Tag: Life

Back in Time

Published on by Yinglan6 Comments

tEREUy1vSfuSu8LzTop3_IMG_2538Last night, I have finally finish all my work and have a moment to breathe. Actually, it’s a few hours to breathe before I have to jump back to work or worse, prepare for my upcoming test.

To fulfill my fun today, I decide to take a whack at the Daily Prompt, which is interesting, it says, “Congrats! You’re the owner of a new time machine. The catch? It comes in two models, each traveling one way only: the past OR the future. Which do you choose, and why?”

If I have a new time machine, I would choose to go to the past. That being said, I assume I won’t get stuck in time (I can come back to the present) or anything catastrophic (like out of fuel or that the fuel is something ridiculous like Plutonium) that happens in movies like Back to the Future. I am most likely to go back in time to learn about American History.

You’re such a geek! Why do you need to go back in time to learn about history when this is what history books are for?!

The thing is, I think history textbook is kind of bland, it’s all about the important figures. What about the help? There’s never anything about them. So I want to go back in time to learn some of the real stories about the unimportant people instead of reading one of those made-up fiction, although I am not saying they are all made-up but I’d like to confirm.

Oh, and not to mention all those TV shows and movies about the conspiracy theories surrounding the Founding Fathers. I like to know if it’s true. The only thing to find that out, go back in time to the 17th and 18th Century.

After I learn about that, I’d then like to travel to early 20th century. A lot to learn there too. I know this sounds like a waste of time for some of you but I’ve been fascinated with American History ever since I began learning it in 7th grade. There are a lot of things that happened in the past 200 or 300 hundred years and I like to know more and why not get the knowledge the fun and adventurous way. I get to learn about the mechanics of a time machine and get to travel back in time! Woohoo!

By the way, what’s up with the daily post page?

Train Rides

Published on by Yinglan1 Comment

Sorry for the late post. Well, I guess it’s not that late. It’s not even noon yet but it will be by the time I post this. I’ve been studying and taking an exam all morning. Not the same one as the one on Saturday, it’s a different exam and I feel so much better now that I’m done with my exams for now. Man, I can really use a break but then again, I have class at the moment so I will just be quick.

It’s been a while since I’ve ridden a train. I have ridden plenty of trains especially since I’ve moved to Utah. For the five years during my undergraduate career, I rode the train to school every single day. Then I also rode the transit tracks train to the hospital ever since I’ve got braces. The longest train journey was the 15 hours train ride from Salt Lake City to Sacramento, California.

During that long slow train ride, I can remember cramp hallway and some very creepy travelers. I remember people piling their stuff in the aisles and I have to step over them again and again as I make my way to the observation car. I also remember brushing teeth in a tiny bathroom while getting jostled around as the wheels of the train galloped over the tracks. In a simple word, although it was fun visiting all the quaint little towns along the way, let’s just say it is quite unlikely I will travel by train to California anytime soon.

However, that doesn’t mean I’ve spent a lot of time in a train station. There are no train stations here, there’s only train platform and rarely does something happen there. So the only station I’ve ever been in was the Sacramento Train Station and I don’t even know the name of that. Therefore, the only stories that’s left to tell are those happened on the train. I think I will tell those another day. For today though, I think I will just settle with that short one above about my train ride to California. I may post something else later after lunch and homework.

Welcome to Boring Suburbia Life

Published on by Yinglan3 Comments

Aside from the mall across the road, this is basically where everything is

I live in a suburban town about 30 minutes or 25 miles from the outskirts of Salt Lake City. I wouldn’t call it a town, really. It’s got 60,000 people and it’s busy and noisy as heck and the traffic can drive a person crazy especially on the weekend and everyone’s trying to get into the mall and we’re trying to get on the freeway. Yup, that’s right, we live right across the street from the mall.

We don’t go there though, at least my mom and I don’t. The clothes there are expensive and the sizes doesn’t really fit us. So on weekends, if we need to get onto the freeway, we take the longer route instead of waiting 20 minutes in traffic to get from our home to the freeway which is about 1.5 miles.

