Friday, April 03, 2009

纹身 and trip to NYC

Well, March has come and gone. I think it flew by because I was waiting for my trip to NYC, and then when that was over, all-of-a-sudden March ended and April sprang forward. One of the memorable things I did before my trip was get a tattoo.
I couldn't be happier with it. The artist, Horishow, from Fukuoka, was visiting San Francisco and somehow he had time to do my piece. I went up to Seventh Son with Pooja around 6:15. After a consultation, he took the information and came back to the front of the shop about an hour later with this amazing 2.5" x 11" piece of beauty. I know it's different from what he normally does at Amitabha, but I couldn't have been more pleased. All of the attention he put into the subtle details really makes it shine. We were finished around 10, a little late I know, but it was well worth it. I hope you like it as much as I do.

On the 20th, I was greeted by Pooja who picked me up before proceeding to pick up Howard and take us to the airport. I was stoked. If you recall, this is peculiar because when I left NYC last time I didn't have the greatest time, but going back this time would be different—and it was.

Initially I had to get our seats situated on our flights because Delta had changed equipment and separated us. I went into an entire tirade about that on twitter (here and here). In any regard, it worked out and we were able to sit next to one another on the first segment from SJC to ATL. In Atlanta, we had enough time to have dinner, so we grabbed it at Houlihan's. We then had the pleasure of flying first class to JFK. We had a couple of gay stewards, so it was certainly more fun than originally expected. As it was late when we arrived to Moniera's, we just crashed and decided to tear up the city the following days rather than taking forever to commute to the club.

Saturday started with dim sum at East Manor with Howard, his dad, brother, and step-mom. I was happy with it, and pleasantly surprised as I had never been to Queens except in passing through on the LIRR to Long Island. After brunch, his dad dropped us off at Union Square where I felt back in my element. Listening to Cantonese for extended periods of time with little to no translation can make the mind wander.

We started off by doing a little bit of shopping and walking around Greenwich Village before meeting up with one of Howard's friend shortly followed by meeting my friend Katie. We traipsed down Broadway and into SoHo keeping an eye out for places where we'd like to shop in our following visits to the area. Time seemed to fly by, and before I knew it, Katie, Howard, and I were with his family again and on our way back to Queens for dinner at Jade Asian Restaurant. The food was amazing, and I had a great time. After dinner, his Dad drove us back to Moniera's where Howard and I got ready to go out.

The three of us (Katie, Howard, and myself) then headed into the city to G Lounge. I had a blast here. Originally Katie was going to have a couple of drinks and head home, but I talked her into staying with us for the night and going home in the morning. We also met up with my friend Roberto, and it was amazing to see him. I hadn't seem him in ages, and was pleasantly surprised he came to a gay bar to hang with us. We had a few drinks from the bartenders, actually I think it was 3 cocktails, shot of tequila, and a shot of SoCo with something, of what I forget.

It didn't take long for us to get the urge to start dancing, so we headed up to Mr. Black. Now, as you can tell from my yelp review, I'm still on the fence with this place, but I did have a good time here with everyone. There was more debauchery and, more importantly, dancing. The DJ was pretty good at the beats he threw down, but some of his transitions were lacking and downright pitiful. Regardless, dancing up in the cage with Howard was fun, even if I did about kill myself slipping on one of the steps. As the dawn grew nigh, we headed back to the house. Somehow, I made it to the subway with my over-shirts, yet when it came to pack for the trip home I had lost them. My suspicion is that I left them on the subway, ugh. Katie's summary of the night was "surreal" (from her having authentic family-style Chinese in Queens, to going to Brooklyn, and partying it up at 2 gar bars). I think I concur with her deduction.

After only sleeping a couple of hours, I woke Katie so she could head home and then to JFK to pick up her friends. I immediately passed back out though as I was exhausted. As it was Sunday, Howard and I slept in until we felt like we could function. When Sahithi called, we decided it was time to get up and go to brunch. Originally we had thought of going to Essex, but instead we went to Yuca, an amazing bistro latino with delicious churrasco. Having had brunch here with Sahithi, and two of Howard's friends, we walked through the East Village a little bit until we headed down to SoHo to continue our lackadaisical Sunday.

