Empty Apartment, Workaholism, and Uncertainty

First, pictures from Friday!




I'm sorry I haven't been updating lately. Its not because nothing is happening in my life, its that the things that are happening are more on a personal and interpersonal level and if I tried to write it out would turn this post into a blubbering mess of text. So I'll try not to do that too much.

So with the end of my undergraduate career, the most surprising thing that I've learned about myself is that I love school. Well, I always knew I loved it, but I just didn't know to what extent. Its been not even two weeks and I am going into withdrawal and my brain feels like its turning to mush. To make up for this, I've become a workaholic. This week was supposed to be my week of relaxation, a break before I start my next job which requires me to be there 8-5. I regretted not going to San Diego the day after Zowie, Nate, and Tim left but received an e-mail from Rita Maran, (the lady I agreed to do an International Human Rights internship with) reminding me that we had a meeting on Monday. Yes, Monday was Memorial Day and I worked, well I like to think of it as volunteering, from 10 am to 6. During this session I met Joan, a student from Barcelona (pronounced like Juan).

At night, Katelyn and I experienced a surge of Cal spirit and manifested our feelings via baked goods:



We also decided to celebrate Diana's unbirthday:



Tuesday I commuted with Chester, boyfriend extraordinaire to the Central store on 4th and Howard in SF. Yes, I worked for the empire. But it wasn't that bad as it was just helping looking up environmental standards/requirements that certain IT products had to adhere to. Then at 12:30 I joined the United Nations Association delegation on 1 Post Street to meet with a field representative at Diane Feinstein's office. I've decided that I never want to become a field representative. I've also decided that Feinstein has a nice-ass office and that Mark Twain was correct about San Francisco in the summer.

On Wednesday, Chester left in an orange tie and black suit as well as left me his whole apartment, in all its untidy glory. I don't like empty apartments and I don't like sleeping alone. Even a roommate is preferred than a single. I have, however enjoyed being able to dance around like a fool because no one's watching!
Later on at night, hung out with the girls at their apartment. My friend Trishna recently came back from Rome and it was really great chatting it up again. =)

Today, had a meeting with the League of Women Voters to plan a Climate Change and Peace conference that is occurring on September 21, also International Day of Peace. Then met up with Jason for lunch--very anticlimactic and disappointing in some respects even though it was great to see him again. Headed to Greenlining afterward and spent the afternoon reviewing interview questions and doing media management on Final Cut. Now I know you don't want to hear about the rest of my day (it can get pretty boring if I start just listing things) so I'll just say that I went on a run and fate has not allowed me to go to Shandong with Tim and Nate.

Peace.

I MISS EVERYONE ALREADY!!!!!! =( =( =( =(

Saying Goodbye, Euro Soccer Finals, Raleigh's Fun, Cousins Gathering,Sushi and Irish Music in SF, my Brother and Sis

It is always so bitter sweet letting go of good friends. It means no more dinner dates, but it also means new and exciting things for each of us. Even though we will always be with eachother I will definitely miss you guys!!! There is so much ahead of us and I can't wait to discover it all with you :)

On Wednesday a packed Raleigh's Bar watched one of the best soccer games I've ever seen!!! And I actually got to take the afternoon off work to sit down and enjoy it. It was the 2008 finals of the European Champions League. Manchester United and Chelsea tied after a 1-1 game that included 2 incredible goals, some unbelievable moves by Renaldo, a fight that included a bitch slap, a missed penalty kick by the best player in the world (Renaldo), and another missed penalty kick by the captain of the Chelsea team!! For game highlights check out the link below...

http://blog.soccerslave.com/2008/05/21/manchester-united-vs-chelsea-champions-league-final-highlights-2008/

Ah, Saturday night was a fun shift! I got to take a "dinner break" over to Kips and Blakes with Brandon and Kevin. I met 2 awesome customers. One won the Fulbright scholarship through MTV and is going to study the way music is affecting the revolution in Bali! I also met some girls who grew up in Boulder who let me know that it gets more sun then San Diego, is a Utopian sort of community, filled with outdoorsy hippie college types. just my place!!
I also made dinner with my cousins and some friends. Andrea (far right) is an returned peace corps volunteer living in Denver Colorado. Ellen is my other cousin who works at Cal and Grace (far left) is my other cousin from the bay who sings in an amazing band called the Grace Woods Trio. You can check them out here...

