not what i expected....and dim sum

having just moved back to l.a. after being in atlanta for the past two years my first concern was were was i going to live. my job is in the o.c. but after looking like crazy i couldn't find anything that suited me in the o.c. it just wasn't my cup of tea. and what is the gay scene like? do they have a gay scene? not that i go out every night, but when i do want to kick up my heels, irvine is not going to be first on my list.

after looking and looking i decided on a loft in up and coming downtown los angeles (up and coming in about 10 years). i was extremely excited because i could still see my l.a. friends during the week and commute by train and not have to deal with traffic on the fwy. i had it all planned out. i get my place and even though it's not completely finished (renovated historical bldg), i figure i can deal with it for a short time until they get it completed. boy was i wrong. first i was promised a dog run, which was one of the main reasons i move into the bldg. max does not like to do his business on the street, let alone in front of skid row. so that was the first thing, no dog run, and no clue when it would finished. we were supposed to have valet parking that was included, another perk about living downtown. no idea when this will take place. next is just the overall cleanliness of the bldg. we've got huge rats running around in our garage. if you renovate a bldg, you need to clean it from top to bottom when you are finished so get rid of the dust and dirty walls and floors. breathing all this dust have given me the biggest bats in the cave that i've become afraid to blow my own nose sometimes for fear of what's in there. then you have the street theatre (quickly coined by a guy that i'm friends with at work) which is out of control. between the gun shots, police sirens, vomiting on the street, human feces on the street (i know this is gross but i see this daily), people shooting up at 6am, my next door neighbor playing his music all night long that sounds like it only has one beat, and just plain old noise at all hours, which led me to reevaluate my living situation.

so i've decided i've had enough and i'm moving once again on saturday. i'm even more excited about my new place but i won't mention it until i get in and really see what's going on. the good thing is i still get to take the train to work, which aside from getting up at the crack of dawns ass, i do enjoy. now i love to drive, and always have, but it is so nice to leave the driving to someone else. isn't that an airplane commercial from way back when? so with this move comes repacking all my crap that i just unpacked and get everything ready to go for saturday. and it just kills me at how once again i've accumulated so much crap again after promising myself i'd keep it light. oh well, it's just stuff, my stuff, and as soon as i can do it, i'm going to get rid of what is not needed or wanted for like the hundredth time. i just pray that the move goes smoothly. my direct tv is all set up for the move as is my electricity. it's so easy these days to just go online and update your info and poof, your electricity follows you to your new home. so i'm sure i'll have more to say before this move is over but until then, it's late (10pm) and i have to get up at 5am to start my day all over again.

we'll talk about the train tomorrow. the cast of characters is out of this world.

politics as usual...it's all about accountability

i'm someone who loves politics. to be honest, if i had to do it over again i think i would have majored in political science. i don't know if it was the way i was raised in liberal portland, oregon or what, but i really enjoy politics, or at least i thought i did. the last few days, or for weeks for that matter have been very interesting in the political scene. this whole hurricane debacle has really got me a little fired up. mr. brown is actually trying to cop an attitude now that his credentials and handling of the situation are being questioned. what the hell? dude you f'ed up and now it's time to pay the piper. once again someone was placed into a position that they were no more qualified for than the current president himself. many mistakes were made and people need to just fess up and admit the fact that "i didn't know what the hell i was doing!"

i actually know someone who works for FEMA and he's told me that the whole thing is an absolute joke. "if you only knew what we're up against" is something he's said to me several times. people from florida are still waiting to be paid from the hurricanes that hit them last year. but i'm sure you've not heard anything about this. it's all a bunch of bureaucratic bullshit. and the president is fully aware of what is going on, don't let the dub fool ya. mr. brown, your ass needs to take a clue and just take your lashing. it will all be ok in a few years. you'll write a best selling book about your side and everyone will feel sorry for you and give you your props. but as of today, you need to just bend over and take it like a man. you can even go out and choose the switch from the big tree in your yard. but i promise you, right now you are going about it all wrong. lashing out the way you are doing is not going to do you any good but get your ass thrown under the bus and but quick. you are the fall guy and you need to realize that. i'm not saying that you aren't a complete idiot and the way you handled the situation was totally irresponsible, but now you have to live with your unsatisfactory performance and it's only going to get worse before it gets better.

which brings me to politics as usual in the workplace. i've just started a new job and love it dearly. i'm one of those people who really enjoys what i do for a living. so it amazes me that people don't take their jobs as serious as i do. i'll tell you right now, if i screw something up i'll be the first one to let you know that i made a mistake. but then i move on and hopefully learn from my mistake and pray that it doesn't happen again. at least that's what i'd like to happen. so i'm sitting in a meeting today with my immediate coworkers to discuss the progress of my WIP (work in progress), only to be given that look that i just can't stand to save my life, that look up to the ceiling as if the answers to my questions are going to fall out the sky and give me the answers i need. accountability folks, that's all i ask. i swear i won't curse, beat you, call you names, stone you, or shun you, i just want an answer to the question currently on the table. the same answer i was looking for last week and the week before. that look sends me through the roof like you don't even know. things have been all sweet and jolly, but you don't want me to flip my crazy switch, you just don't. how hard is it for you to show up to the meeting that is scheduled at the same time every week with the same adgenda, "to answer my questions!"

so i sit there glaring at you and wondering what part of my question you didn't quite understand, or didn't hear, or...hell you heard me as clear as day. but i'm telling you now, we can be great coworkers or we can be enemies, it's up to you, but i'll tell you and everyone who knows me will tell you, it's easier to be in with me than vice versa. i'm not sayin' i'm just sayin'! get your flipping act together and come prepared. your messing up the rotation, puff puff pass already. take ownership in your job and support your coworkers. we're all on the same TEAM, let's try to act like it. being thrown under the bus is not fun.....don't make me go there! when i ask you a direct question, please give me a direct answer. this whole deer in the head lights is not cutting the mustard.

where do i begin?

so really, where do i begin? to be honest, this whole blog thing is pretty new to me. i stumbled upon it several months ago and was intrigued, excited, and amazed at what i found and was reading in the world of blog. just think, this is my blog, a place to speak my mind, share my thoughts, share my life, or just say a bunch of nothing. i have been pondering the notion of starting my own blog for several months now and finally just decided that if i'm going to do this i need to just put my fingers on the keyboard and see what happens. hopefully my style or flow doesn't drive you nuts, but then again, it's my blog.

i have several friends that blog and the thing that amazes me the most about what they write about is their honesty. in the world of blog it seems people share things that they may or may not share with their closest friends but are willing to print it for the world to read on their blog. i really think i'm going to enjoy this form of expression. then again i enjoy many forms of expression. i think the thing i'm most excited about is finally being able to just let it all out. i've got a lot to say (as most of my friends already know), and i'm not afraid to say it!