(btw if you did not get the reference, the title is from soundtrack of the "Team America World Police)

You might be wondering why my blog post typically starts with some sort of expletives.. well the main reason really is that whenever I write I am typically suuuuuuuuuuuper excited/inspired (and yes the multiple u's is absolutely necessary). So all my pent up emotions (+ a sh*tload of stress) often (98% of the time) leads to some (ok lets be honest, a lot of) expletives! <start of thinking> “Note to self must stop talking in parenthesis (oh sh*t I even think in parenthesis)” <end of stupid thoughts>

Anyways these are multiple reasons why I am suuuuuuuuper excited..

1] We, my partner Jane Jonghyun Yi and I and the rest of the studio had our first option studio mid review.. After coming from a really...really busy china trip we had 2 weeks to design something that is befitting of our studio's pedagogy.. (whoa I just said/type pedagogy as if it was part of my daily conversations... I guess it shows that I am acclimating well). Which is rethinking the typical Chinese mega plots using typological/systematic processes such as defining the city's common artifact and framework and abstracting it to its most irreducible unit which is the deep structure.. I hope I did not butchered that explanation because our studio professor, Chris Lee is so precise and eloquent which is the complete opposite of me thus taking this studio.

The funny thing is that both my partner and I are a little bit challenged in eloquently stating our design manifesto(well actually she is just a little bit challenged while I am a lot more). So we are working really hard to change that... so on top of design work, we are spending a good amount of out time  re-reading and re-writing our arguments.

During our presentation we were aslo a bit nervous (croaky stuttery voice in the beggining) because both the deans of gsd and the headhoncho/a of AECOM and some more additional acomplished professors were there.. Our review, surprisingly went very well.......... (notice the multiple periods) The juries  were on surprisingly on board with our scheme with some exceptions that we have not worked on... Oh and remember my last post and I did a shout out to an AECOM executive / GSD alumni Nancy Lin.. well she was here during our reviews and again I am truly grateful for her really clever, on point insight.. She is good... really good!

So these are some drawings of our schemes.. (I will do a more group post sharing the projects of my fellow studio peeps) <wait i have to go to dinner now so i will upload the rest of the photos later> <now i will explain these images later.. need to shower before class>

2] Another reason why I am suuuuuper excited is that I got my American citizenship.. (it was actually on the same day of our mid reviews so it was really not fun but more nerve-wracking because I ended up almost 1.5 hours late for the reviews. As for the specifics of US Naturalization Oath Taking experience, It was actually quite perplexing.

(Warning: this part of the post my sound a bit “emo” [ I know the term is sooo 2005... {and yea triple parenthesis baby!}] so you can just fast forward to Reason#3). 

On that same day I was only running on 2.5 hours of sleep... so partly retarded/unhinged with the reality.. I felt very vulnerable (not a like a baby deer watching his dying mom that was hit by a gas-guzzling douche-mobile like a yellow hummer... I know that reference is quite dark and odd and frankly retarded and I could have just easily gotten the same effect with just describing a fish out of water.. but shit I am having an emo...actually super-crazy-vans-warped-tour-circa-summer-of-2006-with-fall-out-boyish-scratch-the-used-wanna-be-goth-moment right now so get off my case!) during the ceremony. I was really sad to part ways with my Filipino citizenship. It has been a part of me all of my life. But on the other hand I am really really grateful for what the “Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic from which its stands...(yahdah yahdah... just kidding)” has given me and most importantly in my family. And the more I try to be honest with myself, I did most of my “growing up” years here in America. Yes I often think that my adult life started the day my sisters and I were separated from my parents for about 2 years (that was during when I was 14). 

So back to the ceremony, the USCIS lady started with  an anecdote about this baby eagle and his fear of flying for the first time but he ended up soaring in the sky like the rest of his bald eagle family... I have to admit was a bit touched and inspired.. then the head judge of Massachusetts came and delivered another powerful personal anecdote about the shared privileges [between natural Americans and naturalized Americans] of being Americans and we should all work hard together uphold these values that we all share.... It struck a chord deep in me... but you know what <deep sarcastic tone> A REAL MAN DOESN'T CRY, so I quickly shrugged it off and went on to reminiscing about my first few days in America.... so naturally for the rest of the day I was singing this song in my head...

<gracias youtube> SUMMERTIME IN THE LBC BY DOVESHACK <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WK_S4a3s5Qg>

3) Today I freaked out my roomate/buttmate (GSD term meaning the guy that sits behind you and share a cubicle with) and another friend of mine when they heard me giggling like a little asian school girl when I found out that there are Harvard Cooking Classes that is under the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.. Anyways Ferran Adrià... let me repeat myself FERRAN ADRIA of EL BULLI is coming!!!

image copied from:http://www.linternaute.com

this is big... this is sooooooooooooooooooo major! (pardon my valley girl terms). But during the times that when I am feeling uninspired, I often turn to watching documentaries about El Bulli and him or youtube an Anthony Bourdain:No Reservations episode about the closing of El Bulli to re-gain my belief that the world is still good and multiple passions in life is very important!

This blog post becoming an epic emo-mess... but sh*t I am just being honest I guess....

Anyways I would like to just state this last statement.. because I know that the only avid reader of my blog is my dad which then he shares to my mom... to my dear parents thank you very much for being brave and enduring all the obstacles/challenges of moving to a different country just to provide us (my sisters and I) a better life. Maraming Salamat Po!