*south*fla* recap - Part 1

i left for my

last-hurrah

of summer vacay to

*south*fla*

three weeks ago.

*

sorry for the delay,

but here were some snaps

from the trip:

JFK airport had this great artwork in the bag-check area.

***

**

*

our 11:00 departure

was *on time*

***

**

*

the cute [overpriced] cookies in the airport

***

**

*

my feets.

the rug looked like speeding planes in the night sky, right?

***

**

*

after a not-so-relaxin' turbulence-filled flight,

sippin' on the G. Ale...

...we arrived.

these were the first palm trees i spotted.

***

...and like i said i was going to,

i stared,

and

smiled,

and

appreciated:

see the palms in my sunglasses?

see my weird Kyra Segdwick lips?

WT...?

***

also...you notice the *airport*fashion* talked about in this post.

tee hee!

***

**

*
met up with *the*Grams*

while some people who read this might think

"LAME! Hangin' with your Grandmother? On VACATION??!!"

they would be totally wrong.

my Grams rocks.
plus, Tomas & I hung with my little cousin Claudia, seen here and here,

and my cousin Ryan who just recently came back

from Afghanistan and was discharged after several years

serving in the marines.

Nuts!

I was so happy to be with family.

***

**

*

here,

we walkin' to the pool area:

[Claude, the*boyf*, Ryan]
***

*

what's he got in that cup??

[hey, it's vacation...whadaya think??]

***

**

*
POOL TIME:

above you might spot:

Grams & her yellow noodle,

scuba-Claude,

my cute navy&white polka-dot bikini,

my great*aunt Tina in her diva hat & sunglasses and classic 'Stan Laurel face'
&

Tomas in a state of bliss.

***

**

*

us three girls went to a rock&roll show:

me & claudia:
she was excited to wear my skirt.
***
**
*
this was my face in reaction to the boys not attending the show:

they didn't attend because of this:
[this was a mobile phone pic sent to me by Tomas]
Tomas couldn't get in because he was wearing shorts, not pants.
Grams insisted that he go back
to her condo and wear a pair
of her stretch pants underneath his shorts.
***
my cousin Ryan refused to let him
go out in public like this.
he said Tomas looked like a Samoan Peter Pan.
***
**
*
the boys didn't show,
and
us girls watched The Shindigs rock out by ourselves:
***
**
*
after the show,
came window shopping.
***
**
*
my cousin,
Claudia,
who's only 14 and already taller than my 5'8" frame,
should model, I think.
she's got that natural skinniness most models starve themselves to achieve,
and
can act as a perfect moving clothes-hanger.
***
case in point:
***
***
these crack me up.
she is such a sweet, kind-hearted person.
i'd like to think she got some of that from me.
:)
***
**
*
back at the condo at wee hours of the night,
Grams was arguing with the boys about why
she couldn't see stars at night:
light pollution?
cloudiness?
who knows!!
***
**
*
another
can't-be-overlooked
aspect
of the
*south*fla*
trip was the
yumminess:
***

yes, the yumminess.

***

Grams/Granddaughter & red wine & ravioli.

***

**

*

i had me some happy memories on my trip. Thanks for viewing!

Part 2 [Date Night] will be coming tomorrow, so stay tune, loves.

***

have a wonderful wonderful Wednesday.

oh, the *Swayze*

one year ago today -- our favorite actor

lost his battle with pancreatic cancer.

Patrick Swayze
(1952-2009)
****************
Bitt & I have spoke of your name on a daily basis since as far back as we can remember, and were hoping to meet you in person one day.
We are two of your biggest fans and will continue to consistently quote your brilliance.

R.I.P., Swayze-a-Roo!
Thanks for all the hard work that lives in our hearts & minds!
***

a random as *fuck* post here ya'll, 'kay, got that?!?! sound like a plan, totally awesome planner...ramble*scramble*shambles...

i feel delirious.

*

for the past two days

since my double on friday i've

had not one cohesive thought

i can recall.

it's all been a jumble of craziness like a

group of cracked-out piranhas to a cow thigh.

[no, i did not see piranhas 3D, nor do i want to]

[a cracked out piranha...

i have pretty much felt & still feel like that, above]

I

am one

big ball

of frustration, coupled with indifference.

It's like

I have

a raging locomotive

inside of me,

but

I'm standing perfectly still.

*

there's no other way i could describe it really.

*

this post is going to be

the randoms of my brain right now

'cause it needs to be.

*

sorry if this bores you,

or gives you a seizure.
*

let's start with the last thing first

and go in reverse.

rewind:::

**

**

**

**

okay,

so thinking a relaxing

viewing of last night's

VMAs

would help

my

uber-neurotic brain as of late

was

a

COMPLETE MISTAKE.

**

I felt

even more

mentally exhausted after watching,

but can't really pinpoint why.

**

oh wait.

