搬家了

好啦

因為種種莫名奇妙的因素
我把部落格搬家啦

沒有通知到的好友們
請來信詢問

Charles David Warehouse Sale

Haven't gone to any real warehouse sale like this, which was literally right outside of the brand's warehouse! The staff there were actually busy moving out boxes and boxes of shoes from the warehouse.

It was a fun experience, and, of course, I got a couple pairs of nice Charles David shoes for $25~30 each! ^__^



In order to lower the cost, they even use plastic trash bags as shopping bags....>__<

Otom Sushiya

Otom Sushiya is the place I go the most often. Not just because it's close and not expensive, Puncho's jokes and the tasty sushi are also the reasons make me keep going back.

Here is the review I wrote a few months ago posted on Yelp.

I love this place so so so much! Highly recommend everyone tries to get seats by the sushi bar. The sushi chefs are very energetic and funny. Just don't go when you are in a rush, you'll enjoy the meal and the entire night. ^_^

By the way, I don't recommend the $35 all-you-can-eat deal. The dishes don't come out fast. I think if I have time pressure, I'll just complain about their slow service and not be able to enjoy the food and some jokes maybe. Plus, the price there is actually not very expensive. From my experience, the bill always comes out about $25~30 per person.

My favorite -- Chilean Seabass


Otom Sushiya
3936 Sepulveda Blvd
Culver City, CA 90230
(310) 391-8011

2 Celebrities in 1 Day! -2/2

繼中午看到好萊塢剛從戒毒中心出來的大紅人之後
晚上在家附近Sawtelle上的日本超市又看到了壹週刊大紅人章小蕙
這次我們就直接去跟她要求合照並攀談一會

其實大一的時候曾有人說我長得像她(我知道我眼睛沒那麼大can)
我就不要臉的跟她說,有人說"一張照片中的我"長得像她(為了避免讓她太難過)
她沒說甚麼但她應該內心不是在淌血就是在笑我不要臉...哈哈

2 Celebrities in 1 Day! -1/2

這星期三看到Emily的blog正覺得忌妒為什麼我住在LA也兩年多了還沒真正見過甚麼celebrities
(其實也是有啦...如果我看到的當時完全認不出來的Jake Gyllenhaal, 還有聽演唱會的時候坐在我們附近的比莉跟蜜雪薇琪的薇琪算的話)
沒想到星期四一天被我撞見了兩個明星滿足了我看明星的欲望

中午公司中年婦女同事迪尼斯去對面買午餐回來若無其事的說"剛剛我在排隊的時候琳賽蘿涵排我後面"
我跟另一個比較年輕的女生迪娜就說"妳是說琳賽蘿涵?!"
她還鎮靜的說"對阿!她現在就坐在那吃阿!"
毫不遲疑我就抓起iPhone跟迪娜衝到對面的Pizza店Pit Fire
我為了省錢帶了自製三明治所以在那披薩店只買了冰紅茶
噢耶...琳賽蘿涵坐的那桌就在自助飲料區的旁邊
但我並不好意思直接拍她或走過去要求合照畢竟她和四五位友人正吃到一半
因此我只拍了在陪我同事等候披薩的的等待區的偷拍照和狗仔隊守候的現場實錄



共計20~30名狗仔以各種裝束守候在餐廳四面八方


看狗仔隊衝的可緊張的, 他們以為琳賽要從側門離開了


別急別急...原來她只是出來抽根菸....

My TV-watching schedule

Monday:
- How I met your mother: Just for fun. It's very entertaining....too bad it's only 30 mins/week....
- Heros: I watch it because everyone else watches it. I don't want to be left behind...
- The Hills: The half-reality show is going on in LA. By watching it, I get to see a lot of trendy restaurants, bars, and clubs.

Thursday:
- Ugly Betty: working at a fashion magazine is every girl's dream. Though I'm not so much a MODE girl just like Betty, I'm still very curious about what's going on in that glamorous world.
- Grey's Anatomy: I've been watching it since the 1st season, and there is no reason for me to stop watching... ^_^

藍莓是最健康的食物！

根據常常上歐普拉脫口秀的Dr. Oz
最健康的食物是藍莓！

他沒說為什麼所以我也不知道到底是哪裡健康
但我知道藍莓已經自動被我加到待會去Trader Joe's 的購物清單上了...　
（因為我有怪異的健康食物強迫症...)

