Roads

IMG_4110, originally uploaded by SisterSafetyPin.

I've been up since 2:30am and I went to sleep at 12am. Oddly enough... Well never mind, I'm every bit as tired as you can imagine.

My grandmother decided she wanted to go visit my cousin since I would be going back to Sacramento today. I suggested she leave early. She chose 4am. So I was up and ready to drive her to the Amtrak station for her 4am bus. Good times really, it's the least I can do considering all the times our situations have been reverse.

So what have I been doing since then? Making sure I don't leave anything vital when my ride gets here at six. It amazes me. No matter how light I pack, I always end up taking an extra bag back. Gotta love the worrying spirit of the grandmother that ensures you have what you need plus everything she thinks you need.

But really, on the drive back from the train station I realized how much I appreciate LA and KCRW. Honestly, radio stations like KCRW are a dying breed and I'm glad to say LA is home to one of the best. And while listening to the station I came to another realization.

What is it, you ask? It's, while I still think Morrissey is a pretentious asshole... Some of his music really is quite good.

"None of these mindless dolts have any idea how lucky they are. They live perfect lives, eating fries whenever they please, laughing and joking with their perverted condescension. Mark my words--- I will spite these fry-gorged gargoyles. The street will flow with the blood of the nonbelievers!" IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas - Chuck Klosterman

Things I Learned Today: Take 3

The Lounge, originally uploaded by nicolemonet2002.

Today wasn't a remarkable day. Actually, if I were being honest I'd say my day only started 5 hours ago. So perhaps to call it unremarkable is perhaps a bit hasty. However, despite my late start to a day that's been going since 12am, I have learned a few things.

1. I really do love Sacramento.

That's not to say I don't still really love LA, I did grow up there after all. Yet, that very fact is part of my point. LA represents my childhood and all that entails. Good times, bad times, desperate times, great times; LA had them all. And with the majority of my family condensed in that city, I would always be a child there.

That's why I love Sacramento. It's no LA, by far. However, If I find myself in need of a big city, San Francisco, is less then 2 hours away. To put it simply, Sacramento, with all of it's quirks officially represents my intro into adulthood. Freedom. With all of the ups, downs, laughing fits, crying fits, and good times that entrails. I guess one could argue that this isn't necessarily a new revelation. So let's just say, it was something that I suddenly knew with certainty.

2. I really, really, REALLY like Zambezi: Frozen Yogurt & Wild Salads.

Seriously, love. I'm not sure if Zambezi is a chain food place or not, but I DO know that it is ridiculously delicious. What kind of food could expect to find there there? You ask. Well obviously, frozen yogurt. However, by frozen yogurt, Zambezi means 8 different flavours and 70 different self serve toppings. But I digress, I can't proclaim to love Zambezi for their frozen yogurt [despite how hot it is out here, I haven't tried it.] No, no... My cup runneth over with love because of their salads. Let's just take a gander at what a salad from this place entails:

The Zambezi [House Salad]: Spring Lettuce Mix, Red Grapes, Candied Roasted Walnuts, Blue Cheese Crumbles, & fat-free Raspberry Vinaigrette. If you trust me on nothing else, trust that each bite of that salad was utterly amazing. Which is why I went back today and got the 1/2 salad 1/2 sandwich combo. Same salad, turkey sandwich, bottle of apple juice... It was little like heaven.

Of course, that means I had to apply there. The place is just to good and entirely to close to my new place [only three houses down.] Meaning I'll spend way to much money there otherwise.

3. My stomach has shrunk dramatically.

I broke my fast yesterday around 2:30pm. Not because I suddenly, broke and gave into the hunger. My hunger was non-existent after Saturday. No, I broke the fast because I became increasingly concerned with how complicated breaking a longer fast would be. That may sound a little odd, but an extended water fast if not broken extremely slowly and properly could lead to extreme health problems. So, with out much adieu I broke it yesterday with the knowledge that I'd be doing another one soon.

However, I've noticed that since the fast I don't really get hungry. I've also noticed that I get full insanely quickly. Yesterday all I ate was the Zambezi salad. A normal sized dinner salad, that took me two sittings to finish. Today after only a couple bites from both the salad and sandwich, my stomach was sending up a white flag in surrender. It's crazy.

4. Lastly, Public Service Announcements [slash] Warnings, need to be a tad more clear. [And by a tad, I mean quite a bit.]

It really makes no sense to interrupt the music listening of almost everyone in NorCal for a PSA, if no one is going to be able to understand what cataclysmic [or extremely minor] thing we're being warned about.

What Makes a Ghetto?

IMG_3810, originally uploaded by nicolemonet2002.

The Ghetto.

People hear the phrase all the time: in the news, on their favorite crime shows, on the radio and even during everyday conversations. But what makes something 'Ghetto'? By what parameters do we judge an area and determine it as a part of the Ghetto? And what requirements must a Ghetto meet before it can be viewed without the negative word hanging around it's description?

When people think about the Ghetto, they think: cheap, poor, trash, and graffiti. They see homeless people loitering in the streets and unsavory types hiding int he wings, just waiting for a helpless outsider to become their next victim. People hear the word, "Ghetto" and they think: drugs, gangs, and crime.

However, this description of the Ghetto is little more then a caricature. Much in the same way shows like "The Hills" and "The Real Housewives of Orange County" are caricatures of what life in Orange County is like. The Ghetto is more then just a bad dream for those fortunate enough to not have been born there. The Ghetto is character.

The Ghetto is a collection of first generation citizens, immigrants, labor workers, families, churches, schools, small businesses and the entrepreneurs that run them, fast food chains, corner markets, and yes... some graffiti. But is that really a bad thing? Many people see living in the Ghetto as the absolute worst situation to find themselves in. However, to the people that live there... to the first time home buyers, the local shop owners, and the youth [that often get labeled as future criminals the day they're born], it is a community.

A community that is unapologetic about wearing its skeletons on its sleeve. A community of people that struggle everyday and live every night. A community of people that aren't always pretty, but always are. They are both the workers and the users of society. They are the Ghetto. For better or worse

What I learned...

Proudly Brews..., originally uploaded by nicolemonet2002.

Every day of ones life new things are learned. Considering that this is in fact a day [or rather, was a day] I too, have learned things today.

What you ask?

I've learned that...
1. LA as a whole is severely lacking in bike lanes. Not cool.
2. Carson is completely devoid of competent Starbucks Baristas.
- If you see me standing at the cash register, odds are I'd like to order.
- If I ask for an iced coffee and I'm the only customer in your store, odds are I'd like to have my drink before grey hair becomes a reality of my life.
- If I ask for syrup in my coffee, odds are I'd like to be able to taste it
3. Lastly, I've learned that there are rather significant holes in my music collection... That, more then anything else, is unacceptable.