ode to lovely

year of truth, thoughts thus far

Back during new years I made it my resolution to make 2010 a year of honesty and realness. It's been renamed my Year of Truth, which on a side note, is also a good title for the book I keep dreaming about writing.

I think I've done pretty well with my personal goal of TRUTH and I feel quite happy with my progress. Obviously, it's very hard to be honest 100% of the time, but I've tried my best. Sometimes, I want to be brutally honest, but I know it will just hurt someone, so these are the times when I have to hold back even though I don't want to. Why this is always a catch to being honest?

wedding recap

I went to the first of my two summer weddings this past weekend. It was a beautiful beach wedding in the Outer Banks. It was a mini high school reunion of sorts, which kinda made me sad that I'll be missing my 10 year reunion later this summer. The couple is very adventurous and they, like me, left the DC area to live out their crazy dreams abroad two years ago. This is something that I not only admire, but can relate to, so it was truly awesome to have been able to reconnect with the lovely couple on their wedding day. My mom bought me my dress and I wish I had a full length picture I could show. It's BCBG, fitted on the top, bubble on the bottom, and I wore it with this gorgeous necklace from J.Crew.
I had an awesome time with my best friend Elizabeth, teaching her Asian poses that I picked up in Taiwan. Here, we are practicing the Nyan Nyan pose.

And lastly, a picture with the beautiful bride, who wore the most gorgeous bird cage in her hair. Unfortunately, is is not pictured.

 

I can't believe that August is a few days away. So much for writing my thesis in July. Maybe August will be more promising. More later.

my saturday

• I went to the library today for the first time since I was maybe 12. I forgot the magic feeling when you are checking books out for free. I am definitely going back there soon.
• I curled my hair with a 2 inch curling iron, like I used to back in high school. Speaking of high school, I found my senior year portraits the other day. My sister saw them and said I look exactly the same. Thank god.
• I'm headed to the beach in a few hours for a friend's wedding. Excited to get away, but worried about traffic to the Outer Banks.
• I'm off to get my long-awaited, and long-overdue pedicure. Happy Saturday!

i look like my mom

This is one of pictures that the photographer took of me back in Taiwan.  Its amazing to see pictures of my mom when she was young and see how much I look like her. People always tell me I do, and they say that I make gestures just like she does. My middle name is her first name, so I guess it was inevitable that I would somehow resemble my mom.

julytwentyoneninethirtypm

• Sending good vibes to Taipei right now for a friend's thesis defense round 2
• I have been going to bed super early since I got home. Last night, it was as early as 10pm. slightly lame? yes. incredibly refreshing? double yes!
• I ran/walked my favorite trail yesterday and woke up so sore...LOVE that.
• I have a plan to repaint my room. I'm over the green walls.
• My nails are hot red and I couldn't be happier.
• I have a slight obsession with Mongolian beef from PFchangs.
• I am already bored of writing my thesis and its been ONE day. ugh.
• Linds..thank you for the best lunch date ever. :)

dear megan:

your baby is WAY cute! thanks for having me over for some long overdue girl talks, wine, and hummus. thanks for always listening and making me laugh and reminding me of my crazy (yet awesome) past. you are so lucky to have J and little A, and your life in burke is wonderfully adorable and perfectly imperfect, just like i hope mine life will turn out one day. i'm so incredibly happy for you. oh and thanks for reading my blog. ;) you rock!

love you!

nat

i wish...

Back in Taiwan, I took a road trip with Toby to the south of Taiwan before leaving to come home. We visited a Confucius Temple in TaiNan where we had to write our educational goals/wishes and post them on the bulletin board, but not before stamping our papers up all pretty (i always look for any opportunity to make paper into art - i'm a true paper dork).

I wished to finish my thesis and to perfect my Chinese. And this summer, those will be my goals, although I fear that Chinese might have to take a backseat until I return to Taipei.

Today I got to thinking about wishes. And lately, my biggest wishes are security and happiness. Of course, firstly provided by and for myself. And then followed, hopefully, by someone to share these things with. Luckily, I have at least found happiness. Now I just have to hurry up, finish school, and find security again.

sunday to sunday, then comes monday

I got home almost exactly one week ago. In that week, I have:

• slept more than I have in the last 2 months combined
• caught up, mostly on the phone, with old friends
• read half of the book, Little Bee
• said hello, and goodbye, to my aunt and uncle from Spain
• bought the board game Blokus. I highly recommend it.
• went to PF Changs with an old friend and loved every minute of it
• visited Target 4 times...oh how I had missed Target!
• bought 5 new shades of nail polish. Its an obsession I tell you.
• edited my photo-index of my pictures dating back to 2002.
• remembered the freedom I feel when I drive my red civic.
• at times, wished I was back Taipei, but only few moments of time.

The upcoming week for me marks a new start. I had my one week off, now its time to get back to work. I need to get my ass back in the gym, even though I honestly don't want to. I need to start my thesis, even though I don't want to do that either. And I need to start looking for work, which I REALLY don't want to do. Those are going to be my three responsibilities from now until I got back to Taiwan.

