The Seattle Recap

Last month, I took a long weekend vacation to have a little reunion with my former UCSD / work friends up in Seattle. It just so happened that Seattle was one of the next cities in my list of US destinations to visit (Boston being the other prime candidate), and one friend already lived there and another (who lived in Boston) happened to be taking her spring break too. So we worked it all out and planned to reunite!

While it did not steal my heart like Chicago did, Seattle was a cool city to visit. Here's the view of downtown from atop the Space Needle... which really isn't that tall. It's not even the tallest building in the city - that honor goes to the Columbia Center, which you can see below - it's the tallest one, obvs. But it's got a great run/bike friendly vibe that I could see myself being part of... minus the bike part. 

I stayed in a hotel pretty close to the Space Needle, as you can see... that particular weekend, they had an Angry Bird in a sling attached to it, in honor of the recent release of Angry Birds Space. And the skies were really beautiful on the first day! No rain clouds in sight, and not a drop the entire weekend. I feel like  a bit of SD sunshine came with me.

Me, Marina and Katie at Pike Place Market, which has a lot of little touristy shops...

...but home to the very first Starbucks, which opened in 1971!

We walked by the Seattle Aquarium, of course, because the three of us used to work at an aquarium in college.

And we explored the Seattle Public Library, with its 10 levels inside this uniquely designed building. I could definitely enjoy getting lost in there.

We took an underground tour, through the tunnels that lay beneath the current streets above where the original streets were. From the current street, all you would see is purple stones, but looking up from below, those stones let the sunlight in.

We also went to the Experience Music Project museum, which had a Jimi Hendrix exhibit - look how cheap Woodstock passes were!

The museum also had some Michael Jackson memorabilia...

...and a full Nirvana exhibit. It was really rad to read all about their history, and while I knew that Dave Grohl formed the Foo Fighters after Cobain's suicide, I didn't think it happened that quickly (less than two years).

The three of us had a fun time, being a little goofy (taking "special" pics like we used to), reminiscing about the old times, discussing where we'll all be in 10 years, and hoping that our next reunion won't take that long.

Opening Weekend!

So after 8 weeks of rehearsals, "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" has finally opened!

These last two weeks have been insane... But this last week was a lot better, having gotten more used to the rigors of the schedule. And it all culminated in three great performances with one more to come tomorrow afternoon!

Thursday night we had a "preview" performance. This was our first time performing in front of an audience. In the past, Pickwick's (the theatre company) had invited "camps" to come in... but these aren't Indian Hills-type of camps. I forget their names, but these camps serve as sort of juvenile-detention facilities, and the teens get to spend their night out (for good behavior) by coming to see live theatre. They were a great audience, and we even had a little Q&A session afterwards. A good 90% of them had never seen a play or musical before, and they were into it, so it was a cool outreach.

Friday night was the official opening! I wasn't nearly as nervous for this, compared to the night before. I think what also helped was when we got our director's notes after Thursday, I got great encouragement from the director for always being "on" and being where I need to be and doing what I needed to be doing... being new to the company and theatre in general, I think I just needed to hear that feedback. So going into Friday, I was cool as a cucumber. My mom and dad were there for the big night too. They initially told me they could only come to the Sunday matinee due to work issues, but then on Thursday night, my mom messaged me to say she decided to work late the last two nights to finish all her work so they could make the premiere. As much as I'm going to hate living back home again, my parents are awesome. (Oh! And they came out to support me and my cousin at the finish line at the La Jolla Half Marathon two Sundays ago! Again... awesome.) After the show, everyone hung out in the theatre as there was champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries going around.

Saturday was another good day in general... slept in, did laundry, worked out, met up with Chris and Jordan at Artwalk in Little Italy (and bumped into my old roomie and friend Ben), had some pre-show food and libations at El Camino, then rushed my tail back to the theatre (I was 15 minutes late... hate when I do that)... then it was on for another performance, and with friends in the audience too. Ashley, Colleen and Christian came out and I spotted them in the front row, but I tried not to look.

Sidenote time: This is a small theatre, so if you're in the front row, you are like THERE, in the desert with us almost... anyways, I spotted my mom and dad in the front row too the night before (dad wearing his bright red sweater), but I tried not to look at them too. Anyway, when I came into the dressing room on Saturday, two of the guys were all like "hey, were those your parents sitting right in front by the keyboard? They were awesome! They were so into it, and smiling, enjoying the show, leaning into it and rocking out! We would try to perform out TO them!" Haha, maybe I should've been looking in their direction more.

Anyways, I'm sooooo appreciative of my parents and for those friends who came out these past two nights. I didn't think it would be a big deal, but knowing that they're out there just gives you a bigger push when performing, and it's great to have that support, that they would take the time out of their weekend and spend the money to come see the show.

