dear kiki...

A little bit strange...

I finally got some sleep!!!  About 7 1/2 hours...sigh, feels soooo much better!!!!!!!!! I would have gotten more had I not been inspired and started/completed the layout below. That's been part of the problem this week with lack of sleep, I keep having ideas and inspiration and I can't sleep with them twirling through my head even when I step away from the computer and try! I used the fabulous Chris Ford's free Rock Star kit in the layout and was partially inspired by her page. It's so strange where I get inspiration, I was buying some music on Wednesday and flipped through a music mag, I can't even remember which one and saw a photo for just a few seconds and then couldn't get my idea out of my head. Well now it's out. Hope you dig it, it was fun!

I'm soooooo excited because tonight I am going to see one of my oldest friends play From Monument to Masses at Slims tonight! If your local come on out, it's going to ROCK! Francis is an AMAZING drummer, seriously he's awesome!!! Yeah a nice size group is coming to the show so it's going to ROCK, I know I said that before but seriously it is!

OK it was the results show last night for So you think you can dance I was a little surprised with the judges decision. The two I thought should go home were Angela and Demetri, they just can't keep up technique and ability wise with the other dancers. The judges did send Angela home but sent Mousa home instead of Demetri. I don't really get it, I feel like Mousa has been able to keep up and make progress and he's freaking AWESOME! I've never seen someone move like that, it's crazy, it's like he's weightless or something!!! Not only did he rock it in the performance but he rocked his solo big time. Well they were a bit off in the choreography in the together parts of their dance, which was probably Mousa since Natalie is really good and trained. I just still thought Demetri hasn't done that well and his solo was terrible. I don't think Demetri has made all that much progress throughout the show either. Either way, next week is going to be rough because all of the dancer's left are freaking amazingly talented!! I'm excited for the show next week...that's sad, but whatever, I love dance OK!!!

Yes, it's been a crazy sleepless week that is finally over and I'm so pumped for tonight's show, so thanks for taking a peek at my new layout and have an awesome weekend! Ciao!

Nerdy Girl...

UGH! Today has sucked! I wrote this long blog post and it got erased, stop effing up Typepad!!!! Just when your about to hit save BAM!!!  GONE!!! I'm sooo sleepy, I would love to get more than 5 hours of sleep one night this week and now I feel like I'm getting sick! Whilst be drugging self tonight and downing massive amounts of vitamin C and Emergen-C! OK now for the nerdy part, I have two things I want(ed) to blog about today. Most of you know I'm an ex-dancer and I must admit I watch Fox's So you think you can dance yeah I know, sigh... I can't help it, I love watching dance, choreography and the dancer's progression even though it's a cheesy reality TV show! Last nights show was really good, most of the couples rocked it and one in particular captured my heart!

Ivan and Allison danced Contemporary or Modern to Annie Lenox's Why and it completely BLEW me away!!!! This kid Ivan is 18 years old people and a Hip Hop dancer and he moved like he had been doing it for years! Seriously those who don't know a lot about dance, the technique for Contemporary/Modern takes years and years to achieve, it's extremely difficult and about as different from Hip Hop as humanly possible! Not to take anything away from Allison because she is an absolute dream, perfection, every week I delight in watching her dance. Together last night they practically made me cry. Yeah remember how the title of this post is nerdy girl, yeah this is more of the nerdy! I can't help it, dance moves me, music makes me want to move, it stirs something inside me. The choreography by Tyce Diorio was truly inspired, so strong, so amazing and they FREAKING BLEW IT UP AND NAILED IT! Ivan is one talented 18 year old, I never thought he could move like that from his first performance on the show, he just made my heart leap with joy. His foot work and lines were right on, I couldn't believe it, sigh...ugh it was just breathtaking. I can't wait to see what these dancers do next. Honestly many of the couples were amazing last night, so many of them are exploding with talent, this particular piece with these two dancers just completely stirred me! You go IVAN, man! I mean look at Demetri, he has had a lot of training, albeit in ballroom but his foot work and movement was so terrible last night, he should have been able to perform better. Then little Ivan comes out and just FREAKING ROCKS IT! That's the best! Sigh...

Next up I went to Barnes and Noble after work yesterday and picked up the very last issue they had of the June/July Legacy Magazine and I finally got to see my two layouts in print! I'm sooo excited! Sometimes it doesn't seem real until you actually see it in print and they look great! I love these two layouts! So check it out if you get the chance! I also want to post my layout that came out in the Simple Scrapbooks Scrapbooking Celebrations Idea Book a while ago. This is another one of my favorite layouts about....YOU GUESSED IT...My little Sister! What can I say??? I love the girl!!! I love this layout because it was such an awesome sister love moment and it made my day at the time. Every time I look at it I can't help but giggle and grin in delight and think how lucky I am to have her in my life! Hope you like it and have a good Thursday, at least it's almost Friday!!!

Simply Graphic & Legacy...

