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vangsta85
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Name: Julia
Country: United States
State: California
Metro: Los Angeles
Birthday: 4/27/1985
Interests: *To discover and define my true self soon...uncover a genuine passion*
Expertise: riding on impluses...urging for experimentation...and yet still keeping a decent ego
Occupation: Student
Message: message me
AIM:  vangsta85
Member Since:
9/30/2003
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| i found some old conversations and realized that sometimes, i miss talking to you...somehow in the midst of it all, at that time, we got disconnected...and maybe we did give up on each other...they were good times, ancient now, but some of the best and exciting memories to date...
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| it's been about 2 months since i returned from Thailand and just let me say that it was really my escape...if it was up to me, i'd still be escaping at the moment. unemployment is no fun. no let me take that back, having bills pile up is not like the the greasy, delicious, carne asada, and cheap burrito you get after a long night of clubbing.
i'd like to apologize to the people who have been trying to call me only to reach my voicemail. i haven't been in the talking mood lately. it might take me a while to return your phone call, but i am alive and kicking. i'm on a quest to find the right career for me and trying to save up whatever i have left, so i can't be going out like i used to.
the last of my travels included my trip to Laos where i met my aunts and their family. i can't believe i traveled through half of Laos within 7 days. it was tough, but i enjoyed it: the bumpy roads, the long bus rides, the baths outside, the outhouses, the waterfalls and meeting family that i haven't seen before. the most unbelievable part was getting offers to marry my relatives or their relatives. we'd just laugh it off like my uncles were joking, but they saw me as a ticket to the states. unfortunately i couldn't fit any them into my luggage, so i came back empty-handed...
as if it wasn't bad enough in Laos, i came home to nagging parents pressuring us to get married. they didn't exactly put it that way, but when they tell us things like you should really go out there and meet other people, see what other people are doing...umm...ok...they haven't pressured us to go to the new year as much as they did this year. i understand, they're not getting any younger and they want to see us settled and established before anything happens to them, but we're not ready to do so. i just graduated and getting married is not a priority of mine just yet. with their first grandchild here, hopefully they can focus on that and everything else will fall into place.
So i came back in time to see my nephew come into the world. he's adorable. jayden pablo nto moo vang. he looked asian when he popped out, but now he's looking more mexican. i'm pretty lucky 'cause my unemployment allows me to see him more often than my other siblings so we won't have to have a showdown every time someone holds him. plus i keep my sister in law company. and for christmas, my other brother and his wife announced her pregnancy, so i'm getting another nephew or a niece in july.
toodles for now...maybe i'll blog about my job searches next time.
vangsta
i added some of my favorite photos from my trip.
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| "oh life..."
i have 4 papers and 2 finals left before the semester is over and 2 weeks to do it all. i will get it all done. life would be so much better without them though, but i can't really complain, it's not like UCLA here.
I Heart Bangkok and Thailand maak maak!
it'll be sad to leave. it's not just thailand, but the people i met here like Tang said. the people made the experience so much better than i would have thought.
Hong Kong wasn't comparable. i would have liked it a lot better if we went into mainland China, but we didn't have time. Hong Kong was expensive and the people are not as friendly. I did enjoy the skyline and the Christmas atmosphere though, it felt like home.
anyway...i've learned that sometimes life just doesn't work the way you want it to. why are some things just too difficult to do? and why can't people just be honest instead of leaving a friend hanging? i don't know...i guess sometimes you forget right? umm...maybe not, maybe it's avoidance. not saying anything is non-verbal communication. one day everything will work out.
EAP had a thanksgiving dinner last week and it was delicious. it was nice to share an American tradition with most of the international students. they were all stoked about it. Turkey. What? it was their first time, especially for the Japanese students who had no clue what it was. everyone dressed up and we even had wine at the lovely and expensive Four Seasons Hotel in Bangkok.
getting tired...ttyl...love ya! jules
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| as my baby sister would say...wowsers!
it's about 3 in the morning in Bangkok right now. and no, it's not insomnia this time. i should have gone to sleep, but then i got caught up posting photos and then decided to blog on here. plus i'm waiting to listen to a special program on UCLAradio in about two hours.
