Recap

Oh, how wonderful of a day yesterday was. Far better than the one I am stuck in right now.

Went on a failed meat pie run with Ashley and Tree...ended up at my favorite coffee where Nikki used to work. But then, I hate coffee. I go for the chocolate chip cookies.

Catalina Coffee Company exudes vintage touches. Worn shelves, battered chairs, and tacky lamps that illuminate me cookies :]


Their giant chessboard is also a thing of great amusement. I could shoot that thing for a project time and time again.

Turns out Tree touches her nose when she thinks.


Now, there was a tiny little white bishop that I assume was a stand-in for a bigger guy. I made it a point to kill him early on in each game >:]


Back to Ashley's to grub!

Hello Mr. Hummingbird. I am sorry that I am ridiculously large compared to you. But you're still awesome!


And on to the food. $1 Spider Man Easy Mac?! Amazing!


And what were supposed to be the greatest cookies ever or whatever. They lacked chocolate chips, but they were still really tasty. And I got some to go :]


It's been a great two months.
________________________________

On to today. Rejection letters. Mochi and Bob Marley. Moral support from my one and only that I definitely appreciated.

But screw it. By this time Friday, it will be a thing of the past. And guess what?


I'm going to Disney World for ridiculously cheap. Finally booked the hotels and flight.

So I still have plenty to look forward to. Oh baby.

Equipment gripes.

I hate equipment failures. I've been having focusing issues with my camera lately. Only problem is, I can't figure out if it's the lens or the body. But I have to zoom in, focus, zoom out, then recompose my shot. Otherwise, the thing tends to backfocus.

Anyways, the Kogi truck came out to Torrance today. Since when did people call Torrance "T-town?" Weird. Seems to be a college kid thing. Anyways, after Ashley sent a timely text letting me know how to get there, Tree and I arrived to see a line already forming. Considering the truck had yet to arrive, I wasn't quite sure how people knew where to line up. Maybe they just did, and the trucks followed the people. That would definitely make sense.

Well, considering Ashley was the one who introduced me to the Truck, it's about time she got to try it! >_<
I'm quite certain that she enjoyed it thoroughly :]

Aaaand the funny Korean guy taking orders wrote Tree's name in quite an interesting way. No extra vowels or irrelevant letters. I wish all words were spelled with this sense of efficiency XD


On to the fruits of our labor: Kalbi, Spicy Pork, and Tofu tacos. Spicy Pork Burrito. Did a kogi dance and sang Jizzed in My Pants with DK. Such an appropriate song for the orgasmic Korean/Mexican hybrid.


As more and more people catch on to the Kogi Truck, I find that it's time to move on to something else. Possibly some other gastronomical adventure awaits me if Kogi Truck is becoming normal fare. But I still love it.

Of course, other stuff happened today, like going to watch Nationals! Congrats to Sabrina, Saaya, and the rest of Advance Dance for kicking ass and taking names. Those girls are ridiculously amazing. But Sabrina will probably have full details of their most recent awards, and someone else will recount the adventure. I leave those things to my friends.

Today

was a very exciting day.









That is all.

Beaching it.

I believe that I must become more critical of the pictures that I post from now on. As I look back, there's too much crap. At this point, however, I don't want to delete the pictures because then I'd be left with an awkward white box saying that the picture in question is temporarily unavailable. A bunch of empty white boxes would just be annoyingly unsightly.

But here's something to start off my photographic crucible.

So the yearbook people (well, mostly Tamara) decided to stick me in their Senior Ad even though I'm kind of a lurker that hangs around yearbook because I have nothing better to do. Well I do, but I don't do it. Anyways, we took lots of group pictures, lots of awkward shots, and some sort of trapeze human-sculpture bit that involved Canaan and David being crushed by Alex, Jeph, and me.

The girls went off to take their pictures, and the guys saw an abundance of kelp and jellyfish bits. Jeph decided to take one for a walk. Those things need exercise, ya know.

This picture makes me laugh.

And to add to my to-do list: throw Ashley into the ocean.

