New Friends

I just recently started subletting in the UW Women's Rugby house. I live with 8 other girls, and I've become acquainted with most of the team, as they wander in and out at random. Everyone is super nice and cool, and while I have not fully experienced it yet, the team is infamous for their rather spirited parties. I'm looking forward to not only learning more about the sport (which is totally foreign to me), and making some new friends.





This is one of my roommates, Claire, who lives down the hall from me. And, these are the Rugby coach's two dogs that she brings over every once in a while. Susie is the black lab/pit. She's sweet and kinda scared of everyone, and Charlie is brown and black one. I'm not sure what he is, a mix of some sort. But, he's really friendly and definitely a favorite.

Bark for Sark

BOW DOWN TO WASHINGTON! It looks like the Huskies are BACK! After a heartbreaking season last year with an all time dismal no win record, things are looking up for UW Football. So far, we are 2-1. And, the last game was like no other. On Saturday, we played USC, college football royalty and ranked #3. This year, with a new coach, Steve Sarkisian and new members of the coaching staff (both from USC), we have become a new team and we were expected to upset them. AND IT HAPPENED. Final Score: Huskies 16, USC 13!!! I was so excited, I join the rest of the fans in rushing the field at the end of the game! The photo above was my short, but sufficient view

I admit, I am no football expert. It really wasn't until last year that I really understood what was going on in the game (thanks, Josh). And, it's not even my favorite sport to watch either. BUT, you really can't help but fall in love with the Huskies and get caught up in the spirit and excitement of Football Season. Especially, when you see our new live Husky puppy mascot, Dubs. (To see how adorable he is for yourself check out his blog at http://huskymascot.blogspot.com)

Joanie and Mark's Wedding

Before the summer weather gets too far away from us, I thought I should do a post about my cousin, Joanie's, wedding, which happened at the end of July here in Seattle.



This is a photo of some of the wedding flowers on the dock at Ray's Boathouse in Ballard. This was probably the best wedding I've been to. Short ceremony. AMAZING food and drinks.



Here is Joanie and her family getting ready to walk down the aisle.



Joanie and my Uncle Seiichi walking down the aisle.



Joanie and Mark exchanging rings.



Joanie's family.



Marks daughter and her friend.

Egg Cream

I recently went to New York for the second time, and I loved every minute of it. This time I explored more of the delicious and delectable aspects of this great city. One of them being a more classic New York flavor: The Egg Cream. Don't worry. There are no eggs in it. I was slightly frightened at first too. It's basically a milkshake, but instead of milk, they mix seltzer water with the ice cream. Remember to get the vanilla, because the chocolate is gross. Above is THE place to get it. It's this hole in the wall news store on one of the corners on St Mark's. You just go to the guy at the counter and ask for one.





This is Dorothy, offering me a taste of the Egg Cream. She's another favorite of mine. She's originally from the Bay Area too, but lives in Manhatten and besides the fact that New York is awesome, she is my other good reason to try to go back as often as I can. She's so much fun and is a foodie like me. She works for DCTV, a non-profit television station, and located in an old firehouse in Chinatown. She's super and smart and is about to start at the New School to get her masters. She's into philosophy and filmmaking. How much cooler can you get?

Favorite People

So, I grew up in Menlo Park, CA. A lovely place to be a kid in--suburban, friendly, safe. But, not so interesting when you get to, say high school and college aged. By then, you've been everywhere and done everything there is to do there. Probably one of the most redeeming qualities though is the people. And, in this entry, focused specifically on some of my friends...





Here are three of my favorite people. From left to right: Kelly H., Alisa and Michael. All probably some of my best friends, especially from high school/home. In general, they are all just such good friends, always there for you, honest and wise. And, all of them never cease to amaze me.

Kelly H. has always been a strong willed woman. She took a more unconventional approach to post-high school life and she has experienced so much on her quest for what she wants out of life. And, how can you not respect and admire that? And, now, she's studying abroad in Limerick, because she always wanted to go, and she made it happen.





Alisa, who was born in Russian and is now a US Citizen too, has always kind of known what she wanted to do--go to med school and become a doctor. Her intense passion for science was always quite apparent. She just graduated from UCLA and is now attending med school in New York. She is probably one of the smartest people I know and I'm really proud of her. Living the dream! (Please note the framed photo of Gunther on the wall of her UCLA apartment, to give you a further idea of how awesome she is).





And, then, there is Michael. He always makes me laugh, no matter what. What I love about Michael is that we can be totally goofy and then also be serious when it comes to personal problems. I can tell him anything. The cool thing about Michael is that he is insanely good at languages. He not only kinda knows Spanish from high school, but also he's pretty much fluent in French and Russian. And, because he knows Russian, he can pick up the basic parts of other Slavic languages too. It totally blows me away.

Watermelon

What is more satisfying than a huge watermelon about to be eaten, is a handful of its rinds as proof of thorough enjoyment.





Holding these wonderful remnants is James. Boyfriend of my friend Samantha. I just met him a few weeks ago when I visited Boston for the first time. He is quite swell indeed.





And, this is Samantha. We've known each other probably since about 1st grade, but didn't start hanging out until around middle school, thanks to Miss Lauren. In high school, we were pretty close. We hung out all the time and we were also on the same crew team, Silicon Valley Crew (now known as NorCal crew, I believe). So many good times!

Let me tell you a little about her now. She just graduated from BU with a BA in Art History, and now she's in a year and a half long grad program in International Art Business at Sutheby's in London. Impressive, huh? She's a smarty-pants alright. I'm so excited for all the adventures coming her way!

A Photo Blog

Dear World,

First of all, let me warn you that I have never been a very good blogger, probably because I was never very good at keeping a diary either. I've tried, really I have. I've had probably about 3 blogs before this one, and each time I start with great zealous, and each time I stress myself out with trying to think of interesting things to say and ultimately I forget about the whole thing (sometimes on purpose, sometimes not).

Why start another blog, you might ask? Well, I am at a crossroads of sorts. Newly graduated, and unemployed, I've been feeling a lack of purpose and direction lately. I suppose, you could say this is my way of distracting myself from certain lovely realities of the U.S. economy and it's just something to keep my busy while I'm on the job hunt. I'd also like to think that this one is just different enough to keep my interest.

I always thought of myself as a writer, but as I studied and graduated in film, I've definitely become more of a visual person. Also usually being behind the camera, I'm not really that used to or particularly into being in the spotlight. Which is where this blog also takes a different turn. I intend to post photos to help me tell the story of everyday life and things and people and places.

Which brings me to my first photo:





This is my younger sister, Emily. She's 18 years old, also newly graduated, but from high school, and about to embark on the almighty college experience (which is just weird, by the way, b/c she's still like 12 in my mind). She and my mom came up to Seattle this past weekend to help me move out of my old apartment. Lucky them. But, that's what you do for family, I guess. Fortunately for us, Emily is quite the natural entertainer, being a brilliant actress and a drama major. Although we had a lot to do, she made it all hilarious. While moving stuff out to the van, we would be passing other people moving out the building, and all the while we'd in stitches over something silly she said or done, while also trying to carry really, really heavy furniture. (I can tell you now that that combo doesn't really work well together). I could tell that our fellow movers looked on in envy and confusion at the thought of people actually having fun while moving. And, just the mere fact that we were small Asian women having to drive this gigantic, monstrous-sized moving van, was funny enough, not to mention she used the echo in the truck to create her own little concert hall when we were driving from the apartment to the storage unit and back.

In the photo above, you can see her, um, hard at work. She looks thrilled to be there, doesn't she? You can also see how she was also quite gifted at playing Tetris with the furniture and boxes. Thanks Mom, and Em for coming up to help!

Yours Truly,

P.B. Jelly