...An Unexpected Turn of Events

2011-12-26T23:09:00.001-08:00

, originally uploaded by snideremark.

iphone

2008-08-27T21:33:00.000-07:00

I finally broke down and got one. Yay! It's so much fun. I've been getting directions, e-mailing from the beach, and listing to music. The one thing that I don't like is that it doesn't reroute you when you make a wrong turn and I have to transfer my numbers from the old phone by hand BOO.

As I said earlier I went to the beach today with Maddy. She read while I transferred numbers to the new phone. It was a great day at the beach. As soon as it started to get too hot a nice breeze came in and cooled us down. I could not go in the water as I still have a burn on my left arm from work. Actually I did stick my feet in, it was great.

One more thing. My book klub book this time is "Book Thief". It takes place in WWII Germany and death is one of the characters. I think it will be an upper... just what I need in my life more war.

what 'Cha Been Up To?

2008-08-26T10:50:00.000-07:00

I've been a bad Blogger. I really should post more.

Last week we went to Yosemite with a bunch of friends, on the annual Tim and Nicole "Fun In The Wild River Weekend." We stayed at the Yosemite Bug which usually has great food and friendly workers with a laid back hostel feel. Well this year the friendly workers were a little too laid back. They could not be troubled to have hot coffee in ready in the morning. The food went from yummy and expensive to just expensive. We did not let it get us down. We just ate in the park which has a full bar and yummy Bloody Marys. I did not get to go in the river as I had managed to give my self a nice burn on my arm while at work the previous week. Everyone else did and seemed to enjoy floating in the river.

On the Cute Puppy front Tally-wa bit a dog the other day at dogie daycare. Fortunately it was not too bad, but a bite is a bite and now she has been suspended from Wagville pending another evaluation. I hope she gets back in and behaves herself. When she doesn't get enough exercise she wakes up at the slightest noise and starts barking. Not fun when you are dead asleep.

iphone, still might get one.

Gas Crush

2008-07-12T21:04:00.000-07:00

I know we have all been felling the gas crush. I thought I had found a way around it.

DRIVE SLOWER.

Any one who has driven with me knows that I drive RIDICULOUSLY fast. My theory was go faster than the police about 90 or 95 and they will catch the people going 80 and it worked (okay I was caught once, he turned around through a dirt median, they don't do that in L.A.).

So I'm now trying to drive 65-70. The problem is that I'm concentrating so hard on the speedometer that I'm missing my exits and having to turn around, which is wasting all the gas I am trying to save.

I'm not done yet. I just have to keep at it and hopefully not get hit by those that are going past me at 80.

Funeral III

2008-06-19T09:12:00.000-07:00

I have been to three funerals this year, two were burials one was cremated. All of the dead had died of cancer all had become friends of Poopoo while her mother was being killed by cancer.

The first was Poopoos mom who was cremated. It was a nice funeral on a very cold New Years Day. There was a nice speech given by the deceased brother and a slide show showing her life.

The second was a brother of Poopoos co-worker. This was my first open casket funeral, when we got up to the the casket I was surprised, "Oh, a dead body. There is something you don't see every day." Why do people do this the deceased never look like they did in life. Their cheeks are sunken in the makeup is pasty. The services were in Persian, it was interesting to not understand anything that was said. At the burial the process becomes very mechanized, trucks pull up, guys jump out, cover the casket, lower it into the hole, flowers are thrown in and it's over.

The third was a closed casket. Again in Persian, later I heard it was a horrible accent and didn't have much to do with the life on the deceased. At the burial the mechanization was kicked up a notch. They had a noisy crane rather than a winch lower the body into the hole. The mourners tried to place flowers in as the keepers used a back hoe to fill in the dirt, it was quite noisy. Then comes the coup de gras they use the back hoe with a pneumatic hammer to tamp down the dirt. I literally almost cried. It was like they were crushing the deceased. Yes the family was there the whole time.

To all concerned I'd like to be cremated.

In Which European City Do You Belong.

2008-06-17T12:54:00.000-07:00

You Belong in Paris

You enjoy all that life has to offer, and you can appreciate the fine tastes and sites of Paris.

You're the perfect person to wander the streets of Paris aimlessly, enjoying architecture and a crepe.

What European City Do You Belong In?

An Unexpected Turn of Events

2008-06-06T23:58:00.000-07:00

Today started like so many others. Maddy kisses me on her way out as I was still sleeping. When I awoke I listened to NPR, piddled around the house, ate breakfast, played with the dog. I was suppose to be packing for our trip to Oregon, doing laundry and cleaning the house. I had lots of time it was only noon.

The phone rings its Poopoo she wants my help to support her at a funeral at 2pm. (Yes this is the same Poopoo whose mom died of cancer on Christmas morning and whose uncle could not take it and died five days later on New Years day, the same day as Poopoos moms funeral.) So I said I'd be delighted to go and support you at the funeral of your co-workers brother. It was wierd seeing a dead body there in the middle of the church. It was my first time at a funeral with an open casket. What a strange custom.

I call my wife and let her know what is going on. Poopoo and I leave her car at the cimetery and go and get something to eat. We get back and there is someone trying to break into her car to get at an empty purse she has left on the seat. I pull my car right infront of their escape vehicle as the guy is running to get inside. He backs up and takes off. You have got to be some kind of serious asshole to try to steal from a car at a cimetary. Fortunately the car was locked and he did not get in.

After The Ride

2008-05-30T12:07:00.000-07:00

Last night Maddy and I went in for a massage at a place recommended by one of our friends who has muscle issues and gets massages all the time. Because she has to go all the time they cant be expensive. She sends us to a Thai massage place in Studio City that charges $40 for an hour.

It was the best massage ever. Its like yoga but they do all the moves and stretching for you, they massage your face, head, legs and the best part is at the end they place a towel with mint on your face.

Let's Ride

2008-05-30T11:41:00.000-07:00

Maddy and I recently got bicycles so we can spend more time together as well stay in shape. She has gone out with me a few times. She has a hard time doing it with her tight schedule of work, banjo, dinner and sleep requirements. I often end up going alone or riding on the trainer stand in the backyard. It's fun and I feel better for doing something healthy.

