laslaff

Being at home almost 24/7 makes you stop and appreciate the little things that makes home home.

And I'm not saying structurally in a house or functionality in a family, just the odd quirks and anecdotes that make the 626 somewhat more interesting than it seems.

I went to CostCo today for gas only because it's guaranteed that it's around 10 cents cheaper than at other pumps, and there, cars form lines for the pumps. I was at the 2nd pump fueling up when a brand new Toyota Prius that was bought from Longo in the city of El Monte drove up behind me at the 1st pump.

The man that seemed to be at around his 40s had a disgruntled demeanor when he got out of the car, slamming the door behind him.

He takes out his wallet, swipes his card in the machine, and then looks at the price, and all I could remember hearing was,

"FUCK. 2.94? piece of shit prius."

Despite things like these happening, I think hybrid car owners will still have the last laugh. I'm not too fond of both presidential candidates, obama and mccain, but I'm sure one of them, when elected, will fuck up and thus Prius owners will get their money's worth.

I digress.

What's your Halloween plans?

secret passions and fine cuisine

I'm not sure if anyone back in riverside ever saw, but one of my bookmarks on my Opera and Camino internet browsers is yelp.com. It's basically a website in which you can input any location that sells a service, thing, or type of food, and what you will get are countless of reviews by people who have "yelped" this particular place.

I'm an avid yelper since late 07, and I've yelped 138 times.

I think I brought it up one time how Filipino restaurants are utter crap compared to other cultural bistros. Now don't get me wrong, I love filipino food. It is my culture. But to quote Kat, "[filipino] food just isn't that interesting." I guess being vegetarian, she is limited in her options with fine filipino cuisine. I digress.

But it isn't only that, and I can't really couldn't point my finger at what is wrong and why Filipino food just isn't as popular as, per se, thai food restaurants. Now to backtrack, Thai food was only introduced to me in I think early 2008 by a good friend, so excuse me if I seem like projecting some sort of hindsight bias when I continue talking about how Filipno restaurnts aren't too popular.

Well, back to yelp.com. Along with reviews, there are also many threads on yelp.com, and after searching up a restaurant that I was meaning to yelp for, for about a month, there was a related thread simply titled, "You Hate Filipno Food. Why?"

Most arguments and rebuttals were dumb, but true. But finally, some guy by the name of "AJ B." stated it clearly:

I'm filipino... you know why I don't like filipino restaurants?

1. Invest some damn money on the decor... I don't want to feel like I'm eating in halfway house.
2. I know you like watching the filipino channel, but does that have to happen within blaring earshot of the customers?
3. When I do go, I get looked down at because of how I look. I'm not your son or nephew. I can have purple, green or red hair and still make an amazing living. Don't look at me like I'm trespassing on your property.
4. I pretend like I don't speak the language, because, inevitably, I will be talked about... not behind my back, but right in front of my face. No thanks.

There are exceptions, of course, but since the thread topic is straight-up full of generalization, I'm just going with the flow.

Show me a Filipino restaurant that's decked out like as nice as a Thai restaurant (but with Filipino decor, of course); where the people are proud of their heritage and show it in the space and the ambiance; and are proud of their cuisine so they actually spend some time on presentation; where they are respectful of the clientelle and actually focus on good service... and I'm there. 5 stars on yelp, even.

He brings up several good points, and I really can't counter any of them. I then realize that this is exactly why no one raves about "DJ Bibinkahan," or "Pinoy Pinay," as they do for "Sweetey Hut," of West Covina or "Thai Specialty 2 (lol)" located in Rowland Heights.

As for telling him about a Filipino place that is as "decked out as nice as a Thai restaurant," however, Pondahan Fusion Bar, Cafe, and Grill is definitely the spot. Too bad this restaurant is the only place where the trifecta of impeccable service, food, and price come together at a Filipino food joint.

5 stars. even.

Quest or Boxcutters?

My friend lydia is doing abdc. She'll be auditioning with two groups. Both groups already have respected names in the hip-hop dance scene as they are powerhouses at bodyrock, fusion, and ultimate brawl. however, if both teams make it to the live auditions, she'll have to choose one to stick with and represent.

lydia is bomb at singing at dancing, but in my opinion, if both teams do make it, she should be siding with boxcutters. quest is like super cr3w on steroids, and that can be a good and bad thing. boxcutters is another one of those typical azn/college dance crews, but i digress. she's content with both styles, but i'd rather see some choreo heads win abdc this year.

love is a dangerous thing

haven't you noticed how time flies?

already prepping for my 2nd midterm on monday. got damn.

I passed my chem entrance exam with flying colors, scoring a 25 out of 27 when all i needed to pass to get into chem 151 is a 14. I am quite content with that accomplishment. speaking of prerequisites, everyone has to listen to pete philly and the perquisite. 

but i digress.

i'm enjoying my responsibility.

retention is not my forte

I always find pretty witty and insightful things to say on my blog during various times of the day. However, every time I get on this thing, I forget what to say, and I talk about something completely different than what I meant to write.  That happened yesterday with my Kanye tangent, even if I did think "Heartless," was/is a pretty cool song.

Anyway, I've been repping riverside a lot lately, through that infamous purple shirt that some swear they've seen around ucla, and my maroon riverside pullover hoodie. 

