.:: y'om say'n? word. ::.

.:: Tuesday, December 31, 2002 ::.

have you ever wondered why we celebrate the new year? i kinda think it's an over-rated tradition. what's so great about saying goodbye to one year to say hello to another? i guess it's a sense of starting fresh, with a clean slate, huh? i just don't know what the big deal is. in any case, i'm finally home from work and must go make spinach dip and prepare for a nice party with some high school friends, our boyfriends, tons of food, and more alcohol than even we know what to do with...

p.s. i hate new year's resolutions, so don't ask. ;)

:: joyCleeP 6:40 PM [+] ::
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my 3-day weekend is coming to a close...so sad to see it go, but actually looking forward to working! wtf?!

so i was at the post office on friday, a place i NEVER go to, since i do everything online these days, and hardly ever use stamps...and there was a lady in front of me buying 1000 stamps. i kid you not. what does one do with 1000 stamps?

for christmas, my parents told me to buy myself a burberry bag. at first i was confused why they would want me to do that, since i've never expressed any interest in wanting one. then i got kinda excited, cuz why wouldn't i want one? especially if they're gonna pay for it! :) so spoiled...i know. but the more i thought about it, the more the idea of having a burberry bag seemed less and less desirable. why would i want something that is worth more than all of its contents? scary. so i went to union square anyways, where the nearest burberry store is, and there were a million people crowding the streets. if this is a slow time for union square, i can't even imagine how crazy it was when things were booming. i was walking at a snale's pace, trying hard to walk around the slow-walkers (i am NOT a slow-walker...) without being rude. afterall, they're probably just tourists trying to take it all in, right? and that's another thing i don't understand. why do tourists come to SF to shop? when they have the same exact stores, probably way better, in their own countries? like japan for example...there are a ton of japanese tourists all over union square, but i recall watching a travel channel special on the shopping districts in tokyo, and they are far more superior than anything in california. i just don't get it. same stores, just in a different city. oh, and i didn't buy anything, in case you were wondering. i may ask my parents to just forget the bag and give me the money instead...is that very un-christmas of me? but i thought i would feel very out of my element walking into burberry, gucci, neiman marcus, saks, but you know, there were lot more ordinary looking people than i thought there would be. did you know that neiman marcus only accepts diner's card, american express, and their own credit card? i didn't know anyone with a diner's club card til my roommate got one from work. is it supposed to be a symbol of prestige or something?

on my way home, i stopped by kuk je, the new korean supermarket. first off, parking is a complete nightmare. but once you get that part done and over with, the inside is quite nice. aisle after aisle of everything korean you can imagine. even a BAKERY!! fresh kim bop, ban chan of every sort, meats and fish...it was a tad overwhelming. and everything was soooo clean and new! :) so tonight i will feast on kim bop (which cost me $4.25, good lord) and soon dubu (mom's recipe, yummmm...). i can't wait to eat dinner!!

:: joyCleeP 5:55 PM [+] ::
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i will not deny it, i am anxious to watch joe millionaire. i actually just want to see the last episode, when the girl finds out that he's not actually worth $50million, he's only worth $19,000!!! gosh, what on earth does he do to make that much? part-time retail? heh. i told you i was a reality tv junkie...

i actually have a day off from work! i can't believe it!! so i am off to do a million and one errands, which starts with blogging, then going to the post office, then going to the gym, then going to union square, then some other little things, and ending up sometime this evening back home where i can start cleaning up my room. yipes. not looking forward to that at all.

:: joyCleeP 10:37 AM [+] ::
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there was an earthquake this morning, at 12:22am, measuring a mere 3.6. it jolted me out of sleep, i hate that! :( i couldn’t fall back to sleep which is the worst. and my annoying neighbor downstairs had his stereo on just a tiny bit too loud, but somehow i drowned it out and finally fell asleep. it’s really weird, but i can’t remember what it was like during the loma prieta quake back in 1989, which measured something like 7.1 on the richter. all i remember is that it felt like the shaking would never stop. my coworker and i were talking about how californians are such wimps when it comes to severe weather, like our recent rain storms, but when it comes to earthquakes, we act like it’s just a part of our daily routine. probably cuz we know what to do when there’s an earthquake, but we have no clue what to do during a freak rain storm! heh, stupid californians…

it’s christmas eve and I’m stuck at work…bummer. looks like it’s gonna be a very quiet day.

:: joyCleeP 10:27 AM [+] ::
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well, w took my laptop with him to sd for the week, so i am sans computer at home. what am i going to do?! no surfing for a whole week? *sigh* don’t expect me to update much this week…not that you'll miss me or anything... ;)

:: joyCleeP 1:22 PM [+] ::
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ohmigosh, have you seen this?? holy shit what is this girl smoking. ugh, makes me never want to eat...

today my manager gave me a pound of starbucks christmas roast! it cheered me up this morning, even tho i really didn't need the cheering. i think i'll go have a cup now.

