T.R.P. Kids

This past week sucked. Tired. Yester-
day was a day that I looked forward to
though. Two of my middle school
friends, Perik and Brandon came down
to visit. I really didn't think they were
serious about it. The other three guys
didn't show up, but that's okay. I have
known these two since sixth grade. I
haven't seen Brandon in five years.
It's so weird, but so nice to see him
again. He goes to Santa Clara Univer-
sity and is going to graduate next year.
That's what he said. Perik, on the other
hand, is a working man. He works at a
company called "Nice Collective" in S.F.
He works as a fashion designer/graphic
designer. Wow! He says that he's their
bitch over there. Good for him. His
dream is to work in New York for Marc
Jacobs. I can see that happening.
Brandon wants to work at New York
Life Insurance. High ambitions these
two have.

I had a fun time hanging out. It was a
good way to end all the stress. Well,
most of it anyway. We ate at Miyake,
had a crazy journey searching for
dessert and "Take on Me" by Ah-ha
on Perik's CDs, picked up dessert at
Santana Row, and came back to our
apartment and engaged in a photo
shoot. Those two are super and so full
of energy. I missed them, even if I
went to high school with Perik. Those
boys are good friends. Thanks for
coming dudes! Thanks Perik for driving
too! I'm looking forward to more hangouts.


My "deciding what to order" face


Playing "Six Degrees"


Enjoying


What's wrong with this picture? Perik.


A good one. Brandon and us girls.


Paranormal.


Group shot!


Blue...like someone's expression


"So, when are we going to hang out again?"
they ask. I don't know, you guys tell us.
Come on, Brandoc, we need to go photo
shooting one day! He said we would. Oh,
he also said that I changed a little bit. It
must be the hair.

Geography Journal Number Four

During this week's lecture, one of the topics
that I found interesting was about land-
water heating differences.





The main difference that I learned is that land
warms and cools faster while water warms and
cools slower. I was so interested in the facts
and the diagram of the topic, that I took more
notes about it during the lecture. I learned
that water will evaporate when it is heated.
According to the book, it states that "84% of
all evaporation on Earth is from the oceans."
Water is also transparent and light can shine
through it in a depth of 200 feet. Solid ground
is obviously not transparent. Water has a spe-
cific heat, which refers to the amount of energy
it takes to heat an item, compared to land.
Water has movement as well. It is capable for
water to mix, such as surface and deep currents.
Land is solid. In terms of marine vs. continental
effects, water heats up slower than sand even
when there are equal amounts. Although most
of these comparisons are common sense, I was
still interested in learning about them. When I
think of the deep ocean, I think of how scared I
am of water. I think it is because I almost drowned
when I was younger, and that caused me to be
traumatized for life.

New Found Glory's New Album

(Look. The CD's personalized)
The album just came out this past Tuesday.
The style is a lot different from their prev-
ious albums. I like to call this new one their
"settling down" album. A good amount of
the songs talk about relationships and their
sound has really toned down. In their older
songs, their song topics were more of a var-
iety and contained high energy riffs and
beats. Now, you can really tell that they're
starting to hit the reality of being in long-
term relationships and building families.
The singer is also singing to his fullest
ability. They did say that this album is the
sound that they have been wanting and are
fully satisified with it. This album was re-
corded in the same house where Incubus
recorded their "Morning View" album. Now
this album was also the album that changed
Incubus' eccentric style of music. They too
became a little mellow after recording in
that house. Must be some kind of paradise.

I think I'm starting to get used to NFG's CD.
It's such a big difference that I kinda can't
believe that it's them. I'm not saying that I
don't like it. I just need to adjust to it. I'm
just going to keep listening to it for a couple
of days or so. Meeting them again brought
back great memories. I love this band! I
want to see them in concert again. Oh...
and no they're not a Christian rock band.
They're punk.

Like the Good Ol' Days

Yesterday, Lalaine and I went to
see New Found Glory at Tower
Records in Mountain View. They
were doing a signing over there
and we figured we would go
since it was so simple to meet
them. It was a wait in line until
you get to the table to meet them
kind of deal. In the beginning, we
weren't that excited because we
knew that it was just going to go
by and we weren't going to say
anything to them. Like what the
heck do you say to people that
you don't really know? Sure,
they're in a band and there
could be plenty of questions you
can ask about their new album
or something. Still, sometimes
you feel weird for asking such
questions. NFG's a well-known
band, but they're really easy-
going and approachable. What
I like most about them is that
they're just like their fans. They
come out to hang out with them
after shows. One of the nicest
group of fellas in their industry.
Their sense of humor is also a
plus in my book. Hilarious!

