Month: March 2011

  • Cyanide and Happiness: Reenacted!

    I’ve been meaning to do a picture collaboration post with swtaznxtc90 for a while now.  We finally had time last week, so we decided to do our own version of 5 Cyanide and Happiness comic strips.  Our versions aren’t exact replicas, but we made them as similar as we could while adding our own spin to them.  Enjoy!

    #1

    #2

     

    #3

    #4

    #5

    Perhaps we’ll make more in the near future!  Which one was your favorite?

  • Pregaming Before Next Month’s NYC Xanga Meet!

    I was up in New York City this weekend with a couple of old friends.  Originally, I was planning on just casually meeting up with some Xangans in the area while I was up there.  Instead, we ended up having a much bigger party than anticipated! 

    What did we do (besides climbing up to the top of my 14 story hotel)?

    Well, there was quite a lot of bar/lounge/restaurant hopping…





    I discovered Xangans are awful influences, peer pressuring me to drink even though I’m allergic…


    Via Beluga group chat

    …but on the plus side, I did find out I can handle soju and the strongest shot they had at Continental Bar with less allergic reactions than some other drinks.

    A few people got more than a little intoxicated…



    We definitely surpassed our karaoke quota for the year…




    Especially after doing such intoxicated, horrible, yet fun “singing” such as this…

    Oh, and we ate tons of Chicken and Rice.  YUM!


    NOM NOM NOM!!!

    Thanks everybody for coming out for me while I was in NY (Cakalusa, TheBigShowatUD, lcrazyaznl, Yohkom, Trigger821, EmpathyandReason, infinitiNY, jia_x3, LitlKittyKat, coffee_kaioken, juiCyer, and of course Darrell and Timmy).  It was a great warm up for next month’s big NYC meet up!

  • How to Look Sketchy on Foursquare

    I’ve recently been getting addicted to this relatively new location-based social network website called Foursquare.  In case you don’t know what it is, you basically “check-in” to places whenever you go somewhere.  There’s a lot of cool little things that go along with this.  If you check-in the most at a place you become the mayor, which people will see everytime they check-in there.  You can see tips people have left at places, which can be useful when you’re trying new food and etc.  You can also get badges for doing special check-ins, such as checking in at 5 different airports.  Best of all, you can get real life deals at certain locations just for checking in!  It’s really fun, and as long as you adjust your privacy settings you don’t have to worry about people stalking you or whatever.  Check it out sometime!

    Alright, that’s enough Foursquare promotion for this post.  Moving on…

    So before my New Year’s Eve party, I picked up two Xangans (RaquelHiggins005 and Elimane) from the metro.  I treated them to some Thai food, went over to the grocery store to pick up food for the party, and finally I dropped them off at their motel.

    Now, that’s what actually happened.  My friend, who’s also on Foursquare with me, did not see it that way.  Once he saw my check-ins, he called me up and started jokingly interrogating me. 

    “UMMM, Alex!  WHO did you just pick up?  WHY did you take them to some place called BANGKOK STREET?  And WHAT are you doing with them at a Motel 6???”

    I managed to explain myself to him, but I suppose I couldn’t completely blame him for being so suspicious of my whereabouts.  After all, this was what he saw:

    I personally think it doesn’t look THAT bad, but then again I’m a bit biased.  What do you think?  Would you have thought this was as sketchy looking as what my friend thought?

    By the way, I’m actually still mayor of that Motel 6!  Hmm, I guess that doesn’t help my case does it?

    **********

    This was 5 of 5 posts this week for John’s Blogathon challenge.  I made it to the end!  What do I get for a prize, John?

  • Do NOT Get Lost in Baltimore!

    It’s not fun, trust me.  Here, let me explain how I got myself in this situation…

    During my senior year of college, I had this foreign exchange student stay over my place one night (I’ll spare the details since nobody wants to hear about that, right?).  She was a student at another college that was located in Baltimore, so I decided to drive her back instead of making her take to bus. (1st bad decision!)

    I didn’t have GPS at the time, so I just searched the directions on MapQuest and printed it out.  I figured that would be all I needed to get me there and back. (2nd bad decision!)

