I'm in LONDON!! HURRAH!

Can I tell you how many times I wanted to puke on the way over here? I was sleeping quite nicely 4 hours into my flight from Chicago to Heathrow, until there was quite a bit of turbelance. Actually, a WHOLE FREAKING LOT. I was chewing the heck out of the gum in my mouth because thats my own little secret to not getting sick... but it was bad. I think I had that same piece of gum in my mouth for over 3 hours. Ew.

But it all doesn't matter now because I'm in LONDON! :) I'm just waiting to check into my hotel room so that I can get settled in a bit before heading out and doing I don't know what.

:) How exciting!

Oh how I love talking with my cousin Angel... who seems to think I'm a whore.

D3viLiShAnG3LxXx: be safe
spaznik: i will!!
D3viLiShAnG3LxXx: remember especially wit those foreigners
D3viLiShAnG3LxXx: no glove no love
spaznik: thank you dear baby cousin.
spaznik: i am now properly freaked out. :P
D3viLiShAnG3LxXx: well i was just sayin nicole
D3viLiShAnG3LxXx: i dunno what u r going to do on the trip
D3viLiShAnG3LxXx: i want to make sure u dont bring anythin back wit u
spaznik: what happens in italy... stays in italy!
D3viLiShAnG3LxXx: except those damned stds
D3viLiShAnG3LxXx: they just never seem to want to go away
spaznik: hahahaha ok HO! go to bed!!

How exciting... I'm leaving tomorrow... and yet I'll still be here for the AMAZING RACE FINALE!!

I'm 75% packed and ready to go... just a bit nervous because my travel agent Geri called today to tell me that my direct flight to London was cancelled. So now I'm booked to go to Chicago first then to England where I'll arrive at 7:30am on Thursday. And with my promise to Laura to STAY UP FROM THE MOMENT I ARRIVE UNTIL NIGHTTIME to avoid jetlag... it's going to be quite an experience.

I have 25 rolls of film and 17 days to use them up.

Its going to be pretty darn cool. :)

I have a new man in my life..


Who's this puppy??

Meet Sonny. No. Not the Canadian. This is Sonny, one of the cutest puppies in the world. Only 4 months, and completely opposite as Penelope. While Penny is rambunctious and enjoys nibbling, Sonny (the dog) is a bit shy and has a very quiet "vibe" to him.

Sonny (the dog) actually didn't get his name from Sonny (the Canadian). When I went over to my aunt's to pick him up, she already had his name set.
Auntie Espy: You get to bring home Sonny here.
Me: Wait. His name is Sonny?
Auntie Espy: Yeah...
Me: That's Carlene's boyfriend's name!
*everyone laughs*

Actually Sonny (the Canadian) calls Sonny (the dog) Junior... its really cute.

The sad thing is that my Uncle in Seattle wants a dog and it looks like when he comes down to visit in October, he just might take his claim on Sonny (the dog).

Ironically, my Uncle's name is Sonny too.

Its like this dog was destined for the name.

But since my Uncle Sonny might be taking Sonny (the dog), we're trying our hardest not to grow attached... but its hard. Cause he's so gosh darn cute! We might need to find a way to keep him. Even Penelope is friendly with him!


buddy buddy!

They're pretty much the same half Chihuahua half Dachshund combo with the exception that Penny is half brown and white and Sonny (the dog) is beige with cartilage in his ears. Penny's doesn't stick up like that.


What is up with those ears??

Oh puppy love. Aren't they the cutest!

When I was a freshman in college, I joined a club called Circle K and immediately bonded with the group. Among them, was a girl named Erin... and although she wasn't a freshman, she was also a newbie like me. She had the GREATEST COUCH EVER at her apartment and I spent many a nights on it after CKI events or late night studying. When times were tough, she was probably THE one I vented to and to this day, I am truly grateful for it. She was fun, silly, and overall was and has always been a terrific friend.

This weekend Erin got married.

What a pretty bouquet...
I wonder who made it. ;)

Her walk down the aisle was quite dramatic with her in her gown being perfectly silhouetted with the brightness of the sun behind her. She was gorgeous and I was definitely tearing up. It seemed a bit surreal to see her up at the alter, saying her vows. Maybe it was because it felt like we've been talking and planning for more than a year.... and there it was, the product before our eyes. Or maybe it was because it made me feel old and there I was, in that stage where your friends are getting married and starting their "older" lives... with their husbands and own kids.

Anyways, it was a beautiful wedding. During the reception, I was happily reunited with some of my ex phone operator girls (my first job that actually Erin help me get) as well as Connie, my boss from Telephone Services... and we DANCED. We trained. We YMCAed. We got "Crazy in Love" with Beyonce. It was good times.