So, when Lalaine and I were
looking for the place, we got
so lost that Lalaine was start-
ing to get a little road rage
out. It turned out that the
Tower Records was so much
closer to the beginning of the
last road we turned on than
where we ended up. The funny
thing was that it also ended up
being at the same area as the
place I was making comments
about. There was a restaurant
named "La Salsa" and I kept
saying the name in weird ways,
so Lalaine and I kept laughing
as we passed through it. So, I'm
blaming "La Salsa" for distract-
ing us. Haha. Kidding.

Meeting the band was an okay
experience. It was just like I
expected it to be. It was quick
and I didn't even really say
much. There was this fool who
hecka cut me right when we
were at the table though. I
was pissed because he talked
so much that he stole my
thunder. All of the guys were
paying attention to him and
I was just there standing next
to him waiting for them to sign
my CD. I really wanted to tell
him to shut up, but I didn't
have the guts to do it. He
ruined my moment. Lalaine
had better times. She took
pictures of and with them.
Hey, and they even said her
name right, which is a big
thing to her. I'm not deva-
stated or anything. At least
I accomplished one thing: I
made Chad (guitarist) laugh.
Yes! Points for me! It's a big
deal because their humor is
so outrageous, I didn't think
I could be a person to set off
his haha's. Overall, it was fun
seeing and meeting NFG again.





Messin' around in line...


Lalaine looks so happy. Haha


Me...and the guy who kept yappin' away.


Chad and Jordan


Ian and Cyrus


Lalaine and Steve


Why we got lost. I look really pissed.

Say it...with attitude

"Break it, so I can sue you!" - Quote of the day

Geography Journal Number Three

One interesting topic that I learned
about last week was about Joseph
Kittinger and his participation in
Project Excelsior. I was so amused
with the brief story of his excursion
that I wanted to do a little more research
on it. Kittinger did the project with the
ambition to determine the issues of high
altitude bailout. Apparently, he took
several of these high altitude flights with a
high altitude balloon and open gondola. His
record-breaking flight occured on August
16, 1960, since he did reach an altitude of
102,800 feet, and the highest parachute jump.
His record fall lasted four minutes and
thirty-six seconds. His parachute opened
when he was at about 14,000 feet.
Then, he landed eight minutes after that point.

Now that is what I call intense skydiving.
He was ultimately brave for doing all of
these high altitude projects. I can barely
stand being in airplane altitudes and he
flew much higher than that. I give him
much appreciation for his courage. I
found out that Joseph Kittinger is still
alive and flying. It is obvious that he has
a huge passion for it. If I were to inter-
view him, I would ask him what his
secret is. I know I am terrified of flying
and I just want to know what he feels
about it. I also want to know more in
depth about what he felt during the
whole experience of the project,
physically and emotionally.

The moment I have been waiting for...for weeks

Yay! My camera finally came in after weeks
and weeks of miscommunications and emails.
I had to re-order it and now it's next to me
on my couch as I write this. I played with it
for a little bit after I took it out of our package
mailbox. It's exciting to have, but everyone
else is probably used to having a camera. Hey,
gimme some time. It's just like all new things
you want and get, it's exciting to have in the
beginning and you get used to it until you get
something else. This is the current object of
my affection. Something to play with every-
day, for now.

What do you want, may I ask?

So, two nights ago was a

scary night. Lalaine, Tiffany,

and I were all doing our own

things out in our living room

when out of nowhere some-

one knocked on our door. It

was almost 1AM! Who the

heck would that be? Normally

if people were to come over

they would call first or some-
thing. The knocking was so
gentle, it would of been im-
possible for anyone to hear
in any other room. Both
Lalaine and Tiffany looked
through the peep hole (I'm
too short to even try) and
saw someone they did not know at
all. Supposedly he was a guy with a
gray shirt, a mustache, and some-
thing to drink. At one point, he tried
turning the knob as if he would have
easy access to get inside. What the
heck was he thinking? He kept
making the same attempts during
different time periods within the hour.
Finally, we decided to all go into the
bedroom, so we can shut off all the
lights to shoo him off.

