Yesterday, the first day of the new decade, Paul, Howard and I went down to Gilroy. It began with a Grand Slam breakfast at Denny’s and ended with dinner at House Of Noodles @ Milpitas and of course dessert at Hello Dessert near Howard’s place. In between I spent about $300 – $160 for a long-coveted Le Creuset 6-3/4 qt pot in Kiwi colour, $80 for two H&M kickass-cool jackets (so kickass-cool that I bought the same jacket in two colors, black and grey), and $45 for two Calvin Klein slim ties (to go with the J Crew slim-fitting suit I bought about a month ago). The H&M jackets were actually from the Great Mall, which we stopped by on the way back to dinner – I seriously love H&M; the clothes are so reasonable and yet styling and fit me well. Even though I probably spent way more money than I should have, it actually was a great day out - just relaxing, hanging out, eating (the bean sauce noodle at House Of Noodles was delicious and only $4.95, and it came with a free, albeit very diluted, milk tea), and buying stuff. And despite spending almost $300, I still think I didn't overpay for anything. The Le Creuset pot was a steal relatively speaking; it's going for about $250 average. And the H&M jackets were a style I was looking for. I almost ordered one from Gap online a few days back but didn't pull the trigger - the Gap one was double the price of the H&M one and probably wouldn't have fitted as well. So I actually scored bargains and feel good about that. At least that's the story I am sticking to.
By the way, on New Year's Eve, I actually wrote more in a single evening than what I was able to muster in the entire past month. I hope that means I am inspired again and it will flow a little better for now. I like it when I am able to write well - it makes me feel as if I have some talent to contribute to this world. Again, that's the story I am sticking to. I need some confidence-boosting to jump start the new decade.
A sad note to end last year though - I had to attend a funeral. It was Lisa's mother-in-law. She had a massive stroke. Lisa actually was up in Tahoe with Ed and Nicholas skiing when it happened, and they had to rush back to the city. It was a Catholic funeral. I don't recall ever attending a Catholic funeral - it involved a lot of sitting and standing and kneeling and standing and sitting and kneeling again. I was like, make up your mind, dude. My knee was definitely hurting from the kneeling. And how do Catholics remember all the things that they have to repeat back? I am having hard enough of a time remembering the lyrics to I'm Yours, which I am learning in the event of an ambush karaoke. Regardless, Lisa's family seems to be coping well. I guess that's the way it goes sometimes - the circle of life. That's what they say in The Lion King.
So, one more day til I go back to work, and the cycle starts again. I will go to work Monday with a good attitude. Sure deep down I am dreading it, but if it weren't for my getting up every morning to go do what I do in that cubicle of mine, I wouldn't be able to afford my toys and clothes and stuff. That's what we human beings do these days. We work to consume. Sure, maybe we can also achieve self-actualization. You should at least aim for it. Dreams, lofty goals, hoping for a better world, wishing for something more fulfilling than the daily grind. But before that happens, I will just extract my joy from my Le Creuset pot and H&M clothes and bean sauce noodles and my Fruity Delight desserts. Those things may not be as grand as love and world peace and achieving artistic or scientific greatness, but they will do their job for now in making me happy. At least that's the story I am sticking to.
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