| Six hour drive, a hundred bees dead. |
[Mar. 22nd, 2008|09:09 pm] |
So I was away in the bay for five days. Didn't check the internet at ALL. Wasn't even curious. Well, I get back and it appears that practically nothing has happened on yon interwebs. I should take these net-less breaks more often. It was easier than I suspected to just get away from the useless cycle of reflexively checking the same sites every hour. Talk about an unhealthy routine.
I preferred reading John McEnroe's "You Cannot Be Serious"
( Five day review: solitude, handstands, and a tremendous medical disaster )
More on rehearsals and the new kitchen in a few days. Mom's visiting for a bit and helping us settle in to the new cleaned-up domicile. I've still got some heavy mopping to do but we're almost done. |
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| Rib Day |
[Sep. 29th, 2007|05:07 pm] |
[13:02] Esco> WHOO
[13:03] Esco> engineering is the sex.
[13:03] Antigone_Jones> all that math
[13:03] * Esco has to towel off his extremities
[13:03] Antigone_Jones> those algorithms
[13:03] Antigone_Jones> the nerve wrecking calculations
[13:03] Esco> yes nothing gets a man going like a lengthy equation
Ho ho ho. Class was awesome, as usual. 11 people(??). For some reason a few regulars with perfect attendance didn't show up today. Very peculiar. Considering what we learned this weekend they're in for a surprise next time. Moo hoo, a ha ha ha.
-Few hundred dollars later, both front axles, front brakes, e-brake and tires fixed (plus oil change). What a relief to get that mess overwith. Both axles were practically destroyed and the brakes were disintegrating. Quite a bit of satisfaction being able to afford the repairs, I was never able to with my van. THE TIMES THEY CHANGE
-Swung by Best Buy and got the re-released 4-disc 2003 Pride GP. Now I have every GP except Open-Weight 2006, which isn't out yet. Holy shit do I miss Pride. Six months already since the last event! Uuuuugh.
What a Saturday.
[14:21] Esco> ribs
[14:21] Esco> ree-yibs
[14:22] Esco> you know you guys ought to order some ribs
[14:22] p_d> i can't eat any
[14:22] p_d> ;_;
[14:22] Esco> you can boil a rib until the meat disintegrates
[14:23] Esco> but more people in the world need to get they rib on
[14:23] p_d> i haven't got my rib on in a month
Moral: Get your rib on. Thanks and god bless |
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| Tife and Limes: Jump They Say |
[Aug. 14th, 2007|01:05 am] |
Haven't blooged for ages. Nothing eventful happened until the weekend anyway.
( Vegan Plate, Dusty Carpets, El Guapo )
Mailing stickers is fun. It's going over pretty well. I've been including fortunes with them too. Ho ho ho. GET YOU SOME STICKERS. |
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| Thanksgiving Not-As-Mega-As-Last-Time Pictoral Thanksgivingish what what |
[Nov. 26th, 2006|11:58 pm] |
After that bleedin' long-as-the-nine-hells drive I didn't have the strumgth to get out of bed until about four. Late-night pasta in the works right now. Also macula-deep in my old In Living Color/Sifl & Olly tapes. I have like eight of the damn things. MAN they did a lot of Ike Turner sketches.
Thanksgiving was laid-back and coooooool. It was one of the smallest gatherings since there were some uncles absent. Things carried on in true Leong fashion, which is constant munching lathered with a fine coat of dry wit.
( Pictures, hoo-ha, whatnot, so-on and so-forth. Hyphen bonanza. ) |
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| "A Jose Canseco bat? Tell me you didn't pay money for this!" |
[Oct. 6th, 2006|12:34 am] |
So wednesday I'm at work with nary a smile having crossed my heavily-jowled face. Then out of nowhere I get a phone message from PD. Excerpt: "Hey man thought I'd give you a call. I can't just sit here while you're SAD. And HORNY. :(((((" Then I started laughing so hard I hit my head on the table and pounded it righteously. Thanks, Gene.
Ham-baa-gaa. (boiling!)
Monday had a killer hamburger steak at this mom and pop Korean place. Sam noted that Korean restaurants are pretty consistent in quality, which I agree with. Haven't had a great hamburger steak since Japan. Sat or Sun we ate at this BULLSHIT Thai place in San Gabriel that was allegedly good four years ago but was probably the worst dining experience I've had in years. Waiters came back four times asking what we ordered. My duck was a colossal fucking rip-off. Then Andrew got a fucking PRICE TAG cooked inside his food. I was outraged but Andrew paid it no mind as in boarding school he used to find NAILS and other junk in his lunches. At least I got free ice cream when I screamed that they were dissing Andrew on his birthday of all days, not like it really was. Today we ate at a Thai place we hadn't been to in ages which turned out to be a new restaurant sans Asian Elvis impersonator. Had a hilarious waitress that I dubbed "Susan" (turned out to be Michelle). She was hilarious, although if I lived with her I'd probably kill her. That chicken was BAD ASS. I would've taken a picture if my camera hadn't died. I tell you those Mexicans in the kitchen sure could cook Thai food. That's not a joke, I saw inside the kitchen when I came out of the bathroom.
GOF 2006
The hell they're gonna say how this fight is won! BRING ON THE JEEPS, GOD DAMN YOU!
This awesome shirt has reminded me how good I look in green. I used to wear green all the damn time in high school but I've predominantly been the bluest dude the past few years. Situation must be remedied.