When we got to Soho, we wished everyone adieu, and Howard and I went in to get free facials at Bloomingdale's. It was a sponsored event, which turned out well for us. Afterwards, we took the subway up to 57th and started our stroll which took us through Central Park, along 5th Ave, through Grand Central, passed Bryant Park, and finally to Times Square. Although it was a little chilly, it was a good walk and we did a little shopping along 5th and in Times Square. I actually picked up a CD at Virgin since they were closing in 8 days; I really can't remember the time before last when I bought an actual CD.

As it was dark by this time and we were hungry, we ventured back to the East Village and ate at Ramen Setagaya. Their ramen is the best I've ever had, hands-down. It's authentic and is hand-crafted by actual Japanese chefs, so if you want to try real ramen, come here. For dessert, we actually walked up to Union Square to Max Brenner's. We split a chocolate cake with a white chocolate center, and had our hot chocolates to go as since we were headed to the Brooklyn Bridge. Finishing up, we hopped the train to City Hall and got out to walk the bridge halfway. It was windy and cold, although not as windy as in the city itself, but the skyline was incredibly beautiful. I love walking that bridge at night, there's something about it that I just love, and part of that is due to company. That night we decided to head home earlier than the previous night so we could get more stuff done during the actual day on Monday.

Monday was the "touristy" day. We set off for the Staten Island Ferry so we could ride it and see the Statue of Liberty. I was surprised to hear so much French on the ferry, but it made sense as we were looking at the Statue. Afterwards, we had a late lunch with Howard's dad and step-mom in Chinatown at East Boat Restuarant. I can't remember when I had so much delicious seafood, including sharkfin soup, and not only 1, but 2 lobsters. After lunch, we were then driven up to the Empire State Building, where Howard and I continued our touristy activities.

The Empire wasn't that busy when we got here around 4:30. I think we only waited about 10 minutes to pass through security, and then only had to wait behind 1 person to purchase tickets. If you come here, you need to go to the 102nd floor. The 86th floor does not do the city justice. I do realize it's an extra $15 to the $20, but it's well worth it. After purchasing tickets we went through the queue to the elevators and hopped a ride to the 80th floor. Then after walking through another queue, we took the next elevator to the 86th floor. This is where the main observatory is. You can venture outside and look out on the city in all 4 directions, but be advised it's cold and windy, or at least it was when we were there. After standing in the blasts of freezing air, we headed back inside to catch our final trip up to the 102nd floor observatory. The nice thing about this is it is not crowded like downstairs, and the staff up here is seemingly extra nice. They even took our pictures and pointed out sites for us. You don't need to shell out $5 for the map when you can come up here and have your own personal tour guide. I also found that the people up here seemed nicer and more considerate than those below.

After gaping at the sites for awhile and snapping dozens of pictures, we decided it was time to head back down and back out into the city to continue our escapade. We did so by heading to Otafuku in the East Village for delicious takoyaki as an appetizer before we met up with my friend Brian in the UWS. We then initiated our shopping spree, eying places we would want to shop on Tuesday and checking out any small boutiques.

For dinner, we met up with my friend Brian and ate at Vynl. It reminded me of Lime in SF, but enhanced with disco fever. Well, maybe not enhanced, but decked out in disco paraphernalia. The food itself was good, but I enjoyed the company more so. Afterwards, we were going to go to Therapy, but decided not to after we saw the line to get in (RuPaul was there promoting her show...). Instead, we went to Vlada Lounge and had a cocktail and reminisced about times past. I was sad to wish Brian farewell, yet even sadder when I realized I forgot to take pictures of us. This night ended at a decent hour as well, as the next day was dedicated to shopping.

Tuesday rolled around, and it was so declared shopping day. We started at Union Square and winded our way through the Village and SoHo, stopping at any boutique and store which caught our eye. I ended up buying a few things: desert scarf from Urban Outfitters; Superdry jacket from Century 21; jeans, shirt, and jacket from FCUK; and 3 nice shirts from Uniqlo. I think my Uniqlo and Century 21 have become my favorite shopping spots in the city. When we left Century 21, we hit up this pizzeria for NY style pizza, but it was a let down. I should have taken Howard to the Village or Little Italy for pizza. Anyways...