We used to live in Salt Lake County. I don’t say Salt Lake City because a lot of my Californian friends used to get confuse when I tell them I live in Holladay. Wait, I thought you live in Salt Lake City as I would often get in response.

No, I’d tell them, Salt Lake City is actually very small.

A lot of people visiting Utah for the first time, even my relatives, thought Salt Lake City is a large city but if you’ve lived here long enough, you will know that the city itself is quite small and it’s the county that’s large.

The train that used to get me part-way to school and home

Well, by my standards, anyway. The county is actually small compare to the other 28 counties in the state but it is surely the highest populated county in the state, about 1/2 of the state population is gathered there. Anyway, I don’t live in Salt Lake County, I used to, but I live in Davis County which is even smaller than Salt Lake County.

When I did my undergraduate at the University of Utah, whenever people asked me where I live, I’d tell them, Layton. They would be like, huh, where’s that? I was a little confused myself of why people don’t know where Layton was. So after a while, I started telling people I live about 30 minutes from the school but by train and bus, it’s about 1 hour. They were like, wow, you must be getting up early to get here everyday. I’d nod and say, yup.

I live in Utah for about 7 years now and I never really discover any strange quirks up until about 2 months ago when mom mention that she noticed the people here don’t pronounce the “t” sound except when they say “Utah”. I never noticed that and now I hear it everywhere. For example, I hear people call the city I live in “Lay on” when it’s supposed to pronounce “Layton” with the “t” sound. And when you need braces, people say you need to “straigh en” your teeth. Weird, right?

It’s okay, I guess, living here in the suburbs, though I find life a bit boring and annoying sometimes. There’s hardly anywhere to go and the only place I seem to know to shop is Hill Air Force Base. Now, with my ID card cut off, age restriction, I can no longer have access to the base and without a car, life has just become 100% times more boring. It’s almost like constantly being grounded. I can’t even go with mom to buy groceries now because I have to watch my cousin at home.

F.Y.I, mom nor I want to take my cousin to the market because he has a reputation, even at 17, to throw a tantrum if we don’t get him what he wants and frankly, I am terrified.

Exam Day

Published on by Yinglan10 Comments

I am a mess at the moment. In fact, I feel like I am about to blow. With the endless pile of homework and exams, I don’t have a spare moment to relax. Continue reading “Exam Day” →

The different side of me

Published on by Yinglan2 Comments

This morning I woke up and went straight to work. This month’s pile of work is enormous. If I don’t complete by the end of the month, I won’t receive a paycheck and that is bad. Anyway, I just got to school and have a few minutes to breathe before my class starts. So I thought I would give the daily prompt a go.

I actually gave the prompt a gander earlier this morning and I was like what the heck does this quote mean. “Follow your inner moonlight; don’t hide the madness.” — Allen Ginsberg

Well, after a quick search on google, I found this meaning on chacha.com. “The phrase follow your inner moonlight don’t hide your madness means to be yourself and love who you are and don’t be afraid to show others the real you out of fear that they won’t accept you.”

There are two sides to me, childish and sophisticated. I usually show my sophisticated side but the truth is I am just another big kids and being smart and sophisticated sucks. On the other hand, I would never show my childish side to others because that’s the side that will drive people away.

Being sophisticated sucks, yes I know I said that but this is the side people like . The part that suck is being smart and calculated. It is extremely exhausted sometimes. Don’t you think so? It’s almost like taking tests all day.

I like who I am but until I am truly comfortable, I am keeping my childish side in hibernation for now.

Give me Ten Minutes – A Little Life Update

Published on by Yinglan6 Comments

I haven’t been feeling well this week. 😦 The temperature fluctuations tend to do this to me. Over the weekend, it went from the 80’s to the 50’s. The temperature difference in the classrooms doesn’t help either. So I have chills, headache, and my dizziness.

