Less is more?

Lately, I've heard and experienced (at least one encounter) girl friends telling me about their horrific stories regarding guys who try a bit too hard. First, there's the stereotypical SPAM (super passive Asian males) guys, then there's the "men" | h, and now, there comes the opposite of SPAM! I've always had respect for guys who state their intent with a girl instead of playing games, but then there have been guys that take it a notch higher.

When a girl says "no, I'm not interested" and brings a friend along to make it a non-date, I think a guy should get the hint that hey, maybe she's really just not interested, yeah? Now I'm hearing stories about how a guy becomes extra mushy and baby goochie-goochie-gooey to the girl they're interested in. Now do they actually think that attracts a girl? Cause honestly, I believe it does the opposite.

So maybe playing it natural, being their friend... would that be the next best move if a girl says she's not interested? Is less really more in this situation?

Guys... a complicated species indeed. Luckily for me, I'm just listening to these amusing stories and having a laughs of my own. Good thing I snatched the best guy out there and don't have to worry about SPAMs, "men"|h, and SAMS (super agressive males).

A new trend

There seems to be a new church trend in town. A couple years ago, it was quite unheard of, then all of a sudden, this boom appears out of nowhere. You suddenly hear from multiple people that they can't commit to just one small group, but they're double-dipping (or more). For example, there's a group where they enjoy hanging out with peers and there's a group which has "better and more in-depth" Bible studies. It looks like people are starting to put half of themselves into different groups.

What my friend found interesting was how there seems to be many more single people in the church congregation lately. (I'm talking about the single I'm not even dating anyone consistently type of single.) He correlated that with how so many people can't even commit to a small group. When you're in an exclusive relationship with someone, they have their good to which you are attracted to, but they have their faults as well. Because this person has their faults does not mean you go out and find person #2 who doesn't have those faults, right? There's a catch 22 with everything.

Well, this is the theory I came up with: there are more single people nowadays because of their phobia with all sorts of commitment. I did my own research and analysis and saw that all the double-dippers I know are also quite the singletons. Hmm... coincidence? I think not.

So, since the holidays are just around the corner, what should you do? Commit to just one small group and make it your group, take ownership of it and in the meantime, maybe you'll catch someone's eye this holiday season with your deep level of commitment.

A Bit Bipolar?

Hot and cold. Happy and sad. Tired and energized. I've been feeling a bit bipolar lately. There is an extremely serious side when I think about more important matters (small group and *hopefully* my growing business), then there's my other dork side which concentrates on not so serious matters (hanging out with friends and joking around while talking about a made up family).

I would actually like to meet middle ground with my two polar personalities, but it's very hard. I realized that I am a bit anal when it comes to making sure a meeting is ran "perfectly", that all the major points are hit and we rarely go off topic. But on the other hand, when I'm having fun, I'm strictly having fun and not worrying about anything else.

Maybe I am a chameleon, adapting to my environment whenever needed.

"Men"| h

The title of this post comes from the Lexus|h. It is a hybrid of the original Lexus. "Men" is in quotations because it has come to my attention recently that a lot of guys my friends and I meet are not really men, but "men".

This is simply an observation of mine, but it seems like a lot of new guys that my girl friends and I meet fall short of manning up. There are guys that are gay, there are guys that are metro... but there's a new breed in town! These guys are worse than girls on their WORST pms days. They are needy, they are overly emo, and anything can rub them the wrong way! What's up with these guys?

They get butt hurt if you don't message them a "hi" in the morning. They get butt hurt if you don't say "hey" to them at a huge gathering. As guys, I think it's necessary for you to man up! Girls have enough drama on their own, we don't need this extra baggage too.

To all the real men out there, please teach these "men" | h what's up... please...

Incomplete

Cooking used to be one of my passions. During my prep times at work, I would be on either 1) www.allrecipes.com or 2)www.foodnetwork.com to look up cool new things to make. Regardless of how tired I was after work, I would used to love going to the supermarket after work to pick up stuff and cook. It always brought me happiness when food came out super delicious with nice presentation as well.

Obviously, I wasn't cooking for one. It used to make me so happy to be able to "play house" with my former best friend and have a nice meal prepared by the time he came home. I have recently picked up my side cooking hobby again (cooking on a budget, of course), and today it hit me. Cooking doesn't give me half the satisfaction it did before. I have came to grips that I won't be able to "play house" anymore, and the last meal I cooked for that best friend of mine was many months ago.

