Recipe for success

I have always known that communication in any relationship is important. Being in a profession where I stress the importance of communication, I have to say that I do sometimes forget to communicate effectively. Partly the ineffective communication is due to fear of hurting others, however, over the years of dating I have figured that saying what’s on my mind is much more important than wanting to protect someone’s feelings. I have found that oftentimes the other party is also thinking the approximate same thing anyway. Over the weekend, Jason helped me in realizing another important fact, which is that those that really care for you; will listen to all that you have to say. There are times when I think what I have to say will hurt or damage a relationship. In reality, however, regardless of how much you think the information might hurt their feelings, they are more interested in listening and helping you through tough times. After all, those people that really care (either be family or in a romantic relationship) for you will want nothing but to see you happy.

Another great date movie

Over the weekend, Jason and I went to see The 40-year-old Virgin. Again, like most romantic comedies, the plot itself is not so unpredictable, however, surprisingly this movie actually shows some depth. The movie deals with some issues that arise in romantic relationships. “It’s not only a funny movie, but a sexy one as well” it was the comment I heard last night from a radio station, and I agree with the statement. So, if you are looking into a good date movie, give this movie a try.

Puzzles

Sarah introduced me to a game this morning. Which turns out to be the same game that our family friend, Chuck, got my brother and sister-in-law hooked on. The game is called Sudoku; the objective of the game is to fill in the missing numbers so that each smaller block and columns/rows will be filled with numbers from 1 to 9. This is a highly addictive game, but if you love puzzles, this is a perfect game! I have not venture out to the more difficult levels yet, but nevertheless it’s fun when I can solve the puzzle.

Silver lining

Those of you that know me and know what kind of year I have been having, you will agree when I say that I have been having a rather bad and bizarre year so far. I have been having a string of bad luck since about December or January in both my school and my personal life. Then Jason walked into my life and things are at least looking up. Although I am still experiencing a rather strange and eventful summer, it has been helpful to have someone that just wants to offer support in my hours of need. I feel heard, and I am grateful.

Good date movie

I haven’t been to a movie in a long time. I actually think that the very last time I was at a movie theatre was probably in December or January. Besides the fact that there are no good movies that I must see, I am also not to keen on being in a crowded theatre while trying to find seats. It is a blessing to me when there are other people that are willing to share movies with me.

Recently Jason joined one of those DVD rental services and I asked him to rent The Wedding Date for my amusement. I have to admit that it’s one of those “feel good” movies where the plot is predictable, but it is nevertheless a cute movie that is great for dates.

Voice from the past

This year makes my 10^th year out of high school. Time sure flies, and I realized that I have lost touch with many of my friends back when I was in high school. Two days ago, to my surprise, one of my old friends from high school Yaohua (a.k.a. Athena) found my e-mail address and decided to write. She now is a mother of a little girl and has been married since 1999. It’s very interesting to find out how my friends are doing since we bid farewell 10 years ago. If she does decide to go to the class reunion that is set in November, then it will be more of a reason for me to consider going :)

Wedding guests for rent

I heard about the new type of business springing up in India, guests for rent, not just any guests, wedding guests. Having been through couple of weddings already, I know how expenses in weddings tend to pile up. First, the whole idea that there are people in the world would want to spend double in order to seem to have a big wedding is just beyond my imagination. What bothers me is the whole idea that there are people out there that think there are not enough guests in their wedding. I have always heard that couples needing to cut down on the number of guests in order to actually being able to pay for the wedding. I, for one, have never been into large and extravagant weddings. Few years ago when a friend of a friend got married, they couple had 500+ guests. Sure, at least half of them are over 50 and do not know the couple other than their names. I agree that sometimes the more the merrier, but I still do think there’s a point where it is just overwhelming.

Well, the news continues to say that the company will actually get the posers together for the couple few days before the wedding to go over details. Just in case the real guests ask questions about the couple that have completely nothing to do with them other than a business opportunity. What will the creative and desperate businessmen think of next!

