Today I began my summer internship at Cisco in HR!!
All badged up.
Breakfast at the all hands, Cisco Beat.
Awesome mugs they were giving out!
CEO Chuck Robbins kicks off Cisco Beat.
Got lunch at the local cafeteria.
Delicious Indian food!! ?
The cool swag they welcomed me with. ?
One of the execs brought her dog to work.
I got to put this sticker on my laptop. ?
I’ve been traveling through Asia with some of my classmates for school and now for fun, so I haven’t had the time to really sit down for a post. It’s been such an amazing time and in trying to explain work husbands to my cousin in Japan who joined me for part of the trip, I talked about creating my own little extended family unit. I think that’s a fitting way to describe the closeness I feel with these incredible people. I’m with two of them now, as well as some who could very well be siblings or cousins of sorts (I’ve taken to calling one of them “lao ba” – an affectionate “old dad” nickname). More on my non-blood family another time… for now, here are some pics.
We stayed right across from Taipei 101.
Climbing Elephant Mountain was difficult but totally worth it.
I’m all about climbing and nature and views.
Pretty sure I lost this dress at the hotel, boo.
This bus was like a time capsule!
Taipei airport music-themed rest area. Off to Shanghai!
Visiting Baosteel to watch steel being made was cool.
It’s super hot when it rolls by and glows all over you.
City God Temple has tons of shopping.
Professor Lin and have the same taste and voted for the same logo design.
Hangzhou visit to Alibaba took us to this beautiful city.
Cats!!
At the highest place in Shanghai enjoying the view.
A funky place for live music in the basement of The Peninsula.
We found an amazing rooftop bar to contrast the club below. What a way to end our time in Shanghai.
The last breakfast buffet! I loved the salted duck eggs and congee.
I finally had time to try the fresh noodles before heading off.
I’m such a bleeding heart.
If I ever got measured for sentimentality, I’d probably be off the charts. I have a soft, squishy part of my soul that is reserved just for 6 very important people: my parents and my grandparents. Whenever I see them, I leave feeling a little nostalgic and pensive. It gets more pronounced as we get older and I think of all the love I have for them. How strange that I can feel so loved that it makes me tear up every time.
Growing up, I always thought of my parents as 35. In my mind’s eye, they didn’t age and my impression of them was frozen in time. Then at some point in my 20s, I realized they were hitting 50. Ever since then, they’ve been stuck at that age for me and they probably will for many years to come. Something about that changing doesn’t sit well with me, so I like to keep them in a little time capsule in my mind. Luckily, when I see them in person, they still look 50 to me so it’s easy to keep up the illusion.
Throughout this time, I’ve started to appreciate everything they’ve done for me more and more. We’re not an affectionate type of family, but I’ve taken to hugging my dad and kissing my mom on the cheek whenever I greet them. Just typing that makes the tears well up. What is it that makes me so sappy??
I’ve pretty much always been like that. I’ve written about how I love tenderness before and I shared some stories about my laoye, my nainai, my mom, and my dad and yeye. I guess I should add in a story about my laolao to make it complete. Thinking about each of them tugs on my heartstrings in ways that I don’t understand. Each of them has given so much to get me to where I am today and I feel close to them, yet I hardly ever see them.
I see my mom the most, at about every other month when I go home for a day. I see my dad 2-3 times a year, whenever he is visiting from China. Two of my grandparents died many years ago. I see my living grandma and step-grandpa and other grandpa on average once every 3-4 years. The closeness I feel is certainly not reflected in the frequency of our interactions.
Perhaps this distance is why I enjoy expressing nuggets of love to my friends. Absent cousins or grandparents to snuggle with and share my thoughts, I cherish the friendships that give me that outlet. As an only child, I craved the intimacy of a sibling and I’ve spent my life on the lookout for friends who could fulfill that desire. Maybe that’s where my sentimentality comes from, as I try to derive meaning in every moment, every interaction. I love inside jokes and pet names and hugging and sharing food. All these things that casually indicate a deep level of comfort with each other. To me, that’s love and it’s what I seek. More on that another day.
Back to my family though – the most mundane interaction with them can easily make my heart swell. I don’t know what it is about them that is a huge trigger for me, but I feel it more strongly with each passing year. I mean, just this weekend I had brunch with my parents and I felt incredibly sad to part ways. Did anything notable happen? No. Is either of them in poor health? No. Is there any specific reason to be sad? No.
But I’m a softie with a giant trigger on my heart that is basically a big CRY NOW button. And hanging out with my beloved family activates that for me.
Five weeks ago, I was chatting with some friends when one of them (my “Partner”) randomly mentioned he had an extra helmet and could take me on a motorcycle ride sometime.
You should have seen the wide-eyed, excited look I gave him.
It was the weirdest thing because just days earlier, I had been thinking to myself who I knew with a motorcycle. I was driving back from a tour of Amazon’s facilities out in San Bernardino and kept seeing motorcycles passing by. One of my mentors had recently had his stolen, which also caught my attention (and strangely enough got me interested).
I had been mulling the idea over in my head for a few days when out of the blue, the offer was made and I cannot tell you how ecstatic yet baffled I was. Had he read my mind?! I hadn’t talked to anybody about it yet and our topic of conversation was nowhere near the subject. I wasn’t about to ask questions though, so I happily took him up on it. Ever since, we’ve been trying to find a time to go and things kept getting in the way.
