The past few weeks or so.

It was fun to dog-sit Oscar for a day over the weekend.

Happy Labor Day, America!

It's the unofficial end of summer this weekend. Goodbye hot weather and shorts. And hello to autumn and having to wear real pants again.

The summer went by so quickly. I can't believe I've already been back in town for over a month after spending two months away. Everything seems like a blur since returning. I was couch crashing and moving around the entire time. It was a lot of lugging my shit around, but it was also nice to see friends. Thankfully though, my wandering days are finally over because my friend Jess and I got a place uptown in Harlem. We've been slowly moving our stuff into the apartment and will be all settled in pretty soon. I'm excited to finally have a somewhere to call home again, it feels it's been too long.

I've been dog-sitting Oscar in the Upper West Side for the past few days. It's been great taking him for walks through Central Park and farther north. We took a long stroll through Morningside Park last weekend and that was really nice. There were tons of families and people there barbecuing and enjoying themselves. It smelled so good in the park.

It's Sunday afternoon right now, and I'm ready to head out soon. I've been sitting at Junho's place with the shades open and all of the lights off since waking up. It was raining earlier and is still a bit cloudy, but it's still a nice day. I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend!

Leave it to the kind employees of an Apple Store Genius Bar to give you an ear complex.

Since the days of the original iPod, earphones that usually come with Apple products have never really fit my ears. Their design has always been too awkward for my natural shape, and would fall out or simply never felt right. This lead me to trying lots of different earphones over the years, but about a month ago I decided to give one from Apple a go.

I purchased the Apple-In Ear Headphones that come with silicone tips, which usually always work well for me. I was happy with the new pair, and everything seemed fine. I even noticed how different it felt to go about my day using white earphones from Apple like most of the world---it was like I was finally a part of modern civilization. But then a few weeks later, I began to have issues with the left side. Anytime I attempted to pull the earphone out, the silicone tip would come unattached from the wire, leaving it it sitting in my ear canal. After days of dealing with extracting it out with my fingertips, I decided to go to the Apple store to return them for a new pair.

I've been dog-sitting Oscar for the past few days, so I decided to exchange them at the Apple Store in the Upper West Side. When the nice associate at the Genius Bar began assisting me, I explained how the left side was defective, and I just wanted a new pair. Since the sound quality was still fine, I inquired if my issue was something he saw often, which he responded to as no. I demonstrated how the silicone tip would remain sitting in my ear when I pulled at the wire. But when he tested the same thing on his own ears, the earphones did not have the same issue. After a bit more assessment, he recommended a full refund rather than an exchange. When I pressed him for more info, he said that because of my ear shape, this problem would most likely happen again. And when I explained my history of having ill-matched ears for Apple earphones, the whole thing just made sense. It was then when I realized: Apple products and my ears just aren't meant to be.

I know there are tons of other earphone options for me to try, but I can't say that I wasn't a teeny-tiny bit bummed leaving the store. To come to the conclusion that this relationship will never happen, well, okay Apple, I finally hear you.

It's a clear sunny day here in New York City. I've been dog-sitting for the past couple of days in the Upper West Side, and will be heading out in a bit for a meeting in Union Square, and then dinner with my friend Judy.

Have a great Sunday!

It's a snowy Saturday afternoon here in New York.

I got to my friend Junho's place in the Upper West Side a few hours ago to dog-sit for the next couple of days. The view outside his window right now is a complete wash of snow and wind with a tinge of pink in the sky. It's nice to be indoors after being outside in the weather earlier though. I forgot how much of a thigh workout it is to try walking on snowy sidewalks during a storm without falling on your ass.

It's such a sunny afternoon here in my apartment. With the windows and curtains open, it feels like a treat to be able to have this alone time. My roommate is currently away on vacation, so I have the whole place to myself. Of course Oscar is here with me as well, so it's just the two of us hanging out. Today is my first day with no one here because my sister and brother-in-law were over yesterday with their dog. All I ever need is alone time in a quiet place with my computer, and I feel like myself again. No other place I need to be, no obligations, no television, no distractions. It's just some music on for background noise and my laptop.

Saturday night at home.

It's been a few days since I finished dog/house-sitting for friends in Brooklyn. I'm back in the city now, but will be heading out to New Jersey after work tomorrow to stay for the rest of the week. My sister and brother-in-law are currently on a business trip overseas, and I'm going to be helping them out with some stuff in their office while they're gone. Besides that, I don't really feel like I have much going on with me right now. I haven't been updating this much lately. Sometimes the topics I want to write about seem to be about things that I've already mentioned, which isn't a big deal. But I'd like to think that I'm constantly growing, learning, and evolving---so bringing up thoughts and emotions I've already said would seem like I'm taking a step backwards. I've also recently come to think about what exactly I should and shouldn't be writing about here. While I don't really have my name written much on this blog, and keep it as unsearchable as possible on Google, I have to accept that people might stumble onto it somehow. And what makes me reflect on that is I don't want to wait tables for the rest of my life, and therefore don't want any future employers at big companies not hiring me because of anything that I've written about here. I mean I guess it might be a bit too late for that, because I know I already do have some colorful entries written here, so why stop with all of it now? I would say the fact that I'm currently 31 is a reason, and that perhaps I've moved on from a lot of the bullshit in my life that used to consume me. I recently told all of this to one of my best friends, and she disagreed. She said that I was creative by nature, and that it's not only good for me to continue writing here, but that I should continue to do it as honestly and openly as possible. That really made sense to me... so I here I am sitting alone in the dark after 3am at night---it doesn't get any more honest than this. Monday morning is literally hours away, and yet I just can't seem to fall asleep. I guess some of the old bullshit in my life just isn't ready to leave me yet.

It's nice to see ice cream trucks back out on the streets.

It's such a brisk and beautiful morning here in NYC.

I'm currently house/dog-sitting for my friend Junho for a few days, and I just took Oscar to the dog park at Gramercy Park. It was nice to get some air and watch Oscar socialize with all the other dogs. It had been a while since I'd been to a dog park, and just watching all the pooches play and run around really was such a great way to start the day.

Happy Saturday, everyone. I hope you have a great weekend.

This is Juby, my sister and brother-in-law's dog.

They're currently in China for a business trip for a few weeks, so I'm watching their office and also house/dog-sitting for them here in New Jersey. It's been nice because my sister got Juby while I was living in Thailand, so this is the first time I've been alone with her for a large chunk of time. 

As a professional couch surfer, it's been nice to hang out with so many dogs along the way.

this past weekend in nyc was finally sunny and beautiful. i was dog-sitting again so i thought it'd be fun to go the park in dumbo. it felt nice to get some rays and enjoy the summer weather. woo-fucking-hoo.

here are a few pictures of my friend's beautiful brownstone in brooklyn and their dog that i was watching for them a few weekends ago.

these pictures don't do their apartment justice. everyone who goes to their place for the first time is always floored by how amazing it is. the space is so large and there are so many little design details in the place that gives it so much character. and isn't their dog madden such a cutie? dogs are such people magnets. when i took madden into the city for a walk, i was stopped at least once a block and complimented on what a cute dog he was.

i have been house/dog-sitting since thursday for my friends in bed stuy. they have a large beautiful brownstone and the cutest little dog named madden. they also have furniture, a tv, cable, and internet --- i feel like i'm on a little mini vacation here.

i'm watching the "we are one" celebration for the 56th presidential inaugural weekend on hbo, and it's just making me feel so good and tingly inside.

i really feel like 2009 is going to be a year of great change in every aspect.