Besides cooking, there used to be a lot of other things I did which brought me constant happiness. And although I still do them, it's just not the same. Even something as simple as conversations with others, it's not the same. I feel like no one truly understands me the way my former best friend did. I've been busy with many things, but at the end of the day, there is still an emptiness inside of me which may not be quenched for a long time.

Although I have consumed my time with lots of random things, a part of me is still incomplete...

Bad Timing? or... God's Perfect Timing?

This has been a thought that's been circling around in my head for the past few weeks. I've been planning on things to work out this or that way, but at the very end, God is very humorous and ends up changing my plans, yet still making them work out at the same time.

Just a thought...

Shattered

June 6 - June 10. I would consider this to be a very significant part of a change in life and comfort. During this short time span (one expected, and one quite unexpected), my two biggest comforts for the past two years was taken away from me. Although the two do not really correlate, I always just put one with the other because that's how it's been like for me.

Work has always been something I took for granted. True, the kids drove me crazy at times, but the other times, the stuff they do gives me this nice fuzzy feeling inside. I do miss teaching, it was fun and enjoyable, and I always got to chat during my preps (which was definitely a plus). *sigh*... those were the days. I wonder how my kids are doing though...

The other comfort I had, well... I don't necessarily feel like it became my idol, it's built me into a person I never thought I would become, and I'm thankful for that. But like many good things in my life, it always comes to an end. There's still a lot of things that happened here which I don't fully comprehend, and I'm not God, so I'm not surprised that many things don't make sense to me at all. I understand that people undergo a season of changes... but many changes just don't make sense.

How can someone who made you feel like you're the best thing that's happened to them also be the same someone who can now make you feel like you're the most worthless thing in the world (in their eyes)? How can someone who at first had so much faith in you now think that your life is a mess and you have no idea where you're headed? How can someone who made you feel so happy before be the same someone who can say so many harsh things to you? How can someone who claimed that you were the most important person in your life before now want close to nothing to do with you? How can someone who was your everything now want to become a close to nothing? How can someone you ran to before for comfort be the same one who you are now trying to run away from? How can someone you would be willing to die for be the same person who claims that they're burnt out by you? And how can someone who you put all your faith and trust in be the same person who can destroy you the most?

I'm still attempting to make sense of all of this. Maybe it was not supposed to make sense. I have a scar on my left hand because of this person and I know it will be there for the rest of my life. Although it was physically painful for a while, it's come and gone now. All I have left is the remnants of the burn. However, the inner scar left inside hurts 100x more. I would trade in any physical pain to get rid of the emotional pain that's been left inside. But how can something that can seem so right in your eyes, something you're so convicted is right turn out to be so wrong?

From Jack Bauer, 24

“Hey...
It's me. I'm here.
I know that I promised...to take care of you...and protect you...
But I'm at a crossroad.
Right now the best way... the only way... to do this is to let you go.
I hope one day you can understand me.
I hope one day you can forgive me.
I love you with all my heart.
And I always will."

Which episode?

Changes

No, I don't wake up in the morning and want to blast myself (if that did not make sense to you, just ignore it and move on).

It was an honor this past weekend to go and see two of my college friends get married in a small, beautiful wedding in Pasadena. But no, that's not the change I'm talking about, even though I'm very happy that Danice will have a change in their relationship from being engaged to being married and all that other fun stuff I have yet to experience.

The best word to describe it was that I was a bit shocked. These are the friends I "grew up" with in college, the same ones I served with in ministry the last two years of my Davis life. During our one year reunion post college at our friend's wedding, it didn't seem like much has changed. But having this reunion this time around was completely different. It came as a complete shocker to me with how different I felt there with my former group of friends.

Here I am, completely consumed with my new passion for ministry and serving while most of my close knit group of friends from college have completely fallen away from it due to different circumstances and surroundings. It is quite sad, but who knows, maybe something will bring them back in the future. I just felt like the odd one out, but at the same time it was a nice feeling too. And to top it off, going to my friend's church before going back home was nice and refreshing too... I really enjoyed the message about trials.

It was a bit weird. I'm used to talking with people and sometimes even starting conversations, but things just seemed a bit... superficial to me this weekend and everyone just expected me to act like the same person I was four years ago. Definite changes.

