Monday, August 25, 2008
Monday, August 18, 2008
Monday, August 11, 2008
1 Week, 1 Photo & 500 Words or Less (August 10, 2008)
Greetings from Irvine, California, USA!
Photo taken on Saturday, August 9, 2008.
* This was a missing journal entry. I took a hiatus – the break unplanned, the duration undefined. Eventually I restarted but skipped over 14 weeks. Approximately a year later the entry is now written.
Recently my parents went to Seattle for 11 days, both my roommates went on a motorcycle trip for 3 days and a couple with their son went to Hawaii for 7 days. Where did I go? I spent a week in Fountain Valley dog-sitting for the island-bound family.
While not a five-star hotel, their house has its comforts – a swimming pool, a jacuzzi, 100+ channels of cable with Tivo, flat-screen televisions in the bedroom and living room and, overlooking the three dogs and one cat, an empty house to do whatever whenever I wanted.
I spent most of my time at “Casa de Pou-chay” playing with the pets, watching television, lounging beside and in the pool and jacuzzi… Basically I did not have a care in the world, just living the “Life of Riley”, whoever he is. Everyone needs to leave harsh reality occasionally and enter a dreamland, a place with no distinction between weekdays and weekends, no schedules or routines, nothing resembling everyday life.
I left the “sanctuary” occasionally. I went to the beach to play volleyball twice during the week and to the Orange County Great Park yet again on Saturday. I was there for an evening flight in the big balloon. In my weekly photo the orange orb stands out against the dark sky. From the bird’s eye view of the balloon, lights from cars, streets and buildings created a luminous nightscape – an enlightening new perspective of suburbia.
Meanwhile the Olympic games in Beijing, China, started on Friday with the Opening Ceremonies, which had me on complete awe. Artistry seamlessly intertwined with technology and the talents of the performers were magnified by the scope of the production. This was inarguably a five-star caliber performance. Let the games begin.
Angelo
Photo taken on Saturday, August 9, 2008.
* This was a missing journal entry. I took a hiatus – the break unplanned, the duration undefined. Eventually I restarted but skipped over 14 weeks. Approximately a year later the entry is now written.
Recently my parents went to Seattle for 11 days, both my roommates went on a motorcycle trip for 3 days and a couple with their son went to Hawaii for 7 days. Where did I go? I spent a week in Fountain Valley dog-sitting for the island-bound family.
While not a five-star hotel, their house has its comforts – a swimming pool, a jacuzzi, 100+ channels of cable with Tivo, flat-screen televisions in the bedroom and living room and, overlooking the three dogs and one cat, an empty house to do whatever whenever I wanted.
I spent most of my time at “Casa de Pou-chay” playing with the pets, watching television, lounging beside and in the pool and jacuzzi… Basically I did not have a care in the world, just living the “Life of Riley”, whoever he is. Everyone needs to leave harsh reality occasionally and enter a dreamland, a place with no distinction between weekdays and weekends, no schedules or routines, nothing resembling everyday life.
I left the “sanctuary” occasionally. I went to the beach to play volleyball twice during the week and to the Orange County Great Park yet again on Saturday. I was there for an evening flight in the big balloon. In my weekly photo the orange orb stands out against the dark sky. From the bird’s eye view of the balloon, lights from cars, streets and buildings created a luminous nightscape – an enlightening new perspective of suburbia.
Meanwhile the Olympic games in Beijing, China, started on Friday with the Opening Ceremonies, which had me on complete awe. Artistry seamlessly intertwined with technology and the talents of the performers were magnified by the scope of the production. This was inarguably a five-star caliber performance. Let the games begin.
Angelo
Monday, August 4, 2008
1 Week, 1 Photo & 500 Words or Less (August 3, 2008)
Greetings from Newport Beach, California, USA!
Photo taken on Monday, July 28, 2008.
* This was a missing journal entry. I took a hiatus – the break unplanned, the duration undefined. Eventually I restarted but skipped over 14 weeks. Approximately a year later the entry is now written.
My 10 years of Junior Chamber (JCs or Jaycees) membership has been through the Newport Beach (NB) chapter until last year when I switched to its neighboring South Coast (SC) counterpart. I was going to more SCJC events than NBJC ones and my experience would better help the newer and smaller South Coast group.
