Sleep All Night, Play All Day

Summer has been kind of slow. I've been going downtown every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Then every Tuesday and Thursday, there are usually something to do. I'm also taking Chinese classes with my mom every Monday and Saturday. Then every Saturday night we go to this reality singing concert. Kind of like American Idol, but the Thai version.

Oh, what a life.

And the dog that I rescued last Christmas break has also been coming in to the room to sleep as well. She is so adorable. She has grown so much since the last time I saw her, considering how she was only a puppy when I left home last time.

 

She sleeps real funny as you can see. Hahaha. There is enough room for her to stretch out, but somehow she seems to like putting her head against the cage while sleeping.


Then early in the morning, we let her out to go run around the yard/garden the whole day. She apparently likes jumping into the fish pond chasing after the Koi.


Last night, we were going to go to the concert, but it had been raining for around an hour or two before it was time to leave. Naturally, my gated community was flooded and we didn't dare leave even with the Land Cruiser. The water was that high. We didn't even go beyond 200 meters from home, I don't think. It was raining really hard and the water drainage system in the community is kind of slow.


So I ended up just watching Thai soap last night. :)

A Trip Out of Town: Khao Yai

How long has it been since I updated here? A while, I assume. Nothing much happened. I've just been going around town with my mom. Taking care of business (not really). I just went to renew my passport today because it will expire in 2 months. I have to go in and get it on Thursday. Thankfully, it didn't take too long like it would normally take.


Before this, I think it was last week, I went out of town to a city called Khao Yai. It is a very well-known city here in Thailand. It literally means "big mountain." The main attraction is the Khao Yai National Park. I have never actually been to the national park, but I definitely will when I have time. There are also outlets and interesting venues around town.


Usually I go to visit my grandpa because he is currently developing pieces of land there that he owns. He has his fruit farms and other "projects" he imagined up. Many, many things that I will not mention just yet. But, one of his project includes the Kaoyai Lumtakong Hotel where my mom is helping manage at the moment. Hence, the many trips I take to go there.


There was this little creek behind the hotel when it was first bought. With my grandpa's imagination and some landscape engineering, the creek was turned into a small, beautiful waterfall, giving the hotel a pretty attractive and relaxing environment.

From the patio :)

Another view

Whoosh whoosh!

As you can see, the water is pretty high right now. That is mainly because it is the rainy season here right now. I know, I know. There is no such thing as a "rainy" season, but we really do consider that here. It has been raining everyday ever since I got back. And I don't just mean regular rain, but more like thunderstorms and a heavy downpour.


So, there is an abundant of water here at the moment. A little too much, I think. It's so humid!


By the waterfall, there is also a water wheel, which I think adds a lot to the homey feel of the hotel. I heard my grandpa got it from one of the local farmers around the area. Hahaha. Because the water wheel is usually used to pick up water and irrigate the field.

Note: there is a blue, yellow, and green crane on the land behind the water wheel if you look carefully. My grandpa is still developing the piece of land behind the hotel. I think he plans on making a garden there.


Then there are the Koi fish in the pond by the reception:

Awww, they're so nice and plump!

A little crocodile by the pond

There are also orchids around the hotel, but they don't really have many flowers right now. I only managed to get one photo int he limited time that I was there, which was less than a day. Maybe even less than half a day.

Well, I've been watching Thai soap ever since I got here. And I gotta say. It's pretty darn good! :D I guess it's just one thing to do when I'm here.

4th of July and Home

It's been a while since I've last wrote, mainly because I've been quite busy with preparing to get back home and the trip back home itself. So I'll just briefly outline what had happened. I am still feeling pretty jetlagged. :s


After summer school ended for me, I went to San Diego for the 4th of July weekend. It was a pretty relaxing four-day retreat. I got to visit my hamster, Potato, at Joel's house. Although we're really worried about him right now because Joel told me through Skype that Potato looks like he's getting the wet tail disease. :( Hopefully he'll be saved in time. He is the sweetest hamster; it will break my heart to see him leave so early especially because I only bought him two months ago.


Anyway, Joel made an awesome house for him though. That kid better not die on us.

Told ya it was awesome! (verging on epic :p)


I still have hope. It's funny though. Because I lost this toy hamster Joel and I bought that will remind me of Potato when I come home at the airport. Somehow, that must have been some kind of omen. I really miss that fluffy furball of a rodent with his short, hairless tail. :'(

That's him on his "Woodland Get-A-Way" house.


Live, Potato! Live!


Moving on to a happier subject, Joel's cat, Troy, seemed to love me more than before. He was playing with me and meowing a lot when I meow at him. Hahaha! Funny how that works. He's adorable and fat. Reminds me a bit of Garfield except his face is not as huge. Joel said he had been nicer ever since he got kicked out of the room because of Potato. Hah!

It took me some time and effort to try and get a good picture of him because he keeps on moving around.


I also went running at the beach for the first time in my life. Well, not really because I'm pretty sure I did run at the beach when I was smaller. But now I've just grown lazy like other adults and prefer to walk around the beach instead. If I remember correctly, Joel and I ran at Imperial Beach. We tried to stick to the dry sand so it was kind of taxing. When we finally got back onto the pavement it was like running on nothing. Hahaha.


We watched fireworks from the freeway on the night of the fourth, and I ate lots of good food. Mmm. Baked mussels. :3 I wish I could stay longer.