Enough!

Once again, I was watching another Sex and the City episode last night where Big is planning on moving to Paris (for business) and does not discuss it with Carrie. She later decides to be supportive and tells him to go, I forgot what he said (I was multitasking), but all of a sudden she threw her filet-o-fish at his TV and storms out.

Anyway, what I saw was someone who desperately wants to be a part of his life, but later realizes that it's over... there's really no hope left. Now, if it was just some friend who mentioned that to Carrie, I'm pretty sure she wouldn't mind at all and wouldn't have that "enough is enough" attack.

I see that happening in my own life as well. Usually I don't get mad at people, and if I do, it's a very brief madness. But I guess it's true, you always have a higher expectation for those you care about the most. It's easier to get mad at them for every little intricate detail because my expectations are so high.

This entire week has been filled with drama-drama-drama. I DTR-ed with somebody and basically said no, but of course I didn't get mad over that, just happy that I did it. But what stood out to me time and time again is how I get mad at somebody for the littlest things, and the reason for that (even if it seems a bit unfair) is because I care too much and expect "perfection"...

Ready Are You?

As quoted by a wise 900 year old being...

“Ready are you? What know you of ready? For eight hundred years have I trained Jedi. My own counsel will I keep on who is to be trained. A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind. This one a long time have I watched. All his life has he looked away... to the future, to the horizon. Never his mind on where he was. Hmm? What he was doing. Hmph. Adventure. Heh. Excitement. Heh. A Jedi craves not these things. You are reckless.”

At this time tomorrow, I will be eating at Fat Wong's with my parents and then heading to SFO to go on a journey which I'm guessing will be eye-opening and possibly life changing(?). I've had my suitcase out the entire week, but haven't really gotten myself to pack the essentials that I need. What to expect? That I do not know. A friend told me to just remember the 3F's while on the missions field - fun, flexible, and focus.

I'm finally excited about Thailand... the thought of being overwhelmed and scared have slowly gone away. It's reassuring to know that I have my supporters here who are praying for me, since I have just recently grasped the fact that prayer does go a long way. So, in two weeks, we'll see if there are any new stories to tell! Weeee!

Guilty Pleasures

I have recently discovered some guilty pleasures in my life: morning, afternoon, and night.

Morning - You know how they say that you usually have a total body makeover after a break up? I'm definitely feeling it right now. Before, I could barely get myself to run a mile, much less two in a week. Nowadays, I get up and run at least three miles every single day... and it just feels so good! I think I ran more the past two weeks than I have the entire month when I was not single.

Afternoon - I go to the bookstore and just start reading. It's hot at home, there's a/c at Borders, so why not? It's like a library... but better! I've always wanted to get into more Christian literature as well as stuff about the economy and business.

Night - SATC! Enough said... every single episode so far has reminded me of something that happened in a past relationship, as well as wishful thinking for the future (whenever that may be).

And there goes another year...

For some reason, I have never considered the new year to be January 1, (fill in the year). A new year for me has always been August/September time. Maybe it's because I was either in school or teaching... and this is the first time for me to step out of that mode. As I came home last night from small group (we just had our end of the year potluck/BBQ), I realized that when our small group (hopefully) launches again, it'll be my 4th year back! Wow... time flies, especially this year.

I remember moving back home 3 years ago, a fresh faced 21 year old, and completely innocent and naive to the "real world". I thought I had it all together then, boy did that cockiness slap me in the face. I thought I failed miserably as a facilitator because 1) I was completely immature back then, 2) no real passion or drive to keep on trucking when things were not going my way, and 3) I was under a not so good influence at the time.

Add 3 years to it, at the age of 24... sometimes I don't feel like everything is completely different. I do, however, think that I've had the most growth this year. I think just being in a long, serious relationship, and then getting out of it because you know we were not meant to be together does change you in many different ways. I came in one person and came out different (not jaded, of course).

But yeah, overall, I would say it was a good year, challenging though. And right now there's plenty of new transitions for me: adjusting back to single life and losing my confidant, finding a new job, learning different roles ministry wise... year 4... almost quarter of a century!

The Amazing Power of God

Rules... are they really made to be broken? I know I have friends who love me and are always looking out for me. That's why everyone told me that I shouldn't communicate with D till 2 weeks afterwards and not even see him till after I come back from my missions trip. At the time, everything made sense... we both needed our space and that's the "right" thing to do.

