I love this book....
I went to the library the other day and picked up a book called Haircoloring in Plain English by Roxy Warren. It answers just about every question about hair color that you'd ever ask...and then some. It explains a lot of the chemistry and biology about how and why hair dye works. I thought the book was fascinating and read it in one day.
Of course, when Kirk saw me with it he asked, "Why do you need a book to tell you how to color your hair?" He didn't really get that there's more to just grabbing a box off the drugstore shelf. Yes, you can do that, but you might not get the color you want. For example, no matter what box dye I used, my hair was still too orange. Using beauty supply store colors, you get a lot more options of base tones (the underlying color that box dyes never give you beyond the general "ash" or "golden" in the title). To fix my orange-y hair, I bought dark ash blonde with a green base (using the color wheel, green cancels out red--it was a toss-up whether I should use a green base or a blue base). Strangely enough, despite the base tone, the dye still looked purple. Of course, who cares what the dye looks like as long as your hair comes out the right color in the end.
It tastes just like Cherry Coke, only cheaper.
I did lots of shopping today....I finished my Christmas shopping in an impressive hour and a half, then I went to the grocery store. While I usually go to Save Mart, I stopped at Albertsons, 'cause it was on the way home. I found some amazing things there. Number one, off-brand cola. The Albertsons brand cherry cola actually tastes like Cherry Coke (my favorite soft drink). I've mostly given up on actual Coke because it's expensive. But the Albertsons stuff was $1.25 for a six-pack.
The other great thing I found was an entire 6 feet of freezer section of vegetarian goodies. They had vegetarian taquitos with fake beef or fake chicken. I bought the beef ones, and they're quite good. Much better than my cooking disaster the other night. I'm terrible at frying things.
In an update from the last entry, I got my DHC CD from Tower (yay!), and I sold the Best Buy card to my parents.
Don't buy Best Buy giftcards!
One of my friends bought me a giftcard for Best Buy for my birthday. Stupid me forgot about it (and didn't have it in my wallet) when I bought the car stereo. That's okay, I thought. I need to replace my Dance Hall Crashers Live Record as it was stolen along with Kirk's car stereo. (Theives with good taste.) So, I logged on to bestbuy.com, where they had the CD for $13 and shipping's free. Cool. But when I went to check out, I learned that you can't use giftcards at bestbuy.com. Many retailers let you use giftcards online or in the store...heck, I even used a gift certificate for towerrecords.com once; I just had to mail it in. But Best Buy has yet to graduate to the 21st century.
You can also arrange for store pickup through bestbuy.com, if there had been a single store in the Bay Area with my CD. ("Available for pickup in most stores," it says. Yeah, just not in the ten around here.) I called the 800 number just to make sure there was no way around my problem. The guy's only suggestion was to call my local store and see if they could order it. According to the lady at my local store, nope. However, she told me that two stores in San Jose had the CD, according to the computer. I called one of them, but I was told they don't carry that CD anymore. So, the only way I can get my DHC Live Record is to buy it...from a different store.
So what have we learned...don't get a Best Buy giftcard unless you know the person has mainstream tastes and can actually use it at the store.
Downtown Snow, the revenge
Two weeks after the adventurous three decided against partaking of the San Jose Downtown Snow ritual (i.e. skating on ice that looks like it hasn't seen a Zamboni in a week), we decided to try again. The weather was questionable, so I was smart and called the rink. They said the ice was wet and thus they hadn't run the Zamboni...again. No big this time, 'cause I had a backup plan called the Ice Centre. The adventurous three (Jenny, Kirk, and I) plus my mom headed to the nice big indoor rink. Of course, even this ice hadn't seen Zamboni love for several hours, but it was bearable. The center patch wasn't bad at all. And, as with public sessions, there were far too many small children for my taste.
After skating, we adjourned home to change clothes, etc., before meeting for dinner with a few other folk for my happy birthday to me event. After some running around by people who misinterpreted directions, we all met for a nice big meal followed by presents. Fun! After that, all the twenty-three year olds went off in search of the Britannia Arms. I only had a vague idea where it was, and apparently Jenny's idea was even more vague, 'cause she and Megumi ended up wandering around San Pedro square.
At last, we found the Britannia Arms, but there was no karaoke. We (well, mostly the boys) amused ourselves with foosball and some sort of hockey game. When I'd resigned myself to games and TV, a soundsystem appeared. The karaoke lady had arrived, bringing with her binders full of songs to choose from. We sat ourselves around the binders and took eons to pick anything. Finally, Jenny and I busted out with "Lady Marmalade." Of course we spent as much time cracking up as singing. It was a whole lotta fun, especially when Megumi and Jenny did some Linkin Park. I'm all for a return to the Brit...nice casual atmosphere, free karaoke, and reasonably priced drinks (I've heard the fish n' chips are good, too). All in all, a nice way to spend a Sunday night.
