Things are still crazy but this made me laugh

Big fundraiser this weekend, so work has been crazy. It's crunch time, which means lots of late nights and restless sleep. Enjoy this cartoon while you wait for Laurie Ann to return to her usual witty self.Thank God cell phones were not in existence when I was little. I'm sure my father and brothers would have found this hilarious.

Scenes from lunch

Not all of Wednesday sucked. I took a little midday bus trip with Criss to the bank at 9th & Hill, then to Ralphs at 9th and Hope, then back to work. Here's some photos to keep you company until I have something else to write about.Ceiling of Washington MutualClock tower at park, 9th and Hopelovely air conditioned bus

And here is Friday's salad, from Loose Leaf on 6th Street (between Hope and Grand), which has the thickest raspberry vinaigrette I've ever seen. It made my salad look like an accident scene. It was yummy, though. I highly recommend Loose Leaf if you're in the downtown area (on foot, though, because parking sucks). The salads are huge and reasonably priced.

This day sucked, but my salad was delicious

Things started off just fine. I woke up at 5am and decided to get moving rather than hit the snooze. I had some delicious blueberries while I prepared a salad for lunch. I chopped lettuce, tomatoes, and peppers while the sun came up. It was really quite meditative. The salad was visually stunning, although I didn't take a picture. I put it in the fridge to chill while I got ready and prepared my breakfast--avocado sandwich.

I headed out and had to stop at Rite Aid on my way. They didn't have what I was looking for, but I picked up some cards and an amazing chocolate bar. Then, I headed downtown to pick up a gift certificate for a fundraiser. My eyes were burning from either smoke or some other allergen, so vision was impaired. I got turned around on the one way streets but managed to make my way to the parking garage entrance only to turn in the out driveway. Oops. I backed up into traffic a little, drove a bit on the sidewalk, and came in the proper entrance and shrugged apologetically to the security guard who was giving me the stink eye. The nice valet man sent me to the beginning where I made a right and almost exited the garage. The peeved security guard had me back up and turn left down the ramp confusingly marked "Monthly Parking Only." I drove down the ramp and around that level, finding nothing and attempting to find the ramp to the next level. Then it happened. MY OIL LIGHT CAME ON!! And the beeping--MY GOD--the beeping was loud and scary. I hightailed it out of the garage, but when I came to the gate, it turns out there is no grace period; I owed $3.88 and they don't take cards. I pleaded and told the lady that my oil light was on and beeping and I needed out right this second and I don't have cash and I may have cried a little (or a lot). I begged Jamie to make it to the gas station, which she did because she's a champ, but when I pulled over, I may have been driving a little erratically and the police came over to ask me what was what. Here's where the tears and pathetic face work wonders. I let Jamie cool and added oil.

Then I came to work. And I was in such a mood that I didn't feel like doing anything so I went on an errand with Criss. After lunch, I called the DMV because my registration is due (yes, again) but they didn't send me the form yet. The window-licker who answered the phone told me the following: a) his computer was down and he couldn't help me; b) I'd have to pay a late fee because it was due October 2nd, even though they didn't send me the form because "that's really just a reminder, not a bill;" and c) I'm an idiot. Okay, he didn't tell me that last one, but he kept repeating, "You didn't get the form. (no) and you haven't changed your address or anything. (no) Are you sure you didn't get the form?" Seriously??

I did manage to get things accomplished, but not as much as I had hoped. Oh, and I have zero dollars in checking. How did that happen?

Oh yeah, I had a weekend

I got up before the liquor store opened to head out to Studio City with Annika to get our hair did. The lovely Andy fixed my bad dye job and cut my hair just the way I wanted it. Afterward, we looked too hot to waste it, so we went to the Army Surplus store, then cruised past Faith's to check for Halloween decor, and finally headed over to Melrose to check out the LA Eyeworks Big Sale. It was surprisingly not busy so we took our time and tried on a whole lot of frames. Oddly, I ended up buying the first pair Annika handed me and she ended up buying the last pair she tried. I think we both look great with our new haircuts and new frames. After all this fun, I went to a movie screening with more friends to see "Zack and Miri make a porno," which was a lot funnier than I had expected. Phew! Who knew you could pack so much into a Saturday when you actually get up early.

On Sunday, I ventured out to Pasadena to have lunch with my friend Tami. After lunch, we walked across the street to Starbucks to relax over coffee and catch up. On one side, we had a guy in an orange vest playing air guitar to Rush's 2112. On the other, we had a man with binoculars checking out Tami's bosom. Mind you, he was maybe 10 feet away from us and binoculars were certainly not necessary as Tami's bosom is quite ample.

and now it's Monday. Sigh.