Usually, I wouldn't write about what I wear to school, but yesterday was sorta cool in the fact that the two people that noticed that my sweater didn't say "CAL STATE UNIVERSITY LOS ANGELES," but was "UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE," commented on how Riverside "parties pretty hard," or how Riverside is a "total party school," and that came from my lab TA.

That's why I make it a point that I'll only drink in Rside, and nowhere else. Perhaps because it's more honorable that way. 

lol @ 60 acre elephant sanctuary in downtown Los Angeles.

swagger talk

so i heard about a week ago that during the listening party of kanye's new album, there were 50 naked ladies in the middle of a warehouse somewhere in downtown LA. sources are reliable (radio, maybe kanye's blog..i don't really keep up), so I believe it.

Now the same sources tell me that all songs will be like Love Lockdown. Auto-tune and all singing. At first I was skeptical on how successful the tracks will be, but I finally heard the second single off the album.

And it did not disappoint. I don't know the title yet, but I'm looking it up once I write this entry. All I remember was "How could you be so heartless?"

What did disappoint, however, is the new haircut.

Wishlist 2008

1. Navi

2. Tint

3. GTS upgrade

4. 10 or 12 sub

5. amp

6. logic 8

7. scorch

8. HID bulb

9. android t-mobile

10. affliction shit

thanks napp for calling me the other day.

note to self.

there's no pride in a front.

there's no pride in a thing you're good at if no one cares about what you're good at.

there's no pride in imaginary goals, achievements, or past accolades that were a figment of your imagination.

there's no pride in succumbing to memories that never were.

there's no pride in being second best.

note to self:

drink only in rside. and only in rside.

ditty

no need to say my name 

i know they jockin my steez

and the way i spit so cold

they call me mr. freeze

so a couple of interesting things happened today. apparently my fil-am music speech is nominated to be presented in front of the communications department at csula. also, i met a couple of new people..which means jam sessions every wednesday.

also.

Mu Xi Kappa

if you can decipher it's meaning then pat yourself on the back.

raccoon eyes

so if real eyes realize real lies, then why does it seem to me that my eyes as fake as those of a person who has just met me.

but i digress on the poetic devices. i'm not very good.

i finally wrote a new song.

i'm going to riverside on friday.

Life's full of coincidences

and I'm sure if anyone got a dime for every time they've ever heard that phrase before, we wouldn't be in such an economical crisis right now, but that's besides the point.

I dreamed about my grandma's friend, Lola Nena, at some sort of debut, and earlier today, I got to visit her. I haven't seen her in years.

I started thinking about people in Riverside, and just a couple of hours ago, I caught up with my old co-worker, Vince, at CSULA.

Finally..some inspiration for a song.

"Untitled"

You said so long

And I didn't even catch your name

Keep holding on,

But I'd rather never feel the same

prechorus

See now I'm three thousand miles away from home

which means you're three thousand miles away from me

Distant memories come to life in faded dreams

chorus

Only time will tell

Only time will tell

Only time will tell

To fall asleep faster

is a moment with you

and any moment hereafter

is another disaster

prechorus

chorus

So I hope you can hear this melody

from three thousand miles away

And if I ever forget to breathe

I just ran out of things to say

Na-par-det Da-ta-jar-rauht-sri, is how I say it.

I have to deliver a speech on monday of next week.

I also have two midterms that same day.

:] I'm up for it.

Today was awkward in a way that I wasn't being my "CSULA" self. I found myself doing things I used to do during my first year of college. This activity includes: acting a fool in public eating places, scouring the entire campus for the cleanest and safest restroom to poo in (safe as in knowing you won't get walked in on), making new friends (one of which knows Czierel (spl?) Madly), and actually started thinking about starting up Pi Rho Phi again as an Awareness fraternity. Sounds lame, but I thought of it this way: we're doing much more of a grand thing when our reach does not only affect the areas surrounding us, like how Alpha Phi Omega primarily does community service. 

As brothers (and perhaps, sisters), of Pi Rho Phi, we dedicate ourselves to the service of others, not only in areas covering a  few miles radius, but worldwide, and this is why our fraternity stands out in this Greek system. 

--yeah, I actually wrote that on the paper that may or may not charter the fraternity to CSULA.

Pi Rho Phi: Today's youth. Tomorrow's Leaders.

bwahahaha. I hope no one googles this and finds this shit laying around.

Something Inherent

People who are just too good at something should be discovered. However, it's the same people that I look up to that discourages me thinking that I would never be as good as them.

Enough about my insecurities though.

little piece of home

little thing i know. i don't want to be alone.

Hm. I think it's one of those songs I wish I wrote, and I know I could've, but inspiration hasn't hit me yet.

More later. Happy Birthday, Lola!

Finally!

Well, I'm not saying this is necessarily a good or bad thing, but life at CSULA has finally become, well, routine.

I don't say this in regretful manner, however, only because I think it's about time for me to accept the fact that "college life," is, in a loose sense, over for me. Parties, kickbacks, and "pizza socials," are a thing of the past, and it's time for me to embrace the simpler things in life such as...

rekindling memories with high school friends that go to commuting schools, the comfort of home, going to a fitness club instead of an on-campus gym, not making 25+ friends daily, and so forth.

I can't honestly say I regret making my decision to go to CSULA, because it's only week 3, and I know my bitching will end sooner or later. The main thing to worry about are "practicals," which seems to be the term used in lieu of "midterms," in CSULA.

Fancy that.