caught the 1655 train back to Kowloon and met up with M and T who had already gotten back. We went shopping for bedding mats as that would be our beds for the remainder of the trip. Our other two cohorts were at the apartment when we came back with the mats, extra sheets and towels. Everyone grab a drawer and a few hangers to claim as their own. The gluttony commenced about 90 minutes later as we walked around TST to get a fix on our position and noted where restaurants were. We hit a noodle store and pounded it: dumplings (two kinds), tripe, beef cubes, noodles (thin and wide), iced and milk teas. Stuffed and getting comatose, we headed back to the apartment.
March 30th
Q had to go to work so the four of us had lunch at the diner across the street. Afterwards, we diddle-dallied at the apartment a bit before T headed to HK island and M, C and I walked north to check out the famous Ladies Street. We hiked up Nathan Road and checked out various stores. C bought a business card holder at the China Arts and Craft store. Along the way, we checked out pricing on hair straightening as M’s hair was subject to the humidity kryptonite. We stopped to buy a mango and papaya drink, the mango tasted better. We found the street flea market in the middle and made our way up to the northern end. Cheap imitation jewelry, designer bags, watches, sneakers, shirts, etc. The vendors were aggressive and willing to negotiate as only the suckers paid what they asked. It should be noted that any guide/tour books recommend haggling with the vendors. Upon reaching the southern end of the flea market, the pungent and foul aroma of HK’s infamous Smelly Tofu was in the air. Luckily, an uncertain breeze moved the funk away but I was ready to try it. We ordered other foods and the moment came when I chomped on the Smelly Tofu. Tasty though it was overcooked a bit. We lugged our take back to the apartment. I don’t know what we did afterwards.
March 31st
Q went to work again and I met my cousin who arrived the Wednesday night. I was prepared to meet her out in Kwun Tong but she had already come over to TST with her friends for dim-sum and down the block from the apartment. She was there with her co-worker, his sister and their niece. I thought the girls were local gals until I heard them speak American English. They’re from California and were psyched about their impending trip to Bangkok and Phuket. It was interesting that neither one of them could speak Chinese but were Vietnamese Chinese. The oddest thing was my cousin (whose a FOB) asking me how to say “soy sauce” and “oyster sauce” in Cantonese. And I’m the worst Chinese speaker of all! My cousin had an appointment with a hairdresser around the block but the guy was late so we talked a bit. When he arrive, I took my leave and met up with my co-troublemakers at the apartment. We strolled over to Harbour City but I wasn’t in the mood to shop; neither was T. The girls got lost in the Bazaar which offered up to 80% off on various designer stuff. So we had Starbucks coffee and chatted downstairs about the differences between Asian and American Chinese. When the girls were done, we headed over to the Peninsula Hotel for High Tea. There were (i) ham sandwich quartets, (ii) cucumber sandwiches, (iii) mini-omelets, (iv) mini-mushroom rolls, and other stuff that I don’t’ remember (truffles, cakes and rolls). T and I returned to the apartment because the girls saw an Espirit outlet and went nuts. That night, we went to the Mid-Levels to meet up with T’s friends (Lynn, Linda, Ally and newcomer Carly aka DC or Dumb Cunt as those first three girls would call her). We had Italian cuisine which was decent given the locality and Miss Linda was a riot. She’s Chinese from Scotland and she got a bit of a mouth. After dinner, we headed down to a massively packed LKF as the ex-pats, non-Chinese and other imported personnel were drinking it up. Do note that HK was hosting the Rugby 7s that weekend and LKF was PACKED! We walked around a bit because I hit them with a shot of Jack Daniels each. The main artery of LKF was so crowded it took me about three minutes to go 10 yards to get a half-yard of Carlsberg. Upon our return, we lost the girls. We couldn’t hear anything on the cell phone but they eventually found us. They were 20 yards away from where we were and they were groped making their way around but left it at that. We did a bunch of shots and headed back to TST around 0030 because the MTR shuts down by 100. Thoroughly buzzed, we met up with Q and her co-worker J at a karaoke bar near the apartment. We drank some more for the next few hours before M, T and I staggered back. C and Q got back later around 530.
April 1st
Perhaps hung over but without the headache, we had a late lunch as everyone got up around 1300. I returned to the apartment as I needed to do some laundry. The others went for a walk and to shop. T and M came back shortly thereafter and we did about six loads of laundry. The building had a laundry room on the third floor alongside a terrace for residents to chill or to rent for barbeques. The washers and dryers are small but was cheap at HK$15 which included detergent, softener and drying time. We started around 5PM and didn’t get done until late. The other girls came back around 1800 and we gathered at the apartment for a bit before heading out to dinner. We walked to Temple Street to check out that flea market and had a late dinner at one of the notorious Dai Pai Dongs. We picked up the rest of the stuff in the dryer and showered up once again before retiring and looking forward to Stanley Market the next day.
