YAYAism

A much needed update!!!

2006-02-01T14:55:00.000-08:00

I know I'm neglecting my poor blog, but there has been so much going on that I really haven't had the time to sit down and write a post!!! I have a kick-ass new computer at home now, so I'll start posting more often. The big news right now is Mom is moving to Houston this weekend to be with Stephenie and the grandkids. Since Sammy broke his neck, he needs constant care and supervision until he recovers. I'll be spending the next few days over there helping her pack, so that they can leave early Saturday. I have to pick up Steph and Alex from the airport Friday night, so that she can drive the moving van to Houston.

Much more to come....

I'm in Good Hands!

2005-06-16T15:21:00.000-07:00

The last two weeks I haven't posted much, because my new boss has been in the office training. I've been debating for months, as to whether I should stick around here or look for greener pastures. After spending these last two weeks getting to now my new boss, I have decided to stay put. He's turned out to be a cool guy, with a lot ethusiasm and great ideas for the agency. I really think he is going to be great to work for/with!

BTW.... did I mention that he's buying a high tech coffee maker for the office? My little caffine saturated heart is doing back flips!!!

Felled tree.

2005-06-01T01:50:00.000-07:00

Felled tree.
Posted by: yayaism.

I thought this made an interesting picture. I don't know if the limb was broken during the storm the night before, or by some of the kids that frequent that area. However it happened, it was still a little saddening to see such a large part of the tree die.

At the ballpark.

2005-05-25T08:55:00.000-07:00

At the ballpark.
Posted by: yayaism.

I snapped a couple of pics during the game Saturday. The nephews had a great time. They particularly liked the fireworks that went off everytime Frisco made a homerun. We all had a blast, and I even got another Frisco RoughRiders cap for my collection (I've gotten 5 different caps)!

Play Ball!!!

2005-05-20T02:27:00.000-07:00

Play Ball!!!
Posted by: yayaism.

My family and I are going to a minor league baseball game on Saturday. The Frisco RoughRiders are a great team. I've been to several of their games, and I really enjoying watching them play!

This will be the first time my nephews (9 and 7 yrs old) have ever been to a real baseball game. I can't wait!

My Dahling Darren!

2005-05-19T04:04:00.000-07:00

My Dahling Darren!
Posted by: yayaism.

Hanging out at karaoke last night, I snapped this pic of Darren! He's an absolute dahling and one of my favorite partners in crime. I hadn't seen him in a couple of months, and it was great getting to hang out with him again. We had a blast singing and dancing all night. I think the best part was getting JoAnn (his sister and one of my best friends) to mess up on her song. She's the HOST of the karaoke show, and we had her laughing so hard she couldn't sing! Now THAT'S entertainment!

Here is another one!

2005-05-18T03:25:00.000-07:00

Here is another one!
Posted by: yayaism.

I caught this one in full bloom!

Flame Rose

2005-05-18T03:19:00.000-07:00

Flame Rose
Posted by: yayaism.

I took this pic outside of my apartment building. I love the firey colors!

blaze of curled petals

flaming hues ignite the soul

inspirations fire

OOOOO AAAAHHHH

2005-05-18T02:18:00.000-07:00

OOOOO AAAAHHHH
Posted by: yayaism.

My obsession with Corvettes is well-known by those close to me. I friend sent this pic this morning to feed my need!

Tired!

2005-05-16T13:26:00.000-07:00

As of Friday, I am no longer a danger to myself and other motorists! I finally got the money together to get some decent tires. Woo-hoo! Yee-haw! Hooray! Ya-hoo! It's the little things in life that bring the greatest joy. Celebrate every victory, no matter how small, because they add up.

Sara and I went to the movies Friday night and Saturday morning. Friday's movie was The Hitchhiker's Guide t the Galaxy. Sara really didn't care for it at all. I thought it was alright, but having read the book, I was a bit let down. Saturday's choice was Amityville Horror. Why I let her talk me into watching horror movies, I have YET to figure out. I'm by no means a horror movie fan and this one fit the horror part to a "T". There were some scenes that were just plain gross (and I am NOT the skemish type either). If you see it this one, pay attention to what happens to the babysitter. UGH!!! Okay, enough about movies, onwards to the rest of my weekend!

I spent the rest of Saturday mostly on the couch, laid out with a migraine. FUN, FUN, FUN NOT! At least I wasn't down the entire weekend. Sunday I spent most of the day at Mom's. Since Stephenie (my younger sister and only sibling) was in Houston last weekend, we postponed Mother's Day until she could be home. We just hung out and played Scrabble and watched T.V.. Steph cooked dinner and I had made a cake for desert. The cake turned out really cute (wish I had taken a pic to post). My decorating skills are improving with every project as is my aresenal of culinary gadgets. I've been building up my own cake decorating kit ever since Kelly (my best friend) took hers back. (I only had it for a few years!) As much as I HATE to cook, I have no clue as to why I enjoy decorating cakes. Who knows, who cares at least it keeps me entertained for a couple of hours.

I guess that's all for the moment. I'll post more later this week about some of the things that have been going on with me and mine.

A Blog is such a terrible thing to waste!

2005-05-12T09:21:00.000-07:00

My poor little blog has been so neglected! Now that my little world is starting to settle once more, maybe I can get back to posting regularly. I have a million things to write about , but only about five minutes in which to do so. For the moment, I will just say that I am alive and well and have lots of posts coming up!

From your YAYA 2 U.....Do NOT drive 65 MPH on a donut spare. It WILL POP!!!

Way overdue!

2005-02-18T16:00:00.000-08:00

I am well aware that this post is way, way overdue! I swear that I'll have a complete update posted by Monday noon. Things have been getting busier here at the office, so I just don't have a lot of time to blog. I'm going to start writing posts on my laptop at home, then uploading them when I get to the office. Hopefully, that will get me back on track with blogging!

Right now, I'm trying to re-evaluate my little life and iron out some MAJOR wrinkles! It's taking time to readjust my entire way of life. I think I need to step back and take smaller steps if I'm going to make and real, lasting changes. Little by little does the trick!

The Weekend 1/21/05 to 1/23/05

2005-01-24T12:00:00.000-08:00

Yet another weekend that ended way too soon! I went out to the karaoke shows on both Friday and Saturday night. It had been more than a month since I'd been to the Friday night show, so I really enjoyed hanging out with that crowd. Saturday night at the Dove was crazy! It was busier than New Year's Eve. I shot a few games of pool, but couldn't get into the swing of it. After losing badly for three games, I put up my cue for the night.

Stalker #2 (Roy) was in attendance Saturday night. I guess the new year has inspired him to boldness. He kept trying to sit at my table and even tried to speak to me. I reminded him that he isn't welcome in my world and he finally retreated to his usual lurking and watching from a safe distance.

After karaoke ended, I went to the Truck stop for breakfast. I ran into a group of friends that I don't get to see too often as well as a guy I know from another club. We all sat and talked until arond 4:00 before they all left. I decided to stick around for awhile a finally got started on my 2005 journal. I'd had gotten out of the habit of writing several months ago, and I was really starting to miss it. I traditionally start a new "Everything Book" (what I call my journal because it also has everything in it from grocery lists to phone number to poems to design sketches) every year, so it seemed like to perfect time to get back into it.

I ended up penning SEVERAL pages before finally calling it a day at 5:30 in the morning. (me and my night owl tendancies) As I was climbing into bed, i could just see the sunlight starting to filter through the blinds. Ahh, another day milked for all it was worth.

I slept in Sunday then wandered over to Mom's for dinner and TV with the family. We've made a habit of watching Desperate Housewives and Boston Legal every Sunday. I think it's a pretty good way to wind down the weekend.

The Bug

2005-01-19T00:26:00.000-08:00

The Bug
Posted by: yayaism.

The last few weeks I've had the WORST flu bug! I'd been fighting it off for nearly a month, but it finally got me. I've been hit with everything from stomach cramps to blurred vision to raging fever to dizziness. The last couple of days I've begun to feel a little better, but I'm not going to call myself well just yet. This crud tends to hang on and on and on!

Experimenting.

2005-01-13T08:51:00.000-08:00

Experimenting.
Posted by: yayaism.

I'm experiment with buzznet and blogger. If this works, I'll have pictures on my blog! Wish me luck!

By the way...this is a picture of the teapot Tip gave me for Christmas. (to keep himself from giving it to his ex-wife whom he bought it for)

Merry Christmas/Happy New Year/Happy Humpday

2005-01-05T08:17:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I'm wwwaaaayyyy overdue for a post. Deal with it! A lot has been happening in my little world. My little sister (31) graduated from college in mid December. It was kind of a big deal for our family. Steph is the 1st college grad. (I getting a fair bit of flack about that). Anyway, some relatives drove in from Houston, and arrived just in time for the ceremony. Afterward, the entire lot of us went to dinner at IHOP. It was great, sitting around sharing stories and laughing. Unfortunately, all good things must come to end. The folks from Houston departed from the restaurant and headed back home. Their visit was much too short, but I hope to drive down for a weekend sometime in the near future.

Christmas was okay for the most part. There's never enough time and money to do and buy all the things I would like. Christmas Eve I found out that a friends mother had passed away. I couldn't help but feel bad even though I didn't know the lady very well. It's a horriblr thing to lose someone you love, but during a holiday...that only makes it a hundred times worse. Her Christmas's will NEVER be the same.

The family Christmas was pretty low key. We just hung around Mom's house and watched the kiddos enjoying their loot. I think we've all got a lot pressing on us right now, so it kinda dampened our holiday spirits. I know that I never really got cheerful.

New Year's Eve at the Lonesome Dove was the same as it always has been. Many of the same people and the same counting down the New Year BEFORE midnight (damn bar time). I left a little after 1:00 and headed to the truck stop. I had breakfast with Mom and was gone before the rest of the bar crowd ever arrived.

