vancityrockgirl

burn

2008-08-27T13:20:45Z

this is going to be one of those "blogging for the sake of blogging" posts.
because i am in some serious pain... and have been for the last 7 hours.
and it's hard to think of anything witty to say.
i am suffering from the heartburn from hell/phantom gallbladder attack.
and it's slowly killing me.

i have taken every medication that's hanging out in my medicine cabinet.
antacids and painkillers alike.
nothing is helping.
i am now considering the lone T3... or even one of the 3 percocets that i've been saving for a rainy day.
hell, at this point, i'm thinking of swigging some cough syrup with codeine.

i have no idea what triggered this... but i kinda want to die.
okay. i'm done complaining. i'll save the rest of that for when my husband comes home. teehee.

so, as part of my unemployed and bored as hell lifestyle that i lead, i have been planning future vacations as a hobby.
my next three holidays are:
jamaica - december 21 - 28, 2008
las vegas - december 20 - 27, 2009
new orleans & florida - february 12 - 26, 2010

now, jamaica is magic... but really, i've been there before and we're staying at the same resort. i know pretty much what we're going to do and what's available... so there's not too much planning that can be done.
plus let's be realistic. i'll be spending 85% of my time laying on the beach, smoking blunts and drinking red stripe.
plan done.

(actual photo that i took in jamaica 2 years ago)

vegas is full of planning posibilities of course.
i already have several awesome plans in action. including renting an escalade and driving into the desert - specifically to the valley of fire

seeing the criss angel cirque show

and drinking vodka at the ice bar in red square.
apparently they serve you shots of vodka in hollowed out ice blocks.

awesome.
this plan will also change as deals get released and plans are firmed up. so for now it's really more "ideas" than a real plan.

so that leaves the 2010 vacation. ie. our plan to flee the olympics.
this was always a plan to hit florida, since the new harry potter theme park will be open at universal studios...

(that's the finished projection... although this is what it looks like right now...)

also my husband has never been to florida... and well, because florida is beautiful, the weather is great and the theme parks are wicked fun. i've been 3 times, but not in years... probably haven't been in 6 years or more. so i'm sure much has changed.
well, except those beautiful beaches.

a couple weeks ago, we randomly started discussing new orleans. and how we've both always wanted to go... so i did a little airline research and realized that we could fly from yvr to new orleans, then to orlando for only a little bit more money than flying direct to orlando. so we thought, well, we'd better go to new orleans for a couple days while we're in the neighbourhood.
THEN we realized that mardis gras in 2010 is february 16th. which is PERFECT timing. so we can actually see mardis gras! how exciting.

and then that leaves us a couple days to see graveyards, the old houses (especially anne rice's house!), go on a swamp tour and eat delcious cajun and creole eats.
it is a great plan...

but then today i'm searching for some info on the daytona 500, since my husband is uber nascar fan.

and nascar is likely feb 12 in 2010. basically meaning that we can't hit both mardis gras AND the dayton 500.
for me, it's a no-brainer decision... i've wanted to see mardis gras my whole life. and i hate nascar.
but here's the thing. if i pick nascar over mardis gras, then i earn some super mega huge wife points.
so it's a tough decision.
i mean mardis gras would make us both happy...
but nascar would make my husband unbelievably happy. like, he would totally lose his shit to see a race live.

*sigh*
i gotta think about this.

making love out of nothing at all

2008-08-26T11:46:57Z

one of the greatest saturday night live sketches in the past 10 years has got to be the VH1 Storytellers with Air Supply.

if you've seen it, you know.
and if you haven't... well, i just feel sorry for you.
and you can find it on the best of will ferrell dvd - volume 2.

and here:

Find more videos like this on www.truveo.com.

it's fucking classic.
and it's made me love air supply a little.
it's also made almost every person i know memorize the words to "thanksgiving love"

so when i heard that air supply were playing the pne tonight... and gate admission is only $12...
well, i knew what i had to do.

there's also a beer garden.

seems like a pretty obvious decision to me.

my new love

2008-08-25T07:21:29Z

dear red wine,
i have a confession to make.
i've been cheating on you.

it's hard to believe... given the wonderful feelings you bestow upon me...
the pleasant dizzy feeling in my head, the slight (but charming, i'm sure) slurring of my normally eloquent speech... the uncanny ability to share my deepest secrets with anyone within earshot... while smoking entire packs of cigarettes in one sitting.
but it's true. i have been seeing other liquor.

see, your love was too much for me. you left me lonely and in pain the next day...
the fuzzy feeling in my mouth was nothing against the pounding drums in my head.
you made my heartache... literally. the heartburn was killing me.

