in the eyes of a young girl

Giving back, Part Deux

2010-12-16T16:51:00.001-08:00

It's that time of year again where I attempt to not let the commercialism crush me. This year's opportunity involves some of my dearest friends and one of our longest standing traditions.

I think this is the 13th year of our Christmas tradition, and we are trying something new ('changing it up'). Instead of buying a gift for our secret santa, we have all decided to make a donation in honor of them. One of the organizations that we will be using is kiva.org, where you can give a micro-loan to an individual or group in a developing country to help support their small business. They eventually pay you back, and you get to reinvest the money. It is the gift that keeps on giving. If you are interested in learning more or 'changing things up' this year, you can find more information on their website kiva.org

For more ideas, I also compiled a more extensive list last year. Some of the organization I purchased from and would recommend included Nighlight, Women's Bean Project, Raven and Lily, and Punjammies.

Merry Christmas!

we love LB

2010-01-24T20:05:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was my "give a day, get a free disneyland ticket" volunteering day. We chose to help clean up our city, and boy was it a dirty little thing. We focused our efforts on storm drains because of the recent rains, so not only did we clean up a part of LB, but also saved a few oceans and whales while we were at it.

Cleaning up LB is entertaining in and of itself. The best piece of 'trash' we found all day was no contest: a dime bag of coke outside of an unnamed donut shop. Other honorable mentions included a dirty diaper (Ronnie found this one and will have nightmares for a few weeks about it), woman's underwear, a handle of a toy gun, and alot of qtips (are people really walking down the street cleaning their ears?)

The real question of the day we were all left with was this: After giving back to your community, what is the most valuable reward? A ticket to Disneyland or the chance to help out your neighborhood?

We all voted for the bag of coke.

Christmas Update

2010-01-04T22:07:00.000-08:00

a tad bit late....

So I was alittle cryptic in sharing what Ronnie and I were doing for our Christmas gift, and for good reason- I was concerned that it may not turn out as I had envisioned. Which was true. So true that even in person, no one was able to accurately describe our creation. But it has grown on me over time, and maybe I can use that reason for the delay. But without further ado, behold- our Christmas sandman:otherwise known as the Christmas volcano. Ronnie had a bit of a different vision. Some may say it is cheating, but I'll let you be the judge:
What else did we get each other for Christmas? Why what I always wanted- a Honduran toilet!

All kidding aside, thank you Parkcrest for a great idea. This was a very special and meaningful Christmas for me.

Advent Conspiracy

2009-12-02T21:27:00.000-08:00

I was inspired by my church and advent conspiracy to do something different this year.

I am trying to buy gift for others that give alittle back. For example, gifts/companies that are supporting/employing women in disadvantaged positions both here in the states and abroad. I didn't want to share all of the info, in case any of my gift recipients are reading this blog. But I also wanted to share some of the sites that I really like, because let me tell you once I started on this quest it was like falling down the rabbit hole. The possibilities are endless.

So maybe consider buying one gift this year that gives back.

Or maybe no gift at all and instead donate the money you would spend on a gift, and give a special memory or your time instead (a la Advent Conspiracy). That is what Ronnie and I decided to do for each other, and I can't wait until our gift day, where we donate our money and go do something fun (I'll wait to tell you what it is, in case it doesn't work because our idea of what to do may not work out like we are hoping...)

But I digress, on to the websites:

World of Good a good (haha) place to start for lots of options, sponsored by ebay

Trade as one many different vendors and options to choose from, they have stories of the artisans for each item available

Night Light girls who were being exploited in the sex industry in Bangkok, given job skills and support, they make jewelry

Suubi women of rural poor neighborhoods in Uganda given job training and education, they make jewelry and bags (the bags are really cool bc they have the artisan's story sewn in the inner pocket of the bag)

Raven and Lily I love all of their products, very anthropologie style, but with each purchase you know that you are supporting a fair living wage for women in India or Africa

Punjammies Each pajama pants is created in an after-care facility for women who have been rescued, released or escaped from a life of forced prostitution.

Kauzbots I wish I had kids to shop for, the purchaser can choose a kause with it's representative kauzbot and 10% will be donated to that charity, a good way to teach kids about giving back. Also kauzbots works closely with their manufacturers in China to provide a good wage and positive work environment, they even document their most recent trip out there on their website.

Women's Bean Project this one is in the states, I think Denver, helping women break the cycle of poverty and unemployment, teaching job readiness and life skills for entry-level jobs through employment in their gourmet food production business.

Samaritan's Purse several organizations do this, where you can buy a dozen chickens or part of a cow for a family in need in honor of that person on your list who has everything

fruit fly problem

2009-09-28T20:59:00.000-07:00

The new apartment is working out marvelously, except for the damn fruit flies! Two of them even started drinking my wine last night when I wasn't looking- Gross!

The solution: a mixture of balsamic vinegar (because they think it is rotting fruit) and liquid dish soap (because it traps them in its slimy layer). Leave it out in a glass over night. It actually looks alittle like red wine so I recommend a third step of labeling the glass "Fruit fly trap- Do not drink".
I'll let you know how successful it is. But this concoction has tough competition- after the 2 flies got in my wine yesterday (don't worry, I saw them before I took a sip), I decided to leave out the glass (with the above mentioned label of course) overnight to see how many I could get....

Red Wine: 4.......Balsamic Vinegar+Soap: ??

moving day

2009-08-31T11:51:00.000-07:00

I have successfully moved out of the storage unit/psychiatric ward and into the new apartment. No matter how many times I move and how much stuff I accumulate, why is it that I always find something else that I need to buy at the new place?
On the list this time is curtains, stylish boxes to make use of the new trend of open shelving in every piece of furniture they now sell, and a bath mat that doesn't clash horribly with the new bathroom. Is it ridiculous that I am buying a new bath mat because the other one doesn't match the colors of the new bathroom? I thought that Europe had changed me, and that I wasn't going to be a wasteful American any more.....that lasted 3 weeks.
I do have to say though, as I unpacked and moved, I was happy to see how much of my furniture was inherited (read: stolen.... no-just joking mom) from friends. On that list is my bed, desk, bookcase, and dresser. Maybe I was secretly European all along.....

2 more weeks...

2009-08-24T21:34:00.000-07:00

...until I start working again. It has been 3 years since I last had a full time job. It is weird to think that there aren't any more breaks (besides those that come with working in a school district) ahead. Come to think of it, with my job, I guess there are alot of breaks coming up! I am looking forward to meeting everyone at my site, and starting this new job that I spent 3 years prepping for!

a new continent

2009-08-07T00:30:00.000-07:00

in my heart...

2009-08-07T00:28:00.001-07:00

Trier

2009-07-30T05:09:00.000-07:00

Yesterday i went out on my own in the city of Trier. I was a bit nervous since I don't speak a word of German. We worked it out so I didn't have to take the bus, it was quite a concern at the time :)
I think the day went pretty well considering I don't speak a word of German (well technically I guess I speak about 10 german words, but Shisser and Hallo will only get you so far) and I do not have an internal map.
The biggest incident of the day was when I bought a cup of coffee at the McDonalds. I got to the city at 9, but most everything didn't open till 10 so I thought I would get a cup of coffee while I waited. I ordered a coffee with milk and went over to the area at the counter with sugar and stir sticks. There were 3 choices: a brown package which I thought was sugar on the raw, a pack with little tablets of nutrasweet which I had seen at my friends house, and a white packet with regular sugar. I grabbed a packet of the regular sugar, or so I thought. Because after mixing it into my coffee (but before drinking it), the lady at the counter came over and told me I had just put salt in my coffee, oops!
The rest of the day was nice, exploring all of the Roman ruins of Trier (the city is I think the second oldest city in Europe, next to Rome), then going to an authentic Fribad (public swimming pool) in the afternoon.

deutshland culture

2009-07-27T07:57:00.000-07:00

It was quite a shift from Spain to Germany. Especially the weather-- all last month it was over 100 F every day. The highest temp I saw was 109 F (43C), and it was typically 96-98 at night. Here in Germany it is around 75F, but it feels much colder to me. Some other tidbits I have picked up in my first three days in Germany...

a closed bathroom door does not indicate that someone is in the bathroom, it is important to remember to lock the door
you can ask for money on the street simple if you are young and alternative looking... and people will give it to you!
dessert is eaten in the afternoon, before dinner, so when you arrive late to a party and thez offer zou dessert, don't worry- you didn't miss the meal
the y and z are switched on the computer keyboard
don't arrive late to a party, germans are punctual
just outside almost every town or city is a forrest, but there are no dangerous animals in these forrests (mountain lion and bears don't live in germany)
there is a special holiday in may where you hike through the forrest with a wagon full of beer, the fast you drink your beer the easier it is to hike
it may rain at a moments notice, but don't worrz the rain doesn't stay for long
you eat salad with your meal, yay!

alemania-germany-deutschland

2009-07-25T10:46:00.000-07:00

I am now in Deutschland with 2 great friends. A beautiful day spent in Tubingen, which I will hopefully have time to write about soon. Just had to say though, what a difference in 1 day of travel going from Spain to Germany. I find all of the cultures I have experienced in the past 4 weeks infinately facinating! (Maybe I should have been a cultural anthropologist :) )

flamenco

2009-07-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

Two nights of flamenco in Spain....
I waited until just before I left, but I am really glad that I got the chance to see some flamenco while in Sevilla. The first night we went to a bar that has free flamenco performance each night. The interesting thing about this bar was that they had 2 different prices for drinks, 1€ for the spanish and 1.50€ for forgeiners. Not that it was advertised as such or anything. I went to the bar with my best accent, hoping to get the locals fee, but sadly I did not pass. One of our Sevillan friends explained later that it wasnt so much the accent as it was what you said and the attitude that you said it in. Supposedly, if I wanted to be charged 1€ I needed to yell across the bar 'Nino! dame un copa!' or something to that effect. Since that was definately not happening, I had to settle for my 1.50€ tinto de verano for the rest of the night. It was worth it though for the free flamenco show. The same Sevillan friend said that the singer was not that good, but it all sounded great to me. The sound of flamenco is very unique, I would describe it as nasaly, emotional, and loud, in a chanting kind of style.
The second night we went to a small theater called Casa de La Memoria. The show was in a small outdoor terrace area, with tiled walls and ivy growing down one of the walls. There were candles and flowers decorating the grounds as well. The group consisted of one guitarist, one singer, and 2 dancers (one female and one male). I didn't realize that there were male flamenco dancers, but man was this guy talented! Both dancers were so amazing, with such control and emotion in their dance. It was a beautiful show that went by so fast.

