Long Distance Ritual: Salmon Asparagus Pasta

Admittedly, it has been awhile since my girlfriend and I exchanged recipes pursuant to our little "long distance ritual," as described in full detail in a prior post. To add a bit of humiliation, she's been giving me more recipes than vice versa...in fact, I don't think I have given her anything to cook thus far. Well, today, after saying good night to her (time-zone consequences), I went through a not-so-normal bout of missing her and started to feel the significant distance at an odd time of the day. Luckily for me, I finished up work early and took the opportunity to swing by the supermarket to gather some fish and ingredients, and attempt to concoct something delicious for dinner. After all, it's about time that I live up to my end of the promise/ritual and give her something to try out in the cucina.

The result?

Salmon Asparagus Pasta. It's a cream-based sauce, but because of the portions, it came out lighter than expected.

Ingredients:

1 bunch of Asparagus, cut into about 1-inch pieces

Half a box of Angel Hair pasta

1.5 Tbsp Butter

1/2 Cup Heavy Cream

Grated Parmesan Cheese

Lemon Pepper

2/3- 1 lb. Salmon fillet

2-3 Garlic Cloves, minced

Parsley

Rock/Kosher Salt

Cracked Black Pepper

Recipe:

Place salmon fillet on baking sheet (I used an olive oil cooking spray over the sheet). Season your salmon fillet with the salt and black pepper, and then add the parsley and minced garlic over the fillet. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Bake for around 12 minutes or until salmon is flakey.

Boil a pot for your pasta, but before you place the pasta inside the pot, put in the asparagus pieces for around 2 minutes to soften the asparagus a bit, but not too long so that it remains firm. Take out the asparagus, and then cook angel hair pasta with boiling pot.

On a skillet, melt the butter, and then add asparagus pieces. Toss to coat. Add the cream and the lemon pepper. Heat until cream begins to thicken. Add pasta, salmon, Parmesan cheese and cracked black pepper, then toss. Voila!

An Ice Cream Phase 2008

It was probably over 5 years ago when I made one of the biggest steps towards a healthier lifestyle. That was the year that I decided to take softdrinks out of my diet entirely (although if absolutely necessary, I will take an orange soda or a small coke once in awhile for lack of having an alternative available). I stepped it up and started drinking more water and juice, and then became less groggy, full and bloated for the years to follow. The second biggest step was cutting down my ice cream intake. I believe at one point, I lasted more than a year without touching ice cream once. Once in a blue moon, I will return to an ice cream phase, which simply translates to finishing up one container and not buying ice cream for another year or so.

My ice cream phase has returned, and this phase's winning indulgence for the first quarter of 2008 goes to ... Edy's Vanilla Sandwich flavor.

During my childhood, I always used to buy grocery brand vanilla sandwiches (not klondikes, or ice cream sandwich wannabes), primarily because of the sequence of taste that fills the mouth when biting gently into a soft but firm chocolate "cookie" while the taste of vanilla cream spreads over my taste buds like a refreshing milkshake. Unfortunately for me, I never really learned how to finish an ice cream sandwich without making a mess of myself, whether it be staining fingers with melted chocolate cookie, allowing vanilla ice cream to drip on my lap, or creating a brown and white mustache.

Decades later, Edy's decided to make life easier for me. Peculiarly, it tastes nothing like your typical cookies n' cream flavor.

So, if you like ice cream and haven't been to the frozen section of the grocery in a long time, take a trip and see what kind of creative new flavors are available.

And the World Grows Old with You...

Have you ever been disoriented by the sight of college kids crawling and rolling down the street in drunken stupor, not because the laughable image is somewhat annoying, but because there was a time in your life when people looking that young were still high schoolers? Do you remember that one day you had a conversation with friends and realized that many of your former schoolmates and other friends are getting married or having children? How about the shocking news that some acquaintances have passed on due to medical complications that are not typical in persons in their mid-20's to early-30's? How did you react when you heard updates of friends becoming regional managers at a big consumer company, or have the title "VP" attached to their name?

