[Super Duper Fantastic] ISFP/INFP. 4w5. World Explorer. Super Hero. Rose-colored Glasses.

Over the weekend, I volunteered for the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival. I have been meaning to get involved with the festival for years, but their shift hours never quite matched up with my availability until now. Hooray for work/life [+ volunteering] balance!

I picked up two shifts, earning myself two tickets to the festival. One started off with taking tickets for an afternoon talk with Aasif Mandvi [The Daily Show, Today's Special, The Proposal] and finished off with passing out around two hundred boxes of popcorn with Toyota’s logo on the box. They’re a sponsor of the festival and were giving out free popcorn for select screenings. The second shift involved a giveway for the Asian Art Museum. I would have picked up more shifts, but with the timing, I wouldn’t have been able to actually SEE any of the films. A little disorganized in some areas, but considering the event is fueled by volunteers [volunteer:staff ratio is quite high], it was a good experience overall. I’d do it again if it fit into my schedule.

Update: The sister who has been working closely with the film festival for years also found the volunteering experience to be disorganized, so it wasn’t just me. Also, during one of her shifts [Youtube Panel], a group of high school girls tried sneaking in. When they were out of tickets, the girls were unruly and swearing at everyone in sight. LOL – glad I wasn’t working that particular shift, although telling off a bunch of tweens might have been hilarious.

So tonight, I’ll be checking out Dear Lemon Lima! From the film festival guide:

“Today I read the ‘un’ section of the dictionary and learned a lot about myself: I am: unpopular, unwanted, and unlovable,” scrawls 13-year-old misfit Vanessa into her dear diary, studded with rainbow hearts and cupcakes, and works her fortune-telling device (covered with unicorns, of course) until it gives her the answer it wants: that Philip, class dreamboat and first-class narcissist, loves her. Half Yup’ik Eskimo, Vanessa is the token minority at a prestigious private high school in suburban Alaska (Philip’s family helped her get a scholarship), ignored by most other students and only accepted by a motley crew of fellow outsiders, slackers and geeks. When Philip finally dumps her, Vanessa hits upon an odd idea to win him back: to lead a team in the “Snowstorm Survivor Challenge,” a high-school contest that “incorporates” (or appropriates) Native Alaskan survival techniques, and hopefully impress him with her skills. An assured comedy about gawky adolescence that doesn’t, despite its cuteness, sugarcoat the legacy of bigotry against Native Alaskans or the toxic overprotectiveness of modern parents, DEAR LEMON LIMA, features winning performances by part-Yup’ik (and first-time actor) Savanah Wiltfong and veteran Beth Grant (reprising her role from DONNIE DARKO) as an overenthusiastic school booster.

The San Francisco portion of the festival runs until Thursday, and then it heads down to San Jose for a few days. There’s usually some great films you wouldn’t get/think to see otherwise, so check it out if you can!

Update: This movie was excellent! It’s on Netflix if you want to check it out.

After reading Laura’s adventures with S-Factor, I have decided to update my 101 in 1001 list. I am changing:

009 – S-Factor or equivalent class.

to

009 – Watch all the Star Wars movies.

They both start with the letter “S,” so that makes for a suitable replacement, yes? Okay, one is supposedly more like exercise, but I suppose I can leave the exercising to my other tasks, such as finishing my Bar Method classes or at least getting started on my daily sit-ups.

In terms of progress, I have finished Episode IV through VI! Avoidance of I through III has been suggested, but I might just put myself [and the friends who watch them with me] through the pain anyway to say that I’ve gone through them all.

“Do or do not… There is no try.” – Yoda

It may come as a surprise to most, but I have only begun to watch the Star Wars movies. The first two came out in 1977 and 1980, both years in which I was not yet alive. When the third came out, I was but a toddler. My family never had cable television, so the likelihood of me watching the films as a young person were quite low. In fact, I only recall bits and pieces of the third film. Since I’d not seen the first three, I avoided the last three when they came out in theaters.

Thanks to Keane‘s encouragement by renting the movies and providing the venue to watch them, I’m finally getting to it!

Two down, four to go.

On Wednesday evening, I had the opportunity to attend an early screening of Robert Kenner’s Food, Inc. [Thanks, Yelp!] in downtown SF, followed by a Q&A session with Kenner and Michael Pollan, author and activist. It was definitely an eye-opener and a reminder that we are what we eat. The film exposed the food industry for what it is, how it got that way, and we’re going to have to do to fix the problems. A handful of corporations control the food supply, basically giving up maintaining the health of consumers, safety of workers, as well as the environment, for money.

