Things to do while unemployed

Why not alphabetize your CDs? 

A break from cynicism

Sometimes

by Sheenagh Pugh

Sometimes things don't go, after all,

from bad to worse.  Some years, muscadel

faces down frost; green thrives; the crops don't fail,

sometimes a man aims high, and all goes well.

A people sometimes will step back from war;

elect an honest man; decide they care

enough, that they can't leave some stranger poor.

Some men become what they were born for.

Sometimes our best efforts do not go 

amiss; sometimes we do as we meant to.

The sun will sometimes melt a field of sorrow

that seemed hard frozen: may it happen for you.

Awesome weekend

Highlights of going to Davis this weekend (This is mainly for my own recollection):

-Making the 6-hr drive in the (rather small) car with Kaylan, her boyfriend, Toby (a dog) and Java (a cat).  

-Playing Cranium a total of three times in 2 1/2 days, Scene it twice, and Catchphrase 3 times.  YES!  My friends like games too!!

-Finally meeting Ashley and Michelle (I've heard so much about them).  Gathering together in the living room for Michelle's mini-concert.  

-Going to 80's night at the club, dressed in 80's clothing, and not caring that no one else at the club was thematically dressed.  Dancing the WHOLE NIGHT.  And being impressed by Alicia's lack of self-consciousness. 

-Kaylan making enchiladas for everyone.  

-Shopping at the Co-op with Alicia.  And spending $22 on a Hello Kitty water bottle.  (OK, perhaps that price isn't exactly a highlight.)

-Taking Toby for a walk out on the greenbelt.  

-Looking forward to doing it all again.  

I see nothing wrong with this.  In fact, sounds like a reason to visit Switzerland on the way to Iceland.  

And (ha ha!) it figures they'd be mainly be Germans.  

Another reason to visit Iceland

On January 31, Iceland is going to appoint the world's first openly gay head of government: Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir. She's a "former flight attendant who parlayed her experience as a union organizer into a decades-long political career."

I've long heard that Iceland is a beautiful place to visit (not least because it's a perfect spot to see the Northern Lights, a life goal of mine).

Turns out politics are another reason to check out the country!

Lesson learned

Do NOT download Beyonce's single "If I Were a Boy" and then listen to it a single time, because it will be stuck in your head ALL DAY (all year?!).  

I don't even know the lyrics after she says "If I were a boy...."  So I don't even have anything to sing after that.  All I can do is hum.

Hot man:

Namely, Jeffrey Dean Morgan.

Yeah, I realize he's mostly famous for being on that overrated TV show, Grey's Anatomy.  

He definitely deserves better things.  At least, based on his looks (I'm not even worrying about talent).

But does he or does he not bear a striking resemblance to Javier Bardem?  

It's like JDM is America's lower-cost, more-attainable answer to the hot Spanish one.

OK, done drooling for tonight.  

It's time to put an end to this destructive relationship

I've made a resolution to stop shopping at Urban Outfitters. 

The relationship has just gotten too strained. During my high school years, I discovered the store (thanks to Vivian), and was obsessed with it, blowing hundreds of dollars there for birthdays and Christmas. I convinced myself that it was OK that the shirts cost upwards of $30 each, because I was being original and artistic.

But then Forever 21 came along, with virtually the same clothes for about half the price. And I've actually heard good things about Forever 21's clothing manufacturers (well, the workers protested and got lots of public attention, so Forever 21 was basically forced to make improvements).

So UO has high prices, most likely uses bad labor practices, and...then I read Broke & Beautiful's blog entry, which discusses how the latest catalogue features half-naked girls modeling the clothing.  

That crosses the line; what's the point of dressing the models like this?  I suppose it could be argued to be artistic, but I don't buy it.  None of the male models appear like this.  It's pandering, and it offends me.

Thus, I refuse to shop at Urban Outfitters anymore!  

I'm also writing them an email telling them why.

It may not be much in the grand scheme of chain-store shopping, but it's something.  

A Beautiful Day

Oh yeah

Is it hard for anyone else to believe that Obama is going to be OUR PRESIDENT tomorrow?!?

It's a happy disbelief.

I'm not a Republican yet

...but sometimes it looks like it would be a lot of fun.