Clanging balls in heaven I haven't had time to play my DS in weeks. Last time I played it I got through the first two missions in StarFox while on the can. Speaking of StarFox, I played the original a few days ago and had a freaking ball. It was a seriously incredible piece of work for its time. Got my ass tore up in the Space Armada as usual.
All the time outside of shooting has been Andrew asleep for the remainder of the day and me watching Sam play Brothers In Arms: Earned In Blood. I didn't enjoy the original, but EIB is great fun. Particularly co-op missions. My only wish is that you'd get larger squads to fend off, like a Saving Private Ryan type scenario where you have a few groups to command and have to survive getting run over by an entire company or something. Oh and holy crap the guns are innacurate. That may make it more realistic, but I've seen Sam empty a Thompson clip at three bunched up Nazis and seeing only one get dropped. I'm spoiled in this case because I'm too used to every bullet in Call of Duty 2 being perfectly spot-on. Now THAT'S a game that needed some Killzone-esque Assault multiplayer modes. Online multiplayer only my ass.
There really ought to be a World War I FPS on one of the new platforms. We have more than enough WWII games. Really dirty and visceral trench warfare as the opening level. Imagine running around a trench with explosions and confusion all around, then peeking over the edge to see a ginormous sherry-colored cloud slowly crawling toward you. "GAS! GAS! GET YOUR MASKS ON!" your sergeant yells as soldiers start shouting and panicking and even scrambling out of the trench into enemy mortar fire. It'd be GREAT! GREAT I tell you. Maybe. The potential for portraying WWI is untapped outside of all the Red Baron games. |
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| Hungry like the AROOO |
[Aug. 25th, 2006|08:05 pm] |
[17:53] pencils_down> whattup man
[17:58] Esco> so tired
[17:58] Esco> busy man this guy who is me
[17:59] pencils_down> ahhh
[18:00] Esco> it's about time too
[18:00] Esco> I haven't been this driven in a long time
Nor have I been this excited. Last night I must've said "This (FANCY PLANS/PANTS TO MATCH) is gonna be FUCKIN' GREAT" out loud no less than a dozen times. I was thinking about it a few days ago and I seriously don't get excited for ANYTHING anymore. Upcoming movies, trips, holidays, whatever. I just wait for it and go with the flow. I rarely get worked up for much at all. "Hmm. Leg's bleeding. Fancy that. Guess I'll clean it up." and so on.
But I am EXCITED! WHOO! *chest slap* Been rehearsals four days a week, man. GO TIME LIKE WHOA and I am a serious effin' dude.
Tuesday I hit a gymnastics floor for the first time in about an entire year. I still have all my shit. Took a little bit to do the gainer full, but after that everything was e-z. Cartwheel to full twist, cheat 900, alla that mess. My butterfly twist has a bit less height since I rarely worked it in my living room but all the flips are intact. Yay. Funny thing: I expected to be HELLA sore on Wednesday. Sometimes after a hiatus when you get into a solid groove and don't feel the pain, you'll get smacked by full-body pain spikes the day after. However, Wednesday I didn't feel anything but some stiffness in my upper back from doing falls. But then on Thursday my thighs hurt like a BITCH. All the adductors were like "HEY WHAT'S UP". I find that peculiar because I didn't strain that area or do anything that required more than usual use.
Thursday I realized I am going to get absolutely wrecked doing some of these fight scenes. Can't wait! Got a healthy bump on my elbow.
Afterward Sam dragged us to Bossa Nova in Hollywood. Pros: Great food, great bread. Cons: It's in fucking Hollywood (no parking, insane vagrants, loudmouth industry cocksuckers). But if I had a ride I'd totally eat there again, they had tonnes of bomb shit in the menu. Much difficulty in deciding.
The Sam, The Andrew
I did my best to fit in with the crowd while we waited for the food.
"So anyway Gillian and Bradley decided to install these absolutely fabulous burgundy curtains in the executive office then I called my stylist Tomas to discuss the new ensemble I'm bringing to the chalet in Aspen this weekend do you like my new $400 shirt I bought it on a whim while perusing the boutique with Chazarade and Butterick I think it really brings out my newly-installed cheekbones oh listen do you want to go golfing with Mackenzie and Serbia-Montenegro this weekend afterward we're going to snort cocaine off the navels of some $5,000 hookers" *was then swiftly killed by Sam*
I fuckin' HATE the city. But I do love bread, and breaded chicken. So it balanced out.
edit: ( too-long-spur-of-the-moment-cuz-the-Fonz-did-it innernut quiz ) |
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| Tife and Limes: Gezora Gezora Gezora |
[May. 23rd, 2006|06:30 am] |
| [ | Tags | | | drawing, food, internet, movies | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  kind of like cheese fries | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Led Zeppelin - Stairway to Heaven (Live @ Earl's Court) | ] |
First off I have to post this again (thanks Steve) and you ALL HAVE TO WATCH IT. Ernesto Hoost on "Gaki no Tsukai". The Japanese variety shows I saw while in Japan were pretty terrible, but this one is just a BRILLIANT idea. The best part about it is how the people in the background barely look up at all. Couldn't do this in an American library. My favorite segment is the balloon, watching him flail because he doesn't know when it'll go. And the LAST guy, that's the real gut-buster.
My hometown is fighting off Wal-Mart. I love this quote in particular; "I don't want to have anything ghetto around me and my family". Damn straight. I can't believe how big Hercules has become. Even when I was a kid I was never quite aware of "old Hercules" and everything else on the west side of San Pablo Ave. Place is ginormous now, 24,000 people?? I sure liked it better when it was half that.
