sister day

i was really excited for sister day. as awesome as it was having a sister who lived in london and then new zealand, i appreciate her being back in the states where i can see her more often. i missed my little sister. ok, yes we're only something like 15 months apart but she's still my little sister. who i am very proud of for having a fancy digital matte painting job where she can work at places like Dreamworks and take me on a tour!

Dreamworks animation day. we walked across the dreamworks animation campus to the cafeteria where she told me they serve free lunch to all of the employees from 11 to 1. not only is it free but the food is really good and there's loads of choices. like a grill! i have to say, i'm jealous. we walked around until we found her work buddies at a table. shadi (my brother in-law) joined us because he works there too. somehow the topic of how neat and tidy i am compared to my sister came up and the example of how different our rooms were in high school. my bedroom was clean and organized and my sister also pointed out that i've been sorting my clothes by color since i was a little girl. weird right? then compare that to my sister's room in high school where it looked like a clothes bomb exploded. our mom was not a fan of the exploded clothes bomb. one time our mom stormed in there and shoved all of my sister's stuff in trash bags because she couldn't take it anymore. she needed to see the floor, at any cost. my sister shook her head and said the whole family was all about everything being clean all the time. she said it was her room, why couldn't it be messy. it sounds like the typical teenage complaint. she has gotten better otherwise i'm sure shadi would have a word or two to say about it. he agreed it has gotten better and they balance each other out as far as cleanliness goes. now, let me get this straight before i go on, my sister is never dirty she can just get really messy with putting her clothes away.

after lunch she took me on a tour of the campus. first we scoped out the conference room to see if anyone was in there because she wanted to show me the high-tech live meeting room. it has a screen that is the same width and height of one wall that has a live feed from redwood city and vice versa. the cameras can also zoom in the opposite room to get close-ups of storyboards and whatnot. pretty awesome. next was the theater for dailies where shots can be shown and discussed. they also show whole films in there for the employees. we walked over to the lobby and she pointed out some art on the walls and told me about the animation, pointed out the awards and then i had my picture taken with the giant statue of Po from Kung Fu Panda. next she took me to see the landscaping because there's this mini river running through the place complete with koi fish swimming around, ending at a big lagoon. i was told thre were ducks and pointed out the special ramps for the ducklings to get in and out of the water. she said she'd like to be a fly on the wall when they discovered ducks were stuck in the water and needed ramps. so the ducks, no one knows what happened to them. she thinks they were removed because they begged like little quacking dogs under the lunch tables. she took me into where the concept artists work and then to the motion capture room. i didn't realize it was so big. meanwhile as we are walking through the buildings there is framed art from the animated movies. everything from concept art to stills from the films themselves. kristi said i can't share those pictures because she can get fired. 

next stop, the lighting department where shadi shared some of the work he and his team are working on. i wish my office was lit like their offices. it's all very dim and/or no lighting except what they set up in their workspaces. it totally beats the fluorescent lighting in my office. from shadi's office we walked over to where my sister works and she shared her movie-related toys, like the shiny cape from megamind the animators were given. i was half serious when i asked if i could wear it for halloween. hear that kris? *wink wink* she let me see the work she is doing and then lots of other artwork goodies but i won't talk about it because i don't want her to lose her job. i'll just say it was extensive and i could have sat there all day with her looking at the artwork. she introduced me around and then we walked over to a wall where she fumbled around with some things on a bookcase. i heard a click and the bookcase was a hidden door! rad. i want one of those. especially when behind the super special secret door is a hiding place with a mini bar and lots of other fun decor like fake fireplaces and couches. my job needs a secret room with things to drink in there. i think all offices do. we walked back outside, stopped at the gift shop so i could pick up some movies (they're cheap there) before leaving for the Griffith Observatory. 

