easter

this year's easter morn found me sitting on a floor in a convention center waiting (for three hours) waiting to be let into a room where (supposedly) my boyfriend, nathan fillion, would be joining joss whedon's much ado about nothing panel at wondercon.

i had read, only a few days before that fillion had confirmed his attendance, and though i wasn't familiar with the event (turned out to be run by the same folks as comic con), there were still tickets available, and they were $10 each.  i immediately bought a ticket and reached out to my partner-in-geekdom, jami, who was happy to join me.

and because it was easter, and because it's jami, she even created little easter baskets for us!

when we were eventually let into the room, we chose seats in the first row of the second section (read = we were close). i took a seat next to a guy with an open laptop.  i asked who he wrote for and we struck up a conversation. it was enjoyable and helped pass the time.  his article showed up later that day on my 'nathan fillion' google alert . i know it was his because i had been reading over his shoulder a bit, and in the end, i thought he captured the experience quite nicely!

i'll admit that it wasn't everything i had hoped it would be.  when the name tents were put out on the table, i noticed immediately that there wasn't one for nathan.  and, it wasn't long before joss himself came out to apologize for nathan's absence. but for $10, and with the knowledge that i have a guaranteed nathan photo opp in philly in june, i couldn't really complain about how the rest of the day unfolded.


the rest of the much ado panel was introduced, and i was excited to learn more about the film.  i am in love with the kenneth branagh version. so much so, that i've described his benedick and emma thompson's beatrice as my 'perfect relationship' since i saw it.  i never anticipated that anyone would ever give that a run for its money, but if anyone can, joss can.

though alexis denisof and amy acker (both, formerly of buffy glory) were not on the panel, clark gregg (of agent coulson avengers glory) and sean maher (firefly, anyone?) were on hand, as well as many other cast members. and in the end, i was infinitely more excited for the june movie release.

following the much ado panel was the nerdist panel.  chris hardwick, nerd icon, host of the 'talking dead' (airs after the walking dead on amc), and creator of the nerdist empire, was in the building to chat about...well, whatever we wanted to chat about.

the highlight came when jami, who was too shy to say hello to him when she saw him at the highlight came when jami, who had once been   disneyland (so instead took photos of his backside), finally spoke to her celebrity crush.  she had carefully crafted a question. i was impressed at his obvious pleasure when she told him that she had formed a 'nerds in the middle' lunch group for kids in her school to celebrate all things nerdiness. and when she asked what he would have wanted to discuss/learn about if he had been in that kind of group, his response was both thoughtful and engaging.

after the nerdist panel, we moved a little closer for the arrow panel. this is not a panel i would have waited in line for. i watch the show, and i like the show, but i think i may still just be too attached to justin hartley's version of the character in smallville to really love the show.  it was about what i would have expected, with one exception.  the 'tommy' character on the show has never stood out to me. until i was sitting 30 feet from him.

holy moly was he a cutie!  he was the most self-possessed, well-spoken, charming one of the bunch.  and i might have sighed a little when i learned that he hailed from broadway.  when the moderator encouraged him to sing a little something, and he complied?  .i sighed a lot.  it also didn't hurt that it was a parody of a song from wicked (one of my favorites), which is probably the best known show in his repertoire.

at the conclusion of the arrow panel, jami and i decided to check out the exhibit hall.  we didn't end up doing much browsing though, and ended up deciding to stand in line on the off-chance that we might get in on the arrow autograph signing.  jami had made an ipad case from the bag she got at comic con last year...and it just happened to be for the arrow.

sadly, no luck. so we decided to head back into the arena to finish our day with the dr. horrible's sing-along-blog sing-along.  just something about a room full of strangers singing lyrics like:

he rides across the nation
the thouroughbred of sin
he got the application
you just sent in
it needs evaluation
so let the games begin
a heinous crime, a show of force
a murder would be nice, of course
bad horse

that just can't help but make you smile.

all in all a fun and unusual easter!

foreign fever

i've got it. i don't really know where it came from, but i've got it.

