The holiday season has been nice as we went on a two-day trip to Bakersfield!
Day 1
The trip began with a 255-mile drive to Bakersfield. Aside from a bathroom break at Casa de Fruta and another stop at a rest area for lunch, the drive was uneventful. There was some traffic, although we didn't arrive too late.
We unpacked our stuff and had some rest before going to the local Albertson's to buy food. The three of us had dinner before heading down to the fitness center. It was nice to burn off calories while watching the football game between UCLA and Kansas State.
Day 2
All of us woke up pretty early and had trouble sleeping again. On the other hand, the nice part about getting up early is that there is plenty of time to explore the area. Following a nice breakfast at the hotel, my family headed to Red Rock Canyon State Park for a hike. This was pretty fun, although we spent much of the time in the car as it was getting hot outside. We had to drive some very bumpy gravel roads to get back to the freeway. This was definitely an adventurous moment. On the whole, I'd say Red Rock Canyon State Park was the best part of the trip.
We turned back towards Bakersfield, stopping in Tehachapi on the way. This was a small town and reminded us of Niles. We spend a short time exploring the downtown. Mom then suggested going to the nearby Burger Spot to try out their ostrich burger. It didn't taste too different than a regular hamburger but was still delicious.
Back in Bakersfield, the three of us visited three thrift shops and went to WinCo Foods and Von's for groceries. Dinner again consisted of frozen meals. There wasn't much else to do in the area, although I watched X-Men: Days of Future Past on TV while my parents talked poetry.
Day 3
The three of us spent the morning exploring the downtown after another nice breakfast at the hotel. One notable stop was the Kern County Museum. It was really nice to check out the 50 original buildings from the county. The downside is that we wasted over half an hour here due to Groupon issues, but the clerk was kind enough to let us in for free our troubles.
This was followed by lunch at IHOP. The plan was to visit Taft as well, but we decided to leave that for another time as my parents were tired. The drive home was mostly uneventful.
Conclusions
The main reason for the trip was actually to visit the LIGO Hanford Observatory - which we thought was in Hanford, California. Mom knew I liked science and figured I'd be interested. Only after we left our house did we realize the observatory was in Washington. *facepalm*
Despite the mistake, Bakersfield was still pretty fun. Although we had passed it a few times on previous trips, this was our first time exploring the area in full. The hike in Red Rock Canyon State Park was definitely my favorite part of the trip. It's too bad we didn't have time to visit Taft or Carrizo Plain National Monument due to time constraints, but I'm sure we'll have plenty of opportunities to go there in the future.
Currently listening to: "Fox on the Run" by Sweet
Thursday, December 28, 2017
Friday, December 15, 2017
company holiday cruise
Today was my company's holiday cruise in San Francisco. It was so much fun!
I had to leave my house just after noon as boarding was scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m. Dad wanted to start out early because the route to San Francisco is often congested. The good news is that we arrived in San Francisco with plenty of time to spare. Because nobody else was there, my family went for a short stroll around the pier in the meantime. They then dropped me off at the gate as my co-workers started to arrive.
It was soon time to board the California Hornblower and get the party started. The boat then set sail 30 minutes later as dinner was served. The food wasn't that extraordinary - mainly because the prime rib was too tough - but that wasn't a big deal as the main purpose of the cruise was to enjoy the atmosphere.
There was also a DJ on board. Though not many people got up to dance, our senior executive administrator Jonell was more than happy to hit the dance floor. She was the life of the party. A lot of people later got on the observation decks to watch the sunset. This was a wonderful experience and brought back memories of the dinner cruise during our trip to Hawaii in 2002. The cruise also reminded me of the Boat Dance at Berkeley during my freshman year.
On the whole, the cruise couldn't have been better. I'd like to thank Jonell for organizing this event and am definitely looking forward to the one next year. Feel free to check out my pictures from the cruise.
Currently watching: Wonder Woman (2017)
I had to leave my house just after noon as boarding was scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m. Dad wanted to start out early because the route to San Francisco is often congested. The good news is that we arrived in San Francisco with plenty of time to spare. Because nobody else was there, my family went for a short stroll around the pier in the meantime. They then dropped me off at the gate as my co-workers started to arrive.