Yet I don’t tell anyone. No one will believe me plus I don’t have insurance. I don’t even bother talking to mom anymore because her temper had been at its worst ever since my aunt and cousin came to town. Yesterday, after enduring 2 hours of exam and not eating lunch, I went home straight to fighting. Frankly, my throat is coarse and tired.

What did we fought about? Two days ago, she had asked my aunt to re-park her new car and my aunt backed the car into the pole that held the basketball basket. She did what my boss did last November to my car. She turned the wheel in the wrong direction. So naturally, she blamed me for not stopping my aunt. Can you believe that? If I’d known that, I would have re-parked the damn car myself.

Then last night, after she found out how I did on my exam (I stupidly blurted out), she wouldn’t leave me alone and the fight went on for 90 minutes (storming into my room and interrupting me doing homework and all that). It’s so freaking annoying. I feel like the fights are going to go on and on probably until one of us dies or move out.

The other thing that is annoying me at the moment is ever since my aunt and cousin moved in, they’ve been eating, eating, and more eating. It feels like that’s all my cousin think about is food. In less than a month, they have eaten the amount of food that would normally take me and my mom two months to eat. I’m serious and I mean just my aunt and cousin. It doesn’t include me and my mom.

My cousin eats like there’s no tomorrow, like everything is free. Well, nothing is free. There’s no free lunch. He cooks three dishes for lunch and eat most of it himself and then 30 minutes later, snack and then 2 hours later, three or four dishes again, dinner and the cycle continues. Okay, I am at awe here because I have never seen a 17-year-old with such a large appetite. And the thing is, he doesn’t gain weight. Okay, now there’s something wrong with that kid.

Okay, my 10-minutes is up. I don’t really need prompt today but they are part of the fun for my day.

I’ve been super busy with school this week. If you leave a comment, I may not reply right away. Be patient, I will try to get to you as soon as I can find the time to sit. 

Think before Be

Published on by Yinglan1 Comment

Today’s prompt asks, To be, to have, to think, to move — which of these verbs is the one you feel most connected to? Or is there another verb that characterizes you better?

To think, that definitely characterize me. Although sometimes, I should just be because I tend to over-think the simplest of situation and end up with consequences.

I think the person that’s at fault for this characteristic might be my mom. At the age of five, she began sending me to chess lessons. Apparently, chess is a popular game that most parents send their five or six year old kid for lessons, maybe to see if they’ve got a prodigy.

Oh my gosh, I still remember those lessons. The instructor spent the first night handing us all a yay-size book that had the basic moves and all the tricks and then we paired up and play while the parents stood against the wall and watched. I don’t remember mom being there but I sure do remember that it was her that dropped me off and picked me up each night.

With that book, you can imagine everyone in that class knew all the tricks. I did too except I can’t apply it because my opponent would see it coming from a mile away. Anyway, I sucked at chess. Even now I suck. I can’t even beat my own self at the game. But a few classes later, I figured out how the other kids got so good. I saw their eyes move all over the chess board, determining their next move and the move after that. I started doing that too but it didn’t work. I still lost. Eventually, mom gave up sending me to lessons.

I used to be a “to be” person but after those chess lessons, it changed me forever. It’s morphed me into a “to think” person. Now, like a chess game, I would think and analyze every situation before acting, not that it’s bad thing but I just wish that I can just do what my instinct tells me and not think about the consequences.

If I have a vial of truth serum…

Published on by Yinglan8 Comments

Today’s daily prompt states: You’ve come into possession of one vial of truth serum. Who would you give it to (with the person’s consent, of course) — and what questions would you ask?

Hmm, which poor soul would I use the truth serum on?

You know, I am a curious person yet I seldom ask questions. I believe that is because sometimes asking too much questions drive a person crazy and I hate making people feel bad. Hmm, is that why I let my smart-mouth cousin say things about over and over? Is that why I cannot get him to shut up?

Anyway, if I have a vial of truth serum, I probably would keep it and never use it. But let’s say hypothetically that I do use it. I can interrogate anyone I want, three people come to mind but the question is what do I ask them?

