I See You!!!

But only out of one eye. Darn those photos w/ drunk friends where they push your hair half in front of your face. I still love this photo though. Happy HNT!

An Interesting Quote

I heard an interesting quote this last weekend. Something along the lines of:

"If you ask an honest question, you have to be ready to accept any answer."

This really struck a chord with me. So often we say that we want to know the truth, want people to be honest with us, want to know what is really going on. This can be in any type of relationship - lover, friend, coworker, etc. However, when the truth is given to us we may not like it. People get upset over the answer. They become hurt and/or angry with the other person.

I guess what I really like about this quote is it reminds us that we asked for the truth and have to accept the truth that was given even if it wasn't what we wanted to hear. We may not like it, but you can't be angry at the other person for giving what you asked for. It also makes you think before asking a question - do you really want to know the answer? Are you truly willing to accept whatever comes back in response?

It's a hard lesson to practice, but one I fully intend to work on. Just thought I'd throw it out into cyberspace to see if it struck a chord for anyone else.

This quote was brought to you by the letter Q and the number 1.

Note To Self

Don't go do a 6:15am hour-long spin class the day after doing leg weights when you've been a slacker and haven't been keeping up with your workouts. If I can move tomorrow I'll consider it a victory.

The weather is foggy and rainy today. Makes me really want to curl up on my couch, put in a movie and go to sleep. It'd be even better with someone to join me. Instead I'm stuck here at work with asshats. Ugh.

This gray moment was brought to you by the letter R and the number 6.

Good Times

Though I didn't make it to Texas Interhash this weekend, I still managed to muddle through and have a great time. Friday night I met Scrummy, Menage and Naddy at Dos Pinas for some mexican food and $2 Coronas. Nice! Then we went to The Strokes concert. It pretty much kicked ass. We started out on the elevated area to the side by the first stairway. Far too many people being far too rude caused us to just head to the back of the venue where you could still see, had room to dance and didn't have people shoving into you constantly. Good times, good times. Oh, and Murray - Eagles of Death Metal were pretty damn good. How the heck do you know about them?

Saturday I spent some time unpacking things in the apartment. It's starting to resemble a home a bit more. Part of my problem is I need to buy some book shelves. That would help a lot. C'est la vie. It'll happen eventually. Spent about an hour and a half on the phone having an entertaining conversation with E. Ended up falling asleep for a bit and of course woke up late. Oops.

Called E and told him I was running behind in getting down to Los Gatos. We eventually met up at CB Hannigans and had some awesome cask-strength Laphroig 10 year old single-malt. Mmmm mmmm good. Grabbed a bite to eat and then started a bit of a pub crawl. Ended up at the Black Watch because where else are you going to end up in Los Gatos? Our timing was perfect as we grabbed the last two stools at the bar and then the place got packed. It was hilarious people watching and we had some great conversations throughout the evening. Let me preface this next story by saying that E has long hair. A group of folks celebrating a birthday came in. They were pretty hammered. We were chatting with one of them for a bit. About 5 minutes later the same girl comes over and says, "Ladies, let me tell you a story." I almost fell off my stool laughing. Anyway, I thought we were just hanging out and was excited to get to know someone knew. It turned into a little bit more than that which was pleasantly unexpected. We hung out for a bit at PF's place and then he headed home and I just crashed there as she was kind enough to let me use her place while out of town. I don't really know what's going on, but it's really fun getting to know him.

Sunday I had a Burning Man camp prep-day. We were making pillows and cushions for our chill space. It was a good time. That night I tried to do laundry, but the neighbors were doing it so no such luck. Stayed up far too late watching a rerun (of all things) of Grey's Anatomy. Did make it to the gym this morning though!

Today I got conned into signing up for another poi class that starts tonight. When I get home I need to do some serious laundry and clean my bathroom.

The point of all this? Well, there really isn't one. Just that I had a great weekend and can't wait for the next one!

