SinCityBlonde’s Neighbors

Uhhhhmmm... that's not Moshi

nobody@vox.com(LeendaDLL) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 22:09:07 -0700

Heard one of the cat's eating. Except... it wasn't one of the cats

I don't remember inviting wildlife to dinner

The new question is... how long has it been in my house? 5 min or 5 weeks? And how do I get it out?

All's well that ends well update:
Using a broom, I chased the possum out the front door (after a detour through the living room). Lucily, it was young so it didn't go viscous, or possum, on me.

But opening the front door meant that the cat's took off. So I had to looking for them (dark grey & solid black cats - at night). I saw Moshi up the street and knew he had probably followed Boo. While I was searching the neighbor's yards for Boo, I started hearing a woman crying like her baby had just died (no other way to describe it). I'm pretty sure I heard her scream "dead" a couple times. I was at least a block away from her - so why didn't I see anyone closer going out to see what was going on? I called the police - apparently the first to do so. That made NO sense. She'd been screaming for at least 5 min at that point. Then I started hearing a guy tell her to shut up. Then I thought I heard her being slapped - but I wasn't sure. The police asked if she was screaming for her father (so maybe someone else did call in). I said I didn't know. I kind of got the feeling she'd found out someone was dead and was freaking out - but I'm not basing that on anything more than a hunch. After I hung up with the police, I headed outside and saw a group of people outside "the gang house" (I have no idea if the residents are actual gang members but the cops have been there more than once, in a night, and they have a couple really scary dogs and everything about the place/people seems unsavory)... a couple guys and the crying girl were out front. She was mostly calmed down while the guys were laughing about something. WTF? Then I watched the police drive right past them - the only people on that part of the street. WTFx2? About 4 rounds of the block later, I think the cops are finally talking to them now... I'm not sure cause I was trying not to be too obvious cause in this neighborhood it's not smart to be obvious about being the one who called the cops.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Casual FunDay

nobody@vox.com(LeendaDLL) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 20:27:59 -0700

After a lot of wasting time, I finally headed over to the Health Expo at the Costa Mesa fairgrounds. As I expected (from attending a previous event there), it was pretty much deserted. I didn't expect most of the vendors to be nut jobs - but this was apparently a "holistic" health event so for every 1 normal person, there were about 4 whack jobs. It was... interesting.

I tried one of those vibra-workout machines. The "K2". I actually really liked it. While on it, I had fun changing positions (which you're supposed to do) and finding what new body part - never before thought about - would jiggle like mad. And now, several hours later, my abs actually feel a little sore - so maybe it works. But at $3500, I won't be getting one.

I tried a couple health juices. And followed them with a beer.

I spent a couple hours with Nicole and her pole dance booth. She got some vid of me, doing a simple spin, but I'm afraid to see it. It was fun to try out the poles on stages. I'm soooo glad I didn't buy one! Everything that concerned me turned out to be accurate... too short, bitch to get on (cause of my knee), not stable, definitely unsafe at my weight. I loved watching an older (60s?) woman learn some moves. She was really fit and took to it fast. I hope she goes to the studio for classes! Nicole gave a free class to anyone who took a spin.

I didn't make it to the swapmeet (10' away) but that was by choice. I left the health thing around 5 (right when they were getting ready to pack up) and headed to the main store of Promeli's (the little high end grocery store I've been frequenting in Balboa). I didn't like the atmosphere as much as the little store, but I did find "Chipotle Cheddar" SALAD DRESSING. So I had to buy that! Then I went for my target, Boar's Head brand turkey. But I found REAL turkey for the same price, and bought 2 lbs of that instead. Mmmm... turkey sammiches!!

There was a super busy coffee place (are they coffee shops, houses, stores, or what??) next door so snagged a white mocha. Then I headed over to Hi Times Liquor Store. I've heard about the place nearly all my life but this was my first time in. Well, hellloooo nirvana!! If you can imagine it, they probably stock it!. I found 20 varieties of Proseco (look, Scotch, I remembered!!). I found Absolut Los Angeles for only $17.99. I found blue-cheese-dijon-mustard. I found more types of vodka than I knew existed. I found mini bottles of nearly everything imaginable (EXCEPT barenjager - which is what I went for. but they did have full bottles)... choco-raspberry vodka, pom-acai vodka, caramel vodka, guava rum, limoncello... on & on. I FOUND A CHAMPAGNE PURSE! I had to conscoiusly remind myself, "it's OK not to buy everything. you can come back!" I didn't go into the tasting room - but only because Grrrace had told me that you pour your own "samples" and it's very easy to have too much fun. I still had to drive.

