Correlation?

Today, I realized that that old game Don't Wake Daddy was probably based around Corporate America getting coffee from the breakroom...

Dream Log: 09.20.09

I had a dream last night that was pretty awesome. I just want to write it down now so I don't forget it:

It seems like I somehow got kidnapped for some reason - I don't know the details, but I guess I got taken to a place kind of like an island. We were being kept in this place kind of as prisoners, but it wasn't like a traditional prison. We were able to explore like free people, but there was definitely a feeling of imprisonment and limitation. Me and Liz were both taken there and we woke up feeling really bewildered and couldn't figure out really where we were. It kind of reminded me of LOST in that sense. There were hovercars in our area and so we decided that we would try to escape, but do it in a sneaky way... so we had to find out more information on where we were and how to get out, but without seeming like we were doing that. We took the hovercars and told the guards we were just going out exploring the area. There were taxis and we were definitely scared, but we needed to get out. We ended up going through this town and going to this Disneyland-like theme park to scope things out. The theme park was really cool and there was a really awesome looking Lady and the Tramp scene that they rebuilt. There was a stage that looked cool too, with life-like character replica statues that lit up. I can't remember which characters they were, but they were really cool and I made Liz come back to look at them. I think we got too distracted at the theme park to actually try to escape, but we ran out of time and had to go back. I finally remembered that we needed to find out more information so we asked a cab driver "which state are we in?" to which he replied "that's a really good question. I shall tell you!" and then I woke up... so I will never find out where we were... SIGH. :(

awesome dream though.. :)

New Camera!

I got a new camera off of Craigslist: A Nikon D40 DSLR. I shall now learn to take good pictures and will post my favorites here sometimes. :)

For now, let me just give you this picture of an otter that I took this weekend (but not with my new Nikon...)

wow this is so awesome

Source: http://www.ruminations.com/site/

Random Thoughts of the Day:

1. I wish Google Maps had an “Avoid Ghetto” routing option.
2. More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can’t wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that’s not only better, but also more directly involves me.
3. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you’re wrong.
4. I don’t understand the purpose of the line, “I don’t need to drink to have fun.” Great, no one does. But why start a fire with flint and sticks when they’ve invented the lighter?
5. Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you’re going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you’re crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.
6. That’s enough, Nickelback.
7. I totally take back all those times I didn’t want to nap when I was younger.
8. The letters T and G are very close to each other on a keyboard. This recently became all too apparent to me and consequently I will never be ending a work email with the phrase “Regards” again.
9. Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn’t work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There was no internet or message boards or FAQ’s. We just figured it out. Today’s kids are soft.

More Random Thoughts after the jump!

