Stripping sounds like a good alternative at this point.

Location: The deepest pits of Hell
Time: 12:41 AM
Date: July 19th

I am not one to listen to a Katy Perry song and feel a connection to it. As hard as I try, I never quite feel "like a plastic bag drifting in the wind" or "like a house of cards, one blow from caving in." I mean, don't get me wrong. This is clearly a lyrical masterpiece worthy of winning a Nobel Peace Prize, but somehow, I just don't ever feel like it's speaking to me. That was until yesterday, as I drove to meet a friend at lunch to discuss how to fix my life falling apart. There I was, listening to the radio and then I heard it: "If you only knew what the future holds, after a hurricane comes a rainbow. Maybe your reason why all the doors are closed, so you could open one that leads you to the perfect road." Katy Perry, what is this?!?! Did you reach into my soul to pull out that verse? I know perfectly well what my future holds. EMORY. SUCCESS. HAPPINESS. LITTLE ASIAN KIDS RUNNING AROUND. BEING A SURGEON. Paying for college will be my hurricane, but I know that a rainbow will come after it. I just gotta rough it out, y'know? Doors closed or not, I will blow everything out of my way and everything. will. be. fine.

That being said, I did ride four hours to Atlanta to go talk to the Financial Aid office. Uh, aid? More like abuse. I thought the point was to help me pay for college. They pretty much told me I was SOL because I didn't do the CSS Profile. Like, what even? Not only did both of my parents not go to college, but let's add in the fact that they're not even from this country. Oh, and let's add the fact that I'm an only child and I have no idea how to do any college stuff. Does it look like I knew I had to fill that junk out? To be fair, I TRIED filling it out, but apparently, I need to petition and waive to prove to Emory that I don't know my dad. Girl stop. I am so beyond offended at this point. Oh well, I just finished filling that out and I will forever pray that I will get some sort of money from it. If not, I'll still be fine. I still have to apply for a loan and after that, life will be fine and I will be fine and everyone will be fine and the world will be fine.

So, these past few days have been crazy/hectic/hell for me. Little did I know a few nights ago that my world would practically be flipped upside down. I was expecting a quaint little night watching a movie on Netflix and then BOOM! WHAT? WE CAN'T PAY FOR COLLEGE? SHUT UP, YOU LYING. And although, that problem is still being situated, it's much closer to being fixed. This is where I will give out shoutouts to everyone who have listened to me complain/bitch/moan/whine/cry/yell. Thanks Hatel for telling me everything will be fine in the end and enduring me turning into crazy Johnny, where all I do is yell and hate the world. In the end, we didn't get "DA MONEY," but I will be fine! Thanks to Fantasia for spitting out knowledge about loans like a pro and helping me get my life on track. Girl, you know I'm Chinese and I don't know anything about this stuff. Thanks to Beth for being my goon and listening to me be Ghetto Johnny where my speaking voice is a constant scream and making me laugh when I felt like forever crying. Thanks to Heather for listening to me talk about the randomest things, including America's Got Talent and past crushes, instead of focusing on more pressing matters, like my life. Thanks to Erin for being the wonderful little hipster she is and being there for me. AND THANKS TO AMAAN FOR BEING THE FREAKING BEST ROOMIE EVER. EMORY AIN'T READY FOR US. "DA ROOMIE." LMFAOOO. You guys are really the best and I would've been an emotional wreck without you guys!

If I was Harry Potter. Paying for Emory is Voldemort. AND WE ALL KNOW HOW THAT STORY ENDED...

xxxjohnny.

Confessions of a broke and soon to be in debt college student.

Location: MY HOUSE
Time: 1:54 AM
Date: July 17th

Okay life, let's have a talk. Where should we start? I know we struggled a bit about applying to college. Not only do I not know what I want to do with my life, but I also didn't know where to go. In the end, I figured I would be fine with UGA. Right? WRONG. You had to introduce me to Emory... well, to be fair, it was more of my parents' fault. So, here I was, applying to Emory. Now, I knew not to get my hopes up. I mean, Emory is a pretty bad ass school full of smart people, practically the hardest in Georgia (no offense to anyone else). I mean, I'm smart, sure, but I am definitely no genius. You're talking about the guy who spends half of class painting people's nails, doing hair or secretly watching Youtube videos on his phone. I admit, 95% of me was expecting to get a "BOY, SIT YO BUTT DOWN AND GO TO UGA." response from Emory. After getting my acceptance letter from UGA, I no longer had shame in my game. Here I am, ready to live it up in Athens.