I'm liking the short story thing better than recounting my whole entire day. After all, most of what I do is pretty mundane and unmemorable. Might as well cut the crap and highlight the things I find most interesting.

Cheers.

Decency

So Sunday, I got a random call asking if I wanted to go out to dinner. I thought Flossie's might be fun to check out, on a recommendation from the same person that has told be about Slavko's, Pacific Dining Car, and others. I can say with confidence that I was utterly stuffed after that meal.

So here's how it works at Flossie's. You walk into a tiny little restaurant with blacked out windows that seems like a super-condensed Lucille's on the inside. For a set price, you get your chicken or catfish, 3 sides, drink, and a dessert. I got fried chicken, corn pudding (odd), mac and cheese (very thick and hearty), some random other crap, bread pudding, and cornbread (a bit tasteless). My favorite thing: they only had lemonade, iced tea, and Kool-aid for drinks. No soda, no nothing. How kickass is that?!

I still feel that Honey's is better. Flossie's reminded me too much of KFC, with a very grainy batter but still delicious. The amount of food given was also probably enough to feed two people on a bad day, or one hungry person on a good day. Not a particular favorite of mine, but it's local. Meh.

Sooo, now that college acceptances are out, it's time for College Sweaters!

Just kidding. Sabrina had this before she got into UCLA...but now it has more significance methinks. Notice the awesome nails.

We were a good Congress :D

Aaaand the Tan Man's legal! So what else could we do but celebrate his birthday with Kelly's ASB cupcakes..?


And another creepy-ass thing in ASB...a faceless doll with Jesus in it. Huh..?

This was pointless. I just found it amusing.

And my face is no longer naked! Goodbye indecency! Headed out to K-town to get my Wayfarers refitted, because I was stupid enough to step on them and twist the frames. Afterward, I went to some Chinese restaurant in the Galleria. I hate restuarants with untranslatable names. Mandarin Cafe, perhaps?

I also hate foods that don't have good-sounding English equivalents.


Ja...ja...myun? Something like that. I should just type it in Korean.


I think that most of my posts lack a coherent train of thought. They're more of compilations of random vignettes from my day. Well, hope that's bearable for those out there who actually read this.

Work It

Oh man...Attic Prom Fashion Show. Had to wake up waaay too early for that crap. But whatever. It was fun and ended up being worth it for the most part.

I wasn't really happy with the tux that I got. Shirt sleeves were short, jacket was a bit big, etc. Well, whatever. It was still fun.


As we walked onto the runway, women swooned, men howled, and the world bowed at our feet. Just kidding. We strutted out stuff, spun around, stripped off the jackets, twirled em in the air, and went on with our lives. Haha Ray got quite the applause for his little spontaneous dancing bit.

Left the Fashion Show and headed over to Farmers Market. Sadly, my favorite barbecue people were nowhere to be seen. Made me quite sad. I had to deal with my consolation prize, a bacon-wrapped hot dog with grilled onion.

Curtina and I then proceeded to interrogate Terry on all matters school- and college-related. We're mean.

Read Frankenstein and fell in love with the language used. Napped, then met Ashley for dinner at By Brazil. Their food is currently 30% off. Brazilian BBQ dinner for $20. Oh baby.

The meat was well cooked, but extremely salty, to the point where I could feel the salt crystals on the meat. Bastards, forcing me to fill up on water instead of meat. What a cheap trick. Well it wasn't Fogo de Chao or M Grill, but it was still pretty damn satisfying.

Stuffed ourselves silly, talked about random things of times passed. Somehow managed to whittle away the hours until it was time to come home.

I'm sleepy unusually early. Good night.

success!

As the lighting implements are still in Shea's class, I continue to use that at lunch for cheap entertainment.

I'm sick of headshots for now. So behold! My anti-headshot! Actually, an anti-headshot would be of someone's feet or something. Oh whatever.


Oh man, look at that studly photographer XD. I have to admit, he does look the part.


And that just plain sucks.


On to the fun part, aside from my car tire being popped. Which is why I had to bail on Tree and Ashley for Wienerschnitzel goodness. Freaking car.

