The David Kim Show

Facebook is Killing my Blog

2010-08-21T00:57:00.000-07:00

My blog is being neglected because of Facebook. I apologize once again to my Blog fans. No one can serve two masters. I've got too many things going on, and I can't handle everything. I need to use my time more wisely. I've got to focus on the important things and not get distracted by the millions of things that I want to do. I've got a To Do list that is as thick as a textbook and I need to cut it back down. I've got to start over again. I feel like I'm drowning in things to do, and they're driving me crazy. I've got to stop being so anal and stop trying to do everything. I need to just do what's important like work and exercise. I probably should cut back on facebooking too if not quit altogether. It's such a huge time-suck.

Road Rash

2010-04-28T22:26:00.000-07:00

The other day I was cycling to Pasadena when I fell off my bike at high speed. I was going 35 mph+ downhill in Pasadena when a red pickup truck approaching from the other side tried to make a left turn in front of me. I swerved to the right and lost control of my bike. My front wheel started skidding and I fishtailed. I slid on my left arm the most and got really bad road rash. I got scrapes on my right arm, right knee, and left knee too, but my left arm is the worst. My bike's handlebar is scraped up and I should replace it. I just rewrapped it with handlebar tape. My bike seat is shredded. My bike pedals and rear wheel skewer is also scraped up. My backpack has holes in it now. My bike lycra shorts were shredded to bits. My watch was also scratched.

I had to bike back home quarter-naked, because my lycra shorts were shredded to bits on the left side.

A nurse who was walking by witnessed it and stopped the pickup truck from leaving. I was shook up and didn't know what happened. I was most worried about my bike. Since I could ride it back home, and I didn't get any broken bones, I let the driver off the hook. I didn't pursue any claims against him since he didn't hit me. Drivers should be careful when making left turns, especially because bicycles can be approaching at high speeds behind a car. Drivers just don't seem to know how fast bikes can be.

I'm still in pain due to the road rash. It hurts the most when I put antiseptic cleansers on it. I can't help but scream out in pain when I put that stuff on since it hurts so bad.

I just don't want to get an infection. I really hope that it doesn't leave a permanent scar. My arm looks horrible.

For some reason I do feel stronger after the accident because I survived a speed fall with just road rash. I hope I don't fall or get hit again for the rest of my life. Last time I got hit by a car in a similar situation where the driver was making a left turn, because she didn't see me due to her inattention.

Drivers, please be careful driving, especially around bikes!

Fargo Street

2010-03-17T00:43:00.001-07:00

I rode up Fargo Street (claimed to be the steepest hill in California) with Peter Dragonslayer Munoz. It's a 33% grade hill.

This hill is in the Echo Park/Silver Lake area. There are a few twin streets that are parallel to it like Baxster Street.

The steepest hill in America is in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania at 35%. The steepest hill in the world is in New Zealand at 37%. San Francisco's steepest hill is 31.5%

I want to try Eldred Street in Highland Park/Mt. Washington which is rated at 33.3%

Going up Fargo St. was much tougher this year. I must not be in as good shape as last year. My bike needs a lot of work too. My rear derailleur was touching my rear wheel spokes when I put it into the lowest gear.

We didn't do the official LA Wheelman event since I didn't have time on Sunday. We just took a short break to go up there. Then, I went back to work.

It was much easier on my mountain bike which has lower gears to climb steep hills. Even then, I had to zigzag towards the top since it's the steepest at the apex.

I was able to do it last year on my triathlon bike a little bit easier than this time around. I just didn't have the confidence this year for some reason. I must be out of shape and so is my bike.

Peter and I took a few falls. I even fell walking up the hill since my bike cleats had no traction on that steep hill.

The pictures don't do the hill justice. If you want to see how steep it is, you'll just have to go there and try it yourself.

Chinatown Firecracker 5K

2010-02-28T22:29:00.000-08:00

I ran the Chinatown Firecracker 5K this morning. I think it's one of the most fun and best organized short races in L.A. They lit up a hundred thousand firecrackers before the race for the Chinese New Year. They had a bunch of booths at the festival. I also met the Chinatown Queen and Court.

This was one of the more difficult runs because of the hills around Dodger Stadium. I thought my time would be worse than the last 5K I did, but I actually improved. I ran it in 23.33 seconds. That's almost 4 minutes off my last race, and I didn't even run at all since the last one. I was quite surprised since I thought the uphills would slow my overall time a lot. I guess the downhills more than made up for them. I'm not sure how much more I can continue to improve without actually training. I'm hoping I could get back to my high school running time of under 21 minutes.

After running to the 5K, I ran back home. Well, I did run back slowly since I was so full from eating. My legs were also pretty sore. I didn't run too slowly since I had to go to the bathroom. Then, I biked to church.

I gave up trying to gain a ton of weight so I could go on The Biggest Loser show. I didn't feel good gaining so much weight. Plus, I actually lost weight lately.

Last night, I cut my own hair. It didn't turn out that great. I actually did a terrible job. I had to get Sarah to make my hair a little bit more presentable. I think she did a good job. She doesn't want to cut my hair again since she comes home late every single night and is too tired. She's been working 14 hours every single day without a day off in over a year since she started her own pharmacy.

After closing her pharmacy at 9 p.m., I took her out to eat some sushi in Little Tokyo tonight. We also ate some Pinkberry frozen yogurt. Even though she's really tired, I think she liked our little date night.

Pasadena Bike Tour

2010-02-21T23:25:00.001-08:00

This morning I did the Pasadena Marathon Bike Tour. I woke up at 4 am to eat and get ready. I biked about 15 miles to get there for the 26.2 mile ride that started at 6:15 a.m. It rained a little bit but not as much as last year.

I started near the front again. I know it's not a real race, but I finished in 8th place out of several thousand riders. I finished in under 1 hour and 20 minutes. The guys at the front were really fast. I tried to hold on to 5th place until I got passed at around mile 20. Then those guys dropped the hammer and I was huffing and puffing to keep up with them.

It was kind of lonely riding in the front. The streets were empty and hardly any riders. It was like biking by myself like I usually do except all the intersections were blocked off for the riders.

I rode about 66 miles for the day since I biked to church and Sarah's pharmacy as well. After teaching sunday school, I helped my wife at her pharmacy from 1:30 to 9:00 p.m.

My bike riding has decreased a lot in terms of mileage this past winter season. I wish I kept up the high mileage I had early in 2009. Still I was pleased with myself for my time and position. I guess the large pizza I finished by myself last night helped me to fuel up. Dang, I'm a pig. Well, at least I still got it in terms of eating capacity.

LA Kings 5K

2010-02-13T19:33:00.000-08:00

I am so tired these days I feel like a zombie. I did not want to wake up this morning to do the run, but I forced myself to do it. I've been so busy these days that I haven't been running. The last time I ran was the Santa Monica turkey trot back in November. This time I learned my lesson from the last race and didn't eat too much before running.

