Last Night

We went out last night to celebrate Ryan passing his physician's assistant (PA) exam. I had no doubts he'd pass - he always passed our chem and bio exams - but he was a bit worried because he'd heard about some of the questions. Well, he passed and that's all that matters now. Yay, go Ryan.

At about 3pm, we went to Tammy's to sing karaoke. She has one of those magic microphones and they're soooooo cool, I want one! The only equipment is a microphone - it has about 2000 songs built-in and all you have to do is plug it into the TV. Easy peasy. I'm quite good at songs that need to be belted out - i.e. Celine Dion (Hey, don't knock her! I like Celine.) - but one of my best scores was Evanescence's My Immortal. (Yeah, the machine scores you out of 100 and even gives commentary.) w00t w00t!

Jr came over directly from school (he's going to the Gene Juarez Academy). Being a hairstylist is so perfect for him and he loves it, especially working with his flat iron. My hair and I love him and his flat iron, too. He trimmed Ryan's hair and Georgia's bangs/fringe, and did mine. I asked him to straighten it but he curled it instead. Jr's so funny; he kept gushing about my hair, saying, "Omg, Jessie, your hair's so bomb. It looks so bomb." Georgia nodded and Ryan said, "Haaawt" with a thumbs-up. I checked it out in the mirror after Jr was done and, to use his words, my hair was bomb. It looked like what the professional stylist did at The Studio photoshoot. My hair was hot and I looked good. Woohoo! Curls look really good in my hair because it makes the red really stand out...or maybe it's the other way around, with the red making the curls stand out. Luckily Tammy had some hairspray so my hair could stay curled for the rest of the night.

We left close to 7pm, had sushi takeaway at Ryan and Georgia's, changed clothes, touched up on makeup and zipped over to Capitol Hill. We were supposed to meet Matt and Kenny at the Garage for one of Matt's coworkers' birthday do, but they weren't there yet so we had a couple of drinks at Purr first. Both were very nice places and I wasn't charged for my Coke at Purr. Free ninety-nine is always good in my book!

R Place was hoppin' as usual. Ryan was expecting to see Mykal there and was very excited about seeing him again. Everyone got drunk except me and Jessica, so all was quite merry. Remember the straight guy I met at R Place the night we went out for Matt's birthday? No, I didn't see him again. I met another one! That's two - count 'em, TWO - straight guys I've met at R Place. That's progress girlfriend! (And oh, how times change...) We were getting ready to leave the club when Patrick asked where Jr was. I said, "Outside," but a guy stepped between us and intercepted my reply, then he paused in front of me...and held out his hand. Eh? It's just natural to hold out your own hand when you see one being held out to you, so I shook his hand and looked up into a very cute face. Ooohhh. Yeah, I hear ya. I smiled and he replied, "You are beautiful." Now it's one thing for your my friends to say I'm beautiful - they're supposed to say it because it says so in the Friendship Rules Book - but it's a whole 'nother story when a complete stranger says it. Insert an image of me beaming - "Thanks!" Then he grinned and asked me if I was straight. Apparently it was the right answer because he said, "Yes!" and gave me a big bear hug and several kisses on the cheek. I guess he's straight, too, hehehe. I was still a bit startled at the compliment and totally forgot to even ask him his name, let alone give him my number. Oh well.

Continue Reading

Josh Groban Valentine's Day CD at Hallmark

Okay, let's just get one thing straight here first. I hate Valentine's Day. I've always hated it and I will probably always hate it. There have only been two 14 of Februarys when the hate receded a bit because I was distracted. Do I hate it because I'm single? Maybe...probably...but I even hated it when I wasn't single. It's always been such a depressing 'holiday' (it is not a bloody holiday, damn commercialism) and it SHOULDN'T be because there is nothing wrong with being single - hell, the playing field is so much wider for singles - but even though it shouldn't be depressing, it is invariably depressing, which only makes the whole damn thing even more depressing! 'Hate' is such a strong word (and I injected no sarcasm there) but I do hate Valentine's Day.

