Old Minus Four

Today was my 26th birthday. 26 ---- so old!!! Sigh…

Normally, I hate my birthday. I’m happy to celebrate other people’s birthdays, but mine always just suck. Something bad always seems to happen (ie my parents getting the day wrong or forgetting all together, my significant other spending the day with his ex-girlfriend instead of me, etc…). So, I never make a big deal out of it, and when possible, I even prefer to go on vacation to just avoid the whole day all together.

But, I woke up today and decided to change my whole outlook and think positively that maybe today would be really great. And it worked: today turned out to be a really nice day. A lot of my friends and family wished me happy birthday, my coworkers took me out to lunch, and my friends had a nice dinner for me. I had a really easy and fun day at work for a change, and I got a really cool birthday present: two of my friends arranged for me to get a private lesson on how to make sushi at my favorite Japanese restaurant. How cool is that?! I’m really excited!

And after feeling so sure that my parents had once again forgotten my birthday, they actually came through and sent me a happy birthday email a few minutes ago!

So, all in all, today was actually a pretty great birthday. Thanks everyone!! *o*

And even though people have been making fun of how old I am now all day, I’m actually pretty excited to turn 26. After all, 25 was a pretty shitty year for me, so being 26 is bound to be better, right?! *o*

New iPod!

So after a long and tiring week, I decided to reward myself with a little present: a new iPod!!!!

I was having a hard time deciding between the Classic, Nano, and iTouch, but ultimately I decided to go with the new Classic. And I LOVE it!!!!!

Today

I've been feeling really down yesterday and today: I have such high expectations for myself, but I feel like I've been falling short of those in a number of ways lately. If I were a stronger and less fearful person, today would have been the day that I flew out to SF for my final interview and probably would have come home with a job offer. Instead, today was the day that I took off from work and laid around in my pajamas, watched tv, shopped online, and cleaned my bathroom. Sigh...

But at least one good thing happened today: Hung was declared the winner of Top Chef. (did I call it or what?!) I'm not really sure why I was rooting for him so much, but I'm really glad that he won. He got such a bad rap from people - nearly every blog I read and person I talked to thought that he was a jerk and an a** hole. But no matter what people think, he's a hell of a chef and totally deserves to win.

Big decision

Several weeks ago, I applied for a really great position at a university on the west coast. This position seemed to be my dream job and was in the perfect location, so I was very excited. It's no secret that I'm not super happy or satisfied here on a variety of levels, so when I received a call 2 weeks ago offering me a telephone interview, I was even more excited.

The interview went well, but the position is very competitive, so I wasn't expecting much. Therefore, I was even more surprised when I received another phone call last Wednesday informing me that I was the finalist for the position and that they would like me to fly there this week for one last short interview before offering me the job. I was extatic to say the least!

However, something didn't feel right. In fact, I spent the past several days feeling stressed and afraid of everything that taking this job would entail: leaving my current position, apartment, and friends, using all my savings to move clear across the country, finding a new (much smaller and more expensive) apartment, making all new friends and leaving my current ones behind...again, buying all new furniture, starting a new job where I'd be the "new guy," adapting to a different quality of life, etc... It's not that I can't do all these things - I've done them all before...several times. But the more I thought about all of these things, the more my dream job seemed less and less perfect. In fact, it made me realize that it comes with some pretty major drawbacks. Most importantly though, my gut was telling me that taking it would be the wrong choice. It's the same feeling that I had when I got on the plane to leave Japan last year, and I've regretted that decision for the past 10 months. So, if there's one thing I've learned this year, it's to trust my instincts.

So, this afternoon, I cancelled my plane ticket for Wednesday and notified the university that I am removing myself from consideration for the position.

This is a pretty huge decision for me, but I'm proud that I was able to think it through in a really rational way. It's also a pretty shocking decision - I never would have expected that this would happen. I'm still in shock that I was even offered an interview! Hopefully this isn't something that I'll end up regretting...

But, there is one really good thing that is coming out of this. Because the job required me to have a driver's license, I have finally started to learn how to drive! I got my learner's permit (yep...at almost 26 years old!) and have been taking driving lessons for the past two weeks. My drivers test is scheduled for Oct. 26, so I have my work cut out for me. But, I'm confident I'll be able to pass. So, although I may not be moving and ending up with my dream job, I am conquering my fear of driving. And I really do believe that getting my license and a car will change my life and open more doors for me professionally, socially, and romantically than I could ever dream of. So, wish me luck! And stay off the road... haha

Really great day!

Yesterday was a really great day!

First, I got some really great news. Unfortunately, I can't write about it on here....yet.

Then, something that I was really worried about at work went really well. Talking about work is boring though, so I'll leave that at that.

And finally, Hung made it through to the second part of the finale on Top Chef!

I seriously am on a TV high this week - all the new episodes of Heroes, SVU, Top Chef, Private Practice, Grey's Anatomy, the Office, Desperate Housewives, Brothers and Sisters... It's all just too much for me! I'm on new TV overload!

Moon Cake Madness

Apparently in China, there is a famous festival at this time of year about the moon (today actually). And during this time, everyone eats these special cakes called moon cakes.

During a program that I facilitated at work last Friday, a bunch of my students from China told me about this festival, and since they know that I can cook pretty well, challenged me to make the cakes for next Friday's session.

It seemed easy enough, so I said "sure!"

Well, it turns out that these cakes are incredibly complicated to make, and most people just buy them from the store because they are so complicated! Regardless, I never back down from a challenge! So, I went online and found some recipes, and headed down to the Asian grocery store to buy some special ingredients.

The things I do for my students! Not only did I brave the dangerous streets of Worcester, but I also actually walked into a store and uttered the words: "Excuse me ma'am. Could you please tell me where the sweet red bean paste and salty duck eggs preserved in mud are?" (FYI, the woman's words told me where they were, but her eyes said "silly white boy...the Gap is over there!) haha

Anyway, I tried a test batch tonight to see how they come out before I serve them to people on Friday.

Preserved duck egg (for the center of the moon cake)

Preserved duck egg yolk - looks kind of like an eye ball

Actual moon cake I bought from the store.

And this is the moon cake that I cooked. As you can see, mine came out looking more like a muffin than a cake. But the taste is pretty much the same.

Anyway, I'm going to refine my techniques and try again later in the week. Either way, both versions taste really good!

test results

Well, the lab results from the 11 blood tests I took a few weeks ago for my black eye problem came in the mail today.

Everything is normal, except the doctor thinks that I "may have an allergy to milk." He suggested the I avoid milk and see if it goes away.

Well, I know that I'm allergic to milk. I've been allergic since I was a baby, and I haven't had a glass of milk since I was a child. I'm careful about avoiding dairy products, and I only have a little when I do eat them. And most importantly, I told my doctor all this when I went to see him!

Thus, clearly, my allergy to milk is not the problem!!

Oh well...I guess I may never know what caused it. At least it hasn't happened since.