And now, because I admire his determination for self-improvement even in the face of setbacks and temptation in the form of wonderfully greasy guilt-ridden foods (not to mention his angry writing is a lot like mine), I present:
Onimaru
I've had this in mind since he posted his picture a month or two ago (insisting it was a terrible idea). I gave him fancy motorcycle-ish gloves because I think they suit him better than boxing gloves.
Been doing a lot of extra drawing. I finally finished the pencils for my Scary Go Round contest entry. I had a nonsensical idea involving Shelley and Fallon (<3). I don't care about winning anything, I just wanted to get my idea on paper. This is seriously the first time I've drawn a comic page spread since early high school. WHY I MIGHT START UP A WEBCOMIC if I knew how to write good character stories :|
Drawing is so fun :D
Sue and I are starting a Gezora craze. Love Gezora, won't you?
;_;
Sue also sent me this crazy-as-the-nine-hells idea, apparently an exclusive in Japan:
That is a PIZZA CRUST. I swear I don't know WHAT to think. I've been trying to imagine what it's like. Sausage and all that crap crammed in there? Jesus.
RockeTT in the channel also introduced me to the Luther Burger. I don't know what the hell to make of this thing either.
Sleep schedule's fucked up again. It's just as well, what with this terribly crapulent spring heat. It's only May and I already have to use my big ass fan for circulation. The past two days we had a bit of rain and it was so gloriously cold last night but it was just a tragically brief respite. TRAGIC!
Bought a new domain, a personal one to link all my personal projects and shit from. Stepping up from Geocities. Got a 20GB/mo hosting plan, probably take a day or two to set up an index page. Gonna be table-tastic and gif-intensive! Wooray!
Oh MAN. So much to do in this life and so little time with which to do it. Of course it's not always about time, the feeling has to be right. The motivation has to be there. That's what's so difficult about life, having the situation right with all the pieces at your disposal. Hmmmnnnrrrrghhhble. |
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| TWO DOLLA! YOU BUY IT! |
[Jan. 26th, 2006|04:12 pm] |
| [ | Tags | | | daily, food, school | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  bready | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Azumanga Daioh - Episode 22 | ] |
I'm getting rid of stuff and trying to raise some funds. Lots of cheap DVDs and books and games and stuff on eBay. YOU BUY IT! Three dozen auctions, ends in 5 days. Took me like two and a half hours to do all that listing.
I'm on the tail end of this blasted cold. I feel pretty good other than that I still have to cough up lung salsa every half hour or so and my head is a bit fuzzy. When I get sick I'm a pretty useless dude. I just want to get better as quick as possible so I stay asleep most of the time and eat like mad. The past week sure flew by faster since it was mostly a haze. I'm kinda pissed because I missed out on some work opportunities while I was sick, but there's not much I can do about that now. OH well. Less backward, more forward! Hup three and such!
Over my downtime I wrote a lot of emails and got back in contact with a few people I haven't talked to in forever, most notably some folks from high school. Left Ken Yee and Ryan Ko some notes, compared Sabrina to a benevolent space laser, got a message back from Bill Tam (who actually really wasn't around when Matt and I went by his house so I could give him a Jushin Liger t-shirt), and hollered at a few other folks. So at least there was a bit of a silver lining over the past couple days.
Today it was actually pretty bleeding nice outside and I was feeling well enough so I went on a healthy jaunt and bought a ton of groceries. My head's pinging a bit so I'm probably gonna knock out right after I finish this entry.
TOTALLY worth the walk. Damn. I tell you.
Man I just had a crazy idea. I've still got a full bottle of sesame oil, I'm gonna try lightly frying some pitas in it and see how that turns out. Or maybe I could get some roast beef action going on and figure out a marinade.
Mm. There's just something totally comforting about a giant stack of bread. Love it.
...
That stack of pitas looks like a Like-Like. MY SHIELD! NUUUUUUUUUUU |
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| Thanksgiving Mega-Weekend Pictoral Part 2 of 3 |
[Nov. 28th, 2005|12:28 pm] |
And to follow:
Dad, Lian, and I at the new Japanese place in Hercules on Wednesday night. It's a very nice looking place and extremely busy, probably the nicest restaurant in Hercules (not that there was much competition). Their chicken katsu was effing bland though.
( (Click here for the food and a huge-eyed baby) ) |
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| Tife and Limes: "THAT'S THE SEY-CUND TAHM YEW'VE CAWLED ME THAYT." |
[Oct. 22nd, 2005|09:56 pm] |
Cast Manned the Luxurious is going to be the WORST. Enough said! But it was great hanging out with my sister after work (we weren't working in the same unit during the day). The other great thing was I ran into three of the cats from my core group in THAT OTHER MOVIE (SHH) as well as about a dozen background I recognized. I think I'll make an entry soon about the glamorous experience that is background work. It's hiiii-larious.
I spent about 3/4 of the time playing my NEO GEO POCKET :O which I kept with me in my NEO GEO POCKET CARRYING CASE that holds NINE GAMES. I could whip that sucker out on a moment's notice, and did often. THIS THING PAYS FOR ITSELF EXACTLY WHAT I BOUGHT IT FOR HOLY SHIT AWESOME MORE RUN-ON SENTENCES etc. I put about ten hours on Cardfighter's Clash, and now I'm screwed. I have to buy another system and a link cable because I need someone to battle.
