Week In Review

Well then. Looks like I won't be needing this as often as I thought I would. Still off facebook, but that urge to post stuff and check in to places is slowly wearing off. Which I guess is a good thing.

This week was a little hectic but I made it. It's Friday!

So I think I bombed my test. I thought I studied well enough, but it was super hard. We'll find out our test scores on Tuesday. Not really looking forward to it, but I've already moved on to prepare for the next test. Definitely going to study more this time.

Finally got caught up on most of my shows. I say most because I'm not sure if I want to catch up on some shows any more.

For those keeping track at home. I'm down to 271. Started the week at 275 so I'm at the 4lbs/week, but I know I have a 'busy' weekend so I need to lose a couple more just to balance this weekend out. I'm probably going to hike San Miguel Mountain again. It was a good workout last time so that should do the trick. I also NEED to start doing ab work. That's the part of my body that needs the most work right now, too much flab, not enough ab. I do miss my hashtags, I'll admit that #withdrawals.

I think things will be alright. I'm trying my best and it feels like it's going to work out. Time will tell as they say.

Song of the Day: "Stars (Hold On)" by Youngblood Hawke

monday, Monday, MONDAY!

So yep. Made it through the weekend. This is where I would normally post a upidy statement about it being Monday. Yeeeeee!!!!

I started on my Viet homework this morning. I have no clue if I am doing it right. I'm so not confident about tomorrow's test. I hoping I can take my work to my tutor and hopefully she can check it in time to tell me if I'm doing it right. We shall see. This also means that I need to finish it soon.

This is what I don't like. I'm supposed to be 'off' 8am to 11:30am, yet here I am posting from work. I'm going to need to make it more clear. I'm not here during that time, please don't ask.

I was thinking of ideas to do for my goddaughter. She's my first girl godchild that's a little kid. Mostly they've been high school aged boys (confirmation) so I want to spoil the heck out of her. hah. I was thinking either Legoland or Disneyland. I overheard her today telling her friends that she's never been to Disneyland... PERFECT. Good thing she's tall enough to ride everything. and hopefully she wants to as well. I'm thinking about asking her to invite a couple of her friends as well. Ya know, so it's not just her and she can have fun too. Going to have to save up for mouse ears, food, souvenirs, eeek. What am I getting myself into. Oh well. It will be worth it.

Last night hanging out with the OLSHies was good. Love them to death, made some good points about my situation. Glad I have people like them in my live who will always support you. I knew it was going to be tough doing this alone, but I know I'm not alone. I have them to lift me up when I struggle. Thanks OLSHies. 

Song of the Day: "Welcome Home" by Radical Face

Sunrise and Plans

So most of what was planned didnt really happen. Goes to show... man makes plans, God laughs.

We lost our softball game. Bounced in the first round of the playoffs. Knew it was going to happen though. Our two best girls didn't show up so I knew we didn't stand a chance. It's so frustrating. I understand not being able to make super athletic plays or chase down a fly ball etc. but it's the simple things that annoy me. you can't put your glove on the ground for a ball that's rolling, and rolling... that it gets past you, letting everyone else advance another base? 

Anyway, it is what it is. I had a really good game but who cares, we lost. A friend of mine texted me wanting to go on a hike the next day. I'm always down for a hike. we hiked San Miguel Mountain. if you're familiar with the South Bay Area of SD, it's the big mountain with all the cell towers. Took a total of 6 hours to finish, and it was 9.2 miles round trip. definitely the longest one for me so far. it was all incline and no zigzags, just straight up climb. this was a real work out. Not much of a photo op, but here are a couple photos: 

Definitely worth it though. I was exhausted all day afterwards. Still haven't fully recovered. Good to know that this is supposed to be a difficult hike and I finished it. On to the next one...

So the school had this fundraiser dance thing. The people that went to enjoy the entertainment had fun. Even though it was only a few. I had fun getting to know the new teachers. What was not fun was eating all that crap food that was available. Did not do my diet justice that night. Blah.

