Sam's Blog

Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0151804/

Today was Administrative Assistants day. It was cute. The nurses got me a massage package from Burke Williams and cake and ice cream. I was totally surprised and caught off guard because I didn’t know that this day existed. Very cool. But for as much as we preach teamwork and equality in my department, these types of days almost further perpetuate the distinct differences of people’s positions. I would have loved to have gotten the day off and get paid for it. Now that is the type of appreciation that I like! I really am grateful for my massage gift though. It was very thoughtful and I know that I need it and I am sure that I will use it so fast. They’re all so sweet! Tomorrow will be their day. It will be Oncology Nurses Day and we have breakfast, lunch, and dinner all planned and paid for by lovely drug companies. I am excited and I am feeling much better than I did earlier today.

I had a headache all morning and I was nauseous after lunch today and I was really nervous, on top of that. The second interview went really well and I really like the people that I have met. But I know that it’s a long process and I hope that they call me back for another interview. I guess I will have to wait and see. I just wanted to also say thanks to all of those who wished me good luck. It really means a lot to me and I really appreciate the support. I have been up writing thank you cards to all of the interviewers. It’s a lot harder than it seems.

I was glad to hear from all of my old D12 crew in SAA. I actually got emails from Alexis, Monica, and Kate. All in one day! It was awesome and I miss them. Though Alexis lives in LA, I hardly see her as often as I should. I need to change that. But I am now really tired and I must go to bed.

S&TC quote of the day:
Miranda: The real world?
Samantha: A homeless man showed me his dick on the way here. It doesn't get any realer than that. (Season 4 – I Heart NY)

Link: http://www.viewaskew.com/chasingamy/

So now my life is more complete. I smiled at Jason Lee today. He looked really good and so very hot. Jeans, t-shirt, tennis shoes, gray blazer, and a beard. [He likes Baked Lay’s potato chips and Fiji water. Or maybe that’s all they had there, who knows.] But Lindsay pointed him out to me and I looked and he stared right back. I looked away, not knowing what to do. He was with a lot of people and was obviously waiting for more people to arrive. He was just standing there, so I had to look at him more than once. He left for about 15 minutes and then came back. Lindsay had left and I avoided looking at his direction. I stared at the television screens in front of me. But I couldn’t help but glance over there every once in a while. Then finally, we made eye contact and he smiled. I smiled back. I was smitten and giddy for a while. He and his entourage left and the only feeling that was left in me was nervousness. I am so tired now, but the interviews went pretty well overall, so I am happy about that. More to come when I’m actually thinking coherently.

Link: http://www.nin.com/

So dinner with my uncle didn’t go as greatly as planned. We couldn’t get a hold of some people and the next thing I knew, it was 8:30 pm and I was starving. So I told everyone that we needed to decide or else I will die of hunger. [I realize that I am surrounded by a lot of people that are really indecisive when it comes to making plans and social outings. It works out in the end, but sometimes it is frustrating, such as this case.] So my family ventured to Monterey Park, where all of the good Asian restaurants were, and ate at Garden Café. I had never been, but my siblings were regulars and they had the best sizzling beef udon. It sounds weird, but it’s fabulous. It really was a great Chinese restaurant and it's open very very late.

My visits home have become less frequent and I do feel bad for not going more often. It’s a bit comforting there because nothing really changes. My grandma is always slightly sick, but nothing too bad to worry about. She watches basketball now. So weird to me. She follows the Sacramento Kings, as do the rest of my family. I guess it didn’t surprise me too much, being that she is the same lady that watched professional wrestling while I was growing up in the 80s. My dad is still stubborn at times and refuses to use his walking cane in public, even though his arthritic knee is in pain. My sister, Nak, is always fixated on something when I am there. This time, it was her upcoming trip to Mexico City and a new boy that she met. Nat is always indifferent about pretty much everything and seems to be doing fine. My brother, Pheap, is still addicted to coffee and is always up for conversation as long as I buy him a cup. We still wrestle all of the time and he can always do the sleeper hold on me. He is rather skillful at that and you would think that I would learn how to get out of it by now. He schooled me on classical jazz favorites. We went to the Cerritos mall and we commented on how much it reminded us of the malls in Modesto and Stockton. So sad. We moved so far away and yet things are the same and there is still not much to do. I was able to see all of the photos that my dad and Nat took during their recent trip to Cambodia. It looked lovely and my dad’s family seems to be doing rather well for themselves. I was worried that weren’t, but luckily they have tons of land and beautiful houses all over Phnom Penh. My sister had a traditional Cambodian outfit tailored for me. Its turquoise and gold and I think I’m going to wear it to my cousin’s wedding. I am excited. I do want to go to Cambodia very soon.

It’s weird. I realized that I purposely don’t put pictures of my family members on here or talk about them much. I guess I am protecting them in a lot of ways. But I am still going to keep things the way that they are. And plus, if you know me well enough, you can always come over and I can show you tons of embarrassing family pictures. Yay!

Anyway, after I came back from home on Sunday night, Josh and I went to Aussie’s place for her annual birthday potluck. She made yummy shrimp fajitas and enchiladas. It was really fun and it was so nice to see her again. Josh was finally able to meet Matt and Ray. They are really cool guys and I knew that they would get along with Josh really well. We played a few games of Mafia and then just chatted some more. It was a great night and fun times were had by all. I think that Josh will be collaborating with the guys in an upcoming project. So cool!

