Nice day to get my credit on!

So I've been freaking out about my near-future details, like credit and school. I ignorantly applied for a few credit cards online with sites like PayPal, since I use those sites occasionally. I was never approved, so I found my credit score. I realize I probably should've reversed those steps, but I have a bad habit of leaping before looking. "Let's give this a try! If they reject me then I know what my credit is..." Yea... silly I know. Anyway, my sister suggested the obvious and told me to try at their bank, Navy Federal Credit Union. The idea made me nervous. I'm okay with being rejected by an online credit algorithm, but being rejected in person seems embarrassing.

Turns out I don't have horrible credit (thanks to Quizzle. Really easy, thorough, and actually free.) But I do have some demerits thanks to some past mixups. Still, I was a bit nervous.

When I went in, I had to fib a little about my living situation, income, and employment... Not the best idea, but I know I can pay off my purchases. It paid off! I was approved about an hour later and I should see my card in the mail soon. My first purchase will be a new laptop! A touchscreen windows 8, probably. I've gone to a few places and messed around with Windows 8 and the touchscreen and was pleasantly surprised. It was really responsive and easy to learn. I realize there is a ton of negative review against Windows 8, but what I read always seems like more nitpick complains rather than legitimate detriments. "I've been doing it this way for so long, change is r bad." ALSO! Their releasing an update that fixes a ton of the complaints. Lets me know the company is willing to admit they have room to improve. The price isn't bad either.

Convoy Street Festival

So Via brought me to a festival on convoy street, a street primarily known for it's Asian cuisine and goods. I wasn't sure what to expect because in her email she said there would be "lion dancing". I wondered if she meant "line" so I brought comfortable shoes just in case.

This was the atmosphere. And by atmosphere I mean lines for the food. They weren't serving anything special from what I could tell, but the prices were waaay cheaper than what you'd normally find. Via and I shared Lua Mee Lao Noodles, 2 lobster roll sticks, 1 fish stick, a veggie roll, and two bottled waters for 13$. For Cali, that is CHEAP! And it didn't taste that bad.

There was hawaiian themed dancing! Really fun to watch. Via was wanting to see the "Dancing Lions", a dance group, but their show was too late for us to stay. When she brought it up first, she didn't clarify and I though we were going to see Lion Dancing. I didn't know what expect. This was fun either way.

They had a projector and old-school Dragon Ball-Z game tournaments! That was pretty sweet. I didn't play but it was still neat to see an old favorite anime game in a crowd. Plus I think they'd have kicked my ass.

The night was really fun. It was great to get out of the house with someone other than Megan and Andrew. Their fun, but I need to make my own friends and my own way around.

Being productive I hope?

I haven't kept up with this lately but things are still happening.

The main thing on my mind right now is my credit. I need to improve it if only for the sake of it being improved. It isn't shit, but it isn't great either. I'm going to talk to the bank out here, Navy Fed (just joined through my sister) and ask them if I can take out a loan for a computer for school, while explaining my primary goal is improving my credit. I don't know if being so up-front will work but it's the best I have. That's my short term goal at the moment - getting dat credit up.

Next goal is getting into UNCA. My GPA is high enough, I think, and with some classes in the spring to help, I think I can get in. That means I'll be moving back to Asheville fall of next year! Which I like the idea of. I don't miss it too much, but the familiarity will be nice. And maybe some of my friends will still be around. Anyway, I need a degree. I think I'm just going to shoot for a Bachelors in English that I can carry into teaching.... out of the country. That'll take some work, but I want it. I want to travel, and for me that's probably my closest bet.

My nephew, Levi, is being so good! We tried out his sling the other day... it's a tad too small for him. He seemed comfy but I think he was cramped. If we did get another one it'll be bigger. We'll see. He's the cutest babeh I've ever seen! And I don't care for babies.

Running and whatnot

Can't believe I forgot to post this earlier! I took 1.5 minutes off my mile today!

My mile earlier this month was 10 minutes. Nothing special, especially for my size (5'11'', 140lbs... i'm scrawny). Our housing complex has a swimming pool and gym that i've decided to take advantage of during my stay. I try to run once or twice a week, but slacked off while company was in town. But today I pushed my time down to 8.5 minutes. I'm pretty sure what that means is I wasn't really pushing myself before and that should be my standard time... maybe lower? I'd like to get down to 7 minutes.

There's a valley trail about a mile from the house that I walk the dogs to. After we get there I can take off the leashes and start running. The trail races up and down the valley so it helps keep my feet fast, heart rate up, and working my legs a ton.

There are also cool trees and creeks!

Swimming has been really fun. The water is around 70degrees and feels great once you start swimming. I need to strengthen my shoulders and chest and I figure that's a good way to warm up at least. I'm working my way up to a mile on that. We'll see!