2AM was approaching and I was ready to
call it a night. I layed in bed and once again
heard the footsteps nearing the front
door. The knob on the door was trying
to get opened again. Now that really
scared me because it didn't make any
sense why this person kept doing that.
If he really wanted to get someone's
attention, he would have knocked
boisterously or something. I scared the
other girls when I came into their room
to tell them that he was back. Apparently,
he wasn't giving up. I looked through the
crack of the curtains and I saw him, sitting
at the top of the stairs. What did he really
want?

All three of us were standing in front
of the closed-curtain window in the dark.
Then, we all saw his shadow move toward
the door. He moved the knob again. His
actions were way too suspicious, so Lalaine
ended up calling the cops. I stood there with
Tiffany's huge new pan in my hands just in
case. The guy disappeared when the cops
came. The two of them knocked on our door
and asked us questions. "Why did you wait
an hour to call us?" one of them asked. We
just thought he would go away since we
never responded to his knocking. The whole
thing was weird. I hope he doesn't come back.
We have already planned our defense strategies.
Perhaps "Home Alone" serves as inspiration.

Geography Journal Number Two

Last week's lecture had some
pretty interesting topics that
I would like to share in this
entry. Most of the inform-
ation was about what a
typical globe or map of our
world looks like and how to
read the features on it. Some
of the features include: latit-
ude, longitude, great circles
and small circles, and prime
meridian and standard time.
Latitude measures north and
south and a ladder can be
used as an analogy I suppose,
to remember the direction it
measures. Then, longitude
measures east and west and
are not equidistant. Another
interesting fact is that there
will be a new law next year
in which daylight savings
time will start a month
earlier than usual.

http://www.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=84+Godeus+St.+San+Francisco+CA&ie=UTF8&z=19&ll=37.742621,-122.421126&spn=0.000899,0.002076&t=h&om=1

Above is the Google Maps link
to a satellite view of the place
where I used to live when I was
a toddler. I found it interesting
that I can actually zoom in to
the actual building in this
version of map sites. However,
I agree with the teacher that
this form is not always accurate.
In the photo, the arrow points
to a building that is right behind
another building. If I remember,
the apartment that I lived in
should be where the front building
is. Also, the apartment in
the picture is located next to
another street. My apartment was
towards the center of the block.
I think it is a big example of in-
accuracy. Even when I searched
for my current apartment in San
Jose, the location was not right.
The arrow points to a tree and that
is definitely not where I live. It is
an interesting way to find places,
but I do not think it is that reliable.
Plus, it is kind of scary because of
how specific it could get.

Geography Journal Number One

During Labor Day weekend, I went on a Brotherhood
Camping Fellowship with some members of the co-ed
fraternity that I am involved in. The location of the
three-day event was held at Cooley Ranch in Santa
Rosa. The ranch is private land, so there is no specific
address that can be used to locate it on a map website.
One of the member's (Paige) family owns a portion of the
ranch and she only provided us with directions straight
from her memory. The directions were pretty simple, but
the route on the way there looked a lot more compli-
cated. I think it was due to the fact that we were travel-
ing at night. We went from the highway to a curvy
mountain road that was completely dark. Paige was in
the first car ahead of two others and she was our guide;
so we barely used the written directions.

The ranch is a complicated place to search for in maps
because the place is not indicated specifically. I tried to
search "Cooley Ranch" on mapquest.com, but it did not
give me any direct directions. It did give me a map of
the whole country and some places that had part of the
name in it. However, there is a site that I found on
google.com that provided a better map of Sonoma
County, which is where the ranch resides. There is also
a small map that shows how big the ranch is. These maps
were the most informational sources I could find about
the place. I can understand it since it is private land. If
it was not private, mapquest would of definitely offered
straightforward directions.

















So how was the camping trip you ask? I can definitely
tell you all about it. First, to sum it all up, I can say it
was a blast. It was not the kind of camping where all
your resources were whatever nature provided you.
We actually had a little house in the area with a kitchen,
bathroom, dishes, forks, all kinds of goods. We did
try our best to keep it close to the traditional ways
though. I guess I can say that this trip was my first
semi-camping experience. I really should have had
more outings before this. After all, I am a Taurus.





