the roof, the roof, the roof is on fire.
we don't need no water, let the ...

if you've been watching the news, you've heard that northern LA has a few hill fires going on. the news stations state the fire fighters has them under control and so far, only one house has been lost to the fire. last night, while trying to sleep in the hot weather, it smelled like smoke the whole night. i think the winds have been carrying the smoke and ash down south. so much for planning to wash my car this weekend.

as i was just watching the news, they just reported that burbank has a new hill fire going on. i decided to look outside my window to see what direction it was at, and to my surprise, its just outside the window. don't worry, its still really far away. the 5 freeway is between us and the fire. i just hope it doesn't affect my commute to work. i better leave early today.

well thats it for now. i'll up date later. lates...

weekly update...

lost
i caught last night's episode of lost and i've got to say i'm crazy hooked. it keeps getting wierder and wierder that you have to watch it so see what comes next. and you really can't expect anything cuz they always throw something new into the mix. i love 24 but at end of the season, you kinda know jack is going to fix the problem and he's gonna come out alive (cuz they need him to do the next season). with lost, i'm not quite sure they're gonna be saved. and with all the wacky things that happen, it just grabs your attention. i just hope they don't go in to too many seasons cuz i won't be able to buy all the dvd box sets. i guess i'll just have to netflix it.


diversity training
last week at my job, we had an HR diversity training, which reminded me of that episode from 'the office'. HR went on how the company recognizes racial diversity and how we must learn to work with each others' racial background. all i'm thinking is that the company doesn't care what race you are, as long as you can lift a box. it was a bit odd as the room was filled with african americans, latinos, 2 asians (1 filipino and 1 japanese)... and no caucasians. there are caucasians who work there but they're the minority there. and from my perspective, we minorities aren't that PC with other minorities, as we are with the majority. so i don't have a problem, as long as you can lift a box.


star sighting
i've seen a few celebraties since my return back to LA. this makes my wife mad cuz she really wants to see one but i just happen to see them while doing normal things.

yesterday i had another star sighting. i saw drew barrymore at the 'family guy' office. at first i couldn't recognize her cuz she had long brown hair. then i heard her voice and i still couldn't figure out who it was. only till after i left the area it occured to me who it was. maybe she's going to be in an upcoming episode.

i also saw mila kunis from 'that 70's show' at the 'family guy' office. and when i heard her voice, thats one voice you can't forget. just like jackie from her show, it was pretty loud and piercing. i think she's friends with the creator of the 'family guy' as i heard her say 'come on seth, lets go'.

i think the one star sighting that really got my wife miffed was seeing nicole richie at a ralphs grocery store. we both had watched 'the simple life' so she knows who she is. it was on a weekday and the store was in studio city. at first i didn't recognize her cuz she doesn't wear all that make up as she does on tv. she was with her boyfriend and when i saw her small dog, i knew it was her. i was looking for a few items, running back and forth through the isles and i think maybe they thought i was a stalker cuz it seemed like i was following them. but i really don't care, i was just looking for the spagetti sauce. when i left the store, i heard the baggers talk about her and how she looked a bit different from tv.

i also caught paris hilton (not with nicole) walking towards the grove shopping mall. i was driving by in my truck and she had huge sunglasses on. but if you live in LA, you can tell when stars try to hide themselves by wearing huge hats and sunglasses. now if they really don't want to be recognized, why not wear normal clothes, no make up, and when people ask 'hey, are you paris hilton?', say 'um, sure, why not'. then it'll seem like you're just a normal person and wouldn't mind the attention. come on people, reverse psychology.

the only star sighting me and my wife had actually shared was seeing vanessa carlton play in a free outdoor concert at the santa monica 3rd street promenade. she was the one who sang 'a thousand miles'. i think most people watching the show didn't know who it was until she sang that song. i know i was asked a few times who it was and i had to explain it to them, and when she sang that song they said 'oh, now i know'.

once i bumped into finola hughes outside the e! entertainment building. she played anna was on 'general hospital'. i always thought she was good looking. i also thought she would have made a perfect couple with pierce bronson...being british and all.

my actually physical star sighting was with james cromwell. you might recognize him from his works like 'babe', 'the green mile', and 'star trek (something?)'. i delivered a package right to him. when i looked at the address, i thought it might be him. the address was to a nice gated apartment complex and it was from one of the major studios. when i knocked on the door, a young woman answered. then he came right to the door and signed for the package. i was running late so i couldn't really talk to him, i had more deliveries to do. i wonder if that young woman was his daughter or his wife. go figure.