I have gone out with my neighbor a few times he is real good. I see him riding on one of his project bicycles and see if he wants to go for a ride tomorrow he says sure. I'm thinking maybe like ten or fifteen miles we end up riding for almost THIRTY EIGHT miles by the time we get home I'm almost dead. The worst is that we live on a hill a steep hill so no matter how tired one is you still have to make it up the hill. My neighbor just jams up the hill while I barely made it.

Today I am very sore.

Fashion

2008-05-21T20:17:00.000-07:00

I dont get what is on the minds of womens clothing designers.

The other day I went shopping with my cousin. It turns out that designers are bringing back what I'm calling "The Jordache Look." You remember circa 1985 the high waisted pants that were a pain to get on and never looked as good as you thought they they would and sitting looked like it HURT.

I know I'm a male, but some of my best friends are women and I don't want to seem them go through this AGAIN, besides low waisted jeans look better (no whale tail though).

Construction

2008-05-09T09:49:00.000-07:00

They have been working across the street on a new house. This has been going on for about a week or so and the hill is pretty torn up.

Today I was watching them destroy my view when a man drives up in a white car gets out and tells the men to turn off the equipment. He proceeds to ask if they have a permit to do grading. They don't, doh! Did they have a guy come out and do soil samples? the head guy says, "I don't know." Inspector says, "You don't know much for a guy who is suppose to be in charge. Look, you are shut down till you get the permit. Take a long weekend boys."

So they are working on a super steep hill with huge equipment removing truck after truck of dirt and don't know if the hill is gonna fall on you and make a mess in the street?

Welcome to Home Depot...

2008-04-18T14:30:00.000-07:00

... How can we disappoint you today?

I went to my local Home Depot today, I know better, I was in a hurry. To find some things for a project on which I am working. I went to the hardware section at find a threaded 5/8 inch rod and some bolts. They did not have the bolts and the rod did not have the price on it.

After waiting what seemed like for ever for a guy to show up. He says, "I don't know where they are." Like its an OK answer. I also had to wait while they looked up the price on the rod, which there was only one, which was in my hand. I think they made up the price. I didn't care I was just happy to have some two-bit security guard touch her Sharpie to my receipt and be on my way.

Friday Traffic

2008-03-09T16:55:00.000-07:00

It was bad enough to get out.

The weirdest thing I saw was a driver cleaning his gun, I didn't get that picture.

Maui

2008-02-21T21:21:00.000-08:00

I went to Maui last week for my cousins wedding. It was good to see the family. The wedding was beautiful I drank too much and stayed up too late every night. Got back to L.A. at 12am on Tues. and had to go to work at 8am (good times eh?).

One thing I was surprised about was the amount of "Americanization" on the island, wal mart, Macdonald's, Barns and Nobel they even had a Costco. Not that they don't deserve these, but really? I felt like I was in Santa Barbra or the Santa Monica Mountains.

Another odd thing was the size of the tourists. Americans have got to stop eating so damned much!!

It is currently Humped back Whale breeding season in Maui and Maddy and I went whale watching. It was amazing. The male whales were fighting over the females. Others were jumping out of the water. We even saw a baby whale that was less than a day old. The crew said they had never seen so much aggressive behavior from the males, and stayed out longer the time we paid for to watch them fight.

It's nice to be back in my own bed.

Sick

2008-01-15T11:28:00.000-08:00

I've been sick since Sat morning. I'm not used to this, my wife is the one who does all the getting sick in the family. I got this cold from my wife who got it from some sick kid at the library. My friend come over this weekend while M was out of town, I gave it them.
Being sick sucks.

New Years Day

2008-01-02T21:22:00.000-08:00

The memorial for poopoos mom was on 1/1/08. On this day we found out that at 6am that her moms brother had died that morning.
WHAT THE FUCK!! Give the family a break.

New Years Eve

2008-01-02T19:28:00.000-08:00

Poopoo called and need me to pick up one of her relatives and bring them to Valencia (By magic mountain) for the funeral on New Years Day. Her flight was coming in at 9:45p which wasn't too bad so Maddy and I went to LAX at the appropriate time and called her on her cellphone and she said she was waiting outside in a hat, white t-shirt and jeans we drive by the Delta terminal Three times. Its now about 10:30p. We don't see her. I'm beginning to think she doesn't know what the hell she is talking about. Then I hear it, "I'm next to the BOB HOPE SIGN."

I had picked up Poopoos aunt at LAX the prior week and everything went smooth as lemonade. It turns out that Poopoo gave me all the info except which airport to which I was going. Her relative is at Burbank!

Maddy and I jam all the way from West LA across the valley and to the other side of Burbank. Fortunately for us everyone was pretty much at their NYE destination which meant smooth sailing.

We pick her up and had a good laugh over it and and made it to Valencia in time for the big ball drop.

Christmas

2007-12-29T23:30:00.000-08:00

My best friends mom died on Christmas day, that fuckin' sucks!

Overheard in Los Angeles (skid row)

2007-12-26T17:13:00.000-08:00

Female crack head arguing with her boyfriend:
She gave you money for drugs and you got yourself some fuuuuud!

OMG

2007-12-22T09:25:00.000-08:00

Okay where to start?

I finished the Phenomenon project,thank god! Talk about a pressure cooker. We'd shoot the show on Wednesday a clean up on Thursday, off on Friday. Sat start prepping for the next shoot. Off on Sun, Monday rehearse, there were always changes to what we started on Sat. Tues. rehearse, we get more changes and try to catch up with the changes and get ready for the live show on Wed. Wed a.m. more changes, two more rehearsals changes and shoot the show at 5p. Good times.

So Maddy gets pissed of at the phone/dsl company, ATT. They are charging us for high speed dsl and delivering slow speed. The price of the phone service was high, so she calls Vonage and switches our phone to the internet. Vonage says they will take care of "everything" and not to call the phone company. Wow, I dont have to do anything.
WRONG!!
Vonage takes the phone number, good. Turns off the phone service, good. Turns off the internet, BAD. We ask them why our internet was turned off?

