$.97

I had a pleasant time with Mama Liu for a couple of days during Christmas break. We did a lot of reflecting, debating and of course, laughing.

During one of our talks, she mentioned Christmas of 1996: this was the year she read through the entire Bible for the first time. (Since then, she reads through the Bible at least once a year. Usually twice. It's very admirable.)

In '96, I had to buy a 2-liter bottle of soda to take to a church potluck. My mom didn't have the money. She said we kept driving by the bank to check if my dad had put in money, but he hadn't. My mom felt so sad. That night, she asked me, "Did you know that we are sinners?" I replied, "Of course Mom. That's so rudimentary." She stated, "I didn't know until this year." I feel sad I don't remember this conversation because it's the first time my mom shared about her faith.

That night, Jina, who was like a big sister to me, bought my bottle of soda to take to the potluck. I have always been surrounded by people who have generously loved me. I am so thankful to have a mother who is so content and strong in her faith.

In all circumstances, we can always be grateful.

Lots of movies and documentaries

I took last week off. I pretty much slept, ate and caught up on my Netflix queue.

• Killer at Large: a good documentary about obesity. My favorite person was the Militant Lunch Lady.
• The Trials of Henry Kissinger: that man was crazy.
• Frost Nixon - Watergate Interviews: the actual interview. Nixon was another crazy man. It's scary hearing him talk about the incident and take no responsibility whatsoever. He truly believes he did nothing wrong.
• Miracle at St. Anna: I liked the story, but maybe it was something about the execution of the story.. I wasn't too impressed.
• Sweet Bird of Youth: Tennessee Williams and Paul Newman can do no wrong.
• King Corn: two guys decide to grow an acre of corn. It's disturbing to see how farming corn has turned into a huge industry where nutrients are not really valued. It's more about production and turning the corn into unhealthy things we put in our food.
• After Innocence: documentary about men who are exonerated. Working on reentry issues, this was an enlightening documentary. There are so many resources for those who are released from prison, but none for those who are exonerated. It makes no sense.
• Frontline - Inside the Meltdown: an analysis of the economic meltdown.
• The Natural History of the Chicken: this turned out to be a surprisingly good documentary. It looks at different ways of raising chicken and what this means for the consumer.
• The Devil Came on Horseback: documentary about a military official who goes to monitor the peace zone between Sudan and Darfur for the African Union. He starts documenting what he sees. I liked the documentary because it portrayed the situation in a personal and real manner.
• Darfur Now: This documentary looked at the genocide in a more big picture perspective. It analyzed policies and was shot beautifully.
• Confessions of a Superhero: documentary following four character actors who take pictures with tourists on Hollywood Blvd. It's kind of depressing. Overall, a solid documentary.
• The Machine Girl: Japanese movie about a girl who gets her arm chopped off, gets a machine girl as a prosthetic and seeks revenge against all the bullies who killed her younger brother. Yep, it's so bad, it's good.
• The Host: I didn't really like it. I don't know why it did so well in Korea. Ryan's take on the movie: "Everyone was so overly-dramatic. Even the creature was dramatic. You Koreans and your drama and your soaps." I had no response.

letter

Training to be a ninja?
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

My father wrote me a letter. It was quite nice.

Even when I was a little girl, my father would write "Miss Grace Liu" on the envelope of a birthday card. It made me smile to see it on his letter.

Overwhelmed.

Looking up
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

Line of Leaves

Line of Leaves
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

While waiting, waiting, waiting...

Miss Art

Pollock!
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

I helped Ryan study for his art history exam last weekend. During college, I always enjoyed making art history guides the most because there were pictures.

Is there a job related to just going to art museums all the time where the only requirement is that "one must appreciate art in all its forms"?

I don't want to be an art critic. I am an art lover.

How do you tell a man kindly that you don't like his facial hair?

"So, do you like it?"

"Well... I like to see more of your face."

"Well...... Too bad!"

Fail.

Best Break-Up Ever?

I think it really was though.

Especially compared to the Joaquin fiasco earlier this year.

Ryan and I both grew through the relationship. We're just in different places. So cliche, I know. But, it's the truth. We both knew it; we were both surprised it lasted as long as it did.

We talked about what we appreciated in each other, encouraged and thanked each other. I know in my head, it's the right thing. But, I still feel sad. In the end, I know I'll be okay.

But for now, I picked the scab from where I got hurt the last time we spent time together. I don't mind the scar.

I posed the question:

Koala so cute
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

What could be cuter than a baby panda?
(simultaneously)
Mon: a baby wombat!
Me: a baby koala!

They're relatives!! This was possibly one of the greatest moments in our friendship.

Summer Boyfriend

My parasol
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

Is it true that a boy can tell when the girl is going to break up with him, and that's when he turns his game on? I heard this the other day and wondered.

And, why does the boy I don't like always call/text me?

Boys.
Boo.

Ah, forget it.

"Let's go see The Killers and make out in the bleachers."

Weekend of Love, Discovery and Play

Clive seeing Amy for the first time in the wedding dress
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

Thursday/Friday:
Amy's wedding was the most perfect wedding I've ever been to in my entire life. I may be biased because it was Amy's wedding. But still, it was definitely beautiful. I love seeing Amy and Clive together. I enjoy hanging out with Clive's family and I appreciate how they've adopted me as a sister too. Throughout the rehearsal and wedding day, there was such warmth. I'm not the biggest fan of marriage, but experiencing being a part of a wedding broadened my perspective. I saw how amazing it is when two families unite. It's so wonderful to see the amount of love in such a room.