lately all the men i find remotely interesting seem to hail from other countries. i find the orange county, ca perspective a bit limited and narrow-minded, and i appreciate that these foreign men bring with them a broader world view, greater (more diverse) life experience, and, of course, accents.  so after two years of not finding any man particularly compelling, there are now two who have peaked my interest.

tonight i spent some time getting to know the second. he is a new addition to my social sphere and it's been four months since we met (and last saw each other), so i wasn't entirely sure what to expect.  turns out, it was as perfect an evening as i could have hoped for, with the likely possibility of more to come. it also brings the possibility of some uncharted waters, but, one 'getting to know you' dinner at a time.

tonight the food satisfied, the conversation flowed, the laughter bubbled, and the gentleman was a gentleman.

home again, home again, hippety hop!

returning from baton rouge on sunday with a couple days off ahead of me, i couldn't help but wishing that i didn't have to spend them at the dmv, doctor's office, and doing laundry. but the pill was a little easier to swallow when i realized that i don't have to make my way back to an airport for a full month.

a month. at home. whatever will i do?

well.  i think i'll start by having dinner with a cute (local and mormon!) guy i met in november.

then i plan to join some friends for the dr. who season premiere (complete with souffles in honor of the doctor's new companion).

then i'll finish off the week by making my way over to wondercon (comic-con's little sister conference) to gawk at nathan fillion and joss whedon at their 'much ado about nothing' panel.

had you heard? did you know that joss had re-made much ado? given that i use emma thompson and kenneth branagh's benedick and beatrice as a model for my ideal relationship, there is much to live up to.  but if anyone can, joss can. (trailer below)

since tickets to the sunday line-up are $10, and it's in my backyard (moved from san francisco due to scheduling conflicts), i could hardly resist. it will be an atypical easter, but i'm hoping the timing works out so that i can join my cousins for dinner to celebrate the holiday.

at some point, i'd also like to see 'the host,' the new movie based on stephenie meyer's book (which by the way, was MUCH better than her more popular vampire series), but, i guess i've got plenty of time for that... uh hip, hip, to the hoppety hip, to the hip hop hippety hop. okay, yeah, i'm a little excited to be home.

leg 3: baton rouge

2013 is turning out to be kind of a strange year for travel.  several of my events have shifted their dates just a tad, with some unexpected results. instead of going on one trip and having three or four days at home in between, all the travel backs up against each other.  the upside is that i might actually get to be home for a couple of weeks at a time. the downside is that i'm also on the road for a couple of weeks straight.

baton rouge was the final leg in my too-long road trip.  and it's one of the few 'recognizable' cities left in the country that i haven't been to.  and, as i learned last month in columbus, oh.  if i haven't been, i probably don't need to go.  does that sound snobbish?

i was actually excited to go. i've known two boys from baton rouge and both of them were very cute.  and i kind of thought that baton rouge would be a less drunk version of new orleans, and that it might give me a chance to enjoy the things i love about the south without all of the debauchery of the big easy.

but i could not have predicted just how different the two cities would be. instead of an 'up all night' kind of city, it was an 'everything worthwhile closes at 5' kind of city.  and, when you are sitting at a booth in an exhibit hall until 5pm everyday, staying in a downtown area, without a car, that boasts a number of empty restaurants, and nothing else, it's hard to feel like it's a city you're excited to be in.

of course, there's always an upside.  i was traveling with an enjoyable co-worker. we WERE able to find some good food (one of the best salads i've ever had, actually). i was in my room early every night (sometimes a challenge on the road). and watching 'swamp people' feels more real when you're in gator country.

and, if you know me at all, you'll know that i always make an effort to see or do something new.  fortunately, we were able to get out of the exhibit hall a little early on the last day, and first wandered over to the uss kidd.  

one of the interesting things i learned was...

