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So last night I had a dream that Ashton Kutcher told me he was going to have the surgery required to turn him into a woman. This was what he really wanted, and it was going to make him happy.

But it didn't make me happy, because in my dream Demi Moore was my mother. And I was sad for her.

I don't care about these people in real life, I have no idea why they invaded my dreams last night. Hopefully they go haunt someone else tonight.

Oh, and after that I dreamed I was in my new, gigantic office (with a DOOR!) and was decorating it. Hah!

And now I go to sleep as I'm getting up at 6:30am to get to the gym.
12 pounds lost since April 12.

To answer Kat's comment/question about whether I had cut out TacoBell during my previous attempts to lose weight, of course the answer is Yes. Honestly, this time is not much different than the other times, that is why I am a little shocked that things are suddenly working.

I really felt like my metabolism had just STOPPED. It didn't matter what I ate, how I exercised, no matter what I still gained weight. And so seriously, if I spend two weeks living on 1200 calories a day (do you know how little that is??) for two weeks and work out every day, and then gain three pounds, do you not think it is easier to eat Taco Bell for two weeks, not workout and then gain three pounds?

It's been frustrating. Extremely. And so I don't really have ANY advice for anyone who wants to copy me, because all I can say is it didn't work for the last four years, but this time it is. I have no answers.

The only possible difference is that my workouts themselves are greatly varied. Instead of just running every day, it's running, biking, elliptical, weights, etc. It's all sorts of stuff, usually at least two different things a day. So I don't know if that somehow woke things up or what. Up until this recent weight gain I never had a problem keeping weight off. Maybe my metabolism just took a five year vacation. I don't know!

But we're into the third week now, I still feel comfortable eating 1200 or less calories, and I'm working out 60 or 90 or 120 minutes a day. And still feeling great.

And as of this morning I'm down eleven pounds in 16 days.

Farmer's Market

Rode bike to Farmers Market. Bought oranges, giant snap peas, three bags of Spring Mix, two containers of hummus and some fresh pitas. My basket barely held it all. Then rode home.
Weighed myself - down another pound.

This is a little crazy. I kind of don't really understand why it is that the pounds are just melting off like this, I mean logically I do - but I've done all this before, why is it working now?? It's like... so EASY this time. I don't really understand. If I could bottle this up and GIVE it to you all, I would.

I'll just be happy with it though. Only a couple months more until I'm the new old me.

Hopefully that girl can keep herself out of trouble. She didn't do so well with that before.

Ready to kick ass

I am finally feeling good enough that I could ride my bike. I am due to be in class in 15 minutes, but I think instead I am going to take the bike out for a long ride. Sorry professor, but riding my bike will make me feel better than sitting in class. I'm going to do it.

Colds suck

I'm f***ing tired of this cold. I really am. I actually feel much better right now, but I'm not 100% and I AM TIRED OF THIS.

Always a sign of getting better when you stop feeling sorry for yourself and instead want to start kicking some ass.

I've been battling with the wierdest cold for a week now, and it's got me good at the moment. All last week I felt fine during the day, but I would wake up around 3am with a nose full of more snot than you could imagine. I'd feel like crap when I first woke up, but after a shower and getting dressed I was fine. This went on for a week, until Sunday.

Saturday I had a huge workout, almost two hours of constant cardio. I mistakenly went to the mall after to buy bras, and I thought I was sweating and hot from the workout but I believe now that I probably had a fever. I fell asleep on the couch around 8pm, woke up at 3am, blew my nose and went to bed. Sunday I woke up and it was clear that I wasn't going to the gym. I slept most of the day away.

Today I woke up and went to school, but I was really tired. Came home and logged into work but by 1pm I knew I was about to fall asleep so I called in sick. Then I fell totally out for a few hours. I feel EXHAUSTED and I haven't even done anything.

It doesn't feel like the flu, so it's probably not swine flu - so I'm calling it my Carnitas Cold instead. After all, my snout is full of snot, so it fits.

Send chicken soup, stat.

I'm not feeling good, but this poem always makes me feel better

Donald Justice - Love's Strategems

But these maneuverings to avoid
The touching of hands,
These shifts to keep the eyes employed
On objects more or less neutral
(As honor, for the time being, commands)
Will hardly prevent their downfall.

Stronger medicines are needed.
Already they find
None of their strategems have succeeded,
Nor would have, no,
Not had their eyes been stricken blind,
Hands cut off at the elbow.