I ran today's event in 24 minutes and change. I was quite surprised since I haven't trained at all since November. Last time I ran a 5K in 27 minutes. I thought I would come in around 30 minutes this time. It must have been from all that daydreaming about being fast. I know it's a mediocre time for serious runners. I've got to start running more.

More L.A. Auto Show Pictures

2010-01-02T21:44:00.000-08:00

Here are some more L.A. Auto Show pictures.

Mikey and His Remote Controlled Jeep

2010-01-02T20:16:00.000-08:00

Mikey driving his new remote controlled Jeep I got him for xmas. I also got him Disneyland tickets, Lego magazines with a Legoland ticket, Magic the Gathering game cards, a soccer ball parachute, a yo-yo, and an Aladdin DVD.

I also visited my parents with my sister, Sae Woon, Bobby, and Jasper.

Otherwise, I just worked every single day at the office and at Sarah's pharmacy.

5th Grade Sunday School Kids xmas

2010-01-02T20:10:00.000-08:00

My 5th Grade bible study class busy wrapping xmas gifts.

Xmas Carolers

2009-12-29T21:18:00.000-08:00

The church kids caroling and passing out baked cookies

Biking to church on xmas

2009-12-28T20:53:00.000-08:00

Biking to church on xmas Sunday. 6:30 a.m.

I Love American Pie

2009-12-28T19:57:00.000-08:00

I just ate an entire 10 inch custard pie by myself in one sitting today. I think I ate about 8,000 calories overall today. I gained about 5 lbs. since the last time I posted. I'm going to need a "Wide Load" sign when I bike if I gain 300 lbs.

It's not going to be easy for me to quickly gain 300 lbs. and then lose 310 lbs. I'm not sure about my idea to become The Biggest Fattest Loser anymore. I'm going to have think of another way to become rich.

Mother's Care Pharmacy

2009-12-19T18:28:00.002-08:00

Come visit Sarah and me at her pharmacy, Mother's Care Pharmacy.

Sarah is a very knowledgeable, friendly, and patient pharmacist. She'll be able to provide your prescriptions very quickly and at very low prices.

We also accept Medicare and Medi-Cal and all types of insurance. We also provide delivery services as well. Delivery is free in Koreatown.

For friends, I'll deliver any medication to you for free in the Los Angeles County area.

Mother's Care Pharmacy
3500 W. 6th Street Suite 120
Los Angeles, CA
(213) 739-3030

We are located in the new galleria, The City Center on 6th in Koreatown, Los Angeles. The underground parking entrance is on Mariposa Avenue. Parking is 2 hours free with validation. We are located on the same block just north of the Equitable Building on Wilshire Boulevard.

We're open 7 days per week.

The website is:

http://motherscarerx.health.officelive.com

Or click the link below.

Working Late at Sarah's Pharmacy on my Birthday

2009-12-19T18:03:00.000-08:00

Thank you everyone for wishing me happy birthday! I really appreciated your Facebook comments. I just worked all day until 9:00 p.m. on my birthday just like all the other days.

Come visit us at Sarah's new pharmacy, Mother's Care Pharmacy in Koreatown, Los Angeles.

The address is:

Mother's Care Pharmacy
3500 W. 6th Street Suite 120
Los Angeles, CA 90020
(213) 739-3030

Sarah works 12 hours or more 7 days a week. It's been very tough this year. Hopefully business will pick up in 2010.

Sarah keeps getting sick from all these sick patients. She should get a lot of rest, but she can't. She's a tough woman.

Regarding my birthday, after hitting 21 many years ago, I never looked forward to birthdays anymore. I don't like getting old. I want to stay young forever like Peter Pan.

I Feel the Need for Speed...y Cars That are Parked

2009-12-19T00:39:00.000-08:00

I went to the L. A. Auto Show with Chris Choi. We didn't spend too much time there, but I went crazy with my camera and took a bunch of pictures of a bunch of cars.

It was a fun event. It wasn't too crowded since we went there on Wednesday night. Before when I went on a weekend, there were so many people it was hard to get a chance to sit inside the driver's seat of different cars.

Oh yeah, by the way. Chris Choi is a young and single bachelor dentist. If you know any nice young lady you can introduce him to, let me know. He's very available.

I Want To Be The Biggest Fattest Loser

2009-12-18T01:51:00.000-08:00

I'm thinking about gaining 300 pounds and quickly trying to lose 310 lbs. I want to be the Biggest Loser. I want to win $300,000 or so and a lifetime supply of Subway sandwiches.

I know it's not going to be easy. I'll probably kill myself from eating so much way before I even gain that much weight. Well, it's a challenge and I love challenges. Well it depends on the challenge I guess.

I already eat a lot as everyone around me knows. I think I eat more than anyone I know. I'm constantly eating all day. I can't imagine how much more I have to eat in order to gain so much weight. Sometimes I eat 6000+ calories in one day. I guess all that biking helps me to burn off all those calories. I don't want to stop cycling so I guess I'll have to eat more. A heluva lot more!

I currently weigh about 135 lbs. The heaviest I got was 148 lbs. at one point in college. When I started running, after I got my bike stolen at the library my 3rd year in law school, I went down to 125 lbs.

Can you imagine me at 435 lbs.?

L. A. Auto Show

2009-12-18T00:13:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from the Los Angeles Auto Show. Too many awesome cars! I can't say which one is my favorite. Each year it seems that cars get more and more incredible. At this rate, cars will be going 0-60 in under 3 seconds and get 100 mpg in our lifetime. Who knows? It could happen with the rate technology is advancing.

American cars are really starting to step up their quality and design. I was quite impressed.

More Bike Adventure Pictures

2009-12-16T23:51:00.000-08:00

These pictures were taken on my way back from the YNC Cycling Malibu Ride. I took some shots in Beverly Hills, L.A. County Museum of Art, La Brea Tar Pits, Museum Square, and Downtown L.A.

I've biked over 6,000 miles this year. I put over 12,000 miles on my bike since 2006. I put about 1,200 miles on it in 2006. In 2007: 2,000 miles. In 2008, 4,000 miles. I'd like to put 8,000 miles in 2010, but we'll see how busy I get next year. It was tough putting 6,000 miles on my bike this year since I worked so much.

YNC Cycling Malibu Ride

2009-12-16T01:30:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, December 5, YNC Cycling had their last group ride of the year in Malibu. I biked about 40 miles to get there. We met at a park across from Pepperdine University. Joshua Kang, Joel Kim, and John Lim were there. My total miles for the day was 89 miles. I also worked 10 hours. I only slept 4 hours. I usually only sleep 4-6 hours per night since Sarah and I work very long hours 7 days a week, 365 days per year.

