7 deadly sins

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…















may 2010's photo theme is now ready for viewing.
check it out: 20 graffiti, 30 days

if you haven't checked out the other themes from 2010 be sure to do so.
april 2010: 20 pink, 30 days
march 2010: 20 religious buildings, 30 days
february 2010: 20 things that go together, 30 days
january 2010: 20 numbers, 30 days

if you're interested in joining the photo group, let me know. just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well…
the photo theme for may 2010 is now online for your viewing pleasure

reach for the stars

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i so want a strawberry golden oreo blizzard. all i have to do now is figure out where the closest dq is. road trip anyone! just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well

come a little bit closer

at presido golf course

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

so far it's been an absolutely gorgeous weekend here in the bay area. the sun is out in full force and i even busted out the shorts. i had a late lunch with d&j on saturday at ppq in the sunset. this time around i went with the papaya salad and a lemon soda. so delicious. after lunch, we took a walk along the beach. i've never seen ocean beach so crowded. lots of eye candy to enjoy. today, i met up with butterbean to have brunch at ella's. i had never been there before and was quite impressed. i debated between buttermilk pancakes and chicken hash & eggs with toast. i opted for the chicken hash which was a good choice. it was rather tasty. they had homemade pineapple upside down cake on their menu but i was too full from breakfast that i didn't get any. i should have ordered a piece to go because that's all i can think of now. :) ella's isn't too far from my hood so we decided to enjoy the weather and walk back. we took a slight detour through presido park. nature, sunshine, & good friends. what more could a person ask for. it's been a great weekend so far and i still have one more day. YAY! just where will i end up next is anyone's guess?

stay gold & be well…

shark

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

miss b & pevil took me out for my birthday adventure part 1. it was a great day spent with two great gals. the day started off with breakfast at brenda's where we had the sampler beignets: chocolate, plain, apples & cinnamon, and crawfish. i'm a big fan of the savory so the crawfish was by far my favorite. as for my actual breakfast, i went with the fried catfish eggs benedict. it was absolutely delicious.

after breakfast, we headed over to amc van ness to check out what movies were playing. we decided on kick-ass. the movie was awesome. definitely not what i expected and thoroughly entertaining. since we had some time to spare before the movie started, we walked down to civic center to check out the asian heritage festival. miss b & pevil sampled some wines and gave me the fancy asian heritage wine glass they had gotten. i took a little taste of the sparkling sake they tried which was pretty good.




we finished off the day with cocktails at toad hall in the castro. mr. d joined us and it was the perfect way to end the day. miss b & pevil informed me that there's one more stop to come in this birthday adventure. they haven't told me where we are going but i'm definitely looking forward to it. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold and be well…

satellite minds

deary-lou.
previously on the e-list…

only in japan…
just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well

automatic

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

so much done in the last couple of weeks, so little time to write about them. here's a quick rundown of what my last couple of weekends consisted of: mass consumption of cheese at a birthday gathering, drinks at the eagle, brunch at the ramp, quality creative time, etc.

on a different note, d&j returned from their asian vacation bearing belated birthday gifts for yours truly. there's nothing better than asian treasures. among them was this super cool bunny bag.


the boys know how much i love bunnies and i love my new bag. they also surprised me with a very special birthday present: my very own marble tile with birthday message that's going to be placed on the base of the big buddha statue in thailand. how awesome is that! just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

too nice to talk to

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

shrinky dinks! need i say more.




just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

omegaman

deery-lou.

previously on the e-list...

on april 10, 2010, i turned 40. yes, 40. i have a hard time believing it, especially since i feel like i'm still in my 30s. a lot of people have asked me how it feels to be 40. honestly, i don't feel any different & turning 40 didn't bother me at all. age is just a number, it's all about how you feel on the inside. i embraced 40 with open arms, just like i did 20 & 30 before it. i personally feel that i look better now than i did a few years ago.

i had an awesome birthday weekend with good friends. on friday night, i had a small gathering of work friends/friend-friends at my new favorite bar/restaurant farmerbrown. i managed to kickback a few bring the beet back cocktails or as we were preferring to it later as turn the beet around. saturday it was off to golden gate park for a picnic with close friends. it was a tad chilly but that didn't damper our festive moods. i also got to catch up with an old friend from high school. i couldn't have planned a better weekend. thanks again for all the birthday wishes & for helping me celebrate my birthday. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well...

hold you down

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i've been thinking about my mom a lot lately. i can't believe it's been a year since her untimely death. there's not a day that goes by when i don't think of her. thoughts of her always come to mind while i'm riding muni to and from work. there are a lot of things i wish i had shared with her. i'm just thankful for all the wonderful memories i do have which seem to make my days brighter. sometimes at night, while i'm laying in bed i fear that i will forget what her voice sounds like. but then i close my eyes and i can hear it in the distance. the sound of her voice is something that i hope i never forget. memories are a wonderful thing and i'm so glad i have so many photos of her to help me remember them all.

not too long ago, i had googled my mom's name and came upon a tribute page for her on tributes.com. apparently, someone [i'm not sure who] had submitted her obit and they created this page. i was amazed to see that some people had left comments under the memory book section. it was really great to read what they had to say about my mom. since it's the anniversary of her passing, i thought i'd share this page and encourage those who would like to leave a comment to do so. click here for the page. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well...

