"Because if you made a book of what really happened, it'd be a really upsetting book."

Said by the character Angela in the show My So Called Life. Pilot Episode.

"Leave it to Flushing to turn a beautiful image into a bowel dysfunction." 

Said by the character Fran in the sitcom, The Nanny. Sean 2 Episode 4 titled "Material Fran."

The Nanny isn't a sitcom I've ever really watched or knew much about, except for the fact that the main character, Fran, is from Flushing, Queens. But oh man, this rerun that's on tv right now is really funny so far.

With age, I've come to realize that fresh fruit tastes better than any manufactured sweets or candy.

"Everything looks perfect from far away."

From the song Such Great Heights by The Postal Service. 

Within the past month or so, somehow, it feels like my life has suddenly become quite busy.

It seems like lately, every single day of the week is earmarked for some sort of activity. Whether it's waiting tables at my second job right after finishing my office job, dinner dates with friends, social obligations, attempting to sweat it out at yoga, having people visiting from out of town, running an errand that should've been done a while ago or just trying to keep my overall shit together, all of the days and weeks look as though they're melding into one long blur. This constant cycle of busyness does make time go faster, but simultaneously had me wondering if I'm actually getting stuff accomplished instead of just going through the motions in life.

It does seem that my thoughts on all of that are connected to a truth that I've only recently learned to truly accept and understand, and that's that HAPPINESS IS IN THE RIGHT NOW. There's no future achievement or completed goal that will bring me any more than I can help myself recognize that I have today, and that I can make this very day as happy and fulfilling as any other fantasy moment where things in life might seem "better" or "easier."

Wow, it took me 31 years to see all of this in a different light... and from this day forward, I'm really going to try my best to never regress back to that mindset.

Dear friends,

Please check out my latest story for VICE's MUNCHIES: GOOGLE SEARCH HELPED THIS FOOD RUNNER LEARN HOW TO WORK IN A RESTAURANT.

Thanks.

"But as with so much of Mr. Choi's flavor-dense cooking, the dish contains more complexity and cultural history than may be apparent. For many Korean-American children, instant ramen qualifies as after-school-or-after-the-party, straight-from-the-bag soul food. 'It's out snack, it's our peanut butter and jelly sandwich, it's our bowl of cereal,' Mr. Choi said. 'It's something that has been a part of my life forever."

From the June 17, 2014 New York Times article, Ramen: A Quick Fix for the Soul, by Jeff Gordinier. 

"That tension invaded the private life of the boy, too."

From the book The Big Rock Candy Mountain by Wallace Stegner. Page 245.

"Alexander Imich, a Polish-born psychic researcher who was certified the oldest man on earth, died Sunday morning at a senior residence in Manhattan. He had turned 111 on Feb 4."

From the June 9, 2014 New York Times article, World's Oldest Man, Though Only Briefly, Dies at 111 in New York, written by Ralph Blumenthal.

It's the weekend!

The past few weeks or so.