    After I dropped her off, the directions told me to make a left turn on this side street.  Sounds good.  Unfortunately, once I approached the street I found out it was a one way in the other direction, so I couldn’t turn in.  Since there was traffic behind me I decided I would continue to drive straight ahead. (3rd bad decision!)

    I figured I would eventually find myself on a highway or something, you know?  I could not have been more wrong!  I kept looking for signs to major highway but saw nothing.  Before long, I somehow found myself on residential streets that looked like this:


    Ruh roh!

    You see that?  Now, imagine this street filled with shady people standing on the side waving at you to pull over.  Actually, just imagine The Wire because that’s exactly where I was driving through.  I somehow found myself visiting the inner slums of Baltimore.  Lucky me!

    At this point I was starting to get really, really nervous.  I was definitely feeling like a fish out of water, being a lifelong suburbanite and all.  I wanted to stop somewhere to figure out where I was, but everytime I wanted to stop there were people (with some of them definitely being drug dealers) standing on the corner staring at me.  Thus, I kept on driving straight ahead. (4th mistake!) 

    Why did I keep driving that way??  I ended up deeper and deeper into the slums.  Throughout this time, I kept thinking “that girl was not worth all this!”

    I eventually got a hold of a friend (ch10n9) on the phone that tried to find a way for me to get out, but it was difficult to pinpoint me seeing as I was constantly on the move (for reasons mentioned above).  You would think I would be less nervous now since I had him guiding me, but with my phone’s battery dying and my car running out of gas I was effectively freaking out like a little school girl who just lost her mommy in the mall.  “MAN, that girl was SOOOO not worth all this!  WEH!!!”

    I did manage to get out alive (hence how I’m able to write this), but it took me over 3 (!!!) hours to finally get out of Body-More, Murdaland.  It could have been worse for sure, but overall I believe I can still say this was a sucky way to spend a Saturday!


    I do not miss you

    Now you all understand 1) why I don’t go anywhere anymore without GPS, 2) why I avoid driving in any city whenever possible, and 3) why I make foreign exchange girls walk back home (just kidding!).

    P.S. Speaking of cities, I will be in NY tomorrow until Sunday visiting some old friends and Xangans in the area.  Let me know if you’re around and maybe we can meet up!

    **********

    This was 4 of 5 posts this week for John’s Blogathon challenge.  Just about finished!

    Coming up next:  How to Look Sketchy on Foursquare

  • Getting Down with the Ex

    There’s not a lot I would say I excel at.  I always saw myself as more of a jack of all trades type of guy, able to handle a lot of different things but not necessarily be the best person for the task at hand.  However, there are a few talents I possess that I can confidently say I can do much better than a lot of people I know.  One of those talents is something I wouldn’t have gain had it not been for my high school girlfriend. 

    Before I met her, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing.  She didn’t say anything the first few times I was on her, but she soon took control and showed me how to get the right touch and feel.  She introduced me to all the best techniques, making sure I understood how to target the right spots and how much pressure I should use.  Since this was still quite new to me, she did have to guide me for a little while until I got the hang of it.

    Fortunately, I had plenty of opportunity to practice on her.  She was always craving it, so I made sure to give it to her whenever I could.  Over time, my skills increased to the point where she didn’t even have to tell me what to do.  I just knew what she wanted by feeling her out.  It was like I went on auto-pilot, finding and hitting her spots over and over and over again.  My endurance, a problem before, became practically limitless as I could go on for hours without stopping or taking a break.  I just didn’t get tired anymore!  I was becoming a machine, just cranking away at her as she laid there absorbing everything.

    This soon became a common activity, with us taking turns regarding who would do who.  The funny thing is that as much as I enjoyed receiving, I much preferred to give it to her instead.  Knowing that I had such a great understanding of her body and the fact that I was effortlessly giving her the release she needed really made me feel like the man!

    Of course, our relationship eventually did come to an end.  However, I made sure I took what I learned from our time together and delivered it to those that came after her.  They all really should thank my ex-girlfriend for what I’m able to do so well now.  I wouldn’t have gotten that skillful without all the long, hard practice I went through with her.

