August 30, 2009

Zoo Party for Kapiolani Medical Center

Today I headed over to the zoo for a free family day with my sister, sister-in-law and two nieces. Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children was celebrating its centennial celebration and was offering free admission by simply downloading a pass from the net.

We got there a little after 11 a.m., but it was difficult to find a place to park. Apparently there was a free shuttle to and from KCC but we didn't know it at the time. Luckily, my sister is renovating a studio in Waikiki so we used its parking structure.

On the way to the zoo, we stopped off at Rainbows for some burgers and plate lunches. Yummy! I haven't eaten there in forever. It was like coming home. I got the hamburger steak, my sister got their roast pork and we split it. Delish! When our stomachs were full, we went into the zoo.

I haven't been to the zoo in probably ten years or so and I have to admit that it has improved quite a bit. A lot of the enclosures are new and there's more food places. Today, there were tons of tents set up with activities for the kids. I think my nieces had a great time. We wandered through the zoo, and most of the animals were where I remembered them to be. I'm not sure if they're the same ones though. My friend the tortoise wasn't in his enclosure, but we did see him in a back area. God, he was there when I was a kid. Wonder just how old he is?

Despite the extreme heat, it was a good day. The place was packed full of kids of all ages. I think the event was quite a success for Kapiolani.

August 29, 2009

Opa!

Tonight I went to the Greek Festival with my friend Elle. It was held at McCoy Pavilion and was completely packed. It was $3.00 at the door to get in, and there were many booths - food, drinks, crafts and religious icons. There was also live music on a stage and dispersed around the pavilion in the form of single singers with guitars (or whatever the Greek equivalent is called).

The lines were ridiculously long when we got there at 7:00 p.m. I advise that you come earlier . . . either that, or don't go on an empty stomach. It was really hard to stand in line for 20 minutes when I was starving. Also, if you go too late they'll be no food. There's an area called Ethnic Foods where you can get a plate of diffent things for about $10.00-12.00. By the time we got around to it, they were saying there might not be any food left. The two girls in front of us were the official cut off. We might wait a half hour and walk away with nothing. Luckily, we were able to get a plate and have dinner, even though some of the entres were sold out already.

We stopped by the pastry section and picked some up to go. We tried the kataifi, which is like shredded wheat over a really sweet honey sauce. Too sweet for me. We also tried the kourambiedes (aka wedding cookies) because I had heard about them a lot. They were okay - not as sweet as the kataifi but nothing special either. They tasted like shortbread cookies covered in powdered sugar.

Overall, it was an okay night out. Nothing much happened and we didn't stick around too long. It was just too crowded and there really wasn't a lot of stuff to look at. It was also pretty dark in areas, even though there were lights strung up. This was my first and probably last time there. I'll wait for the real thing.

Visian ICL - Pre-Comprehensive Exam

Back in June I went in for some consultations on corrective eye surgery. I was able to watch both procedures live, which was pretty cool. The Lasik surgery was extremely fast and looked painless. The Visian seemed a little longer, although it was definitely less than 15 minutes.

I decided on the Visian ICL procedure over the Lasik because I feel more comfortable that it isn't permanent. Hopefully I'll never need to undo the surgery, but I like knowing that it can be done. With Lasik, once they blast your eye with the laser, the cells don't grow back. I mean, on the off chance that there's an eff up, you'd be screwed. With Visian, they can remove the implant and you can go back to how you were pre-op.

Anyway, my comprehensive eye exam is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. This is when they will do all the elaborate measurings and readings of my eyes. If I remember right, they said it'll take two hours. Once this is done, they can order the lenses. The surgeries are scheduled for the following two Wednesdays (only one eye at a time).

Because of the exam on Tuesday, I have to wear glasses from now till then. This is supposed to allow your eyes to return to their normal shape. I guess contacts of any kind reshape the surface of your eyes if you wear them for too long. I've had contacts since the fifth grade so I guess that's sufficiently long enough. On a positive note, I wear soft lenses so I only need to remove my lenses a few days prior to the exam. If you wear hard lenses, you have to take out your contacts for a couple weeks, I think.

If you're like me and never wear your glasses outside of your house, wearing them now is like a slow torture. I keep telling myself that I'll never have to wear glasses again, but the next four days will be a killer. Since I'm not used to wearing glasses more than a couple hours at a time, this should be a painful experience for me. Even now, after wearing them for only a couple hours, they feel extremely heavy. At least I only have to wear them for two days at work though.

