Puff pastry party

To celebrate the return of The Hills and The City to my weekly television rotation, VALedictorian and Roommates A and J came over for a little viewing party. I prepared an assortment (two) of different puff pastry-based munchies, procured from the Food Network.

So, we drowned ourselves in greasy foods, sipped some bubbly wine and watched these two "reality" shows kick off their most recent seasons.

The Hills met my expectations with Kristin's return and I was pleased to see that she brings the same energy that made me love her in Laguna Beach. As much as I adore LC, Kristin seems like a much more fun gal to hang out with.

And this season of The City looks to be much more interesting, with dumb Olivia stirring things up as the girl with no workplace etiquette! It's only a matter of time that poor, boring Whitney departs from the drama, but at least this season looks to be a million times more interesting than last.

Tuesday is the new Monday, indeed! With the new 90210, Melrose and now two of my MTV faves.

Pauper pasta

In an effort to save money on extraneous things like eating, I recently made a lasagna, hoping that it would last me several meals.

Sadly, I just ended up eating the lasagna as snack (and maybe breakfast) in addition to my regularly scheduled meals. I'm not succeeding in saving money, but I am growing a nice belly!

On a related note, Victor Kiriakis was really, really interested in the lasagna. Much more so than in any other food that's been made in his presence.

Seafaring Saturday

My very busy Saturday had a decidedly nautical bent to it. After an early morning haircut, I traveled to Treasure Island to see Cousin Beezey compete in the San Francisco International Dragon Boat Festival.

It was a very warm morning and hundreds of people had assembled to compete and spectate. Cousin Beezey's boat was composed of co-workers who'd been training for several months. While I watched her first race (they came in second), an elderly Chinese man tapped me on the shoulder and yelled at me for being too tall. He implored me to sit down, but I pretended not to understand his Chinese-speak. Instead, I turned my attention back to the race, snapped some pictures, then left the scene. If they wanted to cheer on the race, they should have been standing up also!

Evidently, Cousin Beezey and her team won a gold medal, but I only watched the first race of the day - and I stuck around long enough to witness some Cantonese rapping, which was quite interesting in itself.

Later on Saturday, I joined friends from grad school on a booze cruise of the Bay, to celebrate some friends' birthdays. To celebrate the '80s theme, I donned a 21 Jump Street t-shirt and some snappy suspenders. It was a gorgeous, clear, warm night and it was fun to down some drinks while cruising around the Bay.

The rest of my friends went on to an '80s cover band, but I took my leave and returned home to meet Puppy and his visiting friend for dinner and to regain my land-legs.

Stop having sex with babies

I took the advice of several television columnists and watched Cougar Town last night. It was actually quite funny and I enjoyed watching Busy Philipps act like a hot mess.

But I really couldn't get over the idea that Courteney Cox would have a hard time finding a date or bagging a younger man. Especially since she spends approximately 1/3 of the first episode in her underwear, obviously showing off that she has a flawless little body.

Off the wagon

Since my little vacay in Austin for Labor Day, I have been abstaining from alcohol. It's been a little experiment that I planned to endure until my upcoming trip to Los Angeles next weekend.

Well, I officially fell off the wagon last night. You see, Blanca is in town so a bunch of us enjoyed a backyard dinner at Mattress and Beetle's, accompanied by generous pours of wine. I simply couldn't resist! And truthfully, I had no real reason not to imbibe - I was just being stubborn for the past 2.5 weeks.

I guess the timing is right because now I'll feel no compulsion to adhere to sobriety for the weekend, the activities for which include a booze cruise and outdoor beer drinking.

Verified account

Recently, I've been following more and more "celebrities" on twitter and peeking into their lives. It's interesting to follow these folks during the normal course of their day, drinking coffee, going to the beach, getting their nails done, picking up kids, saving the world, etc.

