Flashback: Summer 2008.

Let’s have a look-see to what I did in the summer of 2008, yeah?

Saturday, June 21st, 2010:

I went to Eden’s thing today. In attendance was Sonny, Howard, Jennine, Kat, MacKenzie, Eva, Chris, Jonny, Hiep, Lina, Lynard, & Minh.
It was a blast. I got to eat free food, play/watch Slapjack, play Super Mario Brothers, Play tag in a jumper, throw water balloons, etc. Oh, and free cake!!!!

I got home and decided to watch “Camp Rock”. A typical Disney movie. Pretty funny, however, it’s so lame how there’s always a bitchy white girl in every Disney Movie (mean girl style). Anyway, the girl was semi-fake at the beginning of the movie, so that’s okay and the bitchy white girl was that way because of her mom. It’s fine. I thought character development was fine. The acting & songs could use a little help. But that’s fine. It was worth watching in the end.

We’ll just see what happens in the rest of the summer. Sigh. Sometimes I get random mood swings too.

Wednesday, June 25th, 2008:

I don’t think people appreciate life enough as they should.

If you’re never happy, or if you’re always miserable about something, you’re not living life like you should. Life is a blessing, and people should be more grateful for what they have instead of what they don’t have – whether that be a material item, returned love, etc.

I doubt in Third World Countries people’s happiness are affected by trivial love pursuits and longing for someone. Instead, I think they’re more worried about finding actual FOOD to eat.

Anyway, let’s all just be happy and live life the way it should be . <24444

In the words of Patrick Park,
Life is a dream because people walk in their sleep.
People also stand in lines, like they’re dead upon their feet.
People build their house of cards, expecting and waiting and anticipating for it to fall.

But people ALWAYS forget how strange it is, just to be alive at all, including myself.

Sunday, June 28th, 2008:

Now that high school is complete, I feel an urge to do a quick blog summarizing all the important events thus far in my life.

October 28th, 1990: I was born, the youngest of 5 older siblings (4 sisters, 1 brother – which can explain why I’m less of a “man” than I should be). My brother is essentially the black sheep of the family. He dropped out of college, is the buffer, cooler, more social version of me, and he now lives with my sister in a nearby home in Garden Grove. One of my sisters is married, one is old and still living with us, one is attending Oregon State University, and another is dorming with annoying roommates (or so she says) at the University of California, Los Angelos.

I don’t remember much, but in America was the bulk of my life, as I entered the K12 California school system.

I first lived in Stanton in a pretty ghetto apartment, but I can’t complain since almost all of my childhood memories were derived from there. I remember there were sidewalks where I used to live, and I remember riding my bike, skating, and chilling with my sister as we walked to Outdoor Swapmeets and 99 cent stores to buy food. I also remember an illegal candy shop in the apartment next to us (of course, I thought it was legit at the time, but yeah… long story). Walking took a long time back then (as it does now), but I can truly say that I was probably 24 times more fit back then than I am now. I remember being a chubby kid, but that’s pretty much it. I remember living around a bunch of Mexicans and I tried my best to make friends with them, but it just didn’t work out. I was taught in school to celebrate diversity and respect other cultures. However, that’s not the ACTION I received from fellow of my Mexican peers at Stanton. But, we’ll get into that later.

Now, cumulatively speaking, the events that have transpired from Preschool to Graduation.

Pre-school: I remember crying a lot. Looking back on my pre-school picture, I could tell I was a weird kid, but I was much bigger back then. Like a little more balanced teddy bear. Now I think I’m just a stick.

Kindergarden: Oh boy! How can you ever forget those childhood games as you walked into class. I remember playing with Disney toys, action figures, puzzle games, you name it !. It was the best of times, it was the worse of times. I remember truly being a “rebellious bad boy” then, but after crying a few times, and a BUNCH of punishments from my teacher, I realized the good in me, and decided to embrace it. From that point on, I entered a terrain I would never be able to escape – the nice, good guy. Aiya.
I wasn’t exactly the most social kindergardener, but who is? I remember this one time when 2 girls were chasing me around, and I just happened to get scared. I was so, morbidly afraid of girls at the time. And I had no idea why. So I decided to “faint”, so I laid on the grass as they chased me. I must have been really tired at the time, so I fell asleep. Ouch. When I woke up, I was in a hospital. Turns out, they took me to the nurse (who thought I fainted… sigh), so they took me to the hospital (where I was hooked up to stuff). I woke up and was ready to leave. That included a hefty hospital fine, which I plan to pay my parents back in due time, as soon as I have a decent career & paycheck.