Right now I'm wrapped up in the change over that's about to take place in my little office. My boss is retiring and selling his agency to an agent from Missouri. From what I've been told, the new guy intends to keep me on, but nothing is definite yet. The change won't actually happen until April 1, but Darren (the new boss) is comimg in tomorrow to check things out. I guess I'll have to wait and see how it all unfolds.

I guess that pretty much sums up all that's been happening of late. I'll try to get back to posting regularly. I'm still playing chess on-line, and losing most of the time. Hopefully, I'll start improving soon. Wish me luck!

Pony Up!

2004-12-20T16:10:00.000-08:00

Another weekend has come and gone all too quickly! The highpoint of the weekend was getting to spend time with my family from Houston. My aunt Lupe, my cousin Eloise and Eloise'e daushters Christina and Rami came up for Stephenie's graduation. Even though thier visit was short, I really enjoyed it! I'm hoping to take a trip down to visit some weekend. I want to make more of an effort to keep in touch with them.

The on-line chess is starting to get interesting. I met some other players that prefer faster game play, so I think it'll be a lot more interesting from this point on. If you happen th be on gameknot look me up. I play under the ID "angelao". I finished (and lost) my first game today. Even though I lost (quickly), it was still fun and I accepted the next challenge from the same opponent.

I surfed around and found another online chess site at letsplaychess.com. I'm acually getting to play in a tournament! You can keep up with my standing in the tournament by clicking the new "ChessWorld" icon on the sidebar. On this site you'll see me as "YAYAism" so I won't be too hard to find!

That's all for now!

Humpday Report

2004-12-15T09:20:00.000-08:00

The last few days, I've been playing chess at gameknot.com. I'm trying to brush up in case I end up playing Toby. He is an AVID player and I haven't played a real game in YEARS! Right now, I have two games in progress, but it will take days to finish either of them. So far one of my opponents averages one move per day, and the other averages two moves for day. I guess 'serious' chess players need hours and hours to decided on a move. I think I'm going to look for another site

Last night Tip gave my a really pretty collectible teapot for Christmas. He had intended it for his ex-wife, but I ended up with it. Even if he gave it to me to spite her, I still appreciate the gift. He could have taken it back or given it to his mother or sister. I've thought about getting him some sort of small gift, but I haven't a clue as to what I would get him. I thought of maybe a wallet or a money clip. I don't know. Maybe I should just give him a nice Christmas card.

Tonight I'm going to Carrollton to hang out with Kelly for awhile. I saw her Saturday, but it's kinda hard to visit while she's trying to hostess a birthday party! Anyway, tonight we should get to time to sit down and chat and get caught up on what the other has been up to.

Last night's karaoke show wasn't too bad. It started off pretty slow, but then ended up with a pretty good crowd. Just before I shut it down at 1:30, it dwindled down again. It was a major improvement over the last couple of weeks.

Much Ado About Everything

2004-12-08T12:04:00.000-08:00

There are lots of things churning about in my little world. Steph is finally graduating from college next week. My friend Sue may be coming up from Corsicana for the weekend. Kelly's daughter will have her first birthday party on Saturday. Next weekend, some of my family from Houston will be coming down for Steph graduation. I haven't even begun shopping for Christmas. I need to take my car in to have the serpentine belt replaced and I really need new tires. There is so much to do and so little time. There are so many things I need but so little money. I'm stressing. I'm stressing. I'm stressing.

I'm also pissed off because I lost one of my pretty chrome wheel covers. The idiots that replaced my tire on Monday, didn't put the cover on correctly and now it's lost! If i thought it would do any good, I would call and raise hell. I know that they won't do anything for one plastic/chrome wheel cover. I guess I'll have to start shopping for new wheel covers too. Geez does it ever end??!!

Archie Sparkles

2004-12-02T14:58:00.000-08:00

I devoted part of both yesterday's and today's lunch breaks to washing my car. Archie cleans up REAL good. The snazzy chrome wheel covers are so shiney!! It's been years since I washed a car. That's probably why I missed cleaning one of the wheel covers yesterday. Yep, I was so proud of myself for washing my little car; then I get back to the office and realized that I'd missed the front driver's side wheel!

I got it taken care of today along with the interior (windows included). Archie's a happy car today!

What a Week!

2004-11-29T10:30:00.000-08:00

I slept ALL day Sunday to recover from the weeks activities! From Monday through Saturday, I went out every single night. By the time Sunday came around, I was thankful for a much needed rest! Even after sleeping all day and all night, it was hard for me to get up and moving this morning. I could easily sleep another full day!

From Your YAYA to U!

2004-11-23T11:51:00.000-08:00

DO NOT kick-box in flip-flops. You WILL regret it!

The Weekend 11/12 to 11/21

2004-11-22T08:30:00.000-08:00

The Friday night show went pretty well. It wasn't jam packed, but it was steady all night. I felt kind of like a rookie because of all of the blunders I was making. My friend JoAnn hang out with me all night, which was cool. I don't think I would have survived the night without her moral support!

I stayed in bed until nearly 3PM Saturday afternoon. I only got up then because 1) I was getting hungry and 2) I had to go to the car dealership to have my stereo replaced. I now have a working tape deck WOO HOO! Now if only I could fing my Violent Femmes tape.

Saturday night was the Lonesome Dove as usual. I wasn't in a very good mood, so I stayed on the stage most of the night. Once in a while I'd go over to chat with Sara and Kelly H. for a few minutes. I really didn't want to be bothered by the rest of the crowd, so I stayed out of reach.

Sunday was another stayed in bed until 3PM day. When I finally got up, I decided to go to the movies and see National Treasure starring Nicholas Cage. It was an awesome movie! All the historic clues were cool and there are even some funny moments that had me laughing out loud. I would seriously considering buying National Treasure for my personal collection.

I spent the rest of Sunday at Mom's watching TV until I fell asleep. I finally went home at 12:30 this morning.

The boys were excited by the Mortal Kombat 3 cheats codes I found for them. They were trying all sorts of "new" moves this morning. I'll have to mess with it this weekend to try and unlock the rest of the cheats. After the holidays, I'm going to start looking for more games for the Sega Saturn game console that I have. I've found several on E-bay, but I want to check out the different types before I buy them. I don't want to end up with a bunch of games that we never play.

Finally Friday!

2004-11-19T14:49:00.000-08:00

WOO HOO the weekend is here! I'm so fantastically glad that it's Friday, I could nearly scream. Tonight I'm working the show in Denison. Betty is covering another show for an employee that needed to be off for her daughter wedding. Hopefully I'll have a good crowd and the night will go quickly.

Toby showed up at karaoke last night. He told me that he would be gone a vacation for the next couple of weeks, but he'd catch up to me when he gets back. We'll see.

Taking Corsicana

2004-11-15T08:45:00.000-08:00

Another awesome weekend to add to the archives! After work Friday, I picked up my friend Sara and hit the road. It was slow going on the highway due to traffic and multiple fender benders, but we made it to Corsicana without incident. For me, it's a minor miracle to get ANYWHERE without incident!

Most of the weekend was spent just hanging around Sue's apartment, watching movies and gabbing. Sue's friend ans co-worker "C" joined us on Saturday. She's half crazy, so she fit in well with our little group. Her puppy Little Bit was the cutest puppy I've ever seen! She wasn't even half as big as Nimbus, the smaller of my two cats.

We went out to the local bar on Saturday night. It was okay. There were a lot of people there, but it wasn't like Lonesome Dove where we know everyone. We cut out early (a little before 1 AM) and went to the Waffle House for breakfast, then back to Sue's. I enjoyed hanging out and cutting up way more than I did going to the bar. Driving around Corsicana was quite an experience! Between the train, the rain and the back AND front seat drivers, there was never a dull moment!

It was a pretty low key weekend, but it was still a good time. Sue is going to try to come up here in early December. If she makes it up here, she's going to try to get C to come along. I think we would have a hella good time if we all got together at Dove!

Sara and I got a later start than planned, but we still got back fairly early. I dropped Sara off at around 2:30, then headed up to Oklahoma (I only live about 10 or 15 minutes from the state line). I finally made it home at about 4:20. I really enjoyed the trip to Corsicana, but I was glad to get home!

Saw this on Scott's site!

2004-11-11T14:04:00.000-08:00

You are Gertrude Stein, turn of the century
word-smith. You stretched language to its
outermost limit, while collecting scads of
other artists and writers.

Which 20th Century Poet Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Gearing Up to Gear Down

2004-11-11T09:39:00.000-08:00

My friend Sara and I are gearing up for a trip to Corsicana this weekend. We'll be leaving Friday evening and, hopefully, avoid the rush hour traffic.

I'm looking forward to a weekend AWAY from here. The last few weeks have been beyond hectic, so Corsicana will be a nice change of pace.

Well, it's back to work. Big wigs are coming in to meet with my boss so I'm left sprucing the place up while he goes to get a haircut. Typical.

Lots o Links

2004-11-10T08:48:00.000-08:00

I've added several links to some of my favorites things. CLICK ON!!

The Rest...

2004-11-09T14:15:00.000-08:00

Even though Friday was my actual birthday, the main party took place Saturday night at the Lonesome Dove. After the late night the night before, it wasn't easy getting up to watch my nephews Saturday morning! When they went home around 2:00, I took a nap to rest up for the evening's activities. I met up with my friend Sara at 7:00 and we headed out to our favorite Mexican restuarant, Jalapenos. Jalapenos' margaritas run a close second to those of City Limits. Sara and I both enjoyed a couple before heading to the club. Just as we were deciding to leave, I was ambushed by waiters and waitresses singing Happy Birthday and rattling silverware drinking glasses! Sara had set me up! The onslaught even included a sundae with a candle on top! I was completely caught off gaurd, so I know I must have turned at least a dozen different shades of red! That's okay, paybacks are hell Sara (who will having a birthday on June 20th)!

