Five Days of Summer Vacay

No matter how many days you might take for a vacation, it just never seems like it's enough, does it? The days just fly by and before you know it, that morning you dreaded has arrived, the one where you have to wake up early again, no more sleeping in, and head back to work. For me, that morning arrived today! Grrrrr.

I took three days off this week, to have a little 5 day extended weekend vacation. I wasn't planning to head out of the country again this time, like back in January, and definitely wasn't planning to have to serve on jury duty again. lol This time it was just to relax and enjoy a few days of the summer, work and worry free.

I got out of work early last Friday (part of our summertime schedule at work) and just hit the gym and packed up some stuff at night. At the time, we were planning to head out of town to either San Diego or the Santa Barbara area on Saturday. But due to Comic Con, San Diego hotels were probably too booked. And for some reason, so were the Santa Barbara ones. Maybe we should've planned it more sooner. hehe But oh well, instead we just took a drive down to a beach in northern San Diego and spent the day just relaxing, enjoying our Subway sandwiches for lunch on the sand. hehe We came back that same evening and the next day, Sunday, we just relaxed at J's house. Then on Monday we hit another beach, this time a bit closer to home, Seal Beach. Since it was Monday it wasn't too packed, so it was nice to have a pick of where we wanted to sit at the beach. The sun was nice and bright, the water was warm and the sand was soft. It was a nice beach, very relaxing, not too many people to get in your way. We relaxed a while, took in some sun and water, then took a walk on the pier and through the shops on the main street. The shops were kinda quiet though. Although we were only a few mins drive from J's house, it felt like we'd gone further away from the city. hehe So it was nice.

Come Tuesday, we just headed over to my house and spent some time there, after first experiencing the earthquake over at J's place while getting ready to leave to my house. He lives on a second floor condo so at first he thought it was me shaking the room by jumping, as I do sometimes. So he tells me, "Stop shaking the room!" And I just stare at him and say, "I'm not doing anything!" It then took a split second for us to realize what was going on, and we just kinda looked at each other. lol We just felt the room swaying back and forth, it wasn't rough or shakey...just felt almost like being on a ship. Nothing really fell there, but when I got back home later that day I found a bunch of my little toy figures I have in my room had tipped over. But no major damage. We hadn't felt a relatively big shake here in a while! So Tuesday night we spent at my house, just hit the gym, had dinner and watched some TV. Wednesday we then ran some errands (J's car got an oil change, hit the gym, hit Target, etc.) and at the end of the day chilled back at J's house. It was more of a normal day, but hey anything definitely beats working, especially when I'm with the one I love. :)

Overall, it was a five day weekend spent mostly in town, a lot of sleeping in, relaxing, having lunches and dinners, some gym time and beach time thrown in. And I loved every single minute of it! It took every bit of strength I had to get myself out of bed this morning. I wanted to sleep in so bad. I almost felt like calling in and saying I won't make it today. lol But I toughed it out. It's only one full day of work and part of tomorrow (I get off early). I can do it! Before I know it, another weekend will be here!

Batman For My Bday?

So who wants to be the sweet generous person to buy this for me? lol It's out on November 4th, just a few days before my birthday. Coincidence? I think not! And for what it's worth, the price below is just the SUGGESTED retail price. I'm sure it'll be a bit cheaper on the weeek it's released.

I'm just sayin'!

Night Job

I've noticed something over the past few years that I've been working at my current job. Being an entertainment related company, several of my co-workers are in bands, make movies, play instruments, sing, act, dance, etc. I see them posting flyers all over the office for their gigs, movie releases, art shows, etc. Now why don't I have a night job? So that I can then go to that night job and say how much my day job sucks and that my true passion is what I do after I clock out at 5. LOL Maybe it's time I dust off that old Casio Keyboard from the 80's that's been forever under my bed. ;)

Just Smell It!

Three random things that I usually like how they smell, but I don't like to drink/eat:

1. Coffee Drinks. In particular, those with a hint of vanilla, hazelnut or other similar type of scents. I usually do find the smell coming from a warm cup of coffee quite delightful. But I've never been a coffee drinker, not even the Starbucks variety cold/hot types. I'm more of a smoothie guy, or at least just a regular ol' cup of hot chocolate on a cold night. Still, at times I do wish I was into coffee, especially when I'm dozing off at work. lol

2. Menudo. And no I'm not talking about Ricky Martin's old band. I'm talking about that warm dish that is served in many Latino homes. Wikipedia describes it as "a traditional Mexican dish; a frequently spicy soup made with tripe. It is often thought of as a cure for a hangover, and is traditionally served on special occasions or with family." I've always liked the smell of Menudo in the morning, but I've never actually liked the dish itself. I'm more of a posole person! hehe (Side note: The smell from when the tripe is being cooked the night before....now THAT is a nasty one! lol)


3. Fried Chicken. I've passed by Popeyes Chicken before and found the aroma of greasy deep fried chicken emanating from their restaurants to be quite tempting. lol But I don't like fried chicken that much. I hate all that greasy gunk and that nasty feeling in my tummy after I eat that. I'd much rather just have flame grilled white chicken breast meat. :)

Lost . . .