Today was really busy at work, as usual for a Monday. I didn’t get much done on the weekend and my apartment is a mess after the film shoot. I didn't sleep very well because I am not used to the new sheets, even though it is so soft, and I guess my mind didn't like having the bed in a different part of the bedroom. Josh didn't sleep very well either, so I think that we will have to move it back to where it was originally. In any case, all I can think about is the interview tomorrow. It can change my life in so many ways. Or it will not. I am nervous, which is very typical for me. But I am going to try my best and hope for the best. I’m a firm believer of the phrase, “Everything happens for a reason.” Roni has been a believer in that motto ever since I have known her and it’s rubbing off on me. In any case, I still remain hopeful and positive, no matter what the outcome is.

S&TC quote of the day:
“The most important thing in life is your family. There are days you love them, and others you don't, but in the end they're the people you always come home to.” – Carrie (Season 2 – Shortcomings)

Link: http://www.nin.com/

I spent two hours looking for dark sheets yesterday. Queen sized dark sheets aren’t that hard to find normally. But I didn’t want to spend that much money on it because it is for Josh’s experimental film that he is shooting today. I guess I was looking during the wrong season. I was surrounded by tons of white, light blue, eggshell, light pink, lavender, and tons more spring and summer colors. But the only color I found was a deep red, after two hours and two different stores. Not the most ideal thing to be doing after work on a Friday night, but it needed to get done. I like the sheets a lot. It’s jersey knit and fabulous and we’re keeping it.

I was talking to Michelle online last night and we decided that we were losers because we didn’t have any plans and we were both extremely tired. We started a losers club and we are proud. I fell asleep at 10pm after putting on the new sheets on the bed. So sad, but yet it was nice to sleep for hours and hours.

I woke up to murmurs of voices in the living room. Meghann (the DP for the film) was over already and they were getting ready to set up lighting. Since they were going to use the bed that I was currently sleeping on for the shoot, I had to get up. But I didn’t mind because I think that I had plenty of sleep. They are currently still shooting and about to wrap up in a little bit. It’s not that bad and I hope that it turns out well for Josh. From what I saw today, it looks really cool.

M surprised me with a blue Coach wallet that she got from Santee Alley in downtown LA. It matches my new jacket because it has little “Tiffany” blue accents on it. I know that it’s not a real Coach wallet, but the real ones are way too overpriced anyway. I am grateful that she got me something! She really is so sweet.

I am waiting for my family to call me. They should be calling soon because we are supposed to have dinner with my uncle and everyone else tonight. Nothing is ever planned. I am not one for disorganization at all, it’s frustrating. But I am just waiting…

S&TC quote of the day:
Carrie: So what type of movies do you compose for?
Patrick: Really bad ones. You know, the "I Screamed When I Knew What You Did Last Summer on Elm Street" type. (Season 2 – Was It Good For You?)

Link: http://www.nin.com/

The phone was my friend today. Nothing but good news and good conversations. I got a call to interview for a major entertainment network. I don’t expect much will come out of it, but it would be a good experience and really awesome to work there. We will see I suppose. I try not to jinx myself before major interviews anymore. All I get is disappointment. But we will see with this one. It is exciting nonetheless.

Mandy (pictured above), an old traveling nurse that worked with me a few months ago called me out of the blue today. We had been playing phone tag for a really long time, so it’s nice to finally talk with her. She hates Arizona with a passion and longs to come back to LA. Her contract expires in June and I am hoping that she will be able to come back here. That would be fantastic. She is so much fun and we enjoy each other’s companies very much so.

I had a long phone conversation with Lindsay today about our futures and work and school and stuff. She’s so funny. She didn’t know that I had this blog and so I gave her the website. I forgot that I sent one email a long, long time ago when the site wasn’t even nearly what I have right now. No colors and no pictures. No wonder why no one reads this. I can only think of like 5 people, but I’m okay with that. It scares me to think that there may be more than 5 people reading this. I retell everything that I say on here to everyone I hang out with anyway, so it’s not like they’re missing anything. It made me realize that it’s not hard to find me at all, if anyone cared to look for me. So weird, yet so cool.

M and I had a conversation about work on my way to Costco and on her way home. We agreed that we don’t like bosses who have less education than we do. It just seems wrong in many ways, even though that sounds bad. To me, if they are not educated, I would hope to think that they are really experienced in the field. Most are and most are great managers. But there are those that mismanage and seem clueless, but yet they are still making more money and will never get fired. It’s just frustrating sometimes knowing that the bureaucracy of the office will allow people like them to exist. And as I talk to M and help her find her ATM machine in Westside Pavillion, I realized that I am pathetic. I know where every Bank of America ATM machine is located on the Westside, even in the malls (on the 1st floor in front of the Steve Madden store/3rd floor food court near the Coffee Bean cart at Westside Pavillion and at the base of the “down” escalators near Black & White in Santa Monica Plaza). So sad but useful.

My sister, Nakara, called me today and told me that my uncle from Texas is in town. This means that I will probably go home this weekend, which is wonderful because I need to do laundry and I miss my uncle and cousins and family. I found out that both of my cousins (who are both younger than me) are engaged. One is getting married this summer and the other one is going to do it next summer. It’s so weird to grow up with someone all of your life and watch them get married. I know that it will feel a lot weirder when the day comes. Anyway, my sister will be in Mexico City for the summer. She travels so much more than I do. I don’t even have a passport and she’s been all over, even Cuba. I don’t even think that she will be working there at all. I think that it’s just a really long and fun summer vacation for her. I am jealous. I am going to probably be stuck in an air-conditioned office all summer. Fun fun!

