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

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

why I didn't go to prom

So yesterday was the LAHS prom. I'm probably one of the few people who stayed home.

I'll start by saying that things were a little different this year. The school officials banned limousines and other private transportation, much to the chagrin of the senior class. Though they compensated for this by reducing the price from $75 to $50 per person, many students were still shaking their heads.

But that's not why I didn't go. I could care less how we got there. The main reason was the price - $50 is still a lot for a three-hour dance. The back-to-school dance was lots of fun and cost only a fraction. It's not like prom could be that much better. I also didn't have a date and couldn't be bothered to find one. The fact that my grandmother had just passed away a few days ago didn't help the mood.

For those who did attend prom, I hope you had a great time. :-)

Historical note: Prom pictures have been removed from the LAHS website but are available at the Internet Archive.

had to miss out on another dance :-(

The week ended on a sour note as I had to miss out on the "Holiday in the Sun" dance. This was rather disappointing as I had been looking forward to it for a long time. It definitely brought back bad memories from last year.

Mom was worried about the flu outbreak and advised me to stay home over concerns that germs spread easily in crowded places. She had a point as a dance isn't worth getting sick over. Although I was prepared for the possibility — mainly because my mother has always taught me to expect the unexpected — having to miss the dance still sucks.

The back-to-school dance in August might be my last high school dance ever. Though there are two more coming up — Winter Ball and Sadies — the tickets aren't cheap. Prom is probably even more expensive. Mom assures me there are dances in college, but that remains to be seen.

On the bright side, I don't have too much homework this weekend. The other good news is that my aunts Wei-Jen and Wei-Fang are coming over from Taiwan and will be staying for a few weeks. Dad plans to take us all to the Southwest U.S. over the holidays. So at least there's something to look forward to. :-)

In other news...

Our winter choral concert is tomorrow night at the Los Altos United Methodist Church. This will be my first public performance. I'm a little nervous but also excited at the same time. So wish me luck — and make sure to be there!

Currently playing: Chasm: The Rift

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

the worst weekend ever

Hopefully everyone had a good weekend because mine was terrible. Sometimes shit happens.

As you may remember, the holiday dance in 10th grade was pretty fun. I was definitely looking forward to going again this year. However, my mother advised me to stay home and finish an overdue paper for American Literature.

Because I'm supposed to be catching up, she didn't think Mrs. Herrera would be thrilled to see me at the dance. I felt she had a point and reluctantly agreed not to go. Considering that I've been waiting for months, this was a huge let-down. It didn't help that I also had physics, trigonometry and web design assignments. Talk about unlucky — no wonder Friday the 13th gets a bad rap.

Of course, that alone wouldn't have been so bad as there are other things to do. For example, my family loves to go hiking on weekends. But that didn't happen either because the trails were all muddy from the rain. I decided to catch up on TV shows — only to find there was no signal available. Just wonderful.

Another thing is that my favorite online forum is shutting down for legal reasons. It's like a second home to me. Seeing the community disappear really sucks. Other forums just aren't the same. :-(

However, the good news is that I managed to find time for games. RuneScape is something that always cheers me up. I actually reached level 70 Mining and can mine adamantite ore without boosts. Click here for a picture. It only shows my stats because I was too excited and forgot to press Print Screen after leveling up. D'oh!

Update: I asked my mother for RuneScape membership in exchange for giving up the dance. She said that would depend on my grades. I guess it's time to work harder. :-)

Currently playing: Blackhawk Striker

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

a great holiday dance

Tonight's dance at LAHS was pretty awesome. Admission was $5 for students with an ASB card and $7 for all others. I didn't buy one this year and had to pay the full price, but that didn't make a huge difference. For those curious, this year's theme was Mardi Gras.

I've been to several dances but enjoyed this one the most so far. It helps that Christmas is coming up. In my experience, events are more fun during the holiday season. Everyone certainly had a great time.

Also worth mentioning is that I saw my crush but didn't have the courage to invite her to dance. Social anxiety sucks. :-(

Currently listening to: "A Puro Dolor" by Son by Four

another high school dance

Hopefully everyone had fun at the back-to-school dance. As before, the event was free for students with an ASB card and $5 for all others. I didn't buy one this year and had to pay an entrance fee, but it was a good deal nonetheless.

Compared to the dance last year, this one was no less enjoyable. I actually stayed the whole time. One thing for sure is that LAHS knows how to put on great events. On a related note, there's also has a holiday dance in December. It's definitely something I'm looking forward to.

Currently listening to: The Sounds of the Canadian Rockies by Orange Tree Productions

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

return of swing dancing

We just started a dance unit in PE class. You may recall we did the same last year. I've always been shy around girls, but that didn't make it any less memorable.

After going over the basics, the teachers put on music and paired us up. I was partnered up with Stephanie for the first dance. We had to put our arms around each other for this specific style. As you could imagine, this was awkward even though we've known each other since 6th grade. Go figure.

Each unit typically lasts three weeks. I suck at dancing but still find it enjoyable. It helps that the girls are pretty cute. Heehee.

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. :-)

swing dancing!

