The End Of A Year...

2008 draws to a close today. I can't say I don't welcome a new year, as 2008 was full of ups and downs for me. Predictably, the highs were so high, and the lows painfully deep.

When I think back on the last year, change is the word that comes to mind. Change happened on a variety of levels - I graduated college, moved across the country, and started a new job within 2 short (so very, very short) weeks. I enjoyed successes and felt the hurt that comes with failure, laughed often, and cried my part. Today isn't a day to recap the lows of my year - I am (sometimes acutely) aware of them, and I feel ready to accept them and move on.

The many highs are sometimes too much to count, but a short list includes...

Graduating college
Getting a job!
Getting the women's team back to Regionals
Visiting my family in Germany
My mom's visit back in September
Wildwood!
The party at Will's house after Regionals
Froggy's on graduation night (despite the fact that I ended up crying)
ABC
Thanksgiving with my family
Obama
Finding my book club
Taking a leap and moving across the country

I won't take this chance to talk about 2009, as it is not yet upon us (although mere hours away). 2008 deserves recognition as the year of incredible growth and transition. I don't think I've learned as much about myself in a year as in the one about to pass, and for that I am both grateful, and maybe a bit exhausted as well. I didn't make any resolutions last year..at least not that I can remember..so I don't have to submit myself to self judging in regards to what I did and did not do. That can wait for a year from now, I guess.

For now, I wish all of you a wonderful and happy new years eve. I hope 2008 was kind enough to you, and that you are looking forward to the next year with hope and anticipation.

See you in 2009!

In The Spirit of the Holidays

And my love for LoLCats

Time to Reboot

An excerpt from Thomas Friedman's recent op-ed:


"My fellow Americans, we can’t continue in this mode of “Dumb as we wanna be.” We’ve indulged ourselves for too long with tax cuts that we can’t afford, bailouts of auto companies that have become giant wealth-destruction machines, energy prices that do not encourage investment in 21st-century renewable power systems or efficient cars, public schools with no national standards to prevent illiterates from graduating and immigration policies that have our colleges educating the world’s best scientists and engineers and then, when these foreigners graduate, instead of stapling green cards to their diplomas, we order them to go home and start companies to compete against ours."

Here's the link, read the whole thing!
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/24/opinion/24friedman.html?em


Merry Christmas everyone! I'll soon be putting up pictures from Germany, but for now I hope everyone has a relaxing day with the people you love.

Döötschland

No, it's not how you spell it, but I'm on a german keyboard, so there.

now iäm going to stop tzping normallz...german kezboards are set up differentlz, get used to it.#

Anzwazs, just posting to saz that iäm alive and well, and that i made it safelz to the continent. little sisters are adorable, stepmom is awesome as alwazs, and mz dad gets in from amsterdam todaz.

thatäs all folks. if i dont post again while iäm here, merrz merrz christmas!!

20 Minutes Left on a Friday

So what do I do?

Blog a wee bit.

First, please watch this video. It is amazing. Edit: I stole this off Anna's blog. There, happy?




Second, this is a public plea for my roommate not to leave San Francisco and stay in our happy home forever (or at least until I'm gone, she's free to do what she wants after that). Alex, stay! Who else will I watch GG with, providing snide comments in the hopes that they'll make it into your live-blogging post? No one. Don't go breaking my heart like that.

Third, the Bay Area is expecting lows in the high 30s this weekend, as well as lots of rain. Happy I just bought some rainboots, not happy for the weather. I haven't seen that kind of cold in what, 8 months? I guess it's cruel preparation for Germany, which is a mere 7 days away! I guess 6 if you're counting down when I actually leave, but I'll be traveling for close to 24 hours. Brutal.

On tap for the weekend: dinner at RNM tonight, tomorrow is massage (!!!)/movie/xmas-and-dress shopping/cocktail-and-holiday-sweater party, and Sunday is probably recovering from Saturday, with some laundry and Germany prep-work thrown in.

That's the quickfire update of life right now. Not really sure how animal battles fit in, but I'm sure someone could make a really deep analogy and it would all work out.

If You Were to Ask Me How Life is Right Now

I'd say something to the effect of.....it's pretty damn good.

Tonight I went to bookclub, which was kickass because people seemed to get way more drunk that usual, annnnd we had a white elephant gift exchange and clothes swap. Besides coming away from the evening with:

One frog-esque piggy bank (gift exchange)
One Zara purse
One pair of cheap pearl earrings
Two old copies of Lucky magazine
(treasures, all of them!)

...I also walked away feeling great about life, friends, and the future. My job is getting much better...it seems the growing pains are subsiding and I'm settling in well with my clients, responsibilities, and skills. And when jobs get better, life seems to get better (a sad, but accurate, correlation). I'm getting back into the habit of going to the gym, reading more, listening to music more, talking to and seeing friends more....it's just more more more of the intangible things that keep me going and allow me to put my head down and get through tougher times. I'm incredibly grateful for the friends I'm making and the ones I already have, and I'm thankful to have a family that loves and supports me, especially my mother, whom I can call crying and, 45 minutes later, hang up feeling calm again.

Sometimes I feel like what I write about here is something of a broken record...things are great, then awful, then great again. It has, admittedly, been a very difficult 6 months. The post-college transition was taxing, and being in a new city made me feel especially isolated at a time when all I wanted to do was run home for the weekend or into the arms of loving friends. Now, I am so, so excited for 2009. I have resolutions to make (yes, I'm doing them, and yes, I plan on keeping track of my progress here), and an entire year laid out in front of me where I am transition-less. How I welcome it! Ask those close to me and they will tell you that I am a planner by nature. I love thinking in the long term and dreaming up new ideas, trips, career paths, even what I want to cook. Now, I can have a year where I can plan to my heart's content, but with the comfort of knowing that, no, I don't need to act on this immediately. For the next 12 months I get to settle in, relax, and see what this whole growing up thing is about.

To bring it all full circle, I'm the baby of my book club by about 4 years. Tonight I told a few of them "If I'm anything like you guys when I'm older, I'll be more than happy," and it couldn't be more true. If growing up means turning into someone more comfortable in my own skin, more confident in my abilities, and more willing to cut through the bullshit then I'll take it. They're a lovely group of girls, and if that's what I have to look forward to, so be it.

This is a Nothing Post

1. I go to Germany in 10 days. I am very, very excited.

2. Go see Bond. It was awesome.

3. New Britney CD = awesome.

4. New (to me) Black Keys CD = fantastic. Get it.

5. Office holiday party was a success!

6. I had a great conversation with Maggie tonight, and it made my day. Why have we been neglecting the phone so much!?

7. Chuck Bass baby. Chuck. Bass.

Exciting Things are Happening

Kind of.

To start, my brain has quieted down quite a bit the past couple weeks. I'm no longer on the verge of a major freakout regarding life, and I'm feeling pretty good about things. I've decided to stay in San Francisco for all of 2009 for various reasons. The city itself is beautiful, I'm meeting great people, and my job is actually getting much much better. More responsibility, less boredom, and a lot more appreciation from my coworkers. The casual dress code and work from home days don't hurt, either. Nor does the 65 degree weather when the rest of the country is ice ice cold.

I also need to have a non-transition year. College was always busy, and there were always plans to travel home, summer housing and jobs needed taking care of, and it was just go go go. 2008, of course, was a huge transition, with graduation and moving across the country. So in 2009 I'm looking forward to feeling a little bit more settled in a new place. I'm also planning on kind of recentering myself through a couple of ways, including maybe taking some art/ceramics classes and getting more into writing again. I've just felt incredibly scattered the past few months and, more than anything, rootless. It's hard to know where home is after having just graduated and left behind a lot in DC and then so suddenly moving somewhere utterly new. Slowly, though, little roots are forming here, and while they might be delicate and easy to tear out, why not let them grow a little deeper? The decision to stay has left me with a deep sense of calm, the kind that comes in a moment of clarity where suddenly an invisible burden lifts off your shoulders.

