becoming regular

I have been in Los Angeles for a year. The move here kick-started adult life for me. It made me a contributing member of society, and with that came a lot of responsibilities: bills, taxes, becoming a more educated voter, rent, getting things like the cable/Internet set up, taking care of my health and especially my teeth since I don't currently have dental insurance, worrying about things like insurance and what type of plan to get, and more. Dealing with these types of things really gets you in a sort of routine. I pay each bill at the same time every month, I have started cooking the same meals over and over again, I grocery shop every Sunday, and I do laundry every two weeks. There is something comforting about this responsibility routine. I think what I like about it is it gives me a sense of accomplishment to which I must reward. This is a tribute to all the things I do to reward myself for being an adult at which I have become "a regular":

GYM: This does not sound like a reward type of experience. I guess most people would think of it more as rewarding experience, but I actually like going to the gym. Zach and I go to the same gym 4 days a week in the mornings. I like spending that time together and making fun of people doing weird things on machines, but I also like the feeling it gives me to push myself on each machine. I also specifically like the gym we go to. It is possibly the lamest/smallest/nothing to it LA Fitness in LA, but it feels comfortable to me. We are friendly with the trainers there, and I like seeing some of the same people there everyday. We get tips from trainers who know we are "regulars". We have been going there for enough time now that I actually see results in other people's bodies, and I tell them. Is that weird? Also, the occasional BJ Novak (Ryan from The Office) sighting is enough to keep me going there for a long time to come.

CHINABOY EXPRESS: There is no other place I would rather be on a Thursday night than at Zach and I's favorite hot-spot, Chinaboy Express. If for some reason we are not able to go on a Thursday night, we will actually have a make-up night although Zach is much more serious about making sure he gets his than I am about getting my weekly fix. The ladies there know us. And by that I mean they know what we order, and my order is the most complicated, specific thing ever....we are talking half orange chicken but not a full half portion because I won't eat it all, half spicy chicken and veggies, two scoops of fried rice, and only the broccoli from the beef and broccoli. In fact, the last time we were there, I started to tell one lady what I wanted and the other pushed her aside and told her she knew and would take care of it. We can walk there from my apartment. This place is so obscure that I couldn't even find a picture of it online. While it is a place we really look forward to visiting every week, I wouldn't expect to go if you come to visit town on a Thursday night. I decided it is not a place I like to see through other people's eyes if you know what I mean.

BLOCKBUSTER: I visit blockbuster regularly no matter where I live in the world. There are three Blockbuster stores in the U.S. where I have at some point been "a regular". The one here is my favorite store. The regular staff consists of a sweet-but-talks-way-too-much-when-you-just-want-your-effing-movie-gay-guy, a smooth-talking-hits-on-me-every-time-Zach-is-not-there-even-though-he-knows-we-are-dating-Irainian-guy, and a very unpleasant-almost-angry-for-no-reason-seeming-Hispanic-girl with penciled-in eyebrows. I have an unreasonable sensitivity to judgement from Blockbuster employees so I feel it is important to establish good relationships with them. And by good relationships, I mean make sure they know you have good taste in movies before you start renting fluff. I have noticed that when I am new somewhere, my renting habits tend to be more quality. It is not until I feel like I have established a good sense of superiority with these people when it comes to movies that I will go for the occasional Nanny Diaries type titles, quickly followed by or possibly along with some Sundance-selected documentary. The Blockbuster in Gainesville was actually much more overall judgemental seeming than the one I go to here, surprisingly.

ACTIVIA: Of course this is probably too much information, but aside from becoming a regular at the above places, I have also become regular in the don't-you-wish-you-had-stopped-reading sense of the word. Activia is this yogurt that is designed to assist your digestive system. I fell victim to a promotion when a lady at the grocery store handed my two yogurts as a free sample last week. I was not even having particular digestive problems. I tried them, and they tasted so good, I decided to take the "two-week challenge" advertised on the back. I am eating one little 4oz tub everyday for two weeks, and I was promised results or my money back. I will just say I will not be needing my money back from the activa people.

Oh Arnold

I have already started to slack off in my blogging frequency. I pumped out a whole three in the first week, and then nothing. I hope this was a major disappointment to all.

HAPPENINGS: There was an earthquake today. I am not sure why, but I realized I am unreasonably calm about the possibility of a major earthquake. I realized during the one today. I was on the tenth floor of a glass building. At first it felt like someone was jumping up and down next to me. Then it began to feel like a really fat man was skipping down the hall. The building began to sway and things on the tables began to shake. At the most intense part, it felt like a wave was going through the building. I think the intensity of it was heightened because I was so high up in a tall skinny building, but overall it wasn't too bad. It lasted about 30 seconds. The moment I realized my abnormal state of calm was when people in the building were getting in doorways, and I went to go answer the phone. I guess I didn't freak out for the same reason people do freak out; there is absolutely nothing you can do about it, and there is no way to see it coming or plan for it. I think I am more likely to worry at least a little more about something that can be foreseen like a hurricane because it is hard to tell how much is enough when taking the proper precautions.