I think Josh is going crazy. He has to shoot his experimental film this weekend. So much pressure and many, many time constraints.

Oh and thanks to Kate. She sent me an “I miss you” card. It’s funny because I just bought her a similar one today from Flax and was going to mail it out tomorrow. We think way too much alike, even though she is 3,000 miles away. It was sweet and I miss her so tremendously.

Happy Birthday Tripp!

S&TC quote of the day:
“I mean, if you put a phone up on that platform, it's just a typical Friday night waiting for some guy to call.” – Carrie (Season 6- One)

Link: http://www.nin.com/

Yes, I am on a NIN kick. I am sure that it will pass sometime in the near future, but I am enjoying it right now. I got a new purse today. It makes me happy too. I am a consumer whore. Yay!

I splurged and bought the 10th Anniversary edition of Reality Bites. I don’t have the DVD, I have the VHS and I was purchasing a DVD online as a gift for a coworker of mine, so I figured, why not? I haven’t bought a DVD in a really long time (well, not that long ago if you count Sex and the City Season 6, part 2). I usually get them as gifts or Josh would get them. Our collection has slowly merged and I definitely am the lucky one because he has a huge and wonderful collection that I somewhat inherited when I moved in with him. It’s nice that we don’t have cable anymore because we can always watch a movie or show that we have on DVD. Who needs cable, right? (I do miss The Daily Show, whimper.)

I got together with M tonight. It threw me off completely because we usually meet on Tuesdays. She had just gotten back from a conference literally a few hours before we met up. She was tired and hungry and I am not one to stand in the way of anyone’s hunger. So naturally, we went to The Cheesecake Factory. I am beginning to believe that she is a freak magnet. She attracts a lot of weirdos and older strange men. She has a certain confidence about her that they like. I see it too. But confidence does not translate into having heightened sexual energy. After going through the metal detector, a guy asked her if he could put her shoes on for her. That freaked me out just hearing it. Pervs. All of them. And almost all of the men at the conference were old and married. What a mighty fine selection of men! Poor girl. All she wants is a nice, cute, nerdy guy. But it’s all about timing.

Wow, I got really tired all of the sudden. I am really trying hard to post frequently, but it's bedtime.

S&TC quote of the day:
“New York City is all about sex. People getting it, people trying to get it, people who can't get it. No wonder the city never sleeps. It's too busy trying to get laid.” – (Season 1 – The Draught)

Link: http://www.nin.com/

Am I excited about the new NIN album? Of course. Have I heard it yet? Nope. But I will probably still buy it. I do hope that it is a fantastic album because there hasn’t been many lately. If you know me at all, you know that I don’t listen to the radio much. I know that I will hear the new song soon. I know it’s out there. Maybe I’ve already heard it before and didn’t realize it? I highly doubt it, but there is still a slight chance. In any case, I will hear it soon and I will probably hate it at first. That is usually my reaction to his music. Then I grow to like it, or in some cases, fall absolutely in love with it. Damn, now I want to hear the song. My unhealthy obsession with Trent Reznor started my freshman year of high school (1994). It was during band camp [insert chuckle] and I was totally in love with Jason (my friend, Alison’s brother). It was just a small crush, especially since he was a junior and totally popular. It’s funny to type that because I know Alison reads this sometimes, but she knows about my crush on him. I believe many of her friends had a crush on him, so she is used to it. It’s even weirder now because he just got married this past October. Anyway, he would blast the song “Closer” all of the time in his truck while we loaded and unloaded all of the percussion from the field. Ah, good memories. So Trent and I have had a love affair for over ten years. He’s been such a recluse lately, but I know that he will be out to promote his new album. I still want to go to Coachella to see him. I am debating because I want to go to both days and I am not sure if I can afford the time or the $$.

Earlier today, Angie asked for our top 5 movies. I couldn’t decide. I thought of 10 off the top of my head, which actually impressed me. So I will post them up here. I can already think of a few that I forgot and some that I would take off, but it was spontaneous thinking on my part and I was surprised that I could even come up with those, given that it was such a horribly busy and awful day. Here they are: The Big Chill, Reality Bites, In the Mood for Love (or any other Wong Kar-Wai film for that matter), American History X, The Royal Tenenbaums, Casablanca, The Usual Suspects, Roman Holiday, Office Space, & Amelie.

I met up with Lisa at lunch. She is feeling better physically, but not so much mentally. I hope that things get better for her soon. That’s all that I can say. I like having actual conversations with her. It’s swell.

So I was finally able to solve my random spam problems. It appears that the couple that is getting married listed an email address and people got confused and replied to my email address. Slight mix-up, but no harm done. The only reason why I know this is because one of the people that replied still had the original email invite attached to his response, so I was able to read what they sent out. It’s nice to finally know and also to know that it wasn’t spam that I’ve been getting.

I met up with one of my favorite professors from college. He is doing great and we were able to discuss so many things like current events and programs, research, graduate school, politics, and why he decided to stay in LA instead of moving back to Canada. It was a refreshing conversation and I was really comfortable around him. I hadn’t seen him in over two years and I was afraid that he had forgotten who I was. It was pleasant and I am volunteering to help him with his research and anything else he throws at me. It’s nice to be in the academic mindset again. I kinda missed it (but not too much).