Vonage:We did not know that you had ATT internet.
Me: Dont you do this for a living? Why did you not make sure that the internet would stay up.
Vonage: You have to make sure that doesn't happen.
Me: You said in all your literature, "Dont call the phone company." Now its my job to fix your mistake?
Vonage: Blah, Blah, blah yes.

I call ATT try to get my dsl back up (mind you this is all on my cell sucking up my mins. like mad) ATT says they will have it back up by 8 that Monday night, fine... NOT! I called every day for two weeks with no resolution. They send guys out they do stuff at the office and nothing. I finally call the cable company to come out ond hook me up to the internet, and you know what, next day Bam! Cable internet!
No more stealing the neighbors internet!

Took the car in for service to the dealer they say its covered under warranty. Yay! I come back and pick up the car from the lot, drive away and there is smoke coming from the hood. I take it back and I noticed there is a huge dent in the back of my car WTF I had not noticed it earlier as it was backed into a spot. I figure that they would cop to it. NOT! I have to call my insurance company and deal with them. So far they don't seem to care that it had happened at a dealership and I had nothing to do with the the dent. They seem happy to pay for it. No wonder insurance is so expensive.
Ill let you know how this works out.

Guess What I Saw?

2007-11-30T17:10:00.001-08:00

Today I was a Fry's getting a new wireless card (wireless b was just too slow). I was standing in line listening to the lady call out register numbers I see a nun going to the register, I guess nuns need tech. too, then I notice she has a pager. yes a pager the thing you call and leave numerical message. Im thinking why does a nun have a pager? Don't they just hang out and pray and help the needy. Maybe there is an emergency in which she needs to go to and feed the needy.

You ask where does a nun keep her pager? Right nest to her rosary.

Baby Pict

2007-11-28T20:16:00.001-08:00

Charles Edward

THIS JUS IN

2007-11-28T18:49:00.000-08:00

Carrie Had A Baby!!!!!

No Strike For Us

2007-11-11T11:02:00.000-08:00

Our show does not have writers, yay! I still have a job. I just hope people are still watching the show after last weeks show. All the magicians had bad days, they made stupid mistakes. Maybe it was the Playboy Models they were working with?

I hope we survive.

A new job

2007-10-26T21:43:00.001-07:00

I am now working on a TV show called The Phenomenon. If you are into magic you'll like it. Its on live Wed. at 8p on NBC. Think American Idol with magicians.

My Best friends Mom

2007-10-26T21:26:00.000-07:00

My best friends mom had cancer she went to chemo. Talked to many doctors who said they could not operate, she found one who would and he did. After a long fight her cancer was gone for about four or five months. It came back she is now fighting again the outlook is not good, they say there is nothing they can do.

The other day she was out of the house working on the solar pool heater. She had turned off everything and it exploded covering half of her with scalding hot water. this left her with second degree burns over 1/4 of her body including her face and neck.

I went to see her today she is in the burn unit in Sherman Oaks (supposedly the best this side of the Mississippi) she is in good spirits and was glad to see someone other than her immediate family. I hung out for about an hour and we caught up on life and all.

Its odd that some people are scared to see her like this, "she is the same person only crispier" as she says.

tacos

2007-10-08T22:56:00.000-07:00

today i had some of the best tacos from the little taco stand down the street. I asked for three carne asada tacos and they gave me four yummy tacos with cilantro,onions and a lime on the side and green salsa. the spices in the meat were just right tonight. they were perfect with the beer!

I can't wait 'till tomorrow morning

2007-09-23T14:59:00.000-07:00

We went to the grocery for some provisions and when we got home we found these across the street. I'm sure not sure what they do, but I' pretty sure that tomorrow at 7am they will fire these up and it will spew exhaust and dust into our bedroom. yuch!!
I'll see if I get a picture of them in action.

Chocolate Ice cream

2007-09-13T21:14:00.000-07:00

Maddy made home made chocolate ice cream!! Uber Yummy!

Hit and Run

2007-08-27T23:10:00.000-07:00

Today I was driving a big ass truck for work doing returns for a Bud Light commercial and saw the fallowing:

1 someone hit a parked car and keep going.
2 someone fixing a flat in on coming traffic around a blind corner.
3 someone driving on BOTH sides of the road at once.
4 a truck full of sand spilled on the freeway.
5 4 out of five cars sitting at a GREEN light, drivers on the cellphone.

Be careful out there, it's not safe.

lead man II

2007-08-27T22:52:00.000-07:00

Well I completed The Taco Bell job. It went well, everyone said I did a good job.

It was very stressful. I have no problem telling people what to do when I'm not responsible for the results, but when I am it makes it much harder. I found myself second guessing myself. I think that that will go away with time and expierance.

Fortunately I have a very good crew who know their jobs and do them well, I pretty much just have to get the boat out of the harbor and it pretty much and the set will pretty much run itself. I did some times try to steer it which makes for a fun but stressful time as to see where you end up at the end. I did make a few mistakes and my crew did not let them become a problem.

The main difference I found is after the job is over you still have to runaround town and tie up the loose ends of lost props, damaged props and fixing property damage done to the location.

Although I have not received the check yet I'm sure the extra $100 a day will be worth it.

The Mall

2007-08-19T11:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to the mall to see if I could find a Harry Potter DVD. I had not been to the mall on the weekend for quite some time. It was a strange sight to see there were people walking around in a daze. It was like the mall air had put them into a stupor. As I passed the sleepwalkers and free range seven year olds I noticed two moms slowly pushing strollers they stop in the middle of the isle to talk. One was a double wide, this meant that the whole isle was blocked. Why would some one be so inconsiderate of others! One would not stop ones car in the middle of the road, would one?

