January « 2010 « ((little fat notebook))

Weight maintenance

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: childhood, experiences, food, travel

21 January 2010

I have been really blessed when it comes to my weight. I’ve never had to diet and never been fat (though at times I’ve been fatter than I would have preferred). However, I’ve always had a “normal” BMI (fluctuating between 19.6-22.7) and I’ve always looked and felt perfectly healthy. And though I’ve never dieted, I have certainly lost weight kind of like I might have been, which was really random.

When I left for Singapore, I weighed 140 lbs, and when I came back five months later, I was 130 lbs. I didn’t notice a difference until I weighed myself at the doctor’s, when I went in for a check-up after getting sick (just to make sure it wasn’t H1N1). Actually, even then, I didn’t really notice a difference, but not long after, I suddenly realized the reason my pants had been loose and why I had needed to wear a belt more. Since then, I’ve lost another 5 lbs for no good reason and that’s where I’m at now. When I’ve eaten, I’m around 130 and when I haven’t, I’m at 125. I don’t watch what I eat and pretty much go with whatever I am craving, which mostly happens to be pickles, ice cream, kimchi fried rice, or (most recently) chili cheese fries.

I hit my peak when I was in England, at around 145. It was probably in part due to the cold (hey, you need some insulating body fat!), lack of movement, and just general unhealthy behavior starting from when I entered college. It wasn’t until I looked at how I look now, versus pictures of how I looked then, that I can see the difference. My face is rounder and plumper in those pictures and I probably fit my pants a lot better. After all, I bought a bunch of new jeans before going abroad and now they’re all quite loose.

I never realized how fit I was in high school until I got really out of shape in college. Whereas before I had track & field, swimming, and ROTC training to keep me extremely active, in college I lazed around eating great food and lounging on couches or my bed. I guess my natural weight is just around 140, since it seems I can maintain that very easily. Nowadays I linger at 125 and I wonder if it is because I can’t eat as much as I used to. As a kid, I was always a huge eater (and more of a snacker), so my metabolism was constantly on hyperdrive. I think that helped me not gain a lot of weight and now that my metabolism has slowed, my eating habits have shrunk along with it. I’m just glad I never had to discipline myself to eat well because I love my food too much!

A curious phenomenon

laelene Posted in photo blog，Tags: food, observation, pictures

20 January 2010

One day I looked at my KOR hydration vessel to find it covered in bubbles.

water bottle with tiny air bubbles lining the inside

So it turns out this is what happens when you put hot water in, seal the container, and let the water cool.

How fascinating.

My dreams of being a school bus driver

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: childhood, future, memories, storytelling, work

19 January 2010

When I was young, I wanted to be a number of unusual things. While other children were aspiring to be doctors, lawyers, artists, dancers, or some form of celebrity, I once had it in my mind that I wanted to be a school bus driver. You see, I always had a penchant for sharing candy and snacks with my friends and I figured there was no better job that allowed you to give candy to kids than that of a school bus driver. I wouldn’t have to deal with teaching and grading like teachers do, I wouldn’t have to clean up after messy kids like janitors do, and I wouldn’t have to deal with strange cafeteria food like the servers do. All I’d have to do is pick students up in the morning and drop them off at night. Meanwhile, I could have a lovely stash of treats that I’d give out for holidays and in certain special times like first and last day of school.

When I was in fourth grade, my teacher had an entire drawer of delicious candy. When we got homework assignments and tests back, we’d find nickels, dimes, and quarters stamped at the top of our page. Depending on how well we did for that assignment or test, we would find different increments of change stamped on. We would then tear off the stamped image and keep it in a bag or pencil case. Then, one glorious day, Mrs. S would open up her fabulous drawer and allow us to “buy” the candy within. Though I thought that would be fun to do, I didn’t like the other aspects of the job, like controlling unruly young kids and patiently teaching them a variety of subjects. So, I decided that I would rather be the like school bus driver, who would give us candy on Valentine’s Day or for the winter holidays. It’s all the fun without the grunt work!

When your boyfriend cuts your hair

laelene Posted in video blog，Tags: amusing, experiences, panda, technology, videos

18 January 2010

I don’t know what program I’m supposed to be installing to be able to record a video from my webcam on my computer, so I have resorted to online methods. Most programs I found don’t seem compatible with Windows 7 anyway. So here’s my attempt at the vlog I wanted to do before. The audio’s a bit harsh, so turn down your volume!