The 30-year mark of my existence in this world beckons on the eve of the launch of the Beijing Summer Olympics. The Chinese are very particular about numbers, and have found that the number 8 is an extremely lucky digit to have around, so much so that the Olympic organizers have decided to launch the Olympics on August 8, 2008, at 8 minutes after 8. It isn't the number 8, however, that is swimming in my mind like a guppy dropped in a goblet of merlot. The number 30 is upon me, and surprisingly, I invite it with open arms and heart-pumping anticipation.

This is the year that I become the stories I have witnessed thus far, and take life to an all new level. It is the time for me to shape my career with utmost prudence, and take it down a balanced path of uncertainty, excitement and reasonable calculation. It is the period in which I allow the smallest of mistakes and annoyances to become challenges, and the fatigue of having a year-older body, an opportunity to return to a rejuvenated physical and emotional state of being. This is the year when music, interests, relationships, goals and travel merge into one scheme of life. This is definitely the year that calls me to be as mature as an adult as I need to be, and removal of all the "unnecessaries" and complications becomes a priority. This is also a year when I must take up one notch my responsibility to myself and those most important to me.

Appropriately, it is the Olympics that houses the slogan, "Faster - Higher - Stronger," and as the world grows older, such a simple yet powerful thematic motivation could not have come at a better time...and to mark my 30 years, an even more precise celebration, down to the day and down to the minute. 8:08.

Compatibility Measured Through Candy

Yes. Another cheesy post is at hand, so I'll keep this one short.

My girlfriend and I were chatting online about candy, and suddenly launched into a conversation about skittles. I told her that I would never eat skittles again in a movie theater because the lighting was too dim to distinguish one flavored skittle over the other, and that I only liked the green (lime), yellow (lemon) and orange (orange ... duh) flavors. Sometimes when we chat online, we end up sending messages to each other simultaneously (that's just the nature of the communication). It just so happens that as I had sent her my message of skittles preferences, she had sent me a message at the same time stating that the only skittles flavors she eats are the purple (grape) and the red ones (cherry).

I could end this post with a cheesy, "We are indeed a match made in candy heaven," but instead I will just say that the money I invest in buying skittles from now on will not be put to total waste ever again.

Celebrity Sighting...Again

In true New York form, I found myself bumping into yet another star on the streets today (see previous posts on Kevin James, Mariska Hargitay, The Brand New Heavies etc.). Rihanna, known for her hit "Umbrella" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdPScXhaztg), was in her SUV surrounded by bodyguards and policemen, as a big crowd congregated in a semi-circle, as if gravitating slowly and collectively like an organism of some sort to the passenger seat where Rihanna was situated. I decided to join the amoeba of people and take a look. Starstruck yet again.

Speaking of Rihanna, Mandy Moore (one of my guilty pleasures now - and I will explain later so keep on reading) did a cover of "Umbrella". I must say, it was actually pretty cool. Check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMB6YOWzQMY

As for Mandy Moore, her music has gained my respect ever since she came out with remakes of old rock pop song classics, "Can we still be friends?" by Todd Rundgren (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Olc1PTyeCzM), and "Breaking Us in Two" by Joe Jackson (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C-xazgqpPc). If you get a chance, listen to Mandy's versions (I know...I'm making it sound like she and I are close) and compare. The production quality is excellent, and Mandy's voice puts a good spin to these once soft tunes.

Long Distance Rituals

I never thought that it would be such a challenge to maintain an intense long-distance relationship. My girlfriend and I have had an online friendship for the past few years, grounded by high school memories, and continued intermittently through a 15-year period of platonic banter...yet even if we had built a solid foundation of uber comfort, the stakes have been raised, and now we're in a serious commitment. Instant messaging isn't the same as it used to be.

We wondered what it would take to "be in a commitment" though physically separated. At the end of our brainstorming, we decided to get creative, and somewhat dedicate our little tasks and accomplishments in our respective cities to each other. Sounds vague, yes...but I believe an example is appropriate to illustrate this airyfairy mantra:

Since we are both foodies, we came up with the idea of giving each other simple recipes to try and cook.

She would give me a recipe, then cook that recipe herself, and then I would attempt to mimic what she did and cook it myself, and then vice versa. Recently, she decided to give me a new recipe of sole fillet with a honey dijon marinade. The challenge was on. For good measure, I decided to steam some garlic broccoli, and prepare a side of tri-colore fusilli pasta with a light parsley-butter sauce and baby bella mushrooms.