Another unique distinction about KIDD's first voyage was the make-up of her crew. Anne Randle was the first member of the WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service) to be assigned to the Office of Shipbuilding in New York City. Ordered to take a training tour of the Kearny Shipyards, her name was placed on the list of personnel that were scheduled to report on board KIDD for the purpose of accompanying the destroyer across the harbor to the Brooklyn Naval Shipyards. Her name was listed as "Ens. A. Randle", omitting any mention of her gender. At that time, there was still an uneasy tradition that having a woman aboard a naval ship was to invite bad luck. However, when KIDD arrived at the Brooklyn yards, the official message sent back to the yards in Kearny read: "The WAVE delivered The Kidd at 2:30 today."

but i was also interested because of my grandfather's service as a naval pilot. in fact, the plane out front had motivated me to email my father to see if he had any info on the planes my grandfather had flown, and he sent a couple of photos in response

while perusing a display case inside the museum with models of various planes, another visitor, who could tell we were searching for something, asked if he could help.  when i explained what i was looking for, he took a quick look at the photos.  he recognized them instantly, but they were not represented in the case.  only slightly disappointed, sam (my co-worker) and i chatted with him and his wife, and enjoyed his obvious passion for the subject.

after the museum, we headed to the ship and enjoyed our self-guided, out of order,' if it's not roped off you can touch it, ring it, (or in the case of the beds) climb into it' tour.  i'll admit that climbing in and out of those beds were probably among the least graceful enterprises i've ever taken on, but some of the beds were hung so closely together, it was hard to imagine actually sleeping in them night after night.  it would definitely be an experience!

after fully experiencing the uss kidd, we headed next door to take in a planetarium show.  the science museum itself was a HUGE disappointment. but since the admission was basically free with the ticket for the show, no harm no foul. the show was fun, and the planetarium was a little different than others i've been too, so it was a nice way to cap off an early evening, and the trip itself.

leg 2: vegas

after taking a bite of the big apple, i was en route to vegas for some annual training.

shortly after arriving, i met up with terry, one of my trade show besties (and the reason i ended up on stage with keith urban a couple of years ago).  since his promotion last year, i no longer get to see him at our human resource conferences, so i look forward to seeing him at the exhibitor show every year.

though we had originally discussed dinner and a show, i passed on dinner in favor of room service and a shower, meeting up with him after to go see our show.

we had decided on la reve, a cirque style show, similar to o, and i was excited to see the aquatic acrobatics.

our seats were in the second row -- in the splash zone -- and i was pleased to see that similar to cirque's love, it was a theater-in-the-round. i was also pleased to learn that they would allow flash-less photos, and as you might imagine, i took full advantage.

all in all, i'd have to say that it was second only to love on my list of favorite vegas shows.   it was quite beautiful. i enjoyed the diverse music and characters, and, of course, the company.

the next morning found me in early classes getting some mediocre training.  and, even though the training wasn't as spot on as i had hoped, i appreciate that the conference gives me an opportunity to reconnect with industry friends - sharing challenges and successes in our respective markets.

dinner with the exhibit house was on tap for the evening, and, since i've developed great relationships with some of them, it felt like a dinner out with friends.  to that end, mike and i met up with terry at the invite only house of blues foundation room before calling it a night.

leg 1: new york

being home for two full weeks was blissful, but a price had to be paid, and leg 1 of my two week road trip found me in ny for 36 hours.

determined to make the most of my time,  i had reached out to my friend deb, who has been out  of town for my last couple visits, and my cousin melanie, who recently moved to the city, to see about getting some girl time.

both agreed to join me for my second viewing of 'sleep no more'.  lucky for me, i had been upgraded to first class on my direct flight from lax to jfk, so i wasn't a total zombie when i arrived. 

deb and i met for dinner before the play and began the business of catching up.  since i haven't seen her in about two years, there was a lot to talk about! we enjoyed some tasty pizza, until my boss (who was also joining us for the play) arrived, and we headed over to the theater together. 

melanie and her roommate joined us shortly thereafter and i was excited for them all to participate in one of the most unique theater experiences of my life. interestingly enough, it was completely different then the first time. in fact, every scene was different with one exception, and i was glad to end the night feeling like i had seen much of what i missed the first time.  

after the play, melanie and i made brunch plans for the following day, and i headed back to deb's apartment with her to finish her catch up and say hello to her husband.

saturday afternoon found me heading to meet up with melanie and her roomie (in the snow!)  441/2 - a place i'd highly recommend in the hell's kitchen neighborhood.