    That, my friends, is how I learned how to give top notch back massages.

     
    See, my back rubs are even Snoopy approved!

    I did make it obvious I was talking about that, right?

    **********

    This was 3 of 5 posts this week for John’s Blogathon challenge.  Halfway there!

    Coming up next:  Do NOT Get Lost in Baltimore

  • My Brother, Captured via iPhone

    This was the first picture I took of him with my iPhone when I got it late 2008.  He was 13 years old at the time.  This was also the beginnings of his infamous Bieber hair.  The world was not prepared yet!

    Sad little brother is sad.  I took this so I could show him later what he looked like when he was upset.  I think we both agree it’s not a good look on him.

    Who was around when we made this?  That was one of the most random video we did together.  Hey, any excuse to utilize Sylar!

    I caught him while he was napping under his Pokemon blanket.  Teehee!


    At my old tennis & fitness club job, a picture would pop up on the computer whenever members signed in.  Not everybody had a picture, so my brother took the liberty of giving them one.  As you can see, big noggins run in the family.


    Home made keyblade!  No match for my gunblade of course, but it’s not shabby I suppose.  He also finally chopped off his hair.  He said it was because of summer, but my mom thinks it was because he wanted to look more like me.  Hmmm…

    Remember the hickey post?  I managed to trick my brother into giving himself one when I bet he couldn’t keep that little plunger stuck on his head for more than an hour.  I did make sure to get him to ice it down immediately though, so it didn’t stay there as long as the one on swtaznxtc90.

      
    2 years later, my brother is now 15 years old.  My have things changed!

    Let me end this with a crazy voicemail my brother left me recently.  Try to see if you understand what he’s saying.  You’ll get brownie points from me if you do.

    **********

    This was 2 of 5 posts this week for John’s Blogathon challenge.  Are you a part of this yet?

    Coming up next:  Getting Down with the Ex

  • Frickin’ Heelys! Never Again!

    I usually don’t hold grudges, but I make an exception for Heelys.  You know, those shoes that have wheels on the back that seem to have gotten popular over the past few years?  Yeah, I used to own a pair when I was a sophomore in high school 9 years ago.  I’ll admit I enjoyed them then, but that all changed drastically on a fateful October day in 2002.

    I still remember it vividly.  It was an overcast day as I headed over to a neighbor’s house to give them something.  As I approached the street I began using my Heelys to skate over, like I’ve done successfully numerous times before.  I would have again this time had it not been for one tiny barrier.

    This stupid pebble somehow lodged itself in the wheel of my leading shoe, which managed to completely stopped the wheel from rotating instantly.  I’ll let Sigmund Freud (yes, you read that correctly) reenact what happened to me next:


    BAM!

    I faceplanted the ground so hard that I actually recall my face bouncing back up before finally crashing back down.  I felt like I blacked out for a few seconds before I slowly got back up.  Disoriented, I looked at my reflection off a nearby car’s window to see that my face was covered with blood mixed with dirt and pebbles.  To top it off, I soon found out a significant part of my front tooth was chipped off during the impact.  Ouch!

    Thankfully, noone was around to witness the beating the ground gave me.  I went back home to clean my face up before passing out on my couch.  I would have just called it a day right there, but there was one problem; I already promise some friends I would go to my high school’s homecoming game that night. Urgh.

    I kept my word and went out, despite my face looking all busted up.  I left early though, not because of the pain but because I was tired of all the questions and stares from everyone.  I was pretty nasty looking, so I can’t really blame them.

    That was the last day I wore Heelys and I don’t foresee myself setting my feet in a pair ever again.  Good riddance!

    **********

    This was 1 of 5 posts this week for John’s Blogathon challenge.  Check out his site for more details!

    Coming up next:  My Brother, Captured via iPhone

  • One Month Away! Important Update for the April 16th NYC Meet

    As the title states, we are exactly one month away from our next New York City Xanga Meet!  After talking with the other hosts and considering for our group size, we decided on this current itinerary for Saturday, April 16th.