Josh and I went with some of his animation friends to Philly West, a local restaurant bar near my old apartment. Excellent cheese steak sandwiches and cheese fries. Yum yum. It’s a cool place to sit and relax and watch whatever game is on at that time. It's pretty rad.

Two of my good friends are out of town right now and I miss them dearly. I can't wait for them to get back...M will be back tomorrow (yay!) and Angela will be back in about 10 more days hopefully. My life feels incomplete without them here, especially since they're gone at the same time.

S&TC quote of the day:
“Philadelpha. Just a hop, skip, a cab, a metroliner and another cab away.” – Carrie (Season 4 - My Motherboard, My Self)

Link: http://www.thecure.com/

I find it more and more true that people’s moods are affected by the weather. It was overcast all day and it got a bit chilly towards the evening. People were grumpy and had foul dispositions. I was not a fan. Maybe they all had a case of the Mondays, but it was really hard to work with some of them today. I just steered clear of them the rest of the day. So work was okay, nothing too exciting.

I have been getting random emails from people that are not from the US. It’s hard to tell where they are from actually. If I were to take an educated guess, I would choose Singapore. But a few people have been RSVPing to a wedding on May 17th and giving me their home addresses. I at first thought that it was spam, because it looks like spam in a way and in another way, it looks real. So I don’t know what to do. I want to think that they accidentally spelled their email address wrong and gave them mine instead. Parts of it look suspicious, but then again, they did give me their home addresses. So I am still not sure what to do. I am tempted to email those people back and tell them that they got the wrong person, but if it is spam, I am afraid that it will send more and more to my inbox. I never get spam in my gmail account, so it’s all weird to me. Anyway, I am unsure as to what to do, but on a random note, if anyone is interested in having an extra email account, I can invite tons and tons of people to gmail. I like it and it’s a great format for me and easy to use. It has over 2000 MB of space so, it’s generous in that aspect. So hit me up if you want an account. You know how to reach me.

Being spontaneous, Angie and I met up at Acapulco’s for Margarita Monday. We called up a few others and rounded up Kim, Mendo (Jon), and Marty. I haven’t seen them all in a really long time. It was especially nice to see Marty because I had been concerned about her after her sister’s death last month. I never know what to say, but we were able to talk about it a little and she seems to be holding up really well. I am proud of her and I know that she is a very strong girl. It was also nice to see Mendo, who just recently started his job at one of the big five accounting firms in LA. He likes it just fine and despite not liking his current boss (which changes frequently, luckily) he is doing super duper and doesn’t mind living at home. He works so hard that I guess it doesn’t matter where he sleeps. It must be nice not having to pay rent. Besides Mendo, I realized that all of the people at the table are people that I met through my old roomie, Lisa. They did the Orientation Program a year after I counseled. Mendo was my next door neighbor during the summer and we had good times. But yeah, it’s nice to realize that the people that I meet through my good friends eventually become my friends as well, to the point where I don’t even realize how we had met. Lisa wasn’t at dinner tonight and it didn’t feel weird with her not being there with the present company. She was not feeling up to it and she deserved to relax. I really do hope that she will be inevitably happy with her job, even if it requires her to quit it. It may be the best thing for her right now. I just want her to be happy, that’s all. It’s easy to lose sight of things when wrapped up in work, school, etc. and it all comes down to happiness and what you’re comfortable with. I’m rambling. Anyway, it was very lovely seeing all of them, and again, I have to be better with seeing them on a regular basis.

Josh’s mohawk pics are posted. It’s my first time shaving his head, so please be nice. It didn’t turn out too bad. We are trying to find the best product for it to make it stay up without it feeling like glue. It’s a lot harder than I thought. If all else fails, we can use Elmer’s glue, like my friend Hingyi, and then iron it flat. That’s hardcore.

S&TC quote of the day:
“When I RSVP to a party, I make it my business to come.” – Samantha (Season 4 – My Motherboard, My Self)

Link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/theoffice/

I had a lovely weekend. My Friday started off fabulously because I saw Jessie Spano (Elizabeth Berkeley) in the lobby of the building that I work in. She was really tall! But she was still beautiful and thin and didn’t look like a crack whore. Score for her. After work, Josh and I hung out and made dinner and watched Shaolin Soccer. It was an excellent and funny movie. I really want to see Kung Fu Hustle, which was also directed by Stephen Chow.

I have been watching The Office throughout the weekend and I have fallen in love with Tim (Martin Freeman). He is pictured below with Dawn. He’s adorable and nerdy and charming in an unusual way. He’s a good guy in the show and I don’t think that the guy playing his role in the American version is as good. He will be in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, which should be coming out soon, so I will definitely watch it for him. Well, not just for him, I love the story as well, but he just makes it more pleasant to watch. The movie has been getting lukewarm reviews, but I hope that it is good.

Dawn and Tim - The Office

Saturday was a gorgeous day full of spontaneous fun and great people. I had a dentist appointment to get my teeth cleaned. I bonded with the hygienist. She seemed really sweet and we talked and talked, even though she had my mouth opened throughout the whole conversation. She is making me come back to see her in 6 months even though she knew that I hated going to the dentist. I have to go though, twice a year technically, so I made an appointment to see her in October. I figured as long as she was going to clean me, it wouldn’t be so bad. I liked her and she does good work.