We finally made it to the club and the serious partying began. Every time I turned around, someone was putting another shot in front of me. Not only that, but Dove has a pretty mean margarita too! It didn't take me long to lose track of how many drinks I had had! Several of my closest friends turned out. Sara, Kelly & Lawrence, Betty, Kelly H., my Mom and even Nacho (ex-boyfriend/Stalker #1). I got a lot of great gifts from everyone, but the best one had to be Toby (a 6 foot 3 yummy Marine)! I got into a world of trouble over Toby, but he was well, well worth it! It's one of those things that'll keeping my smiling in my old age! If my birthday weekend is any indication as to how my 33rd year is going to be, I had better buckle up because it's going to be a hellova ride!

NOTE: Toby showed up for my Tuesday night show and I kind of expect him to show up tonight too. Happy Birthday to me!

PS...Yesterday was my little sister's 31st birthday. Now that makes me feel old!

B-Day Recap and other stuff.

2004-11-08T08:30:00.000-08:00

Now that the heat has died down a little (and the boss has yet to arrive), maybe I can dash off a few lines about my birthday weekend (I turned 33 on Oct. 29th).

I missed that entire week of work, because of the Cavalier dying, so I was not in the best of moods. At 12AM Friday morning, my mom called and sang me Happy Birthday (she wanted to be the 1st)! All morning long, I got calls from friends and family with B-day wishes! Friday afternoon, I finally got Archie (my new Olds Achieva) and spent a little time driving around, enjoying the scenery and getting aquianted with my new car. I met up with Betty and we went out to eat at City Limits in Sherman. We normally don't have time on a Friday night to go to City Limits. There's always a long line by the time we get there at 7:30. Since I didn't work Friday, we had plenty of time to get down there and have a leisurely dinner and drinks. City Limits has THE BEST margaritas! Having time to burn before our 9:00 show, we decided to swing by another club in the area. The couple that owes the Yellow Rose are old friends and karaoke patrons from way, way back.

We visited with Terry and Linda for awhile then had to take off for the show. By the time we got to the Pub, I was already feeling zero pain! A couple songs and a couple of shots later, I was happily intoxicated. The next thing I know, Terry (from the Yellow Rose) is leading me outside. In the parking lot, a white stretch limo awaited. I got to take a ride around Denison for my birthday! Of course my drunken self was standing up out of the moon roof, waving at passing vehicles! It was quite a thrill. Wind thrashing my hair around my face and people honking and waving as we passed, I felt like the queen of the world!

All too soon, I was back at the club (reality bites). The rest of the evening was filled with well wishes, a few more drinks and a round of "Happy Birthday" accompanied by a trumpet!

I'll post the rest either later today or tomorrow morning!

On the Road Again!

2004-11-01T11:45:00.000-08:00

After blowing up yet another car, I'm finally on the road again! My '93 Cavalier finally gave up the fight on Sunday night last week as I was coming home from Corsicana. I'm thankful that I made it back home before the car quite on me!

The car lot had my car for a week before thet finally figured out that the head gasket had blown (for the third time). Rather than taking even more to fix the car (which would probably break down again sooner than later), they let me trade my car in. I'm now the excessively proud owner of a 1998 Oldsmobile Achieva SL! It's a white sedan with a spoiler and some really sharp looking wheel covers and it's a 6 cylinder. I (heart) my car. I shall call him Archie! (my car except for the wheels)

I really didn't want to take my vacation time to cover car problems, but at least I had it to cover missing a week of work.

There's another post coming (probably tomorrow) covering my 33rd B-day last Friday! It was quite a weekend, and MORE than made up for the lousy birthday I had last year. So far 33 has been a hella good time!

He's Got My Number

2004-10-20T12:01:00.000-07:00

My six yr old nephew has memorized my phone number. He now calls me at least once a day, just to talk for a minute.

He hasn't quite gotten down all the in's and out's of telephone use. While we were talking yesterday evening, he got irritated because the phone kept beeping. He thought I was doing it on purpose, until I explained Call Waiting to him.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2004-10-19T14:39:00.000-07:00

This is posted on WilWheaton.net

dallas comic con

I forgot to mention this until just now: On Saturday the 23rd of October, I'm going to be at the Dallas Comic-Con at the Plano Center, in fabulous Plano, TX. I'll have copies of Just A Geek, Dancing Barefoot, and the last few preview CDs for the audio book version of JAG. For all you Munchkin players out there, I'll have a very few "Heart of the Anomaly" cards, as well.

I haven't quite figured out exactly how I'm gonna do this, but I am SO gonna be there!

I was having a really bad day, but this just made it all better!

Weekend RECAP 10/15 to 10/17 2004

2004-10-18T09:30:00.000-07:00

It was another all round great weekend! Due to my lack of sleep, I took off early Friday. I would have taken the whole day, but I had to renew my insurance license before it expired on 10/16. I've spent too many hours doing continuing education (classroom AND on-line work) to let my license lapse. It's all taken care of, and I'm good for another two years. Now I can start working in my life license!!! WOO-HOO!

I caught an all to brief nap (only an hour and a half) Friday evening before meeting up with Betty. The Friday night show at The Towne Pub was INSANE! It was like a karaoke family reunion. People came in that I had not seen in years! I enjoyed seeing so many old familar faces.

Saturday I spent most of the afternoon with my youngest nephew Sammy. He went grocery shopping with me then we went back to my house and played my old Sega Saturn. Later that evening, the whole family went to dinner, then Mom and I took the boys to see Benji Unleashed (too cute). After the boys went home, Mom and I headed out to Dove for karaoke. The club was pretty busy, so I didn't get to sing much. It was cool though, because it gave me more time to hang out and shoot pool. My friend Rob and I played partners against a couple of really good players, and we WON! When the club closed, Mom and I went to the truck stop for breakfast. We didn't stay very long. I was still way tired and I had get up early to meet Sara for the Indy Race.

I managed to make it to Sara's by 9:00Am (ON TIME!), and we headed out to the Texas Motor Speedway. All was going well, until we realized that we had somehow gotten off track. We had missed the cut off for 35W and had taken 35E into DeSoto (way way off track)! A few phone calls later, we were on our way again. We missed the first half of the race, but we still had a pretty good time. Even the parking was an adventure! It took me 10 minutes to get Sara's Ford F150 Extd Cab wedged into those narrow parking lanes! The trip home was a lot less exciting. Considering the day we'd had already, we were glad to finally have some smoothe sailing!

The Race is On!

2004-10-15T09:16:00.000-07:00

Sara and I are going to the Chevy 500 race on Sunday. WOO-HOO!! I love the races. I don't care who wins. I just love watching them ZOOMING around the track. It's going to be awesome!

All Nighter

2004-10-15T08:57:00.000-07:00

It's giong to be a rough day. I can tell already. I know because I've had absolutely NO sleep. I'm well aware that this is my own damn fault, but I did get a lot accomplished.

Steph (my sis) called yesterday evening to ask if I could start keeping the boys every morning. She would drop them off sometime between 6 and 7 AM (depending on the day) and then I would drop them off at school. No big deal. I've done this before.

I went to karaoke as I usually do on Thursday nights. I hung out with a few guys that I've recently met. We all ended up going to the truck stop for breakfast. I didn't leave the truck stop until 4:30 this morning. The guys left at around 3:30, but my friend Deb (Deb-Deb for those that would know) stayed and talked for another hour. We don't often get to just sit and chat, so it was great getting to catch up.

When I did finally go home, I knew that if I laid down, I wouldn't be able to get up when the boys came over. SOOOOOOOOO, with that in mind, I opted to stay up. I got a lot of my weekend "TO DO" list knocked out. Except for being over tired, I'm feeling pretty good. I even got a couple of "ROUND TO ITS" completed! All in all, I'd say it's worth it.

I'm a bright girl! My mama tells me so.

2004-10-14T08:20:00.000-07:00

If stupidity were punishable by death, I would have been executed YEARS ago. Last night, I locked my self out of my car. I had to go the the dealership this morning and get another key. If this day gets any worse, I'm going to go hide under a rock or something.

I finally got a work table for my office/lab. It was quite a feat getting it up the stairs! Knock on wood, in the two years that I have lived in my apartment, I have not fallen down/up the stairs(yes I fall UP stairs too). I have had a couple of close calls, but no actual falling. Those of you that know me personally should realize that this have got to be some sort of miracle. Thanks be given to whatever powers that be that have kept me from bruising my backside! I think my fear of stairs and falling down/up them might be a contributing factor. It's hard to fall when you have a death grip on the handrail! ;)

Gold Plated World

2004-10-12T08:40:00.000-07:00

Gold Plated World

As I was driving home
The sun was setting
Like so many times before

But this time
As Apollo descended
He cast a golden glance

And everything
Was bathed
In shimmering gold

The trees, the cars, the road
All were made of gold
Brilliant and dazzling before me

It was marvelous and breath taking
And I wanted it to last
But nothing gold can stay

What a beautiful dream
To be a gold plated girl
In a gold plated world

Angela A. Ochoa
October 12, 2004

10/08 to 10/10 Recap

2004-10-11T11:45:00.000-07:00

This weekend was pretty good I must say. I got to hang out with my friend Sara Friday night. Even though the club was WAY slow, it was cool just to be able to sit and gab for more than a minute or two. Saturday night I had to work the show at Dove while Betty covered a wedding and another show in Sulpher Springs. It wasn't jam packed, but it was a fairly busy night and it went by quickly. After the show, I made my usual trip to the truck stop for breakfast. Several people from the club were there. I ended up sitting with James, one of the regulars at karaoke. He turned out to be a really nice guy and I enjoyed talking to him. As I was leaving, I ran into a guy that my sister and I used to hang around with as teenagers. We chatted for awhile about the family and other friends. We traded phone numbers in order to keep in touch.

My only gripe about Saturday night is that Rob didn't show up. I never know when he's going to turn up, but I'm always glad when he does. If we could only establish some sort of a consistent schedule!