Now to find an airplane

It's a Champagne Purse. Really!

So I got back in my car and noticed that it smelled odd. Not bad... but I couldn't identify the exact odor. I figured it was something from Promeli's getting too warm. I started to head home, finally sipped my coffee and realized... it smelled like pot (I don't smoke but I know the smell), and tasted of it too. Hmmm... that was... unusual... and perhaps why the shop was so oddly busy?

On the way home, I stopped at the FGNs' to turn in my wedding RSVP and drop off a mini bottle of Trump Vodka (their reception is going to be at Trump National Golf Course in Palos Verdes). It occurred to me that Tamara (the person who tentatively invited me to Jamaica (she's from there)) might like to go to the wedding and that it might be a good opp to see how we party together. The FGNs told me to go for it, more the merrier - they want to have a FUN celebration (it's open bar, I think they'll reach their goal).

So... home now. The kitty's got some out front time. I got my mattress pad in the wash (and the big spider moved his web today so I'll actually be able to get back into the garage to put the pad in the drier), had a big ol' turkey sammich (with blue cheese dijon mustard) and blood orange soda (LOVE those!). I should probably put stuff away... or get ready for work tomorrow... or something productive. But I think I'm gonna go watch TV... cause that's how I roll.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Saturday's Adventure

nobody@vox.com(Artzy Carmen) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 20:22:23 -0700

We went to an auction Saturday, it was an adventure. I really enjoyed it.

We went to purchase a house… knowing that it would be very unlikely that we could snag it for what we could afford. And we had a little fun while we were there.

My dad had told me about the house, since he recognized that it was one street over from us. I went one day last week and walked through the house and fell in love in an instant. Mainly with the kitchen. It was pretty amazing! It was like two kitchens, and the largest kitchen I ever had (14’7” square) wasn’t nearly as big as this one. I instantly knew that I could have an art studio (at least the glass and soap) in that kitchen and still be able to cook dinner with no problem. It is not new, or fancy, or the slightest bit up to date. But it is spacious and in good condition – other than needing all new floors and a coat of paint. Outside everything is great. It has all its original carpet and vinyl floors (ewww!) which are in remarkably good condition for as old as it is. We watched the bidding go higher and higher and it looked like it wouldn’t sell for a while but finally the one with the high bid took it up to the price the family wanted. And that was that, the house was sold. It was a fascinating process and I was ok with how it turned out. I knew there was no way we could afford to go as high as they could, so that was that.

Hubby bought some tools, and he was pretty pleased with himself although none of it looked interesting to me. I bought a microwave for my studio for $3, plus a pair of floor lamps in good condition for $4. And they went inside to sell the furniture and they were selling off a whole bedroom at a time and I was kind of incredulous on how little stuff was going for so I stuck my hat in the ring and ended up buying a bedroom suite of vintage furniture for $50! I was tickled but hubby was standing there looking at me like I’d lost my mind since I have no space in my house to put that furniture! I’m still not sure where it will end up, but when we get a bigger house, we’ll need that stuff.

I met the woman who was the seller. She was the niece of the elderly couple who had lived there for many years. The husband had passed on and the wife was in assisted living. She was there alone (her hubby was out of town) and had to make the decisions all by herself. I felt for her. I didn’t buy the house and I had my husband and father both at the sale. I had more support than she did. I told her that our house was on the market and that we needed a bigger house so we could bring home our children and told her briefly about our adoption. That seemed to connect with her, she said she wished that we’d gotten it.

We also spent some time with the buyers. They live in the smaller house across the street and bought the auctioned house on impulse. (How do you DO that?!) So on impulse (sensing a pattern here) they invited us to walk through their house thinking that maybe we might want to buy theirs. It wasn’t even on the market but we walked through it anyway. It was hard to really get a feel for that house because they had it FULL of junk! Mercy, they had a TV room where there were three recliners facing a TV and everything from the chairs back was filled with junk! It was really pretty amazing! We could make that house cute I guess, but it would take some investment! There is a wall that needs to come down and the kitchen needs remodeling. It has a vintage stove that is larger than regular ranges are. If that thing went ka-putz, replacing it would get tricky. It really wouldn’t be a great fit for us but maybe we could make it work for a short term house. The one across the street we would have considered a long term house! He mentioned a price based on what other houses in the neighborhood had been going for. He didn’t realize that those houses were newer and renovated and his wasn’t. So it hardly matters, I can’t imagine that we’ll end up in his house. It didn’t feel right at all, but maybe that was just my reaction to their walls lined with stacks and piles of junk.