Today saw the beginning of the dance unit in P.E. class. The teachers brought in this huge ghetto blaster and taught us some steps, and we all had to partner up. This was quite the surprise - I certainly didn't expect us to cover swing dancing.

For the record, my first dance partner was a girl named Hana. I had known her since the beginning of the school year, so it wasn't all that awkward. But I'm admittedly still a little nervous around girls at the moment. Case in point, I was never brave enough to ask anyone to slow dance with me despite having been to two LAYC dances. While swing dancing isn't anywhere as intimate, it was still a little weird at first.

But it wasn't long before I started getting used to it. I'd say swing dancing actually turned out to be quite fun. Because we rotate partners for each song, I don't need to worry about having to muster the courage to ask someone for a dance. Plus, it's not like we have a choice. :-)

From what I've heard, we'll also be covering line and square dancing in the next couple of weeks. I guess P.E. isn't just about sports and whatnot.

Currently playing: Metroid II: Return of Samus

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

back from camp

I just got back from Camp Costanoan, a retreat for students with disabilities. Because many of my classmates have been there, my parents decided to sign me up so that I could experience it as well. This was my first time being away from the rest of my family for an extended period of time, so it was a pretty big challenge for me.

Day 1

Mom and Dad dropped me off at the camp in the afternoon. I was a little nervous at first, so my parents did their best to convince me that everything would be all right. They went home after making sure I could check in, and so began my adventure.

I was introduced to my counselor Andy after signing in. He was very nice and made me feel more comfortable. I soon met the other kids and their counselors in our group, and we spent the rest of the afternoon getting acquainted with each other. One of the students in the group was a guy named Brian who sounded a bit like a girl and acted a lot like one. He seemed rather friendly at first, although he definitely gave me the creeps.

There was a dance in the evening, and I got to swing dance with my friend Chelsea. While I absolutely suck at dancing, this was by far the best part of camp. I'm usually shy around girls, but it wasn't much of a problem as Chelsea and I are in the same class and know each other pretty well.

It was rather late when the dance ended, so we went to bed shortly afterwards. I had trouble sleeping at first because I wasn't used to being in an unfamiliar place away from my parents. The fact that I was sharing the cabin with all those strange people didn't help the issue. After what seemed like hours, I was finally able to doze off with the reassurance from a counselor.

Day 2

Saturday was long and tedious. There wasn't much to do aside from the group activities, so I spent most of my free time hanging out with Andy and the other counselors. Brian later joined us for a few games of cops and robbers some time after lunch, which was was a great way to kill time.

I wish I could say that all was well, but this unfortunately not the case. Things went downhill in the afternoon, when one of the counselors started picking on me. I don't quite remember his name, but I think it was Derek or something similar. In any case, that guy was a complete asshole. He made me so upset that I was about to bash his head in with a rock when another counselor talked me out of it. I'm rather glad I didn't follow through as I would probably have gotten into huge trouble otherwise.

I later bumped into Brian again in the cabin. This encounter was less than pleasant: he accused me of peeking at him while he got dressed, and then threatened to do something bad to me. I don't understand why anyone on Earth would want to peek at creepy naked guys. Let's just say my positive impression of him just went out the window.

The evening ended with an art workshop of sorts. It wasn't that interesting, but I nevertheless took the time to appreciate other people's talents. The good news is that I was also able to reconcile with Derek. All I had to do was tell him that I didn't like what he was doing, and he apologized for his actions. That worked like a charm; I guess violence really isn't the answer after all.

It was then time for bed again. Having gotten more used to the environment, I was able to sleep much better.

Day 3

This was the last day of camp. The program ended well before noon, so it wasn't long before parents started picking their kids up. The staff put on Disney's Hercules in the meantime, and we were about halfway through the movie when Mom and Dad showed up. I was extremely glad to see them again, and they were obviously very eager to see me as well. Mom went as far as counting how many hours she had to wait before she could pick me up, and she even considered sneaking to the camp to make sure I was safe. Too hilarious.

Conclusions

Camp Costanoan certainly had its ups and downs. The highlight of the program was last Friday's dance, which was loads of fun. It was also nice to get to know the other campers and their counselors. Speaking of which, I'll have to admit that some of the kids really creeped me out. I was actually afraid to use the shower out of fear that someone would steal my clothes, and ended up being a stinkin' pile of sweat by the time camp was over. Come to think of it, I was probably a little paranoid.

However, the worst part of camp was when Derek kept making fun of me, which really pissed me off. You'd think a counselor would know better than that. I cannot fathom why Camp Costanoan would hire a jerk like him. Perhaps it's karma, considering that I've done my fair share of picking on Andy too. :\

On the bright side, Derek was an anomaly that did not represent the other counselors, most of whom were decent people. I guess I'm very lucky I wasn't assigned to him.

To be honest, the negative experiences have somewhat put me off. This isn't to say that Camp Costanoan is bad; it's actually a great place to meet new people, not to mention that most of the staff are extremely nice. That having been said, I may be interested in going there again when I'm older. But for the time being, I prefer family vacations. :-)

Currently watching: Hercules
Release date: June 27, 1997