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

an awesome Thanksgiving party

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today was fun as we invited lots of people over. The best part is that our family friend Mei also brought food to share. That was so generous of her. Everything was delicious, especially the egg custard. Though the Lu and Shieh families left early because Rae and my uncle Dong are morning people, most of our guests stayed past 11 p.m. On the whole, this was one of the best parties ever.

I'm very thankful for getting into Berkeley this year. Being accepted into such a prestigious school was the last thing I expected. Speaking of which, I should probably start preparing for my finals. Haha.

Currently listening to: "Fluid Combustion" by Synthetique

first day of college!

The big day has arrived. I moved into the dorms at Berkeley this afternoon, and so begins a new chapter in my life.

One thing for sure is that college is very different from high school. I was nervous at first but am adjusting pretty well. I've met my roommate Scott - he's a cool guy from Southern California. The other six people in our suite are really nice too. Oh yeah, and hot chicks are everywhere. ^_^

Classes don't actually start until the 30th, but new students are encouraged to attend Welcome Week to get a feel of the school. The schedule is filled with activities, including a dance on the 27th. I'm pretty excited.

In other news...

Summer ended on a good note as the Lu family invited us to dinner at HomeTown Buffet on the 20th. Everything was delicious. I had a great time hanging out with Thomas, Connie and Jenny at their house afterwards. Of note is that the Lus agreed to meet on Friday instead of Saturday because I wanted more time to prepare for the move. I truly appreciate their consideration.

Currently playing: The Incredible Machine: Even More Contraptions

Historical note: Pictures from Move-In Day are available here.

Happy birthday to Casey!

Our family friend Mei's son Casey just turned 10 years old. She had a big party at her house and asked us to come over. It was just me and Mom as Dad has to work and couldn't take the day off.

Aside from a few high school girls, the guests were young children and their parents. Though I mostly played games on my laptop, the party was lots of fun. I'd definitely like to thank the Lees for having us over. Summer has been great so far, especially considering that my family just came back from an awesome trip to the Pacific Northwest earlier this month.

Currently listening to: Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J. S. Bach

choir party report

So we had another party in the choir room today during lunch. However, this party wasn't quite like the one in December. The biggest difference was the lack of atmosphere. There were fewer people, none of whom stayed long or got up to dance. I'm guessing it's because the finals are coming up.

Though the mood was less festive, everyone still had a great time. I even brought my laptop to show people the Quake demos I downloaded. That's as geeky as it gets. ^_^

Currently playing: Quake Mission Pack 2: Dissolution of Eternity

a little choir party

Our successful holiday concert is certainly a reason to celebrate. Therefore, the LAHS choral department had a party during lunch today in the choir room. The table was filled with snacks while Mr. Shaull put on holiday music. Some people even got up to dance!

The party was fairly short as we only get 45 minutes for lunch. However, that's not a big deal because everyone had a great time. This almost makes up for the dance I had to miss. :-)

In any case, I should get back to studying as the finals are starting tomorrow for us seniors. Peace.

Currently listening to: "White Christmas" by Irving Berlin

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 party that almost wasn't

Today was fun as we had a party for the Memorial Day weekend. Mom and I did all of the work because Dad is out of town again. The good news is that everyone had a great time. However, the party almost didn't happen.

You see, my maternal grandfather was extremely upset this morning for reason. Though we're not sure what set him off, he was madder than a wet hen. Because our guests were all relatives and close friends of my grandparents, Mom was afraid they'd decide not to come. Had that been the case, all the effort we put into the party would be wasted.

To our collective relief, Grandpa cheered up shortly before the party began. I'm glad things worked out in the end. Old people are so weird sometimes!

Thanksgiving with the Lu family

I had a nice Thanksgiving as the Lu family invited us over for dinner. It was a much-needed get-together, especially considering that they didn't stay long the last time they came over.

Lisa prepared a large turkey and several other dishes. There was more than enough food for all of us. I mostly played games on my TI-89 but did enjoy hanging out with Thomas and Connie. Everyone definitely had a great time.

On a related note, I'm grateful for my new calculator. It's extremely useful and a great time killer. Imagine bringing it to a Thanksgiving party — you can't get any geekier. :P

Currently watching: Interceptor Force 2

four barbecues over the weekend

Hope everyone is having a great summer. Or at least I am because we managed to have a barbecue every day for the last four days!

Thursday

So we have an electric grill that's been sitting in the garage. Mom wanted to test it out and decided to invite my grandparents over. She had gotten it as a gift from my aunt Cynthia a while ago. Electric grills are safer and less likely to cause cancer. However, the food was just as tasty as before. Grandpa goes to bed early and wanted to leave after dinner, but this was understandable given his age.

Of course, no 4th of July is complete without fireworks. I got to set some off after the sun went down. One thing I noticed is that there were more fireworks this year. Firecrackers and bottle rockets are still going off every so often. People must be feeling patriotic following the 9/11 attacks.

Friday

We decided to have the Lins and another family over. Only the Lins came as the other family canceled at the last minute. But this wasn't a problem because the Lins were our main guests.

