Wednesday is the New Monday

Today has been a giant string of miniature disasters. Aside from Wednesdays being generally sucky because I have to be on campus from 9am - 9pm, Graham is sick, I slid down a snow embankment and ruined my new flats (I know, I shouldn't wear flats in the snow. Stop yelling at me!), I forgot my wallet at home (and had to get my sick husband to drive to campus and bring it to me) and I am still here. In class. Blogging. That's almost the same as listening and learning. Right?

But none of that matters friends. Know why? KNOW WHY!?! Because tomorrow I will be hopping on a big, steel bird and flying out to sunny California. Because - have you SEEN this commercial?

So. I'm going to california because David Beckham wants to play soccer with me.

In addition to the whole "David Beckham clearly wants me and is using soccer as a ruse" thing, I am going to visit one of my favorite people on the planet: Miss Catherine Herzog. She is so beautiful it's disgusting. I can barely like her because of it. Despite the nauseating attractiveness, however, I am going to go spend some time with her. I haven't seen her since Evie was born. I haven't told the story about how she was there for those first two weeks... but let's just say that I am beyond lucky to have her as a friend. Beyond. Lucky.

I also get to visit my niece: Sophalinaloafa. That is the name on her birth certificate. At least her birth certificate that exists inside my head.

All this to say that there probably won't be much posting this weekend... but I will catch everyone up when I get back with a post that will inevitably start "HA HA, SUCKAS, I wore hawaiian shirts all weekend while you were all stuck in the cold... with runny noses!"

Tomorrow I'll post about how I have an EIGHT MONTH OLD. And, while we are on the subject: WHAT THA WHAT?!?

Santa Barbara Weekend

We played tourists again this weekend, visiting the beautiful city of Santa Barbara which, though we live only an hour south of it, we had never been to. Here are some pictures of Bear at Arroyo Burro Beach, a dog-friendly, off leash area. I don't think that he has ever had so much fun.

It's the End of the World as We Know it

If anyone has seen the movie "The Day After Tomorrow" you might remember the scene in which two tornadoes rip through the Capital Records building and the Hollywood sign in downtown LA. Well...they chose tornadoes because they don't have them in California. Not until yesterday, that is.
Yesterday two tornadoes touched down in Riverside. These twisters were accompanied by fires, thunderstorms, hail, and snow. No, that was not a typo...it snowed in Southern California yesterday...10 minutes outside of LA. Can we say "doomsday"?
People, guard your historic landmarks, according to the movies natural disasters always take them out first. If anyone is looking for me this weekend, I will be hiding in my bathtub...with a mattress over my head.

So Long, So Long and Thanks for All the Sashimi

The past two years of my life have been spent in Los Angeles, California. Now, in keeping with my general restless nature, we are moving. This post is an acknowledgment of the things that I will miss most about Southern California.

1. Pepperdine University: The most beautiful campus in America (seriously, ask US World News)

Graduation 2008 - Alumni Field

2. The Gumbo Pot: Located at the Grove, this place has killer gumbo yaya...and sweet potato chips that will make you swoon. The closest to good ole' southern food that we have found here.

3. Sushi: Sushi bars are as commonplace as McDonalds here...and so far I have found one, count it, one in Connecticut...this will be a major adjustment. Graham is evil (and doesn't care much for sushi) so I am sure that he will delight in my sorrow.

4. University Church of Christ: I count this place as one of the few churches still able to challenge the intellect of its members. It has become our "home away from home" in a city that would have otherwise been a great deal more lonely.

5. Taco Tuesdays: You know you have good friends when dinner starts at 6:00pm and ends at 9. I am going to miss Taco Tuesdays at Dukes with my dear friends.
I am sure that there are more...but 5 seems like a very good, round number. So long, California, and thanks for everything.

Utilizing the Weekend

(disclaimer: pictures provided in part by Graham Scobey, any views expressed here within are mine and not his, prolonged exposure to his photography may result in a new-found appreciation for art and life, proceed with caution.)

We have exactly one weekend left in Los Angeles, and we are trying to cram in all of the touristy things that we didn't get around to in the past two years. This past Saturday (after our A.M. fix of World of Warcraft, which we play with our dear friend Ben) we went to The Griffith Observatory.

On the way there we stopped at a Panera in Studio City. I had been craving their "you pick two" combo (with a caesar salad and turkey sandwich) forever. It did not disappoint. Then, after driving circles in the hills of Hollywood (thanks, Tom Tom) we arrived. The observatory was, in short, phenomenal. It is amazing how many aspects of life are effected by astronomy. My favorite part by far was the planetarium...it also had one of the most amazing views of downtown LA that I've seen.

Los Angeles is so big...it is no wonder that it holds all of these jewels, but it makes me wonder how many amazing things that we will not have gotten to see by the time we leave next weekend. Regardless, the greatest jewels that I have found in LA are new friends (of both the furry and hairless persuasion). I am really going to miss this place.

(Please excuse my dog licking Karma's inner-ear...such indecency!)

A Big Day

Yesterday was a big day for all of our friends in California in same-sex relationships. The Supreme Court in this great state overturned the prior ruling that banned gay marriage. The deciding factor for this ruling was the belief that "responsibly to care for and raise children does not depend upon the individual's sexual orientation." The ruling was surprising, being that the California Supreme Court is overwhelmingly conservative, but I am pleased whenever people make steps away from discrimination and towards acceptance.

Just so you can decide how offended you should be by me, let me explain where I stand on the issue. Whether you call them marriages, unions, or whos-a-ma-whats'its, all people in this country (unless that have committed a crime against some other individual) deserve equal rights, regardless of the choices that they make in their personal lives.

I am hopeful that California will start a trend, and that other states might follow; allowing fair and equal rights to all people, regardless of gender, race, or sexual orientation. No matter what your political bent, this ruling will likely make the issue of gay marriage a larger one in the upcoming elections. Here is where the candidates stand:

- Senator John McCain (GOP nominee) has always been a big supporter of "traditional" marriage but does not support a constitutional ban on gay marriage (as he believes it is a state issue). McCain also supports giving same-sex couples some of the same legal rights and benefits that heterosexual married couples have.

- Barack Obama (whoop whoop!) and Hillary Clinton stand united on this issue, both opposing a constitutional ruling (for or against) on same-sex marriages. Obama and Clinton support the idea of "civil unions", in which gay couples are afforded the same rights, benefits, and responsibilities as married couples.