I would take a picture of the cookie (shaped and frosted like a technicolor dreamcoat) that Ashley, Colleen and Christian (and Lea Michele, haha) sent to the dressing room, but I ate it as soon as I got home - and it was good, too.

But here are some pics from the show! :)

TOW The Cowbell

Back in the days of 2005, I frequented Lestat's Coffee House for concerts on a pretty regular basis. A musician friend of mine, Pete, played a monthly show there and eventually I started getting called out from the stage. Whether that was to bring my camcorder up to him so he can play around with it, or to sing backup to Little Red Corvette ("whooo hooo hoooo!"), I was always extremely nervous to get up there, yet always game. (Such is me - always nervous, but always game. Maybe that should be my motto.) Anyways, on one of his monthly shows, a group of us got called up. Actually, I forget the setup, but we knew we were going up there to join him, which is why I brought my cowbell (which I still have, thankyouverymuch) and Tyler brought a toy trumpet. Luckily, Chris brought his camera and managed to tape this "faceoff" performance of cowbell vs. trumpet during Little Red Corvette.

Thought I'd share this here. :)

Not talking about raindrops on roses, or whiskers on kittens...

This week's episode of "How I Met Your Mother" featured Barney Stinson doing a rip on Oprah's Favorite Things, which caused me to think: "what were some of MY favorite things in 2010?"

(in no particular order)

Homemade Tortilla Chips

I have an addiction. And I've boiled it down to this: crispy carbohydrates. I love them. French fries, potato chips, tortilla chips. But these things tend to be fried and not exactly healthy for you... until I came across the idea to get corn tortillas, season them a bit, spray some cooking spray, bake for 13 minutes at 375, and voila! A healthy alternative for me to get my crunch on! One corn tortilla has less than a gram of fat, only 15 grams of carbs, and makes 8 chips. Dip in salsa, and it's all good. 

Non-fat Greek yogurt

Keeping with the healthy theme, I've been getting down on some of this stuff. Non-fat, otherwise the fully loaded kind is laden with bad stuff. But this is a great snack when you want something dessert-ish, and has double the protein of regular yogurt. Throw in a bit of crunched toffee bits for flavoring up plain yogurt, or buy the pre-fruited kind. 

iPhone 4
You already know about this. You either have one, want one, or don't care. I am in love with mine, and the various camera apps (namely, Hipstamatic and Instagram). 

AppleTV

I was skeptical about this product, but I love it. It's not for everyone, but it's been great for my particular needs. I eliminated cable TV altogether to save money, since I have my ways of downloading the TV shows I do watch anyway, and I can stream all my media (music, videos, pictures) from my laptop to my big-screen TV. I can watch one thing on my laptop while streaming another movie from my laptop to the AppleTV (and thus my living room). And it allows me to access Netflix streaming and YouTube as well. Pretty cool. 

2011 Hyundai Sonata SE
So I got a new car this year, and I'm pretty happy with the choice that I made. Not too flashy or expensive, but certainly has plenty of cool features and should serve me well as I go into my late 20s and early 30s. I think this car says "Ryan" more than my two previous trucks did. 

Camelbak water bottle

Upon recommendations from friends, this is the water bottle I decided to try and am so glad I did. It's caused me to up my water consumption like 10 fold, and I use it all the time, even forgoing the use of glasses in my own home. It's spill-proof, easy-to-sip from, and comes in various colors. 

Modern Family
A hilarious comedy. It's not saccharine-sweet like the Full House-type shows of the 90s (which I loved too), but it's got plenty of heart. The cast chemistry is perfect, the characters are all a joy to watch even when they're being silly, and it's definitely worthy of the Emmy Award for Best Comedy. 

Bowflex SelectTech 552 Dumbbells

One of the new things I've gotten that I use almost every day. Easily adjustable weights that go from 5 lbs to 52 lbs. Definitely glad I invested in these, so that I can workout in my room - seeing them right by my desk, I have no excuse to not get some sort of workout in daily. 

Lin-Manuel Miranda

I've had a man-crush this year, and it's this guy. It's not just "In the Heights" and the fact that he composed the music, wrote the lyrics, and freaking starred in it on Broadway and in the LA production (which I am SO lucky to have seen). He's just so talented! He's writing a new musical based off "Bring It On", a rap CD from the perspective of Alexander Hamilton (yes, the one shot by Aaron Burr), and in his recent wedding, he organized a rad thing at the reception to surprise his wife, wherein he and the wedding party did a choreographed number to "To Life" from "Fiddler on the Roof". Check out the YouTube video. 

Incredibly sweet, right? It's also what inspired me to write the speech that I did for...

