happenings

wow a lot has happened. I am engaged as of May 2010. he had the most romatic proposal at point lobos in carmel. we were at china beach when he got down on his knees on the narrow, dirty, overgrown stairs leading down to a white sand beach with baby seals! it took me a good 30 seconds AFTER the ring was on my finger for it to register. I was too busy being perturbed that his nice slacks were getting dirty and wondering why he was kneeling. haha.

yesterday he picked up the keys for our first house together. yes, i know, we are not married yet! i do not plan to move in until after the wedding in Feb. :) however we ate our first dinner out of plastic containers while sitting on the deck overlooking the garden and koi pond. later that evening we did our first home improvement task and tore down the cabinets in the laundry room since the new washer dryer will be too tall. (we bought a fancy front load system. ) yay!!!

life is good. very very good. well worth the wait. :)

roses

i got roses today just because i make him smile. he makes me smile too. :O)

it's the little things he does

things i notice that make me smile:

he always opens the car door for me
when we go running, he runs on the side which has traffic so i am "safe"
he plans the whole weekend - hotel, car, flight before i even have the chance to think about it
he remembers my favorite things even though i mention it only once
he laughs at my quirks and loves them
he laughs at my corny jokes
he not only happily attends my family dinner, but he socializes with everyone and he thanks me for inviting him
he kisses me multiple times in the middle of the night while we are sleeping
he txts me good morning
he brags to his friends and family about me because he is so proud of my accomplishments
he isn't daunted by my critical parents
he tells me i'm beautiful and amazing...all the time
when we drive, he holds my hand
he also kisses me on the hand...randomly
he loves watching me laugh so much that he rewinds the movie just to see me laugh again
he gives me massages even when i don't ask for one
he loves his dog and treats her like a princess
he loves his family and calls them often
he cooks breakfast for me
he loves my cooking so much he ate his whole huge plate of food and polished off the his friend's plate too
he brings me water whenever he thinks i'm thirsty - i don't have to ask
he notices i'm not drinking the water because the cap is on and my hands are full so he opens the bottle for me
he tells me to sit and relax while he takes care of things
he loves to do things i've never done and it makes him visibly happy to find something novel to do

=)=)=)

hugs and sneakers

hug it out

after watching an episode of gray's anatomy streaming online, it got me remembering about something i had read a long time ago. basically one of the characters was freaking out and needed someone to hug her to calm her down. she explained the physiological reaction which started with hugs - which would eventually lower her heart rate and reduce her hyper ventilation.

when i was little i read the same information and every day after my dad came back from work i would give him a big bear hug in hopes it would make him healthier and live longer. asian dads are not always the huggy type ;) my mom however loooooves hugs. she will give bear hugs randomly at any hour of the day, any time she sees one of her kids or hubby. even though i like to give hugs just because...it somehow motivates me to give good hugs not only to family but also to friends after learning about the increased oxcytocin. fun fact about me - i consciously make an effort to give good hugs when i say goodbye to friends and family. don't be alarmed if i squeeze you tightly. haha.

more fun facts about me? i have an illogical addiction to discounts. they make me very happy. i bought running shoes recently - orig price $168. but i got them for $89 after a sale and an additional $10 off coupon. sure there were other shoes which were discounted 30% and would mean only $60 out of pocket - asics and new balance - good running shoes. however i like to be able to say I got more than 50% off. when i went running with the new shoes, it made my shins hurt a little. but i was determined to keep the shoes since i got such a good deal! so i ran again - and it seems they hurt less as they get more broken in. haha. yay! i love it when my determination pays off. haha.

one last fun fact about me? i lose my voice a lot because i can't stop talking. i talk so much that sometimes i get a sore throat. i continue talking even with the sore throat, and then i lose my voice. i can't shut up! thank goodness for the internet to allow me to release my thoughts other than verbally.

jook cook welcomes the year of the ox!

happy chinese new year everyone! lots of fun things in the next few weeks to bring in the new year. more about those later. but first! jook!

yesterday we had a jook cook off at diana's house. ohhh man what a throw down! my opponent - dave. master of all things flavorwave. his culinary genius is astounding - evident by his knowledge of seasonings, meats, and his dedication to pastrami. (a brick of pastrami was carefully walked across the brooklyn bridge because of a transportation strike and flown all the way back to california. yeah...hardcore. it was pastrami from katz deli. i really need to try it sometime.) i learned that i was using ginger that was too young and about the differences in flavor depending on which part of the ginger root you use.