Anyway, moving on. Every year, Hallmark does a special Valentine's Day CD and this year features Josh Groban. I adore Josh. No, I really do adore him. It's not how it is with Jake Gyllenhaal (my only other celebrity crush - and I said I was too old for crushes. HA!) I love him as much as I hate Valentine's Day. Wait, so do they cancel each other out, and this year's 14 February will be unhateful (Is that even a word?)? Ha, I doubt it. I do not have my rose-coloured glasses on at the moment.

Love and hate aside, this special CD is good. Of course. I mean, this is Josh Groban for goodness' sakes. He's always good. I love it. I love him. Oh swoon. Sigh. Haha. I need a cup of tea...

Continue Reading

The Perfect Body

I just read this on Catwalk Queen. Apparently, scientists at the University of Texas have been slaving away to discover the 'perfect' female body shape. Yeah, they're getting paid to do this. (Are they being publicly funded or privately funded? Can you imagine tax dollars going towards that?) Their conclusion leads to Kelly Brook - an English model and actress. Wiki tells us that she's noted for her naturally large breasts. Yay for au naturel.

Anyway, according to these scientists, any woman with a waist to hip ratio of 0.70588253 is scientifically proven (I'd like to know how) to be 'perfect'. To see how you measure up - no pun intended - divide the measurement of your waist at the narrowest point by the measurement of your hips at the widest point. Mine's at 0.7105263. Pretty darn close, eh? An ex-boyfriend once said I had the perfect body but he had no idea. Haha.

Continue Reading

Samantha Brown in Cornwall

There's this show on the Travel Channel called Passport to Europe with Samantha Brown and I love it. I want HER job damnit: travel around the world and film it all. Lucky cow.

Anyway, the show's on TV right now and she's in Cornwall! *Sob* Part of me wants to watch it because it's the UK and y'all know how much I pine for 'home'. The other part of me doesn't want to watch it because I actually ache to go back. Sigh, what a predicament. Well, call me a masochist but I'm watching it. Sigh. I console myself with a cup of tea. Or two. Or three. :)

Continue Reading

Matty's Birthday

It was Matt's birthday last Thursday and we all went out for dinner on Friday at Palomino in Seattle. I hadn't seen everyone since New Year's Eve because of being snowed-in, so we had a lot of catching up to do. Mike and Garrett came out, too, and I hadn't seen them since I left last March. It was an awesome dinner with so much laughter going on, my jaw still ached long after the last bite of my seafood linguini.

Mike knew one of the guys at the restaurant, so he treated all of us to a round of free drinks. Woohoo! I got white wine because up until now, I've only ever had red. In Garrett's words, I'm a purist (like him - he got ale). He and I shared a wink and a moment. The white wasn't too bad but I like red better. What I really wanted was some cider - Magners, actually - but alas there was no cider to be had. Oh well, it was free anyway.

After dinner, Matt thought we were all going home but little did he know that we were all going to surprise him back at his apartment with a cake that Georgia (and Ryan?) had made. He and Kenny had to drop off another friend at her car so that gave us enough time to get to the apartment before him. He had no idea at all and that was awesome. The look on Matt's face was priceless. Of course, we couldn't share the cake because we had to get down to R Place to get in at least an hour or so of dancing!

Matt's birthday kiss from Ryan.

We tried to find a birthday present for Matt but it turned out he was taken already. Bummer. Then Mykal showed up, who Ryan hasn't heard from since New Year's, but there was a happy ending for that story. Yay! Ryan deserves it. Now if I can just get one, too...

Ryan and Mykal taking a self-portrait but Aaron and I snuck into the picture. Hehehe.

To award me for my sneakiness, Mykal had Matt take a group picture of us. We so cute.

At one point, as Ryan and Mykal were totally oblivious to everyone else, I sat down on a couch with Aaron and we guy-watched. (Too bad all of them didn't swing my way! And Aaron was too chicken to talk to any of them! Bless. What a waste.) A guy and a girl who weren't dating (you can tell by the body language) sat down on the couch perpendicular to ours. I tapped him on the knee and struck up a conversation. (It started with "Excuse me, are you gay?" LOL. For real.) Turns out he's not gay and neither was his female friend. He's the first straight guy I've met at R Place! Whoa. We expounded on the pros of R Place and how awesome it is. He then asked me if I smoked and I said no. He replied, "Oh good, neither do I." I raised a mental eyebrow. Good, eh? Sounds like something a single guy would say. Anyway, he said he was going to go outside with his friends so they could have a smoke and "I'll catch you later." Haha, I never saw him again that night. No big deal since he wasn't that gorgeous. Ah, well.

