Berkeley, I'm Back Babyyy!

Dear Bianca,

Hey what's up? I'm back in Berkeley. Finally! It felt like summer was the longest thing everrr, but now that I'm here, it's like I never even left. 

I'm so tired right now. Classes started today, and I had Japanese 1A at the ungodly hour of 8 am. It didn't matter, though. I was so excited. I busted out my Hajimemashite and my Doozo Yoroshiku. You should've been there. I was awesome. I felt like a smarty-pants. But then we started reading through the syllabus, and I realized pretty much everyone can read Japanese in that class; it wasn't just me. Haha. Damn Berkeley kids. Of course they'd be on top of their game. Of course. 

Anyhowz, Asian American Studies was pretty legit too. Professor Omi seems tight. I think he reminds me of Aihara Sensei. Don't ask me why though...because I don't know. Anyhowz again, I'm gonna need to get a lot of books for that class. One is by a Filipino author, Carlos Bulosan. Exciting, ne? I think this is the first time that I'll be studying about Filipinos in a classroom not situated in the Philippines. 1337. 

Oh and can I just tell you how much assembling my roomies and I had to do the other day?! ZOMGoodness. We bought these bunk beds from IKEA, and we thought they'd deliver and assemble them, but NOOO; we had to do it ourselves. ALL OF IT. It got pretty intense there when Vannalyn accidentally dropped a screw into the bar thingie itself. It felt like the end of the world. But it's cool now. We screwed and screwed til we couldn't screw anymore, and now I'm here sitting on my top bunk. :D 

Hey I miss my co-interns. :[ The next time I see them, I better be at The Grove, munching on whatever Mario Batali comes up with...and listening to Seal. 

Laters,

Bianca ♥

TTFN, Summer 08

Ta-ta for now, Summer 2008. 

You've been so good to me. You've given me so many opportunities and opened so many avenues in my life that I didn't even realize were possible. 

You gave me my first rejection in the professional world. (Thank you, Knott's Berry Farm, for making me feel inadequate. If I suck, then you suck more.)

You gave me my first job! (Thank you, Dr. G, for being crazy enough to think that I'd be able to handle working at a dental office.)

You gave me my first internship! (WOOT! Thanks to my BFF, Tiger Woods, for making it all happen.)

You gave me my first breakup! Excellent! Hindsight is 20/20 indeed! WHEW!

What else...? 

My first paycheck, of course. My first trip to Yogurtland. My first time eating at Chipotle! (Can you imagine? It's like right there on Telegraph. & it's soooo good!) My first time playing golf! & karaoke-ing at a karaoke place in America! & the first time somebody (Sam!) baked me a birthday cake and wasn't a family member! & the first time someone threw a water balloon at me and soaked me from head to toe (Thanks, Mr. Carr.). My first animal shelter visit. And lots of other fun things, I'm sure.

Thanks, Summer 2008. You were really 1337. Have a nice retirement. :D

Summer's Winter

These people made my summer amazing. Thank you guys! I'll miss you all terribly! :D

Argentina's Favorite Son

I am devastated. Not only did Team USA steamroller Argentina in the semis; my hero, Manu Ginobili, re-injured his left ankle and hobbled his way off the court. :(

Prior to the Olympics, I was already torn by the decision he had to make. Since he was hurt throughout the West Finals, he wasn't really supposed to play in the Olympics. The Spurs definitely didn't want him risking further injury, but if there's one thing that stands out about Manu, it's his stubbornness. He really wanted to defend his gold medal, but more importantly, he wanted to represent his country.

Personally, I thought it would be fun to have him in the Olympics. I was just getting sick of not being able to watch any basketball, and I thought...hey, it'd be nice to see Manu play again, even for a little bit. I knew all along about the risk of Manu hurting himself, but I guess no one really wanted to think about that.

But now that he's hurt, it seems like the sky is falling in San Antonio. Fans are clamoring for a trade. Why keep this ailing, 31-year-old on your team when you can trade for young blood? Isn't that what San Antonio needs? Hasn't the recurrent "they're so old" label struck a chord in them just yet?

To me, it hasn't. Not for Ginobili, at least. Where else can you get a guy that plays with the heart that he does? Maybe you can replace his athleticism or his consistency, but you can never, ever replace passion. To me, Ginobili is a priceless player. You can't put a price on his heart, and on his contributions.

So to all the Chicken Littles in San Antonio and in the Spurs' fandom, I say have faith in Ginobili. I have faith that he'll deliver yet again, and if he doesn't, I'll be one of the patient fans who'll accept that his prime has passed. I will say though, that if he ever gets traded, I won't hesitate to jump ship to that other team fortunate enough to receive his services. I guess you can say that I am a Ginobili fan foremost, and if San Antonio doesn't show him the loyalty he deserves (because the NBA is admittedly a business), then I guess it's time to switch loyalties as well.

