A little nervous

• What's up folks? Not much here. Unlike my last entry which was filled to the brim with excitement, this is not. Same old crap the last few days. Working both jobs, eating dinner, loading the dishwasher in between. Whoo hoo. I'm tired. Later this week I'll be even more tired. Later this morning is grocery day, like almost every Wednesday morning. Thursday morning I have some boring errands to run, and I'm watching my dad that evening.
• Friday morning Dad has to go to Stanford for a 3 hour pre-op appointment. His surgery is next Thursday April 30th. Finally. I'm nervous about this procedure, but at the same time I'm glad it's being done. Yes it's risky since he has heart/lung issues, but this is one of the best hospitals in the country. I think he's in good hands. Everyone pray for him and send good thoughts his way. I just can't wait until it's over, so I can see the results. Hopefully he'll be walking instead of shuffling, and not being nearly as confused. So like I just said, everyone send him positive thoughts, he needs them. :-)
  

New Kids 4/16

• Hey folks. Boy did I have fun the last five days or so. Let me break it down for you. Wednesday morning I left work early, and went to Millbrae to pick up the wheelchair rental van for the trip. The San Mateo Bridge was still messed up from an accident the day before, so Cathy took the Dumbarton Bridge to get me there instead. The guy from the van company was a few minutes late, and I really had to pee. Eventually he arrived, I got my vehicle and was on my way. I got to Kimmie's house in Lodi around 10:30am, and took a nap in her room while she was doing some last minute packing. Erlene (Kimmie's sister) and Joyce arrived a little after noon. Soon we packed the van and left around 1pm. We stopped by Kimmie's very close friend Kevin's apartment, but he wasn't home. Then we picked up some Weinerschnitzel, ran by Kimmie's apartment to grab her disabled placard, and hopped on the freeway. By 4pm, we were at the fantastic Holiday Inn Express in Clovis. This place was great. Nice beds, big enough bathroom for a wheelchair, pool, jacuzzi, gym with brand new equipment and free breakfast. After Joyce and I took an afternoon swim, we all went to dinner at Red Robin down the street. I had a Maui burger, it was tasty. Once we got back to the hotel room I pretty much passed out. I had been running for 24 hours on about 2 hours of sleep. Kimmie woke me a few hours later so I could use her lift to help her into bed, then I hopped on the train to sleepytown once again.
  
• Thursday we woke up just in time to get Kimmie in her chair and speed on down to breakfast. They have a great spread there. Hard boiled eggs, 3 different types of milk, 2 different types of yogurt, eggs, sausage, biscuits, gravy, bagels, muffins, white/wheat toast, 4 different types of cereal, oatmeal, coffee, apple/orange juice. It was fantastic. Once we were done chowing down we went back upstairs. I took a shower and got ready for the concert, although we were leaving hours later. It takes Kimmie a LONG time to get ready since she has CP and is a paraplegic, so she needs a lot more bathroom availability. To pass the time waiting to leave for the show, I watched lots of Cops on TV and snacked on chips and other stuff. Before we knew it, it was time to leave.
  
• We were about 5 minutes away from the Savemart Center, and we got there way early. There was already a line of about 20 girls there, just waiting to see the boys get out of their tour buses. We were able to get the first spot in line for the 5 Star VIPs, since everyone else seemed to be enthralled watching Jordan Knight leave his vehicle. Once inside we signed in, got our gift bags and were shuttled downstairs. We drank soda and ate some veggies/cheese, then finally got in line to see them. Being the second group, we didn't have long to wait. When we first walked in, I saw Jonathan dropkick Jordan in the throat, and Jordan fell on the floor in the fetal position. It was so funny. A few other girls asked if he was okay, and I walked up and said "Why are you on the floor? Get up, dude." I'm so mean. So I did hug all the guys, though I can't really remember in what order. Then we took pictures. Unfortunately all the girls grabbed a New Kid but me so I was stuck in the middle. Oh well. Kimmie got to have her picture taken separately with the guys, and that made her entire year. They wanted Joyce and I to stay for her picture too, but security kicked us out. Boo. I'll be back in July, so maybe Kimmie and I can get a solo group pic with the guys. That would be nice. After meeting them, we got our tickets and left to get Kimmie's camera (they don't let cameras into the meet & greet, I kept mine in my purse anyway) and the posters she brought. There was quite a bit of confusion when we arrived upstairs, because the table where we left them had vanished. After bothering many security personnel, I had to stake out the guest services desk and wait for the camera. Forever. Even took everyone to find their seats, transferred Kimmie to her seat, stowed away her chair, went back upstairs and the camera still wasn't there until 10 minutes later. Then I found out that security had "confiscated" the posters, because they weren't allowed. During the show we saw several girls who had snuck theirs in. Grrr.
  