when i die

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

it's a rainy easter weekend here—sigh. i spent my weekend in concord visiting the brockway-huegel clan. luckily, i got to escape most of the rain although it wasn't as warm there as i had hoped. as always, my visit with the brockway-huegels is always good. i had cocktails with scott on friday night & then with heather on saturday night. the rest of the weekend was spent going to an easter egg hunt, shopping with heather, walking the hills, playing with the boys, relaxing [at least trying to], & reading bedtime stories. can't wait until my next visit. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.




stay gold & be well…

let me in

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

"who's baby are you?" because i can. enjoy.

just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well

42

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

yesterday, i spent a very relaxing day in dolores park with pevil & d. it was a gorgeous day. it felt really great to feel the sun beating down on me. however, the morning got off to a rocky start with 2 new students not being able to find their host moms at the airport, but once that crisis was solved i was able to kick back and relax. even though i piled on the spf 30, i still somehow managed to get red. go figure. before heading home, we stopped off for some cocktails at toad hall in the castro. they have an outside patio which is a perfect spot for afternoon drinks. i finished off my evening at misty's. she had an impromptu wine/cheese gathering. it was a pretty awesome saturday if i do say so myself. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well

mohammed

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

I read this great tribute article this morning about margaret moth, a cnn camerawoman, who died today. She sounded like a true pioneer & an amazing woman. Along with the article, which can be found here, there were two videos from a documentary made about her "fearless: the margaret moth story". She said something in the video that really stuck with me, "I think life's sort of like a game of tennis. You have no choice over how that ball comes to you, but it's how you hit it back that counts." Just where will I end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well…

problems

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i love pam! i'm almost embarrassed to admit it but i'm very tempted to watch dancing with the stars for the first time because of her. it is pam, afterall…
just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well…

song of the disposessed

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

cookies!!
are awesome
– as seen written on someone's backpack while riding the 38L muni to work

just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

alarmed

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

this week flew by. did it even happen? i was quite busy with teaching, doing my ac duties, & taking students out on excursions.

on monday, i took a group of student to the sfmoma who just so happens to be celebrating their 75th anniversary. most of the exhibits were geared to their anniversary, 75 years of looking forward. there were three exhibits: the anniversary show, focus on artists, & the view from here. i think i enjoyed myself more than the students seeing that they were waiting for me to finish. i discovered a lot of new artists as well as rediscovered some familiar ones. with a mixture of paintings, sculptures, photography, etc., there's a bit of everything to get the artistic vibes flowing. some highlights for me included: jackson pollock's male + female; mark rothko's tentacles of memory; david parks' bathers; clyford still's untitled; bruce conner's looking glass; robert rayschen's scanning and untitled [that had an image of jesus]; arshile gorky's tracking down guiltless doves; paul klee's fast getroften; & barry mcgee's picture wall. the list could go on but i don't want to bore you too much. i also apologize in advance if i misspelled any one's name.

i was particular intrigued with nicholas nixon's brown sisters. this is a series of photos capturing the brown sisters, one of whom is his wife, since 1975 . it's quite fascinating to see how people change over time.

there was always a piece in the pop art section that i liked simply because it was of jaclyn smith. yes, i'll always be an angels fan. i forgot to write down the artist's name. it was an image of jaclyn taken from a tabloid that was blew up and the eyes had been cut out. the headline read, "jaclyn smith says..."

yesterday, i took a small group to see alice in wonderland in 3-d. as much as i wanted to love this movie, i felt that it was just ok. my expectations of the 3-d effects were quite high especially after seeing avatar but instead of amazing me they simply left me empty. the story itself wasn't that bad but again being a tim burton film i wanted so much more. it's definitely entertaining but not worth viewing in 3-d. some of the students had a hard time understanding it because of the accents. the best part of the movie was whenever helena bonham carter appeared. she's an amazing actress. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

be well & stay gold

shimmer

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

check out this video of kirsten dunst singing the vapors turning japanese. she's so cute!

just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

crabtown

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i went to the shanghai exhibit at the asian art museum on saturday with d&j. the exhibit was pretty good although i wish it was a bit larger. the special exhibits at the aam always seem to leave me wanting more. perhaps that's a good thing. there are a few pieces that stood out to me:

mawangjui, by liu dahong
a corner of the city, by li hua
wandering eyes giving way to wandering thoughts, by wu youru
morning sun rising over the sea, by wu qingyun
plum blossoms under the moon, by tao lengyue [by far my favorite]

and then there was an area rug: rug with crested crane design

i tried to find some photos of the above paintings/rug online but didn't have much luck. two of them [wandering eyes giving way to wandering thoughts & mawangjui] are visible here. if you're in the bay area or are planning a trip be sure to check the exhibit out. it runs until september 5.

when we had finished exploring the museum, we headed over to little saigon for lunch. none of us have eaten in the area before so we just randomly picked a spot. we choose bodega bistro where we had a delicious green papaya salad with beef jerky called nom as an appetizer. let's just say, yum! i couldn't stop eating it. as my entree i had the beef stew pho which was pretty good. there were some mystery beef pieces floating around that kind of scared me but i ate it any way. the flavor of the soup was outstanding. i'd definitely go back.