well thats it for now. hope you all are well. catch ya later...peace out.

bad luck phil...

well i've named my bad luck, such as the hurricanes that have been hitting the gulf coast. my bad luck is named phil. so every time something bad happens, it just phil again. why phil? i was debating with either phil, gary, or ace, but phil got lucky.

so far phil has been coming in fast and hard. and phil doesn't quit. the results of phil are the following...

friday...
i called the shop in the morning to talk about my options. the manager said he could have the valve stem holes drill larger (which earlier was not recommended) to a normal size. he was going to call the machinist to see if it could be done on the same day and he would call me back with the info. i waited till around 4 pm and did not recieve a call back. so i called and the manager had already left for the day. the 'desk guy' said that the manager would pay for one wheel to be drilled ($50 a wheel) and i would have to pay for the other 3 to be drilled. this made no sense as only one wheel needed to be drilled but the machinist would only do the set of 4. and i was told that the machinist is closed on the weekend so there's no option to drill them this weekend. thanks for not calling me back earlier and giving me nothing to work with. the manager will be in at 7am tomorrow morning so i'll call then and chew him out.

saturday...
i called early in the morning to talk to the manager. he asked if anyone had 'called me back' and i said no (cuz it was i who did the calling). he went on how all 4 wheels will need to be drilled and how i would have to pay for 3 of them. i went off saying THEY were the ones who made this situation and i gave them my options on how to close this. the final solution was that i would buy a rim and they would reimburse me (up to $150), switch tires, and put on the new rim. i saw the same design wheel at the place where i first bought the rims (when i went in to ask about the valve stem), so i figured it was going to be easy.

after work, i went over to the store where i bought the wheels and saw my rim there. it seems that rim is only a display model and it doesn't have a valve stem either. then i asked if he could sell me the cheapest 17" rim he has so i can get my car back, but he didn't have any in stock. so i went to visit a few other places but found out that rims are usually sold in sets of 4 (not just one), and they often don't have them in stock (they'll have to order them). so after visiting 4 stores, i found one that would sell me just one.


so the first thing i asked was 'can you sell me just one rim?'. then i went through my whole story (which i told at all the stores because they don't understand why someone would need just one rim). and the guy said he would sell me the floor model and the best price he could give me was $175 (cuz they would have to special order one rim to replace the one i bought). after deciding that i might have to eat the $25 difference for the reimbursement, i agreed cuz i just want to get my car back. then the salesguy said 'you paying in cash?' and i said 'credit card'. he said if i paid in cash, he wouldn't charge me sales tax. so luckly there was a ATM across the street and i paid him in cash. the guy was cool and the new rim actually looked better than my old ones, so i told the guy that i might come back later to grab the other 3 when i have more money. he said he could get me a better deal when i come back to get the other 3. at least i'm a step closer to ending this whole crisis.


so i went home, ate lunch, showered up, packed, and left with my wife to san jo. we took highway 101 (which takes a bit longer than highway 5) and got dinner and gas half way through. when we got into south san jo, there was a truck that was doing over 90 mph in the car pool lane. i said 'man, where are the cops when you need them'. just then, a cop comes off an on-ramp, and sneaks through traffic towards the car pool lane. i figured the truck was going to get away since it took the cop a while to get through the traffic and into the car pool lane (and he didn't have his flashing lights on). later, in the distance, the cops lights came on but it was so far away that i lost sight of him. i wanted to see if the cop could catch up with the truck since the truck was so far away. about a few minutes later, we saw the cop and the truck on the side of the road, giving the driver a ticket. i wanted to stop and thank the cop for his good work but i didn't want to get shot.

we got into san jo around 11 pm, and luckly i had a spare key to rick's place. i have a keyring with tons of keys on it, where i don't know where they go to. we showered up and went to bed early.

sunday...
woke up early cuz i need all the time i can get to deal with up coming problems as they arrise. we were supposed to go pick up kenny and then drop off my new rim, but we left the house a bit late so i decided to drop off the new rim first, have breakfast with the so's, then pick up my car. when i got into the shop, i was waiting for the desk guy to get off the phone and noticed a wall full of rims. and what did i see...