Sending off and Slacking off

Blargh! It's been 3 days since my last post. I'm worse than +Joshua Cole at this point, haha. It's been a busy couple of days. My dad, Andrew's parent's, and our old house mate Tim Daugh all left on Wednesday/Thursday. The house has been so quiet since then! I can finally collect my thoughts and hang out in my room again. Don't get me wrong, it was nice having them here, but I was going through solitude withdrawal. I get pretty grumpy and disagreeable if I don't get some alone time.

I managed to find my way into our housing complex's common's room late one night. Couches and lounge chairs are placed everywhere, a full kitchen off to the side and a television on the focus wall... AND ARCADE MACHINES! Oh man, I have to go back and blow some quarters on those things. One of them is like 50 games crammed into one machine you choose from, and I think the other was mrs. pacman. That was there I drew my hand studies posted earlier.

We ate out every other night while company was in town. I'm a larger fan of stay-at-home cooking. Partially because it tastes just as good, partially because my wallet was getting pretty slim. They payed for a lot of our meals, and I didn't argue with their offer. The final night they were here we took them to The Cheesecake Factory. I thought the main course was cheesecake, but it turns out they're actually a full fine-dining restaurant. It's an okay place I guess. I find I can get food just as delicious elsewhere without my wallet hurting at the end of the week.

I also thought their ceiling decorations were silly looking. I don't care for airbrushed pastels.

This also made me chuckle. I'm assuming this is when they're open... Or closed? WHICH IS IT?! does it open at 11am and close at 11am? These doors are unclear.

Old Town, Neat Pipes, and Interesting Beer.

Yesterday we went to Old Town, San Diego. Kind of an "old west" feel, only cheapened by obvious props and choice merchandise advertising. It still had some pretty neat things to see. This was a fountain in a restaurant we stayed in. The goblets you see in the fountain are what they server margaritas in. 58oz I think? Dericious!

This is a shot from the courtyard of La Casa De Estudillo (Es-too-dee-yo), a house that started as probably 2 rooms and then added onto later. It was started in 1827 and built by Captain José Maria Estudillo, a military commandant of the San Diego Presidio. He died before it was completed and his son, Lieutenant José Antonio completed it.

                            

About 18 years after the Estudillos abandoned the house, John D. Spreckels of the San Diego Electric Railway Company bought and rebuilt the house to be a tourist attraction.

Here is a shot of a room for prayer. They tried to keep the old feel and authentic feel by keeping as much of the original furniture as they could. Donations help keep it kept.

The majority of old town were shops selling overpriced merchandise from Mexico. 1$ for a tiny plastic dinosaur. Please. Try a quarter. I might've considered the 40$ poncho if I wasn't so close to the boarder. My favorite shop was Racine & Lamarie, a tobacco and pipe shop.

Talking about overpriced, their clay pipes were 20$ and not the best quality. I could buy 4 or 5 for that price. Tourist traps, what can ya do? Even so, they had a magnificent display of 1800 pipes and knives.

The pipe below was my favorite. I didn't ask or look for a price, but imagine its 4 digits.

These were pretty cute. I'd feel like an asshole smoking one.

I ended up buying a cherry blend. Their tobacco was the only thing reasonably priced, 6$ for 2oz. I'll report on how it smokes later. I wish you could upload smells through the internet.

After Old Town, we stopped by the Coranado Brewing Company for drinks. They had a draft named Señor Jefe (He-fe) that was "infused" with jalapeño and sage. A smooth tang explodes in your mouth left by a light sting. If you find a beer similar, try it. Just watch your stomach the next morning and try to drink water before bed. It doesn't sit well over night.

iOS7

Apple recently released iOS7 with their iPhone 5C/5S and the update is compatible with my iPhone 4S.

I'm fairly pleased with the new look. The gloss was becoming dated and the new crisp pastels are very easy on the eyes. 

This new display is super nice and something I missed when I jailbroke my phone. You find it by dragging your finger up from the bottom of the screen. Being able to turn wireless and do not disturb on/off without wading into settings is really nice. The brightness and music controls are especially neat.

They also added dynamic wallpapers (moving) that change depending on how you hold the phone. I'm a sucker for things like that. It's all very charming.

There are a few updates to apps like Safari and Music that make them easier to navigate or include new options. One example is private browsing in safari and having your favorites appear in an immediate display, making browsing much easier. These updates are more than welcome.

After singing my praises, I need to note that this update seems to be apple's means of playing catch-up with other OS's. Dynamic wallpaper isn't really new for android, nor are the wireless/Bluetooth/brightness controls found in the swipe-up display. The update was needed, but not "innovative" or "new" for a lot of smartphone owners.

I have no loyalty to apple and will probably switch phones when my update is due. Not anything against my phone, it's great, but I'm curious about other phones and have a feeling I won't miss the iPhone.