After not finding the video I started back to my car and noticed that it was happening to me I was beggining to feel sluggish and dazed, thats when I noticed that none of the stores in the mall had anything that I wanted. It turns out I'm not in their targeted demographic 16-29. I'm getting old. WTF!

lead man

2007-08-16T20:43:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow I start my first job a s a lead man instead of a set dresser. It will be interesting. Ill let you know how it goes.

what have you done reciently

2007-08-16T20:28:00.000-07:00

The other day I was working on a game show where the contestants bet whether the betee could do a certain challenge. There was a guy who said he could ski over eggs. I spent half a day in the back of a refrigerator truck gluing eggs to egg crates so they could be put in place on a ski ramp in sections as oppose to one egg at a time. The riggers spend their day placing the egg crates on the ramp. At the end of the day the guy comes in with all his ski gear to have a go at it. He fails awesomely. He leaves two lines of broken eggs down the ramp. His skis are so covered in egg when he gets to the bottom he falls down. It was quite funny.

Today I made snow in 95 deg. weather. Fake snow is made from shredded plastic grocery bags (I did not have to shred them). I had to make it fall in front of the window. Its sticks to sweat.

RAIN

2007-07-23T19:33:00.000-07:00

It rained last night!! Yes water was falling from the sky while we slept.

Maddy came in and told me the great news. I would have gotten up to see, but it had stopped by the time morning came around.

As for the stats who cares water fell from the sky!

While it did rain last night the sun did come out to make it hotter 'n fuck and humid like the south. bleech!

Reverse Meme

2007-07-15T11:22:00.000-07:00

Stolen from Sitcomgirl

Wherein you tell me all about you.....
1. Can you cook?
* yup
2. What was your dream growing up?
* That Smurfs were real
3. What talent do you wish you had?
* Play piano
4. Favorite place?
*Beach
5. Favorite vegetable?
*I dont like vegetables much, maybe corn.
6. What was the last book you read?
*Plain Janes
7. What zodiac sign are you?
*Leo
8. Any Tattoos and/or Piercings?
*not any more, I used to have a pierced ear.
9. Worst Habit?
*My wife says picking my toes
10. Do we know each other outside of our blogs?
*No
11. What is your favorite sport?
*football or tennis
12. Do you have a Negative or Optimistic attitude?
*Optimistic
13. What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator with me?
*Ask your name and how you knew Zero
14. Worst thing to ever happen to you?
*Fight with my friend Crystal
15. Tell me one weird fact about you.
*I like A Prairie Home Companion.
16. Do you have any pets?
*We just got a dog
17. Do you know how to do the Macarena?
*Thank god no
18. What time is it where you are now?
*7/15/07 11:50A.M.
19. Do you think clowns are cute or scary?
*scary
20. If you could change one thing about how you look, what would it be?
*I dont know. I kinda like me right now.
21. Would you be my partner in crime or my conscience?
*I don't know you, so it depends on the split on the take.
22. What color eyes do you have?
*brn
23. Ever been arrested?
*n
24. Bottle or Draft?
*draft, but not Bud ever
25. If you won $10,000 dollars today, what would you do with it?
*little of this and a little of that, maybe take a vacation
26. What kind of bubble gum do you prefer to chew?
*Eclipse mint
27. What's your favorite bar to hang at?
I don't generally hang out at bars.
28. Do you believe in ghosts?
*Probably not
29. Favorite thing to do in your spare time?
*make things, go for a drive you know stuff.
30. Do you swear a lot?
*More than I should
31. Biggest pet peeve?
*Stupid people
32. In one word, how would you describe yourself?
*Calm
33. In one word, how would you describe me?
*A picture of a very young Punky Brewster
34. Will you repost this so I can fill it out and do the same for you?
*sure

and if you aren't posting your answers in my comments, drop me a line and tell me to come to your blog :)

My Dog

2007-07-12T15:03:00.000-07:00

Today I took the dog to be evaluated for doggy daycare. On the way I picked up a blt with egg (yummy), I stopped at the gas station to get gas and something to drink. That meant the dog was in the car for 7-10 min by her self with my sandwich!! When I got back lo and behold my sandwich was still there on the passenger seat!!! yay

I knew him before he was on Boing Boing

2007-07-11T20:59:00.000-07:00

My friend James used a hidden web cam in his house to catch a burgler! Check it out the guy even tries to go get some stuff from the fridge!!

I live for the dog

2007-07-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

Today we took the dog to the dog park. At firstrst she was scared of the other dogs, they were BIG and professional dog park dogs. There was a pittbull that kept trying to play too rough with her and he went to another fenced in area. After that Tally was better although ther other dogs were still way bigger than she.

There was a friendly guy there who told us the rules of the dog park (keep your knees bent so the dogs don't break em when they run into you). He also said that there are some crazy people at the dog park at times whose dogs actually bite other dogs and people. (Oh Joy)

All in all it was a good time for all for our first outing Tally even played with the other dogs. She did although roll in the dirt after her sixty dollar cut style and bath.

Have a Nice Day

Me, the dog and a sick wife

2007-06-27T22:04:00.000-07:00

I'm doing great!
Dog is getting her stitches out tom. she is fixed
Speaking of out. my wife got her tonsils out last week.
I have been home taking care of them both.
Lots of walks.
Lots of soft food.

Pup-Pup-Pup-Peeeee!

2007-05-30T16:09:00.000-07:00

Yay! We got a puppy from Vegas and it is uber cute! did great on the six hour Labor Day ride home stuck in the desert.

It is part "Lassie" Collie, Border Collie and Husky. It is five months old and likes air conditioning. Her name is Tally-wa after a character in Scott Westerfield's Uglies Trilogy she always was getting in trouble when ever she tried to help. The first time we saw the dog she had managed to get her head stuck in a drainage hole in a brick wall while trying to get to her owner.

She has one blue eye and one black eye like all seven of her brothers and sisters.

She is teaching me to stick out my tongue I'm teaching her to drive (watch out, she has a lead paw)

Democrats!

2007-05-26T09:29:00.000-07:00

WTF! I cant say I did not see this coming. They have always had a thing about capitulation. Anytime there is a struggle they say that there is nothing they can do, The President is not playing fair.

Well surprise he has not played fair for 7 years. For the Dems. to capitulate on their mandate because they are afraid that the soldiers would not have bullets and armor and would be in more danger. Trust me there are plenty of bullets and armor (they just sent 3 planes full to Lebanon). If they did not fund the war the soldiers could be safe at home as apposed to safe with funding in Iraq.