Portugal

2009-07-22T05:15:00.000-07:00

This weekend I went with a friend from CLIC to the city of Lagos in Portugal. We took a bus there, the bus ride was 5 and a half hours! We met up with 2 of her friends that are vacationing and traveling in Portugal and Spain. They had a rental car, and I have to say that it was quite strange to sit in a car again after 3 weeks of not being in a car. We spent our days and the beach and nights in the city of Lagos. It is a quaint antigua pueblo cerca del mar. One of the sad points in Lagos´ history was that it was the first site for selling of slaves to the new world. The beach that we went to was absolutely beautiful, it was called Dona Ana beach (a picture of the beach is above) and it was right outside our hotel (Carvi). I was told that it is one of the top ten beaches in Portugal. The strange thing was though despite the heat of the day, the water temperature was freezing. A few friends back here in CLIC have told me that this is so in all of Portugal. It was the kind of tempertature that makes you legs feel numb. So the whole day consisted of me running in and out of the water to cool down, but I couldn´t stay in for longer than 30 seconds. I also attempted to scale a wall to get to another beach (I was the only girl attempting to do it, and I don´t know if it was my ineptness or the fact that girls dont do these things in Portugal, but ever guy was offering to help me). I successfully reached the top, but didn´t go down the other side because it looked even more difficult than the first.
Dinners were a nice treat during the weekend too. Usually here in Sevilla, we go to cheaper restaurants and have little bocadillos or tapas. But during this weekend, we went to some nicer restaurantes (it was a vacation for the other people in the group), and I had barbequed fish (it was either sea bass or swordfish, I can´t remember) the first night, and cod with rice dish the second night which is a traditional Portuguese dish similar to paella. The thing that we had to watch out for though was the bill at the end of the meal. The waiter brings bread, butter, pate, and olives to your table in the beginning of the meal but you have to pay for them if you eat them. We were warned that sometimes they will charge you for it even if you don´t eat it because they know that tourists may not understand the bill. Our first meal was fine, but after our second meal we had to send the bill back 3 times because there were charges on it for things we didn´t eat.
Sunday was another day spent at the beach, and thn my new travel friends were kind enough to offer to drop me off in Sevilla on their way to Cadiz. That meant that I didn´t have to ride the bus home alone and the trip back only took 3 hours, rather than 5 and a half :)

Fiesta de Clic

2009-07-20T05:40:00.000-07:00

This weeks posts were also sparse or absent because it was a week spent dining and going out, with little cultural experiences. Thursay night was CLIC´s summer party, which was great that it happenned to fall on a day when I was here. The party took place at a discoteca-bar called Buddha Bar in Sevilla. All of the professors, teachers in training, and students came and we had the rooftop bar to ourselves for the first 2 hours. CLIC hosted an open bar for the first 2 hours, and it was a great time to chat with the teachers in training and friends. The rooftop bar was really nice, with a lounge type atmosphere. Rooftop bars are always my favorite, whether they be in LA, Long Beach, San Diego, or Sevilla. :) Before the party, 2 of the teachers in training came with us to dinner, which was great because they recommended 2 new dishes that we hadn´t tried that were tasty. One of the dishes was similar to fried calamari, but the waiter said that it was a different type of squid. They were describing the shape of the animal, but I didn´t quite get it completely, maybe just a bigger squid? Regardless, it was delicious! :)

I´m back

2009-07-20T05:05:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the week of no posts. There has been an influx of jovenes (teens) at the school, and they monopolize the computers. So it is hard to get a minute to check my email, I actually told one of them that he should get off the computer for another student because he was playing internet games while this girl was waiting to use the computer to check her email. Oh, the jovenes!
The other change is that I started going to afternoon classes taught by the teachers in training here at CLIC. The classes are really good, and often better than the ones that we go to in the mornings with the real professors. The best part is that these classes are free. It reminds me alot of the experience I had in grad school in the clinic. It seemed that the therapy that a client would recieve at our clinic (with clinicians in training) was better than some of the therapy given by professionals in the real world. Not to speak badly about my profession, I don´t think this is true in all cases. But when you are a student, and you have a supervisor watching you through a one way mirror (in my case in the clinic, not in the class here :) ) and disecting your lesson plans and goal, you know you better have your stuff in order. And you plan alot as a student, as I have seen in my afternoon class. All of the lessons are original plans, not from a textbook. They are creative too: to practice future tense, we did palm reading of each other. And another day we had mini clothing stores where we bought and sold clothes. Maybe I can get some ideas to use in therapy :) I am looking forward to what today will bring in the afternoon class...

Pics of Sevilla

2009-07-13T08:44:00.000-07:00

I have been having a bit of difficulty with my pics so here are just a few I could get onto the computer.
This is the plaza area of my school , where we pass a few hours of the afternoon frequently, catching up on emails and things .

The beautiful beach! This was on the walk down to get to the beach, obviously. It was quite a walk, maybe about half a mile or mile from the parking lot. Which was nice because the beach was more secluded that way.
Here is a pic of Plaza de Espana. It is pretty close to where I am living. It was constructed in the 1920s for a festival for all spanish countries. The group from my school in Morrocco with our guide for the day, Abdul (he also liked to be called Michael Douglas because his friends say that he looks like the actor).

Morrocco

2009-07-13T08:23:00.000-07:00

What can I say..... I went to Morrocco. I learned what it is like to be on a tourist bus. I learned that I do not like to go on tourist bus trips. I really enjoyed our short trip to the city of Chefchauan. The people of the city of Chefchauan are friendly, peaceful and kind. The city is of Chefchauan is absolutely beautiful (the picture is a small example of the whole city), the whole city is painted with white and blue and the feeling of life there is relax and simple. Our local guides for the 2 days were very interesting, one went with us to Tetouan and Tangier; and the other to Chefchauan. They were both interesting in their own way, and were pretty opposite of each other. The first guy had kind of a flirtatous personality-- he said that he has 3 wives, and that the rule in morrocco is that 4 is the max and he wanted to find his 4th on our bus. He also liked to talk about ´making babies´ and the virility of muslim men. The second guide on sunday was the opposite-- very serious, very loud, and very proud of his coutry and city. I liked him better. :) I think it also helped that the second city was a bit more modern in its customs-- the men only married one woman, the women didnt marry until 18 (instead of 14), and the way that the guide explained life it seem that women were more valued and equal to men. I have to say that though the people and city of Chefchauan were beautiful, I left on Sunday happy to have the freedoms that I as a woman, and looking forward to a beer and coffee in Spain.

another day...

2009-07-10T04:07:00.000-07:00

another beach...
I can´t seem to get away I guess, and yesterday I returned to the playa for a little swim and time in the sun. This time we went to a beach that is a national park, again it was beautiful. There were the most incredible irradescent shells along the shore line. I also found oyster shells and calamari bodies-shells (I don´t know, are they bodies or shells?). I looked and looked for a whole oyster, to see if I could open it and eat it but never found one. Probably better though, because if one was laying on the beach it may have spoiled. I am getting more use to the toplessness, but was not expecting the full male nudity that I found! No tan lines I guess...
Today I leave for Morrocco. Many new cutural experiences in the course of 5 weeks, I love it!

La Catedral

2009-07-08T08:36:00.000-07:00

I went with a group from the school to see the cathedral today. It was absolutely beautiful. We unfortunately only had a little over an hour there because it closes early. So it was a rushed trip, but a good one. There is a guy, Juan Mal that organizes most (if not all) of the cutural-social things for us. He is a great guy with lots of info, and he doesn´t really know much english so it it requires me to practice my spanish. Some points of interest (based on what I understood from Juan Mal, so there may be some accuracy lost in the translation): This cathedral is the 3rd biggest cathedral in the world. It was built over maybe about 3 decades by different groups, so there are different types of architecture and styles. The cathedral had many different functions, as a relgious center and poltical center of Spain. Christopher Columbus is burried here, though several places claimed to have the grave of Columbus. National Geographic tested the bones of all of the claimed graves, and declared the grave in the Sevilla Cathedral the real one. Score one for Sevilla!
There is a group of protestors that are staying in the cathedral. I need to look up more information because I don´t really understand the situation, but they are a group of miners that are on a hunger strike against the Spanish government and are supported by the cathedral. So part of the cathedral is blocked off as a residence for the miner, with cots and bedding. That was also very interesting to see, how the church is involved in the politics here.

recipe of the week

2009-07-06T08:33:00.000-07:00

My host was kind enough to teach me a recipe last week and make a delicious lunch for us, which I thought I would share. It was fun to work as her sous chef, she gave me very detailed directions and showed me exactly what she wanted me to do. The reciped here is for gazpacho, a cold tomato based soup, which we made in a industrial strength blender that my host seems to use for everything. I am sure though that an american style blender would suffice.

Gazpacho

1 kilo tomato
1 half white or yellow onion
1 clove garlic
1 lemon, with the peel and pith removed
1 half cup olive oil
1-2 bell peppers
2-3 cups water
1 tablespoon (maybe a bit less) salt

Quarter everything that can be quartered. Fit as much of it as you can in the blender (if all of the tomatoes don´t fit, you can add more later), except for the water. Blend, then add the rest of the tomatoes and the water to thin as you prefer.

la playa!

2009-07-06T08:20:00.000-07:00

Lots of catching up to do, with no access to internet over the weekend. It has definately been interesting to not have a cell phone and very limited access to internet.. kind of freeing and difficult at the same time. Especially when you want to hang out with people, it requires always having a plan in advance.
On Saturday, I went with a group from the school to a small town named Vejer (the picture above is of Vejer). Vejer is the in the neighborhood of Cadiz and it is one of those towns on the hill where everything is white. The town itself was absolutely beautiful. One of teachers here is from Vejer, so he took us around and gave us a tour of the city. We went into one of the traditional spanish homes, where around every bent there is a veranda full of plants and 4 floors with a rooftop view. Then we went to the sister school in Vejer, also built very similarly to the home with probably 4-5 floors and lots of nooks and cranies. The gardens were beautiful and we all enjoyed an amazing lunch of paella. Then it was down the hill to the beach. Only a short 3 hours spent playing in the ocean and I already wanted to go back the next day. The heat here is exhausting, today I rode my bike in 105 degree weather! Needless to say, the ocean was amazing and I am trying to convince my friends to ditch class this week to go again. They unfortunately are better students than me, and have not been convinced.

