Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Revelations

Don’t you hate it when you are sitting alone and that pesky lightbulb goes on over your head and you just realize what the hell you want or need in life? I’m rather content in living life obliviously at times with no hard needs or desires (ok, except for the whole being healthy thing and my Kings winning games). But over the past few weeks, I’ve been realizing more and more about what I want in life.

I blame this book I’m reading: Eat, Pray, Love. It’s really opening my eyes to certain things about me, stuff I really haven’t done since I was in therapy after the whole “breaking up my marriage” thing. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve done the self evaluation routine a few times since I’ve moved back to LA and I’ve gotten really good at standing my ground on certain things, but I’m always shocked at how I can allow certain people to treat me how I don’t like to be treated.

Sometimes I think I’m too nice. I think about other people’s feelings and what THEY want more than what I get in return. And by the time I realize that I’m making all the effort, it’s too late because I’m so upset. Upset with them for not making an effort and myself for not saying anything sooner.

So what’s the answer to this?
A) Become a bitch?
I can do that…but its not who I am.
B) Actually tell people how I feel and expect them to change?
That doesn’t work either because if I tell them 1) they respect it and try to work on it or 2) they think I’m selfish and stupid for actually having feelings and expectations.
C) Keep my mouth shut?
Surprisingly enough, this is always my default answer.

I know what my answer is – but the question ultimately becomes: do I actually follow my own advice?

Sigh – I think its time to listen to more Aretha Franklin.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

A Little Inspirational Message From Me To You

With all the negative stuff that fills our lives on a daily basis, I thought I'd put a little sunshine up for all of us.

Today's Message of the Day is: Life is short, Break the rules, Forgive quickly, Kiss slowly, Love Truly, Laugh uncontrollably, And never regret anything that made you smile.

I wish it was so easy...

Thanks Mon!

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

I really dont know what to say about it....



And my friend and I called the number on the screen, its a real company. Funny thing, is that I can name two people that I would buy this for and they would be pretty jazzed about receiving it as a present.

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Competition for the Laundry

Don't you hate it when things don't go as planned? On Sunday mornings, I tend to have a routine. I get up early (and by early I mean 7am) and get my laundry started. While that is going on, I get back to my apartment and start cleaning. I'm usually done cleaning my apartment by the time the morning NFL games start.

This morning, was no exception. I got up at 7am and since I'm usually the only one that is in the laundry room that early in the morning, I didn't rush out like I normally do. See - mistake #1. I ASSUMED that it was going to be the same as always.

I get to the laundry room and all of the machines are taken, and what sucks is that I missed it by 1 minute. So I leave my clothes and head back to the apartment to start cleaning while I wait for the machines. 32 minutes pass and I head back to the laundry room where I find the person who is screwing up my schedule. I find her LOADING THE WASHERS AGAIN.

Now, if you have 9 loads of laundry, wouldn't it make more sense to go to a laundry mat where you can do it all at once or in one of those giant machines? Just a thought.

What makes me laugh about all this is, that I could have been done with this yesterday. I had planned to go shopping for a couch but I got caught up with procrastination and laziness that the only two things I managed to do were 1) make dinner and 2) watch Legally Blonde The Musical on MTV.

So back to cleaning and unpacking I go! I'm almost done...just a few more boxes. Oh look - Field of Dreams is on AMC...

Tuesday, October 09, 2007

So Close...I Could Feel The Body Checks

HOCKEY SEASON IS BACK!! And to celebrate, Jake and I went to the Kings home opener on Saturday night. Boy...what a night!

