Today Nickie told me about the new America the Beautiful Quarters that are coming out this year. I thought we were ending with the state quarters. There are going to be 56 quarters coming out through 2021. They commemorate national parks and other national sites in the states and U.S territories. I thought Texas’ coin would surely be Big Bend…we only have a couple of national parks: Big Bend and Guadalupe Mountains. Instead they chose the San Antonio Missions “Historical Park”…I guess they’ll use a picture of the Alamo or something. I vote for Big Bend with a picture of a gigantic cactus, but it’s too late. Timothy Geithner got to pick the sites.
From US Mint: “The five quarters to be released in 2010 will honor Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas, Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, Yosemite National Park in California, Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona and Mount Hood National Forest in Oregon.”
Yosemite Coin, 2010
I started looking at the list of National Parks. There are 58. I’ve only been to four: Arches, Canyonlands, Great Smokey Mountains and Joshua Tree. I **WANT** to visit Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton and Redwood.
Last week Nickie (friend/co-worker/partner-in-crime) and I took a ride on the newly opened MetroRail here in Austin. It was free during the first week of service so we drove to the station closest to our office to see what the buzz was all about. It was our plan to go downtown for 50 minutes, have a drink and catch the last train back up north. As soon as we left work it started raining. We arrived at the station expecting to find a large parking lot, like a Park & Ride. All we found was a small rail station situation between a couple of ugly warehouse/office buildings. Absolutely no parking. Street parking was not possible either because the station is located off a busy road. We parked in the warehouse/office parking lot (more like a strip of parking spaces) and wandered into one of the offices. It belonged to one of Nickie’s contacts at work, a general contractor. The man was NOT happy to see us and told us we’d be towed if we stayed where we were. Blahhh. We moved our cars to the even creepier back parking lot.
We walked onto the platform with other riders eager for the train. A MetroRail employee reassured us that our cars would probably be fine where they were. He was going to keep an eye on them for us. We asked him why no parking lot existed. He didn’t know. More people walked up including a woman who works for the City of Austin planning department. She had some answers. She told us there are not plans to develop parking at the Kramer station. They consider it one of the “urban” stations (though it’s still really on the cusp) so it’s meant for people walking/biking/busing to the station. She said the businesses in the area would probably start a private parking lot once they figure out there’s money to be made.
I feel like the city’s overall plan depends a lot upon the success of the Domain and future urban developments in the area, which I don’t know of any. And I don’t know that the Domain will be residentially successful any time in the near future. Even so, the Domain is for wealthier people. Those units can’t be cheap. It seems to me like an improved public transit system should aim more to help people that rely upon public transit. Not to say that just because you live in a wealthy apartment community means you don’t use public transit. Maybe the city should focus on putting more affordable housing near the rail station in the future.
The ride itself was okay. It was very crowded, but that was expected. I don’t think there’s enough room for people with bikes. On the way back we encountered two families with young children. The daughter of one family was crying about being on the train AND it was her fourth birthday. The other family sang “Happy Birthday” to her on the train. So cute! We also talked with a guy on the way back who told us about a new bar opening up close to our office. Useful. Sometimes it’s beneficial to meet people via public transit.
Plane
A couple days later I left for California to visit a friend and see a concert. I specifically packed my suitcase so that I wouldn’t have to check it. I even left my 3.4 oz bottle of Chance by Chanel in my friend’s car so that they couldn’t possibly take it because of the 3 oz liquid rule. I get through security without a problem. I flew Southwest and was one of the last people to board. As soon as I stepped on the plane one of the flight attendants said, “We’re gonna have to take that,” and reached for my bag. I thought, “Okay, whatever.” It looked like a full flight. I don’t like to cause a scene. She asked me my final destination, “San Jose,” I told her. I saw her scribble the word “SAN” on a piece of folded scrap paper along with a bunch of other illegible destinations. I proceeded to find my seat knowing deep in my heart that I was doomed. All I had was my purse and two copies of the New Yorker. As I flipped through the pages of my magazines during the flight I looked at this flight attendant. Her yucky grayish-purple lip liner was distracting, as were her obvious bleached blonde highlights and her gaudy jangling charm bracelet. She was fake nice to me when she asked what I wanted to drink, of course.
