Oh yes, work has been fun. I'm still trying to get the hang of everything, which is half the battle. Then there's the battle of the BBs. Every day I need to email a report showing the census of all three hospitals. No problem... except they want it broken down for JUST their department. That's all fin and dandy, except neither of the two UCLA hospitals or the private one list patients that way. So what's a girl to do, you say? Count beds individually. 330 for one, 200 for the other. The third just gives me a general guestimate, which I have no control over. The wrench in the works is that I still don't know all the doctors names. It's hard for me to give an accurate count other than looking up each doctor I don't recognize. Cue the time issue. So it takes me about an hour to do this. Fine. Whatever. They want numbers, I'll give them numbers. Except they keep changing exactly WHAT they want. And they don't even agree with what each one wants individually. So yeah, I'm just sitting tight until my boss gets out of her meeting so I can once again try to narrow down what the hell I should be doing. Once my job kicks into high gear this shit is going to mean diddly squat. Unfortunately it's they've pushed back the start time for me to step in until sometime in mid-August. *twittles thumbs*

Uhhhhh... EVERYTHING! I don't care that there's a smudge on the wall or that the windows are dirty (how often do they clean nine stories up). I don't even care that the temporary chair is set for munchkin height because the temporary desk is so low Billy Barty would sit here with no problems. It's roomy and more importantly... I don't have the two BBs of my department breathing down my neck. Right now it's all mine (eventually I'll have someone else working with me) and I've got a window view of Santa Monica that can't be beat. Plus... the house staff is right next door and they are uber nice. Everyone here is. Oh yeah... and they're not here that often so the whole floor is relatively quiet (they have a conference room but keep the doors closed). I can always close my door and eat in peace or listen to music without disturbing anyone. I'm just amazed at how different this hospital is from the main one. The atmosphere is calmer, the doctors are more laid back... and everyone is just more pleasant in general.

They've ordered me a beeper so I am going to be attached at the hip. Even that is cool beans. I am just enjoying the hell out of myself. Being away from the BB's office is a HUGE relief. Soon I'll be able to set up my desk and then when my computer comes I should be able to do more online. I just don't want to risk it with the temporary one. If all else fails I'll get the laptop and just do my own thing. I'll have my own printer, copier and mini refrigerator. Plus they're ordering a water cooler for me. I just want to pinch myself. I know once I go into high gear I'll be panicking (unless they actually give me instructions on what to do... ha ha). But it will still be something new and exciting and a totally different atmosphere. Plus... I LOVE MY NEW BOSS! She took Friday off to go surfing. How cool is that? Pretty fucking cool, that's what.

I took a few days off to celebrate my birthday and take a breather from work. It was like heaven. My birthday started off a bit rocky. I needed a haircut badly so I went to my hairdresser in the early afternoon. I felt guilty about using 'the cheap stuff' to try and lighten my hair a few weeks back and apologized to her. Yeah, I'm a total pussy. She said it looked fine and offered to highlight it. As you recall I wasn't too hip on the highlighting from before. It looks great when it's down... but like the bride of Frankenstein when I pull my hair back. Guess which way I wear my hair 90% of the time. Yeppers... So anyway, I said okay because I was stupid and she did my hair. The cut looks fabulous. The highlights? I think I'm going to need therapy. I'm not one to wear my hair down. All that flipping back and tucking makes me feel socialitish. I dunno.

The evening rocked my socks off. Cat and Mark showed up with TWO cakes (vanilla for my boring ass and chocolate to mix things up). We hopped in the dirty Rav4 and headed over to Houstons. Jake called beforehand and they said the earliest reservation was 9pm. He called at 5pm. We did it just in case and walked in to a 20 minute wait. Awesome... Two glasses of wine later I was feeling no pain and we enjoyed a great dinner. Once we arrived home I changed into something a little more comfortable (sweats... how romantic) and they brought out the cake. It was awesome. All sorts of awesome.

On Sunday I drove Cat and Jake up the wall trying to find new outfits. People think I'm joking when I give them the 'I HATE shopping and am miserable to be with' warning. Now they know... Monday I took the car in to get the damn radio replaced (thank G-d for warranties) and have it serviced. Tuesday... Tuesday I was a total bum.

I can't tell you the rest of my weekend just yet... but lets just say I was really happy with how it turned out.

Some times it just doesn't pay to be a dork. I decided to play with my food this morning (because I'm giddy from caffeine and my boss isn't coming in) and snapped this random photo.Yes, I am a sexy bitch. What you don't see is the lady who sits next to me standing up and seeing me in all my broccoli glory. Yet another classic moment I'll never live down. For some reason being a complete idiot on the internet isn't the same as in real life. Online it's some sort of expectation. The sillier the better. Of course once you cross over into the 'shamed' line you can never go back. That fine line between 'LOL U R teh FUNNAY!' and 'OMFG! What a LOSER!'. So far I've only skirted around the 'Heh' area. Nothing too humorous, but not too bad either. I've gotten a few 'LOL's, but not enough to be 'teh FUNNAY', which is fine by me. Jake is 'Teh FUNNAY' and it's a rough place to be. Once you get there you're expected to always be 'Teh FUNNAY'. I'll happily settle for the 'Heh' and 'Dork!' status. No expectations and enough positive feedback to keep me happy. *looks over at coworker* Meanwhile my offline antics are giving me some sort of 'You're so crazy' title I'm not sure I want to deal with. Not the same expectations as 'Teh FUNNAY', but easier to slip into the 'OMG! She's REALLY crazy'. Ahhh, the titles we all wear. *sips coffee*

After looking at this picture its a wonder I managed to get to work. Between the time change, the medications and the lingering illness I am seriously dragging my ass. I couldn't even open my eyes until the third try. Yay for Flickr and it's easy uploading options.

This weekend is going to be spent fucking around and NOT thinking about work. I also plan on sleeping in... which means my cats will be on death watch if the even so much as peep at me. Phoebe had decided that 2am is a great time to get some late night lovin. Considering Jake doesn't even get that, I'll be damned if I'm going to pay attention to a cat. First order of business is to get a new squirt bottle for the bedroom. Pronto. If I even hear a peep I'm aiming and firing in that general direction. Expect stories of wet cats and early morning mop ups in the near future. If that doesn't work I'm buying a Super Soaker.

My boss finally arrived at work at around 11am, still sick but on the mend. I can't believe she's even attempting to come in... especially how sick she was. She also managed to forget her keys and asked to borrow mine. "Okay, only if you wash them off afterwards." It's the little things that make my life enjoyable these days. I had to practically pinch myself so I didn't smirk while saying that.

