14 I should be studying..

Instead, I'm spending my time watching the Food Network and relaxing. I should really be studying. I haven't studied all day and my final is at 7 AM tomorrow. Wow, this dessert that they're making looks really good! How come chefs are all fit and attractive? How do they do it? I should learn how to cook.

There's no real point to this post. I just wanted to spend some time to reflect. So much has changed this quarter. It's interesting. I remember being so excited for a new quarter, a new year. I think that I didn't embrace the changes that happened in my life. I feel like I've been fighting it all along instead of taking it for what it is. I think that I've had such a set idea of how I wanted this quarter to go that I didn't leave room for mistakes/other factors of life.

I look at certain people in my life and wonder how they're so happy all the time. They're so carefree and even if they're frustrated or worried about something, they don't let other people know. How do they do that? My goal for the next year is to be more like them. I need to learn how to control my feelings and not dwell on issues that I have no control over. I'm going to try and not let my negative energies flow. I just need a game plan.

13 Finals Week

Ah, I think I'm down to one post per month. =/ I wish I blogged more often, but alas, time does not allow for such things.

Well, it is finally finals week for me. I can't believe how quickly this quarter passed by. It was so hectic and busy, both mentally and emotionally stressful. There were some things that I wish I could've dealt with better but oh well. I'm learning.

Honestly, my thoughts are on love right now. Long story short, I liked my best guy friend but he doesn't like me back. It's been such a long time now, and I should truly be over it by now. It just makes me sad thinking about it and what's happened since then. He and I are fine but I'm pretty sure it's hurt our relationship. I feel like I've lost a good friend and it makes me wonder when I'll find someone like that again, as in someone who will open up to me and someone who I can open up to, someone that I can rely on to be awake when I want to talk to someone at 4 AM. Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of friends that I hang out with. But still... it's still possible to feel alone even when you're surrounded by people. Wow, that was harder to write than I thought it would be..

12 Long overdue

Ah, I'm home! Thanksgiving!! Break is so nice. I was so sick of school before I came home. I had a really tiring week beforehand, having stayed up all week for three midterms and a busy weekend with PCE. I'm just glad it's over, but I know that in two days, the whirlwind will start again until Winter Break.

I had a wonderful evening hanging out with best friends! Ah, I've missed them so much! We're all so busy when we're at school that we rarely talk to each other, but our conversations always seem like we never stopped talking. I love that!! I love coming home and meeting up with them is always exciting. We all come back with such different experiences and I love exchanging ideas, new gossip, new things in our lives. I'm always reminded of all the things that I want to know more about, the things that I want to do more in my life, such as ballroom dancing, reading more books, and catching up on TV shows/movies. I'm watching the Season 4 finale of Grey's Anatomy as I type this. I've missed so much!!! I plan to catch up on everything over Winter Break. It should be good. =]

A small update on school...
School is alright.. I feel like I need to meet more people now though. I love my friends and getting to know everyone that I met last year better, but I feel like I need to grow more. In all my classes this quarter, I know at least two or three people. It's fun having classes with friends and all, but I'm always with them. It's nice, it makes coming into class more comfortable and it's easier to get help with classes. I really think that it's hindering me from learning more though. I find myself less focused in class, more scared to ask questions, less independent... I need and want to put myself out of my comfort zone. I think that's part of the reason why I did well in my classes last year. I asked questions and went into office hours. I also joined study groups, met people there and just understood more. This quarter, I'm still keeping up with my classes, but I know that I'm not fully grasping everything that I should already know by now. Hopefully next quarter, I'll be able to do everything that I'm setting out to do. I don't want to stick with what's familiar and comfortable. I want new experiences and get more out of my college experience!

11 Weekend Update

Ah, I wish I had a picture to show you, but I don't. I haven't been taking pictures lately, but hopefully, I soon will. Warning: This is a huge post! So break it up over a couple of days if you have to! =]

So I've been really busy. Seriously. Some people just don't understand when I say that, but I know that it's been true. College is so hectic. I came back to SLO from summer and was immediately overwhelmed by how much work I had. Having a summer internship totally doesn't compare to college life. There is just way more to do in college, I think.