I just got back two days ago. I landed and got back home around noon. Than in the late afternoon I got onto another plane and flew to Chiang Mai (a northern city of Thailand). As you can imagine, I was super jetlagged that day. Yesterday, I just flew back down to Bangkok. We were only there for a Buddhist ceremony so we didn't stay long.


And here I am, sitting in front of my laptop, writing in my blog. So much and so little has changed at the same time. It's kind of hard to explain what I'm feeling. Seeing and sleeping with my dog again is definitely nice.


Hopefully, I'll be able to get back into my exercise routine again soon. It's awfully hot here though. Oh, AC, how I worship thee.

Breaking in the Boots (Part II): On a Shopping Spree

Summer school has officially ended for me. Woot woot! I was really tired of studying hard every single day, especially because I took two classes this past session. I gotta say it was totally worth it though. I learned a lot from both classes. You know how on class evaluations, they ask if the class has contributed to your morals and values? I actually marked one of the classes as being a total life changer. Yes, it was that great. Although that's really another story.


The point is I moved out, and now I'm in that awkward, in-between period where I'm waiting to fly home. So I'm staying with my cousin in LA and packing/cleaning up the room. Then today I decided to go to Santa Monica and visit the REI store.


Gotta use that $10 discount before time runs out! :)


What a great opportunity to try the other pair of socks and to continue the process of breaking in my boots. Today, I decided to wear Thorlos Thick Cushion Hiking socks.

Just as a reminder, last time I wore Thorlos Moderate Cushion Light Hiking Socks.


Both of them feels very comfortable and soft. However, the one that I wore today is definitely for colder days. My feet were heating up a little, not to the point where I would take the socks off, but it was warming up nevertheless. It would be perfect for use in the colder time of the year, definitely. But hey, it's been getting quite hot these past few days, what was I doing wearing boots and socks anyway?


Bottom line: I'm not returning this pair and will be keeping them for winter adventures, hikes, etc.


I walked a couple of blocks to get to the bus station and rode down to Santa Monica. I was so happy there wasn't any traffic, considering it's the fourth of July weekend. Regrettably, I forgot to take my camera with me (I have got to just stick it in my purse!). I was really hungry, so I ate at this place called Bellagio, which was literally in the middle of the promenade.


I had this super awesome hot chocolate (even though the weather was a bit warm; but I decided to get it probably because I was cold from the AC inside the bus) and a kickass salame panini. Salame's the best!


Then I walked over to REI.


I bought more than I was expecting when I first walked through those front doors with pickaxes as handles. Really, I'm not joking. I thought that was a nice touch. Anyway, so I went to look for the base layer. Smartwool was recommended to me. I looked at other brands as well, like Patagonia and The North Face, but Smartwool seems to be the most comfortable out of all those. So I tried on different colors and got one microweight and one midweight crew shirts.

Smartwool Microweight Crew in Lavender

Me with the shirt on :)

**I usually don't take pictures of myself, especially not in front of the mirror, but I just wanted to let you guys see what the shirt looks like on an actual body. So, because I don't have a manikin, I had to use myself.

Smartwool Midweight Crew in Aegean Heather

The shirt on a body!

As you can see in both pictures of myself, I was trying to suck in my tummy as much as possible. Hahaha! And also the fact that I wear a Spongebob boxer at home for comfort. (Yes, it says Bikini Bottom.)

Moving on with my shopping day, something else caught my eyes. It was a sportsbra. I already have one, and it works pretty well, but looking doesn't hurt right? Well, it kinda did hurt my wallet. Because I ended up buying it.

I bought the blue Serena Seamless Sportsbra from Moving Comfort.

**Sorry, but I don't think I should model for this product. ;)

Not only did the color (which is a little brighter than in this picture) catch my attention, but the fact that it was soft and smooth. I love soft clothes! And when I tried it on, it was pretty comfortable. I jumped around a bit, and there was still some bouncing. It's only a medium impact bra though, so it was fine.

Here is the bra that I had before:

I bought this online from New Balance. It works pretty well. I used it when I went running or whenever I do any exercise. I've read people complaining about how a certain sportsbra would rub on their shoulders/clavicle and leaving behind red marks. I never had any of those problems with this one. It fits well and doesn't rub against my skin when I run.

I plan on testing out the new bra this weekend. Joel and I made a plan to go out running on the beach. :) So that should be challenging. Tammy recommended me to train on the beach because she wants to take me backpacking in the Sierra, and there are a lot of gravels which crumbles down to becoming almost like sand. We'll see how the running session turns out.

I probably won't be able to run as far as Joel, considering how I am less fit than him. Hehehe.

Continuing with my shopping story, I finally got to the clothing item I actually went into the store to get. The North Face pants. There was actually my size this time, which made me really happy: x-small, petite. :D

They are SO soft and comfortable I had to get them! :) They are quick-drying as well as protects my skin from the sun (UPF 30). I don't know exactly if I will be needing them for my trip with Tammy, but I couldn't possibly miss out on this piece of the cloud!

I also went to buy a charging cable for my iPod because I seem to have misplaced it. I can't believe how busy it gets in that store. I probably stayed in there for less than five minutes. The sales guy that was helping me out had a guide dog. He was really nice and the dog was super timid. I got to touch him/her (I didn't get a chance to bend down and see its true gender). I think it was a black lab.

After that, I took the bus back. Now, I wish I could have gotten gelato or something. I don't know why I didn't. Oh well. It was a day well spent nonetheless.