I have participated in a wide range of activities and roles except for one. I had never been President until this year but it was short-lived. My small board of directors slowly vanished due to various personal reasons until I was the last person standing. I had the difficult decision either to keep the group going or call it quits. I chose the latter.
With the end in sight, I stayed committed to our existing schedule of events up to the last one – the group’s 5th anniversary beach bonfire. I would return to the Newport group but first South Coast would end with a blaze of glory as the weekly photo shows. That Monday night I had a “South Coast Jaycees” sign and added “2003-2008”, creating a tombstone which I tossed into the bonfire. It was a bittersweet moment of closure.
The next day we had a modest earthquake circa 11:30 AM on Tuesday. Having lived most of my life in SoCal, I was accustom to quakes. On the other hand my roommate James, originally from St. Louis, Missouri, had yet to experience one. I was stretched out in bed watching television when the tremor started and simply rode it out. James was also at home and I heard him run from his room, down the stairs and out the front door. When it was all over, I could hear James talking with other neighbors about the earthquake.
I had a temp job this week, working from 12 Noon to 6 PM and did not see James before leaving. Back home later in the evening I saw my other roommate Wayne. He too is from out of state, originally Oklahoma, and had never experienced an earthquake. Much to his diappointment, Wayne did not feel the tremor as he was driving at the time and his car’s tires and shocks absorbed most of the shaking.
James appeared as I told Wayne how he ran out of the house when it hit. While his behavior was not atypical, I gave him grief as he never checked to see if I was okay after the earthquake. He felt a little guilty and now I have an ace up my sleeve. At some later point in time, when needing a favor, I can say, “James, remember that earthquake when you ran and never checked on me? You owe me for that and I am collecting on it now…”
Angelo
Photo taken on Monday, July 28, 2008.
* This was a missing journal entry. I took a hiatus – the break unplanned, the duration undefined. Eventually I restarted but skipped over 14 weeks. Approximately a year later the entry is now written.
My 10 years of Junior Chamber (JCs or Jaycees) membership has been through the Newport Beach (NB) chapter until last year when I switched to its neighboring South Coast (SC) counterpart. I was going to more SCJC events than NBJC ones and my experience would better help the newer and smaller South Coast group.
I have participated in a wide range of activities and roles except for one. I had never been President until this year but it was short-lived. My small board of directors slowly vanished due to various personal reasons until I was the last person standing. I had the difficult decision either to keep the group going or call it quits. I chose the latter.
With the end in sight, I stayed committed to our existing schedule of events up to the last one – the group’s 5th anniversary beach bonfire. I would return to the Newport group but first South Coast would end with a blaze of glory as the weekly photo shows. That Monday night I had a “South Coast Jaycees” sign and added “2003-2008”, creating a tombstone which I tossed into the bonfire. It was a bittersweet moment of closure.
The next day we had a modest earthquake circa 11:30 AM on Tuesday. Having lived most of my life in SoCal, I was accustom to quakes. On the other hand my roommate James, originally from St. Louis, Missouri, had yet to experience one. I was stretched out in bed watching television when the tremor started and simply rode it out. James was also at home and I heard him run from his room, down the stairs and out the front door. When it was all over, I could hear James talking with other neighbors about the earthquake.
I had a temp job this week, working from 12 Noon to 6 PM and did not see James before leaving. Back home later in the evening I saw my other roommate Wayne. He too is from out of state, originally Oklahoma, and had never experienced an earthquake. Much to his diappointment, Wayne did not feel the tremor as he was driving at the time and his car’s tires and shocks absorbed most of the shaking.
James appeared as I told Wayne how he ran out of the house when it hit. While his behavior was not atypical, I gave him grief as he never checked to see if I was okay after the earthquake. He felt a little guilty and now I have an ace up my sleeve. At some later point in time, when needing a favor, I can say, “James, remember that earthquake when you ran and never checked on me? You owe me for that and I am collecting on it now…”
Angelo
Monday, July 28, 2008
1 Week, 1 Photo & 500 Words or Less (July 27, 2008)
Greetings from West Covina, California, USA!
