bad decision Joyce

Ahoy,

This past weekend, I made the monumentally bad decision of walking up the side of a mountain during high noon. This incident will forever go down in the record books as "the day Joyce decided it would be a good idea to walk up the side of a mountain during high noon." He let me pick what to do.

So I read some online reviews and guides and such and we thought this sounded like a cool hike. Just a little rigorous enough, but not boring and rewarding also. Clearly we're not very good at gauging what the online community regards as difficult or not difficult in terms of walking up the side of a mountain. Or we think a little too highly of our mountain conquering prowess.

We got to the bottom of the mountain and realized that it's a mountain (gulp). Not just a mountain, THE mountain I am always gawking at as we approach this area, because you can see it from miles and miles away. It is just always in the distance, a monumental facet of this idyllic California landscape.

As we approach the trailhead, we see normal looking people, families, not the most fit types, etc., so it's a little reassuring. But as we get further up the mountain, we encounter more and more folks of the serious hiker type - the walking sticks and hiking boots and giant backpacks probably carrying my weight in water. And we see less and less normal folks, and then we see less folks in general. The sun is beating down on us like Japanese Taiko drummers and there is no sign of relief because all the hiking in southern California consists of dusty narrow trails that go up a mountainside and have no trees. I applied 2 layers of sunscreen before we started, but I was pretty sure it was melting off of me. I couldn't reapply because I had left the bottle in the car (so well prepared I am). And because we tend to overestimate our athletic abilities, we also only brought the one bottle of water (that I carried, because I'm the pack mule in this relationship).

Nevertheless, we had no choice but to continue up because we are both too stubborn to admit defeat. Conversation, mostly consisting of whining, came to a halt and was replaced with serious (read: desperate) aerobic activity as we continued on a ~30% incline that seemed endless. Although, we did have time to make our personal hiking soundtrack:

1. Granddaddy Nature Anthem

2. Indiana Jones theme song

3. Ants go marching one by one...

But we did finally make it to the top, and it was definitely worth it. We saw 3 deer, 1 gecko(?), and a bunch of dogs on the way. There are the ruins of a former resort at the top. It was this 70 unit mansion with a train line between the valley and this mountain top. You can explore the leftover foundations and stone outlines of the buildings, and climb around the old train parts. Super cool.

Going down was a lot easier. We figured most of the people we saw at the beginning had turned around before going all the way up because we saw significantly fewer people the farther up. We stopped at a grocery store to chug our weight in water, and proceeded to get groceries and boba because we are responsible adults that know how to feed and hydrate ourselves. Also, neither of us got sunburned.

cheekily acmed,
jt

adult decisions

Ahoy,

Prior to beginning the day's activities, we had to make sure to pack the right snacks and provisions. I had been talking about chocolate chip cookies all week. We had no more butter, but let's face it, I'll never make anything as good as the ones at Grand Casino Bakery.

A: How many cookies do you want?
Me: 1
A: Maybe we should get 4.
Me: ...
A: No, maybe we should get 6.

We got 6, I ate 1, he ate the rest. Sometimes I think he has a sweeter tooth than I, but then we get ice cream. And I could eat his weight in ice cream for dinner every night.

meltingly aromatic,
jt

bananas

Ahoy,

In my quest to ensure he gets enough fruits and veggies. He can be super picky. And I know if the banana is a little too ripe, he won't go for it. I packed it in his lunch anyway.

me: Did you eat your banana today?
A: No... I was going to pretend to eat it tomorrow... [guilty face]
me: Well, I figured you weren't going to eat it, and once you brought it back I was going to make banana bread.
A: ...that sounds a lot better than pretending to eat it...

I don't really like bananas, but he does, and he loves banana bread.

going bananas,
jt

at his reluctance

Ahoy,

This weekend I got A to do two things that I've been dying for him to do with me.

Tennis
He tells me he was a tennis coach for many years and played tennis for most of his life. Unbeknownst to me, besides his stories, because I've never witnessed any of that. He uses his tennis bag to store climbing shoes now. He could tell me he was a master rice carver for most of his life and I would have believed him. I love tennis and have a list of go-to tennis buddies when I go to Chicago, but I've always wanted to chase after balls with the RRS. We had to go around looking for a free court because the one by our place has only one, but has 2 handball tennis courts (I've never seen anyone use these 2 non-real-tennis courts). He whipped my butt pretty good, but I still had fun. One of the many things he is better than me at. One day I'll get him in a pool, and I will establish my dominance in the water (but that is unlikely since he is hairless and skinny like a torpedo).

