Thank you, Bridesmaids!

So, Bridesmaids are wonderful people and they make wedding-life happier and easier!

I would like to take this moment to thank all of them for their tremendous hard work, support, and encouragement through this entire process.

Here are the gifts that I have chosen as tokens of my appreciation. Each bridesmaid got their own Swarovski crystal starfish hairpin to wear for the big day!

Jackie is my Matron-of-Honor (she's not a maid being already married & a *hot* mama) and she has been the BIGGEST help through all of this since she has experience and could give me the most advice, help, and guidance. I chose this box because it was so elegant and sturdy - if you know her, you will know that she is naturally beautiful and graceful... and ALWAYS there when you need a friend. Her pin is a turquoise/teal color - quite against my sensitivities - to highlight the fact that we have completely opposite tastes when it comes to color palettes!! But thanks to her, no one has to suffer through a *fiery sunset volcanic orange* wedding...
BiYing was a superstar because during the 17 months of planning she was hopping back and forth between California and Chicago - for school, interviews, personal stuff, family, and Me! She made a commitment to be there for me and I could not have been happier to have shared this awesome time of my life with anyone else! I chose baby blue because I know it's her favorite color and I chose this owl because it was hilarious looking. When I think of BiYing I just think of all our crazy college years together and the insane amount of laughter and inside jokes. There's a joke inside this owl...

Lastly, Mariah was the only one of my bridesmaids who actually lives in San Diego, making her the most accessible on the fly. She was always willing to lend a helping hand when I needed opinions on dress colors or find out information on possible event venues - she even scouted out the Omni with me when there was like a private even happening... how awkward! So, thanks for braving through the whole ordeal - we made it to the end! I chose pink - and if you knew her, I wouldn't have to explain! =)

In closing, I would like to express my deep gratitude for the crazy amount of help and for throwing me the best parties of my entire life! I will never forget this incredible milestone and you made it happen!!

I will see you in the morning and then it's down the aisle! Goodnight!!

LateSummer Night's Dream

I have always been a vivid dreamer.  Most of the time they're really fun and I genuinely do get to fulfill my daytime fantasies.  For example, I have been to a neighborhood BBQ with Brad & Angelina because they lived in the condo above me, I have partied hardy with Ashton Kutcher in a city I can only assume was NYC, and I once held hands with, and possibly kissed, Harvey from Sabrina the Teenage Witch (back in the 90's, of course)... anyone still remember his name?

However, lately my dreams have been dominated by the anxiety-ridden motif of Wedding Day Blunders.  I have dreamt that my makeup and hairstylist both were no shows, the photographer missed practically the entire wedding, and the seashell place card holders were spilling uncontrollably out of their container with each step that I took.

I know they are wedding jitters and I have been assured by recently married brides and even moms of brides that they all had these same exact dreams and felt the same exact anxiety... but it still sucks to wake up feeling worried, frazzled, and more tired than you did when you went to bed!

But in the spirit of ill-fashioned dreams... I decided to include a short excerpt from another one of my literary projects.  This is an actual account of one of my dreams back when I was still working at the Medical Examiner's Office.  I guess I'm just one of those people who can't shut their brains off... but at least things are getting sorted out by my subconscious while I sleep... I just have a very loud and theatrical subconscious.  Figures.

This one was truly a masterpiece because it exhumed buried Zero Period Band Practice anxiety from over 10 years ago!!!  I wonder what I will uncover next...

Goodnight, world.  Sweet dreams! =)

            The sky was nowhere in sight as the sunrise lost the battle against the thick veil of fog.  I rode over the bumpy field, steadily passing the evenly spaced white lines.  The quad jerked and twisted against the uneven terrain.  Two platform trailers rattled angrily behind, threatening to throw off its cargo.  An array of percussive instruments somehow remained on board and tightly packed together.   Quite a curious accomplishment since they were not held down by any anchors.  The instruments themselves remained unerringly silent, as though they refused to acknowledge this undignified journey. 

                I didn’t need to check my watch to know I had about two minutes before I absolutely needed to get the trailers perfectly lined up at the front of the field, straddling the center line.  Six forty, six forty, six forty.  Must be on the field and ready to go by six forty.  Otherwise, Mr. J would make everyone desperately aware of his displeasure.  Six thirty-nine… crap.

           I whizzed by something small and dark on the ground.  The misty air was just saturated enough to make me quickly lose whatever sight I had of it.  Something triggered me to squeeze the brakes and the trailers all but crumpled into each other.  I swung myself cleanly off the seat in one swift movement.  I couldn’t spare a moment’s worth of concern for the wreckage of chimes, broken drumheads, and assorted mallets.  My attention was completely focused on the curious object that laid only feet from my, well, feet.

            A few sure steps brought me close enough to bend over and pick it up.  It was about the size of a honeydew melon but more elongated.  Densely weighted for something its size, almost like a medicine ball.  I rubbed it and the prickly fuzz felt good against my palms.  I looked down at the thing and sudden recognition struck me as I turned it over. 

            I intuitively knew what it was even before I saw the distinct profile.  Two dark ridges overhung the softly protected mounds resting on either side of the pronounced ridge.  An apex, a sharp cliff, and then the slight opening, held drily ajar, exposing the deep cavern.

            A human head.

            I needed to find some sort of refrigeration for the mystery head before anything else could be done about finding the rest of its owner.  I hadn’t noticed that I was walking during the whole discovery process and looked up to find myself at the doorway of an administrative building.

        The lobby was dimly illuminated by the grim light of the gray morning.  Ambient sounds of breaking ocean waves wafted through the hallways as I walked past empty offices toward the employee break room.  I held the cranium against my side like some sort of athlete sauntering off the court after a pretty good game.