Photos taken on Sunday, July 27, 2008.
* This was a missing journal entry. I took a hiatus – the break unplanned, the duration undefined. Eventually I restarted but skipped over 14 weeks. Approximately a year later the entry is now written.
The guest bedroom enlargement project at my parents’ house is done and I am not impressed. The contractor built a “guest house” annex for a relative. It looked fine at first glance but a closer examination revealed small mistakes that a more experienced builder would flag and correct. I asked to see the blueprints before construction began but that did not happen. Less than two months later the job was done. My pair of weekly photos shows opposite views of the room.
The room has one big flaw. The new foundation is uneven with the original. Even worse the mistake could have been caught and corrected. As a measure of safety during construction, my dad boarded up all the doors between the bedroom and the rest of the house. When they were reopened the foundation on one side of an entryway was not level with the other side by as much as a half-inch.
Another flaw is an external door that was elevated a few inches to prevent flooding. But no step was made to compensate for the added height. In each case, people can easily trip walking through the doorway. The rest of my small list of complaints are largely personal preferences. The saying goes, “No use crying over spilt milk.” My dad has done nothing to fix the mistakes and I suspect that it will stay that way for a long while.
I started a 7-day temp job at an ad agency. The project trafficker was going on a vacation and I would cover for her. I started on Thursday to train with her for two days then be on my own the following week. But she called in sick on Friday so I flew solo a day sooner. The creative studio was suppose to be a very busy place but the work load was lighter than usual. On a few occasions people went home early because it was so slow.
Overall I enjoyed the experience and my supervisor was happy with my work. If and when she needed the help again, she would give me a call. Considering how sparse the work assignments have been, I was happy to hear that news.
Angelo
Photos taken on Sunday, July 27, 2008.
* This was a missing journal entry. I took a hiatus – the break unplanned, the duration undefined. Eventually I restarted but skipped over 14 weeks. Approximately a year later the entry is now written.
The guest bedroom enlargement project at my parents’ house is done and I am not impressed. The contractor built a “guest house” annex for a relative. It looked fine at first glance but a closer examination revealed small mistakes that a more experienced builder would flag and correct. I asked to see the blueprints before construction began but that did not happen. Less than two months later the job was done. My pair of weekly photos shows opposite views of the room.
The room has one big flaw. The new foundation is uneven with the original. Even worse the mistake could have been caught and corrected. As a measure of safety during construction, my dad boarded up all the doors between the bedroom and the rest of the house. When they were reopened the foundation on one side of an entryway was not level with the other side by as much as a half-inch.
Another flaw is an external door that was elevated a few inches to prevent flooding. But no step was made to compensate for the added height. In each case, people can easily trip walking through the doorway. The rest of my small list of complaints are largely personal preferences. The saying goes, “No use crying over spilt milk.” My dad has done nothing to fix the mistakes and I suspect that it will stay that way for a long while.
I started a 7-day temp job at an ad agency. The project trafficker was going on a vacation and I would cover for her. I started on Thursday to train with her for two days then be on my own the following week. But she called in sick on Friday so I flew solo a day sooner. The creative studio was suppose to be a very busy place but the work load was lighter than usual. On a few occasions people went home early because it was so slow.
Overall I enjoyed the experience and my supervisor was happy with my work. If and when she needed the help again, she would give me a call. Considering how sparse the work assignments have been, I was happy to hear that news.
Angelo
Monday, July 21, 2008
1 Week, 1 Photo & 500 Words or Less (July 20, 2008) SPECIAL EDITION
Greetings from Costa Mesa, California, USA!
Photos taken on Sunday, July 20, 2008.
This edition is an appropriate starting point so I am adding a few people to my distribution list. Also in response to a comment, I am averse to call these “messages” a blog or diary. I prefer “journal entry”, as when I started this, I said that in another life I would have been a photojournalist.
In April 2007 I finally bought my first digital camera, despite its rapid popularity in the past decade, and a month later, started using it. To date I have nearly 1900 shots with just 64 pictures making their way into these entries. Coincidentally my first photo of my first digital camera was taken the same day that I bought my first new laptop computer (my previous one was secondhand).