• The show itself was off the hook. About 80% of the songs they performed were from the 80s/90s. So awesome. I took a lot of pics, and a little bit of video. There are no real words to describe just how amazing their live shows are, you need to see it for yourself. I know Sandi has. The ending was the best part, we were rained on by tons of confetti. So great. After the show, we hit up Dennys down the street for some post-New Kids grub and went back to the hotel, which was practically next door.
  
• Friday morning we woke up just in time to grab breakfast downstairs again. We headed on back to the room, I showered, and Erlene helped Kimmie pack her stuff to leave. We got out of there before noon, and decided to have lunch at the Cheesecake Factory down the street past the arena. So yummy, especially the banana cream cheesecake. We cruised the mall for about half an hour, then had to gas up and head back to Lodi. Although there was a little traffic, we made it back a little after 5pm. I left by 6pm and made it back to Millbrae a few minutes after 8 (had to gas up before returning it).
  
• So yeah, the trip was fantastic. I'm sure everyone had a great time. I went back to Kimmie's on Saturday/Sunday and we had fun then too. Watched quite a few movies. I left in the late afternoon a few hours earlier than usual. Both of us were tired and after spending 5 days together you start to want some space.
  
• That's about it folks. Back to the old grind here at work again. Off to take a power nap.
  

Yaaaay

• Hey folks. I'm excited. This time tomorrow I'll be asleep in a hotel in Clovis, down the street from the Savemart Center, where we will be meeting New Kids On The Block on Thursday and see them perform. This is my 2nd meet/greet, and my second time seeing them in concert. I'm so stoked. Everything is packed, and Cathy's taking me to get the van in Millbrae right after work. I'm getting off an hour early, and I'm glad since we may have to take an alternate route to the other side of the bay. There was an overturned big rig on the San Mateo Bridge this afternoon and the WB lanes still aren't open, until the bridge is deemed structually sound. So yeah, may have to drive further south and take the Dumbarton Bridge. Fun times.
  
• Anyway, the next five days will be tiring but awesome. About 2-3 days in Fresno, a night at home, and a few days in Lodi. Yay!! I'm going to be taking tons of pictures and some random video. I'm so juiced. Well, for now I think I'll try to get a power nap, I know I won't be sleeping much today until evening, so I can take all the rest I can get.
  

Happy Day After Easter!!

• Word up homies!!! How y'all doin? I'm fantastic. Had a pretty busy weekend. Friday I worked here until 11am, then came home and crashed. Later that evening I hit up Fresh Choice with Michelle, then came home, watched TV and went to bed. Yeah so eventful. Saturday Cathy and I took Dad to the San Francisco Zoo. It was awesome and he had a great time. I took a ton of pictures. I didn't post them all, but I guess I will if you all want to see cute animal pics. That night I stayed at home, and Cathy made bombass chicken tostadas. They were off the hook. I ended up falling asleep watching Mac & Me in my room, and got more than enough sleep.
  
• Easter Sunday was kinda crazy. I got up, made pancakes, showered, took a nice long walk then picked up Dad to take him to Uncle Jim's house for our little Easter family get together. Cathy and Michelle went too, of course. It was so fun seeing our cousins and their kids hunting for eggs, and getting baskets full of goodies. A little bit of candy, mostly toys. Oh yeah, both Michelle and Cathy gave me Easter baskets on Saturday. Full of candy. I'm still working on M&Ms from Valentine's Day, so yeah it'll last me a while. I'll end up taking most of it to my afternoon job eventually. Around mid afternoon we left my uncle's house and went to Sebastopol to see Mom and put flowers on her grave for Easter. She loved Easter and still gave us baskets, even as adults. It's still kinda rough without her but I know she's watching us all the time. We didn't get back until around 7:30pm, and Dad treated me to Jack In The Box. I got a fruit cup and a chicken teriyaki bowl. Yeah I'm supposed to be watching my sodium, but that's probably one of the healthiest menu choices that place has. Oh well.
  
• Later tonight I'm going to grocery shopping since I'll be heading out of town around the time I usually go. I have a feeling I'll be eating a Kashi frozen entree for dinner. It's got more protein, less sodium and is healthier then Lean Cuisine and Healthy Choice, so I guess it's alright. Anyway yeah, the next few days I'm working both jobs, and will be focusing on running errands and packing for later this week. I'm spending 2 nights in Fresno, a night at home (after most of the day on the road), and one more night in Lodi. So yeah, kinda crazy. I tend to thrive on crazy. I'll be twittering most of the time, I'm sure. Except while I'm driving, of course. Okay folks, off to double check my list for my excursion and balance my bank account. Fun times.
  