Some of these folks simply use twitter to promote their or their friends' projects:
"The real housewives of Atlanta & me! LOL! We r on tonite @ 10pm BRAVO tune n boo boo cause it's on" - NeNe Leakes

"Heading 2 Days - shooting 2 eps today, then off to see @BrookeBurke and @DENISE_RICHARDS strut their gorgeous mom selves on the catwalk" - Alison Sweeney

"Today is the third and final day taping Sweatin' to the Oldies 5. Tomorrow we will tape Tonin' to the oldies. In... http://bit.ly/1k3bcm" - Richard Simmons

Others invite followers into the more mundane aspects of their lives:
"Getting my hair cut & colored this morning." - Candace Cameron

"School drop off, pilates, Book, meeting new girls for Belle Gray, car pool, Delilah Ballet, Amelia in after school, homework, dinner, bed." - Lisa Rinna

A few try to show they have a social or environmental conscience:
"Right Action for Women is my foundation.We will provide funds to those at high risk to get the proper screening they need for breast cancer" - Christina Applegate

"Another day of studying modern day slavery. I'll let u know how it goes." - Ashton Kutcher

Some have day-long conversations with each other:
"you lookeed gorgeous, and did really well. It's hard to go out there, and you were so lovely and gracious..." - Denise Richards to Kathy Ireland

"Speaking of GORGEOUS>>>>Pardon me..but UR just as beautiful as can be..and so warm..." - Kathy Ireland to Denise Richards

"thamk u so much, so sweet of u..didn't get me far on the show:)) I sent u a DM...xo" - Denise Richards to Kathy Ireland

Many just try to stay relevant:
See above.

For whatever reason, I find this pretty fascinating and time-consuming. Work productivity has definitely plummeted.

Life on Mars

Images from the recent dust storm in Sydney are pretty amazing. It's like the whole city was transported to Mars! I wonder if it's safe to breathe...

Always gonna be another mountain

Sometimes, on my way to work I stop off at a little coffee kiosk and get myself some morning caffeine to fuel my day. The man who works at said kiosk is a compact, very muscular fellow in his 40s with ugly bleached blond highlights, leathery skin and a scruffy goatee. He's as straight as straight can be, and often calls me "boss" or "man" with the occasional "brah" thrown in for good measure.

Today when I ordered my ladylike nonfat vanilla latte, the kiosk man was humming a tune. It took me a while to place it, but he was humming a horrible, horrible song: "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus. That sort of bewildered me.

The man cried out

I'm loving the new Yeah Yeah Yeahs album, mostly due to this song.

Date night fail

I'd taken it upon myself to come up with a Sunday date activity for Puppy and me and I came up woefully short. My big idea was to get outside in the sun and learn a bit of SF history by following a stairway walk, but that idea was vetoed by Puppy, who was already basking in the sunshine at the park and had already done his exercises for the day.

So, my idea was simply to go to dinner at a restaurant recommended by 7x7 magazine and a host of other folks online and in the real world. We ended up in the foggy Sunset neighborhood, circling around for parking and finally finding a spot right across from the no-frills Chinese food restaurant we aimed for.

Even though it was early, it was absolutly packed with people, loud, busy people inhaling their food. There were dozens of people waiting for tables as well, but we were lucky enough to snag one of the handful of seats available for waiting patrons.

One couple entered the restaurant, a heavyset lady and her male friend with one good eye and one eye gone horribly wrong. Perhaps this busted eye is what led him to wear the acid-wash, pegged jeans from circa 1985. That, however, is neither here nor there. The lady asked one of the others waiting for a table what the difference was between the restaurant where we found ourselves and the Chinese restaurant across the street. The one with no one occupying any of the tables. "Is the food any different?" she posited. And even though I'd never been to either restaurant, I was willing to wager that the food at one restaurant is considerably better than the food at the other, simply based upon the fact that one was packed and the other empty. But what do I know.

We ended up having an above-average meal, featuring tasty dumplings, pot stickers and some interesting and delicious chicken wings. But it was clear that Puppy had hoped for a restaurant of a different, more refined, atmosphere. And I'll be sure to keep this in mind when I next choose a restaurant for date night.

Greening the thumb

Because Lil' Sis' Panda!!!! and Cousin Steppynose were in town, I went down South to meet up with my siblings and cousins for a reunion lunch. It was only one of the things on my "to do" list, which also included getting my car's oil changed and a car wash.