Eastern vs. Western cooking

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: food, habits, mommy, observation

17 January 2010

It seems to be an Eastern cultural thing to cook based on feeling, rather than using measuring cups and step by step instructions. At least that’s how we do it in my household. I guess that’s why we never quite know if our food will turn out like that one time when it was perfect and wonderful (and usually it doesn’t, pity). But hey, it’s a lot more fun that way and when you get enough practice, soon enough you can cook pretty consistently. It’s a good way of testing your culinary skills! Besides, having that variation allows for unintentional discoveries that can be quite fun. I personally enjoy never knowing what my food will end up tasting like. Makes meals just a little more exciting. 😛

Jiminy Cricket

laelene Posted in photo blog，Tags: animals, experiences, panda, pictures

16 January 2010

One day, Panda noticed a cricket on the wall. He immediately wanted it out, but I saw that she just needed a warm place to stay. Besides, being a female, she doesn’t chirp, so she wasn’t bothering anyone by being there. Plus, crickets are considered good luck in Chinese culture, so I figured it’d be nice to have her around the place for a bit. We eventually compromised by capturing her and keeping her in a ventilated container. Panda didn’t like the idea of her running around the place and I didn’t like the idea of shooing her away.

We read that they like to eat rotting food, so I figured the pear core from earlier that day was suitable. Oh yeaaah, doesn't that mold look appetizing?

cricket in plastic container on grass, with lid removed to allow it to hop out

After two or three days, I was afraid we didn't have the conditions to keep her as a pet, so I decided it was time to release her outside.

cricket hopped out onto grass and was free to go

She eventually hopped out of the container, made her way across the grass, and disappeared into a crack in the wall.

Job listings

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: job hunting, observation, work

15 January 2010

As I scour the web for job listings, I’ve come across quite an assortment of posts. They range from professionally-written and well-organized to a complete jumble, riddled with errors and not very representative of what the job may be. Some barely give me enough information to know if it’s a job I’d be interested in! What a waste. So here are some thoughts I had while reading dozens of descriptions…

1. What amuses me greatly are the ones that say “only serious candidates please.” It made me wonder if that actually works, and silly as it sounds to me, I bet it does, if only a little bit. There’s something about human psychology that needs a little reminding of the seemingly obvious things at times. That’s exactly why saying “please RT” on Twitter actually does work in increasing the number of retweets. It’s obvious that people would love if you retweet their stuff on Twitter, but sometimes when it’s a particularly important thing, writing it out gets people to take action. Similarly, having that warning phrase probably does do some damage control for the posters, decreasing the number of junk applications they get.

2. I appreciate it when the company tells you who they are! It amazes me how many anonymous job listings there are. After all, if I were the hiring manager, I would want to make sure the candidate not only fits what I want in the position, but aligns with the business objectives of the company as well. Don’t you want people who fit the company culture and truly like your product or service? I can understand individual people looking for personal assistants being more vague on who they are, but at least they describe themselves – “female executive working between home and office.” Companies rarely go into their company culture, usually saying something generic like “fast-paced environment.” What if I find out, like my friend Elle did once, that you stand for exactly the opposite things that I do?!

2a. Also, some descriptions are very similar and I wonder if it’s the same one I applied for. Though it doesn’t look the same, it’s the same job title, in the same general area, with the same pay. What if I’m wasting my time applying twice? If I know what the organizations were, that could be prevented.

3. What’s up with this whole “salary commensurate with experience” deal? I would much rather they put up a range so I can get an idea of where I fall. To me, job descriptions vary greatly between organizations and though I just about qualify to be a marketing director for one, I barely qualify to be a marketing associate/assistant in another! That’s where the issue of money becomes handy (and I begin to see why money came about in the first place). The standardization of worth is pretty accurately measured across these jobs, despite the descriptions. So a quick glance at the salary or hourly wage gives me a good idea of whether I’m too far off from a position or if it is within my range. Oftentimes the job descriptions don’t even tell me and technically I qualify, but I get the impression they’re looking for someone with closer to 7 years experience, or the like. I think having a solid number up there helps weed away people whose expectations are too far off.