The Lobster Festival 龍蝦節

聽朋友說在Port of Los Angeles 有個龍蝦節就興沖沖跑去了
滿心期待著有龍蝦多到滿出來吃到死的場面

以龍蝦的便宜程度來評量的話雖然有點令人失望
(1.25 磅要價$17)
但絕對是個新鮮好玩的體驗
有點像是台灣的園遊會
(天黑之後其實更像是夜市)
有著迷你咖啡杯小飛機和摩天輪
和一些地下樂團表演
但重點還是吃吃吃
三個人分了一尾龍蝦
還吃了超好吃的玉米. 炒蝦跟熱狗
看了不太認真表演的海盜秀跟不是很有信心的地下樂團
不是太瘋狂但有很有美國中西部的感覺

這樣的活動在中西部很多(有各種不同的名目..什麼festival 什麼fair 都有)
甚至還有個網站 festivals.com 告訴妳各地的活動
妳想的話幾乎每個周末都有不同的東西玩呢!

Corteo 科特歐 - by Cirque du Soleil 太陽馬戲團

上周末去看了我的第二個太陽馬戲團戲碼 -- 目前巡迴到LA的 Corteo
(會在LA一直到10/28, 想看的還來的及)

不像在Vegas高級飯店裡的大秀"O"
看Corteo的經驗是真的像想像中或小時候童話中的馬戲團印象
在停車場上搭的彩色大帳篷
外面還停著運送表演器材和團員家當的貨櫃車
讓我在劇碼還沒開始就已經興奮到不行了!


太陽馬戲團一向以其創意和音樂著稱
當然Corteo 也不例外
因為場地跟舞台配置的傳統風格
跟"O"比起來他比較有傳統馬戲團表演的味道
也多了許多和觀眾的互動

主題是一場喪禮, 但卻有許多類似嘉年華會的熱鬧場面
可隱約看出它融合了中國民間技藝
馬戲團裡沒有真馬, 但有像是中國舞龍舞獅的"舞馬"
"舞馬"把馬的習性. 小動作等表現得維妙維肖
讓我不禁覺得他們把中國舞龍舞獅的技藝帶到了更高的層次
除了舞馬外, 還有留長辮子像是清朝男子的裝束及扯鈴特技表演等
應該都受是了中國文化影響

整體來說是個很棒的難忘的經驗!
沒看過太陽馬戲團的一定要看
-- 難得不必跑到Vegas又可以用比較便宜的票價坐到超好的位子
對看過太陽馬戲團其他演出的人也是推薦
-- 因為每一齣劇碼真的都帶給我完全不同的體驗

NOHO

紐約有藝術家聚集的SOHO區, LA 也有NOHO區!

紐約的SoHo是"South" 跟"Houston"的合成 (跟倫敦的Soho是完全沒關的...)
指出這一區的地理位置是"south of Houston Street"

最近因為工作地點在洛杉磯北邊Valley區的North Hollywood
發現他們也有著成為西岸藝術地帶的雄心
街上處處掛著旗子寫著 NOHO, Arts District
連斑馬線都搞得五彩繽紛(雖然我個人並不十分欣賞...)

最近的生活領悟

1) 不要心存僥倖: 不然會像我一樣受懲罰($400 + $370 + .....)

2) 對於挫折和生活的種種磨難,要"微笑面對"(這是在一個好朋友問我如何度過這麼多挫折的時候我告訴他的, 如果不是想起自己曾親口告訴別人這些話, 怎麼可能還在沮喪時想到要微笑?)

3) 要懂得感恩,懂得珍惜身邊的好朋友和把握學習的機會

來輛蘋果車吧! iCar!?

不知不覺中Apple藉著各種方式改變人們的生活模式
在健身房裡不只是邊跑步邊聽iPod, 還可以邊踩腳踏車邊用iPhone回妳的Facebook留言

iPod 把其實已經存在很久的MP3 player帶入更多人的生活
iPhone 其實也只是把早已可上網的手機美化加上種種酷炫因子變得更普及
Apple在賺進大把鈔票的同時其實也促進了科技的普及
算是對人類也是很有貢獻吧

最近蘋果的Steve Jobs 跟福斯(Volkswagon)的執行長正在討論合作的可能性及細節
以Jobs 過去的成績推斷想必iCar也不會令人失望
忍不住開始猜測起他會帶來甚麼特別功能...