I had to leave the ride early since I had to ride back to Sarah's pharmacy, Mother's Care Pharmacy in Koreatown, Los Angeles.

It's really beautiful biking along PCH in Malibu. It's extremely dangerous on PCH especially in Santa Monica and Pacific Palisades where there are no shoulders for bikes and cars are going over 50 MPH sometimes. That's even more incentive for me to bike as fast as possible to get the heck out of that area until I get to some roads with shoulders. There are a lot of cyclists riding in a paceline training for races. I've kept up with one group averaging 28 mph+ for a few miles, but once we got to the steep hills they dropped me.

Griffith Park xmas lights

2009-12-15T01:38:00.000-08:00

I went to the Griffith Park xmas lights on opening night on December 3. The roads were closed to cars. It was supposed to be open to bikes only, but there were a lot of pedestrians walking around as well.

I think it's a very romantic place to ride with your significant other. It's much better than being stuck in traffic in your cars driving around there. You can really see the lights in much better detail and enjoy the fresh air along with many other people.

Last time I was there was a nightmare. It was bumper to bumper traffic the entire time. I was driving a stick shift Mustang too. After awhile, my leg started to get very sore.

While I started to ride back home, Phil Lee saw me. He must have good eyes, because it was pretty dark. He caught up to me and then we chatted for a few minutes.

Santa Monica Turkey Trot

2009-12-15T01:18:00.000-08:00

The Saturday after Thanksgiving I went to run the Santa Monica Wobble Gobble 5K Turkey Trot.

I ran pretty fast in the beginning, but after I hit the first mile marker, I started feeling really bad. I ate too much food right before the race. The race started late so I just kept on eating more snacks and drinks until it started. That was a really bad idea. My insides felt like they were about to explode while I was running. I started feeling sick. I had to slow down a lot. All those people I passed in the beginning started passing me back. Even old grandmas and little kids started passing me. Those were fast little kids!

I was able to still finish in 26 minutes. I wanted to finish in 24 minutes. Oh well, there's another race coming up soon. I was going to do a 10K, but I have way too many things to do. Even Saturdays are busy because I help Sarah at the pharmacy.

Jasper

2009-12-15T01:17:00.001-08:00

Here are some pictures of Jasper, my sister's new puppy. He is such a cute dog.

Cadillac SRX Test Drive Event and Other Past Events

2009-12-15T00:38:00.000-08:00

Cadillac

I was invited to drive the Cadillac SRX and CTS along with some of Cadillac's competitors. I drove the Acura MDX, BMW X5, Lexus RS 330, and the Mercedes GLK. Cadillac has improved a lot. The interior was impressive. I loved the glowing blue instrument cluster and all the different measurements it had. All the other SUVs were good too. I'm not sure which one I liked the most since I didn't spend enough time in them. Although SUV's aren't my first choice for a vehicle, they will definitely come in handy carrying my bikes and a friend's bikes.

Past Events:

Sorry, I didn't update my blog in a long time. This has been the longest I've gone between posts. It's because I'm doing Facebook now. It's much easier and faster to post stuff, upload pictures, and keep in touch with friends. If you want to keep up with what I'm doing, be my Facebook friend.

On Halloween, I helped Andy move to his new condo in Irvine.

The past couple of months I've spend several hundred dollars on car repairs and bike repairs.

On November 6, Sarah and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary at her pharmacy, Mother's Care Pharmacy. We ate some cake.

Last month, I also went to watch Zombieland at Gold Class Cinemas in Pasadena with Chris Choi. They have awesome reclining seats and they served us restaurant quality food and wine there. It was pretty dark though eating while watching a movie. The movie was stupid but it had its funny moments, especially with Bill Murray.

Classic Car Show

2009-10-29T20:38:00.000-07:00

A few pictures from a local classic car show. I took a lot of pictures. I might post some more up if the demand is there. My favorite cars are the Shelby Cobras. Many of them are worth well over $1 million dollars. The most expense car ever sold was a 1966 Shelby Cobra that auctioned for $5.5 million dollars.

Playa del Rey Triathlon

2009-10-20T08:20:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday, I did the Playa del Rey Tri. I biked 30 miles to get there in the morning. My total mileage for the day was 76 miles. I tried not to tire myself out too much before the race. Then, I did the bike portion of the race in 32 minutes (20K or 12.4 miles). The course was pretty flat and fast. It was a relatively short course. It was more of a sprint tri than an Olympic distance tri. I got my fastest average ever for a race (almost 22 mph). That was pretty good for biking 30 miles before the race. My endurance is getting better. It felt great passing over a dozen racers on my bike one by one. I did get passed by couple of guys at the end. They were illegally drafting one another though. They should have been penalized if they got caught.

Then, I rushed to get to church for the teachers' meeting by 9:30 a.m. That was 20 miles away. I got there in about 55 minutes.

I think I'm getting faster with each race. Unfortunately, my wife wants me to stop doing triathlons so that I can be with her during the 8:00 a.m. service at church. So that's basically the end of my triathlon season for this year. I may be doing fewer races next year. She has to go to the first service so that she can go back to work at her pharmacy right after.

On Monday, I got my fastest time ever for my bike commute: 24 min 50 sec for 9.5 miles.

Last Friday, a car ran a red light trying to make a left turn and almost hit me. That scared the living daylights out of me. The car wasn't even at the line when he tried to turn. He was speeding up from way back and totally made a late left turn at the red light. I just barely made it out of his path. That was one of closest calls in a long time. Damn these stupid drivers!

It's always dangerous biking around all these idiotic drivers. I wish they would come to a complete stop before they make a right turn. They keep inching up coming close to me before I cross their path. Drivers should also be careful making left turns from the opposite side. They don't seem to just by speed accurately. I'm going over 30 mph on certain flat sections. Don't turn left until I cross! Geez! I hate jerks that intentionally try to scare me with their cars too.

I got hit a few times by drivers who made left and right turns without looking carefully. Every day I put my life in the hands of other people. It's scary but somehow it gives me a rush when I survive near-death experiences. It's like the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain.

Drivers shouldn't squeeze by me in the same lane. It's not hard to pass going into the next lane. Bikes can take the entire lane if it's not safe for cars and bikes to share one lane. And don't honk at me either. Don't speed by me closely. You wouldn't drive like that around your kids if they were on bikes. Give bikes plenty of space when you pass. Sometimes they have to avoid things on the road so they might have to make evasive maneuvers.

Okay, enough of my ranting about dangerous drivers. On a brighter note, usually drivers only have rude things to yell out at me. It's memorable when they compliment me. When I was biking home a couple of weeks ago, one driver yelled out, "Hey, how do I get legs like that?!" I told him to bike a lot and do pylometrics.