On another point we're getting a DOG it lives in Vegas right now yay!

A Set Back

2007-05-14T21:38:00.000-07:00

I have been making a windmill in my backyard to power some lights on the steps I put in on the hill in my backyard. I built the turbine out of fiberglass, which was harder that I thought to get out of the mold. I managed to hook it up to a generator I picked up from APEX for $20. Mounted it on top of a pole in the backyard, and hooked it up to an old battery charger hooked up a 12v d.c. battery and it charged YAY!!!

So I went to Frys and spent $40 on leds to use for lights and found them to be a bit dimmer than I thought, so I went out to APEX and got another battery and hook them both together and hooked my $40 worth of leds and managed to destroy all of them. One if them even made a cute little fire. I looked on the Internets and found some brighter ones for cheaper. Yay!

You know what now that I think about it there use to be lots of good electronics stores in The Valley before we lost our military industrial complex, now all we have is Frys who only sells stuff to make your car loud or your computer wireless and Radio Shack who sells cell phones and electronic toys for kids. No one sells parts anymore at Home Depot you tell them you need some thing that will do thus and so, they say, "What is it for." or "We don't have that."

So hopefully my leds will be here soon and I will have lights in the backyard.

What 'Chu Talkin' 'Bout?

2007-05-07T16:40:00.000-07:00

Stolen from ZeroDoll who stole it from running42k. If you take this let me know.

Explain what ended your last relationship?
I Did not want to get caught.
When was the last time you shaved?
Last night.
What were you doing this morning at 8 a.m.?
Emptying the garage for the termite guy to spray chemicals (oh the joys of home ownership.)
What were you doing 15 minutes ago?
Writing my blog.
Are you any good at math?
NO.
Your prom night?
Meh.
Do you have any famous ancestors?
No.
Have you had to take a loan out for school?
yes, and I'm still paying it back
Do you know the words to the song on your MySpace profile?
I dont have a MySpace song 'cuz they annoy me.
Last thing received in the mail?
I have not checked yet. Its too hot to go down there.
How many different beverages have you had today?
Water and Oj and ginger lemonade so thats three.
Do you ever leave messages on people’s answering machine?
No, I usually hang up and call them on their cell.
Who did you lose your CONCERT virginity to?
I think it was UB-40 at Universal.
Do you draw your name in the sand when you go to the beach?
no.
What’s the most painful dental procedure you’ve had?
Wisdom teeth, but I was out.
What is out your back door?
Back patio and view up the hill. I need to clean that patio for a party this weekend.
Any plans for Friday night?
NO its Monday let me get over the weekend first.
Do you like what the ocean does to your hair?
Don't care
Have you ever received one of those big tins of 3 different popcorns?
No, but they would always end up in the breakroom at work.
Have you ever been to a planetarium?
The Griffith Observatory in LA which has just reopened.
Do you re-use towels after you shower?
Yes. Good God, are there people that don't?
Some things you are excited about?
Orange juice, my new showerhead and my supercomfy bed
What is your favorite flavor of Jell-O?
I dont like Jell-o.
Describe your keychain(s)?
It has 4 keys on it a car unlock remote and one of those tags so they can track what you buy at the grocery.
Where do you keep your change?
In a ceramic cat we got in China Town, it paid for a trip once.
When was the last time you spoke in front of a large group of people?
Don't remember.
What kind of winter coat do you own?
Black Pea coat, a rain/snow parka and prolly a few others.
What was the weather like on your graduation day?
I graduated in Riverside CA. It was fuckin' Hot!
Do you sleep with the door to your room open or closed?
Generally open.

Its Getting Hot in Her'

2007-05-07T16:28:00.000-07:00

Its like 90 deg. today. I want to go outside,but its too hot!!

This morning at 8 a.m. I had to empty out the garage so the termite guy can come and do his annual inspection. Damn we have a lot of stuff in there. Including a Cal King bed that we need to get rid of. It will not fit in our new house so its been in the garage for a year. I think its time to post it on Craig's list. Trash day is tomorrow and I'll be able to throw out some old stuff. By the time I stuffed all the crap back in it was noon-thirty and I had not eaten breakfast yet.

Welcome to Dodger Baseball

2007-04-15T15:41:00.000-07:00

I went to the Dodger game the other day complements of some big insurance company. I got to sit in those seats that you say, "How do you get those seats?" Yes we were closer to the batter than the pitcher.
It was great!! Everything is included in the ticket parking, all you can eat food including; Chinese food, pasta and ice cream no beer. Darn!

The dodgers even won!

My brother threw the olive from his Bloody Mary on the field.

I Love a Psycho Showerhead

2007-04-12T22:21:00.000-07:00

Yesterday installed a new showerhead from Water Pick. It was one of the fancy change the spray and had a hose to move it around in all. The problem was that it sucked! They make the hose diameter so small that there is not enough pressure to run the massager. This is after I opened it and took all the water saving devices out. Oh and it leaked at the seals. Boo

I took it out and exchanged it for a Moen waterfall or something. It looks like the shower in Psycho. It is the best shower ever. It even gets all the conditioner out.

Where U 'Been

2007-04-10T19:39:00.000-07:00

I know it's been a long time. I have been working like crazy!

Check this out, I just finished a commercial for a cellphone company. This was the craziest job ever. The agency did not like anything that we picked out for the spot. Mind you we sent pictures of the stuff to them before we picked it up. So on a hot Sat. me and another guy are climbing around in the back of a big truck looking for a table and chair which they have pictures of, "Do you have this one?" "Yea it's in the other truck"

We pull like five lamps, six side tables and matching shades for the lamp. The director is being a total DICK.
"Do you have this table a little bit shorter?" I think, "this isn't Target, this is a parking lot on Saturday afternoon and you want to shoot his on Monday and nothing is open."
"I like this table. Can you make it darker like that table? It seems like it is kinda nicked up."
They finish dicking around and I head back to the shop to tell my boss he is going to spend the rest of his weekend refinishing a table. To say the least he is not happy.

