tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034Mon, 09 Mar 2009 23:24:34 +0000http://www.tinapham.com/noreply@blogger.com (Tina)Blogger64125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-8184326960492670616Mon, 09 Mar 2009 23:20:00 +00002009-03-09T16:24:34.403-07:00News/TrendsWords cannot describe how confused I am:Police: Man offers $69 for Klondike bar down pantshttp://www.tinapham.com/2009/03/huh.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-4475910290436481565Sat, 07 Mar 2009 20:33:00 +00002009-03-07T12:37:01.177-08:00Retail TherapyI have been hinting and hinting and hinting for quite some time that I would like some Crocs, but my husband has been very non-responsive to this. In fact, he's been downright against it, saying flat out that they look ugly. They look ultra comfortable, though, and there are days in which I'm working where I'm on my feet for over 6 or 7 hours.I went to Nordstrom Rack with my sister and saw http://www.tinapham.com/2009/03/i-have-been-hinting-and-hinting-and.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-1539590022117915783Fri, 30 Jan 2009 23:40:00 +00002009-01-30T16:14:58.380-08:00RecipesOK, so I've been having a thing for cupcakes lately. I went and tried all the red velvet cupcakes in the immediate 5 mile radius. And then I decided that it was really expensive to buy cupcakes from cupcake bakeries. Especially when red velvet cupcakes (fast becoming one of my favorite cupcake flavors) were easy to make. I found this recipe from New York's famous Magnolia Bakery online, and I http://www.tinapham.com/2009/01/red-velvet-cupcakes.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-5512727989694193519Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:19:00 +00002009-01-05T18:19:54.762-08:00 Megan knitted us sheep and sent it to us for Christmas. Presumably it was more for or because of the Skittle, but I had a notion that perhaps the smaller sheep was for Romeo, as he is in fact a shepherd by birth. Romeo, however, decided that the toy was way too nice for him and has kept his distance from the plush toy, which is unusual but I'm not complaining. The sheep is too nice and whitehttp://www.tinapham.com/2009/01/thank-you-megan.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-7968073785762693294Tue, 30 Dec 2008 00:10:00 +00002008-12-29T16:25:11.078-08:00Retail TherapyI have been trying so so hard not to buy anything for the baby. Especially baby clothes. I know academically that people L-O-V-E to give baby clothes, so in general I have been trying very very hard not to buy anything for the baby until after the baby shower.But I'm now 18.5 weeks along, and it's the end of the year, and everything is on CLEARANCE. I have refrained from buying the adorable http://www.tinapham.com/2008/12/i-tried-so-hard.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-2284481354180979069Tue, 25 Nov 2008 17:10:00 +00002008-11-25T09:13:01.186-08:00RecipesOne of our favorite sides at a Lawry's Restaurant is the creamed corn. I found this recipe off of the Lawry's website. I'm debating trying it out for Thanksgiving. It really seems easy enough...Creamed Corn (from Lawrysonline.com)1½ tablespoons butter1½ tablespoons flour½ teaspoon salt1½ cups whipping cream2 tablespoons sugar3 cups fresh, frozen or canned whole kernel cornMelt butter in heavy http://www.tinapham.com/2008/11/delicious-creamed-corn.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-8135304594064742912Thu, 25 Sep 2008 14:16:00 +00002008-09-25T07:33:13.215-07:00HanoiTravelI just realized that I never posted pics from Hanoi and Ha Long Bay! It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed myself. I'm pretty sure Tania's favorite part was Ha Long Bay. We took pictures as much as we could, and there's a whole huge set of the pics on Flickr.I really really loved Hanoi. We ate at all of these awesome restaurants, but we were a little dismayed that the restaurants in the http://www.tinapham.com/2008/09/highlights-from-hanoi-ha-long-bay.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-1869200878524547884Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:53:00 +00002008-07-16T18:02:33.823-07:00Okay, so Joel and I have been looking for houses. Our agent encouraged me to drive by a house this afternoon, which I did. The house itself was okay, but what melted my heart was the kid next door, out on the front lawn (you don't see this in very many neighborhoods in LA - a kid out on the front lawn alone), playing with possibly the cutest little puppy I've ever seen (sorry, Romeo). The boy http://www.tinapham.com/2008/07/cute-kid-puppy-real-estate-sale.