San Jose's Downtown Snow
So, Bay Area people have perhaps heard of Downtown Ice, but Downtown Snow?! Well, the plan on Sunday was to go ice skating downtown, since the Evanescence concert in SJ has been postponed. So Jenny, Kirk, and I met at the rink, got our waivers to sign, and got out our money. Well, then the lady at the register noticed my skates and said, "You might want to take a look at the ice first." I did, and it wasn't ice I saw--it was snow. Apparently, they'd had problems with the freezing unit and thus hadn't run the zamboni. The ice looked like it hadn't been resurfaced in a couple days (and I truly don't think it had). I said no way (much to Kirk's relief, I think). So the three of us in our multiple layers of (California) winter clothing wandered around downtown and ended up having dinner at Johnny Rockets. We also found a really spiffy snowflake patterned light and a snow (bubble) blowing machine. But the ice skating will have to wait. What have I learned? Call the ice rink before travelling and wasting your time (or in Kirk's case, $10 in parking...I guess he didn't hear me when I said Jenn and I parked on the street).
The not-so-great nail polish experiment: day 7.
It finally chipped today. Sure it's three days short of Revlon's advertised 10 days (well, up to 10 days), but for me and nail polish, that's darned impressive. So I went to Wal-Mart and bought another shade of it.
What else? I spent way too much money today. I bought Skechers ($40) so I could have another pair of shoes to wear to work. They're black, white, and silver. Pretty. Bought jeans at Sears ($30), but of course the pair I liked best had a hole in them, so I'll stop at Oakridge tomorrow and look into exchanging 'em. I had to buy a size five! Bwahahaha!
And on the KOHL front...Kirk Patrick keeps looking to me for all the answers to the station's music programming. I'm not the music director...I just happen to be the music director's girlfriend. I just seem to know more than most of my classmates because they apparently don't pay any attention during their airshifts. Okay, I've also watched Kirk work when he's doing the logs, so I guess I have a little more exposure to the joys of scheduling than the others. I suppose I'd better get a good grade in this class. Oh, who am I kidding? I'm the girl who broke the curve on the midterm. Unless I royally screw up between now and next month, I'm getting an A.
It's just another manic Monday. Well, not really. I woke up this morning to the sound of a vaccuum at about 8:30 or 9, which is not much earlier than I usually get up (considering most days I don't work until 3 or 4 pm). I tried shopping for jeans today, as somehow most of my pants are now too big. I'd just like to say I hate the current style. Super-low jeans are not for me, and they're always too big at the waist (or as close to a waist as they get). And why is it that the pockets on women's pants are either nonexistent or just useless? I always envy how guys manage with just stuffing everything they need for the day in their pockets, while I lug around a five pound purse. I wonder if guys jeans would even fit me? Or maybe more expensive ones would fit better? I doubt it, but that's going to be my theory as to why Kirk's jeans often cost more than entire outfits of mine. I'll head to Macy's tomorrow to test said theory. I just want some pants that fit. Is that really too much to ask?
Continue reading " "Not to be all "miss product endorsement," but I am fascinated by Revlon Colorstay nail polish. I was at the salon on Wednesday, waiting for a haircut, so I started flipping through a magazine. They had a short blurb about this nail polish and how the formula is acrylic-based, similar to car paint. Their tests had it last 12 days. Well, that sounded worth a try, so off to Target I went. For $5, I got a box containing a bottle of color and one of topcoat. On it went, and three days later, this stuff hasn't even chipped yet. That's with resetting aisles and blowing up balloons at work, and washing and coloring my hair. Okay, so there's one little chip, but my actual nail broke, not the polish...darned shelf tags. This stuff is great for those of us who are incapable of actually being careful with our nails. I love this low-maintenance makeup (this and the Max Factor Lipfinity/Covergirl Outlast).
Continue reading " "Well, I had an interesting weekend...how about you? Friday, it was finally Halloween, so I figured the madness at work would be over. Nope. Can you believe we still had a huge line of people buying last minute costumes until about 7pm?! Get your act together people. I rushed home after work to change costumes (from a Catholic schoolgirl look to a dominatrix-y outfit). Kirk showed up with his (overpriced) Neo coat. It looked cool, but $80 for a Halloween costume? No thanks. We went to City Beach in Fremont, where the ads promised a 10-piece disco band, which sounded fun. Well, it actually turned out to be like House Band, but worse. Oh well, at least we got free Ataris tickets out of it.
Saturday morning I went to work on about 4.5 hours of sleep. Fun. I got to deal with all the customers who expected Halloween merchandise to be half price. "You're joking," one woman told me. Nope. I don't think I can be quite that deadpan about it. I finally got out of work and was heading over to Walgreens to scope out the discounted Halloween candy when my phone rang. The caller ID said "Kirk cell," which was odd, since he said he had to work from 3pm to midnight. Well, he said he wasn't going in to work (obviously).
