Friday is my favorite day

I am SO tired. My new job - pretty cool. My new hours - not so hot.

There are different functions so members of my team rotate each week. This week, I worked 7:30am - 6:00pm. Throw in the fact that I'm brand spankin' new and training my little tail off. I am spent. I can't believe I'm actually thinking this but I am very excited to be working at 8:00am next week.

Anyhow, when The Man sleeps over, I've conditioned myself to be able to spleep through his alarm and him pressing the snooze button several times. At 4:40am. That is not a typo.

Now that my wake up time is close to his, his alarm wakes me up.

4:40am alarm+Lulu=Bad a$s attitude!

( D-Doll & Lulu. She's included b/c she can rock the same bad a$s attitude:)

Completely off topic, I'm thinking about changing The Man's nickname to "G-Unit." I like the oppressive implications to "The Man" :) But he's sooo the opposite of ghetto that I like the irony of G-Unit. Plus, I'm delirious with exhaustion.

Why I love romantic comedies

I do ... it's true. I love romantic comedies. Most likely, if you're my friend, you want to knock me upside the head because they are sappy movies and you are sarcastic. And slightly bitchy. Which is probably why I adore you.

I can watch 50 First Dates, My Big Fat Creek Wedding and the Wedding Singer over and over again. Those kind of movies remind me what it's first like to fall in love. The heart going pitter-patter, the bumbling awkward moments, the late night calls because you just want to know everything there is to know about the person. And then some. I love the crazy things in movies that characters in love do for one another because you love the person that much. One of my favorite goofiest scenes? When Heath Ledger sings and runs around a high school stadium, accompanied by a marching band, to woo Julia Stiles in 10 Things I Hate About You. That kind of stuff melts my heart. Control yourself. I know you want to bitch slap me for being so corny. I can't help it.

I know that being in love is the best. I mean, I can't deny that things change and people get comfortable. I can't deny I'm comfortable too. Past-midnight calls don't amuse me like they once did - I get up way too early for that. I also don't go to the farthest bathroom humanly possible like I did when we first started dating. The jig is up - he knows I poop. So I can't really complain when he shows just how comfortable he's become, too. Because, despite all the hard times, nothing beats someone knowing which side is YOUR side of the bed. Or someone knowing you so well that, just by looking at your face, he knows you need a big fat hug and some major cuddling.

Some people may have the best of both worlds - being in a long-term relationship and the lovey-dovey stuff that usually only occurs in the "honeymoon stage." If you're one of those people, though, don't even think about commenting on my blog to tell me that.

I wouldn't trade what I have for the "newness" part of a relationship. But you gotta love the goofy songs Adam Sandler sings to Drew Barrymore. In both movies.

Speaking of mistaken ethnic identity ...

At my new job, I work with someone who graduated from the same university. He was also a big part of the Filipino organization that I briefly interacted with when I participated in its Pilipino Culture Night aka PCN.

Yes, California is so packed full of Filipinos that we have clubs at almost every college and university. A "PCN" is a huge yearly event when the club showcases traditional and modern dances, cha-cha, and some acting. You don't have to be Filipino to participate but most are, by default. Almost every club has a PCN. Scary, ain't it? ;)

Of course, we exchange names to see who we both know. Never mind that there are over 28,000 students. We stick to the Filipino organization people b/c we figure we would have a better chance. Surprisingly, or not so if you're Filipino, we knew a few of the same people.
Later in the day, my coworker (we'll call him PB for "Pinoy Boy") says to me fron his desk, "Guess who I just talked to on the phone?"
"Who?"
"Bing. Do you remember him?"
"The one with the hair?" Gesturing as if I have a big afro. PB nods to confirm my guess. "I loved his big hair!" I did. I didn't know an Asian guy could have a stick straight afro. But he did. I was always impressed when I saw it.
"I'm going to call him back and see if he remembers you!" says PB.
"Mmm, maybe not. But you can try."
I hear PB on the phone, "Hey. I have a new coworker who used to go to State. Do you know a girl named Lulu?"
Listens.
"Well, she was in a PCN a couple years back. You know, Lulu." insists PB.
Now I'm just thinking, Bing has no idea who PB is talking about.
PB smiles, "Yup! That's her! OK, well, I'll call you later. Bye!"
He turns to me and says, "He remember you! He paused when I said your name. Then Bing asked, "Is she the one that's Filipino but doesn't look it?" and I said, "Yes!""