April 2nd
We got up and running around 1100 to prepare for the group’s first dim-sum fest in HK. We went to a local restaurant down the block where I had previously gone with my cousin. We were all hungry and looked forward to dogging some serious dim-sum. And we did! The local patrons were shocked as we had towers of bamboo containers and dishes feeding our gluttony. Thirty-two stamp marks on our ticket including two other dishes. At some point, we had to ease up on the carbohydrates to finish as much as we could. In the end, we wasted one dish and took home four dishes and the rest of the noodles. Amazingly, the bill was only HK$623 or around US$81 for five hungry but now stuffed and satisfied Americans. We dropped off the doggy-bags, hit the bathroom and then began our adventure to Stanley Market on the other side of Hong Kong. The bus ride from Central took about 45 minutes as it was quite the view going up near Victoria Peak and down to Repulse Bay. Many luxurious cliffside homes were spotted and it would have been more picturesque had it not been foggy and humid. The first thing purchased was two stone stamps bearing my Chinese surname before we proceeded through the shops. The girls found heating pads, a feng-shui compliant drawing, a statue of Guan Yu on a horse, clothing for kids and other knickknacks. At some point, we got hungry and ate at Wildfire. Their drinks weren’t so good as my heavily liquored Long Island ice tea kicked me in the butt but the buzz wore off within an hour. I passed out on the ride back to Central but awoke when we were in Wanchai. We got off before the station and the girls went into Louis Vitton to check out bags, wallets and all things LV. Q bought a wallet while M mused about this blue handbag that was cute and certainly not yet available in the U.S. However, the gold/brass plate on the face of the bag screamed for a mugging to happen so she opted not to buy it. We walked around a bit before buying some pastries and heading back to the apartment. We had dinner at a Shanghai restaurant in TST’s LKF because Q was swayed by the fake dishes on display when we walked by the previous Wednesday night. We retired to the apartment afterwards.
April 3rd
The girls wanted to go to Wong Dai Sin to make prayers to various deities and get their fortunes told. Upon ascending from the MTR, we were mobbed by several elderly ladies hawking their various incense and offerings to the gods. As T and I weren’t into the rituals, we went along with the simple prayers and had a smoke outside the temple. We hit a shopping center across the street and grabbed some snacks before heading back to the apartment. It was hot and humid that day. I don’t recall much of what we did later that evening other than getting a whole bunch of street food for dinner. Also, Q and I had business meetings the next day.
April 4th
I was up and about at 1100 and got suited up to meet my company’s counterpart in Kwun Tong, about 13 stops further inland and east. The woman took me to a Chinese restaurant in the building’s complex. She ordered fried bean curd rolls, chicken with peanut sauce over noodles, spinach with bean curd paste, spam Chinese-style and something else. She took me up to her department as I wanted to meet her boss (aka Grim Reaper because whenever he emails us, the proposal is pretty much dead). I was amazed at how low the cubicles were; perhaps, because the Chinese are short people. The Reaper wasn’t there and I left after thanking her for lunch. I met up with Q who was one MTR station away at her HK office. Her co-worker J cracked me up when I walked into their office. She gave me the eyes-popping-out gesture when she saw me as I was in a suit and not grungy like the past Friday night. Q and I took a cab back to the apartment where we chilled. I don’t recall if what we had for dinner as we got ready to go clubbing that night. That Tuesday night was big for the locals as the next day was Ching Ming, I call it Chinese Easter. We got to Club Edge around 2215 and waited on the queue, about 20 people were in front of us. The other folks on the line were drinking beer so I went to the 7-11 down the block and brought back a six-pack of Carlsberg. Upon our return, they started letting people into the club so I chugged my beer and the extra can. Still, we had to wait and the buzz was full-on. A guy asked to cut in the line with us (the girls thought he was cute) and I allowed it if he bought me a drink. He did, scotch and red bull. Club Edge is friggin small. The word was that they sold only 500 tickets (which explains the HK$480 price) but it was unlikely that it could hold 300. We found ourselves a nook at the end of the bar and just stayed there. As the partygoers came it, the place got really hot and damp. Then, Tiesto came on and rocked the house. Being drunk, I made my way onto the floor and was grooving with this guy and his lady friend since I was slutting him for drinks. I don’t how long I was there but when I got back to the bar, T told me that the girls left because C was starting to black out from the heat. The place was just jammed as people were rubbing up against even though I was thoroughly self-marinated. I was enjoying myself when I met these women from Venezuela. One of the seem to be plying her mojo on me which I thought was cool. I thought I was going to get lucky and my freak on. After Tiesto finished his set, I asked them what they were doing later. They said “sleeping”, so T and I went back to the apartment. DOH!
April 5th
I got up late and didn’t want to do much of anything. I showered up and started eating whatever was saved in the mini-fridge. The girls went to do more shopping and T met up with his friends in HK. I stayed in as I was caught up in James Patterson’s book Big Bad Wolf. I took a nap around 1930 and was awaken at 2100 to meet up with the girls for dinner. We had the boiling buffet at a restaurant on the sixth floor overlooking Nathan Road and Austin Street. It’s interesting how restaurants and bars in HK aren’t necessarily on the ground floors of buildings. T met up with us later and we turned in early because we were heading to Macau the next day.
