Fireworks

This morning I was doing a search on my blog, and i came across the last time Matt and i connected.

I wish i could tell u what the search words were. I'm sure they were fascinating.

I hadn't remembered that post (arguably the beauty of blogging!) And reliving the moment of when Matt called me a friend was still precious. Got me choked up, to be honest.

I was playing the Kill Bill, Vol. 2 soundtrack (which Matt had played at one dinner party which i wasn't invited to) when Taylor texted.

Taylor misses me, as i do him.

It was July 4th when Taylor first wrote me.

He caught my attention right away. I mean what guy writes on Indepence Day in lieu of watching sports?!? Or whatever is purportedly significant that day.

"You seem like someone who would be easy to be with, wonderful to talk to, and hard to leave."

I concur: that may've been a default from a draft. Hookthechix.doc.

At the end, it wasn't that hard to leave my side.

Irresistible

T-Shirt i bought online tonight. Gotta luv yet another sausage reference. Plus it's in "oxblood rose". Who could pass that up?


Courtesy Tobi

Tokidoki

Is it me or does it look like the Asian chick is really giving it to the pink monster??


Courtesy Tobi

Gifted

Taylor annotates the CD he made me:

It cracked me up!

On the inside sleeve he wrote "No Cheating". To this day i don't know what he means.

It is quite a compilation (wish you could read it). It took me an hour to research and input all the song info as it had none (at risk of sounding like an ungrateful bitch!) (And perhaps bordering on cheating?) What can i say, i must label.

Taylor said he burnt this disc justa give me this one song. He didn't say which one.

If 13 out of these 14 tracks are gravy, i haven't found the turkey yet.

No Caption Necessary... Almost 12

Mmmm... Would love to drink art

Neither Parallel Nor Intersecting

"I meant to tell you earlier," Derek II told me at the end of the day yesterday. "You look very pretty today!"

Let's see... Greasy hair pulled back in a funky bun; chapped, colorless lips; my trusty grey pants with grey flats which are practically my work uniform...

... add up to cute??!

It's my pink twinset. Derek loves pink. Well, not on him.

I could be wearing a pink potato sack and he'd be paying compliments. Although that would probably be violating the company dress code, i suspect.

Attachable

I bought this for Denisse. It's in her favorite color!

It's Drinkwear, patent-pending coaster "designed to fit like Cinderella's slipper on the foot of most stemware". Aww... cute!

Slip

The first time i listened to David Allender and Tim Johnston's Red Rock version of Tom Waits' "Hold On", i thought i heard:

You don't need nice girls in coffee shops...
She says Dave i still love you

Later i realized the lyrics were *babe i still love you.

Talk about hearing what you wanna hear. (I'd tell you how so but then i'd hafta kill ya.)

Quote 116

The way you are and the way you write... it's like you are dancing even though there is no music playing.

- Taylor

Snippet 57

JD:
How are you?

V:
Major depression for a week. How are you?

JD:
Well, it didn't look that way from your blog.

V:
When they find me in a pool of blood and vomit they'll be like, "But she sounded so cheery on her blog!"

Himo Tsuki Hotate Scallops

Another first...


Funny-looking things they are... Very alien!

Three different textures that i can discern...


They're like stand-alone hamburgers!

Dick and Jane

This one is even more phallic than the last!

Dedication

Within 24 hours my mother sends me two emails. I reply to one.

"That's the easy one," i told Elsie afterwards on IM.

My mother almost instantly shot back another email inquiring why i hadn't replied to the other email.

"Are you that busy?" She asked.

No, not busy. Just that there are other things i'd rather be doing.

This morning i told her:

It's not easy to reply to your email. It requires a lot of thought.

I swear the woman drains me.

After i finally officially replied, i told Denisse, "The whole time i was wishing i had a screwdriver. The drink, not the tool."

A while ago i told JD, "I don't blame my mother for the way i turned out any more."

"Oh?" Responded JD. "Who do you blame?"

"Myself," said i.

I may revert.

As Told To Denisse 2

I don't expect anyone to be there for me when i need them. I feel lonely and then i go to bed.