My sister brought along her PSP and Lumines. She got a lot of "IS THAT A PSP DURR GIRLS PLAY VIDEO GAMES WHUB" from the men. Lumines is par excellance, I would get enthralled a-like so. The PSP looks spectacular, but it's not the most comfortable thing to hold for extended periods and the speakers SUCK. If I had the money I'd probably get a DS because Nintendo's been releasing some really innovative titles for it. I want to know what all the Phoenix Wright/Trauma Center/Meteos/Metroid Pinball is about.
My NGPC has been spreading joy and harmony near and far:
Top left: Who needs food when you've got NGPC?
(Sue KILLED that chow mein, she's one hardcore eater I tell you)
Top right: NGPC is endorsed by tri-lingual Indonesians who owned a Genesis!
Bottom: The family that plays together... never orders food.
Summer's over. It's dark, cold and actually rained Monday and Tuesday. Of course, it's not so cold yet that I need anything more than a light jacket. Canadians far and wide are laughing at our poor excuse for cold weather. At least I can finally sleep under piles and piles of heavy blankets at night, which is totally the way to go (I'D RATHER IT WAS A LAYER OF CURVACEOUS SHORT-HAIRED BRUNETTE, DAMN YOU GOD). But the past six months still held some great times, so here's a tribute to the finest summer moments- minus the grand amount of hours I spent buck-ass naked in the sweltering heat (oo er)
P.S. Thai food.
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| Tife and Limes: Waiting on Gals Fighters |
[Oct. 12th, 2005|05:42 pm] |
| [ | Tags | | | daily, food, herv, work | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  parmesan chicken-deficient | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Ridge Racer - Rhythm Shift | ] |
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) 90negroes, wetsprocket, pointman_4000, and kenshiro made entries about my NGPC pictoral guide :DDD
But to set the record straight, let it be known that AJ INVENTED LINKING TO OTHER PEOPLES' LIVEJOURNALS.
Yesterday I went out between errands to pick up some groceries around 2 pm and all the kids were walking home from elementary school. It's possibly just my area, but I didn't see a single kid that wasn't cantaloupe shaped. I have seen the future, and it is round, whiny, and out of breath. I blame Yu-Gi-Oh.
To add to my ever-increasing Chineseitude, I bought a 3-cup OMG KAWAII rice maker. It makes perfect restaurant-texture rice, I always had trouble with bigger 6-cup ones either coming out too wet or too dry (or only the rice in the middle being good). Now all I need is a machine that churns out cashew chicken. The more I look at this thing, the more I think it really needs two big eyes on the front:
My script went to shit after I worked on THAT MOVIE (secret), but after straightening myself out through the post-work haze I FINALLY settled on an idea that utilizes both my 'original' concept (psh) and is actually fun to write. My original storyline and it's following six incarnations were a fucking HORRID LOAD to churn through and ultimately the motivations didn't fit what I was going for action-wise. I'm not much of a writer as it is, but when it doesn't flow EVERYTHING gets fucked up. But now I've returned to a semi-serious ludicrousness that was my staple in Damn 3 and pieces are fitting together with (relative) ease. I'm going to go to Jerry's tonight for dinner and get away from my computer for awhile to work on it. As useful and necessary as my pc is, it can be the most distracting and debilitating of all things. Sorry Andrew, I fell off the wagon and onto my head for a bit there.
Okay, three minutes after I wrote the above paragraph, ANDREW CALLS and says he's in the area. Fuckin' weird. We walked out to Jerry's and had the greasiest of pizzas and flung ideas back and forth. Strange coincidence, and probably the most productive night I've had in weeks.
Pioneers of the future!
After we got back I handed the NGPC with Sonic Pocket Adventure to Andrew as I typed up all my notes from the evening. I just wanted Andrew to beat Knuckles for me, and he ends up getting to the final level in an audible flurry of "NOOOOs/Fuck!!/You ASSHOLE"s (combined with the telltale *ching* of all the rings flying away from Sonic) which was pretty fucking entertaining to watch.
Man I can't WAIT to finish my NGPC article. Been a great week. |
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| Tife and Limes: Jiggy Frogman Cheeseburger Adderley |
[Sep. 25th, 2005|09:56 pm] |
My legs and hips (particularly my flexors: the psoas and iliacus) have been feeling like raw hamburger the past two days so I guess I overdid the workout a little. I like doing standing kips a lot (from a standing position, jumping backward onto your hands and folding your body on the ground, then springing back up to your feet- aka Law's d+3+4, otherwise called a frogman) because it's a full-body exercise that requires a lot of coordination. I try to do them with as little prep (arm-swing/leg bend) as possible and try to land standing up, not crouching. Even doing it repeatedly, I can freak out a bit from time to time and just land in a headstand.
I bought a Sourdough Bacon Cheeseburger yesterday. The bread is far superior to the Sourdough Jack but overall it wasn't worth what I paid and was quite underwhelming. I've been steering away from fast food for the past few months. When you're poor the value menu can be an excellent way to get dinner for $3, but I've become much less interested for some reason. I'm also trying to cut down on soda (HA HA right) and see how long I last. Man, every time I go to the Vallarta and see three 12-packs of orange soda for $10, IT'S SO HARD TO RESIST
As irrelevant as it was, I miss Crystal Pepsi. I say this at least twice a year. That glistening crap was DELICIOUS. One of the few good points of the middle school years.
meetjamesensor and I had a conversation a few days ago about jazz after he read my entry about Bebel Gilberto. He's big on Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Cannonball Adderley, João Gilberto, Stan Getz, John Coltrane. THIS MAKES BOING TEN TIMES COOLER THAN THE REST OF YOU UNCULTURED HEATHENS despite his entries embellishing his own gas. I still think he should change his nick to Cognoscenti. Eh? EHH?
