did you feel that?

i hate panic.
studies show that in times of crisis or emergency, panic kills more people than the actual catastrophe.
and i work with panickers.

lucky me.

and, living in an area with more cracks than a crackhouse, well...

cracks. not buttcracks. earthcracks. them edge-em-u-cated folks calls 'em faults. i's calls 'em reason to par-tay.

no, not really.

but at 11:42 today, we had ourselves a little episode. only a 5.8 on the Richter scale.

pftttttt. call me when it reaches 6.

don't get me wrong, i do hate earthquakes, but i cannot STAND it when people panic. because in their panic, they will do something stupid that could kill them...and me, too.

so there you go. just a little shaker that was really hard, at least at my work. we lost a good section of tiles from our ceiling, and to be on the safe side, they sent us home.

and i did.
no damage, except to the cat. he was pissed.

just so you know, the whole earthquake is probably my fault. you see, i had emailed April last week about a chick i know that i've been butting heads with (i know, hard to believe i can't get along with people). i said to April that this look i got was the same as if i had farted in the Vatican.

therefore - the earthquake is my fault.

but - everyone i care about is OK, some more shaken than others, but no damage, surprisingly.
except that the news stations with their continuous coverage are losing their minds.

because nothing really was damaged. no freeways collapsed. nothing to see here, move along.
hey - what if they threw an earthquake & no one came? a TV news nightmare.

and all because i passed gas.


moving on to today's regularly scheduled post.

on the morning news today, there was a story about a man who had invested his life's savings into opening a rather trendy (read: EXPENSIVE) clothing boutique in West Hollywood.

he'd been opened maybe two weeks, and sometime last night, was broken into and robbed.

cleaned out.

every article of clothing - gone. they even took the Swiffer.

come on, guys; you took the Swiffer? what are you gonna do, sell that out of the back of your car with the clothes?

*hmmmph*

but - they left the hangers.

hangers? dudes.
it did, though, remind me of something that happen when i was a kid.

i had watched Dragnet - not sure if was a rerun or not, but Our Man Sgt. Joe Friday was called out to a clothing boutique that had been the victim of a grab and go. the criminals had run in, grabbed hangers of clothing off the shelves and run like hell.

Sgt. Friday was his usual sympathetic self. he told the owner that what she should do is to arrange the hangers with the loops going inside and outside the bar on the roundabout. that way, if she were to be robbed again, the criminals wouldn't get nearly as many of the goods.

my seven year old self thought that was a great idea. so good in fact, that i decided to do that in my own closet.

because, you know, there was a string of home invasion robberies back in the late 60s, early 70s, where the perps were stealing little kids clothing from their closets.

goes along with the vampires that lived under my bed.

needless to say, my crazy auntie Kay completely lost her mind, trying to fix my closet the way it should be, as well as trying to explain to me how i wasn't really a candidate for clothing thieves.

so there you have it. i'm not only responsible for today's earthquake, but for my great aunt's mental illness.

watch it - i might affect you the same way.

cheers & jeers

remember that from TV Guide? (or actually they DO still run it, whatever) the reviewer would cheer & jeer (duh) the best and worst of TV that week.

once again, art imitates life.

Cheers:
Mike's is having a 50% off sale on their Cricut cartridges.
Jeers:
they won't have anything i want, just what i do have.

Cheers:
the Cricut.
Jeers:
oooops. i've been calling it a cree-cut. found out it's really cricket. d'oh.

Cheers:
the price of gas is coming down a little here under the Smogberry Trees.
Jeers:
dagnabbit, it's still over $4/gallon

Cheers:
i survived the layoffs at work.
Jeers:
rumor is, there's another one possibly coming down the pike, but this one will be company wide.
hey - we're bleeding money, i guess you gotta do something to stop it. and dang it, the severance package now won't be nearly as generous as this last one. time for me to get my sign made up 'Vietnam Vet, Homeless, God Bless,' and find my space on the freeway's off ramp.

Cheers:
B's new car - sweet.
Jeers:
car payments. less than sweet.