The rest of my day is spent finding balls every kind of ball from golf to basketballs, wicker to string, I must have had at least 40 balls including disco. On Monday they ask for more ball choices.

It turned out that the agency got fired half way through the job. YAY!!

I got 10 days on a three day shoot, yay!

Crazy People Part Dux

2007-03-09T20:27:00.000-08:00

Last night Maddy and I went out to Casa Bianca for a pizza pie and lasagna. At this restaurant you expect the wait and the crowed, so we check in and head to a local bar down the street to wait out the thirty-five minutes. When we get there the bar is not open yet (no it's not 10AM either) they don't open 'till 7pm and its 6:55 so we figure there is nothing else to do so we wait outside the bar (lemme tell ya nothing feels better than waiting outside a closed bar.) Enter crazy guy and his friend who are looking for a place to shoot pool. I tell them that there is no pool table inside there is one down the street at the bowling alley. They don't leave but continue on about how much they would like to shoot pool.

It is now 7:10 I'm wishing the bar would open but it doesn't he's still yammering about how much he likes L.A. 'cuz its so much faster than San Diego and the people are cooler... The bar has not opened yet. Others are gathering to go in he calls the bar on his cell. They answer. He starts talking to be bar maiden about why they aren't open yet. She says the bouncer is not there yet and that he always comes through the back door. Yep like a 4th grader this sets him going. The back door eh blah blah blah, "I just wanna know" he says "Do you have heffewiesen in an IV." She I presume says , "Huh" because he repeats himself.

Finally they open, I thought it was over... Wrong! He proceeds to continue to talk to us and annoy the bartender. He wows me with intriguing how he installs pools. Maddy and I order and I make the mistake of ordering Guinness which takes forever to pour... He's now asking what I do. Maddy is half way through her beer by the time mine gets there I'm determined to catch up! I work in film, blah, blah, hours a day, Canada. Ball is now back in his court. Immigrant labor something about Russians and duct work. Finished my beer got outta there.

We are at the restaurant enjoying our pizza when lo and behold he finds us at the restaurant. Mind you we were not in the front, we were through the kitchen two rooms over in the back against the wall in a booth. He starts talking about how good the food is, oh is that a pepperoni and mushroom? I saw your girlfriend on the way to the bathroom.

Thank god he did not sit down!

Where You Been!?!

2007-03-09T19:42:00.001-08:00

I realize It's Been a while, so I'll fill you in. After the hole incident I had a few days off and it was right back to the grind. Did 3 commercials; Sony in the fish market, Sony Baseball and some crazy commercial about rabbit feet.

My co-worker/boss makes fine furniture as a hobby/passion I told him I made beer now he wants some, actually he has been wanting some for a long time now so with a week off from work and my social schedule thinned out I finally had time to start brewing. I brewed three batches which is CRAZY as it takes all day to do a batch practically.

The first batch I did was a spin off of Sam Adams Boston Lager. I added some oak chips for that cask flavor from the olden days with out having to go through with the off flavors that come with the oak barrels. Second is a Guinness style stout. I added more chocolate malt because everyone likes chocolate! I'm thinking of getting a Guinness Tap to get that creamy head that Guinness is known for... (U Sick-O) It costs about $75 so I don't know if it it is worth it. The third is an IPA, on this one I added more hops and more alcohol. I'm thinking of adding oak chips to this as well as originally the IPA was shipped from England to India and the extra hops were added as a preservative, now they are added for fun and flavor. They should be done in about three weeks. I'll let you know how they tasts

More pain!

2007-02-25T08:10:00.000-08:00

Friday night Maddy came to the hospital at about 7:30pm.

I was at work walking along the sidewalk carrying a ladder and a 4x8 sheet of foam core board when I fell in a hole left open hole. This hole was left when the City of Los Angeles removed a tree from the sidewalk. If the hole was just a hole like if you remove a tree from your backyard it would have been fine. The hole I fell in was in the side walk. There was no dirt involved this hole it was a big square in which a potted tree is put then a grate with a hole in the middle for the tree trunk. This hole is just the right size for one to put in ones foot. As my foot went into the hole followed by my shin which scraped against the metal grate leaving a large abrasion and a large open wound. The crew with whom I'm working rushes me off to the hospital where I find the emergency room almost (amazing on a Friday night empty) fill out paperwork.

My driver goes out to call my wife.
Bambaata is ok, he's totally ok. There was an accident at work. We took him in to make sure his leg is not broken.

Fortunately it is not broken, unfortunately the doc. could not stitch it up as it was not a gash but an abrasion. She gave me a large bandage and 600mg of ibuprofen, whee.

I go back to the doc. today for a look see.

I hurt myself today...

2007-02-06T21:14:00.000-08:00

Today I was doing the dishes and managed to cut my finger while washing a knife. Talk about lame, I work with saws drills knifes and all sorts of "dangerous" stuff everyday and here I am cutting myself with a knife while washing it! You know the feeling as the knife slides over your skin it feels a little ruff as it cuts into your skin. By the time you realize what is happening its too late you put the knife down and squeeze your finger and wait for the blood to start pouring out. The next step is to grab a paper towel and begin to apply pressure to the wound so it will stop bleeding long enough to get a band aid on it. I choose to use a rubber band and a paper towel for this as I had other things to do while waiting.
While waiting I called an old friend to set her up with another friend we are going out on Thursday for drinks. I hope they hit it off.
Anyways, my finger finally stopped bleeding and I was able to finally put a band aid on it and move on with my day.

Skunked

2007-01-29T10:37:00.000-08:00

At 2:30a.m. we were woken up by the smell of a skunk. It's not as rare as you might think as we live on an island of wilderness in the city. What made this different was the power of this particular skunk.

After the initial blast we went back to sleep. In the morning the WHOLE house smelled like skunk. It made your nose run, eyes water and sneeze. We opened the house and tried to air it out which was not working so we escaped to breakfast at a nearby restaurant leaving the windows open and the fan running. After running some errands we returned to Skunk Manor and found that it still smelled very bad. We broke out the scented candles which helped.