下一個慾望城市?

HBO 的慾望城市受到大多數女生的喜愛(如果不是全部)
劇中曼哈頓最時尚的餐廳/酒吧
主角們另人稱羨的職業
以及他們身上每季最新的名牌行頭
都是我們夢想中的都會女性生活的一部分

因為慾望城市的大受歡迎
今年有幾部打著慾望城市名號的影集即將陸續推出

MTV的熱門影集The Hills(Laguna Beach 的續集)被戲稱為SEX AND A NEW CITY
主角們住在高級公寓, 光顧一樣是最時髦的餐廳夜店
主角Lauren 和Carrie一樣迷戀名牌鞋也戴了個跟Carrie一樣的名字項鍊
不一樣的是場景換成了LA
多了紐約沒有的豪華別墅沙灘派對和加州陽光

除了The Hills 之外
(1)慾望城市作者Candace Bushnell的另一部作品口紅叢林(Lipstick Jungle)即將在NBC播放
(2)慾望城市前Executive Producer, Darren Starr, 自己拍了部類似的Cashmere Mafia 也即將在ABC播出(Lucy Liu 也在其中扮演一角)
這兩部都是在描寫在美麗能幹的主角們在紐約的生活萬象

哈像我一樣喜歡幻想都會生活的女生又有好戲看了!
(怪的是其實生活在LA,那些有名的Club去過幾次也並不覺得太有趣, 反倒是看別人的生活比較開心)

勤勞的亞洲人

今天開始了在美國的第一份工作
在一家廣告公司做網路行銷(不知道為甚麼用中文寫出來就聽起來很遜還頗有詐騙集團味道)
雖然只是一周二十小時的實習,但今天我可整整工作了10個小時(還不知道他們會不會把多的小時算進去)
中國人就是便宜又勤勞好用阿

在10+個小時的工作後
不甘心放棄我找工作期間的新生活習慣
還是乖乖去了健身房
大大驚訝原來我們這一區住了這麼多亞洲人
之前我去的是白天的健身房,亞洲人約有3%
晚上十點的健身房, 亞洲人比例大大增加到多於30%

大家都工作這麼長時間之後才去運動的嗎?

The 1st Brunch Tasting

Sept 1, 2007

Menu:
- Eggs Benedict
- Pecan Waffles with Freshly-Made Blackberries Sauce & Sour Cream

Drink:
- Mimosa
- Coffee

Guests: Emily, Jia, Andy, Tom, Jessica, and Hank

平價地中海美食 Gaby's

自從不再需要去學校之後就懶得大老遠開車到東邊(East LA, aka San Gabriel, Alhambra area)
遠離便宜好吃的中國菜
我開始尋覓西邊平價好吃的地方

Gaby's 是個我家走路10分鐘可以到(耶又省了汽油錢) 的地中海餐廳
主菜是各種kabab (有雞牛豬魚) 或是 肉或海鮮排或條
餐前有免費的pita, 每道主餐也都有附沙拉
主菜大約9~13元左右, 包含稅跟小費一人大概$15 可以搞定
所以在沒收入的時期這是我和朋友聚餐的最佳選擇
(美國真的貴, 在台灣$500 可以吃五星級飯店的buffet 下午茶了....>_< 在這居然是平價美食的價錢...sigh...)

大學足球季開跑

VS

Yay! Tomorrow I'm going to the 1st game in the season. It was embarrassing that I didn't get football at all until the last game in last season. (Yes... the unfortunate one. USC lost to UCLA.) That was the last game in my 2 year student life in USC. Now I've become an alum and I'm very excited about going to the game, although I have to pay so much more for a game. ^_^

找工作的詐騙集團

人有欲望跟恐懼
所以有詐騙集團的存在

早期流行的金光黨
利用的是人們的貪念
而前陣子台灣猖獗的詐騙情節
用的則是人們害怕親人受傷害的恐懼

當很多人都想得到某種東西卻無法得到的時候
詐騙集團就會出現, 來滿足人的欲望想像
騙人中樂透的不稀奇
但我居然接到騙人去工作的

現在我傾向不直接接起陌生來電
因為若是徵才公司的話我可以爭取多一點時間準備好再回電
話說前天早上我看到陌生的來自亞利桑那州的號碼索性不接
但聽留言的時候居然是我完全聽不懂的印度英文
好啦....我承認我對於印度英文並不擅長, 但以一般印度同學的腔調來說我至少可以懂個85%
這個我真的只聽懂了<10%, 聽到了 resume, 大致聽出是跟找工作有關的
但甚麼公司甚麼職位都聽不清楚
心裡想著反正我沒申請任何在亞利桑那州的工作也沒甚麼興趣搬去那裏工作
在加上就算我回電我也聽不懂他講的話, 就決定不回電話了