I had the intentions of going with these rules as well. Except two days after our break up, I had a huge urge to e-mail him just to tell him my good news, to not worry about me anymore because I was doing perfectly fine. My mind was not clouded anymore and I have also come to the same realization that he came to months ago, we would be miserable if we married each other. I held back that urge that night because it would be breaking the rules, and I felt really bad for telling him that after a 1.5 year relationship, I could move on so quickly just like that, *snap*.

That night I was just lying in bed, thinking "wow, how could this happen?". Never in my wildest imagination could I have imagined that I would be over him so quickly and be at so much peace. I knew a lot of people have been praying for me, D included, and this was the first time that I truly experienced God in a BIG way... that He was always there for me, and that He has answered all those prayers that people have said for me. I have always had little experiences where I knew God heard and answered my prayers, but I was just waiting for a BIG experience to share with others to show that He is there (and bam!, there's my experience).

The next morning, even though it was against the rules, he messaged me and asked how I was. I thought this was the perfect opportunity to just tell him everything, and that conversation was probably the most carefree and honest conversation we had in months. I was so happy and relieved to just tell him my realizations of the relationship and vice versa. We had a great phone conversation as well as more chatting afterwards as well. We were both happy just knowing that after 1.5 years, it's good that that door has closed and we'll both be able to move on.

Because of the "us" history, I told him I'll probably transition out of small group and find a new group, since it will probably be easier for him than me. However, during the course of the day, as we were talking about our vision and what we wanted out of everything, it looks like if we were both mature enough to place our history in the past and move forward together, there's a possibility that we can still continue serving together. I was pretty excited about this because I always thought we made a great team serving together, our gifts complimented each other, sorta. And once again, this was just another experience where I was wowed by God's awesome presence in both our lives; to be able to move forward and be able to still serve God together. Of course, I was thinking on and off the whole day if I was doing it for the wrong reasons, because if I had any doubt in my mind, I would definitely just say no and step out of it, regardless of how excited I was to help be a part of the transition of our small group.

A friend once told me that she does not regret anything from her past relationship. You lived it, had great memories together, and learn from it. I think the biggest lesson I learned from the whole thing was that God is greater than all of us, and He is more than capable of accomplishing what us humans cannot fathom. And this is probably, by far, the greatest testimony I have that God is alive and truly working in my life.

I'm thankful for a lot that came out of this past relationship. I was able to get to know an amazing person on a deeper level, and although we didn't get to have a Disney "happily ever after", I still believe I did, to some extend that cannot really be explained in words. I was able to recognize my passion in serving. D always encouraged me to come out of my comfort zone if I truly wanted to be stretched, and slowly, over the course of this year, that's what I did. If it weren't for this relationship, I don't think I would've grown to become the person I am today. I think that's a huge reason why I still want to continue working with him, even though to everyone else, it doesn't make sense because now is the perfect time for me to transition out as well. We'll see what God has in store for the both of us...

No Real Formula?

Is there really a formula for the time you should be over someone? If you were together for 1.5 years, how long would it take to get over that person? This is definitely by God's grace, but after getting out of a long relationship, I got over everything surprisingly quickly. I know I had lots of prayers and God was definitely working in my heart, but it just surprises me for being able to get over someone who meant so much to me in the past so quickly. Yes, I was grieving for 2 days and couldn't eat or concentrate on anything else... but now, I just feel so relieved. The cloudiness in my mind is definitely all gone. I've definitely learned a lot from my past relationship, and I'm definitely having a really easy time moving forward right now.

The BIG Disappointment

If you follow SATC, you would know that Carrie always had this on going on again off again thing with Mr. Big (aka: John James Preston). He broke her heart a couple times and was just so emotionally out, yet lead her on the whole time. Her friends hated him for what he did to her, and although she portrayed herself as someone strong who could move on, it still took a toll on her.

Now fast forward to the movie... Mr. Big and Carrie are finally happy together, moving in and all that jazz... but when the wedding day comes, he couldn't make it there and there goes THE biggest heartbreak she's had to face with him (as well as embarrassment). However, Carrie finally had a happy ending cuz she ended up with him (sorry to ruin the movie for those who still haven't seen it yet).

