j * m e

[Because I felt like it]

Ever since my break, I wanted to make a layered chocolate cake. I wanted to do lots of things. Just couldn't find the time to do them.

I finally was able to make my cake. I got a recipe online. Jo Jo helped me and I was all excited about how it'd turn out. I made 2 rounds and Bno helped me make chocolate frosting with cream and chocolate chips. Mmm.

I couldn't wait to put it ALLLLL over.

And Bno had to make it look perfect.

Hawwwww cake.

Yeah. It's still sitting in the fridge. The frosting kinda went hard so I think I gotta put it in the microwave or toaster or something before I eat it. (That is... when I find the time to eat it)

[Because we felt like it]

Originally I had planned to play tennis with Brandon since it IS Friday and it IS my 'off' day. I don't get off days anymore. I have to squeeze in my fun days in between work and school and home life.

My plan was to play tennis at noon then hang out at the Satay Garden until closing to work on the menus and stuff. I have been working on menus and brochures and ads for this lady. She's not paying much since I haven't had any experience doing this. But I mean it's a decent amount and I get food of course.

Dustin and Brandon are so cute together

Well anyway those plans were scratched. We ended up heading down to Tom Lee on Granville and then Granville island.

After Tom Lee, we grabbed Mega bite pizza. Mmm only the bestest pizza in the worldz. Wesley met us there for a bit.

Did tons of walking across the Granville St Bridge. Yeah. We marched across the bridge. Pretty much right above Granville Island.

Diane was complaining about the heat the entire way. She had her purse around her neck and got stuck

Whenever we go places we just never have time to stop and take some nice pictures. So today I said.. Brandon.. we should take a picture with that 100 sculpture. Lol

Then I got him to take one of me and Diane.

We got gelato and Dustin decided he wanted bubble tea.

That was basically it. We walked around a couple kiddie stores and went into this store that sells hammocks. O em jee. I am gonna get a hammock. Imma put it under my bed with hooks. Mmm then I can lie there... during my.. non existent free time. And think about work and school.

We got back to Surrey and had bubble tea at Pearls. Mmm. Diane wouldn't stop buggin Dustin here. So random.

[Public Service Announcements]

Mwahahahah! Makes me excited. I love the part where the Hamster does that crazy I don't know what it is shriek.....then whisters... I'll go get my ball

Anyways. Here's what we're doing in class now. We have 3 videos to do all due mid September. =S Gonna be tons of work. Coz I've given myself way more than just 3 videos. I've picked up a couple along the way and they've all become my own projects on the side now.

For our PSA however, I wanted to do something for either Green Peace or WWF. Kinda leaning towards WWF. Save the animals!

If I was in animation, I'd have so many ideas I'd want to do. They'd all probably take weeks to do. Trying to find see if any of my ideas are already out there. I don't think I've seen many videos since I barely watch tv and I'm not on youtube like lots of people are. I pitched a commercial idea to Brandon the other day and he said, sorry to disappoint you but it's been done before. I went on youtube and searched for it. And there it was.. my idea! Cept I pictured it differently of course. I mean.. maybe it's coz I subconsciously recognize things I see around me so maybe it's at the back of my head and pop up at times like these. Nothing can possibly be created. Everything's moulded from something else.

[Je suis Canadien]

So we took our Oath of Citizenship on Tuesday. It was supposed to be a VERY important day. A day where we're SUPPOSED to be excited and happy. My dad and I got up late and freaked out. We had 20 minutes to get ready and drive down there. It usually takes 15 minutes to drive to Surrey Central. We got there in 11 I believe. Joey said she'd been up since 7 lol so my dad was like: How come you didn't wake us up!!! Well.. we weren't late... or well too late. We were 2nd last.

The judge came out and talked about what it means to be Canadian and what our responsibilities as Canadians are. We took the pledge in both French and English and sang O'Canada. Took pictures with the judge like we were at Disney Land or something and then headed out. Whoopieee. Lol.

Here's Brandon and I at White Spot for our Canadian dinner even though he's Canadian. We shoulda taken a group picture. My dad has all the pictures of us with the judge but hasn't posted them yet. So.. until then!