沒想到過了約一小時
一個後面兩個號碼不同, 也是來自亞歷桑納的號碼又來電
我仍然故意不接
這次換成另一個印度男子留言, 稍微好一點
但我已經開始覺得他們應該是外包到印度的電話行銷中心
當天下午又有另一個相近號碼的另一個人留言
雖然我不知道他們能從我身上騙到甚麼
但總有點好氣又好笑的感覺

好笑的是我心裡第一件想到的居然是...
唉他們cold call 名單沒分配好不夠專業
還有最近在看的書Tipping Point...想到原來申請的工作多到一種程度, 各行各業甚至連詐騙集團都會找上妳

好氣的是電話號碼被某個求職網站洩漏
不過算了啦反正也沒甚麼可以讓人騙的沒有真得很氣就是了

Cha Cha Cha - Silver Lake

Cha Cha Cha is a Caribbean restaurant chain. I've been to the one in SF and the one in West Hollywood for dinner. They have great Tapas menu and also serve great Sangaria. Now I found it was also a great place to go for a relaxing & exoctic weekend brunch! The seafood omelet is my fav!

Complimentary Bread


Chilaquiles: Scrambled eggs with tortillas, guacamole, crème fraiche & tomatillo salsa


Tortilla Marbella: Seafood omelet with scallions & mushrooms

Manhattan Beach Sunset

Bike riding has become my Sunday routine. It rained a little bit this aftenoon, so we left a little bit later than usual. Because of that, I got to catch the beautiful sunset at Manhattan Beach.

Feel-good Things Lately

1. Biking: Loving beach side bike riding in south bay!
2. Walking: Actually the only walk I've been doing is probably from my place to the gym. I used to walk a lot when I live in Taipei. Walking makes me feel alive, feel that I'm closer to the world.
3. Knowing that I'm following my workout routine
4. Cooking with friends: Welcome to Palms Kitchen!
5. Learning American pop culture: Ha... well actually by just watching E! & MTV channel and listening to a lot of American pop music

sick

I've been sick for the past week. I haven't caught a cold for so long that I can't even remember when was the last time i was sick. Also, unlike this time, i would normally recover in 2~3 days. What happened to me?

Maybe the reason was the same as why Meredith almost died. She could swim but almost drowned because she lost her will of living for just a second.

Am I gradually losing my hope of succeeding?
How could I find back my confidence and optimism?

The research on the popular cafes - Toast

I am working on a project that I have to find out the places with the longest wait and dig out the reasons why they are so popular.

Need your inputs & comments!
- Please tell me the most popular/crowded cafes you've ever been.
- Please comment on the reasons I list out if you've also been to these places. ^_^

I'll start with Toast.
1) the hip of the crowd (I think this is the single most important reason.)
2) the good looking waiters & waitresses
3) its location (this contributes to #1, but also the painful parking situation.)
4) its menu (it serves burgers, quesadillas, wraps, and soups, other than the regular brunch/breakfast menu in other places)
5) its hour (it opens until 10pm, much longer than most of the cafes.)

Baking

In Grey's Anatomy, Izzie couldn't stop baking muffins when Denny died. When she stopped baking, she was recovered and ready to face the real life.

I can't remeber when was my last time baking. 6 years ago maybe? I made very tasty and looking-good oat cookies. I can't remember why I started baking either. But I remember I enjoyed the time hanging in the kitchen with Mom and I loved the smell of baking.

Today, I just started baking again. I made waffles. I baked alone in the kitchen.(not as fun as baking in the Kitchen at home with Mom) I am not trying to hide from the real life. I'm doing so to try to learn about the reasons why some waffles are good and some are not.

Here comes my first waffle. Okay, I was wrong. I shouldn't have been lazy and bought the baking mix from Trader Joe's. The waffle tasted not bad, and it was quick and easy to make. But it won't be easy for me to adjust the ingredients and flavors.