I randomly talked to M after my appointment and we decided to hang out and go for a walk. I wanted to see her before she left to Berkeley for a long work conference. I am saddened that we won’t be able to have our usual “Tuesdays with M” but we rescheduled it to Wednesday night this week. We walked all over Brentwood and ended up at Q’s for a late lunch. She is not as stressed as she used to be, though I did try to help her deal with some drama from last week that I was involved in as well, but she seems to be over it, which is good to hear. She has all of these job interviews lined up, so I wish her good luck.

Amy called while I was with M and she had a few hours to kill before she had to go back to work and we went to watch Millions, the new Danny Boyle film. It was so good and entertaining and visually stunning in many parts of the film. The little boy is absolutely adorable. Please go see it if you can! On a sidenote, we watched the movie at The Grove and I keep telling myself that I will never go back there to watch a movie ever again, but in this case, it was the only showtime that fit into Amy’s schedule, so I went. They changed the parking fees ($2 for 4 hours) and there are no student discounts or any matinee prices of any sort really. So the ticket price is $10.75 now. I still can’t believe that it’s gone up so much since I was in high school. It’s so crazy.

After the movie, I had dinner with Michelle and Lindsay at Barney’s Beanery on 3rd Street. It was really nice to see both of them again. I hadn’t seen Lindsay in a while and I was glad that we were able to catch up. They are such fun girls and I don’t see them as often as I should. We all realized that we have to be better at this, or else we won’t see each other for months, so we made plans for next week. It’s nice to start something regular again. I have learned recently that it’s way too much energy to try to make new friends and I think that I should work on my friendships that already exist and make them more solid. That makes me happy just thinking about it.

Today was great because it was a lazy day with Josh. It was relaxing. I cleaned, did laundry, etc. I also shaved Josh’s head for him, which was very nerve-wracking in the beginning. I didn’t want to mess it up and I was scared that I would mess up horribly. I guess I didn’t do that bad of a job. Josh now has a mohawk and it’s pretty even. He looks like Travis Bickle from Taxi Driver or Heroin Bob from SLC Punk. He looks hot with it and hopefully I will take some pictures of it and post it soon. I was sad today because the last episode of Arrested Development aired and I am not sure if they will ever come back for a full season. It says that they will be back in the summer, but I am not sure for how long. Please sign the petition on the site! I have nothing to watch on TV anymore except for Scrubs and that makes me kinda sad. And I think that Scrubs will be done with their season soon too. I guess that it was wise of us to not get cable because nothing good is on anymore, not even my HBO shows because they will be on hiatus for a long time.

I miss Angela. She will be gone for two weeks and though we talk on the phone a lot, I still want to hang out, but we can't. But it's only two weeks, so I will live!

S&TC quote of the day:
Miranda: Steve is completely predictable but that's one of the things I love about him. He's just so comfortable and safe.
Carrie: Are you dating a man or a minivan? (Season 4 – Drama Queens)

Link: http://www.u2.com/

It’s official. Josh will probably never ever be able to learn how to speak Cambodian. I can’t even speak it that well, so I won’t hold it against him. It would be cool if he was able to speak to my grandma and some of my relatives, but I have to admit the language is difficult and I have yet to learn how to read it. I am impressed that Greg has learned how to speak some Farsi. It will be fun to hear him speak it at his wedding this summer. Eek, I can’t believe that his wedding is coming up so soon!

I am still stoked that I saw Eddie Izzard last night. I was tempted to stick around and talk to him, but there was a small crowd forming around him and listening to him talk. I am sure he didn’t want to be bothered because I think that he was waiting for Dylan Moran to come out and they were probably going to go drinking or something. He cracks me up so much, he’s just brilliant.

Had dinner with Nate, Josh and Lisa tonight at El Torito Grill. The food was yummy and they have the best guacamole. It’s Tex/Mex style and it’s not that bad, but I love authentic Mexican food so much better. As we were walking out, I see a flash from a camera across the street. Then I see a few guys running around with huge cameras and taking pictures of a couple walking down the street. Ah, paparazzi. What a way to make a living. We were trying to figure out who the couple was, but they were walking away from us and they were pretty far away. All I can see is that the girl was blonde and the guy was dressed weirdly, which describes almost all of the celebrity couples. So yeah, I have no clue as to who they were, but they were being followed closely. I wouldn’t be able to handle that if I were famous. Then again, if I were famous, I wouldn’t go to a place like Mr. Chow, where the paparazzi are almost guaranteed to be hanging around.

I am getting tired easily and I am slowly starting to doze off. I am excited about this weekend though. I made plans with some friends that I haven’t seen in a while and I am definitely looking forward to relaxing and hanging out. I think I need a real vacation soon. And it's Cambodian New Year and the thought of it makes me miss Cambodian food.

S&TC quote of the day:
“Just don't be photographed in anything sleeveless. No one who went sleeveless ever won a Pulitzer.” – Carrie (Season 2 – Shortcomings)

Link: http://www.tenaciousd.com/

I woke up with a headache today. Strolled into work at 8:00am like normal. Whoops, staff meeting was at 7:30am this morning. I guess I didn’t miss much anyway, except for first dibbs on the donuts and strudel. Damn. I can tell it’s gonna be a long crappy day.

Bright side is that I am going to be watching Dylan Moran (Shaun of the Dead, Black Books) tonight. I am sure he will make me laugh.

Oh, I forgot to add yesterday...Congrats M, you're one step closer to getting your second masters degree and Happy Birthday Tina!

-------

Things that brightened my day today:
Hospital strength Tylenol, lunch with Angela, roses from a patient, my new beautiful black jacket and strawberry cheesecake ice cream.

