On The Radio

I woke up yesterday morning to a nice surprise. As I went into the restroom for my morning shower, I turned on the radio we have in there to listen to KROQ's Kevin & Bean, which I do every morning. But something caught my attention. They were reading a letter on the air, during their E-Mails segment, and I thought to myself, "Hey...that sounds familiar." Sure enough, it was MY letter! lol Unfortunately, I only caught the tail end of it, the punchline if you will.

Let's go back a bit... Last Friday, as I was heading to work, I heard Ralph (their entertainment guy) talking about some controversy with Britney's song "If You Seek Amy". Apparently, their station's powers-that-be won't even let them say the name of the song on the air, much less play it. And I guess the record label is making Britney re-record some lyrics for the song, changing them to "..if you see Amy" or something like that. Of course, they thought this was all just silly, as did I. If you've been hiding under a pop culture rock and don't know why the song is facing some controversy, just say the name out loud a few times until it hits you. "If You Seek Amy" :)

Anyhow, when I got to work, just to be silly, I shot them a quick email. I'd already forgotten I ever sent it so I was pleasently surprised when I heard it read on the air yesterday morning, giving me my few seconds of fame, though I doubt anyone I know even heard it live or would remember. lol But, you're in luck! 'Cause it's online now, courtesy of the unofficial site, kevinandbeanarchive.com
.

To listen to the clip, * * * CLICK HERE * * *. Mine is the very last email that's read, so you can skip through a bit or just wait for it. hehe If the direct link doesn't work, just go http://www.kevinandbeanarchive.com/audio.php and find the entries for 1/29/09, file name: 04 Email-2009-01-29.mp3.

Here's my original email as I wrote it to them, though it sounds better when it was read aloud. hehe And yes, I was being completely sarcastic and just trying to be funny. I actually enjoy the song...though truth be told I don't get it. lol

Subject: Seek Amy?
Sent: Fri 1/23/09 8:16 AM

Hey Kevin & Bean,

I heard about the whole controversy, during Ralph's showbiz report, regarding the latest Britney single. I, for one, am glad that disgusting song is being banned from even mentioning it's name on your station! Who does Britney think she is, putting such filth like that out! She thinks she's soooo clever by disguising those insulting words behind some otherwise innocent sounding phrase! To think that she is a role model to some kids and teens out there, and she comes out with a song like that! I am deeply offended and fear for the future of our nation!

-Nelson

P.S. Can you please play "Rape Me" by Nirvana? Love that song!

And yes, they really ARE allowed to play Rape Me, which is why I thought this whole "you can't say the name of Britney's song" demand that their bosses put on them was silly.

My "Horrible" Week

It's the last week of January, February is just around the corner. I had a lot of work to keep me busy this week, so it went by relatively quick. But, I must say, this has been a very horrible week for me. Dr. Horrible, that is! :)

If you don't know what it is (i.e. you aren't in the "cool club" lol), then let me enlighten you. "Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Along Blog" is a short musical (approx half an hour or so) from 2008 that is set up in 3 acts. It starts Neil Patrick Harris (Doogie Howser; How I Met Your Mother), Nathan Fillion (Firefly; Desperate Housewives) and Felicia Day (Buffy the Vampire Slayer; The Guild). It was created by the man, the genius, my entertainment saviour...Joss Whedon. During the writer's strike of recent past, which put the entertainment industry on hold, he set forth on this low budget project I believe in part to show the power of the internet over entertainment media. He released the musical, one act at a time, for free through DrHorrible.com. Then it went on to iTunes and similar online sites, eventually being released as a DVD and CD soundtrack (both of which I own, of course). You can still get it in all formats, just check out the site for the links. Or, if you want to view it online, it's available at Hulu.com by going HERE.

Being a fan of Whedon's TV work, I'm automatically drawn to anything that has his name attached to it. (Did you know, by the way, that he was also a writer on the original Toy Story!) When Dr. Horrible came out, I was excited to check it out. Unfortunately, so were many many others because the site hosting it was crashing on me. Eventually I got through, and loved it. It's got everything I love about Whedon's work, plus singing! What more do I need!

This whole week, I've been playing the CD soundtrack in my car as I drive home from work. Being a short musical, the soundtrack is even shorter, but I still have a blast listening to it and singing along (in the confinement of my personal space within my car where nobody has to endure my vocal pipes of death). The more I listen to the lyrics the more I catch funny phrases that always give me a good laugh, such as this one sung by the super cheesy super hero Captain Hammer, Dr. Horribles nemesis...

It may not feel too classy
Begging just to eat
But you know who does that? Lassie.
And she always gets a treat

It's funnier in context, of course. So go watch it! :)

Oh and...with all my rave & praise I forgot to mention what it's actually about. In a nutshell, Dr. Horrible is trying to get into a supervillain league, but to do so he must prove his worth. While doing so, he video-blogs about his latest updates, as well as the girl he likes, Penny. And then there's Captain Hammer, always getting in his way. I won't give away more, it's more fun to watch it for yourself. :)

Meet LOST's Desmond

Meet Henry Ian Cusick (Chávez), who plays Desmond Hume on ABC's wonderful series "Lost".

Did you know...
1. He was born in Trujillo, Peru. (Peruvian mother and Scottish father.)
2. He is fluent in both English & Spanish.
3. He is 6 feet tall. (Same as me!)
4. He once played Jesus himself in "The Gospel of John". (I see the resemblance! lol)
5. He was nominated for an Emmy in 2006, "Outstanding Guest Actor In A Drama Series", for the episode "Live Together, Die Alone".
6. He's easy on the eyes, for sure...


Brotha!

Butt what?

Lately I've been feeling a bit lazy when it comes to the gym. I used to get off work and actually look forward to going. Straight to the gym, without any hesitation, right after work. When I first started though, I would even get up super early and go to the gym before work! I haven't done that in a long time...mostly because the mornings are too cold to want to be out early. hehe Maybe once the summer rolls back around, with warmer mornings, I may try it out again. But back to my laziness...

I've still been going to the gym whenever I can. Just doing my usual half hour on weekdays and hour on weekends. I don't like to do too much, just enough to keep me active and healthier. Who knows, maybe down the road I may try and push myself a bit more and hopefully actually tone up my body! Miracles can happen, after all! But now, when I leave work, I just feel like going straight home. I try finding ways to convince myself that it's ok to skip the gym. I try harder to ignore those thoughts! lol Fortunately, I've managed to keep going. Once I'm actually there and start working out, it's all good. Just getting myself there after work is what's been feeling a bit more challenging lately.

Sometimes you just have to find ways to motivate yourself. Think of the benefits you get out of going. Losing weight, feeling better, looking better, etc. And there are other benefits as well that they won't tell you in the brochures. Specifically all the hotties you can check out. I mean, come on...you know you all do it! You're working out at the gym and there, in front of you, is someone running on a treadmill, in their shorts or workout pants, with that butt jumping around in the air, as if to say "Look at me!" It's funny...I was never a butt guy before. Didn't really pay too much attention. But now that I've often found myself working out with some nice butts in front of me to observe, I've come to admire the beauty in them. And with that...I've come to start feeling a bit more self conscious about my own derriere, or rather...lack thereof. :( I used to accept it, think of it as no big deal. But with all the nicer ones I've seen, I can't help but wish I had one too! Grrrr. Maybe I should just go out and buy myself a friendly little donkey. Why? So that I can proudly say, "Yes, I do have a nice ass."

What's the word?

Today I present to you a behind-the-scenes look into the magic of this blog! lol We've all done a google search before, right? (Or a search using just about any search engine.) You type in a few words that you believe will help you find what you are looking for, and if you're good at guessing those words then that thing you are looking for will probably be found within the first couple of links that are spit out to you. But then there are usually a lot of other links, often several pages worth, that are listed in your search results. I doubt anyone has ever done a search looking for my blog specifically, but I find it interesting to check up on some of the word searches that have lead people to my site. Below you'll see a list of the last 10 keyword searches that eventually lead people to my site:

It's funny that half of the entries include the words "gay", "sex" or "sexy." I think that says more about what people are searching for than what my blog actually contains, because for the most part I tend to write about random dorky stuff rather than the hot & sexy. lol Though, I try to do my part by throwing some of that in every now and then, to please your perverted minds! lol If you're wondering about the "sexy disney heroes" one...there's a perfectly good explanation for it! A while back, I linked to a guy's page where he had some artwork up in which he gave his take on what the classic Disney animated men would look like if they were drawn more sexier. He did some pretty cool drawings. (Check out my original post HERE if you'd like.)

