Well, the big news in my office is that Anna Nicole Smith died. Most of my coworkers think her kid is better off without her. But even though she was a bit crazy and not the smartest person, it’s kind of sad. After all, she was only 39. What a shame.

(B) Tortilla Flat (John Steinbeck, 1935) Grade: B
Considered one of the great American writers, Steinbeck’s Tortilla Flat reads like a fable, with each chapter offering a moral lesson. The characters’ poverty reflects the Great Depression and also provides a glimpse into California life at that time. His book was adapted into a 1942 film starring Spencer Tracy, which I’d be curious to see. Though I prefer Of Mice And Men, Tortilla is still a solid entry in Steinbeck’s body of work.

I read an article that said Jan. 24 is the most depressing day, because it’s after the holidays, with no other long-term holiday for quite a while; it’s usually a time when people’s New Year’s resolutions have been broken; and you’re feeling fatter and poorer (both post holidays). But I’m thinking Feb. 20 is pretty depressing too, because it’s after V-day and President’s Day, which means no official holiday until Memorial Day. Now that’s a long wait...

Please note if you don't see your name on the site you are still a member of the house. Apparently, if you have not signed up on Blogger with your new Gmail account you will not show up. A bit lame but yea. So sign up if you can.

Thanks for the post Hedwig. I was wondering if anyone posted for Tuesday. Nothing much to report on my end. I'm feeling under the weather :( I hate that I get sick. Oh well. I don't talk about work much but lately things have been getting annoying. My boss is a big fan of micro-managing and my supervisor has anger problems. It just sucks. :(

On another note, I was talking to one of my gay co-workers and told him how my supervisor (a white guy) was dating an Asian girl. He told me he must eat Asian food 5 times a day and I went but I don't think he even likes Chinese food to which he informed me Honey I'm not talking about food ... ZING!!

must...keep...going!!!

HPV Vaccine

Gardasil was approved by the FDA on June 8, 2006. I had to look it up today for "homework" on my rotation. HPV infections are the most common sexually transmitted infections in women. The vaccine protects against 4 strains of the HPV virus; two of which cause genital/respiratory warts, the other two that cause cervical cancer. The recommended age range is 9-26 years of age. The reason why I blog about this is because of the media exposure it has gotten recently. I think this is awesome. Not only have there been commercials which have been circulated well, but the last two weeks Greys Anatomy has mentioned it during episodes in significant plot lines. As far as I've heard, Michigan and Texas have passed laws which include the HPV vaccine to be part of immunizations required to enter in 6th grade. Now, I tried to find a clip of Greys Anatomy, but all I could find was one of the commercials for Gardasil.

Los Tacos

Address:	7954 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90046
Phone:	(323) 848-9141

This place has great food. It's by Santa Monica and Fairfax. The best part is that they are open 24Hrs! I liked their beef tacos (they use hard shell tacos) and their carnitas burritos. Delicious and affordable.

there's already been a post for today, but whatevs....
late with the news, but i just read it myself

garbage is BACK!

looks like they're working on a new album, plus a greatest hits (with possible inclusion of b-sides & remixes) for March, to be titled Absolute Garbage.
as Jesse would sing, I'M SOOOOO EXCITED!

I wanted to go to the Jacky Cheung concert in Las Vegas but 1. It was a lot of money (around $200 bucks) 2. I had no one to go with and 3. I don't think I would understand all the words :P At least I have YouTube.

Because I have been threatened continuously for the last couple weeks about my lack of blogs on this site, I decided I should write something or kicked get off. So here you go new wave, are you happy now?

1. The Superbowl Commercials. - This year the cost for a 30 second commercial cost a record $2.6 million dollars. These are supposed to be the commercials that stick in our mind and convince us to buy crap we don't need. This year I have to say that I was highly disappointed. The only one I remember was the Kfed one, only because I had seen it before and was the one everyone was talking about. Now I'm not asking for weird commercials where robots and monsters have sex and procreate a Hummer H3, but I would like something that makes me laugh or sticks with me. You all failed, what will consumers buy now?