INFURIATING: My governor has decided that our tax dollars should go to funding the production of non-smoking adds to be placed at the beginning of PG 13 movies that include scenes with smoking. The next step will be placing anti-speeding ads before movies like 2 Fast 2 Furious, or adds that depict the dangers of jumping from rooftop to rooftop before films that glamorize it like Batman and Spider Man movies. Then we can start placing anti-shooting-your-lover-because-he-wants-to-leave-you-and-then-lying-about-it-and-pretending-to-be-pregnant-so-you-win-your-trial ads before movies like the PG 13 Chicago. I would rather our money go to PSA's before movies like Fool's Gold warning us how stupid what we are about to watch actually is.

TIPS: If you live in Koreatown, you should make sure no one is inside of the dumpster before you toss your trash in there.

Also, I just finished the first season of Mad Men on DVD (compliments of Natalie). I would recommend it to anyone except people who are or once were addicted to cigarettes. The show just makes cigarettes look so, well, just so cool. Unfortunately for those susceptible, it is not prefaced by any anti-tobacco spots. It is a show about advertising executives on Madison Ave in the early 60's. It is funny, it looks great most of the time, and it is interesting. Something else I really like about it is that it is a cable network series. I am getting really excited about the fact that cable series are beginning, in the past few years, to do so well. In a perfect world, all programming would come from premium channels like HBO and Showtime who can be more innovative with their projects since they don't solely depend on individual programs' ratings. Censorship by no means destroys television, but it dumbs and dulls it down. Something like 24 could be a much better show on HBO or even FX.

Will Arnett the next Batman?

I went to see The Dark Knight on Sunday afternoon. Although I was there with four other people, I had to sit by myself because the theater was so crowded. This movie broke a box office record, selling $158 million opening weekend. I don't tend to like superhero movies. I didn't go see Iron Man after being disappointed over and over again by movies like Transformers and Spider-Man 3. I feel like I have been trying for a long time to make myself enjoy these kinds types of movies, and it hasn't worked so I decided to give up and stop wasting my money. I am not going to tell you that The Dark Knight changed all of that for me, but what I will tell you is that it was the best superhero movie I have seen. My basis for judging movies usually consists of me asking myself how many other movies would I rather be seeing for the first time instead of the one I am watching. In this case there are several, but that definitely does not include any other superhero movies that I can recall. For what it was, this movie had interesting characters, and I think that was the biggest difference for me. Heath Ledger's performance didn't disappoint me even with all of the hype surrounding it. I guess my biggest complaint was the way Christian Bale talked when he was Batman. I heard his voice may have been digitally altered when he was playing Batman to distinguish his voice from when he was playing Bruce Wayne, but I feel like it sounded ridiculous. I thought it was a joke. I just don't know who to blame: Christian Bale or the digital sound guy. It pretty much sounded like Gob from Arrested Development's voice or maybe like the voice of the guy that narrates all the movie trailers. Anyway, overall it was a good experience which is more than I can say for anything else I have seen with comparable subject matter.

It's not like it's that hot.

HAPPENINGS: I went to the zoo today. If you know me, you should know that I love the zoo. If you don't know me, it is weird that you read my blog. I don't even know why I like it so much, but I have been to different zoos about five or six times over the past 3 years. Today, Zach and I went to the awesome one in San Diego. It was nice to get my mind off of the job search which is a little slow right now. We were supposed to drive down into Mexico after the zoo and grab some tacos and a bottle of our favorite tequila, Don Fernando, which is sold in LA for $100 and in Tijuana for $20. When we were half-way to San Diego, we realized we forgot our passports at home (which you now need to cross the border) so we had to settle for Fred's Mexican Restaurant in downtown San Diego and a tequila bar nearby that was selling an ounce of Don Fernando for $25. We did not enjoy any Don Fernando on this trip. However, as dull as Fred's Mexican Restaurant sounds, I would certainly go back for the steak fajitas.

THOUGHTS: Walking through the zoo, there was a stretch of area where each animal seemed to be sleeping in its den area towards the back. I know not everyone knows this, but being the zoo expert that I have become I know it is rare to actually get a good look at the lions, tigers, and bears in their respective areas because they are always sleeping out of plain sight. As we passed the lions' area, the girl behind us said, "Why are they back there? It's not like it is that hot." She was right. It wasn't that hot out. It was a nice day, but it was stupid what she said. Zach and I laughed at her as we often do at people who say stupid things to each other around us in passing, or how we laugh at the guy at the gym who grunts almost in a sexual way when he lifts an unimpressive amount of weight. I guess it goes back to the elementary school mentality that we never really grow out of when it makes us feel smarter to laugh at someone we perceive as stupid. It makes me wonder how often I am giving people something to laugh at. I will speak softer from now on when in public.

