I BOUGHT A NEW CAR!!!!!!!!!!!! I really wasnt intending to when I went to test drive it today, but things just fell into place. It is amazing the way things happened.
I was telling a friend of mine about how worried I was about paying for a new car, and he asked me if I had AAA. I said yes, and he told me to call AAA and ask to see a fleet manager. Apparently, AAA negotiates with dealerships to give better deals on cars. So I got online on Monday and filled out an application to see a car, and AAA sent out the info to the car dealership. It was the same dealership I got my previous car from too! A fleet manager called me back on the same day, and asked when I wanted to test drive the car. I thought about it and told him Wednesday morning.
So today I went to Longo Toyota to test drive the car. Now I'm not too familiar with the exit to the dealership, and there was road construction all over the place. I thought I had missed the exit, and had to go to the next one. But the next one was closed off so I had to go further down and double back. I got a little lost, and I was late, and I just prayed that God would at least get me there safely and let me have a good day there.
So I got there and they didnt have a silver one I wanted. But they did have it in every other color. I test drove a red 2004 Toyota Corolla LE model, and it was a really really nice drive. Then the guy and I sat down and talked about cost. And he gave me some numbers which I thought were really good, but I wasnt sure if I wanted to commit because the insurance company hadnt called me back about how much they were willing to pay me for my car yet. So I called Chilin, and asked him what I should do. He said it was a good deal. Then he asked me, are you there by youself?? I said yes, and he goes, NONONO, you cannot do this on your own! YOu need Joel with you!! Dont do anything until you get Joel down there with you, because you are a girl, and you are fresh meat for them! So I said ok and told the guy I'm not sure if I can commit. On a whim, I called Joel hoping that he would hear his phone ring at work. He picked up and I told him what is going on, and he says, Well I need to drop a package and I can be there in a little bit. I was like, Oh my gosh, thank you so much! I thought he was taking time from his lunch break or something to just help me for a little bit. He said he couldnt stay long, but he can be there for a little bit. I was just grateful for that little bit.
So while waiting for him to show up, I try to ask the fleet manager as many questions as I could. I told him I think I can put $7000 down and he did the calculations and my monthly payments would be about $185. Then I recanted and said, well what about $6000? Because the insurance company hadnt gotten back to me about how much they were going to pay me yet. And of course my monthly payments were higher. I was ready to just put 6000 down. I felt uncomfortable sitting in front of him not doing anything and waiting for Joel, so I got up and went to sit in the lobby instead. My phone rings and it was Joel who said, Did I just walk right by you?? I thought to myself, I didnt see you! I would definitely have recognized the UPS uniform! But Joel was in civilian clothes! I said to him, did you go home to change?? He goes yeah, I did. He said, I knew this was going to take a long time, so I took the rest of the day off. Youre costing me a day's pay. I felt SO BAD! I apologized and apologized, and then he goes, No, I'm kidding, I actually GOT THE DAY OFF!!!!!!! Now I Have seen the man work, and he works LONG LONG hours!!! He said that there were too many workers and not enough work, so they gave him the day off. I couldnt stop thanking God at that point. I felt so much safer when Joel was with me because he knew what to ask. After some negotiation, we determined that $6500 down was a good safe amount, and my payments would be below $200 a month. I was ok with that. As we were walking from the fleet managers desk to the financial department, my cell phone rang. It was my insurance adjustor. And she said she researched and they are going to pay me, GET THIS, $9041!!! This is NINE THOUSAND DOLLARS!!!!!!! I was going to start crying in the lobby. This was more than I ever expected. And what perfect timing too. I was about to commit to 6500, but God gave me 9000 instead. Which was only 1000 less than what I paid for the other car in the first place. So with all 9000 down, my payments are even less than I expected.
Joel followed me back to the place where I rented my car from, and I returned it today. I was never happier when I returned the keys. And then he had to take me back to the dealership to get my new car so I could go to work. Remember when I said I thought I turned at the wrong exit the first time I went to the dealership? Well it turns out, I did the right thing afterall, because if I had turned at the other exit, I would have been more lost than I was. So thank God for that too!
This has been a day nothing short of a huge miracle, from Joel having the day off to the insurance company paying me this much money. And all I wanted to do was test drive the car!
So I got a champagne colored 2004 Toyota Corolla LE. Everything is powered. I would have liked a silver colored one, and I almost got a red one, but the champagne colored one looked pretty classy. And it's lighter colored than the red one, which means it repels heat better. Which is great in the summer.
So this car is all God. I couldnt have even imagined things could happen this way. God is truly amazing.

