the real journey begins

i havent been good at keeping up with this thing. my original goal was to update it as daily as possible not only to keep my dear readers updated on my adventures but also so i would have a record of my travels.

i just arrived in london this morning, and 'oh boy' (as sojinator would say) i am jet lagged as fuck. my 7 hour flight left new york at 925pm and got here around 925am. it would have been perfect if i slept on the plane but all i could manage was about an hour or two. checked into the hostel and took a nap.

new york was fun. i didnt do anything real 'touristy'; the only thing was going to the empire state building. i met up with a lot of old friends: y. peter (ondal), woo, hana, brian kim, linda and karen. this meeting up meant a lot of drinking, and i swear there were some days my kidneys and liver were swollen. i realize now that i didnt plan the new york part of my trip that well, but i think i got a real feeling of what it feels like to live there. like i said, didnt do the tourist trip but more the 'get a feel for the city if i ever lived there' trip. linda, karen and especially brian were actively trying to recruit me to move out there. if only employers would actively recruit me like that...

my first impressions of london: i feel like i just stepped onto a movie set. it's interesting cuz i had the same impression in new york. the big apple is forever immortalized in the tv and movies, so when i got there it felt familiar. but in the end, it was still america. but london's a different story. i constantly hear the austin powers theme in my head. and sometimes when brits with heavy accents talk fast, its hard to understand them. but its true what they say: you feel like there's a long history behind everything. the buildings have character. its not like in america where every building was probably built in the past couple o' decades.

anyways, enough of this boring post. ill post some juicy shit later.

This entry will be guest written by ondal.


So there we were, having drinks at the bar at the Tribeca Grand. It was me, ondal, linda and karen, and brian. Brian joined us after he got off work. I kept talking about how linda and karen -- both non-drinkers -- didn't need to have any alcohol because they acted drunk anyway. They kept the conversation going which was good because all I had to do was interject every now and then with my homespun wisdom and clever witticisms. It felt weird to be hanging out with all my high school friends in new york. They kept telling me how I had to move out there...maybe I will.



About an hour before, we had dinner at Nam, a nice Vietnamese fusion place on Reade Street that the girls picked out. It was good. Although me and ondal split the check, the girls only thanked him since he was the one that slapped down his card. whatever.

About five hours later, we went to a place where they only serve non-alcoholic drinks. ondal said the chinese girl was moving too fast and he told her to slow it down. then we went to brian's house and blazed and had some hilarious conversations (nem seh muk nun ham ma).

worst entry ever.

she gets a real kick out of weddings.

i think i've found a new soundtrack for the summer of '02. last summer '01 when i spent 2 months in korea interning at LG Advertising, the 'soundtrack' album was coldplay's 'parachutes'. the best track on that album is number 2, 'shiver'. this summer it's jack johnson's 'brushfire fairytales'. it's such a good album. a couple of his songs have been stuck in my head these past couple of days. DEFINITELY worth a download, my friends.

guilty until proven innocent

i dont know why, but i have a weird habit of acting guilty when i have no reason to be.
case in point, woo's roommate danny wakes me up cuz he cant find his keys. he simply wanted to check the couch i was sleeping on, but once the paranoid thought creeps in my head "what if he thinks i hid it or had something to do with its disappearance?" i start acting guilty.
im one paranoid mutherfucker. when something happens and i know im not guilty, the thought that i might even be a suspect gets me to act guilty. isnt this strange? it happens all the time and i dont know why i do it. ironic.

today was pretty uneventful. ate at a nearby deli, did my laundry, and ate at indian cafe for dinner. i tried indian food for the first time, and although it was good, i dont think it lives up to the hype. ive been hearing about indian food since my freshman year at berkeley. it's aiight.

go take this mensa test. i got a 22 out of 30. after reading the answers, i missed some really easy ones. some questions are a lot simpler than you think and others are quite abstract in comparison. after getting the results it said that i would be really good at taking the test. what are the benefits of a mensa membership, i wonder, besides being able to skip down the street and gloat to passerby's? telling people you're in mensa is like bragging at school that you are in all honors classes or scored a 1600 on the SAT, no?