My favorite entry has to be the "dominic monaghan can't change a tire" one. lol No idea why they did that exact phrase search, but I know I must have posted something on Dominic before since he was my favorite on Lost. :)

Why Should I Worry?

With everything that's going on lately with our country, some times you just gotta sing out loud to feel better.

"I may not have a dime,
but I got street savoir-faire!"

Why Should I Worry
from Oliver & Company (Disney, 1988)

Scary

Via CNN.com:

The final week of January began with a bloodbath for the job market, as over 71,400 more cuts were announced on Monday alone.

At least six companies from manufacturing and service industries announced cost-cutting initiatives that included slashing thousands of jobs.

More than 200,000 job cuts have been announced so far this year, according to company reports. Nearly 2.6 million jobs were lost over 2008, the highest yearly job-loss total since 1945.

CLICK HERE to see a chart of the main companies that have had cuts so far.

DAMN. What else can I say. But, Damn. :(

College Dazed

Whenever I go visit Juan after work, on my way to his house, I pass by the USC campus. Often, I'll be stopped at a red light for a couple of minutes at the side of some dorm rooms. I glance over at some of the windows and see the students sitting at their beds, studying, watching tv or doing who-knows-what. I see them jogging around the campus. I see them walking back to their rooms from evening classes or study sessions, backpacks and books in hand, and their youthful looks taunting me! For some reason, as I drive through there, I start to think back to my own college days, albeit at the rival (and much better! hehe) school, UCLA. I think back to what I could have done differently. I was never really active in anything. I'd go to school, attend classes, study as much as I could just to keep up. To save money, I'd take the bus back home each night, so my time actually on campus was just to get my work done and go to classes. As a consequence, I never made many close friends there. The ones I did make usually would just last as long as we had classes together. lol So I can't help but wish I could have done a few things differently. Maybe live on campus, join a group or two, or at least be more willing to talk to people. I look back on college and for the most part just remember classrooms and long boring study sessions. But oh well, we can't change what's done. Still, I can't help but feel a bit jealous when I see all those young students starting out college, with many possibilities ahead. Then again...in today's economy and job market, I'm sure many of those students are probably scared of what they'll be heading into after graduation.

Accent

Sometimes I wish I had a British accent. Or a Spanish one. Though Italian would be nice too. Hell...just about any European accent. Why? I don't know. Just think it'd be cool. :)

I Heart Banana

I was walking past the Marie Callender's, on my way to pick up a salad for lunch from Koo Koo Roo, when what did my eyes see but the beauty that was a picture of a banana cream pie! I love banana flavored...well, anything, pretty much! It's probably not one of the most popular flavors, as evidenced by the discontinuation of the banana flavored Quik powder. I still haven't gotten over that. :( I know they still have the bottled version, but no longer can I mix my own at home. lol

Anyhow...my eyes lit up and my mouth drooled (just a little!) when I saw that the banana cream pie is one of their featured pies of the month! :) Granted, I've never had one from there but it's banana...how can it not be good!?

I recently came across a new Cheerios flavor, too. Can you guess which one? Yep...banana nut! And I love it! I don't really know why I love banana flavored things so much, especially smoothies, or when it started. But I love it! It's not a particularly strong flavor. And to the untrained tongue, it may just taste like vanilla. But it isn't! Banana can kick vanilla's white ass any day!

I still remember that ice cream man who tried to deny my passion.
"One banana nut ice cream cone, please"...I asked him.
"You mean vanilla?"
"No, banana nut."
"There's no such thing. You want vanilla."...he had the audacity to tell me.
"No!"

I still have nightmares of that day. ;)


-----------
Edit: Let me add that I do not work for Marie Callender's nor do I have any sort of investment in their company. lol

craigsLOST

My friend Erik passed this Lost themed craigslist parody along to me and it gave me a good laugh. Thought I'd share it, too. If you're not a fan of the show Lost, you probably won't find it funny. Also, helps if you're caught up with the show. Anyhow, check it out at:
http://www.collegehumor.com/article:1769316

The Shirt Off Your Back

Question: If you were to see this guy out on the streets and he comes up to you asking for some clothes...YOUR clothes that you are wearing...what would you do?

I like to think of myself as a kind, generous and caring person that'll try my best to help others in their time of need. But I don't know how I would react if a complete stranger just came up to me, wearing nothing but a beret and some briefs (yet looking quite good, if I may add lol), and asked me for my clothes. I wish I could say I'm always willing to help everyone out, even a complete stranger, but I can't help but always be a bit cautious. I hear so much in the news about the horrible things some people do, I tend to always watch myself around people I don't know.

So yeah, this whole scenario was just one of the little challenges given to contestants on the new Saturday night CBS show "Gameshow In My Head". It's a game show where one person is given several embarrassing, uncomfortable and overall funny tasks to complete. They all involve the person going up to random strangers and interacting with them in some way to complete the challenge. During all this, the host (Joe Rogan) is communicating to the contestant through a headpiece, hence the name of the show. The random people that get involved don't know what's going on, as it's all being filmed on hidden cameras, and the contestant can't mention it's a show at any point.

I just came across this show randomly but am kinda hooked on it now. It's pretty funny yet at the same time it raises some interesting questions as to what complete strangers are willing to do. As Blanche du Bois would say, from A Streetcar Named Desire, you "can always rely on the kindness of strangers". (Don't let this reference fool ya...I'm not that 'cultured'. I only know this line from that episode where Marge played her in The Simpsons lol.) But can you really rely on strangers?

What makes the challenges especially difficult is that most people tend to run away from complete strangers coming up to them and acting weird or asking for strange requests (such as the lady dressed as a hospital patient out on the street, complete with an IV bag, asking people to forge a doctor's signature on her release form). One poor guy looked freak out when a lady started to do a little singing strip tease and opened up her shirt revealing her Wonder Woman outfit underneath. lol

But then there are instances where some people really do shine. There really are still people out there that have a very open heart. That guy, Seth, when he was walking around in his underwear asking for people's clothes, making up all types of random excuses, kept being ignored or pushed away. There was one lady who snapped a picture of him with her cell phone, though. lol He eventually finds a woman who gives him some bright little sweater she was wearing, and another guy gives him some socks. But then, he meets a couple that really went above and beyond. The man gives him his shirt, shoes AND pants! His wife had an extra pair of shorts with them though. Maybe they were gym bound? Seriously, how many people out there would give a stranger that much? It's one thing to help someone with a monetary donation or donating clothes through organizations and whatnot, but to just hand over what you're wearing? Wow. Kudos to that man! I believe Seth went on to win the maximum. Hopefully he at least treated that man to a new outfit or something.

What about you? Would you have given up the clothes off your body to a random guy? How friendly (or cautious) are you around complete strangers?

Tippin' Yogurts

I just knocked over my yogurt I'm eating right now. The container tipped over right at the edge of my desk, on the verge of falling over it. And the container's opening was pointing directly over my crotch. Lucky for me, it was almost empty so nothing spilled out. Otherwise, this could've been one messy and embarrasing situation! I lead a very dangerous life, I tell ya. So yeah, just thought you would want to know. ;)

Perfect Timing

Three weeks ago, it was the start of the New Year. It was also our last full day of our trip to Vancouver. Now that a little more time has passed, that "high" of being on vacation has mostly worn off. I'm all back to my normal daily life. But I still find myself thinking back to the trip at random moments. I guess even the memories of the good time I had is enough to cheer me up a bit when I need it. With all the layoffs that went on at our company last Friday, this wouldn't have been a good time to seek some vacation. So I'm thankful that Juan arranged for our trip to take place when it did, during the holidays. Things are a bit more scary now. I knew about the problems with our economy, but when it starts to really hit home on a personal level it's whole other feeling! That vacation came about at the perfect time.