This pointless ramble was brought to you by the lette A and the number 3.

Random

After leaving the gym this morning I was on my way to work. At a stop sign I happened to glance in my rearview mirror. I did a double, triple and quadruple take. There was a woman behind me who looked exactly like my mother in her younger years.

I probably made the poor woman uncomfortable because I couldn't stop staring. At least I had sunglasses on so maybe she didn't entirely notice.

It's just interesting because my mom has been on my mind a lot recently. Bizarre. I really don't know what to say so I'll stop babbling now.

This moment of babble was brought to you by the letter M and the number 1.

Finally!

I've been kissed by someone who knows how to kiss. It seems like ages since that has happened. Fabulous!

This moment of randomness was brought to you by the letter K and the number 2.

Happy Happy Joy Joy

I'm really looking forward to this weekend. Sure, it's disappointing I can't make TXIH and hang out w/ all you crazy folks, bu it should be fun despite all that.

Tonight I'm going with Scrummy, Menage and Gonad to see The Strokes at The Concourse at SF Design Center. Yea The Strokes! I heart those guys. Should be a cool show. Eagles of Death Metal are opening for them. Who are they? I have no idea, but their name kicks ass.

Saturday day I *must* motivate to unpack my apartment. It really is ridiculous that I've been there as long as I have and am still living in boxes and suitcases. That's mainly because I'm never home, but still. Really need to get that finished.

Saturday night I'm hanging out with this guy E that I met last weekend at the Pirate party. He seems like a pretty cool cat and I'm looking forward to getting to know him more. We're heading to CB Hannigans in Los Gatos which is the single-malt bar so that should kick ass. Plus he's mentioned I may be able to finagle a massage (he's a CMT) so how much will that rock?!

Sunday I have my first work day with my Burning Man camp - The Iron Roses. I can't wait! We're preparing stuff for our chill space so it should be a fun time.

I did dinner last night w/ my old roomie and we were able to catch up on each other's lives. I realized as I was talking to her that other than work, I have some really cool things going on in my life right now. I'm fire dancing, belly dancing, meeting new people, stretching my comfort zone, etc. And you know what? It feels good.

This moment of general happiness was brought to you by the letter A and the number 3.

Blue Light Special

It's a 2-for-1 HNT today. A photo from the Betty Ford Rehab Hash lingerie run. Sorry for the poor quality, but you can see the parts y'all are looking at anyway. :-) Happy HNT!

An Overdue Thank You

Yes, I know I still owe stories from Betty Ford. Sue me! I've been a busy girl and this one won't take long to type. In fact, I can't believe I'm inflating this wanker's ego with a blog posting.

To the Wanker with a capital W Brownie - thank you for sending me some kick ass music. I've really enjoyed the CDs - New Monsoon, G Love and some hash songs. You rock, but if you ever try and claim that I'll deny it vehemently.

This moment of thanks was brought to you by the letter M and the number 1.

AFOS

After my little public transportation incident Friday night, the rest of my weekend was pretty good. Saturday I did some unpacking around the house. That night I went to a Pirate Rum and Wine Tasting party over in Oakland. It was a pretty good time. Met some cool people, learned about a single-malt bar in Los Gatos and I got to dress up and walk around w/ my flogger. What more could a girl ask for?

Sunday was absolutely GORGEOUS! Blue sky, bright sun and warm (relativel) temperatures. After far too little sleep I remembered I was supposed to spin fire that night w/ white gas. Problem - I don't have any white gas. And it's Sunday which means most hardware stores aren't open. Went over to Laurel Heights to deposit some checks and see if that hardware store carried white gas. The store wasn't open just yet so I walked down to the evil monopoly Starbucks and had a coffee. Laurel Heights is a really cute part of town. The population is mainly young parents with kids or DINKYs (double-income, no kids yet). The kids were absolutely adorable and I had a big smile on my face. At the same time, it's been some length of time since I have felt that alone. I'm not sure how you can be happy and sad at the same time, but I figured it out.

