Stuckinthe80svalleygirl

10 totally bitchin' songs

2006-07-06T22:36:00.000-07:00

Human League: Louise
Roxy Music: Mother of Pearl
Squeeze: Labelled with Love
The Clash: Straight to Hell
The Pretenders: Pack it Up
Duran Duran: Late Bar
Oingo Boingo: Change
REM: Get Up
Spandau Ballet: Round and Round
The Cure: The Perfect Girl

The Rotating Home

2006-06-03T21:43:00.000-07:00

So I went on the tour of the spinning/rotating home on Mt Helix. What a dump. Kidding!!! It was amazing. The guy has a license plate that reads "ROT8ING".

Check out the view from the kitchen sink. Now that's how I want to wash MY dishes.

yeah, this girl must've done something right

2006-03-03T22:00:00.000-08:00

Three Thing Thursday

2006-01-18T21:13:00.000-08:00

1) I went day tripping in San Diego to take pictures a few weeks ago. Here's some things I snapped, including a 'shoe tree'. Get it? Shoe? Tree?

2) I'm going to take KMJ to the Scandanavian Specialties store someday. She might find something she likes for her home.

3) I had to take college 'remedial math', essentially, because I kept taking that major math test in college and failing it. You get like three chances then if you still can't pass they put you in Loser Math class. It sucked.

Three Thing Thursday

2005-12-28T17:28:00.000-08:00

1) I went day tripping on Christmas Day to the famous historic neighborhood of Burlingame (http://gothere.org/ShowBusiness.asp?IdNum=4414) Burlingame is distinctive for its pink sidewalks and Craftsman, Mission, and Prairie style homes. I had always heard about it but never been. Above are some of my photos.

2) Two of my photos have been chosen for the Radio Nigel 2006 calendar. My friend Steve runs an online radio station and is going to give photo credit to my husband for one, as a technicality, so that both of my photos can be in the calendar. Yippee! One was of a snowman on the beach at Lake Tahoe, another was of the San Diego skyline. Maybe I'll post them here at a later date.

3) I am listening to John Denver 'Calypso' right now. I am not afraid to declare my worship of someone as 'square' as John Denver. He is like family, I grew up listening to all things John on that 9+ hour drive up to Tahoe every summer and winter.

Three Things Thursday

2005-12-22T07:14:00.000-08:00

1) John Taylor: even today, positively scrumptuous

2) Snow Miser from Rankin Bass 'The Year Without a Santa Claus'. I love the Rankin Bass shows!!

3) George Carlin: so funny, so clever, love him!!

ps-I'm busier than a one-eyed cat watching two mouse holes! Sorry it's so short today! :)

Favorite Site: Stuff on My Cat.com

2005-12-20T12:27:00.000-08:00

Have you guys been to www.stuffonmycat.com? It is my favorite place to visit. Tons of pictures of cats with all kinds of crap their owners have piled onto them/dressed them in.... I LOVE IT!!!!!

Three Things Thursday

2005-12-14T21:36:00.000-08:00

1) I went down to the lake at Lake Tahoe last winter and someone had built this picture perfect snowman. My life is so crazy right now that just looking at the picture makes me calm. I'd love to be there right now.

2) I love to ice skate. I hope I can get my daughter hooked because that's probably the only way I'll ever be able to go. I took her to a mommy and me ice skating class and she was a little weirded out. But she's only 3. We'll try again next year.

3) with all the toys around at Christmas I got to thinking about someone's post that talked about favorite childhood toys. One of my favorites was the TreeTop house, that my parents still keep at the house I grew up in. My room is now the grandkids' room.