It was soon time to board the California Hornblower and get the party started. The boat then set sail 30 minutes later as dinner was served. The food wasn't that extraordinary - mainly because the prime rib was too tough - but that wasn't a big deal as the main purpose of the cruise was to enjoy the atmosphere.
There was also a DJ on board. Though not many people got up to dance, our senior executive administrator Jonell was more than happy to hit the dance floor. She was the life of the party. A lot of people later got on the observation decks to watch the sunset. This was a wonderful experience and brought back memories of the dinner cruise during our trip to Hawaii in 2002. The cruise also reminded me of the Boat Dance at Berkeley during my freshman year.
On the whole, the cruise couldn't have been better. I'd like to thank Jonell for organizing this event and am definitely looking forward to the one next year. Feel free to check out my pictures from the cruise.
Currently watching: Wonder Woman (2017)
Sunday, December 10, 2017
book club holiday party report
Two months ago, I joined a book club for people in their 20s and 30s on the recommendation of my father. The nice thing is that we just had our annual holiday potluck and book exchange!
This year's event took at Elizabeth's house. After everyone got some food, each of us introduced ourselves before participating in the book exchange. Because we were going by white elephant rules, people were allowed to "steal" others' books. The whole thing was pretty hilarious. I gave away The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien and ultimately received Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl. Though my top choice was "stolen" by others, I've heard Man's Search for Meaning is a great book too.
Our organizer Dane later brought out some board games. Everyone then decided to play the adult version of Codenames after the exchange. It definitely brought out the 14-year-old in all of us. I think our parents would freak out at all the dirty conversations being thrown around. :P
On the whole, the party was lots of fun. It was supposed to run from 4 to 8 p.m. per the invitation, but everyone had such a great time that some of us stayed for almost an extra hour. I'm glad I got into reading and am definitely looking forward to next year's holiday book exchange. For those of my San Francisco Bay Area readers who may also be interested in joining our club, here is a link to our Meetup group. :-)
Currently reading: Mapping the Interior by Stephen Graham Jones
This year's event took at Elizabeth's house. After everyone got some food, each of us introduced ourselves before participating in the book exchange. Because we were going by white elephant rules, people were allowed to "steal" others' books. The whole thing was pretty hilarious. I gave away The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien and ultimately received Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl. Though my top choice was "stolen" by others, I've heard Man's Search for Meaning is a great book too.
Our organizer Dane later brought out some board games. Everyone then decided to play the adult version of Codenames after the exchange. It definitely brought out the 14-year-old in all of us. I think our parents would freak out at all the dirty conversations being thrown around. :P
On the whole, the party was lots of fun. It was supposed to run from 4 to 8 p.m. per the invitation, but everyone had such a great time that some of us stayed for almost an extra hour. I'm glad I got into reading and am definitely looking forward to next year's holiday book exchange. For those of my San Francisco Bay Area readers who may also be interested in joining our club, here is a link to our Meetup group. :-)
Currently reading: Mapping the Interior by Stephen Graham Jones
Sunday, November 26, 2017
an amazing Thanksgiving long weekend
I had a great long weekend as we went to our family friend Henry's annual Thanksgiving party and did lots of other things!
Thursday
I'll have to admit that I slept in really late. Considering that I have a long commute, I often don't get much sleep on weekdays. It was definitely nice to get some extra rest.
We then went to our family friend Henry's house for their annual Thanksgiving party. The food was really good as always. It was also nice to meet the girls and Steven again.
Though the Tings were out of town and didn't come this time, the Changs did invite another family over: the Tus. The cool thing is that their son Joshua is an EDM producer and showed us all the tracks he's written. That was impressive, considering that he's only in 10th grade.
This year, I'm especially thankful for my new job. Not only does it perfectly match my interests, the office is in a really nice place. I couldn't ask for a better place to work.
Friday
The weather in the morning was nice and made for a great hike on the Stevens Creek Trail. This was first time there in quite a while.
The plan was to watch the 2017 film The Mummy after dinner. However, Dad and I went to the library to pick up the DVD only to find that it was closed for the day, Therefore, my family went to Nob Hill Foods for groceries instead.