1st grade: I was bullied most of elementary school because of my race. That must have shattered my self esteem, because I truly had trouble making friends. The only friend I had was a Chinese boy named Danny (he was Asian, like me). He was a nice guy, but I think at some point, he realized he could prevent himself from being bullied by bullying me when we were around other people. I had to stick with him though, because he was the ONLY chance I had for an Elementary school friendship. ONLY CHANCE. Everyone else was truly inconsiderate and cruel. But what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger ?

2nd grade: Maybe my poor self esteem rubbed off to scar me for life, because I was EXTREMELY shy in 2nd grade. My teacher, Mrs. Chee tried her best to prevent me from being that kind of kid. By the end of the year, she’d have me raising my hand to volunteer and talking to other people more casually.

What I failed to realize at that point was, that the girls in elementary school were much nicer than the boys. The boys would argue, tease, and make fun of me every chance they got. The girls were fun, and didn’t involve themselves in such elementary antics. Of course, I realize, befriending a bunch of girls in elementary school would probably have made me even more girlier than I currently am, but it could have boosted my self esteem a lot more, than scar it indefinitely.

3rd grade: I have absolutely no idea why I decided to verbally assault my Mexican bullies back this year, instead of the other years. Maybe I was REALLY, definitely tired of it. Maybe, maybe not.
Thus far, it had only been verbal assaults fired at me about everything, including the most frequently used comment in elementary school, “gay”, or “gay-lord”. What the heck is a gay-lord?! I still have no idea.
I decided to verbally assault them back. Guess where that got me? Physical assault. They followed me around after school, chasing me to my house, and beating me up. up. up. time after time , again.
I decided to finally tell the teacher. Of course, the way I told Mr. Vo was the most awkward way EVER to tell a teacher, in front of the whole class. I remember him reading us a story, and then asking us a question. It went a little something like this.
Me – raises hand
Mr. Vo: Yes Le?
Me – These 4 kids beat me after school yesterday.

Of course, they got punished. But they didn’t get after school detention. They had to sit at a pole for lunch. Literally. WTF! That was their punishment!? They still followed me after school and beat me up.
Luckily, I walked home an alternative route, and this route included ice cream, so I was happy. Of course, with the physical assaults gone, the verbal assaults remained, indefinitely.

This was also the year I made a really , really nice friend. His name was Stephen, and he was white (duh). He was one of the only kind people I met in elementary school, and we talked often. Unfortunately he moved halfway through the year. What the heck.

4th grade: This was the year I think my self esteem was boosted (a little bit). I was kind of young, but I knew it was weird how I never had anyone to talk to (socially). I hated it. Maybe I was really weird back then. I can’t even remember right now, but the fact that I was so lonely during elementary school just brings back unhappy thoughts.
Unhappy. Unhappy thoughts.

Of course, this was the year of the “Anaheim Achieves” after school program. Whoop De doo. I remember attending it. I also remember getting Class President. It was so funny. All the girls voted for me – I guess I was nice to them, and they were nice back. I beat Alex, one of the Mexicans running against me. I think it was due to his own stupidity though. I remember his friend Louis running or something, and Alex voted for Louis.

What the heck.

This was the year I also ran into my after school teacher’s car with a bike. I think someone chased me. I’m not sure, but I made a huge dent in her car.

& No, she did not sue.

I remember Saturday day morning cartoons, and when they used to have Fox Kids & Kids WB Weekdays back to back.
I remember Pokemon, Digimon, Animaniacs, Cardcaptors, everything they showed on tv. I watched the Simpsons DAILY.
I’ve been through FOX for a while, and I didn’t get obsessed with it until The O.C. & 24 came on.

Everything changed when I moved to Garden Grove. It took a while, but I think I was able to boost my self esteem up.

