25 Things

This is adapted from Facebook and inspired by Fay

Rules: you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you.

1. I like to think that I could survive on sugar confections alone - particularly cake, pie, pudding, real Pepsi (the kind you get in Europe or Mexico), and newly acquired passion -- red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting from Sprinkles.

2. I hate acting my age.

3. I could watch kids' movies all day, every day. "The Brave Little Toaster" comes to mind... also the original "Parent Trap," any and all Pixar movies ever made, "My Robot;" seriously, the list can go on for days.

4. I must have listened to Matchbox 20's "Yourself or Somebody Like You" at least 1000 times in high school.

5. I think women are far sexier than men.

6. I hate running - hate it - but when I have an occasional "good day" I get such an endorphin rage that I tell myself I will run again tomorrow, which inevitably is never as satisfying.

7. I too (Fay) still have to recite the alphabet to remember the order when I’m looking things up in a reference book. I also count on my fingers.

8. I take candy - especially the peach gummy Os - out of the open plastic buckets in the grocery store. Some people call it stealing; I call it a tasty snack.

9. I despise Pomeranians.

10. Britney will forever be my favorite pop star.

11. I have eaten ostrich meat (it was not good).

12. I read every Anne Rice book I can get my hands on, even though everything after Witching Hour has been a huge disappointment.

13. One of my pet peeves is bad spelling.

14. I eat boiled pasta with nothing on it but ketchup, and it is delicious.

15. I would rather suffer from a cold or the flu than take cough syrup or NyQuil. Just the thought of it is making me want to throw up a little.

16. I wish I did not have to think about whether I want kids or not until at least my 40s.

17. I watch cooking shows while running on the treadmill.

18. I used to think I was going to marry Zach Braff.

19. I think the sexiest instrument to listen to is the cello, and the prettiest language is Farsi.

20. I am getting an IPhone this weekend; and I'm pretty sure my next computer will be a Mac.

21. One day, I will write a book, and it will be awesome. The subject and/or genre is yet to be decided upon.

22. The funniest person I know is my bf's six-year old niece.

23. My favorite male character from literature is Francisco D'Anconia from Atlas Shrugged.

24. I want to travel to all fifty states. So far I have been to CA, AZ, NV, HI, NE, and most of the New England states, though I would love to go to all of them again.

25. Today is my four-month anniversary of working at Stanford.

Beedle the Bard

The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
The Tales of Beedle the Bard is pretty witty! A short collection of fairy tales, translated by Hermione Granger, is supplemented with essays by Albus Dumbledore himself after each tale. The tales are short and very kid-friendly, and the last one ties in directly with the Harry Potter plot. I gave the book only three stars because there were so few tales! I wanted a whole volume! The first tale, about a hopping magical cauldron, is really cute and funny, and I can see myself telling it to my own kids! Actually all of them are worthy to be re-told, and there is definitely a Rowling-ness to them -- a hairy heart, a wart-covered cauldron, a witch turning into a bunny... Oh, how I miss the HP books!


View all my reviews.

What's in a week? (A hell-of-a dream!)

Right before my alarm woke me up this morning, I was in the midst of a wonderful dream. I was one person in a sea of many; I was engulfed in excitement, joy, pride, loud and unabashed celebration. It was Inauguration Day, and Barack Obama was about to become the 44th President of the United States. I looked down, and saw I was wearing my favorite jeans. Around me, people were dressed in jeans, sweatshirts, t-shirts; on their feet were flip-flops, Converse sneakers, running shoes. Their heads were bare and their faces glowed with anticipation. We were all one massive sea of people, and we were on the Stanford campus. The President-elect, soon to be the President, was expected any second. There was no security to keep anyone back, block any bullets, prevent any miscreant act of violence, because this wasn't the kind of world where that was feasible. I could hardly contain myself; I kept running through my head what I wanted to say to President Obama when he came to speak to me. Should I tell him "Congratulations"? How redundant! Should I say "This is the dawning of a new era"? Absolutely not. How about BEEP BEEP BEEP!!! BEEP BEEP BEEP!!!