I’m sure I’ll find other nuances that either entertain or annoy me as I keep looking. Such is the experience of being a job hunter! I’ve gotten much better at distinguishing between real listings and the fake ones though (well maybe they’re not fake, but they’re a bit of a scam and not the standard career job I’m looking for). I’ve got some promising leads and interviews to be scheduled, so that’s good. And the hunt continues…

In lieu of a real video blog

laelene Posted in video blog，Tags: experiences, fun, los angeles, videos

14 January 2010

I wanted to do a “real” video blog today – you know the type where it’s a webcam shot of someone talking at you? Well, turns out when I upgraded to Windows 7, I lost all the pre-installed programs so now I don’t have anything to record on my webcam with. Until I figure out what software I need or find a different program that can do that for me, you’ll just have to make do with watching me enjoy the kick of this rifle.

rifling it from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

Glenrock explosion? Yeah, I was there.

laelene Posted in photo blog，Tags: experiences, los angeles, panda, pictures, storytelling, ucla

13 January 2010

Well, what an intense night it was, what with an electrical transformer exploding underground, shaking the buildings in the Glenrock meets Levering intersection. Panda and I were happily enjoying our dinners when I swear, the entire building swayed a few feet and then snapped back to its normal position. For some reason, I thought it was something like a dumpster that got rolled off the roof. It certainly sounded like it, but the movement of the building only made sense in retrospect, when we found out that it was due to an explosion. The boom was louder than the sonic boom we’d experienced back in August or so (then again, that sonic boom came from veeery far away). At first we weren’t sure what to do and I peeked out the porch to hear car alarms going off. Panda called up a coworker and then reported it to the police, who’d gotten wind of it just minutes earlier.

As Apartment Coordinator, it was his duty to make sure his residents were alright and go find out if we needed to be evacuated or anything like that. So, we headed out to see what the commotion was all about. I went straight outside to take pictures, hoping to practice my photography skills in the dark! Out on the street, people were all gathered staring at the steam (and smoke?) rising from a manhole in the ground. Let me tell the rest of the story with pictures… (click pictures for full size)

firefighters and trucks gathered around manhole where electrical explosion occurred

This is the scene we were greeted with not long after the explosion. The steam is rising from the manhole that got blown off.

crowd gathers on the street to watch the manhole spewing steam

You can see across the street all the people who gathered before we were all chased away.

an ambulance takes up the span of the road after the Glenrock explosion

The ambulance quickly found that nobody was injured, thankfully.

firetruck makes its way down Glenrock after the explosion

The ambulance soon gave way to the firetruck, which lent its hose to the efforts. Apparently there was a bit of a fire going on underground.

police cars parked across the road to prevent cars from driving by

The police came and blocked off Levering at Midvale so cars wouldn't drive down towards the mess.

police cars parked to prevent traffic from passing by as people stand around wondering what happened

People kind of just stood around dumbfounded as they talked to each other trying to figure out what happened.

firefighters stood around in the middle of the street, deciding what to do

After the people were cleared, the firefighters huddled up to plan what to do.

firetruck parked in the middle of the street

The firetruck served a dual purpose of providing a hose and blocking off traffic.

I never saw what they used this hose for, but I guess they needed it underground to fight the fire the transformer set.

firehose winds its way down the street to the manhole

And so it wound its way down to the scene of the action.

policeman standing guard across the street, near the firetruck

A policeman on scene as watch guard, probably to keep pedestrians from getting too close.

part of city skyline as backdrop to the commotion going down in the streets

I loved the backdrop of the skyline juxtaposed against the bright lights below.

a floor-to-ceiling glass panel broken in the explosion

Residents nearby were startled not only by the boom of the explosion, but their glass breaking!

huge crack across entire width of window

Check out that massive crack, yikes!

shards of broken glass outside on the porch

The shards of glass that fell from above.

shards of broken glass that landed inside the room

The bits that landed inside the room. Thankfully it was pretty concentrated!

The troublesome manhole, just a rectangular hole in the ground.

car lights shining on manhole in the ground

That's where all the trouble originated from...

bright lights from a firetruck light up the street at night

Those lights were rather glaring, as they shone on the intersection.

lights went out in our apartment complex

We went back to the room after the hubbub and things were quieting down until the lights went out for us too (buildings on another street over had lost power with the blast)!

city skyline with no bright lights on streets now

The firetruck with the bright lights seemed to have retreated and we were offered a darker view of our surroundings.

I thought it was cool how the lights faded away into near pitch-black darkness. You don't get that much in the city!