Fun times ahead

• Word up homies. It's another Friday morning blog here. Not so much that's new. Wednesday morning I grocery shopped, then got my teeth cleaned, then met up with the ex to give him some of his stuff back. Yeah I'm about 3 years late, but whatever. Thursday morning I took Dad to get his echo cardiogram at San Leandro Hospital, my most hated place in the world. I ended up chillin in the lobby watching Rachel Ray since it was cold and raining outside waiting in my car, and I kept having to pee. I picked Dad up later that afternoon and he hung out at my place for the evening. Then I came to work. I'm here for a 12 hour shift since Brad has an eye appointment or something. Four hours of overtime, I'll take it.
  
• I should have a jammin weekend. On Saturday Cathy and I are taking Dad to the San Francisco Zoo. I like it there, it's fun. Dad loves animals so I think he'll enjoy himself. Sunday is Easter, and we're going to Uncle Jim's to watch our little cousins hunt for eggs. I'll be using my camera quite a bit. Oh yes and of course next week is NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK in Fresno!!! We're staying two nights in Clovis, how exciting. I'm just a tad hyper just thinking about it. It's gonna be a blast.
  
• Okay I have about 8 hrs left of my shift, but I'll try to keep myself occupied with surveys, watching TV online, and games on Pogo.com. Fun stuff.
  

Busy and tired

• What's up folks? Not much here. As usual, the middle of the week is pretty boring. Lots of work. Not enough sleep. I'm exhausted, and have too much to do. This includes shopping and getting my teeth cleaned this morning. I'm hoping to get to brush my teeth and put away food before the dentist. I've been up since yesterday afternoon and my teeth are probably kinda gross. Thursday morning Dad has an echocardiogram and I'm babysitting him later that evening. Guess I'll sleep in between. Like I said, my schedule is nuts.
  
• On an awesome note, a week from today I'll be picking up the Wheelchair Getaways van and beginning our journey to Fresno for NKOTB on Thursday the 16th. We're staying 2 nights in Clovis. Haha. Boy it'll be thrilling. I'm a lot less nervous about things this time around since I've done this before. I love me some New Kids, and I love hugging them in person. Oooh wheeee.
  
• Okay I'm going to take a power snooze now. There are actually 2-3 topics I'd love to talk about, but can't for various reasons. Some things you just have to keep to yourself. Okay. toodles.
  

Oh the insanity

• What's up my homies? I'm back. Yeah I didn't blog on Friday morning, but I had good reason. I was sick again. Later on after I got off work I actually went to a doctor (shocking I know), and was diagnosed with pink eye and another sinus infection. I had spent the whole night before with a watery eye that had lots of white/yellow gunk in it. It sucked. Thankfully I do have insurance, plus my work reimburses most of my co-pays. So get this. I'm paying $6 for my doctor visit and $6 total for my eyedrops and pills. Awesome. Guess that $83 a month I pay for Blue Cross pays off.
• Due to my sudden illness, my weekend pretty much sucked. I had planned to spend Friday night with Cathy and Amy in Fresno partying, then driving to Lodi and spending Saturday/Sunday there with Kimmie and her nieces and nephews. My pink eye kinda killed that idea. Instead I did a lot of sleeping and movie watching the whole weekend. Also did plenty of housework to keep myself occupied. Then I got my car detailed, the carpet inside shampooed, and a nice wax. Oh and the nail in my tire finally was removed on Sunday so my air stopped leaking. One weird thing did happen, though. Sunday morning my car stereo decided to stop working completely, and I was bummed. I totally had it planned out in my head that I'd have to call the dealership this morning, and either drop the car off and get a rental (since it's still under warranty), or wait until Friday to fix the problem. Fortunately God is a practical joker, and my stereo started working hours later. Whew, one less thing to stress about.
• This week will be a busy one. This morning Dad has to visit the pulmonologist to get an OK so he can get the operation at Stanford. I'm going to be tired and this guy is kinda rude, so I'm not looking forward to it. I'm also working my second job this afternoon, so I'm going to be kinda tired. Tuesday I'm working both jobs, Wednesday I'm getting off work a bit early so I can get the groceries done then I have a dentist appointment. Gotta get those choppers cleaned. Thursday I'm babysitting Dad, and Friday I may go to the A's game with Sandi. Saturday we might take Dad to the zoo. So yes, this is one crazy week. Next week is the NKOTB concert in Fresno, and we're staying over 2 nights in Clovis. Oh the insanity. Can't wait.
  

i need a nap

• Hey homies. Nothing too thrilling on the home front. Monday I got some sleep, and had to work at Traffic in the afternoon. Took Michelle to Wendys, came home, ate, and could have relaxed had there not been loud children and a loud TV on. Oh well. Worked here later that night. Tuesday morning I had to take Dad to do blood work at his doctor's office, when I should have been asleep. Only got about 3 hours of sleep, and worked at Traffic again in the afternoon. I'm beat.
  
