my life uninterrupted...

Review: The Help

2011-08-15T10:20:00.000-07:00

Ever since I saw the preview for The Help, I knew it was a movie I had to see. It is a period piece based on the book, The Help, by Kathryn Stockett, and features Academy Award-nominated actress Viola Davis, Emma Stone, and Octavia Spencer.

Set in the 1960s during a time a great racial segregation in the South, The Help is an inspiring movie about the love, the hate, and the bonds between Black maids and those whom they work for. In 1960s Jackson, Mississippi, a young aspiring writer and college graduate, Skeeter (Emma Stone) is looking for an interesting project to kick-off her writing career. After being raised herself by a Black maid and seeing the kids of her friends in the same situation, Skeeter decides she wants to write a book about life as a Black maid; raising White children while their own children are at home being watched by others, the treatment and racial prejudices against them, and the trials and tribulations of being Black in the South.

Skeeter first interviews Aibileen (Viola Davis) and Minny (Octavia Spencer), but realizes she needs more stories in order to bring the book to press. Many maids do not want to be involved for fear that their families may be hurt by airing the dirty laundry of Southern White household. However, after a few racial incidences that occur in the town, these maids decide to stand up for their race and speak out against their White employers. As the book is published, people cannot get enough of the interesting and candid stories, and the women of Jackson become stunned by the narratives.

It's a awe-inspiring story about race, people, family, surprising friendships, and courage. In this story, you see all the heart and passion in these maids, and how they took a stand, risking everything, to help their community. Although it may seem like just a book of stories, you see these stories help heal a community and encourage others to stand for what they believe in. By the end of the movie, you will be in tears.

Overall, this was an incredible movie and I recommend that everyone go see it! I give it FOUR Stars and TWO thumbs up!

Did you see any movies this weekend? Or, your thoughts on The Help?

LA Food Trucks... Let the Stalking Begin!

2011-08-08T17:01:00.000-07:00

Last week, I decided that I wanted to try some new LA Food Trucks. I did a little bit of research and found a few trucks I wanted to try that would be in the Pasadena area. For the last couple of years I have been a BIG fan of the food truck craze... the only problem is the ones I want to try out never seem to be in a convenient area for me. Therefore, I gave up on "following" food trucks for awhile.... until last week!

On Tuesday, I headed over to La Crescenta on my way home to try the Nom Nom Truck. I tried the Grilled Pork Bahn Mi sandwich, which was quite tasty. On Wednesday, I headed over the Jones Coffee Roasters for their "Wheel Food Wednesdays" featuring many food trucks and a live band. I tried the Komodo Truck, which was super tasty as well.

Now that I have decided to "get back out there" and attempt to find some new trucks, I wanted to create a list of all the LA Food Trucks that I want to try, as well as the ones I have already been to. So here it is (in no particular order):

LA Food Trucks List

Been There, Done That:
1) Nom Nom Truck
2) Komodo Truck
3) CoolHaus
4) Lobsta Truck
5) Kogi BBQ Truck
6) Grilled Cheese Truck

Let the Stalking Begin:
1) South Philly Experience
2) Lee’s Philly
3) Buttermilk Truck
4) Calbi Truck
5) Baby’s Badass Burgers
6) Barbie’s Q Truck
7) Crepes Bonaparte Truck
8) Dim Sum Truck
9) FrySmith Truck
10) Get Shaved Truck
11) India Jones Truck
12) Shrimp Pimp Truck
13) Dumpling Station
14) Mandoline Truck

What's your favorite food truck?

Internship at O.N.E. Coconut Water

2011-08-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

After months and months of searching for an internship, I finally landed the most awesome internship EVER! I have been a long-time fan of coconut water, especially O.N.E. Coconut Water, so it had to be a dream come true to land an internship for a company I was such a huge fan of.

I started my summer internship at O.N.E. Coconut Water in June. I was quickly briefed on the few projects I would be working on. I have been able to analyze sales data and compare O.N.E. with its competitors, and see O.N.E.’s growth in the industry. I have been able to see first-hand what its like to market a consumer packaged good. There is currently four different options of O.N.E. Coconut Water: O.N.E. Cocout Water 100% Natural, O.N.E. Coconut Water with a splash of juice, O.N.E. Kids, and O.N.E. Active, which is O.N.E.’s sports drink. All options are super delicious!

One of the reason I love O.N.E. is because it’s not just your regular coconut water or consumer product. O.N.E. prides itself on being socially responsible by using eco-friendly packaging and giving back to charities and the O.N.E. World Fund.

O.N.E. perk of working at O.N.E. is I get to drink coconut water everyday! I have also been able to attend O.N.E. sponsored events, like Matt Leinart’s Celebrity Bowling Event. So, I guess you could say I’m learning new things, having fun, and working for an AWESOME company!

On the Red Carpet at Matt Leinart's Celebrity Bowling Event

What is O.N.E. of your favorite companies or products?

4th of July in Cabo!

2011-07-27T15:41:00.000-07:00

Every year, my family takes a trip to Cabo San Lucas during the summer (usually June), where we stay at various timeshares. Yes, various… my mom and about four of them, and my sister and I have one. It’s usually the same old people: my mom, dad, and sister. Occasionally, my brothers will come down with their families as well. My family and I usually relax by the pool, drink some pina coladas, and eat incredibly good food. However, this year was a little different. This year, JR turned 30, so we figured we had to do it up big! We invited a bunch of his friends and headed down to Cabo in July for a spectacular, party-filled week of eating, drinking, and clubbing!

Outside Casa Dorada

JR and I stayed at the Casa Dorada Los Cabos Resort & Spa, which is my mom’s newest timeshare purchase, and it absolutely fabulous! Some of our friends stayed at Casa Dorada, while a few others stayed at ME Cabo and Pueblo Bonito Rose. The first night all of us where in Cabo, we headed out to eat at my favorite local seafood restaurant, Maro’s Shrimp House, where you can get two lobster tails and a handful of jumbo shrimp (plus rice and veggies) for only $19.99… Talk about a steal!! They also have this amazing drink called the Bulldog, which is basically tequila, lime, and a corona. It’s safe to say you probably shouldn’t drink more than two of these, or else you might be dancing on tables by the end of the night! The food and drinks were absolutely delicious. After dinner, we headed out on the town to partake in the crazy nightlife that is Cabo San Lucas. We first headed to Love Shack because two people we were with won a bottle there for partaking in a contest earlier that day. We, then, headed over to Mandala and Pink Kitty before we called it a night.

JR drinking a "Bulldog"

Sunday, July 3rd, JR’s god sister rented a cabana at ME Cabo/Nikki Beach for JR’s birthday. If you’ve been to ME Cabo/Nikki Beach before, you know Sunday is the day to be there. It’s a HUGE party, and it was especially big THAT Sunday because it was their annual 4th of July Party. There were girls dressed in red, white, and blue, as well as two girl painted from head to toe: one as the American flag and the other as a silver Statue of Liberty (I guess silver is more flattering than green on a painted body). We pretty partied the entire day at ME Cabo. Later that night, we headed to another local spot, Poncho's, for dinner. Because of all the partying and fun JR and I had earlier that day, we didn’t make it out after dinner.

Poolside at Nikki Beach

American Flag and Statue of Liberty!

Monday was JR’s birthday, as well as the 4th, so we had to do it up big! We headed to Mango Deck (the place to be during Spring Break) on the beach to watch all the 4th of July festivities going on and silly drinking competitions the host makes random tourists do. We saw some beer chugging contests and a couple switch bathing suit bottoms in the ocean… needless to say, it was quite entertaining! We, then, hit the waverunner for a bit before getting ready for the evening. For JR’s birthday, we all went to Casa Dorada’s restaurant, 12 Tribes, for an all you can eat and drink dinner, where we sat outside and took in all the beautiful scenery. Dinner was followed by fireworks on the beach and lots of dancing on the dance floor. Well, there really wasn’t a “dance floor” but we created one, and got lots of people to join in on the festivities, which included a “soul train” line! After dinner, we headed to El Squid Roe to party it up even more! I had bought JR a table and bottle for his birthday, but everyone has so much to drink earlier that we didn’t end up drinking that much of it. Oh well, c’est la vie!

Birthday shot at Mango Deck

Birthday Cake... and many blue shots...

Fireworks!

JR & his cousin at El Squid Roe

Tuesday and Wednesday were more of relaxing days for us… we are getting old and can’t party like we used to. We did drink a little by the pool and relaxed on the beach. Wednesday, we headed to “Lover’s Beach” because we attempted to go last year, but didn’t have the time. JR went snorkeling and jumped off a giant rock into the ocean while his God sister and I laid on the beach and swam in the water. Thursday, it was back on the plane and back to reality…

Cabo's Arch!

In the end, JR had an AWESOME 30th Birthday and really enjoyed himself! We ate DELICIOUS food, had some AMAZING drinks, and PARTIED “like it was 1999!”

What did you do this summer? Or, for the 4th?

HTC Status Social

2011-07-26T17:55:00.000-07:00

HTC Status Phone

Last week, I was invited to attend the HTC Status Social to promote HTC’s new phone, HTC Status. The phone is absolutely awesome! It’s has a touch screen AND a physical qwerty keyboard, which is perfect for people who want a touch screen but are not used to touch screen typing. But back to the event…

The GREEN Carpet

I was asked by AT&T to be a Brand Ambassador for the event, which was pretty awesome because they gave me an HTC Status camera to play with at the event! I was able to easily log in to my twitter and Facebook page so I could update my status and post pics. After I picked up my awesome HTC Status (for the night), I headed inside. Before walking in to Stage 18 on the Paramount lot, there was a GREEN carpet with several photogs waiting for the celebrity guests to arrive. Guests included Demi Lovato, Lauren Conrad, Eva Pigford, Jayde Nicole, Peggy Tanous from Real Housewives of Orange County, and many more.

Katelin and myself!

The party itself was AWESOME! The décor was chic, the DJ was killing it on the 1’s and 2’s, there was a Facebook station where you could check your FB page, there was a hair and make-up station, and a photo booth. The photo booth was a lot a fun… I got to take a pic with my bestie, Katelin, before the highlight of the night…. an Usher performance! I looooved that Usher played some of his old hits, like “You Make Me Wanna” … took me back to my middle-school years.

The whole time I was enjoying the event, I was tweeting and posting updates on my Facebook page. The best part about the HTC Status is that there is a Facebook button designed into the phone. At the bottom of the phone, there is a bottom that allows you to quickly update your Facebook page with comments, photos, or videos. This is definitely one of the best parts about the phone because instead of fumbling through your apps trying to find Facebook, you are just a push-of-a-button away!