Anyway, that store didn't carry white gas so I tried another one. Once they finally opened they did have it so life was good. Played volleyball in Golden Gate Park that afternoon. It sucked. Well, the volleyball didn't suck. I sucked. Badly. Really really badly. Just painfully. You know when you haven't played in a while and when you come back you have a great day that reminds you that you really do know how to play? Sunday was not one of those days. I finally called it quits and headed home for a quick shower. Then I was off to my instructor's house to spin fire. That was a lot of fun.

After fire dancing I met up with Scrummy at Q for some grub. It was the final night for both of us before getting back on track w/ our healthy eating plan so we had macaroni and cheese w/ tator tots. Awwww yeah. Going all out! After we headed over to the Rock-It Room (formerly Last Day Saloon) for a concert.

I ended up getting free tickets from Live 105 to this show. Can you guess who it was? Fishy and Spotty - you will love this. Direct from the 80s...we went and saw...none other than.....here's a couple hints:







That's right ladies and gents (and hashers) - A Flock of Seagulls!!! How's that for a blast from the past?!?!?! At the same time I was laughing, I was kind of excited to hear their 3 hits live - I Ran, Wishing (If I had a photograph of you) and Space Age Love Song. Plus I was morbidly curious if they still had the hair. I'm still not sure if I was hoping they did or didn't.

Apparently they are not only touring, they also have new music out. Who new? Alas and alak, the hair is no more. Neither is the quality. Man, all I can say is at least the show was free. You know how you're totally stoked to hear some of your fave songs from your childhood live? Stick w/ the old tapes kids. They sound better. Scrummy and I were chatting after and talking about the hair. I mentioned how one of the band members had been a hair dresser and we were wondering which one it was. The conversation went like this:

BH: Hmmmm...maybe the bass player?
SM: Yeah, it had to have been the bass player. He was the cutest.
BH: True, but I spent all show trying to figure out if he really was cute.
SM: You mean if he really was cute or just the least ugly?
BH: *falling over laughing in the street* Yes, exactly.

In my search for photos for this blog (no, I don't have AFOS posters or photos) I learned that the AFOS I saw really only has one original band member - the lead singer. Now tell me, if a former band only has one original member, is it right to keep the name?

As I ponder, I leave you with some lyrics:

I Ran

I walked along the avenue.
I never thought I'd meet a girl like you;
Meet a girl like you.
With auburn hair and tawny eyes;
The kind of eyes that hypnotize me through;
Hypnotize me through.
And I ran, I ran so far away.
I just ran, I ran all night and day.
I couldn't get away.

A cloud appears above your head;
A beam of light comes shining down on you,
Shining down on you.
The cloud is moving nearer still.
Aurora borealis comes in view;
Aurora comes in view.


And I ran, I ran so far away.
I just ran, I ran all night and day.
I couldn't get away.

Reached out a hand to touch your face;
You're slowly disappearing from my view;
Disappearing from my view.
Reached out a hand to try again;
I'm floating in a beam of light with you;
A beam of light with you.

And I ran, I ran so far away.
I just ran, I ran all night and day.
I couldn't get away.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wishing (If I had a photograph of you)

It's not the way you look,
It's not the way that you smile.
Although there's something to them.
It's not the way you have your hair,
It's not that certain style;
It could be that with you.
If I had a photograph of you,
It's something to remind me.
I wouldn't spend my life just wishing.

It's not the make-up
And it's not the way that you dance,
It's not the evening sky.
It's more the way your eyes
are laughing as they glance
Across the great divide.

If I had a photograph of you,
It's something to remind me.
I wouldn't spend my life just wishing.

It's not the things you say
It's not the things you do
It must be something more
And if I feel this way for so long
Tell me is it all for nothing
Just don't walk out the door.