Saturday
The plan was to go on a day trip to Petaluma. But because my gum has been sore for several days after I got a filling redone, Dad decided to take me back to the dentist just in case. The good news is that it wasn't anything serious. The good news is that the dentist redid the filling so that food would no longer get stuck there and irritate my gums.
Due to time constraints, my family decided not to go to Petaluma and went to Half Moon Bay instead. We headed there straight after leaving the dentist's office. Dad had wanted to order some food there, but we decided to head home instead after seeing the long lines.
Dad and I went to the library to pick up some DVDs. The three of us then watched The Mummy after dinner. The movie was all right but didn't quite compare to the original 1999 one.
Sunday
Today was mostly uneventful. Having gone so many places, I mostly stayed home and relaxed, although I did play some RuneScape and watch Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 on DVD. That was definitely an awesome movie.
Another highlight was the RuneScape free weekend. In other words, Jagex is allowing all players to access the members servers for three days. That was definitely pretty awesome.
On the whole, this was one of the best Thanksgiving breaks. Things couldn't have been better.
Thursday
I'll have to admit that I slept in really late. Considering that I have a long commute, I often don't get much sleep on weekdays. It was definitely nice to get some extra rest.
We then went to our family friend Henry's house for their annual Thanksgiving party. The food was really good as always. It was also nice to meet the girls and Steven again.
Though the Tings were out of town and didn't come this time, the Changs did invite another family over: the Tus. The cool thing is that their son Joshua is an EDM producer and showed us all the tracks he's written. That was impressive, considering that he's only in 10th grade.
This year, I'm especially thankful for my new job. Not only does it perfectly match my interests, the office is in a really nice place. I couldn't ask for a better place to work.
Friday
The weather in the morning was nice and made for a great hike on the Stevens Creek Trail. This was first time there in quite a while.
The plan was to watch the 2017 film The Mummy after dinner. However, Dad and I went to the library to pick up the DVD only to find that it was closed for the day, Therefore, my family went to Nob Hill Foods for groceries instead.
Saturday
The plan was to go on a day trip to Petaluma. But because my gum has been sore for several days after I got a filling redone, Dad decided to take me back to the dentist just in case. The good news is that it wasn't anything serious. The good news is that the dentist redid the filling so that food would no longer get stuck there and irritate my gums.
Due to time constraints, my family decided not to go to Petaluma and went to Half Moon Bay instead. We headed there straight after leaving the dentist's office. Dad had wanted to order some food there, but we decided to head home instead after seeing the long lines.
Dad and I went to the library to pick up some DVDs. The three of us then watched The Mummy after dinner. The movie was all right but didn't quite compare to the original 1999 one.
Sunday
Today was mostly uneventful. Having gone so many places, I mostly stayed home and relaxed, although I did play some RuneScape and watch Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 on DVD. That was definitely an awesome movie.
Another highlight was the RuneScape free weekend. In other words, Jagex is allowing all players to access the members servers for three days. That was definitely pretty awesome.
On the whole, this was one of the best Thanksgiving breaks. Things couldn't have been better.
Tuesday, October 10, 2017
when your age is a perfect power of two
I just turned 32 years old. To a computer geek like me, this is a pretty special birthday because 32 is 0b100000 in binary. :-)
The best part is that my family went to Black Angus Steakhouse for dinner. The food was really good yet not too expensive. I especially loved the lobster and the steak soup. The free entree and dessert made things even better.
The rest of the evening was uneventful because I have to get up early for my commute, but this is definitely one of the best birthdays I've had in years.
Currently reading: The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
The best part is that my family went to Black Angus Steakhouse for dinner. The food was really good yet not too expensive. I especially loved the lobster and the steak soup. The free entree and dessert made things even better.
The rest of the evening was uneventful because I have to get up early for my commute, but this is definitely one of the best birthdays I've had in years.
Currently reading: The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
Tuesday, September 5, 2017
Labor Day long weekend report
I had a great Labor Day long weekend even though it was extremely hot outside.
The best part is that our family friend Linda invited us to a party at her house on Sunday. Mom's friend Lily also carpooled with us. Linda had asked us to arrive early as there were some things she wanted to discuss with my parents. The plan was to go hiking together, but we changed our minds because the weather was too hot.
