Week of July 16: Hot wedding in LA

When I went to college at UC Davis (13 years ago and counting), I lived at the Tercero dorms during my freshman year where I became friends with a great bunch of guys. After freshman year, we moved out of the dorms into off-campus housing, where we remained roommates and friends until graduation. Since then, we all have gone our separate ways but have managed to stay in touch and see one another from time to time. All of us have gotten married, and some even managed to have a kid or two. All except Ian. Ian was the sole bachelor, running his business and livin it up in Los Angeles. But that all ended on Saturday as Ian tied the knot.

From talking to Ian earlier in the year, I knew that he was dating Jennifer but I was shocked (happily surprised) when he told me a couple of months ago that he was engaged. Go Ian! So this weekend, Andrea and I flew down to Los Angeles for Ian and Jennifer's wedding, the first of four weddings we are scheduled to attend this year. For this wedding, I, along with the rest of the gang, was Ian's groomsmen.

The gang from left to right: Scott (winemaker at Hess Winery), Zach (that's Dr. Zach, MD... the surgeon), me, Ian (the groom and owner of Metro Jeans) and Dan (that's Dr. Daniel, MD... the child psychiatrist). We were all chillin in the green room before the wedding making sure that Ian didn't skip town through the back door.

By the way, Ian had picked the hottest day of the year to get married. It was 117 degrees outside and about 90 degrees inside the church with the air conditioner running. With the tux and the flood lights, I was about to burst into flames. It was good that the ceremony was rather short. This is especially amazing considering that every sentence of the ceremony was given in English and immediately followed by the Korean translation. I'm not sure how it happened, but Ian had managed to score big!!! Not only was Jenn beautiful, she was very nice as well. Good job my friend!

Presenting Mr. and Mrs. Hong!

Here is a picture (left) of Cathy (Dan's wife) and Laurie (Zach's wife). Even though they suffer very much from living with these clowns, they have managed to still look incredible. The reception following the wedding was held at the church. Thus, no adult beverages were served... although from the picture on right, you would think otherwise.

After the reception, Ian and Jenn held a small traditional Korean wedding ceremony. As you can see, Ian, Jenn and Ian's mom were all decked out in Hanbok. I guess I should be able to tell you what the heck is going on here but your guess is as good as mine... sorry.

After all the official wedding related events, Ian and Jenn threw an "unofficial" post wedding party as the church affair was more or less subdued. They reserved a few tables at the swanky Tokio Bar in West Hollywood where delicious food was plenty and the cocktails were flowing. They left for their honeymoon to Tahiti the following morning... hopefully they weren't too hung over. Jenn and Ian are off to a great start. Bon voyage!

Week of July 9: Destination Bemidji, MN

Most of you know that Andrea was born and raised in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Her family also has a lake home (on Long Lake) in nearby Bemidji, Minnesota, about 110 miles east. As Andrea's parents (Rick and Karen) were both in education, they spent their summers in Bemidji. Most of you know that I was born in Seoul, Korea and that I grew up moving from Seoul, to Singapore, and finally, to the Bay Area. We lived mostly in or near urban cities and spent summers and winters in air conditioned rooms (both Singapore and California stay relatively warm year long). So it's safe to say that the Ludtkes and the Kims have had a very different lifestyle, especially when it came to how we spent our summers.

Andrea and I usually take one or two trips to Bemidji each year. This year, Rick and Karen, also invited my parents to spend a week at the lake home as well. My parents enthusiastically accepted the invitation and the four of us boarded a red-eye flight to Minneapolis on Tuesday morning. This vacation was going to be an interesting experiment to say the least. Prior to the flight, I had given my parents the rundown of what to expect in Bemidji, MN... lots of lakes, lots of sun, lots of relaxation and not a lot of people around. My father only had one question- "So we're gonna be fishing right?" My mom had a few more practical questions- "Is there electricity?", "Will there be restaurants?", "Is there a Neiman Marcus?" and "No Neiman Marcus! Where will I shop?"

We landed in Minneapolis at 6 AM and rented a car. On our way to Bemidji, we stopped over to have breakfast with Andrea's brother Scott's family. Then it was about a 5 hour drive up north to Bemidji. As we departed the metropolitan city for the country, we passed through small lake towns like, Garrison (population 224) and Jenkins (population 307). I could sense then that my parents were quite unsure of what to expect. As we neared our final destination, Andrea was beginning to get antsy with excitement. I was certainly ready to hang up the car keys and begin my vacation. We left the paved highway for the last mile of dirt road to the lake house. My parents had a look of worry as our Chevy Malibu kicked up dirt on the unpaved narrow road. As we pulled into Rick and Karen's driveway, my parents were delighted to find a regular 2 story house, equipped with all the modern conveniences, like plumbing and electricity. Their eyes were wide open with marvel and joy as they took in the view of the lake from the living room. The Ludtke-Kim vacation had officially started.