Assuming my curiosity have driven me insane and I finally decide to use my secret weapon, truth serum, the two people I would use it on would be my grandparents. By then, I probably won’t even ask for their consent before injecting them both with half of dose of the truth serum. I don’t want to be cruel but I’m afraid if I use the truth serum on them, I am more than desperate. Either way, I will get the answer that’s been bugging me for most of my life.

If I don’t use the truth serum on my grandparents to get some deserving answers, I would otherwise use it for curiosity and the person I would use it on is my first crush. The story is we sort of fell in like with each other in freshman high school but he never told me he likes me. However, right before I moved to Texas, his sister told me that he likes me but if he did like me, wouldn’t he tell me that himself? So it makes me feel suspicious about the truth.

Of course, I would ask him for consent because he isn’t my grandparents and I have a feeling he would consent because he is a little shy and is probably afraid to tell the truth without truth serum. So the questions I would ask him are:

  • Did you have a crush on me in high school, before I moved to Texas?
  • Why did you have your sister tell me instead of telling me yourself?

Unless, someone else is keeping something from me, these are the three individuals I would ever use the truth serum on.

An Open Letter to…

Published on by Yinglan4 Comments

See, I told you I’d post something else today. Continue reading “An Open Letter to…” →

Fiction or Non-Fiction

Published on by Yinglan6 Comments

tkLOe7nnQ7mnMsiuijBy_hmSince I got my kindle reader less than three years ago, I have read close to 100 books. That is a lot by my standards. I can tell you that ALL of them are fiction.

I love reading about history. It makes my imagination go wild but if I’m going to read about history, why not read the dramatic take of a specific event? It would involve love, death, and all that stuff that would make me jealous and sad. Besides, if I want to read about facts, wouldn’t I just turn to a history book?

I also choose to read fiction because many of those literary fictions that were written long ago like pre-20th century, those novels often depict the lifestyle back then and I like to compare then and now. Like the inventions and I also like to marvel at the simplicity of life. No phones, computers, and all the electronic gadgets that have caused us to sit more stand or walk.

Anyway, there may be a lot of great non-fiction books out there that’s crying for my attention but I think I’ll stick to fiction for now.

I know this post is random and all but I hope if I have time, I may post something else later today. For now though, I have to go to school.

I DO NOT Eat Everything!

Published on by Yinglan6 Comments

picky2I have been in the United States for almost 13 years now, more than half of my life had been spent here. When I meet Chinese folks, they tend to have all kinds of assumptions about my diet. Oh, you’ve been here a long time, you must eat all American food. Not exactly. What do you normally eat dinner? Most would ask. Rice, vegetables and meat, I’d tell them.

When I worked for the Li’s earlier this year, they were even more ridiculous. They often asked me to eat the stuff that they don’t like such as cold pizza, burritos (chimichanga), and even over-sweetened cakes. I was like, why don’t you eat them? Don’t treat me like a garbage disposer. I remember a quote from my mom’s speech, “If there are 4 legs and it can walk, it’s food.” I guess they took it literally. When I complained to mom about it, she came up with the term, Garbage Mouth. It means someone who eat everything literally. image03291553

No, that is not me. I am a super ridiculously picky eater. Okay, maybe that’s exaggerating a little but it’s true and I hate it when people assume I eat everything. One thing I tell you I do not eat is onions. Green, red, spring, anything that belongs to the onion family, I DO NOT eat, that includes leeks. I like the smell of minced garlic with vegetables but I throw it away right after.

Another kind of food I don’t like is squishy sloppy food. You’re like what? I’m talking about anything hot that makes the squishy sound when I squeeze it. No, Popsicles don’t count. Those include burritos, sloppy Joes, apply sauce, well, you get my point.

Oh and don’t get me started on smelly food. Smelly food makes my stomach churn and I can’t think around those kinds of food and I don’t mean like when people say they can’t think around food. I literally I get headaches and want to vomit.

