Boat Dance report

I just got back from the Boat Dance. As the name suggests, this was a party cruise for Berkeley students. It certainly didn't disappoint!

Because the RHA didn't have a booth or anything, buying a ticket was difficult. I only managed to get one at the last minute. On the other hand, the $25 price was a great deal, especially considering that similar cruises are usually very expensive.

The buses departed for the Port of San Francisco around 6 p.m. Boarding the San Francisco Belle took a while due to the security checks and the sheer number of people, but the folks in charge wasted no time in getting the party started. A violin quartet played Pachelbel's Canon as we got on the boat. I could tell this was a classy event.

The San Francisco Belle was huge. There were two floors for dancing and one for movies. The view of the San Francisco Bay was absolutely amazing. Though I mostly walked around and didn't dance with anyone, I still had a great time. It was past 1 a.m. when we got back to campus!

The only downside is that there wasn't any food besides light refreshments. Those who have evening classes didn't have much time for dinner. Case in point, my suitemate Cyrus and I came back hungry as a result. It didn't help that all the cafeterias and grocery stores were closed.

On the whole, the Boat Dance was an incredible experience. While I skipped my high school prom, I'm sure this event was far better. You can read a full review of the dance here.

Currently listening to: "Take My Breath Away" by Berlin

went to an awesome '80s dance

I just came back from the Blast from the Past dance at Bowles. Unlike the Dance & Casino Night in August and the ASUC Fall Dance in October, this one was quite awesome.

For starters, the DJ played a lot of great music. It made me feel nostalgic even though most of the songs were before my time. I heard only one slow song, but people didn't seem to mind too much. The organizers also hosted a costume contest and a raffle drawing. That was really fun even though I didn't win anything in the raffle. Last but not least, there were ample refreshments.

The only downside is that the place was pretty crowded. However, that's probably a good sign - a large attendance means the event was successful. On the whole, the dance totally rocked. You can find a full review of it here.

Currently listening to: "Heaven Is a Place on Earth" by Belinda Carlisle

touching base with my high school choir class

I just got back from the annual Main Street Singers holiday concert. The Main Street Singers are Los Altos High School's elite choir; they have many performances throughout the year and go on an international tour every spring. Though I didn't join the Main Street Singers, many of my classmates from Chorale did. It was certainly great to see everyone again, especially Mr. Shaull and their accompanist Debbie.

The music was enjoyable as always. The most poignant moment was when Mr. Shaull invited the MSS alumni to join the current choir for the last song. The concert ended with an after-party with cookies and hot cider. There's no better way to get into the Christmas spirit!

Currently playing: Field & Stream Trophy Hunting 4

worst school dance ever

So my roommate Scott invited me to a party at his fraternity house. But because frat parties aren't my cup of tea - mainly because I've heard so many horror stories about them - I went to a dance hosted by the ASUC instead. As much as I hate to say this, the dance totally sucked.

For one, there was barely any information available. The only thing I could find was a flyer near my dorm. To their credit, the ASUC dropped the $3 surcharge for people who bought tickets after the early bird deadline. However, that was where the good things ended.

Only a handful of people showed up at the dance. Although I saw my friend Albert there, he didn't stay more than an hour. The music was repetitive and would randomly stop. There was little else to do as we weren't allowed to play the piano in the ballroom or use the Internet kiosks downstairs. It's no surprise that the dance ended early when people lost interest. I'd say it was a blessing in disguise.

This was a total waste of time and money. Had I known better, I wouldn't have attended the event even if it was free. You can read my full review here. Shame on you, ASUC.

report of my first college dance

I just got back from the Dance & Casino Night at Pauley Ballroom. This was my first college dance and certainly a new experience. As its name suggests, the event featured casino games like blackjack and roulette. This was a nice touch even though they're not my cup of tea.

Of note is that the DJ didn't play any slow songs at all. I had never been to a dance with no slow songs. That was a little weird and didn't make much sense.

The dance ended 45 minutes early when everyone started leaving and the DJ stopped the music. It wasn't her fault that people decided to leave, but she should have kept the music going until the end. Just my two cents. Shortcomings aside, the Dance & Casino Night was pretty enjoyable. Feel free to read my review for more details.

In other news...

There was also a game night at the residential computing center. I got to play Doom 3 for the first time. It was kind of scary but also pretty fun!