Today: I was supposed to go to Viet mass: I didn't. I was supposed to go to the gym: I didn't. I was supposed to go running: I didn't. I was supposed to go to a BBQ my softball team was having: I didn't. I was planning on going out after catching up with some friends: I'm not going to. Instead I went shopping; bought a bunch of clothes, felt good. I'm such a girl. Today was filled with a lot of "I didn't" and I hate that. Why do I do this. Yargh. 

I don't know how to talk to you anymore. I want to. More than anything else do I want to spend hours talking with you but I can't. I don't know the right things to say anymore. For the second time, it's difficult being in this situation. I'm really good at adapting to any type of situation. This one is so new and strange to me I still need to figure it out. One thing is for sure: I don't want to be the person you turn to for fashion advice. Don't get me wrong: I don't mind at all you sending me pictures of yourself in different dresses. But it's almost insulting knowing how I feel, and then you doing that. Someday you'll understand. Someday.

This lack of social media experiment is working out okay so far. I still have the itch to check in at places I'm at, but it's getting easier. Sadly, my "2 months" doesn't officially start until Oct. 1st. All this is just a trial run I guess. Well, off to hang out with the OLSHies. Maybe I'll get around to gym or ab work or something. 

Song of the Day: "Awake My Soul" by Mumford & Sons

I've Got Friends In All The Right Places

Well, I've made it to the weekend. Friday!

Which frankly is going to be the most difficult, in all aspects. I feel that if I can get through a few weekends and be okay I can make it.

I'm really grateful for one friend in particular. Almost a blessing from God. I'm going through some tough stuff right now, and we haven't talked in years. Literally, years. It's a great feeling to know that even after all that time of not talking to each other, we can pick things up as if that time was not an issue. I know you probably don't think much of it, considering most of our talks have been about work, our old cars, music and song lyrics. But it's the dialogue with someone that I needed. Thousands of miles away and you still find the time to talk. It's funny how I don't have that nerve racking feeling in between texts where you don't respond for hours. I guess because I know you're in a different time zone and you have work, busy schedule and all these other things going on. I wish that was the case with others. Maybe someday that can develop too. Only time will tell.

My car is still at the mechanic. Not sure for how long. He's trying to fix it without having to have me spend a lot on repairs. He's a family friend so it's not like he's trying to rip me off or temp fix my car, just to have it mess up on me later. It's just another one of those 'things' that we rely on too much.

I've got softball playoffs tonight. Which is a nice win-win situation for me. We start at 6pm. If we lose, I'm fine because I can just go to the gym for a couple hours. If we win, we keep playing til most likely 9pm, which is still good because I can go to the gym after. Point is, I don't want to be at home doing nothing tonight, not tonight. I need that distraction more than ever. Tomorrow is that school fundraiser thing that I'm required to go to. It ends around 9pm I think so hopefully I'm just dead tired and fall asleep. I know I probably won't be able to run since they have the Bonita Fest at Rohr Park that day so the trail is blocked off....unless it's only during the day (crosses fingers). Could be another gym day. We'll see. Sunday I've got mass at 9am in Viet at Holy Spirit. Then nothing really during the day, which is fine. I use that as my clean up day: room, car, laundry, etc. Yep, that's how I'll make it through the weekend.

Today is not really anything special. Tutoring at 10am. Not sure if I should keep going. It's just for pronunciation and I feel like I'm wasting her time. Gotta make sure I make that hour productive. Regular day other than hoping I can get my car for softball game(s) tonight.

Song of the Day: "I've Got Friends" by Manchester Orchestra

Double Subbing Today...woah

Subbing today was fine. 3rd/4th was more fun because I had to read a couple chapters form a Willy Wonka book so of course I had to get in character, and they seemed to enjoy it. Then sent them off to swimming and then took over for 2nd grade. Ehh, they're okay. They're still in that needy stage where they are not used to a routine so they have to be told constantly to stop talking and to focus. On the bright sight, I finished with the lesson plan super early so I taught them how to play Heads Up 7up. I forgot how cool that game could be.

