happyfeet96

As everyone who knows and loves me would agree, my sense of direction is questionable at best. I'm not very good at figuring out the boundaries of neighborhoods in Los Angeles. I do know I live in Hollywood technically. I'm pretty sure the coffee shop I'm sitting in is in Silverlake but it might be someplace completely different! Alas, what I'm drinking is delicious and before I slurped down half of it, it was also so pretty that the lady behind me ordered because it was so pretty without evening know what it was. This coffee shop is called.... (I must run out to check the name of the place) Kaldi Coffee and Tea.

Danny, the guy behind the counter and I had a good 5 minute conversation about Jackalopes. He also has pretty tattoos. Ah yes, coffee house, you may be the highlight of my day.

My roommate is lovely and her dog Mitzi is also lovely. She's an ancient black lhasa apso, who my roommate says can't hear but she also comes when I say her name so maybe she can feel the vibrations or something? I don't know but she has kept me good company in the two weeks I've been here. My roommate and I have been bonding over making food, playing with Mitzi, and hiking (or rather she hiking and me huffing and puffing) in Runyon Canyon, which is only a few blocks from our apartment.

Things I need to do to continue to get my life off the ground here:
-Get a job. (working on it!)
-Make some friends (any tips?)
-Study a map (I can do this on my own!)

For those you who have moved to new places, are there things you know now, that you wish you knew when you first arrived/moved what not?

I am currently in a Holiday Inn Express in Albequerque, New Mexico. We have been driving since Tuesday, will arrive in Los Angeles Saturday. In Texas I had to smile because we passed through all these places from my road trip with Olivia: Shamrock, TX, The Cadillac Ranch which someone repainted yellow recently so it's not quite as cool looking as the first time, the world's largest cross aborted babies memorial (oh Texas), the leaning water tower and the visitors center in New Mexico that was closed last time. So many good memories!

Man. I can't believe how close I am to actually living in Los Angeles!

It's been a long time since I've updated this but I've been updating my facebook status so people probably know what's going on in my life anyway but alas. On October 22nd I left for a long weekend in Los Angeles. I stayed with my friend John and we had a good old time hanging out. While he worked, I went apartment hunting. I had some appointments set up. I've talked a bit about these in previous entries but I feel like they were so long ago! I ended up signing a year lease for an apartment on the edge of West Hollywood. My roomie-to-be has said at the 6 month part I can look for someone to take over my lease if things aren't going well but I hope that doesn't happen. Obviously If I don't find a job, I will end up running out of money, so I'm glad to have that option.

On Tuesday my mother and I will set off to drive from here to there in about 4 days total. Everything I own in a Nissan Sentra! Yes, this fast but there really was not any other way to do it. People in need of roommates out there seemed to need them ASAP for financial reasons particularly.

People keep asking me why LA and why without a job and here I will just get it all out. I've been out of college since May '08. Nothing has really happened since I graduate, not to speak of anyway. My intention was to get a job first, I even considered grad school briefly, and I applied to jobs all around the country but no bites. So, I'm just diving in and I'm excited for that. I'm confident that things will work out. I just hope I'm good at this whole being a grown up thing.

I haven't read my FL in a long time so that's what I'm doing now.

I am going to move.

The plan is, go look at apartments/ meet potential roommates in October. Move in November. Any of you California dwellers wanna let me sleep on your floor for a few days? Right now I don't have many leads other than parameters of where to look for housing (Thanks Ames! <3) and a plan for when I get there. A friend who has some friends out there is having them ask around about both jobs and apartments so that's something.

I can't wait. I love Baltimore but I am so done with my "life" here. Those of who have moved a lot can expect me to hit you up for advice. (You know who you are; I've probably bombarded you with questions before).


More lucid update later.

Maybe I'll join the coast guard.

Or become a florist.

So it's true, famous people die in clusters, or so it seems.

I am back from my New Orleans/Florida/Savannah trip. It was much fun, even with the massive amounts driving and bugs. Savannah was really beautiful, even with the confederacy enthusiasts everywhere. (Think pick up trucks with confederate flags painted on them everywhere). North Florida was great for swimming and New Orleans was same as always - awesome but too hot!


Now it's time to plan for my London trip! I'm going to London on July 21st for a week! That means I'll get to go to Artscape beforehand, yay!

My other goal is to my resume in complete order, not just semi order like right now!

I've been trying to find good movies to watch lately and after watching 1408 with a friend last week I'm really in the mood for good horror movies!

So what are your favorite scary movies? Or favorite thrillery movies?

Besides things like The Omen and The Exorcists, I've got those. XD

I always wanted to date a guy named Norman. I'm not sure way or what prompted me to use this as a subject line but what the heck huh? He is pretty cute. And now that he's apparently dating Lisa Edelstein my favorite show (House) had a connection to my cousin's favorite show (Lost) Ha.Ha.Ha. Yes, I have too much free time lately.

OH but pretty Aaron Tveit icon. He's a gorgeous man.

So, dog sitting this week. Myra is the best dog ever. She's some kind of hound/lab mix. I haven't heard her bark yet. They also have a cat, Ava, beautiful cat.