[My Present Life Schedule]

Monday: School
Tuesday: School
Wednesday: Work --- Bowling night
Thursday: Work
Friday: Rest day ---work and or school work --- Tennis day
Saturday: School ---Sleep in day
Sunday: Rest day ---work and or school work ---Work

It never ends!!!

Well today was tennis day. The air was really cool so, good weather for tennis. And there was NO ONE there!

Pepper had run out of food and I figure since my dad and sister will be back tomorrow, I might as well bring him home. Diane's mom didn't have the car so I decided I'd just drive over and pick him and his stuff up. I know I know. Not right. Unsafe. I was contemplating actually doing it. I was safe. Drove there, drove back, fed Pepper. All was good. I actually felt a lot more confident too since no one was in the car with me. I think next time I have lessons, I'm just gonna try to ignore the fact that anyone is in the car with me. It just puts so much pressure on me. Can't wait to get my N.

[The Dark Knight]

Sylvia and Jensen had tickets for the opening show and asked us to come along. Brandon, Troy, Doug and I hung out at Pearls before and then over to the theatre to line up. They originally had 1 show open. 400 tickets, all sold out. So they opened another show. Another 400 tickets. We got our tickets right when the second slot opened so we got fairly good seats.

I've never been to an opening show before. There's TONS of people! And especially since it's Batman (and especially since Heath Ledger died from this movie. But we don't know that's true. After seeing his acting in the movie though, I would definitely say that the movie drove him nutz. Coz he did an awesome job as the joker and it was pretty crazy and messed up)

It was a really good movie. Very long. I need some light chick flick to watch. All the movies I've seen lately have been so heavy. Makes me think so much. Puts a weight on my chest!!

[Friends?]

I have a group of friends that I hang out with every week (nowadays). I don't talk to them on a regular basis like I use to (busy with other things). Ever since we had bowling days, the group has sort of come together again.

We had a little chat-a-chat in Timmy's the other night. While everyone talked, I sat and thought about how we're such a tight group of friends, yet, we aren't really close at all. We don't talk to each other about our feelings (well I talk to Diane about that). We talk about each other. It's weird. I'm slowly beginning to see how friendships and relationships work. And even by saying that, it's weird. I won't blog about what we talked about that night coz it would probably never end.

[The Music of the Night]

I always get worried whenever I'm out late maybe or when Brandon's out late and alone and he has no ride home. Fear has been in me ever since I was Jamie I suppose. Fear is in everyone and I guess in a way it's a form of protection. It's instinct to have fear so we protect ourselves that way. Brandon always tells me that it's pretty silly for people to fear the night. It's simply the same as day but with the lack of light. That gives.. bad people .. better hiding places??

Brandon loves walking out in the night time. He told me he finds it peaceful. And well I'm usually in bed like most people are. Everyone scurries back home at night and hides in their houses. I always worry about him when he decides he wants to walk home late.

For some reason, that night I was out and on my way home from school, I had no fear. I walked at my own pace. I didn't rush like I usually do. I just.. enjoyed the fresh air. I walked. I could have walked for hours. I got home safe. Happy.. lol. Fresh air flowing through my lungs.

In the day time people are out and about; some people are even afraid of day. I know parts of me is. I don't really like that I am. It's so hard to -not fear- when there are so many bad things happening out there. You don't really know who you can trust anymore. But living with the fear will definitely not help me or anyone else on the train.

And in the morning, traces of evidence that people are around at night are left.

[Panda Eyes]

In other words, goggle tan, in other words, sun glasses tan, in other words, very goofy looking

It's way to bright out not to wear my shades and I've gotten used to wearing them so it's automatic that I have them on the second I step out of the door.

As a result of playing tennis for hours in the sun, I get this silly tan line that should only happen when I'm on vacation.

I guess it wasn't as noticeable last week when I had class. (Hmm it's a bit hard to tell in the picture too. Oh but it's there) Or maybe it was just dark in the room as I had an evening class. When I was in school today though everyone noticed. Lol The second I step by the cafe, Kim goes EH Kiddo! Nice tan line going on there. Someone's been out in the sun. And then Sam comes by and says, I like your tan! With her innocent little smile.

I've been trying to get rid of it. But it's too difficult not to wear my shades out there. I also have such an uneven tan line on my shoulders. I think it's time to pull out the bikini and do some tanning on the deck. I haven't really been wearing my shorty shorts and so I have a strange... I don't know. My thighs just seem pastier than my legs. It's gradual though.