Yeah so I've been totally slacking on posting my recent publications.  Oops!  Better late than never right??  This came out a while ago, here is the link it's a book from Memory Makers Magazine Simply Graphic. I have to say this is a great book, so many talented people are in this and it's really inspiring and different than most idea books. This is the first and last time one of my paper layouts will be published, since they are really old at this point.  My layout in this book is actually a digi/paper combo.  I designed the paper in Photoshop CS and printed it out on 12x12 cardstock and added stuff. It's about one of my favorite spots in Italy the Cinque Terre, Dennise and I had a blast there! Really, one of the most amazingly beautiful places I've ever seen! You should check it out because it's a great book but you get to see my layout too.

I also have two layouts in the current issue of Legacy Magazine the June/July issue. I haven't gotten a chance to pick this up and see it yet, hopefully soon! Not only is this one of my favorite magazines but two of my favorite layouts are in it and guess who they feature??? I know, I know, this is a tough one, who could it be, who could it be.................................drum roll......................................
MY SISTER!!!!!!!!!! Imagine that!!! What can I say, I love the girl! Like that's a big secret! Wow man, I just started a sentence with the word, like, I need help! I think my recent sleep deprivation is going to my head and sucking vocabulary out of my brain! At least it's Wednesday which means the week is almost over and the weekend is almost here. I digress...again...Checks it out if you want, it's cool to have two layouts in one magazine especially with sweet pictures of my little sis who I am missing dearly at the moment! You can pick it up at Barnes and Noble, Borders and the like. I have now officially updated everyone on my current publications! YAY! Now to try and salvage some brain cells! Peace out!

Self Portrait As...

Vulnerability. It's Tuesday,  Self Portrait Challenge day. The theme for July, Self Portrait as (fill in the blank) almost too many possibilities. There is something inherently vulnerable about self portraiture and the person/image you want to portray. I had to protect myself from so many things from such a young age that I developed unhealthy emotional detachment. I thought if I remained untouched, alone, an island from all others then no one could hurt me again. Clearly a childish perception of love, life and self preservation. I still struggle with the instinct to push anyone away who threatens my emotional well being. There are parts of me I don't want anyone to see. Things I don't want anyone to know. Most of all I'm afraid to allow people to affect me and for them to realize that they can. Thanks for looking and please look at the other Self Portraits here.

Fiesta!

I did some vegan cooking/baking this weekend for my friend Z's back in the bay Fiesta! Wow it was way too much fun! I made the Baked bean dip from La Dolce Vegan that everyone loves from the last party and an appropriately titled fiesta salad also from La Dolce Vegan that was really yummy.  I don't have pictures of those two. I have already posted a picture of the bean dip. I forgot to take a picture of the pasta salad.  To my left is a silly little pic of me enjoying one of the Lemon Gem Cupcakes I made from Vegan with a Vengeance.  OMG those are sooooo freaking delicious!!!  I also made Big Gigantoid Crunchy Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies from Vegan with a Vengeance.  So freaking Yummy!!  Everybody LOVED everything! Check out all the yummy photos, we had fun documenting the Vegan yumminess! I did kind of mess up the cupcakes, I guess I had too much batter. The Lemon Gem Cupcakes are supposed to not go all the way to the top of the muffin cup, so that the frosting sits on top all within the cup. I just used all of the batter anyway, so when I frosted them they overflowed but they were still delicious, just slightly less beautiful. The best part of the Fiesta besides the food was getting to hang out with everybody at the same time. We had way too much fun, margaritas, wine, chips and salsa! A few of us hardcore peeps went on to The Easy in Oakland after wards, just a short walk from Z's pad. Yeah we had a good time.  Sigh... too bad it's Monday and back to work but I am excited to workout because I think I drank about 5 million calories on Saturday, damn margaritas!  Enjoy the pics, drool if you must, check out one of the cookbooks and you too can make amazing Vegan Food and dazzle your friends and family!  Also you can lick the batter, Vegan baking kicks ass like that!  Ciao!

mmmmmm, yummy cupcakes!

Warning, you may want to lick your computer screen... Not a good idea!

PB Oatmeal Cookies!

hee hee, fun with silly vegan food pictures!

Margaritas and Vegan Cookies, what could be better???

I made this...

I can't believe it's Thursday, I can't believe it's July, how did that happen??  I was up a wee bit too late last night making this page, it was worth it though.  I love the feeling of making a layout and I hate not finishing when I'm really close!  Pirates of the Caribbean comes out tomorrow but I doubt I'll have time to see it this weekend, maybe Sunday.  I'm super excited about it though, I luved the first one and like every other girl in America am in love with Johnny Depp, have been since, hmmm 21 jump street???  Sigh... I Freaking LOVE Pirates!!!  I even got one of those dorky hats in Disneyland that says Pirate Kiki, sad but true!  Hopefully it will cheer me up after the Superman Returns disappointment.  The more I think about it, the less I like the movie, hmph.  I hate it when that happens!

