BooTASTIC!

The night of Hallows eve in almost upon us, and so is the changing of the clocks. ick, so long to daylight......... I will rise in the AM, and leave work in the without the sun in the PM once again.

I am very excited about halloween, even though I am never satisfied with my costumes. Laura and I have tickets to see a taping of the Ellen show, and they called today saying that the taping we are going to attend, is to be aired on halloween, and to wear a "daytime friendly" costume. hmmm, daytime friendly......lets see......I suppose my french maid costume with whip in hand is out. (ummm yeah, not really)
I always have the hardest time with costumes! Every year, I anticipate halloween, excited and eager to be something really cool, something that will be talked about for months afterwards. Usually, after Halloween passes, I swear that I have an entire year to think about and obtain a potentially legendary costume, and then splat! it's spring already, then summer, then fall, and by September, the panic starts to set in. What am I going to be? Do I have the funds to cover it? then, it's mid October and I find myself going to party city or Spirit superstore getting a cheesy, overly expensive costume that never quite fits the way the picture shows it should. Such is my dilemma as of today. I suppose the 3 musketeer costume will have to suffice, but again, I am already thinking of next year and what I should be, since I have a year to think about it ..............

a love affair begins.......

at last, I am on the road with my new bike! I love it and the weather has been awesome to ride. mid to upper 70's and sunny.
The first night began with this unplanned passenger hanging on, I didnt like it.




And there she is, I LOVE my new bike. (not a flattering photo of me though) It rides very smooth, and handles nice. Of course this is my first bike, and my 2nd day riding, but, for a beginner, I can say it handles easily. It is exactly what I wanted, to commute and have fun with.
My biggest problem thus far is making sure I always turn off my signal. It takes getting used to, since after turns, it doesn not shut of automatically like a car. The first day I just rode around the neighborhood and luckily, there really isnt much traffic on our side streets, so forgetting about the signal light didnt cause confusion to any drivers. But by the 2nd day, I only forgot it once.

a little grumble helps the world move along

So within 3 hours of my blog concerning my grumpy day and waiting for my shit to arrive, 3 out of 5 things have arrived.
I do declare that a little rant to cyberspace can do some good.

random thoughts

-change brings new experiences. experience can create wisdom. dont be afraid of change, use it to your advantage.

-being sorry means saying your sorry. those 2 words can mean a lot to a person. we seem to throw around hate and fear, defensive attacks and offensive language, but the hardest thing it seems for us to do is say we are sorry. take the time to say your sorry, sincerely, when you can.

-people just dont think (at times niether do I ). I bought a FAKE crow at Target for a halloween decoration in my office. 3 people, 1 of them a software engineer who you would think had some sense, thought it was once a real bird, that I stuffed and now had displayed. this is a $4.00 bird people, that I bought from Target, and doesnt really look like a real dead bird. Comon people, I am not into taxidermy.

-why are there so many fucking cereal choices? they have devoted an entire aisle to cereal. doesnt this seem a bit much? do we really need that many choices?

-walk your talk, otherwise shut up. I am guilty of this, and I try to correct it when i am conscious of it. (if thats mis-spelled, i am too lazy to fix it) Sometimes i need to say less, it says more.

-an ex smoker never stops having smoking dreams. Had one last night, freaked out thinking I was cheating, and wondered why I was smoking. hate those.

-after all this blather, im just not grumpy anymore. it helps. hmmmmm........

sometimes we just cant win

Now, how many times have you experienced the over eager sales person who starts barking at you the minute you walk through the door, hangs within 7 feet around you like a hawk, watching your every move. They wait with anticipation incase there is anything you might need, you will let them know.
They are so aggressive that we fantasize in our heads about telling them to just "buzz the fu** off" and we will let them know if we need them, when we need them and not a second sooner.
Then there are times where we can experience just the opposite. We walk into a store, meander around a bit, look at the merchadise to be sold, waiting for someone to notice us, and say "hi, is there anything I can help you with", but this doesnt happen. We might look around, like we are trying to telepathically send them "notice me" messages.