according to suchin pak on mtv news, the eminem cd will now be released may 28th, a week earlier than planned because the whole album was already available on the internet by may 11th. she even said that bootleg cd's were already selling on the streets of new york.

so me and ondal went down to chinatown today [monday] to get me a copy. i ended up buying a lot of other shit:
-eminem's new cd the eminem show = $4
-weezer's new cd maladroit = $4
-a hash pipe = $5
-a turbo jet lighter with a bottle opener at the end = $4
-star wars episode ii attack of the clones bootleg dvd = $9
-an AC adapter converter for use in europe = $0.50

we then went to koreatown and ate at this pretty good korean cafe/restaurant called 'oori jip' or 'our house'. we ate at the korean food buffett where you pay $4.99 per pound of food. i got stuffed for less than $5.

i migrated over to woo's apt., which is exactly only 4 blocks away from y.peter's. peter went to another columbia graduate school of journalism shindig for some more partying/drinking and i couldnt do that for a fourth day straight. here's a recap of my new york trip:
i got here wed morning, drank wed night [see my 5/16/02 entry], got stoned thurs night, partied with sojinator on fri night, and partied with columbia grad students sat and sunday nights [the 2 5/19/02 entries].
this partying is making my liver cry for mercy.
of course, the second i walk thru woo's door i see him drinking a beer and he offers me one. being a gracious guest, i accepted.

the unofficial term is the 'booze cruise'. it happened today on a boat, we left 40th pier in new york. the occasion was the columbia grad school class of 2002 party.

even though i hardly knew anyone there, people were all friendly enough. and also i saw the statue of liberty, the empire state building and where the world trade center USED to stand. i figure i knocked off 2 days of sight-seeing in that one boat cruise.

im gonna take the next 2 days pretty slow. no more drinking. i should try some real sightseeing or something. maybe ill go catch that one flick everyone's been talking about. star w- something or other.

tagged along with peter and went to a columbia grad school party. the cool part was there were a lot international students there. england, spain, mexico, france all representin'. just a bunch of different peoples, and it's fun when we all talk and swap stories.

new york's cool. met y's girl c and e. damn, e is abso-fuckin'-lutely gorgeous. im talking pure beauty.

besides that, went to a number of different neighborhoods today. chinatown, union square, k-town, places. im just soaking it up all in, along with a lot of alcohol. still jet-lagged as fuck and the alcohol intake's not helping. makes it a bit more bearable, tho.

the 9:25pm red-eye flight from long beach to new york is hell. i slept about 20 min., if that. i touched down onto JFK at 5:40am, right on time. i took the shuttle bus, then the A train, then the B train and walked a block to ondal's pad. he lives across the street from central park, and man it looks impressive.

new york is so fuckin' cool. i havent seen shit yet but i love it already. it smells like seoul, and the oldness of the buildings and street seem to be from a similar era. but mostly it's the smell in the air that puts the 2 cities in the same category.

if only there was a camera that captured smell. smells are far more vivid than images.
-garland, the beach

but im jetlagged as fuck. did laundry, some grocery shopping [all on the same block as his pad] and finally went to sleep at 10am. i just got up and its 430pm.

tomorrow i begin my journey. i leave long beach airport at 9:25pm and arrive JFK in new york the following day at 5:40am. then on may 29th i leave newark airport (new jersey) for london.
that means tomorrow i have a BIG day. i havent packed yet, and i have to pack for both new york and europe.

i also have a job interview at carat usa in santa monica at 1pm. if i get this job as an extranet coordinator, i will dance through the streets naked.

fuk, its already 2:24am and i dont think ill end up packing. i should start studying the carat site and prepping myself for the interview. or should i try not to overprepare and just wing it? today i wasnt feelin' it, and the interview with the headhunter went so-so. doesnt matter tho, cuz they're just a recruiter but tomorow its with an actual employer. why does it feel like this interview tomorrow is going to determine the rest of my life? it's going to affect whether im going to korea and shanghai after my europe trip, thats for sure. STRESS.