I spent sunday either sleeping, shopping or watching TV. When I finally got up around 1:00, I went down to Mom's. We loaded up and went shopping at Big Lots and Wal-Mart. Afterwards, I went back to mom's and watched TV until way too late.

Not a bad way to spend a weekend, if I do say!

I spent most of Sunday either sleeping, shopping or watching TV. When I finally got up Sunday

Life Lesson

2004-10-08T10:06:00.000-07:00

Woman Pleads Guilty in Tongue Biting

Thu Oct 7,10:54 PM ET Strange News - AP

ST. PAUL, Minn. - A woman pleaded guilty to third-degree assault Thursday for biting off a piece of her boyfriend's tongue in the midst of a kiss.

Pamela D. Johnson told police that she had argued with Larry Sylvester early June 16 in the bedroom of her St. Paul apartment. When the argument ended, Sylvester tried to make up by hugging and kissing her, but Johnson said she became fearful and "bit down a little too hard" on his tongue, according to a criminal complaint.

Sylvester, who at one time was engaged to Johnson, was taken to Regions Hospital, where doctors found that the front third of his tongue was missing.

Police couldn't find the bitten piece, and Johnson told officers that she doesn't remember what happened to it.

In her plea Thursday, she did not admit to assaulting Sylvester but agreed that there is sufficient evidence for a jury to find her guilty. She will be sentenced Nov. 16 by Ramsey County District Judge Marybeth Dorn.

Third-degree assault carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine, according to the state statute.

And the moral of the story.....

Never bite off more than you can chew!

Coming to a Sidebar Near You!!!

2004-10-04T15:50:00.000-07:00

YAYAism is poisonous! Induce vomitting if ingested.

N
POISON

From Go-Quiz.com

Vette Story

2004-10-01T12:19:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week, I had a recollection that made me stop and think about how our lives wrap around upon themselves time and time again. There are themes that present themselves to us, if we take the time to look.

I have been in love with Corvettes since childhood. I have counted them, read about them, fawned over them, been scolded over them and collected (toy versions) them. Over the years, I accumulated a nice little collection of ‘Vette stuff, which included about 10 Matchbox/Hot Wheels Corvettes.

When my first nephew came along, I introduced him to the beauty of the Corvette. I was forever pointing them out to him as we were out and about. It wasn't long before he too became a fan. At the tender age of 2 , he confiscated my entire collection of Matchbox/Hot Wheels “Cor-Bettes”. I let him have them. After all, toys are made to be played with.

Several years have since passed, and my Corvette collection was long forgotten until a few months ago. My nephew is now 8 years old, and quite a handful. While I was babysitting him and his younger brother, a crisis erupted when his almost brand new (second pair in 6 months) glasses, disappeared. We frantically searched the house looking for his AWOL spectacles. For over and hour, we dumped out toy boxes, tore apart beds and moved furniture. At last, I found them behind the dresser in his bedroom.

We were all relieved to have found them. None of us wanted to face the anger of his mother! In appreciation for my finding his glasses, my nephew sorted through all of his cars and pulled out every Corvette. As my reward for diverting the wrath of MOM, he was going to give me his ENTIRE Corvette collection. I nearly cried. Half of the cars laid out in front of me, were some of the very same cars he has claimed years before. I explained to him how special the cars were and took two of the dozen or so cars he had offered. He even argued that I should take them all. I chose one of my original cars and one of the cars he had acquired through other means.

I recalled all of these events and marveled to myself. As I mentioned before, themes crop up on our lives from time to time. That evening as I pulled into the parking lot of a local club I frequent, I parked in my usual spot. The kicker is that on that night, there was a Corvette parked right next to me. It's funny life tends to wrap around itself.

Angela A. Ochoa
September 28, 2004

The Answers

2004-10-01T11:59:00.000-07:00

The answers to the riddles I posted are as follows:

Nothing.

A candle.

A mouse's nest in a cat's ear.

The other post I promised it on the way.

Weds and Thurs

2004-09-28T14:20:00.000-07:00

I will be away from the office on both Wednesday and Thursday. I have insurance classes on those days, slightly out of town (Irving for those that know the lay of the land around here). Anyway, I won't be able to post anything on either of those days, but I promise to come up with something totally terrific for Friday (I swear, no more declarations of love for my laptop either). I'll have to do some serious digging in the gray matter and cook up something special! Let's just hope that it doesn't end up burnt like the rest of my cooking. ;)

For now I leave you with these:

What is greater than God,

Meaner than the Devil,

Poor people have it,

Rich people don't want it,

And if you eat it, you will die.

-AND-

Little Miss Endicott,

With a white petticoat,

And a red nose,

The longer she stands,

The shorter she grows.

-AND-

What never has been and never will be?

You can leave your answers in the comments!!!

I'll post the answers on Friday along with the promised post.

I {heart} my Laptop!!

2004-09-28T09:07:00.000-07:00

I'm not even connected to the internet yet, and I'm already in love with my laptop. I'm such a geek! In my not so humble opinion, my laptop is running a close second to being as great as sliced bread, and maybe even better than peanut butter!! When I get on-line, I'll probably go completely over the edge! As it is now, my computer will have it's own room!

I really, really, really, really, really, really love my laptop :)

Okay, I'm gonne quit before I get all emotional!!

From my Laptop to You (SORTA)!

2004-09-24T12:31:00.000-07:00

This is a practice entry for my blog. I am attempting to create blog entries on my laptop, save them to a disk in order to upload them to my blog at a later time. Hopefully this will be a success!

It works, it works!!!!

These are kinda funny!

2004-09-23T09:27:00.000-07:00

Senior Personals

The following "Senior" personal ads were seen in Florida and Arizonanewspapers: (Who says seniors don’t have a sense of humor?)

FOXY LADY: Sexy, fashion-conscious blue-haired beauty, 80’s slim, 5’4'’ (used to be 5’6"), searching for sharp-looking, sharp-dressing companion. Matching white shoes and belt a plus.

LONG-TERM COMMITMENT: Recent widow who has just buried fourth husband looking for someoneto round out a six-unit plot. Dizziness, fainting, shortness of breathnot a problem.

SERENITY NOW: I am into solitude, long walks, sunrises, the ocean, yoga and meditation. If you are the silent type, lets get together, take our hearing aids out and enjoy quiet times.

WINNING SMILE: Active grandmother with original teeth seeking a dedicated flosser to share rare steaks, corn on the cob and caramel candy.

MINT CONDITION: Male, 1922, high mileage, good condition, some hair, many new parts including hip, knee, cornea valves. Isn’t in running condition but walks well.

MEMORIES: I can usually remember Monday through Thursday. If you can remember Friday, Saturday and Sunday, let’s put our two heads together.

It's 3:00 and somewhere....

2004-09-21T13:00:00.000-07:00

It's 3:00 and somewhere a plane is taking off, a ship is setting sail or a train is leaving the station, and I'm not on it.

There are places new to me in any direction I choose, and yet, here I remain.

What's Up

2004-09-20T11:29:00.000-07:00

Mom is out of the hospital with pending appointments with two different specialists. The hospital doctors never could find anything wrong. On top of the dizzy spells, Mom has caught the bug I've been battling for the last week. Having this cold/flu/allergies/whatever has made me appreciate the little things I take for granted like breathing, talking and sleeping. I'm so congested, that if I try to to take more than shallow breaths, I start coughing. If I talk too much at once, I start coughing. For a wind bag like me, this is nearly torture! The only way I can really sleep, is sitting up. If I try to lie down, I more or less drown. THIS IS NOT FUN.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KELLY!!!! (again) ;)

*does a double shot of NyQuil*

What's been going on

2004-09-14T09:45:00.001-07:00

Mom has been in the hospital since Sunday evening. She is having severe dizzy spells, disorientation and blurred vision. They have done numerous tests, but still can not find the source of the problem. Mom is getting more and more irritated with every hour that passes. After three days, the doctors still have no clue, but they won't release her.

Today it's more of the same. They still don't know what's wrong, they still won't release her. On top of that, they have her on a low sodium, low cholesterol menu, which is basically the blandest food possible. I can understand the low sodium thing. Mom has high blood pressure. However, the low cholesterol diet is a joke. Mom has never had problems with her cholesterol. In fact, her cholesterol has always been low.

After three days of being poked, prodded, scanned, starved and denied nicotene, Mom is NOT a happy person. Hopefully, for the safety of all involved parties, they will let her go home today.

KLUV Oldies Fest

2004-09-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

10th Annual KLUV Oldies Festival!!

Saturday, September 11th

Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie

Gates open at 6:00 pm

Concert starts at 7:30 pm

Parking $10

Featuring: Johnny Rivers, The Spinners and the Vocal Majority

No coolers, pets, alcoholic beverages, pets or recording devices allowed. Be sure to bring your lawn chair!

For the special KLUV entrance, follow the signs to Hunter Farrell Road on the north side of Lone Star Park.

Lone Star Park will only accept Cash for the $10 tickets at the door. No reserve seating. "

I've only missed 2 in 10 years! I can't wait. I don't even have to call in sick to work this time, because it's on a Saturday!!

WOO-HOO!!!!

Land Locked

2004-09-08T11:18:00.000-07:00

It's been so cool the last couple a days. I feel winter creeping in. I guess we're getting residual effects of the hurricane. I more or less grew up on the gulf coast in Corpus Christie. I miss the beach. The sand, the salt and the surf are a part of me. Like some people are part of the mountains or the woods, I am of the sea.

There are a lot of lakes around Dallas/Ft. Worth. DFW is actually part of the Texas Lakes Trail. Even though I'm less than an hour away from water (in any direction), it's not the same as being able to stand on the beach and look across time itself and feel it lapping around your ankles. At least that's kind of the way it is to me. It's very humbling, standing on the edge of forever.