At the end of the night, I was completely exhausted… but, it was TOTALLY worth it! I had sooo much fun… and to top it all off, I was given an HTC Status phone as a gift! Now, you can’t go wrong with that.

Overall, great music, plus awesome décor, plus fun activities, plus spectacular performance, plus really cool phone equals INCREDIBLE event!

On that note, I'll leave you with Usher's opening performance...

Time is Love and Passion is Plenty in Brazil

2011-07-22T12:55:00.000-07:00

"Unlike Americans who live life under the slogan Time is Money … Brazilians follow the slogan of Time is Love."

For me, Brazil was like visiting a whole new world. A world with a rich history, great passion, and spectacular food! My journey throughout Brazil began with its passion….

Futbol Fanatics & Love

First stop, a futbol game. Game day starts early for die-hard fans. The people of Sao Paulo, called Paulistos, dress in all their gear early in the morning to get ready for the Palmeiros game. Once you get to the game, you can feel the energy in the stadium. The die-hard fans are jumping and screaming the entire game, while others shout and yell during fouls and bad calls. This high-energy game illustrates Brazilian passion for futbol.

You can also see the passion of Brazilians in everyday life. As you walk to streets of Sao Paulo or the beaches in Rio, men and women are constantly showing affection for one another. Holding hands, kissing, hugging, dancing in the streets. The people of Brazil help to define its slogan of “Time is love!” Relationships and love are the most important part of life.

History Runs Deep

Brazil’s history runs deep in their culture. On our first tour through Sao Paulo, we stopped at the exquisite the Sao Paulo Metropolitan Cathedral, which was built in 1919, though its history dates back to 1589.

Our tour through Rio de Janeiro took us to the Metropolitan church of Rio, called Catedral de Sao Sebastio, as well as Pão de Açúcar (Sugarloaf Mountain). Although the Cathedral was finished as recently as 1979, its history dates back to 1767. The new cathedral was built to replace many other cathedrals that held Rio de Janeiro’s history. It was built in a cone-shape, or circular shape, to illustrate its openness to all denominations. It was the first statement of Brazil’s openness to other types of people, other than Roman Catholic. Sugarloaf Mountain has been made famous by tourists who want to visit one of the highest points in Rio. The view from Sugarloaf allows you to see all parts of the city. The name Sugarloaf has its own history; when Portugal was exporting sugarcane from Brazil, they would pack the sugar in small cone-shapes to travel across the Atlantic. These cones were called “Sugar Loafs.”

An Appetite for Life … and Steak

The best part of my trip had to be the food and drinks. Brazil is known for its amazing steakhouses, a bean dish called feijoada, and its signature drink, Caipirinha. As you walk into a steakhouse, you are overwhelmed with the choices or sides and salads at the salad bar, as you sit down to begin chowing down on some hearts of palm and black beans and rice, several servers bring you a variety of meats. As they slice these different meats, from lamb to chicken to the infamous picanha (signature beef), you sit and converse with friends. Some restaurants offer a Brazilian specialty called feijoada, which is a combination of rice and black beans that are cooked with different parts of the cow and pig. It was one of the most flavorful dishes I had in Brazil. Every meal and every night out ends with a caipirinha or two! This signature drink includes muddled lime and sugar and filled with cachaca, a Brazilian rum. Two of these and it is time to party!

Business Buddies

If you want to do business is Brazil, you must understand the passion, history, and food & drink of Brazil. Unlike Americans who live life under the slogan “Time is Money,” as mentioned previously Brazilians follow the slogan of “Time is Love.”

Professor Roger Volkema of PUC Rio spoke to us about the cultural differences between the Western world and Latin America. One point he explained to us was when given a choice between Trabajo or Vita? (Work or Life?), Brazilians always choose life. Living life is more important to Brazilians that conducting work, so it makes sense that relationships are the most important part of doing business in Brazil. If you do not have some sort of relationship with a future business partner, you probably will not do business together.

Be prepared to conduct business over food or drinks rather in a traditional American business setting of an office or boardroom. My advice for doing business in Brazil involves three things.

■First, take your future business partner out to a nice steakhouse and partake in a caipirinha.

■Second, be sure to understand the importance of futbol to the country.

■And third, be sure to not warrant an immediate response from the future Brazilian business partner.

Knowing and understanding that Brazilians make decisions on their own time is very important. A decision may not be made at the end of the meeting or dinner. Overall, everything that is important to Brazil as a country is also important when doing business in Brazil. So be sure to always keep three things in mind: Passion, history, food and drinks!

Have you ever been to South America?

Note: This was a re-post from a blog I wrote for my school's blog, Graziadio Voice, in June, which I won blogger of the month! You can see the article on their website here. The futbol image was originally a video, but I guess it didn't make the cut. ;) I will post the video on my blog at a later date.

Best Fish Tacos in LA!

2011-07-21T20:42:00.000-07:00

Since I will soon be blogging about my AMAZING time to Cabo this year, I wanted to post a little review about the BEST fish tacos I've tasted in Los Angeles. This is a review I wrote for Yelp last year. I hope you try out this place... it's awesome!

Best Fish Tacos in Ensenada

I came across some of the best tacos I've ever had in Los Angeles, so I had to write about it. I visited "Best Fish Taco in Ensenada" because I saw a review about it on a blog site, and I have to say I'm so happy I fell upon that review. I love Mexican food... and when I walked into "Best Fish Tacos in Ensenada," I felt like I just walk into a corner taco spot in Mexico. The décor brought me right back to my vacations in Cabo and Mazatlan (I've never been to Ensenada)... simple, colorful, and full of personality!

Now for the best part... the tacos... it's just like the taco bars in Mexico! Fish or Shrimp on the tortilla... and you add all the fix-ins yourself. They have "hot guac," which is part guacamole and part hot salsa, and an array of salsas (regular, mango, pineapple, radish). Caution: When the salsa says HOT, they mean it! Oh! And don't forget to add the cabbage and crema sauce! Delish!

Overall, these fish and shrimp tacos are definitely some of the best I've had outside of Mexico! There's a reason why they are called "BEST Fish Taco in Ensenada." Oh, and I didn't even mention how cheap the tacos are ($1.50 for fish and $2 for shrimp)! Definitely an affordable lunch... or dinner... they are open until 9pm!

Cabo has awesome tacos too! 4th of July in Cabo... coming soon...

3 Days of Celebration...

2011-07-20T23:35:00.000-07:00

Carmageddon what? ... That's exactly how I felt this weekend...

My weekend was packed with celebrations.... First up? My "official" "dating" anniversary! Yep, there are a lot of quotes in that sentence, I know. "Official" is quoted because I have sort of been dating JR for longer than that, and technically, the official day was at the end of June. "Dating" is in quotes because we aren't married and I don't know how comfortable I feel with calling it an "anniversary" ... even though it is one. But moving on... Our date was so cliche: dinner and a movie! When I got to JR's house, I was pleasantly surprised by the TWO DOZEN red roses on the bed and a balloon that says "Happy Anniversary", which I thought was so adorable and thoughtful... and very appropriate for our "cliche" date! Then, we get dressed and head over to Kingston Cafe in Pasadena. We have both been wanting to try this place for a long time, but we just never got around to it. I had read many negative reviews on Yelp, but we figured we should try it out for ourselves rather than trust strangers... and I am so glad we did because it was AMAZING! I will be writing a review on Yelp to help adjust its ratings. After dinner, we headed to see Bad Teacher, mainly because I wanted to and I love Cameron Diaz! The movie was pretty funny, but its not necessarily a "Must See" if you know what I mean. Overall, we had a great night of delicious food and lots of laughs!

Kingston Cafe

"Bad Teacher"

Saturday, JR and I headed to a wedding in La Canada... only 10 minutes away! It was the wedding of Mike and Quintana, who both used to take acting classes with JR. The wedding ceremony was beautiful, the food was yummy, and the music was fantastic! If you know me, you know I love weddings.... if being a "wedding crasher" was an actual job, I would apply in a heartbeat! This was my seventh wedding since August 2010 and they keep on coming... one next weekend, one in August, and one in September! Here's a few pics from the wedding...

Mike & Quintana


JR and I (in front of the "shack" Mike built for the wedding)

On Sunday, I woke up early to head over to Barney's Beanery in Pasadena to watch the Women's World Cup... go USA! Watching the game was so nerve-racking, yet exciting at the same time. I was a little upset that we lost the game, but the USA women put up a good fight, so I had to be proud of them! We stayed out for most of the day hanging out with friends and meeting new people...

Go USA!


Did I forget to mention that I met Jermain Jackson? Random, I know.

Overall, it was a weekend of CELEBRATION.... and we managed to stay in Pasadena/La Canada all weekend... far far away from Carmageddon. Woot!

Did you have any celebrations this weekend?

Leadership in B-school

2011-07-19T15:59:00.000-07:00

When I first began my transition back to school at Pepperdine University’s Graziadio School of Business and Management, one of my goals was to become really involved in the school’s community. I did so by being selected Director of Communications of the Marketing Society and as a Graziadio Marketing Ambassador (now, Graziadio Student Ambassador), in addition to joining many different clubs. Because I found these positions extremely valuable and rewarding, I decided to pursue higher leadership positions at Graziadio for my second year. Towards the end of the Spring session, I was elected Director of Communications for the Malibu Graduate Business Society (MGBS), which is Graziadio’s student government, and selected Chair of the Graziadio Student Ambassadors Program, which helps recruit prospective students.

My campaign for Director of Communications of MGBS started with late nights of putting together my campaign proposal, posters, postcards, website, Facebook page, and Twitter account. Part of my job duties at Director of Communication would be to update MGBS’s website and social media platforms, so I figured it was only fitting that I create my own website and social media account specifically for my campaign. All my hard work paid off as I was elected Director of Communications of MGBS! And, thus, I have been working super hard all summer to get ready for the upcoming school year… Wish me luck! Check out my campaign’s website and Facebook page! (There’s even a video where I rap…)

As Chair of the Graziadio Student Ambassadors, I will oversee all Ambassadors, starting with the selection process and going throughout the Program. One of the great things about this program is it allows students to “give back” to Pepperdine, while helping to recruit awesome potential graduate students. I am currently in the process of updating the Program, something that is done by the Chair each year, and when I’m done, it will be even better than ever! (At least, I’d like to think so…)

See why I have been MIA in the blogging world?!?

Did you have any leadership positions in school?

A Year Off...

2011-07-18T12:40:00.000-07:00

So I took a year off of blogging.... why? There are so many reasons, but most importantly, I have been extremely busy with school. Yes, school. Much of 2009 & 2010 had been focused on applying to business schools and researching types of business schools I wanted to attend. My career goals has been to work in marketing for a consumer products, "green", or entertainment company. I was accepted to Pepperdine's Graziadio School of Business and Management in Spring 2010, where I quickly began my transition into the bschool world!

