The Not So Eloquent One

Welcome to our last full day in paradise.  And while I'm writing this blog post two months after our vacation ended, I still remember every bit because we didn't do much except relax and enjoy the surroundings. We woke up at our usual time, 8:00AM and started getting ready for the day.  Since we had a routine down, it didn't take us long to get washed up and head down to the buffet for breakfast. We said "hello" to our little friends along the way.  It's pretty much normal for us to see all the lizards and iguanas out lounging as we headed to The Palm.  And as always, I've got the camera out snapping photos of them because I can't help it.  After breakfast (and stashing some waffles in a ziploc bag) we headed back to the room to get ready for pool time.  It was around 10AM when we headed down to the pool and Charlotte was thrilled.  But let me preface this by saying we were smart time time and dropped off some stuff on two lounge chair

It was another day of waking up at 8AM for me.  I think my inner clock is set to wake up at that hour because it's the same time I wake up on the weekends.  Charlotte woke not long after and she in turn woke up Allan. We ended up at breakfast an hour earlier than the day before. Come to find out, heading to The Palm around 9AM is peak time since everyone wants to get their food in before heading out to the pool and beach. The weather was perfect too because it was partly cloudy and the sun wasn't beating down yet.  I was a little disappointed in today's breakfast selections (not that anything would change, but I was hoping the waffles would be there again.) Charlotte waits for us by the door as we get ready to head outside. We didn't spend much time at The Palm and were pretty much in and out. Once again, we enter the room and Charlotte gets upset. Does anyone see a pattern here? After explaining that we were getting ready to go to the pool, she calmed down only

Now that's what I call a vacation. Wouldn't you like waking up to this sight every day? I woke up at 8:00AM feeling completely recharged after the day before.  Charlotte and Allan were still asleep, so I turned on the TV and switched the channel to whichever one had the NY feed going and Good Morning America was on.  I don't know what it is about the islands here. but this is the second time I've traveled to an island in Caribbean and it had a NY channels. Charlotte and Allan finally woke up shortly before 9:00AM and we didn't make it out to breakfast until around 10:00AM. We weren't in much of a hurry, it was a vacation after all. Just lounging around Now, as we walked to breakfast, Allan was quick to point out the wildlife that was roaming the grounds.  These guys are everywhere, on the rocks and roaming around. If you're not careful, one could be walking next to you as you're going by the pool. It felt a little unnerving at first, but we

Taking our first family vacation, just the three of us - Back around Christmastime, ideas for family vacations we're being tossed around. Originally, it was going to be a cruise with Allan's parents, but the timing for the trip was never right and it wasn't possible for me to take a week off from work and neither could Allan.  We like to take vacations surrounding holidays so as to use the least amount of personal time off from the job.  Cruises on Norwegian and Royal Caribbean were pretty limited.  In the end the cruise idea got nixed and the idea of taking a vacation in May was shelved for the time being. It wasn't until late January when I revisited vacation ideas and I first thought of going to the Bahamas and staying at Atlantis Paradise Island.  I had visited that resort back in 2011 when the Carnival cruise ship I was on docked for the day. It was a nice visit, but a day long excursion was definitely not enough.  Allan and I thought about going there, becau

This post was originally written on April 19th.  If only I was Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Seth Meyers or ... but alas, I am not. WORK WISE - Last week was a pretty crazy Monday to Friday with Everything that went on. The first two days of the week were pretty calm, but Wednesday through Friday were days where I was pulled in almost every direction and did not get a chance to finish a task. By Friday afternoon, a lot of my projects were not 100% complete and I was ready to throw in the towel've given how I was mentally exhausted. Hopefully this week has been much better since the boss lady was not in the office on Tuesday and Wednesday. This will give me time to concentrate on things. ARUBA - As of tomorrow, it will be one month until family vacation in Aruba. I can not wait until Allan, Charlotte, and I get on a plane and head down to the beach for a few days. This is a trip I have been looking forward to for a few months now. We'll be staying at the Occidental Grand Resort

Gym rat - Last week, I rejoined New York Sports Club. I hated how I looked in a particular picture and I decided it was time to make a change.  Being back in the gym has never felt so good. It's money well spent and despite the soreness I felt waking up my muscles again, I do not regret spending the money.  My goal is to get back in shape, but mostly to lose weight. I've really let myself go since 2013 and it's not good.  So, I'm back at it and putting in the work.  Last week I went to the gym on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. This week, I'm in there Monday, Wednesday and Friday. And best of all, I am sweatin'. Diet - Now that I'm back in, the other half of this is changing how I eat.  I have a personal goal of cutting down on my carbs and eating more protein.  Cutting down on carbs is going to be a real challenge, because rice is a big staple in my diet.  It's not really my fault, but simply a product of growing up Asian.  Hopefully the nutritio