:: joyCleeP 9:37 PM [+] ::
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days like today, i really wish i had heated seats in my car! at work, we have to park off-property, and we have shuttles that drive us to the hotel. one of the shuttles is this ford special edition windstar mini-van, and it has heated seats! one very cold day i got into the front passenger seat and noticed that my butt was getting very warm...it was an odd feeling cuz i totally wasn't expecting it!! last night i turned on the heater at home for the first time this winter! burr...

well, the next big storm is slowly rolling in, and you can definitely see the signs of its wrath at the hotel. this little pond near one of the walkways was completely overflowing, and became this rushing river flowing down to the ocean!! it was quite a sight. i wish i had a digicam to take a pic...scary stuff. i sometimes think that if there was a big enough storm, the entire building could easily slip into the ocean and just float away. heh. we're very close to the ocean...on the edge of a bluff.

so i think i've got this soap making thing down! my soap came out fantastic! and they smell really good too! very happy about that.

yesterday i was talking about not wanting anything this christmas, and not even caring if i didn't get a single present. funny thing, i feel the need to share. :) at my department holiday dinner on tuesday, we also had a secret santa gift exchange. so after we placed our orders, we decided to exchange our gifts. everyone is giddy with getting what they asked for (we had a wishlist on our bulletin board...yeah, i still don't know how i feel about that). well, i didn't get a gift. there's a good reason. the person that had me couldn't make it to dinner because her son was sick with pneumonia. yipes. anyways, i was really whatever about it, and was honestly happy to see that the person i had LOVED her gift. it brings me so much joy to give gifts and see the person's reaction. :) anyways, so today the person absent from dinner came up to me and handed me my present, apologizing for it being late. i graciously accepted. everyone wrote their preferences on their wishlist, and everyone got what they asked for. everyone but me! i can't help but laugh. it's almost like she read my blog and knew i didn't care what i got! but she got me this baggy with perfume lotion and stuff. i asked for a gift cert from best buy so i could buy another wireless controller for my game cube. :) funny how things happen, huh? oh well, it's a sign that i shouldn't play video games all day. :) hehee

:: joyCleeP 10:06 PM [+] ::
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i don’t know what happened. flo and zach won. wtf? ugh, she so didn’t deserve the $1million. zach totally did, if it weren’t for him, they would’ve quit a long time ago. why is he putting up with her? sheesh, he is one understanding/forgiving guy… i so wanted the brothers to win…i totally thought they had it, especially at the end, when all three were in a cab-race. *sigh* can't wait for amazing race 4. :)

:: joyCleeP 2:53 PM [+] ::
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who knew making soap would be so difficult? it sounded easy enough...cut glycerin into one inch cubes, melt the glycerin in the microwave on high for 30 seconds, pour into mold, let set for 2 hours, and voila! you have soap! instead, i have a kitchen counter full of soap shavings, paper bowls and toothpicks for mixing, paper towels, all over the place. it's not a pretty sight. it's a good thing i'm making soap and not candles...ugh. i think i'll stick with baking, i'm a lot better at that.

okay, so is anyone else out there watcing the amazing race 3? i have to say it's one of my favorite reality tv shows, and i admit i'm a reality tv junkie. :) but good lord, flo is such a whiner! i can't believe they made it this far. *sigh* someone needs to kick her. her and zach are in the top three, and the whole time she's whining and crying and essentially giving up, repeating over and over how she wants to go home. what?! i would love to be in her place right now!! travelling the world for free! no, actually, they get money from the show, so they're getting paid! and if they win, they get a $1million!! geez, they should just eliminate her for her bad attitude. :( sorry, i just had to vent, and my roommate j is away on business (she usually watches amazing race with me). she's been trying to convince me to apply with her since we first saw the very first episode of the first amazing race. maybe someday you'll all see ME on amazing race!!!

but back to "reality"...i cannot believe christmas has crept up on us already! holy crap! this is the first year really that i haven't thought about gifts. not giving, but receiving. i usually have a quite extensive wishlist by now, but this year, oddly enough, i don't really have much that i want. what's wrong with me?? am i materialistically satisfied? that's impossible. :) but seriously, if i didn't get a single gift this year, i really wouldn't care. hmm...i have no idea how that came about. weird.

my department had our holiday dinner last night. we went to pazzia. the food was great, and staff was, well, italian, barely able to speak any english at all really. but it was way too small for a party of 18. we took over almost the entire restaurant!! but it was a lot of fun. it's always interesting to meet your coworker's significant others. :)

okay, i think my soap should be set now...must get back to work...

:: joyCleeP 10:58 PM [+] ::
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courtesy of my chidelt lil sis. scary, isn't it?

See what Care Bear you are.

