Home Sweet Home

I have three places I call home: my apartment in Louisville, my mom's house in SC, and my dad's house in NC. So it's always funny and occasionally confusing when I say "I'm home!" Back from a few days at the beach. The weather was wonderful, and there were lots of lovely tide pools to lay and relax in on our last day. I met my cousin Emily's cousin on her mother's side (so I guess she's like an extended cousin by marriage?). Her name is Marianne, and she's from Germany! Her mother is Vietnamese, and her father is French. She's really nice and fun. Also met the two most adorable twin Vietnamese girls! They were adopted by a couple who used to live next door and is good friends with one of my uncles. They were so small and cute and reminded me of me and my sister when we were little.

Hrrrmmm...not much to say. Nothing too particularly exciting. Went crab hunting one night and caught a crab with my bare hands! I got pinched twice in the process! I still have the marks on my finger. The crabs were really small, they're not in season this time of year. My uncle caught one really large rock crab using a trap. Also, my cousin Khoa saw Andrew Zimmerman eat sand crabs/sand fleas when he went to Thailand. So my family dug up a huge load of sand crabs, battered them, and deep fried them. I didn't try one, but my cousin Kim said they tasted like a combination of shrimp and crab. Such is my family; they are pretty hardcore when it comes to catching fresh seafood.

Now at Barnes and Noble just chilling and mooching off the free wi-fi. Going to Golden Corral shortly; my dad says he likes the buffet there better than the Chinese buffet. The only reason to go to the Chinese buffet is the unlimited crab legs and sushi. Posting a few pics of the vacation, more later.

Vacation: Take 2

On my second and last vacation of the summer. I was actually somewhat reluctant to go because I'm kind of vacationed out after Florida and the cruise to the Caribbean. Also, I just started my new job at the KY Center, and hate to lose hours not long after I've started. This time, I'm on vacation with MY FAMILY--a bunch of crazy Asians all of them, no exaggeration. I flew out of Louisville this morning with only a 15 minute delay and made it just in time for my connecting flight to Augusta--yay for no extensive delays or layovers!

Once in Augusta, my sister and I went to Atlanta Bread Company for lunch. We came home, she ran errands while I talked with my mom and attempted to sneak in a nap which lasted for about 5 minutes max. We went shopping at the Aiken mall because it's tax free weekend in SC. I came out with a sophisticated, white blazer jacket for about $17 from Dillards. I'm picky about my clothes and am unwilling to pay over $20 for a polyester cotton blend shirt much less $40 on a pair of pants--granted it was buy one get one for $1! Even though it was tax free weekend and my mother was paying, if I wouldn't pay for the clothes with my own money why should I make my mom? Then again I doubt my mom would consent. I kind of wanted to pick up a cool book of essays on True Blood and Philosphy. I read one about Sookie and how she reflects the conflicts between feminists and the feminists movement. It's philosophy "lite" and geared toward a much more casual, albeit educated audience--definitely not towards academics.

Tomorrow, my sister and I are driving to NC and will not be getting lost this time, especially because we are leaving early in the morning! We are going to see our Dad and all our relatives on his side. Monday, we're heading to the beach for several days (more driving); everyone's already there and waiting for us. I'm going to tan, enjoy listening to Vietnamese karaoke going on ALL DAY, hang out with my cousins, eat twenty times a day, and oh yeah, swim in the ocean and maybe read more of Pillars of the Earth. 

California-Nia...

Is nice to the homeless... I love the South Park episode: Night of the Living Homeless. Their version of 2Pacs California Lovin' never fails to crack me up. Though I doubt the area of CA where all the wedding stuff is taking place is nice to the homeless. My mother is snoring like a beast; my sister is snoring too, but she sounds more human. I slept for maybe three or four hours. My body is all out of whack going from KY to CA.


Vacations for my family 8/10 times always end up more stressful, boring, and unfun than relaxing, exciting, and fun. Currently, we're in CA for my aunt Hanh's wedding. We had a to rent a car and drive ourselves around. This is really difficult because 1) we forgot the GPS 2) we're not from here 3) my aunts that live here are not much help because they are too busy running around with wedding stuff to drive us or guide us to locations. Thankfully, we discovered my mom's phone has a GPS system, and we can try it out for free for 30 days. My poor mom is so disoriented, frustrated, and stressed out. Thankfully, my aunt from Arizona and her family are staying in the same hotel as us. They're more comfortable and familiar with driving around the area, so we can follow them.