BUT.... you accepted me. After pooping my pants from shock and celebrating, I felt amazing. I felt like everything I had worked for paid off and this was just a sign to show it. After being on the Emory website at least 123,593,403 times to make sure I was prepared, finishing a schedule and picking classes that took days to do, and countless other things, I was ready to take on the world. A little over a month left and my life would begin...

No. That's what you decided to toy with me. All of a sudden, you want to make my parents say "WE DON'T HAVE MONEY FOR COLLEGE. LOL, GO BACK TO UGA." What kind of games are you playing, life? Does this amuse you? Because I am anything but amused. Suddenly, you gave me the fate of whether I go to college or not. So, here I sit, researching everything I can about student loans and aid. You may think you have won this time, but you will be proven wrong. In case you forgot, I have conquered many tasks. Let us not forget how I beat out 7 people in a semester to be third in my class, or that time I got my IB diploma after two years of Hell, who else was it that made "poop" an acceptable word amongst friends? And Y2K? Yeah, you're welcome, world. The end of the world was no match for me. So, miracles do happen. And I consider this just one more task to accomplish. Pssh... $50,000 a year? Do better next time. How about $5 million a month along with my firstborn? Life. You. Are. Going. Down.

Maybe, I'm over-reacting. Maybe this is all just a part of Post-Potter Depression. Maybe, I'm just too busy mourning the loss of Lavender Brown, but trust and believe that I will win in the end.

So, in conclusion, everything will be fine. Even if I have little meltdowns along the way.

xxxjohnny

Goodbye is the hardest part.

Location: Incheon, Korea (Incheon International Airport)
Time: 7:57 AM
Date: July 5th

Hi, my name is Johnny and I like to boohoo cry when I leave people. Ok, so I didn't boohoo cry, but I was doing that awkard thing where I wanted to cry, but I was trying not to cry, but I ended up tearing up anyways.

It's funny that my first post ever of my vacation took place at this airport! Because Koreans are kind people who love giving out free wifi. However, I did not appreciate the 5 hour flight from Vietnam to Korea where I felt like I was going to die on the plane, but then the feeling went away leaving me to wonder if I was even awake or if it was just a dream... My life.

I spent the last week chillaxing in Vietnam. Nothing really crazy or out of the ordinary happened. It was just to be able to relax after doing tours back to back to back in three different countries. Leaving is such a bittersweet family. I got used to living with my family and basically doing nothing all day. The only downside was not having my phone or hanging out with people, but it was also a nice break to clear my mind and get refreshed. It's weird to think that I've been out of the country for five whole weeks. I've missed so many big newsworthy things and events, but I experienced things that I'm sure many people won't ever get the chance to experience.

Things I'll miss: my family, being forced to go play badminton, Star Channel and Channel V, waking up way earlier than I would at home, being able to stay home all day, actually eating 3 meals a day at the table, doing more things a day than I would in a week, having the shower consist of the whole bathroom, riding taxis and motorcycles, being in a room the same temperature as Antarctica.

Thins I won't miss: SQUAT TOILETS!!!, no A/C, death traffic, cars honking, not having a cellphone, slow internet, being up when everyone in America is asleep, having to sneak around the house when I wanted to poop, being able to stay home all day, eating way more than I would normally, spending 24/7 with my mom (or close to  it), the world falling apart when I'm gone, flights, feeling like I'm about to die at the randomest times.

Overall, this was a crazy and amazing journey. I had so much fun, met tons of people I'll never forget, and to see what it was like to live in three different countries. Will I do it again? Definitely. Except with different countries of course. Traveling is way too fun for me not to. However, it feels TOO good to be going home to America. I know we may have had our problems, but I truly see how amazing you are and I would not want to live anywhere else. Irony that I'm returning home on July 4th. Funny how things work out!

So, this is my last journey. The forever long flight to Atlanta. Hopefully, I will make it! Heck, if I can survive China, I'm pretty sure anythin is possible at this point. I have TOO much to do when I get back, especially preparing to leave for college. Crazy to think that in about seven weeks, I'll be moving out and living in a different city.

Fact: I'm totally old now. Where's my cane?

In conclusion, It's been real, Asia.

xxxjohnny.