so i slipped out the back door and made friends with vodka again.
vodka and i have had some good times.
there were many late nights where i was lit afire by the clean lucid drunk that vodka provided me.
the morning after wasn't always roses. it's true.
but somehow it always seemed easier than the way that the red wine would leave me...

but last night red wine, you were back in my arms.
and it was as wonderful as the good old days.
but i must admit that after you left last night, when the bottle ran dry... i saw your older sister, port.
and the port is a truly a dangerous mistress.

delicious and deadly.
it gives me everything you gave me... and more.
and i think i'm in love.

yes. over the past couple weeks, i have been making sweet sweet love to the Taylor Flagate 20 year Tawny Port.

she's not cheap, like you are red wine.
i mean, don't get me wrong. i almost always spend at least $15 on you...
but the port? she gets really sexy around the $40 mark.

the port gives everything you do, but with so much more depth.
and to be honest... well, i just don't think you can compete with my new love.

so, it might not be forever... but for now, i have to put you back on the shelf.
we'll be together again one day. i'm quite certain i can't live without you.

~

catching up

2008-08-22T15:37:53Z

okay hi.
sorry for being a week without blogging... but damn. i have been busy.
and then just tired.

we've had people staying at our house since last thursday... and the place is a disaster.
and it's not like you can say "oh hey, i'm just going to clean my house, so can you sit and watch tv... or help?"
so nothing has been done until thursday pretty much.

so let me backtrack a little.
the wedding reception went well.
the food was a big hit. like actually... not to toot my own horn (did i really just use "toot"?) but really... people went kinda crazy over the food.
the three major highlights were the mini burgers, the chicken satays with peanut sauce and the deconstructed potato salads.

we had, as i suspected, far far too much food. i brought home 75 mini burgers.
i think the problem was twofold.
first - the heat. it was 32 degrees. dripping sweat hot.
and second - everyone was drunk. and so they didn't eat that much.
i for one, did not eat a thing. not one single solitary bite the entire night.
all i heard about was how good the food was, but i didn't even taste it.

i get like that when i drink. once i have a couple beers, i don't care about food at all. you have to force me to eat.
well, my husband forces me to eat anyways.

so that was it.
it's all over now.

we got some rad gifts (including rock band. yeehaw!)
and mostly cash. (the gift that really keeps on giving)
so yesterday my husband played hooky from work and we went shopping for some house stuff.
we bought a dresser (and honestly, i am so excited about this. i haven't had my clothes in drawers in 8 years. they've been in piles.)
and we bought a ceiling fan for our living room...

and a couple little house things for the kitchen.
but the bulk of the money we're saving for hardwood floors.
which we hope to put in before winter.
that would be AMAZING.

we've decided on bamboo hardwood.
for several reasons.
first and foremost, it's sustainable. and i would honestly feel guilty everyday if i was walking on some beautiful hardwood from rainforest trees.
second, it's durable. like more durable than hardwood.
third, it's affordable. cheaper than hardwood, but more than laminate. (honestly though, i'd never pay to put laminate in. personally, i just don't care for the look of it. it's kinda like having astroturf vs real grass. no real contest against the real thing.)
and lastly, well, i just love how the bamboo looks.

so we're thinking of a darker stain. not the real light one...
probably kind of like this colour:

ya. that's the one.
sexy sexy floor.
i'm gonna roll around on it all the time, lol.

i can not wait to get it installed.
i fucking hate our disgusting carpet.
it's gotten to the point where we actually considered putting in laminate a couple months ago because it was all we could afford and i just wanted this gross carpet OUT.
but we resisted.
and our patience will be rewarded.
with sweet new floors.
yey!
'cause to me, carpet makes my skin crawl.
no matter how clean you are, and how much you vaacum, your floors are always dirty and full of dander and mites and all sorts of other grossness.
hard surface floors are the way to go.
there's no contest.
ESPECIALLY if you have pets or kids.
of which we have neither... but you know.. one day i'll finally be allowed to get a dog.

pink star

2008-08-14T09:58:13Z

okay, not much time to blog today...
i have a mad to do list.
including a trip to my second home (costco) in about an hour.

BUT. i totally had to share this loveliness with you all.
my graphic designer friend emailed me this morning with a logo and business card that she designed for me.
and i am stoked.
because i think it rocks hard.

now here's the mini-disclaimer. i opened this in paint, so that i could black out my name. so it's a little grainy because of that.
but in reality, the hot pink part is one colour and very vibrant.
also anywhere it looks "shady"... well, that doesn't really exist.
(why does paint do that anyways?)

so here it is.

it's totally what i wanted.
sassy and cute and fun...
kinda badass, so i can do concert production and that stuff...
but also purdy and pink for the wedding stuff.

so.
thoughts?

fail.