I try to take nice photos. I smile, bat my eyes and make sure the makeup is on right. Jake does a last minute flex pose and gets almost 100 views. Granted, I added the photo to the All About Male group on Flickr... but come on! His photo is on page 26 to 30 the last I checked. So he's still mega popular 30ish pages back. Yeppers, the love of my life is Mr. Popular among gay men who prefer Bears. Yay....

I've been taking more self photos lately. Part of the reason is boredom, part because I'm finally beginning to be happy with how I look again. For so long I didn't want to see myself in a photo. It was another reminder of how much I've changed since the accident. Another ache in my heart that I was not getting better and another push to the realization that I either had to do a life altering surgery or suffer in pain. A year and a half later and I am beginning to remember the old me. The old life. Now I just have to save up so I can get out and enjoy the world outside. That's NOTHING compared to what I've been through. That's a fucking cakewalk.

Yeah... so this morning Jake and I had a fight. First he wakes up late... after turning off his stupid alarm that he set for four in the fucking morning. I mean come on! THEN I find out he didn't buy enough energy drinks and I am out. Whatever. He's so late that he can't run to the store so I grumble but deal with it. He quickly hands me my lunch bag while cooking his breakfast and I look in. Crumbs. He gives me crumbs for a snack. Aparently he ran out of THOSE too. Meanwhile he has all the ingredients to cook a big breakfast and all his needs are taken care of. Me... not so much. Selfish much? Fucker...

Every year it's the same thing. Hurry to get in line to vote and then wait on the committed (and VERY slow) volunteers to look you up in the system. This year I was determined to get there before the rush and arrived at 6:45am. I parked in front of a man who obviously had the same idea. I jumped out of the car and he followed, as if he wasn't quite sure of what to do. I was amazed that there were no other people around. I walked up to the usual spot only to see it was closed. They moved the spot and only put letter sized directions to let people know. Way to make it difficult guys. I tried following the confusing directions and was herded back on track by a nice guy who obviously did the same thing. The grin on his face should have told me something was up. This year they had something special. A new system. A new system that elderly volunteers had to figure out. Kill me now.

I arrived at the door sans makeup and looked at the guy in front of me. Cute, kinda pushy... he reminded me of the actor who played the boyfriend in Wedding Crashers. He might have been too. Anyway, he was quite chatty and we rolled our eyes at the slow moving line and inability to find names of people who had lived at the same spot for years. The new fangled machine seemed to stump the three volunteers for a bit and I thought about coming back in the evening. I figured NINE hours was enough time for them to at least get the fucking thing working. Finally it started to make noises and the people went to their polls. I started going into a spot and the man yelled for me to wait. Apparently they're segregating pollers now. I had to wait for a DEMOCRATIC polling spot. Lovely. The cute, pushy dude pointed me in the right direction and I quickly voted. Afterwards I waited for the volunteer to tell me I passed the 'You Know How to Vote' test and get my fucking sticker. I walked out and met up with the cute pushy dude, who wanted to chat some more. We laughed about the voting process and how it never gets any better and I made my way towards the... stopping to show a few wayward souls where the new location was. At least I have my sticker....

This weekend was a blast. On Friday Jake and I went to Pattie's house to check out the new puppy. After squealing and cooing we all settled down to grab some dinner and then talk. I never realized how much work a puppy was. Waking up every few hours to walk her, and then having to hire someone to come to the house during the day. My desire to get a puppy dropped significantly after our visit. It's above breeding, but below another cat.

On Saturday we drove to Cat and Mark's house for dinner and to pick up a portable A/C. We went to Daphne's Greek restaurant (Yum!) and then Target for the Air Conditioner. After wandering around for a bit I asked a salesperson where they were. "We're out". WTF!?! Granted, it has been warm... but to sell out was just bizarre. After pouting for a moment we decided to head to Trader Joes for some wine desert.

Once back at the Cat/Mark homestead we drank wine, munched on cupcakes (which I got sick from. Go me!) and they played the Guitar Hero game Jake gave them. Even as I drifted in and out of sleep I didn't want the night to end.

Sunday the Gruesome Foursome (Jake, myself, Cat and Mark) met for a late second lunch/dinner. Cat and I snapped a photo in the bright sun (see Flickr account) and then parted ways. Jake and I went to feed a friend's cat that was away and trekk down to Home Depot for a fucking portable A/C. After the Target incident I had Jake call to make sure they had the one I wanted. Nope... So we nixed that and went home. An hour later Cat and Mark stopped by to chat and we taunted our friend Mike with Chicken breasts (finally the photo is explained) to see a photo of him. I am one of those weird people who just love photos of people. Especially people I care about. it's a moment in time to remember, a photo to see someone and smile... and I am a total camera whore. Show me more pictures, damn it!

It's Purple Thursday. I'm reaching, I know... These are the books that were on display for a bookcase in Ikea that Jake bought. Nice, bookcase, too!

I need to get out and start taking photos again. Hell, I need to get out! I've fallen off of my exercise routine since Jake went back to school and it's a bitch to get back on it. He's no help in the support area either. I totally need a buddy system here! It's also hard when I basically have two and half hours after work to jump online, eat dinner and then exercise. Last night I tried a little Sims time and it sucked away an hour. I think that game is going to have to be a weekend toy only. Meanwhile, I am late and have yet to write a rant for NoChickTrix Oops!

It's Purple Thursday, damn it! I'm at home feeling like crap from a mother-fucking head cold. All the classic symptoms that annoy you JUST enough to not want to go to work, but not enough to take away the guilt for doing it. So Now I am sitting at home and feeling icky. Meanwhile my boss gave me enough compassion to make a flea feel suicidal and I just want to be better and go back to work.

Anyway, about the photo. My boss wanted to take some photos to be put up on our website and dragged me into taking some. Besides the fact that my hair looks crappy she had me try and look pleasant and happy while she took the shots. Oh sure... So this is me trying my best to look like I really want to be there fifteen photographs later. I deserve a fucking Oscar...

It's 7:12am in the morning. I am *supposed* to leave by 7:02am. So what do I do? I grab my friend's sun glasses that were left behind and mug for the camera to mimic the one Jake did. Four or five shots later I gave up and rushed out the door... and barely made it to work on time. All things considered the photos came out pretty decent. It was worth the few minutes I took... even if I drove like a maniac to make up for the time lost. What sucks is that I'm only 13 miles from work. Most places that is a few minutes away. Most places aren't in Los Angeles. Here you drive by the watch. If it has ANYTHING to do with the freeways you double the time. Triple it if you are driving during peak hours. You know... 6:40am - 11:30pm. Those hours.

You know work is boring when you resort to extreme close-up sideways photos with the cam phone. I swear my cell phone shots are rivaling my camera shots on my Flickr account. If only the color was better.

