Happy Birthday To Me!

Thanks, President Obama.  It's the best birthday gift you could have given me!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/obama

Life Drawing

I started my life drawing class yesterday.  I've taken this class a few times, but haven't been able to recently because of scheduling conflicts with school.  It's a great class because it's really just model time without any instruction (unless you want it). 

I'm VERY rusty after a few months off, but it was nonetheless wonderful to get back to it.  The human figure is my most favorite of any subject.  I love the complexity of it, the softness of the body, and the way the light gives it form.  For me, both drawing and viewing it evokes more emotion than any other subject can.  I love getting my fingers full of charcoal and zoning out for a couple of hours.  The only problem is that time goes by too fast.  But that's what happens when you're doing what you love...

Anyway, thought I'd post my sketches each week to share (I thought my mom would especially like this) and also to track my own progress through the weeks.  The first are quick sketches - the model moves every couple of minutes - and the subsequent ones are anywhere from approximately 10 to 25 minute sketches.  

Weekend Update

We had a busy weekend.  On Saturday, Joseph and I went to the gym, Long Beach for lunch, and then friends came over to watch the fights.  

Sunday was SAG.  We had a lot of fun and saw all the usual celebs.  I was in charge of Jenna Fischer from The Office (see me in the pic on the right below!), The Entourage cast, and Mickey Rourke.  Joseph had Tina Fey and Mrs. Cosby (can't remember her real name).  Tina was nice, but Mrs. Cosby was snooty.  We had a fun day, the show was really easy, and the after party was crazy and packed so we didn't stay long.  And by the end of the night our feet hurt like hell!

I liked these people best: Tina Fey, Jenna Fischer (and her nice boyfriend with whom I had a long and awkward conversation while we waited for Jenna to come out of the restroom), Amy Poehler (her friends were all calling her "Pole Cat" and she was soooo nice and funny), and the casts of 30 Rock and The Office.  

Oh, and the women were skinnier than ever this year.  I felt like a blimp!  

Anyway, I'm hoping to get some pics of us around the Shrine later from Maggie (the producer of the show), so I'll post again when I get them.

Hope everyone had a nice weekend!

SAG Awards

Just a reminder to watch for me on the red carpet at the SAG Awards this Sunday.  The show is airing at 8PM EST on TNT and TBS, but the pre-shows of the red carpet can be seen on a number of different channels beforehand.  For details go to www.SAGAwards.org.

Not sure what I'm wearing yet, but it'll probably be black.  And I'll have a headset on.  I'll try to stand behind the cameras this time!

Lazy Weekend

This photo of Joshua pretty much sums up our weekend.  We had a relaxing one, mixed with a little cleaning and laundry.  And check out the new sunset photo to the right.  So pretty!

Friday Night

Had a fun night out last night with some people from work.  We celebrated Dasia's birthday at Buca Di Beppo, then went to see Benjamin Button at the movies.  

Hope everyone is having a good weekend!

Saab

I am the proud new owner of a 2008 Saab 9-3 Aero Sedan!  The pictures show a pretty true representation of the color - "nocturne blue."  

We had the best car-buying experience we could have hoped for.  After getting $4,000 off MSRP for the GM employee discount (offered to all buyers), another $8000 in rebates (for I don't even know what!), and another $2000 off for credit card points that I'd racked up, I felt very comfortable with the purchase.  

The salesman and finance guy at the dealership were just too nice.  They broke open a bottle of non-alcoholic champagne and some glasses, and did a toast to my new car!  And I learned from them (although I haven't checked for proof yet) that Saab engineers have the highest IQs of any of the car makers.  Pretty cool!

The car is just too nice!  It has XM radio, OnStar, dual climate control, and a bunch of other fun things.  And it's fast too.  It has a turbo-charged engine which makes it really zippy!  AND it received the highest safety ratings possible in all categories.  

Joseph and I have already chosen a name - "Eleanor Blue."  It's after the name of the character in one of my stories and well, because it's blue :)

Teaser

I might have some exciting news to share tonight.  Stay tuned...

Oh, and here's a hint:

Hi all!  I don't have a lot to write about today.  Except our beautiful weekend!  It was about 80 degrees and sunny - a great change from the dreary 60-degree weather we'd been having.  I spent Saturday cleaning while Bodhi and Joshua soaked up the sunshine and Joseph spent the day up in L.A. with his friend, Eric.  Joseph was supposedly birthday shopping for me, but I think it was an excuse to hang out on Melrose and go to The Griddle (where, by the way, they saw Steve from 90210 AND last time we were there we saw Slater from Saved by the Bell!).  We went out with Chris, Claudia, and Eric to a Greek restaurant here in Laguna on Saturday night.  And yes, once again the guys ended up playing Rock Band all night.  Sunday was car shopping day (more about that some other time...) and then a nice night on the couch watching movies.

