I judged another mom in person. It was bad. We'll get there, but this is the tone we're starting with. I need to just get that off my chest- but alright. Lets go.
A couple weeks ago my boss pulled me into her office for a chat (I enjoy our chats, feedback is my shit) and before I leave, she's like oh yeah, this is for you.
It's become a fun thing to look forward to now, and more people have been joining in. :D
I call it garbage day because we're trash for feeding into the blind box fad, but we're also crow brained morticians running on ch20 fumes and coffee that like trinkets, so it's actually just math.
Work is fun but... when I have to leave home...
God, the tug of war it is to put Mung Bean down for a nap instead of holding her longer... because that moment is gone, and the next day she's bigger.
My heart T_T
One random day, Mr. Chicken took us out on a date. A normal, date. Like how the kids do. I was so excited!
It was a lovely day. We had drinkies, yummies, and nommies as we strolled around downtown.
And as our day concluded, we sat down on a bench and just talked while people watching. It was so nice just being present with each other in this way. The memorial was for a street performer that always set up on this corner.
Ha, we did it. We're at the sitting on public benches stage of life.
A couple weeks ago my boss pulled me into her office for a chat (I enjoy our chats, feedback is my shit) and before I leave, she's like oh yeah, this is for you.
It's a personal thank you from a family. T_T
There's a joke with embalmers about how we're like, goblins behind the scenes surviving on monsters and cigarettes and never come out of the shadows and gurgle to communicate (sometimes true), and how it's a thankless job.
Here's a show that it is not thankless. lol. In the years that I've been serving famililes, there have been countless times that my efforts have empowered grieving families to graciously find the courage to reach out- with so much gratitude; to not only the front facing funeral professionals, but also the gurgling frog people in the back. It's such a tender act to even remember to do when you're enveloped in a tsunami of grief. When we get that feedback, it's a big deal.
I also had another recognition at work for another similar situation in the same week.
Feels really good- pouring so much of yourself into something, marrying that with precision, art and science, to try and get everything just right, as much as you can, and... you're told that it helped... just a little bit, in such an insurmountable way.
We do our best regardless, but it hits home when that feedback comes in.
This makes me sound even more horrible for judging that mom. But you'll see. Look. At the end of the game, the King and the Pawn go in the same box. So.
GARBAGE DAY! Everyone's favorite day at work, where (whoever wants to participate) buys a blind box, and we open them together with thoughts and prayers!
We do our best regardless, but it hits home when that feedback comes in.
This makes me sound even more horrible for judging that mom. But you'll see. Look. At the end of the game, the King and the Pawn go in the same box. So.
GARBAGE DAY! Everyone's favorite day at work, where (whoever wants to participate) buys a blind box, and we open them together with thoughts and prayers!
It's become a fun thing to look forward to now, and more people have been joining in. :D
I call it garbage day because we're trash for feeding into the blind box fad, but we're also crow brained morticians running on ch20 fumes and coffee that like trinkets, so it's actually just math.
Work is fun but... when I have to leave home...
God, the tug of war it is to put Mung Bean down for a nap instead of holding her longer... because that moment is gone, and the next day she's bigger.
My heart T_T
One random day, Mr. Chicken took us out on a date. A normal, date. Like how the kids do. I was so excited!
The first stop was the house where Hocus Pocus was filmed at. "Master's" house, lol. "Oooh, thou should not speak to master in such a manner."
Ahh so fun. Apparently the area gets really exciting around Halloween time. This was so cool. It's easy to forget but I didn't grow up in California, so stuff like this, as dorky as it may be, is exciting and sentimental for me lol.
It was a lovely day. We had drinkies, yummies, and nommies as we strolled around downtown.
Dope
And as our day concluded, we sat down on a bench and just talked while people watching. It was so nice just being present with each other in this way. The memorial was for a street performer that always set up on this corner.
Ha, we did it. We're at the sitting on public benches stage of life.