I want to go out and take more photos, but don't want to fill my page with random shots of birds and flowers. Then again, filling it with random shots of me at work isn't much better. I think it's time for another field trip! I still have to upload photos from my El Capitan outing and the San Diego zoo. Part of it is laziness on my part (resizing/sharpening/etc...) and then there's... Actually, it's just laziness. :/ I need to just get my ass in gear and start doing what I want. Part of my problem is my TV mentality. Everything's exciting for about a month, then I lose interest. The other part is only wanting to do things with JakeD. I want to travel, but only if he wants to. I want to start photographing, but only if he wants to join me. I know I need to do things on my own, but I'm in this 'share our lives' routine that makes everything else just sound boring. *sigh*

Screw it, I'm using the shitty photo. I wanted so bad to find something purplish to post for Purple Thursday and couldn't find a thing. I hate feeling like I am forcing myself to take a photo of anything just for the photo. you were inches away from an ad for Celine Dion. Gah!

Now that Jake has classes on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays I am left to either walk alone (as if) or ride the stationary bike. Not that we see a whole heck of a lot walking the same streets. There's only so many shots of crows and graffiti you can take. At home there's even less. "Oh look! Phoebe is in the broken litter box!" "Yay! Trixi just hocked up a hairball!" *click* *click* Of course my 'waving in the car' ranks right up there with sleeping kitties, but oh well.

I swear I'm going to start a photo album on stupid people signs. While at Universal Studios we came across a sign that said not to sit on the escalator, complete with stick person showing what not to do. This was just one of the many 'no shit' types of signs that we seem to need in order to keep us from peril. Another of my favorites is the stick person crushed by closing gate signs. I just hate to think we're that stupid as a whole to need these sorts of signs. My friend made a comment about how sad it was that someone was actually this stupid and they had to make a sign to warn them from doing it. We glanced over only to see three people on their way down sitting on the escalator. They overheard our conversation and sheepishly got up. Part of me wanted to say 'No no.. Please, just sit. Let Darwinism take over'. But the rest of me was too busy staring at them slack jawed to get those words out.

Jake and I went to Universal Studios with our friend Pattie this weekend and had a blast. It was a last minute day trip that ended up being worth every cent. We took TONS of photos and walked our asses off. It was nice to just get out and be entertained. I gave it a review over at 43 Places, and decided to cross post it here.

I just got back from Universal Studios and had a blast. They are constantly changing and upgrading the tours so it's always something new. I took my boyfriend, who has never been to Universal Studios, and my friend. We arrived at opening time (9am) on a Saturday and there were hardly any lines. We headed straight for the guided tour (a MUST SEE) and walked right on. The rest of the day we spent going through the different attractions and enjoying the day.

If you are into movies you will appreciate this more. It is geared towards showing people what happens behind the scenes and giving them an enjoyable time.

Attire: Prepared to get wet. Most places have at least a mist. By the second ride my makeup was off and my hair was wet. Keep this in mind when carrying bags, cameras, etc... Comfortable shoes are a must. It's a very large place.

I enjoyed every attraction I went to, so I'll give a break down of my opinion of each (I did not go on all of them so this is an incomplete list of what is available):

The guided Tour: Go there first to beat the lines. It's a great ride where you get to see set designs, surprises and thrills. My favorite part on this ride was King Kong as far as scream value. My friends' left ear can attest to this.

Jurassic Park ride: Be prepared to get soaked. SOAKED. I swear you would have thought someone stood over me with a bucket of water by the time I got off. It's perfect for the hot summer days.

Backdraft: Perfect for after Jurassic Park ride to dry off. A pyrotechnic show with some surprises. I never saw the movie but it was still highly enjoyable.

Special Effects stages: We had a blast in here. Sit down and watch how the magic happens. Everything from Blue Screen to CGI is covered, as well as sound effect. The tour guides were hilarious and we had a lively group.

House of Horrors: Oh G-d! I screamed my way through this place. It was definitely one of my favorite parts. I walked in expecting some sort of museum about horror films and ended up walking through a VERY dark haunted house tour. I have a scream factor of ten so I spent half the tour scaring those around me.

Back to the Future ride: Fun but a tad long in the beginning. The signs give warnings about claustrophobic people but I didn't think it was bad. It's a simulator that takes you on a trip through time, flying around.

Terminator 2 - 3D: There was an obnoxious guy on the mic outside which was funny for about 2.3 seconds... but thankfully he was not part of the ride. Long intro, so be prepared to stand. I was almost ready to leave when we finally went into the seating section. If you like 3D movies and special effects together you will enjoy this one. The funniest part was the 'commercial' showing how Shaq's free throw improved with Cyberdyne technology.

Revenge of the Mummy ride: A roller coaster with fun special effects. I thought the warning signs were a tad over done. They made it sound like a terrifying ride that only the healthy should ride (back/neck problems, seizures, heart trouble, motion sickness, recent surgery, prosthetic limbs, etc...) It was a little too short but still worthy of checking out. I wouldn't bother standing in a long line for it though.

We ate lunch at Doc Brown's Chicken, which had decent prices and really good chicken. There are tons of places to eat or grab drinks.

Overall: City Walk is an interesting place to go in itself. You can hang out, eat and go to the movies. I would recommend this to anyone wanting to enjoy a fun day who enjoys the magic of movies and fun rides. The park is kept clean and the staff are very friendly. You can always find someone to help you with directions and the rides are enjoyable for all age groups. I'm not sure why some did not like the place, but we had a blast.

What a day today was. I didn't get a chance to breathe. By the end of the day I had sent over 80 emails (and gotten twice that in response). It started off with four emails asking me to do different reports, all due by 9:30am. This was at 8am. After that it was a series of orders until she had to go to her meeting (thank G-d). I continued to work on the original report due when she came back with more work.

After asking to meet with her I started to relay my encounter with Heifer from the day before. She cut me off, saying she just wants to see if it's taken care of. That sent me into bitch-mode and I snatched the papers off of her desk. She tried to calm me down by explaining that she's got a million things to do and I gave her my "FINE" response that sets the hairs on the back of her neck on end. I hate when she wants to meet, but only so SHE can talk. I finally managed to tell her most of it. Afterwards she calmed down a bit and we managed to stay out of each other's way for the rest of the day. That is, except for the volley of emails that never ended. At one point I tried looking up the sentence for breaking someone's fingers... but figured I'd stick to just deleting them. Thank goodness it's almost the weekend!