2008-08-13T15:37:59Z

why am i not surprised that this is in newfoundland?
FAIL.

blog friends

2008-08-13T15:29:34Z

i am looking to expand my blog reading and also my blog roll.
so if you read me secretly and want to be added to my blog roll, please leave me a comment with your url.
or if you have a blog to suggest for my reading pleasure... please let me know!
thanks internet friends!

title

2008-08-13T15:24:11Z

i really have nothing to say today.
my personality has expired.
but yet, i will blog anyways.

i thank everyone for their concern about my lack of booze.
i do have a plan.
but i thought it would be foolish to put these things in writing on the internet.
ya dig?
it will be all good.
i'm getting wasted anyways.
yes.

so, i went to the mall today for some retail therapy.
because i got a call from a collections place today and that made me sad because it reinforced just how in the shit i am.
so i did what any reasonable girl would do... i went shopping.
i know, i suck.

but i did purchase two awesome books.

i figure books are allowed... 'cause they're about learning and shit.
ya. that's it.

anyways, it's all good because now i have new things to read.
and that will be good times on my patio.

let's see... what else?

well, doing an ikea trip tonight to get a couple more plates for saturday.
and then my man said he's taking me out for dinner.
and that's awesome because a) i get to eat something good and b) i don't have to cook or clean up today.
sweet action.

my husband has been pretty awesome lately...
last night he told me he's going to give me some money to pay my bills.
i feel weird about it and a little guilty... because i hate hate hate feeling like a charity case.
but he IS my husband.
so i guess it's better to take money from him than from anyone else.
i hope to be all caught up on my bills and back on track by the end of the month.
i hope.
and i will try my best.

on that note, i've started looking for work seriously again.
i need a job.
if i'm going to start my own company, it's going to have to be a side project.
a side project that can maybe one day become a full time job... but not now.
now my bills need to be paid and i need to save some money.
now is not the right time.

but i do want to do this on the side for sure.
so if you know anyone that's planning a wedding/stag/party of some sort, send them my way.
i will also be available for catering work for groups of under 100.
over 100 people will require more resources. but it could be done.
and my cooking kicks ass, if i do say so myself.

i fought the law... and the law won.

2008-08-12T13:07:10Z

i just spent the last 2 hours securing the liquor license for the reception.
i know... nothing like leaving it to the last minute, eh?

because this shindig is taking place in the city of port moody, the police have to okay things.
so basically the shiz goes down like this:
i fill out the form, liquor store okays it, i take it to the police and they okay it and then i take it back to the liquor store and they print off the official certificate and i'm good to go.
simple...ish.
but not so much.

the big pain in the ass about all this is that i have to know exactly how much liquor i am buying.
i have a list (of course) of what i planned on buying, including the 2 kegs i had ordered etc...
well, it turns out that the license will only let me have a maximum of 6 servings per guest.
sooooo... my kegs alone put me over the limit.

after haggling with the liquor store staff, we finally decided on this:

90L of keg beer (that's a full keg and a pony keg)
12 bottles of wine
2 x 750ml of hard liquor

that is not much.
at all.

so we're half way to the police station... when it hits us. l
et's just say we'll have more guests.
so we go back to the liquor store... "er... we forgot some people, so we'll really have 100 guests, not 75"
so we get more booze, right?
right.
so the guy tells us we can have this:

90L of keg beer
25 dozen prepackaged beer
20 bottles of wine
2 x 750ml of hard liquor

hot damn. now we're in business.

so we go to the cop shop...
and she looks at it, and says "do you want more hard liquor than 2 bottles?"
and we say yes of course
and she tells us that we can have 6 bottles.
sweet. things are looking up.

so we are now at:

90L of keg beer
25 dozen prepackaged beer
20 bottles of wine
6 x 750ml of hard liquor

the nice cop lady signs off on the form (which has now had like 30 things crossed out on it) and we head to the nearest liquor store (not the one that we started at because we had time constraints)

we're at the liquor store and the guy looks at our form and says no way.
he said we are WAY over the limit for what we can have.

at this point i kind of want to beat my head up against a wall.
does ANYONE know what we're allowed to have?!

so he downgrades us BIG TIME.
to this:

25 dozen prepackaged beer
15 bottles of wine
4 x 750ml of hard liquor

so... i have to cancel the kegs.
and that's the maximum amount of liquor that we are allowed on site.
by law.
and i for one would never dream of breaking laws. right?
right.

but fuck. what a pain in the ass.
and tell me that 6 drinks per person over an 8 hour event isn't a little stringent?
because i think it's retarded.
think about this. a martini is 2oz. so 3 martinis over 8 hours?!
that wouldn't even get you tipsy.

bah.
anyways, what a pain in the ass... so much running around and math and shit.
again... i can not fucking wait for this shit to be over.

recovery.