/more to come later

los ahnalas: thursday

thursday morning. i wake up chatty. my sister's trying to get ready for work and i'm talking a mile a minute. she had to tell me to stop talking and get ready because she will be late for work if we don't hurry. so i compromise, get ready quick and keep talking. she mentioned something about how can i be so perky in the morning. i say, "i'm on vacation!"

we drive over to the rental place to pick up my car. i don't have any credit cards because i am not ready for credit card debt again but i might have to re-think it after this. what a pain in the ass. they don't take debit cards for various reasons and stupid me (* head smack), of course i should know this. i work in loss prevention in a large bank and fraud is rampant in LA. of course they will be more strict. anyway, my sister had to use her credit card but there was stress involved in that because SoCA drivers are not the safest. so we get the full insurance coverage and of course it adds almost $100 to my bill. arg. they give me a free upgrade for the trouble so that was nice. car, check. kristi gives me her tomtom to use and then she's off to work. 


i run some errands and then look for a cute diner to eat at in pasadena. i find an old diner that's been open since 1963 and looks promising, i'm all for old diners. it's called the "Pie n' Burger" and this is what sold me on it:

Pie 'n Burger first opened in the fall of 1963 on California Blvd., just off South Lake in Pasadena. It continues to be in the same location to this day. The recipes, products and methods used in preparing the award winning food today are the same as those used 46 years ago.


i sit down and notice the following:

• diner looks like it is still in the 1960's and i'm having a semi-mad men fantasy going on. i think i've been watching too much of that show. 
• waitresses are super friendly
• lots of regulars who are getting hugs by waitresses who seem to know their life stories.

i really like this place. i ordered a BLT and a coffee. the waitresses successfully talked me into ordering a piece of pie and good thing i didn't eat my whole sandwich because mmmm, that pie was good. it also made me so full that all i wanted to do was lay down, groan, and pat my belly. waitresses were consistent in their being nice to the new girl (me) and it was a comfortable place to just sit and hang out for a bit. i used some of that downtime to write few ideas in my notebook for what i wanted to include in heidi's wedding book. 

i finish the last of my coffee and walk up to the ancient tiller to pay my bill. the waitress who helps me looks like she's in her late 30's and has the thickest valley accent i've heard in a long time. i keep her talking just to hear her accent. she's telling me to go out to redondo for a seafood restaurant: "duuuuuuuuude, like, you totally have to go. it is SO good. oh mah gawd. you will totally love it. duuuuuude. whoa. it's like the best seafood. they totally like, you can pick your seafood and then like, they totally serve it to you, fresh!" she said something similar about another place to check out in santa monica. then she starts telling me stories about spending time on the pier in santa monica. i could have sat there and talked to her some more but i had things to do. she shakes my hand, tells me her name and begs me to come back. i tell her i'll try and i'm hoping my sis and brother in-law will check the place out. 

i drive back to my sister's house and write up heidi's wedding book page and take a quick disco nap. i wake up suddenly, realizing i didn't have to wait for sara to call me and was supposed to be at her house in west hollywood at 3:30 and...it was 3:31. hello. 


i scramble my stuff together and run out the door. 


i make my way out to weho using the tomtom and should have known better. i made this trek everyday (glendale to west LA) when i lived here, and i knew the best way to go. i don't know why i used it. anyway, it took me on a weird long, roundabout way. *rolling eyes. what made it somewhat entertaining was the mispronunciation of city and street names by the stupid thing. like los angeles became "los ahnalas" and gave me endless entertainment every time she said it. los ahnalalalalas. LOS AHHHHNALAS. the capitals happened when i hit traffic. all weekend i couldn't help it, i had to say "los ahnalas!" every time she said it; even when i had people in the car with me. luckily they found it just as amusing. driving through downtown LA was fun except for stupid tomtom telling me to "keep left" on the 110 when i knew the 10-west exit is way over on the right and in traffic you don't "keep left" unless you want to battle four lanes of traffic. luckily i knew better and i'm an aggressive driver who is not afraid of SoCA drivers. it then told me to take crenshaw-pico-san vicente and up and around the long way to west hollywood. wtf.


finally i get to sara. yay sara! i'm so glad i had a pocket of time to fit her in. she gave me a tour of her one bedroom duplex-style apartment which is adorable. she even has a yard, which has the biggest rosemary bush in the world. i gave ancient millie some love and we took her two bostons on a long walk around weho. it was good to catch up. i miss sara! i wish i had more time with her. there were a few new bars on santa monica blvd and it was weird to see the Normandie Room as a gay sports bar. i kept getting turned around because there has been a lot of changes in weho. sara said the Palms is still around. which is surprising. what is not surprising is that it's still a dive. i hope it's just as trashy as it was back then. i wonder if they still have the shower.