Well, I tried cooking it for dinner tonight, and here are the results. The only sole fillets available were very thinly cut, so due to overmarinading, the fillets broke up into little shreds, looking like poor excuses for pale chicken strips. The taste was very tangy and light. I liked it very much, although next time, I'm going to reduce the amount of honey I use for the marinade and perhaps increase the tabasco. Cooking needs its adjustments so that the end result is "just right" after a few attempts, and fittingly, it will be these little rituals and adjustments that will steadily help us to get better at this thing called a long-distance relationship.

Poise and Composure at the Doctor

Today, I went to the doctor for a check-up, but made the mistake of going to the bathroom ahead of the appointment, forgetting that I had to give a urine sample (no, I am not an athlete that has been selected for random testing). The personnel in the clinic needed a sample and suggested that I wait around until my body decides that it is time to go again.

So, in the waiting room, the youngest patient around - me - all dressed up in his little lawyer-suit and tie, decided to speed things up a bit, for work was beckoning. Next to me was a water dispenser and a pile of unused plastic cups. I took one of the cups and realized that it was quite a small container. As I bent down to reach the dispenser handle, I filled the cup with water, and started my "fast-track" mission to expedite the production of this oh so important urine sample. I took my first drink, and realized that it was like taking only a double-shot in quantity. So, I bent over again, to fill the cup once more. While the refreshing feeling of drinking the water affirmed to me that the enjoyability factor was working, the disappointing lack of "sensation" in my bladder started to tell me that a couple of double-shots were far from sufficient to get the job done.

So I kept on bending down, filling up my cup and drinking, bending down, filling up my cup and drinking. Eventually, there was just complete silence in the waiting room, except the sound of a plastic dispenser being moved, water pouring onto a cup and me gulping in the liquid. The older patients around just stared at me and maintained a smirk as if to say, "Hehehe. The kid has to pee..." I just looked at them and said with my eyes and fake smile, "how you doin' folks? Minding your own business?" The lab technician and receptionist also took notice of my attempt to drain this water dispenser of the supply that someone will surely need after me, but did not say anything presumably because they did not want to humiliate me, or they just didn't care.

There was a chair next to the dispenser, so I tried sitting down to be less inconspicuous with my mission of the hour. Alas, it was too far and cumbersome a reach for me to sit down with my legs crossed and reach over to fill my cup again between 10-second intervals (the time it takes me to finish my cup). So, I stood up every 15 seconds or so refill and then realized that people were staring in amusement. In a defensive reactionary move, I then picked up a Sports Illustrated to read on my lap to make it look like I was not the least bit embarassed about the situation, but realized that was stupid too, as I had to put the magazine down every 15 seconds to stand up, making me look even more idiotic as I fetched more water from the well. At the end of it all, I decided to go back to my standing-around-the-water-dispenser-and-bending-down-to-refill-my-cup routine like a dude in a bar alone drinking shots quickly and pretending that he had friends or a date showing up to keep him company.

It didn't help that a personnel member went up to me several cups later and handed me a sample cup saying in front of everyone, "sir, please fill this up when you are ready."

It finally took me maybe a gallon of water or 12 double-shots of H2O to get me going. That my friends is my urine story of the day.

The Best Christmas and The Best Present

I'm in such good spirits notwithstanding this relentless cough and pinched nerve in my back that is keeping me from enjoying movement and comfort freely (not to mention the nasal congestion that is preventing me from tasting my food). I think people would guess that I just completed what I would consider to be the best holiday season ever, spending time at home with my family, friends, and of course my new girlfriend/old friend. Well, because the truth of the matter is simple, then there is no need to delve into detail and fully describe the events that constituted the most amazing two Christmas weeks ever.

There is, however, a need to blog about what I consider to be one of the best Christmas presents, if not, the best Christmas present I have ever received. Allow me first of all to briefly distinguish between Christmas presents and gifts before I describe the present I received. My take on gifts is something a bit more macro, intangible and experienced. Presents are tangible, wrapped and given. The best Christmas present I have received thus far was given to me by my girlfriend (big guess there).