Word of the week

2009-07-03T09:26:00.000-07:00

tos = cough
I got sick on the flight I think with a bad cough so I heard this word alot. For example
Tienes un tos
Como esta su tos
Medicina para tos
My tos is getting better, despite a `tos´attack during the middle of my class today. We were learning commands-rules, and one girl wrote (for me) `Se permite no llegar a clase si estas enferma´. Thanks classmate, is that a hint?

Alcazar

2009-07-03T04:41:00.000-07:00

I am a bit behind on the writing... on tuesday I went to the palace located here in Sevilla named Alcazar. I didn´t know anything about it when I went, just that someone invited me along and I said yes. So it turns out that this palace dates back to the 14th century, and was the palace for the king of Spain (Sevilla was the original capital of Spain if I remember correctly). The articheture and details are incredible, so many rooms covered in beautiful and ornate tile. It was a nice escape from the heat of the city too, with all of the stone and tile rooms. There were many gardens too, it was incredibly large inside considering that it is in the middle of the city. We found some peacocks and baby ducks in the gardens, but were unsuccessful in our attempts to get the peacock to open it´s feathers. I remember in San Pedro as a child, it was pretty easy to do if you chased them, maybe I don´t look as scary to a peacock now than I did as a child. For some reason, I can´t get my camera to upload the pics in the correct format. Hopefully I will figure it out so I can show you all beautiful Alcazar.

La Bicicleta

2009-07-02T11:28:00.000-07:00

I successfully rode a bike through the city of sevilla today! The walk to and from my residence to school is about 40 minutes, and if I go home for a siesta and then meet friends in the city later, that means a 40 minute walk 4 times a day. So I decided that I wanted to try the bikes that the city has out to rent. A friend, laura gave me all the info and helped with the first rental. You go to a kiosk and the first time, put your credit card in and they give you a paper with a code and you set up a secret pin. Then whenever you go back you just use the code and pin to rent a bike. The hard thing is that there is just a little time from when you enter the bike # that you want to rent and when it locks up again. You have to run over to it and press a button to unlock it completely. The second time i rented one today it took me 4 times until i successfully unlocked a bike. I now know that before selecting a bike i need to check that the button still looks intact. The bikes are hard to unlock so some people jam a poker that is attached to the bike (for the button) into the button, and it looks like over time the button becomes even more difficult to use. Anyways, the bike ride is about 15 minutes i think (took me 20 because i had to try 4 different times to get a bike), and much easier than walking in the heat. I also didn´t run into any people, and if you saw these streets you would know that is quite an accomplishment... people everywhere! and they definately do not stay out of the bike lane. So most of the time you have to ride pretty slow, but that is ok bc the bikes are like 3 speed beach cruisers so it would be hard to go fast. Here is a picture of the bikes in

Settling in

2009-07-01T04:29:00.000-07:00

Today is day 3 in Sevilla, and it has been quite an emotional and mental rollercoaster so far. I arrived late on Monday, so was not able to start my class and meet the other students in the morning. Someone told me though that there is a tour each monday night of the city for new students, so I went to that and got to meet many of my fellow students then. The tour was great and the city is beautiful, especially at night. I have settled in to a group (I feel like my grammar is off while I write this, maybe the influence of all of the spanish?) of friends from that night: 2 Americans from Cali and Texas, 1 Italian, and 2 Germans.
My residence has been a point of difficulty but I think that my flatmate and I may have turned a corner this morning. When I arrived, she had 5 pages of rules that I had to read and be sure to follow and most of the rules have to do with maintaining her house to a degree of declutter-cleanliness that I am not used to. It may be a cultural or language barrier thing, but our communication seemed strained and demanding-unfriendly. Also, my residence is by far the furthest of any other student (2.5 km) and with me being sick (I think I caught something on the plane), the walk is difficult to make 4 times a day (most people go home for a siesta and then return to meet for dinner or drinks). I was ready to ask for a residence change when I went to bed last night. But this morning, she was very kind to me- making me breakfast because I am sick and recommending that I go see a doctor. So now I do not know what to do, maybe it just takes some time to warm up to her? I guess I will wait a few more days, I have not spent much time at home because it seemed to be an unfriendly place but today I am planning on returning there for a siesta.
My class is good, but I am concerned that it may be too advanced for me. It is hard to say because most people have been in the class for 2-3 weeks, and only me and one other girl started this week. I understand maybe 60-70% of what the teacher says. Again, I think I will give it a day or two and see where I am at then.

The layover

2009-07-01T04:19:00.000-07:00

I may not be the most talented person when it comes to booking flights online. It just so happens that the one that I bought had a 9 hour (!) layover at JFK. One of the things that I freak out about is being late to anything, so it was quite a risk to think about leaving the airport during the layover. But 9 hours would be a long time to spend at JFK. The night before I left, I found out that some friends were also going to be in NYC- so then it was set, I would go exploring the city with them. So I met Kosmo and Ryan at the Brooklyn Bridge around 9:30 and after crossing the bridge on foot, with the help of an ipod, we found a Dunkin Donuts, Ground Zero, 2 cathedrals, the Hudson river and views of the Statue of Liberty. Topped off the afternoon with some pizza and hopped back onto the subway to JFK. And I managed to make it back to my gate with about 3 hours to spare!
Kosmo and Ryan are on a motorcycle trip, visiting every state in the country. You can follow their trip on their website The USA Motorcycle Trip

grad gown

2009-05-18T11:19:00.000-07:00

why do masters degree gowns have penguin sleeves? and should I receive a graduate degree if I can't even figure out how the hood works? and probably the most important question of all-- why is this creepy mannequin the only picture I can find on google images to illustrate my point?

compulsivity

2008-11-02T21:54:00.000-08:00

Who knows if that is actually a word, but it describes my behavior at the hospital well enough. about 2 times per week I add up my total number of patient/client contact hours, and project where I will be by the end of the semester and if it will be enough. Thankfully this past week at the hospital was a pretty busy one, i hope that it keeps up that way. I finally put my hospital hours into my excel spreadsheet that I keep everything since starting the program last fall in (I have to say it is a very pretty spreadsheet, another obsession/compulsion of mine-- is anyone else out there meticulous when it comes to organizing the layout of your spreadsheets, line width, total columns, number/frequency of lines in the table...need I go on?). My grand total as of the end of October is a whopping 221 contact hours. I have to get to 400 by next May, that only gives me 7 more months. There is some other random observation hours that we can count, so really it is a total of 375. But still-- I need 150 hours in 7 months, and it took me 13 months to get 221. I don't think my compulsivity goes unwarranted...

in bed

2008-10-04T17:15:00.000-07:00

I am still sick I guess from a stomach bug that got me earlier this week. And although it may not have been MRSA, it still did freak me out a bit since I now spend my days at a hospital. Having a lot of free time because you are in bed recuperating may not be a good thing for someone who is a bit of a germaphobe and anxiety prone. The good news is that I am still alive, and the doctor said it was just a gastroenteritis. The bad news is:
1. I may not be hospital material, considering all of the worst-case scenarios that played out in my head. The situation was not helped by the fact that I am one of those millions of Americans that are uninsured. (The one redeeming moment of this week in bed: I have since purchased catastrophic insurance, and though it will add a brick or 2 to my wall of grad school debt, it is worth the alternative of performing my own appendectomy).
2. I have gone a week without beer or coffee, and it was a sad week indeed. I did some experimenting within the past 24 hours and I can confidently say my tummy is not ready for either legalized substance yet.
3. I am supposed to go out with friends tonight, which is a major bummer (see #2).

settling in

2008-09-19T11:36:00.000-07:00

Things are settling down for me at the hospital. Maybe that first week I bit off more than I can chew understanding-wise, I am not too ashamed to admit that I probably did most of the stressing of my-own-self :)
I have started seeing patients now in my 3rd week, though still supervised (thank goodness). The most nerve racking task that I have to do is a certain part of the Oral Mechanism Exam where I have to gag the patient with a tongue depressor to see if their gag reflex is intact (if they don't gag, then that means there is some cranial nerve involvement-- CN X to be more specific. I did my first Oral Mech earlier this week, but didn't get a gag. But it was my fault because I was too timid in my poking of the back of the patient's mouth. I have been told to be quick and aggressive when doing it, but it just feels so uncomfortable!
I have gotten to see some interesting things too, including laryngectomy and rhinectomy. And I haven't fainted or gotten sick! The only problem is my bad habits of touching my face and chewing on pens-- neither are really a good idea when working in a hospital where patients are on contact precautions. My goal: no MRSA through Dec 08!

this is supposed to be easy?

2008-09-05T08:05:00.000-07:00

I survived my first week at the hospital. The thing is, the class a year ahead of us all said this year in our externships would be much easier than last year at the clinic. But I just don't see how that is possible (32 hours in 3 1/2 days). I have learned my lesson though, and next week I won't try to understand everything that all of the doctors say during rounds. I am not a resident or an intern, so I am allowing myself some zone-out time. The patients are interesting, but I can't go into much detail. I will learn alot this semester that is for sure-- I have already observed 2 video swallow exams and 2 bedside swallows; voice, swallowing, aural rehab, and brain injury therapy. I should be getting some outpatients of my own to start seeing for therapy next week, which I am ready for. We'll see about those swallow evals though, that should take some time....

am I too neurotic?

2008-08-21T09:15:00.000-07:00

If you found a horse fly (one of those big ugly ones) crawling around on your toothbrush this morning, what would you do? I thought soaking it in Listerine for 10 minutes would do the trick, but even then I gagged at the idea of putting it in my mouth... crazy?

a new endevour

2008-08-19T22:21:00.000-07:00

I got my fall placement recently, which will be at a hospital that is a bike ride from my house. I don't think I'll be able to ride a bike there though, considering my dress code includes heels and dress pants or a skirt. It's a nice idea though. My supervisor gave me a sneak peak of what I will get to do. It's a long list of alot of new things that I have never done, including swallowing evals (bedside fiberoptic endoscopic video!, meaning we stick a tiny camera up your nose and down your throat) and therapy, traumatic brain injury, stroke (I have worked with stroke patients actually, just not acute), tumor board (wow, didn't know speech therapists sat on tumor boards), craniofacial clinic (I saw a bit of this in Mexicali, but I am really excited to get this chance again-- this would include stuff like cleft palate and cleft lip), voice disorders, stuttering, and motor speech disorders. phew-- I am nervous already, trying to enjoy the rest of this break but maybe I should be preparing??