Similar to the camera, the computer stayed boxed up for a week more. Most people, especially men, would power up the laptop and camera moments after arriving home. But at work I spent nearly all my time using a computer, then came home completely averse to touching another piece of technology. Not by coincidence, when my job ended, my photojournal began. In fact my journal’s first photo was taken on my last day of work after I left the office and went to the Orange County Fair. I had already planned to go there later that day and just went sooner, not allowing bad news to ruin my fun.
Still looking for a job a year later, I have had a few moments of search frustration but far more moments of “carpe diem”, Latin for seize the day. Others are enwrapped in a wi-fi world of Bluetooths and Blackberrys. I have a dusty alarm clock. In the past 365 days, I cruised Newport Bay in a tri-level luxury yacht and an electric-powered Duffy boat; attended three weddings and one funeral; played beach volleyball and watched the professionals do it 100-times better; seen a meteor shower, a lunar eclipse and countless seaside sunsets; and volunteered in many community projects and charity events.
Breaking tradition, I have not one but three photos that bring the past year full circle. Like my very first two journal pictures, this latest trio is from the Orange County Fair. Breaking tradition again, I appear in one shot – at least my backside does – with a passerby, looking up at my picture, a past weekly photo, which was accepted in the fair’s annual photo contest but did not win. The other two snapshots show the fair’s theme “Say Cheese” illustrated over the carnival area entrance and also given form in a sand sculpture of a mouse in a camera, a fitting follow-up to last year’s “Cowabunga” theme and surfing cows sand masterpiece. Next year will be a “Super Fair” and the theme “Think. Big.” My response, “Can’t. Wait.”
Angelo
Photos taken on Sunday, July 20, 2008.
This edition is an appropriate starting point so I am adding a few people to my distribution list. Also in response to a comment, I am averse to call these “messages” a blog or diary. I prefer “journal entry”, as when I started this, I said that in another life I would have been a photojournalist.
In April 2007 I finally bought my first digital camera, despite its rapid popularity in the past decade, and a month later, started using it. To date I have nearly 1900 shots with just 64 pictures making their way into these entries. Coincidentally my first photo of my first digital camera was taken the same day that I bought my first new laptop computer (my previous one was secondhand).
Similar to the camera, the computer stayed boxed up for a week more. Most people, especially men, would power up the laptop and camera moments after arriving home. But at work I spent nearly all my time using a computer, then came home completely averse to touching another piece of technology. Not by coincidence, when my job ended, my photojournal began. In fact my journal’s first photo was taken on my last day of work after I left the office and went to the Orange County Fair. I had already planned to go there later that day and just went sooner, not allowing bad news to ruin my fun.
Still looking for a job a year later, I have had a few moments of search frustration but far more moments of “carpe diem”, Latin for seize the day. Others are enwrapped in a wi-fi world of Bluetooths and Blackberrys. I have a dusty alarm clock. In the past 365 days, I cruised Newport Bay in a tri-level luxury yacht and an electric-powered Duffy boat; attended three weddings and one funeral; played beach volleyball and watched the professionals do it 100-times better; seen a meteor shower, a lunar eclipse and countless seaside sunsets; and volunteered in many community projects and charity events.
Breaking tradition, I have not one but three photos that bring the past year full circle. Like my very first two journal pictures, this latest trio is from the Orange County Fair. Breaking tradition again, I appear in one shot – at least my backside does – with a passerby, looking up at my picture, a past weekly photo, which was accepted in the fair’s annual photo contest but did not win. The other two snapshots show the fair’s theme “Say Cheese” illustrated over the carnival area entrance and also given form in a sand sculpture of a mouse in a camera, a fitting follow-up to last year’s “Cowabunga” theme and surfing cows sand masterpiece. Next year will be a “Super Fair” and the theme “Think. Big.” My response, “Can’t. Wait.”
Angelo
1 Week, 1 Photo & 500 Words or Less (July 20, 2008)
Greetings from Irvine, California, USA!
Photo taken on Saturday, July 19, 2008.
