~:[CH2 - Day 31]:~ Battle of the Mind

~:[CH2 - Day 31]:~ Battle of the Mind

Even before the day, I started a battle with myself. Trying to overcome a personal battle and ultimately, I came out victorious. I guess when a day starts out like that and you find success in something you've worked so hard in, your day somehow becomes amazing. The work day flowed, as I drove down south after work. A guy cut me off as we were driving and I looked knowing that people like that never learn, but this time, he was not so lucky, as ten miles down, he got pulled over. I stopped at the same place to catch a glimpse of the view point. It was a beautiful day, but know there are many more sites around this country that can top that. Regardless, I enjoyed a great lunch down at the cove at Whisknladle, a very small, quaint place that had just enough sunlight with an ocean breeze. The scallops were purely amazing with a sauce that was very subtle and a butternut squash puree that was even more subtle. The combination was a refreshing and delicious combination that was only made better by the guava gelato :) ... after, I met with a few friends more north of La Jolla, as we just hung out and I was able to also grab a quick nap, before heading back to the Kearny Mesa area for dinner. I love a place where everyone speaks Japanese first, including all the customers. While small, the place packs a punch and 4 1/2 stars is not an easy thing to do, especially with almost 400 views. Regardless, as I drove home, I felt this refreshing feeling. The kind you get when you rise to the top and feel as if things are rolling in the right direction. Today was the last day of January and I can't imagine a better January than the one I just had. While I may never have felt much time to just sit back and have a lazy day, I think in the end, it was all worthwhile. I guess now I can begin February with a clear heart and a clear mind.

~:[CH2 - Day 30]:~ Falling Short

~:[CH2 - Day 30]:~ Falling Short

I've always aimed at reaching the highest goals possible with the situation I am given. Who doesn't? It's a daily grind to get yourself to continue reaching for those heights, only to find yourself a little too late, just behind the person in front of you, or worse, tumbling back down, knowing how miserably you failed. However, life is about getting up. Life is about taking a few punches, yet, never forgetting all the reasons why you're taking them in the first place. I've fallen short so many times in my life and even worse, just short of my goals. It's a challenge. It makes you question, "am I setting my goals to high" and even, "why even try?" Each time that I fall short, that I have bad timing, that I suffer a broken heart, that I just don't have what it takes, however, I know that each time I fall, I come back stronger as long as I continue to remind myself that I can do it and if I can't, I'll at least do all I can to get there. I continue to remind myself that I having loving and supportive people around me to continue pushing through. I continue to remind myself of that one person who looks down on us, allowing us to make mistakes, but ready to help us when we need Him most. I've jumped for the stars and only found the ground, but in the words of Aaliyah, "if at first you don't succeed, dust yourself and try again." Try again I shall. Descarte said, "I think therefore I am," and I will keep thinking of myself of someone who can get to that end goal that is waving in the distance. The failures of the past have left their scars, but are only reminders of how close I have come, how hard I have tried, and how much I have invested in this. I have a good feeling this time around and know that my time is coming soon.

~:[CH2 - Day 29]:~ Route to the End

~:[CH2 - Day 29]:~ Route to the End

We've arrived at the end of the school year, a week that is complete pleasure in the amount of time I work, but a complete pain in the headaches that come along with it. Normally, it's not too bad, but reminds me that I always have to remember that the path I take and the things I do while trying to reach a goal is more important than reaching the goal itself. Student each year try to find a way to get the grade that they often times do not deserve and will do anything to try and get it, yet tarnish their reputation in the process. I, myself, have caught myself in the act of trying to reach a goal or even after I reached that goal and have to try to remind myself that reaching that goal is not as important as keeping my core values in place. As they say, "the ends do not always justify the means." In any case, other than that, I had a great day catching up on things I needed (oil change and sleep) and also caught up with an alumni last minute who was looking to grab a bite, before heading back to a Japanese home cooked meal :) A full stomach means a happy me.

POEM: Typewriter (At Last)

the words you need aren't always where you need them but the message is always there.

POEM: Just Right (At Last)

when everything seems to be just right.

