Friday, September 28, 2001
if yer reading this, and happen to have expendable Seattle Mariners Division Series tickets for sale...contact me ASAP!
e-mail- jin_kazama@mailexcite.com
worth a shot... =]
e-mail- jin_kazama@mailexcite.com
worth a shot... =]
Sunday, September 23, 2001
hit up the Puyallup Fair yesterday...if you're from Washington, you know what's up. for those non-Washingtonians, it's essentially the biggest state sponsored fair in the state of Washington. it was a fun, interesting experience as usual, and it seems that evey year the fair takes on a different theme for me personally. last year, it was winning bundles of those cuddly stuffed animals, many of which were the various incarnations of Pokemon...and a jumbo sized Kermit the Frog.
this year, the theme was to do *daring* things at the Fair. no, didn't go to the extent of gettin' on the Extreme Scream, and believe me when i say that extreme is no understatement. extreme heights, and the extreme vertigo from falling faster than gravity...thanks for the offer, but ummm...no. instead, i opted to do rockclimbing...first time i'd ever climbed so high, about 80 feet, and once i reached the top...boy, getting down was quite an experience since you needed to have faith in jumping down, trusting the integrity of the rope mechanism. that it'd lead me to the ground safely, which it did...
later that night, i decided to participate at the karaoke booth, after overcoming the intense nervousness i'd been experiencing. i ended up performing Craig David's "Fill Me In"...and boy, it was a exhilarating rush up there, looking down at the crowd which didn't know exactly what to expect from me in terms of performance quality. i admit, i had a major case of performance anxiety come over me the moment they called my name up, and to overcome the nerves, i told myself i'd just have as much fun on stage as possible, and to let things hang out. and boy, did the advice ever deliver...first time i ever had a crowd up on their feet like that, seein' the crowd gettin' larger, girls shrieking w/ excitement...haha...
kinda like that last one... =]
this year, the theme was to do *daring* things at the Fair. no, didn't go to the extent of gettin' on the Extreme Scream, and believe me when i say that extreme is no understatement. extreme heights, and the extreme vertigo from falling faster than gravity...thanks for the offer, but ummm...no. instead, i opted to do rockclimbing...first time i'd ever climbed so high, about 80 feet, and once i reached the top...boy, getting down was quite an experience since you needed to have faith in jumping down, trusting the integrity of the rope mechanism. that it'd lead me to the ground safely, which it did...
later that night, i decided to participate at the karaoke booth, after overcoming the intense nervousness i'd been experiencing. i ended up performing Craig David's "Fill Me In"...and boy, it was a exhilarating rush up there, looking down at the crowd which didn't know exactly what to expect from me in terms of performance quality. i admit, i had a major case of performance anxiety come over me the moment they called my name up, and to overcome the nerves, i told myself i'd just have as much fun on stage as possible, and to let things hang out. and boy, did the advice ever deliver...first time i ever had a crowd up on their feet like that, seein' the crowd gettin' larger, girls shrieking w/ excitement...haha...
kinda like that last one... =]
Thursday, September 20, 2001
only 11 days until Fall classes at the University of Washington start up...clock is ticking...
Saturday, September 15, 2001
did an abbreviated six-hour shift at Sea-Tac yesterday, and it was encouraging to see planes land and take-off for the first time since the tragedy. it's even more encouraging to see people across the nation band together, praying together, aiding in the healing process over the tragic series of events surrounding New York and the WTC...
the Lord works in deeply mysterious ways, and i think w/ these heinous acts of terrorism, He's trying to remind us of the immense evil that is mobilizing around the world. trying to remind us that, as a collective humanity, we need Him. that we desperately need the armor that only He can provide. the armor of Faith...
the Lord works in deeply mysterious ways, and i think w/ these heinous acts of terrorism, He's trying to remind us of the immense evil that is mobilizing around the world. trying to remind us that, as a collective humanity, we need Him. that we desperately need the armor that only He can provide. the armor of Faith...
