Ngong Ping is a nice little (fake) village up in the mountains of Hong Kong. The town center is a tourist’s dream, with shops, food, and even a tea house. As far as I can see it’s kind of like Disneyland though – completely constructed for tourists and not actually lived in. However, if you go outside this main area, you’ll find some real people along the way to the temple and the Buddha way up high.
ngong ping village from Mary Qin on Vimeo.
In D.C. on Sunday, Panda and I came across this adorable squirrel! She was hardly scared of people and after feeding her I decided to name her Sasha.
We spotted her so close to the sidewalk, munching away at something yummy.
She ignored us for a long time as she scavenged, but then the crinkling of the bag caught her attention.
She stared right at us when we pulled out a gummy bear from the bag.
She hopped up on the ledge and began to sneak over.
She came right up to the edge to see this wonderful piece of food.
She took the gummy bear straight from my fingers and began nibbling at it furiously.
I offered her some more tempting candy as she finished gobbling up the first.
She was really eager for these! What a hungry squirrel.
She put her paws on me to grab the red one, which fell. When she didn't notice where it landed, she went for the yellow one instead.
Her paws were so soft and slightly scratchy where the nails were. I want a pet squirrel!
This weekend has gone by too fast, yet Panda and I were able to get a lot done! It was really nice to get to see all the places that he has spoken about and also take a quick tour of D.C., since it’s been years since I’ve been here. In fact, I haven’t returned since we moved out to California nearly 9 years ago. I’d almost forgotten what the scenery was like around here, with plenty of greenery and bodies of water. The weather has been so-so and I am looking forward to experiencing a real summer again in a few months. The one thing I’ve always missed is seeing fireflies on those hot summer nights.
It’s hard to believe that the weekend is over and tomorrow, we’ll both be back at work, thousands of miles from each other. The good thing is, he’ll be back to the West coast in a couple of weeks for work so I get to see him again. It’s been nice hanging out back East and I look forward to coming again later this year. For now, it’s time to pack my suitcase and return to my life in LA.
What’s the deal? Did April turn into everybody get acquired month? Suddenly I’m receiving email after email notifying me that various products/services I use have been bought by some big-name company and how that will affect my experience with them. When the first two came through I thought it was an interesting coincidence. But I’ve received 4 or 5 and at this point, it’s got to be a pattern. I guess it’s because of the social media bubble that’s going on right now (which my coworker was just telling me about yesterday).
Has anyone else received these notices? The last one was for Delicious, which apparently was owned by Yahoo (I never knew) and is now bought out by the founders of YouTube. As with all the others, the notice was basically saying that I’d need to agree to new terms and conditions as outlined by the entity that the product is now under. Other than that, most things are business as usual and my account would transfer seamlessly. It actually kind of reminds me of the rebranding we recently did at my company. I sent out many emails detailing the changes, but also reassuring clients that the people haven’t changed and neither has the service.
With spring in the air, is change always imminent too?
Well, right when I was first starting yoga, I wrote about “Yoga Pains” and now it’s all about my yoga gains. While I still suck at a lot of moves and struggle to figure out how exactly each pose should feel, I’ve definitely gotten better. From the first downward facing dog of the night, I can already bring my heels to the floor. I was nowhere near that three months ago. I finally started to understand this concept of pushing the floor away – no matter what I did when I first started, my palms just wouldn’t stay glued to the floor and I pretty much was only using the heels of my palms to keep myself up in downward facing dog and plank pose. This created a strain in my wrists that was painful.
I’ve gotten better at regulating my breathing, but still feel like I fill up too fast and those deep gulps of air just don’t last very long for me. I guess I’m still breathing in too much air right away. My shoulders stay away from my ears and I’ve been pretty good at remembering to lengthen through everything. However, a lot of this lengthening strains my right shoulder because I have to raise my arm above my head and the constriction there doesn’t help the looseness I have in the socket. I have to try a lot harder to keep my shoulder in the socket, properly stored away.
I’m still working on keeping my legs engaged during poses and not getting shaky so quickly. And while it’s getting much easier to maintain a handstand (with some help keeping my legs straight up), I’m still weak in a lot of areas. I’ve noticed that I’m improving in all areas, but gradually. My upper body strength has been pretty pathetic since sometime in high school, so it’s nice that I can work on that. My low back has been troubling me for over three years and it’s feeling a little less strained when I stand. Most of all I think it’s nice to take out an hour of my time twice a week to focus on my body. I don’t find my thoughts wandering when I’m in class. I just concentrate on what is before me and the moves that we are working on. Then at the end, I completely let go for the resting part and sometimes even fall asleep from being so relaxed.
