In an instant

When you're at work and have those few minutes to spare to do whatever. I spent mine doing a 6 day Japan itenerary for my aunt's. Conditions were very simple. Make it cheap, some thrift shopping, do it in 4 to 5 days and they were specific they should at least be able to go to the bamboo forest.

Arashiyama Bamboo Grove Normally, I would not even take this challenge and deem it near impossible. But I wanted to see what are the posibilities and if they don't like it, then it's ok. Immediately, I had to negotiate, since 4 days in Japan is a waste of money and it needs to be more.

Osaka Castle So there I was googling my way. Looking through flights and schedules. And this is the same time were in Japan as well (November). This is just 5 months away, and I'm having doubts with the rates already. Four hours after, I came up with a rough draft. And this is how it turned out.

Japan right now is a good destination. We were there pre-pandemic and it was a bit pricey and yet worth every penny. It's a no brainer to not go and spend a few weeks there now. Again, 10 days is not enough. The amount of things to do, places to go. Immersing yourself to their culture and understanding how they look at the world, gives that perspective on how we should be living as humans. You wont understand till you go there, and stop behaving as a tourist, go down on whatever pedestal you're standing on and experience on how to be a local. And you would start questioning yourself why can't we be like the Japanese with regards on how respectful they are, disciplined and just in general. Dotonbori, Osaka Anyways, the auntie's are thinkin about it. But again, if I'm in their shoes, decision would be in an instant, a very clear "YES!!!".

The 100

I was surprised to see this email when I woke this morning. Whoever that 100th person, Thank you so much!!! Does that mean I'm a legit influencer now? Do I start shooting videos on a tripod dancing out on the sidewalks and be able to ignore the stares and grins that people would throw at me while I distrupt the flow of foot traffic? Or maybe rent out a Lambo and start doing those gold digger scenarios? Howbout just play video games and have people watch me all day? Endless possibilities...........

My most viewed

This was my most viewed unboxing. I was not even expecting it to go beyond 300, let alone by 2k+. Nothing really special about this figure and it's also based on the movie which most collectors are not that eager to buy. And again, I just want to thank all those who viewed this, just hope that somebody would comment why it's so popular.

And we're off again in July 2023

It was my weekend off and was perfect timing for SDCC to have their returning attendees to have their badges purchased this day. But again, me and another 50-60k people out in the world are probably ready for this. 8AM PST is the hour that we should be logging in and an hour wait to be placed in a virtual line. The first few minutes was already hitting a snag. It was not letting us wait and just gave us a notice that we'll be re-directed. I was like, "probably normal since people are starting to log in" Another 20+ minutes then this happened. "MAINTENANCE". Now there's a problem. I was logged in two computers, one under my account and another to Anna's. FB and Twitter started blowing up. people are now frustrated and but we are all not surprised. And now people are speculating that it might not even happen today and get re-scheduled. 9AM and stil no news. Wondering whats gonna happen next. Then a twitter was sent out that they found and resolved the issue. Registration will commence at 9:30AM and pre-sale will be at 10AM now. Now I was excited the moment it came up and saw that little walking guy that would indicate wher in line we're at. Now it's just waiting whether the tickets would be sold out by the time I get the chance to buy the badges. And I got in under my account. Anna's was still an hour away. To my surprise all days are available including Preview Night. But I had to skip that since thats only 3hrs and I would have to cough up another $55.No thank you. My friend Vinh wanted to go on Thursday and Friday only but at the very last minute decided to go on all days. I think we had lady luck on our side. So I went and left Anna's account still in line just wondering if it would be able to get in. I returned some stuff I bought from Amazon to UPS and by the time I got home, Anna's account was still in-line. Waited again for another 10-15 minutes, and got in. Thursday and Friday were the only days left. This day ended well for us. And now people at work would just be like, "How are you able to get those badges and can you get me one?". Argghhhhhh. It's just..........

Tokyo Central

Whenever were around the Clairemont Ave area, this is our go to place for a quick fix on any Japanese food craving. From sushi to bento boxes, $25 can go a long way, enough for 2.

3 days and counting

The biggest pop culture convention is about to begin in a few days. San Diego Comic Con is back. Although last year, there was a special edition which is a toned down version, and I mean toned "down". But it seems it has not gather that momentum just yet. A few of the mainstay companies wont have a presence and there were several things that was able to get access to. One would be parking. Yes, parking is a big thing that you have to register ahead of time to be able to buy spots on days that youd be attending. And thats not guaranteed as well. Ace parking is unfortunately the sponsored/endorsed/official company that handles this. On the map provided, there's only one available parking structure that close to the convention center and thats the rate for that day. Another thing is the hotel room availability. Bookings the hotle rooms is also a nightmare. It's like buying the con tickets but the price per night is astronomical. So now you can imagine the amount of money you'd invest just by attending a 5-day event. And that does not include transportation whether through flying or driving, the food, the merch that for sure youd buy and any other things that you require. And mind you, whether it be freebie items that companies would hand out or exclusive items, they go for big bucks on Ebay, Mercari, FB marketplace, Craigslist, Offer-Up etc. This explains why the crazy numbers. And to all those cry babies out there saying that these attendees should be considerate in selling any of these items for a high price, lets see if youre willing to fork out thousands of dollars of your own money, be in line for a minimum of an hour and just be a nice person buying things and lugging them with you back home and sell it to a complete stranger for maybe a mark up of $10 from the original price. Then............