Spotlight on Crypto-History (I was an extra!)

Hey There:

Over the weekend I participated in the taping of an indie project as an extra. As opposed to my participation in the taping of TLC's Randy to the Rescue, this time I had some camera time!

The film shoot was for a web series called "Spotlight on Crypto-History", in it the main character - Mark O'Bannon, author of The Dream Crystal - interviews people from the past. In this particular scene, he was about to interview George Washington Carver - portrayed by Extreme Rahim -  when an explosion interrupts everything!

My job was to be in the audience, scream, duck and cover my head because of the imaginary bomb. In this part of the scene only the back of my head was shot. Once that part was done, the director, Jimmy Diggs, writer of several episodes of Star Trek Deep Space Nine and Voyager, decided I should be in front of the camera.  I got on stage, kneeled next to George Washington Carver and my instructions were to fan him and check if he was alive. While two other actresses where crying over Mark's inert body.

Another scene shoot that same day was between the bad guys, who planted the bomb. This scene was shot in the alley behind Lestat's. In these pics the director, Jimmy Diggs, is giving the actors instructions about the scene.

"Spotlight on Crypto-History" is a web-series meant to promote the main project "HMS-Victory", a steampunk style story that involves important characters from the past, like Madame Curie and George Washington Carver, time travel and many more things the creators don't want me to reveal!

This project has been written, filmed and cast right at Lestat's Coffee House (3343 Adams Avenue, San Diego, CA 92116). I've seen countless production meetings, plot discussions and "Hey! You wanna be in a movie?".

The goal of having the web series is to create and audience and then launch a Kickstarter project to get funding for "HMS-Victory". As the website links are available I'll update this blog post, in the mean time you can see updates through Jimmy Digg's Faecebook page.

Afternoon Tea Party

Hey There:

Over the weekend I hosted an Afternoon Tea meetup event for the Geek Girls of San Diego. The original idea was to drink proper British tea in dainty flowery cups, sugar cubes, scones and have a nice conversation. In reality, we did all those things, except drink hot tea!

I have a one bedroom apartment and using every single chair-like thing around my place I could seat 15 people, spaced out between my living room and patio. I put up a make-shift canopy on my patio to guard against the sun and planned to have a fan too.

The day of the event - middle of August - was hot and muggy and I made the huge mistake of not editing the RSVP settings, so before I knew it, I had 18 people RSVP to the event! The day before the event I did warn them we would be playing magical chairs, what I didn't know then is that we would ALL be in my living room....forget the patio! Too hot!!

We had a great selection of pastries, while some were store bought we had a home-made peach cobbler and a Japanese pastry, as well as tiramisu, cookies, scones and cherries. Because it was so hot instead of offering British tea, we had water, freshly made lemonade and an awesome Peach Cool Brew Iced Black Tea. I can't say enough about that tea, we put four tea bags on a pitcher with room-temperature water and 5 - 10 minutes later it was ready to be served!

The event itself was a success, some of the ladies came in with very nice hats and dresses. As I mentioned we were very cramped and sitting in a circle but that made conversation easier, some times the ladies were talking in small groups and others we were all in one conversation. It was wonderful to see the interactions and hopefully new friendships blossom from this event.

I'm very sure this is the first of many Afternoon Tea events to come, who knows, we can have an Alice in Wonderland/Mad Hatter theme and I'm sure next time, we will get to use our cute little flowery cups!

Encinitas Day Trip

Hey There:

I've met very cool people on Twitter, I have a tweep (Twitter/peep) who's great, we mostly talk about food, places to eat and things to do. He usually mentions places in North County, especially in Encinitas, I soon realized I've never been there before! I know where it is since I pass it every time I drive to OC or LA but never been there in the 13 years I've been living in San Diego. Another thing I've never done is take the MTS Coaster from San Diego to the cities in North County....that's how a Day Trip to Encinitas idea was born!

The first part of the trip was to arrive at the Santa Fe Train Depot where I could grab the Coaster that would take me to Encinitas. The Coaster departed at 12:40 PM, cost $11 round trip and would take 45 minutes to get there.

The Coaster is very comfy, with good leg room and with some seats facing each other so groups of friends can sit together. They even have small tables, I'm sure commuters with laptops use them since wi-fi is available at no extra charge. Once you get closer to the coastal cities then you get to see very nice views of the ocean and beaches.