Viet class tonight. I feel like I'm starting to fall behind. I haven't done my homework assignment yet (due Tuesday) but I'm usually already done with it by now so I can go over it with the professor.

Also starting to feel real tired when I get to class. Not really sure what that is since this passed month I've been fine. I hope it's not that I'm getting complacent or cruising too much since I got the A.


Done.

Throwback Thursday!

....or at least it would have been (sadface).

Breakfast of champions: 

oh yea. Greek Yogurt (Orange Cream flavor, first timer so I'll let you know how it goes), walnuts, sugar free Jello, and good ol' H2izzO (/hova). 

I've decided that I wasn't doing enough to lose weight/stay in shape. Reflecting back on these past 2 months, I would say I'm at about 70% on my commitment level. I skip workouts, I sometimes don't eat the healthiest of foods, and I don't try my all during said workouts/runs. F that noise. My goal now is to power through until December when I leave for Vietnam. I'm basically at my short term goal to be at my high school weight (270). My ideal goal is 220 or less. Initially I told myself 'give it a good 9 months to a year and I'll get there.' That's going to take forever. I'm only 2 months and ~ 3 weeks away from leaving (eeek!) That's 12 weeks looking at my calendar (starting on Sunday that is). 4lbs a week, it's a little extreme and demanding, but doable. When you have this much weight to lose, I think it's definitely possible. 

I definitely have to be more consistent though. No more junk snacking. No taking a slice of pizza and thinking it's not going to hurt. No more skipping running because I'm not 'feeling it'. No more skipping gym because I forgot my headphones. DO FREAKIN WORK. The motto this whole time has been "Can't Stop Won't Stop" and I'm not being true to it. Time to man up. 

Good start last night. Instead of the usual 5K run, I did an extra mile. So 4 miles total, 45:31, at 11:23 per mile. That's a good start for me. Normally I run the 5K in around the 10:30 to 11:30 range, so keeping that pace for the extra mile is great. Next time I'll either have to add a 5th mile or see if I can decrease my time. I'm thinking more adding the 5th mile because I felt last night that I could have kept going but it was getting real dark and some parts aren't really well lit. I'll have to start a tad earlier if that's the case. Or wait til the times change. Because as we all know: the times...they are a changing. hyuck, hyuck, hyuck. 

I'm subbing today. Only have day, but for 2 classes. Yes, I am that amazing that I can sub 2 classes at a time. Actually, 3 since one of those is a combo class....To clarify, they have water safety classes at the Y so I'm with one class for half of half (a quarter?) of the day, then switch over to the next after they are done. Subbing has been okay so far. I prefer the older kids but I've been with the younger ones so far. 

Time for Ollie Williams and the blaccuweather report...Ollie? IT'S GON RAIN!! Thank you Ollie. 

Yea, it's that raining feeling. Winds gusting, chihuahuas really close to being lifted off the ground, trees swaying. 

You are the smell before rain. You are the blood in my veins.

Sorry. It is a Throwback Thursday after all. So, back to the point (GET ON WITH IT!). Yeah, long day of work today til 6pm. Viet class til 9:30pm. Then gym after. GO TO THE GYM THIS TIME, DON'T SKIP BECAUSE YOU'LL 'work out at home' pfff. Right. You've said that every time, and you've yet to do it once Joser. 

The End. 

Oh! Before that. This little girl (2nd grade) had a conversation with me (conversation is a loose term considering it was just her talking and me listening, as I do best) and it went like this:

"Coach Magaña, right now you're 28. Next year you'll be 29. And then another, and another, and another, and another. And then you're dead. The end."

She does have an amazing point. 

Song of the Day: "The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot" by Brand (effin) New

Next Day...

So we received our assignments from a couple weeks ago in Viet class: 99%. I'm going to assume it's the highest grade in the class. No one really paraded around their grades like on the test, but I did see a lot more lower scores when he was passing them out. It's interesting how I see native speakers get lower grades than me and I wonder how that can be possible considering it's basically second nature to them. But I get it: that's why. Because it's second nature to them, maybe they don't try as hard considering they're probably actual college students with a full work load of bio-chemistry, calculus and writing courses. This class probably isn't their priority.