later that evening i met up with some friends in the castro. we ended up having a sort of pub crawl in the 'stro hitting such spots as moby dicks, bar on church, trigger, & the cafe. things have definitely changed since the last time i've been to some of these spots. the cafe was packed with the ladies. one of them ended up grabbing me for a little bump & grind session. it felt like early college all over again when my friends & i would spend our saturday nights at barbarella's getting down to the 80s. some of the girls and i would do a little dirty dancing back then. fun times! just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

fish

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

here's a mini-conversation i had with two students after noticing them standing in the hallway & sensing that they wanted to ask me something but were too shy:

me: can i help you?
[places hand over mouth and starts giggling]
student: is castro dangerous?
me: dangerous? not at all. it is the gay neighborhood, though.
[the girls are still giggling & one of them is hiding behind the door]
me: i used to live in that area and i think it's pretty safe. what are you looking to do there: dinner, a club, meet people?
[the girls are still giggling, mostly due to be embarrassed.]
student: see gays!
me: like at the zoo...

i talked to them a bit longer trying to convince them that it was safe to go there. you knows why they thought it was dangerous. oh, sweet, sweet petals. not sure if they actually went. the one girl is in my class so i'll ask her on monday. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

i'm just a lucky so and so

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

the day started off with coffee from emma's then breakfast at joe's with misty. i went with the old standby four pieces of bacon, two eggs & two pancakes. i love when pancakes absorb all that goodness we call syrup. yum.

my valentine's was spent at marlena's where there was a benefit for the Aids housing alliance. it was hosted by emma peel who is running for empress of the imperial court. don't really know a lot about that since i'm not part of the drag community but i'm all for supporting good causes. it was a small but very lively crowd. i hadn't been to a drag show in quite some time and i forgot how fun they can be. besides the drag queens performing, they also pulled people from the audience to do a routine based on what number they picked. at one point, emma peel approached me to to go on stage but i hadn't yet had enough vodka tonics to do it. perhaps another time. they ended up raising over $600 for the Aids housing alliance. not bad considering it was valentine's day.

for those of you living in sf, the voting for empress happens on february 20. if you want to support the drag community get out and vote. i believe there are two locations: project open hand & castro muni station. also be sure to check out emma peel's fb page: emma peel for empress. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

weather radio

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

went to the legion of honor this past weekend to see the cartier exhibit. lots of amazing jewelry, clocks, tiaras, etc. to view. i never realized how grand his stuff really was. no one seems to wear jewelry like that anymore. it definitely screamed dynasty. there were a few pieces i was particularly drawn to: the panther bracelet, the mini mystery clocks, the animal figurines, & the crocodile necklaces [see above photo]. i was also quite fascinated with his use of coral. that might be due to the fact that i have a thing for orange right now. be sure to check out the exhibit if you have some time. i believe it goes until april. it's definitely worth it. where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well...

pearl

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…














a friend of mine painted this for me about ten years ago. it's based on a photo i have of my sister, my cousin, & myself with cookie monster. i recently got the painting back from sister. it makes be happy. i love that i was given farrah hair. now i need to find a place to hang it. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

run letter

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i went to the movies with pevil & miss b yesterday to see avatar in 3-d. i must admit that i enjoyed. i had heard mixed things about it, so i decided to go into it with an open mind. visually, i thought it was amazing. not sure i would have liked it as much had i not seen it in 3-d. granted the storyline wasn't anything original and some of the dialogue was quite cheesy but i managed to block all of that while watching. 3-d movies have definitely come a long way since jaws 3-d. after the movie, we headed to edinburgh castle for a few cocktails. when we got there there was tribute to betty white on the tv. we immediately thought that she had died. she didn't. she was just being honored at some awards ceremony. whew!

this afternoon i met up with some friends to have lunch at coriya hot pot city. i've been wanting to go there for some time and was glad i finally got the chance. it's all you can eat meat & seafood that you cook at your table. it was fantastic and priced reasonably. will definitely be going back. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

all the holes in the walls

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i've been published! quiet some time ago someone from flickr sent me an email and asked if he could use one of my photos i took while in seoul. he told me he was working on a photo book based on the anarchy symbol called a-cerchiata [circle-a]. always one to encourage any art project, i gave him permission to use it. last week he sent an email letting me know that the book was completed. he attached a low version pdf for me to see. it turned out great. i was quite excited to see my photo especially since it was used at a decent size. i'm going to have to check the bookstores to see if i can get a copy. in the meantime, here's screen capture of the bookcover, my photo, and my name in the credits. enjoy!


















a-cerchiata [circle-a]










photo spread [the singer photo is mine]









photo credit

just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

all over again

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…















december 2009's photo theme is ready for viewing.
check it out: 20 signs, 30 days

be sure to check out the previous two months as well.
november 2009: 20 food, 30 days
october 2009: 20 orange&black, 30 days

if you're interested in joining the group send me an email. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be gold

splintered in her head

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

how would i describe last weekend—packed! i was literally on the go most of the weekend. as most of you probably know that's pretty out of the ordinary for this homebody. it all started out thursday night when i got inspired and decided to make borscht. it turned out to be more like a borscht stew but it was still delicious. soups are going to be my new thing. i think i could actually start to enjoy cooking. who knew!