Lost two pounds!
That's 7 pounds in ten days, and I know that sounds like a lot, but the change to healthy eating habits vs convenient eating habits plus working out every day is a logical answer. I'm not starving myself, I'm getting 1200-1500 calories a day and it's all good food. As opposed to Taco Bell for lunch (MMMmmmmm) and heavy eating for dinner. And huevos rancheros for breakfast. Etc. So I know it sounds like a lot, but I don't believe it is.

For instance, I probably consumed 3000-4000 calories a day before and no workout.
Now I consume say 1300 calories and burn about 600 from workout = Total 700 leftover. That's AT LEAST 2300 - 3300 calories saved PER DAY. So I don't believe the seven pounds is too much, it's just a switch to normal, healthy living.

It's really REALLY nice to see some progress.

Watching Judge Mathis (well, not really watching, just have it on in the background) and I don't know if he's been drinking but Judge Mathis is slurring his words a little today.

You go Judge Mathis. I'd drink too if I had to spend all day listening to all those crazies.

I did NOT gain a pound!!

My little Wii Fit machine told me I had weighed myself yesterday at a slightly different time, so I just did it again, at the same time as yesterday.

And I did NOT gain a pound! I'm exactly the same as yesterday! Which is better than gaining a pound.

Also, I just back from a long bike ride and I feel GREAT. Yayy!

I want to punch the weather in the throat

Forcast today is 94 degrees and "hot and humid" with "record breaking temperatures". Yay. I love to cook in my own house. I can't wait to do it two days in a row.

Television Shows

Haven't talked about TV in awhile yet, so let's waste more time for a minute, shall we?

Southland: I couldn't get through the first episode so I deleted after 15 minutes. The second episode I was drawn in by the baby in traffic storyline so I watched the whole thing and I actually did like it. I think it just might be a pretty good show.

Harpers Island: I was looking forward to this for a long time due to all the previews they've been showing. So again, first episode hit and I was SORELY disappointed. Way too many characters, all the blondes look the same, all the brunettes look the same (like I can't even tell who are the mothers and who are the kids!), way too many family relations that I could get straight and didn't really CARE to get straight. BUT I decided to watch one more episode, and after that I can say, well, it's not exactly a great show, but I'm really enjoying it. I'm not really sure how I feel about having a horror film on prime time TV, I mean... there's been some horrific killings on the show, light for movies, but kind of harsh for prime time. But overall, I like it.

College Life (MTV): I am just totally in love with this show, and the kids who are filming it. MTV finally got something right, and they really chose some good kids to star. I just adore it.

That's it. Off to my shower now. < / procrastination >

Less motivated today

So this morning the scale says I've gained a pound. And I know that day to day a one pound gain or loss means nothing, but it's hard to work so hard and stick to 1200 calories a day and work your ass off and then see a one pound gain. So I'm not so motivated today. It's like the only thing I can't seem to succeed with. I'm not giving up, just not feeling happy about this. I'm going to go take a shower and get on my bike and ride like crazy.

Yeah, I think that's what I'm going to do.

There is nothing more to say.

Freelance writer, needs work

So far I have mailed my new business cards to one friend, and to Scott. And over the weekened I magically had no cards in my purse, when I could have actually used them.

WOOO! I'm gonna make tons of money this way!

okay yes i just put some in my purse now, ready to work now, ready to write.

So Buffy cleaned up Spike's bathroom today, because she was sick of the grossness inside, but when she finished, it turns out his bathroom is just a plain white boring bathroom. So she asked if we could go to Target to redecorate. Spike said fine, I said okay.

HEEEEEEEEE.
What person in their right mind lets Buffy redecorate their room?

Here are the pics. Not that she did a bad job, I personally kind of adore it, but Spike's response was to rub his eyes.

Went to gym today, used ellyptical for 15 minutes, Expresso bike for 30, and ran for 45 minutes. WOOOOO.

Did I mention here that I lost five pounds this week? Yes, yes I did.

Photo update

I took some pictures of the flowers in our front yard just so you know our ENTIRE yard isn't a gigantic jungle (only the BACK yard). Also on Flickr are Phoebe-Cat exercising, and Buffy's newly ORANGE HAIR. Yes, RIGHT BEFORE PROM.

The boy went to the mall (3 miles away) and dropped off applications to all the stores. And then he came home.

Yeah, I can see how he would need more than $5 for gas.