Bemidji is known as the home of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox. Unfortunately, about 10,000 other towns also try to take credit for that claim to fame. You can see that my parents were trying very hard to look like a couple of locals. Andrea and I, on the other hand, fit right in. (Double click to enlarge all pics)

Living on a lake, Rick and Karen have lots of toys. We took Rick's ski boat out for a cruise around Long Lake. My mom was concerned about motion sickness but after this successful maiden voyage, she took every opportunity to go on the boat. Not once did she lose her visor!

We did a lot of fishing. With Long Lake having no public boat access, we had the whole lake pretty much to our selves. As such, we caught lots of fish. My dad and I used to go fishing all the time when I was young. But it has been about 20 years since my dad had last gone fishing... so he was in fishing heaven!

While this Californian reeled in a huge largemouth bass (I prefer calling it bigmouth bass... thanks to my college days), the local dangled his prized Sunfish. We also caught some Crappies, which we actually kept. My mom, made a spicy Korean fish stew out of them... very delicious!

Andrea and I did a lot of water skiing as well. I learned to water ski a couple of years ago here at Long Lake so I'm still a beginner. Andrea, however, has been water skiing all her life. Here, she is showing off her one ski riding.

But I kick ass in tubing. I can hold on to that doughnut with the best of them. Is that all you've got Rick?

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Andrea is gracefully dancing on the lake in her solo ski.

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I am holding on for my dear life in my double planks. Slow down Rick please!!!

We were able to find time to leave our busy schedule at the lake to do a little sight seeing. We took a day trip to Lake Itasca. The Mississippi River begins it's two thousand three hundred and twenty mile journey to the Gulf of Mexico by overflowing the edge of Lake Itasca. You can actually walk across the Mississippi here.

Our family vacation week went by too quickly. It was very nice to spend the week with both our parents. For my parents, I think it gave them a better sense of who Andrea is and how she was brought up. At least now they understand better (they always have to begin with) why their son is so love with such silly-hearted girl and why she married their child-at-heart son. We even got to eat out at a fancy restaurant... yes, in Bemidji, Minnesota.

Week of July 2: 4th of July weekend... Red, Whiteman, and Blue

This year, Independence Day fell on a Tuesday. Fortunately for many of us, including myself (but not Andrea.. she had to work on Monday the 3rd), it meant a 4 day weekend. With such an extended weekend free from work, a lot of our friends were having BBQs. What better way to celebrate the good ole U. S. of A then to Q it up with the Whitemans. So on Saturday, Andrea, Kodi and I headed down to San Mateo for our first BBQ of the weekend. The Whiteman's had on their menu Grilled Pork Loins, Spanish Rice, Garden Salad and Oatmeal Toffee Cookies. We picked up a fresh ripe pineapple to slice and grill on the BBQ.

Here is Max exercising his constitutional right to wear the flag as a cape! A lawyer in the making?

Max put on a good show for all of us, including for his baby sister Kate. He couldn't figure out why we all didn't join him on the blue jumpy thing. Maybe his daddy Brandon will get real and get an actual tampoline someday.

As you can clearly see, Andrea was the designated driver. She's holding a cold refreshing can of Fresca while Brandon and I were drinking our Mojitos. Overall, this was the perfect relaxing way to begin the holiday weekend. The weather was warm (despite Andrea wearing a fleece jacket), the food was great and the drinks were cold. Despite all the problems we face today as a nation, I strongly believe that we are truly blessed to live in such a wonderful country.

Week of June 25: Rodd the Bodd is 33

On Saturday, we celebrated our friend Rodd's (striped brown shirt) 33rd birthday. Todd and Leslie organized the birthday bash for Rodd at Medjool Cafe in San Francisco. We had a group dinner reservation at 7 PM. With the weather being so nice, some of us decided that 7 PM was way too late for cocktails. So Leslie, Todd, Kathi, Brian, Andrea and I met about an hour before at Foreign Cinema for happy hours. Foreign Cinema is right next to Medjool Cafe. It is mainly a restaurant but has a separate bar that serves strong happy hour drink specials and has a divy-er industrial chic feel to it compared to Medjool. Another interesting thing about Foreign Cinema is that foreign independent films are screened in its outdoor covered dining area every night... hence the name. We all arrived separately at Foreign Cinema around the same time and enjoyed a few rounds of Cosmos (for the gals) and pilsners (for the men).

Kathi (from left to right), Leslie and Andrea really seemed to enjoy their 3rd Cosmo of the night. Brian was trying to convince us that a Cosmo was a perfectly acceptable drink for a man as well. He claimed that on a hot day, beers were too "heavy".

At 7, we left Foreign Cinema and went over to Medjool Cafe for Rodd's party. I think the 6 of us were all feeling pretty good from multiple rounds of happy hour $2 drink specials (not many places in SF where you can get drinks for that price). At Medjool, we met up with the rest of our group (about 30 people all together). They set us up at the Mezzanine Level where they had an entire corner section reserved for us. Medjool serves "small plates" inspired by the diverse cuisines of southern France, Italy, Spain, Morocco, Tunisia and parts of the Middle East. We ordered lots of delicious "small plates" as well as a lot of birthday drinks.