One time when I was still living in L.A., My step-dad and his friends decided to go to an Indian restaurant after church since his friends resided in India for quite some time. As we entered the restaurant, the smell of curry was so potent that immediately I ran back outside and wanted to vomit. I’d never mind the smell of hot curry, in fact I liked curry, until that moment. It turned out what I smelled was a different kind of curry, I forgot what they called it but it was horrible. So no Greek, Thai, or Indian food for me.

Frankly, I can sit here and go on and on about what I don’t like to eat but I think by the time I’m done, you all might unsubscribe my blog so I’m going to end with these three. For now though, I think I’d stick to my favorite foods, Chinese, American, and Italian food.

Too Much Too Little

Published on by Yinglan1 Comment

ednaferber382367Today’s Daily Prompt reads: “Perhaps too much of everything is as bad as too little.” – Edna Ferber Do you agree with this statement on excess?

Yes, actually, I do agree with this statement. Some things are just perfect in the middle. Take baking, for example. If you have a cake with either too much salt or sugar, the cake won’t taste right.

It’s similar to my situation now. Late last night, mom has decided to 100% transfer the car to my aunt who is going to pay it off completely. Today, there’s a guy coming to look at my old car, less than two days after I post an ad to sell it for $2000. If the guy decides to buy my car, I will truly be car-less and you have no idea how horrible it feels because that means I can’t go anywhere. I live in a town where everything is spread out. There’s an enormous need for a car because without a car, I can’t go anywhere.

Anyway, back to the prompt. Mom told me I need to get a car for myself. Even though a used car is just in my price range, it’s out of the question because they won’t let me. It has to be a new car. Here’s where the statement on excess comes in. Mom wants me to buy an All-wheel drive so I’ll be safer on snow and icy roads but those come with a large price tag.

Well, I’m just driving to school and back, 30 miles round trip max daily. Do I really need to get such a pricey car? It’s not like I’m going to go up the mountain or somewhere with high elevation. On the other hand, I did some research on low-price car ($12000- 13000) and well those cars have other worries, wind. I pass through the mouth of a canyon everyday on my way to school and it’s often the windiest spot of the whole drive.

I have driven my mom’s car and it swayed uncontrollably like a piece of paper. That’s what I’m worried about with those cars. I guess I should probably go for the middle price, not the ridiculous price on the new car mom bought yesterday yet not as low as the tiny hatchbacks that might get me scared of the wind. Maybe I should just settle in the $15000 to $19000 price range because too large of a price will cause me a headache and too small of a price will make me run away from driving. 

Headache and Heartache

Published on by Yinglan1 Comment

I have a very awful headache right now. I think I need to lie down. Yeah yeah, I know what some of you’re going to say, I’m young and I shouldn’t get headaches. Well, I’m here to tell you the headache have something to do with my impending doom. Continue reading “Headache and Heartache” →

Some Truthful Answers Please

Published on by Yinglan7 Comments

Example of handwriting with gold penI am so nervous about today. Since my car can no longer drive, I’ll have to take the bus home while mom, aunt, and cousin go search for new car for me. It’s a 90-minutes bus ride plus a 20-minute walk home but I am thankful for that because that means I won’t be involved in car-shopping. Trust me, it won’t be pretty if I’m involved because I do not like to shop for anything. I always tell my mom, either tell me what to buy or just tell me when it’s ready to pay.

Anyway, today’s prompt asks, You’ve been given the opportunity to send one message to one person you wouldn’t normally have access to. Who’s the person you choose, and what’s the message?

Hmm, that’s a tricky topic. Who will I write to? (drumming fingers on desk)

Does God count as one of those person? Because I have an important question I want to ask him that I know he might be the only one that has the answer for me and the prompt did say to write to one person I won’t normally have access to. God seems to fit the criteria.

My message is:

I’ve always been in the dark about my father’s death. When he died, I was four and everyone just assumed that by keeping me in the dark, it would prevent me from grief. My mom didn’t cry. Her face remained stone hard. 

It was a few weeks later that she told me my dad was gone. I asked how and she just told me heart attack. I believed her then but as I got older, I grew suspicious because I found out it was my grandparents who told my mother about the cause of death. When I was around 7 or 8, I asked my grandparents about it but they gave me a stern talking to about never saying the words “die” or “death” under their roof. So I gave up. 

