AllSaints Not For Sale featuring Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

It's crazy how so much is packed in the Hollywood area: there's the Hollywood Bowl, Hollywood and Highland, the Pantages Theater, Amoeba Music, the Chinese Theater, The El Capitan, the Egyptian Theater, and the Music Box theater all in close range of each other. Film and music lovers could spend hours watching movies, staring at stars (on the ground), and seeing great bands from all over the world. The AllSaints Not For Sale event was an invite only gig, which managed to have plenty of famous and fashion industry people while still having some real BRMC fans and friends in attendance thanks to the prize winners who'd purchased shirts in advance before the show. Dana was one of these lucky winners and I was her even luckier date.

These special events are always kind of strange because celebrities are milling about and models are serving snacks. Bar tenders are busily attending to the many people who take advantage of the open bar. And who could say no to free drinks and snacks? Manny Pacquiao, the Filipino featherweight boxing champion of the world, was the special guest of the evening. There is plenty of human trafficking in the Philippines, which much of the world knows nothing about. Celebrity endorsements aside, there really is a problem when people are still being bought and sold as slaves - wage slaves, sex slaves, even worse is when it's a child who's adult life ends up troubled due to horrible experiences. It's a heartbreaking thing to know that Slavery still exists all around us according to SlaveryMap.org.

So I forgot to write anything about the show. BRMC were a breath of fresh air in the star studded environment, which I heard included Sarah Ferguson (Duchess of York) and most likely many other important people. We saw Dan Russell, his sister Nancy (who works at LACMA), and her friend who was charge of volunteers at TwentyWonder. Robert made a funny remark in between songs as how important we all know that fashion is. This was met by many approving chuckles from the fans. I took quite a few photos, which you'll find on Flickr. I'd say they played for about an hour and a half. The set included 10 +1 songs (thanks to Mel on the Forum for the setlist): Beat the Devil's Tattoo Bad Blood US Govt Weapon of Choice Ain't No Easy Way Red Eyes and Tears Six Barrel Shotgun Punk Song Spread Your Love Shadow's Keeper Open Invitation Check out my videos of "US Govt" and "Open Invitation":

   

Santa Monica to Long Beach and back

It's been a busy day - more so for my boyfriend than me because he worked all night and still drove us to a bunch of different places. I think my joint job/apartment search will lead me to the South Bay rather than Glendale or Burbank. Though I did have a brief yet promising phone interview, there seems to be a lot more good companies and reasonably priced apartments in the South Bay. It's also an easier place to get around than the Santa Monica area and most likely also less dangerous.

My friends are generally helpful in advising me on what to do, but I sometimes like to figure things out on my own. Me and my boyfriend are both a bit stubborn that way - something we both need to work on. I am usually pretty resistant to following other people's advice, I don't know why I can't do that sometimes. My family likes to force their opinions on me and it makes it hard to separate the good from the bad.

So the day involved going all around Santa Monica Place for the Tokidoki x Barbie event, which was packed when we first got there and cleared out by the time we went back. We ate at the Food Court, which was much more than we expected it to be and got some stuff at Hot Topic - which also ended up more than we expected, but at least we got some good deals. I looked at a few shirts at the store when we did get in, but they were not surprisingly more than I'd want to pay.

We stopped at an apartment in Mar Vista just to look and then went down to Long Beach to test drive a Nissan Leaf (but ended up more interested in the Nissan Versa - much cheaper and still fuel efficient). After that, we got some dinner at a nice sit down restaurant - which though more expensive than Santa Monica, was nicer and more relaxing place to enjoy a meal. And they validated our parking, not that we needed to at Santa Monica Place.

The Waiting Game

Sometimes you know something big will happen and you just can't wait for that thing to happen. A lot of major changes have happened in recent months - both good and bad. I think the worst is behind me and what I have to look forward to is better than what I've been through so far. I know it sounds vague, but I honestly feel there is more to my life than a bunch of contract jobs and people I've met that don't bother to keep in touch. I'm not talking about anyone in particular, more like people in general who don't call me back or respond to messages.

I've tried not to be the type of person who doesn't respond, but there are times when I don't feel up to it. For anyone I do consider my friend (which is more than you might expect), I will be there for them (or you if you are reading this). Anyways, I'm kind of in a wait and see mode of whether I can get a job that will allow me to live in LA more permanently while also getting an apartment to allow me to actually feel comfortable living here. In the past, I've known my roommates well enough or gotten to know them and it's no longer the case.

I just hope a job and an apartment turn up in my near future!

Taking charge in my life

My decision to stay in LA is definitely one that I know will be worth doing, I will establish myself in my job and community and attempt to lead by example rather than titles or requirements. I will exceed the expectations of others and make myself a necessary part of any organization. And I will accept being part of a good place on my own terms. I am the one in charge in my life and I will shape my future and the future of others around me.

Westside

I'm giving LA another chance, not that I didn't like it before - it's different from Orange County in a lot of ways but not necessarily better or worse. They both have their pros and cons - LA has better public transportation (not compared to SF or Chicago, but that doesn't matter), Orange County has better traffic and possibly more polite drivers. LA has a lot unique neighborhoods, which Orange County has as well - but the cost of living is higher in LA and therefore, the age of senior citizens is lower in LA. I was a little surprised that age 55 was considered a senior citizen in LA, while it's 62 at least in the OC.

There's a lot of misconceptions about both areas, but one big one seems to be that everyone goes to the beach and surfs. Not in my life - and it's not that I don't want to, it's more because like the ocean is a big scary place full of unknown things - the likelihood of a shark being in shallow waters is unlikely, it's when you venture out into the depths. That's when you'd want a submarine, which reminds me of the ride at Disneyland. Now there's a real dream land for you. I know a lot of people know there's more behind it than you see, but it's not all bad and it's not all good. There's always gray area in these matters.

It takes time to understand and time is not something everyone seems to have. I fortunately have a lot more time than most people right now being between projects and this leaves me with lots of time to reflect and ponder such difficult questions, like "Why does Hollywood like to typecast people?" and "Who comes up with this stuff?" I don't even want to know sometimes because it can be utterly fluffy and meaningless. Where is the substance beyond the style? Why don't people think or read or even try to make an effort to go beyond what they see? Is there even a point to me writing this?

