The House Poet

Aaaahhh, Friday and Saturday April 9 and 10 were two glorious days~ Andrew and I had so much fun! Things have been getting busier for me as the semester winds down and my trip to Japan looms closer. Last week, though, was rather calm and I welcomed it. I spent some quality time with Andrew, applied for a Passport (I hope my application goes through!), and my classes weren't too bad. :) Friday was wonderful-- Andrew and I were able to spend the whole day together and it was such a blast! :D That morning was interesting because we went to a different (and sketchier) part of town so I could submit my passport application and take pictures at a post office. There is only one post office around here that does walk-in applications and pictures so we braved it and went there. It wasn't a bad experience at all! I had an issue concerning IDs, so hopefully I will still be able to get my passport. After the whole application process was done, Andrew and I went to try Genova Bakery, a bak...

The weather here in Stockton has certainly been interesting. A few weeks ago, the days were hot and vibrant with green grass and blooming flowers. Then, last week the weather took a turn for the worse and rain was falling almost every day, and the days were cold and slate-grey. Not exactly the most cheerful Spring week, let me tell you. However, this post and the pictures hearken back to the week where every day was a bouquet of sunshine and smiles. This particular Friday dawned bright and cheerful; Andrew took me out to our first favorite place, Le Kims! This restaurant is really special to us; we used to go all the time when we first dating and have loved it ever since. :) It was our haunt when the nights were cold and rainy~ We noticed we hadn't gone in a while, so we decided to go and get some good, homey Veitnamese eats! :) I got new glasses! The frames are purple and very cute~ I love this picture; it's so sweet! Of course we had to take pictures together at lunch, it wa...

(Yay, those are the cute stuffed loves that he gave me, along with a sweet and awesomely ilustrated card! Thanks love!) Last Sunday was my second Valentine's Day with Andrew, and it was fun to celebrate a holiday a second time together~ :D Our day was rather unconventional, which works for us! ;) It started off with us working at a children's birthday party! Andrew is the guitar teacher for a sweet 9 year-old and I get to tag along at the lessons because the family likes me lol. The party was celebrating both the son and daughter's birthdays. Andrew was in charge of the boys and I handled the girls. The girls were ages 3-7 and let me tell you it was tough work. I was exhausted by the end of the day. Some of the girls' parents were there and not all were nice to me. I just shrugged off their rudeness and tried to be the best babysitter I could be. I think I did a great job, as no girls had any problems. :) Some of them even really liked me, which was cute and fun for me...

YAY! On Thursday Febuary 4, 2010, it had been one year since Andrew and I started dating! We have grown so much together and can't imgaine being without each other! I feel like my life has changed for the better and through him I have been introduced to so many wonderful foods, bands, and fun things! Andrew is my true love, my other half, my best friend, and my partner in life. :) Sadly, Thursday was a busy day for both of us. I had classes all day, and he worked all morning and had class all afternoon. He came to my room around 4:30ish and we hung out the rest of the night at his house just relaxing. We gave each other gifts and had a blast opening them! He gave me a lovely eternity ring with gold and cubic zirconias! We pledged our committment to each other. :D On Friday, I woke up feeling more rested and better than I had during the week, and he only had a short morning class, so we were together all day! Yay! We had lunch on campus (which was pretty good!) and then went to Sak...

Well, hello 2010! A lot of fun things have happened so far, so I have a good feeling about this year! :) I have been back at school for a little over a week now and it's been intense but manageable. I am now an art major, which means that I'm learning how to deal with classes that are different than any kind I've taken before. I never even took art classes in high school! I am in class almost all day from Monday through Thursday and then Friday is my day to work on art projects in the art studios here. This morning I spent two hours at the ceramics studio trying to learn how to use the pottery wheel. And let me just say that it is NOT easy! It's like a workout! I am exhausted! I am not going to lie: this week has been hard for me. I guess I have to get used to my new schedule and become more familiar with my classes. I sometimes have a hard time dealing with change, so I have to keep that in mind. I have been enjoying my time with my friends and with Andrew though!! He ...

