High school and middle school really are the best time to have a xanga with all the drama and hormones going crazy. I read one of my posts where I gave this spanish poem and box of chocolates to this one girl for Valentine’s Day. I remember I couldn’t stop smiling the whole day even though I probably looked so dumb. Dayum.

Ghetto Ranger

Dang, I just had a flashback of Halloween in first grade.

In my school, we had a parade where all of us got to showcase our costumes. Parents would take pictures etc. Of course the Power Rangers were huge back then so all the girls and boys were the pink and red ranger.

I was the Ghetto Ranger.

Every kid got their Power Ranger suit from the nice stores and their costumes were so much better than mine.

I got my red ranger costume from Chinatown.

It wasn’t even the red power ranger costume. It was bootleg lol.

My costume was ripping because it was made of the cheapest material. My mom held it together with duct tape lol.

Yes, it was a bit embarassing, but at least I was a bit different then the other kids

My Nose

Hey. Is it just me or is my nose messed up?

I remember playing football sometime in the winter and my nose was crushed and it was bleeding and everything. I did not know if it was broken for sure or not, but I was afraid to go to the health center to get it checked out. I did not want surgery (if it was broken) and it would have been a hassle during school.

However, right now, I have feel that it’s healed improperly. It makes me wish I would have checked it out back then.

So, for those of you that have seen me lately last summer on, how does my nose look to you?

Fun w/Graphs #1: You’re Fine the Way You Are

DISCLAIMER: THIS IS NOT TO OFFEND ANYONE WHO SPENDS 60 MINUTES ETC. DOING MAKE-UP. I AM SURE YOU STILL LOOK PRETTY. JUST NOT AS PRETTY AS YOU’D BE NATURALLY. SO DON’T WORRY ABOUT MAKE-UP! AN AVERAGE LADY SPENDS 3276 HOURS OF HER LIFE PAINTING HER FACE. GOD GAVE YOU TIME, USE IT WISELY. GOD ALSO GAVE YOU YOUR NATURAL FACE. DON’T HIDE IT! I DON’T KNOW WHAT I’M SAYING BY THE WAY. BUT MORE GRAPHS TO COME.

Sometimes I get the feeling…

… that people want to see me fail simply because of my career choice. Most of my cousins to date are either Pharmacists or Engineers. I’m not going to front, but they live steady, nice, financially secure lives. So, seeing this, my parents naturally want me to pursue a career in Engineering or Pharmacy.

However, as I take a different, unknown career path (in their perspective) in Finance, they seem angry when speaking about my future. I get the feeling they want to see me struggle, just so they can say “I told you so!”

I know they want the best for me, and I could understand that. But I feel like they want me to live an easy, stable life with a ceiling in terms of advancement (in career and salary). Personally, I’d rather live a life that didn’t have a limit to what I could achieve. I know it’s risky, but I think having my potential bottled up is a lot worse.

I know I sound crazy, but I don’t want a steady, stress-free career. I want a career where I continue to set goals and aim high. I never want to look back and think what could’ve been, because I’m ready to achieve things no one expects me to.

Places I’m Considering Living In

I know it’s probably too soon to think about where I’ll be living after I graduate college, but I just can’t wait until I get out of Howell. I can’t wait to move into the city, so here are my prospective cities to live in, from least to most, after I graduate college. Feel free to opine, disagree/agree (photos are from Wikipedia)!

10. Toronto, ON

Pros: Asian population (27.5%), English speaking, Clean, Crisp Air, Unique blend of nature and urban life, Large (pop. 2,503,801)
Cons: It’s out of the United States, Questionable Climate in the Winter, Nothing else that I know of around it since I don’t have that much knowledge on Canada, Far from Family

9. Seattle, WA

Pros: Clean, Blend of nature and urban life, Asian population, High Tech, Most Intelligent City
Cons: Far from family, Weather, Rain

8. Boston, MA

Pros: Asian population (8%), Every place is within walking distance (known as the walking city), Aesthetically pleasing from what I’ve heard, Cleaner than most cities
Cons: Small compared to other cities (pop. 590,763), Patriots fans, Known as the most racist city in America