LA is one place that you see the super wealthy and the homeless co-existing in the same areas. I wonder how this happens, but I try not to think too much about it. Homelessness is not a new thing, but neither is poverty and lacking hope. That's my guess as to what real poverty is - hopelessness, and even worse sadness about not being able to change a situation. The reality is you need to choose to change before anything happens and change is a hard thing to accept, especially if you feel stuck or don't want to change.

My parents never really wanted me to explore the world and even meet anyone. I think they wanted me to help my brother my whole life.  But why cripple myself for someone who brings me down? I've managed to find a great group of friends in various parts of my life and I thought I'd remain a lone wolf. But I am not as brave as a wolf, I'm more like a cowardly lion. But I'm also sort of a sheep because I feel like I've had wool over my eyes for the longest time. I need to stop making silly animal references and really cut to the chase.

One thing I've noticed people appreciating about me is my patience and hard work. I've always been told I'm smart and nice, but no one can tell I'm funny or silly or strange. Another thing they say is that I'm cute, but not beautiful and sweet (but also short). I doubt I have a point to this ever expanding blog post, I just felt the need to go on and on about myself. My boyfriend sees every side of me, the best and worst parts of me and has accepted them all. I'm not so good about that because I've always been compared to others and it's made it so hard to be me.

Just writing this now is making me tear up. So I'm stopping for now. I'm meeting with a new therapist tomorrow, so I have hope that it will be a good meeting. It's tough dredging up painful memories and stuff. Maybe I've said too much and I should really stop. Okay, now I'm done.

Time for a sabbatical

Sorry I've been incommunicado for awhile, I've had a lot on my mind - an effect of being bipolar and having a huge list of mental issues like insomnia, obsessive compulsive disorder, seasonal affective disorder, paranoia, and who knows what else. I was feeling like I went on autopilot a few times because I was doing things without remembering why I did them.

I don't like the feeling of not being in control, I had a pretty cool contract job for awhile and I'm just unable to cope with sudden life changes - at least if I'm feeling distracted and stressed out. I'm not trying to cut off my ties with any friends online or offline, I just need to focus on feeling healthy and normal. Sorry again, I'm not one to be in the limelight and I would rather work behind the scenes.

My boyfriend is more into talking to anyone and asking questions, I haven't socialized myself properly and it is very hard for me to feel comfortable when there's so much uncertainty. Most people understand this and I just can't always put myself out there if I feel like my thoughts are racing and going all over the place. I like helping people, but I also like to feel safe.

Thank you to all of you good people who like to keep in touch. You help keep me sane and feeling connected even if I just want to run and hide in my room. Being so introverted is tough, I think those I've opened up to understand. I'm feeling drained at the moment and will be back to my happy normal self soon.

Friends, Romans, Countrymen

Relationships are ultimately the most important thing in making your life rich and fulfilling, not necessarily romantic or physical ones - more like family, social, professional, and even online relationships. I've been fortunate mostly in my online, social, and romantic relationships because I've made good close friends with people I know I can trust and also who share some of my interests.

Professional is something I'm working on because getting back into the working world is a tough transition from going to school and just goofing off at home or hanging out with friends. Being in a work environment is very different for me from when I started in college and re-connecting with people is always very exciting. True friends are definitely the most important people to have in your life.

I would have a difficult time in my life if I hadn't had good friends I've made over the years in various areas of my life. I do my best to value those I've reached out to and those who've reached out to me, and it's really helped me to become a better more focused and less selfish person. Caring for others is a great thing because the people who really matter to you need your help the most.

BRMC @ Del Mar Concert Series

There’s been lot of changes in my life the past few years (even the past few months), but one nice constant has been a fair number of local BRMC shows between albums and tours – which I’ve enjoyed with a great group of loyal fans. Recently starting a new contract position and trying to figure out temporary housing in a semi-unfamiliar area has kept me from writing about this show earlier, but now that I’m settled at least for the next few weeks so I’ll do my best to recap the concert.

The past few LA area shows kind of make you think only women are there early to be in the front row, but San Diego area (or county) shows tend to have a bit more of a mix. This show was a lot rowdier than most BRMC shows, perhaps due to more guys pushing their way through the crowd. I could have done without all the pushing and crowd surfing, as it tends to distract from enjoying the music and ends up causing a reduced amount of personal space. I’m not trying to focus too much on concert etiquette, which may vary from city to city.

BRMC’s music stirs up a lot of excitement and energy, in addition to emotion and feeling. A full set for the cost of parking and entry to a horse race definitely makes this one of the most affordable and unique places to see them. I’ve seen them play at casinos, arcades, churches, warehouses, colleges, and concert venues of various sizes – basically, new venues are exciting for seasoned fans and provide for even more new experiences that I don’t get seeing other bands (not that I see many others these days).

After seeing so many shows, the changes in their sets stand out more than the usual songs and the songs that stood out most were the original version of “US Government,” “In Like The Rose,” “Weight of the World,” and a more recent addition “Half-State” – which really is an amazing blend of psychedelic and shoegaze in a rockier form. I’m not sure if they added it late because it’s a longer song or they had to adapt for a live set, but either way it’s great to hear live.

I got a few nice photos at the show, check out of my Flickr set for more examples. I was tempted to get a video of “Half-State,” but remembered my camera doesn’t have a good enough microphone to make it worth recording with. There are always plenty of videos on YouTube. This post is not a real description of the show, my friend Jen Ruano wrote an excellent review for LA Record with equally amazing photos by her photographer friend Debi Del Grande.

Acer Iconia Tab A500 16GB Wifi

I recently purchased an Acer Iconia Tab from Target since they had an amazing price for it of $399 with a $50 Target gift card. The price was about $50 off the normal price and Target gift cards are always valuable (at least for me). At first, I was thinking I’d sell it since I already had an original iPad which I’d gotten not too long after it came out last year. I soon realized that I don’t use the iPad much and the prospect of being able to use Flash on a tablet makes it a much better product overall due to that alone.