    Itinerary

    12:00-12:45pm:  Lincoln Center (By subway: take the #1 local train to 66th ST/Lincoln Center Station)

    We will meet up at the fountain, which looks like this:

    This will be the initial meet up location rain or shine.  If it rains we will meet up under the cover of one of the surrounding buildings.  After the majority of us meet up here we will take about 15 minutes to walk over to…

    1:00-2:45pm:  Central Park Zoo (Located on the southeast corner of Central Park) + Tavern on the Green

    Ticket prices is $12 for adults ($9 for seniors).  However, if we prepay our tickets before March 31st the zoo has agreed to give us a discounted rate.  See payment section below.

    UPDATE:  Apparently there’s a free event going on at Tavern on the Green, which is in Central Park close to the Lincoln Center.  There’s going to be free live music and (more importantly) food trucks there giving out free food!  Click here for more information about that.

    After this, we will all board the Q or R train down to the 34th ST/Herald Square Station (estimate travel time:  15-20 minutes) to go to…

    3:30pm-5:30pm:  Karaoke at Duet 35 (53 West 35th Street)


    From last year

    I already booked us the biggest room there, which can hold around 25-30 people.  There is a small bar right outside the room where people can also hang out and get tipsy enough to sing.  It’s okay if you don’t want to sing, but it’s more fun if you do!

    Once this is over, we will take a short walk over to our last planned stop…

    6:00-7:00pm:  VaneDave Comedy Show at Maui Tacos (330 5th Avenue)


    From last year’s show

    VaneDave has booked us a private comedy show in the basement of this restaurant where we can eat and watch him perform his act.  Space is limited!

    Our planned day is over at this point, but stay tuned for more details as that can very well change.  Perhaps a private get together like last time?

    Cost/Pre-Payment Option:

    Central Park Zoo
    $10 Adults, $7 Seniors (If purchased before March 31st) OR
    $12 Adults, $9 Seniors (If purchased after March 31st)

    Karaoke at Duet 35
    $11 per person (covers 2 hour reservation)

    Comedy Show
    $9 (If pre-paid) OR
    $10 (If paid on the day of show)

    To make things easier, I want to get as many of us to please pay in advance so we don’t have to go through the hassle of collecting money later on.  I will contact everyone who has confirmed to go individually soon to see if they wish to send me the money for all of this so I can just pay for everything myself.  Don’t worry, I will not be stealing anybody’s money (except for probably Cakalusa’s).

    If you can pay in advance, I will email you regarding how to pay through PayPal (which you do not need a PayPal account to do).  If you can’t or don’t want to, you can still just pay on April 16th.  Just remember that since space is limited in the karaoke and comedy show facilities, the people that paid in advance will get first priority.

    Who’s coming so far (as of 04/08):
    1. Roadlesstaken (Host)
    2. airbornerose (Host)
    3. CaKaLusa (Host)
    4. TheBigShowAtUD  (Host)
    5. EmpathyAndReason (Host)
    6. VaneDave (Host)
    7. NimbustheDragon
    8. swtaznxtc90
    9. GreekPhysique
    10. airborne_muse
    11. Bengozen
    12. FlipGuy31O
    13. lcrazyaznl
    14. scrooge0
    15. infinitiNY
    16. normality_dreamer
    17. jmeLove_x
    18. Lordv16
    19. Rhia_Pyrithea
    20. sweeetstache
    21. xkthily
    22. Bodhiseeker
    23. whotakethmycoke
    24. Resentity
    25. HeLLo_Bianca
    26. Losertastic
    27. pasaway4eva
    28. Prim_Prim4488
    29. jia_x3
    30. LitlKittyKat
    31. babychillax
    32. Striemmy
    33. RazielV
    34. ohveryoung
    35. juiCyer
    36. jdrop
    37. Lost_in_Reverie
    38. verified_but_still_denied
    39. twentyse7enn
    40. Yohkom
    41. shuang_zhaohui
    42. BkLyNzzzHoTTeStLiLgUrL
    43. indiechaos
    44. goingbackearly
    45. SerenaDante
    46. heracheung
    47. remiblanc2011
    48. Shades_of_Athena
    49. rxglasshalffull
    50. SimplyNita
    51. GreenTeaGym
    52. Hollywoodfever91
    53. x3_yoh_asukara
    54. sweetstache