THE SAME EXACT RIM STYLE AS MY OLD ONE!!! (but a different manufacture). my jaw just dropped as they could have just ordered this one and replaced my old broken one, and i would have had my car in a week. i stood there and told the guy that this is the same design as my old one. when i asked him how much it was, he said the company that they order from doesn't open during the weekends (just my luck). man was i pissed. so i dropped off my new rim and they said it would be ready in 30 minutes. we left to go pick up some McBreakfast and eat with the so's.

we got to the so's a bit late cuz i wanted to buy more oil for the so's CRX, wash the car, and pick up breakfast. we got to the so's, ate breakfast, and talked. by now, my car should have been finished and ready to be picked up. so after an hour and half, we all went to the shop.

my old rim
(isn't it the same one as the one above)

my new rim

we all poured in to the shop and i showed kenny the rim on the wall. i pretty made sure that i could be heard through out the shop cuz i wanted all the shop guys to hear it. i went on about how easy it would have been to just order that rim and replace mine, instead of running through LA looking for someone to sell me just one rim. i think when i left earlier, the desk guy must have called the manager and told him about the same rim on the wall. making him feel stoopid (which probably an easy task), he offered to pay for the full amount of the new rim.

then bad luck phil hits again. it seems while changing the tire, they ripped my old tire and had to replace it with one of their own. the shop guy tries to make me feel better telling me that they're giving me a free 'fuzion' tire, which i have no idea what that means. all i'm thinking is that they're such idiots to rip my tire in the first place. if you broke it, you bought it. so i ended coming out with a free new tire, a free new rim, and mixed matched wheels. i even had to go back into the store to ask for my old rim and broken valve stem back cuz i have an order for another valve stem coming in LA. of course, they lost my old broken valve stem. while we were leaving, i still wasn't feeling fully safe cuz you never know when phil will stike again.


previously we made plans to go to the gilroy outlets, meet with vince, and do some shopping. the guys walked around and played with spencer, while the girls did their shopping. then after a few hours we made our way back to LA.

no troubles coming back to LA. we got in safely around 11 pm, showered up, then hit the bed.

i'm debating on calling the shop manager and chewing him out about the rim on the wall, but i'll wait till they credit my credit card with the reimbursement payment cuz i want the money first. now i'll just wait until my other order of the valve stem comes in and see if its the right one. if it is, then i'll have a spare 17" wheel i can use if phil ever strikes my wheels again.

till later...peace out.
comment below if you like. =P

car update...

take a guess. oh come on, just guess.
that's right. after waiting 2 days after the date when the right part was supposed to be in, the 2 parts that came in were wrong. they still don't fit. this is after being told it was going to come in on tuesday and being told its 100% the right part. so now i have to call tomorrow morning to find out what are my options and if i can go up and pick up my car. if they keep my car for one more week, they would have it for a full whole month. i'm gonna press that they should just give me a whole new wheel (same style rim or not) and i'll fix it down here. or else put on 4 new tires on my old ones and i'll fix my rims later. either way, i'm determined to get my car this weekend or someone's gonna pay.


if you've watched the news, i'm sure you've heard about the jetblue plane landing without a working front wheel. thats some crazy stuff. and it seems like it could only happen in LA. with all the car chases, highway shooting, and crazy stuff that happens around here, it just fits in. there's always excitement around here.

i guess we'll see the outcome of my car tomorrow. thank goodness i haven't held my breath, cuz i would be dead by now. i just wish this whole thing would end. it getting to me that i'm starting to break out...and thats not good. maybe i should go to the gun shooting range and squeeze out a few. i'll put a picture of a tire as a target. take care all and wish me luck.

by the way, i hope rick and linda have a safe trip to hawaii tomorrow. aloha.

quick blog for the day...

um...I"m an Uncle! no, ricky didn't have a kid. my wife's brother had a baby boy. it never occurred to me that when they have a baby, i would be an uncle. it kinda shocked me when i was told cuz i wasn't prepared for it (not like you can really prepare for it or there's anything really to prepare for). i guess i was thinking that the only way i could be an uncle was if ricky had kids. and i'm an uncle to a kid who i've never met his parents yet (did you get that?). so when i go to japan, i guess i'll be greeting some kid with 'hi, i'm your uncle' (of course he won't understand me...he doesn't speak english).

well, i called the 'mechanic' (how loosely i use the term) and they said the part should be coming in either later today or tomorrow morning. of course, when i talked to them last week, they said it would have been in on tuesday...that was yesterday!!! so hopefully my car should be fixed by tomorrow (ah forget crossing my fingers, i'm just ready to give the finger) and we can pick it up this weekend. but i'm not holding my breath until i'm driving back to LA in my own car.

today i smashed my thumb in a folding handcart. it still hurts. i hope i didn't break anything. i think i just bruised it. can't this week just go away quietly?