Hammer's farewell dinner

@ Tokyo Table in Beverly Hills

結果論

現實的世界是結果論的

即使大家再怎麼強調過程的美好和從過程中學習的重要
但我們在衡量人或事的時候
很難不用這個最快最直接的方式--結果(也就是事或人目前呈現出來的樣貌)

所以說
努力的目的並不是為了美好回憶, 而是為了結果
沒有結果的話,過去的一切努力 都是白費

我得堅持下去

25 Sites We Can't Live Without

Time Magazine selected the 25 websites that most people are dependent on...
10 out of the 25 are true to me.
See which sites we do live without...

1. Amazon.com : without explanations...
2. BBC.co.uk : I did use it to train my English listening skills when I was in Taiwan... but haven't used it since I got done my TOEFL... It's helpful, for sure.
3. Citysearch.com : but I use Yelp.com more and more often now... Its function of Information provider+ Social Networking attracts me more than Citysearch does.
4. Craigslist.org : I did use it a lot when i was looking to buy or sell old stuff
5. Del.icio.us
6. Digg.com
7. Ebay.com
8. ESPN.com
9. Facebook.com : I do maintain an Facebook page... but so as Friendster, MySpace, and LinkedIn
10. FactCheck.org
11. Flickr.com: but I use its rival site - Picasa more frequently now
12. Google.com: for sure
13. HowStuffWorks.com
14. The Internet Movie Database: it's a great great movie database. it has everything about movie industry...
15. YouTube: no doubt! I use it to watch Taiwanese TV shows... haha!!!
16. Kayak.com
17. National Geographic.com: I'm never a National Geographic Channel kind of person...
18. Netflix.com: I use its rival site, blockbuster, instead. I still like to have the real retail stores that we can look around, exchange and return DVDs.
19. Technorati.com
20. TMZ.com
21. USA.gov: I am not a citizen...
22. Television WithoutPity.com
23. WebMD.com: It's good to know this site....
24. Wikipedia.org : The best knowledge source for me...
25. Yahoo.com

Napa Valley

1. Del Dotto Vineyards & Winery
2. Dalrioush Winery
3. V. Sattui
4. CIA (Culinary Institute of America) @ Greystone

The Simpsons are taking over the planet!

When I first saw the long line outside of this store, I thought they had some big discount. But when I looked closely, I found that was a "Kwik-E-Mart"!

It's a store converted from 7-Eleven. It's basically a 7-Eleven with the store name in the Simpsons that carries Don't -nuts, Buzz Cola, and some Simpsons souvenirs other than regular convenience store products.

There is always a line, but visiting this store is definitly a fun experience. It's like a mini Simpsons theme park. So, remember to bring your camera with you when you visit Kwik-E-Mart!

A great example of Reverse Product Placement. However, I think they could carry more Simpsons merchandise to boost their sales. ( I noticed a lot of people are just looking and taking pictures in the store without spending any money.)

July 4th @ Andy's

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Get your own

Cafe Laurent

It's such a shame that I didn't try it until now. Cafe Laurent is a nice little French Cafe right down the street from where I live.
According to my experience of trying out the most popular brunch places around LA so far, I think they have the best waffle in town! Their salmon omelette is also very good!

Next!

Thank you and good bye.

You didn't respect my value and make me feel accomplishment. I might be interested in you, but I know that's not enough. I realized what really matters to me is something you're unable to offer. I understand maybe that's the best you could possibly do, so I guess I am just not the right person for you.

Thanks & Bye!

生活小事

1)
為了在不規律沒有重心的生活中建立一點秩序
當然也為了要擁有健康的身體跟快樂的心情
這星期開始了每天早上七點起床去健身房的生活
這生平第一遭的健身習慣希望我有足夠的毅力維持下去

2)
新家的後面有家幼稚園
小朋友喧鬧的聲音不時讓我回憶起大一時住的莊敬三舍一樓8人房(天阿那是10年前了耶!)
那時隔壁的政大附幼小朋友的吵鬧聲和點心的味道陪伴我度過了無數的黃昏
不知道是不是因為我真的開始想家了
最近突然覺得好多情景都讓我回憶起過去的一幕一幕
光是開車回家的路上看著夕陽也讓我忍不住眼淚流不停