Just three. One, two, three. Last night of freedom. Then THREE. sigh.

being home = homecooked meals

Its so nice to have home cooked meals again. Last night we had prime rib, potatoes, salad, and this delicious beans and tomato dish. Sooo good! Its great spending time with my family. And great having time to relax, and read, and sleep whenever I feel tired. But I'm also a little worried. What the hell am I supposed to do for 9 weeks? My friends all have their own lives and everyone is busy. I'm not bored yet, but I worry boredom is just around the corner. A girl can read, workout, play on her Mac, and relax only so much. And I didn't bring crafty supplies home, so I really don't have any extra curricular activities to do. I'm sure I'll look back on this post and laugh after the 9 weeks are over, but right now, I'm slightly worried. Just slightly. Happy weekend!

since arriving in the 703 area code

I have been busy, but not really at all. Lazy, yet somehow productive.

Recovering from jet lag, which has taken me longer this time than other times.

I'm enjoying my family. Taking them all in. And trying my hardest to not fall asleep mid-sentence when talking with them.

I miss one special friend back home in Taipei. More than I thought. And more than I'd like to admit to myself.

I cannot wait to get a manicure/pedicure. I will bring my new book, Little Bee, and enjoy every second of it.

I forgot how much I love the weather here. And how my hair loves this weather too. My curls are cute and when I straighten my hair, it actually stays straight.

I have realized there's no place like home, but there's also nothing better than crazy adventures abroad. I am so thankful for all the experiences I've had and I cannot wait to see where life takes me next.

I am so ready to enjoy the summer. To visit the pool. To go the skate park with my cousin. To go to Kings Dominion with my sister. To shop with my mom. To go to happy hours with friends. To BBQ with my dad. To re-discover DC. To laugh every minute I can. Here's to the summer of 2010!

whooo!

Blow the vuvuzelas..Spain has won the WC!! And....after 32 long hours, and many delays, I am finally back in the Washington DC area. I will spend the entire day on the couch recovering from jet lag. More later.

the 3rd

It was Manny's 27th birthday on the 3rd of July so I threw him a surprise dinner with the help of my friend Clare. He was so confused at first when he saw a table of our friends and then he finally realized it was a surprise dinner for him. He couldn't stop smiling the whole dinner, which made me so happy too. Nothing makes me happier than seeing my friends happy. Afterward, we headed to Luxy for drinks and dancing.

This picture turned out so blury, but I love it anyways.

It's been a jam packed week, but more later. Cheers!!

new profile picture

If you're my facebook friend, you know that this is my new profile picture. Its from the 60s party I attended, and also taken by the photographer that took my pictures last week. I sent it to my mom and she wrote me this:

"Estas PRECIOSA......HIJA MIA TE HA VENIDO BIEN ESTAR SOLA!!!!!! JEJEJE"

It's in Spanish, but it basically means that being single has been really good for me! I couldn't agree more. I look back on old pictures and realize I had stopped taking care of my looks. Yes, I worked out. But I became quite a bum about my clothes. Long sleeve boring plain colored t-shirts. Mixed with flip flops. And ponytails. If it was comfortable, I wore it. I never wore jewelry. I hardly wore high heels anymore. And my hair was always tied up. Frankly, I just looked bored.

But lately, I've been having so much fun being a girl. I love high heels again. And jewelery. And dresses. And skirts. And anything girly. I love form-flattering clothes. Cute shoes. And I almost always now wear makeup and do my hair. I love shopping again, even though I can't afford it, but its nice to at least look and feel inspired by fashion again. So, yes mom, I agree. Being single has been really good for me. And I'm happy about it. Rock it while you still got it, right?

 

the second day of the seventh month

I have a new obsession with fake eyelashes. I think they rock! They really make your eyes look bigger and it makes flirting with boys much easier. Unfortunately, as you may be able to see from the picture, I have an eye infection. So, I can't wear contacts, nor fake eyelashes for a few days. But that doesn't mean I can't go out in search of new fake eyelashes to buy.

Other thoughts:

• Today is quite possibly the hottest day of summer. I hate it.
• Its so hot that I plan to stay indoors all day working on my secret project.
• I am an upper lip sweater. It's quite gross, really.
• I cannot freaking wait to go home and get a pedicure.
• I'm finally getting used to seeing my nearly black hair in the mirror.
• I need to buy film for my fuji instax today. 3 packs of 10.
• It's my second to last weekend here in Taipei.
• Going to make dinner tomorrow for a very special someone.
• I don't remember what life was like before my scooter.
• My pictures from my photo-shoot are ready! Wooo!
• And...the photographer wants to shoot me again on Monday. Double Woo!

july, hello

A brand new month. Sigh. I know I've said this a zillion times, but I love the first of every month. Fresh start...here we go! On the agenda for today:

• coldstone with jonathan and karolina
• trying a new mini book project out in photoshop
• packing up things i want to ship home
• cleaning out the storage underneath my bed
• dinner with my usual thursday night suspect
• having a beer to welcome the second half of 2010