Long Beach Bike Tour and Magic Mountain Man Triathlon

2009-10-12T08:01:00.000-07:00

This weekend, I did the Magic Mountain Man Triathlon and the Long Beach Bike Tour. It was the toughest race weekend ever for me, because of the Magic Mountain Man Triathlon. It was a half-Ironman distance tri. The bike course was 56 miles in the mountains near Castaic Lake. I had to bike to the start of the bike course, because I had no support. I had to get there by myself so I had to bike an extra 13 miles. 6 of those miles was because I kinda got lost. I didn't know why the route I took didn't connect with the road I was supposed to take. It was cold there too. My fingers, feet, and nose were numb.

The Magic Mountain Man Tri was absolutely brutal, because half the course was climbing up steep mountain roads. It felt like the whole course was uphill. Even the downhills were hard, because the road going into the canyon was so bumpy. That was the first time I ever wanted the downhill portion to end in my life! My arms and hands were getting weak from going down that rough road.

I did well going uphill and passed everyone since I started out near the back of the pack. However, I used up all the glycogen stores in my muscles and started getting really weak. Even going downhill in the last 10 miles was tough since I had no energy left. I got passed by two downhill specialists. When I tried to lay the hammer down, my muscles started cramping up. I was done for the day. I didn't do the run, because I had to save some energy for Sunday's 26.2 mile ride the next day. I finished the bike course in 3 hours and 9 minutes.

Sunday, I went to Long Beach and did the ride there. There was so much traffic on the 710 Freeway since so many people were trying to get there because of the ride and the marathon that I started 15 minutes late. The swarms of cyclists slowed me down, but I finished the course in 1 hr 19 min. I thought that was good since I was slowed down considerably by all the slowpokes in front of me. After getting about half way through, the roads started getting a little bit more opened up and then I could time-trial. One rider I passed was sucking my wheel for about 10 miles, but I finally dropped him in the last 6 miles. He really wore me out, but I kept pushing myself since I hate getting passed. I drove home and then biked 14 miles to church before 9:30 a.m.

I am so tired and weak now. I need to taper my exercises to get some rest. Although I have a lot more work to do before I get ready for the full Ironman race.

L.A. Triathlon and L.A. Heartwalk

2009-10-05T08:28:00.000-07:00

I did the bike portion of the L.A. Triathlon on Sunday.

Am I the only fool that bikes to the bike races? I biked 28 miles in 1 hr and 30 min to get to the race that started in Venice Beach. Just waking up early to ride on the closed-off road course was worth it. It was a cyclist's dream: no cars (almost), blocked off intersections, and not having to stop at intersections. It was a major pain in the ass for most of the people at church since the road to church was blocked off.

I did the 24 mile bike race in 1 hr 22 min. That's not too bad since I biked 28 miles to get there. I felt my legs getting sore after I tried to pedal hard.

Then, I hurried to get to church to teach Sunday School.

On Saturday, I did the L.A. Heartwalk in Pasadena at the Rose Bowl. It was only a 5-walk. I did get a lot of goodies afterward though. Unlike the other events I went to on Sunday mornings, I got to spend some time at the celebrations afterward. I usually have to take off to church right after I finish so I don't really get to hang out and enjoy the finish line festivities. Sometimes, I have to take off early if I'm running too late.

Sunday School Teachers

2009-10-02T22:31:00.001-07:00

BSBC Sunday School Teachers, School Year 2009-2010

Pictured here from top left, David Choi, Jimmy, Richard, Ryan, David Kim, Pearl, Erich, Sharon Park, Jiyeon (Katie), Jenny Kim, James Kim, Miju (Miriam), Grace Lee, Joy, Heejin (Irene), and Alice.

John Moon and Eun Jung Moon were not present for the photos during picture day.

Special thanks to Jay for taking the great photos.

We've got a wonderful group of dedicated teachers this year.

5th Grade

2009-10-02T22:28:00.001-07:00

5th Grade, School Year 2009-2010

David and Eun Jung Moon (not present for photo day) Teachers

4th Grade-Sharon Teacher's Class

2009-10-02T22:26:00.001-07:00

4th Grade

Sharon Teacher

4th Grade-Erich Teacher's Class

2009-10-02T22:24:00.001-07:00

4th Grade

Erich Teacher and Alice (T.A.)

3rd Grade

2009-10-02T22:21:00.001-07:00

3rd Grade

John Moon (not present for photo day), Jimmy, and Miju Teachers

2nd Grade-Grace Teacher's Class

2009-10-02T22:17:00.001-07:00

2nd Grade

Grace and Joy Teachers

2nd Grade-Jenny Teacher's Class

2009-10-02T22:15:00.001-07:00

2nd Grade

Jenny and Pearl Teachers

My nephew, Mikey, is in that class!

1st Grade

2009-10-02T22:11:00.001-07:00

BSBC Sunday School

First Grade, School Year 2009-2010

Teachers: Katie (Jiyeon), David Choi, and Esther's older sister (T.A.)

Bowling for Church

2009-10-02T21:57:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, the Sunday School teachers went bowling after having a delicious all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ dinner. I ate a ton of food. I was stuffed, but I still wanted to eat, because it was so good. In times like these I want a bigger stomach. I've been trying to shrink my stomach so I can get a 6-pack. I do have one, but it's wrapped up underneath my party ball pot belly.

James, Irene (Hee-Jin), Grace Lee, Jimmy, Ryan, David Choi, Jiyeon (Katie), Miju (Miriam), and I went. I know these aren't the best photos. I was too tired to care about retaking them.

I never want to go bowling again since I got my lowest score ever. I just don't have time to dedicate to bowling right now.

We went to eat Pinkberry frozen yogurt in Larchmont afterwards. I was already tired from helping my sister move and swimming and a busy few months and lack of sleep. I then biked home and got home before midnight and went to sleep at 1:00 a.m. I woke up at 4:30 a.m. to drive down to Mission Viejo for the O.C. Triathlon.

I'm still exhausted. I have about a dozen or so events and races left this year. I need to make some time to get some sleep.....

My Sister's House

2009-10-01T21:31:00.001-07:00

This past Saturday, I helped my sister move to her first house as a homeowner. There's still a lot of work to be done. Hopefully they'll make it look great soon.

Biking in L.A.

2009-10-01T21:25:00.000-07:00

Everyday I put my life in other people's hands, but I love cycling so much that I won't let anyone stop me.

I'm training for the Ironman.

Riding with Lance Armstong

2009-10-01T21:05:00.000-07:00

After riding with Lance Armstrong in Griffith Park (along with hundreds of other crazed fans and cyclists), I tried to take a picture with Lance. These are the best shots that I could get since there were so many crazy cyclists pushing and shoving their way to get a shot of Lance too.