I was late in the game to Winamp TV (like Blitz) and now I'm watching streams pretty regularly. I need a good news/Star Trek/Daily Show/Conan stream if anyone can hook me up. The majority of streams I find are full, but I've been able to watch Daria almost all the time I access it. I enjoyed Daria in high school but didn't watch it that regularly. I've seen almost the whole run now and I love it, it really got more interesting as it went on DARIA'S GOT A BOYFRIEND WHAT. It's expertly cynical and smartly written with the exception of the musical episode which was TERRIBLE. Jane Lane (hey look Emma Peel) is the kind of sharp & witty artist girl I go for- not like I've run into any single ones EVER ;_;
Hot Aunt Amy. I may have found my personal equivalent to Rad McAwesome's Thriftie
Hot adult Daria from Write Where It Hurts, who isn't much different from Amy (intelligent & classy brunettes what)
Besides being entertaining, the music really brings me back. White Zombie's Thunder Kiss '65, Garbage, Wyclef, Rammstein, Lauryn Hill, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Fatboy Slim, Beastie Boys, all the good shit that was hot in high school.
I can't believe people used to say 'jiggy'. JIGGY. What a stupid goddamn word. That's a slap-in-the-mouth offense these days. I also hate it when people compulsively use "you know" when they're talking, since most of the time they're droning on about shit you can't relate to at ALL:
"Yeah you know I mean if I had gotten her pregnant you know then I you know would've missed the bus to the methadone clinic you know"
"NO, I DON'T KNOW! JESUS ON A MAUVE POGO-STICK CHRIST, SHUT UP!"
Reminder: Buy new shoes. |
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| And now for something more positive |
[Sep. 23rd, 2005|05:08 pm] |
| [ | Tags | | | daily, food, work | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  kinda sore, pretty nice | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Tekken 5 - Formless Like Water | ] |
I've got this full-body soreness from exercising yesterday. It's nice because I can feel that I'm alive, yes aliiive, IT'S ALIIIIIIVE /Wilder
When you work on a set, there are frantic and stressed-out people running around called the P.A.s (production assistants). PAs are an integral part of a production, they're the go-fers that make sure everything is ready and prepared. They spend most of their time running around yelling at people ("Why isn't his makeup done yet? 15 minute warning on the three bodyguards! He needs it for the next shot where's Brenda fuck nevermind I'll go over myself WE'RE ROLLING QUIET PLEASE HOLD THE WORK")and saying "Go to 2" on their walkie-talkies (The first 2-3 channels are typically assigned to PA use). PAs are hilarious in that they can be your best friend and your worst enemy in the same day. If you come in late, no matter what the reason, you'll probably get an angry lecture about how you've ruined the shoot by putting everybody behind (which is usually never the case unless you're one of the main stars)- but then at the end of the day they're friendly again because they get to go home and it's like the lecture never happened. Most can seem downright bi-polar while doing their jobs. Really good PAs are amazing to watch, they're like organizational speed blurs.
Here's Bald Ass Esco an hour early to work last Friday. I was either pondering the temporary nature of life or I was envisioning a short-haired brunette in a cream colored shirt, tan cargo pants, sneakers and a white hoodie. What is it with girls in white hoodies? Or short-haired brunettes for that matter?
On set you spend the vast majority of your time waiting or standing around while the crew does their thing (lighting the shot, building or dismantling stuff, moving cameras) or as the director blocks or rehearses and bickers with the DP (director of photography) and the other cameramen. Our motto was "Hurry up and wait!" because the day usually started with everyone frantically getting ready so they could sit around in holding until called (and when called you'd sit around on set for hours but had to stay close by just in case). Hollywood productions can seem INCREDIBLY inefficient and 14 hour days are not uncommon. It's a weird process but it works most of the time, somehow.
Despite all the waiting, I knew that it'd all be over before I knew it. Even while standing around I tried to take it in as much as I could... and sure enough, once my last day came, it was abrupt and anti-climactic. I stuck around with my friends for a few hours on set and had lunch with them before finally taking off. It's so funny how fast the times go by when you're busy- and a month later you're thinking "Wasn't I just on set the other day running my ass off?" Over so quick.
One day when I finished early I went back to makeup and there were no other actors around, so I bellowed, "SOMEONE HELP CLEAN ME! I AM FILTHY- AND NOT EVEN IN AN INTERESTING SEXUAL CONTEXT!" That got a big laugh out of the makeup staff.
What the fuck is up with the weather?? On Monday at about 2 AM I heard a loud "WHOOSH" then a freak downpour drenched everything and stopped after five minutes. Since when is it monsoon season in the valley? Tuesday it was dark, cold, and overcast, I heard it rained more around Pasadena. And then Wednesday the sun was out full blast like it was the middle of summer again. Same thing Thursday. And today it's breezy and cloudy again. *confused*
Last weekend zgescuro and Andrew and I went out for Chinese food. I am continually surprising people ("You eat Chinese food now?!") because I hated Chinese food for the longest time (I blame the forced Chinese family banquets as a child) but this year I started going out for it pretty regularly. Maybe it has something to do with that whole "getting into your culture as you get older" thing, or perhaps I'm settling into my role as an adult and letting go of old biases. However, Italian is still by far my favorite and has no risk of being usurped.
