2/3 of the walk-in closet.
SUCCESS!!
that is all =)
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
When Did You Become a Robot?
...was a question asked at the conclusion of my training today. We were told to write the exact date and situation in which we realized that our life turned monotonous and predictable.
For me, the answer was surprisingly easy. Around June of 2005, I received a job offer out of college. The excitement only lasted a few minutes because I shortly realized that the start date was before a planned backpacking trip to Europe with my best friends. I wouldn't have accumulated enough vacation time to go and when I asked if I could push back the start date, I was told that the job offer may no longer be available upon my return. This was the very moment when I realized that a job - a job that pays the bills - will weigh heavily on most decisions that I will make in the future.
Secure a job now or go on a once in a lifetime trip with my friends?
In the end, my practical side won and I decided to take the job offer.
I'm usually thankful for the gift of hindsight...but in this case, I wish I didn't have it. Because by now, I obviously realize that the experiences and memories had I gone on that backpacking trip would lasted me a lifetime...and my job...I'm sure that it could have waited.
Wake up
Go to work
Tutor
Eat
Sleep
Repeat
My goal this year? Break the robot. Somewhere in that monotonous cycle, I'll have to make time for things that I used to love doing.
Painting
Writing songs/poemsc
Running
Being spontaneous
Spending time with friends!
When did you turn into a robot?
For me, the answer was surprisingly easy. Around June of 2005, I received a job offer out of college. The excitement only lasted a few minutes because I shortly realized that the start date was before a planned backpacking trip to Europe with my best friends. I wouldn't have accumulated enough vacation time to go and when I asked if I could push back the start date, I was told that the job offer may no longer be available upon my return. This was the very moment when I realized that a job - a job that pays the bills - will weigh heavily on most decisions that I will make in the future.
Secure a job now or go on a once in a lifetime trip with my friends?
In the end, my practical side won and I decided to take the job offer.
I'm usually thankful for the gift of hindsight...but in this case, I wish I didn't have it. Because by now, I obviously realize that the experiences and memories had I gone on that backpacking trip would lasted me a lifetime...and my job...I'm sure that it could have waited.
Wake up
Go to work
Tutor
Eat
Sleep
Repeat
My goal this year? Break the robot. Somewhere in that monotonous cycle, I'll have to make time for things that I used to love doing.
Painting
Writing songs/poemsc
Running
Being spontaneous
Spending time with friends!
When did you turn into a robot?
Monday, September 27, 2010
A Reformed Shopper
Since my temporary insanity of buying a designer purse every time I fancied one and learned the hard lessons of credit card bills, I took a serious look at my spending habit and decided to tone it waaaay down. How did I do it?
Step 1 - Live faaaar away from Tysons Corner mall. There's nothing like a migraine-inducing traffic jam to deter you from going to the mall to buy more stuff.
Step 2 - If you do find yourself driving to the mall..let's say after 7pm when traffic has died down and on your drive back home you realize that there are shopping bags in your trunk and you don't know how it got there.... remember that it's ok to change your mind...and that's why there's a 30, 60, and sometimes even a 90 day return policy at most clothing stores. Repeat after me.... Return, Return, Return!
Step 3 - Make lots of girlfriends that wear the same size as you...because what may be something they don't want to be pictured in again is something that you really really wish you could be pictured in ASAP...and then post the pictures on facebook...and wait for your friends to comment how awesome you look in it. LOL
Step 4 - Make the most out of the few things that you actually buy. For instance, an elastic belt with a gold jeweled butterfly clasp that I purchased at BCBG on sale for $13 and have found every excuse to wear since
.jpg)
The lovely belt ...
.jpg)
Worn at work on a casual Friday
Dress: $15 at Target
Cardigan: Present from a friend
Shoes: $60 Guess from DSW
.jpg)
Worn with a printed dress (that doesn't fit me anymore)
Which reminds me...
Step 5 - Don't gain weight so you can keep wearing your clothes!
Dress: $180 Nannete Lapore from Cusp (probably the most expensive thing in my closet)
Shoes: $180 (I think?) Christina Louboutin from some crazy Saks sale two years ago
.jpg)
Worn at a black tie optional wedding...
Top: $13 at Forever 21
Skirt: $19 at Forever 21
Both purchased an hour before the wedding because the dress above did not fit! =(
.jpg)
Will be worn on New Year's Eve...