Anyway, as much as I wish I were Carrie with the happy ending, that hasn't happened for me. The Mr. Big in my life did to me what SATC Mr. Big did to Carrie all those times throughout the series. And although I would like to portray myself as someone strong who can handle things, I'm not...

The Hardest Part of Teaching

I don't mind the loudness. I don't mind them not listening to me and interrupting when I'm teaching. I don't mind all the complaints I get about this and that and who's picking on who today. Sometimes I don't even mind the mess that's left behind. I don't mind that no matter how much I explain a concept, someone always does not get it. All this isn't really hard to me, I've come to grips with it all.

However, while driving home from work yesterday, after hugging and saying a final goodbye to the kids... I realized that (to me) the hardest part of teaching is leaving and saying goodbye. I've spent two years with some of these kids, and have probably seen them more so than their own parents from Monday - Friday, I'm sure going to miss those little rascals.

Thank goodness for technology and gmail though!

Good bye, farewell...

A week ago, I told D that I was pleasantly surprised by the reactions of my students when I told them I would not be returning next year. If you know my class, you would know that they rarely show any emotion towards anything, and they have not been as friendly as last year's class towards me, so I didn't think it'll be a big deal to them.



Little did I know, I was surprised by their shock that I wasn't returning in the fall. I still think it's the dynamics of this year's class, but I just didn't have as much fun as I did last year. I never felt comfortable joking around with them and picking on them as much as my now 5th graders. And I don't know why, but instead of feeling sad and having the "I'll miss you" theory, I am somewhat relieved. I think this year definitely did wonders to me; there was the good, the bad, and the burnt out-ness which came from this group of 9-10 year olds. Sadly, I don't feel like I will miss them that much.


This is a complete change from my first year of teaching, when I was completely attached to my group of first graders. I cried me a river along with half the class on the last day of school, but this year I just feel very blah. Sure, I'm going to leave with a HUGE party with lots of yummy food, but right now I really feel like I'm not going to miss this at all.



I think it's my low expectations this year, but I was shocked at the surprises that were left on my desk when I decided to play hooky one Friday afternoon. There were numerous "good bye" cards which they made in art class. I always thought my group this year weren't very attached to me because of the way they behaved. But the words written to me were quite touching.

Throughout this week, I feel like I've been on and off with this whole "I won't see you again" thing. I think the highight of all this goes to a boy in my 5th grade class, we'll call him "Annabelle" (and yes, there's a story behind all that).

For the past year, Annabelle would troop into my classroom, and make a huge entrance like he's the king of the world. He's trip over a chair or something just to attract attention and make the rest of the kids laugh. He always thought he did a good job "annoying" me and would always make noises here and there just to get a reaction from me. I was never really annoyed, and have always enjoyed his stories (I just don't enjoy the fact that he tells me these stories at THE most inappropriate times, when I'm teaching!). Anyway, I told all my students that I would really like it if they could sign my yearbook, this is what Annabelle wrote to me, which I thought was the nicest thing he's ever said/written to me... ever! (He also dedicated a short story to me about his Sacramento trip that we took together as a class last year).

"Dear Ms. Poon,
For the past 2 years I have been having a lot of fun in your class. You have been a really nice person or teacher I should say.
From "Annabelle"
P.S. You are my favorite teacher out of all of them."

I read that and thought it was really nice coming out of him since we've developed this love-tease relationship this year and I always make fun of him in front of the class. Today, he comes up to me and asks if he can write a little more in my yearbook, and I give it to him, thinking what more he can write, this is what he continues on with in his P.S. portion:

"I am going to miss you. Bomber----@gmail.com".

I think that's the sweetest thing that a student has written me. Sure, I got other "I miss yous", but this one just means so much more just because of our history together and how we're always just having fun jokingly bashing on one another.

Tomorrow's the last day of work here... I'm going to miss these rascals. I know I shouldn't play favorites, but I have a few favorites from my 5th grade class. Thank goodness there's technology and easy e-mail/gchatting.

What Is Your Purpose In Life?

A few years ago, I was asked a specific question. I now realize that I had no idea how to answer that question and what I thought was the correct answer - good job, get married, raise a family was it. That's every young person's "American Dream", right?