She decided to dig deep into our past and construct an awesome reminder of our first few years as friends. Let me describe it. Within a rectangular frame is a picture of me and her on Christmas Eve 1993 - high school days - posing awkwardly as her mother memorialized a holiday image of us. I was much narrower in frame and had braces like any other geeky teen. I was wearing a big t-shirt and baggy jeans...and I had an undercut (give me a break, it was the in-thing back in the day). My arm was somewhat placed behind her, but not around her waist, although the picture makes it look like I have my arm around her. Sneaky. She was also wearing a big t-shirt and baggy jeans, and had her long long high school hair and a headband. There's a smirk on her face presumably shaped in reaction to the teasing that was going on behind the camera at the time. Body language? Her arms were crossed. Go figure.

The frame also included a Christmas card dated December 25, 1992, in which I greeted her Merry Christmas and thanked her for being a wonderful person even if I had just met her at the time (we met because I was supposed to be her senior prom date, but she decided not to take me). Notably, the message in the card was short compared to the novels of writing I would give to friends during my high school days. Accordingly, I wrote the following P.S. - "sorry so short...no time :)" What can I say? Things you do as a kid. But it didn't matter I guess. She admitted to me she had a crush on me back then (I had one on her too) so I got away with it.

To top it all off, my girlfriend, the artist, decided to draw her rendition of the streets of Tokyo around the card and picture, to symbolize how far we have gotten from being high school crushes up to Tokyo in November when things started anew.

That's it for the great Christmas present. How about greatest Christmas gift this year? Well, I think it's pretty obvious at this point.

Not Today

Perhaps one of the negatives about living in New York is the fact that night comes in really early during winter. As I look out the window at 3 pm, I notice that streetlights and some car lights have already started to do its job, and the sky is blanketed by only the thickest of clouds. Indeed, the sun looked like it was setting at noon earlier today (seeing the sun today though, was a rare site).

Having said that, the earlier night of December 20, 2007 is definitely not a negative. Seeing the sun set at 3 pm is an earlier personal reminder that the next time I see the sun, I will be relaxing on a plane going home to start a new chapter in my life.

Happy Holidays. Don't forget to be grateful this holiday season. Cheers.

Au Bon Pain: Bread and Mush

It really was a struggle for me, but at the end of it all, it became quite a fulfilling victory, one which, in the greater scheme of things, is minute compared to other challenges we face every day...even if it's the same challenge on a different day. In particular, I am talking about choosing the right food to eat, and even more specifically, what I chose to eat yesterday during lunch on a cold winter Manhattan day.

My good friend and officemate and I decided to eat at popular bakery/we-have-everything-nice chain Au Bon Pain. The place was just a madhouse in terms of people traffic during lunch, but it was also a lunch equivalent to Willy Wonka's Chocoloate Factory. Well, maybe not, but it's much healthier than McDonald's but also not a vegan joint. After a long long morning drafting court papers for a couple of cases (and one morning of pure oatmeal, water, vitamins and a banana later), I found myself hungry yet again, and the view upon entry into Au Bon Pain did not help by encouraging indecisiveness and distraction from what I perceived to be a good healthy lunch: several cookies, brownies, croissants, tarts, cakes...big batches of rosemary, onion, garlic and cheddar breads...hot roast beef melt, cheesesteak sandwiches and so on and so forth...and of course, an offensive corner stand of KRISPY KREME donuts. I just wanted a small piece of everything hoping that there was something like an "ABP sampler."

Well, I ended up veering towards the soup and filled a small bowl with what turned out to be a yummy tomato basil soup. I wanted a huge piece of rosemary focaccia but decided against it. Instead, I got a half sandwich of turkey, tomato, lettuce and cheddar on a roll. The most difficult part was staving off dessert I must say. There were just way too many sweets from which to choose, but I used my will power and concentrated and focused, until my hands had voluntary movement again, resulting in the pickup of a banana on my way to the cashier. I ended up loving my lunch, and it felt good.

So, the question is, am I dieting? Perhaps. To a certain extent, yes. I think most importantly, this is just the result of having an uber healthy girlfriend. She isn't a hardcore health freak, which at the end of the day makes me believe that she is healthier than others, because she still retains beef, chicken (and KFC once in a blue moon for god's sake) and other good stuff in her diet, but she's gotten rid of a lot of bad things. I guess I have never really consciously said to myself, "eat healthy damnit." Her influence just sort of rubbed off and I'm just going along for the ride.

