Boston, City of Bad Accents and Freezing Weather

My friends and I took a four hour bus ride to Boston last Friday since we've never been before and stayed over a friend's house. We took the Fung Wah bus, which is notorious for breaking down on the side of the road (I didn't know this until after I booked the ticket) and my friend thought that we were going to die. Obviously we didn't die but I felt like dying when the guy sitting next to me was singing and critiquing movies like he was the fatter half of Ebert & Roper. This went on for 4 straight hours. Seriously. At one point someone from the front of the bus came back to ask him to stop singing but the break only lasted 30 minutes.

When we arrived in Boston, I felt like my face was going to fall off. It's 5 to 10 degrees colder than NY. We rented a Chevy Cobalt from Enterprise and went to go meet the friend at a club called Saint. (By the way, I'll never rent a Cobalt again because you have to manually lock the doors. It really sucks when you're standing outside in 20 degree weather waiting for your friend to climb across the seat to unlock your door.) One of the good things about NY is that the clubs and bars close at 4am, but in Boston they close at 2am. After we headed to the North End for Italian food. It was my first time eating an orangini rice ball, which is a fried ball of aborio rice, mozzarella and meat with marinara sauce. Anything fried is good to me.


That night three of us girls slept on the bed with two big pitbulls (as shown above, licking my friend). The next morning, as I was climbing back onto bed from my pee break, one of the pitbulls mounted me from behind and started to hump me...doggie style...literally. But it also humped my friend while she was standing so I don't feel as violated.


Faneuil Hall Marketplace, a strip of stores and indoor restaurants.



Quincy Market, part of Faneuil Hall, built in the 1800s.

We tried to tour the city but it was so cold that we didn't walk far. I didn't know the history behind any of the landmarks so it didn't matter anyways. My fav area is Beacon Hill, which has beautiful townhouses with narrow cobble stoned streets, lamp posts, red bricked sidewalks, and shutter doors accenting the windows. (My camera died by then so I'll have to post my friend's pictures later.)

We drove to Cambridge to check out Harvard's campus and see where the smarties hang out. Of course we didn't get out to walk around because it was cold and dark. For dinner we went to a restaurant known for its steak tips. I haven't eaten red meat in a long time but I managed to finish the almost the entire plate...which is like half a cow. When we walked out of the restaurant, an old white man at the counter asked if we were from the area, seeing that my friend was with two Asians (my friend lives outside of the city and it's a predominately white neighborhood). Then the man pointed to his tattoos and said that he got them in China Town. At first I was slightly offended because my hat was covering my ears and I thought he said, "Are you from the area? I've been to China Town."

After we went to Whiskey Park, a lounge with a cool vibe and good music in the Park Plaza Hotel. The next morning we went to Warren Tavern for lunch. It's located in Charlestown, a historic neighborhood with buildings from the late 1700's. Supposedly Paul Revere used to go there. To continue with the Paul Revere lovefest, we stopped by a cemetary to see his tombstone.

Boston is a fun little city rich in history but I was glad to go back to NY.

I Don't Know Nico

...but I'm a bitch like him, according to Creep, my 37 year-old roomie.

Today at 4am, Creep's brother started studying in the kitchen outside my door. I'm a light sleeper (my ear plugs always fall out in the middle of the night) so I woke up once he stepped foot in the kitchen. Every subtle noise he made was amplified. The opening and shutting of the binder. The rustling of the papers. Him accidentally bumping the table against my wall.

I've been patient with him staying over because he's supposedly looking for an apartment. He's a student and I know how tough it is balancing work and school so I don't say anything. But then again, there are already four of us sharing one bathroom and I really don't need an extra burly body in the apartment. And when he messes with my sleep, I lose patience. I need my sleep or else I feel like shit and probably look like shit when I wake up.

So at 4am, I open the door and ask him to study in the living room (at least I said "thanks" after). He got defensive and said that it was his first time studying at this hour. No it isn't, Burly Bear.

At 9am, after the two female roomies left, Creep confronted me. He asked why I don't like them and why I'm the only one here that complains about them. It's obvious that I don't like them because I never say hi to them and avoid making eye contact with them, but I never complained until this morning...which isn't really complaining. It was more of a request. Then he referred to my message on the whiteboard about not leaving dishes overnight in the sink (it wasn't directed to anyone specifically). He got defensive with that, saying that he only left dishes overnight once, which is a lie. I wouldn't have written that unless I saw dishes overnight all the time. Plus we have freakin' cockroaches. Isn't that reason enough to wash your dishes right away?

Our argument escalated into a shouting match, with him calling the first name. He first compared me to his cousin Nico, who apparently is a bitch. Then he said he never met anyone from OC but assumes they're all like me (clean and likes to sleep through the night). Oh really, do you want to stereotype people? Mr. I'm-from-the-Bronx-with-tats-all-over-my-body-and-is-obnoxiously-loud-and-lives-with-20-year-olds-and-shares-a-room-with-a-snorting-woman? But I didn't go there. We just called each other bitch back and forth with him ending the argument with a threat that he'll make my last month here bad.

I have 3 1/2 weeks left. I hope it goes by fast.