i caught the season premier of 'lost'. man, its good but all i gotta say is...what the??? it keeps getting weirder and weirder. if you missed it, you can now catch it on dvd (which i have to rent cuz i think i missed a few episodes). we're still trying to get through season 3 of '24' (we've had the dvd's over 2 months now). but as soon as we're done, i'm putting 'lost' up on the top of the list. i'm just wondering how much weirder can they go before the show crumbles from reality. i guess i'll be watching.

we also caught 'e-ring' on nbc. its pretty good. exciting as 24. its produced by jerry bruckheimer (who makes great films such as 'con-air', 'the rock', 'enemy of the state', and my all time fav...'armageddon'). it has lots of action and suspense, and keeps you gripped to the chair till the last minute. the only thing sucks is that its on at the same time as 'lost', so i have to record one, and watch the other. i think its time to look into a tivo.

well, the week is almost over. hopefully, it'll end with a smile.
till later...peace out...and please leave a comment. thanks.

weekend update...

so i was planning to go up to san jo this weekend, put on my old tires on my car, and drive it back down but...after talking to 'mechanic' again, he assured me that he's 100% that he's getting the right part this time and he will get it on tuesday. so i decided i would rather have my car's tire fully fixed for free, rather than to bring it back down to LA and pay more to have it fixed. so hopefully next week (crossing fingers), i can pick up my car from san jo. but if you've been reading my blogs or if you know me, then you know i won't hold my breath.

saturday...
i overslept and when i woke up for work, i quickly jumped out of bed, threw on my uniform (plus hat cuz i get bedhead), and ran out the door. Luckily i got to work with 15 minutes to spare. after work, i picked up my wife at the subway station and we went to the little tokyo mitsuwa cuz they were having a huge 20th anniversary sale and my wife wanted to pick up a electric non-stick sukiyaki cooker. all appliances were 20% off and she had lots of gift certificates so she picked up one. now we just need some friends to come over so we can have a dinner party...okay, and maybe a bigger apartment too.

then we headed to bestbuy to sell my old 1.5 megapixel camera (it was a high-end model when i bought it) and buy a new one for the upcoming japan trip. they had some offers and a sale on the one we were looking at so we decided to get it. we got the canon powershot sd300. its only 4 megapixel but we figured by the time we outgrow it, we'll sell it, so why pay alot for a high-end model. the sales guy was funny cuz we were trying to decide which model we wanted (5 megapixel vs. 4 megapixel, though we already predetermined that we were going to go for the lower model) and while i jumped over to look at memory cards, he'd already had the camera in his hand while walking with my wife towards me. he was kinda pushy on the sale but i think he had ADD cuz he talked a bit fast and he didn't make much eye contact. he also tried to push other camera accessories on us but we came out with only the things we needed.

after the whole sale was over, i shook his hand to thank him, and i think he was expecting my wife to do the same, but she didn't. his hand was out but she left him hanging. he kinda jerked his hand back and forth trying to figure out if she was going to shake his hand. she didn't know what to do so we kinda just walked away. we both laughed at it cuz they really don't do that in japan and it was new to her. then we headed home for dinner and played with the new toy.


sunday...

we went to church and it was a special youth choir service. the choir went on a missionary to japan and they were sharing their experience. it was filled funny stories and lots of singing. after service, we stayed for the luncheon. i was sharing to steve and alina on how much bad luck i have, and i do have alot. i even shared the 'dead kitty' story (a story for another time), which i wasn't sure how people would take it, but alina found it funny how much bad luck i have. after that, we did some grocery shopping, ate dinner, and watched some tv.


sorry i haven't updated lately, been kinda stressed over the whole car situation...still. i'll update later.

its all downhill from here...

so here's the update on my tire situation...
the valve stem came in but...its the wrong size. it seems that the wheel is discontinued and they no longer make the valve stem for it (what's up with that). i told the 'mechanic' if he could drill the hole to make it bigger so i could put in a normal valve stem, but he wouldn't do it.

i went to the original store where i got the wheels and was redirected to another store. when i called, they put me on hold and made a few other calls and they said they could get the valve stem (crossing fingers) in 2 weeks. so my next move would be to get my old stock wheels from my parents house, put them on, drive back to LA and wait 2 weeks to see if the valve stem is the right type. today i called the wheel manufacturer and they no longer carry them. they suggested 2 chain stores, and neither one of them had them either. so if i can't get the valve stem, i guess i have 4 wheels that i can't use anymore (unless i buy 4 new rims and switch out the tires). why can't this matter just go away?

thinking about this situation makes me think about this whole 2005 year. this has not been a good year for me. here's a breakdown of my bad luck...

