[TBT] Things that remind me of my childhood

Continuing my nostalgic run of old blog posts for TBT, today I share with you a post from my "childhood."

Sunday, August 21, 2011
Things that remind me of my childhood

Racing my cart-sitting sister pell-mell down the aisles of Ikea + causing patrons to turn their heads at the ruckus.

Oh wait, that was yesterday.

Here sits the lazy-butt that is my sister.

The flip-flop wearing feet belong to my momz. I'm surprised she didn't yell at us when I barreled down the aisles with my sister. There was one little boy who was watching what we were doing (we're such good models of decorum for the younger generation) and tried to create a human blockade with his body. I brake-pedaled with my sneakered feet in time to miss him and slide across the floor and almost ram my sister into some Ikea products. Good times.

[TBT] New House with Bad Drawings

If you guys read my last TBT post, you'd know that I used to have a blog called Monkey Whimsy. I was reading through some of my old posts today and laughed out loud because I'd forgotten that I used to draw with markers and paper, then scan the pictures in for my posts. Now, I have more advanced technology -- my index finger and my phone -- to aid me in my drawing adventures.

So, things have improved a bit.

Ha.

For Throwback Thursday today, here's another one of my favorite posts from the old blog.

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Monday, June 13, 2011
New House with Bad Drawings

My family bought a new house:

Yes, it is green.

And in case you were wondering if it's my bad drawing skills making my house look this ugly, or if in reality, it really is this ugly, the answer is this:

It's even uglier.

The shingles are green, the door is green, the fence is green.

Everything
Is
Green.

You can't even see where the front door is for all the green.
I guess that is a good deterrent against robbers.

At least it's better than if everything were red:

Or purple:

Actually, the purple is growing on me.

The house is also not house-shaped:

I guess whoever built the house in the 1920s thought a triangular-shaped green house would look too much like a tree.

And confuse the birds.

We don't want this happening:

The neighbor's house is house-shaped though:

But it is not green.

It is brown but I don't have a brown marker.

My box of markers is deficient.

Use your imagination.

They've got green bushes though.

We do not have green bushes.

We have a green house:

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This post also made me smile because I realized that my sister's comments on it were the very first ones I ever received on Monkey Whimsy:

At first glance, this comment might seem lovely.

But then you think about the word "actually" and you realize what my sister really meant was:
Janice, you're usually NOT funny and cute, but this post is, and it surprised me. Congratulations!

Thank you, Tiffany.

Thank you for making me realize -- four years later -- what you really think of my sense of humor and adorableness.

Haha.

I love you.

Mac & Cheese. And My Sister.

Tiffany and I are 16 months apart.

That means when our college years arrived, we overlapped by two years.

Our campuses were conveniently 12 miles away from each other so we often got to hang out together.

One day, during Tiffany's first year of college, I get a call from her:

So, of course, the "next time" turns out to be the next day. Because who waits on the promise of free and delicious food?

I arrive at Tiffany's dorm and we head down to one of the kitchens where I'm giddy with excitement, wondering what magic my sister will wield over a dorm kitchen to produce the BEST mac & cheese. And because I have faith in my sister, I believe this mac & cheese will make my taste buds rejoice, my palate sing, and my mouth die of ecstasy.

In short, I am expecting this mac & cheese to change my life.

I might've had high hopes.

So, we're in the kitchen, Tiffany rummages around in her basket of supplies and guess WHAT she whips out.

In case you've never had the pleasure of consuming an Easy Mac snack packet, you pour the contents into a bowl, add water, microwave, and add the cheese sauce.

This was what my sister meant by making the BEST mac & cheese.

And, she had a whole box of 'em.

My anticipation might have set the bar a little too high.

I should've known Tiffany's "making" meant "microwaving."

My Mei

I am watching Jessica & Krystal on Hulu right now and it's making me miss my baby sister.

MUCHO.

The way the Jung sisters laugh and eat and goof off reminds me so much of me and my sister.

It's making me nostalgic for the days when we used to laugh hysterically together, go on eating adventures, lay in bed to girl talk, and just be silly doofuses together.

Now we live in different cities and it's harder to do that.

Why do you live so far away, 妹?

Come back to NYC!

You know you want to. What can I bribe you with?

My little sister, my 妹, Tiffany, lives in San Francisco.

Isn't she beautiful?

Tiffany is sixteen months younger than I am.

But most people think she's older than me.

I have no idea why.

Do you?

Here's my sister at the Getty Villa in L.A.

My friend was getting married in Santa Barbara and it was the perfect excuse for me to fly out to S.F.

Tiffany and I roadtripped down to L.A. together and spent a day seeing the sights around town before heading to the wedding.

We went to The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, stalked the Kogi Truck - where we ordered almost the entire menu (BEST food truck ever!) - and of course, went to the Getty Villa. It was beautiful there. I'd highly recommend this museum to people visiting L.A.

And if you happen to find a statue in the museum, why not pose next to it?

When Tiffany graduated college, my mom sent the two of us on a trip to China together.

I'll never forget this trip as long as I live. It was our first time visiting China and I'm glad I got to do it with my Mei.

We went to the Great Wall.

Where someone wanted me to catch her.

We went to Xi'an to see the Terracotta Warriors.

Where someone did some kissing.

In December 2011, my sister and I went to Vietnam to vacation with our aunt.

We landed in Hanoi.

Where someone asked the fruit lady on the side of the road if she could borrow her hat and fruit.

The fruit lady was puzzled.

We went to visit a temple, then traveled to Ha Long Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

It was easily one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen.

After spending a few days on a boat, travelling the bay, we went to see the Thanh Chuong Viet Palace.

Where someone rode a horse.

That someone later found her spirit animal.

Sisters are the best!

I hope we get to travel together more, Tiff! And, soon! I miss you.