Monthly Archive for November, 2005

Get back in touch with your inner musician*

Published on November 30, 2005 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

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Come to the Music Center to re-learn and play those notes in the company of other lapsed musicians like you! Make music again – mistakes happily included – for the sheer love and fun of it.

Workshops / Play-Alongs for:
– Clarinet
– Flute
– Trumpet

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2005
9:30am to 11:30am
DOROTHY CHANDLER PAVILION

Registration is required (space is limited). Registration fee: $10 per workshop (parking included). All sessions run concurrently; one workshop per person only.

Intended and designed for adult learners (age 18 and above), non-professional musicians. All participants must provide their own instruments and should be able to play at an advanced beginner level. Sheet music provided at no extra cost.

For more information please e-mail musicmakers@musiccenter.org or call 213.972.3660 or visit the Music Center website

*Time machine not included in registration fee. Maybe they’ll have another one soon.

Here goes nuthin…

Published on November 30, 2005 in Uncategorized. 7 Comments

Ok, I’m gonna really do it.

I’m going to do holiday cards this year. (I gotta use up that postage, no?)

People who received Maui postcards are on the list for holiday cards (email me if you have any changes)… but if you want a holiday card from me please send me an email with your mailing address (and phone #/IM addie while you’re at it) to joz AT jozjozjoz DOT com

Wish me luck!

Could there BE any more to do today?

Published on November 29, 2005 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Sheesh.

(I went to bed at 4:30am and got up at 8. I’m tired!)

Should I be worried?

Published on November 29, 2005 in Uncategorized. 8 Comments

My computer (hard drive?) is making an intermittent grinding noise.

Eep.

Pre-thanksgiving posts are finally up…

Published on November 28, 2005 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Check them out…

November 21, 2005 – Vegas, baby!

November 22, 2005 – Spa Day!

November 23, 2005 – Drive back to L.A. Day!

Ok, that’s enough excitement for me today.

Published on November 28, 2005 in Uncategorized. 7 Comments

I left for work all bright and early and walked on to the elevator with several of my co-workers.

As we went up in the elevators, the elevator stopped and said “The manual stop button has been pushed” (or something like that) even though no one pushed anything like that. Then the elevator started going up and down between floors, but the doors didn’t open.

I finally pushed the alarm button and a bell rang and then the doors opened and deposited us on the mezzanine level of our building where we informed the security guard downstairs in the lobby about the problem. Meanwhile, that same elevator car kept stopping on our floor and opening, but after a while, the guys got into the car, and the girls all waited for another one.

We got upstairs only slightly delayed, but sheesh. I am definitely not getting on that elevator car again.

he may have been mr. miyagi to you

Published on November 27, 2005 in Uncategorized. 7 Comments

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but he was uncle nori to me. i hadn’t seen him in years, but it was still very sad to learn that pat morita passed away on thanksgiving.

i grew up knowing we were related to him and being proud because of that. i also knew that roles for asian american actors were sparse, so him being famous for playing a karate master from okinawa with a japanese accent when he was actually born near stockton, ca and raised in southern california was mildly entertaining.

we saw him when we saw most of our other relatives–at weddings and funerals. he even did the eulogy for my grandmother when she passed away in 1984. but we didn’t know he was gone until someone in the family saw it on the news.

he’ll definitely be missed…

Just to clarify…

Published on November 26, 2005 in Uncategorized. 3 Comments

…I know I blog about my Mom yelling and screaming all the time, but you should know that we love each other and are pretty close.

She always yells and screams because she is always loud (not necessarily because she’s mad at me). And she’s also deaf in one ear and doesn’t realize how loud she’s being even though people are always telling her how loud she is. (I’ve also been told that I’m loud but don’t know it either… and I can’t blame it on being deaf in either ear.)

Although my Dad doesn’t scream and yell (he’s usually calmer than Mom is), he is also deaf in one ear… the opposite one of whichever ear my mom is deaf in.

So if they sit next to each other at an event, they have to sit next to each other in a certain way if they want to hear the other talk.

But at home, Mom and Dad are often hollering at each other… mostly so they can hear each other/themselves. Another annoying thing about their home? There are telephones in every single room of the house (minus the bathrooms) and every single ringer is set on LOUD. I hate it when people call the house when I’m there because I *jump out of my skin* from all the damn ringers.

Anyway, back to Mom. Yes, she yells at me a lot, but I know she’s not TRYING to scream at me. She can’t help it.

But it doesn’t mean I don’t get aggravated about it every so often, either.

(If you’re wondering… both my parents lost their hearing in their respective deaf ears due to childhood sicknesses.)

Happy birthday to me!

Published on November 25, 2005 in Uncategorized. 19 Comments

It’s my birthday and so far I’ve done nothing but eat and sleep.