Currently playing: Doom 3

spring choral concert report

Tonight was the LAHS spring choral concert. The event was held in the school auditorium, an extremely convenient location. Like the holiday concert in December, the entire choral department was involved.

The choirs sang a variety of songs before performing Mass of the Children together as Choral Union. I should mention that I had also joined the Varsity Men's Glee after having enjoyed Chorale so much. The concert was definitely a great experience.

The nice thing is that Dad was able to make it this time. He actually rescheduled his business trip in order to come. I really appreciate him doing this for me. Dad even took some pictures to send to Mr. Shaull. Although my maternal grandmother had just passed away a few days ago, I did my best to not let that affect my performance. On the whole, the event was a huge success.

Currently listening to singing: Mass of the Children by John Rutter

Historical note: Pictures from the concert are available here.

my first public performance!

I just got back from the LAHS winter choral concert at the Los Altos United Methodist Church. It was a major event that involved the entire LAHS choral department — collectively known as Choral Union. This was my first public performance and an overall enjoyable experience.

The choral department has six groups: Chorale, Varsity Men's Glee, Girls Ensemble, Concert Choir, Girls 21 and the Main Street Singers. Each performed separately before assembling for Joseph Haydn's Missa brevis Sancti Joannis de Deo. I was nervous at first but started getting used to it after a while. It probably helps that I didn't have to sing solo. :P

Mom and my aunts Wei-Jen and Wei-Fang were more than happy to come. This was one of my proudest moments. The only downside is that Dad is away on business again and couldn't be there. I wanted to record the concert for him, but we didn't know where we put the camcorder. Oh well.

The tickets were $7 each. Though we don't get a cut as the proceeds go to the school, the fact that we had a great time performing is a reward in itself — and that's what really matters. I'm already looking forward to the spring concert next year. :-)

Currently listening to singing: "Rise Up, Shepherd and Follow"

my last back-to-school dance at LAHS

Tonight was the back-to-school dance at Los Altos High School. It was so much fun!

Though it wasn't that much different from previous dances, this was the most enjoyable one to date. I'd like to thank the administration and the student body for making such an event possible. I definitively can't wait for the holiday dance in December.

One thing for sure is that I'll miss these dances when I graduate. Let's hope there are dances in college!

Currently listening to: "Angel of Mine" by Monica

school dances are fun

Tonight was the LAHS back-to-school dance. I absolutely suck at dancing but still had a good time. Dances are a great way to start the school year, that's for sure. Less than four months to go until the one in December!

You may recall that we came back from Hawaii a week ago. Although I still have the holiday blues, the dance brought back memories of the Aliʻi Kai dinner cruise and Honolulu's nightlife. :-)

Currently listening to: "Cry" by Mandy Moore

an impromptu school dance

Some time ago, the radio station WiLD 94.9 held a contest and invited students to vote for their schools. LAHS placed second and won a free dance. I definitely had a great time. School dances can be expensive, so this was nice for a change.

However, there were rumors that the administration had planned to charge a fee. It seems the event is only "free" in the sense that LAHS didn't have to pay for the DJ and decorations. Greedy bastards. As you could imagine, this didn't sit too well with us. Following complaints, the school decided to make the event free — as it should be. I'm glad they came to their senses.

On the whole, everyone really enjoyed themselves. Besides a few slow songs, the DJ played mostly electronic music. Don't get me wrong — the music was awesome — but it could have been less repetitive. Otherwise, things couldn't have been better.

Currently playing: Rebel Moon Rising

went to see Pearl Harbor

Dad took us to see Pearl Harbor as we hadn't been to the theater in a while. I enjoyed it despite the critical reviews.

Pearl Harbor focuses on entertainment and is not historically accurate. However, the action scenes and special effects were impressive. It's a long movie at over three hours, so an intermission would have been nice. On the whole, this was a worthwhile experience. I'd love to watch Pearl Harbor again when it comes out on DVD.

Currently watching: Pearl Harbor

my first high school dance

I just got back from the LAHS back-to-school dance. There's no better way to start high school than with a dance party if you ask me!

