I don't know why I still have this naive notion that people should stay together (preferably forever), friendships should never sour, and families should always love and care for each other. I should be sufficiently jaded by now to know that things are never the way they should be, and that nothing's ideal, but something in me wants to cling on desperately to my naivety.

It sounds like I just don't want to face reality.

I don't know why I'm so teary these days, but I read this and teared for the second time today.

The bf sent me the link to this article. It's a very insightful article..

Having been through the whole scholarship vs papa mama sponsorship debate 4 years ago, I'm glad I chose not to pursue a scholarship+bond though it did look very attractive back then. With a year of studies left, I do not regret not taking up a scholarship, but I definitely regret not applying to "less prestigious" us colleges that offer scholarships.. My sch, though needs blind towards us citizens, is not needs blind for internationals. Right now, I'm not entirely sure if the huge sum I now owe my parents is worthwhile. It makes sense, compared to studying locally, but not necessarily in comparison to other us colleges which might have been better for me. Decisions are tough, but standing behind them is tougher. We should just remember to change what we can, and do what we want.

It feels weird to be in the office on a Sunday. Working on weekends is not cool at all. I guess I should just give my all and quit complaining. It's only another 3 weeks more anyways. :)

Philadelphia Restaurants

While doing some research on philly's restaurants, I came across some restaurant lists and thought that it'll be fun to come up with my own.

All time favorites:
Pumpkin- best byo
Cochon- great byo
Buddakan- love the asian inspired food
Cuba Libre- great cuban brunch (and dinner)
Amada- best tapas in philly, though nowhere near as good as the ones in Barcelona
Tinto- great tapas
El Vez- fantastic mexican
FriSatSun- cozy with wine at $10 above cost
Audrey Claire- great seafood tomato soup, byo too
Alma de Cuba- great cuban food; fried cow is a must-try
Mixto- cuban too, fantastic plantain chips
Vetri- expensive italian, but tasting menu is a must-try
Penang- default place to go to when homesick; kangkong belachan is fantastic
Vietnam Palace- 7 courses of beef is amazing
Smile Cafe- great thai food; hard to get a table
Sabrina's- my favorite brunch place; dinner's hit and miss
Django- great food; byo; heard rumors that it's closed?
Beijing- on campus default chinese
Thai Singha- decent restaurant that's closest to me :D
Sagami (NJ)- great chirashi; definitely worth the drive
Han Dynasty ('burbs)- amazing sichuan food that got me eating spicy food
Plate (Ardmore)- wonderfully huge salads, LA style
Margaret Kuo's (Wayne)- best xiao long baos I've had in the US

Good but not great:
Morimoto- expensive and not as good as sagami
La Croix- great view of rittenhouse but food could be better; impeccable service
Osteria- great home made gelato, nice thin pizzas but not worth the wait or the long drive up north
Pod- great for the express lunches and cocktails but not otherwise
Distrito- love its location but el vez is way better
Devon Seafood- amazing crab cakes which have shrunk over time
Banana Leaf- good msian food but penang is way better
Indonesia Restaurant- nice indo spices but not totally authentic
20 Manning- nice and hip but nothing spectacular about the food
Marigold Kitchen- had great lamb there but never really felt like going back; small portions which don't justify the price
Pattaya Grill- not as good as thai singha but still acceptable
Rx- used to have great brunches but portions have shrunk (either that or my appetite got bigger)
Stars and Stripes- nice brunch but can't measure up to sabrina's
White Dog Cafe- used to be fantastic for the white dog sundae; went downhill since new owners took over
Eulogy Belgium Tavern- great beer selection but mussels are tiny
Estia- nice greek food and great service but nothing particularly memorable
Paradigm
Continental- like the upscale diner feel but food's pretty normal
Melograno- nice Mediterranean food but seafood could be fresher
Meme- amazing mussels but menu could be more extensive
Fork- nice but can't remember being wowed
Zocalo- normal mexican fare
Monk's Cafe- great beers
The Happy Rooster- can't say I remember much about the food but it wasn't terrible
La Viola- fairly decent italian but can't measure up to vetri (I know its not supposed to be as good but I just feel sth's lacking when I'm there)
La Famiglia- normal italian fare; crowd's too old for me
Upstares Varalli- normal italian fare; oldish crowd too
Bistro 7- nice small restaurant
Bookbinder's- decent but not great seafood

Can be improved:
McCormick & Schmick's- can't see why it was crowded
Haru- lousy idea of what's fusion
Nan- thai french fusion gone wrong
Ava- nice cozy italian place near south st but way too heavy
Tangerine- great for drinks for food leaves much to be desired
Sang Kee Duck House- okay duck but other dishes are nothing memorable
Patou- most terrible tuna tatare I've had

To try:
Little Fish
Dimitri's
Le Bec Fin

Anyways, check out nielsen.com if you're bored. It has some pretty interesting titbits about consumer spending etc.. :) Apparently sales of meal starters (whatever that may be, I'm still trying to find out an exact definition) has jumped in the last 12 months while most other grocery categories have slumped. XD

*yawns* I don't know why I get sleepy at work every afternoon.. lol. I feel like going outside to stretch.. Anyways, its strange how stuff always happen subsequent to me making up my mind about something to make me change my mind. =_=

The weekend was great, once again. :) Visiting siannie in boston was fun thought 9 hrs on the bus over 2 days is not. :P I lurve mu que ca. It's one of the best restaurants I've tried so far- I'm definitely going back the next time I'm in Boston (though that might be in ages given that siannie's graduating). Christina's was pretty good too. I had the green tea and azuki bean ice cream and gobbled everything up in a flash- I almost finished siannie's unwanted french rose and mexican chocolate flavors too..

I watched Ave Q and it was really good! Definitely better than expected. XD It gets a bit lewd at times but it was extremely entertaining!