that rosebud girl

night on the town.

fun stuff … and pictures!

after work, a few of us went to monkey bar last night … it was marc’s (almost) last night at the bee … well, technically, he works on sunday, but only until 9 and he can’t go out then. so it was off to the bar for him.

they had newcastle on tap. holy crap! do you know how long it’s been since i’ve drank a newcastle not in a bottle?!

anyhow, it was general good times. jane was with us. afterward, jane left, but marc, tim, melody and i all went to my place … and hung out til 3:30 a.m. drinking some wine.

so here are pictures. they are kind of crappy because, well, my camera phone kind of sucks. i photoshopped them as best as i can, but well, this is what happens when you don’t have a real camera.

random photo of jane. i love jane. she is like my second mom. she feeds me at work all the time. poison of choice? tanqueray and tonic. whoo.

jane and tim.

marc, the man of the hour. i will so miss him at work. he’s freaking cool.

?Ǭ†

melody in mid-conversation.

?Ǭ†

mel and i with drinks (there really isn’t a time we don’t have drinks in our hands when we go out).

?Ǭ†

tim and me. such a nice boy. mel and i are still trying to get him to step up from bud light though. at least we weaned him off the diet coke chaser …

ah, another great friday. at least i didn’t wake up completely jacked up this morning.

?Ǭ†

but ed is at homecoming at usc right now. i am so jealous.

good times.

dinner party = pretty big success.

(phew. i haven’t thrown a bad party yet. i’m keeping my fingers crossed.)

it was tons of fun. i even managed to get all the food on the table more or less on time. and i have enough leftovers to last me a week.

pretty much everyone i invited came: jimmy (w/his woman angela), tim, melody, john and nick. only robert never showed, but apparently no one could get a hold of him! and ahmed came over after work to add more general craziness into the conversation.?

so there was lots of eating, drinking (we pretty much inhaled two bottles of wine and like, eight bottles of fat tire) and general merriment … and lots of crazy stories that i can’t really repeat in this space. but good times is what it’s all about. and there were plenty of those.

everyone (except jimmy and angela) stayed until 2:30 in the morning … holy crap. i had never even realized what time it was when everyone left.

now, the cleanup begins. ugh. but the fun was well worth it!

also, i got another parking ticket today. ergh. 70 bucks worth of parking tickets the last couple of days. i need to break down and get myself a permit. grrrrr.

but, on the other hand, i went and had dim sum with ed at some chinese joint near our house. and i got through the entire lunch using chopsticks and never had to ask for a fork. ah, the small victories in life.

mark!

i love when cool things happen out of the blue.

last night, i was just chillin’ out, watching me some tv with ed around 10:30 or 11-ish, when the phone rings. i run to my room, look at caller id and see that it’s mark. holy crap.

mark and i have been playing phone tag pretty much since july. he left me a message on my birthday singing “happy birthday” to me … it was my personal singing telegram. it rocked. but he is the hardest person on earth to get a hold of. like i said, phone tag since july. and he doesn’t have e-mail. mark, you sooooooooo need e-mail!

but anyhow, he calls. and i’m not busy at all. so i pick up and we end up talking for at least an hour and a half.

i miss marky mark and the funky lunch.

but so we’re talking and going way, way, way, way, way back into the way-back machine. he was telling me that he had met up with some people i introduced him to our freshman year at SC and that this one dude was like, “you know, you look familiar.” and mark says, “yeah, i think i know you.” and the dude is like, “oh my god. jenn javier. she’s the one who introduced us.” and they laugh.

according to mark, i am the tie that links everyone together. because people have actually e-mailed me, inquiring about other people because they’ve found reference to said people on my website. weird. i knew that site would be useful for something!

so he jokes that instead of it being six degrees of kevin bacon, it should be six degrees of me. hahahahaha. i got a kick out of that. but it’s crazy the people you run into.