Jake and I decided to go to the Huntington Library this weekend. We had a blast! Jake ran over to Coffee, Bean & Tea Leaf to grab a couple of Frozen Mochas I filled the tank at the local gas station. While pumping gas some twit calls for the attendant because she's having issues. After trying to explain that it won't pump when she tries, she yells "I'm not blonde, either." WTF!?! I jerked my head up so fast I almost snapped my neck. I yelled out "I am!" as uber bitchy as possible and the dipshit meekly says, "Well then maybe you'll be able to pump the gas" and shuts the hell up. The next time I saw that stringy haired cow she was driving away, ducking so far down she had to look through her steering wheel. Fucking heifer. Jake comes jogging back with iced mochas in hand and finds me furiously typing away on my Treo. He read the result (complete with annoyed picture goodness to get my point across) and laughed all the way onto the freeway. What the hell is it with people? Why do you have to go there? Why put someone else down? Bah!

ANYWAY.... We had a blast trekking through the different sections. You can check out my Flickr page for all the photos. Huntington Library is a library with art collections and outdoor botanical gardens that has plants from around the world. There's also a few museums to walk through and cool off while enjoying paintings and artifacts from the past. It's a MUST SEE for anyone living in or visiting Southern California.

Right now I'm sipping White Zinfandel and enjoying the rest of my weekend. *smiles*

Saturday we had a blast on our first official day trip. We started out an hour later than planned (beauty will not be rushed) and made our way up the coast in what turned out to be a wonderful ride. It added a little more to the drive time, but was worth it just to enjoy the scenery and get a chance to talk.

We finally arrived at Solvang a little after 12 noon and started to wander around the streets. Half a dozen tour buses pulled up and small groups of Japanese tourists piled out, snapping pictures at all the buildings and chatting politely to each other. The first impression of this little town is 'hokey'. Then 'touristy'. After peeking through a few shops filled with the best junk that money could buy I was about to call it a day, but knew Jake wanted to see more. As we walked around to more of the shops I wondered what it would be like to live in a place like this. It was the ultimate tourist-driven town. Every shop was filled with glass baubles and little Danish themed nicknacks. Then we arrived at the food section. Yummy deserts that we didn't get and overly priced meals that we also didn't get. Finally Jake found a decent priced cafe called Mandarin Touch and we started to enjoy the atmosphere. I even got to see the Clydesdale horses I remembered from so long ago.

The town is worth a visit just to see. You need to come with an open mind and just enjoy it for what it is: A touristy spot with nice people to guide you along the way. Everything is kept clean and freshly painted. The public toilets are everywhere and kept clean and stocked. The town maybe a tourist trap, but it's a well done tourist trap. I'm glad we went.

On the way home I started feeling... sad. The day was only halfway over and I just didn't want to go back to our normal routine: Computer or TV. Three O'Clock seems to be the most frustrating times for me on the weekends. It's almost too late to go most places and yet worth it just to get out. I looked at the clock and saw the time. I sighed. Jake asked what was wrong and I told him I still wanted to hit Santa Barbara... even if it was to just go on the beach. I admit being the fussiest person... so this was a last ditch effort to just prolong going to our crappy little apartment. He agreed and my mood lightened.

We arrived at the beach around four and parked next to a skating spot. Dips and curves that made me cringe were being treated as ramps by kids that came up to my hip. We oohed and ahhhed all the tricks they did and groaned when a few ate concrete in front of us. A couple of guys sat at the side with Skating Monitor on their shirts and listened to their MP3 players. Every once in a while one would call a kid over and hand them a helmet. They were always polite and the kids seemed to have a good repore with them. We ventured on, taking pictures of all the beautiful sites and walked along the beach. I asked a few people if they were locals and what restaurants were good. Everyone seemed to be tourists or new in town. We ended up eating at a restaurant back on Stearns Wharf. After choking on the *nice* restaurant menu ($34 for some sort of lobster dish) we ambled up to the bar/cheap restaurant called Longboard's Beach Bar and Grill on the upper level. There we had a delicious casual meal (the chicken strips are to die for) and drank some alcohol (I had two glasses of wine, he had some beer) while watching the boats and birds glide across the ocean. When the sun finally got close to setting we rushed out to snap a couple of photos. It was a wonderful day that I didn't want to end. I thought about getting a hotel room but figured we'd wait a paycheck (or two) and look for a few more spots to hit while there.

It feels so good to finally be able to travel around. I felt like we were falling into a horrible routine of just being together instead of enjoying each other. Saturday was a much needed shot of relationship 'couplism' time that was long overdo. Sometimes just being together isn't enough. You can be in the same room and still be miles apart. I look forward to venturing farther and traveling more. Yay for couplism!

I finally went out and spent some moola on new MAC makeup. Yay for me! After the first try (see Mall Hell entry) I decided to try another mall. This time we went to the Century City Mall, ate at Houstons and then popped into Bloomingdales to visit the MAC counter. Makeup gal was super nice and spent about an hour on my face... much to Jake's dismay. At one point I had purple eyeshadow on one side and brownish on the other. I asked which he thought looked nicer. "The one that doesn't make you look like I punched you in the face." Yeah, he was bored. Later on one of the other counter gals had him model clothes that she wanted to buy her boyfriend. It was pretty hilarious, even if he didn't actually put them on. I also had the gal write out the instructions (what to put on first) and she even added with what brush. Yes, Its been THAT long since I wore eyeshadow. Oy.

I also had a great long weekend that included seeing an old coworker/friend who moved away. We went to Claimjumpers and then walked around the Del Amo mall for a bit. I really missed her. Besides being the one person who helped me get my surgery she was a wonderful sounding board when things were crazy. She'd come over, smile or joke and everything seemed to be okay. She upped and moved to Nevada without a job in hand just to do it, which I am jealous of. I honestly don't know if I could up and move away like that. The rest of the weekend we lounged around and made plans for when the traffic wasn't going to be packed with holiday travelers. We're FINALLY going to travel. W00t!

Yeah, so I decided to torment my friend Steve with a glassy-eyed, pre-coffee, pouting photo this morning to lay on the guilt thick for neglecting me while scampering around with his hot new boyfriend. <333 Look at those eyes! Those pouting lips! That... longish nose. Jewish guilt, baby! There's nothing more potent in the world. Just ask Jake.

As you can see I am totally digging my cellphone photo/uploading to Flickr toy. Plus, sending random photos to friends kicks ass. Why text someone when a photo can say it all? Of course they'll be hunting me down after their bill arrives if they don't have a good deal. :/ I was totally looking forward to random photo tag with Unforgiven. Alas, it was a free weekend only for Mother's Day. I'd send him this photo to express how I feel about his cell phone deal but... Hmmmm.... BRB. *evil grin*

I was so excited to show off my newly fixed toyota Rav4 that I went with the shitty dark parking lot photo. No more dent! No more white paint!

