July 31, 2005

Life is unpredictable

My 93 year-old step-grandmother/great-aunt died on Thursday. She was my paternal grandmother's sister who then married my paternal grandfather after my paternal grandmother died in 1934 at the age of 26. Got it? Yes, complicated.

She was somewhere around four feet tall and I hadn't seen her since Souris and Silvio's wedding in 1998. Three weeks ago, I was compelled to travel to Santa Monica for a ten-day-visiting-family trip. Given pressure about coming out there, I disregarded it and went anyway. Souris, Silvio and I made it to Orange County to meet with an aunt from Canada whom we'd never met, and a couple of our first cousins, too (we have over sixty first cousins, we don't know how many exactly, and they range in age from five to seventy on my father's side - again, complicated). She was healthy and lucid and joked around with us. A few days later, she fell, and on Thursday she died. Just like that. I'm incredibly grateful to have been able to see her. Her son (dad's brother) was even luckier. He hadn't seen his mother in 30 years, came to America to visit her and his siblings, and after spending three weeks with her, was scheduled to leave the States three days after her death. He has been able to extend his trip now to attend her funeral. My lesson learned is, when intuition tells you to go see someone... GO.

July 18, 2005

Wishing for my own bed.

Places I've slept since April 29, 2004.
My apartment in the Village (New York)
Adam and Amanda's apartment (New York)
Kaly's apartment (New York)
Souris & Silvio's apartment (Santa Monica)
Mike & Lori's (Nigel Suite)
Edward & Sharon's (Edward's office)
Hung & Heather's house (Foster City, CA)
Nikko Hotel (San Francisco, CA)
Uncle Ho's (Boston, MA)
Mike & Eileen's (Craig's Room, Arlington, VA)
Mike & Eileen's (Nick's Room, Arlington, VA)
our old house (Arlington, VA)
Seahorse Resort (3 different rooms, Phan Thiet, VN)
Di 10's house (Saigon, District 7)
Linh's house (Saigon, District 5)
Caravelle Hotel (Saigon, District 1)
Victoria Can Tho (Can Tho/Mekong, VN)
Bassac (Mekong River, Vietnam)
International Hotel (New Orleans, LA)
Mom and dad's new house (guest room, Orlando)
Mom and dad's new house (mom's room, Orlando)
Mom and dad's new house (dad's room, Orlando)
Motel (Las Vegas, NV)
Maswick Lodge (Grand Canyon, AZ)
Kiki & Emil's House (Columbus, GA)

F.A.Q.

Where are you visiting from?
It depends on when you ask/ed me.
April 2004: New York, NY
May 2004: Arlington, VA - Santa Monica, CA
June 2004: Santa Monica, CA - Arlington, VA
July 2004: Boston, MA - New York, NY - Arlington, VA
August 2004: Arlington, VA - Santa Monica, CA
September 2004: San Francisco, CA - Santa Monica, CA - Saigon, VN
October - December 2004: Phan Thiet, Vietnam - Saigon, Vietnam
January 2005: Saigon, VN - Santa Monica, CA - New Orleans, LA
March 2005: Santa Monica, CA - Las Vegas, NV - Grand Canyon, AZ - Arlington, VA
April 2005: Arlington, VA
May 2005: Arlington, VA - Columbus, GA - Orlando, FL
June 2005: Orlando, FL
July 2005: Orlando, FL - Arlington, VA - Santa Monica, CA

Where are you?
Today, Santa Monica, California. As of July 20, 2005, I will be in Arlington, VA.

How long will you be there?
Indefinitely.

Where are you staying?
The Doheny B&B. Thanks Mike & Eileen.

What are you going to do?
Temp for about two months so I can be non-committal with a job till I figure out what next.

Then what?
Then I'll either move back to New York or head west to Santa Monica.

What are you going to do in NY or SM?
I have no idea. But something I enjoy.

What about Vietnam?
I'm in a debate about this. If I move forward with the business I'll run some tours this winter (travel season). If not, I'm going to move to NY or SM. I was in Vietnam with some clients last winter and still have an interest in continuing. Temping in Arlington allows me the flexibility to move or to head back to 'nam.

Hope this straightens it out. Sort of.

July 08, 2005

in arlington

I arrived in Arlington yesterday. I fly out to L.A. in six hours.

Going straight from the airport to a luau on the beach in Santa Monica.

Afterwards, going to Orange County to meet my dad's sister from Canada whom I've never met before.