I had a brief layover in San Diego. Flying into the airport through downtown at night was marvelous. Beautiful view! The airport itself was another story. I got off the plane into a massive crowd of restless people. I retreated to the bathroom to collect myself, then ventured back out and made a few phone calls. (Including my mom. I told her I thought they were going to lose my luggage.) My flight was delayed. What a surprise! I talked to a woman for a while; we were trying to figure out why there were so many people flying that night. Her and her husband had been at a fiber optics convention. Probably not the whole answer.
We boarded the plane more than an hour after we were supposed to leave…due to ice on the wings (wonderful) and new flight attendants arriving from some other place. The girls I sat with on the plane said that it was Spring Break in Cali which explained the massive amount of travelers.
Finally, at about 12AM I arrive in San Jose. This is 2AM Texas time and I’d only slept 3-4 hours the night before. Does not make for a pleasant mood. Vanessa meets me and we wait for my bag. Nothing. I take my left over luggage ticket stub from the plane in Austin to the luggage people in San Jose. They tell me it should be on the carousel. Um, no. The tell us there aren’t any more bags coming. So, it happened: LOST. I had to fill out paperwork and go through a bunch of rigmarole with the San Jose luggage people. I was being pretty rotten and not quite acting polite. She informed me my bag was probably stuck in San Diego and they would get it on the first flight to San Jose in the morning. I should have it delivered between 9AM and 1PM on Friday. I should get a call by 8AM when they located the bag. Okay. She gave me a toiletries kit to calm me down, hahaha.
The next morning we wake up at 9AM. I had no missed calls. By 9:45AM I’m on the phone with the Southwest luggage services people. Basically, the woman says the notes in my file had not been updated, meaning they didn’t know where my bag went. She started going over the procedure to make a claim, like, for money to replace all my stuff that was lost. BAHHHH! My best make up (expensive investment) and favorite clothes were in that bag. Plus, a new camera. Three pairs of shoes (two of them new). My favorite tights that I got in Spain and have never been able to find another pair. My favorite cutoffs (also irreplaceable). I was upset. Anyone that knows me understands that I am picky about my belongings. This is partially the reason that I live alone. I’m not a crazy materialist, but my favorite possessions are my favorite for a good reason! If my laptop had been in there I would have had a seizure. I digress.
Vanessa, who can be very aggressive and intimidating, wanted to call for her chance at the fun. She called a couple of airports and the luggage services people and let loose. Whoa, if I’d been on the phone with her I would have hung up. “These are some pretty basic questions,” she said in her most belittling voice. I was giggling in the background despite my extreme frustration. Hey, it’s comical in retrospect! After almost an hour on the phone between the two of us, many angry tweets and an email to customer service we had to give up and move on with our day. I wore Vanessa’s clothes and went out in powder, mascara and bold lipstick A look I actually prefer sometimes. : ) We were having an awesome day even though in the back of my mind I was worried about my bag.
We ended up at a Mediterranean restaurant in Berkeley, California. I went to the bathroom--when I returned I heard Vanessa on the phone saying “turquoise make up bag.” I screamed “YES!” They had found my bag in Sacramento! Success! They would fly it to San Jose and deliver it on Saturday morning. I was so content. The rest of that day was a hazy wandering of Berkeley and later Oakland, which seemed kinda rough in my mind at the time. We saw AIR at the Fox Theater that night. (Reason for my trip.) 100% fabulous!
This one is a video of my FAVORITE song, La Femme D’argent, the quality isn’t superb but the visuals from about 6:30-8:00 are a blast!
The next morning my luggage was delivered. I sat on the floor and buried my face in my favorite gray hoodie.
Reunited and it feels so good! (And I look like a mess.)
The rest of the trip was the most relaxing adventure. I imagine it to the tune of La Femme D’argent! We ate amazing (and healthy) food--sandwiches, Japanese ramen, baklava. Wandered around the city. Sat around in parks. Visited the bridge. Smoked some delicious strawberry hookah at the end of the night and watched SELENA. The next day we cooked french toast and played frisbee on the Stanford campus. The weather was delightful each day. It was exactly what a vacation should be. I’d been to San Fran once before in November 2009, but this trip, though much shorter, was much better. Even taking into consideration the lost luggage. I love San Francisco! It may even rival the infatuation I have with NYC.
