I’ve always been hyper competitive. I make a game out of everything. Mostly, because it’s fun, partly, because it’s a good motivational tool. Plus, if someone is on your “team”, it forms that brief bond, that temporary connection of camaraderie. Sometimes, I compete against people without them knowing it. And sometimes, I compete without me knowing it.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that sometimes, losing is just as nice to see the other person happier. And, sometimes, I’ll lose on purpose. I think this is why, when we were little, my brothers and I always seemed to beat my dad at every game we played.

Friends and I going on a technology fast. Not that I update xanga all that much, but hey, I'll never give it up. So just wanted to let y'all know I'll be gone for 30 days or so. I have some stuff written down to update when I get back, so there will be more content on here in the future.

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A small anecdote.

I didn't really drink until I turned 21. People always thought it was weird that I was in a fraternity and I didn't smoke or drink. I thought it was kind of weird that people thought you had to if you were in one. I pretty much did the "don't drink til you're 21" out of principle. Plus, it helped that the stuff was vile-tasting. I always thought that beer tasted like carbonated urine from the few sips I had had of it.

In any case, when I first came to college, I would hear people order a mixed drink called a "Roman Coke." I always forgot what was in that dark carbonated elixir and asked my friends, "What's in it?" "Coke and rum," they would reply. "Ah, that's weird to call it that," I thought. But hey, I guess it's like how they name it a Long Island Iced Tea, right?

Then one day, I realized I had misheard it the entire time.

Well, apparently my new profile pic wasn't flying too well with my friends, so I decided to switch it up for 'em in the form of Thai Twins (because it ain't called Siam anymore, you horrible horrible person!). I'm kidding, folks.

But then people thought it was too weird? I don't know why. So I thought I'd give it one last shot:

Maybe they'd "like" this.

VISUAL PUN!

This was my new facebook profile for Valentine's Day. It was not received well. I thought women loved gazing into the windows of the soul

My cousin Tinou had her second child this past week- Max weighed in at 10 lbs and 11 ounces- the second largest natural birth the obstetrician had ever delivered.

I find it strange that a woman's friends will just hang around when she starts breastfeeding. I mean, it's perfectly natural and beautiful and all that jazz, but still, I'd be all, "Oh let me give you some privacy- let me know when you're done." Because if my guy friends ever had to do some activity where, say, they had to have their ball hanging out for a few minutes, I wouldn't hang around and be chattin' them up. I'd ask, "Hey man, let me know when you're done here" and let them free ball in privacy for however long they need to. I'm okay with women breast feeding in public (there are just some times where you can't find privacy), but I'm more than okay to let them have their privacy by me moving away.

Anyway, sorry for lack of updates (as usual). I've been pretty consistent with updating several of my other blogs with content, but I figure you guys would be bored and all tl;dr (don't worry, of the several I update, they read like a teenager's diary or something). Cheers!

For years I've been obsessed with figuring out how to get "that look". It's like animators' obsessions with crossing the uncanny valley. And, ironically, my diving into the world of freelance photography has stunted my growth as a photographer. Sure, you learn another aspect of photography, but in terms of improving the quality of your work, you're stymied by being mired in mounds of other people's photographs. Rather than saying, "Hey, let's experiment with this style of shooting," you're thinking, "Ok, gotta plow through 100+ photos, edit each one, and get it out for them right quick before the next photo gig comes up."

So for the new year, Joanna and Danny asked if I could shoot their engagement photos for their upcoming wedding. I figured before I start the editing process, I'd sit down, research, and figure out how to make it better. We also shot at a few new locations (no more herman park, thank goodness). In the end, I was happy with getting somewhat of "that look". It'll take a bit more refining, but now I know that I can do it. And that's finally a step in the right direction.

You're never too old to learn something new. And that's going with everything else in life, too.

Oh yeah, I made a new self portrait for the new year. It's time for a fresh start.

Sometimes I suppose I daydream a bit too much. A lot of people dream about getting rich through say, winning the lottery. I dream about what if I saved the world. Because even if you have a ton of money, you couldn't get away with everything. But man, if you saved the world, you could probably do a ton of things because you could always pull the "Well, you wouldn't be alive right now if it weren't for me."

Like, say, closing down the 610 loop one early morning and borrowing a sports car and just flooring it around Houston with no cars anywhere.