Close Your Eyes

Over the weekend Juan & I went to see "My Bloody Valentine 3D". It's a bloody, gory, slasher film so it should come as no surprise that there's nudity of the young hot female variety, albeit in glorious 3D! lol

Sitting behind us was a mom and her son, who sounded like he was in his early teens at least. As soon as the naked girl comes out, she tells him "Cover your eyes!" Then a minute or so later, she tells him again, claiming that she saw him looking, to which he replied "I'm looking down at the ground!" Then when it's all over, poor kid has to ask someone "What happened to her!?" lol

What I don't get though, if you're gonna take your kid to a rated R movie, why not just let him watch the whole damn thing? If only you knew the things he's looking up online when nobody is watching. lol Mainstream movie nudity would pale in comparison!

Oh and this kid wasn't even the youngest. There are at least two babies that I noticed! Why? Why would you bring a baby to a loud, dark, gory-as-hell horror flick? But hey, at least she was courteous enough to say "I'll sit by the edge in case he cries so I can walk out with him." Imagine the poor kid waking up and seeing some gigantic boobs bouncing around on the big screen with scary music and a creepy killer right behind her! Momma's gonna wonder why the little one won't take her milk anymore. lol

The movie itself, by the way, was a fun film. Nothing award worthy, but if you can catch it in 3D it's definitely a fun time. Just don't take it too seriously and you'll be fine!

A Day of Changes

As a nation, with the inauguration of our new President Barak Obama, I know that today is a day of celebration and hope for some positive changes for our country. As I type this quick post, I'm also listening to the ceremony online through streaming radio. Aretha Franklin just sang "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" and now I believe they are about to begin the oath of office.

While all this is going on though, there's one greater thing on my own mind: all that went down at work last Friday. Several people were laid off, signaling some major changes for our company's future. It's still early in the day so it's a bit too soon to tell just how many people are no longer here. I'm very grateful that I'm still working, but I'm also aware that the coming months will probably bring about some changes in that dept. And I can't help but worry just a bit. I tend to be a person that finds comfort in routine, in knowing what to expect. So when it feels like some big changes are ahead, I do get a bit nervous. But I'm trying my best to just focus on the positives for now, focus on the people in my life that give me strength, focus on the love I share with my special someone...it all helps me get through the days, one step at a time.

It's now 9:05, 12:05 Eastern Time, Obama is now officialy president and is about to take the oath...

I'm hopeful for a bigger, brighter future.

Tough Day at Work

Today started out quite normally. Went in to work, doing what I would normally do. I knew we had a meeting, for the whole office, with the "big boss." Me, being ever the optimist, wasn't fully expecting what he had to say...though at the same time, I kinda knew he would. I guess I was just HOPING he wouldn't. But sure enough, he said it. There would be layoffs at the office today.

We were each going to meet with our department head, to find out if we stay or go. The meeting was at 10am. I didn't get my meeting until around 2pm! So for at least four hours, I had to sit and TRY to work, while the nervousness and fear ate away at me a bit. And again, Mr. Optimist, I just kept calm, telling myself that hopefully they still needed me around. That hopefully my five years and counting there would help me out.

When it was finally my turn to go to his office, I was nervous. For some reason, as soon as I entered, I told myself..."This is it...I'm not coming back." He started out by talking about how it's been a tough day and that these decisions have nothing to do with anyone's job performance, good or bad. I was kinda hoping he'd start off just saying "you're going" or "you're staying" right off the bat. But instead, he kinda just threw it in among his other sentences. I can't even recall exactly how he said it. But as soon as he did, I was able to relax a bit more.

So yes, I'm very relieved I still have a job for the time being. Just how long that "time" will be for, it remains to be seen. It was still very sad to know that several people in our office wouldn't be coming back on Tuesday after the holiday. :( I only know of a few people that for sure were let go. The office closed early today, so I think some people just went home early but will be back next week. I'll have a more clear idea of who was left once I get back on Tuesday. I'm sure it's goig to feel weird though. A major mood shift in the office. As someone put it, it's like those of us that stayed are just prolonging the inevitable.

Come Tuesday, I'm just going to go in and keep my head held high and do my best, just as I've always done. But at the same time, I need to be realistic. I'm going to be updating my resumes, putting myself out there and keeping my eyes and ears open for new possibilities.

I wish nothing but the best for all those that were let go today. Despite my being kind of a recluse at work, I do know that all my coworkers have been an awesome group of people!

Ugly Bush

It's Thursday night in just a few hours...and you know what that means! New Ugly Betty! After last week's episode, which ended on quite a shocker, I can't wait to see what happens tonight! Oh....wait...what's this you tell me? Our soon-to-be ex-President Bush wants one more shot at addressing our fine nation? Just ten to fifteen minutes tops? At what time!? Eight!?!? Damn you!!! No, I say!! LOL

So yeah, no new Ugly Betty tonight. That sucks! It's always one of the things I look forward to on a Thursday (along with going to visit the bf). The episode that was going to air tonight, "Sister on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown," has been moved 'til next week. I just checked ABC's site and looks like this is true, they list two repeats of Scrubs to air after Bush's last stand. But ya might want to keep an eye out, just in case they change their mind later.

If Betty were there at his speech...I can't help but picture her throwing her braces at him in protest. LOL

All That and a Bag of Chips

As I was driving to work this morning, cutting through the streets of Downtown L.A., I came across a beautiful sight. I came to a stop at a red light and looked to my right. There, walking along the sidewalk, I saw a man. And no...HE is not the "beautiful sight" that I'm talking about. Though...he was a cutie. lol Anyhow...that's beyond the point. It was more about who was with him.

The guy was probably in his late 20's, mid 30's at most. Kinda tall, thin build, dressed in t-shirt & jeans style. On his right hand he was holding a leash, which lead down to a cute little dog. On his left hand he was holding on to the tiny hand of a cute little girl. I can't decide who was the cutest...the little dog or the little girl. hehe The dog was a small, brown dog. Don't know the breed. The girl was probably no more than a year old at most. She was able to walk on her own but not very fast, almost seemed as if he let her hand go she might fall. She had blond hair, light skin, and was holding a small bag of chips in her other hand.

So there they were, the man, the little girl and the little dog, just strolling down the streets of L.A. on a sunny Wednesday morning. And for some reason, in that instant, as I saw them walking together...I couldn't help but admire them. Of course, I knew nothing about them. He could just be her big brother, taking her to a babysitter and walking the family dog at the same time. He could've been a divorced father whose turn it was to spend time with her. Who knows. But in my mind, I pictured this perfect little family. The dad going out for a walk with his baby girl, his pride and joy, and bringing along their other love of the family, their pet dog. The wife is probably at home somewhere, or maybe even at work. And it got me to thinking, yet again, about kids. Having kids, that is. One of the "big questions" as we get older in life, especially for gay couples.

I saw that man and the little girl, and I thought to myself, "That could be me." I'd want that to be me some day. I've had many dreams where I do have a little girl...and always a little girl for some reason...and I feel so much joy. She's my love, my child, my little angel. As much as I love my family, my friends and of course my bf...I know there's still plenty of room in my heart for another person...a little person. :) I think I'd make a great dad. I learned from the best, my parents! I've often felt that, emotionally, at this point in my life, I am ready for a child, if I were to try to go that route. But of course, it's not just about emotions and wanting a kid. There are many other factors that go along with it. Can you support them financially? Where will you all live? Does your bf want a child, too? Would you be able to give them the time and attention they deserve? And so on.

So in that minute or so that I sat in my car at the red light, watching the man and his two companions, I couldn't help but admire that sight. In my mind, my background I instantly made up for him, that man had it all. A loving wife, a beautiful child, a cute pet...all that and a bag of chips!

KENS

I saw this video posted on one of the blogs I like to visit. It's a short video created by a guy out in Spain (user pellufo on youtube). He mentions in the video's description that it's his first 3D animated short. It's literally short, clocking in at under 3 mins. But I really liked it. It's sweet yet somewhat sad at the same time. The classic story of a love that'll stop at nothing.