• with the start of the new year, ran over a deep pot hole during the rain season and punctured my tire and bent my rim. had to fix the rim and get a new tire.

• my wife's car blew the radiator on the freeway and had to be replaced in a hurry. same day, gay man forcefully picked up on me. now i avoid that building/area.
  

• my car's radiator was constantly leaking and had to replace radiator.

• someone dented my car in a parking lot.
  

• had to replace rear wheel bearing, clutch plates, transmission bearing, warped brake rotor. but they mysteriously fixed my dent.
  

• had a screw in my tire in san jo. when getting it fixed, they broke my unreplaceable valve stem. had to borrow the so's car for 2 weeks. no luck on finding a replacement. to be continued.
  

• been working 6 day weeks for months. its been so long that i haven't had my day off, that i wouldn't know what to do with it if i had it back.
  

• the whole jumpseat hawaii incident. you can read all about that in my previous post.
  

• huge blackout in LA. what a drama that was.
  

• still no luck with a new job. and that was my new years resolution.
  

• flying semi-truck tire incident on freeway. as seen on previous post.
  

• getting bumped off several stand-by flights. drama ensures.
  

• water being turned off at our apartment complex several times without notice. oh, how we quickly learn to deal without our daily luxuries.
  

i guess with all that bad luck, i still have my health, my family and friends, and i get paid overtime for working on my day off. i still have a couple of months till the end of the year and i still have a japan trip, a few more tries at the lottery, and unemployement to look foward to. maybe next year will be better. till then, i won't be losing any sleep wishing for good luck. if bad luck happens, i'll just blink an eye.

Big blackout...

if you watched the news, you might have heard that LA had a huge blackout today. it was just after 12 noon and lasted a few hours. it seems a department of water and power electrician cut a wrong wire and tried to fix it, but he touched the wrong wires and caused a short. the short was sensed by a computer and begin shutting down sectors to prevent electrical surges from destroying all electrical equipments. the sectors it shut down was the whole two valleys, and most of central LA. it caused traffic jams (as no one in LA knows how to drive without traffic lights) and a slight disturbance in business (or just an excuse to take a few hours break). all i know is that someone is going to be looking for a new job tomorrow.

i was warming up my lunch (left over pizza) and getting ready for work when the blackout hit. when it hit, i ate my warm pizza and got to leave for work early as i knew the parking gates to our apartment were electric. when i got to the parking lot, a few people were outside trying to figure out what to do since the gates wouldn't open. this has happened before and i knew that there was some kind of manual bypass for the gates. i asked our apartment manager how to open the gates, but she's so old and slow and she didn't know what to do. she tried to call the maintenance man but she forgot that her cordless phone wouldn't work because...it runs on electricity (duh). by the way, this has happened once before and i let her use my cell phone to call the maintenance man, so you figure that she would know what to do now (of course, she doesn't).

so i examined the gate mechanism, grabbed some tools, and tried my best to figure out how to manually open the gate. with some luck, it moved and i pushed it open. by now, there were about 5 other tenants who were trying to leave, and all thanked me for my efforts (no thanks to the idiot manager). maybe i should be the apartment manager. i wouldn't mind sitting on my ass the whole day, wait for a complaint then pass the call to the maintenance guy, or collect the monthly rent. how easy is that?

well, the drive to work was a bit hard. since the traffic lights were out, it backed up cars to the intersections. but as soon as i got on the freeway, it was smooth. and when i got downtown, i just used the little streets to the station to avoid the long waiting lines at the busy intersections. as soon as i got to the station, the electricity went back on in that area. so my work day was normal, except for a few intersections that were blinking red. i tried to call my wife a few times but i couldn't get though. i thought it might had been a statewide thing, so i called lisa but she didn't have any problems. and i found out later that my wife's work was unaffected, and she's by LAX. so she missed all the excitement.

i don't know if this is a sign of the start of my week. i still haven't heard about my tire. i would think that it would be fixed before the end of the week (if they actually cared). and tomorrow morning, i have some cavities to be taken care of. maybe this week isn't going to be all that great (still crossing fingers). at least i have something to write about.

till later...peace out (and good luck).

whew...

