Insomniacs Anonymous

What a week it's been!

When you're an insomniac such as I am, one finds that sunsets turn into sunrises as seconds blend together into a mixture so lucid that it becomes difficult, nearly impossible, even, to recollect any information which, under normal circumstances, would be held in great accessibility. So, for that reason and that reason alone, several details will be left out of this week-long recap, but here's my best shot, anyway.

Although my siblings returned to their lovely homes in Southern California the day following my graduation two Thursdays ago, the weekend still brought promising prospects of enjoyment for me: the barbecue. What began as a usual celebratory family get-together erupted into a miniature kickback of sorts, bringing together a host of people, some of whom I haven't seen in quite awhile. Such a grand occasion called for a selection of a more festive palette of dishes rather than a traditional one, and boy, was it festive. Spare ribs, fried rice, papaya salad, fish congee, thai tea; need I go on? A special thanks to all of my friends and family who came through. Although it was a last-minute event, it was definitely one to remember.

Some people enjoy an "on to the next one" lifestyle, but I prefer to take a day or two off after every party, so I decided to get some R&R on Monday and catch up on a few things. First and foremost, the house was a train wreck! Well, it wasn't that bad, but a couple of hours was dedicated that day just to cleaning. While not spotless, I think I did a pretty neat job, if I must say so. I also took the liberty of soaking my Levi 514s, which have been begging for a nice body of water to enjoy for the longest time. Although it's a bit unorthodox to soak non-raw denim, these babies have seen more in the past year or so of wear than most other pairs of 514s see in their entire lifespan. Personally, I think the fades I've acquired on them are very nice for a pair of Levi's, as well as the amount of shrinkage I got out of them. Who says denim needs to be raw to look good?

Tuesday granted me the privilege of having the car to myself for the afternoon, as well as the luxury of not having to pick my mom up from work, so I spent the day with Thomas, Ajphizzles, and the twins at the mall. Our first stop was Chili's, which was my pick, but probably a bad choice for the health-conscious, something I've aspired to be for the past few months or so. An hour later, we crossed the street to Eastridge, where a few new unexpected faces showed up. After about an hour and a half or so, I decided to cut out, so I made my rounds to Daiso, picked up a new bag of Hi-Chew, and drove off to Yogurtland with the twins before dropping them off at home, as well as dropping in to say wassup to Kuya Don. As soon as my parents and I arrived home, which was around the same exact time, it was on: Lakers and Celtics, game 6! Too bad I fell asleep for most of it.

Quiatchon passed his driving test on Wednesday! Congrats, Carbon Copy. And the first thing he did? Stopped by my house, of course. We hung out, played some piano, talked clothes and tech, and then off we went to his house, where we did...well, pretty much more of the same. My mother picked me up around 9ish, and the rest of the night was nothing out of the ordinary for me. Thursday...well, I just stayed home all day.

Friday morning, up bright and early at 7AM to watch the World Cup! This time, it was the U.S. against Slovenia, a topic so controversial that it deserves its own blog post. That'll have to wait a bit. Boredom struck me hard that afternoon, and Daniel, too, apparently. Fortunately, the car was mine for the day again, so I swung by and picked him up to head to a coffeeshop. Much nicer than the one I went to last week with David and Paul, I must admit. The Plant was next on our list of places to go, so we stopped by, browsed Best Buy for a bit, and picked up applications from Five Guys. Dammit, Boiling Crab, why must you tease me so? I'll be the first in line to turn in an application once the new location opens, trust. We stopped by Starbucks before heading home, but unfortunately, the cutie patootie that works every Saturday doesn't work Fridays, or at least not that particular Friday, so we just got our gift cards for our pops and left in a hurry.

Some rather terrible news came to my mom that morning, unfortunately, and we had to make a trip to my cousin's house so that she could talk with my aunt (her sister) about some family matters. My mom and her two sisters left this morning on the bus to head to Southern California this morning, leaving my dad and I behind to watch the house and do whatever. It wasn't until 2 in the afternoon that I finally woke up. Dad and I went to the bank so I could deposit a few checks I received for my birthday and my graduation, and what do I find in the mail when I get home? More checks. Guess I'll come back another day. We picked up my uncle at around 6 to go and get some dinner. On the way to Grand Century, we stopped by Costco to fill up the tank (sweet!), and while waiting, my dad and uncle had plenty of time to crack jokes about my "girlfriend" and I. There's nothing new about everyone in my family speculating whether or not I have a special someone that I go out with all the time when I take the car for the day, but at least now I know my dad expects it, which gave me mixed feelings; it's great that my family allows and even wants me to have a girlfriend, but it's terrible that they don't know what terrible luck I have with the ladies. Cut me some slack here, guys!

Hu tieu was our choice for dinner that night. We met up with my cousin and his girlfriend at the restaurant (the name eludes me right now...), and I decided it was time for me to try a few new things. This time around, I ordered a bowl of hu tieu nam vang, kho, which is just about the complete opposite of what I ordered last time in terms of the way the noodles and broth are prepared, but it was delicious nonetheless. It was also my first time actually eating everything in the bowl, including the heart and the liver, as well as adding jalepenos to it, which gave it a nice kick. After dinner, my uncle and cousins went their way and dad and I went ours. The path we chose? Cleaning the garage for two hours that night. I put my small latex gloves on, slipped into some sandals, and got to work. Mom is going to be so pleased when she gets home! During the cleaning process, I stumbled across quite a few items which I've been looking for, mainly for nostalgia purposes, and they now rest safely in my other bedroom.

After a night of tough and tiring work, all we wanted to do was relax, which was exactly what we did. Before I could unwind, though, I had to get in my 30 minutes of daily exercise, courtesy of the elliptical. Following my post-workout shower and my post-shower nail-clipping, I finally decided to open up the netbook my brother gave me as a graduation gift and put it to good use. It took some time to get used to, but it's pretty sweet. In fact, I'm typing on it from my bed right now! So that's it, really; dad and I watched TV and browsed the web for a couple of hours after cleaning the garage. He went to sleep first, obviously, so I took the liberty of washing all the dishes, which went back all the way to Thursday night. Hope you guys don't mind. Happy Father's Day!

And finally, I'm finished, and I'm sleepy. Goodnight, and goodmorning! :)