On Saturday I'm flying down to New Orleans with my dad to meet my mom who's already there. After a couple days in New Orleans we're driving over to Florida to stay with my Aunt Tricia for a night and then over to St. Augustine to see my godmother and then up to Savannah to see an old friend of my parents. After Savannah we're driving home! Savannah to Baltimore is about 9 hours so we're going to stop in one of these places on the way but haven't decided where:

-Mrytle Beach (except it's not really half way but it sounds fun)
-Some place in North Carolina (Wilmington is about half way, slightly north of it is really half way but I forgot what that area is called)
-Virgina somewhere
-Somewhere else.

Should be pretty fun. We're coming back by the 3rd or 4th and then on July 21st I'm going to England for about a week!

Stalling real life you ask? Hey I am working on my resume!!

I'm really tired and anxious right now for no reason. A nap might be in my future. Bah.

Also, today is my sister's 25th Birthday! Happy Quarter of a century, lady.

I was watching House tonight and around 8:40 my FOX suddenly started showing the CW only without sound! Fail! Did this happen to anyone else around here in my broadcast area? It might just be a glitch with my cable, either way it's irritating!

Back to work tomorrow! I'm okay with that. My mind is sort of past this job since the end of the school year is in sight. I'm not sure how I feel about that.

Things I've done recently:

-Climbed under the 29th street bridge and photographed the underside.
-Read a bunch of books
-Panicked about my future
-Mocked co-workers who gossip too much
-Felt bad about that mocking
-Written some snail mail and not sent it
-Worked out a lot
-Made pancakes

Why am I so nervous about friending a co-worker on facebook? I'm so stupid. I have a friendcrush on her and she's only a year older than me and she probably won't care but I'm stupid now and it's made me nervous.

This is one of those ridiculous conversations I need Liz around for. She would have amusing anecdotes that would make me feel less ridiculous. Stupid best friend backing her car into a tree and not getting to come visit.

25 things about me. Whoever wants to do it is tagged next. You know the drill <3


1) I drive a maroon 2005 Nissan Sentra named Mario. He is named after the Aimee Mann song Pavlov's Bell. Similarly to Marshall's Fiero on How I Met Your Mother The CD was stuck in the player on that song the entire first summer I had the car. I love that car dearly.

2. I choose not to study abroad in college and I very much regret that decision.

3. I have a brother in law. He's English, but NOT from London.

4. I have one tattoo, an anchor on the inside of my right wrist. I would love to get a few more tattoos someday and maybe if I have the money I will.

5. As a kid, I was terrified of accidentally being locked in a public place when it closed. To this day, I'm not a fan of being in the library or a store when it's close to closing and they're giving those 10 minute warnings.

6. I'm a vegetarian three days a week. Someday I'd love to be a vegetarian or vegan completely, but I'm going to have to live on my own and be a much better cook for that to happen.

7. I have never been in a serious (romantic) relationship before. Most people have by the time they're are 22, but we all know how far I am from being most people.

8. I usually always remember my dreams when I wake up. My only recurring dream involves Scientologists.

9. I'm an auditory learner. I have a great memory for things I hear, such as names and dates and birthdays and directions. I still remember my 8th grade French teacher's birthday (August 17th).

10. I was born on my mother's 39th birthday.

11. I have two good friends named Katie. Katie W. shares a birthday with my grandmother in October, and Katie F. shares my grandfather's birthday on St. Patrick's Day. This amuses me greatly.

12. I don't really know what I want to do with my life. I have a vague idea but it's so vague it's scary.

13. I have little desire to be a homeowner. I understand the benefits and if I had kids I'm sure I'd change my mind but I'd much rather live in an apartment or share a house with roommates that have to manage and maintain an entire house on my own.

14. I firmly believe that no one is ever too old for cartoons. I still love cartoons and probably always will.

15. I have never broken a bone before but I hope I do before I die.

16. One of my biggest pet peeves is people walking their dogs without a leash. I don't care if he won't hurt me, I want to be able to talk a walk without a dog sprinting at me, however good it's intentions are. Especially people with really big dogs.

17. Obviously, I'm a cat person. Despite that, as soon as I live on my own in a dog friendly place, I would love to get a dog. Preferably an older lab or other non-hyper medium sized dog.

18. I was named for my Great-Grandmother. I'm the youngest person that I know of named for her but far from the only one.

19. I love breakfast food. Everything from cereal to pancakes to my mother's banana bread. YUM.

20. I once read 11 Janet Evanovich books in about a month. Mmm, I love candy books.

21. Folk/Visonary Art is one of my favorite things. People who make amazing things out out of ordinary scraps inspire me. People who aren't great at drawing or painting but able to be amazing artists some other way inspire me.

22. I love improv comedy. I could laugh at Amy Poehler, Rachel Dratch, and Jack McBrayer all day. My favorite stand up comedian is Maria Bamford. She occasionally improvs at the UCB in LA and someday I will see her there.

23. One of my passions is photography. For Christmas I got my first SLR, a Nikon D60. My Flickr is here.

24. I don't like mustard or beer. I prefer ketchup and wine/liquor.

25. After reading Mr. Popper's Penguin in 1st or 2nd grade I had an imaginary penguin friend who lived in the imaginary refrigerator under my bed. He was a nice penguin.

