Halloweenie

Well, here we are at friday. Wow, i forgot how time flies in this city. Monday was pretty calm around here. Tuesday was spent running errands, tuesday night we went to the maple leaf bar to see another one of my fave local acts, rebirth. They're a brass band that rocks! Its a very intimate setting, there are no chairs, the band performs on a small stage, and the audience just gets their groove on!!! Wednesday was back to work for me, it was my first night on my own at the g.clove! It went pretty well, there are soooo many characters that roll in and out of that place, its quite entertaining. I mean, cheers has nothin on this place as far as the entertainment factor!! I also got to watch the bosox win!! Good for them, its about time!!! Yesterday we were awoken pretty early by jason informing us that contractors were coming to measure the house!! So, we took this as an opportunity to have a french quarter breakfast, which, like most other meals in the quarter, leads to a well deserved nap!!! Today we are off to the french market(the locals place for steals on souvenirs!!). I will be working all weeekend! Dont know how excited i am, but, hopefully, it will be moneymaking. Oh, amie and i happened by this mardi gras store that was having a big sale on halloween costumes. And wouldnt you know we found our costumes!! Ill hopefully have my photos uploaded soon, so you can see all the action!!! Peace out

Just another weekend in the dirtay south!!

Well we had another eventful time around these parts!! Friday was mostly spent recovering from thursday night, which in effect, led to our staying in!! We wanted to get plenty of sleep for the long day ahead of us!! Saturday was a true nawlins day!! We started off (at 2pm no less) dropping in to a local music store to catch a live performance of one of my favorite local bands. They're called schatzy, and yes they're name is a fitting representation of the band. Their lead singer also plays the accordian(more like jams it, he rocks!!). Anyhoo, there were only like 10 people, and we were all drinkin beer, groovin to the tunes, standin in the middle of a record store. It was awesome!! We then ventured through the quarter and decided it was just tooooo hottttt!(ok, so this is where ill point out that this whole heat thing, yeah im pretty much over it, i mean, its gonna be november, and we're still running the a/c, there's something really wrong wit dat!!!)So we hopped in the car(not literally, id only had 2 beers)to my old stompin grounds(am i allowed to say that since i only lived here before for like 9 months, i mean, what if any are the characterizations of a "stompin ground"?Hmmmm?)Parasols!! A cozy little irish pub famous for its tasty beer and even tastier roast beef poboys!!! (also discovered cheese gravy fries"Im in heaven....")So you know how this goes, 1 beer turned into 2, 2 into 3 and so on until we had spent the better part of our afternoon, and well into the evening in this place. They keep it sooo dark in there all the time that you really have no concept of day or night. Once we finally peeled ourselves off our barstools and bid a fond farewell to our new fave barkeep(joanna=had been working for like 12 hours, and was way passed the early phases of delirium"here's for my beer" "oh, didnt you already pay for that?" "Uh, i dont think so" "Are you sure, cuz, well whatever, just keep your money"YEah, like i said, new fave-free drink given barkeep!!) We made it to another show from a local band mexico 1910(they rock!!), got some country fried steak at 2 am(diet?what diet?)and called it a night!! Sunday was pretty uneventful except for the part where my kamikaze cell phone took a dive into my drink(it totally jumped out of my hand!!!)further proving my theory that me and cell phones, well i just dont think its gonna ever be a smooth ride for the two of us, but, with a little therapy(in the form of dr. phil, of course)i think we can make it through this!!! Anyhoo, if you're someone with whom i owe a return phone call, or you just feel like im neglecting you, blame it on the damn technology,( not my codependence of it), and please call me, because, undoubtedly, ive lost your number(mines still the same!!) Hope all is well!!!

Randomness that is New Orleans

Ok, so just a little taste of that whole cosmic thing that ingulfes you in this city!! So, we went to this bar on a street called frenchman(basically, like a locals bourbon). I had wanted to see a band that was playing there! Anyhoo, we were just hangin out when this white guy with no rhythm(but had had a couple, so it didnt matter) tried to do the moonwalk. You know amie and I couldnt pass up the opportunity to feed his drunk ego, and our sadistic ways by asking him to do it again!! Anyway, i started talking to him and his friends(think there were about 4 of them) and wouldnt you know, these boys were from LEMOORE!! Can you believe it? What are the chances, just goes to show that no matter where you are in this city the randomness will getcha!! Toodles!!