Sarah's Birthday

2009-10-01T20:50:00.000-07:00

Sarah's Birthday, 8/21/09. Sorry I've been bad at blogging. These next few posts are from my blog which get RSS'ed to my Facebook page.

Sarah works 12-14 hours every single day of the week at her pharmacy, Mother's Care Pharmacy.

My poor wife is working too much. She's been sick for the past 3 weeks.

My Mom's Birthday

2009-10-01T20:40:00.000-07:00

My mom's birthday, August 12, 2009. Pictures taken at my parents' new house. Sorry it took almost 2 months to post. What can I say? I've been busy and lazy.

The O.C. Triathlon

2009-09-28T07:47:00.000-07:00

I just did the Orange County Triathlon yesterday. I did the 25 mile bike part in 1hr 15 min. This was one of the most beautiful and fastest courses I've been on. We went from Lake Mission Viejo to Irvine Lake and back. This was a hilly course. It was tough climbing up, but an absolute blast coming back downhill. I was going over 40 mph back down so I still was able to average 20 mph to make up for the slow uphills.

There were a lot of fast people in this race. I got passed by 6 people, but I was able to pass 4. Okay, so 3 of them had mechanical difficulties.... I was still able to hold off a bunch of others and stay in the front group. For the first half of the race, it was pretty lonely. Nobody was next to me for miles. It was only when I got near the turn around point that I was able to see a bunch of other cyclists.

Then, I had to hurry back to church to teach Sunday School.

The day before, I helped my sister move in the morning. Then, I biked back home and did some swimming. I know you're not supposed to train vigorously the day before a race, but I race to train. I'm getting ready for an even bigger race later on...the Ironman.

Later that day, I had dinner with some of the church teachers at O Dae San Korean BBQ. We had all you can eat BBQ, and boy, did we eat a lot! We were supposed to go ice skating, but we went bowling instead. I'm never going bowling again! Every time I play I get worse. I had my lowest score ever! I only go once a year so I never really improve. But, I don't think I should be getting worse. I know I should practice to improve, but bowling is not high on my priority list right now.

We had some delicious Pinkberry frozen yogurt to top off the night. Then, I biked home and got in around 11:45 p.m. I went to sleep at 1:00 a.m. and got up at 4:30 a.m. I was really tired all weekend and still am. I'm tired all the time actually.

Long Beach Triathlon

2009-09-21T08:54:00.000-07:00

I did the Long Beach Triathlon on Sunday, September 20 at 7:00 a.m. I rode the bike portion (11 miles) in about 35 minutes. I passed everyone. No one passed me, except for one guy, but I passed him at the end.

Then, I hurried back home. I was going to go straight to church, but I forgot to put my clothes in my bag. Then, I biked 13.5 miles to church all before 9:15 a.m.

On Monday, 9/21, I ran to work again (9.5 miles each way). It's getting easier, but I took it slow, because my left foot is still sore from the last time I ran to work.

2009-08-30T08:46:00.001-07:00

2009-08-30T08:44:00.001-07:00

2009-08-30T08:43:00.001-07:00

2009-08-07T10:29:00.000-07:00

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

2009-08-07T10:22:00.001-07:00

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

2009-08-07T09:56:00.001-07:00

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

James' Birthday

2009-08-01T22:18:00.001-07:00

James Kim JDSN's birthday (36 years old).

I think his birthday is on July 19. We celebrated it the following Sunday, because nobody bought a cake last time. Poor James!

Faith Hill

2009-08-01T21:58:00.001-07:00

Tony Teang and I went to the Faith Hill Concert at the Hollywood Bowl. Faith Hill is an awesome singer! Now I listen to her songs all the time.

Buca di Beppo '09

2009-08-01T20:44:00.001-07:00

The teachers having dinner at Buca di Beppo in Pasadena after VBS.

Anime Expo 2009

2009-07-26T20:04:00.001-07:00

Comic-Con what? I went to the Anime Expo in L.A. instead. It's always a lot of fun.

Mustang Drifting

2009-07-26T19:28:00.001-07:00

I'm not only into bikes. I love cars as well. I love anything with wheels and/or engines.

Sunday Drivers

2009-07-25T21:09:00.000-07:00

Pictures of a couple of accidents that I took while biking to church.

VBS 2009 Boomerang Express

2009-07-25T20:55:00.000-07:00

Click on the pictures to see the full image and to see more photos on the photobucket site.

Sorry that the pictures are all cut off. Photobucket doesn't resize the photos to fit onto my blog. You'll have to click on the pictures to see it in full. I'm just too lazy to edit each and every picture because there's so many pictures and so little time. I have to make a copy of each picture too, since the pictures become permanently small if I resize it on my photobucket account. That sucks.

This was another fantastic VBS, maybe the best one ever!

New Record Commute

2009-07-12T23:08:00.000-07:00

I'm really loving my new 160 psi Vredestein Fortezza tires. That and taking a week long break from cycling has helped my legs to rest and recover, and grow even stronger. My quads are getting even more defined. I've improved about 23% over my average speed on my way home today. 13.1 miles in 35 minutes leaving Ktown to my house. Oh yeah, it was Sunday evening with hardly any redlights to slow me down, so that really helped as well. It usually takes me 45 minutes to commute those 13 miles from my house to Ktown. I hope it's just not a fluke and that I've broken my plateau in terms of my training. I really want to push myself to the next stage and level up.

I know I'm just a Lance Armstrong wannabe and that I'm just a kitty cat compared to those Tour de France tigers, but that time is faster than the average rush hour commute to the same place by car in L.A.

When Tour de France time-trialists go 10 miles in 20 minutes, they don't have to watch out for cars, stoplights; carry a heavy-ass 20 lb. backpack full of clothes, my lunch, shoes, etc.; have less uphill to climb; less potholes to deal with; better, faster, more expensive bikes, more training, more muscles, higher VO2 max, etc. Those guys average 30 mph which is insanely fast.

In the past, I actually had dreams of passing cars on the freeway at night going 80 mph+. That was quite a rush, but only a dream....

Midnight Ridazz Wolfpack

2009-06-10T00:11:00.001-07:00

I went on the Wolfpack ride this Monday at 10:00 p.m. This is a very fast paced race-like ride through the streets of L.A. in the middle of the night.

I took a picture here with Steph from the Team Midnight Ridazz ALC. There are more pictures linked to my photobucket account if you click on the photo.

We rode almost 50 miles that night. Unfortunately, about 20 minutes into the ride, one of the riders got hit by a car. That's what happens during these fast paced rides. Some cops, firetrucks, and ambulances came to the scene. He got taken away by ambulance to a hospital since he had a lump on his head and was bleeding even though he had his helmet on. I think he'll be okay though.

