a woman in love

i heart afflalo.

i heart howland.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/25/sports/ncaabasketball/25kansas.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

now can i get an 8-clap?

GO BRUINS!!!

tube tied

given that i'm often the maternal one in relationships- it's nice to be "mothered" every once in awhile. these days, that's laurie's role, although she's much wilder and crazier than my mom!

our conversation turned into an extensive lecture about dating men.

l: (sigh of relief) only this past year did i finally got my hubby down to 3 times a week.

v: and that's a good thing?

l: yes! sometimes i just want to be left alone.

v: hmm, i know of women who have the opposite problem. they want it more than their partners.

l: (giving me a serious stare) what type of guys are these? are they american?

v: (i nod my head) for the most part yes.

l: then they should date europeans. it's true. american men spend too much damn time obsessed with sports- basketball, football, baseball, hockey. you name it and all year round, there's some sport to follow and american men are always spending all their time with their male friends. all their testosterone gets riled up and spent on sports! european men only get excited about soccer and the world cup once every four years! they are more into spending time with you and the family.

v: (totally disregarding the fact that a european man can obsess just as easily and as much over soccer as any american man over all american sports combined!, i prodded her on) you think so? tell me more. all european men?

l: let me tell you. i married at 25. but before i got married, i dated every type of guy. didn't waste my time if he wasn't exciting, if he had a small *you know what*, and if he didn't do it for me. but you gotta stay away from the greeks.

v: really? why?

l: my GOODNESS. . unless you want it up the ass! they will keep you under their thumbs they are so domineering.

v: hmm. ok. what about latins?

l: ooo. that would be nice. romantic. their culture is very sensual, dancing, etc.

v: so you don't think there would be a problem with sex drive with them?

l: hmm. well, they are all about scoping out women. when they talk to you they will stare at your boobs. so they are arousal is always elevated and this could lead to a lower sex drive too.

v: hmm, so i guess europeans are the way to go huh?

l: yep. i married a german.

while i found laurie's advice giving endearing, i found most of the conversation (which continued on for a bit) amusing. i find it hard to believe that american men are so tied to the tube watching sports that they are not as passionate and sensual with their partners. . . your thoughts?

step it up boys!

wonderful evening. had dinner with j at sushi of gari. i had three and a half rounds of omakase and split a couple bottles of sake with j as we caught up on one another's lives.

this is our routine. every 3 or 4 months we'll go out for a delectable sushi dinner and talk for a couple of hours.

j is a hoya devotee so we talked about college basketball for a bit and he checked the score for the UCLA-Indiana game for me during dinner (yes a little dorky). i suggested going to bar coastal to watch the second half of the game.

march madness + st. paddy's day turned bar coastal into a frat house!! (assuming that's not what it's normally like which i don't know since it's my first venture there) tons of drunk young boys drinking pitchers and pitchers of bud and coors light, getting in fights with each other, etc. j and i felt (1) old and i felt claustrophobic. . but it was the only guaranteed bar to show the UCLA game so we toughed it out.

i bought us a round of beers (brooklyn lager for j and amstel light for me) and we watched as UCLA almost gave away the game. . . while i love my boys, watching them play indiana reminded me way too much of their lavin days. playing with no heart and being lazy and sloppy because of a 10 pt margin. i almost lost it when indiana tied the match. luckily, UCLA won out in the end. . .they won, but honestly they weren't playing like a winning team. the bruins need to step it up if they plan on making it to the final bracket.

i have faith in my boys tho, and howland. for now, i can sleep soundly with tonight's victory.

feeling not so "groovy"

spent all day cooped up inside on a beautiful day studying for my quiz. thought i would reward myself by meeting up with Q2 for drinks at angel share after class. with our busy work schedules, our impromptu get togethers after work have all but ceased so we were both looking forward to hanging out.

class ended promptly at 8:30 and was at our chosen destination by 9 (even made a pit stop for my favorite wasabi fumi furikake at sunrise market). most of the seats were taken so we opted for the bar. i ordered the "groovy", a refreshing drink made with yuzu and shiso leaf. we chatted an hour away and had a second round.

feeling the need for change, we decided to hit up decibel- an underground sake bar just steps away. the host directed us to our seats. as we settled in, Q2 started sniffing the air and crinkling her nose.

Q2: do you smell that?

V: china smell?