I rode out two hurricanes while we lived in Corpus. People around here have no clue as to how terrible they can be. They think tornados are the bad? Hurricanes breed tornados. During one of the hurricanes my family went through, at one time there were 5+ tornados blowing around the downtown area (about a mile from where we were) all at the same time. I remember people drowning AFTER the storm had passed. The floodwaters were so high, people were getting caught up in the debris and dying. My uncle's boat was blown up unto shore about a 1/4 mile away from where he had it anchored. I guess that's one good thing about being land locked, no hurricanes.

Even Hard Bodies Can't Escape Societies Over Inflated Expectations!

2004-09-08T11:13:00.000-07:00

LONDON (Reuters) - He is an icon of male beauty but Michelangelo's David is far from physically perfect with a bad back, weak hip and even hammer toes, according to a health expert.

The problem is poor posture and lack of flexibility, says Alan Herdman, one of the country's leading teachers of the Pilates exercise regime.

"His pelvis is all wrong," Herdman said on Wednesday, 500 years to the day that the 4-metre marble statue epitomising Renaissance male beauty was unveiled to the people of Florence.

"It is thrust forward and pushing into one hip," said Herdman, credited with having introduced Pilates to Britain in 1970. "The right side isn't straight. He will have a weakness in one hip and suffer from lower back weakness and pain."

Herdman concedes David has a "good pair of legs" despite hammer toes on his left foot. But even David's much admired rear end leaves something to be desired.

"If you look at the rear view, you will find that the right buttock is not as strong as it should be because he is sitting into the hips, and the weight distribution is all wrong."

Could Pilates have put David straight? Herdman says that regular exercises would have put a new spring in David's step and helped him to achieve better posture.

Developed by German-born Joseph Pilates in the early part of the 20th century, the exercise regime is designed to strengthen the anatomical centre of the body and encourage correct posture.

Next week all of Skakespear's works will be re-written into a more politically correct format and the Mona Lisa will be evaluated for a long needed cosmetic "touch up". ;)

BTW...I'll be taking off Friday to take my one, two kitties to the pet psychic! NOT.

Pain in the A$$

2004-09-07T07:42:00.000-07:00

Seeing as most of the persons reading this are close personal friends of mine, I don't mind sharing this. Today I woke up with an awful pain in the ass. Not a guy mind you, but a literal pain in the ass. I have a major sore spot in my right hip. I don't know what I did, but OUCH!

Okay, enough about my arse. The Bitch convention was fun. I won the title "ANGEL" Bitch this year!!! A special thanks to all of my friends that voted for me. And I doublely appreciate those of you that thought enough of me to vote TWICE!! What kind of election would it have been without a little contraversy! Having a good time at the convention almost makes up for having to stay home Saturday night because of my car breaking down yet again.

I got all dolled up Saturday night. I was even wearing a dress (a REALLY short dress I might add). On my way to the club, the damn car started overheating. I stopped and added water and oil (both were low but not dangerously low). I took off again, but the overheating continued. I finally stopped and called Mom and Gene to come get me. It was already after 10PM. Gene and I thought we had found the problem, but we would have to wait until morning to fix it. We were thinking it must be one of the hoses. WRONG!! The next day, when we checked it out in the day night, we found the real problem. The heater core is out. I had to call my friend Dave (my car Doctor) in to bypass the heater core. That type of mechanic work is more than a little out of my league! Dave patched me up until I can afford the parts to fix it right.

As of right now, everything is okay.

From your YAYA to U: If you miss your window of opportunity...get a sledge hammer and make a new one!!

Perpetual Motion to EYOB

2004-09-02T11:14:00.000-07:00

Perp Mo has been a hobby/interest of mine since I was about 13 yrs old. It was at that time, that I was first introduced to perpetual motion and was told that it couldn't be done. I don't believe that to be true.

From that point on, I began to study perp mo and the various attempts that have been made over the centuries. Studying the various machines and the reasons they did not work, has been a valuable tool in my own little quest. I have several ideas and even a few designs for machines of my own. Some of them I found to be flawed early on still others remain to be investigated. At present, my favorite hobby is on hold. I'm focusing on getting a laptop for my home office/lab. In a couple of months, I should have everything set up to my liking. At that time, I will be able to defer both time and money to me pet project.

I won't be posting details of my work here for obvious reasons but, I may ocassionally post updates. If there is anything else you want to know, ask me.

Neglect

2004-09-01T10:09:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, I've been neglecting my blog. Things have been busy here at the office. YEAH, I've actually been WORKING! Hard to believe I know, but even I have to buckle down and make a living once in awhile. Anyway, last week was kinda rough, but it workrd itself out. Once again I'm on an even keel. Or at least as even as it gets in my topsy turvy little world.

I'm gearing up for the Bitch Convention Sept 6th and the Oldies Festival Sept 11th. So far September is looking to be a pretty good month! I hope to work in another trip to Corsicana. I may even take a vacation day or two, so that I can stay a few days instead of just the weekend.

I'm stuck on The Remedy by Jason Mraz
(if you've got the poison, I've got the remedy)

If you haven't heard him, you GOTTA check him out. I may have to buy the CD, he's that good.

I guess that's it for now. Happy Hump Day

DISMISSED!

2004-08-20T10:36:00.000-07:00

I got a ticket a couple of weeks ago for not having an inspection sticker displayed. It turned out that when I updated my registration sticker back in May, I removed to WRONG sticker. I was afraid that my raggedy old car wouldn't pass inspection, so I was expecting to have to pay the $140 ticket. The Powers That Be were smiling on me today! My car PASSED inspection (cracked headlight and all) and I got the ticket dismissed. The $12.50 for the inspection and the $10 dismissal fee are WAY more in line with by budget!

Since I didn't have to spend the $140 on the ticket, I bought a tool kit, a phone and two digital clocks (buy 1 get 1 free when you buy the phone). All in all, I only spent $60 and it was on things that I've been wanting to get for my apartment. The tool kit has has a cordless drill/screwdriver with two batteries as well as all the sockets, manual screwdrivers and pliers that are normally included in home tool kits. The phone is a home/office phone that has an extra jack so that a computer can be plugged into it. Since I'll be getting my laptop and phone service at home soon, I needed to get a phone anyway. The clocks are time/temp/alarm clocks. I've been wanting to get clocks for both my kitchen and my home office/lab. It really was cool to get all these things I've been wanting for awhile, instead of having to shell out for a ticket!

Restaurant for Cats Opens in New York

2004-08-18T10:01:00.000-07:00

And I thought MY kitties were spoiled!!!

Yahoo%21 News - Restaurant for Cats Opens in New York: "NEW YORK - Dressed in a tuxedo, Simba sat at the front of one of Manhattan's newest dining establishments and nodded at people who greeted him. Then he yawned, began to roll on the floor and lick his paws. That's acceptable behavior at the Meow Mix Cafe, a new eatery designed especially for cats and their human owners.

Simba, an 8-month-old kitten, was joined by about two dozen other tabbies, Persians and Burmese for a feast at Tuesday's grand opening of the cafe, which is owned by the Meow Mix Company, a Secaucus, N.J.-based cat food maker. "Why not take your cat out for dinner", asked Simba's owner, Leah Thompson, 19. "There's always things for dogs, but never cats."

The midtown restaurant serves Meow Mix packets for its feline customers with corresponding dishes to satisfy human palates. 'Deep Sea Delight' mackerel for cats is paired with tuna rolls for cat owners, 'Upstream Dream' salmon for felines corresponds with mini crab cakes for humans.

Meow Mix president and CEO Richard Thompson said the feline-friendly restaurant has two main rules, no dogs and no catnip, which must be checked at the door.

"Our goal is to keep cats happy ", Thompson said. "The idea is that you can bring them and start socializing them. "

HUMPDAY $#&@#&%$@*

2004-08-18T08:47:00.000-07:00

It's Wednesday, Humpday, and boy am I ever having a hard time getting over! I'd rather be just about anywhere other than here!

I DON'T WANNA WORK TODAY!!!!!!!!!!
I DON'T WANNA WORK TODAY!!!!!!!!!!

Why, oh why, couldn't I have been born rich, instead of so damn beautiful!!!! *sigh* I guess I can't have EVERYTHING!

The Tuesday night show at Dove was better than I expected. The last couple of weeks have been pretty slow, but last night was a little better.

In the bar business, there's always a lull during the late summer. Hopefully, now that summer is nearly over and school is starting up again, things will pick up.

Baseball Haiku

2004-08-17T09:41:00.000-07:00

Took off work at 4
Betty, Jack, Mom and myself
Got an early start

Out to the ballpark
Rangers VS. Indians
Bats and butts, GREAT time!!

Ballpark is way cool
Hell of a view from homeplate
Lots of neat free stuff

Third base line seating
Behind opposing dugout
Free tics were awesome!

Mom sweats the foul balls
Afraid that she will be hit
Fun to watch her duck!

Cute guy flirts with me
And helps me back to my seat
So I fed him fries

Hello win column!
Flashes on a giant screen
Rangers take the day.

Final score 5-2
The Rangers got two homeruns!
It was quite a game!

Theme Thursday - THIRST

2004-08-12T08:23:00.000-07:00

THIRST

Standing on the edge
Watching the river of life
Silver waters stretching out
Behind and beyond
Farther than I can see
Farther than I can dream

Ever changing
Never changing
I watch the waters
Passing me by
As a thundering whisper
Invites

Drink

Angela A. Ochoa
August 12, 2004

Weekend Re-Cap 8-6-04 to 8-9-04

2004-08-10T07:20:00.000-07:00

Corsicana was great. Sue and I had a blast, mostly just hanging out. Sue had to work Sunday, so I spent most of the day at the pool. It took close to 5 hours, but I actually got a sunburn! Most of it has already turned brown, but I still have a couple of red patches.

For those of you that care...I didn't get to see Michael this weekend. He had to work an emergency gas leak over the weekend. I only got to talk to him briefly Saturday night. Oh well, you can't have everything.