It's been awhile

2008-08-07T21:20:00.000-07:00

I was looking for my last recipe post and finally found it back in January. It's not that I haven't been in the kitchen since then, just haven't been posting. I wanted to write this one down because it was that good. I can't wait to make it again, and I thought might as well write it here in case other people want to try it. The bread is really really moist, maybe too moist for some. Using frozen berries weighs it down a bit I think, so if you go that direction definitely be patient in the baking-- it may take awhile longer.

Lemon Berry Yogurt Bread
adapted from Smitten Kitchen
servings: 1 loaf
time: 1 1/2 hours

1 1/2 cups + extra for the frozen fruit
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup plain greek yogurt
1 cup sugar (+ 1 tablespoon sugar for sauce)
3 eggs
grated lemon zest from 2 lemons
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups frozen berries, thawed (I used a mix of blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries)
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a loaf pan.

Mix together flour, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and oil. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Drain the berries on a paper towel and then mix them with the remaining tablespoon of flour to dry them out a bit more, and fold them very gently into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 60+ minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes. Then remove from the pan and pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Enjoy!

Miss Popularity

2008-07-03T17:42:00.001-07:00

Perhaps my favorite post yet from 'Stuff White People Like'. The best sentence is the last one of the article.

Girls with Bangs

If you see a white woman and you are trying to figure out whether she is liked or just merely tolerated by white people, the best thing you can do is get a quick look at her haircut. It is a known fact that white people love women who wear their hair with bangs that hang straight down.

A number of very popular white women have worn this hairstyle including Joni Mitchell, Jane Birkin, Jenny Lewis and every girl ever photographed by Vice Magazine or the Cobrasnake. (Note: it is a good idea to familiarize yourself with these two things as they are both beloved by cool white people. Follow up note: these same things are hated by cooler white people).

Many people associate this type of haircut with children and people looking for the most efficient way to get hair out of their eyes. But for white people, this simple haircut makes a bold declaration by saying that the wearer is artistic, deep, and has probably dated a guy in a band you like. Of course, as with many things loved by white people, simple often means expensive and these haircuts usually cost upwards of $100.

It is essential for you to know this haircut is more than a mere fashion statement– it is an important cultural marking. Throughout the world, many cultures feature ceremonies to announce that a girl has become a woman. For white people, the haircut-with-bangs is an important symbol that a female has completed her transformation from a nerdy girl to a cool woman. In fact, if you went to high school with a nerdy white girl who moved to a big city, there is a good chance she will show up to your high school reunion with this haircut.

When you are introduced to a group of white people, it’s a good idea to befriend the girl with the bangs. She’s probably the most popular.

The Dog, Cat, Rat

2008-05-27T16:10:00.001-07:00

Ronnie and his friends were bachelor partying it up last weekend and ran into this guy. The groom was probably the most excited (and most intoxicated) one of all, but they all shared their account with me upon return.

I think it is a fair thing to say that my goal when I am up in Santa Barbara next month is to find, meet, and take a picture with this modern marvel.

questions worth considering

2008-05-10T11:40:00.000-07:00

Why do I seem to have an attention deficit disorder in those times where my attention to a project is especially needed?
Is going to work at a coffee shop with free internet really the wisest choice?
Who decided to schedule finals immediately following mother's day?
How many references for a five page paper are too many?
Do my grades for graduate school really matter?

A little education for you

2008-04-24T20:17:00.000-07:00

April is rolling to a close, and I haven't gotten around to saying it till now- But in case you didn't know, April is Autism Awareness Month. And in honor of that, I thought I would bring a little more awareness to you the reader by giving you my:

'Top 10 Lesser Known Facts about Autism'

April is Autism Awareness Month (duh), but Autism also shares the title with 'National Poetry Month' and 'National Sexual Assault Awareness Month'. It should also be noted that April 2nd is WORLD Autism Awareness Day- take that poetry!
Jenny McCarthy is sort of crazy.
Her teaching-kids-to-play video actually isn't that bad.
But no, Jenny McCarthy did not cure autism.
The Gluten-free Casin-free diet has no empirical evidence to support it.
While I'm at it, chelation doesn't work either.
If you have seen one kid with autism, you have seen one kid with autism.
Those vaccines don't cause autism. And in fact, the preservative that was thought to be the culprit (thiamine) has not been in the vaccine since the mid-nineties.
Not all people with autism have a savant skill, like in Rain Man.
Behavior therapy (or more specifically ABA) does not always mean drills sitting at a table, Incidental Teaching and PRT are two great empirically supported ABA treatments that do not involve any tables. In fact, you my friend engage in ABA based behaviors every day- you aren't going to work in the morning for the pleasure of it. It just isn't as obvious because your reinforcer comes in the form of a paycheck every other week.

my next career

2008-04-08T19:01:00.000-07:00

It's decided. Once I am finished with this whole Speech Pathology thing, I am going to be a surgeon. That's right, a surgeon.
Last week I had a great opportunity to go with a group of surgeons and SLPs over to Mexicali for a cranio-facial clinic. It was a crazy whirlwind two days. We were greeted with a large group of residents waiting for us at the Red Cross clinic down there. There were kids with needs that we don't see that late in their development. I saw quite a few cleft palate and cleft lip, fistulas, and other non-facial anomalies. The crazy part of it all is that we started our day with assessments of oral structure and function, and the kids were scheduled for surgery for that day or the next!
The best part of the trip was when I got to sit in on part of a surgery for a cleft palate. That's where the new profession comes in. I thought I would be queasy, but was the exact opposite-- I didn't want to leave, it was so interesting.
The only problem with this new career in the future is all the schooling. Maybe if I start a collection now, I can raise the money I need to get through 6 more years of school. I would be really good in that operating room, I just know it. No really, I would!

on being a hero

2008-04-06T22:01:00.000-07:00

I have plenty of school work due this week, so of course.... it is the perfect time to write.
Did you also know that it is the perfect time to save the world?
I have donated 820 grains of rice to help end world hunger today. I have also expanded my vocabulary a bit. Did you know that 'grotty' means wretched?
What have you done to help the world today?
If you are interested in helping the hungry, or studying for the GRE or writing a dissertation and need to expand your lexicon, I recommend heading to the site....

a reality barometer:

2008-03-04T21:45:00.000-08:00

Is this actually true of me:

from Stuff White People Like
#81 Graduate School

Being white means to engage in a day in, day out struggle to prove that you are smarter than other white people. By the time they reach college, most white people are confronted with the fact that they may not be as smart as they imagined.

In coffee shops, bars, and classes white people will engaging in conversations about authors and theorists that go nowhere as both parties start rattling off progressively more obscure people until eventually one side recognizes one and claims a victory. By the time they graduate (or a year or two afterwards), white people realize that they will need an edge to succeed in the cut-throat world of modern white society.

That edge is graduate school.

Though professional graduate schools like law and medicine are desirable, the true ivory tower of academia is most coveted as it imparts true, useless knowledge. The best subjects are English, History, Art History, Film, Gender Studies, Studies, Classics, Philosophy, Political Science, Literature, and the ultimate: Comp Lit. MFA’s are also acceptable.

Returning to school is an opportunity to join an elite group of people who have a passion for learning that is so great they are willing to forgo low five-figure publishing and media jobs to follow their dreams of academic glory.

Being in graduate school satisfies many white requirements for happiness. They can:

believe they are helping the world (of course I am!)
complain that the government/university doesn’t support them enough (well it really doesn't, and those interest rates on loans are getting higher every year)
claim they are poor (to the extremest extent, perhaps)
feel as though are getting smarter (my brain does frequently hurt from all of the learning)
act superior to other people (me, superior?)
enjoy perpetual three day weekends (maybe at other programs, but certainly not mine)
and sleep in every day of the week (I wish, unless you consider 6:30 or 7 sleeping in)

After acquiring a Masters Degree that will not increase their salary or hiring desirability, many white people will move on to a PhD program where they will go after their dream of becoming a professor. However, by their second year they usually wake up with a hangover and realize: “I’m going to spend six years in graduate school to make $35,000 and live in the middle of nowhere?”

After this crisis, a white person will follow one of two paths. They will either drop out and move to New York, San Francisco or their original home town where they can resume the job that they left to attend graduate school.

The second path involves becoming a professor, moving to a small town and telling everyone how they are awful and uncultured.

It is important to understand that a graduate degree does not make someone smart, so do not feel intimidated. They may have read more, but in no way does that make them smarter, more competent, or more likable than you. The best thing you can do is to act impressed when a white person talks about critical theorists. This helps them reaffirm that what they learned in graduate school was important and that they are smarter than you. This makes white people easier to deal with when you get promoted ahead of them.

things that are awesome

2008-02-27T20:50:00.000-08:00

this will be a running list I think, but I found two things that are awesome today that I just could not pass up the opportunity to share:

1. Amy Winehouse is launching her own clothing line and make-up too! This is awesome. I can just imagine the crazy outfits and jumbosized liquid eyeliner and hair spray. I can't wait to see little minature high school Amys walking the street. Crack is sold seperately of course...

2. A new blog that is making me laugh out loud frequently this evening. The name tells it all: Stuff White People Like. I have probably said "so true, so true" 5 dozen times within the past two hours. And I have only read 4 entries. My favorites for you to find are: bottles of water and threatening to move to Canada. If you are white and don't think you have a culture, you should read this blog.

my first superbowl pool

2008-02-03T22:01:00.000-08:00

I had fun creating my first superbowl pool this year with all of my classmates. Since we are all grad students with no money, the boxes were 50 cents a square. That's a far cry from the hospital pools my dad participates in that are $25 a square.
Too bad it was a slow moving game, didn't make for a very exciting pool. I ended up with some good numbers and good chances, but no wins. Oh well, congrats to my speechy friends who did win!
Now the next question: What is the next thing I can bet 50 cents on?

uncharted territory

2008-02-02T17:16:00.000-08:00

The wait is finally over and almost over at the same time. I know my clinic assignment now-- adults! I am excited for the opportunity to work with adults this semester, it is a completely new and forgein experience for me. After years and years of working with kids, this will certainly be an adjustment. I have actually only had one job since I started working after high school that didn't involve children. It was in a library at UCSD, working in an adjunct section of Inter Library Loan, where I scanned and emailed journal article to people all day. Boy was that exciting!
My main concern is breaking the habit of using that voice that you get with kids. I have certainly been conditioned for years (incorporating behavioral psychology terms here, please excuse me) to respond to whomever I am working with in that high but soft voice with an affirmative "good job!"
Clinic starts next week, let's hope I don't tell my adult clients that they are "awesome".
If I do a good job, can I at least get a sticker?

mmmm, cheesy

2008-01-28T21:12:00.000-08:00

I was so excited to see my new Fine Cooking magazine last weekend, even though I haven't gotten a chance to read it yet. The front cover showed a picture of macaroni and cheese, which I got hooked on and couldn't stop thinking about for a week. I had never So finally, I resigned to just try the recipe without my beloved magazine. I read through several recipes from the web and my roomie's new 'Cooking Light' magazine. So excuse the following recipe's lack of details, as it is my own. But trust that it comes from a blend of other reputable recipes (mostly Cooking Light, so you can feel better that this is pretty healthy) and it is utterly delicious. So much so that I have made this mac and cheese recipe two times in the past week. I also didn't realize how great this would be, so I didn't take a picture. I am sure I will be making it again soon, as it is one of my new favorite winter dishes-- toasty warm on a rainy day!