Let me know what you think.

Prison Break Cancelled

A quote from the Hollywood Reporter, regarding the future of FOX's "Prison Break":

"Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly...confirmed that this is the final season for "Prison Break." In addition to the remaining four episodes, there's a possibility of a couple more episodes being shot.
'The show is just played out,' Reilly said. 'Creatively, everybody feels enough stories have been told. ... We want to finish strong and not just gimp out next season. They have a cool ending.' Prison has four more episodes set to air, and might shoot extra series-topping episodes as well."

Yes, I've watched this show religiously from the very first day and have enjoyed it ever since. I would say the first season was my favorite, followed by the second. The rest have been fun as well so far, but even I have to admit that at times it felt they were just trying to stretch the storyline for more episodes. Also, it was the type of show where you just had to suspend disbelief and take what they gave you...that's what made it fun. lol I always get all into it watching this show, and will continue to do so 'til the end. Am I sad that it's being cancelled? Not entirely. I think it's the right time for them to wrap up the stories and give the show a nice, clean ending. What I hate is when a show gets canned and doesn't get to air a proper ending. Fortunately, it looks like Prison Break will get it's proper farewell.

I Dream of Felicity

I had a strange and somewhat random dream last night. I was with Juan, hanging out on what looked like a sidewalk area. I'm not sure where it was. I think we were sitting down on some benches or steps. There were at least three or four other guy friends with us. I can't remember who else was with us, the only other face I remember was Marco, one of my friends.

Anyhow, we were just all hanging out there, probably talking about who knows what. Felt like we were waiting for something...a bus maybe? Then we notice a woman sitting just a few feet away from us. Juan points her out and tells me, "Isn't that Felicity?" (By which he meant Keri Russell, who played the title role in the WB series "Felicity". He often refers to celebrities that I like, but he may not be all that into, by their character's names rather than their actual names.) So I take another look, but I wasn't sure. I always have trouble recognizing people.

So Juan gets up and says he'll go ask her. He walks up to her and says, "Are you Felicity?" To which she was nice enough to respond, "Yes." He tells her that I (pointing to me) love her and would love to meet her. He then walks back to me and tells us all to go on over and that we can take pictures with her. (I tend to always carry my camera when we go out somewhere.)

We walk over to her and for some reason I end up being the one that has to take the picture! Everyone else gathers around her to get in the pictures, while I struggle with the camera. I think one of the other guys had given me his camera to take a picture with first. But it was acting up, so I struggled with it for a few mins. Felicity...err...Keri, rather...was a good sport and being very patient. I give up trying the other guy's camera and take out my own. But then I'm faced with other problems because we can't get a nice shot. Someone was looking the other way, someone closed their eyes, someone was out of frame, etc. I don't know if I ever got a good picture, or I even got my turn to be in one. From this point forward I don't recall what happened in my dream. :(



One thing I do recall...quite vividly...is Keri's appearance. She must've looked at least 15 years older, 50 lbs heavier and she had on a dress that showed off her legs, which were just as hairy as my own, if not more so! lol I've always loved her sweet, innocent, girl next door type of look on the show. Why she looked how she did in my dream...I have no idea! I think I know why she was in my dream to begin with. I was looking at someones profile online and they had this video clip in which they were discussing how they were similar to the character of Felicity. At one point, Felicity's face is placed over his face in the video. hehe

I tend to have the strangest dreams...and I love it! I know I had a whole other dream sequence after the Felicity one. Don't recall if it was a new story of if they were connected. All I know is the second one was more of a "run for your life" scary type of dream. This might've come about because I had just watched "Eagle Eye" on DVD that night, which stars Shia Labeouf. Hmmm...I wonder if Shia was in my dream too? :)

HEROES: "Hard Knox"

Hey, fellow HEROES fans! Did you know that the character of Knox from the "Villains" volume was supposed to have had a little background storyline showing his past connections to Parkman? It ended up being cut from the show, and I figured it'd be included as bonus features in the next DVDs. Who knows, it probably still will be. But if you can't wait, they've put them online now! A little something to hold us over 'til the new "Fugitives" volume begins!

Via www.nbc.com/Heroes/video/categories/hard-knox/894782/









A little more background on this, from Beaming Beeman:

There was a story that featured the character of Knox and his relationship with Matt Parkman. The story took place in L.A. and told how Knox was part of a gang and was trying to get out of that life. Matt was a cop who had busted Knox once and was trying to help him stay on the straight and narrow. As things progressed Knox realized he had the power of incredible strength whenever people around him were afraid. This caused him to turn away from Matt’s good guidance. It was a good story. But it was 9 minutes long. And, in the editing room, when Allan tried to fit it in – all the other stories became compromised. So the decision was made to just drop that one story altogether.

Panic on the Plane

With all my excitement to jot down every excruciating detail about my trip to Vancouver, I still managed to forget about one very important, tragic, traumatizing and life altering incident that happened to me aboard the airplane. Just thinking about it still makes me break out in a sweat. I had never been injured aboard an airplane!

So there I was, boarding the Alaska Airlines plane, just minding my own business, searching for my seat. I find my seat, center seat...never a window seat...I think I need to take over the seat assigning task from Juan! lol So I put my backpack in the overhead compartment, sit down, buckle up and start sending out those vibes for safe trip in the back of my mind. And then, all of a sudden, it happens! The horror! The pain!

I got a freakin' papercut!!! Motherf#%@* stung like a bitch! I swear...it was at least a fifth of an inch long cut straight into my thumb! lol

I had placed my boarding pass inside my jacket's chest pocket after I found my seat. A couple minutes later, I was reaching into my pocket to get my iPod, I believe, and instead my thumb went right through the razor sharp non-FAA regulations paper material of the boarding pass! But I toughed it out. I didn't shed a tear. ;)

Mental Gems

I'll often find myself going about my day, at work, in the car, out and about, doing whatever may come up...when suddenly, a random thought, story or idea will pop into my mind. A little creative, funny, amusing, witty or just plain randomly strange topic that I want to write about in my blog. As soon as I think of it, I start to "write it" in my mind. I imagine what I want to say, punchlines and all. But then, once I finally get to a computer and have time to write it...all that magic that was happening in my head turns to poo! lol I end up forgetting exactly what I wanted to say, or how I wanted to say it. And often, it just doesn't seem as satisfying anymore as it did in my head. Seriously...we need to invent some sort of machine that'll take mental dictations. I'll hook it up to my noggin and I can mentally command it to jot down what I'm thinking. Wouldn't that be nice? Then you'd all get the best of my mental gems, not just the crappy stuff I manage to spew out. lol

One week... One Year...

One week ago from today, we were out at the Capilano Suspension Bridge, enjoying our little adventures over the Capilano River and among the treetops of North Vancouver.

One year ago from today, we were making our final preparations to head out on our flight to Madrid, Spain.

And now, today...I'm just sitting here, trying to make it through the hump day. Yeah, gotta try not to think TOO much about what I COULD be doing instead. Could drive a man crazy! lol

The Macbook Wheel!

Apple Introduces Revolutionary New Laptop With No Keyboard

Back to R...

Well, I'm back. Sitting at my desk, in my dull cubicle, at work. Nobody in my department is here yet, it's quiet. Too quiet. Even the AC, which is normally on full blast, set to freezing, isn't running today. Hmmm. Perhaps the building management finally got that memo that it was too freakin' cold in here?! lol

But anyhow, now that I'm here at work, it finally feels like I'm back to that "R" word. Routine. I woke up, got showered and ready, drove to work, opened the parking lot gate, parked in my usual spot, walked up those same set of stairs, clocked in at the front, headed toward my desk and took my seat. Just like a good trained lil robot. lol I'm sure before I know it I'll be back to my usual "I'm only here 'cause I have to" self at work. lol

Hmmm...my inbox says I have just 8 new emails!? That can't be right. I HOPE that's not right. Because then it means we probably don't have much work right now and it's gonna be a sloooow week. That, or everyone got fired during the holidays and I didn't get the message! Hmmmm. Let's hope it's not the latter. If I'm leaving this place, it's on MY terms! lol

At times, I wonder, am I a bit greedy? It feels like I just want the good things in life but don't want to "work" for them. And by good things I mean just having time with my friends, family and my loved one. That's what I cherish most in life. Sure, I love my music and dvds and other random stuff I can't stop collecting/buying. But I would give all that up in an instant for the people I love. I miss being on vacation already, but what I truly miss most is just all the time I got to spend with my love. So now that I'm back at work, I'll focus on what's ahead. Gotta tough it out through this work stuff for a while again, to get to that next fun vacation. Our next possible destination: Australia! I've already started saving for it as of yesterday! ;)

(Quick update on that small email inbox...I just had one of the inboxes closed. lol Turns out I have well over a hundred missed emails. hehe Oh well...back to work...)