FREAKIN CRAP! I can't BELIEVE THIS SHIT! I snooze. I force my mind to go back to the dream. It is gone. GONE! I nearly start crying in my pillow. Sleep, damn it, sleep, it will come back. It doesn't. All I hear is our neighbors Indian music blaring from his alarm clock as he, too, struggles with waking.

I get up. I stand in the doorway, watching M put on his running shoes. How can he go to the gym at a time like this?, I ask myself. Doesn't he know I just got ripped out of a world in which I could speak to the freakin PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES?!?! He doesn't. "You look cute," he says. (I look like crap-- hair hasn't been washed in days, it decides this morning to stand up, sideways, defying gravity). "I'm going to the gym!" He is too chipper. Too early, too chipper, too - oh who cares?! I JUST WANT TO GO BACK TO MY DREAM!

Interjection -- I have been having awful dreams for the last few nights; seriously, one involved some sort of farm animal attack in which I was the sad loser). This only made this morning's dream that much more precious.

M leaves; I stumble into the bathroom. I stare into the mirror.

"HOLY CRAP IT'S BEEN A WEEK! A WHOLE WEEK!" The realization hits me like heavy blinds being suddenly drawn, letting in the sunshine.

I suddenly feel proud of myself for subconsciously commemorating Barack Obama's first week in office with my own personal dream. (I also realize I tend to be egotistical in the morning, thinking my dream somehow makes Obama's presidency real, rather than his presidency allowing for my dream to happen).

I dressed up for work this morning. And by dressed up, I mean I wore my nice black pants that I hardly ever wear, and an actual blazer over my little red sweater. I even wore the black heels, and did my hair. I was celebrating a little inside, because contrary to who it looked like I was sleeping next to, I secretly know that I was only moments away from spending some personal time with our President. And when one meets the President, one aught to look one's best!

Ray of Light Fund

On behalf of my very good friend, Ray Cruz, I am posting below the email launching the Ray of Light Fund, a nonprofit organization aiming to combine awareness of one's personal health and well-being with awareness that many children struggle with illness everyday, and that places like Childrens Hospital Los Angeles makes a real difference in many sick kids' lives. Please read his message below, and check out the newly launched Ray of Light Fund website.


To all of my family, friends, co-workers and people who I have yet to meet,

It is with my great pleasure that I present to you the Ray of Light Fund. Four months in the making, this started as a conceptual notion on a treadmill and proceeded to become my obsession. In August of 2008 I decided that I wanted to start my own nonprofit fund to benefit an organization that helped saved my life when I was a child, the Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. To make a long story short, I have come to a point in my life where I can give back to this great organization that treats seriously ill children and helps many live long healthy lives, like myself. I hope that you take the time to learn a little bit about the Ray of Light Fund and how you can help me raise funds for the Childrens Hospital Los Angeles.

The Ray of Light Fund is a fitness-oriented nonprofit donating 100% of its proceeds to Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. The Ray of Light Fund recognizes Childrens Hospital Los Angeles for the outstanding care it provides to ill children, and aims to raise awareness that we all have the power to help improve a child's life. Being an engineer stuck in a cubicle 40 hours a week I also want to relate wanting to stay in shape to fundraising. Thus, the Ray of Light Fund was created and I am very excited to discuss my goals with you.

Starting in January 2009, the Ray of Light Fund will host bi-monthly training sessions across the Greater Los Angeles area at popular trails, hikes, parks, beaches, and gyms. These will be open to anyone who would like to make changes in their life or just a get together with a group of people who want to stay fit. Young, old, tall, short, slow, fast anyone can get involved.

I feel that the best way to stay fit is to have a goal in mind, something to train for.. After participating in the 2008 World Famous Mud Run I committed myself to training for the 2009 race. A very short but fun marathon, the Camp Pendleton Mud Run will serve as a platform for the Ray of Light Fund to promote fitness and raise awareness of the Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. Registration and participation in the World Famous Camp Pendleton Mud Run does not have any ties with the Ray of Light Fund nor the Childrens Hospital, but I encourage you all to participate in this fun marathon. Signing up for the race is done through the Camp Pendleton Races website, with proceeds from these fees going toward another positive cause benefiting the families of the United States armed forces. Registration begins January 1st, 2009 and does sell out within the first couple weeks, so I urge those who would like to join me to do so quickly! Please note that the Ray of Light Fund will register for the Saturday June 13th 2009 run.