Mac and Cheese
adapted from a bunch of recipes
servings: 3-4 as main dish, 6-8 as side
time: 45 minutes

1 1/2 cups elbow macaroni
6-8 oz cheddar cheese (maybe 2 cups)
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp flour
3/4 cup milk
a good dash of paprika, salt and pepper and small dash of chili powder
dollop of sour cream
tsp Dijon mustard
1 slice of bread, in crumbs using the food processor (I use the butt of the bread that no one likes) -it should be about 1/2 if you want to substitute boxed bread crumbs
1 Tbsp melted butter

Cook the macaroni in salted water, until it is al dente (it will soften in the baking process as it absorbs some of the milk). Meanwhile, grate the cheese and make the sauce. To make sauce, first create a rue by cooking the flour and milk together in a gentle simmer for 5 minutes until it is thickened (use a whisk to blend together). Add the cheese. Once the cheese is melted, turn off the fire and add spices, mustard and sour cream. The sauce should be runny enough to slide off the spoon as a liquid. Add more milk or sour cream to thin as necessary. Add macaroni. Put it all in a 8-9 inch casserole dish. Mix bread crumbs and butter, and add to macaroni as topping. Bake in a 350 oven for 20-30 minutes.
taster comments coming soon!

a local incident

2008-01-23T18:44:00.000-08:00

Some may have seen the local news coverage about a shooting that occured less than a block from my parents house on Saturday night. The incident happenned at the Masonic Lodge that shares a parking lot with my church in Long Beach. Intial rumors and reports in the night linked the incident to Parkcrest members or staff. Later it was confirmed that the shooting occured at a birthday party for 2 teens at the neighboring Masonic Lodge. Two died in the incident and one suffered non-life threatening injuries. I came into town on Sunday afternoon as the dust was settling, so I missed most of the initial uncertainty. My parents had come home late Saturday night from LAX (right after the incident) to find their neighborhood blocked off by dozens of police cruisers. The police were in the process of shuttling 300 teenagers that were at the event to the elementary school a few blocks away for questioning. They explained to one policeman that they lived in the neighborhood and as he let them by my dad asked if it was safe to go home. The policeman responded "I don't really know." The gunman has still not been caught.

Here is a video of the NBC news coverage from Sunday afternoon.

my nighttime endevour

2008-01-18T18:09:00.000-08:00

this is your brain.

this is your brain on too much neuroanatomy.

either that or a new pursuit in cosmotology school. the break from studies is almost over. bring it on.

my near death experience

2007-12-08T18:39:00.000-08:00

so it has taken about a week to recover and get to the point where I can recount this story to you. It was all very sudden and... (who am I kidding, the only reason that I am writing this now, if ever is that it's finals week and there is no better time to procrastinate). Now back to my story.
I was making dinner for myself last Sunday. Veggie tacos in case you are curious (kale and beet greens to be exact, it was yummy but I will spare you the recipe as I probably just grossed a few people out). The veggies were all set to go as a filling to my tacos, all that was left was to heat up some corn tortillas. I don't know about you, but I really like to heat up tortillas over the stove's flame (that is why a gas stove will always be superior to an electric). So I turned on the neighboring burner, but a pot lid was kind of close to it (I have a bad habit of leaving pot lids on the stove because I don't see them as dirty enough to warrant washing, but not quite clean enough to put away, man the digressions are getting out of control). I decided to move the lid after the fact, and I am sure you may be able to guess what happened next. The entire sleeve of my brown cable knit sweater caught on fire! Now this is where it gets a bit troubling. What did I do, you may ask? Stop, drop, and roll? No. Run over to the sink to douse myself in water? No. Before I go on, I must preface this with a disclaimer of sorts.
You see, my limited exposure to fire is: 1. candles 2. birthday candles 3. the fireplace 4. bonfires at the beach
How do I normally put out these said fires? 1. blow it out 2. blow it out 3. let it smolder out 4. let it smolder out
So you can safely assume that I wouldn't let myself smolder out. So instead, you guessed it-- I started blowing on my arm to put the fire out.
When that (obviously) didn't work, I hit myself with the tortillas I was still holding in the other hand. That also didn't work. Finally, my roomie who was just a few feet away saw the flames travelling down my back and came to my rescue. She hit me until the flames went out :)
Oddly enough, when everything was over my sweater was still intact, and the fire had travelled the entire sleeve and back of my sweater in 10 seconds. Our theory is that there was a hair hanging down from the sleeve that caught on fire as I reached over the flame and it burnt up other loose hairs and general fuzz on the sweater. So those of you girls who "shed" alot, let this be a lesson learned.
We ended the night with some much needed drinks at a wine bar for my birthday. I still do owe the roomie a drink for saving my life....

stuffed but still healthy

2007-11-05T12:46:00.000-08:00

The bell peppers at Henrys are always super cheap so I have a feeling I am going to be making this recipe often. And really, you can just throw whatever you have in the fridge into a pepper and bake it-- this recipe definately lends itself to some flexibility. It is also a healthy alternative to the normal stuffed pepper that is full of ground beef. And for my vegan friends, it can certainly be made vegan friendly! One suggestion though, rather than cut the tops off the peppers, I think it is best to cut them in half. More crispy goodness to enjoy. We stumbled upon this suggestion because I generally don't use all the produce I buy in an efficient manner and there was a bad spot on one of the peppers. Thank God for old food in the fridge!

Couscous Stuffed Peppers

adapted from Smitten Kitchen

servings: 4-5

time: 30-40 minutes

bell peppers of any color (depending on size 3-4)
2/3 cup couscous
1 1/4 cup vegetable broth
2-3 zucchinis, quartered and thinly sliced
1-2 tomatoes
half a can of chickpeas
half of an onion, chopped
1-2 precooked chicken or turkey fancy sausage, quartered and thinly sliced (I used Trader Joes chicken pesto sausage)
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried basil
parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

Half the bell peppers and clean them out. Spray a baking sheet with Pam, and cook bell peppers in 350 degree oven for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, prep the veggies and cook the couscous (bring broth to a boil and add couscous, let it sit for 5 minutes then fluff). Saute onions and sausage, then zucchini with herbs, salt and pepper. Add couscous some parmesan cheese to taste. Stuff it all into the bell peppers. Add some more parmesan on top. Bake for an additional 15-20 minutes.

Jess: "The stuffed peppers were really good...next time cut them in half to get more crunchy topping. Also, I'm glad we used parmesan instead of feta, no fennel and no tomato paste (see the original recipe). Nicole should cook dinner for me every night!"

David: "The couscous added a nice light texture to the stuffed peppers. The only thing I would have added is a bit of tomato paste. Oh yeah, and fennel!"

Antony: "The peppers were great. I liked it cut lengthwise- more crunchiness! The couscous without the tomato paste made it light. A little more sausage wouldn't hurt. Thanks for cooking."

In a haze

2007-10-23T09:12:00.000-07:00

If you haven't heard yet, it seems that all parts of southern California are on fire. San Diego is currently battling six fires. Between the two largest fires, The Harris fire and Witchcreek fire, 700 homes have been destroyed and 100 commercial properties.

This is a picture of what I saw yesterday out of my bedroom window. The smoke would be from the Harris fire which is southeast of us.

And this is a map of the Harris fire. The little yellow dot is where I live, so as you can see still quite a bit away.

My allergies and asthma have calmed down a bit through the night (yesterday they were really bad), but are getting worse again this morning. Lots of sneezing and what feels like a restricted throat. And the smoke outside my window has now dissipated into a haze.

On a happier note-- school is still closed today! So it gives me a chance to be productive and get a paper written that is supposed to be due tomorrow. I am looking forward to going to a coffee shop to work in a bit: I have yet to leave the house in the past 24 hours so it will be nice to get out!

playing catch up

2007-10-15T21:23:00.000-07:00

I've got way too many school related things to do this week (and tonight for that matter), so what does that mean? a blog post of course. One would expect no less, since this blog was birthed out of a moment of procrastination-- that it would be in fact the entire life of said blog relies on such procrastination.
So I think my last post consisted of my wondering of my clinic assignments and eager anticipation of what lied ahead. Unfortunately I cant get into much detail, for confidentiality and HIPPA's sake. What I can say is that I got 2 cute 'clients' this semester that I am working with. That means I will have adults next semester (or so the rumor goes). It has really been such a blessing quite honestly. There was a difficult week in the beginning where I was dealing with two cancelations and having to scratch the plan and start over three times. But one client finally stuck and it has really been a great experience. I am actually looking forward to working with adults next semester though. I was really apprehensive about the idea at the beginning of this year, before we all got our clients but now I see what the other 'clinicians' (or so they call us) get to do with their adult clients and it looks so fun! So all and all it has really worked out for the best.
I had my first diagnostic on friday, so besides a midterm and brief paper this week, I also need to write up a diagnostic report. I thought it wouldnt be too hard at all considering I had written a bunch of assessment reports back when I worked at Cal PsychCare. But one of the hardest things here is that we can't take any identifying information out of the clinic, so its really hard to get any writing done at home. Or at least that is what I am telling myself tonight after a generally unproductive attempt at writing that diagnostic report. An early morning at the clinic will remedy it all.... hopefully.

back in class

2007-08-23T19:22:00.000-07:00

But not in the LBC any more! This is just a quick update for those out of the loop, but I am back in San Diego to finish school at San Diego State. I am very excited about the amazing opportunity that I have been given at this program, there are some great bonuses that are available (including finishing a year earlier than if I stayed in Long Beach, woohoo!). The whole thing from the program to the dear friend that I get to live with has all come into my lap as an amazing gift from God that I did not expect and that I am so grateful for.

