May 2006

That’s how you know we’re really rocking. Well, spinach and puppets. Tonight Bryan and I were in Santa Cruz seeing Beck with Jamie Lidell. It was an all-ages show, but curiously I was able to suppress the urge to kill myself and those around me due to the supreme RADNESS of the show.

Jamie Lidell only performed for about 35 minutes, but I imagine that the work he does takes an enormous amount of energy and concentration. You can hear his work on his website, but I would describe his live work as nothing short of bad ass. He’s up on stage with a mic, a keyboard, some sampling gear, and a Powerbook. He sings beautifully, beatboxes for himself, and samples all of it on top of a basic musical track that he’s pre-recorded. Rawk. [Watch video of him performing live. Click on the picture of the film canisters.]

Beck had puppets. Technically I suppose they were marionettes. The stage was set up so that Beck was front and center, with his band mates off to either side of the stage. Directly behind him was a small stage, with marionettes of each of the band members. They were dressed like the person they represented, and when Beck changed guitars, so did his little avatar. It was hawesome. There was also a large screen at the back of the stage, and it was essentially a concert film of the marionettes up there. You could watch the stage and see people performing, or you could watch the screen and see the not-people performing.

The show was a mix of super new stuff and old school Beck. Highlights included Beck on stage with a guitar and harmonica while the rest of the band sat down at a table to his left and slightly upstage. They had menus, and ordered salads and drinks. During the second song, while Beck was up singing, the guys at the table (including Lidell, who came out in a robe) starting using their silverware and the dishes and even the table itself as the percussion section for the song. It was so much fun! Later, after the band walked off for what seemed like the end of the show, the screen showed a whole mini-movie of the marionettes and their exciting day in Santa Cruz. It included a trip to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, two scrotum jokes, a marionette vomiting into a trash can, the interesting fact that more that half of all puppet injuries occur when a puppet is sandwiched between two women, and all the little guys singing “Don’t Cha” (Google tells me that it’s the Pussycat Dolls) backstage.

After the film, the puppets performed alone on stage to the album version of “Loser.” Yes, we all rocked out to a bunch of marionettes lip-synching to the album version of Beck’s most popular radio hit. It was that kind of night. The actual band came back out to perform “E-Pro” and then it was all over. Overall it was a short night. Beck did about 70 minutes, but it remains one of the best shows I’ve seen in ages. (Certainly better than Bauhaus back in October…meh.)

My friend Audrey (who I last saw for a very early morning breakfast in Boston) has temporarily moved from Burlington, Vermont to Oakland. She’ll be doing a rotation in the ER at the hospital there, and will be here for the month of June. We had a lovely dinner together in Oakland. I recommend Cactus Taqueria. Mmmmm.

I had appropriate email-based dramatic fighting with Sarah at work the other day over these photos. It kind of went the way our usual conversations go, where I ask for something, Sarah tells me to shut my face, I yell back, and then she gives in. No really, that’s how we relate. Sometimes there is bar snack throwage too, but that’s a specific time and place.

Here is some more “evidence” from the night of my going away party.

Yes, I’m doing my typical pointing. Alex is so proud. There’s another one of me pointing, but I think Sarah is putting it up at work, so I’ll hold back for the moment. I’ll admit that I don’t remember the two where Amanda and I are between Scott and Jon. Let’s leave it at that.

I went out last night for an all-girls night with Dena, Melis, and some of their other friends. I worked until 7:30, then met up with them in downtown Mountain View. I met up with the girls at Fiesta Del Mar TOO. I’d intended to take the train to work, and then get picked up, but decided that driving myself to work and then downtown would ensure that I didn’t drink too much because I’d have to turn around and drive home. Smart me!

We had a lot of margaritas. A lot. But after leaving the restaurant, I was on a strict water “diet,” and I was fine to drive a while later. It was good to go out with the girls. The more we change, the more we come together. And it’s good to know that no matter what, they’ll tell me when I’m being a moron, and set me straight with love and a good kick in the ass. With or without the margaritas. But of course everything is a little bit better with margaritas.

I’m gonna fuck it up again
I’m gonna do another detour
Unpave my path

And if you wanna make sense
What you looking at me for
I’m no good at math

And when I find my way back
The fact is I just may stay, or I may not

Ooooh. PMS. Grumpy-pants.

I think getting married is a fine idea. I’m pleased that Bryan and I are doing it. I am also not sure how I feel about actually doing the planning. I had a five minute phone conversation with my mom, just to plan a time for Bryan and I to go over there are talk wedding. In that short conversation, I was asked to figure out how many people were going, where the ceremony and reception would be, and how much we’re thinking about spending.

