I’m supposed to be packing for my flight today but I’m reminiscing about my last trip to the Philippines. I didn’t think I’d be lucky enough to return this soon, AND to return with family! How nice to have parents point out childhood landmarks. I’m glad that as a family we experience seeing where our roots lie. Exactly how far have the coconuts have drifted from their home island? Seeing lush countryside that could have been our stomping grounds, feeling the warm rain of a tropical storm, and living amongst impoverished people smiling because money doesn’t really matter. Oh and the LECHON!  That sweet sweet swine.

Time to pack.

Flight to Japan tomorrow, and I think I’ve got insomnia due to excitement!  I’ve been procrastinating on the packing, mostly due to daydreaming about a foreign land that I don’t fully understand, but love to be in.  Japan encompasses and offers the things I love about traveling… culture shock, good food, and good times.

Simple things like common courtesy, not littering, and attention to detail really make me feel FAR AWAY from Los Angeles sometimes.  In Japan, if there is a tired man in a business suit sleeping on the street, conversations near him get quiet out of courtesy!  I was amazed.  I was totally expecting someone to start peeing on him or something.  Not that they would do that over there, but it surprised me and gave me back some hope I’ve lost for mankind.  Sign of a good vacation, ne?

Thanks to jet lag, waking up at 4 am actually does me good! Since the Tsukiji fish market seems to really start closing down around mid morning.  Tuna are HUGE!  After walking around a bit, Amer and I were able to eat delicious, freshly caught, expertly sliced fish, FOR BREAKFAST.  While sitting next to a man reading hard core smut.  SMUT!  Who brings porn to breakfast?! Now, I’ve never had smut with my sushi at 8 am, but I guess I can’t knock it till I try it.  Total culture shock, totally good food, and great times.

And it turned out the smut belonged to the restaurant!  And had interesting… articles.

Time to pack.

“Dire, Dire Docks” from Super Mario 64 is one of the best songs from a video game. It’s a great melody that really sets an acoustical atmosphere of underwater peacefulness and serenity. But the Giant moray eels with sharp teeth that want to put you in their mouths sometimes ruin the peace. They scared the crap outta me, and that visceral feeling of fear along with the joys of success are part of why I love this game and this song. Back then, when playing the game, I would be totally immersed in the digital, “analog controlled” environment. Also, fortunately for my parents, I was quiet and kept out of trouble. All that mattered to me in the universe was getting past a gigantic moray eel. And I had a BLAST doing it. I learned life lessons as well! Like practicing something till I got it right, and not giving up. And if I’m ever under water and out of breath, I should absorb or eat a gold coin to get oxygen. (Mental note, carry buckets of gold coins the next time I go swimming) See, video games can do you well!

During that summer of ‘96 my long time gamer friend Wayne, who gained local gamer fame by always having all the new systems first, got the Japanese N64 with Mario 64 included! I would wake up, and I would run and sometimes briskly walk from my house in Arleta, CA to my friend’s house in Sun Valley, just to experience the strong combination of Miyamoto-sensei ’s gameplay/fun, a winning score by Koji Kondo, awesome art and seemingly seamless code. It was without a doubt worth the run and the smoggy air, and the stray dogs. That Fall, I got my own US N64 and Mario 64 a week early for $300 bucks out of the back of a car in a motel parking lot. It seemed pretty shady, probably cause it was, but it made quite an impression on me, and added to the thrill of getting something before you were supposed to get it, and being “the Wayne” for once! I took it home and I began to fall deeper into the game and deeper in love with it.

This was the path I ran and briskly walked, like a little brown streak on many “summer of ‘96″ mornings.

Oh yeah. Here’s an awesome piano rendition of Dire, Dire Docks I found on youtube. It made me want to pick up piano. But not like “Me angry. Me want to pick up piano.”

Today I almost got a singing telegram. During a rare conversation with my friend Janice, I had an ever rarer call on my office phone. I picked it up and before I could even put the phone to my ear, I heard a woman singing! I couldn’t recognize everything she was singing but I know it had “my boo” in it. She went on singing and I started to realize that I was intercepting a song for another! And just as I was beginning to think it was a recording or something, she stops and says “…and I’ve been singing that ALL day! … Oh no… did I get the wrong number?!” To which I reply laughing “Yes… but… that was AWESOME!” And we proceeded to have loads of laughter. She apologizes all embarrassed, and in somewhat of a panic tries to explain the “my boo” part by saying “his nickname is “boo” and I wanted to personalize, blah blah” and then abruptly stops, sparing me the details, maybe realizing that her explanation was only making the conversation stranger and more awkward. But I assured her of the event’s awesomeness before we had another laugh about it and bid each other a good day. This singing telegram was really nice, even though it wasn’t for me. I think the world needs more random ass singing telegrams. Thanks random ass singing telegram lady!