~:[CH2 - Day 28]:~ By Design

~:[CH2 - Day 28]:~ By Design

A crooked jacket, a loosened tie, but a busy, yet productive day. Fourteen hours after heading to work, I arrived home knowing that I could have few days as busy as this one. With grills, finals prep, grading, and basketball, the day zoomed by and I still found myself with a few things to do as I prepare for our trip to DC in less than two weeks. I was still exhausted from San Francisco, but mainly because I stayed up late assembling our final position paper packet for NHSMUN, which totaled 658 pages. I was so proud of the packet of position papers they produced and I am confident in their preparedness for the conference. The only question is, am I ready? With some planning still to go, I better make sure all is ready to go so that these trips can go on without any problems. I guess it was okay that my wardrobe for the day ended up a little messed up by the end of the day, but tomorrow, that's another story ...

POEM: Winds of Chance (At Last)

sometimes giving up all control is the best way to grow.

~:[CH2 - Day 27]:~ Flying High

~:[CH2 - Day 27]:~ Flying High

I left Mountain View but not before I had a good conversation with my good friend Shannon who I have shared many hours and many letters and e-mail, talking about life and all it has to offer. It was a short yet exciting weekend where I did exactly what I hoped, catch up with people I needed to and to have new adventures. On my way home, I ended up in first class, which was quite comfortable, however, I did the same I normally do and simply passed out the entire flight. The guy next to me was eating something, so I figured that they had served food, but I was too knocked out to even notice. When getting back, I met up with Angie, who I ran errands with before hitting up Mitsuwa for some good food and good shopping. Regardless, today ended quite a spontaneous and eventful weekend. Thanks to all those who made this weekend special including Lawrence who drove me both ways to and from the airport while Shannon was occupied and for Bacon for keeping me company at night :)

~:[CH2 - Day 26]:~ My Buddy Bacon

~:[CH2 - Day 26]:~ My Buddy Bacon

Less than 24 hours ago, I booked my flight to San Francisco and boarded a plane with not much of a plan. I had an amazing drive to the airport, found parking, and had a wonderful experience at the airport. A lady worker was so amazingly nice and I could tell she lived her job. I knew this would be a good trip. After landing, insteading of taking the BART, I found out I was going to get picked up. What great friends. I headed to Mountain View and played with Bacon and met Shannon's roommates who were super cool. Our Berkeley plans got moved to Oakland, but we had a great night nonetheless thanks to wonderful hospitality. In the end, spontaneity proved to be victorious. I'll be heading home in the afternoon tomorrow already but it was well worth it.

~:[CH2 - Day 25]:~ Growing Up

~:[CH2 - Day 25]:~ Growing Up

I remember when this group of seniors were freshmen. Still new to this idea of high school, trying to adapt, and in many cases, struggling to keep up. However, four years later, they have all grown up in their own way and at their own pace, much like we all have done over the course of our lives. This group went from talking about hamburgers and hot dogs freshman year to providing us with the financial details of their NGO project, helping change a part of the world - they truly have become global citizens. It still amazes me how time flies and how they have changed so quickly in front of my eyes, however, I just have to remember to warn them, don't be in such a rush to grow up, as each day is an experience that help build the trunk of our lives, something that takes time.

~:[CH2 - Day 24]:~ Artsy Fartsy

~:[CH2 - Day 24]:~ Artsy Fartsy

Today was one of those mile a minute days during school hours but it slowed down significantly when I got home. Unfortunately, I did not do what I wanted to do, but I also got distracted by an array of boxes that arrived at my house. I have toys for the weekend :) Regardless, today was spent making many, many buttons. First, I gave a lesson on how to make them for the cross country athletes as we begin to do our fundraiser, however, I also ended up making some after school for Kyle Mustard, as he drew a number of buttons by hand. Aren't they cute? In any case, as I prepare for the weekend, I am looking to go on a one day trip or maybe an overnight one. Any ideas? Any takers?

