So this is what it’s like to be 21.
Posted: June 28, 2010 Filed under: Clubbing, Personal, Reviews 1 Comment »I’ll never have to frantically memorize addresses of random IDs in the car again. I’ll never have to explain to the bouncer that the picture “doesn’t look like me because that was BEFORE the surgery…” I’ll never have to apologetically switch my cocktail order to a “virgin” when the waiter decides to ask for identification. I’ll never have to freak out and hide when the police bursts into a party. And I’ll never have to lie to anyone about my age anymore…because I’ve passed the last threshold.
12 years old, 16 years old, 18 years old, and finally–21 years old.
The milemarkers of life. It ends here.
—–
My birthday weekend was fun, thanks to the amaaazing Kunku. Hiro, Highline Ballroom, and Maru.
It was a good weekend, and I got to see so many old friends and make new ones too!
yay lis & company! haha…
our table at maru
Next weekend I will be having official celebrations with a few tables, so be sure to come out to that one (friends, see my event on fb).
Also, meet my new baby.
the new iphone 4g! My mommy got it for me on the 24th and it was overnighted to me and in my greedy hands the 26th. it literally turns heads as i walk down the streets haha. and thus far i havent experienced any of the antenna problems people complain about. but then again i don’t hold it in the specific way to mess up the signal o_O
i havent tried facetime yet but i am in love with the flash (&zoom!). it’s so incredibly useful!
all pictures in this post were taken by the iphone. not bad at all n___n
i’m so happy with it..and the external design is so much sleeker than the old iphone too!
Right, so back to work for me.
I don’t like the bittersweet aftertaste of birthdays -__-
Especially the day after. It’s like…okay…that was it?
It’s all over? I’m 21?
Anticlimactic. =b
Happiness.
Posted: June 24, 2010 Filed under: Internships, Personal, status 2 Comments »As I sit here in my (quite spacious) cubicle on the 14th floor of 4 Times Square, typing this blog entry up on my enormous monster of an iMac, all the while sipping on fresh strawberry lemonade, I can finally smile and say–I’m happy. In a late night conversation with Daisy last night in Bryant Park—where we sat, the warm summer breeze caressing loose hair and bare legs—I was suddenly struck by something she said.
“Happiness is when you can sit alone…and feel completely fine.”
I had to think about that one. I chewed my organic tuna sandwich (“what?! You haven’t eaten today?! You HAVE to eat something woman!”—thanks Daisy) and thought about myself.
Hmmm. What did I usually think about when I’m alone? Housing. Income. My future. Relationship issues. Overdue errands I need to run. My lack of a suitable dress for my birthday weekend. And when you add it all up, I felt overwhelmed. I felt helpless. And I felt lonely.
But for today and (I have a feeling) the days to come, I feel confident. I feel like finally…finally my life is falling into place.
Kunku and I found housing today in the West Village. An adorable little studio, fully furnished for us for the next two months. I received several responses for job interviews, so I will be cocktail waitressing soon. And I just got handed my most interesting task thus far at Conde Nast Traveler.
I’m not too worried about the future. I’m not too worried about income. These things will sort themselves out in due time, as long as I stay persistent and optimistic. Never in a million years did I think I would be working here at a magazine publishing company. And never in a million years would I be able to guess where this road of life will take me next.—nor am I even so sure I want to know.
And now I’m going to turn back to my research for a piece I’m helping a senior editor with. It’s on British territories in the Caribbean, and I’m writing a report on each island’s culture, politics, hotels, and basically anything else that catches my eye, so that the editor who’s reporting on the five islands will have a better idea of the areas. It’s so exciting to think that the items I report on will be used for an article that travelers read and follow. And it definitely doesn’t hurt that I’m learning so much in the process as well!
So I am alright right now, as I sit by myself, scribbling into my Conde Nast legal pad. I am content right now, as I sit by myself, poring over past and present articles on the Caribbean. And I am happy right now, as I sit by myself, smiling into my Word Document…because I am alone. And I feel completely fine.
Blogging on a Bus
Posted: June 21, 2010 Filed under: Personal, status, Travel, Uncategorized Leave a comment »My feet are propped up. I’m sipping an iced grande soy chai tea latte from Starbucks. I’m listening to Tegan and Sara on Youtube. I’m video Skyping a friend in the UK. I’m typing up this blog entry. And I’m crossing Maryland en route to New York City in a bus.
All. at. once.
