Scott & Adrienne's Wedding - June 21, 2008

Scott's pre-wedding party.  Someone borrowed the top from their Chinese aunt. 

This was my view of the Father Daughter dance from my reception table seat.  What a view!  ***Table centerpiece flowers go to whoever can name everyone in the picture in order from left to right***  

They asked us to write a note to the couple.  I'm always unselfish, praying for and thinking of others...

Our friend John, the Asian Alfred Brennaman (He's being cast in the HK version of "Hitch"). 

Sam is known to party it up wherever he is, with or without the ladies.  Flower girl Carissa gave me the "Ha ha smirk" look. 

Jina's Birthday - Area (West Hollywood) - May 10, 2008

The outside of Area looks like crap, but the inside is sweet.   There modern design couch areas behind wall length window walls (not visible from these pictures).   The dance floor lighting is simple but has a nice effect.  There are a couple of metal poles near the DJ Booth where all the little hoodrat hooches can jump up and get their grind on with their girl friends. 

Birthday Girl Jina.  Sonya.

Michelle.

Angels Stadium at sundown. 

Lil Kristie.  She might look cute, but she really is the devil.   

Ahhhh, this is sweet... Too bad I'm not good at photoshopping names.  Of course I can always crop the photo and just keep the main headline.     

Misc:

Today Christian Bale reminded me of the $90 afternoon tea and good times that I had at the Dorchester Hotel... 

I'm a little behind on Xanga reading, also behind on picture posting, I'll slap some on the screen today or tomorrow for you. 

Dental Dames - Getting My Teeth Cleaned and a Little Sumthin' Sumthin' 

Once every four years I go to the dentist and get my teeth scrubbed, mold removed, etc.  Gotta have my breath non-stank when I kiss my grandma.   It's easy to remember... when the Olympics are here, so am I.  I jest, I jest.   Anyhow, I just got back from the dentist.  After the cleaning, my dentist comes in to do a spot check.  We make small talk and he tells me what his daughter "C" has been up to. 

A little background, my best girl friend from college, Claire, her best friend from childhood is C, so I've hung out a few times with her over the years.    I also asked about his other daughter "S," who is C's older sister.  I met S when Claire and I went to New York years ago and have only seen her once or twice.  Short story short, I know the dentist's daughters. 

• Me:  What's S been up to? 
• Japanese Dentist (laughing):  S is messing around. 
• Me:  Messing around? 
• Japanese Dentist:  Yeah, same old.  She's playing in some tennis league, she plays football with some other friends, and that doesn't include when she goes out.  But she's been working hard too.  She was working on _______________ TV show for awhile as a writer. 
• Me:  Haha, she's keeping busy. 
• Japanese Dentist (after walking out of the room, pokes his head back in):  You know, we are going to Lake Mojave to do Sea Dooing and water skiing, first week of August, if you want to come... I'll tell S to contact you.  You should come out! 

The dental hygenist is sitting there with that look, "Whoa?  Did the dentist just try to hook up his daughter?"  The dental assistant had never met the daughters before, so I explained to her that they are both fun, sweet, outgoing. 

• Hygenist:  Sounds like fun.  You should go!  The lake, water skiing...
• Me:  Did you ever imagine you'd be sitting here hearing the dentist play matchmaker with his daughter? 
• Hygenist:   Why... are you busy?  It just sounds like fun. 
• Me:  Haha, I'm like his daughter... I try to stay busy. 
• Hygenist:  Oh, like his daughter.  Messing around...

The funny thing is that I don't have either of his daughter's phone number or email.  If they do end up contacting me, I'll probably politely decline.  I can just imagine when he tells "S" and she says, "Why are you trying to matchmake me!"   Which one of us hasn't been on that side of the conversation with our parents before.  =O 

What do you say when your parents creatively suggest someone or try to matchmake you?   Do you go?  What's been the best way to get your parents to stop?   

I was out at a lounge this week and talking with a single guy and girl and said, "Well, I don't come to these things (asian mixers) to find my wife, I just come to hang out with friends."   The guy gave me this split second puzzled look, "Isn't that why we all come?"  The girl chuckled because she knew the half-truth.  Most people hold some hope that even though they are there with 10 or 20 or 30 or 40 people that they already know, magically a new person will come that night and sweep them off their feet or wow them.   Really, I'm not going to be finding wifey in a club.   It may happen, but I don't believe it for a second. 

Are the biggest chick magnets dogs and babies?  I should do that experiment one day.  Walk around the city with an adorable dog.  Or push a baby stroller around.  My friend says, "What's the point?  People will know you're married if you have a baby in a cart."  I said, "No, when they come up to see the baby I'll say, 'Isn't my little nephew/niece the cutest thing?'"  Then right off the bat they'll know that I'm domesticated, good with kids, and single.  Score!  Now I just need my brother and his wifey to start the production cycle. 

Maybe You Should Just Go Out On That Date...

If you aren't a dater, don't get asked out much, don't ask many people out, don't have any success, maybe you should open up your pool and let some more fishies in.  I don't think we should ever lower our standards when screening for our future fiance, but it doesn't hurt to meet new people if we're going through a dry spell.  Even if you don't think you'll be that attracted to the person that is somewhat interested in you or if you don't think you're a good match, one time out will not hurt you.   If you are always holding out and never going out, maybe you are aiming too high (or you have an inflated value of yourself). 