Fri. Sept.1 - Left San Jose to go on a three hour drive up
to Cooley Ranch in Santa Rosa. I left with a majority of
the executive committee members in the fraternity. The
highlight of the drive: stopping on the side of the road
right off the Golden Gate Bridge because the tarp in the
back of Sunshine's (she is the VP of Membership) truck
flew off. It was scary too because she almost got hit by a
speeding bus. The route that we took in the last hour of
the journey reminded me of a typical slasher movie. I
was waiting for some freak with greasy hair, and one blue
and one brown eye to pop up next to the president's
window. That would of been so creepy, but funny at the
same time. At least I did not say that. I probably would
of been the first to go. When we got there, we brought out
all of our equipment and went straight to the tent. We
played verbal games and solved riddles. Then, everyone
knocked out. It took me a while to sleep and when I did,
I kept waking up. I was not used to sleeping without a hard
wall above me. Also, my imagination was running wild.







Sat. Sept.2 - Sleeping in the morning felt great for some reason.
I think it was the cool, fresh air. After breakfast, we learned how
to post up the American flag and then went on a hike toward the
creek. It was all rocks over there, but I managed to find one
shaped as a heart. Aww. My co, Paul, stepped on a little frog.
Poor thing. It lived. After that, all eight of us went on a safari
ride through parts of the ranch. That was a highlight. I got
smacked in the face a couple of times by branches, saw some
wild animals, chased a boar down a path, observed gorgeous
scenery, and got splashed on driving through the creek waters.
It was such a perfect day and it felt really good to explore. Five
more members arrived to join in on the fun. (There were thirteen
of us total.) We all got split into three groups. I was in the green
team, the "Gumbies." I came up with the name. He was the first
thing that came to mind. We had the least people. In our groups,
we did three "workshops" on how to build a campfire, build tents,
and "cross the lava." Our team did the best job with our strategy.
Later on after a delicious dinner, we sat next to the campfire to do
our skits that we planned out beforehand. Our group based our skit
on how to survive a chapter meeting. I had to impersonate someone
that was "too cool" for me. I tried to be as loud as I could. We ate
smores to end the night. Then, everyone did their own thing. I ended
up with the group of people who were telling ghost stories. I did not let
it get to me, but I do have a very imaginitive mind. I slept in the
biggest tent with four other people. In the middle of the night, I heard
scary coyote sounds. They sounded like they were in excruciating pain.
My imaginitive mind was ruling again. I was freaked out!







Sun. Sept.3 - After another morning of breakfast, we all started the day
with a hike. There were huge rocks all over the area that we had to cross
through. I brought up the fact that I felt like I was on the kids show "GUTS."
A couple of us were making fun of it, as if we were on the "agro-crag" that
was always the last challenge in the show. Some of us had to walk across
the creek with our socks and shoes. We reached our destination point and
did icebreakers before we got picked up to go back to our camping site. After
lunch, we had free time to swim while the other five members who came late
went on their safari experience. It was nice to sit around by the pool and
watch people jump into the freezing water. It was like they got shocked with
first contact of the waves. The others also went swimming when they
came back. Then, we all participated in a relay race created by Ron (one of
the VPs of Fellowship). Now this was when the "Real World/Road Rules
Challenge" type of activities came into play. The green team was ahead during
the first half, but the red team won. I could not believe it! They had a riddle
and our team had a 100 piece puzzle to work on. Oh well. It was all fun and
games. I was so worn out after that workout, I went to nap. It was a good one
too. Another campfire night followed dinner and we had to act out another
skit. It had to be about risk management. So, our group just did the whole topic
in general and how it is supposed to be common sense. We concluded campfire
night with sing-alongs, jokes, and banana boats. Yum! Our VPs of Fellowship
ended the whole weekend by connecting our circle by having us hold a rope
and cut pieces to wrap around our wrists. This indicated that our connection and
experience would always be a part of each and every one of us. It was a lovely
moment. The songs that we learned from Sara (the other VP of Fellowship) were
fun to sing. We sounded good.





Mon. Sept.4 - I woke up to a freezing morning. We ate breakfast for the last
time and packed up everything we had. Everyone also had the chance to
sign a huge card for Paige's (one of the Secretaries) super generous parents
for letting us hold our event at their ranch. We all had a grand time the
whole weekend. We even shared our thoughts with each other one last time.
I was going to miss it, but at the same time I was ready to go back to city
life.