After lunch, I was driving Cousin Lotus back up to the city when we stopped at a cute little nursery. I intended to buy one succulent to fill a bowl that I wanted to make into a planter, but ended up getting a whole bowl of succulents in addition to the one I wanted. Plus, after talking to an expert on edible plants, I was convinced that I needed to get a big planter of different lettuces and some herbs including thyme, rosemary, chives and sage. Furthermore, I felt compelled to get some mint because it was so fragrant.

So, now I have a shelf of different plants on my back deck. I'm excited to have some greenery, but I really wonder how long it will last, given my poor track record with plants.

Movie night family reunion

Imagine my surprise when I stepped out of the movie theater to go to the restroom and I ran into ... my sister! She's visiting from Los Angeles and was in front of the theater next door, promoting a movie about Asiatic folk or something like that.

I, on the other hand, was about to see The September Issue with Lucy Ricardo, Mahogany Sparkle, Roommates A&J and Kitten. The movie was pretty freakin' good. It was respectful to its subjects - the crazies who put together American Vogue - while allowing the audience to revel in some of the absurdity of the fashion world.

It also introduced me to Grace Coddington, a former model who now serves as the Creative Director for the magazine. With her big, frizzy, red mane, she is one feisty lady who sure tried to put Anna Wintour in her place! It was great seeing these two passive-aggressive women try to collaborate to put out a magazine. Grace really stole the show. She's definitely one hot bitch!

What's going on? Am I deaf?

I sort of loved Community last night, with its references to The Breakfast Club and its silly, snappy dialogue. Nothing really happened in the entire episode, but I'm excited to watch more!

And no, it didn't mend my broken heart

This was the best moment from last night's episode of Glee. Not just because of Mercedes's attitude (dare I say, "Braditude"?), but mostly because the cheerleaders were already dressed in little skimpy outfits, dancing around in the background!

Making whoopee

Reading this brief article brought up several thoughts:

1. Cute! Mr. Sulu!
2. The Newlywed Game is still on the air?
3. So, this is what Carnie Wilson is up to these days!
4. I wonder if her gastric bypass worked.
5. What is Chynna Phillips up to these days?
6. Isn't Chynna married to a Baldwin?
7. How is it that I had no idea this show was on the air when it's "a ratings success"?
8. Shoot! Now I have "Hold On" stuck in my head.
9. I'm hungry. What should I get for lunch?

All work and no play

Ooh! Did you hear? Leland Palmer is moving into the Dollhouse!

Even though Season 1 didn't live up to my expectations (It's not the show's fault. I don't think anything can live up to Buffy.), I'm getting more and more excited for Season 2. We've got Apollo from Battlestar coming aboard, along with River from Firefly ... and now Laura Palmer's daddy!

We can't all come and go by bubble

Puppy took me to see Wicked yesterday, which was a nice treat and a departure from our usual Sunday carousing. The matinee was packed with suburbanites, large women with bold prints and overflowing cleavage, teenage girls sporting Wicked t-shirts and clutching souvenir programs, boys dressed unhappily in their Sunday finest... It made me very glad to be a city-dweller.

The show was very good, and not remarkably different from the version I saw when it came to San Francisco six years ago in a pre-Broadway run. Despite a few show-stoppers, there aren't many (any?) songs that get immediately stuck in your head and insist that you buy the overpriced CD on your way out of the theater. But I'd bet if I were a younger panda from the suburbs, I'd have forced my parents to buy me both a t-shirt and a CD.

Chocaholic

Puppy, VALedictorian and I went to San Franicsco's chocolate festival in Ghirardelli Square yesterday. Despite the gloomy, rainy weather, we decided that trying out various chocolate delights would be worth it!

Of all the different things we tried, I think I enjoyed the standard hot fudge sundae the best. It was pretty crowded and difficult to maneuver, so we didn't stay long, but we managed to see Miss San Francisco (who knew we had one?!), who was one of the judges for a sundae-eating contest. I was pleased to see that she was a very pretty Filipina with gleaming white teeth and a sparkly tiara.

Not the same

Note to sandwichmakers:

When I order a sandwich with avocado on it, I don't - DO NOT - mean for you to spread some guacamole on the bread. I want real, actual pieces of avocado.