TIPS: I watched a documentary last night entitled, My Kid Could Paint That. You may have heard of this, but it was about that 4 year-old girl who began painting abstract art. She was selling pieces for as much as $300,000 at one point. The subject matter was pretty fascinating as far as the value of art and the role the artist plays in the value of art is concerned. However, the documentary itself, was the most uncomfortable thing I have ever seen. At some point in the movie, the family is watching a special 60 Minutes did on their adorable little genius daughter. The documentarian is filming these people watching the special as it turns from a news story about the girl's talent to an investigation into integrity of the artwork the daughter is producing. They brought in an art expert who suggests the pieces that are being sold in the girl's shows in no way reflect the artwork she produces in front of their hidden cameras. The expert suggests that someone must be polishing the girl's work. At this point the family begins to get paranoid around the documentarian, wondering if he is out to "falsely expose" them the way the program was. He then breaks the 4th wall, and becomes a character in his own documentary, trying to walk the line between wanting the family to continue cooperating with his filming and getting down to the truth of what is really going on. It is really very bizarre, but maybe now I have intrigued you.

Rants

I guess this is starting because I keep going to read Zach’s blog, and disappointingly, there have been no updates. It’s not that I don’t know what is going on with him. We see each other quite often, but I guess there is something about it that makes it even more interesting to read. Also, I have been reading other people’s blogs too (no, you don’t know who you are), and it has inspired me to take this step. Now, I am not committing to anything. By writing “taking this step” I mean writing this single entry. I won’t talk about the blog itself too much right now because I think when you set out some huge guidelines at the start, it is less likely to last.

THOUGHTS: That theory doesn’t just go for blogging either. Some other things I would apply that statement to include: dieting/exercise, learning a language, committing to cook at home more often, or most goals that require you to take things one day at a time. At least for me, anytime I have become consistent about doing most of those types of things, I didn’t necessarily map out the entire process from the very beginning. I just decided to do it, and then the rest followed day by day. An exception for me would include: saving money. There is a definite plan where that is concerned, but it is mostly carried out by the bank.

That was probably boring.

HAPPENINGS: I am in a new stage of my life here in Los Angeles: the unemployed stage. I recently quit my job at the casting office where I worked for the past year, and I have started the search for something new. I am still in love with casting, and I don’t want to do anything else at this point, but I really want to try some different types of casting before I decide what kind I would like to do in the future. Different types of casting would include episodic television series, feature film, miniseries, made for TV movies, and reality. I am mostly interested in the first three since I feel like I have gained a good understanding of how the latter 2 work. I worked for the past year at an office that casts made for TV movies for cable networks, and as far as reality goes, I think my internship experience was enough to make me realize that was not for me. I am looking for a job now in an office that either works on episodic TV or features, preferably projects that I could see myself wanting to watch. I have some potential projects in the works from a couple different sources, but nothing is set for now so I am on the interview train. I suppose it has been good to have the time off, but I wouldn’t say it has been easy. Thanks to my bank’s superior saving skills and my industry employed boyfriend (I’ll let you read about that in his blog), I can afford, for now, to find something I will enjoy.

TIPS: There are not many movies out in the theaters right now. Although there is the much anticipated Dark Knight movie that I have yet to see. I saw the Sex and the City movie a few weeks ago and was pleasantly surprised. I never watched more than a couple episodes of the show here and there, but I thought the movie was good. It was funny. There were many emotional scenes that I laughed through. This was not because they were stupid and I was laughing at them, but it was because they managed to keep a good sense of humor even in very emotional scenes. I started watching the show after I saw the movie, and I just finished season one. I wouldn’t recommend it to just anyone, but I am enjoying it.

Something I would recommend to anyone would be the HBO miniseries, John Adams. It was just nominated for an insane amount of emmys today and rightfully so. It has incredible production quality, well above average historical accuracy, and awesome performances. I am considering buying a bunch of copies and sending it to people I know will like it. It is that good.

I also watched an older movie recently that I think has become one of my many favorites. It is a Woody Allen movie called Hannah and Her Sisters. It is funny, insightful, and had really good characters.

Without mapping out meals for the rest of the year, I have been cooking at home a lot. Sometimes, I cook simple things like meat, starch, and veggie. Sometimes I get a little more creative, and maybe you want to try this one. It is inspired by my old UF roommates Christy and Laura who were ultimately inspired by the Italian restaurant, Carrabba’s. I believe Christy made it once at our apartment and it is one of Laura’s favorite dishes of all time. This is not really great recipe form, but I think it is pretty simple.

• cook chicken breast (I cook it by searing both sides until brown) and then putting in my confectioners oven on 325F for 20 minutes.
• At the 15 minute mark of the chicken cooking, take it out and smother it with sundried tomato paste or a thick sauce (you can also use a thick pesto sauce/paste if that sounds better to you), and top it with some sliced goat cheese. Stick the chicken back in for the rest of the cooking time.

So good!