WebJournal - The blog will set you free

WebJournal - The blog will set you free
News of no interest whatsoever except to very close and patient friends and family members and maybe people with no life

Friday, January 31, 2003

I�ve just convinced Mario not to go home to get the car. Better if there�s no driving tonight.

6:36 PM

So far so good. It�s too early to tell but it might just be a slow night! Pleeeeeeeeeaaaze!!!!!!!!!!!!!

6:32 PM

One of my favourite colleagues had just given me a box of delicious Godiva chocolate. He was already high on my list, he just shot to first place.

5:03 PM

Done. It seems that you have to publish a post after altering the template for the changes to show on the page.
I now have barely time to go sautee some tofu and spinach or whatever I find in the fridge, decide whether I'll go to the office in full night gear or come home and change, shower and get to work. I am leaning towards coming back home to change as I am not too cool with showing up at work on snakelike heels. The only problem is that I might end up late and keep everybody waiting. If the place is as packed as it was yersterday, I have no idea where we are going to fit. With a little luck the bartender that M.A. likes will be there and he will be a happy camper. She was there yesterday but we were at the front bar and by the time we decided to go to the back bar and the dance floor she was already gone. I actually asked the guy behind the bar it she was going to be working today, but he did not know.
I am so jazzed up about tonight that I feel I have to calm myself down a bit or I am bound for a major disappointment.

1:23 PM

Second try ...

12:51 PM

I did not sleep, obviously. Instead I spent the morning on the computer. I am taking off a couple of links that are not working anymore and I am adding a mailto code so you can send me nice friendly emails. Unfriendly ones will be deleted inmediately - I do not care for hostility.

12:44 PM

I did go out yesterday, same ol' Opal till almost 3 AM. I almost felt guilty for M.A. - he has to work this morning while I am only due at the office at 3 PM. On the other hand, he's leaving tomorrow and I have to milk him for all his worth. He's particularly entertaining conversationwise and he dances too - a hard act to follow. Also, I don't go to bars on my own, I don' even go to bars with girlfriends, unless it's a bona fide girls-nite-out so I will probably not set a foot at Opal or anywhere else until he comes back, four months from now. Drab perspective. Oh, well, l'll indulge in depression on Monday evening, once he and my husband are both gone. I guess I will go back to spending an inordinate amount of time at the gym.
I got up this morning because I had to talk to my cleaning lady, but I shall go back to bed now for a couple of hours, if I can fall asleep again. If I can't, I'll just read and relax.

Message for Susan: thanks for the e-mail! It feels funny to know you are reading this!

Here's the text of my Evite for tonight:
"It's that time of the year bash - Here I am again, a year older and it ain't a pretty picture. I need all the help I can get to overcome this catastrophic event so please join me for several batches of apple martinis at Opal's (www.opalbar.com) after 10 PM on Friday. It�s a regular bar not a private party, so just walk in and go to the back bar. Friends of friends of friends are welcome. Handsome friends of friends are even more welcome. I will be easy to spot: I�ll be the drunk sobbing in the corner."
About 40 people are invited, plus their significant others. So far 3 declined (with decent excuses), 6 are trying to rearrange their schedules or get out of work early, and 19 said yes. The rest are undecided (reasons vary from "It's cold", to "It's too late" to the plain "I don't know").

9:59 AM

Thursday, January 30, 2003

By the time I left the office at 10 PM yesterday, I was beat. I had to call and apologize for not showing up at the dinner party. M.A. did come over and help me with the table but I am ashamed to say I was too tired to go out for a drink, too tired even for a conversation. I was asleep before midnight (I think) and I got up at 11 AM so basically I am now bouncing off the walls.
I finally got some answers today from the people at Speakeasy. My DSL connection will go down probably tonight or tomorrow and I will have to wait about 10 days before my new one is up. LIfe without a permanent Internet connection will suck but I�ll try to be strong.