All that? Good lord. Also, there is a bit of consternation that we’ve chosen to get married on a Friday. Bah, I say. It leaves a whole weekend for relaxing and spending time with out of town friends. Rachel is already making me feel better about this, reminding me that I should just pick my battles and figure out what’s most important to me.

However, this morning was much more relaxing than those five minutes with my mom. (Oh, but I love you mom! I’m just in wedding denial.) Bryan and I had coffee with Amanda and Tommy, which turned into coffee and craigslist browsing, then a late-ish lunch and beers. “Let’s have coffee” turned into over four hours of hanging out. It was lovely. Definitely a great day off.

When it comes to food, I’m decisive. Rarely do I sit down and look at a menu and not know what I’m going to eat after a quick read. (I realize that this is made easier by the fact that I don’t eat meat so I’m only reading 20% of the menu.) Bryan likes to find one thing that he enjoys at a particular restaurant, and once he finds it, he generally sticks with it. If we’re going somewhere we’ve eaten before, I could order for Bryan without hesitation. I could also name all the things that he’s not going to order, because somehow in the last 4.5 years, I’ve learned that I need to catalogue the foods that he orders and then doesn’t enjoy lest he make the mistake of ordering them again. Thus we can go to an eating establishment and as we sit down I’ll give him a run-down of all the things he’s eaten there and shouldn’t order again. Like, “You don’t want the French dip, and this is the place where you thought the salad dressing tasted weird.”

I bring this up because on Sunday I realized that I apparently need to do this with Amanda as well. For all the time I spend with her, we don’t generally have an abundance of meals together. Usually she’ll have dinner with Savannah (or Tommy) and I’ll meet up with them afterwards. This past Sunday, I had dinner with Amanda and Savannah, and we went somewhere that we’ve gone several times together. I’ve ordered a few different things there, and have generally been happy with the food. Not that Amanda is a particular eater, but each time we’ve gone together, she’s been unhappy with her food, and then ends up eating whatever I’ve ordered. This time I had the asparagus risotto, last time it was calamari and prawns. And she always ends up saying, “You know, I really liked that citrus salad…” while she’s eating half my meal.

After we’d finished eating my meal on Sunday I told her she was required to stop complaining about her choices (i.e. just say “no” to the lasagna) and order the citrus salad and the calamari. Or if she’s with me, she tells me what she’s going to order, and then I pretend to get her that and order her whatever it is that I’ve decided upon. Either way, she couldn’t possibly be less satisfied than she already is after her meals.

Last night she went again with Tommy. I saw her afterwards just briefly for The Passing Of The Keys, and asked what she’d had for dinner. My girl has learned something. She had the citrus salad and the calamari.

I wore a skirt tonight! And of course, congrats to Dave and Jen, who got themselves married tonight! But really, the odds of them getting married again are roughly the same as me wearing a skirt again. I might have to wear it in front of Amanda, just to prove that I actually own a skirt, but that’s not an out-in-public kind of thing.

The process of putting together a new store is daunting, but the last two days of meetings have shown me that REI knows what it’s doing. I really feel like we’re getting the most support possible from people who have experienced this new store process before. I feel like the team we have right now is really coming together. There is a definite dynamic shift for me, just in the nature of my job and the promotion, but I feel like it has been a smooth transition (at least on my end).

What would I change? Well that’s between me and my team, really. Sorry, but there are things I can’t share. Haven’t you read those horror stories about people losing their jobs over blogging about work? Neither have I, but there is a time and a place. I do really miss the people I used to work with. There’s that easy familiarity that comes with working closely with people for a period of time. Not to mention that it’s definitely a different experience working with just six other people for the next few weeks. Until we hire a sales staff, it’s just the managers and our admin. That is very different, in and of itself. Then there’s the obvious…not getting to work every day with Amanda and Sarah. No one screams “Missy!” at me when I walk through the parking lot. Heck, we barely have a parking lot!

Change is afoot in many, many ways.

My final day at the Saratoga store was Monday-ish. It was really Sunday, but I did work about four hours on Monday just to tie up some loose ends, and then to run errands until the farewell fiesta began. I got to Rock Bottom around 5:30 pm and staked out a good outdoor area for our group. I was there until about 11ish, and managed to pace myself quite nicely. I really like their Brown Bear Brown Ale, and I had five or so, plus a shot of tequila with some of the guys from my department. Over about five hours of drinking, that’s a pretty mild night.

