Kel. 28. Lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. Graduated from UC Berkeley 2001. Has a small obsession with TV. Enjoys chick lit and teen movies. Major shopaholic. Blogging since January 17, 2002.

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Date/Time: Thurs, Feb 07 @ 11:15pm
Reading: Wicked by Gregory Maguire
Listening: Popular, Wicked Soundtrack

 Barry.  Emma.  Kelly.  Kate.  Linda.  Marieke.  Marina.  Reen.  Robyn.

• dancefest + yoda
• digital perm
• diesel vs the force
• tv meme again
• my october

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November 24, 2008

So yesterday Rob and I finally checked out a performance of the SF Hip Hop Dancefest. I'm a huge dance fan and I've wanted to check it out for the past few years but was always lazy (and cheap). We finally went this year and I enjoyed it! There was a good mix of "crews" -- from crews that excel in "popping" and isolations to others that merge modern dance with hip hop. We saw "Program A" and my favorites were:

Soul Sector!!! They were THE BEST. They were clean and synchronized and their choreography was fresh and fun. (For all you America's Best Dance Crew fans, some of their members performed as Supreme Soul on the MTV show).
Sunset. Little kids (think 6-13)! Dancing! Adorable.
FORMALity. Another junior group (I think -- maybe high school/college?). Super energetic and lively crew!
Breaksk8. I didn't care for them much when they were on ABDC but I really liked them live. They made the roller-dancing look so easy.

After the performance, which was at the Palace of Fine Arts, we walked over to the Presidio to check out the Yoda fountain at the Letterman Digital Arts Center, which (I think) houses LucasArts, ILM, and Lucasfilm. Luckily, I found a map online so we (ok, ROB) were able to find Yoda pretty quickly. Check us out!

Behind the fountain is a lobby which had a large replica of Darth Vader. SO AWESOME. The building was closed, though, so we could only peer into the windows. We must have looked like big dorks. :D

There was also a Starbucks on the campus which had this cool Yoda drawing on their chalkboard:

When we got home, we settled in to watch 24: Redemption. For the most part, I enjoyed the season 7 prequel/movie. But maybe that was because I was so starved for new 24?! I don't really know. Regardless I thought it set up season 7 nicely and smoothly introduced the new players to the 24-verse.

2 Quick non-spoilery thoughts:
-- Carly Pope (Sam) bugged BIG TIME. GUH. I can tell I'm going to be screaming at her through the TV. I hope she is evil so I can justify my HATE.
-- Actually, I didn't care for any of the new characters (President Taylor, Hodges, Sam, General Juma -- the only "newbie" I like so far is Roger cause I think he is cute, heh :P). Instead, I'm looking forward to seeing my favorite 24 faces -- Chloe, Bill, etc.

Anyway, JACK IS BACK! OH YES. :D

Random -- I'm not a HUGE fan of Beyonce but I love that Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It) song. It's so damn catchy.

Posted by Kel at 11:07 PM | Comments (3)

November 17, 2008

Rob bought me an iphone! WOOT. I am so spoiled.

So over the weekend I got a digital perm. !!! It's not a crazy, super curly perm... instead the curls are more wavy and loose and start towards the bottom of my hair. (A more technical description is here if you're interested).

Before, if I wanted curly hair, I had to wake up an hour early in the morning to fully dry and curl my hair. It was such a pain. And then my wedding coordinator told me about the digital perm a few months ago. She had hers done at a salon in LA and it turned out beautifully. I've wanted to try it since I saw how great her hair looks but I was totally scared. I've never had any professional treatments done to my hair -- no perms, straightening, coloring, etc. And I also didn't know anyone in the Bay Area who's had a digital perm so I had no clue which salons even offered it and that I could trust with my hair. I figured I would wait until I was in LA for Christmas and have it done there. THEN I saw my friend Shirley a few weeks back -- she normally has straight hair -- and her hair was wavy and GORGEOUS. Squeeeeeee. She filled me in on the details of her salon, I checked the reviews on Yelp, and I made an appointment.

The whole experience was great. Before Joe did anything, we discussed everything -- how I cared for my hair, how I styled it day to day, what I wanted from the perm, etc. Then he got started -- after trimming my hair a bit, he applied the solution, set my hair in rollers, hooked up the rollers to the ion emitting machine, applied more solution, rinsed and conditioned, then finally dried and styled my hair. Whew. All in all, it took about 3 hours. And I totally LOVE IT. It's even more low maintenance than my normal straight hair. I just wash it, blow dry the roots for a few minutes, apply some curl enhancing cream and either "scrunch" the curls for a wavy look or twist them around my fingers for more defined curls. Easy peasy.

