One of the first things I was worried about after losing my job (aside from the complete lack of income and my desire to stay fed and sheltered) was figuring out what to do [...]]]> I want to thank everyone for the great e-mails and comments of support. It really does mean a lot to me.

One of the first things I was worried about after losing my job (aside from the complete lack of income and my desire to stay fed and sheltered) was figuring out what to do with myself and all my free time. I didn’t just want to sit on the couch and watch TV while feeling sorry for myself. I also didn’t want to gain a whole bunch of weight by not being active. So I’ve made a schedule for myself. I make a mental list everyday of things I want to get done. Exercise, cleaning, running errands, writing letters or postcards, whatever it takes to stay busy. Last week I decided to start learning to cook. I made Challah (Jewish bread) from scratch, and it looked and tasted awesome (if I do say so myself). I’ve also made meat loaf and mashed potatoes from scratch, and both turned out to be fantastic. I’ve always collected cookbooks, as if that would somehow make me a good cook, and now I’m finally getting to use them. It turns out that I really like to cook (and based on the comments I got when I posted that info on Facebook, everyone who knows me has a cracked jaw right about now). I’m just not all that fond of the cleaning up part. I keep trying to learn to clean as I go, but I get frustrated when I clean and put away things that I take back out 5 steps later. Measuring cups for example. Do you have any idea how many times you have to measure things while cooking? People on the Food Network never seem to measure anything, and I sure hope someday I can get to that point. Because I’m pretty sure my measuring cups are going to fall apart at any moment.

Aside from cooking, I now have time to do all sorts of fun stuff that I was always too busy to do before. A couple weeks ago I helped my sister set up her classroom before school started. This is her fourth year of teaching, but only the first year I’ve been able to help her, since my work hours and her school hours were always the same. (I’d like to take a brief moment to thank all the teachers I had over the years for all the work they did to get things together before we all showed up and destroyed everything. I had no idea how much work went into getting a classroom ready to be taught in. Also, if you’d like to show your appreciation for your local teachers, try donating to their classrooms. I know they can use anything they can get, especially since they’re still using the same text books that I had when I was in elementary school. I’m 30 now, and somehow I think there’s probably more updated material they could be using if they had the money. Seriously.) Jen and Mom and I got a lot of work done while we were there, and I finally got to see all of the fun toys she’s been talking about for the last 4 years. I’m not ashamed to say that I had a lot of fun testing out some of the toys to make sure that they were safe for the kids. Or something.

Last week I also got to have a full day date with my Dad, which is something I can’t remember ever getting to do. We started off with lunch and then drove out to Los Angeles and the Griffith Park Observatory. It’s been a LONG time since I’d been there, but it’s still just as entertaining and educational as it was when I was a kid. It’s also normally a beautiful spot to take pictures from, but since there are huge fires not too far away, it was really smoky, and also really hot. We caught a show inside the Planetarium which talked about the earth and the universe, and constellations. The mythology of the constellations has always interested me, so I enjoyed the presentation immensely. Dad enjoyed a nap instead. Then we drove down to the Dresden restaurant (as seen in Swingers) and had a fantastic dinner.  The Dresden, along with several other restaurants in the area, provides a “Dine & Ride” package if you’re going to see a concert at the Greek Theater, which is right down the hill from Griffith Park, and right up the street from The Dresden. The Greek Theater is known for it’s horrific parking, so we took advantage of the Dine & Ride shuttle service to catch The Pretenders at the Greek. I’d never seen The Pretenders before, but I knew a few songs and liked them, so I was excited to go. The first opening act was Juliette Lewis (yes, the actress) and her band. Juliette was energetic to the point of being spastic, and while she seemed to love what she was doing, she’s not really quite that talented in the musical arena (Read: She. Was. Awful.) I could not wait for whoever the second band would be, just to get Juliette off the stage. Karma, however, kicked me right in the ass for making such a wish. Cat Power was the next band, and where I once thought Juliette was awful, I thought she was phenomenal in comparison to Cat Power. Every single song they played sounded exactly the same: slow and drawn out. And while their name is Cat Power, the songs sounded very much like a recording of a cat in heat, only with the player running low on batteries, therefore stretching the moaning out into long horrible sounds. They did a few cover songs (if you can even call it that) that we only recognized from the lyrics. “Thunder only happens when it’s raining” is a pretty recognizable phrase, and it took me a full 3 minutes of hearing the “song” before I even had a clue as to what it was. By the end of the set, people were shouting at the stage “Play something good!” and mimicking slashing their wrists. In the blissful pause between the end of Cat Power’s set and the beginning of The Pretenders, the only conversation that could be heard in the entire amphitheater was about how bad that was, and how so many people wanted to leave. Dad predicted that there would be more energy in The Pretenders first 3 notes, than in Cat Power’s 11 whole songs, and I’m pleased to say he was totally right. The Pretenders came on with a bang, and didn’t let the energy stop for the entire time they were there. I only knew 4 of their songs, but they were so good that I enjoyed the whole show. Chrissy Hind was amazing. The woman is 58 (as of yesterday. Happy Belated Birthday!) and was bouncing around the stage in killer high heel boots playing guitar like no ones business. As a 30-year old who can’t walk on flat ground in sneakers without tripping, I was impressed with her guitar playing in those kick ass boots. The show was awesome, and I’d happily see them again.  All in all the day was great. I was glad to spend some time with my Dad, even if it did include a smoky day, and a horrible band.  The rest was worth it.