Thank you for our lovely day :)
We have so many, this one just felt slower. Me likey ^_^
Lazy mornings for 3
We have so many, this one just felt slower. Me likey ^_^
Lazy mornings for 3
She gets an ube steamer. (ube extract, cinnamon, steamed whole milk)
My baby gurr
Ophelia kisses give +20 happies
Ophelia kisses give +20 happies
When I couldn't take it seriously anymore, I noticed my trap was sticking out of my whole shoulder. And part of me had a big sad, LOL. This is what work is doing to me! I'M BULKING AND IT'S NOT CUTE. On one hand, it's cool that I'm stronger. On the other, it makes my back look bigger and I personally don't like that on my petite frame. But it also reminds me of what I'm capable of, so I'm a little proud of it too. It's complicated.
Pause for dramatic Ophelia:
JPL | omg
A while ago (last year), I was trying to book us a tour for JPL as a birthday surprise for Mr. Chicken. As it turns out, it's really hard to get in. So much so that you're better off begging someone who works there to give you a guided tour. I tried for 3 months before giving up and defeatedly flying us out to Miami for the F1 Grand Prix instead. I'll lose to anyone else, but I won't lose to myself.
But I never forgot JPL.
I told Mr. Chicken this, and 2 months later...
He got us in. How? I don't know??? He just went on the site on the day they were opening tour bookings and got really lucky?? It was a request that had to be approved, but days later we got the clearance and were over the moon. Ahaaa haa. Haaah. Geddit?
This campus was so amazing. It was like walking into Blizzard on my first day of work.
Rover babbbyyyyy.
Did anyone else get extremely sad when Opportunity said she was dying?
That was crazy.
That wasn't verbatum but "my battery is dying and it's getting dark" was an emotional K.O.
That was crazy.
That wasn't verbatum but "my battery is dying and it's getting dark" was an emotional K.O.
There was a huge observation deck into where assembly for everything is done. So humbling T_T
MOM JUDGEMENT TIME |
Ok, look.
Lets establish some sensible observations.
This tour is free, and done as a courtesy by passionate employees there for us.
There are people working there, so we don't wanna be inconsiderate.
The tour has a group of people who are all excited to be there.
Have some environmental awareness, etiquette... don't be weird...
Pretty elementary stuff.
We head towards another room. It's one of the coolest things I've ever seen.
This is from another observation deck into the control room. The room has maybe 10 rows of seating with like, probably 20 seats in each row. I'm just guessing for the visual. It's wide, but small. Just enough for the tour group.
There were kids, 4 total, I think, not including Mung Bean. They sat up front. Two moms had made friends (I think) because their kids were around the same age. We all entered and took our seats as the guide began explaining everything and going into the lore of everything we saw. It was cool. Almost all of us were listening intently... respectfully.
One of the kids got up from their seat and walks up to the glass, puts his hands on it. The moms in the row behind; idle. Then the other kids get up and walk up to the glass. The guide is still patiently trying to get through this despite the glaring interruption. The moms remain idle. Seconds go by. Nothing. Then finally, one of the moms pulls her phone out and walks over to the glass kinda like, stealth crawl/squatting over to her kid and leans in. We're all watching this thinking she's about to make things right. The tour guide is so patient, he keeps talking slowly, trying to keep our attention.
The mom turns her phone camera on, tells her kid to turn around and starts taking selfies right in the middle of everything.
We're all staring at her in disbelief. The other kids are still there, conversing and pointing, putting their hands on the glass, the other mom is still in her seat, not doing anything but has her phone out. There was a dad, I don't know who he was with, but you can tell he was checked-out and not reacting. It was probably the selfie lady's man.
The tour guide snapped. It was like he was talking to a 4nd grader. He said something along the lines of "what are you doing? do you not see that everybody else is here too and part of the tour? please sit down, that is rude. That isn't okay." But with more words. He shamed her. It was glorious. The tension before he got to that point was palpable. Everyone was staring daggers at her in disbelief. I was disgusted, rofl. The checked-out dad was comedic relief. If she's that oblivious and self centered... there isn't room in her head for pity from anyone else.
