Posts filed under 'Outer Spaces'
I’ve heard travel has become quite a nightmare lately, but now we have firsthand experience to substantiate that theory. You see, the Ninja had to fly from Southern California to Rhode Island where he was expected to appear as a groomsman in a childhood friend’s wedding. As charming as that sounds, I wish we had turned them down.
Even though we are desperately low on funds since their wedding so closely followed our own, and even though we were required to pay for tuxedo rental, airfare, accommodations, and more… It still wouldn’t have been so bad. What made it terrible was this series of events:
Continue Reading August 5th, 2008
Would you believe I finally got the very first stamp on my passport?
The Ninja brought me along on an all-expense paid trip to a resort in Mexico! He kicked some butt at work and earned a vacation that began on his birthday. We kicked off the last year of his 20s at the Pueblo Bonito Rose in Cabo San Lucas with a few dozen of his co-workers.
It was a four-day trip and Jordan’s company organized transportation, lodging, meals, and even provided an additional $125 per person room credit that we could use on spa treatments, room service, or whatever. The resort wasn’t brand new, but our experience was still very nice.
Most of our friends went on excursions (riding quads, parasailing) but the two of us mostly relaxed in and by various pools and worked on undoing some of our cycling tan lines. We enjoyed a preview of summer weather with temps in the 90s by day and mid 60s at night.
Had I written this right after I returned, my review of Mexico would be slightly more glowing. But I’m still getting over (for lack of a better term) intestinal trouble, bug bites, and a head cold, so I’m slightly less than thrilled with travel in general, especially to third world countries.
In fact, if you take a look at how we spent the room credit, it pretty much sums up what trips with the two of us are all about: we’re always hungry, so there are tons of charges for room service, and the rest went for snacks, hydration, bug sprays, lip balms, and sunscreen.
We may not be well-suited for travel, but we still had fun!
April 30th, 2008
So, the Ninja and I hopped in the car and drove to Vegas. We stayed at the Signature at MGM Grand, which was made even more enjoyable thanks to a free upgrade to a penthouse suite. Pretty nifty. Not that we spent a lot of time there, since we were in the other city that never sleeps, and there’s no shortage of fun things to do and see.
However, the whole point was to meet Misty, Dena, Shelly, Lisa, Gina, Monica, Tasha, and Salena. Regrettably, only 5/8ths of that goal was achieved because (despite my best effort) I couldn’t track down the last three. However, it was lovely meeting those first five special ladies. Turns out your blogs very accurately portray who you are and what you’re all about… You’re each as fantastic as I’d imagined, and more!
Now that I know how awesome you are, I wish that Virginia Beach were right next door to Southern California. Though the Ninja and I are a couple of premature (yet immature) fuddy-duddies who don’t drink, smoke, or gamble, we hope there will be many more fun times to spend together soon. Maybe with hubbies and kids even… No? …Or not.
I should have done this in person, but I didn’t want to get all serious on you in the midst of all the fun, so listen: Blogger friendships may seem too distant or detached from outsider perspectives, but the laughter and support we share means a lot me. Thank you for sticking around through some very tough times, and for never forgetting that I exist even when my posts dwindle down to once or twice a month.
You’re each amazing, wonderful people, and I love you… XOXOX!
March 31st, 2008
We’re hitting the road one weekend after another in March. Last weekend we went up the California coast to participate in the Solvang Century. It was my first time riding over 100 miles in a single day, and boy was I beat when it was over. Seven hours of riding, and a significant stretch of it fighting strong headwinds on uphill climbs. Looking back, I’m proud of that accomplishment, but it’s not something I’d enjoy doing on a regular basis.
(The bunny on my handlebars helps though.)
Normally, I prefer 30-50 mile rides while surrounded by ten to twenty of my other road biking buddies, and of course, the one and only Jordan. I’m stoked that we’re once again enjoying daylight savings time (also known as cycling season). My office life sucks, but it’s made more tolerable when I can ride off the stress after work.
This weekend we’re heading out for yet another road trip. We’re gearing up for Las Vegas where we’ll be meeting a few of my favorite peeps on earth! I’m so excited. Good thing I’ve been so busy lately, otherwise I’d be obsessing over what to pack, dreaming about the fun we’ll have, and stressing that I’ll be too shy to enjoy it all.
As it stands, I’m worried about not having appropriate shoes for all the walking required in that town, so I wrote to Manolo the Shoeblogger for advice. To my great pleasure, he wrote about it and made suggestions. I’ll try and head over to a nearby Cole Haan boutique later tonight and find some of those Nike Air heels he recommends.
See you gals soon! XOXOX
March 13th, 2008
It doesn’t take much to get me into the holiday spirit. The first sign of red and green gets me smiling, even if it’s while strolling the aisles at Target in October. So, it came as no surprise that last night’s theatrical event threw me over the top, and into full-on yuletide zeal.
My best friend on earth (Whom I just happen to be dating. Did I forget to mention it before? Interesting. Maybe I’ll share the story some day.) is a private banker, and his firm bought out the seats for last night’s performance of “A Christmas Carol” by South Coast Repertory.
I’m no theater buff, but I can see how people get into seeing shows on a regular basis. It was oddly relaxing and thoroughly entertaining. You can kind-of lose yourself in the drama, and there’s an interactive quality that could be addicting, especially when you have great seats.
Not only was the show fantastic, but it was a hoot getting to wear a pretty new cocktail dress and spending the evening on the arm of a very dapper gentleman. Even the obligatory schmoozing with clients and co-workers was unusually tolerable. Last night was such a treat!