I arrived at Encinitas and went to El Callejon, a Mexican food restaurant where I met a member of the Geek Girls of San Diego meetup group since I added this excursion as a meetup in case anyone else was interested in being a tourist in our own city. By the way, this is a great meetup group, very interesting and smart ladies are in it...like me <grin>

My time was limited and my mistake was spending too much time at the restaurant, but don't regret it, the conversation was great! At El Callejon I had one taco al pastor and ceviche, the portions were just right to satisfy me without leaving me dying from eating too much...give me a lot of food I will eat it all!!

When we finally left the restaurant and went to the shops I realized I only had 40 minutes before I had to get back to the station for the 3:53 Coaster back to San Diego, so we made the most of it!

Coast Hwy Traders

Was in awe in this store! They have the best Day of the Dead collection I've seen anywhere, not even in Old Town have I've seen so much! While I was drooling over skulls, my Geek Girl friend was drooling over mermaids and I couldn't resist and bought a magnet of St Isidore of Seville, the patron saint of computers...AVG I don't need you anymore! Just kidding.

Whole Foods

We did a quick pit stop here and just had to take a pic of organic watermelon gherkin...what the hell are those?

Chuao Chocolatier


Another one of my tweep's suggestions, we walked a few blocks for the most amazing and delicate truffles. I am not one for delaying pleasure, bought two truffles and ate them within five minutes...at least I made them last 5 minutes! 

I had one Wild Truffle and a Honey Orange one 

All these shops and so many more are found in Encinitas, CA walking through S. Coast Highway 101. I saw a knitting shop I didn't have a chance to stop at, several bookstores, restaurants, a historical school house and only got a glimpse of the beach when I was rushing back to the Coaster station.

Great trip, I will do this again!

Happy Freaking Birthday to Me!

Hey There:

It's that time of year again....my birthday is a few days away and as tradition, I'm slowly jumping into the dark mood I get each year.

Don't know when it started but when I come near my b-day I'm not happy because it's my day, I don't feel grateful to be blessed with a good life, good friends and family, I don't look forward to the next year. NO, I obsess over everything I haven't accomplished, I compare myself to people who became millionaires by age 21, or 31, or 35, doesn't matter...I ain't me!

For the longest time I thought it was only me until I read a non-fiction book from my favorite author Marian Keyes, where she mentions she's the same. So there might not be too many of us out there, but I'm not the only one who wants to strangle the first person to say "Happy Birthday" to me.

This year I planned throw a House-Warming/Birthday party, but I cancelled it two weeks ago. First of all I know my apartment wouldn't be ready to...the unpacking has been a nightmare! And second, I don't want to be among people.

A friend of mine said I should have had the party anyway, since it's easier to hide in a crowd. What he said does have some logic, except when it's supposed to be "Your Day" and any frown is met with people trying to force you to be happy. Which really, it's awesome that I have friends that care for me, but I just want them to shut the hell up! In this case...it's not them, it's me.

Birthday #37 - No Pics exist

That year my b-day fell on a Saturday. And that day I was forced by my Mom to attend a cousin's wedding and I don't even like this cousin, but I went...I had to....my Mom said so.....yeah, I know I'm an adult that has lived outside the parental home for over a decade....but my Mom said so.

That day I had a trim and hairstyle done to look nice, and the girl did a horrible job! She didn't trim my hair, she chopped it with I'm assuming were rusted scissors since it took me almost 6 months to outgrow that haircut.

All pictures I took that day, I looked awful! There were all erased, have tons of pics of my friends and family at the after-party we had. But none of me, I was not a happy b-day girl.

Birthday #38 - Vegas, Baby!

For the first time in my adult life I decided to forgo the obligatory celebration with my loved ones, instead I took my sister and we went to Las Vegas for the weekend since my b-day would be on Sunday.

It was great, it wasn't a crazy drunken weekend or anything like that. Just me and my sis, spending time together, having fun and avoiding any mention of the "b" word.

On Sunday as she drove back I received phone calls, answered friends e-mails and Facebook posts, but was feeling very happy to not be physically around any of them....it was an awesome B-Day!

Vegas = Elvis...and Austin Powers, I guess

Didn't get drunk, at least not that I remember

Those were just fun people

Birthday #39

This year, though the b-day falls on a Monday, I still feel obliged to do something over the weekend. On Friday a girl friend and I are going to a metal concert, I plan to dress up nicely, might even use my red corset.

Saturday I plan to get drunk with a Russian friend, just because I haven't gotten drunk, not even once, this whole year.

Sunday, hopefully I'm too hungover to even care it's the eve of the b-day.

And on Monday I only have planned to go to lunch with a girlfriend and spend the rest of the day in bed with my cats answering Facebook well wishes and the ocassional phone call.