i haven’t seen that boy in forever! i miss him. he said he’d go home to petaluma this christmas and maybe we’d meet up. we were talking about going to the Castro in San Francisco and partying and having a general good time. he did say he’s always wanted to take me to a gay club. i think that would be hella fun. the beauty of it is that you’re surrounded by boys who can dance but won’t hit on you.?you can’t ask for a better combo.?and i’ve never gone out and partied with mark. it would be hilarious, since he was always the good conscience in college. mark with a drink? ludicrous! but i know it happens — i’d probably see it far more often if i was in LA and hitting up west hollywood with him. ha! but i hope i see him in december. and that we’re not playing ridiculous phone tag again!

thanks, mark, for being the highlight of my wednesday!

randomness.

today was cold. and kinda rainy. it’s been a long time since i’ve experienced either of those weather-related things. but i guess it finally had to be fall. boo.

i was thinking last week, as i walked out the house to run errands … damn, i’m in shorts. and it’s really nice outside. and it’s mid-october. back east, it would have already gotten wicked cold. oh, well. i suppose the warmth had to end sometime.

i also got a parking ticket today. 35 bucks! crap. that’s even more expensive than an L.A. parking ticket, and they’re parking nazis down there. bastards. i know i should get a street permit, but i’m too lazy.

my house is a freaking disaster. boxes and furniture everywhere. but i put some stuff on sale … and people at work are interested … so hopefully i come into a little bit of cash.

i need to clean up some things, though. i’m having a dinner party tomorrow. i think it’ll be sweet. i hope everyone i invited comes. i hope they like the food (though i’ve never had a bad dinner party … but that’s also an ego thing).

thank goodness for a relatively early night … i think i pulled some sort of muscle in dance class, so i had to leave early again … ergh. but i have tons of web projects i need to get cracking on. ugh. too much crap to do … and i’m too lazy to do it. i need a clone. or about five. yeah. five would work out quite well.

i also realize i have regular readers. weird. i never thought i’d have regulars! so, um, hi to all the regulars out there.

okay, enough of my randomness. i just felt compelled to type mindlessly …

the dangers of goalposts.

i saw this on the wire while at work today:

Student dies after goal post pulled down at Minnesota-Morris college football game
MORRIS, Minn. ?¢‚Ǩ‚Äù A 20-year-old University of Minnesota-Morris student was killed Saturday when football fans rushed onto the field and pulled down a goal post at the end of the school?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s homecoming game.

Richard Thomas Rose, of Benton City, Wash., was pronounced dead at a hospital after attempts to revive him on the field failed, school officials said. No one else was hurt.

Minnesota-Morris Chancellor Sam Schuman said it was not immediately clear how Rose died. “I think the presumption is that (his) death was caused by a blow from the goal post,” he said.

oy. what a crappy way to go. poor kid.

i’ve witnessed/almost got engulfed in a couple of on-field celebrations.

the first was the usc-ucla game in 1999, my junior year. usc broke the eight-year losing streak to fucla. i saw the crowd storm the field (i was a student reporter; i didn’t participate). man, it was a mob scene. maureen told me she was pepper-sprayed on the shoulder by the LAPD. one kid i knew from the paper (he was a spectator) had an air cast on his ankle and nearly got stampeded on. luckily, he was unhurt and was eventually put back on his feet.

the second was a couple of years ago at delaware, at the I-AA national semifinal at delaware stadium — still the best post-game mini-riot i have ever witnessed. in that incident, some kid decided he was going to try and jump out of the stands onto the goalpost … about a 10-foot jump. kid jumps, puts his hands out — and slams into the crossbar and falls to the ground. idiot. other students got beat up by delaware state police. it was nuts. they never were able to bring down the goalposts, either — they just tilted them a little.

this only serves to illustrate why students should be banned from taking down the goalposts. it’s hazardous to your health. it looks cool and fun and all … until someone dies.

besides, what would you do with the posts anyway? you can’t exactly chop them up and display them in your dorm room …

the power of booze.