On the way home the lady at the door to the plane tried to tell me my luggage was too large to bring on the plane. Funny, I’ve traveled with it countless times and it’s NEVER been a problem. She forced me to fit it in the sizer. It wasn’t fitting. She said it needed to “slide it in without forcing.” I was about to slide my fist right into her face. I rearranged my stuff and it was fine. She apologized, I gave her my sassiest look and boarded the plane. No one is going to take my luggage away ever again.
I had another weird dream during a nap I took yesterday. As a narrative it doesn’t quite make sense, but the elements of the dream are interesting. I’m looking at a dream dictionary.
Crossing over a huge canyon on a rope. -To see a canyon in your dream represents your unconscious mind and hidden feelings. It may point to emotions and relationships that you did not recognize.
-To see a rope in your dream represents your connection and attachment to others. It is also an indication of what is holding your relationship together.
Make it to the other side, realize I’m at some sort of amusement park. -To see or be in an amusement park in your dream indicates that you need to set some time for leisure and more enjoyment in your life. Consider how everything in the park is an expression of some aspect of yourself. Alternatively, you may be too easily distracted lately.
Children are bungee jumping off a cliff. Some are just jumping. I am supposed to do the same. Terrified. Notice that they’re only jumping a few feet to the ground. The distance to the ground below must me morphing. -To dream that you are bungee jumping represents your ability to bounce back from adversities and setbacks in your life. The important thing is you took the initial risk.
-To dream that you are standing at the edge of a cliff, indicates that you have reached an increased level of understanding, new awareness, and a fresh point of view. You have reached a critical point in your life and are afraid of losing control. Alternatively, it suggests that you are pondering a life-altering decision
-To dream that you or someone falls off a cliff, suggests that you are going through some difficult times and are afraid of what is ahead for you. You fear that you may not be up for the challenge or that you cannot meet the expectations of others.
Two very small children (two-year-olds?) are walking around alone. Their supervisor/parent/whoever assures me that they’re fine. I’m not a fan of children, but this strikes me as wrong and horribly irresponsible. I start to watch after the babies. -If you dream that a baby is neglected, then it suggests that you are not paying enough attention to yourself. You are not utilizing your full potential.
-To dream that you are babysitting, suggests that you need to care for the child within yourself.
The children start to wander inside a haunted house area of the park and try to coax me in. I don’t like this idea. -To dream of a haunted house signifies unfinished emotional business, related to your childhood family, dead relatives, or repressed memories and feelings.
Suddenly I’m on the streets of San Francisco, but instead of storefronts and cafes Nickie and I are walking along a huge outdoor make up aisle, like Ulta. -To dream that you are applying make up suggests that you are trying to cover up or conceal an aspect of yourself. Alternatively, it indicates that you are putting on your best face forward. You are trying to enhance your self-image and increase your sense of self-confidence.
Then we get to a large intersection with lots of traffic. We see a billboard for some kind of kooky chicken restaurant and Nickie starts telling me all about it and how we need to go eat chicken immediately. -To dream that you are at an intersection represents a decision or choice that you need to make in order to progress forward.
-To dream that you are in traffic signifies frustrations in life and that things are not going as smoothly as you would like it to. You feel stuck at where you are in life.
-To see a billboard in your dream is a sign or message that you need to take note of in your path toward your goals. Consider what advice the billboard is trying to convey to you.
-To see chickens in your dream, symbolize cowardliness and a lack of willpower. The dream may be a pun on being a chicken or chickening out of some situation. Chickens also represent excessive chatter and gossip. Listen closely to what people may be saying about you or what you are saying about others.
Then I woke up.
So what does it seem to mean? I have anxiety over some impending major decisions in life and that I have unresolved emotions. Sure, why not?
I worked on a story that was published on the Houston real estate blog Swamplot this morning. The news was all over Twitter shortly after appearing on the site. I lost count of the blog post comments…at least 50. And the Houston Chronicle wrote up a story sourcing Swamplot. A million thanks to Gus, Swamplot’s founder, for being helpful, supportive, patient and awesome.
Mad Libs while waiting in line for tickets to see Broken Social Scene. “Pay a visit to your favorite stripe store and buy some striped new things that will cause men to stripe in the street.”
They sold 50 tickets to Broken Social Scene for people without wristbands or badges. Me, my sister and her friend were numbers 50, 51 & 52 in line. All three of us got in. We were the LAST ones!
Liking of The Besnard Lakes. Marvelous!
Seeing Emily Haines sing “Anthems for a Seventeen Year Old Girl” with Broken Social Scene at Stubbs. Being in the third row.