Well, this was one of those weeks where I thought would never end. Nothing happened, and I thought I had some really SLOW students this week. I just had the urge to shake them and say, DONT BE STUPID!!!! But I didnt, thank God. My student Emry bought me dinner tonight. We had Korean food and she paid my share. She really didnt even want a lesson. She walked in, and I was munching on cookies and she said, DONT EAT! Am I the last student? And I said yes, and she said, how about going for dinner afterwards? And I said, Sure. and she said, I am paying for you! And I said, no, you dont have to, but she shushed me. And we had 15 mins of lessons, and she said, ok I'm hungry, lets go. It was a nice dinner, we had a good time chatting.
I got chocolates from Shana and Rajan today. That was a really nice surprise. It's always nice when students surprise me with a note, or a piece of candy. It totally makes my day.
A friend of mine recently told me I think negatively a lot. I had to pause and take stock of that statement. And it's not negative about things. It's negative thoughts about myself. I give off the impression that I have no confidence in myself and my abilities. And I was told I think too much. By TWO people who dont know each other. Hmmm, I guess it's something I may have to address. But I am glad they told me.
Anyway, I guess I'm looking forward to this weekend. There will be another recording session at Joy Partners, and I'm looking forward to helping and observing again.

Wednesday and Thursday were so much fun! I had a blast at Jerry's house. There were quite a few of us there. There was Jerry, Doug, Yuko, her friend Ako, Blessing, Aura, Charisse and I. We had a sushi party, and we had the supplies and we made our own sushi. We had other stuff as well, but it was so much fun just chatting and hanging out with each other. We see each other a lot, but we hardly get to chat because we only pass each other as we let one student in and another one out. So we say hi at most, and maybe a minute of quick conversation, but nothing substantial. After we ate, which took a long time, some of them played on the keyboards and sang, I think only Doug, Charisse and I just sat there and became the audience. We were too full to do anything else. And besides, there were many talented people around!
Then on Thursday, Aura, Charisse and I went to Universal Studios! And I got my Free Year pass!!! It was so nice not to have to rush from place to place, because we know we can come back in at any time, FOR FREE!! We ate Funnel Cake, which was the best thing! We went to watch the Shrek 2 show, which was 4-D. It was fun, and then we took the Studios Tour, and they have added a lot more since the last time I was there. It was a good tour. And we just walked around a lot, and then had dinner. And then we went shopping. The girls bought stuff, but I didnt see anything I really wanted to get, so I didnt get anything. But I started to get tired before they did, because I had worked in the morning while the other 2 had the morning off. I was basically rushing from place to place, and it finally caught up with me in the evening. But Stephanie called while we were shopping, so I let the other 2 shop while I stood outside and talked to her, and she passed the phone around to several people, and the best part was that I got to talk to Dr. Hicks. She's a cool teacher, and I've missed chatting with her.
And so Friday I went back to work. I thought my Spring Break was way too short, especially when I had to work in the mornings because Chilin was not around. I'm ready for another break! And this time, I WILL get my time off!

I lost another 2 pounds! That makes my total so far 17 pounds! I'm so excited. I want to see if I can lose up to 20 pounds, and then figure out if I can lose more. This does make me feel good. And people have commented that they can tell that I've lost weight. Yay yay yippee!
I just came back from having dinner with my students, Shana and Rajan and their mom. We went to Red Robin, which is like a upscale hamburger place. It was nice to hang out with them outside of class. Sometimes it's hard to chat with their mom because I am on a time crunch, and I dont want to take any time away from their lesson, but their mom and I have become friends, and so it's nice to just chat with her about stuff. She thought I was 22! I was so thrilled. She didnt believe it when I told her I am 31. Then after that we went to Baskin Robbins for ice cream. Poor Rajan. He's 9 I think, and the color of this one ice cream really tempted him, and he got it, and then he didnt like it, because it was Daiquiri ice cream and it had a rum taste in it! It was quite funny. His mom had to help him finish enough of it so he could eat the cone.
I think their mom wants to go out for dinner with just me one time just to chat, because it was hard to have a decent conversation with the kids around. But we'll see. They've already invited me to Shana's birthday party.
Tomorrow a few of the teachers are going to another teacher, Jerry's house for lunch, and then he's thinking of going shopping at a outlet mall. And then on Thursday, Charisse, Aura and I are going to Universal Studios for the day! I'm so excited!!!
But I kinda wish I had left a day or 2 free just for myself. I have to work in the mornings still, so the afternoon off would be nice. But whatever it is, it's still nice to do things I normally wouldnt have time to do. I wish my break was longer though! Because I have more stuff I want to do and I dont have time to do it! I think I need a break after my break!