2010 holds big plans for me, but luckily nothing that I need to worry about, at least for now. The time for applications and essays will come soon enough, but right now I'm enjoying the respite of thinking ahead and just staying in the moment more.

Other recent/future happenings:

• Thanksgiving in Chicago. Delicious food and my beautiful family led to a relaxing week filled with lots of sleep, long walks with Buddy the dog, and much-needed family time. I'm always amazed how a conversation with my mom can refocus me and calm me down. I think it's something only moms really know how to do.
• B-B-B-Britney! Yes that's right, in March I'm flying to Nashville, roadtripping to Atlanta with Caitlin and Anna (!!), among others, and seeing Ms. Britney Spears in concert, 12 rows back. Think I'm lame? Don't care. I get to spend a long weekend in Nashville with my best friends, get back to my hometown (because let's be honest, Nashville is home), and get back in touch with my 7th grade self, the one who saw N'Sync in concert (TWICE) and may or may not have an autographed picture with LFO, that terrible boy band who sang the Inspector Gadget song (who else is in the picture? YUP, Anna and Caitlin).
• Germany in 2 weeks, where I get to meet my tiny baby sister and see my not-as-tiny other baby sister. Christmas in Germany is sure to be a vision of gingerbread, steaming mugs of chocolate, and long walks in snowy fields and along icy rivers. I'm also ready to spend time with my Daddy and stepmom and see their new house outside Heidelberg.
  

That's all for now. I've noted everyone's comments on great inspirational sports movies and will be adding them to my Netflix queue. Any other movie suggestions are always welcome.

Oh, and happy holidays everyone! I hope the turkey was nap-inducing and that the coming weeks see you full of yummy holiday treats and keeping your head up amongst the dismal economic forecasts. It's the time of year for snuggling into warm blankets, drinking warm drinks, eating candy canes, and holiday parties! I, for one, will be doing all of the above, and I hope you are, too.

Inspirational Sports Movies

God, I love them.

Put me in front of movies like Remember the Titans, Friday Night Lights, We Are Marshall...the list goes on....and I will be happy as a clam. I don't know what it is--the inspirational destruction of race and social prejudices? The thrilling games? The alternately supportive and destructive family?

Really, it's a magical mix of all those elements. Regardless, I guarantee you that anytime I'm bored, put on Remember the Titans and I'll be one entertained (and happy) camper.

Point of this post? Up for debate.

Caitlin - The Recap

My fingers would quite literally fall off if I tried to recount everything from Caitlin's visit, so here are the highlights from the weekend:

Thursday:
- Farolito: Caitlin's first taqueria trip ever. Delicious.

Friday:
- The day is kicked off with mimosas and breakfast at Stacks.
- Shopping. So. Much. Shopping.
- Introducing Caitlin to the wonders of frozen yogurt
- Pier 39! Sea lions + In-n-Out = typical SF tourism.
- The Big Umbrella for an arts show. So hot and crowded I literally thought my face was going to melt off.
- Jameson Comedy tour. The best bit was clearly about how pinkie toes get caught on afghans.
- Getting on stage at the comedy tour? Subsequently getting kicked out? Look, everyone was gone, how was I supposed to know it's not allowed.
- Trying to hail a cab outside the comedy club when we wind up in a limo. Um, what? Proceed to go on what feels like the longest limo ride ever through the city, where I sat on the floor.
- End the night sitting on a fire hydrant waiting for Caitlin as she proceeds to walk up and down some of the biggest hills in the city to go see a park.

Saturday:
- Morning = death. Get breakfast on the corner and skip out on our brunch reservations. Cab back to my house. Caitlin in last night's clothes, me barefoot and in pajama pants.
- Sit on the couch for about 2 hours, where I eat about half of a loaf of sourdough bread.
- Pry ourselves off the couch, pick up Adam, get Mitchell's ice cream, and go to the bridge!
- Caitlin and Adam walk out onto the bridge, while I get nauseous from fear and turn around about 30 yards in. The fact that I'm wearing a skirt in gusty conditions doesn't help.
- To the beach! Yes, it was 75 degrees, so we head to the beach for classic "jumping in waves" pictures and so Caitlin can see the Pacific.
- Dinner at Asia SF. We get lessons in sake from the bartenders and watch some hot trannies lip sync on the bar in skimpy costumes. Someone is there celebrating a divorce.
- Call it a night since nothing can top the "gender illusionists," so we head home to hang out and watch SNL. Asleep by midnight.

We head out of the house at 9am the next morning to get Caitlin on her flight. I spend most of the day either in bed napping or on the couch. The night ends with Chinese food and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo.

Needless to say, the weekend was amazing. I'm super pumped for our next reunion, scheduled to take place somewhere in the Midwest during the Britney Spears tour. Am I kidding? I'll leave that one for you to figure out.

For Alex

And for all my other dear friends who, in the passing of Prop 8, have seen their civil liberties thrown out the window.

Hope

This time last week, my heart was beating with nervous anticipation. We were all merely one day away from bringing to an end one of the longest campaigns in US history and electing the 44th president.

24 hours after uncertainty sent my heart into a nervous pitter-patter tears swam in my eyes during Obama's acceptance speech. Four years ago on election night I went to bed with a heavy heart, but looking back it seems far less things hung in the balance at the time. Last week, however, it seemed that the future of America was at stake--would this be the night when we, as citizens, make another grave mistake by sending the wrong person to the Oval Office? No. This year we chose to herald the return of reason and, dare I say it, intellectualism to America. Last week, I cried because I was filled with the hope and optimism that had escaped this country recently, and because the system works. A candidate won the presidency in both the popular and electoral vote, a definitive statement that yes, we believe in change, and yes, we can. Last week, I cried because I saw the man who I voted for win an election that I care deeply about and last week, I cried because it was an historical night.

After wiping away the tears we joined the crowds in the streets, just as there were crowds in New York, in DC, and, surely, across the country.

Mere feet from my old doorstep we found the revelers, climbing on street posts, dancing to drum circles and brass bands, shouting, hugging, and high-fiving.


This, already 3 hours after the results came in.


The excitement in the air was tangible, that night and through into the next morning. Today that excitement remains, somewhat tempered with the ever-darkening financial horizons, but still there. I imagine it will grow back into a frenzy around Inauguration Day, and I do so very hope that we will continue to feel so optimistic in the coming years.

DISNEY

A few weeks back I took a road trip down to LA with two kickass girls for my very first Disney adventure ever. It was incredible. Not only am I a fiend for roller coasters, but I was so thoroughly impressed with the artistic vision in the park. Truly, the attention to detail, the story that was told, was breathtaking. Up until this weekend I was upset that I'd never been to Disney as a child, but now I'm pleased that this was my first trip--a weekend with two friends, and at the age where I'm old enough to go on all the rides (and not be scared) as well as appreciate the effort that went into the entire operation. Yes, some of you may scoff at the idea that something so juvenile as Disneyland could hold some sort of creative merit, but you'll be the ones missing out. I, for one, am a new member of the Disney fan club (not really though, although I'm sure such a thing exists).

On to the pictures!

Follow the signs....


Sup huge pumpkin?!


Tea cups!!


Hey roommate!


Ah, building castles in the sky....


Great Adventure!


The Bridge, a la Disney:

Note: Not the actual bridge.

Celebrity sighting:


This blew my mind:


Tower of Terror:


Outside the Haunted Mansion:


On Splash Mountain....



After Splash Mountain....See how wet Alex's shirt is? Yeah, my shorts were right there with her (not because I peed myself out of fright. Just the splash).



The next morning, after a 12 hour Disney day, we went into LA to get brunch with Alex's friend Garrett and his friend (um, whose name I forgot). We had a delicious breakfast, saw Garrett's (now old) apartment, got Pinkberry (YUM) and went up to the LA Observatory, where we could see both the Hollywood sign as well as look out onto LA (at least what the smog allowed). We hit the road and made it back to SF in 6 hours. It was, altogether, the perfect weekend escape, and I can't wait to go back.

