my moral standing is lying down

Have been here in LA for almost four weeks now. It's really, really different than NYC in a lot of little ways, but of course it's not quite as different as being in another country. ^_~

Still searching for a job, and not doing too much else since I'm trying not to spend money. The first week I was here I certainly spent enough: buying a bed and a bookcase, furniture for the living room, dishes for the kitchen, groceries, etc. And LOL, gas. Why is gas so expensive here? It's at least a dollar more than it was in Albuquerque; basically around the same as NYC, though probably something like $.10 more per gallon.

Traffic here is both just like everyone says (HORRIBLE), but also not really as bad as it's infamy implies? Like, it's worse than NYC traffic at times, but I've been in worse traffic in NYC too. I've learned that the traffic seems to be worst on the streets leading up to freeway entrances; not really on the freeway itself. Don't get me started on my rant about dumb California drivers and even worse signage.

It's been tons of fun so far with Eli and Acadia; living with fangirls is clearly a singular experience. Going to try to update more often and get back to actually reading my flist, considering the amount of free time I have right now. But it's a bit difficult as I'm a bit plagued by cabin fever and all I want to do is go out.

BTW, I've utterly succumbed to Words With Friends, so if you're into that, please feel free to start a game with me (username: osaraba).

Also! OMG THANK YOU to xlovebecomesher, leashy_bebes, and koyappi for the v-gifts!!! YOU GUYS ARE AWFULLY SWEET! <333

So this is my last day in NYC (I leave today at 3pm). But it's not forever; just for the foreseeable future. I've been super excited for this and pretty nervous, too, but this morning I'm full of anxiety and WHAT THE FUCK AM I DOING? But I know that'll pass. I think it's only just started to settle in that I'm not going to be able to see anyone/everyone whenever I feel like it anymore and I AM SADFACE about it. I'm going to miss you guys SO FUCKING MUCH.

But enough of that. I'll be back to NYC eventually; there's just no way I could stay away forever, so I'll see you guys again.

For the next eight days I will be staying the night in 8 different states and driving through several more! The weather will go from a high of 34°F currently in NYC (with snow still on the ground from yesterday) to a high of 80°F in LA. WHAT EVEN. I'll try to update eljay on the way, but I'll probably be updating (and/or freaking out on) twitter and tumblr from the road, so tune in there if you're interested.

This is what my route looks like (click to embiggen):



ETA: And to those who contributed to my cross-country gas fund, I greatly appreciate your generosity!!! It's going to be a HUGE help! THANK YOU SO MUCH! Please expect a little something in the mail shortly after I get settled in LA. <333

So. You may have heard by now: I'm moving to Los Angeles!

...I'm used to having a strong reaction to respond to at right about this point in the conversation so I now find myself at somewhat of a loss!

WHY?, you may have asked. Well, I realized back in July, when I experienced a huge upheaval in my life, that I kind of want a change -- a big one -- and that change of jobs wasn't really going to cut it. I want to not see the same thing I see every day, the same subway, the same places to hang out, etc., etc. I've never ever before in my life felt the need to leave NYC because I love it way way more than I should, but I guess I reached that point. I can't imagine actually leaving NYC for good, though, so I'll likely be back in a few years.

But I totally need this right now.

I contacted likeaglass who I knew was sort of vaguely planning to move to LA and asked her whether she was still going and if she'd like a roommate. Aaaaaand here we are, along with a third fangirl friend, Eli, planning a February 1st move-in.

So guess what that means? Cross-country road tripppppp! What a huge fucking opportunity! Similar to how I've wanted to go to Indonesia but never really wanted to use my vacation days to do so, I've wanted to do a cross-country road trip. NOW IS MY CHANCE! I'll be leaving probably between January 22-25; my parents have bought a new car (2009 Toyota Rav4, which is awesome and I'm so jealous I won't be able to drive it around much), which they've been thinking about doing for a while anyway, and will be giving me their 2005 Toyota Camry.

One of my really close friends from work, Maura, is taking the trip with me because she loves road trips and driving (and it'll be a big help to have another driver at hand)! We've planned to sort of go from NYC >> New Orleans >> Austin >> LA, so if anyone at/near any of those places -- or anywhere along the way -- wants to meet up, just let me know! I'd love to combine this with fangirl lunch-dates across the country! And, OMG if any of you actually live in/near LA, I'd love to meet up with you and chat and get some tips on the ins and outs and things to know about LA!

I still haven't read my flist for a good 8 weeks now, and I-- alsjdflasjlfs what is my freaking block on it? =/

In the meantime, if I haven't seen you since I got back from Indonesia, WE HAVE TO HANG OUT BEFORE I LEAVE! I will miss all of you guys SO SO SO MUCH, you don't even know! <3333

Okay, quick update since I'm supposed to be sleeping. We're leaving at 4am for TORONTO!!!!!


Also:

1. Rangers game sucked.

2. Picked up the rental car and I'm driving a 2011 silver Chevy HHR (which I kinda hate because the back windshield is tiny) but has New York plates because it's got ONLY 544 MILES ON IT. YAY NEW CARS! \o/

WAS ANYONE ABLE TO GET HEADSTONES TIX THIS MORNING?

