"I love this shit!"

Said the excited guy when given the free bottle of Black Mamba.

Anyways.

Friday:
Scott's birthday. BP Tournament. 3-1.

Off to Sabrina's last dance show of her life. Snapped a shot of a moment she shared with her dad.


In-and-Out! Froyo! My house! Fun night...
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Saturday:
Supposed to go check out some concert at the Promenade, but missed it by a few minutes. I blame myself, traffic, and the fact that if I drove any faster people might freak out and yell at me.

But at least we saw this.


Wandered around aimlessly for a bit, checking out stores and booths and whatnot. Decided to head over to Santa Monica Pier to ride the Ferris Wheel. I love my new ultrawide.


Messed around for a bit, then headed back home. On the way, we stopped by Honey's. I am but one step closer in my goal of showing good food to all of my friends.


Somehow we managed to get back in time for the others to run off and watch UP. Jealous. But not too much, because instead I went to spend time with the lovely.

Drove around aimlessly until we decided to go to Ragin' Cajun. Fried Alligator, Crawfish Etouffee, and fried Crawfish. Oh, and the sauces ;] In case you were wondering, this is my second dinner.


Froyo, Falling Slowly, late nights.
Happy four months, love.

And that concludes the noteworthy part of my weekend. Well, and the fact that I'm probably going to Cambodia.
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Monday: Random smattering of things. Jacob and Bucky decided to play Chubby Bunny before we threw out the marshmallows.




I'm not even sure if anyone really won. Probably the people who were cracking up watching, because the two of them DEFINITELY did not enjoy that experience...

And Mrs. Hildreth made the announcement that we had to clean off our desks by Monday to make room for next year's ASB. Ouch.

This has been my home, my little slice of the school, for the entire year. Here lie my holiday cards, picture frames, bottles of Sriracha and Hoisin Sauce, extra lens, and notebooks. My memories...little bits of my life from throughout the year. And now, it's time to take them away. Out with the old, in with the new. I'm the old. Out with me. It's a bit painful to say that, really. I've experienced so much on ASB, that it really pains me to give it up. C'est la vie.

Loose Ends

ASB Banquet was today. I'm despairing a little bit, to be completely honest. I will miss every single member of ASB so much...they've all become my extended family. The ones who I can have inside jokes with, make fun of, steal food from, bitch about school, and count on when the going gets tough.

Tis sad.

Well, the banquet was touching, to say the least. It had such a feeling of finality to it, but thankfully I will see my ASB family for the next few weeks.


Oh, and I just found this picture particularly amusing. Rawr.


And we are definitely fat. After an all-you-can-eat banquet dinner, we went out for froyo. Success.


Gah, I shall miss these people dearly.

What a weekend.

Last Friday before the rest of Senior Year... cruise control, yeah?

For some reason, Jordan decided to show up. Cute.


Anyways, one hell of a hectic Friday. Recycling, Boat Races, CIF, Duct taped, etc.

Took Kyle to Flossie's for some fried catfish, 3 sides, and sweet tea for $12.01. Definitely recession-friendly. Still liking Honey's better than Flossie's, but Flossie's is local. Bonus points for that.


Back to Max's after the game, blowing shit up, when his parents yell at us to come outside. What are we greeted with? The best TPing job that I've seen in some time.


Strangely enough, getting TPed got us off of our lazy asses. The night definitely improved after that.
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Armed Forces Day Parade. Tagged along with the TYC Kids and got to go to a snazzy luncheon with the veterans. Twas interesting and humbling to be surrounded by Medal of Honor recipients, admirals, and generals. These are people who did something with their lives. Countless Thanks to all of the men and women fighting for our country.

The parade itself was quite amusing. We received some great visors and mini American flags. Totally looked like tourists...


While sitting in the stands, I witnessed one of several surreal moments that I would see that day. Two soldiers who fought during World War II, one from the illustrious Big Red One. Both were thanking each other endlessly for helping the others' infantry divisions during the Pacific Theater. I got chills up and down my spine listening to them talk with such sincerity and gratitude. That's brotherhood.


And now, the parade. F/A-18 flybys, Abrams, Humvees, Tuskegee Airmen, and lots of brass.


on a sidenote, I just happened to sit next to the wife of some Rear Admiral or something like that. Interesting conversations abounded.

Then rushed over to Ashley's choir concert. You sang wonderfully, love.

In other news, we finally managed to clear out my stock. Getting some new goods for the summer :D
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And on to Sunday...funeral time.


Twas my cousin's grandfather's funeral. He was 89 at the time of passing, so it was a bit expected, but still difficult nonetheless. I don't have much to say about it.

He did, however, make it a point that the funeral was not to be somber or mournful. There was little crying or wailing. My funeral will be similar. Something festive and vibrant, to celebrate my life rather than to mourn for my death. I don't want people to have to cry on my behalf.

And that, my dears, is the conclusion to a hectic weekend.

Things are heating up

Quite literally. Friday was definitely shorts weather.

Talked to the other Photo kids for the first time in a while...without a doubt worth sticking around for. What a great group of kids... I should've hung around in Shea's more often. We all had our cameras, so of course we took pictures of each other taking pictures. I mean, what else would we do with our cameras?


Then over to Fantastic Cafe with Ray, after a failed burger excursion. Ate some decent, reasonably-priced diner food instead. Yum. Chili burger with fries.