Such an occurence of the ladder happened to me today. At first I felt jilted, wondering if they thought I was just not worthy of their time. and didnt I look like I was going to spend money, so they werent going to "waste their time"
Eventually I was helped, and the sales clerk was very nice, not displaying any characteristics of prejudice. As I left the dealership, I thought to myself, how silly of me to think that they might be profiling me, and not helping me because of some status quo issue. It was an ideal situation, I wasnt harrassed, and the staff was accomodating. I found it funny, because I am so conditioned to being "jumped" by sales people, that when the time comes that I am not flooded upon, my first thought is that there is something "wrong with me". It took a moment for it to sink in, and then I started to enjoy the act of browsing a store and not being bothered or feeling pressured for "just looking". I was amused by my reaction and my rationalization and finally my realization. it was a good "ah ha" moment.

hooked on another......

.......program. It is the fall, and it is also the season for the new series and shows. Old favorites are back, new ones emerge and our Tivo is getting full.
I decided to give the show "surface" a go and see how it was. Its hoakey, but not hoakey enough to turn me away. in fact, after the first showing, I reluctantly muttered "im hooked " . After the second show this Monday, I confidently proclaimed, IM HOOKED.
It could really turn out to be a bomb, but just the hint of scifi and world destruction by giant lizard mammal water creatures was enough for my imagination to fill in the void, and decide to tune in until I get bored.
I saw another great movie last night, "Schultze gets the Blues"
This was such a good movie. Very random scenes, and a story told more in pictures then in dialogue. The main character is soooooooo lovable, and it sucks you in fast.

brooding?

This is my cat, and like my cat, I sometimes too have this look. It is a look I get while trying to figure out just why I blog. is it for the fact that I am writing crap that no one really reads but me, or is it because I am an exhibitionist, or because I want to keep the few that do read it informed of my goings' on inside my head.
Whatever the reason, I keep doing it.

all said and done

Well, in 6 days, I went from never touching a motorcycle to getting my license. Today I took the written test at the DMV and passed. Yippee! So, dont you all feel safe now that you know it has taken me only 6 days to do this? yeah me too.

I learned something today.......experience far outweighs written comprehension.
So, as I mentioned earlier, I went to the DMV today to take my written motorcycle test. In filling out the paperwork ( and much to my surprise, the clerk was very friendly) The clerk asks me if I have taken the written test for driving a motor vehicle within the past 12 months. Of course I hadn't and she tells me that I will need to take half the test again, and gives me a handbook, and says you "might want to brush through this".
Being that it's DMV, I figured I at least have an hour or so to read up on the latest "rules of the road", but oh no, not today. No sooner did I finish signing my name on the application, did she say, ok, go to window 20 and they will take your picture and then you can start your test. EEEKs I thought. so on my walk around to window 20 from window 14, I rapidly thumb through the handbook looking for ANYTHING slightly unfamiliar.
This might prove to be an embarassing day, I might get my motorcycle permit, but fail the regular test.
Then what do I do I thought...I've had my license, and been driving for 20 years, and now it might go away? How would I get home? Would I have to break the law? Because I am certainly not going to leave my car there.
Rest assured, the test had not really changed since 1984 when I last took it, and the same stupid questions are still there.

So, with a sigh of relief I am finally legal, and can ride my motorcycle that I havent gotten just yet.

afternoon thunder

I had to make a post because I m soooooo excited. Here it was a sunny day in California, like it has been for the past 3 months, and then around lunch it started getting dreary. then about 2 ish, it started to rain, thunder and lightening. Now, about 4 people in the office were like "ooohh, it's earthquake weather" which comon people, there is no such thing!
Back to my delight, it's thundering, thundering as I speak and I am getting chills, I miss storm so bad living out here. I miss the musty smell of a good storm brewing and the low groans and bellows that mother nature can unleash.

1 step away from the road

So this weekend was mostly spent in the hot sun with a helmet, gloves, boots and a long sleeve jacket. You might be thinking why??? well I took my motorcycle safety class this weekend, which I highly recommend to anyone thinking about riding.
There was about 8 hours of theory and a written exam, and then 8 hours of riding instruction, followed by a riding exam. Now I have wanted a bike for a long time, and wanted to ride a motorcycle, the only problem was, I didnt know how. I had never set foot on one. I was quite petrified at first, but by the second day, I found myself becoming more comfortable with going faster and turning quickly. It was a challenging test, because they make you do these tight figure eight's within a small bounding box, then there are cornering and swerving techniques that are evaluated, including proper speed, not too fast, but not too slow. You learn a lot more about bikes, and I also have a newer understanding of motorcyclists that go inbetween cars when traffic is slow or stalled. It is much harder to control a bike going slow or in 1st gear behind traffic, then if it can go quickly between a tight spot. You also develop an awareness for all the things in and on a road that are hazardous to a bike, that you would never encounter with a car. I am happy to say I passed, and my score was pretty good considering I had never ridden a motor bike before. There were 4 excersizes we were judged on, and I aced 3 of the 4. My fourth one I had points taken off for rolling off the throttle slightly while I was in my 130 degree turn, but over all, I think I did pretty good, especially since 1/3 of the class already rode motorcycles and had their permit, but were going for their license, and I scored slightly better then them. little kudos to myself there. I am just so happy. I want to go out and get my bike tomorrow and start riding!! But.... there is one more step, so it's off to the DMV to get my license first, then I will get my bike!
I will also point out the importance of good riding boots. Mine were not. They were soft leather, very soft leather and after 2 days of riding, I have a little bruise on the top of my toe because of all the shifting.

Sunday Sunday........

I had this song running through my head, and it is Sunday afterall, ending yet another wonderful weekend. Saturday was spent mostly relaxing at home and watching a movie. This morning started out with a drive (in the mini) to Twist cafe for some breakfast, (eggs, potatoes, and toast if you are curious) and then it was off over the hill to Santa Cruz for the Mystery Spot. I had been a few times, but Laura had not been, and well, you just cant really explain it, so it's something you need to experience for yourself. It made me dizzy, like it always does, but it also makes me laugh and boggles my mind. It's a place where laws of physics, gravity, and your sight do not agree with eachother. Things roll uphill, and you can lean at a 45 degree angle without really falling.
Next it was off to the Boardwalk and Wharf to take some pictures with the mini. It was a beautiful day, and a really fun time.

paying more attention

So Iv'e had the game Splinter Cell Chaos Theory for some time now. I took a summer break from playing it, just because of moving and troubles with my DVD /CD ROM, and time in general. So I picked it up again and have been playing almost nightly. There are objectives/opportunities where I need to hack into a computer, and before I get to the terminal, there are screen savers running on the computers. On the screen savers are various adverts for movies or show's, most of which I never pay attention to because I thought they were just put there for effect, meaning nothing. BUT how wrong I was, because much to my surprise, the screen saver was for Transporter 2, opening September 2nd. The other one was a billboard in a green house up on the wall, and it was for Supernatural on the WB. Both of these I now know are real show's, because I have seen the adverts for them. I was surprised, and on a new mission, to pay very close attention to the background of my games to see what else I may discover. If I would have really been paying attention, I would have know months in advance of a fall show coming to the WB. There have also been adverts for AXE soap. All of these I have found to be an interesting way of marketing and I will now be looking between the lines to see what else I can find.

wheeeeeee................................whoa!

This past weekend I spent riding my bike up by Lexington resevoir. I hate biking up that hill and the Dam, and truth be told, I dont ride up it, I walk my bike because it's just too darn steep for me. BUT, I do ride down the hill and that is the fun part. Now to the avid mountain bike fan, 31 mph might not seem like much , but to me, it's really fun. There is something very cool about being able to go over the speed limit of 25mph posted for the cars on the road, but be on a bike.
So I was riding back, barreling down the path, when I came across this cute guy and almost ran over him. I had to hit the brakes and swerve to the right in order not to run over the little fella.

getting a new bike

For as long as I could remember, I have always secretly wanted to ride a motorcycle.
I have had friends who had them, and been a back seat rider, but I always wanted to ride my own.
for 1 reason or another, I never learned how to ride, nor did I ever buy a bike.
So, at my ripe middle age of 37, I have decided to throw caution to the wind, and finally feel the freedom I have wanted to feel.
I love to ride my mountain bike downhill, but going uphill is such a bore, so now I can finally have the benefit of going fast without the effort of pedaling up a hill to get that feeling. woo hoo
What I liked about this bike is it's more old style look. I am not in the market to be speeding down the freeway in a racer. It's just not my style.
I like the more cruising, just out for fun kind of bike, and this just caught my eye and fit my vision.
I am excited and nervous, but more on the excited side.
I probably wont actually get the bike until October, but I am still very excited.:)

popcorn????

We all have odd dreams, and sometimes we just cant get a handle on exactly where they have stemmed from. Such was the case last night with my dream.
So it starts out, I am in this hummer, but it's old and rusted out, and cant get out of 2nd gear. I am trying to manuever it out of this parking lot that has a really high hill. I manage to turn the vehicle around, and park it so I can pick up the rest of my friends who were waiting in the lot because they somehow were homeless.
So we all get in the hummer and I start exit the parking lot and am driving down the paved road, and then in an instant, as dreams are, I am now in this dirt road going up a hill. I smell something burning and it's popcorn. I look over to my right and notice that there is a farmer lighting patches of his field on fire. I go up to the farmhouse which is nothing but a garage with a bench and inside is president Clinton talking about how he wants to expand the farmhouse and is lighting an acre around the farm on fire. The ground is actually filled with cornstalks, and it's a special type of corn that you can pop it by burning it. Clinton explains how he is feeding the hungry animals and clearing the ground for construction. I looked around and it was nothing but white fluffy popcorn on the ground and cows grazing.
Very odd

today's meaningless drivel

Last night, at 9pm I walked out of my apartment and locked the front and back door for the last time. I am finally out of my old place 100%. I have cleaned and spackled and cleaned some more, taking most of the weekend, inbetween going to the San Franciso Tattoo expo, and watching Laura get an awesome tattoo.
My goal was to be completely out last weekend, but you know how that goes. I had such high hopes, and then after I moved, I wanted to never see my old place again, and I kept finding dirt in places that I hadnt seen in over 3 years. Amongst the findings were:
- a nub of a cheeto, which, I dont even eat cheeto's , so that came from a guest at some point
- 3 dried rose petals, which i cant remember ever having roses, so that must have been really old or someone elses
- a wrapper from a certain brand of "protection", which again, is not my brand
- and my favorite, a very dried kitty hairball that was from one of my cats, who knows how old that was, or how it made it's way to the location behind a bookcase, that was only 1.5 inches away from the wall.

I started seeing a trend here, and got the feeling that much more was going on, when I aquired a roommate and was spending more nights at Laura's house. It was a little creepy.

Oh, which reminds me a a sick story I would like to share. I forgot all about it until right now.
ok, so we are at the tattoo expo, and Laura is about 35-40 minutes into her tattoo. I kept walking around, because there wasnt much room in the booth for friends. Only room for the 3 artist's and the 3 people getting tattooed.
I digress..........There was a stage nearby that had some freakshow's, (literally) and every once in a while they would give away free stuff. So I decided to venture over and hold my hand up to try and grab on of the free t-shirts that they were throwing into the crowd.
up towards the front of the stage was this kid. and I DO MEAN KID! he was 12. the guy giving away the free stuff started asking the audience for a sick joke, deciding who would get the next t -shirt. So, I hear this young voice saying somethin about........... "what smells like dead fish"........
I was horrified! The guy on stage was a little stunned too, and repeats the question for clarification, and then asks the kid "how old are you?" He exclaims "12" with such pride in his voice. I think everyone was in shell shock that the guy on stage just laughed and gave the kid the shirt.
I was mortified that someone would allow their kid onstage to say something like that. I am all for freedom of speech, but lets please use some tactful judgment people!

10:52 thought

I was walking across my production floor, passing the lunchroom and was hit by the smell of egg. This wasnt the stinky egg smell. This was the smell of egg salad. I thought "damn that smells good" and like a lightbulb being turned on, I was like, I NEED EGG SALAD TONIGHT! My mouth started to water, and my stomach started to feel hungry, even amidst the crappy instant oatmeal I had for breakfast.
Egg Salad, something so tasty that I forget about. Havent had it in years, probably wouldnt have thought about it for years to come without the scent awakening my taste buds.

blah, blah, blog

This is the hard time of the day. It's 2:09pm and this is where it gets hard to concentrate, work and be productive. Why you ask? Because I am bored and lathargic! I have a trillion things in my inbox, well, actually only 2 (ive kept up good today), but I have a trillion things to buy and about 7 vendors I want to strangle right now, all of which are completely ineffective in my supply chain.
So, I am choosing to take the high road and not fantasize about acts of violence against my opposition, and instead, clog my blog with meaningless drivel.
There's got to be more of you out there, just wishing they could walk out the door at this very minute, and say-"yep, im done for the day". No more bad times, no more excuses, just happy times away from the office.
Well, I suppose that wouldnt fly to well with the powers that be, so I will sink back down into my chair and start my string of phone calls once again.
◊◊tangent◊◊
They have been closing all the local Subway stores for remodeling. I went to go there for lunch today and it was closed, so I chose to go to Fry's and get a pc game instead to self soothe. I ended up with a new game and finding my way to TOGO's (which I really dont care for). I never really realized the immense size of bread that TOGO's gives you. You could take off the entire top, slice the bottom half in two, and still have a slightly larger than normal size sandwich bread. Why do they use so much bread????? and then they put a tiny marble size dollup of mayo/mustard on it, and thats supposed to moisten my half loaf of french bread?? geez!

a WICKED kind of night

As the hour struck 8 pm last night, I was quickly transported into the land of OZ, and back in time to learn the tales of two very different, yet similar witches. This was of course the musical "Wicked".
For my first musical, I have to say that I enjoyed myself more than I anticipated. Though I am not a huge fan of musicals, I am a very huge fan of live performances, and this is really where it's at for me.
The set was beautiful, and at times I found myself (being the technical person I can sometimes be) fascinated by the fluid movement of the huge sets, and actors on cue, transitioning scene to scene. Everything about live performance is captivating. From the element of mistake that cannot be undone, to the sheer creative aspect of human performance.
Whether it's musicians, or actors, live performance is just captive of my attention and heart. The story was cool too, dont get me wrong. But for me, I am focused more on the performace of human beings, telling a tale to the audience, expressing themselves for our enjoyment.
During some of the lengthy songs, I found myself wandering to the sets, wondering how did they do that, watching all the mechanics of the actors footsteps, knowing exactly when to turn. With about 15 people on stage, it's very fascinating the way lights, sound and acting come together to form a huge choreographed scene. It's not only the dance routine that is taking place, but every aspect of sound, and lights to form a beautiful, enchanting performance.
OF course the element for mistake is there, and a good actor will not let you notice that mistake, however, Glinda was not one of those actors last night, and chuckled after tripping, and breaking her character a few times.
In summary, the story was great, and the company was superb to make my first musical a success.

a movie not for the faint of heart or sensitive

We went to see aristocrats this weekend and let me verify that every warning you have heard, (or may not have heard but I am telling you now), is true. Just the warning on the theatre ticket window stating that if you left within the first 30 minutes, you could get your money back, was enough insentive for Laura and I to say "lets see it!"
This movie, or documentary is about a joke that has been circulating between comics for years and years, and each comic adds their own spin on the joke itself. The first line of the joke is the same, and the "punchline" is the same, but the journey each comedian takes you on is where the real part of the joke lies and how each comic has their own personality embedded in the tale.
This is by far the raunchiest, foul, discusting, offensive and yet very funny in a "cult" sort of way tale you will hear.
I dont really know if I would recommend it to anyone, but if you are curious and thick skinned, go satisfy your curiousity just to say you saw it. It's just not the kind of movie/documentary that you would recommend to others, though it is very funny in parts. It is more a informational that you just have to see for yourself if you dare.