National Novel Writing Month

Hello there everyone!! Well, and i know this is going to come as a shock to some of you, but, i've actually committed myself to something worthy!! Just fumbling around on this websites home page i stumbled upon National Novel Writing Month(henceforth referred to as NanoWrimo). Nanowrimo is a web based event that pushes novelists on all levels to write and finish a novel(50,000 words) in just 30 days. I don't know that many people know this, but it's always been one of my"Someday's". You know, like our parents always say"Someday, when i win the lotto...(insert fantastically unattainable item here)". So, i read up on it and thought, why not? At least I can say i did it!!(To all the naysayers, you're my motivation for actually completing this daunting task!!) So, forgive my absence/lack of sanity(moreso than normal) in the month of November for I am embarking on a spiritual, intellectual journey!!! In other news, got a job yesterday! In my tainted opinion, it almost seemed too easy!! I mean, I asked for an application on Tuesday, the manager told me they were hiring, I went in yesterday to turn in the app.. When i asked if she wanted me to come back today for an interview, she was like, yeah, i want u to come back to start working!! Now, i know ive got charm, and i guess im doing ok in the looks dept., but come on, i know i aint that good!! Well, maybe i am!!! Amie and i celebrated my newfound employment with the locals fav, hurricane!!! Oh, yeah on the weather portion of the local news last night i learned that yesterday, OCTOBER 19, was the HOTTEST day of the year here!!! Go figure!!! Oh yeah, so if y'all want to check out my progress, i'll be writing it online, the website is http://firststabatthis.blogspot.com/!! Remember, it doesnt start til Nov.1!!

Whats up with you people

Ok,so heres the deal people, i know this whole weblog thing is a little advanced for most of you, so let me break it down.... You come to this website (which has apparently been a chore for some of u since there's no www), you read my ish,(if i do say so myself is pretty dang funnay), then (most crucial part), you leave a COMMENT(so i at least know my wittiness is not wasted on myself, that would be lame, i hear myself everyday), lastly, you check back and comment to let me know you still love me(yes, im 2000 miles away and i still have issues!!!) thank you for listening

Humidity, Heaven, Pintsize fun

Sup peeps? So, today was quite the day in this little city. I'll start by saying this morning was nothing short of a preview of the weather in hell! When we left the house this morning(and yes it was in the a.m, we called it an early night), it was sooooo humid(note to fresno residents: U ARE NEVER ALLOWED TO BITCH/MOAN ABOUT THE WEATHER EVER AGAIN!!!!!! ) So yeah us fresnans have no concept of(well, i guess this is debatable, some might have a longer list)weather, i mean, so we were all walking around complaining about how HOT it was last week, but, humidity in october? U have no idea, aside from the fact that its just not right, i take personal offense for a couple reasons: 1. I'm what some might refer to as a mutt(german-irish-mexican-)and my parents(love you guys!!)were obviously not looking out for the sake of the products of their love( with respect to hair). I mean, ive got this curly monstrosity that is bearly tameable in the dry heat streets of fresno, but with years of practice ive learned to manage. Now, you wanna through humid, and rainy at me in mid-october, the hair gods have got it out for me, it just aint right. Ok, whew, im over that, anyway, and in my opinion the most important reason, 2. like, hello, didnt we used to have 4 seasons, whatever happened to i dont know, fall, how bout autumn, when was the last time anyone remember seeing a picturesque autumn? Anyone....anyone...bueller? So, after a couple hours the humidity made way to a torrential downpour that caught both amie and i in our now sopping wet summer attire. Once the rain let up we headed into town to handle some business. Ok, so i always thought this would greet me just inside the gates of heaven, but today christmas came early cuz i went to....a two story Target(it was heavenly!)I mean, as if this isnt already the greatest store ever, that requires me to devote at least a good hour of my day, you gonna go and throw another story at me? Bring it!!! So, 2 1/2 hours later, feeling satisfied, and considerably more in debt, we headed off to a fan favorite of fresnans, Bennigans, thats right people, it lives!!! Ok, so this could be, i dont know if i should say this, but it could be greater than the two story target. So y'all remember bennigans right? Strongly irish themed joint famous for lots of drank, and a few scrumptuous morsels, well as we walked pass the front doors, i couldnt believe what stood before me,and only in the great city of new orleans would i even stop to ponder such an events actual existence, but standing behind the hostess stand(all 4 feet of him)was what i instantly thought to be a real live leprechaun(i mean no green suit, or anything, but he was wearing a green polo!!)Once inside i realized, id been had!! Id been tricked!! It was no leprechaun at all, but a little person who was a host!!!! I feel ive been cheated by what turns out to be purely coincidental height of the host's with relation to that of an irish mythical favorite!! Now you tell me fresnans, tell me how any of you could not want to be in my shoes after a seemingly normal(to locals anyway)yet thouroughly comedic day? happy trails!!