小小段落

結束了跟心目中最想要的工作的招募主管的面試
心中有點小小告一段落的感覺
雖然對於其他工作的佈線還在繼續進行
但是有點"就這樣了"的感覺
大概這個工作是決定我能不能拿到MBA等級薪水的關鍵吧
我相信其他還有很多工作也很有趣也能讓我學到很多
但應該沒有其他有趣的行銷工作會給我MBA薪水了

也許我有相對弱勢
七個應徵者中五個是原本公司內部的人
一個是去年夏天在那裏實習的UCLA MBA
只有我完全不相關還是個不討人喜歡的國際學生
但我盡力了
我真的很努力爭取這份工作

剩下的只能等待了
祝我好運吧

I miss you.

I don't celebrate my birthday because I miss you.
I'm tearing whenever I think of the picture.
How are you? Will you come back at some point?

Moving today

2 boxes of books and binders
1 box of magazines
1 box of shoes
1 box of food
3 (and increasing) boxes of clothes
......
......
and more to be packed....

I'm moving out today! (well actually in 7 hours)
I know I'll miss this place because the days we partied, cooked, watched DVDs, and played Wii.
I know I'll miss this place because of the week my family stayed here.
I know I'll miss this place, because I'm so used to telling people " just take 10 W, get off at the Overland Exit and make a left."
I know I'll miss this place because of the Trader Joe's within walking distance (though I've never tried to walk there...)
I know I'll miss this place for all sort of reasons...
but I guess I have no time for this now.

Yeah, Mom... you're right. I'm really not good at packing. I am so inefficient. I've taken so many breaks but am still feeling very tired.

Gotta get back to work.... >_<

My Family Trip(completely 流水帳, for future reference only)

5/12

• Thousand Oaks
• Universal Citywalk
• Hollywood
• Dinner @ Thai Town

5/13

• Desert Hills Outlet
• "O" - Cirque du Soleil

5/14

• Lunch buffet with Chance's family @ the Paris hotel
• Venitian tour
• Mamamia

5/15

• Fashion outlet (outlet again!!!)
• Dinner @ K-town

5/16

• Brunch @ Uncle Bill's Pancake House
• Manhattan Beach
• Santa Monica
• Dodger's Game

5/17

• Los Olivos Cafe
• Firestone Vineyard
• Solvang - The Danish Capital of America
• Santa Barbara City Tour
• Yay! Thai food as Vianne's last dinner in LA

5/18

• Bye bye Vianne
• Wal-Mart
• The Grove
• Beverly Hills
• Bye bye Dad and Mom

Buca di Beppo

My classmates in IOM599 class LOVE the professor and the class so much. So we went out for dinner and drink on Thur. (This is my only elective class that has such kind of get-together outside of class.) We chose Buca di Beppo and I really like it. It is a family style Italian restaurant. Their house special pizza was huge and tasted great!

I really enjoyed the dinner... but maybe more because of the company! ^_^ More photos are here.
Bruschetta & Giant pizza (don't know what's the exact name of the pizza)

J Lounge

J Lounge becomes a very popular place for holding events.(at least among my friends) From Eric's b-day party, Ping&Grace's b-day party, the admit weekend party, and the b-day party for 3 PMers. Well, since I have not been in the mood of clubbing for a while, J Loundge was actually the only club I went this semester.

What do people do in the club? Other than dancing, drinking, picking up girls, and whatever people usually do in the clubs, people in the photos I took at the outdoor area of the J lounge actually look like they are in a picnic, or BBQ maybe. (just the ice tea is Long Island ice tea and the beer is 10 times more expensive....)

En Sushi

Just as how it appears in its website, En Sushi tries to create an image of hip, high-end Japanese restaurant. Overall, I enjoyed the food and the whole atmosphere. (Though I thought it was a little bit over-priced especially after my visit to Miyake at Palo Alto a week ago.)

Since I was there for the rolls, everything we ordered was from the sushi & sashimi menu. (I love fushion sushi & rolls so much!!!) Those in the picture was our first order: Salmon Sushi, Spicy Tuna Roll, Scallop Roll, and Dragon Roll.

some more therapies

• Pinkberry (medium size with blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries...)
• Cooking in the midnight... I know I am very weird...
• Passionfruit Green Tea (Half sugar) with boba: this one is not very effective recently...

The more the pressure is, the more I want to fool around... (like writing blog..)