In my first year, I was trying to get adjusted to being back in school, in addition to becoming involved in the Pepperdine community. I signed up for many different clubs, including Marketing Society, Entertainment Club, Net Impact, Challenge for Charity, and National Association of Women MBAs. I was also selected to be a Graziadio Marketing Ambassador (now, Graziadio Student Ambassador), where I help Graziadio's Recruitment office with events and host prospective students on campus. I was also selected Director of Communications for the Marketing Society, where I was in charge of the Marketing Society's website and social platforms (Facebook/Twitter accounts), as well as emailing newsletters and important information to its members. Over the past year, I have learned about so many important components of business, in addition to other business-related issues. To wrap up my first year at Pepperdine, I attended a Global Programs one-week business trip to Brazil. We visited several companies and bschools in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. I wrote a blog about my experience, which was featured on Graziadio's student blog website, Graziadio Voice. Out of over 20 submission, only 6 were selected and mine was one of them! To top it all off, my submission won "blog of the month" in June! For winning, I received a $25 American Express Gift Card, which will definitely help with my bschool-related expenses. I was really excited to learn the awesome news so I had to share it with my family and friends, whom also loved the blog. So for those of you who want to read all about my brazil travel experience, I will repost the blog here soon! So stay tuned....

More bschool updates to come....

LAKERS!!!! 2010 NBA CHAMPIONS!!!!

2010-06-18T04:38:00.000-07:00

YES!!! LAKERS WON!!!

(that's all i have to say)

Hopefully I'll see you all on Monday at the parade... we'll see!

"Happy Birthday Mom!"

2010-06-17T06:00:00.000-07:00

So in March, I went to a play called "Happy Birthday Mom!" ... mainly because JR was in it. I didn't really know what to expect. It is about a older woman who orders a young man off of craigslist to spend the evening with for her birthday. The doorbell rings a little early, and it is unexpectedly her daughter who came to surprise her mom for her birthday! The mom tries to explain that she's dressed up for an "occasion" when the doorbell rings again. It's the man from craigslist! The moments get awkward and the conversations get intense... and just when you thought it couldn't get any more awkward, more people surprisingly show up! Lol. It is absolutely hilarious! Without giving away too much... the play involves black leather, a black stallion (man), a male stripper, video taping, a "repressed" white girl, and lots of laughs!

"Happy Birthday, Mom" did so well in March that it was picked up by the Hollywood Fringe festival and the New York Fringe festival! If you want to see it in LA, please go to the play's website (www.happybdaymom.biz) or the fringe festival's website . It will be running from June 19th to June 27th. I'll be attending again on June 19th! A little birdie told me that it is even FUNNIER than its first run! I'm so excited! I do not know the dates it will be running during the New York Finge festival, but it will be in August. Check the website next month for more info on the NY festival.

I totally recommend going to see it!

Have you seen any good plays recently?!?

Random Things I'm Excited About...

2010-06-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

So here's a small random list of things that I've been SUPER excited about..

1. The NBA playoffs .. particularly watching my LAKERS with the championship AGAIN!!! This series is making really nervous though... because the games are so close, but I think our Lakers will pull through in the end. (crossing my fingers)
2. The World Cup South Africa! I'm sooo excited for the USA/UK game Saturday morning... and I'm going to be helping BBQ that day as well... I've never really been into soccer that much, but this year I'm pretty pumped! Go USA! Also, a little nervous for them because I know England has a good team...
3. CABO!!!!! My family goes to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico every year... but THIS year is going to be even more fun because my mom upgraded from a two bedroom timeshare to a HOUSE! So we have our own infinity pool and spa... and sweet house. We leave in 2 weeks from today! Woo hoo!
I'm just so excited I don't know what to do with myself! It's going to be a funfilled month of sports and vacation... Woo!

Soooo.... what have you been sooo excited for recently!?!?! Anything?

Snowboarding... my new hobby!

2010-06-09T04:40:00.000-07:00

Growing up, my family was never huge fanatics of the snow or visiting it for that matter. I mean we visited my grandparents in Boston every other Christmas, but that was to visit my Grands, not the snow. My family visited snow in Big Bear a few times to learn how to ski, but I never really thought about learning how to snowboard until recently... About a year and a half ago, I decided to learn... I took a class, but by the next year, I totally forgot what to do!

In January, for my birthday, I took another beginners class with some friends. I still didn't feel confident in my snowboarding skills, so I figured I needed to get back up to the mountain as much as possible this winter season so I can feel comfortable with it. I went back and realized that if I'm going to stick with this snowboarding thing, I better get committed. And committed I did! After my second time snowboarding, I decided to buy a snowboard, boots, and bindings! There's no turning back now.... I'm a snowboarder for life! Here's my awesome new snowboard...

I then went up to Big Bear three more times this season! My first time with my new snowboard, I was still riding bunny-slope-style.... and the second time, I moved on to a mid-level lift... and the last time, I was still on the mid-level lift, but I got to practice my curving and shifting of weight. I have to say that snowboarding is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be... It's frustrating at first, but once you get the hang of it, it's lots of fun! The more you learn, the more fun it is! Now I can't wait until the next time I go!!!! Here's some pics from my snowboarding escapades this winter season...

This is my gangster snowboarding look...
sometimes you need to floss with a 99cent chain!

The gang... everyone is black diamond-style except me :(

We are ready to snowboard!

Pretty soon I'm going to be doing tricks and flips and jumps! I'm going to be unstoppable! haha. Probably not all that, but maybe one jump eventually... my friend JR promised me a free snowboard if I do a trick... and by that he means I must do at least one jump... that's gonna be my goal for next season! Wish me luck!

Do you have any new hobbies?!?!

Coachella-ella-aay-aay-aay!

2010-06-08T05:25:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know it was in April... but it was sooo much fun, I haaaave to talk about it!

It was my first time at Coachella and I have to say it was quite amazing! Even from the first night we got there. Thursday night, I went to this party on a huge estate with free alcohol and popchips! lol. yeah, they had free popchips, which by the way, are soooo good! I'm now addicted... nice marketing/PR popchips! There were three different DJs, lots of photogs, and even a toyota photobooth, where you take a picture inside a toyota. What a great way to start off the weekend!

Friday was a big day for me because Wale and Jay-Z were performing... so we headed over to the Empire Polo Field and got wrist bands and headed inside... first performace I saw was Wale, even though he was 20 minutes late and didn't perform all his hits songs, he was still amazing! (see 1st clip below)... we also caught some of Street Sweeper Social Club, La Roux (love!), and Vampire Weekend, who I love love loooove! Finally... Jay-Z killed it! (see 2nd clip below)

Saturday was a lot of fun too... we saw Portugal, the Man... ran into some friends from high school and hung out with them at their camp spot, which they called "the shanty" and I have no idea why. They took us to hear Bassnectar and that was by far one of my best experiences at Coachella... strong bass and everyone going crazy! We also saw MGMT, Muse, and ended with Tiesto, who gives an amazing light show! We then went to an after party with free drinks, where Will.i.am was spinning and everyone was having a good time!

Sunday we saw De La Soul, Club 75, Phoenix, Miike Snow, Pavement, and Gorillaz. Gorillaz did not live up to the hype, but Phoenix was great and Club 75 was awesome! After that night I think everybody was exhausted and ready for some sleep... The next day, we got up, ate brunch at some random mexican spot called La Perlitas, then headed home to Pasadena! It was a long tiring weekend of fun-filled awesomeness!

Below are some of my pictures from the weekend...

I was pleasantly surprised by some of the new artists that I heard at Coachella that I decided to do it all over again! Well, sort of... there's one day of Coachella-like festivities in downtown LA. On July 17th, Hardfest presents HARD LA, 8 hours of music from different awesome artists all at one place. Some artist that I missed at Coachella will be there, like Sleigh Bells, Die Antwoord, and Flying Lotus... but also M.I.A. and N.E.R.D. are headlining... and I love them both! Should be a fantastic time! Go and buy a ticket and meet me there!

Lost 5.5 Pounds in 6 days!

2010-06-07T11:45:00.000-07:00

Do you ever watch those workout infomercials late at night? Most of which are by Beachbody.

Well, I do. I stay up late... because I'm not a morning person and I watch infomercials all night long. From the juicer to the magic bullet to all beachbody workouts including P90X, Insanity, Brazil Butt Lift, and Hip Hop Abs. I was watching the Beachbody infomercials wondering if they really work... some of the testimonials seem very convincing! I don't know very many people that have finished P90X, but the ones that did said they got really ripped. But after listening to their stories about the workout, I realized that wasn't for me. So I'm thinking... I gotta find something that is more interesting.... something that will keep my attention.
I settled on Hip Hop Abs. Now, how am I going to get it? I'm unemployed, I have no money, and I def cannot afford to pay $75 for it... so I went on ebay and bought it for $20. But it really doesn't matter what workout you do, it was more about the food I ate. The hip hop abs comes with a "6-Day SlimDown" ... although I did not get it with my order, I found a way to get it from the internet. This "6-Day SlimDown" was the key to how I lost 5.5lbs in 6 days.

The "6-Day SlimDown" is a high protein/low carb diet that jumpstarts your metabolism. It outlines a menu for each day. Because I am strapped for cash, I repeated some of the salads and meals instead of doing the new ones they showed. The key was to eat 5 meals a day and finish your last meal 3 hours before you go to sleep. Below is a loose layout of what I ate:

Breakfast:
-1 cup of Egg Substitute (or 3 egg whites & 1 whole egg) scrambled with veggies of your choice (mushroom, onions, tomatoes) OR
-Whey Protein Shake with banana and berries (use lite soy milk; follow instructions on your packaging)

AM Snack:
-4oz. low-fat cottage cheese with blueberries or strawberries OR
-20 raw almonds OR
-Whey Protein Shake (lite soy milk; follow instructions on your packaging)
(note: if you had the protein shake for breakfast, you should probably pick something else for your AM snack)

Lunch:
- 1 cup of mixed greens with 2 or 3 veggies of choice (1/4 cup each) and 4oz. of protein (chicken or tuna) with balsamic vinegar/olive oil

PM Snack: (see above - choose from same choices of AM Snack)

Dinner:
-4oz. of protein (Chicken or fish baked in aluminum pouch with seasonings of choice) and 1 cup of green veggies steamed (your choice; I used broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, or asparagus)

The "6-day SlimDown" booklet does not recommend this diet for more than 6 days because one's body does need carbs in general for energy. After 6 days of this diet, I would recommend keeping much of the same diet but adding in "good carbs" like brown rice and whole wheat bread/pita, or sweet potatoes. Avoid white breads, regular golden potatoes, and white rice. Most workout enthusiast tell you that 70% of one's weight loss is their diet. So, if you are looking to lose weight fast, I totally recommend this 6-day diet in addition to your regualr workout schedule. I did follow the Hip Hop Abs workout plan and did the 40 minutes of workout a day as well. But, as long as you workout for about an hour a day, it should work for you!