~:[CH2 - Day 23]:~ Something's Fishy

~:[CH2 - Day 23]:~ Something's Fishy

I got a few more minutes to relax this morning as instead of work, I headed to a professional development day at the district. There was some confusion and I realized I had to go to this the day before ... it happens to be the week before finals. Already rushing to get everything completed by semester's end, the next few days will be absolutely crazy trying to get everything fit in. However, it something we must do. Regardless, the training was interesting and I enjoyed my time with my colleagues including our lunch at Don Jose, however, I still have my doubts about this whole new process. Unfortunately, they have not completed the standards for social science, thus, it made some of this process not as relevant as if we knew where we were headed. In any case, while interesting, I was more intrigued by the discussion that came up than the repetition of the material. While it was very in depth, I feel that we were capable of a much faster pace than we were going. Afterward, I headed to scrip, then came home to relax with a bowl of sashimi which eased my tension and allowed me to focus so I could finish everything up. Since an assignment was due today, my e-mail box is flooded and thus, it's time to begin checking them all out. Back to the grind!

~:[CH2 - Day 22]:~ Child's Play

~:[CH2 - Day 22]:~ Child's Play

Dylan is back in the album (twice this year already). He came for a visit to practice as his dad, Damon, went on a run with the team. He came holding a brown marker, a comb, and a bag of sweet Maui onion chips. I took interest in the chips and when he didn't want any, I gladly helped myself to a few, then a few more. Of course, as I did, Dylan wanted some and proceeded to eat the rest of the bag, to my dismay. He learned to wipe off his hands after every chip, sadly, he did it on my pants and jacket, leaving me with chip residue all over my clothes.  In the end, we had a good time and he left with a belly full of chips. Still hungry, I grabbed eight pizzas and headed off to my Georgetown grills. The seniors were hilarious and entertained us through the night as we began counting down to our trip (just over two weeks away). It seems just as I unpack, I must pack again. In any case, I had a productive day - parent meeting, grading, and just catching up on things. Unfortunately, tomorrow will not be the same. While I may learn something tomorrow, I think was not the most thought out plan to be required to miss a day of school for training the week before finals. Sadly, it is the students who will suffer because of this at the cost of preparing for more testing.

~:[CH2 - Day 21]:~ Hitting Refresh

~:[CH2 - Day 21]:~ Hitting Refresh

After the weekend, the Monday was not only a day off, but a day to hit the reset button and refresh myself by catching up on all that I missed including some sleep and some work that I needed to do. While I did not complete everything on my to do list, I was able to be prepped for tomorrow, clean up a bit (physically and electronically), complete my taxes (except for waiting on verifying my final numbers on my W-2), as well as begin preparations to make some changes in my room and also my life. My computer and phone also had a refresher as I recovered my computer and updated my phone. It's so strange that all this could occur on a single day, but sometimes it makes you think, it's more than just coincidence. CoCo Ichibanya and Yogurtland were the toppers for the day, as I caught up with Jamie, who left hibernation to eat.

~:[CH2 - Day 20]:~ Simply Fresh

~:[CH2 - Day 20]:~ Simply Fresh

There's nothing more refreshing than eating a great meal ... well I lied ... actually, eating a great meal on a night you got to catch up with a number of people is even more refreshing. The food I ate today was amazing and tasted better than it looked. While it fell on the higher end of the scale, I guess sometimes you get what you pay for. Catching up with a pseudo-daughter and a few other friends before heading home was a much needed night out and I definitely can say that the food is going to to keep me smiling for awhile. The day was consumed with MUN, as our school attended the Mission Viejo Conference. We had an interesting mix of delegates at the conference, but I was able to see some good performances including with our sophomore earning a gavel in the ICC. The conference had a great custom omelet bar and pasta bar plus add in a stop at Micasa and Tapioca Express. My stomach will be happy tonight, hopefully my cough disappears so in the morning, I will feel simply fresh.

~:[CH2 - Day 19]:~ Having a Ball

~:[CH2 - Day 19]:~ Having a Ball

What's more fun than a day without an agenda??? Today was quite the cool and relaxing day I had hoped for, as I had nothing to accomplish during the day and many hours to do it. I found out that Makoa had a basketball game and I went to it. Their team was amazing with good scorers and aggressive players. Obviously it's not a full game at this age, but you could see the skills the team had. Makoa was close on his three shots today, but I did not get to see him make a basket as he did last week. However, it was fun to see everyone play, including the one player who had such great skills dribbling and I think was 4 for 4 shooting. Definitely a future baller. The rest of the day was dedicated to grading and catching up on things I have not done. Of course, some of them remain undone, but I am proud of just letting the hours waste away. Tomorrow will be another full day, so I guess the days of rest are gone, as tomorrow will be just the opposite!

