Okay, it’s been a while since i last posted. I want to do a song of the day thing, but i don’t think i’m that on top of things. So, instead I’ll post lists over the course of the rest of the year so that you can all know more about me. WOOOOO!!! Let’s begin with our inaugural list!

5 MUSIC ARTISTS I SHOULD BE GUILTY ABOUT LISTENING TO:

#1. Kelly Clarkson
Okay, to be fair I don’t even think I should be guilty about this one. Clarkson’s voice alone relieves me of whatever shame should come when a soon-to-be 23-year old man listens to girl pop. Have you even heard the entirety of her “Breakaway” album?! Ok. Go now. Listen to it. Since U Been Gone? Behind These Hazel Eyes? Because of You? Where is Your Heart? Beautiful. Just Beautiful.

#2. N’Sync
Okay, there’s much shame that goes along with this one. So much shame. “No Strings Attached” was THE album back in my middle school years. Ever heard JC Chasez and Justin Timberlake sing-talk/rap? It Makes Me Ill on that album has just that. It was the reason I started liking rap. I know. Sad. But beginnings are beginnings and my hip-hop roots have gone deeper than two white boy banders. Want to hear a surprisingly dirty and weird song? Digital Getdown. Listen Now!

#3. Britney Spears
I’m not talking about the new Britney. I’m talking about young, innocent Britney. The one that I wanted to marry when I was in middle school. I spent too much time longing after this woman pre-crazy. There’s too many songs on “…Baby One More Time” that I know the lyrics to. I continue to go back to that album and reminisce about simpler times. If you want to laugh listen to E-Mail My Heart. Hilarious!

#4. Jonas Brothers
Did I buy a Jonas Brothers CD? Yes. Did I hate myself for doing it? Maybe a little. Was I relieved of my shame after listening to it? Not really. This one probably brings the most shame into my life. I did it on a whim. There’s no real excuse for buying the CD. It’s not terrible. It’s not great. It just is. No track recommendations. Let’s just forget that i admitted this one. There’s still a lot of shame here…

#5. Hanson
That’s right, Hanson. We’re not talking about MMMBop Hanson, though. I’m talking older in age Hanson. Listen to Penny and Me and then tell me they’re the same band as the MMMBop days. Yeah, I didn’t think so. Unfortunately, they’re still a stigma around who Hanson is and with that comes some slight shame. Sigh…

i’d like to start this post with a warning. personally, i’m not a big fan of public displays of affection. i find them gross. however, the girl that i’ve chosen to date enjoys that sort of thing. so, this is one of those posts. don’t read the rest if you don’t want to. i’ll understand. 

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it’s been almost three years since i’ve been single. i mean that in the least braggy way possible. when i look back at my singleness i’m reminded of the fun of making lists. 

i love lists. i don’t know why. i love to make lists for everything in my life.

during my time as a single man i made THE list. you know the one. the list of qualities that my future girlfriend was to have. there were many variations of this list, but overall the themes felt the same. it went something like…

1. jesus time. equally yoked with a fellow believer. non-negotiable.
2. music. she had be to well versed everything from the strokes to tupac to the beatles.
3. food. she had to love and appreciate good food. 
4. opinionated. i always envisioned the two of us sipping coffee in a cafe talking about politics, religion, books, etc. kind of pretentiously in an ironic kind of way.
5. articulate. she would be well spoken and eloquent.
6. funny (mean-funny). we would be able to sit back and make fun of the world together.
7. sarcastic. it was my first language. it should be hers too.

there were other things, but these were the most important. i was excited and waited anxiously for God to bring my dream girl into my life.

i had began pouring myself into a new way of life and ministry began taking up a lot of my time. i was always trying to busy myself and not get too sad about not having a girlfriend anymore.

i had a “whenever God decides to have her walk into my life” kind of attitude. i wasn’t actively looking, but i was open to the idea of dating.

then she walked in.

when it came to physical appearance i didn’t have many requirements. they were all summed up from the shoulder up. long, straight, and dark hair with bangs covering one eye. God had brought her to a youth camp i was serving as a cabin leader at. 

time went on and we began getting to know each other more and more. i was falling hard and fast. through a lot of prayer and God’s opening of doors we finally were dating. 

it wasn’t until a few months in that i began realizing what had happened. 