That didn't exactly happen.

What did happen was errands upon errands, a hockey game, a concert, [...]]]> So the plan this weekend was for me to finish all the work that needed to be done on the new site, and then post a grand opening post over here inviting you all to see the new place!

That didn't exactly happen.

What did happen was errands upon errands, a hockey game, a concert, and a visit to the theater, all crammed packed into three glorious days. So today, rather than an exciting post telling you all about changing bookmarks and reader feeds and fun things like that (which should let you know that soon you'll have to change bookmarks and reader feeds and fun things like that should you desire to continue following me) I'll tell you about my weekend. And you can pretend to care!

Since the economy sucks, and shockingly people aren't spending money on playgrounds right now, my employers have been tightening the belts. Our hours have been reduced, so that I now have every other Friday off not because I work a 9/80 schedule like I used to, but because they can't afford to pay us for a full pay period. I am incredibly thankful to have a job, even if the fact that my job is cutting hours and wages in an attempt to stay in business doesn't exactly have me dancing on tables. But I still get a paycheck twice a month and I'm almost keeping my head above water.

Because of that, I had Friday off, and my plan was to sleep in as long as possible and then go run errands. The gardeners had other plans. At precisely 9am, I was ripped from sleep by a leaf blower being used under my bedroom window. Why must that happen on a Friday morning where there's a good chance that someone is trying to enjoy a three day weekend? Isn't it more likely that people are not home on Wednesday mornings, and that might be a better time for early morning noise? (Before I get called a snob, let's make it clear that I live in an apartment and therefore do not get any say in when or where the gardeners work. I am quite content to sweep my own porch (which is what the blower was crudely being used for) or mow the community lawn outside my living room, if it means I can do so later in the day when I'm already awake.) (Also, before I get a lecture on the temperature being more outdoor labor friendly in the mornings and that's why the noise, let me please point out that the landscape company is on our property ALL DAY. They just happen to start my section in the morning. I'd just rather they wake someone else up, that's all.) So at 9am, I was wide awake and completely unable to get back to sleep. Considering the amount of errands I had to run, I decided I should just get up and get them over with, so I could enjoy a peaceful afternoon nap. After dropping my bedspread at the dry cleaners, exchanging my POS router for a new one, perusing the bookstore for various titles, a supremely yummy bagel sandwich lunch, a quick manicure (my personal indulgence and reward for not biting my nails), and picking up a jersey and hat for Donald, I went back home to try and catch a nap.

That didn't exactly happen, either.

I made the mistake of trying to mess with something that was working just fine, and ended up breaking the entire thing. So I spent my last remaining free hour attempting to fix that, which caused me to be 15 minutes late for meeting Donald at the hockey game. The game, however, was awesome and the Reign won, making me forget that I hadn't slept like I planned. After a fantabulous dinner at Boston's (I highly recommend the pasta with creamy tomato sauce. It's to die for) we headed home and I passed out.

I slept in Saturday and planned on working on the aforementioned new site once I got up. And I did! But not for half as long as I wanted to, and then I was off and running more errands before picking up Donald and heading out to Anaheim to see Reba McEntire perform. Ladies and gents, she is phenomenal. Simply fantastic. She didn't employ her trademark costume changing, but at least she wasn't singing in a bingo hall. Sadly, they don't allow cameras in the Honda Center for certain events (which I think is total crap) so I was unable to document the experience. But I assure you it was unforgettable!

Sunday, Donald and I drove out to LA to see RENTat the Pantages. Second only to Wicked, RENT is the greatest play ever to grace the stage. This is the second time I've seen it in the theater (though I've seen the movie countless times), and it was awesome. Two of the original Broadway cast members are currently reprising their roles, as are two of the final Broadway production cast members. It's a great play with any cast, but these actors make it so much better. It's not your typical theater production, which might be one of the reasons I love it so much. I mean, at one point the audience is asked to moo. Like cows. How many plays does that happen in? The music is great, the story's fantastic, and the characters are people you feel like you know. If you're in the LA area, I wholeheartedly suggest you make time to go see it before it's gone. Actually, it's on tour now, so if it's coming near you, LA or not, you should go see it. I promise you won't be disappointed.

And so there you go. My weekend in a nutshell, and the reason that the new site isn't done yet. It's going to be another busy week for me, but I plan on carving out some time to get the final tweaks done so you can see what I've been working at for so long. Hopefully you'll like it!

As much of an anti-social person as I am, I love to go out dancing. I am not at all good at it, but it's something I truly enjoy and don't do often enough. My favorite type of dancing has always been country line dancing, and I've learned a lot of different dances. Last October [...]]]>

As much of an anti-social person as I am, I love to go out dancing. I am not
at all good at it, but it's something I truly enjoy and don't do often enough.
My favorite type of dancing has always been country line dancing, and I've
learned a lot of different dances. Last October while we were in Arizona, Donald
taught me how to two-step, and we had a blast. About a month after we got home
from that trip, I found some different dance classes nearby and asked him if
he'd be interested in going with me. To my astonishment, he actually agreed! So
next Tuesday we begin a 6 week dance class on Beginning West Coast Swing. I
couldn't tell you what exactly West Coast Swing is, but if you do a search for
it on You Tube (as I did) you'll find that it has lots of twirling on my part.
Which, knowing my predilection for tripping over air, will make this one
entertaining class. I hope they have a good first aid kit.