Some fun with some cool kids, dancing around, ridiculous jerking, and some Chocolate Teddy Grams.

Saturday: ASB stuff! Turns out that neither Kelly nor Tori had eaten a Locomoco before, so I had to show them.

Seriously, what have they been missing this whole time?!

Got kicked out of Ashley's house -__-

STAR TREK WAS AWESOME. I never watched the show, but I still found the movie quite exciting. That's all I have to say about that.

And an early Mother's Day dinner. Scallop-shrimp-pepper kebabs on the grill...nicely seasoned, piping hot, and overall delicious.


Fresh King Crab legs, red wine, Guinness, and an awkward fork jutting into my frame.


Very very very tasty. My stomach was happy. And it's always nice to spend time with family, yeah?

My heart just stopped.

I swear, I'm going to die from barbecue overdose. From Saturday to Saturday, I went to Jay Bee's four times. Four. Freaking. Times. I just can't get enough of it. The melt-in-your-mouth pulled pork, smokey brisket, rib-sticking mac-and-cheese, and sweet corn bread are all so ridiculously delicious that I find myself craving it at every possible moment! What the hell am I supposed to do with myself?!

Well, since nothing else interesting has happened in my life these past few days, here are the pictures from my various barbecue excursions.

Pulled Pork (they call it pork shoulder) sandwich, extra sauce, on a bun with a bed of coleslaw.


Meat Combo: BBQ Beef (brisket) and Pork Shoulder (pulled pork)


Large order of Pork Shoulder. This one did me in with a piece of cornbread. All I needed was some Nehi Grape Soda or Sweet Tea. That's one complaint I have...their drink selection is sorely lacking. But if anything, it brings the focus back to the barbecue.


In other news, I had the case of the drunchies since Friday. I craved fried chicken! So after getting out of school ridiculously early (thanks to the APs), Curstina, Sarah, and I made a food run out to Culver City. Where did we go? Honey's Kettle Fried Chicken, of course.

Taster's Deluxe Combo with chicken and fried catfish, a delicious biscuit that was simply orgasmic when dipped in honey, and some lovely fries that also went great with honey, tasting somewhat like a Korean treat that I love to eat. As usual, Honey's thick, crunchy, salty fried skin didn't let me down one bit. That's the way to do it.


Really, all I've been doing for the past week is eating. I better go make my life more exciting somehow.

Good times.

Before I write about the first day of Spring Break, I would like to mention that Jasmin is a ridiculously good baker.


That is all.
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So Friday. Lip Sync. Seniors won, but I wasn't completely blown away. Impressed, but not as much as I have been in previous years.

Went out to dinner with Sarah and Kyle. Ragin' Cajun, man. The restaurant that got me started on this journey of eating everything possible. It honestly isn't as good as I remember. Not sure if that has to do with the fact that I know more about what I'm eating, or the quality has simply declined. Either way, it's a fun little beach restaurant that has a special place in my memory.

Fried Seafood Platter. Decent catfish and shrimp. Crawfish had a strange bitter aftertaste to it. Hm.


Red Beans and Rice with Andouille sausage and coleslaw. Even more goodness.


Kicked off Spring Break with some friends, knocked out hard.
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Beach with the cool kids on Saturday!

Sabby, Tree, and Emilay will all write about the events of the day, so here are the pictures to go along with it.

Beach Twister! Hehe I won both games. Made things extremely awkward for people ;D


Super Delicious Yummy Awesome 3/$5 Churro run!


Aaaand Pterodactyl! Sabby and Tree played it to a stalemate. They know each other too well.


I'm tired as hell and don't want to write too much. I'm doing this mostly so I don't have a massive pileup of pictures in the next few days.

Good night.

Awkward Bulge.

DEFINITELY is not a velcro bulge.

Well Faculty Wrestling was quite interesting. Enjoyed the MMA guys. Both had that really awesome crescent-roundhouse kick that I love to do. Except their kicks probably hit 10x harder than mine. Justin's display of homoerotic man-groping was also quite...interesting. Just kidding. It's wrestling.

Remember kids, it's only gay if you make eye contact.

I'm sorry, this picture is way out of context. The guy in the white just escaped a hold and is running off. But it sure doesn't look that way...

That made for a good laugh.
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The most important part of my day would definitely be Jay Bee's Barbecue out in Gardena/Carson/somewhere around there. It is THE BEST barbecue I've had in Southern California. It looks nothing like a barbecue joint, but I could give a rat's ass after trying out the food there. Just don't go for the world class service or sophisticated atmosphere. You'll be sitting on picnic benches, enjoying well-cooked meat with other barbecue lovers.

Oh, and Guy Fieri approves. That's a definite plus in my book.


The brisket is exactly how I've been looking for - moist, juicy, dowsed in tangy barbecue sauce, with globs of melting fat chunks and nice hickory-smoked color. The rib tips were quite delicious also. I hear the pork shoulder is excellent, but I've yet to try it.

The portions are ridiculously generous, and the price surpringly low. I was quite satisfied. I definitely got more than my money's worth.

And the mac and cheese was worth writing about separately. With every bite, I pulled out long strings of melted cheese that stretched as I moved the tasty sidedish closer to my mouth.

Every. Single. Bite. Stretchy melty cheese. I swear, this thing could block a leaky pipe, it was so hearty.

I have found my new go-to place for some kickass barbecue. Oh baby, I think I'm in love.

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.

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.

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.