Another week flew by without my noticing. How come I always have a feeling that I cannot catch up and I fall behind all the time? Even Dick Cheney begins to support gay marriage! For real? My head spins out of control. If I don’t write an entry now, I won’t be able to recall at all.
Very Long Hiking
The weather has not been cooperative lately. It’s foggy and chilly most of the days. Despite the not-so-perfect weather, I went to hiking in Marin Headlands yesterday.
I was going to try a new trail that I have not hiked before, but I didn’t bring a map with me.
I became nervous when I couldn’t see where the trail was going due to the heavy fog. All the hills disappeared in the clouds. I began to wonder if I would be in the next day’s news in a lost hiker story.
I checked my cell phone, no signal! Don’t they have a law that I should be able to call 911 anywhere with a cell phone? I calmed down a little after I told myself the thought was my GAD at work again.
I kept going. Turning my head, I saw those hills falling behind me afar.
It was so peaceful. I could only hear birds and the wind. When tall grass was pushed around, I felt like I was in a movie. So I decided to shot a video to document the moment.
By the time I finally reached to a road to catch my bus back to the city, I have hiked 3 hours non-stop. I probably hiked between 9 to 10 miles.
I anticipated something spectacular. But nothing comes close to it. The aquarium is very small, and it’s no comparison to the Oceanário de Lisboa that I visited couple years ago.
What bothers me the most is that in the middle of the museum sits a giant dinning area. A cafe! A very ugly looking cafe. It looks like a construction zone people build when they paint or repair a building.
The planetarium is the best in the museum. A must see, and perhaps it is worth the $25 admission fee alone.
Oh, a guy named Robert works at the entrance of the rainforest is adorable. I didn’t tell him this, because he must already know it.
The low light makes it difficult for taking pictures. But I managed to take some anyway.
I remember that many beach front stores post signs saying:
"No Shoes, No Shirts, No Service."
A few days ago, when I pass a bank, I saw a totally different sign that is asking people to take off stuff. Personally I thought it’s quite amusing because it is totally fake when it states the reason:
"So We Can Get To Know You Better As Customers and Friends: No Hats, No Hoodies, No Sunglasses When Doing Business With Bank Staff. Thanks For The Cooperation!"
I don’t care how many errors this sign has, I find it funny because it’s absurd to be posted at all. Why can’t they just say the truth in black and white? Aren’t really trying to say: "If you rob us, we want to see who you are, so please take off your sunglasses, and hats, and whatever else that can hide your identity."
Now, I can imagine a robber stops at the door, reads the sign, removes the mask, sunglasses, and hoodies, then enters the bank and points a gun to the teller demanding for money.
Good Luck to Billy
I really admire Billy’s courage to quit his job and to move to Taiwan for a year to study Chinese. I don’t think I can do the same. Of course I don’t need to learn Chinese, but I cannot do it for any other languages.
On Saturday, on his rooftop, Billy hosted a farewell party. It’s very chilly, and very windy in downtown. No matter, we had a good time anyway.
In this picture, Yhow Wei looks like he is on a DVD cover for a Korean drama. Maybe a comedy.
I took another picture with my new glasses. I really like this pair because they are lighter than the previous pair of Versace. Now I can wear them for the entire film reading the subtitles without getting a headache.
Mom knit so many beautiful quilt, blankets, pillow cover, glasses holders etc etc when she lived with me. It’s extremely mysterious and totally magic to me watching her knitting. She could just talk or watch TV while she was knitting. Now, all I had are a few pairs of knitting needles she left and many items she made.
I want to relive the yarn world she used to be in; I want to touch these needles that used to pass between her fingers; I want to bring back her magic; I want to feel how she was feeling.
There is no other way to achieve this besides learning how to knit.
I kept making mistakes and started all over twice. Our teacher Eric definitely has more patience than I can ever have. In the end, I am very proud that I can finally make a small piece that looks like a thong. That wasn’t my intention though.
I am very confident that I can master this. Perhaps I can never be as good as mom, but I can certainly make a nice scarf, someday. It probably can also help me to build more patience, and bring me more Zen moments.
I can do it. Time to shop some yarn.
Heading for Iowa
I am done packing! Where am I heading to? Iowa. Not Ohio.
However, I am not sure if I can get up tomorrow at 5am to catch my shuttle for the airport. Today’s missing Air France plane makes me nervous again. Why do aviation accidents always happen the day before my flight? It just trigger my GAD.
On the bright side, I get to visit ISU campus where I spent so much time studying. It will be interesting to see my $200/month apartment when I was a student. It surely will bring some memories.
I tried to rent a car, but the travel Web site told me that there is no car available for me. That’s fine by me. I want to take CyRide and experience the old days anyway.
I am looking forward to the trip now actually, except the flying part. I should catch some sleep before my ride is at the door in few hours.
Indeed, waiting for a whole week to write something is too long.
Silky Tofu, 味道好极了! 