~:[CH2 - Day 18]:~ Philosophically Speaking

~:[CH2 - Day 18]:~ Philosophically Speaking

Today, we finished our second day of our class activity, the philsophers' forum, adapted from Diane's amazing files of assignments. Over the past few years, our one day activity turns into a two day one and could be three days if I had enough teaching days, as we always end up with more hands raised than we have time. I'm glad that the students enjoy this unit so much and take so much pride in representing their characters and playing their roles. For the first time, even the press made a amazing speech, trying to sway those present of the need for the freedom of the press. Regardless, it was a great way to end the week and head into our final regular week of the semester. I got news that I would only be doing one day of the conference this weekend, so now, I must figure out what I am to do with tomorrow. Any ideas??? :)

~:[CH2 - Day 17]:~ A Mock Up

~:[CH2 - Day 17]:~ A Mock Up

Today was a day of mock ups. We did a simulation in class today that has always been one of my favorites. What was even cooler was that teachers were walking from class to class observing today. I was surprised to see so many teachers walk into my second period class. As always, I told a lame joke in class and while I got used to the sound of crickets, I heard Holly laughing in the corner. It made my day. My best class performance of the day was in fifth period who built quite the heated debate in class. After the normal schedule, I hit up practice before heading home to grade papers. I was distracted all night with a stage it concert and the Clippers game on, so I have not been as productive as I should have been. In addition, I did my Ragnar signups today (MooMoo & PooPoo) as well and then took some time out to make a few quick mock ups of our buttons. Cross country is making custom buttons for people who have designs they want to convert into buttons for any reason from 1 to 1,000. While we are selling Valentines and St. Patrick Day buttons on campus, we also are making buttons for anyone interested! All proceeds go towards the athletes and the team so it's for a good cause and our prices are fairly reasonable, but we did need to allow the athletes to feel as if it was worth it for them to take on this venture. In any case, I feel like button making has now taken over my life :)

~:[CH2 - Day 16]:~ Sadie's Lovin' Bringing the Heat

~:[CH2 - Day 16]:~ Sadie's Lovin' Bringing the Heat

The weather began to take a turn for the better, as the "arctic chill" that we have received, began to disappear, as my class held their Sadie Hawkin's Dance premier. Our Grease-based theme, Sadie's Lovin' performed as this "cold" (torture to Californians) began to fade away as the sun peeked out, beginning a stretch of days in the 70s. Regardless, I am proud of my class, as they did such a great job putting together the show. We also had a few cross country nominees for Sadies Court, which always makes me proud. Later in the day, after grabbing my normal milk team, we had our basketball game, where we played three solid quarters against the first place team in our league. Unfortunately, there are four quarters and ended up squandering our lead, but knowing that we had a pretty good game overall. Regardless, my night was left to grading position papers, which it will be again tomorrow. However, I can be proud that soon I will be lovin' the heat coming our directions. I guess it's time to watch Grease again.

~:[CH2 - Day 15]:~ Jam Packed

~:[CH2 - Day 15]:~ Jam Packed

I looked at today's schedule knowing how crazy it would be, but after going through it, I realized how much I enjoyed it. I love when my days are so full that I don't get to think too much because at the end of the day, I feel accomplished. After a busy day at work trying to stay on top of things, I squeezed in an editing session for tomorrow's video, packed away some cookies that I was giving away, then headed back to practice bundles up, which obviously was not enough. Although us SoCalers are so weak, it was quite cold, colder than New York this past weekend in fact. How do I know? Remember, I was just there :) After practice, I jammed to Domino's, had enough time to grab the pizzas, before heading back to school to setup for grills. Grills went well - intense yet fun, as always. I then rushed out again to LA to catch up with the OC, as I grabbed some hot stone bibimbap, which may have been Americanized, but it was still delicious, and dropped off a few cookies around the area. It was great catching up with people and made me realize that I need to do things like this more often. As tired as I will be tomorrow, it was worth every ounce of energy. With that last ounce, I began my 12:01am shopping for items I have put off until now. I can now sleep in peace in the warmth of my bed and under all five of my blankets.

