Tuesday, August 19, 2008

olympics beijing 08



i am thoroughly enjoying watching the beijing olympics, even if they kidnap the gymnasts at age 3 and only allow them to see their families once a year. hey, they got gold didn't they?

i also never thought i'd enjoy watching volleyball. the gymnastics, track and field, swimming are my faves.

you're getting warmer.

i don't know what it is about jacuzzis i love so much. is it the hot steamy water, reminding me of a cold winter's night where i am kept warm within this wonderful body of water? or is it the fiery jets that give me the perfect massage where the sun don't shine? either way, i do truly love jacuzzis, even if they are bacteria ridden and smell of putrid chlorine. i'm so happy to enjoy our complex's jacuzzi.

have you ever fallen in love in a coffeeshop?

coffee must be an aphrodisiac.

where the light is.

d was sweet enough to get me this live itunes album when JM was on his recent tour. although it broke my heart to have missed the concert, pressing play was almost just as good. his music is unreal.

"slow dancin in a burning room." we've all been there.


my fave new JM song. "in your atmosphere."

Monday, August 18, 2008

D&D

the mighty die.

Qlo.
he essentially looks like the travelocity gnome.
so i began playing D&D for the first time in my life, thanks to my d. it's an interesting game, the first RPG i've ever partook in. my character is named Qlo. he is a 3ft2 gnome wizard with a penchant for sweet smelling things, his favorite being the smell of cotton candy and periwinkles. i am still getting to know the game, its nuances, its rules, my character's abilities, the multi-sided die, the liberties i can take to make the game interesting. i think the DM, or dungeon master who is the narrator really makes the game as does good role playing, which d has mastered. i am no geek by any means, but it's always fascinating to enter that of other worlds, no pun intended.
if you're curious to read more about my character's background, which i wrote, scroll down. it was fun writing it!
Qlo

Height: 3’2”

Weight: 100 lbs

Age: 52

Eyes: Brown

Hair: White

Teeth: About 11

Class: Wizard

Race: Gnome

Qlo comes from a village in the Mortela province called Haladyra. He comes from the family Prye. His father is named Glymer and mother is Frusca. He has 2 older brothers named Vlo and Ro. He has one younger sister named Zo. His entire family died in a village fire when he was 50 years old. He also lost his wife, Ziya, in the fire. He was spared because his family sent him out to collect periwinkles for the evening supper. He returned to a fiery hell. He has been roaming the earth since, with a single quest. Before his parents died, they him of a great uncle, named Gera, whom he has never met, 86 years old and dying. They give him a sealed letter that they ask him to give his great uncle. It appears blank and Gera is the only gnome that can decipher it. Qlo does not know what the letter says. He carries it within his sachet and guards it closely. That has become his quest. To find his great uncle.

Qlo is a simple gnome with simple earthly pleasures. He loves nothing more than tending to his garden. He has quite the green thumb and can make almost anything thrive. He also enjoys sewing and can make just about any garment. He has a cottontail who is his traveling companion named Roni. Roni has been Qlo’s best friend since he was a child. Qlo was able to rescue him from the village fire. Qlo believes in the good of all things. He believes in helping those in need. He loves children and animals. He is a happy go lucky gnome who believes life will never give him something he cannot handle. He has become strong since losing his family and wife. He loves simple joys such as watching the sun go down, listening to the flutter of bird wings, watching butterflies stretch their wings, watching the tall green grass blow gently in the wind and watching children play. He enjoys simple hearty foods, stews rich with potatoes and cabbage and beef, lemongrass soup, sweet butter breads, day-roasted beef, rosemary-basted baby hen, beers rich in hops, wild wheat pies and rose tea. He has a hearty appetite to match his taste buds. He loves sweets, to which he owes his toothlessness to. His favorite food is his grandmother’s cabbage and beef stew, with a secret ingredient, an endangered mushroom, which he has been in search of but has not yet found. This mushroom has cured his mother of many ailments. He has an affinity for sweet smelling things, his favorite being the smell of cotton candy and periwinkles. They remind him of his younger years when he used to frolic with his siblings in the village fields and gardens and they would find periwinkles that smelled of cotton candy.

He is charismatic and charming and very intelligent. He knows many languages and possesses magic. He believes in helping others before himself. He is often seen with a toothy grin and bellowing out a hearty laugh. Because of his trusting nature, he sometimes does not read people’s motives well. He gives them the benefit of the doubt. But he learns quickly and once wronged, he will beware of those people, still believing they can become good people. He loves his neighbors, he loves his friends and he loves his family. He loves strangers and he loves and trusts his traveling companion Olok, whom he met while on his quest, like his very own brother. However, there is a dark side of Qlo that only surfaces when severe injustice has occurred. This usually involves others being treated unjustly or when Qlo sees the evils of the world. He becomes consumed with rage. Only once in his life has this rage surfaced. It was when he watched his family and wife burn in the village fire ignited by an enemy village, Halavyra.