butter bean came over friday night for some borscht stew. she was my first dinner guest. it was quite lovely dining with someone in my cozy kitchen. afterwards, we headed over to pevil & miss b's house for our long overdue stocking exchange. christmas festivities in january, how fun! we had lots of good snacks & wine. it was extra special cuz little r was in town. i haven't seen her in ages. it was very nice to be able to catch up with her. pevil was my secret elf and i scored lots of goodies. my favorite has to the the pooping smurfette. pevil knows me so well. she also gave me tons of chocolate to satisfy my late night cravings. hi, fatty!


s-friend & i went to mountain view cemetery in oakland on saturday to take photos. i had never been there before though i remember jen telling me about it. that place is absolutely beautiful. we spent a couple of hours roaming the grounds taking photos. photos from my outing can be viewed here. we stopped for lunch at barney's on piedmont avenue where we had burgers and onion rings. the onion rings were to die for! so damn good. yum. getting out of oakland proved a bit difficult. we had a hard time finding the freeway ramp. this is the second time i've been to oakland with someone and it took forever to find our way out. scary!


later that night i made my way to lucky 13 to help celebrate bagel-ted's birthday. it's been forever and day since i last stepped into lucky 13. it's pretty much the same. just different people. i hung out for a little while then made my way home via the 33. luckily i made it home right before the rain.

i woke up on sunday feeling overly exhausted but it didn't stop me from going to sonoma with misty, butter bean, & natalie. i've lived in sf for over 8 years nows and this was my first trip to the wineries. i don't even remember the name of the first place we went to but i didn't a bottle of wine. yeah! our second stop was at homewood, a mom & pop winery. i don't remember much about the wines because i was to busy playing with lily the chihuahua. however, i vaguely remember a tasty merlot & eating some truffles. we left homewood to meet up with pevil, miss b, little r, & d to taste some champagne. i sat this one out since i'm not a fan of champagne. before heading to buena vista [our last stop], we made a detour for much needed sandwiches. i must admit it was a damn good sandwich. we spent what felt like a few hours at buena vista. i had pretty much lost my steam at this point most of the wines tasted the same. i did meet a cute, fluffy cat outside. meow!


thankfully monday was a holiday and i got to spend the day lounging about. well, that is, after i did my laundry. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

down like disco

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

OK cw, you've done it again. somehow you've managed to get me addicted to yet another teen drama. this times it's the vampire diaries. i was able to escape its evil clutches when it first premiered and assumed it would never cross my path. however, thanks to winter reruns and only 4 working channels on my tv, tvd has found its way into my home. and now, i simply can't get enough. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well...

california uber alles

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

it's january. the start of a new year. the start of a new decade. and the start of birthdays. i've celebrated two of my sf peeps birthdays so far, butter bean & pevil. last sunday, we celebrated butter bean's big day with a birthday brunch bash at her pad. it was great day. i couldn't help notice the glow surrounding butter bean. she a lot great people in her life and i'm glad we were all able to come together and help her celebrate the way we know best with food & drink. besides the numerous bloody marys i consume, i think i ate at least a pound of bacon.

















the birthday girl

i made my first pound cake for the event. it's the same recipe that my mom used. i loved my mom's pound. although mine was not the prettiest pound cake ever made, it definitely tasted pretty damn good if i say so myself. i did have a slight problem in the baking process which was my loaf tin was too small for the amount of batter. it overflowed during the baking process and i had to scrap burnt pound cake from the bottom of the oven. so not fun.

this past saturday i went to pevil's birthday celebration at the wild side west. it was a fun gathering. i'm always glad when i get to see the gurls since it's not that often. mrs. b made a very delicious cake. i was definitely taken aback when a complete stranger helped himself to a piece of the cake. seriously! have you heard of asking. i also heard that earlier some lady walked by and stuck her finger in the icing to taste it. come on people, get some manners.

friday night i went out with some students & a co-worker to cha cha cha's. since when has cha cha cha's become the new h.a.b. hangout. i must have missed that news bulletin. we had to wait a bit for a seat because it was pack but it was well worth it. i forgot how good the food is there. the students seemed to enjoy themselves. i thinking about maybe doing this once a month with some students. it's fun showing them a part of the city they don't normally go to. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

i kicked a boy

deery-lou.
previoiusly on the e-list…

goodbye 2009, hello 2010! it's day four of the new year. a decade is behind us and a new one is beginning. i can't believe that christmas has come and gone already. it seems like only yesterday that i was packing and planning for my trip to r-kansas and now i'm completely unpacked and settling into my so-called life.

i want to start off by saying that i had a wonderful holiday. in some ways it was even magical especially with it snowing on christmas eve. the holiday itself was at times emotional but i'm so grateful that i got to spend it with my family. entering the house for my first time was a bit surreal, with all these childhood objects in a strange environment. even though i don't have a connection with this house, i could still feel my mom's presence all around and that was comforting.

farm life is quiet! i actually found myself settling in quite easily. in the morning, i'd go out and sit on the front porch and drink my coffee. at this time, all the birds are chirping. while i smoked my first cigarette of the day, i lazily watched the sheep, guinea hens, & peacocks stroll about the property. what more could one ask for. sadly, i never got close enough to pet any of them. that was mostly due to milo constantly chasing them.

