Pictures from the park

8 years ago

8 years ago tomorrow Matt and I had our first date. My dear friend Jimmy use to say, "you chased him until he caught you". It was a long chase and well worth it.

Chocolate

Once when my parents were visiting, we went to the museum of natural history to see the History of Chocolate. We all found it quite interesting. Being the marketing genius that those museums are you exited right into a chocolate store. Everything chocolate. My mom promptly stated that my dad would spend at least $50. She was right.

One of the chocolates my dad purchased was a Fire Bar. A large chocolate bar mixed with spicy spices and a creation of flavor I had never experienced. We tasted many, many chocolates that day. Including some mole and various other entree type food mixed with the dark and light delightful chocolate. But really the Fire Bar stuck in my mind.

Quite a long time after the visit to the museum I found the company that makes the coveted Fire Bar. Vosges Chocolate I have placed one order. It came in a lovely package and everything was wonderful. I do prefer the soft truffles to the hard shelled. But these are very good. The order arrived just in time for another visit from my parents. I shared each of the chocolate bars they had at the time. (3 new ones since then!) Again my favorite is the Fire Bar.

The best side effect of ordering from this inspiring company is the mail you get following! OMG, I get catalogs all the time. The pictures are amazing. The stories are interesting. The descriptions are enticing. It makes me want to order more. Even though it is super expensive. I will order more their marketing does work. I also get emails with yummy pictures, enough to make you drool.

So do your self a favor. Order some chocolate. The catalogs that follow make it totally worth the price of the purchase.

BTW, this chocolate is the source of my inspiration of the cookies. I am going to perfect them tomorrow. Cookies for all at work on Monday!

I still have bursitis

YAY! No tear, only a tiny bit of fraying of my tendons. The inflammation should subside within 4-6 months and I shouldn't have any more trouble. My prescription is to do aggressive stretching and yoga. I can do both.

I participated in a state wide disaster drill today. I played a victim, actually many different victims actually. The disaster was a bomb explosion at a hotel convention center (the Hilton in Burbank) after they set up triage outside in the parking lot there was another explosion in the triage area. Then another blast on the main route from there to the hospital. We had 50 victims. I was an older woman who had a large abdominal wound and was sent to the OR. Rather than go to the OR she wandered away and they had to call the cops to find her walking down the street. My personal favorite was the playing the woman who was 7 months pregnant and contaminated. They decon'd me the sent me to L&D and I delivered the babies. I decided to have twins because I couldn't choose a boy or a girl. I was also a few different men, most with hearing loss due to the blast and abdominal pain due to some biological agent in the bombs. It was fun. I like working with different people and these type of drills are always filled with people you only see in passing. Next time they are going one step further and having make up people from the studios come over and do "real" injuries!

I went grocery shopping today. I spent $109 and feel like I hardly bought anything. I suppose the impulse purchase of a $18 prime rib roast, $15.99 tequlia and then $15 worth of water made it seem like so little. I also for the very first time in my entire life bought brussel sprouts. Why you ask? I don't know. But I plan to steam them with some raisins, (the did not have currents) and make myself like them. I'll let you know how it goes. My dad would be jealous!

MRI

I had an MRI of my shoulder today. Prior to the procedure I requested valium. So now I'm home, eating berry pie and watching Starting Over.

The last time I had an MRI it was followed up with Legally Blond with Matt. If I had timed this better I could have come full circle and went to see Walk the Line post MRI. I'll settle for comfy pants and Days of Our Lives and the 20th anny of Oprah.

picture random

I am working on creating a cookie recipe for the November recipe contest on epicurious.com. The theme is cakes and cookies. In my recipe, I recreate some chocolate chips to have a bit more kick and add some fruit for balance. I'll post the recipe when it is perfected.


the cookies, good but not perfect


Chase-er-meow-meow licking her chops, she doesn't like cookies.



Me


Matt and I at Katrina's for a bbq. Matt made his famous ribs, sadly no pictures.


