Acknowledgement

I've been in a bit of a slump lately with school. Some exploring is definitely in order.

Went on a short trip to SF with my homie Eric. One of the chillest days I've had in awhile, thanks to him I was able to pick up my first pair of selvedge denim. A huge thank you to the staff down at Self Edge for being so hospitable and helpful. That's quality service if ever there was one.

Found this cool little Korean barbeque spot near my house. I've finally found almost a dozen places nearby that are perfect when you need a little fix. We met up with some more friends to watch Don Jon later that night. Remember to clear your browser history fellas. I've missed them, and a lot of other people. It's been way too long. Well, good times for a change.

Waitin' On the Day

These days I just can't seem to find the time to pick up the guitar or get going back on my keyboard. School seems to take up so much of my time. I just don't understand. It's not like I'm losing my love for music, it's quite the contrary actually. I've been expanding my taste in music for awhile now, saving up for my own record player and trying to start up a vinyl collection. Honestly, I just want a time to just sit down and play.

Over the summer I tried to actually pick up my music theory books to study them during my lunch breaks at work. It's just not clicking. Sometimes I consider having a minor in music just for the sake of taking the chance to be better educated in it.  Maybe there's way too much on my plate right now Then again, maybe it's me and I'm not utilizing my time to the fullest. There really aren't just enough hours in the day.

Summer Wind

A little bit of a summer recap here, summed up short. Essentially it was made up of going to school and working at my first job! It definitely was a great productive and growing summer. Unfortunately I haven't had much time to shoot so I've just fallen short of my 2013 Resolution of a roll a month. I still took the chance to take out the camera when I had the chance though!

Even if it was just for three months, working at Lucky definitely put things into a better perspective. My father had been working for the company for over twenty years, and having the opportunity to work in the same place he does and dealing with probably not even half of the problems he encounters on a daily basis just had to put me in my place. I mean we're talking about the man who works his hardest to get us in the comfortable life that we have now. Each and every day and I can't help but have a growing respect for him. To have just a taste of the type of work he started doing is entirely humbling. I just wish to be at least half the man he is when I reach that age.

Summer wasn't all work! Well mostly, but there was some play! I've been slowly recovering and returning to my usual mileage with running. Dealing with the dreaded runner's stitch was definitely not fun at all (well they're better than the three years of shin splints that's for sure), but I've been trying to incorporate a stronger core workout since I clearly know that I've been neglecting that most of all. I've pledged myself to start racing again and ramp up my training. My original intent was to run a half-marathon this year, but of course life and more gets in the way so it just didn't go according to plan. Not to fret! I pledged to myself to begin training for my first half-marathon in January, right around my birthday and the one year anniversary of the accident. A moment for redemption? I believe so!

I was lucky enough to have a regular visit from my aunt and uncle from Guam. They had just come back from their trips to Canada, the east coast, and Oregon to visit my cousins and decided to stop by California for a bit before returning home. It's always a treat whenever they come to visit, just because of the mad love they always show. I decided to take up their offer and go on a little walk/hike with them one morning. After my usual morning run I took them up to Garin, which is honestly one of the underrated parts of Hayward. It was some interesting conversation I had with them. They mentioned that I should do abroad studying in Guam, which of course I've highly considered. Unfortunately the college there is on a semester system compared to my quarter, so I wouldn't know how to organize it so that it works out. Regardless, they did offer me to stay a summer with them in Guam. Some runs in some tropical weather? Sounds like a plan to me.

Earthbending runs in my blood.

I seriously love all of the trails here and there are so many uncharted parts I have yet to explore. I really should put in more runs here. My hill runs have involved the trek to get up here myself and they're becoming less of a struggle. Eventually I won't need the drive to get up in the hills anymore! 

Streets On Fire

I've never really done a lot with long exposures, and what better way to experiment on 4th of July. Definitely an unforgettable and wild one. Had an 8 hour shift to end up spending the whole night with the homies. The craziest thing was that on the way home we got pulled over by the police, basically because they believed we were driving a stolen car. Insane. Good thing they were understanding and our alibi pulled through.
Maybe I should actually talk about my photography. Well to drop a little background knowledge, I've been using a Nikon N2020, which was my father's but let me have and I've fallen in love with it. It has its pros and cons, but overall I can't complain and wish I had the funds to use it daily. In the previous post (Everything Is Sound), I had the opportunity to shoot with a Nikon 90S, which a friend of my father's let me borrow. It definitely has a different feel, and I feel like it would be the sort of camera I would use in a formal setting. The N2020 definitely is for more casual use. Hopefully my uncle will let me buy the 90S off of him! Until then, I'll just be putting work into becoming comfortable with both.

Can't Tell Me Nothing

Until recently I have discovered the wonders of gyros and falafel. I've also had to suppress my instinct to eat out every single day for fear of putting a huge dent in my wallet and a couple of unnecessary pounds. There has to be a better alternative. I've thought about it...there's not. Oh well, good thing I'm diversifying my food pallet. Culture exposure. That sounds about right.

Nearing twenty years of friendship. Beat that. A rival, an idol, a phenom, a legend, a hustler, a homie for life, Mr. Amazing. Sum up our friendship in a couple words? Shoes, toys, clothes. Who said life changes? Oh yes, it certainly does. We just make it better.

Everything Is Sound

Being a Bay Area native I'm a bit disappointed to say that I don't take as many trips to The City as I should be doing. The way I see it, it's like being home and not knowing your own backyard, and I know for a fact that there's much more to offer besides the typical tourist traps. Sometimes and somehow, getting lost with somebody else works out in the end. I suppose you just need the right person who doesn't need a particular destination and is willingly open-ended. Now I would say some cliche correlation on how that connects back to life in general but I'll just skip past that. Exactly what am I saying out of all of this? I have no idea, but what I have slowly begun to realize that if you get away from the well-populated hustle and bustling areas of San Francisco, it really becomes a different kind of place. Is everywhere else like this? Heck if I know, but that's the thing, I want to. I want to get out there to explore and see more. I suppose I can start right here, at home. That's a good start, right? I can guarantee however, that as I get older, I'll be wanting to do a whole lot of traveling. It's a bit of an unsettling feeling really, that there's a whole world outside of your home when it already seemed big enough.

Downest chick ever. Don't know what I'd do without her.

Raw Life

A lot of my time lately has been invested in family. It seems like the older I get the less time there is to spend time with all of them. These days it feels like a rare occasion where I have a chance to see everybody. I suppose because when I was younger it felt like there was a family party just around the corner every single weekend. Although I've added more priorities for myself, family will always be at the top, and I try to take any opportunity that there's a chance to have some quality time. I know there's the typical "Absence makes the heart grow fonder," principle, and truthfully it really does. Any moment can't and shouldn't be replaced.

 I don't think I can ever get over my little cousin's obsession with bubbles.

Real talk, I need a bike. There's so many things I can do with it. Places to go, things to see that wouldn't be accessible by car. Plus there's nothing like a cross-training workout after a run every day. I hope I can scrounge up enough money eventually.