There was a $5 entrance fee, but I got to go in for free as I had bought an ASB card. The dance was very similar to the LAYC dances I attended in 7th grade, except the music was somewhat louder and the dance floor was larger. There were also some slow songs, although I still haven't had the courage to ask any girls to dance. Feel free to laugh at me. :P

As I'm still kind of nervous about high school, I was afraid there would be certain incidents at the dance - such as drinks being spiked and people making love in the restroom. But my fears were probably unfounded as none of that stuff happened. Perhaps I'm worrying too much, but I guess it also helps to have all those teachers there as chaperones.

I left about half an hour before the dance was supposed to end, but I nevertheless had a great time. I'm looking forward to the next dance for sure.

Currently listening to: Raptor: Call of the Shadows soundtrack

company picnic report

Today was pretty fun as my parents and I went to Dad's company's summer picnic. The best part was that I got to see my friend Moonway as his father also works at Arcadia Design Systems, Inc.

Unlike the other company picnics we have been to, this one had fewer activities. I don't recall seeing any carnival games, raffles or anything of the sort. On the other hand, the venue was quite large, and there were several areas for sports. It was also nice to hang out with Moonway for almost the entire afternoon!

In other news...

I'm taking summer Spanish and reading classes at Foothill College right now. Reading generally isn't my favorite subject, but some of the books for the class are quite interesting. So at least it's not as boring as the other literature classes I've taken. :-)

Currently reading: The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

a ruined 14th birthday :-(

So I'm 14 years old now. The ironic thing is that the day didn't end too well, even though my "unlucky" birthday was supposed to be last year.

If you really want to know the details, here's what happened: my friend Moonway and I went to a family entertainment center in San Jose called the Jungle. Moonway's mother Angela had recommended the place because it offered free admission to people on their birthdays.

Angela had picked me up at my house and taken us there, so many thanks to her for the ride. It wasn't just me and Moonway as his sister Sarah and one of her friends also tagged along. I didn't catch the name of Sarah's friend, but I think it was Michelle or something. Angela left after paying for the admission, so it was just us kids.

Our day at the Jungle had a great start. Moonway and I checked out the tube maze and the redemption games while Sarah and her friend explored the place on their own. The Jungle was huge; there was just so much to do. But it wasn't long before the afternoon turned sour: the girls got hungry and ordered a pizza. This wouldn't have been a problem, except they didn't have enough money to pay for it. Uh-oh.

Moonway and I were then called to the front desk, but neither of us had any money at all. Angela was out on some errands, so it would be quite a while before she came to pick us up. The people at the front desk didn't really know what to do either. It was certainly an awkward situation.

The Jungle staff eventually let the girls have the pizza at no charge, but they also canceled our admission to cover the cost of the pizza. In other words, none of us were allowed back in unless the fees were paid again, and my birthday offer was unsurprisingly no longer valid. We weren't too happy about the whole situation, so we just sat in the lobby and waited for Angela to pick us up. I guess there's really no such thing as a free lunch - or pizza in this case.

Angela didn't come back until the late afternoon, so none of us wanted to pay the admission fees again. I did rant to the staff on how stupid their policy was, although I understand they were just doing their jobs.

Back in the car, Moonway kept scolding Sarah and her friend for ruining our day and vowing to never let them participate in our activities again. Neither of the girls would apologize, which made him even more upset. However, I felt all of us were somewhat at fault. For one thing, Sarah and her friend should not have ordered anything without checking their budget. They could have at least shared the pizza with us!

But to be fair, Moonway and I had both made the mistake of not bringing any spare change, which is admittedly a bad habit. Other than that, Angela probably shouldn't have left us alone in the Jungle, considering that children under 13 weren't technically supposed to go inside without adult supervision.

In an attempt to make the best of the situation, I asked Moonway if he wanted to come back to my place after dropping Sarah's friend off, but his mother wasn't interested. Oh well.

Let's hope my 15th birthday will be better!

back from our Alaska cruise

"I'm sorry I didn't laugh at your joke." -- Connie, after I retold some jokes from a talk show

My family just got back from an amazing eight-day Alaskan cruise. This was our first real trip to Alaska - not counting the brief layover in Anchorage during our trip to Taiwan in 1995 - so it was pretty exciting.

