Movies

We went downtown this weekend, taking public transportation the whole way! Gasp! Per usual, we learned that public transportaiton in Los Angeles isn't really ideal. We waited for 20-30 minutes for a bus that metro.net said would come, and it never did. I have a feeling it was because three blocks of downtown were blocked off because of a film shoot. This annoyed me at first, until I noticed they were filming a rainy scene, and then I was riveted by the rain crane and all of the extras walking around carrying umbrellas. I couldn't stop looking.



If you click on the photo, you'll be directed to flickr.com, where I've added a few notes on the photo.

View from the Jewelry District in downtown Los Angeles.

I never get sick of that skyline.

Before & After.

I finally have a day off and have decided to post some before and after pictures of the apartment(s). I took quite a few pictures at the old apartment, but looking at them, there are very few I'm willing to share. I'm not sure how we managed there for a whole year. But boy-oh-boy, it was worth it.

Here is the "computer desk/dining room table" which lived in the kitchen in the old place. The table was given to me by KTP about four or five years ago, when I was making very little money and living by myself. It's been a great table - we have no plans to get rid of it. But it's moving to storage for now.



Here's the printer, on top of a lovely rubbermaid drawer set I proudly purchased in my younger days:



In the new apartment, we actually have a separate space for eating:





...and working:



And even some room for the Mana Mana guy and the Snowdens:

Sedative.

We finally bought a dining room table this past weekend at this fantastic furniture store called Target. It's a beautiful dark wood, counter height table with ridiculously comfortable chairs. Since it's arrival, we've been enjoying dinners at it every night. We set the table, the salt and pepper is accessible, and we actually talk to each other, instead of staring at the television while we eat. There have been significantly less spills because, well, a table is actually meant to hold food and drink, unlike the arm of a futon, which virtually promises bi-weekly spills accompanied by unnecessary but obligatory cussing.

To celebrate the new table, we opened a bottle of wine, a yummy Shiraz. We've been each having a glass of wine and a glass of water with dinner. This makes us both very pleasant to be around... I'm not sure if the heavenly feeling in the apartment is the result of the table or the wine. In any case, there is a very significant side effect to this increased wine drinking. I have been falling dead asleep on the couch at 9pm every night. This is what a half a glass of wine with dinner is doing to me.

Meanwhile, it took an Ambien AND a Vicodin to put me to sleep in Holland, and only for six hours at that. I'm thinking I should start requesting a higher per diem when I travel internationally, solely to support the glass(es) of red wine I'm convinced I need to start ordering with dinner.

This Charming Man

I finally got a chance to play with iMovie. Here's a little thing I made using the video feature on my Canon Power Shot.

Dutch treat.

I got back from Amsterdam late Tuesday night in what marked my very first trip out of the country (except for a quick trip to Toronto about 8 years ago, which really doesn't count, because it's only just across Lake Erie, and then Lake Ontario, and it was very much like America except for the whole Metric system thing). A better writer would be able to fully describe the emotion that accompanied this trip. I can only attempt such a feat.

Our plane landed in Amsterdam, where a 115 mile drive to Venlo awaited us. Venlo is a small-ish city on the border of Holland and Germany. I learned that the countryside of Holland looks just like Ohio, except with a lot more Dutch street signs, and rush hour is the same no matter where you go - it sucks. It took us over three hours to get to our hotel. Sick with fatigue, I laid down in my bed, expecting sleep to rush over me like a flood. It never came. Well, not until 5am the following morning, and my alarm went off at 7am. Fun!

I'm sure the lack of sleep contributed greatly to how emotional I was the whole trip. I was overwhelmed to be in a place so far away from home, so far away from anything I know. I was immediately homesick, even though I was thrilled beyond belief to be there, and so grateful for the experience. Almost everyone in Holland speaks English, but not to each other. I learned that no one else in the world speaks Dutch, so when Dutch kids are growing up, they're forced to learn English. However, they don't speak English to each other. All day every day was hours upon hours of white noise - walking around and hearing people talk but having no idea what they're saying. I'm not sure exactly what I was expecting, but I certainly didn't expect it to affect me the way I did.

This was a work trip, but I was blessed to be able to spend a lot of time with Gina's brother, sister-in-law, and their son Giovanni. I posted a bunch of pictures of him when he was born a YEAR AGO. Here he is now:







The whole time I was there, I was just so taken aback with how beautiful all of the architecture was. I took A LOT of random pictures of EVERYTHING. Here are some shots from Venlo:













Here's a shot outside of our hotel in Venlo:



At the end of our trip, we headed back to Amsterdam to shoot some scenics there. Amsterdam is officially the coolest city I've ever been to. These pictures do not do it justice.











There are more bikes than cars in Amsterdam:




Craziest language ever.



Every minute I spent in Amsterdam, I couldn't get over the thought that I was walking through a history book. Just imagining all of the things that have happened there, specifically in relation to World War II, I was so humbled, and felt a reverence I've never really felt before. And the whole time I was there, I couldn't help but think over and over again how grateful I am, that this is my job, to travel all over the world and meet new people and have interesting experiences. Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought I'd be this lucky.

Mmm... coffee.

I've been meaning to write about our BRAND NEW APARTMENT and how UTTERLY ENORMOUS it is, but it's been a very, very busy week. We did move and we're just about all moved in. I can't wait to be able to post the before and after pics I have planned. In the meantime, I am entering the month of March with hesitation and excitement. Here's why:

Currently in:
Seattle, WA

Fly back:
This weekend for gina's marathon - more commonly known as The LA Marathon

Leaving for:
Holland, next Thursday

Flying back:
To LA the following Tuesday

Leaving for:
New York City on St. Patrick's Day

Returing to LA:
March 20th

Possibly leaving for:
Buenos Aires on March 21st.

Returning to LA:
March 27th

Leaving for:
Palm Springs on March 30th to see Sandy! again at the Dinah Shore Weekend.

See? Hesitation and excitement.