Newer Android tablets are more comparable to the iPad 2 and I’m not about to compare it to the original iPad, which cool as it is just doesn’t stack up due to technological advancements. The only thing I really used on my original iPad was an app called Game Dev Story by Kairosoft, which is surprisingly addictive. My original iPad sold within minutes after listing it on Amazon, though I did include a couple of cases and a screen protector with it.

Apple definitely knows how to sell and market their products, which makes re-selling them extremely easy. This even seems to work with broken items sold for parts, though I have a working iMac G5 (before they added built-in webcams) that seemed to have a faulty motherboard from the start. That’s a story for another day. I had purchased AppleCare for it and had it taken in to be fixed for other issues, but no places ever mentioned that my motherboard was bad. The computer works but is very susceptible to freezing and is too unstable to consider using it for very long. But I digress.

The Acer Iconia Tab has been an amazing improvement, I mostly just use it for email and Game Dev Story (and the new Hot Springs Story). It just got the new 3.1 version of Android, so it will now be running Flash 10.3! I’m more excited about that than anything. I’m not a huge fan of Flash, despite my early attempts at making games with it. I enjoy playing Flash games and I know that Flash is actually a very important part of creating websites, interactive stuff and all that. Steve Jobs is definitely not playing with a full deck if he does think not supporting Flash is a good idea. HTML5 is still a bit far off even if some sites use it. The fact that most YouTube videos are flash based is another reason that Flash is here to stay.

TwentyWonder: BRMC, LA Derby Dolls, Axis of Awesome, Exzene Cervenka

This benefit for Down’s Syndrome was definitely very fun and interesting. I volunteered with some BRMC friends (Jodi, Jen, and Armine) at the Underwater Photography room, which featured 3 different mixed drinks named for nudibranchs: The Blue Dragon (Cosmo), JD’s Horny Honey (Bourbon), and Mucho Mexichromis (Margarita). I didn’t take many photos since Jodi told me they were confiscating cameras and I figured other people would be taking a lot (and there were plenty of pros as well as cell phone pic takers). Most of my pictures are from the underwater bar, and a few of the larger displays, like the Batmobile. Ed Asner was reading Dr. Suess right outside our bar and there was a theremin player who provided some musical entertainment every so often. It was pretty cool.

BRMC did a 4 song set that probably went over 20 minutes and included a cool jam at the start. It was a full electric set despite the short set, but warehouses don’t make for good ventilation or acoustics – so it’s not as fun to attend as an outdoor festival or a even acoustic sets in an air conditioned venue. Basically, I was dying from the heat most of the time while we were near the stage (which was probably about an hour total, since Axis of Awesome and Exzene performed right before BRMC). The other songs in the set were Shadow’s Keeper, White Palms, and Punk Song. Trina did a nice review for The Owl Mag (which also has a lot of great photos on it). There are several other blogs that I saw some good pics on too: Ashley Andrea Beliveau and The Love Stains

Another good photos set is the from the LA Derby Dolls’s Flickr. I didn’t see much of the roller derby, but I know what it’s about and I’m sure it was pretty cool. The roller rink and warehouse seemed like an appropriate space for the event and it was a lot bigger than I expected. Axis of Awesome were pretty awesome, bringing the funny and warming up the crowd. Exzene sang the national anthem and a few a capella songs before BRMC started. After BRMC played there was some weird stuff going on with some male dancers (I’m only recalling from other people’s reviews). I didn’t see what happened there, but I’m kind of glad we were able to chill outside where it was nice and cool. As far as benefit concerts go, this was one of the cooler ones (though not temperature wise).  There were probably many celebrities there, but the focus was more on entertaining while raising awareness.

Anime Expo 2011: Megatokyo, Danny Choo, new Gundam, and more!

It’s been over a week since AX and fortunately (or not), I have some time off to relax. This year’s convention was a lot better than last year, in large part due to the Convention Center staff being much nicer to attendees and  also it seems that things ran more smoothly in general. We didn’t watch as much anime as last year, but we did see a lot of debuts and panels related to them like High School of the Dead, Gundam 00 Movie, and Gundam Unicorn. Thanks to a nice AX staff guy, we were able to register at closing on Day Zero which allowed us to attend Opening Ceremonies. My boyfriend is a fan of Megatokyo, a web comic by Fred Gallagher, so we attended his panel on the 3rd day and signing on the last day. We even managed to chat with him in the artist alley.

Danny Choo had a lot of events going on, which we also attended though didn’t stay too long at the Fakku meet and greet. We did pick up a few Mirai T-shirts from J-list and the Mirai Figma from Kid Nemo. My boyfriend was very excited about it and was also able to get a Senjyougahara Hitagi Figma from Bakemonogatari (which I just watched most of last night with him). The Exhibition Hall is always the best way to spend your paycheck, and it didn’t disappoint. I got shirts from Bored Inc, Gama-Go, Aqua Red, previous AX (only $5), Angry Little Girls (bags too), MightyFine, and the previously mentioned Mirai shirts from J-List. I picked up a cute pair of earrings from the Artist Alley for only $2 also.

The AMV (Anime Music Video) contest was pretty popular this year, so we weren’t able to attend any re-screenings or award ceremonies. It was really interesting to see the panels for High School of the Dead and the Gundam Unicorn screenings. The Gundam 00 screening went late, so they moved the panel to another room and we decided to do something else (probably eat). In total, I took a lot of pictures this year and all my photos are up on my AX 2011 Flickr Collection. I don’t take many cosplay photos, but there are plenty of people who do. Cosplayers are everywhere, so even if I wasn’t focusing on them you’ll still see a bunch. The big thing this year was the Hatsune Miku concert (which they brought custom Toyota Corollas out for).