I took off a few days because of the crazy Bachelorette weekend I just had, but I plan on getting back on the plan but adding a few "good carbs" ... i love brown rice and whole wheat pita! I'll probably add a little hummus too... love that stuff!

I haven't been on Hip Hop Abs long enough to comment on how well it works... but, it is a lot of fun! Shaun T is def gay and does a lot of gay dances and poses during the video... you just want to laugh and have a good time. Maybe in a few months, I'll give y'all an update on whether it worked for me, or if I just put it aside and just went to the gym. haha.

Hopefully this was helpful for someone... let me know!

Katelin's Bachelorette Party!!!

2010-06-04T00:51:00.000-07:00

So... where to begin...

Planning a bachelorette party is a lot of work... not only because you worry about how much it will cost, but also because you worry that the bride-to-be will not like it or not have fun. So planning anything for someone else besides myself is VERY stressful on me because my happiness depends on someone else's happiness (in this case, the bachelorette)!!!

I co-hosted the party with the other co-moh (co-maid of honor), Jen. If you didn't know, Jen has been friends with Katelin since college and I have been friends with Katelin since 6th grade (secretly since 2nd grade... but that's a whole other story). Might I add that having a co-moh to help with the expenses is quite nice... especially since I am unemployed. A couple weeks before the party, I was running around LA looking for Bachelorette party supplies (plates, cups, sashes, a tiara, and anything with a penis on it) ... I literally spent a whole day going from store to store looking for bachelorette stuff... i finally fell upon A Touch of Romance in Culver City, where I found pretty much everything I needed. (Phew, I can finally breath... at least everything won't be last minute... I have a big problem with planning things last minute... I'll end up with crazy anxiety) So anyway, I was off to a great start...

The day before the party, I picked up the other co-moh from the airport and we shopped for the rest of the supplies. Saturday was the big day... I picked up Jen and we went to pick up food, balloons, cupcakes, and alcohol... and back to my house (well, my parents' house). It took us forever to set up and before we knew it, Katelin and friends arrived!

We sat around eating and drinking and getting to know each other before we played a few games... oh, the games... we started off with the innocent ones: the toilet paper wedding dress game and a questionnaire game, where Katelin had to answer questions correctly about Matt. Then came the more raunchy games... like make a penis out of playdough contest, and put the condom on the cucumber contest. haha... lots of embarrassment and laughs.

Next, Katelin opened presents and we had yummy yummy cupcakes!

Then the surprise!!!! A LIMO to HOLLYWOOD!!! (Katelin loves limos ... i mean, who doesn't?) We rode the limo to Kress Rooftop (thanks for my awesome promoter, Drew of OPP) and partied it up until we decided switch places and go to Citizen Smith, an awesome bar (also in Hwood). Katelin had fun... she drank a lot, danced with great friends, and even completed a few dares!

Overall, I think the party was a SUCCESS!! (even though I am now broke, haha... can't put a price on friendship!)

Anyway, below are a few pictures from the FABULOUS day/night...

Jen (other co-moh) and I

Most of the Attendees...

Katelin in the Limo! (with sash, veil, penis straw, and penis necklace)

Katelin drinking out of her penis straw!

Bachelorette and Muah!

Note: Some pics were stolen from Katelin. tee hee.

Great Party. Great Friends. Great Time.

Stayed tuned... I actually have a few more things to talk about on this blog... like...
1) How I lost 5.5 lounds in 6 days
2) My snowboarding adventures
3) Coachella

I know... I'm storytelling my life backwards, but who really cares?!?

Hockey + Carls Jr + a Slanket = Good Times!

2010-04-01T03:28:00.000-07:00

Why does it always take me so long before I write another blog post? I have no idea. It's not like a have a job... well, looking for a job feels like a full time job... but besides that, I don't have much to do. I'm gonna make a promise to myself to blog more often... hopefully as least once a week. That would me nice.

Anyway, moving on... so what have I done recently? I went to my first HOCKEY game EVER!!! And, it was tons of fun... thanks to Katelin and Carls, Jr! We all know my best friend Katelin is a long time awesome blogger and because of that she gets invited to events and stuff... so she invited me to see a Kings game with her. We got to watch the game from the Carls Jr. sponsored suite where we received slankets...

What a way to stay warm during a hockey game! We also received a coffee mug, a hat, and some coupons for a FREE banana milkshake and a FREE grilled cheese burger (which I tried on Monday... super cheesy and totally worth trying!). Even Bailey, the Kings' mascot, came to the suite to party with us and Happy Star!

Overall, it was a great night and fun times... even though the Kings lost.

What has happened since July....

2009-11-10T01:18:00.000-08:00

Hi All,

So it's been awhile yet again since i wrote on my blog... mainly because i was laid off and now i'm unemployed looking for a job! Sounds like fun, doesn't it? Well, it's not. i feel like i've applied to over 100 jobs and haven't heard back from any! well, not "any" but practically "any".

So in the meantime, i've decided to focus on my future and the next step... GRAD SCHOOL! an MBA to be exact. So now i'm studying for the GMAT and it's absolutely horrible... i totally forgot how to do math... like algebra and geometry. thankfully, it is coming back to me pretty quickly, but still... so much more work than i expected. the verbal is not as bad, but still bad... i totally forgot a lot of grammer rules... needless to say, it's not going too bad... yet. hopefully i will finish studying and take the test at the end of the month. i'm going to be applying to a few schools in southern california so i can stay here after graduation in order to continue to work in entertainment. hopefully when i graduate i will be working in marketing at an entertainment company... unless things change while i'm in school. so everybody pray that i do well on my GMAT please!!! i need all the help i can get!

Also, since recently was Halloweeeeeeeen... my favorite holiday, i'll share some pictures with you from my previous weekend...

That's all! Hope everyone had a good previous weekend and a good Halloween weekend as well!

20 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Me

2009-07-10T00:12:00.000-07:00

It's a lazy Friday for me... I'm still in bed at 12:00noon and I didn't want to think about a "cool" or "interesting" post, so I thought maybe some people might want to learn a little bit more about me... here's 20 questions.

1. Things you can't leave the house without

My iPhone, keys, ID, and a pair of earrings (even if i'm going to put them on until after work)

2. Favourite brand of make-up

NARS (loves it!)

3. Favourite flower

Lillies, Calla lillies, and orchids

4. Favorite clothing store

Hmmm... used to be Urban Outfitters... now I just like the stores on Melrose (in LA)

5. Favorite perfume

Michael Kors

6. Heels or flats?

Heels to go out. Flats for work.

7. Do you make good grades?

um... really? what kind of questions is this... I'm not in school anymore.
Let's just say I went to an Ivy League University, so I did as good as I needed to.

8. Favorite colors

Green, Purple, and Pink

9. Do you drink energy drinks?

Not really, but I do drink this stuff called Neuro sometimes,
which is like an energy drink, but healthier for you.

10. Do you drink juice?

Sometimes OJ during breakfast.

11. Do you like swimming?

Love it! I love the beach/ocean the most. And I love buying swimsuits. Obvi.

12. Do you eat fries with a fork?

Not unless they are chili-cheese fries

13. Favorite Moisturizer

Vaseline Intensive Care - Coco Butter version

14. Do you want to get married later in life?

Yes. Definitely. And have 3 kids!

15. Do you get mad easily?

Hmm.. I don't think so.

16. Do you believe in UFOs/Aliens?

Yet another strange questions... but I do believe that there may be
another life form out in the universe somewhere.

17. Any Phobias?

Snakes in the wild.

18. Do you bite your nails?

No. I love my nails.

19. Have you ever had a near death experience?

Yes. In Cabo when I flew off my ATV and it almost landed on top of me! YIKES!

20. Do you drink coffee?

Yes. But it's not an everyday addictive kind of thing. Just every now and then.

OMG! There's a garden in my backyard!!!

2009-07-09T10:30:00.000-07:00

So again "yes, I still live at home with my parents" but the best part about it is my dad's cooking!!! I love to cook but my love of cooking came from what my dad taught me. He learned from his mother and grandmother and I learned from my dad and grandmother... I feel like I've been cooking since I was 5 years old. At a very young age, I was fascinated with cooking and I think the first time I became really interested was when we went to visit my great-grandmother in Alabama. She was over 100 years old when we visited and she was still walking out to her garden and picking fruits and vegetables and cooking. Well... she had more than a garden... more like a mini-farm. She had rows corn stalks, cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes, string beans, watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, potatoes, cucumbers, and much more. I can't even remember all the fruits and vegetables she had! She asked my sister and I to gather the string beans and pick off the ends. We sat outside under this beautiful tree, which I can only imagine must have been an oak tree by its size, and picked at our string beans. That's when I fell in love with cooking... okay, maybe not at that particular moment, but soon after. I remember wanting to have my own garden when I get older so I can just go to the backyard and pick whatever I wanted to eat for the day.

Well, just a few months ago, I guess my father decided he wanted to make his own garden. So secretly, behind the garage he started planting fruits and vegetable and they are growing rather quickly! Last night, he decided to make dinner with what had grown in the garden. Here's what my dad made.

The salad contained lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers, and the mixed vegetables contained string beans, corn, a pepper, and carrots. The carrot unfortunately did not come from the garden... and neither did the salmon. That would be pretty weird if the salmon came from our garden. I have to say though ... memorial day weekend there was hardly anything there and now there is already corn stalks, large tomatoes, jalapeno peppers (you know you're from LA when you have jalapeno peppers in your garden), heads of cabbage and lettuce, cucumbers, and much more. I can't wait until the peach trees grow. He planted a white peach tree and a regular peach tree. The food was absolutely amazing! There's nothing like fresh grown vegetables!!!!

I love my dad and his cooking... I can't wait to have my own garden now!

Do you have a garden? What's in it? If you don't have a garden, what would you put in your garden if you had one?!?!?

p.s. my dad has a cookbook... i'll blog about it later... so come back to check it out!