Better boy

Son has been acting much more quiet, meek and mature today. Asked very nicely if he could get a haircut before his job hunting. I said yes. Perhaps he's finally figured out that I am done putting up with his nonsense. So So Done.

And who would have thought we'd ever see the day that I would prefer the girl's company to the boy's? hahaha...

Actually I DON'T have "stupid" written on my forehead

The boy actually asked for gas money so he could go look for a job today. Awww. Good boy. I gave him five dollars.

"Five dollars? I can't really look for a job with just five dollars."

Why not??? Five dollars is a good 40 miles worth of job hunting. Just how much job hunting you think you can do in one day?

"Well, more than this. *SIGHHHH*"

I don't really know who this boy is any more. It's like he's becoming more and more like his father every day. I'm not giving him more than $5. More than $5 can be spent on other things besides gas for job hunting. So, No.

SUCH a baby, I swear.
He has been asking me to help him with his taxes, you know, that easy form that we all wish was our problem. But he asks me when I'm in the middle of work, so I have been telling him, "We'll do them on the weekend." And then he's gone on the weekend. My own taxes, which need to be done by a professional, have sat here while I tried to meet graduation and application deadlines. Priorities, ya know. So tonight comes, and nothing is done, so I pulled out the extension forms and filled them out, mine AND my poor helpless 18 year old son's. And at 10pm I handed him the envelope, addressed and stamped, AND printed directions to the main post office that's open till midnight.

He grumbled and griped about how "This is why I wanted to do them earlier." Look, it's not MY responsibility to get your taxes done Boy. No one did MY taxes when I was 18. I had those things done all by myself and mailed off in January when I was 18. So he stood there arguing with me about how I SHOULD HAVE DONE THEM EARLIER. I got quiet angry.

"I'm not going to argue with you Spike. Take them to the post office now, they're due in two hours."

At 10:45 the phone rings. It's Spike. "I can't do this, this line is like three miles long."

Me: What do you mean you can't do this? They're due at midnight. Get in line and mail them off.

Spike: Mom. This is why I wanted to get them done earlier! I don't want to sit in this line!

Me: It's not MY job to do your taxes Spike, and I just sat here and filled out your own 18 yr old self's extension, so you get your ass in that line and you mail them off or there's going to be trouble, get it? GET COMFY.

*click*

Tomorrow it's back to school. BOO. Oh, and file a tax extension. Yup.

Waiting waiting waiting

Oh Andrew, sometimes you're a pain in the ass making me wait so long for things I ask of you.

My business cards arrived, YAYYYY! And they're so pretty too!

The Britney Concert

The concert was good, but it certainly wasn't the best concert I've ever seen and it wasn't even in my top ten. I tried to pretend it was, but there were certain great things that kept overshadowing Britney and showing exactly how dull this concert was.

We got there early and bought t-shirts, then bought some "Britney pop-corn" which was a pretty big bag for $4.50, not bad. Then Buffy wanted a soda, they asked if she wanted the "commemorative cup" which was a little orange plastic thing and she said yes and we realized later it was $7.50. I made sure all the girls remembered their cups after the concert, that's for sure.

We sat down and had pretty good seats and the girls started getting excited. The stage was a three-ring circus and a pretty good set-up and we could see really well. Remember that my cell camera makes things appear twice as far and you'll see that we were pretty close.

So finally at 7pm the lights went down, my girls started screaming, music started, they announced the PussyCat Dolls... AND THE GIRLS LOST THEIR DAMN MINDS. I have no words to describe the screaming and jumping and hugging and ectasy that was coming from those three girls. The PCD came out, more screams, they "sang" and danced around all three rings, and I found out Buffy apparentely loves the blonde one. Okay, but THEN, when the girls brought their excitedness down to level 850, they were able to control themselves and start dancing, and GOOD LORD my daughter CAN DANCE. And shake her booty and other things that can be shaken. My daughter was a PussyCat Doll in training. EE-Yikes.

They ended with that Wanna Be Famous song and the girls screamed some more and then they left. Nicole Scherzelmmmmph yelled "Hello San JOOOOOOOOSEE" about 300 times during the concert, but I guess Britney wasn't listening. We'll get to that later.