No pain, no gain - And so completes week 1 at the gym. I went for three consecutive days and today I met with Chris, the head trainer.  I received a free fitness and training session for rejoining the club, and it was quite a session. It was a different way of working out than what I was normally used to.  And you know what, I really like it.  I'm likely to start working out this way at least once a week, if not twice.  It was only a half hour session, but in those 30 minutes, I worked up a very good sweat. One thing is definitely for sure, I am going to be waking up sore on Friday morning. I was already feeling it on my way to the locker room. In addition to working out, I'm going to be adjusting my diet.  From what Kory, their Area Fitness Manager, I need to be consuming more protein and less carbs.  Eating less carbs has always been a goal of mine, but it's been tough because rice was a staple in my meals for my whole life.  I'm willing to work on this, though. An

Gym rat - After a one year and four month hiatus, I returned to the gym today.  It felt good being back again.  The sweat rolling down my face as I get my heart rate going and the calories being burned was a refreshing feeling.  It sounds weird, but working out after the year I took off gave me a sense of accomplishment. i really felt good and I'm glad just to get my blood flowing again.  Hopefully this will lead to some results. I'd like to drop back down to being a size 6.  This isn't an impossible goal but it'll require dedication and hard work. On Wednesday, there's a CrossFit Demo at the gym. I think I'll go to it just to see what it's all about. It should be interesting and if I like it, I may take a class. Bookend kind of week - This week isn't the best weather wise.  We had sun on Monday, but Tuesday through Thursday is all rain, followed by a sunny day on Friday.  Can someone rent me their ark for a few days? Then again, April showers does b

Rejoining the gym - After an almost two-year hiatus, I am finally getting back into the gym.  To be more specific, I am rejoining New York Sports Club.  Let's just say, I saw an unflattering picture of myself and if that isn't motivation to get back into shape, I don't know what is.  Therefore, this week I am getting myself a membership and going for my workouts during my lunch break.  There is an NYSC near my office and it's a one minute walk.  It should only take me 10 minutes to change and if I plan my workouts the following way: 10 minutes cardio, 10 minutes crunches, 10 minutes free weights -- I'll be able to make it back to the office in time. I have not felt this determined in a long time and to be honest, I'm very excited to be working out again.  I really want to get back to where I was before Charlotte was born and that is around 140 pounds.  Now, this will also take some work in the eating department.  I really need to cut down or cut out sweets co

If there is one thing I've noticed in adulthood, it's that time flies by so fast or how it seems like there is never enough time in the day to get things done.  It feels like you blink and next thing you know, a couple of hours or half your day has gone by.  My co-workers and I feel this way almost every day at work. We come in, get so engrossed in what we are doing and suddenly, we look up and it's lunch time.  Then when we look again, it's time to go home.  Yes, we should look at this as a good thing, but when you have so much to do, there is this constant feeling of "do so much, accomplish nothing." When I was a kid, the word "later" felt like an eternity and a week or a month felt like an eon.  The concept of time was so hard to comprehend to a young person.  In adulthood, those same words mean nothing because no matter what, the time just goes by in a snap.  I like to joke with a friend wherein I'd say our mothers neglected to give us the

Nicholas Sparks  I recently finished reading The Longest Ride  and now I want to see the movie. Seeing the movie is beside the point, as I was pleasantly surprised at the ending of the book. I don't want divulge into detail about the book itself, so as not to spoil but I will say this was the first book where I was satisfied with the ending.  I'll be honest and admit there were times I wanted to skip portions of the book, but I kept reading in hopes my interest would peak.  This book had two stories happening simultaneously, an A story and a B story. The A story was beautiful and it was classic Nicholas Sparks lovey romance but the B story left me disinterested in a way.  I can't explain why, but it did.  Maybe it wasn't as enthralling as the A storyline? I don't know. However, I assumed Nicholas Sparks had a reason for telling the story because they would connect towards the end of the book.  And they did. Overall, it was an enjoyable book and I'd like to se

Hello folks and yes, as the entry title says, I have decided to start blogging again.  It's been a long while and the last time I remember writing a blog entry I was writing it on LiveJournal.  I still have my LiveJournal page but it hasn't been updated for years.  I could have easily picked it up there but I wanted to start something new, something fresh.  My LJ was written when I was in my 20's and now that I'm in my 30's, I guess I'm looking to preserve what I have there.  I'm in a different place in my life now as opposed to back then so it makes sense I start anew. What will I write about here? Well, it's a whole range of things and it may depend on my interest of the day.  I've been watching more Broadway shows as of late, so maybe I'll post a review.  I'm also hooked on a few TV shows and perhaps I'll talk about that.  There's also food and travel, speaking of which I'll be heading to Aruba in May.  There will be lots to

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