Don't you just hate it when you lose something and you can't find it, so it ends up driving you crazy looking for it and wondering where the hell you could've left it? Earlier today I put something into my pocket, nothing really important, and then when I reached in to get it later I had lost it. So I was going around the house retracing all my steps in the last hour when I'd last seen it, but to no avail. So it drove me crazy just wondering where the hell it was! And of course, as always, I'll end up finding it when I'm not even looking for it anymore in the most random place! Uggh.

Cents and Sensibility

What goes up, must come down...right? Apparently that works with my bank account as well! lol The past couple of months I've kind of been spending a bit too much. Some things were necessary (paying bills and people I owe)...others were not fully necessary, but at least were good investments (the gym membership). Then there were some things that were from the kindness and generousity of my heart (several birthday presents). And finally, there were the stuff I really didn't NEED at all, but WANTED enough to not be able to resist (mostly my comics, music and DVDs). hehe But all in all, what good is working my ass off day in and day out if I can't indulge in a few pleasures, right? At least it's not drugs. lol Still, now that I got all those things done with I really need to try and focus on saving up a bit. My bank account's frightenly low! And pretty soon my car's lease is up so I either have to return it and get a new one, or try and see how much more I'd have to pay (if it's worth it). Then again I could always go back to the bus. I did it for many years and I know it'd save me money! BUT...I've gotten so used to my car and being self-relient and on my own schedule. I don't think I could go back. Hell, I don't even love driving much. I only do it when I have to. If I can avoid it, I will. lol The only good thing in all this...tomorrow is Pay Day! Woohoo!!!

Active Me - Week 3

Almost three weeks ago, on June 21st, the first day of summer, I began my new gym routine. I'd never been to a gym in my life...at all! Not even for a day trial or anything. So needless to say, I was in pretty bad physical shape. I knew I had to go, but like many other things I just kept putting it off. Finally, Juan came to me with a deal I couldn't resist. The price was right, so to speak. "Sign me up," I said.

Three weeks later, I've been going almost every day! I've only missed three days so far, usually because I didn't have time those days. But each other day that I do have time, I've gone. During the week I go bright and early in the mornings, and on weekends I just go at whatever time is convenient. Weekdays I don't get to work out as long as I'd like, but I try to get more done on the weekends. Overall, I've been enjoying it. I don't see it as a hassle like I thought I would. I've worked it into my routine, made it a part of my daily to-do's, right up there with eating, breathing and sleeping. hehe

It's still a bit early for me to see any physical changes in my body. But hopefully it happens! hehe To be honest, even if it didn't change too much, just getting some physical activity on a daily basis has helped me feel better. It's a great feeling. Actually, I did already lose a few lbs. Not a huge amount, but it's working at least. Maybe over time I'll try more of the other equipment, and maybe even hit some of the weights. I'm still a bit self-conscious about doing weights, because I seriously have no muscle and can barely lift anything. But that'll be later on, if I decide to try it out. For now I'm sticking to my cardio. :)

There He Was Just Walking Down The Street

Driving home yesterday evening, I saw a guy walking down the street. He was a young black guy, probably in his 20's, wearing tennis shoes, shorts, and a backpack...no tshirt...nicely toned body. So naturally I was doing a bit of rubbernecking. I'm human, after all. lol But as I got closer, I noticed they weren't shorts he was wearing. They were boxer briefs. lol Why he was walking around the streets in just his boxer briefs, I have no idea. But just another one of those little reasons I must say... I Love L.A.! LOL

No Money, Mo' Problems

Holy Crap! Why do I keep spending? LOL I just saw that my checking account is getting dangerously low. I've made some big payments and purchases in the past month or so that really took a toll, since it all happened at once. I always have my savings as back up but I don't like to dig into it unless I REALLY have to. But good thing is that I get paid this week, and early too since it's a holiday on Friday! Still, I really need to restrict my spending more...at least for a while.