That evening we were thinking of having people over for games and tea, but that would have been just cruel and cold as we still had the windows open 'till it got too cold. That evening we had a fire which also helped rid the house of the smell.

The next day was clear and we left the windows open ad were rid of the smell.

Yesterday Maddy went to the garage to dump the trash lo and behold the smell is still in there. The skunk must have gone off right in front of the garage. Its a good thing Maddy didnt leave her car windows open!

Crazy People

2007-01-05T16:55:00.000-08:00

What is it about me and crazy people?

The other day I was getting the brakes done on my car, I was sitting outside reading the paper minding my own business when a guy who is also getting his car fixed starts talking to me.

He starts in about how he makes people money off of investing. I'm thinking that you don't look like some one I'd give my money to (missing teeth and gardening gloves hanging out of his pocket). He goes on about how he's putting in a fence or something and has to carry boulders and tree stumps up a hill and almost fell down and hit his head on a rock.

I say, "Sounds like hard work."

He says, "No not me I told you I make people money. I don't work"

"Ah, I see"

Goes on about how he was in jail for "messing some guy up." The judge gave him 3 years and since he knows Karate he is considered a lethal weapon.

"Ah. So you have to ghet them to hit you first."

"Yea cuz I'll mess 'em up, but I'm smart. They don't realize it but I'm smart. If I get them to hit me first it's all over.

Im thinking where is my damd car.

Then asks me how to cash a third party check. I givehim some B.S. answer about using his bosses account because that is what he wanted to hear.

Where is MY CAR!!!

Next story is about how Christmas is about capitalism and he is the only one who understands it and he is going to explain it to me.

HELP!

Oh btw some gang is after him. I did not ask why.

Yay my car is ready and I'm willing to pay the $350 to get out of there.

Snowboarding

2006-12-27T22:42:00.000-08:00

Today I went snowboarding with my brother and his g/f (poopoo).
We left L.A. for Big Bear at 8am, drove for an hour and then they stopped for breakfast, a sit down breakfast, I ate before they picked me up. It was kinda weird, I figured that we'd leave like at 6:30 get there early before it got crowded and all.

We drive for what seems like forever and finally get there around 11:30, get our lift tickets and go out to the snow. BTW Poopoo does not know how to snowboard, my brother and I spend some time trying to teach her how to turn and not catch an edge. I feel we are doing fine my brother seems to be in a hurry to get her on the lift and up the hill. I thought I had little patience, one thing I've learned from being married is that if someone is not getting what you are telling them it is best not to push 'em or they will balk. Anyways we practice some more on the bottom of the hill and before long its we have to get you up the hill before you will be able to learn anything. Poopoo gives in and goes up on the lift and does a great job getting on and off the lift for the first time ( she can ski), we strap her to her board and get her going down the hill, she falls many times, but makes it down the hill. On her next run she sees that my brother and aren't having the times of our lives watching her fall down the hill and sends us off reluctantly. We finish one run and are on the lift back up to catch up with her and we see her form the lift she falls forward trying to avoid the lift tower then she gets back up and tries again and falls again, what a trooper, this time she is holding her wrist. I say uh oh its over its at least got to be sprained.

After searching for her we find her in the ski patrol with a broken wrist. Off to the doctors for x-rays turns out that it is broken in two places. At least the doctors at emergency care were quick and mostly friendly.

Oh yea I got in two runs!
cest'la vies

Giftmas Survey

2006-12-25T18:29:00.000-08:00

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate?
*Hot Chocolate. Nog reminds me of... lets just say its too thick!

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
*Wraps em.

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white?
*Old school colored big lights.

4. Do you hang mistletoe?
*No. Mistletoe is a parasite

5. When do you put your decorations up?
*Some time after Thanksgiving.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)?
*Mac and Cheese, not out of the blue box.

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child?
Sleeping under the tree on Christmas eve.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?
*never had santa my dad let us pick a toy from the toy store.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
*No

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
*Whimsically.

11. Snow! Love it or dread it?
*Snow is fine. I go to it when I'm done I leave it.

12. Can you ice skate?
*Yes, it is not like roller blading.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift?
* Yellow Tonka truck

14. What's the most important thing about the holidays for you?
*The tree silly

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert?
*Sweet tater pie

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
Don't have one

17. What tops your tree?
Star from Grandma Frieda

18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving?
*both are fun

19. What is your favorite Christmas song?
*Baby It's Cold Outside

20. Candy canes?
*The curve is the best part

21. Favorite Christmas movie?
* Charlie Brown, cuz of the cool dancing.

Christmas

2006-12-25T18:00:00.000-08:00

We had Maddy's parents over today for dinner.

Maddy made a pot roast for the first time. Not only was it the first time making pot roast but the first making beef with such a large piece of meat. I was afraid that it would not come out, or else that it would come out dry. She got the recipe from her grandma who lives in the mid west where they know such things as pot roast making. Maddy is not from the mid west and obviously not a big meat eater.

As the meat cooked I noticed that it got smaller. Whew! I didn't want to have to eat leftover pot roast for a week, as Maddy is not into eating leftovers so much. We still have mack and cheese form last week.

Surprisingly it was just the right amount for the four of us, and it was not dry or anything! we had the meat with noodles.

Yay! for our first C-mas in the new house.

MOCA opening

2006-11-26T00:44:00.000-08:00

MOCA openings are the best!
We (MLE myself and Patric) got there early to avoid the wait in line to see the art. It was amazing to see the correlation between fashion and architecture.
We met up with Alia, Devin and Lisa whom arrived later and went upstairs and started dancing as they had a DJ and a bar. Drinks were provides by MLE who works there. Yay!
One of the most interesting things is to people watch. The crowed is one of the most eclectic ever! There is no way that these people would ever come together in nature, they are young, old, hip, street, mod, skater and what ever else. Its great.

Thanksgiving Observed

2006-11-19T19:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday (11/19) Maddy and I went to her parents house for Thanksgiving. Maddy will be in Vegas for a concert the and her sister will be in San Ramon visiting her boyfriends sisters on turkey day. We all had a great time at eating, drinking and playing games. I made an apple pie that was huge. It looked like a mountain, it must have stood about 4.5 in above the pie plate. It was quite yummy if I do say so myself. The turkey turned out wonderfully Mr. S did a great job by evidence of the S sisters eating the skin. E's garlic mashed potatoes were great as usual, and Mrs. S gravy was some of the best I've ever had.