Being independent:

• Having my own room again is quite awesome. I like it. Our apartment is so big! Come visit me!! There is soooo much space.
• Roommates are awesome! We get along fine and I'm glad that we set ground rules from the very start. Everyone has their own different schedules though. It's so depressing to be home by yourself! Our common area is so cold and dull too. Truly need to put things in it and make it cozier! Or I should just never be home.
• Not having a car sucks now. It was bearable last year, but this year, since we have to go buy our own groceries, it sucks. It's hard not being able to just go out when you want to. Rides have to be arranged and time has to be set aside to do grocery shopping, most definitely.
• I'm definitely more concerned with how I spend my money. Definitely thinking more about what things are essential and what things I can live without. So hard when it comes to food, but I really shouldn't think about that. I should really eat.

School: Starting classes again was a little bit difficult. One of my classes is a continuation of a class I took back in Spring. The concepts were all familiar but it took me a while to get back into it. Classes, in general, were bleh in the beginning, but they're okay now. There isn't really a class that I dislike. I guess I could say that I don't like labs. They take up so much time and they're just busy work. But it's okay. I've been studying a lot, but sometimes it still doesn't feel enough. I had a midterm last week and a quiz in business that I studied hardcore for. My midterm was kind of bleh. There were four questions and I only really knew how to do two. On top of that, our teacher had us choose three and we could only do those three. Gah. Two more next week! My hardest ones too. Physics and a major class.

PCE: This year is going pretty well. Way better than last year. Being on staff this year gave me a whole new perspective on the club. I never realized how much work it takes to run PCE. Everyone on staff is so dedicated and work hard also. I'm really appreciative and glad to have everyone on board. This year feels very different also. There are so many new faces! Older people have graduated. Though it's sad sometimes, it's exciting to meet new people and to get to know them. I hope I get a cool Ading (little sibling) this year! FRIENDSHIP GAMES is this weekend! I'm so excitedddddddd!!!!

Goals: I've made it a goal for myself to lose weight and be fit this year. I've always put this off for various reasons, but I just got tired of it. No more excuses! So here's my progress so far.

• I've been biking to class and back to the apartment, which is pretty far from campus. It would be about a 15 minute walk. Biking to class doesn't really do me any good though because it's all downhill, aside from the random hills around campus. I'm still a little bit iffy about biking but I'm getting more confident! I can't ride as fast as others though, but it's okay.
• Last week, I worked out every day for an hour after class, except for Thursday (I went to a Career Fair instead). Working out was so blah at first, but on Wednesday, I had a really good work out! I stayed awake throughout the whole day and had so much energy (or I was going crazy from lack of sleep). I decided from then on that I'm not taking naps throughout the day anymore. That's going to suck, but I get so much more work done! My naps take forever! I can't ever really nap for only 20 minutes. =/
• Being in Modern (PCE hip-hop dance) has been fun and I consider it a work out too! At first, I thought I would substitute it for gym days, but I decided to keep it separate now. Modern doesn't make you work that hard really.. but it's been really cool! I get to learn dances and just jump around so much. That's twice a week for two hours. It's at night though, so I'm bound to skip some days to study, especially since it's midterms week!
• 8 minute abs!! Hahaha. I never figured to look it up on YouTube, but some girls from my apartment and I started doing them earlier on in the quarter. They've stopped and I've sort of stopped now and then but I'm starting it back up again. I don't care if they're doing it with me or not anymore. I'm going to do it and get awesome abs!
• This isn't really a good thing, but it fits in here. I haven't really been eating a lot. Don't get me wrong! I'm not becoming anorexic or anything! Part of the reason why is just that it's hard to find the time to cook food. It takes an hour to prepare food (that's not a TV dinner) and I'd rather use that hour to work on PCE things or study. Eating lunch is hard too. I'm usually on campus during lunch and I haven't packed lunch at all yet. Campus food is unhealthy and expensive, though I get a salad once in a while. Plus I've been studying for quizzes in between classes. Just too busy to eat sometimes and there are times when I don't realize it. I think that's what I need to work on next, eating a healthy diet.
  

Future plans:

• I've been thinking about studying abroad a lot more, especially since I have a friend that keeps pushing me to do it. Right now, I realize that I seriously have this opportunity to go. Things are still not set yet though. I'm still not sure where I want to go, where I can go, how much things are going to cost, how long I should go for.. It's kind of hard for me to decide. There are so many future events and inside jokes that I don't want to miss, but I know that I shouldn't let that hold me back. I've been meaning to do more research on it but still haven't gotten around to it. Need to put that on my reminders list!
• There was a Career Fair last Thursday and it just made me think more about working for different companies and my major. Though I enjoy being a CPE, there are so much more people looking for Software Engineers or Computer Scientists. Again, it's hard to decide! I like what I'm doing and I want to continue to learn, but I also want to learn more about software at the same time. Ahh! The Career Fair also made me conscious about presenting myself to others. How do I make myself memorable to others and give a good first impression? What are the types of questions I should be asking? How do I make sure that I'm prepared for their questions?