Chris and Jordan's Wedding
I like weddings. I've had a good time at the few I've been to... but it's a whole other thing to be a part of one when it's not just one, but two of your closest friends uniting. Sure, it happens on TV a lot. But seeing it happen in real life, and seeing the expressions of love and joy on their faces...  it's a pretty beautiful thing. Inside I just kept wanting to go "awwwwww", but I had to stand still. Anyways, I'm super thankful to have been blessed by these two over the years, and it's also made me thankful for the little things from the past - such as MySpace and Spring Awakening - and reminds me to keep trusting in God's planning and timing. Because who knows what the little things from last week or tomorrow might bring?




And that sums up my 2010 Favorite Things. :) 

You think I'm pretty without any makeup on.

Song of the Blog: "Teenage Dream", by... ok, technically this song is by Katy Perry. I knew this song has been out there for awhile, I just never heard it because I don't listen to the radio and I don't really seek out the music of Katy Perry. And I was content living in a world where I didn't know all the words to it... but that ship has sailed. On this week's upcoming episode of "Glee", there will be a performance of the song - and I managed to download it early and now it's my new favorite thing. It's acapella, and hella catchy and fun. It's not even New Directions singing it - it's a rival guys academy glee club, and they're pretty fantastic.



I'm swooning a little bit. Just a little. I mean, the song is no "Awake My Soul" from Mumford and Sons, for example. It's definite fluff, but I love it. And dang, I really wish I'd joined an acapella group and/or glee club back in college! I was in the gospel choir for two quarters, but we never did fun contemporary numbers. I want to sing and sway - to quote Rachel Berry, "swaying in background can.be.fun!" :P

Anyways.

Saturday (11/6) was a good day. Got to spend the afternoon hanging with Chris, joining him on some errands, but then we grabbed an early dinner at Hooleys. I don't go to Hooleys too often, but I think I need to... good food, good drinks, good atmosphere. I had this Guinness BBQ chicken "pizza" that was on a potato pancake - it sounded interesting on the menu, so I went for it. Very delicious! Where can I get this Guinness BBQ sauce too?!? It paired up well with my Guinness pint, and based off a tip I read, we ordered the Guinness ice cream.... super delicious! Add some Heath toffee bits in there and I would be in bliss. Highly recommend trying these items if you visit Hooleys.

In the evening, I went solo to Lestat's to see my friend Saba perform a solo acoustic set. Haven't seen her perform a show in a few years. She's moved to LA and I haven't been as into the scene as I was back in 2004-2006, so it was rad to see her on stage again. She was the first one up, so after she was done, I met up with her and my other friends Pete and Cass at the Ould Sod down the block for drinks (Happy!Ry was out) and some fun hanging. Pete and Cass always make me smile, and it was just fun being out and chilling with friends, catching up, taking pics, and getting dating advice, haha...

Anyways, here's a show (full band set) of Saba's (from 2005!!!) that I recorded and uploaded to the Live Music Archive, if anyone wants to check out a live recording. I like her solo (softer) acoustic sets better, personally, but this is the set that I recorded with the help of Chris.

http://www.archive.org/details/saba2005-08-12.at831.shnf

Oh. Also, last night was Daylight Savings Time. I witnessed it! Well I was awake for it anyways, haha. We had been hanging at the Ould Sod for awhile, and when we left there was a truck making street tacos. Normally I don't stop by these trucks, but I guess the post-drinking munchies hit us. But these tacos? AMAZING. And only a dollar! Seriously, I would drive out there at night again just to get them. But it was almost 2am when we were eating out there. And then I got home and it was just after 1. Gotta love getting an hour back!

Marching On...

Lunch time blog entry time, as I sit alone... *

So yesterday was the 10th anniversary of Flood church. I've been going since 2004, I think, so I remember the old days at the College Avenue Baptist campus, and the later transition to the church's current home at Kearny High School. I don't think I've ever been at a church this long, especially one that I'd consider my own church.

The sentimentalist in me is thankful for Flood since it's brought good people into my life. (This is going to be a sappy blog, I know.)

But really. If it weren't for the Flood drama group back in 2004, I never would've re-connected with my old high school drama classmate Brittany, aka The Weez to my KD. And becoming friends with Brit and spending time at Disneyland and the start of TV Thursdays lead to me meeting and hanging out with her roommate Jordan, who would later become the illustrious TGO... Being a part of Flood drama also brought into my life Johannah - aka the "Jen" to my "Jack" (Dawson's Creek reference) - and all the laughter and scheming that we used to have... some of them including Brit, like the time I swore in front of her for the first time (epeatedly) due to a Johannah-scheme that involved me, or ditching church with Jo so that we could hang in PB (church was at night - but yeah, this still sounds horrible)... so never would I have guessed that these two girls from my high school would be such a big part of my 20s.

