Asilomar Retreat...

Above are pics of the civic center, the orpheum theatre in SF, and a nice dusk picture of Asilomar. So, I'm here at Asilomar...you're probably wondering where the...? Basically its right near Monterey and it's a retreat to go out where there is a small beach, deers, and some tide pools. I'm here for a conference for S-Club(service club) and have 4 of my students here since I'm the advisor. It's been nice to get some grading done, hang out with students, and be out of town for a bit. Been somewhat relaxing and good to meet some new folks here and there.
Ok, other than that- just wanted to check in...hope everyone is having a good weekend...

A Wicked Small World...

Ok, I just got back and HADDDDDDDD to blog... now, I went in thinking- this is going to be the most overrated play that I've seen in a while... yea, I was wrong. It was awesome. From the costumes to the whole thing, it was just cool. In the beginning, I was like, wtf- I don't get why its all that and a bag of chips. But, by the end, it was all worthwhile. If you are/were an avid "Wizard of Oz" movie fan, this is definitely up your ally. It basically explains how things went down before and then you leave wanting to rent "wizard of Oz" again.

Random side note, I got there early an took some pics- those will be posted later...but like I said, earlier, the SF theatre where it this play is- is the SKETCHIEST part of SF that you can be in. I encountered MULTIPLE drug users/homeless/etc and just shady business all over the place. I even saw a guy try to unlock the garbage so that he could get in. Just really sad and somewhat scary. Anyways, on the way HOME, when I was waiting for BART, I glance over and I'm like, um, thats my family friend from Fresno...um, RANDOM. She was there with her husband and had a date night apart from their newborn daughter- they loved it too so it was nice to see them and just catch up for like 10 minutes. I was slightly embarrassed since I had my UCSD hoodie and jeans and didn't look like I just stepped out of 'Wicked' but I did portray the college student look very well...haha.

Ok, going to bed- long day ahead...whoo hoo. If you have Wicked near you, SEE IT. You won't be sorry. If you're cheap like me, get the balcony seats and you pretty much get to see the same thing that the people in Orchestra saw for 4 times less. Trust me, I like balcony a LOT better. Ok, me out...till later...

Wicked...

So tonight, I'm off to see 'Wicked'. I have no idea what it's about except that a) it has something to do with the bad/good witch of the Wizard of Oz and how they came to land on Oz.... b) that it's an amazing broadway play. I don't want to look it up and see what it's about because I love going into a movie and being surprised about the plot and what is going to happen. I heard that it's going to be good and I've seen a lot of broadway plays(in and out of New York)- so I am somewhat a snob when it comes down theatre and that kind of thing.

A lot of people dress up for going to plays/theatre. Last time, I rolled in with a hoodie and I think my favorite yoga pants. I think that was for Avenue Q(an awesome play- everyone should see that!). I'm probably going to roll in the same way but I have my jeans on this time. Last time, people came in really nice stuff and trust me, I KNOW this- but hello, we're just seeing a play. It's like a movie- but yea, back in the day- it was an event. We're in the 2000s and it's not as festive. Especially for me who has to go on BART- go past ohh, 20 bums because the theatre is in the tenderloin district(one of the most shady areas of SF)... and where my friend's car got broken into for a GPS unit. His experience wasn't the first I heard- I've heard MANY stories of people parking their car near the theatre for a nice night out and then getting getting broken into. Hello, I would too if I was a burgler- hi, these people are going to a play- they have to be somewhat well off- they are going to be in there for ohhh, 2-3 hours and they are probably not returning till 10-10:30pm...perfect timing. Apparently, the police don't care/see it everyday/can't do anything because people are paid off to not say anything(aka parking attendents/etc)... So yea, NOT fun to drive there or look like you have a lot of money. Hence, me looking as much as a college student just happening to go to a play. Good times.

I'm off to Asilomar(Monterey) tomorrow for my Service Club officers- its a california get together of all the S-Clubs and so I get to take them. It should be a relaxing weekend of just hanging out, reading, and getting a little bit done on the weekend. They have wi-fi in the lobby I think so I'll try to blog from there if I can...if not, hope everyone has a good weekend...I'll try to blog about Wicked if I feel up to it tonight...

Projects and More Projects...

It's late and I figured I would post something. Today, I had no kids but I still had to go into work. Remember, when you had days off in school because the teachers had meetings and you were stoked??? Yea, it's not so fun when you're a teacher- you don't get the day off- kids do- boo... it was informational and we got to practice lip sync also. I'm almost there and 2 more weeks- i'll be a pro. You would THINK that me, being Indian, would learn this dance quite easily- or one of the first to master it. Um, this is a CHOREOGRAPHED dance- which I haven't done since I was in early high school- so its been a while. Plus, our dance teacher has put some baranatium(southern indian dancing) and is a lot more intricate than I have ever done in a while. Give me a dance floor and let me do my free dancing bhangra- i'm all about it. Memorizing moves...another story. Plus, it doesn't help that the music is RIDICULOUSLY fast...