Vancouver - After-Thoughts - 1/5/09

What do the songs "Country Roads" (John Denver), "Nena" (Miguel Bose y Paulina Rubio) and "Poker Face" (Lady Gaga) have in common? Probably not that much. But to me, they do mean something. They are all the main songs that remind me of my three biggest trips. "Country Roads" was the song that our tour guide would play on the bus as we started each day in our 2005 European Discovery tour. It was our "tour song." "Nena" was a song that we heard a lot while we were in Madrid, Spain in January of 2008. And then there's "Poker Face", it was one of the main songs we heard a lot while we were visiting Vancouver, Canada. So now all these songs, anytime I hear them, will always take me back to those awesome memories.

As I sit here typing this, it's nearly 7pm on Monday night. Just three days ago I was still out in Canada. Now, things are slowly but surely starting to roll back into my regular routine. "Routine"....uggh...such an ugly word, don't you think? But then again, I tend to be someone that relies on routine. I like to know what to expect from certain areas of life. Work is one of them. Despite how bored I may be at times, or tired of working, I like to know what to expect. Maybe it's a bad thing maybe it's not...to each their own, right? But when there's a break from that routine, like, say...a nice vacation to Canada...it feels oh so good!

I've blogged in pretty much boring detail about my trip to Vancouver. Unless you're me or Juan....you probably won't even read most of them. hehe I don't blame you, I know they're long. But then again, I do try my best to read all of everyone else's blogs. I'm just sayin'. lol Anyhow, the blogs were more of a record of what we did each day. But here, in this post, I wanted to reflect a bit more on what the whole trip meant to me.

What else can I say but...I loved it! Up until just a couple months ago, Vancouver, Canada was probably nothing more than a little fact I had stored up somewhere in my mind. Had you told me to find it on an unlabeled map, I probably wouldn't be able to! But then Juan put the idea on the table. "Why don't we go visit Vancouver for a week this winter!" And me, with my usual hesitations at spontaneous ideas...I kinda shot his idea down a bit at first. I won't have money...what if they don't give me time off....I hear it's super cold....it might rain a lot...etc etc....random reasons I kept giving myself. Why? Who knows!? 'Cause I sure as hell know that any chance to escape work and have some fun is definitely welcome! In the end, Juan offered this trip up as my X-Mas gift. It was something he really wanted to do for me, for us...so of course, you can't say no to a gift from the heart, right? So there it was...we were going on this trip!

We planned it out a bit, bought a couple things we'd need (but not too many) and then we were off! The day after X-Mas, on Canada's Boxing Day, we arrived in Vancouver. From that very first moment when we sat it snowing outside and all the snow covering the city...we had that "I don't think we're in Kansas anymore" moment. I loved it.

Vancouver itself was a very beautiful city. Granted, we only got to see most of Downtown for the most part, but still it was really nice! We always had snow all around us, so it really did feel like wintertime holidays, which I enjoyed. I don't think I'd want to deal with snow year round though. But even there in Vancouver snow isn't a common thing. They get rain more than that. We lucked out that during our visit it didn't rain too much. Just a few light rains here and there.

All the people we met were really great as well. Whether it be the random people on the street that we didnt talk to, or the people that were helping us out (shuttle driver, bus driver, hotel staff, waiting staff, etc.), or the new friends that we met....they were all very nice people. I kept hearing about how Vancouverites are some of the nicest people...and I can definitely vouche for that! I don't like to put down my own city, but we can definitely use some more kindness around here. Being there in Vancouver, I always felt like if I needed help on anything, I could probably walk up to a random person and they'd help me with a smile on their face. Of course, I know that not EVERYONE will be like that...but it was just how it felt. hehe Funny thing is, even when we did need help, we'd hesitate to ask for it. We're so used to feeling this "don't talk to strangers" L.A. vibe, that we'd only ask for help if we had no other option.

One thing that really stood out for me personally on this trip is that we got to meet a few people, and even made some new friends. I may be quiet in person and seem too shy, but if you know me well you know that I like to get to know people. I'm the type that loves to keep in touch and try to make new friends. I only wish I was more outgoing in person. Once I get to know people though I tend to open up more. Fortunately Juan was with me of course, and he's more outgoing from the get-go when he's in the social mode. hehe So he'd usually get the conversational ball rolling for us. I really enjoyed the time we spent with Kevin, who lives there, and his friend Sara, who was also visiting. We had a great time with them, and I can only hope that we'll meet again sometime down the road.

The whole trip, the places we saw, the pictures we took, the people we met...ever single second of it...was so special to me. But one major thing that's made this, and previous trips, mean a lot more is having spent them with Juan. Being with him, I never feel homesick, I never feel scared or nervous being in a new country. I always feel at "home". Home is where the heart is, after all. And a huuuuge chunk of my heart is with Juan 24/7/365. So it felt so nice to be able to spend a lot of days, non stop, being with him. Never having to say "good night" on the phone, becuase he'd always be at my side. Always knowing that he'd be there when I woke up. Knowing that whatever we did that day, as long as he was at my side, it would be special. I hope he realizes...I'm sure he does...how much just spending time with him means the world to me, wheter it be in our own homes, or in another country.

About the hotel room...I always felt like it was our home. The place where we'd come back to each day, share a bed, watch tv....things people who live together do. Since we both currently live apart, those days when we live togehter in a hotel room are the closet thing we have right now to REALLY living together. So even just going back to the hotel room was a nice experience for me. lol

And hey, gay marriage is legal in Canada. Major kudos to that! Seriously...America's gotta start stepping things up a notch, give me more reason to stay! 'Cause in all honesty, I could see myself making the move up to Vancouver if I could. hehe As long as Juan went with me of course. lol Hmmm...I should've gotten married while I was up there! LOL

Being back home in L.A. now, I'm trying to readjust to my normal life. Tomorrow I go back to work, finally. I think that'll be the last stepping stone before I return to reality. I slept over at Juan's on Friday night, and we spent a lot of time at his house just resting. It was nice. On Saturday night, he made plans to hang out with his friend and cousin. He invited me too, but I wasn't really in the mood to go out yet, plus I hadn't even been to my house yet. So he drove me home...and then it happened. I started to cry a bit in his car. I hadn't really cried in front of him in a while. And it wasn't exactly that I was depressed or sad. It's hard to describe. I think I just started to think about how I had such a nice time and I didn't want it to end. Then I started to think about that it was going to be the first night in many nights that I wouldn't get to have him at my side as I slept. I would be alone that night, in my bed. So it kinda tugged at my heart and had me crying a bit. But I was ok by the time I got home. I unpacked, saw my family again, and started the settling in process.

The next morning, Sunday, he came over and we hung out and rested at my house. It was nice. At the end of the night, as he went back home, I deciced to sleep over. One final time before he headed off to work. Today, he was back at work, and I was at home doing some chores and these blogs. I missed him a lot. I miss him all the time. But I love him, I know he loves me, too....and that's always what gets me going when we're apart, and anticipating the moment we meet up again. :)

Thank you Juan, for everything. And thank you Vancouver, and its people, for being so nice to us. :)

Vancouver - Day 8 - 1/2/09

This was the first time we had to set the alarm. All throughout the trip, we pretty much just let our bodies tell us when it was time to wake up. We were on vacation after all! Waking up too early is a no-no. lol Well, unless you have a long day trip ahead.