Over the course of the past three years, two older people (one of whom I do not communicate with at all anymore) have asked me that question: what is your purpose in life? When I first heard it, I was thinking "whoaaa... how do I answer a question like that? What would the 'correct' answer be so I sound more grown up?". So when that question was first prompted to me, I gave them my honest answer, which at that time was "I don't know". Person #1 told me that if you can't answer that question, then you don't know yourself at all. This person also followed it up with "what are your weaknesses?", if you can't answer that question about yourself, you don't know who you are and what you're doing.

After hearing that, it made me ponder for a couple years about whether that was really true or not. A year after, I was approached by person #2 with the same question. What is your purpose? By this time, I already had my textbook answer ready, "love God, love people", right? Little did I know, this time around, my eyes would be opened to things I never thought was possible before. What started out as a cop out answer, "love God, love people" has suddenly become my drive in life, my purpose!

What exactly does that mean? How easy is it to love God? Well, He is perfect, so how can you hate anything that's perfect right? Sure, loving God is easy... so now, time for part 2. What about loving people? I can easily love my friends and others who are easy to like. But what has occured to me as a huge challenge (and I am still greatly challenged right now and still working on) is how do you love people who (in my eyes) are unloveable? You know what I'm talking about... the socially awkward, the blunt ones, people with "less class" than you, how do you love them? How do you love them as yourself? And how does that fit into everyone's typical life goals of good job, find your soul mate, and raise a family?

There were many things I had which made me happy... at the time. Sooner, rather than later, what brought me joy at the moment slowly slithered away. The new computer I bought at the moment was nothing more than a machine to me. The snowboard I brought is slowly collecting dust in the corner of the house. All the clothes I have will soon go away as fashion trends come and go. What exactly have I done in my life to make a difference? And the only thing I could think of was relationships with others. Learning to love people when they're difficult, and just loving people who I never would've given the time of day a few years back.

I have realized that life is not about money. You can have all the money in the world but still feel unloved and empty inside. Throughout this year, I found out that the times I feel most loved and at ease with things are the times when I'm doing things not for myself, but for others. Yes, I can get impatient at times, but learning to love people (a huge challenge most of the time for me), has helped me see things in a clearer light. What exactly led me to this revelation? I'm really not sure... it could be a bunch of different series of events put together. One thing for sure though, everything seems a little more clear when you realize your purpose (your map) as you continue steering on toward your goals.

Stealing Kids

This past week, it feels like I've been surrounded by little kids left and right (so when I refer to little kids, I mean just weeks born infants to kindergarteners). Just seeing someone hold a little baby looks so cute (minus the whole pooping and feeding thing) and fun! Today when I was walking to the office, there were these kindergarteners playing outside and they're just so tiny (compared the the 4th/5th graders I'm used to seeing). Maybe it's the scorching heat which is leaving weird thoughts in my head - but how great would it be to steal one of those kids? A cute one (of course)!

I then think about what happens when they start growing. Are kids considered cute at the age of 9-10 now? I'm thinking of my group of kids, I can't imagine myself saying they're cute, like how little kids are cute. But they sure are entertaining to talk to, especially the group of 5th grade boys who tell me all their stories they failed to tell me when I was still their teacher last year when we went on our Sacramento overnight field trip.

And what about the age when they're in middle school and it's probably not considered "cool" to be talking to an adult when it's not necessary? So, is it really worth it to steal a kid? Maybe I should just fly to Neverland and keep them at a certain age so they'll never have to grow up, and possibly learn to fly as well.

Around end of high school to college years is also a pretty cool age as well. They're finally slowly trying to find adulthood and have all these ideas and theories on what it's like. Little do they know, it's nothing like what it's like in the movies.

Back to my original post, I would want a kid. It seems so fun... but I guess for the time being, I'll stick to being with Ms. Piggy (the world's most unloyal dog) and playing with her when no one else is home.

The end of an era

Today marks the end of something very very special, but it's okay cause I'm a trooper.

"Skunk" Attack!

I spend many hours sitting in my chair with 2 missing wheels so I look lopsided when I am at work while starring at an old CRT monitor for hours. I have perfected the art of silent farts and playing off farts for the past year now. When there is no one in my room, I like to fart out bullets (loud, but not deadly). There was this one time where I was wrong - I let out a couple BB shot farts 5 minutes before kids came back in. The heater was on (this was in the morning), so I think it made it a little worse. Anyway, the first thing they say when they walk in is that it smells like a skunk in here. Because I am older (hence, wiser) than them, I matter of factly tell them maybe it's because I opened the door a little and some kind of weird smell came in. Little did they know, it was because of my farting in a closed room. That's what you get kids, for all the love drama you've caused this year!

