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September 30, 2008

Tuesday, 9/30/08: Angel Eyes


Tuesday, 9/30/08: Angel Eyes
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Please excuse the cliche/sappiness factor. It's just one of those days.

I heard this song sometime during the afternoon at work. As I walked home--later than usual, so the sun was starting to set--I realized it was still in my head. And it all seemed fitting. (I'd hoped to get a really pretty picture of the sun just sitting on the mountain there, but by the time I got to a good stopping point, it had dipped too low.)

Today, a friend passed away. He had his fourth liver transplant since May, his third in 45 days, last week. He's been in Mayo Clinic in Minnesota since Christmas, fighting for his life, and just... he was too young. Thirty-four, and previously healthy, athletic, and full of life. I still can't believe it. When this all started, I never dreamed it would possibly end this way. The last time I saw him was on my birthday last year, in late November. G, you were one of the good ones. You'll be missed.


Theme: Song Titles (Angel Eyes, Jeff Healey Band)

Posted by kate at 07:13 PM | | Comments (1)

September 29, 2008

Monday, 9/29/08: In My Dreams


Monday, 9/29/08: In My Dreams
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Since I was totally stuck in the parking lot's stacked parking last night between two cars whose owners felt no sense of urgency at all to come back to their vehicles, I got home late. I got to bed much later than I normally do. And I was all giddy on a post-concert high and couldn't fall asleep! I'm getting too old for fewer than four hours of sleep, let me tell you.

I was definitely wishing I could crawl back in bed and fall back asleep instead of going to work this morning. This is the beginning of my walk, just out of the complex. The whole way to work, I had REO Speedwagon on repeat on my ipod. It actually helped make it okay that I was out in the world instead of in my cozy, comfortable bed.


Theme: Song Titles (In My Dreams, REO Speedwagon)

Posted by kate at 08:50 PM | | Comments (0)

Sunday, 9/28/08: Don't Stop Believin'

I was so excited when I found out Journey, Heart, and Cheap Trick were coming to LA. Roni and I are turning into Concert Buddies, which is A-okay by me. I'd never been to the Greek Theatre before. It was such an awesome place! Outside, in the hills of Griffith Park, and it was the perfect night for a concert. I only knew a few Cheap Trick songs and a handful of Heart songs, but both groups were very good. Highly enjoyable.

But Journey. SO GREAT! For the record, I am on the Arnel bandwagon. He was fabulous! He sounds amazing, he's extremely charismatic on stage... I'm a fan. And I love that they found him on YouTube! I mean, how awesome would it be to be a huge fan of a group, sing in a cover band, and then get asked to join the original band? So cool! Anyway, they played everything I'd hoped they would, and just. *draws hearts*


Theme: Song Titles (Don't Stop Believing, Journey)

Posted by kate at 07:58 PM | | Comments (0)

September 28, 2008

Saturday, 9/27/08: Artsy


Saturday, 9/27/08: Artsy
Originally uploaded by kayay5
The last leftover picture! This was taken in Canada, while I was waiting with Simplybeing for the Wicked lottery. I just really liked this little artsy corner of the Arts Center, with its random and mismatched chairs and funky walls. Pretty neat.

My Saturday actually consisted of tons of wedding-related activities. We had our quarterly all-staff meeting after work, and combined it with a bridal shower for V, who is getting married in late October, and a groom shower for J, who is getting married in early October. It was pretty funny--V thought we were planning the party for J, and J thought we were planning it for V, so they were both surprised. Yay!

Afterwards, I went to the wedding of one of my old coworkers. It was very nice. She looked absolutely beautiful, and it was nice to spend time with several people I used to work with. I only wished (again) that I understood more Spanish--everything official was done in both Spanish and English, but most of the toasts were only in Spanish. And there was a lot of Spanish music, which all kind of started sounding the same after a while. All in all, it was a good time.


Theme: Leftovers

Posted by kate at 01:17 PM | | Comments (0)

Friday, 9/26/08: Fish bowl


Friday, 9/26/08: Fish bowl
Originally uploaded by kayay5
This... is a picture out the peep hole. We get a pretty clear view, eh?! I wasn't trying to catch the lost-looking pizza delivery guy, but he's there. *laugh*


Theme: Leftovers

Posted by kate at 12:40 PM | | Comments (0)

Thursday, 9/25/08: Temple of the Forbidden Eye

I had the day off, so Gen, her friend, L, who was visiting from Illinois, Heather and I took advantage of our annual passes (with the exception of L) and went to Disneyland. It was deserted. I think the longest line was for this, Indiana Jones, and that took us 16 minutes. Most lines weren't longer than five minutes, and Pirates of the Caribbean was walk-on. Literally. We walked into the building, there was a boat already waiting--we didn't even have to pause for it to pull up--and we got in and were on our way! Crazy. And pretty awesome! *g*

Being that this week's theme is Leftovers, this picture was actually taken in March when Jessie and Nadine were visiting, and we all went to Disneyland with J.L. and Keri. I did take a couple pictures this time around, but nothin' new or special. Anyway.