We were up around 4:30 AM, got ready, packed up, checked the room to make sure we didn't leave anything, and then went downstairs to check out. They called a taxi for us and it was actually there in less than a minute. The ride to the airport was pretty quick and fairly cheap, too. So that was good. As we rode in the Taxi, I looked out the window at the city of Vancouver, in it's early morning hours. I thought back to all the fun we'd had, the places we'd visited, the friends we'd met...and how much I was gonna miss it all. But I also looked over at Juan, there at my side, and knew that as long as he's here with me...I'll always be happy. It was a bittersweet moment, leaving the city. We had a wonderful time and yet I still wanted more. hehe We got to the airport in good time, checked in and were well on our way. The flight back home went as scheduled and even arrived a bit earlier than planned, by about 10 minutes. This plane, an Alaska Airlines one, didn't have any TVs or monitors like the Air Canada one did, but it didn't matter because we were both pretty sleepy and ended up taking a little nap.

We touched down in L.A. at around noon, got our suitcases (this time with no delays lol) and Juan's sister picked us up. Before I knew it, we were back at his place, in his room. Little by little, life was returning to normal.

Vancouver - Day 7 - 1/1/09

Ahh...2009 is here! I can't believe how quickly 2008 seemed to go by. I started out the year in Madrid, Spain...and ended it in Vancouver, Canada. Both very beautiful cities. I never would've imagined I'd travel twice this year. I definitely owe a lot to Juan for convincing me to do it. For whatever reason, I always take some convincing...but in the end, I love it and never want to return! lol

So anyhow, back to Vancouver. I woke up on the New Year in Kevin's apt. He had set up a little bed using sheets, pillows and sofa cushions. Juan was hogging the couch that night. lol But I actually slept really well, so no complaints on my part whatsoever. I was up at around 9:30 I think, and once I'm up I don't always go back to sleep. So I just chilled there in the living room. Eventually Juan woke up, then Kevin and finally Sara. We just all slowly "woke up" in the living room and then it was getting to be time for us to head back to our hotel. At this point, I knew we'd probably not get to see them again during this trip, so it's a feeling I don't like. I'm never good at saying bye to people...meaning that I never know how to do so in a way that truly shows how grateful I am for what they've done for us. I'm way better at saying things in writing than in person, so as I was saying bye to them, giving them a hug, I'm sure I must've mumbled some random words that must've sounded just...whatever. If that makes sense? hehe But hopefully they know that we both really appreciated them. We loved meeting them, hanging out with them, having dinner, ringing in the new year and just everything! It was the first time we made friends on a trip, so it made the whole experience all that more special for us.

As we walked back to our hotel, we stopped by a 7-11 to stock up on some water for our room. I ended up getting a 12-pack of small water bottles, and as I carried it in my arms along Davie St I kept getting stares. I guess people must've thought I had quite some hangover and was really thirsty? lol Once we were back at our hotel room, we slept for a couple of hours and woke up around 4pm. I went out to the Subway to grab us both a footlong and brought it back to the hotel. It was officially my first time leaving the hotel on my own, although it was only like a trip three doors down. lol We'd originally planned to check out one more club that night, since it was our last night, even if for a little bit. Especially since most of the shops and stuff were closed for the New Year holiday.

After we ate, we started packing up our things. Just as much as we could at that point, since we still needed some stuff for the next morning. By the time we got showered and ready to go out though, neither of us really wanted to do the club thing anymore. And most everything was closed, so we just did one of our favorite couple activities while on a trip...we walked. :) We just took a little walk through the streets, no real destination in mind, and then just returned to the room. I was craving a pastry or cake of some sort but we didn't find a spot that was open for that. :( So we just finished up some cookies and snacks we had in the room, watched some tv, and relaxed in our room. At that point, as we went to sleep, it started to hit me. This was really it. Our vacation was about to end. I couldn't help but feel a bit sad, yet at the same time it felt nice as I fell asleep, holding the man I love at my side.

Vancouver - Day 6 - 12/31/08

New Year's Eve! The last day of 2008! Never would I have guessed that I would be spending it in beautiful Vancouver, Canada!

We slept in a bit this morning and then showered and headed out for our visit to North Vancouver, across the Burrard Inlet. After my troubles getting us around Stanley Park and to Granville Island the day before, I made sure to write down detailed info and study the maps online for this day. lol We were going to visit the Capilano Suspension Bridge and maybe even Grouse Mountain, if time allowed. Lucky for us, my internal navigational system was back in full working order! I got us on the right bus (10 Hastings) up to the Seabus Terminal. We then took a nice trip across the water on the seabus over to Lonsdale Quay, where we boarded the "236 Grouse Mountain" bus. We finally arrived at the Capilano Suspension Bridge at around 2 PM, easy as pie!

We were at the CSB a good two hours at most. We took a bunch of pictures, as usual...with the signs, totem poles, wooded scenery, the bridges, the treetop adventures and even some with the big black bear outside the souvenier shop. I even snapped a picture of the bridge with my cell phone, and it's currently my wallpaper. Everytime I look at it, it takes me back to that moment. I love that! So yeah, the main attraction there, of course, is the suspension bridge, which spans 450ft across and 230ft above the Capilano River. It looks way scarier in pictures than it really is. hehe But it's definitely a fun experience, unless of course you're afraid of heights or don't like walking on bridges that sway back and forth over a river. lol

Before heading to the actual bridge, we grabbed a hot chocolate and a quick snack (pizza for me and a breakfast wrap for Juan). For desert, we split a brownie. Quite a meal, right? lol Once we were warmed up and our tummies fed, we went onto and across the bridge. It was a really nice view from up there! But it was still pretty cold and even the bridge was icy at points. From what I've been told and seen in pictures, I know it looks even more beautiful up there on a clear, green summer's day. Maybe one day I can return, hopefully.

After you cross the bridge there is an area known as the Treetop Adventures, where you get to travel across mini bridges that are hold together along the trees. It's a fun little experience as well. We spent a good time up there just walking among the trees and taking in all the winter scenery. I loved it!

Once we were all Capilano'd out, we thought about heading up to Grouse Mountain. But we didn't want to get back too late, we still had New Year's plans and wanted to get freshened up. Plus, I needed to charge my camera's battery. For some reason, it'd been dying out really quick during the trip. I don't know if maybe the cold weather has anything to do with it? It had never died out on me so quickly before. Fortunately the hotel room was always nearby so I was able to charge it when needed and it never died out completely.

So we headed to the bus stop to take the same route back to the hotel. While at the bus stop, I noticed this one guy that was with two girls would kinda look over at us. Didn't think much of it. Then when we were on the bus, I was standing up and I noticed he'd glance over at times and look at me. At one poin our eyes made contact and he had that little smile. lol I later found out Juan had also noticed him looking at him. I personally never noticed any attention I may attract out and about randomly, so instances like these amuse me. lol

Once we were back in Downtown Vancouver, we hit up a souvenir shop to buy a few things. Juan got a nice hoodie sweater, I got a zip up jacket (which I later found out the CANADA lettering on it was crooked! grrrr.). We both also bought a few random things, but not too many. They always end up in cabinets or just collecting dust anyway. lol There were these cute little stuffed mascots from the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver that I couldn't resist! I swear...I think I'm a little kid on the inside. hehe I got the Miga & Sumi mascots...which Juan says Miga is him and I am the Sumi one. :)

We were back in our hotel room at around 6pm. Juan needed a nap to re-energize for what was probably going to be a long New Year's countdown night ahead. I don't think I ended up napping this time. Either way, we had agreed to meet up at Kevin's at around 9PM. We found out, when we were taking the bus back to the hotel earlier, that the buses were running free til 5am to prevent drunk drivers. So we took the bus to Kevin's apt. I think that was the first time we didn't walk along Davie. lol

We arrived some time after 9 and had a bit of trouble getting in to the building because I couldn't figure out how to buzz him and my cell phone was acting up. But we finally made it up and our New Year's countdown with Kevin and Sara began...