Three Things Thursday

2005-12-07T22:21:00.000-08:00

1) I loved Paul Lynde on Hollywood Squares! (I also loved him as Uncle Arthur on Bewitched) He always said funny, racy bitchy things on H'wood Squares. When I was young all I knew was, he was funny. But I recently visited a site that listed some of his zingers, and man was that guy funny:

a) Peter Marshall: In "Alice in Wonderland", who kept crying "I'm late, I'm late?"
Paul Lynde: Alice, and her mother is sick about it.

b) Peter Marshall: When Richard Nixon was Vice-President, he went someplace on a "good will mission," but instead wound up being stoned and shouted at. Where did this take place?
Paul Lynde: Pat's room

c) Peter Marshall: What is a pullet?
Paul Lynde: A little show of affection...

2) My favorite indulgence is a spa pedicure. I can hole up with a trashy rag like Us or Star! magazine, be alone, with only the spa bubble jets massaging my feet (when the pedicurist (?) isn't doing it herself.) My only responsibilities or obligations are to pick out a nail color for my toes. Ah, the sheer fabulous delight of a pedicure.

3) My hairdresser in my hometown gave Kevin Costner that haircut that Costner got so much grief over in "The Bodyguard". He saved a lock of Kev's hair for a client's love struck daughter. (not me, boo hoo) People should've saved their criticism for "The Postman". THAT was craptacular!

damn I loved the 80's!

2005-12-06T20:49:00.000-08:00

Three Things Thursday

2005-11-30T22:24:00.000-08:00

1) my parents still live in the beautiful Spanish home I grew up in. It was built in the 1930's. There are all kinds of beautiful details throughout the home that I never gave much notice when growing up but that I notice now. Like the colorful spanish tile in our entryway and stairs and hallway.

2) When we were traveling back thru my hometown (on our way back home from San Fran) we stopped at the truly fab Bob's Big Boy. Their bleu cheese dressing is the best you will ever have, and in high school we always ordered a side of bleu cheese dressing to dip our fries into. I'm certain that we were the direct impetus for management starting to charge $.50 cents for a side order of dressing.

3) Stupidest thing I ever said: I recently met a neighbor and we were chatting about how a politician lives on our street. I said 'oh yeah, he's an assemblyman right?' and they go 'yeah'. Then I said "California, right?" NO CAMILLE, the assemblyman for NEBRASKA lives on our street. DOY! What a total idot thing to say. This is just one example of how I understand so little of the political system. :-)

San Francisco pics 11/25/05

2005-11-26T21:50:00.000-08:00

Depeche Mode review 11/19/05

2005-11-20T20:20:00.000-08:00

woo hoo! Depeche Mode!! Talk about a group with talent, charisma and staying power. These pics are not mine btw. I found them online and they looked enough like the show I saw last night. My friend had awesome seats. He invited me over his brother. Score! I paid him the face value of the ticket but I know he must've paid a lot, because he bought them after the show had already sold out, and most importantly, our seats were killer! We were at the rail above the floor seating. So I felt like we could see better than people on the floor. It was sweet!

How come in the past I never paid much attention to Martin Gore? Sure I knew which one he was and all. I knew he wrote the majority of their songs and I knew the guy was talented, but wow. I don't even know what to say. The most special moments in the concert, to me, were when I'm Just Happy To Be Here Martin would humbly step forward to sing a few of the songs that he sings (instead of Dave, who btw is still sex on a stick. Purr!) Martin has luscious gold locks that are curly but not too curly, and he wore all black (duh) with a little skirt kilt type thing, black boots with silver buckles all over them, and this part was cool: you know how football players smudge that black stuff under their eyes? Martin had that but in a cool silver sparkly type way. And he had wings. Yep, wings. Black feather wings on his back. As 14,500 screaming and adoring fans screamed as Martin and company did their thing, I couldn't help but think: It's great to be Depeche Mode. You get to do what you love, make a lot of money, wear what you want (when was the last time you went to the office with silver sparkle under your eyes, combat boots and wings on your back?)

