May 17, 2003

Oh my. Whatta day whatta day. It was busy:

  1. Woke up at 7:00am, breakfasted, went for an hour of circuit training followed by a half hour of cardio.
  2. Quick shower, met with dad and company for congee and noodles. Finished at ~11:30.
  3. Stopped at the library to borrow some Sopranos: Season 2 (muahaha...i have them ALL kiddies!!! and I'll have them for another week :), did some minor grocery shopping at Save-On Foods, returned home to refrigerate all perishables.
  4. Went to Costco with mum and Sarah and complained about how narrow the checkout lines were, how rude the sampling people are, and how the parking lot desparately needs paving.
  5. More shopping at Lougheed Mall, where we visited not one, but TWO dollar stores and Walmart for some cheap goodies.
  6. Short nap at home (i was very pooped!)
  7. All-you-can-eat Japanese at Kamei on Broadway where I became very uneasy, embarassed and disgusted by my father's eating habits.
  8. Fuming, I returned home, changed into PJs and tried to get another nap in before finishing my applied Bernoulli's and Homogenization / Standardization / Centrifugation of milk. Was unsuccessful...
  9. ...because Mark called me and we had a great conversation about etiquette, The Sopranos, and how we would bitch-slap ourselves if we went back in time to our early adolescence and childhood.
  10. ..and because my cousin invited me out to cheesecake etc. with my aunt.
  11. Talked smack with my aunt and cousin about scandalous secrets, laughed about my uncles' haircut experience.

Now I'm back at home and finally getting some "me and computer" time. You know? You need this time. This time for me is like what coffee is to Izzy. Yes...I need my special time with my computer. Stop laughing. It's not that pathetic. :o\

Anyways. My stop at the gym felt rather good, however after being at Dragonboat practice this Thursday, my body was still a little sore. Can anyone who's done it consistently for a number of years tell me how to even out the soreness? I'm a right paddler, will probably always be a right paddler, will always be left handed. I just kinda dread now the pain in the left latimus, across the top of the shoulders, and right oblique. gawd.

I notice that I am wanting more in terms of Dragonboat. By far, I am not the most experienced paddler..but I feel want more ...sportsmanship and teamwork and ..drive in the team. We do not have a consistent turnout, nor do we have the same dedication. Obviously, everyone has contributed as far as monetary terms..but there is no drive to actually *want* to win.

goshdarnit, I know we're only a rec D team, but still, I want to place SOMETHING.

Ever been rear-ended in False Creek? Now I can say I have. Thursday at practice.. Starts out rainy and chilly, windy but sunny, we go on the water and are in the middle of a race piece when we get rammed from behind by another boat!! I'm glad that Selwin (who was standing in the back steering) didn't fall off...although I'm sure someone would have laughed their @sses off if he had (and it wouldn't have been Selwin).

Anyways it turns out they were trying to "catch" us in the middle of our race piece, and tried to pass us between *our* boat, and a coast guard boat (motor boat). Dumbasses. It also started hailing and pelting us while we were out on the water, but got sunnier as the practice progressed. As we were getting OFF the boats, however, the thunderstorm began.

In short? Vancouver weather is unpredictable as HELL. (although not as warm. ha. ha.)

I picked up some materials that I'll need for Temari decorations. Basically they're embroidered ornaments, traditionally made as a gift from a mother to her youngest daughter at New Year's in Japanese culture..but now it's a decoration. I want to start something like this just for summer...in case I really do not find a job.

That's another thing. Didn't get the job from the fish place. Not that I really wanted it, I suppose, and perhaps that showed through. But another thing is that it is really out of the way for me, and I did mention that I needed to know my hours in order to secure a vehicle. Damn me and my big mouth! Another thing is that the interviewer mentioned that the plant was "non-unionized" and some employees were "rough around the edges". Perhaps he didn't think that I was cut out for that, oh well.

Worst comes to worst, I take out a student loan as planned for the fall. *sigh*


I want a Wal-Mart near my house so I can make them rich by going broke. I think I have just found the mother of all dollar stores, my dears!!