Sara had prepared a delicious meat dish (I believe it was pork) along with a little vegetable medley and some potatoes and a sauce to pour over the meat. It was all really delicious. We all had some wine to go with the dinner, did some cheers to the new year, and had a really lovely dinner. I personally really loved this. I never expected I'd be spending New Year's Eve having dinner at a new friend's apt. It meant a lot to me, and I had a nicer time than I ever would've just going to some random club full of complete strangers as we had originaly figured we'd end up doing. To me, it's always the people that make moments special. So to be able to spend this night with the man I love and with two new, extremely cool, friends...it was perfection.

After the delicious dinner, Sara brought out some gelatin and cake for dessert, and then we were all ready to head out for the final countdown at Delilah's. Delilah's was the place where we were originally going to meet up with Kevin and Sara the first time, but was closed that night. This time, though, they had a nice New Year's Eve event going on, complete with a performance of Rihanna's "Umbrella" by Diva Simone. The whole place was nicely decorated with ballons and party favors to ring in the new year. We took our spots at the bar, I had a Funky Monkey and I think Juan had one called Life's a Peach. Juan, Sara and myself pretty much stuck to our spot, and Kevin would join us but also went around to other people since he knew people that worked there. Everyone there seemed really nice, it was definitely a great atmosphere. I can definitely see why Kevin likes the place.

When it was time for the countdown, he gave us each 12 grapes to eat during the countdown. Three...Two...One...HAPPY NEW YEAR! We all gave each other New Year's hugs and toasts, along with random people that were all around us. It was a very fun and special moment. I couldn't help but actually stop and think to myself..."Wow...I'm actually here!" I loved it! Of course, I was snapping just random pictures like crazy. lol

Eventually, as things started to wind down a bit, we walked back to Kevin's apt. As we were walking, it started to snow a little. I loved it! Being new to snow, I still get excited when I see it snowing. I was carrying a little orange balloon I took from Delilah's with me, and by the time we'd reached the apt it was starting to sink because some of the snow was collecting on top of it. :)

Back at his apt, we just went well into the early morning hours drinking a little more wine, listening to some music and talking, having a good time. I'm not even sure exactly what time we ended up falling asleep. The whole night just went by so quickly. But when you're having a nice time...doesn't it always?

Vancouver - Day 5 - 12/30/08

After we showered and got ready, we headed to the 7-11 that was near our hotel and picked up a day pass for the buses. It was about $9 (Canadian) for unlimited use on the TransLink system (bus, seabus or skytrain). We'd planned to take a few buses that day so figured it'd be better to buy it. We wanted to head over to Stanley Park and visit the aquarium and Totem Poles.

We were both getting hungry, it was around 10 AM at this point, so we took a quick stop at a McDonald's on Granville for a bite to eat, then from there just went up to Pender St where we took the 19 bus to Stanley Park. At one point along the route, a lady came in with her stroller and three kids. She was talking to them, telling them they were going to the aquarium. So if we got lost we could just follow her. hehe One thing I noticed, as soon as she got on the bus, several people started getting up off their seats to make room for her, the stroller and the kids. And a few others helped her get the kids seated and settled in. I only point this out because having taken the bus in L.A. many years in the past, I would rarely see this kind of behavior, where almost everyone around her would go out of their way to help her. Here, maybe one or two will do so while the rest just mind their own business. lol Another brownie point for Vancouverites! :) Once we got to the aquarium, that same lady helped out some other tourists by showing them how to find the aquarium from the bus stop. Things like these just seem like common sense. You know...help out your fellow man/woman. But living in L.A., a city where at times it seems like it's every man for himself...sometimes I really do miss that feeling of community, love and respect for others.

Anyhow, we finally get to the Vancouver Aquarium and spent probably no more than an hour and a half there. There were lots of nice exhibits, fishes and animals of all sorts. I love animals, so I really get into all that. I had fun checking the place out. There were even some dolphins, belugas, sharks and my favorites...the sea otters! It's not a huge aquarium so we were able to stop by each area and then we headed out to look for the Totem Poles. According to my map, they weren't that far from the aquarium. They were just another of several places you can visit within Stanley Park. Unfortunately, what I didn't account for was all the snow laying around! It was covering up a lot of the grass, paths, sidewalks and streets. So I kept getting confused as to where we needed to walk through. lol

We walked along the sea wall for a while. I figured, as long as I follow the edges of the park I can't get lost. Eventually it'll take me back to the entrance leading into Downtown Vancouver. So call it luck, or my excellent navigational skills, but we eventually found the Totem Poles. It's just a little section of the park but if you're in the area, as we were, it's worth hunting them down. We took the touristy photos with them and then just went on our way, because it was getting pretty cold out there at times.

After leaving the Totem Poles, I was still a bit lost. Well, not lost, per se...more like...confused. lol I knew where I was and where I should go, but with all the snow around I couldn't find the right path. So we just kept walking and finally wound up back on Georgia St and found the bus stop to take us back into Downtown. We could've even walked if we wanted, but we needed a break by that point. Plus, we still had the day pass. lol We were back in our room around 2:30 probably.

The plan for the evening/night was to go across the Granville Bridge and visit Granville Island, which we'd heard had some nice farmer's markets and places of that sort to visit. Then from there we wanted to visit the VanDusen Botanical Gardens, which was a bit south from Granville Island. So that was the plan. What actually ended up happening was a bit different...

We took a quick shower and rested for a little bit back in the room before heading out to Granville Island. Having had some navigational difficulties earlier in the day, I tried to make sure I got the right directions and bus info this time. hehe Granville Island was located directly south of our hotel, which was also on Granville St. So I figured we could take a quick scenic route and just walk over the Granville Bridge which would take us to Granville Island. Well...I was almost right. It took us to Granville Island alright...but just over it! hehe For some reason I assumed the bridge went down into the island rather than over it. I hadn't planned for this so I didn't have an alternate plan. I think it was at some point along our walk here that I got a text from Kevin, telling me they were at the Island and would be heading to the Gardens as well. So I responded to him telling him we'd meet them at the Gardens. We didn't want to get even more lost trying to find a way down from the bridge so we just saved the Island visit for another day (though, unfortunately, we never got to go back later on).

We were able to see Granville Island from above, as we walked over it on the bridge, so at leas that was nice. It looked nice down there from what we saw. lol Now we just needed to find the bus stop for bus # 17 to take us to the VanDusen Gardens. We saw one of the buses drive by, so we just followed it to a bus stop and took the next one. The Gardens were pretty much in a direct southward path from our location. So it seemed weird when all of a sudden the bus started to travel westbound. Hmmmm....strange. I checked the brochure and noticed it said "17 Oak" was the bus we needed. We were on the 17 alright. But then I heard the robotic voice calling out street names, saying that we were on "17 UBC". UBC is the University of British Columbia, which is definitely not on the way to the Gardens. lol Juan at first said we could just take the bus and eventually it had to pass by our destination, that maybe it would turn around. But I knew that we were on the wrong route for this line, so I took us off, got us on the 17 back near to where we started, on Granville & Broadway. We walked down Broadway a bit until we reached Oak St, and finally saw the "17 Oak" bus that we were supposed to have been on in the first place.