August 28, 2009

Five Readers A Reality?

I just found out that hemajang, one of the (very few) readers of my other blog called Movie Addicts Club, suggested the blog to one of the Advertiser's bloggers. Is that the most confusing sentence or what? Anyway, he said she told him she'd be contacting me. We'll see what happens since they already have a movie blog among their ranks. It would be pretty awesome to have my own blog on the Advertiser. It'll make closing in on my goal of five regular readers a possibility and not just a dream! LOL! I'll keep you posted.

August 26, 2009

Bucket List - Week 20 Update

Don't think I've made much progress on my Bucket List, but I guess an update is needed.

Bucket List #1
Still working on this one. I haven't heard from my publisher in a while. I also haven't heard anything on the new submission I sent out. It's just a wait-and-see game right now.

Bucket List #2-5
Still haven't decided where we're going for our European jaunt in 2010. It'll probably be one of these places.

Bucket List #10
We're also considering Australia for 2010 so this might be a reality sooner than I thought. If not, a friend of mine actually won a chance to go cage diving with sharks out on the North Shore. No great whites, but I'm sure it's almost the same.

Bucket List #16
I think I found an interesting non-profit group at which I might want to volunteer. I need to check their website again and contact them for details. The group is Hawaii Literacy and they have an orientation coming up that I'm going to try to attend. Gotta double check the schedule because I'm getting my Visian ICL surgery done in September.

Bucket List #39
After the Visian, hopefully I'll be able to see like a child again. Darn these bad genes.

Bucket List #55
Right now I'm a few chapters into a book called Escape from Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur. So far, it's a little on the dry side. I'm hoping it picks up soon. Otherwise, I'm going to look for another book for August. At this rate, I might just need to do two for September.

Bucket List #67
I've been to the driving range two weekends in a row and seemed to be getting better. However work and illness got in the way two weekends in a row too. Now my dad's in Reno golfing with his buds so that'll take away another weekend. I'll eventually get back to it.

Bucket List #70
I've got the sewing machine still in the box it came in. I gotta clean up around here so I can have a nice little area where I can get down to business. How exactly do you sew? You got me.

Bucket List #72
Yes, I'm working on it.

August 21, 2009

Hell Two-Weeks Finally Over

I made it through 12 of 12 days of work. I feel like I should get down on my knees and praise the lord . . . or not. I have to admit that the business retreat for work went pretty well. It seemed to me that everyone had a good time. Hopefully this is reflected in the event reviews.

Our speaker was Bruce Goeas, and for the most part I enjoyed his presentation. The topic was communication, and he covered effective/ineffective communication, communication tools and generational communication. I think it's very timely, especially for our company that continues to grow rapidly. The generational communication was interesting since we have four generations within our organization as well as among the members we serve. Hopefully that'll allow people to understand each other better.

I learned that I'm on the cusp between Gen X and the Millennials aka Gen Y. I discovered I shared a lot of the viewpoints and attitudes stereotypical of these groups. Here are some beliefs for these groups:

Gen X - realistic; want to get the info straight without beating around the bush; work/life balance is important; and cynical about everything.

Millennials - want their work to have meaning; want to work smarter and faster instead of harder and longer; technology savvy; and believe that they are entitled (because they've been told they can do anything in the world since they were in diapers).

It's quite interesting and significant to ponder how these attitudes differ from the Traditionalists and Boomers. No wonder it's hard to communciate. Each group certainly has their own lingo, value set and life expectations. You never know what troll you will encounter when crossing those bridges.

August 19, 2009

Bucket List - Week 19 Update

Again, been too busy to work on my Bucket List. This is now day 10 of 12 days of working. I can almost see the end of the tunnel and am just trying to hang on by my nails.

August 16, 2009

Finance Expo Recap

I spent this weekend at the Blaisdell at the 2009 Personal Finance Expo, the first of its kind for Hawaii. Boy, oh boy, was it slow. Who was the genius who thought to schedule it the same weekend as Bayfest? What a winner!

It was estimated that about 16,000 people would be in attendance according to the organizers. I think they'd be lucky if 2,000 showed up to Saturday and Sunday combined. What a waste of time and man hours. Thank god it's all over.

Despite the hours of intense boredom, the staff who volunteered to come down and help did liven things up a bit. I forgot what it was like to enjoy people around you. Obviously, I don't enjoy my boss' company. It was good to interact with people from other departments. We laughed and joked around like normal people. Jesus, what a fricken concept! People who have a good time together. You can tell I'm terribly deprived of this on a regular basis. Still, it was too much to hope for that my boss wouldn't pull his childish act or snap at someone during this event. He did both today.