Listening to a band play an impromptu show in the middle of the street from a parking garage above.
Finding an awesome “Reeperbahn” sign on the road and awkwardly taking it home in my purse.
Seeing my fab co-worker perform with his band “Son de Rey”.
Meeting a random guy from 101X who climbed into my friend’s apt on Red River though the street level balcony. He drank with us and then confessed that he had no idea where he was, who we were or what he was doing.
Eating a Buffalo Burger at Casino el Camino. Delicious!
Seeing Kristin Stewart, Richard Linklater and the guy from Sum 41 at the Driskill all within an hour.
Successful flask action.
Not driving.
Spending time with some of my favorite people from out of town.
Seeing Austin try to be a “big city”…cute.
No:
Drive By Truckers. Ugh, DNW.
Hostile concert people in the crowd at Broken Social Scene.
Walking from Stubbs to 18th & Lavaca before we could get a cab. AHHHH!
Too cold on Saturday. Then stood in line for over an hour as someone’s +1 at Perez Hilton party. That had to end. kthxbye! hahaha
Overall traffic, lines and exclusivity. But that’s SXSW and the city that logistically fails to accommodate. Oh well.
I got to give credit to my fellow blogger and co-worker Jessica Camarillo on this one. I had no idea LA Gang Tours existed till I saw her post.
The Basics
Who:LA Gang Tours and people who want to pay $65 to participate
What: An “unforgettable historical experience” in gang infested neighborhoods and law enforcement buildings in Los Angeles from the comfort of a tour bus.
Where: Los Angeles
Stops include:
The Los Angeles County Jail
The Los Angeles River Bed
The Metropolitan Detention Center
The Symbionese Liberation Army Shoot Out
Florencia 13
Birthplace of Black Panther Party
Florence District
Florence Avenue
Firestone Sheriff Station
Hall of Justice Jail
Pico Union Graff Lab (Graffiti Lab)
Birthplace to Crips Gang
Watts Arts Gallery
When: Public tours started in January 2010, now they’re offered every Saturday at 10AM, they last for 2 hours
Why: Disagreement on this one…the tour company says it’s to, “…create jobs for the residents of South Central, Los Angeles; to give profits from the tours back to these areas for economic growth and development, provide job/entrepreneur training, micro-financing opportunities and to specialize in educating people from around the world about the Los Angeles inner city lifestyle, gang involvement and solutions.”
Obviously this creates a lot of controversy. Many media outlets have already picked up on it. I thought Scott Gold at the LA Times wrote a particularly excellent article about it that really explores the specific hoots, hollers and criticisms surrounding the tour. The tour could be considered exploitative and voyeuristic especially when the organizer wants to “stage dance-offs between locals.” Sounds more like a human zoo.
Jessica questions the idea, “Other than being a continuation of the stereotyped gang lives actors portray in Hollywood, I also am not sure where the revenue is really going. If it goes back into the community and a large percentage of that community is made up of gang members wouldn’t the money end up in the hands of gang members anyway?”
A few weeks ago I got my ears pierced for the fifth time. It was kind of on a whim, but it’s always been a strange goal of mine to fill my lobes with as many piercings as I could. I thought there was possibly room for one more. I refuse to blatantly pierce the cartilage because I don’t like how it looks. I also refuse tattoos. Lobe piercing is the only bodily mutilation I prefer.
Anyway, I was in Houston with my sister and her friend. She recommended a place where she’d gotten her nose pierced. Initially I got some sass from my piercer. He thought I was too uncertain about getting a piercing and thought I needed to do more research. Funny, I already had four holes in each ear. I know how it works. My problem was that I didn’t like the jewelry they had to put in. It all looked really industrial and hardcore piercing parlor…but I suppose that’s where I was. After I decided to go ahead with the large gnarly ring the piercer became friendlier. He ended up being a cool guy; I trusted him. It was the first time I’d gotten my ears pierced with a needle instead of a gun. I’d never had any problems with the gun (my other four holes had been done that way), but I wanted to be especially careful with this piercing because it was bordering the cartilage. The piercing itself didn’t hurt too bad. I definitely got an adrenaline rush.