Okay a little buzzed after a night of pool, but one thing that lingers in my mind after a long week of work is a baby that’s barely a week and a half old. Her name is Arianna Ysabelle Pimentel. She is my first godchild and I think that she is distractingly cute! I was lucky enough to hold her last Saturday, barely the size of football! Kawaii desu ne!!! And this week I saw a picture of her wearing a natural smile only six days old! So fucking cute!   I thought it looked like she was holding a guitar and having a jolly good time, and Jennifer thought that it looked like she’s doing an “aw shucks” sort of pose. Either way, having this baby vie for my attention as my desktop background has been distracting, esp. since I have a soft spot for ridiculously cute babies wielding guitars with cute baby smiles. I want to smell this baby and bite her cheeks.  Welcome to the world, Arianna! 

Prepare to get spoiled!!!

It’s been a few weeks since my last trip to Vancouver, but I still get that warm fuzzy feeling when I think of it. Or should I say, cool mossy feeling? The only thing I was really looking forward to was visiting the Capilano suspension bridge. Last time, my buddy Franjie tagged along and checked it out while I was working. I saw his pictures and I told myself I had to go. So much green!!! You don’t see that much green growing up in the San Fernando Valley, ese. Anyway… the forecast called for a slight chance of showers on Saturday, and the weather throughout the week was rainy and dreary. But my prayers were answered, and the skies cleared up on Saturday, the day I planned to visit the bridge! And to think, I wasn’t going to stay the extra night! It was a tough choice, since I had a copy of Super Smash Bros. Brawl waiting for me at my local game store… Nature, versus Nerd-ture… this time, I chose Nature. The Opus hotel also made the choice a little easier by putting me in the same room I was in last time, so it really felt like home. Except for the heated bathroom floors, and the view of the coffee shop across the way while sitting on the toilet. What a view! For them and me! I’m kidding, I can hardly poop when other people are in the next room, let alone poop in plain view of pedestrians.

Another thing I’m very thankful for are the people in Vancouver, they are so nice… notably my new friend Dianna! We’ve worked together before but never really hung out. But this time was different! We had an adventure around the Amsterdam Cafe, and connected at the cafe. Like, connected. Ever have one of those spiritual connections with someone? Doesn’t happen very often, but it sure happened with us. I made a new friend! One of those friends that you feel like you’ve known for a long time. Lots of things in common too, especially since we both like women! Having a lesbian friend is actually pretty sweet, it’s safe, and there’s no pressure! I seem to be hanging out with a lot of lesbians as of late but it works for me. Because at the moment, I’m trying to stay single… Long story. Maybe some other time. Also, I’ve got a $500 bet with my cousin that I can stay single until the end of the year. I’ve realized, that for the past 10 years, I’ve been single 12 months. I’d like to change that ratio a little bit and live life for myself…Unless of course the girl wants to PAY the $500… or work out some sort of lay-away plan? Kidding. ANYWAYS… here are some pics from my trip!  Some pictures are courtesy of Dianna and Charity…

Dianna David, Jeff Fisher, lil’ ol’ me.

The best calamari I’ve ever had in my life. Buffalo wings were superb!

Capilano suspension bridge on a beautiful sunny day.

Surfing the swaying bridge.

This nice couple saw my surfing pic and asked me to take one of them…Canada natives and they’ve never seen the bridge before! Kinda like Dianna and her friend Charity! FOR SHAME.

So green. I love it.

Notice how small the people are compared to the trees.

Tree growing out of the side of the mountain!

Charity and Dianna. Thanks for driving, Charity!

I’m a sucker for moss. Ferns too. Even regular old trees on the street had moss on them!

What?! Moss and ferns in the SAME SHOT?! Someone hand me a towel.

I feel so teeny tiny.

Ninja warrior in training. (Willis in the back thinking “what a dork.”)

Treetops. I want my house to look like this.

Dianna asked me to give her my best 90’s rap album cover.

Great food, friends, and fun with nature, I couldn’t ask for more.