I cannot understand how anyone can work alongside this guy and yet I am forced to do so. The guy is a total ass whether he wants to admit it or not. I think it's better when these assholes just embrace it and don't try to hide it. I can almost respect them for standing their ground and just fully living it up. Not my boss. There are moments when I think he believes himself to be sincere and caring, and he tries to pull off the nice guy act. But these childish tantrums that he throws every once in a while just blow his act to hell.

My boss is a grown-ass man and I bet he'd love to just throw himself down on the floor and roll around crying like this kid. At least there's hope that this kid will eventually grow out of it. If not, well then at least he's a cute-looking kid.

August 13, 2009

A Waltz For A Night

I have always believed that I was a cynic . . . either that or very firmly planted on the side of realism. But I just watched Before Sunrise and Before Sunset, starring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, and find that I may have misjudged myself entirely for a majority of my life.

It is shocking to uncover, so late in the game, that I am a closet romantic. Yeah, I know. It's a trip. But the films moved me to tears, and that can only happen if I'm a romantic. I saw myself in the characters. It felt like I had lived their lives. Maybe I had . . . a lifetime ago . . . but it feels so real now watching these movies.

The minimalist nature of the two films captured me. The experiences these two strangers had and shared with one another were moving. The transient nature of their relationship contrasted with the deep impact of it is utterly bittersweet. The beauty in the mundane is also significant - as much to me as a viewer as it is to them. There is something strangely poignant about their separation and reunion that reaches into my very core.

August 12, 2009

Bucket List - Week 18 Update

I've been too busy at work to do anything on my Bucket List. Work has become an immense strain on my relatively peaceful existence. I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do about it though. Taking it one day at a time is the only thing I got at this point.

August 11, 2009

I Work Hard For My Money

Today is day 2 of 12 work days in a row. Throw in three days of events and two days of major prep time and you can tell life just sucks these days.

On top of that, no overtime and no comp time (well, unless there's a significant amount of begging). I refuse to speak to my boss for that long so I guess there won't be any begging going on.

At least I have a job though, right? That's looking on the bright side.

August 10, 2009

Thar She Blows

The Hawaiian islands have been bracing for a storm for the past couple of days. It is expected to hit us on Wednesday. Felicia's current path is headed straight toward us, but luckily she seems to be losing some steam.

The storm watch has been called off for the Big Island but still remains in effect for Maui county and Oahu. Despite this, the weather today was actually nice. We had blue skies most of the day with some drizzling here and there.

I think we'll all be fine, if not just a bit wetter than normal. We'll see what happens.

August 7, 2009

Don't Let The Bastards Keep You Down

You ever feel like throwing shit around, ripping stuff up and then stomping outta the room? Felt like that today at work.

Today, I officially hate my job.

It has now become extremely taxing for me to get up every morning to drag my ass to work. Of course, I'm too responsible to just not show up, but I daydream about it sometimes. I daydream about hitting my boss upside the head like Gibbs does to Tony on NCIS. I daydream about flipping him the bird. I daydream about telling him he's a big, fat weiny!

Not only does my boss suck like a Dirt Devil on crack, he's so annoying that my eyeballs feel as though they're becoming dislodged from all the rolling they're doing. I can, at this point in time, admit to fully hating him. And that is not a statement I make lightly. It's not something I say about everyone who pisses me off. Just the special ones.

I really feel like he ruined my weekend. Despite it being Friday and not having to see him till Monday, I still feel irkatated by the mere thought of him. I feel like screaming because I'm just so frustrated with him and my life. I mean, I'm a good person. What did I do to get stuck with him as a boss? It's like a jail sentence I tell you.

I will seriously begin to think about my future and where I want to do with my life. I don't know if I can stick it out for much longer at this job, and he is too young to retire, so the choice is clear at this point. It is either him or me, and damn it, I choose me!

Maybe I can transfer to another department? Maybe I can find a new job? Maybe I really will apply for the Peace Corps or to teach ESL overseas? God, being a continent away sounds so good right about now.

In any case, I'll have to settle for the simple joy of listening to this song.

August 6, 2009

RIP John

I just read that John Hughes died today. WTF?!?!

