wow, there's just so much to write about. i hate it when i don't blog for days. you can't recall the best details of your good and bad days. sometimes, you mix certain events up. sometimes, you go off topic. sometimes, you start making up things. sometimes, you...

well, as most of you know, i got a new computer last week. after some stupid research on the net and some counseling from friends, i finally decided to buy the HP from Costco. i was really attracted to the Ultra 120 gig Harddrive, the 2.26 ghz, but most of all the 15" lcd monitor. i just had to buy something that was on the spot. i'm too impatient for online shopping. anyways, remember how i was thinking about getting a cd/mp3 player for college? well, i actually had my eyes on a Panasonic one at Goodguys for $100. but as i was looking around costco, i found the same one for $80! right on the spot! it came with a remote and everything! i was pretty sure my mom was going to scold me for spending my money too carelessly right before college. but when she saw the cd player, she simply said, "oh wow. you're buying this new one so you can give your old one to simon right?" so i didn't even have to pay for it. assah!

after i bought my computer, i went back to Extra for the 8,746th time to fix my phone. we got there at 2:30. the sign said Be Back At 3:00. the guy came back at 4:15. dude, i got really lucky too cause i said we would only wait til the parking meter was up. right when we had no more time left, i saw the guy opening his door. after i got my light fixed, hours later i realized that no one could hear my voice on the phone. so yeah, the guy screwed up again.

dykas and i started working on my computer at 6pm. we spent 11.5 hours on this blasted computer, trying to "fix it." first, we couldn't get internet. we switched to 98. i lost everything. we downloaded all the drivers. we got internet to work with my old ethernet card. then we realized that my harddrive dropped from 106 to 2 gigabytes. for some reason, it was only reading 4% of my real harddrive. so we started over. ok, to make a long story short, we spent 11.5 hours on my new computer and by 5:30am, all i had to do was get my cd burner and sound to work. *sigh* next morning, i decided to return the cursed thing, thinking it was the ethernet card's problem.

after some more hours on the my second new computer, we finally figured out that the dsl was already configured into Windows XP. all i had to do was put in my username and password the whole time. ROAR!!! but i was soooooooo happy when i finally got everything fixed. so here i am now, with my computer all nice and happy. it's super duper fast. i love the cd burner. i can burn cds in 3-4 minutes! i can finally watch dvds now! praise God!

oh yeah, before i bought my computer again, i went to Extra once again and got my phone fixed. the guy felt really bad so he gave me a free antenna. i chose white. (these days, i check my phone every 10 min. to see if everything is working fine).

friday, i went noraebang with i-fang and some church people. i loooooove noraebanging. it's so fun! you get to sing songs as loud as you want and your mom can't complain about your cracking voice. highlight of the night: chang's Eye of the Tiger. man, the guy can seriously make you laugh. thank you so very much i-fang. heeeerrrrrrrrrrooooooooo!!!

on saturday, i saw Chingoo on dvd. if you are a korean male and have not seen this yet, i highly recommend this movie. remember, i said korean MALE! this is strictly a guy movie. after watching it for the second time (this time with subtitles), i REALLY enjoyed and appreciated this movie. gosh, so many happy and sad parts. so far, all of my friends admitted that they started tearing up at the end...yes, even me. this is definitely my favorite korean movie so far.

i also finally got to play Twister for the first time at Esther's party. dude, that game is some fun crap! it's even fun when you're just playing with 2 people. esther and i were having a blast just laughing at our awkward positions and heavy complaints. warning: Twister is not to be played with Chang. bad things will happen to your body.

today, i finally saw Amelie. omg. that crap was so weird. it's not an enjoyable movie. very foreign. very hard to pay attention. it's just so weird. i didn't like it. i highly do not recommend it. 2 hours of life wasted.

oh yeah, i almost forgot! i got my dorm info. i got a 3 person dorm. one guy from japan, probably an international student. and this other guy from anaheim. his name's Minh Do. alotta people are telling me he's gotta be korean. but i don't know. my first thought was, "aw crap. i'm stuck with some chinese guy." (eheheheheh. i know you're reading this i-fang). but whatever the case, i'm happy that i'll be dorming with asian students. it could always be worse. *sigh* how am i going to fall asleep with these guys?

Thought of the Day: Twister in America is MUCH better than Twister in Korea.
Song of the Day: Jin-Hey Jin

i got a chance to hang out with my friends again. me, dykas, pat, tammy, and ted. we went to go eat at California Pizza Kitchen and went noraebang in san jo. *sigh* fun times...

pat: yeah, my roommate is korean. but he talks like a fag.
me: hey, at least he's korean.
pat: yeah, but still. i think he's a fag.

(singing Jumpo Mambo)
ted: um...i don't know this part....JUMPER MAMBO!...JUMPER MAMBO!
(mumbles in korean).
(turns off the song).
everyone: ahahahahahahahahha.

me: yeah, that guy looks like a retarded chinese guy.
dykas: looks like he has down syndrome.
everyone: ahahahahahhaah.

some more happy news: i bought pat's small speakers and subwoofer for 20 bucks (originally 60)! very happy. i think i may be getting a cd mp3 player pretty soon too! bring on the blessings!

bad news: one of my lights went out again in my phone. gotta get it fixed again.

Thought of the Day: *sigh* computer.
Song of the Day: Pat Chung-1TYM

my days have been REALLY relaxing lately. i wake up around 11 and eat brunch. i just kinda walk around the house til 2 and go to work til 5. after work, i find something to do with a friend or just stay home and watch a Blockbuster Favorite. then i play chess with simon and go online til 1. it's nice.

today, after work i'm going to eat dinner with my beloved pat, dykas, and tammy in san jo and noraebang with their church friend, ted.

tomorrow, i'm going to buy my computer at costco. playing around with my computer ought to occupy me the whole day.

friday will be another ficy.

and then the weekend is finally here. but not like it matters cause everyday is like a weekend to me.

right now, it looks like i'll be leaving for irvine on the 21st or 22nd. that's next next saturday or sunday. excited yet reluctant to leave. that's fine. expected emotions.

ok, i'm just really bored right now. no one's home. i can't even go downstairs cause these guys are fixing the gas thing in my house til 6. and i can't go out cause i have work in less than 2 hours. what to do, what to do. *sigh* i think i'll go to work 1 hour early. i'm seriously that bored. dang.

Thought of the Day: Am I an addict?
Song of the Day: The Hives-Hate To Say I Told You So

dell lady: order number?
me: 918413881.
dell lady: your order is under production right now.
me: oh. i was wondering if you can cancel that order.
dell lady: um...it's already under production. are you sure?
me: yes. oh, is there any penalty?
dell lady: nope.
me: thank you very much.

praise God! i got my order canceled! no penalties. i'm going to get my computer really really soon! woohoo!

sol: i just recently saw your picture gallery. great pictures man!

Thought of the Day: Dell sucks. HP Rules!
Song of the Day: Eminem-Cleanin' Out My Closet

i finally finished my traffic school last week. i got my certificate through email and just need to send in all my crap. man, getting a ticket will really discipline you very well. all of my passengers will realize how much slower i go on the freeway. sometimes i wish i didn't get the ticket. no speeding takes the fun out of driving. it really does. i really envy all of you speeders out there. but at the same time, i hope you guys get caught speeding at 88 so you can empathize with me. but really, traffic school is really annoying. it's all this common sense crap that you need to review for 6-8 hours. it's like your taking driver's ed all over again. *shudder* yeah, it sucks. but praise God i am done! i've learned. now, may i learn to LIVE what i've learned.

saturday's picnic was pretty fun. i really enjoyed the hours of frisbee, including my special hour with lois. haha. gosh, ultimate frisbee is so fun! it's one of those games where you don't feel like playing b/c it seems very childish and immature. but once you start playing, you don't want to stop until the other team gives up. lots of running. lots of yelling. and of course, lots of team cursing. "DDEUH!"

lisa's house was awesome too. it was really big with really nice bathrooms and hecka toys. man, if i had a house like that, i'd have hecka yg sleepovers and parties. anyways, mafia was alotta fun too. i've never been mafia before so it was a little different for me. well, this was actually my second time playing. but yeah, i guess i suck at lying. sometimes, i just need to learn to shuttup. "I HATE GARY!"

the only bad thing about the picnic was the mosquitoes from hell! gosh, EVERYONE got hecka bit up from that park. and these aren't just any bites. these suckers like to swell up so they look like you're growing unnecessary muscles overnight! these blasted bites itch so much. gosh, why they gotta be like that?!

oh, i almost forgot! i went to chang's place on thursday cause he wanted to cook dinner for me, simon, and chris MUN! gosh, two words: GAL BEE SURPRISE! haha. great unhealthy stuff. soooooo good! that night was concluded with the greatest movie in the world. Searching for Bobby Fischer. highly recommended for all chess players. "i'm offering you a draw."

and the next day, we had Benihana's. all you can eat sushi. three rounds. 200 dollars worth of food. *sigh* it hurts just trying to remember the incident. 3 rounds is good. 4 rounds is really good. 5 rounds is the ultimate challenge. gross. i won't dare anyone to do round 5. gross.

ok, now time for some random tidbits.

on friday, i went to Costco with B and discovered a discovery.

Discovery


isn't she beautiful? this is what i want instead of my customized Dell. 3 reasons.
1. 40 more gigs. .26 more ghz.
2. approximately $200 cheaper.
3. i don't have to worry about waiting for the mailman. i get it right on the spot.

but my Dell isn't so bad either. i would still be happy if i can't cancel my order. but yes, i'm really looking forward to my new computer.

i've been having some bad luck with my new cell phone.

monday: go to Extra to change lights and get new antenna. tells us to come back 1 hour later. we come back 1 hour later. he comes back 1 hour and 20 min. later. no discount.

sunday: 2 lights are loose and possibly broken. i go to Extra to fix the problem. there's a sign that says he'll be back in 20 min. he comes back in 30. tells me the guy who fixes phones doesn't work on sundays. come back tomorrow at 1. he'll be here for sure!

today: Extra is closed. i go to Stonestown. they don't do my phones. i go to J-town phone store. store is closed. i go to Chinatown. first store tells me to come back tomorrow. second store tells me they can't do my phone. third store is closed.

so i'm going back to Extra tomorrow. wish me luck guys.

Thought of the Day: Dykas can't dorm.
Song of the Day: That new WC song.

my morning started off pretty bad today.