Dress: $20 at Forever 21
Oh and Step 6 - Try not to pay more than $20 for a party dress that you're probably going to wear only once.
(on a side note, am I too old to be wearing this??)
Step 1 - Live faaaar away from Tysons Corner mall. There's nothing like a migraine-inducing traffic jam to deter you from going to the mall to buy more stuff.
Step 2 - If you do find yourself driving to the mall..let's say after 7pm when traffic has died down and on your drive back home you realize that there are shopping bags in your trunk and you don't know how it got there.... remember that it's ok to change your mind...and that's why there's a 30, 60, and sometimes even a 90 day return policy at most clothing stores. Repeat after me.... Return, Return, Return!
Step 3 - Make lots of girlfriends that wear the same size as you...because what may be something they don't want to be pictured in again is something that you really really wish you could be pictured in ASAP...and then post the pictures on facebook...and wait for your friends to comment how awesome you look in it. LOL
Step 4 - Make the most out of the few things that you actually buy. For instance, an elastic belt with a gold jeweled butterfly clasp that I purchased at BCBG on sale for $13 and have found every excuse to wear since
.jpg)
The lovely belt ....jpg)
Worn at work on a casual Friday
Dress: $15 at Target
Cardigan: Present from a friend
Shoes: $60 Guess from DSW
.jpg)
Worn with a printed dress (that doesn't fit me anymore)Which reminds me...
Step 5 - Don't gain weight so you can keep wearing your clothes!
Dress: $180 Nannete Lapore from Cusp (probably the most expensive thing in my closet)
Shoes: $180 (I think?) Christina Louboutin from some crazy Saks sale two years ago
.jpg)
Worn at a black tie optional wedding...
Top: $13 at Forever 21
Skirt: $19 at Forever 21
Both purchased an hour before the wedding because the dress above did not fit! =(
.jpg)
Will be worn on New Year's Eve...
Dress: $20 at Forever 21
Oh and Step 6 - Try not to pay more than $20 for a party dress that you're probably going to wear only once.
(on a side note, am I too old to be wearing this??)
Thursday, September 23, 2010
We were the first...
...to move into the newly built Alexandria Crossing development. Having bugged the heck out of everyone and anyone in this whole home buying process, there was no way that our move-in date was going to be delayed any further. We closed at 12pm on June 25th. The movers were done unloading everything by 10pm that evening.
We knew from the start that we were moving in a mixed income neighborhood. A workforce housing condo building was built to our right which would house middle-class professionals who otherwise would have been priced out of expensive dc-metro area real estate. To our left is a subsidised apartment building which would house the lower income tier. The surrounding neighborhood comprised of the same mixed-income households. One block over to the south are established large townhomes - One block to the north are more subsidised apartment buildings - One block to the west are affordable single family homes - and a mere three blocks north is Arlington Ridge where million dollar homes inhabited by politicians (like Al Gore) are perched nicely on top of a hill. Like any other neighborhood in the area, one step in the wrong direction and you may very realize that you're no longer in Kansas.
Skeptical about moving into our neighborhood is an understatement. We were downright scared
But, as more residents slowly trickled in we quickly realized that the neighborhood wasn't going to be so bad after all. The existing mix of cultures in the neighborhood reflected the diversity of the rest of the dc area. The usually vehicle-filled streets were empty by the time I left for work as the rest of my neighbors had already started their day much earlier than I did. Kids played soccer in a small path of grass after school and parents called them in when it was time for dinner. Still, the newly built subsidised housing - only a few feet away from my front door - had yet to be inhabited.
Only three months have passed since we first moved in. And now, most of all of the residents in our little mixed community have moved in as well....and already we are starting to see indications of a downhill slope. Just recently, the neighborhood kids accidentally kicked a ball into our lot. To their shock, one of my neighbors took the ball, slashed it with a knife, and threw it back. Other residents have been seen throwing garbage over the dumpster fence - not even bothering to place the trash in its proper place. Already - an unruly teenager have been seen throwing planters at my neighbor's window.
If you didn't know me personally, you might infer from this post that 1) I'm making prejudice assumptions about low-income residents and 2) I'm going to be one of those uptight rule enforcing neighbor. And hearing my neighbors complain about some of the issues - I admit that I thought the same about them. But seeing some of these things happen myself, it's nearly impossible to point out your frustrations without sounding like yuppy prick.