One of the kids got up from their seat and walks up to the glass, puts his hands on it. The moms in the row behind; idle. Then the other kids get up and walk up to the glass. The guide is still patiently trying to get through this despite the glaring interruption. The moms remain idle. Seconds go by. Nothing. Then finally, one of the moms pulls her phone out and walks over to the glass kinda like, stealth crawl/squatting over to her kid and leans in. We're all watching this thinking she's about to make things right. The tour guide is so patient, he keeps talking slowly, trying to keep our attention.
The mom turns her phone camera on, tells her kid to turn around and starts taking selfies right in the middle of everything.
We're all staring at her in disbelief. The other kids are still there, conversing and pointing, putting their hands on the glass, the other mom is still in her seat, not doing anything but has her phone out. There was a dad, I don't know who he was with, but you can tell he was checked-out and not reacting. It was probably the selfie lady's man.
The tour guide snapped. It was like he was talking to a 4nd grader. He said something along the lines of "what are you doing? do you not see that everybody else is here too and part of the tour? please sit down, that is rude. That isn't okay." But with more words. He shamed her. It was glorious. The tension before he got to that point was palpable. Everyone was staring daggers at her in disbelief. I was disgusted, rofl. The checked-out dad was comedic relief. If she's that oblivious and self centered... there isn't room in her head for pity from anyone else.
Am I wicked for feeling that way? I guess that depends on who values my opinion for that to even matter. And in turn, I also have to value that. So... it doesn't matter. :D
JPL was a lot of fun. The tour guide was super nice to us. He gave us our badges first. I think he noticed we were trying to get out of the way of the tornado that started when he told everyone to line up to collect their badges. We were grossed out and decided waiting to get ours last was the Only Way. But he called to us and gave us our lanyards as people were lining up. Surprised us, lol. At the end of the tour he was like, take extra posters and stickers for your daughter! Maybe she'll be here one day! (That would be SO cool omfg).
Chill recognizes chill.
We went to din din after Mung Bean went to bed. My In-Laws offered to watch her so that we could go eat, lol.
And eat, we did!
A toro cheers for good jujus!
Ahh, she's growing too fast. T_T
FAN FEST | 2026
Lets be clear. I don't play Final Fantasy XIV. I've never played any of the Final Fantasy games. I think I played the first part of Crystal Chronicles on the Gamecube, and Mystic Quest when I was a little kid. Finished neither. Ok, cool.
Lets be clear. I don't play Final Fantasy XIV. I've never played any of the Final Fantasy games. I think I played the first part of Crystal Chronicles on the Gamecube, and Mystic Quest when I was a little kid. Finished neither. Ok, cool.
Mr. Chicken wanted me to be there this year considering how close it was to home! This was my opportunity to see if the legends about the community are true.
I've been filled in on a lot of the lore surrounding the community and VPs at Squeenix that oversee FFXIV. It's, in a word, wholesome.
It also should be mentioned that someone I've known since 2010, probably one of the first friends I made since moving to LA, happened to also blossom into an incredible beacon for the community through his music. More on that later.
We get there, walk around. We watch the opening announcements and head to lunch where we go bonkers and order everything ever.
The Anaheim Convention Center is surrounded by two hotels; Hilton and the Marriott. They get feral during other conventions, so we were trying to get the most of our time at the Marriott before it got too late.
2B of course because of the collab, lol.
There were carnival games to play. Mr. Chicken and I both landed on the same bottle, hehe.
See the two stacked rings? ^_^
^_^
My take away was that yes, the wholesome community legend is true. In all the years I've attended conventions, I'd say the only other one that was this level of wholesome was one that wasn't even in the US.
The convention floor had stations themed after places in the game sprinkled here and there, and there weren't many booths, but there were lounge areas and a dance floor game that simulated a boss fight, and canival games. There was a secret door booth with a collab, and the stages. It was modest, spacious, but so cozy at the same time. This is all for ONE game- but a game that is loved very dearly, and the reciprocity between the devs and the players is beyond endearing.
It made me think of Blizzcon before 2010. That's when I first atteneded, but traction was gaining and it was quick. But it was so much fun and carefree. There were panels with conversation and dialog, humble performances from in-game moments, discussions about the world and the lore. And the players were so in love and eager to come together and celebrate.
That's what this felt like.
The ultimate test was the Hilton at the end of the event.