Glen Ivy.

my review of glen ivy-

i enjoyed: dowsing myself in mud twice, smelling like sulfur while i boiled in it, the sensation of jets while i soaked in the mineral salt baths, the steam room where i got to experience the life of a bbq pork bun, the lazy pool with floaties after everyone had left
i did not enjoy: the dry sauna only cus it nearly made me faint, the pool was a bit cold, the gross orange towels, the prices, and how crowded it was, and how the smell of chlorine and chemicals stayed on my skin for a few days.

overall on a scale of 1-10, i'd give my experience there a 7. would i go back? if the price was discounted but most likely not. but i had to try a day spa at least once in my life. honestly, i would rather spend my $35 on a massage and or facial.

Saturday, August 16, 2008

peeking pug.

even pugs like itunes.
i spy with my little eye.
i have my own myspace page.
i'm more interesting than gmail

Whiting Ranch.

love the spider trees
trees and sky are cool

the bunny was so tame
reminds me of the wasteland
can't resist the wheat
trees are so cool
even burnt ones look cool
looks like a dry riverbed
nothing like tree silhouettes against the sky

even after the fires, there was still remaining beauty.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

research.

i learned that research takes a shit load of time. i've been researching pet foods for dogs with allergies and ear cleansers. and reputable local vets and pet health food stores. i must have spent allllllllllllllllllll day doing this and i still don't know what to do because there's just too much info out there. i should have just followed my calling and became a vet.

not a magician.

i wish i had the power to change people's minds. i wish Tigress' mind could be changed. but i learned you can't change the minds of people who don't want to change their minds unless you're a magician. which i'm not. so i'm just gonna wish her luck.

run L. run.

it's amazing what a simple comment can do. the other day, a lady asked me if i was pregnant. the unfunny thing is, i'm not. :( and my fat jeans have just become my skinny jeans. i decided, enough is enough.

i'm hoping to piggy back on Tigress on getting back into a shape other than round. i'm just happy to be active again cus i've been more sluggish than a snail. i've been wanting to find an exercise partner and the opportunity of the company of a friend presented itself. so i'm looking forward to 3x/wk of at least 4 miles of running/walking. how convenient there's a park that's a mile on each side of the square. too bad my dog nearly died of fatigue when i took her. her max used to be 2.5 mi. i extended it, to her dismay to 4 mi. not a good idea.

IKEA=I Kan't Effectively Appease

so D was attempting to assemble a wardrobe he bought from IKEA. i guess it took 2 people to assemble it and the entire thing collapsed and broke. we tried to return it or exchange it but the lady consulted the QA person who pointed out fine print in the manual indicating that if it was to be constructed upright it would need 2 people. or different instructions if constructing it on the ground or some fine print to cover their liability in case it collapses and the customer tries to return the item. so we couldn't get even an exchange. it was a 90 buck loss.

i am boycotting IKEA. their return policy sucks. customer dissatisfaction guaranteed.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

protozoa.

boohoo. my pug has giardia. gross mucousy poop is the most obvious symptom. here's to her getting well with powdered medicine. i'll b happy when i can stop cleaning the carpet. sorry d.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

a day at the movies.

Batman. i was disappointed. but the joker made the movie.
Wall-e. i was pleasantly surprised. save the earth!!

spoiled rotten (unlike tomatos)

my nephew is adorable but spoiled rotten. he's at that age where everyone and everything adores every move and sound he makes. and he knows it too. his parents cater to his every whim, which i can't say is a bad thing, given his tender young age of 1.5 years and how he's allergic to heat and needs a climate controlled room in order to nap and cannot be disturbed with any slight noises. but he's starting to like the cause and effect phenomenon too much. he must have thrown his toys and any other object in his hand to the ground about a million times last week and i stood by and watched his parents pick up the object about a million times. talk about fun cause and effect. he loves playing with silverware but i drew the line when he was playing with butterknives. i had to yank them out of his hands.
it was fun. he's cute. the makings of a spoiled kid continues..

an 88 year old toothless grin.

i love my old, toothless grampa, with his toothless happy grin and happy go lucky ways. i love his hearty laugh, which emanates from deep within his soul. he's so cute, funny and real. he says exactly what he means but he's never rude. he's got old habits but a young child-like soul. he's almost bald, and he's been that way forever, never quite achieving ultimate baldness. he's legally deaf and would not have it any other way. he's got no teeth and uses his gums to make things soft then gulps his food down whole, and would not have it any other way. and he's so proud of his gums, too. he doesn't visit often enough but everytime he does, he always remembers me. and he rides roller coasters, for goodness sake, though not always by choice.
whoever knew an 88 year old toothless grin could be so charming.

