100 words | last day

This is the 100th and last 100 word post. Thanks for reading.

The last day of the year is always a little bittersweet for me. I usually look over the past year and take inventory of all that’s happened. The overwhelming feeling is that 2011 hasn’t been a good year. I keep thinking about the rough times this year, which definitely weren’t fun. Then I think about the good times I’ve had: the trips, the friendships, and the year always seems to balance itself back out. I’m not sure how I’ll remember this year in the future, but for now, I can only hope that I make the most of next year.

100 words | coffee cup eruption

This morning I thought it’d be a good idea to grab coffee at common grounds before coming into the office. I thought nothing of the lid as I secured it to the cup, since it had a normal opening. As I was getting off the freeway on Jst, there was a slight pothole on the lane that I was in. Oh my goodness. I looked over at the cup, and as if in slow motion, coffee shot up from the hole of the lid into the air (at least half a foot) and came crashing down everywhere. Grr... Happy Friday.

100 words | no thanks, I don’t commute to work on a hang glider

Why do products these days assume that you lead a more active lifestyle than 007? Yesterday, my coworker showed me his new lunchbox, which had room not only for a sandwich and capri sun, but also carabineers for additional bottles and slots for energy gel packs. Watches these days go down to 12,000m underwater and have emergency transmitters, backpacks come with snowboard tools and foldout beach changing mats, and cars come with bulletproof panels. Basically, there are no longer products designed for the sedentary soul. I’m good on the lunchbox, I’ll take my lunch to work in a safeway bag.

100 words | I will probably be excommunicated for saying this but…

Would acacians be averse to paying dues? This may not be a popular idea, but please let me explain. If people paid, say, $100 a year to be a member of Acacia, it’ll cover church lunch, retreat, and any incidental costs that the fellowship may incur throughout the year. Whatever is left over can go to a rainy day fund, and it will likely encourage more budgetary discretion when planning church lunches and retreats. This would also clearly differentiate the members from guests and visitors and encourage members to attend as they have a vested interest. Just a random brainfart…

100 words | airport fun

Not all airports were created equal. There are fun ones, ones that have places to explore, things to do. Then there are airports where the most exciting feature is the scrolling flight status screen (believe me, it's no big whup). The dilemma here is, what do I do in those airports? I tried playing games, but angry birds can only take you so far on a four hour layover. People watching's (noncreeper kind) fun for a bit too, as you can sit there and make up stories about people who pass by.  What do you do for fun at airports?

100 words | sooo humid

I know, I’m from Shanghai, which is pretty much the humidest (I think that’s a word…) place on earth, but no, I’m not used to it. Every time I go anywhere that’s more humid than 40%, it’s game over, which kinda sucks, cuz a lot of places I like to go are humid. Sadly, I’m not made to be in hot and humid areas. Right now, I’m sitting here under the sun in 70% humidity (it’s soooo muggy). Bah humbug. I know it sounds weird, but I kinda wish I was back in Sac weather. Only a few more hours…

100 words | the cousins: Michelle

Michelle is Julie's younger sister, though they're quite different, with Michelle being a bit more outgoing and outspoken. I still remember the Friday she was born, since we had met their family the night before for thanksgiving dinner. It was quite an eventful weekend.

Julie and Michelle are quite close growing up, though they have different talents and interests. Michelle is also quite musically adept, having grown up at the piano bench, however she is definitely much more serious about her ballet commitments. It's been pretty amazing to watch these two grow up. *sigh* Man, I'm definitely getting older haha...

100 words | the cousins: Julie

Julie was the first cousin I watched grow up. We both grew up on the west coast, so our families always did stuff together. I still recall as a toddler, she couldn’t pronounce my name, so she would always call me “Duck”. To this day, every time I see Julie, I still think Duck haha. She has become an accomplished pianist and violinist, and has taken a shine to classical music. It was quite a shock when she got old enough to add me on Facebook. Ahh, she's all grown up and off to college now. Man how time flies.

100 words | the cousins: Christine

Ahh Christine. We call her Tintin because that’s her chinese nickname. She’s the next oldest cousin (younger than Kathy by two months), and we share the same birthday. We also represent the state school demographic in our family (Davis/ Pitt). Christne’s probably the one I talk to the most, usually because she’s on gchat 24/7 and generally replies to facebook posts in under ten seconds. I tested this once, leaving a comment on her status at midnight PST (she’s three hours ahead too). Within ten seconds she’ll like the comment, post a reply, and hit me up on gchat. Efficient.

100 words | the cousins: Kathy

Since I’m at a family reunion and I’m always talking about my cousins, I might as well introduce them to you folks. It’ll be one a day till Christmas (there are four) in order of age.

Kathy’s the oldest cousin (and yet still a few years younger than me). She’s easily labeled the genius of the family, and it’s not hard to see why. She is very dedicated to her work and definitely has the natural talent. We all love her, but she tends to get into her work and it may be months before we hear from her haha, but I suppose genius has its price. She is currently in med school studying to be some kind of doctor. I think she tried it explain it to me once but I don’t recall understanding. Typical =P

100 words | shenanigans seem to follow me...