The rehearsal dinner tonight was at an Italian restuarant called Vero's. I was expecting a big, hearty pasta dinner. However, none of the dinner choices included pasta except the kids; they got to eat Bolognaise which looked really good. I ate red snapper in a tomatoe sauce (not like spaghetti tomatoe sauce); not bad, subtle flavor, but I really was craving pasta. I think the best part of the meal was dessert: tiramisu and cappucino. I keep thinking of the movie Super Bad (awesome movie by the way): When am I going to fucking need to know how to make fucking tiramisu! The actual quote according to IMDB is

"Look, we all know home-ec is a joke - no offense - it's just that everyone takes this class to get an A, and it's bullshit - and I'm sorry. I'm not putting down your profession, but it's just the way I feel. I don't want to sit here, all by myself, cooking this shitty food - no offense - and I just think that I don't need to cook tiramisu. Am I going to be a chef? No. There's three weeks left of school, give me a fuckin' break! I'm sorry for cursing."

It's kind of fun being with all my family. My cousins look so different; the last time I saw my cousins Nathaniel and Jonathan--they were both smaller. Nathan is now super tall, with long hair, and still very opinionated just on things like religion and politics. He likes arguing and doesn't  mind going up against the entire family when they're all start harping him about religion. He was also the only person in my family to know that Old English is Anglo-Saxon English and to be impressed by the fact I could read and translate it. Jonathan still has a baby face and looks so precious. He's twelve--too old for me to scoop him up, hug him, and kiss him. My cousin Theodore looks way different with a shaved head and long beard. I didn't even recognize him. I thought to myself, "who is this slightly creepy looking guy sitting at our family's table?" Then my aunt said this is your cousin, "Theo." "Oh...way to go..." was my mental response I think it's funny how my aunts think it's necessary to introduce me to all my relatives like I've never met them, even my grandparents--granted, I haven't seen them in over ten years.


Today is the wedding day. I love weddings and analyzing their different styles. I'm looking more forward to the reception. From what I've been told, there will be lots of good booze, 80s music, and dancing. The second is the most important factor to me because I can't drink heavily due to being small and Asian.

I'm seriously considering sleeping out in the lobby area of the hotel. There's a large solid but comfy wooden bench. There's a cushy couch in the front desk area...somehow I don't think the hotel manager would appreciate or allow me to sleep there long. My sister suggested the cushy lounge chairs in the pool area. I also thought about the bathtub in our room. Dustin tells me from personal experience that bathtubs are actually very comfortable. The door almost completely blocks the sound of my mother's snoring.

I feel like I should make a more interesting blog post than this. I actually made a lot of notes in my head during dinner about snarky and amusing things to say about the meal and guests. However, I feel they're more suited to actual conversation rather than blog post. I think I'm going to continue eating my pack of goldfishes and read a fantasy novel until I start feeling sleepy or finish the book.

Bookstore Bliss

Bookstores always have a calming, happy feel to them. I know the ins and outs of each store whether used, new, local or chain. I weigh the pros and cons of the memberships of the main stores. Some people are shopaholics, go nuts and spend tons on designer clothes, shoes, accessories. All rules and budget ideas go out the window in the bookstore, especially if there's a good variety in the clearance section. Also, just simply being in a bookstore helps cure the blues and make you forget about life. It's a whole different world in the bookstore--each has their own ambiance. I bought the beautiful leather collector's edition of Wicked and Son of Witch (combined in one) for only $19.98.

I found a really great book which I didn't purchase, but am planning to. It's called More than Heaving Bosoms; it's all about the genre of romance novels and why women love them. I read bits and pieces in the store. It's so funny and doesn't make me feel guilty for wanting to read trashy romance novels or at least the smutty parts. One of the cool things discussed in the book is the transition in plot formulas from the 70s-80s to the 90s-2000s. The writers also have a blog called Smart Bitches, Trashy Books.

Other books of note: 500 Manga Heroes and Villians and The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane--the latter is recommended by Barnes and Noble and sounds really fascinating.

My other aunt from California is flying in tomorrow. It's becoming easier to forget somebody who really wasn't part of our family to begin with. My mom's biggest worries about the debt left behind have been eased; she's not responsible--thanks goodness. It's been the three of us for so long, and it's not hard to go back to it. I think it was the trauma of the event that made us all feel so horrible and sad. This is the last I'm talking/thinking about it today. No more. Hopefully, soon, I'll get to the point where I don't think about it at all.

Going back to watching the Starter Wife--I'm hooked. My sister and I rented it from the library and been watching non-stop.

Staying Strong

I am so grateful to have a wonderful family and group of friends. They have been crucial to helping me and my mom and sister get through this terrible event. I heard the whole story from where it started in KY and how it ended it SC. I learned a lot of things that really scared and hurt me further. However, they were things I had to know that were nagging at me. Now that I know, I can have closure, forget them, and move on. My family is one made up entirely of women, and we are strong. It's been the three of us for a long time, and it's the three of us again. We may argue and complain about each other sometimes, but we love one another dearly. What hurts one, hurts us all. Nothing will break our bond and spirit! Our lives will not stop because of one selfish person's actions. We will forever remain strong and prevail and move on with our lives!