The Long-Awaited Pictures of My Room

Please, everyone, sit back onto your seats normally and take a deeeeeeep breath. They're here.

Note: I apologize for the terrible photo quality. The iPhone isn't really cut out for any sort of picture-taking, and my Chinatown camera kicked the bucket halfway through Disney adventure.

Feast your eyes upon my new (well, 2 months new) home.

Living Room, complete with dinner on the table and Dexter on the TV:


The quite beautiful view from our living room windows:



The kitchen! I love it.


And, lastly, the bedroom.


Oh yeah, see that shelf action?


The other side of my room is my desk/TV and my closet, and a lonely wall that needs love in the form of decoration. Besides my discs, those are there.

Ta-da! Hope you all enjoyed it.

Aw Crap

I owe you guys TWO picture posts now, one for Disney and one for the apartment (yes, still). In my defense, my camera broke so I can't upload my pictures yet. Also, my shelf isn't mounted yet, so I'm still only about 80% moved in, and I want to be able to show you all the 100% awesome glory of it all.

That is all I have for you today. I started work at 6:30am Pacific Time today, and now I'm sitting in bed watching "Broken English" and waiting to fall asleep. My Halloween costume is hanging over my closet door (even MORE pictures), there's a big party on Friday I'm looking forward to, and CAITLIN will be here in barely over 2 weeks (I think we're at 16 days). My brain is also in overdrive, and has been for the past week or so, so maybe you'll all get lucky and be privy to any mental catastrophe I unleash on this thing.

I also owe a lot of people emails and phone calls. Coming soon, I promise.

A Teaser...

To my Disney adventure picture post!

Yes, that's Tinkerbell, and we're all surprised and excited to see her.

Also, "The Hills According to Me" might actually be somewhat more ridiculous than the actual show. Please see:



Okay, pictures and life updates coming soon!

Personal Conversations on the Bus

To my great delight, my bus line is filled to the brim with people who love speaking loudly about their personal lives on the bus ride home.

Recent examples:

#1. Hipster girl who decides to tell her supposedly ignorant friend all about Sarah Palin's horrifying track record and why McCain is the devil. Newsflash: You're in San Francisco. Unless your friend is living under a rock and/or in the middle of Ohio, spare us all your sure-to-be profound insights on the current political system. Or just save it for when you get home.

#2. Same bus ride as before. Phone rings, guy answers by saying "Sorry dude, I'm on a crowded bus so I can't really talk," and then launching into a 15 minute story about how his house got robbed, his computer is gone, but they found the guy who stole his bike because he was "trying to sell it in a shady way by Civic Center" and that the discovery of said bike "really cracked the case in a bunch of robberies by [his] house. We're talking 7 or 8. And that's not 7 or 8 in the whole city, that's like, 7 or 8 in just a few blocks of me, but the bike's still with CSI so it'll be a while before [he] gets it back." Listen bud, everyone on the bus is listening, and everyone is wondering how you can sound so pompous while talking about getting robbed. Oh, and 7 or 8 robberies in a city the size of San Francisco over a period of about 2 weeks would be miraculous.

#3. Today's bus ride home. West Coast version of Jappy girl talking on the phone about how she's just setting all these lofty artistic goals for herself, but really, she just found a job and apartment, and she wants a routine, but when she really thinks about it, wants to learn a couple more languages so that she doesn't have to live in the US, and these are all the humanitarian crises in Asia, but she'd really love to travel to S. America..definitely Chile and Argentina, maybe Peru, and a little Latin American spice with some Ecuador thrown in. Fist meet face.

#4. Also on today's bus ride (apparently obnoxious talkers come in two's). This girl was talking so loudly I'm sure the bus driver heard her all the way from her back seat. This is one of those loud, grating voices that you really can't help but listen to, and one this particular occasion she was sharing how her roommate might get fired, but she (the talker) is working full-time, and now that she's working never has any free time (HA), and, "not to be selfish", but she bought the TV and if her roommates (who are apparently pink-slipped freeloaders) watch it when she can't, well, is that really fair?

Ah, the voices of the city.

In other news, this past weekend was awesome. Roller derby might be the most ridiculous thing ever, and unfortunately is as staged and fixed as the WWE. On our quest to get tickets early we actually talked to one of the guys on the Brooklyn team, who asked Adam what size his feet were to recruit him on the team, made us poke at his muscles, told us about how he started an 18-person fight, and guess what his other job is? (Cue him grabbing his enormous belt buckle) He's a bull rider. Bare back, baby.

Anyways, roller derby = hilarity. One of the women looked like my grandma. No, really.

Sunday was spent at the (horse) races. SO AMAZING. I won $75 but ended up breaking even after adding up what I put in to bet at the start plus beers, food, and parking. In one race I actually picked the 1-2 combination, but foolishly didn't bet on the combination itself (think about it...there you go). If I had, I'd have made about $400. That's the "FUCK" of the weekend. And Adam, the birthday boy, broke even by betting on Flightly Girl, horse #9 in the 9th race at 9:1 odds. I'm not sure if that was intentional or a coincidence, but it paid off (and out).

Annnnd now it's back to the grind for another week. Oh, and for those of you who care, I'm feeling 100% better after Mono-Fest 2008. OH. One more thing. See ya'll at Alumni Weekend, betches.

Picture Post #2 - Work Fun Day in Golden Gate Park...On Segways

So my work took another fun day, this time going to lunch at a tapas place and then taking a 3 hour Segway tour in Golden Gate Park. It was hilarious. I almost fell twice, and one time my boss BIT IT. I laughed, then pretended to be concerned, then kept laughing. I was also a big fan of spinning in a circle, as Segways have a zero turning radius. This led to a lot of nausea and not really paying attention to what our tour guide was saying (which, in retrospect, probably contributed to my almost falling and not listening to the safety instructions). But it was still awesome. Now I get why all those tools commute on them.

Anyways, on to pictures!

Segways, resting.


Two of my coworkers:


Who's got two thumbs and is a nerd? THIS GIRL!



My office.....my whole office.



And just because it's pretty, one of the dahlias in the dahlia garden in Golden Gate.


One more picture post to go....the new house! Expect that in the coming days.

Picture Post #1 - Mom Comes to Visit

The view of the beach from the wharf in Santa Cruz.


Snuggling seals underneath the pier.


Our very adorable bed & breakfast room.


Mommy! On the deck of our room overlooking the garden. She now knows how to text and take phone pictures. Isn't she pretty?


And lastly, the requisite trip to the GGB. Pretty spectacular, despite my hate of bridges.

Live Blogging the Debate!

No I'm not.

HOWEVER, I would just like to point one thing out. If anyone noticed the 20s-looking guy in the upper left corner of the screen most of the time the camera was on Obama, with the blonde hair, 'stache, and green tie.....I know him. I went to high school with him, and seeing as my high school was 400 people, that's saying something.

I had been wondering if I'd happen to know anyone in the audience seeing as how the debate took place in Nashville, so imagine how excited my "OH MY GOD I KNOW THAT KID" sounded.

And no, I'm not commenting on the quality of the debate, either McCain or......that one.

Editor's Note:
My high school in Nashville, not Philly.

Ah, October!

October is here, and the city is beautiful. It's like a combination of bunnies and rainbows and lollipops, all gallivanting together through the streets of euphoria.

But really, the past few weeks have been a revelation--skies so blue you'd swear your eyes deceive you, warm weather, and mild, cool nights. And finally, Friday night: rain! I haven't seen rain in 4 months, save the summer shower that rained out the Sunday of Wildwood. But West Coast rain has been like the unicorn of weather patterns, referenced in witty conversation but rarely seen.