5th grade: I transferred to Stanford Elementary, and I had trouble making friends. I was probably really afraid of not being able to live up to anyone’s expectations considering my lack of social skills acquired in K-4th grade. Fortunately one day Mrs. Demaria walked up to me and was like “John. Have you tried making any new friends yet?”. So I finally decided to try. Cause a teacher asking you that. is super humiliating.

So I walked to the handball courts, and I made my first ever Garden Grove friend, Thiep Mai.

He was a nice guy. Pretty soon, I made a bunch more friends (all male, of course). I think as far as girls were considered, I was still afraid of them.

Oops. They looked nice on tv though. I developed a crush on Nhuy Nguyen this year, as well.

6th grade: I talked to new friends this year, including Jim Van, who I obviously couldn’t even trust. I remember going to his house, and playing Super Smash Brothers & Sim People. It was fun. One day, Andy went to his house, and he didn’t like me, so he convinced Jim to tell me to “Go home!” It was so upsetting. I was like WTF.

Also, I told Jim Van a secret I probably shouldn’t have, that I liked Nhuy Nguyen. He goes and tells her best friend Jennine Ta, and then she tells her.

So one day, I’m playing handball and up walks Nhuy Nguyen, and she passes by me and goes “Le (old name) is gay”. I was so humiliated.

Self Esteem. Down by 200% at that point.

7th – 8th grade. Nothing happened. I had a few crushes. Made a few friends. Saw a huge rivalry between Jarom Olson & Minh Quoc Nguyen. I can pretty much say nothing happened. Everything was drama free.

I think I was too afraid to talk to any girl back then as well.
I remember chilling with Vincent Le. I was also mighty fascinated with Neopets back then, (now, not so much). I made friends with Kevin, Juan, & Minh for the first time. YES, Minh & I were once friends until 9th grade when he suddenly ditched me for Jamal & Judy. He completely ignored me as if I didn’t exist. Some friend.

I have to go a little off course now to discuss the events that transpired in the summer of 2000. I could go off and on and tell a huge story about Joshua Jaramillo. But I’ll say this. This was a guy, that convinced me that you have to fight for what you believe in. There’s no running away from bullies (although, I try to avoid as much conflict as possible, by simply ignoring what they say). Josh was my friend, but everytime he bullied me, I let it get to me. I let his words alter my state of mind. At some point, I decided that I wasn’t going to let it no longer. I fought back (physically and verbally) at some point. I was not going to go down with a fight. Neither of us ended up winning. He ending up winning, but I decided that a lesson learned: I will stand up for what I believe in. I should not let the opinions of others alter the way I act or am.

9th grade: High school begins, and so does the Freshman Advanced Curriculum Team. Maybe I was a little immature at the time, but I decided to have two wars during this year. WOW! A whole two wars, against 2 of my current closest friends – Howard Nguyen (future roommate) & Jonathan Elizalde (future UCSD student). They are really nice guys, and I kind of regret declaring war on them. However, it’s all in fun, cause now we look back and laugh.

I declared war on Howard because I thought he supposedly hacked into my computer to steal a study guide I wouldn’t send to him because he called my friend a stupid slut (Sara) after she almost overdosed on painkillers.

I declared war on Jonny because I had a crush on someone (MacKenzie), and told him not to tell her, but he decided to tell the world through a riddle.

All in fun. I realize it was Freshman year, and I probably shouldn’t have taken things too seriously.

I talked to 0 girls in fact this year. My girl skills were horrible. My social skills were horrible. Eventually, because of the final FACT project, I was able to talk openly with Tran Tran & Kathy Van, who opened the door to end my shyness.

10th grade: So 10th grade came, and so did a new me. I acquired new female friends by finally deciding to talk to them. So there was one obstacle. I could now communicate with members of the opposite gender. Isn’t it sad that it took THIS LONG to happen? I know, I’m pathetic. I can blame Mexicans and Nhuy all I want, but I think in the end, it’s up to me, and I failed myself by letting myself bloom too late. I had sucky social skills, and I could have tried a little harder. Just a regret. A huge one.
So I made even more friends, and tried to be nice to any many people as possible. Of course, I still couldn’t communicate with GIRLS I liked. It was hard. As soon as I liked a girl, I was so afraid of saying the wrong things in front of them that I just kept my mouth shut, as if I was shy all over again. Silly, right?

I got invested in a bunch of drama as well this year, but that was the highlight of the year as far as I’m concerned.