[The Results]

I know my dad would probably say I'm nutz for buying this camera. After all it IS a little plastic camera with plastic lenses. At least I got 4 lenses. But hey hey hey! I love it! It's different and I really like how my pictures turned up. Again, it's nothing digital photography can't do. With a little photoshopping. Again, it's just the fact that it's a film camera and the excitement of not knowing what I snapped. I could obviously take the same pictures and send it out to print. But that's just not as cool. There's just something about holding up a little pink plastic box and snapping a picture at waist height. You haven't a clue what you just took but it really does catch things in the moment. I found that except for the few pictures that were a little under exposed, and one or two pictures that I didn't like of myself, most turned out awesome and I love the way they look. I'm really not sure what it is. It's just different from digital photography.

So here are a few samples of what I took in the last couple of weeks. Again, I know, I didn't have the patience to scan these properly and probably should have. I will! When I find the time to! But anyway, here they are!

Here's Bno on the phone while we were playing tennis. Doug's beside him

Here's a few of us hanging out and me while we were at the tennis courts. I had to play around with the distance. I actually managed to take quite a few that had my whole face in it. One or two I actually chopped my entire head out of the picture. =P Oops

Another one of me at the courts. I think I was cooling off in the forest.

Here's Troy fanning me with his stinky shirt. First picture where you could actually see the action throughout the shots. On the right, that's Cody. She was tied up coz she was being bad at the park.

Here's Bno playing soccer. That was the day he was trying to do soccer training with me and I got really frustrated coz I just wanted to play and he was really trying to coach me. Lol I don't know why I was so grumpy. He was being so nice to me!

Here's when we were done? I think? Or maybe it was when he was getting ready. He bought new shiny shin pads and loves them lots. I was in a better mood then and I actually managed to bounce the ball on my foot a few times. I think my record's 5

I really meant to take a picture of the rainbow (which is behind the big lady). Bno laughed and asked why I took a picture of a random lady. And I said. There's a rainbow behind her!!! Compare it to the digital one that was posted in a few entries earlier. That one's probably better.

[When Opportunity comes knocking]

Or rather, when you knock on opportunity's door, it comes knocking back?

I knocked on Satay Garden's door and it was really difficult getting a knock back. However, I knocked again, and it landed me a job, in fact, 2 jobs! For Short Form Media, I will have to produce 3 videos; a Corporate Video, a Commercial and PSA.

I decided that it was time for me to sit down on the couch and watch a movie so I put on Chaos Theory and finally was in the mind set to watch it all the way through. Around 9, my phone rang and it was the lady from Satay Garden. I was beginning to think that she wasn't interested as she was supposed to call me and meet up in the evening tomorrow. But she hadn't confirmed anything so I was kind of iffy about going on with the project. I had really hoped that Satay Garden would be interested and they were. My hopes were kind of downed for a bit when I couldn't seem to meet with the owner as she's very busy with the restaurant. And I understand, it's tough. But I managed to set up a meeting.

After talking with her, I'm starting to get more excited about this project. And I know it's a starting job and I've never really done work like this before. Yes I've done other videos other than Short Film like Grads and Birthdays. But never an AD of some sort. I'm kind of glad that this lady knew her stuff so it was quite easy to get points across and further discuss what we can make out of this video. Even if it doesn't get picked after I pitch it in class tomorrow, I will probably still be doing up this video.

Along with this little project I will be doing, I've also scored a job working at the restaurant which is AWESOME. I know it's not much, but work hours at the cafe are starting to stabilize and so I can now work part time some where else. I tried Subway but they haven't called me back so that means no job. Can't wait.

The other project I will hopefully be doing is another Corporate video for a friend from high school. She has her own online magazine (Style Republic) and is the chief editor of it. I'm quite excited for this project as well. Now I'm starting to feel all this need for creative control to be all mine. I'm finding a lot of beginning Art Directors and even some of the experienced ones tend to be very controlling and at times it's not what the client wants. There have been lots of cases in school where things don't go as planned and groups have fallen apart and left with crappy projects that don't make it through.

Well... it will definitely be a crazy 3 months. Definitely looking forward to September break! Hah. I just finished my break. Probably should head out to the beach and catch as many rays as I can before it's all gone in September and I finish my work.

