September 1: Vanny’s boyfriend, Junior, planned a small birthday gathering. It was just a few cousins. We swam and played volleyball in the pool. After drying up and filling up on pizza, we went inside to play Taboo. As you can see, my cousin Rene is really excited about holding the buzzer as Vanny gives clues.

September 2: My neighborhood is called Palms.

September 3: I have meetings here every Wednesday morning. I get to take ethnographic notes while community leaders, students and alumni discuss important educational issues. The toughest part is staying quiet because I usually know a lot about the issues discussed, but I’m just supposed to observe and not participate.

September 4: Last June I bought a 3-pack of lip balm. I loved it. The taste was yummy (just ask Ojitos), and my lips stayed smooth and soft. I lost some and used up others. I’ve been trying to find this 3-pack for several months. I was pretty excited to find these at a drugstore in Westwood. I bought two packs. Gotta have soft lips.

September 5: I went shopping on my day off. First stop: DSW in Westwood. I realized that you need plenty of time at a place like DSW because there’s so much to look at. I went in with an idea of the type of shoe I wanted. I got distracted by other cute shoes, but ultimately was disciplined and only bought one pair.

September 6: I had a Puro Pedo Magazine staff meeting at the editor’s house. Jake has a wall full of portraits he’s painted featuring iconic figures (sort of).

September 7: I got cute new shoes and no place to wear them.

September 8: Sometimes the mundane is silly (and stinky). Roommate2 left these eggs boiling too long so that all the water evaporated. I heard crackling and was about to turn off the stove when I heard a pop. The kitchen smelled like burnt egg. Yuck. This is is not the first time Roommate2 forgot about her boiling eggs because she was too busy yakking away on the phone. She’s always on the phone.

September 9: I’ve been wearing headbands a lot. At some point during the day, it gets uncomfortable and the area right behind the top of my ears starts to feel sore. The only solution is to remove the headband, but then my hair looks all funky.

September 10: Trips to Hacienda Heights during the middle of the week are rare due to traffic. I condensed a weekend into a few hours: played with VR and took him for a walk; caught up with Lori about school, marathon training and her love life; gave Adrian some tips and constructive criticism on his practice essay for an exam; had dinner; replaced the tags on my car; assessed the progress on the kitchen; and talked to the parents. The trip is always worth it.