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Due to growing up in the Silicon Valley or my social circle of geeky tech friends, I’ve always been a wannabe-geek but without the shiny new gadgets that real geeks can show off. UNTIL NOW. Sure, it’s not the MacBook Wheel, but thanks to Reid, I have recently come into possession of the “Google phone” - the Nexus One! Since I’ve been using a free flip-phones with antennae (!) up to this point, this is a whole new horizon laid out for me. Amazing. Let me give you an example of what I can do with this bad boy.

Over the weekend, I met up with some girlfriends that work at Google (just another step towards Google HQ infiltration) for some tea at Palo Alto’s Tea Time. First, I had gotten a Google calendar invite (that Android pushes directly to my mobile Gmail). I was able to respond to it, and it syncs with my Google calendars.

I do a speech-to-text search for Tea Time since I can’t very well type while driving, and GPS navigation and text-to-voice directions help me get there since the Google God knows I have no sense of direction. Point in case: I parked in an underground garage, and when I emerged, I had no idea in which direction to walk. Out comes the phone! And I pinpoint my exact location and walk towards the little red dot marked Tea Time. BTW, this phone renders my $140 Garmin nuvi useless.

I meet the girls, and we’re all a-Twitter about this super cute place with super tiny I-need-5-of-these-to-be-full-cuz-I’m-about-as-dainty-as-a-pig English crumpets and sandwiches, so we all take out our Android phones and communally tweet about it via Twidroid. And then Foursquare check-in because… I don’t know. Because we CAN.

The Yelp application helps me decide which sandwich is most highly recommended.

And then some pictures are in order, using our 5 megapixel phone cameras (that also captures video).

Looks like I won't be needing my point-and-shoot anymore. On a different note: look at the tea cozies! I've never seen one before!

Then we chat/gossip about the upcoming Valentine’s Day, and we (or just me) joke that we can keep tabs on our significant others’ current locations via Latitude.

As I leave, I notice that I’ve missed a phone call from Mom and she’s left me a 2-minute message as she is prone to do, but have no fear, because Google Voice has transcribed the message so I can just read it quickly. Unfortunately, Mom speaks in Chinese, and Voice doesn’t do Chinese-transcription-to-English translation yet. Bummer.

Bummer #2: I can’t take screenshots of my phone to supplement my blog post here. But that’s okay because you can already read about them at much more reputable tech blogs.

Bummer #3: Still waiting on a widget/app for Google Buzz that was just released yesterday (which, I might add, still hasn’t shown up on in my Gmail yet…)

Yes, I realize these are all things you can do to some degree with various other smartphones, and in another year, this phone will probably be as obsolete as the G1 that came out almost exactly one year prior to the Nexus One. But let me bask in my new phone’s glory, OK? This is a huge step for me since I have been waiting to upgrade for a long time, but wanted to wait for an worthy phone. Ahh, all praise to the Google!!!

Happy new year! Okay, I’m 12 days late, but I’ve been doing important things, like sleeping—which is SO UNDERRATED when you have 8AM-EST-but-actually-5AM-PST meetings to attend. I’ve been in D.C. this and last week where it’s a whole two degrees above freezing temperature. For someone who wears a down jacket in 60 degree weather, staying warm saps any creative/writing energy I have after work is done (and when is it ever done?).

I have also neglected to clearly define my new year’s resolutions. Due to the excitement preceding the (now annual?) Tahoe cabin trip, and the subsequent business trips beginning on the first day back to work, I haven’t had the willpower to make those resolutions. I can perhaps resort to the usual “1) Lose weight, 2) Save money” but losing weight is hard to do with a generous per diem in D.C.

I continue to digress. Back to my first point: Happy 2010!

I brought in the new year in Tahoe once again, in a posh cabin with 21 friends over a span of 5 nights.