Another new thing was the Food Trucks, which may have been there last year but they had a dedicated area for people to go to. We ended up spending a lot on Indian Food, but it was pretty tasty. The pizza has been the consistently good and reasonably priced item at the LA Convention Center, so we got that a few times over the 4 day event. We were slightly better prepared with cold drinks in the car to get when we didn’t want to spend $3 to $4 on a soda. This was a pretty fun experience and definitely worth attending. I enjoy being able to take in a lot of different panels and screenings, while also finding cool things in the dealer hall. One of the last things we picked up is a DS game by Aksys called Nine Nine Nine, which came with a watch from the game. Andrew already finished it and the watch is pretty cool (even if it’s hard to put on at first).

Make Music Pasadena 2011

Saint Motel @ Make Music Pasadena

Best Coast @ Make Music Pasadena

Ra Ra Riot @ Make Music Pasadena

Kisses @ Make Music Pasadena

Zola Jesus @ Make Music Pasadena

This is the 3rd year I’ve been to Make Music Pasadena – a free annual music festival in downtown Pasadena. Pretty good line-up too: we started the day with Saint Motel at 2 PM, the Morning Benders at around 3:30 PM (who we didn’t really watch), then walking around for food and bathroom breaks. Best Coast at 5 PM, Ra Ra Riot at around 6:30 PM (the main stage was running late), Kisses on the emerging artist stage at around 8:30 PM and Zola Jesus at around 10 PM.

The weather was nice all day, not extremely hot like the first year I went (it was around 106 degrees). This time around, it was in the high 70′s to mid 80′s and didn’t drop too low at night. Tons of people were already there even at 2 PM, so getting around the main stage area was a little tough.  The side streets weren’t too bad, but parking was a bit tricky. There were more inexpensive parking lots than we thought, but we weren’t sure where they were.

The bands were pretty good, though watching them from really far away is not usually that great.  Free events like this is more about hanging out and enjoying the music rather than really getting into the show. At least, that’s how it is for me.  There were some interesting vendors set up in the street that was blocked off (Colorado and Fair Oaks – I think).  Even though Pasadena isn’t too far from where I live, traffic always makes it seem farther.

There was a Chalk Art Fair happening down the street from Make Music Pasadena, which was also pretty interesting to see. It’s sponsored by JetBlue and there were plenty of talented artists making some very cool chalk art. I didn’t get any pictures, but I’m sure there’s plenty online. It was at the same place last year also, so I guess these two events will always coincide now.

Nana (Anime)

I started watching this anime a few years ago when I was visiting my brother in San Francisco (probably start of 2009). Still not finished the series yet even though I've owned a DVD copy of it for awhile now.  Much has changed in my life since then, I've had my own adventures traveling with friends to follow a band and I've gone back to school and seriously pursue a career. And I've been in my first (and most likely only) serious relationship for the past year and a half. It's interesting to be watching this series with my significant other (who's most likely watched a lot more anime than I have over the years despite the fact that I'm older and have most likely started watching it earlier).

We're still early in the series and past the part I stopped watching (Episode 12), but it's interesting since it merges rock music and anime - worlds that I never really felt mixed too well before. My boyfriend likes to marathon anime series if we have the full series, but we do need a few breaks since there are 47 episodes in the series and 3 OVAs, and so far we've just started Disc 2 (of 4). I considered doing some sort of manga series about music awhile back before I knew about Nana, I could probably do something based on my travels and experiences meeting BRMC fans from different places.

I'm not sure how interesting that might be, I never considered my storytelling to be very strong (which is why I had hoped I could work with friends on such a project). Even drawing a few panels would probably not be easy, I'm out of practice on my manga drawing and I'm focusing more of web stuff so there may never be a time for such a project to materialize. Maybe I'll just try drawing certain people in a manga style... that would probably be a fun exercise to see if I coud do it and actually demonstrate certain people's likenesses in a cartoony style.

Break time

Next week, I'm planning to be back in San Francisco for about a week. My boyfriend is going to Google IO and I will just be hanging out with friends and family. It'll be a nice break. I'm not sure about moving up there for work, there are many great companies in the city, not to mention the surrounding areas. Those are the kinds of companies who probably have plenty of good experience job seekers to choose from, which is most likely why I may not even be considered to work there. A lot of contract jobs I get contacted about are in the Bay Area, and it's definitely easier to get that kind of work before something more permanent.

I'm fortunate to have many breaks from work, but that's a mixed blessing. I'm not getting the experience (or pay) of someone who is continuously working, but I do have the time to reflect and decide what to do next rather than just having to keep going. I've had the time to travel, make friends, take classes, and ultimately change my career path. As much as I'd like to be an experienced and highly paid something or other, I'm just figuring what I want to do and how I can do it.

My family is generally supportive about me working, but not necessarily doing things I enjoy. They do provide me financial support in the housing area for the most part, so I'm happy to be able to not pay rent or anything while I try to get where I want to be in life. I still think working from home would be nice, but I do like going into a workplace and having an office to work in that's separate from where I live. My current excuse for a home office is way too messy to be productive in and my room is not much better. I often say I'd clean more if I had time, but I really just need to be motivated to do it.

Tutoring tales

Since I started tutoring students through WyzAnt, I've mainly been showing people in their 20's how to use  HTML and PhotoShop. I recently started tutoring a 10 year old how to use PhotoShop and Illustrator. It's a such a nice thing when parents get their kids started younger on subjects that interest them and I am really happy that her parents are encouraging her to pursue graphic design at an early age.

My parents had me take painting classes pretty early on and piano lessons when I was 10 (which I continued through high school). Me and my siblings were always drawing when we were growing up and I think it's helped me in many ways. I kind of wish I'd gotten into sports earlier, but I did have tennis lessons and didn't do too well with those. My sister ended up joining the tennis team in high school, so at least it wasn't wasted on her.

When I got into using computers as a teenager, it was mostly to use the internet. I dabbled in PrintShop and drawing programs and was very impressed by 3D landscape creators like Bryce. My first web design class at ROP was also my computer course outside of normal school. I'm pretty sure my early web pages were full of animated gifs and large images. Some places still do that (as I've seen from some websites I worked on).

Back to Work!