last night i had a dream where somehow i got deep, long cuts on the inside of my hands: on my palms, on my fingers, all over on the inside. these were gaping gashes. i kept trying to tell and show my friends that my hands were bleeding and cut up, but no one really cared. we were going to all these places and i had to make my friends help me pick up things. and i complained throughout, but again no one cared.
by the end of the dream, during mid-whine, i looked down and my cuts were closed up, halfway healed.
wat does all this mean?

look below at my resume. [excuse the awkward spacing and shit]. i have 2 interviews next week monday and tuesday, and i leave for new york tuesday night.
i've had people look over my resume before: friends, parents, career counselor, recruiters, etc. and everyone tells me different things, and gives me different advice, sometimes conflicting advice.
still, i'd like to know what all of you think, so leave comments.

Eugene Choi
eugenechoi@cal.berkeley.edu

xxx Fitzpatrick Court
La Mirada, CA 90638
(562) xxx-xxxx

Education

University of California, Berkeley
· Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communications, December 2001
· Grade Point Average: 3.3

Work Experience

Film Projectionist – UC Berkeley Film Department 9/00 – 12/01
-Coordinated film screenings for the Film Department, operating 16mm film projectors
-Cleaned and maintained equipment, spliced film and coordinated mailing of film canisters
-Viewed hundreds of critically acclaimed films in the process

LG Advertising, Inc. – Account Services Intern Seoul, Korea 6/01 - 8/01
-Assisted handling the Microsoft Windows Xp launch in Korea in coordination with efforts in the US and Asia
-Participated in daily meetings, involved in new ideas and input
-Conducted research via Internet, compiling data and information on Excel Spreadsheets

Nordstrom Department Store - Sales Associate Walnut Creek/Brea, CA 7/99 - 12/99
-Responsible for sales transactions adhering to Nordstrom's philosophy of best possible customer service
-Maintained personal customer logbook, keeping records and communicating with clients over the phone
-Exceeded sales quota every 2-week period by approximately 95%

Daewoo Motor America, Inc. - Campus Marketing Advisor Korea-Oakland, CA 6/98 - 12/98
-Participated in a two-week training seminar in Korea that included courses in leadership development, client
interaction skills, market research and analysis, and marketing strategies
-Promoted new fleet of cars into the U.S. market by planning and participating in local promotional events

Professional Skills

· Operating Systems—Windows (2000, NT, Xp), Macintosh
· Software—MS Word, Power Point, Excel, Dreamweaver, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Premiere 6.0
· Internet—Web-savvy, Basic HTML programming
· Multimedia Web Design— http://www.mactia.berkeley.edu/ls120/105_site/index.html
· Languages—Fluent in Korean, Proficient in Spanish

Personal

Event Management – 2001 UC Berkeley Korean Student Association Culture Show 7/00 - 4/01
-Co-produced the 3 hour show which included cultural and talent performances and 2 student films
-Planned and arranged the actual content of show, including booking of acts, scouting venues, renting
sound & lighting equipment and hiring technical staff persons; also acted as director on day of show
-Began planning in July of 2000, participated in fundraising and publicity efforts; operated on a
$8,000 budget

· UC Berkeley Korean Student Association—Publicity & Social Chair, 2000 – 2001 Academic Year
· Film—Produced student film on Mini-DV, The War on Drugs: Truth or D.A.R.E.?—Official selection for the 2002 Student Documentary Show at the Pacific Film Archive;
Honorable Mention, 2002 Eisner Film/Video Contest
· Journalism—Section Editor, Page Editor, Reporter for Award-winning Sunny Hills Accolade
· Theatre/Acting—Theatre Rice, UC Berkeley Modern Acting Group; Various on-campus acting projects
· Game Show Contestant—Appeared on ABC’s The Chair

though i walk through the valley of the shadow of death i will fear no evil, for my name is eugene.

i am one drunken monkey...........

is it wrong to lust after cars?

the new infiniti g35 coupe:



the new nissan 350z:



i got a woody staring at these cars on this website.