• So yeah I'm tired. I already have plans for this weekend which may include playing laser tag in Sacramento then kicking it at Kimmie's place the rest of the time. We'll see how things go. I've never actually played laser tag, sounds like fun. I'm hoping to get a lot more rest before hand.
  
• I won't be in bed today until 11am at the earliest, because it's grocery day. Hooray. You can sense the excitement, I'm sure. Now let me take a power snooze before I pass out. Oy.
  

nice lazy weekend

• Yay I'm back after a pretty relaxing weekend. Friday morning I went to the gym, then home for some sleep. That night I took Michelle and Dad to dinner at Applebee's, and to Borders to look at books. I picked up some magazines for myself. Saturday I slept in, went for a walk then took Dad to a doctor appointment which ran an hour late. I was not amused. Later that afternoon I took Dad and Michelle shopping with me at Newpark Mall. I got some cute summer outfits from Target and JC Penney, and Dad finally got new blue jeans. Fun times for all. Later that evening I went to dinner at Chevy's with Michelle.
  
• Sunday I slept in again, and went for a nice long walk near the duck pond by my house. Then Cathy and I went for coffee at Starbucks and drive through the Oakland hills. Some crazy old lady almost ran us off the road on Fairmont Drive. Cathy sped up and gave her a piece of her mind. Haha. Later on we did some shopping at Southland and I picked up some fly Cookie Monster New Balance sneakers at Foot Locker. http://tinyurl.com/dcmo7g
• After that we went to Cathy's friend Rose's house for a bit, and watched Food Network. Later I came home and watched TV with Aubri and her kids, then napped and came to work. Oh so exciting. I didn't do much this weekend, and I loved it. I need time to just veg out and do nothing for once. My life is hectic as it is.
• Oh yeah to clear up any confusion, I was listening to a 21 year old aircheck from KYUU last week. Someone taped it off the radio and put it on the internet, commercials and all. So awesome. That station went off air at the end of 88 and became X100. Now it's Movin 99.7, owned by CBS. It was KFRC-FM for years before hand.
  

I'm feeling a lot better

• I'm back. It's Friday, thank God. This week hasn't been that tough, but I welcome weekends. I need time to unwind, catch up on sleep and movies. As we speak I'm listening to a KYUU aircheck from 88.. several hours of hot late 80s jams with Jack In The Box and Mervyns commercials intertwined.. LOL. Summer before 3rd grade, good times. I'm such a radio nerd.
  
• Last few days have been pretty normal. Shopped on Wednesday, worked that night. Babysat Dad earlier, first at my house then his. Watched Three Men And A Little Lady. Haha.
  
• Gee this blog is pretty boring. Oh yes, thank you Sandi and Kimmie for your comments on my last entry. Had a bit of a theological query going on. I'm feeling a lot better now, spiritually. Physically as well. Just a bit of a nagging cough, that's it. Okay I guess that's all I have to talk about. I'm too enthralled in listening to a traffic report including the defunct Embarcadero Freeway. I need a life.
  

kind of theological

• Hey there homies. What's up? Not too much excitement. First, something that's been weighing on me lately. I tried a little meditation while reading Genesis 32, where Jacob is wrestling a man during the night. I'd like to think of that man who blessed Jacob and renamed him Israel as God. Made me think to myself, that I want to know God a lot better. It's like I barely know Him at all. God is all around me but sometimes it feels like no one is there. Does this make sense to anyone? I mean He was there when my mom died, I felt it. Sometimes I just sit there and wish I'd get more of a definite vibe or sign when I need God. I guess I'm kinda talking jibberish. I'm not a seasoned hardcore believer like some people are.
  
• Other than that theological quandry, life is okay. Didn't get much sleep on Monday at all since I had to take Dad to the neurologist. Now he has to get a pulmonary check-up from his primary doctor before he can have the procedure done. We're doing that on Saturday. Oh the joy. Tuesday I worked at Traffic (well Monday I did too). This morning is our errand/grocery day. I hope to be in bed by noon so I can catch up on sleep.
  