Cheers:
OPI's Russian Navy nail polish. it's blue, it's purple, it's dark.
Jeers:
what they charge for pedicures hereabouts.

Cheers:
got laundry done today - and early, too.
Jeers:
the dang battery in my car died at the laundromat. off to Kragen for a new one. aren't cars fun?

Cheers:
Fudgcicles.
Jeers:
what, are you crazy? even with Weight Watchers, i ain't bagging on the 'cicle.

Cheers:
in 9 days, i'll be off to Reno. oh dang. gotta see people i love and take pictures of them.
Jeers:
besides the joy of airport security, there ARE no jeers.

Cheers:
i still love the camera. and yes, i AM picking photos now that i want to enter in the fair next year.
Jeers:
have you priced a macro lens for one of these babies? geeeeeeeeezzzzz. i'm thinking of selling a kidney to finance it.

Cheers:
BBQing steaks on the patio.
Jeers:
the downstairs neighbor, Dickey McPooPooHead, had a tantrum when we were starting the coals because we had embers popping. and this with Brendan standing there with the lid over the coals, trying to keep the popping down. apparently we were also BBQing the neighbor's cat.
Mr. McPooPooHead was truly like a four year old having a temper tantrum, who yelled at Brendan, then slammed the door to his apartment. he has since avoided us like the plague.

wait...that could really be considered a cheer.

p.s. - the cat is fine.

~Susie Q's "My Favorite Things" Game~

so. here's the rules: you can only pick one (yes one) thing for each category. you attach the icon to your answers, pick five more and just have fun!

Sport: baseball

Game: Monopoly

Color: Blue
Movie: s0, SO many...but if i gotta pick one...Wizard of Oz

Broadway play I have seen: hmmmm...i can't think of one; i see more musicals!

Broadway Musical I have seen: The Producers
Song: Everything - Michael Buble
American city I have visited: Orlando

Foreign city I have visited: Puerto Vallarta

Book: Chuck Amuck

Children's Book: Little Women
Classic television show: Dick Van Dyke

Recent television show: Good Eats

Actor: Brendan Fraiser

Actress: Judi Dench
Perfume: Lemon Sugar
Food: burgers

Dessert: Crème brulee
Chain Restaurant: In-n-Out
Local Restaurant: El Farolito Jr.

Car: BMW 325i convertible

Condiment: Tabasco
Kitchen Appliance: Microwave
Home Appliance: DVD player
Beauty Product: Mascara
Piece of clothing: Jeans
HGTV Show: i am SO out of it...i don't watch that channel...
Food Network show: Good Eats...duh!

Author: Laura Ingalls Wilder ( i am SO silly)
Male Songwriter: Paul McCartney
Female Songwriter: Carly Simon

Holiday: Christmas

Ballet I have seen: does the one i was in when i was four count?

Disney character: Stitch
Flower: daisies
Alcoholic drink: margarita on the rocks

Non-Alcoholic drink: diet Coke with lime

Magazine: People (gotta have my gossip!)
Animated movie: Cinderella
Television network miniseries: V (a cool show about lizard people taking over the world, disguised as humans...i told you, i AM weird)

Season: fall
Male vocalist: Donny Osmond. duh.
Female vocalist: Carly Simon
Day of the week: Saturday

Household Chore: laundry (say it again: weirdo.)
Ice Cream: Hagen Daas Green Tea

Candy: Twix

Artist: Monet

Quotation: Imagination is far more important than knowledge - Albert Einstein

so - if you want to play, i tag: Linda, Melissa, Mama P, April & Becky. and heck, even if you're not listed, play anyway...just let me know so i can spy on your answers.

then change mine.

coming to you live from somewhere in L.A.

on Friday, i drove up with my friends, the oh-so-loving ones, to Griffith Park up in L.A. there's a huge zoo there, the observatory, a western heritage museum and Travel Town, a park dedicated to train aficionados and home of the L.A. Live Steamers, a model train club.