1. stupid lawn mower guy really knows how to wake you up at 9am.
2. computer order is being delayed.
3. Writing 39B is COMPLETELY full. i can't even get on the stupid waiting list.
4. i need to go to my cousin's house today after work (yes, the rich bastard one that intimidates me).
5. haven't even started traffic school yet.

ok, i really appreciate all of the "college advice" everyone gave me. but no one, not a SINGLE person, admonished me about the consequences of signing up for classes late! all i heard was, "study hard! no girls! no parties! study hard!" *ahem* how about giving me some advice that i can actually USE! man, picking out classes in college is a hard kick in the balls. everything is just so inconvenient. it's not simple like high school where the counselors do all the work for you, and you can just whine and change your classes b/c you have one mean teacher. ugh, college registration is more like an authorization code here, a telephone call there, a computer freeze here, and a FULL class there! i know i know, i SHOULD have signed up earlier. i'm just venting cause i've had it up to HERE! *sigh* i want my mommy.

however, with all this stress and confusion, i am very glad to hear that justin is doing fine. he sounds very happy and is already enjoying his time at cornell. for once, i'm happy for the guy. hehe. oh, and i'm pretty impressed with what he did with his blog page. i'm pretty sure someone did it for him but no matter, it pleases me. and by the way, you were NOT "gregarious or sociable." it was just straight up TALKATIVE. make me proud CJ. =D

Thought of the Day: You think you can do it in one week?
Song of the Day: Hweesung-Can It Not Be?

retreat:

i enjoyed this retreat just like every other one. but at the same time, i realized that it felt "different." it finally hit me that i was kinda getting old for yg. having our immature paul come into yg was one sign. PJ letting me sleep in his cabin was another sign. gosh, it's weird. i felt very aloof from all the kids, almost like i didn't belong. oh but don't get me wrong, i sure had a great time. the games were awesome this year. the sermons were definitely worth listening to. and of course, the food was gross yet edible. and oooooh myyyyyy were some of the skits just freakin' hilarious! yeah, i did not regret coming to the retreat over another week in korea. praise God!

sidenote: i never realized how much i missed lois. seeing her just made me very happy. i enjoy her company very much. yes, she annoys me. yes, she bugs me. but yes, i DID miss her. great to have your ugly face back in the west coast. i'm still waiting for our little date.

after retreat:

the same day we came back from retreat, i saw justin off at the airport with moe and olivia. it wasn't like we were bawling our eyes out but there was still that "man, that sucks!" feeling among all of us. justin jang, my homosexual friend, is now in New York. oh so far away from me. yeah, i'm gonna miss the guy. that annoying arrogant guy. good luck with your white roommate and you're only allowed to call me on weekends.

but of course, the three of us just couldn't conclude a night like that. so we crashed at chang's and watched Vanilla Sky. man, that has to be one of the trippiest movies i've ever seen. i didn't like it the first time cause i only saw the middle and didn't quite make it to the end. but this time, i saw the whole thing through and ironically ended up enjoying it. and no, it wasn't just me! olivia said she liked it too. moe of course was snoring away 15 minutes into the movie. hehe.

friday:

my mom wanted to change her cell phone cause it was 90% broken. i really just wanted to chill at home but my mom really wanted me to go with her. so we explain our little situation with our phones, and i tell the guy that i don't want to switch over to anything new cause i want to keep my 8290. i know that cingular is a piece of crap company but you have to first understand what my phone went through. this phone costed me over 200 bucks! the phone itself was about 100 and the rest was spent fixing it up. foolish indeed! i agree. but the guy tells me that i can keep the phone and just change service providers like T-Mobile. so i put all my faith in this guy and canceled my account to cingular right there on the spot. after a ridiculous 1 hour, we get my thing canceled and he calls the T-Mobile guy. he finds out that they can't do it for my phone so i either have to choose T-Mobile or freakin' call Cingular again. *sigh* sometimes, the effort just isn't worth it you know? so my mom and i both walk out of that store with our new Motorola V-66 phones. gosh, and i'm still a sucker for fixing up phones.

random:

boLbim33 (1:17:50 PM): excitinged about IRvine?
boLbim33 (1:18:06 PM): LA girls... they are different...
boLbim33 (1:18:12 PM): they are soooooo prettier
boLbim33 (1:18:15 PM): than Nor al
Pretzelboi96 (1:18:18 PM): haha


today:

2 hours of soccer. *sigh* it was hard. we got raped pretty bad. 8-2. but i honestly had some fun. gosh, matt's pretty good.

justin called today. he sounded a bit nostalgic. i don't blame the guy. there's no place like california.

oh yeah, dykas came back today too!

Pretzelboi96 (9:56:30 PM): dude, wasn't korea awesome?!
AzN1283 (9:56:38 PM): man it was AWESOME
AzN1283 (9:56:39 PM): i love it
AzN1283 (9:56:45 PM): i hella didnt' want to come bak
Pretzelboi96 (9:56:55 PM): ah yeah!
AzN1283 (9:57:16 PM): man
AzN1283 (9:57:18 PM): i miss it
AzN1283 (9:57:21 PM): i miss the food
AzN1283 (9:57:22 PM): girls
AzN1283 (9:57:24 PM): everything

reflection:

so i have less than a month before i go down to irvine. man, i have so many things to do:

1. traffic school.
2. work.
3. sign up for classes.
4. sell my cell phone.
5. buy computer.

well, i guess that isn't so bad. it sounds alot worse that it actually is. i'm really excited about my computer. Pentium 4 2.0 ghz. 512 ram. 80 gigs. 32x cd-rom with burner/dvd combo. 15" flat panel monitor. and some cheap printer. all approximately $1,995.00 after tax and shipping. just fits my budget of $2,000. praise God. hey jomo, it's Dell too!

Thought of the Day: Withering away.
Song of the Day: Basement Jaxx-Where's Your Head At (at at at...)

so i am back from my oh-so-fun vacation. and like justin said, "i know you're disappointed to be back." i AM really sad. this land that we call america is one boring place. alot of me regrets coming back to the states. i was getting alotta pressure from my dad to stay in korea an extra week. we would've gone to Gwangju and i could've played with this one noona i know. yeah, it would've been fun. *sigh* but i knew i couldn't miss my last youth group retreat. sometimes, there's just some things you can't sacrifice. and like gary said, you know you love something when you're willing to sacrifice or something like that. and i guess, i just didn't love korea enough. no, that's not true. i guess i just love retreats that freakin' much. *sigh* but still, it hurts. it's nice seeing friends and all, but it's so much nicer seeing my cousins everyday. haha. *sigh* sniffle sniffle.

reflection:

korea was definitely a good choice that i made. remember how i talked about how i needed to make money over the summer for college and stuff? well, i actually came back with more money than 3 weeks of work's pay. isn't that great? well, i think it's terrific. praise God!

i got a chance to talk to my dad about lots of things like family, friends, and church. my role as a son. his role as a father. our past and our future. it was good. i got a chance to see my dad in the working field again. frankly speaking, his business sucks. i'm sure you guys would pity him if you saw the business he gets. but at the same time, i grew a stronger appreciation for my father's efforts. after lunch, he works til about midnight, sitting behind a computer and greeting customers. he jokes around with the little kids and always talks to the adults with much respect. he's just a nice guy. a nice guy who i'm so freakin' proud of.

i got another chance to improve my korean. every time i go to korea, i come back with at least an improved vocabulary of 10 words and an improved slang vocabulary of 5 words. i mean, i learn hecka words everyday but you can only remember so many as part of your permanent speech you know? every single day, i would ask the question, "what does that mean?" at least 20 times. every single day, i would have the same response, "i don't know." at least 50 times. haha. but yeah, it was good.

i noticed that my dad's rich family is REALLY different from my mom's average or below family. i realized that the poorer family were much happier and nicer people. they were also much more generous and knew how to cook some good crap. the rich side was stingy and just bought me dinner all the time. i could sense that my dad felt more comfortable talking my mom's family than his own brothers. very ironic. well, i'm not saying that rich people suck. i'm not even saying that i hate my dad's side of the family. but i just thought it was interesting noticing these observations. i guess money only makes us "worse" people. *shrug*

things i constantly heard throughout my time in korea:

1. "simon, you got so big!"
2. "hey, simon isn't cute anymore. he's all big and ugly now."
3. "how do you say this in English?"
4. "simon, isn't it going to be hard living w/o your brother?"
5. "are you having fun?"
6. "wanna eat some watermelon?"
7. "what would you like to eat? i'll buy it for you."
8. "you look so much like your father. simon looks so much like your mother."
9. "what's your major going to be in college?"
10. "hey, you can speak korean now!"

Thought of the Day: Errands Errands Errands!
Song of the Day: Jaurim-Fallen Blossoms

monday:

what a bummer. in-gyu went to work and couldn't get out of it. i was stuck home, watching korean music videos for a good 3 hours. the first hour was entertaining. the second hour was getting to me. the third hour was just a very sad and unhappy hour. before my dad dropped me off at my cousin's place, we had like our first official serious talk. i forget how it started and my memory's still a bit sketchy. but it was cool.

as soon as i got to my cousin's place, we went to this gym to go play some basketball. man, that was a very energetic and fun time. i was actually playing pretty well that day. i was one sweaty, aggressive monster. but as soon as we finished, it started raining again. then of course, my fragile body caught another cold. another stupid cold that came and gone.

we watched another korean movie, pretty funny stuff. i didn't understand 75% of the dialogue but the i thought the other 25% was great. man, korean people are freakin' funny. their humor and american humor is different in so many perspectives.

tuesday:

i buy another pair of shoes. 63,500 won. good stuff. so tuesday was the last day i was going to see in-gyu's family. the mom gave me 100,000 won and simon 50,000. man, so generous. then we go eat gal-bee with my mom's cousin. *drool* great stuff. blah blah blah. you know the story. before we say goodbye, the lady gives me and simon 100,000 each! my wallet is starting to tear! so many bills bills bills! my cousins and i go to Coex Mall, a REALLY big underground mall. i think it's quite impressive. very futuristic and crap. as much as i wanted to spend money, i just ended up buying a comb for one of my girl cousins. shopping will have to wait. another night at the noraebang. blah blah blah.

wednesday:

my cousin, james, wanted to take me out to lunch so went to this chinese restaurant. it was weird seeing him again. it's always weird seeing him again. he got alot skinnier. we started talking about college and future and stuff. yeahyeahyeah, lots of bs conversation. but the part that i thought was most interesting was when he told me about his older brother:

james: so my brother took an IQ test recently. he scored 177.
me: woah.
james: he's an "ultra-genius." they have different levels for different iq's. there's normal, very smart, genius, super genius, ultra-genius, and unrecordable. my brother's an "ultra-genius."
me: woah.