2008-08-11T11:26:16Z

so... ummm... ya.
saturday i got obliterated.
ooopsie.
i didn't really mean to... but the vodka was going down like water... and the next thing i knew if was 3:30am and i'm sure i was saying stupid things.
it's okay... happens all the time. right?

here's the problem.
i totally forgot that sunday morning i had to go downtown to meet my great uncle and aunts for breakfast.
so at 7:30am my mom called. 8 times before i actually mustered up the strength to pick up the phone.
i was, without a doubt still totally drunk.

by some miracle i got up and into the shower.
i got dressed (and by "dressed", i mean yoga pants and a hoodie) and my mom picked me up at 8am.
we stopped for coffee (and water and a green juice) and met them downtown at 8:30am
it was rough.

somehow i managed to eat some breakfast... and then we went to stanley park and did some sightseeing before dropping them off at their hotel.
i barely made it.
by the time my mom dropped me off at home at 11:30am, i felt like a bag of assholes.

slept until 3 or 4pm and felt a bit better, but basically the whole day yesterday was a write-off.
didn't eat much and didn't sit upright much.
thankfully we have a tv in the bedroom, so i just laid down and watched olympics all day.

it really was one of those days that makes me use the phrase "i'm never drinking again."

ugh.
anyways.
i am in the home stretch now for this wedding reception.
5 days away.
i can not wait for it to be over.

five ring circus

2008-08-09T10:27:43Z

okay, confession time.
i really love watching the olympics.

i HATE the olympics.
the IOC is a fucking joke.
i mean what the hell is china doing with the olympics?
but then i remember that the IOC also gave germany the olympics under hitler's rule. so really... am i surprised?
no.

i also strongly oppose the olympics coming to vancouver for a million reasons that i don't feel like getting into right now.

anyways.
i do love watching the olympics.
and part of the fun to me is staying up all night because it's happening on the other side of the planet.
i guess it comes from my youth... when i was a kid, m dad and i used to watch every event... especially the swimming and water sports.
my dad used to swim competitively... and at one point was the third best backstroker in canada.
i also swam competitively... with far less success...
but i was also a backstroker.
and so i understand the way that the race works.
and to this day i will watch any swim race.

so imagine how pissed i am that all the swimming at these olympics is at 3am.
booooo!
i tried my best to stay up last night and see the IM's.
the IM's are my very fav to watch.... and i was dying to see if phelps was going to set a new record.
but i fell asleep around 2am.
to my disappointment when i woke up this morning, i was updated from my husband that i had indeed missed the 400 IM's and that michael phelps had won the gold AND set a new world record.
damn it.
so i'm thinking that i'm going to have to work harder at staying up late for this... or set my alarm.
because apparently this is a fast pool and records are expected to be broken all over the place.

so last night, while i was waiting for the swimming, we watched gymnastics, the cycling race and beach volleyball...
pretty cool.
but really. the beach volleyball makes me laugh.
i mean, come on. what are you wearing ladies?!
that can NOT be enjoyable to have your ass hanging out.

well.
some people find it enjoyable i guess.

adventures in catering

2008-08-08T13:57:37Z

yesterday i finally dove into the dirty work...
up until then, my catering work had been mostly making the dips and some little test runs of other items...
but yesterday i made friends with 10 lbs of ground beef and starting making the mini burgers
i got half of them done... 75 total.

here's the thing...
this stuff isn't "hard" to do...
it's just time consuming.
but i'm half done.
well, half done the burger patties anyways.

i forgot how greasy burgers are... and how much smoke they make on the bbq.

seriously...
i think i smoked out the whole complex.
good thing it was the middle of the day and most people were at work.

but in the end i feel pretty happy about what i acomplished.

they're pretty cute.
and i tried to get the perfect grill marks...
well, i tried on the first 40 or so... then i kinda gave up on that dream.