and that is where we ended up - checking out a barn. Uncle Walt had a barn, e-i-e-i-o.

back in the day, Walt Disney discovered model trains, this was way before he had designs to create Disneyland. he built a barn on his property, much to the chagrin of his wife, and with the help of two of his animators, designed the train that ran around the back of the house.

it is open to the public, but usually only on the 3rd Sunday of the month, when the train club meets. my friend, as he is so good at, finagled an invite to have it opened just for him. so, i got to tag along.

totally cool. not only the barn, the grounds and the wee train tracks, but heck...i got to flipping play for an hour with my baby camera.

that, Gentle Reader, rocked.

the barn.

looking out towards the hills in Griffith Park.i think this was my favorite of the whole day. made me fall in love with my camera all over again.

this was just cool.

this too. creepy, but cool.

the end of the line.

i just always like to wonder what's around the bend.

it just might be true love...between me and my baby camera. and yes, i'm already working on what i could submit to the fair next year.

happy weekend!

what - me weird?

have we established i'm weird?

i am, you know.

so when i saw this on Photojojo, well...

heck, i wanna go find some dangerous abandoned building and go exploring with my new ball.

then i get this vision of me being a klutz, falling and getting stuck under something, then being the lead story on the 1 o'clock news.

because idiots generally don't make the prime time news...just the politicians. *snort.*

it's too damn hot.

and i realize that hot here in Mostly Smoggy So. Cal is nothing compared to what Jolene deals with, but still. i'm a baby and i don't like it hot or humid, thank you very much.

and where will i be all this weekend?

outside. in the heat. what the hell?!

we have friends coming down for the rest of the week. i'm gearing myself up for battle...
well, possible battle. not with both of them, just one of them.

she doesn't care much for me, but puts up with me because her husband and i have been friends for...well, forever. for crying out loud, though, i met her the same dang day i met him.

oh well.

we've had some run-ins before, and i think she's found that i will push back when pushed.

it's just weird to be looking forward to someone visiting, while at the same time, mentally preparing for a possible battle.

more to come.




in other news....

my girl, Linda, for whatever reason (i think the check finally got there!), has decided that mine is an artistic blog.



oh you.

so - here's the rules:

Recipients of this award must strive to pass it along. Indeed, one good turn deserves another.

(1) Pick five blogs that you believe deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also for contributing to the blogging community, no matter what language.
(2) Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.
(3) Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given him or her the award itself. (I know those of you Texans won't go that!)
(4) Award-winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of Arte Y Pico blog, so everyone will know the origin of this award which is here: Arte Y Pico

Tug- the girl's got an eye for photos. and she lives in hell, so you know there's lotsa photo ops there.

Susie Q - gaaah. i want a tenth of her talent in the world of photo taking. not only that, but visiting her little corner of the internet is like walking into a perfectly temperate pool...refreshing and restful.

April - my girl bares her heart on her pages. 'nuff said.

Melissa & Mama P - writing is my first love. these two do it professionally, but understand the power of the written word and still manage to infuse their writing-for-fun with humor, pathos (ooooh! triple word score!) and power.

awards are cool...even if i didn't get a dang ribbon at the fair (i've let it go. no, really.), but i think all of us blog because we like it. not because we're looking for accolades.

but they are nice. thanks Linda...and thank you, you, you, and you, lurking in the corner, for reading every day and going on this crazy ride with me...even when my writing is crap.

monday.

he went to an auto parts swap meet out in Pomona yesterday; Pomona is about 40 minutes from us, and sits next to what we call mountains out here.

it gets hot out there. Africa hot. and lately here tis been hot AND humid. what a lovely combination! it's like getting poison oak AND an infection down there.

and girls, you know what i mean.

he came home looking like he should be on a plate with some lemon wedges and lotsa drawn butter.

i didn't go, i stayed home and had the fun of laundry. i was gonna play with some stuff, but it was just too dang humid in that room to do that, so, i let him have the fun.

new one here. happy monday, y'all.

well then.

dagnabbit.