i never knew my other cousin was that smart. i mean, i heard he was smart and everything but i just thought that meant he studied really hard just like any other korean. but no, this guy was a weirdo the whole time. i think that would explain alotta things about him. you see, this cousin of mine isn't exactly the nicest, most patient, and comfortable person to be around. he's a bastard. he's worse than james, the cousin who used to torture me for fun. but yeah, pretty interesting huh?

so afterwards, i receive more money. 50,000 won for me and my brother. ironic how out of all the people who gave me money, the richest bastard gave us the least. no matter, i was one loaded dude. *giggle*

i had to lie to my cousin that i was busy cause he wanted to spend some time with me (alone). so i had to lie (sorry, chose to). i told him i was going to a baseball game with my cousins and that i was going to the Soccer Allstar Game tomorrow (which i really was (my cousin's friend couldn't make it so we couldn't get tickets)). so it wasn't like he couldn't force me to stay even though i could see the thought in his face. so we escaped and finally got to my dad's pc bang. i got a new pair of glasses. pretty nice and cheap. 30,000 won! it only took me like 5 min. to check my eyes out. i got my glasses right on the spot. no prescription crap. no waiting for 10 days. just wham bam glasses man! haha. i'm so stupid.

then i went to the hair salon and got my hair high lighted again b/c i wasn't satisfied with the first time. it took pretty long but it was definitely worth the price, 12,000 won...with a free haircut of course. i was kinda unhappy with my designer cause he made me feel a bit uncomfortable.

guy: you're not from korea are you?
me: nope.
guy: are those your friends over their?
me: no, those are my cousins.
me: oh, you probably don't have too many friends over here huh?
me: um...no.

me: can you just cut the sides and the back?
guy: no. that'll look weird. how about i don't cut the sides, i just cut a little in the back, and you grow this part out and raise it up?
me: *sigh* ok.

however, it all turned out fine. not a bad cut. satisfied highlights. and of course, 12,000 won. man, that's like cheaper than some of the dyes in america!

for dinner, we went back to Kim Gah Neh. *drool* this time we all had ramen and "mot-nah-eeh-kim-bap," which translates to ugly sushi. haha. my cousin called it "simon sushi." after a very satisfied dinner, i went to go buy a pair of windbreakers. we came to this one store, which was the only place that had long windbreakers, and tried to bargain with the lady. the original price was 28,000 won. we wanted 23,000 won. they wanted 24,000. we argued and argued but they just wouldn't. my cousin was really stubborn too. got all red and crap. kinda funny. but we left. we came back cause everywhere else sucked. it was such a pride-killer though, going back feeling all inferior and stupid. my cousin couldn't even go back. it just wouldn't be right. haha. but i got the pants for 24,000. satisfied.

the night was concluded with pool and bowling. no more nackyu for who knows how long?

today:

we go to Tech Mart, a 7 floor mall in korea. pretty nice. not bad at all. i bought a whole buncha pens, a cd holding thingy, some magazines, blank cds, cd cases, and an air freshener for my uncle's b-day. man, so so cheap! for lunch, my 4th uncle bought us gal-bee-tang. *drool* great stuff. he gave the common advice about college. study study study. it's funny though cause EVERYONE always mentions that it's going to be hard for simon cause i'll be gone. perhaps it's a big deal. but i think simon can care less. *shrug* doesn't really seem to have any concern. *shrug*

i buy another cd and go to grandma's to burn a mix with their nice computer. we go home and give my uncle the air freshener. it was funny cause i know he was happy and he was still trying to find something to complain about. haha. that guy.

uncle: why'd you buy this? you don't even have any money!
me: it'll make your call smell good.
uncle: (mumbles something).
me: what?
uncle: GO UPSTAIRS!

yeah, he's one of those guys who always end each sentence with "jah-sheek-ah!" or "eeh-saeeki-ya!"

one of my girl cousins bought us all some neng-myun, which i am not too fond of. after dinner, we went bowling. after bowling, we went home and sang happy b-day. after that, we played with some firecrackers cause they're really cheap and legal. not as fun as we expected. basically threw away 20,000 won for 5 min. of weak lights. and now, i'm here pc banging with two of my cousins. i find it so funny how my girl cousin wants to play starcraft with my brother so much. she's like 24 and yet she's so immature. gosh, girls playing computer games. full of them in korea!

so i'm coming home tomorrow. sucks. smell you guys soon!!!

girl in red: happy b-day!

Thought of the Day: 3 weeks went by so fast.
Song of the Day: Jadu-Euak Seh

fatman goes into the unfamiliar restaurant. excited and hungry, he is ready to conquer his table. what?! "it's a buffet," he hears. the meat is being cooked. his bowls of rice are in place. everything is just right. on your mark. get set. EAT!!! after what seemed like hours of gorging on cows, fatman finally stops. father frowns. cousins frown. brother frowns. fatman is not like he used to be. he can no longer eat 3 bowls of rice with comfort. fatman struggles after a pitiful bowl #2. his heavy breathing increases. fatman is defeated. fatman sucks.

you know how i describe how good the restaurants are right? well, just imagine just how much BETTER the buffets are! i am telling you, that crap is freakin' tight! i wanna use non-existing words. i wanna cry. i wanna gesticulate. but i just can't tell you just how "awe-ful" my dinner was. *sigh* like i said, i can't eat as much as i used to. but i can tell you that i ate to the point where my initial unhappiness turned into sorrow. that's right. i ate and i became sad. too much is too much. oh, but it was also an interesting experience. across from my table was this really fine looking girl. first of all, i'm not used to seeing too many pretty girls at buffets so it kinda came to me by surprise. second, you would expect pretty girls to eat with tiny cute little bites and complain about how fat they were after 5 pieces of meat. ha! this girl was no ordinary girl. she would make her big meat sandwich thingys (sang-choo + meat + rice) and stuff ALL of that crap in her mouth! it was really unattractive and funny at the same time, seeing her trying to chew so much with her tiny little mouth. she'd be wiping her mouth over and over and continue making her enormous sandwiches. it was a very interesting site. such a pretty girl with no shame at a buffet. interesting.

so i'm back at my dad's place. i was talking with my friend, daniel, who just got back from taiwan. right now, he's like the only friend who relate to how much fun i'm having. in taiwan, they bowl, pool, eat, drink, and club. that's really similar to my vacation except i replace drinking and clubbing with shopping and pc banging. he quotes, "america is one dull country." haha. there's definitely a half-truth to that.

today, my aunt gave me 50,000 as a gift. gosh, i hate taking money from my mom's side of the family cause they're kinda poor. my aunt sells fruit everyday and i KNOW that crap doesn't sell too well. man, you know how insistent koreans are. just won't take NO for an answer. speaking of insistent, i bought a pair of fake Oakley's today:

me: how much is it?
lady: 12,000 won.
me: that's kinda expensive (*giggle* i'm such a cheap bastard!).
lady: ok, 11,000.
me: lady, i'm from america. these glasses are REALLY expensive over there. can't you just go down to 10,000?
lady: *sigh* 10,000.
me: thank YOU! (i don't even look good in glasses, but who cares!).

tomorrow, in-gyu is taking me out to the "fun" place now that i'm 19 in korean age. my cousin told me that he was either going to take me to a nightclub or a drinking place. i don't know. i hate alcohol. however my cousin also told me that there's hecka fine girls there, and they like to "play" with you (which basically means they want to drink for free). anyhoo, shoutout goes to our theological friend, jomo...

JSangLee: phil
Pretzelboi96: ayo
JSangLee: 7th day...
JSangLee: we celebrate 7th day as sunday
JSangLee: b/c of Jesus' ressurection
JSangLee: not because of rome
Pretzelboi96: oh really?
JSangLee: Jesus resurrected on a Sunday
JSangLee: b/c it was 3 daysafter good friday
JSangLee: and taht stuff doesn't change
JSangLee: b/c jesus died around passover
JSangLee: so we celebrate the Sabbath, or the reminder of heaven to come, through the day in which Christ was risen from the grave
JSangLee: but the issue is not the day of worshp
Pretzelboi96: uhhuh
JSangLee: the issue is that 7th day adventist still believe in a lot of levitcal law
JSangLee: liek they can't eat hooved animals like pork
JSangLee: and can't eat anything w/o a spine
JSangLee: like shrimp or crab
Pretzelboi96: what the?!
JSangLee: now why?
JSangLee: b/c it says in the old testament
JSangLee: but!
JSangLee: we don't live according to the law
JSangLee: and in essence
JSangLee: what they do is they believe in both the law
JSangLee: and christ
JSangLee: which is a contradiction b/c christ is the law
JSangLee: and the fulfillment of the law
JSangLee: and if they go back to the law, they are only condeming themselves and stripping Christ of his due power
JSangLee: so its a theological issue and not a "which day your worship" issue
JSangLee: its basically a very legalistic religion
Pretzelboi96: ah, i see
Pretzelboi96: do you think they're saved "christians?"
JSangLee: but
JSangLee: the ironic thing is...
Pretzelboi96: i mean, they DO believe in christ as lord right?
JSangLee: most of the non-7th day christians in korea are just as legalistic, b/c they live as if they need to be good ppl...and that that is the marker of a good christian
JSangLee: if you don't believe in SOLUS CHRISTUS, you're not
JSangLee: b/c if you're relying on works
JSangLee: then you can't be saved
JSangLee: but if they truly believe it is christ that saves them...and puts faith in that
JSangLee: I'd say they are
Pretzelboi96: right
JSangLee: they can still be saved
Pretzelboi96: of course
JSangLee: but if they really professed what they do...and still believe in Christ as their only saviour
JSangLee: they are bing higly inconsistent
Pretzelboi96: ok, that really helped alot
Pretzelboi96: thank you much jomo
JSangLee: no problem

Thought of the Day: So many fine girls in Korea=deception and destruction.
Song of the Day: Air-Hair Do

wednesday:

one of my dad's friends wanted to buy me dinner so we went to the restaurant downstairs to eat some sam-gyup-sal (fatty fat fat pork). my dad's friend is one of those funny ah-juh-shees. he talks really loud with a funny accent and likes to laugh at my stupid reactions. a nice guy who likes to talk about his childhood and how much he used to be able to eat. but omg, i have never eaten such unhealthy pork in my life! that crap was probably like 50% fat, literally. and of course, everyone took the good pieces while i was stuck with the white chewy lard. yummy. but it was yet another dinner that i appreciated, something you don't eat everyday in america.

i went to nackyu's house cause i was going to the hair salon with him the next day. he told me i could straighten my hair for 15,000 won at the place he was going. that's an amazing price compared to the regular 50,000 won and of course, approximately 70-80 dollars in America? i know it seems pretty gay, but i don't care. straight hair is almost always better than annoying wavy hair...at least for me. so we're at his house and my freakin' mom calls to tell me not to do anything to my hair. i knew this was going to come sooner or later, but today?! i know i should stop tampering with my thin hair cause it'll probably fall out someday. i went to bed deciding to just leave my hair alone.