Headed downtown with Sarah and Curstina for some food adventuring fun. First off was Wurstkuche, a Belgian sausage restaurant smack in the middle of the uber-hipster Art District by Sho Tokyo. The interior was dripping with urban touches - communal tables, brick walls, good music, and lots of fashionable people wearing porkpie hats and fedoras. You know, those people.

I got a Rattlesnake and Rabbit Sausage with Sauerkraut and Spicy Peppers on a boring roll. The combination of strange meats had a distinct taste. Not to the point where it was odd, but you could tell it wasn't just another chicken or pork sausage. The snakemeat was a tad rubbery, and the sausage overall was slightly buttery and a bit too juicy. The toppings were just icing on the cake, so to speak.


The fries were double fried and delicious. Crispy, not too greasy, and hearty. Definitely a batch of legit restaurant fries. Not to mention that it came in a paper cone! Instant awesome points. And the curry ketchup and BBQ sauce it came with were both excellent, particularly the former. I might just have to add some curry powder to my ketchup from now on.


As an added bonus, their plain ol' water is flavored with cucumber :D Nice touch. Also had a ridiculous selection of Belgian and German beers. Go back there when I'm old enough, to be sure.

I owed Sarah a cookie because of some stupid picture on facebook, but I would not give her just a plain cookie from school or somewhere equally boring. No, I had to take her to MILK, my go-to location for all matters cookie- and ice cream-related. Introduced her to the wonders of the Ooie Gooie Chocolate Chip Cookie. Ignore the spelling.

I have fulfilled my cookie debt.

We then got a Brownie Sundae and ate it in the car, watching out for the parking enforcement dude that was patrolling the area where we were. I guess we weren't supposed to park there.

Rich chocolate and vanilla ice cream topped with whipped cream, fudge, pecans, and cherry...all on a bed of crusty, delicious brownie goodness. What a beast of a dessert. We got it to go, so it's stuffed into a paper container. Believe me when I say that it looks far more epic when in a tall glass cup.

We were already full and on our way home when I remembered that the Kogi Truck was in the area. So...we turned around and headed straight for my newfound obsession.

Found the truck with a lot more ease than last time. The line was also only ten minutes long! We conversed with a funny Kogi Truck virgin (well he wasn't anymore, since that was his second round). His friends played a bit on their ukulele, then left him to wait in line to order tacos. They were quite hilarious to wait with. Got my Pork Taco, and Curstina got two for herself.

I've already shared my feelings on this topic, but once again I must say that those tacos make me jizz in my pants. If you don't get the allusion, shame on you.

Curstina, after having been shown the wonders of Korean bbq in a taco :D


And now, I am full beyond belief. I more or less waddled through the front door. Accomplished a lot in terms of gastronomics. Tried something new, returned to some of my old favorites. Good food, good music, good company. Honestly, what more could I possibly ask for?

Ever have one of those days

where random things just happen? But you look back on it and smile? Yeah, today was one of those days.

School was normal. Nothing of significance to talk about. But after school, I accompanied Ashley to the aquarium to take pictures. And I finally got to hear her spiel about all of the lovely fishies, crustaceans, plankton, and whatnot. I feel thoroughly educated. Ah, and there was also this strange thing that must have been beaten with an ugly stick. Seriously.

Only a mother could love a face like that. Or eat it. It totally would. For the record, it's called a football fish. Only ten have been caught in the world. In like, forever. Interesting.

On the drive there, we passed by Slavko's, a chicken restaurant that has been on my food list for some time. Recommended to me by my mentor in all matters food-related, I was not disappointed. Two wings, a half-pint of some decent jambalaya, and some free delicious potato nuggets thrown in for free, just because the guy there was nice and awesome. Did I mention it ran me a mere $5.50?

Here's the jambalaya with the staples: jerk chicken and andouille sausage.


The chicken was definitely unlike the usual greasy, soul food-type fare that I usually have. The outside was light in consistency, grease and flavor. Rather than be overly seasoned with however many herbs and spices, it simply accentuated the almost sweet flavor of the moist chicken. As opposed to some fried skins that completely mask the flavor of the poultry beneath. The broasted potato nuggets were also quite delicious. Seasoned to perfection and bite-sized, they kicked the crap out of KFC's potato wedges.