The emergency lights kept people from tripping in the dark.

parking enforcement lady stands by her vehicle

The parking enforcement lady was brought out to guard this part of the road and redirect all traffic.

emergency supply closet held some hatchets

We went to get some glow sticks from the emergency supply closet and found some hatchets and axes!

bag full of glow sticks for emergency use

We got the bag of glow sticks and began to distribute them.

We placed the glow sticks in strategic places in stairwells and hallways.

It looked like a news truck, but had no logo and nobody was reporting outside...

cars driving down Glenrock found themselves turning around at the roadblock

Cars not knowing what went on came down Glenrock only to run into the road block and have to turn around.

This is what Glenrock looks like when all the lights on the block are out.

a building thrown into darkness from the blackout

One of the many buildings that found itself enveloped in darkness.

the neon 555 Glenrock sign was dark for once

That glaring red sign that most people know about was dark for a rare occasion.

What a night it was! I have concluded that I should definitely get a tripod to go with my future DSLR… but these night shots turned out so much better than they would have on a normal point and shoot. 🙂

Check out the Daily Bruin article that came out just an hour after the event, then the one written after more information was gathered.

A rejuvenating experience

laelene Posted in photo blog，Tags: animals, experiences, food, friends, fun, green, los angeles, nature, observation, opinion, opportunity green, pictures, relationships, storytelling, travel

12 January 2010

The past week has been really hard on me, as the pressure to get a job grew and my parents and I had a tiff over my sleeping pattern and job search, among other things. So, it was an absolute blessing that Opportunity Green was holding a retreat over the weekend. One of the Board Members owns Casa Barranca, a fabulous estate out in Ojai. People who had contributed to the Opportunity Green Conference back in November were invited to either stay the weekend or swing by on Saturday or Sunday to hang out. Tucked in the hills of Ventura County, in a gorgeously maintained house from the early 1900s, I got to spend my weekend relaxing, enjoying nature, and chatting with some really amazing people.

Delicious potluck to start off the weekend.

Friday night I arrived thinking I was late for dinner, but it turns out the days drag out so peacefully and slowly there that dinner hadn’t even been thought of yet. I hung around the kitchen, talking to some of the people I hadn’t really gotten to know prior to the conference – we were all so busy, after all! It was already completely dark outside when I pulled up around 6:30, so it felt like 11 when we eventually got around to preparing the food. I think it was more like 7:30-8. But that’s the thing about being far away from the city and its lights and noise; time stretches itself to its very limits and you discover how much can be done in just a few minutes, a few hours. There’s a serenity about Casa Barranca that relaxes you and lets you forget that you have an inbox full of e-mails or that your favorite TV show is on. In fact, there isn’t a television in the entire place, which I found to be one of the best choices they could have made.

yoga studio at casa barranca, detached from main house

That yoga studio was to die for!

The house itself is absolutely lovely and you should definitely check out the virtual tour on the Casa Barranca website. Besides that, there are a bunch of little bungalows or “teahouses” sitting around the property and small cabins as well. You can easily fit 30-40 people without ever feeling overcrowded. When I got a chance to first see the grounds during the day, it was even better than I imagined. The yoga studio sits perched at the top of a hill overlooking part of the valley below. There’s no better location to get in touch with your inner spirit and truly experience some Zen. Between that and the house lies a little orchard, teeming with citrus trees of all sorts! Since part of the grounds is an organic winery, I think it’s safe to assume those fruits were organic too. I meant to pick one to try, but was so distracted by the beauty that I forgot to. There’s also a chlorine-free pool and hot tub, small field to frolic in, a koi pond, a hammock, and so many great vantage points!

A cute little shop in the middle of town!

The town is also a delight, with a main street that is lined up with little shops. The Casa Barranca tasting room is right next to the ice cream shop (and thank goodness, because I got hungry pretty quickly and needed something to fill me!). I felt slightly out of my comfort zone in their downtown, which didn’t have lights illuminating every inch of street. When I was directed to the nearest ATM, I turned around too early because the lights stopped. It seems that their town is so safe and quiet that they don’t need lights all over the place. It was strange to be back in that type of place again, after years in the city. At night when I went to sleep, I was struck by how absolutely silent it was out there. It was completely dark as well, and laying there was such a tranquil experience. The rest of the people had long since called it a day and were no doubt happily dreaming away in their respective beds. I’m glad I had a roommate to share the space with, otherwise everything might have seemed too still. But with another person in the room, I fell asleep easily as a long day caught up with me.