-------

Ok so Dylan Moran is a freaking genius. He made me laugh so hard and put me in a jolly mood. He chain smoked on stage and commented on the fact that people in LA would be bothered by it. He was right though. I didn't care so much, but others did. After the show, I was pleasantly surprised to see his friend Eddie Izzard chilling outside. I think Eddie is brilliant. So fabulously brilliant! I had to call Amy straight away. We used to stay up and watch his special on HBO all of the time when we lived together. I hear he's living in LA for a while and playing small gigs, so I will have to hunt him down soon and watch a show. But please see Dylan Moran, he will be in LA for another week or so.

S&TC quote of the day:
Miranda: He was funny. And cute.
Carrie: Yeah, and in town for a week! What's the point?
Samantha: That IS the point! It's the best possible scenario, because you know he's leaving.
Carrie: But it's like whatever happens, there's an expiration date. It's expiration dating.
(Season 6 – The Catch)

Link: http://www.tenaciousd.com/

I’m tired. So tired…of complicated people and people that make things complicated for no reason. Why make life so hard for yourself and others? I mean, c’mon! Life is way too short for this kind of nonsense. I am glad that I am able to recognize these things and perhaps avoid some possible unnecessary conflicts. I know that I am too passive and try really hard to be agreeable. A lot of people don’t ever say what they mean and it’s frustrating because I’m 24 and I expect that people would be able to do that by now. I always give people the benefit of the doubt, but I don’t think that I have the patience anymore. I think that I am becoming an adult and it’s actually not as bad as I thought it would be. This rant is not aiming towards one person or anything like that, it’s just that I see how things affect my friends, family, coworkers, and the people around me and it just seems so petty and pointless most of the time. Don’t get me wrong, I can be irrational at times, but it’s usually under some kind of duress, and it’s actually pretty rare. I would like to think that I am a rational person, but then again, so does everybody else…

Link: http://www.ren-stimpy.com/

Yay! Congrats to M for passing her graduate school Comprehensive Exam in Urban Planning at USC. Good luck on your oral tomorrow babe! From what I hear, you're good at orals. Haha. That was a bad joke, I know. I guess that means I should go to sleep. Well, until next time.

Link: http://www.neworderonline.com/

I heard that song three times last night within 4 hours. I was on my way to Cinespace for Natasha’s birthday party and it played on STAR 98.7 and then they played it at Cinespace in their front dance room, and then on my way home, they played it on JACK 93.1 a new station that I love (it replaced ARROW) because it plays a random assortment of 70’s, 80’s and 90’s music. I just thought that it was weird because I hardly hear New Order on the radio at all and then in one night, I hear it three times. I had their CD in my car and was tempted to pop it in, but I thought the randomness of tonight was good enough.

Cinespace was an interesting venue. It was pretentious, which I expected because it was a trendy Hollywood club. But I didn’t expect a lot of the interesting mixing of many different crowds. I think that there was a birthday party for an Asian porn actress because all night, I kept seeing these short, thin, hot Asian girls with HUGE fake breasts walking around everywhere. It looked like they were going to topple over because they were so top-heavy. Maybe I’m wrong, maybe they were all real. In any case, they were there and there were break dancers and a private party, a lot of Hollywood wannabes, people in the industry, midgets, sorority girls and some arty types that just didn’t look like they belonged. Natasha was drunk and having a blast. The girls (Eva, Dre, Mich Garr) were there and I was glad because we entertained ourselves for a bit. We didn’t feel like dancing because the dance floor was too crowded. I couldn’t really dance anyway because I was sore and very tired from earlier that day. I did see an old friend and coworker, Priti, who is one of Natasha’s friends as well. I haven’t seen her in a long time and I found out that she works for MTV with my friend Gabe. Small world. The music was interesting as well. The back room played all hip-hop music. The dance floor was slightly bigger and the DJ had many unusual mixes, such as NIN’s “Closer” with 50 Cent’s “In Da Club.” But he would be okay, if I liked hip-hop music. He played other favorites like Notorious BIG, Warren G, and Tribe. The front room was playing totally different music like Joy Division, Rod Stewart, Blondie, Depeche Mode, New Order, and Future Sound of London. I preferred the front room and spent the rest of my night there with the girls. I left there a bit early and was kinda mad that I had to pay $15 for parking there. I am just glad that I didn’t have to pay a cover. I was glad to have been able to check out the venue and hang out with Natasha and her friends. I would like to come back on a weeknight when they are actually serving dinner and showing a movie and have live bands play. That sounds a little more agreeable to me.

Well, the reason why I was sore and tired yesterday was because Alexis and I volunteered to help with Habitat for Humanity for the UCLA Alumni Association, which was organized by Eva. We started bright and early at 7am in Pacoima. I would never wake up early on a Saturday unless I had something worthwhile to do and luckily I was able to get up in time to do this. Our job was to paint primer on all of the interior walls of two houses. It sounded like fun because Alexis and I wanted to paint instead of working outside and building stuff. We got our brushes and rollers and got busy. I got all dirty and primer was everywhere on my clothes and face and glasses. It was fun for a while, but after lunch, I could feel my arms hurting and it became a bit arduous to paint more. We did stick around until it ended, but I was beat. It is nice to know that we were able to finish 2 houses in that small amount of time. It felt good to help out. To pick our spirits up, Alexis and I sang along to “You Oughta Know” by Alanis Morissette while sitting through 405 traffic. That made us feel a lot better. I got home and took a short nap (which isn’t very usual for me because I can never take naps during the day) and got up and got ready for Cinespace. I was still exhausted mentally and physically.