my life is … better.

nothing a little general drunkeness and a $21 bar tab (cheap … far less than i thought) can’t cure.

ed has been here three days. woohoo. he also got an introduction to some of the people i hang out with and an introduction to the golden bear. no insanity to report. it was pretty low-key.

we had no softball game yesterday because of a forfeit. bummer. but we did present kepley with his trophy, and as predicted, he was giddy as an 8-year-old girl. luckily, he was smart enough to keep it in a plastic bag and give it to a semi-sober tom so that beer wouldn’t get spilled on it.

melody nearly knocked over a full glass of beer while we were trying to thumb wrestle. don’t ask. i lost.

i also lost a second drinkoff. to tim, of all people. crap. i challenged his manhood … and then wound up being humiliated. i’m pretty pathetic that way.

we are supposed to have all our furniture from delaware delivered saturday morning. woohoo! i can finally do a little decorating …

that’s pretty much it. at least things are a little better.

thinking.

my smile is a lie,
a ruse, a ploy
to make you believe
my life’s full of joy

but my heart aches, it breaks
oh, how it grieves
it longs for the day
it gets a reprieve

*sigh*

why are things so complicated?

holy crapola!

oh my goodness … the greatest college football game i have ever watched just came to pass …

AND USC WON!!!!

holy crap!

it was seriously the most ridiculous ending i have ever seen. usc-notre dame was being billed as the game of the century and damn, did it live up to the hype.

i didn’t get to watch it with tim, like i had originally intended, but that was probably a good thing since i might have killed him by accident by halftime. but it was unbelievable.

i had to leave the house for work midway through the fourth, but saw the entire end sequence here at work, surrounded by co-workers. jane said they would win. i wasn’t so sure.

on dwayne jarrett’s 40-something yard catch on fourth down, i literally jumped out of my seat and ran like a little girl out of the newsroom. people in news saw me and started laughing. i didn’t care.

we were all huddled around the tv when we thought the game ended the first time. and then there was the fluke play where matt leinart fumbled. if that hadn’t happened, usc would have lost. but then he scored the touchdown.

ridiculous!

the ending spawned a boatload of phone calls. robert called me 10 seconds after the game ended. i called tim. i called ed — who said it was the best $450 he ever spent. he was also sitting in that end zone where the final touchdown happened. i called scott, who was driving to uc davis and hadn’t actually watched the crazy end sequence.

i am speechless. that was by far the best game i have ever watched.

hats off to usc and notre dame. i felt kind of bad for the irish. it’s a pretty crappy way to lose a game. but usc lives again.

now i’m trying to decompress so that i can actually function at work …

it’s a lyrical blog … enjoy!

i’ve got a hunger, twisting my stomach into knots
that my tongue has tied off
my brain’s repeating
if you’ve got an impulse, let it out
but they never make it past my mouth …

our youth is fleeting
old age is just around the bend
and i can’t wait to go gray
i’ll sit and wonder
of every love that could have been
if only i’d thought of something charming to say
– death cab for cutie, “the sound of settling”

—

the more i know, the less i understand
all the things i thought i figured out, i have to learn again …

there are people in your life who’ve come and gone
they let you down, you know they hurt your pride
you better put it all behind you babe, ’cause life goes on
you keep carrying that anger, it’ll eat you up inside
– don henley, “the heart of the matter”

—

am?i more than you bargained for yet
i’ve been dying to tell you anything you want to hear
’cause that’s just who?i am this week
lie in the grass, next to the mausoleum
i’m just a notch in your bedpost
but you’re just a line in a songdrop a heart, break a name
we’re always sleeping in, and sleeping for the wrong teamwe’re going down, down in an earlier round
and sugar, we’re going down swinging
i’ll be your number one with a bullet
a?loaded God complex, cock it and pull it
– fall out boy, “sugar, we’re goin’ down”