Minus 30 lbs and counting

Hey There:

Over the past five months or so, I've been going to a nutritionist in Tijuana. This was a guy recommended to me by two people who don't know each other, but even after the recommendations it took me months before I decided to go. I just wanted to lose weight on my own, I mean everyone who watches The Biggest Loser or any of those shows knows you need to eat well and exercise. No magic formula or shortcuts about it.

But in spite of my "eating well" and exercising I went up to 215 lbs and that was it! I had to go, I know a lot of people who know me personally will be surprised at how much I weighed because I'm blessed with a body that can hide that much weight. I mean I didn't look skinny, but I still had a waistline with a bit of a tummy and looked proportionate with a big butt and big boobs. And I know how to dress myself to hide imperfection. This picture is me with a weight over 200 lbs.

As I said, don't look skinny, but don't look morbidly obese (me thinks), I looked like a gal with meat on her bones. But no matter how I put it to myself, the scale didn't lie and worse of all, it didn't go down. So finally I went to the Doctor and even though part of the treatment consists of an appetite suppressant and an injection to boost fat burning, I have done a lot of sacrifices and it's been hard work to loose all that weight.

Among the sacrifices? I stopped drinking alcohol for the first three months, not a drop, even though I've been to events with "Free Bar". Especially hard was the summer months were everyone was with a nice cold one and getting drunk. More than once I had inner thoughts like "Gee, this guy/gal is a sloppy drunk! How come I never noticed it before??....Oh wait, I was just as drunk as he/she was!"

I don't have a set diet or calorie intake, I just follow guidelines on food intake and once in a while let myself eat some junk food. The way I see it eventually I'll be out there without appetite supressants or a Doctor checking me once a week, I might as well learn to eat bad food moderately. The only thing I refuse to give up is my daily can of Coca-Cola....I just need it!

Exercise also changed from doing mostly weights to doing mostly cardio with only upper body strength training. So far I'm amazed how much more cardio I can tolerate and for now I'll stay on the treadmill, elliptical and stairmaster.

Now the thing that has kept even more motivated is the way guys have been reacting. See, my bubbly flirty self hasn't changed. I still consider myself Hot no matter the size, but apparently size does matter, since now guys who have known me for months are now suddenly flirting or inviting me out. So, of course, that flatters the ego and keeps me going!

Still, with the 30 lbs loss I'm still not even on my half-way point, I'm only at 185 and my Doctor wants me to be at 140 - 150 lbs in order to be at the right amount for my height and build....that means I have to continue for 65 - 75 lbs, which seems insane to me. Not sure if I'll go all the way, but for now I know I still have to keep on, this morning I tried on some of my old skirts and I can finally zip them up, but they're still a little too tight.

All I focus on is my 2 lbs a week, I don't think of the total and of course, I do feed on male admiration since I can't feed on tortillas, quesadillas, pizza or beer. Here's a pic of how I look now!

I Hope He Got Laid

Hey There:

One of my weekly rituals is to go to The Ould Sod on Tuesdays when they have a group of musicians playing live Irish music. I find it soothing and it energizes my creativity. I like to have one beer, read, make a plan of what I will be writing in the following week, maybe talk to some of the regulars, meet new people, etc.

Granted, the last couple of months I haven't been doing too much writing. It has mostly been talking to the other regulars and the bartender, Sara Petite, a local country singer. She's great!

Last night I got there, minding my own business, sitting in my usual spot but this time it wasn't a pleasant experience. Next to me was a couple in their mid-twenties having a drink and talking. Wait....what I meant was....SHE was talking, he had a blank stare, out in space.

This girl annoyed the hell out of me with a loud, shrill voice, valley girl way of speaking and just yapping and yapping and yapping. I mean, non-stop yapping about her current job, her previous jobs, her volunteer work, her vacation in Martha's Vineyard, and so on. I tried very hard to shut her out and concentrate on the music and my book, but it was hard. Now to be fair, they did have a 10 minute conversation where he got to speak and was animated, then she took over again and his blank stare returned.

Not sure if they were a couple, their body language said they've only recently met. Eventually they left for another bar together, he had his arm loosely around her waist and my ears rejoiced. I compared notes with the guy next to me, who was also trying to read and we both agreed, if the guy had to put up with her, he deserves to get some.

I texted a friend and he said something that made my feminist side feel chastised. I said "I can't believe what men put up with to get laid." He said "I can't believe women put up with having sex just to have someone to listen to them." But I still maintain my point, because we have the option to talk non-stop with girl-friends while they talk non-stop as well.

And I really do hope he got laid! He earned it.

