i've been 24 for 2 days so far. one thing that was different was when i got on the eliptical machine and i almost put in 23 in for my age. that eliptical is a constant reminder how quickly these years are going by. the weird thing is that when i was a lot younger....around 14 or 16, i used to think that people in thier mid 20's were still very young. but now i'm 24, and i feel like i'm a little too old. what am i so afraid of? maybe i'm worried about never finding a significant other. and i'm worried because time is running out. when i was in high school, i always believed in marrying at a descent young age. 26 seemed like the ideal age. and i still believe that now. but i'm 2 years from that, and i don't think i'd want to marry anyone that i haven't dated for at least 2 years. considering i'm not dating anyone now, unless i find someone tomorrow, it ain't happening.



here's my take on dating. here's an easy way to start dating someone. if you start a relationship with someone and estabilish that you have more interest than friendship, and this is mutually expressed, you can end up being bf and gf's after just a few dates, even though a friendship was never solidly estabilished. and this is how a most relationships, especially in the younger group, start these days. it is common that these relationships don't last too long after you really get to know them. it's not that the other person will turn out to be a psycho or anything of that nature. basically you start off dating, and might even become bf's and gf's and such, but you realize you're looking for the same level of friendship you have with some of your friends. if this person is going to be on a higher priority list, they'll have to be a more valuable friend than any other friend you have right? when you realize that you have friends that you care for more than someone you consider yourself a partner, the relationship is on shaky ground. and a lot of the times, you'll never find that special thing that makes the other person so special, so the relationship is over when this search is over. for me, it's just too awkward to look for this special friendship bond in the middle of dating someone.



for some people though, especially when they get older (maybe starting the age of 25 or so), they have learned to see through the pitfalls of the typical scenario, and believe in trying to find the special something in their existing friends. the more they get to know someone's personality, the more they'll respect for what the other believes in. and if their belief is something they appreciate, they do eventually form feelings for the other person. unfortunately, sometimes the timing or the sharing of mutual appreciation is never in sync, and that is the story of my life. also there is the problem of being in the friend zone, but i won't touch that topic with a 10 foot pole. all the friend zone arguments make sense (i think eric sent a link about this guy once), but i also believe that if both really are attracted to eachother, the friend zone problem is a minor technicality that both can overcome. if someone gives you a "i don't want to ruin our friendship" argument, don't waste any more time. give up and move on. that's my advice for today. their loss anyway.



turns out that at least one person has gone through my entire blog. amazing cause some of my entries are pretty damn long. remember how doogie howser did his daily journals? just a few sentences every entry. unfotunately, if i truncate my entries in 2 sentences, there will be too much underinterpretation, or overinterpretation going on. :)



back to just blogging.

my birthday was a blast. had some great food at buca di beppo. had a great time. i don't think i can ask for anything more. if all my friends just keep showing up on aug 30, that's all i could ask for. as i predicted, one friend from LA flaked at the last moment. i think one of the greatest skills in life you can acquire is understanding what to expect out of people. growing up with a dad who made too many false promises, i've had my hopes crushed too many times, and have learned not too always expect the best out of people, but expect what is more realistic. this way, there is less chance of disappointment. also, when someone does go out of their way, you will recognize and appreciate them more for doing what they did. they'll appreciate you back in return for the reconition for something they didn't think they were going to do either.



after buca, we went to Rock Bottom. we went there to play pool, but the tables were all taken up, so we just ended up talkin, and then it was closing time. oh, i had the beer taster at rock bottom, and i was a little to buzzed to drive home, and then i said something to really offend the people at the table, and i think especially wendy. now that i think of it, i must have sounded like a chauvinist pig. the truth is, the car insurance is under my dad's name (i'm registered for his honda odessey), and i really don't know what would happen and if there is coverage at all if something does happen. also, the car has pretty bad steering, but i guess that's all relative. i always say my car feels like i'm driving a tank. and yes i'm protective of my car, but that's only a fraction of it. the reason i said jeff should drive my car, is because jeff has driven my car before, and also, he's one of the best drivers i know. so even if the insurance thing is still a problem, there are less issues with him driving my car. it's not that i think wendy's a bad driver....i've been in her car a number of times, and other than that one small incident (nothing worth mentioning), i'm very comfortable when she's driving, compared to riding in as a passenger with some drivers......not gonna name any of them. anyways, to do some damage control, i let her drive home, and yes, it was very pleasant.



a lot of people got me gifts this year, which wasn't something i was expecting. got the Animusic DVD from Nik. i've already watched the whole dvd maybe 8 times in the last 24 hours. eric got me the mr pink version of the resevoir dogs. i'll try to pop the dvd in this weekend. nguyen gave me some pull up working out thing. i've already done some push-ups on the thing. and wendy gave me a bbq tool which will come in handy next time i grill something up. i've played around with it a little bit, and it's remarkable how good it is in telling the room temperature when it's not being poked into a steak.



today, i went to the potato shack for brunch. they are known for their manhole sized pancakes. one thing worth mentioning is that they don't take credit cards. i thought that was awkward. so i know 3 places that doen't take credit cards in San Diego. Lollicup, potatoshack, and Sam Woo's. anyway, the brunch was awesome and a bargain. not to mention pretty healthy for what you can get elsewhere. after brunch, we went to the del mar race tracks. horse racing is definitely cool and really exciting. i'm gonna try to check it out next week if some of my friends are intersted.



after that, we went back to jeff's place, and went driving in his GTR for 1.5 hours. we did the usual drive from del mar, to la jolla, to prospect, to pb, and back. we got some attention, and it was rightly due. he removed a restricter, and the blow off valve is really loud now. i had jeff's digicam with me and shot like 20 30 second movies. the car's suspension is really stiff so the video is very rough. maybe i'll post some links to that when jeff gets around to sending me the files. after that, we went to get some pho and boba. we were gonna play some GT3, then it got too late. that explains my last 36 hours away from blogging.