today we kinda relaxed. over slept and missed church (sorry steve). had breakfast/brunch then headed over to borders books to check out the consumer reports reviews on digital cameras. we want to upgrade my old 1.5 megapixel digital camera (it was a high end camera when i got it) for our japan trip, so we're doing research on whats good out there (any recommendations?). after writing down a few models from a few books, we jumped across the street to ikea to pick up a big cheap pot and a dollar ice cream cone.

next we hopped over to costco to pick up a cheap smoothie at their snack bar. news break...i hate costco's parking lot! it so over crowded that i just dropped off my wife to get the smoothie while i roamed around the lot looking for a space. i ended up double parking in back of the warehouse, behind some wooden pallets, and waited until she was ready and picked her up. here's an idea, if all the costco's parking lots are always packed...why not make a parking structure like the ikea's lot in east palo alto. big elevators and a couple of levels. it isn't too hard to figure it out.

then we jumped into best buys to play with the list of cameras we wrote down. the funny thing is that best buy didn't have the models that were on our list. but at least we got to play with some and have an idea on what we want to get. next we grabbed some supplies at target and then went to fry's to play with more cameras, which was mess cuz their cameras are displayed in no order and all most all of the camera's batteries were dead, so we couldn't play with them. if it wasn't for their cheap prices, its a wonder how fry's stays in business.

next we ran over to ranch 99 for some cheap produce, another parking lot i hate. some how nobody can park between the painted parking lines, always gotta be on or over the lines. and the lot is also small and crowded. i usually wait in the car while my wife goes shopping, so i can watch as the person who parked next to me tries to get in their car without hitting our car. i know if i wasn't in the car, they would be banging their doors against mine right and left. i also hate going into ranch 99 cuz when you come out, you smell like fried fish (which they offer in their meat department).

we got home and ate dinner in time to catch 'densha otoko' and 'family guy'. 'family guy' is becoming one of my favorites. the humor is so quick and crazy that the writers must have ADD. after 'family guy', i stayed to watch a new show 'the war at home' with Michael Rapaport (who i enjoy). i think i'm destined to become his character when i have a family. if you seen the show, you can understand.

while washing dishes, i caught 'american dad', which is good too but not as great as 'family guy'. at the end of the show, after the credits rolled, they show the companies who produced the show. it shocked me as i saw a security guard say 'i hope you enjoyed the show'. it was a guard from the E! Entertainment buildings, where the 'family guy' and 'american dad' offices are based, and where i work at. how funny is that.

well i hope this week goes by fast and stress-free. i've got a dentist appointment for 3 minor cavity fillings on tuesday. and hopefully my valve stem comes in and my tire is fixed so i can head up to san jo and pick up my car this weekend.

please leave a comment below, and till later...peace out.

No such luck...

well, today came and gone, and still no valve stem. the mechanic (if that's what they call themselves) said it was supposed to come in yesterday but it didn't. and it didn't come in today. so another week without my car. and when i asked him about the price, its free (probably cuz they knew they screwed up)...but at what price? another week pushed and another week borrowing the so's car. i just want this whole matter to be done with and over already.


instead of just sitting around the house today, we decided to use our annual passes and make our first visit to universal studios. after coming home from work, eating some lunch, and showered up, we caught the subway and made our way to the park. when we got there, we found out that the park closes in an hour. so we hit up the shrek 4-D show, which is a 3-D show (with glasses) with moving seats, and sprays of water and air to enrich the viewing. it was good since we didn't know what to expect. i didn't know whether it was a ride or a show.

next we hit up was the waterworld show (the only thing we could do since the park was closing). i've never seen it so it was new to me. it was a bit crowded as it was the last thing open before the whole park closed. we got okay seats but the sun was in our eyes. and since it was crowded, our seats were close to the water, where you can get very wet. the show had a malfunction in the beginning and they had to restart it from the start again, which kinda ruined the experience. lots of explosions and water flying. maybe next time we can get better seats with a better view.

well that's it, just 2 attractions. maybe next time we'll try to go earlier and try to make it three. but probably not next week, as i hope my valve stem comes in and i can go up north to pick up my car. till later...peace out.

