Chill Saturday

It was a fairly nice day Saturday. I'm getting pretty mad at how it doesn't feel like winter at all in the beginning of February in NYC. Anyway I decided to drive up to Rockland to hang out with my friends "Doza" and Khristine. We ate and bullshitted at BonChon Chicken in Nyack then bullshitted some more at a McDonald's in the same plaza.

Khristine baked me some "cake batter bars" which were pretty good. I'm sitting here having them with coffee for breakfast as I write this. They're like a mix between cake and brownies.

One Year

So over at CCS we have a private little blog that we use to stay up to date with inter-office happenings. It's been a year since I started working with the company so to commemorate the anniversary my manager, Robyn, did a little interview with me. I don't mind sharing it so here it is:

How excited are you for hitting the 1 year mark??
__ Somewhat excited
__ A little more than somewhat excited
X Gonna throw a party tonight and first drink is on robyn's tab excited
This choice has no bearing on my excitement level as it is about my intoxication level.

If you could change 1 thing about your cubicle, it would be...
I'd want a big bouncey ball thingy that I can hop around on. Isn't that what they do at Google?

The first person I met at CCS was...
It was Robyn but if that doesn't count, Justin!

When I'm not here, you can find me at...
Atlantic City! Specifically the Borgata Poker Room

My typical lunch order is...
At work its a Double Whopper with Fries and a Dr. Pepper, with a mini cinnabon for dessert.
At home its Chicken with Broccoli and a Large Hot & Sour Soup.

One thing you may not know about me is...
I'm a french frier!! (aka I ski rather than snowboard)

What's your proudest accomplishment while working at CCS this past year?
It can only be best put in the famous words of the Bee Gee's: Stayin' Alive

Resolutions

Everyone usually denounces New Year Resolutions saying that they are things that should just be done, not just once a year. The truth is that a New Year feels like a fresh start, despite it being like any other typical set of days. It’s a good checkpoint to stop at and observe the habits you fell into in the past 365 days and set new goals based on that for the next 365 days. You can better dedicate, commit, and discipline yourself if you have a longer term goal, and not just goals that change from day-to-day. That’s why people make Resolutions, to see if they do something for an extended period of time, not just for the next day, the next week, or the next month, but for the next year, or many years. So here are my resolutions:

1. Save, Save, Save
I have a job and should be saving a lot more. I’m going to cut down on extravagant shopping habits. Stop buying shoes: Maybe max out at 1 pair per every 2 months. Less clothing splurges: Set aside a fixed amount a month on new clothes. No more crazy tech purchases, I finally got the Macbook Air and accessories for it I’ve been lusting over for years. I want to cut down enough to reach my goal of putting away a certain amount per month in savings.

2. Make Better Eating Habits
I can’t keep going out for food either at fast food chains or restaurants. I want to also start getting into cooking, learning how to cook different types of meat and making some really flavorful dishes. I actually have a good time cooking when I do get to do it. I want to choose healthier options too. It doesn’t mean I’m banning fast food altogether, I will try to set a limit of 2-3 trips to a fast food chain per week.

3. Getting in Shape
Ever since I moved out to Queens, I haven’t been playing hockey at all. That used to be what kept me in shape. My belly has been getting bigger and bigger and I need to get that work out element back into my life. I need to stay disciplined in running at least 3 times a week and doing either sit-ups/push-ups/weights 2-3 times a week.

4. Up the Social Life
I’ve been really kind of a hermit the past year since I started work. I haven’t been really getting out much or seeing my friends too often. I’ve kind of just been hiding, with the mentality of “If they want to chill they’ll hit me up.” Well it should go both ways. I want to be able to put myself out there and meet new people. I’m going to try and make a conscious effort to hang out with people and follow up more, and see what my friends are up to on a week-to-week basis.

5. Blog More
Experiences and realizations are not just important to have but to remember and share. Every attempt I make at keeping a blog usually end up failing after a few weeks. I just either forget to do it or feel like there are way more important things to do. The fact of the matter is that blogging is important too. To share my life, even for my own records to look back on, is a very important thing. It’s not something that I want to just keep in my head, that I might end up forgetting years from now. I’m going to try actively blogging for as long as I can. I’ve been keeping a good pace of about 10 posts per month since November, so I should try to keep that up.

Tito Bengie

This year I spent Christmas with my family on the 19th floor of the Stony Brook University Medical Center with my Tito Bengie. As I was growing up I used to always call him just plainly, "Uncle." He really was the only true Uncle that I've grown up knowing, since the rest of my 1st cousins are all in the Philippines.

Here's a view of the nothingness for miles that is Long island:

My Tito Bengie is a fighter. Just a week ago he basically was hooked up to an iron lung, doctors weren't optimistic and all of his medication was stopped. He went almost 48 hours without eating because the doctors were afraid to take him off the machine, thinking it was the only thing keeping him alive. But the mask came off, and he started breathing on his own. A week later he's alert and attentive, talking and eating. He even was able to do an impression of me dancing (I have no idea how he could know what I look like dancing). Dare I say it seemed miraculous.

Manny Pacquiao, you got competition for strongest Filipino.

Christmas Wishlist

So I finally put my Christmas Wishlist together. Hopefully it's late enough so that no one could actually buy any of it for me. I don't like asking for things, but these are usually fun to do.

1. Red Wing 296 6-Inch Boot - Been eyeing these boots for a while already. Came pretty close to buying them on several occasions.
2. Red Bull Pro-Rider New Era Hat (7 1/4) - These aren't sold officially, the only way to get them is over eBay. There are actually other colorways of this I like as well.
3. Coffee - I get coffee everyday before going to work, so this would be a really awesome gift. Either Dunkin' Donuts or Starbucks gift certificates work. I don't discriminate.
4. Apple Wireless Keyboard - I'm trying to set up a desktop dock at my place for my newly acquired Macbook Air. I already got the Magic Mouse, but would like the keyboard as well.
5. Patterned Long Socks - I would love to start wearing some cool and crazy patterned long socks. The ones pictured above are by Nike SB, but I would really like anything with a crazy cool pattern and nice vintage color combination. Stance makes some cool socks as well.
6. Toy Figurines - I've been starting to collect cool, random little figurines ever since I got a couple Kid Robot Dunnies a few months back. Although more Dunnies would be nice, I would be fine getting anything wacky, rare, or just cool looking.