While I was eating lunch today, I got a message from the Project Manager for the contract job I had started last month. I will be going back there tomorrow and hopefully a few more weeks until the project is done. I had a Skype interview yesterday with a good placement agency and someone else contacted me about another position this morning, but nothing beats actual solid work.

This is a bit of a relief because my mom and brother have been annoying me about my Metrolink monthly pass (which I already got a 20% off discount for) and basically a day of working there pays for the whole pass and even my lunch while I'm there. I have been contacted by other recruiters and such, but most of them would require a move up north. I wouldn't mind moving to SF or something, but for now, I just want to gain more experience.

Retail Therapy

I've been doing better lately in my job search, people are actually scheduling interviews and interested in getting me work. Even so, I get a little down about things. The thing about buying stuff when you're not happy is not a healthy thing, but it really does make you happy for a little bit. My boyfriend hardly ever wants to take me shopping, so I end up buying stuff online and the thing about that is - you have to buy at least $50 worth of stuff to get free shipping or you have to pay a lot to ship a few things...

I like maximizing my spending potential and usually always end up spending at least $50 worth of stuff: Old Navy (30% off sale on everything except dresses), Forever 21 (super cute biker boots on sale for $22.99), Sephora (new Tokidoki Beach Makeup bags and Devil Girl Makeup palette for $28.99)... Then there was some other places I just buy from because of my boyfriend: ThinkGeek, Valve Store (Portal shirts are 10-35% off), Best Buy (the new Tron 5 disc set on Blu Ray was on sale for $50, now back up to $70).

I ordered some of the Relief Run shirts by Tokidoki for me and my boyfriend also, but aat $25 a shirt - it's a little cheaper than most of their shirts and it benefits Red Cross's relief efforts in Japan. The Giant Peach was having a 20% off sale on already reduced prices, so I got a couple Tokidoki x Marvel shirts for me and my boyfriend. The retail therapy only works if you are expecting more money - and I do have another check coming in soon for the other 2 weeks I worked.


I do need to be more careful about my bills and spending, even if I have a few interviews lined up. I have plenty of stuff I can list on my ebay store, I just need to get around to doing it. The Post Office now has padded flat rate envelopes, which I think is the best thing they've come up with yet. I have so many heavy Body Shop and Bath & Body Works items that fit perfectly in those envelopes, so I'll probably sell more of that stuff soon.

One more thing, I somehow have 26 subscribers to this blog. No one I really know, which I find a bit interesting. I'm not really writing for my friends to find out about my life - though I wouldn't mind if they did read this blog. I'm not sure who reads this blog or why they read it, but it's nice to know there are people out there who are interested in my life even if they don't know me. I have email and Facebook for friends, Twitter for interests, LinkedIn for business, and this blog for random internet folk.

Journal writing is good for you

This time off from work has given me some more time to write in my journal, which I enjoy since it's a place where I can write anything without censoring myself. Blogs are good for that, but there's always a chance of someone you know reading something you don't want them to if it's online.  I don't usually write anything bad about any specific person, but being able to vent privately is nice if you are particularly annoyed at someone - which is bound to happen.

I had a relaxing weekend, mostly stayed home while my boyfriend was at work. On Sunday, I had a tutoring session to introduce a 10 year old to PhotoShop. It's nice that her parents are encouraging her to learn at such a young age, I kind of wish my parents cared enough to do that for me. I did have piano lessons for awhile and painting classes before that, but I never considered doing either of those things professionally. Technology has gotten to the point where kids are learning things earlier, which is a good thing since there is so much you can do with computers.

I applied to some interesting jobs today and found some for my boyfriend to apply to also. One job was writing about music, which I hadn't thought of trying to get paid for in awhile. I later on noticed that there's a specific genre that they want the applicants to like and I realized I would probably not be right for it. Oh well, there are lots of web design and development jobs that would be a better fit. I'm not as into new music as I used to be and I really have no idea what's popular or not right now. I am slightly enclosed in a bubble of seeking only information that interests me or my boyfriend, which means I'm a bit out of it...

A week off or time to find a new job?

My contract work is taking a week off since there hasn't been much for me to do lately. They said they would bring us back for more testing of the website later, but who knows if they really will. Since I have been getting lots of notifications about other jobs, I figured it may be a good time to look for more work either freelance or permanent. I noticed LA has more telecommuting work for web design (at least on Craig's List), so I decided to apply to some of those jobs as well as local jobs. Working from home is sort of a dream of mine, and if I can actually do it now - why not? Taking the train to LA is interesting, but working in my pajamas would be awesome.

Bloom Circle

I placed an order for some skin care products through this new website called BloomCircle since they give you $40 after your first purchase of $40 or more. My skins been breaking out a bit more than usual, I think it may have been stress related as it started during my frantic job search. I'm slightly stressed by taking Metrolink every day, but it's more when I go home because I tend to get on the wrong train more than I'd like. Fortunately, I've started being able to correct the mistake faster than before - meaning I do end up on the right train as soon as I realize I'm on the wrong one.

Today's been pretty relaxed here, I did an online training that I was probably supposed to do as soon as I got here. Other than that, I did a simple file conversion. I changed my Blippy username, since I figured out that I could so update your links if you happen to have them. I am wondering about this contract thing, it seems more likely to lead to more work here - so I'm not sure if I should be responding to recruiters... I usually do so out of politeness, but there are some that I actually might want to apply to. I wouldn't want to leave this position early which is why I'm hesitant about responding to certain emails.

The weekend is almost here and it feels like summer already is... I've put away some warmer clothes and now I'm thinking about losing weight. Not necessarily for bathing suits, more because I don't want to sell clothes because they don't fit me. I don't want to buy larger clothes if I don't have to and I also don't want to get rid of cute clothes that would fit me if I were thinner. I do enjoy eating and dressing up, but there's danger in liking either one too much. I have lots of clothes I don't wear, but I'd rather sell them because of that rather than because it doesn't fit me.