i had some time for dinner before heidi's bachlorette party so sara and i decided on the Abbey for garden burgers. my stomach was finally ready for new food after the morning's big breakfast. we dropped off the dogs and walked back up to the Abbey. the place hasn't changed too much other than the bigger space over on the right side. we found a table and began our favorite thing to do when we get together - talk about the "good ol' days" in san francisco. we've become a couple of nostalgic fools. so we start talking about when we met and sara always forgets i met her a week after her 21st birthday. i was only 19 at the time. we were babies. then we started talking about our days of living in the tiny one bedroom with her girlfriend. she was 22-23 and i was 20-21 at the time. we still don't know how we did it - 3 girls in that small space. we started trying to remember what we ate back then and decided we need to make a Sara and Kelly circa 1998-1999 poor in SF cookbook. we ate some crazy things like toasted sourdough buttered and cut into strips and a small pot of homemade pasta sauce. dip bread in sauce = dinner. mmm nutritious. then we'd slam 100 proof vodka shots with a pepsi chaser. bring more vodka in the empty pepsi can to drink in rat alley (pee spot before club), and then go out dancing. we were crazy. it's still really hard to do vodka shots without gagging a little. fun! we also had a hard time remembering eating out. i don't think we did very often in those days. i remember burritos in the mission. falafel sandwiches. some greasy egg roll thing at the doggie head diner around the corner from our apt when we were on the rag. 


while we're having this conversation as her new girlfriend and daughter show up. i think we were having more fun talking about our memories than they had listening to it. i'm glad sara and i can re-tell these stories over and over again and never tire of them. dinner finished, we all walk back to sara's and it's time i have to head over to santa monica for heidi's bachlorette party.

honestly, i was feeling trepidation about the whole "acroyoga" thing they had planned at gidget's house and was hoping i missed it because it sounded awkward. no such luck. i missed the dinner portion of the night but not the cocktails and ... acroyoga. or, "flying" as they called it. i always feel shy around new people and this time was no different. i did really love the big big hug from heidi when i walked in the door. heidi! another person i wish didn't live so far away. i really need to make a trip out to hawaii to visit her. 

so the flying was about to happen. i refilled my sake. this big guy with an aussie accent comes in and invites people to come balance on his feet and do splits in the air. these pictures are of heidi and it looks like she's having a great time. all of the other girls looked like they loved it too and said it felt amazing. i think it's because all the blood goes to your head and that can make you feel a little high and giddy. i believe this blood pooling in the head can easily distort reality. the stretching part is something i could use but i was dancing later and i'm sure that would loosen me up just fine. i also didn't have the right clothing. mostly, i didn't want to embarrass myself.

okay, so i wasn't trying to be all debbie downer about it but reasons for not participating, other than wearing jeans and not bringing comfy splits-in-the-air clothing:

1. i wasn't sure if that guy was strong enough to hold me up there

2. didn't want my belly hanging out and embarrassing me

3. don't like being the center of attention while i'm balancing on some dude's feet

4. it looks awkward

5. i have trust issues

6. it's just a little too woo-woo for me.

as for the trust issues thing, aussie dude really liked talking in woo-woo voice about how it's all about "opening up" and "trust" ... yeah, sorry. can't do it. aussie dude tried small talk with me and i mention something about one of my ex's who's a massage therapist and after more small talk he asks me if i was seeing someone?! why are you asking me this. none of your beeswax buddy. i say no, and excuse myself for the bathroom. it was good to see heidi's friend dana again (she wasn't in the bathroom, if you were wondering). dana and her girlfriend were down from portland too. it was also good to catch up with shandra. portland girls and i had fun saying "this sure ain't portland!" and i'm sure it was obnoxious after awhile. we also liked to talk about how disgusting the LA water is and sure enough, as soon as i am back in portland i'm appreciating our tap water so much more. i almost wrote "we totally gagged out on the water in LA" but had to stop myself. i'm including it for your amusement.