It was a sight for sore eyes, and sounds for sore...ears? The past four years in DC have created an appreciation for falling asleep to the sound of wet pavement under cars, that unmistakable whssssssshhhhh that make you happy you're inside and warm. The smell of a freshly rained-upon city can be intoxicating, sidewalks swept clean from months of dirt, with air so crisp you just want to breathe, breathe, breathe until your lungs burst. So, Friday night, I happily stepped outside into the lightly falling rain, feet wet on the pavement, streetlights reflecting off the road. I think you can't really feel like you live somewhere until you experience something other than just sun; it's the comfort that rain brings that makes you feel like, just maybe, you're starting to feel at home somewhere new.

So yes, hello October! The coming weeks are full of exciting birthdays (roller derby and horse racing!), DISNEY (I am finally going to the Happiest Place on Earth) with 2 quite awesome girls, and Halloween just around the corner. I'm looking forward to pumpkin smells, layered warmth, and the last few weeks of Indian Summer.

And then on to November, full of Thanksgiving trips and a visit from the one and only Ms. Caitlin D. She wants gays, Full House, shopping, and the Golden Gate Bridge, and by God I'll give it to her (errrr....figuratively speaking).

And really, I promise, a picture post is coming soon, with new house, Momma's visit, and work fun day (SEGWAY TOUR).

I Have to Make a Confession

I have an addiction...


to playing Tetris on my phone. This isn't your run-of-the-mill phone game though. It's gotten to the point where I'll whip it out mid-conversation, mid-tv show, mid-work day. I can't help it! I even think about it when I'm not playing!

It reminds me of when I got really into Solitaire for about 3 weeks, culminating in me beating the game in 81 (yes, 81) seconds. I haven't played since.

Thus far I've made it to level 11, but who knows where it'll go from there!? Tetris is like my sweet mistress, lurking for me in the dark corners of my mind.


Embarrassing? Maybe. Scintillating? Obviously.

What's This? A New Post!?

Finally! I'm going to update you all, my dear readers (all....4 of you) on life here lately.

Hmmm, where to begin. Oh right, the move. Pictures haven't been taken yet, and there are still shelves and posters to be hung, so as soon as I get that taken care of I'll put up some pictures of the new place. Despite the lack of pictures and shelves, it's been awesome. My roommates are all great, and moving wasn't tooo terrible. The weekend was filled with consumerism, making stops at Bed Bath & Beyond, Ikea (SWEDISH MEATBALLS, HELLO!), Best Buy, Target, and probably something else that I'm missing. I'm hoping to have some sort of Oktoberfest house-warming party, or at least an afternoon of grilling, in the next couple of weeks. I do love living here though, being away from the hobos and having a room that doesn't get bright in the mornings or is deafeningly loud at night (no more skateboarders going by!). The neighborhood is also pretty nice, with your standard array of coffee shops, bakeries, restaurants, and overpriced boutiques (really, a rusty couch frame for $500? That's not chic, you just bought trash). I'm basically moving up the ladder of yuppiness. Whether that's good or bad is yet to be decided.

Moving on....

Mommy's visit! It involved lots of great breakfasts, lots of walking around the city, as well as getting out of the Bay Area for a day. We spent 2 days and 1 night in Santa Cruz, which was super super relaxing. We stayed at basically the most charming bed & breakfast ever (complete with afternoon wine & cheese!), spending the first day down by the beach and at the wharf, and then going downtown for a bit the next day to find my mom some Birks (yes, Birkenstocks in Santa Cruz. We love cliches). After that it was on to The Mystery Spot! Which was amazing. It's basically this strange little area set in the redwoods outside SC where gravity is completely screwed (it might also kind of be an optical illusion). Please see:

(Thank you to this dude for letting me post a picture of him)

Essentially you stand on the weirdest angles ever, feel totally dizzy, and look alternately shorter/taller based on where you're standing. Bizarre. At one point I saw a crooked beam that was actually level (they had a level on hand to demonstrate) upon which a pool ball rolled uphill. Or what looked to be uphill. I highly recommend it to anyone going to the Santa Cruz area, if anything because it's a total trip.

After Santa Cruz we returned to the city to do some touristy sight-seeing. However, I was super tired on Saturday so we ended up just getting breakfast, relaxing at the house, and getting Thai with Alex. OH! And going on a field trip to get Mitchell's (best ice cream ever), where Alex was a fool and got 2 scoops. Ridiculous. Sunday was a huuuge day of sight-seeing, including Union Square, Chinatown, North Beach, Coit Tower/Telegraph Hill, Pier 39 & Fisherman's Wharf, and the Golden Gate bridge. In.Tense. Momma flew out Monday morning bright and early. It was great to see her, and Mommy-time was definitely needed.

Work has been meh, fine. I was working on a super lame report for basically all of last week and up until yesterday. It could have been done in a day, but I was basically given the wrong instructions about 4 times. BUT my laptop did arrive! Work laptop? Money, very money.

Ah, and maybe what's been contributing to my total lack of posting and complete exhaustion the past few weeks? Mono. Again. Mini-rant: My co-workers have been all "Ooooh, don't get me sick!" or "Maybe I caught it from you and that's why I've been tired." Listen: Unless we have, or will, engage in a heavy makeout session or I spit in your drink (don't put it past me), I highly, highly doubt that I will give you mono or I've already given it to you. So just shut up.

Friday is a work Fun Day, so expect a post on that. Fingers crossed I won't see my boss naked again (female boss, FYI). Also on deck is an apartment picture post, and hopefully lots more updating once I start feeling awake again/not like I'm going to fall over on the sidewalk I'm so tired.

Okay, that's it for now, dedicated readers.

Exxxxxeunt.

I Know, I Know

I haven't posted in almost a week! What can I say, it's been very busy here in San Francisco. Actually, that's probably pretty untrue, except for all of the moving/apartment shenanigans this weekend. I promise a longer post, complete with pictures of the new place, very soon. Then it'll be another longer hiatus as my MOM is coming to visit on Wednesday!! Yes, I'm extremely excited. It's a big week.

Ups and Downs

It's been a roller-coaster of a day.

It started when the J-line got backed up by about an hour. Two packed trains passed my stop without letting people on, and the third got to my stop at 9:02am...it's a half hour ride into work. The train itself was already getting full, which is pretty unusual. I grab one of the last seats, but little do I know that I'm directly behind a frankly terrible smelling homeless person. Like, people were covering their noses. I endured the smell of old cheese/wet dog for the 45 minute ride (yup, lots of delays, so exciting) and was realllly relieved to get off that train.

The up was that it's free breakfast day in my building, so I had an apple fritter. Delicious. Then, 5 minutes after I sit down at my desk, I get a call from a job I'd applied to last week. They want to interview me! After a bit of schedule investigating we decide on 5pm tomorrow. It's a communications job at a sustainable agriculture/organic produce distribution company. It looks awesome and in-line with my anth/public health interests, so naturally I'm pumped.

2 hours later, I get a call saying that we have to postpone the interview til October because my would-be supervisor is going to Spain for a month at the end of the week and is totally swamped. Booooooooooo. October will be here soon enough, but still! I'm not a very patient person and this definitely didn't help out in that regard.

Now I'm just waiting for the next "up" to happen. Chances are it will involve food.


Ah, what else is new? Tonight starts the adventure of packing all my stuff up for the move on Saturday. Uh yes, I am completely pumped, thank you for asking. I also played tennis for the first time ever on Sunday, which was...okay? I didn't suck completely, and now my right arm is sore as hell, but I think I'm going to take some lessons and get a little bit better. Maybe a replacement for ultimate? Lastly, my momma is coming next week to visit for 5 days, and I am completely and totally excited to see her. Our agenda includes trips to Santa Cruz, being touristy, and doing wine tasting in Napa. It's gonna be awesome. (Hi Mami!)

That's really all I got for now. I think I might take a 20 minute nap at my desk soon, seeing as my coworker is leaving for an hour and I'll be alone in the office. I feel like my brain is moving in slow motion.

Earthquake?

I'm sitting in my bed and suddenly felt a little wobbly. I thought maybe it was the really big truck driving by, but then the truck went away and the wobbliness continued. Then I looked at my wall and the mirror was shaking. This whole episode lasted maybe 10 seconds.