Grammar lesson

As respectfully and patiently as I possibly could, I just spent the past several minutes explaining to my boss what a gerund is and why "commitment" isn't a verb. In the end, no progress was made, but we agreed to move on [I gave up] and I let her finish editing my document. Why can't I be a trust-fund baby?

4616

I thoroughly enjoyed my return to 4616 Melrose Place last night! While the original series took about a season and a half to shake loose of its morals and hit its stride, last night's premiere episode had a murder, blackmail, prostitution (whore), burglary, same-sex makeout in a car and awful dialogue all in the first hour!

The new Melrose knows it's going to be a trashy soap and doesn't apologize for it. Me loves!

Es el queso

Nearly every meal we had in Austin (yes, including breakfast) included an opener of queso. Growing up, I learned that queso means "cheese" in Spanish, thanks to the "It's the Cheese!" campaign in California. But I never new that it referred also to a cheesy dip that came served with tortilla chips until this past weekend.

Queso, apparently, usually has some different spices to add flavor, but the fancier versions came with blobs of guacamole and/or meats in it. And clearly, this really is the most appropriate way to begin a meal in Texas.

Breakfast tacos

All my life, I've grown up with the breakfast burrito concept, but only on my trips to Austin have I encountered the breakfast taco. And I wonder, why don't these delicacies make their way to the San Francisco area? They're the perfect size and packed with flavor.

One breakfast taco in particular was so huge that it came with two extra tortillas. I daintily made mine into three servings, but I did spot someone shoving the whole monster into his mouth. The most amazing part? It was under $4!

Otherwise, it seems breakfast tacos are also a good way to satisfy one's hunger after a night of drinking too much.

Austin city limits

Puppy and I are spending the long weekend in Austin, drinking and eating way too much. There's a big gay party in town, and that's what initially piqued my interest in coming, but for the most part, we've avoided all the festivities and had a lower-key time, hanging out with friends.

Everything we've done has mostly centered around eating queso, drinking margaritas and recovering. We did manage to get to Barton Springs yesterday, until rain drops forced us to seek shelter at the nearest establishment that offered ... margaritas and queso!

We've run into friends from San Francisco, I've seen someone I knew in DC, but we're really just lazying around, taking long drives and walking around some of the touristy areas. It's a nice Labor Day weekend, for sure.

What's in a name

Apparently, my office building held a raffle of some sort. One I neglected to enter, I guess.

In the elevator yesterday, a piece of paper listed approximately 40 names: those people who entered and won the raffle. I'm not sure what the prizes were, but that was beside the point when I noticed one of the names on the announcement. Harry Wiener.

Since no one else in the crowded elevator was reading the paper, no one seemed to understand why I was giggling.

Top notes of desperation with base notes of failure

Jessica Simpson has a new perfume called "Fancy Love" in stores now!

If I were marketing a perfume, and somehow contractually obliged to use Jessica Simpson as its spokesperson, I would not include the word "love" in its name. Given her track record of divorce, a recent dumping and John Mayer, she may not be the best embodiment of the concept of "love."

Also, the ad! It makes me LOL.

Interior monologue

A few comments that ran through my brain today while at the office, that I had the good sense to keep to myself:

"You aren't really that smart, are you?"

"That is a seriously long pee."

"Wow, your boobs are much bigger than I thought."

"Who is responsible for that smell?"

"That new hair color is horrible."

"What makes you think you're allowed to speak to me?"

When I get older, and the filter fails, there's no way I'll be employed.

Elevator pitch

It's sort of rare for me to actually be in an elevator at work with someone I know, since I try not to leave my floor unless it's absolutely necessary. But when it happens, I find that I really, really have to stretch to make small talk.

At my old company, elevator chit-chat was much easier because when it came down to it, talking about work was talking about clothes. And I get clothes. And I want to know about clothes.

But here, the case is usually that I don't care about/understand what my colleagues are working on. They may go on and on about something very interesting and innovative, but I have no idea what they're talking about. Or I simply don't want to know about the number-crunching that happens when we close a quarter.

Please stop

You. Have. GOT. To. Be. Kidding. Me. Seriously?