So there was a ten minute intermission while they started re-arranging the stage and my girls started getting antsy and excited again. Suddenly the two side rings lit up and for fifteen minutes we saw some circus sideshows while they continued working on the center stage. There were acrobats and dancers and a hula hoop girl who was actually pretty impressive. I guess when those rhythmic gymnasts are done with the olympics they get jobs at the circus?? (yeah, I'm waiting for the hate mail - You don't scare me, rhythmic gymnasts!) As each act ended the girls braced for Britney's arrival but of course it wasn't until the lights went down again and the music started and the screams started and then lights came up...

And if Jesus had risen from the dead right then and there I don't think the screams could have been louder. I thought all three girls were going to have heart attacks they were so excited, seriously.

But for me, the excitement started to end there. Because this concert was not all that, and Britney was not up to par - not even close. There were a lot of problems and wierdness going on.

She doesn't dance. There were a few spurts of dancing here and there, but NOTHING that my girls coudn't do in a snappier, tighter fashion. Mostly she stood in one place kind of swaying around until it was time for back up dancers to carry her to another stage, or roll her to another stage. And that's kind of disappointing because you certainly don't go to a Britney concert to hear her sing live, so you expect some entertainment instead. I understand she's older now, but you have to understand - she was not dancing. She could have done better. Madonna is 50 and is better. Miley Cyrus is 16 and can do better. Missy Elliott is heavier and can dance better. We all know Britney can dance. (And side note: Britney looked great, she is def back in shape)

And like I said, we don't expect her to sing, I mean it's no secret that she lipsyncs but I've never been to a concert where they didn't even bother to pretend. I stood watching thinking "Good lord, they're just blasting her CD!!" There were some intro re-mixes, but the songs were just straight blasted from the stereo to the speakers. So essentually what we paid money for was to sit in our seats, listen to her CD, and watch her sway around and get carried across the stages.

As for spectacle? I was REALLY disappointed on that point. There were a couple fireworks, one flame scene (that petered out too early) and not much else. A theater in the round prohibits most set design, so what we're left with were three worn stages with too few dancers running back and forth. There were five minutes of magic tricks - Britney appeared and disappeared, and was cut into thirds - but that was it. The pics I took on flickr make it look more exciting that it was.

The one set design that was awesome was the cylindrical screen that hung over the center ring. That continuously showed film clips, Britney videos, background artwork and animation - And I give MAD PROPS to the artists, animators and film people who set that whole thing up. It was beautiful and the photos DON'T do that justice. I could have looked at that all night long, especially when they shows new video clips of Britney and her circus act - GORGEOUS - but the beauty of those clips just kind of reminded you how naked the stage was and how boring the entire act was. There was a short interlude when a remixed "Sweet Dreams" was played with a beautiful video showing on that screen during a scene change - and it was the rockingest, funnest part of the night for me.

Another contrast serving to highlight the poor show quality was when late in the concert they had each of her dancers come out to do an individual solo while their names flashed on the screen. I was surprised that her dancers were so good because the choreography of the show was so sub-par. But these guys brought the house down with their solos - I loved Tiana the best. So while I loved that part, it also left me wondering why we weren't seeing their skills on stage. I mean, Britney isn't dancing anyway, so why not let the dancers entertain us??

There were some problems, as with any big show. One acrobat hanging from a silk piece seemed to be having some problems and I was afraid during his entire act that he would fall. After Britney disappeared and the magician jumped onto the set where she had "disappeared" the set didn't collapse all the way, kind of negating the whole "magic" idea. And there was one wierd scene change where a curtain must not have been down when it should have been. Britney just came crawling out of a hole on her hands and knees to the center stage and sat lacing up her boots, then stood up and started "singing". It was really wierd, and I'm SURE a curtain was supposed to be there.

And then... Britney yelled "Hello SACRAMENTO!" I started laughing, as did half the audience, the other half including my girls were looking at each other saying "What did she say??? Sacramento????" My thoughts were just "I guess she didn't hear Nicole yelling San Jose 300 times." My daughter turned to me and said "I don't really expect anything else from Britney." Which was kind of sad.

It ended and the girls seemed happy but strangely quiet. As we sat in the car waiting to get out I polled them all on their feelings. The concert across the board received a solid B+. Reasons cited were: Lip synching, no dancing, kind of boring, and... "What was up with 'Sacramento'???" and then... "The PussyCat Dolls were really good though!"

It wasn't a total loss, not at all. The girls were still so excited that they got to see PCD and Britney, and the screams I heard at the beginning were worth the money that I paid. They all agreed that they had a great time, it just wasn't the BEST time. I know that when I took them to see John Mayer of all people, there was much more excitement in the car and we couldn't even SEE him we had sat so far away. But that's because John Mayer puts on an AWESOME concert, and he sings for real and plays awesome guitar and is way better on stage than on your radio. He doesn't need spectacle and dancing to entertain.