Interesting.

Update:

Suspicions confirmed!

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/09/06/california.quake/index.html

Minor quake jolts Oakland, California

SAN FRANCISCO, California (CNN) -- A magnitude 4.0 earthquake struck east of Oakland, California, at around 9 p.m. ET Friday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The quake's epicenter was about 10 miles (16 kilometers) below the surface, the USGS reported.

Residents said they felt a sharp jolt, saw plants sway and dishes rattle.

There were no initial reports of damage or injuries.

It Just Keeps Getting Better

They're buying a new work computer for me!

This after multiple near-panic attacks due to various computer douche-baggery and receiving emails 15 minutes after they were sent.

Maybe the job hunt will go on hiatus for a bit....

What Living in SF Does To Your Brain

I guess I can tell that my vocabulary is shifting as a result of living out here. Evidence? Today Christina K's gStatus was "Reading with my bear"

What did she mean? This:


What did I think she meant (very, very momentarily)? This:


If you don't know, please see items #1 and #3 here:

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bear

Buying My Love

I just got word of 2 new company policies:

1. September is now going to be all casual dress code. Fucking sweet.

Want to know what's even better than that? Why, it's:

2. Starting this week my job is conducting a 3 month trial of everyone getting one work-from-home day a week. I get to choose the day, and all I have to do is install VPN software on my laptop.

All of a sudden things are looking up, and I feel a little something like this....

Oh Look! A Word Cloud!

This Is a Useless Post

1. Fancy new layout! Not really new or fancy, but thanks to Blogger's templates and a night with nothing to do, I went big and clicked the "Save New Layout" button. For those of you wondering, I chose it for the widescreen effect. I feel it makes the reading experience more enjoyable.

2. I just caught up on the last 2 episodes of "The Hills". And all I can say is....wow. Does anyone watch this anymore (spare me the glaringly obvious observation that yes, I just watched it, so obviously someone does)? Really, I want to know. It seems like the only thing they're really good for is making some great facial expressions and eye rolls. These girls have got non-verbal communication down. Please see:

Oh yeah, that's some good shit.

Anyways, at this point it seems like the girls are becoming total caricatures of themselves. Lauren is the dull whiny one (seriously, look at how she acts on dates. No wonder she's had so few), Lo is the snarky bitch who looks like an aging housewife, and Audrina is...simple. I'll admit that I was kind of into the show seasons 1 & 2, but I can only spend so many half hours of my life completely uselessly. Goodbye, Hills. The rest has all been written.

1/4 Year

That's exactly how long I've been living in San Francisco. 3 months ago today I boarded my plane sleepy and bleary-eyed, and emerged 9 hours later the newest member of people who make drastic moves directly after college.

While my time here has had its ups and downs, I'm beginning to love it more and more. I'm starting to feel a bit more comfortable (while still missing the enveloping comfort and total familiarity of the East Coast), savoring the mundane, and cuddling into my still-growing social nest. Every day I'm getting more and more clarity (and ironically, the questions coming from) regarding my goals, hopes, wishes, whatever you want to call them. While they'll probably change in the next months, as goals have the tendency to do, I'm excited to watch them grow and change. I'm also reading everything in sight right now, devouring op-eds, memoirs, novels, and articles, and loving it. Instead of reading for tests or class, I'm reading just to step back a little bit from my life and immerse myself in something completely detached from myself.

Yesterday we took the train to Berkeley to explore the campus and take advantage of the beautiful weather. It was exactly a college campus should be: a self-contained enclave that lets you forget that the outside world still exists, with rolling green grass, leafy walkways, and distinguished architecture. After traipsing around for a couple hours we went to a local brewery & restaurant that Yelp gave good reviews. The late afternoon was spent drinking (lots of yummy cider for me), eating wings & greased soaked baked potatoes, and watching the Olympics. We hopped back on BART and spent the rest of the night hanging out at Valley St, with Chan & co making an appearance (and experiencing Mitchell's for the first time!!), and ending with me passing out in the papasan for a bit.

Today has lent itself to simple life maintenance; meeting Alex for lunch at Dolores Park Cafe and reading Dreams From My Father, making a stop at Bi-Rite for simple groceries, and relaxing in my room with the sun shining in from the hills. The coming week will hopefully be low-key in anticipation of Labor Day weekend; the boss is out of town through Wednesday, and the office closes at 2pm on Friday. The only possibility for negativity is my informal Q2 review, but even that I'm not too concerned about. I think it's safe to say that life is good, and getting even better.

Rage-Inducing Moment of the Day

When I get a bill from AT&T on an account I don't even have, with a number I've never seen, and then when I'm on the phone with customer service my call gets dropped TWICE.

The Highlight of My Week Thus Far

Dear Yellow Bouncy Ball,

Thank you for letting me buy you and use you as my new office chair. I think we've had a fun couple of days so far. Major highlights have been trying to bounce myself off you as high as possible when no one is looking, as well as dancing to the jazz band outside my window. I hope that the coming weeks will continue to provide me with the most fun I've had at work the entire time I've been here, as you are a cheerful, bouncy, delightful office companion. I might have to play it cool when other people are in the office, but trust me, I'd rather be bouncing.



Love,

The Ass Who Sits On You

Foul

I think something died under the stairs of my apartment, because it smells like someone bludgeoned a skunk with a moldy block of cheese and left it in the sun for a few days.

Seriously though, this is disgusting. That is all.

Update: My roommate cooked fish. I shudder to think what it tasted like.

Book Reviews

I'm taking a page from Alex's blog and doing 2 book reviews today. It's a dreary Monday and the bay looks silver-y grey from my work window, and a quiet office lends itself nicely to blogging.

Book 1: The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls.

The Glass Castle is an unbelievable memoir. Not in writing style, but in actual events; I find them incredibly difficult to believe. The book begins by recounting the author's earliest memory--she is on fire in her trailer park kitchen at the age of 3. She was making hot dogs on the stove, and her ballerina outfit catches fire and she is engulfed in flames while her mother paints in the next room.

The memoir is filled with moments like this, where the reader shakes their head at the squalor the author grew up in, and at her critically dysfunctional family life. Her parents are manic depressive and alcoholics, often forgoing feeding their family in favor of hording chocolate or spending their daughter's hard-earned escape money for a night at the bar. You can't help but feel for the children, who are alternatively enthralled by their parents or angered and ashamed. One of the turning points for the author is when she in on her way to a Park Avenue party and sees her homeless mother rooting through trash on the sidewalk.

The book is an exercise in emotional restraint for Walls. Instead of treating the book as a catharsis, she writes from an objective, emotionless perspective. It seems that at this point in her life the hardship she's gone through is completely detached from her current reality. She rarely expresses anger towards her parents or family, instead choosing to recite the facts of her life like she's reciting facts from the encyclopedia. It's an easy read, but it'll leave you feeling frustrated with Walls and her family, especially her parents. It's true, though, that Walls had a life worth retelling, so if you're into memoirs you'll probably enjoy this.


Book 2: The Pillars of the Earth, Ken Follett.

I finished this 1,000 page novel this morning on the J on my way into work. I've been working on it the past couple of weeks, and I was left generally satisfied with it. The story is set in the 1100s in medieval England, where the country is engaged in civil war. Pillars of the Earth weaves together an ensemble cast of characters whose lives become entwined in the first 200 pages, all with varying goals, desires, and wishes. Frankly, it's a 1,000 page soap opera with all the standard ingredients: love, lust, war, religion (medieval, remember?), murder, and conspiracies. At times I was just wishing for the book to end; at a certain point one village can only be invaded by the same guy so many times. But it's fluff, and fluff is always pretty easy to stomach, even in large portions. The writing is easy and engaging enough, and one of the books greatest strength's is its character depth--you really begin to know and feel the characters, and you can bet that if you see one guy at the beginning he'll show up at the end with his own twisted history. If you're currently overwhelmed by more intense reading and want something on the side to pick up and just entertain you for a bit, this is a good choice. But if you're looking for something profound that'll change your life, leave this at home.