Summer To-Do's

2009-07-08T11:15:00.000-07:00

I can't believe we are halfway through the summer, and there is so much I need to do! And I've been pretty lazy too... I told myself that I was going to do all these wonderful things but I haven't gotten around to half of them.... So here's a list of things I need to do before Labor Day:

1) Visit the Getty Museum (can you believe I've lived in LA my whole life and have never been)
2) Visit the Pasadena History Museum (I know, never been there either)
3) Work out at least 3 times a week
4) Go to the beach at least 4 more times (I've been twice already)
5) Read 4 books... (I gotta start with a low number since I'm not good at sticking to reading)
6) Go to Sushi with JR (and can I add do sake bombs... or is that kind of alcoholic of me to add to a list?)
7) Do some sort of relaxation meditation or Yoga once a week
8) Hang out with my Family more
9) Be conscious of "Going Green" ... recycling, using my Sigg bottle, using one less paper towel to dry my hand in the bathroom, etc.
10) Sit on my new Balance Ball Chair for 10 hours out of the week

That's all that I can think of for now. I don't want to make my To-Do list too extensive since I only have less than two months to accomplish them.

What's on your Summer To-Do List?

My Favorite Michael Jackson Video

2009-07-07T23:39:00.000-07:00

Watching the Michael Jackson's Memorial Service today made me sad and I cried when Paris talked about how she loved her father so much. It's late at night and when it's late I watch music videos and of course all that is on right now is MJ videos... so I thought I'd leave you with one of my favorite videos.... Can I have someone be head over heel in love with me? (and tell me he is while he dances!) It's a favorite because MJ is so hot for that girl...

Michael Jackson - The Way You Make Me Feel
Uploaded by Brownsugar18. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

What's your favorite MJ video?

My Weekend got trumped by this video!

2009-07-06T16:23:00.000-07:00

I was going to talk about my weekend, but it's kind of late in the day to start talking about it now.... Plus, I don't have any pictures... so you can view my Friday night and Saturday day over at Katelin's blog since I was with my HS friends most of the weekend. The only difference is I didn't see the fireworks on TV, I actually went to a friend's house for the Rose Bowl fireworks! (note: I use the term "friend" very loosely since she is a distant friend of my mom's ... whose party my mom made me go to since she was out of town)

So instead of explaining my whole weekend, I thought I'd leave you with a video I found quite amusing! If you are a twitter-addict, you will find it amusing too, if you haven't already seen it!

What do you think? Funny?

i went with tuna...

2009-07-01T09:50:00.000-07:00

So on my Twitter yesterday, I asked what I should eat last night... salmon, chicken, or something tuna? Well... Tuna won! I had salmon and chicken the week before, so I decided to go with tuna. I made tuna casserole. It was my first time making tuna casserole and it was actually VERY delicious! When I cook food, I usually like to look up about 5 different recipes, see which one I like best and then I usually combine two or more. I cook pretty often so I usually know what tastes good and what doesn't ... at least what tastes good to me. So anyway, here's what I made...

this is not the actual tuna casserole i made,

but it looks just like it so added it for refernece.

Megan's Tuna Casserole

12 oz. Package of Small Shell noodles
1/2 medium onion
2 cups of frozen peas
2 cans uncondensed Cream of Mushroom soup
2 cans of tuna; drained (7 oz can)
1/2 cup of milk
2 cups of shredded cheddar or mixed cheese
1 cup of bread crumbs

Instructions: Preheat oven to 425º. Boil a large pot of water and throw in the noodle with a pinch of salt. After about 10 minutes, add the frozen peas to the boiling water and pasta and continue to let cook until noodles are tender. Strain the noodles and peas.

Chop onions and saute in a little bit of olive oil until tender. Add cream of mushroom soup and milk. Stir in 1 cup of cheese until melted. Then drain the cans of tuna and add to soup mixture. Make sure to stir often so the soup/cheese mixture doesn't stick or burn.

In a large baking dish, add a layer of noodles/peas, then a layer of tuna mixture, and repeat until all noodle and tuna mixture are combined. Top with a thin layer of bread crumbs, followed by a layer of the remaining cheese. Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes or until cheese is golden and/or crispy. Remove from oven and let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

I hope you try it. It was amazingly delicious!

$23.40 in Library fees from 1997!!! Haha.

2009-06-24T10:08:00.000-07:00

So apparently I haven't check out a book from the library since 1997!!! Ah ha ha ha ha!!!

I've been contemplating picking up a good book for awhile now.... but... I just get kind of lazy. Over the weekend, when I went to see The Proposal with Katelin, I started talking to a woman who said she couldn't wait to see The Proposal and named all the other movies she wanted to see. One of which was My Sister's Keeper. She asked me if I had read the book, I sadly said no and pointed her in Katelin's direction because I knew she read it. Then the lady mentioned all these other books that she had read and I thought to myself... when was the last time I read a non-school-related book? I couldn't think of any... or at least any I had finished. So yesterday I decided to go to the library to check out a book or two.

After work I moseyed on over to the Altadena Public Library. I figured it was a pretty small library, so they should have some good fiction books. I had looked up some books on the internet so I kind of had an idea of what I wanted... Unfortunately, they did not have My Sister's Keeper (both copies), which I figured would be the case since the movie comes out on Friday. So, what were going to be the first books I read in a long time? Well, I came somewhat prepared... My book searching themes were to be 1)beachy, 2)social and girly, and/or 3)family/relationships. I figured the last theme would be in any book I picked up so I search for theme 1 & 2.

So in an attempt to find a good social girly book, I went straight to Candace Bushnell (obvi)... I was certain to find something good there, and I did... One Fifth Avenue. It's about a group of girl living in NYC that aspire to live in a particular building in the city. It's about old money and new money. It's quite a hefty book for a first read... so I might read my second choice first.

I looked on the Best Seller's List to find my second book. I was just looking for a summery title. I know, strange way to pick a book. But hey, it worked! I saw the title The Beach House (by Jane Green) and I thought that sounds interesting... so I went to find it and read the summary. It is about an old woman living on Nantucket island who doesn't care about what anyone thinks of her. One day she realizes that she's running out of money, so she decides to rent out rooms in her house. The novel is about all the encounters and lives of the roomers. I automatically said "yes" because I used to spend all my summers on Martha's Vineyard (a nearby island) and I visited Nantucket a few times, so maybe I can relate...

I figured two books were enough, and while walking up to the check out counter, I prayed that I would actually read/finish them before their due dates. As I place my book on the counter to be checked out, I mention to the librarian guy that my account might be old since the last time I was in that library was 2002 (when I graduated HS). He assured my that that was fine and that he just needed my ID. So he pulls up my account and he says actually the last time you checked out a book was from 1997 and it says you were in 7th grade! Haha. I just had to laugh... and he was like... and it shows that you owe us $23.40 in late fees. He proceeds to explain to me that I cannot check out the books until I pay at least $13 because you cannot have more than $10 in late fee to check out a book. Then he mentions that unfortunately he cannot tell me what the fines were from since they switched over the system in 2004. I said it would be fine and I'll pay the late fees. Was I really going to argue with him about some books that were probably used for some research/history report in 7th grade. I had better things to do... like go home and attempt to start reading! Now, I was a little perturbed because he took every last dime in my purse! Literally... I only had pennies left. Ha. And now I'm thinking "I could have just bought a book for that amount! Actually, I book and a half!" Not that you can actually buy half a book... but metaphorically, you get it. Then I calmed down and said to myself "It's for your literary future" ... and then "so, you better start reading!"

Oh! And after the whole book check-out incident, librarian guy said "would you like to rent any movies from us? They are free!" as he held up Taken, a movie that recently was released to DVD... it was like a corny commercial! Ha. I just said not now. But honestly though... when did libraries start renting out DVDs?!?!?! I remember like documentaries and stuff, but they had Meet The Parents and The Wedding Planner ... not exactly documentaries or books made into movies (like Pride and Prejudice)... did libraries always carry blockbuster-type movies for FREE??!?! Has it really been THAT long since I've been to the library that I don't remember that? Or is this just the new avant-garde library?!?

Anyway... overall, I had an interesting, yet productive visit to the library... and hopefully I will be back soon!

"Pay It Forward" Giveaway!

2009-06-23T16:46:00.000-07:00

So I was reading a couple of blogs today and I ran across a contest over at Underfunded Heiress. She was so lucky to have won a "Pay It Forward" contest that she decided to have a giveaway herself! She's giving away this super cute white bikini cover-up from Victoria's Secret. And we all know how much I love VS... I practically own half the bikini's in the catalog... remember when I bought five in one day! ...and that was over a year ago... I can't even count how many I've bought since then... anyway, this cover-up would look super cute on me... so go over and check out her blog! Or even enter into the contest... but if you do enter the giveaway and win instead of me, make sure you let me know about the post of your winnings, so I can see how cute it looks on you!

And I know I haven't blogged in a long time and we know I love summer clothes.... so here are some pics of my most recent purchases from www.victoriassecret.com...

And one more swimsuit is on my wishlist...

isn't it sexy? loves it....

it's like finding a nickel on the ground...

2009-06-23T14:16:00.000-07:00

so the other day I was taking money out of the bank, when I saw there was a mother and daughter next to me also using the ATM... it looked as though the daughter was telling the mother what she was doing in spanish... which first of all had me confused because there is a "espanol" button on the ATM that translates everything into spanish ... but that's besides the point... not the point of my post... so anyway, we leave around the same time and a small truck (kind of like a Toyota Tacoma) pulls up for the mother & daughter. Before they get in the truck the mother sees a large aluminum can on the ground and pours out what's left and puts it in the bed of the truck. My first instinct is "wow! that's nice... she's cleaning up the environment!" (this is not a far-fetched thought for me because when I'm hiking I often pick up trash that ppl leave behind) But then I saw the two pile into the small truck (3-seater) that already had 3 other people in it, and my thought quickly changed... "oh! she probably grabbed that can because she can make 5¢ off of it!" Now, I don't think there is anything wrong with collecting cans to assist in providing for your family... in fact, I had an epiphany!

Okay, well not really an "epiphany" ... but I got to thinking... with this economy, things are kinda rough... so if I kept a trash bag in my car and every time I saw a can or plastic bottle, I collected it, how much money could I make in a month? Now, I'm sure most of you are like "is she insane?" Yea, probably... but I mean if you think about it, only positive things can come from it... 1) recycling helps save the environment and 2) maybe I can get a weeks worth of gas money.

So for the next 30 days, I'm going to make a goal to collect as many plastic bottles and aluminum can as possible and see how much I come up with!

If you think I'm insane, let me know... if not, maybe you should try it too! (maybe you'll beat me)

Ryan Reynolds, Sandra Bullock, DJ Quik, Kurupt, and Daz

2009-06-22T10:22:00.000-07:00

So remember I said I had a few things going on this past weekend... well, I had a fabulous weekend starting off with Friday...