All in all, it was a fabulous night.

Continue Reading

Shoes, Shoes, Shoes!

I love shoes. I've said it once and I'll say it again: I'm a total and complete shoe whore. I love shoes as much as I love books; they're number two on my list of favourite material things. That's a lot of love. Since Autumn 2005, I've been looking for a pair of equestrian boots. They're not for riding, of course, since I don't know how to ride a horse but I so want to learn!

Anyway, I digress. So I've been looking all over for knee-high, low-heeled, round-toed, chocolate brown boots devoid of any embellishments. Simple, right? Wrong. Plain brown boots are not that easy to find - and keep in mind that I'm a babe on a budget! - and to make matters even more difficult, it's seldom that I'll find a boot that'll zip up my calf. I mean, who has pencil thin calves anyway? Sigh. I had originally planned to go to Italy last summer, while living in Cambridge, to splurge on a pair of Italian leather boots. Obviously, things didn't pan out as I'd wanted and a year and a half on, I'm still boot-less.

Cue the post-holiday sale! I love sales, too, especially when I find exactly what I'm looking for at 50% off original price. Yeah, that's right - I found my boots!! They're from Aldo, called Pau, and were a mere $70 after tax! They're real Italian leather and although not exactly knee-high, they're pretty damn close at an inch below the knee. And at that price, how could I say no?

Do you have any idea how good it feels to finally find something that fits perfectly with what you were looking for? I feel so satisfied, you've no idea.

Continue Reading

The Travel Bug Strikes Again

I went to the Crossroads mall the other day with my sister. She's been learning to drive so I let her drive there and she's not bad - a bit fast going into the turn but it's all good. We stopped by Barnes & Noble to kill some time before her driving class. I love bookstores. Anyway, she checked out the art books while I checked out the romance section. There was nothing new that I didn't already have and Dark Celebration still hasn't come out in paperback *impatient*. I was walking around the store looking for the manga section and came across the Travel section. And I had to completely avoid it. I felt the pull to browse through the Lonely Planet books but I couldn't do it. The travel bug bites again!

What's worse is that I just found out I've accumulated enough airline miles for a free return flight to Europe. Oh dear, that's dangerous. I'm tempted to just book a trip and fly away, but I can't. I've got four weddings that I know I'm invited to - two in the US and two in the UK - and those miles will come in handy. Gah, I just want to hop on a plane and go.

Continue Reading

Snowed In

How annoying. It started snowing again today! My street's totally iced over and now more snow's been piled on top. Great, just great. What's worse is that since my street's all icy, I can't get out in a car so I couldn't make Holly's baby shower. Damn and blast it. I was so looking forward to it, too! *Sigh* I wonder if I'll be able to make it to work tomorrow...

Continue Reading

Looking Back

I'm a sucker for these things...

1) Where did you begin 2006?
Hugging and kissing strangers in a club.

2) What was your status by Valentine's Day?
I thought I was part of an item but the other half of the item didn't bother to mention to me that I was labouring under misapprehensions.

3) Were you in school (anytime last year)?
Yup, finishing up my degree.

4) How did you earn your money?
Work, work, work! I held 3 different jobs.

5) Did you have to go to the hospital?
Nope.

6) Did you have any encounters with the police?
Nope.

7) Where did you go on holiday?
Holiday? What holiday??

8) What did you purchase that was over £500?
Nothing, but my flight to Taiwan was almost £300.

9) Did you know anybody who got married?
No, but I've got 4 weddings to attend this year - 2 US, 2 UK. I attended an engagement party, though.

10) Did you know anybody who passed away?
James Brown and Former US President Gerald Ford.

11) Have you run into anybody you left high school with?
Yup - my best friend who got engaged this year.

