TiVo

As most of you already know, HappyOblivion and I are HUGE TV fans. We are also extrememly busy and sometimes we don't have time to watch all the shows for a particular day. Now, the VCR can only record one show at a time but often we have to watch 2 shows at the same time. What to do? We bought a TiVo!!! It was a great deal and it was very hard to resist. I figure now it's the time to buy it since we are both very busy. Yeah yeah, $13/month but if we pay the lifetime fee we don't have to worry about anything until the DVR breaks down. I am so excited!!!

In a Quandary

Hmmm...I have been looking at pocket PC's and I finally found one today with the right price. It's a really great deal but I am hesitant because I don't really know if I need one. Completely blinded by my desire to own electronics and advanced technologies, I become impractical and make irrational decisions. Why do I need a pocket PC anyway? To tell the truth, I just want to have one. $250 to satisfy my "desires" is a pretty high price. My brother-in-law gave me great advice regarding which PDA's are worth buying and I am greatful for that. I keep on fabricating various situations when I might need a PDA but all I came up with were TV schedule and school. All this time, I tend to remember things pretty well and for those that I forget, I guess they are not that important anyway. Hmmm, I will keep thinking...

20 Facts About Angelpoo

Victim of a vicious crime of blog tagging, I am to write 20 facts about myself. Well, here it goes:

1. Just like my parents and my cool roomate Jenn, I LOVE to get rid of stuff. Everytime I go back home (SJ), I end up donating 3-5 bags of junk! I like to dump other people's stuff too :)
2. For some reason, people never succeed in getting me drunk. I am very alcohol tolerant...hee.
3. Stepping on HappyOblivion's back and hearing his spine crack makes me feel good. I just hope I don't get too excited and hear other things crack...
4. I am allergic to peanuts. So if you hate me, feed me peanuts. Beware, I might punch you in the face.
5. My dream job is to dive with sea turtles but that will never happen because I am scared of sharks. Hey, that's why it's called a "dream" job!
6. I draw comics about my favorite stuffed animal pig and panda (Achoo and Oreo), hoping someday they will act out my comics.
7. In my future house, I will build a huge pond in the backyard for my lovely pet turtles. I really hope someday they will stop fighting and start mating :D
8. I am sucker for cute Japanese characters (Momoten, Kogepan, Kodama, Totoro, MonoKuRobu, etc...)
9. I want to have a farm with pot bellied pigs, sheeps, ducks, chickens, and llamas. Although I would hate to maintain it.
10. I have seen cows trying to mate and it is not a pretty sight :(
11. I am secretly planning to kidnap my niece and bring her to to the beautiful beaches of Hawaii to check out the local boys :) Doh!
12. I wish to buy TiVo but am afraid I might spend even more hours in front of the TV than I already am (15+ hours/week).
13. I bought a yellow body pillow at Costco for the usual "pillow comfort" but end up giving it a name (Tamago) and treating it as a stuffed animal. I yell at HappyOblivion when he tries to hug it or squish it in any way.
14. I hate swimmers who fail to swim in a straight line and end up in MY lane. So I swim close to them and pretend to kick them accidently so they would go away.
15. The point of mosaic puzzles is so you can have months of fun. Well, I usally get impatient and finish a 5000 piece mosaic puzzle in 3 days or less.
16. I am a secret admirer of a sushi chef at Imanas Tei. I hope that one day I have enough courage to ask for his name, take a picture with him, and buy all the Tamagoyaki in the restaurant.
17. I read a comic called Sherman's Lagoon. I hope to visit the lagoon and find Sherman the shark. He is the one shark I am not scared of :)
18. I have no sense of direction. People look at me weird when I say I got lost in Davis, CA.
19. I am not religious because I cannot find any religion that approves of my ironic beliefs in the good and the bad.
20. I hate writing about myself...