After the others arrived, all of us went to the Ly Luck Restaurant in Oakland for lunch. Everything was really good, especially the giant clam with vermicelli. Back at Linda's house, the other adults talked while I read a book and surfed the web on my phone. I'll have to admit it was a little boring as there was nobody my age. On the other hand, all of the snacks were delicious.
Though Lily said her husband could pick her up at her house, Mom insisted on giving her a ride home. This did mean a longer drive, but we enjoyed hearing about her recent trip to Alaska. It definitely reminded me of our own trip there many years ago.
Lily invited us to hang out at her place for a while. This was our first time going to her house in around 20 years. The Shuehs showed my parents their souvenir collection while I chatted with their son Alan. It was around 7 p.m. when we finally got home!
The rest of the weekend was uneventful. Due to the heat wave, none of us wanted to spend much time outdoors except during our evening strolls. On the other hand, I got to watch several episodes of The Flash (the 2014 series) and get RuneScape membership again. So yeah, this was an awesome weekend. :-)
Currently reading: What Every Body is Saying by Joe Navarro
The best part is that our family friend Linda invited us to a party at her house on Sunday. Mom's friend Lily also carpooled with us. Linda had asked us to arrive early as there were some things she wanted to discuss with my parents. The plan was to go hiking together, but we changed our minds because the weather was too hot.
After the others arrived, all of us went to the Ly Luck Restaurant in Oakland for lunch. Everything was really good, especially the giant clam with vermicelli. Back at Linda's house, the other adults talked while I read a book and surfed the web on my phone. I'll have to admit it was a little boring as there was nobody my age. On the other hand, all of the snacks were delicious.
Though Lily said her husband could pick her up at her house, Mom insisted on giving her a ride home. This did mean a longer drive, but we enjoyed hearing about her recent trip to Alaska. It definitely reminded me of our own trip there many years ago.
Lily invited us to hang out at her place for a while. This was our first time going to her house in around 20 years. The Shuehs showed my parents their souvenir collection while I chatted with their son Alan. It was around 7 p.m. when we finally got home!
The rest of the weekend was uneventful. Due to the heat wave, none of us wanted to spend much time outdoors except during our evening strolls. On the other hand, I got to watch several episodes of The Flash (the 2014 series) and get RuneScape membership again. So yeah, this was an awesome weekend. :-)
Currently reading: What Every Body is Saying by Joe Navarro
Monday, August 7, 2017
a final farewell to Eileen
You may remember that our family friend Eileen recently passed away a few days ago. Today was the celebration of her life.
Only my parents attended the viewing because I was at work and they didn't want it to impact me too much. Dad then picked me up at the BART station near my office before we met up with the other people at Eileen's house. It was pretty crowded as Eileen's family and other friends were all there.
This was followed by dinner at a Chinese restaurant. There was lots of food, but I was admittedly feeling a bit emotional and didn't eat much. On the other hand, I got to meet many of Eileen's relatives. Though it was nice to get acquainted with them, this definitely wasn't the situation in which I wanted that to happen. The plan was to go back to Eileen's house afterwards, but we decided to head home because everyone was getting tired.
It's a little sad to realized that one of our closest family friends is gone. I'm going to miss Eileen for sure. :-(
Currently listening to: "You Raise Me Up" by Josh Groban
Only my parents attended the viewing because I was at work and they didn't want it to impact me too much. Dad then picked me up at the BART station near my office before we met up with the other people at Eileen's house. It was pretty crowded as Eileen's family and other friends were all there.
This was followed by dinner at a Chinese restaurant. There was lots of food, but I was admittedly feeling a bit emotional and didn't eat much. On the other hand, I got to meet many of Eileen's relatives. Though it was nice to get acquainted with them, this definitely wasn't the situation in which I wanted that to happen. The plan was to go back to Eileen's house afterwards, but we decided to head home because everyone was getting tired.
It's a little sad to realized that one of our closest family friends is gone. I'm going to miss Eileen for sure. :-(
Currently listening to: "You Raise Me Up" by Josh Groban
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