4 years ago

Since I'm still not very familiar with the new version of IE, I accidentally opened all the links in "My Favorites". The old photo album @ pchome drew my attention right away.

I still remember that summer. We were still young and still had a lot of dreams to be realized.

Now, 4 years later, some of us, the lucky ones, are living their dreams, some've realized the reality and already given up the dreams, and some had spent so much efforts to fight for their dreams and didn't realize that dreams only existed in the dreamland until they got very close to the end.

Pizza is coming to SUBWAY

Subway, the largest restaurant franchise in the US, will introduce deep-dish style(Chicago-style) personal pizza by June. Just as how we currently order sandwiches at Subway, we will be able to decide our own toppings on the pizza. I can see its success in the near future.

Personalization is always popular. Chipotle is another example. This Mexican grill restaurant owned by McDonald's just opened a store by our campus last month and it has been very busy since then. I am not a big fan of either Mexican food or McDonald's but I spent 30 mins waiting in the line just for a burrito or 3-taco meal. I believe the way they let us customize our burrito or taco is the main reason.

Krispy Kreme launches whole wheat doughnut

The project we did for "Advertisement & Promotions" class last semester was on "Dunkin Donuts." And what we recommended them to do was inroducing a healthy product line!!!
Though the one who started to take actions was Krispy Kreme, I am still very excited that our idea has been actually turned into a trend! Oh Yay!!!

Reel Inn

Reel Inn has the best seafood I've ever had in LA! It's a casual, relaxed place. I felt I was in a restaurant near the wharf.

Its fresh seafood and Malibu beach view have immediately made the Reel Inn one of my favorite spots in LA.

My Therapies

I've been extremely stressed this week, so today I applied two of my private therapies. They really worked, and I feel energetic again! ^_^

Shopping Therapy: helps to relieve the stress mentally

• Where? Century City Mall (less than 10 mins from home)
• Store? ZARA or Abercrombie & Fitch (can always find some "nice to have" shirts)
• Rule 1: Spending < $50 (will feel bad if spending more than that)
• Rule 2: Spending less than one hour

Hot Tub Therapy: helps to relieve the stress physically

• Where? my hot tub @ Home
• What do you need? Japanese hot spring bath salt + magazines

USCIS REACHES FY 2008 H-1B CAP

Oh well, I can take my time now.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it has received enough H-1B petitions to meet the congressionally mandated cap for fiscal year 2008 (FY 2008). USCIS will use a random selection process (described below) for all cap-subject filings received on April 2, 2007 and April 3, 2007. USCIS will reject and return along with filing fee(s) all petitions received on those days that are not randomly selected.
Cap Procedures: In keeping with USCIS regulations, USCIS will use the following process to handle
H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2008 cap:
• USCIS has determined that as of April 2, 2007, it had received enough H-1B petitions to reach the FY 2008 H-1B cap and has set the "final receipt date" as April 2, 2007.
• In keeping with its regulations, USCIS will subject H-1B petitions received on the "final receipt date" and the following day to a computer-generated random selection process.
• USCIS will reject all cap-subject H-1B petitions for FY 2008 received on or after Wednesday, April 4, 2007.
• USCIS will reject and return along with the filing fee(s) all cap-subject H-1B petitions that are not randomly selected.
• Petitioners may re-submit petitions on April 1, 2008 when H-1B visas become available for FY 2009. This is the earliest date for which an employer may file a petition requesting FY 2009 H-1B employment with a start date of October 1, 2008.

The journey

I am sure the journey itself is valuble no matter where the destination is. However, I'm still having hard time making myself enjoy the journey without knowing where I'm going to end with.

US News - America's Best Grad School 2008

Though there is so much drama going on, we got an okay US News ranking this year. UT Austin is still two spots ahead of us. Well, but I've had so much fun here and got whatever I wanted. That really worths it. I'm so glad I chose USC over UT. ^_^

Diet Coke Plus

Diet Coke plus

Oh yeah! Finally diet coke is becoming healthy.
Diet Coke Plus launches NEXT MONTH acroos the US!!! The new soda include vitamins B3, B6, and B12 plus magnesium and zinc.

Mom, don't stop me drinking diet coke next time! ^_^

Even the fortune cookie told me....

"Give your business interests top priority next month"

Sometimes fortune cookies are surprisingly right.... I do have to work harder and give it top priority to find a job...