God had brought me a girl that met virtually none of my expectations. she was a strong and devoted follower of Jesus Christ and that was it. christina’s extreme lack of musical experience left me introducing her to various bands and genres that she had never even heard about. while she loved good food, there was no innate need to adventure into the vast unknown of the culinary world. she had virtually no opinions on any of the things we could’ve talked about at a coffeehouse. she misspoke more often than not and didn’t get half of the jokes that i made. when i spoke in a sarcastic tone it was taken as fact. 

it was like God took our common bond in following after Him and said, “all right, that looks good to me.” 

we were left with nothing in common other than a japanese american heritage and the bible. 

throughout all of this that’s one of the biggest things God has taught me. i didn’t need any other common bond with christina. so what if she didn’t know any kanye west songs by heart or was able to have in depth discussions on the meanings of movies or tv shows. it was okay that she had never heard of 99% of the things that i care about in this world, because, as cliche as it sounds, when we have Jesus what else do we need?

it wasn’t about what i wanted. it was about what i needed. 

what i needed was a girl who was organized and could help me figure out what a planner/calendar is used for. i needed a girl who would patiently listen to me ramble on and on about nothing. i needed someone who could teach me to love people. i needed someone who could show me how to genuinely care for a stranger. i needed someone to love God first and me after. 

God had what i needed in mind more than all my wants. 

so, when i have to talk to my son (God willing) and tell him about what to look for in a girl, i’ll say, “Spider-Man, God’s got you covered. seek Him and the rest will fall into place.”

in celebration of mother’s day we took my mom to the #mce_temp_url#. the entire ordeal consisted of walking, which i hate, and missing the lakers game, which would end up being the last one of the season. 

i love my mom and the sacrifice was a fairly easy one to make, but the meat of this story occurs with the car ride to lunch after our long wetlands walk…

all five members of our family piled into my dad’s truck and began driving towards much needed sustenance. 

my dad quickly changed the radio station to the laker game and we all anxiously awaited the announcement of the score. much to our dismay the lakers were down by something like 20 points midway through the fourth. 

the mood in the car rapidly fell into a sort of depressed, sullenness. save for the young twelve year old girl sitting in the back seat. 

my little sister began exclaiming how the rest of us needed to have faith. 

“just watch. they’re going to make a comeback and then you’re going to be like, ‘oh sarah, you’re so smart!’” she said vehemently defending kobe and the gang’s resolve and skill. 

she would not be denied another lakers game. 

a lamar odom three-point play was all the confidence she would need to guarantee a lakers win to my mom. 

“i bet you ramen that the lakers will win,” said my sister to my mom. 

ramen is sarah’s favorite food, nothing else really gets close. my mom graciously agreed, not asking for anything in return if the lakers were unable to come back. 

when i looked back at my sister you could see the hope in her eyes. in her mind there was no denying that the lakers were going to turn things around and make the greatest comeback in nba playoff history. 

i have to admit, i began believing. 

an odom and bynum ejection later, the reality of the situation began to sink back in. 

my sister’s fanaticism is nothing new. she loves the lakers and the dodgers.

she’s just as superstitious as anyone else. she’ll sit on the same spot on the couch in order to will kobe to fourth quarter heroics. she’ll yell at pau for giving up the ball and jump up on a big dunk. 

i guess as i’ve continued to watch and cover sports i’ve begun to lose that childlike faith one has in their teams. i’ve become calloused and unbelieving in the fantastic and unbelievable. 

but for a brief moment in a truck listening to the radio i once again believed. 

a 6:00 am wake-up call is not something i look forward to, let alone on a saturday.

in fact, the idea of being in a close race with the sun makes me angry. i found myself doing just that last saturday. i’m taking this communications class that required us to judge a high school speech competition. 

as soon as i got to school i was a little overwhelmed. i was to judge two rounds of oratorical interpretation, the interpretation and delivery of a non-original speech (MLK’s I Have a Dream or Lincoln’s Gettysburgh Address). i got to the judging room only to find i was the lone judge…

half asleep, i waited for the high schoolers as i contemplated all my doubts and frustrations with life.

