California Calling

Two trips outside of So-Cal, one past, one future.

Let's start with the past one before I forget what happened there. I had a conference I went to on behalf of work to the great, wondrous, metropolitan city of......Watsonville :-/

To quote some previous tweets of mine:

No great place to visit ends with the syllable "ville."

I am so exited to go to Watsonville!!!!!! SAID NO ONE EVER.

The trip was actually quite productive, but there are some quarky stories I'd like to share.  The first, my arrival to the San Jose Airport.  Landed at about 11pm, and by the time I got my rental car and was well into the road it was around 1am.  Well, the drive up to this town (about 45 mins away from SJ) was extremely interesting/death-defying.  The road was pretty much going up a mountain, with zig-zags a la Dr. Seuss's designs.  Turn here, turn there, turn everywhere! Uphill in the middle of the night.  The following thought actually ran through my head while driving up there:

"So this is how I'm going to die...driving...a rental car...at 1am....going through a mountain....in Watsonville!!!!"

Got to the hotel, which I was less than satisfied with, and turned in for the night as much as I could as my first meeting was only a few moments away.  The school I was sent to wasn't a school, IT WAS A TOWN WHERE CLASSES JUST SO HAPPENED TO BE TAUGHT.  This school was just acres beyond acres of campusy goodness.  Not to mention that they have an equestrian club that houses 20 or so horses.  AH!

The conference was good, and I got a lot of great information I could bring back to LA with me.  Best thing about this trip was seeing a good friend of mine, Lizzy (http://secretariesinaphonebooth.blogspot.com)!  She lives in San Jose right now, so it was great making it into town (especially because at that point I knew what to expect from the roads going to and fro), seeing some shops, getting some food, and just talking.  It's just like we're fourteen, but now with master's degrees.

(Outside of Sushi Confidential in Campbell near San Jose)

Now let's dive into the future!  A note, as I was typing this blog I had a Skype conversation with Audrey affecting the dates of this trip.

So there's a group of us in Cali that once upon a time taught in Korea. We currently have two from our circle of friends in Pyeongtaek that are visiting Cali and found in a perfect time to organize a reunion.  So far, the following individuals are scheduled to appear in Fresno in two weeks:

Mel (http://italymel.blogspot.com)
Audrey
Josh (http://singinginkorean.blogspot.com)
Brooke
Pam
Lindsey
Jaime

Some tentative, but I hope it works out because the more the gears are going in these plan, the more exciting it feels.  I feel like it doesn't matter what we do, it'll be fun just like in SK.  It's like riding a bicycle, or in this case a 2,300 won taxi :-)  Whoop whoop!

Slumpdog Millionaire

The slump seems to be rising, and stars with the planets align one by one.  This feels better, more at peace.  We shall see.

I'll be gone most of next week, have to go to a North Cal conference which, despite it's location, I'm really looking forward to it.

There's nothing that family, friends, and a good cup of coffee can't overcome.


p.s. One of my favorite times in entertainment is when all of my favorite musicians have new songs and albums, now is that time.

Wake me up when October begins...

So it goes.

You see it in those you know.
You see it in the faces of your loved ones.
October is here.
It's not easy.
It's the norm of a slump.
To feel like a slump.
To let others' slumps affect you.

I see it in my friends.
I see it in my family.
I see it in my students.
I see it in my colleagues.

But it doesn't last long.
That's the good thing.
It makes you appreciate the other eleven months.
It's not even a whole month.
And then it's gone.
Then it's a memory.
Then October begins once more.
And then it's the time for the "here we go again."




Comment: This post didn't start out looking so poetic, but I went with it, and I have to admit it, I like it.

It's been one month since you looked at me

As you read the blog title, keep the Barenake Ladies' song in mind, as I do.

A lot of things can change in a month's time, and they have.  An update on the previous neighbor blog, I've gotten a new apartment, and am enjoying it.  It's great being in the South Bay, where my friends are, my family is close, and even my sister lives like five blocks away.  This place is a lot bigger, and the best thing is the storage.  <-Lame I know, but this was a big deal at the last place.

(yes, this is was my rockin' laptop looks like)

School has begun in two senses, both as a teacher and a student.  I started the clear credential program at MSMC in downtown LA a few weeks ago.  It's going to be couple of semesters of fine tuning work and school, but it's the way it has to be.  I must say I have a lot of nice things to say about the school and its community.  It's like the grad school equivalent of where I work.  Speaking of where I work, our first two weeks are now done, and I'm really feeling confident about this school year.  The staff where I work is amazing, and seeing these systems I implemented last year roll the way they are, has made me happy.  Even though my teaching schedule has intensified with the addition of two classes, it's going back to that dine tuning that will help me find some equilibrium with my pseudo free time.

My summer was intense, no joke there.  I taught summer school, had to set up my new apartment, had to upgrade our equipment at work, and dealt with some family things (will go back to that in a little bit).  However, one of the best things was going to Hawaii this summer.  I'd like to think that I was celebrating the anniversary of my last Hawaii trip.  This time around I got to do some island hopping with going to Oahu with friends and being in Kauai with family.  Oahu was amazing, and even though the original intentions of being there changed, it was great seeing so many people I know and get along with all in one resort in Waikiki.  Not sure how that would happen again, and I'm even amazed it happened in the first place.  We had so much fun, have some great stories we brought back with us.

(Pearl Harbor)

(Waikiki)

It was also great going to Kauai where I have family in Lawai.  We had a great time, I got to meet my cousin-niece, and enjoyed relaxing.  We took it pretty mellow, which is just what I needed before I started school.

(At the Kauai Lighthouse with my awesome fam)

(Getting a late night treat)

Unfortunately, when I got back from Hawaii, things with my family took a bad turn. Shortly after my return, my grandmother, Esperanza, passed away. She was my mother's mother and she passed away suddenly. It all happened so quickly one night.  In a two hour span, the calls I got went from her being sick , to being in a hospital, to passing on.  It was dejavu of the worst possible kind.  My mother saw both of her parents go exactly four months apart.  She lost her father on April 14th and her mother on August 14th.  According to many, and I agree, he came to get her.  It took 24 hours after my grandmother's passing to get my mother to Guatemala, and those 24 hours her intense.  We went all over LA running errands for things my mom had to finalize before she left.  When I dropped her off at LAX, all I could think of was "Wow, I was just here doing the same thing." I have to give my mom kudos though, she kept her game face on given the advice she got from our whole family that she needed to hold it together and that she could let go (or explode) once she got to Guatemala. I still cannot imagine what's going on through her head then and now.  Losing a parent is bad enough, losing both, especially while she was still mourning and grieving over one, is something I can't even phantom dealing with.  The consensus amongst the people I know is that my grandfather came to get my grandmother so that they could spend the rest of their days in the next life together.  I'm keeping a special eye on my mom, as they are sure watching over her.

(My grandmother and I at the temple entrance in Esquipulas, Guatemala)

So my summer had its ups and downs, but keeping my head up and looking forward to what September and the time thereafter will bring.