So I need some truthful answers because all I have is that he collapsed at a restaurant. Also, the only ones who would most likely to have the answers are my grandparents and frankly, I don’t think they are going to tell me anytime soon. So I am asking you, God, to please tell me exactly how my father died because I think after this long, I deserve the truth. 

What a day!

Published on by Yinglan3 Comments

Well, yesterday was quite unexpected. If you’ve read yesterday’s post, you’d know how it started. How it ended, is another thing. As I was driving home yesterday with my aunt and cousin, my car decided to quit, not literally but almost. The RPM started dropping fast on the freeway and no matter how hard I pressed on the gas. It scared me to death.

So I barely made it home, ate the delicious lunch my mom made and then shakily drove my car to the mechanic. They can’t even diagnose the problem after I blurted the entire story to the front-desk guy. So mom had to drive me home and wait.

A few hours later, the mechanic called me back and told me the intake mass air flow sensor was bad which caused the car to wheeze and the RPM to drop suddenly. It’s going to cost $450 to fix it. Mom said no, we’re not throwing any more money into this car.

I felt like my heart’s been broken into a million pieces and I immediately wanted to cry. She wants to throw my car away. 😦 The car that’s been with me through so much ups and downs. She wants me to post it online to sell it. Me, of all people. That’s like asking me to sell my organs or something precious to me.

How can a day that started out okay-like be turned into so dark and horrible? Mom and aunt are going to help me down-pay a new car but I don’t think I will ever feel the same as when I’m driving my old car. Well, that’s 10 minutes and I shall stop my sad rambling.

A Break from Criticism

Published on by Yinglan14 Comments

One of the great things I’ve found out about having my aunt and cousin here is that they can take some of the pressure off of my shoulder. Continue reading “A Break from Criticism” →

Tests of Friendship

Published on by Yinglan2 Comments

I am so excited this morning! I have made it through one year of blogging. Yeah, I didn’t post consistently until the summer but I did post once in a while whenever I’m inspired. It’s been a fun journey to watch this little blog of mine grow and thanks to all of you who took the time to read and like my posts. Let’s go for another year!

Anyway, enough of my babbling, today’s prompt reads: If you had to come up with one question, the answer to which would determine whether or not you could be friends with a person you’ve just met, what would it be? What would the right answer be?

Honestly, I don’t ask myself questions like that. If someone comes up to me and wants to be my friend, I will be so grateful. I would literally be friends with anyone. Then if that either one of us are not fit to be friends. Then we just slowly drift apart. For some reason, it always worked for me. Rarely will the friendship become something of a frenemy except that time.

I was in middle school. I know, I keep referencing back to middle school. I was in P.E. class and there was this new girl. She had gray-blue eyes and tan skin. Her name was Angel except she was no angel. She approached me and immediately seemed to want to be my friend. I was so happy because how often is there someone who comes up to me and wants to be my friend?

We had so much fun during class but unfortunately, that was the only class we had in common. The next day in PE, I’m not sure what happened but Angel had befriended with some of the other students and began teasing and making fun of me. I was like what the heck?! What happened overnight? I’ve never talked to her again as she was like everyone else who like to make people (i.e me) feel bad.

Although I don’t ask myself any sort of question, I do tests. If this person and I are still friends after a day, I will go for a week. Then I would go by a weekly basis. Also, if this person makes fun of me in front of others, if I’m there and it’s just light teasing and I’m laughing along, then yes, I would probably still be friends with this person.

However, if they are anything like my so-call friends in middle school who say bad things about me behind my back, I will ask why and then judge their answer to see whether or not I will still be friends with this person. There’s more, it goes on and on. Ultimately, it’s like there’s an algorithm in my head.