so tomorrow i'm going to a bakery to see if i can get some custom mini buns made...
and then they will be topped with provolone cheese

basically i am precooking the burgers and freezing them... then we'll thaw and reheat in a foil pan in the over at the venue.
then when they're heated, my kitchen staff will put the on the buns, top with cheese and put on the platter...
and people can add their own condiments out of my super cute dispensers.

i know.
SUPER cute, right?
i kinda love them.
and i think this is a pretty solid plan.

today also marked costco trip #3 of 5 for stuff...
i got the goods to make my greek dip, even though i'm not making it until friday...
and we got cheese for the cheese platter and ingredients for the chicken satay marinade...
yep. it's all coming along nicely.
trip number 4 will be next thursday and trip 5 on friday morning.
it's a good thing i love costco, lol.

but i really should get back to making burgers...
75 down and 75 more to go.

might have to get stoned for this task.
on the upside, it's not like anyone can smell the weed over all the bbq smoke, lol.

dark knight

2008-08-07T10:45:23Z

alright. i know i'm a little behind the crowd... but i never leave my house.
so cut me some slack.

last night my husband and i splurged and went to see the dark night in the theatre out in pitt meadows.
the up-side of the theatre there is that movies are only $9.95 so it saves us a couple bucks vs going to the theatre in coquitlam.

anyways... obviously this movie has been hyped beyond all hype... but hey, i like batman, so i wanted to see it... and my husband was super stoked on it.
i gotta say... it was good. like pretty good.
but i just don't get how so many people are saying it's like "the best movie ever"
really?
it was good.
heath ledger was outstanding...
but it wasn't a flawless movie IMO.
two major issues plagued this film.

problem number one - maggie gyllenhaal.

really?!?
she is gross.
like, i couldn't even stand to look at her ugly wrinkled face. she looks like she almost 60 years old... not at all convincing as the coveted female that the men are fighting over.
there were a couple nasty close ups of her where all i could see was the bags under her eyes and the wrinkles around her mouth... she looked fucking hideous. to the point where it was distracting.
i never ever thought i'd say this... but they would have been far better off with katie holmes.

now... maybe i missed the point and there was some reason why they decided to cast someone ugly as the female lead. because that's about the only theory i have at this point.

seriously. she almost ruined the movie for me. the best part was when she died. i cheered.

problem number two - batman's voice.
really?
what's with the whole "everything i say is going to be under my breath so you can tell i'm serious" voice?
it was fucking distracting.
almost as distracting and maggie's fug face.

really... it made it hard to take anything seriously that came out of batman's mouth.
just talk normal for christsakes.
it was over the top and totally unnecessary.

and really christian bale... i expected more from you.

besides those two issues, the movie was pretty darn solid.
it was long... but i only got bored a couple times.
for the most part i paid attention.
and only once during the movie did i think about how i could have been watching stepbrothers instead.

(i really want to see stepbrothers)

and as much as it's oh-so popular to love people once they've died... heath ledger really was great in this movie.
his character has heavily borrowed from previous villains, but he played it well and made the character his own.
it's too bad he won't be reprising that role.

the one bad thing that i'd say about the joker was that the makeup bothered me... the "scars" on his mouth that his character made such a big deal about were totally uneven. some scenes they were really well done with makeup, and others it looked like just the lipstick.
like here:

again, i found it distracting.

overall i give this movie 3.5 out of 5.
actually maybe 4 out of 5.
ya. 4 of 5 sounds about right.

in other words, worth the ten bucks, but i didn't cream my panties over it.
certainly better than the last movie i saw in the theatre... that indiana jones one. eeesch.
at least this one didn't have a lame alien ending.

catering to whims...

2008-08-06T10:27:33Z

my mom is making me a bit crazy.
it reminds me of working at my old job...
basically i have a plan.
a well formed plan with excel spreadsheets and schedules and lists.
i have a plan.

my mom, not unlike my old boss, has been busting into my plan with new ideas and changes...
and it's making me crazy.
because every time she gets a new idea, i have to throw away my plan and make a new one.
so yesterday i put my foot down.
no. more. changes.

she has this idea that we won't have enough food.
let me tell you this.
we have a mere 60 people rsvp'd to come (sadness.)
and we have 14 substantial appies (like mini burgers, quiche, chicken wings, satays etc)
and 6 dips, 6 kinds of bread & crackers, fruit, desserts and popcorn.
we have food for about 200 people.

we will not run out of food. of that, i am confident.
but my mom seems to think we'll be out of food within the hour.

here's the problem... because i am making almost all the food (like over 80% of it) for the reception, every time she adds more food to the list, it's really just getting added to my list of things to make.