On Friday night, a group of us (Josh, Wen, Amy, Shahab, and Angela) went to dinner at Kabuki. We had so much sushi. Tons and tons of it to the point where we had to take some home. Wen got drunk and fell asleep, which was very amusing to me and Angela. It was nice to see the girls and Shahab. Shahab has been working a lot and we haven’t seen him as regularly as we used to. Seating and service took a long time and we didn’t get back until 11:30pm. I didn’t get to sleep until late, which wasn’t a good idea because I knew that I had to be up early for Habitat. Well, at least I am glad that I was able to sleep in today at least and catch up on some of the sleep that I’ve lost this week. I am hoping that today is going to be a relaxing day. Cleaning, reading, drinking coffee, and such.

S&TC quote of the day:
“It was a typical downtown male mix. Ten percent Wall Street, ten percent real estate, and ten percent Samantha had already slept with.” – Carrie (Season 3 - Running With Scissors)

Link: http://www.subpop.com/bands/shins/

Oi. I was tired all day today. I wasn’t myself. And I found out from my dentist that I have to get all of my wisdom teeth out. Uggh surgery! I hate going to the dentist. At least this one is actually cool and is right next door to work. But yeah…surgery and “restoring” my old fillings and cleaning my teeth, eek, I have to go back 4 more times at least, plus separate visits to the oral surgeon. The good thing is that I don’t have any cavities!

Nothing too exciting going on these past few days. Everything is normal and nice and relaxing. The weather is starting to cool down a bit and it was actually cloudy most of the day today. It puts people in weird moods and I suppose it affects me too in many ways. On Tuesday night, I had my usual “Tuesday’s with M” dinner. Our waiter was gorgeous and M kept on staring at him. He would come to our table at the most inopportune times, which was usually when we were talking about sex and stuff of that nature. We didn’t realize that there was a family sitting in the next booth until the end of our meal and though we weren’t speaking too loudly, I hope that they didn’t get offended or hear anything that was said. But I wonder what kind of family would eat dinner at Barney’s Beanery? Apparently a lot of families do because I noticed tons of them on our way out. I hope the parents know that there's pictures of half naked men and women all over the walls of the bathrooms there. I guess that place is not really made for families after all. I am glad that M is done with her thesis because she is finally sane again and less stressed out.

Yesterday, Josh and I decided that we needed to start going on our walks again. The weather’s not too bad and there’s more daylight in the evenings, so it was a perfect time to start up again. The neighborhood that I live in now is very different from my old place where we used to walk and I kinda miss it, but it’s not too shabby. We were actually very resourceful because we ended up at Trader Joe’s and bought some groceries for dinner before heading back home. I do hope that we can keep this up regularly.

It was James’ birthday yesterday and I hadn’t seen him in years. We went to high school and college together and we talk pretty regularly, but we never manage to hang out. M and I went to hang out with him and his friends at Sonny McLean’s, a small little pub in Santa Monica and it was nice to see him. Rachelle, who I also went to high school with, was there too. They hadn’t changed too much and it was great to catch up with them. I really do need to arrange a SoCal high school reunion brunch. There’s quite a few of us floating around here. I also hit up the Ill Again show at Temple Bar as well. I caught the butt end of the show, but it was great to see Amy and Angela. But I stayed out late last night and didn’t get much sleep and am really tired now. You would think that I would learn by now…but I say that it’s always worth it.

-------

It's 12:36am and I just got home. So much for trying to go to sleep early. I don't know why I do this to myself. But I was able to see my mom for a while, but unfortunately, she sleeps early, so I wasn't able to stay for a long time. I then hopped over to the Hollywood Barney's Beanery where Nate and his coworkers always hang out on Thursday nights. I met a few new people and am becoming better friends with those that I met at previous functions. They're cool and I also ran into some old SAA friends...Verna, Rocio, Molly and a few of their friends were hanging out there. Jon was there too and is always unintentionally putting on his charm. This time he was sitting with a table full of girls (6) and totally talking up a storm. He's so funny. Steve recommended the band Alexisonfire to me (Alexis introduced me to them because she was bummed that it wasn't Alexis on Fire) and I plan on listening to their stuff soon. Kevin was drunk, as usual, but he wasn't beligerent this time. They are always a fun bunch. But now my eyelids are heavy and I will be so tired in the morning. Yay!

S&TC quote of the day:
“Say it a little louder, I don't think the old lady in the last row heard you.” – Carrie (Season 2 – The Fuck Buddy)

Link: http://www.tmbg.com/froMain.html

So I decided for a new color for this website. It felt like it was time for something different after the time change and the great sunny weather. I played around with a lot of color combinations, but I hope this one works. Please let me know if it’s hard to read. I can change it pretty easily now that I have the coding down. Big thanks to M for her objective opinions and also for Josh’s help. I do miss the hot pink though. I may have to change it again soon if I get tired of it. I had some cool retro color combinations, but it was a little hard on the eyes and I didn’t want to subject you guys to it.

