Why are weekends so short?

This has been one of those weekends where I need an extra weekend to recover.

I went to:

1) Tracy, to sign papers related to the upcoming J.K. Rowling fest.
2) A book club meeting in Oakland.
3) A book fair at Fort Mason.
4) Lunch with friends.
5) A birthday bash that was way too much fun.
6) A wedding expo (and also happened upon a gamers' convention)
7) Back home to SF to meet up with relatives, to sign more Rowling-related paperwork. You'd think we were meeting the President (I'd be way less excited about that).

Now it's 7:30 and I'm ready to pass out. Can't I just take another day off?

Yelp!

Recent reviews by Vandana M.

What's this?

Leftover Lady

I try to limit my TV intake by allowing myself only one show per season. Unfortunately, it appears that "Ugly Betty," "America's Next Top Model," and "Project Runway" will all be on in the coming months. Looks like I've got my work cut out for me.

Did anyone catch tonight's episode of ANTM? These contestants keep getting crazier. My vote for the winner (though definitely not the craziest) this time around goes to the girl with Asperger's syndrome (or Ah-SPER-ger's, as she pronounces it). Although who can forget Jade, a.k.a. "Leftover Lady" from a few "cycles" ago?

Let's enjoy and reminisce, shall we?



Dang, that shit never gets old.

A Gold Star Day!

Today has been a most exciting day. I woke up with a phone call from my aunt, who told me that my cousin M, a huuuuuuuuuuge Harry Potter fan, had won a sweepstakes to meet J.K. Rowling in New York.

I thought this was exciting enough (she cried when she heard the great news), but THEN, I discovered that she was asking me to go along!!! I am so so so excited!!

After a haircut and lunch in Hayes Valley, Rrrr and I discovered the latest art installation on Hayes Green -- The Hayes Valley Historic Miniature Golf Extravaganza. It was completely random and completely fun. Today was the last day, so we lucked out. Rrrr won the game, but it was close.

Next on our list was the beach (it is a gloriously sunny day), but sadly, the sun didn't extend to the beach. So we hit up Golden Gate Park instead and lounged by the Conservatory of Flowers. The Dahlia Garden is currently in full bloom, so check it out if you can. We saw three wedding photo sessions and one for a Quinceañera.

A plus perfect day so far. I'm meeting Ocho and the Bobster in a few to see Across the Universe. So far the reviews have been less than stellar, so I'm hoping my streak of luck won't come to a screeching halt in the movie theatre tonight.

This is amazing

Rubbish and the City

As we all know, I love "Sex and the City." A lot. I watch the entire series, episode by episode, over and over and over again. I can honestly say I've probably seen certain episodes over 50 times.

Lately there's been talk of a "Sex and the City" movie. Here's a news tidbit about Jennifer Hudson possibly playing a role. People seemed shocked that I am absolutely, unequivocally against this plan. Not the Jennifer Hudson part (though as my friend Anne aptly puts it, "Since when has Carrie known any Black people?") -- the whole thing.

Why are you surprised, my friends? Isn't a major component of the show the concept of style and individuality? What is unique about a studio trying to squeeze out every last cent from any decent entertainment franchise (Scooby-Doo, Spiderman, Harry Potter...)? The madness must stop!

Give me my DVDs and leave my memories of the show intact (except for the last two-and-a-half seasons -- those you can have). And don't even THINK about making a Family Ties movie.

Cleaning out the closet

I finally cleaned out the hall closet and, lo and behold, the majority of the stuff in there was...mine. Oops. Guess I was too quick to blame the ghosts of roommates past.

The rest of the weekend was spent catching up with friends and sitting around the house. I also attempted to phone the parents of all my students. I like to call on Sunday afternoons when it's less likely that anyone will be home. That way I can just leave messages.

Most importantly, I managed to go to Tango Gelato two nights in a row. Did you know gelato has half the fat of ice cream?

Did anyone else see Britney on the VMAs and think she looked like she'd been shot with a tranquilizer dart?

Here are some pictures I've taken recently:

It's hard to believe...

So perhaps you've heard about this little piece of celebrity drama.

I do adore High School Musical, so I suppose it's moderately upsetting that the little innocent starlet is posing in the buff (though it's also upsetting that Zac Efron pretends she's his girlfriend. Give me a break.).

But what really gets me is all the comments about how she needs to shave her hoo-ha. Really? Why? I can't pretend I don't fall prey to the obsession with grooming and hair removal to a certain extent, but...really? She needs to? Why? I actually think it's kind of refreshing to see a
celeb with natural anything.

I hope I can watch High School Musical 2 without flashing back to that photo.

Why so slow?

The Bay Bridge was closed all weekend so they could do some retrofitting or whatever so it doesn't collapse again. The job was completed by C.C. Myers Inc., who also fixed the nearby 580/880/80 interchange when it collapsed last May.

In both cases, the work was finished (safely) ahead of schedule.

Also in both cases, the "traffic nightmare" that the news media were eagerly awaiting and predicting never really happened.

This proves a few things: one, that things CAN get completed in a timely manner (Bay Bridge construction companies, are you listening?) and two, that people aren't always as stupid as we look. At least not in San Francisco.

I wonder if C.C. Myers could get hired to do other things quickly and expertly, like reform health care and immigration, plan weddings, or install cable. I'd hire them for sure.

Summer of Love

Yesterday, Anj and I stopped by the 40th anniversary Summer of Love concert in Golden Gate Park. It was kind of a madhouse, but I think we learned several important things from the 50,000 hippies who were there:

1) Driving a Prius brings good parking karma. We (along with a huge line of others) were searching for parking for at least 30 minutes. Out of nowhere, a guy said, "You looking for parking? Take my spot." We flipped a quick U-turn (which was pretty tough, because the street through the park was narrow and there were tons of cars) and snagged a great spot. And instead of being mad at us, the people in the car behind us yelled, "Hot car!" It added to my Prius lust for sure.

2) The older they are, the more fun they seemed to be having. Not counting the babies, who are always having fun, those aging hippies were sure re-living the good times. We saw old hippies doing all manner of things, including turning on, tuning in, and dropping out.

3) Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair. True to form, there were some friendly old folks handing out yellow daisies dipped in glitter to all who wanted them. Everyone was in a friendly and generous mood. I love it when San Francisco is at its stereotypical best. Positive energy, man.

Back in 2007, I'm going to use my energy today to hit the gym and re-organize the hall closet (we'll see if that second one actually happens -- I've been saying I'd do it every weekend).