So I didn't have very high expectations (low expectations which I tried to disguise in the previous post), but as it turned out, Monster Jam (R) was pretty freakin' awesome. It may have had something to do with the 3 beers Cammy and I drank on an empty stomach beforehand, but I think the main elements of loud engines and massive trucks flying into the air makes for an unbeatable combination of FUN. It was kind of like watching a sports game where you don't need to have any beforehand knowledge of the rules; you just cheer for what you like, and everyone cheers with you (and you get to eat enormous bags of cotton candy at the same time).

Monster Jam! Tonight! I'll let y'all know how it goes....

The "Academy"

I know most of the people from Monrovia know the Academy movie theater, on Colorado. I think it's known mostly for being rundown.

Well, with me being unemployed and all, I have rediscovered the beauty of this theater. Matinee shows $2! Evening shows $3! What more could I ask for? (Especially when the cheapest price you can get at the Krikorian now is $7.25. And the regular adult price is $10.25!!)


So today I went to go see Wendy and Lucy (a film about nothing, basically), which was totally worth the $2. Not that the movie was bad...I just couldn't picture myself paying more than $5 to see it.

The point I'm trying to make is, don't pay so much for movies! If you're gonna spend more money, go see a play. If you want to watch a big screen, go to the Academy. At least the name sounds fancy.

Unhealthy obsession

Two items of ridiculous clothing that I keep coveting, despite all common sense:

1. A "romper" or "jumpsuit," it appears to be called, looking something like this (only $11 at Forever 21!):

and 

modeled here:

--as well as--

2. High-heeled (I need high heels like I need a hole in the head) oxford shoes, as illustrated in this example:

I can't wait till these impractical items go out of style and get out of my sight. I need them to stop tempting me.

Now I need to watch 12 Angry Men. Or Runaway Jury?

As of yesterday, I am finished with FOUR WEEKS of jury duty! It wasn't four weeks straight; it actually only added up to 12 days. But due to the holidays, it ended up going over many weeks (and into a new year!).

And after all that work, it ended up being a hung jury. We had 11-1, not guilty. ONE WOMAN refused to change her mind. But even after all the frustration of not being able to reach a decision, I felt satisfied that we had truly done our best to discuss all the possibilities. And I guess that's how the whole system's supposed to work.

I think the best part of this jury duty was hanging out in downtown LA. And no, that's not sarcastic. Downtown has a lot of really awesome restaurants, gardens, museums, and shops. The Walt Disney Center, MOCA, Little Tokyo, Grand Central Market, etc. I definitely hope to get down there again and sightsee a bit more before leaving the area (if that happens).

I'm doing a massive overhaul of my room. And I have concluded, I have too much meaningful stuff! What am I supposed to do with it all?

I suppose if it's truly meaningful, I'll remember it even if I don't own it anymore.

If Obama does it....

Does that mean it's cool?  

I've always thought the backwards baseball cap, with its connotations of arrogance on one hand and laid-back chillness on the other, was an interesting fashion trend.  

Perhaps it's time for a comeback?  

You are a Delight

I am now eating my last container of Turkish Delight (or rather, Greek Delight). I brought back 6 boxes of the stuff (I sort of fell in love with it), and have now managed to give all of it away, except for this last rose-flavored box.

It makes me a little nostalgic already for my ship travels.

The Keht Abides

After an absence of little less than a year, I am back. Or at least, making an attempt at being back.

Today I saw Hannah, (Hannah! My best blogger buddy, who is now married, whom I've not seen in about 2 years, when we met up in Berlin), who told me I should get back to this "blog" thing. And right now, I have the motivation.

I didn't post during that almost-year because I was teaching English on Princess Cruises. A job which I have decided to give up. Still not sure why I decided that, exactly, but no regrets (yet)!

Also jetzt bin ich zu Hause, with the parents (sans Leah while she continues her stay in Paris), for better or for worse. They say they'll start charging rent in April, so that gives me...4 months. I'm pretty sure I can be out by then.

To close, I will leave you with a cartoon by Roz Chast. She's a cartoonist for the New Yorker, and I got a collection of her stuff for Xmas. I'd never heard of her before yesterday, but she's definitely worth checking out. A great mix of random and witty.


PS-I got more Melty Bars this Christmas! Hooray!!!

Too much is going on!

I met Hedwig!! As in, from Hedwig and the Angry Inch!!!!! And I finally saw the musical live, which was totally worth every cent. Cammy was there. It was awesome.

And I leave for my cruise ship training tomorrow. My first official day of training is on my birthday. Not sure how I feel about that, but it'll probably be a...stimulating day at the very least, right?

Wish me luck!