April 6th
We had trouble getting to the ferry terminal despite knowing where the building was (on the other side of Kowloon Park). We just missed the 1200 ferry and got tickets for the 1300 ride. We caught a quick lunch at the terminal. The ride wasn’t bad and seemed very quick though I did fall asleep. Within 10 minutes of being at sea, a woman runs to the back to hurl her lunch. It was humid and hazy when we got to Macau. Unsure of what to do, we hired a hatchback to take us on a tour. Our first stop was a store selling various cookies and beef/pork jerky. Next, we took pictures of the Lotus which symbolized the return of Macau to China from Portugal. We stopped at the Oon-Yum temple for more pictures. The guide drove around for a bit before taking us to a church offering views of the newer and older parts of Macau. Then, we cruised along the streets from the southwest end to the northeast end before stopping at yet another temple. On the second to last stop, we stop at another church and saw what looked like Macau’s LKF. The girls bought a dozen of the famous egg-tarts and other knickknacks. I told the guide to drop us off at the Sands Casino. There really wasn’t anything that interesting to see in Macau. The casino was interesting though. All packages are to be checked in before entering the premise through metal detectors. We figure the security was tight because of the history of unscrupulous gangsters. I thought about playing only blackjack but saw that they adopted the same style as the casinos in Puerto Rico: dealer does not get two cards like everyone else; they get it after all the players have stayed or busted out. The place was crowded with mostly mainland Chinese. We tried finding a Portuguese-styled restaurant but we had to get to the pier for the 1900 ride back to Kowloon. We hit up a dai-pai-dong at the pier where we ordered five pork chop sandwiches, two Portuguese chicken rice plates and a curry squid. We were put in the front of the nearly empty boat and practically froze our asses off. Once back in Kowloon, I went to see my tailor for final fitting and adjustments since I missed my appointment Wednesday night. We gathered at the apartment and the packing started. Q and C went nuts as did M with the shopping. T and I watched them sort out their wares. Around midnight, we got hungry and T and I went out to get some grub as Q already had her black-peppered drumstick.
April 7th
We had an abbreviated dim-sum, compared to the first outing, at the famous Shamrock Hotel. They went to do final shopping and I went to get another Bolo luggage for my suits. As the suits wouldn’t be ready until 5PM, I walked around a bit looking to see what DVDs I could get. Not finding what I wanted, I went back to the apartment and chilled out. I picked the Bolo and suits at 1730 and packed 95% of my gear. We got ready for dinner at 900 in Causeway Bay but Q wanted to get some group pictures from those Japanese cutesy photo booths. On the way back from the photo shoot, we stopped at Ichiban and Q went nuts buying snacks of all kinds. We met up with C’s sister and Q’s co-worker and had Indonesian fare. After dinner, I was still on a mission to find part two of the move Royal Tramp. Within seconds, M and I lost the group so we decided to head back to the apartment to finish packing. The group met up with T in Wanchai and have a few drinks. I was amazed at how much stuff I had bought but was content.
April 8th
We were up and about by 1000. The apartment was cleaned up by 1030. We headed out to the airport at 1200. After checking in, Q, T and I had Burger King while C had congee and noodles and Q had chicken and shrimp fried rice. We meandered around the various stores at the airport before boarding. At 1515, we left HK.
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Plus 13 hours
I'm going to Hong Kong again! The last time I went, I didn't do much and it was frustrating as some know. In fact, I blogged a bit about it on my myspace profile but that led to a whole lot of shit. I'd love to say something about that but there's no point. I will actually HAVE FUN THIS TIME AROUND. Why?
I'm going with friends who have been there before and will be chasing down various delicacies sure to excite the palate as opposed to McDonalds. Plus, we’re going to take a day-trip into what was once called Canton to visit family and friends. BUT, we’re not having any exotic or funky foods like snake or insects. EW!
Another exciting thing about the trip is a favorite deejay of mine will be spinning at a local club there and we’re going. Booya! We’re also going to Macau to see what the Portuguese-Chinese lifestyle is like as well as its foods. Also, I’ll visit the tailor that made some suits and shirts for me as I could use a refreshing.
Hell, I’m going to gain 10 pounds and fucking love it!
I'm going with friends who have been there before and will be chasing down various delicacies sure to excite the palate as opposed to McDonalds. Plus, we’re going to take a day-trip into what was once called Canton to visit family and friends. BUT, we’re not having any exotic or funky foods like snake or insects. EW!
Another exciting thing about the trip is a favorite deejay of mine will be spinning at a local club there and we’re going. Booya! We’re also going to Macau to see what the Portuguese-Chinese lifestyle is like as well as its foods. Also, I’ll visit the tailor that made some suits and shirts for me as I could use a refreshing.
Hell, I’m going to gain 10 pounds and fucking love it!
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Out with the Cock, In with the Bitch
Chinese New Year came on Sunday. The weather looked like it was going to be nice as I took a glimpse from my bed at 9AM. Scattered clouds, blue skies and seemingly warm temperatures. I got up at 10, showered from head to toe (a no-no according to tradition) and headed out to Chinatown. I got there around 1130, met up with some friends and went to a temple. I'm not particularly religious nor superstitious but I rather not mess with the funky funk. That kind of weird thinking still gets into your head in eerie ways.
The temple was vibrating with throngs of Chinese folks praying, inserting lit incense into the giant worship pot, getting their vegetarian lunchboxes and sipping holy water. Nevertheless, the urgency of doing things was ever so prominent as it appeared I was in everybody's way. Then again, it's typical. One would have thought that on this particular day, the folks would be more courteous. The courtesy is the fact that they don't curse you out aloud. Rather, they instigate with a smile and sneer while cursing you silently because you got in their way.
I find myself somewhat amused as the busy bees are buzzing with selfish rituals of bribery to the Gods of Luck, Fortune and Longevity. It's quite interesting that most of the people are only concerned about themselves rather than a general overall well-wishing for global peace or the end of violence. It's more like "I left you lots of food and burned lots of Hell Notes, so I hope you know to take care of me, especially when I go to the casinos or at the mahjong tables and make sure I don't get sick this year."