Theme: Leftovers

Posted by kate at 12:37 PM | | Comments (0)

Wednesday, 9/24/08: 603?


Wednesday, 9/24/08: 603?
Originally uploaded by kayay5
When we had to replace the front door, the numbers that were there didn't come off very well. My dad bought us new numbers, but came back saying unfortunately, Home Depot didn't have 306, so he got us 603 instead. *laugh* The new front door still needs to be repainted, so these numbers are still not up where they should be. Just one more thing on that ever-long To Do list.


Theme: Leftovers

Posted by kate at 12:29 PM | | Comments (0)

Tuesday, 9/23/08: Its fun is done


Tuesday, 9/23/08: Its fun is done
Originally uploaded by kayay5
This poor, deformed creature is Monet's favorite toy. It has most definitely seen better days, but she doesn't seem to mind. It's on a stick, and she'll carry it down the stairs with the stick dragging behind her, meowing around it for someone to play with her. It's actually pretty cute, gruesome fish aside.


Theme: Leftovers

Posted by kate at 12:21 PM | | Comments (0)

Monday, 9/22/08: View (none)


Monday, 9/22/08: View (none)
Originally uploaded by kayay5
This week's theme is Leftovers, with the objective of giving us a picture-taking break and using up some of the pictures that didn't make it as Pics of the Day when they were taken. It didn't actually stop me from taking pictures, but as none were spectacular anyway, I didn't mind not using them. Not that the replacements were works of art, either... ha.

Anyway. This is the view out my bedroom window. Sliding glass door. Whatever. The cats are fascinated by it, even though I'm not sure there's anything to see. Even in the realtor's listing it said "View: None". But it's okay, because if I walk outside, I can see mountains, and that's good enough.


Theme: Leftovers

Posted by kate at 11:51 AM | | Comments (0)

Sunday, 9/21/08: Girls' Weekend


Sunday, 9/21/08: Girls' Weekend
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Dinosaurs and sea creatures and Halloween, oh my! We had Girls' Weekend and made dozens of cookies. Chocolate chip and sugar cookies, yum. We also watched Jurassic Park, which was the inspiration for the dino cookies. The grocery store had Halloween cookie cutters on sale, which explains those, but the sea creatures... I got nothin'. They're tasty, though.

Posted by kate at 11:43 AM | | Comments (0)

Saturday, 9/20/08: Unpacking


Saturday, 9/20/08: Unpacking
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Yes, this is still my life. I only have a handful of boxes left to unpack, but they're obviously things I don't use often and I've lost my motivation. I've run out of steam. The unpacking has stalled. But we DID manage to hang a bunch of pictures on the walls downstairs! That's progress!


Theme: Camera Settings (Color Accent... again)

Posted by kate at 11:38 AM | | Comments (0)

Friday, 9/19/08: Switch


Friday, 9/19/08: Switch
Originally uploaded by kayay5
So, this picture is of one of my throw pillows. It's really a cranberry red and tan, but when I used the Color Swap feature on the camera, it came out like this. I dunno, not too impressive. I'm not sure what you'd use Color Swap for, to tell the truth. *shrug*


Theme: Camera Settings (Color Swap)

Posted by kate at 11:34 AM | | Comments (0)

Thursday, 9/18/08: Relaxing


Thursday, 9/18/08: Relaxing
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Thursday was Premiere Night for some of my favorite shows, and after the week I'd had, I was SO looking forward to just collapsing in front of the television (which is in front of me, even though you can't tell from the picture) and being entertained. And I wasn't disappointed!


Theme: Camera Settings (Sepia)

Posted by kate at 11:31 AM | | Comments (0)

September 19, 2008

Wednesday, 9/17/08: Seriously?


Wednesday, 9/17/08: Seriously?
Originally uploaded by kayay5
I had a spectacularly craptastic day that started with spending my lunch hour with a rude DMV employee, continued through an awful afternoon at work that left me fuming, and ended with this. A ticket.

I had dropped Sandra off at the airport and was heading home on the 405. I'd left a message for Caitlin about this weekend and was listening to the radio and thinking about how tomorrow would be better when... I was pulled over.