we went to the fair the other day. Brendan got in the building before i did(see what happens when you stop to talk to people?) and it took me a few minutes to find him...and my photo.

with no ribbon.

that does sound egotistical, doesn't it? oh well.

we have friends coming out later this month, so we'll be going again, but just on the first glance, it seemed to me that the ones that did win, were huge.

some of the biggest prints i've ever seen.

maybe bigger is better. hey - it certainly worked for all the Super-Size Meals.



y'know - i was surprised...not that i didn't get a ribbon, but at my own reaction to not getting a ribbon. i had been so nervous prior to us going that i thought i would fall apart if i didn't win.

could that mean i'm actually more grown up than i thought i was? finally - after 46 years on this planet, i've matured?

naaah. besides - there's always next year.

the good, the bad and the ball.

what a week.

it's been up...down...at one point i was ready to check myself into the hospital...either a mental

one or a medical one. i'd take it all - as long as there's drugs.

so you know - earlier this year the Husband lost his job AND his car...although not at the same time. about a month into his unemployment hell, he got backed into in a parking lot, and the insurance company decided to total the truck out.

we've been borrowing a car from Kristie ever since.

last weekend we went on an insane car shopping death march. Mr. Particular knew what he wanted: light exterior. dark interior. leather. sunroof. 2005-2006.

oh and he didn't want to pay over $16,000. heck - that's like trying to find a virgin in Hollywood.

however...miracles do happen.

we are now the proud owners of this:

that would be a 2005 Solara, silver, leather interior with a moon roof. at the right price even. whodathunkit.

so Wednsday we picked it up - tomorrow we drive to the credit union to get the check to pay off the dealer.

then came Thursday.

you know how you get that karma? the bad vibe feeling. the no-good-horrible-very-bad-day feeling?

oh yeah. i had that.

first - i planned a birthday potluck for someone in my group for today; then i remembered we had another birthday this month and prepared to combine the two, when the boss said to make it for a day later this month. when i looked at him quizzically, he only said 'trust me - you don't want to have it tomorrow.'

good gravy, i thought. the layoff is Friday.

begin popping Maalox.

then about an hour later, the boss asks me when i take lunch. 12:30 i say. can you go earlier? he asks? just make sure you're back before 1pm.

holy freaking CRAP. the layoff is TODAY.

begin popping Pepto Bismol tabs and run to the...well - you know.

we go to lunch - and as we start to head back up, one of my lunch buddies, who also used to be my boss, says, 'oh, ladies, why don't you come with me.'

and we start walking over to a downstairs conference room.

i have no idea how i got there. my friend said i kept going red, then deathly white (which is a normal look for me), back to red. she just looked like she was going to cry.

we sat there for about 15 minutes or more before a few more people came in. i seriously forgot to breathe once.

then more people came in, and it finally got through to my hysterically panicked brain that i'm gonna be OK. i may die, but not today.

we lost nine people yesterday. thankfully, none of my close friends, but still.

so today, i had that feeling you must get when you survive something horrible. exhausted, yet exhilarated. bulletproof. giddy. then we had a meeting to discuss what's going to happen next week - we're all moving around. again. then we'll have one of our yearly re-orgs, where we divvy up everyone to make it more even coverage for the supervisors.

i'm leaving my current boss and going to a new group...with a supervisor i've had before. which is OK in some ways; i was starting to like him more, he was relaxing and not being so much of a schmuck. but on the other hand, my soon-to-be boss is laid back. VERY laid back. to the point where i want to shake him to possibly get a reaction.

but if i've learned nothing in my 20+ years at this place, it's this: nothing is forever. change is inevitable. keep packing boxes under your desk.

so there's the good and the bad. but what about the ball?

well, in Brendan's family when they were kids growing up, when one of them had a birthday, the other two each would get a ball - just to keep the peace.

so - it turns out that since Brendan got himself a car, he thought he would get me a ball.

here it is:

that would be a Canon Rebel XSi digital SLR.

oh good googly moogley.