for so long i had wanted to be a journalist and recently the glamor of it all began to fade. i was no longer excited to go to volleyball games and interview/report. there was no longer a thrill in being able to pick up a paper on campus and see my by-line. it had all become a little mundane. 

i mulled over my sheet and the six contestants strolled in a few minutes before go time. my list had a combination of letters and numbers to identify each speaker, nothing more and nothing less. 

each one of them was an anonymous being sent to “wow” and “entertain” me with their individual speaking abilities.

i called the first one up.

a young asian girl, she seemed timid at first. her speech would start the same way. she delivered a speech by a rape victim. this was going to be a long day…

we were halfway through the first round when i called Y312 up to the front of the class.

she was the third asian girl to go. she was taller than the others and seemed to have a slight confidence about her. 

she recited the title of her speech, “Christiane Amanpour’s Keynote Speech at the 2000 Murrow Awards Ceremony”

i was in. 

amanpour is constantly praised in my various journalism classes for being the end-all-be-all of broadcast journalism. she’s the top. 

the Y312, more than any other speaker, looked at me when she was talking. it felt like amanpour was talking directly to me.

in her speech, amanpour addresses the state of journalism in the year 2000 and more over the perils of doing what she does. 

she’s constantly in harm’s way and is no stranger to conflict, war and whatever horrors this world has to offer nowadays. but why is it that she continues to do what she does? 

“Because it matters…[I am] going to tell the world about the bad guys and perhaps do a little good”

then it hit me. what i want to do is simple. 

i want to write things that make people fall in love with every aspect of these people, teams, moments, competitions, etc. that i fell in love with.

i want to be able to paint the picture to the public what it is like when that team that hasn’t won in forever finally catches a break. 

i want to convey the smell of fresh cut grass, the split-second hush over a crowd as the last second shot attempt goes up, or the tension in the stadium when a team has one more play to win it all. 

i want people to feel the roar of emotions during a victory and the agony of a loss. 

i want to show people the humanity behind that player that they always saw, but didn’t know. 

i want to write, talk, shout, yell about sports for the rest of my life and i had almost lost that. 

so, to you Y312, whose name i never got to find out, good luck at state and thank you for channeling ms. amanpour to remind me why it is i love what i do. 

in a season that ended a month ago the dodgers, or mainly the dodgers’ fans continue to lose. i am one of those fans. as frank and jamie continue to rip our hearts out and stomp on all the tradition that made being a fan, last night marked yet another tragedy for the boys in blue…

it has been hard being a dodger fan this year. it was hard when ethier went down in the beginning of the season after going on a tear. it was hard when we realized matt kemp would give more attention to rihanna than the field. it was hard when we tried to find the bright side of any billingsley or kershaw outing. it was hard when mannywood came crashing down. it was hard when roy oswalt went to philly. it was hard when broxton blew up. it was hard when the season was over before september. it was hard when we learned money was being siphoned from the team to vacation homes. it was hard when we realized there would be no court-ordered sale of the team. it was hard when we heard that the target payroll was $80 million. it was hard when it looked like san diego was going to the playoffs and not us. it was hard when the san diego imploded and the giants got in. it was hard when lowe and hudson couldn’t finish them off. it was hard when halladay, oswalt, and hamels couldn’t cut it. it was hard when lee got lit up in game one. it was hard when the texas bullpen gave up 8 runs. it was hard when hamilton, young, and guerrero couldn’t hit. it was hard when lee took the mound in game five. it’s near impossible now that i’ve seen the giants win the world series, but have yet to see the dodgers…

i now find myself saying what UCLA football fans seem to say every season, “at least there’s basketball season.”

go lakers. go kobe. go pau. three peat. 

not that anyone was particularly waiting for writing assignment two. here it is anyway:

my crush

dear my not-so-secret crush,

every time i am privileged enough to be around you my heart begins to race. you see, you are everything that i want to be and more. this crush developed what seems to be ages ago and the more and more i was able to see you work and do the things that God had called you to the more and more i fell for you. my adoration for you was one of my best kept secrets for a while, but like all crushes it eventually came out into the public. but that’s okay because now i could care less who knows how i feel. in fact, i would proudly shout it to the world that you are my crush. 