~:[CH2 - Day 14]:~ Back in the Habit, Sort Of

~:[CH2 - Day 14]:~ Back in the Habit, Sort Of

It was back to work today after a weekend in New York, however, I wasn't quite back on track yet. After a fairly good day, I took a short nap in my car before practice and woke up midway through the warm up with a knock on the window. Who did I see??? Damon, Dylan and Elmo. While I may not have quite caught up yet, I am getting back into the groove already. I've got a lot going on this week, so hopefully I can make it through in once piece. I miss New York dearly already, but I guess it won't be long before I am back. 

~:[CH2 - Day 13]:~ Out of the Comfort Zone

~:[CH2 - Day 13]:~ Out of the Comfort Zone

Today, I got to catch up with my friend Sandy who went to the same high school as I did and who I have been lucky enough to keep in contact since. I still remember first meeting her in my math class  and boy was it an interesting class. In any case, I got to go to her church and the message for the day is my topic for today's blog. The pastor talked about how we must go outside of our comfort zone in order to reach God, as we must do more than simply the normal routine of praying for things we need, yet not always doing what we need to please God. In any case, it really made me thing about life in general of how if we really want to make progress and go further, we must step out of our bounds and just see what happens. We can't always trust that things will work out perfectly, however, if you never go out on a limb and give it a shot, you'll never really know if you can progress or not. While there was more to the message, I felt that it was definitely something I could share with everyone. Trips like these are exactly what I need to do just that ... go in, with a semi-structured plan and then just see where things go. Heading to places I've never been, breaking the normal routine, and just looking for adventure, wherever it may be. It may not work out perfectly, but sometimes those mistakes are what will make the trip extra special. While I am now back at home and getting ready for work tomorrow, I will carry a piece of New York with me and I am not talking about the dozens of cookies I brought home. Until March New York, good night.

~:[CH2 - Day 12]:~ Spectacular

~:[CH2 - Day 12]:~ Spectacular

Despite a late wakeup and a closed UN building, today was quite a loaded day with stops through Grand Central, Madison Square Garden, White Castle, Levain's, Dylan's, Shake Shack, Space Billiards and around Korea Way before sitting around in Times Square. While I will be back soon, I was definitely sad that this will be my last night here. I know my cold will like being home. However, tonight, all I can think about in describing New York is, spectacular.

~:[CH2 - Day 11]:~ Empire State of Mind

~:[CH2 - Day 11]:~ Empire State of Mind

Today was one of the longest days as I arrived in New York at 7:20am after a red eye and headed out for the day in New York. Our driver ended up choosing the worst routes and our drive took awhile yet we were still on schedule. The hotel had our room ready early so we cleaned up and headed out. Much has changed in lower Manhattan due to hurricane Sandy with the islands closed and some subways out of service. With time, we hit up Ippudo, then back to the 9/11 memorial, the NYSE and Wall Street, Federal Hall, before heading to Chinatown, SoHo and Little Italy. Shopping was fun but tiring as we picked up our combos over rice and took short naps before seeing the amazing Barklay's Center. All was great except the Suns played a bad second half and I lost my famed yellow scarf somewhere. (I already ordered a replacement.) After hitting Empire and Times Square, we took it easy with some food and drinks as we ended the night with Looper. Tomorrow we got an early rise, so until then, good night New York. You may not sleep but I need to sleep in a bed every once in awhile.

~:[CH2 - Day 10]:~ Venturing on an Adventure

~:[CH2 - Day 10]:~ Venturing on an Adventure

After a long week of late nights and getting back into the swing of things, it's finally time to head off to the city I love the most. It took a lot to get to this day after a long week summed up by my seniors who looked so exhausted that I gave them a seven minute naptime. It felt like kindergarten but it was much needed. I finally got to heading towards LA with a stop at UCLA to eat at feast. It was nice running into a few alumni such as Albert (thanks for the emergency swipes), Mike, Tong, and Tiffany as well as my dinner group including Kelvin and Hannah. In any case, after a great meal, Infinally can breathe, relax, and get ready to sleep. The check in process was smoothe, the tsa guy asked how long it takes me to make my piece of art (hair), and my weekend begins today. See you soon NYC!

