dots for irv.

after irv got off work on friday, he and i made a few stops before we left for my house for the weekend. our first stop was dots cupcakes in pasadena.

dots is my favorite cupcake place. just because the frosting is soo good and they don't pile it on.

we got an apple pie cupcake and my all-time favorite, chocolate mint. i also got a mini strawberry lemonade cupcake for later.





afterwards we made our way to johnny cupcakes, bape and flight club.

the afternoon went by way too fast. it feels soo nice to have irv here...i can finally take him to all my favorite places. i just hope it cools down soon, its way too hot for it to almost be november. i want some fall weather.

deep-fried ice cream.

today irene, neil and ella left for chicago. last night we had one last dinner before they left. of course we had to eat mexican food, since they won't be able to find much of that in the midwest. =]

we went to el torito. great guacamole, amazing corn cake and the best place for deep-fried ice cream.

when ella wasn't posing asking me to take pictures of her...

she was asking me to help her take photos of her own.

"tawn tawn! i want to take a picture! of mommy and daddy! picture!"


i love the deep-fried ice cream. make sure they don't make it with cornflakes.


ella was super full of energy the whole night. she would put her hat on irene and crack up laughing.

i know they'll be back to visit soon. i mean with deep-fried ice cream this good, how could they stay away?

food + family = fun times.

last night i was privileged enough to hang out with irv and some of his family. after irv got off work, they came over to see his new place and then we made our way to the americana at brand.

the weather was perfect. we walked around a bit, ella played on the playground, we watched a choreographed dancing fountain water/light show and rode an old fashioned trolley.



for dinner we ate at Max's of Manila. full filipino menu...they even have these restaurants in the philippines. seeing as i'm vegetarian and most filipinos love their meat, there wasn't too much on the menu for me. i ordered the one vegetarian dish on the menu and some pancit without meat. those 2 dishes were more than enough food for me.  


calamansi juice - definitely my favorie part of the entire meal. as soon as i get my own house, one of the first fruit trees i'm going to plant is going to be a calamansi tree.



and for dessert, neil and irene picked up some fresh 'n natural cream puffs from beard papa's. i'm usually not a big fan of cream puffs, but these were pretty good. not too sweet or artificial tasting and just the right size.

i'm gonna miss all these people when they go back to illinois. and like i always say...i wish there was some way that chicago and california could be a little closer together.

johnny cupcakes!

tonight, i met johnny cupcakes! its true...i finally got to meet him. i can't stop smiling. he's soo cool. =]

every year he has this event called "there's something in the cupcake mix" where he releases some really limited shirts. since his LA shop just opened this summer, this is the first cupcake mix in LA.

i dragged mello along with me (michelle met up with us for a little while) and we stood in line for a good 6 hours before we got into the store. i was starving, cold and tired of standing. but once we got inside, i knew it was all worth it.

for johnny's grand entrance this hearse showed up and inside it there was a coffin with johnny in it.




mello and i both were able to get a free shirt (only for the first 100 people) and i was able to get irv one of the limited shirts - shirt 136 of 150.

i look up to this guy and how he runs his business. he made an effort to try and talk to everyone that came into his shop tonight. i was super glad to finally meet him and have a conversation with him. he told me he's going to be in LA for the next 10 days...i'm going to stop by his shop again before he leaves for boston! =]

shawnimals.

my last hours in chicago last week were a little stressful, but in the best way possible. after meeting up with super cool people and making quick stops at golden nugget, kid robot, and st alfred, i really wanted to make one last stop at rotofugi before my flight left. shawn smith from shawnimals was going to be there.

at the last minute when i had decided that it was too late to go matthew said we had to go. he told me, "i'll just drive by. you jump out, go in and run back out." its a good thing we went...

i got to meet him, try out his new video game and he drew a super ninja just for me. =]


of course, i'm embarrassed because i think i was a little star-struck, seeing as i didn't really say much. even when he asked me what my favorite ninja was, i couldn't think of anything.  oh well, i guess thats just what happens when you meet someone you admire.

thanks matthew for taking photos and then rushing me off to the airport.

southwest.

the flight attendant on my flight last night had her own spin on the safety spiel before takeoff. it went something like this:

"good evening. to buckle your seatbelt you do that and to release you do that. if in the case southwest airlines becomes southwest cruise-lines please follow the disco lights on the floor safely out. this is a 4 hour and 35 minute flight, exactly. so ladies and gentlemen that means that this is a no complaining, no whining, drama free flight. thank you, now sit back and enjoy your flight."

i had many an adventure yesterday. one of which included being slightly star-struck. photos and stories coming once i sort out all my thoughts.


p.s.
matchew, i left a box of goodies in one of the closets in your apartment. let me know when you find it.

last hurrah.

my last day working at AU has finally come and gone...and once again the end is a little bittersweet. but its time to go home, i can feel it. if the geese are flying south thats my que to go west.  

i finally finished my project this morning and once i was done i had the biggest sense of accomplishment.

right afterwards marc and sharon picked me up for lunch at daybreak. i'm really gonna miss those two - come visit! =]

i said my goodbyes to the new entrance. and then when to Lula's and Chocolate Cafe with Beatrice and Matt.

tomorrow night i'll be back at home. irv's gonna pick me up from the airport and it's going to be the best/weirdest experience.

i can't wait.

window jumping.

matthew is so sad that i'm leaving. today at work, he threatened to jump out of the window.
no, just kidding. this is the whole ordeal he has to go through each time he wants to close the window.

change pt I.

irv's farewell party was this weekend. he's driving to california as i type this. i've been waiting for this to happen for so long. so how come now it feels like its all happening so fast?

yogurt, noodles and marshmallows.

this past friday night, the plan was to meet up with andrew and matthew for some frozen yogurt. little did we know, the night was going to turn into a mini-eating marathon.

we met up at red mango in downtown naperville. its delicious and they claim its also nutritious. i think i still like pinkberry better though, but only because they give you more toppings.




of course after eating something sweet we wanted something salty. somehow we ended up at noodles & company.

irv and i shared a mediterranean pasta dish called penne rosa. possibly the best pasta dish i've eaten at a restaurant in a very long time.




and our last stop was, once again, for dessert at ethel's chocolate lounge

irv and i shared a wonderful cup of marshmallow hot chocolate. i've never had marshmallow hot chocolate before so i don't have anything to compare it to, but it was pretty good. basically a melted s'more in a cup.




needless to say, good food and good company always makes for good times.