on monday she decided that we should have mini burgers and sandwiches.
sooooo... this week i have to make 150 mini burgers.

and then the day of the reception we will now have to make 100 mini sandwiches.
i'm thinking that i may also make about 40 mini veggie burgers.
just for good measure. (and because mini burgers kick ass and you can never have too many)

anyways. it's especially frustrating because 90% of this has to be done last minute to maintain optimum flavour and freshness.
i made a triple batch of peanut sauce yesterday for the chicken satays and put it in the freezer...
and i'm going to premake the burger patties and freeze them this week... but that's about all i can do in advance.
next friday is going to be a very very busy day.
on top of doing all the food, i also will have to pick up the sound system and lights at some point.

the thing that has me worried is my fridge space.
i'm quite concerned about getting it all in there overnight.
ah well... i'll figure it out.

so, i'm working on my schedule for food prep. because yes, i am that anal.
but because at this point i have 11 items to make, all of which involve prep work... chopping, marinading, blending, cooking, etc.... i need to have firm time schedule of when everything needs to be done and in what order.
so far it looks manageable... but it's a lot easier on paper than in practice.
so today i'm going over it again to see what i can make in advance.
i had scheduled marinades for the friday morning, but i might have to do that thursday night instead to buy myself more time... but there's so many variables... like exactly how long does it take to thread 150 chicken pieces onto skewers for satays? i have nooooo idea.

note to self - catering your own wedding reception is not the best idea ever.

but after this, i think i'd be ready to do my own catering on the side
i got the plates and everything... so if you need me for a party... just sayin'

hunter.

2008-08-05T15:36:06Z

i'm enjoying a book called "Hunter. The Savage and Strange Life of Hunter S Thompson"
it's all kinds of awesome...
and either a good part of it is written by him... or the lady that wrote it has nailed his style.

anyways... a good part of it is quotes from other people about hunter.
and i was just read this part... from a childhood friend...
and it made me come inside and type it out.
because i totally identified with it...
and it made me smile.

You know in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, early in that book, he wrote about the glee of gathering his supplies - forty-two tabs of this, two bags of grass, and so on. That's exactly the way he was in high school. He loved gathering up for the big party. He thought that was grand. "We have seventy one beers!" The important thing wasn't that we had beer, but that we had seventy one beers, and we had two and a half quarts of bourbon and we had a pint and a half of gin, and we were going to have a big party. He had a unique glee in planning. And when i read that part in the book, I said "same old guy".

really!?!

2008-08-05T09:24:59Z

have you ever seen the SNL sketch that they do as part of weekend update called "really!?!"
if you have not... well you should totally watch that.
it's all kinds of awesome.

SNL - Really!?!

2:45 of your life well spent.
i promise.

anyways...
on that note, i bring you this, ripped fresh off perez hilton

really!?!
who would buy this?

i do have to give mad props for the sweet puns...
sex in her shitty? pretty gold.
sarah jessica porkher? mmm... not bad.

but really.
she is so gross.
sure she's got a good body... but her face is all kinds of weird.

anyways... made me laugh... and say "really?!?"
so i had to share.

buying some happy.

2008-08-01T13:39:52Z

well, i spent all day yesterday pretending that i was rich.
my mom and i had "girl's day"
meaning that it went down something like this...

starbucks stop on the way downtown to the spa.
got there early, so we spent some time in the steam room and pool and enjoyed some glasses of champagne before getting the most delightful facials... followed by pedicures.
check my polish - OPI linkin park after dark.
sweet.

4 hours of pure bliss.
man, i wish i could do that every week.
it had been far too long since i've had a facial.

then it was off to yaletown for a quick drink and some satays at glowbal

oh hells ya.
the food at glowbal is fucking epic.
it really is one of my favourite restaurants in vancity.

then we headed next door for our hair appointments
cut and colour for both of us...
we drank a bottle of wine and had chocolate cake while getting dyed and chopped.
excellent.

sadly, at this point we figured that the bank account would suggest we wrap things up... so we headed back to the 'burbs and stopped for a delicious thai dinner.

seriously... is there anything better than red curry?
me thinks not.

great success.

however, with great success comes great cost, lol.
that's okay... well for one, i didn't pay... and for two... well... sometimes you just have to treat yourself.
plus we're ridding the wave of the minor lotto win, lol.

day of awesomeness

2008-07-30T10:26:05Z

this is what makes an awesome day in my world.

got up early and went with my mom to the lotto place for her form signing, picture taking and cheque collecting.
awesome... but not directly beneficial for me...
but still cool to take part in.