Ashley and I both give it a 7/10.

The interior of Slavko's is also quite...eccentric. Random signs, models, and doodads peer down at you from above the tall drink-fridges along the wall. I had fun seeing what kind of things were up there.

Spent some more time with Ashley before I had to head home and go to the Prom Fashion Show rehearsal.

Plug: Come to the Attic Prom Fashion Show this Saturday at 11:00 am. Studly gentlemen and fashionable ladies show off the latest prom apparel. There will also be a silent auction to share a Shirley Temple with the models. Haha.

Moving on. Went to some new teahouse in Gardena with Curstina called Tea...something or other. I already forgot.

Edit: Dani says it's called Tea Station.

Overpriced, but they had an extensive tea selection that impressed me. However, I found it difficult to justify the purchase of a paltry pot of tea. I'll make mine at home. Instead, I got some wonderfully sweet Honey Milk Tea in a really cool cup/pitcher/thing.

We are scheming something really really really awesome. Keep an ear to the ground. You'll be quite happy with what's in store.

And now I am here, without any homework to do. How exciting :D I had a very good day. Did you?

And if you haven't already noticed, I go through food phases. I am currently in my fried chicken-barbecue phase. Before this, I was in my steak phase. What's next..?

GAH!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO SABRINA AND CONGRATS ON GETTING INTO LA. The fact that these two events were on the same day make them particularly worth mentioning.

Sabby, surrounded by all of her birthday goodies :D

Haha so UCLA results came out today...all of Yearbook was glued to the computers for the entire period.

Ironically, the decisions didn't come out until later. Congrats to all those who got in!

Annnd Members Only Night! With amazing performances by the Juniors, Band, Dance, and all those other cool kids. 09's was quite hilarious if you got the references.

Like this. Mean Girls!

But honestly, I was disturbed. Laughing my ass off, but disturbed -__-"

Overall, Jerek and ASB pulled it off pretty well. Although we had some awkward lulls in between the performances, I think Jacob and Jane's random jokes made things more bearable. I also freaking loved our ASB skit and commercials XD

This picture has nothing to do with anything. Other than highlighting the fact that cool kids wear sunglasses indoors. Or something. Why would anyone actually do that, anyways??


And here's Jerek, with the XXL Mega Super Plus Tampon. Ohhhh man. So wrong.


What a tiring day. I think the giant tampon just made everything better.

More monochrome fun.

Before I talk about another photoshoot in my string of photoshoots, I would like to take this time to mention that Honey's Kettle Fried Chicken is amazing. I've already gone over this before, but I felt it deserved me mentioning it again.


That is all.
__________________________

And on to another day of studio lighting and awkward posing. Chris Koh volunteered to be my unfortunate model for the day. I should really take notes on how I set this all up. I'm pretty much working from scratch every single time. Damn.

I should've done something cool with the bottom of his shoes.


Chris does this thing where he likes to act....flamboyant. I don't get it. That kid's a weird one.


Staring off into oblivion.

I actually told him to think about college admissions for this picture. Figures.

Ahaha I really really really like this picture. Not for any technical reasons...it just makes me raff. Raff raff.

Emilaay: pah! orange my idea! xDDD
Yes, it was Emily's idea.

Having this much fun with photoshoots must be against the law or something. It's impossible for something to be so fun :D

How funny.

I realized how much I miss having shitty point-and-shoot pictures of me and my friends. I'm so caught up with my gigantic Canon that the people around me simply don't take pictures anymore. I just...don't have the crappy low quality pictures of friends and events that I used to before I carried around my dslr everyday.

Makes me a bit sad.

I'll post something new when my life becomes interesting again.

Fun fun.

Busy week. Haven't gotten much sleep. Looking forward to knocking out for the weekend. Lots of pictures to accompany this update, mostly modeling. Or actually, calling it modeling would be too gracious. More like random posing for the camera.

Jerek and Justin make very entertaining subjects. Both have great expressions and are quite outgoing. Makes my job easier. Tree, Sabby, Ashley, and I pretty much yelled out an emotion and they would imitate it. Nice.