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=45348248

In our quest to discover SF Geoffrey and I tried a sushi restaurant rated as the best sushi in the Bay Area by the Guardian. The place was called Ryoko's Japanese restaurant and bar in the downtown area. I have to say this roll the "jumping Unagi" (eel and avocado fried) was one of the best things I have ever tasted!! Next week we want to try the best Italian restaurant....I can't wait!

We also saw a good band called third date at Ireland32. It's part of my quest to find an Irish bar that plays amazing live Irish music. This music wasn't Irish but I thought they were really good live. Their influences are Dave Matthews, Green Day, The Beatles, Nirvana, The Rolling Stones, and all that is good.Here's a link: http://www.myspace.com/thirddate
Scot (my twin brother) and I went out for lunch at round table on Sunday. It felt like we just laughed the afternoon away which felt great!
I've been going out with my workmates at Raliegh's more often and am so glad. I got to know Nadia and Brandon much better on Sunday night. Getting to know the people at work really has made work much more enjoyable. It feels more like a warm home than a workplace.

Ah, and I had a wonderful morning phone conversation with my beautiful sister. We solidified plans for our John Muir Trail hike in July. We also talked about balancing our yin and yang, genuine connections we've experienced over the week, new poems we've discovered, Unitarian Universalism universal peace dance services, her city year gala, and the way hot tea and mantra meditation caress our soul. I feel so lucky to have a sister who brings so much laughter, insight, inspiration, and love into my life!!!

It's been an exciting week!

I went to spin class at the RSF on Wednesday. It was so hot I had sweat dripping from every corner of my face!

I finished our itinerary for the John Muir Trail. We'll leave on Monday July 7th and come back July 26th. It was good but tiring to figure out what to eat over those 20 days or so. But it's done and now i just have to buy the food and gear most of which will be done at REI!

Just finished a pretty good book called The Other Side of You by Sally Vickers. It's about a therapist and his female patient. Over the course of a night they both learn about their past as the source of grief which has made them who they are.

Made some very yummy chicken parmigiana with pasta also!

Met up with Sabine in SF. She was my best friend in high school and it was so nice to see her. She wants to do a spiritual journey in India/nepal with me, backpack around S america, and hike around Kuai next summer. Sooo awesome! She also invited me to do Bay to Breakers today, but I have work tonight....maybe next year ;(.

Hmmm pizza! Geoff and I are starting to go on random adventures in SF. This week we had no plans but just to explore and see what we find. We found a cool Irish bar downtown and next week we'll be going to Ireland32 for some awesome Irish music...I cannot wait!!

I went to my cousins show in SF on Tuesday at the Hotel Utah Saloon. her band called the Grace woods Trio is awesome! They sounds like Ben Folds Five and Tori Amos mixed into one. It was so nice to see my other cousin Ellen and her friend Meg who is hilarious! They are doing the John Muir Trail challenege where you win a free shirt if you do some of the best trails in the bay area. I wish I was staying!!

Sound Film Project

So, here's the rough cut of our final sound film project. As you know, we started with just a layer of dialogue and then added layers of music and sound effects. I wrote the dialogue, but Neil did most of the sound mixing and Louis did the images. See if you can guess what this is all about.

Too much is too much

Yesterday, there was a barbecue at the Greenlining Executive Director's house after our shoot at Braelan's house which was.. very interesting to say the least (the shoot I mean). Braelan's house is insane-- the late Ralph Gleason used to live there. (I really encourage you to read the article as Braelan and Jennica were both involved in making his documentary and are mentioned in the article). The place is stacked head to toe in books, old vinyl records, progressive paraphanelia, and pictures of famous music artists and social activists. There's a giant picture of Gleason with the Beatles (the only one in existence) in the stairwell. Apparently, the house used to be a hub for great jazz artists like Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis and has been frequented by Cesar Chavez and other 60s activists. Walking through the house was kind of an honor.

Anyways, the barbecue wasn't so much a barbecue as Mexi-cue complete with Horchata, agua frescas, tacos (carnitas, chorizo, and other meats) + salads upon salads galore. Joel and I had 4 tacos. Each.