6:17 PM

Wednesday, January 29, 2003

I worked until 11.30 PM or so yesterday and then spent easily an hour on the phone with Pam and then flipped through my brand new Power of 10 and read a few pages of the latest Anne Rule's book (she is still my favorite true crime writer). Bottom line: not much sleep. The alarm went off at 6 AM this morning and I finally got out of bed at 7.30 AM. I was in a training seminar all day and now I am at the office, till end of business.
The trainer was a very knowledgeable guy, and entertaining at that. We might have a shot at getting a Visual Basic course, if we manage to come up with 12 names.
Tonight, if I leave early, I have a dinner invitation at Chema's and I also need M.A. to come home to help me put the table back in my room. One thing for sure: I will sleep tomorrow!

5:52 PM

Monday, January 27, 2003

The paella on Sunday went great. Everybody showed up and everybody stayed. Some stayed and stayed. We had lots of wine and then when we were done with the wine we polished off a big bottle of rum, a smaller one, almost a bottle of vodka and God knows what elsel. Miguel, M.A. and I tried to go dancing afterwards, but all the bars in the neighborhood had their TV sets on and were transmitting the Super Bowl so after a while we hopped in a cab (it was snowing!) and went to Splash, in Chelsea. As usual the bartenders were gorgeous, I danced until I thought my feet were going to fall off (again, those pretty high-heeled pointy boots!), I got to grind with a half-naked gorgeous twentysomething (as gay as they come, of course, but I had no further intentions), I got to slip a couple of bucks in the red thong of one of the dancers gyrating on top of the bar counter, etc. Clearly good ol' decadent fun. Eventually M.A. was ready to go. Miguel stayed on. We again hopped in a cab, it was still snowing. I tried to convince him to go to the Park and make a snowman but I guess the prospect of freezing his butt at 2 AM in Central Park with a demented hyped woman was not too appealing to him. We decided to leave it for this morning. This morning I obviously slept until 11AM when I was awoken by Nidia reminding me that I was supposed to have lunch with her and Jose Antonio. Needless to say, I canceled.
I am now almost ready to go to work. I have to send off the invitations to my birthday party on Friday and I have a gazillion things to do. I also have to figure out what's wrong with my vacuum. It died on me and it's very bad timing. Vacuums should not die on you after a party where glasses have been broken, food has been thrown on the floor, wine has been spilled on carpets ... I also need to move a table back into my room. So many things, so little time!

2:10 PM

Sunday, January 26, 2003

After an afternoon with Melissa (we watched "Pay it forward" on DVD at my place) I went out with M.A. It was an early night. A short stop at Opal. Way too much food and too much cold at Go Sushi. Another stop at 252. The crowd was barely 21 and M.A. was not in the mood, so here I am. I've just signed for him to get the keys to my place tomorrow morning so he can start preparing lunch while I sleep. I also took the opportunity to explain the 911 call to the bewildered doorman and was happy to realize that the same thing happened o some Japanese girls on the 30 something floor.
Guests are expected at about 2 PM tomotrrow and I should be up a little before that, in time to move some pieces of furniture around to make room for everybody. I already bought a cake and a couple of bottles of wine, not to mention plenty of snacks. M.A. mentioned going to the Park in the morning before going grocery shopping for the paella. I love the idea and would love to be able to do it. I also know there is no chance whatsover of me getting up early enough to go for a stroll before everybody show up demanding to be fed.
Lets just hope the subject of war will not creep into the conversation tomorrow. It already did today and we had a go at it. I just hate it when people start a sentence with some generic "we" like everytdoby agrees with them. Usually I am the one who disagrees. I happen to disagree with most people 99% of the time and I take offense at somebody else pretending to speak for me. Take the present situation, for example. I do disagree with engaging in a war in Iraq but for none of the reasons most people seem to take for granted.. I am not against "American imperialism", I am not against the U.S. being the police of the world, I am not againt intervening in non democratic countries. I happen to think America does not do enough or well enough. Hardly a popular standpoint for a conversation with Europeans or South Americans. In any case, I should try to get some sleep now and leave the debate for tomorrow.

