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TAIWAN and or HK? – OPINIONS FROM MY AnDers
Saturday, Oct 17, 2009 5:56AM / Standard Entry
It’s been decided! I am going to Taiwan Nov through mid January 2010! I will be spending new years in Taiwan and watching the Taipei 101 building ignite as the seconds count down to the new year! I’ve never been abroad for a new years celebration so this will surely be an exciting occasion!
I am up in Northern California right now. I will soon be in New York and drive to Toronto then fly back to San Francisco just in time to jump on a plane to Taipei. I just decided ALL of this yesterday for some reason. Somehow it all made sense.
Here is where I need help! I basically have to decide today by 5pm. My flight stops in HK to transfer to Taipei. I was thinking of stopping in HK which I’ve done in the past, but I don’t really have any particular plans in HK and not sure what I would do. I would love to meet up with some of you AnDers but this is all very last minute so I am just throwing it out there and curious to see if there are any compelling arguments to make a stop over in HK.
This is a sudden decision, but I guess it makes sense because I feel like I have a calling to be in Asia. Plus when I finish competing at worlds I am going to want to chill out for a bit so I figure I’ll spend that time in Asia. The entertainment industry along with some businesses slow down during Christmas and the holidays so its a perfect time and when I get back fresh in Jan 2010 I will be ready to go!
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Moments like these make it all worth it. – Thanks to my co-workers at CNB.
Thursday, Oct 15, 2009 4:47AM / Standard Entry
I come home at who knows when last night after a session of training and being stuck in traffic in the rain and other errands to find a nice little treat from my former colleagues at City National Bank.
I opened it up to find the following:
If you cant read what the actual card says – it says
“May the future
hold not only
dreams come true
and much success
But all that means
the most to you
and gives you
happiness!”Very touching! Even though its a Hallmark card =P I really think the message inside touches me at this point in my life. I am going to the World Wushu Championships.. something I have always wanted to do since I was 15 and after that I still want to continue to pursue my other dreams… so anyways, I think it’s a great message. Thanks guys!
Also inside the wonderful gift bag was this!
I mean.. I always say that I am a pretty lucky guy, but with this LUCKY FORTUNE CAT.. my luck is going to be ridiculous. I will probably slip on a piece of gold and then my head will land on a pile of money to catch my fall and then a wealthy business mogul will say.. just have it for being at the right place at the right time! =) Thanks wealthy business mogul!
There were also some oranges/citrus in the bag which Leah says is good luck to poker players.. I think we all know what oranges look like so I did not take a picture of the oranges.. but just wanted to mention that they were in fact there.
I have placed my fortune cat on my bookshelf for now, but will be bringing him with me to nor cal for added luck and motivation. Again, I want to say thanks guys because its moments like these that I am so glad I am pursuing what I love to do. It re-affirms that I should be doing this whole joblessness thing… and now I gotta run to meet up with an agent and then train and then drive up north. Ciao!
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MASTERS MAGAZINE and KUNG FU MAGAZINE – Alfred Hsing Double Feature
Friday, Oct 9, 2009 11:10AM / Standard Entry
I got an email today from an editor for MASTERS magazine (http://www.mastersmag.com). Apparently my article and interview is out on newsstands for their winter edition. =) I think this is the first magazine where I have a featured section.
I am getting mailed a copy soon so I actually haven’t even had a chance to read the actual article yet. I hope I didn’t say anything too ridiculous. This was actually done BEFORE I made the US Wushu Team so I don’t think I had a chance to talk about Worlds or training for team trials. Dan Inosanto (Game of Death, Big Trouble Little China) is on the cover I believe.
I also received the photo shoot pictures from my Kung Fu Magazine shoot. I posted up a few proofs last time, but here are some of the good ones. I don’t think these have been posted in kung fu magazine yet… and this jump straight sword one is my favorite so I’m posting the higher res version!
Aside from those magazines, I trained straight sword and spear full forms today. I played around with 2 small combos that I might fix up in my spear form, but basically it will be the same form as during team trials. I also changed my brake pads and worked on some martial arts nutrition research. Now I am going to eat. Ciao!
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Wushu Medal on the Horizon and Beating the Freelance Blues!
Thursday, Oct 8, 2009 9:33AM / Standard Entry
“Mooncake represents my heart!”
Wushu
NWTC, 99Wushu, White Lotus, UCLA Wushu / gym. This week I’ve been working more on short sections and speed over full forms. Only day I did full forms was at NWTC because they were the only place with enough space to do a full form. I’ve been training every day except one day for recovery.. shoulders have been feeling a little tight and same with my back. Overall I am probably in the top shape of my life though. I am going to bring home a medal from the 10th wushu world championships.Film
Went out to an audition for Wizards of Waverly Place. It went alright. I said my lines confidently and naturally, but regardless when I came out of the audition it made me realize I want to take some more acting classes and practice more to refine my art. It’s always good to get more practice and I am a firm believer that everything takes practice. You can be talented, but to get to that next step, it still takes practice.. whether its acting, martial arts, giving speeches, etc.Today I went to a meet and greet with a sports agent. They help book for fitness magazines, sports commercials, and anything athletic related. They liked the pictures I had and seemed satisfied with my athletic qualifications. I’ll be hearing back from them on Friday.
