2006.08.21

beno hwang 31 flavours

월요일 오후: 저희가 거울에 비천 자기 얼글으 쳐다보기 juhheega guhoolei bichin jagi chyuhdabogi (cing the reflektion'f my own face in the mirror) 오늘이 저의 31번째 생일예요.   2day's my 31st b.day.   i'm 31 now.   maybe some ppl, 'specially @ my werk, don't think i look 31 but younger.   however, honestly, when i saw myself in the mirror 2day, this morn, i thought i looked older than i'd expekted.   [a li'l later] earlier, i thought it was cos i've gotten so much sun exposure this summer cos'f skateboarding n' biking; but just now, after looking @ myself in the mirror 'gain, i realise it's cos i had such a hard wknd'f partying.   i must just look tired n' worn out from the partying this wknd.   yah, the beautiful kaela hwang organised the "beno's 31st b.day lu'au" party.   it was quite a success on sat nite.   man, i've gotta thank all my guests.   i've gotta thank kaela most'f all.   she did so much planning n' cooking.   next, i wanna thank roland n' duk 4 coming early n' helping out.   i wanna thank yuna 4 helping so much w/ cleaning up afterward.   nelson, i wanna thank him 4 being my trash man over n' over.   jen n' ben... i guess i've got them to thank 4 how worn out i look 2day.   yah, those 2, being the friends they r, made me drink so much.   well, i didn't puke.   however, wow... they made my 31st b.day party feel like a 21st b.day party. ha ha ha.   it's good to feel young.

lu.au: kaela cooked all sorts'f good stuff.   the nite b4, we skinned n' boiled 2 chickens (닭 2마리) w/ ginger 4 chicken long rice.   also, i peeled a whole bunch'f yams the nite b4.   in the morn, i cleaned up the house.   kaela went to a yoga class @ cindy's hot yoga b4 starting her day.   me, i wanted to hit up the sunnyvale skate park but didn't.   i'm not much into yoga.   it's ok but just not my bag (baby).   (my favourite austin powers movie's still the 1st 1, i think.   yah, i'm pretty sure.)   kaela cooked chicken long rice; yam n' banana casserole; blackened, spicy mahi mahi, lomi lomi salmon, mango salsa, n' salad w/ shrooms.   she also made some mango iced tea n' cut up a bunch'f pineapples.   also, she ordered a bunch'f kalua pig from l&l drive inn on calaveras blvd in milpitas.   kaela also gathered a bunch'f hawaiian decorations 4 the party.   we had hawaiian.looking, paper lanterns; lawn torches; a tiki piñata; hawaiian vakation.themed, shiny confetti; plastik leis, ... all sorts'f things.   well, i tried to clean up as much as i could.   i got what i could ready 4 the party.   i wasn't sure if i was gonna dj or not, so i got my djing stuff ready.   in the end, i didn't dj but just hooked my laptop up to our living room stereo system 4 some good tunes.   originally, we were s'pposed to go 노래방 noraebang b4 the lu.au party; but things were a bit 2 hektic n' not 2 many ppl committed to go sing.   i still wanna go 노래방 noraebang sometime sooner rather than later.   someday... i realise life's a bit 2 hektic 4 that @ the moment, eh?   in a way, i miss the ol' cal taekwondo p.crew days, when we would've gone to 노래방 ne random nite... even on a weeknite, i think.   in a way, those were carefree days.   however, it's a give n' take, man.   many things r better now.   well, roland showed up 1st, even tho' he pretty much travelled the farthest.   then duk showed up.   yah, these guys helped us out 'lot!   duk drove roland n' me to the l&l drive inn on calaveras blvd in milpitas to pick up the kalua pig.   $43'f pork, man... good pork!   [later] wow! well, i had a good time.   we had ~30 ppl in our house.   oh, ok... 28 ppl.   28 ppl + sooni.   i'm sure sooni loved the attention she got.   she was running 'round w/ a pink lei on her 4 a long time.   that was cute.   we had kona brewing company longboard lager, corona lite, some wine coolers that ryan n' his wife jessica brought, modified margaritas, n' plenty'f rum... rum like pirates...   yo ho ho ho, a pirate's life 4 me.   kaela bought a nice cake from sheng kee; n' will n' alice brought a delicious chocolate pie from marie callender's.   our friends presented both desserts to kaela n' me w/ candles 4 both our b.days!   that was great.   kaela pted out that the party was done by midnite; but i still had so much fun.