We found seating without trouble, and enjoyed ourselves in the undisturbed calm of the Hilton Hotel after a convention. Unheard of.
None of the behavior we've come to expect from other conventions. At all. It was calm. Normal. As was the Marriott.
The legends are true.
Not to mention... the performances on the 2nd day were just so good. I cried during the piano concert. IMAGINE. A PIANO CONCERT? It was so beautiful. And Mr. Soken showed up as I've been showed he does, in all of his unbridled eccentricity. It was wonderful. Yoshi P came out and sang a metal song. Like ?????
They were all just kicking it. Having fun. Embracing the event and enjoying it just as much as the players were. Everyone's heart seemed attuned to the same beat of appreciation and admiration for this game. It was truly a sight to see and to experience. How awesome?
And I got to see him. My old friend. T_T
He sings on the score for several expansions now, and it's a marvel that he's become this super cool .... musical superhero for this community. waahhhh
Jason Charles Miller. Good country-rock tunes. Excellent for long car rides. :D
He sings on the score for several expansions now, and it's a marvel that he's become this super cool .... musical superhero for this community. waahhhh
Jason Charles Miller. Good country-rock tunes. Excellent for long car rides. :D
Breakfast with the bean before breakfast sushi.
Technically brunch sushi. The last day was a whatever day. We were just there for the concerts so we got to take our time. The cosplayers were great!
Good stuff.
Just some beautiful things in my life
Mr. Chicken gets me flowers sometimes. It's random, so it's always a surprise. I love them so. He gives my heart butterflies.
And my baby girl is just so fly.
Am I gonna play? I don't see myself being able to for several reasons. Every time I've tried, I get bored of the cinematics. There's a lot, and I just want to play. There's also a lot of story to catch up on. And lastly, I'm time broke. I can't justify paying a subscription when my heart isn't in it. I wish it was, but the timing is bad. Sucks, but I like what I saw.
Oh, I'm also not a community person. It's nice and all, but I'm good doing my own thing.Just some beautiful things in my life
Mr. Chicken gets me flowers sometimes. It's random, so it's always a surprise. I love them so. He gives my heart butterflies.
And my baby girl is just so fly.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY | Mr. CHIKIMN
Packing: My tshirt range is small but loud.
He wanted to stay somewhere away from everything, with our friends.
I told him to pick whatever he wanted and he'll get it.
My husband wants what he wants and deserves infinitely more, but we settled on this estate in Joshua Tree. It was perfect and accommodated everyone comfortably.
Mung Bean got her first K.O. !
lmaooo
The cake was as chaotic as it was messy
Someone got him a sniper decanter with grenade glasses
rofffffllll FERAL
Smurr brought Rennie and Mung Bean was so happy, lol.
Unc dance party.
It was cold out. So once Mung Bean knocked out, we went to check out the pool. Naturally.
The water was freezing, so we got in.
Homdray dared Lifa to sit in the hot tub. So we all did it and it sucked but we stayed submerged because it hurt to move, lmaoooo. It's fine. If Brad Pitt can do it in the F1 movie, so can we.
Smurr got the sauna started so we went in there and that sucked because we didn't know how it worked but instead of leaving, we just sat in there and complained. It felt better with complaining.
The grounds were really cool. Lots of stuff.
Decided last minute to get the pool heated. It'd take 15 hours, so by this day it should've reached temp by 1pm.
fkin One Piece, lmao.
Lord of the Rings Extended Edition, very important.
Mo and Kevin made these delicious boozy smoothy things that were so dangerous.
The pool hadn't warmed up at all. It was an issue throughout our stay.
The pool hadn't warmed up at all. It was an issue throughout our stay.
But we still enjoyed everything else available to us.
The hot tub heating was complimentary, so we spent most of the day in the hot tub.
Unreal Tournament 2004
xD
Our last morning was bittersweet.
Lots of fun.
We'd never stayed out at Joshua Tree. It's very... desert. But I like the isolated feeling while stayed there. And everyone else seemed to have a good time. Overall, another happy birthday celebration for Mr. Chicken!
