Friday, February 29, 2008

Fake Friday

While watching Good Day L.A. this morning Jullian made a remark about Leap Year. "Today shouldn't even be happening" little did she know how I was thinking the same thing.




Please GOD watch over my brother & give him the strength to make it through each day.

xoxoxoxo

Friday, February 22, 2008

No Name has a name!

It was kinda fun calling out "No Name". However it's official please meet Molly Mae.



I added the Mae part for no apparent reason & I haven't a clue where the name Molly came from nevertheless: Molly Mae. Please keep in mind whether we keep her or not has not been "decided". At least not out loud. :) We took Molly to visit Dr. Sid yesterday. Everybody loved her! She was offered treats & lots of love. One of the nurses claimed that no dog has every eaten the healthy all bran-no taste nasty treats they had on hand. Well Molly didn't mind! She's still adjusting to eating everyday & wouldn't dare passing up a treat. During out visit she was really cautious around other people. I don't think she's every been around a crowd or maybe even inside a building. It was odd to see her so nervous around strangers. The first day I met her & called out she came so willingly. Molly was the perfect patient to Dr. Sid. She didn't growl or cry (which I can't say for the other two poopies who despise Dr. Sid). Matter of fact she didn't cry in the car either. Sadie will whine for days (which is rather annoying) but Molly just plopped down & rested up. We discovered she's 10 months to about a year & has a strong resemblance of an American Pit Bull Terrier. It was nice to finally know what breed she may be linked too. Pit Bull was a given but there was a hint of some other breed & it happen to be Terrier. After receiving two shots, two meds & a bag of Prescription Diet i/d dog food. Molly Mae weighed in at 28 lbs. We gave the Dr. a stool sample & have a return visit in one week. She's "horribly malnourished" as stated by Dr. Sid & this food will help fill her out. Surprisingly when we arrived home Molly wanted nothing to do w/the new food & Sadie gobbled it right up. Sadie rarely eats out of a dog dish so it was a nice surprise that she enjoyed the food & I didn't just waste my money. :/ Molly will learn to appreciate it. At least until she reaches normal weight. How dare she become picky! After our visit we made a quick run to Pet Smart for a collar & leash. She's been using Oscars old one & kinda looked like a boy. :/ Again, she was greeted with praises & compliments. After a few minutes of walking around she grew tired. It's so sad that she gets lethargic so quickly. We hurried home & relaxed in front of the T.V. after a few hours it was time for bed. She's been so good about sleeping in the crate we decided to let her sleep outside last night. I'm not sure how this decision was made but she slept on the side of the bed........with "daddy" lying next to her. Again! The decision has not been made whether we're keeping Molly Mae or not.






After only having her for a few days it's so funny to see her learn & adapt so quickly. She's learned to roll the food ball aroundcatch a tennis ball (after watching Sadiekins) & she's even begun taking sniff lessons from Oscar. Good job Molly Mae!

Get it papa!

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Queen of random

I never knew this about myself. Recently my bff(!) Jenn pointed this out to me. Not willing to believe I repeated the comment to Paul & it was confirmed......I'm hopelessly random. Now, I'm still not quite sure what this means. Am I random or just spontaneous? Let's take last night for instance. The "plan" was to finish my taxes (which I've been putting off because I'm incredibly lazy) & study for a test. Well at least the tax part was taken care of.