I take technology for granted too often, but as I sit here now, watching trees flash by in blurs of dark green, I’m starting to realize an entirely new meaning to the word “multitask,” branded by our current promises of technology. So as I soak it all in, marveling at how the internet has revolutionized our lives and simultaneously made the world smaller and larger at the same time, I am also wondering what the next ten years will bring. It only took two decades for the internet to explode, after all.
In three more hours I’ll be there, the city where dreams are made, to find my own.
Wish me luck.
chuuuu~ good bye dc. T3T
<3 xx~aileen
Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Posted: June 20, 2010 Filed under: Books, Personal, Travel, Uncategorized 1 Comment »
My friend Rafael had recommended this book before I left for my month-long Eurotrip the end of March, but I never got a chance to read it until I happened to come across it at the Kyobo bookstore after church today. I picked it up and stacked it on top of the pile of books I had collected while walking around the bookstore. I already had four books in my arms, but there were always new books, catchy titles, and curious covers that piqued my attention. My plan was to find a quiet place to sit and just immerse myself in the world of fiction and narrative nonfiction. Why did I need so many books? I was afraid I would get bored if I just had one or two. I needed a variety.
Only when I started reading this book did I realize the reason why I couldn’t help but pick out so many different books from different genres was the same reason why Elizabeth Gilbert divorced her husband and quit her job to travel to three different countries, Italy, India and Indonesia, for four months each. According to Gilbert, each one was as valuable as the other. She wanted pleasure and she wanted meditation. She wanted Italy and she wanted India. Indonesia was to be the final destination for her spiritual and existential journey. Why did she go to all three places? She couldn’t pick one. That was an impossibility. She wanted all three, and so do I.
I’ve only read half the book given the time I had, but the more I read, the more I felt at one with her. Her witty words, unusual experiences and her frankness did a pretty good job keeping me laughing up my sleeve, to a point that the guy sitting next to me was amused by my giggling and asked me what I was reading. But it wasn’t just the jokes. It was everything she said—the reason for her unhappiness in her marriage, her desire to travel, her love for Italian wine and their authentic thin AND doughy pizza, and her need to balance the pleasure-seeking life with the spiritual.
Wait. What? Travel? Pleasure? Spirituality? Did she read my mind? She thought she was writing a memoir, but she was describing me instead. I was Elizabeth Gilbert. Well, that is where I would be in ten years if I were married, hoping that I would eventually want to settle down and crave this stable lifestyle. Truth is, she is a very unhappy woman at the beginning of the memoir. Unhappy is an understatement. She was bipolar, hysterical, lonely, anxious, stressed, depressed. That’s why she decided to leave for the year. Do something different. Indulge in things she has always desired. Learning Italian. Befriending the Italians. Traveling. Meditating in India. (Unfortunately this is how far I got).
Funny thing is, her three-act journey is eerily similar to mine.
Starting off the year in Brighton in January, traveling around in Europe and learning what it means to enjoy free time by doing absolutely nothing, drinking wine, eating real Moroccan tagines, authentic Italian pizzas, and homemade Greek moussakas, meeting strangers, befriending them, and living life as if my sole purpose on this earth was PLEASURE.
Now I’m in Korea, and it’s exactly the opposite. I’m living with my family, and it’s a more repressed lifestyle. Repressed not because I hate being here (which I don’t), but because I’m repressing my own urges and the pleasure-seeking drive. I’m looking for a job, but I haven’t been successful. Maybe it’s because my summer is supposed to be about meditation. Finding my spiritual needs. Renewing my soul. And praying.
(Now I really feel like I need to go back to the bookstore and either buy the book and stay there until I finish reading it, because I can’t make this analogy without reading the rest of the book) But the last section is about balancing pleasure and spirituality. And eventually finding love. May I be hopeful about next semester, a conclusion to my own Eat Pray Love?
weekend in
Posted: June 20, 2010 Filed under: post Leave a comment »I’m bored. Aileen gets to the city in 2 days. YAYYY!!
My official fb prof pic photographer and i will be reunited hahaha
So a lot has been going through my mind lately, more than ever. I’m shaping up my blog (which has been private till now) so feel free to follow me, my music posts, poems, and rants (mostly rants and MVs) when I link it to this joint blog. I feel bad spamming just MVs on this blog 
ALSO updates on events in NYC (manhattan and bk) that I’m promoting or think is cool will be up on both blogs.. more frequenty on mine.