Dinner was had with Howard's friend and Sahithi. We ate at May's Place Sushi. As I mentioned in my review, the octopus was extremely fresh, to the point where it was strange. The food was good, but I still haven't decided what I think of the place. Afterwards, we hit up Veniero's Pastry Shop on 11th. The cannoli I had was amazing delicious, as was the cheesecake.

That night we headed back home to pack a little bit and get ready for a journey back home. We went through our pictures and reminisced about our times and talked about the fun we had. The trip certainly went by fast, but I was ready to head back home.

On the subway ride back to the airport the next day, I was a little sad to be leaving NYC, but I had a great time with Howard and left the city feeling like a little piece of me really did belong there, unlike my previous trip which you can read about on my other post.

So, with that, I'll leave you with some pictures.

Music of Choice: Altered State of Mind (Sunfreakz Remix) - Mr. Groove & Vergas (blip)

Monday, February 23, 2009

押さえ切れずに want me, baby

Today has seemed extremely busy for me. I think I did more today than I do in some weeks: orthodontist consultation, dentist consultation, MetLife inquiry, contacting friends in NYC to let them know I'm visiting in March, Starbucks, meetings at work, writing a technical specification, finishing emails, tanning, running at the Dish, dinner, writing this post, and making sure my Chinese homework is done for tomorrow. I would also read, but I need to get to bed sometime today.

The past couple months have been interesting. I've been focusing on doing more cardio at the gym, and it's starting to take a small toll on my knees. I desperately need to find high-intensity cardio that requires only low-impact to my knee joints. Running and stairs are great, but my knees aren't going to keep up with me I feel. I have also been rowing more, like I did back in college, and I think all of this is starting to slowly pay off. It's definitely a clear head-start for the summer, as compared to last year when I waited until spring. I'll get my official results when I do my hydrostatic in March.

Speaking of March, this will be the first year in the past few in which I've not visited Missouri. I've normally been going for my mom's birthday, but I was there just in December, so I'm holding off for a little while. Instead, I'll be going to NYC with Howard. I'm completely stoked to be going. I've been hitting up my friends to let them know we're coming and to make sure they mark their calendars to have some free time. I think the one thing I really want to do this time is go to the top of the Empire State building. Actually, I want to go to the Brooklyn bridge at evening again; so, I suppose that's two things really. I did set a goal for myself to get lean for the trip. I think I'm on track, but will only be so if I stop having setbacks such as the Oreo binge I went on during the weekend, ugh.

I've been lucky to make some new friends during the past couple months as well. It's definitely been a pleasure getting to know Simon better. I've also had the pleasure of talking with Stefy up in the city, and becoming better friends with Chance. He's been the major reason for going up to the city on Fridays to hit up Dragon. Seriously, you couldn't have any better bartender than him.

From my cultural interests, I've been listening to Namie Amuro (安室 奈美恵), Jay Chou (葉惠美), Wilber Pan (潘瑋柏), Lamya, Arya, and a little bit of Alan Kuo (柯有綸). I've also been infatuated with spicy food lately, almost to the point of obsession. Perhaps it's because my body has been craving vitamin C, but that's beside the point.

Anyway, that's my monthly update, seemingly so. I've been going through heavy and light phases of using Twitter, so I suppose it's probably best to keep up on my life there if you want to stay as up-to-date as possible.

Music of Choice: Want Me, Want Me - Namie Amuro (安室奈美恵)

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Happy 牛 Year

I've had so much going on with me during the past couple of months, that I don't really know why I haven't updated my blog. I really need to stop coming up with excuses for not updating this thing. For tonight, I have no intention of writing a full wrap-up of events prior, but tonight I would like to jot down a few thoughts.

I've slowly began to notice that I have a vast social network, yet it is only deep in a few areas. It's almost the same with my knowledge. I have general knowledge of many things, yet my depth is limited to certain fields. I've also started to notice how the internet truly influences me. As an example, I never would have heard of Lamya had I not subscribed to one particular blog which happened to mention she had passed away. Her voice is hauntingly powerful and seductive, I can't help but listen to her songs on repeat.