I COULDN'T!!1 *CRIES*

I CONTINUED TRYING AND I FUCKING GOT TICKETS!!!! ROAD TRIP TO TORONTO, BBS!!!!! WHO WANTS TO GO?

ETA: I'm planning to rent a car and drive up from NYC with a friend, so if you're interested in joining in, please let me know (even if you're just considering it)!!! YAY SO HAPPY FOR ROAD-TRIP FUNNNNNNNN!!!!!

I'm slowly becoming burnt out from my travel/event/social schedule. I have not reached the crash point yet, and I'm not getting sick or anything like that, but I can feel that I'm tiring a bit. I should slow down and take a break, but I can't seem to help myself.

Weddingcon was awesome! It's not really any different now that Chris and Carrie have tied the knot, but it is, too. Congrats to them once again. The day could not have been any more picturesque. The weather was cheerful and temperate; the bride and bridesmaids were beautiful; the groom and groomsmen were handsome. I'm sure there were some snags and hitches, but you couldn't tell from this end!

It was also a wonderful day of adventure! I love to play dress-up... and then get stuck in traffic on Canal Street between the Manhattan Bridge and Holland Tunnel for 2 hours! YAYE! Yes, that's right -- it took 2 HOURS to go THREE-QUARTERS OF A MILE! So wonderful. At least we were comfortable in the rental minivan. Eventually we did make it into NJ to pick up the rest of our party. And luckily, since we left so early from my house (10:30am), we actually made it to the wedding with 20 minutes to spare! That's right -- we got there at 2:40pm. So what should have been a 2-hour trip only took... what, 4 hours! I would have been heartbroken had we missed it. ;_;

Anyway, after the reception I drove people home, got back around what, 1am or so? I then returned the minivan to LaGuardia airport and got picked up and went on a drive to Pittsburgh! This was fun and frustrating for varied reasons which I will not go into here. But in any case I enjoyed the trip and had a nice chance to bask in the sun on a cliff by a railway bridge for around 20 minutes. I would have loved to fall asleep in the grass with the sun making me feel all cozy and warm. We only stayed in Pittsburgh for about an hour or two (we were picking something up), then turned around and drove right back.

Have I mentioned how much I love to go for a drive? Whether as driver or passenger; it makes almost no difference.

Of course, last night sent me further down the burnout path. I took an impromptu trip down to Philly, met Steve (who was previously only a disembodied voice in the background of Jim's phone calls), helped Jim and Duncan unload a truck (most of it was done when Steve and I got there), went to dinner (hadn't eaten in over 10 hours at that point -- and btw, RHUBARB CRISP = AWESOME!), then drove for the next 3-4 hours. Got home at 4:30am! I'm just lucky that Jim didn't need his car (I dropped him off and then drove home by myself). If he did need it today I would've had even less sleep. Maybe even like none at all.

So I may have to return the car tonight, which is fine, though it means I won't get too much of a chance to rest up, either.

*headdesk*

Everyone's saying this Katsu was "not the best Katsu ever, but..." But I'd say it went similarly to last year for me. I worked 10 hours on Friday, 10 hours on Saturday, and 5 hours on Sunday, followed by driving back to NYC. After breaking down the booth each day, I went to hang out/party with friends until 3:30/4am each night. IT WAS PRETTY FUCKING AWESOME. I've got no complaints -- this is exactly what I was looking for out of this con.

I would have liked to hang out with NA more, and meet some of Judy's new friends, but instead I hung out with some new people -- Jon and Patches -- and CUBE!, whom I don't usually hang out with at cons, but which I obviously must rectify because he's a ton of fun! And this was IMMENSELY enjoyable. =D

I also didn't get totally wasted, but I had a nice buzz going on Saturday night, thanks to Rymel and his delicious concoctions. My additional flask of gin did come in handy, though.

Thanks again to Yoshi, Jerry, Sean Kelly, Cube, John, and Rymel for helping out at the booth -- we couldn't have run as smoothly as we did without you guys! =D

Memories of note:

• driving to VA
  
• meeting Jon
  
• working all of Friday
  
• going out to that 24hr diner with the scary waitress with the shakes who kept holding the menu up between her face and Jim's
  
• conversations with Yoshi and Jerry
  
• walking back to the hotel alongside the highway, between the trees and the concrete, with Jim leading the way with his flashlight
  
• bumping into Jon, Cube, and Patches and acting silly, chasing each other around. I want some of those pics, Cube!
  
• working all of Saturday
  
• wearing those awesome rockabilly Penthouse shoes!
  
