El Matedor

In honor of Mother's Day, my brother wanted the family to take a small trip to Malibu. I was reluctant to go at first, mainly because I didn't want to drive that far. But with some rare family time and gorgeous scenery, I was glad I went. One of our destinations was El Matedor Beach, a place I had never heard of. It's relatively hidden and the parking is scarce. I never knew a place like this existed so close to home. Naturally, I got trigger happy with my camera and I will definitely come back to this place.

Happy Little Accidents

Painting is tough, but Bob Ross made it look so easy. I thought Vanessa had wasted her money by signing us up for a painting lesson. It was a special lesson in which it involves painting your pet. The paintings they showed on their website were amazing and I thought that ours would not even come close to that. It was a four hour class and with our cats already pre-sketched onto the canvasses, we took helm at bringing our kitties to life. The instructor was pretty knowledgeable about the style he wanted us to follow, and his helpers were always walking around. It was tough at times trying to blend colors and keeping the paint wet and thin, and the middle stage of the painting was awful to look at. I was hesitant and reluctant to believe that it will turn out okay when he told us to use colors that don't match our pets, but I was wrong. Towards the end, it was coming together, and I could see our cats. It was a fun and draining experience, and it tickles the idea of picking up this hobby, but not now.

Was that really him?

A few weekends ago, Vanessa and I sketched out a route circling downtown Los Angeles. We wanted to visit famous buildings and parks to work on my photography. We were able to visit Greystone Park, Park Ave Building, and the Fine Arts Building. These local sights were mostly empty and quiet, which was a nice change compared to other L.A. landmarks.

We stopped by Joan's on Third for lunch and Vanessa saw someone at the line resembling Leonardo DiCaprio. At first, I just shrugged it off as a look-a-like since he was disguised with a cap and sunglasses. But as I saw the the girls behind him trying to get a good look at him with eyes wide open, my doubts faded. He placed his order and immediately left the building, having his friend wait for the take-out. It was fucking Leonardo DiCaprio.

Indian Cuisine

I apologize for being absent here in the past two months. I will regret this is the future, I'm sure of it. To be fair, however, it will be easy to catch up.  We have gotten hooked with yet another leisure activity.  The obsession this time around is Indian cuisine.  Ever since I started working with the Ghelani family last July, I feel in love with their exotic dishes.  Vanessa and I tried several places before discovering the local hidden gem down the street from her house.  We have gone once a week for the past five weeks, it is ridiculous.

This will also mark the place where both Vanessa's and my mom meet for the first time.  It was pretty sudden for the meet, but it went surprisingly well despite the language barrier.  Mrs. Navarro was nervous, so she brought Krystal for moral support, haha.  Naturally, I was the translator for the two, as they joked about their children and husbands.  After the dinner, Mrs. Navarro gave my mom a grand tour of the unfinished house and their animals.  My mom had a smile the whole time, which was nice.

Life is swell.

Weeks are going by much faster these days.  Things have been good, and I feel good.

I'm in the last steps of finishing my application for graduate school.  My finances are still unstable, so hopefully furthering my education will help with my career.  My job hasn't changed much, I'm still patiently waiting for more hours, giving them the benefit of the doubt.

Vanessa and I have been practicing our archery in her backyard.  We have improved a lot and its barely the beginning!  It will be a matter of time until I get mine, :).