Moonway loved the hot dogs even though he isn't much of a meat eater. I went to get one and found them all gone. Good thing I already had one the day before. Everyone had a great time catching up before Moonway and I went to play games.

Saturday

Mom invited the Lu family as they're also good friends. It turns out their kids love video games too. However, they didn't stay long either because their father Wen-Juei is also an early sleeper. I was a little disappointed that I didn't get to spend much time with Thomas and Connie. Hope it's not long before we see them again.

Sunday

Dad had some co-workers over as we had enough supplies. But let's be honest — the same thing gets old after four days. It's going to be a while before I can stand another barbecue. :-)

Currently playing: Pinball

happy new millennium

I can't believe 2001 is here. According to the Gregorian calendar, the new millennium starts this year. It sounds counterintuitive, but that's what the experts tell us.

New Year's Eve report

Of course, the dawn of a new millennium is certainly something to celebrate. Although we're still recovering from our trip, Mom invited the Liangs over for dinner. It was very exciting even though I was mostly glued to my laptop. At least in my experience, having a party right after coming home helps with the holiday blues. :-)

2000 in review

I don't think anyone will disagree that 2000 was awesome. For one, our recent trip to the Southwest U.S. was one of our best vacations ever. It helps that I'm now old enough to appreciate things. Another highlight was visiting Willits last summer. Traveling is always something to look forward to. On the academic side, graduating from Egan was an important milestone.

The only blemish was when my learning skills teacher Mrs. Roth sent me to the office for saying "shit" too many times. So much for free speech. But because I'm on good terms with Mrs. Satterwhite, she only gave me a warning as opposed to a suspension. It really does help to have friends in high places.

At any rate, school starts tomorrow for me. I have a 7:20 a.m. biology class and probably shouldn't go to bed too late. Take care, everyone.

Currently playing: Final Doom

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

the party of a lifetime

Hope you guys had a great New Year's Eve. Or at least I did because the Liangs invited us to a big party at their house. :-)

We arrived at our family friend Carol's house in the evening and caught up with her. Carol ordered so much food that there was barely enough room on the table. After dinner, everyone gathered in the living room to watch the Times Square ball drop. Imagine our anticipation as we counted down the seconds. One thing for sure is that this is a defining moment for our generation.

Some of us decided to watch The Matrix on video later. I enjoyed the special effects even though I didn't quite understand the movie. It ended pretty late — just before midnight Pacific time. Soon the year 2000 was upon us. Everyone was having so much fun that no one wanted to leave. We stayed for another hour or so before finally heading home.

One problem is that I'm socially awkward and don't have many close friends. I didn't know anyone except the Liangs and decided to take out my laptop. However, there were still opportunities to socialize. A guy saw me playing Quake and also wanted to give it a go. He turned out to be an expert at the game and even showed me some neat tricks. It's always nice to meet people with similar interests.

On the whole, the transition to the year 2000 couldn't have been better. It's hard to believe something like this only happens once every 1,000 years. Such an event is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Perhaps science will one day allow us to live forever. But I digress.

Some predicted computers would crash and cause chaos. However, that doesn't seem to be the case. To my knowledge, there have been no incidents so far. At least my computers are working fine. Let's hope nothing too crazy happens. *crosses fingers*

1999 in review

Last year certainly had its ups and downs. I really enjoyed our Alaska cruise in the summer. Spending time with the Lins and the Shiehs made it even better. Our trip to Japan was pretty fun too.

Of course, there were also bad days. Dad wanted to take us to Tahoe in February but had to back out due to work commitments. Having the cancel the trip was a bummer. Although we invited the Liangs over for dinner — as a compensation of sorts — the mood was ruined when my dad and I got into an argument over trivial matters. I guess life doesn't always work out according to plan.

Currently playing: Quake

winter break report + Tahoe trip canceled :-(

This winter break had a pretty good start, thanks to the awesome party at Ann's house last week. However, the break kind of ended on a bad note.

As mentioned earlier, my family had planned to go skiing in Tahoe again this past weekend. Unfortunately, the trip was called off as Dad was too busy with work-related stuff. I had been eagerly looking forward to the slopes, so this was quite a let-down. :-(

On the other hand, my parents invited the Liang family over to our house for dinner on Saturday to compensate for the trip. The gathering was quite nice except for when I got into an argument with Dad (although not related to the cancellation of the trip) during the meal. This was rather embarrassing, although it could have been a lot worse if it wasn't for the fact that we are good friends with the Liang family. Damn Asian parents.

In any case, I hope spring break will be a lot better, preferably with no canceled trips or silly bickering. :-)

Currently playing: Operation Neptune

Valentine's Day party report

Last night was pretty fun as Mom's friend Ann invited my family to her house for dinner. This wasn't really a Valentine's Day party per se; the gathering just happened to fall on February 14 and so wasn't too different from the other ones we've been to. An actual Valentine's Day party would no doubt have been very awkward with all the hugging and kissing going on. :P

Ann lives rather far away in Walnut Creek - which is about 70 miles from our house - so we don't get to visit her all that often. This was actually our first time seeing the Jung family in years, so it was great to get back in touch with them. However, the real reason we hadn't touched base for so long was that I accidentally killed their pet fish on our last visit.