There are indirect positives to going out, even if he or she isn't all that.  First of all you get to meet someone new.  Sometimes we just need to meet to people to remind us that there's more to life than just us.  Even if you find yourself less attracted to the person as 10 minutes turns to 30, and 30 turns into an hour, you'll still feel flattered that someone is/was attracted to you.  If you did the asking and scored some time with someone that's normally "out of your league," even if you can tell there won't be a chance for you to get a second date, at least you had enough to at least intially intrigue the hottie in front of you, right?  Don't underestimate arm candy's positive effects on your psyche.   Do you know any girl who doesn't talk to their friends about a date that they went on?   Exactly.  Even if the date sucked, they still want their friends to know that they went out on one. 

Sometimes dating is like interviewing.  You want to go one every so often just to keep your skills sharp.   Too many of my guy friends complain that this girl is busted, or that girl is busted, but I don't see them out with anyone.  Maybe it's them that's busted.  It's equally easy for girls to get caught up in the same mindset, none of us are immune from it.   Some people always complain about the jobs that they interview for.  This job is too menial, or that job is too much manual labor, or the hours are bad, or...  Do you know who I hear it most from?  From people who are unemployed.  

How about that friend that always complains about how they never get to go on/get asked out on dates?  A bad date always sets them straight.   I'll always stop whining after a bad date, because it reminds me that many times it is better to watch a movie at home by myself than to be stuck listening to an annoying whiny girl.   Sometimes it is better to not go out than to go out (for the record, I do not whine about not going out, only written to make a point). 

If you get asked out all the time, I don't know if any of this would apply, because going out with more people would probably be a waste of time.  At that point you wouldn't you want to filter and cut out the riff raff?    Ahhh... if only I had that problem.  =)

Next Time Friends... or More?

A girl/old friend I hadn't seen in over five years recently treated me to dinner.   She had been in and out of the area for school or work and now she's back for good.   Before, whenever she was in town for a couple of weeks (usually about once a year), I would say, "Hey, if you're free and want to catch or grab something to eat, give me a call or let me know how your schedule looks."  No ulterior motives on my part, just catching up.  She would say "We totally have to catch up..." and then I wouldn't hear from her until after she had left town again.  

I was always friendly with this person, but never really knew her that well.  Imagine her to be what you want... old co-worker, high school friend, college friend, church aquaintance, etc., she could be any of those.  This year, when dinner was suggested, I was amenable but didn't really think it would happen and wouldn't have been sad if it didn't.   We were destined to be convenient "next time" friends.  We all have "next time" friends, the friends that always promise to see you next time, but never do.  

Dinner went well and when it came time to pay the bill, she grabbed it from me and would not let go.   I brought out my 9mm and she brought out her 50 caliber.  I relented. 

Was dinner supposed to mean more?  This was not a case where she was paying because she had felt bad for standing me up before because those other years we never ever formally planned anything.  What if I told you she was previously engaged and now is single?  And that she told me she's starting to feel her age? 

I feel wrong that she paid, so there will have to be a next time.  But don't get the wrong idea, I'm not in pursuit or super excited.  Back in the day I might've been more interested in getting to know her better, but now that ship has sailed (well, I don't think about her in that way).  I'm just not sure if her paying for dinner was her just being friendly, her hinting that we'll have to go out again (with me paying next time), or her signaling that she's open.  What do you think? 

My home computer Windows crashed.  POS!  Some virus is corrupting all my dll files.  I turned off the computer while it was doing that and then I couldn't get back on.  I could only get as far as the Intel screen and BIOS menu option.  I'm not cut out for this, let's hope my IT guy at work will fix it for free tomorrow (and either restore or hopefully all it needs is a windows reinstall).  Most of my "vital" files are on the 2nd non-windows harddrive, so hopefully none of those files got affected.  And of course I usually back up my 2nd harddrive onto a 3rd external harddrive (I haven't backed that up for a couple of months). 

The weekend was not all bad.  Playing basketball, swimming, hanging out at a 60 person Asian singles mixer at a lounge and meeting six nice guys and two chain smoking Korean girls with mean faces, watching "Wanted," chowing at Soup Plantation, chowing at Natalee Thai, and getting served hot tea by Japanese French Maids is a good way to go out.   I was even gifted a lucky elephant from Thailand!  He's gonna be my new driving buddy.    

I ate too much, so today I'm on Jamba Juice lunch diet and then celebrating with all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ tonight with Tim "Justin Medlock is on my fave five" Ngork and Samlanlikiki's Chi. 

My Fave Five Women

I've seen the Gnarls Barkley and Ow-Call-Life-Alert-My-Shoulder Wade commercials about 2,347 times.   I still don't own a T-Mobile phone.  It was a funny commercial at first, but when they gonna update this ish?   Whoever is in charge of this marketing campaign should take it to the next level.   Let me see A-Rod's fave five... Madonna, his Agent, his Kaballah mentor, etc.   How about R. Kelly's fave five, or Derek Jeter's, or Jared Leto's or...  

Why don't do they do the commercial with women?  

They could pay the SATC girls fat money to do the commercial and it would be a huge success.  Sam calling Carrie, Charlotte calling Miranda, Miranda whining to Carrie.   Girls would be thinking... that limited T-Mobile phone with ostrich leather and swarovski crystal buttons, I gotta have that. 

This commercial would make total sense, because most girls only have about five fave women.  Well, of course I'm assuming a lot, but from what I've seen, it seems that most women only have 2-6 fave girls.  All the other women they know, they can't stand because they annoy them.   They steal their men, they are too dumb or too pretty.  If they can stand them, it's only in little doses.   If she's too pretty, too smart, or too dumb, girls have a hard time hanging with.  Maybe women seem to coexist better when one of the two isn't single and the other isn't a threat to steal the other's man. 

Guys don't really have this problem   It's really basic.  If the guy's a d*ck, he's out.  Everyone else we are cool with.   Why can't it be that easy for girls?