Last night was fun, the Hudson Terrace is pretty cool.. too crowded on a Friday Night. If you don’t get there by 11:30pm, have fun waiting in line since the maximum capacity gets hit very fast. I expected more from the deejay last night, was slightly disappointed but he still played some decent songs. Just repeated some tracks 2-3 times which is kind of a no-no unless you’re in a dorm party in college or a house party to be fair enough. I think I’m spoiled to only listening to what I like or hearing good deejays.
AND the best part of rooftop parties is that you can smoke, drink and party it up. just like in good ol asia and europe. I did feel quite at home on the terrace, but the close to anorexic models kind of.. not so much. It got packed way too quick. I’ll probably go back just to have fun, not to promote unless I end up working with one of the event planners that runs the party.
vs
Hotel Rivington in the lower east side on a Thursday night – interesting crowd, some lovely folks.. i’ve just decided that crowds in the city are just interesting all around- my friend was deejaying so we hung out there after the AAIFF launch party. Nice lounging space, LOVED the black & white and mod feel to the space and i’m a fan of his mixing, so much better than last night. Bathrooms are the deal breakers for me (and the dj), rivington has huge loos, 4-6 separate rooms the size of a single in mhc, all black marble I think + huge mirrors= won my awe and fancy. The restrooms in Hudson were tiny and the lady was rude. so i think HR win, and HT fail.
I’m going to quit Bloc Group, it was good experience in the past 3 weeks but its all about the vibes and I’m not getting a good feeling anymore. mad sketch, like alotta things in nyc.
Today has been a slightly emotionally draining day, the weather is gorgeous outside, there is a mermaid parade in Coney Island and I’m stuck in doors watching a taiwanese drama.
so i think i’ll get back to the drama and decide if i should go out tonight to chill, sleepover a friends to walkover the BK bridge in the morning or stay in and just be a bum..
AUUUGHH IPHONE4 PREORDER IS ALL OVER ONL…
Posted: June 19, 2010 Filed under: status Leave a comment »AUUUGHH IPHONE4 PREORDER IS ALL OVER ONLINE AND IN STORE. NEXT BATCH DOESNT COME IN TILL JULY 14TH. I NEED AN IPHONE 4 BEFORE JUNE 27/MY BDAY. I WANT IT I NEED IT I HAVE TO HAVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND I REFUSE TO CAMP OUT FOR A FUCKING PHONE. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
LK;DSAJF;LKDSJFA;LD;ALKSD I AM SO PISSED. HELP ME X____X SOMEBODY HOOK ME UP!!!!!!
*frustrated* >=|
My promo job for tonightt is @ Hudson Te…
Posted: June 18, 2010 Filed under: status Leave a comment »My promo job for tonightt is @ Hudson Terrace, 92.3′s DJ Ani Quinn is spinning and he is such a cutie. Wasn’t too much of a fan of the Highline scene (really nice set up and vibe but crowd is iffy). Hudson Terrace is a more popular and known venue in the city. Erected from imported heirloom woods, handcrafted tiles and treasured stone, this rooftop is one venue you wouldnt want to miss out on.
flyer: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs119.snc4/36317_1332131594502_1567380117_30898614_7931635_n.jpg
21st Birthday Wishlist
Posted: June 16, 2010 Filed under: Personal, Silly, Uncategorized Leave a comment »so several people have asked me what i want for my birthday. as usual, here’s my list. notice it hasnt evolved much since my last list (http://chinklicious.xanga.com/684549431/holiday-wishlist/). i guess some things (people) just dont change haha =b i’m predictable.
Wacom Intuos4 in MEDIUM: $295
OR Wacom Bamboo Fun in MEDIUM (black): $155
Hello Kitty for Tokidoki stuff/Hello Kitty stuff in general for my dorm room
(like anything from here! http://www.dreamkitty.com/category/HK.html
or here! http://www.strapya-world.com/)
American Apparel leotards/bodysuits (want this one so bad) in SMALL: $36
Gift cards for SEPHORA or MAC!
Cute Victorias Secret Underwear (ONLY cotton hipsters/boyshorts/boybriefs NO strings, bikinis, or thongs please): 5/$25
Chanel Reissue 2.55: Black w/gold hardware in SMALL: $1895
HAHA just for kicks. =b
but yeah, thanks everyone! <3 (=
my horoscope today: You’ve taken for gr…
Posted: June 15, 2010 Filed under: status Leave a comment »my horoscope today:
You’ve taken for granted something that may not be available to you in such abundance. It’s time to assign some real value.
hmmm i wonder what was available in abundance, time? love? friendship? luck?