Lost my voice

• Hey everyone, I'm back. Yes I'm alive and well. Okay not perfectly well. I caught the flu last week. Had a fever that reached its peak at 102.6 degrees on Friday morning while driving Dad to Stanford for his consult. I got home and eventually took a full dose of Tylenol, passed out for 3 hours and knocked it down. Still had a fever for a day after that, and eventually it went away. Now I just have some major bronchitis/laryngitis. Hacking up green phlegmballs and barely able to converse. It's lovely.
  
• I won't spend too long discussing my weekend. Much of it was a drug induced blur. A lot of relaxing, Beavis and Butthead, good food, rock concert in Modesto on Sunday night, and now I'm at work again. My throat hurts and I may take a brief power snooze for a bit.
  
• This week should be okay for the most part. This morning Dad has a follow up at the neurologist. He probably won't be happy since the procedure hasn't been done, but it's all the red tape, not us. Then I get to work at Traffic in the afternoon. Yay for lack of sleep. Eventually later in the week I'll catch up. Hopefully. Okay now I'm call it quits. Hurts to swallow. Ouchies.
  

Busy week

• Howdy folks. How y'all doing? Not much here to report. Just my midweek "same old crap" blog. Monday I worked both jobs and barely got rest in between. I also didn't get much sleep that morning since I had to run Michelle on an errand. Ugh. I got home that evening and TJ's niece/nephew were there with TJ's mom. Those kids are so freakin loud. No matter how many times you tell them to be quiet, they still have to yell. They also don't go to bed at a decent hour. Oy. Tuesday I kinda got more sleep, still not enough. Worked both jobs, ate dinner and watched TV in between.
  
• Oh other stuff. I bought some fly Nikes from Ross this past weekend, and they're two sizes too small. I had got them off of a rack ziptied together, so I couldn't try them on first. Also I could only base the sizing on a sticker, since there was no way to check the tag inside. I found my receipt, thank God. Gotta return them this weekend. Another fun thing, system crashed at my part time job earlier. We sat around for an hour twiddling our thumbs, it was lovely. Lastly, remember that guy I said yelled at me months ago that works for my network? I met him about an hour ago. He's in town because we're having a special "banquet" tomorrow. Maybe now he'll be nicer to me.
• Okay that's about it. This morning is grocery day. Tomorrow we're getting our taxes done, and I'm watching Dad. More like I'm watching Dad till Cathy gets home then I'm taking a nap. Friday morning Dad has his appointment at Stanford. It's only like 45 minutes away but traffic sucks and he has to be there early. Hooray. Okay, now to eat leftovers and try to stay awake.
  

I got it at Ross!

• Hey there folks. I had a pretty busy weekend. Friday evening I hung out with Fernando and Grace. They treated me to dinner at Black Angus. I tried to pay but they wouldn't let me. I also spent time with Joey and read him bedtime stories. I love that kid.
  
• Saturday morning I got my stuff ready to head to Kimmie's, but before I left I took a nice walk to the duck pond and back. Then I got an oil change at Wheelworks, picked up some coffee, and sped off to Lodi. I met her at Target, and we had fun shopping. I got Scrubs season 7, and a few organic snacks. We were both a little hungry at this point so we had a late lunch at Coco's. The food was great at a fantastic price. Next we went shopping at Marshall's and didn't find much of a selection. We went to some party supply store afterward, and it was kinda lame. We decided to go back into Target for a bit before her bus arrived, and I picked up Mr. Mom on DVD. I love me some Michael Keaton. Once we got home Kimmie subjected me to the original movie production of Romeo And Juliet from 1969. I remember watching it in class as a freshman in high school. Wasn't so bad. Not that exciting either. Haha. Once that was over I ran to California Pizza Kitchen in nearby Stockton to pick up dinner, and Starbucks for coffee. When I got back I put on Breakin 2 : Electric Boogaloo. It was on Comcast On Demand. Cheesiest movie ever, I swear. Kimmie put on Fatal Attraction next, and we watched about half before going to bed.
  
• Both of us awoke around 9am the next morning, since the Dial-A-Crap bus was coming at 11. After I showered and she made coffee, we attempted to watch more of Fatal Attraction, but her DVD player was being stupid. We opted for rockin out to 80s music instead. First stop on our little excursion was the Golden Ox Grill for lunch. Yummy. I was good and had the diet chicken meal with veggies, fruit and cottage cheese. Healthiest thing I ate all weekend. Next we hit up Ross. I found a totally rad pair of retro Nikes, and got em for $24.99. They are so awesome. We then had some time to peruse the 99 Cent Store, although I would have loved to shop there a little longer. I only picked up a few things, like air freshener, snacks, etc. After we got back to her place we finally finished Fatal Attraction. Glenn Close was one scary b**ch. Wow. Then I went to Casa Mexicana to pick up our dinner. I had a chicken burrito, and have one left over for tomorrow. Yum. It was my turn for a movie selection, and I chose Mr. Mom since both of us love that movie. It's so funny. We had about an hour left after that, and Kimmie threw in What's Love Got To Do With It. We watched about half, then I had to leave so I'd get home in time to drop off my stuff and come to work. All in all my weekend was pretty rad. Next weekend should be fun too, maybe just a tad more laid back.
  