I have mentioned the ChildSpree project twice in the past few months and now is the time for the full story. Mervyns, a department store with locations mostly in California, sponsors a community project called ChildSpree twice annually, the Back-to-School version in late July and the Holiday version in December. Each store provides $2500 in the form of $100 shopping sprees for 25 local children from low-income families to buy, at significantly discounted prices, clothes for the upcoming school year or presents for the gift-giving season.
Each Mervyns store partners with a local organization such as the South Coast Jaycees (SCJCs). Through that group, I have volunteered on this project for the past three years. The group has the primary responsibility to locate eligible children and provide chaperones for the shopping spree but the South Coast Jaycees take the project several steps further. We collected money and other donations to buy and fill backpacks with school supplies – pens, paper, scissors, etc. – for each child. We also asked restaurants to provide breakfast for the children, parents, chaperones, other volunteers and store staff.
Because of a mix-up by Mervyns’ Irvine store, two groups - the SCJCs and the Assistance League of Irvine (ALI) were both doing the project. Then the neighboring chapter of Newport Beach Jaycees (NBJCs) offered its help too. Since South Coast was short on manpower, the extra hands were welcomed and we split the workload. ALI gathered the children and most of the chaperones while I led the NBJCs and SCJCs in providing a few more chaperones, the backpacks with school supplies and the food.
On the day of the event I spent most of my time with the food and backpacks and did not take many pictures. Nonetheless I managed to shoot a few including this week’s photo. The shot is a mix of participants – the children, their parents, the South Coast Jaycees, the Newport Beach Jaycees, the Assistance League of Irvine and the Mervyns team. Overall it was an exhausting but rewarding experience. In fact since I was in charge of food, the leftovers came home with me. I’ll pig out… After I nap.
Angelo
PS: I am about two months behind on these emails and, when writing these, I try to limit myself to what I know as of the date in the title, in this case Sunday, July 20, 2008. But I recent got some news worth mentioning. In August Mervyns filed for bankruptcy protection. As a step to regaining financial stability, the company is closing some of its stores including the one in Irvine with which the South Coast Jaycees did ChildSpree. Additionally I have heard that the project itself will end as well.
Photo taken on Saturday, July 19, 2008.
I have mentioned the ChildSpree project twice in the past few months and now is the time for the full story. Mervyns, a department store with locations mostly in California, sponsors a community project called ChildSpree twice annually, the Back-to-School version in late July and the Holiday version in December. Each store provides $2500 in the form of $100 shopping sprees for 25 local children from low-income families to buy, at significantly discounted prices, clothes for the upcoming school year or presents for the gift-giving season.
Each Mervyns store partners with a local organization such as the South Coast Jaycees (SCJCs). Through that group, I have volunteered on this project for the past three years. The group has the primary responsibility to locate eligible children and provide chaperones for the shopping spree but the South Coast Jaycees take the project several steps further. We collected money and other donations to buy and fill backpacks with school supplies – pens, paper, scissors, etc. – for each child. We also asked restaurants to provide breakfast for the children, parents, chaperones, other volunteers and store staff.
Because of a mix-up by Mervyns’ Irvine store, two groups - the SCJCs and the Assistance League of Irvine (ALI) were both doing the project. Then the neighboring chapter of Newport Beach Jaycees (NBJCs) offered its help too. Since South Coast was short on manpower, the extra hands were welcomed and we split the workload. ALI gathered the children and most of the chaperones while I led the NBJCs and SCJCs in providing a few more chaperones, the backpacks with school supplies and the food.
On the day of the event I spent most of my time with the food and backpacks and did not take many pictures. Nonetheless I managed to shoot a few including this week’s photo. The shot is a mix of participants – the children, their parents, the South Coast Jaycees, the Newport Beach Jaycees, the Assistance League of Irvine and the Mervyns team. Overall it was an exhausting but rewarding experience. In fact since I was in charge of food, the leftovers came home with me. I’ll pig out… After I nap.
Angelo
PS: I am about two months behind on these emails and, when writing these, I try to limit myself to what I know as of the date in the title, in this case Sunday, July 20, 2008. But I recent got some news worth mentioning. In August Mervyns filed for bankruptcy protection. As a step to regaining financial stability, the company is closing some of its stores including the one in Irvine with which the South Coast Jaycees did ChildSpree. Additionally I have heard that the project itself will end as well.
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