Prior to the beginning of the festivities, we tried to navigate Chinatown and it seemed to have lost that authentic feel. Years ago, the emasculation came in the form of banning fireworks by Mayor Rudy because it was dangerous and contributed to the continued survival of the illegal enterprises. (But it was okay for the Italians to set off lots of them during July 4th because it's tradition and America is about celebrating traditions and is the great melting pot.) Thousands of confetti-producing poppers were being sold at exorbitant prices to the mass of Chinese and non-Chinese trying to catch a glimpse of the 2006 celebrations.
My heart truly ached for the days of firework smoke and sound, the many dragon dances not subject to corporate sponsorship and the absence of self-promoting-bullshit artists. Maybe I'm a purist, but some things ought to be pure. Except bottled water.
The temple was vibrating with throngs of Chinese folks praying, inserting lit incense into the giant worship pot, getting their vegetarian lunchboxes and sipping holy water. Nevertheless, the urgency of doing things was ever so prominent as it appeared I was in everybody's way. Then again, it's typical. One would have thought that on this particular day, the folks would be more courteous. The courtesy is the fact that they don't curse you out aloud. Rather, they instigate with a smile and sneer while cursing you silently because you got in their way.
I find myself somewhat amused as the busy bees are buzzing with selfish rituals of bribery to the Gods of Luck, Fortune and Longevity. It's quite interesting that most of the people are only concerned about themselves rather than a general overall well-wishing for global peace or the end of violence. It's more like "I left you lots of food and burned lots of Hell Notes, so I hope you know to take care of me, especially when I go to the casinos or at the mahjong tables and make sure I don't get sick this year."
Prior to the beginning of the festivities, we tried to navigate Chinatown and it seemed to have lost that authentic feel. Years ago, the emasculation came in the form of banning fireworks by Mayor Rudy because it was dangerous and contributed to the continued survival of the illegal enterprises. (But it was okay for the Italians to set off lots of them during July 4th because it's tradition and America is about celebrating traditions and is the great melting pot.) Thousands of confetti-producing poppers were being sold at exorbitant prices to the mass of Chinese and non-Chinese trying to catch a glimpse of the 2006 celebrations.
My heart truly ached for the days of firework smoke and sound, the many dragon dances not subject to corporate sponsorship and the absence of self-promoting-bullshit artists. Maybe I'm a purist, but some things ought to be pure. Except bottled water.
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Time's Up
Today, I made the decision to find a new job and get out of the current one. I had been happy but that slowly eroded and nearly came to a head last Friday when I practically told the general manager he was a dick. Afterwards, I just gave it to my supervisor. As it seems, my days are numbered and it's just a matter when I get a new job.
I really enjoyed working there as my Cantonese skills improved greatly as I deepened my vocabulary and picked up a lot of idioms. That joy started its descent last year when I was shafted on my bonus. Though I performed the work of two people, I got a tenth of one year's salary, the reason being that the bank didn't make budget. So I asked if I was penalized for that fact, the gm offered nothing but excuses like "some people didn't get anything", "you got the biggest bonus" and "the nature of the business". BULLSHIT!
The bank didn't hit budget again for 2005 and I did better than last year. Guess what's going to happen come the end of February? Yup, I'm going to get shafted again. So fuck'em! I'm going to stay around until I get my pittance and then bolt. Presumably, my supervisor is going to put in for a rank upgrade so that I get four weeks of vacation this year. This is another pisser as one guy in my department got four weeks right off the bat but produced a fraction of what I did.
Another thing I'm looking forward to is Chinese New Year. When the Year of the Rooster rang in last year, I was pretty stoked until this narcissistic woman jinxed my ass. Hairy, as she is so endearing called, said that the Chinese gods are not pleased with the children born in the year of their sign. Basically, if you're a Pig, the year of the Pig isn't good for you. I hadn't known about this and felt kind of hexed. 2005 was a bit funky compared to the other years that I can remember. Then again, I have been on a big tear since November 2003.
In any case, bring on the Bitch! Er, the year of the Dog.
I really enjoyed working there as my Cantonese skills improved greatly as I deepened my vocabulary and picked up a lot of idioms. That joy started its descent last year when I was shafted on my bonus. Though I performed the work of two people, I got a tenth of one year's salary, the reason being that the bank didn't make budget. So I asked if I was penalized for that fact, the gm offered nothing but excuses like "some people didn't get anything", "you got the biggest bonus" and "the nature of the business". BULLSHIT!
The bank didn't hit budget again for 2005 and I did better than last year. Guess what's going to happen come the end of February? Yup, I'm going to get shafted again. So fuck'em! I'm going to stay around until I get my pittance and then bolt. Presumably, my supervisor is going to put in for a rank upgrade so that I get four weeks of vacation this year. This is another pisser as one guy in my department got four weeks right off the bat but produced a fraction of what I did.
Another thing I'm looking forward to is Chinese New Year. When the Year of the Rooster rang in last year, I was pretty stoked until this narcissistic woman jinxed my ass. Hairy, as she is so endearing called, said that the Chinese gods are not pleased with the children born in the year of their sign. Basically, if you're a Pig, the year of the Pig isn't good for you. I hadn't known about this and felt kind of hexed. 2005 was a bit funky compared to the other years that I can remember. Then again, I have been on a big tear since November 2003.