1:13 AM

Saturday, January 25, 2003

Took a day off today. I wanted to try and stay warm but there�s a problem with the heating in my apartment. It was just 17 degrees in my living room today (well, living room is a rather pompeous term for the one real room outside the bedroom, but it could qualify as the living wing in Manhattan). I had to call the handyman and althought the temperature in my room is a little warmer, it�s still just 18.5 in the living/only room. I am getting the service phone number first thing tomorrow morning. The good thing about having the handyman over is that he managed to unscrew a gizmo at the end of my kitchen faucet that was preventing me from screwing in my brand new Brita filter.
In any case, given that I was freezing at home I decided that I might as well freeze outside so out I went. I finally got the frigging plates. I bought a dozen and that should suffice for the time being. I almost started buying glassware too, but I had checked my VISA account prior to leaving the house so I knew it was not a good idea.
JP called a while ago to tell me has a flight booked for next Friday, so he will be here on Saturday for my birthday. Yeah!
He will not be here for Friday's night bash though, but that's OK.
I am off to Nidia's now. She has a little family party going on tonight. I am wrapping myself in my very politically incorrect fur coat and getting on the first cab I can lay my eyes on.

Back now. Major neck and head ache.

1:58 AM

Thursday, January 23, 2003

The show yesterday was OK, though nothing earth-shattering. It was certainly not music to dance with so we stayed on a little while waiting for the next show - a Latin hip-hop band. I managed to move a little to the background beat but it was getting late fast and the band was nowhere to be seen. Time to cab back home. I must admit I was a little tipsy by then and I just wanted a warm bed. What I got was a warm bed with a spinning ceiling. I hate that spinning feeling with a passion!
Today at work I had a brutal reality check when I was called in to my boss' office. Seems I caused a major problem with a mistake in a document. Of course somebody should have checked the text but didn't, so that was another unfortunate mishap in the chain of command. Still, if I hadn't made the mistake in the first place there would never have been a problem. I have to admit that the boss was very civil to me, even cordial, though I heard she was pretty mad this morning when she found out. I was lucky and came out of it with ruffled feathers but no major ego crash. Fact is I must pay more attention.

It's 4.30 P.M. and it's beautifully sunny out there, so different from a month ago, when it was already dark.

4:33 PM

Wednesday, January 22, 2003

I am off in a little while so I can run home, slip into something obscene (I wish! It will probably be just a switch of shoes and some frantic facesaving make-up application), meet a bunch of friends at a nearby pub and cab over to S.O.B.s to see what this �Basilio M�rquez y Eclipse� is all about. It better be good. It�s freezing out there and another evening indoors watching reality shows does not sound half bad to me.

4:36 PM

Tuesday, January 21, 2003

I can barely glance at the tv. The embarassment is killing me. There are some people on American Idol II who are just painful to watch. Then there are some others who are very moving. And of course I can't get enough of good ol' Simon.
By the way, I got my new iPod today. The battery does not seem to be full. I'll charge it tonight and see what happens tomorrow. If it's working then I will be able to resume my workouts (I can't work out without music - it's difficult for me to even waIk without earphones blasting).

8:48 PM

Yesterday I was in bed by 9 PM and probably asleep before 10 PM. I even missed the Last Resort premiere. Tonight I must stay awake for American Idol II and the return of Simon. My life is full of cultural pursuits.
Tomorrow a bunch of us are off to S.O.B. I�ll probably sneak home from work to slip off the sensible shoes and climb on some decent heels.

2:03 PM

Monday, January 20, 2003

I am having a lightheaded day. Might be the weather. Can�t wait to go home and do nothing.

5:17 PM

I am still amazed at the 911 call. The "Police! Open the door!" yell has been a longstanding sexual fantasy of mine. I was sort of hoping to be confronted to a huge black officer ready to carry me in his arms. I could have used him at 5 AM on Sunday morning. But no such luck. It had to be a woman and a beer bellied short guy. Will the same happen to me if I ever have to call the Fire Department? Will I get saved by the only non attractive firefighter in town? What have I done to deserve this?