Back to Dave Gahan. What is it about these rock stars that have still got it goin' on? I saw Billy Idol earlier this year and Billy had six pack abs that would put Brad Pitt to shame. And he loved loved loved performing, you could tell. He signed anything that people passed forward to him. And Dave Gahan, with his tight little tush (whenever he shook his money maker the arena went WILD) and his abs and his sexy voice....man. Normally, when a man grabs his crotch I find it disgusting. But when Dave Gahan does it, well, I don't seem to mind.

Here to the best of my memory is the set list:

Intro
A Pain That I'm Used To
John The Revelator
A Question Of Time
Policy Of Truth
Precious
Walking In My Shoes
Suffer Well
Damaged People
Home
I Want It All
The Sinner In Me
I Feel You
Behind The Wheel
World In My Eyes
Personal Jesus
Enjoy The Silence
> encore
Somebody
Just Can't Get Enough
Everything Counts
> encore #2
Never Let Me Down Again
Goodnight Lovers

Places I'd Like To Go

2005-11-18T21:50:00.000-08:00

*sigh* someday....

Three Things Thursday

2005-11-15T23:10:00.000-08:00

1) my sister's boyfriend got this picture for me. I don't know if it's a real autograph. I never did try and ask if it was for real, I just thought it was so funny because of the inscription. At the time I was in love (and still am!) with John Taylor of Duran Duran and Rob Lowe. I also loved Rick. So it was very clever that the inscription says "I'll do more for you than John & Rob". It sure would make the story more fun if it turns out to really be his signature. Maybe I'll send it to a Rick S fansite for 'authentification' lol

2) I had leg braces when I was about 12 (?) months old. Apparently that was very common back then for young children to have leg braces. Then one day doctors caught on that the legs would straighten out on their own and the braces were phased out?

3) I was at the Depeche Mode Rose Bowl show back in 1988. It's the concert that was filmed and recorded for their Depeche Mode 101 CD and DVD. It was one of the best concerts ever! Talk about an awesome event...

70's psychedelic memories

2005-11-10T19:55:00.000-08:00

Three Things Thursday

2005-11-10T10:06:00.000-08:00

1) I met Rob Lowe in either '82 or '83. My older sister was attending UCLA, and Rob was there one night speaking about his movie 'The Outsiders', which my girlfriends and I had already viewed religiously in the theaters a bazillion times. After the speaking gig, we saw him on the streets of Westwood Village, and my sister told me and my friend Kim we would clobber ourselves later if we did not at least say hi. So we walked up behind him at a crosswalk while the light was red and said, sheepishly, "um, Rob?" He turned around and we talked to him briefly. He was very nice. Then we went on our separate ways and got to my sister's sorority house and SQUEALED with delight and told all the other girls our story.

2) my brother had peritonitis when his apendix burst at college. The story is funny only because you have to know my mom: she would never let us go to a doctor for anything. You had to be visibly bleeding or something really bad needed to be happening. Maybe she was thrifty, or just had an inherent misstrust of doctors. She wasn't a Christian Scientist or anything. Anyway, my brother kept telling her he was having stomach pains and she was always dismissing it "oh honey it's probably just stress". I mean Total "oh honey everything's fine.." So finally one night my brother was just dying in his dorm and his roommate Chris Whytock drove him to the ER. We gave my mom grief to NO END. Oh mom, our brother almost died, you know, no big deal. She can laugh about it now.

3) Some of my closest friends are friends that I have known almost my whole life. There is something special about someone who knew you back when, shares your childhood memories, knew you through life's major changes, and still knows you now. I hope my daughter will have friends like that. These days everyone is always in transition; people rarely grow up in one neighborhood keeping all the same neighbors. I had the kind of neighborhood where you could walk up the street to so-and-so's house and walk in their back door without knocking. Almost everyone's mom was always home. It was sure a different world.

Happy Birthday Tiger Beat Poster Boy Leif

2005-11-08T09:00:00.000-08:00

Say Cheese!! lol

Let's face it, I'm a doll!