So FINALLY, yesterday we got a chance to go for a ride. Partner picked me up in DTLA and we went through Echo Park towards Griffith Observatory. When we first got going, I was rather surprised to find nothing to hold on to except him. For some reason I hadn’t expected that. As we went along, I got to see a bit of what others had warned me of in terms of crazy drivers who either don’t see or don’t care you’re there. We tried out some winding roads and meandered around surface streets before stopping to grab some lunch. It was so interesting for me to look around as we went – I feel like I saw a lot more and noticed a lot more.
I found it quite odd that people seemed to ignore our presence as they drove in their cars texting irresponsibly. Being exposed like that made me feel a lot more connected with my surroundings and I kept shifting my gaze to try to see as much as possible. There were moments where I burst out into a goofy grin because it was so cool to be cruising along. I certainly didn’t get my fill this time, but there will be other chances!
While waiting to get gas, I couldn’t resist taking a selfie with my new helmet courtesy of Partner.
After getting gas, it was time to sling the leg over and get back on the road.
For lunch, we shared a charcuterie platter and some yummy bread.
Sneaky action shot! I like the angle and the capture of the sign.
After we stopped, I wanted to get some selfies.
What an awesome friend, work husband, and Partner! Now please take me on a ride again, kthxbye. 😉
Peace.
“Now sit on it.”
I want!!
Well then… since spring break, I’ve been awful at doing any reviews, so let’s get the first box from this year out there!
Prospurly is just under $45 per box (with code for 10% off your subscription – use my referral links from this post) and comes with artisan foods, bath & body items, home products, and other sustainably crafted items. Boxes are sent monthly with no option to skip. They offer a referral program that earns you free boxes.
Beach Organics Bath Salts First Light – As always, I will save these to soak in when I have my own (more comfortable) bathtub to use. I like that these are a combo of Himalayan and Dead Sea salts – sounds super fancy.
From Molly With Love White Sage Smudge Spray – Can someone explain what a smudge spray is? Well, whatever the case, this a good way to cleanse the air of odors. It makes a very handy room spray, though apparently it doubles as a body spray.
Sakari Botanicals Juniper Oil – A massage oil or cooking oil in one? Now that’s new. I definitely thought it was a facial oil and put it in with my bathroom products. Good to know I can ingest it too.
St. Tropica Coconut Hot Oil Hair Mask – I’ve been meaning to use this for ages! My hair could use a boost and I look forward to a hair mask, which I haven’t done before.
The Brothers Apothecary Winter Immunitea – This blend of herbs is great for a soothing cup at night when I need to relax. I haven’t cracked it open yet since I haven’t felt like hot tea as much recently, but it will be very useful in the cooler months.
Frau Fowler Tooth Powder – It’s so strange having this slightly salty powder for toothpaste, which you don’t rinse out after spitting out. I like to use it at night before I go to bed so in the morning I can have a more traditional minty mouth wake-up.
This was a handy box with great products that I will enjoy using. What do you think of this month’s box?
[This post contains affiliate links. Signing up through them helps support my subscription and I’d be ever so grateful. 🙂 All opinions are my own and I received no compensation for this review. I just purchased this box and wanted to share what I got!]
Over the past month, I’ve been on a mission to secure some new work husbands at school. You see, I inadvertently had created these special relationships with some of my fellow MBAs only to realize they are all second years poised to graduate in just 10 days! While I was in Israel for spring break, I began to get anxious about the second years moving on. So… ever since I’ve been back I’ve kept an eye out for some new work husband relationships.
In case you’re not familiar, a work spouse is typically someone you’re close to at work – a confidante and best friend. In my case, I’m in the grad school environment so these are my classmates who I connect with particularly deeply. Everyone goes about this a different way and even between the various ones I have, our dynamic is wildly different. Each one of these guys offers something special (and yes I need multiple because I don’t want to hog all their time!).
One is always there to talk about the goings on of b-school and join me for a swim. One is an old friend from a previous job who shares personal life lessons. One is fantastically patient with my oddities and his place as my cashmere pet. One is awkward yet charming and a strange combination of self-deprecating and cheerful. Funny enough, I also managed my first “work divorce” without ever claiming another one. Can we get divorced if he hated hearing about work husbands and refused to accept the term in the first place? Alas, I’m willing to accept it because we’re splitting custody of the chakra. I like the oddballs.
In light of losing these guys to full-time work in the coming weeks and coming back in the fall to an empty nest, I have since recruited some new gentlemen. One is an excellent partner who trains me and shares very thought-provoking ideas that I find fascinating. He’s also my go-to for introducing me to new things (ideas, places, experiences). One is the sweetest and most thoughtful person who checks up with and in on me. And I have a resistant 1/2 one who doesn’t like that work and husband both imply work! 😛 He’s so chill and fun to play fight with yet he’s a total teddy bear on the inside. For now he’s agreed to “fake side babe” as a moniker.
These are all first years who will be graduating with me in 2018, so I’m feeling pretty good. When we start school again, I can also see if some of the 2019ers want to join in the fun as well. Plus, there’s a trio of three guys who are often attached at the hip and I get along with them all quite well too, so perhaps I should recruit them to my squad. 😉
Does this all sound a bit weird to you? It’s all in good fun and all of these guys know about it and each other. You’re probably wondering what my real life husband thinks of all this (he’s cool with it and recognizes that while he’s on the other side of the country, I could use some companionship to keep me active and happy).
Growing up, I did not have a lot of close relationships because I moved so much, so I really cherish these kinds of bonds. I especially love inside jokes and pet names, so that’s what a lot of this comes down to. Do you have any quirky relationships like this?