I have also perfected it in front of my boyfriend, I actually fart a lot around him, he just doesn't know it cuz I'm pretty good at silent farts now! =)

"The Hills"

I recently found out this week that there's a love triangle going on in my fourth grade class. I don't know what's up with my group this year, but they're growing up a little too fast. Now that I found out (from the principal), everything seems to make sense.

Basically, D & J were an item but broke up earlier in the year. This explains why J always requests to not sit anywhere near D (bad break up, I presume). Now V & J are together, so D & V (who used to be friends) now have beef with each other. Is it just me, or does it seem like the drama between Lauren and Heidi on The Hills?

So once I found this out, I decided to actually really read through their journal writes (they have to write 10 minutes in their journal every morning) and bit by bit, things are coming together... V writes about how sweet J is and blah blah blah. And like any typical guy, they don't share much emotions about what they're feeling.

Anyway, who needs to watch MTV shows when this real life drama is happening under my own eyes! I can't believe it took me so long to figure it out myself. BUT, aren't they a little too young for this? I thought this stuff starts in middle school...

Google Calendar

I've always been into buying a new calendar (50%) the day after Christmas. It was always a debate between which TV show I would like to have posted on my wall for a whole 365 days. This year, Grey's Anatomy won. I have many different colored Sharpies I like to use to color coordinate everything, so it seems like my life was "in order" and that I did indeed have a life.

However, it has come to my attention that I'm really not home all that much and when I'm not home, I'm usually sitting on my butt at work doing close to absolutely nothing. It wasn't till yesterday when I really looked at my Google calendar and decided to update it with pretty colors and everything just like my calendar at home.

It all makes sense now... most of the time, I make appointments and everything else when I'm at work, and my memory isn't that great to begin with anyways. So I started playing around with the colored tabs and everything. Now, not only is my life in order at home, but also everywhere else I go with internet access! Go Google!

Also, from someone I would like to keep anonymous:

********: omg! google calender saved our marriage. hehe

The Boy Who Cried "Girl"

I have an ex-frenemy: "keep your friends close, and your enemies closer", who enjoys to punk people, especially me. But after the last episode of me being punk'D by him, we decided to call a truce and become sophisticated friends once again.

Punk'D #1:
"Ashley"... that was the girl he was dating... she turned out to be made up. After a couple weeks, he decided that the joke was over and told me the truth about her.

Punk'D #2:
We decided to make amends meet and punk our other shady friend, "Anna Yee" by creating a new girl, "Charlene"... or was it "Charlotte"? Anyway, it really wasn't that fun, so we ended his other fake relationship in a week.

Punk'D #3: (or is this real?)
- Requested to not be posted yet...

However, since he's been crying "girl" so much, we still don't know if he's trying to punk us or not. Moral of the story: Do not cry "girl" because it makes it very very hard to believe.

CNN Crime Stories

When I have extra time at work (which happens a lot, especially in the afternoon), I often go to CNN and read their crime stories. There are plenty of sick and twisted individuals in this world, but I think this one tops it off as one of the worst...

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/02/08/child.slain.ap/index.html

The infamous Carrie B

I posted this link on my status message: http://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=W5VmqP2T4O_aAMq5YwTJzQ and received two messages from two friends of mine.

SL: no way, thats you?!?!
me: yeah! have you read me before?
SL: yah
me: COOL!!!
SL: i was like, dumb white girl
me: which review?
SL: the flies one
me: HAHAHA dude, that was gross
SL: i don't remember how i stumbled onto your thing thats weird...
me: sweet
SL: cuz you have no friends
me: if you notice, most of my reviews are asian restaurants
SL: i was like, wow she talks a lot about her bf
me: i dont wanna make it sound like im going there by myself
SL: why not? its the new thing nowadays

KN: that's you? you're carrie?
me: shut up you read my reviews before too?
KN: no but i saw pictures ahahaha i'm on it too i'm the bitter one
me: really? show me your link! i'm the mainly negative one
KN: hahaha you mention your bf in everysingle one!
me: no i don't! those were the recent ones the other ones were just with friends
KN:carrie has no friends. hahaha

So this is what they both got out of my yelping: (1) Carrie has no friends and (2) Carrie talks about her bf a lot (not true).