Man, that's such a loss. He had a huge impact on kids growing up in the '80s. While I was probably a little too young to fully enjoy The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, Sixteen Candles, Ferris Bueller's Day Off and all the other great teen flicks when they were first released, I've been able to watch a lot of them over the years.

In each film, Hughes was able to capture the teen experience with honesty and was never patronizing about it. People, teens especially, could relate to the hurdles his characters faced because they had lived through them too. Hughes never diminished the significance of getting to first base or waiting around for a boy to call. These were, and still are, stressful times that everyone experiences growing up, and I don't think anyone has been able to capture this feeling or time of life as well as he did.

He will be missed.

August 5, 2009

Bucket List - Week 17 Update

I've got a several updates to my Bucket List.

Bucket List #16
After checking out a couple websites and considering what my future goals are, I think Hawaii Literacy might be the best fit for me. I still need to really look into their website and see the different programs they have, but I think I'd like to do some tutoring. They seem to have an extensive adult tutoring program where they train you. That seems pretty cool. Hopefully, this experience will help me decide whether or not I should seriously consider teaching English overseas.

Bucket List #55
I finished reading I Will Teach You To Be Rich and am so surprised at all that I learned from it. That's not because of any genius I have but moreso the genius of the author Ramit Sethi.

Bucket List #67
Went to the driving range this past Saturday and had a good time. Every part of my body hurt, but that's part of the learning curve since I'm totally out of shape. I plan to do it again this weekend.

Bucket List #70
Still haven't done anything with the sewing machine. I've gotta clean out an area of my apartment and set it up. I don't really have an area so it might be a problem.

Bucket List #87
Decided that I can't do the line dancing class. It conflicts with my corrective eye surgery. I really want to do it though so I'm planning to look for other classes or maybe just check out the next time it open up. Stay tuned for some "yeehaw" and "y'all."

August 3, 2009

Range of Aches and Pains

On Saturday I went out to Kapolei Golf Course with my dad for my first official golf lesson. No, he's not some club pro or part of that KCC class I registered for. He's just my dad. I asked him to take me out because I figured I shouldn't wait around for the fall class to discover the joy (and pain) that is golf.

So we went out there to the driving range and bought a bucket of balls ($4 a bucket). Over the next hour and half, he did his best to acquaint me with some irons and woods. Let me tell you that it was definitely harder to do than I remember. I've only been the driving range a couple of times in my life and all when I was younger and relatively fit. Now I feel like an out-of-shape, uncoordinated buffoon trying to hit these elusive neon yellow balls.

You'd think that you'd be able to hit the ball every time you swung a club. For goodness sake, the thing is not even moving. It's not like a baseball or tennis ball that can curve or dip away from you. This little ball is just sitting there patiently waiting for you to whack it down the course. Yet, somehow this simple task takes all your concentration and effort . . . and still there is no guarantee that the ball will be moving at all.

Needless to say there were tons of times when I either missed the ball completely or topped it off. Other times I'd be lucky enough to dribble it 10 feet away from me. I'd call it a success if it was 10 feet directly in front of me. But no, now and again it'd squirt to the left or right of straight ahead.

I don't know how golfers do it. There's so much to remember and think of before every shot. Check your grip. Plant your feet. Bend your knees. Pick up the club head. Don't try to crank it. Just make contact. Slow down your tempo. Keep your head down. Oh my gosh it's so frustrating.
Besides all that, you begin to notice that your body is aching in places you never thought would ache. If your hands are like mine (ie. delicate from all that indoor office work I do 40 hours a week), then let me warn you of the possibility of blisters. If no blisters develop (lucky you), you'll definitely have achy finger joints. I'm serious. Who would've thought, right? But today my hands hurt when I close them and seem to have no strength to grip anything. I also have two minor blisters from yesterday's adventure.

In addition to these sore hands, I've got muscles everywhere screaming that they've been used and abused for no reason at all. Wrist, forearms, shoulders, back, stomach, quads, hamstrings and calves. Pretty much every major muscle is tight from yesterday's exersion. Don't let anyone tell you golf is a safe, non-contact sport. This game touches every part of your body, especially if you're not in shape (which I fully admit to not being).

Still, despite all the muscular aches and pains that I have today, I was able to hit some good, solid shots yesterday. Oddly enough, it makes you feel good to hit a good one after so many bad ones. But I did make an improvement from start to finish, and that's the main idea of practicing is it not? I intend to try again next weekend and see if I can still remember all the rules. Hopefully my body will be more cooperative and not so shocked by the weird twisting and turning next time.