I had told PB earlier that day that when I auditioned for PCN, I didn't know a soul because I wasn't active in the Filipino club. Of course, everyone else knew each other. But after a few months, I got to know some people.
After one of our rehearsals, a guy asked me, "So, what made you decide to join PCN?"
I replied, "I was in a PCN at my old college and I wanted to be in one here before I graduated."
Guy then said, "Oh that's cool. Are you also active in La Raza?"
Me, with a blank expression, "Huh?"
Guy, looking a little confused, "Aren't you Mexican?"
Me, now thinking he's special, "If I was Mexican, why would I join a Filipino cultural event?"
Guy now a little indignant, "I thought you just appreciated other cultures."

I guess that could have been true :)

Filipino reference of the day #2

(This was actually a few days ago but it's new to you, right?)

I was listening to my favorite morning show, Fernando in the Morning. Dat Phan, a Vietnamese comedian, was on the show to promote his comedy tour. A lot of his jokes are Asian-oriented (Hehehe. I said "Asian" and "Orient" in the same sentence. I've just been kicked out of the club.) The two DJs, Fernando and Greg, asked Dat why some Asian ethnicities seem favored over others. They gave an example of when they asked one of their Asian coworkers if he was Korean and the guy yelled, "I'm Chinese, not Korean!" Fernando said, "It was like we called him a horrible name or something." Dat Phan responded that it has a lot to do with people always grouping Asian cultures together and not bothering to know the difference.

Greg asked, "What about Filipinos? They don't look like other Asians."

Fernando said, "Yah, they look like a little bit of this and a little bit of that."

Dat replied, "They're like Asian curry. A whole lot of different things, a whole lot of different spices."

Greg agreed, "Yes, and they're very delicious, too."

I have to agree - The Man is quite delicious:)

For the second year in a row, Lulu has won the title of ...

BOMB A$S GIRLFRIEND.

*cheer, cheer, clap, clap*

Thank you so much *fluttering of the hands* ... I want to thank everyone, especially The Man, for enduring three years of good and crap gifts from me. This includes the build-a-bear kung-fu fighting teddybear that said "I love you" which seemed like a really cute and sweet idea at first ...

You may have remembered last year's birthday present to the Man which is why I say "three years of good and crap gifts ..." I think I got it right into our fourth year together. And I believe that I did a pret-ty fine job for our four year anniversary. As you know from reading my little blog, I do enjoy the wine. The Man, unfortunately, does not share the same love and affection that I do (my Texas Cousin and Sister may remember the incident from my graduation party. We won't delve into it.) But my honey does like himself the sauce. He gets a kick out of microbreweries and trying new and different beers. Yes folks, I got him:

A MEMBERSHIP TO THE BEER OF THE MONTH CLUB!

Ahhh-yahhhh.

And because The Man IS The Man, he gave me a great gift as well. Unfortunately, The Man has been swamped with work. He barely has any free time lately. When he does, he's either kung-fu-ing or sleeping. I was sad that we weren't doing anything spectacular for our anniversary but we are both going to the Philippines and need to save. Anyway, despite doing everything on the fly, we had a great day. We went to Capitola and strolled for a little bit. Lucky for us, no rain! We ate at a so-so restaurant. We forgot that we didn't care much for it the first time we ate there. But our waitress did tell us where we could find a spa.

Earlier that morning, The Man was looking into mudbaths online but I had to set him straight on the fact that Lulu doesn't like mud all up in her crevices. Now, most of you know about spas. It's best to book ahead because they will most likely be all booked up especially on the weekends. I didn't want to get my hopes up just to be let down. We drove south to Aptos, checked out Sanctuary Day Spa and, hurray! They had an opening for a deep tissue massage at 3:30pm. The Man did not want to get a couples massage. Especially from a dude. I told him as long as I got the pretty girl, it was fine. He still declined. But he said he would pay for my massage-his gift to me-and roam around. It was 2:00pm and we ended up killing time at a nearyby cafe, Full of Beans. (BTW - The Man and I decided we would open two shops. Mine would be "Full of Shitzu" and his would be "Just for the Halibut." We think too much sometimes.)

