heaven is a place on earth with you

"Video Games" by Lana Del Rey

full circle

It's funny. Ever since they tried to put their moves on me, DfmB and Food Dude seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth. I wonder if it's just a coincidence or if they actually had a secret mission to get a date and failure to do so could only end in termination.

Whatever it was that happened, it's left things in a pretty sorry state at work now, with Boss as my only form of "entertainment." However, the company is throwing a holiday party, and it just so happens that it'll be held at the venue where I met Sketchy.

I thought the worse that could happen was running into him there, but the phone rang today and you'll never guess who called to hash out event details with me. The best part was when he did the verbal version of a double take. After asking me to repeat my name, recognition seemed to dawn on him in that split second of hesitation before he pointedly asked, "How are you?"

blown away

December started off with a freak windstorm that knocked out power for over 250,000 residences in LA. The night it happened was pretty exhilarating--the wind began as a howl that steadily turned into a roar outside, rattling the windows and distorting the sounds of passing helicopters and sirens that never seemed to be too far away...

I didn't realize just how strong it had been until I went outside the next morning and saw that two trunks had been snapped off the neighbor's tree and flung onto my driveway. Some less fortunate trees around my area even got uprooted. On my way to work, streets were lined with debris.

Going 24+ hours without power was kind of a cool, albeit inconvenient, experience. Not having internet access gave me a reason to do things I had been putting off, and then I actually went to bed early for the first time in years.

It's one of those things that you don't regret happened, but you also wouldn't want to do it again.

turkey weekend

My weekend was filled with the abundance of eating, shopping, and sleeping that comes with Thanksgiving as an American.

I was crazy enough to suggest going to the Moonlight Madness event at Citadel Outlets on Thanksgiving evening, hoping to get an early start on the insanity that is normally reserved for Black Friday. I left my house at 9:20pm to make it to the event which was starting at 10:00pm. While it didn't take that long to reach the freeway exit, it took an entire hour just to get out! By the time I found parking (which was relatively painless), it was 11:00pm. Then we had to line up just to get into the stores. Tired and defeated after two hours of not accomplishing anything, we hopped back in my car and made for home. It only took me 14 minutes to get back.

"Never again!" I had sworn to myself. Except...

...I slept for 3 hours and went on another mission, hellbent on satisfying my Black Friday shoplust. But finding good deals just wasn't in the cards this year. Everything I purchased was at regular price, with the exception of one ugly-with-potential sweater from H&M that only managed to reel me in because it was so cozy when I tried it on (I am powerless to soft things). Will try to post some pictures of my haul soon.

Saturday night featured a Thanksgiving potluck with friends, a dinner that's become an annual tradition spent at Greg's house where everyone has a jolly time getting fat and wasted. The highlights of the evening were two gloriously juicy, tender deep-fried turkeys:

The skin was the best part! Salty and greasy!

The lowlight of the evening was having to take care of Greg after he had waaay too much to drink, holding him upright after he began vomiting so that he wouldn't choke on it while out cold, only to end up getting it all over my arm. Thanks, friend!

healthy lungs

I sat in the break room drafting my resignation letter on my Blackberry in silence. Boss's shouting got louder and louder with every word I typed, and every decibel seemed to increase with as much remorse as I felt for every letter I punched in.

By the time I had finished, Boss was still going. The fact that Boss could still achieve those levels of sound even with a bad case of bronchitis was astounding. I'm surprised my coworker still had a face after that.

the northern capital

I wish I had been more diligent about documenting my visit with J. But there's not much to photograph when you're just gaming or shopping. As for the food...well, I fully intended to take pictures but by the time I remembered I had a camera, everything was either already half-eaten or in my/someone else's tummy.

Mountain of shaved ice covered in red bean, condensed milk, and fruit

An Orgasm during Happy Hour...*cough* one of many *cough*

Not an Apple advertisement. I just happened to like the pink glow cast by the adjacent screen.

Hot French onion soup topped with bread and melted cheese

A really juicy salmon fillet with a butter lemon sauce garnished with tomato wedges dipped in pesto

My Chocolate Devotion and J's Founder's Favorite in chocolate-dipped waffle cones

View of the city through a dirty window, from 80 stories up

J and I went to a cozy British(?) establishment for afternoon tea, but I don't have clear pictures of our sandwiches, scones, and pastries, so...have some pictures of the surrounding area instead.

All the lights were beginning to turn on by the time we finished.

It got dark fast and we promptly boarded the subway to escape the chilly evening air.

Maybe I'm crazy to say this as someone who revels in the weightless blanket of indoor heating once it drops below 60 outside, but I kind of miss the brisk 40s we had abroad (legitimately cold, I'd say). Or maybe...I just miss the warmth of being held in the midst of it.

wedges

When it comes to women's shoes, I feel like it's nigh impossible to look stylish without sacrificing comfort. Breaking in a new pair of heels is about as fun as accidentally hitting your boobs when they've just begun growing in. So yeah, a pair of fancy shoes needs to be pretty damn enticing to warrant such a sacrifice, especially because I'm normally not big on footwear anyway.

With that said, look what I found while browsing online:

I find wedges to be a pretty good compromise between looking put-together while still feeling relatively comfortable. They give you height with significantly less pain than heels over the same period of time, and I like the fact that they're much more stable than heels even when your feet do start to hurt.

These also come in a pretty shade of blue:

I was spared the anxiety of having to make a decision, however, because my size is no longer available in either color. It's the weirdest combination of disappointment and relief.