6th Concert of 2008: Tidal Wave, Day 2

So I probably don’t strike you as someone who would sit in the sun all day and have her ears assaulted by heavy guitars and blast beat drums. And you’re right. Not exactly my usual haunt. But I’m always open to new adventures, especially when they’re free.

The boy, on the other hand, is very into metal. So I decided, after hearing about it for two years, to get down to McLaren on July 6th and hear the following bands (for free!):

Embryonic Devourment
Agenda of Swine
Fog of War
Saros
Ludicra

Man, metal band names make me giggle.

It was a nice day. The weather was perfect, there was food and beer and good company (my favorite boy, Brandi and her wonderful kidlet, Brandi’s gruff-looking but totally nice friends, and Nomi and Joseph swung by as well).  I won’t write too much about the bands themselves, but I am a self-professed idiot when it comes to this musical genre. Let’s just say that, to my ears, the bands improved as the day wore on, though I think I liked Fog of War the best. Which I think means I’m into thrash? I have no idea.

All I’m saying is I’m not opposed to showing up again next year. Did I mention it was free?

AIDSwalk 2008 – We Made It!

AIDSwalk 2008 – Me & Tina, originally uploaded by maceelaine.

(As if there were any doubt)

The walk was fantastic; the weather was perfect (overcast but not cold). The company was the best (I love Tina, Will and Jason). And we raised 4.5 MILLION dollars for SF AIDS Foundation. I personally raised $1220, and that’s without the company matching my generous coworker’s donations, which should be processed soon.

I’ve thanked almost everyone, but I just can’t seem to stop. Thanks again to all the people who helped me reach my goal, and gave to a fantastic organization. And now you’re spared my nagging for another 11 months!

Caving into Coke

So today I caved. I had worked at a Girl Scout Day Camp* in the morning. Then lunched with my mother, then dragged my butt into work. Sitting at my desk, all I could do was stare at a computer screen while time ticked by and I felt worse and worse about the large amount of work I still needed to do in lab. I was so wiped out, I was ready to just put my head on my desk and cry and nap at the same time. I knew a simple solution, but was trying SO HARD not to buckle.

I swallowed my pride with that Coca-Cola.

But I’ve gotten through 75% of my work, and while I still have at least forty five minutes to go, I know that I can make it through. I’m a little disappointed in myself, but I’d be more disappointed if I shirked my responsibilities.

Unrelated: someone ended up this blog by searching for “be a badass.” This is the best thing I’ve seen all day.

* Details on that later.

Only five days left until AIDSwalk

I’m sure most of you, my readers, have gotten at LEAST two emails from me about my favorite charity event, the San Francisco AIDSwalk. It’s the only time of year I ask people I know for money, and though I’ve been pretty bad this year about returning the favor (procrastination, mostly, not apathy), it would mean a lot to me to get your donations.

Living where I live (not only in San Francisco, but on the edge of the Castro), AIDS is still a very prominent problem and concern. So far it’s avoidable, but not curable. I believe in the programs this walk supports. I believe they can make a difference. And I believe that you are willing to help.

Sure, my part is small. I just take a lovely walk through Golden Gate park with some of my favorite people. What’s impressive about the walk itself is how many people show up. That means something. It means that every person there wants to make a change for the community, for the country, for the world. And that moves me. I love looking at the pictures of the hordes of people. I get a little teary.

So, yes. Please support the San Francisco AIDS Foundation (and a host of other worthwhile groups) and make a donation. You can even donate through Paypal! If online isn’t your thing, contact me personally and we can work something out. Or, even better, you can come walk with us. It would mean a lot to me, and also to my community. Thank you.

A year ago, um, July 8th

Trevor, originally uploaded by maceelaine.

The last in a series of posts that make most people want to throw up a little. And this one is late. DAMN ME.

Trevor and I had been hanging out a lot. I’d been finding various reasons to go over to his house (thank goodness I knew two of his roommates). There were a lot of hanging out in groups, eating, watching TV and playing games, and then long makeout sessions by/on my car before I left. I sometimes imagined this was how normal teenagers probably did it back in the day. (Not me, so much.)

So we’d been hanging out for three weeks and realized we’d never been on an official date. So we decided to get sandwiches and enjoy the free music of the SF Symphony over at Stern Grove. And while we weren’t alone (we were lucky that Liane and Carla got there early and got us choice blanket space), it was the first time we weren’t surrounded by his roommates. We ate our sandwiches and enjoyed the music*. I had at least 2/3 if not 3/4 of a bottle of wine, which made me quite sleepy. In fact, the Mozart piece in the second half was VERY relaxing. I was sitting behind Trevor at that point, and I just leaned forward, resting my forehead on his back. And completely nodded off for at least 10 minutes.

Having drank said amount of wine, we were obligated to hang out in the park for quite some time. Luckily we still had the blanket, and it was a beautiful day, so we relaxed and talked about very serious things. After a few hours, having regained my sobriety, we headed back over to his house, where I got my very first taste of Ethiopian jazz and food, both of which have become favorites.

Alright, enough of the squish. Back to random facts about me, my house, and Poop Magazine.