So yesterday, I forgot to mention, was Fat Tuesday. The pic on my blog of me is when I went to Mardi Gras in New Orleans and had the most awesome time. I wore those glasses all week and someone grabbed my camera(in drunken stupor) and took a pic of me. It came out awesome and it's one of my fav pics ever since. Mardi Gras, from my experience, is a LOT more wholesome than what it is portrayed in the media. There a LOTTTT of parades- where kids are there- and you get a LOT of beads just attending those. I had a whole carryon of beads on my way back and I didn't flash anyone. One night, I had so many beads, I could feel my circulation being cut off and I was begging people to take my beads/throws. It's a great experience- Burbon Street isn't for the faint of heart- but at the same time, I've seen a LOT worse in Amsterdam. I love New Orleans and it'll always have a special place in my heart!

As for other things, now that I have my new toy, I'm now OVERWHELMED with projects. I have Spain video that I want to edit, make new photo books, organize this puppy to the way I want it, play with other programs that I haven't even touched... the list goes on. I'm even developing a headache because of all these new projects that I'm really excited about but I know are going to take a lot of time. Time that I don't really have- but hey, I'll find because it's a fun hobby to have.

Ok- me out. Oh, in late Mardi Gras fashion- I decided to do like the Catholics do and do lent. So my big lent sacrifice is that I'm not going to eat fast food till Easter. Me and my best friend did it for a good 3 months and I made it so I was pretty damn proud of myself(he cheated twice)... So we'll see how that goes. Ok, hope everyone had a good Wednesday/hump day!!

A New Toy...

So, I got my new 'toy' last night and so today, I was itching to really get it opened and try it out. I knew once I did, I would spend hours trying to figure it out- all the new features, etc... and then organizing my old files- its somewhat a nightmare but a fun one. Like a kid in a candy store, I came home, and was like, ok- you're not going to open the box until you get the grading you have to do done. 2-3 hours later I was ready to open the box(yes, I had a lot of grading...).

In other news than my laptop, some of my co-workers came in today to try on indian suits. They look soo cute and they are stoked to be in them...and I'm stoked for them as well. I can't really be that excited to wear a suit since I've worn one since birth and wear one probably around once/month...but hey, I love to see non-Indians get excited to wear cute Indian clothes...and they love wearing it also. What is also funny is that a lot of them are old suits that my mom, my sister, or I wore- so its a little flashback for me to of when I wore them and what I was doing- what I felt like, etc. Just a nostalgic feeling all around.

Tomorrow, I don't have students- just a meeting all day. It's somewhat odd to have a meeting on wednesdays but I guess it makes having kids(and teachers) skip out on it for a long weekend. It's just hard on the mental planning thing because now, I'll be off by a day as before. Ok, what an uneventful blog entry...oh well--hopefully, i'll figure out something more 'fun' to write about...

p.s. random note... who knew about the oklahoma city thunder??? um, didn't know that team even existed...my brother would be ashamed of me right now...

Slumdog Wins!

So the one oscar nominated movie I saw- actually won...how exciting!! I still want to watch Milk which comes out next week on video- so I'm stoked about that. Today, was a really random day. I felt like my day was slipping before me and I was running all day to catch up with it. I got a lot accomplished but at the same time, not enough- does that make sense?

I've been on a Woody Allen movie thing lately. I don't know if I like his movies that much(other than Vicky Christina Barcelona) which I loved- and Penelope was awesome to get the Oscar for it- but I feel like he's one of those directors that gets a lot of praise that I never gave a chance to. we'll see if I'll watch any more(watched Annie Hall(boring) and now New York Stories(random- not good)...)...

In other news, I got to take my picture of being a kid at heart for the yearbook. we did bubbles with me sitting below a desk and my counterpart(a guy-coworker on top of the desk)- it turned out cute. i had pig tails and wore it 5th/6th periods- it was definitely a look and kids enjoyed it...i don't know if pig tails are the way to go after 10 but hey, one of my co-workers rocks them EVERYday so who knows? maybe its a trend that I don't know about...

Ok, me tired...lots of work done but more to do. Hopefully, I'll have some more exciting postings soon..

Work Weekends Suck..

So like I said, I had a lot of work to do this weekend and guess what i did?? WORK. Not even for work- this is all masters work. It's pretty much finals week so I had to do a good 20+ problems and figure out how to write-up a cow dissection. Good times. I'm not used to being at home on the weekends. It's a little odd. The next couple of weekends I won't be at home, so I guess I should appreciate being home for now. Tomorrow even brings more work- this time school. Quizzes to grade, planning to do... the list goes on. I'm usually caught up on stuff- having 'bliss' weekends- but little things have crept up on me and now I have to finish them all before they get into an unmanageable mess...

Now, I'm watching Hulu.com and just trying to enjoy my saturday night. Blockbuster denied me because their system was down and they weren't accepting any cards- only cash. That's a big NO-NO in my book- I didn't even bother going to the ATM- wasn't worth it. Oh well- we'll see. I'm broke also- too much spending this month on laptops, personal maintainence, snowboard jackets, and snowboarding. All these added up and now, i'm looking at $50 dollars left to spend till Friday. Usually, I have PLENTY left by the end of the month, but this has made me super cheap and eating stuff at home all the time. I'll be aok- I have savings if things get into emergency mode. I'm just all about staying on budget and trying not to spend beyond my limit. We'll see how I do...

Ok, back to my random movie- "falling in love" with robert deniro and meryl streep(totally 80s movie)...hope everyone is having a more enjoyable weekend...