Many of us are avid snowboarders and carry season passes, so we went riding at Sierra-at-Tahoe for as many as 4 days. There was a bit of a blizzard on the first day, but the powder was perfect for smooth riding. I feel like I finally have a decent grasp on carving moguls, but it takes so much focus that I am entirely spent after one run. The Lower Main run is quite possibly my favorite run at Sierra: steep, smooth, and good powder when groomed; Beaver is very fun for tree runs on the side, except for one particular jump I hesitated on and totally faceplanted. At least my new riding helmet helps keep my brains in!

I’m tired and must sleep for the week’s activities in D.C. now, but Reid, the ever faithful blogger, has captured more cabin moments here. However, I do want to reiterate that the word game Bananagrams was more successful than I could have ever imagined! Best game ever, really!

The frequency of my blogging seems to have steadily diminished since I first started this site. I suppose I could say that I’ve been spending time away from the computer and have thus abandoned my blog… And for once, I wouldn’t be lying! Summer has bestowed upon me the inability to sit still, and Reid seems to believe that I actually enjoy the sun and being a social being. Whew, is he wrong or what? Just kidding, Reid—I swear. Anyway, I won’t promise to update more frequently—I’ll only set myself up for failure—but I do want to keep tabs onwhat I’ve been up to.

It’s kind of a shame that I’ve spent my entire life no more than 40 miles away from San Francisco, but have spent so little time in the city. I blame my parents who have probably vacationed overseas more times than they’ve visited San Francisco! (Dad will probably email me right after I post this blog to correct me on my exaggeration here.)

1980's: Check out Ma's awesome vintage sweater!

However, it does seem like I’m making up for lost time lately. Two weekends ago, Char set up a crab fishing trip at Municipal Pier. What blows my mind about this is that you can walk away with free crabs! If we were in China, I don’t think there’d be a single crab left at the pier if you could do this, regardless of legal restrictions on type and size of crabs caught. However, the cost of crabbing manifested in different forms; we battled cold weather for four hours and ended up with only four crabs that were barely 4-inches across their back (the legal size of crabs). FOUR CRABS.

Despite the frustration of having to throw back 2 deliciously large Dungeness crabs and many others little crabs, and being unable to stop a sea lion from ripping a tightly-secured chicken drumstick from our net, the subsequent meal of boiled crab dipped in garlic butter was well worth all the trouble.

Tips for next time: Use KFC chicken for 1) eating and 2) delicious oil and fat to attract crabs. Bring a book or some form of entertainment. Leave the net out longer to let the chicken fat smell travel in the water (we were impatient and pulled up the net every 5 minutes).

Last weekend, a trip to Half Dome at Yosemite was cancelled due to forest fires, so instead we went to San Francisco yet again. This time, we took a ferry out of the SF Ferry Building and headed out to Angel Island where “my people” came through back in the 19th century. There was none of the usual overcast weather that’s so typica of SF, but it was instead beautiful, blue, and extremely warm. The hike around the perimeter of the island offered some pretty awesome views of the SF skyline, Bay Bridge, and the Golden Gate Bridge—makes me wonder how it took me more than 20 years to get out to the city!

Not to worry though, I’ll be back this weekend when Kim visits and we go to Aziza. Have I mentioned how much I like this place?

Today’s ridiculous heat wave made for a lazy Saturday. Some friends threw a “Puppy Party” to meet their new puppy, but all the dogs and people attending were lethargic from the heat. Poor Chowder!

The one attending cat was okay though. +1 for cats!

It’s finally cooled down to 75-degrees at 11PM, so I can finally clean my room without suffering from heatstroke!

Ant and Wushu girls minus Linda

To celebrate Anthony’s 27th birthday yesterday, we went to the California Academy of Sciences Nightlife event in SF’s Golden Gate Park, catered to a 21+ crowd. Perusing science/animal/environment exhibits with a couple of beers and cocktails in hand is a pretty good combination of “hip” and nerdy, which is exactly how I would describe Anthony, albeit much more of the latter than the former. Now, I had visited the Academy when it first opened last year and spent a Saturday afternoon avoiding kids and tripping over strollers; yesterday, I spent the evening avoiding A-Z-N ricer boys and tripping over drunk wannabe-hipsters. I can’t tell which one is worse.