Tuesday, September 11, 2001
In regards to this tragedy of epic, worldwide proportions and implications, I humbly offer this single suggestion:
Pray...
Pray...
Sunday, September 09, 2001
sunday night, weekend over, and lucky me can look forward to a 50 hour work week...
but, really, i don't mind much. generally it's laid back, and after all i am accomplishing the Lord's will there...
weekend was eventful. brother came back saturday from a summer full of sun, sun, and Army boot camp. bonus points if you caught right away the play on words there. boot camp can never be...fun. haha. it's coo that he's back. we went to our aunt's house today, 'cause she prepared some good ol' authentic Filipino grub to commemorate his graduation from boot camp. haven't had real Filipino food in a long while, since no one cooks at my house no more, so it made everything much more palatable and appetizing...
caught the Hewitt-Sampras match while i was there. Hewitt took the US Open title in three convincing sets against Sampras. The Australian Hewitt has a bright future in tennis...he handled the perennial champion Sampras, who's 11 years his elder, w/ lightning bursts of mobility around the court, and such bull-dog tenacity and guile...
oh yeah, friday at work...yeah, tips were good that day, but that's not what stuck out to me. first, i had a conversation w/ Al Martin. yeah, that Al Martin that plays left field for the Seattle Mariners. here's what our conversation consisted of...
Reg: hey, what's up Al...
Al: yo, what's goin' on bro...
what a dialogue, eh? haha...
second on the list for momentous events this past friday ocured while i was waiting for my passenger to de-plane. she eventually de-planed, took a glance at me and said "hey, i have a cute-looking guy assisting me this time!" i was flattered by the statement, but i was absolutely elated when the gorgeous-looking stewardess standing next to her to a look at me, smiled, and said "yeah, he is!"
to say that this comment brightened my day would be a understatement...haha...
but, really, i don't mind much. generally it's laid back, and after all i am accomplishing the Lord's will there...
weekend was eventful. brother came back saturday from a summer full of sun, sun, and Army boot camp. bonus points if you caught right away the play on words there. boot camp can never be...fun. haha. it's coo that he's back. we went to our aunt's house today, 'cause she prepared some good ol' authentic Filipino grub to commemorate his graduation from boot camp. haven't had real Filipino food in a long while, since no one cooks at my house no more, so it made everything much more palatable and appetizing...
caught the Hewitt-Sampras match while i was there. Hewitt took the US Open title in three convincing sets against Sampras. The Australian Hewitt has a bright future in tennis...he handled the perennial champion Sampras, who's 11 years his elder, w/ lightning bursts of mobility around the court, and such bull-dog tenacity and guile...
oh yeah, friday at work...yeah, tips were good that day, but that's not what stuck out to me. first, i had a conversation w/ Al Martin. yeah, that Al Martin that plays left field for the Seattle Mariners. here's what our conversation consisted of...
Reg: hey, what's up Al...
Al: yo, what's goin' on bro...
what a dialogue, eh? haha...
second on the list for momentous events this past friday ocured while i was waiting for my passenger to de-plane. she eventually de-planed, took a glance at me and said "hey, i have a cute-looking guy assisting me this time!" i was flattered by the statement, but i was absolutely elated when the gorgeous-looking stewardess standing next to her to a look at me, smiled, and said "yeah, he is!"
to say that this comment brightened my day would be a understatement...haha...
Thursday, September 06, 2001
i'm gonna be hittin' the Emerald Downs track later tonight, and it's gonna feel different because five different co-workers of mine have pooled in w/ me today. seems like they're intrigued by my uncanny streak of profit generating there, and wanna join in on the fun...
as for work, well, it was work as usual...however, it was unusual in that pay-day was today rather than tomorrow...
as for work, well, it was work as usual...however, it was unusual in that pay-day was today rather than tomorrow...