**

oh yeah:

a fuckin' meat dress??
...and a meat hat??
i mean,
i kind of get it, i guess.
**
VMAs, right?
Veal Meat Accessaries?
makes sense.
i mean, as much sense as she's gonna make.
i'm not sure if i'm glad she won.
i mean, i do like me some
rah rah rah mah mah, roma rum mah mah, gaga ooo laa laa
sounds in mah ear and mah body while dancing.

**

Chelsea Handler was disappointing.
*
Taylor Swift bugged me.
*
Kanye, in that red outfit, with that douchebag song...
...i have no words.
*
what I
thoroughly did enjoy,
however,
and was by far my favorite part::

was
Florence + the Machine's performance
of 'Dog Days are Over'
*
i friggin' love this song:

the performance of this had me wigglin'

on the couch next to Tomas as we were watching it.

i even sang along.

so, thank you, Florence, for

singing your reassuring song [...what felt like...] just for me.

**

i also liked the mickey-mouse bobble head DJ guy.

he was awesome.

**

**

alright,

i think that's enough

of the VMAs

[Viewing of Major Attention-whores]

moving on the the next piece of my convoluted brain-puzzle:

i

shall soon

be

getting

an
iphone.

i am excited for this,

but i hope it lives up to all its hype.

i want a white 4G.

when is this coming out????

does anyone know?

maybe i do want the black.

did anyone hear about the 'antenna' problem??

aren't they supposedly fixing it by October?

know any good apps?

*

that's all I have to say about that.

*

*

moving along to one of the most

random lines from one

of the most random books/movies

ever to be put into this random existence:

???

*************************************************

tomas & I

went on a

triple date

Saturday

night

to:

i love saying this outloud:

KOTOBUKi!

**

try it.

it's really fun.

no really:

KOTOBUKi!

**

okay, well, anyway...

...I so looked forward to

my friends' company

& sushi-ing it up with Tomas.
**

most fun,

though,

was the time

i gave myself

saturday afternoon

preparing for dinner.

**

got me a mani.

got me a pedi.

**

me & my curlin' iron

worked together in harmony.

**

...and my favorite, favorite part:

my all-black ensemble.

black & gold.

lovey dove dove.

**

it made me feel so *put*together* because

as you can tell from this post, I am so not.

**

even just the picture makes me happy.

the solid one-color is keeping me calm.

let me carry on...

[Josh, Elisa, Natalie & Carlo]

my fellow triple-daters
**

both of these girls have their own classrooms this year.

**

[pause]

**

i'm happy for them.

i'm sad for me.

**

okay, yeah.

i'll leave it at that.

**

i had me Japanese beer:

Sapporo.

that was delicious.

I also had me edamame.

also delicious.

I had some of Tomas's sobo soup,

and yum yum yummy was that.

then the sushi:

my stomach was not in love.

any more than three pieces in my mouth,

and it would've been KOTO-PUKE-EE.

it tasted great,

but about two years ago, I got sick after a sushi dinner and barfed.

when you throw up about a pound of sushi,

you're body doesn't want it for a while, even if yo' brain does.

{{deep sigh}}

oh, well.

maybe some other day,

beloved california roll,

maybe some other day.

**

**

**

a

*so*true*

three-block

cartoon:

{{quiet whimpering}}
**
**
**
**
the dress i talked about here and ordered
came Saturday.
here it is hanging in my
"view-what's-new" spot in my room
to rev up my enthusiasm.
definitely gonna wear it wit'
black tights and black flats.
**
i really really tell you,
thoughts of outfits
are really the only thing
that's keeping me sane lately.
**
maybe it's this thesis class.
**
maybe it's the late nights at this lousy restaurant job.
**
maybe it's my frustration that i'm going to be subbing another year
when i should be with my own class already in my own classroom.
**
my mood is so fucked today.
**
i think i gotta nap right now.
i have work later at the goddamn restaurant,
and work with no nap makes Amanda a tired,
binge-eating, unfocused, cracked-out piranha.
YOU
WANT THAT SERVIN' YOU DRINKS
DURING CRAZY
MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL??
**
**
**
change of topic:
Maegan from
...love Maegan
posted this link to an outfit post she wrote last week,
and
let me tell you,
this song speaks
volumes of truth.
good job, christina agui,
for making one listenable-song
on your new bionic album.
it's going to take a lot to undo
the damage you did after i heard the woohoo song.
**
pretty much,
though, i love this song.
describes
how i felt
this week exactly.
i love when that happens.
**
i think i want to be done now.
**
a few more
sporadic randoms
that are
*ping*pinging*
around my
cerebral cortex::
*
What am I going to be for Halloween??
maybe Lady Gaga in a meat dress.
no, but seriously...
...i wanna win $300 at the costume party i'm going to.
i also need a workable costume to wear at the restaurant.
yes, the manager said "mandatory costumes".
jerk.
*
*
*
*
also, i have
SOOOOOO
many
*south*fla* pics.
I
wanted to create a slideshow,
but don't know how,
so...
...I think I'm going to post them in pieces.
we'll see later this week.
*
*
*
*
lastly,
*2010* is going to be
over before we know it.
*
notice my blog's title?
*
i'm in the workings
of developing a *new*blog*
*
how did ya'll decide on your blog's title?
did you find that once you picked one
that sounded good,
you hated it, like, 15 minutes later?
haa haa!
*
what blogging program do you all use?
*
i think i'll talk more about this in a future post.
**
**
time for me to like, legit, bolt from this 'puter.
i
leave
with
this
ending
image:

cute hair. cute sunny-g's. wish i had a louis. love the outfit, and the kinda zen surroundings, and homegirl's got my iphone.

this is my wooosah focus pic.