(To be fair, we were at my aunt & uncle’s house until 2am when we decided to check out the lines for Black Friday… at 2 Best Buy locations and at Fry’s. We gave up when every line we saw was wrapped around the building. After getting to my parents’ home around 4am, I crashed out shortly after arriving.)

UPDATE @ 3:53p: I also went to the post office to put a package in the mail and did a little bit of shopping at the 99 cent store… yay for 33-cent jello!

UPDATE AGAIN: Thanks for the birthday wishes, Lomara, MikeDoss, and Shelli!

Finally, all that PartyPoker pays off…

Published on November 24, 2005 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment

I fooled them all the first game ($20 buy-in); first to be knocked out… only to come back the second game to beat them all!

Tournament style; 1st place wins $120; 2nd place wins $60; 3rd place wins $20 (gets the buy-in back).

I beat my brother with a straight on the turn.

Now my cousins are calling me Annie Duke, even though I’m not.

Whoo hoo for an $80 profit!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Published on November 24, 2005 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

I think it’s some sort of irritating tradition that my mom yell at me on Thanksgiving.

I called her earlier today and I got screamed at. But it was short and didn’t last long.

(How was I supposed to know that she had already called me 2-3 times this morning? I was up; the ringer was just off!)

Sheesh.

I’m back!

Published on November 23, 2005 in Uncategorized. 4 Comments

I tried to blog remotely, but it didn’t work too well.

Now it’s time for sleep.

If you check back in the next day or two, I’ll have updates.

Drive back to L.A. Day!

Published on November 23, 2005 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Well, Yoshi drove back anyway.

What’s there to say about today?

We woke up, ate leftovers for breakfast, showered & packed. We checked out and then went downstairs where Yoshi wanted to put a few more bucks in a slot machine before we left. Yoshi ended up winning $64 dollars right before we hit the road. Woot for winning our gas money for the trip! (We got gas for $2.21/gal in Vegas… wow!)

We left at 11:15am and drove non-stop (I didn’t even ask for a potty break) until we got home around 3:15pm… four hours including Thanksgiving traffic!

[I can’t remember what else we did that day, but I think that we just stayed home and ate, slept, cleaned, and did laundry.]

Spa Day!

Published on November 22, 2005 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Here’s a brief run-down of the day… sorry if you don’t understand them… it’s what I jotted down while I was in Vegas.

-Wake up, go to the Spa.

-Yoshi and I get Duet Swedish Massages in the VIP room at the MGM Grand Spa.

-Lounge in the spa (steam room, dry sauna, Jacuzzi, COMFY lounge chair in white robes). Snacks and juice (apples, bananas, granola bars) and lots of water! (No, I didn’t get spa-ed out… I could do this again… real soon!)

-Up to the room, check email briefly. I couldn’t plug into the network so I connected via an intermittent wi-fi connectino. For that crappy service I was double-charged $10.99/day. I called and complained and they credited it back to the room. But that’s why I wasn’t able to blog from Vegas.

-Out to Aladdin. To Desert Passage; dinner at Blondie’s. Rude waitress. GIANT onion rings, Mega Touch machine! Shopping: Sephora (didn’t buy anything but spent an awful lot of time there), Gap (tried a few things on, didn’t like anything), Build-A-Bear (no xmas outfits allowed!), Origins (I kept getting caught on the drawer knobs so I had to leave), Footworks (Yoshi looked around, but thankfully bought nothing), 3 cookies at Nestle Tollhouse (chocolate chip, m&m, and white chocolate/macadamia nut), $15 of chocolate from Teuscher, Fossil (yoshi looked at some watches), Sharper Image (sat in a massage chair… like I hadn’t had enough massage for the day… we bought some stuff but will return some of it, will keep the CDs). Gelato from Aromi D’Italia (pineapple).

-Over to Bellagio. Cold but no jacket… hence, blanket = poncho!
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-Stand and watch the fountains (a snippet of Rodeo by Copland… otherwise known as the “Eat Beef” music, Your Song by Elton John, Viva Las Vegas by The King himself , This Kiss by Faith Hill, That American song). Lots of Chinese tourists. Paramedics pulling up to the Bellagio (what happened?)

-Walked through the lobby of the Bellagio to check out their fall display (those are real apples!) and took a picture of part of the display under the famous Chihuly glass ceiling.
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-Back to MGM Grand. Food down at the Studio Café. Brief time at slots. Woot! We’re up for the weekend!

-More soaking in the tub before going to bed.

Vegas, baby!

Published on November 21, 2005 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment

That’s where I am for the next couple of days to celebrate my birthday. Thanks to Yoshi for booking us a suite and also for making the drive to Vegas. I’m so excited!

Before getting to Vegas, we stopped off in Primm to return a few items I had previously purchased at the Old Navy and Gap outlets. I bought a few new things, but I definitely returned more than I bought… so that was cool.

