Round and White; Breakfast at Terry Chi's; The Bean Bun Post

Boy, it’s hard to get back into the blogging groove after a couple months of not writing. I’ve also become “blogged” down with work and preparations for my upcoming trip to NYC (excuse the bad pun, but I couldn’t help myself). Something, or more like someone, else has also been taking up a lot of my time- I guess I should introduce you to him…

Meet BEAN BUN! That’s only his official name- he also goes by Bunbun, Bungee, Bunnicle, Bunzie, Bunjamin Button, Mr. Bean, Beanie, etc etc etc. The bun puns are endless.

Fate struck one night when a desperate-looking woman walked into the Tea Court and asked my manager if he wanted a bunny. He shook his head and pointed her in my direction, knowing that I had been in want of a cuddly companion for a long time, especially after watching Audrey Hepburn living as a single gal with her unnamed cat in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. It was hard to resist the woman’s pleas to take one of her parents’ baby dwarf bunnies, especially since she was on the verge of tears while explaining that they may be put in a shelter where they’d probably be euthanized. I’m no “Mother Teresa of Animals” like the woman n North Carolina with 300 cats, but I’m easily swayed by sad animal-in-need stories. My compassionate side definitely kicked in. 

So before I knew it, I was driving home with a baby bun in the backseat of my car. As I was driving and consoling this little snowball of fur that everything would be ok, I started to get anxious about having another being’s life in my hands. Previous pets of mine were also taken care of by my parents, so this was the first time I was solely responsible for my own pet. It was frightening! What if I forgot to feed him or neglected him or stepped on him?? I had two big black rabbits when I was 4, but my parents didn’t know how to take care of them properly, so the rabbits ended up turning into lethargic, triple-chinned lumps. I loved them but I don’t think I took good care of them or gave them enough attention. Now that I’ve learned to take care of myself, I also have a better idea of how to take care of someone else, in this case, a round white ball with two blue eyes and two-inch ears. This seems to parallel my theory that one must love oneself fully before being able to love others properly.

Anyhoo, I eventually got over my fear of responsibility, visited a wonderful pet store and rabbit shelter called “RabbitEars,” and got on track with my bunny care knowledge. I loved finally having company, waking up to the sound of grass munching and the sight of one of the cutest creatures I’ve ever laid eyes on. Now every time I eat an apple for breakfast, I cut out a little piece and share it with Bean Bun and for the first time in a long time, I feel, without fear or doubt, that I’m sincerely sharing a piece of my heart.

A Clean Plate; Sleepless in San Francisco; The New Year Post

Clearing my plate of the well-gnawed bones of 2012 and piling up some new resolutions and goals...

2013. Thank God it’s not 2012. Jk jk. 2012 was a bit difficult at moments, but it was a year of many firsts, many mistakes, and many lessons. So I guess thank God for 2012.

I must say though, I felt a panoply of positive emotions when 2013 arrived- relief, refreshment, and rejuvenation. I woke up in a bed of freshly cleaned sheets after an exhausting, slightly chaotic and champagne-splashed NYE night, ready to start the new day and the New Year. Last New Year’s Day, I spent a wonderfully relaxing day of fresh air, homemade hummus, and poetry-reading with my dear friend Danika and her sister, Anya, who you may remember from my WestOakland Dinner Post. This year, Danika was in Sweden, participating in an amazing Youth Initiative Project, on her way to making a significant difference in the world, so Anya and I were on our own. We started off with a late lunch of dim sum takeout- char sui baos, baby bok choy, taro cakes, etc., which we ate by a little lake in a lushly green park in the Richmond District.

Afterward, we took a walk along Land’s End, and Anya proposed we do a ritual for the New Year. I wasn’t too surprised, considering she wanted to have a "witchy" party based on the lunar calendar and hosted an all-women séance-y gathering one night (love it!). Her idea was to take an object- leaf, rock, stick- imbue it with something from the past year that we didn’t want to take into the New Year, and hurl it into the ocean. Then we thought about something to invite into 2013.

Once we brainstormed and discussed, she decided to throw away fear and invited in boldness while I chose to throw away weakness and invite in resolve. She hopes to step out of her comfort zone more often and embrace her silly side, and I hope to stand up to people who try to take advantage of my kindness and stay true to goals that I make for myself. As we stood on the edge of a cliff overlooking the Pacific, with the Golden Gate Bridge on our right and the setting sun on our left, I felt a sudden surge of strength and happiness as I flung my weakness over the edge of the earth.

With the sea air in our lungs and the images of the sun hitting the ocean’s edge in our minds, we ended the day with tasty tacos from the Mission and a cozy movie night, watching Sleepless in Seattle, a cute Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan romantic comedy directed by Nora Ephron about a man (Tom Hanks) who moves with his son to Seattle after losing his wife. Depressed and forlorn, the man worries his son, who seeks help from a psychologist on the radio (so old school!). When the psychologist asks the son to put his father on the phone, the man describes his love for his late wife so beautifully that women all across the country fall in love with him, including Meg Ryan, a woman recently engaged to someone she’s not sure she loves completely. Basically, Tom and Meg barely see each other, but somehow seem to be destined to be together. They don’t meet until the end of the movie at the top of the Empire State Building (like in An Affair to Remember- a Deborah Kerr-Cary Grant romance that served as inspiration for the movie). Though the movie sometimes contains the cheesiness of a typical Rom Com, it was a hopeful story of intuitive love and life after death. I felt moved by it, because it was quite relatable for me. The last year and a half, I’ve attended five funerals of significant people in my life and though they’re saddening, I’ve discovered strength and inspiration in hearing about these loved ones’ lives and a newfound resolve to live my life with purpose and passion and love. Though this may mean some sleepless nights in the city, at least I’ll know that I’m filling my hours with living and loving.