Crutches

Good morning world! Redmond has been snowing on/off, not able to make an inch or two to entertain my eyes, oh well  

Damn it, I’m blogging about my toe again. Not because it’s done and over with, I might have to use crutches + wearing a cast. Instead of listening to my doctor to take good care of it. I did the unthinkable, well, excessive walking, shopping, swimming, and dancing. Word by word, she said “no excessive physical movements and that includes dancing!”

It’s been more than a month, my toe still feels the same, I can barely bend it, it still feels very stiff, as if the bone continues to be fragile. Now, I not only have a cast but a pair of crutches sitting in my car, waiting for me to put them on. I’m purposely ignoring them as if they don’t exist, but I think I’m committed to healing asap so I can get back into running. Aw man, if I was not so angry when playing soccer with my friend, this would have not happened.

Maybe Condos

In the past year or so, I have stopped blogging about condos and some folks have been curious as to why. It’s not because I lost interest nor I don’t intend to purchase one, it’s because of the restrictions, the maintenance fee, and the new ones are always better. Condos come up so fast, every new one is always the current best one. Nowadays, we are attracted to open floor plan, open to below living room, loft style, and so forth. In about five years, I highly suspect that a new design will be developed, space efficient, more/less open depending on the current demand, and this is where a condo falls for me, I can’t alter or make heavy modifications to my floor plan that involves architecture renovation, meaning I’m STUCK. The same goes for townhomes.

I’m off the market for condos.

My Trip to Cancun Mexcio

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The Hotel
We stayed at a “5 star” hotel, all inclusive, meaning including food, drinks, activities for $1000 per person. Most people said we got a good deal for December. I was convinced until my arrival, the food was buffet style, all Americanized, greasy, oily, it made me feel like I was eating cafeteria food when I had a meal plan in college. Thumbs down for the all you can eat buffet. The whole time I was there, I ate a lot of soup, picked out bell peppers patiently in everything. They had some authentic Mexican food at the restaurant, but very oily…

Our room had an ocean view. We loved sitting in the balcony, chit chatting looking at the ocean, the sound, the smell, it was a wonderful experience. Unlike everyone, I usually wake up between 6 and 7, Sophia thought I was crazy, but it was nice to be able to sit and listen to the sound of those waves. Those were probably the best moments of my vacation.

When we first arrived, they lured us into attending a presentation. We thought it was a tour around their other resorts, turned out they tried to sell us vacation packages, timeshare, etc. After half an hour, we were very clear that this is not something we are going to commit, even tomorrow, next year, or perhaps next life. They finally took us back to hotel.

Blankets, sheets, pillows, TV, internet access, everything seemed uneasy for us. It was difficult to sleep on the pillows that they had, internet went on/off every two minutes. I was not satisfied with the hotel. 

The People
They loved us. Everywhere we went, we were offered service, polite greetings, and everyone spoke English. We were treated just like queens. I felt uncomfortable and offered to take some parts of the service myself, yet we still tipped here and there.

You will find many locals walking around the beach trying to sell you cigarettes, sunglasses, or anything they can carry on their shoulders. I even saw a little kid selling cigarettes on the beach. As you can see, where you stay is not really what Mexico actually is. It is an image, a cover up, you can certainly tell the economy here is not stable.

The Beach
Out of four nights being there, I went to the beach three times, the best place when you’re looking for something different than Seattle. It never rained when were there, the temperature was about 85F. We slept on the beach, jumped in the water, went back and slept some more, and jumped back in. That was the best part. It was difficult for my toe, but the water was screaming for my name

The Club
Don’t go to the clubs. Don’t fall for the all inclusive drinks at these big clubs. The entrance fee is between 50 to 60 per person, includes unlimited drinks. We refused to pay that much just to go dancing. Instead, we walked around the area looking for a bar/lounge to hang out. The minute we got out of our car, promoters approached us and offered to get us in for free. We did not have to show ID nor did they ask for our age. All clubs in the area close between 5 and 7am.

The Cops
Woaw!!! The first time I saw an AK-47 in real life. Even traffic cops were carrying AK-47, not on the back, but right in front of their body. We saw them outside of Cancun when going for a drive outside of the resort area.

On the way back from clubbing, we were stopped by a traffic cop. He said we were speeding and wanted to charge us a fee. In the US, if you tried to argue or pull some tricks, your ticket does not drop, it only goes higher, my friend pulled some tricks and demanded a lawyer in the US before she wanted to pay a fee. He then asked for $200 in cash and he will let us go, great, we are dealing with corruption during our vacation. Sophia continued to demand to get a lawyer first, finally, he let us go.