11:52 AM

Sunday, January 19, 2003

Went to see the Einstein exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History. I loved it and I loved the Museum too. I have this adolescent dislike of museums that I must overcome. For some reason I equate museum goers to old farts, the kind of people who are always consuming culture yet never create anything. The people that go the Opera but don't sing, go to the ballet but don't dance, go to the theater and don't interact with people. The people who buy the books but never write anything. That kind of people, so of course I stay as away from museums as possible. But then when I do go I love them. Not all of them, but definitely this one.
We also saw an Imax movie on the Kilimanjaro. Good thing that they filmed it because it's as close as I will ever get to the real thing. The great outdoors are not for me. Just the bathroom situation will kill me.
Anyway, after the museum we had a wonderful, wonderful early dinner at Rain in the Upper West. And now I am at home, and staying in.

9:07 PM

This morning at 5 AM I had the cops at my door.
As soon as I came home from my Saturday night I tried to call J.P. (I just wanted to keep talking) and was actually successful at leaving a couple of messages. Five minutes after I hung up the door rang. I was startled because nobody shows up at my door like that here, not with the doormen downstairs. Well, I get to the door and I hear "Police!" straight out of the movies. For a second I thought something had happened to M.A. but then I quickly realized there was no reason for the police to come get me. "What have I done?" was another thought that crossed my mind, which proves how easy it is to doubt yourself! For a fleeting second I though maybe I had had a psychotic episode, had killed somebody and could not remember it! Guess it�s time to stop reading true crime books. Anyway, there were these two officers, a guy and a woman. They told me they were responding to a 911 call made from my number. I had no clue. But then they asked if I had made a long distance call. Duh! I said yes and I tried to repeat JP's number (not an easy thing to do when you have dyscalculia , a few drinks and are totally startled). That's what it was. I had misdialed. But I know I am delighted to know that, should I need them, police will be at my door within minutes .
Gotta hop in the shower now. I am meeting Debra for brunch and something.

12:54 PM

Way too tired to explain. Had dinner with Randy and Vivienne at Epices du Traiteur then went to pick up M.A. for the usual round, Opal and 2 whatstheirname. I�d better write about it tomorrow and just get some sleep now. Good nite.

4:34 AM

Saturday, January 18, 2003

So they are called "Eurowimps"? As much as I dislike the idea of a war against Irak, I can't help but chuckle at the nickname. It rings so true ...
Well, I stayed home yesterday evening, under several layers of comforters. I am looking out of the window now and it is an absolutely gorgeous day. It's freezing of course but I still want to go out. Gotta make my Sat. phone calls, grab a bite and then bundle up and go.

11:30 AM

Thursday, January 16, 2003

I was bummed that we had to cancel the plans for tonight but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Today, at the very end of my work day, after I came back from a long meeting and was merely looking into a text that I thought I had a day to do, I realized I was in fact wrong and that it has to be ready by tomorrow at noon. So here I am, ready to work through half the night. It's so cold that even with the heat on and several layers of clothes I need to get under the duvet and work on the laptop.

9:46 PM

Opal. And then a red wine sample, a Sauternes and a Calvados with a fois gras terrine and a tartare de thon at Le Bateau Ivre. And of course a non stop 6-hours conversation. Nothing short of amazing. Now it's time to try and get some sleep.

2:28 AM

Wednesday, January 15, 2003

I needed to buy dishes. We got all worked up with Mario and we rushed to Ikea from work. I bought all sort of stuff. I did not buy dishes. I still need to buy dishes.

12:40 AM

Monday, January 13, 2003

A heartwarming story: last August I got in touch with somebody on Tony Robbin's boards about getting a copy of Tony's appearances on QVC and other shows (I very much enjoy the personal stories shared by the callers and I like to see Tony reacting to different situations live). I sent him money through paypal to pay for the blank tapes and basically never heard from the guy again, except for one mail with a lame excuse. I decided it was not something worth getting upset over, so I just sent him the following message : "How disappointing. I guess I will never see my money nor the tapes. I just assumed somebody on Tony's board would have higher standards. Enjoy the 30 bucks." . Well, lo and behold, I get home today, almost half a year later, and the doorman hands me this unexpected package. I started opening it and as soon as I saw the first tape I had a wonderful rush. What a way to start the year and what a way to restore faith in my fellow men! Yeah, baby!