            I found the break room but the door was locked.  I could see a few people milling about through the floor to ceiling glass panel next to the door.  They were holding coffee mugs in their hands and were laughing at each other's remarks.  I despised their mindless gaiety while I remained stuck outside the door holding a head, a fairly heavy one at that, while being pummeled by soothing ocean sounds.

            They ignored my knocks.  In fact, they seemed steadfastly oblivious of my existence and the human head I was waving at them.  I tried to call out to them but my voice was drowned by the crashing waves and screaming seagulls.

            The absurdity of the whole situation was overwhelming.  I turned around to leave and everything turned black.

             Simultaneously, I woke up.

(Note: the ocean waves... is my sound machine alarm clock)

Bling!

The wedding frenzy has slowed down a bit since everything has pretty much been squared away... there was a miniature crisis with the make-up artist and I surely will be blogging about that mishap as soon as time permits.

Now I get to finally sit back and enjoy the many rewards of this whole occasion - aside from the whole happily ever after marriage part, of course - but we haven't gotten to that part just yet!

I've gotten some fantastic bling! from friends and family and I really just want to show them all off... I kind of have this squirrel-syndrome where I am very attracted to shiny, sparkly things and I like to hoard them away and bring them out once in a while and just marvel at them and pet them.  Which is why I can't watch ANY of the Ice Age movies because I am literally in agony watching the poor prehistoric squirrel lose all his acorns ALL THE TIME!!  It's so unfair!!!!!

My preciouuuuus.... creepy moment, sorry!

I picked out the wedding veil and necklace and my mommy bought them for me.  I loved them at first sight because they matched my dress so perfectly and because they SPARKLED with crystals!  The veil is elbow length and rounded along the bottom with hand-sewn crystals all along the edges reinforced with glue.  The necklace is a gorgeous pearl and crystal creation with a unique and dazzling designer clasp that also doubles as a vintage-style pendant.  It's from the Summer Ball collection and each necklace is made by hand after purchase by Justine M Couture and can be customized to your specific details, so it really is one-of-a-kind!!!

If you have a keen eye, you may have noticed that there are two amazing pieces of jewelry in the picture next to us.  Well, that is because my MOHizzle extraordinaire had the incredible foresight and generosity to purchase the matching bracelet for me as the Best Birthday Present EVER!  Shout out to her lovely sis Jennifer as well for being a part of this incredible gift!  And, of course, to Mr. Khoa Ngo as well... because well, what's his is Jackie's... and what's his is Jackie's.  LoL.  Shhhh.... no one tell Will my marriage philosophies.

Next, I have this unbelievable display of craftsmanship and thoughtfulness.

SIDENOTE: I think I can also apply as a writer for QVC, yeah?

Once again, Jackie tortured me for weeks over this surprise that she created herself.  It's a full set consisting of a super cool brawler style ring that goes over 2 fingers, a necklace with my name, and a bracelet also with my name spelled out.  I told her a loooooong time ago when I was obsessed with Sex and the City that I wanted a necklace with my name written on it.  And then a few years back I went through this ghetto-fab phase and really wanted giant hoop earrings with my name inside them.  I didn't even remember I had these desires and she busted out with this ultra cool jewelry that she made herself!  She has a newborn... what the heck?!  I think she borrowed that secret necklace from Hermione Granger that gives her extra time.

Harry Potter & LOTR name-drops in one post... sho' nuff!!!


On a Vegas note... My friend & Bridesmaid Mariah got me a little necklace with a shot glass attached.  That little shot glass did me in... good times!  LoL.  She tried finding me a shirt or other kind of gear but they all said pretty vulgar things or like "Buy this b*tch a shot!" or "This b*tch is getting married!"  And it was very perceptive of her to figure out that I wasn't about to run around calling myself a b*tch... please, I have plenty of other people lined up for that job.  I was also fully decked out in the tiara and sash that my bridesmaids gave me for the bridal shower, so it was pretty hard to miss what I was.. although, I strangely still got some "Happy Birthdays!"  Those beads were courtesy of the Rio's Show in the Sky... where they threw down beads from the the floats in the sky... thanks to my super decked-out status, I got beads from every single float!!  No flashing required, stay in boobies!  =P

My  half-sister, Carol, sent me this beautiful heart necklace from Tiffany & Co.  I've never had any jewelry from them before, so it marks a first!  It's pretty awesome because up until 3 years ago, my sister and I had been complete strangers to one another.  I grew up with my mom and dad in America when she was already 18 years old and had her own life in Hong Kong.  Finally, 3 years ago, my mom approached me and asked me to connect with my sister and make friends with her.  It was shocking and weird at first... but she is a really nice person and has a great heart.  Even though we will probably never be as close as sisters who grew up together, I am hopeful that we can spend the rest of our lives building a friendship.

Lastly, and most dear to me, is the gift from my Mom & Grandma.  My mom sat me down this past weekend and pulled out this simple, elegant jade pendant from one of those little Chinese jewelry pouches.  I recognized it immediately because my mom used to wear it almost every day since I was a little girl.  That pendant originally belonged to my Grandma when my aunts and mom all bought it for her birthday before I was even born.  My mom was my Grandma's favorite daughter so she gave it to her to 'keep her safe.'  One day, my mom thought she lost it because her gold chain had broken while she was at the swap meet and she was devastated.  Later that evening, she found out that it was actually trapped inside her many layers of clothing.  Needless to say, she was super relieved but she never wore it again.  So, now, she is passing it onto me because I'm growing up and I'm about to start my own life in my own family... and it will keep me safe.  I treasure it the most above all things because I feel like I'm carrying my mom and my grandma with me close to my heart.