thursday:

so after i talked with one of the hair stylists, i was convinced that there was nothing wrong with straightening my hair. after nackyu dyed his hair, we went to his church cause it was the only place that was cold. i met two of his friends, surprisingly only 15 years old! anyways, they were really interested in the american boy. the boy with the "perfect" English accent. the boy with the cool watch. the boy with a driver's license inside a wallet full of dance pictures. it was quite a funny experience:

girl: so what part of America are you from?
me: San Francisco.
girl: what? slower please?
me: san-pran-shees-co.
girl: ohhhhhhhh.

girl: wow! look at his watch! can i wear your watch? woah, it's so heavy. haha. hey, it has the days of the week, the date, and the hour of the day! hey, it glows in the dar too! look! wow, an American watch!

girl #1: wow! look at his wallet! what's a "rewards card?" hey, smell his wallet! it smells so good! hey, he has so much money!
girl #2: wow, he does have a lot of money! count how much he has! i only have 2,000 won!

i know it sounds like i'm exaggerating. but i assure you, i speak the truth and nothing but the truth. the first girl had a very interesting name. while most korean names only have 3 characters, she had 5. her name was lee ha neul gang nam (lee sky river). interesting no?

after that, i met up with simon and woong-chan and we ate at this small restaurant. dang, that place had THE BEST bibimbab! that crap was only 4,000 won! quality, quantity, and cheap. exactly what we lack in America.

friday:

so we go bowling again. samo samo. then we go to my grandmother's house again. i burn a cd with my cousin's computer and eat fried chicken for dinner.

aunt: is the chicken better in america?
me: of course!
aunt: ahaahhaahahahhaha.

we shoot some pool and we come home b/c my other aunt is sick. what's that thing called when your face is kinda crooked b/c of lack of blood flow or something? well, she had a minor attack? yesterday. it's kinda funny when you observe my uncle and aunt. my uncle is an old-fashioned korean who tries to find every reason to complain and belittle you. my aunt on the otherhand is one happy lady. she's always smiling and laughing (kinda like chris moon), quite jolly for a korean lady.

at night nackyu wanted his hair to be even redder. we got some red bleach called cherry. in the end, his hair turned into this hot pink. we didn't know what to say. shocked yet sympathetic. it was kinda funny though cause he seemed to be really happy with it, smiling like an idiot. haha. it's something you can get used to. just really awkward at first. reminds you of moon hee jun.

today:

my girl cousin wants to go to school in sweden to study Interior Design or something cause she really likes the school. she can't speak english for jack crap but she's really determined to study study study. so i helped her write her application today, translating every sentence from korean to english. ugh! after we finished, the crap didn't save and we lost the file. we started over and finished and left the pc bang 2 hours later. she was really sorry but i guess she deserved my effort. she works really hard to give me and simon a good time in korea. she takes us bowling, buys us food, cooks us food, cleans the house, watches movies with us, and even takes us shopping. the poor thing. i know she's going to be a good mother. so yeah, she deserved my stupid effort.

i found out last week that woong-chan and jung hyun are 7th Day Adventists, "christians" who go to church on saturday. it's really weird cause they're always asking me to go to church with them on saturday. it doesn't feel right and i know it's wrong. but the worst part is the fact that i don't know how to argue against it. they argue that saturday is the 7th day of the week and sunday is the first. it was supposedly always like that until Rome forced everyone to go to church on sundays. so yeah, it's kinda frustrating. the best i could do is tell them that i disagree with them. sunday is the last day, not saturday. *shrug* so it got me thinking, when IS the actual 7th day of the week? in korean, sunday is the first day-eel yo eel. help me out somebody!

i had a pretty good lunch today. i ate at this restaurant called "kim kang myun," which sells a variety of kim-bab and ramen. crap, that stuff was so good and cheap! i ate lap-pok-ki and hecka kim-bab and simon had oodong. 10,000 won!!! and of course we shot some pool afterwards.

today, i bought some cds and a bought a jersey. it's really cool bargaining with people on the streets.

me: how much is it?
guy: it's normally 32,000 won but i'll give it to you for 28,000.

nornally, i would've even bought it for 32,000 won cause it's just so freakin' cheap! i know that crap is fake, but it's all good right?

me: c'mon, can't you just give it to me for just a BIT cheaper?
guy: hmmmmm...well, since the weather is kinda bad today, i'll give it to you for 27,000 won.
me: thank you. (sucker).

it turns out that i was the real sucker. my other cousin told me that he could've gotten that crap for 5,000 won cheaper. eh, it's fine. i'm happy. that vender is happy. however, i gotta stop buying clothes now...even if it was only 2 things. i have enough clothes in america.

so you guys starting to see the trend here? my life is basically bowling, pool, pc bang, movies, food, and walking. i have less than a week left in this fantastic land. *sigh* this fantastic land.

Thought of the Day: Gotta stop spending money.
Song of the Day: That popular Koyote song.

sunday afternoon:

i went shopping in Dong-Deh-Moon again. we went to Doota Tower and Migliore (or whatever it's called), the two big cheap places to shop in the area. simon bought two Echo shirts, a pair of shorts, and windbreakers. gosh, i never knew clothes in korea could be so cheap! and finally, i started seeing all of the pretty korean girls i was hoping for. you just have to go to the right places you know? man, i just realized that i do alotta traveling in korea. i spend at LEAST 5 dollars on transportation a day and do at LEAST 3 miles of walking a day. it's really fun doing all this traveling. i love just looking around all the streets and people. i think i'm becoming a city person. i like taking buses and subways. i like walking around shopping malls and buying food in the streets. i just like the environment. it's great.

monday:

after we came back from shooting pool and bowling, we decided to give my other cousin, Na-kyu, a call. fortunately, he was free for a while so he came over. gosh dang did he look different! the guy is now 183 cm, which is about 6' 1? and grew out his hair like he promised. haha. the only thing he didn't do was dye his hair blue. we're going to the hair salon tomorrow to do that. but yeah, he's still the same ol' guy. it's weird though. everytime i see my cousins, i feel a bit shy around them cause i haven't seen them in a while. but after a few questions about america and different translations, the ice finally breaks apart. we went to noraebang AGAIN, but for some reason it's always funfunfun! we came home and Na-kyu saw the chess set i brought. for some odd reason, all of my cousins think chess is the most interesting game. perhaps it is the fact that it is a GLASS chess set. i mean, that's what got me hooked too. anyways, they really suck but they really enjoy the game. they have some pretty fun reactions.

me: checkmate.
cousin: STOP! (moves the pieces back and starts thinking again).

tuesday:

so we go bowling AGAIN. this time, i do pretty a little better than usual-153 baby! it's fun playing with my cousins. we give each other high fives no matter how bad we did and always yell ASSAH! haha. my girl cousins really wanted me to go to the korean museum of history so we stopped by there. i can't say i had the funnest time, but it was a bit interesting. i find american history to be much more exciting even though it only goes back a few hundred years. but oh well. i appreciate what korea went through. we see one of my girl cousins taking a tour but we tell her we're just going to meet her at McDonald's at 6. we go ahead and eat just a little so that we can eat dinner a little later with her. we then go watch a new korean movie called Phone. it's supposed to be really scary and stuff so my oldest cousin hooked us up with tickets somehow. it's really cool. she always hooks us up. anyways, the movie ended up being pretty dang scary. i really enjoyed it. gosh, there was this one part though that i must comment on. the main character is walking into this room cause she hears this girl crying. when she walks into the room, there's a bed with a girl sitting on it. her hair is REALLY long, all the way to the floor, and her face is buried in her hair. omg. that crap was sooooooo scary! and of course the stupid girl approaches the crying ghost. man, i think that's brilliant. that was just oh so scary! good movie. good korean movie.

after the movie, we go to Dong-Deh-Moon to do some shopping again. it was weird though cause my girl cousin was in a bad mood. she wouldn't talk to us and kept complaining about stupid things. we didn't speak to her til we got home. man, walking in the rain is soooooo much fun! my cousins and i were walking for miles, singing and yelling mindless things. "DAE-HAN-MIN-GOOK!" "OH PILSEUNG KOREA!" what a memory. that's definitely a keeper. before we got home, my other cousins and i ate cup ramen at this 7-11 type of place. gosh, eating at night is so much fun. everything is cheap and available. so unhealthy but so worth it you know? after we got home, my pissed off cousin wanted to talk to me. she said she was pissed at us cause we didn't wait to eat with her at McDonald's. she was disappointed at us to the point where she was crying when trying to explain things. it was weird seeing the sensitive side of my cousin, the same cousin who's as immature as simon. so weird. girls. weird. girls suck. but everything was ok after that. what a long day.

Thought of the Day: "Thank you very much. You're welcome to my house Minjung. Here are some flowers for you."
Song of the Day: YDG-Alley

monday afternoon:

so i finally got to see my beloved cousins. woong chan (19), jung hyun (21?), jung sook (23?), and junguk (25). that's 1 boy and 3 girls. so far, everyone who's seen me says that i got taller and skinnier, which is absolutely false. i've only grown 2 centimeters and have replaced my lost baby fat with "unnatural fat?" but when they see simon, they are in awe of his change in height and voice. he is no longer the cute, adorable, laughing maniac. he is now the not-so-fun and quiet teenager. i guess he has
changed alot in the past 2 years. but he still knows how to make me angry.

so we go see my grandmother (mom's side) and my oldest uncle. i'm never too excited to go to that house b/c it is just absolutely boring. tv. room. room. kitchen. bathroom. thank you very much but i am not interested. and of course, there is the crippled grandmother who cannot do anything but mumble complaints just to make conversation. yeah, i don't like her much and i'm sure she doesn't like me either. to her, i'm probably the "different" grandson. the retarded american boy who cannot speak korean for crap and dresses like he's going to continue growing for the next 5 years. anyways, my uncle is a pretty funny guy. he's really good at belittling his nephews, especially woong chan.

uncle: so can you drive now?
me: yeah, i got my license 2 years ago.
uncle: woong chan, what about you?
cousin: no. not yet.
uncle: what?! why not? only stupid people don't
know how to drive.

all of my cousins are pretty much the same. they just changed their hairsytles a bit, but they really seem like nothing's changed in 2 years. i think that's cool though. change is gay.