In a million years, I never really thought that I would be one of those people active in the community. But having invested so much in our home, there's no way I can just sit back and see the neighborhood deteriorate. At the end of the day, it really shoudn't matter what income level you fall under. At the end of the day, we should all be thankful for the roof over our head and take care of it as if it were our own (even though the morgage company or the city really owns it) , and at the end of the day, we hope that we have neighbors looking out for one another.
That's the vision. Now how do you get everyone on board with that?
We knew from the start that we were moving in a mixed income neighborhood. A workforce housing condo building was built to our right which would house middle-class professionals who otherwise would have been priced out of expensive dc-metro area real estate. To our left is a subsidised apartment building which would house the lower income tier. The surrounding neighborhood comprised of the same mixed-income households. One block over to the south are established large townhomes - One block to the north are more subsidised apartment buildings - One block to the west are affordable single family homes - and a mere three blocks north is Arlington Ridge where million dollar homes inhabited by politicians (like Al Gore) are perched nicely on top of a hill. Like any other neighborhood in the area, one step in the wrong direction and you may very realize that you're no longer in Kansas.
Skeptical about moving into our neighborhood is an understatement. We were downright scared
But, as more residents slowly trickled in we quickly realized that the neighborhood wasn't going to be so bad after all. The existing mix of cultures in the neighborhood reflected the diversity of the rest of the dc area. The usually vehicle-filled streets were empty by the time I left for work as the rest of my neighbors had already started their day much earlier than I did. Kids played soccer in a small path of grass after school and parents called them in when it was time for dinner. Still, the newly built subsidised housing - only a few feet away from my front door - had yet to be inhabited.
Only three months have passed since we first moved in. And now, most of all of the residents in our little mixed community have moved in as well....and already we are starting to see indications of a downhill slope. Just recently, the neighborhood kids accidentally kicked a ball into our lot. To their shock, one of my neighbors took the ball, slashed it with a knife, and threw it back. Other residents have been seen throwing garbage over the dumpster fence - not even bothering to place the trash in its proper place. Already - an unruly teenager have been seen throwing planters at my neighbor's window.
If you didn't know me personally, you might infer from this post that 1) I'm making prejudice assumptions about low-income residents and 2) I'm going to be one of those uptight rule enforcing neighbor. And hearing my neighbors complain about some of the issues - I admit that I thought the same about them. But seeing some of these things happen myself, it's nearly impossible to point out your frustrations without sounding like yuppy prick.
In a million years, I never really thought that I would be one of those people active in the community. But having invested so much in our home, there's no way I can just sit back and see the neighborhood deteriorate. At the end of the day, it really shoudn't matter what income level you fall under. At the end of the day, we should all be thankful for the roof over our head and take care of it as if it were our own (even though the morgage company or the city really owns it) , and at the end of the day, we hope that we have neighbors looking out for one another.
That's the vision. Now how do you get everyone on board with that?
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
The Third Best Thing My Parents Ever Gave Me
Was my first car....a green 1996 Toyota Avalon. That was in 2003 and I needed a car for the summer to get me to and from my job at the newly opened Ikea in College Park. The car wasn't anything particularly special at the time. I just needed something to get me from point A to point B.
Driving the car yesterday to the dealership where I would eventually trade her in, nostalgia started to kick in. I didn't realize until then how many memories were made in that car. Long drives to Boston and back. Spontaneous trips to Philly for Pat's cheesesteaks. Converstions, tow trucks, parking tickets, friendships, heartbreaks, and those sing to the top of your lungs because no one else can hear you type of moments.
At the very instant that my new car was pulled up next to the Avalon, I thought "how fitting that I'm trading this car in now". It's almost as if some higher power was telling me to move on...to grow up and finally stop yearning for that time in my life when I didn't have any responsibilities. I could almost hear the Avalon say, "Yes, it's time...it's time for you to have a car payment. And yes, you also now have mortgage payments. And yes, you are also about to get married."
In the midst of this very busy summer and the past two years that have passed by so quickly, time stood still as I handed over the keys. I was taking a step over an imaginary line towards the next phase of my life. I took one last look back...smiled, cried, and laughed inside...and drove off (into the sunset of course) with the new car.