Seriously though, I think I've visited enough dollar stores within the past month to last me a while. I think I know the best of them and where to go for what. Hmm. Shall I write a review of dollar stores in Vancouver? Lemme know.

Also made a stop at Sportchek where I admired swimsuits from afar, found one I liked, but realized that it was rather small and probably a children's suit. My multiple personalities took over:

Jess the girl: oooh. preeeety blue.
Jess the butch: Oh Great. Blue flowers. Too bad it's made for little girls!!

A quick glance at the price sign confirmed my fears: "Kids' Suits - $24.99 and up"

Jess the girl: Oh crap. Yeah..that'll never fit me.
Jess the butch: It might fit your micro boobs, but it won't fit your huge @ss. *cackles hysterically*
the girl: Geez! Don't have to be so mean. You're so...right. *sigh and slumps away*


Do I want to go into how my father embarrassed me at dinner? Let's do it briefly. So. Kamei is a good-quality Japanese restaurant. They do all-you-can-eat, as well as a la carte items at lunch and dinner...It's probably one of the best (and reasonable) Japanese places I know of in Vancouver. My father is *not* an avid sushi / sashimi / robata fan. But he DOES have his favourites. I suppose that since he was paying, he assumed that he could act any way he wanted to.

And he did. He began burping out loud several times, complained loudly about their "limited order" policies, and bitched about how not everything was on the "all-you-can-eat" menu. He also proceeded to wolf down everything, including things that were supposed to be for the entire table, and were "limited order" and complained some more. He was basically finished his entire meal after 20 minutes, and began berating us for eating "so little" and not getting our "money's worth". Yes...we're NOT getting our money's worth. Because you just stuffed your face with our food!!!

I was just so pissed of. SO pissed off. I have never been that ashamed of my father before. I don't want to bring him out to any good restaurants. Ever again.

Tried to get in a nap. But once I hopped into bed, Mark calls me. Basically our conversation switched to me complaining about my father to how if only we could go back and teach our adolescent selves a lesson, what would it be? Mine would be.. to enjoy life more. Stress less. I wouldn't change any major points. Basically, I like the way my life is right now, so I wouldn't change it or inform myself differently. In short, I'd go back to my darkest days and tell myself that it's all good in the end. Or somewhere near the end, at least.

What would you teach yourself? What would you change? What advice would you give to yourself?


CHHEeeeeesecake. I like hanging out with my aunt and cousin. It's so..girly. I think all three of us get along better with guys than girls... so we have this unspoken, mutual understanding about us of how women can be the most annoying things on earth. It was good to bond again after so long.

My aunt is pregnant now, and is happily so. She is *glowing*. We visited "Cheesecake, etc." and I had cheesecake with strawberries and spiced chai, while they both had chocolate cheesecakes with strawberry and a latte and cappucino. Cheesecake was GOOD. light, creamy, matched well with the strawberry, and after the chai, I was relaxed. We chattered about how the receptionist that I relieved last year was getting the big ole' "frying squid-in-the-wok" (her and her receptionist career with the company is KAPUT), how my brother is probably not too sure about where he stands with anything, and how my uncle chose his haircut this afternoon.

Basically he has been spending anywhere from ~$30 to $60 for haircuts in Richmond ..you know. At those places where they greet you by name and give you fancy coffees and teas that they bill you for later and take all day...Today they visited Station Square..right beside Dai Masu and the travel agency and Starbucks, he contemplated the haircut. Sitting in the chair, they decided on haircut "F": as shown by the lovely blond model in the photo beside the mirror, it was suiting to his face type and was stylish and manageable at the same time, without being too short.

$12 and some SIX minutes later, all was done and Uncle Henry and auntie were ready to boogie. :)

The upside of my day? I am feeling much better now, thank you. The downside, of course, is that it is now 12:30, I am much more tired than when I began, and I haven't completed JACK.

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