I did scope a really cute guy when I was lounging poolside. The laudry room is right off the pool area, and he had come through with a laundry basket. He spoke to me as he was coming in the gate, but left after getting his laundry started. After a few minutes, he was back this time in swim trunks rather than the shorts and T-shirt he was wearing before. He never got in the pool. He just laid out for awhile. Me, being the coward that I am, could bring myself to talk to him outside of asking how to get to Taco Bell. One of these days, I'm going to grow a backbone!

I ended up not coming back until Monday morning. Sunday evening I got a migraine and decided that it would be safer to stay the night rather than risk trying to drive. The drive in was awful. A drive that would normally take less than an hour, took almost 2 hours because of rush hour traffic! I don't think I'll be making THAT drive again anytime soon! It only takes an hour and a half to make the WHOLE drive on the weekend.

Theme Thursday -SHIFT

2004-08-05T09:18:00.000-07:00

I present this weeks contribution to THEME THURSDAY!!

SHIFT

I can feel it beginning

Like wind picking up

Before a storm

Or a heavy truck

Rumbling past

On it's way to parts unknown

Things are changing

Nothing tangible

Yet

But I can feel it

None the less

There's that high rev

Whining in my head

Letting me now

It's time to

Shift

Angela A. Ochoa

August 5, 2004

All Better!!!!!!!!

2004-08-04T08:37:00.000-07:00

Blogger got it fixed!!!

It's posting time Baby!

Last night I had the show at Lonesome Dove. It was a pretty slow night for the most part but towards the end of the night, a few really good singers turned up! I ended up running until 1:45! On the way home, I got stopped by the local police due to the headlight being out. He was pretty cool. I told him that yes I knew the light was out. I'd had an accident a little while back and just didn't have the extra $130 to replace it. He'd let me go with a warning and said that if he saw me again, he would remember that we had already talked and not stop me again. Now that's cool.

I stopped by the truck stop after the cop let me go. I'm more or less broke until I get paid on Friday so I only bought a bottle of milk to stave off the hungries. I was joking around with the cook and asked him what kind of free food did they have. He said he'd make me anything I wanted! I ended up getting a breakfast burrito and he even added the cheese I normally order. Yet another way cool experience! So far, this has been a pretty good week!

Problems

2004-08-03T09:02:00.000-07:00

Every letter I typed for the title of this post, caused an error message. I've been having tech problems for the last couple of days. Today, not only is Blogger acting up, but my right hand has been tingling since I got up at 7 this morning. I've had that awful pins and needles feeling in my fingers and palm for the last 4 hours!!! I'm guessing that I must have slept on my side last night but, if that were the case, it should have long since gone back to normal. Admittedly, I'm becoming a little concerned.

Anyway, the weekend was awesome. Friday night I took off bar hopping with a cowboy I barely knew and, ended up not coming home until nearly 9 the next morning. That was one of the wildest rides I've been on in a long time! YEEEEE-HAAAAWWWW!

Saturday night was Kelly H.'s B-day party. I was supposed to work the show but when I got to the club, I found out that Betty had cancelled the wedding she was going to cover. I ended up getting to hang out after all!

Sunday I spent the better part of the day hanging out at Mom's and watching Red Skelton videos (Freddie the Freeloaded KICKS BOOTY!. I left Mom's around 5ish. i had to go home to get leftover cake from Saturday's party and drop it off at the B-day girls house (now that she was home and SOBER!) before heading over to Margo's for dinner.

STALKER STATUS REPORT: Yesterday, Nacho, AKA Stalker #1, called my friend Margo and left a message for me to call him. Yeah Right! He ended up buzzing by her house a couple of time before I left at 10ish. The last time he showed up was at teh club on a Thurday night about a month ago. I was outside on the phone when he walked up and I said hello but after that, I ignored him until he finally left. I was hoping that he had FINALLY gotten the hint, but I guess not.

Finally Friday!!!!

2004-07-30T08:56:00.000-07:00

At last, Friday has come. Today is going to be pretty low key, I hope. I'm leaving the office at 11:40 to go donate blood then book it back here to meet up with my co-worker and boss. Dale is taking us to lunch for Linda's birthday! Seafood...uuummm.

As soon as I get off work tonight, I have to head up to Sherman to order my new bed! Hopefully It'll be delivered Monday. Saturday I have an ACN meeting in Dallas from 9am until 2pm. On the way back, I'm hoe to stop by Kelly's for a little while. Saturday night I'm working the karaoke show at the Lonesome Dove. The other Kelly is celebrating her birthday (Aug 2nd) this weekend, so it should be a fun night. Sunday, I have to get the old bed moved out of my room and get it rearranged for teh new bed to be delivered Monday morning. Another bus but gratifying weekend!

Theme Thursday - FOUND

2004-07-29T07:36:00.000-07:00

FOUND

It's always the last place you look

Found things

In that one place you pass over

Again and again

Muttering to yourself

It couldn't be there

But it is

That lost thing

In that place

You overlooked

I lost myself once

And wouldn't you know

I wasn't in any of the ususal places

So I fianlly turned my search inwards

And lo and behold

There I was

Hiding behind myself

In the very last place I looked

Angela A. Ochoa

July 29,2004

I SOOOO love Rhapsody!

2004-07-28T13:44:00.000-07:00

I'm in the process of making an Angela/YAYA playlist. Yep, you guessed it. Each and every song will include my name or some derivative there of.

After reading what I just wrote, it has become painfully obvious that I have WAY too much spare time today.

2004-07-26T14:11:00.000-07:00

I Will Survive

2004-07-26T07:56:00.000-07:00

I made it through the week and nobody got hurt. I barely even had to threaten anyone! I had a few non-disireables Friday night, but I dealt with it. JoAnn (Joey)(Roo) came by after her show ended and we headed over to IHOP after I closed mine down. Typically, when Joey and I get together, we end up being out ALL night and the better part of the next day. We don't get to really hang out very often, so when we do meet up, we try to make the most of it! This week, however, we called it an early night. We decided a little after 5 a.m. that it was time to call it a night.

Saturday was pretty cool. I ran some errands then met up with Sara. Went went out to eat, then headed up to the club to shoot a few games of pool before I went to work. The show went well. It was a pretty busy night, which makes the time pass much more quickly. All in all, it was a pretty good night.

Sunday, I didn't do much other than rest. It was a long week, but I survived. I spent the evening at Mom's watching TV. Michael called to talk for a little while. He's wanting to come down for the weekend again, but he doesn't know exactly when he'll be able to. He's supposed to call me next weekend to work out the details of my trip up there in two weeks.

Sue called this morning, and things are all set for the Corsicana part of my trip. I'm really looking forwarded to spending the weekend just chilling out!

Another poem inspired by Scott's pics!

2004-07-22T13:43:00.000-07:00

Quiet Conversation

do you hear me?

whispering in your ear,

begging to be heard

do you see me?

long cold eyes gazing,

pleading to be seen

can you feel me?

icey fingers reaching,

trying to be felt

I am here

I hear

I see

I feel

I am

Hear

See

Feel

Butterfly Poem

2004-07-22T08:37:00.000-07:00

Butterfly Poem

DEL I IFUL

I N T

C S U

A E A

T C E

E T B

G * R

A L U

V I T

A F A

S E L

I first created this for a post on my friend Scott's site.

I thought it turned out really cool, so I posted here too!

I hope you like it!

If you would like to see the actual post, CLICK IT!

Theme Thursday - SADNESS

2004-07-22T08:04:00.000-07:00

Sadness

Playing with fire

Can get you burned

But I hold on

Engulfed in the flames

The sun burning white hot

I'm finally warm

With the setting of the sun

The light fades to black

Darkness settles in

And a chill permeates every part of me

Never knowing when and if

The next dawn will come

He is my sunshine

My only sunshine

He makes my happy

When skies are gray

He'll never know

How much I love him

Please come back

My Sunshine

And stay

Happy Hump Day

2004-07-21T11:18:00.000-07:00

Once again, I find myself laboring to get over that hump in the middle of the week. Work was fairly busy this morning, but it has finally slowed down to a snails pace. I'm okay with snail right now. Tonight I'm spending the evening in. Since I'm covering karaoke shows Thursdays, Friday and Saturday, tonight will be the only rest I'll get until Sunday. It will be a good night for me to start working on the home office I've been trying to set up since I moved in nearly two years ago. I really want to get the office in shape because I'm hoping to get a computer for home within the next couple of months. Hopefully, I'll be able to find a used laptop pretty cheap. At this point my main goal is to get connected. I can worry about speed etc later.

Happy F*CKING Birthday.

2004-07-20T11:20:00.000-07:00

Today is my father's birthday and tomorrow is my grandmothers birthday. Considering that my grandmother hates me and father disowned me over a decade ago, I feel only minutely compelled to acknowledge either of them. SOOOOOO....Happy F*UCKING Birthday "dad" and "grandma".

Back Here on the Ground.

2004-07-20T08:48:00.000-07:00

I'm coming down off that weekend high and it sucks. The blissful dream state I've been in since Saturday has given way to harsh reality. Even the soreness I got from dancing the night away, has faded to a memory. Why can't everyday be Saturday night?!

Hopefully, I'll get a little bit of a lift from doing the show tonight. Last week was pretty good , so maybe, just maybe, this week will be better. I hope so.

What a Weekend!!!

2004-07-19T14:01:00.000-07:00

Between the wedding reception Friday night and dancing my legs off Saturday night. I'm TIRED!!! I went to bed a 8 o'clock Sunday night, and I'm STILL tired! It was a truly GREAT weekend. Just the kind I like! My knees are stilling aching from all the dancing, but I wouldn't change a single moment!

Going to the chapel...

2004-07-16T10:35:00.000-07:00

Today I'm taking off work early (4 instead of 6) to go to a wedding. My friends Josh and Misty, from the karaoke show in Denison, are getting hitched at 5 o'clock today. They are both really great people and I'm glad to see them both so happy. They're going to have their reception at the club, so if I don't make the wedding itself, I'll catch up with them there. I sent Misty an e-mail this morning asling for directions, but I don't know if she'll get it before I leave. If not, then I guess I'll just have to deal with taking off early on a Friday as best I can.

