rambling remedies.

avli - my greek gem

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 22:30:00 -0400

obsessed would be an understatement when it comes to my affection for avli. to an average neighborhood dweller, avli probably does just above any solid mediterranean restaurant. experienced foodies can also vouch for me when i say that its dishes are superb and contain the perfect blend of seasonings. be it garlic, herbs, cheese, or all of the above - avli mixes them all in with flawlessness. but avli to me is more than just a good restaurant. i paid another visit with my parents this evening and decided to engage in some soul searching while devouring on my warm pita smothered in tzatziki sauce. i thought long and hard about why this place always grips me with such a tight fondness…

for me - bell blvd brings me back to a road where life was undemanding, effortless, and humane. it’s where i spent my childhood buying spice girl lollipops and wrigley’s gums for 25 cents. its the street that i walked on to get to my friend jackie’s house where we would paint our nails and get chased around by her little brother. it’s where my mom and i would drive to pick my dad up from the train station every evening. it’s where my grandma’s favorite soup spot uno’s is. i guess it’s the very fact that avli is situated at the heart of these experiences that intensifies my liking for it that much more.

but there’s another link that bonds avli and i. they go by the names of olga & tony - my childhood next-door neighbors. to me, their smiles were always warm, their arms always wide open & their homes always inviting. i only heard of greece because they sounded different. their accents revealed that they were from another country, but i knew nothing beyond the fact that it was a place far away from both america and korea. a large portion of my childhood memories have them in it. i can still recall their maroon-colored living room walls embellished with gold picture frames of their kids… the wooden kitchen table olga made me sit at while she made chocolate milk - my favorite beverage of the decade. i can still picture the grape vine tony built in their backyard & the abundant loads of green grapes they gave my parents every time summer rolled around. they were really wonderful people, both of whom i’ve unfortunately lost touch with.

but avli reminds me of them. the oil-based paintings on their walls remind me of where they once might have lived in greece. the slow, yet catchy folk songs in the bg illustrates the kind of music they might have listened to in their hometown & all the people dining around me may have a childhood that they are just as reminiscent of, as i am of mine… all so beautiful & radiant.

captivate

Sun, 19 Feb 2012 12:11:39 -0500

i’m so messy and distracted,

undisciplined and tactless,

here on the inside.

i thought age would tell the secrets,

but the secrets are still secrets.

the years are passing by …

soul’s

screaming out to be found in you <3

Photo

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 13:51:07 -0500

"I find it odd- the greed of mankind. People only like you for as long as they perceive they can get..."

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 14:01:33 -0400

““I find it odd- the greed of mankind. People only like you for as long as they perceive they can get what they want from you. Or for as long as they perceive you are who they want you to be. But I like people for all of their changing surprises, the thoughts in their heads, the warmth that changes to cold and the cold that changes to warmth… for being human. The rawness of being human delights me.””

- C JoyBell

"Life is raw material. We are artisans. We can sculpt our existence into something beautiful, or..."

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 13:33:07 -0400

“Life is raw material. We are artisans. We can sculpt our existence into something beautiful, or debase it into ugliness. It’s in our hands.”

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Mon, 19 Sep 2011 12:50:39 -0400

steinbeck

Sun, 31 Jul 2011 22:21:00 -0400

ok soooo i’m sure everyone has read/or at least pretended to read steinbeck’s “of mice and men” in english class sometime between the 6th and 11th grades…… wellll that book was one of the most boring/uninteresting books i’ve ever read…. but throughout the past few months, that story has been on my mind for some bizarre reason and i am now realizing how much of a masterpiece it is. WHY you ask? because steinbeck symbolically illustrates how unexpected curve balls in life can ruin the most carefully thought out plans.

for instance, unanticipated rain can screw up a really well-organized wedding or hiking trip. but that’s just a mini example… soooo many unforeseen factors in life can completely change one’s plans. someone may go to college wanting to become let’s say…. a world renowned lawyer… they enroll in a bunch of interesting poli sci classes….intern for a slew of distinguished law offices….study their butt off for the LSATS and the bar……finally be able to practice law and then learn at the start of their career that the job isn’t meaningful enough, that the stuff that they envisioned to be doing isn’t actually what they are working on…. or maybe something happens… God forbid an unethical lawyer serves a client who killed your best friend and wins the case, scars you, and makes you not want to continue your profession. or maybe you really do like your job and you end up working there for decades but suddenly your law office goes bankrupt… and you need to find an immediate replacement job (be it an attorney position or not) to feed your fam. i mean… these are some extreme scenarios but seriously… anything can happen in life.

so my question is…. why even plan? why not just go with the flow… graduate with a psychology or some other BROAD major and just take any opportunity that comes your way?

i’m writing about this because i am one of the meanest planners i know! i plan hardcore plans for my future. i’ve taken all these steps to achieve the future that i want…but unexpected things keep happening in my life (which aren’t necessarily good OR bad… just unexpected). and i’ve started to just go with the flow now…. and i can’t be happier…..

unexpected moments in life—-whether it be rain, or new encounters with people, or reencounters with old acquaintances… whether it be a financial boom/bust, an illness, or a miraculous healing from a disease—-are ubiquitous and are bound to happen. so while “the best laid plans of mice and men [DO] oft go astray,” life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass… but learning how to dance in the rain.. kakaka so corny but true!