This is a really big post, but I just needed to get all my thoughts out. Especially since I probably won't be writing for a while again. Miss you!!!

10 More to come...

Sorry, I haven't updated in a little bit more than a month! It has been really crazy since school started and I truly couldn't find the time to give a little update. Just know that I'm doing well (for the most part) and I'm coming home this weekend! It should be a nice break from school but will still be busy since I'll be running errands all weekend long, I believe. *sigh* More to come soon!

9 Ends and Beginnings

My summer is just about to end, while others of you might've already ended yours or never really had one. I'm glad I had some time this week to reflect. There's been so much going on lately that it's hard to find the time to do so.

Last Friday, we had a Mini-golf Tournament for charity at work. It was so fun. The interns worked together to create one of the holes and here is what we got.

We had a Mario theme and it turned out pretty cool. We had a little Yoshi windmill. We made its tail swag over the tunnel. The trap flower in front also opens and closes. Oh the things you can make with cardboard and Lego. We were a bit smug and thought that we were already going all out with our 2-foot moving Yoshi, but our hole didn't compare with the holes that other employees made! They all pulled it off in such a short amount of time and they went all out with their decorations! I was amazed! Everyone had so much fun playing too. They were all so excited! Here is one of the holes that I thought was cool. It has a Racing theme.
This Monday, I finally bought a bike! I was so excited but sad at the same time because I couldn't ride it yet. I didn't know how! Yesterday (Wednesday), my friend Ashley came over and helped me learn. It was so fun! I went pretty far. I'm still not really good, but I just have to practice. At least I know that I can kind of start by myself and just keep going haha. :D It was so great though. I reached my summer goal! Totally cutting it close, but I still made it! Here's a picture of me with my pink bike and matching helmet. I won't post up a video of me falling. :P

So my internship at AT&T is about to end. My last day is next Monday. I can't believe that it's over! A bunch of people are leaving tomorrow and I really won't know if and when I'll see these people again. I had a lot of fun this summer. Just having those people at work made it much more enjoyable. Tomorrow is going to be fun though. I don't have any real work to do anymore. My partner and I did what we could with our project and they just need to integrate it. Our department is putting on a talent show that we've been making decorations for all week long. Again, it's for charity. It should be really fun. :]

I'm also off to go to a staff retreat this weekend. I'm so excited! I get to see everyone again! It'll be so much fun. I'm so excited for the new year. New people to meet, new experiences along with familiar places and faces. Check out our club website that I've been working so much on! It's only supposed to be a temporary layout, but it looks pretty nice. I might just keep it the way it is and just keep adding new and old content to it.

Off to sleep! Big things ahead of me. :]

8 Blush on a Tuesday night

I usually try and have a picture to go along with every post, but I don't have one today, at least not from my personal collection.

Tonight, I invited my friends Dereck and Ritchie to come along for band practice. I used to be a member of the local community band here and thought that it'd be fun for all of us to play a little music together. Only Dereck got to come down though, but I'm glad that he still ended up coming through. It's rare that I get to spend one-on-one time with my college friends. So he came down and we played a little bit. Ah, sight-reading music... It was fun. Very short time to play and we didn't really get to play our main percussion instruments but still enjoyable.

Afterwards, I wanted to go and get some frozen yogurt. I got Dereck to look up some places on Yelp and we found Blush in Dublin. The place was great! Nicely decorated and very friendly staff! I initially thought that it was pricey but they served a good amount of yogurt. Neither one of us really wanted a lot so we ended up getting a Blush Parfait for around $5. "Blush" is their featured flavored yogurt made of Pomegranate and Dragonfruit. The parfait was perfect for the two of us and had tasty granolas on top of it all. We got mochi balls and Fruity Pebbles for our toppings to make quite a colorful combination. So delicious!!

Just wanted to share my lovely Tuesday night and a reminder to myself to try out new places every time that I go out. Also, if you haven't been using it, Yelp is an awesome resource when trying to find places for eating or shopping, etc. Hope you all had a lovely Tuesday also! :]