tuesday:

i found out that you can dye your hair and get a haircut for less that 30 bucks in korea! this was a bargain i just could not refuse. we went to AP-GOO-JUNG-DO, one of the more popular cities for younger people. but before that, i was seriously craving some pat-bing-soo. my cousins took me this placed called Ice Berry. they have this one pat-bing-soo called the KING BING SOO, which is absolutely enormous! you get this hecka big bowl and just add tons of crap to it. it's basically a pat-bing-soo that you eat as a group. it was so freakin' good!!!! man, i could've cried right there on the spot. i don't understand why we cannot have such things in america.

at the hair salon, i got my hair done by several people. first, this guy and this girl were putting the dye on my hair. they were so careful to make sure every little hair was going to get colored. then, i got my hair washed by this other lady. then this other lady highlighted my hair. then the same lady washed my hair again. finally, this well known hair stylist was in town or something so i got my haircut from him. man oh man, is he good! he seriously takes his time in every little snip. a freakin' perfectionist man! he made sure each side was exactly even and kept starting over. it was quite an experience. i think he was gay cause he was wearing red pants and was so good my with hair. but i don't know. not like it should matter i suppose. and of course, the best part was that i got a discount. 35,000 won to 25,000 won (approximately $20). ugh, what a deal! korea really knows how to treat your hair right!

we also saw The Score on video. it only costs 1,000 won to watch that crap. that's like what, 75 cents?!

wednesday:

and the food continues to do justice! every morning, i ate don-ggah-seu for breakfast. haha. it's weird eating such food at such a time. but it's all good right? on wednesday, i went bowling with woong chan and jung hyun. dang, we bowled like 3 games and it was still less than 10 dollars! it was great cause we were all bowling great that day. we all made new high scores except for woong chan. my new record is 172! my last 3 turns were all strikes. i was seriously the KINGPIN! ok, that was stupid. but after that, jung hyun made us egg salad sandwiches. quite impressive for a girl who's lived in korea all her life. after dinner, we went to go play basketball. now basketball in korea is one frustrating mother! first of all, the weather is unbearable! humidity is seriously no joke. after you're done playing, your shirt has got to go. freakin' gross. second, the ground is all dirt. korea's too poor to have nice concrete courts like we do in america. don't take that crap for granted guys. finally, korean people suck at basketball. well, i guess i can see why with the conditions they play in. anyways, it's still hecka fun. they think they need to learn how to play from "american" people.

finally, we concluded this fun day with 2 hours of noraebang! i hecka love the noraebangs here. 1 hour=15,000 won? crap that is so cheap compared to our $25/hr. and plus, they have all the unpopular koreans songs too! it was cool cause my cousin knew the owner and he have us so much more time. we sang til we could sing no more. what fun. too much fun. so exhausting.

thursday:

my cousins took me to this one park. they have this one area where you take your shoes off and walk along this rocky trail. it's supposed to be really good for your health or something. anyways, it was one painful experience. while little kids were just chatting and cruising on the rocks, the 4 of us were screaming bloody murder, trying our best to finish the cursed trail. at the end, there's a picture of a foot that shows you what body part is the unhealthiest, according to where your foot hurts the most.

me: my foot hurt over here the most. what does it mean?
cousin: well, i can't explain it too well. we'll look it up when we get home ok?
(later at home).
me: oh, sexual reproductive organs huh?
cousin: yeah. that's where you have the most problems.
me: hmmmmmmm...

later that night, my oldest cousin said that she could get us into a GOD concert for free. so of course, we all went. before we went to the concert, we ate at Mr. Pizza. dude, they have some funky toppings over there in korea. they have bul-go-gee pizza, potato pizza, and some other stuff i don't remember. we had the potato pizza. some interesting stuff. not bad. not good. however, i do miss American pizza. after our meal, this guy was selling masks with X's on them, saying the theme for that night's concert was "LIE," one of their hit songs. "you have to buy it or you'll be the only ones w/o masks!" it turns out, the guy was a fake and we never even put on the masks. freakin' bastard! so many people like that in korea! the GOD concert wasn't as big as i thought it would be. it was big, but not that big. it was really loud and the place was just polluted with girls. i felt so gay, being one of the few males cheering for GOD. they were pretty good live. all in all, i enjoyed the concert. my first, and probably last korean concert i'll ever go to. once again, we concluded this day with noraebang, but this time with a few more GOD songs.

friday:

i went to DONG-DEH-MOON, a popular city that sells everything for really cheap. i bought my shoes there for 40,000 won! now that is cheap!!! shopping was really exhausting though. taking hecka buses and subways is no fun ride, especially when they're packed with koreans. later that day, we also went to go buy some cds but i decided to cut down on my shopping for a bit. besides, one of my cousins promised to make us her infamous spaghetti. to be honest, it was one of the best spaghetti's i ever had in my life! i really enjoyed it even though i'm not a big fan of spaghetti. we rented John Q and watched that late at night.

saturday:

my dad took us camping to this place in the mountains. omg. there is nothing better than eating sam-gyup-sal in the outdoors. i even had my first taste of "so-joo" cause i was now a "college student." dang, i really suck at drinking. i hate the stuff. i know you're not supposed to drink it for the taste but still! soda is the way to go. anyways, it was really nice playing in the river and splashing each other with rocks. for dinner, we ate shin ramen. this crap is great outdoors too! camping in korea is just a great thing to do. it's totally different from our american style. it's nice. lots of fun.

unfortunately, i got sick that night. what i thought was a small cold slowly turned into a small fever. after taking some medicine, i slowly fell asleep as my brother was having some hilarious conversations with my friend, in-gyu.

in-gyu: shi-mons (simon). let's wrestle before we sleep!
simon: no!

in-gyu: shi-mons. lemme teach you some cuss words. do you know what "sheep-seh" is?
simon: no. but i know what "shi-bal" is.
in-gyu: oh. well, "sheep-seh" is "shi bal upgrade!"
simon: ahahaahahahahah.

in-gyu: you know, all you say is "gee-nyang" or "uh-tuh-keh." if you say use those words again, i'm going to give you a kiss.
simon: nooooooo. "gee-nyang..."
in-gyu: it's "geu-nyang." not "gee-nyang." that's it! i'm going to kiss you now!

once again, these conversations are only funny in korean. so fudging funny!

man, my dad's pc bang is so full of smoke! by now, i must've inhaled enough smoke to add up to one cigarette! today, i'm going shopping with my cousin again. don't worry i-fang. my cousins told me they have PUKA stuff here. gosh, everyday is so full of fun. i know you american suckas envy me! i know you do!!!

Thought of the Day: However, I do miss some of America.
Song of the Day: Cool-Before I Become Sad

i just realized that whenever i post a new blog, they use American time and not korean. i thought the whole time thing would be relative. well, korean time is 16 hours faster than US. man, it's really hot...102-103 degrees. sticky icky. gross.

so i met my friend, In-gyu, last night. he's still the same funny guy except he got chubbier, darker, and wears different glasses. i say this every time i see him coincidentally. anyways, it was great seeing him again. we always talk about the stupidest things such as WWF, hamburgers, dance parties, and how much simon sucks at korean. haha.

(in korean)
in-gyu: so the place you live in america. can you get to the WWF places?
me: ahahahahahaah.

in-gyu: so, you're 18 now huh? now i can take you to some "fun" places!
dad: where?
in-gyu: somewhere "fun."
dad: where?
in-gyu: it's a secret.
dad: can you take simon?
in-gyu: nope.
his mom: don't worry, he just says that to make it sound exciting.
in-gyu: it's a secret!
me: ahahahahahahah.

well, i guess it's not so funny cause i translated everything. hearing it in korean is SO funny.

today, i saw my 5th uncle (the rich bastard) and one of my old cousins. it's so awkward talking to them. of all the uncles, i hate seeing him the most b/c he's "different." it seems like he deserves the most respect even though he's the 5th of the 6 sons in the family. anyways, he was talking about how struggles make us stronger people and crap. pleasure only spoils you. blah blah blah. he always talks about how i should perfect my korean so i can get a REALLY good job in the future or something. but he did have 2 interesting conversations with my dad over lunch. they were talking about how crazy the Worldcup was. they started talking about each game, how we tied with US, beat Portugal, going to sudden death with Italy, fighting til the end with Spain, and looking pitiful with Germany. i can tell these guys were hardcore fans. i mean, everyone in korea was! i just couldn't imagine my uncle getting all worked up. the second conversation was totally unexpected...

uncle: so simon. does your brother beat you up?
simon: no.
uncle: but he used to right?
simon: yeah.
uncle: yeah, all brothers beat each other up. i used to get hit by 3rd uncle all the time.
dad: oh did you? 2nd uncle doesn't seem like he would hit you alot.
uncle: yeah, he didn't. but i know 1st uncle used to hit him alot.
dad: and you didn't hit me much either.
aunt: except for that one time a few years ago!!!
(awkward silence).
dad: but he never hit me when i was young.
(cough).

i don't know. he's not like my mom's side of the family. now those folks are cool. they're like pretty poor and don't have anyone who did really well in school. they're more down to earth you know? they know how to have fun. they're MY kinda family! but yeah, everyone seems to want to take me to dinner. just about every person i meet in korea ask me what my schedule is cause they wanna take me out. yes, i am mr. popular in korea. the coolest bastard alive!

ugh, i enjoy almost EVERY meal over here! even breakfast is DA bomb cause they still eat rice and stuff. i know you're getting sick of this but I LOVE KOREA!!!

