Happy Coachella

This past weekend was my long anticipated weekend at Coachella. So apparently this years festival was brought to you by Ray Ban. Every indie kid and their indie mother was sporting Neon Ray Bans! I have to say I was a bit disappointed as there is usually a variety of crazy outfits to see but this year, every single person there looked identical! The unofficial uniform for girls consisted of the aforementioned Ray Bans, one piece jumpsuits (complete with ass cheeks hanging out) and fanny packs. For guys it was "I look like I'm a member of Vampire Weekend." Although there was a lot of conformity, here are a few of nominees for best original rickdeezalous outfit:
-Guy who made his own assless chap jorts... it takes some balls to wear that in VIP and we all saw them!
-The Gold lamé Superclan - group of kids who strutted around in gold lamé capes
-And finally, who needs a top when I can just wear a bra girl!

I mean, next year I just want to walk up to these people and say.. excuse me "what is it that you do for a living?" Anyway, overall it was a great weekend. We stayed with our crew from last year (Michelle and Matt) at the Renaissance Esmeralda which has killer beds (slept like a baby every night), a killer pool and an even killer breakfast buffet (I get very disappointed when I wake up to find there is no one in my kitchen to make me a custom omelet). We rented mopeds again to ride out to the venue, which was super fun (even though there was a small mishap with Michelle and Matt's key but it's amazing what locksmiths can do these days so it was no sweat off anyone's back). The actual shows were wonderful... I'd have to say that Cut Copy, Hot Chip and Portishead were my favorites, oh and of course Prince but that goes without saying.

My other favorite Coachella moment was when I was trying to help Michelle with a video project for work where she was asking celebrities if they'd flash the peace sign. We spotted my longtime tv crush Scott Speedman (otherwise known as Ben from Felicity) and when we asked if if he'd be down, he slowly said with a pleasant smile "I'm sorry I'm just so fucking stoned right now" which I totally appreciated as it was a friendly and genuine answer.

All in all, another good year and I look forward to next April. Below are a few photos from the festival.

Artsy Fartsy

Coffee Break

Hot Bitches! No literally it was 100 degrees!

Hipsters Climbing the Tent Towers to Watch Hot Chip

It's So Hard to Leave the Esmeralda!

8 Things

My friend/co-worker Emily has a fantastic little blog http://cupcakesandcashmere.com/ and she posted a really cute little blurp on "8 Things" so I have to give her credit for the blog posting below (however I altered it slightly). Thanks Em!

Things I Heart
- Ice Cream
-Electro beats I can dance to
-Expensive Flashy Sneakers (but I can never bring myself to drop $ on them)
-Hiking
-licking cake batter of the beater
-Laughing so hard I snort
-Romantic Comedy's
-Vino

Foods I can't Live With Out!-Chocolate Chip Cookies
-Veggie Corn Dogs w/ Ketchup
-BBQ'd Corn on the Cob
-Sushi
-Tea Sandwiches
-Samosas
-Pink Lady Apples
-Peanut Butter

Favorite Films to Watch When I'm Sick
-Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
-Reality Bites
-Sixteen Candles
-Donnie Darko
-So I Married an Axe Murderer
-Spinal Tap
-Singles
-The Royal Tenenbaums



Books I’ve Read Recently
-Eat, Pray, Love
-Sex, Drugs and Coco Puffs
-Jeez... why have both of the books I most recently read have 3 word titles? I might as well only like bands that start with "the!" But seriously, both of these books are fantastic!
-Also.. I'm aware this is not 8 books


Things that attract me to my best friends- Great sense of humor
-Enjoy my wacky antics
-Are always there when I need them
-Are always down for a spontaneous adventure
-Pick me up when I fall down
-Are present during every major life change
-Have kind souls
-I never have to walk on egg shells around them


Things I want to do before I die
-Travel with my husband to Norway to see our college friends
-Eat sushi in Japan
-Have a backyard with a garden that I planted and kept up myself
-Live in at least 3 other cities than the one I live in now
-Have a family that I start my own holiday traditions with
-Take my children to their first concert
-Own a Beagle named "Otto" ( Sorry Mo.. I still love you)
-Leave a legacy of being a kind, helpful and loving person

Bamboozle

So to be a supportive wife, I accompanied my husband to Bamboozle this past weekend in Irvine. For those of you that don't know, Bamboozle is the worst music festival on the face of the planet. It was held in the parking lot of the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater (meaning you are standing on hard concrete all day long) and there is little shade. Not only is this music festival set up horribly, but the line up was terrible. On Saturday while Tony conducted interviews for his acts, I was forced to listen to bands like Story of the Year, New Found Glory and Reel Big Fish. Now don't get me wrong.. when I was a teenager, I was a fan of bands like New Found Glory and Reel Big Fish.. but now they are too old and too fat to be performing wearing bro shorts and wife beaters. Aside from the 2 hours I got to watch fairly decent bands like Jimmy Eat World, Alkaline Trio and Face to Face, I wanted to impale myself of some spikey OC Bro hair. Here are some "lowlights" from Bamboozle...