Today was the first time that I ever cooked tofu. I know that it doesn’t mean much to some, but I really don’t consider tofu as part of my diet normally. I blame it on Josh entirely now that he’s gone vegetarian. I stir-fried it with veggies and soy sauce. We cooked up some veggie potstickers and rice and it became a yummy vegan meal. I was surprised that the tofu turned out so well because I had no idea how to prepare it. I am glad that we are eating healthier and Josh pointed out that our meal roughly cost $3.00 total. Now I am a big fan of that. Too bad I am still a carnivore though. I need meat at least once a day or else I will stay hungry. It’s weird how my body is conditioned to that. We watched more episodes of The Office (British version) and knitted and vegged some more. Josh is feeling a lot better, though the sickness is still lingering a bit.

I was able to catch up with some old friends today. I had a great and long IM conversation with Amy P, who is all the way in Japan. (Technology still amazes me.) She just got back from a brief trip to Kyoto. I think that it is awesome that she gets to travel so much. Amy and I have a really strong understanding of each other’s relationships. We all knew each other when we got together with our significant others 6 years ago. I guess we share that special bond and it is wonderful to be able to talk openly about every aspect of our relationships. It feels like she is still with me here in LA, except I don’t see her that often. I can’t believe that it’s almost been a year and she will be back soon! Yay!! I am glad that I was able to talk to Andrea, because I had been teasing about her Wisconsin boy. He commented on this website a few days ago underneath her profile and I thought that it was the cutest thing. She seems to be doing well and is still hating Denver. I am bummed that she will not be back in LA this summer, but I am hoping to see her very soon. In about a year and a half, I can finally call her “Dr. Dre” and it will be true this time. I love catching up with old friends, it is a great feeling.

S&TC quote of the day:
“You can't be friends with a squirrel! A squirrel is just a rat in a cuter outfit.” – Carrie (Season 4 – Sex and the Country)

Link: http://www.sweetadeline.net/

I was going to post on April 1st and play an April Fool’s joke, but there wasn’t anything worth doing. I did have a lot of fun with my coworkers and now I am scared because they vowed that they will try to get me back sometime soon “when I least expect it.” Eek! That kinda scares me, but I know it’s all in good fun. I have been getting to know my coworkers a lot more and having a lot of fun with them. It’s just sad that they are all a lot older than me…married with kids, etc. Nobody really hangs out with each other after work. I guess that’s a good thing in many ways. At least it is very drama free that way.

It’s been a few days since I’ve posted. I wanted to everyday, but I just didn’t get around to it. It takes a lot of effort on my part to sit here and do it. Josh has been sick and has had a hard time sleeping, poor guy. He is the lightest sleeper that I’ve ever encountered. But my poor baby is sick, so I tried to help as much as possible.

Well, a quick summary of the events from these past few days:

Watched the play, Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said (Philip K. Dick) on Thursday night with Amy and Josh at the Evidence Room. It had its good parts and its boring parts, but overall, it wasn’t too bad. I wish that I had read the story first. I’ve read a lot of his short stories, but I didn’t get a chance to read it before the show. There were a lot of great actors, so I suggest that you guys watch it before the show ends in a few weeks.

I went to watch Dave Gorman’s Googlewhack Adventure on Friday night with Amy and Tripp. It was hilarious and he is British and you all know my motto, “everything is better with a British accent.” He was fabulously entertaining and a great storyteller. His adventures seem unreal, even though they are not. I developed a tiny crush on him, though it’s the type of crush that I have on movie stars and unattainable model-types. But he just won over a new fan and I am so glad that we were all able to see him.

I had coffee with M that night at Swinger’s and she was in the midst of her comprehensive exams for her master’s degree and was getting stir-crazy all cooped up in her apartment. We decided to spontaneously go out and we had a lovely time talking nonsense in Seinfeld-like banter while the people around us stared and looked at us with intrigue and confusion. We get that reaction a lot when we’re together but it doesn’t seem to bother us in the slightest.

I got home late on Friday night and I slept in soooo late on Saturday. I hadn’t slept in that late in such a long time. I felt good and I lounged around all day. It was one of those great days where I didn’t leave the house and Josh and I just vegged together. We watched Last Life in the Universe, a Thai film that was a bit sad (but I was expecting it because it was an Asian movie) and yet a bit hopeful as well because there is no real resolution in the end. It’s one of those movies that slipped under the radar and was only shown in a small theater for like a week and then it was never shown again. Christopher Doyle was the DP and you can tell just by watching it.

Today was very busy, with the time change and all. Brunch was great and I am glad that people were able to make it out. It was a gorgeous day and we sat outside Newsroom catching up on each others lives. I hadn’t seen Big Papa and Matt in forever. I miss them and their wacky true stories of the crazy shenanigans that had happened since we last saw each other.

A group of us met up after brunch and watched Sin City. (I love how I accidentally stumbled upon a porn site of the same name, thinking that it was the movie site. If you Google it, you will know what I mean). I was excited about it because I like Robert Rodriguez and there were a lot of actors that I liked in the movie (no, not Jessica Alba or Rosario Dawson, in fact, I really don’t like them all, even though they are hot). It was very violent, which I was expecting and visually stunning. It was beautiful in some parts and gruesome in some. There was a balance, though many people only remember the violence. It was dark and gritty and dirty, just what I like about comic book movies. I was thoroughly entertained.

Well, I am exhausted now, even though I had a lot of sleep this weekend. I know that I will wake up tired and I think I’m okay with that. It’s late and I should be in bed with my wonderful but sick boyfriend. Poor guy.

S&TC quote of the day:
Samantha: I can't even be around that man. He's dangerous and toxic.
Carrie: So he's manthrax? (Season 5- Anchors Away)