I HAVE A MAN-CRUSH ON ALBERT PUJOLS!

thanks mr. pujols that everything you’ve ever done on and off the field of baseball and the faith you display everywhere. 

sincerely,

andrew

ps. if you’re ever found to have used PEDs i might die. 

recently, while tumblr-ing, i found a project that seemed interesting and easy enough to start and actually finish. over any given course of time i am to write a series of thirty letters, each to different people. some of the recipients are very specific (ie sibling, girlfriend, parent, friend, etc.) and some a little more abstract (dreams, memory, reflection). it should prove to be, at the very least, a fitting exercise to the heavy loads of writing that are sure to await me at CSULB. with that brief introduction, allow me to begin.

letter #1 - your best friend

dear matt,

we both know that this letter could go to any one of a few people, but i’ve chosen you. our friendship is something that i value more than most things in my life. you’re my best friend, my confidant, my right-hand man. the more and more we get older the more i begin to realize that “we” may not be the same “we” it’s been for all this time.

you see, a about a year ago i started dating this girl and the more i get to know her the more i think that this may be the one God has for me. you’re probably laughing right now because you think you’ve won some special prize for calling it. you’re dumb. anyway, whether she is or some other girl is the fact remains that our time as best friends is coming to an end. it won’t be just matt and drew anymore. it’ll be matt and what’s-her-face that will be besties and andrew and that-girl-who-you-approve-of will be off doing their thing.

i kind of equate it to when cory and topanga get married in boy meets world. did you see that? well, in case you haven’t let me explain it to you. cory and shaun have been best friends since forever and when cory and his girlfriend, topanga, decide they’re going to get married shaun is super excited. then the realization that he’s not going to be cory’s best friend anymore sets in and he freaks out. it was always them+topanga, but when you enter into marriage things change. your best friend is your spouse. 

i’m not saying we won’t be friends anymore or our level of sharing will change, but something will. it’ll be different and different is scary. we’ve been friends for so long and it’s always been this weird/awesome relationship of give and take. it’s already started to change, and i know you’ve seen it too. we’re growing up. 

you’re my best friend. we talk about the stupidest stuff in the world and stay up late and play video games all night. we push ourselves physically…at korean bbq. a lot of the challenging stuff we do is preempted with a “i’ll do it if you do it”. we’re awesome like that. there was always safety in knowing that we’d have each other’s backs wherever it is we went. if you were there i knew i couldn’t fail…completely, as gay as that sounds. but we’re reaching a point in our lives where our #1 won’t be each other for very much longer. 

you’ll have someone and i’ll have someone and then we’ll be bumped into new equally weird/awesome scenarios, being #2. a very different place in the hierarchy of priorities, but not a bad place. we’ve been through worse, right? 

until, God has us face the huge responsibility of marriage, not to each other btw, then we’ll soak up as much of freedom as we can. 

besties forever,

andrew

growing up. 

a picture is a poem without words.

even before turning 21 i was fascinated with the idea of making cocktails or even indulging in the drinking of alcohol. there was something poetic about things coming together and making something better than the ingredients alone. recently this has begun to evolve into pure taste.

i guess i’m kind of turning into a foodie. i watch more food network and travel channel than i ever have in my entire life. i’ve been cooking on a semi-regular basis trying to experiment with ingredients, styles, and instruments i’ve never even heard of before. it’s completely enthralling.

today, i was looking through the archives of a website i frequent and i discovered something i must’ve tossed by the wayside. http://www.sodapopstop.com/. it’s the website for a store located in los angeles called galco’s. it’s a store that specializes in the selling of sodas. you can look up an interview with the owner, fantastically upbeat and excited about his occupation. they have every kind of soda imaginable from all around the world. it’s like bevmo! for sodas.

i think i may turn my tumblr into a log of my food adventures from now. photos, reviews, experiences, etc. hopefully in the coming months we can try this galco’s out.