Daaaayum! XD


Now, Mr. Shea had some continuous lighting fixtures sitting around in the photo classroom. So I had the idea to play around with them, and others joined in as the day went on. Thanks to my awesome models! At first there was only Sayo, who looks great when she's laughing, but eventually I rounded up random people to do the whole posing thing.


"Now, THIS is a photograph."


Fooling around with square composition.


Kinda just set up the lighting however I felt like it. Took a test shot, shook it up, went to work. Probably the most fun I've had in some time :D

Later on in the day, I headed out to the Kogi Truck! Or Kogi BBQ. Or whatever it's called. Headed out with Min and Scott, met up with Pastor Lee and his friend Albert once in line. I had to go all the way from USC to Sunset and Santa Monica because the truck at USC had left 24 minutes before our arrival. Bastards. It was quite an adventure trying to find the elusive truck, which we finally discovered upon seeing a mass of people semi-lined up in a parking lot. The truck came, people cheered, then proceeded to wait over an hour for some Korean-taco goodness. Totally worth the wait. Oh, and I saw Ray there! We semi-raced once he let me know he was going. Totally beat him there. Because we rock.

BBQ Pork Tacos, Galbi tacos. $2 each. Wonderfully seasoned meat with a medley of veggies not usually put into tacos. I gladly wolfed them down.


Kimchi Quesadilla. That's right. You read correctly. Kimchi in a mix of melty cheeses between a tortilla. Tasted a lot like buchimgae. But man, was it awesome. I want one right now, as a matter of fact.


Ohhh man. Galbi Burrito. A bit on the sweet side with some sort of asian dressing tossed into it, but still a solid burrito nonetheless. I would actually have gone for the pork one instead, but hey, it was so tasty, I didn't mind all that much.


Moving on to Friday, which was Pi Day :D Lots and lots of pie to go around. Haha around. Round. Pie. Get it? Har har.

Jerek dressed in the most awesome nerd costume ever. I only had Mike Ahn's suspenders to throw on. But Jerek and Kaitlyn gave me one of their Disney World buttons, so s'all good.


Shot up Pi Day, then went back to Shea's where another photoshoot and a stunning model awaited me.

Ashley told me a story about a Forkmaker who went on to become a Sporkmaker. Noooot quite sure how this fit into it, though.


Yup. That's my Ashley right there.


AHAHAHA. There's a great story behind this picture. Ask me about it sometime if you're curious. or Ashley. Or Emily. Or Sayo.


She puts up with my weirdness. I guess it helps that she's weird, too.


In conclusion, I want an all-white room to shoot in with seamless floors and walls. And lots of lighting fixtures. Ya know, I should just make myself a studio in the future. How fun would that be?

Moving on...Yearbook decided to include me into their Senior Ad! Hehe that made me smile on the inside. Although, most of the school probably assumes that I'm already on yearbook. Whatever.

Later that day, went to the CAMS Dance Show with Mikie. Just to get it out there, they're by no means South High Advanced Dance. It was very conceptual-abstract-whatever. Confusing at moments, but entertaining. And they have some amazing individuals on the team.

Mikie and I were starving afterwards, so we caught Five Guys just as they were about to close. It was so overly hyped, I was a bit disappointed. The meat was of good quality but lacked flavor. The amount of BBQ sauce they put on the burger was paltry. At least the jalapenos were delicious. And the grilled onions were unremarkable. But then, I've been spoiled by the onions at The Counter. It was a solid burger, but I failed to see why this was considered the In-and-Out killer or whatever. I'll stick to my 4x4 animal style any day.


But the fries...now those were good. Cooked in peanut oil, they took on a peculiar taste. They were also fairly thick-cut with skins left on. Really felt substantial like good steakhouse fries.

The large size is also VERY LARGE. It comes in a tall styrofoam cup, with the extra falling out into its accompanying paper bag. Quite a good amount for the price.

These past two days have been quite exciting. I've had reason upon reason to smile, and things have only been getting better and better. Here's to good times. I hope they don't end anytime soon.