then, got on the skytrain and bus to east hastings street to the international chinese restaurant for delicious dim sum
it rocked.
j and i and his friend shared 11 or so different dishes... most of which were mysterious to me, since i like "white girl dim sum" like har gow, sui mai and bbq pork buns.
but we kind of just took whatever was offered to us off the cart and asked few questions.

it worked out quite well.
we stuffed ourselves full and it only cost $33 for the whole table.
awesome.
i'd go back there for sure.

then we got on the bus down hastings street and got off at main.
oh main and hastings. so... charming.

you know... and allow me to sidebar here for a second...
the downtown eastside may not be a bed of roses... but i'm going to have to go with hot hot heat on this one..
"ugly or pretty, it's still my city. say what you will, but get in or get out"

i love the downtown eastside, warts and all.
it's part of what makes vancouver what it is.
and i do not fear it in any way.
there's loads of people that would never ever get off the bus in this area, let alone walk across the street and wait for another bus.
but it's not unsafe.
it's just full of a reality that most people don't want to admit exists.
and frankly i think it's good to have an accurate view of what that reality is.
because how are we ever going to help these people, if most of us ignore their existence?

anyways.
so then we got on the #3 main.
well, j and i did anyways... his friend stayed on the hastings bus heading downtown...

(which did not look anything like this because it was pouring rain yesterday. but you get the idea)

and we headed up main street to the legion!
specifically to the Army & Navy Taurus Unit #298 on main and 23rd

hells ya.
you might wonder what would make two folks in their late 20's / early 30's want to go to the legion on a rainy tuesday afternoon...
well, first off, we're both unemployed. so what's better than a day of drinking at the legion?
but secondly (and mostly) there's BINGO!

we were the only people there under 60...
but it was mega mega awesome.

not only did we play bingo for 3 hours... but we entered the meat draw (MEAT DRAW!!!!) and played their 50/50 and all the other bar games.
this place had it all.
keno, pull tabs, pool tables, bingo, meat draws...
and cheap ass beer.
that bottle of pilsner pictured above was $3
my strongbow was $4
glasses of draft beer were $1.50

there was so much awesome it could barely be contained.

when it was over and we headed home... they thanked us for coming and said that they always love having new faces.
so we're totally going back.
every tuesday from 1:30pm - 5pm.

and as if that day couldn't get any better...
then i came back home and went for dinner with my mom...
we had a $300 seafood dinner... crab and lobster and spot prawns and other assorted goodies.
it was fucking magic.

i fucking rule at life.

hair today... gone tomorrow...

2008-07-28T09:44:40Z

well, i am officially hair extension-less.
two months ago, i shelled out a retarded amount of money to get beautiful beautiful hair extensions...

they were indeed glorious.
and for the first time in my life i had long hair.
i could put it in a ponytail...
i could flip it behind my ear...
i could put it over my upper lip in the faux moustache.
true story.

i fucking loved it.
it made me happy.
so happy.

but all good things must come to an end...
so now i present to you...
what's left of my hair extensions

sadness.
that's the last 80 or so of them... i pulled them all out last night.
only took me about 2.5 hours.
i think i had about 300 or so when i first got them.

i have a hair appointment on thursday... but my hairdresser told me that it was going to be $100 an hour to get them removed... and i can't afford it, so i did the dirty work myself.
my hair is a mess right now.
i have little bald patches...
it's thin and feels far shorter than it did before.
so hopefully when i go in for a cut she can do something with this mess.
i might have to cut it all off and start again.
again.
*sigh*

you may ask yourself why a girl would pay almost $1,000 for high quality human hair extensions...
well, here's the truth.
i don't really grow hair.
my hair grows almost to my shoulders... and then stops.
it has never ever grown longer than that, no matter how long i wait and how much i wish for it to happen....
it does. not. grow.
it's thick and has great curl and looks purdy... but it's not long.

so the dream is dead... long live the memories.
at least in my wedding photos my hair is long and beautiful...
even if it was all just lies.

highway to hell

2008-07-28T09:25:21Z

i watched the traffic at pemberton on the news last night.
well... i can't say i was the least bit surprised.
the average backup for cars was 11km...
but really... did anyone NOT see this coming?
do the math... 40,000 people = about 15,000 - 20,000 cars.
on a one lane hwy.
the ONLY road you can take to get there.
seems like everyone should have expected this.

so here's my "i didn't go to pemberton, but can gleam what is was like via the news" wrap up.

*

Complaints about ever-present dust, overflowing toilets, chaotic parking lots and lax security were as pervasive as talk about the music on Sunday, the third and final day of British Columbia's inaugural Pemberton Festival.