7. Chicago, IL

Pros: Large city (pop. 2,833,321), Lots of things to do, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Skyline, Reasonable Cost of Living
Cons: No other major city around it, nothing else outside of Chicago, Far from family

6. San Diego, CA

Pros: Second most attractive residents, Asian Population, Clean beaches, Shopping malls, Beautiful Weather, Scenic views, Sunsets
Cons: Cost of Living, Lack of Finance jobs, Far away from family

5. Los Angeles, CA

Pros: Asian Population, Large City, Beautiful Weather
Cons: Smog, many tourists, Far away from family

4. San Francisco, CA

Pros: Asian Population, Clean, A lot of history, Beautiful Weather
Cons: High cost of living, Earthquakes

3. Manhattan, NYC, NY

Pros: Largest city in the USA, Unlimited amount of things to do, Chinatown, Diversity, Finance jobs, In NY/PA/NJ Metropolitan Area
Cons: Most expensive place to live, Lots of tourists, Too busy/fast paced for me, Seems like it’s a nice place to visit but not a nice place to live

2. Flushing, NYC, NY
Pros: Asian population, Not as busy as  Manhattan , Still in NYC, In NY/PA/NJ Metropolitan area
Cons: Mets Fans, High Cost of Living

1. Philadelphia, PA
Pros: All my cousins, grandma, uncles and aunts live here, Close to home, Comfortable with some Neighborhoods, Culture and Art, Know my way around for the most part, Low cost of living, Favorite Sports teams, Holy Ground aka “The Linc,” In the NY/PA/NJ Metropolitan area, Simple public transportation subway/bus system, Murals, City is growing at its fastest rate in terms of buildings and (re)construction projects in recent years, Not the cleanest but aesthetic in a unique way
Cons: Might get boring, “Wooder,” “Lunch Meats,” “Hoagies,” I’ve been here too often, Least Attractive People Among Major Cities, Least Active, Least Stylish, Least Friendly (ouch)

I was in Philly this weekend…

… and I visited an old house my aunts, uncles, grandmother, cousins and mom used to live in when they first immigrated here in the seventies. The story was that when my aunt got here, houses were so inexpensive that she saved her checks and bought the house within a few months. I’m not saying that my family was dirt poor when we first got here, but we sure weren’t the most affluent family on the block. Anyway, after visiting, I realized how quickly we progressed socially. All of my cousins have either graduated college, are attending college today, on their way to college, or would have been in college if they had only lived long enough. However, what amazes me most is how fast we went from an underprivileged immigrant family to an opulent group of kids within one generation.

My aunt and uncle were working blue collar jobs to support a family of seven when they first came to America (not to mention that this was during the eighties, where the unemployment rate doubled to ten percent during the recession). Twenty years later, all of their five children are college graduates earning six figure salaries and supporting families of their own. Talk about living the American Dream: having their children become financially independent  through the means of education. It’s astonishing how my cousins were influenced to motivate themselves to become the hard working people they are today (and how they influenced me to get where I am right now). What’s even  more humbling is that I don’t think my aunt or uncle asked for one penny after their daughters and sons earned their salaries, continuing their occupations as a sushi-chef and hotel cook (even though I’m positive their children wouldn’t hesitate to give a couple thousand if they asked for it).

After leaving his home and family in Vietnam (due to the war), my father arrived in America through the sponsorship of a Catholic church. Starting off with three hundred dollars, he had to adjust to a different culture as he went through West Philadelphia High School, learning a language that was completely foreign to him. On top of that, he worked night shifts at a pizzeria just to get by financially. It was tough for him, but with his perserverance, he was able to attend and graduate from Temple University, where he met my mother.

As for my story, I don’t think I ever had to or ever will work as hard as my parents, uncles, aunts and cousins did. It makes me regret not living up to my parent’s expectations of becoming a full scholarship Ivy-League student. However, not a day goes by where I don’t appreciate how much they’ve sacrificed to make sure I had the things they didn’t.