mine was the traditional cantonese style pei dan and pork jook. I used the special pot in which you bring it to a boil for 15 min and then transfer it to another case to slow cook. pork was marinated in soy sauce, salt and a little white pepper. added very thin slices of ginger to the jook. also brought some spicy scallops and green onions to put on top. dave made an abalone jook made with chicken stock. he was supposed to make the jook taiwan style with previously cooked rice. however diana misunderstood a text message and there was no premade rice. haha. btw the lack of cooked rice then started a poll to decipher said text message. i remained impartial.

jen made awesome snickerdoodles which we topped with vanilla ice cream right outta the oven. dave also made some mackerel in the flavorwave oven seasoned with salt and chili. all yummm.

was a fun evening full of good food and great chat...helped along by wine and vodka tonics. haha. i fell asleep before 11.

pics to follow

it's been a while

i know it's been a while. been too busy to post. also sometimes i feel i can't be truly candid on here. but i suppose i should give some updates.

been at the new job for a few months now. love the job but at times it's definitely challenging. it's all about influencing without authority and utilizing interpersonal skills. i still feel like i really haven't been able to really dig into it, but i need to push myself to take those extra steps. i have a book elaine bought me on some of the finer points of investment M&A and venture capital which i still have to finish reading. it's been a great experience meeting with some of the top vc's and banks. still more to go! i'm really excited about getting the opportunity to "look under the hood" and see what goes on behind the scenes. it's an opportunity of a lifetime that i've been given and i'm thankful each day that i was so fortunate. *happy*

yogurt shop is still up and running, but less time to put there now and really hard to balance everything i want to do. been lucky elaine has been able to put in a lot more time. but i feel like the first year i put in a lot since i was there every day almost. although, so was she. maybe i just don't have as much energy? i'm getting lazy about it. need to change that.

went to HK for cousin's wedding, had an awesome time. people keep asking what i did there, expecting to hear tons of stories of fun parties, eating, etc. actually the best part was just hanging out with my cousins, aunt and uncles, my grandpa, and just seeing how they are day to day. everyone is getting older, priorities have changed. i see how my cousin and his new wife love eachother and how each day they still have to deal with all the distractions of daily life, living together. they realized that you have to get married when the relationship is at a high point. when that moment has passed, it's different. i see how goo ma and goo jeung cherish eachother more now that they are older. goo jieh is happier now and sad to see her daughter engaged only because that means she will be staying in toronto and not moving back to HK. she's engaged to a doctor so i'm assuming that goo jieh approves of her fiance. however from what i'm told, fiance's family is difficult to get along with since they are not very easy going and extremely particular. grandpa seems lonelier and keeps telling me that a simple lifestyle is better because when you work too much, you worry too much. he seems like he wishes things were different, however if put in the same situations again, he would have made the same decisions because he believed they were right. i completely understand how he feels. i've made decisions in my life too which might not have ended up right, but at the time i would not have changed my decision.

fitness: went on a 2 hour high intensity hike and also went running in HK. then i got sick. doh. went on a date saturday and as part of the date we went to work out at the gym in four seasons. great gym! kinda funny that i ended up at a gym during a date, but oh well! haven't been since saturday but will go gymming wednesday. i want to push myself harder to watch my diet to really see results. for the past few years, i'm just at equilibrium. i don't really gain but i don't really lose either.

love life...well i've been meeting people. i still talk to L though as friends. many times i find myself thinking - this guy and that guy, although they are fine, they are not as cute, funny, driven as L. but, i also know i'm remembering my feelings for L at happier times. when i think of the last few months of out relationship, i still remember how unhappy i was the day we broke up. it makes me sad that i was so happy with him but just seems like some things were not a match. things that seemingly were small, but over time they are big things. in observing my relatives, i can see how all my mom's words are right. it's important not only to choose the person, but the family and upbringing make a huge difference when over 20-30 years. i hate that my mom is right. and it's difficult because the feelings i had overshadowed L's list of traits by far. it's not everyday i fall in love.

but...in meeting all the new people lately, it's hard to find that perfect person. the people i'm attracted to and have the most chemistry with are not the same people that have the best "list" for a future husband.

*sigh*

murray

there was a boy i had a HUGE crush on when i was in 7th and 8th grade. murray. i just found him on facebook because there have been a bunch of st. andrews connections there recently. he's so not cute anymore! he looks so....average and fat.

there were two other girls i found also, i had thought they were my friends but they ditched me at great america and i was so sad i was crying. now they look old and are stay at home moms. boy, i'm really glad people still ask me what college i go to when i dress down. i was so traumatized back then by those girls. but i have to say, that experience changed how i view the world. i try to include everyone i know in anything i plan - even the quiet ones.

i'm supposed to meet up with one of the "popular" boys for lunch. he has a family of 4 kids now. FOUR!!! i doubt he will recognize me. i was so nerdy and quiet back then!