Friday, September 30, 2005

my first celebrity sighting

i forgot to tell you! the first time celena took me to runyon canyon, i saw her and her cute little dog trotting beside her with a stick its mouth, looking up as if to say "mom, mom, c'mon mom! throw the stick, c'mon! i'll be good, c'mon!" so cute! celena recognized her the first time, and then we passed her again and celena said, "see it now? it's totally her." and it was! but i didn't have the nerve to say hello so we just walked on by.

ohmygod, i have just finished a ten hour day. and it's going to get worse. but for now, i'm enjoying my time at home. celena and her fabulous roomie, gabriel, are on their way over. we are going to the grove to see this movie and have dinner. so excited! :)

mom and dad and katie will be visiting over veterans day weekend in november. we're so excited! i'm checking out a few local bed and breakfasts this weekend for them, but both look so wonderful just on the internet that i'd be willing to book a few nights for matt and me! there's elaine's and the secret garden. what do you think?

Thursday, September 29, 2005

hollywoodland

did you know that was the original name of hollywood? at least that's what the sign said until the "land" part burned up or fell down, i'm not sure...

tonight was a total l.a. night. first of all, it was (and still is) extremely warm outside. second, i went out for girls night with cindy and some other women that i barely know to the grand lux cafe. we pigged out on delicious dinners and split four yummy desserts. then, on our way up to our cars via the escolator, we had a celebrity sighting! he was going down the escolator while we were going up. we were all talking and then as he went by, we all got quiet. by the time he passed us, we were all whispering like a bunch of school girls! it was awesome! matt couldn't believe it.

on my way home driving down hollywood boulevard, right said fred's song (and i don't remember the title but it's the catwalk song) blared on jack fm. i rolled down the windows, cranked up the tunes, and sang my heart out.

like i said, a perfect l.a. night! ooo, and i had a glass of chateau st. michelle's syrah with dinner. yum yum!

indian summer

i have to remind myself these days that i live in southern california. it's frickin 80 degrees outside, maybe warmer! that leads to my favorite thing, warm summer nights. except when i'm trying to sleep...that's no fun. last night it was so muggy i didn't even get under the covers. if there were fall trees everywhere, this would be perfect!

matt's loans came through yesterday! yay!

tomorrow night celena and i are going to see corpse bride at the grove and i'm totally excited. i adore tim burton's movies! and of course, i heart johnny depp. matt will be in chinatown with nathan and tom to visit a site and talk about production for their first cycle project. matt invited me but i think it's best to leave them to talk about movie stuff. celena and i will have a fun night out!

work is great, just a little insane. high holy days start monday night so there is much to be done. i'm really looking forward to the weekend and a few days of rest.

in honor of jenny, who does this on her blog, i think it's time i started and it just might motivate me to read a little more...

books i am currently reading: in her shoes and harry potter 5
book i just finished: something borrowed

Monday, September 26, 2005

dazed and confused

i love that movie! :)

universal studios turned out to be quite an adventure. joss whedon didn't come due to a scheduling conflict and there was no screening of the movie. the wristbands to enter into events were already gone by 10am (the park opened at 9am) so we were pissed. to make a long story short, we were able to prove that the email i got said there was a screening of the movie and nathan got his money back and handed back his ticket (matt and i have season passes so we didn't really care). on our way out to have lunch at city walk, we got our wrists stamped to come back in and i heard the lady say "make sure you show your stamp and your ticket when you come back in" and so i told nathan and he in turn told the lady he lost his ticket! hah! it felt kinda good to screw universal studios out of $40. :)

saturday night we went to an afi party. those things get a little awkward for me since i don't know the slightest thing about making movies. but i nod and smile and pay attention because these people just might cast me in a movie someday.

sunday we went to runyon canyon with fellow afi first year director student amin (he's from jorday by way of ohio) and his dogs oboe and cello. had a great time laughing at oboe trying to hump at least 5 different dogs! :) came home, had dinner and went to sleep. i got to sleep in this morning because i worked yesterday morning and was able to come into work late. :) always a good thing.

any suggestions on where to find cheap tickets? i want to visit my bud melanie in montana in march...