Knowing Johannah also played a part in me knowing Chris, and so did his being a part of Flood too. Having been a regular of the local coffeehouse show circuit back in 2004, I knew Chris' face. I was familiar with a number of faces actually. A lot of the same people went to the usual venues on a regular basis to see the usual bands and artists that played all the time, and so I started recognizing people, even if I was too introverted to say anything. Until I came across Chris' MySpace profile (all due to a comment he left on someone else's page) and read that he went to Flood - and because that one thing made him different from all the other music fans I saw around town, I made the bold (well, for me) move to say "hey what's up..." Of course, it would later turn out that Chris knew Johannah as well, and eventually the friendships solidified, and thankfully both are still around...

And of course, now there's Chris + Jordan... but I've waxed on about those two in various forms in recent weeks, so I'm quite spent when it comes to discussing my feelings on those two. ;)

Flood's had great ministries over the past 6 years that I've been in attendance - some of which I've been part of - and the worship there is like none other that I've ever experienced. But what I'm the most grateful for is the friendships that were formed and all the memories that were made and are still to come.

* disclaimer - blog started at lunch, finished at night b/c a friend ended up joining me at lunch

Six on Saturday

Yes, I am again cribbing from the TGO's blog.

1. I ran 16 miles today. My legs were pretty much dead for the last two miles, and so I walked them (like... really slowly), but I got it done. Coach Ronnie asked how I was feeling, and I mentioned that I hadn't had a long run in three Saturdays, and my last run period was last Sunday (for the Carlsbad 5K). He told me that the lack of training this week just threw me off rhythm, and it's not a big deal and that I can shrug it off as a bad day. Although, 16 miles on a bad day is still cool -- because who does that on a regular day, right?

2. While on those 16 miles, I had to amuse myself. That's a long time that we're not allowed to wear headphones or have mp3 players. (This is because we're not in an official race, but training on the streets, so we need to be aware of our surroundings). I ended up making a Taylor Swift parody (?) to her hit "You Belong With Me", but from the perspective of a guy singing to a girl... (And no, I'm not a Taylor fan, but darnit, this song was all over the place and is catchy.)

You're at the bar with your boyfriend, you're upset

'Cause he ignores you for all his friends that you've met

He doesn't appreciate you like I do

You're dropping hints that you're ready to go home

But he's drunk and he is talking in loud tones

He doesn't think about you like I do

But he wears jerseys, I wear polos

He's into beer pong, and I play piano

Writing out a song that expresses exactly how I feel inside

So I'm singing out now

If you could see that I'm the one who'll be there for you

Do the things you like

So why don't you know

That your man's a schmo

That your man's a schmo

And when I got to that point, I thought that was enough ridiculousness for the day. And so I moved on to focusing on the cute girl running in front of me... (Just kidding.)

3. This is my medal and bib from the Carlsbad 5k. Pretty cool, yeah? I feel.

4. My delicious dinner at Hash House, where I was with The OSFs and some of Chris' family. This was a mashed potato and bacon burger. They know how to serve you up at this place, that's for sure. I ate half and saved the other for tomorrow. It was filling, and I didn't wanna stuff myself completely. Plus, Jordan's trying to get me to lose, and I gotta stay strong.

5. Apparently I have guns. Or am starting to have guns. As in my arms. I say this because I caught up with some friends tonight that I hadn't seen in a few months, and the three girls were all "whoa, you are looking buff!" Then they asked me to flex my biceps. And I did. And they felt them. And they said "oooooooh"... And then we moved on and chatted about real things... And then when our time was over and we had to split up, we all hugged and they asked me to flex one more time. I obliged, and they felt me up. It was just a funny moment to me, as this has never happened.

6. This video is one of the reasons I love Lea Michele. If only we had gone to see her at this cabaret before "Glee" had taken off! Now an intimate event like this with her there will never happen... But still, she amazes me, and this song from Spring Awakening reminds me and re-affirms my love of the show.

On the drive back, I'll think it through...

There's been one little trend in my recent blogging habits -- I tend to blog on Sundays and Wednesdays. I came to this realization while on my drive back from today's little trip, and then I also remembered that today is Wednesday... so what better time to share about the day's mini-trip to the OC!

[makes the letters with his two hands]

Ok, so I was never really good at making letters/signs with my hands. But true story -- I did drive up to the OC today. Lake Forest, to be exact, and I hung out with Sarah. Totally unplanned and random, but I'm glad with how the day went. Here's how it went down...

I was sitting at work, feeling discontent with life and wanting something to liven things up. I need to take some time off, but going on a trip isn't something I can splurge on at the moment. (Didn't help that my cousin gets to visit Europe for two months with his girl, and on her parents' dime.) And I'm still liking my marathon training (both running and weight lifting) and have been consistent, but now we're midway through the season and I'm feeling the repetitiveness (they warned us). So when the afternoon hit, I was in "I need to get out of SD" mode. Figured a drive might do some good.

