some bits of the footage are cheesy, but overall i think she’s cool. she seems happy, running her own successful business doing what she loves. i like that they alluded to her parents. her tattoo art has a brushwork texture to it. cool how she uses a brush pen in the initial stages. ps – she and my sister have the same name

in a sinister black dodge charger rental bound for north hollywood, i embarked on a mini-roadtrip with my dad and sis over the past weekend to visit my cousins, simon and cynthia. they’re both in the “entertainment industry” and are a lot of creative, crazy fun. you might remember them from the wickedly witty vachina.

though short-lived, the impromptu trip was packed with a lot of memories and laughs. on top of that, we bonded with pop and made a few discoveries about him, such as the fact that he loves blasting the heater in hotel rooms until our mucous membranes are desiccated, and he can’t get enough of celebrity gossip rags.

* happy birthday simon!

* if you want to see other goodies from our trip, such as what jordan catalano’s been up to, vehicular scrotums, and manga spunk, check out cynth and simon’s blog.

he actually made us stop at walgreen’s to pick up his fix

chillin’ with a ground sloth

404 dire wolf skulls at the la brea tar pits page museum

i will never stop loving these fellas

i told them to think “crouching tiger little dragon,” and this is what i got

the birds! the birds are coming!

simon, a talented actor, played linus in the charlie james brown play. there was singing, dancing, and perfect smatterings of ribaldry. he even addressed the curious fact that he was a chinese linus. “once you go yellow you won’t want that fellow!”

i could spend all day trolling LA for terrific neon signs

my dad’s first chili cheese fries. he liked them! we also ordered all of the dessert menu. we play for keeps.

we are a classy chinese family. obviously

pa gets introduced to wii. he picked up tennis surprisingly quick. my sister pointed out that i can be frighteningly competitive with my violently flailing arms and cursing at my dad when he misses the ball. that’s filial piety for you

little tokyo’s curry house katsu curry

and time spent in LA vacay wouldn’t be complete without this pilgrimage.
dad has no idea what he just stepped into

but he’s about to find out!

cynth, the storyteller / camera mistress, got my first time on video. if only all first times could be this sweet…i am a huge dork

i really love little tokyo. a warm, lovely atmosphere. very nice. these are the guys who started mochi ice cream, the common white man’s introduction to those mystical doughy things

dad bought some sapporo and sent me to get some of these red bean delights and takoyaki from this stand. we then proceeded to sit outside in little tokyo, at dusk, enjoying our treats and the people watching. you can’t beat that!

the ol’ man marvels at the towering sculpture at MOCA downtown

cynthia embraces the thing we that we assumed was a real man from afar

we went to griffith observatory. i thought of leonard nimoy a lot.

bought some scrumptious homemade tacos from this enterprising roadside family

simon got us into the far east movement’s birthday shindig at area nightclub. i hadn’t been in AZN nation in a long time.

it was here that i really discovered that the awesome dancing gene properly embedded itself in everyone’s yin DNA, EXCEPT FOR MINE. sigh

dad and my sis hi-five each other. it was an excellent trip

and now i will close with a bowl of auspicious sweet chinese soy milk. it’s good for you!

it is FREEZING tonight. my feet feel like popsicles and i swear there are icicles forming in my nostrils. i can actually feel my frosted blood cells struggling for mobility in an already sluggish circulation system.

weather like this reminds me of how nice space heaters are. everybody could use one. in fact, i think they make great gifts. we all could use one, right? i love mine. it’s great for thawing out my limbs in the morning.

however, THIS is the most deluxe space heater in the world. there’s no better way to get toasty and warm. every once in awhile, i get to enjoy this luxury.

(weary, puffy eye capsules/bags)

i’m running around trying to wrap up something. whilst i wait for the copying machine to do its thing, here are a couple random things. dunno why just cuz.

hop on.

thank god for modern medicine.
the caption accompanying the image below reads:

“Saving face: Severely disfigured by a genetic nerve disorder, Huang Chuncai awaits a second operation to remove his massive facial tumors at ahospital in Guangzhou, China. Huang, 32, had about half of the 50.7 pounds of growth cut out in his first operation last year. The second surgery will remove another 10 pounds.”

imagine how he felt/looked BEFORE the surgeries. here are more images. proceed at your own risk. i mean it.

yay! my very first.

i am excited and hope this is the beginning of something special. for eater sf’s inaugural gatekeeper (below), the lighting was good and there was plenty to work with. the energy, the staff…it reminded me of how much i love and miss working in a restaurant.

i was also able to shoot the monk’s kettle for the “Eater Inside” series. there, the down-to-earth owner was laying down table settings to the sounds of eddie vedder on the speakers. so appropriate.

whoa, it’s 2008! how’d that happen?

the past few months have been whirlwind. the holidays exemplify dichotomies. good: bad. relaxing: harrowing. enlightening: disappointing. sentimental: obnoxious. exciting: ennervating. some things caused my blood pressure to spike, but whatever, december was filled to the brim with all kinds of stuff to remind me of how lucky i am.

WORK
we had a free day at the museum to celebrate a big grant it had recently received to beef up its education program. lots of families showed up. it is so sweet when little humans extend their baby paws for some trusting hand holding.

EARTH SHATTERING ACCOMPLISHMENTS (not mine)
on december 7, after two+ years of unimaginable dedication and laborious pregnancy, derek and alec gave birth to their gorgeous, innovative baby, AQUARIA. i know nothing about video games, but i do know that this beauty has blown the gaming community out of the water (hyuk hyuk). it’s nothing short of mindblowingly spectacular. do yourself a favor – if you haven’t seen it yet, watch the trailer. you can practically taste their blood, sweat, and tears. this is the ultimate labor of love. filled with pride and awe, i was moved beyond tears when aquaria made its highly-anticipated debut.

derek could barely stay awake. peg said his eyes looked like coin slots

the staggering number of netizens hot for buying the game caused the commerce site to freak out

finally, he sleeps for the first time in two+ years

EXPLORATIONS
revisited san jose’s japantown and flippin loved it. got to snack on chi chi dango and eat a satisfying meal at gombei. just another reason to have san jo pride. quiet and down-to-earth, in a lot of ways it’s different from but complementary to sf’s nihonmachi. you can savor the poignant community vibe and history in the people, the architecture, the calm in the air. pretty refreshing and charming.

goodies from the famous shuei-do manju shop

also had the fortunate pleasure of getting away to the central coast, specifically morro bay and paso robles, templeton. beautiful roadtrip destinations, i got a bit of the nautical and a bit of cowboy country. went carousing through wine country with good people, and got to stay in a built-from-scratch southwestern palace.

BIRTHDAYS

REUNIONS
it’s exciting to get together with the girls you grew up with, especially when some of them disperse all over the country in pursuit of incredible achievements. rarely can we gather, but it always feels special when we do.

FAMILY
my grandma used to intimidate me, but she’s really cool. mellow but spry, her crafty skills are intact (girlfriend practices calligraphy on a daily basis) and she’s still a badass in the kitchen

it’s nice to see your aunt and uncle, especially if it doesn’t happen too often

bonus: spending lots of time with my sister. it’s an extended mirthquake

FESTIVITIES
board games bring out the bloodthirst in people, especially us asians

a museum tradition, a cultural tradition, and over the years a sacred tradition of mine – the japanese new year bell ringing ceremony at the museum. it’s a magical and auspicious way to make peace with the exiting year, while greeting the impending one with warm open arms.

and of course, new year’s eve!

one resolution for this year? cease with the epic eyesore posts, and post more frequently in bitesized servings.

so that was my december 2007.
hope yours was sweet.