Halloween Costumes and the Zombie Walk 2010

Hey there:

My Halloween weekend was pretty interesting, this year I got to wear three costumes for different events. The cool thing is that it all came together a week before Halloween and I was able to use a lot items I already had from previous years.

On YouTube I saw a tutorial on how to do a Catrina or Day of the Dead makeup, very easy and unique, although time consuming, it took me nearly two hours to complete. I did this costume for the office Halloween lunch, this year lots of people dressed up, but I won first place (for the 2nd time in 5 years). I loved the costume even though I could not smile, eat or drink while wearing the makeup.

For this costume I used an old skirt I had from the days I used to perform Polynesian dances, paired with a red top, since the yellow top that came with the outfit no longer fits. The colorful rebozo was a gift brought to me from Oaxaca by a friend of mine. The necklace is a portrait of Frida Kahlo and put on nails that prevented me from doing any typing all day, and used a black wig so I could have the long braid with a red flower. 

The following night I went to a Halloween party with some friends and decided on an ironic costume, an angel. In this case my face was as natural as possible, I found the costume & wig at Walmart and pimped out the halo and wings with feathers and glitter. Received a lot of laughs and protests since this look was "not me" but it looks great in the pictures with all my friends. The funny thing is that mine was the scariest costume, the party was outdoors and while people were talking all of a sudden they would spot in the corner of their eyes something white approaching, more than one person jumped in fright!

The following day was the first Zombie Walk in Mexicali, Mexico organized by a friend of mine from High School. It was a great treat to participate, but also to see my friend. I felt a little awkward, definitely out of my comfort zone since I had to act like a zombie. Mainly all I did was walk as if I was asleep with a limp. I did manage to scare a cousin, an old lady and almost made a kid cry. Can't wait to do it again next year!

For this costume, I used a wedding dress I found at Salvation Army some years ago (good thing it still fit) smeared some blood in it and tore the veil. People at the event put on the makeup and a girl gave me the dead flowers since they looked better on me. This picture looks amazing, it was taken by some guy and found it on Facebook, he allowed me to tag it to my profile. Since the event I've heard from several relatives that they've seen me on TV....how embarrassing!

This was a successful, if small, Zombie Walk. 

I made this small video of the event and you can find more of them in YouTube by searching for Zombie Walk Mexicali 2010. 

Shopping Gargoyle

Hey There:

Well, it's been several days since I've posted anything, and it's not because I'm getting lazy. It's just that I don't have that much to tell lately. I'm taking a small break from men, and only comunicate with my Cuddle Buddy, my Irishman, the Young Entrepreneur and the Philosopher, and that's it! Nobody new to talk about.

Between you and me, one of the reasons is that I had a Tarot reading about 3 weeks ago and the lady told me I would meet my man after my trip in the June/July timeframe. And after my mini heart-break with the Philosopher and my speed dating fiasco, I decided not to push it. Next week I go on a cruise with a cousin, so I figure I can take it easy. In the meantime, I've been writing, editing, cooking, cleaning, exercising, crafting, reading; pretty much just enjoying myself. And it's been a good break, I feel younger, prettier and more relaxed.

One thing I wanted to share is the story of my Shopping Gargoyle. One thing you must know about me is that I like lots of pretty things and I don't like paying too much for them, or at all. So one day, I went to my favorite thrift shop and saw a stone gargoyle. I looked at it and told her, if you can help me find an amazing item, I'll take you home. And I did! I found BCBG patent leather, high heel, peep toe shoes...in my size! So I took the shoes and the gargoyle home.

She is now perched at the top of my book case, and more than once I've asked for specific items....and she's come through everytime. For example, I work from home quite a bit and because I work on my laptop non-stop, the dining room chairs, sofa and bed started hurting my lower back. Ergonomic office chairs can be very pricey, so I asked my Shopping Gargoyle for a free chair. Eventually my Gargoyle came through and someone left a nice executive upholstered chair (without the wheels) to be donated. So I brought it home, propped it up with some bricks and started using. It was big difference on my back, but I didn't like the brick look, so I asked again and within weeks my company sold office chairs. So I bought 3 of them, at $1 each. I tried them out, one will be for me, one for my mom and the other to barter.


Another example was last year when we went to look for my sister's wedding gown, more than the dress itself, our hearts where set on a beautiful veil that cost $80. Since our budget was limited, I asked my Gargoyle to help us get the perfect dress at the perfect price so we could get the veil. And we did!


Some may call it Law of Attraction, but I called it my Shopping Gargoyle.


Now I asked a telescope and an e-reader.