More Causes

UCCE, Save the Children, Tzu-Chi, Musicians that I Know (MP, CL, MT, WH so far... feel free to add to the list!), Community Art/Theater/Music

new: gumball capital, illini 4000, barestage

So many things to support! Gotta start keeping track of what I'm spending money on so I can start supporting. :)

Spending --> Donating

This is an idea that I have worked on for a while, but never fully fleshed out. I was either too scared, too busy, or too poor.

I'm not sure that any of that has changed, really, but I'm noticing that I tend to justify whatever it is that I spend money on. That, and there are a couple of causes that I would really like to support, but don't ever get around to doing.

The basic gist is that for every dollar I spend on unnecessary items, I will donate a portion to a good cause.

I am using slightly lax parameters for "unnecessary" and "cause" to support the people and programs I think deserve it and to help rid of bad habits.

Here is a preliminary list of items in each:

Unnecessary/Leisure: Soda, Candy, Video Games, Movies
Causes: UCCE, Save the Children, Tzu-Chi, Musicians that I Know (MP, CL, MT so far... feel free to add to the list!), Community Art/Theater/Music

I'm clearly not going to cut all the leisure activities out of my life, but I can more evenly distribute my money towards the better causes if I have to spend more than the sticker price on the leisure activity.

Friday is a new month, hopefully, I'll have some sort of system worked out by then!

last few days of rest

The last couple of days has been full of sleep, phone, sleep.... interspersed with some cleaning, cooking, and movie watching. There's just one more day until work starts again! I am actually sort of excited to get back into the groove of being busy. Today passed sooooo slowly! Cleaning took much less time than I thought it would, and I kept looking at the clock and thinking, "It's only 5pm? When can I go to sleep?"

It's good to know that I can stay up until 11:30pm without having taken a nap. Now I just have to wake up at a normal time tomorrow, stay up to about this time tomorrow, and wake up early on Monday for work.

I have one more essay to write (for now) and hope to complete that tomorrow, in addition to going to a cycling (spinning) class, and maybe stopping by the library for a magazine sale.

I can't tell if I have too much to do (and therefore don't want to do any of it) or too little to do. It certainly does feel busy to a point, even though I think time passes so slowly.

Maybe I'll just go to sleep and make more sense tomorrow.

visiting old friends

This break, I saw more friends than I thought I would and I knitted less than I had hoped. And that's okay! During my very short stay at home so far, I have been able to see countless friends and family friends through all sorts of events. There were the potlucks and the parties, where massive amounts of food were consumed, the individual hang-outs, at the coffee shop or the lunch place, the late night visits, either at In-n-Out or at a very nice person's house. We had the catch-up conversations, the planning conversations, the more philosophical conversations.

All these conversations give me the chance to solidify my thoughts, something to give shape to the ideas floating inside my head that I don't crystallize on my own. I talked about education more in these last two weeks than I have my entire life. What I realize is that I'm not the only one who cares (by a long shot!). Everybody I have talked to has some sort of opinion and insight into how the education problem can begin to be fixed. This is extremely encouraging to me! The fight for educating students doesn't start and end with teachers. That is simply one portion of the puzzle. For students to truly be successful, they must have strong teachers, mentors, role models, family members, community members, etc. The more support they have, either by way of example or by conversation, the better off and more informed they will be.

Whatever career you choose to take, you CAN impact somebody's education. For some, that might mean saving box-tops from cereals and other packaged foods, others, signing up for e-scrip, still others, showing up to those performances and games. I hope that by the time we have our own kids or are around other people's kids, we'll remember all the things that people did to support us and clear a Saturday afternoon to catch a matinee performance or a soccer game.

There are so many things to talk about regarding education! This is just a start to what one can do easily.

I am glad that my friends are doing well in their own lives, and I am hopeful that we can make a difference, even if it starts by talking about education over coffee or tea. :)

over or underwhelmed

I'm not quite sure which it is.

I am overwhelmed a little by:

• everybody being home, especially my sister
• all my stuff (I really need to donate some things)
• all the things that I want to do (and haven't done)
• education. I am overwhelmed and excited. I need to decide what I want to teach!