So out of no where around 3:30 on Friday, one of the guys at my job was like if you've finished your work, you can leave early today! This totally came as a surprise and I was so thankful because I was all worried that I wasn't going to make it on time to my 8:00 movie date with my BFF Katelin to see The Proposal. I ended up leaving around 4:45ish and headed over to Paseo to grab late lunch/dinner at Yardhouse while waiting for my date... finally Katelin arrived, we grabbed a drink before heading into the theater. I was so excited for the movie and had been waiting for quite some time to see it... I know what you are thinking... totally a chick flick, right? Well, no! I really think that guys would love it too... Ryan Reynolds is hilarious and so is Sandra Bullock. The majority of the movie was dying of laughter... the end gets a little serious, but overall it was a great movie.

Saturday I went to a DJ Quik concert with some friends and had a blast! I was a little skeptical about the concert at first because I thought it was just going to be Quik doing his thing but then I found out that it was a concert for his new album coming out with Kurupt. I had heard that the album wasn't that good so I was worried that the concert wasn't going to be good either. Come to find out it was like a DJ Quik and Dogg Pound concert! Quik played all his old hits and Daz showed up to perform with Kurupt and they did some of their Dogg Pound hits!!! The crowd went crazy and it was absolute insanity!!! I had so much fun and so did everyone that went with us.

Kind of dark, but I believe that's Kurupt, Daz, and DJ Quik... and me and JR.

Sunday was pretty mellow... my parents had already left for Cabo so we didn't do anything for Father's Day... I just sat around the house watching movies with my sister...

Overall, it was a fantastic weekend!

i'm baaaaaack....

2009-06-19T10:43:00.001-07:00

So it's been quite awhile since I last blogged... almost a year! July '08 to be exact! That's crazy... and a lot has happened in a year... so let's recap...

August 2008: I was in bootcamp for this entire month so I pretty much had no life... I was waking up at 5:00AM and eating 5 small meals a day and no carbs after 3:00PM. That was fun... really, it was... I loved it!

September 2008: Started dating someone new, but he's a long-time friend (JR) ... so we'll see how that goes... we went to dinner and met up with some friends at the LACMA for this really cool retro artsy event... 'twas a fun entertaining night! I also went to a Common/N.E.R.D concert mid-September which was also a lot of fun too!

October 2008: Went to NYC with my best friend Maya to see her bf play in the NY Giants/Seattle Seahawks game and I got to visit/party with some college friends. I went to Lucha VaVoom ... look it up! It's a very interesting & fun show... mexican luchadores wrestling, some minis wrestling and burlesque dancers.... At the end of the month, I went to some pretty awesome Halloween parties with friends...

November 2008: Can't really remember much... One of my best friend's Katrina had a birthday party at Howl At The Moon at Universal City Walk, but got so drunk that she had to end the party early... well she left the party and passed out in a car while the rest of us partied Saddle Ranch! Let's see? what else? I went two fabulous Thanksgiving dinners and stuffed myself full of yummy yummy goodness...

December 2008: Went to Big Bear with friends and learned how to snowboard for he first time! I was only really out there for like an hour learning the basics so I didn't get very far... I'm still on that bunny slope. Towards the end of December I went to some Xmas parties... and finally made my way to Boston for Christmas with the fam....

January 2009: Had an awesome New Years at some random place with friends... Had the most amazing 25th Birthday party at Air Conditioned in Venice... although I don't remember most of it, I know I still fun!

February 2009: Went to see a play called The Old Settler like 7 times (because JR was in it) and I have to say it was VERY entertaining and totally worth all 7 times! ... Also, went to some birthday parties... and went to a Nintendo DS party where I got a free DS Lite... I guess February was pretty mellow...

March 2009: One of my best friend's boyfriend had a Birthday weekend in Vegas... so you know I had to go!!! LOOOOVE VEGAS!!! We partied, ate and drank! That pretty much sums up Vegas...

WE ARE ALMOST DONE... I promise!

April 2009: Well... My high school best friend Katelin (who writes a pretty nifty blog herself) got engaged!!! To long-time best friend Matt! Woo! And it happened the day before her Bday... so she had two things to celebrate on her Bday.... yay! Congratulations!

May 2009: We start off the month of June with Matt's Birthday (Katelin's fiance now)... we went Go-Kart racing! Of course the boys won... but it was still a fun experience! Towards the middle on the month I went to the Aquarium of the Pacific with JR. He loves jellyfish, so he made me take a bunch of pictures of them... Memorial Day weekend was probably the best weekend of this year because I went to the No Doubt concert in San Diego and had the time of my life!! BEST CONCERT EVER!! (sadly I have no pictures)

June 2009: Finally! I started off June falling 13,000 feet from the sky... I went skydiving with a bunch of friends at Lake Elsinore (I'm going to try to post my video later)... and last weekend I saw The Hangover (for the second time... so funny!), went bowling with friends, and watched the NBA playoffs where LAKERS killed the MAGIC. It was crazy fun ....

but this month isn't over just yet... I'm going to see The Proposal tonight and I've got a concert tomorrow... and who knows what else is in store for this life I lead....

Thanks for catching up with me!

it's been a long time...

2008-07-07T14:42:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time
We shouldn't have left you
Without a dope beat to step to
Step to, step to, step to
Step to, step to
Freaky-freaky....

sorry... i wrote that title... and then thought of that song by aaliyah and thought i would share.... that was one dope song... everyone's gotta love timbaland.

so... i've been gone for awhile... working... vacationing... relaxing... and more working...

but i'm baaack.... and i have wonderful stories to share with you! (and pictures!)

stay tuned...

weeknight parties ... and cool new stuff!

2008-05-01T16:20:00.000-07:00

so my friend james is leaving... and i'm kinda sad... we just started hanging out more often since he love to LA in january... so last night was his "going away" party... he's just going back to NYC... so we went out to The Sapphire in studio city to get drinks and hang out and have a good time. The place is pretty small and dark, but at the same time very chic... check it out...so that's the spizzot! kinda shnazzy, don't ya think? so i knew i wasn't going to know anyone there so i invited my friend, jr, who never goes to places i invite him... we are always going to places he wants to go to... so i was testing our friendship and seeing if he would come (especially since he was at rehearsal in studio city right before, practically down the street) ... so after some convincing... he decided to go! yay! so i'm thinking... all james's friends are basically from NYC or the east coast, so jr will only know me.... so he shows up after i did... and all of a sudden i turn around ( he didnt even try to find me first) and he's talking to like all of the people at the party BECAUSE HE KNOWS THEM!!! i'm like is there anyone on this earth that you DON'T know!?!?! geeeez... so it turns out that one of the guys there is also an actor (like jr) and went to morehouse college (where jr went) where they both studied theatre... and another girl there went to spelman (morehouse's sister college). so it's basically a fact: jr is the most popular person in the world! oh, and on a random note.... as we were about to leave, i saw a "famous" person... if you used to watch the disney channel, you know who this is...

did you say "The Famous Jett Jackson"?

yea, so i saw him there, his name is Lee Thompson... so we talked to him like a normal person would (basically not hinting that we knew who he was) but i really really wanted to call him "jett jackson" ... but i refrained... kinda... until we gave everyone hugs and walked away... so when i gave him a hug... i whispered in his ear... "goodbye jett jackson... you thought i didn't know, huh?" ... and he laughed and said... "no, i didn't think that." hahahaha... am i an asshole? or am i just funny!?!?!? hahahaha.... i think i'm funny! mwah ha ha ha! anyway... he was there with a homie from disney channel too... supposedly... jr told me that the other guy was on "even stevens" ... so i think this is him...

i guess his name is ty, dont really remember

so that was an interesting night... but moving on to bigger and better things! today i receive my digital camera via UPS to my office... and it's sooo cute and sexy (like my shoes... and everything "megan") here's the picture of it... sleek, sexy, sophisticated, and BLACK... like ME! hahahahahaha.... so here it is...

oh so yummy!

so there is it... i'm sooo excited because now i can take pictures at these wonderful parties and places that i go so that all of you bloggers and blog-readers can see that which is the "fabulous life of megan ashley"! and i know you want to stay tuned because my life is soooo flyyyyyy!

xoxo,
meggy-megs

Taco Night! and then some...

2008-04-29T15:31:00.000-07:00

oh what a monday...

so i get to work and i get a text message from my brother saying they are having taco night at their house for his birthday! and i get soooo excited because then i can see my cute little ky-ky!!! i love her to death! she's the most adorable kid in the world!

kylie, my niece

that is a picture of her 2 years ago i believe at my college graduation party... but nonetheless you can tell how cute she is.... and she knows she's cute too! my favorite story about her is when her mother told her that they were going to go to the park to play... and kylie says back to her mom in a whiny voice, "i don't want to go to the park mommy, everyone is just going to tell me how cute i am!" ... i guess she was annoyed with people calling her "cute" ... but back to the bro's birhtday dinner.. it was a lot of fun... the tacos that my brother, david, made were sooo good. it reminded me of the tacos in cabo... real authentic tasting... and he made everything from scratch (pico de gallo, guacamole, chicken, rice, beans) yum-o! we sat around watched a little bit of the laker game, drank beer and ate cookies... and had tons of great conversations... conversation are always great with tish (my sister-in-law) and her best friend mia.

later i got a text from my friend jr saying that a friend was performing at the derby in los feliz and that i should try to come by... he supposedly started at 9:10pm which was when i was leaving david's house. so i try to hurry on over... but i missed j.bradley's original songs... i only got to hear the covers that he did... he did do sublime, which was cool... that was good! then we went over to a friend of a friend's house to hang out and chill.... it was overall a really great night besides the fact that i didnt get to watch gossip girl, the bachelor, greek, bones, and the hills.... i guess i've got a lot of tv to watch tonight...

but ooooo... as i'm about to publish this post... one of my ex's (sort of) texts me... to tell me he may be having a get together at his new spot in north hollywood. he just moved back from chicago... to make a long story short... we were in the beginning stages of our relationship when he moved to chicago, but he said he was only going to be there for 3 months... cut to 3 months later... he wasn't moving back (job position changed) ... and i'm over long distance relationships... have had too many of those.... so i just stopped answering calls and/or calling... and that was about it... he was mad ... i felt bad... so anyway... he may be having a get together tonight... should i go? or should i not? i guess since he actually invited me... there are no hard feelings... or... he could be trying to be shady... and pretend he has a girlfriend at the party to make me mad... okay, i just made that up... but it could be entirely true... what to do? what to do?!

oh what a weekend! (part two)

2008-04-28T14:43:00.000-07:00

so... back to my weekend!

so i'm on my way to katelin's bday party at the wonderful Dave & Buster's to get my food and drink on... but i thought i was gonna be late since i left courtney's house later than expected... but i ended up pulling into the parking lot of d & b around 7:05 (we were supposed to be there at 7:00 and i thought i was going to get there at 7:15) .... and then it takes me 25 minutes to find a parking spot.... i'm thinking "what is with me and parking today?" first it took 25 minutes at hermosa beach, and now 25 minutes at d & b... geeez! so i finally make it there in one piece... and we had some food and i drank what felt like a pitcher of beer... had some fun chit-chatting... then it was off to the next party! LJ's draft party in inglewood... i was driving all over the place on saturday!