Next two books on tap are Eat, Pray, Love (I feel like everyone woman has read this book, but I might be wrong) and Obama's Dreams from My Father. Needless to say I'm more excited about Obama's book, but I'm also vaguely curious to see how living in Italy, India, and Indonesia goes. Maybe I'll just have to go on vacation there and find out.

Let's Get Physical

It's a terrible song, I know.

But here's something I've realized in the past week or so (big revelation turn-around): I am not someone who enjoys going to the gym.

This probably explains why I rarely went to the Hel-Wel when it was warm enough to play outside, and why it took a major breakthrough for me to sign up for my gym out here. I just really dislike being in a recycled air box that looks like Globo-Gym, surrounded by girls too concerned with their makeup and guys too concerned with their rippling (ha) muscles. I find that it takes a huge amount of effort to motivate myself to get on an elliptical for 45 minutes when I'd otherwise happily get outside and play ultimate, ride my bike, or just take a long walk.

So why am I not playing ultimate? There's a few reasons, but 2 major ones. The first is that I got to San Francisco too late into the club season to really weigh my different options. The second is that I wasn't in the financial position to be able to afford living a normal life and also play club, and that I also wasn't ready to make the time commitment. I was, and am, new to the city, and I wanted my weekends to explore my new surroundings and get comfortable in a completely different place. And disappointingly enough, San Francisco doesn't have any semblance of a real summer league like PADA or even WAFC. There's technically a league that plays in Golden Gate, but it's beginning-friendly, not even allowing zone for the first 5 weeks or so. One word: lame. I'm excited for winter league, and am faintly toying with the idea of playing club next year. If I don't do that, I'll also be more than content making Wildwood my yearly tournament come-back.

My real point though is that I like being outside and doing something that actually achieves a purpose that exceeds meeting a time or calories-burned goal. Yes, I like chasing after a piece of plastic for 8 hours straight, but 8 hours in a gym? Fat chance. After spending the last 5 weeks or so trying to be diligent about heading to work out after work, my enthusiasm is waning. It's time for me to get outside again, start doing yoga after a year hiatus, and maybe even throw every once in a while...living with Alex will hopefully help with that aspect.

One thing I will not do is hike for extended periods of time. Why? Because of a disastrous senior hike in high school that has still left me scarred to this day. I'll save that story for another day though.

October 1st

I know, it's still almost 2 months away.

But October 1st is my newly self-imposed deadline. On that day I'm hoping to have:
1. New house
2. New job

New house is essentially taken care of. For those of you wondering, Alex and I were actually offered the amazing apartment we looked at on Thursday. It was perfect--good size, great condition, nice quiet little side street. On Sunday we got the email saying we'd gotten the apartment. But, plot twist!, the landlord (who lives below) would need to share the bathroom and kitchen with us due to some sort of legal shenanigans. The landlord was a cool younger guy, but we weren't crazy about the idea of suddenly having a 3rd (and at times 4th, when his girlfriend was around) roommate. So we did the unthinkable in the San Francisco rental housing market...we turned him down.

So then how do I have a place to move into October 1st? I'm now taking a room opening up in Alex's current place at Hayes and Fillmore (.5 blocks from the Full House houses, if you're wondering), waving goodbye to the Mission and its sunshine and burritos. I'm not overly heartbroken about it, as Alex's place is gorgeous, with fun things like dishwashers and laundry (which I'm currently lacking), as well as an enormous kitchen, deck, backyard, and big living room. My future room is a bit smaller than my room now, but with a big closet. It also won't be blindingly bright at 7am every morning, and won't be filled with the street noises I currently hear while falling asleep (for example sirens, crackheads, and drunks). Lastly, I can GET A DOG. My bulldog puppy dreams are nearing fulfillment....

So I guess I just need to get a job in the next 6 weeks. Totally doable, crap job market be damned.

I'd also like to wish Alex a very happy (albeit belated) birthday! Here's to you, future roomie. May your coming year be filled with grilled peaches, kegs of Blue Moon, and many multiple roommate makeout sessions (disclaimer: not her roommates. Other roommates).

On a slightly more serious note, I'd also like to just take this chance to publicly remember my Granny Bell. I found out on Friday that she died last week, at the ripe old age of 92. I was her only granddaughter for 18 years, and I loved her and miss her very much. My dad said it best in his email to me and my brother:

Do not grieve too strongly for her. First, she would not have wanted you to do so; for she was cheery and optimistic in her outlook on life. Sadness had its place, of course, but was also to be kept firmly in its place. Secondly, she had had what we British call a very good innings. She enjoyed a long and full life -- though not without its trials and tribulations -- one marked by love, children and companionship, as well as robust good health until almost the very end, when physical frailty and arthritis became a daily burden. Thirdly, she died peacefully at home. Pamela found her in her armchair, looking quite peaceful, with the television on. As Pamela reconstructs things, she had opened the windows, aired her bed, had a light breakfast and watered the plants in the pots in the front garden. These exertions would have called for a brief rest -- and so she departed this life quietly and in dignity. Such a death we wish not only for those we love, but also for all who have led decent lives.

Current Wishlist

Things that I want right now:


A banana muffin from Boudin.

The apartment Alex and I are looking at tomorrow.

Bulldog puppy. Name if it's a boy: Gulliver (Gully for short). If it's a girl: Lucy.

A vacation.

And, lastly, a nap.

August August August

How it is already August when I'm wearing a sweater and it's cloudy, cold, and dreary outside? 22 years of experience tell me that this is the month when I should be sleeping without a blanket, darting from air conditioned cars to air conditioned apartments, and rediscovering the relief a sprinkler can bring on a hot day.

But no. Instead I'm stuck in some kind of winter-to-spring limbo that demands a fluffy comforter at night and sweaters by day. I suppose, on the plus side, that when the East Coast is buried in snow I'll still just be wearing a light sweater, down jackets be damned. The thought still doesn't completely satisfy my inherent need for sticky 95 degree heat.

Something else about August that I recently realized was that, for the first time in 17? 18? years, I won't be having a first day of school. Of course, the anticipation for these first days varied. When I was younger my mom used to put together huge, cone-shaped containers filled with candy and back-to-school goodies like pencils and cute erasers. If I remember correctly, there's a picture of me on the steps of my house on my first day of first grade, wearing a yellow flowered dress and holding this enormous reminder that fun was over and school was starting. I wasn't smiling in the picture. In fact, I looked pretty unpleased for summer to end.

While the unpleasantness of the end of summer probably never quite left my face, feelings changed. I remember my first day of high school and being SO excited to finally have left middle school and enter what I thought would be adulthood. First day of college was a mix of fear and excitement. And then, last year, my last first day of school was a mixture of the apathy any bored senior knows, nervousness in facing first practice as captain, and the simple, enlightening knowledge that I'd made it through 3 years, I can do one more.

Now, a year later, I'm conflicted. Habit tells me that in a matter of weeks my routine will consist of hard plastic desks, afternoon practices, and late nights (not of studying, though). Part of me, admittedly, has the itch to go back and start learning anew, but that's an itch I can wait a year or two to scratch. The greater part of me has the desire to face new challenges in an as-of-yet underdeveloped part of my life: work. In the past day I've spoken to or emailed with two of my favorite DC people. One is embarking on a 2 year teaching challenge, the other quit his sure-to-be profitable job at Deloitte before it even started, becoming a field organizer for the Obama campaign. Both of them are working their asses off, drowning in work and assignments, going to bed exhausted every night from the sheer energy it takes to make every day successful. The thing is, they love their jobs, despite the late nights and despite the daily challenges and stress they're always presented with. While one (obviously) did have a first day of school, but on the other side of the desk, it seems that they're content to have August go by without the overwhelming wish to be back in school. Yes, we might miss college and its irresponsibility, but there's no real need to be back. The next step is treating them well.