One of the featured stories of the film details the struggles of one mother while fighting for regulatory agencies to have more power and involvement in oversight of the various meat producers after her two-year-old fell victim to E. Coli. Another focused on genetically modified seeds, and the harm caused when all a corporation focused on was making money and taking over the market share. This not only wiped out any chance of a seed that wasn’t genetically modified, but it put people who relied on the processes required for maintaining seeds out of jobs.

To say the least, the film is graphic. Animals are slaughtered on screen. It’s not recommended for those who cannot stomach it. Food, Inc. is very informative and doesn’t end in a bitter note. In fact, there are easy ways for making steps in the right direction when it comes to food. They list ten simple ways [click for more details!] to change the food system.

1) Stop drinking sodas and other sweetened beverages. [Yup, I don't do this much anyway.]
2) Eat at home instead of eating out. [Guess I'm learning to cook!]
3) Support the passage of laws requiring chain restaurants to post calorie information on menus and menu boards. [A given, really! What do they have to hide unless they don't know either?]
4) Tell schools to stop selling sodas, junk food, and sports drinks. [Many school districts have done this.]
5) “Meatless Mondays” – Go without meat one day a week. [Isn't that Friday for some?]
6) Buy organic or sustainable food with little or no pesticides. [I think true organic is hard to find, but we can try.]
7) Protect family farms; visit your local farmer’s market. [Yes, luckily there are a ton of farmers' markets in San Francisco.]
8) Make a point to know where your food comes from – READ LABELS. [It's surprising what you will find.]
9) Tell Congress that food safety is important to you. [Clearly, not enough is being done.]
10) Demand job protections for farm workers and food processors, ensuring fair wages and other protections. [Absolutely!]

Highly recommended film. The movie is a pretty general picture, touching on a lot of different areas. Ignorance isn’t bliss. It’s your life!

So now I have more to add to the reading list: The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto, and Fast Food Nation. There are others! Yes, I know that I should have picked those up long ago.

Originally, RV and I were planning on leaving Los Angeles on Monday. But after walking around a bit on Friday and hearing about a particularly good deal at one of the restaurants nearby, we decided “What the hey, we’ll stay another day as long as it’s okay!” And of course, being as awesome as they are, Jen and Alex let us stay another night. We remained out of their hair most of the time, so that probably helped. Aside from the evening plans, we didn’t really have much of anything else on the agenda. Wandering around, looking for food and just taking it all in before finding ourselves back in SF? Found random spots to take pictures…

Somewhere along the way, we came across the Museum of Death [Watch out - it's a MySpace page!]. And to take words from my Yelp review: Wow. Just wow. We were wandering down Hollywood on our way to a Thai place down the street, and this unusual spot caught my eye.

On the outside, it doesn’t look like much. There are several signs around the building that say “Museum of Death.” Entrance is $15, and it is NOT for the faint of heart. The aim of the museum’s founders, married couple J.D. Healy and Cathee Shultz, is that visitors to the museum leave grateful to be alive. And after a bit of time inside the museum, you really do feel good to be alive… and wonder what is WRONG with all the psycho-serial-killers!

It was rather gruesome, and I was feeling faint at some parts. Just had to remember to breathe. It was pretty amazing though, just how extensive the collections were. Definitely a very random place to wander into when you didn’t really have much planned for the day.

After the Museum of Death, we wandered around West Hollywood a bit before heading back to the apartment to join Jen and Alex for dinner at Citizen Smith. Half off all food on Mondays, and it’s totally worth the discounted price! Large platters of Mac ‘n Cheese for $5. The other entrees are normally priced high, but at half off and for the taste, there’s no reason not to swing by. We also ordered a burger and a meal-sized salad. They cover their sweet potato fries in sugar and cinnamon and call them “churro fries.” Tasty!

To end the evening, we hopped over to Space 1520 for the last in the series of Monday night outdoor movies for Bill Murray month – Groundhog Day! It got a little chilly, but it was definitely not as windy as SF.

Good times. Wondering when my next trip to LA will be. Perhaps August? Maybe sooner?