It’s pretty difficult to see any of the exhibits while navigating your way through so many people; at least with kids you can just punt them out of the way (just half-kidding; chill out). Additionally, mingling with new people isn’t really an option because it’s such a large venue and not designed to facilitate that sort of interaction. So, it’s probably the worst of both worlds, whether you’re trying to meet new people in a bar/club-like setting or trying to see the all the exhibitis. Luckily, I wasn’t trying to do either, so I had a really good time with old friends in an awesome venue.

Aquarium + Bar???

Alright: GMAT has been taken, and my stash of chocolate has dwindled significantly, but I’m ready to get on with my summer.

That’s why, last night, a couple of nerdy friends and I stayed up until 3 A.M. playing, of all things on a Friday night, TypeRacer.

I can’t believe that 107 WPM puts me in 4th place, and that at certain times, the others were getting upwards of 120 WPM. I need friends who type more slowly so I can feel superior in comparison :P Even for such a fun activity, I was getting nervous and my stomach started to cramp up from the fun-induced stress—something tells me I need to learn to relax!

[Update: Eric just hit 150 WPM. FRIENDSHIP OVER.]

We also made Spicy Mississippi Chicken Cakes from the Google Cookbook! They were pretty darn delicious.

Backpacking to Young Lakes in Yosemite next weekend with the Asparagooglers! Any excuse to shop at REI and Sports Basement is a good one.

Chillin' on the deck. Quite literally.

As I mentioned in my last post, I went on a cruise with some old friends over the Memorial Day weekend. It was my first time on a cruise, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I hoped it was going to be G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S-yeah like the Titanic (and Fergie), minus the sinking, but because it was Carnival Cruises, it was like being in Reno, but on a boat. I think Peter said it best, when he said at the end of 3 days of boat/Titanic/pirate jokes, “I’m going to miss the decor. It’s tacky, but it’s growing on me… like a fungus.” Aforementioned decor garnished the cheesy dance shows that must have originated from the 70’s, the dance club with middle-aged people, and a casino. The food and table service, however, far exceeded my expectations of sloppy buffet food. On our first night, we ordered 15 appetizers, 8 entrees, and 17 dessert items, and with each subsequent dinner we tried to out-do the last. Oh, the gluttony!

The ship was originally to set sail for Ensenada, but due to the recent swine flu scare, we stopped at Catalina Island instead. There we did a lot of touristy stuff, like having lunch at the country clubhouse, where the Chicago Cubs held their spring training, and walking past the world’s first theater for talking films. The highlight, of course, was ocean kayaking in the clear, shallow waters amongst kelp forests and bright orange fish.  Amy and I tag-teamed the kayak and even paddled around trying to pick up what litter we spotted floating in the water. Yay, we’re Green! I risked taking my camera onto the kayak with me and was consequently rewarded with this money shot:

MONEY.

Island excursion aside, there is really limited entertainment on a boat. For lack of better things to do, somebody lay out in the sun, expecting to be there for only an hour—thus forgoing the sunscreen—and ended up falling asleep for 4 hours, resulting in a very large, unmistakable bikini bowtie tan line. Observe:

HAHA, poor Nance!

The real highlight of the entire mini-vacation, however, was simply reconnecting with old friends, some of whom I had not seen or spoken to in 10 years. We ordered drinks and toasted to ships instead of friendships, explaining that we would need much more to tolerate each other for 3 days. Clearly we needed a few more:

The recreation of the subsequent picture.

Circa 1996---when we liked each other.

Amy, Judy, Nancy, Jon, Josh, and Peter: Here’s to hot tubs, Moscato, T-pain, A Whole New World, climbing palm trees, homosexual elephants, sunburns, 4 boats in 3 days, and Journey. Let’s do it again (maybe not a cruise) and don’t stop.. beliiiievin’!

