Champagne Supernova

2011

2012-01-02T22:08:00.000-08:00

I know. I don't post on here a lot but, I wanted to recap 2011 so that I can (hopefully) forever remember the ups and downs of the year. I know my closest friends know what a tough year it has been and how much stronger I am because of it.

First Highlights of 2011

My trip to Ghana!
It was a credibly eye-opening and humbling experience to say the least. The trip made me realize that I want to be defined by the people that surround me and not the items that I own. I was happy to be fully supported by my family and friends to take this trip. I did become a pin cushion to prep for it and I got a GI tract infection while I was there but those kids were worth it.

Istanbul and Germany
I was very fortunate to travel with OT people to these awesome countries. I have a new appreciation for grandiose mosques and market places. I love all the details with Turkish art and the color combinations.

My fieldwork experience at St. Joseph Medical Center...
Renewed my passion to work with the elderly. Sometimes I think that I love old people because I miss my grandparents. The acute rehabilitation physician was not able to interact with the patients as much and I was glad that I was able bring humanity into the hospital and make even the most senile and depressed patients smile.

Happiness!!

My good friend's Kristy's engagement to the love of her life! Better photo coming soon...

(Ok my friend Kristy is on the right and she's not a lesbian but this is seriously the only photo I could find on my computer) We need to take more photos!

Bittersweet

Having my amiga/good friend leave for Seattle! It was sad to see her go however I'm happy that she's living her life to the fullest...leaving no stone unturned (sorry for the cliche). I hope I have supported her as much as she has supported me. All her hand written letters have gotten me through tough times. One of my new years resolution is to make her a very effective dream catcher.

The Lowest Low

Letting my grandmother go...
I remember whispering into my grandpas ear as he was passing away that I would be strong in life for him because that was his piece of advice to me. I know why he told me to be strong...for times like these when all of my emotions and irritations would be tested and I would have to think straight for the sake of my family and for my future career. I figured out quickly the friends and family that I could count on during this crisis. Although it was tough, I was able to cut people out of my life that simply could not "handle" me during this tribulation.

The Sun After The Storm

The sun is in human form and he is currently my boyfriend. He helps me float away into outer space to forget what I have lost this year. I'm very fortunate that my good friend Hanna introduced us and that we grew into something more than what everyone expected.

This picture is Hanna! Haha I'm really horrible at remembering to take pictures during events. I still need a picture of Arshad and I.

The End.

I'm still feeling the effects of 2011 but I started 2012 with the best family gathering. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in my studies that I think it's the most important thing but NO! My family is. I'm very fortunate to have lots of cousins and crazy aunts and uncles that fart in my face and make fun out of any situation.

Please be good to me 2012 and don't listen to the Mayans.

Mainz and Istanbul!

2011-05-13T15:27:00.000-07:00

Here's my trip to Germany and Istanbul in a nut shell! I definitely want to go back and spend more time in these countries, 4 days is NOT ENOUGH :( There's so much to see in the world and so little money and time that I have. Hopefully my next adventure will be in east Asia. It's funny how I'm slowly making my way around the world. I'm hoping to end up in Japan one day.

Mainz, Germany

This guy was so welcoming :)

We found a safe place just in case it might rain haha

Say this 10 times, it will make your head turn

Reminded me of SF (just a little bit)

So sad there wasn't enough time to eat dessert here.

Where is the water coming from?????

It seemed like I was walking through disneyland

Were ready for Istanbul!

The BLUE MOSQUE

Tivo!

It was so enchanting inside

Hagia Sophia

It tasted yummy

I found Jasmine's father

So detailed and ornate

Such a mysterious place...I loved it

medusas head

traditional turkish dessert with pistachios

they had like 40 different kinds of baklava

I loved the lamps!! I would decorate my whole house with turkish decor

shopping central

bars galore!! we couldn't choose!

The view from our hotel

The sultans palace

spices!

I really liked all the designs, especially with the gold etched in

water closet time

No words can describe this moment

coffee with the cutest dishes

yummy tea!!

The best meal I had in Turkey, eggplant with...

Hagia Sophia at night

SHOPPING! AT THE GRAND BAZAR, biggest shopping center I've ever seen

the scarfs were so beautiful, I wanted to buy 10 of them

Turkish drink that tasted like hot rice pudding with cinnamon, it was soooooo goood. I would go back for just this :)

Our residence, such a difference from Ghana

Gotta go home :(

Turkey is truly an amazing place if you like to shop and see the beautiful side of the middle east. I enjoyed being there with my OT friends. I can't wait to go back! WHO'S DOWN?!