On Sunday we waited all day for my coworker to call. By 3PM I was annoyed. I called and she said 5PM they'd be on their way. So we had a boring Sunday... at least there were no malls involved. At 5PM she called to say she was on the way. Jake reluctantly started dinner, thinking he would let it simmer. Thirty minutes later my coworker calls to say they were *just* leaving. Bah! We got ready for our evening walk and waited. It was worth the wait. The only problem is that he straped the bumper underneath the tire while putting it back on. Minor damage considering what I had fixed. I said no problem and they went on their way. It was worth every cent to have it fixed. I know there are going to be dings and dents on my car. I guess the first one is the hardest. Next time I'll think about my dwindling bank accound and live with it. Unless Jake's the one who does it. Then I kill....

I decided to go to the mall and get some new makeup. I casually moved passed the mob, noting the frantic movements of the otherwise catatonic salesmen and women at the MAC counter. A shortish girl buzzed over and asked if she could help me. I smiled and said, "Yes, I am looking for someone to help me choose matching eyeshadow, blush and lipstick." The girl looked like a deer caught in the headlights. She blinked and looked around as if to say, "Are you fucking kidding me!?!" It seems Prom night was that same day. After stuttering she asked me to hold on and disappeared into a mass of bitching mothers and fretting teens. Silly me, I actually thought she was going to get me someone. Five minutes of dodging frantic people later I caught the eye of another counter girl and said the same thing. She took a deep breath and said, "To be honest, there's no one today. If you come back tomorrow or next week someone can spend hours with you. But today... it's prom night." I took one last look at the madness around me and walked out... turning once to snap a picture of the chaos.

Sometimes it's the littlest things that make the day fun. Other times it's the most childish. Today was a mixture of both. Mike (Unforgiven) found out that there is a sweet deal on messaging with his cell phone on the weekend. After threatening to spam my cell phone with daily pictures from his bathroom I sent him a 'see food' photo while at work. If you don't know what a 'see food' picture is, you can see my photo HERE. Don't click it unless you can take a joke. I also sent that photo to Jake just because. Yeah, I know... I'm such a romantic. This weekend we've been sending each other various obnoxious photos of funny signs, tongues and the ever popular 'flipping of the bird'. No photo album should be without one of these timeless classics. Of course Jake just HAD to top everyone by sending Mike a butt shot. The funny part is that Mike thought it was my butt. As if I'd have a hairy ass like his. :p

I finally posted the photographs I took while at the Renaissance Fair on my birthday weekend on my Flickr account. This year the maiden VS wench radio was surprisingly high. Very few wenches (IE: women with boobs practically falling out of their tops) were waltzing around. A few older wenches were about (ew) and from the looks of it their boobs could have been chin rests. Floppiness is NOT attractive!

The Bold and Stupid Guys show was hilarious, as were the conversations of random people. One man walked around with a bunch of rope and started impromptu rope pulling contests. Jake jumped into one and their side won. There was also a few fairies (or pixies) that tried to cause havoc on unsuspecting people. One would play dead while the other two held rope across the walkway.

We walked in and Jake was skeptic. He assumed it would be something boring that you 'had to be into' to fully enjoy. Within ten minutes he was talking about coming back and dressing in costume. *smiles*

The costumes were fantastic (as usual) and the faire was very large. If you haven't been to one, it's a memory you won't forget.

I just realized I was wearing purple in this picture and decided to do a hail Mary post before Thursday was over. Don't I looke like such the little operator? I took this yesterday while getting ready for my birthday/mini vacation. Can you tell I was in a good mood or what? My boss was a no show on that day, which was fine by me. It was nice not to have any extra stress. Next week will be hell but it was worth it to just get away.

Today was my birthday. I turned the big 4-0. I spent it relaxing and enjoying the well wishes of friends. I got calls from people I didn't expect to hear from and MIA wishes from people I thought would. I guess it evened out. Jake bought me 18 long stem roses, which were mooshed by the delivery people, but still a wonderful gift. Later on he took me to our favorite restaurant, Houstons, where we dined on prime rib and artichoke and spinach dip. Yum! Later on we had some cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory that sent me into a sugar rush from hell. It was worth it.

We tried taking some photos together at the restaurant but either kept laughing, talking or making odd faces. All in all it was a good day. Tomorrow I continue my mini vacation by sleeping in, lounging around and planning our day trip to the Renaissance Pleasure Faire on Saturday. I can't wait!

Yeah, so I learned a valuable lesson this morning. One I learned YEARS ago from my dad and somehow managed to forget. The best way to keep a secret is not to tell anyone. The updated version is never tell someone something you wouldn't want the world to know. This morning I woke up to a link that reminded me that keeping something personal is impossible on the web. Imagine my surprise when a 'friend' decided to blurt out how I was 'coming out' since losing weight and it was about time to show how my outside looked as good as my inside. This was a HUGE surprise to me since all that I did is post some new photos on Flickr. Apparently posting photos is the equivalent of 'coming out'. So... since my weight loss has been discussed and now posted on someone's blog I might as well share what has been happening. Mind you, It's not like I've been keep this a huge secret. I have told people. I just wanted to keep it to those who were close to me and understood. Silly me...

Six months ago I had Bariatric surgery. Lets take it one step further... I used to be skinny. REAL skinny. I was active and could eat anything I wanted. Then I got into a bad car accident and it went down hill from there. I was laid up for a year with surgery, etc... and my metabolism slowed to a crawl. I slowly gained weight and tried all sorts of diets to lose it. What I didn't know was that every time I tried some new diet and ate less my metabolism went lower. All those fad diets killed my metabolism. Then I hurt my other knee and went in for surgery. Afterwards my back went out and I was almost immobile. I would stand to do dishes and my back would lock. I couldn't exercise to lose weight and the weight was killing me. It was a vicious circle and I had to put a stop to it. I finally agreed to do the surgery.

My life is very different now. I can't eat that much (no big deal) and have to be careful of what I eat or I get sick (kind of annoying). I remember talking to someone about the surgery who REALLY needed it. She was over 300 pounds easy and shook the ground when she walked. We talked about the procedure and what you had to give up. She balked and said no way because she loved food too much. That's when I knew I had made the right decision. Food is not worth your health.

A little about the procedure: My stomach is still there, but I don't use it. Instead they bypassed it and created a new 'stomach' the size of a 30 cc cup (like the ones you take meds with) that has an 8mm opening at the bottom (about the size of an eraser head). This means I have to eat slowly and chew everything until it can fit through that part. Needless to say, I have been dropping weight and starting to feel like me again. I can no longer wear my current clothes and have started wearing the older ones til I lose all of the weight. The best part is that I finally see ME again. I've still got a little ways to go, but it's all good.

If you have any questions about this I will be happy to answer. It was a rough ride to get to this point and I honestly didn't think I would even tell people about it. Weight has always been a sensitive issue for people and I guess I'm no different now that I've been on the other side of the size stick. I have learned a lot though. People judge you quicker, are less likely to be flirty and can be really mean.