Strategic Abandonment

It's the little things that make me happy. Like posing with inanimate objects, cooking with my friend, doing the broken robot, and watching waves crash along the shore.

And it's the little things that distract me from the bigger things that make me sad. My sister told me about my parents' financial situation and I felt like I was disconnected from their life because I was out of the loop. I felt like I wasn't a good daughter because I'm not there for them. My dad puts so much pressure on me to find a job in OC so I can live close to him, but I'd forgo better job opportunities in NY...and I'd be so bored in OC (I'd consider SF because it's closer to home and it has the city vibe but I'm not sure about pr jobs there). My two sisters keep my dad company but I can't help but feel like I'm abandoning them and I'm being selfish.

I'm afraid that once I go back home in December, it would be hard to leave. I don't have to go back to school in NY so I don't have the same urgency to leave as last time.

De-stress Myself

I don't stress out often. I really have no reason to. I have a steady part-time job, I live within my means, I typically plan out things so I'm prepared for the future, and I try not to worry about frivolous things or things out of my control...like not knowing where I'll be or what I'll be doing in several months, being attacked by dirty pigeons, or not having a boyfriend to meet my naive, childhood goal of being married by age 28 (I moved it up to age 30...33 max).

But now I have a reason to stress. I looked at my calendar and have five weeks left to work on four class projects, including one where I have to present to a few United Nations staff. Then I have to prepare for the interviews that I'm conducting in Vietnam at the end of December for my Capstone Project, which will determine if I get a piece of paper that says I graduated. All the while, I want to help my cousin with his personal statement for college apps, be a good host with people visiting me in NY, and have time to talk to family and friends so they don't feel like I'm neglecting them (sorry for being short with you).

So what do I do when I stress? I take breaks from doing class work (like I'm doing now), rant to people who can put up with my complaints, listen to happy music, and make lists so I can put a big, fat X through completed tasks. I would go running but my body aches from sleeping on my roomie's crappy air mattress, plus I'm sick. Taking NyQuil during the day didn't help either. Nap time!

Hanging Out With the Rich, Dead, and Famous...at Madame Tussauds

I hung out with a bunch of celebs yesterday. The paparazzi wouldn't stop hounding us...


I can't resist a man who wears his underwear outside his pants.


Some NSync fan was going crazy for JT.

Michael Jackson's nose is still intact. I checked.

I don't know why Baywatch is behind Michael Jordan.

Prince really is small. Like pygmy status.

Tina invited me on stage to dance with her.

The Beatles.

I could take him.

Hanging with James Dean on a street corner...because that's what cool people do...as well as hookers and day laborers.

I beat Jesse Owens across the finish line. By the way, the NYC Marathon was going on and it made me feel like a fat ass.

When I think of Charlie Chaplin, I think "Hitler."

Johnny Depp said he needed his shirt unbuttoned.

Reading F. Scott Fitzgerald's book with him.

I had to fight Gandhi for my stick. So much for non-violence.

The Pope is dope.

The greatest president that has ever lived, George W.

Bill Clinton still has it going on...even as Billy Grahm is watching in the back.


Hilary gave me a high five after she saw Bill make a move on me.

Rachel Ray's over-use of her hands and bubbly personality bother me. But I do love her 30 Minute Meals...which really takes more time than 30 minutes if you have to wash and chop everything.


I was hungry...

Weeeestsiiiide!

Beyonce has amazing armpits.

I wanted to be on Usher's music video.

Whoever created Brad did a horrible job.

Angelina Jolie sans ten billion kids.

I thought Woody Allen had a thing for Asians since he did marry and have a kid with his adopted daughter, but he ignored me.

I struck a pose for Tyra but I didn't make the cut.

Whoopi tried to steal my purse.

J.Lo and some other booties.

Going to Madame Tussauds is one step below Star-Trek-convention-dorkiness level but I had free tickets so I went with my friend. Who knew posing with wax figures could be so fun?

Halloweeny Foliage

The weather on Halloween was a nice change from the previous days' cold weather. I didn't want to work anymore so I said, "Peace out, work!" and walked up to Central Park to get some warm sun on my smiling face.

Even though I go to Central Park all the time, I never cease to be in awe every time I step foot underneath the towering trees. It is the one place that will wipe away any worries that I have and make me feel like I'm walking through an enchanted forest in a fairy tale...until I see a bum lying on the bench or smell horse shit.

I love fall colors.

I sat at Bethesda Fountain to people watch and listen to my iPod. If I had someone next to me, these are the comments they would hear: "I don't want to get old and look like Maxine, the crabby old lady from Hallmark cards."

"I wonder if she was that size before or after she got pregnant?...or maybe she has hypothyroid." "Maybe this man likes some cushion for the pushin'." "Would my husband still love me if I was bigger than him?"

"Aw, how cute. Old people gettin' it on...Okay, I don't want to watch you guys make out anymore." "I wonder what keeps the sparks going after being with someone for decades...or maybe they're newly dating?"

Later that night I went to a couple bars with friends. I skipped out on the parade since I went last year and I didn't want to deal with the crowds. Some notable outfits I saw: