Good Day, Sunshine

Greeting the morning meeting up with the sun as the day breaks on the 10 Freeway makes me like the 10 a little more now.

I can kick myself for this, but I never actually made the effort I should have to get myself up and out early enough to see the sun rise on the East Coast.

Perhaps that's what I should set as a goal for myself by next year: Find some awesome peak and watch the sunrise atop it. The two that come to mind is Mt. Fuji and that one big volcano on Maui. Or maybe do it somewhere over the water on the East Coast.

The past 36 hours have been very remarkable.

JAH

She was going to teach me Italian. I could have learned Hebrew if I wanted to as well (and I did).

Unus Vieo pro Annus

I wish I could better look back, but I would like to think that I've made and am still making progress.

If One or Two Wasn't Enough...

I'm writing in yet another blog.

It's a project blog called Project: Elbow Squeak.

I teamed up with another friend of mine after several discussions around the new year and getting to work on things we've been putting off for a while. We figured that if we have a sounding board to vent any frustrations should they come, or to show off a job well done, we have a place for it. It can also track our progress to see how a particular project is coming along.

What's also neat is that I'm now a part of Ravelry.com, a knitting and crocheting social networking site, and it has some really awesome features. One can keep track of the needles and hook one has, the various books logged, bookmarks to patterns and projects others have made, as well as a page devoted to projects. The site can link to one's blog and Flickr account, which makes things MUCH easier to upload pictures of projects and notes on progress. I have this new blog linked to my profile, and I'll be able to post blog entries to any particular project there.

Again, I have no plans on ending or deleting this blog; this is just to show what little of a life that I have, I am able to work on projects, pretend I have adventures and have silly thoughts enough to distribute them all into three separate blogs.

YAY!

WOO HOO!

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lab.drwicked.com

What I wrote is not going to be published, as it's a mess. But I think the pending doom at my fingertips is a very good motivator for me, and knowing that I may be "punished" at any moment. I'm not really thinking about editing myself, and I'm just allowing myself to write. I am too scared to actually see what the consequences are for not writing, and it may be good to aspire to not ever experience it firsthand.

Since I spent some time writing this, I will have to put off a proper entry that I wanted to write here, for I think it definitely would make for a wonderful entry in my adventure blog, I think it's more of a personal thing, and should I actually wind up writing about it, I don't think it will be a loaded as it would be should I post it in my personal blog.

In other news, I have been thinking about posting more to this blog, but I've come to realize that I have no desire to really talk about my personal happenings as much anymore. A lot of the entries, if not all, on the other blog are based on first hand experiences, and is a little window as to what I've been doing in my life, but obviously is not a full account of what I've been up to. I think I like that. Who wants to hear the piddly details of me little life, anyway? At least what I do want to write here next will be informative and mildly entertaining for the stranger sort.

Karaoke Wishlist

I will love any karaoke setlist forever and ever and go there all the time if they carry this gem of a song:


"This is Many Shades of Black" by the Raconteurs. This is my current karaoke dream song.

Granted, I won't have the advantage of Jack White shredding on the solo, but since the first time I heard this song and its hooky chorus, I've loved this song for its...what is it? I just love songs that sound like this.

And after hearing Adele's cover of this song (though she sings it in a lower key), I'm convinced that I can do a decent job singing it.

Magic Mac

This is another email entry, as I'm minimizing my webpage visits at my new work.

I as previously mentioned, I am at my freezing office at my new job, on this pretty swanky Apple computer.  Though the carriage features in word processing have its setbacks, I'm really loving typing on this keyboard, which is a step better than the action of a notebook keyboard, and the CPU itself is one of those computers where the whole system is all contained in the monitor...including the camera at the top of the monitor.

If I have some time to myself and I wind up figuring it out, I may be following suit as another friend who is now kept company at work with a brand-new sexxxay computer with camera as well, and we can either stalk each others' productivity silent movie style, or make silly little videos that can feature this little stuffed mouse that's on the desk right now.

Oh, the future looks bright and fun!

I guess I should also officially mention on this blog that yes, after 4 actual days of unemployment, I now have another job, working at another performance company that's nonprofit, based in LA.  They've got a similar budget as my old work, but I have one additional co-worker and have PEOPLE to talk to!

More on that later, I guess.

TESTING THE WATERS!

I'm testing the waters and am writing in a new blog! It's called Ad Adventurum

I've teamed up with the very awesome Frank, and we are combining our Wonder Twin powers for this blog on ADVENTURE! The exciting application of verbs! Wishing we're more exciting people!

I will still be posting more personal matters on this blog, but I will also be posting on a regular basis on this new blog, where I'm posting every Friday and alternating Wednesdays for the time being.

As we're kind of lazy and will likely get tired of reading just the others' entries, we are excited at the opportunity of finding guest writers who would like to share their adventures on our new blog. Please let either one of us know, and we'd love to have you contributing as well!

I Happened upon This

My Yahoo! horoscope for today:

Just because you said goodbye to someone doesn't mean that they still can't inspire or affect your future in a positive way. You take them with you wherever you go, and they will always be a part of you. So try to switch from sadness to gratitude that you ever got to know them in the first place! Your feelings are important to honor, but you cannot let them control your goals in life. Use your head today and start moving again, in a new direction.

Interesting, especially considering what I discovered yesterday.

This is funny that I ran into this, as it seems to encapsulate a lot of what's been going on with me for the entire year practically.

I Quit My Job.

I'm out!

My two weeks are already ticking away, and I don't have a permanent job lined up. Scary? Yes. Sane? I hope this move will be.

Perhaps the more concerning part of this move is the fact that I have this trip to Germany in practically a month, which will make it difficult for me to find another within this time frame as well as trying to finance it with not a guaranteed source of income in sight.

...I have been asked if I would consider working part time after my two weeks is up (November), which I may do, but I've also signed up at a temp agency and may be able to get some work in that way.

Either way, I am completely burned out on all this job searching that I've been doing for the past several months, and I'm in this strange place where I'm either semi-desperate to apply for a job or very, very picky on minute details of the job description. At the very least, I've broadened my job search to include positions where I'd be very happy doing, rather than just applying for the jobs I know I could do. It's too bad my main passions are pretty competitive and/or not well-paying. Bummer.

If I had my way, I'd be able to support myself and my current bum of a lifestyle (like scrounging up for Germany) taking pictures, writing a bunch of junk, and feeding miniature donkeys as my bread and butter.

PS - If anyone knows anyone or any place that's hiring, particularly if they're okay with me being gone for 5 official workdays next month, drop me a line.

This is The End

My only friend, The End (click for images).

Well, this is the beginning of a whole different era.

It's going to take a bit of getting used to, especially since I'm using a lens that's not exactly compatible with the body, but I got myself a pretty nifty camera, the Nikon D40 with a 50mm f/1.4 lens.

Let's see what happens from here.

Gross.

Here is my first earnest attempt at writing (kind of) first thing in the morning. Of course, this may have not have happened at a worse day. Maybe even a worse week. It's not that I'm complaining, but I'm just telling it like it is.

I actually should hop into the shower right now and get ready for my day, because I have to be at a doctor's appointment right at 8, then I have to go to a seminar to improve my work writing. Following that, I have to go pick up plates and forks and then I'm off adventuring with my long-lost friend around Torrance and Gardena.

All this wouldn't be so bad if not for the fact that I'd like to be ready by now, but I slept past the beginning of my alarm and that I promised myself that I'd do this exercise for the first time, after I had planned to do this daily a long, long time ago...so long, in fact, it's coming close to about a year.

Also, I know that this will be good for me to do. I should do this, regardless of how tired I am, how little time there is, how little sleep I got from looking at things and tossing and turning in bed, and recalling at some point, I did have a strange enough dream that caused me to start crying. I have no recollection as to what caused me to do that, but that was upsetting...at the time, and now my eyes are a bit puffy from it. It's not something foreign to me, because that happened the night before anyway.

Gah, I really don't want to go to this doctor's appointment. But I must, it's for the best. I also don't feel like digging up a book that I really, really need right now, but I think it's a good thing for me to grab, because today officially marks the beginning of starting something new in a way, but is something that I should have done ages ago.

In fact, that's something that I could share with others, for not many people knew that I did such a thing 5 years ago, even the people who actually knew me at the time, but that's for another entry with its own purpose. Perhaps I should really get my day started and perhaps address things for later.

Hello Again

Let me do you the favor and tell you that if you want to watch the video, spending half a minute would suffice. Trust me.


Fancy that, I'm back to blogging.

It's not that I had nothing to write about, and had thoughts that I did want to put down in some shape or form, but this month since day one has been nothing short of madness, and along with other things in my life, blogging was one of the things that really didn't happen during this time.

As my entry at the end of last month suggested, I had big plans for the rest of the summer, with hopes of doing a few of those things in July. Unfortunately, this month was started in the most unsettling way: around 2:30am July 1, I woke up to a man standing at the end of my bed. He had somehow got our side door open, and was in my room for who knows how long. Sparing the details that I'd rather not get into, I'm okay, nothing was stolen to our knowledge, locks were changed/are fully functional now (though there was no sign of forced entry).

It was a very scary experience for me, as I was alone in the house with my roommate working the swing shift at the time. Even though the police came to investigate, dusted for fingerprints, and I have the support of many people around me, all of that still hasn't allowed me to completely put this experience behind me. Out of the 18 days of this month so far, I've only stayed at my home maybe 5 times, one being after the incident occurred, when my roommate came home from work and we locked ourselves into her room and slept in her bed. Since then, I've slept in 6 other beds aside from my bed at home. It worked out that I had plans to stay the night in other places already, as well as house sit for my boss and then house sit for my friends that I'm doing this week, so I don't have to spend nights alone at home, trying to sleep in the dark of my room, where it happened. Yes, there are new locks even for my room, but I still do feel uneasy about things, and since then, I've never really had a good night's sleep. I've either woken up in the middle of the night freaked out, have cried myself to sleep, or otherwise. I've had unsettling dreams every night as well.

As much as it is nice to get some space from the incident and where it happened, I worry that avoiding that space for so long will make it even more difficult for me to come back to it and try to settle back into normalcy. That's not to say that my time spent alone in a strange place as I've been doing for the bulk of this time has been easy, but I've managed to keep myself busy until I'm tired enough to go to bed. In those few times that I've been home without someone there with me, I do rather well by myself, keeping myself busy, keeping the lights off as much as possible so whoever doesn't know where I am/what I'm doing, but last I tried, each time I turn off the lights, this overwhelming sense of fear gets to me, and I then have to somehow convince myself there isn't anything to worry about and hopefully sleep will take me quickly.

I know these things take time, and I have to keep reminding myself that. Still, that doesn't stop me from waiting and wishing for the day that I can once again feel safe sleeping in my own bed, alone again.

...and in case you're wondering, I have been making something of an effort to find a new place to live.

Greener Pastures

The more and more I think about it, the more I think I need to move to another place.

Call it novelty, or call it practicality, but I may even have a place in mind.

At this point in time, rent and relative location are the two big things going for it. Otherwise, I'm ready to leave this space.

In other news: My roommate no longer believes in the ear candles. I did wind up mentioning to her that it's said to not work, and she didn't believe me. Tonight she did it on a friend of hers, and after he wasn't convinced all that wax would come out of his ear, they just burned through one candle without attaching it to an ear. Her dreams are now dashed :(

Speaking of, I'm thinking of getting one of those bamboo ear wax scrapers. I once saw a Hello Kitty one, but that was $10. As if I really need a Hello Kitty ear wax shovel that badly.

Everything Happens for a Reason.

In a really bad summary:

Roommate got in a car accident yesterday, which leads to a few things.
-I get to justly use my Arby's coupon that the Coupon Fairy gave me on the day it expires as her comfort food, only she's on a special diet which makes the trip more interesting
-Her back hurts from the accident so she doesn't go to work today, which usually means she does some crazy things (not included in this crazy is her dishes, as usual, of course)

I forget my phone at home today, which makes things more interesting.
-Thankfully it was on vibrate so my roommate didn't have to deal with the incessant beeping all day
-Of course, the day I leave it at home I get cool messages like a picture text of YUMMY looking tostadas
-It's okay, because I was having a very yummy meal at a club downtown on the boss' husband's company's tab
-But I also miss a voicemail left by my roommate after the Lakers lost (boo-I wasn't that sleepy), who asks to borrow my camera when she goes to Disneyland tomorrow, and that I have to watch out for the kitten in the bathroom, but she doesn't think the kitty is much of a door dasher...

WAIT, DID SHE SAY A KITTY?!?!?!?


Yes, a kitty.

That's taken with my picture phone. Better pictures are forthcoming when I learn more about this adorable stranger in my commode.

But she's so scared and timid and BEAUTIFUL.

KITTY UPDATE:
As soon as I posted this entry, my roommate gets a phone call and gets out of bed, at which point I use that time to GET ALL INFORMATION I CAN FROM HER!

Kitty is a pound purry. It's a girl. Very interesting she decides to get a kitty now. All the same, I guess she's living in the bathroom for the week until she gets better used to...us?

Tentative name: Kioko, which means something like, "greets the day with happiness" or some cute junk (it's actually "child born with happiness"). She's not a playful-seeming type, but that may be because she's living in a bathroom right now (though she spent the whole day on my roomie's bed, and was pretty mellow, I guess.

Okay, I seriously need to be asleep NOW otherwise I will very much regret it. More later.

House of Red Rivers Can Truly be?

The gay marriage ban has been lifted from California on a 4-3 decision.

Interesting that this ruling came today, for I briefly spoke to my mom this morning, and the decline letter from my medical insurance application for some reason went to my parents' house, and the reasons for the decline was for the same bullshit reasons that I had paperwork to back up my claims. What assholes. Before we got off the phone, she quickly told me just to apply for Kaiser and then I'll be okay.

No, I won't, because I don't want to sign up for Kaiser.

When I heard news of the decision, two things came to mind: I thought of the people who I know who had to have the loves of their lives go back to the country where they have citizenship because they couldn't manage getting an extended visa or other means of staying in the country, and how wonderful how those people and couples living here getting the opportunity to marry if they want to, as a symbol of their love and dedication to each other.

And of course, the whole getting insurance thing comes to mind.

But really, I'll never do it. I know Nat is very serious about the idea, because she wants me to be taken care of, and should something happen to me, I won't have to worry about getting better just so I could spend the rest of my semi-healthy life paying back all the expenses from not dying, which would probably wind up costing less than what it would take to get better. It's much like the conversation I had with a friend, who had to go back to Germany because her employer at the time decided not to renew her work visa. I was wholeheartedly joking when I told her that she and her boyfriend should get married, and we both laughed, but she abruptly stopped and told me matter-of-factly that she'd never get married for that reason, and would marry for love. I was taken aback, mostly because that was the most stereotypically German I've ever witnessed of her. So back to Germany she went, and eventually she got come back for a bit and spend time with the boyfriend. When she had to go home, and she and her boyfriend already said goodbye, she was already walking towards the gate when he proposed to her. Aww.

So are you kidding me? I hate commitments to begin with, and I couldn't start to imagine what it would be like to fabricate a commitment, particularly one that's done out of convenience and more specifically, something I may not be able to fabricate well.

But back to the actual topic at hand. I'm completely reeling that LOGIC, not preconceived notions and tradition has seized the day.

And on a more selfish note, should I actually live with a television signal ever again and have a DVR attached to it, you know I'll be recording those reality dream wedding shows that will feature ridiculous melodrama of two comet flaming Adonises with too much money than they can count, planning the wedding of the century.

BETTER YET: Make me a movie version of the above, only let it be a comedy stemming from Camp Apatow, and have it star Jonah Hill getting married to the love of his life, Zac Efron. But Zac wouldn't do such a thing to spoil his wholesome boy image (he went to a home Utah Jazz game he's so wholesome). I guess Emil Hirsch would suffice. I'd otherwise say Drake Bell, but that's too easy, and I don't know...he's just goofy enough to be too goofy for the role.

I Went and Did It Again...

I signed up for some Interwebz thing.


View my page on 29-Day Giving Challenge


Yet another online something or another that would involve a bit of writing. Do I actually work? Or perhaps sleep?

I was reading green LA girl's blog and happened upon her entry where she announces that she threw her hat into the 29-Day Giving Challenge.


The title of the challenge explains it all; to commit one's self to giving something for 29 consecutive days. What one gives can be something material, like toys, clothing, or a service, like help with a project, braiding someone's hair, or something completely abstract, like a compliment, or a smile; or maybe a hug or something.

Reading green LA girl's entry really caught my eye when I read it yesterday, for I had given away something that was pretty dear to me earlier that day. Although I'm in some way kind of sad I gave it away, it also made me very happy that I did it, because I truly think that I perhaps was not meant to have it and the recipients were much more deserving. Don't worry, I'll dedicate an entire entry to that giveaway. I guess I've already fulfilled my giving quota today as well, so I'm pretty much on a roll.

I think this will be a good challenge for me, especially since that I really don't see a lot of people in person on a day-to-day basis, especially since my boss is out for the rest of the week. But I guess I don't have to be face to face with a person to give someone something, and that's what the fun, creative and exciting part of this challenge will be I think...it will really get me thinking about the giving and taking we do on an everyday basis, whether we're aware of it or not.

I think I will have fun with this challenge, provided I keep up with it. I'm hoping that I'll get pretty creative and not do the same type of giving every day, but that remains to be seen.

Now the bigger question is whether I should write all my entries on this blog then have the entries here posted on my Challenge Page using an RSS feed. I could also just post my entries and images on the actual site, since that's what it's there for, and then maybe post an link in an entry here on my blog. I suppose it doesn't make much difference considering I only have what, 4 readers anyway?

Either way, I'll have to think about it. I think this will be more fun than frustrating. Aside from giving one thing away each day, I'm sure there will be some interesting side effects while going through this process.

I guess we'll just have wait and see.

Work/Vacation?

Today, I pack my bags, a bit of food, my light table, and of course, my own laptop, because this week I'll officially not be staying here in LA and will be house sitting/staying at work for the week since my boss and her family are out of town visiting family.

It's going to be convenient for me, as I just have to wake up and shuffle over to the office to work, start my day earlier, end it even sooner than usual, and just lounge around, maybe take a dip in the hot tub (the pool isn't cleaned right now, I think). I'll be with the cat and dog, and at least I'll see one person during the day, since the housekeeper is still going to come.

Maybe this is will be a taste of if I have a nice life living in the hills of Beverly...perhaps I'll have to play the Lottery a bit more, or maybe do some smart investing, or perhaps the easiest thing to do of all: marry rich. Because everyone knows that there's no money in nonprofit.

And Her Name is...

...I'm not exactly sure yet.

But I do know she is a girl. After a harrowing 1 hour drive from Monrovia to Mid-Wilshire, I arrived to this general area I've been around a bit for the past week. And as he walked my new bike over to my car and load it up into Danny, he said, "She's dirty." Which she was, and I didn't mind at all as once again Danny did not fail to hold what I needed to transport.

He wasn't lying about her being dirty. There were a few spiderwebs on her handlebars, and a bit of grass sticking to her spokes, and she had a general layer of dirt about her, as if she was kept outside. She's also a bit rusted, with the paint scratched from her bright teal paint. She's seen better days, with her front rim all bent and other dings and scratches about, but she's now mine.

I discovered she's a Women's 1971 Schwinn Collegiate, which I guess is appropriate her being a female bicycle even though that's also strange at the same time. I'm pretty sure the paint is her original color. Everything, including the rims, seem to be the original pieces, and it looks as though she's missing parts, such as reflectors, as well as a horn or light that can be housed on the handlebars. She's a 5 speed, and I haven't checked if the gears work well or not, or if the chain has scratched up the chain guard. She's a bit beat up and rusty, but she still looks pretty good, and with a little help, I'm sure she'll be a great bike.

As soon as I got home and settled in, I went to look up more information about fixing her up. It comes as no surprise there are a lot of communities, even the official Schwinn website hosts a great message board for Schwinn enthusiasts, which I spent some time on, just looking at pictures of what she would have looked like in her heyday, even though she's not too far off. Looking at all the pictures and reading all the info makes me want to restore her to her full glory, which would include fixing all the obvious problems, get the rust off, get some new, white walled tires, new paint, and of course, decals. I'd probably use that little space alloted for a light or a horn, which would be cool. I'm not sure how much it would cost, but I figure, since I didn't have to pay for the actual bike, she might be worth fixing up, since I'm already fixing her at all...but that may come at a later time.

I was knocked out when my roommate came home and discovered her in our laundry room, but she thought my bike's really pretty...first of all, she loves Schwinns, and she's also blue, which Nat loves, and she's got fenders, which Nat loves even more. I told Nat that my bike's not as cute as hers; a '72 Suburban 10-speed that's been taken care of so well with its old skool gear shifts, basket in the front and back, her original paint, and has been kept so well that the sticker of the store from where it first came from all the way in San Jose is still in tip-top shape. Nat simply stated that I just needed to add a basket, and my new girl will be just as cute as hers.

It's pretty fitting that I get the bike just as Spring hits, and the weather's warming up, and I hope once I get her fixed up and purty, I'll actually use her often! Natilie's even excited now that I have a bike, I can go along with a ride that's starting out at the Gold Line Chinatown station which isn't so far away. We'll see what comes of this endavor...

See You on the Darkside

Even though I've made it a pretty good habit out of keeping this blog up to date, I should note that I've went ahead and did something that will probably throw all those efforts out the window.

On Saturday, I bought myself another copy of Animal Crossing: Wild World for the Nintendo DS.

If no one ever hears from me again, now you'll know why.

Don't worry, you can get back in touch with me by getting yourself a DS, the game and a WiFi connection, then let me know you've got all that, so you can visit the town of Buddyton and see how Kokoroko has kept up her town with her adorable animal neighbors now.

And I absolutely CANNOT start over. I already have a great neighborhood, and I can't wait to see who else moves in.

So far I have:

Rolf the grumpy tiger


Bree the sassy mouse


Aurora the formal penguin (I love her especially since I have the little charm of her!!! She also wears this ADORABLE plaid pattern instead of this fugly print in this game)


Bud the island lion


and Pinky the prissy panda just moved in yesterday.

I've never had any of these neighbors before (either from Animal Crossing on Gamecube or my first Wild World) with the exception of Pinky. I'm excited.

If you know what in the hell I'm talking about, come and visit me! My native fruit is apple, I only have a fishing rod, shovel and watering can, and I haven't paid off my first house.

I need friends and fruit.
Also another shovel (to make a golden one), a slingshot, my ever-beloved bug net, an axe or two and maybe some aviator sunglasses if one can spare it.