If I had a photograph of you,
It's something to remind me.
I wouldn't spend my life just wishing.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Space Age Love Song

I saw your eyes,
And you made me smile;
For a little while
I was falling in love.
I saw your eyes,
And you touched my mind.
Although it took a while,
I was falling in love.

I saw your eyes,
And you made me cry;
And for a little while
I was falling in love.

I was falling in love.

Falling in love.

Falling in love.

Falling in love.

Falling in love.


This blast from the past was brought to you by the letter H and the number 81.

Pubic Transportation

Every Friday my client has what they call a "Ho Ho". What marketing genius came up with this name I will never know. Basically a different department sets up a little party with a theme. Personally I think it's just an excuse to serve food and beer. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I've never been to one, but my buddy Seamus stopped by and conned me into going to the one on Friday. He had never been to one either, but his wifey wanted to go so there you have it. It was fine - they had Bass and Guinness on tap so I was a happy girl. Unfortunately they were only serving meat which didn't work for this Catholic girl on a Friday in Lent. They had Irish dancers who were incredibly talented. However, what is up w/ the trend in recent years to wear those horrible wigs w/ the curls? They just look silly. The way they bounce all over the place as they are dancing is very distracting from the footwork. Maybe I view things differently since I have naturally curly hair, but to all Irish dancers out there - LOSE THE WIGS!

We had a few pints and I decided I needed to head home then. Otherwise I was going to stay all night, get rat-arsed and not be able to get home. I headed home, changed from my London Irish RFC jersey into my 'Kiss Me I'm Irish' shirt, grabbed a bottle of Bushmills and headed to my former roomie's housewarming party. I decided to be a responsible citizen and take public (or pubic as we called it in college) transportation.

Party was good. Got to catch up with a lot of folks I hadn't seen in ages. Finally about 1:30am I decide I'm tired and want to go home to bed. Now, the regular bus lines stop running at midnight. Then it switches to the "Owl" service - fewer lines less frequently. I figure out the route and head to a bus stop.
I waited about 15 minutes for the first bus (the 24) and exited at Haight St. Now it was time to wait for the N-Judah. After about 30 minutes it appeared. Wait, why isn't it slowing down? Cue waving frantically - Hey, come on! Stop! I need to get on!

No love from Muni. The bus was full so it didn't even stop. Well, the joyous thing about the Owl service that I learned that evening is they generally only have ONE bus on the route. The N-Judah is a long freaking route. Another 30 minutes goes by and no sign of a bus. Fine, I'll hop a cab. Wait, I only have $10 and no credit card. That isn't going to get me anywhere. So I was forced to wait for a total of about an hour for the bus to come back. This time even though it was still mobbed, it did at least stop. I really don't think me standing in the road and blocking its path had anything to do with it.

Time I left the party: 1:30am
Time I walked in my front door: 3:30am

Now don't you think that the geniuses in city hall could figure out when St. Patrick's Day is on a friday they might just need some additional buses running? No no, apparently that is far too logical a thought. The worst part - I was sober and could have driven home. Never again my friends, never again.

I think MasterCard would have this to say about it:

MUNI fare: $1.50
Taxicab home: $20
Not standing in the cold and waiting for 2 hours to go <10 miles: Priceless

This mastercard moment was brought to you by the letter M and the number 2.

Lush O' The Irish

Lá Fhéile Pádraig shona daoibh go léir.

Happy Paddy's Day everyone! The day when everyone in the world can feel Irish. I'm not quite sure how that works out, but somehow it does. Maybe it's just that those of us who are truly Irish are so damn lucky every day, we don't mind sharing the day with others.

Last night I actually made it to a hash that didn't involve a plane ride or a roadtrip. Seems these days I've turned into the travelling hasher, who never hashes at home. There was a combined Gypsies/SVH3 run last night in San Mateo - not all that far from where I work. Since I didn't make the gym in the morning I decided to hit the run. This was supposed to be a St. Patrick's Day prelube and everyone was to wear green and a kilt. Well, it was bloody cold so only a few freaks were out there in kilts.