I suppose the real reason I want to comment tonight is that one of her songs, "Black Mona Lisa," has been on constant repeat in my head. "I am not a afraid to be a lone Bohemian. I can paint a portrait of myself. …" It just eats at me, resulting in me becoming a thoughtless wreck throughout the day.

I believe a portion of my reflective mood tonight can be attributed to thoughts of others (well, one other). We can refer to him as 小辣椒 (little chili). He's been a great pleasure with whom to spend time, and has overall made me smile on several occasions over the past couple weeks. You know those little seeds of thought that grab hold of you and make their way inside, warming your soul making you smile? It's that type of smile. It's the type of smile that makes me think there's clear blue water ahead, a place with no danger.

I can't help but think of Buddha and his retorts to answers of matters sacred. If I were to ask, "What lies ahead?" I'm sure he would answer something such as this with, "Who is he who is not the navigator?" or "Straight ahead, no left, no right, there lies only the present." Sometimes, I just want to be the leaf following the stream down the drain when I get into a head-space like this, but you know, it only helps me grow.

So, with that in no way answering anything, I will bid everyone Happy 牛 Year! It's quite the clever pun, although I didn't come up with it. 牛 is "niu", which in English sounds basically like "new", and it happens to be the year of the ox, which 牛 actually means. 恭喜发财, 新年快乐!

Also, for the clever ones out there, you'll notice that I alluded to a few songs, so if you picked up on that, props.

Music of Choice: Black Mona Lisa - Lamya

Sunday, November 30, 2008

夜曲。

一群嗜血的蚂蚁被腐肉所吸引

Life is strange. It passes before your eyes and before you know it you're, there's nothing left. With no regard for our mere existence, time is above all a power we seemingly cannot begin to harness. I suppose I feel a tad philosophical tonight, but I that's not highly unusual I suppose.

我面无表情看孤独的风景

The past month has flown by. In fact, this entire year has flown by; it's nearly 2009! I've been in the Bay now for three years, and in some regards it feels like an eternity and yet in retrospect it's gone by as quickly as any others. I need to figure out what I'm doing with myself. Seriously. What am I doing? I went to school to get a good education. Now I'm working to pay off that education. What's the point with the education if I don't utilize it the way I should?

失去你 爱恨开始分明

As far as this month is concerned, it was a lot of fun.

失去你 还有什么事好关心

I went up to the city and met up with Duy for his birthday (November 2). We had drinks and dinner at Yoshi's and then had drinks at Martunis. I hadn't seen him since my birthday, which was exactly two months prior. It was really good to see him.

当鸽子不再象征和平

I also found out this month that the mysterious dark spots I had develop on my back are allergic reactions. This being after my doctor told me she thought it may be morphea. The last thing I need is an auto-immune disorder. She thinks I'm allergic to one of the two new colognes I bought for the fall: Hanae Mori and Gucci. I hope that's what it is, because although the spots are better, they still are there.

我终于被提醒 广场上喂食的是秃鹰

Last weekend, I went to Vegas and met up with Kim. I haven't seen her in ages! It was great. We stayed at the Monte Carlo and did a little bit of shopping and went clubbing. On Friday we went to 8 1/2, which was fun. Saturday night we went to Krave, where I got the numbers of a bartender and the VIP host—hopefully next time I go I won't have to pay cover. One of the best parts of Vegas, other than getting to see Kim, was all the services the hotel comped: first night ($65), spa credits ($60), 4 buffets ($80), and 2 margaritas at Diablos ($20).

我用漂亮的押韵形容被掠夺一空的爱情

This past week I had four days off which were spent relaxing. I ended up doing Chinese hotpot with 旭东 and Pooja. I felt it was appropriate; his family is in 杭州 and Pooja's mom was in India and her dad was working. That night we hit up Dan Brown's where I played open pool and had manhattans for a little while. I was doing fairly well, and definitely have decided to get in some more practice at the new cafe in Building Q at work.

啊 乌云开始遮蔽 夜色不干净

The next day I did a bit of shopping with 旭东 at Stanford Shopping Center and got an extra discount on an awesome vest from Energie and a pair of nice dress shoes from Macy's. All in all a good two days prior to the weekend. I did end up staying in that Friday because I was feeling a bit under the weather with sinus congestion.