in the evenings, my pops would build a fire in the sun room where we just sat & relaxed. on occasions the puppies would fight, but most of the time is was very peaceful. my pops definitely has his hands full with all the animals. the fact that they keep him so busy is probably a good thing. life on the farm does seem to agree with him. i got to meet some of his neighbors on christmas eve which was nice. i'm glad that he has people there to look after him. i'm looking forward to going back in the summer. i want to explore all the state parks & swimming holes i saw.

here are some highlights from my trip:

1. spending time with my family

2. fresh country air

3. snowing on christmas eve

4. country fried steak

5. a deep dish pizza pie [it looked like an apple pie]

6. fried jalapenos & pickles
7. day trip to mt. magazine
8. passing through small town squares
9. watching the peacocks
10. pulled pork
11. finding old photos
12. tabitha's salon takeover marathon
13. hearing pops laugh while watching family guy
14. meeting the new puppies [grace & milo]
15. simply relaxing

can't wait to see what 2010 has to bring. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

m-train

deery-lou.

previously on the e-list...

R-kansas, here i come. i hope the people of charleston [if there even are people there] are ready for me. i'll be flying out there in about 10 hours. i've got my cowboy hat & boots all packed. can't wait to to spend some time with the sheep & peacocks.

i have a lot of mixed feelings about this trip. on the one hand, i'm looking forward to spending the holiday with my family. on the other, this will be the first christmas without my mom. i still haven't been able to look at pictures from last christmas. there's a part of me that feels if i do it makes it even more real that she's gone. it has been over 5 years since i've been to my parents house. and the first time for me to be at the house in arkansas. i'm a bit nervous about walking into this house and seeing all the things that remind me of my mom. i know that i haven't fully processed my mom's death. i'm just hoping that being there doesn't set off any triggers. i really want this holiday to be about us creating some happy memories. afterall, we could definitely use some. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well...

p.s. not sure i'll be able to post much while in the country, so stayed tuned for my adventures in R-kansas. happy holidays to one and all...

winter now

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

sugar is evil! i went to a cookie exchange last night and managed to od on sugar. i truly believe it was the two pieces of eggnog fudge that sent me over the edge. i brought pbj cookies to the exchange which, if i do say so myself, turned out quite tasty. there were lots of goodies to be had and i left with an tin full of cookies & fudge. now if i can only refrain from eating them all today.

as part of the cookie exchange, there was also a white elephant. i dipped into my supply of back issues of girlfriends & on our backs as my white elephant gift. i even threw in a rainbow bright hat i made several years ago but never wore. i ended up with a book, the cheetah girls: living large books 1-4, which will now allow me to tap into my inner tween girl. i love how the book includes the cheetah girls credo: "to earn my spots and rightful place in the world, i solemnly swear to honor and uphold the cheetah girls oath"…

the book also contains a cheetah girls glossary making it all the easier for one to fit in with the cheetah girls. it's very important for us to know the meaning of such terms as: wefties [weaves that are so tick tacky the tracks are showing] or diva size [a size fourteen or up]. the best of all however, is the introduction: "once upon a rhyme, there were two beautiful, bubble-icious girls named galleria and chanel who were the best of friends and the brightest wanna-be stars in all the land." hmm, that sounds roughly familiar. i can't wait to start reading this classic.

while making my pbj cookies yesterday, i felt inspired and decided to dig out my little christmas tree and decorate it with the random ornaments i had in my apartment. the christmas spirit is definitely beginning to rise within. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

















my little silver tree

stay gold and be well…

if she wants me

deer-lou.
previously on the e-list…













saturday night, i found myself celebrating my friend tamara's birthday russian style. we met at sadko, where we started the meal off with fried calamari, beet salad, crab salad, pickled vegetables, some kind of duck loaf, potatoes & mushrooms, rye bread, and shots of vodka. according to sasha & tamara it's customary to eat something [preferable a pickle] after taking a shot so that's what we did throughout our appetizers. prior to my entree, which was schnitzel, i had a bowl of borsch. and for dessert we had cherry blintzes. i'm not really sure where i managed to put all the food i consumed that evening. perhaps i was making up for fasting on friday. all i do know is that everything i tried was absolutely delicious. birthdays russian style are F.U.N! just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

be well & stay gold.

four sticks

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

well, another thanksgiving has come and gone. i have many things to be thankful for as i reflect on the past year's events. i spent the day at misty's with great friends, delicious food, and lots of drinks. this is the first year i managed not to stuff myself and it felt good.

i did a bit of shopping yesterday in my hood. i love the fact that i don't need to travel far to get things. i managed to score myself two pairs of jeans [the second pair was a guilt buy] as well as getting some stuff for others along the way.

in a few minutes, i'm heading downtown to check out the richard avedon exhibit at the sf moma. i'm looking forward to having an art day. it's been awhile. i hope every one out there in the cyber-world had themselves a happy thanksgiving. enjoy the rest of your weekend. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

make me smile [come up and see me]