Craft Fair
This is the bane of pretty much most boyfriends, no? Fortunately we began with food and beer, so he was content enough to walk on the grounds. I even gave him an out on several occasions. Our friend E met us there so it's not like he would have been leaving me all alone there. Being the sucker he is, he stayed with us to walk up and down all the aisles. He was clearly not as amused as us and it ended up being the follow-your-gf-around-while-she-looks-at-girly-things-that-he-could-never-comprehend. I knew this would happen, and it's always important to have snacks on hand for situations like this. I'm always grateful for all the times he bears through the follow-your-gf routine. To me, it's a sign of patience and devotion that I appreciate and would return the gesture (which has happened because he might just like shopping more than I do).

High on my list of things to get my reluctant bf to do is swing dancing. One day he may even dip me.

dreamily ensconced,
jt

eating at American households

Ahoy,

Eating at other peoples' houses is strange. I've found that most families don't conduct dinner like my family has. In my household, we typically gather around the tv for dinner. Sure, the tv is on, but most of the time no one is paying attention unless it's primetime - in which case my brother and I are interested. For most of my life we didn't even eat at a dinner table; we ate on the coffee table, or my brother and I would run over to the tv with our bowls of rice in hand and dash between the kitchen and living room in between commercials for more food.

Eating in a Chinese household, there is little dinner time conversation. If you are talking, that probably means the food is not good. Any attempts at conversation are dashed between full mouths and mid-chew, so don't even try. You pick a seat, grab a bowl of rice and chopsticks, and everybody just pulls from common dishes whatever they want. Manners be damned! You know the food is great when all you hear is the clatter of chopsticks and slurping from bowls of rice. That's all the praise a chef needs. You are expected to eat to the full and fast, but not like you are starved. If there is any food left over, everyone will make a big fuss over who will eat it. No one will claim it for themselves, but continue offering it to each other. Beverages are not allowed with dinner. Something about mixing solids with liquids is bad for your chi, but I think it's just that my mom feared liquids would take up valuable food space. And then after your bowls have been cleared, the plates have been cleaned - then does the conversation commence, typically over tea and fruit. The children have left the table long ago and are running around wreaking havoc at this point, or watching tv.

Eating at the RRS's household is strange; it's not like eating at a Chinese household. You sit down at a table and you are expected to stay seated for hours. There are place settings with forks, spoons, and knives - no chopsticks, no tvs. There are serving platters with separate utensils for each food item, and you are expected to pass things around. Manners abound! For hours you are expected to converse while you are eating, and you are expected to maintain eye contact with people. People ask you questions mid-bite and look at you until you cover your mouth to talk with your mouth full or finish chewing and then answer. Either of these situations are awkward. People aren't too busy eating to shower the chef with praise, niceties galore. You are also allowed to drink things, I typically get 3 different drinks at the same time during dinner at his house. And then there is a separate dessert course of an actual over-sugared confection.

I'll never delight in the hours long process of clearing my plate, in which I have to pace my eating rate with conversation time, but I don't mind the dessert. Clearly I've been raised a savage, incapable of being tamed.

excrutiatingly still,
jt

rearrangements

Ahoy,

There are few things that delight me like rearranging furniture. I used to rearrange my bedroom twice a year, and would have the urge to do so many more times than that. Instrumental in my tetris-like exploits would be my brother for whom I wouldn't have been able to muscle through it all without. But now I have more muscles than him, so he's just there to look handsome these days. So when O brought up the subject of rearranging his furniture in his Seattle apartment, I jumped at the chance. You could see the gears turning in my head, brimming with all the different possibilities and combinations. The boys didn't know what to do with me. It seemed they were so ready for bed, and I was so not. Often seems like the case in my life.

We had just arrived back from Vancouver that night. A and I had been sent out to get provisions for mojitos. Upon returning, we found O's body sprawled out across the kitchen floor down the hall. It was quite the Kodak moment, but A was never too swift with the napcam. Rejuvenated by imbibements, we proceeded to clear the way for a new frontier of living for O. This was so much fun. It's as if he has a whole new apartment.