公园里葬礼的回音 在漫天飞行

On Saturday night, I met up with Tom who I had seen for several months. It was amazing. We both rolled up to Hue in Santa Clara. We had a good long talk and tossed back some Korean drinks, maybe too much: Chum churum, bek se ju, yogurt soju, and OB. In any regard, I felt like we got to reconnect. I invited him to go running next weekend at Purisima. I haven't gone for a couple months, so this week I need to focus on my endurance if I'm going to be able to run that myself. I look forward to getting out there and going running with him. It should make for good times.

送你的白色玫瑰 在纯黑的环境凋零

I have about two more weeks before I go back to Missouri. I'm excited to visit family, as I haven't been there since February. I'll be flying into Kansas City and renting a car to drive down to Springfield. My flight leaves December 16, and I'll return on Christmas day.

乌鸦在树枝上诡异的很安静

Well, I should get to sleep. 晚安做个好梦...

静静听 我黑色的大衣 想温暖你
日渐冰冷的回忆 走过的走过的生命
啊~四周弥漫雾气
啊~我在空旷的墓地
老去后还爱你
为你弹奏萧邦的夜曲
纪念我死去的爱情
跟夜风一样的声音
心碎的很好听
手在键盘敲很轻
我给的思念很小心
你埋葬的地方叫幽冥
为你弹奏萧邦的夜曲
纪念我死去的爱情
而我为你隐姓埋名
在月光下弹琴
对你心跳的感应
还是如此温热清晰
怀念你那鲜红的唇印
那些断翅的蜻蜓 散落在这森林
而我的眼睛 没有丝毫同情
失去你 泪水混浊不清
失去你 我连笑容都有阴影
风在长满青苔的屋顶
嘲笑我的伤心
像一口没有水的枯井
我用凄美的字型
描绘后悔莫及的那爱情

Music of Choice: 夜曲 – 周杰倫

Monday, October 20, 2008

Oh temps…

The past few weeks have been rather interesting. I say interesting, because I, myself, have discovered slightly new things about myself.

My trip to New York City changed me a little bit, and in a way I don't feel I truly understand. I've always enjoyed going to the city for visits, but this trip left me desiring something. I admit, I had a great time while I was there, but I was certainly ready to leave on Sunday. After I arrived on Friday evening, I headed to Moniera's where I hung out for the evening. We ended up relaxing and had some 'Chinese' food.

On Saturday, I went to the city and met up with Tommy and Grand Central. We walked around a bit and had lunch at Cosí in Union Square. After that we traversed Broadway down to Chinatown while doing a little bit of shopping. After catching up, he decided to go home because he was a little sick. I took him back to GC where we sadly sad our goodbyes. It was really great seeing him. I feel he's come a long way from where he was in the past.

After seeing him off, I headed to Union Square to meet up with Katie. We had a light dinner at Sushi Samba. I thought the food was really good this time, and it was the first time I've sat in the bar area. Afterward we headed to the SoHo Grand Hotel Bar & Lounge where we met up with some of her coworkers and had drinks to celebrate one of their birthdays.

On Sunday, I walked around SoHo again and picked up a few small gifts for some friends before meeting up with Lisa and Phil. I hadn't seem them for such a long time! We went to Woo Lae Oak to have dinner. I really enjoyed it, but I felt they could spice it up just a bit. They were gracious enough to drive me back to Moniera's, which I was so thankful for since I didn't need to take the subway. After I got back, I passed out shortly thereafter because I had to get up extremely early to catch the trains to JFK. I think I left around 3 and made it to JFK around 4:20. I thought it would take longer, but I was really lucky and didn't have to wait for the trains for too long at the various stops.

As I sat in the terminal, all I could think about was how I was ready to go back. NYC is great, but I always feel so dirty after walking through it. Seeing all the dilapidated structures and transit systems is depressing to me. I do appreciate, however, the efforts the city is making to turn NYC 'green.' For instance, the Q is getting new cars that run cleaner and have regenerative braking systems.