Took some pics of my house on Saturday since it was such a beautiful day (and actually clean for a moment!).  

2008

I have this list (er, messy Excel spreadsheet actually) of all the things I want to do in my life.  Some of the things are simple ("Get a membership to the Laguna Beach Library") or typical ("Lose 10 lbs.").  Others are more ambitious ("Be the featured artist at a gallery opening") or more general ("Do something I'm afraid of").  You get the idea.

Last year flew by.  I worked a lot.  Had some fun.  By the end, it felt like a wash.  But then I pulled out my list and found that I actually accomplished quite a bit in 2008!

1. Lose 10 lbs.  (Lost 5.  I get half credit for this one.)
2. Traveled to Detroit, Phoenix, Vegas, San Francisco, and Austin 
3. Donated to a charity (ASPCA and American Cancer Society)
4. Took an acrylic painting class
5. Went to Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach
6. Rescued a pet from a shelter
7. Started a Website  (Kind of.  Does this blog count?)
8. Learned to meditate 
9. Started practicing yoga 
10. Went to the San Diego Zoo 
11. Went back to school to get my degree 
12. Cleaned out my closets and donated old clothes
13. Took life drawing classes
14. Started a novel
15. Got new living room and bedroom furniture

I did lots of other things that weren't on the list, but are worth mentioning.  Joseph and I revealed our relationship to colleagues (what a relief!).  I worked the SAG awards and attended the after party for the 2nd year in a row (met/saw Tom Cruise, John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Julia Loius-Dreyfus, Will Smith, and many others).  I Read at least 20 books (I didn't start keeping track until after the start of the year.).  My niece turned 2.  We had Joseph's family in town for the 4th of July and watched the fireworks over the ocean from our balcony.  Family and friends visited: Lynn and Bri.  Joseph's mom, sisters, nieces, and nephews.  Joseph's best friend, Vince.  Joseph's cousin, Daniel, and his wife and kids.  Joseph's cousin, Titus, and Jill and the kids.  We Saw Cirque Du Soleil.  Went to Palm Springs.  Had a surprise birthday party for Joseph's 30th birthday.  Saw Joseph's other best friend, Eric, do a show in Hollywood.  Went for countless walks on the beach.  Felt an earthquake for the 2nd time.  Saw more beautiful sunsets from my own house than I've ever seen in my life.  Fell asleep to the sound of the ocean every night.  Accomplished lots of things at work that are insignificant in the grand scheme of things.  Had friends from work over.  

And see the pic below?  Those rocks jutting out into the ocean at the very top?  That's where Bodhi and I sat every evening in summertime and prayed and watched the sunset.  

Quake!

Yep, we felt it.  An earthquake (5.0 magnitude) occurred just moments ago, at about 7:49 PST.  Looking at the map, we're located just a bit south of where you see Santa Ana, right on the coast.

Joseph, Bodhi, Joshua, and I were sitting on the sofa - while Joseph watched college football and I re-edited chapter 2 of my novel (I've written 5 - chapters, not novels) and polished off a glass of wine - when things started to shake.  It was a gentle rumble, but significant.  I don't know why, but I kind of love earthquakes.  I get this giddy, excited feeling.  (No, it's not the wine, I promise.)  I'm sure I'll change my tune when a scary one hits, but for now I'll enjoy the excitement of them!

Oh, by the way, I've determined that my animals are not of the etho-geological forecasting persuasion.  

My Drabble

As many of you know, I love to write.  I'm working on my first novel now, hoping to finish it this year.  I've started lots of novels, but I've committed myself to this one.  I plan to see it through to the end, then begin the arduous undertaking of finding an agent and getting piles of rejection letters.  Such is the romantic life of a writer... 

Perhaps I'll start posting some finished chapters soon.  For now, I'll share my entry to the "drabble" contest being held by a writer's site to which I belong.  A "drabble" is a work of fiction of exactly 100 words.  For this drabble, we were asked to look at the picture below and explore questions like "Who is  he?" and "Why is he there?"  

The picture is of a homeless man and was taken during the Great Depression.  A little explanation of my take on it: A snapshot of the man's thoughts, like the snapshot of a picture. 

Here's the picture and my drabble below:

The way Betty held me in the palm of her.  Moved her lips against the back of my neck as she whispered "goodnight."  

If she were here she'd pull my hands from these pockets.  "Twirl me," she'd say.  A pirouette.  She'd throw her head back and laugh at the sky.  Dangle her arms around my neck.  Brown eyes.  "See, baby, it ain't so bad," she'd say.  

Betty wore orchids in her hair.  Liked jazz.  Ginger Rogers.  And pearls.  

If she were here she'd tip my hat up to see my eyes.  "Baby, I'll always go where you go," she'd say.