i dined on some delicious french toast while hearing all about melanie's decision to move. i can also relate to and appreciate just how much she's experienced in her short time there. it made me a little nostalgic for my early california days when i had the energy and time to do and see so many of the tings there are to do and see here!  it seems she is settling in quite nicely, and though i never doubted it, i was glad to see just how well the city, and her roommate seem to suit her.

and, all too quickly, it was time to head to work.

luckily, 'work' was fun.  once again my company has sponsored a series of award shows, and tonight was the first.  a highlight was getting to meet the cast of 'smash' (who were all darling and gracious), and actor, john leguizamo, who, despite being in the middle of what looked like a semi-serious conversation, still make time to snap a photo with me.

unfortunately, the show ran REALLY long. madonna pitched a fit and said she was leaving if they didn't put her on (how often do you get to say that?!?) so our portion of the evening got cut.  we finished the night pretty angry at not having gotten what we paid for, but there wasn't too much time to dwell as i had to be on a plane the next morning for the next event.

it was a quick trip and though i was exhausted, i made every one of my 36 hours count!

if you're interested, here are a few 'articles' about the event...
dan stevens
madonna
anderson cooper
smash

dizz knee land

I just ran away from home,

Now I'm going to dizz knee land.

i apologize. i just can't help but hum the 1992 dada song every time i even think of the theme park!

despite living about twenty minutes from the park (on a rare, no-traffic, california day), i don't actually think about it that often.  when i first moved to cali, i got myself a 'local' pass, and used it frequently.  or, frequently enough to make it a good value.  but the truth is, i love roller coasters (which disney properties are not known for), and have an admittedly strong bias to disneyWORLD.

and, between that, the price increases on passes, and a travel schedule that limits my ability to use it, i haven't been to disneyland in three years. so, come saturday, when my friend ben invited me to take advantage of his disney employee status (and i happened to actually be in town!) i couldn't refuse.  i invited jami along, and off we went!

as you might imagine, much has changed in three years, and ben and jami (both frequent park visitors) were kind enough to indulge me by focusing on all of the 'new' stuff (ahem, cars land!).  they also supported my need to ride roller coasters, and we successfully visited both california screamin' and space mountain (the only true coasters on the property) before the night was through.

an unexpected highlight for me, though, is a little known nook that jami introduced us to.  the beast's library is  tucked away in an unexpected location, and i think it's my strong desire to, one day, have my own library, that made me oooh and ahhhh when i entered the room. in addition to the change in the room lighting and sound (to reflect the change from prince to beast and back), you can also take a 'which disney character are you?' personality test.  i was mrs. incredible, jami, maleficent, and ben, mickey mouse.  i'm going to let those speak for themselves! ;)

self-gifting

august 2012

it's sunday. i'm feeling a bit run down and like i don't really want to get out of bed.  disneyland took it's toll on my body (my knee) last night, so i'm cruisin' the web trying to entertain myself.

oh look, new items on my nathan fillion google alert feed.

yeah, yeah, already knew he'd be at calgary comic con. checked the dates. couldn't go. wait. what's this?  philadelphia comic con?  and there is a 'nathan fillion vip package'?  a guaranteed photo op?

VIP’s get:
• Philadelphia Comic Con 4-Day Weekend Ticket
• Exclusive Nathan Fillion VIP Badge
• Exclusive Nathan Fillion Lithograph
• (1) Nathan Fillion Photo with Signature Ticket - You can have him sign this photo OR another item on-site.
• (1) Photo Op with Nathan Fillion
• VIP’s get onto the show floor 30 Minutes before regular attendees each day of the show!
• Guaranteed seating at the panel Nathan Fillion will appear on (Firefly/Serenity or individual)

package purchased. hotel reserved. flight secured. promise made (to myself) that after i finally meet the guy, i will stop trying so desperately to meet the guy.  i won't even follow his twitter feed during san diego comic con to see if i can 'run into' him somewhere.  okay, well, maybe we won't go that far...

family

when i'm home, i try to spend my sunday nights with my cousins.  if a picture is worth a thousand words, than these are priceless.

the butterbeer experiment

two attempts yielded a tasty treat akin to the butterbeer offered at the wizarding world of harry potter.