About the 'outting'. I'm not going to mention (or link) the person who decided to talk about my weight loss. He didn't do it maliciously (that I know of) and did not mention the surgery. I do want to mention that I wasn't 'coming out' by posting a photo of me. I have taken many photos and just wasn't happy with the ones I was taking. But I have posted some so I don't know why he would think this was any different. To be honest this photo wasn't the greatest either. I had gotten back from chatting with Audie for about five hours and looked a tad tired. still... I was dressed nice and like the way my hair looked *vanity*. Anyway, back to your regularly scheduled blogging.

Last night was yet another round of stubborn heads between Phoebe and Jake. This time Jake started it. I have no idea why but he gets annoyed with when the cats are laying on me at night. One usually lays on my side/hip while the other lays over my leg. Getting up to pee is a treat. Anyway, Jake decides to push sleeping Phoebe off of me. That sets her in motion and she starts running around the apartment. Jake gets up and chases her around with the squirt bottle while I fuss at him. She finally jumps on the bed again, only to use Jake's crotch as a diving board. This makes him even MORE grumpy and the running with squirt bottle continues. Once back in bed Phoebe sneaks back onto the bed. Jake, in sensor mode, turns over and pushes her off. I fuss and she jumps back up again, shielded by my arm. Finally I yell "Just leave her alone. Jeesh." while she's trying to lay on my chest under my arms to hide from him. Mind you the whole time this is happening I am giggling. It's like a circus in our house.

Our office has been hit by the cold/flu/infestation from hell. My boss mentioned how everyone is sick and she doesn't want them around when they are. I mention that I have been sick and she does a 180. "I think part of the illness is mental. If you keep a positive outlook you'll be fine." I shot back, "So you're saying the recent outbreak around the country is a bad case of the grumps? Brilliant." With that she shooed me out of her office.

I loathe when people twist things to suit their specific needs. She wants the sick people who AREN'T working for her to stay home, but her staff to put on a happy face and get back to work. How's this?

Dorian loves to watch the fish. I think I got more just for his amusement. One night we heard him make a "yelp" sound and Jake stood up just in time to see Dorian leaning against the tank and waving both paws in what Jake described as 'jazz hands'. We didn't stop laughing for ten minutes.

Meanwhile his fur is just gorgeous. I was hesitant to get a long haired cat but he really doesn't shed. He's a big ball of love. *smiles*

Halloween was a fucking blast. I finally took Jake to see the West Hollywood Halloween Costume Carnaval. If you've never been and are planning to be in Los Angeles next Halloween... It's the BEST place to go. West Hollywood is made up of a mostly gay community and is a great place to hang out. The people are friendly, the streets are kept clean and there are some great places to shop. The annual Halloween party is held on Santa Monica Blvd and spans for almost two miles. This year they estimated about 500,000 people showed up. It was insane! The costumes were over the top and the people were all so nice. There were families with children of all ages joining in and everyone loved to have their picture taken. My only downer was that I forgot to change my camera setting to outside/night so the pictures aren't great. Jake got some fantastic shots, though.

We drove down Santa Monica Blvd until the roadblock signs warned of "Loooooong delays", then turned down a side street. After a few *cough* wrong turns we ended up at the parking lot. We arrived around 7PM (about 1/2 after everything started) and ended up on the fifth floor before finding a spot. After that it was a short walk into party heaven. Imagine four lanes with a median in between and people filling both sides. There were at least four radio stations with stages set up blaring music while people danced. The roads were blocked with police who were taking pictures and posing with people. We started up one way and the costumes just kept getting better. I kept asking Jake to take pictures and he finally said, "Next year. This is just so much to take in." I forgot how overwhelming it can be for someone the first time.

The best part about this party is that people spent a lot of time to come up with these costumes. Most parties consisted of the usual rentals and cheapies from stores. A lot of these were hand made or altered. As we walked down the road there were people gathered around spots watching others do dances and acting in costume. My favorite has got to be the Victoria Secret Models. Four men dressed in tight shorts and black wings that looked like super models. They would clear a small area and each take their turn walking the catwalk and posing like glamour models. I went nuts. They all had incredible bodies and were gorgeous. Another popular duo was the YouTube guys. They wore a box cut out that looked exactly like a Youtube page (pictures on my Flickr account) with fake/humorous ads on the top and side. Crowds would gather and chant "Rotate! Rotate!" until the guys turned the ads to say something else. Brilliance! The freakiest costume was the one I am using for my post. It wasn't JUST the costume. The guy had this high pitched maniacal laugh that made my neck hairs stand on end. I didn't know whether to laugh or run. I chose to just hide behind Jake and tell him to take a picture.

We walked for two and half hours straight before my back started to give out. I felt bad about having to go so early. Luckily our cameras batteries both died at the same time so it was a good time. This was one of the best Halloweens ever!

The ivy is gone! W00t! I took the first day off so they could work on our apartment. Jake's day off is today. Antonio arrived at 11:30am and we pointed out what needs to be done. He walked into the rooms, shaking his head. I was so embarrassed. I have been griping about how much I loathe this apartment for quite a while now, yet always found a reason to keep living here. Lately it's been the price. With rent control I'm living in a one bedroom for at least $200 less than most people. The landlord mentioned a two bedroom that had just opened up for $1,400. I almost died. No way could I afford that. After walking through my apartment, showing all the flaws, I am completely miserable about living here. *sigh* I was hoping we'd move after Jake graduated so it would be more permanent... and out of California. The weather (usually) is great, but the people... not so much.

Antonio tackled the easy jobs first. Changing the sink knobs and putting up the vertical blinds. They're buuutiful! I put a picture of them in my Flickr account. He then went into the bathroom and started filling the cracks from the earthquake. I kept a steady supply of water going to him. I can't imagine working in those conditions. Afterwards he went to the bedroom for the grand finale. After The vines had grown behind the metal part of the window and made it impossible to pull out the screen. He had to cut the screen and bend it out. Then he pulled off both window panes and started ripping the vines from the wall. Fuck the 20 ft ladder! At least for now. :P I took a picture of the ivy by leaning out the window before he put the glass back on. The vines are so thick! Today I'm going to try and take a picture of the ivy from the outside.

4pm came and Antonio packed up and left. Thank goodness! The place was so hot I couldn't wait to take off my clothes. I walked into the bedroom and leaped back out the door. No blinds. As you can see from the picture the bedroom is in full view of traffic, pedestrians and three apartment buildings off to the right. Lovely. After a few hours of playing 'dodge the public' we managed to hang the lace curtains. As long as the light was off no one could see in. Yay for public sex! I'm just happy that I'm going to come home to a newly painted apartment that has a breeze coming through the window. :D When all else fails: whine!