In any case, bring on the Bitch! Er, the year of the Dog.
Monday, October 31, 2005
Plame Blame Game
Did anyone see last night's 60 minutes? The first part was on the CIA leak case in which the special prosecutor indicted VP Cheney's chief of staff, Scooter Libby, for making false statements and obstruction of justice. The piece more or less centered on the effects of Plame's outing with commentary from fellow retired undercover agents and Plame's husband, former ambassador Joe Wilson.
Though I'm usually on the left of issues, I do agree with certain right-of-center matters such as a strong defense and national security. I think it's totally messed up that W's people fucked over the American public by outing one of its agents and, consequently, putting other people's lives in danger just because someone disagreed and criticized W.
An article in today's NY Daily News quotes Gary Bauer, a former Republican presidential candidate, as saying that Plame's sending her husband on "a mission that ended up in a very real way being used to undermine the President's desires in foreign policy" can be argued that "she sought to 'undermine' the administration". How fucking stupid are these right-wingers?
By outing our own agent, the administration set back the network she established to gain intelligence on foreign activities which could affect the national security of the U.S. When the folks on the hill bitch about not knowing how shit happens because we don't have assets in place, this is a perfect example of why we didn't know since shit got messed up.
Robert Novak and whomever (Cheney, Libby, Rove, Wolfowitz, & Co.) told him should be anally cattle-prodded and publicly bitch-slapped before being sent up for 15 year bid. But knowing how W is loyal to "his people", he'd probably pardon them. It seems "his" people is more important than the American people.
We need a serious presidential candidate in 2008, not another platform partyline spewing schmuck to led this country. We need someone like Arnold Vinnick or Matt Santos from the West Wing, no bullshit, just straight-up fix this country.
W, kiss my ass!
To the Feds monitoring this blog: this is only an opinion as I'm sure you'd want kick the shit out him too.
Though I'm usually on the left of issues, I do agree with certain right-of-center matters such as a strong defense and national security. I think it's totally messed up that W's people fucked over the American public by outing one of its agents and, consequently, putting other people's lives in danger just because someone disagreed and criticized W.
An article in today's NY Daily News quotes Gary Bauer, a former Republican presidential candidate, as saying that Plame's sending her husband on "a mission that ended up in a very real way being used to undermine the President's desires in foreign policy" can be argued that "she sought to 'undermine' the administration". How fucking stupid are these right-wingers?
By outing our own agent, the administration set back the network she established to gain intelligence on foreign activities which could affect the national security of the U.S. When the folks on the hill bitch about not knowing how shit happens because we don't have assets in place, this is a perfect example of why we didn't know since shit got messed up.
Robert Novak and whomever (Cheney, Libby, Rove, Wolfowitz, & Co.) told him should be anally cattle-prodded and publicly bitch-slapped before being sent up for 15 year bid. But knowing how W is loyal to "his people", he'd probably pardon them. It seems "his" people is more important than the American people.
We need a serious presidential candidate in 2008, not another platform partyline spewing schmuck to led this country. We need someone like Arnold Vinnick or Matt Santos from the West Wing, no bullshit, just straight-up fix this country.
W, kiss my ass!
To the Feds monitoring this blog: this is only an opinion as I'm sure you'd want kick the shit out him too.
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
Tutoring
Last Tuesday I finally decided that I should tutor my nephew because I found out that this seventh grader had the reading level of a second grader. DOH! I had figured he was lazy and bored like most 12 year olds. So, on Sunday, I picked him up and brought him to my place where we had lunch and I wanted to get him in the mood to learn.
I had him do his homework for an hour before I went over the answers with him. I had to draw upon a lot of patience as I went over his answers. Perhaps, he a bit scared of me from when he was younger and I was scarier. But, I get the impression he keeps lying to himself and others. Nevertheless, he guessed at all the answers because he really doesn't understand what's going on. The patience part: as I explained to him how sentence structures work, it totally baffled me that he didn't understand what I was saying. So I tried again, hoping that he's figure out that one plus one equals two and that two minus one equals one. All I got was a baffled look from him.
As the afternoon wore on and I passed up on knowing the football scores, I came to the following conclusions:
1. He needs glasses
2. He needs someone to speak English with him
3. He needs to stop watching Chinese videos
4. He needs to want use the noggin as opposed to obeying commands
5. He needs to have understand what he's reading and fatten his vocabulary
6. He needs to stop going to those uncaring it's-all-about-the-loot Chinese after school centers
Though stressed, I remain hopeful since he's only 12 and the learning curve, though nearly vertical, can be flattened in the next five years.
I'll be ready again this Sunday.
I had him do his homework for an hour before I went over the answers with him. I had to draw upon a lot of patience as I went over his answers. Perhaps, he a bit scared of me from when he was younger and I was scarier. But, I get the impression he keeps lying to himself and others. Nevertheless, he guessed at all the answers because he really doesn't understand what's going on. The patience part: as I explained to him how sentence structures work, it totally baffled me that he didn't understand what I was saying. So I tried again, hoping that he's figure out that one plus one equals two and that two minus one equals one. All I got was a baffled look from him.