Aww, corny and cheesey photo ftw.

I signed up for this Carnival Cruise with my oldest family friends of 18+ years just so I can sing this ridiculous song from The Lonely Island that satirized this music genre so well that it’s actually played on VH1. Thankfully, dorks attract dorky friends who were more than willing to indulge me by helping me recreate our own version of the song.

On a side note, I can’t believe I was able to get a picture with a buoy and mermaid more easily than I was able to find a nautical-themed pashmina afghan. And believe me, I looked.

My roommate and long-time friend Nancy turned 24 on Monday, and we had celebrated over the weekend Friday with her coworkers and a few of good friends that we grew up with. Check out the two pictures below—that’s me, Nancy, and Judy in 1993 and now (plus Jean!) in 2009, 16 years later!

The interesting thing is that prior to Summer ‘08 when we moved in together, I hadn’t seen Nancy for about 10 years since I moved away from San Ramon and stopped attending the church that we grew up with. Coincidentally, we both ended up working in this area after college, and she needed a place to stay and found via Facebook that I too was looking for a roommate.  As a product of living with Nancy, I’ve been getting back in touch with several others that she had kept in close contact with. Interestingly enough, even though I had been MIA for so many years, I found that we’re all still able to mesh well and that our childhood ties run deeper than one might expect from a bunch of kids that watched The Brave Little Toaster about 20 times over and slid down the stairs on a red mini-sofa while their parents communed and prayed together. 

Yesterday, the four of us that work in South Bay decided to cook together and prepared meal of zarusoba, baked salmon, pesto pizza, nian gao (or “Rice Ovaletts” according to the packaging), salad, chocolate pie, and frozen yogurt.  Eclectic yet delicious!

Our next potluck is supposed to be a curry cook-off, so stay tuned for that one; I intend to win this one as I’ve been getting in some good practice lately!

We spent the rest of the evening checking out a dance floor that Wei installed in his room; Wei and I tried to teach Josh and Nancy how to Lindy Hop, and they tried to teach us how to pop lock and drop it. I think I’ll stick with ballroom…

Anyway, I’m looking forward to some good times on our cruise next weekend! We’re no longer going to Ensenada due to the Swine Flu but circling the Pacific Ocean to land at Catalina Island instead, which is definitely a-OK with me!

It’s no big news that I’m a devout fan of a certain mid-sized Scranton, PA paper company and what must be the most dedicated and/or bored camera crew ever that films the employees through their everyday awkward moments and the hilarity that ensues at Dunder Mifflin.  Last Monday, I was able to see B.J. Novak a.k.a. “Ryan Howard” a.k.a. writer and producer of The Office when he visited Santa Clara University for his stand-up comedy act. Apparently he’s been making some rounds, as he was at Stanford last week, and had quite a few of us in the auditorium! Anyway, he’s a really good comedian with a lot of subtle, witty lines and great timing—exactly my type of humor! 

At one point, Novak went through a stack of cards of pre-meditated/written jokes and one-liners to gauge audience reaction, supposedly for his future routines. He threw some of the “bad” ones away, and one of the girls in my group was able to grab one for me (Thanks Beah & Sandy!). A group of girls bum-rushed Novak at the end of his routine for signatures and pictures. But not I. No, I would never sink to that level of fangirl-dom. 

Or would I?!

Yea, I would. :(

Dwight Schrute: Whenever I’m about to do something, I think, ‘would an idiot do that?’ And if they would, I do not do that thing. (Ep 3.16)

Michael Scott: A boss’s salary isn’t just about money. It is about perks. It- for example, every year I get a one hundred dollar gas card. Can’t put a price tag on that. (Ep 3.18)

Jim Halpert: Question. What kind of bear is best?
Dwight Schrute: That’s a ridiculous question.
Jim Halpert: False. Black bear.
Dwight Schrute: That’s debatable. There are basically two schools of thought–
Jim Halpert: Fact. Bears eat beets. Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica.
Dwight Schrute: Bears do not… What is going on?! What are you doing?! (Ep 3.20)

Kevin [on pizza]: It’s bad. It’s real bad. It’s like eating a hot circle of garbage. (Ep 4.3)

Andy Bernard: Beer me that CD
Jim Halpert: Lord, beer me strength. (Ep 3.20)

KFC, ARE YOU CHICKEN?!