• killing Jerry at Uno at the maid cafe
  
• chatting with Jon, Cube, Jim and Peter at the Valentine Ball
  
• running into Peter again at the bar, mooching booze off of Rymel
  
• slapping Jerry on the ass to wake him up... with Jim taking pictures
  
• randomly talking to some army guy at the bar, and Nikkia, whom I know I've met, but have no idea where/when
  
• hanging with Cube, Judy, Anna in the bar area, and then tripping over nothing, slightly twisting my ankle, but not having anyone notice but Cube. ^_~
  
• stumbling back to the room, giggling and happy
  
• being really warm that night
  
• driving back to NYC on Sunday, getting lost for a while in DC, but then making up for it by going 80 later
  
• eating an Angry Whopper at a rest stop (which tasted 5x better than the one I had in the city)
  
• singing along to mid-late 90s alternative music with Sean Kelly *high-fives!*
  
• having Monday off from work, but making myself super-exhausted anyway
  
• literally spending less than $20 for the whole weekend
  
• not having to return Jim's car 'til last night!
  

All I can say is -- NEXT YEAR, THE GAYLORD!

Traffic in the city this weekend and forthcoming week will be horrid. At least, around the East Midtown area. The General Assembly is in session and several nations' presidents/heads of state will be visiting, including our own. Usually this wouldn't make much difference, but I'll have the car this weekend, so this is somewhat of an inconvenience should I have chosen to use it. >_<;


( as for the new Metallica album... )

So yeah... what do you think?

Today's xkcd is totally full of WIN!

Last night's NA was fun fun. =D

So tomorrow I'll be borrowing Vince's car, driving up to Albany and then back on Sunday. And I just got a cold AGAIN, this time totally courtesy of Judy.

Wait, maybe I should go pick up the car tonight instead of tomorrow morning.

Ycon Report, or What I Did In SF While I Was Supposed To Be At Ycon.

I didn't get a wink of sleep on Wednesday night. My flight was Thursday at 7am, so I was up for a full 24 hours before the plane actually took off. But once I was on the plane and actually sitting down, I passed out so hard that I slept through take-off. ^^;

I had a great time driving around San Francisco! I was actually quite happy to have Judy who needed to go back and forth to her aunt's (who lives in SF), so that it gave us an excuse to drive around the city. I certainly am becoming more familiar with certain parts of the city than I was last time, that's for sure. Also, driving is a completely different experience when you've got a bunch of friends in the car and are chatting and listening to good music, etc., as opposed to driving when you're alone and tired.

We did the standard going to Japan Town on Thursday and, not surprisingly, met up with Christine, Sharon, Artemis, et al. It was nice to hang out with them. And though it was for a pretty short time, I think it was the longest I'd actually get to see and talk to them. It was a big change from last year. I think it's partially due to that this new con hotel's lobby is not really conducive to lounging and talking in relative privacy. At the Westin, the lobby was recessed and slightly away from the front desk. In that respect, the new con hotel wasn't the best. However, other aspects made this hotel very enjoyable -- the rooms are HUGE! The beds are pretty darn big too; they weren't doubles -- they were queens! We also happened to get first-floor rooms, which was really convenient. Also, the con rate for the rooms were so amazingly well-priced. Less than $100/night!

So unfortunately, I think I did even less con stuff than I usually do. Previously, I had gone to a panel or two. This year I bypassed everything and went straight to the dealers' room/art show/fan market. I did not pass go; certainly I did not collect $200. On the bright side, I spent under $30 at the con itself.

On the other hand, I spent almost $100 on dinner/club with Nicky and her boyfriend Ryan on Saturday night. But OMG, it was SO WORTH IT! The Supper Club is an awesomely entertaining place. You sit on a bed. And eat at a small table on the bed. There's a DJ and some live entertainment. Our host(ess) was a (very good-looking!) drag queen. One part of the live entertainment was a woman who did acrobatics on a rope that hung from the ceiling. It was HOT, beautiful, and impressive as hell -- she must be insanely strong! I wish I had brought my camera! I didn't actually get to stay and see Grand Master Flash because I had to leave before I got too tired to drive myself back to the hotel. >_<;

Ryan brought two bottles of red wine to share, which were delicious, and considering I usually don't like red wine, they were pretty damn good. The food was also really amazing. They serve a 5-course meal (you don't get to choose what you get, you just tell them if you have any allergies, etc.). One of the courses was a very lightly cooked salmon that was just heavenly. And I don't like salmon. Or even most fish, in general. It was really amazing. Getting to catch up with and see Nicky, and getting to enjoy the Supper Club really made this trip worthwhile.

I got a little ahead of myself -- Friday was also slow. I enjoyed window shopping on Haight Street. There's a vintage and/or Halloween store every other block! Unfortunately, Amoeba Music, which is listed on the Warp11 site as carrying their albums, did not have anything, so I went away very disappointed at not having been able to purchase their newest release. Fortunately, I remembered to ask Nicky to bring me the 3rd album (which I also didn't have), which she'd gotten signed for me when it came out two years ago. Haha. Later that night was just fun and hijinks in the room. Lots of giggling on my part. ^^;

Sunday was basically getting ready to go back home. I had to return the car by noon even though my flight wasn't until 3:40. However! I'm a smart girl and got on standby for the 1:25 flight and got a spot! Sitting in a middle seat and being slightly uncomfortable was definitely worth getting home at 10pm instead of midnight. =D

All in all, a very enjoyable trip. Some pics are here. I think some of the more incriminating ones have been left out. ^_~

BTW, Capital G is an excellent song!

And Happy Halloween, people!