I need to make some extra money on the side. In realizing how expensive it potentially might be to get my car fixed, my mom made an interesting point. Why don't I just buy a new car? At first it seems like a silly proposition: because I don't really make that much money? But then I consider my annual salary...what percentage of that would go into buying a car....you know what...I'm not that far off. I should consider it.

One Day?! Really?!

I can't believe it's been less than 1 day and I'm already having these tweeker withdrawals about facebook. It's crazy how society has turned is into (cliche, I know) machines.

And I'm supposed to last 2 months like this? I need to find something to keep me occupied and to keep me in the social loop. News media sites? coffee shops? going out more on weekends? We shall see.

Yea, that mechanic visit was not fun. $700 in estimated repairs 0_0. That's going to be my whole paycheck. The plan was to save money for my trip to Vietnam. Grrrrrr. rrrrr. rrrrr.

Viet class tonight. Hopefully I understand the material better this time. Prof keeps calling on me every single time. I get that he feels I need to learn it and that I got the highest grade in the class, but cut me some slack guy.

The day is winding down. It's going to be interesting how my nights end up without social media.

All That I've Got

So I've deactivated my facebook account. For various reasons. Yes, one of those being a girl, but that's besides the point. I'm going to try this experiment of seeing how long I can go without using facebook. It got to the point where it wasn't healthy for me.

Now I don't want to abandon social networking at all (I'll still use twitter, but I don't have any followers nor do I care much for twitter followers). Instagram is a no-go too.

I'm going to post my random thoughts and odd daily accomplishments here. For example...this preschool kid: love these kids to death but she asks soooooooo many questions. Which is GREAT, it means hopefully she'll be a bright girl. But usually in the mornings, my mind isn't that active haha. I guess it's a good thing to get my motor going early.

My car failed it's smog test.......AGAIN. So frustrating. I got this fixed last time and somehow it still didn't pass. I had it paid for through this gov't program but I might make too much money now to qualify. We shall see. I'm going to spend the majority of my day now taking care of this. Which means I can't go for a morning run. Hopefully I can get my ab workout in after Viet class today.

Speaking of which, class is starting to get difficult now. Which I guess should be expected. It's not going to be 97% all time heh. Also, one of the parent gave me $100 for my trip to Vietnam. How awesome is that?! It's really a great feeling to have this much support.

On a completely unrelated note: I'm going to try my hardest to not make this a 'let's complain and whine about 'this girl' blog. I'm not 17 anymore. I get it. At the same time, this may be my only outlet to vent so hopefully it doesn't get too unbearable. Although being that no one reads this. We'll see. I don't want to put it all out there, and then some day refer people back to this blog if they are at all curious of what I've been doing during my time away from facebook.

Ramble Ramble Ramble.

Borrowing this from my old LiveJournal days:

Song of the Day: "Ghosts That We Knew" by Mumford and Sons

Little Cart Thief

I was in line at Walmart the other night, this little 4 year old comes out of nowhere, pushes me, says "Vete!" (which basically means 'leave' or 'go away') and takes my shopping cart. I just stand there and smile because he can barely reach the handle, and doesn't really do anything but stand there with my cart.

His parents eventually see him, grab him and apologize profusely. It's too bad we live in a world where most people would get annoyed or say something like 'where are the parents? Why is this poorly raised kid wandering around taking people's carts? Ppl need to watch day kids tho'

Good Morning Homeless of San Diego River

So I've been jogging (jogging because I haven't worked my way up to actually running yet) the path at SD River in Mission Valley most mornings. Peaceful walk, including, believe it or not, the homeless there.

The standard stereotype is that homeless are crazy, smelly druggies that beg for food or money so they can booze up. But I guess San Diego being classy and all, means that our homeless are classy too. The several encounters I've had with the homeless people there were not the usual case.