10:40 PM

Sunday, January 12, 2003

I am hooked! I love High School Reunion ! So far, as much as I hate to admit it, I like Dan B. Yes, he has a gut and yes, he is a player. But he is also very attractive. The new Dan I don't really care for, at least physically. Jason has a hot body and a cute face but not much of a personality. So far, after Dan B., I would go for the bully. As for the girls, Nicole is scarily stupid and she looks the part. For some reason her mouth is always hanging open giving her a look of total idiocy. Sarah is the kind of aggressive whiner and drama queen that I like to stay miles away from. She doesn't seem to have any insight whatsoever and comes across as a extremely unlikeable. Natasha I like. She's sweet, nice and fresh looking. She does seems a bit too girly sometimes, but I guess it's part of the high school reunion effect.
There was this show on JFK jr. tonight too, but I could not get myself to watch it. For some reason his death hit me very hard. I think I cried for a weeks. And I still can't read all those magazine articles and books that have been published since then and that I dutifully collected. Go figure.
My neck is still stiff, though a little better. I still have the sharp pain in my back and I sure can't turn my head downwards or backwards. I just tried: ouch! What a wreck.
Now I know why the bouncer at one of the clubs on Friday let me in without carding me. I was deeply offended, of course, especially because all it took for him to make a decision was a quick sidelong glance at me (I had no picture I.D. with me and I asked him whether I could get in without it. He first said gave me the standard answer, i.e. a flat no, and then he looked at me and came up with a profoundly hurtful "Of course, come in" . It was a no win situation).

10:34 PM

Why did I have to show off my flexibility? We were enjoying a perfectly fine dinner when the topic turned to yoga (it was mostly sex all evening, but then this is NYC after all, and yoga creeps into any conversation). Several of the guests were very much or a little into yoga . J.A. is a serious adept, he has been practicing for years and he even does the yoga retreats in the middle of nowhere. Bob on the other hand is an enthusiastic beginner. Yours truly has has taken one lousy yoga class at a fitness convention in California a half lifetime ago. So of course when I heard Bob say there was this exercise that could be difficult I immediately had to assure him it was peanuts to me. I then proceeded to get on the floor and show off. I had no problem with the pose itself (lay down on you back and bring your legs up and behind you till you touch the floor with your toes) but then I thought it would be cute and athletic to sort of nap back to my feet with a flur. That did it. I felt something was wrong right away. Something in my neck. Today I woke up with a bad bad back. The pain is focused between my shoulder blades on the left side and it shots up to paralyze my neck. I can hardly turn my head around. Serves me right. A hot shower and a massage has helped some, but this won't go away easily, I know it. So now I have to go to work and sit at the computer for a few hours. Wonderful. Maybe I will learn.

11:33 AM

Saturday, January 11, 2003

It's official: Xenadrine and alcohol will not kill me. I am doing just fine.
I finally went out tonight. Opal. The Divine Bar. Then the what-is-its-name club until it closed and kicked us out. And then it was 4 AM and time to call it a night. A pity. I could have gone on. M.A. too, but there's nothing open anymore.
Tomorrow I am taking Melissa to the movies and then heading to Debra's in the evening.
Sunday I am on beeper duty and I can't, for the life of me, find the beeper! I've been very distracted these few days.This morning I came out of the shower without rinsing off the conditioner and only noticed it when I started blowdrying my hair and it felt strangely sticky. Then this evening I opened a can of hearts of palm and proceeded to drain the water in the trash bin and throw the can in the sink.
Gotta get some sleep.

4:40 AM

Friday, January 10, 2003

Unheard of! Yesterday I was so tired I cancelled my evening plans! On a Thursday! And of course I could not sleep till the wee hours anyways ...
I finally received the Tony Robbins' programs I should have gotten before Xmas. I now need my iPod back so I can convert them to MP3s and carry them around with me (I don't own a portable CD player). I just checked the repair status and it seems they ordered a replacement! I am getting a new one!
Back to work now ... more later.