– fall out boy, “sugar, we’re goin’ down”—my song is love
my song is love, unknown
i’m on fire for you, clearly
you don’t have to be alone
you don’t have to be on your own

and i’m not gonna take it back
and i’m not gonna say i don’t mean that
you’re the target that i’m aiming at
but?i’m nothing on my own
gotta get that message home

and i’m not gonna stand and wait
not gonna leave it til it’s much too late
on a platform, i’m gonna stand and say
that i’m nothing on my own
and i love you, please come home
– coldplay, “a message”

—

no particular thread connects all four songs. no particular reason i’m attached to any of the above lyrics. just been listening to a lot of music lately. music makes me think.

first song just kicks ass. death cab for cutie is cool. this song is in heavy rotation in my ipod. it’s a great song, fairly deep, great to just have it roll around in your head.

second song is one i’ve always liked; it’s also one of pete’s favorite songs (and the story of his life at one point … he used to have it as an away message). we always thought it was funny that we liked all sorts of random music … and don henley. not connected to any of the other stuff we listed to at all.

third song is also in heavy ipod rotation. it rocks. i found the lyrics to the whole song and just thought, “holy cow, that is one messed up song!” but i like songs about fairly messed up things/lives/etc. the line ” ’cause that’s just who i am this week” is also so true. i can totally relate to that.

fourth song is simply awesome. perhaps one of my favorite coldplay songs ever. simple melody and lyrics. i desperately want to learn it on the guitar. i would love to do the song live. i especially like those last two lines: “i’m nothing on my own/and i love you, please come home.”

its message is simple: no one should have to be alone. this is why we have friends. family. and some of us are lucky enough to have an other half.

i miss my other half.

*sigh*

all this music makes me wish i could be a songwriter. i used to be a decent poet. all inspiration has left me. i don’t think i’ve written anything since my freshman year of college. i was prolific in high school. why is it we produce our best work when our lives are all screwed up? i think being tormented is the first requisite to being a really good artist.

i also recently found out that an old friend of mine just cut an album. self-produced using some mac software. i took a listen and liked it. so i bought the album. can’t wait to hear the whole thing. it’s pretty folksy and mellow. but i’m super jealous because i would love to do something like that. where’s the band that ed wanted to put together?

*double sigh*

today, i decided i was going to go on a massive bike ride. i got on the parkway and wimped out at the 3.5 mile mark and turned back. but instead of going back the same way i came, i decided i would take a spur and go in the direction of old sac. so i wound up doing maybe 12 miles anyway. sheesh. oh well. it wasn’t bad.

just me and my music and nature. very therapeutic. and at least it wasn’t wicked hot.

and now, back to more music …

hmmm.

every new beginning is just some other beginning’s end …

don’t know why that particular lyric has been kicking around my head lately. i’ve always liked that line, though. it’s very true.

maybe i am thinking about it because i just had a birthday. 25 was a pretty kickass year. lots of good things happened. i got a hubby. i got a car. i got a new job. i’ve got lots of friends. lots of things to do. lots of new places i got to see.

i only hope 26 is even half as good as 25 was.

maybe i am thinking about this because i realize i have been in this fair town of sacramento for almost exactly three months. that blows me away. it’s been … quite a time. i never imagined being here in the first place. i now can’t think of any place i’d rather be. truly great town, truly great people, truly great just about everything.

i used to hate change, used to be scared of it, used to hate having to uproot and move and start all over again. but i’m glad i’m here. a lot of people made the transition easier. i’m seriously having a great time. everyone was asking me on saturday how i liked being back in california and how i liked sacramento, and all i could do was smile. because things are good here. good friends, good times (even while stumbling around slightly tanked!), good memories so far.

i only hope ed will like this town as much as i do.

maybe i am thinking about this because ed will officially be here. no turning back now. the movers have come and cleaned our old house out. the house will officially exchange hands tomorrow. and in a week, ed will be here. and we’ll take it from there.

and so it goes.

here’s to hoping for more good times and smooth sailing …