I honestly could not imagine what I was being pulled over for! I wasn't speeding (evidence on the ticket: Max Speed 65, Speed Approx 55). I'd just renewed my registration--which wasn't due until the end of October to begin with--that very afternoon, so I knew it wasn't that. I hadn't even changed lanes. I didn't think I had a tail light out. I was baffled!

I rolled my window down and waited patiently for him to tell me what I'd done. He said he'd seen me talking on my cell phone. I looked at him, shocked, and said I hadn't been! I pointed to the ear bud still in my ear, picked up the phone from my cup holder and showed him my hands-free was still plugged in. He told me he'd seen me with my phone in my right hand, holding it to my ear, and my lips moving. I don't know what he saw, but it certainly was not that. Since I first got my phone in, what, 2000? I have always, always, ALWAYS used a hands-free.

He went and wrote my ticket, and when he came back, I told him again that even BEFORE the cell phone laws went into effect, I always have used my hands free, I promised I hadn't been using my phone without a hands-free, and asked him what could I do? He said I could go to court. I apologized, told him this was my first time having to deal with something like this, and how did I go about going to court? He told me the info was on the ticket. Then I asked how I got back on the freeway (I was on an exit ramp). He said to go to the end of the ramp and I'd find a No U-Turn sign, and to make a U-Turn. I asked him if I'd get a ticket for that, too (which he kind of laughed at, thankfully... I wasn't trying to be smart), and he told me he was giving me permission.

JEEZ. So now I have to go to court in downtown LA in November. BAH! So stupid. More so because I didn't do it! *sigh*


Theme: Camera Settings (Digital Macro)

Posted by kate at 07:26 AM | | Comments (0)

Tuesday, 9/16/08: Friends, neighbors

It was the cutest thing! This little cat (I have the inexplicable desire to call her Sasha) came over to play two nights in a row, and she and Cymbeline were nose-to-nose on either side of the glass for the longest time. When Sasha would walk to the other side of the patio, Cymbeline would follow her. When Sasha got up on the air conditioning unit, Cymbeline stood on her back legs and reached as high as she could. When Sasha rolled onto her back, Cymbeline laid with her nose against the glass. Seriously. Most. Adorable. Thing. EVER.

Also, you should see both cats discovering Sasha at the beginning. Also the cutest thing ever. And you can really see how different Monet and Cymbeline look from each other now.


Theme: Camera Setting (Night Snapshot)

Posted by kate at 06:42 AM | | Comments (0)

September 18, 2008

Monday, 9/15/08: What's your story...

...morning glory?

I'm not sure I really knew what a morning glory was until I noticed these little guys outside our front door. They spend their afternoons and evenings all curled into themselves, but they're beautiful in the morning!


Theme: Camera Setting (Color Accent)

Posted by kate at 09:34 PM | | Comments (0)

September 17, 2008

Sunday, 9/14/08: Miracle?


Sunday, 9/14/08: Miracle?
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Saturday afternoon, I was over at Glace's (Karen was in town, and it was great fun!), and Glace showed me her fabulous super-litterbox. I was so impressed with it that I ran right out and bought one on Sunday, and I'm hopeful that I'll be able to replace our two boxes with shiny ones like this. This picture was taken before either cat had stepped foot into it, for the record. *g*

As of this post, we haven't yet gotten the cats to actually use the new litterbox, but we're trying. I have high hopes that I can say good-bye forever to stepping on spilled litter when I get out of the shower! High hopes! Now, if the kitties would only cooperate...


Theme: Camera Settings (Macro)

Posted by kate at 06:40 PM | | Comments (0)

Saturday, 9/13/08: Thirsty?


Saturday, 9/13/08: Thirsty?
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Saturday was the annual S.V. Days Parade, which pretty much runs east to west across the main drag in town and closes off the street right in front of our office. It was our second year handing out water to people along the parade route. We got to dress casually and spend a couple hours outside, which was nice. The parade was small, but nice. There were only a few classic tractors this year, which kind of disappointed me! Last year there was a whole herd of ancient-but-well-kept John Deers. There were the baseball teams and the square dance troupe and the Rockin' Roller Derby Girls (who invited me to join), the YMCA and the churches, the high school bands and tiny gymnasts and tinier karate...ers. Quaint. That's what it was. Quaint.