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

we had our holiday potluck at school on friday. staff, host families, & students all brought food to share. the school supplied the thanksgiving basics: turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, and cranberries. everything seemed to be going smoothly until it came time to carve the turkey. no one had thought about needing a carving knife in advance. so there i was left to carve a turkey with a butter knife & plastic fork. not quite sure how i got stuck with the task. oh wait, could it be because no one else takes any initiative. anyway…to makes matters worse i had students lining up asking for turkey before i had even cut any. there's nothing like starving students breathing down your neck. half way through i abandoned the plastic fork & just started pulling turkey off the bone with my fingers. nothing like getting your hands dirty. it was the first time for most of the students to have turkey and they all seemed to enjoy it which makes it worth it in the long run. here's hoping we have an actual carving knife next year.



















i went and saw new moon on saturday with some friends. i didn't really like twilight and mainly went to be social. i'm trying something new these days. i'm sure i'm going to get some hate mail for this next comment, but i've got to admit i thought the movie was pretty boring. it felt as if i was watching a very long, drawn out afternoon soap opera. i didn't care much for the bella character at all. she seemed quite needy and selfish. the only redeeming factor of the whole film was the shirtless werewolf clan. whenever they appeared on screen, my interest peaked. go figure. the other highlight was seeing a preview for the new john woo film red cliff that looks awesome. i'll definitely be checking that out.















after the film, misty & i did some shopping around japantown. i love that mall, especially the cheap japanese stores there that sell everything for $1.50. note to self: go to japantown more. just where will i need up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

talk talk

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

part of my weekend was spent with the brockway-huegel clan in concord. i headed out there on friday after work and came back saturday evening. i always have a great time when i visit them. scott & heather open up their home to me as if i was family. in a sense, they are a part of my extended family and i've very grateful to have them in my life. the two of them are doing a wonderful job raising their boys and i'm very lucky to be a part of it. it's really great to see scott in action with the boys. the fact that we went to high school and are still a part of each others lives is truly amazing. we spent friday night simply sitting around talking and drinking. who could of asked for anything more.

on saturday morning, i awoke to lachlin poking me to tell me that the pancake breakfast was ready. it wasn't. scott & heather were still sleeping and i was on to his game. he ended up climbing in bed with me and we had a little chat. he sang a song about some kind of bunny pie, we talked about superheroes, and he asked why i had hippos on my pajamas. the last time i visited i gave the boys two "challenge of the superfriends" dvd. apparently, it has become a favorite of the boys. lachlin seems to be a fan of the green lantern & riddler while finn favors batman & robin. a boy after my own heart for as we all know robin is one of my favorites. i think i managed to watch all eight episodes with them and some of them even twice.

the afternoon was spent taking a mini-stroll at castle rock which i like to call castle greyskull. we never did quite make to the castle rocks but that wasn't the point. it was all about just hanging out together. during our outing we happened upon a tarantula. i had never seen on in the wild before so it was pretty exciting. the boys seemed pretty impressed by it too. after lunch we drove to the top of mount diablo. it was another first for me. it was pretty cold at the top of the mountain. the view from the top was simply amazing. i could see twins peaks & the golden gate bridge. we even managed to see some hand gliders. i can always count on the brockway-huegels for getting me out into nature. it's sort of becoming our thing & i like that. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

no i in threesome

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

there's a man that i see from time to time on the 38 muni on my way home from work. when i do he's always making paper swans from what appears to be square pages of a magazine. before his begins folding them he always checks both sides of the paper. i happened to see him again today and as usual he sat there making his swans until he reached his stop. every time i see him i can't help but watch as he folds the paper into these creatures. i can't help but wonder what he does with all of these swans. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well

new jersey

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…


"i am lost, it's ok". the words from this image stayed with me long after i had left the "fight hiv your way" exhibit. even while i was walking around the exhibition, i kept finding myself returning to these five words. it been quite some time since i've been to an art show that had such a strong impact on me. the images & accompanying quotes spoke of hope in lieu of the tragedy & heartache that is often thought of. the images were powerful & several of the quotes gave me chills. i had taken my class there for two reasons. the first, as a writing assignment, and the second more important reason, i wanted them to take a look at this disease in another light. after reading their essays, i realized that i successfully accomplished my second goal. sometimes it feels good to be a teacher. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

freeloader

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…













i went and saw whip it tonight with misty & kate. awesome! everyone in the movie was well cast, but i must give props to juliette lewis. that role was perfect for her. the movie made me think of the episode of charlie's angels "death on wheels" when jill joined a roller derby team to uncover a murder. there's a scene where jill participates in the classic roller derby move, the whip. here's a minisode for those of you interested.



just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be be will…

honeybear

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

need a good pick me up in the morning? check out my new favorite site people of walmart, capturing the true essence of america. here's a sample for you:

hot for teacher

just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

heads will roll

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

as i was passing by new may wah supermarket market on clement street today, i noticed a little boy swinging what appeared to be a dried squid. last time i checked, i thought dried squid was meant to be eaten. apparently, it's now the new hip toy of 2009. place your orders soon. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

dragon queen

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

she's back!
ok, i must admit that i'm totally excited to see heather on the new mp. so watching on november 17th. i miss the mp viewing parties we used to have back in the day. here's hoping heather spices up the place once again.