Our friends came through so hxc and chipped in for the estate. I wasn't expecting anyone to chip in, it was just something for us to enjoy for his birthday, but omg WE'RE SO BLESSED.
The AirBnB drama that came from this was fun though. I didn't tell anyone, only Mr. Chicken. But I got it handled and it flexed my lawyer level debate talents. I can be a pedantic mf but this... this begged for it and all my talent points in Pedantic shined like a DIAMOND, qworl. The company tried to get us, but I put a timeline together and Sherlock Holmes'd everything, and Mr. Chicken added the killing blow. It was beautiful. AirBnB ruled in our favor and the property place had to eat what they tried to get us for. I had so much fun.
TLDR: There was damage to furniture that was obscured; no one was aware of it until their cleaning crew reported it 2 days after we left. But the property had another booking the day after us. They tried to get us for the replacement. No, mami. :)
ANYWAAAYYY
The milestones keep coming. She wants to learn all of the things. It's kinda early for potty training too, but I thought it'd make things easier later on if she was familiarized with words and association, sitting, sensations, etc. So it's been like 2 months now since I've been bringing her with me to the bathroom first thing in the morning and she knows to tell me she has to go now.
Chopsticks! She sees us use them and she's been trying on her own.
Yay learning. We just have to let her see what works and what doesn't.
Ren Faire !
The milestones keep coming. She wants to learn all of the things. It's kinda early for potty training too, but I thought it'd make things easier later on if she was familiarized with words and association, sitting, sensations, etc. So it's been like 2 months now since I've been bringing her with me to the bathroom first thing in the morning and she knows to tell me she has to go now.
Chopsticks! She sees us use them and she's been trying on her own.
Yay learning. We just have to let her see what works and what doesn't.
Ren Faire !
Weeee, yay gross outside activities!
It's okay, it didn't pour down on us this year. And the last time I wore this outfit I was pregnant, so it was nice to wear it and actually be comfortable.
Wey wizard + strongk passerby was a beautiful moment, immortalized.
D'awww
Mung Bean loves her tia Lele ^_^
D'awww
Mung Bean loves her tia Lele ^_^
Kids!
The Gandalfs were just... precious.
Next year, I wanna cosplay as Grima Wormtongue and yell at friends to take all the staves.
Next year, I wanna cosplay as Grima Wormtongue and yell at friends to take all the staves.
I repurposed our Lovevery play tent thingy or whatever it's called, into a little comfy, hidey fort thingie for Mung Bean.
Ophelia claimed it.
It's fine.
It's fine.
It's fine.
She's our eldest, I can't tell her no T_T
She's our eldest, I can't tell her no T_T
Sushi with the tios and tia
This little lady is a bottom pit. We're so thankful for that. (She's not having raw fish.)
I was determined to develop the "foodie" trait early because I don't have the patience. No, m'am.
Heading towards the end of May also marked another year around the Sun for Homdray. We celebrated with Helldivers 2.
No idea what it is other than a co-op shooter where you shoot monsters and try to survive. It's beloved in our circle, so I wore a cape :D
Yay, Democratic birthday boy!
There's a saying; For Democracy!
I'm not sure how it's contextualized in the game, but yeah! That!
Also, Mr. Chicken wore a militant beret and it looked good on him, lol.
Happy Bday, Homdray!
There's a saying; For Democracy!
I'm not sure how it's contextualized in the game, but yeah! That!
Also, Mr. Chicken wore a militant beret and it looked good on him, lol.
Happy Bday, Homdray!
Another Disneyland outing with the fam
I'll never get tired of these days. It's monotonous and wonderfuly so. Loudly reclusive, and perfect.
I understand King Triton. Everything. His distrust of humans. His fear for his daughter. His controlling nature. His heartbreak seeing Ariel pining for this POS human man and choosing to transform her anyway because he loved her so much. I get it now. I hate Eric. Like, wtf does he know about Merpeople? Did he even try to do any research? What about the nightmares she'll probably have for the rest of her life as she acclimates to a completely different environment, not to mention culture. SHE BRUSHED HER HAIR WITH A FORK, I MEAN C'MON.
I'm just saying. He better have been patient, because she literally had no clue wtf people did.