In the concrete jungle where dreams are made of
Posted: June 14, 2010 Filed under: Clubbing, Personal 1 Comment »There are two Rs I cannot stand.. rude and racist people. Sad reality is, THEY ARE EVERYWHERE and scarier, there are bits of it in everyone of us…
So I went for my interview, waited for about 30 mins after rushing to get there 10 mins before my interview. Well the wait was worth it! I got the promoter job. My first event was on Saturday, June 4th 2010 @ the Highline Ballroom and posted below is the flyer. As NY Magazine reviews, Highline Ballroom is a ” classy music venue—former home to dance clubs Power and Glo—has the fairly dubious distinction of being located next door to a Western Beef supermarket. But indoors, the spartan 700-person-capacity space distinguishes itself with exposed beams, lounge-worthy lighting, and a column-free main floor with great sight lines from both the wide downstairs area and the carpeted balcony. (When seats are added to both levels, the place maxes out at 400 people.) Bookings are consciously eclectic, but overall reflect the evolved vibe of the neighborhood with bling- and controversy-free hip-hop acts, mellow songstresses, and veteran critical darlings. Owner Steve Bensusan (of B.B. King’s and Blue Note) donates 25 cents of every ticket sold to Friends of the High Line, an organization supporting the conversion of the nearby elevated railway into a public park.”
I officially started working with Asian CineVision on the Asian American Interntional Film Festival (AAIFF)!
Life is about to get busy but I’m cool with that. Nothing productive ever comes out of being idle 
. Trust me, you just get sore, tired, claustrophic and dull from laying around. The sore part sucks the most.
My position at my internship is Special Events Coordinator of this years festival. So far i’ve been scouting venues and trying to finalize contracts by Tuesday!! My boss (J.Woo of Woo Art Productions) and the festival co-director (awesommest person ever and from australis c: )have a meeting with Toyota, our sponsor. The film fest’s launch party is on the 17th of June:
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1567380117#!/event.php?eid=126569034040558
I have so much to update, I promise to get better at updating (<3 aileen) but just been stressed with work. I unecessarily stress out with the occasional procrastination. Im learning the more you grow up.. the better of you were as a kid.. lol
Some people at work keep telling me I sound like Utada Hikaru… ok cool, so they call me utada at work. And then i told aileen and she said i sound like serena van der woodsen aka blake lively?? wtf ok.. haha i sound like a japnese singer and some white chick. heres what i supposedly sound like.. if only i had the singing voice as well…
[i <3 pocahantas! everyone has a disney princess -i think aileens is mulan?- mine is poca! for several reasons.]
So I guess on a more personal note, 2 people I considered important or remotely dear to me have exited my life. They are healthy and alive but seem to have chosen not to have me be a part of their life. I could say I’m sad, devasted, shocked… not really shocked. BUT the deal is, I’m tired. Letting in people is hard enough, trust is another issue and then having them abandon you is just not cool. I love people but after a certain level of disappointment, exhaustion kicks in and enters indifference. It is kinda icy and cold of me to be unaffected but if you re-read the previous two sentences, it makes sense. I tend to be really vague but I don’t want to throw names out there so I’ll just call them X and Y since X &Y have affected my life in so many ways that I often wish they never had. But I probably would not be who I am if it hadn’t been for them . Why must everything have a love/hate relationship, a bittersweetness? Its kind of annoying. Is it just me, or is everything a paradox and an oxymoron? Maybe thats why I’ve been drowning in gray lately. Trying to find a safe zone, a neutral area from whats black, and from whats white.
Aileen just told me to listen to my heart…
End of an old chapter and the beginning of new one. Its time to put the past in the rear where it belongs and move on to bigger and fresh things.
I GUESS I’LL MAKE THE ANNOUNCEMENT AND SAY AILEEN AND I WILL BE SHARING AN APARTMENT IN NEW YAWK CITAY SUMMER 2010!! so much hype cuz we been planning this for ever!! and now its finally real.
like my fb status says, “dreams are becoming reality. epic reality.”
look forward to reading about our adventures, her perspective and mine. conde nast (my love) travellers and AAIFF’10 + tainting the night scene and not letting them know what hit ‘em ^^
lot of clubbing + dining + lounging + all sorts of reviews to be coming up from chelsea to west village to midtown to williamsburg to l.e.s to soho…
Till the next post…
<3