Thanks for your time

Published on by Yinglan9 Comments

In several occasions during the past few years, I have been placed in a room full of strangers, mostly students I don’t know. Most of the times, they would ask me about my story but none of the times, they would give me the full allotted time to do. I mean, at least give me 2 minutes. I would’ve been grateful for four but come on, they would had lost their attention by then. After all, they are teenagers, they have a shorter attention span during adults.

In those occasions when I am placed in a classroom full of bratty hormonal teenagers who think life is all about shopping for brand-names like my cousin. He won’t wear anything that’s not a famous brand-name like Nike or Calvin Klein. That’s why we had to go to the Outlet Mall on Saturday, to get some brand-name clothing for him. Same with the ones I used to deal with at a time when people barely classified me as an adult.

Anyway, I am usually only given about 30 seconds to a minute to introduce myself before those people realize they don’t need to take me seriously. I can never figure out why until I looked myself in the mirror and realized I wasn’t intimidating enough. Clearly, you need to have an intimidating face to be a teacher and if you don’t, well, let’s just say you will come home screaming everyday crying out “Why!”

Anyway, at the start of the class, I would say something like, “I am Yinglan and you will be learning ESL from me.”

Then someone would raise their hand, “What is ESL?”

“English-as-a-Second-Language.”

“Anyway, I will be teaching you the basis of English starting with grammar and vocabulary.” Then I’d pass out the disclosure statement, all the teachers does it, that states my rules. I’d read each rule aloud, then have them sign it. Just like that, strict town and anxiety was over. They began talking and not listening to me.

They must have sensed something about me that I couldn’t sense myself. They have decided to not take me seriously. That’s why I like blogging by the way, people here don’t know who I am, they don’t know what I sound like. I am just another normal-ish person. If I was given a chance to be in a room full of stranger that would give me 4 minutes of their undivided attention, I would be able to tell from life story and by that, I mean, the slightly extended version of “About me“.

Just Say It!

Published on by Yinglan2 Comments

What a long day! I just got home from a long day of shopping for clothes and food. Continue reading “Just Say It!” →

If I meet my extended family…

Published on by Yinglan1 Comment

extended circlesIn the past week, I’ve managed to learn something new about my extended family. It turns out I have a bunch more of family in China, more than I’ve ever known (grandparents, aunts, uncles).

Anyway, for as long as I could remember, I’ve always been the second oldest among my cousins that is until mom told me a couple days ago about an older cousin whom I’ve never known about in China. Now, I maybe third eldest or the forth or the fifth… Whoever knows.

I had to asked, “How much more family do I have?”

She chuckled, “More than you know.”

“Well, then the next time I go back, remind me to have them sit in one room and everyone will introduce themselves.”

If I am to meet all of them, my entire clan, for the first time today and I assume today means the present, some time in the 21st century and not some time in the 1900’s, that is exactly what I am going to do. I am going to sit them all in a giant circle, the eldest shall sit directly across from me while from there on, the circle shall go in a counter-clockwise direction with age like the second eldest would sit to the left of the eldest and it goes on. Then we’ll go around the circle introducing each other.

I am sure that is the strangest way they have ever encountered to introduce themselves, after all, why would they need to? They know each other. Unfortunately I don’t know them, so we’ll do it my way. Wait, would I be known as the family’s weirdo after that? I bet I will but I am sure some of my many cousins will have my back. So I’ll probably have a posse. 🙂

Two nominations in a month! – One Lovely Blog Award

Published on by Yinglan5 Comments

one-lovely-blog1

Wow, I’m flattered and honored. Earlier this month, my other blog, Hidden Stars, was nominated for the One Lovely Blog Award by SHRUTIGOPINATH and then yesterday, this blog, My Simple Life, was nominated for the One Lovely Blog Award by Vik Tory Arch. Thank you all so much. You’re the reason which I continue to blog.

Here are the rules:

  1. You must thank the person who nominated you and include a link to their blog.You must list the rules and display the award.
  2. You must add 7 facts about yourself.
  3. You must nominate 15 (or more) other bloggers and comment on one of their posts to let them know they have been nominated.