12) Did you move anywhere?
God, yes. 3 times even. US to UK, UK to Taiwan, Taiwan back to the US.

13) What sporting events did you go to?
American football with Raven, who was playing. Woo, go Cats!

14) What concerts/shows did you go to?
The All-American Rejects! WOO!! I heart them.

15) Are you registered to vote?
Of course.

16) Who did you want to win Big Brother?
Eww, that's nasty. I don't watch it and I don't care about it.

17) Where do you live now?
I'm back in the states, in Seattle.

18) Describe your birthday.
It was so uneventful. I worked the whole day and then had dinner with Yseult. It was Italian - Bella Italia - and the food was quite good. She gave me a card :D! But it was Kate's birthday that Saturday, so she invited me to celebrate together with a really nice dinner with her husband, my boss and mutual friends/co-workers. She's awesome. And Val gave me a box of Gordan Ramsay chocolates, which were verrrry nice despite the fact that if I ate more than one, I'd get a migraine.

19) What's the one thing you thought you would never do but did in 2006?
There wasn't anything I thought I would never do last year.

20) What has been your favourite moment?
God, there were so many! New Year's Day, the moment I flew down the hill on a snowboard without stopping, getting into BUNAC, last day of uni, getting my tattoo, flying back to the UK, first day at NXT, meeting Lam at the bus stop my first day in Cambridge, first day at Ceroc, birthday day dinner with Kate, Val & co., flying home for graduation, Ceroc in Cambridge with Flick, and meeting Raven and Niko, Ros, Ashley, Tess, Nicky and Jonathan, John and Johnny, dim sum and shopping with Lam, American football with Raven, Ceroc with Flick and Yseult, The Fez Club with Lam and Rasmus and friends, Heather's care package, my first time driving in England, The Studio, Officers' Summer Ball at Bassingbourn Barracks, Niko's passing up parade, last day at NXT, The All-American Rejects concert, going to the shotgun range and blowing up clay pigeons with Raven, Johnny and Lucy, Strada with Raven, Yseult and Johnny, Ceroc freestyle night at St. Neots, meeting the new members of my extended family (babies!), school reunion, finding Tetley's tea and Patak's curry sauces in Taiwan, karaoke singing with mates, teaching my first class, teaching my last class and saying goodbye to my favourite students, flying home, Em's engagement party, New Year's Eve. Let's just say I had an awesome year.

21) What's something you learned about yourself?
I remember far more Chinese than I thought I did. Amazing!

22) Any new additions to your family?
Cousin Tse Shing's husband.

23) What was your best month(s)?
March, July and September.

24) What music will you remember 2006 by?
Miami Vice soundtrack and Christina Aguilera's 'Ain't No Other Man.'

25) Who has been your best drinking buddy?
I don't drink much, so I haven't one really...however, all my friends are great drinking buddies. (Oh God, that reminds me of that night at Strada with Raven, Yseult and Charlie...that's what happens when you mix Jess with good wine, good food and good company!)

26) Made new friends?
Tons!! And I miss you all. :'(

27) Best new friend(s)?
Raven, Yseult and Lam, and I became closer to Flick, too.

28) Favourite night out?
The Fez Club with Lam, Rasmus and friends, and the night of the ball both rocked my socks off.

29) Any regrets?
None. I don't do regrets.

30) Worst month?
October.

Continue Reading

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow

We've had snow storm warnings for about a week now and it hit. I was on my way to pick up my sister from the community centre and got stuck. Damn. Gotta love the Pacific Northwest. The snow's coming down like crazy. We've got at least four inches - and it's still snowing - since 5:30pm. Anyway, I managed to park the car on the side of the road and then walked up the hill to where my sister was. Then we walked home. Hilly!

Spirits still high despite the cold, the snow and the hill. We were about 45 minutes from home.







A block from my house. Cars were all stuck on the road. Mine got stuck about 2 miles away.







My sister making a snow angel on our lawn.








View from my front porch, looking across the front lawn towards my neighbor's house.