welcome back, janice

Well, we finally rolled into new orleans about 10ish in the pm on thursday. The sheer joy of no longer being in texas was quickly replaced with my excitement to be back in this town. I don't know how many of you have been here before, but, to put it briefly i'll just say, theres something cosmic in the air here(no its not the humidity, although..i guess it very well could be)There's something so empowering to know that im here with all this history and culture, (oh yeah , and i heard they've got a couple bars here too!!)its so invigorating. I was also soo excited to be back with my main man jason. The man has the most powerful combination of genius and sheer wit, he makes me want to do and be more with myself and life. So, there's a little tidbit about the new/old roomie!!!! We debated whether or not to venture out considering the state of sleep deprivation and fatigue(ok, so we didnt debate, i mean, granted i was so beat i didnt even remember my name, but i did no how to get home from the bar, and in the end thats all ya need right?-joke dad, dont freak!!!). Anyhoo considering this was amies first time...in new orleans,hehe, we embarked on the frighteningly intriguing walk of bourbon street. Luckily for me, amie didnt have the usual entranced kid in a candy store ,typically male reaction to the not so putrid smelling (werent that many stumbling tourists out this night)street, and we were off to one of my favorite spots just off the beaten path of bourbon. monaghan's, famous for their chocolaty, yummy irish car bombs, and true irish tunes blasting from the jukebox, a must on any tour of the quarter. Jason hung out with us for a couple hours before heading home for the night. This is the part where I can say i kinda sorta miss the whole "last call" thing in california. Its also where i make an attempt to excuse the time at which we left the bar. We'll go ahead and leave the time out of this fun little one, to protect those involved. So, we leave the bar and head home feeling reassured of the decision that i made to come back, and feeling satisified that this was a pretty great welcome back night. That feeling didnt last long. This is where it gets good people, so listen up. Jason gave me a set of 3 keys that get me into the house. We had used 2 of the 3 keys when my luck ran out. The 3rd key, supposedly for the front door, did not work. Considering the "couple" of cocktails we had consumed, we pretty much tried all 3 keys about 100 times each, into the morning hours. After several attempts to get a hold of jason(20 unanswered cell phone calls, several new cracks in his bedroom window)i realized, he too was apparently in much need of sleep. We finally gave up and got my first night home sleep on the front step of my new residence, with amie passed out on a patio chair. I was awaken by the piercing rays of the morning sun, and an overwhelming need to pee, at which point i decided i would have to put my several years of girl scouts to good use, i was gonna break in. After surveying the house, i tried to open a set of storm shutters on the backside of the house. By the grace of god i found that the door behind the shutters was unlocked, there was only a barstool that stood in my way of relief and sleep(in a bed). So i got amie up and we went on our stealth mission to break in! Alas, we were in and headed for the bathroom!!! Now for the good part, I couldnt understand how deep of a sleep jason was in to not hear his phone, or the rocks at his window. I was also pretty pissed at the fact that he gave us a freakin key that didnt work. So, we busted into his room to find him passed out, at which point amie began jumping on his bed. I found his cell phone in his pants pocket and showed him the missed calls. This guy had the nerve to say we must've not known what we were doing. Ha, puhlease, like ive never had drinks and had to get into a house. Anyway he comes downstairs smugly shaking his head in disbelief. Well, he tried our key, and, surprise, it didnt work, at which point he pulls out his key to disprove us again, the next thing i know jasons on the ground rolling in laughter, and i see his keys on the ground, well, half of his key, yeah he BROKE his key when opening the door the night before, and had had a few too many apparently because he was completely unaware of the fact he'd broken the key until this very moment. The remainder of the weekend has been spent pretty much recovering from that first night. Along the way ive already received a couple job offers(bartending, for all yall dirty rats who mightve been thinking otherwise)Friday night, got to hang with a couple of old friends, and met my new cabdriver Sam, hes from jerusalem, and he crazy, so i figured who better!!! Saturday the intent was to go to the voodoo music festival, but after a near food coma inducing meal at copelands(let me just say spinach dip served with deep fried bowtie pasta, YUM)and a few hurricanes(the drink)i was reminded why making plans on the weekend is very futile!! We also came across the first truly "dirty old man" ive ever met, 3 europeans on vacation, and ive decided that my feet pretty much hate me right now(damn fashionable footwear). Sunday, today, ive made a list of alll the productive things to do that shouldve been done this weekend, oh, and we had lunch at juans flying burrito,the best not mexican mexican meal in town(these southerners, they just dont know casa corona would put this place to shame)!!! Well friends thats it for now,
Quote of the day:
While walking down Royal street in the french quarter a man in a wheelchair yells out to amie"you make my liver quiver, lets get together and have some handicapped kids"
PS.If anyone has some really cool old school pillowcases will ya let me know, its this new thing im gonna try(if it works you'll hear all about it)