    The maybes so far:
    Joanna_said_SO
    Marc
    Behindthedimples
    Finity
    throughsamseyes
    AlluringAddiction
    CPKviperphoenix
    Linh_L
    RonnyV
    MacPhoto
    fried_ryce
    hardlyhandsomest
    Utoppia
    heyanh
    Evil10
    x0_electric_kiss
    SqueakySoul
    JimmySmallz

    To everyone listed above:  Can you each just re-confirm with me if you are still able to come, a maybe to come, or are unable to make it?  Also, let me know if you can come for the whole day or only part of it.  Thanks!

    In the mean time, I will actually be traveling to New York next weekend (March 25-27th) to do some scouting and have a pow wow session with some the other hosts regarding this very packed (but hopefully memorable and fun) day.  Let me know if you have any questions or comments below!

    Previous post:  http://roadlesstaken.xanga.com/741454381/ny-xanga-meet-april-16th-mark-your-calendars/
    Last year’s NYC Meet:  http://roadlesstaken.xanga.com/730716362/a-big-recap-of-the-big-ny-xanga-meet/

  • Random Encounter with an Unknown Follower

    During my birthday last week (thanks again everyone for your well wishes!), I got a lot of random messages from people that were apparently long time readers of my blog but have stayed under the radar until now.  There was one Xangan in particular (who will remain anonymous) that stood out.  She sent a message that read “URGENT: interview from UMD” (FYI, UMD is a near by college that I often visit).  Intriguing.

    She turned out to be a journalism major at the school who has been following my blog for some time but just recently subscribed.  She had a short assignment due in 14 hours for a class where she had to write up an article for a fictional magazine.  She decided to write about how in a world where Facebook, Tumblr and Twitter are the main leaders of the social networking world, Xanga is still thriving, partially through the Xanga meets other Xangans and I have put together. 

    I thought it was really cool and flattering that she thought about me for her assignment, so I had no problems with this last minute request.  After I answered some questions from her, she ended up writing this article (I added some appropriate links):

    On April 16, more than 50 individuals plan to meet up at the Lincoln Center in New York City. Some know one another and others do not, but they all have one thing in common: Xanga.

    Popular during the early 2000’s, the blogging and social networking website is still thriving despite Facebook and Twitter being all the rage now with over 600 and 190 million users, respectively.

    Alex Chan aka Roadlesstaken, 25, has been planning meet ups since he attended one held in D.C. in 2009. Meet ups opened up a new form of social networking for the graduate student.

    “I think people just like the idea of meeting up with people they’ve gotten to know for a while online,” said Chan, who has been a Xanga user, or Xangan, since 2003.

    Chan first started to plan meet ups in California due to its overwhelming population of Xangans, but decided to plan closer to home on the East coast. Last July, Chan hosted the largest meet up in New York City where over 50 Xangans attended. The meet up attracted people from Maryland, New Jersey, Virginia, California, Massachusetts, and even, Canada.

    Typical meet ups consist of sightseeing, entertainment and food. Some meet ups end with an after party.

    After meet ups, Chan and other Xangans blog about their experiences and share photos on their Xangas.

    “What would have happened had I not befriended so many people online to the point where I viewed them as close, if not more so, than my current in real life friends? What would have happened had I chickened out of meeting these online people in real life?” Chan blogged after a California meet up last August.

    Chan recalls Xanga being described as a “gated community” where the network is small, but close-knit.

    “From the outside, you probably wouldn’t know all that’s happening in the Xanga world, but once you’re in and connected, you feel everyone is separated by less than six degrees,” said Chan.

    Over the years, Xanga has formed lasting relationships for Chan and other Xangans, connecting the West to the East, North to the South. Blogging may be the main aspect of Xanga, but meet ups take the blogging experience up a notch.

    “I’ve personally strengthen and made a lot of true friendships over the past few years thanks to meet ups,” said Chan.

    I say that was pretty good!  She mentioned she probably could get it published somewhere if we wanted to pursue that.  Hey, why not?