• This week I'll be keeping busy, as usual. Tomorrow and Tuesday I'm working both jobs, Wednesday is grocery day, Thursday I'm watching Dad, Friday I'm taking Dad for his consult at Stanford. Fun stuff.
  

Progress

• Word up homie G's. How have you been? You know when I ask that, you CAN leave a response in the comments. Although most of my readers are people I talk to almost everyday, but still. Where was I going with this? As usual, it's the middle of the week and no exciting stuff happening. Tuesday I took Dad to the doctor (well I slept in my car while my sister took him inside), then worked at Traffic later on. Didn't sleep much. Wednesday morning we did the weekly grocery run, and I was in bed before noon. I was so exhausted.
  
• Oh a few things. A few of my Youtube videos had copyrighted music, and now they have no audio. That is until I edit them on Windows Movie Maker and replace the songs, then reupload them. Booo. Johnny, one of my homies from Chabot works for Youtube, maybe he did it. Hahaha. It may be a week or so before I can get that stuff fixed, so sorry bout that. My schedule's crazy. Oh yeah, Dad finally has his consult at Stanford a week from today. We finally got the ball rolling. Now just to get our taxes done. I think H & R Block needs a call, pronto.
• Oh yes, this weekend should be cool. Later today I'm watching Dad then working a 12 hour shift here. Friday I might be going to Fresno with Cathy and Stuart to visit Amy, then going to Lodi early Saturday afternoon to spend the rest of the weekend with Kimmie. So yes I'll be taking my own car, Cathy. Duh. I'm sure I'll have plenty of pics and videos hanging with friends. Yay! I kinda like having the whole weekend off. It's nice. Okay time to go. Gotta pretend to work for 4 more hours.
  
• Oh yeah, I'm on Facebook a little more often now, I just don't add all those stupid applications. Just search for my name. Lisa Sovulewski. I'm also on Twitter like 24-7 now.
  

http://twitter.com/djlisas

Back on the grind

• What's up my homies? Not much here. No important life changing events in the last few days. Technically every action we take every single day affects our lives, but enough philosophical talk. Sunday I slept in until 4pm, then went on a nice walk to the duck pond and back. I watched lots of TV then went to work that night. Monday I worked at Traffic, then came home and made dinner/watched TV. Now I'm here. See? Not much going on.
  
• It's back to the old grind this week. I'm working 54 hours. Right now I'm pretty tired, and I have to interrupt my sleepytime to take Dad to the doctor. Oh well. I can rest on the weekend. Oy.
  
• Sorry this is so short, but I'm sleepy and my creative juices have called it a day. Toodles!
  

I'm baaaack

• Hey there folks! I'm back from my much needed vacation. I wasn't planning on blogging until later tonight, but I'm working an overtime shift and I thought "Oh what the heck?". Okay I'm not going to detail what we did minute by minute, but I'll recall what I can remember without boring you all to death. Cathy and I left our place Sunday morning around 8am. After a few stops to pick up last minute items, we headed out to Fresno and arrived in the late morning. Amy's new place is really nice. We hung out and chatted for an hour or so, and headed on our way. The drive to Anaheim wasn't really bad at all. We got to the hotel before 3pm and got settled in. Cathy and I were both starving so we went to Downtown Disney for some mexican food and shopping. Apparently the sudden climate change did a number on Cathy so we headed back to the hotel. She passed out, and I watched random stuff on TV for hours before falling asleep. Not exactly the way I wanted the first night to pan out, but stuff happens.
  
• Monday morning both of us work up nice and refreshed. My alarm clock was set an hour ahead for some reason, so we were ready to get out the door before 8am. We ate our free breakfast before leaving, of course. It was pretty darn good for being continental. Biscuits/gravy, eggs, oatmeal, orange slices, cereal and toast. No I didn't eat all of that. Opted out on the biscuits/gravy, eggs and cereal. We made it to Universal Studios by 9am and had time to grab coffee and browse a few stores before the park opened. Once we got inside, I took a random survey from a very inquisitive lady, and got a front of the line pass for the studio tour. Awesome. Cathy and I went on the tour first, then did some exploring, rode the Simpsons ride (twice). Second time we rode it some dude next to Cathy kept hecka farting. Hahaha. Oh yeah, we went down to the lower level and rode Jurassic Park. Plus we met Beetlejuice, then Scooby Doo/Shaggy tried to steal our lunch. Professor Klump also took pics with us. Back on the upper level I made Cathy go through the haunted house and she was actually scared. We met Curious George, Shrek and Fiona, Spongebob, Crash Bandicoot, Woody and Winnie Woodpecker, and Fievel from An American Tail. It was so much fun. We browsed Citywalk some more, then headed on back to the hotel and had IHOP for dinner. So nutritional. Oh well. Later on we relaxed our aching legs in the jacuzzi, and watched TV until we fell asleep.
  