As is typical, the hash didn't start on time. When I say it didn't start on time (6:30), I mean at 7:15 the hares weren't even out yet. The longer we waited, the worse the clouds looked and they eventually decided to open up and start pouring on us. Most folks bailed and just went straight to the on-on-on. Wankers. A few of us die-hards decided to run around the golf course. This included the hares who didn't really lay trail either. I think they ran with us and left a total of two markings on the ground. Always remember - Is fear rith maith ná drochsheasamh. Somehow I managed to first snare a hare and then gorilla trail a gorilla trail. That takes talent my friends. Of course, my gorilla trail required hopping a couple fences. Oops. When people started giving me grief about it I simply said, "It's called shiggy you wankers."

We did probably the fastest circle in history as it was still pouring. Then everyone left for the pub. When I got back from "trail" I noticed my former roomie had shown up late. I figured that meant she was out on "trail" which would be hard to follow since there were no markings. Everyone else took off, but I didn't feel comfortable leaving someone out there in the rain and dark so stuck around. I tried her cell phone on the off chance she would have it and she did. She and another hasher were lost somewhere out there. They were able to give me street signs and I finally found them and drove them back to the start. Then we all headed over to the pub.

The pub was a lot of fun. I met the owner of O'Neills who was a pretty cool cat. I always like talking to pub owners. He wanted me to come back today for Paddy's Day and have some whiskey with him, but I live in SF and have no intention of driving on Paddy's Day. He mentioned they have one in SF too. Turns out he bought my buddy's old bar and it's now O'Neills SF. He then tried to bribe me with corned beef and cabbage, but since it's Friday in Lent I couldn't even do that. And what kind of Irishman forgets about things like that? Though I know bishops in some places have provided "Special Dispensation", as far as I know the bishops out here haven't. I'm such a buffet Catholic I don't know why I have chosen to follow this one. However, it just seems wrong to me to eat meat on a Friday in Lent. Guess I'll have it tomorrow instead.

Ended up having some grub and headed home to get some sleep. A sure sign of getting old - I'm still exhausted from Betty Ford last weekend. Yes, I know I still owe y'all stories. I promise I'll get to it. Right now I need to pretend to work and then need to get my taxes in the mail to my tax person.

A little Irish humor for you: http://www.codesandlyrics.com/cal/familyguy-irishroots.php

Go mbeannaí Dia is Muire duit.

This Irish moment was brought to you by the letter I and the number 2.

DAMN IT!

I can't believe Marquette lost in the first round. Fucking useless wankers! Never mind that I had them unrealistically going to the Sweet 16 in my pool. That's my alma mater and the boys are supposed to represent.

Brownie - I swear to G if you say anything I'll kill you.

Ok, not really, but the wound is really fresh right now. Do you have to rub salt in it so early?

This moment of bitterness was brought to you by the letters ALABAMA and the number 5.

The Girls - HNT

Holy cow it's Thursday again. Since the girls were the subject of fascination this past weekend, I'd figure I'd use some old photos from Tex-Mex. Don't you just love helpful people? I should have some good HNT photos in the future after last weekend's debauchery at the Betty Ford Rehab Hash. Actually, I should be scared at the number of photos taken. For now, y'all will have to make do with these.

Mr. Biggelsworth

Apologies for the delay in giving everyone the details of my Thursday night insanity. I was at the Betty Ford Rehab Hash in Palm Springs, CA and just got back Monday night. Before any postings around that adventure, I figure since so many folks are asking for details I'd let y'all know how it turned out. RC and GR - stop reading now. Otherwise don't blame me for any visuals you may have.

Thursday was the designated day of torture. Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition! I left work and headed to my appointment at Bella Pelle in Union Square. Once I checked in they handed me a glass of red wine. Awesome! Just what I needed. I had gone through about half the glass when my esthetician came out and got me. Let me preface by saying that I love this girl. She's cool as hell and we always have hilarious conversations.