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-753608899072746974Tue, 08 Jul 2008 01:32:00 +00002008-07-07T18:45:24.509-07:00Megan tagged me awhile back, so here we go:What was I doing ten years ago?Ten years ago: July 1998. I was on a summer study-abroad in the Kansai region of Japan, working on my Japanese. It was my first trip out of the country!Five things on my to-do list for today?Monday is my day off, sort of. 5 items off of today's list:- Go to the paper company. Complain about paper received and buy ink.- http://www.tinapham.com/2008/07/megan-tagged-me.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-4363941616857426706Tue, 01 Apr 2008 22:38:00 +00002008-04-01T15:40:00.838-07:00I can't take anything seriously today. Ever since that incident when I was in 6th grade when a news announcer said that Hawaii was switching to Daylight Savings Time...no joke.More tomorrow!http://www.tinapham.com/2008/04/april-fools-day.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-8414773439009558579Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:28:00 +00002008-03-24T10:30:03.852-07:00Hong KongTravelHere are highlights of our trip to Hong Kong!We arrived in Hong Kong at 7am. After going through customs and picking up our luggage, my sister and I had our own bus to our hotel on Hong Kong Island. We checked in, and as our room was already ready for us, we showered and were on our way. First order of business: dim sum! We went to dim sum in City Hall at Maxim's Palace. There, we experienced forhttp://www.tinapham.com/2008/03/hong-kong-highlights.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-4240359768945377856Mon, 24 Mar 2008 07:00:00 +00002008-03-24T00:06:29.125-07:00TravelIt's been thrilling to travel around, but it's also very nice to be back home. I've been busy sorting the pictures and putting everything up online for posterity. A couple things that I've welcomed:- Potable tap water. So so nice. - Enforced traffic laws.- Catalytic converters. I didn't think I would call LA air clean, but man, it certainly seems clean after Hanoi.- Cushy bed. Nuff said.http://www.tinapham.com/2008/03/back-home.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-8370347247285474916Wed, 19 Mar 2008 23:58:00 +00002008-03-19T17:05:07.764-07:00HanoiTravelIt's 7am here in Vietnam, and we're going to be leaving this afternoon. I wish we had more time here to see more of the country. We stuck mainly to Hanoi, with our overnight cruise to Halong Bay. It is warm and sticky here in Hanoi during the day, and I can't imagine going any later than spring. I am definitely going to have to come back to see more of the country -- especially Hue and Saigonhttp://www.tinapham.com/2008/03/leaving-vietnam.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-8629480115716346548Wed, 19 Mar 2008 01:59:00 +00002008-03-18T19:19:05.150-07:00HanoiTravelYesterday, my sister and I saw the majority of the remaining sights in Hanoi. The entire morning was taken up by queueing up to see Ho Chi Minh himself. It was quite the surreal experience. Afterwards, we saw the One Pillar Pagoda (Chua Mot Cot), perused the Military History Museum, and then had a super late lunch of Cha Ca. At night, we walked to Bobby Chinn and had a superb dinner.Today ishttp://www.tinapham.com/2008/03/last-full-day-in-hanoi.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-1070272946552417752Mon, 17 Mar 2008 09:49:00 +00002008-03-17T03:11:26.301-07:00HanoiHong KongTravelIt's been an interesting trip so far. Right now, my sister and I are back in Hanoi after doing an overnight trip to Halong Bay. Hanoi is a noisy, lively city, and the trip to Halong was peaceful and quiet. The Internet connection here has proven to be super slow, so I've decided to wait until I get home to upload our hundreds of photos. Our trip is more than half over, and I wish we had more http://www.tinapham.com/2008/03/hello-hanoi.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-539557156117469478Thu, 13 Mar 2008 14:30:00 +00002008-03-13T07:36:25.422-07:00Hong KongTravelIt's almost bedtime for me here in Hong Kong! My sister and I arrived here yesterday morning after a 15 hour flight from Los Angeles. (Strangely, Hong Kong is 15 hours ahead of Los Angeles.) We've been all around Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and even Lantau. Tomorrow, we are leaving for Hanoi, Vietnam. If we had stayed in Hong Kong for one more day, I would have probably broken down and gone to http://www.tinapham.com/2008/03/in-hong-kongnext-stop-hanoi.