Like our previous cruise, this wasn't a vacation for just the three of us as we traveled with the families of my friend Moonway and cousins Connie and Cathy. Strictly speaking, my parents did not plan this vacation; the Shiehs and some of their neighbors had organized a group vacation with Celebrity Cruises, and Aunt Cynthia invited us to join them. The Lins also expressed interest in coming along, so we happily obliged. :-)

Day 1

The trip began with a flight to Vancouver, the port of call. Upon arriving at YVR, my parents and I rendezvoused with the two other families and introduced them to each other. The meeting between the kids was a little awkward at first, but Moonway's sister Sarah and Cathy quickly became good friends. This was not unexpected, considering that the girls are about the same age.

Once everyone had gotten acquainted, it was time to board MV Mercury and get the party started. But before the ship set sail, all of the passengers and crew first had to participate in the mandatory muster drill. This is actually one of the lessons from the Titanic disaster. The drill was followed by the captain's welcome reception in the evening, and we got to meet the big man!

Day 2

The day began with a bus tour of the area around Juneau. The tour took us to quite a few places, but the most notable stop was the small zoo in the countryside. While zoos aren't exactly my cup of tea, I loved seeing the grizzly bear cubs. They were just so darn cute!

I should mention that I bought a key chain for Dad while at the zoo. The souvenir didn't cost more than a dollar, but it looked really nice. I certainly hope Dad will find it useful.

The rest of the day was fairly uneventful except for the comedy show that my parents and I went to see in the evening. It was hilarious at first, although it started getting boring during the second half. The three of us then met up with the Shieh family for dinner. I shared some of the jokes from the show at the table, but nobody else seemed to get them. Oh well.

Day 3

The entire day consisted of sailing as the next destination was was several hundred miles from Juneau. This didn't allow for any excursions, so we took the opportunity to see what the ship had to offer. It was hard to believe how big MV Mercury was.

Our families spent some time on the main deck to enjoy the cool breeze and the great ocean view. There was also a swimming pool and spa, the latter of which was nice. Moonway and I later found a game room on one of the floors, and the two of us would often go there during the next few days. The room only had four computers, but they were seldom occupied.

The cruise offered some ballroom dancing lessons, and our parents decided to go dancing after dinner. Moonway thought the idea of dancing with girls was gross - and the event was restricted to people over 15 anyway - so the two of us stayed in his cabin to play with my Game Boy instead.

Some time later, I found out there was a teen dance party scheduled for midnight. The staff apparently hadn't forgotten about us kids. I really liked the LAYC dances when I was in 7th grade, so I decided to stay up to see what this one was like. However, the only people that showed up were a couple of girls. That didn't seem too fun, so I went to bed. I think the dance would have had a much better turnout if it didn't start so late.

Day 4

The highlight of the day was the Hubbard Glacier tour. The glacier was in a rather inaccessible location, so the sightseers got there via helicopter. One thing to note is that the rotors were loud as hell; I have no idea how Sarah managed to fall asleep during the ride. It seems kids can sleep through anything.

The tour itself was literally a cool experience as we got to hike on the glacier. Yet I couldn't help but notice all the deep holes filled with water. It was a little scary as falling into one would almost mean certain death - and a rather unpleasant one at that. Several brave tour guides were there to try to prevent that from happening, but I was still kind of nervous as the ice was quite slippery.

There was a movie night after dinner, and the staff put on Practical Magic in one of the auditoriums. I wasn't too interested in the movie - not to mention that I had seen it before - so I left early to hang out with Moonway.

Day 5

The ship stopped at a small town called Skagway. One excursion that we went on was a scenic train tour through the surrounding mountains. The views were absolutely beautiful, and my parents and I really enjoyed the ride.

The excursion wasn't that long, so there was time to explore the town itself afterwards. Skagway had many gift stores, and we spent much of the afternoon window shopping. To our regret, Moonway and I got into a bit of trouble: the two of us had absolutely nothing better to do, so we wrote some not-so-nice comments in the visitor log of one of the stores as a prank. The manager was obviously not a happy camper when he found out, and blamed my father for not supervising me and my friend closely enough. As you could imagine, Dad wasn't too pleased either. Yeah, that was pretty stupid of us. :-(

Day 6

Next on the itinerary was Sitka. The highlight of the day was a boat tour of the Indian River. There were countless salmon leaping out of the water, and it was an incredible sight. The excursion was fairly expensive but worth every cent. But what made the tour so special was that the captain of the boat allowed me to be the unofficial sonar operator. This was an incredibly special experience - I imagine it's not every day that they'd let some random kid play with such expensive equipment.