75 Cents?

Yesterday could be called the luckiest shopping day of my entire life. What could you buy for 75 cents? Candy, newspaper, cheapo notebook, paper, pencil, pen, etc... Well, guess what I got for 75 cents :) I went to Walmart last night looking for kitchen towels but found Panasonic women's shaver replacement foil and blade set for 75 cents! I couldn't believe it! Where can you find ANY shaver replacements for less than $20 nowadays. I guess they were trying to clear the stock so the prices went plunging down to entice people like me to buy 7...hee hee. Yup, I bought 7, which will last me for the next 10 years or so.

Sudoku

Just yesterday I heard on the news that there is a new craze going on about a new mind puzzle that got thousands of people hooked! The game is called Sudoku. I wanted to see why it was so addictive so I went to Barnes & Noble last night and bought a book on Sudoku puzzles. My conclusion is, THIS GAME IS ADDICTIVE! I have done 10 puzzles so far and it's been only one day! When I get addicitve on something, it's bad news. Just like Katamari, my impatience will drive me to become an expert in the game because I am so ambitious. Then I end up spending most of my time doing this stupid mind game instead of my research or paying attention in class. Crap! I have included a link on the left (along with Jumble) in case you want to give it a try.

Busy? or Not...

The past 2 weeks have been a SOB (sorry, just couldn't find a better way to express my intense antagonism toward the piles of readings I had to go thru). I don't know how I did it but my crazy exam weeks have finally come to a pause...but will resume in another month. How did I manage to take 2 exams, 2 quizzes, 1 research proposal, and 4 homework assignments AND still keep up with my TV schedule (15 hours a week) , I DON"T KNOW. I am just glad it's over. Wait, I still have another quiz tomorrow and another homework assignment due on Friday. Crap!

Enough with the sad part of grad school. The happy thing is, I just got an offer for an RA position. That means I either will have to quit my TA position now and take the 11-month appointment RA position or do both and get paid more. The research is on modeling a particular watershed to assess the impact of land-based pollution to coastal areas. Very interesting and I can actually do a thesis on it. OR I can do 2 projects and my thesis will be on establishing a soild connection of nitrogen runoff as a possible vector for the spread of FP in sea turtles. Hmmm...well, now I am going to lunch to enjoy the little and precious free time I have before I have to write my report on forest ecosystems. Food...................

I've gone loco

This is a picture of mini angelpoo. Itsn't she weird looking but otherwise a creative piece of art work? HappyOblivion gave me an avocado seed so I decided to fancy it up. I drew some eyes and the mouth is carved by accident when he took the seed out from the fruit. HappyOblivion gave me weird looks when I showed him my new friend...he ran away :(

This is exactly what happens when I study too much, I go crazy. Back to the books...

Aji Ichiban

If you love Asian snacks, go to Aji Ichiban. I went crazy when my parents brought home some snacks from the Hong Kong store. As usual, I ate everything they brought back and I had to find the same store in San Francisco. Prices were more expensive in the U.S. so I didn't buy too much. After I moved to Hawaii, I thought I would never see that store again. Just 2 nights ago, I found Aji Ichiban in the shopping plaza we happened to eat dinner at and I was so HAPPI! The prices were cheaper and the selection was great. I bought so much and I am planning to go once a week to fill up my snack cabinet. These snacks are not the usual chips and fatty fattening oily junk food. These are the yummy crackers, dried squid, salty n' sour plums, candy that makes you jump off the floor kind of snacks. In a sense, they are less fatty so more healthy...at least I don't feel guilty eating them. Anyway, this is the website: http://www.ajiichiban-usa.com/.

Wallace & Gromit

Don't forget to watch on opening day!

Results: 5K Run

It was a disaster! We were both late to the race because people wouldn't move on freakin' Kalakua!!! Then there were all these cops taking up the entire road. So we didn't hit the starting line until 22 minutes later. Even worse was we had to RUN to get to the race because we parked very far away. So we were tired by the time we got there. I am happy that we didn't finish last. My official time was 52:27. Subtract 22 minutes so that would be 30:27. Hey, not bad for my first 5K. It was only 27 seconds over my goal. I am proud and I will run another 5K maybe....in another year or so. For now, I will eat and play some Katamari.