But Britney didn't have enough of anything.

Buffy just came home from her dad's house with her face covered in poison oak. And calamine lotion. EWWWW. Gross.

Nice way to go to the Britney concert, heh.

It's the Easter Britney

Have I mentioned that we're going to see Britney Spears in concert tonight? Yeah, nothing completes an Easter Sunday like Britney!

I was able to pre-order four tickets months ago, with the understanding that Buffy would invite two friends who would pay for their tickets. They are not the super expensive tickets, but they aren't the cheapest ones either - but reasonable, I thought. So for months Buffy has been the star at school - who would she pick to accompany her? Who would be the lucky two? She locked one down right away, a life-long friend who loves Britney.

But for the other ticket... you wouldn't think it would be so hard to find someone to take it. Not for lack of girls wanting the ticket, it's the whole Easter Sunday thing that's holding them back. Parents don't want to let the kids go on Easter. I don't know about that. Easter has always been a morning thing for us. Even at my parents' house, Easter dinner was a late lunch. If I had wanted to go somewhere after that I know they would have let me.

But that is a parent's perogative. The fact is, all but one of Buffy's friends were told they couldn't go because it was Easter. The other friend didn't have the money.

So I was faced with an option: Sell the ticket to someone I didn't know, or bring Buff's friend and give her the ticket. And that's what I decided to do. I would rather spend the money and see a kid super happy than sell it to someone I didn't know.

So around 5pm we're driving to the HP Pavilion so we can buy shirts and things. Then at 7pm the concert opens with the PussyCat Dolls, and then Britney.

I doubt it's going to be an Easter themed or appropriate show, but I know three teeneage girls who are going to be very very happy tonight.

Article accepted!

So last semester I set up a new email with a more professional sounding address to use for freelance writing. I sent out a couple queries in October, and then went back to work on school. I checked the email several times (okay, several times a DAY) but never received a response.

So after school ended I just kind of stopped looking. But now that I've ordered business cards and plan on getting as many writing jobs as possible I decided to just take a peak at it.

Um. One of my queries was accepted. In January.

Heh.

Luckily this was for a local San Jose neighborhood paper, so not too big a deal, and the article would still be relevant, AND the editor apologized himself for his own lateness in responding. He said he could not pay but would be happy to give me a byline.

That's all I ask for at this point. It's another byline in the can. So I just shot off a reply apologizing for MY lateness, and offering to get him the article by the end of the week, whether he still needs it or not. He also had offered to possibly give me a regular feature - not paid again. Hopefully this could still be possible.

GAWD. And GOSHDARNIT. I hope I wasn't too late. I could kick myself. BUT at least it wasn't a real paying job that I missed, just a byline. And hopefully I can still get it.

Yay!!!

Graduation Pictures

I'm seriously considering taking my own graduation photos.
I don't know why I shouldn't. I don't know why they wouldn't turn out just as good if not better than the ones the school took.

I mean, first of all there's the whole cap thing. I went along with it for the photographer even though the mirror clearly showed that having an egghead was the least flattering look possible for my face. I mean, you have no idea. And you won't, because I'm not linking to the pictures.

But then you have the whole "different angles" thing. And while I understand that this picture is not your standard graduation pose, I can also tell you it shaves about 50 pounds from my appearance. Whereas my official graduation photo seems to have added 70 pounds. Not even joking, and again, not linking.

But my kids want a photo.

But it's 2009. We're in the middle of a technological revolution. We can take our own professional pictures.

So this morning I was thinking again about these photos and just realized: I don't have to suffer through those pictures. I can take my own. I can take them just holding my cap, I can take them looking over my shoulder, I can do the whole MySpace holding the camera up in the air while standing in the bathroom pic if I want.

And so that's what I'm going to do (well, not the bathroom shot). Because although the reality is that I might still be working on these extra 70 pounds, reality also means I didn't gain another 70 like my official pics show.

I mean, I took this shot myself, at my first graduation. And it's not me sitting in a chair at a studio, but it's my very favorite graduation pic of all. And there's no egghead involved. And I can certainly do better if I try.

So why shell out $50 for a 5x7 and 8 wallets that I don't want anyone in the world to see?