When I got home last night, the cue case and the second of the two pool cues I bought on eBay had arrived. I may just have to go practice pool for awhile. My game is improving, but it's still far from great. Last night at the Dove, some guys I was shooting with ticked me off. None of them are particularly good players so I got irritated by them dissing me. I picked up my quarters and put up my que when I found out they "played around me" a couple of games. There was no reason for them to play around me, I wasn't working the show last night. Betty was there. They just didn't want me playing with them. Fine, for now. I decided that the next time I play any of those guys, I intend to win. They won't be able to pass me up if it's MY table.

Meeting My Match

2004-07-14T09:55:00.000-07:00

Last nights show went really well. Once again, this weeks crowd was slightly larger than the previous show. I had a bigger crowd this week, in spite of having there were several absent regulars.

Every week I see a couple of new names on my sign-up list. This week, I met two guys from Sherman named Brian and Cheston. Brian has his own show going in Sherman on Wednesday and Friday nights. Since he had the night off, he and his friend (Cheston) decided to come check out the Dove. Cheston was a pretty good singer, but Brian bordered onto awesome! I've only come across a handful of guys that I would classify as better than Brian.

Most of the songs we sang last night were "showcase" songs for us both. When you put two good singers together, there is always a little bit of rivalry. Showcasing is our way of establishes a karaoke pecking order. In this case, it was me. Considering that it was my show, on my turf, it wasn't much of a battle. Brian being the visiting KJ, was well behaved. He showed that he could belt it out, without having a prima donna attitude.

Brian was a great guest, and talent wise, we're fairly evenly matched. At the end of the night we were discussing duets that we might sing. Next week, I'm going to try to visit his Wednesday show. I was hoping he'd come to my show next week but he doesn't think his wife will let him. She was pretty ticked off at him for staying out so late. I did promise to learn "Close My Eyes Forever"(Lita Ford/Ozzy Osbourne) so that we can try it next time we meet up. I challenged Cheston to learn "Unforgettable" (Nat King Cole/Natalie Cole). I think it will be a lot fun getting into karaoke duels with someone that really knows the ropes!

Betty and I went to Brian's show last night. Not good. He doesn't have a very good system, and his stage presence needs work. He had talked himself up a lot, so I was really disappointed that he had such a lousy show.

Weekend Re-cap 7/9 to 7/11

2004-07-12T07:36:00.000-07:00

This weekend was pretty good. I spent a lot of time practicing my pool game Thursday, Friday and Saturday. My game still sucks, but I think I'll be able to get back into the groove. Practice makes perfect!

Even though I got a late start Saturday (I slept til 5 PM), I still managed to have a good time. Sue-B came down late Saturday night and that was cool. I got to hang out with her as well as Sara and Kelly(H) at the Dove, then we all went out to breakfast.

Sunday I hung out with Sue for awhile before she had to leave. We went to lunch and then shopping at Wal-Mart. I am rather proud of myself, I only spent $21.21 at Wally World instead of my usual $40+. Sue-B left around 3 and I spent the rest of the day at Mom's.

I had to bomb my apartment for FLEAS!!! I took both kittens to Mom's with me and gave them baths at her place. THEY DID NOT LIKE IT!!! I have lots of pretty red scratches on my arms to document their protest of flea baths! They both fought so much that they nearly drowned themselves. Nimbus was actually coughing up soapy water for an hour or so after having her bath. They were so pissed at me, they wouldn't get anywhere near me until this morning!

Sunday was Michael's 29th B-Day. I got to talk to him for awhile and sang "Happy Birthday" to him over the phone. It was kinda of funny, because I was sitting inside Arby's with Sue at the time! The other restaurant patrons were looking at me so strangely, and I have no CLUE as to why?! You would think that they had never heard someone sing "Happy Birthday" before. GEEZ!

BTW: If you notice any mis-spelled words, DEAL WITH IT!!! The spell checker on Blogger is BLOKEN!!! (Bloken was intended...a throw back from when Sammy was little!)

From UR YAYA TO U...If it ain't BLOKE...don't FITS IT!

What do want on your tombstone?

2004-07-08T09:37:00.000-07:00

I could have the first karaoke headstone!!!!

Yahoo! News - Talking Tombstones Bear a Message from the Grave: "Talking Tombstones Bear a Message from the Grave

1 hour, 1 minute agoAdd Oddly Enough - Reuters to My Yahoo!

LONDON (Reuters) - The dead could soon be speaking from the grave if an American inventor's plan becomes reality.

Robert Barrows, of Burlingame, California has filed a patent application for a video-equipped tombstone that will display a video message from grave's occupant.
'If his patent is granted, Barrows hopes that when people make out their will, they also leave a parting video with their lawyer,' New Scientist magazine said on Wednesday.
The hollow, talking tombstone will include a flat touch screen and will house a computer with a microchip memory or hard disc. It will be powered by electricity from the cemetery's lighting system.
The plan will not be the first electronically enhanced tombstone. An American company has a patent on a gravestone that will display photographs of the deceased and tributes from friends, according to the magazine.
But the Barrows plan will go one further by including contributions actually from the deceased.
'It's history from the horse's mouth,' he said. "

I can just see the look on peoples faces when my headstone starts singing..."And when I die, and when I'm dead, dead and gone...."

This Quacked me UP!!!

2004-07-08T09:23:00.000-07:00

Yahoo! News - Call This the Decoy Squad?: "Call This the Decoy Squad?

2 hours, 43 minutes agoAdd Oddly Enough - Reuters to My Yahoo!

BERLIN (Reuters) - German police made quacking noises to coax two trapped ducklings out of danger, after they fell through a manhole cover and got trapped in a sewage pipe.

Passers-by called the police and fire brigade when they saw the ducklings' distressed mother by the roadside.
Police officers opened the manhole but could not reach the ducklings. 'Two officers decided to imitate duck noises,' said a police spokesman in the city of Wiesbaden.
Their quacks proved more effective than those of the mother duck and guided the ducklings to safety. "

Theme Thursday -WINGS

2004-07-08T08:03:00.000-07:00

Wings

If I had wings I'd fly away
Just like in my dreams

I'd live in the sky
And have clouds as my neighbors

The sun and moon and stars
Would be my companions

And mountain tops would be my family
If I had wings

Taking a Leak?!

2004-07-08T07:00:00.000-07:00

My day has only just begun and already I've had my first crisis. Dale (my boss here at the office) broke a valve in the toilet yesterday. It was running a lot, but for the most part, it was under control. When I came in this morning, there was a rather large amount of water on the bathroom floor. So much water, that it had begun seeping into the hallway carpet. I called Dale and told him about the leak, then got my friend Tony (works two doors down at the cleaners) to shut off the water to the toilet. I tried to shut it off when I first found the leak but the valve was too rusty for me to turn. Thankfully, Tony managed to break it loose enough to turn it off.

I cleaned up all the water and Tony set up a fan to help dry the carpeting. I'm sure Dale will stop on his way in, to pick up the parts we need to repair the leak. i think the biggest worry is going to be the carpet. It's really difficult to dry carpeting that has gotten really wet. In this case, the water seeped in from underneath so it's wet all the way down to the padding. If it doesn't dry completely, mildew can set in and ruin it.

I'm a bright girl, my mama tells me so!

2004-07-02T08:35:00.000-07:00

Today I have the mental capacity of a mushroom. It's the Friday before a three day weekend, and I'd rather be just about anywhere other than here.

This week I've been addicted to eBay. Admitting it, is the first step to a cure. Right?! Anyway, the first of several items I don't need, but bought anyway, arrived yesterday. The package was too big for my apartment mailbox, so I was directed to pick it up from the post office. No problem. On my way to work this morning, I swung by the post office and much to my dismay, the office was closed but I could hear someone in the back area. The posted hours are 8 to 4 and it was about 8:30 (running late for work as usual). I went back to my car and called. When they answered...
POW (post office worker)

POW: Howe post office.

Me: Yes ma'am, what are your office hours today?

POW: We're open from 8 to 4 today.

Me: I was just in there a few minutes ago, and the doors are still locked.

POW: Well, yes.

Me: But?

POW: Yes ma'am, it's ten minutes til.

Me: UMMM, no, it's almost 9.

POW: No, I don't think so, it's 10 til 8.

Me: Are you sure? No, let me check my...
(at this point I turn my car on the check the clock)
Me: It's it really? How the hell did I... Oh, I'm sorry!! Nevermind!

POW: (laughing) That's okay hun.

You know, it takes a special kind of stupid to misread a DIGITAL clock. Oh well, at least I made it to work on time today!!!

Theme Thursday - CLICHE

2004-07-01T11:18:00.000-07:00

For Theme Thursday, I was going to write a really saccharine poem using all sorts of cliches! Didn't happen. Instead I went to Steph's house for a nice little visit, then came home and read a book she had loaned me. I enjoyed each and every moment of that much needed break.

Sorry I didn't get around to posting a new poem, but hey, that's the way the cookie crumbles!

Little bit of Humor.

2004-06-30T13:12:00.000-07:00

Thank you to Sara for sharing this little tidbit!

WISHES

A bus carrying only ugly people crashes into an
oncoming truck, and everyone inside dies.

They then get to meet their maker and because of the
grief they have experienced, he decides to grant them
one wish each before they enter Paradise.

They're all lined up and God asks the first one what
he wishes.

"I want to be gorgeous," and so God snaps His fingers
and it is done.

The second one in line hears this and says, "I want to
be gorgeous too."

Another snap of His fingers and the wish is granted.

This goes on for a while with each one asking to be
gorgeous but when God is halfway down the line, the
last guy in the line starts laughing.

When there are only ten people left, this guy is
rolling on the floor laughing his head off.

Finally, God reaches this last guy and asks him what
his wish will be.

The guy eventually calms down and says: "Make 'em all
ugly again".