On a side note (an important one at that), I believe I've come a long way from the beginnings of this blog and have since transcended from what was then the underlying premise of my writings. Things have a way of coming full circle, and I am starting to find a clearer way through this thing called life. My girlfriend now is a huge part of that, and I would never have guessed that a close friend for 15 years would end up being that one special person.

Cheers to you friends and readers. It's been a long ride, but we have reached the beginning of something new, real and exciting. *End of Mush*

Have a nice day.

Celebrity Sighting Again

In the spirit of this unplanned transition in theme from "Confessions of Sensitive Man" to "Confessions of a Starstruck Man," I had experienced yet another celebrity sighting. Last week, I attended a charity event for victims of domestic violence, and it was pretty fancy to say the least. I was wearing a tux for the first time ever (a partner at my firm pretended to order food with me), and the venue in one of the Chelsea Piers off the West side of Manhattan was absolutely gorgeous.

While I was chowing down free wasabi chips, risotto balls, tuna skewers and other lovely hors d'oeuvres (and numerous glasses of cheap pinot grigio), a tall man and a stunning woman entered the room. I had no idea who the man was, but he was escorted by no one other than Emmy awarding Mariska Hargitay (http://www.mariska.com/), best actress from surviving NBC spinoff, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. I tried to get her autograph on my hors d'oeuvre napkin, but I was too late, because I didn't swallow my food in time and couldn't whip out a pen quickly enough. Plus, the ink of the pen would not have found space on that poor napkin due to an overabundance of food oil smeared all over it.

I also feared she might give me her champagne glass thinking I am collecting empty dishes.

This comes a few weeks after my good friend appears in the opening scene of an SVU episode, as she discovers the body of a dead student under an elevator (see previous post of Friend on SVU).

Good times.

Interesting Aspects of Japanese Culture

I believe it is common knowledge that the Japanese people are relatively deferential, respectful and accomodating in nature. Many are aware of Japanese customs, which reflect this nature, such as bowing and their perpetually friendly greetings. Sure, during my trip to Tokyo a few weeks back, the crazy television shows, funky futuristic aura of the city, and ridiculously fashionable (almost to a fault) people all caught my attention, and dealing with the "Lost in Translation" part of the trip brought about an opportunity to practice my language skills (e.g. sumi ma sen, ohashi o kudasai - excuse me, could I please have chopsticks; shashing tote kudasai - could you please take our picture; hoteru ginza washington wa doko desu ka; where's Hotel Ginza Washington?) was quite the trip... but it really was the occurrence of two smaller, insignificant incidences that really caught my attention for reasons beyond me.

(1) Immigration officers. Was it me, or were they nicest people in all of Japan? Upon entry, my immigration officer must have apologized to me a hundred times for taking forever in processing my passport and thanked me just as many times for visiting Japan. He appeared to be around 24 years old (I'm a bad judge of age at times) and was nervous as hell as I towered over the tiny immigration desk thinking that someone a few meters away would accidentally take my generically black Samsonite off the baggage carousel. Wow. A really nice immigration officer.

(2) ATMs. My first attempt to withdraw from a local bank ended in failure, mostly because I entered an amount of Yen that was not divisible in accordance to the bill denominations of the country. Lo and behold, I could not understand the several Japanese characters appearing on the ATM screen that presumably rejected my withdrawal transaction...however, other than the fact that no money was dispensed by the machine, two cartoon characters appeared on the screen with sad faces...and then bowed...and then remained in a bowing position. I almost wish there was a button to tell the animation to stop bowing and stop apologizing (I mean that with utmost respect even if I know it's their custom -- I thought the cartoon didn't need to apologize).

"It's all good," I said to the lonely ATM screen turned animation reel.

Anita Baker and Rage Against the Machine

Want to hear something odd? I was driving to work this morning, and my Ipod was on its usual "shuffle songs" mode. I felt something was off when I realized that I was peacefully listening to "Sweet Love" by Anita Baker (http://www.noolmusic.com/blogs/YouTube_Music_Videos_80s_90s_-_Anita_Baker_-_Sweet_Love.shtml), only to be followed by some drum-banging on the dashboard to the tune of "Take the Power Back" by Rage Against the Machine (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmdkh1iMT_M). Even more bizarre was the fact that I was not fazed by this schizophrenic manifestation of musical randomness.