The Great Easter Weekend Snail Massacre of 2009

We got our lawn mower out of the shop Friday (vacuum too!) and so I decided to battle the yard yesterday. Bad enough that the lawn was a bit overgrown when the mower broke, but then we had loads of sun and rain which caused the lawn to grow further at a very fast rate. So what we ended up with was this.

Despite my eyes watering just from stepping out there to take a picture, I grabbed the lawn mower, pushed down on it to cut at a 45 degree angle, and started pushing. Fifteen minutes later the yard looked like this. When you get that outcome and realize how proud of yourself you are, you should realize that you should get your lawn mowed more often. So I kept pushing the mower around with my eyes squinshed shut, but eventually opened them. And do you know what I saw?

Snails. Everywhere. Every square foot of mowed lawn had big snails, little snails, running snails, dead snails, pulverized snails. Snails that had been smashed by my feet, snails that had been hacked up by the mower. Looking at the mower I realized they were crawling all over it too, even trying to get into the engine vents. Snails are not the brightest gastropod in the yard, that's for sure.

When I was finished (I only did half the yard) I came inside to rest and the next time I looked outside I saw birds swarming the yard. Happy Happy feasting birds. I don't know if they eat snails, but there were plenty of other dishes to be served in the yard. By evening I looked outside and saw a huge march of snails crawling around the patio looking for a new home - EW. And EWWWW again. But never fear, I have a large bottle of Deadline and last night I gave them a feast. A Last Supper, if you will.

This morning I looked out the window and not only saw a yard full of happy feasting birds again, but also Pischina-kitty poised under a chair watching the whole thing. I told her "No birds in the house!!" and closed the door just to make sure.

And so hopefully the snail massacre is over. I've seen enough snails to last me a lifetime, and I never liked snails to begin with. But my yard looks better now.

Next month: Pool time!

Happy Easter Mom

Wow, I just had the wierdest thing happen and it's just opened up the floodgates again, first time in a couple months anyway.

I was getting up to go to bed and saw the phone sitting on the desk. I picked it up and put it on the charger thinking "Mom might call to wish Happy Easter in the morning, I need to charge up the phone."

Wow. That would take some charge, huh? I don't remember ever having a wierd lapse in thought like that in a long time. Of course then the crushing blow came a split second later as the realization of no forthcoming phone call. And then the tears just burst.

I know it's not Easter exactly, I think every school accomplishment I have brings these feelings on. I don't have faith that she knows what I've been doing, and it kills me that she never knew what I've managed to accomplish. So as we get closer to graduation the missing her is going to get worse again and I guess I'll have to deal with it.

So strange though, those few seconds of thinking she would call me in the morning. I don't think that's happened since maybe the first couple weeks after she died.

The Boy just came home and we're talking about dyeing eggs and I feel a bit better now. I know now though that I have some rocky weeks ahead. Ah well. Have to get through them some how.

In 30 minutes I get to leave for a dinner with Scott! Yay for Friday dinners with Scott!

Housework and Yard work this weekend!

My vacuum and lawn mower are both coming home from the repair shop right now!
That 3 year warranty I bought for the vacuum has really paid off. In a year's time it has never spent more than a week in working order. Seriously. I have never used it more than twice without it breaking down. This time they are replacing ball bearings or something like that. It's less than 18 months old.

But now we can vacuum again! And mow that back yard that is about three feet tall. WOOO!

Class Ring

Okay, try this link for my class ring instead: CLICK HERE
In antiqued white gold and a blue stone.

If that still doesn't work, search for the Lady Legend style.
:D

My week at school

I've been up early every morning this week and back at school to take care of different graduation and admission things. It's been so nice to be back on campus. I really love my school and even if I wasn't a teacher I would love to have a job on campus. It's just a very nice campus with very nice people.

So anyway I bought my cap and gown, and was told I had to take my graduation pictures right then, but that morning I had just rolled out of bed, put on a sweater, and went to school - there was no way I was getting my picture taken!!

So back to school I went the next day, all gussied up, and put on the gown... and the frakkin cap. Is there no way on earth to make a graduation cap that doesn't make the graduate look ridiculous?? I look absolutely ugly with the top of my head all lopped off and flattened into an egg shape. Ah well.

BUT - they also had the class ring sales people there and I couldn't resist looking. I never got a class ring for high school, and that's okay, but I really felt like I deserved one now. So I spent an HOUR looking at them all, and trying every single one on, over and over again. And I finally settled on this one in antiqued white gold with a blue stone (for my school color). It's really really nice, and I love it, and I can't wait for it to arrive.