    I’m glad this long time follower got in touch with me and is no longer unknown.  Hopefully we will meet up sometime soon.  I wonder who else is out there reading my stuff?  Is it you?  (Yeah, I’m looking at you!)

  • For Your (Mis)Information…

    I’ve noticed that a lot of you have some interesting but inaccurate beliefs of me.  They’re more flattering than negative at least, but they’re still not the whole truth.  Let me try to clear up few of the more common ones I’ve been hearing lately.

    First off, my age.  I personally feel like I’m still in my early 20s, but apparently others feel I’m closer to my late 20s for various reasons.  After hearing I just turned 25, I received messages from people saying they thought I was older since I come off as being so sure of myself, knowing what I want and where I want to go with my life.  In all honesty, I probably feel more confused than ever.  Sure, I’m in a better position now, but I still don’t know what’s going to happen to me in the next few years.  Am I still going to be here, or will I move to another state, coast, or even another country?  Is my current career path what I really want to do, or should I find something that’s more closely related to my studies?  Yup, I’m still very unsure of what I’ll end up becoming.

    Next up, some of you are perplexed as to what I do for my job.  You know I work in the tennis industry but seem to think I just travel everywhere playing tennis, having fun and what not.  Actually, what I usually do is support all the tennis programs in my area by doing stuff like providing funding, technical assistance, establishing client relations, training instructors, organizing events, promoting, etc.  I do work from home, which is a nice perk, but I travel around my state a lot for meetings and I often times have to work entire weekends since most major tennis events happen then.  My job isn’t killing me, but I do stay busy doing real work.

    More misconceptions people have concerns my traveling.  Either people think I travel all over the country for work or I don’t work because I seem to have so much time for traveling.  What people don’t realize is that I usually plan all my trips way ahead of time so they don’t conflict with my school and work schedule.  Also, most of my trips aren’t really that far as they’ve all been within the US (for now).  The furthest I really travel is California, which so happens is the place a lot of people think I’m from (I’m from the MD/VA area folks!).  I do admit I’ve been traveling a lot more these past two years though.  What can I say, it has become one of my favorite hobbies!  It’s not only because I get to see sights and visit people, but it’s also an avenue for me to search for that something I feel I’m missing from my life right now (this can be a whole other blog, so I’ll digress).

    Finally, there’s the money people think I have an abundant of due to my travels.  People either think I’m rich or I have a sugar momma.  Come on!!!  OBVIOUSLY it’s the latter.  The end!

    Alright seriously, I’ve never had a ton of money throughout my life.  My family’s cash flow has always been modest at best, but something my parents do very well is saving money.  I’ve been fortunate to learn my saving habits from them.  In addition, my lifestyle (minus the traveling) is quite laid back and inexpensive.  I don’t really party and drink often, I tend to buy my food frugally or get free food from home, I don’t really pay gas anymore since work reimburses me, I hardly splurge on clothes or electronics, and (the biggest factor) I’m currently not seriously dating someone.  You might laugh at the fact I said that, but in my undergraduate days I would devote at least half of my meager paycheck to the girl I was seeing.  Now that my situation has changed I have all this excess money, so what do I do?  I either save it or spend it on the occasional trips.  Overall I would say I’m living comfortably, but I’m no Sean Puff Diddy Dirty Money (or whatever he’s called nowadays).

    Does that clear things up?  Now you know I’m not some late 20s, wise, rich fella from California with a non-stop fun job that allows me to travel whenever and wherever my heart desires!  Maybe one day that will be me, but that day isn’t today.

    Oh, speaking of traveling…

    I officially booked my tickets to Toronto June 24th-27th!  I will be staying with AzureRecollections and we will be touring the area with unfathomablelove, caeliosophy, and plump_katz that weekend.  Hopefully I will also be spending some time with Joanna_said_SO, getyourownsandwich, Sophannieta, d_ciao, suuperstar, kinamorata, JoeytheGenie, jing116, throughsamseyes, eternal_relevance, nimbusthedragon, CakaLusa, and whoever else while I’m there.  Let me know if you might be around.  I’m excited to finally visit some of my Canadian Xangans on their turf!