More Nightime Adventures

I had a dream where I bought some chocolate and vanilla swirl frozen yogurt and put strawberries on it. Seriously, that was the whole dream. I guess the big drama point was that the lady put it on a cone instead of a bowl, but corrected it when I pointed it out. FASCINATING.

However, earlier that same night, when Trevor turned out the light in my bedroom, the following exchange took place:
Me: Baby, it sure is dark in here.
Trevor: I turned off the light.
M: Well, I guess I shouldn’t have canceled my subscription to Poop Magazine then.
T: … What?
M: It made sense in my head.

He tells me this over dinner the next day and I laugh so hard I cry for at least five minutes and the wait staff looks a little panicked.

Dear Diamond Heights Safeway

You are superior in every way to the Castro Safeway*. Specifically, when I was done shopping, I immediately got in line and checked out. SWEET. Will you be my Safeway boyfriend?

Thanks,

Mace

*Except in terms of people watching. The DH Safeway is full of people with families or people discussing people they knew in common in high school.

5th Concert of 2008 – Stevie Wonder!

Mace and Trevor at Stevie, originally uploaded by mizsarah.

As my (early) birthday gift, Trevor took me to see Stevie Wonder at Shoreline on Saturday, July 5th. Sarah and Gabe joined us as well.

I keep saying I’m never returning to Shoreline, but I keep getting pulled back. After the Bjork disappointment*, I swore my rear would never touch the grass. But the four pack of tickets was such a good deal, and it was STEVIE WONDER. How could we not go?

The set was fantastic. Sure, there were a lot of unfamiliar songs, but there were also plenty of sing-a-longs. He ripped through a bunch of hits right near the end, including my favorite of his songs, “For Once In My Life.”** The band was tight, and Stevie just radiates joy when he sings.

And oh, the food. Both couples brought a ton of food for a picnic on the grass before the show. There was cheese, pate, bread, olives, shrimp, broccoli salad, pickles, and more and more. And cookies and cherries and truffles for dessert. I rolled out of that place. I adore eating with Sarah. She knows food and loves to share. Fantastique!

It was an excellent night. I was the people I was always jealous of, for once in my life.

* Which was disappointing because I could not at all see the stage, not because it wasn’t a good show.
** I’ll admit it; I cried a little. I was there with my boyfriend, listening to a song that always makes me think of him, and OH GOD WHEN DID I BECOME THIS CREAMPUFF? I am infected; please shoot me in the head.

July is hard

So I never realized how much caffeine I consume. When I really sat and thought about it (and I did), I had a cup of coffee in the morning, and a soda some time in the afternoon, either with lunch or in that lull around three in the afternoon. It really doesn’t seem like that much, but yet once I stopped I HAD A HEADACHE FOR THREE DAYS STRAIGHT. Ouch. Nothing major, but just enough to be a near constant annoyance. Luckily it’s now gone, as is the complete zombie feeling that went with the first two days. I’m almost glad the Styx concert was rescheduled, because it was on day 2 and I don’t know if I would have made it through.

We got all the way to Saratoga before finding it out that Styx had been rescheduled, as the renovations to the Mountain Winery were behind schedule. I had just been on the winery’s site that day, making sure my directions were correct, and I must have completely missed the notification about the delay. You’d think they’d have it in big yellow and red letters on every page. Now I have to wait until September to get my Styx fix. Ha.

2008, the year without: July!

I would say the month without a credit card was a rousing success. It’s nice to know that I can survive, hell throw a HUGE ASS PARTY, using only cash. It just meant that I usually had large sums of money on my person, which tends to make me nervous. But sometimes I would keep different amounts in different wallets. I think in the future I’d like to use my credit card for large purchases, and maybe gas (which I guess IS a large purpose nowadays), and try to use cash more.

So July is going to be double duty. First off, I’m tackling something that I’ve become rather dependent on in the last few months: caffeine. I could easily blame the late-night boyfriend for this one, but the truth is, I’m a big girl and I can go to bed whenever I want. I just don’t. There’s also the whole enjoyment of coffee in the morning for me: I come to work, I get my coffee, I sit and read my email and news. This morning I tried it with herbal mint tea. This may work. The big test will be about three in the afternoon, when I usually have a soda when times are rough. It’s really too bad that most caffeine free sodas make me gag (except for root beer. Damn, now I want a root beer).

As for the second bit, it’s something I’ve lifted from kfan. I’ve had a long standing rule about televisions, phones and computers in bedrooms, but recently, they’ve snuck in. I think someone might call before I fall asleep, I leave my cell phone on my nightstand. I’ve taken to watching Venture Brothers tucked in, and my laptop is found on the floor next to the bed more nights that I can count. This is NOT helping me sleep. I stay up late, saying “Oh, I’ll just check this one more time” or “I’ll just play one more round of Scramble.*”

So, to sum up, July is the month without caffeine and the laptop in my bedroom.**
* This is nearing a serious addiction. I’m serious.
** There is an exception. I really mean this on school nights. Trevor and I have a long-standing tradition of watching Infomania in bed together on Friday nights. I’m not willing to sacrifice that. But not during weeknights!