Drive south? No... I have no passport. And what would I do in Mexico? I'd be kinda scurred.

Drive east? No... there's a whole lotta nothing until I get to maybe Calexico/Mexicali? And again, what would I do over there. Maybe I'll save that for another adventure.

Drive north? ... ... "Sure! I know peeps north of the San Diego county border," is what I reasoned.

I immediately thought of two friends I've missed hanging out with, and Sarah was one of them. Wasn't sure if she'd be free to hang, but she was. She did question me being able to drive up on a "school night", heh. But after I responded with a "that's how I roll", she proposed we see the movie "Date Night" and grab a bite to eat. I responded, "Perfect!" And off I went.

Traffic sucked, but I made it up there in good time. We grabbed a bite to eat at In-N-Out, and then caught the movie. It wasn't as laugh-out-loud hilarious as I was expecting, but it was still a funny movie. I knew nothing about the storyline, so I was surprised with how it went down, but it worked. I give it a solid B+. And I was awake the entire time! Like a solid alertness. If you've seen a movie with me, you know this is a feat in itself.

So I was very stoked with the outcome of my spontaneous decision to drive up for the evening. It was great to see Sarah, since San Diego misses her. But it looks like her, Bethany, and I (and hopefully we can rope more friends to join us) will be heading on a karaoke outing when Sarah comes down for her next visit. With her love of singing (and great voice) and me being Filipino, it's a wonder we've all never hit up a karaoke bar already, haha...

On the drive back, I was listening and rocking out, singing to that Lady Antebellum song. You know how it goes. "It's a quarter after one, I'm a little drunk and I need you now..." It's a fun one to sing even when you're sober. And then I started thinking... this little road trip stemmed out of my present longing for something to stir in me again. I've had certain thoughts brewing for awhile now, and I've wondered where they were coming from... is it me, or is God trying to tell me something?

So I turned off the music and sat there driving in relative peace, and started a half listening/half prayer thing...

"So I await the words that You say

I open my life, I am longing just to hear these words

That You say, That You say..."

And what came to me was that even though I may be scared to pursue something -- I don't need to be. We may look at ourselves and see how we fall short in certain things, but I think God looks at us differently. Like it goes with any loving parent -- your child may disappoint, anger, and frustrate you at times, but yet you love them fiercely and when you look at them, you see all the potential in the world and all the possibilities for their future. And I was thinking how God's the same way... He gave us the ability to dream, and He will help us out. We just need the courage to ask, and to seek in Him both the strength to follow through and the humility to keep ourselves grounded and thankful for what He's done.

Having thought of that tonight, and feeling certain that He was the one that planted this seed that's been in my mind for the past few weeks and allowed it to grow... I think I know what I want to be doing in the fall. Granted, this will require planning and research, but I'm game to start the process. I want to go back to school, and if I can, then hopefully achieve my second bachelors degree (biology). And if that goes well...

I wasn't ready for this back when I was a college freshman, but I'm ready now.

I want to start studying to become a doctor.

On a Sunday, I'll think it through...

The title for this blog entry is the name of one of my fave Jimmy Eat World songs... but has nothing to do with the song. I just wanted to jot down some reflections on today, tis all.

IT WAS AWESOME! =)

Act 1: Carlsbad 5K

Got up there just in time to meet up with Pete, who had his family there to cheer him on, and my old roomie Ben. The three of us gathered together at the start line, and off we ran! We all pretty much made our goal times. Ben finished in at just about 26 mins, Pete in an even 28:00 (when he hoped for 29), and I clocked in at 29:39 - just under 30, which is what I was hoping for! I tried to give it all I had, which needed to include a few walks to catch my breath, but this race marked another improvement (pace-time wise) from my previous run (new pace 9:33 min/miles vs 11:06 min/mile). After I caught up with the guys at the finish line, we got our t-shirts and went to the beer garden. Because apparently that's what you do at these things: you run a good distance, you treat your liver to some alcohol... Cassandra snapped a pic of us guys with our beers in hand, and I hope that pic soon to commemorate a fun run. There were professional photographers taking pics of all the runners during the race too, and I hope those get posted online during the week.

Act 2: Oggi's Pizza

After the race, I wanted to treat Ben out for some pizza. Post-run is a good time for that usually unhealthy meal, heh. Plus it was his birthday a few days ago. So the two of us former roomies went down to Oggi's Pizza and shared our usual pepperoni. Definitely miss hanging with the dude, as he's always been a stand-up guy and one of the very few that I could always be real and raw with.