[Dinner party at Bno's]

It was Jaedon's (Brandon's cousin) birthday and so I was invited over for a little BBQ rib dinner. I hung out with Yoo Hwa, Bno's little korean cousin and after dinner we headed over to Fleetwood for tennis.

[Finally a Movie Day]

At last, a day watching a new movie. 2 new movies! I saw Hellboy II and Hancock with Bno, Troy and Douglas. 2 pretty heavy movies. Ugh. I thought Hancock was going to be light and silly and funny. Well it was funny but then there was this deep dark part that just made me all... meh. I wanted to see Kung Fu Panda! Gonna have to settle for either online quality or just get the DVD. But I hear it's very good!

[Lunch with Sasha + Adam]

Met Bno at SFU this morning. We were gonna go for lunch with Sasha and Adam since we haven't seen either of them in AGES.

Adam was running a bit late (zzz) so we were a bit delayed. Sasha picked us up and we went downtown to the new Cactus Club. It's pretty nice. I'm not a fan of these fansy pansy restaurants. I also don't have the clothes to be sitting out there on the patio. Most of the people there were dressed in dresses and shirts. All office people.

It was an UBER windy day today. So weird!!! I was like GAH Brandon!! Why's it so windy!?!!? Brandon goes: "Well you see.... when a cold front.. hits a warm front." And Jmerz is like.. I know I know!!!! You've told me before! He knows all these things. It's so hard to impress him with the knowledge of things I have. But I guess he can do the impressing.

It was so windy that street signs were blown sideways!!! Same with traffic lights! Lunch was yum. I got a Cajun Chicken Burger =}. Mmm..

When I got home (no not right away), I had Roti Prata and curry. This entire vacation seems to be all about food. Eat, Sleep, Work, Play. That's life. =P

[I Speak English, I Learn it From a Book]

So yes, my TV show is inspired by Fawlty Towers. No it won't be exactly the same. It probably won't be english jokes. I don't know what "Canadian" jokes are though.

[Rattle my Brains]

Guess I didn't REALLY have to rattle my brains. I started painting one night coz I had to let stuff out. And here's what I came up with.

Yea I'm on the floor of the family room. I need to turn my room into an art room(Don't worry Mommy it's clean!! I didn't spill!!)

[Dreaming]

It's 10:20 am. I'm still rolling around in bed. My alarm went off this morning as it does every morning at 6 am. Half my brain listens to either music or the DJ blabbering away. My subconscious mind pays attention. The other one sleeps. Maybe that's why I get strange thoughts throughout the day and I think I remember something but I'm never sure. Could be bad?

I think about when we were in Phuket.. when we were in Singapore... Sentosa.. Penang.. AND I WISH I WAS ON VACATION!

I started my second class yesterday, Screenwriting 100. We've had a scriptwriting class prior to this. Had to write a script for a short film. This time, as a group we have to put together a Pilot for a tv series, either sitcom or serial. Didn't sound very interesting to be at first. We had to sit for about half an hour and just come up with an idea on the spot. In my head, I kept trying to get away from typical sitcom ideas. Family. Sci Fi. Friends in a large city. Office people. For some reason I kept thinking Fawlty Towers. I know that there isn't a tv show on the main channels that involves a hotel of some sort. There is The Suite Life of Zac and Cody but that's a kids show. I guess what I was going for was something in between.

Other than my idea having a "good shelf" life, I can't remember anything else important that my teacher had to say about it. I think it would be funny. But my ideas have yet to churn.

Anyways. Today I don't have class until 6pm. WHICH SUCKS! Since James and I have the same classes though, I get a ride with him. We're gonna go down town Robson to pick up a pair of pants he got from LuLu Lemon. Then probably head to class.

I'll probably take a shower this morning and run down to Nesters to get some food and drop of a resume at Subway. Yeaaa they only want evenings and weekends so maybe that will do me some good. My hours at the cafe are finally stabilizing as well. By August I'll probably be back to 14-16 hours a week. Hopefully it won't get in the way with school.