If I knew I was going to have such a long weekend I'd have planned a trip or something. With Jacob being absent Friday, professional development Monday, and the last two days being snow days, I've had a 5.5 day weekend. I've read a lot, made pesto, did some house cleaning, worked on transfering stuff from my old computer to the MacBook, and other things, so at least I've been a tiny bit productive during this period of not getting paid. It feels so wrong to be wishing away snow days but at this rate I'm going to have to pick up another job or something. I'm thinking I might look for a job waiting tables a few nights a week or Starbucks a few nights or something. My no so secret goals of a European Vacation this summer and then move to California just might work if I do that. I know I can do one or the other but I want to do both! I was shoveling snow yesterday as per my mother's request. She had recently gotten new snow shovels (recently as in since the last time I was in Baltimore during in the winter) and the brand of these shovels is called Ames. That makes me think of thatames and therefore California! It must be a sign! Or I'm just cold and bored and hopeful. One of the two. The weather is still pretty gross and Baltimore County is wimpy so tomorrow will probably be two hours late at minimum or even closed again. My bank account hurts.

Yoga was cancelled tonight too, but I'll still get to go out later. I'm meeting some folks at the Barn (a bar) in Parkville called The Barn for trivia night. They seem really cool, I think it will be a good time. They're also going bowling Saturday night which I'm also thinking I'll attend.

I'll probably do that 25 things about me meme later tonight.

Olivia Wilde has a huge forehead. I just wanted to put that out there.

I had a money related rant I was going to post here but then I realized I didn't even feel like typing something that stupid and depressing. Not to mention a lot of my pals here have the same problems or worse so instead of rubbing it in I'm just going to bring everyone in for a big group hug instead!

*GROUP HUG OF LJ FRIENDS*


Ah, there we go.

Jacob was absent from school today so I only got a half day. There's also some professional development day on Monday so it's long long unpaid weekend for Nell. Ah, well. (Some of the rant almost slipped out there, oops.) My job really is great actually. I love the kids and the teachers and people keep saying I'm getting through to Jacob. That makes me happy. It can be pretty fun too. I'm starting to gain some weight from all the treats parents bring in and put in the faculty lunch room! I need more self control. It was really fun too, watching the inauguration through the eyes of these first graders who had never seen the process before and were only just starting it's importance. I don't think I'll forget that anytime soon.

My life is lacking in excitement in any other ways. I've been doing lots of yoga and considering going on one of those diets where you don't eat anything that tastes good so eating stops being a pleasurable experience but rather what you do to not die. I probably won't go that extreme but I'll let you know.

My social life is lacking considerably these days. I'm trying to make some new friends and reach out to some older ones I've lost touch with. I've joined a brunch group, a movie group, a book club, and an alternative lifestyle book club. That should help. The movie group meets all the time but I'm too broke to spend money seeing movies like "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" and "Underworld" they also see like three movies a weekend in theaters which is crazy! I like crazy people though so as soon as they see some less crappy movies (okay that sounded mean, I mean movies I'm interested in) I'm totally in. Also, if you know anybody in Baltimore who might want to hang out preferably not doing something that costs lots and lots of money, let me know! I'm pretty cool. Your friends will like me. Or if you happen to be in Baltimore with nothing to do, I'm around!

I also want to visit IUP in some future weekend. Anyone got a good suggestion for a good weekend to come up?

Thanks for everyone's well wishes on my job! I think I'm really going to like it. The teacher refers to her students as her friends (as in at recess "All Ms. XXX's friends line up) which is pretty cute. My kid, who's name is Jacob, apparently just started taking medicine this week and he's doing SO WELL on it. He gets frustrated sometimes but is not nearly as tough as I thought he would be. He has a lot of positive reinforcing strategies (like stars and pennies) which work well for him. One big thing I do with him is repeating instructions... I don't actually do it, but he likes to repeat them to me out loud several times before he goes into his independent work. It's interesting how his brain works. He's a great kid.


DC trip this weekend! Yay! Should be good times!

vertical_chaos does this all the time and I'm bored so I'm stealing her idea for one post.


I got a Barnes and Noble Gift card for graduation back in May and used it this week to buy two new CDs.

Jenny Lewis's Acid Tongue is her first solo sans Watson Twins record. I like it pretty well so far, though I've only listened to about half of it. The first few songs are okay but sort of on the dull side. I did listen to them while driving so I probably owe then another listen. In tracks 5 and on she seems to pick it up a little and they're pretty fun. Not sure if I like this one better than Rabbit Fur Coat or not.

Vonda Shepard's From The Sun is as good as Vonda's records always are. She's got to be the most optimistic singer-songwriter ever and that makes me happy. I loved her last album Chinatown, and this one didn't disappoint.

I saw Secret Life of Bees today. I had read the book so I knew what to expect and I really liked it. I don't want to give much away but Dakota Fanning fit the roll better than I thought she would (she's still so tiny!) and Paul Bettany should always play creepy guys.