In addition to training events, the Ray of Light Fund will organize fundraisers to help reach and hopefully exceed our goal of $25,000 by June of 2009. Our main fundraising avenue will be through the website http://www.RayofLightFund.org/ where donors can link directly to the Childrens Hospital donation page. I would like to stress that all moneys raised go directly to Childrens Hospital. Donating on behalf of the Ray of Light Fund on the Childrens Hospital website will be the primary source of fundraising. Various events will also be hosted in the coming months to help raise money for our cause.

I invite you to get involved in this cause that I am very passionate about in any way you can. One thing I have learned is that Los Angeles is a great place to network and there are many people out there who are willing to help if presented with a good cause. So I challenge you to get your company involved, tell all of your friends and family, come to our open training sessions and fundraising events, and be a part of the journey. I personally decided to take things a step further and currently am a volunteer at the Childrens Hospital Los Angeles playing with the children at the Child Life Playrooms.

I appreciate you taking the time to read this email. Please look through the PowerPoint attachment and check the website weekly for event information and details of the fund. To learn more about the Camp Pendleton Mud Run and the story of how the Childrens Hospital saved my life, see the About Us tab on the Ray of Light Fund website http://www.RayofLightFund.org/. Help me make this small dream of mine become something larger than I could imagine. Forward this email or my web site to anyone who you feel would like to help.

Sincerely,

Raymond Anthony Cruz

Ray of Light Fund Founder

W: www.RayofLightFund.org
E: Info@RayofLightFund.org
C: 818.324.9474

For those interested in receiving Ray of Light Fund publications please look out for the ROLF Newsletter from Info@RayofLightfund.org.

'Tis the Season

Winter is finally upon us. I know this because today it was cold. Not Wisconsin-freeze-your-eye-balls cold, but definitely cold for an Orange County girl. The high today was 56 degrees in Palo Alto - definitely fuzzy scarf weather.

Another reason I know it is really winter is because Christmas is now around the corner, and I can get into the holiday spirit. The Christmas songs on the radio and in stores began a few weeks ago, which really bugs me because by the time Christmas rolls around, I'm sick of Rudolf and his red nose. But now, with December in full swing, it is time to deck the halls and be merry!

Yesterday, M and I bought "our" first Christmas tree! It was very exciting. We went to Target and scoped out the fake trees they had there. I was highly impressed with Target's selection! We picked a little four foot tall one, kind of fuzzy, not the typical wintergreen kind of fake tree. I originally had wanted a real tree, but with us not being home the two weeks before and after Christmas, I did not want a real tree to have died without getting the chance to bring joy on Christmas morning. The tree was actually really cute, though it was pretty scraggly when it came out of the box. We had to fluff it up a bit, and by the end, it was nice and bushy. I found a really cute Penguin ornament at Target, and some new ball ornaments, but most of the stuff in the tree came from my Christmas box that I've had for years. We also strung up blue lights in our little tree, because blue lights are my favorite. If I do say so myself, our little tree is not too shabby!

While I decked out our tree, M put up lights outside on our balcony, and inside around the living room's big window/door. We even decorated our little bamboo tree - no reason exotic trees can't get dressed up and join the party! And, our little Wilbur got his very own Christmas bell around his fat little neck. He is too cute not to share, so he got top billing in this entry. Some people have kids, others have pets; we have our Wilbur the Pig, and he is a great apartment pig. He is also a very politically involved lil' pig, and if you squint, you can see his Obama pin on his right ear.

It was really nice decorating our apartment and getting into the holiday spirit. We played Kenny Chesney's Christmas album, "All I Want for Chirstmas is a Real Good Tan" (how country of us!) while we put decorations up, and hummed along to visions of a white Christmas - white sand, that is! Domestic little things like Christmas decorating really make one feel like half a couple. It's still strange sometimes to think, Wow, I live with this person; this tree belongs to both of us. Strange, but warm and fuzzy, and isn't warm and fuzzy what the holidays are all about?