I ate three pizzas in the last four days and only gained 2 pounds. I bet after I go to the bathroom it'll be gone. Maybe 135-140 really is my ideal weight? Bleh :|
Okay, time to fiddle with some html. |
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| PANCAKES |
[Aug. 25th, 2005|01:18 pm] |
fucking PANCAKES
fucking SYRUP
YOU HEARD ME. |
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| As I slowly inherit my mother's legacy of dough |
[Aug. 5th, 2005|08:40 pm] |
| [ | Tags | | | family, food | ] |
| [ | mood |
| | pretty dang good, man. | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Cibo Matto - Sugar Water | ] |
Hey Dad, Matt, Aunt Sarah, all you folks good at vectors/vertices, try this game. It's a hoot.
I am very much enjoying learning to cook new things. Well, just those things that involve frying or boiling because I can't afford gas for the oven. The latest thing I've learned is Chinese flatbread, the name in Mandarin I have forgotten. It is typically a greasy, chewy, salty bread with embedded green onions. My mom made it for me as I grew up (sans onions, I abhor onions) and I love this stuff to DEATH. She'll make a stack about six inches high and I'd just kill that plate quick as I could and have bread leaking out of all the orifices in my face. Not a pretty sight, but I was HAPPY.
My mom makes it look SO EASY. I've got a long way to go
The flavor primarily comes from heavy quantities of sesame oil that are worked into the dough. Unfortunately I had no prior experience with dough, it's simple enough in explanation but takes years and years of practice to get right. I'm still working on kneading and getting the texture the way I like it. (These pictures are 2 months old because I meant to make this post shortly after I returned from Canada)
All the necessary components for a bready good time: Burner, rolling pin, non-stick pan, spatula, mixing bowl, unbleached flour, sesame oil, measuring cup, salt, plate, and a dishrag to expedite cleaning.
Jazz CDs for ambiance, charming yellow man drinking root beer are optional
...but recommended ;)
Sure that pile of stuff looks bothersome, but the point is to enjoy the process of cooking. When I first started out, since I had no idea what in high hell I needed to do with the dough other than what my mom told me over the phone, I think it took me close to two hours to make two cups worth of bread. Over the next two attempts I've knocked that down to around 50-60 minutes. It's still turning out much much drier than my mom made it, but I've got plenty of ambition (and dough and sesame oil) to improve. Dough continues to puzzle me for the moment.
There's always a significant amount of pride that goes into cooking from scratch. Thankfully I haven't had any total disasters yet. So as I heartily chew my dusty, crunchy, flaky as the desert playa bread, I at least know that I MADE IT. And I'll be DAMNED if I'm going to throw away this pile of effort- for now I must improve, yes, improoooooove. *Crunch crunch crunch*
I like food. Food is good. (that's a song I can't remember) |
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| My Dad is Spock |
[Jul. 27th, 2005|09:20 pm] |
| [ | Tags | | | family, food, movies | ] |
| [ | mood |
| | like a low barry sax | ] |
| [ | music |
| | The Fixx - One Thing Leads To Another | ] |
So a week after I made an entry about cooking and non-stick pans, a mystery package arrived at my door. Lo! It's from my father. And I beheld a pan... not just a pan, but a Calphalon Professional Nonstick II Limited Edition 10-Inch Omelet Pan.
Features include:
- Oven safe to 450 degrees; lifetime warranty
- Two-layer advanced nonstick interior; anodized for hardness
- Thick-bottomed for rapid, even heating; double-riveted, stainless-steel handles
- Made of heavy-gauge aluminum for superior heat conductivity without hot spots or warping
;_;
I love my dad. (Hugs pan) CHRIST this thing is HEAVY
Let's talk about my dad! My dad is basically Spock, only he's loosened up considerably (especially in the past 5 years). It seems as time goes on that he's enjoying himself more and more. And it's ABOUT TIME, I say what. He's traveling more often, and smiles about 400% more than he used to. This is quite a welcome change from the image of the man I grew up with.
My dad's a talented guy, but being a private person it took him quite a while to find the right outlets that suited him. My dad sings with the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir and the FCBC Gospel Choir. He dabbled in community theatre for a few years (appeared in Damn Yankees, Fiddler on the Roof, and Once Upon a Mattress if I recall correctly). Being an engineer, he has a great ability for spontaneous sketch art (I believe) but he's never pursued that. He also cycles everywhere. His heart is probably in better shape than MINE is. Additionally he's quite the mechanic and carpenter, has been as far as I can remember. He's one of those guys who will pick up an ability and be able to whip it out at any time.
Speaking visually, this image sums it up*:
Yuen Wah + Leonard Nimoy = My Dad (seen here in Italy)
*Note how Leonard Nimoy and my dad buy jackets at the same store.
Thinking back when my dad got angry, this visual comes to mind:
It honestly has nothing to do with the fact that my dad took me to see Star Trek VI in the movie theater in '91 (my first real exposure to Trek, I've been a fan since), it just really seems to make sense when I think about it. 'Tis logical. =P
It's funny how what you pick up from your dad can sneak up on you sometimes. I notice that my romanticism and sentimentality come from my dad. For many years I didn't think I had much of anything in common with him, but the more I thought about it I realized he was influencing my perceptions indirectly since he's not a confrontational or outspoken person. I just kind of picked things up subconciously by being around him. My grasp of subtlety also came from my dad that way. My dad's sense of humor is very subtle and simple, he's also been known to unleash the most crippling of puns on an occasional basis.