Saturday, September 24, 2005

Doin' the Universal

for those of you who don't know, back in washington state we have this thing called "do the puyallup" which means going to a huge state fair in puyallup, wa. it's filled with roller coasters, food stands, 4-h competitions, all kinds of hokey and fun fair stuff. well, i haven't found a state fair in l.a. so we're going to this thing at universal studios instead. matt is a huge fan of joss whedon and his latest film, "serenity" is being "sneaked previewed" at universal. joss will also be there along with members of the cast. fellow afi first year student, nathan atkinson, is also joining us. he's become a good friend to matt, and they are lucky enough to be working on their first afi film project together.

Friday, September 23, 2005

aaaaaahhhhh!

so let me explain the change and the weird posts. for days now i have not been able to post to the blog - some weird error messages kept saying my template was empty - whatever that means. anyway, i finally changed the main template and all of the sudden all the posts i've been trying to get on the blog show up at once! weird!

i am soooooo tired but just one more day of work. work is good, but just hectic with high holy days coming up. today is my first big "pow-wow" with the rabbi. i'm really looking forward to working with/for her - she is an awesome lady!

Wednesday, September 21, 2005

shalom

it means "hello", "goodbye", and "peace". my goal is to learn a new jewish word at least once a week, if not once a day. right now i'm taking baby steps.

yesterday matt and i woke up to the sound of pouring rain! we opened the windows and let the fresh air roll in. then i started thinking "wow, it's raining hard, and its really warm outside...i don't have an umbrella...maybe i'll have to drive to get my lunch...OHMYGOD, i'm a wimp!" i started lecturing myself when matt asked me for a ride to school. i said "honey, we are wimps! we are turning into californians!" god help us. the rain turned into a full fledged thunderstorm that lasted through the afternoon. it was awesome!

Monday, September 19, 2005

brain is full

well, i'm 15 minutes shy of completing my first day here at kol ami. it's been overwhelming which is to be expected but the people are so helpful and fun. i know i'll enjoy working here. i had a delicious lunch at baja fresh and a nice afternoon walk. updated calendars and was suprised at the "filing system" that the rabbi has. there are some definite changes i can make, but she's not here right now to hear them! she's out of town through wedensday so i have one more day to make it seem like i know what i'm doing. the job is amazing and lots of opportunity to learn and grow in my little career here. i think i'm going to like it here!

i had a great weekend in seattle. bryan and brenda were so cute on their wedding day. the ceremony was simple but classic and brenda wore the most beautiful dress. bryan looked calm, cool, and laid back for a groom...i'm not sure if that was an act or not. the reception was held at my aunt and uncles house with the pool. it was an outdoor reception and the weather held up - will miracles never cease? :) we had a great time and i enjoyed seeing family i hadn't seen in a few years. lots of catching up to do!

mom is doing so great. her color and attitude never cease to amaze me. dad and katie are fineand it was fun to see paige who just got a new job at assoicated ministries as the development director! it is a well deserved change of job and location, so best wishes and congrats! :)

Friday, September 16, 2005

it's cloudy but good

so here i am in seattle, FINALLY. my flight was delayed ab0ut 2 hours so i didn't get here until 10:30! bed at midnight. ugh. and, i woke up at 10:15. how delightful!

more later. time to spend quality time with dad. :)

Thursday, September 15, 2005

bound for clouds and drizzle

yeah! and fresh air too!

my cousin bryan is getting married on saturday in puyallup (i really hope it doesn't rain hard) and the reception is at his parents lovely house with the pool. tonight i'm flying to seattle and will land around 7:30 or 8. my day tomorrow is rough: i have to get a massage and i might have to go out to lunch with a very dear friend of mine. i think the most painful part is that i am going to get my eyebrows waxed. i head home sunday afternoon, around 3. i don't think either matt or i will be back until december for christmas...and that really depends on how much vacation i get from the new job.

last night i got a much-needed pedicure. i hadn't had one in almost 2 months and when you live in l.a. pedicures are necessary because you hardly wear shoes that cover your toes! i got a fun sparkly pink color. i don't feel the same way about manicures because the nail polish comes off so quickly.

mom is doing well but she tires easily. today is "chemo day" and she's also going to get results of a CAT scan she had on tuesday. her bloodwork is good and for the most part, she feels very positive about everything.