Opportunities

Yesterday, my boyfriend got some exciting information. A recruiter for a staffing agency told him about a software QA position for a company in El Segundo. It's a full time contract position and pays a lot more than where he is currently (and even what I'm making), plus he's been wanting to find something else for awhile. If he does manage to get this position, it almost seems that a move out to LA is a good idea. Even if my contract position ends after 2 months, it may be easier to find other web related jobs in Los Angeles or even Long Beach. I know moving is a pain, but commuting is too and an easier commute is always better. We'll see how things turn out, but I'm hoping he gets it since he works hard and is too smart not to get something like this.

Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco

For the past 2 years, I've registered for a free expo pass for Web 2.0 Expo in SF and haven't been able to go because of work. Ironic because I do work on websites, but not quite for companies that are very Web 2.0 (which may be a goal). Every year, I add myself to the attendee directory since it's nice to have professional contacts in some form even if I can't meet at the event.

Anyways, not being able to go because of work is better than going because I don't have work. Meeting professional contacts in person is a great way to get work, but I guess it can wait until I can actually plan to attend. Having an income is important, not to mention gaining more experience. Maybe I'll attend Web 3.0 Expo... it's possibly I'll get there before then, though that may only be possible if I am living in San Francisco!

San Francisco Popfest 2011

This event has been happening every year since 2009, which is a good sign for indie pop music. I am more interested in the bands this year than last and I will hopefully attend 3 out of the 5 shows. I'm thinking Thursday, Saturday, and the free show in Dolores Park. Those afternoon shows are always fun even if you can't here the bands as well. The pass for all the shows is only $60, but I got one it in 2009 and was exhausted!  I think just going to a few of the shows will make it more fun and relaxing for me. I'm a little curious about the Friday night show, but I would be fine with just the 3 that seem most interesting to me.

Full Schedule 

Wednesday, May 25 
The Rickshaw Stop 
   - Fujiya & Miyagi  
   - Blackbird Blackbird
   - plus support TBA 
  
Thursday, May 26  
Café du Nord 
   - Dominant Legs
   - Aberdeen
   - The Motifs  
   - Sweater Girls
  
Friday, May 27 
The Rickshaw Stop
   - The Undertones
   - Allo Darlin’
   - The Mantles
   - The Smittens 

Saturday, May 29 
The Rickshaw Stop  
Slumberland Records Then & Now Showcase:

   - 14 Iced Bears 
   - Phil Wilson (of The June Brides)  
   - Neverever
   - The Art Museums
   - Devon Williams
   - Brilliant Colors
   - Terry Malts
   - Sea Lions
   - Kids on a Crime Spree 
   - English Singles
  
Sunday, May 30 
Acoustic afternoon picnic show at Dolores park 
   - Surprise Lineup!
  
Sunday, May 30 
Hemlock Tavern 
   - Eternal Summers
   - The Beets
   - Catwalk 
   - Seapony   

Vacation

I had the day off today, but I feel like I have been on vacation for the past 2 weeks. Not because I haven't been working, but because my mom has been out of town. If you ever met my mom, you might understand why. Even talking on the phone with her can be so frustrating. I know I'm past the age where I should be living at my mom's house, but while she was living in Irvine - I was the only one living here. It's a pretty big house for one person (and a cat), so it wasn't as fun as it sounds.

Having lots of space is nice though it clearly is a bit lonely. I do like my alone time as much as any introvert, but having someone to share my space with isn't that bad. I've had a few roommates during college and it can be fun. I even enjoyed sharing a 3 bedroom apartment with 5 other females. I guess it really depends on how close you are with the people you live with. At the time, I did feel close to them but I didn't really keep in touch with them much after college. Most of them went on to professional and graduate schools and I was still figuring out what to do with my life.

I have a better idea of what I want to do now, but there's always a lot of uncertainty about anything. I don't mind working, I just wish I could get more done in my off time. Today was nice because I had time to relax and clean up a bit. I still have much more to do, but I am feeling better about how things are around the house and I will try to get more done during the rest of the weekend. I would like to get more things listed on my online stores since I still have tons of stuff.

I am still considering a move to San Francisco for a few reason:

1) many web design/development jobs there
2) related tech conferences
3) more local video game companies (if my boyfriend wants to get testing jobs there)
4) much more interesting night life
5) better public transportation
6) my dad and brother are still living there and my sister and her family are also not too far away.

The main things against the decision to move are:

1) colder weather than Southern California
2) not good to move my cat or leave her with my mom
3) too much stuff at home that I need to sell
4) it's more expensive to live there
5) my options of places to live in SF are not that great
6) I don't really like moving

I actually think visiting San Francisco is more fun than actually living there. I consider Southern California more my home since I've lived here most of my life. Both me and my boyfriend have friends and family here, so it does make more sense to stay here. There are good jobs here, I just need to find them. My mom's house is really nice, and I can deal with my mom better if I just talk to her. She's more understanding when I explain certain things to her and I kind of feel moving is like running away. That's what my brother wanted to do in dealing with my dad, but I think I can handle my mom if I try.

Baby showers, birthdays, and another work week!

It's been an unusually busy weekend for me, I saw a lot of friends from college, met a lot of my boyfriend's family members, and even bought some things for me and my boyfriend at Bath & Body Works and JC Penney. I wasn't able to attend the Fujiya & Miyagi show at the Echo, partly due to exhaustion and also due to not wanting to go to LA in the rain. On Saturday, I went to the Bath & Body Works special event to vote on the next fragrance and get a few nice things for myself. After that, we went to JCPenney since I had a $10 off $10 coupon. I figured that my boyfriend needed clothes more than I did, so we looked at some clearance jeans and graphic tees. Lots of good deals there, but my boyfriend didn't like the worn look of a lot of the jeans. We ended up getting some dark blue ones with the look of a little wear and a gray Mario T-shirt.

Soon after, my boyfriend dropped me off at my friend's house so we could go to the baby shower of a mutual friend of ours from college. She was out shopping for greeting cards when I got there, so I just sat and watched her husband play a new motorcycle game he'd gotten for his iPad and iPhone. He's getting an actual motorcycle some time this week and his birthday is also this week too. My friend wasn't happy about his new interest in motorcycles, but he definitely is. The baby shower was at our friend's parent's house in Torrance and it was not a bad drive from La Mirada. I haven't been to a lot of baby showers, but it was mostly sitting, talking, and eating. There were some games going on outside, but it was a little cold that day.