so i get to LJ's party and my mom and dad were still there... and of course my mom was dancing on the dance floor when i get in with maya's mom and friends.... they had a comedian come perform for a bit and LJ got up to say thank yous and everything.... then it was dance party central! woo hoo! i love to dance ... and of course i requested "lollipop" .... it was overall fun times! (as usual) and i'm soooo excited to be going to Seattle next season! so then i go home... oh no... i didnt go home... went to visit an old friend at his house... and talked and had a good time played with his dog jimbay... weird name huh? ... then i went home...

saturday was pretty mellow... i went to some Links African American Arts Fair where my dad was displaying his first published book, a cookbook, called "southern soul food" ... you can buy it on southernsoulfood.biz at somepoint later this week... the site isnt fully up and running yet. so i hung out with my dad and sold some cookbooks until like 4pm... then i went home took a nap and woke up to watch TV with my mom... season finale of big brother 9, desperate housewives, top model from wednesday and moonlight from friday.... fantastic evening! i love tv and my dvr.

so that was my weekend... in a not-so-much nutshell!

oh what a weekend! (part one)

2008-04-28T01:58:00.000-07:00

friday night after work, i decided to meet up with some friends that i had known when i was in college. One of them, James, just moved here in January, but is now leaving to go back to NYC. But this weekend, he had a visitor from Philly, Rick (whom I had also known in college). So, we had planned on going to Blvd3 (one of my favorite places to party), but instead the boys got an invite to go to ML Lounge instead... so we decided to go there. First of all, we couldn't get in because one of the guys was wearing an affliction t-shirt with no button up or jacket. so we waited outside for a few minutes before we had to pay $20 a piece to get in!!!! what! $20! i'm soooo glad i didnt have to pay, or someone paid for me (same thing)!!! so we are standing in the club (sippin' on a vodka tonic) when james (and friends) decide to buy bottles, and i'm like why didnt you say that before i got my drink... but then i realized i didnt pay for that either ... so then i was like whatever. so we sit down and drink a little and listen to the music, which was "okay," and then do a little dancing... but i had to choose my dances wisely because i didnt want my feet to die, since i was wearing the super cute black patents that i bought a few weeks ago. but oh of course i had to get up for the "lollipop" song... oh! and i realized that rick is actually funny.. and i had a good time with him because while james (and friends) were all over the party, rick sat with me and clowned all the people in the party with me... so much fun! he said something to the likes of "i can see why people love cali, the women are beautiful" .... cut to like 10 minutes later... "and the ugly ones learned how to shake their ass on the dance floor" hahahaha... yeah, we were looking two slightly unattractive girls that were dancing so hard we felt like we were at a houston hall party (for those of you who don't know what i'm talking about... just imagine freshman year hot sweaty people grinding on each other type of party) overall, it was a good time though!

saturday, i was sooo excited when i woke up because i was going to the beach with some girlies.... we left for the beach around 12:30 got to the beach around 1:00, but then drove around looking for parking until 1:30... it was horrendous! i cannot believe we were looking for parking for that long... it was soo annoying! but anyway... got to the beach, and layed out for a good 3 hours! another reason i was soo excited was because one of my best friend's boyfriend was getting drafted that day.. so as we were at the beach, i kept checking my phone for draft updates... then all of a sudden my mom calls screaming... "yaaaay yaaay! LJ went first round to Seattle!" she was screaming so much that some ladies came outside of the convention that she was at to ask if she was okay. hahaha. she told me that my grandmother had called her to tell her and my grandmother was all excited... i think that's pretty strange for my grandmother to be sooo excited seeing as to how she's never met LJ, but whatever... now he's got fans in boston too! so then i was even more excited for LJ's draft party that night... but i had a few other things to take care of before then... one being my other best friend's birthday party! so after walking around hermosa a little, i realized that i loved it there and that they needed to build a parking structure so i could go more often! i drove the girls back to courtney's house where all of a sudden she got the urge to come to CABO with me in june and spontaneously buy a ticket on the spot! WHAT!!! i know! i was shocked too!!! so now i'm SUPER SUPER SUPER excited to go to cabo because courtney, maya, AND rachel are coming!!! YAY for best friends! so... moving on to more best friends.... and katelin's birthday....

actually, it's sunday night /monday morning and i'm tired...

to be continued...

Grey's Survival of the Fittest!

2008-04-25T00:34:00.000-07:00

"we like to think that we are rational beings. humane. conscientious. civilized. thoughtful... but when things fall apart... even just a little. it becomes clear. we're no better than animals. ... we think, we walk erect. we speak. we dream. but deep down we are all still routing around in the primordial ooze. biting, lying, scratching out an existence in the cold dark world like the rest of the tree toads and slops." -meredith grey

i think shonda rhimes is so clever. i don't know if she's trying to tell us a subconscious message or not to subconscious message... but did anyone get the message that this first episode back was all about EVOLUTION!?!?!? i'm thinking is she trying to get people to believe in evolution or was this just a random metaphor in which to base an entire episode. It was completely about Darwin! Survival of the Fittest!!

First of all, most of the episode was about a competition between the residents. Who could get more points for their work in the hospital... you got a certain amount of points for doing different things. whoever helps their patients the most, wins a sparkly pager. the point is they are competing, and in the end someone will come out on top. Survival of the fittest. What is interesting is that the person who won, Meredith Grey, did the least amount of work.... is that supposed to be some subconscious message too? Cristina is running around all crazy... Kurev is steadily putting in stitched for one point each, and Izzie is giving for poor man tests that are useless so she can get more points. All Meredith does is put her fingers in front of a man and detects that he has a brain tumor. So is the lesson... it's not how fast you work, but the quality of work you do? or maybe it's not how fast you work, but how smart you are? (that may not make sense) ... i personally think it's just dumb luck! but who knows! maybe there's a lesson in there somewhere...

then there is the McSteamy competition... this is the epitome of survival of the fittest! it's what Darwin's theory is based on... it goes back to that the male of a species should spread his seed all over in order to have the maximum chance of his spawn surviving. correct? Well.. McSteamy suggests to Derek that instead of him dating Rose, he should enter into a competition with him and the more women you sleep with, the more points you get... and more points for two women at the same time.... so... again... survival of the fittest!

and lastly... George and Lexie decide to move into together... George hates the apartment because it is dirty and isn't very "homey". Lexie, being the woman, tries to change that by stealing from the hospital. She is trying to get is attention so he will stay. kinda animal like ... like in female mating calls. but this is really not my point.... my point was going to be that they are interns in the hospital and we see them in a dirty nasty apartment... basically, they are at the bottom of the totem pole, so they are stuck in the dirt (so to speak)...

i kind of feel like i'm analyzing a book, like i'm in college again! :o)

"we are each other's keepers, we are the guardians of our own humanity. and even though there's a beast inside all of us, what sets us apart from the animals is that we can think, feel, dream and love. and against all odds, against all instinct, we evolve." -meredith grey

so what is meredith really saying... in the beginning of the episode she is saying that we are not different from animals... but at the end, she says that we are difference from animals... and we have evolved into civil humans? so what is it? maybe she is saying that we are not just about competitiveness anymore, but about feelings. since she decided it wasn't about winning the competition, but helping people, in this case a couple that "loved" each other (the tumor guy and his spontaneous wife). what do you think about this episode or my thoughts??

ps. you know what's interesting.... there was NO sex in the whole first episode! i think that's interesting! what do you think?

catching up on life...

2008-04-23T01:18:00.000-07:00

so i've been out of commission for a few days... but tons of great thing have gone on since i've been gone. for one, tv is so good. Gossip Girl was great! Jenni is the new queen b, but then she gets de-throwned by Blair when Jenni's friends find out that she is poor and stole a dress from a friends' mom's closet. But then miraculously... Jenni pulls it together and brings Nate to the club Butter in NYC to meet back up with the girls... then all is forgiven and Jenni is back on top! She was de-throwned for literally 5 tv-minutes! I was so surprised, but it was soooo good at the same time! Who knew Jenni had an evil side like that! She's quickly turning into a "bitchy" Blair. And what about Serena? She seemed so happy this episode... i think she and Dan are sooo cute together and soo in love! It's absolutely adorable! .... but .... next week's episodes.... who's the mysterious "G"?!?!?! Serena is going to back to her wild ways! Poor Dan... cest la vie!
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oh! and what about that photo shoot we had at my job on monday.... it was cool actually! i mean... not like super professional, but it was fun because i got to be outside of the office for two hours NOT answering phones or doing any "real work." i got to basically watch the whole thing... and was also added to a few of the shots for "diversity" i assume. i get to be part of a tailgating scene in the background of the comp (meaning what you see when you look at the front of a dvd). we shot D.B. Sweeney sitting on a car with a girl, who is actually going to be a body double for Moira Kelly... strange right? since this is NOT a re-make of Cutting Edge. so yeah, they are doing another movie together, but not just the two of them. by the way, D.B. is super nice. he seemed really cool, but not so cool where i should be beaming with joy that i met him.... i mean... he was sooo 1992, ya know? can't really get excited about him in 2008. but i think overall, the shoot went pretty well.
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what else is going on in the life of megan ashley?!?! well... boys as usual... but i don't feel like discussing... unless someone wants to hear... oh! i bought some toiletries recently... my favorite place to shop, besides when i'm shopping for clothes, is CVS! i just looove that place. yesterday, i bought some olay body ribbons body wash, and some cotton pads for my face toner, a new comb because i seemed to have lost my old ones, and some cotton q-tips... i had totally ran out of q-tips like 2 weeks ago and my ears were getting kinda gross... you know it's hard to get all the wax out with tissue paper and your finger... and don't act like i'm being gross cause i know you all have done that once in your lives! anyway, i'm just glad to have my jumbo box of q-tips! :o) oh, and on monday, i got really excited for this new product that one of my best friends told me about called "Mixed Chicks." it's a wonderful hair care product for girls who are "mixed" ... or just have curly hair... it was supposedly going to work wonders on my hair... i screwed that up my using it at night instead of in the morning ( if you know me, you know i don't take showers in the morning.... not a morning person.. i take my showers at night) anyway, i tried it and it made my hair really soft and nice, but i slept on it so i don't think my curls withstood my sleeping environment... one day i'll try it in the morning (probably the weekend)... but i have complete faith in it!

well... that's a wrap! happy humpday wednesday!

awesome week(end) to come!