The day ended with a "farewell" dinner. This was a little odd, considering that there were still two days left of the cruise. I'm not sure why they put on the finale event at this time, but it made me feel like the trip was almost over. Other than that, the food was delicious, so I ain't complaining. I'd say this was overall the best day of our vacation.

Day 7

The ship arrived in Ketchikan, another one of those Alaskan towns. Ketchikan was very similar to Skagway in that it also had a lot of gift shops, although the former was much larger. Like two days ago, my family spent much of the day browsing the stores. Ketchikan was my second favorite stop; even though it's hard to describe, there was definitely something very special about this town.

Day 8

All good things must come to an end, and this cruise was by no means an exception. MV Mercury arrived in Vancouver at around noon, and all of us disembarked and headed to the airport. Our families then flew back to San Francisco before going separate ways.

I had started feeling homesick a few days ago, so it's great to be home after a week on the sea. But at the same time, I'm also kind of sad that our amazing adventure has concluded.

Conclusions

Our first cruise was to Ensenada, Baja California with the Liang family in December 1997. That cruise turned out to be loads of fun, so we decided to go on an even longer one. The best part of this vacation was undoubtedly the Indian River boat ride. The tour itself was nice, but the honor of being the unofficial sonar operator made it infinitely better. I also loved Ketchikan as well; the unique atmosphere of the town made it a very special place. I hope to go back there should we ever revisit Alaska.

Our cruise had some not-so-glorious moments as well. The worst part was when some of us started feeling ill a few days ago. No wonder they say it's easy to get sick on cruise ships. I only had a mild case of sore throat, but my parents and Moonway's father Hank had it somewhat worse. Being sick on a family vacation is no fun. :-(

There's also that run-in with the angry shopkeeper in Skagway after Moonway and I wrote some crude comments in the guestbook as a joke. Dad said the guy could have called the police on us, but nothing of the sort happened. I guess we lucked out.

The other thing was the age restrictions: many of the ship's amenities, such as the exercise rooms and most dance floors, were off-limits to children 15 or under. While this didn't seem to be strictly enforced, I didn't want to be a bad role model to the other kids by not following the rules. This means I probably won't be able to get the most out of a cruise until I'm older, but I guess there's a time for everything.

The vacation also wasn't all fun and games as I had to read Will Hobbs' Downriver and J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit for 8th grade English class during my free time. It's not like the teacher will give us a quiz on the first day of school, but I felt it was best to get that out of the way first. However, this did not make the cruise any less fun; if anything, it made the vacation a lot more memorable because I actually enjoyed those two books.

To say the least, this was a once-in-a-lifetime trip. I don't know if we'll ever go on another cruise like this, especially because it's so hard to find another family that is willing to spend the money. For those who aren't aware, cruises can cost up to twice as much as regular trips, and even more so for international cruises. Traveling by ourselves is always an option, but cruises just don't seem that fun when it's just me and my parents. Having said that, I hope it won't be long until our next one.

In other news...

Moonway recently got the full version of Duke Nukem 3D: Atomic Edition at Electronics Boutique. Throughout the cruise, I was so anxious to check out the game that I kept asking Moonway what would happen if we fire an RPG at various objects, much to his chagrin. I guess I'll get my answers soon enough. :-)

Currently reading: The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

last LAYC dance of 7th grade

I just got back from my third LAYC dance. I was too lazy to attend any dances for the past six months, but I didn't want to miss out on this one as it was the last LAYC dance of the school year. This time, the DJ played a bunch of music videos on a large projector screen, which was really cool.

Although my LAYC membership included admission to eight dances, I was too lazy to go to the other five. This was admittedly rather wasteful, but at least I had fun at the ones I did attend - including this one. :-)

went to another LAYC dance

I just came back from the second LAYC dance of the school year. Because last month's dance turned out to be so much fun, I decided to attend this one as well. It was much like the one in October, except I did not wear the wrong outfit this time. :-)

Like in the case of the previous dance, I did not stay until the end. I returned home early to finish watching WarGames on video, but I nevertheless had a great time at the event. In hindsight, I'm kind of glad Mom made me go to the one last month. Haha.