I'd rather have a dancing gopher!

2004-06-30T11:00:00.000-07:00

There used to be a Gopher doll that danced to "I'm Alright". It was the gopher from Caddy Shack and it was too cute! This doll wouldn't be good for much other than target practice!

Yahoo! News - Hip-Swaying Dancing Doll Ridicules Saddam: "Hip-Swaying Dancing Doll Ridicules Saddam

Wed Jun 30,10:34 AM ETAdd Oddly Enough - Reuters to My Yahoo!

By Luke Baker
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqis used to dance to his tune, but in Baghdad toy shops a chubby, gun-toting Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) doll now wiggles his hips to the 'Hippy Hippy Shake.'

Toy stores around Baghdad are doing a quick trade in dancing Saddam dolls -- foot-high battery-powered puppets of the former president, kitted out in full insurgent regalia, who swing their hips to cheesy pop music at the flick of a switch.
Decked out with hand-grenades, daggers, a walkie-talkie, binoculars and an AK-47, Saddam dances to the 'Hippy Hippy Shake' when turned on.

'It's funny, isn't it?' said Mustapha al-Kadamy, a young father as he browsed through a toy store in the wealthy Mansoor district and prepared to buy one of the dancing Saddams.
'Tomorrow Saddam will go before an Iraqi judge and so today is a good day to make fun of him -- we need to be able to smile after all the horrible things he's done to us.'

The owner of the store started offering the dolls shortly after Saddam's regime was overthrown in April last year. A Turkish traveling salesmen turned up with the Chinese-made puppets, also featuring dancing Osama bin Ladens, Fidel Castros and George W. Bushes, and he placed an order.

At first it was the hip-shaking Osamas that sold best, but slowly Iraqis grew less fearful of ridiculing their deposed president and started buying the Saddam ones too.

"At the beginning we'd hide them under the counter and only sell them to those who specially asked because people were upset to see the former president as a doll," explained Asaad Majid, a salesman in the al-Jelawi toy store in Mansoor.

"Now we're not scared anymore, we display them openly, and people buy them regularly," he said, adding that demand peaked soon after Saddam was captured last December.

Thursday, the real Saddam and 11 of his associates will go before an Iraqi judge to be charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity. Saddam's trial is not expected to begin until early next year.

There was little doubt about Saddam's guilt in the minds of customers and sales staff Wednesday.

"If he's executed, then that's the end of it -- it's too easy for him," said Ala, a sales assistant at Jelawi's.

"It would be better to keep him in prison for the rest of his life so that he has to suffer every day."

Sue-B

2004-06-28T13:58:00.000-07:00

My friend Sue came down from Corsicana this weekend to hang out with me. We did karaoke at the Dove then breakfast at the Truck Stop and finally headed back to my house at a little after 4AM. Sunday, we both slept until noon then got up and went to Pancho's for lunch and then did a little shopping. My only regret is that we took Sue's car to Pancho's, so I couldn't fill my trunk up with Sopaipillas! I did find a really cute pair of sandals at Payless for $4! I love cheap shoes.

Right before Sue left to go home, she showed me where she had been bitten by a spider a few days before. There was already a hole in the middle of a black and red ugly sore. I've never been bitten by one, but I'm well aware of the symptoms of a Brown Recluse bite. I told to get to an emergency room as soon as see got back home. When she got home,she had her mom check the bite. She too believed it to be a Brown Recluse bite. A trip to the hospital confirmed what Sue's mom and I already knew. They hospital cleaned out the bite and gave her a shot of antibiotics as well as a prescription (10 days worth). I called to check on her today and she says the bite is already feeling a lot less painful. She's lucky she didn't it go any longer. Those bites and get pretty nasty.

I did some surfing today to refamilarize myself with Brown Recluses. You can't be too careful.

My Mom's hometown made the news!!!!

2004-06-24T15:55:00.000-07:00

Yahoo! News - Judge Suspected of Masturbating in Court

I can't wait to hear what she says about this one!! I bet she won't be so "pumped" up about being an Okie anymore! ha ha hee hee ho ho tee hee *sigh* I think I'll e-mail her a link just to make certain that she reads it!

Theme Thursday - Eye-Catcher

2004-06-23T17:35:00.000-07:00

This weeks Theme Thursday entry is something that caught my eye, while on my way home last night!

For my audio challenged friends...

As I was driving home yesterday, I saw a man riding a horse and talking on a cellphone. The whole image struck me as being funny so I posted it here. Tah-tah for now.

What's up Doc?

2004-06-22T10:11:00.000-07:00

Reporting another bunny sighting at my favorite lunching spot!

It's a little brown rabbit living in suburbia, I think I'll call him/her Bourbon!

Have a good day all!

Always Running Behind

2004-06-22T09:22:00.000-07:00

Running later than usual today. I guess I stayed up too late writing that letter. It's going to be a long day and an even longer night! It'll take a brass band to get me out of bed in the morning! Think I'll get a couple of people to call in the AM to make sure I get out the door on time tomorrow.

Right now I'm listening to "Into the Fire" by Sara McLachlan on RealRhapsody. Right now I only have a trial membership but I think I may pay the $10 a month and keep it for awhile. I've found so many great songs that I haven't heard in years! I want to at least burn off a couple of CD's before I give it up. AAHHHHH Radio Song by R.E.M. . Hey, hey. hey. Everything to show and everything to hide.

Weekend Recap 06/19 & 06/20

2004-06-21T09:29:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a weekend! I went out Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights for Sara's birthday. Friday night I got to sing back-up with a band at the American Legion! Too cool. I've always wanted to try singing with a band. They wanted me to sing Give Me One Reason by Tracy Chapman (one of the guys heard singing along with the jukebox) but I was too nervous for that so I compromised and sang back-up on Drift Away by Dobie Gray. It was a lot of fun and I promised that I'd be ready to sing when they come back next month. I sing karaoke all the time but it was very different with a live band. The lead singer was kinda ad-libbing the whole time because he couldn't remember the words and the rest of us were just chiming in on the chorus.

Saturday night was the main event for Sara's B-Day. We all assembled at the Dove for some serious party-ing. The highlight of the evening was the stripping cowboy that had been arranged by one of her other friends! Yee-Haw! It's a good thing I wasn't drinking much (I was the designated driver tis trip) that poor fella might not have made it out alive! My only qualm with him, was that he had better hair than I do. Mine is a little longer, but his had some nice waves. I hate it when guys have better hair! Anyway, Sunday was spent hanging out at my sister's house for a Father's Day dinner. It's always cool hanging out with the family and getting to spend time with my boys.

Rainbow Ramblings

2004-06-18T16:19:00.000-07:00

A saw a rainbow on my way to Sara's house Friday evening.

Theme Thursday - BEND

2004-06-17T10:47:00.000-07:00

Bend

Bend but don't break
Don't let them win
Hold it all together
Reign yourself in

Never let 'em see you sweat
You gotta keep your cool
You lose your cool, you lose the battle
That's the golden rule

In this cruel world
It's dog eat dog all the way
This secret to this game called life
Is to take it day by day

Angela A. Ochoa

Whew...this was next on my list of excuses!

2004-06-16T14:33:00.000-07:00

Yahoo! News - Blow Drying Excuse Fails to Save Speeding Driver: "Blow Drying Excuse Fails to Save Speeding Driver

Wed Jun 16, 7:18 AM ETAdd Oddly Enough - Reuters to My Yahoo!

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - A New Zealand man caught driving at more than twice the legal speed limit claimed he needed to step on the gas in order to blow dry his car.

Roger Daniel, 37, made the novel excuse after he was nabbed traveling at more than 75 mph in a 30 mph zone in the northern town of Whangarei, the Dominion Post newspaper reported on Wednesday.
'I have a bad back and just thought I would do that to dry the car instead of having to chamois it dry,' he told police.
The explanation failed to impress and Daniel was fined $191 and had his license suspended for six months. "

Guess I'll have to skip this one and go on to "I was trying to dry my hair!"

Show Time!

2004-06-16T12:23:00.000-07:00

Last nights show went very well. I'm starting to build up a regular crowd. I had about ten singers at the top of the night, most of which came in right around 9PM. All of the people that sang had come in just for karaoke, meaning that they didn't just happen to be there. I was in a pretty good mood and ended up having a lot of fun.

When I first got to the club the only people there were the bartender and the manager. The plan was to start at 8 o'clock, but it just didn't happen. I killed time by reading my book while sitting up at the bar. I was dreading have to do a show with no singers! I know enough songs to sing for 4 hours, but it's not much fun singing to yourself in an empty club. Robert (my closet karaoke singer),showed up around 8:30. We chatted for awhile then, lo and behold, at 9:00, people started filing in! For the rest of the night, I was in such a good mood, that Shay thought I was drunk! I was just happy to have some singers rather than having to do the "Angela show" all night!

Kitty Corner

2004-06-15T09:22:00.000-07:00

Well the kittens are settling in nicely. They're having a ball attacking my hair in the middle of the night. At least once a night, I wake up to little kitty cat claws digging into my back as a kitten fights with my ponytail. FUN.

I decided to change their names from Shadow and Shade to Stratus and Nimbus. They seem to like their new names. Nimbus will even meow back at me every time I call him by name. Stratus doesn't "talk" all that much, he just kinda sits and watches from a safe distance but he will turn and look at me if I call his name. So far so good. They haven't broken anything yet, although they did knock my clock radio and my cellphone off of the night stand so that they could nap.

I guess I had best start cat-proofing my apartment BEFORE they do any serious damage!

The Grand Tour

2004-06-15T08:03:00.000-07:00

I finally went down to Tracy's shop yesterday for the tour he promised. It was actually pretty cool seeing all of the machinery used to repair collisions. The highlight of the tour was the custom Jaguar that they're working on. SWEET! Black Pearl and a Corvette engine, it was a struggle not to drool all over it! I'm going to try and go by again later this week to see what kind of progress has been made.