I am underwhelmed by:

• how much I want to just stay in bed sometime
• my lack of desire to leave the house sometimes
• how sleepy/lazy I feel

There are so many things to do! So much that's it's hard to get started. I have been meaning to write for awhile now, and just didn't get to it. I should take my own advice: create smaller (achievable) goals, while working to fulfill those big goals!

too

there are too many things to do, too many places to see, too many words to read, too many sounds to hear, too many people to love

there is too little time in a day, too few days in my life, too little resources to devote

Was today, irregardless of yesterday or the day before, worth it? I do not mean whether I accomplished all my life goals today or not, but whether I am proud of this day or not.

It was and I am.

Giving Thanks

This long weekend has been a whirlwind of family, friends, potlucks, foods, and fun. I can't believe I considered not coming home for Thanksgiving. Not being in the area, I just don't feel quite as connected to everybody as I used to be.

Wed:
I got home around 12:30am and my parents stayed up until 2am to talk to me! Even though, sometimes, my parents are night owls, I was still touched that they missed me and wanted to talk to me enough to give up so much sleep.

Thu:
After waking up at an ungodly hour (due to the time difference), I continued to talk to my parents extensively. Maybe we don't agree on everything (let's face it, we don't), but I'm excited that we're at the point where at least we can talk about everything. I'm at the age now when I don't really have to ask to make a choice, but I would still rather my parents approve or at least support whatever I choose to do. And, even if I hate admitting it, sometimes they make a good point.

Still Thu:
We gather together with my family friends for all major holidays and some birthdays (we used to do "surprise" sweet sixteen birthday parties, complete with wands and capes.... nevermind). It was nice to see everybody and hear what they're up to. I'm sort of glad I didn't talk to the adults quite as much this time, just being everything is so up in the air/controversial/undecided.

Fri:
I had lots of high school friends over for non-lunch food, and we still had a ton left over. I went to the farmer's market at Vallco in the morning to stock up on some fruit, and then I checked out the new Trader Joe's to finish up my shopping. I love catching up with these friends because I don't get to see the much, and it's so interesting to see what everybody is doing. There's still a pretty healthy range of things that folks are doing: some are working, in school, figuring it out, living with boyfriends, living at home, etc.

Fri Evening:
We had dinner with family friends from high school. Sort of. All the kids are younger than me, but we had a lively discussion with the parents and the kids (now that we're all old enough to participate). I love that I can talk to the parents now and have a conversation. One more than "how's school?"

Sat:
Shopped briefly with a good friend from high school. Bought some of the items on my Christmas gift list, but I'll have to keep working on that. We had more people over for dinner and had fun playing with the kids (ages 8 and 10). They left early to get the kids to sleep, and then we embarked on a loud conversation about my dad, my dad's family, and other people we knew. We don't get rambunctious that often, but this was definitely one of those times. Everybody talked louder, but had a blast. I'm excited to have those more with my family.

Sun:
I'm starting to pack up before eating two lunches before going to the airport. It'll be nice to get back and settle in. It will probably not be nice to work tomorrow. Back to the real life!

When is it okay to lie?

In a Junior English class last week, the students were asked a question: If you were wrongly accused of a crime, but will be let off if you confess, would you do it? If you continue to claim your innocence, you will be hanged. What would you do?

This question comes out of the current topic: Salem witchcraft trials. The reaction was mixed. To those who said they would not confess, the teachers asked, "Have you ever lied before, in your entire life?"

I won't lie now. I absolutely have lied before in the past. If you ask me, however, what I would do in that situation, it would be very hard for me to say that I was guilty, if I knew I was not. Would I be willing to give my life for it? Probably not, to be honest. But, if this was a purely theoretical question, I would emphatically tell you that of COURSE I wouldn't admit to a crime that I didn't commit. What's the difference? I value my life more than I value whether people think I committed a crime, especially if the situation was made clear. Why should I throw the rest of my life away just to prove a point? On the other hand, why do I have such a hard time admitting that I would disregard my principles of telling the truth to save my life? I want to believe that my principles mean something.

What I have gathered is that while my principles do mean something, they don't always mean AS MUCH. Especially if my life is on the line. I can live and spend the rest of my life living my principles, but I don't get that chance if I choose that moment to be stubborn.

Why is it okay to tell lies to parents, to friends, but when it comes to telling a lie that can only help save your skin, we freak out and bring out all these principles that we would be going against.

Is it okay to lie? When?

"I'm a big kid now" - Band Aid Commercial?

What do you want to be when you grow up? I'm sure I, like so many adults before me, will be asking this question often, especially during this summer teaching kindy classes, and next year, working with juniors in high school. Typically, the answers include: astronaut, teacher, president, artist, but what does growing up really mean? Is it just a job? Is it what you fill in the “occupation” or “job title” blank?

