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By Johnny, January 11, 2009 1:38 am

Wow. 2008 went by so fast. I can’t believe it’s already 2009. My New Year was spent at Universal City Walk waiting for the count down. Oddly enough I was with family. Over my holiday break my sister and I decided to reconnect with them since we haven’t done so for a few years now. Yeah we’re bad relatives. Not just us but also my Mom & Dad. They were never really close to the familia except a few. But even then, they don’t see each other for awhile.

So the last 2 weeks came and went rather quick. I had the opportunity to spend almost all my time here at my home. Can’t believe it’s almost 2 months living here. I have a tenant / roommate living at the other room. It’s the gf’s sister who was looking for a place to stay since her job was relocated to Studio City from WeHo. It’s nice to have someone looking after the place when you’re not here. Except she works almost similar hours as I do.

The place still needs furniture. I haven’t had the chance to dive into my woodworking ambitions. Not sure if its because I’m lazy or I don’t have time. Maybe because I know that this new hobby is going to cost me some dough to buy tools, I’m just holding off on it for now. I do need some furniture so I’ll save up for it. I did get to do my first major upgrade to the kitchen sink. Not really something I absolutely needed to do but the old sink was leaking pretty bad and I was going to just change out the parts of the old sink. Unfortunately, the bolt on the handle would not budge and the allen wrench I used kept on rounding off corners in the hole. I just gave up after trying for about an hour. Ran over to good ole Home Depot and picked me up a Moen faucet. The job took me another hour and I was done installing. It was a lot easier than I thought it would be. The hardest part was ripping the old one out and getting wet as well as having rusted metal fall over my head because the bolt underneath the old faucet was corroded pretty bad. I couldn’t unscrew the bolt but rather ripped it out from the top of the sink. Here’s a few shots of the old faucet and the corroded bolt

Here’s a nice picture of the end results of the new faucet.

I have to say I’m pretty proud of my work. I celebrated by making dinner for everyone.

Last weekend I had the chance to attend a wedding of a very good friend of mine. We were friends since 6th grade. She’s finally getting married. This gave me the chance to reconnect with people in past. One notable figure was my 8th grade history teacher. He looked the same except more white hair. Also got to see some college buddies and their kid. It was good to see everyone again. I contributed to the wedding by helping them build their website and creating their slideshow. Fortunately it turned out great with their multiple day visit and feedback. My gf said their attention to detail made my slideshow better and made me look good. Hopefully we’ll get that thing on YouTube soon.

I also had a chance to get in a good ride on the same day as the wedding. It was a good 20 mile ride around Burbank, Glendale, Los Feliz, and Griffith Park. I found another route that leads me up the Verdugo Mountains and San Gabriel mountain area. It’s a 30 miler through Sun Valley, Sunland, Glendale, and finally Burbank. Haven’t done it yet but will be doing it soon when I’m feeling ambitious and adventurous. In the mean-time, my daily commute to work every Tuesday to Friday will keep me happy.

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By Johnny, December 25, 2008 1:38 am

Some how during all my life changing events, the “feeling” of the holiday season isn’t here. Considering that I’m writing about this on Christmas I don’t think the feeling will be coming this year. To me, it seems like another day. Yes, I get to see more family, friends and have a 2 week vacation to help me usher in this holiday season. Unfortunately, purchasing this new home seem to have sucked the festive feeling right out of me.

I think the main reason for this lack of “feeling” is that I didn’t get to go Christmas shopping this year. Just alot of shopping for the new home. I didn’t feel I took part of the giving. I even tried to replicate by participating in volunteer events every weekend this December but still nothing.

I’m not the only one who’s feeling this way. My sister, who is also in the midst of her home remodeling is bitten by the scrooge bug. Gone is our annual Christmas tree. Gone is the presents under the tree. Gone is the annual tradition of staying up until Christmas morning to open our presents.

I’m hoping this is only a temporary setback only for this year. I’m hoping the same time next year, we both will be situated and will be fighting to have our traditions restored. Maybe then 2009 will give me back that “feeling” of the holiday season. But for now, here are some pictures from recent events in my life.

Anyway, I still wanted to wish everyone out there a very Merry Christmas. And if I don’t post again before the new year begins, Happy New Year!

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By Johnny, January 9, 2006 11:29 pm

First of all, Happy New Year. I’m finally settled back at home with my folks. I finally got my home hooked up to the Internet via SBC Yahoo! DSL. It only took me 5 days from the day they said it was going to be installed. That’s sarcasm just in case you didn’t catch that. I’ve been very productive since coming back. I’ve empty and organized all my box of stuff. I unpacked whatever I needed. Just the bare minimum. For some reason I just don’t think its time for me to completely unload. To me this is just a temporary stay so I don’t want to completely settle down. I tell ya, its good to have food ready when you come home or have food to bring for lunch. Also a place to wash and work on my motorcycle is sweet. The only bad point would be my lack of seeing my gf. At least we have the weekends to spend together.

Vegas was fun on NYE. Lots of people and great display of fireworks. I did very well that night being up about $200. But then lost it all on NYD. In a span of 1 hour I lost $200. And then lost the rest ($300) playing careless Hold’em later that night. I should have been more patient, but got too greedy. I even hit quad 9′s and won $50 for getting the hand. Unfortunately, blew that on craps. As far as gambling goes, the trip sucked. But overall, it was fun!

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By Johnny, December 27, 2005 10:59 pm

This will be my last post for the year as well the last post in my apartment at Diamond Bar. I am a bit sad about leaving this place. I had alot of good memories for the past 2.5 years. Unfortunately, I will not have Internet access until the New Year arrives. So Happy New Year to you all. I will be at Sin City for the New Year so wish me luck!