10. There is a great need for sarcasm font.
11. Sometimes, I’ll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the hell was going on when I first saw it.
12. I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I’ll end up wasting 90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone’s laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I’m still the only one who really, really gets it.
13. How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?
14. I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.
15. I think part of a best friend’s job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.
16. The only time I look forward to a red light is when I’m trying to finish a text.
17. A recent study has shown that playing beer pong contributes to the spread of mono and the flu. Yeah, if you suck at it.
18. Was learning cursive really necessary?
19. Lol has gone from meaning, “laugh out loud” to “I have nothing else to say”.
20. I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.
21. Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.
22. Whenever someone says “I’m not book smart, but I’m street smart”, all I hear is “I’m not real smart, but I’m imaginary smart”.
23. How many times is it appropriate to say “What?” before you just nod and smile because you still didn’t hear what they said?
24. Every time I have to spell a word over the phone using ‘as in’ examples, I will undoubtedly draw a blank and sound like a complete idiot. Today I had to spell my boss’s last name to an attorney and said “Yes that’s G as in…(10 second lapse)..ummm…Goonies”
25. What would happen if I hired two private investigators to follow each other?
26. While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it…thanks Mario Kart.
27. MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.
28. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.
29. I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.
30. Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.
31. I can’t remember the last time I wasn’t at least kind of tired.
32. Bad decisions make good stories.
33. Whenever I’m Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don’t mind if I do!
34. If Carmen San Diego and Waldo ever got together, their offspring would probably just be completely invisible.
35. Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I’m from, this shouldn’t be a problem….
36. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you’ve made up your mind that you just aren’t doing anything productive for the rest of the day.
37. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don’t want to have to restart my collection.
38. There’s no worse feeling than that millisecond you’re sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.
39. I’m always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.
40. “Do not machine wash or tumble dry” means I will never wash this ever.
41. I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There’s so much pressure. ‘I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on? I bet everyone is wishing we weren’t watching this. It’s only a matter of time before they all get up and leave the room. Will we still be friends after this?’
42. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Aghh!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What’d you do after I didn’t answer? Drop the phone and run away?
43. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.
44. When I meet a new girl, I’m terrified of mentioning something she hasn’t already told me but that I have learned from some light internet stalking.
45. I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it’s on shuffle, then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.
46. Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles…
47. As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.
48. Sometimes I’ll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.
49. It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.
50. I keep some people’s phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.
51. Even if I knew your social security number, I wouldn’t know what do to with it.
52. Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey – but I’d bet my ass everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time every time…
53. My 4-year old son asked me in the car the other day “Dad what would happen if you ran over a ninja?” How the hell do I respond to that?
54. It really pisses me off when I want to read a story on CNN.com and the link takes me to a video instead of text.
55. I wonder if cops ever get pissed off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.
56. I think the freezer deserves a light as well.
57. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.
58. The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, saw they had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someone at the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, and then estimate d that there must be at least four people eating to require such a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself.

Dream Log

My dad came up to visit and I guess my mom had found an old dream log that I had made way back when. I read some of it, and it's pretty interesting even though now I have little to no recollection of those dreams. Now, I don't write them down in a journal anymore, but maybe I should start again... Anyway, here's one in the interim that I want to remember. It was kind of trippy, but I liked it.

