SVong-Along

Tomorrow I turn 30, and although lots of things have been thrown off course, I am grateful for essential oils that essentially all of my friends or family are healthy, I am still working to serve my state, and am hopeful that this next decade will be one of growth and continued gratitude. I definitely did not accomplish much on my original  30 goals before 30 , which I even narrowed that down to 20 goals. But setting these goals did give me direction, even when did I not fully accomplish them, i.e: I applied for the Inn of Court Pegasus Scholarship in London, interviewed, but was turned down. I instead applied to the Inn of Court National Advocacy Program, and got selected for the Tim Coleman Scholarship to study a trial training program in Washington DC! I will hopefully attend in person in 2021 if feasible.  Because of COVID19, I have started running 2-3 times a week, training for a half-marathon (which I haven't done since 2015). With better diet, I have lowered my bo...

TL,DR: Yosemite is a lot less crowded, main bathrooms were still open, masks required indoors at all locations, and I felt very safe from COVID19 while being able to enjoy responsible recreation. Yosemite reopened June 11, 2020 after having shutdown in March 2020 due to COVID19. My college roomie Chanrith and I went for his 30th bday weekend June 27-28, and it was a great way to opt outside for responsible recreation. (also, a majority of these pics will be from Chanrith's iPhone that is fancier than mine). I recommend visiting if you can get an online reservation, since passes are limited and there are a lot less visitors than normal, and it is definitely possible to socially distance from other groups/hikers. We entered Yosemite Valley through the 120 around 9-10 AM on a Saturday- and it still took about 15-20 minutes to enter with 3 lanes of cars entering. Most people were processing their online registration. Once you show your reservation, they give you a permit th...

TLDR: The gym was sanitized, but still seems risky for air transmission of COVID and I would not recommend going if you are uncomfortable being around people not wearing masks. I have been a 24 Hour Fitness member since 2012, and I've bought the Costco member 2 year super sport pass for $599 3 times. My main gym is the Downtown Sacramento Super Sport. It reopened today- but 24 has been pretty good at sending updates, i.e. when it closed in March, and how they were planning on reopening: I reserved a workout time on the 24GO app the day before: I arrived around 6:05, and could not get in because the club was closed for cleaning. The club manager informed me that they start cleaning at 6 and it takes 25 minutes. That reassured me re: sanitation as 20 or so people walked out without wearing masks. I also saw the manager cleaning the door. (screenshot of 24's safety video) People were crowding around the entrance, and not lining up according to blue tape outside whi...

TLDR: it was quick and pretty easy, I just gave up all my privacy rights (and agreed to be contact traced), but at least it gave me peace of mind I did not have COVID. ALSO: I did not have any symptoms, have been working from home and social distancing, and took the test to have peace of mind before visiting home.  I heard about the drive thru testing in Sacramento through the SacBee , and after seeing someone post about their experience - I thought I would sign up. Verily research conducts the test, which is meant for people in CA who do not need immediate attention. You can sign up here:  https://www.projectbaseline.com/study/covid-19/eligibility/ . Here is a timeline of the process: Friday, May 29 - sign up for 10:30 AM appointment on Monday, June 1  June 1 - 10:15 AM- arrive at Cal Expo  Drive to the old Disneyland California letters, to realize that is the wrong entrance 10:18-20 - drive around to other entrance and to check-in area Confirm my a...

Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim has been open for about half a year, and I finally got to check it out, as well as Lunar New Year at Disney California Adventure (DCA) when I went this past weekend for my friend Betty's birthday. My take on Star Wars: Immersive & Expensive  Right now, the hip new thing at Star Wars land is the Rise of the Resistance attraction. People go to DLand at 6 AM just for a chance to get on the ride. Essentially you go to the park at opening and bid against thousands to get a boarding pass (See Micechat  guide ). We went pretty early, getting to the parking lot around 8:20 AM, and the boarding passes were already out. Apparently they went out the first minute. Star Wars land was still open, so we checked it out in the afternoon. If you enter from the side of Critter Country, the entrance isn't as epic, but you pass by the Rise of the Resistance entrance where lots of people will be. The structure...