After we left, my friend's husband drove us all to Santa Monica Place so he could look at some boots. It was fine with me since I could check out what had changed at the Tokidoki store. It did look pretty different from the last time since I'd gone during the holidays, and they had a lot more new bags. The new clothes was not as interesting to me, though they had some cute kids and baby clothes. The designs actually do work better for smaller people because they are cute as it is. There wasn't much I really wanted there, but my friend seemed to like the liquid eyeliner. We left the store and went down to Kenneth Cole to meet up with her husband. He ended up getting a lot more than just boots, but he can afford it being an engineer. We may have gone to more stores, but my friend needed to practice for choir since she was singing the next morning.

Today is my sister's birthday and her daughter's 4th birthday was just 4 days ago. I celebrated my boyfriend's dad's birthday with him and a lot of my boyfriend's family members. For the birthday celebration, we met at his dad's church Calvary Chapel of East Anaheim. It's close to a movie theater that I once knew as Cinemapolis and also where a comic book shop that me and my brother used to go to. We had lunch at Marie Callendar's across the street, which was pretty tasty and it was cool to have a whole room for the family. After a delicious meal and some interesting conversation, me and my boyfriend went to his dad's place to pick up some things and help his dad with some computer and cell phone issues. It's always nice visiting with his dad and we definitely surprised him by showing up with the rest of the family at his church.

This is my 2nd week on the contract position I'm doing, the first one was mostly smooth with only minor hiccups in figuring out which track to take at LA Union Station. I think I understand how it works now, so I hope I don't end up on the wrong train again. Downtown LA is a nice area to work and it's better not to have a car here due to parking and traffic. I would consider finding something more long-term here if there were some good opportunities. I don't enjoy driving and buying gas enough to work in Orange County, but we'll see if anything opens up there. For the most part, the web design jobs in OC are mostly in the southern and central parts. At least that's how it seems to me, but I'm not sure how true that is.

New job starts tomorrow!

After a week of waiting, I got word on Friday that my new contract position starts tomorrow!  I've been sleeping a lot last week, so I hope waking up around 6:30 to 7 AM won't be too hard. I have been wrestling a lot with the new Wordpress blog and somehow managed to get it working today. I moved it to the main server rather than directory and it seems to be working fine. My boyfriend helped me fix the database access to the backend and it's working. There are some SQL database issues I'm not sure about, but I hope to fix those soon.

Most people know about the massive earthquake in Japan, which combined with Tsunamis has leveled cities and started nuclear meltdowns. It's scary how little we can do against the forces of nature and it's so sad how much death and destruction was caused by the earthquake and it's many aftershocks. Even though we are used to them in So Cal, nothing as big as an 8.9 quake has happened here. The 1906 earthquake in San Francisco was estimated at 7.9 magnitude, and it pretty much destroyed the city. Considering there are over 1000 dead and hundreds more missing in Japan, the damage is immense.

It is really sad about the earthquake, I really hope Japan can recover from the huge amount of loss due to this unexpected disaster. It's hard to know what we can do to help other than just donate money, I guess that's all most people can do for now.

Grey skies starting to clear up?

After several unsuccessful job interviews and some not so new family issues, I was seriously considering moving up to San Francisco to find work while also helping my brother and dad with apartment stuff. I have been tutoring some students in HTML and PhotoShop, and I did a few hours of temp work with a non profit - so I have been keeping busy outside of the usual selling on ebay and Amazon.

Today, I finally managed to get some good news about a 2 month contract position. It starts on Monday and it is in LA, but I am close to a Metrolink Station and the company is close to a Metro line. They need someone right away, so I guess there wasn't a need to interview me since the company I will be contracting for has worked with them before. For once, I am familiar with the company even though I never really expected to work for them.

I was already kind of excited about my new blog, which just has my old music reviews on right now and a church friend had recently contacted me about doing some work on his web store. I also signed up for Dinner with 12 Strangers through the UCLA Alumni Association, since I thought it might be nice to re-connect with some other local Bruins. So I guess I was doing things even when the job search wasn't going so well, still it's a relief to have work doing web design and such.

BRMC @ The Book & Stage in Las Vegas

Why is Reality TV generally horrible?

I've been thinking about crappy reality television shows that I still remember despite not really watching or enjoying them. Shows like The Swan, Beauty and the Geek, Temptation Island... the list goes on and on. I guess The Hills is more of a scripted reality show, but it's no better than any of the rest. I guess MTV really is partly to blame for introducing The Real World and Road Rules, plus numerous other silly dating shows.  I do admit to watching a few episodes of the first season of The Real World, but I can only say it was due to being young and bored. Perhaps that is why people watch reality television?

Boredom in general was always my reason to watch TV, but I prefer to escape reality than have a fake version of it presented to me on television. Now, I don't even bother with watching TV at all. I'm sure I'm missing out on the latest adventures of The Office and The Simpsons, but I have a feeling I'll get to see them if I really do feel the need to. I'm a few seasons behind on finishing Lost, and really far behind on most other shows I once watched. The only channel I really enjoy watching is HGTV or maybe the Food Network.  Maybe I'm weird to no longer enjoy mindless entertainment, but I don't think that's a bad thing.

Just a couple more days until my Vegas trip and my car has been prepared with various new parts and services. My boyfriend is more interested in Marvel vs. Capcom 3 than the shows or gambling, so he got a cable that will work with older TV's since the hotel we're staying at may have them. I'm wondering how it will work if he's just playing his new game all day while we're there. Most likely we'll just leave for food, and I'll leave for the concerts. It's not such a bad thing since we'll both be doing what we like. I don't want to force him to stand through a long concert or walk through a smoky casino.