I can get used to that.

It’s official folks! I am in a relationship with Jason. He showed up at my door on Saturday with a bouquet of purple roses in hand and asked me the very important question. I couldn’t be happier! It’s wonderful not only the fact that Jason and I have amazing amount of commonality, and also that I have never been asked to be the girlfriend before. I can really get used to the feeling of knowing that he wants nothing more than for me to be happy!

That was disgusting

I drove to Children’s Hospital yesterday using local roads. As I was entering DC from Silver Spring, I noticed a white van with DC temporary plate. We stopped side by side at a traffic light waiting for the light to turn green. As I took a sip of water from my water bottle, I noticed the man in the van (I estimated him somewhere between his late 40s early 50s) talking on the phone while looking my way. Very quickly I turned my gaze and looked out of my driver side window. Not that I thought it was inappropriate to look, but I just did not want to draw attention. So, this van in the next few blocks kept about one or two car lengths away from my car. At a certain point, he was to the left of me and he purposely slowed down to peek into my window. I was completely gross out and felt disgusted. Now, I know he has rights to look at anyone that he wants, but I just have a real problem with the fact that the look is not welcomed. The thought that he might follow me to my destination crossed my mind, and that is a real unpleasant feeling. His gazes at me made me feel like a piece of meat. Ugh, so disgusting!

Problem solved… hopefully

I ran into my next-door neighbor yesterday as I was coming home from Children’s Hospital visiting some of my old co-workers. I told her about the gap where the birds were and basically told her that she should have her landlord fix the problem. So, hopefully after this I can look forward to birds-on-my-roof-free days next year.

The zoo

After a long stretch of 90+ degrees days, the first “seasonal” day finally arrived last Saturday. I decided to take a stroll with a newfound friend, Jason, in the zoo. We finally arrived at the zoo around 4:00pm. First we saw some cheetahs. They are truly magnificent creatures. However, it was warm out, so they were lying on the grass relaxing. We saw other animals such as the always very cute black-tailed prairie dogs, playful Asian elephants, grazing giraffes, and a giant hippo that led out a loud sneeze at one point. Unfortunately we entered the zoo a little late, and all of the indoor exhibits are closed by 6:00pm. We got a glimpse of the gorillas, as we were being rush out of the building. There are other animals that I have not mentioned here. I am also pretty certain that we had not walk the whole zoo.

It was memorable when we saw a kangaroo sleeping on the grass, however, the position the kangaroo was in, it seemed like it was hurt, or worse, dead. Few people, including the two of us, were wondering if the kangaroo was actually breathing. Luckily someone spotted the chest moving up and down slightly and it inhales and exhales.

Due to the warm weather, the zoo sets up several stop points where a water spray can be found. I thought it’s very thoughtful of them to think of the comfort of pedestrians.

It was a fun trip that I intent to do again soon!

Slow month

It has been a slow month so far and things are somewhat uneventful. Ok, so today is only the 4^th day of the month, but I am thankful for this leisurely pace! (Especially after a very long Spring semester and a busy first half of summer.) I am going to enjoy these time off as much as I can.

Nice puppy

A few friends and I went to a park in Reston over the weekend for an Asian festival. Few hours after we have gotten there we spotted a few cute dogs walking alongside their owners. Few feet from where we were sitting was a Shar-pei who has a chocolate coat and is very cute. He was walking around his owner trying to find something to play with. In any event, a friend of mine, Andy, decide to approach the dog. From how the dog was playing, we could tell that he’s still a puppy, which was later confirmed by the owner. The puppy got so excited and just wanted to play. I approached the puppy to pet him. I can’t resist playing with a cute dog anyway! The puppy got so excited and wanting to jump on me. Because he is still a puppy, he has no idea the amount of force that he is exerting. He pushed me a bit hard and caused me to loose balance, but luckily I didn’t fall. His owner told us that he is especially attracted to women. By the time it’s said and done, I have dog slobber all over me! It’s wonderful though. I love dogs!