(if you've been to china, you know that there is this unmistakable odor- associated with subways, little alleys, etc)

Q2: it smells like urine. ugh, i can't take it. . let's move.

V: ok. motioning to the server. can we move?

S: sure.

we get up to look around. the only seats are at a short bar right next to the entranceway.

V: wanna sit here?

Q2: hmm. i don't know.

as the server tries to assist Q2, a random asian guy walks by and asks me where the bathroom is.

V: huh? i don't know.

RAG: oh, sorry, i thought you work here.

uh, yea RIGHT! all the guys that work here are wearing robes with japanese characters on it and i'm wearing a brown/beige polka dot dress. but ok, let's give him the benefit of the doubt.

V: nope. sorry.

eventually Q2 and i decide to go back to the original seats. we order 2 glasses of sake and edamame to share. we chat. we order 2 more glasses of sake. by now, we've both reached our limit and decide to call it a night. when we walk the stairs, we see RAG and his friend smoking cigs by the doorway.

RAG: sorry, i really thought you worked there. leaving already?

V: no worries. yea, it's late.

RAG: what is your background anyways.

V: guess.

and guess he did. . every nationality under the sun. japanese. taiwanese. malaysian. singaporean. siamese?!!? pretty sad pick up line i have to say. not only is it generic, but it shows he can't tell one asian from another!!!

so lessons to be learned?

guys- can we be more please just be sincere. what happened to "hi, my name is X, what's your name?"

for me- 2 drink maximum when i have to go to work the next morning. . woke up feeling not so groovy.

unexpected call

chatting chatting chatting with eulalie.

ring ring from the other line.

v: can you hold on a minute

e: sure

switch over

vk: how far away are you from the city?

v: hmm. .maybe 20 minutes? what's up?

vk: can you stop by?

v: what's up?

vk: we locked ourselves in! can you come and open the door?

v: sure. i'll see you in a bit

vk: thank you thank you thank you.

turns out VK had managed to lock herself into her apartment. . . of course, me and my tickets, i rushed to her apartment, double parked and left my hazards on, got buzzed in, ran up the stairs, unlocked VK's door, asked if they were ok, ran back down the stairs, got to my *thankfully unticketed car* and drove back home.

now, how did VK manage to lock herself into her apartment? i still don't know. . only know that the design of her locks is that you can lock yourself in but now out? how does that work???

fighting cravings

had my first taste of it on tuesday after lunch. i only finished half. so perfect and oh-so satisfying.

a couple meetings at work. then my first craving stirred. luckily i still had a half left. polished it all off.

can't stop thinking about it. . yep. . trader joe's greek style yogurt. it is creamy, thick, and has the exact consistency of a rich frozen yogurt or soft serve ice cream. unfortunately, there is only one TJ's in the city and i have been unable to go back to get more. yesterday i was craving it so much after lunch that i broke down and bought a $3.25 small cup of frozen yogurt from the company restaurant (which is actually very good but not cheap). then i realized that i needed to go to TJ's as soon as possible. even thought about whether i should lug a suitcase full of it from newport blues back to nyc but i dont' have the fridge space for it. . . and it's dairy and shouldn't be out of fridgeration for so long. . . .

it's been a torturous two days without TJ's greek style yogurt. wed night had class until 8:30 then had to rush back home to have a conference call, thur night met up with VK for dinner and was too slap happy to do much of anything except for chatter away on the phone with theng.

but it's friday morning, i've got a late shift and will drive out to work early to hit the gym there. there's also a TJ's 20 minutes away from the gym so i can do a little shopping and store whatever i get in the manager's fridge before my shift begins at one.

sigh. . i can see how addictions begin. . .

homeward bound

spent weeks worrying about how i would fit my parents, sister, brother-in-law, niece, and nephew into my 400 sqft apartment. . .looks like an easier solution arose. . . i'm heading back to bad news sat morning. it'll be a short trip. arrive sat morning leave sunday afternoon.

can't believe how much i've been missing the place- haven't been home since october. . maybe it's just missing a comfortable bed and my momma's cooking!

so march madness begins

channel surfing while i was burning out the stair climber at nysc last night. caught the tail end of the VCU-GM game. . VCU was down but stepped up to win back the game. . very exciting game!!!

somehow the significance of march had passed me- perhaps it's being out of grad school and less contact with my grad school friends. . . nonetheless, glad to see my boys are representing!!!