We live inside a gated community. Our condo is located right by the entrance gate so we're pretty much within 10 ft of the public park & the main street. While walking toward our place I noticed a dog (who I will refer to as No Name) in the middle of the road poking her nose through some trash. I initially freaked out not only because she was in the middle of the road but because a truck was heading straight toward her! So I walked (I've realized w/each stray I meet that running only provokes fear) so I briskly walked over to No Name & calmly w/a sweet voice called out to her. Thankfully she was very trusting. So trusting in fact she fell into my lap & dug her nose in between my arm. It was so touching! My heart melt when I realized how skinny she'd become. You could see all of her bones. :( I quickly took off my coat & wrapped it around her body. It was so sad. A few cars driving outside the complex stopped & asked a few questions, "was she the one in the fight? was she with the other dogs?" I had no clue. At that time I didn't even see any dogs. I had Paul go inside to get a collar & a leash (we have extras through out the house because I'm a compulsive shopper). I carried all the way to the front portion of our condo. To avoid any conflict I wanted her to meet Sadie & Oscar on common ground. As soon as they showed interest in one another we praised & gave out treats. No Name gobbled them right up! After the intro we decided to take them inside. Oddly enough she didn't understand what stairs were or how to get up them. So I placed a treat on each step & she climbed right up!Once inside I gave her a bowl of dry food. Poor thing was so hungry! I placed my hand inside to bowl to see her reaction & thankfully she just ate around it. Not sure of her background I wanted to make sure she wasn't aggressive. The other poopies even walked around the bowl while she was eating & nothing. YAY!
After praising her good behavior we gave No Name a quick tour of her new home, don't tell Paul I said that ;).
Look at that floppy ear!
Her gorgeous eyes :)
Next, we headed to the bathroom for a much needed bath. Getting her inside the bath was fun. :/ She stiffened & tried to escape. So since she was determined to fly out of the tub.......I joined her. :) It was pathetically sad when she began to push her nose through the crack of the shower doors & started to climb up the wall to avoid getting wet.
Notice all the dirty water!
She can't even believe all that dirt was on her!
After a nice hot bath we dried her w/a towel fresh from the dryer. Oscar & Sadie love this part. After washing all the gunk & dirt off of her coat you can see just how beautiful & shiny her true coat can be! Then afterward Paul took all three out for a walk. While they were away I made a quick dash to PetSmart to pick up a crate. If we learned anything from potty training Sadie it's you should always crate train them. That was not a easy or cheap lesson to learn. Plus the crate also acts as a "den" which can help calm any feeling of insecurity w/their surroundings.


Our first night with No Name was actually pretty easy. She realized begging for human food was wrong & not to go inside the kitchen.
She laid at our feet during American Idol & went into her crate w/out (much) hesitation. She's a real sweetheart & I'm really glad she found us. Since I have class tonight Paul is taking her to meet Dr. Sid to make sure she's healthy (besides malnourished), fixed & to check if she has a chip. I cannot express how well behaved No Name is around us & our poopies. She didn't mind my touching her feet & she loves Paul. I was really excited that she didn't fear men. Alot of strays unfortunately have that common fear. I'll be sure to keep you updated on No Name. We're still up in the air about whether or not she's going to stay w/us. First step is taking her to the vet & we'll go from there.


She seems to fit in rather nicely don't you think? :)

Monday, February 18, 2008

The calm before the storm...

This weekend was jam packed full of family time & emotion. Unfortunately I forgot my camera at home. Subconsciously I believe this was intentional. I've been avoiding the emotional roller coaster that's waiting for me once Jeremy leaves to Iraq. On his last tour I went crazy. Sounds incredibly stupid since I'm not the one over seas but it's still hard to be so far away & not being able to help him. My brothers are more like my children so I guess that's why I take the time away & the horrific circumstances so hard to deal with. I'm incredibly blessed to have him home. Especially since we had a scare that he might not be coming home as planned. Due in April but extended until July we moved our wedding date & prayed for his safe return home. Luckily, we were surprised when he arrived home in May. He actually surprised me at work & I remember it like it was yesterday. I hugged him so hard he probably couldn't breathe! I was crying, laughing & shaking so hard that my customer probably thought I was crazy. But here we are again. He was home for so long & it was fun while it lasted & honestly all the time in the world wouldn't be long enough.



So blah, blah, blah these are the exact thoughts I've been trying to avoid. Onto my story of random shhhhhhhhittttttaaaaa.

Prior to the weekend events I had to make a quick stop to Barnes & Noble for Jeremys going away present. While celebrating Phillips birthday Jeremy would not stop talking about & quoting the ever famous Superbad movie. So I began my search for the movie script. Not only did I find the script but Superbad : The Illustrated Book included alot of extras: interviews, pictures on & off screen a special section including certain uhh drawings. It was beyond perfect. Then on my way back to my car I saw this gem.



It was incredibly windy this past weekend so I'm sure it flew off of some ones ear. How sad for that person. I wonder if it belonged to somebody that doesn't normally wear earrings & they took this as a sign to never wear earrings again or if they were a gift from an ex lover or they were a gift from a recent love that they weren't sure whether they should stay with or not & hello! this was obviously a sign to leave that cheating bastard. Ahhhhh imagination is a wonderful getaway. So until fate brings the previous owner & I together the feather has a new home.