Some pics of my new hair!

From the back. This is how my hair looks right after styling it in the morning.

Fron the front. After a looooong day at work. The curls aren't as defined but there's still a nice wave to it. And BONUS: Diesel says Hello!

I'm definitely going to grow out my hair so the curls will eventually fall below my shoulders. YAY.

Posted by Kel at 09:24 PM | Comments (4)

November 12, 2008

Rob recently taught Diesel how to "play dead" against The Force (you know, from Star Wars).

Check out Diesel's new trick here.

OMGHEISSOCUTE. I love the way he just FLOPS on the ground. I'm so proud. :D

Posted by Kel at 10:00 PM | Comments (4)

November 9, 2008

I was tagged by Ceci for this meme...

1. Post these rules.
2. Each tagged person must post 8 things about themselves in their journal.
3. At the end, you have to choose and tag 8 people.

1. I have been absolutely obsessed with headbands lately. Totally the influence of Miss Blair Waldorf.
2. I've never had anything "done" to my hair besides a cut -- no perms, coloring, highlights, etc.
3. I adore the holiday season. My "holiday season" starts in October with my birthday... it's like a triple whammy with my bday, then Thanksgiving, and finally Christmas. Love it.
4. My favorite lunch pastime (when I can sneak out of the office, that is) is to walk over to Union Square and do some window shopping at H&M and Sephora.
5. I would LOVE to spend my 30th birthday in Paris. *sigh*
6. I haven't worked out regularly since the wedding. F to me.
7. I recently discovered the show What Not to Wear on TLC and it promptly went on my Tivo season pass list. :D
8. I'm currently obsessed with tart frozen yogurt. YUMMY.

Everyone should do the meme (not going to officially tag anyone)!

Also, a TV meme that I stole from Jen...

Name a show you can't miss:
Gossip Girl, Chuck, Supernatural.

Name an actor who would make you more inclined to watch a show:
Hahahaha. Joshua Jackson. That's what happened with Fringe. I'm not entirely sure I would have been so interested in the show if he wasn't cast. Love him. I would also follow Emily Van Camp anywhere. Before she was on Brothers and Sisters, I only watched the show when I remembered it was on. Once I heard she was cast, I started watching it regularly so I could figure out how her character would play into the storylines. That's when I discovered how great a show it is and I was totally missing out even without her in it. I'd probably also be more likely to watch a show if Leighton Meester was in it -- she rocks.

Name an actor who would make you less likely to watch a show:
??? Can't think of anyone really...

Name a show you can and do quote from:
Dawsons Creek. Heh.

Name a show you would recommend everyone to watch:
CHUCK!!! Monday nights. NBC. Be there. Also, Privileged needs some love too.

Name a TV series you own on DVD:
I'm a DVD whore. Seriously. I have so many. Let's see... Felicity, Friday Night Lights, One Tree Hill, Dawson's Creek, CSI, Brothers and Sisters, Gilmore Girls, Heroes, Lost, Friends, Sex and the City, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Everwood, 90210, Smallville, Alias, 24, The OC, Roswell, Firefly, Veronica Mars.. etc etc.

Name an actor who launched his/her entertainment career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops in television:
Rebecca Romijn (models turned actors are not usually so good)

What is your favorite episode of your favorite series?
"True Love," Dawson's Creek
"The Gift," Buffy the Vampire Slayer
"Foreverwood," Everwood

Name a show you keep meaning to watch but you just haven't gotten around to yet:
Rome (I promised my best friend Carmen I would give it another shot). The Tudors (I've had disc 2 of season 1 from Netflix for months now). The Office. How I Met Your Mother.

Ever quit watching a show because it was so bad?
Not really. Once I get into a show and connect with the characters, I'm hooked until the bitter end (unless I just get bored like I did with Ugly Betty). I contemplated giving up on Alias (after the season 2 finale) and One Tree Hill (in season 2 when Anna and Felix arrived and then again in season 4 with Haley's pregnancy) but I was (am) too invested in the characters.

Name a show that's made you cry multiple times:
Everwood. I cried when bad things happened. And when good things happened. That show really got to me. Gawd, it was good.

How often do you watch TV?
Uhhh. Every day. :)

What's your favorite/preferred genre of TV?
I'm drawn mostly to (teen) dramas (Dawson's Creek, One Tree Hill, Gossip Girl, etc). But I also enjoy the secret identity/spy/superhero type of shows, like Buffy, Chuck, Alias, Reaper, Heroes.