December 7th, 2007
“I hate those fags on bikes. Every time I see one on the road I want to run them over with my truck” he said. “Oh yeah? Your wife will be on one of those bikes soon. You gonna run me over, too?” I asked. “Yep! Look, a cyclist. Thump! That used to be my wife, but now it’s a speed bump.” he replied, half joking, half his usual brand of control via intimidation.
So, it was no big surprise when, after months of panic attacks on the bike every time I rode within proximity of a silver Toyota Tacoma, one finally ran me down on what would have been our tenth wedding anniversary. No, it wasn’t my ex that took me out, but a total stranger… But still, pretty eerie, is it not?
I was riding with about thirty cyclists that morning and I was fifth from the lead. The truck overtook most of us, then cut a quick right turn into a driveway ahead of me, offering me no option but impact. I was able to slow down from about 18-20 mph to about 6-10 mph prior to the collision, but hitting a wall of steel at any speed is gonna hurt.
And hurt it does. This is my first day back at the keyboard in over a week, and I’m making it a short visit just to update. Although I was extremely fortunate that I didn’t go under his back wheel, I did suffer a great amount of damage from the three impacts: my bike hitting the truck, my body hitting the truck, and my body hitting the ground.
Continue Reading November 25th, 2007
Only took me three decades to try a meal at the #3 burger chain in America, and only one spicy chicken sandwich for Wendy’s to become my favorite place to catch a bite on the run. I’m trying to remember why I’d never dined there before. Was it their scary looking redhead girlie mascot? Rumored use of kangaroo meat? (No, that’s why I waited 20 years to try Jack in the Box.) Or maybe simply the fact that while growing up we weren’t allowed to eat fast food. In any case, I’m over it now. That spicy chickeny goodness, skip the fries in favor of a baked potato, add a mandarin orange cup… That’s what I’m talkin’ about. I’m seriously addicted to this place.
October 18th, 2007
Last night I experienced the pleasure of my first blogger meet. It was a nice warm-up for Blogasm 2008 but let the attendees be warned, for this new experience taught me that this Bombshell gets extremely shy when meeting fellow bloggers. Though I’m normally not bad at making friends, there’s just something about seeing someone in the flesh after reading about their life for ages that makes me feel extra super duper awkward… Perhaps I’ll do better next time.
Despite my shyness it was such a treat to meet Dave of Blogography and his crew of devoted Los Angeles fans at Lucky Strike on Hollywood Blvd. Unfortunately, I had to cut out early to see UCLA vs. UW at the Rose Bowl, so I missed out on bowling and meeting Neil and Sophia of Citizen of the Month. Which is lame since I’m the one who tipped him off that Dave was coming to town. Our guest of honor was every bit as cool as I’d already presumed from his writing, in fact, now that I’ve witnessed him in his full three-dimensional glory, I’m betting that his writing will take on some extra dimension for me, as well.
Dave, thank you so much for giving long-time readers like me the opportunity to get to know you a little better. I was really impressed with all the fun things you did to make your guests feel so greatly appreciated. I wore my artificial duck button to brunch today alongside my Ninja who donned his “I am the decider” pin. He’s now a believer regarding the undercover geek status I claim. We both hope to see you again some time. Oh, and here’s the pirate joke we owe you:
So a pirate walks into a bar, swaggers up to the barkeep and demands a glass of rum. The bartender, being a reasonable fellow, makes no complaint but simply grabs a large glass, a bottle of fine dark rum, and begins to pour. And while he’s waiting for the glass to fill he sizes up the pirate, having never seen a real honest-to-God pirate before.
This pirate is in full regalia: gold earrings, patch over the eye, a big filthy white blouse covering his swarthy chest, tattoos everywhere, all of it… but protruding from his pirate trousers is the unmistakable form of a ship’s wheel. As the glass of rum tops off, the barkeep skims it across the bar to the pirate, who nods curtly and downs it in one huge swig. Slapping a dubloon on the bartop, he turns to walk away when our bartender’s curiosity gets the best of him.
“Wait, one second. What’s up with the steering wheel?” and the pirate turns back and fixes him with a beady glare from his lone eye, “Arrr, I don’t know, but it’s drivin’ me nuts!”
September 23rd, 2007
At first glance I figured maybe they sold calculators, but when I walked up to get a little closer I realized it was the sort of thing one could only find in Fontucky… God bless San Bernardino County and their interesting retail concepts.
Perhaps if I could stop laughing so hard every time I see that sign, I might be able to mozy in and place an order for some chicken-fried sushi with a side order of eda-yo-mame.
August 21st, 2007
I’ve been a Pasadena, California resident since birth, and for the most part I have enjoyed life in the city of roses. We don’t have to look far to find places to play, great shops, tons of diversity, and tasty food.
As a cyclist, I especially enjoy the many bike routes and legendary group rides such as Montrose and the Rose Bowl. Adding to the excitement, it was recently announced that the Amgen Tour of California (one of the premier pro cycling events in the US) will finish with a criterium in our town.
Which is why it was so strange that a week later a new ordinance was passed by the city council to outlaw the peloton. That term refers to a group of cyclists riding together in a free formation, such as you’ll see during any of the grand tours, like the Tour de France. So, let me get this straight: The pro peloton is coming to town, and you want to OUTLAW that style of riding for all the local cycling fans? Brilliant!
Continue Reading August 10th, 2007
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