i hardly update anymore. i don't know why i can't seem to find the time. it could also be because -

life is boring, that is one thing. it is the same 'ole, same 'ole... or, the junk i usually blog about i'm trying to just thinking through on my own rather than writing it all down and letting it fester out there on the interweb.

at any rate, black tie event tonight. pulling together an outfit was quite an ordeal because not all DC black tie events are created equal and generally, DC is just a bit stuffier and more conservative than other cities. and this one, while most all of the gents will be in tuxes, certainly isn't an inauguration ball. i shall try my best to look good though. pics later. thomas friedman of the NY times among others will be honored.

back to the SF trip. it was so great being back in the yay area. it almost makes me want to move back. people always think my roots are in seattle, but i'm actually a bay area girlie. there's something about SF that just makes you feel good. there's the sheer beauty, it's unique charms, and of course its diversity... it all felt so darn good. DC feels so much less authentic, not that i'm hating on it necessarily. there are plenty of things i love about DC.

anyhow, my two nieces there are absolutely adorable and i had such a good time with them. some pics:













besides good 'ole family time, a few seattle gals were down there. or rather, one moved down and the other was apartment hunting when i was there as she's moving down too. good times with them, as always. it felt great seeing them again. as for the pics... well, i've decided i look much too tipsy in them. we'll save those for another time.

happen valentine's day. after going several years without having one, it's kinda nice to have one this year.

after spending all sorts of time at greeting card shops though, i couldn't find anything that i really liked. for starters, why is it that they all have to say "love"? what if you aren't yet or are not sure if you love someone? what if you just like them a lot? and then what's with all the crap poetry they throw inside the cards? why not a simple, "happy valentine's day" message inside? it was absolutely aggravating looking for a card. the result? i bought construction paper and elmer's glue and jimmy rigged one up at home. the result:

i am tired.

got back from SF yesterday and it was a great, great time.

one quick pic of me and my newest niece, josie.

how cool is this? i think it's so great that nick jr has unveiled a show about a chinese-american kid. i'm just waiting for a korean-america kiddy show. a review of the show can be found here.

i've been so lazy and haven't posted a darn thing in quite a while.

last night, somehow we ended up hosting a superbowl party despite the fact that neither of us are into football or even knew which teams were playing. i guess you say, "we're grilling out back," and people round up and come over. it was a lovely day for bbq-ing though. nice and mild. i did win $2 for rightly betting on the giants.

off to SF this week to go visit my bro and his family. it should be a nice little getaway + some of my seattle girls will be down there too. we'll have a nice reunion in the bay. can't wait!

i went to some health fair last week and they had all sorts of gadgets and... well, lots of crap, and this was one bizarre little device. it's supposed to target your pressure points. what i was doing in this picture... who knows.

side note - i finally weighed myself, the first time in probably four years. it's just a number... but i still don't like knowing the number. i'm going to obsess over it now. wonderful.

mahmoud ahmed. ethiopian singing legend - likened to the james brown of ethiopia. i thought, well, at least this would be a unique and different new years experience. and so we bought the tickets. we ate a buffet of ethiopian food. and then we waited, and waited. two hours, we waited. boredom struck us. we drank as much as we could. we began drawing on our table. we began taking silly pictures.





and finally, after the two hour wait, several minutes after the new year had begun, he took the stage.
 


pretty cool show. a swarm of ethiopians, and then our group. we stuck out like a sore thumb.

this morning, blueberry pancakes. trying to start the new year out right.



now... if i could get off of my lazy bum and go for a run... that would be something new and different.

i was thinking the other night though... 2007 has been interesting. work-wise, it's been the most fulfilling year ever. i've also felt more empowered than ever as i've been able to "do" a lot. i don't think i heard the word "no" very often in the past year, which is an exciting position to be in. there was of course the london trip, which only served to sweeten the work year too. related and unrelated, i was able to travel to some exciting places - morocco, london, brussels... and then personally, it's been a fun year too - i saw my bro get married and then have a baby. i saw another in-law get married. i watched my little neph grow by leaps and bounds this year - and let me tell you, he is amazing! and as for myself, i've spent the second half of this year gallivanting about town with someone new - what an experience that has been. there have been highs and lows like never before... i can't wait to see what 2008 brings.

i finally learned the lesson a few years ago that there are no sure things. i can try to plan out my life, i can try to plan for a conversation to go a certain way, i can try to plan and prepare for how to approach a situation and what i want for the outcome to be... but things don't always go as planned. they haven't ever gone as i have planned actually, and so sometimes, i really do feel like leaving things up to others [or perhaps, a higher power?] to decide... well, sometimes that's all that i've been able to decide to do and in certain situations, it's just has seemed like the right thing.

so yes, what is meant to be, will be - i recognize this can seem like a cop-out. as indecisive as i can be, or as lazy as i can be, saying that whatever is supposed to happen will happen can seem like me just being unwilling to make a decision or act upon a situation and that i'd rather just let others or someone else take action and then react or follow suit. and sometimes that's true; i do leave somethings up to others because i am simply unsure. but what i come back to is that if things are meant to be a certain way, then they will happen, won't they?

i hope you had a very merry christmas like i did - my family here in DC, they are the best.

i'm feeling the christmas spirit - finally!

okay, so, i've been thinking. maybe it's cliche because it's so literal - but, in cleaning over the past few days, i've managed to get some additional clarity about a few issues that have been consuming my mind and heart. it's partially because i found things from the past which maybe would not have surfaced unless i was cleaning. but it's also that in clearing things away and literally bringing order to my surroundings, i have been able to see a bit better the state of things as they are in the present, and feel a sense of content for what i have around me. does that make sense?

there's this somewhat silly list for example on my old laptop. i hadn't brought it up in quite a while as it is buried away in my old e-files. but in clearing things out, i came upon it and decided to have a look. essentially, it is "the list" of qualities that i want to find, and expectations i have of potential partners - or hopefully, everything that i should hope to find in "the one." the list got its start three years ago when i was a little unsure of who i was and what i needed then. and it was never meant to be a guidebook, or a checklist per se of things to look for in a boyfriend - it was just that at the time, i felt like i needed to articulate why certain people weren't a good match, why others could be... and i wanted to focus a bit and not be out there dating just for the sake of dating. i wanted for it to be right.

i've been through my fair share of gents since then, i've moved, i've changed jobs... life looks a bit different now - but surprisingly, not much has actually changed in terms of what i wanted and needed then, and what i want and need now out of a boyfriend. but have i stuck by the list? not so much. it seems that over the past three years, at times, i might have lost sight of my wants and needs and gotten caught up simply in the the comfort of companionship instead. enter, faux intimacy. i know the notion of the list is a little silly - but in looking at it again, it actually has provided some clarity and has reminded me of who i am at the core, including what makes me happy. i guess some things will never change...

that's it for now. merry merry merry christmas!