Ni hao, Kai-lan! (Part 3)

Location: Outside Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Time: 10:34 AM
Date: July 3rd
Day 5
We flew over to Hangzhou, which I have never even heard of before that day, but Gwen lives there right now! So, that's pretty cool even if I didn't get to see her. The first place we went to was the West Lake (Uh.. I think.) I was super, super tired that day and I wasn't really paying attention to anything. They took us on a little boat and drove us around and showed us interesting things. I was kinda half asleep, but it's all good. The lake was really pretty and so were the surroundings. I do remember the Baochu Pagoda though, which was made for prayer.

After that, we went to the Yue Fei Temple, which was a little walk away from the West Lake. The temple was built in honor of Yue Fei, who was a famous general and the model of loyalty in China. There were huge statues and elaborate wall paintings there and it was interesting. When we were done, it started raining and we had to walk all the way back to the bus. Repeat of Beijing, much?

Next, we went to go have tea. I don't remember much about this... So, it must've not have been exciting. It was one of those show and sell things. After that, we went to see a show called The Romance of The Song Dynasty, located in this little theme park looking area. I was this close not to going because I was really tired, but I went anyways and am I glad I did. It was one of the most spectacular shows I have ever seen. The props, technology, costumes, acting and everything was just so on point. There were scenes when half the stage turned into a lake and rain came from the sky and scenes were actors literally would appear out of nowhere from all directions. I die. Definitely worth going to. After the show, we drove a few hours to Suzhou to sleep for the night.

Day 6
The first place we went to was the Lion Grove Garden which housed several cool artifacts, but the main exhibit was the crazy pretty gardens. The coolest part were all of these rocks that intertwined with eachother and created this sort of maze that you were able to go into and climb around to take pictures. It was super fun.

Next, we went to a temple but I don't know what it was called. I think it might've been the Hanshan Temple, but I'm not sure. I just remember there were religious stuff everywhere and it was really cool. I also remember a bridge... if that helps.

Next was a show and shop place. Silk is the major producct of Suzhou, so we went to a place that showed how they got silk, how it's used and the products

After that, we left Suzhou and went to Shanghai. Shanghai is ridiculously beautiful and have the biggest and most elaborate buildings ever. I fell in love. The first thing we did in Shanghai was go shopping. First, we went to this one section that had the main typical Beijing stores and restaurants. People were everywhere. It was so crazy and I was getting a headache just being around everyone. It was similar to the US, nothing too different about it. After that, we went to a different section that was more tourist-oriented with less brand stores and more cheap stores. I managed to get a ton of stuff there because I went to the equivalent of the dollar store. Oh, there was also an H&M. There were also a bunch of people peddling their goods on the street. It's so annoying because they harass you until you buy stuff or until you snap on them. It got old quick.

At night, we rode a ferry around Shanghai and saw the city as it lit up. It was super beautiful.

Day 7
Last day in China!

First, we went to the Jade Buddha Temple. It had some of the coolest statues ever. The grand hall had like 30 giant statues in it. The jade buddha was also incredibly cool. Next, we went to a show and sell place, but this time, it was for pearls. They showed how to tell the difference between real pearls and fake pearls (apparently, real pearls are not all perfectly round.) and then people got a chance to buy stuff. This one lady got a pearl neclace for $500. Crazy. Next, we went to this scenic area where we looked out over this lake and got to see the city. It wasn't anything special, but it was still nice.

Once again, we went to another show and sell place. This one took forever because it was jewelry but the guy that was showing us around kept on giving discounts on the products. One bracelet was like 135 yuans, but he sold three for 100 yuan. He also marked down two necklaces for 100 yuans and people lost their shit. People were just buying things left and right and idk, money was flying every which way. It was kind of hilarious. I got a few bracelets to give as gifts.

More show and sell, this time it was at a steel place that did a lot of kitchen appliances. I felt like I was in heaven because I'm weird and I love watching those late night infomercials where they sell you 543249 different types of knives and demonstrate how to use it. They basically did the same thing here. The knife place was also hooked onto this other building that literally was like a maze of doom because it was one long hallway of products. It was seriously the longest walk ever of people just trying to sell you stuff. I thought it was just chocolate at first, but then it was coffee, toys, clothes, disney stuff, makeup, etc... I was like wtf?!

Finally, we flew home with a transfer in Shenzhen. At this point, everyone was tired to death to the point where we were all sprawled on the floor with our shoes off. Touring is draining!

Currently, I'm chilling in Vietnam and I'm coming home in a few days!

xxxjohnny.