Quote 115

Sometimes you read like William Shakes

And know
the stupid things i do
have absolutely no reflection
on
how i feel about you

I'd love to have your cake and eat it too

- "Stupid Things", Beautiful Soul, Jesse McCartney

Discovered

When i hear James Morrison's "If the Rain Must Fall", i feel like putting my arms around me and slow dancing, swaying ever so gently, keeping my eyes closed.

Believe me, it takes a lot to inspire feelings of love these days. The man's got soul! I'm glad i found him. After all, woman can't live on Jason Mraz alone. : )

Quote 114

I'm not hiding
If you dig a little deeper
you will find me

- "Undiscovered", James Morrison

All In a Day's Work 18

Today a customized product was returned. This was the label:

"Is that a color?" I asked Kato.

"No!" Exclaimed Kato with an evil smile. "That's the name of the customer!"

Nice... It's not everyday you have an encounter with a porn star!

Snippet 56

[Derek II wanders about, appearing disoriented]

V:
Whatcha doin'? Where you goin'?

Derek:
Crazy. You wanna come?

V:
Sure! I'll join ya!

Snippet 55

V:
Are there clubs close to you so we won't hafta drive out to the city?

Denisse:
Ooh you in the dancing mood?

V:
More like in the get-hammered mood. If dancin' goes with it then so be it. LOL!

Haphazard

Sometimes the dispenser on my Target Brand face lotion gets clogged up, and when i pump, it squirts up. And all over the place.

Kinda like peeing with an erection! Or so i've heard.

It's a faulty design! The penis, that is.

Fraulein

Three days in a row i wake up with tissue fibers on my eyelashes.

Not as pretty as snowflakes.

Signs Are Everywhere If You Look 2

I came back to work from lunch @ Quizno's to find this in our parking lot:

It had to be a cosmic statement. What it says i don't know. I just knew: if i didn't take a picture, i'd be kicking myself later.

Vignette 7

Last Friday, Miles*, my then-pen-pal, who was working from home, asked, "Do you sometimes WAH?"

It took me a few seconds to realize he was referring to telecommuting.

I replied:

I don't wah, although i do, occasionally, bawl like a baby.


*Not his real name

Quote 113

可能在我左右　你才追求　孤獨的自由

有時候　有時候　我會相信一切有盡頭

可是我　有時候　寧願選擇留戀不放手

- "紅豆", 王菲

I Read It Somewhere... And It Crosses My Mind At Times

沒有你，我也可以過得很好。

Shrinkage 7

Yesterday, upon viewing a photo of mine, Denisse inquired, "How long ago was this?"

I swear there was discernable disdain on her face.

"Uh, not that long ago... Last November?" I replied, thinking i looked old in that picture. Old, and wrinkled, and worn. "Why, did i look different?"

"Yeah," responded Denisse, still scrutinizing the image, fixated. "Different."

Good different or bad different? I dared not ask.

"I was 7 pounds lighter then," i offered information. "Oh, wait, that was toward the end of my trip..."

"Oh, whatever!" Denisse interrupted me, laughing. "You're still a stick!"

I laughed too. Oh i love Denisse. She's a godsent.

Vintage 9

A case of buying the bottle for the illustration...

I've always considered the hand one of the most beautiful body parts, if not the most...

Alive

I have said time and again: at my age it is cherishable to still have firsts!

A first today: barhopping in daylight!

Second stop: El Jardin @ Santana Row.

Margarita Caliente. Jalapeño-infused tequila with sour mix, served chili-salt rimmed. The shot version is called "macho". I bet it is!

Hot, hot, hot! Those Mexicans mean business! And i am well-trained by now in hotness...

After my first sip, i offered Denisse a taste.

Denisse declined, "If you say it's hot, no, thank you!"

Aww... I'll take that as a compliment : )

You know... I thought that'd be a weird combination of flavors? Cuz i've never cared for the salt rim with margaritas. But this works! It more than works. It rocks!!! I am definitely going back for more!

That, or infusing my own tequila...

Sayeth the Wordsmith

"Conundrum" is such a great word. It contains an establishment, a woman dedicating her life to religion, and a percussion instrument!
: D

Conundrum

Sometimes, when i quit iTunes, a little window will pop up that says:

Saving iTunes Library...

But i haven't made any changes!

What's it saving iTunes from? The evils of the world?