Tuesday, September 13, 2005

ohmygod

need a laugh? check this out: www.stuffonmycat.com

moving forward

as of this afternoon, i will be officially employed by congregation kol-ami as assistant to the rabbi. essentially, i'll be running her office and schedules, publishing flyers, transcribing notes, attending meetings, it's going to be really cool. i know i should seem more excited (and i will be), but i guess i wasn't expecting to get a job anytime soon...and perhaps a little part of me will miss being at home. the cool thing about the job is that it's not the one i interviewed for, and they offered me more money. :) plus it's closer to home. those are always excellent incentives!

wohoo! i'm employed!

Sunday, September 11, 2005

cute kitty

we call this quinn's "dead" pose. i asure you she is alive!

in memoriam

you know, if we lived in new york city, i wouldn've been thinking about today all week long. as i live on the west coast and have never been to nyc, i just realized that today is the anniversary of a terrible event. please, take a moment to say a prayer or take a moment of silence for those who lost their lives on this day.

Thursday, September 08, 2005

museum row

today i'm working at the petersen automotive museum in the membership department. they are currently looking for a membership assistant so i handed in my application and bam! i have an interview on monday morning. :) i also found a job opportunity at lacma (los angeles county museum of art) and they are looking for an education coordinator. i mailed in my resume this morning so hopefully that will turn into something...i also got 2 phone calls from employment agencies that i had turned to last month, but told them that i'd have to get back to them because i have 2, maybe 3 job prospects happening right now. we'll see what happens.

and my supervisor just told me i can't eat at my desk. "it's not healthy- you need a break." but it's my decision...whatever...if taking my lunch break away from the desk is what gets me hired, then she'll get her wish!

matt's friends tom and nathan came over again last night, passionately discussing their current project...which i'm not really allowed to discuss because 1 - i don't understand the entire concept and 2 - the projects they do at afi are to stay at afi. no outside producers or help since the projects are totally sponsored and financed by the school. makes sense.

Tuesday, September 06, 2005

wishin' and hopin'

i had an interview this evening at congregation kol-ami, a reform synagouge (sp) in west hollywood. really neat people and environment. it pays less than i'd like, but the job is right up my alley, i have all the experience, and i think it would be a good fit. i flat out told her that i am definitely interested and that i would do well. she's supposed to call by the end of th week...we'll see how that goes. based on my last interview, i can't necessarily trust that spiel!

the opening ceremonies at afi are tomorrow, and i'd like to try to go but alas, i have to work! :) i'm looking forward to getting to know l.a. more and getting out of the apartment. i think the cats will be weirded out but they will adjust. matt is excited for me and really happy that the job market just might be working out.

a very belated "happy anniversary" to my in-laws, nancy and greg! good job, guys! :) you are a true inspiration!

Sunday, September 04, 2005

fun with friend

amanda and i went to a fabulous restaurant this afternoon for lunch. what a sight! all dining was outside and we sat among the butterflies along a lovely creek. she had belgian waffles and i had a scrumptious omlet with shrimp, avacado, and salsa. mmmm!

matt's professor/mentor at afi gave him some leads on some potential jobs for me at ucla - i guess this job market is all about who you know and persistance! :)

Friday, September 02, 2005

pouring rain

no, it's not raining in l.a. but it seems that the job market needs me! the temp agency called today and i have a job for the next month at an automotive museum. then i got a phone call from one of the many places i've sent my resume and they want an interview next week! seems that maybe, just maybe, things might be turning around.

matt is loving school and having a really good time. we're definitely going to celebrate tonight for his success and my financial contribution! :)