~:[CH2 - Day 9]:~ Packing Light

~:[CH2 - Day 9]:~ Packing Light

I realized I am packing fairly light, as I take one last look at my suitcase, ready to head to New York. It was quite the busy day today, but in the end, it was focused on the end of it so I could get prepped for my trip tomorrow. While I won't be leaving until later in the evening, I needed to be packed before I left for work tomorrow. I am so excited, as this is the city that I would be living in, if I was not here in SoCal. Who knows, I love it so much, I may just move there, of course, it wouldn't be any time soon. I guess to those I will not see at work tomorrow, I will see you next week or sometime thereafter.

~:[CH2 - Day 8]:~ Avoiding the Deep FREEze

~:[CH2 - Day 8]:~ Avoiding the Deep FREEze

I paid special attention to dressing warm today, as I layered up my clothes in case of cold weather. While it actually warmed up more than I thought it was, I am glad I did as I stayed warm through the day ... much warmer than I was yesterday. Of course, shabu shabu plus our free drink did a lot to keep the cold away. It was great catching up with Jamie and I think the food was just enough. Today ended up being a pretty good day despite the fact that I was grading through most of it. While I was able to catch up to where I should be, I still have a lot of work to do to be where I need to be. Of course, the way that this year has started so far, I am looking forward to what is to come. While my schedule is busier than it ever has been, I am very excited that it is, as I am going to be catching up with more people than I have ever done in this short of an amount of time. Well, while I think this weather is cold, just wait until I head back east in a few days.

~:[CH2 - Day 7]:~ Chicken Soup for the Soul

~:[CH2 - Day 7]:~ Chicken Soup for the Soul

Sometimes you just need that something to revive you when you feel that all is lost or in a lull ... a great chat with an old friend, something great to look forward to (like a weekend trip to NY), something as simple as chicken soup, or all of the above. In actuality, my first day back was pretty great and I felt like it was quite the success. While there were bumps along the way, I survived standing, avoiding the TKO. I guess we all seek out that chicken soup that we hope can keep us going through the day and through our lives and hopefully it makes all that we are battling, manageable. I've had such a strange mix today, but in the end, it all went down with a bowl of chicken soup. Thank goodness.

~:[CH2 - Day 6]:~ Required Attire

~:[CH2 - Day 6]:~ Required Attire

While this picture was taken yesterday, I thought it was something I needed to mark down in the history that is my daily photo log. For some, you may not think anything of this picture, for others, you may be wondering, WHAT IN THE WORLD HAPPENED? For those that don't know, I have been a diehard Clipper fan for as long as I could remember, sitting behind the basket in the Sports Arena cheering on the Clippers, attending every playoff game I could as they moved to the Staples Center, and cheering for them at their lowest points and now as they have risen. Why then am I wearing a Lakers shirt (for the first time I can remember)? At our annual coaches gift exchange, we receive different things and if we receive something, we are normally "required" to wear it. Instead of having to wearing it on the first day of school, I wore it to a Saturday practice and now I can burn it, never to be seen again. Really, Chazmine is going to take it off my hands, but I would burn it in a second. Regardless, it was much easier to stomach since the Clippers took the game that Friday and it was easy to post today since they lost to the Nuggets. They'll probably figure things out, but until they do, I'll enjoy watching the Clippers play with this day becoming a memory I will bury, never to be revisited again. (THIS POST WILL SELF DESTRUCT IN 3, 2, 1 ... )

http://espn.go.com/blog/los-angeles/clippers/post/_/id/3452/what-lakers-fans-love-telling-clippers-fans

~:[CH2 - Day 5]:~ When Two Become One

~:[CH2 - Day 5]:~ When Two Become One

I guess the Spice Girls said it best in their song, when two become one and it was for two reasons. For one, today felt like two days wrapped into one with a trip out to LA to eat at Tsujita LA with Derek for some char sui tsukemen, a stopover at the gym to wear my gifted Lakers gear (one of the first Laker shirts I have worn in recent memory - at least the Clippers won on Friday), caught some of the Packers games and kept track of the Clippers route of the Warriors, and I finished with a beautiful wedding reception in Westminster, where two truly did become one, as I danced the night away with Van, Nina, and some relatives :) It amazing how so much can be fit into one day but even more amazing of how special a union of two souls could be. I am so glad to have been part of this special moment and was quite entertained by the moves of Van's aunt and uncle. Good times! :)