"What the hell?"

"What the hell" is the closest English translation of "老娘跟你拼了！" I can think of.
I wasn't sure how correct it is. But that remind me of Susan Mayer in Desperate Housewives.

Yeah! 老娘跟你拼了! I need to tell myself that again. That makes me feel powerful/capable for some reason.

May Day

When I get stressed out, May Day's music can always make me feel strong again. By repeating the lyrics, I got back my belief in myself.

當 我和世界不一樣 那就讓我不一樣 堅持對我來說 就是以剛克剛
我 如果對自己妥協 如果對自己說謊 即使別人原諒 我也不能原諒
最美的願望 一定最瘋狂 我就是我自己的神 在我活的地方

我和我最後的倔強 握緊雙手絕對不放
下一站是不是天堂 就算失望不能絕望
我和我驕傲的倔強 我在風中大聲的唱
這一次為自己瘋狂 就這一次 我和我的倔強

對 愛我的人別緊張 我的固執很善良 我的手越骯髒 眼神越是發光你
不在乎我的過往 看到了我的翅膀 你說被火燒過 才能出現鳳凰
逆風的方向 更適合飛翔 我不怕千萬人阻擋 只怕自己投降

我和我最後的倔強 握緊雙手絕對不放
下一站是不是天堂 就算失望不能絕望
我和我驕傲的倔強 我在風中大聲的唱
這一次為自己瘋狂 就這一次 我和我的倔強

Jack n' Jill's

I visited Jack n' Jill's at Beverly Hills yesterday. Since it's on Beverly Drive, it's a great people and car watching spot. I guess Beverly Hills area has the highest density of trendy-dressed people and luxury cars. The service wasn't slow. The wait wasn't bad either. But we spent about 2.5 hours there just chatting and enjoying watching people and nice cars.

In terms of food, I thought it was good in general. I liked the "Hi-Protein Scramble" I ordered a lot. However, I did find their fruits were SUGARY. I didn't expect that would happen in any upscale/premium restaurant. I'm sure I'll order something else as the side next time.

Another thing I'd like to share, the portion of their French Toast is HUGE. Even the guests at the next table were laughing when the waiter served the French Toasts. It was good. But it's better to share the GIANT French Toast and ask your friends to order something different. You wouldn't want to finish the whole thing by yourself.

Hi-Protein Scramble (Egg whites, chicken breast, turkey bacon, spinach, tomato, onion, Jack, Cheddar and Mozzarella) $12.95

Sunset (Asparagus, mushroom, spinach, onions, tomato, herbs and jack cheese) $10.95

Vanilla French Toast (Thick Egg Bread dipped in eggs, vanilla, cinnamon and cream. With whipped butter and syrup.) $8.5

Ninja Turtles is coming back!

I watched TMNT(Teenager Mutant Ninja Turtles) on TV and played it in Gameboy all the time when I was young. Now they're coming back in theaters on March 23!

Extraordinary Desserts

After visiting all those tourist spots, Yaya took us to the Extraordinary Desserts. As what its name trys to convey, its desserts are really extraordinary. I haven't seen this kind of place in LA. (Though there are a lot of them in Taiwan and Japan.) In addition to the store vibe, the deliciousness of its desserts is even more important for the success of Extraordinary Desserts. (How popular? A friend of mine drove from LA to San Diego just for the desserts!)

La Bete Noire An irresistible addition! Vanilla creme brulee, chocolate mousse and chocolate truffle cream are layered in between dark chocolate cake moistened with Madagascar vanilla bean.

Lemon Praline Tart and crunchy. This layer cake is made of lemon soaked genoise, French meringue, lemon curd and lemon buttercream, while surrounded with crushed praline.

Napoleon (the most popular order)

Old Town Mexican Cafe

Though I live in the city that >50% of the population is hispanic, I am not quite familiar with Mexican food yet. The "Old Town Mexican Cafe" in San Diego old town was recommended by Richard. I have no idea about most of the dishes on the menu. I know taco, burrito, and pretty much it. I ended up ordering Enchilada basicaaly just in order to really know what Enchilada is like.

Chilaquiles Served with red or green (tomatillo) sauce. Corn tortillas simmered in a hot chile sauce; served with fried eggs and beans. A hang-over cure!

Beef Burrito

Enchilada