I had a dream last night that I was at some kind of entertainment center, kind of like a carnival or fair or something of the sort. Within this center, there were many different areas, very similar to a school, with private classrooms that people were just hanging out in or taking naps in. There was a courtyard, or actually multiple courtyards where people were talking and sitting/standing around in. It seemed crowded and each section of this center could only be accessed at certain times, which made it a good idea to stay in one section for a long time, for fear of not being able to get back there anytime soon. Of course, some areas were harder to get into than others, as the gates would only open at a certain time and then they would close at another (I think one gate was set to close at sunset). At one point, I sat and talked to these two guys. One was an asian man, who was a little older and one was a small man. I don't remember what we talked about, but I do remember being with friends/family members and them also talking to these 2 guys and being slightly entertained, as those 2 were a little loopy. I then remember taking a nap with someone in my family in a private room. I woke up and saw a bunch of pictures and drawings and construction paper with writing on them. I saw one with my name next to it and said 'hey look! it's me!' I kept looking around and realized that there were actually quite a few with my name on them or next to them. I saw a picture of a woman I didn't know who looked horrible, black eye makeup smeared and frazzled hair, with the words "RAPE 1992" (or was it 1993?) and I realized I knew what happened. I realized that the room was haunted but didn't really seem to be scared of that. Somehow I think the asian guy knew what happened to, but at that point I woke up...
~~~

In other news, I feel like things are changing quickly but slowly at the same time. Byron and Doris are officially done with their college taiko careers, which kind of disconnects me more from the group. I don't feel like I can go to practices anymore without feeling a little awkward, especially after they choose newbies for the year. Yes, there are still others I am very close with still in the group, but I feel like it's time to finally move on. I've also been doing a lot of traveling, especially on the weekends, enjoying the summer weather. Life's been a lot of movement, travel, new things, old but dear things, and lots of fun things.

Work, on the other hand, is the same day after day, with very few changes. This has kind of made me very comfortable in this environment and I've had to really dig deep to get that motivation to come back to me, to find changes everyday and to do something different than in the past. This stagnant feeling isn't necessarily bad though, I've just become accustomed to it in a way. I'm ok with how things are now. We'll see what happens in the future...

The Need for Smart Phones

When I went to Japan, there was a plethera of awesome smartphones - in fact, the entirety of Japan has phones all with similar functionalities and it was even more amazing because although the phones were made by different manufacturers or had a few different functions or designs, they were all meant to work together and interact with each other. For example, they all had infrared capabilities, where you could transfer entire profiles with numbers and all by clicking a button and putting the devices near each other. This was so much different than the US, where all the manufacturers try to outdo eachother, adding functionalities only for the individual, but not so much with the entirety of society.

When I came back to the US, about 2 years ago now, I was sad about the fact that our phones don't do nearly as much as theirs can, with the exception of Blackberry, but that even wasn't very widely used -- it was more for business professionals who need to be connected at all times. Today, these Crackberries are more widely used, especially for professionals, but also just by normal people, who just need that connection to the internet 24/7. And, sadly, the US has been overtaken by the iPhone. Though the iPhone does have some very cool functionalities, it still has so much growing to do. It makes me sad that the entire US society is so immersed in this sea of iPhone love when they really don't need that kind of technology right now. I don't believe that it actually does all that much for you. Maybe I'm just not understanding how useful it is because I don't own one, but the most I've seen people do with it is the ability to look up certain random facts while talking at a bar, or use their makeshift GPS system while riding in the car. But I ask myself, do I need something like that? I have my own GPS system that works better than it... I sometimes like the fact that I don't know random facts - it gives me an excuse to talk to someone else about it later or figure out the answer myself which actually helps me remember better. What else is it used for? Apps.. that you have to pay extra for...? I would not like that. If I don't need it 24/7 I wouldn't pay any extra for it, not to mention you have to pay more to be connected to the internet all the time. I can easily come home and use the computer for what I need. You get to watch YouTube all the time?? Who effing cares... I use YouTube as a time filler, and I don't need it all the time. When I'm out of the house, it's usually for a reason. Like seeing real people, face-to-face. And interacting with them. Plus, there's no way in hell I would trade my wonderful Verizon service for AT&T to get things I don't need.

I've been reading some articles recently about technology that they are trying to create on iPhones to unlock cars or use barcodes directly from them to scan things with. Something like that that I could use on BART by placing the phone directly on the entry gate to automatically pay for my ticket, now THAT would be useful. And I don't want to have to pay extra for it (minus actually paying for the ticket...). So far, I'm not impressed with the iPhone, and it seems like a lot of people are buying into the hype just because they want to follow the crowd. The people I have the most respect for have not yet fallen for the craze either, so at least I know I'm not missing out on something that's truly useful, or I feel like the people with sense in the world would all have them. My entire family still uses Verizon. I don't need to be another Apple fangirl. And until they really blow me away, I will reject every app, every fangirl or boy that they throw my way.

Common Thread

It's kind of amazing how some things can always bring people together, whether or not people were complete strangers before or whether they were already close friends. Common interests, hobbies, eating preferences, quirks, friends, values, experiences, etc are all things that could bring people together or push them apart. But some things pull people together and keep them there while some let them go after a short time. And that's just the way things are supposed to be I suppose. There are some people who just will always be in your life, and there are some who fade in and out, and some who fade away all together.

But what happens when one person wants to fade away while the other wants to keep that friendship intact. What happens when a friend disappears completely and suddenly - are you supposed to let that person go? Maybe they were just one of those people that you are supposed to let fade away. Or are you supposed to track them down - let them know that they are not one of those people and that there is something in the world that isn't letting you fall out of each other's lives so easily. How are you supposed to know?

Hunt

I'm so frustrated with life in general at this point - I can't work well with people I don't get along with. It's very hard to put on a happy face all the time when you're not feeling that way at all. I'm falling behind slowly and although I keep up with everyone for the most part, I can feel the work draining my motivation slowly as well. I'm not good with things that are unfair or people that bend the system for their own benefit and throw others under the bus. I need to have something else to do outside of work, like taiko was before... hmmm I must begin the hunt.