"it's a celebration, b@#%#es!"

i apologize for being m.i.a. but may has been a very busy and exciting month so far. after a year without one, i got another disney pass when i went there for charlene's birthday. i spent the afternoon at disneyland after clinicals in sun city with charlene (of course), achi, crystal, tiff, pat, christian, sibs, yambeezy, big ray, fred, matt, martin, meagan, jibs, and katrina. i don't know why i didn't renew my pass earlier haha. i forgot how much fun i had going. another may 8 has passed i'm now 22. i celebrated my birthday in a peaceful and pleasant way at home with family and friends. enough noise and good vibes to make it a party but just the right amount of everything else to set it apart. thanks to everyone who came and showed some love. anavie was not in attendance because on may 7...she gave birth to ever marian leelin! i'm so happy for her and mike and i can't wait to visit them and see ever. she's going to be the closest thing to having a niece for me. speaking of which, my sister left for the carmelites on may 9. my family and sibs, nikki, and charlene went over to the Sacred Heart retreat house in alhambra to drop her off. we met a couple of the sisters there and i must say that they are quite amazing. an hour over there convinced me why my sister chose the carmelites. as sad as i am to see her leave...i'm happy that she's finding her niche to serve God in a whole new, better, and bigger way. i can only hope she'll be happy and lead a more fulfilling life with this vocation. later on that day, i went over to swasdee's for aimee's graduation dinner with pat and tiff...only to find out she wasn't there yet. as much as we wanted to wait for her to arrive, we had to make our way over to manna in k-town for matt's birthday dinner so we left. manna was dope as always...good and enormous amounts of food. matt got drenched twice in champagne. the usual laughs and good times. i don't think i'll have korean bbq for awhile haha. mother's day this year was unique. less than 24 hours after we dropped off my sister at the carmelite house, my family visited her to attend the may crowning ceremony. it was a beautiful experience that i was glad to be a part of. from the rosary to the mass...it was a seized opportunity to cherish the awesomeness that is the Catholic faith. last night for the first time in a long time...kp, nick, christian, matt, big ray, and i went monday night bowling. i miss the days when we used to go every week but i'm glad that we still go when there's time in our busy (and getting busier) lives. today...i spent my day off from school having lunch with aimee and dub. we went over to ichikawa at the commons for some shabu shabu. it was aimee's first time eating shabu shabu and i'm happy to have made her a fan. it was our first time eating there and i must say it's not too shabby. good environment and good service. i wouldn't mind coming back. we got our dessert fix at yogurtland and proceeded to spend the next hour sitting and relaxing on the bench outside mesmerized by the dancing water fountain haha. ah...the simple joys in life we take for granted. summer is supposed to start next month but things are already heating up...get ready or you might get burned.

peace and love - jl