There are so many things I want to do. Again I find myself in a spot where I need to balance things off. But I want to be able to fit it all in my schedule. I have my base which is school and I love doing that. If I could be filming already now, I would. Also, I want to be working a lot more so I can actually start saving up. And sports wise, I wish I was more active. Julian wants to play mix with me competitively this year. Season starts in September. I figure if I get 2 jobs, juggling badminton training in there will be really tough. I can only allow badminton on Sundays and probably won't be able to stick to that schedule consistently if I have work as well. Well we'll see I guess.

[Cell Phone pictures]

I can't seem to connect to my mom's computer through blue tooth so I had to pull out the good ol' USB cable. I found many pictures in my cell that have been sitting in there since Winter. Decided to put them up

Here's Bno up on Cypress. I forget which run we were on but him and Aman were trying to do flips and such. Trying to hurt themselves in other words.

And here's me, loving me in goggles

Here's (left) James with his goofy little smile and (right) Kirsten in her UBER BRIGHT PINK PANTS! We were down at the beach soaking up some rays.

And here are the kiddies (and their parents) on the train that goes around Metrotown mall.

Choreographing sword fight. I didn't get pictures of this on the better camera coz I ran out of battery. But this one isn't too bad.

Recording ADR for our informercial.

[Drumming 101 with Fred]

Fred's this uber tall korean guy who graduated with us last year. I only started being friends with him near graduation when I was finishing up my grad video (he appears in parts of my grad video and also at the end with his "hey I'm back" line). Everytime I see him on the bus, he will scream my name and give me a hug. He'll do the same for Brandon. Lol He's a funny one.

Well he's selling his drum set and Bno's thinking of getting them for his brothers. Drumming's probably one of the tougher things to learn. Or it's just me. No hand.. left hand.. right hand... left foot.. right foot... coordination? Or lack there of.. since all parts sort of have to play on their own but at the same time in sync.

Fred gave Brandon a super duper quick lesson on drumming which was pretty interesting. He knows his stuff. It'd be so great if I knew how to drum.. and play the guitar.. and all them crazy instruments. But yea.. I'll just stick to photography and videography.. and drawing.

[Satay Garden]

Yeah this picture's kinda weird. From the inside, the words should be flipped. That's coz I took the picture from inside and flipped it on photoshop. Just coz I was too lazy to go to the other side of the restaurant to take the picture.

Bno, Diane and I decided to check out the new Malaysian restaurant in the village; Satay Garden. It opened yesterday. It looks really pretty on the outside. And it's uber bright inside. Lol Diane said she didn't like their chairs. They were really green.

I just tried their curry puff. Pretty good. =) Bno ordered their "Pork Rib Soup" which is actually "Bah-Kut-Teh". He also got a plate of Satay, rice and the whole deal. Rice, egg, peanuts, cucumber, peanut sauce. The lady decided she'd give us 2 extra chicken satays since there were 3 of us.

Ordering was very very awkward. You can tell they're first time restaurant owners. And I assume they're malaysian coz it's definitely different from being in a Vietnamese place or chinese place. They have a very small menu. It's got 4-5 items on it along with some drinks and desserts. But what I realized is they change their menu everyday. Which is pretty cool. So that way there are basically specials every day to start with and maybe when business picks up they'll have a full menu.

So yea, while you guys are in Ipoh eating your real malaysian food, I'm having my share of the "Canadianized" version of it.

[What kind of bow can't you tie?]

A Rainbow~!

I went for dinner with Uncle SH, Aunty Wendy and family tonight. We went for Pho at Noodle Island. =)

Da-Yong asked me a riddle: "What kind of bow can't you tie!?"

While I was waiting for them to pick me up outside Wal-Mart, there was a Biiiiiig one up in the sky. =)

[More sports]

As we all know by now, Brandon loves soccer. And he's been trying to get me to play it for a long time. The other day he decided I should get a soccer ball. We were at Sport Chek and found one that was pretty. Then we came across this one. Nike with old school stitching and in a unique colour. I love it! It's a choco-ball with white and gold stripes. Whether I'll be a crazy soccer player like him or even play that much, we'll see!! Tomorrow he wants to get me cleats. =S! Once I have them, I'm gonna have to play!!!

[Colour Theory]

In colour theory now. We're just playing around with Photoshop. It's pretty cool. Here's a couple of things I've done in the past hour. On the left: Original On the right: My colour correction. It's really basic. Just playing around with colour replacement and making the image look good or stylized.