Oh my gosh... Erin's married!

So congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Ackerson. May you two have a beautiful "happily ever after."

So every so often, I'll get emails from Divisoria.net which is a filipino website where I can get all the music and dvd goodies I usually can't find at Seafood city. Actually, I only ordered once for a karaoke mulitplex tape, but I guess that one time has put me on the "emails for life" list.

Anyways, one of the new movies they were advertising on the email went by the title of "Sabel" and had the following tagline:

Her love...
every man's challenge
Her story...
every woman's secret.

It makes you think romantic drama huh. Now read the movie description...

"Sabel" is a compelling story. Judy Ann Santos is Sister Sabel, a nun who counsels prison inmates. Jojo has a crush on the perky nun, and rapes her one moonlit night. A traumatized Sabel leaves the convent and stops visiting the prison.

Months later, Jojo is released. With Sabel still on his mind, Jojo begins looking for her. When he finally finds her after months of searching, an unlikely romance ensues. Sabel announces one day that she's pregnant. But before a happy Jojo can propose marriage, Sabel disappears again.

While searching for Sabel, a heartbroken Jojo talks to the ex-nun's friends and family, and is shocked by what he discovers. Sabel was apparently fond of casual sex, and given to modd swings and bouts of rage. Jojo then happens on even more disturbing news: Sabel is now reportedly living in the mountains of Benguet, where she is on trial for murder. Could a former nun be capable of such a heinous crime?

Wow. Talk about DRAMA. I was telling Dielle about this movie last week, and as I was describing how the girl who was a nun was raped by an inmate... I couldn't stop laughing. Apparently I am heartless bitch who takes pleasure in one fictional character's misery. And you thought Jane Eyre had some problems with Mr. Rodchester being married to the psycho attic chick and later only having one eye. This story just gets worse and worse... shes raped... shes pregnant... shes in love with her rapist... shes running from the law... all while being a NUN!!

Ahhh, this is something I will need to rent someday.

What are the odds... really?

So... my dear sexy friend Robert and I have been sharing a secret love affair. Yes. Its true. We both have a love for Barry Manilow. We declared our love the night of the "Barry Manilow" night on American Idol right before Jennifer Hudson got booted off for singing WEEKEND IN NEW ENGLAND.

From April 28, 2004
Zasher816: when will our eyes meet
Zasher816: when can i touch you
Zasher816: when will i hold you...
Zasher816: agaaaaaaain
spaznik: NOOOO!!!
spaznik: i love that song!
Zasher816: hahahaha
spaznik: makes me think of jennifer hudson!!
Zasher816: oh god
spaznik: hahah great now you make me want to listen...
Zasher816: lol
Zasher816: i'm listening right now
Zasher816: soo good

Oh it hurts my heart to think about it. Poor poor Jennifer Hudson. Anyways....

From May 7. 2004
Zasher816: when will our eyes meet
Zasher816: when can i touch you
spaznik: stop listening to barry!!

Anyways, so yesterday night we had this little conversation.
Zasher816: so i've bene practicing my singing
Zasher816: i'm ready for american idol
spaznik: whoohoooo!!
spaznik: when are auditions?
Zasher816: no idea
Zasher816: but i'm so there
spaznik: what are you gonna sing?
spaznik: brian mcknight?
Zasher816: probably
Zasher816: i'm thinkin maybe "still in love"
spaznik: ahhhh... New Edition?
Zasher816: mase
spaznik: oh... sexy.
Zasher816: wait
Zasher816: no
Zasher816: i got it
Zasher816: one word
Zasher816: BARRY
Zasher816: LMAO
spaznik: OH DADDY!!
spaznik: yeah. mama likes.

Well... looks like Oprah is on a roll with fufilling EVERYONES dream because who do you think was on the show today?!

Today at 4:45pm
spaznik: did you see BARRY?!
Zasher816: what?!
Zasher816: where?!
spaznik: OPRAH!
Zasher816: ARE YOU SERIOUS?!
spaznik: i swear... shes giving away cars...
spaznik: now she has BARRY...
spaznik: its like shes READING MY DIARY!!
Zasher816: WHAT A FRIGGIN COINCIDENCE!

Zasher816: what are the dang odds
spaznik: I KNOW!!!!
Zasher816: next oprah will bring tons of female strippers and give away millions of dollars
spaznik: write to her and it will come.
Zasher816: interesting...
Zasher816: it's like writing santa claus
Zasher816: she's more RELIABLE that santa claus

Dear Oprah... can I have some lotto numbers? Oh heck, can I just have some lotto winnings please?!?

Oprah... can I be your friend!?!