I like to think that growing up goes beyond a job title. Growing up includes having a job, hopefully, one you enjoy, but more importantly, the job provides financial security, part of the the process for growing up. It's not just the job, though, it is also being independent and taking care of yourself and others, being responsible for your own life, setting your own alarm, getting up on your own in the morning, and doing the things you want.

Even though growing up means doing things independently and on your own, it doesn't mean we have to grow up on our own. I've had lots of help! Leaving California was the most grown-up thing I've done. I grew a lot in high school and in college, but the fact was, I lived either at home, or very close to home and always had a lot of support from my family. After I graduated, I lived in Berkeley, but went home every weekend. There's only so grown-up you can get when your mom still cooks for you.

Coming to Illinois, my parents were fairly uninvolved. They had opinions, of course, but they didn't look at apartments for me, they didn't look at my lease, they didn't book my plane ticket. They said I could come, and there ended their greatest involvement in my leaving. My mom doesn't even ask me if I've done my laundry, or if I'm getting up on time. She assumes everything is fine unless told otherwise.

When my dad stopped giving me money, though, right after I graduated from college, I felt the most financially independent. I watch my bank accounts now like a hawk, and calculate when I'm getting paid and when I have to pay my credit card all the time now, but it felt so good to pay rent and everything on my own. I mean, I'd love if somebody did pay it for me, but, the idea that I can absolutely take care of myself financially is wonderful.

I'm not completely an adult, yet, though. I still call my parents and get their okay before signing a new lease. I make sure it's okay to go to Los Angeles for a week before buying bus tickets. Maybe it means I'm still holding off adulthood, simply that, unlike many other young adults, I still like my parents.

Honesty...

or what we want to hear.

We've all been there. We ask a question with a clear idea of what we do and do not want to hear. It is so easy to react negatively when we hear what we don't want to hear. What message does that send though? Say what I want to hear and I won't get mad. Say what I don't want to hear and I'll get angry. What will this person learn? Say the "right thing" and nobody gets mad. Often, this leads to lying or at the very least, stretching the truth.

It's easy to say "tell me the truth." However, if I overreact every time somebody tells me a truth that I don't want to hear, they'll learn. They'll learn to say the right things and stay out of trouble.

Consequently, if I don't pay enough attention, it would be easy to mistake their right answers as their agreeing with me. Is it, though? If I willingly allow myself to stay in denial, I will only be more surprised (and angry) when I find out the truth. Then, I say, "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

Why, indeed. They were trying to keep you from being mad, and therefore spoke an untruth. Of course, it comes back to bite them anyways because I accuse them of not having stated their opinion earlier.

"But I asked!" I might think to myself. True, I did speak the words, but my actions, over a period of time, did not match that. In the end, it is the actions that others believe.

It is difficult to let go of these bad habits, but until we do, we remain blind to the truths sitting in front of us. Letting go requires patience, persistence, and practice. The results, however, are more honest and open conversations, earlier detection of issues, and clarity in the understanding of the situation.

Shouldn't we be doing everything we can to minimize misunderstanding?

The Plan...

... is to come back in the fall and live across the street from Central High School. I want to work there for one more year before starting a masters program (meaning I'll be applying next year). Hopefully, I'll get to do some more work with the special ed department and really get an idea of life as a special ed teacher (also casework and co-teacher). Armed with this experience, I will be much better prepared for a masters program in special education.

In the meantime, I will make sure that special education is what I really want to teach, keeping in mind my other options of math, ESL, or literacy. I'm anxious to get started teaching, but I also want to make sure my student is at a good place before I leave him to fend for himself.

My goal for him is to not need an aide with him the entire day by his senior year. That's a little ambitious, but he's a smart kid, and when encouraged and motivated, can make amazing progress.

Progress, once acknowledged, will quickly lead to more progress.

a quick update

Since graduation last May, I have:

• toured Los Angeles with the UC Chorales
• worked at SCORE! Educational Centers for six months
• sang with UC Alumni Chorus for a semester
  
• traveled to Taiwan for three weeks
• moved to Champaign, IL (at least until June)
• crocheted a hat
  
• started work at Central High School
• joined The Chorale
• accepted a part-time temporary position with Pearson Assessments
• enrolled in an online stats class

I am in the process of:

• looking for summer work
• figuring out "the plan" for next year
• trying to keep in touch with everybody that I miss
• looking for my knitting needles
• reading lots of books
• cooking a lot more
• playing zack and wiki on the wii and daigasso band brothers on the ds

It's been fun out here in the midwest so far, but I am super excited to come home for the summer!