I mentioned previously that my dad has ridiculously excellent taste in music, and I blame him thoroughly and appreciatively for both directly & indirectly passing it on to me. And on a most peculiar note, for some reason the first song that comes to mind when I think about my dad is "Super Freak" by Rick James.
TEMPTATIONS SING! |
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| bump bump bump ba da dump, bump bump bump - ba dump (hey, shmups) |
[Jul. 20th, 2005|01:48 am] |
I just came back from the Vallarta because I had a late-night hankering for scrambled eggs. I haven't made myself eggs in months. I'm still to this day trying to whip those yolks like my mom did, she transformed them into a cohesive vortex in the mixing bowl. I guess it's all in the wrist but I never managed to do it nearly as well.
Dang, four large eggs is a lot more than I remembered.
...
Or maybe not. I want more.
Now that I have my beloved non-stick pan, I should get some tortillas and monterey jack and try to make chicken quesadillas. I'm getting all inspired cooking-wise now, or at least anything that involves frying or boiling.
But one of these days, when I'm fabulously wealthy, I'm going to hunt down and procure the most scratch-resistant non-stick pan on the earth and get a dozen of them because you pay good money for the teflon to NOT START PEELING WHEN YOU'RE NOT EVEN FRICKING USING HIGH HEAT DOUBLE-U TEE EFF.
This flash Raiden X rocks my socks. I owned Raiden Project for the PS way back when. Simpler graphics aside, the flash version feels exactly like it. Same anxiety trying not to pick up the wrong color powerup, same completely lame-ass music (better suited for a cheap high school-related anime), same pushover bosses. This is great nostalgic fun. I remember I got my dad to play it for a few weeks, and he suddenly ceased one day. I asked him why and he replied, "I can see it when I close my eyes."
edit: Raiden Project is going for $30-40 on ebay. That's hilarious. I bought it as a shelf-warmer new for like $10 years ago at a FuncoLand. Funny how things change. And yet no love for Omega Boost. I played the LIFE out of that shooter. Philosoma as well.
I regret that I never obtained Einhander, Raystorm (played the hell out of the demos for those two), Raycrisis, Strikers 1945, In the Hunt, Thunder Force V, G Darius or R-Types/R-Type Delta for PS1. One of these days. (Not too interested in Xevious 3D/G+ or Viewpoint)
Moral: If you wanna ride, ride the white pony. |
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| Tife and Limes - aka Life Defined By Tickets & Glassware |
[May. 9th, 2005|12:32 pm] |
| [ | Tags | | | daily, food, videogames | ] |
| [ | mood |
| | Keen like a Commander | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Streets of Rage - Round 5 | ] |
This is by far the stupidest trend I have had the misfortune to read about in my daily news. Teenagers are incredibly stupid. Think back to your time in high school, you know you did some stupid shit back then. This article is ten thousand times stupider than anything I ever did, and I say that with tight-fisted certainty. Oh you're damn right I'm sure.
Two days ago I went to Circuit City. There's a stout, jolly doorman/greeter in a yellow shirt. As I was leaving, I expected him to say something like "Have a good day, sir" as he usually does. But on my hurried way out he instead asked, "Did you find what you were looking for?" First time I was asked on my way out without buying anything, so it made me stop. I said no. He said, "Well sir, I apologize." So I had no choice but to turn on my heel, march up to his face and ask with eyes ablaze, "Are you IMPLYING it was YOUR FAULT??" He was somewhat jarred and a nervous "Naa-eee haha" reaction scattered from his maw. I hope his day became more interesting.
My allergies have been KICKIN'. I go out for my daily walk and my eye (usually just one for some reason) starts screaming at me to liberate it from the socket and apply rapid two-handed friction to alleviate the maddening itch. I stopped by the local Health Food store and bought some antihistamines. I like that store but their male cashiers are pale emaciated shaggy emo skater kids with a dozen face piercings that seriously could afford to get more exercise. The tall leggy brunette working the medicine aisle seemed somewhat unnerved by my presence, perhaps it was my powerful au natural musk. The world will fear my unblocked pheremones.
I have mentioned this elsewhere- On various streets in my neighborhood, people set up portable gas grills and sell food. One guy in particular near the entrance to the Vallarta Supermarket on my corner sells $2 hotdogs wrapped in bacon. I'm lucky I'm upwind from the smell of sizzling beef franks snugly wrapped in a protective layer of smoked pig strips or I'd be in debt with a 250% cholesterol level to keep me company. THEY'S GOOD. Argh. If it wasn't raining right now I'd go look for the guy.
Yesterday Sam and I ventured out to use up the remaining points on our D&B cards from my prematurely aborted b-day gaming. I only go to D&B's only once or twice a year so one day was all I needed. It actually took about 3-4 hours to use it all up. Unfortunately the particular D&B we were at wasn't very big and only had racers and shooters (Some larger D&B's I've been to actually have fighting games).
We cleared Ghost Squad first, which is an excellent shooter and I wish we could've abused some of the weapon/costume privileges the Japanese get with the IC Card (although apparently somewhere in the US they have these as a US ranking site exists). We failed the final objective on the jungle mission and got blown to shit by that imitation HEAT Viper, alas.