GHANA

2011-03-23T21:30:00.000-07:00

I was skeptical about this trip at first but, I'm so happy that I took a chance and gained the best occupational therapy experience thus far. I figure I won't be able to see everyone and fully explain my experience and I figure I should be documenting my travel experiences before I forget. Sorry some of the pictures are out of order.

Here we go!

sleeping quarters...this is VIP status in Ghana

goats...they were so cute

outside of our sleeping quarters

the children's school

happy that we are here!!

our personal alarm clock

plantain donut, and the BEST PINEAPPLE IVE EVER EATEN

our first time meeting EBE and VERONICA :)

the cutest ghanaian boy in the world!

dinner time

a town scene

canopy forest!!

the suspension bridges were sooo much fun!

me and tivo!

ahhh I'm going

this is how I really felt

the beach

the slave castle...bonnie was right, everyone should visit one of these in their life time

homemade plantain chips...they were soo yummy, it tasted like lays

awww poor ebe

veronica with her shaker

playing games before dinner...she was so sweet here

hi franklina

this picture always makes me laugh....paul's foot

parachute time...the kids loved this activity

hanging out on my shoulder, he was tired

bonnie doing work

i loved how they carried their children

hi solo!

irene and ebe marching

they both had a crush on ebe...these are the community based rehabilitation therapists in training from ghana

more students

ebe, paul and the kids getting their groove on

side shot

were trying to be cool with our sunglasses

they win for the cutest but most inappropriate couple :)

don't worry I got you

the kids marching in the ghana independence parade...so proud of them

here they are in front of the leader of the town

beach day :) sooo stoked

most heavenly drink on earth, well it seemed like that in ghana

ot all day everyday...exhausting but worth every moment

what I ate after getting sick

back to the beach pictures

yeaaah!

he had to do his beach dance before getting in the water

best fresh banana chocolate bread

what the wind can do to a palm tree

down time with tivo

these guys are too cool for school

hi ebe's mom, so sweet and nice

veronica's sister

sooo good. thank you ebe's mom

football time

most of the time me and ebe would sing, play games, sometimes scream, or talk about harry potter and high school musical

tano!

this is a picture of rice, cabbage, a boiled egg and red sauce oh and I can't forget the chocolate cake

me and tivo at paster joe's grandfathers village

in our ghanaian dresses

our usual daily hug

hallo

our lovely host and instructor

at church with the kids singing and dancing their hearts out

limbo time! I convinced him to do it

he didnt want to talk on the last day

my favorite rapper

he has the biggest smile

aww zufah

my favorite duo

ebe saying bye :(......

i hope you keep that smile on forever

I learned so much from being in Ghana. I love their culture, people and energy. I'm so glad i chose USC and OT or else I wouldn't have gotten this opportunity and inspiration. I'll post istanbul pictures next!

Being more environmentally aware

2010-09-06T15:22:00.000-07:00

Lately it's been bugging me about how much waste America has. It's so easy to just throw away things and not take a trip to the recycling center or call a charity to pick up old clothes, furniture and etc... I've been trying to do research on the internet about what can be recycled and where to take it or who to call and I FINALLY found a perfect website for this, it's called Earth911.com. You should check it out! It's perfect for people like me who likes to hoard items in hopes of a future function. I can now put my items towards a good cause so it's not a complete loss.

http://earth911.com/

Also, I was hoping that the plastic bag ban legislation would be approved, but it failed. Read more.

I encourage people to STOP USING PLASTIC BAGS. I am sometimes guilty of this because I forget to bring my recycled bags. To prevent this I bought these bags called Chicobags and they come attached to a key chain so you can never forget. They are also made out of recycled materials.

Trying to change someone's lifestyle to have less impact on the environment is hard. It took me days to convince my dad to use an aluminum bottle to drink out of instead of the plastic bottles. Slowly things are changing.

2010 is AWESOME!

2010-04-14T17:20:00.000-07:00

knock on wood.

Sorry I don't post often but, this year has been awesome which is a complete opposite from last year which now seems like HELL.

Here are some of my highlights of 2010 in no particular order

Working at Borders which saddens me that I'm going to quit soon. SEX AND THE CITY 2
England, Ireland, Spain and France trip with Miss Samantha Kao
Health Care Bill passed, which means I will be covered until I'm 26 with my parents health insurance.
Got to work at a chocolate shop, GODIVA
OT Masters Program, Class of 2012

ill update more later. gosh i never have time to complete my posts

Escondido Canyon Park

2009-11-28T15:26:00.000-08:00

If you're looking for a nice peaceful hiking trail this is the best place to go away from the LA city but not too far. During the rainy season there's a beautiful waterfall at the end of the trail. There were some steep climbs but overall an easy walking trail. This is located in Malibu and on the way to the real trail you get a glimpse of mansions and vast grasslands. I really enjoyed the greenness with the ocean in the background. Here are some pictures that me and my partner took on the trail.
I really needed to get away from being cramped up at home and this was the perfect idea.