legoland is the new disneyland.

that place rocks. that place is a water park lover's wet dream--pun intended. it's basically a water park that they built rides, created shows, and build mini-land as afterthoughts. and they threw in lego caricatures to have a theme to base an overpriced park on.

snoopy.

i snoop
and sometimes i poop
i pissed off the guy after my last ex
with things i read on his text.
can't help that i was mad
and also a little sad
can't help i felt unsure
after reading what he wrote to her.
but i'm a feeler
not a thinker
my heart always gives my head
the middle finger.

072208 a day that will in famy.

i have finally officially moved back to the OC. never thought i'd be so happy to back here, seeing how long i've tried to stay away from this place.

the truth about cats and dogs.

the cat and the dog are fascinated with one another. my dog is the first canine little cornelius has laid eyes on. she hissed like a wildcat the first few minutes she met nibblet. so i petted her and calmed her down to get her acclimated to my dog. my dog has had many feline friends. however, they have all had other canine friends, so she is used to cats who love dogs. it's funny cus then the cat started to follow my dog around and couldn't keep her eyes off of her. it's like she found a big sister she could tag along with. it was cute. but my dog seemed irritated with her. she wanted to chew her bone in private and the cat kept sneaking up on her and inching her way towards her. then my dog would move away. when i fell asleep my dog was next to me and the cat on my lap. now they're snoring away side by side. it's raining cats and dogs love...

sick.

sicker than a dog
grosser than a tick
in all my years
i've never been so sick.
hackin up my lungs
my throat's closing in on me
this fever is here to stay
and it'll get the better of me.
i'm finally mute
sure wish i could sign
sure wish i could call an overpriced health insurance
mine.
breathing in 409
was not my idea of fun
at least i'm out of that hellhole
and into the sun.

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Fill (with) more (latinos)

yesterday, i was in Fillmore to retrieve my dog. you take highway 23 all the way through Moorpark, a cute but older community with new tract housing. as you wind through olive and grape vineyards, the scenery is beautiful. then suddenly you find yourself in these mining canyons on a 2 lane highway on the edge of nowhere surrounded on either side with yellowish-white stone. there are huge mountains of grated stone, finer than sand. it's hot. then suddenly, through the farmlands, this town appears, the town of Fillmore. it looks alot like tijuana. lots of latino stores and people. old streets. old town. i think it was founded in the 1800s. so i'm off to find this elusive house where my dog spends her weekends. sequentially, the house does not exist. there are 5 streets of the same name. my dog sitter is somehow unable to give me directions to her house although i've listed many landmarks. she warned me earlier i wouldn't be able to find her house because it was behind other homes. she phones her mother-in-law to see if she could bring me my dog. she says her mother in law can't leave her house right then because the cops were searching her block for illegal fireworks. so i decide to go to the police department. i ask them where i could find her address. they point me to where i've been. sequentially that house number did not exist. i inform the cop that right now, some of his people are searching that neighborhood. he tells me none of his men are searching that neighborhood because they all just got back from a search. he says the most racist but funny and stereotypical thing, "it's probably a probation check." inside, i laugh so hard, although i know i shouldn't. he asks me what the last name is. i give him a classic latino last name and he says, "that doesn't help." then i ask him if he has a map of the town. he whips out the thomas guide and it was totally unhelpful. he then asks me, "are you sure you're in the right town?" i said, yes, fillmore. he says, "people mix up sylmar with fillmore because they sound alike." i said with certainty Fillmore. finally, my dog sitter's mom in law brings me my sleepy pup. i'm still convinced her house doesn't exist. after all, mr. policeman said so. but i do wonder, what if there's a 911 call or emergency at that address? how would they find it? and how did they know where to go to do this "probation check?" :)

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Henry's Beach in Santa Barbara.






the perfect beach day, says the pooches!

lesson of the day.

don't paint yourself into a corner by quitting your job and vacating your apartment and giving up your dog when you barely know the guy. especially if you're doing all this without a back up plan.
if things didn't work out, imagine how it would have been: no job, house, dog or bf. that was the problem, i didn't imagine it enough. but now i'm living it. except the dog part.

silver lining: i won't get my job back, i don't care for this apartment, but at least i have my dog.

farewell

just because you say farewell
doesn't mean it ends well
just because you've tried your best
doesn't mean you passed the test
just because you loved him
doesn't mean it will last til the end
just because it was grand
doesn't mean it's not made of sand
just because you've said your goodbyes
doesn't mean you won't ask why.