As the afternoon wore on and I passed up on knowing the football scores, I came to the following conclusions:
1. He needs glasses
2. He needs someone to speak English with him
3. He needs to stop watching Chinese videos
4. He needs to want use the noggin as opposed to obeying commands
5. He needs to have understand what he's reading and fatten his vocabulary
6. He needs to stop going to those uncaring it's-all-about-the-loot Chinese after school centers
Though stressed, I remain hopeful since he's only 12 and the learning curve, though nearly vertical, can be flattened in the next five years.
I'll be ready again this Sunday.
Monday, October 03, 2005
End of 3Q
September came and went quite quickly and I haven't had a chance to say anything here. As it's the third day of the last quarter of 2005, I'll go through a quick summary:
Labor Day weekend: I don't remember what I did
The following weekend: It was my friend's birthday and she wanted to get trashed. So we got her trashed. With the alcohol coursing through her body, she revealed quite a few things going on in her world: (i) she's been seeing a guy of questionable character and (ii) she was diagnosed as having some pelvic disease. Though I left early that Friday night, I stayed up because I was on the first flight to LA. I'm so glad football season started. Woohoo! The redeye flight back to New York Monday night sucked as I'm too tall to sleep across the entire row of seats. This resulted in another episode of a pulled muscle and/or pinched nerve on the right side of my back. Still lingering to this day.
The following weekend: It was the birthday night of another friend who patiently took care of me when I was completely shitfaced on my bday weekend. He drank enough but wasn't too gone. But drama erupted that night over another matter: a torn black tank top. It's much too complicated to really discuss here. BUT, long story short, the guy was drunk and had a bit of macho pride. He ripped a borrowed tank and his gf got upset. Being drunk, he acted stupid and etc.
The following weekend: I had procrastinated cleaning the apartment since Memorial Day because the heat and humidity weren't conducive to doing a good job as I'd drip sweat on the freshly mopped floor. I had prepped the apartment the entire week putting stuff away to make a session go smoothly. Took me five hours to complete the housecleaning and laundry but I was quite satisfied. I chose to stay in to enjoy my clean home.
Past weekend: I had been listening to Armin Van Buuren (a big European deejay) for some time now, especially Thursday afternoons when he does his A State of Trance sessions. He spun at Crobar this past Friday night from 2AM until 8AM. The first two hours were amazing and the rest was typical late-night club fare. From 530 to 800, it was excruciating as I was so damn tired but the folks that I went with didn't want to leave until AVB was done. Got home at 9AM, showered, did some laundry, did my football thing and then slept for 3.5 hours. Went to a barbeque/open house where I worked the mini-grill (the hostess' bf was on the maxi-grill). Headed out to Chinatown for coffee and dessert before retiring for the night. Got up kind of late on Sunday and was going to head out to Manhattan to check out PastryAuntNY's new crib but a block party was one and folks double-parked on both sides of the street. Since I couldn't move the car, I bought a few bagels and went home to make breakfast and watched football all day long.
Not much has been happening during the week as it's a zombie routine of waking up, showering, shaving, dressing, heading out to work, coming home, eating, read/watch tv/CS a bit and then sleeping. However, the last week was the start of the fall season of shows so I'm kind of excited. I'll be catching West Wing, Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy, Boston Legal, Alias and Night Stalker. Other shows I'd want to see but haven't yet are: Lost, Invasion and Rome. I'll probably find them from the torrents.
Happy Birthday to Deedee (I hope you're reading this). I did call you that day but I was pretty strung out from the flight back from LA so I sounded kind of loopy. Still am.
Labor Day weekend: I don't remember what I did
The following weekend: It was my friend's birthday and she wanted to get trashed. So we got her trashed. With the alcohol coursing through her body, she revealed quite a few things going on in her world: (i) she's been seeing a guy of questionable character and (ii) she was diagnosed as having some pelvic disease. Though I left early that Friday night, I stayed up because I was on the first flight to LA. I'm so glad football season started. Woohoo! The redeye flight back to New York Monday night sucked as I'm too tall to sleep across the entire row of seats. This resulted in another episode of a pulled muscle and/or pinched nerve on the right side of my back. Still lingering to this day.
The following weekend: It was the birthday night of another friend who patiently took care of me when I was completely shitfaced on my bday weekend. He drank enough but wasn't too gone. But drama erupted that night over another matter: a torn black tank top. It's much too complicated to really discuss here. BUT, long story short, the guy was drunk and had a bit of macho pride. He ripped a borrowed tank and his gf got upset. Being drunk, he acted stupid and etc.
The following weekend: I had procrastinated cleaning the apartment since Memorial Day because the heat and humidity weren't conducive to doing a good job as I'd drip sweat on the freshly mopped floor. I had prepped the apartment the entire week putting stuff away to make a session go smoothly. Took me five hours to complete the housecleaning and laundry but I was quite satisfied. I chose to stay in to enjoy my clean home.
Past weekend: I had been listening to Armin Van Buuren (a big European deejay) for some time now, especially Thursday afternoons when he does his A State of Trance sessions. He spun at Crobar this past Friday night from 2AM until 8AM. The first two hours were amazing and the rest was typical late-night club fare. From 530 to 800, it was excruciating as I was so damn tired but the folks that I went with didn't want to leave until AVB was done. Got home at 9AM, showered, did some laundry, did my football thing and then slept for 3.5 hours. Went to a barbeque/open house where I worked the mini-grill (the hostess' bf was on the maxi-grill). Headed out to Chinatown for coffee and dessert before retiring for the night. Got up kind of late on Sunday and was going to head out to Manhattan to check out PastryAuntNY's new crib but a block party was one and folks double-parked on both sides of the street. Since I couldn't move the car, I bought a few bagels and went home to make breakfast and watched football all day long.