"Are you feeling okay?" I asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
Okay, now I was worried. "What's wrong?"
Pause. "I hit the center divide at 65 miles an hour."
Well, you can imagine my shock and horror. For a moment, I forgot he was calling from his cell phone and imagined him phoning from the hospital or something. It seems that other than a few cuts and bruises, he's okay. I happen to consider that just shy of a miracle, because the Miata, on the other hand, is toast. Or scrap metal. Thank God for airbags, because without one, Kirk would be in the hospital.
Here's what happened. He was driving home after dropping me off at about 3am Saturday morning. He dozed off a little, came to in time to swerve to avoid an abandoned vehicle, slid sideways, and hit the center divide head-on. It sounds positively frightening. You don't how relieved I am that he's okay. The fate of the car is a little sad. It was a cute little car, plus it was all paid off. Now he's looking into buying a new car, well, a new used car.
After Saturday's excitement, I had a Not4Sale gig on Sunday morning. Kirk came with me, though he had to miss the Raiders game to do so--that's devotion. I was surprised, but he thought the show was really cool. I half-expected him to not like it. That evening, we went to SCU to see the Ataris. I think the crowd was more entertaining than the bands. We sat up in the bleachers and watched the insanity on the floor. People were moshing and crowd surfing, and playing volleyball with giant Live105 balloons. When we left, we saw a couple fire trucks and concertgoers on stretchers. That's why I don't stand in the front. I don't want to risk being trampled by idiots.
Well, that's about it for me. I think I'd like this weekend to be positively boring in comparison.
Two weeks to Halloween; then the madnesss will be over. Work is sooooo crazy this time of year. Then again, it's never boring. Apparently now the upper management has decided that having employees wear costumes is good for business. At Sarah's behest, I donned the Snow White costume to go with her Cinderella outfit. While I've never seen myself as Snow White, it was an okay ensemble. (And strangely enough, Kirk has been pushing for me to get a different Snow White costume--one with a much shorter skirt that, obviously, we don't sell.) I'm not sure what costume I'll pick tomorrow, but I think I need to bring different shoes. Black Vans and long dresses really don't go that well...I think jazz shoes would be better.
Well, it's off to finish making my batch of fudge. I've yet to ever get fudge to turn out properly, so wish me luck.
Thursday Threesome (on Friday, just to keep you guessing)
Onesome: Ain't- There's a lot of slang floating around out there. Some of it has even found its way into the dictionary. Is there any one word that you find more annoying than others? That you just wish would fall off the face of the planet, never to be heard again?
I can't really think of one super-annoying term right now. Of course, I'm a valley girl and commonly overuse words such as "like," "y'know," and "dude."
Twosome: It- It's/Its, they're/their/there. Just a few of the most commonly misspelled words in the English language. So the question is, when you blog, do you worry about grammar, punctuation and spelling? If you notice a typo do you go back and edit? Or do you shrug it off because everyone makes typos?
I wish everyone would not make typos. I try to use proper spelling and grammar. I'll fix it in email and in the blog, but I tend to leave errors in chat and IM simply because I don't notice the errors until after I've pressed return.
Threesome: Purty?- Purty/pretty, crick/creek, warsh/wash. All common pronunciations, whether they sound pretty or not. And one is mispronounced. What's one commonly mispronounced word that just drives you nuts?
Nuclear. All too often I hear people say nu-kew-lur. I can't stand it. Say it with me now: nu-klee-ar. The word "poosey" also bugs me, but that's because my boyfriend and his best friend say it all the time and laugh hysterically.
My goodness, I've gotten lazy. I just haven't felt like writing of late, so now, let me update you.
First of all, I can't go to Santa Barbara for Elysia's senior recital this weekend. That really sucks, 'cause I know it's going to be a great recital. But because one friend flaked and I didn't tell the other about the recital soon enough (and a whole bunch of other things) I can't go. But Khristine and I sent flowers, so that makes it a little better.
More bad news. Apparently not all California drivers know that when there are two left turn lanes at an intersection, they both turn left. Because of this, someone squished my mom's car. Don't worry, she's all right, and even the car didn't look as bad as I expected. Still, it's very annoying and a very stupid reason for an accident. At least our insurance provides a rental while mom's Corolla is being repaired.
Now for some good news. After weeks of house hunting with Adam, Brad, and Sou (and David, too, but he doesn't join us as often), they've found a house. (I'm so tempted to say "we," even though I'm not actually living there.) They're moving in this Sunday, so it should be exciting, especially since Sou and I both have to work that afternoon because it's the once-a-year inventory.
And on Monday I start my internship at a real live radio station. So I'll now feel like I'm working 40 hours a week, but my weekly paycheck will only average out to $3.50/hr (it's an unpaid internship). So we'll see how that works out.