BRMC at the Cosmopolitan

It hasn't been that long since I saw BRMC live, but it's nice that they're playing 3 free shows in Las Vegas at the Book & Stage in the Cosmopolitan on the nights of February 15th and 16th.  BRMC's song "Spread Your Love" is used in one of the ads for the hotel, and I first noticed it last October when I was watching TV in San Francisco. I really don't watch TV anymore and I don't miss it, but that's another story.  Here's the full 60 second ad on YouTube:



I love the cute fluffy kittens and puppies, but I digress... Since the shows are in the middle of the week, hotel prices are more reasonable than on weekends and I found a very close and cheap hotel to stay at. Gas is a big expense, but necessary for long road trips. Being unemployed or even only working part time has its advantages, since I wouldn't be able to do this if I (or my boyfriend) had a full time job. Not having a lot of money is tough, but I've been getting by so far.  I should probably list some more stuff on ebay and make the most of my store, and I should also clean up and organize my room... I will be doing both more soon.

I recently was contacted by a Facebook friend about building a site, which will require me to apply some of my limited database knowledge in a real world context.  I hope I can manage it! I've also been getting painting lessons from a friend, along with her mom. So far, I feel more comfortable with drawing - but painting is much more involved than drawing. I am still in need of a few supplies before finishing my painting, which is a peacock that was originally made by a Chinese master chef who used postage stamps to create beautiful and elaborate mosaics. I will post pictures soon of that.

Year of the Rabbit

I got back from SF at around 1:30 AM last night. The drive back was much easier than the drive up, and the trip was pretty good overall. It was nice to see some friends and family, and the job market seems so much better there too. Competition for those jobs is probably tougher, but I think it may be easier to find a good job there. I guess I can't really focus on moving until I do find a job there, though my brother's nice apartment near Market St. is basically empty most of the time. Such a waste... I should probably just move up there so someone can use it more. In the rush of packing, we didn't notice that we'd left our iPad in my brother's car. It's not a big deal since my brother will be visiting next month.

The Chapter of Your Life Entitled San Francisco

I'm headed back to San Francisco with my boyfriend for a few days starting on Thursday night. It will be nice to be back since I haven't seen my dad and brother since the beginning of December. I have a bunch of stuff to bring him and my dad. I even have some things for my sister and my niece, who have birthdays coming up in March. I hope to see my sister and her family since it has been awhile. Some friends from Sacramento may also be there for Interpol at the Warfield. My boyfriend likes SF a lot, so it's a good place to celebrate his birthday. We will be able to use our MacWorld Expo passes for the exhibition hall at Moscone Center. Should be fun since I've never been to MacWorld before.

In preparation for the trip, I am returning some clothes and beauty products to Sephora, Victoria's Secret, and Body Shop. I will probably resume listing stuff on ebay after I come back, since it makes more sense to list stuff when I am home to ship it all out. I'm mostly just relaxing at home while also trying to clean up and get more organized. I still have tons of yarn and clothes to sell, so I've got a lot to do in preparation to selling. I've recently discovered a really cool review website called Blippy.com, it links to a lot of online accounts to allow you to review purchases. I like the interface design and customizability of the site, not to mention that there seems to be a lot of cool people using it.

Here's my account: http://blippy.com/liane_chan

In case you're wondering, the title of this post refers to a nice song by the Lucksmiths - one of those cool Australian indie pop bands that many people have never heard of. I guess they based the songs on an actual book, but I've never read it so I can't say what the book is about.

Limbo

On Thursday afternoon, I did have a phone interview with a hiring manager at that company I've wanted to work for since I first got into using computers and I did feel that it went well. I'm sure they had many other highly qualified candidates, so the company can be selective about who they go with. Since it isn't local and I may not hear back for up to 2 weeks on the next step, I'm kind of in a weird state of thinking of whether or not to apply to jobs in this area or maybe just deciding that it would be better for my career to move to either San Francisco or Silicon Valley. 

My dad and brother are in San Francisco, but are somewhat fickle in how actually supportive they are of my life and choices. My sister is in Silicon Valley, but she has a small house with husband and 2 kids. I could possibly stay with her for a short time, but I would eventually have to get my own place and I would hope my boyfriend would be able to move with me. I know the easiest thing to do is to just stay here, find any sort of web design job, and just gain more experience. It's a hard thing to want to do when I know all the high tech companies that are leading the way are not far away.

Another thing I've considered is focusing more on getting freelance work and selling more on my ebay store. That would be a nice way to pay the bills while I am deciding my next step. I don't really enjoy moving, but maybe I could use a fresh start in a new place that I am familiar with. I've stayed with my sister in Santa Clara and I've lived in San Francisco, so I do know that both areas are pretty nice.  I know more people in San Francisco and there is more to do there, but the tech industry is more in Silicon Valley. There's plenty of good jobs in both places, so it could go either way right now.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - I Am Not Willing

Today has been a slightly better day, but maybe also slightly worse. I got a message and email yesterday from a recruiter at a large computer company in Cupertino about a position I applied for several weeks ago. I was a bit in awe to find out that they actually wanted to speak to me, since I've put in many job applications there for positions I was and was not qualified for and this is the first time I'd heard anything from them. I was excited to get the messages and responded within minutes, leaving messages and an email back to the recruiter. I am still waiting to hear back from him, and trying to figure out how likely my chances of actually getting a job there might be.

To get my mind off the anticipation of a possible interview with a company I passed up Google for (long story, possibly not worth mentioning), I decided to focus my attention on a new article for Examiner.com - Eye on Kawaii: Cute, colorful fashion inspired by Japan. The new article is a listing of events, brands, and stores in the LA and Orange County area. It would be much longer if I went into detail about each thing I mentioned, I could have probably just written an in depth article on the events alone. Most of them were past already, which is why I chose to do a listing.  I could really go on and on about Tokidoki alone, which I believe is what I originally wrote about to get chosen as a Fashion Examiner. Maybe I'll post that article next.

For those of you reading my blog because of BRMC, here's something you might like. It's a HOWL era b-side called "I Am Not Willing." I wonder how it slipped by all these years without me even hearing the name?

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - I Am Not Willing

Tagi: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club Am Not Willing