Not much has been happening during the week as it's a zombie routine of waking up, showering, shaving, dressing, heading out to work, coming home, eating, read/watch tv/CS a bit and then sleeping. However, the last week was the start of the fall season of shows so I'm kind of excited. I'll be catching West Wing, Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy, Boston Legal, Alias and Night Stalker. Other shows I'd want to see but haven't yet are: Lost, Invasion and Rome. I'll probably find them from the torrents.
Happy Birthday to Deedee (I hope you're reading this). I did call you that day but I was pretty strung out from the flight back from LA so I sounded kind of loopy. Still am.
Monday, August 29, 2005
Going Nowhere
Alternate side parking means that New York City's Sanitation department comes around when it wants to remove garbage placed by the curb. During school days, you cannot park near or in front of a school from 7AM to 4PM. So I had to move the car this morning because of the double whammy potential ust mentioned. I find parking in front my cousin's house over by the Brooklyn Eighth Avenue Chinatown, which is nearly as stinky and dirty as the Manhattan one. But it's okay, I have my iPod on and the music is going.
Upon arrival to the train station, a sign says there's no train to Manhattan, one must take the Brooklyn train deeper to another station to catch any trains going to Manhattan. Nice! Especially as throngs of smelly and unbathed Chinese stream into the station. It's okay, the iPod is now fully kicking. Here's come an N-train. I get off two stops later at New Utrecht. There's a D train but its doors just closed, so I wait as it's only 725AM. AHA! An N-train arrives and runs express to 36th Street. Woot woot!
At 36th Street, the N-train I'm on comes in on the local side but an N-train also comes streaming into the station on the express track. Damn, it's my lucky but funky day! Now, it's my fourth stop and there's two more stop til Canal Street. At 815, I arrive in the original and ever-smellier Chinatown. It's still early so I opt for a steak bagel from McDonalds and a well-done hash brown. The only thing to blow my interesting morning commute was the shitty coffee that came with it.
I'm taking a short break now and going to Starbucks for my usual venti. Mmmmm.....
Upon arrival to the train station, a sign says there's no train to Manhattan, one must take the Brooklyn train deeper to another station to catch any trains going to Manhattan. Nice! Especially as throngs of smelly and unbathed Chinese stream into the station. It's okay, the iPod is now fully kicking. Here's come an N-train. I get off two stops later at New Utrecht. There's a D train but its doors just closed, so I wait as it's only 725AM. AHA! An N-train arrives and runs express to 36th Street. Woot woot!
At 36th Street, the N-train I'm on comes in on the local side but an N-train also comes streaming into the station on the express track. Damn, it's my lucky but funky day! Now, it's my fourth stop and there's two more stop til Canal Street. At 815, I arrive in the original and ever-smellier Chinatown. It's still early so I opt for a steak bagel from McDonalds and a well-done hash brown. The only thing to blow my interesting morning commute was the shitty coffee that came with it.
I'm taking a short break now and going to Starbucks for my usual venti. Mmmmm.....
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
National Geographic
I'm tired because I missed the first showing of Part 2, Zero Hour, of the two part series, Inside 9/11. The repeat aired at 1AM. Having seen the first part Sunday night, I wasn't going to miss Part 2. The channel did an amazing job chronicling the events leading up to that horrible day and ended with the reporting of the latest bombings in London last month. It concluded with a remark from Bin Laden himself in November: "We love death. The U.S. loves life. That is the difference between us."
We live in messed up times. Smile and say "hello" to your neighbors.
We live in messed up times. Smile and say "hello" to your neighbors.
Friday, August 19, 2005
Daily commute
As I've done both the drive and taking the train to work, I surely choose driving to work because I don't have to deal with the packaged sardine atmosphere. It's not that I'm grumpy in the morning, the iPod and magazines help with taking me to my happy place. I can deal with people being a little rude as we all want to get to work on time or have things to do wherever we're going. I'm also okay with older ladies, sometimes the men, pushing me to get to the just vacated seat. What does bother me is:
BODY ODOR: I can understand if one woke up late and had to get going. But, please, shower, wear clean clothes or do something about the funk since I'm sure you quietly bitch about it too. We all know that the N train is the worst with its occasional non-working air-conditioning, so with the summer full on, swipe some Arrid/Secret/Degree or whatever to your pits when you wear your hoochie-ass lingerie-looking tops. Maybe, wash your clothes more often as well as your hair or let air move through your apartment so your clothes don't stink. PLEASE DO SOMETHING ABOUT THAT B.O. that obviously singed your sense of smell cuz you ain't fine if you stink. *SNAP, Turn, SNAP, Walking Away*
In the nearly two years that I've been commuting on the N line, I have been pushed, stepped on and shoved. Usually, I keep my mouth shut as they almost always seemed worry that I'd kick their ass when they look up to see who's pushing back or not moving out of their way. I don't mind folks rushing for a newly open seat or trying to get onboard with a loaded train. Just recently, the free local paper rated all the trains and the survey said that the N line is by the worst bang for the buck. Thanks Mr. Murphy.