• Tuesday was an even better day. Disneyland! We got up early again, ate breakfast and got to the park an hour before it even opened. Eventually we made it inside, and I made a beeline for Goofy. Cathy really had to pee and I forced her to stand in line with me for 10 minutes to get a picture. I'm so mean. Then we got a picture with Goofy's son Max. Throughout the day we covered the whole park. I'm more of a strategical person and used the map as a guide to cover the most ground. I think sometimes I get way too goal oriented and drive some folks insane, like my sister. We did get to see everything. The longest wait for a ride was about 35 minutes, for Indiana Jones. I think we waited about 30 min or so for Splash Mountain. Most of the other rides we practically walked on with no wait. We also got a picture with Mickey Mouse in Toontown. Yes I've met him before, but I love the guy. I did feel bummed about one thing. Early in the day we were going to meet Tinkerbell in Fairy Hollow, but the wait was an hour. We came back at 5pm and realized we had just missed her. I feel guilty for waiting forever for Indiana Jones. If we hadn't, Cathy could have met her. Or if we had read the sign, then we could have made a point to visit earlier, and go on other rides later. Oh well. Later I treated Cathy to Cheesecake Factory because I felt so bad. It was tasty. I was exhausted when we got back to the hotel. I fell asleep before she did, which is rare.
  
• Wednesday morning I woke up kinda sad since it was our last day. I also had quite a bit of packing to do. We checked out and hit the road around 9am. First we drove out to San Bernadino to visit some folks who work with Cathy. They're pretty nice folks. Then we drove an hour back to L.A., and I made an attempt to find Randy's Donuts, home of that giant donut you see in movies, TV shows, etc. After driving through South Central L.A. for 20 minutes or so, we concluded that Randy's is now a Jack In The Box. Either that or Google Maps is very very very wrong. Boo. So we drove to Burbank to take a picture in front of NBC Studios. Yes I'm a nerd like that. This we did accomplish. We drove past Warner Bros Studios next, but there was no access to parking, etc so we moved on to Bob's Big Boy for lunch. The burgers there are to die for. Our tummies were full, and we went further down Riverside Drive to a defunct University Medical Center, known to Scrubs fans as Sacred Heart. Had a nice convo with the security guard, but alas we could not get in. I did see Mike Schwartz AKA Lloyd The Delivery Guy come through the gate in his Range Rover. He's also a producer/writer. How frustrating. Next stop was Paramount Studios on Melrose Ave. No parking anywhere nearby. Cathy was crabby and didn't want to walk 3 blocks, so we just took pics as I was driving by. Last major spot we visited was Hollywood Blvd. It was fun as well. By this time both of us were tired/cranky. We left after an hour or so of browsing up and down the street, and cruised down Sunset. What a fun strip. Took it to Beverly Hills, did a little driving around that neighborhood as well. Then through Bel Air, and eventually to the 405 freeway, where we were stuck in traffic forever.
  
• Well, my trip was totally awesome. I was sad that it was over, but again there's no place like home. Okay I'm just trying to stay awake here at work. Gotta get used to overnights again. Lucky it's daylight savings time and it's nearly 4am already. Whoohooo. I wanna go home and hit the hay. Oh yeah, I already made a 2 part video blog about the trip...
  

Yay!!

• I'm so excited. And I just can't hide it. I'm about to lose control and I think I like it. Woot! Last post before vacation. I won't be blogging again for about a week. I took all five days off from both jobs. Amazing but true. I should have done bible study earlier, reading Numbers 1-7, but thats one of the most boring parts of the Old Testament and I have pre-vacation ADD at the moment. I finished the book of Hebrews in less than 3 days earlier this week so I'd say thats an accomplishment.
  