One clear sign that we are getting older is the fact that our gatherings are becoming more and more dominated by couples. Andrea and I are chillin in our comfortable seats on the Mezzanine Level. Kevin and Mariella are enjoying themselves as well.

On the left, the cute couple Jason and Todd. Brian also brought along his beautiful date, Invisible Woman.

I'm pretty sure that Rodd had a good time. The good thing about having 30 people throw you a party is that you have good friends that are fond of you. The bad thing about celebrating your birthday at a fully stocked bar with 30 friends is that you do lots and lots of shots. As you can see from the picture on the left, just as Rodd is about to do another shot, Tracey, in the background, is ordering another round.

And Tracey orders yet another round. Rodd's thought bubble: "Not another Tequila... is there a back door out of this place?"

Rodd finally gives Tracey the "stank eye". But being a good soldier, Rodd takes his drinks like a man. I think it was shortly after this that Rodd's memory shuts down. Note to self, Tracey is not invited to my birthday!

And finally, Rodd gets his birthday cake. Happy Birthday Rodd. Hope you had a Birthday you couldn't remember.

Week of June 18: Re-Living the First Date

About a month ago, on Memorial Day, Andrea and I celebrated our 1st wedding anniversary (see blog: Week of May 21 and May 28: Sleepless in Seattle). Because the 1st wedding anniversary is symbolized by paper (aka paper anniversary), we took a trip north and spent a fun weekend in Seattle a la paper airline tickets. In addition, we had gotten each other personal paper gifts as well. I gave Andrea magazine subscriptions to Sunset Magazine, Real Simple, and San Francisco Magazine. Personally, I can't stand all the fooffy-trendy-Fung Shui fashion/organization crap. But because my love for Andrea is so deep and pure, I have vowed to endure having neat organized stacks of these magazines accent our coffee table for the next 12 months. Andrea on the other hand, gave me tickets to the Giants game... Club Level seats! Since we were in Seattle during our actual anniversary, she had gotten me tickets to Saturday's Giants vs Oakland interleague game. Another significant thing about these Giants tickets, besides being consistent with the whole paper anniversary theme, was the fact that Andrea considers our first official date to have been our first Giants game about three years ago (has it been that long?). I on the other hand, strongly believe that the weekend Ludlow Ski Hut trip of 2003, the 14 mile (round trip) snow shoe backpacking trip with 12 of my friends, to have been our first official date. Not sure why that snow trip doesn't qualify as a romantic first date.

Pretty sweet seats and fantastic weather. The great thing about Club Level is that behind the last row of seats, you enter the glass doors inside the Club Level where there are full bars with TVs and gourmet food. You can even order food from your seats! The best thing about the game was that the Giants came back to beat the A's in the bottom of the 9th inning with a walk-off homerun from Ray Durham (box score). Barry also managed to hit his 11th homerun in the 1st inning. Even though Andrea and I have moved to Oakland, we're still loyal Giants fans! Go Giants!

Week of June 11... and beyond: Summer Project

I have heard people say over and over again that one of the "joys" of home ownership is the fact that home improvement/upkeep is never ending. It's been over a year since Andrea and I became home owners. During the past year, we have done many things to fix, change, and improve the overall condition of our home. We've crossed out many line items from our list of to do's. Some were big items, such as the bathroom remodel, but most were smaller in scope, such as fixing the leaks in our sprinkler system. But despite our best efforts, I have sadly come to accept the truth of the aforementioned saying. Our current list of to do's is just as long, if not longer, than our original list. Having subjugated myself to this reality, I have decided to keep it real and continue working on the list on a more sustainable level... to strive for consistency and not to go in spurts and burn myself out. Operationally, I have decided to take on one large improvement project a year with smaller multiple fix-it projects on the side. So this year, I have decided that this year's home improvement project (I consider the bathroom remodel to be last year's project) is to rebuild our garden shed.

The garden shed is a small 10ft by 12ft wooden structure that sits on the back right corner of our back yard. It is severely weathered (paint is very distressed and peeling) and has several missing windows (covered up by cardboard), sloping roof and floor, and a door that is off its hinges. Instead of doing an entire tear-down and rebuild, I've decided to salvage as much of the shed as possible and rebuild the portions that are unfixable. The foundation and two of the walls were in pretty good shape so I decided to keep most of them intact.

A full day's worth of demolition. I guess this was the easy part. The back wall and the right wall were in good shape so I decided to leave them alone.

Not sure if these pictures are clear but these vertical studs are not nailed to the foundation. Pretty sloppy craftsmanship. Hopefully, my handy work will be much better.

UPDATES WILL BE MADE AS THE PROJECT PROGRESSES