I really need to run downstairs and get a soy chai latte right now, mmmm soy chai, precious caffeine goodness!!!  Damn am I ever caffeine dependent, well I gotta do what I gotta do!  I love that everywhere has soy now, well almost everywhere.  Had to make a big trip to the Whole Foods yesterday, was out of almost everything, note to self: Grocery Shopping after a long holiday BAD idea!  It was the worst I have seen that place, it took forever!!!  On the bright side I bought yummy pineapple, corn, bananas, hummus, green beans and apples!  There was a lot more but that's what I'm drooling thinking about right now.  I'm going to make the tofu tereyaki I made last week again tonight but instead of just green beans I'm going to add mushrooms, zucchini and maybe water chestnuts mix in some Chinese with the Japanese.  I forgot to make the brown rice ahead of time though, I'm trying to prepare more things ahead of time so that it's not as complicated to make dinner when I get home.  Since I'm starving and exhausted most of the time.  I did bake 4 potatoes last night so that I could take one to work for lunch and have some ready for dinner for those really tired nights.  Now I just have to start making rice/couscous etc on Sundays for the week.  Now I'm hungry.  OK now I'm off to get my chai and eat my breakfast of bagel and PB, my favorite!  Hope you like the new page, it's kinda messy/crazy but I'm digging it.  Ciao!

It's Wed already!

Ciao!  Wow what a crazy week or so, I can't believe the week is almost over again!  Bizarre having Tuesday off.  My weekend was awesome, maybe a little too awesome ;)  Very impressed with myself as Friday I did a 1 hour cycle class followed by a 1 hour yoga class, um yes it's true, admire me!  Worked out Monday & Tuesday as well, yesterday's workout was a tough one an hour and a half cardio/weights circuit!  Felt good though.  I ate massive amounts of delish sushi this weekend, mmmm sushi, I can't get enough, it's like crack, I want to eat it every day!!!  Went on a impromptu pub crawl thing Monday night which was a fun way to check out several bars in SF since we tend to migrate towards our tried and true favorites like the Fly.  Some QT time with the ladies.  Lots to do this week, I need to organize all my new pictures and send to friends, edit and play with them, post some, scrap, cook, bake, shop, decorate and help girl Z prepare for her fiesta on Saturday which will be a blast.  Work on planning two trips and wedding preparations for my best friend.  It felt like I had all of this time to plan and now October is right around the corner, how did that happen???  Been really digging this band The French Kicks I get into moods where I want to listen to one band over and over for awhile, right now their it.  Check it out, rocks!  Keep finding some cool new music and want to buy it but trying to restrain self, I'll introduce it slowly. 

Oh saw Superman returns on...Sunday, I liked it and I was dissapointed by it, I mean there were flaws, poor characterization being one of them, some story stuff but hey it could have been worse.  I felt it was overall enjoyable and enough so that I will purchase it on DVD.  I am a big dork though, so some may not feel the same way.  Heavily influenced by the first two Superman films, very nostalgic feel which I think I liked, probably because it brought back memories of watching the Original Superman films as a kid with my little brother.  It was strange though that they went with the re-create the first two movies angle, I mean I knew it was coming, I know far too many comic book people not to have been bombarded with screen shots and the like, but not sure how it played out.  Love Kate Bosworth, so beautiful, great Lois but like I said the characters were a bit cardboard, lacking, hoping that will be resolved in the next film since they will be able to skip all of the recap, intro stuff.  I felt that they really missed the mark on seeing Superman as a person, with a personality at all, his lonleyness, alienation (cute huh?).  I mean like most comic book movies there was a lot of stuff, fast, leaving the characters as an after thought.  I think it would have been a much stronger film had they spent more time on the characters and relationships but hey that's just me.  Yeah I think I liked X3 more than Superman, and it was disapointing compared to 2.  Hee hee, Cyclops was with Lois!  The special effects were cool, haven't seen Superman like that oh and there was a Spiderman 3 preview which was effing AWESOME!!!!  I can't WAIT for that movie, that is going to kick some serious ARSE!!!!  Man it looks GREAT!  Oh and one other thing, man were the people in the theater ANNOYING!!  Seriously, I thought I was going to scream, not the kids the ADULTS!!!!  So loud, talking through the whole thing, like 7 cell phones went off and people ANSWERED THEM and had conversations!  People yelled crap, the guy next to me was a total moron and wreaked of booze, really wreaked, SO irritating!  WHY PEOPLE???  Is it so difficult to behave like a normal adult human being???  Damn!  I wanted to grab one of the cell phones someone was using and throw it at their big fat stupid head!  This is why I watch movies at home!

I had several adults acting like idiots run ins this weekend.  On BART yesterday on my way back to Oakland, these two guys had to be in their mid to late 40's are wasted wearing Oakland A's gear and screaming and cussing because the train kept stopping and moving slow.  They were pounding the roof of the train, screaming "God damn it fucking move, go now, move now, now, now, Come on"  Over and over again and punching the air.  There were several kids in the car, it was ridiculous.  I wanted to tell them to shut it and watch their mouths but that probably would have made it worse.  I do stupid things when I drink too much too but I don't act like a complete asshole on BART!  I mean at what point do you grow and up and realize hey I'm 45 years old, maybe I should think about my life and priorities??  I mean seriously it was sad, pathetic.  You expect that kind of thing from 18 or 19 year old's but from grown men??  Well apparently not all that grown.  Lame!

Well enough about idiots, I could go on about that forever!!!  Enjoy your day!  Ciao!