I guess there will always be a first for everything. I got in a car accident yesterday evening. It was stop and go traffic on the 57N and the car in front of me stopped and I didnt react on time to stop my car, and I rear ended them. I was freaking out and panicking, because I didnt know what to do, and it was my nightmare come true kinda thing. I called Lu and she called Joel and he was very nice and came out to help me. But by that time, the traffic cop was already there and I was a little more calm. For a moment there, I didnt know who to call because I didnt have anyone close to me. But I'm glad I for Lu and Joel who came to my rescue. He stayed with me and looked at the car and told me what to do. I was shaking the whole time. I know this happens often, but this is my first time, and I hope my ONLY time! My car needs to be towed to be repaired, but the other car didnt look very scratched to me! So I had to call the insurance company and call the car dealership and everything, and then I had to get Dave to give me a ride to Chino Hills because there were some pressing things that needed to get done. And then when I was done, I had to call Lu to come get me to take me home. I didnt realize how much hassle it is not to have a car! I have become so dependent on it that without it, I feel very helpless. But I also thank God for friends who have come to my rescue. I had to cancel classes in La Habra today and I was going to do the calling myself, but when Aura found out, she also helped me call some of my students, and I really appreciated that. So now I need to rent a car because I cant do without one, and I think I will rent it from the dealership because I think they will give me a better deal. I hope they dont take too long to repair my poor little car.
Sunday's recital went really well. It was a very very long day though, and I was running around from 9 am to about 6.30 pm. My students did pretty well. They did not choke nor did they freak out when they made mistakes, which made me very proud of them. One girl, Priscilla, was supposed to play one piece twice, the second time at a higher octave, but she forgot and stopped after playing it once. She put her hands down on her lap, then she put them back on, and I thought to myself, NO! Dont play it again! But she started her second piece instead, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I asked her on Monday when she remembered she forgot to play the piece the second time, and she said, as soon as she put her hands down after the first piece. And I said, I am SO proud of you that you went on even after you knew you made the mistake. There were a few very cute moments. Synthia, another teacher, had a very young class of 3 year olds and they were on stage with their parents, and they sang and danced and played the keyboards, and they were just all round very very cute. Joshua's class did very well. They were one of the best group performances, and I was very proud of him!
I ate like 5 cheetos the whole day because I just didnt have time to sit down and eat anything, but after the whole recital, Synthia invited all of us who helped, Jerry, Doug, myself and Aura for dinner at The Boat, which is a Thai food place. It was a great time, and I had fun just hanging out with them, even though I think we were all so tired we were about to fall asleep eating.
This week is Spring Break week, which is great because I dont have to worry about going places and pressing time. I still have plans for the beach and Universal Studios, and hanging out with Shana and Rajan, 2 of my students, and their mom.
This will be a boring weekend, because I have nowhere to go and nothing to do. I guess the TV will just have to do. Maybe I'll go for a walk or something. We'll see. Anyway, blessed Easter!

Tonight we have to set our clocks forward an hour because daylight savings starts. So that means I lose an hour of sleep. Which stinks because tomorrow will be a busy day and I want to sleep MORE!
Tomorrow the Chino Hills Yamaha School has its annual student recital. I have a few students participating, and I think it will be fun. I have to do duets with a few of them, and I've told them again and again to play louder because the people came to see them not me! But I think most of them are ready. Today I heard some of them because they came for lessons, and they made a lot of mistakes because they were nervous. But I told them, better they make mistakes now so that they know things like that can happen, than for it to happen tomorrow on stage and they freeze up. All the parents were asking me, so do you think he/she is ready for recital tomorrow? And I had to tell them, well they are as ready as they will ever be! I told the kids, you have to sell the whole performance, not just your piece. The way you walk on stage, sit at the piano, prepare yourself, and bow after that, all play a part in your performance. I dont think many of them believed me!
Today was the first Saturday where I didnt go to Ventura because I have to be at the recital venue to set up at 9 am. So I spent the day by myself, which was interesting because there really wasnt anything to do. I didnt want to go shopping, so there was nothing else to do. I went home and took a nap, something I've not done in ages! Then I cleaned my room a little, which means basically I took stuff off the floor and put them in the right places, and I did laundry, the thing I hate most to do. But that's good because that means I dont have to do laundry for a LONG TIME!
So I dont know how tomorrow will go, I hope it will be wonderful and fun, I'm sure it will be busy and tiring, but I hope my students do as well as they can. Their performance in a way is a reflection of my teaching abilities. So I'm praying they dont freeze on stage.
I cant believe I am losing one hour of sleep TONIGHT of all nights! Cant wait for October when I get it back!