10:14 AM

Wednesday, January 08, 2003

So much for the funk class. I got home after 8 PM.
Tomorrow I have to get up very early in order to finish a text and get to the dentist by 9 AM.
As of tomorrow evening, I might go out for a drink. I still have to find out wether I can mix Xanadrine and alcohol. I researched the matter on the web but so far it seems to be safe (I am talking about the efhedra free Xanadrine, of course).
Saturday evening I am meeting with Jose Antonio, Debra and Bob.
Debra and I have decided to try this dinner in the dark thing, as well as a raw food restaurant (probably Quintessence) . I've also like to try Suba , maybe for my upcoming birthday.

11:51 PM

I came in early this morning so I could leave early and get to a funk class at Crunch. It�s not going to happen. I am still here and will be here for a while.

5:47 PM

Tuesday, January 07, 2003

Done. I've switched to a much faster DSL provider (Speakeasy). I only hope to have it up and running before Direct TV goes off line.

1:35 AM

Sunday, January 05, 2003

Met Debra downtown and watched her eat while elegantly sipping a Bellini. Before meeting with her I stopped at GNC to get a post-holiday-season-kit (Xenadrine-EFX, some Xenadrine bars and meal replacement shakes).
After she headed uptown to play tennis I walked to the Apple store to have them check my iPod (the battery lasts only a few minutes). I waited for about 45 minutes, some of them chatting with a very nice fellow macaddict. The guy at the Genius Bar was very willing to give me a new iPod but he had none left, so I am having mine picked up tomorrow and sent to Apple. While at the store I could not resist buying something and I got EyeTV. I've already installed it but I definetely need a longer coaxial cable.
I am now watching the premiere of what is bound to become my next major addiction: High School Reunion.
Tomorrow is back to work and I actually can't wait!

9:19 PM

Saturday, January 04, 2003

I'm back home! And boy am I happy! I had a great time in Madrid but I miss NYC. I just adore this city.
I flew in on Friday. Took off from Madrid at 10.30 AM, connected in Lisbon at 11.30 AM and arrived in NY at about 5 PM. The best thing was that I got bumped into First Class on the Lisbon-NYC leg. I have no idea why but when I showed my boarding pass for the very last time the flight attendant that took it wrote a new seat number and announced to me that it was on First Class. It was certainly enjoyable but frankly, I don't think I would pay for First Class out of my pocket - sure, the seats are fine but I don't need them, I can sleep just about anywhere. The champagne I don't care for and I am not drinking more wine than I would in coach just because it's free. The food is much better and you get your own little screen (but I hardly ever watch a movie) so the only selling point to me is the clean bathroom. For some reason I expected the restroom to be much bigger and it wasn't, but it sure was cleaner and that I appreciate.
At Barajas airport, doing the check in just beside me was this guy who worked at the office a few months ago and whom I really like. He was flying back to NY with his wife, and I really liked her too.
Then on the plane the lady sitting beside me was a Barbra Streisand look alike and just friendly enough that we could talk a little without me feeling like I had to sustain a running conversation till landing.
I am home now. I did not go out yesterday nor today, except for the bare necessities. Tomorrow though I should go to the Apple store in SoHo.

11:21 PM

Thursday, January 02, 2003

No news for several days. Haven�t done much. On NYE dinner at home and then we went out to find a bar. Most were hosting private parties so we ended up at La Solera. JP�s attention span is very short so we did not stay long. For some reason the city seems to be invaded by Italians and Argentineans.
January 1st was a stay-at-home day and today, January 2nd, I am waiting for my sister-in-law to pick me up to go do some light shopping. Tonight we are having dinner at a vegetarian place on the first floor of Jimena and Jose�s building.
I am still not sure whether I will be leaving tomorrow morning or staying the weekend.
As for the stolen flat screen, it seems I will be reimbursed by the airline.
Side thought: as much as I like visiting Europe and I can appreciate the standard of living, the food and the wine, the culture etc. etc., I really much rather live in the U.S.
Europe and America are two very different worlds and there is something about the been-there-done-that blas� attitude of old Europe that I am not comfortable with. I know it�s a more sophisticated view of the world but I choose to be stupid.

11:24 AM