2. Oh there was a football game today too, it was mildly entertaining. I think the highlight was the end where I won by football grid/pool and walked away with $200.

(G) Morrissey @ Pasadena Civic Auditorium (Feb. 3) Grade: A
Steven Patrick seemed a bit moody tonight. He was hardly as chatty as he was on Friday. I was hoping the set list would change a bit, but they performed *exactly* the same songs (in different order). I think this is because the band has changed and the new members would have to learn the different songs in order for there to be variety, whereas the Wiltern shows all had different set lists. Morrissey was a bit snide as well, remarking that the people in Pasadena were lucky for living there because they had their own spa and Rite-Aid. Tonight he handed the mic to Julia, who is his mega-fan that goes to all of his concerts. He usually just addresses her name in his stage banter, but this time he actually chatted with her. Despite the Mozzer mood, it was an overall great night.

(M) Fists In The Pocket [Criterion Collection / Spain])
Grade: B-/C+
A man living with his older brother, beautiful sister, blind mother, and retarded brother is driven to frustration with everyone and plots to kill all of them but his older brother. This film made Marco Bellocchino's career. It wasn't bad and I guess it can be disturbing for the idea of somebody killing their own family members (or wanting to) but it didn't have the impact I guess I was hoping for.

(G) Morrissey @ Pasadena Civic Auditorium (Feb. 2) Grade: A+
Everything about this concert was fantastic! The venue was relatively small, so even though I had a Z ticket, which I was able to upgrade to U, I could see the stage pretty well. Moz performed a good deal of tracks from Ringleader of the Tormentors (“I Will See You in Far Off Places,” “Dear God, Please Help Me,” “You Have Killed Me,” “Life is a Pigsty,” “I’ll Never Be Anybody’s Hero”) but also five Smiths songs! He started with “Panic,” then “William, It Was Really Nothing,” “Girlfriend in a Coma” and “How Soon Is Now?” And then he started the encore with “Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want”! Tears came to my eyes at that point. He also introduced “Everyday Is Like Sunday” by saying that this song came out back in the day when KROQ still played his songs. Steven Patrick seemed in a particular good mood that night and threw out three shirts into the crowd. Lovely, lovely, lovely. I can’t wait to see him again tonight.

P.S. Morrissey is on the cover of L.A. Weekly, so pick up a free copy!

Another close call. Hey, I need help people ... please :) hee hee. Some things that interest me:

- California Science Center is calling all nerds to join them on the dark side.


- I wanted to go to the Simpsons panel one but of course it all sold out :(. Apparently the Office one is in high demand on Craigslist.

- The Wii is good for you, which makes me want it more.

- A new way for me to save EVEN more money.

1st album review of the year!
(A) A Weekend in the City, Bloc Party (2007) grade: B

So this album is a lot more mellow than the debut album. Overall, I like it. I first listened to the UK single, "The Prayer", and wasn't impressed by it. Apparently Kele Okereke was inspired by Busta Rhymes' "Touch It" and you can hear the influence on this track. I then checked out the US single, "I Still Remember", which I enjoyed more. This track is more representative of the rest of the album. My favorite track is probably "Uniform".
The album is released Feb. 6.
(note: links to songs above are to their respective videos)

In anticipation of the Morrissey weekend, here’s a bit of an interview with him:

Do you find yourself being attracted to people?
“Yes sometimes. I do have the occasional flushes but they do pass. I sit down and have a chip butty. You don’t accept that do you? Yes, I do have flushes, usually at Bank Holidays. Mostly, no, people are a great disappointment to me. I think I am interested and then I discover the reality. People are quite light and frothy, which is fair enough. I know some people aren’t frothy at all. I think there’s a lot of frothiness about, especially in Peterborough.”

Mm, light and frothy!