-Bro shorts and black socks that go on for days
-Trashy women with chunky blonde highlights and Rocket Dog Platform flip-flops who brought their BABIES to Bamboozle.. REALLY.. YOUR BABY AT BAMBOOZLE.. REALLY?!
-New Found Glory BUTCHERING Bob Dylan's hit " It Ain't Me Babe"... shame on you New Found Glory.. shame on you
-Emo kids who think it's okay to smoke cigarettes when the crowd is packed in like sardines. I love when my hair smells like smoke and when 16 year olds accidentally ash on my arm!

All in all... I was very thankful to return to our hotel room after the days events. However, I had to leave once to attend an even crappier after party that smelled like trash and served bottom shelf vodka and fruit punch chasers. The festival was held on Sunday too, but based on my experience from the previous night, I chose to drop Tony off and go shopping at South Coast Plaza instead. Wish I had thought of that on Saturday!

A Few of My Favorite Things...

~The return of The Hills ( I know, I know.. it's sad but true)
~Hot cup of green tea with a pinch of honey
~The Cherry Trees in bloom in front of my office
~A bubble bath and John Coltrane
~Mani Pedi day
~Hot biscuits with butter and jam
~Going to bed before 11 on a "school night"

Road Rage

Road rage is a very common thing in the City of Angels and there is nothing angelic about it. I'm not one to talk, on my five mile drive to work, I often find myself yelling "Really Dude" at the various obstacles in my way.. old men in BMWs reading the newspaper while driving two miles an hour, douche bag agents on their headsets running through stop signs.. and even though I hate to admit it, the ocational crossing guard who helps school children cross the road but keeps me at a stand still for a good five minutes.

I understand the antsy-ness we all get in our cars, we all feel invisible through our thick steel doors and plated glass windows. But something happened today on my drive that I don't understand. As I was driving down Olympic ( a wide three lane road) the car behind me for some reason felt that my going 50 in a 40 zone wasn't fast enough and proceeded to ride my ass for several blocks. He then tried to swerve to the right lane and pass me there. Now, I can't see the driver in question but I'm imaging that they fit one of two scenarios:

A) A middle aged a-hole in a Maserati who feels the need to show off the power of his car to feel comfortable with his bald head and beer belly, or
B) A tiny blonde LC wannabe in a Mercedes on her cell phone who's recapping last nights episode of American Idol and just isn't paying attention to the road at hand.

But it's neither, the answer is C) a very flamboyant man with a tall head of hair and blonde highlights to high heaven, driving a Saab Convertible with a tiny Terrier in his lap.. that's right a Terrier! This man as he drives past me to cut me off is yelling and his Terrier is barking and scolding me too. It was the host hilarious sight I think I have seen. This is the first time I have experienced road rage from a queeny owner and a queeny dog simultaneously. God.. I love LA

My Weekday Boyfriend

So lately Tony has been working A LOT. It's not unusual for him to get home from work around 9 or sometimes even 10. At first I tried waiting for him to come home so we could eat together but then I started to binge on goldfish crackers and apples and peanut butter for 3 hours, and realized this was probably not healthy. It's taken a while but I finally got into a groove and have this funny little weekday routine down. I wouldn't say it's ideal, because it's not at all, it's hard not spend any quality time with your significant other during the weekdays which is why I've started to to refer to Mo as my "weekday boyfriend." So my weekday usually consists of this:

I get home to find Mo happily waiting for me by the door ( I swear this animal is a dog trapped inside a cats body), I feed him, fumble through the mail which usually consists of bills and weird home craft magazines from the tenant before us. After this, I make dinner and make a plate for myself then a plate for Tony and cover it with foil and stick in the fridge. From there I eat dinner and catch up on all my girlie netflix Tony would never want to watch with my weekday boyfriend. After Mo and I get some good quality snuggle time in, I take a bubble bath to the tune of Ella Fitzgerald and then clime into bed and read my book. About this time.. Tony comes home and just starts to decompress from his 12 hour day right as I've fully forgotten the woes of my workday.

I know all this cat talk sounds a little bonkers .. trust me.. many times I imagine myself in 50 years, wandering around an old house filled with nick knacks and cats in every nook and cranny and when people come over I introduce the cats as my "boyfriends" and I get a little scared for my future. And if that ever happens to me I hope someone is kind enough to check me into cat rehab, but for now I have to say my weekday boyfriend is a great companion, chick flick buddy and dinner date and he'll have to hold me over until my hubby can find a job that doesn't require slave labor hours.

Grandpa Jack

To all 5 readers who have probably stopped tuning in due to my lack of blog posts, I apologize. The past month has been a bit hectic and busy. In February I flew up to the Bay Area to be with my family for the last week of my grandfather's life, which was an honor to be present at. The following weeks were spent taking care of family members and flying back for funeral and memorials. Going through my grandfather's death was definitely a learning experience as I have never been witnessed someone go through the process of dying before. It was really hard to watch my grandfather be in tremendous pain and suffering, but although it was hard, there were little bits of wonderful that shined through. For example the last few days of his life, he became completely despondent and stopped talking. One of the days I was in the hospital, he didn't talk all day but at one point grabbed my hand pulled me to him and whispered "I love you" followed by a long pause and then said "so much." It was heartbreaking and wonderful. Just by hearing him say that, it made the pain of being there even more bearable.

Anyway, not that I want to go on and on telling sad stories, but long story short...It was an incredibly humbling experience, that made me want to savor every minute of time I have on this planet. It also (once again) put into perspective what's really important which is family and friends and health.

Much more happy/funny stories to come in the coming months I promise. :)