I am getting more and more excited (an less nervous) as each day goes by. The program is pretty intensive, which means we started class a week early in what the faculty like to call "speech bootcamp". And they aren't exaggerating really- six hour of 2 classes a day for 2 weeks straight. Then I get my first clinic assignment and start seeing 2 clients (on top of starting 3 other classes). I wonder who my clients will be, children or adults and what my clinic supervisor will be like.... On top of it all, I am part of an autism project (which I meet with tomorrow) and will be going to do field observations this semester, looking at what it looks like to collaborate across professions to best meet the needs of the child.

Can you tell I am excited? I go between excited and anxious/overwhelmed serveral times a day at least... It seems to be the pattern among my cohort, so at least I know I am in good company...

the morning after

2007-07-08T11:31:00.000-07:00

With ears still buzzing, I am waking up this morning with happy memories of the beloved Bowl. I spent last night listening to the Decemberists and the LA Phil make music together that can be summed up in one word: magical. And I have come to a new conclusion: every ephemeral po-mo* band should hold a concert with a full orchestra behind them. It is how their music was meant to be heard: full.

What is not to love about a night with beautiful music, wonderful company, full-bodied wine, and delicious picnic food? I can think of no better way to spend a warm summer night.

*"po-mo = anything and everything post modern, especially winey rock bands" ~Mike

into the wind

2007-07-04T17:19:00.001-07:00

Katie and I have signed up for sailing lesson for the summer- they start in 2 weeks.

This is the image of sailing that I have had for quite some time now (and the reason I signed up for the class): Sitting on a beautiful sailboat with four or five friends, enjoying the sun and a beer on a lazy Saturday afternoon. I have recently been told though that there is work involved. Work? What do you mean? No beer? No lounging? I guess there are ropes and pulleys and the wind to deal with and the boat that we are learning on may only fit one to two people, rather than five friends. My romanticized version of sailing has not been completely crushed yet, there is still a glimmer of hope in my heart for at least a bit of relaxing in the sun. At the same time, I am starting to think what did I get myself into?

I have one lesson learned though before the classes even start. This comes from a friend in San Diego who will go unnamed. When drinking on a sailboat during a hot Saturday afternoon, remember that there are actually no bathrooms available. You may just need to squat and pee in a bottle if it comes to that.

Lets hope not..... I don't think I have that skill, and I am not looking to be trained in it during our classes.

tart and sweet, fresh and airy

2007-05-22T22:39:00.000-07:00

So because a one just opened down on 2nd street (and I am always looking for a distraction when it is really time to study), this post is dedicated to the yummy and delish pinkberry.

I don't know if you all have heard, but they have recently undergone some pretty serious accusations of heresy from the ice cream lords. I found this disclaimer on their website:
"As some of you are aware, claims have been made recently about the nature of our products. We want to assure everyone who enjoys pinkberry that the product is wholesome and made with fresh ingredients. We are, of course, investigating these claims and look forward to being able to demonstrate the quality of our product."

Crisis averted. We can all keep singing "Sorry ice cream, I’m on my way to pinkberry..."

ps: get the mochi, it is a delicious secret.

humps

2007-04-23T20:49:00.001-07:00

Here's to listening to lyrics

worker's lounge

2007-04-23T20:14:00.000-07:00

Does anyone else find those motivating posters up in your work lounge annoying and pretentious?

click

2007-04-16T23:03:00.000-07:00

Is it worth spending money I don't have to buy a camera I don't need? Wait before you answer. It does cool stuff like this:

Creamy Creme

2007-02-12T21:20:00.000-08:00

I had the pleasure recently of being responsible for my dad's birthday dinner. After an offer to pass the overdone 'birthday pie' idea, for the newer 'birthday creme brulee' dessert was accepted, I got to work. After comparing a few recipes for the custard base, I chose a happy medium of all. And passed the recommendation for 'creme brulee sugar' for just the plain old white stuff. I did get the opportunity to use my mom's kitchen torch instead of the broiler. After maybe the ninth creme brulee, I think I finally mastered the art of torching. Just a hint- even if you think it is done, or even burning too much, keep going. The only thing I may change in the future is to put less sugar in the custard, to contrast more with the crisp topping.

Creme Brulee

from a blend of recipes

Servings: 7-10 (depending on the size of the ramekins)

Time: 15 minutes (plus time in fridge to set)

2 cups of heavy cream
4 egg yolks
2/3 cup of sugar
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 300. Put cream in a saucepan over medium low heat until it is barely simmering, then remove from the heat. Beat egg yolks, vanilla, salt and sugar together until creamy. Add hot cream to egg mixture slowly, careful not to cook the egg. Strain the mixture through a sieve to remove foam. Fill ramekins with creme mixture and bake in a hot water bath* for 30-35 minutes. The middle of the custard can still be pretty jiggly when you take them out and still be good. Remove ramekins from the water bath and allow to cool at room temperature for a bit. Then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. **You can stop at this point and store the creme brulees in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. When ready to serve, cover custard with 1-2 tsp of sugar and melt either with a torch or under a broiler.

*how to make a hot water bath: Wet a kitchen towel and put it in a baking dish, then put the ramekins in the dish and fill them with the custard. Fill the baking dish (outside of the ramekins) with hot water. I find it is sometimes easier to pour the water in the dish while the dish is in the oven (depending on how rickety the oven is).

Glorious Leftovers

2007-01-28T20:02:00.000-08:00

I think that everyone isn't too excited about the word leftovers. But with the following simple recipe, I can have a smile when I open that refrigerator door with only the old roasted chicken left in it. The original recipe was for your leftover Thanksgiving turkey. I used a roasted chicken, but any fresh or older poultry would suffice. I love a good tortilla soup, and this is a really good one, especially because I don't skimp on the garnishes. My parents agreed that it was definitely a good soup, even though my dad had never heard of it.

Tortilla Soup

from: Fine Cooking Magazine

serves 3-4

time: 3o-40 minutes

soup

1 cup diced onion
2-4 tbsp chili powder (I did 2 tbsp and it wasn't spicy at all, next I will try 4 for sure)
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 quarts chicken broth (low sodium, and then adjust the salt yourself)
handful of cilantro (next time I will tie them up as it was a chore to fish them out)
2 cups shredded chicken
1 cup frozen corn
1 can of black beans (rinsed)
2 tomatoes, diced

garnishes (I recommend them all)

corn tortilla, cut into strips and fried (shortcut: tortilla chips, but really I recommend bothering to fry your own tortilla strips- they were delicious)
avocado
lime juice
fresh cilantro
sour cream

Saute onion in a bit of oil in saucepan until soft, add chili powder and tomato paste and cook for 30 sec (don't let the chili powder burn). Add broth and cilantro and bring up to a simmer. Simmer uncovered to reduce by about 1/3 for about 20-30 minutes, or until you are happy with the concentration of flavors (while it is simmering you can fry up those tortilla strips). Remove cilantro and add salt if needed. Add chicken, beans and corn and cook about 5 minutes to warm it all up. Add tomato right before serving so it doesn't get too mushy. Dish up and add as many garnishes as you like.

Happy Festivus

2007-01-02T16:57:00.000-08:00

Nothing says Merry Christmas like two lawn ordaments mating. Aw, our Naples neighbors never disappoint.

So here's to the Holidays.

And more importantly, here's to the Holidays being over.

Freedom at Home

2006-12-23T20:18:00.000-08:00

A new movie is coming out called Freedom Writers. It is a touching story about an inspirational teacher who believes in a group of students who have been written off by other people in their lives. She asks the students to begin to write journals, and what happens in the midst of this English class changes these students for the rest of their lives.
Cheesy? Inspiring? Regardless, I recommend it. The true story that the movie is based on took place in an English classroom of a neighborhood school of mine, Wilson, when I was in high school. So go out and see a movie that supports the heroes of the Long Beach Unified School District! Not to mention that it is starring 2 time Oscar winning actress, Hillary Swank.

Please leave it behind

2006-12-14T17:52:00.000-08:00

File this under: times that I am embarrassed to be associated with the word 'Christian'. A new video game was recently released called 'Left Behind: Eternal Forces'. The premise is this: you are part of a post-rapture group of Christian converts. Your goal is to convert or kill as many non-believers (infidels) as possible. Blood, gore, point blank murder.....Christianity?

I cannot even begin to talk about how disturbing and utterly appauling this is.

A few quotes:

“Megachurches are very likely to embrace this game.” -Left Behind Games CEO Troy Lyndon

"Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition." -Newsweek

"Conduct physical & spiritual warfare : using the power of prayer to strengthen your troops in combat and wield modern military weaponry throughout the game world." -the game

looking for a christmas gift?

2006-11-27T13:20:00.000-08:00

Here I have put together some recommendations of gifts shown to me by a few friends:

"Why Mommy is a Democrat" children's book

(find it here)

The Ex-A knife block for the newly single friend

(find it here)

Aquariass- the Aquarium Toilet

(find it here)

(note: this is not my wishlist)

the pom-pom

2006-11-13T17:43:00.000-08:00

For all of the rants and raves about this miracle fruit, I decided to finally buy one and try it. And my expectations were pretty high after paying $2 for just one at the Santa Monica farmers market.
My only question: how the heck do you eat one of these things?
After some experimentation and coaching (thanks Em)-
The answer: less like a grapefruit, more like an orange...

I'm a student!

2006-09-14T22:25:00.000-07:00

King said to me the other day, in the most amused tone "You're a student again."
And it feels good to be back.
It's third week already in my program at CSULB. For those catching up, I am in a MA program for Speech Pathology. I have a year of prerequisites to take (undergrad upper div), so it is going to be at least 3 years till I am done. Most people go this route though, because it is such a specified field, not too many choose to get an undergrad degree. So this means that I have a good group of people going through all of this with me. My group is all female; I think out of the 50+ students in the department there are 3 guys. It's really unfortunate, because I think certain clients would do really well if they had a male clinician, but there just aren't too many in the field for that to happen much. On a tangent, last night at the clinic the director commented that the clients are doing better with clinicians using the same language (instead of a translator) or of the same sex. It makes sense-- there is a connection there.
As I said- I went to my first clinic observation last night. It was great! It wasn't the first time I had been at a speech session, far from that. But it stood out more than the others. I think I just love the controlled setting that a University affords in their clinics-- specific clientele, great supervision, high value put on data driven/empirically sound practices. I am again reminded how much I appreciate research and empirically supported practices that come from it.
On a side note, I have become the very talkative, lots of questions girl in class. Alittle surprising, not really. I guess I just forgot about that part of me when I was in those large lectures or intimidating small classes at UCSD. Other people have said that my questions are helpful, but I think I might quiet down.....a bit.