The cons:
-horse shit everywhere, rich people are too lazy and take their horses to the waterfall so on the way to the trail you are constantly dodging the horse shit.
- without a map you can get easily lost. me and daigo ended up on private property because we forgot the map
- there is little parking, and be careful when your walking to the canyon because rich people might run you over with their mercedes and range rovers.

Here's the pdf of the map:
http://www.lamountains.com/maps/escondido.pdf

These pictures don't do the trail justice but, here are some of the sights that I experienced.

This is what I come home to :)

Empire State of Mind

2009-11-23T23:28:00.000-08:00

LISTEN...version without Jay-Z

I miss New York! I really like the atmosphere and I bet it's awesome during Christmas time.

Here are some photos from the last time that I went to go visit. One year I'm going to spend Christmas and New Years in New York. It seems so magical.

click on the image

this waterfall under the Brooklyn Bridge is actually an art exhibit by Danish artist Olafur Eliasson

natural lights from New York

I would probably go here for my entertainment. I'm known for my jungle fever.

NYC LIGHTS

my favorite painting at the MET

In New York
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
There's nothing you can’t do,
Now you're in New York
These streets will make you feel brand new,
the lights will inspire you,
Let's hear it for New York, New York, New York

Seems like just a dream.

Updates!

2009-10-05T21:02:00.001-07:00

I've been consumed with applying for grads schools sooo all my hobbies have been put on hold. After going to a awesome art gallery called surfindian, I've been wanting to get back into photography, possibly polaroid pictures. However film costs almost $30 including shipping! I'm also contemplating stenciling and screen printing. We shall see where life takes me, I wish I was a natural artist but for some reason I think my left hand has always prevented me from drawing a line straight. I've been looking at old and new album covers for inspiration for my art

Some of my favorite album covers!

My life thus far

2009-05-11T12:31:00.000-07:00

I don't really know who looks at my blog but my motivation to join was to keep up with my high school friends because I MISS THEM!

Lately I've been eating, going to the beach, hanging out with friends randomly. Oh and also in my free time I STUDY! haha surprisingly. My anatomy and physiology class at ELAC is challenging and I love it. I thought classes at community colleges are suppose to be easier than high school but not this class. Apparently the professors that been getting laid off at top University's are starting to teach at Cal State's and CC's. My professor in chemistry last quarter use to teach at UCI. So yes I love my anatomy and physiology class at 7-10am. I think my strengths are in understanding the functions of the heart and brain. The classes that I liked the most and got the best scores in were brain dysfunction and cognitive neuroscience. I never really cared about science, yea my ap bio class teacher was BORING and EVIL, but having a professor explain a function or system makes the learning process easier because they are actually experts and researchers in the field and their passion shows. Anyways on to more interesting thoughts

Ok on to FOOD!

Last week I went with my sister and Daigo to MAKO! Go yelp it! It was amazing! THE BEST SUSHI IN TOWN. The fish was fresh, the tako and sea urchin were almost moving because they were so fresh. The sashimi really melts in your mouth. The last time I had good sashimi was when my dad went on a fishing trip and brought home yellow tail. The table behind us bought four trays of sashimi priced at $30 each. It's not all you can eat but, if youre looking for quality sushi it's the best place.

I went to the LA BBQ festival and ATE THE BEST BBQ in TOWN

The bbq place is called BABY BLUES BBQ. Try the memphis style ribs and mac and cheese. The mac and cheese was sooooo good. It's homestyle or paula dean style haha.

Yea, me and daigo are turning in fatties but, I'm planning on taking up skim boarding and as soon as I get a job probably a pass to 24.

I wish I had photos of food with my nikon D40 but here are some photos to enjoy!

Bear in mammoth. In the parking garage!

me and the friend

my dad and his favorite place to be

I miss blogging

2009-04-06T17:44:00.000-07:00

Well my xanga kind of fell through years ago so now I hopped on the bandwagon and joined the Blogg community. My life isn't that exciting at the moment but, I'm been having amazing experiences every now and then. Now that my mom has a high-tech camera I can keep this updated with interesting photos.

Well I'm in vegas visiting my sister and I'm about to eat. I'll blogg later gators.