There's "Delay" In "Vandelay"

On Wednesday i met Taylor's confidant Art*.

"When you blog about me," said Art. "Call me Art**."

So i am.

I found Art distant. Lukewarm handshake, eye-contact aversion, and snappy remarks.

When i shared my view with Taylor a couple of days later, he said, "That's just Art... He's been bitter since he lost his fiancée."

To another human being? Or to death? I didn't pursue.

We are products of our life experiences. Some of us are a volume of compilations of hurt, with frayed pages bookmarked and dogearred. Others, it seems, are a complete Brittanica collectors' set.


*Not his real name
** A Seinfeld reference

No Caption Necessary... Almost 11

Yes, it is.

The Embrace 2

On Wednesday, after lunch, Taylor and i hugged goodbye in the visitor lot at his work.

Some of our best hugs took place in parking lots.

While we were still interlocked, Taylor asked, "So i'll see you soon?"

Keyword being "soon". Been a while since Taylor had explicit interest in seeing me again. Plus he doesn't project. He lives in the present.

Then he asked, "You're not gonna hide from me for a year again?"

Cute...

Speaking of which... On my birthday Taylor said to me, "You're even cuter than i remembered."

Possibly the best compliment one could get from an ex.

Siskel Channeled

I've got but one commentary on Sex and the City the movie:

So, really, it's all the Chinese girl's fault!

Leaving a Remainder of One When Divided By Two...

Summer Benediction

Just when you think i'm burnt out...

I'm not!

All In a Day's Work 17

Riley*, our new trainee who's in his - i dunno - third week? Came in my office thrice today to mock the customers he'd had to deal with.

Yesterday out on the floor he asked me to go get the gun from his car and blow his brains out.

At the end of his third lamentation today, i inquired, "Do you need your brains blown out today, Riley?"

"Maybe i can go outside and lay on the pavement," replied Riley. "And you can crush my skull with your car."

Then he got all excited and asked the model of my car and so on, evaluating whether it would do the job.

"Maybe you can chain me to your car and drag me around," continued a wide-eyed Riley. "Gangster-style!"

I cringed. I do not like to fathom pain, physical or otherwise, let alone inflicting it.

"I don't like torture," I stated, grimacing. "Torture is not cool..."

After pausing for drama, i added, "Death is fine."


*Not his real name. And not the same Riley.

Veracity

This week, Fefe*, an old friend from SoCal, who now lives in San Diego, is in town.

Since i last saw her, she has gotten married AND had a baby boy.

She's one of those who goes on and on about the latest with them, then pauses to ask, "What's new with you?" and after you respond, doesn't even react. Not even a condescending, "Uh huh."

Suffice to say: we've grown apart.

I was ready to meet up on Saturday when she informed me they'd be departing on Thursday. Friday the latest. She wasn't sure.

She texts me for my home address, what time i get off work, and how far my abode is from the wharf in Frisco - information she should've had for 2-3 years.

The baby is no excuse. The baby is only 8 months old.

I reply on Tue, and she inquires again on Thu.

And i reply again. Even threw in the work addy.

At lunch today Febe texted to see if i was at lunch. When i didn't text back promptly, she called. I didn't pick up. A minute later, she called again.

Fefe is one of those who are quite dense when it comes to my aversion to the phone. I don't bother to explain as it would escape her.

As i would tell Denisse later:

When i'm eating, i don't answer if the president is calling.. Or even God himself!

It's true. Ain't nothing worth disrupting alimentary sanctity. Even if my mother was dying, what could i change by stopping to eat?

At the end the timing did not work out. It was an hour and a half from outtie time as Fefe's family was heading down to San Luis Obispo.

And i can't say i'm hurting.


*Not her real name

Scrambled

Walking over to wait for his brew @ Bux, Taylor passes by a Sumatra display.

"I like that name," says Taylor, referring to the namesake of the Indonesian island. "It spells 'traumas'!"

Burnish

My after-work missions today were to take my car in to be handwashed (hadn't in ages!) and go get my toenails painted.

Upon learning my plans, Derek II exclaimed, "Both you and your car are getting a pedicure!"

I nodded contemplatively, "We are both gonna be cured."

All In a Day's Work 16

As i have mentioned before, Denisse works with older folks inflicted with a plethora of ailments.