Act 3: Coffee with Matt

After I got home/showered, I went over to Linda Vista and had coffee with my growth group leader (Matt) at a little shop by the Flood campus. He was my prayer partner for the week, so we caught up on the latest hap's and discussed life... I'm liking being in growth group this time around. It's still a little hard to break down my walls and talk sometimes (although I did manage to give my personal story last week), but I know it's something I need to keep trusting God to work in and through the group.

Act 4: Flood with Jess

Straight after coffee, I met up with Jess and her cousin Camille in the Flood parking lot. Chatted it up a bit and went inside for the service. Once I saw the piano on stage, I knew that The Gate Called Beautiful was likely leading worship - and they were. It was a good service - worship was awesome, and the service marked the beginning of a new series called "Touch: Real Sex in an Artificial World". Earlier in the week, another friend of mine saw the name of the series, and she kinda gave me a look, like "mmmmhmmmm..." But the fact is, sex is a big part of the culture we live in and regardless of one's age or marital status, the Bible does have lessons to learn on how we should view our sexuality. Thankfully, Adam (our speaker) didn't just throw down the stereotypical conservative church party line of "pre-marital sex is bad". (Actually, he started out with a rather hilarious look at the lyrics of Usher's song "Yeah"). But to sum, I'll just use a quote that they gave us from author Philip Yancy:

People worry that they will miss out on something if they heed the Bible's warnings against premarital sex. Actually, the warnings are there to keep them from missing out on something.

I'll definitely re-listen to the podcast, as I enjoyed the message (even if I can't properly express how it went - I'm tired now, lol) and I'm looking forward to the rest of the series. Also, this was the second week in a row that one of my original Mitchell besties, Jess, joined me for a service. Aside from the fact that it's been nice having a friend join me at church again, it's rad to feel like she's enjoying it (both the music and message), and to feel that the Holy Spirit is just doing it's thing.

And that's what I prayed with Matt during our coffee session. A lot of times I feel that uncertainty of the future, and I have my periods of doubt and lack of faith. But then I get that still voice pulling me back in and reminding me, "Hey... I'm still with you... for all those times you feel like I'm not there, or you may not even want Me there, I'm still working in your life. You may not see it right away, and you may not understand something, but trust in Me." When I hear Him reminding me of what He's already done and what He's promised us in Jeremiah 29:11, I realize that it's all good and I can put my fears aside and start finding peace/rest/hope in His love.

With that being said (quoting my Medicare mentor right there) -- Happy Sunday!

All of my life, in every season

You are still God

I have a reason to sing...

Reunited...

...and it feels so good. =)

Great times yesterday hanging with Jess and Krod -- my old Mitchell crew -- down for some eating and bowling at the Eastlake Tavern and Bowl. The three of us haven't hung out together in ages! Even though I've hung out with both of them individually on a pretty regular basis still, it was awesome that we could all get together again. I only wish we had a regular camera so this pic wasn't grainy, but I still love it.

11 Weeks Later

I think I'm going to be doing a little "Lost" like story-telling with this here blog, as over the next few entries I think I wanna go over some of the happenings over the last 11 weeks... since it's been 11 weeks since my last blog. Quite a long time. I'm a bad busy little blogger, but there has been some awesome things since I last updated that I feel should be discussed/ranted/raved, etc... and much like "Lost", I'll probably be jumping back and forth in the timeline.

WEDNESDAY - NOVEMBER 4, 2009

I see a lot of concerts, but this night was definitely one of my favorites. I went down to the House of Blues to see Boyz II Men! Kinda old school, right? I was only 7 years old when they first came on the scene with that fun song "Motown Philly", so I mean it's not like I was their target demographic in those days. By the time "I'll Make Love to You" was released when I was 10, I was old enough to enjoy the music of it, and yet feel slightly uncomfortable hearing it on the radio with my parents in the car. But songs like "Water Runs Dry", "On Bended Knee", "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday", those were the ones where I knew all the words.

When I heard they were still touring last year, I was pretty surprised, considering they aren't really popular anymore. And they're old - I mean, imagine if NSync were out on tour in 2017. Strange idea, right? But some friends and I were excited to go see them, since they were part of our childhood.

I was initially supposed to go with Kasey, Tiff, and Sarah... and all three couldn't go for different reasons. So I debated not going, until I found out Colleen was going and she could rally three of her friends to go... so I went down with them, and they were all big fans too, so it was awesome. They sang all their hits, and we were singing along, watching them do all the Motown-style dance moves.

At one point during the show, I wondered if they would sing "One Sweet Day", which was their hit collaboration with Mariah Carey. Considering it was really her song and she wasn't there, I quickly brought myself back down to earth. But when the show was finally over and the house lights came on, the house started playing the song over the sound system. And as the audience started to slowly filter out, you could hear people singing along to the very first lyric - "Sorry I never told you..." And then more people started singing it, until soon it felt like everyone was singing along. Our group kept was about to head up the stairs to exit the concert hall, but then we turned back and saw that people were back on the dance floor, slow dancing! So we went back and joined them... definitely a fantastic experience.