Theme: Directions

Posted by kate at 06:32 PM | | Comments (0)

Friday, 9/12/08: A snail's pace


Friday, 9/12/08: A snail's pace
Originally uploaded by kayay5
I was off to work in a hurry, later than I wanted to be. (It's weird, living closer has me running later--yes, later, not late--because I know I'll be there in approximately four minutes, and don't have to leave in time for a forty-five minute commute with a ten minute traffic buffer.) And I was hurrying down the sidewalk in my suit and heels when I almost stepped right on this little guy! I stopped and crouched down and got a good look at him. He was way cool! He was traveling east so slowly I almost couldn't tell he was moving at all. I hope he made it across the sidewalk okay.


Theme: Directions

Posted by kate at 06:26 PM | | Comments (0)

September 15, 2008

Thursday, 9/11/08: Housewarming Part Deux

These roses were a gift from a coworker, straight from her garden. Beautiful! And we have a little garden we can plant, which is exciting. Maybe I'll get my green thumb one of these days.

Posted by kate at 07:08 PM | | Comments (0)

Wednesday, 9/10/08: The door.


Wednesday, 9/10/08: The door.
Originally uploaded by kayay5
The door was the one thing that actually was a bit easier than anticipated! At first measure, our existing door was 78.5" instead of the standard 80". Once we got that door out, though, we found an extra inch and a half and thus avoided sawing through steel. Whew! Not to be outdone by the rest of the repairs, the door gave us its fair share of grief, including the need to re-paint it at a later date. And my dad was working right up to the eleventh hour... on his last morning in town, we went to breakfast, and then he had to "quickly" splice in a piece of flooring next to the threshold before he got on the road back toward Illinois. It was certainly worth it; all told, it's beautiful and solid and such a vast improvement over what was there that I actually grin every time I see it.


Theme: Directions

Posted by kate at 07:04 PM | | Comments (0)

Tuesday, 9/9/08: Success!


Tuesday, 9/9/08: Success!
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Is it surprising that the ceiling fan installation also caused way more strife than I felt was altogether necessary? Especially Gen's. Hers just did NOT fit together like it was supposed to. Mine was a little more cooperative, but not the easy-as-pie installation the directions implied. It was, however, my first foray into simple electrical work, as I hooked together the wires myself. With my dad's instructions, of course. Ha. After all that elbow grease, not to mention the effort that went into finding the Perfect Fan, I'm extremely happy to have it. Hooray!


Theme: Directions

Posted by kate at 06:57 PM | | Comments (0)

Monday, 9/8/08: Angles


Monday, 9/8/08: Angles
Originally uploaded by kayay5
In a moment of pure exhaustion, Gen flopped back onto the floor at the bottom of the stairwell, and then exclaimed, "Oo! If you ever need a picture with lots of interesting angles, lay down here and look up!" So I did. Things go in every direction from this vantage point.

A side note, this is the one section of the condo we have ignored completely, and continue to ignore as we try to figure out how to conquer it. The ceiling is probably a good 18-20 feet above the bottom of the stairs, and the skylight extends another six to eight feet above it. The ceiling and skylight have naked drywall, as the ugly popcorn was removed (and thus need to be both primed and painted), and the walls are still that dirty yellow the entire house was painted in. I think we'll have to end up hiring it out, because I'm not sure it's physically possible to paint without extensive scaffolding. *sigh* Anyone local know good painters that don't charge an arm and a leg?


Theme: Directions

Posted by kate at 06:52 PM | | Comments (0)

Sunday, 9/7/08: Swoopy


Sunday, 9/7/08: Swoopy
Originally uploaded by kayay5
This week's theme is Directions. I'm not so sure this actually fits, but the hooks have direction, right? A very curly-cue direction. Ish. We'd finished painting the bathroom (be gone, dirty yellow, be gone!) and put up these towel hooks and it was all nice and pretty. We also installed a cabinet above the toilet (another one of those way-more-difficult-than-it-should-have-been stories), but it's kind of around the corner from this wall and is thus not in the picture. Anyway, I ramble.


Theme: Directions

Posted by kate at 06:47 PM | | Comments (0)

Saturday, 9/6/08: Picky fingers


Saturday, 9/6/08: Picky fingers
Originally uploaded by kayay5
I have picky fingers. If there's something to pick at or peel, I'll do it! Tape stuck to things, paint chipping off metal railings, none of it is safe with me. It's lucky that the easiest way to clean the little paint bucket was to let the paint dry and peel it off. I think peeling the paint was even more fun than popping bubble wrap!


