Anny’s World

There can be many definitions of periods:
pe·ri·od
n.
1. An interval of time characterized by the occurrence of a certain condition, event, or phenomenon
2. Any of various arbitrary units of time
3. An instance or occurrence of menstruation.
4. A point or portion of time at which something is ended; a completion or conclusion.
5. A punctuation mark ( . ) indicating a full stop, placed at the end of declarative sentences and other statements thought to be complete, and after many abbreviations.
interj.
1. Used to emphasize finality, as when expressing a decision or an opinion

No matter what period you are referring to (period in time or period as in menstruation, etc.), it is imperative to have a group of good girl friends who have survived certain periods of your life with you.

I’ve been through many periods and had great company with me along the way. All of you know who you are because you’re reading this entry right now at this period. All of you are equally important, but I have to dedicate this entry to my bestest dater.

Dater and I were inseparable for the 1-2 years after college in what was known as our self-destructive periods. We went clubbing every single night Thursday through Saturday for every single weekend, went boarding every Saturday, and went to eat almost everyday. That period was self-destructive b/c we shared similar experiences with ‘.’ (Period symbolizing somethng) Towards the end, we both were feeling the effects and we took a period away from the party scene.

Dater and I always tout that we are the most mature and grown-up in our group of friends…well, it could be true because we are also both the oldest in our group of friends.

It is no wonder that in this particular period of our lives, the two of us are the ones looking to leave the Bay Area, not for school, but for a list of reasons only we ourselves are fully aware of. I was chatting with dater tonight and it’s undeniably great that after all these periods, we still share the same sentiments:
-We’re soooo, almost too, comfortable right now in the Bay Area.
-We’re scared of the unknown, yet it is liberating at the same time.
-Everything seems to be happening so fast.
-All these things are in motion.
-There’s so much to do and so many people/things to say goodbye to but it feels like there’s not enough time.
-The time we have left in the Bay Area is slowly diminishing everyday, yet it feels like the move is never going to happen, because we’re still physically here in the Bay Area.
-We know we should start getting rid of some of our furnitures/things and start packing, yet we can’t set our hearts to do so because then the reality of moving will start kicking in.

To my dater, thank you for going through all these periods with me knowing exactly how it truly feels. You’re the bestest fuji apple charlie’s angel UTB dater and I know we will be here for each other always no matter what period of our lives and even if we end up on opposite coasts. Period.

As a sidenote, below is a list of things I need to get rid of. If you want anything, let me know or else I’ll donate or post it on Craigslist for free.
-Long Table
-TV Stand
-Two Stools
-Coffee Table
-Bed
-Dresser
-Two bookshelves
-Sofa I’m selling for $200

02.09.2006 - 02.18.2006: Taiwan

(From 7 Habits…the short clip actually won an award! I was thinking about it last night and had to pull out my DVD this morning and re-watch it.)

If life were a painting
And you were the artist
What would you paint?
Which colors would you use?
Grey? Electric blue? Candy-apple red?
Is it a landscape?
Is it a still life?
A portrait of yourself?
Your true love?
Your most passionate hopes?
Would you hang it at the center of your home?
Or at the center of your office?
Or at the center of your heart?
When others see it…
What will they remember?
Just lines on a canvas?
Or a work of art?
This is your life.
Paint a bold picture.
Make it a masterpiece.
Sign your name.

What will your masterpiece look like?

I was going to draw and post my masterpiece…but considering I’m off to Taiwan, I don’t have time to do it so maybe when I get back!!!

Stolen from Garden State: “You know that point in your life when you realize the house you grew up in isn’t really your home any more. All of a sudden, even though you have some place where you put your shit that idea of home is gone. You’ll see one day when you move out. Just sorta happens one day and it’s gone. You feel like you can never get it back. It’s like you feel homesick for a place that doesn’t even exist. Maybe it’s like this rite of passage, you know? You won’t ever have that feeling again until you create a new idea of home for yourself. You know, for ..your kids. For the family you start. It’s like a cycle or something. I don’t know. But I miss the idea of it, you know? Maybe that’s all family really is. A group of people that miss the same imaginary place.”

When anyone asks me where I’m from these days, I always have to stop and think…
Well, I was born in Taiwan and was there for 6 years (lived in 3 different places I can remember)…
Then, I moved to Dallas, TX and was there for 5 years (lived in 2 different places)…
Then, I was in Torrance, CA and was there for 7 years (lived in 2 different places)…
And finally, I am in the Bay Area and have been here for 9 years now (lived in 8 different places)…

It doesn’t seem like I’ve been in the Bay Area long, but in fact, it’s now the longest tenure I’ve held at a place. So, where do I consider home? In college, I still considered Torrance and the house where I spent my entire high school years my home…even tho I’ve moved around a lot. But after graduating from college, my parents moved out of Torrance to La Habra, from LA County to the OC. The ‘home’ where I was from has now since disintegrated. I don’t consider anywhere my home anymore…and hence the quote in Garden State describes perfectly well what it feels like when that concept of ‘home’ is gone and you feel homesick for a place that doesn’t even exist anymore…this isn’t a good or a bad thing…it’s just part of life and growing up.

For the time-being, I’ll live the exciting life of a vagabond until that sense of home comes back or until I start a family of my own.

I wonder if I get my transient behavior from my parents…that’ll be another entry…when I write about The Squid and the Whale…

I know I’ve posted several times the tragic flaw entry about the inability to change. The most ironic part of it is my tragic flaw is actually NOT the inability to change. It is quite the opposite. My real tragic flaw is probably my inability to stay put.

If you look at my life after graduating from college (from 2001 until now), you will see that I have lived in 6 different places spanning from Berkeley to El Cerrito to Emeryville to San Francisco. In terms of career, although I might have stayed with the same group or company, I have jumped/climbed to a new position practically every single year.

When I had dinner with Ricky last week, he made a comment that people from my old group are always envious of me because I am always looking ahead to my next step in life and I actually go out and grab that opportunity.

I was talking to my big sis this week and I told her how I had a short attention span. This was her response to me: “short attention span. more like lil sis treats life like a box of chocolate. she takes a bite of each of them, then throws them back in the box because she realizes that she doesn’t really like chocolates to begin with.”

I am a big believer of making choices to pave the course of your life and of taking action on those choices when the time is right to do so. Making changes is relatively easy for me because I love knowing that there are unlimited possibilities out there for me to go pursue and unlimited places for me to go explore…and I am appreciative and lucky to be able to do that…even if I try something and realized that I don’t like it, at least I tried. (Yes, I take a bite of the chocolate and put it back into the box.)

My latest change I have been juggling for a while now. I was going to do it early last year but at that time, I would not have been making that change for the right reasons. Looking back, I am glad I ended up not making that change back then because the past year threw me the biggest lesson that I learned about myself and I had the greatest time of my life.

Now, with a clear, sound, and level mindset, I am ready to make that change. I have thought about it over and over again to see if I even have a slight inkling of changing my mind about it or if I’m worried about any consequences as a result…and honestly, I don’t and I’m not. Everything in my head and heart tells me that it is the right choice for me at this exact moment in time.

People need to stop making me cry tho. Imagine me at the end of April if I am already tearing up…My entry in April will be the hardest for me to write…