Halftime

Current status: Sitting at the dining table, having just finished the dishes, while that infectious song of Beyonce's plays on my laptop. Darn you, Beyonce, and your catchy tune ("Halo") that make me sing along. (Although, I kinda feel that I like this song more since it's going to be featured on "Glee" this fall... can't wait!)

It's a beautiful Saturday afternoon, and I'm in total relaxation mode right now. I'm currently in the middle of Summer Concert Fun, the 2009 Edition. Here's a quick recap of the first two concerts of the weekend...

Thursday night

Chris, Jordan, Johannah and I were supposed to go another of those free Hornblower concert cruise events (courtesy of KPRI) to see Andrew Bird (an amazing artist that blew Chris and I saw perform earlier this year). Then a short series of unfortunate events happened that led to none of us going on the boat, and I ended up taking a coworker's offer for cheap tickets to see Incubus, who I've never seen but always wanted... so I took my friend Ria and met up with Ann (coworker) and her friends down at Cricket Wireless Ampitheatre in Chula Vista. My cousin also happened to be there with her boyfriend, so we chatted with them for a bit. Incubus put on a good show - not much in terms of stage intricacies, but they sounded fantastic and opened with some of my favorite songs. Two personal highlights: the audience all singing along to their uber-hit, "Drive", and then once Incubus left the stage and the PA system started playing Journey's "Don't Stop Believing", the audience started singing along as we all left the ampitheatre. Good times.

Friday night

After visiting my parents and then my cousins for the evening, I journeyed out to rock the Casbah and see Dirty Sweet. I went by myself to this one, and almost didn't go because I'd be flying solo and I was already tired and this was going to be a late show (as it always goes at the Casbah). But I'm so glad I came out! I was initially disappointed that Get Back Loretta (another local SD band) was opening, because I've seen them before and have never been impressed. But they completely won me over tonight with their energy and melodies. They've really polished up their live show and looked like they were having fun. During their set, there was this trio of cute blondes right in front of me, drinking their Pabst Blue Ribbon and posing for plenty of pictures. I laughed to myself thinking, "I'm sure Andy would've made some new friends tonight." LOL.

I almost left after GBL's set, because it was already 11 and my feet hurt and I just wanted to go to bed. Just can't hack it like I used to! But I was resolved to see the band that I came out for, even though I really didn't know a single lick of their music. I thought I'd seen them before (way back in 2004), but it must not have been the same band because the frontman I remember seeing was a pretty-boy blonde. When this band came out, I thought "hmmm, definitely not the same guy." Long brown hair, tattoos, and kinda grunge-y. But once they started rocking out, I was like everyone else in the small crowded room - banging my head with the music and having a good time. I almost had beer spilled on me, as the guy next to me was dancing along with a 3/4 full pint glass in his hand that was held up too high for my liking, but thankfully I was spared. Another drunk guy bumped into me a few times - I didn't drink anything there and was getting annoyed but kept my cool the whole time - and towards the end, when he bumped into me again, he put his arm around me and slurred something about how he was sorry for everything but that I was such a good sport. He said quite a bit more than that, but it was really loud and dark, so I just tried to smile and nod along and say "yeah it's all good, man." I did catch that he claimed to have been on the road with the band before and has known them for four years, and he was excited for them and thought that they're on the verge of blowing up. I hope they do - and now I'm glad to be able to say that I saw them "way back when." The concert finally finished up at 1am. Tired as I was, they were just so great that I didn't want to miss a single moment of it - and I think that's the mark of a truly great concert.

The Morning After

"Holy crap."

That's what was running through my head when I opened the door to my apartment around 7:45pm yesterday to find the place completely decked out in "Lost" paraphernalia and my closest friends and cousins there yelling out "surprise!!!"

Damn right, was I surprised.

Let me back track a little bit. A "Lost"-like flashback, if you will. Earlier in the week, I was informed (or rather, lied to) by Chris that he had planned out something on Saturday for my birthday. This was borne out of a conversation he and I had where I was trying to figure out if I wanted to do something and what/where that could possibly be. And since I hate all that planning stuff, he told me not to worry about it or ask any questions because he'd figure all the details for me.

"Agreed", I said.

So I marched through the work week looking forward to whatever surprise he and my friends had in mind for Saturday. I kept thinking "just make it to Saturday", and "Saturday is just around the corner." I was told that we'd go up to Switchfoot's Bro-Am for the first part of the day, and then that I'd need to be comfortably/casually dressed for downtown in the evening.

Lies, all of it.