dunst day

yesterday i finally got to watch spiderman at the local fullerton amc 20. it was 4:00pm and the theater was full of rowdy, sticky, smelly kids. but the movie was good. it's exactly like the comic books i used to read as a kid.

later i found myself at the local blockbuster when i saw the crazy/beautiful dvd jump out at me. actually, it was just kirsten dunst's low cut jeans on the cover that really jumped out at me. this movie had a certain amount of publicity when it was first released becuase of a well documented struggle between the filmmaker, the studios and the ratings board. the movie was given an 'R' rating but the studio wanted a 'PG-13' so they could target the teen demographic. so the director was forced to go back and cut some of the racier sex and drug scenes. problem was, it still got slapped with the 'restricted' rating and he had to re-edit and re-submit the film 5 times. when the movie finally came out critics said that it seemed like something was missing, and that the studio should have just released the 'R' version.

so anyways, i didnt expect much from the movie. i mean the cover of the dvd had quotes from film critics and one proudly blared "3 stars". shit, since when were movies proud that it got 3 out of 4 stars? frankly, i was looking forward to the 'deleted scenes' found in the bonus material section of the dvd more than the movie itself.

surprise, surprise, this is a damn good movie, one i would recommend to anyone. it's a possible purchase, i enjoyed it that much. it made me really fall for dunst the actress. no matter how fukked up she gets in this movie, she is still so damn likeable. she's actually pretty grungy and raw throughout the film, but she is still such a unique beauty. after watching this film i noticed that my ex had a similar smile, where just the right amount of teeth would show and sparkle and eyes that would smile just as loudly as her mouth. i dont know if i began reading into it too much but at certain points in the movie dunst's character acted exactly liked my ex did, complete with a similar voice and manner of talking. tripped me out.

i missed being 17 years old, and began even wondering if i ever lived like i was 17. hm let's see, at 17 my life revolved around the SAT's and college applications. i guess this is similar to the main character carlos in the movie. he was obsessed with getting top grades and making it to the naval academy in anapolis. he was a football star, i had won a couple of medals and titles in track and also was an editor for the school newspaper. you could say i identified with the carlos character quite a bit, but i didnt have the wild love affair he did. jay hernandez and dunst had very good chemistry in this movie, and it made me wonder if i ever had good chemistry with anyone in real life.

i know it's a movie but shit, i wish i lived it up a bit more when i was 17. i definitely wish i discovered alcohol back then, haha.

i've been going to a lot of bookstores lately looking for the Let's Go Western Europe 2002 guidebook. they didnt have it anywhere so i just bought it on amazon.com. i did however pick up 2 books today at barnes & noble, the beach by alex garland and the doors of perception/heaven and hell by aldous huxley.

bookstores are fun again. when i was a little kid i used to be the biggest book nerd. my addiction started growing in the 3rd grade and was full blown during 4th and 5th grades. i was averaging about 1.5 books a day, and i remember one time borrowing 30 books from the san jose public library. that was probably at the height of my bookworming when i averaged 2 novels a day. that's how i ruined my eyesight and got glasses in the sixth grade. i would always read in bed with shitty lighting and sometimes at night in the dark. i was a big nerd.

looking back now i would liken it to a drug addiction. once i discovered an author i liked, i would read every single book by that author like i just took my first hit of crack. in those years i plowed through every single book by judy blume [tales of a fourth grade nothing, superfudge, etc.] after getting freckle juice in some book club deal. i read every single encyclopedia brown and all of donald j. sobol's other books, like his two-minute mysteries series. i remember feeling like i had discovered the wizard of oz behind the red curtain when i found out that that fucker donald j. sobol would recycle some of the same 'mysteries' for his different line of books.

my addiction began escalating when i started looking for books to conquer and colonize. i got into the three investigators series before and after alfred hitchcock was writing forwards for them. and the authors would change so i would branch off and read some of the other books those authors wrote. i conquered louis sachar [sideways stories from wayside school], roald dahl [james and giant peach] and stephen manes [chicken trek]. i read the newberry award winning books and then read the other books that author wrote. it got so bad that i would do drive-bys, where i'd get a couple random books with interesting covers just to see if that author was any good.

and then i discovered video games.

next: the nintendo years...