I always thought there was some algorithm in the determination of the sequence of songs on shuffle mode, which relies on several factors such as the number of times a track is played and which songs are most similar in genre to a previously/subsequently played song. Clearly, the algorithm was out of control this morning.

Yet, despite this incident, I am a true believer in the concept of the music genome project. Our individual different musical tastes converge at a certain point with similar characteristics, rhythm, chord progression etc. So I believe that the R&B movement had a lot to do with the development of hard rap pro-communist tunes you get from bands like Rage Against the Machine. Hard sell? Maybe. For more on the music genome project, check out http://www.pandora.com/.

How diverse is your musical taste?

Home in a Month

For the first time in two years, I will be going home to Manila. Mark my words, this trip will be something else. The feeling of Christmas and the prolonged celebration of the holidays have always been the most charming of characteristics of Philippine culture. Last year's accident caused my first ever holiday season alone, and I intend to make that up with only great reunions and memories.

Getting a December vacation from work may be one of my most treasured blessings. Simply put, as much as possible, I would like to spend good quality time in Manila every year with family and friends, and this year is no exception.

Next month, however, may be extra special, and there may be more stories to tell come January. It's almost fitting that the recent Tokyo episode has spilled over into a pleasantly surprising continuing chapter in my life, and I expect that Manila may be the next chapter.

I was told 2007 would be a great year personally, and so far, there has been no disappointment.

Me and Kevin James

Last week, I decided to fly out to Japan for a few days and then fly to Vegas to attend a christening (a friend wanted me to be a godfather of her second born). I arrived in Vegas on a Friday afternoon. Upon my arrival, I was compelled to treat myself to something good, most especially after the great yet somewhat stressful events that had took place in the preceding days in Tokyo.

It really was just a choice between clubbing, watching one of the several Cirque du Soleil shows, watching a musical, or losing my money to a stupid slot machine (or blackjack table if I wanted to look professional). Instead, I found myself buying tickets to a Ray Romano/Kevin James stand-up comedy show at the Mirage. Oh boy, it was great. Everybody Loves Raymond is by far my favorite sitcom of all time. I love the fact that both TBS and CW in New York play hours of reruns everyday (along with Family Guy, and now The Office). In fact, I'm one of the few believers that the ensemble in Raymond really deserved the group Emmy, beating out Friends on its second to final season. Ray was great, and you could see that most of his jokes were still "family-related" stuff (I know it sounds prudish, but his dry humor is just ridiculous). I had a blast to say the least. The show also included Kevin James, who was also pretty damn funny. I was not a fan of his show The King of Queens (although I thought Leah Remini was pretty gorgeous), but I always thought he was a funny guy, especially in the movies Hitch and I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (I think that's the title).

Probably 5 hours later, after drinking and gambling with some friends, I was walking back to my hotel, and lo and behold, I bumped into Kevin James on the street. With my inebriation-driven confidence, I of course stopped him and had a short conversation with the guy. He's a really nice guy!

Starstruck yet again.

Pivotal Moments

There really are great reasons as to why I have not given much attention to "Confessions of a Sensitive Man" in a long time. I knew 2007 was going to be a special year although I was slightly misled to believe through astrology and fortune cookies that everything would occur during the beginning of the year and throughout the summer. Yes, much has happened, including a short-term relationship that ended early early on (yes, for those of you who have emailed and asked, the "girlfriend" mentioned in previous posts is no longer in a relationship with me, and it has been that way for awhile). Yet shockingly, as I waited for 2008 to appear as a reminder that 2007 was just another year of earning money and having a relationship, the most amazing and unrelated phases of transformation occurred during these late months of the year. What makes it even more spectacular is that in hindsight, it appears that the entire 2007 was somewhat of an ontological change, and it is far from over entering the final few weeks of the year.

Having said that, I do not believe now is the right time to get into the details, most especially since the stories running this episode in my life are far from being complete. Accordingly, I will leave this post with some random yet related thoughts that have been the basis for this irregular and exciting sequence of events.