after the last post...my insomnia went away. i still have no clue what i want out of life though. i really want to pursue medical school, but just not right away. well, truth is, i can't just yet. i'm thinking, if i go that route, pre-med internship, post-bac, MCATs, med school applications and then hopefully i get into a med school in california. my alternative is another healthcare occupation such as nursing or medical assistance. not that they're any easier than med school, but because i don't think i can handle all the schooling to get a medical degree. and if i decide not to pursue healthcare anymore, i'm going to grad school to further my psychology degree. i've narrowed it down, but who really knows what the future will bring. as long as i have faith in myself and faith of others in me, the possibilities are endless and i'm certain everything will work out in the end.
well, Thailand's been great! i'm finally content here with only a month and a half left. i have so many things i still want to do and places to see. and i know i can't do it all. Singapore and Malaysia might have to wait for another trip back to Asia. but i'll be going to Hong Kong in two weeks and then Laos next month. i heard that Laos is beautiful. plus i'll get to meet my extended family there.
i can't wait to go home though. the weather in bangkok has cooled down, but it's still gets warm. it's winter and i can still get a tan. i can't wait to wear jackets, scarves, and boots and drink warm tea in the company of friends and family. i'll be missing thanksgiving, but i'll be back in time for Christmas and baby jesus' 32nd birthday. and another exciting event...our first nephew will be arriving in january and i'll finally be an auntie.
Happy Vang New Year today in Merced!
p.s. i watched beyonce live in bangkok a few weeks ago and she was awesome! i would definitely pay to attend another beyonce concert...to the left...to the left...everything you own in the box to the left...
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| all right...it's 2 in the morning here in Thailand and i can't sleep. this rarely happens to me. i'm usually the first one to knock out. i was reading for class and i started to feel tired, but once i got into bed, my mind wasn't up for it. maybe it's due to my naps during the day...well, it is due to it...naps shift sleep at night. so here i am...on xanga...
it's been a while since i've blogged on here, so let me update since the last time...
summer came and went pretty quickly...it was all work and play and quite an adventure thanks to sannya, jd, chuck, betsy, and the dormies (julia, emily, kathy, maria, melanie and stella). summer highlights...movie premieres, clubbin', and chillin, taking in as much of Los Angeles as i could. the only problems i can complain about include not finding a subletter to fill my spot for the rest of the summer, not mending a broken friendship, and not having enough time to see and hang out with everyone before i left. i know that when i left that saturday morning, a part of me knew that i was definitely closing that chapter in my life...whether or not i return to the city of angels really depends on what i want to do next...and that i'm unsure of at the moment...but i do love LA and hopefully one day soon i'll be back there for med school.
and now i'm in thailand....it's been 5 weeks so far and i've done a good share of traveling though it has slowed down a bit since our new friend Don left back to the states...he planned our trips and outings like it was work-related...i don't blame him though, he was a former RA. and since i only have classes tuesday through thursday, four day weekends are great for traveling. the two major trips were to Cambodia and Chiang Mai. In Cambodia, we saw Angkor Wat and the killing fields during the Khmer Rouge regime. everyone speaks English there and they use U.S. currency along with riels. the purpose of the Chiang Mai trip was to meet with our Thai language professor from UCLA who resides there and to find Hmong people. mission accomplished! we even met with a Hmong researcher at Chiang Mai University.
let me elaborate on our Hmong experience in Chiang Mai...the first night we (me, Ia, and Ying) got there, we went shopping at the night bazaar and we were estatic to find a few Hmong people. we even got a Hmong guy to take us to another Hmong village. i was shocked to realize that the guys we met, who are probably the same age as we are, had trouble speaking Hmong too. i was under the impression that they all knew how to read and write Hmong, but i was wrong. they're losing the Hmong language here as well. they speak a mix of Hmong and Thai just like how we speak a mix of Hmong and English.
they asked for our numbers and pictures...how were we supposed to respond? anyway, we also realized that the Hmong Thai guys are losing out to Hmong Americans who come and marry Hmong girls here in Thailand. it's quite disturbing because most of them are very young when they do get marry as if marrying a Hmong American is going to make their lives that much better. i personally think Hmong people are doing just as well here in Thailand and that they're going through the same revolution we are in the states.
well, i can keep on going, but i'll just end it here. until new adventures come along or until the next night of insomnia...peace, love, and happyness.
Happy Birthday to Yolanda and Pang!
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