The battle between (wo)man, nature (and the owner) continues. When I moved in the ivy was just starting to grow. At first I didn't mind it. The ivy gave us some privacy from the neighbors. But after a while it started to block out the breeze and our apartment got warmer... and warmer. I spoke with the landlord on several occasions and he forwarded my concerns to the owner. A year ago Antonio, the handyman, finally started ripping down the ivy on our apartment building. I came home one day and three forths of it was gone. Then he stopped. Right... at... my... apartment. The reason? They needed the 20 foot ladder elsewhere. Okay... After a couple of months went by I mentioned the ivy again. Aparently the issue was bringing BACK the 20 foot ladder. No one had a car big enough. I went back to waiting. A year later the ivy is still here and now It's a health hazard It's completely blocking the window... in layers! My landlord comes down and checks it out. Vines coming through the window (which will now have to be replaced) and eating through the screens. He started looking around the apartment and mentioned all the things Antonio could do. After 14 years in the same apartment I was happy to hear they finally wanted to fix something. Fix the tubs? Great! Paint the walls and fix the cracks from the earthquake? Fantastic! Just make sure the ivy goes FIRST! He nodded and off he went. That was a few months ago. Then heatwave hit. After four nights of misery I put my foot down. The ivy needs to go. He agreed and asked me to write out the list of things to fix. Sure. Fine. Whatever. Just get the ivy off! I made my list and even stopped by the hardware store last night. $150 for a ladder. I called up the landlord and asked him if I should get it. He said no, that the ladder would be here. Fine.

Jake and I decided to take days off so someone would watch the cats while the handyman was there. The shitty part is that Jake won't get paid for his day off. *sigh* In the end I had better have windows with a breeze or there's going to be some hell to pay.

Today we're celebrating my coworker's birthday. The latest tradition is the last person who celebrated a birthday has to buy the cake for the next person. I was reminded about this new policy at the last minute. Last night I met Jake at the store after work to buy the cake. He got there before me and ordered it. As he walked towards the car he gave a warning. "The girl who did it was new". That was the first clue the cake was less than decent. He added, "And she didn't know how to make flowers". Oh great. I looked at the cake and just blinked. The flowers sucked, she used RED icing to write the Happy Birthday which clashed with the other colors, there was ribbon on top and little sprinkles around the cake. Then it came into focus. She put a ballerina on top. WTF!?! It had to be the ugliest cake I have ever seen. I'm just hoping it will fit into the 'it's so ugly it's cute' category. I don't think I'm ever going to live this one down....

Dorian... smelled. I mean really, really smelled. Since he's the type of cat that loves to crawl on our shoulders and plop his body on our faces it was time for a bath. He wiggled. He cried. Trixi cried. We laughed. He scratched us. Everyone cried. In the end he was clean.

I cannot believe how much I had to do to save one cat. On Wednesday I told the guy who owned her to simply get her shots and checked for viruses. One way or another she'd find a home. Friday morning I called him to see how everything went and he said he took her to the shelter. My heart stopped. Apparently someone called him saying she had a woman willing to adopt and he thought it was me. When the woman told him she wouldn't be able to pick her up til Saturday he said he was leaving on a flight and couldn't wait. then he muttered something about them having her spayed and shots as we speek, which was bullshit. Obviously the guy didn't know shit about shelters. I hung up the phone and frantically called "B", my hero who rescues kittens, to cry. she said I did my best and somehow it wasn't comforting. I had to try. I called the guy back and told him about her statistics (the shelter he put Maya in has a 70% kill rate), that they wont give her any shots until someone adopts her and that means she has a low immune system and won't survive. That got him on the guilt road to salvation. I told him to go get her and I'd take her for now. Then I hung up the phone and called the woman who wanted her to see if she would still take her. She called me back saying yes.

The guy asked if he could bring the cat to me, which I agreed. We met at my vet and Jake and I took over. He seemed nice enough, just not one to EVER have kids. Oy.

We spent three hours (and $260) at the vet getting her shots, tested and ear meds. Yeppers, she has ear mites. We brought her home for the evening and let her loose. She really is a sweet animal. Phoebe and her get along really well, Trixi's hissing and Dorian... well he's in hiding. Wimp.

My friend, who's always taking in pets emailed me with a friend's plight. He was given a kitten as a present and his landlord found out. Now he has to get rid of her by Saturday. He said that he doesnt want to take her to a shelter but he cannot keep her past then. She's indoor only, medium hair and very friendly. I'm asking my friend from Kitten Rescue but it's the worst time to find someone (kitten season). As it is she's bottle feeding kittens round the clock at her place.

Now for the gripe. She's 8 months, not spayed and doesn't have shots. Luckily she's only been an indoor cat but still. When you take on an animal you are supposed to take care of it! I'm really annoyed that the chick even gave him a kitten without asking if he could have pets. Her cat had kittens so she decided to 'present' them out. There are so many animals being killed every day. We need to start teaching people to be responsible. Don't get an animal unless you are willing to make a life long commitment. That includes medical care and getting them spayed/neutered. It's not as easy as just buying food...

I've started the process of a life altering decision... that I'm not ready to talk about yet. The first process is to start a more healthy lifestyle. I bought a HUGE container for water that I have to drink every day... which means I have to pee. A LOT. It holds 72 ozs/2.2 liters/8 glasses. Basically a shitload of water. I don't know how I'm going to pull this off during the week. I can't take the hourly potty breaks in the middle of the night, but it's harder to do it at work. Yeah, this is going to be fun.

Saturday was a strange day. I woke up and started up the computer, waiting for Jake to get back from the store. I was still half asleep when all of the sudden a loud crash is heard... followed by other crashes. You could tell it was bad. I jumped up and ran to get some clothes on, throwing my robe and slippers as I did. Then I grabbed my cellphone and headed downstairs. The crowd was already forming. Some guy in a white truck wasn't paying attention and slammed into a Toyota who hit an SUV which hit a Mitsubishi who slammed into a Ford Taurus. It was crazy. I frantically called Jake who was a block away. After he went up to call the cops I whispered (come down with the camera). Yeppers, I have no shame.

The ambulance arrived and this big guy got out to direct traffic while his partner made sure everyone was okay. Some twit decides to try and drive in between the crashed cars and the drivers. The EMT bellows "HEY! SLOW DOWN AND GET OFF THAT CELL PHONE NOW! Watch where you're going." The chick freaked out and slammed on her breaks. She was so frazzled that she couldn't even drive for a minute or two. He kicked ass... The scariest part was when the owner of the white truck tried to start it up. There was gas everywhere. Luckily the EMT stopped him. He said, "You're not going to even be able to turn your wheel. You can drive straight forever." *snickers*

I am still messing around with Imeem. I figured I'd try using the Flickr blogging feature to see if the photo showed up or not. Yes, I am still having fun with my new *toy*. :D

Right before the holidays a coworker asked me why I didn't wear a Jewish star necklace. I told her that ironically I would love one but couldn't find the one I wanted. I came back to work and she slipped a present infront of me. I opened it and a beautiful Jewish star on a silver chain was there. I literally wanted to cry. She gave me something so sweet and personal... and I had dick to give back. I know it's not about receiving but damn.... I wish I had something to give her. The photo doesn't do it justice. There are little diamonds in each star point. *smiles* Thank you, LaResha!

