all my dad wanted for his birthday was taco bell. i shouldn’t confess this, but prior to taco bell i made them take me to the mcdonald’s drive in so i could finally indulge my french fries and quarter pounder craving that’s been haunting me for months.

oh but don’t worry, i ALSO ate taco bell on top of that.

yes, i know there’s a special place in hell for people like me.

during lunch, i remembered that my dad used to take us to taco bell a lot when we were kids. it’s the addictive crunch from the hard taco shells that he loves. i used to get the refried beans n cheese in a cup, and mexican pizzas.

afterwards, we went to go see my grandma who recently got out of the hospital. instead of going to the tidepools, we bought ice cream and rice balls, then proceeded to take a two hour nap at his house. when we woke, we ate again.

what a lazy sunday.

you know what gives me warm fuzzies? this.

(i wasn’t there; my sis took these photos)

he’s leaving a comment on a certain blog.

one of the nice things about falling asleep at a grandparent’s house is that the grandparent will inevitably go fetch a blanket or two to cover you up and keep you warm. you could be 45 and this would still be one of the most nourishing, wonderful feelings in the world. grandparents are cool in this way.

Hi, my dear daughter Jennifer , do you have time to up to date your Flickr and Nefarious web site, mom really like and enjoyed your web site. When mom cooking, mom listern to the radio, radio already play Christmas songs, is nice and beautiful. Looking forward your qucik reply.

Love always,
Mom
(12/1/2008)

my sis visited our paternal gramps in the nursing home today and snapped this. he’s looking at the home’s birdcage (made of glass instead of wire), though i’m not sure how much he’s actually “looking” per se. this photo is startlingly powerful and simple. i feel like it would be in one of those overpriced artsy magazines you’d find in boutique/gallery hybrid stores.

ps – do you see the candles? they look like they’d be called “fall spice” or something…

when i look at these, i am reminded of why i am a neurotic and obsessive when it comes to taking pictures. every moment counts.

girlfriends
(perhaps one of the sweetest things i’ve ever seen)

after 32 years away, mom reunites with the girlfriends. everyone’s grown up. can you match up the faces? that’s the fun part

they used to walk this bridge together to and from school

(they’re making an “aww” face during my mom’s touching “speech” at dinner)

they all lived more or less within earshot, with their bedroom windows facing each other in this little alley. this helped facilitate planning, smooth getaways, and gossip

sometimes it’s like they never grew up, what with the girltalk and giggling and jewelry swapping

on the way to the night market, which they frequently did together in their youth. immediately cue “ladies’ night” to the rhythm of their assertive stepping

mom and her godbrother, “a-gu”, back in the day. he took good care of her

here they are together again

the modern day photos were all snapped in taiwan on MOM’S REUNION TOUR FTW 2008.

meeting all these crucial figures from mom’s childhood was like one drawn out, poignant ya ya sisterhood trip except awesome and amazing and without sandra bullock. being around mom and her childhood friends seriously blew my mind and heart apart. they were genuinely cool gals; feisty, plucky, and fun. we all seemed to get each other, which is kind of a surprising thing, considering the generational and cultural AND language gaps. every moment together welled up with emotion. also, their lives have been marred with tragedies, yet they manage to have such an upbeat disposition and attitude about life. everyone treated us sooooo well in such touching, quirky ways. it was cute how they would non-too-subtlely try to buy us gifts.

“a-gu” (mom’s godbro) took us to this great jade market and kept on peering over my shoulder as i would pick up things and look at them. he’d try to ascertain my taste, and even asked funny questions like “so do you like big jewelry? or little delicate things? do you like jade”? haha. nice try. i basically said “don’t you dare!” though i totally fell in love with this and wanted it real badly. i envisioned myself in an amy tan moment, wearing it on my neck on a red string. i should’ve bought it.

here’s mei qi wondering what the heck is wrong with me as i stuff succulent handmade mochi in my maw. the whole time at the night market whenever i stopped to check something out she’d be like, “do you like it? do you want it?”

Facebook to me
11:52 PM (9 hours ago)

Anne sent you a message.
——————–
Subject: Add as a friend

Hi, Dear daughter:

Please add mom as a friend.
Thank you.
Love always and forever.

Mom (11/10/2008)
——————–

happy birthday to a very, very special girl.

i remember the first moment i ever met my sister. i was four. there was a sense of anticipation and a vague understanding that a huge shift in the household (and my life) would ensue whether i liked it or not. there was commotion, my parents were gone for a while, i was alone in the house with maybe a few grandparental units. then: mom and dad finally came home but with this new…thing….in tow.

i remember peering at the little creature. i must have been confused but filled with wonderment. my entire life, children have never had the oooh-ahhh affect on me the way other animals did. show me a dog or cat and i will squeal and coo like a scary nut. a kid, on the other hand, better be pretty damn special to elicit the same excitement. however, ever since i was very small, i always KNEW my sister was friggin adorable, and no, not just because of my obvious biased stance. even then, i remember thinking, “wow…she’s precious!” ting ting goes down in my books as the cutest little human being ever. not just for those huge saucer eyes or cheeks, but for everything inside and out. a strange, curious, and unique being all the way.

like all siblings, we’ve been through a lot together, so it’s a good thing we’ve always had each other’s backs (though i was a shamefully absent elder sibling for a part of our lives).

she makes me laugh really, really hard, and she’s a wicked dancer.

snippets from a phone conversation tonight with the ol’ man.
context: he finally saw the father’s day blog entry i wrote.

me: “so dad did you like the “article” i wrote about you?”

him: “yes, i like a lot. that’s my story! i’m a star!”

me: “no dad, it’s not really a story about you or anything. it’s just a bunch of funny things you said.”

him: “that’s MY STORY. everybody in this house read it. they all like it. one person said that i look better as i get older.”

me: “okay. did you remember all those things you said?”

him: “i remember everything i say…do you like the iphone?”

me: “…um, yeah, i do actually. why?”

him: “i saw it yesterday…i fall in love with it.”

me: “dad you don’t even know how to use a computer.”

him: “yes but if i’m outside and bored i can just type in ‘chinese’ and watch tv and movie on it!”

all while i was cooking a specifically chinese childhood dish of yellow chives sauteed with egg tofu and a real egg thrown in for good measure. was that like, a total joy luck club meets Y generation / 20-something bachelorette moment or what?

sitting in my inbox over the weekend, an email from my mom. the subject line:

Ted Bundy Bio – How scary

heelarious. why is she looking up info on serial killers? how did she find that stuff? what was the sequence of cognition that led to this? if you’re curious, these are the links she included in the body. video and everything! great, just one more thing to deepen her maternal paranoia.

monolithic recap of the INTENSE comic con weekend to come when i get some breathing room. for now, a sneak peek. (glimpse of) derek’s recumbent body, fran’s smile, and wing chun in the back courtesy of jay and swing. meanwhile anthony was in the water with boogie board, and peg, annie, and sonali were being cute and playful. venice beach.

photo taken by annie, our sweet hostess