Later that day I met up with Nisha and Supaksh at the Bear's Lair which was crammed full of people because it was an awesomely beautiful day.



Later on, more food action at Shan Dong in Oakland, Chinatown. Upon arriving we had waiters ask us if we were here for the "contest." By contest, I mean food eating contest and by food eating contest I mean too much goodness to handle. Seriously. There was so much food.



After buying a load of "dan tat" or chinese egg custard tarts, we head down to The Graduate where we consumed MORE popcorn amidst pitchers of Blue Moon (or in my case, diet coke) and in Chester's case nasty Wild Turkey stuff.

Today, Tim, Chester, and I met up with Coady and Caroline at Meal Ticket down in San Pablo for some brunch . I didn't really have much, but did have the pleasure to try Tim and Chester's food which was omygoodness incredible. See chesternet.org for pics. As always, their cornmeal pancakes and coffee were topnotch.

Now I need to get some hardcore studying done.

Helio Sequence- Blood Bleeds

The theme of my freshman year at Cal:

Mantra Meditation

So I wanted to share a wonderful gift I received on Sunday. I went to the Nyigma Institute which chants a mantra from 5-5:45pm. The mantra was the most beautiful thing I have ever heard. I think it is b/c a lady with a very soothing voice led/sang the mantra. Repeating it for 45 minutes placed a lot of peace and warmth in my heart. It was like receiving a big hug from my mom for 45 minutes! Mantras are really nice b/c you can take them with you wherever you go. For example, when I am thinking too much I just sort of sing the beautiful mantra in my head and I am quickly brought back to a very peaceful place in myself. I couldn't find the mantra I listened to on the internet, but I found one on youtube that is very nice. Check it out if your interested: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=158AWXhDdZI These mantras you can sing with yourself in mind or you can sing them with someone else in your heart.

Aidan needs to get window blinds

"Aidan" definitely needs to get window blinds. I don't think I can concentrate while studying otherwise.

The last weeks have been filled with work, school, --- oh wait wait... shittt is that Jillian?
Laura: "damn.... on a Monday night too"

As I was saying, the last few weeks have been filled with mild excitement-- the Annual Greenlining Economic Summit as well as a trip to the "country" were highlights. Oh! And I can't forget This American Life. Ira Glass is even more lovable than before.

Some pictures from the Economic Summit:



Joel and I and our lopsided heart



At Firecracker bar/lounge/club in Chinatown, LA



Joel's big ass room that ended up being the room for our "small" preparty

As for last weekend, I am very grateful to Tim for letting Laura and I see his hometown. Because I don't know how appropriate it is to post pictures, I will just post this one:

And the world keeps turnin'

And so it goes...the major updates as follows:

My dear Egyptian friend Sami reappeared in my life a few weeks ago via his good friend Mohammad Ma'andi. Sami is the wonderful man who found me a place to live, a job, and alcohol in the middle of Cairo. He was the best host imaginable so naturally, I felt obliged to do the same for his good friend. Timmy and I showed him around the town and spent many an hour reminiscing about Egypt and speaking in Arabic. I must say, I felt quite nostalgic once he left.

Me and My Ma'Andi

Wonderful acoustic show by Mr. Travis Bland. The White House girls and myself drove out to the middle of nowhere San Mateo to an old restaurant frequented by Neil Young to hear Kelly's long time friend perform in his first Bay Area show. The music and company were lovely -- Travis (despite his self-deprecating statements) is genuinely talented. Best of luck to him, soon enough he'll be Bob Dylan 2.0

From Left to Right: Travis, Allie, Damarys, Ben

In other news, Teach for America is progressing rapidly. I'm continuing with my "pre-institute" work and even made my first classroom visit last week. The whole prep-work experience has been quite beneficial. In fact, I've been so inspired that I went to the library last friday and checked out books on New Orleans revitalization. I can't believe that I'll be there in almost a month...oh man, I better stock up on bug spray.

And inevitably, with Teach for America beginning, other things must come to a close. On a good note, I finished my last undergraduate assignments this past weekend and now have finals to look forward to. But, with the end of the school year means the end of IM sports, White House gatherings, and Willard track...Ahhh, more ruminations soon, after I collect my thoughts and meditate a bit on my Berkeley finale.