11th grade: So this year came, and I finally mastered social skills (partially) as I became president of VOC, the volunteers of Orange County. This club really changed me. I still suck at public speaking (primarily speeches), but at every club event, I embraced the members, thanked them for coming, and tried my best to remember their names (I failed, but yeah…) I think this was essentially what allowed me to have even more friends than before. Thank goodness. I wouldn’t say I was popular by now, but I would say that I acquired connections to people that would make it appear so. In essence, I made friends with the RIGHT people instead of the wrong people.

I could have gone down the drug path – and taken out all my pain by using drugs, but I decided not to, because that isn’t me. I’m not a druggie. I will never put anything in my body that I know will hurt me that way. That includes alcohol. Never means never. You can say I’m closed minded about that, but honestly, there are better things to do at night than go party and get laid.
I realize most guys are concerned about getting laid. Me? I’m always been essentially clingy, which explains my 24 & Jojo & miley Cyrus obsessions accumulated throughout ALL of high school. I try my best not to cling to people because I know they’re not going to live up to my expectations. They just aren’t. They just can’t. And I know I shouldn’t force them to do so.

This was the year that changed me, especially as far as girls were concerned. After a long cycle of crushes (as soon as I finished liking a girl, I liked another one), I decided to stop after… amy tran.
I liked her. A lot. I talked about her, a lot. I told everyone I liked her, which was probably a bad idea. Looking back, she’s probably super flirtatious, and was giving me mixed signals, but I worked with what I got . I messed up. I got WAY too attached to a girl, a girl I barely knew. Everyone knew. It was so obvious as she walked into the VOC club meeting that everyone was staring at her. I can honestly say the stupidest thing you can ever do is tell everyone who you like.

I made a mistake. But, I didn’t get rejected, ever. No way, I was too afraid to even ASK the girl out, including Amy.

At the Choir Banquet, I offered her a balloon (which I spent an hour trying to get), and then I gave it to her. She rejected it.

That was the closest to rejection I’ve ever been, and I hated it. It wasn’t that close to it, but it was way too close for comfort (paradox?) Anyway, I was tired of it, so I gave up on her, and I gave up on girls essentially.

It took me all summer to realize that I could be happy on my own. Something made me cling to girls like that, because I was way too inexperienced with them. In essence, the only thing I knew about girls is the things I learned on television, which wasn’t much.

In essence, it took time for me to raise my self esteem enough to a point where I could be happy on my own.

12th grade, Senior Year, Class of 2008: I love my class. Aside from all the drama, fake boyfriends, rapists, and fake people in general, they’re a fun and loving people. They single handedly boosted my self esteem at least 24 points by allowing me to win Winter Formal King. That was one of the happiest moments of my life. I actually felt popular (when I essentially wasn’t).

I love them. I also got my first girlfriend this year, which was fun (while it lasted). I won’t go into the details of everything we shared, because it’s too much to type. However, breakups are painful, but maybe I’m better off alone anyway. Of course, a breakup tears your heart & self esteem apart, which it took forever to boost.

It came at a bad time too. It came at a time when I had to graduate. Essentially, I had to put my pain on hold in an effort to ENJOY the last few moments I would @ school with the Rancho Alamitos graduating class of 2008. I did enjoy the last few moments, and after graduation, I could feel the loneliness creep back into me again, as soon as all my friends were gone.

Every single relationship I shared was gone. Not really. The friends I’ve acquired in high school, and the love I’ve shared all of high school far outweigh the negatives of the Mexicans in elementary school and all the physical, and verbal assault I experienced. In essence, I would say my life has turned out FINE, based on everything I’ve been through.

Normally a person bullied would probably grow up to be a bully themselves. Not me though. I try my best to be as nice to people as possible, and if it suits their personality, I can insult them, just for fun !

In essence, my self esteem has been shot down, raised up, shot down, raised up, shot down, and raised up so much that I don’t even know where it’s at anymore.

I can say with confidence as I attend University of California, San Diego in the fall that I’m ready for the next journey of my life. I have high expectations that it will be even better than high school, and thus way better than elementary.

Thursday, July 17th 2008:

Interdependence is defined as Mutually dependent on one another for survival.
Dependence is defined as the state of relying on or being controlled by someone or something else.
Independence is defined as freedom from control or influence of another or other.