The whole time we were being shown around their home, the man was shaking his head and wondering out loud if they’d made the right decision. He kept saying he wondered if it would sink them. He said she wanted the house so he said ok. And they were well past retirement age and he said they wouldn’t live there long anyway. Later I joked with the auctioneer that it would be on the market again in five years. So who knows, maybe we’ll have a shot at it yet. I would love to raise my children in that house!

I have decided that I like auctions. It was a rainy day and the crowd was small and we snagged some bargains. I was pretty pleased with our little adventure.

Send to a friend

Well, Wouldja Look at the Brain on THAT City?

nobody@vox.com(Kirk) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 12:44:26 -0700

This morning Amanda gleefully mentioned a 2006 study conducted by Central Connecticut State University that found my hometown of Seattle as the nation's most literate city.

It's a statistic to be proud of, sure, but for me it's mostly another reason not to feel bad about getting away with things like splitting an infinitive in that last sentence.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

travel help...

nobody@vox.com(uncagedbird) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 12:23:11 -0700

I need a recommendation for a lesbian friendly B&B in Seattle - preferrably Capitol Hill area. I've decided that I don't want to stay in a hotel downtown & would rather have the B&B feel when R and I go out this fall. I've checked the travel guides (both print and online) but would love to get a recommendation from someone who either lives there or has stayed in one.

I know they exist, but it's been 8 years since I lived in Seattle and couldn't even begin to guess who's still in business and who's not...

Thanks so much...

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Happy Birthday Richard

nobody@vox.com(Daniel) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 10:23:52 -0700

This is a crosspost from ...was i there?

To the most important person in my life, the man who has stood by me through good and bad for 11 (or 12) years, my partner, my confidante, my friend, my lover...

Thank you for spending another year of your life with me! Happy Birthday!

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Man, I'm a nerd.

nobody@vox.com(Mello) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 04:59:43 -0700

I love those freecreditreport.com commercials with that guy who sings those little songs. I think they're funny.

Did you just totally lose all respect for me?

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Sunday Muse-ic : Siouxie & the Banshees', 'Dear Prudence'

nobody@vox.com(ed'sperience) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 01:43:25 -0700

Siouxsie & The Banshees - Dear Prudence (music video)

I like her haunting rendition of this number....which goes very well with her disturbed, couldn't-care-less-about-mainstream-trends look....

ed

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

WulfTheYounger - Sunday, September 07, 2008 3:47:22 AM

nobody@vox.com(WulfTheYounger) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 00:47:23 -0700

heartbreak or nonsense

unsplit lip non-slip grip
unsplit lip non-slip grip

What is that noise?!

Aaaaaand thunder breaks

The phantom smell of maple wafts up into my room

this serves as a warning wake up in the morning
this serves as a warning wake up in the morning

Deep Dark Found Down Dead
Sleep Stark Frown Sound Said

Heartbreak or nonsense
What do we need to deciiiiide?
Do we have the needle and fence and the beetle and two pence
But you just stood a-
just stood a-
stood a-

Just stood aside.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Smaller Government

nobody@vox.com(Artzy Carmen) — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 21:15:31 -0700

That’s code language for: “Mr. President, that’s MY money, I inherited it fair and square, and you can just get your hands OFF it! One of the speakers at the RNC made the point that government is NOT the church, and it is not a philanthropy. And she went on to say that Americans are the best at choosing which churches and philanthropy’s are right for their money. Which made me snicker because clearly the RNC haven’t gotten the message that most people are seeing their gas budget eat into the grocery budget which may not leave a whole lot of room for the charity of their choice. Then there are those who are trying to survive medical bills and home foreclosures. I’m pretty sure they aren’t kept up nights wondering which charity to unload their access cash. So maybe that slogan about “Country First” should come with a little addendum such as: “as long as my country doesn't come asking for my money.” They can package it all up in a slick marketing campaign. Only problem is, it’s missing the ring of truth.

Send to a friend