Colbert-isms

"Christians go to Heaven, specifically Catholics."

Stephen Colbert: "God is a woman, and now he's an illegal immigrant?!"
Anne Lamott: "I'm from San Francisco!"
Stephen Colbert: "There it is."

On Jenna Bush's wedding: "Jenna, Henry, you two remind me of myself...in that I've always wanted to marry myself."

To Psychology Icon Philip Zimbardo: "I teach Sunday school, motherfucker!"

"Corn + Magic = Gasoline."

"The sky is blue because it's God's favorite color!"

"Well, first of all, what is dark matter? Because I don't see the color of matter."

"Why do they make fluorescent light bulbs look like soft-serve ice cream if you're not supposed to lick them?"

"Who's pooping in our pools? My guess - the elusive Poopacabra."

"Nation, if you're like me, you have your Google alarm set on 'Ryan Seacrest' and 'animal attack.'"

"Oh Lord, please help our athletes bring home the gold - enough gold so we can melt it down and buy back our economy from the Chinese. And as always Lord, give me thick, luscious hair and a rockin' bod."

"If I had a quarter for every time I said I had a nickel, I'd have five times as much theoretical money."

The Pensive

Today is my birthday. I am 20 years old young.

I was scrounging up some memories in my brain, memories to share on this blog that could lend insight into what kind of person I was, am, and will become. All that I got, though, was a trail of vivid pink objects that seemed to dot every special event in my life.

My family lived in Bacolor, Pampanga when I was born. I barely remember anything from the old house; I was too young to remember the wooden detail of the walls and floors, the surrounding fields of peaceful bamboo trees, or the lively chatter of neighboring houses. But when I try to recall, or when my mother tells stories, I can somehow picture what it looked like. For instance, in my mind I see my 2-year-old self dancing in front of a floor-length mirror with bright pink plastic borders. I was dancing, dancing with similarly pink sunglasses hanging from my small face, and I'm pretty sure I was impressed with myself. All of these are scattered images, though, and the molten lava from Mt. Pinatubo swallowed them whole, making sure that I would never remember much else.

If you ask me about birthday parties, the memory that sticks out most to me was on my 7th birthday. I wore a gaudy yellow dress (I always wore dresses! And my hair was always up in pigtails! Thanks, Mom! :)) with lots of ribbons, and I held a pink balloon tightly in my hand as I prepared to face the crowd - my friends, whose faces and names I can't even recall. My favorite aunt - Biba, I call her - was at my side. I don't even know how it happened, but...my pink balloon - the biggest of the bunch made for the occasion - started sailing up, up, upwards, away from my reach. I felt the thin string sliding through my fingers, and in a matter of seconds, it was flying away from me. And then it was just a dot in the sky. I probably cried.

What's my point?

I honestly don't know...

Anyways, that was just a random connection I made between the color pink and my childhood memories. :) I guess I just diminished any power those stories had with this lame disclaimer. Haha. Oh well.

THANKS to everyone who wished me a HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I had a happy one, thanks to you guys. AWWW.

Good night!

myyy awesuume bday weekundd!! <333

zOmggg guyssz! i had lyke d bestt weekenddd evurr! well i guess it wusn't rly d bestestt, but it wuz aiite. yaddamean? it was cooo enuf for a bday weekend! 

lyke sturdayy my fambamz ♥ hadd a partyyie 4 da august celebrunts! i+ wuz lykk s000 tiigHt cuz i goT 2 hangg 0ut with mahh cuzns! and der was rlllyy gr8 f00d!

i got 2 watch michul felps win 8 goldZ der too! dat wuz a nice bday present to me 2!!!!! cuz i lyk michuel felpz. HE'S SOO HAWTTT!!! lyk forealz. u prolli don't evun reckanize! but yuh i'M haPpY! congrgulaTioNs 2 hImZ!!! :) i'm Z0 hapY!!! i thiNk i saId dat olr3di, but datz 0k...lol!!!! i ddnt see d medall curem0ni3 thingi3, th00....w/c iz pr0lli a g0od thInG cuzzz i w0uLd 0f cri3d, i`m sureee! LOL!! i wi$h i were JK, butttt i`m n0t rlyy. 

nywyz,,, s0 den my kewll cuzn maiDa sleP+ 0ver @ 0ur hauz t00!! w/c i th0ugHt wuz hecKa tiiiighhhhtTTT!!!!!! cuzz she`s s000 niC33! she juzz wunted 2 lyk celebra+3 my bdaY wif m33! lykkk b4 i g0 bak t0 burkly! :) she`s s000 nic333 guyzz!!! add her 0n frIenD$+3rrr!! w8...idkk her emaiL addrezz th0...LOL jm!! i d0 kn0wwww!!! LOLL!!! i`m s00 funni33!!! 