Thought of the Day: Why does my uncle have to be like that?
Song of the Day: Cool-Truth

on friday, i watched Austin Powers 3 with dykas. it's been a while since i cracked up that hard. i think this one had to be the funniest one out of the trilogy. it's weird when you compare the first one and the third one though. the humor is REALLY different. i mean, they're both funny but they're both different kinds of funny you know? anyways, i liked it. picky mother trucking phil liked it. OK TERRANCE?! i also went shopping at hillsdale for my cousins' gifts. i got 3 bath and body gift set things for 40 bucks and 2 Tommy Hilfiger shirts for 25 bucks. i brought 120 to spend but came out of the mall only spending about 70. praise God!

ok, it is REALLY hot in korea right now. you know how it's usually hotter inside your car on hot days? well in korea, it's the opposite. all the humidity is outside so it's usually cooler inside the car. it's weird. man, right now it's 10:18pm sunday night, which means it's 6:18am sunday morning for the people in US. praise God for a safe trip here. however, it wasn't the most pleasant ride. i had these 4 chinese people sit behind me and this one kid was kicking my chair the whole time. if he wasn't kicking, he was hitting the tray. if he wasn't hitting the tray, he was back at kicking. i was really annoyed but i didn't have the cajunas to ask him to stop. i'm such a weener. i tried to stay up on friday night so that i'd be knocked out on the plane and not have to dread the 11 hour ride. unfortunately, my weak sauce body fell asleep at 4am and woke up to a miserable 9am. this caused my body to be tired enough to want to sleep, but not tired enough to FALL asleep. but it was pretty cool getting off the plane and seeing my school friends at the airport. Pat, BS, and Ted were picking up Dykas and byung's little brother. they all said hi and stuff and my dad found me.

dad: you look a bit skinnier but simon obviously got fat!

man, it's pretty cool coming back to korea again. i almost forgot about all the retarded store names.

simon: hey phil! look. it says Buy The Way! ahahahahahahahah.

i even got a warm welcome from one of dad's friends. he especially likes simon. however, you know how korean people tend to be a little "too touchy?" gosh, that guy was straight up rubbing my face and patting my butt a few times too many. i'm serious dude. if he was in the US, they'd put him away for good! but yeah, he's nice. "too nice" most of the time.

dinner was awesome. we had galbee for only like 10 bucks! but the special thing is that this crap is quality! the kimchee here is incredibly excellent. they even give you watermelons for desert! and boy were those suckers juicy! i enjoyed my meal very much. sidenote: Californians should not take for granted the fact that smoking in restaurants is illegal. over here, they puff away like it's part of the meal! man oh man, it's hot!!!! i already know i'm going to enjoy the next 3 weeks. woohoo!

oh, another thing. can i just say that korea has the coolest cell phones?! everyone has these really neat ringtones that sound like they're coming from a tv! they would seriously laugh at the garbage we use in the US!

shoutout goes to the Girl in Red: thanks for the 5 dollars. it's the small things that makes us happy. 5 bucks is small. 10 bucks is small. even 20 bucks is small ok? oh, what's that one chinese girl character thing called again? =D

welcome back missions people!

Thought of the Day: It's FREAKIN' hot in here! So take off all your clothes!
Song of the Day: Fly To the Sky-Sea Of Love

i got back from irvine around 1am this morning. boy did i get some gooooood sleep last night! gosh, so much to talk about. where do i begin?

so we took off from millbrae around 4 in the morning. we were just cruising and everything was fine. b/c i had not eaten in the last 12 hours, we decided to stop by Harris Ranch. as usual, i had my Ranch Burger, which i am convinced is my favorite burger in the whole wide world. it was a bit odd though, eating such a meal at 6am. haha. but no worry. i was one satisfied customer.

we continued our journey and shortly approached "grapes of wrath" or better known as Grapevine. all LA drivers know this cursed area b/c it totally rapes our cars. dykas thought of changing it to "RAPE-vine." anyways, right before i was about to enter Los Angeles, i see a cop waiting on the side a good 50 feet away? i slowed down from a comfortable 90 mph to a safe 65-70 mph. i looked into my rear view mirror. he started following me. NO!!!!! the siren went off. NO!!!!! so i got my first speeding ticket for going 88 mph at a 65 zone. i have to appear in court a month later in this place called Valencia. for the rest of the day, i was what my friends called a "zombie." i was incredibly pissed at what had just happened and could not get it out of my mind. i felt like my whole trip had just fallen apart. WHY GOD WHY?! i was totally in a bad mood. i had not gotten ANY sleep for the past 24 hours, it was pretty hot, and i had just gotten my first ticket. no sir, that is not a good combination.

fortunately, the Marriot we were staying at was a sweet piece of cake! it was just like Char said it would be. they had some hecka comfortable beds, a tv, a sofa, and a kitchen with pots and pans. all of this for only 60 bucks! yeap, we were definitely pleased.

at irvine, we went to the advising session and picked out our classes. we were really hungry so we decided to go to k-town for dinner. man, we got soooooo lost...

justin: alrite phil. is it 10 east or 10 west?
me: (after looking at the map) um, i think it's 10 west. but i'm not sure.
justin: i think it's 10 east. yeah, this place definitely looks familiar!
(1 hour later)
me: ok, how about we try 10 west ok?
justin: i don't know man. i'm pretty sure it's 10 east.
(we get onto 10 west and see Western right away).
justin: sorry guys.

the whole time, we were driving around Compton and Inglewood. justin and dykas were getting really frustrated and started hating on Mexicans. we were lost. we were hungry. we were tired. it was hot. they were pissed. we finally found Hodori and ate our crappy meal. the service was really bad. the food was over priced. the food did not make us happy.

justin: can we get some more ban-chan?
unhappy waitress: just wait til the other food comes out ok?

we then went to Alexandria plaza to find Intercrew Cafe. that took us a while. it took me a long time to figure out that Intercrew was actually on another block, and not in THAT plaza. our waitress was pretty cute. however, they once again did not have any pat-bing-soo! we left and went to this other cafe. after eating a delicious desert, we headed back to the hotel.

after a good 9.5 hours of sleep, we were all refreshed. the hotel gave us a continental breakfast, which was much more than just muffins and water. we had lots of eggs, toast, soup, and cereal. quite pleased. after we all washed up, we were ready to go to Irvine once again. dykas had to take his Subject A Exam and i had to take care of financial aid. before that, dykas and i took our pictures and received our id cards right on the spot! dude, college id cards are so much cooler than the ones in high school! gosh, i love looking at that crap. as dykas was taking his test, justin and i took a housing tour to check out the dorms. OH-MY-GOSH! i was incredibly happy about the rooms. they are just so nice! the desks were alot bigger than i thought and all the rooms have windows! woohoo! justin was pissed cause he said that the dorms at Irvine were bigger than any IVY school dorms he's ever seen. he was overflowing with envy. eheheheheheh. praise God! i love my school! however, as were walking back to the parking lot, we saw a lady writing tickets and putting them on cars. as we approached my car, we were once again pretty angry. justin tried to talk to the lady but she said we were in a reserved spot or something. the ticket was only 20 bucks but still! it's just so stupid you know? 2 tickets in 2 days. ugh.

we went to k-town for our last meal there. we were trying to find this one place that chang recommended but we had trouble finding it. we stopped at this small area to ask for directions until we saw the words, "sullong tang $2.99!" justin was instantly attracted. it looked like a piece of crap from outside but we decided to give it a chance. shoot! this was definitely no mistake! gal-bee was only 6.50 and it was totally good stuff! justin's soup was REALLY good too. and to top it off, our waitress was just so nice to us! we couldn't have asked for a better restaurant. they were also pretty generous in terms of quantity. that lady received a 5 dollar tip from a 16 dollar meal. haha. totally earned it.

no matter how full we were, there was ALWAYS room for pat-bing-soo. haha. that crap is just so good! as we were eating outside, we saw this cop who pulled over like 4 cars on the same block! as i watching each unfortunate event, i was totally empathizing with the drivers. dude, it just sucks man! those cops are just out there to get you. we then went to ABC plaza as always to buy some korean cds. i also bought a car freshener and a new map cause the one we were using was getting old. we finally took off at 6pm.

dykas: dude, pray for me that i'll be able to get a dorm even though i'm on the waiting list.
justin: my mom said that we should pray before we take off.
me: alrite then pray.
justin: dykas pray.
dykas: no! you pray!
me: why are you guys so ashamed?
justin: alrite. i'll pray.
(prays for safety and thanks for a good trip).
everyone: amen.
dykas: DUDE! you didn't pray about my dorm! that's messed up!
me and justin: ahahahahhahahaa.

this time, i was driving no more than 75-80 mph. i definitely learned my lesson and began putting it into practice. it was so weird though b/c the whole time, i was thinking why God had given me a ticket. what were His reasons? well, i found out one of them as we were driving. on Grapevine, there was this cop that was waiting on the side of the road. i wasn't speeding or anything but that got me thinking. if i had NOT received my ticket yesterday, i can almost promise you that i would've been doing well over 100 mph. and we all know that that is considered reckless driving...supposedly over $1000 tickets or something. i had a really good feeling that God was preventing something even worse from happening. THEN, as were getting off of Grapevine, there was ANOTHER cop that as waiting on the side of the road. i thought to myself...if i had NOT gotten caught the first time on Grapevine, i definitely would have gotten caught the second time! and this too would have been at least at 100 mph too! i mean, i'll never know WHAT exactly would've happened. but of course, i would like to think those were parts of God's reasons for my ticket the other day. then of course there are other reasons that i may not know such as prevention from future accidents/tickets or to just merely discipline/humble me. all in all, it happened and i cannot do anything about it. however, i have faith that God works for the good of all of His people, right?

but boy did we have some great talks in that car! we talked about racing cars, why justin and dykas hated mexican people, the awe of watching star wars, the finest girls in the korean music industry, and about independent, stupid, lazy, and fake girls. haha. CURIOUS JYKAS! lol.

we stopped at McDonald's to take a break. then out of no where, we see Ken Mak! he was visiting UCLA with Lucerne and they were on their way home too! it was such a coincidence! what are the odds you know?!

ken: phil, lots of hot girls in irvine?
me: eh, it's alrite. what about UCLA?
ken: HELLA HOT GIRLS!
me: ahahahahahahaha.

so finally, we arrived and here i am after an amazing 8 hours of sleep. my goal: watch Goldmember and buy gifts for cousins today. boy oh boy, lots to do!

Thought of the Day: Well, at least mom's not so pissed.
Song of the Day: Um Jung Hwa-Looking For The Hidden Picture

so i'm supposed to be leaving for irvine in a few hours. unfortunately, i am a prisoner to my insomnia right now. i tried going to bed around 9 so i could get about 6 hours of sleep. i awoke around 11 and watched some tv. i went back to bed after simpsons and just could not fall asleep. i played some chess with simon and went online til 2. for 30 min., i remained captive to this sleepless curse. so here i am, blogging. nothing else to do.

this past weekend was just full of chang chang CHANG! we played lots of chess, went to some good burger joints, and ran alotta his errands. chang took me to Barney's for the first time after lying to me, promising to take me to La Burrita. anyways, the burger was most excellent. it's definitely up there on my top 10 list...perhaps #1? the thing that i really liked about it was that it wasn't super duper greasy. it was big, filling, and almost healthy? for dinner, i was once again promised a dinner at La Burrita (i am officially addicted to the Cheesesteak Burrito). however, jomo wanted to take us to this place called Rubio's. i was initially unhappy about this, but my meal definitely made up for it. they have this thing called the Lobster Burrito. it sounds disgusting but it tastes pretty good. very unique. Rubio's is like a MUCH better version of Una Mas. thanks again jomo. and finally, my chang weekend concluded with him coming over to my house, playing chess with simon.

simon: checkmate.
chang: DUDE! you KNOW that game was supposed to be mine. admit it simon. admit it before i rip you apart. admit before i "jjejuh" your "beh!" ("rip your stomach open" in korean).
simon: okok! that game was yours!
chang: GOSH!

it's really nice not working for once! i have like hecka weeks off b/c i'm on "vacation!" so here's my new master plan for this week.