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/rankingsindex

anyways, if you see a little asian girl at a sports bar yelling at the t.v. during a bruins game in the middle of nyc, chances are it's V. . .

brunette and brunetter

had been looking forward to going out with Q2 all week. . .plan was to meet up at her place, get dressed, grab dinner and catch up, and then hit the b-day party. the "slumber party" themed b-day party. feeling adventurous, we decided to go for it- b/c with any theme party you have to go all out and be obvious or risk looking silly?

right? well at least that was our thought process!

we glammed up in sexy sleepwear and hit the town, of course, careful to cover up with cardigans to be decent for dinner.

enjoyed a great dinner at a local sushi spot and a couple glasses of otokoyami for "courage" and headed to the gallery bar. upon arrival there was a small line forming but we spotted the b-day boy at the entrance way and got in straightaway. taking in our surroundings, it quickly became apparent that we were the only ones that dressed up!!! (well, except for a petite japanese girl wearing cutesy pjs)

uh oh. this doesn't feel awkward at all. the fact that we were dressed in sleepwear was not in the slightest embarrasing. good thing we weren't wearing anything too scandalous!

of course the b-day boy assured us we looked great!

um yea, of course you think so, you're a guy.

nonetheless, it took a few more drinks before we relaxes. . .and i suppose the outfits did make for a great story and got us invited to another b-day party downstairs. a "blazer" crowd of doctors, lawyers, consultants, etc representing the bulldogs. made conversation with the boys for a bit but started to feel as though we were fulfilling some asian fantasy and decided to head back upstairs for a bit of dancing. . .the music was a bit uninspiring so we headed back to Q2's to change into our regular going out clothes and hit la caverna.

met up with celestial and her date, a nice aussie boy. music was rocking and we danced up a storm. after some time, we decided to head back to verlaine. small world that it is, we ran into jere, deb's cousin. . .a drink later, i was done and our crew rolled out of verlaine and being that it was 3AM, we went to rosario's to grab a slice of pizza. perfect end to a fabulous night!

great finds!

it has been a WONDERFUL day off! slept in until 10:30. . i think a first for me since i can't remember when. fabulous workout at the gym.

met up with m.fem. around 2:30 to check out a studio sale by one of my wedding/special events planning super-heroes. they are moving offices and are getting rid of a lot of their inventory- beautiful fabrics, candle holders, and vases galore. . i was in heaven!!!

i picked 3 silver/beaded candeholders, a couple candles, and this gorgeous white fabric that was hand beaded. . all for $60!!!! i'm goin to nail the fabric up on my wall (until i buy a big mirror or flat screened t.v.). i also spoke with the staff and got info to volunteer with them. . sigh, that would be amazing!!

after our bargain hunting, m.fem and i went to trader joes where i stocked up on groceries. . very long line. . . sigh, i miss LA and the less crowded TJ's. nonetheless, the staff there exudes a great energy. chatted with the line/traffice director for a bit before getting rung up by "dilan" who was fantastic.

dilan: how are you?

V: great, you?

dilan: good. find everything you want?

V: pretty much, but got to the end of the line and realized i had forgotten one thing!! arg.

dilan: what did you forget.

V: fresh basil

dilan: why don't you go get it while i ring you up.

no encouragement needed, i sprinted to the produce section and grabbed a container of basil and back to the cashier.

V: i love you! thanks so much.

madonna playing on the overhead speakers.

dilan: don't you love this song? this is my favorite song. better watch out!

V: why, you might bust a move?

dilan: yea, i just want to start dancing. call up the girls and start dancing.

V laughs.

dilan: you want one of these? he holds up an array of my energy snack bars.

V: actually, yea, i'm starving.

dilan: which flavor? i start to touch the "cookies and cream" flavored zone bar. hmm, i would save that for later. . peanut butter caramel?? hmm? yes? good choice. V laughs.

how can you beat TJ's? great food, great prices, and great staff.

grumble grumble grumble

didn't leave work until 10:30. got back around 11:30 and spent half an hour looking for parking. . . was trying to find a spot so i wouldn't have to move for street cleaning in the morning.

sigh, had to switch my days off work due to work politics. . UGH! so going in tomorrow on the late side. which is annoying b/c now i have to miss my girls night out- art gallery exhibit opening reception and chance to meet with the artist. . .alas, it's the "right" thing to do workwise.

damn sensibilities- i wouldn't be able to enjoy myself anyways if i knew i wasn't doing the "right" thing. . .