[New hobby]

Brandon bought me a new racket. Douglas works at Sport Chek and so he got me a nice racket at a good price. =}. I like it.

It's pink!!! Like my cammy. Yea I know it's not my usual colour. But it's nice.

When I hit the ball with it, I was like DUDE! This is magical. The ball goes back SO nicely.

I'm finally starting Quarter #4 tomorrow. Colour theory all day. Jmerz excited.

[The "Norm"]

It seems that everyone's lives are basically the same. We eat, we work, we play, we sleep. I blog about what I do for fun, what I study and what I eat.

Keep telling myself it's time to make something new. I've been cooking so much that I don't really have an appetite to eat the food I make. I made Honey Dew Sago because Bno really likes it. His favourite fruit is honey dew too! I made Curry Puffs again because Bno really loves that too. Was afraid that the crust was too dry coz I added tons of flour and was all crumbly when I tried to wrap them. But they turned out really good. It melts in your mouth! Hawwwwwgh~~~

Today I made a BLT wrap coz we've been making them at the cafe and it's sooooo good. And much healthier than curry puffs.

Brandon and I made poutine for lunch. =) He chopped up the potatoes and fried them. I cubed the cheese and made the gravy. So bad. But sooooo good. At least the fries were made by us!!!

Well until next time. I think next up it's gonna be Chili and Bread bowls. =)

[Before Carbon Tax]

I don't have a picture of after the Carbon Tax began which was.. couple days ago. But it's up to 152.0 now.

[If you can't be friendly, stay home]

Gasp! I haven't been posting! ......Gasp!!

So.. what's been happening over here in Vancouver. Well.. Canada day kinda just came and went. Didn't really do anything spectacular. I worked the day before which was pretty fun I suppose. Been chilling with the Bno. We made curry puffs and honey dew sago. Surprise surprise. =) I thought my crust was gonna be bad coz for some reason it wouldn't fold properly and was crumbly. But when they came out of the oven.. o em jee, just melts in my mouth. So good.

We were originally gonna go down to Granville to check out this photo store, Beau Photo coz I wanted to get my Supersampler. But it was uber hot and we missed 2 buses because they were full. We decided it wasn't worth it since it was already 2.

This is me. Lost

"If you can't be friendly, stay home"

So today I decided to get my camera. I'm getting pretty good at this transit and directions thing. Wonder if I'll be any good driving. Google earth!!!! So yea. I bussed and trained. And bussed.. then found out I missed my stop and was on my way to UBC so I had to get off and go back the other way. There are SO many things out there. Ever since we came to Vancouver, we decided that it's a very pretty country. We love the weather and basically it's quiet. I guess it can be pretty quiet around where we live. Especially in the Winter. But there's actually SO much going on. There are so many shop out there. So many things to see. So many interesting people on the train. One lady kept talking about her experience in the army.. or military.. or some sort of rehabilitation centre. I'm not even sure. It sounded like she was all into the drugs and smoking and drinking when she was younger then she found help and became a police officer of some sort. She talked about how we're all in this together. All that stuff. I basically had a motivational talk on the ride from Surrey to Broadway.

Foundz it!

So yea. I got lost. But I found the place eventually! I'm glad I checked out their website to see what it actually looks like from outside. Or else I probably would never have found it. It's on West 6 Avenue. I found West 10, West 5 and took a bus and found West 7. Then I realized.. it was in between! I don't know how I missed Granville. And I don't know how I missed West 6. But yea, I found it eventually. It's such a strange little shop. It kinda looks like an office on the inside. There are people in their little.. areas typing away on their puters. I found the Lomo section and GAHH, excitedness!!!!! So many pretty cameras around!! Jmerz happy. They're a lot smaller than I thought they were. It's perfect though coz that's what I wanted. I just thought they were bigger. They look big in pictures I guess. Hehehe. So I got my camera which made me happy.

New baby. That's where my carbon tax money went. Jk jk!! I'll do something to help the environment! I AM growing plants now!!

Our old/new bowling crew

Also today, (Wednesday) bowling again! Wednesday has become our bowling day. It's all you can bowl, as many people as you want for 20$, shoe rentals included, for 3 hours. Which is pretty good. We manage to get quite a few games in there. My high score for today was 120. Brandon's was 177.

Swoosh of Jensen