1st Snow fall

I feel like Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone 2. It's snowing outside and I'm in a hotel room by myself in a strange city. I'll have to admit, I've always avoided the cold weather snow, but it's not too bad to look at. It's easy on the eyes, calm and quiet. Feeling it, on the other hand is not my thing. Even walking back from a party last night at this restaurant, my extremities were numb from the cold. It wasn't even snowing yet! I am defnitely not prepared for this at all. But on the bright side, I'm dining on company dime and boy is it goooooooood.



Speaking of last night, a live band performed, called the "Spazmatics". They were soooo funny and really talented too. This cutie was my fav: Geoffrey, the guitarist. <3

Austin day 2

It was a bright and unusually warm morning today. I made it a mission to find a church so I can attend Sunday mass. I looked it up online and there was St. Mary's Cathedral .6 miles away from my hotel. Excellent. I decided to take a longer route there so I can see what downtown Austin was like in daylight. The historic 6th street was filled with lots of bars and saloons. As I walked by the bars, I can smell the sticky scent of spilled drinks on wooden floors. The buildings are really old and you can find a lot of dive bars in this place. I also came across the state capitol building!

Other interesting things worth noting: dt Austin is like a ghost town on Sundays. No one is around and even the CVS is closed. Where in the world does CVS ever close any day of the year!? Here apparently...and it's every Sunday. The cathedral I went to was an old Gothic cathedral. What I like best about Gothic cathedrals is although they look like they're about to crumble on the outside, the inside is completely the opposite. It's glorious.


So later in the day I went to the first session of this conference. I did my best to comprehend the material, but it wasn't registering in my head. Just smile and nod right? That's what I did. Night time, we had a social event at a local restaurant. Open bar and appetizers. One of my objectives for this trip is to network and make contacts with at least 5 vendors. I failed horribly. Standing at a bar, being the only female, and the youngest one was intimidating. So here's the problem: 1. Half of the people I met, I couldn't carry a conversation with them because they knew too much for my own good about the industry. 2. The other half that I met were only trying to creep. Gross. After realizing all of this, I gave up and left. Is this what I have to report back? It's a good thing that my manager was supervising from a distance. He saw that I tried! But to me, I failed. Here's to hoping that tomorrow will be better! Gnite.

Austin day 1

It's midnight now in Austin and I've finally settled into my hotel room. Getting here felt like it took up the whole day! I flew SFO-AUS, a 3 hour flight, but I can't complain much since my boss generously booked a first class flight! It was my first time in first class too! Seats were really comfortable and the stewardess was extra nice. I had some fancy salad for my lunch and a bottomless glass of ginger ale. Upon arrival to the hotel (downtown Austin) I had noticed a lot of people parading the streets in costumes and scantily clad outfits. Men and women! I'm not sure what's going on around here, but it looks like Mardi Gras? It was like Halloween meets S&M meets Vegas. Kind of scary. But I'm here for business and not to party! So after checking in, we checked out the scene to find the infamous "Hoboken Pizza." Disappointment!!! It wasn't that great.

Now in the hotel room...by myself on a Saturday night. Oh how I wish I were home... I wasn't thrilled about the thought of attending this "tech conference" in Texas for 6 days...starting today (my weekend). But I'm going to do it with a smile on my face because I chose this path and I'm going to do my best =) Gnite.

LOVE

From the hysterical and talented Woody Allen:

"To love is to suffer. To avoid suffering, one must not love. But then, one suffers from not loving. Therefore, to love is to suffer; not to love is to suffer; to suffer is to suffer. To be happy is to love. To be happy, then, is to suffer, but suffering makes one unhappy. Therefore, to be happy, one must love or love to suffer or suffer from too much happiness."

Happy Valentine's Day everyone <3

Oh happy day

Where do I even begin? I'm so thankful for the wonderful friends and family that I have. It was a great start to a long festive weekend and turning 25 wasn't so bad after all! For starters, my cute grandparents came up yesterday from OC along with my auntie, to celebrate the New Year! I <3 them. What more can I ask for? I haven't had the chance to celebrate with my sissy for the past 8 years because she was always away from home. Not this year! You see, our bdays are 364 days a part, which means that we have back to back bdays. Happy bday Annie!! I've dreaded the big 25 for a while now. I guess I had much more to expect from myself by this age. Nevertheless, the friends and family that I have made it a memorable moment. Thank you to everyone who made it out and celebrated with us.


Of course my night wouldn't be complete without all sorts of craziness. Just to mention a few: Thank goodness Annie was the one who had to take the sadistic bday sake bombs from the teapot. Friends killed 4 bottles of alchy within 1.5 hours. Thank you Mr. Officer for not giving me a ticket when I peepeed on the street(He yelled at me instead). GF, I'll never forget your "deer in headlights" reaction...it was classic. No thanks to all of you who made me drink, knowing that I'm a weakling! I remember names and faces! Watch out until your bday comes around.



Here's to a 2nd chance of the New Year and the next quarter century. <3 you all.

Me & Annie's bdayyyyy

Ohhhh Oprah...your words of wisdom!!

http://www.oprah.com/relationships/The-Number-One-Thing-to-Look-for-in-a-Partner/1

One of my girlfriends just sent me this article. "The Number One Thing to Look for in a Partner" from Oprah.com. It's composed of 7 articles that say what characteristics and traits you should really look for in a guy. I know that you can find these articles anywhere, like on a Yahoo homepage or gossip magazine, but this one was just different. It was insightful and deep. I find most of it true and useful! Especially the first article. Know what to look for in a person and what is most important. In the end, your happiness and feeling safe is on top.



Little experts from the article:

1) The psychology of evil which included "The Psychopath Checklist." Criminal psychiatrists use this helpful list use to test the potential of someone being a hardcore psychopath, capable of committing repeated evil and violent crimes.

Guess which traits psychopaths share?
* Glibness
* Extreme charisma
* Need to always be doing something
* Feelings of high self-worth
* Pathological lying
* Proneness to boredom
* Emotional unavailability

2) Do you really prefer to place a higher value on a guy's superficial aspects (his sexiness, funniness, smartness, wealthiness) more than you value his character? His Soul?

If so, then there is a big danger you will wind up involved with a guy who's rude, angry, dishonest, disloyal, hurtful, non-communicative, unempathic and selfish! As a result, all of his inner bad qualities will make you feel unhappy, insecure, unsafe, frazzled, neurotic and totally crazy!

3) Reminder Time: The number one reason to spend time with a guy is that he makes you feel happier and he is improving your life. Not making you more unhappy, insecure, unsafe, or just plain frazzled!

Another way to explain all this is to make the following confession…

True love is a that—not a him

Hate it...love it.

I've been contemplating...whether or not I should stop this blog, for recent events have made me lose inspiration.

But with these changes, good and/or bad, I've decided that I will continue to document whatever comes to mind. I feel that life passes us by and I want a way to remember these moments.

Maybe I'll take the random bits and pieces of "Peace of Mind" and make my own collection of short stories. Maybe one day these thoughts will make sense.

Current state of mind: Feeling good. I can stand on my own two feet. No one else is on my mind. Nothing is in my way...and if it is, I could care less. I am done with one chapter and excited for the next... a strategic career move I hope.

Current appetite: All things scrumptious. With my sissy back, I've been eating all sorts of things. Thanks!

Current goal: Gymming more. With food comes exercise. Sissy motivates me to work out more. She's like a hamster on a wheel. Always running on the treadmill or on the streets. She wrestles with me and shows me what she has learned in the Marines. I am no match.

Current project: Reorganzing, redecorating, and updating the furniture in my room.