Best radio jingle ever...
"Channel 104.9, the new music alternative, spending our nights killing the zombies that roam freely through Sunnyvale." - KCNL Sunnyvale, CA (Gotta love the Buffy reference.)
It's Wednesday, and thus time for....
Things I need to share with you from yesterday's radio show:
-There's a cat in London with more money than you and me put together. A lady left her cat a half-million dollar home and a $160,000 trust fund. That cat is living in style!
-From the San Jose Mercury News: Who knew McDonald's was so dangerous? A kid got his head stuck between the legs of a statue of Ronald McDonald. Employees had to coat the child's head with soap to get him loose. And by the way, the dad blames McDonalds, not himself for not watching his four-year-old.
-Can't wait to get your hands on Harry Potter, Book Five? Well, England's Sun Newspaper reports that stolen copies of the book were found in a field in Eastern England. But aren't you suprised the books were found in a field and not on eBay?
-Most everyone has visited Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. Well, Fred Rogers now lives on as an asteroid somewhere between Mars and Jupiter. In honor of his work with children, the International Astronomical Union has named an asteroid Misterrogers. Just think, if that asteroid ever comes hurtling towards Earth, it's correct to say, "Mister Rogers is coming...we're all gonna die."
Flashback! I decided to archive the whopping two posts from my old "my-diary.org" journal:
June 5, 2002
In the beginning...
Just to introduce myself to you, my unseen public, I'm 22 and just about to finish college. You know, at the end of high school, everyone asked, "what do you want to do?" I said, "I don't know." Four years later...I still have no idea. Really, the end of the school lifestyle is a bit scary. 20 years of school, but now what? I'll just take the Scarlett O'Hara approach: I'll think about it tomorrow.
What else do you want to know? I have a boyfriend, Jeff, whom I've seen but three times in the last three weeks. Long distance? No, not really. Just the mess that is the end of the school year. However, I haven't dealt well with his sudden unavailability. Last Friday, I thought it was all over. I wanted to go salsa dancing, as there was a free event at school. You can't go wrong with free. But no, he couldn't spare three hours of his life to do that. He had to finish all his papers by Sunday morning, even though they weren't due til Monday 'cause he wanted to start moving out on Monday. Still, I only asked for three hours. I'm sure he lost much more time than that just messing around doing everything but writing his papers. So I called him and swore horribly at him (I rarely rarely swear). He had nothing to say. We hung up. I thought that was the end. But the next day, he calls. It's like nothing happened. I don't get it. Nothing fazes him. Ever.
I try to be reasonable. I think I succeed most of the time. Still, he makes me soooo upset at times. Not that I get mad at him. I just get disappointed. He really just doesn't get it. Now, don't go thinking poorly of him--it may be that I'm just not making things clear enough, but there are days where I laugh hysterically and think he just doesn't get it at all.
Men are from Earth and Women are, too!
Everyone really needs to read this book Gendered Lives by Julia T. Wood. It's a textbook, but it's the most fascinating textbook ever. It's all about socializations of gender and how people act and react. If you ever say "I don't understand women and/or men," you must read it. No, the world won't magically start to make sense, but you'll have a lot more insight to people's behavior.
For example, whenever I complain of a problem, my dear boyfriend [if you're trying to play along at home, that would refer to Jeff] lists 20,000 possible (but rediculous and highly improbable) solutions. It makes no sense and annoys me horribly. However, I learned that masculine persons figure the best way to help someone with a problem is to simply solve it. Feminine persons, however, often seek or offer support. The reason all the rediculous suggestions annoy me is that I'd really just rather receive a little positive support and comfort.
What other tidbits can I offer? If you talk to a woman, she will usually nod, smile, or make some verbal acknowledgment (yeah, mmm hmm, etc.) to show that she's listening. Of course, she may not really be listening...women are just socialized to be responsive. Men, on the other hand, are not. So just because he doesn't say anything, it doesn't mean he's not listening. It doesn't mean he is, but it doesn't mean he isn't.
Busy day yesterday. We went to look at Adam, Brad, and Sou's potential house. It's a little old for my taste (the kitchen and bathrooms could use a little remodeling), but the others like it, and they're the ones that are going to live there.
After meeting with the gregarious landlord, we went to watch the boys play (alto sax and trumpet, respectively) at the first show of the season. It was very dark and cloudy, but there was a decent crowd. Unfortunately, they weren't crowding around the stage. At any rate, it was nice to see what the bands had been up to in the off-season.
The one weird thing is that I did have to see Jeff (aka "The Ex"). I didn't work up enough nerve to actually speak to him, but I watched him sing with his band. Let me tell you, that evoked an interesting barrage of emotions. I was also rather alarmed to see that after breaking his leg in January, he's still walking with a cane. Maybe I should've been a better person and called him a few months ago, but I didn't think he'd speak to me, anyway. What a difference from a year ago.
