I remember experiencing a really warm day one year in like December.  It was beautiful.  Myself and a bunch of other people were like, "Wow what a beautiful day."  And  senior said something to us which I still remember:  "Winter should feel like winter."  He's totally right.  NYC winters should feel like NYC winters.  I don't enjoy 20 degree weather but that's the price I pay to live here.  I think it was low 70's on Saturday.  That's not NYC winter weather.  My question is if its this warm during the winter... what's summer going to look like?  110 degrees?  120?

Everyone should watch the movie "An Inconvenient Truth".  Yes, some of it is political but overall its a movie that reveals things that can deeply impact your life.  Like a global flood from melting polar caps. 

Do  you think we have global warming?  Or is it just a trend that will correct itself?

OK...let's see how long this lasts.  Blogging for the 2nd day in a row!

I'm recyling blogs!  Hahahhaha.  It doesn't count if they're older than three years.  Have I been on this thing for three years?  Daaaaayaaaanm!  I wonder if any of youse would even remember this blog.

Bonus attributes

Everyone's got basic requirements for a significant other.  Personality, intelligence, humor, looks, wealth, family values, integrity, confidence, respect for others, etc etc etc.  You hear different versions of it all the time in different priorities.  But what about bonus attributes?  You know...those things that would be cool but aren't necessary at all? 

Music or voice talented:  I have never dated a girl who was very musically or voice talented.  A good friend of mine has a fantastic singing voice.  Sometimes I get to witness it and at the end of the song....all I can say is: Wow.  How cool would it be for a guy to get serenaded by a girl while she's playing the guitar?

Driving stick:  I live in NJ and drive just about everywhere.  When I was living in the city I more often than not drove people home to Brooklyn or Queens.  I'm so used to it that when I meet a girl who can drive and has a car I'm like...eh?  But a girl who can drive stick?  How about a girl who can drive stick and has a M3...YOWSA.  Amy is close with her M3 automatic.

A girl who's better than most guys in a sport: Just for bragging rights.  Dayaaaam...did my girl just SCHOOL your punk-ass???  PUUUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH. 

What attributes do you think would be cool in a significant other but are just bonus? 

http://www.utexas.edu/police/alerts/atm_scam/    Tricksy Hobbitss! 

I'm going to try to blog more this year...... that's my New Year's resolution.  Or maybe I'll just start to re-cycle my old blogs.

Went to a www.charityis.com/ on Monday with a good friend.  Check out the link.  Its a charity whose purpose is to drill wells in the poorest part of Africa so that people can have access to clean water.  It doesn't sound like a big deal because access to water is taken for granted here.  I guess you'd have to imagine what it'd be like to have no access to water and be forced to travel several miles in order to get water into a jerry can from a dirty water hole.  Makes you appreciate the "finer" things in life.

The founder had already come to visit my church back in September so I was already familiar with his story.  The highlight of my evening was dinner with Alan, an old friend and taking pics with Adrian Grenier aka Vincent Chase from Entourage.  I haven't seen the show in a while but I always found it hilarious.  I thought there was the chance that he might be a snob about taking pictures about it but he was actually really nice. 

One of my friends coworkers (the girl) is a huge fan but this was the conversation we had:

Kin: Julie, check out the dude carrying the water!

Julie: Uhm.... what's the big deal, its just a guy carrying water.

 

Kin: ...... I thought you were a fan of Adrian Grenier...

Julie: I am!  Why??  Did you see him!?!?

Kin:  Yea... he was the dude carrying the water....

Julie:  REALLY?? ....... hmm, I thought he'd be taller.

Hahhahahahahahahhaha. 

It didn't stop her from taking a picture with him

Thanks to Christina for taking the pics

Two of my best friends have birthdays two days apart on Nov 14 (Pete) and Nov 16 (Omay).  Since I will be away visting Ms. Preggers I'll be missing their festivities this weekend.  So I took them and had running nazi tag along for dinner at Ben Bensons for some steak, lobster and wine.  Hey, we only turn 25 once. 

Anyway, its always good to have a girl tag along to keep us relatively civil.  But you know when you put a bunch of guys together, there's a limit to how much civility we can be. Highlights of our convo's:

Omay:  I developed this complex excel model to calculate a good age for my future spouse.  Its half my age + 7.

Leilani921:  .....are you sure that's right?

Omay:  Well, I started at just half my age.... but that would get me arrested.  That's what the +7 is for.

 

Talking about marathons and running -

Leilani921:  Well, I had chondromalacia

Omay and Pete <<Blank Stare>>

Ksiu1:  Its good that you practice safe sex.

Leilani921:   Chondromalacia is runners Knee!!

Ksiu1:  Ohhhh..... for some reason I heard "condoms in asia".  *snicker*

Omay: <<spits out food>>

Pete:  AAAAAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHH

 

Phone conversation with Omay before dinner:

 

Ksiu1:  Dude, I just read on the internet about this lasik operation that went really bad.

Ohmnz (who got Lasik earlier this year):  Whoaaa, what happened??

Ksiu1:  Well, first its so bad he had to wear an patch over his eye. 

