Whale Watching

YESTERDAY:

  • woke up around 10 am
    • Brian missed our mentor meeting again q.q
  • found that missing jacket … in my backpack
  • head out to lunch with Franco
    • traffic was a bit awful
    • lovely Japanese place called Toyokan Bowl
    • didn’t realize it was mostly chirashi!
    • had some delicious wagyu instead
    • fun conversation about Franco’s work situation
  • walked around a bit
    • massive tree fell over in the local neighborhood
    • it did hit a parked car, but luckily missed a house
  • drove over to Granville Island
    • horrible parking situation
    • got very lucky with street parking
  • checked into our whale watching tour
  • happened upon a street performer
    • juggling knives and a torch on a 10-foot unicycle
    • hilarious with the audience participation
  • whale watching was fun!
    • saw two humpback whales preying on fish
    • also saw two separate pods of orcas hunting for food
    • lots of smelly sea lions
    • took some photos for a fun family
  • went to a social on the island afterwards
    • mix of bachata and salsa
    • ended up leading salsa a few times xD
    • good energy with folks!
  • started raining like crazy!
    • head to T&T
    • lucky I had an umbrella in my backpack
    • massive grocery store!
    • three types of frozen lo mai gai!!!
  • dinner at No. 9 restaurant
    • open 24/7!
    • also a massive menu!
    • sadly, it was a bit pricy for what we got …
  • got home around midnight

» Read more


VR Sandbox

YESTERDAY:

  • work
  • head to lunch with Jackie’s dad!
    • HK BBQ Master’s
    • amazing bbq pork and roast pork
    • hostess at the restaurant recognized Jackie’s dad
  • dropped by Canadian Superstore afterwards for some frozen lo mai gai
  • realized Jackie’s dad doesn’t have a lot of freezer space …
  • finished work around 5 pm
  • head to Shannon’s place
    • carpooled to the Olympic Oval
    • took a call from the cafe there
    • climbing at the Oval!
    • so much incline!
    • failed an interesting route
    • required a compression followed by a dyno into a heel hook
    • I’m still not sure how Shannon pulled that off …
  • dinner at a malatang place afterwards
    • fun convo with Jackie’s friends
  • got caught up on their latest gossip
  • got home pretty late

» Read more


Poutine

YESTERDAY:

  • internet still out!
  • head to Jackie’s aunt’s house that still had internet
  • productive in the morning
  • head out for lunch
    • picked up James who lives a few blocks away
    • went to Lunch Lady, a Vietnamese restaurant in east Vancouver
    • soft shell crab appetizer was delicious
  • head back
    • dropped off James on the way
  • work into evening
  • dinner with Jackie’s aunt
    • tasty homecooked food
    • chicken + potato reminds me of my parents dish
  • head out for social at Baza dance studio
    • decent leads and follows!
    • had fun with a switch that got confused whether she was leading or following
  • drop by poutine place next door!
    • first time!
    • vegan cheese was … not as melty as it should be I think
    • pretty tasty though for a late night snack
  • got home late in the evening

» Read more


BJJ BBQ

YESTERDAY:

  • head to drop off a bag to Mel
  • picked up some shrimp skewers from a Canadian Superstore
    • it’s actually pretty massive
    • beef prices are super low compared to the US
  • found out our afternoon plans had to change
    • originally was going on a hike with a friend
  • dropped by to pick up some dance shoes
  • head to West Van (not to be confused with Van West)
    • bbq!
    • apparently it’s the 18th anniversary of Jackie’s cousin’s husband’s BJJ studio
    • met an interesting guy from Colombia
    • also relearned how to throw a football with Alex’s son Liam
    • he’s so much bigger than when I first met him!
  • delicious picanha!
  • head to downtown Vancouver for a free social at Robson Square
    • mix of salsa and bachata
    • picked up some basic on-1 steps
    • had fun with a few folks
  • head back to Richmond to enertain Melissa’s kids
    • took a nap in the car
  • head to dinner with Jackie’s parents
    • picked up Jackie’s dad on the way
    • amazing crispy roast pork belly!
    • and it’s only 4 minute drive from Uncle James’s house!!
  • head back to hang out
    • finished off three mangos for dessert