Saturday: hung out with mama, which was fun because we haven't played in a while. We talked about silly things, laughed and ate. I always assess the plants at her place. We talk about them like they're kids.

Sunday: had breakfast with Jonathan and for the first time, actually verbalized my plans for applying for grad school. It was nice to share ideas and get some feedback. I'm uber excited about the possibility of going back to school. Oh, how I missed it so. We went thrift-store hopping and I bought five books for $6!!!
- Modern One-Act Plays
- A Mercy by Toni Morrison
- The Plot Against America by Philip Roth
- Lake Wobegon Summer 1956 by Garrison Keillor
- The Complete Book of Vitamins (I may give this one to my mama because she's obsessed with health, especially vitamins.)

Sunday night: pleasantly surprised by a visit from Ry. Late night sushi dinner with his best friend and his girl. It's funny to watch how Ryan and Will (Ry's best friend)'s mannerisms are similar. They've been friends since junior high. Their pet peeves are pretty similar too. It's neat how friends become more like one another. Or, do we all just start out there and navigate towards those who are like us?

Overall, a jam-packed weekend of fun.

Bloom!

Bloom!
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

My mom and I potted a few plants over the 4th of July weekend. Most of my plants died while I was away in New York, so I needed new ones. The only one that survived was the persistent succulent plant. I really like succulents and cacti because they survive through anything. But, I needed a bit more color in my place, so I got a couple of flower plants. I truly enjoy them so and can't wait to come home to see how many more flowers have bloomed.

My place finally feels like my home.

Typewriter

T is for Typewriter
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

I wish I had a typewriter in a cabin near a lake.
Protected by tall trees surrounding the cabin.
The sound of the keys and "ding" at the end of the line would be all the rhythm I need in my life.
I would write poems, stories and thoughts.
Maybe even feelings.
I would write.
After I was done for the day, I would soak my feet in the cool lake and watch the blue hues take over the orange in the sky.

The Hollywood Bowl

Adele!
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

Cheese, crackers, wine, grapes, blanket and good music. I was a happy girl.

- Adele was so amazing. Her voice is even more sultry and wonderful live. She sang all my favorite songs and I really enjoyed her Etta James and Sam Cook covers. The string orchestra was such a lovely addition.
- Etta James was supposed to perform, but she backed out last minute because of an illness. I kind of expected this could happen because she's kinda crazy and I think has lots of medical issues from all her drug use when she was a young rising star.
- So, her replacement was Chaka Khan, who had a lot of hair. She was pretty fabulous. "I'm every woman" pretty much got everyone up dancing (except for my friend). I liked the little stories she would tell during the instrumental parts of the song. It was so dramatic. She talked about how she was a "bad girl," but then the grace of God saved her. After she went off about how much she loved God and Jesus, she finally said, "Okay, that's enough church! It's time to sing some more secular songs!"
- There was a sign language interpreter at the concert and she was so fun to watch, especially during Chaka Khan's set. The interpreter was totally dancing while signing.

"Daydreamer, sittin’ on the seat
Soaking up the sun he is a
Real lover, makin’ up the past and feeling up his girl like he’s never felt her figure before"

Air Sex

What have I gotten myself into?

It ought to be an interesting night...

Yowzahs!

I just checked the weather for the prison tomorrow.

99 degrees.

Good grief.

Weekend Recap and This Week

Weekend Recap:
- Amy's bridal shower: check. It was quite a stressful and hectic day, but it all worked out in the end. Although I threw up twice and felt nauseous the entire day, I think listening to my playlist titled "Girly" helped me get through it all. Amy enjoyed it, so that's all that matters.
- Wedding season has begun. It's so exciting!
- It was so nice seeing the Hong's and Charlotte yesterday. Charlotte and I realized we're like the two grumpy old men muppets.
- Keisuke made a fun shot for me. :)
- Singing "Lean on Me" with Johny was fun.
- Video game with lots of shooting at 3 in the morning is NOT okay.

This Week:
- Going to Sacramento tomorrow to visit the Solano prison. It should be an interesting trip. The best part is signing a waiver that basically says I give up all my rights and I'm okay with being taken hostage.
- Adele and Etta James on Sunday! I'm already looking forward to the weekend and it's only Monday. I have a feeling it may be a long week.

A Whole New World

Hmm, I miss singing that song with Keisuke.

I went to an art exhibit on Saturday at the Laguna Art Museum with Ryan because his work was involved with the current exhibition. I was a bit reluctant at first because Ryan works at a place where they make video games. Art and video games? But, I was pleasantly surprised. It was interesting to see the art inspired by the games. People really get immersed in the game and it becomes another realm of reality for them. I found that so fascinating. Ryan was telling me about how some guys like playing female characters because they can control the woman's actions. He said they may have a distorted view of masculinity. I found that very disturbing and interesting. It's probably not like that for all those guys, but I think it may be for some.

There was this one video piece where they just taped a player's hand movements in the game. Such coordination and agility!

The whole gaming world is so bizarre to me. I never played video games growing up and never even owned a gameboy. I think the only game I knew how to play on a gameboy was Tetris.

Sidenote: it's interesting hanging out with animators. We were at a bar the other night and Danny (Ryan's friend) gets all excited and says, "Wow, that guy has a great face. I wish I had my sketchbook." The guy did have a very cartoonish face, but I probably would not have even noticed if Danny didn't say anything. I love how we all notice different things in the world!

June Gloom

I enjoy it.

Red Flags

Exit and Oceanside Pier
Originally uploaded by gliuoo

How many red flags does it take in a relationship before one exits?

The whole pros/cons list sucks and isn't helpful at all. I guess in the end, the question is, "Does he bring me closer to God?"

Hmmm...