just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

skeletons

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

my apartment building consists of old asian women & russians with a few youngsters scattered about. yesterday, i rode the elevator with my neighbor, an old asian woman. our conversations usually go like this: "hello", "what floor", "goodbye". you would think that after a year she'd recognize me as her neighbor but she never does. perhaps i shouldn't change my look so much. anyway...as we were exiting the elevator, she handed me a flyer that was in her hands. it was a notice from fedex about a delivery attempt. i wasn't sure if she knew what it said or not so i explained it to her. she responded in chinese, then ran into her apartment. she returned with another fedex notice from the day before and preceded to talk to me for five minutes in chinese. the whole time she was talking she was pointing up and and down the hallway. i couldn't quite figure out what she was trying to tell and finally had to say, "i don't know". she repeated, "oh, don't know", said goodbye, and headed into her apartment. i love my neighbors. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

my wandering days are over

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

the last two themes. whew! the current theme will be posted later this month. not every one has uploaded their photos yet. remember if you are interested in joining contact me. just where will i need up next is any one's guess.

august 2009 theme: 20 blue, 30 days
september 2009 theme: 20 stairs, 30 days

stay gold & be well…

twisted up your spine

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

two more themes for your viewing pleasure. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

june 2009 theme: 20 patterns, 30 days
july 2009 theme: 20 shadows, 30 days

stay gold & be well…

counting backwards

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

two more photo themes for you to enjoy. just where will i need up next is any one's guess.

april 2009 theme: 20 water, 30 days
may 2009 theme: 20 flowers, 30 days

stay gold & be well…

wants & needs

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i just realized that the last time i blogged about my photo group was back in february 09 and that was for january's theme. bad blogger. over the next couple of days i'm going to attempt to catch every one up with the themes i didn't post. for those of you just joining my blog, if there are any out there, every month a group of us take photos of a particular theme. we have 30 days to take 20 pictures of the given subject. at the end of the month we upload them to flickr to a group that i create. so that's the group in a nutshell. if any one out there wants to join, simply send me an email. with that said, some links to past photo themes. i'm going to do it in pairs. hope you enjoy. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

february 2009 theme: 20 love, 30 days
march 2009 theme: 20 green, 30 days

stay gold & be well…

mess with time

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

october has come & gone leaving behind wonderful memories of yet another halloween. i started off my halloween weekend with a school halloween party. i went to school as lucifer's fall [my goth name]. the students all thought i looked very scary but that didn't stop them from taking their pictures with me. for a minute there, i felt like paris hilton. we had a costume fashion show/parade to show off all the costumes. i was pleasantly surprised at the number of students who actually came in costumes. some of the costumes included: colonial death bride, a bumble bee, a plastic surgery victim, minnie mouse, capt jack sparrow, a zombie or two, a ladybug, & a few vampires. after announcing the winner [colonial death bride], they started the pumpkin carving contest. the students all seemed to enjoy themselves which was great. the best part of the day was when evan's daughter made an appearance. she's such a cutie! she was handing out candy to all the adults. by the end of the day, it felt as if i had worked a month straight. party planning/organization is HARD!

saturday night was d&j's haunted halloween party. i headed over early to help the boys decorated. while we waited for the party guests to arrive, the boys were visited by several trick or treaters. it's been awhile since i've seen trick or treaters and it reminded me of my youth. i loved going tricking or treating. there's nothing like ringing a doorbell, saying three magic words "trick or treat", and walking away with a bag of candy. goodtimes. the party was fun as usual. we had good eats, loads to drink, & music to dance to. what more could you ask for. the cast of characters in attendance included: a gossip rag, a white moth, lumberjack attacked by owls, the golden girls, black-eyed ps, julia child & her husband, father jojo, drinkin' lincoln, and special guest star the cat in the hat. unfortunately, i didn't take any photos since i don't have a camera. my digital finally died. r.i.p. however, here's a group photo that misty took. yay!



i hope everyone had a ghoulishly good halloween. just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well…

zerox

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i can't believe that halloween is this weekend. this boy needs to throw a costume together by friday for school. oh what to be...at least my costume for saturday night's party is in the works. nothing like planning two costumes for one holiday.

it's been a month since my last post and sadly not much has been going on with me. well, that's not exactly true. last thursday, my colleague & i took a group of students out for a pub crawl in the mission. we started out at one of my old haunts (from the days of j.a.b) el rio & ended the evening dancing away in beauty bar. all in all, i believe that the students had a good time. another crawl is being planned for november. neighborhood to be announced…just where will i end up next is any one's guess.

stay gold & be well

me and my 424

deary lou.
previously on the e-list…

on saturday, i attended my first student wedding. it was held in golden gate park. the ceremony was simple and elegant. the bride looked beautiful in her kimono. it was a small gathering of family, friends, & teachers from school. it was so great to see so many former students gather to help hiromi & jeff celebrate their wedding date. it was a lovely way to spend a saturday morning. to hiromi & jeff: i wish you both all the happiness. congratulations. just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

to view photos from the wedding click here

stay gold & be well…

down in it

deery-lou.

previously on the e-list...

last weekend i found myself in the beautiful jenner celebrating misty's 40th birthday. the house had an amazing view of both the russian river & the ocean. sadly, i never made to the ocean but i did take advantage of sunning myself on the deck as well as doing laps in the hot tub. the festivities began friday afternoon and it didn't take long for the wine to make its entrance once we all arrived. by dinner time people were well on their way of being buzzed and it lasted throughout the night. it made perfect sense that the costumes & wigs exploded onto the scene with many different persona's appearing. i believe its safe to say that everyone was in full-party mode that evening. as things began to wind down a group of us headed off for the hot tub. what a perfect way to end a most fabulous evening.