After the show it was nice (albeit unusual) to not have to pack up the equipment. Sou and I just packed up the spiffy folding chair and let everyone else do the real work. It was also nice to not have to mix for House Band, but the whole time I was thinking it would've sounded a lot better if I had. I mean, for the first half a song, we only heard one vocalist because two of the mics were off. I then ran over to the sound board and hit the mute buttons on the two channels that were off. I wonder just how long it would've taken the sound guy to realize the problem if I hadn't done anything.
1. Name one song you hate to admit you like.
Abba's "Dancing Queen." People always look at me funny when I say I grew up on Abba.
2. Name two songs that always make you cry.
Well, songs don't really make me cry, but here are some sad ones: Selena - "Dreaming of You" and Josie and the Pussycats - "You Don't See Me."
3. Name three songs that turn you on.
Well, well. Getting a little personal. Turn me on to what, eh?
4. Name four songs that always make you feel good.
No Doubt - "Spiderwebs." Save Ferris - "Come On Eileen." Dance Hall Crashers - "Lost Again." Cyndi Lauper - "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun."
5. Name five songs you couldn't ever do without.
Save Ferris - "Mistaken." Mariah Carey - "Love Takes Time" (my first talent show song). "Seasons of Love" from RENT (I got a lot of performance mileage out of that one). "Joy to the World" (gospel rendition, not Handel). I'm sure there's more, I just can't think of something right now.
Asking me to name song-related stuff is dangerous business. My tastes still change fairly often.
I know I didn't post yesterday, so pretend it's Wednesday, and thus time for....
Things I need to share with you from yesterday's radio show:
-It rains a lot in Seattle. Well, the sun is such a big thing there that Seattleites welcome it with a parade. The summer solstice parade features the usual things: floats, dancers, and naked people on bicycles. Now a man is suing the Seattle PD to protect his right to bicycle naked in the parade. There's a guy who doesn't want to lose a single moment of precious tanning time.
-The show that made teens across America sound like they’re from the valley is almost over. The first of the three final episodes of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" airs tonight at 8 on UPN. But don't wig; there’ll be more Buffy DVDs out in June.
-Jack Osbourne is apparently in rehab in Southern California, but no one seems to know what for. He's only 17...how much rehab can he need?
-Got some metalhead friends? If you know someone who's a member of the Metallica fan club, you can enter to win tickets to one of four free shows at the Fillmore next month.
Read this article. Now please tell me you are as disgusted as I am.
This high school's first integrated prom was held in 2002?!?! I mean, I didn't just jump 30 years back in time or something, did I? And now in 2003 these kids want a white-only prom? That is so outrageous that I lack the words to express myself. I can't believe that there are such narrow-minded people. This is why I really hate the human race sometimes.
Friday Five
only a day late....
1. What was the last TV show you watched?
"Good Day Live." I watch it to get ideas for my radio show.
2. What was the last thing you complained about?
People who call my show but no matter how hard I try, I can't get them to say anything of interest.
3. Who was the last person you complimented and what did you say?
Oh, that's a hard one. I don't think I've complimented anyone in awhile. What a bad person I am . . . I really can't recall.
4. What was the last thing you threw away?
A bunch of empty shopping bags that were cluttering up my room.
5. What was the last website (besides this one) that you visited?
The South Bay School of Music Arts (sbsma.com) to look at the May rehearsal calendar.
I have this condition...
My short-term memory is gone. I went to the ATM after work to deposit my paycheck. Just as I was about to leave the handy Washington Mutual drive-up ATM, I remembered that I also had my tax refund check in my wallet. Well, I went through the motions again to deposit the check, thoroughly aware that a monster truck was breathing down my tailpipe. So, I hurried along, feeling guilty for taking two turns at the ATM. But in my haste, I must have left my check card (which I use for everything) in the ATM.
When I got to Target and realized I was short a Visa card, I called the WaMu 800 number. I was rather impressed that I was only on hold a few minutes. Then, a nice lady took down all my info and said she'd cancelled my old card and would send me a new one. At least I caught my error quickly, but now I have to make $40 cash and a third of a tank of gas last me until sometime next week.
Thursday Threesome
Onesome: View- What is your favorite scenic site, either around your place, where you've traveled, or just that one special picture (like that Ansel Adams "Half Dome" shot)?
When I drive home at night on 680 (a freeway that runs on a hillside), I love the view of all the lights spread out below. You can see a good portion of the South Bay, and it's all lit up.
Twosome: From- How far is it from home to work? Are you a long distance commuter or do you just schlep on into the dining room/office?
I found my job when I was out for a walk one day. I've only walked home from work once after that, but it's a four-minute trip by car. School is a bit more. It's about 15 minutes to the parking lot, and another 10 from the lot up up up to campus (there are a lot of stairs involved).