» Read more


Vancouver Island

YESTERDAY:

  • head to work
    • got a bunch of things finished in the morning
  • bento box for lunch!
  • one nap
  • head back early
  • finish packing
    • forgot to switch my shoes
    • also left my kindle behind q.q
  • Dad took us to the airport
    • Flair requires us to show up like 3 hours early
    • but flight was delayed by 1 hour
  • found a cool exhibit on afro-futurism in the airport
    • with an artist from Pittsburgh!
  • flight was pretty smooth
    • switched seats with lady so she could sit with her daughter
  • got picked up by Jackie’s family
    • late night noodle soup at one house
  • took Jackie’s dad’s SUV to his house
    • some trickiness with the gate remote not working

» Read more


Marugame Palo Alto

YESTERDAY:

  • head to work
  • ginger chicken for lunch
    • not too gingery
  • busy day
  • head to solidcore class in Palo Alto
    • met up with Ann there
    • lovely class, lots of hamstrings and triceps
  • Sara caught up with us for dinner
    • took Ann to Marugame Udon since she’s been without Asian food on travels in Europe
  • picked up my bike
  • head home
  • packing for Vancouver trip

» Read more


Pack for Vancouver

YESTERDAY:

  • head to work
  • karaage bento box for lunch?
    • pretty chunky sushi too
  • few naps
  • head to solidcore class in Mountain View
  • quick shower
  • Jackie brought back Google food for dinner
    • another chicken and avocado toast
  • one more episode of the Eternaut
  • won’t see Thorvald for ~3 weeks

» Read more


Yoga Weekend

YESTERDAY:

  • took Dad’s minivan to Costco to fill up on gas
    • also picked up 6 jackets for dance team
  • head to hot yoga class
    • 26&2 was lovely
    • great breathing exercises
  • Palmetto Superfoods refuses to take online orders now in Santana Row
    • had to order via a tablet!
    • but it gave me time to take the minivan to re-enter the parking garage
    • avoid that $3 charge after 2 hours
  • also picked up Jackie’s lunch from Urban Plates
  • head home to shower and have lunch
  • quick nap
  • head up to see Sharina
    • quick stop by Trader Joe’s
    • watched Devil Wears Prada 2
  • drop by Satoshi Ramen for dinner
    • sadly they close at 9 but kitchen closes at 8:30 pm
  • went home for dumplings instead
  • stayed up a bit late playing around with an ADU loft concept

» Read more


Sheep Detective

YESTERDAY:

  • head to work
  • chile verde for lunch!
  • lots of naps today
  • head back to Mountain View for a checkup appointment
    • doctor took a while getting to see me
  • work from home in afternoon
  • another late night call with China team
  • Jackie had dinner at Google
  • head to birthday dinner with Benson
    • Daeho in Milpitas
    • delicious!
    • also fun catching up with folks
  • watched sheep detective movie
    • little easy to anticipate
    • but a fun movie
  • couldn’t fall asleep until 4 am

» Read more


Fiber

YESTERDAY:

  • head to work
  • bunch of morning meetings
  • late lunch at 1 pm
    • choo chee fish!
    • but it wasn’t that fresh
  • two naps
  • had a call with a Earthlink about fiber availability
    • representative was completely useless
  • head home
  • dropped by Wells Fargo to take out some cash
  • pick up Jackie from home
  • drop by Costco for gas
    • went inside to check out adidas jackets
    • adult small size is too large
    • kids L size is close though …
  • productive dance practice
    • working on fundamentals
  • head to home eat for dinner
  • call comcast about internet outages

» Read more