Amanda got there after work and we stuck around until the work crowd dwindled, then went to Khartoum with Sarah and Jon. There was more drinking, extreme foosball suckage (Amanda’s, not mine, I was not drunk enough to think I had anything to offer in the realm of hand-eye coordination), and then more drinking. Sarah may have instigated some bar snack throwage, but I’m sure she’ll say that Savannah started it six months ago so it’s really not her fault. Sarah and Jon took off at some point, and Amanda and I staggered (and I do mean staggered) back to her place to pass out and wake up with lovely hangovers the next morning.

Tuesday night I didn’t mean to go out drinking, but the best intentions blah blah tequilacakes. Amanda and I met up with Erica at La Pizzaria, ate some tasty food, and then went to Khartoum. It was another glorious night of free drinks, as I think every person in the bar that I knew paid for one drink for me. So I sort of unintentionally had two beers and three shots. D’oh. I mean, you know, oops. Amanda drove me home, but I woke up this morning sans hangover.

This morning Bryan and I went and talked engagement rings with a jeweler. We should get an estimate on the rings later this week. Whee! I’m getting my “dream” ring, with an alteration to set the stone into the ring. Here’s hoping platinum isn’t too expensive.

And then this evening, around 4pm, Amanda, Erica, and I went to the beach again. It was pretty windy, so we didn’t get into the water this time. Mostly we drank Pacifico and played cards. Erica taught me how to properly drop my shoulder in order to tackle someone. Where “someone” is Amanda. I did knock her down once, but then I ended up with my face in the sand, so I lost even though I’ve successfully knocked her down now. I’m about one for 803. My odds are increasing!

Amanda and I both work tomorrow, but don’t work together. To quote a great line: “This is weird. It’s weird. Very weird. Fuckin’ weird.” It’s the beginning of a whole new era for us. Tomorrow is Day 1 for me at Mountain View. w00t!

I’m writing music reviews again. That’s right, me. Check out iPod Observer for iPod news and music reviews from people more clever than I.
[ETA: Check one out.]

I’ve become obsessed with organization at work. With a million things to do each day and only eight hours to complete said million things, I’ve needed to become almost obsessively organized. Since I’m moving to a new office space next week, I’ve been collecting ways I can “start over” and become even more efficiently organized. Thus the five minute organizer system, which I’m going to try out.

For the first time in ages, Amanda and I had a day off together so we planned a trip to the beach. Glorious beach! The day was perfect for hanging out by the ocean. Erica came too, and they picked me up and away we went! We drove out to La Selva beach, which is beautiful. It’s Amanda’s favorite, and I can see why. There were only a few other people there (granted, it’s a Thursday) and we were able to relax uninterrupted.

We got a little sunburnt (my right side more than my left, alas), but it was well worth it. Check it out!

After rushing home, I went and had dinner with Dena and Melis at Thea Mediterranean in Santana Row. We haven’t gotten together in a while, so it was a leisurely two hour meal. I’ve now got a full bridal party! Woo! We then did a bit of window shopping (and real shopping), and ended up gabbing in front of a store which we all hate and I won’t name. Apparently we were standing there for so long, this guy noticed us as he walked by a few times, and made a comment that we’d been standing in that one place forever. We decided that was probably our cue to leave.

[I realize that this is an inane and inept description of my great day off. It's more of a narrative and less of an interesting read. I apologize. But I got photos up, and now I go to bed.]

I love Tuesdays because new CDs and DVDs are released. Here’s a list of today’s gluttony:

• Stadium Arcadium — Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Whatever People Say I Am Thats What I Am Not — Arctic Monkeys
• The Greatest — Cat Power
• Wolfmother — Wolfmother

Six Seven (I can’t count) months from today, Bryan and I are gonna get hitched. It’ll be on our five year anniversary (because Bryan is kind of a woman about it), which is a Friday. Who says we’re conventional? Now here comes the planning and the madness.

I’ll be leaning heavily on Rachie and her mom for the planning, as they managed to plan two weddings in one year, and are now far enough past it that they’re only remembering the fun of the planning. To answer the pressing question, YES I will wear a dress. While jeans and a dress shirt are a tempting combo, I shall bow to tradition and attempt a dress for the occasion. Plus, it’s kind of fun!