*update* I just watched the show and although I thought I would be a pile of bitterness and jealousy when she gave out the cars... I cried. I mean yeah, sure I want a car too... but its Oprah and she's awesome and wow. OH and I was BALLING when she gave that poor girl a makeover AND college tuition, housing, books... AND $10,000 in EXPRESS clothes. Oh Oprah... you rock. So hard.

I read this on dooce.com

Oh my goodness...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY SISTER!! :)

Well, today was Carlene's 23rd Birthday and we celebrated over the weekend by having a get together Saturday night with Carlene's friends, and bunch today with the family at Mission Inn.

Saturday night was a lot of fun. Since redecorating and landscaping the backyard with ideas of "when we have parties..." or "oh we can have dinners here" we finally had an an excellent excuse to go all out do just that. It felt grown up with all the candles and glasses of wine... and talk of "WORK." Oh goodness. The only thing was that at 11pm that evening, we were visited by 2 possums who decided to walk across the back fence. One actually fell off the wall and the other possum decided to skip out on his homie and left him to fend for himself. Useless. It was my first time seeing a possum, and when we heard the crash of the first one, I first thought it was a really ugly cat. A really really ugly cat. Then someone yelled "OH MY GOSH! ITS A POSSUM!"... followed by "TAKE A PICTURE!!"


"I want to see it hanging from its tail..."

The rest of the night went possum-less indoors with lots of old school Nintendo, hookah as well lots and lots of greek leftovers. Joe, Ken, Jean, Sonny, Chelle and myself claimed the table battled it out for chips in probably the most hilarious game of Poker I've ever gotten to participate in... complete with ample smack talking and killing of spirits with the girls managing to knock out all the guys (VAGINA POWER!). Oh and we can't forget Joe the dealer and his obsessive need to organize chips.

Ken: I see pride! I see power! I see a bad-ass mother who don't take no crap off of nobody!

Joe on losing: I'm really good at the begining... its usually during the end that sucks.

20 minutes later.
Jean: Hey joe. Come back! We're starting over! You'll be good again!

All in all, the party was a sucess. In the words of all our SL girlies... *good times* It was good times today also at the Mission Inn for bunch... yay for waffles!

But most of all YAY for Carlene, who's my bestest sister and friend in the whole wide world. :) Love yooouuu!!

Today, although I felt like I'm being stalked by Biggie's "One More Chance" (really, do you know how many times I've heard this song within the last couple of days? Its so old... and very random.... and they'll play it on KIIS!) , I've been walking around with Petey Pablo's "Freek-A-Leek" in my head. And the thing is that I've been singing it to myself over and over again... which in a way is a bit "pervy" and "sick"... to a danceable beat of course.

"How you like it daddy"

Ugh. Make it stop.

Anyways, lets talk about some good TV.

THE AMAZING RACE: Chip and Kim need to win. Really they do. I love them. I want to hug them and invite them over for dinner. Then maybe afterwards, we can all go hiking together in my backyard and be as happy as apple pie. See, if I were to go with Colin and Christie... Colin might kill me. He's crazy like that.

THE APPRENTICE: New season. New folks. Right now I'm feeling the Real Estate agent, Jennifer C. because I love her lipstick color. I'm about to friendster her to find out what it is exactly.

THE PLAYER: Not necessarily good. Just funny. "Don't hate the player. Hate the game. " Even as I write it down, it still sounds retarded. "Play on playa." Yeah. Even player with an A sounds lame.

THE REAL WORLD: Gay guy #1 looks familiar.... He was on GHOSTWRITER!! Rally H Hector!

THE SURREAL LIFE: Are you kids watching this trainwreck!?! Oh my gosh, this is GOOD. Charo is adorable, even if I don't understand her. Although I get that she want to name the dog "CUCHI." Supposedly the ghetto Flava flave and she-man Brigitte Neilson are going to get it on. Did you see when Brigitte went topless and danced with the Thunder from Down Under guys? When I think about it... I giggle then puke a bit inside.

K. I got some laundry to finish. Its a big weekend, next weeekend will be the same... and I need some clean clothes. :)

I've been hearing this Jojo song on the radio I swear, every other minute. And everytime I hear it, I tend to sing along but with a lot of emotion (see: teenage angst) . And since I don't know the lyrics, I try to make them up.... mostly as the angry girl in the backround who's trying to get the her point across.

Get out (LEAVE!)
Right now (FUUUCCKKK!!)
It's the end of you and me
It's too late (GOOOOO!!!)
And I can't wait for you to be gone
Cause I know, about her (GOSH!)
And I wonder (UUUUGGGHH!!)
How I bought all the lies
You said that you would treat me right
But you was just a waste of time (WASTE OF TTTTIIIIMEEE!!!)