Good Will Hunting Homeless: I'll start with my favorite box-living dude. He sleeps in a box next to a bench. Usually I catch him awake reading one of his books. He has about 6 or 7 stacked next to him, along with a newspaper, reading glasses, and yes, an iPad. An iPad. The thoughts in my head that justify how he got his hands on an iPad are endless... and how does he charge it when the battery is low. He dresses standard for a homeless guy: tattered coat, dirty stained pants, shaggy hair. What tickles my fancy are the seemingly deep thought provoking conversations he has with other bystanders. This leads me to believe he is some sort of intellectual genius philosopher who is well versed in the secrets of mankind. But I digress. Until I muster up the courage to talk to him, the question of his genius will remain just that.

Toothy Thumbs Up: alright so his name isn't all that original or well thought out. His front few teeth are missing and he always gives me the thumbs up when I jog passed him. I just think it's cool that he apparently has a positive outlook on life and appreciates my attempt at a healthy lifestyle. It's good to have a little positive reinforcement.

A man and his pouch: this homeless dude is just that, some homeless dude. I'm going to hilight his dog because, as most if you know, dogs are hilarious. This one in particular has a tennis ball. He carries it around proudly with his head held high. It's almost as if like he is pet to his master, his ball is his pet. When they stop for a break, he drops the ball and let's it roll around a bit. When it's time to leave he grabs it and off they go.

These are just a few, but I realize this post has gone on far too long. Enough.

Another sun....clou...rain....uhh. What's up with the weather?

Yes. Oddly enough I'm returning to blog about the weather. Actually it's more of an ice breaker. (Sexy voice): Hello...noticed you from across the bar...

I've decided that I want to delve deep into Social Media, so my blog will rise from the ashes like a phoenix and once again bring you glorious nonsensical content. You're welcome Internet. I've got all the basics:

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Pintrest

I'm probably missing some more (s'more). I'm thinking G+, Vine, Youtube? Any others? I'm not doing all this to be vain. Social Media is becoming more and more of a main source of communication. The more versed I am at it the better. Plus, Social Media Expert could make for a good side job.

I'm directing another musical. This time it's The Little Mermaid Jr. This would make it musical #4. Not sure if it will be the last (I don't see any others that I like or that I'm comfortable directing), but if it is, I will definitely go out with a ... wait for it ... ... ... SPLASH! Yes, I went there.

I have many great, elaborate, expansive (and expensive) ideas for props, sets, backdrops, costumes. Hopefully this is the year that I get it all done in advanced and I'm not sitting in my room at 3:00am hot gluing sequences to flower skirts.

And then there was basketball. Since last we spoke (2009?) I was a mere padawan coach: a couple practices a week, one 7 week season, finishing with a record of 3-4 or 4 -3 every once in a while. I am presently a full fledged Jedi Sith Knight Lord (spoiler alert, sorry Star Wars fans, that's where the future of the franchise is going). Crusader Basketball has become a year round sport. We play 4 leagues per year, 3 tournaments, and several shoot outs here and there. We are up to 6 hours of practice a week, some nights (I stay up cashing in my bad luck) until 7pm. I've introduced my players to club basketball. These group of kids have come along way and so have I. We currently have a 3-1 record with the one loss coming this past weekend to a really good team. We have the talent to hopefully face them again come tournament time. I am extremely proud of how far along they've come. There are games where I think to myself "Oh! That would be awesome if he could..." and they said he does it before I finish my thought. You cant help but put a smile on your face when you see these kids execute plays/moves that you have been practicing. We have a few games ahead before the big tournament. Hopefully we keep that momentum.

You're lucky that last paragraph wasn't the whole post. It has been suggested by others not to bring up my basketball team as a conversation starter because I will go on and on and on. My brother and close friends can attest to that.

I leave you with a concern from the other day:

I opened my fortune cookie. Ate the cookie, but threw away the fortune without reading it. It's been bugging me all week. What did it say? Does this mean I will have bad luck? I am reminded of an episode of Regular Show starring said fortune cookie. HmHmHmHm.