Me and my Avalon. 2003 - 2010 =)
Thursday, August 26, 2010
The Best Indication That I'm Going Through Hard Times
Is through my hair.
To the best of my knowledge, the only time I ever do something drastic to my hair is when I'm going through something sad and emotional. If I chopped my hair down to a bob, that probably means I just went through a break up. See me around with highlights? I might not be that happy with how my career is going.
Partaking in the the latest and greatest Asian hair trend...the digiperm...I'm not quite sure what to make of it. Post-house purchase buyer's remorse? Sad that I don't have a legally driveable car? Or perhaps, with such a "permanent" change, it's something more.
Well, nothing is permanent. It'll grow out...
In the meantime, I actually kind of...like it =)
Thursday, July 8, 2010
My Secret to Happiness
I'm all about me....and it probably seems that way at least that's the way my online persona looks. And I admit,I was very much all about my life. Focusing on all its imperfections and what it lacked. I'd focus on how others did me wrong. How unfairly I was treated at home, at work, and everywhere else in between. I was miserable, unappreciative, jealous of others, and always seeking for more and more and more.
There is nothing more disheartening than seeing someone who take their life for granted. And I'm talking about taking it for granted in the most simple sense (not like some prodigy kid who got hooked on drugs and is now homeless). Imagine that at my early twenties, I was making decent money, driving a working car, working for the government, and making a decent living. I had family and friends that genuinely cared for my well being. I could go to the mall to pick out a new clubbing outfit for the weekend. I could meet up for happy hour at any day of the week...Yet I had the nerve to allow ONE thing that I lacked (a boyfriend) to consume me.
Thankfully, we are given the gift of hindsight and memory. Had I forgotten those experiences, I wouldn't have been able to look back today and realize how ridiculous I was back then. It seems, that as time goes by, my solution to finally stop disrespecting my life was to simply snap out of it and focus on something else...focus on being good to other people...appreciate the things that aren't so bad in my life. Do I sound cliche yet?...'cause I'm gonna keep going ... =)
I couldn't really define happiness for you. I don't know what perfect means. Yes, I know I keep on putting up posts about how awesome Joe is and you might even think that we have the ideal relationship. Our relationship...my life...is still a work in progress. I still complain...but when the complaining gets really bad, I slap myself in the face (sometimes even literally). I think about all the things that I have, and I move on. Is it really that bad that I still don't own a classic Chanel flap bag in caviar leather? Is it really that bad I'm not driving an awesome car?
All I'm trying to say is...
Focus on the good, focus on being good to others, and after a while, you might actually start feeling...
Happy
and if that still doesn't work, I think you just might have to shell out some money and buy yourself a ticket to a third world country.
There is nothing more disheartening than seeing someone who take their life for granted. And I'm talking about taking it for granted in the most simple sense (not like some prodigy kid who got hooked on drugs and is now homeless). Imagine that at my early twenties, I was making decent money, driving a working car, working for the government, and making a decent living. I had family and friends that genuinely cared for my well being. I could go to the mall to pick out a new clubbing outfit for the weekend. I could meet up for happy hour at any day of the week...Yet I had the nerve to allow ONE thing that I lacked (a boyfriend) to consume me.
Thankfully, we are given the gift of hindsight and memory. Had I forgotten those experiences, I wouldn't have been able to look back today and realize how ridiculous I was back then. It seems, that as time goes by, my solution to finally stop disrespecting my life was to simply snap out of it and focus on something else...focus on being good to other people...appreciate the things that aren't so bad in my life. Do I sound cliche yet?...'cause I'm gonna keep going ... =)
I couldn't really define happiness for you. I don't know what perfect means. Yes, I know I keep on putting up posts about how awesome Joe is and you might even think that we have the ideal relationship. Our relationship...my life...is still a work in progress. I still complain...but when the complaining gets really bad, I slap myself in the face (sometimes even literally). I think about all the things that I have, and I move on. Is it really that bad that I still don't own a classic Chanel flap bag in caviar leather? Is it really that bad I'm not driving an awesome car?
All I'm trying to say is...
Focus on the good, focus on being good to others, and after a while, you might actually start feeling...
Happy
and if that still doesn't work, I think you just might have to shell out some money and buy yourself a ticket to a third world country.
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