While Jen and Alex rested off their hangovers from the Alter Egos party, RV and I went up to the Valley to visit Jeshii, Yayoi, and Little Joe! The last time I had seen Jeshii was when he told me that Yayoi was pregnant. I’d seen photos of Joe over the last few months, but to see him in person at three months old, wow! It’s sunk in. One of my close friends has a baby! And Joe was so well-behaved while we enjoyed brunch at CiCi’s Cafe. Steve [Ace] was there also, and I hadn’t seen him for a few years, I think. Good to catch up. The food was pretty good too!

After brunch, we hung out for a bit at their house. Caught up a bit. I’m considering returning to LA in August for the annual Death March. Will see if I can fit that in!

Upon returning to LA, we made our way over for ice cream at Scoops! I think I make sure to visit every time I’m in LA. Unfortunately, we got there about half an hour before closing, so there weren’t a lot of flavors left. I ended up with the Brown Bread [with Grape Nuts] and a vegan Salty Chocolate combo. Still very good.

And then a few hours later, Taco Zone! I’d heard so much about this taco truck from Jen and other friends. It was much easier to track down because they park in the same spot every night – on the side of the road, right by the Vons parking lot. Very convenient location! The food was pretty tasty; we ordered the suadero burritos on Jen’s recommendation. We grabbed everything to-go and chowed down on the back of the car.

If I visited LA more frequently, I’d return to SF a very fat girl… I just keep on eating… Oh, wait. I do that in any city already!

The rest of the evening was relaxing. Watched Duplicity back at the apartment. It was a little confusing at first, but then it all came together. I actually really liked it because the portrayal of corporations competing for secrets cracked me up. A bit over-the-top.

I finally watched the movie. It’s one of Keane‘s favorites, and I can now see why.

I really liked it too. I won’t elaborate since there are enough movie reviews out there. It made the walk home more interesting. RV and I jumped over puddles in the cold and dark night, discussing what each character brought to the movie and how the audience is expected to react to each.

It was suspenseful and kept my palms sweaty [Gross, right?]. It was only in theaters for a short time, so if you haven’t seen it yet, go rent it! It was definitely made for the big screen – lots of breathtaking visual effects. They are, after all, heading straight for the sun.

Yesterday was perfect. The weather was wonderful, and I was surrounded by friends. We started out with a picnic because the breakfast/brunch spot we wanted to eat at was closed. Armed with cheeses, crackers, and a whole lot of other “snacks,” we hit up Washington Square Park. Tangent: I remember coming to this children’s playground portion of this park back as a kid. We’d go down the slides, sit on the swings, and feed the birds. Now I only shake my fist and get irritated at the folks who feed the birds… I’ve turned out quite cranky!

Chrissi, a girl from Germany who contacted me via Couchsurfing, joined us at the park. I always love mixing and mingling my various circles. Human interaction between cultures can be quite entertaining. People often take for granted the idioms used and the idea of sarcasm. I could totally see the blank stares when one or the other couldn’t quite understand. Even a simple mix-up with terminology brought a smile to my face. I absolutely love how small the world is getting, especially in terms of traveling and communicating.

A little while later, we all wandered to Dolores Park for ice cream, more sun and people-watching. The tightrope walkers were out, a random band was playing in the middle, and there was even a goat… Yes, a goat in the middle of the park. So bizarre, but my friends have photographic evidence.

Afterwards, wandering around the Mission to show Chrissi some of the random shops and murals. Such a beautiful day in the neighborhood. [cue Mr. Rogers' theme]

And in the evening, I hung out with JM. We had a post-picnic clean-up dinner at Stern Grove; he helped me finish up a lot of the leftovers from earlier in the day. Nothing like a nutritious cheese & cracker, tomato & mozzarella, bread & pita chip dinner. Afterwards, we watched Stanley Kubrick’s Lolita. Of course, it was a DVD box set from Asia, so his name was really Stanlet Kubrick. I was most definitely amused.

How was YOUR Labor Day?

On Friday, with our assigned seats printed on the tickets in hand, we gathered at the wonderful Sundance Kabuki theater for a showing of The Dark Knight. Christian Bale was as hot as ever, but it was without a doubt all about the villains.

Wow.

There was much hype for the movie due to Heath Ledger’s passing, but his performance is definitely NOT overrated. It shows his ability to capture such a complex character and his flexibility from one role to the next. The other actors performed brilliantly as well.

• awake! #
• Son of Rambow looks HILARIOUS. Who wants to watch it when I get back from LA? :) #
• study study study. :) wish i was even more productive than this. #