Today Denisse was sitting in the hallway with one of her favorite ladies who has dementia when the latter informed Denisse, "I need a man."

"Oh really?" Asked an amused Denisse. "Why?"

"Oh, just to look at," replied the lady.

Too cute!

I couldn't help but muse as i replied to Denisse:

Sometimes i think i can't wait to be old so i'll stop wanting a guy and then the misery will stop. It's NEVER gonna stop, is it.. LOL!

"No, it's not!" Denisse shot back.

Wow, wisdom. I embrace thee.

Motorcycle Chick

Every once in a while i still find something new under the sun:

Macy's Remembered!

Aww... And in my favorite color too! How'd they know?!?

Jubilation

That's one of the best wishes, ever!!!!!

No Caption Necessary... Almost 10

Aww... Shucks!!!

Treat

Ginger Cosmopolitan. Yum!


Calamari Katsu with Lemon Caper Burre Blanc.

Course, we all know katsu is Japanese for "deep-fried and artery-clogging"! : )

I didn't know what the French suffix meant. But all the respectable chefs know it: Throw in some French and you've got them reeled in! : )

Turns out that literally translates to "white butter"! Yikes!

I thought the paprika on lemon with a sprinkle of black sesame made a very enticing garnish!


Oh my god the decadence!

They call the cut "Julienne style". I call it "Oh, i don't hafta wield a knife? Super!"

With three different dips: Wasabi, Chipotle, and Thai. I thought I had died and gone to heaven!

(Especially when they're brought to you by someone with shimmery lips who reminds you of Gina Gershon, who calls you "honey", and caresses your back!)
I thought capers would be weird with flavors other than the designated sauce, but boy, it was all gooooood... "Orgasmic" came to mind : )

Intersection

HAD ta stop.

There was a time when two crossed paths, love was one's mission.

Vigil

So glad to have found again the lost dock Taylor took me to many moons ago. Words cannot express the sense of completion.

One thing off my list. It's a big list.

How I Feel At Times 3

Found

This morning somewhere between 4 and 4:30, i woke up from a weird dream with Elsie's Mom in it.

I wondered why Elsie's Mom hasn't made vermicelli lately.

Then i remembered: she is dead.

All of a sudden i was really glad i was not dead yet.

This evening i found myself singing the last clause in the chorus of "Best Days" by Graham Colton, subconsciously changing the possessive in the lyrics:

Here comes the rest of my life.

All In a Day's Work 15

Yesterday i posted this note on my office door mid-afternoon:

The blurred is moi, of course. : D

One of the few perks about working at Merry Lore is that you get paid to do nothing for a day, just cuz you were born. If that isn't love!

By 4 i saw that Derek II had done some editing:



Later someone else felt the need to accentuate:

Yes, spooky. That is kinda the whole point : )

Quote 112

Even if there's no one else
You've got to love
yourself

- "Song for a Friend", Mr. A-Z, Jason Mraz

All In a Day's Work 14

I work with unprofessional imbeciles.

Yesterday, i hesitated to entrust Roar* with my office supplies to Louis who now works at another location and is infinitely unhappy.

If there is anything i can relate to, it's infinite unhappiness : )

Roar, while using my phone to confirm Louis is gonna be present @ delivery, disrupted the layout of my desk.

After i had informed him "You can leave it on his desk", after establishing he knew which Louis' desk was.

I resumed my task, hoping Roar would depart soon.

Instead, Roar ripped open my interdepartmental envelope to view the content. AND he was amused.

I was appalled.

"What if it was confidential?" I lamented. Given, it wasn't labelled as such. But why do you think we bother having someone's first AND last name inscribed on the sucka??!?

"I was just curious," said Roar. "No one yelled at Curious George!"

And he turned red. So he had to have known something was awry.

"You realize," I remarked. "You have just compared yourself to a monkey."



*Not his real name

Snippet 54

V:
Do you know what you're doing this weekend?

Taylor:
Monastery on Saturday probably. Sex club... Sunday.

Just kidding. No sex club.

V:
In that case, i MIGHT text you on Sunday.

T:
Wanna be my partner to the sex club? Yeah baby.

V:
Sure.

Alas there is none.

T:
You can branch out and do others if you like.

V:
I have no will to reach out

T:
What took your will?