There were over 30 riders that night. The ride was still fast since there was John, the California State road bike champion who regularly attends along with some other racers. This time, the ride was a little easier to finish since there weren't as many turns as our last ride. I think everyone was able to make it to all the checkpoints. Last time, I had to frantically keep up with someone who knew the directions to the next scheduled stop. If I didn't I wouldn't have been able to finish the ride.

We rode from Hollywood to Westwood. Well, we did have an unscheduled stop due to the unfortunate bike accident one of our riders went through. After he was taken away by ambulance, we kept on going to our next stop in Westwood. Then we rode over to the Venice Beach pier, went to the Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown, and then back to the doughnut shop on Sunset Boulevard.

We finished at around 1:30 a.m. I had to bike back another 18 miles back home. I got home around 2:30 a.m. Then, I had to shower and make lunch for Sarah and me for the next day. By the way, washing dishes and making lunch takes a long time. I wish I could find ways to cut down on cooking time. I finally went to sleep after 4:00 a.m.

I totaled 92 miles on Monday after a full day of work, volunteering at church to help prepare for VBS, the Wolfpack ride, and 2 hours of sleep.

Maybe next time I'm going to leave the Wolfpack ride a little earlier. It's way past my bedtime. I was a little concerned about how I'd do on Monday's ride since I've been putting a lot of miles on my legs recently. I was already sore before the ride. After riding with other people, it was so fun I kept going. I already feel faster since I started riding with the Wolfpack.

Los Angeles River Ride

2009-06-08T01:18:00.001-07:00

I went on the LA River Ride on Sunday, June 7, 2009. I started at 7:00 a.m. I had to get to church on time so I left the ride early. I still got in about 45 miles before I got to church by 9:00 a.m. I ended up riding about 60 miles for the day since I biked to the ride, to church, to Sarah's pharmacy, and back home.

It was a fun ride. There were a lot of riders who showed up. It's always fun to ride with lots of people....Makes for a lot more people to pass. It always feels good to pass people. It makes me feel like I'm fast.

Wolfpack: The Hustle Ride

2009-06-03T02:04:00.001-07:00

I went to ride with the Wolfpack Monday night at 10:00 p.m. I got my ass schooled. This was the first time I've been on this ride in nearly 2 years. The last time was in October of 2007. There's a post I made about it last time in my Archives.

I thought this ride was fast last time. Things have gotten much more fast and furious this time around. A couple of years ago, it was mostly guys on fast track and fixed gear bikes. Now, it's been taken over by mostly road racers. They've taken it to a whole new level.

We rode about 35 miles that night. Then, I biked home and got home around 2:30 a.m. I slept around 3:30 a.m.

This ride is a very fast paced ride. Think of Fast and Furious on bicycles and you get the type of racing we do. I'm not kidding. There were 4 stops. The stops were a little long though. We waited for some riders to make it to the stop. We kept losing people. I think we started with around 30 riders and only half were able to finish. I was just barely hanging on. The only reason why I didn't get totally dropped was because I was following right behind guys who knew how to get to the next check point. If I fell behind, my ride would have ended right there. I can't see street signs very well, much less at night. Plus, I can't keep track of all the turns when the route is announced. There were a lot of cops out that night. One of the riders got pulled over. These guys just don't stop at lights. It makes it nearly impossible to keep up if you get caught at the light in a big intersection. You've got to spin as fast as you can and just pray you don't get dropped. This ride is not for the faint of heart. We pass cars going downhill and we don't stop for anything.

We went through a lot of L.A. neighborhooods like Hollywood, Koreatown, Griffith Park, Los Feliz, the Convention Center, and Silver Lake.

Why do I put myself through this type of punishment? Because it's fun, thrilling, and I want to keep pushing myself to become a faster rider.

I can't wait for my next ride with the Wolfpack, but these wolves ride at way past my bedtime.

2009-05-26T01:18:00.001-07:00

Los Angeles Marathon Bike Tour.

I biked the route twice again even though I woke up a little late. I wanted to go for a record 3 times, but I turned off my alarm clock at 2:00 a.m. If I got there at 3:00 a.m., I would have biked the course before the official start with the Midnight Ridazz. Oh well, maybe next year.

There was an endless sea of bicycles along the route. It was fun passing and lapping 15,000 cyclists.

I'm in the photo somewhere. I need to get photobucket to adjust my photo sizes when they upload them to my blog. Once I shrink them, the pictures are permanently shrinked even on the photobucket site. That stinks. All of the photos I uploaded to this blog are screwed up. I'm too lazy to reupload them. I would if it didn't take so long to upload each photo.

Click on the picture for more pictures.

2009-05-26T01:16:00.001-07:00

Audi Driving Experience

2009-05-26T01:15:00.001-07:00

Audi A6's

Audi Driving Experience featuring the new Audi Q5, a premium midsize SUV. The new Q5's handle pretty well for SUVs. I still prefer sports cars and sports sedans. We also got to drive the A6's. This was a good event since we got some good test time with the Q5 driving along city streets and an autocross track. There was some really delicious and fancy catered food.

2009-05-26T01:13:00.001-07:00

Audi Q5's

2009-05-26T01:08:00.001-07:00

Bike to Work Day, City Hall, Pasadena

2009-05-26T01:04:00.001-07:00

Blessing of the Bikes at the Good Samaritan Hospital during Bike to Work Week

2009-05-26T00:59:00.001-07:00

Jenny Song's baby, Kong-ee

2009-05-26T00:45:00.001-07:00

BSBC Sunday School kids singing a touching tribute to their moms during Mother's Day

2009-05-26T00:38:00.001-07:00

Manny and his mountain bike in the Santa Monicas

2009-05-26T00:25:00.001-07:00

Mountain biking in the Santa Monica Mountains

2009-05-26T00:21:00.001-07:00

El Monte Reservoir

2009-05-26T00:19:00.001-07:00

Biking to work along the sweet bike paths. These are like freeways for bikes. Too bad there aren't more of them.

2009-05-26T00:17:00.001-07:00

Stopping to take a photo at one of the lakes in Whittier Narrows

2009-05-26T00:14:00.001-07:00

Duck, Duck, Goose, Pigeon at Legg Lake

2009-05-26T00:07:00.001-07:00

Revisiting a scenic rest stop along the Rio Hondo bike path

2009-05-26T00:06:00.001-07:00

Biking by the Rio Hondo River

2009-05-26T00:02:00.001-07:00

There is a plethora of blossoming flowers along the bike path

2009-05-26T00:01:00.003-07:00

Biking through the lovely Eucalyptus tree-lined bike paths to work.

2009-05-26T00:01:00.001-07:00

For about a week I biked down to a project that took place in Whittier. I had a lovely commute biking on the trails to work.

Here, there is a roofed fence to protect people from the remote controlled airplanes that are flown at this part of the Whittier Narrows Recreational Area.

