I Don't Know How to Quit You, Diet Coke

Last month, I once again tried to give up diet soda and artificial sweeteners altogether. And it stuck for the longest amount of time yet - a month. Previously I couldn't make it a week. Diet Coke is my raison d'être so a month felt like a long time. But it felt good. I felt virtuous.

A few weeks ago, I fell off the wagon and I'm back at the vending machine. You know what happened?

I was walking in my old neighborhood and I saw a group of nuns returning from the grocery store. One of the nuns was carrying a crate of Diet Coke. Fading sunlight glinted on the familiar silver box as she crossed the street. And I thought to myself:

"This woman has given up the majority of the pleasures in this world, and even so, she has allowed herself to enjoy Diet Coke. Why are you depriving yourself?"

I'm back to one can a day. Ok, maybe two.

L.A. Vacay, Continued

Here are some pictures taken with my iPhone. Despite June Gloom, we had a great time!

Everything seems more colorful on the West Coast. I love how even a blah gray concrete wall can be jazzed up with some painted flowers. (Your taste may vary).

The Getty Center is absolutely gorgeous and worth a trip to Los Angeles.

Look how steep that driveway is! Good thing it doesn't snow there. I made Debie do all the driving on this trip, poor thing. I even made her drive on Mulholland Drive, which was a terrible, terrible idea. It was all hairpin turns with no guardrails, and I pictured our rented Suzuki sailing off the edge. Motorcycles and bikes kept passing us, even on the left, and the road seemed to go on forever.

That drive took 5 years off my life, not sure how many it took off Debie's life. Possibly more. She stayed cool, calm and collected, with just a tad bit of screaming. She may never listen to an idea of mine again, though.

Fun street art and graffiti. The underwear-clad, tattooed hipster in the above photo looks bashful. Maybe it's a depiction of one of those dreams where you go to class and later realize you forgot to put on pants?

We met up with my friend and study abroad travel buddy Emily - so wonderful to see her again! Here she is with fancy sunglasses and a mustache, via Scoutmob's iPhone mustache app. It looks quite nice on her!

Emily was kind enough to give us her take on LA and what we should eat. That's pretty much all we did on this trip. Time well spent.

Fish tacos.

Note to self: Don't order something if you don't know what it is. I just liked the name, Michelada. This goblet was the size of a beta fish bowl, and was way too spicy. You win this round, Michelada!

Check out my previous adventures on the West Coast here (namely driving a lawn mower-sized vehicle in San Francisco traffic).

June Gloom/LA Casting Call

I went to L.A. for the first time and forgot my camera. Doh! I brought plenty of other stuff - mainly shorts and tank tops and summery things for sunny California. Turns out I didn't need those at all as Debie and I arrived in the midst of "June Gloom."

This concept was unfamiliar to me. When we got off the plane it was cold and grey and not at all as what I imagined when I booked the plane ticket for a West Coast getaway. "Oh, June Gloom," at least 5 people remarked to us in the first thirty minute. As if that explained everything.

June Gloom, duhhhh. June Gloom!

What is this June Gloom? Is that why my plane ticket was so cheap? I should've known!

Anyhow, I had to rely on the iPhone for impromptu photos, like these snapshots that I took from the rental car window as we drove down the street.

Here is a line of dozens of people wearing costumes of every different cliche. I see a Mexican poncho, a clown, a guy with one of those Chinese hats on, but no Bumblebee Man. Who else can you spot?

Yeah Yeah Yeahs in Coloring Book Form

Sorry for the radio silence, I moved last week and we don't have internet yet. I'm also moving offices at work, which is strange as I've had to pack up my entire life - both office and apartment - over the past couple weeks.

There's a lot of blog post ideas I've been delinquent on sharing, and I'll get to them, but let's start my posting my coloring piece de resistance, from the very fun Indie Rock Coloring Book, gifted to me by my friends Lauren, Emily and Andy:

How professional is that? This one is also nice:

Moving Day


I'm moving apartments this weekend. Gotta get Percy the Llama packed up on and on the road (with bubblewrap for safekeeping).

Isn't funny that when you move, you think somehow everything will be better in this new space. An empty apartment equals a clean slate. A chance to forget the past and do things right from now on.

"I won't hoard so much junk," you think as you survey blank rooms. "I'm going to cook more, healthy food and gourmet stuff. I'll probably work out every day. Yes, I won't be late for the bus anymore, and maybe I'll muster up the energy to wear makeup to work more than one day a week."

I know this sentiment defies logic in a way that is uniquely human, but I'm hoping it will be true. It will at least be different, and for someone who isn't great with change, different might already be a step in the right direction.