After dinner we took a walk around the neighborhood where they grew up. They closed the old fort and are closing the bridge that they used to cross on the way to elementary school. It was sad to see the fenced off fort it looked like it would be a dream to play in. J and I were thinking of jumping the fence to get inside, but the fence was too high.

When we got back to the house we played Boggle which E beat us handedly. I thought her sister was good, I was proven wrong! While playing Boggle we ate the two pies we had brought over along with vanilla ice cream.

Beer Update

2006-11-13T20:59:00.000-08:00

It was a Smoked Urbock. My stomach feels ill. I'll admit I've had a few beers go BAD in that they would spray everywhere when opened like some product you would find in the world of Harry Potter, no one has ever complained of being sick.

I'm gonna go get some Pepto

g, night

New beer

2006-11-13T19:54:00.000-08:00

Around the corner there is a great beer store where you can find beers from all over the world, I found a beer called Urbok. It tastes like smoked fish. I don't think I like it.

Cabo

2006-11-07T10:02:00.000-08:00

We're (myself, Maddy, E & her boyfriend J) back from Cabo it was a great time.

It turns out the only way to get to the hotel from the airport is to take a taxi. To get a taxi you pretty much have to go earn it. Here is what happens you exit customs and are accosted by people trying to get you to go to their time share presentations. In exchange for going to the presentation you get "gifts" one being a ride to and from the airport. Other gifts we "earned" were a booze cruse, horseback riding and 1/2 hr message. Not bad right? Not so much, the presentation was billed as 90min. it took like 3 hours of valuable vacation time.

We get to our hotel and check in to our timeshare and are approached to go to a timeshare for our hotel we are tired and tell her we'd talk later. We go to our room and take off our watches and order a pitcher of margaritas. yummy.

Next day we go to our "90 min" timeshare pres. and go to do the booze curse. We get to the dock where the boat is and are shocked and frightened at how small the boat was.
It reminded me of a boat that a refugee would use.

We decided to go and have some dinner at a restaurant on the wharf. Where we found that salsa in Cabo to be lacking in hotness. The beer was fine.

We did other stuff too like drink and sit in the hot tub it was a great time. If you would like to learn more check out Zerodoll She has a great write up.

Vacation

2006-10-25T21:19:00.000-07:00

I'm going to Cabo this weekend! Yay! except I'm sick.

Why is it that you cant get sick on work time or sit around the house time? Why do I have to get sick when I'm about to leave the country?

Hopefully Devin will be by to bottle his beer tomorrow, or he will have to wait till I get back next week. That means that the beer will be ready about Thanksgiving. It's been so long since I actually put it into a bottle, I usually put it into a keg and drink it.

I'll tell you about the trip next week.

Making Beer

2006-10-11T10:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday (10/10) Devin came over and we made beer. It took all day, he picked a recipe with 15 lbs. of grain which meant that to convert the sugar to starch and rinse it took about 10 g. of water, which meant that it took literally all day to boil out that extra 5 gallons of water. Eight hours later we finally added the yeast to the wort and we were done with exception of some minor cleanup.

It's odd that his recipe asked for so much grain then asked for brown sugar. Why not just add more brown sugar if you are going to be adding sugar not from the grain? The beer is now in the backyard being made into better things by the yeast. I'll let you know how it comes out in three weeks.

10/4/06 A Beautiful Day

2006-10-04T20:06:00.000-07:00

Today was one of those days you love to live in Los Angeles! It was like 74 deg. Outside and a beautiful clear blue sky which I am not usually into, but today it was wonderful.
I tried to get some things done sense it was my day off. I went to the hardware store, got the numbers transferred from my broken phone to my new one and had lunch with Cute Baby.

For some reason when I got home form lunch I was extremely tired so I went to bed and didn't wake till like 4:3o. I got on the computer and checked the usual place then Maddy came home and we had TJ's frozen pizza ( not bad for frozen ).

Last Friday

2006-10-01T20:41:00.000-07:00

My wife has been out of town sence Friday. After dropping her off at the airport poopoo calls me and asks if I wanna go rollerbladeing. I pick up Jamesey and head out to the valley to go skating which goes fine. No one falls not too many complaints about the heat from other than myself (I like to skate at night).

We headed back to Poopoos to make tuna sandwiches yummy! They came out well.

Later we went to Mimi's Cafe for soup and a salad. Lisa was gonna meet us but didnt make it.
she will meet us at poopoos to pick up a book.

It is now about 5pm and Melenie is asking us what are we going to tonight we say dunno. Melenie leaves and makes coppies comes back and says you are stilll sitting here is that what you are going to do tonight? Looks like it. We decide to get on the phone and have come people over to Poopoos. They resist Rita says no, Ryan is in the desert, Sofia moved to Wisconsin, Tim and Nicole are in Santa Cruz, Rj &Bj already have people over, Preston is in Seattle, Mike didnt answer (suprise), MLE she wants to go to Das Bunker (a club) and dance and is willing to come and get her kidnapped husband to do it, we fortunately we convience her to come overand bring marghretta fixins, Alia and Devin are "watching a movie" and will be over later, Seri says he'll "come."
So we're hanging out drinkin beers and conversating about life and what not and David finally comes home and brings wine (such a nice boy). Devin & Alia finally get there and we have a little party going. Agreat time was had by all.

It used to be that we would just call 3 or 4 people and the house would be full befoer you could count to ten. I guess we are getting old and moving apart, hell Deb is now in Irland.

First try

2006-09-25T18:16:00.000-07:00

Today I went to the movies with my friend Lisa. We saw Jet Li's Fearless (one day I will learn html so i can link). Contrary to what it said in the paper it was an enjoyable movie. The special effects were not overdone nore was the hero "Hollywood Perfect."

Tonight is Kamakaze Karoke! Nope. Its been moved to the second. Maby I'll go play tennis instead.