I was really excited about these seats I had scored for the game. They were two 2 rows from the glass! Look at that view!
Now - not only was that view awesome...but when I looked to my right - lookie lookie who I see...but Peter Petrelli (aka Milo Ventimiglia from Heroes) and yes, he is that pretty in person - sigh.
So yeah, needless to say, I kept looking over at him. And then the game really started getting good and Jake ended up making a friend - Nick.
Since they have already experienced the power of the body checks up close once before, they learned their lessons. Jake bolts early and runs away seconds before Nick does the same thing when a puck is getting sent down the ice towards them. I felt bad that I laughed as hard as I did when they got the bejesus scared out of them when two players crashed into one another in front of them. But as you all know, I got over it rather quickly and decided to take pictures for the blog.
Nick and Jake not only bonded over hockey, but also over Pokemon cards. Let me state that this was going on DURING the game. Yes, I had the shame.
During the 1st Intermission, I had noticed this blonde on the left. I knew her...I just couldnt get the name out. Then I realized that it was Luc Robitaille's wife, Stacia. Kind of sad I know that, but I do.
The next intermission rolls around and Luc is back by the ice hanging out with his son. So I take my shot and scream, "Luuuc!", he looks over and I ask him for a picture. And low and behold, he comes over and meets Jake and Nick and takes a picture with them.
As you can tell by Jake's face, this was quite the highlight of the night! What cracked me up is that Jake heard me call Luc over and when he realized that Luc was indeed going to take a picture with them, he basically threw the Pokemon cards at me and had this look on his face like "Don't let him catch me with these!".
Another interesting development during the 2nd intermission was that Hayden Pentenierre (aka Claire from Heroes) shows up. If you aren't up with the celebrity rumors, they are "allegedly" dating. And from what I saw that night - they totally are.

Quite the night, I must say. The next day I decided to check out the pictures from the game and low and behold, I found an interesting one. Look below...see the player on the left NAGY lifting his right arm in triumph after the Kings scored a goal.

His glove - is covering my face! So close, yet so far away...

Thursday, October 04, 2007

Why Is This A Bad Thing?

All day today - I thought it was Wednesday. ALL DAY.

I sent emails out saying, "Please return this to me by end of tomorrow - Thursday."

I made plans in my head for "The day after tomorrow - Friday."

Until someone waved one of those fateful emails in my face did I realize that it was Thursday. I even tried to argue with them about what day it was. Who does that? What sucks even more - is that I was DISAPPOINTED I had lost a day! What the hell?

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Mother Nature Is A Bitch!

(MEERKAT MANOR SPOILER ALERT)

For once I mean that literally.

While walking through the office today, one of my favorite coworkers comes up to me and asks me if I had seen the most recent episode of Meerkat Manor. My answer was No because of the move, I really hadn't had the time to catch up with my TiVo and I had noticed last night that the Meerkat Manor episode from Friday night had already deleted (no doubt to make room for Heroes and Weeds). He had this "cat ate the canary" look on his face and he said "yeah, something bad happens to Flower" and kind of stops. Now - if you want me to pester your ass, never EVER tell me something like that because there is nothing more I enjoy doing than getting to the bottom of something. I go into his office and he eventually fesses up what happens. I kind of don't believe him because - well...lets just say that I actually gasped when he told me what happened. I didnt get the details from him - oh no, for that I went to Wikipedia. There, the truth was laid before me...FLOWER WAS DEAD!

For those of you who don't watch the show, Flower is (was) the leader of the Whiskers who is the family of meerkats that this show mainly revolves around. They track the developments of the family, the fights with other meerkat sects over territory, and their ability to survive in the Kalahari Desert.

I was literally in shock. If this was a scripted show, it would be like killing Sarah Jessica Parker's character, Carrie, off on Sex and the City. Ok, maybe not that extreme but its huge.

Earlier this evening, I was able to sit down and see if anything interesting was on my TiVo. Low and behold, it had recorded this episode again (I swear, I love this thing). I started watching it and soon Jake joined me as well. Time is winding down in the episode and the cameras show a Cape Cobra snake slither into the burrow where Flower's newborn pups were in. As soon as she went in to check on her pups, Jake says, "Uh-oh, I think Flower's going to die." Sure enough, she gets bitten in the face by the snake and she eventually dies from her wounds. Now - I know that I knew about this when I started watching the show and I know this is a show about some meerkats half-way around the world...but....I still teared up a bit. I think it was this bit of dust from all the boxes...