Controlling Misery/Happiness

"Most people would rather be certain they're miserable than risk being happy."

A random quote I stumbled upon in Google Feeds. Seems silly, doesn't it? Even so, I understand a little of what the quoted person meant.

Control. That's really all it is. If I believe I can control my destiny, and I can't seem to make myself happy, then I am a failure. However, I CAN make myself miserable. This is much easier than making myself happy. And I know that I did that. I had that control. I had that ability to make myself that way.

Why is it so hard to be happy? It's much less explainable. The things that make us the most happy sometimes aren't as straightforward as the things that make us sad. I can be sad because somebody was mean to me, because I didn't accomplish something, because I am still stuck on something I have been stuck on forever. What makes me happy? A beautiful day, an appropriately timed peck on the cheek, a kind word spoken by somebody at exactly the right moment.

Sometimes, we can do all the right things and still not be happy. This in itself is frustrating. It's even more so when we know we have the capability to control our happiness. Yet sometimes it is still unattainable. Instead of facing that and being happy with what we have done so far, reveling in the process, and basking in the hope of what is to come, we falter; we think, if I try so hard and still fail, maybe I should just fail better. Fail bigger. We sabotage ourselves so we can admire our own handiwork.

Although this is far from pure speculation, I have moved past of most of this and am allowing myself to feel happiness. To not question it too much. To let it be.

Sometimes, the absence of trying is all that is needed to feel the pure happiness that has already been presented to us.

little itty bit-eee

In short: I arrived in Taiwan on 1/22 and I leave on 2/11. In Taiwan, I met countless relatives and ate loads of good food. Yesterday (I think), I acquired a brand new toy! It has a 7 in screen, 512mb of RAM, 4gb of flash memory and runs on NOT MICROSOFT (Linux).

In long: There are so many things to think about, so many bits of meaningful conversations I have had with folks, so many new angles and ideas to discuss that I utterly fail at doing it all. I think the topics that come up the most include: family, children, marriage, and all things related.

Family: It's definitely different being in the homeland for Chinese New Year: much more of an event than at home, although we do try pretty hard every year to achieve some of the festivities. My dad, his brother, and his sister (all three children) made the trip back to Taiwan this year. My aunt has not been back for 23 years (for the New Year, not to Taiwan). My grandmother complains about the noise of all of us invading their house, but not-so-secretly, she's super happy that we're all here. Even my grandfather, who spends most of his time on the couch watching TV or in his room calculating stocks comes out to socialize a bit and join in on the fun. In addition to the three children, my mom and my dad's brother's wife both are here as well. I'm here representing the grandchildren (by way of graduating early and being employed, and then unemployed, and thus able to take a three week vacation).

Everybody also has a different opinion about marriage. Maybe those will get shared later...

Writing some is better than none, so at least I got started!

summer thus far

I'm going into my seventh week at Score! It's been a crazy couple of weeks: 1 day of orientation, 3 days of real training, 1 extra day of offsite training, 1 day in my center, 3 days of sales training before I was in my center for good. In my 4th week, I was solo all week. Scary? Yes, but so much fun. I love meeting the families and the kids, and everybody who works at Score! is so passionate, not necessarily about the same thing, but with a variety of the perks of the job. I love hearing about everybody's different experiences, and what keeps them here. The hours are funky, but I don't start super early, but I get out sort of late. I've gone out almost every day. Today will be one of the exceptions, but it's nice too, to come home and relax.

In other news, I am moving. My apartment is beautiful and my roommate is sweet, but it was time for a change. Now I have to deal with the realities of packing. :( I'll be there for at least a year, working in Albany and not biking up this silly hill of mine. I'll be sharing a room (something I thought I wouldn't want to do again), but I think it'll be fun! We'll have bunks and desks and a plethora of nightstands. They are all theater kids; should be fun!

Life is different now, from a couple months ago. I think I'm playing harder than I ever have before; and it's amazing!

from Dagny Taggart to Hank Reardon

from Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged...