2009-05-25T23:40:00.001-07:00

This restaurant's name always makes me laugh. My Dung surprisingly increased its Health Department rating to a B from a D last time I took a picture of it a few years ago. "D" rating for Dung.

It had a C for awhile. My Dung is steadily getting cleaner.

2009-05-25T23:01:00.001-07:00

Los Angeles Fun Ride. I went on this ride, but had to ditch the ride early to teach Sunday School. I went on the Advanced ride. It was fun, but I was tired from lack of sleep.

Sorry for not updating my posts in a long time. This may have been the longest ever since I've updated my blog. I've just been busy with everything and helping my wife at the pharmacy. I just haven't had time to update it.

It's been so long that I just can't write too much about my experiences anymore. Basically since I've forgotten and also since I'm too tired and lazy to write down all the details.

2009-05-25T22:04:00.001-07:00

Emmanuel Han and his awesome titanium Litespeed mountain bike.

2009-05-25T21:45:00.001-07:00

Mountain Biking in El Prieto, Brown Mountain, San Gabriel Mountains, Angeles National Forest near JPL La Canada, Pasadena. Posing next to a sheer drop off of about 50 feet.

Pasadena Marathon Bike Tour

2009-04-11T22:22:00.001-07:00

The Pasadena Marathon was finally held in March after being postponed a few months because of the wildfires last year.

This year, it was raining pretty hard at certain times during the ride. It started at 6:00 a.m. and it was pretty dark. It was hard to go really fast. I was near the front of the race. I kept making wrong turns following the guys in front of me. It was really dark and raining so I couldn't see very well. I almost hit some cones too. I was freezing when the ride was over, because it started pouring rain and I was just standing around in the cold in my short shorts.

Sorry I didn't update my blog lately. I've been busy at work in a new law office.

Before I took my new job, I was doing some contract work in Costa Mesa. I rode my bike to work. That was over 35 miles one way. It took about 2 hours to ride there, but my other co-workers said it took them about 1.5 hours by car, because of the traffic. I'd rather be cycling for 2 hours then be stuck in traffic for 1.5 hours. It's more fun to ride and I got some good exercise. Right now, however, I haven't touched my bike in weeks due to the very long hours of work.

The first day I biked there, I had one of the worst commutes ever going back home. I bonked out because I used up too much energy accelerating stop light after stop light. Cars kept honking at me, because they're idiots. Also, there were no shoulders for me to ride on and let cars pass for about 15-20 miles.

I had to stop and eat 2 times before I got home. I was so hungry from using up so much energy biking as fast as I could, because the streets were so dangerous and I wanted to get out of that situation as fast as possible. One of my spokes broke on my way home too, because I was going really fast over some pretty rough roads and potholes. I had to get it trued before I got home. My 30 lb. backpack was killing my back too. I had to carry my food, clothes, and shoes in there along with my heavy duty bike lock and bike repair kit.

I got faster and faster each day I rode though. Now, I'm out of shape again. I only slept 3-4 hours per night during the project. I was only able to do it, because I was so excited from my bike rides.

Fargo Street Hill Climb

2009-04-11T22:20:00.001-07:00

Check out the video clip from Time Warner cable about the annual Fargo Street Hill Climb.

http://www.lawheelmen.org/fargo09_timewarner.mov

You can see me mountain biking up the hill for a couple of seconds.

I just climbed up a couple of times, because I had to hurry back to church to teach Bible Study.

I climbed all of the hills on Fargo Street last year on my time trial bike to train for this. On my very high geared time trial/triathlon bike, it was very tough climbing up. I had to give it my all and fell several times. It's very tricky to switch back while riding up.

On my mountain bike, it was pretty easy. I put it on the lowest gear, but I think it was too low. I was spinning pretty fast and that caused my breathing to rocket sky high. I should put it on the second to lowest gear next time.

I hope to climb this hill several times next year.

Hill Climb

2009-04-11T22:18:00.001-07:00

Marlboro Hot Laps Drifting Mustang

2009-04-11T22:16:00.001-07:00

Marlboro Indy Car

2009-04-11T22:15:00.001-07:00

Sunday School Musical

2009-04-11T22:11:00.001-07:00

Sunday School

2009-03-15T15:11:00.001-07:00

Contest Rehearsals

2009-03-15T11:17:00.001-07:00

Gospel Song Contest Rehearsals

2009-03-15T11:13:00.001-07:00

Marlboro Hot Laps

2009-03-05T16:46:00.000-08:00

I went to the Marlboro Hot Laps event at the Irwindale Speedway on Monday morning. It was very cool riding shotgun with pro drifters at the track. We rode on two different courses around the track. I was honestly scared the first few seconds before the first corner. The driver I was with was going impossibly fast approaching the first corner and then he spun the steering wheel around applying opposite lock and the rear end of the Mustang swung around the corner. That was a lot of fun. It takes tremendous skill and precision to control the cars while they're drifting.

I want to try and do that with my cars, but I just don't want to spend the thousands of dollars it takes on buying new tires all the time.

Since the event was sponsored by Marlboro, there was a ton of smokers smoking all around me. I've never seen so many overweight and sickly looking people with brown teeth before. Yuck!

Although there was too much smoke, it was fun drifting. Plus, they provided really good food. I was totally stuffed on the buffet.

They also gave out great gifts including a Swiss Army watch valued at nearly $300!!! Sweet! Cigarette companies must still be rolling in the dough with all the nicotine addicts in the world, despite being sued nearly every day.

Pictures of the event to come soon.

The Joys and Sorrows of Cycling

2009-02-28T18:05:00.000-08:00

I rode my bike for the first time in several weeks since opening the pharmacy. In the early part of my ride, this woman yells out "Damn, you have nice legs!" from the passenger seat of a car. That made me feel good since most of the time people are yelling obscenities at me or honking at me or just trying to run me over.

Things started getting worse when I started my route back home. Some fugly fat Hispanic grandma in an SUV kept honking at me for no reason. I was going down a 2 lane road. One lane for going south and one for going north. There was plenty of space for the angry granny to pass me. Instead she just kept honking her horn at me as if trying to say that I should get off the road. I actually went down 5 miles south before I saw her again. After that I just left her in the dust. I guess people are frustrated when they are stuck behind traffic and stop lights. It's still no reason to take it out on bikes. I always watch out for bikes and pedestrians when I drive without getting mad at them even though they aren't obeying the traffic laws. Some people are so rude.