Ohmnz:  W...T....F, no way.

Ksiu1:  It gets worse, there was a side effect

Ohmnz (starts sounding really concerned):  It gets worse??  What else happened?!?!? 

Ksiu1:  Apparently, he has this uncontrollable urge to say......HAAAAARRRRRRR!!!!

Ohmnz:  I hate you.

Ksiu1:  BWWWWAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHHAHHAHAHAH

Ohmnz:  I hate you SOOOOOOOO much right now.

Ksiu1: BWWWWWWAAAAHAHAHAHAH *DEEP BREATHE* BWWWWAHAHAHAHAHHAHAH

Here are some links for this weeks marathon:

General links:

http://www.ingnycmarathon.com/about/spectator.php

Specific to my charity team:

http://www.teamforkids.org/index.cfm?organization_id=57&section_id=904&page_id=3765

If you're not going to be spectating... stay out of the areas where the course runs, its going to be crazy!

This Sunday on November 5th, I will be running my first marathon. 

I am just about the slowest runner out there.  That's not even fake humility.... I think I finished somewhere in the last 200 people for the NYC half marathon back in August.  Hahhaha.  I could have finished better but I couldn't find any rocks to hurl at people and slow them down.  This body was just not built for completing runs in a swift manner.

Which I guess makes my decision to run this year's New York City marathon all the more surprising.  The most miles I've ever completed prior to this summer was five.  I've since completed two half-marathons and training runs of 18 and 20 miles.  None of them will come close to shattering any records.  I'll work on speed next year.  I just want to complete this marathon.

I've basically reached my fundraising goal for Team For Kids.  Thanks to everyone who graciously and generously helped me.  I going to say more, but with the caveat that people should NOT interpret this as a guilt trip.  There could be any number of reasons why people wouldn't support my particular charity team.  And I totally accept that.  You may already support other charities, you may not donate to any charity whatsoever, you may not agree with the vision of this particular organization... all valid.  That's not the point.  My point is that during this whole process, I've been a witness to some real generosity.  Not in the monetary sense (this isn't a shoutout to rich people) but in the sense that people who don't even know me that well or whom I haven't seen recently, still decided to support me.  And that's not a pat on my back so much as a testament to the fact that there are people out there willing to just step out in a bit of faith and support a cause that does not directly benefit them.  When as a society, we are surrounded by all the "bad news" that seems to be the ONLY thing happening, I think that's heartwarming. 

Life goal - complete 10 marathons by age 35.  I'm hooked!

For some reason, 2005 seems like such a blur to me.  I was talking to a friend who's moving back to New York from Brazil and we were trying to figure out when we saw each other last.  Turns out it was 2004.

Memory is such a funny thing sometimes.  Ever have something trigger a memory, which triggers another after another?... and its a chain reaction of memories and emotions before you just have to say... Stop.

I'm currently listening to a U2 remix of One with Mary J. Blige.  Its good.  I feel like its making my heart feel heavy though. 

Switching to Ghetto Story remix with Alicia Keys.  Ah...much better. 

I racked up a balance on my credit card again and I'm in the process of paying it down...again.  One more month.  So I'm checking my balance and I noticed the credit card company upped my credit line by almost 10k!!  Isn't that sneaky?  Yea, it seems like a "reward" for being less of a credit risk but let's be honest.  They're trying to spur more purchasing! 

Tricksy little hobbitsss they are.

Like I"m going to fall for that!!

.........I wonder if I can fit a plasma into my room.

More pics from Curacao.

Read Pete's story of how his ex-gf "accidentally" drilled him with a golf ball.

So we ran during out trip there even though this running nerd said we would never run on vacation.  Woke up at 6:15 on Friday morning to run 9+ miles with Omay and Datyon!!  In Curacao.  Btw, Omay torched Dayton during the run.  It was embarrassing.  Besides my sandal story and Pete getting nailed other highlights include golfing.  20 mosquito bites.  Babz drunk dancing in the pool.  Dayton passed out on the beach chair.  Mikey getting toasted BEFORE the wedding.  Entourage marathon in the room.  The casino.  The special Colon at KFC.  Cookie monsters.  For the kids too.  Win = Big Fat Woman.  According to Omay, the sun sets at 4pm.  TABLE FIVE IS ALIVE!! 

Pics of the wedding and couple.

Of course.... no vacation is complete without silly pictures.

I got your balls right here!

I told Omay that Cindy and I look like a couple.

He wasn't amused.

Dayton's got his game face on.

I"m being demure.

Don't mess with the Winstonator when he's about to eat.

Someone..... save me!

Who says asian men can't drive?

I'm about to take it all the way home.

I'm pretty sure I blinked in this picture.

Pete and I have different reactions to our bunny ears.

The boys at the golf course.

Carefully checking the wind.

I think she got everything right.  Except contact.

Its the re-missssssssss!!

Sporting the remnant west tshirt Ashley made me buy

Feed me!!

There's nothing brokeback about this.... at all.

Representing the F to the OB.

Who let these guys out??

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You guys can think of a caption for this pic.