:: joyCleeP 9:39 PM [+] ::
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the coffee at my last job was horrible, extremely bitter and burnt-tasting. so horrible that i brought in my own one-cup french press and freshly ground coffee, just so i could have a decent cup of coffee in the morning. at my current job, the coffee is so bland, i feel like i’m just drinking hot water with cream and sugar. blech. i may have to dig out the old french press again…

:: joyCleeP 4:24 PM [+] ::
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well, i have tried and tried and tried, but for some reason i just cannot post pictures on my blog. :( so instead, here is what i've been trying to share with you all. it's a gingerbread rendering of my workplace, the place i spend the majority of my waking hours. it took our pastry and culinary teams 4 days, 3 nights to complete. it is a spitting image of the actual hotel. it was originally supposed to be big enough for a small child to fit in, but i guess the chefs changed their minds. :) can you imagine? a life-size gingerbread house?? holy crap.

i contemplate leaving california all the time. like picking up my bags and moving away somewhere, anywhere. but truthfully, i'm such a wimp when it comes to extreme cold or extreme heat, i wouldn't last a day anywhere else. sad, isn't it? w and i talk about it all the time, where we would go, when it would be feasible, but i don't know if it'll ever happen. it seems the longer i wait, the harder it gets for me. i'm not as young as i used to be, you know. and plus, i don't know if i could stand to be so far away from my parents. they're not getting any younger either. my dad is turning 64 tomorrow. 64! he doesn't seem that old. he seems more like 46.

:: joyCleeP 10:29 PM [+] ::
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last night i dreamt i was the lead character in a video game, and i had to collect these items, but i needed these people to give me clues to help me find them. okay, i think i need to stop playing super mario sunshine.

:: joyCleeP 11:33 AM [+] ::
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6 hours later, i finally feel i've got the shopping bug out of me. :) i spent way more money than i should have, but damn it, it felt great! i know, i know...i should've used the money to pay off credit cards, but oh well, too late for that now. but my roommate, her boyfriend and i went on a shopping spree. yea for friends and family discounts!!! we even went to hobie's for breakfast! i haven't been there since i was in slo...gosh, memories. blueberry coffecake...yummmm...i think i need to bake some cookies, i've suddenly developed a sweet tooth. now there's something i haven't done in ages. i used to be a baking machine, and now, since i've started my new job, i haven't baked a single thing! what is going on?? i think it's because we get fresh baked pastries and cookies and desserts at work...for FREE. we have an amazing pastry kitchen. :) lucky me.

my roommate bought lilo and stitch on dvd, and we were watching it last night. the girl who does the voice for lilo is the girl who did the voice for chihiro in spirited away. i had seen the japanese version, with english subtitles, and thought lilo's voice would be way to "young" for chihiro. but it actually fit very well. one of my coworkers, this really cute japanese lady, told me that miyazaki wasn't allowed to watch tv when he was a boy. his friends would tell him about the shows they watched, and miyazaki used his imagination to create the characters that his friends saw on tv. and supposedly that's how he developed his amazing imagination and story-telling ability. lucky him.

it's so weird...i never thought i'd have enough to "say" to have a blog, and it's funny that i think of things that i want to post but it's too much of a hassle to boot up the computer. so when i do have the time to post a message, i am at a loss for words. hmm...i'll have to find a solution to this. lucky you.

:)

p.s. did you know that there is a guy at yahoo who's sole job is to come up with emoticons??? (you know, those cute little smileys...) if you come up with any good ones, you can submit it to him for review! insider info...

:: joyCleeP 8:30 PM [+] ::
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my calves are sore. *sigh*

i've finished my christmas shopping early. i'm so proud of myself, cuz last year i was still shopping the day before, literally. but now i'm all done, so i've treated myself to new clothes (2 sweaters). :) *happy* it's been so long since i've gone shopping for myself...

:: joyCleeP 10:46 PM [+] ::
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i am already using my gym membership. i feel good. thank gawd my favorite step aerobics instructor is still instructing at my favorite gym, or else i don't know what i would do. she rocks. and thank gawd again that my ankle didn't give out! *phew* but i can feel "it" in my calves already...dread. i didn't expect to see so many familiar faces, and it's been about a year since i've gone to this class. anyways, yea for me. :)

:: joyCleeP 10:51 PM [+] ::
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i got this thing in the mail from 24 hour fitness about a month ago, with a deal i couldn't pass up. so now i've re-enrolled, trying to convince myself that i have to work out. i can quit at anytime, and the terms were the same as my first membership (no processing fee, no enrollment, no contract, just pay monthly as you go). hopefully i'm not just getting sucked back into thinking i'll work out because i'm paying for it. ha! we'll see how things go.

just in case you were wondering, my thanksgiving feast came out great! even i was impressed! hahaha... and now we have leftovers to last the rest of the week!

:: joyCleeP 12:59 PM [+] ::
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