I really hope everything and everyone I have met is enough to pretend me for college, indefinitely. If the san diego tides were to turn over me (figuratively), I wouldn’t be too happy . We shall see !

Come home, come home,
cause I’ve been waiting for,
for so long, for so long.

And right now there’s a war between the vanities,
but all I see is you and me .

Sunday August 3rd, 2008:

In the summertime, when the weather is hot
you can reach right up and touch the skies!!
…. and I forgot the rest.

I don’t like complaining, especially in the summertime. What’s better than doing nothing? Something ! of course. A break from schoolwork is always nice.

So I’ve found myself lying around using the computer & watching satellite all day. My favorite channels are the movie channels, the Disney channel, and the FOX news channel! aha. So I’m entertained & informed, slightly at least.

& Today, I solved my first ever Sodoku puzzle. HAHAHAH. Yay !!!! It was on ‘easy’ mode. Eventually, I should be able to do Medium. Advanced looks intensely tough, and I don’t think my brainpower will be able to sustain and overcome that feat.

Time for some movie reviews… umm, on a scale of 1-10, here’s how I’d rate these movies.

Dan in real Life. 0. Horrible movie. Contrived dialogue, and unlikeable characters.

Definitely, maybe. 8. Good, and cute. My favorite line was…
Daughter: You didn’t get your happy ending though.
Father: I did, you’re my happy ending !
or somewhere along those lines.

Akeelah and the bee. 7. Pretty average movie, but slightly enjoyable.

Seven Monkeys. 8. Time travel? Bizarre. I didn’t really understand the ending, but neither does half the people on IMBD either.

Disturbia. 4. It’s interesting at first, but gets boring. The serial killer subplot killed it for me. The girl was cute though, but the guy was just stalking her.

Freedom Writers. 7. It’s interesting. One of those teachers teaching gangsta’ movies. I didn’t like the ending though.

American Beauty. 0. Please, I don’t understand this movie at all. It won a lot of awards apparently… but I don’t really get why. It’s just drugs + a depressing lifestyle of an American suburban family.

National Treasure 2. 6. Not quite as good as the original.

Drillbit Taylor. 5. Sigh, I wanted to like it, but it really wasn’t that funny, and the guy was pretty messed up in my opinion.

The Breakfast Club. 7. A Classic, in my opinion, but it could have been better. I really disliked the pot smoking scene.

John Tucker Must Die. 5. Take it or leave it, a typical chick flick. Oh, and Brittany Snow looks really cute in this movie.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. (remake) 5. The original was better.

Juno. 9. It was good, but I wouldn’t recommend teenage pregnancy. Adoptions are much better than abortions though.

Spiderwick. 5. Eh, it was a children’s movie. But I wasn’t too particularly interested in it, unfortunately.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall. 6. It provided some laughs, and Mila Kunis & Kristen Bell were cute, but it wasn’t a hysterical laugh riot in my opinion. OH, and at least at the end, he ended up with the right girl.

Sydney White. 6. Amanda Byne’s acting skills are really limited, so I think she did pretty well in this chick flick. NERD POWER!

Accepted! 5. This movie had way too many plots holes to be entertaining in my opinion, but it provided some laughs at least.

Enchanted. 7. Good Disney movie, but not great. She ended up with the right guy. =D

I’m out. For updates call me, and such. <24.

Saturday August 16th, 2008:

Okay, so I know I haven’t been religiously posting Xanga blogs in the summer like I intended to do so, but I can play catch-up, starting NOW!

I went to two concerts this summer, both FREE (cause like I’d actually pay for one of those things). HelloGoodbye & Plain White Ts. At the first concert (respectively), a bunch of girls were pushing, a mass amount of them being white. They were all there for Jesse Mccartney apparently. Also there, there was a bonfire with friends, and enemies showing up and not talking to one another. =D. It was great.