She left me for a few minutes to undress and use the baby wipes to make sure everything is all nice and clean. We started w/ the eyebrows which is no big thing. Same as we've been doing for many months now. About the point I'm relaxed she says, "Ok, it's time." Drat. There went the blood pressure.

What no one tells you when you get a brazillian wax is that you really need to be a yoga master. Oh sure, it starts off in the usual butterfly position as you do for the extended bikini. Ok, a little extra pain, but nothing all that bad. Sweet. Starting to relax as we chat away. Then you have to practically put your leg behind your ear, but off to the side so they can get the angle right. Let me just state for the record that though I am flexible, I'm not that flexible. This is the point where she starts taking every last bit of hair from all the really sensitive areas. Especially up close to the top. Yowsers! That whole breathing through it thing is for the birds. Man, if I ever have children I am SO going for the epidural.

My favorite bit was as I was laying there trying not to yell she says, "You really should try taking Aleve or Ibuprofen about an hour before you come in." I said, "Information that would have been useful to me an hour ago." Don't you teach your phone people to share that information w/ the newbies? Crikey!

Just when I thought my esthetician couldn't get to know me any better, I hear these words, "Ok, now lay on your side w/ your back to me and use your hand to spread apart your cheeks." Talk about feeling self-concious and exposed. I asked her if this was her least favorite part of the job. Apparently they just become desensitized to it and it's no big thing. She compared it to a gynecologist. I guess there is an actual gynecologist who comes in and gets brazillian waxes done. This woman said, "I guess our jobs are pretty similar." I told my esthetician, "No no. That's when you say: I see your vagina and raise you an asshole."

Ok, I think I'm funny. Luckily so did she. There's something really wrong about laughing as someone is ripping hair out of your backside. That part wasn't painful though.

She did leave a tiny little triangle of hair at the top (in the front you sickos). I think she was trying to be kind. At that point what's ripping out a little more hair? If I haven't hit you yet, it sure isn't going to happen now.

All in all, it really wasn't as bad as I expected. I will definitely be using the ibuprofen in the future. I have to say I like the results. It's like a constant surprise and a good one at that! For those of you who have considered it - try it. But be sure to go to a good place to get it done. Certain things are worth spending a little extra cash to have done.

People have said they are addicting. I always thought they were full of crap. There's no way an experience like that could be addicting. Yeah, you bet your ass I'll be in there in a few weeks getting it all done again. I'm enjoying Mr. Biggelsworth and he may have to stick around for a while.

This hairless moment was brought to you by the letter B and the number 1.

Drained

I know that I owe y'all how the waxing adventure turned out and how the Betty Ford Rehab Hash went. However, I'm too beat to do it today. You know how when you're tired from a vacation and you come back to work and are instantly hit w/ all these problems that someone else should have solved, but didn't, so now it's left to you to take care of and any good your vacation did you is now gone? (yes, it's a run on sentence. As Romey says - bite me) Today is that day.

Hopefully tomorrow I'll be in a better mood and more entertaining.

This moment of grumpiness was brought to you by the letter G and the number 8.

PS - My liver hurts.

New National Holiday Today

Happy Get Over It Day!!! I love this!

For Glib

This one goes out to Glib and all the other Ventura hashers.

Happy HNT!



Yeah, I know, the only part of me that is nekkid is my hands, but suck it up and deal! :-)

What Am I Thinking?

I just made a waxing appointment for Thursday evening. For some unknown reason I think I signed up for the whole enchilada. I blame BI for promising to check at Betty Ford this weekend.

On a side note - you know those commercials where the guy is working with a bunch of monkeys? I'm that guy. That has become my reality. And unfortunately they aren't nearly as cool as MonkeyO.

This moment of pain was brought to you by the letter P and the number 8.

Goose Bumps

Every once in a while, someone forwards you or instant messages you a thing of value. That happened to me today. RC sent me the following link. Warning - you will probably get goose bumps and misty eyed by watching. Completely work safe.