Do you agree that perhaps one of the most difficult things to do in life is to genuinely come to terms with happiness? We joke about the workaday world and how "work sucks" and you wish you were doing one thing over another. How frightening is it to actually do something out of the comfort zone and choose happiness?

Another thing. What is the craziest thing you have ever done? Was it crazy because it was so worth it, but the average reasonable person could never really do it? Was it exhilirating to do it? Was it a true moment in your life?

Final thing. Do not underestimate friendship. You don't know what it has in store for you later down the road.

Last week, I traveled halfway across the world for a few days and on a whim to provoke some of these questions, and I came back realizing that life was new yet again, and I am loving it. My friends said this is the craziest thing I have ever done, yet they supported me all the way. I figured that after all, as so aptly sung by Seal, "we're never gonna survive unless we get a little crazy."

Friend on Law & Order SVU Follow-up

I received an interesting reminder on my phone today. As you might have read in an earlier post, a friend will be appearing on a Law & Order SVU episode tonight at 10 PM ET. Make sure to catch the prologue before the opening credits. I believe she gets killed then...or she finds the body...or something.

I don't really watch the show but I will not miss this one. I'm starstruck yet again.

One Year Anniversary

It's been exactly a year since my almost fatal car accident. One year ago, at around this time, I was lying in the Emergency Room of a Westchester hospital, not knowing the extent of my head injuries.

Since then, life has continued. Very soon, I will be visiting the police officers, firemen/women, and EMTs that helped me out of my car and try my best to express my gratitude for giving me 2007.

Disappointing Event in Westchester

I have never used this blog as a means to criticize people, mainly because the blog has always been a medium for catharsis or self-expression, but also because criticism isn't much of a healthy thing to do unless it is productive. Mindful of that, I will try not to make this particular post an exception to the way I've been treating this blog thus far.

So close to the place that I now call home do I find something in the news that has placed me in a state of disappointment. Of course, it has nothing really to do with the fact that it took place a few minutes away from where I live; it has everything to do with what had transpired.

Marion Jones, former US Olympic medal winner (3 golds out of 5 total during the Sydney 2000 Olympics) and American sports hero has pleaded guilty in a federal courthouse (nearby) for the use of steroids during competition, including, but perhaps not limited to, the Olympics.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/10/05/jones.doping/index.html

So while baseball fans have spent the past few years debating about whether Barry Bonds deserves the home run record, and on a more important level, respect, such fans likely only constitute a minute percentage of the people who watch the Olympics. On an even more important level - not to put down baseball (I'm watching the playoffs as I write this) - the Olympics is the one event other than the World Cup that catalyzes patriotism and gives sports fans and non-fans alike a sense of belonging on a far-reaching global level. In some instances, this pride is contagious between competitors; fans of one country are at times inspired by the amazing feats of a rival's athlete to the extent that they cannot help but cheer even in the face of defeat. Indeed, pride is so strong, defeat ends up not being the worst thing that can happen in the Olympics.

Perhaps precisely because of strong pride, cheating might be the worst thing that could happen.

Well, it's happened.

Although short of admiration, I commend Jones for coming forward with the truth. It is quite unfortunate that someone who was considered somewhat of an American sports icon had to disappoint her country for victories that were witnessed by many around the world.

My Most Cosmic Fateful Day of the Year

Who would've thought. I'm in shock.

I called up a pizzeria to order lunch, and as I punched in the area code on my phone, I accidentally dialed "1-911" and then hung up immediately after realizing my mistake. A minute later, the office receptionist gets a call from the police inquiring about the call. I told the receptionist there was a misdial.

10 minutes later, a cop comes into our office and asks for my last name just to put it on the record and confirm that there was no actual emergency. As he was talking to me, I asked him if he knew the name of a cop from his county who pulled me out of my car after my near-death accident last October.

He said it was him. He asked me if I was the guy who ended up in the reservoir off Route 22 and said he had pictures of the accident confirming that I drove a Jeep. Up to this day, they're puzzled as to why I wasn't killed judging from the pictures. I was speechless; I shook his hand and told him I couldn't thank him enough.

What makes this even more shocking is the fact that I was planning (and still planning) to visit all the people who helped me on my first year anniversary of the accident, which is just a few weeks away.

Such a cosmic world we live in.