So I now have three professors working on my recommendation letters. Earlier in the week I was browsing through the Mass Comm website and found a link to Graduate Studies. I clicked it and what do you know, I needed ANOTHER application turned in to their department!!! And the due date was April 1!!! Well, I already had submitted the university application, on time, so I just quickly filled out the new application, wrote up a new and much improved essay (which I love) and sent that sucker off. Only time will tell whether they will accept it.

You see, California took millions of dollars from the CSU budget. And my university alone is going to eat 30% of those budget cuts. The "reasoning" is something about us being the most successful CSU, so... we could afford 30% of the entire cut??? It's pretty ridiculous. So now thousands of applicants are being turned away. As a graduate student I have a better chance, but not 100% especially with that little missed deadline. It's frustrating to me that that additional application and deadline was not mentioned anywhere but inside that one not-obvious link, but I have to accept that I may not get in.

BUT, then I came home yesterday and see my application status was changed from "Incomplete" (meaning they haven't looked at it yet) to "Complete" which means I have all paperwork in and they're processing it. It's not "Accepted" yet, but "Complete" is actually a few steps through the process. Yeah, there are a zillion steps to being accepted. "Complete" may not seem like a big step, but it's actually pretty encouraging. A quick check of the current graduate classes show they aren't very full at all, so hopefully the Journalism department (which includes Mass Comm) will overlook the missed date and let me in. I'm no longer extremely worried, and now am only a little worried but very hopeful.

In the meantime, I now look forward to my department graduation. I'm not attending the giant all-inclusive graduation (because that would be a nightmare for me), but the English Department has a wonderful lunch and lets everyone say something as they cross the stage. That will be May 21. The kids and Scott will attend and I will finaly be officially, no doubt about it, a university graduate.

And hopefully also a graduate student. :)

My Brute has two friends!

I'm so happy, my little Agnes Bombay has friends today! I don't know who you are though, who made friends with my brute?
And if you want to be friends with my brute, GO HERE. Then make a brute and fight and they'll be friends.

Looking forward to not having to get up and rush to school tomorrow. It's a sleep in day! Not a pajama day though, because I'll probably be going to dinner with Scott. That's okay. I'll be happy with just sleep.

New movie coming up!

Hell is Other People is an independent film made by my friend Mr. JB Whaley. I would appreciate it if you went to visit the site and looked around.

Love,
Me.

My Brute needs Friends

Have time to waste? A need to procrastinate? Play MyBrute with me!!

Click here to go to MyBrute. Make your character. Fight.

Don't have much time to waste? You only get three fights a day. So it only takes up five minutes of procrastination time. Please make a brute! My little Agnes Bombay needs friends!

Free Business Cards!

Kim from MyGoodCents.net has a new giveaway on her site this week, 1000 free business cards!

Even if you don't need business cards you should be visiting her site anyway. She has tons of links to free samples and great deals, and even lists really cheap items on Amazon to add to your order to get the free shipping. Besides that, she's a really nice person that I have known for ten years (eep!). Also, I am in love with her cats. So go visit her site to register for free stuff, or try to win some free business cards!

Kittay asked for some more movie reviews or suggestions, and since I haven't seen any I really loved lately (HATED Kiss Me Kate, couldn't finish Tropic Thunder) I went through my Netflix list of rented movies and picked some I really love.

So Kittay, and anyone else who wants a suggestion, if you haven't seen any of these, you should:

Pan's Labyrinth
The Host
Memento
Cabaret
Milk
Quinceanera
Outsourced
Run Lola Run
Murderball
Monster Camp

I love these enough to say that if you haven't seen one of them, even if it doesn't sound good by the description, you should see it anyway, and I would bet that you'll love it. So try something new!

After this morning, fearing I was going to go bankrupt over the whole prom dress thing, I now feel like I won the lottery.

First we went to Betsey Johnson, which does have some really beautiful dresses. And Buffy, though she sometimes wears dresses, dresses more in a "hippy" style and never very formal. So the sight of some of these dresses on her was quite spectacular. I think she was also pleased. Unfortunately, the dress we all fell in love with was $475.

Now, I HAVE $475. But... I really didn't want to SPEND $475. Knowing, of course, that we still have shoes, and hair, and god knows what else, and knowing OF COURSE, that the father isn't pitching in one dime... I was hoping to spend quite a bit less.

