smartlab lunches, 6.27.24

on thursdays, smartlabs provides lunch which is so clutch. today it was poke bowls. i got a teriyaki chicken one. it was pretty good. a few hours later when i went back to get a drink, they had leftovers so i had another one. along with the chicken and rice, they had vegetables like carrots, cucumbers, corn, etc. so it was fairly healthy compared to what i normally eat.

next week is july 4th so they are providing lunch on tuesday, which will be just as good.

-ratha 4:46pm, 6.27.24

lunch with tom, 6.26.24

tom and i have been trying to get lunch together for a few weeks now but it came finally came together today. we went to smokeshop. we always get the agave wings there because they are so damn good. i feel lucky to have met tom two years ago. he’s the man to me. we spoke on so much because it had been so long since our last lunch. his birthday is coming up in july, then his granddaughter is turning one a few days after, and his pup is now two years old. it’s true when they say life doesn’t stop because where did the time go?? tom also gave me some great advice and help to put a situation into perspective that has perplexed my mind for quite some time. only certain people can tell you the things you need to hear for it to resonate. as we ended our meal, we walked through moderna’s grand opening. we saw dylan there, who used to work at affinivax last year. he said he manages alexandria and the new moderna building. good for him. that’s my guy and i miss seeing him around.

it sucked that we had to go back to work, but this was one of the best lunches i’ve had in quite some time.

-ratha, 1:32pm, 6.26.24

changing the hoop day, 6.25.24

we were playing today after work when a few adults and a bunch of kids came to the basketball court. they said they had the courts from 5:30pm-7:30pm on tuesdays to thursdays. 5:30pm-7:30pm are our prime hours, so we’ll have to switch the day to wednesdays. the bad part is i lost the first game, so i ended the day 0-1, but the good news is i was able to get out there and hoop for one game.

these past two weeks i’ve been off, but i’m looking forward to next week.

-ratha, 6:24pm, 6.25.24

last minute goals, 6.24.24

i was rushing home to watch italy play croatia. we were down 0-1 literally the whole game. i was caught in traffic (per usual) so i put the game on streameast. we had been struggling all game to get some offense, so it was looking bleak. during the last two minutes, i had lost all hope. money had texted me 3 fire emojis and i didn’t pay no mind to it. then literally at the last minute, we break free and score the equalizer to move on to the round of 16. i couldn’t believe it. literally, last minute. that happens in basketball and sometimes even football, but soccer? i don’t think i’ve ever seen that before. in general, it is so difficult scoring in soccer, much less the last minute.

between the italy/croatia game and game 7 of the stanley cup finals is on tonight, i’ve been spoiled with sports since basketball ended.

-ratha, 5:24pm, 6.24.24

the tres leches pt. 2, 6.23.24

first off, happy gday to big bro! 37 is a big year, gotta make everyone count from here on out. 2nd, i finally got the tres leches pancakes from ihop and they were just as good, if not better, than i remember them.

it is late, but the trip to saugus was well-worth it.

-ratha, 2:15am, 6.23.24

face on a bag, 6.22.24

my cousins threw a graduation party for my nephew today. he graduated high school, so we had a big cookout in lowell. i pulled up, saw the family, talked to my nephew, and ate good food. he showed me his new car and i watched them play a game of pool. as i sat in at the party, i thought about my graduation and how transitioning from a senior in high school to a freshman in college was one of the best eras in my life. i told him if he ever needed anything to let me know. as i was about to leave, my cousin (his mom) passed out sunglasses and a bag of chips with his face on them. the bag of chips caught me off-guard, but that’s such a fire idea. i loved it so much i felt bad ripping the bag of chips open lol.

long story short, it was a good party with good company and good food celebrating a good kid.

-ratha, 6:32pm, 6.22.24

the tres leches pt. 1, 6.22.24

it is currently 1:59am in the morning and i am craving tres leches pancakes from ihop. the one in saugus is open 24 hours on friday and saturday. i know it’s too late to go there, but for whatever reason i’m craving like i’m pregnant, smh. i should go to bed but i just had a flashback to 2017 when i first tried them at an ihop in garner with chan one random spring morning and those pancakes are all i can think about.

maybe tomorrow night.

-ratha, 2:03am, 6.22.24

happy friday, 6.21.24

i look forward to the day i no longer look forward to fridays as everyday should feel this good.

-ratha, 2:33pm, 6.21.24

encore, 6.20.24

remember on monday when i said sports were over until football? fortunately, i was mistaken. they have the eurocup on and then there are the summer olympics in paris later this year. i didn’t even know about the eurocup until they showed it on the tv at the gym. italy lost to spain off an own-goal, smh. 2021 italy won it all so i got high expectations for them this year. i like soccer, but i only watch international play. i think it’s more exciting on the world stage. anyways, for the next few weeks i’ll have the eurocup, then for two weeks in august i’ll have the olympics.

not too bad because baseball never gets me through the summer.
though i do want to catch a game at fenway for the experience.

-ratha, 5:44pm, 6.20.24

hump days off, 6.19.24

we have today off for juneteenth. it so happens to be a wednesday and you know what, that’s not too bad at all. i always thought mondays or fridays were the best days off, but today feels good. i napped, did some laundry, walked btg, read 20 pages, and i’m about to hit maya for their wednesday buffet.

slow, yet productive, days are refreshing.

-ratha, 5:56pm, 6.19.24