Or, my most recent personal favorite, get one of those old fashioned railroad handcars and find one of those outfits with the top hats and coattails and a monocle. Set it up at a busy street intersection so the crossing guards come down and then pump your way to the intersection where all the cars can see you. Then you stop, look around, have your monocle pop out, and then furiously pump off into the distance. The visualization of the absurdity of it all makes me laugh.

So yeah, I think if I saved the world, I'd run around the rest of my life doing things just for my own personal amusement. But really, if you saved the world, I think no one would give you money anyway and you'd still have to spend the rest of your life working and hoping someone doesn't try to kill you to be famous.

The thing I love about my family is that apparently, being weird runs in it. And it's that good-natured kinda weird. Heck, even my cousin Tinou's husband Vincent fits right into the "quirky males" that seems to run rampant in the family. Well, this Christmas was no different. We celebrated at my parents' house this year, so here's a brief highlight clip:

Vincent brought over a 5 lb gummy bear he bought off of amazon.

The main entree this year was a stuffed pork loin among the numerous other dishes.

There was more food than this, but I just wanted to take a picture of my plate when it looked all @_@

Here's the gummy bear next to a beer bottle for size comparison. The nutritional label says it is 51 servings.

Trying to serve a gummy bear is a bit tough- just slicing it with a knife seems kind of barbaric.

In the end, only the ear was cut off, Reservoir Dogs-style. Except I didn't douse it with gasoline afterward.

Tina got Sofia a digital camera for the week-long trip to Disneyworld the following day. The awesome thing about this camera is the viewfinder! Lookit that- no more squinting. I don't know why they don't do this with all cameras.

Here's the LilBro wearing the cowboy hats my cousin Tino got for his parents for their road trip the following day. He's got that Dali look going for him.

We always have our cousins secret santa gift exchange every year. This year Tino requested a pair of nunchuks and a horse head among other items.

Tinou modeling the pregnant mare look.

Sofia trying to show her mommy her new Disney Princess shoes.

Every night during the Christmas holidays, my parents would tell me and my brothers to go upstairs and sleep in the beds. Every night, we stayed up late in the living room and would fall asleep under the piles of blankets there.

For Christmas, we all chipped in and got my parents a fancy leather photo album. I rushed through making the album- which normally takes a few days- and got it designed and completed in 24 hours.

It's got nice thick card stock and great print quality.

And the best part of it is that it's an gutterless album, meaning you can print photos through the spine without interrupting the photo. My parents never really want anything, but they were thrilled with the album. My mom hadn't gotten around to making any family photo albums since we were young, and I figured the family trip to Japan was as good as any place to start. They looked through it multiple times throughout the Christmas break. Sometimes, this photography thing pays off.

Tina also got me this weird soda- I think it's from ikea. It tastes like weird beer though.

And if I happen to die this year, it's because Tu and Tramanh bought me this deep fryer. I think they just want to slowly kill me, because you can't arrest cholesterol. Maybe they wanted to rent out my room

Tu and Tramanh got married in November.

They were both my friends independently first- Tu from college days, Tramanh from after college- and then they started dating. Which is nice when your friends consolidate- an added bonus is that you now have fewer times occurring when one friend is having one thing and another friend has another thing going on that same night and you have to choose.

Just this past New Year's, I was talking to a friend at the NYE party, and we were talking about how hard it is to meet good people. And they're good people. From the start, Tu and Tramanh invited me to their family events, didn't judge me when I screwed up, and were there to quietly support me when I was down. Even when I feel like I've embarrassed myself to death (which apparently happens probably way too often), they play everything down like it's no big deal. So I was more than happy to attend in the wedding celebrations. Here are a few photos from that day:

The church.

Married.

The dress.

The reception at Petroleum Club.

The cake.

Bride & Groom's table.

The cake topper.

Maid of Honor speech.

Cake cutting.

Father-daughter dance.

The First Dance.

Some weird dance later that night haha

The after dinner candy station.

The parents.

I like this picture of Melissa and Thomas. Kinda reminds me of some ad in a magazine. Maybe for Virginia Slims or something.

Anyway, it was a nice wedding with great weather, and when the floor opened up that night for dancing, everyone jumped on and danced the night away.

Congrats, you guys.