I don't remember being this "pissy" as a teenager. Or maybe I was... Hmmm. I DO remember a lot of door slamming and throwing myself onto the bed out of frustration and anger... but that was yesterday. :P

Since the our relationship with the white carpet downstairs has seen better days (also known as the pre-dog era), we decided to take it all out and put in woodfloors. Well, more like everyone else did and I found out a week before when they came home with 24 cases of wood laminate. so... yeah that's what I was going to do this weekend!


tools. hardcore.


a "before" picture.


sonny scraping concrete. this is "offically" harder than originally thought.

Taking out the carpet wasn't too bad. My mom had enlisted the help of one older filipino gentleman who was a friend of a friend of the family... and man co-worker who we're 90% sure is in love with her. She calls him Pogi, which basically in tagalog means "cute", and in return everytime some heavy duty "work" needs to be done around the house, he comes over and does her bidding. Both guys worked in fobby fipflops.


done! wait... this isn't wood.


under the carpet... theres a blue layer of cushion. thats what makes it so soft! i knew that!


... like in gymnastics! Go Canada!


out of bounds. a 10th of your score. no gold for you shortie!


oOoOO... its all woody!


24 hours later...


Ooo... almost finished...

We pretty much finished with the floor around midnight on Sunday night... then it was just finishing up with the quarter rounds and moving furniture in. Pieces at the door and closet need to be finished, but essentially, its pretty much DONE.


overhead view. we need some sort of rug in the middle now.


come on in! keep your shoes on! no more white carpet!!


the family room... completed!! don't you think a bear-skin rug would look GREAT in there!?

So yeah.. no more white carpet!! Well just downstairs. The upstairs is still white and prone to messyness... but it shouldn't be too bad. It feels a little bit wider downstairs and theres more of an echo too. Its nice. It looks nice. And you can slide around in socks. Did someone say DANCE PARTY USA!?!

So, today's wedding was really "different" considering the fact that while we were at the hotel ballroom, decorating, we learned that the GROOM LEFT THE BRIDE AT THE ALTAR!!!.

*gasp*

While I was working on the backdrop (a really cute one if I do say so myself), I overheard a waiter say that the event was cancelled... but since we didn't stop working, I figured that he was joking. But then later, a coordinator came in and told us that he never showed up for the ceremony.

I know. How sad is that!! But I guess since everything was already paid for and if you're going to be dumped by someone you thought wanted to spend the rest of his life with you... well might as well spend that first night surrounded by your family, friends, and lots of pink chiffon and twinkle lights.

Aww, that poor bride though. It must be heartbreaking. Its one thing to say "Hey. I can't get married." and just not come to the church at all. What a coward. And I guess this wedding was supposed to be early last Spring, but they kept on moving back the day. You'd think that was a sign or something.

When we left, the band was talking about how now they can play a lot of FUNK rather than sappy love songs. Although Beyonce's CRAZY IN LOVE wouldn't fit that category and that was the song they were working on as we were finishing up.

But then again "Uh oh uh oh uh oh oh no" seems slightly fitting.

Awww, that poor poor bride.

OH what? Its September already?! YAY!

Last night had dinner with my favorite Lucy loves, Tammy, Lisa, and Melissa, down in Pasadnea. Who knew that sitting on the ground of the children's section of bookstore, color coordinated, completely sober, with MAD LIBS, a pen, chocolate, and a stack free postcards could be so much fun. There were also the "what the fuck" questions such as...

"What would be weirder? Having sex in your parents bedroom or your parents having sex in your bed?"

Insert question about something with a midget, or something with someone with no arms or legs... or was there a pegleg in there somewhere?


"Making out with (insert name of ASSHAT we despise) or one of us?"

For the last one, Tam replied, to you males' enjoyment, "You guys. Hand down. Even if it wasn't an option."

Wow.

Awww, how I love my girlies. :)

As we were having dinner, we came to the realization that the "real world" sucks. Those days of not having bills to pay are gone. I wish I had to study for something... instead I'm constantly trying to figure out a way to make more money so that I can pay off my debts, get a new car, and travel to my hearts content. Lotto here I come.

And to make things more "grown up" for me, I decided that once I do find THE JOB (see: I have no clue), I'll be moving out. Good gracious... but I'll think about all that in October. Maybe by then, the Lotto thing will work out for me.

On the oh so bright and happy side, this week, I got all my travel documents and with the tickets in my hand, I feel very "offical". All the rolls of film I've been hoarding all summer is actually going to be put to use!! I imagine that when I get to London, I'll be peeing in my pants out of sheer excitment. I actually tinkle a bit just thinking about it.

Only 19 days to go. :)