Threesome: Afar- for the travelers out there, just how far have you gone? I mean, is the trip to Grandma's about it? ...or have you made it farther abroad?
The farthest west I've been from home is Hawai'i and the farthest east would probably be either Quebec or Miami (I'm not sure which is farther). Of course, even the trip to Grandma's is a 2-hour plane ride to Seattle.
Time for a lesson in interpersonal communication. Today's theory: reciprocal attraction.
The theory of reciprocal attraction is simple--we like people who like us. Now, this makes sense. How many friends do you have that don't like you? We generally don't get along with people who are antagonistic towards us. In a platonic sense, reciprocal attraction is great. In a romantic context, it may or may not be problematic.
For me, romantic reciprocal attraction is dangerous...emotionally. I'm such a sucker for it. I tend to be so flattered that someone likes me that I begin to like him in return, even if I wouldn't normally. It's brought me two boyfriends that have caused my friends to ask, "What are you thinking?!" It has led me to make some very bad choices. It also left me wondering why I don't date guys I actually like.
So now I worry that I've fallen prey to reciprocal attraction again. But maybe not, and I just think I have. It's terribly confusing. Then again, the one time I know it wasn't reciprocal attraction but one of the other several theories that drew me, the relationship was still a disaster.
It's time for the soul-bearing blog. Woo. Not that I feel you need to know this, but maybe I'll look back and laugh...or say, yeah, I was right.
So for the past month or so, a friend of mine has been trying to set me up with her boyfriend's best friend. Well, "set up" isn't quite the right term....more like relaxed, low-key double dating. I've had a lot of fun (e.g. see the entry about going dancing). Anyway, he's a great guy, and I like him well enough, but I have a lot of baggage (and who doesn't?). I fell in love with my last boyfriend (and I'd never done that before); then he left. Men leave...that's what they do, no matter how sincerely they tell you they won't. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not looking for pity. Lord knows I know there are millions of people with far worse problems than me...this is also why I said you don't really need to know this. I just like to get my thoughts out in the market of ideas.
Anyways, here I am with my buckets full of doubt. My friends said, "Give him a chance." And I'm all for giving people a chance, because everyone deserves a chance. Still, I have a lot of reservations. Am I ready to go through all of this again? My last relationship left me with several months of depression and a mild dependency on sleeping pills (the latter has since passed, if you were worried...the former has become merely occasional). Even better, starting in a month or so, I'll be forced to see my ex on occasion throughout the summer. *sigh* The last time I went out with a guy (in January) I burst into tears when he kissed me. Thankfully said guy was a good friend who understood. I guess it's time to move on. I sure hope I'm ready. I just...well, new relationships can be scary. I mean, do I really have that much in common with him? Do we have anything to talk about? Conversation so far has been somewhat stilted because he's kinda shy, and apparently I make him a little nervous. Honestly, beyond the sterling recommendation of my friend and a handful of conversations, I know very little about him. I don't know what the hell I'm getting myself into, and that's really frightening to a control freak like myself. If things go badly, will I fall apart again like I did last year? I can't do that again. I really can't.
Still, I want to be fair to him. I feel like I should try. Does that make any sense? I really don't want to hurt his (or anyone else's) feelings. That's me, the great peacemaker--such an expected stereotypically feminine role, but I'm sure I'll rant about that in a later entry on feminism.
Friday Five
1. Who is your favorite celebrity?
Favorite, how? I like Alexis Denisof on "Angel," but I haven't seen him in anything else. I've seen many Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn films. I think Danny Kaye is hi-larious.
2. Who is your least favorite?
Well, I can't stand Keanu Reeves or Leonardo DiCaprio's acting (I use the term loosely), but I don't hold it against them, personally. I just don't think I'm well-read enough on that whole celebrity trash thing.
3. Have you ever met or seen any celebrities in real life?
I crossed paths with Bill Nye, the Science Guy once. He was at the Chittenden Locks in Ballard (Seattle), just walking and talking with a woman. I walked passed him and then whispered to my mom, "Isn't that Bill Nye?" The people right behind us asked the same thing.
I've also received e-mail from Kevin O'Rourke and Hugh O'Gorman of "Remember WENN."
4. Would you want to be famous? Why or why not?
Yes, because I'm vain and attention-hungry. However, I think I'd get annoyed with the lack of privacy. Still, I think there could be a whole lot of perks to living in the limelight.
5. If you had to trade places with a celebrity for a day, who would you choose and why?
I wouldn't want to. For one thing, there's no celebrity that I know enough about to have half a clue what I'd be doing in his/her place. It's confusing enough just being me.
I have outwitted the laws of physics. Thanks to the miracle of radio, I managed to be in two places at once this morning. I was on the radio from midnight to 6 a.m. and I was at home, sleeping in my little bed.