"The saddest people I’ve ever met in life are the ones who don’t care deeply about anything at all...."

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 00:12:39 -0400

“The saddest people I’ve ever met in life are the ones who don’t care deeply about anything at all. Passion and satisfaction go hand in hand, and without them, any happiness is only temporary, because there’s nothing to make it last.”

- Nicholas Sparks, Dear John (via parkavenueprincess, quotewhore)

july fourth

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 00:09:00 -0400

it’s been 235 years since the inception of this nation, and while it definitely stirred up feelings of reverence for this country… i can’t help but feel damn ashamed! the hypocrisy of this country sort of shocks me. a land that’s supposed to embody justice, equality, and freedom is well…not representative of those qualities at all… and i don’t want to get into the nitty gritty arguments of politics/capitol hill. but honestly….i feel that our government’s values are nestled so cozily in all the wrong places. i mean, perhaps i was a little too naiive in believing the unyielding patriotism that our founding father’s had for the new world. or maybe the star spangled banner and the pledge of allegiance really had me believe that our country was such a humanitarian, and had really great morals. but who are we kidding? does the government really have the best interest of its people? does congress really rally for equality? justice? freedom?

what really is the purpose in these magnificent fireworks and moving anthems. why should we have a day off on july fourth and celebrate the reputed “freedom” that our founding fathers bestowed upon us if we don’t practice any of these ideals 235 years later? are natural resources really so crucial as to start a damn war and spend trillions of tax dollars to kill thousands of innocent people?

greed is bad. bad bad bad BAD and it will be the destruction of mankind! i feel like a damn preacher and.. i’m pretty greedy too but… we should really check ourselves and examine our actions… we are not what we say we are. i am such an idealist. but a hopeless one…. cause i too am a pretender of my own ideals (if that makes any sense)

so.. i guess… another.. circular post cause there’s no remedy to this problem since mankind will always be greedy… just rambling again.

"Difficult times have helped me to understand better than before, how infinitely rich and beautiful..."

Sat, 07 May 2011 05:24:10 -0400

“Difficult times have helped me to understand better than before, how infinitely rich and beautiful life is in every way, and that so many things that one goes worrying about are of no importance whatsoever…”

thoughts on a friday afternoon in april 2011

Fri, 08 Apr 2011 16:29:54 -0400

i love growing up just as much as i hate permanently separating further away from my childhood. with age comes deeper wisdom.. a clearer sense of morality.. and a stronger understanding of yourself… but those gains are also accompanied by greater responsibilities and expectations. more accountability, stronger convictions to reciprocate another’s act of goodwill, tougher choices. not that those things are bad, but it’s just like WOW i’m getting older and there’s no turning back.

haha this song reminds me of a dude i dated in the summer when i...

Fri, 11 Mar 2011 03:49:00 -0500

haha this song reminds me of a dude i dated in the summer when i was like 14… good life

time to sleep ?

Wed, 09 Mar 2011 02:33:00 -0500

we’d be so unified, so joyful and at peace if we ALL lived to make others happy instead of trying to make ourselves happy. what a shame it is that we choose to exist THIS way when our lives could be infinitely better. and how amazing would our relationships be if we could ALL be 100% vulnerable and transparent with one another without having to feel embarrassed or ashamed about our problems.. or feel as though we’re being judged. there’s a status quo we all have to meet as a friend, a co-worker, an acquaintance.. and those certain expectations limit us from being explicit about our REAL problems…our REAL concerns…sometimes these synthetic, “conventional” ways we interact even hinder us from facing reality and feeling what we truly want/need to feel. haha i just lost myself pulling these pseudo inception-type theories/reasonings. maybe i’ll delve deeper and try to arrive at some 21st century freudian crap.. jk, lol …just another random ramble from none other than a recent grad with a lot of time on her hands… :)

<3

Mon, 21 Feb 2011 10:50:16 -0500

the sax is so sexy

Wed, 09 Feb 2011 19:44:07 -0500

the sax is so sexy

to mother

Wed, 09 Feb 2011 18:20:00 -0500

During Women’s Group on Sunday, this excerpt from Captivating by Stasi Eldredge really stuck out to me:

“All women are not mothers, but all women are called to mother. To mother is to nurture, to train, to educate, to rear. As daughters of Eve, all women are uniquely gifted to help others in their lives become more of who they truly are—to encourage, nurture, and mother them toward their true selves.”

It stuck out to me because in the midst of changing times & in a century where our society encourages equal opportunity, there are still some gender-dependent roles that are just intrinsic and should be reinforced. I think us females all have a natural inclination to look after others and it is, in a sense, our duty to protect and care for other people to become healthy in body, mind, and soul. Without strong women to carry out these responsibilities, it will probably become more difficult for people to achieve their full potential. I am thankful for my mom who has supported me, encouraged me, and empowered me to be the woman I am today. It further posits my belief that females, whether they are mothers or not, should still mother others to become their best.

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Mon, 07 Feb 2011 11:52:59 -0500

(via parkavenueprincess, candiiksses)

Mon, 07 Feb 2011 11:51:28 -0500

(via parkavenueprincess, candiiksses)

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Sat, 05 Feb 2011 05:32:10 -0500

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Sat, 05 Feb 2011 05:31:07 -0500