Wow, glad we’re showing up Wednesday night. Freezing temperatures on Tuesday. And I don’t think a spoiled, tropical born, LA raised, brown person has the genetics to call that comfortable. But I’m not complaining! I’m just trying to prepare myself…

For wearing a super tight spandex suit that has Canadian reflective balls on it. Balls all over me. It’ll be so cold there, it would be hard to “best represent” myself in a spandex suit… but whatever… I’m not complaining! I get to play “guns” just like I was a kid. Good thing they don’t record the sound effects I make when shooting and dying. Otherwise you’d hear, “pew! pew! pew!” when I’m shooting a big gun, or a Super Street Fighter “OOOH-AAHH,ooh-aahh!” when I die. Apparently, I can’t do sound effects.

But it’s so much fun! I’m really looking forward to the great food (poutine and silky smooth kit-kats), great beer (burr), and feeling very “OK.” (ooookaaaay!)

I might want to pay to stay till Sunday…we’ll see what the weather permits.

Some pics from my last trip…

Clean,

and green.

Mmm poutine. Heard it was a must have. It is. Fries covered in spiced gravy, topped with melting cheese curd. I can’t wait to put it in my mouth. (What? That’s where it goes.) There is no such thing as eating healthy on a vacation for me. It’s a vacation! (kinda) And my favorite thing to do is eat!

“work”

Two summers ago I visited the place I was born. I haven’t been back to the Philippines since I left as a 2 year old. I had become a toddler prodigy at the local shoe factory and a multi Peso-naire. Selling my house, car, and caribou were hard to do. Plus having to haul all that luggage was tough for a child my age.

Here is a picture of me a few hundred feet from the Subic Bay military base in which I was born. Which happens to be in the middle of a jungle and during the year of the Monkey. I’ve come to realize, those two facts explain a lot about me.

It was a spiritual experience. As we entered the gates of Subic Bay, we were greeted with a sudden torrential downpour. I couldn’t tell if my ancestors were crying tears of joy, or disappointment over my return. I’m an optimist, so… they were happy damnit! Our van sputtered up the small uphill road that wound through the jungle. I kinda felt like a salmon swimming back to the place I was born. Except I wasn’t going to fertilize a bunch off eggs at the end of the trip. Child support can be expensive. The uphill drive made me think of how life would have been had my parents not moved to America. Although I love my life in America, I might have made a monkey friend in the Philippines. Now that would have been awesome.

I’d like to think I’ve made an eight-legged friend! Well maybe not, but the evidence may suggest otherwise…

So I woke up one drizzly morning and hanging above my head was this.

Some might say, “Eww gross it’s nasty and it’s a dust bunny with a hair stuck to it, suspended by a web from the ceiling” but I think it’s artistic. Especially for a spider. The way the dust bunny was carefully placed on the end, how it was hanging from the middle of the ceiling, and how it seemed to be perfectly balanced. I’m impressed to be honest! But could it be a sign of gratitude?

A few weeks ago, I noticed a big brown spider on my wall. I think it was a mouse spider or a wolf spider . I’ve handled these spiders many times as a young nature boy and I really hate killing spiders, so I let it out. A few days later, it started raining heavily in Los Angeles. Then one rainy night I noticed what seemed to be the same big brown spider sitting upside down on my ceiling. I walked up and stared at it for a while, contemplating taking it out… But I didn’t let it out because I was lazy, and it was raining. (Not the spider, the sky.) And I’m not going to get wet for some spider! And I guess it’s kinda mean if you are an animal lover. So I fall asleep with the spider sitting on the ceiling near sliding door. When I woke up laying on my side, I could see right under the pillow next to me, it looked as if a spider had set up shop there for the night! Cobwebs were connecting the pillow and mattress cover but the spider was nowhere to be seen. I was actually a little appalled at the fact I was sleeping with a spider so close to my face and that its current location was unknown. Not to mention the urban legend about the spider bite! After composing myself and avoiding a wig out, I turn toward the ceiling and see the dust bunny and hair dangling and spinning like a mobile right above my mug.

Call me crazy but this is how I put it all together… I let spider out nicely one day, and it comes back for shelter in the rain. I let it stay the rainy night, and to show its gratitude, it hauls up a hair and a dust bunny and makes a mobile for me above my head. After that, it drops down and sleeps next to me. Isn’t that sweet? Thank you spider friend! Can I call you Charlotte? Yay for good karma.

God this pimple is getting BIG.