Right now my "next step" is...average. I'm currently trying to make the decision between:
1. Staying where I am (professionally) for the next 6 months or so, earning a raise and promotion and sticking it out til I go somewhere else for a higher-level position.
Or
2. Going somewhere else now, same position, dealing with getting broken in to a new company all over again, but hopefully doing so in a more vibrant, challenging, and fitting environment.

Advice is welcomed.

So, that's August for me. Coasting along til I figure out my (re)direction, spending time off soaking up the city, its people, its food, reading for pleasure (something I never had in school), and building my sweater collection.

And if anyone wants to send me some candy on the first day of school....I won't say no.

Wildwood. Or, An Adventure in Deep Frying

This past weekend I returned to the East Coast to partake in my favorite summer activity:

Wildwood.

What is Wildwood, you may ask? Besides being the trashiest place on the Boardwalk, and the easiest place to spot teenagers of the jail-bait variety, it's also the world's biggest beach ultimate tournament. Roughly 3,000 ultimate players descend upon this hepatitis-drenched enclave with the purpose of playing ultimate and spending 48 hours intoxicated.

This weekend was no different. I played on Bayonet Tailgate Party in the 3-1 Beer league. The team consisted of only the best and brightest. Errr...drunkest and drunkest. It was basically all my favorite people assembled into a cyber pink ball of awesomeness (minus Jenee and Dan, whom I missed terribly), with the badass-est logo on the beach.

Evidence:

I know, we're terribly good looking and stylish. It's a blessing and a curse.

To get the boring part over with, we went 3-3, losing 2 games on double game point and 1 by three points. BTP was robbed of its championship dreams, but everyone had moments of glory and moments of hungover-ness on the field, some more than others (I was of the latter persuasion).

Friday started off early. Got off the plane at 7am after being con men and convincing our gate agent that I was suffering a terrible case of food poisoning and that we'd be missing our connecting flight to BWI. We were then picked up by my mother in Philly for a delicious breakfast and then dropped off at the Greyhound station, where I thought I lost my wallet (it was in Adam's pocket).

3 hours later we arrive in Wildwood after taking NJ transit down the shore. Approximately .2 seconds after the bus driving away do I realize I've left my purse (complete with wallet, passport, and birth control) in my seat. Commence sprinting after said bus. The operation was a success as the bus luckily hit a red light 1.5 blocks down.

After that we joined Adam's family on the beach, where 2pm beer drinking and cheesesteak eating commenced. After checking into the efficiency suite (best idea ever), we departed for dinner, once again with the Croce clan.

Sidebar: the efficiency suite is the height of Wildwood ghetto chic. Imagine 2 dark, musty-ish rooms. The first has a creaky pullout couch and a mattress on the floor...with a headboard nailed to the wall 2ft above. A "kitchenette" with full sized fridge (it held beer and only beer this weekend), mini stove, and unplugged microwave. A bathroom with a window that didn't open (leading to steam room-esque conditions) and broken toilet seat. Lastly, the "bedroom", with 2 full size beds maybe, MAYBE one foot apart from each other, with windows looking out onto the hotel's dumpster backyard. All class.

Back to dinner. I decide now's a good time to start drinking, so I start off with a Long Island. You can imagine where the night went from here. After hitting the nearest liquor store Adam and I do a "Tooter" (pre-mixed shot of death) and head to Old Man Steve's condo, where joyous/snarky reunions commence. LFaust proceeds to make me some kind of rum drink, and I think this is where the night went downhill. Or uphill, depending on how you look at it. We head to the Bolero, where I accost the likes of Danny and the Biggest Tim. I think shots were taken. Fast forward to about 1:45am--I'm being obscene towards Lauren due to a conversation she was having and next thing I know she throws her drink at me. I, logically, throw mine back.

Cue both of us being thrown out of the Bolero. Yes, it's the first time I've ever been thrown out of a bar, and of course it's due to Ms. Lauren Faust. Thanks, douchebag. Also, no matter what she tells you, she threw her drink first. Fact.

Passing out happened around 3am. Waking up was at 9am. Nausea was 9am-7pm.

Saturday night was equally amazing, but in different ways. After hitting the beer garden we return to Steve's condo for more Can Jam (laundry hamper + discs + holes), drinking, and hanging out. We set off for the Bolero once again, with Lauren and I timing our entrance so as not to incite the suspicion/wrath of the bouncers. Once inside it's the same usual shitshow. Packed dancefloor, terrible cover band, bar crowd 4 people deep. While there I was enlightened about websites like DateACougar.com, but after the day's hangover wasn't really feeling more drinking. Neither were a few others.

At 12:45am-ish eight or so of us head back to the hotel room for some hanging out. None of us were prepared to walk in to see MS scamper out of the bedroom with the most devilish look on his face EVER. For privacy's sake I'm going to forgo the rest of the juicy details, but the end of the night ended in creating a delightful sleeping nest out of sleeping bags and wet towels for a special someone (or so I was told...all the hanging out led to passing out around 3 again).

In between the devil smile and nest-creation much hanging out commenced, leading to a major 2am hunger session. Being 2 blocks from the boardwalk we figured everything would be open, and we'd have our choice of pizza, fries, and other gluttonously delicious treats. We arrive at the boardwalk...and it's empty. Yeah, you've got you random 15 year olds being daring and staying out late, but no neon signs welcoming us. Except....30 yards down we spot a yellow sign (I believe Lindsay called it "A yellow beacon of hope"). We walk up and enter a little slice of heaven. Corn dogs, funnel cakes, frozen bananas, deep fried Oreos/Twinkies beckon to us. A feeding frenzy ensued, and about $50 later we walked away overloaded with fried deliciousness. I had a corn dog and funnel cake, but that was nothing compared to a few others. Notably: Will got a funny cake covered in caramel, strawberries, and mint chocolate chip ice cream. Matt Shiel actually managed to get them to make a funnel cake with deep fried Oreos IN IT.

We returned to the hotel happy and stuffed. I passed out, but the aforementioned nest building ensued. Josh or Adam can give you the detailed run down.

Sunday was relatively low-key. We lost our second game, and were done for the day at around 1pm. Then, the heavens opened up and it started POURING. Games were delayed, then teams eventually started bailing. Julie was kind enough to offer us a ride back to BWI; we got in the car at 2:30 and arrived at the airport at 7:15pm. I was seriously worried that our airline wouldn't let us get back on our flight due to getting off in Philly on Friday--the customer service rep on the phone sounded pretty foreboding. However we get the BWI and the line is long and there's only one rep working. We get bumped to the front of the line because our plane was leaving relatively soon. The e-ticket kiosk gives us some trouble, so the one rep comes over, gets our passports, and hands us our tickets, just like that. We think she saw that there was an error with our reservation and didn't want to deal with it, and hit that big red override button. God bless that angry woman. The flights were happily uneventful, and 16 hours after leaving the shores of Wildwood we arrived at my house and promptly passed out.

Already looking forward to next year....

Happy Birthday to My Big Brother

My brother Roland turns 24 today -- GOLDEN BIRTHDAY ALERT.

I'm not telling you what I got him because he might be reading this (I'm not sure though).

Anyways, Roland, happy birthday! I'm glad that we've made it through 22 years without ever making good on those threats of kicking each other asses when we were 8/11/14/17/etc, because if we had then you'd be missing out (because let's face it, he would win in a fight).

Seriously though, thanks for being there through the good and bad, and for letting me bear witness to your various hair phases, highlights including the mullet, dreads, and the Justin Timberlake fro. Also, thanks for scaring off all the people who wanted to ask me to Homecoming in Nashville - Caitlin was the best date I could have asked for.

I hope that this next year sees you going to med school in Germany and having all your hard work rewarded, and that the following years bring you happiness, love, and the peace of mind that you've got a little sister looking out for you. And great hair.

Love,

Julia

Desperate Measures

Posted on the sidewalk (literally--I almost stepped on it) 1 block from my house.

In Keeping With My Last Post...

A conversation overheard while walking out of my BART stop.