No way to describe the day we had at work. It was amazing. We smashed through our sales goals and our membership goals. We also sold 36 bikes and 601 pairs of shoes, in addition to the numerous everything that we sold. Craaaaazy. I’m pooped, but in a good way. Tomorrow I’ll stop and get my crew the goodness that is Roses Donuts. They deserve the sugar. Plus there’s a tri-tip bbq challenge between two guys at work, so they’re making tri-tip sammiches for everyone for lunch. Us vegetarians get baked potatoes and other tasty things.

Also, I’m feeling the pull for tattoos. Again. In no way is it connected to the fact that my pal Robbie just got a new tattoo. (Or that I saw this sweet ink after Robbie’s popped up.) While it’s still my dream to get some ink done at Eccentric in Nagoya, Japan, I somehow doubt I’ll be able to arrange both a tourist stop and a tattoo stop in that part of Japan. That’s a lot of coordination. I’m not sure where I’d go to get ink done these days. It doesn’t appear that Mike is still at Staircase, where I had my ankle tattoo done. It’s still holding up, even though it’s nine years old. My guess is that I’d head up to San Francisco to get another one.

My ankle tattoo is my favorite, hands down. I’m not particularly in love with the other two. A new one would probably cover both the old ones. I’ll have to start looking for inspiration.

Norelco has a new, online Flash ad campaign. Brilliant. It’s mostly work-safe, but I guess that depends on where you work.
[via]

Tee hee. Never in my life did I think that I would post about the new Star Wars DVDs nearly 11 full hours before Slashdot. Hooray for The Digital Bits for keeping me in the loop.

It’s about goddamn time! Thanks to my favorite DVD site for bringing it to my attention, and a giant HELLS YEAH for the official word. Those bastards at Lucasfilm are slightly less bastard-y as of today. It’s official, the original Star Wars trilogy will be released on September 12 (in “limited release” a la Disney vault) on DVD in their original theatrical format. No stupid added special effects, no digital Jabba, no Hayden Whineyson ghost with the Ewoks, just Star Wars like it was originally presented.

In response to overwhelming demand, Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment will release attractively priced individual two-disc releases of Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Each release includes the 2004 digitally remastered version of the movie, as well as the original theatrical edition of the film. That means you’ll be able to enjoy Star Wars as it first appeared in 1977, Empire in 1980, and Jedi in 1983.

See the title crawl to Star Wars before it was known as Episode IV; see the pioneering, if dated, motion control model work on the attack on the Death Star; groove to Lapti Nek or the Ewok Celebration song like you did when you were a kid; and yes, see Han Solo shoot first.

Oh yes. Oh yes.

I was thinking about importing my LiveJournal posts into Wordpress, but I can’t decide if that’s a good idea. It’s possible I’ll just nuke the LJ all together. It’s like sad posterity.

Since I’ve been thinking of this, I’ll revive an ancient meme that I found on my LJ, but with new!jinkies answers.

Things I can’t do (that most people can):
1. Roll my “r”s.
2. Walk down stairs without looking down the whole time.
3. Tell when meat is done cooking.

Things I can do (that most people can’t):
1. Recite all the helping verbs.
2. Properly calibrate a home theatre system.
3. Use my computer. Really.

Things I love (though my demographic group is supposed to hate them):
1. grammar
2. NPR
3. Staying home on Friday nights.

Things I hate (though my demographic group is supposed to like them):
1. reality TV
2. MySpace. Guh.
3. Fancy-schmancy coffee drinks.

These things are available at regular stores, but I go out of my way to get the schmancy variety:
1. Coffee. Give me Peets or Coffee Society.
2. Stuff for our house. Avoid Bed Bath and Beyond, go to Williams Sonoma.
3. Face soap. Shiseido or nothing!

Oh, and I’ve implemented asides, which are the mini-posts you see here. I’m not sure if I’m going to stick with it, but it seems neat.

Moving Veronica Mars to Tuesday night has seriously affected the TiVo. It’s now on at the same time as House and Scrubs. One time, two tuners, three networks. Grrr.

I’m spreading. Three days per week at the gym (minimum) is my goal. Or if Sarah buys a damn mountain bike frame, maybe I could do outdoor activities too…

Tonight Amanda and I flashed back…we hustled guys at foosball for free drinks. Then took shots and hung out with the bartender and Giovanni. Then Giovanni took us to La Pizzaria and made us pizza while we sobered up. It’s good to know the right people, and it’s fun to be a “regular” and get the personal service that is so great. Recently I’ve been missing some of this due to other circumstances, and it’s been nice to feel a little bit like less has changed.