Autistic

Thank you for passing it on!

This tear jerker moment was brought to you by the letter B and the number 44.

Sleepy

Got up again at 5:15am today. Made my spin class which I haven't made in ages. Whew! Man did that workout kick my ass!! I'm one tired puppy now, but the good kind of tired. Tonight I need to try and get a new swimsuit, do some laundry and maybe get a pedicure. Need to have pretty toes for Betty Ford this weekend. So far I've been pretty good about being in bed by 10pm so I can a) get some sleep and b) get up to workout in the morning.

Managed to cut out a couple more pieces for my fur coat last night. That leaves only one more piece to cut. The problem is now that I look at it, I think I should have made it a bit longer. The piece that is left to cut is the back piece so that will be easy to lengthen. However, that means I would need to recut the front piece to add length as well. I have enough material...just don't know if I have enough drive. Time will tell.

Is this day over yet? Man I need a nap!

This sleepy moment was brought to you by the letter Z and the number 7.

What's In A Name?

This weekend was fabulous. Friday night I unpacked my kitchen, bathroom and got my room arranged the way I want it. Still boxes everywhere, but there are fewer of them! Saturday morning I woke up and went for a run. Man was that painful! My lungs hate me. Came back, showered and packed for camping. Went and got my hair cut which was badly needed. Yea haircuts! Then I met some old family friends (honorary family) for lunch at Rose Pistola in SF. Really yummy! We were sitting by the window and would watch all these people dressed strangely go running by. My friend Steve said, "What in the heck is going on?" Without batting an eyelash I said, "Oh, it's just the Urban Iditerod." It's amazing what you become used to after living in SF.

After lunch I headed down to RWB Beach in Santa Cruz. A Burning Man crew was doing one of the monthly beach burns. This was the first of the season. The weather recently has been pouring so I was a bit concerned, but it was gorgeous. The sun was shining and a drunken croquet game was going on. I never did figure out the rules, but it did involve a lot of drinking. Then we played Fizz Ball. What is Fizz Ball you ask? I asked the same question. A guy had altered a bat by putting in bolts that stuck out a bit. You then take cans of really bad "beer" like Natural Light, shake them up and pitch them. The person hits them w/ the bat which generally tears the can in two and sprays beer everywhere. Hey, when you're drunk it's fun. Hell, I was sober and it was fun. Of course, then you have to clean up all the can remains at the end. Took a bit of a nap in the car and then the evening festivities started.

There were tons of DJs who each had about an hour set. They were playing some pretty good tunes. People started breaking out the fire poi and staffs and started spinning. I was completely intimidated because I've only spun fire two nights before that one and some of these folks kick ass! I didn't want to spin in front of them, but got talked into it. As I was going out, this guy Coyote says he'll be my safety. I warned him it was only my 3rd time and he told me not to worry and to have fun. It was great. Sure, I made mistakes but it was fun. At the end he hugged me and said, "You may not have all the transitions down yet, but you are beautiful to watch. I'd safety for you any day." I said, "Thanks Ice Man." I ended up doing one more spin as well. It was cool. Everyone was really supportive which was nice. PF was telling people it was only the third night I'd lit up and everyone was saying, "No way! You must be lying." So that made me feel a bit better.

Then the drinking began. Met tons of new people which was great. Some of you know I've been badly in need of a good makeout session. There were a couple guys there who I'd been chatting with who at various times kept telling me, "You are so beautiful, inside and out. Do you have any idea how sexy you are?" etc etc. Though I don't believe them, hey it's nice to hear. Then about 5 minutes later I'd get introduced to their wives. Just my luck. Right, Still attractive to married men. Good to know. Ugh.