I drove up to Davis this past Saturday to revisit my old haunts in conjunction with the 95th Annual UCD Picnic Day. I don’t remember quite so many people participating in the festivities on Picnic Day, but then I realized it is UCD’s 100th year anniversary. Woo, go Aggies!

While I normally don’t have too much school spirit, I did want to return as a UCD KungFu Club alumna and perform with some of my other KFC alumni brethren. It was then that I realized I hadn’t done a whole half-form with any sort of intensity since the last Picnic Day; as a result, Wushu felt incredibly awkward, as my body has acclimated to a soft easy lifestyle, yet kind of familiar and exhilarating. I’m still feeling the sore hamstrings 4 days later, so I don’t think I’m in any sort of rush to return to old training days. In any case, it’s good to see that the club is still alive and kicking (pun intended! haha!) with new members–those cats were fast as lightning!–it makes me feel a bit less guilty that the club has diminished a bit since our good friend and founding member Alan left a 50-member roster in our hands when he left Davis.

Unfortunately, we missed the annual Doxie Derby, where tons of little dachshund hounds race against each other. How is it that I’ve seen the races only ONCE since I started attending UCD? Ri-diculous. We actually missed a lot of events that we had hoped to see, but I was content just to do the things we used to do–sit at the lounge, eat subpar-yet-expensive baked goods from the MU Bakery, eat bagels, drink Arizona Sweet Tea at the MU in between classes while working on crossword puzzl homework.

We also visited the MUGA (Memorial Union Games Area), where Eric and Linda used to play SUPER. SEGA. GT. everyday while waiting (and thus, missing) the bus. I used to work as a student manager there, and the bowling customers would say things like, “I think your lanes are tilted; my ball keeps rolling to the right.” WELL! MAYBE, you suck at bowling! (I’m terrible in bowling too, but you don’t see me blaming it on the lanes!) Ah, good times.

I finally picked up the “UCD Cow Tipping Team” shirt I had been wanting for a year. Since there’s never much to do in Davis, people tend to ask if I used to tip over unsuspecting bovines in the middle of the night. I might as well advertise that I’m part of a very elite, competitive team.

The one thing I discovered this year is the Battle of the Bands, where different university bands come together and play in rotation starting at 8am. Each band drops out of the rotation when they run out of new songs to play. They do this until there’s a winner or 10pm, whichever comes first.  Stanford played a 30-minute piece and all the university bands joined in; the percussionists took turns with solos while running across the lake, lying on the ground, and pulling a bunch of other stunts. There were an insane number of people at Spafford Lake watching on the lawn, and the atmosphere was really fun and crazy. I’ve been totally missing out!

Anyway, it was good to be back for just the day, from the all-familiar KFC demo to the post-Picnic-Day red-cup parties. I do miss having so many friends and peers close by everyday, since I took it for granted when I was still in school, but if given the choice, I don’t think I’d go back to that life; I’m definitely enjoying work and the “real world” more and always excited to see what’s coming up next.

…Speaking of which, I came down with a fever yesterday while flying to Albuquerque, New Mexico for a 4-day business trip. THIS part of the “real” world, I’m not enjoying much. :(

Make a wish!

Yes, there were 26 candles, and we very well could have set off the fire alarm and sent the whole restaurant in a frenzy. Now THAT would have made a good blog post.

(No such luck.)

We celebrated Jean’s 21st (+5) birthday yesterday at Amarin Thai, with some very nice waiters that catered to our group of 13 on a busy Tuesday night. Gifting a pyromaniac a large box of matches and a new Zippo and then telling her light her own candles is probably a bad idea…