...WOOOOSAH...

some sucky Friday

i'm doing a double @ the restaurant today

i don't like the restaurant biz.

**

please, someone...give me my own classroom already.
**

i'm out,

ya'll.

**

blog on.

when was the last time you played with *paper*dolls*??

For my friend *Elisa*

it was today, at around 3 o'clock.

so i didn't really have a blog post planned for today,

but this material was too good not to blog about.

**

ya'll read yesterday's post

about the invitation Elisa sent in the mail

to her bridesmaids inviting us all to get together for the dress fitting??

**

well,

in a nutshell,

the girl is excited!

she has every right to be,

and

she deserves the love,

the gushing, the glamour,

everything that comes with

being the bride, you know.

the girl

is

SOOO

excited,

that she

made:

paper dolls of the wedding party!!

**

it was too cute not to document.

[sorry, all i had handy was the blackberry.]

[i was not prepared for such hilarity!]
**

below,

is her and josh,

and

JUST. THE. BRIDESMAIDS.

HULL-LLO!!

**

uh...I counted 15.

15 of us.
**

this was my paper doll representation:

she put a bacio chocolate

in my "hand" because

when i go to her house,

I'm always eating them.

**

her and me:

how hilarious??!!

**

she confessed to me

that she plays with them.

**

i used to get excited about

my neighborhood bazaar

when I was younger and used to

spend the whole week before it

opened drawing sketches of

how much fun i'd imagine i would have.

**

it's really the same thing, I think.

**

it's just so cute.

**

...and

after doing this below:

[the pairing of couples & triplets walking down the isle]

i understood why this was a genius idea.

this way, she doesn't have write and rewrite everyone's names. she can just move the dolls! it was so funny. we were laughing up a storm.

***

hey, brides out there, anything else I can suggest to my crazy friend over here??

:)

a pink & white *invite*

something that has made me

*love*my*SEPT*

so far:

*

a pink & white *invite*

that i got this

week from my

beautiful *bride-to-be* friend,

Elisa

pretty much,

it invited her bridesmaids

to a luncheon

on October 2nd

[her birthday...how cute!!]
to mingle and munch

while trying on the dress(es)

she picked for us

the cutest part is

it's written in a poem

[...and ya'll know how that stops my heart still]

Ooooo...it's at the Wedding Salon of Manhasset

[can't expect anything less fabulous from Elisa]

Alejandro, above,

so into the *invite*

[isn't he getting SO big??!!]

remember when he was just a little guy??

we thought he was going to be a runt.
Haa Haa!!

Not anymore!

**

**

so...

...back to my pink & white *invite*...

...i'm so excited for the luncheon,

and

of course immediately

started thinking of

what i am going to wear to it...

...hmmmmmm...

i

thought

something

fall-ish/autumn-ey

so

perhaps

something

with a three-quarter sleeve...

...but

i still

wanted it

to be

a happy

color or pattern...

...

...

...

...and then

i came across

this dress:

...and thought that would be peeeerrrfect

for an early-October luncheon with the girls!

*

[to see it in runway action, click here.]

*

it's gauzy,

it's girly,

it's fall-fashion, while still capturing something special about summer...the flowers?? idk.

*

oh!

i love.

*

i'm going to prob

pair it with

black stockings

[maybe grey plaid??]

and

black flats.

*

needless to say,

i bought it.

*

i figure even if i don't wear it

on October 2,

i could wear it all year long

to sub.

major plus!

*

another plus:

it's easy to slip on and off in the dressing room

whilst trying on zee dress!
**

**

...and speaking of *zee*dress*...

...i wonder what it's going to look like!

*

remember

this post?...uh...maybe you don't.

check it out.

it explains Elisa & I's

half-assed first attempt at bridesmaid-dress shopping.

it also first talks about

the color Elisa was scouting

for her bridesmaid dresses:

light light pink.

*

wonder if any

of these

are *zee*one*:::

nah.

not this one.

it's too short.

Elisa didn't want short.

right color, though.
**

**

hmmm...maybe like this.

she wanted flowy & soft.

**
**

now this is what I'm saying! it's all about the drama, baby!

i'd be bringin' sexi back, yeah!

**

can't wait!

heyyyyyy...

...maybe the dress is like those on the invite.

DUH!

pink top? white skirt?

we'll see, I guess.

**

Happy Wedn.