Currently watching: WarGames
Release date: June 3, 1983

report of my first school dance

"Dude, why are you dressed all formal?" -- another guy at the dance, after seeing me in a tuxedo

I just got back from the first LAYC dance of the school year at the Los Altos Youth Center. The event was open to all local middle school students, and was the first school dance I've ever been to. Strictly speaking, it was not a school event as it was organized by the city of Los Altos, but I'd nevertheless expect Egan's own dances to be similar to this one.

I wasn't too interested in going to the dance at first, mainly because I didn't know what to do there. However, my mother insisted that I attend at least this one so that I would have an idea of what teenagers' social events were like. She also taught me a few basic steps before we left so that I wouldn't look like a complete fool in front of everyone. I was still a little nervous, so my parents went as chaperones. As a side benefit, I got to go in about ten minutes early. :-)

The dance actually turned out to be quite fun. The place was crowded as lots of people showed up. I saw many of my Springer classmates there, and it was definitely nice to get back in touch with them. The DJ had this really cool laser projector. To top it off, the LAYC membership included two complimentary items from the snack store. It's a pretty good deal, if you ask me.

The DJ later put on some slow songs, and it was kind of weird to see so many guys and girls holding each other closely for several minutes. I was too shy to ask anyone to dance, so I mostly just paced around the dance floor. Surprisingly, no one asked me to dance either, so I guess I lucked out. Although I was pretty much - I hate to say this - a wallflower at the dance, I really enjoyed its atmosphere.

But the dance was not without its awkward moments. Mom did not have school dances when she was my age and so was equally clueless about them. She naturally assumed the dance was going to be a formal event like in the movies, so she put me in a tuxedo, complete with a red bow tie. Imagine my surprise (and embarrassment) when I realized I was the only person to show up in such a handsome silly outfit!

Only one or two people made a comment about it, but I did quite a few strange looks. I'm sure everyone else at the dance was secretly laughing at me. Thanks a lot, Mom.

While the tuxedo incident was a bit humiliating, it did not make the dance any less enjoyable. If anything, the whole thing made for a memorable experience. Funnily enough, I think I later saw another guy wearing a tuxedo, and it was somewhat comforting to know I was not the only one. Haha.

The dance was scheduled to end at 10:00 p.m. I didn't feel like staying that late, so I came home early to play video games. That said, I had a great time tonight, and I'm looking forward to the next LAYC dance for sure.

In other news...

Speaking of video games, I just beat the NES port of Rush'n Attack for the first time. The last stage was quite difficult, but I finally nailed it. Go me!

I'll have to return the game to my friend Moonway as it belongs to him, but he's letting me hold on to it for a few more days. Thanks, dude.

Currently playing: Rush'n Attack
Release date: April 10, 1987

went to see Armageddon today

As my aunt Phoenix and her daughter Lori are visiting from Taiwan, my parents decided to take them to the movies. This was pretty exciting as my family doesn't go to the theater all that often.

But there was a little problem: Phoenix and Lori wanted to see Disney's Mulan while I wanted to see Armageddon. I wouldn't have minded watching both movies, but that wasn't an option due to time constraints. It was up to me and my aunt and cousin as my parents had no preference. I ultimately managed to convince the ladies that Armageddon was the better choice.

Armageddon was indeed pretty awesome. It's about a group of unlikely heroes - oil rig workers to be exact - who must try to save Earth from a gigantic asteroid. The theater was packed as the movie had just come out yesterday.

Having seen Deep Impact (another recent film with a similar but more plausible plot) last month, I felt Armageddon was much more lighthearted. Spoiler warning. One of my favorite scenes was when the Russian guy "fixed" the shuttle's engines by whacking the controls with a wrench. There were a few other funny scenes as well, although I won't spoil them for you. Of course, the movie wasn't without its tear-jerking moments either: the saddest part was when Harry had to tell his daughter Grace that he wasn't coming home. Spoilers end here. All in all, Armageddon was a good movie.

But I don't think Phoenix and Lori enjoyed it very much, considering that they fell asleep in the theater. I felt kind of bad afterwards; they were our guests, so we should have let them pick what they wanted to see. I guess I shouldn't be so persuasive next time. *shrugs*

Currently watching: Armageddon
Release date: July 1, 1998