Food for the Vegan in You

2006-09-08T14:38:00.000-07:00

Mexican Tomato Rice & Beans

from: Fine Cooking Magazine
serves 6
time: 30 minutes

Two of my favorite people came over for dinner in my new apartment last week, and it is always an adventure to find something to make. As one of the two feels that all meat eaters are going to rot in hell (he told me that last night), I settled on the following recipe paired with portabello and red pepper tacos. It turned out quite scruptious, and we saved an animal that night. I'm doing my part (once every other week?) to liberate our furry friends from the bondage of commercial farming.

Rice

1 cup uncooked medium grain white rice (Jasmine)
1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic chopped
1 jalapeno chopped (leave out the seeds, unless you like spicy)
1 can black beans rinsed
2 tsp salt
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 cup fresh cilantro chopped

In a covered saucepan or rice cooker, simmer rice with 2 cups water for 20 minutes, then remove from heat. While rice cooks, drain tomatoes straining the liquid into a 1 cup measure. Add enough water to the tomato juice to equal 1 cup. Saute garlic and jalapeno in skillet with olive oil for 1 minute. Add black beans, salt, cumin, chili powder, oregano- stir and cook for 1 minute to incorporate spices. Add tomato juice and bring to a boil, cooking for 5-7 minutes until liquid reduces by half. Add tomatoes, cilantro and rice. Cook until warm (1-2 minutes).

Mike: "Bitchin! Love this rice and bean combo. Great flavors from all of the spices and the beans provide a wonderful texture. A 9 on the scale." Katie: "I'm not a big fan of rice dishes, but love this one! Fresh cilantro freshens up the flavors. Pairs well with a lovely Syrah Rose." Nicole: "Alittle dry (Katie and Mike say no), but I would just not boil off as much tomato juice next time. Otherwise, good flavor and very filling."

the hills are alive!

2006-07-31T00:44:00.000-07:00

with the sound of muuuuuuuusic.

Ah- just got back from the stage performance at the Hollywood Bowl, and I am wired. It was none of that sing along movie stuff. Just the real thing.

Something has been bothering me though. I feel a bit ashamed of my generation. All the buzz of the youngsters around me was 'hey did you know that Captain von Trapp is played by the dad on Smallville' and 'hey the Liesl character is the girl from Desperate Housewives- Terri Hatcher's daughter.'

Nothing was said (except by the conductor) about the 4 time Emmy winning Marni Nixon (who played the head nun), who was the female lead singing voice in such classic films as The King and I, An Affair to Remember, and My Fair Lady. Not to mention that Captain von Trapp (John Schneider) starred in the original TV Dukes of Hazzard, a TV icon that will last far longer than Smallville.

Is my generation (and more so, those younger than me) so obsessed with pop culture that we fail to recognize industry greats when they are right in front of us? Maybe it's because I watched Breakfast at Tiffany's today for the first time, and have a invigorated appreciation for the classics (except for that strong distaste for their racism), not to mention a love of everything Audrey. (and now I want to watch all of those classic movies I always hear about if anyone is interested or has any suggestions, the ones above are definitely on the list)

I am almost too ashamed to admit though, that through most of the movie I was tracking how Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City was partly modeled after Holly Golightly. And the only way I know that the movie greatly deviates from the book, and even that the book is written by the great American writer Truman Capote, is from a Seinfeld episode.....I'm as bad as the rest of them. Although I will say that I think both Sex and the City and Seinfeld are going to stand the test of time and dare I say be considered classics in their own right.

On a tangent, below is one of my favorite Slim Aarons' photographs:

Capote at Home

Who knew Val Kilmer was funny?

2006-07-30T11:14:00.000-07:00

"Can we get Russell Crowe, and Sheryl Crow, the Counting Crows, and the Black Crows together with Jack Black, Shane Black, and Will Smith?"

-Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

It's got to be the funniest thing I have heard in weeks. great movie.

Asian Flavors

2006-07-17T23:25:00.000-07:00

I was inspired recently by a friend to start writing about some of my cooking ventures. So this will be a new addition to the blog. Come and see some good recipes that I have tried and loved.

Tonight, I made an asian themed meal for my friend Irene, who frequently gets to be the guinea pig on new recipes. Here they are:

Vietnamese Noodle Salad with Pork Patties (Bun Cha)
and
Vietnamese Dipping Sauce (Nuoc Cham)
from Fine Cooking Magazine
serves 4
time: 20-30 minutes

Salad

8-9 oz rice vermicelli noodles (package said 'rice sticks')
1/4-1/2 cup julienned carrot (1 carrot)
1/4-1/2 cup julienned jicama or daikon (I used jicama, could possible use cucumber too)
3 tsp sugar
1 tsp red wine vinegar
1 lb ground pork (it is pretty fatty, but yummy! I may try ground turkey next time)
1/4 cup sliced green onion
1 1/2 tsp fish sauce (this was my first time using it, very smelly, but important for this recipe)
1 cup torn lettuce (I used red lettuce, recipe said romaine)
bunch of torn mint
bunch of torn cilantro
salt and pepper

Sauce-- I would recommend cutting this in half, I did not and had lots!

3 cloves minced garlic
1 sliced hot red chile- serrano (I omitted this)
1 cup water (I think next time less water, maybe cut it half)
1/2 cup fish sauce (used alittle less bc I was put off by the smell)
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup granulated sugar (used alittle less)

Soak noodles in a bowl of warm water about 10 minutes to separate. Place them in a salted pot of boiling water for 2-3 minutes, and drain. Set aside to cool. Put carrots and jicama in a colander and sprinkle with 1 tsp sugar, 1 tsp red wine vinegar, 1/4 tsp salt. Let sit for 10 minutes, then squeeze their liquid out and add to sauce ingredients. For the pork patties combine pork, scallions, 2 tsp sugar, 1 1/2 tp fish sauce, and some salt and pepper. Mix and make into small 2 inch patties. Grill patties on greased grill pan 5-7 minutes each side (you could probably use a regular pan too). Then place the warm patties in the sauce. Assemble platter: first noodles, then greens on top, then patties, and top with sauce. You may want to do this individually so the lettuce doesn't wilt much, and people can control the amount of sauce they put on (hint: not too much). I let everything cool off to serve.

Irene: "Very refreshing, perfect for the hot summer. The noodles are nicely seperated (N: I think the first soaking is key). I love fish sauce!" Nicole: "I love love love the pork patties. I ate one plain to make sure they were ok- delish! I think this would just be good too as pork patties in lettuce wraps"
King: "Fresh"

Asian Style Salad
from allrecipes
serves 4-10
time 15 minutes

Dressing: combine all of the below ingredients, and serve on the side of the salad

3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon peanut butter
2 teaspoons brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon hot chile paste (I omitted this)
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
3 tablespoons seasoned rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2-3 tablespoons of juice from canned mandarin oranges

Salad: combine the below ingredients

1 chopped cooked chicken breast
half a head of romaine lettuce, or a combination of romaine and cabbage chopped
1 carrot thinly sliced
1-2 green onions, chopped
handful of chopped fresh cilantro
handful of crunch chow mein noodles
handful of canned mandarin oranges

Irene: "I like the thick creamy peanuty dressing" Nicole: "I love this dressing- it tastes like the fancy restaurant style asian salad dressing."

Thai Iced Tea

from a blend of several recipes
serves 2
time 20-30 minutes

I only was only able to find thai tea in a thai grocery store, but I didn't look at a Ranch 99. If you are a friend in the LA area, and are as obsessed with this drink as much as I am I can give you some tea, just ask. I bought 2 pounds of the stuff! It was $2 a pound, so now I can have thai iced tea for 10 cents for the next 10 years!

Tea

5-6 tablespoons of thai tea
2-3 cups of water
2-4 tablespoons of sugar
3-4 tablespoons of evaporated milk or condensed milk (use less sugar)
ice

Everything is an estimation with this one. Steep tea in hot water for 15 minutes. Strain out loose tea with a coffee filter (or paper towel) and strainer. Add sugar to taste. If using condensed milk, add it when the tea is hot and also use less sugar as it is already sweetened. If using evaporated milk, after sweetening tea, chill it in the freezer for 15 minutes, then add evaporated milk. Serve over ice. For rainbow color effect above, put evaporated milk in glass first, then ice and tea.

Irene: "Tastes like professional thai iced tea." Nicole: "I love thai iced tea, and this is the exact thing!"

the people have spoken

2006-06-23T22:27:00.000-07:00

www.thebubbleproject.com

Ouch

2006-05-04T22:20:00.000-07:00

I have been battling tension headaches for the past few weeks. Today's is particularly bad-- 12 hours straight of headache and the 6 aleve that I have taken throughout the day haven't helped. My headaches are most likely caused, at least in part, to me subconsciously clenching my teeth when I sleep, and sometimes when awake. This behavior is particularly frustrating because it seems that I should be able to stop it. I have already left one job in part because of the stress headaches. Now what am I to do?

This brings me to a bigger issue- the chemical dependence that Americans find themselves in so easily. Two years ago I was taking a preventative prescription medication to address my tension headaches. There is also the option of wearing a small mouth guard while I sleep that prevents me from clenching my teeth. The problem lies in this: the medicine is covered by my insurance, the mouth guard is not (and actually most dental plans do not cover such devices). So what am I to do? Spend $5 on a co-pay for the meds, or $350 for the mouth guard?

Sounds like I will be adding another pill to my daily chemical fix.

Owned!