Tonight, we had dinner at Shibuya, which was wonderful. We wanted to dine at craftsteak, but as luck would have it, it is closed the entire time we’re here. (Dinner was courtesy of BossGuy, who wanted to make sure we had a very nice dinner to celebrate my birthday while we were in Vegas).

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Here’s me at Shibuya!

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We started out with ebi and salmon sushi along with a rainbow roll.

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Yoshi ordered the Kiyokushin Chicken (teriyaki chicken) with Ginger Yam Puree and Teriyaki Sauce.

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I ordered the Roasted Duck Breast with “Ume” Mirin Reduction. Yummy!

Since we’re celebrating my birthday this entire trip, we ordered two desserts:
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The Sorbet Selection: Yamamomo Peach, Lychee, Apricot Ginger, Pepper Red Berry and Black Sesame Toffee

and

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Yuzu Mandarin Brulee with Vanilla Mochi and Strawberry Citrus Compote

We’re staying in a spa suite at the MGM Grand which means there is a hu-mongo whirlpool tub in the bathroom.

But tomorrow is spa day, so if it’s possible, I might be spa-ed out by the time we leave Vegas.

I don’t know what it’s like…

Published on November 20, 2005 in Uncategorized. 11 Comments

…go to on vacation.

I have the next week off…

What am I going to do with myself?

YAY!

Published on November 19, 2005 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

Yoshi’s home!!!

Actually, Yoshi got home a few hours ago, but I’m just now getting to the computer.

(Yoshi has been gone since Monday for a family trip. I had to work and couldn’t go. That’s ok, because I’ll have the entire upcoming week off work so I can celebrate Thanksgiving and my birthday.)

HOORAY!

Published on November 19, 2005 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment

Hooray!

Hooray!

(Still waiting, but almost time!)

Tick, tick, tick…

Published on November 19, 2005 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

I’ve been waiting all day…

Tock, tock, tock…

Eeek. I have hives.

Published on November 18, 2005 in Uncategorized. 6 Comments

On my face.

What’s up with that?

Stupidly still awake

Published on November 18, 2005 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment

I don’t know what’s up with me staying up past 2:30 every night this week.

I suck.

I heard a rumor…

Published on November 17, 2005 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

…that a few theatres in Germany sneak previewed and began showing Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire a day or two early. (Without permission, of course.)

Remember how people went apeshit when copies of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince got out early?

You think the peeps in Burbank at the WB lot are gonna be pissed? You think they might go all Voldemort on someone?

(Is there anyone at Metblogs Berlin who has already seen it?)

Whoo hoo!

Published on November 17, 2005 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

Still at the office.

That’s 12 hours (minus 1 hour for lunch).

Hooray to me!

Published on November 16, 2005 in Uncategorized. 4 Comments

I called SBC and they unblocked my outgoing email port. Yay to the SBC tech support person who put up with Surly and Slightly Rude Joz, especially when Joz found out all that needed to be done was for SBC to unblock the port and for Joz to reboot modem, router, and computer. (Who asked SBC to block my outgoing email port anyway? It sure as heck wasn’t me!)

I haven’t been able to send mail via SMTP for approximately 1 year.

Who knew that a call to Tech Support could fix such a thing? Maybe I’ll be less elusive via email now.

Laugh Factory Benefit for The Freddy Soto Family

Published on November 16, 2005 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

FreddySoto-CorySoto.bmpThe Laugh Factory is hosting a benefit tonight to raise funds for Cory and Cruz Soto, the widow and three-year old daughter of recently-deceased stand-up comedian Freddy Soto.

Soto died in his sleep of heart failure on July 10, 2005 at the age of 35. Only one night before, Freddy triumphantly left the stage of Laugh Factory in Hollywood to a raucous, standing ovation. Freddy struggled and moved up the ranks of show business for 14 years, and although he was on the brink of major stardom, like many other comedians, he had no insurance.

Freddy was known for imitating his family in a loving way and he had universal appeal. His credits included THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO, THE LATE LATE SHOW WITH CRAIG KILBORN, HBO’s COMEDY MINUTOS, Comedy Central’s PREMIUM BLEND, Showtime’s LATINO LAUGH FESTIVAL, the Aspen Comedy Festival, and several films including Adam Sandler’s SPANGLISH. Hispanic Magazine rated him one of the “Top 10 Latino Comedians”.

FreddySoto-CruzSoto.bmpComics participating in the Laugh Factory’s November 16th benefit include: Bob Saget, Jon Lovitz, Carlos Mencia, Paul Rodriguez, Dane Cook, Joe Rogan, Dom Irrera, Aries Spears, John Caparulo and others to be announced .

There will be 2 benefit performances on Wednesday, November 16th — at 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.
The minimum donation per person is $25, or $35 for VIP tickets. All proceeds will be donated to the Soto Family Fund.

Reservations recommended. Please visit www.laughfactory.com or call 323-656-1336 x1 for reservations/information.

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