Sightseeing
We rented a car, drove out of the resort area. We saw a lot of run down local shops, poor architectures, in other words, the real Mexico. We drank Coconut juice, visited the Pyramid ruins. Since the ruins were treated as a tourist place, they charged us just about everything, parking, entrance fee, even taking pictures cost money! There we met a lot of interesting people, from all over the world, we had some great talks about Mexico. We drove back to Mexico, wanted to stop by a local shop rather than eating at the same buffet restaurant, but it was too late and we were exhausted from walking around the ruins. We wished to have another day for the ruins and local areas, but we had to take off the next day.

Next time
Buy tickets, book hotels, and definitely rent a car. No more all inclusive deals, these deals attract the standard, typical American family, couples, but healthy people would beg for the difference after they get there.

Do not go shopping in the tourist area, do not eat food there. They have Starbucks, McDonald, Outback Steakhouse, fancy malls, fancy sushi restaurants, I literally felt like I was in Bellevue Square. Take your car, drive outside of the tourist area, meet up some locals, talk to the people, get to know their lifestyle, get some real Mexican food. However, be prepared to face some dangers such as bad roads, bad drivers, and AK-47 cops.

Shampoo

For once I actually respect something made from Pantene. This is thinking outside of the box. Instead of presenting the typical, tall, perfect blond looking women, they pulled together a short little drama between two competitive girls in music. One fully deaf, who plays the violin, and the rich, who plays the piano. Well done.

Waves

Aw, 6:30 in Redmond is different than 6:30 in the morning in front of the beach. The sound of those waves, the smell of the ocean, how can one deny.

My trip was beautiful, I have some pictures to share, they will be up soon. I’m putting together a travel blog, my experience in Mexico, what not to do and what to do. Been caught up with playing Fallout Vegas

Training Toe

Currently training my toe to be flexible. Now that it is almost there, the cast can be removed, I can walk, but my toe cannot be moved, it’s been straight for the last 2+ weeks. Training something to be flexible is no different than learning how to speak English. Man, this is tough.

This is the first injury that requires some training in order to bring back flexibility. I can’t wait to get back into running, I miss running.

Null Superman

I’ve grown and changed. I’ve watched my friends grow and change.  I still struggle with feelings and trusting my process, my path, my ways. I still feel afraid at times.  Sometimes, I forget and try to control everything that is out of my power. Sometimes, I become obsessive and lose myself in a situation, but I catch myself, get up and try life again. 

It is true some things haven’t changed, but things are constantly changing. I’ve realized that women have souls, and men have feelings.  I understand society continues to alter us to be indifferent, to fight off obstacles, but it cannot change our spiritual beliefs, our emotions for one another, our sacrifices for each other, or rather, what has enabled us to continue life. I don’t know how much is too much, but there is never enough respect to give, there is never enough love to receive, instead we are choosing to practice selfishness, running after conveniences of instant satisfaction, only to create a messier mess than we already have, only to hurt another innocence to meet our short term needs, causing broken hearts, causing pain, then comes the unnecessary healing process. Some constantly give but don’t know how to receive. Some give until they are angry, exhausted and emptied of everything, and some give until they give up. We know this is an imbalance that one should not engage in, but we do it anyway.

There were times when I stopped thinking, I stopped feeling positive emotions, and I was left with rage, bitterness, hatred, fear, depression, helplessness, despair, and guilt. During my weakest moment, I tried to hide until I am capable of the fresh, the new, the clear, then I come out. At my weakest moment, what I thought would be there for me, spit me out like dirt. At my darkest hour, what I thought would light me up, instead shut me out. Until it becomes clear that there is no god to save me, no superman to protect me, and no angel to wipe my tears.

Sports Kinect Injury

This is not a joke. Almost broken bone playing Football in Sports Kinect. I want to see how popular this baby gets returned in google search.

2010 Goals

Checked – Got promoted
Checked - Lost 10 lbs
Checked – 30% increase in savings
Checked - Living room redesign
Checked – Bedroom redesign
Checked – Sewing room
Checked – New Piano
Checked – Finished playing Honor Him (Theme from Gladiator)
Checked – Delivered CoolAlbum to Softpedia
Checked – Visit at least one new place (Oregon Coast)
Failed – New car
Failed – Gamerscore 10000