Last Sunday Jake and I took a day trip that took us through Kanan Road and onto PCH. It was a beautiful day for a drive and a great photo op. After half a dozen drive by shots we decided to stop at some scenic view points. What's frustrating is that the pictures really don't do justice to how beautiful it was. Imagine green hills as far as the eye could see and hardly a soul around except for the occasional car flying by. After living there for so many years I could finally appreciate how lucky I was. Now all we see around us are buildings and signs. The only wildlife around is the ferile cats and our idiotic neighbor. Need to see something green? We're lucky to have neighbors who have some beautiful lawns, but it's nothing like standing in the midst of nature. If we're REALLY lucky the outline of a mountain is seen in the distance... hidden by a thick layer of smog. *sigh*

My dear friend and coworker took a nasty spill at work yesterday. She had just put down some food for people to eat in an empty cupible and turned to walk out. At the last minute she noticed a drawer was ajar and tried to step over it only to realize a small trashcan was beyond that. She spun around and fell hard on her hip, fracturing it. She had surgery on it last night, and is feeling better.

I spent yestrday trying to call her husband, doctor and set things up. Unfortunately they brought her to the closest hospital, which wasn't UCLA. I am not happy about that. I'd rather she go to a place where I knew people instead of some rinky dink place that has a third of the capacity. After threatening to cut the balls off of the doctor if he screwed up I made my way home to pick up the freshly neutered/spayed kittens.

She invited Jake and I to her house for Christmas, so I offered to have Jake cook for her there instead. I just can't wait for her to be home so she can feel better. At least she has a steady stream of callers to drive her up the wall. *smiles*

Bernadine delivered Dorian and Phoebe last night. Yay! Almost all the pictures looked like shit because I was so excited. When Bernadine opened the cage they took off running and checking out the place. I thought for sure they'd be nervous, but they were more relaxed than we were. Phoebe *pointed out* several spots that need to be kitten proofed within 5 minutes. Jake and I did double time trying to catch the little buggers as they romped and played. Phoebe went behind the couch and decided it was time to play hide and seek. Unfortunately Trixi was there hiding from all the comotion. She hissed at Phoebe, who thought it was a game. Luckily that's all that happened.

We kept them in the bathroom at night so they could get used to the new home slowly. When we brought them out today they went wild. Jake and I sat there and watched them run and jumped all over the place. Phoebe is a pro at sneak attacks and has already claimed the top area of the cat furniture. Trixi watched them from under my desk, hissing at them when they ran up to her. They didn't seem to mind her too much, which was pretty funny. I think that will stop her from hissing faster than anything. It's no fun hissing if no one reacts. :)

After giving Trixi a peace offering of chicken we watched a movie on the couch with the little ones hopping in our laps. I felt bad for Trixi, but I know she'll be right up there with them soon enough. Bernadine called to check up on the little ones and I couldn't thank her enough for saving their lives and giving them to us. They're both complete charmers who love to snuggle and sleep on our laps. Phoebe uses my chest as a napping place, which I adore. I knew having large breasts would come in handy some day.

Saturday Jake and I got hair cuts. My friend owns a salon and is the best in town. He looked great (of course) and then it was my turn. I finally gave her the okay to cut my hair. It's been long for years (halfway down my back) and I needed a change. She happily chopped off 4 to 5 inches and asked if she could give me highlights. I've never had them so I said go for it. She talked of 'bold strips' and I nodded, not knowing what she meant. She covered my hair in tinfoil and I felt like some freak blocking alien mind probes. 20 minutes later she washed and styled it. I finally realized what she meant by BOLD strips. After putting on my best 'I love it' smile I walked to the car and stared at my stripes. Dude... This is going to take some getting used to. Jake said he loves it and I think it looks good the way she styled it. The only problem is that I wear my hair back (which shows the stripes more) and it's going to be curly when I wash it. The real verdict is ten minutes after I walk in the door. If I hear whispering, that means they hate it. *crosses fingers* Wish me luck.

When my camera first arrived we put it to the test. This is a shot of our street at night. You can see the screen but it's still a cool shot. I am having a ball with my new toy. :D

I sound like a slacker walking down the corrider at work these days. I can't wait until my toe stops being so damn sensitive. You'd think it was PMSing. Right now I am basically wearing flip flops until I can wear a shoe without screaming everytime the top touches my toe. What's great is that someone asked if I had a costume on at work on Halloween. I said that I was a beach bum and let it go at that. Suckers...

Jake and I spent the day at a woman's house who fostered cats. She was amazing. 12 kittens and 10 adult cats roamed freely about the house. All were affectionate and playful. She is a lawyer and does this in her spare time. By spare I mean every minute she has free. After five minutes of cuddling and playing with the different kittens we started talking about adopting two instead of one. The short hair Russian Blue mix was a bit too shy for us, so we focused on her two long haired grey brothers and long haired black sister. By the time we had left we were almost sure we'd take the one gray male and 1 black female. After talking about it tonight we decided that would be best. They were all so sweet and friendly, but the two we chose came up to us immediately and kept coming back.

A short story on the kittens. The woman found out they were on the KILL LIST because they had a cold. Although it's easily treatable, they choose to euthanize them. She rescued them and they are now almost over the cold. I called my vet to make sure it was okay and she said that as long as they are well by the time we pick them up it shouldn't be a problem. Count down til kitty time!

Jake and I went shopping over the weekend and brought home some new fish. Four Silver Tipped Tetras to add to the menagerie. They're really cool and very active.

I'm so picky about what fish to get. I want to stick with ones that are community fish. No nippers! There's nothing worse than a tank full of chomped on fish.

Unfortunately we lost two fish too. We came home to one dead loach (the older one) and my Rummy Nose Tetra. Now I have to search for another one. Aparently Rummy Nose Tetras are a rare find around LA.

In other news: It's a four day week. Woo Hoo!

I took this picture when I was at my old jobsite and just realized how much I miss walking to the parking lot at sunset. The sky is usually filled with the pinks and reds that signify the end of a day. Now I am usually rushing to get ahead of the traffic and miss the sunsets completely. It's strange how the little things mean so much more when you don't have them.

I am trying to keep a positive mindframe right now, but so far it's more like a trapped feeling. I just hope I can hold out until Jake gets through college and finds a job in his field. Oh well, it's a pretty picture.