Tea
AngelsTea in Nucleus Art Gallery. (Read here: http://www.angelstea.com/angels-tea-in-nucleus-the-art-gallery-and-store/) Uploaded a few more pictures to the gallery and did some facebook updates. Add Angels Tea on facebook and twitter http://twitter.com/angelstea ! Valentines day should be a good time for people to consider Angels Tea as a sexy fun gift for their significant others.Good news is that I’ve already had to make a re-order since my inventory was running low. My family has been supportive as well and family friends have helped spread the word in nor cal and I have made a few sales to get me off my feet with this. Thank you guys! Of course the true test is to continue pushing forward and get a large retail location to distribute my product, but sales are sales and the support behind me is a very positive thing.
WushuKicks
Set up a bunch of sites related to wushukicks. Hoping to cross promote and build up traffic through related markets. I began to evaluate other niches. It goes without saying.. wushu shoes occupies a small market compared to all of martial arts shoes or martial arts equipment. Also sketching in my idea book how to redesign wushukicks cleanly. Looking to get this done soon.Filed for incorporation at the Secretary of State building. Next step will be to set up online merchant services. Also other To Do items include: Making new business cards, getting QuickBooks Pro, and making a wushukicks intro video.
Martial Arts Nutrition
Quite a bit of back and forth has occurred with the design. The lab has tested and labeled everything on their end. I believe we are at the point where we are going to get this product up and ready soon! Excitement is in the air.General Business / General Thoughts
The bottom line is this – everything costs money! lolIncorporating costs money. Merchant services costs money. Pay pal takes money. Shipping costs money. Joining the Realtors board costs money. Owning a realtor supra key to open lock boxes costs money. Maintaining your membership with your local board of realtors costs money. Product development costs money. Manufacturing a product costs money. Gas costs money. Business license costs money. Franchise tax board wants money. Sellers permit costs money.
Aiyah! Why didnt anyone tell me this BEFORE I got into starting up my own businesses. (I complain, but I love the entrepreneurial lifestyle.)
I got some great accounting advice from my uncle who is a CPA and also from my mom who was a controller for a tech firm. Now I am slowly getting all my bills, accounts, and expenses in order so that I can actually see my profits and losses.
My other uncle, a former CIO, encouraged me to read “never eat alone” – a book about building relationships and connecting people. I read it that day just because I figured if I didn’t read it right then, I would probably never get around to reading it. The book has a lot of common sense ideas, but 1) its good to re-enforce those ideas and 2) within its 250ish pages it obviously did have some new information and advice that I thought was clever or motivating.
We had an entr meeting with Dave, Misa, Jaemin, and Alison yesterday. Seems like everyone has encountered the freelance blues at some point.. which is working by yourself and having your own time, but feeling strangely unmotivated. We determined a good solution to that is to work WITH people wether mentors or partners. Even if you are successful its never fun sharing that by yourself.
Seems like Dave is FINALLY going to take some caffeine and maybe start working on getting our clothes design manufactured. I give him a hard time, but I know he has been swamped with Nom Nom (www.nomnomtruck.com) and I have been equally busy preparing for World Games.
Moon Festival
Despite all this business, I had a really relaxing day with my relatives on Chinese Moon Festival. First we visited grandma then we had some crepes for lunch, mooncakes of course, and a nice bbq at my uncles house. All us cousins went to the mall and played with every single contraption in the “As Seen on TV Store”. I had some good chats with my cousin Lydia and took note that its really key to maintain a balance between friends and focusing on success.The next day we went to a Taiwanese dinner that my aunt invited me and Lydia to. I bumped into the random-est people there: Vivy, a college friend that I hadnt seen in a long time, a bunch of the Miss Taiwan Pageant girls which I saw at the Miss Taiwan Pageant only because my roommate Eliver knew people there (read post: http://www.casualiscool.com/pictures/miss-taiwan-approves-of-angels-tea/), and my aunts friend who happened to be on the US National Taekwondo forms team.
When I set out to write this entry, I was trying to make it as short and matter of fact as possible, but I am glad I wrote all this because sometimes I look back and I think “what have I done all week”, but as soon as I write it down it makes me feel like.. “okay, I have been remotely productive”.
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Angels Tea in Nucleus Art Gallery and Store!
Sunday, Oct 4, 2009 2:14AM / Standard Entry
Re-posted from: http://www.angelstea.com/angels-tea-in-nucleus-the-art-gallery-and-store/
You can now find the deliciously sensual Angels Tea in stores at Nucleus!
Aside from sexy tea, Nucleus also sells some really cool shirts, drawings, and toys! Check them out!
Nucleus is located at:
210 East Main Street
Alhambra, CA 91801
http://www.gallerynucleus.com/Nucleus is a great store known for their art gallery, unique products, and collection of artwork. Nucleus offers an extensive collection of original contemporary, illustrated, graphic, commercial, and narrative art. They have exhibited both local artists and artists from abroad, and catered to an international customer base. Here are 3 of our favorite pieces.
Cup of Teas piece is by Marguerite Sauvage. You can get this artwork at Nucleus.
If you are around the area remember to stop in and ask to smell the heavenly aroma of Angels Tea. =)
Stats
- just a man on a mission
- Occupation: Martial arts , Actor , Stuntman
- Gender: Male
- Total visits: 49,614