Continue Reading

All That Glitters

I'm a magpie. I can't help but be attracted to shiny, glittery jewelry. I picked up a catalog from Helzberg Diamonds to flip through on my break - oooh and aaah. Such purdy jewelry! Of course, I'm a fussy cow - or a picky magpie, if you will - and I really only like silver coloured jewelry and I prefer clear stones. White gold and diamonds? *Snort* More like sterling silver and cubic zirconia, says my budget. Ah, well. It's not like I need more jewelry, right? Right?? (Just keep telling yourself that, Jessie, and you might start believing it.) Ha, yeah right.

A couple of items caught my eye. Okay, okay, make that many items. I can't help it. I especially like this ring. It's only $99. And this pendant, which is even more affordable at $50. And this and this and this.

To hell with a man buying me jewelry; I'll buy myself some!

Continue Reading

H&M

Y'all know I love H&M. It's my absolute favourite shop (yes, yes, surpassing Victoria's Secret, Express, J.Crew and The Limited) and I just love their stuff. Now imagine my delight and surprise when I found out that they're opening a branch in Seattle. FINALLY!! I don't know when they're opening it here but I'm so glad they're finally bringing it here! I don't have to go to San Francisco or wait until my next trip to Europe to go to an H&M. Woohoo! ...Of course, if I move to LA, then it wouldn't matter since they have a branch there, too, but at least there'll be one whenever I visit Seattle!

Continue Reading

Woo, A Slide Show!

I've been seeing these photo slide shows on other people's MySpace profiles and thought they were pretty cool so I went about creating my own. Woo! I had fun with this.

Continue Reading

Gimme A Tissue!

Ahahaha, hahahaha, ahahahaha! Oh, oh, I'm dying of laughter. I need a tissue to wipe my tears. Read on!

How Did I End Up On The Cover Of This Romance Novel?

Continue Reading

What Happened On New Year's Eve...

Two days after New Year's Eve, I finally remember everything that happened clearly. Not that anything particularily scandalous happened - sadly - but I did have a drink and while I wasn't completely pissed, my head was a bit fuzzy the whole night so not all the details of that night have completely surfaced until now. (Note: I'm a lightweight so one drink goes a long way to getting me hammered.)

Anyway, I had a Malibu Mango Rum and Sprite - it was really tasty - but it sure got me drunker than a regular vodka and Coke! I've had three vodkas and Cokes in one night before without feeling sleepy in the middle of the club, so I was surprised that just one mango rum and Sprite was making me fall asleep. Weird. However, I did manage to stay awake through the whole night, and Ryan and Georgia were so proud of me for having a drink. Haha.

We went to R Place, as usual, to count down the year. I had an awesome time and it was just a great night. Well, except for Jr. who got too wasted and was sick in the loo and outside the club. The club was a lot more crowded than last year and it smelled like funk! Ugh. I thought I'd given my New Year's kiss to a really hot guy but I remembered wrong. Oh well, it wouldn't have mattered either way because all the hot guys there were gay. That also meant that I didn't pull that night, but I did try! I asked all the cute guys I came across (except for one) if they were gay and they all were. *Sigh* That's what one gets when one's best friend is gay and one hangs out with a bunch of gay men. J'ai besoin d'un homme!

Continue Reading

Happy 2007!

Yes, it's another year. Mad, isn't it? 2006 was an awesome year for me. There were new adventures, new jobs, new experiences and fabulous new people. There were also many reunions, mostly in Taiwan, with friends and family whom I haven't seen in over seven years. I also went around the world in nine months: US to UK, March -> UK to Taiwan, October -> Taiwan to US, December. Woo!

Now, regarding my New Year's resolution...well, I don't do New Year's resolutions. I think they're rubbish. I did, however, jokingly say that mine should be 'try not to move in one year'. Ryan snorted and said, 'Ha, good luck with that!' I think he's got the right of it...haha.

So, what am I going to do this year? Who knows! Work, of course, since I can't go too long without working or else I'll get bored. I need to gain more valuable work experience to make myself more employable. And travel, of course, because I looooooove it. I've also got at least three weddings, one of which I'm a bridesmaid in, and at least one baby shower to attend - exciting!

Well, whatever happens this year, it's going to be good. Wanna know why? Because it's the year of the pig! The year of the golden pig for that matter. Auspicious!

Continue Reading