Theme: Fun

Posted by kate at 07:51 AM | | Comments (0)

Friday, 9/5/08: The hard way


Friday, 9/5/08: The hard way
Originally uploaded by kayay5
I think I mentioned that absolutely nothing was as easy as it might've been while my dad was here. He wanted to put the light switch in a place that made sense--next to the door. I guess normally, doors are framed with two two-by-fours on each side, which would've left about a two-inch space between the two doors through which to drop the wires. My dad was in the attic drilling downwards to get through the header when he popped out through the wall and saw light. In this house there were five two-by-fours lined up one next to another. At that point, there was no going back, so he just removed a piece of drywall and... routered? routed?... out one of the boards. The sound was horrifying and really not fun and I ended up standing off to the side wincing as he cleared away a path. We patched it and spackled it and I think it'll be good as new once I paint it.


Theme: Fun

Posted by kate at 07:47 AM | | Comments (0)

Thursday, 9/4/08: Ribbit!


Thursday, 9/4/08: Ribbit!
Originally uploaded by kayay5
A friend brought this to me as a gift after my first year in college. It's on elastic and it ribbits whenever it bounces (or, it would if I hadn't taken the batteries out years ago). It was right about the time frogs were becoming my 'thing', really without my doing. I was still a biology major at that point, and I think frogs were representative. However it happened, I started getting a lot of frogs as gifts, most of which I still have today.


Theme: Fun

Posted by kate at 07:41 AM | | Comments (0)

September 14, 2008

Wednesday, 9/3/08: Fun Frame


Wednesday, 9/3/08: Fun Frame
Originally uploaded by kayay5
This picture frame has stood empty since the day I got it, which is a shame because I really like it! I think I want a picture of my sister and me to go in it. Yes.


Theme: Fun

Posted by kate at 09:28 PM | | Comments (0)

Tuesday, 9/2/08: Impala


Tuesday, 9/2/08: Impala
Originally uploaded by kayay5
I went right out at lunch time and bought Supernatural Season 3, and it came with this little Impala. Cute, eh? Although, isn't Dean's a four-door? Anyway. I have a little die cast Mater, too, so they can sit together on the shelf. Friends.


Theme: Fun

Posted by kate at 09:24 PM | | Comments (0)

Monday, 9/1/08: Little A


Monday, 9/1/08: Little A
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Disneyland is kind of hit or miss on national holidays. Luckily, it wasn't very busy at all, this being Labor Day! I went with my friend S and her daughter, Little A. I think every time they go, Little A has her picture taken in the giant A in CALIFORNIA. Or, one of the two A's. Ha. Anyway, we had a great time, and were celebrating Little A's birthday (nine! I can't even believe it!), which was later in the week, so she had people wishing her a happy birthday all day long. Fun!


Theme: Fun

Posted by kate at 09:19 PM | | Comments (0)

Sunday, 8/31/08: Flower Power


Sunday, 8/31/08: Flower Power
Originally uploaded by kayay5
Have I mentioned before that I'm a sucker for details? I am. I bought this bedspread because I really liked these little flower details. The cats also like them, and occasionally try to chew them off, but that's beside the point.


Theme: Details

Posted by kate at 09:16 PM | | Comments (0)

Saturday, 8/30/08: Stop and smell...

My first housewarming gift: roses! My uncle was in town from Illinois (he took the train! Across 2/3 of the country!) to visit my cousin (um, his son), and they came out to take me to lunch and see the place. My cousin was the only person who took me up on my "offer" of helping us paint, and he did an awesome job on the living room ceiling. He also helped us move, and his last time here, the living room was piled almost to that beautifully-painted ceiling with boxes and furniture and crap, so it was nice to showcase how far it's come--even if it still has a long way to go.

Anyway. Roses. Pretty!


Theme: Details

Posted by kate at 09:12 PM | | Comments (0)

Friday, 8/29/08: It's a start!


Friday, 8/29/08: It's a start!
Originally uploaded by kayay5
A living room! Unearthed! It was at this point that I'd finally gotten the downstairs unpacked enough that it was starting to look like a real place. (Please to be ignoring the mess in the background there.) We're in desperate need of artwork for the walls, new throw pillows, and probably an area rug. Something to tie together the red couch and green walls.

Oo, this picture also shows the ugly box light in the kitchen that has subsequently been replaced. Take note. *g*


Theme: Details

Posted by kate at 09:06 PM | | Comments (0)

Thursday, 8/28/08: Falling


Thursday, 8/28/08: Falling
Originally uploaded by kayay5
This is the first time in a loooooooong time that I filled up for under $4 a gallon. (Of course, by now prices are even lower, so this doesn't seem so exciting anymore.)

Posted by kate at 09:00 PM | | Comments (0)