So That Happened

Dear Fires,

Please STOP.  And weather?  Please stop being such an enabler.

Thanks.

Sincerely,
All of California

I Clearly Need To Live On This Street

Surprisingly, it is not in a place named Boozetown or Drunkyburgh.

The Master Cleanse: A Follow-Up

A few days ago I put an APB out on the Master Cleanse and you were all so great in leaving comments - thanks!  I wanted to let you know that I decided to not do the MC as it seemed very drastic.  Not only that, this has a pretty stressful month for me and taking on something like this would not do my psyche or body any favors.  I'll stick to what I've been doing for several months, which is a lot of portion control (including weighing most of my food into eight-ounce servings).  It's worked very well for me so far.

In case you were wondering, my co-worker finished the MC and lost ten pounds.  Her fiance, on the other hand, lost nineteen pounds.  NINETEEN.  In TEN DAYS.  She said he said he feels fine but...I don't know.  That seems like an awful lot of weight to lose in less than two weeks - to me, at least.  

Dear Paul Rudd,

MARRY ME.  PLEASE.  

Why?  Because of THIS:

Wait until 1:45 and you will all see why I love this man.  LOVE. HIM.

(And in case you were wondering, the song he is dancing to is "Rocks" by Primal Scream.  You're welcome.)

A Totally Shameless Promotional Post

Those of you who have been reading this blog know that I've mentioned my best friend/partner in crime/traveling cohort/fellow food fiend/better half Heathyr.  You know how you have that one person you can call at any time day or night no matter what the problem, or even if there isn't a problem at all?  She's mine.  We clicked instantly the moment we met 12 years ago in college, and have pretty much shared the same brain ever since.

ANYWAY.  Heathyr has managed to remain off the interwebs for the most part - that is, until now.  (I'm serious - she wasn't even on Facebook until literally last night, which led me to check if hell had indeed frozen over.)  Earlier this fall she did what most of us dream of doing: she up and quit her job and moved to the Bay area to become a sommelier student.  And she's writing about her adventure here:

Working the Vine

So read her blog, won't you?  I promise you will not be disappointed.  And if you are even just a little bit, I will come over and punch you right in the throat.  Because even though I know what Dionne Warwick & Friends have told me, that's really what friends are for.

Sweep the Leg, Johnny!

No, seriously, sweep Will Smith's leg, Chris Murphy's leg, Jerry Weintraub's leg, and even Jaden Smith's leg (I don't care if he's only ten years old), because I do NOT agree with the idea of remaking The Karate Kid as a vehicle for Jaden.  Just STOP IT.  STOP IT WITH THE REMAKES, HOLLYWOOD.  And stop encouraging Jaden, who works my last freaking nerve.  (I admit I cannot STAND Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith, and their entire clan, so I may be a little biased.)

GRR.  RAAAAAAAGE.

Vintage

I wrote earlier about finding a bunch of old photos, including some of my Mom at Disneyland from 1968.  I'm going to post those later - once I recreate the same shots, that is - but I wanted to share this shot of my Mom and her friend from the same year.  

My Mom is on the right, and her friend (and my sister's future godmother) is on the left.  Don't they look awesome?  I really love their dresses.  I still don't see any resemblance to her.

The Master Cleanse: Any Thoughts?

I've been watching my co-worker like a hawk with great curiousity for the past week as she has been on the Master Cleanse.  In case you don't know anything about it, it's essentially a 10-day (or longer) fast in which you only drink a specific blend of water, lemons, cayenne pepper and maple syrup (click here for more details including the recipe). 

I have been thinking about doing it for some time because it seems like a nice way to "reset" your systems.  I know many people who have done it and absolutely rave about it (read Carla's take on it if you would like), so I wanted to cast a wider net and get more input from the interwebs.  Have you done it?  Did you like it?  Did you miss things like chewing?  Would you do it again?  Help a girl out and leave your thoughts - thank you!

Looking for a Good Cry?

Then read this:

A Butler Well Served by this Election

Don't forget your tissue.  Seriously.  Thanks to Uccellina for the heads-up on this article.

Flashback

I finally got around to using my scanner and boy oh boy, someone should take that thing away from me because I've now become a scanning MACHINE.  (As opposed to, well, a scanner, but you know what I mean.)  I found some great old photos I can't wait to scan and save - the most important ones being of my mom at Disneyland in the late '60s.  The photos are so beautiful and vintage; I love them a lot.  I'm also compelled to go back to DIsneyland and pose for photos in the same places my mom did for perspective.  What do you think of that plan?

Here's one photo of me as a wee bairn: it is at my ninth birthday party in 1983.  I remember how much I loved my Flashdance-style dress, as well as the clear jelly shoes you can sort of see under the bench (the white socks make the shoes' jelly-ness not so obvious).  And look - it's Santa E. Cheese!  Or is it Chuck E. Claus?