So we continued on. Found a lot of pretty dresses at Blossoms, but none were bigger than a size 4. Buffy wears 6-9, depending on the dress. Nordstrom had nothing she liked. So we stopped and had lunch while I digested the idea of spending $475 on a dress she'll likely spill punch on before she even gets to the prom. We had passed through Macys on the way in the mall and they didn't really have anything. So we started heading back to Betsey Johnson after lunch. But suddenly Buffy took a turn and said she wanted to go back to Macys just one more time. I wasn't sure why because they really didn't have ANYthing worthwhile. But her friend suggested we go to the very bottom basement level.

TaDAAAAAAHHH!!!!! PROM DRESS GALORE!!!! I was so happy. I could barely breathe when I saw all the dresses because I KNEW there had to be something here among the thousands of dresses and that it wouldn't cost $475.

In fact, she kept looking at really pretty sun dresses that were 50% off. So I decided to bribe her, that's right, I BRIBED her, and told her that if she found a dress here at Macy's then I could also get her a couple sun dresses.

So she found a beautiful dress (fit her requirements of "short and puffy") that was white with silver and gold flowers. It's really gorgeous and very "her". AND she got three very cute sun dresses too. I left Macy's with four dresses in hand and only paid $200.

Pictures of the trip here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pischina/

Prom Dress Shopping

Taking Buffy to the mall today (Valley Fair mall, UGH) to shop for prom dresses. I don't know why we can't go to the discount asian dress shop down the road, no, we have to go to the gigantic rich people mall across town. And she specifically wants to visit the Betsey Johnson store. (P.S., Betsey Johnson? I owned this dress in 1986 and it cost me about $25).

I hate malls, I hate Valley Fair most especially, I hate shopping. But I am a sucker, so off we go to Valley Fair.

I'm going to take pictures as she tries them on and I'll send them to Flickr. So keep a look out there.

Bored? Head over to Lost Zombies for some interesting ways to participate and have fun. The guys running the site are very cool and enthusiastic, and if you're into zombies (or horror film) you're going to love this.

Many images are very realistic/bloody, you might be careful at work and it's not really for children. I'm not particularly endorsing, just giving you the heads up if you're interested in this sort of thing.

Soooo much got done today!

I went to SJSU and just went down the line of offices getting what I needed.

Office One: Hello Professor, I am switching majors, could you please write me a recommendation letter? Yes, I am sure that's what I want to do.

Office Two: Hello Professor, I am switching majors, could you please write me a recommendation letter? Oh, sorry I am breaking your heart.

Hallway: Hello Professor, I feel this major is a natural progression from the English major.
Professor: Natural progression??
Me: Okay, it's the next step.

Office Three: Hello Professor, please sign my form saying English 123D = 123A.
Professor: Why do we have to explain that... okay, nevermind.

English Office: Here's the form, please sign me up for Department Graduation Ceremony. Thank you.

Student Services: Here's the form, fix this mess NOW.

Student Union: I would like to buy this Alumni license plate frame, this Alumni water bottle, this Alumni key chain, two Humanities 2008 tassles, and a new SJSU Catalog for my Masters classes.

Admire the beautiful Cesar Chavez Memorial Arch that is FINALLY finished.

Parking Garage: No ticket on my car! Hurrah!!

It was a good day!

Michelle Obama is more than the sum of her clothes

I am going to scream if I hear the news say one more time, "The world is waiting to see what Michelle Obama will wear," or "We can't wait to see what fashion statement Michelle Obama is going to make today." REALLY??? Is that what she went to school for all those years? FASHION???

I mean, yeah, she's beautiful, and Yay for nice clothes and stuff, but hasn't this woman accomplished anything else in her life? Is the fact that we have (another) First Lady who is just as intelligent as her presidential husband so scary that we have to reduce her to the sum of her clothes? I can't even get out through my words how absolutely offensive it is to hear the NEWS people reduce her intelligence, accomplishments and value to only what she wears. I am furious, and I don't understand why other people aren't upset too. YOU SHOULD BE UPSET. We should NOT be so proud of Michelle's fashion sense that we completely ignore the OH SO MUCH MORE IMPORTANT aspects of this woman and her life.

RIDICULOUS. If the news reported on her work and accomplishments along with her fashion, then all would be just fine - but the only thing ever reported on Michelle Obama is what she does and doesn't wear and if you can see her (*GASP*) arms. You news people should be ashamed of yourselves!

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