What was the first TV show you were obsessed with?
Beverly Hills 90210. I was only 10/5th grade when it premiered so I wasn't supposed to be watching it but I did. I was so obsessed that I used to horde my money to buy BOP and Teen Beat so I could tear out the pictures of Jason Priestly. Heh.

What TV show do you wish you never watched?
Reality shows like the ones on MTV and VH1... My Sweet Sixteen, Flavor of Love, I Love New York, etc. I don't actually sit down and watch these shows but even seeing a glimpse while flipping channels drives me crazy.

What is the weirdest show you enjoyed?
I enjoy a lot of random shows but they're not really weird... Say Yes to the Dress (I cannot stop watching this -- I still love looking at wedding dresses), Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, Ace of Cakes, The Rachel Zoe Project.

What TV show scared you the most?
I get scared EASILY so I tend not to watch shows that would freak me out. But serial killer storylines always get me, like the Carver storyline on Nip/Tuck and the Blue Paint Killer on CSI. ((shivers))

What is the funniest TV show you have ever watched?
I'm not a huge fan of sitcoms. I don't know why. But I always used to laugh out loud at Friends. ??? Sorry, I'm lame.

Do you prefer TV to films?
TV. I love following my favorite characters week after week.

Name current TV relationships that you love.
Blair/Serena, Gossip Girl. They are so dysfunctional. I adore them.
Nathan/Haley, One Tree Hill.

Posted by Kel at 10:28 PM | Comments (2)

November 4, 2008

The Starbucks red cups are back! WOOT. This signals the start of my ABSOLUTE favorite time of the year. I got my first red cup of the year today. My signature nonfat peppermint mocha. YUM.

So it doesn't seem like it but I'm around. Just lazy. As per usual.

My "vote by mail" ballot for today's election arrived yesterday. WHICH MEANS IT IS TOO LATE FOR ME TO DO ANYTHING WITH IT. Considering I live in Northern CA and am unable to fly down and turn it in to an LA County polling place today. You'd think they'd send the ballots out early enough to give the voter enough time to you know, MAIL IT BACK.

I know, I know. I'm disappointed in myself for not registering for my ballot earlier. :(

I just finished watching McCain's concession and Obama's acceptance speeches. WOW. I teared up a few times. It's an amazing day and even though I did not participate, I'm glad I am here to witness it.

So I've been meaning to share pictures of some recent events so here goes...

October 18
Rob and I attended our friends' Eric and Amy's wedding at the Trump National Golf Club in Southern CA. It was a wonderful event! I definitely appreciate all the little details now that I've planned a wedding myself. Some of the gorgeousness...

The pretty, pretty placecards. Amy embossed the cards with a lovely brocade motif. The colors of the wedding were various shades of purple. So lovely.

Trump's outdoor ceremony site boasts an amazing view of the Pacific Ocean. WOW. And look at all the purple yumminess! The rose petals along the aisle, the hydrangea balls hanging on the shepherd's hooks, and the pashminas laid out on the chairs.

The gorgeous bride coming down the aisle...

They had my favorite Sprinkles cupcakes instead of a traditional cake. Terrible photo but YUMMY cupcakes.

A picture of the husband and me during cocktail hour. (It is still SO WEIRD to say "husband"). And yes, I wore that blue dress to yet another event this year. :D

October 26
Rob, Diesel and I were invited by our friends Shirley and Grantland to attend Farm Day with them at the Terra Firma Farm in Winters. It was a gorgeous day -- perfect for the farm! Shirley prepared a picnic lunch for us (turkey sandwiches, hard-boiled eggs, chips) and the farm provided freshly squeezed juices to drink (the apple was particularly yummy).

Sitting on the picnic blanket waiting for treats.

Rob and Diesel enjoying the day in the sun.

Rob picking strawberries. They were SO GOOD.

As we were leaving, we walked past a large dog that kinda looked like a pitbull. He was tied to a tree with his owners nowhere around. When Rob and Diesel walked by him (I think it was a him), he jumped for Diesel and started biting his poor little face. Rob got in the middle and Grantland pulled the crazy dog away by his leash (luckily he was there because I didn't know what to do and totally froze). After a few tense minutes, they got the dogs separated. Diesel was shaken and had a cut by his nose but he was his old self in no time. He's a tough little guy.

October 31
Halloween!
But also Girls Weekend in LA with my best friends. We didn't dress up but I wore purple cat ears. :D No picture, though, sorry. We spent the weekend eating, relaxing at Le Spa, shopping, watching Center Stage... it was great. AND I got to have Pinkberry! YAY.

Now I'm gearing up for a tough few weeks at work and looking forward to the holidays. I love this time of year.

Posted by Kel at 10:38 PM | Comments (3)