On Friday, more than 40,000 fans made the bumper-to-bumper trek up B.C.'s Sea-to-Sky Highway for the three-day rock music extravaganza. By Friday afternoon, the highway approaching the village of Pemberton was backed up, and fans were greeted with lineups, confusion and dust kicked up by crowds in the farmer's field that has been converted into the festival site.

"Getting here from Whistler was a nightmare," Adelle Papp told CBC News. "Then we paid $90 for parking, and we just stumbled on it. There was no one directing traffic, nothing."

The confusion and dust continued into Saturday and Sunday. Organizers have had their hands full directing the 20,000 people who are camping in the fields surrounding the concert site. And fans have been resorting to covering their faces with scarves so as not to inhale the dust.

Although organizers promised tight security measures that would keep alcohol, weapons and drugs out of the camping area, festival-goers said security was lax.

"Security was giving up," Chris Betts told the Canadian Press. "There were no checks and no one seemed to know who was in charge."

"It was kind of like going to a war zone," Colin Horgan said. "It feels like entering a refugee camp: tents, blowing dust and bright lights."

Traffic delays that lasted hours, porta-potty issues, and inescapable dust that coated everything from plastic forks to human skin...

As thousands of dust-covered music fans gather in a B.C. mountain valley for the second day of the inaugural Pemberton Festival Saturday, complaints about poor organization are just as likely to be heard as talk about the music.

It's the first year for the Pemberton Festival, and while attendees are thrilled by the lineup, many seem soured by the chaos surrounding their arrival on Thursday and Friday.

The 3,000-person town is normally a two-hour drive north of Vancouver, but festival goers say it took about five hours to make the trek in bottleneck traffic.

Organizers had their hands full with the influx of vehicles, as well as directing the 20,000 people who are camping in fields surrounding the concert site.

Chris Betts said he waited eight hours in the festival's makeshift parking lot, the local airfield, before he could board a shuttle bus to the campground.

Despite complaints about stopped-dead traffic, hours-long waits for shuttles and campground showers, and trash everywhere as the few garbage containers overflowed, the executive producer of the Pemberton Festival says he thinks he can bring the giant music event back to the tiny village.

But Pemberton's mayor says he wants to hear from his community before giving future festivals the green light. Jordan Sturdy says he and other stakeholders will hold a technical debriefing in late August to determine whether to allow the festival again, and to address key issues.

Chief among them will be the transportation delays that have plagued the festival since Thursday night. People waited hours in traffic on the single-lane Sea-to-Sky Highway, followed by hours-long waits for shuttle buses - which sometimes never came.

ah...
good times.

well, i'm sure everyone that went had fun... you know besides the lineups, dust, overflowing porta potties (gross) and more lineups.
at least the music was good while you waited?
ya... that's gottta be the silver lining.

they're talking about doing it again next year... but i don't know.
i'll be a little surprised if it happens.
i think they'd be better off to do this in merritt.
at least it would make more sense logistically. merritt has proven that they have a solid infrastructure for dealing with large festivals... doing it there would make your task a lot easier.
pemberton is just such a weird place to pick... logistically it doesn't make much sense at all.

anyways... unless the promoters made a crapload of money on beer, concession and merch (which i'm sure they did) then they were not making a ton of money from what i can tell...

40,000 tickets at $300 each, plus 20,000 that paid an extra $200 each for camping and parking... plus another 10,000 or so people that paid $100 for the whistler shuttle... that's 17 million dollars in ticket revenue.

the bill for the bands was about 12 million... so 7 million left for staff, rentals, transportation and the million other things that you need to run a large scale festival... especially in the middle of nowhere... that's not a lot of money.

so basically as far as i can figure, they made their money off their cut of beer, food and merch. 40,000 people for 3 days... well, maybe they did alright.

i guess we'll know soon enough. because if they didn't do well financially i can't imagine that they'd do it again... although live nation has been throwing around some pretty heavy cash lately with their deals... so they might think it's worth it to not make a ton of money, if they're asserting themselves as the festival people...

i guess we'll have to sit back and see.

would i go next year?
well, i think it would be the same thing for me as this year... for free? sure, i'd love to go.
as an event person, i find the workings of large festivals to be very interesting and love to see the logistics up close. really, big festivals are more interesting to me for what's going on around me rather than what's going on stage.

but for over $800 per person when it's all said and done? no fucking way.
i don't care who the bands are... i wouldn't pay that much for a weekend.
well... not one that wasn't in las vegas anyways.