Yup, welcome to the wonderful world of voice tracks. This particular method is the cost-effective way the Clear Channel corporation rules its section of the airwaves. Basically, the DJ records everything he or she is going to say and often sends the tracks to other locations. In my case, I recorded my voice and told the computer when to start and stop the songs and public service announcements. I spent about an hour and a half to get the entire 6-hour shift done. And for the first time, I was able to actually hear myself on the radio...weird.
And, because it's Wednesday....
Things I have to share with you from yesterday's radio show:
-Daytime TV will get its first lesbian kiss on ABC's "All My Children" next Tuesday. Hollywood apparently considers the daytime audience to be conservative, which is why soaps are so far behind the rest of TV. I mean, remember Willow and Tara on "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer" in 2000?
-MTV announced the nominees for its 2003 Movie Awards. The top nominees are Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and Spider-Man with five nominations each. Four furry-footed hobbits versus your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man? You decide.
-Dreadlocks: they're fun, fashionable, and they make a great wallet. Prison guards in Norway found 2500 euros (about $2700 USD) in a prisoner's long dreadlocks. Can you imagine how nasty that money would be by the time the guy got out of jail? Eww!
I went "dancing" last night. I use quotation marks because I don't exactly agree with what kids these days call dancing. I prefer swing or salsa--something with an actual variety of steps and moves (and I think I found a place for those, yay!). Anyway, five of us went to the most prominent 18 and over club around, and the music was not only loud, but not exactly what I'd choose to listen to. (Except for the really odd dance version of "Hella Good." Did you know Gwen Stefani is part chipmunk?)
However, the right company can change all that, and I was out with some great people. Even though the booming bass was deafening and my high heels were causing my knee to spasm, I still managed to have fun. I learned some lessons, too:
1. People are easily led. If four of us went out on a completely empty dance floor, 10 minutes later, it would become a moderately crowded dance floor.
2. Having a Marine around is handy. My friend's brother came with us in his Marine Corps uniform. We got to cut in line (unintentionally, but they didn't kick us out) and we got a lot more respect than we would have without him.
3. If you can't pronounce "tequila," it's time to leave the bar. Hehe. Our extra light lightweight said she'd had a shot of tekwila. Then we got her some water.
I took the CBEST today (that's California Basic Educational Skills Test). With it I can get a substitute teaching permit in the state of California (or Oregon). Really, I wish they'd just let me submit my SAT scores. This test was so easy. They give you four hours and I took just over two and a half. It consists of 50 multiple-choice questions each for reading and math and two short essays. The most difficult math question was 2x + 26 = 50. And this is part of how we determine who can teach the kids?
Anyways, it was short enough that I was able to get home in time for a 12:30 showing of Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers at the cheap theatre. Everyone loves the cheap theatre, but the price is creeping up. It's already at $3.50 (having started at $2 two years ago)! Of course, compared to the $9.75 you'd pay at the Century theatre down the way, it's a bargain.
Friday Five
1. What was the first band you saw in concert?
Save Ferris at Santa Clara University in spring 2000. 300 people in one small room, and I ended up sitting on the horn section's monitors to avoid getting stepped on.
2. Who is your favorite artist/band now?
You don't know how hard a question that is. Right now, the album I play the most is by Evanescence. But my other favorites include Save Ferris (who broke up recently) and Dance Hall Crashers.
3. What's your favorite song?
"Mistaken" by Save Ferris. I find the lyrics often pertain to my life, e.g. "You said that you would never leave/A lie you told and I believed..." You get the idea.
4. If you could play any instrument, what would it be?
Guitar. I can kinda play, but I'd like to really be able to play (like solos and fast-changing fancy chords).
5. If you could meet any musical icon (past or present), who would it be and why?
I don't think I'd want to. We form our own ideas about these people we've never met, and perhaps I don't want to be disillusioned by meeting the real person. That, and I can't think of anyone I really want to meet.
Thursday Threesome
Time to: Are you a punctual person, always on time? Or do people have to tell you that everything starts an hour earlier than it really does, just so you'll be on time? Or are you somewhere in between?
I'm usually quite punctual and am often the first person to arrive. However, I can get lazy about class or work (especially this week!) and be a couple minutes late. I also have terrible luck with traffic. See, Californians can't drive anywhere without taking the freeway, and our freeways are a collection of champion bottle-necks.
Spring: After a long week, what puts a spring in your step? How do you spend your downtime?
Reading...music. No, not reading music (though that's fun, too). I like to just stay in bed with a good novel. I also like music...but sometimes it can add to my stress rather than relieve it.
Forward: As we enter Daylight Savings Time and the clocks spring forward, do you like having that "extra" hour of daylight or would you rather just not mess with it? Or do you live in an area that doesn't follow DST?
