the afflicted

A holiday with the flu is no holiday at all.

For the past few days I've been popping Dayquils and Tylenol Cold pills like candy (I could really go for some Jelly Bellies, come to think of it). I draft this blog on my phone as I lie in bed with the comforter pulled up to my chin, desperately wishing that my parents had wireless internet. I could then at least enjoy my Hulu queue while resting up in bed. Those who are shackled by ethernet cords may relate.

So my parents' house back East is where I am spending the holidays, as I suspect many Angelenos might. My days thus far have included sneezing and blubbering about, and cancelling various plans due to the pesky nature of this influenza. But I was able to catch up on a bit of television.
Top Chef: I have a new favorite character; his name is Fabio. The Italian accent and culturally infused self-deprecation provides adorable yet lighthearted moments of amusement.
Also ended up watching two hours of Dateline about two college girls whose identities were mistaken. Riveting stuff.
Diners, drive-ins and dives: quite possibly the most delectable show I enjoy on the Food Network. That Guy has a sweet job. There should be a World List of Sweet Jobs and How To Go About Getting Them.

Some of my initiatives for 2009:
1. Meet Diego Luna.
2. Find an intercambio whom looks like Diego Luna.
3. Get some writing done.
4. Get the hell out of credit card debt.
5. Make a pie from scratch.
6. Finish up 2008's remaining projects.
7. Take the Metro more. Drive less.
8. Keep more dark chocolate handy.

Bring it, '08

It's been awhile since my last post - there have been a few setbacks in these past few weeks; specifically, my laptop withering after three faithful years. After trying to call during Central Mountain Time operating hours and a considerable wait time, I got through to a customer service representative at the conglomerate consumer computer giant known as DELL. Apparently they charge for service repairs - to even get your computer looked at - there is a $199 cost up front, and then of course, the cost of your repairs. I wince at the news. Struggling temps cannot shell out this kind of cash without batting an eye. $100 quite possibly may always be a large sum of money to me.

Academia
I have been resorting to visiting my neighborhood library and taking a number to use the 55-minutes-or-less-in-duration computers on hard-backed, wooden, un-cushioned, do-not-fall-asleep-in-here chairs. If I am lucky, I get a computer wedged in between the loud breather on my left and the we-can-all-hear-the-music-playing-with-his-headphones-on-guy to my right. Hopefully it won't happen again.

These local biblioteca visits remind me that I do enjoy libraries. Quiet. An escape from the noise of life. The thirst for knowledge. All things scholastic and studious. Intelligence. A wave of nostalgia, of those undergraduate years on the fifth floor of the Gelman in D.C.

Holiday in LA
So I've begun breaking up my sedentary lifestyle. It has been a painstakingly slow process. (I'm fighting my desire to hibernate in the cold, windy season in Los Angeles.) Especially when there's no heater in the bedroom or bathroom of our apartment. Honestly, heat is a basic human need. Los Angeles homebuilders of yore, what were you thinking?! This isn't Jamaica, mon. Yup, I said it.

Also - there isn't enough decent Christmas music to put up on the airwaves. Play something we know, guys. Some recent Christmas pop albums. I'm sure there's something audibly delectable from Josh Groban. Ne-yo's falsetto-infused singles just don't get me in the holiday spirit. Pretty damn catchy, though. (I have also been fighting the uber-adhesive quality of the musical stylings of Rihanna. I have since given in to the notion. Gah.)

Oh, jobs
Been out interviewing more lately, before Christmas week, but nothing too spectacular has emerged. I think this year I'm thankful I've survived this year, strike and uncertainty of life and all. Maybe I really should sell all my stuff and work for some sort of travel abroad organization. Or at a Catalunyan gastropub. Or join an Unemployed Anonymous group. Thoughts?

Peeves: Sleepers in public places
These locales include: bookstores, libraries, airport lounges, buses (who in Los Angeles rides buses?), shopping malls, church pews.

Anxiously Awaiting
New eps of Heroes. And who knows when that's going to happen?
Permanent Employment. Well - who really wants anything to be completely permanent? The phrase drips with demasiado finality.

This Year's Lessons & Reminders

I am not my job. The "what do you do?" question plagues us all.

Never take calls from telemarketers if you can help it. Take that, LA Times. I wonder if all canceled account holders get removed from your calling list. I hope to never get a phone call from you ever again. Also - is Toluca Lake the LAST stop on your route? Sometimes I got the paper before 7am. Sometimes not until after 8:30am. What's that about? But don't call me to answer that question. My desire for the answer is not greater than my desire to never hear from you again.

MTV does not play music. Stop checking to update yourself on music videos only to find none there. How much more of The Hills and Newport Harbor does America really need? The mainstream public disappoints me.

Visiting the Grove is a double-edged sword. The pseudo-quaint-inner-city-modeled shopping complex is enclosed, walkable, and immerses me in abnormally attractive yuppie crowds. Yeah, it's nice. Just don't let me forget to get parking validation.

Bite-Sized Post and COTW

It's been awhile since my last post - but honestly, not that much new is going on. The writers are out and about picketing; I'm just trying to survive during a particularly lean market of available entertainment industry jobs.

I just had my first chocolate croissant in three or four years. I think the last time I had them was when I was in D.C. and went to the Au Bon Pain on campus. Those things are scrumptious. Something tells me that the holidays, as usual, are not going to be good to my body mass index. Are they ever good to anybody? Well, maybe to the pockets of the scoundrels in the Bally Total Fitness Membership Office come January.

With the approaching holidays, I must say that I'm looking forward to not shopping in stores and doing my minimalist shopping online. Hey, I'm a struggling assistant. On a recent visit to the Burbank Media Center mall during the first weekend of November, the thirty-plus people waiting in line for the register at a women's clothing retailer was enough to turn me off. That, the cranky salespeople (aren't the customers supposed to be the irritated ones?) and screaming kids that parents let run amok are enough for me. I don't need more stress in my life. I wonder what the average stress levels are for the Los Angeles area resident.

Latest COTW

Comedians. Something about being intelligent, quick-witted, and attractive. Or maybe it's the sense of humor that increases someone's appeal.