You see, I really liked their aquarium, so their daughters told me I could feed the fish. But because I didn't know how much they were supposed to eat, I ended up putting in too much food, and the poor fishies all died of ruptured stomachs as a result. Oh dear!

In other words, I learned the hard way that the concept of moderation was apparently foreign to the fish. You could say I literally loved them to death. The girls were understandably so upset that they told their mother never to invite us over again. True to their word, our families didn't have contact for a long time.

But it seems I've been forgiven after all those years. When I brought up the subject at dinner, all of us had a good laugh about it. Leaving the past to the past, our two families had a great time. All of the food was delicious, especially Ann's homemade blueberry tarts.

The highlight of the evening was when we learned that Ann's husband used to be a NASA flight controller, and that he was there during the Apollo 13 incident. As you could imagine, he had quite a few sleepless nights - as well as an epic story to tell!

The nice thing is that winter break had only begun. If everything goes to plan, my family will be heading to Lake Tahoe again in a few days. :-)

Currently playing: Chip's Challenge

Happy 1999!

I hope everyone had a great new year!

Anyway, last night totally rocked. The Liang family invited mine to their New Year's Eve party, and everyone had a great time. Although I mostly played Super Mario Land and Star Wars on my Game Boy, I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the party. As midnight approached, we participated in the countdown to 1999. Happy New Year!

But the party wasn't over just yet; my parents and I were having so much fun that we stayed for almost another hour before leaving. This was my first time celebrating the new year at someone else's house, and I had never gotten home from a party so late early before!

1998 in review

In a sense, 1998 was my "coming of age" year. The most significant event was probably when I transferred to Springer as a full-time student. That was a very important milestone in my life; my parents had feared that I would remain in a special education program indefinitely, but it turned out otherwise. I also gave up Easter egg hunts, trick-or-treating and annual birthday parties on my own power. Those weren't easy decisions, but I guess it's safe to say I'm not a little kid anymore. :-)

The best part of 1998 was when we visited Yellowstone National Park in August. That had to be one of our best trips ever. It's hard to say what my least favorite part of the year was, considering that things generally went very well. Chances are that it's one of those arguments I've had with my parents over some trivial shit, but I guess that's one of the things about being a teenager. :P

In any case, I'm looking forward to a great 1999. Rock on!

Currently playing: Star Wars (Game Boy)
Release date: November 15, 1991

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.

The nice thing was that my mother's friend Carol invited my family to her house for dinner last night. Because my parents and I know the Liangs pretty well, our two families tend to visit each other fairly often. I'm unfortunately not very good at making friends, so I spent much of the time playing Dragonheart: Fire & Steel on my laptop. However, I did hang out with Stacey when she had nobody else to play with, and Carol later thanked me for "babysitting" her daughter.

Other than that, I got to watch parts of Money Talks on the big-screen TV with the other guests. The movie was kind of lame but also really funny at the same time. On the whole, my parents and I had a great time at the party. It was actually so much fun that the three of us stayed until almost midnight!

This year, I am very thankful for my parents' efforts in getting me transferred to a regular school. If it wasn't for their perseverance, I would probably still be in a special education program right now.

Currently watching: Money Talks
Release date: August 22, 1997

San Francisco trip report

I just got back from a one-night stay in San Francisco with my parents. It wasn't so much a vacation as a business trip as Dad had to go there for a conference, but he took the rest of us along due to San Francisco being so close.

Dad was away in meetings most of the time, so it was pretty much just me and Mom. The two of us considered exploring the downtown on our own, but we decided against it due to the reputedly high crime rate in San Francisco. There wasn't much else to do, so we spent the bulk of the time in our hotel room. But it wasn't all that bad because SimCity 2000 had kept me occupied, and that we got to see The Arrival on HBO.

The three of us also watched U.S. Marshals last night. The film turned out to be pretty good. This was our first time seeing a pay-per-view movie, so it was a neat experience. The movie wasn't cheap by any means, but it was nevertheless the most memorable part of our trip. Even though we didn't get to do a whole lot otherwise, it was nice to be with Dad whenever he wasn't in a meeting.

Despite being so short, the trip was not without mishaps. Those who have seen Deep Impact may remember the scene where astronomer Marcus Wolf throws down his pizza in a panic after discovering that a comet is on a collision course with the Earth. Well, I thought it would be funny to reenact that scene by slamming down my croissant whenever a disaster happened in SimCity 2000. It was actually pretty funny... until I accidentally spilled my sparkling water all over the laptop. Oops.

I cleaned it up as quickly as I could, so computer still works fine save for some sticky keys. I fully expected Dad to kill me for that, but much to my relief, he merely had a good laugh about it. The whole thing was rather hilarious in hindsight.

In other news...

I didn't feel like making a separate post, but last Thursday's party totally rocked. It was really great to see my Springer classmates one last time. I'd definitely like to thank Brianna for inviting me. :-)

Currently watching: U.S. Marshals
Release date: March 6, 1998