"I want nothing from you except what you wish to give me. Do you remember that you called me a trader once? I want you to come to me seeking nothing but your own enjoyment. ... My way of trading is to know that the joy you give me is paid for by the joy you get from me - not by your suffering or mine. I don't accept sacrifices and I don't make them. If you asked me for more than you meant to me, I would refuse. ... If ever the pleasure of one has to be bought by the pain of the other, there better be no trade at all. A trade by which one gains and the other loses is a fraud."

San Francisco... TWICE in two days

Living only a Bart ride away from SF, I don't actually make it to the city that often. That said, I've gone twice in two days, and went to Fisherman's Wharf, Ghiradelli Square, and Coit Tower all without the help of buses. We walked EVERYWHERE, from Powell to Bush/Mason to Fisherman's Wharf's In-N-Out to Ghiradelli Square back to Bush/Mason back to Powell. And then the following day, we started at Montgomery, walked through Little Italy to Pier 39 and Fisherman's Wharf, and walked along the water back to Embarcadero. It was a lot of walking and my feet hurt, but it was nice to be able to take in the sights without being cramped next to a stranger and without the frustrations of waiting for the (always-late) Muni.

Tuesday, May 29
came back from Saratoga, had lunch w/ a friend at Joshuya's (mmm rock-'n-roll: avocado, eel, cucumber in a sushi roll... AMAZING), picked up a friend from the airport and almost went to Hooter's in San Francisco (but instead, we opted for In-N-Out), devoured sundaes at Ghiradelli Square and strolled back to Powell

Wednesday, May 30
after eating a scrumptious breakfast at La Note, my friend from Cornell/Colorado/Saratoga/Portola Valley and I went yet again into the city with the intent of finding dim sum for lunch, but by the time we were hungry we had walked to the water and craved clam chowder instead. then we found the most marvelous museum of old coin-operated games, except that some of them weren't games. OLD-SCHOOL PORN where you put in a coin and it shows you images when you look down the lens. oh my goodness so funny. we wandered around the water and spent some time tasting in the Ferry Building, then we went back to Berkeley, bought books at the closing Barnes and Noble, had pearl milk tea, and ate dinner at Crepes-a-Go-Go with his friend from Cornell/Hong Kong/Thailand. then we looked at apartments with him (he's working in Oakland for the summer) and didn't get horrendously lost. luckily he REALLY liked the second apartment so he took it on the spot. it was super cool to meet a friend's friend, and it's always nice to see people I know interact with people.

Work starts MONDAY in Albany (YAY no 2 hour crazy commute!). I am super excited. It should be good.

just for fun

Obviously, I'm bored and don't wish to sleep quite yet.

For a quick summary, I passed all my classes. I am graduated and will being full-time work on June 4. Until then, I am moving out of my Saratoga house, entertaining a friend from middle school, visiting the State Capitol, and getting ready for working all the time. YAY!

The "Grown Up" Survey
(Meant to be completed by those out of high school)

Tired of all of those surveys made up by high school kids?
'Have you ever kissed someone?'
'Missed someone?'
'Told someone you loved them?'
'Drank alcohol?'
Here are 50 questions for the people who are a little more "mature"...

1. What bill do you hate paying the most?
Rent

2. Where was the last place you had a romantic dinner?
Romantic, eh?

3. Last time you puked from drinking?
never

4. When is the last time you got drunk and danced on a bar?
never

5. Name of your first grade teacher?
heidel (spl? but i do remember her name)

6. What do you really want to be doing right now?
sleeping

7. What did you want to be when you were growing up?
teacher... and now that i can, i wimped out. i'll get to it soon enough.

8. How many colleges did you attend?
cal

9. Why did you choose the shirt that you have on right now?
something to wear

10. Gas Price?
3.5? depending on where you are

11. If you could move anywhere and take someone with you?
i wouldn't

12. First thought when the alarm went off this morning?
already?

13. Last thought before going to sleep last night?
sleepy...

14. Favorite style of underwear?
women's ^.^

15. Favorite style of underwear for the opposite sex?
hey. if you're hot, you can wear whatever you want.

16. What errand/chore do you despise?
cleaning: dusting, vacuuming, etc.

17. If you didn't have to work, would you volunteer?
yes

18. Get up early or sleep in?
get up

19. What is your favorite cartoon character?
snoopy? charlie brown? winnie the pooh? no great reasons.

20. Favorite NON sexual thing to do at night with a girl/guy?
talking

21. Have you found real love yet?
how do you know when it is real? it feels real, but how do i KNOW?

22. When did you first start feeling old?
graduation. not old in the "twenty is old", but old in the "i'm going to be working full-time!"

