Commencement

5/13/2023 Saturday
Today Berkeley is holding campuswide commencement. But we have to be there by 830am and taking the 6am flight is too risky. I didn't want to drive the night before and since none of my friends were going to that one, I decided to stay at home and watch it remotely. (You can't walk on the stage due to the size of it)




Thank you Porto's for getting me thru this academic year on the days that I don't commute..


5/14/2023 Sunday
It's drink time!







5/15/2023 Monday
I was on my way to LAX picking up my friend flying in to attend my commencement, I took the 110 express lane and the connector to 105 WB, forgot to exit at the first exit and kept driving, which became a carpool lane. A CHP officer saw me and pulled me over.. And I marked myself on waze lol..


That's a very bad day to get pulled over. She told me it's gonna be a $491 ticket. I said with sarcasm, "I guess that's my graduation gift then.."
"Okay sir, I've written you a citation, treat it as a warning okay?"
What do you mean by warning when you gave me a ticket... Now my commute cost is gonna pass $6k because of this expensive ticket..


Almost had a mental breakdown on my way to LAX, thinking of how expensive the ticket is and why I missed that exit! I drove to innout by Sepulveda, got some fresh air, watched my friend's plane landing, then drove to the terminal.


I told the story to my friend, he was shocked, "are you serious?" Well, it is what it is I guess. We then drove to Kettle's for dinner.




Then we went to play some arcade games, and this machine was the first thing I saw.. FACEPALM.


Racing game is my favorite, because I can drive whatever way I want.





5/16/2023 Tuesday LA-Berkeley
Leave home 921am XX6978miles
Arrive Campus 509pm XX7374miles
One day before engineering commencement, we drove up to Berkeley. It's my first time driving to NorCal, and I drove the entire way, which honestly was exhausting.


Finally reached campus!




You probably remembered me mentioning some creative regalia I made for my commencement right? Well, here is the answer. Before I started this commute, I decided to print a hard copy of my boarding pass for EVERY commute flight, and make a sash from them. I always remembered to print a hard copy, and never missed a single flight. It's crazy planning and execution right?









5/17/2023 Wednesday Berkeley-LA
Leave Campus 1258pm XX7397miles
Arrive Home 1109pm XX7822miles

It's finally the commencement day! Listening to the background music, I was so emotional. I've made it that far, and finally it's coming to an end.






Oh, did I forget to tell you I decorated my cap with all the clipper cards?


And I think I forgot to mention I made my master's hood from Southwest snack mix? Of course with those unique regalia, I had some interesting conversation with staff and other students.


Show time!




I like his facial expression lol.




Kudos to my friend for holding my hood, otherwise it'd be difficult to sit down.


After commencement, we had lunch in J town and started driving back to LA. But.. How could I miss this opportunity to take some photos in SFO?
So here you go, my special edition of commencement photos as a MVP100K




The check-in agent was so nice, she even asked if I would like to take a photo at the counter. YES PLEASE!


Love it!




"graduation gift" from CHP vs graduation gift from friend, oh well..


The following day, I started my short 10-day trip to Asia Pacific.
My 111st airline: Fiji Airways


It's actually my first time flying to the south of equator (after 900k+ miles in the northern hemisphere), so I was very excited.


My 112nd airline: Air New Zealand


My 113rd airline: Xiamen Air


Osaka! Osaka!


Taking Nankai Line to Namba




Hankyu lines at Osaka Umeda


Dinner with friend in Japan, the best way to end the day


Since I have 4pc 32kg/70lb luggage allowance, I bought a lot of snacks, duty free.




KIX-LAX JAL business class


I opted for the Japanese menu. Very tasty.










Soba noodle before landing


Back to LA!


The following day I started working again, coworkers asked, "you didn't fly in today didn't you?"
"I wish I could!"


Summary:
May 2023
6 trips to school, 13 flights (11 AS, 2 WN), 2 car segments (commencement), used SDC 8 times.
BART: $0.40
Airport Parking: $15.00
Gas: $256.10
AS: $56.98 (after 20% off from gift cards) PLUS 35000 miles
WN: $11.20 PLUS 3965 points
CHP: $491.00
Excluding mileage value and CHP ticket, cash total: $339.68
Excluding mileage value, including CHP ticket, cash total: $830.68

The commencement walk was epic, as I didn't see any other customized sashes. Even for the graduation cap, not a lot of participants decorated those, probably because everyone was already exhausted from academic workload. As I was driving home, I kept thinking, what if I didn't choose this lifestyle and lived in Berkeley like every sane person would do? But no, I'm different. That's why I'm here telling you my story, which probably no one has done it to this magnitude before.