On my flight back, it dawned on me that I've been living with very few goals, if any at all. Thinking back, I've always had a goal which I was trying to obtain. In high school, it was getting into RPI. At RPI, it was getting my degree and securing a good job. Since I've been at Cisco, I feel like I've just existed. That isn't a life to lead at all. So, in order to get myself back up and running, I've set myself a goal of doing an around-the-world trip within the next two years. As I'm still mulling over ideas, I'm currently considering these major locations: Lima, Rio de Janiero, Rabat, Paris (+ Europe), Singapore, Bali, Hong Kong, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing, Tokyo, and Sydney. I'm sure some of those will change, but as of right now, that's the initial thought.

I've had a few other updates, but I'll leave them for another post as this one is already fairly lengthy.

Music of Choice: Sea of Sin – D:Fuse & Hiratzka vs Depeche Mode

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Poverty - Blog Action Day

You know, I'm really not sure what to write about in regards to poverty. My family isn't poor, but they certainly aren't rich either. When I see my family struggle with medical expenses, random acts of nature (living within Tornado Alley), and various other bills I'm not really sure what to do. Having already surpassed all of my family members salaries, it's hard not to want to help them, yet it's even difficult for me to do so when I have bills of my own from my car and college loans. College in and of itself set me back quite a bit having to shell out $40,000 a year before all of my scholarships and grants.

Living in the Bay area, I don't feel as if I am exposed to that much poverty. I realize that there certainly are people who live here below the poverty line, but I don't see it that often, except when I'm in San Francisco, but even then it's limited. The fact that the homeless have their own newspaper there fascinates me.

On another note, I am proud that Cisco is partnering with Google and the U.N. to help maintain the MDG Monitor, a website tracking the progress of the toward decreasing world poverty by 2015. If you are interested, the goals the U.N. is focusing upon include:

  • Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
  • Achieve Universal Primary Education
  • Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
  • Reduce Child Mortality
  • Improve Maternal Health
  • Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other Diseases
  • Ensure Environmental Sustainability
  • Develop a Global Partnership for Development
Music of Choice: Lemongrass - Lakuna

Thursday, October 02, 2008

Autumn Arrives

I feel like I have had a fair amount on my mind lately, yet I've been avoiding it by staying busy all the time. For instance, this past Friday I hit up the city with James: having dinner at Lolo and bar-hopping Truck, Pilsner, and Summer Place. I had a great time, although getting up the next morning was a bit early for me after having had half a bottle of wine and four cocktails.

I suppose what has been on my mind revolves around feelings of being interested in another guy. I still have a fair amount of residual hardening of the heart from previous tangos that I still have a natural reflex of unduly skepticism and yearning for perfection. As much as I crave a warm, strong body lying next to me, I still have considerable ease of creating a fashionable fault to convince myself I'm not ready. Having realized this, I took it up on myself to get out of Bay for while. Last week I purchased a plane ticket to New York City for Friday next. I mean, as it stands, I'm technically leaving for New York in a matter of hours, but who's counting? 27.

Having thought back, I've realized I haven't left the Bay since February. Taking a further step back, I have noticed that I tend to travel in the autumn months. For instance I went to NY a couple of times last autumn and winter, and I went to Missouri in February. I suppose it's a matter of cycles, but I haven't deduced their true reasoning. In any regard, I have also purchased a ticket to go to Missouri in December, which I'm looking forward to seeing family. I feel as if when I travel it gives me a chance to step "out of the box" and learn to better appreciate the things in my life.

I feel if I allow my mind to truly wander, that I begin to realize how much I am ready to settle into a relationship in some fashion. Not in the traditional sense of the meaning, but in the sense where there is someone always in my day-to-day life, to whom I can come home and spend time. A person to go out on the weekend and party it up. Someone to go with to Skyline Boulevard and watch the sun set over the ocean and foggy beaches. It's as if I want stability, yet I want it to be semi-unpredictable in the same sense. I find that hard to even comprehend, myself, but it is how I feel.

As it is late, I think I'm going to go to bed. I have a lot on my mind, and I need to process it before I can elaborate further anyway.

晚安和做个好梦。 -敖博瑞

Music of Choice: Autumn Tactics - Chicane - Behind the Sun