For those who have that rage (or are in denial) about the shitty traffic on the daily commute, please fret not. You are comfortably seated. You can control the temperature of your environment. You can change the radio station/cd. You can pull over for a mocha latte and/or donut. Just be mindful of the moving traffic, pedestrians and avoid rubbernecking. Most importantly, you don't have to worry about stinky body odors.
Nicotine-free: 3.5 days and holding on.
BODY ODOR: I can understand if one woke up late and had to get going. But, please, shower, wear clean clothes or do something about the funk since I'm sure you quietly bitch about it too. We all know that the N train is the worst with its occasional non-working air-conditioning, so with the summer full on, swipe some Arrid/Secret/Degree or whatever to your pits when you wear your hoochie-ass lingerie-looking tops. Maybe, wash your clothes more often as well as your hair or let air move through your apartment so your clothes don't stink. PLEASE DO SOMETHING ABOUT THAT B.O. that obviously singed your sense of smell cuz you ain't fine if you stink. *SNAP, Turn, SNAP, Walking Away*
In the nearly two years that I've been commuting on the N line, I have been pushed, stepped on and shoved. Usually, I keep my mouth shut as they almost always seemed worry that I'd kick their ass when they look up to see who's pushing back or not moving out of their way. I don't mind folks rushing for a newly open seat or trying to get onboard with a loaded train. Just recently, the free local paper rated all the trains and the survey said that the N line is by the worst bang for the buck. Thanks Mr. Murphy.
For those who have that rage (or are in denial) about the shitty traffic on the daily commute, please fret not. You are comfortably seated. You can control the temperature of your environment. You can change the radio station/cd. You can pull over for a mocha latte and/or donut. Just be mindful of the moving traffic, pedestrians and avoid rubbernecking. Most importantly, you don't have to worry about stinky body odors.
Nicotine-free: 3.5 days and holding on.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Deja New
As I was entering the loo this morning, I had a deja vu experience that took me back to last year's August 17th. That was the day I first blogged about my relationship with a particular woman to which a male friend having an insider's view quickly alerted that woman. Thus, a friendship dating back to elementary school ended.
That experience taught me several things:
1. That woman is an unmotivated broke-ass moocher
2. That guy probably still faults me for outing my dirty laundry (no names were used) because if he could figure out who I was blogging about, so could the whole world
3. I'm better off today having realized how much I was taken for granted
4. I needn't feel guilty for saying "no"
5. Unconditional friendship or love is cool; it isn't when it's one-sided
It might sound tit-for-tit, but the energy flow in friendships and relationships go both ways. I'm just dismayed that I get this silence or frown when I say "no" now. That's just wrong.
What's happened in a year's time?
1. I learned that woman has been a moocher for long time
2. That guy blogs almost incessantly here on blogspot!
3. I don't feel guilty saying "no" anymore
4. I do consider helping out when asked; it's not nearly as automatic as before
5. I'm simply happier and know myself better
It would be funny if that guy reads this entry and publishes on his blog how I once again should/shouldn't, is/isn't and/or must/mustn't. Bite me bitch.
Oh, it's been 37 hours and counting. Has nothing to do with Peter Jennings but it's just time to stop. Almost caved last night; luckily, I had no cash and wasn't going out once I got home. Phew! The power of "No" can be righteous.
That experience taught me several things:
1. That woman is an unmotivated broke-ass moocher
2. That guy probably still faults me for outing my dirty laundry (no names were used) because if he could figure out who I was blogging about, so could the whole world
3. I'm better off today having realized how much I was taken for granted
4. I needn't feel guilty for saying "no"
5. Unconditional friendship or love is cool; it isn't when it's one-sided
It might sound tit-for-tit, but the energy flow in friendships and relationships go both ways. I'm just dismayed that I get this silence or frown when I say "no" now. That's just wrong.
What's happened in a year's time?
1. I learned that woman has been a moocher for long time
2. That guy blogs almost incessantly here on blogspot!
3. I don't feel guilty saying "no" anymore
4. I do consider helping out when asked; it's not nearly as automatic as before
5. I'm simply happier and know myself better
It would be funny if that guy reads this entry and publishes on his blog how I once again should/shouldn't, is/isn't and/or must/mustn't. Bite me bitch.
Oh, it's been 37 hours and counting. Has nothing to do with Peter Jennings but it's just time to stop. Almost caved last night; luckily, I had no cash and wasn't going out once I got home. Phew! The power of "No" can be righteous.
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Becoming clear...
Last night, I had some unsettling thoughts about my health. For the last three years, I had a minor heartbeat irregularity. I had seen a cardiologist who said that it wasn't anything to worry about. For a period of a few months just after I moved out, it went away. Of course, thinking about it, it came back.
Today, on the train ride home, I started having thoughts about an impending heart attack. I'm guessing that my body is telling me that it's time to give up the smoking, finally get down to 200 and limit the boozing to once every other week or a month. I have three packs left.
I think I'm ready. I'm pretty sure of it. I'm ready to believe. Interesting how I was wondering about faith just the other night.
Today, on the train ride home, I started having thoughts about an impending heart attack. I'm guessing that my body is telling me that it's time to give up the smoking, finally get down to 200 and limit the boozing to once every other week or a month. I have three packs left.
I think I'm ready. I'm pretty sure of it. I'm ready to believe. Interesting how I was wondering about faith just the other night.
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