2005-11-06T17:35:00.000-08:00

Do YOU have a doll named after you? :)

Stuff Portrait Friday-Something I Made

2005-11-04T22:19:00.000-08:00

okay this is my pretty lame weak entry for SPF, but hey I'm awake and it's not midnight, so I'll play tonight.

Recently I was in the mood for a mix. You know how you get in the car and you don't want the radio, you don't want a particular album or artist, you just want, well, a MIX. So tonight I burned a mix of 70's and 80's songs. The list is quite eclectic. Here it is:

The Things We Do For Love by 10cc
Biggest Part of Me by Ambrosia
Every Time I Think of You by The Babys
Mr Blue Sky by ELO
Laughter in the Rain by Neil Sedaka
Bad Blood by Neil Sedaka
Just When I Needed You Most by Randy Vanwaldemer
Stop Draggin My Heart Around by Steve Nicks and Tom Petty
You Can't Change That by Raydio
Magic by Pilot
Give a Little Bit by Supertramp
Right By Your Side by Eurythmics
Swamp Thing by The Chameleons UK
In Dulce Decorum by The Damned
Just Got Lucky by JoBoxers
Lined Up by Shriekback
My Spine (Is The Bassline) by Shriekback
Ghost Town by The Specials
Gloria by U2

Anxiety for awhile

2005-11-02T23:07:00.000-08:00

I did not take this picture. I was on a site looking for pretty pictures of homes and saw this one and liked it so much that I thought I should share it. Isn't it lovely.

Back to my point: I was looking for pictures of homes because my latest anxiety in life is related to my house. Now, I feel a little silly complaining considering what my friend KMJ is currently going thru (talk about inconvenience and frustration) But I must vent to anyone who will hear me.

A neighboring home has just been granted (despite mine and my neighbors' vocal opposition) a conditional use permit to convert a quintessential post-war single family residence into a pre-school. We're not talking about an in-home daycare my friends. No no no. They are going to demolish the attached two car garage, leveling it into a blacktop asphalt parking lot with 7 spaces for parents to come and go. 5 staff members and 38 children, some part time (which means there will be more than 38 kids coming and going if some are part time) This will no longer be an owner occupied residence. This will be a full blown commerical building/preschool in a residential neighborhood. Shoot me now. We're talking about the home that abuts my property.

So tomorrow I file my appeal and it will then eventually go to the City Council. In the meantime, please think happy thoughts for me. I can't move. I don't want to move. And even if I did move I'd never be able to sell my house now with this about to happen. So while I don't want to sound selfish, please just pray that the outcome is in my favor. I know that sounds awful but you guys, this is my HOME.

Shaggin' Stormtroopers

2005-10-31T08:12:00.000-08:00

This just makes me laugh

Worth the $10

2005-10-29T21:36:00.000-07:00

I'm not alone in saying that movies today are crap. And when you do find a movie you want to see, you usually just wait for it to come out on video. The theater going experience is not what it used to be, for several reasons. Firstly, movie going patrons are hideous. Secondly, movies aren't that good. Thirdly, it's the way movies are shown. Movies used to be shown at stand alone theaters. You know, the ones where the golden velvet curtains would part, there would be previews, then the curtains would close again before the movie started. There were no ads, no annoying moviegoers, no cell phones, no talking. But I digress...

I went tonight to see 'Good Night and Good Luck', George Clooney's latest, of which George is a co-star, co-writer, and director (Man, too bad the guy has no talent or looks huh). The movie is a lovely lush black and white gem, based on the true story of TV journalist Edward R Murrow. Murrow took on Senator Joseph McCarthy, the guy who was trying to 'out' all the Commies he was certain were infiltrating America. It's a beautifully filmed, perfectly acted, and very thoughtful movie. I loved it!