And now you know, it doesn't take much to get physical labor out of me. I could furniture rearrange circles around you and your dog. Also, moving, packing/unpacking. You know where to find me for your everyday manual labor needs.

exceptionally deranged,
jt

super duper fun time Squamish

Ahoy,

Squamish was so fun! I think it's my favorite outdoor climbing location I've been to. Vancouver is so close to Seattle, and then Squamish is so close to Vancouver. Our GPS from Burnaby told us it was only 31 miles away! Burnaby is a suburb East of Vancouver, so the distance from the city proper was probably closer to <25 miles away. It's amazing how close such a spectacular gem of nature is to civilization.

We began our morning with a stop for breakfast at Tim Horton's. O "accidentally" got 5 doughnuts, but A and I ended up polishing off at least 2 of them. Another step for obesity = another step towards bliss. Those crullers are amazing! We also stopped at a Canadian grocery store for sandwiches and potato chips. Potato chips were my favorite as a child, and my love for them has not waned. Anyone that tells you otherwise is lying or is not a human person. The drive up to Squamish is gorgeous. It goes around the Howe Sound. You're surrounded by this beautiful deep blue/aquamarine color water, mountains and trees. There's no other way to describe it besides beautiful. In the truest, simplest, most organic form of the word - beautiful. We arrived to the parking lot in no time, and there was a sign for "Climber Parking Lot." We probably spent more time looking for parking than looking for the first climb.


The first set of boulders we saw was literally steps from the trail entry. It's amazing. There are so many climbs all packed so close together. All the boulders are clustered incredibly close to each other. All the boulders you could want and more are right on the main trail, all the climbs are in your face before you have any time to wonder where the boulders are. It was not crowded at all - the most we'd have with us at one boulder would be one other group. Everything is in the forest and shaded. We didn't even apply sunblock and no one got burned. Any day without a sunburn is a good day. The temperature and weather was perfect. There were even bathrooms, and it was close enough to access one whenever I wanted (not often because I have an iron bladder). The feel of the rock was super grippy/frictiony, but it didn't leave your skin torn up like frictiony rock often does. Since the sun doesn't set until 9:30 over there, we were able to get in probably close to noon and left around nine.


We were done just before sunset so we got to make a stop at Shannon Falls on the way back. There was so much water. I loved it! The drive back was just as gorgeous as the drive there. And in no time we were back in Vancouver to hunt for dinner. After watching tv the previous evening, we decided that we had to try this restaurant. But we hadn't plugged it into the GPS, so we figured we'd just go into the city and drive around to see if we saw something or if one of our phones could find it. No such luck. After driving by the nightlife and riff raff, we stopped off at a Marriott to see if I could get the directions from the front desk of a hotel we weren't staying at. With my best lost tourist impression, mission success! It was the perfect ending to a perfect climbing day.

trancontinentally aghast,
jt

super fun time Vancouver

Ahoy,

On the morning of July 5, we made the long and arduous 2.5 hour journey to get from Seattle to Vancouver. We scrambled around all morning picking up and prepping all sorts of stuff we probably should have started the day before, but we are adults of the irresponsible sort so you can't tell us what to do. We picked up L, our last companion, probably about 2 hours late. So punctual we are. And thus we were on our way! Shortly after, we were at the border patrol line. This is an hours long line where everybody has their cars running because border patrol just loves the environment. This ate up so many hours on our trip I don't even want to know how long it was actually that we were in the hotbox. Probably forever. A and I were in the back with the sun approaching from behind and onto my lap. Also, my window had stopped working. So in a state of roasting, I scrambled onto A's lap and stuck my head out his window, like I had seen a dog doing earlier, effectively usurping A's seat. After making it past the border, it seemed like within minutes we were in Vancouver.

Our first stop was for boba at this place that totally played us for suckers in so many ways. First, it was cash only. Second, their conversion ratio was .9 USD to 1CD (it was actually 1.08 USD = 1CD). And then, staying there meant the drinks cost more. We were a bunch of suckers. After this blast of sugar, we went hunting for a cash exchange place at the mall. Success. I gawked at the market, and got hurried out to check in to the hotel because I would have eaten everything had we stayed a second longer. We watched hotel tv (read: Food Network) for a while and headed back out to the Afghan Horsemen for dinner where everybody loaded up on a lot of meat. We tucked in for the night to head out bright and early for Squamish the next day.