Wednesday, September 05, 2001
if you're wondering why the uncharacteristically early entry, well it's because i called in to Sea-Tac this morning. i hit the tennis courts for four hours yesterday, playing six sets...and this morning i couldn't get up. physically i could, but mentally i knew i couldn't go through ten hours of work. even though the nature of the work is real laid back and easy, after all it's still work and requires one to have the right mentality...the "work" mentality. definitely not up there as one of my favorite mentalities...heh. at least i'll be refreshed for the ten hour shifts thursday and friday. and it definitely doens't hurt that friday's "big-fat check" day... =]
feels good to just have this silence, no distractions...right now if i was at Sea-Tac, things would've started to get real busy, putting up w/ people in frantic rushes to check baggage and find their gates, airline agents in dire need of attitude adjustments, people stopping me and asking questions in what seems like every other minute. i really don't mind the physical hectic-ness of it all, mentally however, that's an entirely different can o' beans...strength and resiliency in this capacity is requisite. well, i guess here i only speak for myself, 'cause i think i lean drastically on the sensitive side.
silence is beautiful...
feels good to just have this silence, no distractions...right now if i was at Sea-Tac, things would've started to get real busy, putting up w/ people in frantic rushes to check baggage and find their gates, airline agents in dire need of attitude adjustments, people stopping me and asking questions in what seems like every other minute. i really don't mind the physical hectic-ness of it all, mentally however, that's an entirely different can o' beans...strength and resiliency in this capacity is requisite. well, i guess here i only speak for myself, 'cause i think i lean drastically on the sensitive side.
silence is beautiful...
Sunday, September 02, 2001
looks like i haven't updated in a while...to those handful of persons that actually read these updates...my fault.
speaking of faults, i hit the Lincoln Park tennis courts yesterday evening for the first time in a few months...and it was a really encouraging experience. i think i've discovered once again what attracted me so much to the sport, and i think it has much to do with getting into a zone, and feeling comfortable w/ your shots. i went to the courts w/ the intention of strictly serving, and it ended up that i'd be playing three sets against the prospective #1 boy's singles player from Evergreen HS. everything was working for me during the match; backhand was pace and topspin ferocious as ever, forehand and running forehand had uncharacteristic depth, pace and consistency, and my serves were going in at a ridiculously high number that hovered around 75 percent. this all came together and allowed me to handily pull out the three setter 6-1, 6-1, 6-0...
funny thing is, i wasn't supposed to play this well 'cause the racket i usually hit with was out of commision, requiring a re-stringing. instead, i found myself "stuck" w/ my spare long-body racket that i'd thought was useless to me...and ended up guiding me to the positive end of a three-set blow-out demolition...
it's so ironic...it's a broken string that stripped me of my abilities four years ago, and it's again a broken string restores those abilties, even exceeding them drastically, four years later. this definitely reinforces the truth that God operates in mysterious ways...
speaking of faults, i hit the Lincoln Park tennis courts yesterday evening for the first time in a few months...and it was a really encouraging experience. i think i've discovered once again what attracted me so much to the sport, and i think it has much to do with getting into a zone, and feeling comfortable w/ your shots. i went to the courts w/ the intention of strictly serving, and it ended up that i'd be playing three sets against the prospective #1 boy's singles player from Evergreen HS. everything was working for me during the match; backhand was pace and topspin ferocious as ever, forehand and running forehand had uncharacteristic depth, pace and consistency, and my serves were going in at a ridiculously high number that hovered around 75 percent. this all came together and allowed me to handily pull out the three setter 6-1, 6-1, 6-0...
funny thing is, i wasn't supposed to play this well 'cause the racket i usually hit with was out of commision, requiring a re-stringing. instead, i found myself "stuck" w/ my spare long-body racket that i'd thought was useless to me...and ended up guiding me to the positive end of a three-set blow-out demolition...
it's so ironic...it's a broken string that stripped me of my abilities four years ago, and it's again a broken string restores those abilties, even exceeding them drastically, four years later. this definitely reinforces the truth that God operates in mysterious ways...