Also, where I saw the film made all the difference. I saw it in Hillcrest. Hillcrest is a hip, arty, smart community filled with ethnic restaurants, vintage clothing boutiques, coffee bars and bookstores. It's the kind of neighborhood where you'll hear BB King blaring from the stores, not Beyonce. A very intellectual crowd. So seeing a movie there is wonderful, for me, for several reasons: 1) the moviegoers are usually in the age 35 and up crowd. 2) if you do see ads before your movie, they will most likely be for things like Turner Classic Movie Channel. 3) the theaters themselves are referred to as cinemas, not theater #1 or #2. Everyone there is a cineaste, not just some chucklehead.

So in summary, I had a night out, alone! It was a lovely respite, topped off with an enchanting movie, that, imho was well worth the $10.

James

2005-10-29T16:31:00.000-07:00

Nothing to say, really. Just love James Dean.

Three Thing Thursday

2005-10-27T16:56:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's here again!

1) my latest photography assignment to myself is to shoot old retro signs I come across. I want to thank my friend Karen and her friend Sherry because they have inspired me to do this kind of thing. I think Sherry once told Karen to go out and shoot only front doors that day, or something unique like that. I like giving myself an assignment like that because it really makes you head out looking at things in a whole new way. Although, my driving probably ticked a few people off because I was driving slow enough to look at signs and pull over suddenly if I had to. The sign I have (hopefully) uploaded is a sign I found slightly disturbing. Drive in Liquor! Yee Haw! Let's give them credit for not making it a drive THRU Liquor.

2) In my senior year in high school some of the guys decided to steal the statue from Bob's Big Boy and planted 'Bob' in our school quad. The quad was a big open area with grass and a podium and benches that everyone sat on at lunch. Because it was done at Christmastime, the guys even added a white cotton beard to Bob and a large santa hat. I'll see if I can scan in a pic. (It made the yearbook)

3) I like the smell of incense. My husband hates it because he says it reminds him of the dorms in college when people would light it to hide the pot smoke (not him mind you! lol) But I really like the smell and sometimes light some when he's gone at work and my kid is at daycare.

what I do

2005-10-22T20:27:00.000-07:00

"I am accountable for creating a climate of love, peace, joy, beauty, abundance, health, tolerance and order in my home. I am raising responsible citizens of the United States of America. What do you do?"

I got this creed off someone else's site, and I added 'tolerance' because I think it is needed now more than ever. If I had to sum up my own personal belief system in one phrase it would be 'live and let live'. Meaning, as long as what you do doesn't adversely affect others, you're ok in my book. I mean really, isn't that what it's all about? anyway I've drifted off my intended point: the homemaker's creed I saw was cool because I've always thought it rather rude when people start a conversation with the question "What do you do?", as if an occupation was the sum of a person's parts and identity. Now, I know people don't mean to be awful when they ask it. They're probably just curious or trying to strike up conversation. But how about "so, tell me about how you know so-and-so" instead of "What do you do?" It just seems so ghastly personal unless you really identify with your job, which, most people don't. So answering 'stay at home mom' is becoming easier for me. I feel I contribute more as an unemployed mom than I ever did working for a corporation. Hey there's nothing wrong with making a profit. Or providing a service. And I certainly don't claim to be superior to anyone else just because I don't 'work for the man', ha ha. But I'm okay with what I'm doing now. Although, the pay sucks! :) And you moms who work outside the home, don't let anyone make you feel like you're less of a mom for doing it. okay?

Three Thing Thursday

2005-10-20T08:50:00.000-07:00

1) I got mono the summer after 10th grade. My mom was out of town so I got to sleep in their bed all day long, drifting in and out of sleep, watching Flipper and old shows. Then my dad would come home from work and I'd switch over into my own bed. My loyal girlfriends Karen and Laura were the only ones to visit me.

2) I had a purple retainer. Most people had flesh colored ones. But mine was purple. I don't know why?