saturday was spent sunning & hot tubing. we were a feeling the effects of the night before. i spent the night trying to sleep on a air mattress with a slow leak. not so much fun unless you enjoy sleeping at a 90% angle. that night was italian night with a most delicious meat sauce i've ever tasted. i kept my drinking down to one glass that night. things were a bit more low-key though many bottles of wine still got emptied.

i spent sunday lounging around while the others went off wine tasting. it was nice to chill out at the house. it was quite peaceful to sit and stare off into nature. we had an informal pj party that night. it was great seeing everyone in their pajamas. i do feel that i worked my pink hippo pjs quite well. most of the evening was spent chit-chatting with one another. it was great way to end the weekend.

we were up & out of the house by 10. we got back to sf around noon & i spent the rest of the day doing absolutely nothing. i was soooo tired. what a great weekend. there's nothing like hanging out with good friends. i look forward to many more getaways to come. just where we i end up next is anyone's guess...

for photos from our fabulous weekend click here

stay gold & be well

p.s. happy birthday, misty!!!

vanishing twin

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i've had this chronic sinus pressure that is driving me crazy. some days it feels like my head to going to explode. otc drugs just don't seem to be helping. looks like i'm going to have to bite the bullet and see a doctor. sigh…

in other news, i finally got myself a little kitchen table and 2 chairs. Yay, me! slowly but surely my apartment is becoming complete. next on the list is a love seat or perhaps a futon to sit on in order to watch tv instead of my bed.

the last of the holiday groups left on wednesday. lucky me, i got to take them to the airport. at least i got out of work for a couple of hours. hopefully now things will get back to normal at work.

i had a bit of shopping spree last week. i managed to get a vest, a pair of shoes, some sunglasses, etc. also met up with d-nasty for a mid-week movie. all in all things have been pretty good. just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well…

mr. disco

deery-lou.

previously on the e-list...

this is why i love pam anderson so much-click here!

just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well...

lithium

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i forgot to mention last week that i experienced "muni story # 713". this time it was on 38 geary and it involved the crazy balloon man. he sat in the doorway of the exit talking to himself while making balloon things. for the duration of my trip he popped two balloons, made two swords, made a strange flower thing, & attempted to make two dogs [hence the balloons popping]. life in the city is never dull.

some other highlights of last week/weekend:
• happy hour with some current/former co-workers
• the arrival of the french teenagers
• korean bbq at han il kwan [my new fav place]
• huegel coming into the city friday night & having a sleep-over
• discovery of delicious pupusas [where have you been hiding]
• nihonmachi street fair in japantown
• rhubarb tart
• la mediterranee
• crissy fields
• twin fan from target
• surviving another week of work

just where will i end up next is anyone's guess…

stay gold & be well…

delicious demon

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

i have a new favorite site. it makes me happy. it's called the daily bunny. as you can probably guess it's all about cute fuzzy bunnies. you get to see pictures like this…


and let's not forget its companion site which is just as cute called the daily otter. the otters are trying to out cute the bunnies…


oh, how playful otters are. they make me happy, too! the otters are the best part of the zoo. i also like otter pops. just where will i end up next is anyone's guess…

stay gold & be well…

i can see now

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

in 1946 on this day barbara lee shellem entered the world. even though she is no longer with us, we will continue to celebrate the life she lead. happy birthday, mom. i miss you deeply…
oxox



stay gold & be well…

walking in l.a.

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

while straightening up the classrooms last week, i came upon this little gem hanging on the wall for all to see.



oh, the things teens come up with. never a dull moment. just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well…

natural disaster

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

it's been ages since my last post & oh so much has been happening. here's a quick rundown of events in no particular order:

• huegel's b-day in the blazing heat
• dinner with kiki & her lovely lady [yum fest]
• krispy kreme bread pudding
• days of not leaving my apartment except to go to work
• french/spanish/chinese teenagers holiday groups
• a smoking muni
• harry potter
• two new tees from my favorite site teefury
• a new shoulder bag
• cafe time with j&d
• a cheeseburger with bbq sauce, bacon, & onion rings
• dinner with mrs. leibowitz
• big mac pizza
• a lovely visit from jen
• pride weekend & wine bar
• fresno for the no on 8 rally
• a few dates here & there
• a photo outing with shane
• a visit with my cousin
• capitola
• and finally after months of searching...a rug for my apartment [see photo]


so that just about sums it up. i'm sure i missed a few things but whatever. my spirits have lifted quite a bit so expect more blogging on a regular basis. i will also be adding links to the photo themes that i've skipped. stayed tuned. just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well…

the fuschia wall

deery-lou.
previously on the e-list…

the natives are getting restless. while riding the 31 balboa home from work, a man snatched a woman's wallet/cell phone [i couldn't tell which] out of her hands and jumped off the bus. the woman took off after him. as we drove off, i noticed that the man who had taken the item was being thrown up against a wall by a man. meanwhile, another guy [who i think was an undercover cop] was crossing the street to assist the man. what the fuck is going on…
just where will i end up next is anyone's guess.

stay gold & be well…