Katrina and Christina


Katrina eating Scott's apple and pomagranet pie



Matt and I again


stalker?

Neighborhood relics

My Doctor posted about the 1940's air raid sirens. I live across the street from one and just last week commented that I think it is a siren of some sort. Matt thought it was just a wire depot or whatever. Here are some pictures others have compiled. My personal siren is not pictured.

http://www.polarinertia.com/sep05/raid01.htm

Deep Thoughts

I'm sick and tired of Natalie Hallaway and her mother. Why are they still in the news? I've done some really, in hindsight, stupid things in my life. Sure it could have been me, but when you put yourself into situations that could endanger your life you stand a risk of something bad happening. And if you choose to go to a darkened beach with a boy you just met in Aruba you made your choice. The same damn thing happens here, it happens at Venice Beach, Jones Beach, beach town USA. I don't see any of those mothers on television. Our justice system is just as screwed up, but we don't call for a boycott of that; nope you just move to a state that allows you to live as you choose regardless of guilt. I'm sorry that she is missing and possibly dead, but slandering the entire country of Aruba isn't going to bring her back, it will probably work against you in the end. Speaking of white girls in the news whatever happened to Chandra Levy, who killed her?

Matt asked me this weekend what ever happened to Reggie the alligator. I’ll have to direct him to his blog. It seems that Reggie has gone into hibernation for the winter, it IS getting cold here.
http://savereggie.blogspot.com/

I’m not voting today. I don’t have any good excuses except I don’t care. I’m just glad it is today and I won’t get any more phone calls from Arnold, or the abortion people and the commercials that run every 4 seconds will stop. I may change my mind and force Matt to go with me. I’ll let you know what happens.

My friend Rose finds free stuff on the internet and has stuff sent to my home. Today Joe Anna received Oguma. Oguma you say? It is the Aqua Key Ion Complex Elite. The kit contains a spray bottle and some face masks. What I gather from the pictures, I’ve yet to read the directions. You spray your face and you then have positive Ions. You can use the mask for the deep Ion refreshment. I haven’t tried it but I did smell it. It smells like nothing, maybe water. Which prompted me to review the ingredients:
ICE-Ion Complex Elite, nanotech molecular water, oxygen.
That explains why it smells like water, it is water.

What does this mean? It is not unusual to find milk flush or exzema immediately after spraying Aquakey due to causes such as waste residue or toxic substance stored in skin, it is of natural metabolism. Reduce the spray amount by 50% until condition disappears. I’m not so sure about this product. I think I’ll have Matt try it and see if he gets milk flush.

It is freaking water in a spray bottle, I swear.

I have a 3 day weekend. Friday I plan to rent a dirt doctor and shampoo the carpets. I don’t know if I can actually do it, but I want to. My shoulder thus far has not been keen on vacuuming.

I nearly have a 4 day weekend, if all goes as planned on Monday. I have an MRI at 9:30, so maybe if I’m brave enough I’ll just go home after. I already emailed my supervisor telling him I think I won’t be back. So maybe I’ll just work 3 hours then come home and watch day time tv! Whoot!

Reservations Made

I know that May is still forever away, but I just made the reservations for our camper in Alaska!

We will be sleeping in a truck camper for 9 nights. 4 nights will be spent with Tom in Palmer.

Now to make the Denali camping reservations. OMG, we're going to Alaska!

Days of Our Lives

Tonight was the night! I pulled into the parking garage, and the lot was full. I pouted a bit and the guy asked me my name. I said Joanna. He left to get "the list" and came back and said that sadly I wasn't on the list. The names on the list were Ken Corday (producer), Deidre Hall(Marlena)... yes; I'm not on that list I KNOW those names. I asked him what I was supposed to do and he said he didn't know, I pouted a bit more and he took my keys and gave me a ticket. YAY. I then asked him where I could get a drink. He didn't have any suggestions. I walked out and checked out the line.