on sun, i woke up early but was 2 worn out from the party to get up n' hit up the sunnyvale skate park, altho' i would've loved to.   i'm glad i was able to get kaela up n' out to grx's early service (900a 915a) @ the santa clara convention center.   (since kaela n' i'd gone to the late service 1100a 4 the past couple'f wks, i'd 4gotten that the early service starts @ 915a n' not 900a.   no wonder it didn't cm like we were that late.   still, we should aim 4 900a!!!   there r some things u wish u didn't know, huh?   i wish i'd just kept thinking it's @ 900a.)   neway, after church, kaela n' i went to ¢0$+¢0 (costco) to get gas 4 her kia sportage 기아 자동차 n' then to the el camino real, sunnyvale safeway to get some gro¢eries.   then we met up w/ my mom @ the sunnyvale cherry orchard pasta pomodoro, where we got to use kaela's b.day "free appetizer" e.mail printout.   4 our free appetiaer, we chose the gambera (shrimp in a cioppinioesque sauce).   i chose the chicken speido, which was the special'f the day.   kaela chose the sea shells pasta salsiccia, which i had b4 n' liked.   my mom ordered some kind'f angel hair pasta pomodoro.   'twas a good meal.   afterwards, we went to the borders bookstore in the cherry orchard strip mall.   kaela inspekted my mom's arm cos my mom sed it had some probs.   later, kaela n' i hung out @ the bookstore n' read.   we went out to the nearby $tarbu¢ks to get a tall banana coffee frapp 바나나.   later, @ the borders café, kaela bought us a soy decaf latté.   after spending the entire afternoon n' early evening @ borders, we went home briefly to drop off the gro¢eries that were suffering miserably in the hot car.   then we went rt back out 4 dinner.

37th monthversary - we went to the san josé tony roma's off'f saratoga ave. @ moorpark to use kaela's free b.day meal e.mail.   wow, so much heavy fud this wknd!   kaela ordered the filet mignon w/ carmelised onions w/ sides's baked potato n' baked beans.   i ordered the "red hots" roma rack w/ sides'f cole slaw n' baked potato.   i also got a regular bud lite since bier goes great w/ ribs.   we were sooo full!   we watched the post.game show'f the raiders game, while eating.   the raiders won 7 to 23.   neither kaela nor i care much 4 futbol american.   on fri, in the men's lockerroom'f the east arques sunnyvale 24 hour fitness, i saw a tv show where commentators sed that the raiders rivalry's the biggest rivalry in the nation.   really?!   they sed it's bigger than cal v. stanfurd n' dodgers v. giants.   really?!   i dunno, man.   i'm pretty sure 'least dodgers v. giants is bigger than raiders!   'gain, i don't care 2 much 4 these kinds'f sports, but... *shrug* when i was a kid, my family always like the niners.   i grew up, thinking the niners were the best futbol team ever cos i grew up in the 1980s.   however... nowadays, i like the raiders more than i used to cos they do represent ppl who werk hard, n' their fans r so unique.   i dunno.   nowadays, i c niners as more'f a "preppy" team, 'specially in contrast w/ the raiders.   however... sf itself's still a kewl city, so i can't di$¢ount the niners.   yah, niners? giants? they both represent sf, n' sf's a kewl city.   i dunno, man... i think they're all great, these bay area teams... but i don't care much 4 these kinds'f sports.   neway... we had that filling dinner.   then we came home, n' i let kaela praktice her chiropraktic stuff on me.   i was really sleepy.

this morn, i woke up early n' went to the east arques sunnyvale 24 hour fitness.   the guy @ the counter sed happy b.day when i checked in.   he either looked @ my id or the 'puter told him.   i lifted some weights while waiting 4 the turbo kick box (tkb) class.   apparently, 'twas cancelled.   i lifted some more weights n' went home.   i was aktually pretty happy that turbo kick box (tkb) was cancelled.   i showered n' then took sooni out on skateboard.   i hadn't done that in a long time.   i don't think i'd ever done it on a wkday morn.   i'm sure some ppl were annoyed by my loud wheels so early in the morn, but... 1) 'least i wasn't driving a harley, n' 2) 'tis my b.day, n' i was having a great time w/ my doggy.   then i got my stuff together n' took off to the sunnyvale skate park.   dude! the skate park was empty!   my only company 4 a short part'f the time was the maintenance/cleaning guy!   'twas like just 4 my b.day, i had the whole skate park to myself.   i had a good time.   i had a pretty good session.   then i went to werk.

during my lunchbrk, i came home to eat leftovers from sat's party.   i received in the mail 2 skateboard.related patches i'd ordered from some dude called "retiredsk8er" on ebay.   1's a black n' white "skateboarding is not a crime" patch (a classic), n' the other's an amerikan flag w/ the zero skateboards logo stamped on it.   i have a reason 4 buying that zero amerikan flag patch: i realised a few wks 'go that i really enjoy skateboarding n' that i prob'ly couldn't live this kind'f life as a 30.sumpthin' yr.old skateboarder in ne other country.   i mean, heck!   of course, i obviously like korean culture; but if i were to live n' werk in korea? i prob'ly wouldn't be able to go out in the morn n' ride in the skate park b4 werk.   ppl just don't do that in asian countries, rt?   i mean, heck! it's a frickin' shame; but... *shrug* the fakt that i can skate in the sunnyvale skate park b4 headin' off to werk as a mechanical engr makes me frickin' proud to be an amerikan.   furthermore, i'm so thankful to be living rt here in the silly valley (silikon valley) the real heartland'f amerika!   thus, i've got nor*cal pride, in that sense.   ha ha... yah, in that sense, it cms that i could fit in w/ this whole "hyphy" phenomenon that i'm witnessing 'mongst youths in the area.   yah, i've got nor*cal pride.   after all, i think it's easier to be a skateboarding, 30.sumpthin' engr when u live in nor*cal (home'f santa cruz, berkeley, n' sf) than if i lived in a gated community in orange county 오렌지, rt?   keep santa clara weird.   neway, i took that zero amerikan flag patch n' ironed it on to the rt butt cheek'f my new old navy military green cargo pants.   i think it's good.   i wonder if some wacked out conservatives might aktually consider it offensive that 1) i put the amerikan flag on my butt n' 2) i have a skateboard company's logo stamped over the amerikan flag.   *shrug* so what?!   the reason i love amerika's cos i'm free to be who i am.   i'm free to be me.