the Husband said it's time for me to expand my horizons. he think i AM smart enough to figure out f-stops and exposures and all that crap. i differ with him on that one.

but we did bond on Tuesday (the camera and i, not the Husband. i bonded with him a long time ago) - i found a way to set the camera so i could basically erase things like fences, so when i took some pictures of horses at the racetrack by my work, even with a chain link fence standing between me and horse, i could make it go away.

of course, there is other gain for B besides the car - he now gets my old camera. and, after we get his old (my first) Canon fixed, it's going to my mom.

always like to see the good work go on.

today starts the OC Fair. did i go?

hell no. i'm SO chicken. i don't think i can walk in that exhibit by myself, so tomorrow, on the way home from the car payoff, we'll go and do a run-through.

likely i'll break his hand from squeezing it.

so what have we learned from all this?

that life is a roller coaster. hang on - it's one hell of a ride.

i lost some days.

what did YOU do this weekend?
if it involved anything other than spending it in car dealerships, my hat's off to you.

we started the Glorious Fourth at a restaurant with my parental units and our Special Guest: my stepbrother, in town to visit his mom in San Diego, then his dad (my step-pop), then a road trip to Nevada to see a friend and visit wine country and bunches of other fun stuff.

off we went.

i do believe we've been to every Honda dealer in our local area...some of them B went to without me.

we've looked at cars a-plenty. driven some. heck, we even made a game of it: how long does it take before the sales weasels, er...staff hit us up. one dealership, it took over a minute. at another, it took 15 seconds.

15 seconds. i won that one.

it's possible he's narrowed it down to one, but he left work for awhile to take it to a repair place his friend recommended, in order to have it checked out.

so there could be a new-to-us car in our future. not to mention new-to-us-car-payments.

oh well.

i have to laugh, i think my boy is having a mini midlife crisis. he's insisting that this car have leather interior and a moon roof.

hmmm...beats the hell out of wine, women and song. but - he's diabetic, so no wine for him. women, well - he's married so that's out. that just leaves song...

he can have the leather and moon roof.

the glorious fourth

what can i say that hasn't been said before?

remember the fallen.

salue the standing.

Happy July 4th.

V - Queen of the Disco.

Gentle Reader - i'd like to introduce you to someone. all hail the new me:

V.

V is hip. she is edgy. she only refers to herself in the third person.
she endeavors to be an Award Winning Photographer, but as yet has to hear from the people who could make her an Award Winning Photographer...damn them all to hades.

(and if you are from the fair, reading this...so kidding)

V don't take no guff from anyone. V doesn't have to. V is confident in her own abilities and can make you as confident in yourself as she is in you. V has that kind of power.

V never shirks from any challenge. she succeeds, or if she doesn't then she will try again until she does. and even after that if she fails, well, it had to have been someone else's fault, because V did all she could.

V is usually full of it. obviously.

on our way down to San Clemente Saturday, for the Drunken Cartwheel Competition, i created V, mostly to amuse Brendan...which it did.

V likes to make others laugh.

V is also a way to calm my freaked out butt down.
i swear, i'm making myself bi-polar, between worrying about whether or not i'm getting laid off and whether or not the fair is going to call.

gahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

but why, you may ask, is V the Queen of the Disco? easy.
V would never buy these, but Valerie did.
the Donny & Marie show AND the Hardy Boys Mysteries. both on dvd.
Sunday night, i relived my high school era. only the good parts, not the holy-crap-i-am-gonna-fail-math-and-WHY-doesn't-David-Hunter-know-i'm-alive? parts.

so while V, all hip & edgy, would never be caught dead with those dvds in her collection (V prefers documentaries on dead artists), Valerie the Geek will be caught with em.

and - loving it.





in other news....
MAD props to Kristie - it is her birthday after all. happy birthday girl, and i hope you love the present your girl made you...believe me when i say there's blood sweat and tears in that thing.

and Linda? you'll be OK. prayers for you and here's hoping for a fast, pain-free recovery. try to relax, heal and make the kids take care of you! sheesh!