"think big, eugene."
that's what my pops always tells me. and like most things my dad always tells me, i hear, but i don't necessarily listen.
well dad, im listening now. thinking big means stop buying stupid shit for my car, and instead booking all the airline tickets and eurorail passes and shit for my traveling this summer.
thinking big means quit wasting money going out to clubs and bars in koreatown and sunset blvd. and instead saving money [and my liver] for the wild nights i will have in new york and europe and korea.

snap out of it eugene, you're looking at life with narrow fullerton eyes. the whole world is at your fingertips, my dad would always say.
i spent a lot of money this past week and went out and partied a lot. it's like getting myself full off of french fries when i have a filet mignon as the main course.

these things have been going thru my head ever since last night, when i went over to jean's apt after a night of clubbing at le prive. it was fun and all, but nothing new. and then at jean's apt she was watching the beach starring leonardo dicaprio. many people hated it cuz of leo, but this is probably my favorite movie of all time.
"i'm looking for something different...so, i figured that travelling the world would get me there sooner or later."
think bigger.
"i'm richard. i've disposed of items from my past to find something new. pleasant or unpleasant, the experience of travelling is what it's all about."

i just found out that the movie was based on a book by alex garland. i think im gonna go to the bookstore tomorrow and buy that and a europe travel guide. in other news, i stumbled upon susan kim's absolutely Beautiful website thru a series of coincidental clicks on random links. we went to jr. high together and hung out a bit in korea last summer. she also gave me brian kim's e-mail, and i already got a reply from him. these two are definitely on my list of 'good peeps'. think of it as a VIP list for a few select friends who inspire me in some way. they usually make me THINK BIG. half the people on this list i dont even know that well; they fall somewhere in between 'acquaintence' and 'close friend'. i've shared 'moments' with both of them.

with susan it was probably last summer when we were eating at this famous 'soo-jae-bi' place in shinchon, just the two of us. i really enjoyed picking her brain, learning what she was all about. she cool, real cool.

me and brian shared many 'moments'. the funny part is that they happened in different phases in our lives. we grew up together in jr high playing football and running with the same crowd. and then our paths crossed again in college when we both experienced korea as adults for the first time. most recently we revisited each other at the height of both of our toking careers. its funny but for some reason we share a lot of mutual female friends and they often bring us back in touch with each other. first susan lee, then jane and now susan kim.

man i realize my journal writing skills suck. add that to my list of to-do's. i digress too much.

korean celebs: before they were stars

just so you know, each row of 3 pictures is of the same person.

pure rambling

look at me. im making an excel spreadsheet of my finances. ive been tracking all of my spending whether it be from cash thru an ATM or a check card purchase. its good tho, im being really smart with money, more 'business-like'. but i feel kinda guilty. ive been buying a lot of luxury disposable income items lately. this is supposed to be idea tho; tracking my money, being smart with it, being able to buy cool shit. but i feel like a selfish miser. i feel stingy. its all about me, all about buying myself toys, things, to make me happy. when i spend money on others i rationalize it somehow to make myself feel better, like i just fukken donated to a fucking charity or something.

it was easier being stingy when i was broke. and i wasnt just broke, i was in a LOT of debt. credit cards are the devil. back then i had an excuse to be stingy, to be selfish. but i wasnt. and thats wat made me spiral further into debt. credit card debt increases exponentially, let me tell you that. getting that check from that stupid game show was the greatest moment in my life. my slate was wiped clean. the biggest chip on my shoulder, my debt, was wiped off. i see now that my debt was ultimately THE NUMBER ONE THING that was holding me back. i feel like anything's possible now. before, i realized that i couldnt live anywhere but home because i had to save money and pay off my debt. by living at home, i saved lets say 600 bucks a month. my debt would be wiped out in less than 2 years. i couldnt go see the world. i couldnt travel becuase i would need someone back home to pay my monthly credit card bills. thats why my trekking around the world this summer is going to be so fucking liberating. im so excited im not.

at least my recent excel project will satisfy my OCD.