Road Trippin

Well, we made it. Which is nothing short of a miracle. 33 hours of pure unadulterated cabin fever. Driving through texas is most easily comparable to nails on a chalkboard, with a hint of that noise that silverware makes when you rub it together, and a pinch of a faulty smoke detector(ok, maybe this ones a little random, but you see where im headed with this). I cant tell you the sheer joy of knowing i NEVER have to do that again.... Ah damn, i do, crap, that was shortlived--story of my life!!!(nods of agreeance from all readers). Could i have been any happier that just days prior to our departure i joined the rest of the free world in purchasing a cd player? That would be a definite hell yes!! Passenger activities included amies incessant perfection of her first crocheted scarf, my newly found addiction with tetris(you know you love it too).The constant that only amie and myself can truly appreciate was the fact that at any given moment, with any given cd, it was a guarantee that at least one of us was giving concert quality performances that only true american idol fans can appreciate(dont lie, you know you're a fan too!!). Ok, so the first day, we're were scheduled to leave at 9am, since we all know my time clock seems to have been running slower than everyone elses for like ever (so yeah, im habitually late, i really, just cant help it!!!),we didnt end up hitting the road til around 1pm. Pulling up to amies place, the sheer comedy of her first view of the green machine packed to the gills with all my lifes possesions was a classsic kodak moment(pic to follow, once i figure out how to get that shiggity up heeah(sorry nawlins ebonic lingo is already coming back to me!) So, the first day of the drive put us through california and into tucson, arizona. With brief stops for fuel, and relief. And a short unmentionable yet mentioned stop in blythe, california(note to readers:go ahead and skip on the blythe del taco) I totally hyped that place up cuz amie'd never eaten there before and her first and probably last experience saw the delectable chicken soft taco missing its key tasty ingredient(you know, that white creamy substance that we tell ourselves is sour cream, yet noones brave enough to confirm).Our first night in tucson saw me not getting much sleep for several reasons: paranoia over some transient finding himself with a new pair of rollerblades and ikea comforter(extent of lifes possesions). Getting familiar with the sleeeping pattern of my road-dog(still waiting for bruise on arm to lessen from ugly purpleness, result of amies sleepspasm.)Woke up not so brighteyed and bushytailed headed for san antonio. This is where the road trip takes its turn for the worst, the state of texas, dun-dun-dunnn!!! Honestly, it just seems like somebody should have some money to at least throw a few, i dont know, streetlights, billboards, give me something to look at during the tumultuous 14 hours i'm spending driving through your state, is that really too much to ask? So yeah, by the time we made it to san antonio it was 2am. So, not only did we miss last call(depriving us of a well deserved cocktail) we had to settle for an upstairs room further feeding the paranoia that out of all the beamers, and suvs in the parking lot, someone was looking to get my not so shiny and new ford escort!! We awoke and headed for the historical part of the trip(what?dont act so surprised,and no its not the history of bars in san anton, although, not a bad idea.wish id thought of that sooner!)the alamo. Ok, call me cuckoo for cocoa puffs, but, when we woke up in the morning the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day in downtown san antonio. As soon as we started walking around the alamo, the sky was replaced with big, dark, grey clouds. I considered this to be the warning sign of the gods, the warning that i was teetering on a potentially hazardous path, i my friends, was having an educational moment brought about by my own volition. I too asked myself that very same question i know you've just asked yourself, who is this knowledge seeking individual? And what'd you do with janice? Well, let me set your worried minds at ease, the moment passed, and i had a beer.(Along with a mighty tasty burger i might add, from fuddruckers. Big ups to those peeps for coming correct with how a burger joint should be done. I even got to play a little misspacman after satifsying my thirst and hunger!!) We walked around the riverwalk for awhile and decided we had prolonged the inevitable 4 long enough, we had to do more driving through texas!!! And, in only 8 long, grueling hours, we would be out of the state i will henceforth refer to as "the forgotten", and back with my one true love, louisiana.