Sanctuary Day Spa is a cute little spa. What I loved is that they had a Relaxation Room where you could chill before and after you have a massage. Nothing irks me more than a place that calls itself a "spa" but doesn't have a locker room or a room to relax in before and after your massage. Those places should be called "spa-ish" so right away you know the difference. I digress. My massage therapist was named Dea. She was a pixie lookin' girl and, while adorable, I was skeptical that this gal packed a punch. I was sooooo happy to be proved wrong. In fact, I had to tell her to ease up a little. Dea gave me a 60 minute aromatherapy deep tissue massage and it was so nice! I told her my shoulder was hurting me (I think from knitting and my new job but I didn't want to look like a dork so I just told her it was from my new job) and she worked on it for quite a while. It was the first time someone worked on my derriere but it was through a sheet so I figured I wasn't being assaulted.

I don't know if it was the aromatherapy or her massage but it was the first time that I fell asleep. I've dozed off before but never fell asleep. Luckily, it was towards the end so I was awake to enjoy most of it. But I was SO relaxed that I konked out. Know how I knew I was knocked out? I woke up to a big ass SNORE. From me. Now, I don't snore. But I know for a fact that it was one of those deep snores, from the throat. And since I don't snore, the sound actually woke up up! I apologized profusely but Dea didn't care. She just said that it was good b/c I was obviously relaxed. I couldn't hang out at the relaxation room afterwards (something I usually love to do to bask in the afterglow of a good massage) because The Man was waiting for me. I smelled like lavendar and was a happy gal.

We ended our visit at a very pretty restaurant called Shadowbrook in Capitola. It was such a yummy meal! The service was excellent. (I'm always wary of places that don't have a lot of minorities working or frequenting the place. Hey, call it a hang up for being brown but I can't help it. Plus, we looked casual so I wasn't sure how it was going to go.) The Man ordered lobster & steak and I had a salad b/c he said I could have some of his lobster. We also ordered baked brie and jalepeno mint jelly as an appetizer. Hot damn that was good! Of course, a meal isn't a meal without a delicious dessert. We had the Jack Daniel's Mud Pie. Oh yum.

Pookie, you have to tell P-hubby that The Man was thinking about him/you both. He said a couple of times, "We have to them here when they come visit. Then we can take them to Capitola or Santa Cruz. I think they would like it a lot." Isn't that cute? He was thinking of you guys during our special outing. Wait, is that normal? Does P-Hub think of The Man when you guys have a romantic dinner? Don't answer that. I'll just choose to continue thinking that it's sweet :)

And that was the end of our anniversary celebration. Well, I thought it would be romantic to take the scenic way home, Hwy 1. Three hours later, we were home :) (OK, not the brightest of choices but whatever. Bite me.)

I just realized that I have to apologize ...

for being so GD boring lately! :(

Knitting projects and such

I still knit even though I'm bone tired. My newest project is a scarf with not one but THREE cables.

Before this scarf, I have never cabled a damn day in my life. Here it is:

(Click a picture to make bigger.)

Needless to say, there were a lot of colorful words coming out of my mouth when I started this project.

AL's getting this for Mother's Day and you best believe she's going to like it.

Excuse the attitude ... I'm just so dang tired.

I am t-i-r-e-d.

Hello, my lovelies ...

I am one tired chick. I can't believe it's only Tuesday. Coming to work before 8:00am has proven to be quite a challenge.

I've been training, shadowing and working on my own. I get off work around 5:30pm.

Over all, though, I like my new job.

But dammit. I'm tired.

10 random thoughts

1. DAMMIT! Grey's Anatomy is a rerun.
2. I'm a little nervous about starting my new job tomorrow.
3. I'm trying to psych myself up that I start work at 8:00am (I thought it was 8:30am. That 1/2 hour makes a difference in my world.)
4. The Man just reminded me that I blurted, "Bust a nut!" out of nowhere when he was driving. I asked him, "Isn't it synonymous with "Bust a U-turn?"" He said no. Whatever. We should all start using it in that context and it will eventually come around.
5. Is it normal for my shoulder to ache from knitting?
6. I wish I lost those 10 lbs already.
7. I wish I didn't like chocolate as much as I do.
8. I like most babies and kids but I can't stand the bratty ones.
9. Now that I wrote that, I fear my kids will be bratty.
10. I left Target today b/c I couldn't stand the screaming children. They made me nervous and irritated.