Finally we reached the VanDusen Botanical Gardens at around 6PM and met Kevin & Sara over by the food area. The whole place was beautifully decorated in lights and holiday cheer for their "Festival of Lights". It literally felt like a Winter Wonderland. I'm pretty sure at one point they even played the "Winter Wonderland" song. hehe We got some hot chocolates and then spent some time walking around with our friends, just hanging out, taking in the decorations and scenery, and of course capturing those special moments with our cameras. Toward the end, we came across this room where a children's magic show was taking place. Sara wanted us to go in and check it out, so we did. Truth be told, I had fun in there. lol The "opening" act were a couple of singing gnomes who I laughed at mostly because of how silly they were. lol They just sang a few cover songs and then the magician guy came out. What I really loved more though was seeing the excitement that the show was bringing to the kids. Some of them literally could not stay in their seats and kept trying to walk up on the stage for a closer look. They'd also yell out in response to the magician and burst out laughing in unison at his silly acts. One poor kid, during some magic trick where she was tied up and was going to be cut in half, ended up nearly toppling over during the bit. At that point I just couldn't stop laughing. lol I know it was probably wrong...but I just thought it was the funniest thing. :)

After the Gardens, we all took a taxi back to the West End. We stopped by a liquor store where Kevin bought some wines and we got some vodka...you know, to get ready for the New Year's festivities. lol One thing I didn't know at that point, which Juan & Kevin pointed out, was that in Vancouver they only sell liquor at liquor stores. You can't get it at the markets or others stores like we do here. You have to go to stores that sell just liquor! The one we went to had a big selection of drinks, all neatly organized by country of origin. Juan & I represented our country by picking up some American Vodka. LOL

After the liquor store, we all went to the Safeway and Kevin bought some ingredients for a salad he was making us for dinner. He'd have to keep asking us what ingredients we did or didn't like, since we can both be picky. lol So that was nice of him to keep that in mind. We then went back to his apartment and he prepared us all a nice, delicious chicken salad for dinner. It seemed pretty easy to make, as I watched him prepare it, and it was really delicious. Definitely the type of food I enjoy. hehe After dinner we all just chilled in his living room, had some wine, listened to music and talked about random things. Juan & I then just walked back to our room at some point and went to bed. We'd made plans to return for New Year's eve and hang out with them. So I was really looking forward to that. :)

Vancouver - Day 4 - 12/29/08

Monday morning we woke up at Kevin's apt, rather than our hotel room. We both ended up curling up on his living room couch and spending the night, so it was really cool of him to let us stay there. I actually slept all the way through, which I'm guessing in part was probably due to having "passed out"...which left me in a nice, comfy sleep. Right before doing so, I remember Kevin had made me drink some water to help me feel better. And it helped, 'cause I woke up feeling pretty good. Just a slight feeling of tiredness but otherwise normal. So that was good. Wouldn't want an all day hangover during a vacation! :)

I believe we left his apt at around 9:30 or so, and then we just walked back to our hotel room. We drank some more water and then took a nap for a while, to recover a bit more and prepare for later that night (we were planning to go to the club again). Once we finally got up and showered, we headed out for lunch. Anyone that knows us will tell you that we can both be picky eaters in our own ways, and when we do eat out we don't really go for the super expensive/fancy places. Not that we can't afford it every now and then, but it just isn't really "us." We both would much rather go to a simpler, casual type place (such as a Cheesecake Factory) as opposed to a super fancy place (such as....well...I can't even name one since we never look for them! lol). So at some points in this trip we did think about going somewhere "nice" to eat, but in the end we just stuck to the usual foods we eat back home. lol On this day, it was a Hamburger Mary's that we came across on Davie St. :)

We got there at around 2pm, and I just ordered a Teriyaki Chicken burger with fries and Juan got some other Chicken Burger (forgot which) with a side salad. They were pretty good. At that point I don't think I was 100% back to normal, so I didn't clean my whole plate like I normally would. hehe But at least I got some food energy in me. I'm just glad I never had a hangover or anything, it just more of that "slightly tired" feeling. Definitely owe that thanks to Kevin for getting some H2O in my system before I dozed off that previous night.

After we ate we decided to walk back down Davie St, toward or hotel, and go past it into Yaletown. Yaletown, back in the day, used to be a railway works yard. Now, it's home to several offices, condos, boutiques, clubs, pubs and restaurants. It's a really nice area. We walked all the way down to the edge, and ended up at the Quayside Marina and Cooper's Park, where we checked out the views beyond False Creek to the other side of Vancouver. We were just enjoying the cool night, taking pictures and walking up along the edge. When we got to the Plaza of Nations, we went into a casino that was there because Juan wanted to gamble a bit. You know...just so we can say he gambled in Vancouver. hehe It was only a couple dollars and we were out as quickly as we'd gone in. We then just continued past the BC Place and GM Place stadiums and ended up in Chinatown.

Without meaning to do so, I ended up taking us over to East Hastings St, which I'd been told by a couple of people, including Kevin, that we wouldn't really want to end up in. It's the "bad part" of town in that it's where people on drugs and whatnot hang out. It was only around 5PM when we went through there, but in just a short walk we did see people that seemed to be "on something", as well as a prostitute and a guy who started to pick a fight with a random guy walking by. Needless to say, we didn't stop for any pictures and I just looked at my map to guide us out of there and toward Gastown. From what I read, I know this is a historic part of Vancouver, but we were only there for a bit and went to visit the Steam Clock, which is on Cambie & Water St. We did what any good tourist would do and took pictures with it. lol There were a couple of souvenir shops nearby that we just browsed but didn't buy anything.

Once we left Gastown we just walked back westward toward the Downtown area and took Thurlow down to Davie. Along the way, we passed by the world famous Nelson Park! Ok...it probably isn't famous. I don't even know anything about it to be honest. All I know is that it's on Nelson St. and is called Nelson Park, so with a name like Nelson, it's gotta be good, right? lol So of course I had to take pictures with the sign. I know...I'm a dork. hehe It was already dark and the park was snow covered so I couldn't really tell if it was a nice park to honor my name. :)

Once our long walk was done with, we headed back to the room for a while to relax and clean up a bit for "Latino Night" at Numbers. This happens ever last Monday of the month there. Since we happened to be there on the last Monday of the month, we figured we'd check it out. To our surprise, as soon as we got there, it was already a bit more packed than the first time we'd gone there on our first night in town! Being a Monday night, we didn't think a lot of people would show. Some people were locals, some looked to be travelers like us and others were actually recent arrivals, like this one guy that Juan invited to dance with us at one point. I believe his name was Ivan. Seemed nice enough and whatnot. We just all danced a few songs together, had some small chit-chat (though it's hard to hear on the dance floor) and he then just went on his way. This was the one night we went out that I didn't drink, only because I felt I wasn't ready to drink again yet and didn't want to overdo it before the New Year's festivities even began! lol

At one point, as with many gay clubs, there was a drag show. One diva did a Thalia song, I believe. Then a guy came out, shirtless, wearing some jeans with an iPod video screen as the belt buckle, some chains over his chest and some random lights on his wrists and legs to illuminate his face and body in the darkened stage. We'd actually seen him walking around earlier in the club, and I pointed him out to Juan, to which he just kinda mocked the attire. hehe We didn't know it was part of his performance at that point. hehe I don't know what songs he did, whether they were originals or covers. All I know is that in one song, the lyrics pretty much said "I like to play with my dildo..." among other things. lol So for the rest of the trip, at random moments, Juan would start singing it, "I like to play with toys...". hehe It became a little running joke. :)

To our surprise, there was also a drag performance of two Jenni Rivera songs! If you don't know who she is, no worries...I really didn't either until a while back when Juan's cuz became her designer. She's especially famous around here in Banda music, and is known as la diva de la banda. Anyhow, it was kinda cool seeing someone do her songs all the way there! Juan went all crazy during her performance yelling and cheering at the top of his lungs. Meanwhile, I was recording it with my camera, trying to peek it through the two latina lesbianas that were making out in front of me. Awwww...too cute. :)

So that was pretty much it for that day. We visited a few sections of Vancouver we hadn't been to and then partied it up a bit at night. We then got some rest back at the hotel.

Vancouver - Interlude

I'll blog more later on, probably back home, about my remaining time here. For now, here's a little funny incident from our very first day. While we were at the airport here in Vancouver, waiting outside for the Airporter shuttle that would take us to the hotel, there was a Mexican family (or at least I think they were) that had just arrived as well. A lady had her video camera on, pointed at a little girl, and asked her, "¿Donde estamos?" To which the little girl responded, "Estamos en Bancomer!", a Mexican bank, instead of saying Vancouver. The lady just laughed. I thought it was funny & cute, too. :)

That was pretty much about a week ago. Damn, where did the time go? It's 2009 now! It makes me a bit sad to think that soon I have to return home. Sure, I miss my family and friends and life at home, but why can't this, my winter paradise, last just a bit longer? hehe