I don't like having to adjust to the time change, but I like leaving work at 6:30 and the sun hasn't set yet. Maybe if I got up at 4 or 5 a.m., I'd prefer to just stay on PST, but since I'm more likely to be out at 8 p.m. than 8 a.m., I'll take my PDT, thanks.
Things I need to share with you from yesterday's radio show:
-Blue ketchup. Yup, Heinz, the folks who brought you green ketchup in 2000, introduced "stellar blue" ketchup on Monday. Heinz has actually sold over 25 million bottles of colored ketchup (green, purple, orange, and teal) in the last three years. Now, in light of salsa verde, I can understand green ketchup, but orange....and teal? Um, ew!
-For those (like me) who can't stand screaming children: A Northwest Airlines flight attendant was convicted of trying to quiet a "severely rambunctious" 19-month-old passenger by slipping Xanax in the baby's apple juice. So maybe drugging the kid was wrong, but I bet there were several passengers who were extremely grateful to this flight attendant.
I had the strangest dream last night...well, this morning really...that just goes to show my subconscious can't even come up with anything new. It just rehashes other people's plots.
So, from what I can recall, I've joined what we at Television Without Pity call the MoG on Angel. Of course, the title character is not there because I think he's a dork. Mostly the dream was about me and Wesley (mmmmm) saving the world. So the talking trees (from Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers) tell us how to get rid of this worm-like thing (I think my mind was trying to come up with oubros, but could only remember Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets). Wesley and I are gathering clues as to what this worm thing is doing and how to get rid of it. At one point we have all the clues lined up and have almost figured out the message. There's a lot more that I can't recall at the moment.
Then I remember the end...I'm driving somewhere, though I don't know that I'm actually driving, because I'm going backwards! I swing the car around because I need to exit soon, and run right into a car that's trying to merge left by signaling but otherwise sitting at a standstill in my lane. Well, no one was hurt because I saw them soon enough to slam on the brakes, but still, I was going to be late to go save the world (or at least greater Los Angeles). Then the alarm went off. *sigh* I only have the good dreams right before my alarm is scheduled to go off.
P.S. Ignore the post below. I typed an HTML tag incorrectly, and now I can't edit or delete the darn thing.
I had the strangest dream last night...well, this morning really...that just goes to show my subconscious can't even come up with anything new. It just rehashes other people's plots.
So, from what I can recall, I've joined what we at
I've spent all day sewing. From 10 am to 6 pm, and boy, does my back hurt. So now I'm sitting at the computer. Big posture improvement there...heh. (So when are they going to develop the sarcasm tag?)
I bought five yards of navy blue fabric with white polka dots, partly because I have a great love of polka dots. I was thinking of making a dress kinda like a cross between Gwen Stefani's in the music video for "Don't Speak" and a swing-dancing dress. Well, after 8 hours of working, it looks a little too 1950s--instant June Cleaver; just add pearls.
Grrrrr....due to an Internet Explorer error, my post was eaten. Twenty minutes of typing down the drain. So anyways, let me teach you today's lesson in the art of radio. No matter how large (or small) your audience is, pretend you're speaking to just one person. Never say, "To all of you out there in Radio Land...." Radio is like being on a telephone, but you usually can't hear what the other person is saying, and there's a lot more music involved.
This past week, I've been on a Remember WENN kick. I watched my old tapes of the third and fourth seasons, and I resurrected my website. If you have never discovered the joys of WENN, check out my site or Linda's. So last night, I was watching their spoof of Casablanca, and at the end, our ingenue protagonist, Betty, must decide between the two men in her life: the staid, upright, and altogether good Victor Comstock or the roguish and occasionally unscrupulous Scott Sherwood. Betty types eight letters, but the last names of both men are eight letters long. I had a bunch of ideas about whom she chose and why, so I wrote them up today. You can read them yourself, because it's too long to rehash here.
Also, this being Saturday, I had rehearsal. I play keyboards and sing a bit in a pop-punk band called Senseless. For the first time in over a month, all seven band members were present. This includes three singers (well, including me). One of them just had a baby two weeks ago, so no one expected her back so soon. Not only is she back, but she has more songs than the other two of us, combined. I think something's a little off, here. I hope that when we finalize what songs we're doing (I keep rehearsing the wrong things!), we'll redivide the set to make it a little more fair. Poor Morgan. At least I have an instrument to play when I'm not singing.
Oh, no, we're on the air, and I haven't hired a writer! Well, I've been peer-pressured into the blog business. Okay, not really, but I've been terribly impressed by my friends' blogs (Mike, Linda, and Daniel). Thanks to the Remember WENN chat group for helping me with title suggestions. And the winner is...Mike, and his constant endorsement of anything named "Betty."
Once I figure out what the heck I'm doing, I'll make this all pretty with links and a new background, etc. But for now, this is a small-time operation running on an impossible budget. (There's a budget?)