Better luck tomorrow...

well, i still don't know if my car is going to be fixed by this weekend. i have to call tomorrow and find out if the part came in. if it doesn't, then i won't be able to pick up my car till next weekend. man, this is pissing me off. and i don't think the mechanics really care cuz i think they're gonna have to eat this one (freebee). i'm gonna do some calls tomorrow and see if i can get my hands on a stem valve in LA. if i do, i'm gonna raise h@ll on them.

i guess if we don't go up this weekend, we can always go to universal studios. the last time we were there, it was so crowded that we only went on the van helsing ride (which i would pass on next time as we found out, its a haunted house walk-through). we have annual passes and from now till the end of december, there aren't any black out dates. so we can always use it as a backup plan when we're bored and don't know what to do. i still want to try out the mummy ride, and of course my favorite, backdraft (i'll bring the marshmellows).

i'll keep you updated on what happens this weekend. whether after work, a 12 hour drive (round trip) to san jo to get my car, or just relax and kick it at universal studios. hope you all have a good weekend. lates...

p.s. thanks so family for lending me your car. i really appreciate it. =)

Stop the ride, I wanna get off!!

sorry for not updating sooner, i've been recuperating from this past weekend experience. here's how it went...

friday...
got off of work, came home to eat, and drove 5 1/5 hours to the 'ville. got in around 2:30 am, and went to sleep.

saturday...
woke up early, went to buy a electric lawn mower (for my mom) and some gardening supplies, and with the help of vince, we attacked the rain forrest (also known as my parent's backyard). after the horrendous battle, we feasted at a local village diner, miyuki's. they mixed up the order and my dad had to wait for his meal for a long time, which actually wasn't that bad cuz he's usually the first one done and wants to leave before the rest is done eating, so it worked out. then back home to sleep.

sunday...
woke up early to meet with my wife's friends in capitola. they had a beautiful house just along the hillside of cabrillo college, with a gorgeous view of the ocean. we had some good food and good conversation. then headed back to the 'ville to pick up the family pictures from da big K that we took a few weeks back. the pictures wasn't that great, but for the price...i guess you get what you pay for.

then we headed up to san jose, but before we left, i noticed a screw in my tire. i think i had it in since LA, so i thought we could make it to san jo. then, when we got up there, i would take it out. well, we made it san jo, and had a birthday dinner for ricky and linda. it was good except linda's meal took a long time to arrive...and it was her birthday. besides that, good eatin. then we kicked it at rick's and linda's for some cake and conversation. good times.

monday...
i took my car's tire in to get it fixed. they actually had some cars already there so my car wouldn't be ready till around 3 pm. so i left my car there and had lunch at the so's. around 3, i got the call.

it seems, while putting my fixed tire on, the mechanic broke my tire's valve stem (where you put air in the tire). and since my rims are 17 inchers, they have a special valve stem. and since its a holiday, they can't get a replacement part. so my options are to leave my car there overnight and have them fix it in the morning, or put on the donut spare and take it back. well, my wife had to work the next morning, so we had to get back to LA. after a few minutes (which seemed like long, slow, headache splitting hours), we decided that easiest solution would be that the so's would let me borrow one of their cars for the week to drive down to LA in, and we would leave my car in san jo to be fixed. that means, i have to drive back up to san jo the next weekend to pick up my car.

so after 6 more hours of night driving, 10 gallons of gas, and one red bull, we made it safely back to LA. by the way, i don't recall the mechanic saying 'sorry' for inconveniencing me, and while on the phone, he wasn't apologetic. i just hope that fool doesn't damage my car any more.

well, that's it in a nutshell. i'm still wondering if my car is fully fixed. i'll call tomorrow and figure things out. this thing has given me a stomach ache for the past couple of days since the call (i hope i'm not getting an ulcer). and to make matters worse, its still hot down here. a couple more work days to go, another 6 hour drive, and maybe things will get better (crossing fingers). besides that, i've just been going through normal work days. i hope you all are doing well.
till next time, peace out.

ghetto fab

well i just came back from the dentist. since i've moved, i haven't been a dentist, so i looked one up on my insurance website. actually, my wife wants to go too so she picked one out for me to 'try' before she goes. and i think it would make her more comfortable if the dentist spoke japanese, so she picked one with a japanese last name that was close, and i made an appointment.

if you been to our apartment or know where we live, you know that its not beverly hills. then again, it isn't compton. so when i got to the dentist office, it wasn't all that great. in fact, its in a bit of a ghetto area. when i entered, it seemed half constructed and pretty much like the discount clinic. now i've been to some dentists where the office is in a nice complex, the decor is contemporary, and they even have really attractive assistants (which is a plus having an attractive young woman sticking her fingers into your mouth and scraping off the plaque). maybe this place is new and still being remodeled. or maybe this is at its best. ah wells, its the dentist work that matters.