Also... a really good show that features Mermaids in the most realistic way is called Siren. It's well done. Gets kinda dumb later on, but it starts out really cool and I tolerated the goofy stuff later on as the show grew on me. It's dope.
Derailing for a second: on the note of Mermaids, I always figured that they'd be ugly, to our eyes. Or at least look kinda fearsome, as they'd be equipped with physiology to support their environment, right? Ex: noses. Zero functionality. If anything, it'd create resistance turning their head in the water fast enough to glance at whatever. They'd have webbed fingers, armpits, under their jaws onto their necks... their "hair" would be like... actually just some species of deep sea algae or fungus or something, covered in some kind of slime with no surface friction. They'd have to have sharp teeth, or some kind of evolved mechanism that would give them flexible jaws that could potentially unhinge, the way snakes have. I think they'd be apex predators, because they'd have, albeit primitive, capabilities liken to human intelligence. Their eyes would be strange to us, equipped to see in complete darkness. No eyelids. Or at least minimal liddage.
I'm just saying, they wouldn't be cute. Their allure would be their songs. Similar to how whales communicate, but with human vocal chords, they could, like dolphins, enjoy being assholes and playing with their prey.
ANYWAY. SOrry.
I'm just saying. He better have been patient, because she literally had no clue wtf people did.
Also... a really good show that features Mermaids in the most realistic way is called Siren. It's well done. Gets kinda dumb later on, but it starts out really cool and I tolerated the goofy stuff later on as the show grew on me. It's dope.
Derailing for a second: on the note of Mermaids, I always figured that they'd be ugly, to our eyes. Or at least look kinda fearsome, as they'd be equipped with physiology to support their environment, right? Ex: noses. Zero functionality. If anything, it'd create resistance turning their head in the water fast enough to glance at whatever. They'd have webbed fingers, armpits, under their jaws onto their necks... their "hair" would be like... actually just some species of deep sea algae or fungus or something, covered in some kind of slime with no surface friction. They'd have to have sharp teeth, or some kind of evolved mechanism that would give them flexible jaws that could potentially unhinge, the way snakes have. I think they'd be apex predators, because they'd have, albeit primitive, capabilities liken to human intelligence. Their eyes would be strange to us, equipped to see in complete darkness. No eyelids. Or at least minimal liddage.
I'm just saying, they wouldn't be cute. Their allure would be their songs. Similar to how whales communicate, but with human vocal chords, they could, like dolphins, enjoy being assholes and playing with their prey.
ANYWAY. SOrry.
Daddy dadding
^_^
^_^
As long as we live in California, the Disney parks will always be somewhere we can run off to. I'll make sure of it.
The day she gets tired of going, that's okay because it'll always be there for Mr. Chicken and myself ^_^
One of the family owned Japanese food places has become our regular spot. The owner always bring out a little cup, bowl and silverware for Mung Bean. One day I wanna bring them a gift. Just because. We appreciate them. We go so often lol.
The last day of May had us in Riverside. For an anime convention!
Totally last minute, Lifa hit us up and I saw that Lauren had a booth. Hadn't seen her in forever. Bought tickets so fast, lol.
Anime Riverside was a lot of fun! Really chill, smaller convention. Also... Downtown Riverside was really nice. When we got out of the car, it didn't smell like pee and there wasn't trash everywhere. I was flabbergasted that downtowns could be so clean! I've only ever been to Riverside once before, and that was for setting up for a service at cemetery.
No shortage of awesome cosplay
Mung Bean has one of the coolest aunties, I gotta say.
Mung Bean was suspicious of this giant, ugly pikachu. As she should be.
It was so good seeing Lauren. She voices many fighter chick characters, but she's a damn warrior in real life too.
Welly, well well. This finally concludes this post. This fricking thing that was like, several weeks in the making because I kept having to pause and resume, but would forget where I left off. Woof.
Been a good season. June has been great. The weather is getting more ... uncomfortable, but it also forces my hand to make a play area in the back yard for Mung Bean and summer BBQ hangouts.
I'm tired. :)
The flu sucks, lol.
Mkay byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyeeeeeeeeeee