stuff about where I live and play, and maybe some stuff about where I work and play.

12.20.2008

12.10.2008

bride's request


i swear, after this last piggyback ride at heather's wedding back in september, the "rides" are going back into retirement. i totally swear.

12.08.2008

12.07.2008

dephomo 12.6 & 12.7

last night, sunset on the pacific design center
today, celebrating new personal records for the LA half marathon
good times, ya'll!


12.05.2008

spies like us.

one of these days i'm going to spin a tale about our alter ego spy identities.

for now, you just get a visual of that one night when we rocked the spy industry in the wabasha caves in st. paul, minnesota.




and yes, it's framed and placed strategically on our mantel, because that's just how we roll.

12.04.2008

yep.

just a long over-due girls night out with ladies i worked with at my last job and one awesome dude that showed up and taught us all how to rock the world. is all.

the pink one is a grey goose pomegranate margarita. right? *drool*

12.03.2008

my boyz

i mean, it's no secret that we are "those people" that dress our dogs up...in jerseys, halloween costumes, santa outfits...
but you know what? it never gets old (to us).

at any rate, here are the two most handsome men i know, wearing the best color in tha universe.



it's no accident our vikes are #1 in the NFC North, what with the collective awesome jersey power of these two? can you even go wrong?

ya hearrrrrrd.

yeah. i know.

12.02.2008

old is new.

today's dephomo theme is "something old," or some variation of that. i thought it would be appropriate to post a photo that was taken a few days ago when i was back home of some of my best friends - all of which were my best friends in high school.

it's been 14 years since we all graduated, but "magically" we've all remained in each other's lives. i'm proud of, amazed by and constantly in awe of these amazing ladies.





so, um, yay for girls that rock.

12.01.2008

epic fail.

so i pretty much failed at the nablomo challenge. i blame: laziness, lack of internet access whilst in minneapolis, not enough time etc.



but now that i'm back and settling in, i am going to attempt a new challenge:


DEPHOMO!

basically, a photo a day for the month of december. are you ready for it?

here's what happened when we took cosette to the park on a mild minneapolis winter day.

pretty much, she couldn't hack it. but aw, how cute is she in her hoodie?


and here's one i took today... you know. dephomo.

11.22.2008

today we experience a cool, sad and random event: an open-urn memorial service for a dog.
the dog being celebrated was jackie, the dog who belonged to the owner of our little mom 'n' pop pet store.


it was cool because it we got to know some of our dog-loving neighbors on a different level. it was cool because the pet store owner hasn't been "OK" in the two weeks since her best friend passed. but today, she was so full of gratitude and she felt so loved. it was cool because we UNDERSTOOD what it's like to lose a furry friend, and how important it is to celebrate that life.

it was sad, because, hello.

it was random because how many dog memorial services have you been to? i'm guessing none. also? she made gingerbread cookies in the shape of her dog, and she made them in the shape of a "J," for jackie. also? an open-urn? unreal, but she is so quirky and adorable that it was OK. she also served wine and cheese. chips and dip. and of course, treats for four-legged friends that she made herself. i died of teh cute.

and now? we are about to leave for the airport with our little furry friends. it's mu's first plane trip and for cosette, it's probably her 10th.

i'm really just SO grateful to have them.

11.21.2008

conversations of late

REGARDING THE POOP SAMPLE RESULTS

ruby (5:58:36 PM): camus has a F8cking parasite can you believe that?
tenna (5:58:49 PM): oh no.............
ruby (5:58:49 PM): fecal freak
tenna (5:59:28 PM): that is weird....so, on meds he goes?
ruby (5:59:32 PM): they are both going to take the special powder and 5 days from now poof it shall be gone
ruby (5:59:44 PM): i want a parasite, just for thanksgiving though
ruby (5:59:55 PM): i want to eat a shitton but not have to digest it
ruby (6:00:14 PM): know whutimsayin

tenna (6:00:23 PM): HAHAHAH! are you drunk?!?!?!?

~~~~

REGARDING ASHLEE SIMPSON & PETE WENTZ DECISION TO NAME THEIR SON BRONX MOWGLI

jason (10:33:58 AM): what the F is mogli anyway
ruby (10:34:07 AM): the guy from the jungle book
jason (10:34:11 AM): oh
ruby (10:34:14 AM): http://images.google.com/images?sa=N&tab=ni&q=mowgli
jason (10:34:14 AM): OMG
jason (10:34:25 AM): they named him after the guy from jungle book
jason (10:34:29 AM): or is it just coincidence
ruby (10:34:33 AM): um no
ruby (10:34:35 AM): they did that

jason (10:34:39 AM): geez
jason (10:34:48 AM): that could be the most ridiculous thing I've heard in quite some time
ruby (10:35:25 AM): indeed
jason (10:35:45 AM): i wish i was friends with them
jason (10:35:47 AM): I'd be like
jason (10:35:48 AM): ummm
jason (10:35:50 AM): what!?!
jason (10:36:13 AM): I don't think I could keep a straight face
ruby (10:36:34 AM): i wouldn't be friends with them
ruby (10:36:39 AM): that is some sick shit

jason (10:36:43 AM): hahah
jason (10:36:43 AM): yes
jason (10:36:44 AM): it is

11.20.2008

this one is for my pants, ya'll

dear my pants,

prepare to get yourselves ROCKED! normally you only have to deal with one Turkey Day per year. but this year, my tight little friends, you GET TWO! oh yes.

the traditional turkey day will take place, appropriately, in the midwest. it is there that i will dine on delectable midwestern fare which undoubtedly will have to include meat, potatoes, starch and fat.

THEN! we will whisk ourselves back to LA on friday and we will do part deux, courtesy of the wonderful in-laws. this feast will probably have less potatoes, starch and fat, but it will probably include more chocolate, wine and gamey animals than you can shake a fist at.

ahhh, my belly is growling in anxious anticipation.

so hey pants, i suggest you install a belly expansion panel. cuz, uh, you're going to need it to contain the beast formerly known as my belly. yeah, i said that.

stay strong!


love,
ruby

11.19.2008

floating tidbits

i keep forgetting that i'm going to MN on the red eye saturday night, and it's messing with me a bit. holy crap, i need a vacation. i don't think my brain is able to comprehend the fact that i will not have to work for nine days.


today aaron dropped off some poop samples for cosette and camus with the vet. he has a theory that they are upcharging people to do a parasite test by preying on our fears and insecurities. this test is $104 a pop. i think his sentiment about this was something along the lines of "dude, come on, just because cosette has a bit of the drizzly droo* or the ra-ra**, doesn't mean it's a parasite!!" but on the other hand, she has had the ra-ra for almost a week straight, and camus' ra-ra has come and gone, so i guess it's good to be more safe than sorry.


in other news, they are both vet-certified to fly on our aforementioned red-eye flight, which now sounds funny to me when i just got done talking about the brown-eye. i know, i'm gross. but! the one thing that IS worriesome is the fact that camus has to fly in the luggage area underneath, and if the temp is BELOW 10 DEGREES either on this side or that side, they cannot fly him. current temps for mpls are projected to be in the high 20s for the day we fly, but...i'm a little nervouse. and yes i wanted that e on the end of nervouse. it makes it seem french or somesuch.


today i had a meeting with some fancy talent agency research people who were not only smart, they were also some pretty hott ladies. they got in a three-way discussion with my boss about NANNIES which was where i promptly glossed over and started thinking about wine. this always happens when anything relating to babies comes up. i automatically think about wine or sushi.


currently, aaron is one half-hour into a 90-minute massage with the enviable zach t. i will be taking my turn with zach around 7:45pm tonight, and i wish i could communicate with typed words how UNCONTROLLABLY EXCITED I AM ABOUT THIS, but alas, you will just have to imagine my unbridled excitement for yourselves.


so there you have it.


18 nablopomo entries down, 11 mo' to go. (see, i skipped a day, because i suck)


* aka diarrhea
** aka diarrhea

11.18.2008

i have to say.

so mostly, today was a good day.

i had a great client meeting (my first at the new job! very exciting!) in the morning.

lunch was some tofu over brown rice with a rich thick tahini sauce or somesuch. so good that i drank the remains of the container once i had thoroughly drenched the veggies and tofu with it. delish.

then, i interviewed a potential analyst for "my team." she was effin whip smart and totally cool. great first candidate.

then i pulled together a bunch of powerpoint slides for a lunch meeting at a prestigious talent agency tomorrow. my boss only had a few tweaks, which was totally refreshing.

then! i went to grab my car keys from the valet in our parking structure, and they were, um, how you say, MISSING. after a very in-depth and thorough investigation, turns out the P5 valet dude had "accidentally" taken my keys home with him. so i had to wait upwards of 45 minutes for him to come back. so that was fun.

then i got to catch up on lipstick jungle, gossip girl and priveleged because aaron had a production meeting.

when he finally came home, he came bearing chicken wings and pinot grigio. um, hello, it doesn't get ANY better than that.

and now, we're finishing up fringe and tomorrow i am working from home for half the day and then going to a fancy lunch meeting.

not bad i say. not bad at all.

11.17.2008

on meh.

it's pretty cool when gawker decides to write about one's blog.

what meh says about us

well, maybe it's not about MY BLOG, per se. but it is about my blog's title. so yay, i'm awesome?!

in case you're too lazy to click the link, here's the article:


What 'Meh' Says About Us
By
Richard, 1:16 PM on Mon Nov 17 2008

Meh, the unimpressed expression of "who cares" coined on The Simpsons, has now officially entered the lexicon. It's being listed in the Collins English Dictionary! In these crazy times of war and crumbling economy it could have been some dread-filled "word" like ZOMG that got the honor, or it may have been a Hope and Change rally word like Obamamania (well, all right, that would never happen, but still). I guess it speaks to a young generation defined not by apathy exactly, but by a sense that we're (they're?) not supposed to be easily impressed, that this dismissive, tarty little word made the list.

Kids have been sort of unimpressable for a while now, probably, but only recently has the idea of childhood become such a resoundingly cynical one. Markets are tested and groups are focused and everything's dangerous and sarcasm is now mistaken for cute, youthful willfulness. That 'meh' became the battle cry for this seen-it-all generation makes perfect sense; it's funny in its onomatopoeic nonsensicalness—it's like someone gave up halfway when trying to come up with a word. It's a bit sarcastic, just like kids like it, and it came from a pop culture touchstone. It worked its way up, in such a modern little cyber-organic way, through the school halls and internet chatting rooms and it's now in a big British book. It even beat out the über-popular Sex and the City term "frenemy," which was being considered too!

Maybe that means that a meh attitude isn't a path to slackerness and failure, but rather an alternative route to success! The meh sentiment demands a lot—impress me!, it yells. And maybe that's a good thing. Or, you know, whatever. Maybe not.

Who cares anyway.


So there you have it kids.

We are the MEH GENERATION.


11.16.2008

mailbag!

dear The Future,

you is looking good, dawg. lookin real bright. i cannot wait to see what you bring.

~~
dear the fires of socal,

please you can stop burning now. your ashes, not so much good for the complexion or lungs. also? my eyes are burning. so maybes you can die, mutha f*ckers. it's been real, but your time? it's over. no one likes a you.

~~
dear northwest airlines,

thanks for allowing both of my ridiculous french bulldogs to fly the friendly skies. maybe you can think about not charging camus as much as a human, because he ONLY WEIGHS 33 POUNDS. that's like, a large baby. but he has to fly IN THE LUGGAGE area, mmkay? cut a dawg a break.

~~
dear mr daniel craig,

well done, sir. you make an amazing Bond. although this movie wasn't one of the best i've ever seen, it was still fun. and i'm all about fun.

~~
dear upcoming half marathon,

please be kind to my knee(s). kthxbye.

~~
dear new job,

thanks for making me feel like a REAL ADULT. i am equally overwhelmed and excited about the responsibilities i now have, but we all now that fear is a powerful motivator for awesomeness. so, thanks, yo.

~~
dear aaron,

you're adorable. love you long time.
~~

11.15.2008

smoke hangs heavy in the air. it's unseasonably hot in los angeles, or maybe it just seems like this weather SHOULD be too hot for this time of year.

one cannot be sure.

in the past week i've donned big girl britches in a way i don't think i've ever done before. i feel like i'm changing, as much as i feel the world around me is changing.

paradigms seem to be shifting everyday. nothing seems concrete. and frankly, nothing needs to feel that way.

the same way that flames are burning all around us in los angeles, the flames are being fanned internally. some of those changes are going to be everlasting in ways i still cannot fathom.

but one thing rings true throughout:

i'm excited.

i'm feeling a renewed sense of optimism. i feel like my perspective is malleable, but not in a bad way. and nothing seems bad about any of this.


so i choose to revel in it.

11.14.2008

o to the v to the ER.

in one week i will be on vacation, finally. i've gone a whole year without any "real" vacation and i.cannot.wait.

other than that.. it's friday night. what are you doing? not reading this i hope.

i cannot wait until this one blog a day sh*t is OVER. O to the V to the ER. and off i go.

11.13.2008

whole new world

there wasn't anything "wrong" with the last place i worked. it's just that i got lazy and maybe turned my brain off a lil bit.

but hey! good news! it's back on. and it's ready to think my face off.

get ready for it.

11.12.2008

on this day, a mu was born.

it's camus' 1st birthday!

(he's the tannish one)

only 2 more years until he can drink.
f yeah.

11.11.2008

11-11-00

  • 20 year ago I first laid eyes on him. I was in 6th grade, he was in 5th.
  • 18 years ago we had our first date and remained together for a turmultous couple of weeks. I broke up with him, but we got back together a few months later, and and stayed together through the summer of '90. but then I broke up with him again when I became a high school freshman. he was in 8th grade.
  • 17 years ago he became a high school freshman and I worked for months to convince him to give me "one more chance." on Decemeber 11, 1991 at midnight, he FINALLY gave in, and we made it "official." I promised I would never break up with him again.
  • 13 years ago we took a 3-month "break" when I was a college freshman and he was a senior in high school. but we quickly realized we were meant to be together and resumed our 4- year relationship. (ps I kept my promise - he did the "break" this time)
  • 10 years ago he moved to California, while I stayed in MN. But he came back to visit for the holiday break, and he proposed to me at the strike of midnight as we welcomed in 1999. I moved to LA a few months later.
  • 8 years ago (on this date) we made our love official in front of our nearest & dearest in Palm Springs, CA.



11.11.00

It's been an amazing ride, and I'm still so proud and happy to call the same person I call my best friend, my husband.

Happy Anniversary, Love!

11.10.2008

oh about that blog-a-day thing..

i totally effin forgot to write yesterday, even though i composed 4 or 5 different ideas throughout the day yesterday IN MY MIND.

blurg.

well anyway, mostly it would have been something about HEY THE VIKES BEAT THE PACKERS THE SAME WEEK THE BLACK GUY BEAT THE WHITE GUY. so next up> FLYING PIGS! AWESOME!


in other news.

i started my new job today. i have an awesome view of the observatory AND downtown los angeles. apparently, when there are fires, i also have an excellent view of those. woo! i also have a DIRECTOR title and blahblahblah.

anyway, i have to go now. but uh, see you tomorrow? same place, same time-ish.

ciao.

11.08.2008

moreso.

today it was just aaron and i...

...at the gym for two hours

...eating lunch and sipping french wine at the little next door

...wandering through the farmer's market

...eating dinner at taste

...drinking a delightful bottle of jordan chardonnay

...celebrating 8 years of Married Us, and many more years to come.

....still contemplating the rest o' the evening

...feeling GOOD about our future

and so on.

ps/ i don't have a laptop until monday, so making "do" with aaron's which is some janky ass business.

lovin you long time

11.07.2008

celebrate, ya'll

tonight we went out with aaron's brother and wife and celebrated.

we celebrated my new job, which starts monday.


and we celebrated our upcoming wedding anniversaries; our 8th anniversary on the 11th and their 2nd anniversary on the 10th.

we celebrated a new chapter in our country's history.

what have you celebrated lately?



ps/ i know this is a lame excuse for an entry, but i'm EXHAUSTED. the end.

11.06.2008

mushy.

so my work farewell thingie was awesome. it was too many apple martinis and all sorts of debauchery, and i was in a world of hurt today. i'm going to miss those silly bastards. (especially tenna. aw)

i struggled through the day with bloodshot eyes and flashbacks of inappropriate conversations, and for a few fleeting minutes i actually felt, um, nauseous. but i'm nothing if not a hangover trooper, and i survived.

in other news, after a 90-minute massage with the magical zach from the aplty named "healing hands" wellness center, i am feeling 1,000 times better.

in summary, if you HAVE to party hard, make sure you have an intense deep tissue massage waiting for you on the other end of the situation. words from the wise.

11.05.2008

winding up and winding down.

It seems pretty fitting that at the same time our country is CHANGING, I am also CHANGING. Well, I'm changing my JOB, anyway. Tonight is the Celebration of Me, per my co-workers, and even though I am exhausted by the excitement that defined last night, I am still going to rally to give myself a proper send-off.

But this is a bittersweet evening; i.e. super EXCITED for the new jobby, but sad to leave the cool peeps I've grown to love.

Which worries me.

The last time I was TRULY sad to leave a job, the night ended with me crying in a napkin and giving 200-lb men piggy back rides. To be fair, I am 100% more sophisticated and classy now then I was oh... 6 years ago or so. But you know, one never knows how these evenings will go.

Especially when you walk through certain parts of the office and you can just SEE people thinking about the shots they are going to try and force you to drink tonight.

At any rate, bring on the alcohol-absorbing carbs, and let's get down to business.

11.04.2008

it's what the cool kids are doin'

I woke up anxious, and for a minute I forgot why. But as I looked outside and saw the sun shining brightly on glistening drops of an earlier rain shower, I smiled and thought: IT'S VOTING TIME!

But since I was up earlier than normal, I may look like I was a bit irritated. Don't be fooled! I AM EXCITED!


I kind of feel like blowing off the rest of the day and sitting in front of a large TV tuned to CNN, eating popcorn and drinking sauvignon blanc.
but alas, no.
I will, however, try to force myself into the gym so I can obsess over the results whilst on a treadmill.

and THEN do the sauv blanc/popcorn/couch thing. ya heard?
GO VOTE!

11.03.2008

fallin'

i love...


...setting the clocks back

...the chilly chill of the fall air

...dressing my dogs up in playboy costumes

11.02.2008

once upon a time.

one year ago, i ran a damn marathon. it was one of the coolest, most painful things i've ever done.

today, i ran 10 miles and realized knee pain just 8 miles into my run. i thought to myself, self, ain't it GREAT that we don't have to run 26+ miles today? and myself said, HELLZ YAH, dude.

so anyway.

after my run, we headed over to the bro & sis-in-law's house. we drank bloody marys, ate ahi tuna burgers and watched the vikings rough up the texans.

i have to say it was a good day.

in other news: fall has FINALLY arrived in LA. thank you cold weather gods, you make me smile.

11.01.2008

it's national blogging month, something or other.

so here begins the attempt to post one-a-day for a monthski.

today's entry is brought to you by douche-duds. you may be asking yourself, what, pray you, are DOUCHE-DUDS, ruby? pray tell!?

aaron and i decided, whilst watching a douche walk by us on la cienega / beverly today with designer duds on, that we shall hereforth call such duds by the name from which they originate. because, it causes us great pondering. when we see dudes dressed from HEAD to TOE in OBNOXIOUS designer clothes (aka ED HARDY) that there are a few things going on.

1. if this dude is wearing designer clothes, he has money
2. a dude with money likes to show off
3. an unintelligent dude with money might think wearing obnoxious, but obviously expensive, clothing will make "a statement"
4. this dude is a douche.

henceforth, DOUCHE DUDS.

ya heard?

10.27.2008

I'm a winner


Last Thursday I took part in one of the most awesomest experiences of my life: The Hall & Partners Charity Treasure Hunt. Our company actually sent two teams this year – we were the “’Vestigators” and the other team was “The Drunken Hellfish.”

The event was described to us as “the Amazing Race” meets “Road Rules,” but it only takes place in one location. Last year it was Venice Beach, this year it was the streets of Hollywood.

To get an idea of what it was like, check out this photostream from one of the teams here

If you know me AT ALL, then you know how much I want to be on Survivor and/or the Amazing Race. But since neither of those audition attempts have panned out, this was the Next Best Thing. And the best thing about a huge puzzle-solving race?

WINNING.

I am pleased to report that this year’s race winner was THE VESTIGATORS. We ran a tough race and were in 3rd place for most of the event. However, we pulled through in the end with a little luck, grit and sheer perseverance and were, therefore, declared the winners.

Yes, it does feel good to be the best.

VESTIGATORS! Mount up.


And here was our logo:






10.08.2008

fall it to me.

i love fall. mostly, because i love chicken wings and football, and this is the best time of year for both of those things, but i also like a slight chill in the air. you know, like in the lower 60s. ahhh yes. that's like heaven to me.

so can someone please 'xplain to me why we keep having these mini-heat waves in LA? i'm just kind of over summer, already. time to move along into the mild, temperate breeziness of fall, ya'll. perhaps it has something to do with... wait for it... global warming? maybe? which, to quote tina fey as sarah palin "is perhaps just part of the end of days." mwahahahaha.

anyway, i know people in the frozen tundra of minnesota are probably all like, STFU, already, ruby. because you know it will be 40 below in just a matter of minutes up there. and i'm sorry about that. truly. and hey, i'm sorry you still live there and that i escaped the icy grip of the northern clutches, but you know, there's plenty of room in LA and it's really cheap to live here. nope, actually, no there isn't and no it's not. sorry about that.

where were we?

ahhhh yessss. fall. so the thing REALLY that is keeping me up at night in a feverish sweat BESIDES the hot heat, is a hearty desire to switch into my warmzies for fall. you know, the clothes in the closet that only make appearances when the thermometer drops. i touch them now and again. i feel their furry threads and wooly wools and imagine myself bundling up in a wrap and some knee-high leather boots. i long for the days when i can wear a "sweater" but without actually "sweating." then, of course there's a whole rack of sweet, fuzzy scarves that are BEGGING to be worn, but i fear my neck meat will suffer if i don them at this time.

alas.

it will have to wait.

*sweats*

9.30.2008

so.

aaron's been back just over a week now. I flew us to SF for the weekend to celebrate his birthday, which meant he was still nursing his jetlag hangover while we were there. no worries, though. it just meant that we had lovely, lingering dinners sans nightlife, but full, full days and we took complete advantage of a GORGEOUS 'frisco weekend.

he's shifted, some. but not as much as his cryptic emails sent from "weird" laptops would have led me to believe. whenever someone travels outside the US, their world gets smaller. and now he has friends from all over the world that might someday come visit us. but he's the same, just a little more appreciative of what the world has to offer, and conversely, what he truly appreciates about America.

so.

there you have it. we haven't really had time to pause and take it all in, but we did have a beautiful weekend to celebrate his birth anniversary and maybe, soon, I can share some of his pics. because they're awesome, that's why.

9.11.2008

aw, just some thangs.

^jim morrison's grave^
by aaron

thing 1. it's 10:52 PST, which means it's just about 7:52am(?) in Paris. Aaron will probably wake up in a few hours smelling like french wine and will get ready to leave Paris and enter Bruges. He's on a search for "gay beer" whilst there, and hopefully you've seen in bruges and you know EXACTLY what I'm talking about. if not, go see now, please.

thing 2. EXACTLY as I was writing about my husband, his face came on TV. he's in a new Land Rover commercial and they've been playing the ever-living shit out of it. which is awesome. because in the land of national commercials, it's pay for play, baby, pay for play. (I'm not sure if that's actually true, it just sounds awesome)

thing 3. I have a lady-date with my sister-in-law tomorrow night. I think we're going to do sushi. *that WHOLE ENTIRE thing sounded wrong, didn't it?*

thing 4. I just watched Priveleged and I think? so far it's my favorite new show of the new season! Even better than *gasp* FRINGE!? OK, maybe I'm drunk?

thing 5. I have to go to the dentist tomorrow for a routine cleaning. While there, I'm going to schedule an appointment to have two wisdom teeth pulled. I'm SUPER excited.

thing 6. I learned how to surf last weekend. It was totes gnar-gnar, dude. I was actually much better at it than I expected. I credit being short and practicing yoga. Rad.

thing 7. Since Aaron left on Tuesday, I've watched: Fringe, The Hills, Gossip Girl, Priveleged, America's Next Top Model, Million Dollar Listing, Runway, 90210 (premiere ep & ep #2) & Real World/Road Rules Challenge. OH yeah, and two episodes of Big Brother 10. How is it humanly possible to watch that much TV in three nights? Skills, baby, skills.

ps. GO RENEGADE! YEAH!

pps. Aaron? HURRY BACK. but first? enjoy bruges, switzerland, berlin and amsterdam. but then HURRY BACK.

xoxo

9.03.2008

making food, not war

In light of the Massive Rioting happening in my home sweet hometown(s) of MPLS/ST.PAUL, I texted my little (psuedo-anarchist / chef) brother yesterday and the convo went a little something like this:

RUBY: are you involved in the great riots of '08 up there
RANON: too busy making breakfast lunch and dinner for jim lehrer and daily show cast and crews. 150 people each. 7 days. working round the clock. BRUTAL.
RUBY: Aw, i love ya little bro
RUBY: and also pls say hi to jon stewart for me. xoxoxoxo
RANON: thanks sis! Love you too! I'll send the message

I'm so proud.

totes funical

ruby: that will be funical
jason: huh?
ruby: fun and whimsical
ruby: all in one
jason: ah
jason: one of your made up words
jason: gotcha

9.02.2008

Throwaway Panties.

aaron is less than a week away from an epic adventure to europe and the shizz is starting to get crazy up in our crib.

i don't want to brag or anything, but i've flown across the pond THREE WHOLE TIMES in my life, which makes me somewhat of an expert jet-setting type of person. not really, but let's pretend. aaron has a very sad, empty passport which bears no stamps, not even one. which translates to: aaron has really never left the country. unless you count those trips to tijuana, and really, you'd have to remember them to count them. am i right? am i right? haw!

so, he's doing the backpacking thingfor TWO WHOLE WEEKS, which requires resourcefulness and the ability to live like a hermit crab for quite a bit of time. he keeps coming up with these, um, "ideas" ...

  • I'm going to buy underpants, and then throw them away! So that I don't have to wash them! [ok to be fair, he doesn't call them underpants. but i think it sounds funny, so I do. but really. buying underpants just to throw them away so that you don't have to wash them. it just makes me ponder.]
  • I only need one pair of pants, right? [i. would. die.]
  • I only need one pair of shoes, right? [see above]
  • I think I need a red shirt. Yeah, a red v-neck t-shirt. *smiles contentedly* [I'm still trying to figure out the significance of this one.]
  • My plane ticket is around $700. But the Euro Pass is $800. I must have. [ok so this one actually makes some sort of weird sense. But please don't get me started on the whole search & find process for said Euro Pass]

and so on. it's gotten to the point that i brace myself each day as i head home for the next "big thing" for his trip. i wonder if today will be WHAT SIZE BAGGIES DO I NEED TO BRING DAY? and such.

in reality, it's quite adorable how excited he is. and also? it's pretty awesome that he is going to see paris, bruges, switzerland and who knows how many other locations in his 2-week adventure. because part of the fun is having the Euro Pass so he and Eddie can Go Anywhere, and make the train their home. There's all sorts of other Weird & Crazy things going into this trip, but don't get me started on the COUCH SURFING experiment. I mean, like whoa.

Stay tuned for What Kind of Deodorant Aaron is Going to Pack... (i kid, honey.) smooches!

8.20.2008

words i really like.



I'm pretty sure I made these all up, or at least i've convinced myself as such, so whether or not I actually did, I think I did and that makes it so.




Cogito ergo sum.




1. EXSQUELLENT. actually, I think my sister-in-law, Dilla, made this up. the best context for this particular word is when you are planning something diabolical in nature. Just creepily put your fingers together a la Mr. Burns and let the word rollll off your tongue. EXXXXXSQULLLLLLLEEEENNNNNNNTTTT. see? AWESOME.





2. SQUIDICULOUS. This word is squidiculous. I think I "made it up" one time after a weekend at a beach house in San Diego. We were young and had the tolerance of Clydesdales. Or at least we thought we did. There are fuzzy memories (AND PICS!) of me doing "interpretive dance" and I remember scraping marshmellows or a similarly sticky substance off the wall after a particularly intense food fight. At any rate, a weekend like that couldn't JUST be described as "ridiculous," and appropriately SQUIDICULOUS was born. Now I just use it around people I don't know very well. That, coupled with the phrase "I'm going to make like a baby... and head out" usually charms the pants off of people.


3. SQUIGGLESWORTH. This is just part of Camus' formal name. Mr. Squigglesworth McGillicudy Bear. Just makes me smile to say it.



What awesome words are you rocking these days?

8.16.2008

how do you define ADDICTED?


well, let's see . in just 24 hours i've watched the olympics in the following locations:


  1. my house

  2. el guapo cantina

  3. my house

  4. the gym

  5. my house

  6. tina's nails

  7. my house

  8. fat fish

  9. my house

  10. my house

really? i mean REALLY?


but...


so much awesome i can barely stands it.



thoughts:



  1. watching michael phelps win a gold medal by 1/100th of a second is MUCHO ENJOYABLE whilst sipping a vanilla vodka soda in a bar full of people

  2. as much as I wanted to make fun of trampoline, it was actually quite enjoyable watching it with my korean pedicurist. she was way into it! hee!

  3. four years ago, i watched the women's marathon whilst on the treadmill. i remember thinking AMAZING, i will NEVER do that as i ran 7 miles (which was a LOT at the time.)

  4. NOW? i can't believe i actually watched the entire women's marathon (almost 2.5 hours!!!). but you know? once you've actually run one, you can actually kinda sorta a little bit relate? but not really. shit. 6-minute miles? INSANE.

  5. watching michael phelps' 8th gold medal race was as much fun as you could imagine, and then some. brought to you by a contact high from my pot-smoking neighbors coupled with a nice french bordeaux.

  6. anyway.

A-D-D-I-C-T-E-D



8.07.2008

10 cool things i've done recently

  1. rented a giant house in the desert with a pool and jacuzzi over the weekend
  2. had a late-night belly flop contest in said pool ( i lost, or i won, depending on how you view it)
  3. created an M.I.A - Paper Planes station on pandora (IT ROCKS)
  4. lined up plans to see "pineapple express" at the arclight tomorrow night (btw, pineapple express inspired the pandora station)
  5. booked one more [unmentionable] item in preparation for aaron's big surprise bday weekend (hi aaron!)
  6. got interviewed for a legitimate research project about my blogging habits and got $paid$ for it
  7. tried a new "DOWN LOW CARDIO*" class last night that involved LOTS OF JUMPING ROPE INTERVALS (i can't remember the last time i jumped a rope? dude! it's HARD)
  8. followed the super hard 45 minute "DOWN LOW CARDIO" class with 1.25 hours of YOGA which combined for 2 hours of good gym time last night (um, sore much?)
  9. got a lot closer to booking a business trip to atlanta (HOTLANTA, if you ask me)
  10. confirmed plans for a two-hour private bachelorette-flavored session at the S Factor

what COOL things have YOU done lately?

*don't get any dirrty ideas, you

the olympics are coming!!!

i've been trying to be cool about my olympics excitement. just like, oh yeah, the olympics, whatevs. but the secret truth is i'm so excited i can barely stand it! in preparation for the upcoming games, i've decided to dig into the dusty vault for a few choice olympic memories.

wellll let's see.. there was the time i missed my 6am flight to minnesota in summer '04. aaron had gone ahead of me, so i was left to my own devices (never a good thing). i was OBSESSED with gymnastics, particularly the MEN'S GYMNASTICS. even more specifically, this guy. (sorry aaron). anyway! the night before my early flight to MN, i cleaned, packed and got everything in order so i wouldn't have to do anything in the morning. just jump in cab. GO. i settled in with a bottle of wine and the remote and maybe it was like some super important event, like the FINALS OF MEN'S GYMNASTICS. all i really know is that what i originally MEANT to be a glass or two of wine ended up being THE WHOLE BOTTLE. and suddenly, i just remember waking up thinking OH SHIIIIIIIIIIIZ. i missed my flight.

the best part, though, was explaining to my family why i would be arriving several hours later than i originally planned. heh.

there was another time, when aaron and i "went" to the ' 02 winter olympics in Salt Lake City. really? i was there for work. we were promoting NESCAFE COFFEE and i was there to make sure all of our promotions and media efforts were successful. i had visions of partying with people from ALLLL over the world, but in reality, no one was really "partying" in SLC. sure, they relaxed some of the strict drinking laws to make it a little more visitor-friendly, but it was still pretty lame overall as a "scene." there was one night we found a totally white trash hole-in-the-wall place and had some stronger than average drinks and some of the "crazy party animals", but the party seemed to wind down before it really even got started, and everyone had scattered by midnight to get some sleep to be up early to take in the next day's events. meh.

oh also? the Mormons aren't fans of people pushing coffee, as they are against caffeine as well. so we got a lot of dirty looks and stares as we promoted our delicious "frothe" drink. WHATEVS, SLC.

anyway, i have no idea what's going on or when, but i can assure you, it's about to get olympic up in our place. ya heard?

7.31.2008

katy perry me.






ruby: in 24 hours i will be in a pool in the desert
ruby: i keep thinking this

tenna: lucky bitch
ruby: yes.
tenna: I would have you
tenna: if I didn't love you
tenna: have=hate
ruby: uh oh
ruby: are you getting all katy perry on me again
ruby: i would have you to
ruby: but im not GAY

tenna: ok, did you hear that laughter
ruby: yes
tenna: cause I snorted
ruby: totally dude
ruby: loves it

tenna: yeah dude, Im not INTO you like that
ruby: i cant stop laughing
ruby: i know but it's fun for IM

tenna: "getting all katy perry" on me
tenna: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA



Shakey and The Bandit

I don't know. It's been a wild, weird week. I don't feel good AT ALL today. I'm guessing the sad excuse for "spicy chicken wings" and the MOJO potatoes I ate at SHAKEY'S PIZZA last night didn't help much. Nor did the "salad bar" I sampled. No, none of that made me feel "good." But moreso, I'm thinking four glasses of cheap wine are actually more of a culprit than anything else.

Shakeys.

It was a surprise party for my friend Johnny. They mispelled his name on the sign outside the restaurant so it said HAPPY BIRTHDAY JHONNY. How hard can it be, you know? But obviously we weren't dealing with spelling bee champions at this joint.

Anyway.

Murder, earthquakes and Shakey's aside, today is actually FRIDAY for me and we are renting a house in palm springs for the weekend starting: tomorrow.

I'm 18 different varieties of excited.

Saltwater pool in the hot heat of the desert.... TAKE ME AWAAAAAYYYYY.

7.29.2008

just got ROCKED

...by a 5.8 quake!. my office is on the 13th floor (right? how awesome) so it felt pretty damn intense.


whoa, dude.


In other news,a woman got stabbed to death across the street from my gym last night while I was zenning out in yoga class. I exited the gym to see a ton of cop cars and tons of people milling outside the parking structure. I thought, huh, now that's odd. Later, on the news, I saw why.

SO SCARY.

Let's just say my nerves are a little shot at the moment.

Just a little.

7.22.2008

big brothering.

i have to preserve my "initial" thoughts on the houseguests for a quick moment because, as always, these will probably change 1,000,000 times before the end of the season. why? because big brother is a manipulative mutha effer, that's why.

favoriteses so far:
  1. steven the gay cowboy: giddy up
  2. suprisingly not a bimbo keesha: has a little something going on
  3. old man jerry: why not
  4. asian sensation angie: self-proclaimed, asian sensation, mindya
  5. sinister catholic school teacher dan: hee
  6. memphis: has some depth to uncover, potentially

kinda like meh:

  1. michelle eh meh
  2. ollie kind of annoying, but kind of has a little game going on

totally on the hate train:

  1. jessie "the body": i think he's actually playing a decent game, i just CANNOT stand him
  2. april: just, ew
  3. libra: shut up already
  4. renny: just bleh

missing already:

  1. "i wanna be like will" brian - blew his wad too early, but showed some promise

watch this space. i guarantee my opinions will shift dramatically...

kthxbai.

watch "the cleaner" tonight on A&E 10/9c

Aaron's playing the role of SPYDER.

Watch out, suckas!

Or, check it out later on A&E


Yay, AARON!


7.14.2008

i knew i wouldn't like kansas

dear marriott of overland park, kansas:

i really, really wanted to like you. i had this VERY VERY awesome plan, see. and here it was. I WANT TO EMPHASIS THE PAST TENSE OF THIS PLAN. i was to arrive tonight (as i did). i had a plan of room service and a glass of vino. then! i would wake up whenever the hell i felt like it, go for a run, then lounge by the pool in 93-degree heat until 11am CST which would translate to 9am PST. that would have been awesome, right? then i would have showered, done some work and then gone around the corner to facilitate focus groups. i guess that's why i'm here, anyway.

BUT.

when i checked in, your front desk person had some bad news! no water in the WHOLE ENTIRE HOTEL after 9a tomorrow because a water main or somesuch thing burst. and it won't be back on for ohhhh 4-5 HOURS. and he said, "will it be a problem for you to complete your showering, etc. by that time?" YES IT WILL BE A PROBLEM BECAUSE NOW I HAVE TO BE DONE SHOWERING BY 9AM. this means NO POOL TIME, MUTHA EFFERS! @$*&^!$!&($^(.

AND THEN!

i checked into my room and it smells funny. like sweat socks. oh and also? everything is under construction. like the whole facade of the hotel (so i drove by it like, oh three times trying to find it) and the whole parking lot.

eff you, marriott of overland park, kansas. eff you!

so, anyway. the night isn't a total loss. your "pitchers" sports bar downstairs makes some REALLY delicious chicken wings. and you have a decent wine selection. also, i just finished watching the season premiere of BIG BROTHER 10 on cbs.com. and that makes me happy. so again, all is not lost.


so i hate you, still. but maybe we can find a way to be friends.

sincerely,
the girl who likes chicken wings and sauvingnon blanc and really, really wanted some pool time in the 93-degree heat tomorrow. but whatever. i guess i will just WORK all day long.

7.10.2008

harshing my vibe.

saturday night is a private premiere screening of the short film that aaron starred in and eddie produced/directed over the past year. aaron and i haven't seen ANY of it, and apparently it's really good, according to the 9 billion other people who eddie sneak peeked it to.. so, pure excitement for the FIRST SCREENING of it for us.


it will be followed by a lovely little soiree at the belmont cafe with eddie's family and the cast & crew. yay! i loves it.


in other news.. aaron's guest stint as SPYDER on "the cleaner" will air on july 29th on A&E. so mark your tivos! and all that noise!


a lot of really great stuff happened over the 4th of july extended weekend, but it was too lazy to write it all out, so i made like a flowchart of it? i am 100% certifed dork.




so. um. that weekend was fun. a lot of happy hours, a lot of working out, a lot of eating and a lot of pampering.


*i should note that "In Bruges!" means that we WATCHED "In Bruges" for the 2nd time and then spent maaaaybe a few hours watching behind the scenes. holy shitballs, that movie is amazing.


last night i went to a yoga class that i haven't been to yet and the OLD schedule said it started at 7:15p so I thought, hey! I'll go at 6:45 and get a nice little run in before. EXCEPT! the schedule changed on july 1st and so now the class starts at 6:45! so imagine my surprise when I saw all the people with mats rolling into class just as I was jumping on the treadmill. anyway! it worked out well, and instead of the class being 1.0 hours it was 1.25. BAM! and now i'm centered.


there's more to the yoga story, like how one girl arrived 40-odd minutes late and kept texting someone IN THE MIDDLE OF VINYASA sets. but um, no THAT'S NOT TOTALLY RUDE OR ANYTHING. not to mention that she TOTALLY HARSHED MY VIBE by setting up her mat directly between me and the mirror. damnit. how am i supposed to correct my ill-aligned warrior pose with your stupidtextingface in front of my view? HARSHING MY VIBE!!!!!


but oh well.


aaron and i were going to go wine-free for Mon, Tues & Wed so that we could drain out some of the built up wine from the weekend... but... wouldn't you know it. on tuesday night as I settled into the coolest booth at big wangs, i couldn't help but order (2) $6 glasses of vino to wash down my (11) 25 cent wings.


and so it goes.


tonight we will find ourselves at a picnic area outside the hollywood bowl sampling foods from these fine vendors:


Asahi Beer
Bravo Cucina
Bravo Pizzeria
Chakra Indian Cuisine
Cobblestone Vineyards
Coca-Cola, Co.
Dandy Don's (Ice Cream Sundaes)
Evian Water
Full Throttle Energy Drink
Glowelle
Hama Sushi
Hansen's Sparkling Juice Bar
i.Cugini
John & Pete's Fine Wine and Spirits
Nestea Products
Neutrogena Corporation
Ocean Avenue Seafood
Primitivo Wine Bistro


and then we will mosey into the bowl and just after the sun sets, we will settle in to listen to:


Symphonie Fantastique by the Los Angeles Philharmonic conducted by Bramwell Tovey.



Ahhh summmer.


6.29.2008

i can haz?

when liana informed aaron and i that she had already purchased our tickets to lucha vavoom on june 26th (see previous entry), it only took me moments to log into our time & attendance system at work, request the 27th off as one of my 4 "summer fridays" and then pat myself on the back for being so clever.


so clever.


so thursday night was 10 of us at the mexican wrestling event (also featuring mostly naked "ladies") in honor of tal's birthday. it was mostly awesome and probably the most random thing i've ever seen. i wouldn't even know where to begin describing it, so hopefully the pics do the job.


aaron and i rolled in around midnight that evening and sat back and some vino and caught up on SWINGTOWN, which i still can't decide if i actually like it, or if i'm just watching it for the train wreck factor. we relaxed with the knowledge that neither of us had to wake up early the next day, and it was delicious.


friday brought a nice little stint at the gym followed by... what else... MASSAGES! after we turned ourselves into MUSH, we decided to hit up the usual FATTY HOUR at fat fish. yummm. i had a nice little wine buzz as we walked outside around 7ish and it was still blazingly sunny out. so then! we decided... let's go car shopping! hell, why not.


the thing is, actually, that time was of the essence. my car was at 73500 miles and it was just about due for over $4000 in services that frankly, DO NOT WANT TO BUY. but car needed. so instead! we decided to unload the car. but! they said i was upside down in my financing situation. MUTHA F*CKERS! so we walked out of the dealership, well, drove out, in my sad little broked down 2001 audi.


sad. but oh well. went home drank a glass of wine. passed out. game over.


saturday morning brought: 4 mile run followed by intense power sculpt class. sweat dripping, muscles flexing, face growling. followed by shower time and then? applied lip gloss, jumped into high heels and off we went to catch the 2:40p showing of WANTED. but first! afternoon glass of vino and some salad with chinese chicken at the arclight restaurant. sitting pimp-style in the big booth.


I CAN HAZ ANGELINA JOLIE'S SEX APPEAL? DO WANT! man. i loved it so much. i described it this way to anyone who would listen "IT'S LIKE FIGHT CLUB MEETS MATRIX! BUT! ONLY THE BEST PARTS OF FIGHT CLUB! BUT WITH NONE OF THE BAD PARTS OF MATRIX!" during the movie, one whole JUMBO GINORMOUS BOX of junior mints disappeared. later discovered? in our bellies.


after the HIGH OCTANE DELICIOUSNESS that was jolie & mcavoy (loves him), we decided: OKAY. let's go BACK TO AUDI AND MAKE SOMETHING HAPPEN.


and thusly and therefore, i rolled out of there in a DOLPHIN GREY 2005 audi a4 with XM radio, 6 disc changer, quatro, 1.8 something or other and BOSE sound system. now aaron and i have the following cars:


1. 2005 SILVER audi a4 2.0 quatro


2. 2005 DOLPHIN GRAY audi a4 1.8 quatro


additionally, i now owe AUDI my first born child and $1,000,000 in financing fees. oh well.


so then! to celebrate we headed out to 3rd Stop pub & restaurant and we ate and drank hurrah! we also made friends with the head chef and will come back more, because he was pretty awesome.

the night ended with me sleeping like a baby on the couch while aaron watched SUPER HIGH ME.


AND SO FINALLY. today arrived. with it came (1) 11-mile run AND THEN!

(8) chicken wings in my belly

(2) $4 bloody marys from the bloody mar bar at BIG WANGS

(1) taro-flavored yogurt from snowpod with chopped up mochis on top and

(1) bare burrtio from baja fresh.

so much for burning calories.


there was also target, bevmo and assorted other shenanigans in the mix. but i don't want to bore you... oh wait.... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz i've gone and bored myself.



kthxbai.


6.27.2008

what i did last night.

{CLICK THUMBNAILS FOR LARGER PICS}
LUCHA VAVOOOM!
the crazy luchadors arriving outside the mayan










my personal favorite:
THE CRAZY CHICKENS!
especially the LITTLE CHICKEN!



looks like a dream i had one time.
and by dream i mean NIGHTMARE?

CHUPACABRA!




these b*tches clearly know how to party

CHUPAAAAACABRAAAA!

da boyz.




CHICKENS!!!!!!!



way too much fun for a thursday night...


god bless trannies.



let's just say I'm really happy I took today off.
and leave it there.
the end.
ps. i accidentally didn't take pictures of the strippers. maybe? next time.