The aftermath has been much worse. It’s been three weeks since I did it and my ears are still sore. One is healed pretty well but still randomly bleeds. (This morning I woke up with a blood crust. Lovely, I know.) The left ear gives me trouble. I think it’s been infected almost the whole time since I got it pierced. I’ve been taking care of the area–cleaning it with soap, saline solution, not putting my grubby fingers near it. It doesn’t seem to help too much. I read a bunch of internet horror stories of people who had to remove the ring, got keloids or weird messed up bumps and scar tissue. Or ear amputation. OMG. I don’t think mine will be that bad, but I’ve talked to people who said their ear never really healed. It’s just curious to me because I got all the other holes done with the UNSAFE GUN (heaven forbid) but I had absolutely no problems with the other piercings.
This is what it looked like about a week and a half ago. Also a close up…
Also, this is my sister eating part of a cheese log and crackers at an art studio at UH before we went to go pierce my ears. : )
Okay, finally, I’ve been cross stitching for about four years. Maybe more. I don’t even know how stitches many I’ve made. I gave almost all of them away as gifts. I want to start taking pictures of the ones I make because I wish I had some kind of gallery. So this is my first contribution. I made it for my friend…kind of an inside joke we had from high school. I love the violin!
My fascination with Lady Gaga and Christina Hendricks is coming to an end.
Today I watched Lady Gaga’s new music video “Telephone” featuring Beyonce. Do not want. It just wasn’t impressive. It was almost too Lady Gaga. She was blatantly naked dancing around in the video. I didn’t like the costumes enough. I watched an interview she did about a week ago with Jonathan Ross. Fake. She says she gets annoyed when people claim she’s being a character, but during the interview I could see her true character coming out a few times. She has too many talking points. It’s like there’s an agenda when she does interviews. I still like what she represents, her costumes, her sassiness…but she’ll quickly lose touch if she hasn’t completely already.
Christina Hendricks is fabulous, but it seems like America is obsessed with her because she’s voluptuous. I don’t necessarily care about her ridiculous curves or huge boobs. I think she’s a pretty lady. I love her character on Mad Men. Those are the main reasons for me. I read an article about her a long time ago and it said she’s been dying her hair red for years. It’s not truly red. I was disappointed.
I don’t normally like her movies or her style, but she looked beautiful! Everything was so polished. Her earrings were simple. I loved that she didn’t overaccessorize. The gown is sleek. Her makeup is classic. Hair is so SHINY! Mad she won the Oscar, but it’s good she showed up looking like she knew she would win.
Cameron Diaz in Oscar de la Renta
I just like the dress. It’s pretty. Not trying to take over the world. Don’t really care for Cameron…I guess her hair looks nice. I thought her earrings looked like plugs from afar. Overall, great job!
No
Mariah Carey in Valentino
I know it’s not cheap because it’s haute couture, but it still looks cheap-ish to me. I’ve never liked dresses with big garish jeweled pieces on them. Plus she had on so much jewelry on top of that…big earrings, bracelets, rings. It’s too much. The color looks like it should be on an old woman. The cut, especially at the bottom, bothers me. Cute shoes though.
Carey Mulligan in Prada
It’s not that I abhor her gown. I actually do not. And great shoes. I give Carey the “no” mostly because I think she has so much potential to be fabulous. I don’t like that she’s ripping off Mia Farrow’s hair cut. I think she looked better in “An Education” with longer, dark hair. The beading and cut of the dress, plus the bold hair just makes it too much. Cant’ get behind the overall look.
Too bad
Jennifer Lopez and Amanda Seyfried in Armani
Their dresses are both okay. Very much similar. JLo seems to have chosen a fussier version of Amanda’s dress. They both look like they’re made from those expandable garbage bags.
“Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.” Ernest Hemingway
“I don’t think happiness is an area that anyone really lives. I think we all kind of touch on it once or twice a year for, like, a moment that’s fleeting.” Vincent Kartheiser (Pete from Mad Men)
“Happiness is a very strange thing.” Jihae Min, my friend
“And all I wanted was to be a happy man” Lyrics from Chaos of the Galaxy/Happy Man by Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse
I’m done adding massive amounts of animal pictures for awhile. In the future they will trickle in instead of taking over my whole blog. If you want to read my older posts without gagging on all the animal pics look at the “Uncategorized” category.
Capybara obsession started when I found out they’re the largest rodents in the world. GIANT GERBILS! There’s a lady near Austin that has one for a pet. Once I touched a capybara in New Braunfels. See below…
