Semi-Unrealistic Christmas List 2011

Ahh it’s my favorite time of year again. The magical, twinkly, romantic, freezing cold time of year they call the Christmas holiday season! Well technically it’s supposed to start in a week, but the stores have already been in Christmas mode for months.

Personally, I LOVE giving gifts. There’s something about planning out the perfect gift for your loved ones, sneaking around to get or make it without them finding out, anticipating their reaction and hoping they like it, and finally seeing the look of surprise and joy on their face when they open it. It just makes me so happy :) 

And if you appreciate my efforts, and want to do the same for me, I thought I’d help you out and make a little christmas list. You’re welcome. 

1. I still need an Instax 25 mini!! I know that if I wasn't a broke college kid, I would have bought one of these myself by now. (Actually despite that I still almost did once but was outbid...) 

2. The thing I want most from santa, and hope his budget can afford, a new camera lens! My 50mm 1.8 has served me well over the past year, but it's just too close sometimes. After researching lenses I found out that my real ideal lens is the 35mm 1.4 L lens....but thats like $1,200 or something! So I found a more affordable but still good alternative, the Canon 35mm f/2! 

3. Last February my mom finally upgraded our ghetto Sears brand TV to a brand new flatscreen, it's beautiful.  ( *_*)  But then I moved into my own apartment and had to take my old 99 dollar TV from Walmart...it's chunky, it's tiny screen-wise, and it has a weird purple splotch on the bottom of the screen. That's why I also want a new TV. 

4. I have a bad  back, a few years back I was even diagnosed with mild scoliosis. That's why you should feel sorry for me and get me one of those massage chair things.

5. A boring practical thing that I need is a new wallet. the one I have was originally a light tan plaid pattern, and is now stained blue from my jeans...I want a wallet that says "hey look at me I'm a classy grownup!" but at the same time isn't too boooorrrinngg. 

6. I can't believe I'm admitting this...but I'm really into Pretty Little Liars. I started watching it back in '10 to make fun of it...and now it's probably my favorite currently airing TV show...So just go ahead and buy me the DVD, and we'll pretend this whole thing never happened. 

7. I have a pair of headphones that I love from audio techinica, they're the best! But I don't like going out with huge over the head headphones, so I need an in ear pair for bus rides and such. I read that these ones have really good sound quality for their price. 

8. Once upon a time Davic wore John's clothes to school. I looked at one of the shirts and thought something along the lines of "Hey that shirt looks really good on him....and it would look really really good on me!" And ever since then I've been searching for a similar shirt and nowAE has one! (The blue option of this) 

9. I technically don't need one cause I never have time to play video games anymore, but I still want a 3DS. I mean there's a new cooking mama game out for it! How can I pass that up?

10. Anyone that's used prismacolor or copic markers knows they're both amazing. I don't think I need much more of a reason than that to want them.

11. Next to christmas, one of my other obsessions in life is Disney! Specifically, Disneyland! I haven't been since 2009, and I miss it! So if anyone wants to pay for an entire trip, and somehow line it up with my school's breaks without it being too much of a peak season, that would be greatly appreciated. 

12. I still have a lot of empty space on my walls and it needs to be filled with a big victorian-inspired picture frame. I can probably take care of the photo, but the frame itself has been difficult to find. I either need a white one, or one that's cheap enough that I can spraypaint it white without feeling guilty about it. 

Not white, but the right idea style-wise.

Other than that, I also need textbooks....but those are no fun. :(

The Temple

So I’m a month late....and the event actually happened over a month ago, but I'm finally going to write about it! I’m going to break from my usual....kentiness(?) and write a touching emotional sappy entry, like a normal person! Okay...maybe all the kentieness won’t be gone. But still, the last time I wrote an entry like this was Mason’s birth. So grab your tissues, and lets get started. :) 

It all began when Davic came to stay with me for a weekend in October. As you already know, we spent the first day exploring Pike Place Market. But on Sunday, we had plans with a heavier tone to them. Since the following day was Davic's dad's birthday, he wanted to use his last day in Seattle to visit the temple which holds his dad's remains, and I was more than happy to go with him.

We found a bus that would take us there, and I saw a whole new side of the city that I didn't know existed. Honestly if I was alone I would have been scared out of my mind. But then again I'm a wimp when it comes to shady areas. 

When we arrived at the temple, I realized it was different from what I had always imagined. There was an ornate yellow fence that seemed to fit what I'd expect, but the temple itself was just a regular old house. When we found our way in, a nice older woman gave us a glass for our flowers, while the young monk girl gave me weird looks as she asked "...your friend?" 

We entered the small shed that housed the ashes of all the people who have passed away. Papa Do was front and center, the first clear photo I've ever seen of him. It made me realize how much my friends resemble him, especially Davic. 

As Davic began the ritual and lit the incense, I stood quietly taking in my surroundings. I listened to the music that filled the room, I smelled the incense sticks as they burned, I looked at the picture staring back at me, feeling as though I already knew him. Davic finished his prayers, and began to cry. I could feel a lump in my throat as I teared up a little myself. 

He turned around and introduced me aloud to his father. "Dad, this is my very good friend Kent." And call me crazy, but as soon as he said that, I felt as if his dad was smiling back at me. The warm feeling you get when you meet someone and they're  welcoming to you. It was like he was officially accepting me as part of his family. :) 

When we went to meet  Ba noi (who is their grandma, as well as the head monk) we had no idea that we were walking into the middle of a Sunday service! Davic sat in the nearest seat while I went wherever the elders ushered me. I had no idea what was going on and couldn't understand a word. A little boy stared at me as I sat down, probably thinking "What in the world is that white guy doing here?" 

I tried my best to follow along, mediating with "no eyes" as Ba noi told us. Flipping to the correct pages even though I could only understand maybe 2 words. Standing up or bowing when everyone else did. It was all an interesting cultural experience that I was glad to be a part of, until the longest meditation happened....I swear that one lasted at least 20 minutes...My back started to ache and my body started to twitch. But I survived. 

When the service was over, everyone gathered their money and gave it to Davic. He tried to turn it down, but they were not having it! Ba noi put it in his shirt pocket and insisted he take it. People who we had never met were coming up and treating us like family. I couldn't even communicate with them and they were comfortingly putting their hands on my arm the exact same way my own grandma does. I definitely wasn't used to the level of kindness.

We ate a meal with them there at the temple, and talked more with a woman named Lan who spoke the best english. She was one of the sweetest people I've ever met in my life. The two of us had a heart to heart with her, relating some of of the hardships in her life to our's. After we were done eating, she gave us a ride so we wouldn't have to take the bus again. She even forced MORE money on us. 

That whole day was really emotional for me, and that doesn't happen very often. Mylinh and Davic are the two closest people to me in the world. I've only known them for 2-3 years, but they've changed my life. I always knew their childhood with their dad was an important part of their lives. And through this experience, I felt like I was able to go back in time and connect to it in a way. It's hard to explain, but it makes me feel...important? Like I'm loved enough to be a part of their most treasured memories. 

And the people at the temple took it to a whole other level. Ba noi telling me to always stay together and take care of Davic was adorable, it was nice to be seen as good enough to take care of her grandson for her.

 Thank you, temple people and my Viet family for the experience that I'll never forget as long as I live. <3 I know I'll be back again some day.