The first twist came in the form of Beth inviting me to the Stone Brewing Company for a Friday after-work outing with some of her coworkers. Having never been there but being a fan of beer, I said I was game. I met up with her and her friend Marla at their work, and we drove up to San Marcos, which is where they're headquartered. If you've never been out there, it's pretty fantastic. The dining/bar area was really nice - it was very open, lots of natural light coming in, they had a nice selection of their beer and some interesting dishes to eat. I had the blonde ale (really nice and light), and Beth and I had these mashed potatoes that were rolled into balls, dipped in a beer batter, fried, and served with a beer-based BBQ sauce. It was fantastic! They even had this outdoor park-like setting where you could bring your food and beer, walk a little trail... I feel that this place would make for an awesome picture day. If only I had brought mine with me... we ended up not taking a tour of the actual brewery, so I'm definitely itching to go again.

Anyways, so I thought that after the brewery that I'd be able to just chill for the night and rest up for a fun busy Saturday. However, Beth concocted this story that she left her jacket at my apartment and asked if she could come over and get it. That sounded fine by me, so she followed me back down the freeway. Arriving at the apartment, I noticed Andy's car was parked, which was unexpected since I thought he'd be out with family, and when I got to the door, it wasn't completely shut. A little curious, but I was still clueless as to what would happen next. So I pushed the door open and all of a sudden -

"Surprise!"

There were "Lost" posters (including one that Chris printed that had me on it), island-themed drinks, "Lost" season three playing on DVD, it all felt very "Lost" and tropical. They set up a photo station, Brit made her famous strawberry ice cream as well as two kinds of cake, and they came up with a photo scavenger hunt for me, where I'd hunt down "Lost" snapshots printed and scattered throughout the apartment. Even the beer and water bottles had custom Dharma Initiative labeling taped on them. I was so stoked that my cousins came over too. I'm glad this was something that they could be part of (since not all are 21 yet). Though hopefully reports of "Happy Ryan" don't get to my parents... (Eh, I'm sure it will, but that's okay.)

It was very well planned and executed, and I still feel completely floored and thankful that my friends did this for me. You guys are the best!

Pictures to come in another blog, when I get a chance to see them.

Show me what I'm looking for...

Last week, during Coffeeshop Tuesday, I was sitting at the Starbucks as per usual and checking my email on my phone, when I noticed another email from radio station KPRI. And as soon as I saw the headline, I think I may have "squeeed" like a fanboy just a little bit... because Carolina Liar was having a show on the Hornblower!

I can't remember exactly how I got into this band... but I'm pretty sure Kasey told me to check them out a few months ago. And I was sucked in, thought they were rad. They're the type of rock music I'd normally like. So when the chance came to see them for free, I jumped out of my seat and drove like a maniac to try to score my free tickets.

And I did. Made it in the nick of time before the store closed!

I told Kasey about the concert the next day, since I figured both he and Tiff would be down to see them. We went on our lunch break to score more passes. I checked with Janice to see if she was going to get her passes too, and she did. Each pass covers two people to get on the boat.

I've been on these radio station boat concerts plenty of times before, but I don't think I've ever been so stoked. It ended up being Melodi and me, Kasey and Tiff, and the OSF heading down there. When we got to the boat, we were almost pushed away when the bodyguard was trying to say that there was no more room on the boat. We almost walked off but decided to wait a little bit longer, and then he let those of us waiting on the side onto the boat. It was crowded, and full of people who didn't really know the band but were just there for the free boat ride. But we found a nice spot where could still see the band and could sing along.

Only two of the band members were there - the lead singer, and another guitarist - so it was more of an acoustic set. They came across as really friendly and it was cool to hear them talk about the songs before playing them. They didn't play many of their songs, but they did play my two faves ("I'm Not Over" and "Show Me What I'm Looking For").

Tiff really wanted to meet them, and really so did I, so as the boat kept cruising around, we eventually found them signing pics and taking pictures on the 2nd level of the boat. Tiff pushed her way up there and I took a pic, and she had a little poster signed. We walked away, thinking we were content with that, and then Kasey and I caved in and made our way back up to the guys. Talked to the guitarist for a bit and he was very cool. I guess the band has played at the House of Blues down here before, so I'm bummed that I didn't get into them sooner. But they might go back on a full band tour later this summer. If so, I'm there!

Success and Juevos

So Chris and I are sitting here at the Broken Yolk Cafe in PB after Kristen's graduation at SDSU (congrats Kristen!) and we've been looking for cool apps for our phones. And lo and behold, there's this great little app to blog from the iPhone! So this is my test. If this works, I'll probably be more apt to update, like when I'm out and about.

I have stuff to say about last night's outing that wasn't but became something else, and blogs that I need to read and comment on (I'm so behind on the times) but I'll do that at the comfort of my home and laptop. For now, I look forward to the California breakfast burrito. Mmmmmm...




-- Post From My iPhone