Here are 7 more facts about me that I have not listed yet:

  1. I used to play the piano. I learned it during my Sophomore year in high school and I got pretty good at it, at least according to my step-dad. He even spent $600 on a digital piano so I have something to practice on.
  2. During that time, I spent part of the time also learning guitar but unfortunately my fingers couldn’t reach the strings. So my step-dad gave up, at least until I could master the “G” note.
  3. I skipped half of the Fall semester and the spring semester of 4th grade as well as the Fall semester of 5th grade. So technically, I skipped an entire grade.
  4. After nearly a month into the semester, I think my understanding of accounting is so many times clearer than engineering. Is that strange? Maybe I should’ve swapped major a few years ago.
  5. During the past two or three years, the music on my ipod has changed dramatically, from pop and R&B to rock, indie, and alternative. Pop just sound so annoying these days.
  6. My favorite colors are light purple, black, and white. These choices have never changed.
  7. I have always been told my skin feels icy. Frankly, I have no idea but my mom and aunt like to wrap their arms around me during the warmest time. It’s nice but I’d be sweating to death. 🙂

As for my nominations, I am nominating everyone because I think everyone is awesome in their own way.

Life’s Tiny Rambles

Published on by Yinglan4 Comments

Okay, I guess you know by now that I like to talk about me. Well, who doesn’t? Talking about ourselves is the best subject we know. Well, today, I can because the daily prompt is to just write for 10 minutes.

Anyway, yesterday was a weird day. I went to school and while in class, the wire in my braces shifted and popped out, forcing me to have to waste $1.99 to call my orthodontist. Thank god, his receptionist picked up and I was able to fix it yesterday.

I had to hurried home right after class and made a bowl of ramen noodle. Mom wasn’t home and either was my aunt and cousin, mom took them to register for classes at the community learning center and shopping for food. They bought a lot especially my cousin.

So I left for the orthodontist just as they decided to take a nap to adjust to the time difference. When I came back 2 hours later, they are still asleep! Mom urged me to wake them up. Why do I have to do everything around here? So I did.

Last night, they were so awake. I wonder if they slept at all last night. Well today is their entrance exam to see which level of ESL class they should be placed in. I have to take them there in about 30 minutes.

Well, 10 minutes is almost up and I am in danger of one of them busting through my door any second to wake me up. So I guess that’s all I am going to say today. Have a great day! 🙂

Meddling with Other’s Happiness

Published on by Yinglan4 Comments

I'm sure some of you've seen this picture.
I’m sure some of you’ve seen this picture.

This morning feels kind of weird to me because despite only sleeping for 7 hours, I feel weirdly awake. That’s right, my aunt and cousin have arrived and their first test, adjusting time zone difference.

Anyway, at least today’s daily prompt is so much better than yesterday and the day before. It asks: Are you a good judge of other people’s happiness? Tell us about a time you were spot on despite external hints to the contrary (or, alternatively, about a time you were dead wrong).

No, I am not a good judge of other people’s happiness. That’s why I typically stay out of people’s way because first of all, I am a doubtful person, I have doubts after each decision that was made. Also I don’t try to meddle in other people’s business because if it doesn’t work out, I will definitely be the person to blame and I don’t want that.

The last time I meddle in other people’s happiness was with my mom and it’s just a few months ago. I remember writing about this in a series of posts a few months ago too. I meddled in my mom’s happiness by persuading her to purchase that plot of land. She kept awing on how nice the view was. So I told her just buy it, whatever makes her happy.

But then, she was having second thoughts because the view was partially blocked by the house in front. In the end, she refused the offer because she lost the $4000 custom design bonus as well as the partially obstructed view.

Also last week, she started feeling thankful she didn’t purchase the land because yesterday she got fired. Yeah, I know, horrible, at least that’s what a normal person would react but she was happy. Apparently, she wanted to leave for a long time but didn’t want to resign because then she wouldn’t get unemployment benefits. So she’s just waiting for the right moment.

Anyway, after that land fiasco that I went through this past summer, I am never ever convincing mom to do anything ever again because it will probably and always end up my fault.