3) I was born with Amblyopia which is the fancy name for lazy eye. I am legally blind in my left eye still. They corrected it as far as they could when I was in preschool. I had to wear a flesh colored bandage (no cool pirate patch for me, no) over the strong eye, to force the weak eye to get stronger. My mom said it was the hardest thing for her, because it was like intentionally blinding your child. I only got to take it off for baths. I was the cleanest kid on the block. And today I only wear a lens in the strong eye. The eye doctor says it's just easier for my brain to concentrate all the vision to the 'good' eye.

Sea World

2005-10-15T16:54:00.000-07:00

Shiny Shoes

2005-10-08T20:34:00.000-07:00

My husband took this of our daughter. She had sparkly new shoes, and the sun was coming in through our skylight. She stopped right in the beam of sunlight to admire the sparkle.

Dark Side of the Rainbow

2005-10-04T15:39:00.000-07:00

I just finished watching the DVD of The Wizard of Oz, soundless, set to Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon album. While I agree with the attached article (below) that it doesn't perfectly correspond, and, given the band's denial that they composed the album to compliment the movie, I still recommend you give it a view. If only for the serene feeling you get watching a movie with the dialogue tuned out, set to music. The creepiest examples of perfect synchronicity were when the witch first appears, on her bike (as Elvira Gulch). And when the tornado approaches, then Dorothy is hit on the head and falls into her trance as her house is spinning. And when scenes fade into each other, right as the songs are transitioning on the album...Oh man there are so many examples. I hope you get to experience it sometime.

http://www.turnmeondeadman.net/DSotR/Intro.html

Graham Crackers with Frosting

2005-10-02T12:17:00.000-07:00

BEST. TREAT. EVER!

random question of the day

2005-09-29T11:20:00.000-07:00

Where can I find out when to throw out certain foods? I saw a sight called Food Safety Education but it didn't address my main inquiry: a glass jar of spaghetti sauce. I opened it 9/10 and haven't re-opened it since. The 'best before' date is 2/07 but that applies to it on a shelf, unopened. Too bad I am so cheap that these are the things I wonder about. Like I can't just go spend another $2-3 no no no I have to subject myself to microorganisms and illness because I am too thrifty! GAH!

New York Pics

2005-09-20T23:06:00.000-07:00

OHMYGOSH

2005-09-13T15:48:00.000-07:00

This is depressing...she isn't even 19 she's 18. She was born in 1987!!! NINETEEN EIGHTY SEVEN you guys. I am gonna cry: that's the year I friggin' graduated!!

I wanna be Joss Stone!

2005-09-13T15:31:00.000-07:00

okay anyone else a fan? I saw her duet with Rob Thomas recently and have decided that I want to be her. She is this sexy little British 19 year old with an amazing soul voice. She performs barefoot with long flowing bohemian skirts and shakes her sexy little waist like a belly dancer. She is the new face of the Gap, and just generally overall too talented and too pretty. I love her yet hate her for being so damn cool! I wanna be Joss Stone!

hi to KMJ

2005-08-24T20:01:00.000-07:00

well this is my first blog thingy. Have to thank KMJ for getting me started

Stuckinthe80svalleygirl

10 totally bitchin' songs

The Rotating Home

yeah, this girl must've done something right

Three Thing Thursday

Three Thing Thursday

Three Things Thursday

Favorite Site: Stuff on My Cat.com

Three Things Thursday

Three Things Thursday

damn I loved the 80's!

Three Things Thursday

San Francisco pics 11/25/05

Depeche Mode review 11/19/05

Places I'd Like To Go

Three Things Thursday

70's psychedelic memories

Three Things Thursday

Happy Birthday Tiger Beat Poster Boy Leif

Let's face it, I'm a doll!

Stuff Portrait Friday-Something I Made

Anxiety for awhile

Shaggin' Stormtroopers

Worth the $10

James

Three Thing Thursday

what I do

Three Thing Thursday

Sea World

Shiny Shoes

Dark Side of the Rainbow

Graham Crackers with Frosting

random question of the day

New York Pics

OH*MY*GOSH

I wanna be Joss Stone!

hi to KMJ

OHMYGOSH