b4 he passed away, my paernal grandfather told me to stay out'f politics n' religion - while @ borders on sun afternoon, of course i read some snowboarding n' skateboarding mags/zines.   i also read some book whose title sounded familiar, some book on dealing w/ ppl in the werkplace.   i think it might be called "dealing with people" or sumpthin'.   just b4 we left, i browsed thru a book published in 2004년 called california 24/7.   however, i spent most'f my afternoon reading the following 2 books: 1) god's politics: why the right gets it wrong and the left doesn't get it by jim wallis n' 2) the blue pages: a directory of companies rated by their politics and practices by polipoint press.   dude, i'd been looking 4 a book like the blue pages 4 a long time now.   aktaully, i'd been looking 4 a web page like that; but 'least i found this book.   i discovered some amazing things.   i realised that many big corporations that try to have a "cool" image r still just stuffy, men in suits in the end.   the book's kewl; but i realise that some'f the ways they use to determine how republikkkan or demokratic a corporation is rn't that accurate.   as i expekted, most'f those expen$ive designers r good companies.   after all, they kind'f aim to cater to the ppl who r rich enuf that they don't hafta be greedy n' conscienceless.   i tried to make a quick list'f companies from the book; but in the end, i should buy the book.   here r some notes i jotted down on my pa1mone tungsten t5:

the other book i read was, as i sed, jim wallis's god's politics: how the right gets it wrong and the left doesn't get it.   i mentioned b4 that our church denomination (evangelical covenent) has a magazine, n' that magazine had a feature article that talked 'bout this book.   dude, it's a good book!   u've gotta read it.   read it whether u'r a demokrat, a republikkan, a christian, a non.christian...   it'll teach u 'lot!   well, i'll be honest w/ u: b4 i read it, i thought it would bag on both republikkkans n' demokrats.   however... well, i'll be honest w/ u: the author's a demokrat n' he does spend a bit'f time talkin' 'bout why christians can be demokrats.   yah, obviously, that appeals to me.   however, i still think the book is fair, especially since christian progressives r sooo under.represented... furthermore, every1 hates us cos we're cn as the "everything is wrong" types.   u know the tekno musician moby, rt?   he used to talk 'bout being a christian vegetarian or vegan.   then he aktually released an album titled everything is wrong, rt?   (i s'ppose the correkt answer would then be "wrong.")   wallis makes a great pt, though, (which i believe was in the magazine article) 'bout how it's ridiculous that political conservatives can support a netwerk like fox cos'f its conservative spin on news but look away when it comes to the trashy reality tv shows they used to air like temptation island.   wallis does a good job explaining how "conservative" does not equate to "family values."   :-/ i guess that's 1 thing i really miss 'bout the environment i had @ the berkeley ivcf (intervarsity christian fellowship).   i had lots'f christian friends who were also political progressives.   i mean... s'pposedly our church here also has demokrats mixed in.   i've heard stories'f political debates btwn demokrats n' republikkkans @ church.   however... i've gotta admit that the political environment in the silly valley isn't yet as progressive as it is in berkeley.   keep santa clara weird.

[later] it's my b.day.   my 31st[later] "high of 75" funny; this morn, while i was doing biceps curls on the curling machine, i caught a glimpse'f the kpix ch5 morn news n' saw that we'd have a high'f 75 2day in the san josé area.   really, eh?   u know how i like that relient k song rt now.   i did mention that on youtube, there's that video some1 made, where they take the song n' put in clips from various harry potter movies to make a musik video, rt?   it's a pretty neat video.   i think harry potter funs'll love it!   just youtube up "relient K high of 75 harry potter."

it's my b.day 2day, n' 4 the most part, things r ok.   werk's been gen'ly stressful in recent wks; but i s'ppose 2day's not much more stressful than ne other day in the recent wks.   i thought maybe some cowerkers from my college program might 'member my b.day n' offer to take me out to lunch, but they didn't.   it's ok.   i was fine eating leftovers @ home.   i'm just so thankful that i can go home 4 lunch so often.   i mean, i can't do it everyday, but 1nce in a while's ok.   it's good.