• The last few days have been okay. Wednesday morning was spent grocery shopping and sitting in a boring meeting with the family attorney. Oh I also had to go to Starbucks twice. First time I went through the drive-thru, I ordered a hot latte, and the one I received was ice cold. I didn't have a chance to call and complain until about 2 hours later. I did receive a new drink and coupons for two free beverages in the future. Like I've said before, when it comes to food/beverages, it never hurts to complain of you've been wronged. Most of the time they'll make it up to you and then some.
• Thursday I woke up in the middle of my sleepy morning to purchase our NKOTB tix, and scan/email some document to one of my bosses. Fun stuff. In the afternoon/evening I hung out with Dad. I was bad and had some Coldstone ice cream, but TJ treated so I couldn't say no. Took forever to get it since I had to order for 4 different people, one of them wanting A LOT of ice cream. Oh well.
  
• I am just so stoked about my vacay, I can't say it enough. Yes there will be a small bit of worry in the back of my head about my dad. I'll try to enjoy myself as much as possible and take tons of pictures and random videos. I can't wait to go on a four day adventure, and spend the next 3-4 days afterward running errands at home, yet still resting in between. Yay!!!
  

Pray for my Dad

• Hey there homie G's. What's crackin? I got a few things going on. Some good. Some bad. Monday morning we took Dad to the neurologist. Dad has spinal fluid pressing his brain against his skull. This could be the cause of his dementia-like behavior, not Alzheimer's. He needs to have surgery pronto, to put in a ventricle shunt. We're waiting on the insurance to approve the procedure, and to find a neurosurgeon who takes Dad's insurance. At the earliest we may get a consult by Friday and maybe can schedule the procedure late next week when I'm back from vacation. Now it's more of a waiting game and I'm spending almost every waking moment worried about Dad. On the plus side, up to 80% of patients show improvement after the shunt, so Dad may get some memory and cognitive function back. Which is awesome.
  
• Other than that scary news, the last few days have been tiring. I got less than 3 hrs of sleep on Monday. Total. Tuesday I slept about 5 hours, give or take. Today I'll be in bed by early afternoon and I'm shooting for 8 hours. We're shopping at both grocery stores and have an appointment with the lawyer in between so lord only knows when I'll be able to hit the hay. I also have to clean the litterbox and start laundry after I put away the groceries. Oh boy.
  
• I'm hecka excited for my vacation next week, yet feel guilty about it. I'm going to be 5-6 hours away having a blast while my dad is at home sick. Kinda selfish. Other people tell me I deserve a vacation, and I have been planning it for almost 4 months. Okay, my boss will be here soon, time to pretend I'm being productive.
  

"Why does Ray look like John Candy?"

• Hey there my buddy old pals. How was your weekend? Mine was pretty fun. Friday morning I went to the gym, and that evening I took Michelle and my dad out for dinner and to Target. I got an awesome Grover puppet. Haha. I worked here later that night, a nice overtime shift. I need the money so I didn't mind.
  
• Saturday I got about 5 hours of sleep, then got up, showered and headed over to Kimmie's house. We had a lot of fun. We watched a few episodes of Forensic Files, then I went to get our dinner from Carls Jr/Green Burrito. When I got back we watched a remake of Sybil. I like the original with Sally Field much better. After that I put on Little Shop Of Horrors, one of my top 5 movies now. Cute little Rick Moranis, I can't help it. Then we watched all of the NKOTB music videos on DVD, including some live tracks. It was pretty fun. Then I made a quick trip to Starbucks for a much needed coffee boost. Later on, then I really totured Kimmie with Sixpack, a movie with Kenny Rogers and a very young Diane Lane. In the middle of the movie we were both hungry again and craving fries/shakes, so I made a 1am random trip to McDonalds. I got a chocolate shake and a snack wrap, she got a vanilla shake and fries. After the Kenny Rogers movie we watched an episode of The Real Ghostbusters (On Demand), and went to bed.
  
• We slept in until about 11am on Sunday. We listened to Howard Jones and other random 80s stuff while getting ready, then took the Dial-A-Crap to Casa Mexicana, a pretty decent restauraunt. They had awesome chips. Only downside is that I still have heartburn almost 12 hours later. I took several sips off of Kimmie's banana margarita, it was yummy. Later on we came back home, and watched the second half of Till Murder Do Us Part, that bad Lifetime movie with Meredith Baxter and Stephen Collins. Then I went for our dinner and coffee. KFC for Kimmmie, Jack In The Crack kids meal for me (applesauce instead of fries), and more Starbucks. After the overdramatized TV movie, there wasn't enough time for me to put on another movie, so we watched Highway To Heaven. Awesomeness. I had a pretty fun weekend I must say.
  
• It's another busy week for me. Today Dad has an appt at the neurologist, then I get to go home for about 3 hours of sleep. Gotta be up at 1:30pm for my afternoon job. I'll probably catch up on sleep by Wednesday, so I'm okay. After all, this time next week I'll be snoozing in our hotel room in Anaheim. I can't wait!