Take this job and ...

Last night was my Going Away party. My friend, who's also in charge of work events, asked me what kind of going away party I wanted. I asked for a small, intimate party at a very cute restaurant called Lure (it's four months old and looks straight out of Sex and the City. So if you're in the Peninsula, stop by, it's fabulous! OK, that was my plug.)

My party was a dutch event and I was A-OK with it. See, here's the thing. A lot of people have their going away party either at Chevy's or Red Robin. I'd rather have a dutch event at a nice place then have the j-o-b pay for everyone and their mama to eat at a mediocre restaurant. I'm not a snob but I wanted my party to be at a place that was pretty. Why? I want a place to have a nice enough atmosphere that I enjoy it when I come in stone sober and come out drunk as a skunk.

That's right, bitches, I got drunk. I had a glass of wine at another restaurant (before Lure opened.) Once at Lure, I proceeded to have another glass of wine and two glasses of a champagne mix concoction. Luckily, I ate the asian crackers they had out as well as dessert. Because Lulu loves her some dessert.

It was a WONDERFUL going away party. I was faded, laughing it up, and having a grand ol' time. Our waiter, a cool mister named Michael, asked me what I was going to be doing at my new job. I said, "Staffing Manager." He looks puzzled. My friend Maria, a little tossed herself, said "She sells people." So I went with it and told him that I was a pimp. In his proper voice, he said "Great, then I'll be your ho." When my soon-to-be-ex-boss arrived a few minutes after us, Michael introduced himself. "Good evening. I understand that this party is for her," pointed to me, "she is my pimp and I'm her ho." My boss was stunned that this could come from such a refined gentleman. She turned to me, "What did you do to him? You've only been here for 10 minutes or so!" And that's pretty much how the night went.

I have the BEST ex-coworkers. Normally, I don't list what I get as presents on my blog b/c I feel like I'm bragging. But dammit, my friends did a great job!
- The company gave me a gift certificate for a deluxe spa pedicure and manicure at my favorite nail salon, Pinkies. And guess who happens to have an appointment today at 1:30pm for that exact package? (Again, the result of having a friend who's in charge of also buying company gifts!) It was a present to myself that I booked earlier this week but now it's on the j-o-b. Sweet.
- My two closest friends gave me a $100 gift certificate to Ann Taylor. They both know that I will most likely go broke ass buying new clothes. Aren't they very thoughtful and generous? They also happen to be the culprits who introduced me to this oh-so-lovely store. But I'm not placing blame ;) I love them so much!
- And then another coworker went to my favorite knitting store, Nine Rubies, and bought a beautiful needle case that I've been coveting every time I go into the store but is way too pricey for me to justify.
- The j-o-b also extended my free gym membership for another year. I was VERY excited to hear that b/c there was no way that I was going to be able to pay $63/month.

I loved my going away party. And by the time it was over, I was in no condition to drive. Tod, a former coworker himself (and also one of the people that I drank with on Tuesday) was nice enough to drive Maria and me to her house. We stopped by a coffee shop with the hope that it would sober me up. It didn't. Tod dropped us off and Maria and I barged into her home to the dismay of her boyfriend. Poor Maria's honey. Around 10:00pm, he had to help Maria (b/c I was STILL in no condition to drive) get her car AND my car back to their place. They let me crash on their couch. Today, I woke up at 4:50am and drove my butt home.

Thanks to lots of water the night before and three Advil before sleeping, MamaLu's head doesn't hurt. I go into work this morning to tie up loose ends, get my mani/pedi, knit a little bit and then go to another going away party. At Red Robin. I think I won't tempt fate and opt for Diet Coke*.