1. go to irvine in a few hours.
2. come back thurs. night and rest.
3. go shopping and pack for korea.
4. go to ficy.
5. stay up so i'll be tired enough to sleep on the plane.
6. korea! freedom!

hmmmm, i wonder how the missions people are doing?

Thought of the Day: i JUST want to sleep!
Song of the Day: EOS-Not A Stranger

Clueless was alrite. not the funniest or too thought-provoking. just alrite. however, i do think now that Reese Wetherspoon looks like a retarded version of Alicia Silverstone. i remember when everyone used to think she was the hottest girl. eh, she's alrite. just kinda cute. i know they exaggerated the whole valley girl stereotype alot, but i do know too many girls from mills that fall under the description. "whatever...as if!"

Mafia-almost as bad as the first time i saw it. it was really a waste of time. so stupid. very immature humor. they only made fun of Godfather 1 and 2, Casino, and Scarface. it was really dumb.

just now...

allan: so you going to korea huh?
me: yeap.
allan: you gonna have alotta fun?
me: yeap.
allan: ahahhahahahaha. you gonna bring one home?
me: hahahahahaha. NO! the girls there are really different from here. really immature.
allan: no, those korean and japanese girls are really simple. girls here are really complicated...blah blah blah...if they come here...blah blah blah...get married....blah blah blah...take care of the house...blah blah blah...get your degree and trod on back!
me: ok.

i'm at work so i'll make it quick. all missions people, have an awesome trip. i will try to remember to pray for you guys everyday. have a safe and God-glorifying time! i'm sorry i could not donate much. i'm sorry i could not encourage much. bye guys.

Thought of the Day: One desk and one bookshelf is so much trouble.
Song of the Day: for once, there is no song of the day. *shrug*

dang, char can hecka hook it up with Marriott! since me, dykas, and justin will have to stay somewhere down in Irvine, char told me that she gets fat discounts for family and friends at any Marriott. she works there part-time as a waitress so she gets employee benefits. anyways, the first thing she offered was 1 bathroom and 2 queen size beds for $70. that's a pretty good deal compared to its original price-$180! then she told me about the Marriott Residence Inn, which is supposed to be alot nicer with 1 king size bed, 1 bathroom, refrigerator and kitchen with utensils, continental breakfast, and last but not least complimentary parking! this would only be $60 compared to the original $160. i practically spent the whole day "working" on my whole hotel thing. she's so cool.

char: you fa sho?
me: i'm fa sho!

then at Mrs. Field's...

me: so i'm going to korea next saturday.
beth: oh really?
me: yeah. i'm going to see my dad.
beth: oh, can you get me one of those tequila glasses? give me one that says korea on it or something.
me: tequila glasses?
beth: yeah. i collect them.
me: so it's like your hobby?
beth: yeah. it's like hobby. i have over 20.
me: woah.

beth: omg! 9.99 for a shirt? too expensive!
me: what? then what's cheap?
beth: 3.99.
me: dude, that's like straight up Burger King right there!

me: ok beth. i'll see you in a month.
beth: OH! ok. buy that for me ok?
me: ok. bye beth.

we really don't talk much. but i know she's going to miss working with me.

i saw alotta people at the mall today. i first saw Alice at the foodcourt and got some super nachos from her. as i was walking to work with nachos all over my face, i saw Amanda. i found out that she works at Body Shop. then, right before i got to work, i saw my cousin, alan, again. he told me simon ditched him so he was all alone or something. as i started work, BS, Justin, and Calvin came to my store. unfortunately, Calvin was forced to pay for his cookies b/c the manager was standing right next to me, watching my every move. during my break, justin's mom came to the mall b/c she needed to talk to justin about some medical form. as i was working, i saw this one guy who used to be in PE class during my junior year. also, this white guy named Adam came to my store. we didn't really talk much in school but he said wassup to me. 2-9:30 on saturday and that's it!

today, right before i got off the bus, i looked at the bus driver and started doing some random thinking. i was thinking about how much i hated my job and how much crap certain people give me. it sucks, busting your balls for some lady and not even getting a single Thank You. even if it's a Thank You that didn't sound meaningful, I STILL WANNA HEAR IT! so right before i got off the bus, i made a decision to start getting off the front of the bus and to ALWAYS say Thank You to the bus driver. if working with cookies sucks, imagine driving up and down El Camino to pick up/drop off people in the middle of the night. the least i could do is say a simple Thank You. and every time from now on, i'll mean it.

i spent the weekend with my cousin, alan. well, we're not exactly related-he's more of a second cousin (my uncle's wife's brother's son). anyways, i haven't seen this sucker in pretty long. i think the last time i had actually talked to him, face to face, was when i was in 7th grade? yeah, it's been a while. alot happens in 5 years you know? haha. he's so tall now! just slightly shorter than me. his voice has changed from a light squeal to a low mellow tone. the kid actually dresses up and puts on cologne! however, after spending much time with him, i realized that he was still the same ol' alan. weird, immature, and laughs at my stupid comments. it was nice seeing him again.

after ficy, we went to La Burrita in Berkeley. of course, i forced everyone to buy the would famous Cheesesteak Burrito! gosh dang! i cannot help but praise God for such food! my favorite burrito at a most decent price. man, they also give you lots of nachos to eat with your burrito. dude, that green hot sauce is some mean crap! i swallowed too much of that stuff for one night. my stomach was crying all night and morning. ugh, but it was soooooo worth it! lol. i apologize if i'm overdoing it. i tend to do that sometimes. ok, lots of times. but let's just say that the Cheesesteak Burrito is my favorite burrito in the world.

after that, it was time for desert-Top Dog. man, i ordered this thing called the Hot Link. for 2.50, i think it's a great hotdog. however, i realized i'm no longer a big fan of hotdogs. it's just too overwhelming you know? especially with that Russian mustard stuff-what a kick! i guess it's a good snack.

one more week of work and i'm a free man! i am seriously dreading these days. it's such a struggle to go to work. i just cannot stand it! maybe if my life had some fun in it. man, 6 days a week of work. no fun. i guess i have a GLIMPSE of what i-fang's life must be like. of course, i'm no where even close to that unacceptable lifestyle. i seriously give that girl props! man, you are so hardcore...and you somehow seem to make time to be a yg teacher. gosh, somebody give that girl some balloons or something! haha. anyways, i am sooooo looking forward to korea. i emailed one of my cousins that i changed my mind and i was going to korea. she wrote back and told me she was going to take me out alot! and trust me, when they say "alot," they mean ALOT! oh freakin' joy! haha. notice how i haven't even been mentioning my Irvine trip at all? it's almost not even a part of my summer. i know it'll be fun. but korea beats the crap out of it!

what?! did you guys hear that Iverson might have to face up to 54 years in jail? somebody update me on the details.

Thought of the Day: "goo-gyung MAHNEE shee-kyuh-jul-ggeh!"
Song of the Day: The Neptunes & Clipse-Grindin'

testing...

ok, i finally have some good...no, GREAT news about my life. I'M GOING TO KOREA!!! i know i was planning on not going cause i needed to work/save money and stuff but these past few days, i've been doing alotta reflecting about my summer. i basically work every single day except for sunday. i don't go out. i don't play. i simply just work and play chess with simon. that's it. and like i said before, i have been overwhelmed with bitterness. work sucks amen? anyways, i was just thinking about korea and why i decided not to go in the first place. i basically came up with the same list as before-save money for college. then i started thinking about the flipside-why i SHOULD go to korea. the last time i saw my dad was february 2001. that's exactly 1 year and 6 months. i thought about the next time i would see him/korea again. there was no realistic future date that i could point to. i mean, if i can't go to korea my summer right after high school, how in the world am i going to be able to go to korea in my college summers? i know my dad really wanted to see me. it must be tough, working too many hours in a failing business and not being able to see your beloved sons in over a year. i also thought about my whole summer in general. basically, it's turning out to be the worst one ever. i know that money is a factor, but i knew it'd be cheaper if simon and i went...compared to my dad coming here for like one week. soooooo, i talked to my mom about it and she said she'd talk to my dad about it. the other night, my dad was totally YES! i'm planning on going sometime after my Irvine trip. it'll be the best 2-3 weeks of my summer!

so the night i found out, i wasn't able to sleep for the longest time. i went to bed around 2. i didn't fall asleep til 4:30. for approximately 2 1/2 hours, i couldn't stop thinking about korea. i struggled with thoughts of cousins, trips, gifts, girls (ehehehehehhe), and the indescribable food (praise God!). it just hit me that i was forced to bury my love for korea for a long time. i can't describe how much i love going to that country. i seriously have the greatest time stress-free fa sho! and finally, after 2 years, i get to go back again. my repressed excitement has finally been released. man, LA is NOTHING compared to korea. ugh, i can go on and on. but don't worry, i'll be back in time for the retreat. can't miss that for the world.

Thought of the Day: "DAE-HAN-MIN-GOOK!"
Song of the Day: Perry-Get Ready (for korea!)

work:

me: hey allan.
allan: OH HEY! (startled).
me: (smile).
char: so, you got a physical yesterday huh?
me: um, kinda.
char: did they do the "complete?" ahahahahahahahaha.
me: hahahahhahaha. no. they did not do the "complete."
char: yeap. my sons hated that.

wow, susannie was right! Jimmy Eat World is one awesome group! after watching their music video, Sweetness, last night, i decided to give them a chance this morning. i downloaded all of their songs and instantly, my ears were pleased. they have a good combination of slow depressing music and softcore punk rock. i don't know if that description does justice. well, they remind me of Weezer in some subtle ways...but alot less mellow. i like it. susannie believes they're the best alternative group right now. i disagree. i think Blink 182 is still doper (ahahahaha. i'm so stupid). of course, my opinion is totally biased. Blink 182 has had hecka albums and went through many changes, mistake after mistake. however, Jimmy Eat World came out better than decent with their very first album! i'm impressed. what do you think?

Thought of the Day: "It's getting hot in here! So take off all your clothes!"
Song of the Day: Jimmy Eat World-Sweetness

man, adam sandler is starting to suck. he's not as funny as he used to be. remember Happy Gilmore and Wedding Singer? dude, that crap was hilarious! Mr. Deeds was weak sauce. alotta time wasted on attempted romantic scenes and cheesy morals. now don't get me wrong...there were a few parts where i laughed with decency. but at the same time, it's becoming apparent that adam sandler is starting to run out of ideas. my movie madness was just as i predicted. i'm watching alotta movies this summer. i believe i watch an average of 3 movies a week. i think that's alot. oh well. on to Clueless!