Niketown 5K Run

Tomorrow is the day, my first 5K run. I ran about 5K a week ago and it was not very fun. I almost died! My goal for tomorrow's run is to get up early enough so I make it to the run on time, ha ha ha! Well, second goal is to finish the run under 30 minutes. Not impossible but very challenging. Wish me luck.

Visit http://www.niketown5k.com/honolulu/ for more information on the Honolulu Niketown 5K Run.

Smallville

So, guess what I have been up to this past week aside from the 5 homework assignments and 2 exams I had. I was catching up on my Smallville episodes. Smallville has become my new favorite TV show and I have been watching the old Smallville episodes on ABC Family so I won't be clueless when watching the season premier. Call me an idiot but I had no idea Smallville is based on Superman. Can't blame me because I have never watched Superman. I don't think they had Superman in Hong Kong!!! Anyway, Clark Kent lost his powers in the season premier. So what's gonna happen next? I like him for his powers and now he is trying to ruin the show for me??? Crap...

Emmy's

I missed the Emmy's, how disappointing:( Well, I only wanted to see Lauren Graham in her beautiful outfits. I managed to find a picture of her from the Emmy's and yes, she looks elegant as always. Hmm...looks like she gained a little weight, but she still looks amazing. Who won best actress and actor by the way? What about best series? I can't believe I missed it for Family Guy (which was disgusting btw) and American Dad (also disgusting). For some reason, both shows had the same disgusting content, which I won't mention and am sure you know what I mean if you watched them last night.

Movie Review: The English Patient

"In Love, there are no boundaries."

Beautiful story and the quote is very well portrayed. This is an old movie and I didn't have the chance to watch it until yesterday. Now I understand why people thought the beginning was boring but the story is more intense after the 1st hour. Sad story indeed but their passion is so strong and so wonderful. It's amazing what love can do to a person. The movie is a bit long (3 hours) but it's worth my time.

TV Fanatic is BACK

I am so happy my life is back to normal again. For the past few summer months, my best friend has been on vacation. Now he is back with season premiers and new shows. Oh, I can't wait until next week when I sit in front of the TV for 3 hours each day, sippin' my wine cooler, eating cheetos and enjoying my favorite shows. In addtion to all those that I continue to watch (Gilmore Girls, SVU, Joey, Will & Grace, Crossing Jordan, One Tree Hill, Battlestar Galactica, MI5), I am planning to add a couple more, or at least watch a few to see if they interest me. The new additions are Living with Fran, Smallville, Prison Break, Numbers, 3 of the CSI series, and Supernatural. Living with Fran, Smallville, and Prison Break are for keeps but not sure of the others. Yes, I am a TV fanatic and thanks to HappyOblivion for that.

Let's talk about Gilmore Girls. I am so happy that Luke and Lorelai are engaged but this happiness won't last very long because I know they won't get married!!! If they did, everything will be happy happy joy joy and that's not what Gilmore Girls is about. It's a drama and bad things are bound to happen. I just hope their engagement last for at least until the end of this season.

We Love Katamari

September 20th is a very big day for me and all those Katamari fans out there! Katamari is back with new and improved characters, challenges, and graphics in We Love Katamari. I am soooo excited! Too bad the ugly King is still there. Anyhow, I heard the new Katamari has an option of team play, meaning 2 people rolling one katamari. So if you and your roommate never agree on stuff, don't choose him/her as your teammate for this game. Also, I saw some previews of this game and they have different looking katamari's. One was a huge sumo wrestler...so funny :) Well, I spent today cleaning up the TV shelfs to make room for this new game (I am so silly). If you want to learn more about Katamari, its website is http://katamari.namco.com/. Enjoy!

PS. I beat Katamari Damacy already. Haha, that 300m ball was huge!!!!!! I got to pick up roads, bridges, and islands!!! I told you sticking all of Honolulu on my katamari is possible! Oh and below is a picture of the King of Cosmos in Katamari. I told you he's weird looking.

