Scuba Diving and SF

SAN FRANCISCO I'M BACK!

It has almost been three years since I moved away to Chicago and this trip really took my by surprise as I realize all the things I have forgotten about my hometown. The culture of the city seems somewhat foreign to me these days. I had forgotten how slack people in SF dress and am not used to being immersed in a city with asian faces everywhere. 

Whenever I come home, I always stick to going to the places I know. I realized that I don't really venture to new restaurants often because I worry about the hit or miss factor when my time in the city is so short and all I want to do is stuff my face with my favorites while I am in the city.

The default activities my friends and I do when I am back is, cooking, karaoke, and eat at Enjoy Vegetarian. It's almost like a tradition now. 

The most exciting activity my friends and I tried out this time was archery! It's pretty neat that they have a place in the park that's free for people to use recreationally to play with bows and arrows. I liked it so much I suggested doing it in Chicago but for some reason everything is twice as expensive and in the suburbs in an indoor facility. I suppose the one thing I like much about SF is that finding activities to do is much cheaper there.

 

Shooting arrows in the morning takes a lot of energy so we went back to my parent's place to make a hearty superbowl pizza. We all finished a quarter of the pizza.

 

 

This trip, I spent a lot of time with Derrick. I reviewed his resume and cover letter, went to the Exploratorium with him, squeezed in volunteering for the MS walk in SF with George, and last- went to an Ingrid Michaelson concert in Oakland with his dragon boat friends.

 

 

For me the trip was too short! I didn't get to spend as much time with people as I would have liked. I felt most sad leaving my dad when he has health issues. He stayed home to take it easy when I left for the airport.

 

SCUBA DIVING- I WANT TO SEE WHAT'S UNDER THE SEA

 

Or ocean! My friend Julian asked if I wanted to get scuba certified and I jumped at the opportunity to try something new. Back in college I remember talking to a guy who was a scuba instructor and thought about how cool it would be to try it some day. I suppose that time is now.

 

 

We finished the confined dive class in a weekend. Now we have to try it in open water! The worst part about getting the certification is reading something like a textbook for the class. Luckily we don't need to do again for the open waters.

The Never Ending Winter

The beginning of May is in full swing and it feels strangely like San Francisco on average with the drizzling rain, fog, and cool temperatures. The weather in Chicago is so crazy this year that the tulips down Michigan avenue are struggling to bloom. They popped out of the flower beds and started to wither when odd 30 degree weather hit on and off in Chicago. Surviving the long winter made me want to fly back to the west coast where it is strangely warmer this year.

MACY'S FLOWER AND GARDEN SHOW- THE SECRET GARDEN

The flowers may not be blooming outside in Chicago but that doesn't mean I can't find gardens indoors in the city. This year's flower and garden show was called the secret garden. It sounded like a British theme but it was hard to tell sometimes. They added garden sculptures of horses and deer's, chess pieces, a self portrait of a man in an impressionistic style, some porcelain garden sculptures, a bike with a piano, a dining table, and some colorful lanterns, with the highlighting piece of the whole show being a mannequin in a flower dress. I think of all the shows I have been to, Brazil was the best since the toucan was made of flowers itself.

 

 

TATTOOED..... TEMPORARILY

I got a henna tattoo during one of the Navy Pier's festival of the world event. It was interesting watching those ladies work with a frosting pipe on your hand. It looked like chocolate frosting until it started to dry out and crack off.

TOO MUCH MEAT

I come from a meat loving family, so not having meat during lunch and dinner is a hard habit to break. Lately I feel like I need to cut down on the animal protein and replace a portion of it with GREENS!

Xiao is a little picky about his vegetables but he will usually eat it if I put it on a plate for him.

ABSTRACT ART???

For the past year I have not done anything art projects in my studio. These days I have been thinking more about painting abstract art pieces. I haven't made time for this but would really like to.

THE GYM

I don't know what happened here but I basically stopped going to the gym. Why? Probably because I want to spend more time with Xiao. Gym is an hour and a half process. With tutoring eating my Wednesdays, time spent as a couple, time spent with friends occasionally, and domestic duties like cleaning and cooking, I find it difficult to make time for anything else. It sounds like an excuse for sure so I have been thinking about trying to hit the gym before work. I cringe a little at the thought of waking up early, but I heard doing something good for yourself really early before doing things for someone else (work) makes you more efficient throughout the day. Plus it would free my evenings up to hang out and do things. With Xiao temporarily living with me, my bed time is unfortunately earlier and my first wake in the morning is much earlier.

Post Crash! Darn Blogger App!

I recently put a post up about spring in Chicago and lost it since the app and my site were not displaying the same thing on the pages. It seems to be difficult uploading photos with the mobile app as it will not be able to fetch photos from certain gallery applications. Lame! But what sucks the most was that a post appeared as a failed draft when it was published. Deleting the draft post got rid of the published post as well.