so i get there early cuz i know i have forms to fill and info to give. the receptionist ask me for my insurance card but i don't have one (i think i lost it). usually they would look it up on the internet with their computer...but they don't have a computer. come on, step into the 90's. so she has to call the insurance company to get all my info. while i'm waiting, i try to pick out something to read but all they have are reader's digests, one japanese news mag, and magazines of 'latino'. so i pick up the 'latino' mag, cuz jennifer lopez is on the cover, and spend my time looking at the pics. after 20 minutes, i finally get dental on.


i first get my xrays from the assistant, a short girl which makes my wife look like shaq =P. the xrays isn't so bad except the film holder digs deep into the insides of my mouth. i try not to gag as she takes the 10 or more photos of my pearly whites. then the dentist starts his work. he's an young asian american which i don't think is good cuz he might not know japanese. he does his check and even a cleaning. it turns out i have some minor cavities and some filling to do. i make my appointment for the fillings but i'm not sure my wife still wants to go. maybe her first dentist visit in the states should be a more 'better' one.

well, we're jetting up north (yes, again) this weekend for another bday party and to take the down the rain forrest in my parent's backyard. we'll be driving this time cuz we need a car, and with all the airplane travel mishaps with me recently, i think i'll prefer the car. i hope the gas prices doesn't burn a hole in my wallet, or make me take out a loan to get home. i'll be back next week with more pics, and hopefully some good stories. and maybe lisa will have some stories...as she's been slacking on her blogging. come on, you're 2 days behind. =P

peace out.

my 2 cents...

i feel for those people in louisiana and the neighboring states. no electricity, no clean water, no food, no phones, hot weather, and homeless in a disaster area. sounds familiar?....like iraq (without the bombing and wild west shootings). are our "insurgents" the looters who are taking advantage of this dire situation?

man, those looters really piss me off. and the cops can't do anything cuz there is no jail to put them in (actually a jail would be a good place in their situation as they would provide shelter and food). the looters are actually holding up the rescue supplies and robbing them. and the looters know the cops won't do anything cuz as soon as a shot is heard, you'll hear it from the media and the activists.

the state is in 'state of emergency', which is almost like martial law. here's a quote from wikipedia...

"Contrary to many media reports, martial law has not been declared in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, because no such term exists in Louisiana state law^[4]. Rather, a state of emergency has been declared, which does give some powers similar to that of martial law. On the evening of August 31, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin did declare "martial law" (in name at least) in the city and said that "officers don't have to worry about civil rights and Miranda rights in stopping the looters."

so i'm backing up the cops on this one and say let the bullets fly (on the looters). if some looter is stealing money or carrying at tv out of a store, packing a shotgun, i say the cops have every right to do everything in their power to control the situtation. and the looters don't even need a tv at the moment....they have no electricity!!

now the people who are taking the basic necessary needs are okay. i understand food, water, and a few clothing items. but don't go all crazy and think 'hey, i really want a digital camera' and take things which aren't needed for survival. it just takes some rotten apples to ruin the whole bunch. i suppose i'm wasting my time writing this as the looters have no electricity and no internet to read this (unless they already stole it).

and i kinda feel for pres bush (not really =P ). he got 9/11, iraq war, and this. i bet he's saying to himself "why didn't clinton get this?". we really need david palmer (24 tv show). he'll know what to do.

whew, got that off my chest.

Google me this...

sometimes when i'm bored, i like to find things on the internet. i'll just sit in front of my computer and think of things to type in. i like to type in names and objects into google/yahoo and see what comes up. here's some good findings...


this is a pic of my bro and his wife after they won a pair of wedding rings at a wedding and bridal expo. i think in exchange for the rings, the company that put on the drawing can use their names and picture for advertising/promotional purposes. i wonder if they know they're on the net.


ah, here's a jewel. there's kim in the back row on the left, wearing the green shirt with the glasses on (i said left, not right). you can click on the picture to make it bigger. and here's a bonus...her eyes are closed. oh, this is a keeper.


here's a news article i found on jeff kinoshita...

"Up until now, CDF Fire Apparatus Engineer Jeff Kinoshita said this year’s fire season has been relatively quiet. Typically, summer is when the fire danger is the highest."

what does a CDF Fire Apparatus Engineer do? i know jeff likes to surf. maybe something connected to surfing.


thats all the findings for now. its cooling down a bit. excited about going up north this weekend and see my peeps...again (we were just up there 2 weekends ago). leaving on a good note, my cousin and his family got out of flooding area of louisiana before katrina hit. i don't know how their house is but i believe they're in good health. whew.... peace out.