It was 5:15 and I didn't really want to stand in line for an hour. I kept walking and saw the Cheesecake Factory. Bingo. I don't know why I forgot about the CF. I saw one seat at the bar and politely asked the woman sitting next to it if it was available. It was. I sat, ordered a cosmo and perused the menu. I heard the women next to me mention details of Days or DOOL if you are a true fan. I said “Oh are you guys going to the days thing?”. All three women sneered at me and said yes, then as if an after thought the woman next to me asked quite rudely if I was. I snotted right back to her yes. Snotty bitches. I tried my best to ignore them and listen to every word they said while I read the menu and watched the football/basketball game.

The bitches left and I finished my (gasp) second drink. $25 later, I left and walked the two blocks to the TV & Radio Museum. The line was still outside, and I now a little buzzed and quite a bit braver, chatted with the old (70ish) couple behind me. Doug and Julie, two old time cast members go to their church, the one at Colfax and Moorpark where they filmed 7th Heaven. Once inside with tickets in hand I found a single seat in the middle. I asked the woman next to me if she was from LA. She was from out near Joshua Tree. I said that is a very special place in my heart. The woman she was with lives in JT. I told them all about my wedding and we bonded over DOOL. We brought the woman on the other side of me into the chit chat. Then all of the sudden the desert chick squeals and realized that it is Sunny from NY. ??? It seems that they all post on the same message boards, mainly Deidre Hall fan sites. The desert chick seriously knows everything about his other chick’s life. I can totally relate, even though I’m not a very active member of my own online community I know their little secrets and it would be weird if I happened to be sitting next to one of them. I give them both my card and they promised to keep in touch.

Soon the lights go dim, and the show begins. They began with a nice clip show and man do the Deidre fans scream when she comes on, wow! The moderator was only ok. It was great to see everyone in real life. On the panel was Ab, John Black, Marlena, Bo, Hope (she is sickly skinny), Ken Corday, Julie, and Doug. In the audience was Maggie, Sami, Carrie, Austin, Nicole and Frankie. There may have been more, but it was hard to tell. They discussed their auditions, the various plots, and different feelings they have for each other and the show. I learned that Ken Corday the son of the original producers. When his father died his mother took over. When she was ready to retire, he took over; 40 years one family. The super fans next to me give quite a spoiler that Marlena is actually married to Alex. I don’t know how that happens; but he isn’t Roman. He really is Roman, he is the OG Roman, the guy that we saw in Vail, CO when I was 15. But he isn’t Roman now, he’s been replaced multiple times, by John Black and Dylan’s dad from 90120.

There were a few fan questions, none of them very good. More along the lines of when are you going to have John and Marlena get a back together? I guess I’m in the minority for the reunion of Roman (Dylan’s dad) getting back together. I quickly learned to keep my thoughts to myself.

After they wrapped things up, there was a nice little reception. The food looked very good, I had an apple slice. Sami was walking towards me and I stopped her and told her how much I enjoyed her character and I thought she was really good. She is the only one who can draw real tears (ok so can Kate but not like Sami). I got my camera and asked some woman to take our picture. I lost the chance and she had her arm around a cute retarded boy, he was in front of me and seemed totally into it. Then someone else grabbed her for a picture. I said to the woman with my camera, oh well missed opportunity. As soon as Sami was done with the second picture she came back to me and said I know you wanted to have your picture taken with me! Hooray.

I also took pictures of Carrie, Ab, a few of Marlena (ok I got all swept up into her fan club, I don’t know if I’ll join, but I might run behind the bandwagon for a bit and check things out) John, Doug and Julie. All the others retreated straight to the green room and did not mingle with mere fans. I’m a tiny bit annoyed that they didn’t even spend 10 minutes in the crowd. Nobody was that crazy. They probably really are that crazy, cause they’ll hate your non mingling ass and let it be known all over the internet. I look forward to reading the boards.

Sami and I

Marlena (I'm such a fan I even took one of her at her car in the parking garage)

Carrie

John



there are a few more, I'll post them later.