this isn't madness...this is dineLA!!!!!

for all of you dine-out enthusiasts out there, what special event is coming up??



(click on the picture to go to the official website) starting on January 27th and ending on October 8th, dineLA is definitely a cannot miss event. and since i can't miss this even, ill be taking advantage of it.....five freakin times.

it's a pretty poppin deal I must say....$22 for lunch and $25-$34 for dinner for a 3-course, prix fixe meal. mmmm my mouth is watering just thinkin bout it. the only drawback i can think of is the hole that it's going to burn in my wallet. i think 5 is a little excessive....but as Joyce says, "think of it as an investment!!" i dunno how it's an investment, but i'll just go w/ the flow....

it was a hard decision trying to decide which restaurants to go to. and although i admit that i really wanted to go to Lawry's, it's a venue that i can go to any other night. i decided to try new things. here is a list of the restaurants that i'll be sticking my knife and fork into:

January 27

January 30
Park Grill @ the Intercontinental Hotel

February 3

LA Prime @ the Bonaventure Hotel

February 6

February 8

not to mention that I'll be going to SF this weekend cuz SF is having their Dine About Town, which is parallel to dineLA. go ahead, call me a fatty, but i'll die happy =D i'll post more about that when I come back on Monday.

but yes, I encourage all of you who love to eat out, or don't eat out at all, to participate in dineLA. it's freakin BOMB!! =D

trial by declaration? GOT IT!

I am here to attest the phenomenon that is...TRIAL BY DECLARATION!!

Dude, last year was not a good year for me in terms of the amount of parking and traffic tickets i got. To ring in the new year, I was slapped with a ticket. Not a parking ticket. Not a traffic ticket. But a FIX-IT TICKET. What the hell man?! What gives?? On the last day of the year, I get slapped with a ticket for of all things, TINT. I never thought that I would get caught for it, but I guess you should never say 'never'!

Anyway, I digress. I'm here to talk about the use of Trial By Declaration. I got 3 tickets this year:

Traffic Ticket 1
Location: Western Ave x Beverly Blvd
Violation: Running a red light
Synopsis: Ummm....driving a little under the influence really DOES impair judgement.
You've all seen the ticket (I posted it on my Xanga). Here is it again for all of you who missed out.

But back then, I didn't know about trial by declaration. How stupid I really was.

Traffic Ticket 2
Location: I-605 South in Irwindale
Violation: Speeding
Synopsis: This happened right after Kel's birthday shindig at Claim Jumpers in Arcadia. This is what happens when you're preoccupied with talking to your passengers that you lose sight of your speed.

Traffic Ticket 3
Location: Valley Blvd x 3rd St.
Violation: Illegal U-turn in a business district
Synopsis: I admit.....STUPID MOVE. I made a U-turn from the curb, cutting 2 lanes and going over a double yellow. What makes it worse? The cop was pulling out onto Valley just as I was making the turn. Not one cop, but like THREE freakin cop cars.

I am here to talk about the last two tickets. Per Nutz' advise, I contested my tickets through Trial by Declaration. It's a simple process- pay the ticket, write a letter of contest, send it in, wait for a decision. Why would you do this?

Citation Number: 36284DP	Law Enforcement Agency: California Highway Patrol
Name: SCOTT ANTHONY LEE Court: West Covina Courthouse 1427 West Covina Parkway, West Covina, CA 91790 (213) 742-1928 Violation Date: 05/12/2007 Initial Due Date: 06/26/2007 Case Status: Dismissed Disposition: Case dismissed on 09/27/2007 Last Action: Court trial Last Action/ New Appearance Date: 09/27/2007 in 001

Citation Number: A431018	Law Enforcement Agency: Alhambra Police Department
Name: SCOTT ANTHONY LEE Court: Alhambra Courthouse 150 West Commonwealth, Alhambra, CA 91801 (213) 742-1928 Violation Date: 07/27/2007 Initial Due Date: 09/25/2007 Case Status: Dismissed Disposition: Case dismissed on 12/31/2007 Last Action: Court appearance Last Action/ New Appearance Date: 12/31/2007 in 002

I am living proof that this works!! That's $563 that I was able to claim back. Shit son, I got boba money now!

Moral of this post (for all those who haven't gotten the message already): USE TRIAL BY DECLARATION!!!

the new year's here.......BITCH!

HAPPY 2008!!!

I can't believe the new year's already here. Just this morning I was thinkin about past events that still linger so vividly in my mind and then I realize, "Damn, that happened YEARS ago". It really perplexes me how fast time flies....and boy, it flies FAST. Just for a quick recap of 2007, these were the highlights of my year (in no particular order):

- Korea
- EDC & Love Fest
- Bra's return to MEI GUO!!
- Landing a job at CBRE
- Trying out the most restaurants I've ever had with BFG
- Sunday volleyballs gone AWOL now that Thomas moved
- Making SF my second home with all those visits
- My first trip to Mammoth / first snowboarding run in 4 years
- Finally getting gym membership and staying in shape
- Holiday Disneyland
- Taking the GMAT
- Hosting my first ever Christmas party
- The start of new friendships, and rekindling old ones

The end of 2007 and the beginning of 2008 ran by me in a heartbeat--especially being in the inebriated state I was in and besides the fact that the countdown was messed up. GIANT MAXIMUS (echo echo echo) was off the HOOOOOKKKKER!! I have tons and tons of pictures to share, but that'll have to wait for another entry cuz I'm at work with no access to my laptop =( In all honesty, I don't think I would have had it any other way. I was with the people I wanted to be with, and partying like a rock star the way it should be =)

It's also the year of the rat! It doesn't necessarily mean a good thing though. My dad, along with other resources have told me that this year isn't going to be a very good one, and to take caution. I got kinda creeped out by the discretionary warning, but this year has turned out to be a good one thus far! Well, I guess I can't say much with only 4 days into the new year, but still. What's in store for me this year?

THE BIG MOVE. A quick update regarding the big move to SF. I've been riding the fence in terms of moving April or September. April would've been an ideal time if I didn't just get the whopping 7% raise from CBRE along with the GMAT studies I have to prep for. But for right now, September seems to be the more viable option. BUT MORE TO COME SOON!

In any case, I'm done with rambling. Lunch in Ktown with BraKelly today. Here's to more happy blogging in 2008!!