*The Shampoo Drinking Theory: It is believed that there is still enough alcohol in your system the next day that if you drink again, it is a lot easier to get drunk again and that you do not need nearly as much alcohol as the first time. Just like when you shampoo your hair the first time versus the second time. You don't need nearly as much shampoo the second time to work up a good lather.
I THINK I came up with this theory but, then again, someone may have told me this when I was drunk and I plum forgot.

CDC Warning

The Center for Disease Control has issued a warning about a new virulent strain of sexually transmitted disease. The disease is contracted through dangerous and high-risk behavior. It is called Gonorrhea-Lectim and pronounced "gonna re-elect him." Many victims contracted it in 2004, after having been screwed for the past four years. Cognitive characteristics of individuals infected include: anti-social personality disorders, delusions of grandeur with messianic overtones, extreme cognitive dissonance, inability to incorporate new information, pronounced xenophobia and paranoia, inability to accept responsibility for own actions, cowardice masked by misplaced bravado, uncontrolled facial smirking, ignorance of geography and history, tendencies toward evangelical theocracy, categorical all-or-nothing behavior. Naturalists and epidemiologists are amazed at how this destructive disease originated only a few years ago from a Bush found in Texas.

Why parents drink

The boss of a big company needed to call one of his employees about an urgent problem with one of the main computers, dialed the employee's home phone number and was greeted with a child's whisper.
"Hello."
"Is your daddy home?" he asked.
"Yes," whispered the small voice.
"May I talk with him?"
The child whispered, "No."
Surprised, and wanting to talk with an adult, the boss asked, "Is your Mommy there?"
"Yes."
"May I talk with her?"
Again the small voice whispered, "No."
Hoping there was somebody with whom he could leave a message, the boss asked, "Is anybody else there?"
"Yes," whispered the child, "a policeman."
Wondering what a cop would be doing at his employee's home, the boss asked, "May I speak with the policeman?"
"No, he's busy", whispered the child.
"Busy doing what?"
"Talking to Daddy and Mommy and the Fireman," came the whispered answer.
Growing concerned and even worried as he heard what sounded like a helicopter through the earpiece on the phone the boss asked, "What is that noise?"
"A hello-copper" answered the whispering voice.
"What is going on there?" asked the boss, now truly alarmed.
In an awed whispering voice the child answered, "The search team just landed the hello-copper."
Alarmed, concerned, and even more then just a little frustrated the boss asked, "What are they searching for?"
Still whispering, the young voice replied along with a muffled giggle: "ME."

"Pack yo' $hit!"

I was going to write an entry about how nifty my office looked before I packed it up. I was going to post before and after pictures to illustrate how bare my office looks now.

But I plum forgot and now it's just "after." Since seeing "after" pictures really isn't all that interesting, here are pictures of all my office crap now at home:

I'm changing jobs and I can't move all this "decor" to my new job b/c I'm going to have a cubicle. I'm OK with that. But I'm not OK with all this stuff being at home. Decorating my office and decorating my home are two different things.

That's right folks. The picture to the left is a bamboo curtain of hula dancers. (I've turned it sideways for your convenience.) When I started my job, I couldn't commit to a big as$ framed poster so I thought this was better. It was VERY cool at work (It was! I assure you. Ask Demondoll or Tel, they've seen it.) It made my office a lot brighter and more colorful.

I've learned "kitsch-y" can be pulled off at work as long as there's a theme. Mine was "Hawaiian hula." I had pictures of men and women performing hula and Hawaiian stuff here and there. Now I have no idea where I'm going to put it all.

Also, I bought these frou-frou pillows (in blue, pink and green) because it worked in my office. They matched the fabrics from India I had covering my sterile cabinet and table top. Now these pillows don't make any sense-they are more accessories that don't fit in my home. I've ALREADY bought pictures for the home, neutral pillows for my couch and didn't think to purchase any kind of bamboo curtain because, well, do you need a reason?

But I have a bamboo curtain now.

Well, I like all my stuff enough to not want to sell it or give it away. And after talking to The Man, it appears that most of my office stuff will go into my new home office - also known as "the room with a small desk and nothing else." It was supposed to be my Yoga room. Or The Man's kung fu room. No matter that we haven't done either in that room for the past six months. Now it's where my office crap is put to pasture.