A bunch of us were hanging out in a motorhome at one point. I introduced myself to those I didn't know and someone asked what my playa name was. I said since this was my first year I didn't have one. I was just using my real name - Annika. They said, no no, you need a playa name. I told them my hash name, but that wasn't good enough for them. I think they came up with several - Anniconda (which I haven't been called since I was like 8), SweetTart, Mama Mama (this was one that had been come up w/ prior to the burn and means "giver of love beyond all love")...makes you wonder - what's in a name? Apparently my real name wasn't cutting the mustard w/ a few folks. They said it's a work in progress, but for now any one of those would do. Umm...sure...just keep me posted.

Later that night I met this guy G and we were hanging out chatting and laughing. All of a sudden he just reaches over, grabs me and kisses me. Normally that'd be kinda cool. After all, I really needed a good makeout session. So what's the problem you ask? Well, the problem is the man was not a good kisser. Could someone please explain how someone that is 40 and had been married in the past for 7 years is a bad kisser? I just don't get it. How do you tell someone that and then extracate yourself from the situation? "Hey, just so you know. Any attraction I had to you and any desire I had to makeout w/ you has now gone out the window because you're a bad kisser." See, it just doesn't work. Terribly disappointing. Bad kissing is worse than no kissing.

Anyway, the evening went on and I eventually crashed out. Since I didn't have a tent and G had offered space in the back of his truck, I crashed there. No, nothing happened. Honestly, I just told y'all he's a bad kisser. What did you think was gonna happen? The next morning a bunch of folks had brought various ingredients and someone cooked up some scrambles for us. YUMMY! Then we did some more dancing, did some chair dancing, drank some mimosas, etc. Around 2:30 I headed for home which worked out well as it's when the rain started. Got home and took a nap. Then Scrummy came over and we cut some fur for our faux fur coats. Official decision - making your own coats sucks ass! Was back in bed at 10pm and made it up at 5:15am for the gym. Now I just need to figure out how to get home in time to get my poi which I forgot for my class tonight. Oops. Damn those 4:30pm meetings.

This weekend recap was brought to you by the letter N and the number 5.

Life in Boxes

As most of y'all know, I moved on Monday. Well, I should say the movers came on Monday. Tuesday night my old roomie and I met back at the place to clean the carpets, etc. Grabbed most of my remaining stuff then. I went back Wednesday night to get the rest of my stuff, mop the kitchen & bathroom floors and clean the fridge. Last night was my walkthrough w/ the landlord.

I really expected that to be a bit nightmarish. I figured he would be trying to deduct things from our security deposit. Part of me wanted him to because I could use a good outlet for all the frustration I have (work & landlord MB, not sexual). I half-hoped he would try to deduct something so I could say, "Look Paul, if you want to do this, it's fine. However, I will take you to court and you will end up owing me more money because I shouldn't have been paying rent for all the months you never repaired things. So if you want to play that game, let's do it." Turns out I didn't need to use my little speech. He hadn't calculated the interest yet so is going to be putting a check in the mail. I was pleasantly surprised.

So now I am living among boxes. I've unpacked a few - mainly in the kitchen. Haven't set up the TV or any of the electronics because then I know they will distract me from unpacking things. Haven't even unpacked clothes because I need to rearrange the room from the way the movers set it up. Living out of a suitcase and boxes sucks for the record. Haven't really had much time to be home to unpack. Will be doing that tonight (the exciting life I lead) before heading to Red White & Blue Beach in Santa Cruz to camp tomorrow. We're doing a 'beach burn' which should be a good time. Plus, I will get to spin fire there. Woohoo!

Hopefully one day soon things will be unpacked and I will have things on the wall. Considering next weekend is Betty Ford weekend, I'm not holding my breath.

This moving moment was brought to you by the letter B an the number 30.

All Smiles

Happy HNT!

So Going to Hell

Today is Ash Wednesday. I carefully refrained from eating meat at breakfast. Completely forgot at lunch and had a turkey sandwich. What kind of Catholic am I? To top it off, I'm not even certain I can get to Mass today. I am so going to hell.

This moment of brimstone and fire was brought to you by the letter G and the number 1.