V:
Failure

T:
Failure shouldn't rob your will.

Well, hopefully you will return.

Life is good. Wonderful, even.

V:
Life can be wonderful without will or reaching out.

Vintage 8

A case of buying the bottle for the cartoon.

I can't resist humor. Precious how the drunkard's got rosacea. And how cute is the unsuspecting birdie??

Besides, it's French! L'attrape-Coeur probably means The Captured Heart, or something. I don't speak French; i can only guess. Or go on Babel Fish (which used to be Alta Vista but now it's Yahoo proprietary i see), but i don't feel like hopping now.

There's romance in that, right? A quasi-educated guess in a foreign language?

Well, there's mystique. And mystique can be justifiably mistaken for romance.

This is one bottle i would like to get flattened into a cheeseboard/serving plate by Key West Bottles!

Thump

I am still a sucka for a heart in the sand.

Arguably not as good as Taylor's:

Vantage

My dating philosophy hangs on a thread dangling between the airspace of "Someone should love me in spite of me" and "Someone should love me because of me".

The thread is silk. And it's wearing thin. Delicate.

Lately the former territory has been beating the living daylights out of the latter. No contest.

Bird's eye is only cool for so long...

Vintage 7

On Sunday, while starting to make my celery chicken, i realized i had only one glass of pinot grigio left, and the new bottle wasn't chilled.

So i opened a bottle of cab. Can't go wrong with cab! Even though, seemed wrong to be sipping red while making poultry.

I've turned into a snob, i know.

There was a time, not too long ago, when i couldn't even remember which wine goes with which meat. Let alone subtle pairing!

I confronted my brother with my confusion. And he was like, "It's easy! The color of the wine is the color of the meat!"

Oh, that makes sense.

I've come a long way, sorta. I am still no connoisseur. Not by far! Which is why the movie Sideways cracked me up so. It would be so cool to talk like that! It's fucking esoteric! And the way they inhale the vapor especially when it's like orgasmic... I got to observe that firsthand recently in one of my Burlingame outtings with Denisse... I was so amused!

@ the wine fest on Saturday, Denisse had me articulating the difference between petite sirah and syrah. First i was like, "There is a regular syrah??" Later i was like, "Syrah is definitely more complex..."

Then i added, "I love pretending i know wine!"

And then she sprang "mid-palate" on me, and we laughed.

Back to the culinary endeavor... In a moment of tipsiness, i splashed cab in the skillet, thinking i had the mirin in my grasp which was also sitting on the counter. I sure looked dashing doing it though, very debonair gourmet chef like...

"No, no, no!" I thought, as my heart sank, "Shit this must ruin it!"

Cuz you can't mix red with white!!!

Despite the mishap i thought the end product tasted pretty damned good. But then again i was tipsy so what did i know?

This evening i was literally afraid to try the chicken leftovers. As i recalled i grew kinda averse to the aroma of sweet anise as well.

But i finally got hungry enough to take a chance (not unlike how i handle dating! LOL!) And you know what? True to my first verdict: tastes pretty damned good.

So there you have it. You can splash red wine on white meat. Conventional wisdom means nothing!

Spicy Teriyaki Skewered Prawns

Out of all my recent creations, my mother seemed most intrigued by my skewered prawns.

So I made more in her honor.
The colors of nature are wonderful...


So simple, and so yummy!

Mmm... charred... More carcinogens, please!


The one notion that got me hooked on this recipe is that, during the process, the prawn starts "hugging" the pineapple chunk. Sweeeeet!!!...

I had a piece that was so perfectly fused, it was like a welding job well done. It was almost like... love!

Woulda made an excellent demo photo, but by then i was busy eating.


One can never have too many shots of prawns...


Succulent suckas!!!

Vintage 6

A case of buying the bottle for the fairy tale:

She is a creature of fierce, sunny joys gentled by the cool mist of five coastal rivers; she flies close to the sun... and bathes the grapes of the Central Coast in bliss and ocean rain. Her affection make the Rive Rivers Merlot blush deep garnet...

Gosh, it's like imbibing poetry!

Brilliance

My very own gourmet olive oil sprayer! : D

You can even fill it with masala wine! What i would do with masala wine i have no idea. But, good to know!