A celebration of life.

Thank you to everyone who supported our team! We had a great team come out, and I have to say, I’m truly impressed by how much everyone walked. We were one of the few teams that had people walking almost the entire time. There was live music, bbq, games, and camping out under the clear blue skies. Who was sore the next few days? We all were. It was a great time of hanging out, meeting new people, and supporting a great cause. If you ever get a chance to participate in an event like this, it is a great learning, bonding, and growing experience.

A HUGE thank you to a wonderful team:
Thomas
Long
Kenn
Anne
Alinna
Hideyo
JanetMary
Bev
Jessica
Jason

And many many thanks to all of you who supported us:
Amy
Beth
Brian
Cindy

Dad
Diana & Birgit

Gene
Gina
Helena
Jean
Jenie
Karen
Olivia
Teresa

Some pictures for your viewing pleasure (borrowed from Karen and Thomas..I’m bad at uploading pictures):

Our Team: Summer Lovin' (minus Kenn, Anne, Hideyo, Jess, and Mary)

Our campsite, decorated by fabulously by nettie spaghetti.

My pops and I.

The Luminarias that were lit in honor and in memory of those affected by cancer.

Chillin' (big teethy smiles)

In memory...

Relay for Life

My sister at a Relay For Life event!

On June 3, a group of friends and I will be participating in the American Cancer Society's Relay For Life. Relay for Life is about celebration, remembrance, and hope.

When my mom died of lung cancer a little over a year and a half ago, my world was torn apart. She was the picture of who I wanted to become. The healing process has been slow, at times painful, and yet full of hope and looking ahead. My mom fought her cancer with all the strength that she had. During the last few years, some of my most treasured time with her was when I would take her to her weekly chemo appointments. We would sit and talk, read, and eat together one day a week. Yet, her body was fighting against her spirit. My mom was strong, beautiful, loved her friends and family deeply, and greatly involved in the lives of others. I hope to become those things as well.

Relay for Life is a 24 hour walk. Cancer does not sleep. Those who have experienced it personally or through loved ones can attest to this. For this reason, our team will be walking a track for 24 hours continuously from 9am June 3 to 9am June 4. Will you support us by donating to our team? We have a lofty goal of raising $3000 as a team. I am certain that we can do it. All of the funds go to support the critical work of the American Cancer Society's work in the areas of cancer research, education, and resources.

You can donate here: http://www.acsevents.org/relay/ca/mv/remember . You can also view our team page here: http://www.acsevents.org/relay/ca/mv/summerlovin

Even if you can't donate, your support through the years has meant so much to me. Each of you have been a part of the healing. Thank you for loving on me.

1-2-3 Not it!

I've been tagged. And since I'd rather do this than other things that need to happen, here you go:

1. Four Jobs:
a. Boba/smoothie maker at Planet Juice
b. Coffee/Donut setter-outter for the chemical engineering department at Cal (I was the grad student assistant and, apart from putting donuts out every day, I got to open grad school applications! mwahaha!)
c. West Nile virus queen
d. Disease Cowboy

2. Four Things I Wish I Had Done Earlier: (earlier?!? or ever? some are earlier/some are ever)
a. Triathlon
b. Studied abroad
c. Gone to Taiwan with my family when they went in 2001
d. Gone to bed last night!

3. Four Places I Have Lived
a. Charm City, USA (aka: Baltimore)
b. All my college years on one square block in Berkeley one block from campus
c. Lake Merritt in Oakland
d. The house with the Love Pit

4. Four Countries I Have Been To:
a. Brazil
b. Italy
c. France
d. Taiwan

5. Four Countries I Would Like to Visit:
a. China
b. Japan
c. Greece
d. Belgium

6. Four of My Favorite Dishes:
a. stewed pork ribs like my mama used to make
b. leftover lasagna
c. carnitas
d. the dol sot bi bim bop with seafood on top.

7. Four Sites I Visit Daily:
a. mail.yahoo.com
b. craigslist.org
c. bbcnews.com
d. sfgate.com

8. Four Software Applications I Cannot Live Without:
a. excel
b. trillian
c. itunes
d. picasa

9. Four Things I'll Never Forget:
a. saying goodbye to my mom
b. making a new life for myself in baltimore
c. my surprise birthday party that B.E.T. spoiled 3 seconds before I got to the location
d. being 3 years old and leaving my pink elephant on the airplane

10. I tag..
a. jessicaca
b. es
c. mel
d. punksam

It's a gray, quiet day in the office. There are 4 of us in my group plust my boss. Two of my coworkers quit. I am sorely bummed. They were not asked to resign or anything, and I don't want to go into the details here. But, these are the some of the most fun girls that I know. Here's a picture of us. We were nominated for Employee Recognition BS and we were asked to submit a photo. So, we donned our awesome emergency disaster worker vests.



I know you're jealous. Everyone wants one. So from left to right, we have Sarah (gone), our resident PhD from North Carolina (a Tarheel through and through) who loves all things pork and has been practicing her spanish from a little phrase book that she has renamed "Lingo for Gringos." Then we have Tracy (gone), our bacon-loving, Mid-west representing, foodborne outbreak expert who is married to a man who is often a raving lunatic (but much-loved). Right to the left of me is Diana (survivor), a native Californian, who is the shortest of our bunch who is not afraid to tell it like it is and is quite talented at making statements in exam question format (true/false, fill in the blank). And then there's me (survivor).

It's sad to see Sarah and Tracy go. Good thing Sarah's still going to be around the area so we'll still be getting together cuz she says she doesn't know anyone else in CA. And, heck, I like her! Final lunch for the for of us tomorrow before Tracy leaves town for good.

Hmm...maybe I'll post more this afternoon since I'm all by myself in the office today. Everyone else should post today too so that I have things to read during the day!

Una mas!

Happy Birthday, Es!!! Thanks for your friendship, laughter, warmth, and yummy Jell-o recipes!