Our final day in Vancouver, we had realized that Chinatown in Vancouver did not actually hold any cultural or culinary significance. We opted to find dim sum in Burnaby, near our hotel, and apparently where the actual Chinese people live. This was probably one of the best dim sum places I've been to, and my companions will agree. We ate a ton of food and didn't regret any of it. The restaurant is in a mall, and we picked up boba before we left to do more things in Vancouver.






Our first destination was Queen Elizabeth Park. They have a conservatory there that I walked into (read: snuck), but seeing the boys did not follow - came back out to walk the grounds. The water feature is excellent for playing. You must go! And don't forget your swimsuits like we did. We went back to the neighborhood of Gastown where the boys were super impressed with the coffee. Also, we got to drive through Stanley Park (bathroom break because the boys have bladders the size of a pea) before heading to the Granville Island Public Market for dinner. O and L were still full from dim sum (unimpressive pansy appetites). A and I got some bread at the market, which promptly got snatched right out of my hand by a seagull as soon as I stepped out on the patio. Imagine taking candy from a kid. I am not kidding. There were witnesses. This really happened. I went inside and explained my situation, they were sympathetic and gave me a new one I quickly stowed away because the seagulls are aggressive and I wasn't about to let them make a sucker out of me twice. A and I finagled the end of the line to get our final order of fish & chips before we headed back to America. And no seagulls stole our food this time.

I learned about Vancouver when I was a student at Berkeley, so it was super interesting for me to see this city. There's an incredible amount of money and development here influenced by Hong Kong. I've never been to HK, but from pictures I've seen - the architectural styles and glass high rises everywhere could be a page out of HK, no?

delightfully fed,
jt

super fun time Seattle

Ahoy,

This year for 4th of July we took our bags to Seattle. A took the Wednesday off and we flew out early to Seattle. Our first stop was for fish & chips at Pike's Place. We had our bags with us, so we got a taste of what it's like to be obese as we weaved through the crowds. We proceeded to eat all day, another step towards obesity. We moved down the way to get a bratwurst and enjoy the view from a hill overlooking the water. It was so clear that day that we were able to see the snow capped mountains all around us. Upon finishing the bratwurst, we went on the hunt for mini doughnuts inside. Outside a coffee shop, we interacted with the riff raff and ate our doughnuts. They are incredibly aggressive in Seattle, the riff raff I mean. I think a fence is a pretty clear indication, but no, invite yourself on over.

We made our way to the Seattle Public Library where the RRS fell asleep and got in trouble for it while he was studying. It's an excellent maze of a library with beautiful lighting. You must go! After studying/dozing for about 2 hours, we went back to Pike's Place for a piroshky. We avoided/couldn't bear the line earlier, and now there was no wait! A chased pigeons away while I munched. He's my personal security detail. After this, we went hunting for happy hour oysters. These were some of the best I've had. You must go! O picked us up after we chugged our drinks and ran up the hill. And off we went to the Seattle Bouldering Project!

After a much delayed departure, we got over to Capitol Hill for burgers. Poor O and H hadn't eaten since lunch and then we made them go rock climbing for an extended period of time. Meanwhile A and I had been eating all day - it's as if we were starving them. What a set of troopers.

For the morning of July 4, we got brunch with a fruit bar. Berries must be in season on the Pacific Northwest because they were all soooooo good! We wandered around the UW campus briefly as the sun began to peek out, and proceeded to get coffee because nobody was awake yet. Greenlakes was the next stop because the RRS was still sleepy and ready for a nap. It was a perfect day for the lake. The water was so warm and refreshing. We dipped only our toes because no one had brought a swimsuit, but I wanted to jump in so bad regardless of appropriate attire. But I did get the RRS to go in a paddleboat with me. There was absolutely no wind on the water, otherwise we would have rented a sailboat. It was funny to watch sailboats drift in the current and try to sail back to shore with their hands for paddles. The perfect afternoon treat was ice cream. Again, we starved O & H while we paddleboated in the lake, delaying the lustworthy ice cream.