Thought of the Day: Now I know how you guys felt. I'm terribly sorry.
Song of the Day: T-Memories

i had a crappy day at work yesterday. everything was alrite until 9:00 hit. this moron named sam, who works at GAP, always comes to our store and asks for free cookies. this guy is so consistent in coming all the time that it makes me sick. so yesterday, i was closing with the easiest and most lenient manager. once our store closed, the guy comes to the store and tries to talk to me. i walk to the other side and do some work there. he follows. i go back. he follows. "hey, do you have any really old cookies that i can have?" i was really tired and frustrated that i didn't want to deal with his crap. so i gave him some of the less popular cookies and told him to never come here again. as soon as i give them to him, the manager barks at me cause she saw the whole thing. throughout the rest of the night, she lectured me on how i could get fired b/c of the other managers, the video camera, other people who got caught, telephone calls, lack of responsibility, blah blah blah. it sucks dude. supposedly, the district manager comes in every morning and reviews the previous day's work by watching the recorded video. she's the strict lady, monina. the same lady who was THIS CLOSE to firing me. ugh, i don't know. i'm a bit anxious to go to work on monday. once again, i did another stupid thing that could jeopardize my employment. man, i was just so tired, busy, and frustrated. i didn't even think about making sure the manager was looking or not. perhaps God was trying to show me that He was displeased with the fact that i hook people up. afterall, it IS wrong right? at the same time, i'm so pissed at that guy sam. man, so annoying.

on the way home, i was listening to a sermon by John MacArthur on the lordship of Christ. i was surprised to learn that many people just accept Christ as their Savior and not Lord. making him Lord takes place some time later in your "christian life." many churches and evangelical movements out there discourage evangelism that involves the discussion of lordship. they only encourage believing "the facts." i was very unhappy about this, thinking about all the corruption that goes on out there. some seminary writers even believe that evangelizing that Christ is Lord is a heresy! it's really sad. the way our God is portrayed has been so jacked up. i mean, they have good intentions i'm sure. however, they focus too much on saving the person, rather than being faithful to God's word. remember guys, our job is to evangelize FAITHFULLY. God takes care of the rest.

to conclude that day's discouraging events, i saw Lilo & Stitch and Shallow Hal on my computer. i really enjoyed both movies, probably b/c i was expecting some low quality. to my surprise, i really enjoyed Lilo & Stitch. i can see why some people may not have liked it, but i thought it was a decent Disney movie. there were a few funny parts and Stitch was a pretty cool looking alien. in fact, i kinda want a small toy of him now. i could add it to my collection of Psyduck and the Senior Banquet piggy bank. ah, and we come to Shallow Hal. another masterpiece by the Farrelly Brothers (thanks tiff). i think this was the only movie that was perfect for Jack Black. he did a pretty good job with the part they gave him-fat, immature, and nice loser. i actually laughed more than 10 times in this movie! well, i guess this would have to include chuckles but i consider that alot. now that i think about it, i REALLY like some Farrelly Brothers movies like dumb & dumber and kingpin. their other ones were alrite. anyways, do yourself a favor and watch these movies.

today, i bought another chess set after church. i know what you're thinking-ANOTHER ONE?! so right now in total, i would have 4 different chess sets. well, the reason why i bought this one was b/c it looked JUST like PJ's and it was on sale for 10 bucks! haha. it looks so cool when the black chess set and this new one are sitting side by side. they are so ready to be played by people. ahahahhahaah. i crack myself up. and besides, i'm going to be taking one to college, so simon can still have a nice one to play with while i'm gone. 10 bucks yo. what an investment!

prayer request: that i would be more disciplined in work and have a stronger appreciation for the jobs that i have right now. (i am so bitter dude).

Thought of the Day: I think i'm supposed to go to EM from now on.
Song of the Day: J-You, My Dream

my 4th of july wasn't as bad as i expected it to be. i called up a few of my friends but there was just nothing to do. however, moe and olivia decided to entertain me pretty early during the day instead of watching a movie with their friends. we sat in my room for 3 hours, but i honestly enjoyed those 3 hours, talking about summer school, hated teachers, weird cousins, and our beloved korea. later that day, jonna came over to my house and we really didn't have much to do since we had to wait for terrance & tiffanie to come over. well, since we had some time to kill and i felt like moving around, i decided to take these poor souls to Sky Farm! Sky Farm is actually my x-country's HARDEST workout. you go 3 miles straight. 2 miles up. 3 miles back. and walk down Trousdale. well, the 2 miles up part is Sky Farm, the longest and steepest hill in san mateo county i believe. the freakin' thing is literally hills on top of hills. and not just any hills, but rather mini-mountains. even cars struggle going up this crap. trust me, just b/c you're walking doesn't mean this is a piece of cake. any form of transportation is a struggle. of course, none of the kids knew what they were in for. i merely told them it was a huge surprise that was going to overwhelm them. haha. and of course, they WERE overwhelmed.

(seeing one of the steeper hills)
jonna: WOOOOOOAAAAAAHHHHH MY GOSH!

by the time we reached the top, they were all really quiet due to having an incredible amount of bitterness towards me. moe hated me the most. i have never heard so many complaints come out of her mouth. however, i still enjoyed the time. we still got a chance to talk alot and see some pretty nice houses...afterall, we WERE walking through hillsborough. but yeah, i don't think i'll ever do Sky Farm to "surprise" anyone ever again. lol.

after this 2 1/2 hour journey, we met up with chang, phil, terrance, tiff, their friend from korea, and justin. we went to Chili's and i think our table was seriously quite a site. it was me, hwang, justin, terrance, and of course chang! never in our lives have we seen chang swallow his food so fast! i mean, that guy had a mean looking burger and that was gone before we could ask him for a bite! that guy is one speedy gonzalez! crap. but all in all, i was dissatisfied with Chili's. i think everyone was.

later that night, i watched Serendipity at chang's place. it was a short, romantic comedy with a pretty girl. there were a few parts that i chuckled at and a really nice scene at an ice skating rink. i didn't think it was too bad. i was hoping for more romance but they just kinda cut everything off at the end. i wanna say i was disappointed but i can't. it was enjoyable. "serendipity-fortunate accidents."

Thought of the Day: I just learned that i dislike people who seek attention all the time.
Song of the Day: Cam'ron-Oh Boy

i saw MIB 2 with terrance yesterday. man, i was pretty dissatisfied with that movie. i mean, it wasn't like i was looking forward to a GREAT movie, but it couldn't even meet my low expectations. well, terrance and his friend, martha, think i'm some hardcore critic. to them, i appear to be this bitter moviegoer who just likes to complain. haha. funny. i guess i might have to agree with them only sometimes. however, my other friend also heard from others that MIB 2 sucked as well. *shrug* i don't recommend wasting your money on this one. it'd only be appropriate to watch this one on vhs or dvd. but the good part about going to the movies yesterday was that i got to check out Century 20 (no where even close to being an AMC), i got the see the Lord of the Rings 2 preview, and i found out that T3 (Terminator 3) is coming out next summer! yeah, that's about it.

i also watched Idle Hands b/c i was curious and had a free rental at Blockbuster. i enjoyed watching this so much more than watching Will Smith. this movie actually made me laugh in several parts...mainly b/c i can relate to many of them. more and more, i'm coming to appreciate Seth Green as a small actor. i just like the characters that he plays in his movies. haha. oh yeah, and the whole Jessica Alba thing. frank, she's a good 100 points behind Jennifer Love Hewitt. the word, "fine," should not be tossed around like a baseball. it is to be used appropriately. i realized that i love B-rated teenage movies. you know, kinda like Can't Hardly Wait and 10 Things I Hate About You. actually, i'd have to give Can't Hardly Wait an A-/B+ b/c it satisfied me in too many ways. if you guys know anymore B-rated teenage movies, holla at me dawg!

these past few days, i realized that i haven't been enjoying my summer. all i do is sleep, sleep, sleep, work, work, WORK! justin pointed out to me that i look very bitter these days. bingo! i AM bitter! i work practically everyday, don't get paid much, and have no fun when i have available time. haha. justin said this was the typcial American life or something when we're adults. i'm trying to make the best of my summer. i really am. i try making friends at work. i try being productive in the mornings. i try going to bed earlier. these past few days, i haven't been getting good sleep. i go to bed around 12:30ish and fall asleep after 2-3 hours of tossing and turning. i'm such a bitter guy. i mean, i know my contentment is to come from God, and not from "fun." it's depressing though. my last high school summer and it's turning out to be one of the worst.

Thought of the Day: Today. July 4th. Another day. Just no work.
Song of the Day: Lee Jung Hyun-I'll Never Die

yesterday at work, i got a chance to work with Beth, a short filipino lady who looks older than my mom. the first time you meet her, you can't help but assume that this lady hasn't slept in days. her eyes always look tired, she rarely smiles, and she talks in a pretty low tone. but after working with her yesterday, i got to slip in a few conversations with her.

me: so what do you do for fun?
beth: nothing. sleep and watch movies.
me: uh. i see. well, why don't you do anything else?
beth: everything's boring. i used to go clubbing every single weekend for a long time. i just recently stopped this year. i started clubbing when i turned 21.
me: oh. so how old are you now?
beth: 27.
me: *ahem* oh. that's a long time.
beth: yes.

beth: yeah, i love japanese food.
me: yeah, you should go to Todai's. it's all you can eat japanese food!
beth: oh really? but those "eat all you can" places are too expensive!
me: (cracking up inside). yeah, i know.

that sounded so funny. "eat all you can." it almost sounds like a command!

during my break, i passed by Wetzel's and the manager saw me walking by. she waved me over to come and talk to her. as we were talking, all these customers started lining up. then when it was down to one customer, the manager pointed at the customer and me. and i back off showing that i didn't want a pretzel. then i look at the customer and it's MELODY! melody used to work with me at Wetzel's, a very unstable girl who has random emotional outbursts. she was wearing this colorful shirt and had pink hair. man, what a freakin' coincidence! the last time i saw her, she was working at Journey's and yelling F You! at a buncha teenagers for knocking over a whole buncha shoes. psycho fa sho! i can't say i enjoy her company but it wasn't bad seeing her again.

i'm going to bed earliest 2. waking up earliest 12. don't call me b/w these hours! (you know who you are!).

Thought of the Day: Cookies, cookies, and even MORE cookies! ahhhhhhh!
Song of the Day: 1tym-One Love *saranghae* (lol)