I dare you to get this out of your head

glumbert - Hamster On A Piano

Give peas a chance

I had a great day today but I'll give you the weekend update tomorrow. Today I'm here to talk about getting ideas out there and making people listen without rolling their eyes or thinking you're a kook. I'm not given to profundity so I'm not sure I can express this thought clearly, so bear with me. Here's the thing--you know about recycling, right? You know it's a good thing. Many of you are committed to reducing, reusing and recycling. But have you tried to talk someone into it? Have you seen the eyes roll? You can practically hear them calling you "hippie" under their breath. But why? It's 2008 not 1970. Recycling is no longer something done by people who live in vans. I have found that if you provide people with the receptacle and someone else to deal with the actual taking it off to the center, most people are on board but for a lot of folks (and maybe it's just the people I encounter, not the norm) it's still just something you "treehuggers" do.

But this isn't about recycling (although you really should*), it's about why some ideas are such a hard sell even though you can't argue the validity. I mean, recycling? Good. Taking bags to the market to reduce plastic bags in our landfills? Good. Peace? Good. But poor Peace; it gets very little advertising. War is big business. War gets advertising. This did not set well with Jackson over at Superforest.org who decided to advertise for peace in his own way. It all started here. Then came this. And now, he's completed an entire series of drawings designed to promote Peace--the Peace Alphabet. I know I've mentioned them here before but I encourage you all to follow the link and check them out. Jackson is a talented artist and some of the letters are downright whimsical--and you know how I love whimsy. As I've stated, P is one of my faves. I also like V (best topiary since Edward Sissorhands) and D (I suspect it's what happens when you're at work). and you know, peace isn't only about non-war--let's not forget inner peace.

Recently, I made peace with avocados. Huh? Avocados? Yes. You see, growing up in northeast Pennsylvania one doesn't see a whole lot avocados. Sure, there's the occasional guacamole, but other than that, pfftt. So it wasn't until I moved to LA that I experienced them. As many of you know, avocados are on everything in this town (okay, not everything but practically). Salad, club sandwiches, fast food burgers--you name it. I love guacamole but just plain avocados? ew. The first time I tried them I was expecting something very different and the mushy texture totally threw me off. I spit it out and never ate one again. However, it is my plan to change my eating habits, to be come more healthful, and in all the things I've been reading lately, my food arch-nemesis comes highly recommended. Nearly all the recipes in one book include them. "Sneaky bastards!" I thought. "They'll do anything to get me to eat them." Since I always point and laugh at those folks who love ketchup but not tomatoes, I decided to try to like avocados. I haven't picked them off sandwiches or out of salads and Thursday, I actually ate a slice plain. Guess what? I think I like them. I mean, I expect the texture now so that doesn't gross me out and apparently, that was the only deal breaker for me. Woo Hoo! Bring on the mushy green stuff. Inspired by Jackson, here is the first of my own series of Peace Alphabet--things I've made peace with.

Image modified from original found here.


*In full disclosure, I did carelessly toss a plastic bottle in the trash rather than carry it home to the recycling. I wasn't thinking.

"The Starbucks gods smiled upon me" and other tales of good karma

I have some sort of sinus and throat thing going on and the smoky air and Santa Ana winds aren't helping the situation. I'm a little less than my usual fun-loving self lately. Also, I'm a little annoyed at a co-worker with whom I have to work fairly closely, so that's not helping my attitude either. I stayed too late last night finishing a project and had to be in early today to prep for a meeting. I didn't sleep well and was a total Crankypants McGee. But I still had to get the Starbucks order for the meeting and some fruit from the street vendors as well. The boss took pity on me and asked one of the guys to go for the fruit, which left Starbucks to me.

Grumbling, I drove up the street and miraculously hit green lights all the way. Nice.
Turning into the parking lot, which is always double-parked and filled with day laborers milling about, I found an empty spot just four spots from the door to Starbucks. Extra nice.
Only one person was in line before me--my co-worker Kristine. Sweet!
My order was done lickety-split and was correct. Woot!
I made it to the car with six drinks and didn't spill a drop. Hallelujah!!
No traffic on the way back to the office and green lights all the way. Praise be to God!
and then the boss bought us all lunch. [here I bowed my head and practiced gratitude]

In other tales, yesterday Jackson from Superforest.org posted about a Purple dog in Mid-town Manhattan and I commented thus:

Laurie Ann said...

Purple, one of my favorite colors, combined with dog, one of my favorite creatures--what more could you ask for? Maybe a spring green kitten, but that's just crazy talk.

Not an hour later, I received the following picture via email from the Super-awesome Jackson.

Yes, it is October, but Oh My God, the cuteness. And the sentiment is so true, as well.

I'm off to work on my Halloween costume for the WeHo SnB shindig. I've got my superhero all worked out. Here's a hint--his first name is Phineas.

Oh, I have to get my hairs cut this weekend. Any thoughts on local talent? I'm looking for a place that is quality but not too expensive, where I can have a conversation with the stylist and feel as if he/she will listen to my concerns and come up with the best haircut for me. Please weigh in if you have a favorite.