back the party. finally. everyone is ready for dancing. i need the dance floor. so we head over to Zanzibar, which sara warned me was bad but i would give it the benefit of the doubt. i didn't know if i could get into the afro-beats and reggae. the latin music wasn't too bad. what made the club worthwhile was the music picked up and the b-boys and b-girls started breakdancing. this totally made my night. i was out there dancing and the girls from the bachlorette party were swelling my ego telling me i'm a good dancer. heidi laughs and says nothing has changed because i'm the same ol' kelly shy at the party but get me on the dance floor and i'm not shy at all. zanzibar was fun. i danced my ass off that night. one of the b-girls was posing with me for some pictures, one of them being "superstar!" amazing. what was not amazing was seeing the pictures taken of me and my red face. sigh. at least i had a good time. as we were walking outside there was this somber looking lady with a sash over her shoulder that said "Bride to Be" or something like that. we had heidi and this sad girl pose for a picture together. might want to re-think it? or maybe she had boring friends. heidi was glowing. it makes me really happy to see her like this.  

at the end of the night i enjoyed the drive back to my sister's place saying "las ahnalas" along with the nutty tomtom and enjoying the nostalgia of driving across los angeles in the middle of the night. i chattered all about it the next morning to my sister.

los ahnalas: wednesday

last week i made a trip to los angeles for heidi's wedding and to visit my sister.


while sitting around at the airport wednesday evening waiting for my plane to board, this cute girl with a hat kept smiling at me. i didn't recognize her and tried to pretend i didn't see her smile. maybe i looked like someone she knew. i never know what to do when that happens. it makes me feel awkward and shy. i always get this touch of anxiety that they already boarded the plane and i will miss my flight. it gets more intense if they board late, such was the case this time. i try to not obsessively check my phone for the time but luckily i can look like i'm playing around with something on my iphone. this is so i can convince myself i don't look like a crazy person obsessively checking the time and squinting back up at the board where they post the flight info. finally they begin boarding and we walk out to this small commuter plane that makes me wonder why they make us pay out the nose for a flight from pdx to burbank in that tiny thing. as i'm walking into the plane the stewardess says to me condescendingly, "your bag probably won't fit in the overhead." i dare to defy her and walk back to my seat and sure enough, the overhead bins wouldn't fit a backpack. wtf. so i have to wait for the line of people to pass so i can go back up to the front and give them my bag to throw in the back somewhere. i overhear her say "i told her it wouldn't fit" and see her lip curl up into a sneer but i pretend not to hear her because i had my ear buds in. what a bitch. anyway, i get back to my seat and i discover i have both seats to myself. perfect! so i scoot over to the window seat and gloat to myself about my good luck. the rest of the flight was uneventful. i read my book, listened to music, drank a soda. flying into LA i see the telltale rivers of headlights and taillights moving along in traffic and lights! so much light. the pilot makes a jarring landing and we're in burbank. i think the Bob Hope airport is one of my favorites because i feel like i've walked into the 80's. i'm sure the decor hasn't changed much since then and they are always playing 80's music. it always puts me in a good mood. it's also such a cute little airport. i walk outside, call my sister and we play the "where are you" game.
me: "i'm to the left of the wall with the painting and big letters that say BOB HOPE AIRPORT."
kristi: "i'm by the parking garage."
me: "i'm looking at that too. where are you? are you outside of it? look for BOB HOPE."
kristi sighing: "i'll start walking...oh there you are."
big hugs all around. i missed my sister.


what did we do before cell phones. oh yeah, we could actually sit in the airport and great people at the door. remember those days?


anyway, we stop at a gas station and i'm watching the little tv on the gas pump thinking, is this necessary? like we aren't barraged with advertisements enough, we have to zone out (like iw as doing at that moment) at the goddamned gas pump. i peel my eyes away from the little screen as we drive away to my sister's place in pasadena. her house is super cute but she has the driveway of death. that thing is like scaling a cliff. i don't know how they pull into that damn thing every day. we walk inside and big hugs from shadi. i miss that guy too. i'm so happy they are back in the states. 


the rest of the night was mellow. ate some pizza and watched my sister sculpt her elf woman for a class she's taking at work taught by Jordue Schell. pretty awesome. i'm waiting on a photo of her finished work. i wonder if she could sculpt the head. apparently the head is really hard to do. i tried to help out and played around with her sculpty stuff but all i could do is make a grumpy old man face. more to come! bedtime.

Mark Ronson & The Business Intl - The Bike Song

this is rad because,
1. it's all about bikes
2. bikes fight back after one is stolen
3. cute girls on bikes
4. it's all about bikes

Bang Bang

found this online today and i love it, i can't lie.