Yep, it's December now! :) It's been quite a while since I last posted, but I was busy with finals, essays, and just life in general. I am at home for winter break but I miss Andrew and Stockton tremendously. Andrew will hopefully be coming over next weekend to see me and I am so excited! I will bake lots of goodies for him~! The above picture was taken a few days after he returned from the trip to the Philippines. I was ecstatic to see him again! It's been so wonderful having him back! The night after he arrived from the Philippines three weeks ago, he took me out to dinner. We couldn't stop talking and there was so much to say! We went to Dave Wong's Restaurant, a lovely Chinese place in Stockton. It is a gorgeous restaurant, oozing comfy yet upscale ambiance. The lighting is dim and golden, which makes for a romantic setting. They also have curtained booths for privacy; Andrew had put our names down for us to get one. After a while, one of the nice men working t...

This is it, my dear readers, the last post before I go home for Thanksgiving Break! I leave tomorrow morning and I am sooooo ready for this break; I only had one class today and I could barely focus on it. I think I need some time to relax and indulge in fun things like going to SF and cooking, which are things I can't do here. I plan to cook and eat a lot this week, so stay tuned for a ton of posts! :) A couple weeks ago, Andrew decided that we should try one of the places on my "lets try" list, which was Qiang's Bakery, a local Chinese bakery that has very high ratings on Yelp.com. We were both so excited to finally try this place! I don't know much about Chinese pastries and such, and was excited to learn and taste some! First up, a sesame ball, only $0.50 each! And these aren't small either, they are about the size of a golf ball. Isn't it cute and perfectly round? I love the golden color! We each took a bite of our own.........THEY WERE SO GOOD! I co...

Last Sunday morning, Andrew and I went to try a Vietnamese place that we couldn't ever find before. However, last Friday night we passed it in the car and realized it wasn't very far from his house or UOP! So, we decided to go on Sunday, since it was open. The place is small, but meticulously clean. It's run by an old couple who don't speak too much English but are nice anyway. The fact that our chopsticks and spoons were given to us in a popcorn bag is just too funny and awesome! :D Ahhhhhhh, finally, a delicious banh mi! This one has tasty grilled pork in it and the bread is warm and fluffy! I truly adore this sandwich!!! None of the ingredients are overpowering, and I always take out the too-spicy jalapeno slice. The Vietnamese mayo adds such a creamy and savory aspect to the sandwich~! So good for $2.50! Since I love cha gio (imperial/egg rolls, 4 for $3.95) we ordered those as well so I could try them. They were okay, very fresh and steaming hot! I was disappointed...

Last Saturday, I was indeed a pho hoe. It was my friend Jen's 20th birthday, so we went all out and had a great girls' night out! :) We first went to Pho Saigon Bay, and it was good! Some of my friends had never had Vietnamese food before so I helped them out and suggested some good dishes. I, of course, went for the beef pho and cha gio (Imperial rolls). I got a medium bowl and requested extra noodles for a dollar. It was funny because they didn't put the noodles in the bowl with the pho, but in a separate bowl with a tasty broth......hmmm. It was still good though! Just oddly presented I guess. This entire order was for me....I love these so much! I wrapped the rolls up in the lettuce and pickled veggies, which brought them up to a whole new level! :) Very fresh and tasty! Yep.....there is my pho and extra noodles. I loved it! The broth is so rich and beefy, but not overpoweringly so. The beef wasn't too tender, but that's okay. Great soup! After dinner, since we ...

Hello! Once again, another week has passed! I had a good week and I am so excited about the changing weather! For some reason, I am just relishing the Fall weather and October itself. October is especially special because Andrew's birthday is October 5! :D I am so excited to give him his gift! Our 8 month anniversary is the day before, so this is a special weekend! Two weeks ago on a lovely Saturday, Andrew took me to the Haggin Museum! I've been wanting to go there for quite sometime, so it was so sweet of him! I was sad because they got rid of the mummy right before I came back to Stockton....too bad...haha. Above is a rather glamorous picture of me, if I may say so myself. ;) The museum is in the middle of a rather large and lovely park, with lots of grand trees, a little fenced off lake, and picnic tables dotting the grass everywhere. There is even a lovely rose garden too! The museum itself is made of brick and is quite stately looking. Andrew and I really enjoyed it and s...