I drove back from Santa Monica on Christmas. Nowadays, I really don't do that much driving, but it was good to be in the car for an extended period of time because I got a chance to really think about where I'm at in my life and where I want to go.
That is one long ass drive straight up I-5 and I have to say that I'm not that impressed with California drivers. I consistently had to pass people on the right. I will fully admit to being a fast driver. I grew up in Miami, and learned how to drive on the crazy ass highways around there, and then lived in England where there's practically no speed limit on the highways. I love to drive fast. I maneuver carefully, and am assertive and very aware but not agressive. So I had alot of time to ponder why in the world everyone stays in the left lane and how ridiculous it is that people don't consistently move to the right when someone comes up behind them. Then I realized that the problem is in the way the signs are worded.
I was an English major in school and as I grow older I find that words and how we use them are incredibly important. I love it when I hear someone use a word I haven't heard in a long time, or a particular word that expresses the exact feeling or circumstance being described. So what I noticed is that the signs say "slower traffic keep right" and no one wants to admit to being a "slower" driver. The signs need to say "left lane for passing only." It would just freaken amaze me to be coming up behind some van with a bunch of crap bungee corded to the roof in the left lane doing 65 MPH when the limit is 70. And everyone is having to pass him on the right.
I'll admit that I'm competitive and actually think I may have been a race car driver in a previous life, and there was something about being on that highway that really brought out the Jeff Gordon in me. I have a six speed manual Toyota Matrix and I gotta say that I was pretty damn impressed with it's performance. It handled that drive like a champ through the grapevine and I rarely had to downshift on inclines.
Now I gotta go send CalTrans an email about changing the signs....... wish me luck!
Greetings to all my friends from the home of the Blarney Castle! We have already decided that I am not allowed to kiss the blarney stone, since doing so imbues the kisser with the gift of gab, and I have plenty of gab. It is absolutely beautiful here. So green and flowers everywhere. Spent the first three days in Dublin which was fantastic fun. Walked past the Guiness factory about six times and there's at least three to four pubs on every block. Drinking here is clearly a sport as popular as rugby.
Came to Cork the day before yesterday and spent yesterday in Cork City Centre walking all over, checking out the shops. Found a really cool music store and went in and strummed a guitar for a bit just to keep my fingertips tough and then later we found a wine bar and sat by a window watching the river roll through drinking champagne. Walked around the Cork University campus and enjoyed the ancient buildings built in the mid 1800's.
The people here are lovely. Everyone is so polite and friendly and will go out of their way to help you out. There's hardly any crime and the most challenging thing I've come across so far is trying to figure out what in the hell is being said when a person is talking with a really thick Irish accent. It's pretty funny. The best was on my first night here I watched a tv show that was in Gaelic and kept trying to figure out just one word. One word and forget it, it was impossible. It is a completely different language. They continue to teach it here in the schools because if they didn't it would probably die out.
Anyway, I'm having a blast but am missing my friends. I hope to come back with lots of pictures to share. I hope you are all happy and well. I send you my warmest wishes from Ireland!
Happy Fucking Friday! I know what I'll be doing this weekend, organizing my house, unpacking boxes, trying to find my underwear and consuming vodka. I'm definitely going to pick up my guitar and give my imagination, voice and fingertips a good workout.
Last night I got some of my books onto the living room bookshelves that are on either side of the fireplace. The house was built in 1925 and has alot of built in shelving and cabinets. I've taken the time to alphabetize and categorize my books with my own version of the dewey decimal system. Not really, I actually dislike organizing my books in any fashion whatsoever so you'll never know what gem of information you'll stumble across as you sift throught the titles.
Had a couple of drinks, half a cigarrette, my favorite dinner (toast and jam), felt dizzy and went to bed early listening to the rain. Exciting eh?
Yesterday I realized that I have under appreciated the value of alcohol as a medicinal agent and am exploring that more fully. I know that I may sound as though I'm wallowing, but actually I'm not. Bill, my yoga instructor says, "When you're going through hell, don't stop to have lunch," so, I'm not stopping! Another favorite saying of mine is, "Try not to shit on the people who love you." It's simple, catchy, to the point... Kally
My Life, My Dog
Current mood: distressed
Category: sad Pets and Animals
I'll start with my dog. Buddy, my good friend and companion of 14 years had to be euthanized on Monday. It was devastating, but I couldn't stand to see him suffering and he was miserable. I could tell he wasn't feeling very well on Saturday night. He was restless and couldn't seem to get comfortable, but he didn't seem to be in pain. I let him out several times during the night which was unusual, but it wasn't until Sunday night that it got really bad and it became quite clear from his moaning and crying that he was suffering, so I got up and got him to the vet first thing Monday morning. We went to Midtown Animal Hospital and were there waiting when they opened. Dr. Rose was our vet and she's awesome. We made Buddy as comfortable as possible and I called my ex husband Chuck and roommate Micah with the news and we were all present for his passing.