Katamari Damacy

Ohhh, this game is addictive! Japanese people always come up with cutesy games that make people sit on the couch all day and play. Believe me, the concept of this game is very easy to understand. This king (who is really ugly and scary looking and wears a purple robe) did something wrong and accidentally destroys all the stars in space! He then orders the prince to carry this big adhesive ball (katamari) to Earth. His goal is to stick as much stuff as possible on the katamari and bring it back to the King. The King will then release it to space and make it a star. Easy right and somewhat stupid and weird. Just don't ask any questions. No matter how stupid this game may sound, it is driving me crazy! Doesn't this sound ridiculous, "I stay up all night trying to glue stuff on a ball so I can make it into a star." Yeah, even I laugh.

So the katamari...you have to start with little things and then work your way up. The katamari won't stick to big things at first. Let's talk about levels. First level is to make a 5m ball in 3 minutes. Second level is 10m in 5 minutes. I am at a level where I have 23 minutes to make a 300m ball. That is intense! Just 3 days ago (when I got the game) I was rolling this little dingky katamari trying to find pencils and erasers to stick to it. Now, my initial targets are fences and I end up with elephants and giant octopus on the katamari! Now you know why this is stupidly intense. I play so much now that when I take the bus to school, I stare at buildings and picture myself rolling the katamari, sticking all of Honolulu on it and bring back to space.

If that's not enough, let me tell you about the 2 player part. You can compete with your buddies in making the biggest katamari in the time alloted. If your katamari is bigger than your opponents, you can actually stick him/her onto your katamari! Isn't that great! The one thing I wish to do is to stick the stupid King onto the katamari. Why? Because whenever I fail to accomplish a level, he calls me names and say I am a failure. Then he tells me I am no good and sends me away to cry. It was his fault for destroying everything in space and I am just being nice to help him rebuild his kingdom.

Anyway, if you have PS2, BUY THIS GAME!

TAing

Hmmm...being a first time TA, I feel so much pressure just from grading papers. Imagine that! I thought it was just taking points off whenever I see a wrong answer. Well, it wasn't like that. The hardest part was figuring out how much points to take off. These assignments I am grading are really easy to get an A but I see papers that are so trashy that I don't think they even deserve a grade. Then there are those stupid math problems that all you have to do is show your work to get the full 10 points. My professor urged me to be lenient and not grade so hard and I am. Let's say a problem is worth 10 points and there are 5 problems to make 50 points. I see students answering half of the questions and they get only 25/50, THAT'S AN F!!! I feel so bad for flunking them that maybe....just maybe I can lower the bar and take off less points. Grrrr! What to do, what to do...

Oh and I caught 2 students with the same answers. That was the highlight of my day :) Not that I want the students to get zeros on their homework assignements. I just feel so smart and bright (for one second of my life...finally!).

Grad school

First 2 days of school, neither hectic nor carefree, just blah. Lines in the bookstore, lines to get an ID, lines to get a discounted bus pass (which is still a rip off), lines EVERYWHERE! So many classes to choose from with only 4 semesters to procrastinate. Most of those courses are only offered freakin' once a year! Then there are those stupid stupid stupid prerequisites. If you don't take this, you can't take this, it's best that you take this before you take this. Did I mention they are stupid? To avoid being on the waitlist, you register for 6 classes and drop as you go. So for the first week, you end up with 3 labs and 12 lectures to attend because you are STILL not sure whatcha wanna take. Then after the first week, you have to wait in that loooonnnnnnggggg line to return all the books you thought you needed. And...so you think your schedule is set right? Wait until the professors change the syllabus. If the syllabus is a contract between the students and the professors, why the heck do professors have the power to change the syllabus on a whim? Then at the end of the semester, you have 20 copies of the syllabus all with edits here and there. That's grad school. So, how's your life?

So True!

I hate Spongebob. Go Pig!!!