I still find yoga to be too challenging to be enjoyable (for the most part), but then again, I get bored when it’s not hard enough. We’ll see if I continue on when I’m no longer living at this apartment complex.
…or two fortune cookies on a plate? Delicious!
Mmm, perfect way to spice up a fortune cookie!
Ah, the beauty of human interaction. It’s been awhile since I’ve gone out to hang out with friends as much as I used to in college and I didn’t realize how much I missed it! College is sort of a non-stop rollercoaster of social interactions and chilling with friends. You’re surrounded by peers almost the entire time you’re there, which is a stark contrast to the loneliness of work life. Nowadays I come home from work and plop down in front of the computer for the night. I talk to Panda on Skype and maybe talk to friends via IM, email, or Facebook. I rarely go out to meet up with my friends!
However, things seem to be changing pace a bit recently. I’ve started to get out more and make more plans. It’s nice to have social events scattered throughout my schedule and it gives me something to look forward to! Actually, let me clarify – it’s nice to have social events with friends. After all, I’ve been going to a decent number of other events, like yoga, networking events, and massages/facials. Those types of activities don’t satisfy my hanging out with friends quota though. You just can’t beat chilling with people you’re familiar with, whether it’s over a meal or on a couch.
I’ve got a lot of scheduling to do and I’m really looking forward to it! It also helps that part of my chilling with friends gets to be chilling with Panda, finally. 🙂
Here are some shots from an event I went to tonight titled “Why Do We Love Trees?” Why do we? Maybe because they are so instrumental to many of the things in our lives (food, shelter, entertainment). I’ll try to delve into this topic another day. For now, enjoy a visual tour of the night.
The Harold M. Williams Auditorium at the Getty, where the event was held.
The view of the Getty from our part of the venue. I've never been this way before!
The event hosted by the Getty.
Inside the auditorium we got a preview of the artwork by one of the panelists.
The panelists take the floor.
On the left, our moderator Mr. Sipchen from the Sierra Club (formerly with the LA Times as a journalist). Then Ms. Nadkarni, a scientist, Ms. Steinkamp, an artist, and Mr. Masumoto, a farmer. Each provided a unique and interesting perspective! I was struck by just how much their personal backgrounds influenced the way they talked, what they talked about, and how they expressed themselves. Almost as fascinating as the discussion itself.
Lots of holes in the wall! I wonder if that helps with the acoustics?
Afterwards, I got a soda and left pretty quickly because it was cold and I was tired. Down the steps I go!
There's something about glowing lights illuminating the water and plants that is peaceful and cool.
Hmm, it looks like it should be used as a path, but the sign clearly indicates otherwise.
Last Saturday was EPIC. Legend, Apprentice, and I got together for dinner at Din Tai Fung followed by boba at cha for tea. Sounds pretty normal, right? I thought so too.
But along the way, our lively conversation led us meandering down a path I never could have anticipated. We talked about everything from starting a fraternity to winning watches at basketball games to more food, food, and food! And somewhere in all that talk I decided to start making a list of all those things we had said “hey, we should do that” to. The list? Well, to find out, you’re going to have to follow the chronicles of our adventures on a new blog I’m creating. (More to come when it’s ready.)
Here’s what you should know: we will follow a few simple principles in the pursuit of greatness. We’ll make each activity a little bit more exciting because everything we do, we do it big! We’ll live by the motto: “go BIG or go home” and we’ll set the bar high everywhere we go. It starts with our attitude and shows in our wardrobe. We’ll dress to impress, even if it’s to grab some fast food. When you’re the best-dressed in a room, you’ll get noticed. When there’s three of you having a blast as the best-dressed in the room, well – that should raise your bar, too.
Don’t be fooled, most of the things we do may not sound that amazing to you initially, but we’ll bring the flair and set the standard everywhere we go. By the end of it all, you’ll be jealous you weren’t there with us. I’m really excited for our plans and all the fun we’ll have. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to chronicle it all for you. Then who knows, maybe you’ll be inspired to go out and have some fun of your own!
In honor of Doin’ It Big and the conversation about starting a fraternity, we have dubbed ourselves Delta Iota Beta and I am proud to be a brand new DIB. Let the adventures begin!