Can you believe it was only her first time teaching? She did a fantastic job and should totally be a yogi.

I slept in until 10:30 on Saturday, but was still able to enjoy a full day, complete with yoga, sitting out in the sun, chatting in front of the fireplace, going down into town to watch the Casa Barranca wine tasting (mentioned above), playing Spoons and BS, lots of opportunities to experiment with the ISO settings on my camera, an intense game of Jenga, and some hot tubbing. It was really nice for the day to go on forever, since it allowed me to have a multitude of quality conversations with some remarkable people. We talked about all kinds of random things, from what they do to what I want to do to what drives us and how we came to get involved with Opportunity Green. In the mix was also random talk about crazy cat ladies and women who obsess over fake babies. Sharing some of my ideas really helped me think about what it is I want from life and the like.

We came across some great vantage points and learned to be grateful for every bit of shade we got.

On the final day, I got up at 9:30 when I was told we were leaving for the hike. About a dozen of us headed out along the trail, making our way up the path in the morning sun. After awhile, those of us with long sleeves began to regret the decision and the few who brought water found themselves sharing with the group. We met some wonderful people along the way and got to play a bit with their adorable dogs! Two of the people staying at the retreat had brought their dogs, one of which came along for our hike (even though she’s 13!). The trip was absolutely worth the huffing and beads of sweat that began to form, as we were rewarded with views of so much greenery it was hard to imagine life back in the city. It was a great way to spend the morning before heading out in the afternoon. Though physically I was tired from more physical exertion than I had done in months, it was a great feeling and my spirit was lifted after being there.

And for more pictures of the weekend… I’m quite proud that some came out looking nearly like a DSLR took them, or so I think!

standing at the end of diving board looking down into pool

I went to have some fun on the springy surface.

landing after a short jump on the diving board

They tried to get a shot of me in the air, but the timing just wasn’t right. I had a blast anyway!

Artistic pieces sit by the doors that open out to the view over the hillside.

view from yoga studio, looking out over hills and valley

The view that we saw as we did yoga in the studio.

buddha statue sitting outside yoga studio

The statue that sits to the left of the yoga studio entrance.

The fire pit situated right outside the yoga studio doors.

I wonder if the tree was shot at or got infected with bugs?

This pathway led up to one end of the house, where the kitchen is located.

orchard full of orange, lemon, and lime trees

Looking the other way down the path, you see more fruits that you could possibly eat!

Hidden amongst the green, orange, and yellow is this little gem, just barely clinging on.

These plants grew in a patch just outside the kitchen.

I love the colors of the Bird of Paradise.

It kind of looks like those 8-prong head massagers.

Take a look at that freshness!

closeup of lemon with little white flower visible

There’s something really fun about the dimpled texture of citrus fruits.

What a beautiful shade of purple! Absolutely gorgeous.

Jack, one of the dogs with us for the weekend.

Jazzy, the other dog hanging out with us.

outdoor bungalow/teahouses for guests to stay in

One of the bungalows/teahouses scattered around the property.

looking inside bungalow/teahouse to see bed and fan

Inside each were two single beds, a little desk, a fan, and heater.

hammock overlooking view of mountains in distance

A hammock was put at the edge of the hill, with a great view of the land below.

It was a hazy day and the sun began to sink slowly.

It soon became a brilliantly beautiful sunset. I love the details of the rocks in the distance.

festive display in window of casa barranca tasting room

It was so cozy, warm, and welcoming.

people getting ready to taste some wines

Everyone squeezed in to the bar for their share of the wine being sampled.

line of wine bottles in a row for display

Many of these were tasted that night, as Casa Barranca generously shared their products.

Check out these awesome coasters recycling paper into a great new use! I think I remember reading they were from Vietman or Thailand or something.

Along the trail path were these funky leaves, complete with curling tendrils.

The kind of fence you used to hand make with an axe and nails.

a house perched on top of a hill with great views

Now that house is situated in a place with views in nearly every angle!

green metal crane sculpture in alcove along trail

A random sculpture tucked away along the trail.

Such a pretty little puppy!

I was trying to capture how there was a perfect little paw print on her leggings, but the angle isn’t quite right.

So many layers of hills!

a clearing area on the hill, perfect for sheep

We seriously expected some sheep to be grazing here. I thought we were continuing over this hill, but thankfully we cut down the mountain before then.