Wow. Okay, so I've been planning this MAC Daddy Challenge with the Marketing Coordinator at the Hilton for a good two months now, and we were finally able to execute it!
I invited Rowena from RA Grinds and Ritsuko from Poohko Hawaii, two local influencers, to be part of the Challenge. Rowena and I faced off to see who could finish most of the three stack, 5lb pancake in under 90 minutes. We ended up eating pretty much the same amount, but Rowena definitely ate hers in a more strategic way than I did lol. We talked, ate pancakes, laughed, and had a great time, and it was super fun. But with everything in life, I think there was a life lesson, and this time, it was that some people are just born and raised differently, and if you let every small little thing get to you, you're just gonna tire yourself out. I feel like I put so much work into coordinating this event and reaching out to various people to give opportunities, and maybe it's just because one of my top values in life is appreciation and gratitude, but when I didn't see feelings being reciprocated, it took a toll on me. A big, fat, emotional toll. I started questioning why I'm still doing what I'm doing, and it really hurt because I know that I LOVE my (non-paying) job with Spoon Hawaii and being an influencer. But after finishing the event and knowing that all my hard work paid off, I realized that I can't be so close-minded, because the way I think and show appreciation is not necessarily the same way others do too. I re-realized that whatever you put into something is what you get out of it, and that what goes around comes around - maybe not in the near future, but eventually. And I just have to be my best self to get the best results.
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Last day of school was on Wednesday and I have never felt more relief and anxiety at once in my whole life. Jk i probably have - I get anxious about literally everything in life lol
But, what did help calm my mild anxiety before finals week was getting together with my bros one last time before we all head off for summer break. Antoni, our amazing Senior Vice President, put on the best end-of-year banquet I have ever been to. First of all, let me say that the Double Tree at the Hilton is probably my favorite hotel. Why? Because they give out free warm cookies to everyone. I went back twice to get my hands on em, and I had no shame both times. Anyway, the banquet was filled with really good food (especially the cake lol), a goofball of an emcee named Daniel Saladbar, games, photos, roasting & teasing, a slideshow (courtesy of yours truly), raffles, and hoss elections. This was my first banquet that I attended without a significant other, and wow I forgot how good it feels to go to a social gathering and not have to worry about your S/O feeling out of place. There was a point in the beginning of my day that I felt like giving up on the entire world. Google maps led me in a circle, in the rain, with my shrunken canvas converse shoes, in a neighborhood that was probably not the friendliest in Massachusetts. Can someone please tell Google not to make the highway part of a walking route.
After my horrendous experience with technology, I (miraculously) made my way to Boston. I ate lunch at Boston Sail Loft for some Clam Chowder. Rich, thick, and piping hot I give it a 8/10. Plus, I was starving from my whole morning ordeal, I think almost anything would have sufficed. I visited Faneuil Marketplace and all three Markets within the area. I snapped a few pictures, listened to some street performers, and strolled down the many food shops about four times, before deciding there was really nothing that pulled me in. Haymarket was on the way to my next destination, so I strolled past and enjoyed seeing all of the different produce they had for sale. It blew my mind that vendors were selling strawberries 2/$3. That's insane! We're lucky for it to be on sale for $5.99 in Hawaii! The worker at Q's Nuts in Boston Public Market waved me down for a free sample, and boy, did he know how to sell. I really did love all of the samples he gave me, and because he was so sweet (and cause I'm a sucker for samples), I ended up buying a few to take home. My last destination of the day was the North End of Boston, aka Little Italy. There were SO many pastry shops that I wanted to visit, but a girl can only eat so many sweets in one trip. I mean, I know I can eat it (i live off of sweets) but I love my body too much to stuff it with solely cannoli's and pies. I did eat at Carmelina's, an authentic Italian restaurant (one among many) that had raving reviews on Yelp. In my honest opinion, I thought it was just alright. Nothing super amazing (which I'm very sad about tbh). As I wrote in my Yelp review, I think the reviews just raised my expectations too high. I had 9.5 hours to think about what I had done, when I spontaneously booked a trip to Boston by myself for the Easter weekend. As I stood up for the 14th time to let the guy next to me leave to use the bathroom, I wondered what the hell I was thinking.