2008-04-21T01:09:00.000-07:00

it's 1am and i'm about to go to sleep... i've been sleeping all weekend since i've been sick, and i have to say i think my body needed that. although it was slightly miserable as i was blowing my nose all weekend and the skin under my nostrils is raw, my body felt rested from its normal nights of partying like a rockstar on the weekends! it was sad though when i got the text messages and/or calls from friends both friday night AND saturday night asking me if i wanted to go out... and i sadly had to turn them down :o( .... but ... next weekend is coming soon, and it's one of my bff's 24th birthday (which is super exciting cause then she'll be old like me!) and another one of my bff's bf is being drafted! woo hoo! double exciting weekend! two parties in one night... i hope i make them both! also... work this week will probably be different since the boss is out all week....

so tomorrow at work, we are going to have this kinda "ghetto" photo shoot for some movie that we are doing artwork for... i say ghetto because it is kinda last minute and to throw all this stuff together in less than a day is kind of hard... i had to call around all day friday for a 1970s muscle car for the shoot, which i couldnt find... then i hear we are going to do it anyway whether they get the car or not... i'm like... hmmm... doesn't sound promising... but whatev... oh! but it gets better... guess who is coming to the shoot ?!?!?! ... none other than the wonderful D.B. Sweeney! hahahaha... remember him.... "toooooooooooooe-pick!" ...

i KNOW i'm not the ONLY person that used to loooooove this movie!!! kinda weird that 16 years after the movie came out, i get to meet the star... it's soooo not as exciting as it would have been if it was 1992, ya know!? well, mr. sweeney and some "hooters girls" are going to be posing in front of the 1970s muscle car... should be interesting seeing as to how we may not even have the muscle car! hmmm... anyway... i'm getting tired... i'll be sure to keep you updated on how wonderfully awesome the photo shoot went.

oh! ps. i'm sooo excited that Gossip Girl is back on tomorrow!

ugh gag hack...

2008-04-17T22:41:00.000-07:00

still sick... and hating it. i just woke up from a "nap" i guess and i need to go back to sleep so i can be a little more healthy in the morning. i have drugged myself up on dayquil, took some vitamin C, and a herbal immune booster... and i'm about to take some nyquil and go back to sleep. i can't believe i have to go back to work in the morning with how sick i am. i'm sorry for the uninteresting blogs... i promise when i get well, they will be better... until then i'm just going to lay in bed and watch re-runs of "sex and the city" and wait until i'm "allowed" to take my dose of nyquil. bueno noche.

i'm sick. i love tv.

2008-04-16T23:22:00.000-07:00

i'm sick and im hating it... i hardly ever get sick, but when i do, it's absolutely miserable! i could feel that i was getting sick on tuesday, but i wasn't completely sure... but... today at work i was sneezing and blowing my nose all day... so now i have a dilemma... i just started accumulating vacation days in either february or march (don't exactly know) and i cannot take off any days until after i go to cabo (cause i need the days i accumulate for that week in june) ... oh what to do!?!?!

i have mucus coming out of my right nostril and for some reason my right eye has been watering ALL freakin' night! i don't know if it's because i only have a contact in my left eye (so maybe that's keeping it from watering) or maybe because my right nostril is running therefore the right eye is justified in watering? hmm... i don't know, but anyway... so annoying... i'm trying to watch tv and all of a sudden my vision from my right eye is blurry. i'm sitting watching the first episode of The Real World: Hollywood, whose characters are actually crazy, and all of a sudden everything is blurry. so not only am i sick, but i can't even watch tv to my satisfaction! at least if i'm going to be sick, let me do things i love properly, right?!?!?! guess not.

speaking of the real world... Greg is a complete douchebag! i mean really... are you serious? first of all, he come in to the house sooo cocky, thinking he is "the chosen one" ... whatever! and then they decide to go out and before he even gives the line at basque (which i've never been to, isn't that place 18+? .. yeah, don't go to those) a chance, he just bolts! like this is your first time out in hollywood and you're not even going to try? then he just picks on all the people in the house, especially the guys calling them "weirdos" and what not... hello? you don't even know them! and there's more... he doesn't have any friends that are girls back at home ... all he has is "associates" which are girls that he kicks it with and hooks up with... like what!?!?! who calls girls "associates" ... i'm stilling trying to figure out if that is supposed to be a classy way of saying "ho" or if it is a demeaning way of describing a girl he hooks up with... hmmm... i don't really get it, but i know i don't like it. oh! and i almost forgot, he called his mom and told her that he wasn't getting along with the rest of the people in the house and that "[he] doesn't need to change, they need to change" (HELLO!? if everyone doesn't like YOU then obviously YOU are the problem, not them!) and then continues to call the rest of the housemates "peasants" ... like WHO CALLS PEOPLE "PEASANTS"?!?!?!?! like WTF? i mean i've never actually fought anyone (in my life EVER) but if i had heard him say that, i would have really been fightin' for real!!! but moving on... i like all the girls so far... brianna is kinda scary though... a warrant out for your arrest? i'm hoping that was just a one time thing cause she seems like she could be sweet... anyway.. this season of Real World looks like it is going to be better than the last few!

(insert douchebag here)

continuing... i guess i should probably go to sleep soon and get some rest since i will probably have to go into work in the morning. and hopefully i will feel better. but i probably won't. :o(

(insert a blowing of the nose and a wiping of my right eye here)

getting excited for summer!

2008-04-15T15:34:00.000-07:00

so summer time is around the corner... and if you know me, you know that i'm obsessed with swimsuits. ever since i was a little girl, i don't think i've had less than 20 swimsuits for the summer. of course, some were used from the summer before, but on average i think i buys about 5-10 new swimsuits a year. it all started when as a child... i would go to Martha's Vineyard every summer with my mom who is from Boston and her family who is from the cape (of Massachusetts). My mom's been going to Martha's Vineyard since she was a child, so i guess is was kind of like a tradition. anyway, my grandmother would spoil my sister and i by buying us about 5 new swimsuits each summer. So basically i owe my swimsuit obsessiveness to my grandmother, Stella Cruz. In any event, i've been shopping online for bathing suits since february.... and this is what i've bought thus far...

they are all pretty simple, but i'm a simple girl... what can i say? ... and speaking of buying things... i was reading my best friend katelin's blog... which then i ended up clicking on her friend from denison's blog, Kiki, as she names herself on the blog... and she blogged about buying a pair of shoes that she shouldn't have... (which i do all the time)... i love love looove shoes... so i wanted to show you all my latest purchase in shoe fashion...
i've been recently obsessed with patent leather, especially black patent leather... i think the last 3 pairs of shoes i bought were black patent leather... i sooo need to branch out soon. i love these shoes primarily because they are super sexy, but also because they make me feel tall!
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So, while i was halfway watching TV last night, i was putting together some business cards for my bartending adventures to come. i made them super cute with a pic from the internet of two martini glasses... i'm so excited about actually being a bartender that i'm forgetting to actually study and instead i'm making/ordering business cards and watching douchebags like Spencer from The Hills. So tonight.... i shall be studying... you can test me on what a Singapore Slinger is tomorrow!

the good parts of my weekend...

2008-04-14T12:59:00.000-07:00

so what did i do this weekend? hmm...

saturday night was a fun one... so my friend calls me to tell me what he's doing, then asks me if i want to come along... i wasn't exactly paying attention to what he said (as usual.. i have ADD)... but i was just like wait for me, i'll be over in 10 minutes. so i get in my car and go over... when i get there, he tells me again that we are going to a lupe fiasco concert at USC, so then i get really excited cause i love love loooooove LUPE!!!!

so that's lupe..... he did my fav song "kick push" as well as "superstar" and many more... he was amazing as usual.... anyway, moving on to even more amazingness... guess who opened up for lupe?!?!?!?! DE LA SOUL!!!! i haven't heard them is sooo long... i feel like i was 5 when they came out... they are soo good! they did like all their hits songs and i'm surprised i even remembered them... if you don't remember, here's a taste...

random notes about saturday night: ran into BG (my friend courtney's bro) who was on a date... oooh la la; we had glowsticks and energy lollipops... mmm good; my friend james was there but i didn't know it and now i'm sad that i missed him.

so on sunday... my life was pretty boring... but i eventually went to see "Street Kings" with my bestie Katelin and some other friends (including a sheriff).... the movie was not as bad as i thought it would be, but it was still bad and kinda confusing.... i just loved the 5 minutes that Common was in it cause i love love looooove Common (just like Lupe) and I can't wait until "Wanted" come out with Angelina Jolie... so anyway, we go to the yard house after for some food and drinks. so i'm sitting next to the "sheriff" ... mind you, he's my age (24ish) and is a skinny white Jew ... haha... so i'm asking him questions and stuff and i ask "so do you carry your gun around off-duty?" and he's like yes and pulls it out and puts it on my leg... and of course i scream cause i don't like anything that can kill me near me... and everybody at the table is laughing at me. then like 10 minutes later, he does it again... and of course i scream ... at that point i was kinda mad so i kept calling him "cheap" because of the stereotype that jews are cheap ... then he pays for the whole dinner. moral of the story: i guess i shouldn't call the "sheriff" cheap anymore & don't sit next to people with guns!

Lessons I learned from my weekend...
1) re-visit your old school music past (aka De La Soul)
2) Fall in love with Lupe Fiasco... cause he's the shit!
3) Don't go see "Street Kings" ... confusing movie.
4) Don't call Jewish Sheriffs cheap (and don't mess with them cause they always have their guns)

OMG... i haven't even mentioned that fact that Desperate Housewives was new last night! wasn't as good as i thought it was going to be... don't have time to talk about it.

stay tuned...

my first time....

2008-04-11T14:58:00.000-07:00

... blogging, that is!

hahaha... so... the other day i was thinking... maybe i should start a blog?!?!? ... but then i was like... that's just so much effort! nah... i won't do it. Then i was thinking... i have a few new things in the works that could result in amazing blogs, so maybe i should... and a few days later... here it is!!

So, i've recently decided to become a part-time bartender (let's see how long that lasts) and i was thinking where am i going to write down all the crazy and exciting things that happen to me while bartending... a blog!

Then i was thinking... i'm supposed to be moving into a condo with my sister and her friend next month, and i'm sure there are going to be stories about that... and where would i write that? A BLOG!!!

And then there is "the adventures of megan ashley..." ... it's summertime.... there are always things going on in the summer... i need to capture them in writing (in writing because i don't have a camera anymore/yet) ... a blog, you say? YES! A BLOG!

So anyway... that's why i started a blog... hopefully they are sufficient reasons.

And of course, there will also be those random blogs about anything "megan" ... clothes, movies, TV, shoes, "meganism," etc.

I'll be back soon!

Happy Readings!