"....So he gets caught doing a hand-to-hand with a motha-fuckin' undercover and gets no time! And me?! I get caught doing a hand-to-hand and I get fuckin' MONTHS and MONTHS in prison...you feel me?"

Oh, I feel you.

My 'Hood

Last night two women were arrested outside my door for either a DUI or something drug-related. Their black Escalade was also towed.

A little under 2 weeks ago a young man was shot at killed 2 blocks from me in a seemingly random act of violence, and the police hung up posters asking for help in their investigation.

Then, this popped up on SFist today (happened last Wed):

SFist Blotter: Valencia Street Stabbing Edition

A female was attacked on Valencia Street last Wednesday. It happened to the friend of an SFist contributor, both of whom would prefer to remain anonymous. Here's what went down:

Last Wednesday night, after a wonderful evening with friends I was walking home around 12:30 am. I was just a few blocks from my home and I was assaulted [between 15th and 16th on Valencia Street]. Two men in a large light colored van pulled up, the passenger got out and took my bag and stabbed me in the neck, then took off. From what I can remember I dropped immediately to my knees then began crawling up Valencia St.

Within moments I was found by a woman who screamed for help and stayed with me, wrapping my neck in her scarf. From there, it was a whirlwind of sirens, gurneys, and lights in my face. I arrived at SF General where they determined with a cat scan that the cut was about 1 1/2 inches deep and had cut into one of my main arteries. They needed to operate. The operation took about 3 hours and they were able to stitch together the artery and assessed that no damage had been done to my esophagus or my tracheal... good news.

This attack failed to make any crime blotters as far as we can tell. Also, no arrests have been made.

I feel safe in most parts of my neighborhood. My BART stop is prone to crackheads (I actually saw some smoking crack the other day, out in the open), and there are certain blocks I tend to avoid, like dark side streets. I don't walk around alone, or I bike most places. It just seems that there has been a sudden wave of violence in the city, and my neighborhood is affected somewhat (less than others, though). It speaks to the lackadaisical nature of the SF police force that they can successfully tow big SUVs but can't seem to make arrests stemming from violence. I dunno, this isn't meant to be a rant on the nature or causes of violence. I just find it interesting that I feel completely comfortable in my neighborhood, and yet these kinds of things are happening in such close proximity.

In other news, my 27 year old roommate Greg managed to walk in on me in just a bra and underwear while blow drying my hair. Hilarity/blushing ensued.

This City Doesn't Mix Well With My Bike

It's true. First, we had the methhead water throwing incident. If you need a refresher please look here.

Then, rage-inducing incident #2 happened yesterday.

It's Sunday morning, and I'm looking forward to a delicious brunch at St. Francis, a fat kid heaven soda shop/diner. I really was ready for a chocolate malt as a Sunday morning headache remedy.

I hop happily downstairs and get ready to get on my bike and get going. But something seems off as I'm unlocking it. Hmmm, the front tire looks a little flat. Fuck, it's completely flat. Wait a minute...is the back tire flat too?

(5 second mental pause)

ARE MY MOTHERFUCKING BIKE TIRES SLASHED?!

Answer: yes.

I was fucking pissed. I still am fucking pissed. Not only did I miss out on a brunch I was really looking forward to, but I also had to drag my ass to the bike shop and pay $82 to get new tires and tubes.

Here's the thing...the methhead thing was funny, after the fact. This isn't funny. This is some fucking crack addicts in my neighborhood who fuck around with other people's shit for kicks. The kid who fixed my bike probably said it was a bum who was hoping I'd leave my bike there for a while (so he could steal it, I'm guessing).

Hopefully the bike has now seen the worst this city has to offer and the streak of bad luck is over. But I'd like to send a big fuck you to the douchebags who fucked with my tires. Go smoke some crack, assholes.

Patriotism

I've been thinking a lot about the election lately and the current state of our country. This November many people will be voting for a D or an R, not necessarily for the man behind (or in front of, depending on how you look at it) the party. In fact, this happened in 2004, and 2000, and essentially most elections in the history of our country. That's not what I'm here to discuss though. My problem is this: when, in other elections, has such a fuss been made about the patriotism of a particular candidate?

The Republican party is hell-bent on painting Obama as unpatriotic and therefore unfit to serve as president. I'm not going to get into the flag pin wearing particulars of this debate, as my issue lies with the greater argument itself. No man (or woman) runs for the position of president when they do not truly love their country and want to make it a better place for its people. Obama was a community builder in Chicago's South Side -- does trying to help a poverty-stricken and notoriously violent neighborhood make you unpatriotic? Yes, Reverend Wright said some inflammatory things, but when have you held someone responsible for something someone else said? Before you call me naive, I understand that this is the presidential election, and that politics are dirty. But to go so far as to say that the person millions of people chose to represent their political party and hopefully lead the US and the free world is unpatriotic is unabashed mud-slinging.

You don't choose to put yourself into the public eye and constant scrutiny of your citizens and the world if you don't wholeheartedly love your country and are ready to sacrifice your life (quite literally) to protect, advance, and help it. This isn't about Obama v McCain. This is about common sense. Both men love their country, and both have ideas, while vastly different, about what will make it better. Why not focus on the issues at hand instead of engaging in smear tactics to distract from the numerous problems facing us today? Let's spend some time talking about dependency on oil, the climate crisis, the situation in Iraq, abortion, gay marriage/adoption, and countless other issues instead of harping on fist bumps, flag pins, and baby mommas. That way when November rolls around we'll have people at the polls who look beyond the Ds and Rs and who vote with the certainty that their values and ideals are being upheld. I don't care who you vote for, as long as you've taken the time to educate yourself on the candidates so that you may exercise your responsibility to vote in an informed, thoughtful manner.

He's Just Not That Into You

I'm in a book club. I found it on Craigslist (surprise! I like using Craigslist/CL for things. Like my job, bike, apartment, furniture....).

Anyways, the book club is comprised of about 8 women ages 25-29. Yes, I'm the baby of the group. It's a good crowd--intelligent, witty, and super friendly. I met them for the first time about 3 weeks ago at a wine bar in Hayes Valley, where introductions were made and the next book discussed. The choice was....He's Just Not That Into You.

If you know me, you can imagine my initial thought of HELL NO. As someone who considers themselves moderately well-adjusted and not into reading Bridget Jones-esque self-help books, I recoiled at the idea. Frankly, so did a few of the other girls, but somehow we still settled on this particular book.

Naturally, I put off buying it until Monday, book club being Wednesday (yesterday). I was honestly kind of embarrassed to be buying a pink and green book that screams I AM SAD AND ALONE. I seriously contemplated buying the 1,000 page "How Your Government Failed You" book set up by the check out. I thought it might restore my dignity and legitimacy as a functional human being. Anyways, I read the book in an hour at work on Tuesday because it's in toddler-size font. I hated it.

Seriously, don't read it people. Well, don't read it girls. It's a completely twisted modern-day take on The Rules, written by a cocky jackass with bad frosted tips and a single 41 year old woman. He's married and dating you? He's not that into you. He never called? He's not that into you. He doesn't wanna have sexy times? He's not that into you.

Really? Did a book actually need to be written on this subject? Or was there a special "I lost my common sense" convention where people decided a book like this should be written? Beyond that, the book basically says that no guy is ever going to be good enough, and that mistakes (you know, the kinds humans have the tendency to make) are inexcusable. Nothing less than perfection can be accepted, and it's completely the guy's fault if things don't work out. Um, what about all the crazy bitches of the world? Lorenna Bobbit, I'm sorry, but he's just not that into you. What if the GIRL cheats? Still dumps you? Sorry, he's not that into you. Um, of course he's not.

Fine, I can understand that some women may lack the basic common sense to figure these things out, and this book may help with that. But really, you don't need to be showered in rose petals on a daily basis in order to determine the level of "into you-ness". The way I see it, if whoever you're with is making you happy and trying not to fuck up, you're pretty lucky.

Now I'm gonna go return this book.