So here I'm thinking, gee - that was a bit silly of me to kind of react that way. I mean its just a tv show - right? I went to the Animal Planet website to see if I could find a picture of Flower to post on the blog and I see this obituary on the website:


Gone, But Not Forgotten

Flower, star of Animal Planet's popular series, Meerkat Manor, is survived by loving mate Zaphod and many children including Mozart, Mitch, Buster, Suggs and Izzy. Flower leaves behind a devastated meerkat mob now without its fearless leader. From humble beginnings, she created one of the largest, most close-knit families on the Manor. Affectionately referred to as the "Kalahari Desert Rose" by those who knew her best, she was a formidable leader and a noble mother.

Flower, born in 2000 and the matriarch to her family, the Whiskers, lived large for a 12-inch-tall meerkat. Under her reign, the Whiskers endured trials and tribulations, ranging from sibling rivalries to violent clashes with the Commandos and the Zappas, their neighboring rival families. Despite the chaos, Flower remained a source of stability for her family, often making life-or-death decisions without breaking a sweat or cracking a claw. An inspiration to her tribe, this fearless female was no "girly-girl." Flower ruled her family with an iron paw but still revealed her softer side when indulging in cuddles with her newborns or playing in the dirt.

Flower might have lived to see future generations of Whiskers if her life wasn't cut tragically short when she came face-to-masked-face with the snake that tragically dealt her final and fatal blow. Sadly, the Whiskers have felt the stinging bite of tragedy before, having lost Shakespeare, the heroic and valiant son of Flower, last winter.

The family has asked that all donations be made in Flower's name to the
Fellow Earthlings' Wildlife Center.

~Whew - its not just me.

Airing The Dirty Laundry

Over the weekend, I moved to a bigger apartment in my building. And so last night, Jake and I went to Target to buy him a laundry hamper for his room. After walking around for about 45 minutes, it was time to head out and we headed to the registers. We go to the first open one and low and behold the person manning the register is this guy that has always been super friendly with Jake. I know this because, well I pay attention to strangers that talk to my kid.

Mind you, anytime I end up at this cashier, they end up talking as if they have been friends for YEARS and I just end up standing there like an idiot who is only there to pay for the items that are being purchased.

Man (a guy in his late 20's): Its you! My little friend!
Jake: Yes! Its me! How are you?
Man: I'm fine - and you?
Jake: Good - we just came in to buy me a hamper - we moved and I need one for my room.
Man: Wow - do you like your new place?
Jake: Its good - I like it. We have to set up my tv and thats why I we are also getting a universal remote because my mom needs to program it.
Man: Thats cool. You know - when I have a son, I wish that he is like you; smart, funny, sweet, outgoing.
Me: Do you know what sweet means Jake? Its like when you offer to make me tea when I'm not feeling well. Thats a sweet and considerate thing to do.
Jake: Oh yeah! Yes, I'm sweet.

So now I'm getting ready to pay and get out of there. I think its funny that Jake makes these friends and I'm proud how he handles the conversations. Then...the tide turns....

Man: So is your dad going to help you set up your room and stuff?
Jake: No
Me (thinking): CRAP
Man: Oh really? Why not?
Jake: Because he doesn't live with us.
Me (thinking): DOUBLE CRAP
Man: Oh?
Jake: Yeah, he lives in Torrance and we live here...
Me(thinking): SHIT!
Man: Oh, I'm sorry

Then the guy looks at me all sympathetic. So this guy probably thought that Jake's dad and I JUST broke up because of the whole "we got a new apartment" conversation.

Jake: (Sighs) Its ok.
Me: Ok, thanks for your help! Time to go Jake.
Man: Have a good one.
Jake: Bye!!! See you later!

Now, I'm not one to get embarassed but that one caught me off guard.