2006-04-20T23:06:00.000-07:00

Taking risks

2006-04-03T22:33:00.000-07:00

So I get my hair cut about once every year, because it is simply what I can afford. It is always embarrassing going into the salon that one time and telling the stylist "yes I know, my hair is in terrible shape and there are lots of split ends". And when this year's trip rolled around I decided to go big. I realized that I hadn't paid for a hair cut in 3 years. Last year was free because of a Locks of Love donation, and the year before was a free home-owners promotion courtesy of King.
So this year, I colored my hair for the first time, an then the big mistake: a perm. I know, I know, you are screaming at the screen "What was she thinking?" Well, I have to say that I was misled to think that I could have Carrie's luscious locks with a little chemical perm. Boy was I wrong. Oh, but the good thing is that I got a refund on the money I spent on the perm since it was obviously not what I wanted. So the damage (at least pocketbook damage) isn't that bad.

And the Oscar goes to....

2006-03-16T19:33:00.000-08:00

I would first like to thank the Academy for such an honor. This would not be possible without my dear friends and family, that have always believed, always hoped, always loved. Mom, Dad I love you. King you are in my heart. There are so many people to thank.... Sarah Jessica, you inspire me to hair greatness, Katie who orchestrated this Chocala reunion that brought me back to LA, Irene who has stood by my side through the rejection always encouraging me to never give up, Jill and Lindsay who were there with me from the very beginning. Many said that this would never be possible, and doubted me when I made the move to LA a year ago. But anything is possible for those who believe. Keep believing!

Bluebirds are Evil!

2006-03-13T13:13:00.000-08:00

Did you know that bluebirds are evil? For the third time (and the second time in 2 days), I came home today to see that my flower box has been violated. The stupid bluebirds pulled out my pansies to bury their peanut (which a neighbor feeds them). My poor pansy, just by its name you know it doesn't stand a chance next to those bully birds! Just look at them, they mean no harm to anyone. I know what to do when bugs are killing my flowers, but birds? Not to mention their obnoxious squawking at all hours of the morning, and let me tell you it is not pretty. Are there measures that I can take? Anyone know what I could do? I've used pesticides, but what do I do for these pests?

If anyone has seen 'Failure to Launch', I feel like the roommate to has that nemesis mockingbird. It's just too bad that my boyfriend doesn't have a BB gun....really

PS: I did get some revenge today. I saw one of those blues with a peanut in its beak, made it drop the nut and fly away. Then I stole its treat and threw it away. Ha Ha little bird, this is war!

LA love

2006-02-22T21:57:00.000-08:00

I have to say sometimes LA has its moments. The city has definitely warmed up on me since moving up here a year ago. There have been a few times this past month where I catch myself saying "only in LA". Here are a few of the juicy tidbits....

King and I went to the reunion concert of the Fugees. They are back together and hotter than ever. The concert was amazing and the best part was it was free. We jumped the fence and got up close and personal with the Fugees in the VIP section. Can't beat it. The first American concert of the Fugees since the 90s in the streets of Hollywood. As Wyclef said, it was history in the making.

Last week, I went to my second LA gallery show. This time it was in the very hip Hollywood spot Fred Segal. I always love an open bar and delish appetizers. Good thing it was an exclusive list-only showing because Marsha Cross, otherwise know as Bree Van DeKamp, joined us for the show. She is as beautiful up close as she is on screen. I was happy to see that she doesn't look like a porcelain doll in person.

And last, just last friday, three of my dearest friends and I got together for dinner. This may seem like nothing too exciting, but with everyone's insane schedules and relationships, it is a wonder when we ever see each other. This definitely was an LA thing (this is the first time we have all lived in the same county since high school). Our night started with a conversation about Hooters, and how all of our beaus claim they go for the wings. Well, we thought, why not see for ourselves? So our fabulous female foursome ventured to the local Hooters. And let me tell you ladies, the wings...they were just wings. We did however enjoy our perky (no pun intended) waitress, who commented on everything we asked about with the same exuberant response "It's awesome!"

LA still has more for me to look forward to: a trip to Disneyland, a presentation on the fact and fiction of autism (arranged by UCSD but still counting it as an LA thing), and many more warm winter days.....

It's (almost) over!

2006-02-07T22:50:00.000-08:00

Well, it ended up being a virus more serious than the flu, but the good news is that I am better now and back into the swing of things. After completely demolishing my social calendar for a month (I missed 2 birthdays and a trip to Disneyland :( ) and staying in bed until I was so distraught that I started to develop a psychiatric illness on top of my medical one, I am happy to say that I returned to work last Monday. It is amazing that those words would actually come out of my mouth, but there it is in print: I was happy to go to work rather than be at home.

I got just a small taste of what my old roomate Allison had to deal with last year when she got something (that will also remain nameless because after all this is the internet) that left her in the hospital and bed for over a month. I realize now that I was not the best roomate that I could have been. So for all of you out there who have a friend that is homebound for any reason, please go visit them!

Wake me up when this all ends

2006-01-20T14:23:00.000-08:00

Day 8 of my battle with the flu.
Log: I am about ready to give up, wave the white flag, and be done with it. For 8 days now I have had fevers, chills, aches, pains, headaches, nausea, coughing....... I didn't think it was possible. I was in fact so surprised on Day 6 of fevers etc that I went to the doctor. I am growing more and more sure that doctors have become useless. Her advice: get some rest and drink fluids. I wanted to shake her and say 'Are you kidding me with this?' Because I work with kids with special needs, I was particularly concerned with whether or not I was contagious on Day 6 of fevers etc. Dr. Know-it-all said "Well, you really shouldn't be very contagious now." What in the world is that supposed to mean?
All I can say is that I wouldn't wish this year's flu on anyone.....well maybe Dr. Know-it-all.

Happy 2006!

2006-01-03T19:54:00.000-08:00

Well, I am back to the grindstone. But in my dreams, I am still relishing the short secret/fake vacation that I took. Here are some pics:

Off with his head! My first time

making gingerbread cookies.

Katie, Jill, Lindsay and Nicole's 8th

Annual Naples Christmas Decorating Contest-

that's the winning house, doesn't it look like it's snowing?

Christmastime in SF- always a joy

A hard lesson in geography

2005-12-08T11:41:00.000-08:00

This post will probably make me look entirely stupid, but please keep in mind that I have only ventured to 3 destinations in Nor Cal: a trip with family to Lake Tahoe where we drove straight there, a road trip with college roomates where we went straight to Livermore, and to SF to visit my boyfriends family. So with that in mind, please read on.
Little did I know yesterday when I was leaving the house at 3 pm that I would reach my destination 5 hours later. I had agreed two weeks earlier to King's request to go with him to San Jose for the Kanye West concert. I thought then that San Jose was pretty close to Fresno. Is 3 hours considered close? I didn't find out it's actual location until an hour out of Fresno, when I started asking 'Are we there yet?' So we ended up spending 9 hours driving for a 2 and a half hour concert. Was it worth it? All I can say is there is no one else I would rather spend driving to the freakin' Bay area for the night (!) than my dear King.

We're going to party like it's your birthday

2005-11-29T13:47:00.000-08:00

Still recovering from a week-long b-day celebration, for all of those who forgot. It all started Tuesday with tulips from my sweetie and ended by Sunday with a trunk full of wine. This birthday was definately a good one, as witnessed by the pictures.

I spent the actual day working, which makes me really feel like a grown-up. Then there was a fancy dinner with King that I would see later again that night....The evening ended with a Sex and the City inspired night on the town at the endlessly 'hip' Blue Monkey Lounge. It was raging from the moment we got there. I think I started to have too much to drink when I started to pose with my 'sexy face' for all of the pictures. By the end of the night I had a new love for my dearest friend Irene who is very good at holding my hair and King who helps a girl in 6 inch heels walk up a flight of stairs with ease.

The celebration and drinking continued during a tour of Southern Cali's wine country with great friends Katie and Mike. We partied it up Sideways style through Solvang and SLO. The trip began in the elusive Santa Barbara, where streets are not what they claim to be, where we all continued our pursuit of veganism, though 3 of the 4 of us fell off the wagon later that night. I learned phrases like "The full bouquet of this Cab has a rich finish of leather and pencil shavings". After spending the evening in a 4 star condominium courtesy of Ameri Flight, we were scheduled to meet up with Oprah at her cafe in SLO but were disappointed to find that she closes her restaurant at 2:00! All was not lost, and we finished the trip with more wine. By the time we arrived back in LA, we were all alittle bit wiser and alittle bit tipsy.

The vines were beautiful this time of year. The grapes though left something to be desired.

When it rains (celebrities), it pours.

2005-11-13T21:17:00.000-08:00

I was out to an afternoon tea with some friends today, and who did I see? The principal from the OC- Dr. Kim. Am I an OC dork or what? I was pretending to take a picture of my friend Irene as I snapped a pic of Dr. Kim. I'm as bad as the pappers....

It all reminds me of a time a few months ago. I had been living in LA for over 6 months, and (contrary to popular belief) I hadn't seen one actor/tress (I should qualify that to well known actors, as everyone I meet including King's neighbor is an actor). Then....3 in one week. It was like they were stalking me! Sandra Oh found me while I was hiking in Griffith Park, Robert Duvall ran into me while I was eating at a posh restaurant in Beverly Hills, and then Tisha Campbell from the show "My Wife and Kids" had the audacity to show up at my work and watch me in my classroom!

Are celebrity sightings like catastrophic disasters, they come in threes? Well I'm prepared: bring on the celebrities! They can't intimidate me.

Mr. A. Z.

2005-11-06T17:20:00.000-08:00

Even though I have a boyfriend, I still want to say that Jason Mraz is cute. I went to his concert at the Wiltern last night with friends. Not only is he cute in a dorky way, he is a very talented musician as well. At one point in the concert, he took words and phrases (Canada, Green Bay Packers, Genevieve is on the phone) from the audience and made a song with them...and it was actually good. I have to say though that I wasn't pleased with the new addition of other band-mates. He should keep it classic: just Jason and Toca. Jason seemed to agree with me, always referring to the other guys as the "band geeks". My dad would appreciate that he opened with a Bob Dylan song, and did it justice (not too easy of a feat). Thanks Katie for this birthday present! (that's a hint to everyone else: my bday is coming up! countdown: 17 more days)

Can't wait till a week from now

2005-11-06T17:13:00.000-08:00

So instead of studying for my upcoming GRE subject test (psychology), I am finding any means to procrastinate. I am telling myself "I'm taking a break"..... so I finally did it. After making fun of ppl with blogs, I made one of my own. This is the epitomy of procrastination. I have started to do something I never thought possible. Is my life really that interesting to record it on the internet for all those interested to see?
I guess we'll see by the size of my guestbook right? That is in fact the true measure of a person's worth....