We returned to Capitol Hill as everything was closed or closing. All our dinner plans were dashed because we were lazy and did not plan on grilling like the rest of America. This was probably our least interesting meal of the trip. We got back after the fireworks and tucked in early for the drive to Vancouver in the morning. There is nothing like celebrating America's birthday in Canada.

quietly settled,
jt

Ahh! Squamish is sooooo cool!!!

long car rides

Ahoy,

One of the immediate differences I noticed early in my companionship with the RRS is how we define long car rides. Whereas he has grown up driving up and down the California coast, I had no reason to venture outside of Chicago because there is nothing in the Midwest except Chicago. We grew up with completely opposite habits of car rides.

My elementary school was a 2 minute car ride away (we didn't walk this because my mom is over-protective and super-human and determined to prevent us from being kidnapped and sold on the black market), and my high school was 10-15 minutes away. The longest car ride I had been on when I left for college was probably a little more than an hour, and that was a once a year thing. We only went to the suburbs for the mall and that was probably once every season. I had no reason to ever be in the car longer than 20 minutes. In my world, if you have to go on the highway - it is too far. I could get to most places I wanted to go with a 20 minute car ride, bike, or public transit.

Imagine the shock when I first arrived to LA and everywhere we went was on the highway, a 40 minute car ride was considered short, traffic jams constituted of a scale ranging from flowing to parking lot. The RRS spent most of his life with a season pass to Disneyland and made the trip regularly from NorCal to SoCal. His family regularly made trips to places far away ( >20 minutes). Not only this, he enjoys driving with a passion I've only witnessed in kids with emotional attachment issues to blankies. My friends and I avoid driving whenever possible, and I know people who didn't get their license until their 20s and still don't have their license today.

I do think my limited perception of distance in a car can also be attributed to my parents' immigrant status. As foreigners who can't read signs, don't know how to get around or communicate if they do get lost, they tend to stick to familiar routes and are wary of going somewhere new for fear of getting lost. So I do give my mom kudos for shuttling us around as much as she did, because I'm sure my uncles and aunts with an even more limited grasp of American roads rarely venture outside Chinatown.

You should also be warned that I hate sitting still. The first time I made the trip up the coast with him, I was shooting between the back and front seat so much, the RRS said he was getting carsick watching me. Long car rides are not something I'll ever get used to, and I wouldn't want to. I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.

devastatingly geared,
jt

simply eventful

Ahoy,

At the risk of sounding cliche, we engaged in the classic date combo of dinner and a movie. You should too. After following the previous season of Top Chef, we added the runner-up's restaurant to our to-do list. The Tripel is in Playa Del Rey, a close walk from the beach. Seems they don't have much competition, but the wait wasn't too long. Per usual, we ordered way too much food and had to be rolled out of there to catch Now You See Me. Really fun movie. We would recommend the restaurant and movie. You should all go now! Picture my wide sweeping arm waving you to the door.

Barring the "intense" heat in Palm Springs, we opted for the comfort of an air conditioned indoor gym on Saturday. Call us pansies, it's okay, I know you are too. Sender One is the new gym everybody has been talking about, and now we are in on the hype too. The holds and walls had so much grip and friction. The rope walls might just reach the sky. Even though it's a land sport, many of the walls reminded me of ocean waves. One of the most delightful parts was watching the RRS nearly split in 5 different directions as soon as we got there. No celebrity sightings but we did see people we know that aren't famous.

We got back in E's blazing hot car (gotta love those eco-ficient cars that seat more than 2) to zip back to the city. We scrambled around like purposeful chickens with their heads cut off for picnic goods - blanket, food, and wine. We spent the most money on cookies and wine - really, we are such responsible adults. We wandered around under the guise of darkness, amongst the spirits of Hollywood to engage in the age old tradition of watching a movie at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

On Sunday, we slept in and watched family sitcoms because that's the kind of old people we are. He got his hair chopped off as I watched in horror (read: engrossed in my book). We ambled to the nearby farmer's market as they were breaking down and finally tried the food at  Cheviot Farms/ Simpang Asia. He waxed nostalgic about Thailand and we dreamed vacation plans to travel all of Asia. Despite his marked reluctance, I got him to take me to the Melrose Trading Post. A wondrous maze of junk purveyors and artisan craftsmen, but mostly junk.

We visited a kosher Jewish kebab place for dinner and got gawked at because we were the only foreigners for miles. Upon returning with these goods, we settled on a spot in the courtyard across the street and ate among the stars (read: string lights in the trees). It was a perfectly warm night and the din of restaurant guests made it feel like we were at a secret shop. A perfect ending to a weekend of simple delights.

searingly scraped,
jt