2dayy my cuzn, siztahh and i went 2 down+0wn diZneyyy 2 watch sistahooD 0f d traveLinG pantz 2!!! it wuzz c00hH! i lykd it!!! it wuz kinda funnIe t00...cuz my cuzn actuallY haz a dvdd 0f d 1zt m0viee cuz s0me1 gave it 2 herr 4 her bdayy last yr but she rly didn`t evn watchh it!! lol! n0ww she saId she'z gunna g0 h0m3 & t0tallY lyk watch itt cuz she lyked i+!!! 

& denn we ren+ed a c0upLe fiLipinn0 muvi33zz!! c00l, huh?!!! :D & denn we picKeddd up my lil br0derrs and we went 2 cerrit0sz & ate at panduh exprez and dennn i introdUced demm 2 y0gurtlandd & i think dey ALL lykeddd it!!!!!! 

anyh0wzzzz...i+ wuzz a c00h weekenddd!!! n0ww it`szz tym 4 m33 2 pacK cuz i`m h34diN' bakk 2 berrZerkLeyyyy!!! 

nyTT guyzzz! mwaHHHh ♥

Summer School

My internship at the Tiger Woods Learning Center has come to an end, and I am so sad. So very, very sad. I will feed you a cliche by telling you that "I learned a lot" from this program, but I must tell you that I mean that in "more ways than one" (that's a cliche too!). 

Let's see...I learned...

• How to play Apples to Apples, Uno, Mafia, Electricity, and golf! :)
  
• How to build a mouse-trap car, a bottle rocket, an NXT robot, and a rubber-band racer.
• How to work with kids and adults (who can act like little kids sometimes! :))
• That I need a cover letter when I turn in a resume.
  
• That business cards are actually useful.
• That networking is the bombshizzle, yaddamean cuhh?
• That pretty paper is awesome - it elongates attention spans!
• That you can never please everyone, especially when you're working on a group of five different people who all have the tendency to be stubborn but amazing.
• That I'm not quite ready to be "professional" because I giggle too much, I make fun of lots of things, and I throw towels at Stephanie.
• That I can inspire even one person with a single act of kindness.
• That I can make a difference.
• And that I still want to meet Tiger Woods and say "thank you" for every opportunity that he has given to kids like me.

I am honestly going to miss that place, but I hope to volunteer over winter break just to see the kids, the teachers, and of course Donald! :) 

U-S-A!

Now that's funny.

Update

You know what grinds my gears, America? YOU. You and your poor grammar!

"Conversate" is not a word. 

"Withdrawal" is spelled with an A following the W.

Know how to differentiate than from then. The previous is used for comparisons, and the latter is used in reference to time.

And if you don't know what a word means (or if you don't know whether it exists or not), please DON'T use it.

Thank you.

In other news, I am really sleepy. And I so desperately want to open a bag of Cheetos Hot Puffs, but...it's too late for snacks. :[

I did finish a bag of green peas last night, though, while I was watching the Olympics. Phelps was so hot he made me hungry! Haha. I kid. 

Or do I?

Anyways, how about them female American gymnasts? They tried so hard, and I was rooting for them all the way, but in the end...the words that escaped my mouth were "This is a trainwreck." At that, I got up off the couch, dragged my blanket and pillows with me to bed and fell asleep without brushing my teeth. Ewww.

Seriously, though, I really respect what these gymnasts can do. They can twist and tangle their bodies however they want to, while I can barely touch the floor without bending my knees. I was trying a little one-leg stand of my own, though, much to my siblings' disgust. Haha. Ahh...It was not a pretty sight, and we'll leave it at that.

Uhh..

How come Filipino girls in the US all look alike? It's so weird...it's like there's a template for them. They have the same feathered hairstyle, and their clothing preferences are the same. It's so weird...Has anyone else noticed this?

Speaking of the Olympics, I just have to show off my favorite athlete EVERRR. :)

Such Great Heights

I love the Olympics. With all the negativity prevalent today, the Olympics is a contrast - a (quite elaborate) celebration of all that is glorious about mankind. It highlights the extent of human strength and brings the entire world together; even though a lot of controversies surround China right now, all that is set aside to give way to this international celebration.

It's amazing how human beings like myself can withstand cycling through mountainous terrain for an entire 150 miles. Think how numb their legs must be after that ordeal! There's really no other word for it but "amazing." And Michael Phelps? Fuhgeddaboudit! I was just watching the qualifying heats today, and as the commentators were saying that Phelps was preparing to go into cruise control, he breezed right by his competitors. There was a gap of about 10 feet between him and the guy in second place! How does he do that? How can you train yourself to swim faster than any other athlete? How can you become a better gymnast, a better fencer than anyone else in the world? When does that athlete start achieving such great heights?