No sleep, four papers, and 3/4 of my playlist later, I landed in Boston at 5:40am and was completely on my own once again in a different state. This isn't the first time I've traveled by myself (ex. San Francisco and NY) but the past two times, it was because I had to. This time, it was because i wanted to. Which freaked me out big time. But I learned today that I'm pretty decent at being independent. Google maps fucked me up many times today, but I was able to hit majority of the places on my list, and now I don't know how I'm going to spend the next three days LOL. - Boston Harborwalk - Chinatown - Boston Common - Beacon Hill - Public Garden - Independence Wharf *Quick Nap* - Kendall Square Rooftop Garden - MIT - Harvard - Harvard Square - Union Square PLUS: - Tatte Bakery & Cafe - Paris Baguette (my obsession from my days in Korea) - Mike's Pastry ^ Yes. I ate sweets the entire day. Yes. I need to change my diet. After 15 hours of walking, 15.6 miles and 46 floors later (according to Apple), it's time to hit the hay and continue my next adventures. The world works in a funny way, in which as soon as you forget about a goal that you had, you end up achieving it without even realizing it.
When my sister, Celina, was a Yelp Elite, I was stoked for her and thought it was the coolest thing in the world. I tried writing a few reviews, but ended up being too embarrassed that my friends would read them, and quit after a few attempts. With my position at Spoon, Frolic, and Hawaii Happy Hours however, I thought “if I’m already eating all these foods and writing articles, how much more work is it writing one more Yelp review?” I guess I kind of stopped caring what people thought, and just banged out a review for every place I went to along the way. Fast forward to a mere six months later, I got an invitation to become a Yelp Elite. I almost screamed. Anyway, there was a point to this story, besides the life lesson that the world is always watching your actions. I attended my first Yelp Elite event at the Family Sunday FUNDay, at the Hawaii State Art Museum in Downtown. Yelp Elites got an exclusive entry during the first hour to enjoy the booths, live entertainment, and activities. I brought Cavina and Fran along with me, and we messed up real big, because we chilled on the first floor for a good majority of the hour, thinking that was the only thing there was to do (and there was really nothing downstairs, so you can imagine how bummed we were). Come to find out the party was upstairs, and we missed out on almost the entire Yelp Elite hour HAHA but nonetheless it was super fun, with great food from vendors like Primo Popcorn and Kremery, Limon Rotisserie, Teapresso, Lucky Strike, and Jamba Juice. Friday, Saturday, Sunday.
Il Lupino, Machete’s Mean Sandwiches, Ripple of Smiles, Taste of Paradise, O’Kims, Stir. This weekend’s lineup was insane. There were so many times I just sat there and thought “is this what being famous is like?” This was my second tasting at Il Lupino, the first being with Ryan and Hawai Happy Hours, when we got them to be a partner for the Deals platform, and this place never disappoints. They were introducing their new and favorite menu items to influencers, buffet style, so I loaded up on my favorite Arancine Siciliani, and I could not get enough of the fried artichokes and Pesta Romano. I’m pretty sure I gained at least six pounds on Saturday, with Machete’s Mean Sandwiches feeding me, Steph, and Rowena a huge sandwich each in exchange for some photos, Ripple of Smiles providing Joy and me four different dishes as a thanks for collaborating with them for our 10k Spoon Giveaway, and of course, all the amazing food from Taste of Paradise (so many cake bombs LOL). Machete’s bakes their own bread in house and it is the SOFTEST bread I’ve ever seen on Oahu. Their sandwiches are a great deal because they pack as much as they can in between the supple pieces of bread. This is one of those hole-in-the-wall places you’d never think would be amazing, but is. My go-to order next time is The Machete (and hold the mayo, bleh). Ripple of Smiles is a new Vietnamese restaurant, where Frankie Fresh used to be, right across City Mill. Maybe it was because I was still full from Machete’s, but I didn’t really care too much for their food. It was definitely good, and it’s hard to find a decent Chinese or Vietnamese restaurant outside of Chinatown, so I give major props to them for opening one up so close to campus (plus, students get 10% off all the time, and 17% off during the month of April). Taste of Paradise. I already raved about it lol, next. O’Kims is a cute little restaurant located in Downtown, and because we went on a Sunday, we were lucky enough to score free parking at Walmart. We sat outside in their cute lil patio, and they brought out all of their brunch specials. Everything was amazing, and I LOVE that they don’t use any MSG, and that they literally make everything in house (even the kimchi!). Right after our huge brunch at O’Kims, we made our way down to Stir on Waialae Ave. They changed owners and wanted to showcase their newest “dessert smoothies” and acai bowls. They gave us three different flavors (Cookies n Cake > Pistachio Macaron > Strawberry Cake) and an acai bowl. I felt a surge of sugary explosion after, because everything was so sweet. The Cookies n Cake smoothie (can I just call it a milkshake cause that’s basically what it is) was honestly so good – it was like melted cookies & cream ice cream with oreo and cheesecake. |