Thursday, August 28, 2008

So, Grant's sister Kelli came to visit us from Chicago and we did a lot of stuff that I had actually never done before but have been wanting to do. We went kayaking in Seal Beach, we went to Visitors Night at UC Irvine's obvervatory (where we saw Jupiter and 3 of it's moons through a telescope and it really looks like it has lines on it that all the pictures show, come to find out they are storms going on... pretty cool). One of the highlights was when we went up to LA to an Ethiopian restaurant called Rosalinds. It was 5 stars or 2 thumbs up or 4 diamonds or whatever. Amazing. The food was sooo good, combining spices like ginger, jalepeno, and garlic and infusing the meats and vegetarian dishes with the most wonderful flavors. I loved the chickpeas and lentils. Instead of utensils, you hold pieces of this thin bread between your fingers and you scoop it up. It was such a unique experience and cheap too. We were all full off of their combo that was 16 bucks! We all loved it and we are really anxious to go again soon, which we will be doing. It is right next to the Grove too, so we went and walked around there for a little bit. I always love it when visitors come because it gives us an excuse to PARTAY!

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Perfect for Parasols

Any idea where you might catch a scene such as this?




A couple weekends ago, Grant and I attended a free symphony at Irvine's Heritage Park. We set out our blanket on this perfect grassy hill and enjoyed the music amongst families and grandmas with parasols. They played music that we all recognized whether it be from old cartoons or Pee Wee Herman's Big Adventure. Also, there were some featured singers and they performed a few songs from The Sound of Music, and towards the end, some sing along patriotic songs. One indulgence was to actually go up to the stage and conduct a song with everyone else that can't fight the urge to start waving their arms in the air when there is a live symphony present. (I totally do it.) The conductor disappeared and there the symphony played to our flailing hands. Next year, we are going to bring a picnic which they encourage you do. (We were running late so we didn't get a chance to stop and get any snacks.) Also, it only lasted maybe a little over an hour so it was just long enough to hold our attention. They have done it four years in a row and every weekend they have it at a different park. A very fun cultural experience, and it's free, so there you go.


Thursday, August 21, 2008

Adventures in Gabbaland.



Anne and I had an escapade in Gabbaland! Foofa invited us (through our TV screen of course) to enter Yo Gabba Gabba behind the scenes and see the set where they film the whole thing and we got to play in the props and also watch Emma/Foofa do some voice overs, sing some songs, and do an interview as Foofa. She is so perfect for the part. She does the voice and plays the part in costume. We were introduced to a whole bunch of people who work on it, including the producer. The offices are decorated so well. Everything you would expect from the Yo Gabba Gabba team. It was a really fun experience since I had never done anything like that before. Thanks Emma, I mean Foofa, for showing us around Gabbaland and doing a Dancey Dance with us. (Here are some photos of Anne being sucked into Gabbaland through our TV screen. Freaky. I'm glad I was there to get the photographic proof.)

"Cal, I'm going to Gabbaland to wash my hands. I'll be right back... maybe"

"Anne, come back! Come back!!"

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Pardon me


Like any RV that realizes its potential, the "INTRUDER" sends a message to all who come within reading distance. This vehicle enters and exits our non-suspecting neighborhood on its recreational whim, and while we (me and mine) enjoy deciding what we can learn from this title, I'm sure some dwellers sense a literal tinge in its statement. I wish to ponder on the importance of this message because aren't we all intruders at some time in our lives? Why else would there be a need for such phrases as, "Pardon me" and "Excuse me" and even "Sorry"?( And by the way, why do we say these kind of things with their french counterparts that sound like "Par-done moi" and "Excu-say moi"?) There are a few different ways in which we intrude. A popular intrusion is simply just to disrupt someones groove if you will. Simply doing something that causes discord within their very being, creating a feeling of awkwardness and possible confusion. We orchestrate awkward moments (some do on purpose), causing someone stress over how to respond or simply how to avoid the conversation/confrontation/interaction altogether. Many of us are literal intruders, forcing ourselves on people in their homes, conversations, driving lanes (guilty), TV shows(guilty again), dinners, sleep, when they're "in the midde of something", or free time. Although we are most likely not aware of it thanks to social graces, we're all seasoned intruders and in this we are all united. Consequently, being an intruder isn't as bad as it seems. Just a little something to think about. Possibly this RV is simply displaying that which we all are, demanding societys attention toward the part of ourselves that we try to deny, ignore or justify. Or maybe this statement is, in effect, saying "Look, I don't care how much room I'm taking up and I don't care whose room it is. I'm intruding hello! I'm going where I want to go, when I want to go, in this big RV. So, if you don't want to get hurt, get the eff out of my way." Regardless, it is something we should make ourselves aware of.

Friday, August 15, 2008

This won't let you down

Have you guys seen this? I stole this from my friend Heather's blog. I just couldn't resist. It makes me laugh every time I see it. I thought that I would represent, give a shout out to Heather for making this all possible, and thank every one for this opportunity. Watch carefully for the dancing in between the lyrics.


Thursday, August 7, 2008

Yo-Ho Yo-Huh?

It was mid-day when my little sister Bailey (who is 8) showed me the project she had been working on. It was this felt rendition of a blond pirate girl ( about 8 years old judging from the length of the hair and size of the head in proportion to the rest of the body and lack of legs as a metaphor for dependency). I said, "wow Bailey. You really have a talent. I've never experienced felt looking so dang-darn realistic." (She enjoys when I talk like a complete idiot). Our interaction continued when I ritualistically asked if I could have it for keeps, falsely believing again that because she handed it to me to show me, it should now be mine. Bailey proceeded right on cue with the rolling of the huge blue eyes, (I'm convinced she designed her eyes to be so gigantic so that the rolling of them would cause the rolling of heads. What else could she need eyes that big for?) as she instinctively replied, "no", snatching the felt art from my hands. I never saw the "pirate" or her again, until...



A few hours later, I am on my way downstairs and happen upon a pirate scene. Now, I have never happened upon pirates in their free time before. It has always been in formal settings, either when they're at work on the Pirates of the Carribean ride at Disneyland or when they are "playing it up" in film, like in "(insert name of pirate movie here)". Always stealing, swearing, drinking... Arriving upon this calm scene, I had to ask myself, "Are they felt?" But no! They were real and they were really there. This surreal happenstance really opened my eyes to how pirates are really no different from us. I mean, in their spare time they like to do things like:

think about real issues


read children's books


just hang out low-key


(and this one really surprised me)
they even lounge in laundry baskets very similar to the way you and I creatively used (and use) laundry baskets (as beds, sleds, etc).

I don't know how Bailey managed to pull it off, but she really taught me something that day. Pirates, felt or not, are really nothing to be intimidated by. They are just like us "non-ship-riding, non-treasure-stealing, non-red and white stripe-torn-clothing-wearing" people. Really, the only thing that separates us is what we do for a living, what we wear, and the way we talk, the time period we live in, the material we're made of, yada yada. Because if you got us all together during our free time, we'd all be chillaxing the same way!
PS. I've never said or written before, nor ever will say or write again, the word "chillaxing" or any form thereof.