Afterward I stopped by my favorite store. Glorious Marshalls. I can always find crap I don't need but want desperately. Friday was no exception. After finding out the wallet I requested from Karma was no longer available I found a fab substitute.

Thanks Karma.


xoxoxo

Friday, February 15, 2008

Teller 2



Design Process :

The background is black poster board.

I drew the mouth & cut out the outside spiral pieces from Bristol paper.

The hands were magazine cut outs.

The teeth were outlined with yellow sewing thread.

The lips & teeth were painted with Acrylic.


Thought Process :

When the project was presented to the class I knew immediately that I wanted to have a smile that formed into a droop. The original concept included blocked images of "flesh" with hands. All cut outs from magazines. After compiling the blocked images I quickly realized I hated that idea. The original thought for my mouth included a cut out of foil to represent the flash that comes from super shiny teeth. We didn't have any foil so that idea got nixed. The lips were going to be pulled down with thread but then I realized that didn't fully represent my full thought process. So that's how I came up with the end product.


I truly loved my color theory class. I took it over a year ago & still to this day (almost every day) I use the meaning of colors & their communication with one another to it's full extent.


Red : Love

White : Purity

Yellow : Happiness

Green : Growth

Purple : Frustration



Sacred/Profane Aspects :


This piece represents how I feel the world see's me. The smile is both sacred & profane. Sacred because I can gain trust from strangers & it helps people open up to me. The profane aspect is that at times it can be fake. If I'm caught with out a smile there's something terribly wrong. So to avoid constant questions I instead hid behind my smile. My smile allows people to ask & take advantage of me. That's where the title comes into place. Teller 2. So much is asked from me that there are no thoughts of "asking" & the deliberate use of telling me to do task falls off the tongue so easily that it begins to sound more as Teller 2 then Tell.Her.To. The droop that my smile trickles down to shows my hidden feelings of sadness. Through helping others deal with their problems & help make their life easier I loose myself. The swirling pieces in the background represent how I see myself. A swirly mess lost in a world of "want". The hands are others taking pieces of myself to call their own. Taking my life & making it about theirs.


Even though this is obviously a troubled piece that's where the importance of color meaning comes into play. As you can see the red is very dominant. This is because my love for my family is very important to me. My family is my life & I wouldn't have it any other way. The purple represents my frustration over being taken advantage of again & again. The green shows growth. I am determined to overcome this handicap of always saying yes. Over time & triumph I will make time for myself & my needs without feeling guilty. The white represents my morals. No matter how much people pull at me & tell me to do task for them I'll never go against my morals. As I was growing up it was assumed that I would be a high school drop out, have kids before marriage & live off of welfare. I was adamant to not let these negative thoughts pull me down. That's where the yellow comes into play. I truly am a happy person. I love life & I'm truly blessed to have the opportunities' that have been given to me & able to share it all with my family. Last but not least the gift to have met & spend the rest of my life with Paul makes me smile uncontrollably.


Final Grade : B+


In the end I'm happy with my piece & the grade I received. How can you grade art? It just seems impossible. However, I could critique it for hours on end.


I would love to hear your thoughts & critiques (good or bad) regarding
Teller 2.



Thursday, February 14, 2008

<3 <3 <3

There's something so elegant about receiving a single rose.



Happy Valentines Day!

Thursday, February 7, 2008

YAY!

Awesome finds all around!

The lovely giraffe pendant I ordered from Etsy yesterday has been shipped.

I bet it'll go perfect with my new pumps.