Here's a piece of very valuable information. Euthanizing a dog consists of giving them two injections. The first is a very powerful sedative, which pretty much renders them unconcious and the second injection stops the heart. The first injection, the sedative, can be very painful if injected intramuscularly. Our last dog Dewey cried out in pain when she got this injection, and to hear her cry out in her last moments was just heartbreaking. Since I work at a medical center, I asked several of my friends about this and they wondered why the injection hadn't been given directly in the vein. So this time, I asked Dr. Rose to put the first injection into Buddy's vein and it made a world of difference. So unlike Dewey, his passing was much more peaceful.
There are several pictures of Buddy on my picture page. He was a Brittany Spaniel who loved butter, frisbee, playing fetch, swimming and running fast. I got him when he was six weeks old from a neighbor in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and he's been by my side for the past fourteen years. He was absolutely gorgeous and a beastly devil of a dog. I came home from class one day to find him standing on my kitchen countertop and trash and pillow stuffing strewn all over my apartment. He had this crazed dog wild man gone nuts look in his eyes...he knew he was in trouble. Then there was the time that I accidentally threw the frisbee in the street and he ran out after it and got hit by a car. Luckily the car was going slow and he wasn't hurt. It scared the ever living shit out of me though.
Anyway, he's gone and I miss him dearly. As he was passing I praised him for fulfilling his potential as an instrument of unconditional love. He was truly an amazing animal.
Now, the My Life part: My life is pretty burly right now, but I'm trying to hang in there. Chuck, my ex-husband is moving to Seattle on Friday morning and then I'm moving back into the house. There are so many things going on and so many emotions swirling through me right now that I feel like I've been treading water and have gotten really tired. My friends are keeping me going and I'm trying to stay thankful, for my life is truly blessed with a deep richness that I am able to see and appreciate. But I'm definitely feeling off kilter and have been for some time, I miss my usual happy go lucky carefree self. I need to go back to Thailand!!! or go back to bed!!!
Went to see Dark Metropolis (Irving Norman) at the Crocker Art Museum on Sunday. If you ever get the opportunity to see his work, DO IT!!! His mastery of how the military industrial complex effects humanity strikes straight to the heart of the observer. It's deeply stirring and I walked away with a pit in my stomach. He clearly delivers his interpretation of how the military, industrial, religious and academic institutions are built on the shoulders of the desperate masses and dependent on wealth disparities. Truly amazing..... http://www.irvingnorman.com/
Drove down to Vacaville Outlets on Sunday and it was such a beautiful day that you could clearly see the coastal mountain range. Perfect day for riding my scooter.....but alas, shopping called.
Big party weekend. My birthday was Friday and the bar crowd down at the Embassy Suites sang me Happy Birthday, which was quite the event. The Department Holiday Party was held there that night as well, so I started with the Cosmo's there and then kept the party rolling through most of the night at a friends afterparty and then another afterparty at my house. I had to teach the 9 am yoga class and that was quite interesting. Actually, the heat was rather rejuvenating and the postures were helpful for clearing my brain, but I sure was exhausted and looking to just relax for the rest of the day. That didn't happen until much later.
Saturday night, the festivities continued. My buddy calls me at 11:50 pm to say 'get dressed, we're going out' and so I did (I had been asleep since 5pm). Head out to another party that wasn't that far from my house and had a rollicking good time there. Saw a few friends in some unexpected situations that made me laugh at the surrealism of it all.
I was stoked to have my best friends around me for the weekend, including my buddy Melissa from Alaska who I miss dearly. She left here many moons ago and I miss our day to day friendship like crazy.
Hi, I'm Kally, a local singer songwriter/band member in Sacramento, CA. I grew up in Homestead, Florida and have been in CA for the past 7 years. Music, writing and yoga are my passions and I still have a day job, but I'm lucky because I get to work with some cool folks that are fun. I was recently in Koh Panghan, Thailand for 14 days with a group from Yoga Loka and it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life - I can't wait to return. The people, the food, the way of life - at least on the island was great stress relief. I could have used that this morning when I woke with a terrible migraine. Nothing like a good headachy puke first thing in the morning to start the day off right. I wonder what triggered it - the loud band rehearsal last night? I'll write more later. K
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