~:[CH2 - Day 4]:~ Fresh New Faces

~:[CH2 - Day 4]:~ Fresh New Faces

I have a few new faces around my room thanks to Jenn who added a few things to my wild collection of things in my office and my room. However, it was much more of a gift to spend some time catching up and just shooting the breeze. It's so weird how it's been just over fifteen years since we first met and we still keep in touch and are able to catch up. It's friendships like these that makes life so special! Tonight, I got to catch up with the coaches as we did our normal Friday night post-game meals. It's nice having the group together and even better that we watched the Clippers and Lakers game, considering we are split into three ... Lakers fans, Clippers fans, and "others." It was especially fun since the game went back and forth. I was a little worried with us not having our second best scorer tonight in Crawford, but CP3 stepped up his game down the stretch. I spent most of the remainder of the day getting ready for today's high school game - prepping programs and finishing the starting lineup video, however, I also took a little bit of time out to try and shoot my first vlog of my year-long project. We'll see how it goes.

~:[CH2 - Day 3]:~ Motivation

~:[CH2 - Day 3]:~ Motivation

I did not get this medal today, but last April. Last year I entered something that I figured I was crazy to be apart of because it sounded so incredibly difficult. For a team to do a 200+ mile relay from Huntington Beach to San Diego sounded ridiculous and I was completely right, well almost. It was RIDICULOUSLY fun. I am so excited to do this race again that I am actually going to start training soon for it. Me, TRAIN for a race. Yes, I may even exceed the mileage I am suppose to do unlike the marathons and half marathons of the past. The race is like a mini road trip with so many experiences good and bad, soreness, fatigue, pit stops, a feel of a camp out as you try to sleep in 90 degree heat or in the middle of nowhere at night, the lights on decorated vans, counting the kills marks on others, running in the heat of the day and the chill of the dark evening with the only thing you can see being the reflectors on the people around you, the thrill of the teams at the exchange zones, seeing people dressed up just having a great time on a two hundred mile journey. The feeling of crossing the line together as a team was great and I am glad that I accepted that challenge and that Wesley organized it. In any case, I guess it's a good lesson for life, sometimes those things you think you are incapable of are the opportunities you need to discover that there are hidden treasures all around. I will never forget this 30 hour trek and I hope that 2013 will provide just as awesome of an experience. Three months and 15 days to train. Mark your calendars - April 19-20. Let's do this :)

~:[CH2 - Day 2]:~ It's Not for a Resolution but a Revolution

~:[CH2 - Day 2]:~ It's Not for a Resolution but a Revolution

I woke up early today when I really didn't have to and went to my alma mater to play some basketball. For those who have not played with me, I normally get rebounds and some steals and just play defense but every once in awhile I will hit a few runners, three pointers and maybe, if I am lucky, a layup :) ... today, I made two threes, a layup and a jumper in the same game :) ... yahoo ... of course, playing basketball was not for a new year's resolution to exercise, just a revolution to do more in life :) Afterwards, we hit up CoCo Ichibanya for some curry where I ran into an old high school friend. For my delicious dish, I got a sliced beef curry with natto and gyoza! I also was able to stop by 85 degrees and pick me up a nice little snack before heading back home to take care of some errands before the game which included my stop at TapEx. Can you tell, no resolution? I then headed to our game against Norwalk, which we edged out 46-43 despite a poor shooting night in our first game of the season. All in all, it was a great real first day of the year, since it is the first day I actually can get myself to do anything. My resolution? Well, one of them is to do as many new things as possible. Very attainable and I am motoring through the list ... BTW, did I tell you I am officially going to Europe for a quick trek after school is out??? :D Yahoo! 

~:[CH2 - Day 1]:~ Tradition

~:[CH2 - Day 1]:~ Tradition
In my life, I do not recall missing a Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve or New Year celebration with my family. I am not sure what made me ensure that I am around on those days in the past, but as I have grown older, I cherish each of these days more and more. Looking at pictures and videos from our past celebrations makes me realize just how special these traditions are. Along with the lucky noodles, fish, beans and more to ring in a new year, I think the luckiest part of it all is being able to spend it with my friends and especially my family. Here's to a great New Year!