23. Favorite 80's movie?
not sue when any movies were made

24. Your favorite lunch meat?
pastrami

25. What do you get every time you go into Walmart?
don't shop there

26. Beach or lake?
lake

27. Do you think marriage is an outdated ritual?
nope

28. How many people do you stalk on Facebook?
... not any

29. Favorite guilty pleasure?
fruit crepes for dinner. or jamba juice for lunch or dinner.

30. Favorite movie you wouldn't want anyone to find out about?
...

31. What's your drink?
lemonade. as long as it's fresh. pomegranate, rasberry, strawberry, blueberry, etc.

32. Cowboys or Indians?
...

33. Cops or Robbers?
cops

34. Who from high school would you like to run into?
...

35. What radio station is your car radio tuned to right now?
...

36. Norm or Cliff?
... who?

37. The Cosby Show or the Simpsons?
cosby

39. Do you like the person who sits directly across from you at work?
yep

40. If you could get away with it, who would you kill?
nobody

41. What famous person(s) would you like to have dinner with?
...

42. What famous person would you like to sleep with?
...

43. Have you ever had to use a fire extinguisher for its intended purpose?
nope

44. Last book you read for real?
bookseller of kabul

45. Do you have a teddy bear?
somewhere

46. Strangest place you have ever brushed your teeth?
in the kitchen when my roommie was showering

47. Somewhere in California you've never been and would like to go?
national parks!!

48. Do you go to church?
nope

49. At this point in your life would you rather start a new career or a new relationship?
i am starting a new career. i don't need a new relationship.

50. Just how OLD are you?
20.

The Countdown Continues...

We have sold the Saratoga house, so as of June 1, 2007, we will no longer own it. Theoretically, by that time, our Cupertino house will be fully remodeled so we can move in over Memorial Day weekend. My dad made the executive decision that I am not going to Taiwan anymore. I would have made that same decision, but I would have appreciated making that decision myself.

Cabaret preview is tonight... it's going to be fantastic.
I am taking the CBEST Saturday, but the practice test was easy, so hopefully, it won't be a problem.
I find out my CSET score on Monday.
SCORE! is calling sometime after that to ask if I am taking the job or not.

I am late. To what? I'm not precisely sure. But I will continue later...

Time does not slip away. It blatantly sticks out its tongue at you while you scramble to fulfill all of your commitments. There is nothing subtle about it. It laughs, it jests, but as it keeps marching by, you realize the futility of arguing with it, and you can only be swept away and hurry to your next destination.

The Countdown Begins...

...

2nd to last day sleeping in the Toga house
1 week and a day until Tech (2 weeks and a day until Opening Night) of Cabaret
<>

Life has been treating me okay. Things are worse, things are better, the ebb and flow of all the positives and the negatives make life interesting. There was a pretty rough week and half, and then spring break happened right on cue.

Spring break has been lots of packing (or avoidance of packing). My poor mother has had to do so much of the packing herself. My sister, too, spent her week back from LA packing and providing manual labor for my mother. We are mostly packed, but it's never really going to be done. In the last couple of days we've packed, packed, rearranged furniture, staged the house, steamed the carpets, and soon we will have agents/brokers previewing the house on Saturday, to be listed on Monday. This has happened all too quickly. It hit me two days ago that we were down to the final days of living in Saratoga.

I have had my issues with Saratoga; I still do. But that doesn't change the fact that I have woken up in this house almost every day from 3rd grade to 12th grade. And even as I began to refer to my Berkeley apartment as "home", "home" was still really this enormous house in Saratoga.

The house is now almost empty of our things, only furniture remains. Most of the decorations aren't even ours. A stager brought them in to make our house look more presentable. Even though I don't agree with all of her choices, the house does look beautiful, just like every single house you've ever seen on sale. Just don't look in the garage. All of the furniture not used in the house and all of the packed boxes are stuffed into the garage, and the cars got moved outside.

The Cupertino house isn't finished yet, but we will move the instant it is done. April 7th, they say. Right, we reply. It is smaller, but remodeled, and will be much cozier than the Saratoga house.

Thanks, Mommy, for taking care of EVERYTHING and packing the majority of the house. I had enough trouble packing my own room.

Next time, graduation. For now, taking my sister to the airport.