Later on when I was biking back home, this guy sitting in the front passenger seat of a green taxi opens the door right in front of me trying to knock me down. Fortunately, my spidey sense was tingling and I had a precognitive moment where I thought that a car door might open up. The green taxi cab was stopped at a signal behind a few other cars. The taxi just passed by me earlier. As I approached the taxi, some stupid middle eastern guy just opens the door as fast as he could trying to time the door swing so that I would get hit. I slammed on my brakes and started skidding. I tried to steer my bike as close to the right as possible. Fortunately, there was some extra space on the right for me to pass without hitting the car door. If there was less space between the car door and the curb, I might have ended up in the hospital. He screams something at me and I yell back, "You frackin' @$$hole!" I should have stopped and taken some pictures of him and the taxi's license plates. I was kind of in shock and plus my adrenaline was pumping. I made excellent time on my way home so I guess I didn't want to stop or didn't think about stopping. I didn't want a jerkoff to ruin my day. Actually, he did since he committed assault by intentionally trying to make me crash into the car door. He might have been mad since I kept passing him on my bike at several intersections. Still, he had no right to try and kill me.

The taxi passed me again and I caught up to him at the light, but the light turned green before I could get the license plate. I got the taxi cab phone number, but decided not to call since I didn't have the license plate.

Despite the idiots and a-holes on the road, I wouldn't trade cycling for the world. If I make it back home in one piece and I had fun and exercise most of the time, then it's a good day.

Bowl-o-Rama

2009-02-22T11:14:00.000-08:00

Last night, the Sunday School Teachers met at the Great Wall Chinese Restaurant and had some delicious food. We met at 8:00 p.m. since we had to close the pharmacy prescription section. I overstuffed myself as always.

Then, we went bowling. We only had time for one game since it was Saturday night and it was crowded. We had to wait about half an hour to get 2 lanes. There were 12 of us who played. We finished around midnight. I suck at bowling and seem to be getting worse every time I play. I only play about once every one or two years. Sarah did much better than me.

However, bowling is a very good social game. It really brings people closer together since we're all cheering for one another. Well, it brings feelings of closeness. It's back to normal the next day.

I had to wake up by 6:00 a.m. so I could get to church by 7:00 a.m. to set up the church sound equipment.

Sarah and I are really tired since we work 12-14 hours a day every single day at the pharmacy these days. I've only been sleeping 4-6 hours a night and I'm simply too exhausted to do anything else these days.

Those who attended bowling night was: Tony, James, Sarah, Yang, Whoony, Fenny, Jenny, Jung Mi, Ryan, Jimmy, Erich, and me.

Kate, Miju, Irene, and lil' Mikey were there for dinner.

I left my camera in my car, and we took Whoony's car so I couldn't take any pictures. :(

Mother's Care Pharmacy Pictures

2009-02-10T23:45:00.001-08:00

Click on the picture.

Mother's Care Pharmacy
3500 W 6th St. #120
Los Angeles, CA 90020
213-739-3030 (Phone)
213-739-3033 (Fax)

www.motherscarerx.health.officelive.com

Pharmacy hours: M-F 9-7, Sat 9-4
2 hour free parking with validation.

Chinatown 5K Race

2009-02-08T10:22:00.000-08:00

I just got back from the Chinatown 5K Race this morning. I got there a little late, because a cop pulled me over. Fortunately, I was able to sweet talk my way out of getting a ticket.

I started at the back of the pack at 8:00 a.m. I only did the 5K instead of the 10K, because I had to finish as fast as possible so that I could fulfill my duties at church. I usually get to church when it opens at 7:00 a.m. to set up the sound equipment for the kids worship service. I wish it opened earlier on Sundays, because I have a lot of stuff to do. I have to prepare the kids' bible study, set up the sound equipment, eat some food, wash up, and change my clothes. I usually run or bike 13-15 miles depending on the route I take to church. If I run, I usually leave before 5:00 a.m. If I bike I leave before 6:30 a.m. I go to the 8:00 a.m. service and we have a teacher's meeting at 9:30 a.m. Maybe next year, I'll do the 10K. It starts at 8:30 a.m. though. Maybe, I'll do the 5K and then run the 10K right afterwards. The 5K and the 10K registration fees cost the same.

I was thinking of running to the race, but I thought I would be too tired to post a good time. I was thinking of biking to the race, but I didn't want anyone to steal my bike while I was running. Plus, I usually carry some stuff with me when I bike and I didn't have any place to put my stuff. So, I drove my car to the race. That's when I got pulled over.

There were several hundred people at the race. I couldn't believe how many people there were. I couldn't even run in the beginning because it was way too crowded. When I was finally able to run, I went at a really slow pace, because there were just way too many people blocking my way. The entire street and sidewalks were filled with people. Eventually, the crowds thinned out the further out we went.

I was passing everyone and it felt great. After awhile though my heart started beating really fast. During a race, I push myself at a faster pace than when I usually run during training. The uphill section was tough. After when I reached the turnaround point, it started going downhill. That's when my heart felt like it was about to burst. I had to slow down because I had not felt my heart beat like that before. I guess my conditioning was not as good as I thought. I usually don't run at that pace. When I run a half marathon to church in the mornings, I usually go at slow and steady pace. During today's race, I pushed myself to pass as many people as I could. I need to do some more interval training to get my heart to take that kind of high pace strain.

Eventually, my heart settled down a bit and then I pushed myself again. When I came near the finish line, I sprinted. I finished in about 23 minutes. I think I could have gone 5 minutes faster had it not been for the slowpokes blocking me in the beginning of the run. I'll have to train a lot harder though if I want to keep up a faster race pace. I don't want to die of a heart attack.

The great thing about racing is that it is fun running with so many people. I can totally understand the pain and heavy breathing from the people around me. We share in the suffering and we revel in our mutual agony. I didn't even wear my new running shoes, because it was raining in the morning and didn't want to get them dirty so soon. So, I ran with my old running shoes.

I used to be faster in high school. I was the fastest kid in junior high. Then, the kids all started getting the growth spurts in high school, and they started running really fast. I was still fast, but not as good as the track stars.

I've been pretty tired lately since I've been helping Sarah's pharmacy as much as possible. We have to work really hard to make our business grow so that we can survive this recession. I don't want to live out on the streets.

Mother's Care Pharmacy

2009-02-05T22:28:00.000-08:00

My wife, Sarah, just opened up her new pharmacy, Mother's Care Pharmacy. It took a long time to set up, but we finally opened. We're having a grand opening celebration now. If any of you are in the Los Angeles area, stop by.

Mother's Care Pharmacy
3500 W. 6th St. #120
Los Angeles

It's next to the Equitable Center on Wilshire Blvd and Mariposa.

See you soon.

Justice Brothers Racing Museum

2009-01-21T20:33:00.001-08:00

Click on the picture for more images.

The Justice Brother Racing Museum has a bunch of vintage race cars, classics, and antiques. They also have this strange moon mobile with an astronaut standing by it.

I got my Canon camera back so I can take more pictures again. Yaay!

Rose Parade Pictures

2009-01-21T20:25:00.001-08:00

Photobucket Album