I.am.Tired

I’m not just tired I am effin tired. My eyes burn & my legs are sore. I am far from my crazy club-hopin days where I got home at 4 in the morning just to wake up for work at 6. Amazingly enough I always felt refreshed. Those days are LONG gone.
This semester I signed up for two night classes one on Wednesday & one on Thursday. Each class is scheduled 6-10pm. If I’m lucky & leave on time I’ll make it home a little after 11. The traffic is non-exist going to school & home so essentially it’s the perfect schedule. I just need to adjust to the long hours. I’m rambling. I do that.
Anywho, so yesterday our class had a planned trip to The Way We Wore. Along with the trip a scheduled appt to meet with Doris Raymond was arranged. Fabulous woman. Fabulous. If you ever, ever have the pleasure to meet Doris I hope that your experience is as exhilarating as my own. Through her stories of triumph & failure I was able to share a speckle of her amazing journey. She is beyond humble & willing, so willing to answer all questions. If she doesn’t know the answer she knows the person who can help you & is so full of knowledge. Book smart & knowledge through life lessons. I truly cannot say enough about her. The experience was one in a lifetime. The only way you can meet Doris is through an appointment. Appointments are hard to come by & we were very fortunate that she made the time to meet with our class. Not only did she take the time for class but after all the other students left (a little before 8 pm) Rachel (another student) & I stayed to ask more questions & pick her brain. Doris stayed with us until 9:30, until 9:30! Needless to say after gabbing with Rachel afterward I didn't get home until after midnight :/ Anywho, back to the fab Doris!
She did not once complain about our extended visit & encouraged our questions & thoughts. She allowed us to go into her “closet” which is where clients are taken to pick through the best of the best. The room was filled top to bottom of clothes, accessories, magazines ranging from Vogue to Montgomery Ward. It was gold. Pure.Gold. Going over books, websites, designers, places she’d been oh! The list goes on & on. I am just so thankful. Plus I had the pleasure of being able to afford some of the precious items she’d found.

As you can see even the poops have good taste. I bought the red knit cap, pearl necklace w/the lovely ruby accent & heart throbbing vintage Salvador Sapena pumps for under $140. That's what I really loved about her shop. Most items were really affordable. The layout of the store really has the consumer in mind. All items found on the lower level are reasonably priced. But, wow. The top floor.......I was among the greats. YSL, Chanel, Louis, Dolce & Gabbana half the names I didn't even know how to pronounce! How she finds these delicious treasure is truly beyond me. She explained a lot of it was through trial & error (bidding on pieces through auction). One of the many amazing stories she shared was one of Sonia Delaunay. While scouting out other vintage shops she came across an original (!) Sonia Delaunay hat & scarf. At the time she just had a hunch of it maybe, being a Sonia Delaunay original but wasn’t too sure. So instead of passing up the opportunity she bought the pieces for one hundred & fifty dollars. I cannot stress that amount enough. ONE HUNDRED AND-okay you get the point. Anywho, come to find out they were true originals. Sonias son send Doris a certificate of authenticity. Now, with this authenticity her items are worth more than you can imagine. But it's more than the worth. Having an original is priceless! To be known as an owner to an original piece is mindboggling.
The goods don't stop there. Through all her well sought out items Doris is very well known through the fashion industry. A list clients are constantly buying & "borrowing" items helping her name become well known & business thrive on word of mouth.
Photos were not permitted but I tried to take a few w/my camera phone. The pictures do not do her items justice nor does the website. So after the exhileratng high of meeting with Doris & drolling over her treasures I quickly hit the low of my high. Now, here I am at work trying to keep my eyes open.
Just one more trip…..I swear I can stop anytime.
Then again, there's always Tar-jay to hold back the urges...

Hello Lover...



Happy 18th Birthday Phillip!

This past Sunday the world celebrated Phillips big day via SuperBowl. :) Thankfully his mgr was super cool & gave him the day off (yay!). The night before Paul & I went out w/some family members to Chevys. Throughout dinner we heard hollers all around for b-day celebrations. The employees sing & give out little mini desserts. Best of all, they make the b-day boy/girl wear a sombrero. Hee, hee. Oh yeah, we were taking Phillip there for his b-day. We met up w/Phillip his girlfriend Rena, Jeremy & Nikita in West Covina. The place was DEAD. Plus our waiter sucked but it gave us a key conversation peice. Hee, hee yes I'm evil. Onto the gifts! We bought Phillip a stack of Scratchers. He won $54! Lucky duck. Along with the $54 he also rec'd an itch for gambling. Oops. Jeremy splurged & bought him a really nice tie, dress socks & dress shirt. Not too shabby for turning 18. ;) It's no car but hey......Love is priceless.





























Awwwwwwww love at 18 ;)