Then we plowed through L.A. Machineguns (which I'd never beaten before despite my total whoreness of it in college), piddled a bit with Need for Speed GT (motherfucker Sam ran me off the road), Daytona USA (MY ASS! MY ASS!!), both Silent Scopes, Virtua Cop 3 (SUCKED), and pretty much burned out after clearing House of the Dead III.
HotD3 was really disappointing. The only reason to play it is to use those big blue shotguns. Bosses and enemies were lame (club guard/mutant simian/fucking PLANT/Neo Dio cheap bastard), and whose idea were those terrible and melodramatic cutscenes?? The storyline was worse than a Resident Evil subplot. And the voice acting was TERRRRRIBLE. The blonde chick player character, instead of sounding alarmed/concerned/angry, instead came off entirely as annoyed/whiny/irritated. "LIEK OMG DOESN'T THIS GUY GIVE UP GEEZ WHAT-EVERRR" The game as a whole also seemed incredibly short, and the fact the prologue level and last level are the same only made the experience all the more shitacular.
After burning out, we were hanging by the bar and I decided to use my remaining 100+ points on a nearby Tower of Power. Matt knows this shit. The Fonz and I back in '99, we'd drive up to Scandia every weekend during the summer- initially to play games, but it soon turned into blowing $20-30 on the Tower of Power and bringing home huge sacks of Now & Laters only to play more games at my house and eventually feel sick. GOOD TIMES. Anyway so I'm hitting the 24-ticket match with ease, and on my very last play I gesture at the Bonus Ticket mark like fucking Babe Ruth- and I HIT THAT SHIT. 250 tickets erupted forth like a gratifying orgasm of crisp orange achievement. Tower of Power excrement steadily advancing to the floor is truly a rewarding spectacle.
I rose triumphantly and paraded around the area, arms raised signifying to the world that I, yes I, am a WINNER. A WINNER at LIFE. Or at least pressing a big red button. The day having concluded on a high note, I rushed to that pleasure-inducing cave of ticket trade-in nonsense and awarded myself with D&B glassware.
Glassware that stands proudly in the flourescent light. Glassware that looks really fucking big when placed next to my head. Glassware that will shine proudly as a testament to my victory over the red LED lines that thought they'd get the best of ME. NAY, not TODAY, o TOWER OF IMITATION POWER.
Nice way to spend a sunday. |
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| Grey Leader standing by |
[May. 4th, 2005|10:01 am] |
| [ | Tags | | | daily, food, herv | ] |
| [ | mood |
| | hungry, horny, same difference | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Prince Live at the Aladdin: The Work | ] |
Last night I discovered the joy of Literati (Scrabble) on Yahoo Games with the fellas. That shit is FUN. We all played pretty badly though. My Scrabble skills flew out the window (except for spelling QAT to save my ass and surprise r.a.)
I just made breakfast. But I've been up all night since 9 p.m. yesterday so maybe it's dinner in a sense:
Rotini al dente (it's the only way a self-respecting man would make pasta) with meat sauce and some diced sausage. First bowl of pasta I've made since... well, Sylmar eight months ago. I'm also eating my feet because I don't like wasting anything. Food tastes infinitely better when you cook it yourself, no matter what it is. And then you drip sauce on your PANTS NOW I HAVE TO WASH THESE AGAIN curses curses foul inferno. I drink orange soda like water these days. My current kryptonite.
I went grocery shopping at 6 a.m. Ralph's is a pleasant 3-mile walk round trip. It's chillingly grey today. The sky is the same color as the street and most of the buildings. Funny enough that I was wearing grey pants and a grey shirt. Think it's supposed to rain soon, which is good- I like being inside on rainy evenings bundled in sheets. When I buy groceries I usually get around $30-40 worth and cram it all into my rucksack. That will last me about 2 to 4 weeks, ain't bad. I'm really glad that my van broke down, because it forced me to start walking again. I was so complacent and dependent on my van that I knew absolutely nothing about the local businesses for the first 4 months I've lived in Canoga Park. I mean sure I need/love my van, but at least now I won't be foolish enough to waste gas trying to get anywhere within 5 miles. Best part is, money doesn't vanish as quickly when you stop driving to places you can damn well reach using your biped ability. MAN was I lazy. I love walking now, and I love the whole area. I really enjoy the local places like the Green Ginger Bookshop and Jerry's Pizzeria, feels better spending money there than at chains or franchises. Morals: Don't be lazy, save money, get healthy, buy a book.
I'm feeling very satisfied right now. Just the past week or so, I've mentally relaxed to where I can focus on myself (I need to eat more) and things I want to do in the near future. Periods like these I really treasure because the struggle is never far away. It'll be on me again before I know it, like clockwork.
Oh here's an mp3 in-joke I made two days ago with the default Windows Sound Recorder program. I think it'd make a pretty good jazz promo for a radio show in the future when I'm old with nothing better to do. For those of you who don't know, I'm not even going to try to explain to you who GEL is (or the reality of his whiteness). It'd take forever, you wouldn't get it anyway, and it's an in-joke. Just let Charles Mingus' bass drift into your mind. Dig, we ain't trying to get melancholy up in here. Too much trouble goin' on in the world.
Man. This pasta would taste so much better if I was inhaling it off of a nude woman's navel. I have to try that someday. |
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still needs a hug