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-2987838635263931351Mon, 25 Feb 2008 18:31:00 +00002008-02-25T10:40:18.289-08:00Retail TherapySo, I was wondering if it was true that digital cameras died quickly in cold weather conditions. Well, without a doubt, it is. Everytime Joel and I pulled out our little Digital Elph to take a picture in Vail, we discovered that our camera was dead. I've been thinking about getting this freeze-proof, waterproof camera instead:The Olympus Stylus 790SW seems to be made for the slopes. Plus I http://www.tinapham.com/2008/02/my-next-digital-camera.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-3989025865506323083Wed, 20 Feb 2008 19:14:00 +00002008-02-20T11:23:50.672-08:00TravelWe're back after nearly a week in Vail, Colorado! I'm bruised and sore all over -- Vail Mountain kicks serious ass, literally. It was a great trip, and we were sorry to leave. I'll be posting pictures (when I get them) to our website. Until then, here's me at Mid Vail!http://www.tinapham.com/2008/02/back-from-vail.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-7589753573975536903Wed, 30 Jan 2008 22:39:00 +00002008-01-30T15:15:42.129-08:00Cool SiteTravelSo I love TripAdvisor. Finally, today, I signed up, and I was making a map of everywhere I've traveled to. It was kind of fun! Check it out:View my profileCreate your own travel map or travel blogVisit TripAdvisor.comhttp://www.tinapham.com/2008/01/tripadvisor.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-5277581286608877853Thu, 24 Jan 2008 22:43:00 +00002008-01-24T15:09:08.236-08:00TravelLast week Tuesday (January 17th), I sent my passport to the Vietnam Embassy in Washington, DC, via USPS Express Mail, to get a visa for my upcoming trip to Vietnam. Now, I could have sent it to the Vietnam Consulate in San Francisco, but I had a confusing conversation with the Consulate over the phone and the people at the Embassy in DC seemed to understand my questions better.The confusion I http://www.tinapham.com/2008/01/super-confusing-but-superfast.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-9001348724519654874Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:18:00 +00002008-01-24T12:19:48.497-08:00TravelI have an exciting February and March in front of me! In February, I'm going to visit the great state of Colorado for the first time with a trip to Vail. I'm uber excited, and I can't wait to test out my near non-existent snowboarding skills in Colorado snow.In March, my sister and I are going to Hong Kong and Hanoi. This is both my first time traveling with just my sister and my first time http://www.tinapham.com/2008/01/excited.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-7151066615934165386Tue, 22 Jan 2008 21:59:00 +00002008-01-22T15:27:34.090-08:00I've decided on something cleaner for my website/blog.Happy New Year!http://www.tinapham.com/2008/01/new-year-new-look.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-5721462489754147328Wed, 09 Jan 2008 00:52:00 +00002008-01-08T17:56:14.941-08:00PersonalSo for like 10 years now, I've had an awful recurring dream where my teeth are loose and falling out, and I kind of have to shove them back in place. Since I got my first front tooth extracted and implant installed, the dreams have pretty much ceased. Today, however, I went to get my other front tooth pulled (because "short roots," blah blah blah, "need to take proactive steps," blah blah) to http://www.tinapham.com/2008/01/living-dream.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-5161875221877068390Thu, 25 Oct 2007 00:27:00 +00002007-10-24T17:30:30.879-07:00News/TrendsThis is craziness! LA, largely unaffected, smells like an ashtray, and there's a lingering smokey smell in the air. I've been watching the news reports, and it seems like there are more fires today than there were yesterday. I've been tracking the wildfire progress (or lack thereof) on CNN. Here's hoping for rain...http://www.tinapham.com/2007/10/southern-california-is-on-fire.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6931034.post-5815848853806753883Mon, 24 Sep 2007 08:30:00 +00002007-09-26T08:30:09.379-07:00PersonalThis past weekend, my family buried my grandmother. It is so remarkable how many people loved my grandmother and her family and was most obviously showcased by the unbelievable amount of flowers that surrounded her gravesite.The funeral was a Buddhist one, and while I understood the rudiments, if you asked me, I would not be able to explain to you everything that went on. My aunt could not read http://www.tinapham.com/2007/09/not-optimal-family-reunion.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Tina)0