It's never good when your opening line to a TSA agent is "so I got this knife..." It all started with a pocket knife I had since my youth. I was operating on no sleep and wasn't thinking. The exact moment they took my checked bag, I realized that the multitool was still in my pocket. Wait! Too late. Can't bring it back. Now, my only option was to check another bag ($$35!!). Fine... I said, as I checked my carry on. Of course, ten minutes later the flight got cancelled and I got both bags back. *sigh* shenanigans.

100 words | starting off the day with the most pointless flight ever.

*update* this flight has been cancelled. Crisis averted.

Don’t get me wrong, I love vacations, and flying is always an adventure, but is it necessary to have a flight that goes from Sac to SF? I realize that there are many more direct flights from SFO, but in this case, I still have two more connections after this. Not to mention the fact that the plane is a twin propeller plane that probably doubles as a cropduster. This whole thing has a Buddy Holly flying over Iowa feel to it. I hope everything will be fine, but if we go down, we better hit something hard. Just saying.

100 words | bicycle deck

As I pack for the family reunion this week, I am reminded of the old trips we used to take to places like Vancouver and Niagara Falls. I remember all the cousins sitting in the back of the van, the sound of shuffling and dealing filling the air as we played game after game of BS or deuces. Man those were the good old days. Every family reunion we’d always play cards to kill time during car rides, stopping only to find the cards that fell through the cracks of the seats. Hmm, maybe I’ll bring two decks this time.

100 words | oh target…

Last night, as I was prepping for the children’s object lesson, I found a creative way to use candy canes. So I head to Target, and this is what happened:

Me: Hi, where are your candy canes?
Guy: Our fruit flavored ones are right here…
Me: Yea um… what about the red and white ones?
Guy: What do you mean red and white ones?
Me: You know, the traditional ones?
Guy: Uhm, I don’t think we carry those…

*sigh* Target, if you must hire teenagers, please teach them about Christmas traditions. Your logo is red and white for goodness sake.

100 words | a very davis Christmas

Right now I am taking everything in slowly, enjoying, savoring every bit of these next few weeks in Davis. You see, the population in this little college town nosedives in December and (thanks to the four week winter break these lucky students get) a good chunk of January as well. The line at safeway is shorter, parking in downtown is manageable, and they’re opening a Whole Foods here (ok that’s not related to students leaving, but still…). It’s funny, I used to think big city life was for me, but now, I get joy when my little town is deserted.

100 words | jack and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad mistake

Jack knew it was bad when he woke up this morning. There was a fright on his mind as he realized his slight. Oh no! He thought, “what on earth did I do?!” He bound out of bed and logged on his computer. Please, please, let it not be so! He log on to the site and waited and waited, wondering, praying, that he was just having a dream. It was a mistake, an oversight, an accidental click! His heart sank as the page slowly loaded. He clicked and clicked but the words wouldn’t change: Vacation Sold - one week.

100 words | pass the salt

Have you ever eaten with someone with whom you have nothing in common? A few minutes of small talk and then the awkward silence? It starts off with a little “hey how’s it going?” followed by some chit chat about how the weather’s turning a little milder over the last few weeks. This is generally accompanied by some nervous glances to the side and one or two nervous smiles at the other person just to be polite. After exhausting the last bit of small talk, all you can muster up is “pass the salt.” Exciting stuff. Happened earlier this week.

100 words | five pounds of peanut butter?

I have two days left to pick out a white elephant gift for work. $25 limit and gift cards are out of the question. I’m trying to go for gender neutral. I already did a lego castle last year. Snuggies have become passé. Some coworkers like to bring liquor, but that sends an inappropriate message. At least two of my coworkers are doing starbucks mugs. So now what am I left with? I can’t do sports stuff, since everyone’s a fan of different teams. BBQ equipment is out of season. Ahh poop. White elephant gifts should not be this difficult.

100 words | 13 years ago today

I was in the middle of my freshmen year at Saint Francis, and the prospect of speaking in front of people was mortifying. That Sunday afternoon, I was getting baptized, and had to give my testimony while standing waist deep in water. What if I got nervous and threw up in the baptism pool? What if my glasses floated away as I was getting dunked and I emerged a publicly professed Christian, but blind as a bat? Needless to say, I now recall that day with fondness. It’s been thirteen years, and yet I still have so much to grow.

100 words | Philippians 1:20

Yesterday in Sunday school, my group went over the story of the martyrdom of John and Betty Stam. They were the first missionary family to settle in China, with a young baby in their care. The family was captured by the red army when their city was attacked, and the couple was killed the next day. It’s quite a sad story, but in John’s letter to CIM before the execution, he included the verse: That Christ may be glorified whether by life or by death. (Philippians 1:20) That verse stuck out in my mind all day yesterday. Thought I’d share.

(ok… ending it on a happier note…here’s a giant lego head/box I saw at target yesterday…)