 

SPRING IN CHARLOTTE, NC

 

Despite the fact that it is still winter in Chicago during spring, Xiao and I got to enjoy some 60 degree weather when we went to Charlotte last week. We tried north Carolina barbeque and decided the strong taste of vinegar wasn't for us, so we explored some nice contemporary American restaurants during our last day.

 

The North Carolina experience! Brunswick stew.

 

Deviled eggs were good!

 

City Queen Q BBQ platter- pork sausage, brisket, ribs, and pulled pork

Delicious grilled cheese at the Public Market

Coworker looking for dessert at Cloud 9 bakery. He got a brownie.

Nom nom!

Chicken and dumplings at the Asbury

62 degree egg and smoked trout on white grits!

 

LIVING TOGETHER IN LAKEVIEW

Now that we are back in Chicago, Xiao is preparing to spend the rest of spring and early summer in Lakeview. I never lived with a significant other before so it will be interesting. Hopefully we won't drive each other crazy in my small space!

Oops Skipped January!

January has not been a really eventful month for me other than getting sick all the time and feeling miserable from the cold. I am back to my sick from China weight without going to China this year. Although I still don't feel quite right, going to see the doctors haven't done much for me. I suppose the only thing I can do is just eat enough that I am not hungry. I am starting to notice that every time I get the stomach flu or have symptoms that make me want to vomit, I have a tendency to refrain from eating. I thought the loss of love for food was only temporary, but I am learning that it's not. Even though I am a bit bummed that I view food differently, I try my best to keep playing with food and recipes. 

SF VS SEATTLE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME AND JAPANESE CURRY

A while back Rich and Stella introduced me to Japanese curry from a box. I could never justify going to a Japanese restaurant to order curry, and I still won't, but I do like how different it taste from most curries I have had before. It was more like a gravy with a subtle hint of curry. Instead of beef or chicken, we used fish since Xiao loves fish.

Delicious pot of curry!

WOW!

My 49ers... LOST :(

RISHI AND KRISTYN'S BIRTHDAY CAKE

This is my second attempt at a three layered cake. I have to say this cake was a lot more laborious than I thought it would be because I had to run out a couple of times to get ingredients and tools I was missing. The one thing that really sucks about cooking in my kitchen is the fact that I live on a slant. Every time I cook the oil slides to one side of the pan, and so does cake batter. Although it was a little lopsided, all three layers came out perfectly because of what I learned from my first cake experience.

I secretly wrote Happy Birthday to my other friend Lilyan since her birthday was on the 21st. It was hidden because this party was a Rishi Kristyn party. I must be dyslexic because I spelled her name wrong, although all the other times I got it right. I don't know why I thought I had it wrong this whole time.... I am not a huge fan of cakes but I guess making them for birthdays is kind of fun.

Chocolate Raspberry Cake!

 THE BREAK AND MAKE UP MEANS SPENDING TIME IN LAKEVIEW

The amount of stress I have been feeling from spending so much time with someone was taking its toll on me. Of course there were other things that contributed to me not feeling well, like the weather, getting sick all the time, and then work projects piling up on me. I had stopped doing a lot of things I normally would do to relax, like draw, exercise, and doing new things. With things being so tense in all areas of life, I needed to take a step back from everything and be by myself. I didn't like how I felt about a lot things and I needed to learn how to be my own person again.

Asking for a break was what I needed. It was rather painful to ask for one and know that I wasn't going to see Xiao for a while, but at the same time it gave me a sense of relief and some time to discharge some of the built up emotions. I had a lot of time to process things and let things that were issues go. The idea of separation perhaps helped me with feeling okay to be by myself a lot more when I am not with him. I used to try to keep myself busy with seeing friends, tutoring, cooking, etc so I wouldn't feel alone. I suppose that's the strange thing. Feeling more alone when you have someone than when you don't. Now when I am not with him, I feel okay. I can think about other things and focus on them.

I knew that even though I was trying to figure out what makes me happy and what I can do to make myself happy, I still wanted to be with him. We had a struggle getting the relationship to a good place in the beginning and although it is work, it's okay if we're both willing to do it. I had to tell him that I needed him to pitch in more and help me with stuff we're doing together, that I like cooking with someone, I like being outside, and I need someone who wants to explore new things with me. The most important thing I want in a partner is to have someone who is supportive emotionally and will collaborate and cooperate with me to try and get something done. My balance just wasn't there for a while and I needed to explore and resolve the uncertainty.

It's rare that I get to spend time in Lakeview with Xiao and when we do, I get so much done at my place. That's the trouble with spending the whole weekend with your significant other I suppose. I didn't know how stressful it would be going to his place for the weekend to cook and hang out, then having to come back home to my place to clean and cook. I guess that's why couples eventually move in together? Anyways, I'll have to work on asking for more weekends in Lakeview.

Shrimp Stir Fry!