A whole new world?

Yes, cheesy title. But after much encouragement from my sister and brother-in-law, as well as a few good friends who studied abroad, I've decided that I need to start traveling. Traveling! Instead of blowing my money on Vegas like I did the past 2 times I went on "vacation", it's time for me to visit other parts of the world. Money's always an issue but it seems like it's better to go in debt after traveling because of the experience and lessons I can learn from visiting another country. My friends can't tell me enough how much they grew from living abroad and immersing themselves in a different culture (and yes, "immersing" yourself in one thing or another sounds cliched, but how else can I describe it? Soak? Absorb? Occupy? Involve? Ah, decisions).

My goal is to plan a vacation, a REAL vacation, for 5 days in another country. I always had a mental list of the places I wanted to travel whenever I fantasized about going somewhere, but the question is where do I go first!?

Finally!

My long wait is over. Unemployment checks FINALLY arrived and I can breathe a little easier now. Phew.

Money's a crazy thing. Maybe I'm watching too much of 찬란한 유산 but these past few months taught me a dear lesson. Aaah, the stresses of reality. Bah humbug.

Me = Cheeseball

I usually don't watch TV but I can't stop watching Lifetime's (yes, I KNOW) "Drop Dead Diva." I cried during episodes 5 & 6. I'm taking a break before watching last Sunday's episode that I missed.

I've been on a sort of crying spree lately. Anything that is even remotely touching/happy/sad makes me teary-eyed.

Enlighten me

Thinking late at night/Confusion is within me/Finally, I see

No internet

Moving to a new place is a time of new beginnings. In my case: I moved, began a new part-time job and finished my summer semester all in the same week. Along with moving one's own crap, my sister and I had to start up the cable and internet again. Disaster! Even now, we don't have wireless access and the ethernet cable isn't any better! Now I know how much of my life, especially my morning routine, depends upon the internet! I suddenly felt isolated and and a little disconnected even though it's only been about a week. I missed getting my daily fixes whenever I wanted, like NY Times online, American/Kpop gossip, YouTube-ing 2PM, Twitter, and Facebook, just to name a few. Without the internet I continued to hang out/call/text my friends but I guess it's the other online communities out there that I missed as well.

Must...have...internet...

Ooooh boy

Yeah, yeah, it's a bad idea to blog about your work, BUT I will talk about it vaguely anyways 'cause I need to get it off my chest. I recently started my new part-time job in San Francisco and it's more involved than I imagined. In theory my job is pretty straight-forward and I KNOW that by next week I'll have my duties down pat. But it goes to show that translating what you were taught in the classroom to the workplace is not always as smooth as you want it to be. I'm so thankful for the opportunity but I'm even more grateful that it's part-time. If it wasn't, I'd be crying my little heart out and going home cranky. So for the time being, work is a little difficult but I will survive.

I hope for a successful work week.

Julie & Julia

This movie was so darn sweet. I especially adored Stanley Tucci in this. =)

I <3 One Day

How to Think Constructively About Healthcare

'Welcome to the great national healthcare debate. It's confusing, frustrating, and anything but stimulating — because both sides have hunkered down into their respective bunkers."

Wishes and dreams...a brief look back to go forward

I used to be a dreamer. It sounds so silly now, but even up to my sophomore year in college I had all these ideals of what my life was supposed to be like. College was supposed to be fun and I would finally have the chance to break out of my shell. It was much harder to make my college experience what I wanted it to be when I first stepped onto campus at the age of 18. I could blame a number of things: church, my parents, romantic comedies, Korean dramas, etc. In a word, I was naive. Although I was hurt or disappointed numerous times, sometimes even depressed, I find myself randomly wishing I had those same yearnings now.

Where did my passion go?

In the end, college was such a great time for me. I learned to love Santa Cruz, met some amazing people and began lifelong friendships. I'm still a little shy now, but not compared to how I was four-five years ago. I grew up and became a stronger person despite all my hardships. But being unemployed for a little over a month really put a damper on all that growth I accomplished. It was a minor set-back, but I felt like a failure even though it's silly to think of my situation that way. But it goes to show how hard I can be on myself at times. When I'm feeling down it's extremely hard to pick myself back up again right away because all of my insecurities come back to haunt me tenfold .

These days I'm trying to find a balance between my past self and present self. I am feeling a little better and less poopy because I accomplished a small goal, and that makes me one step closer to the career I want to pursue. In the next several years I hope to give back to my family who have supported me, (even when I was at my most selfish) especially my parents. I don't want them to worry about me so much anymore and I need to show them, as well as myself, that I am doing ok.

Ekin

This is my roommate's cute dog. His name is Ekin and he's a Pekingese.

As you can see, Ekin's a bit cuter than the average Pekingese.

He was recently groomed and now looks like a shaved puppy. I will miss him when I am gone. So cute!

Happy Birthday, Sister!

Still packing. There's something so refreshing about reorganizing my belongings and placing them neatly in boxes. Also...

Happy 22nd Birthday to my younger sister, Julie! Whoo!

Krugman: Health Care Realities

I haven't been able to read the news as thoroughly as I want to these days, but I'm trying to catch up before I move out. And then I'll have to play catch up AGAIN since I'm not a fan of watching the news because there are so many awesomely bad shows to see instead. After going through all the headliners, health care reform is one of the major current issues that I really like to sink my teeth into. Krugman described it perfectly:

"it’s not just that many Americans don’t understand what President Obama is proposing; many people don’t understand the way American health care works right now."

Many people who I've spoken with about health care reform fear a government take-over and want to protect their rights as they see it. In reality, the government's already involved. One example: Medicare.

These were some interesting points from the column. It seemed like Krugman was concerned that many American citizens did not know that:

• The government is already involved in health care, even in private insurance.
• Health care depends on insurance. For expensive procedures like transplants or other surgeries, insurance is crucial.
• Private markets for insurance without government aid are most likely to deny as many claims as possible. These insurers are also likely to spend most of the money for underwriting and other expenses not related to medical treatment or bills.
• Most Americans don't buy insurance directly--they get it through their employers.
• Unregulated markets don't work for health care. Period.

Health Care Realities

Just got the call...

And I am no longer unemployed! Well, for now it's part-time temp work, but that's actually in my favor for the upcoming semester. It's funny how the smallest things can make the biggest difference, like sending short thank-you notes. Off to another new start! I will be moving back to Fremont hopefully by the beginning of next week, not back home like I had originally planned. New job orientation starts this Thursday and there's been hints that it could turn into full-time. Real work won't start until the following week. I'm excited!

A new hope

Will I be unemployed for any longer? Things are beginning to turn around!

I'm getting ready for an interview tomorrow and hopefully I'll be able to scratch off the first thing on my list below. If it turns out well, I will get at least my pinky toe into the door, if not my whole foot!