I’ve had pleny of time to think about ways to keep myself happy. It’s really not that hard. Happiness is an emotion that you can control, all by yourself. Realizing it, I need to stay away from the people that constantly need drama in their life. These people are self-centered and CONSTANTLY make everything about themselves, and always somehow find things to complain about. Why can’t they just BE HAPPY? As long as I choose to be, I can fullfill happiness independently. As for a girlfriend, no thanks. I’m not looking for one anytime soon, and I’m pretty sure it’s more of a distraction in college more than anything else. Because of this, it’s easy to see who are my friends, and who arent. With college coming, I just KNOW people that are going to change, and people that aren’t. Change isn’t bad, but you have to remember the friends that got you where you were today. Without my high school friends, I wouldn’t have the self esteem or skills necessary to last in college, and because of that, I owe them a vast amount of gratitude.

Today! I saw Mirrors. It was FUNNY. Not scary at all. I was clappping by the end. Maybe I’m a little biased because Kiefer Sutherland (Jack Bauer) is in it. NAH! Not at all!!!! 10/10 stars.

College. I need to choose my classes. Enrollment times on the 27th, and I find out my roomate selections on the 26th. I’m recommended to take WCMP (warren writing), 10A, Math 10A, and 1-2 Potf (Program of Concentration). I’m thinking literature or history, and science/technology or biology.

Wednesday August 27th, 2008:

It’s official. Me and Howard will be roomates at San Diego. I move in at 19th at 9 AM (wow, that’s early, considering I’ll have to be DROPPED off at that time).

Anyway, I chose four classes to take, three which are EXTREMELY EASY. Yeah, I know. I’m keeping it simple for my first quarter in college, beginning with lower division courses. Hehe.

Here’s my classes and their descriptions.

CSE 3: Fluency/Information Technology: Introduces the concepts and skills necessary to effectively use information technology. Includes basic concepts and some practical skills with computer and networks. Prerequisite: none.

PHIL 10: Introduction to Logic: Basic concepts and techniques in both informal and formal logic and reasoning, including a discussion of argument, inference, proof, and common fallacies, and an introduction to the syntax, semantics, and proof method in sentential (propositional) logic. (May be used to fulfill general-education requirements for Warren and Eleanor Roosevelt Colleges.)

WCWP 10A: The Writing Course A: A workshop course in reading and writing required of all Warren College students. The course emphasizes argumentation and critical writing based on sources. (Letter grade only.) Prerequisites: satisfaction of the university entry level writing requirement and must be a Warren College student.

STPA 35: Society and the Sea: Introduction to the oceans and their relationship to humankind. Selected topics include ocean-related science, engineering, research, economics, and international relations (emphasizing countries of the Pacific Rim); living and nonliving resources; coastal zone management; military and social aspects; and the sea in weather and climate. Prerequisite: none. (F)

Monday September 1st, 2008:

In honor of Labor Day, I have attached Walt Whitman’s “I hear America Singing”.

I HEAR America singing, the varied carols I hear;
Those of mechanics—each one singing his, as it should be, blithe and strong;
The carpenter singing his, as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his, as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work;
The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat—the deckhand singing on the steamboat deck;
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench—the hatter singing as he stands;
The wood-cutter’s song—the ploughboy’s, on his way in the morning, or at the noon intermission, or at sundown;
The delicious singing of the mother—or of the young wife at work—or of the girl sewing or washing—Each singing what belongs to her, and to none else;
The day what belongs to the day—At night, the party of young fellows, robust, friendly,
Singing, with open mouths, their strong melodious songs.

Wednesday, September 17th, 2008:

Tomorrow is the beginning of a new adventure. Everything I have learned from high school should prepare me for college, in theory. We’ll see what happens in practice though.

Thanks to everyone that went to Denny’s yesterday: Jose, Thao, Linh, Jonny, Earth, Thiep, Brian, Tiana, Brandon, Nhi, Dolly, Catherine, George, Kennedy, Tony, Earle, Justin, Christian, Eden, Howard, Eva, Nhi, Dara, Chris, Amy, & Hiep.

Thanks to Tran for dropping Justine, Bradley, and Andrea’s gift off and for eating KFC with me.

Thanks to Tanya & Mimi for taking me out to get ice cream.

Thanks to Kevin, Jerick, and Earle for picking up their “gifts”.

Thanks to Theresa & Linh for taking me “Asian pictures”.

Finally, thanks to all the friends that helped me in high school. Although some of you may not have beeen able to visit me yesterday or today, I will remember you indefinitely.

Before College began, I also did a variety of things with my sisters & other friends.