OakMonster’s Den

Okay Thanksgiving weekend is almost over. I have crap loads of leftover in the fridge!

The story goes…

I heard about a program organized by the Armed Force YMCA in San Diego that sign families up to host a couple of Marines, Navy servicemen and women for Thanksgiving. So Brandon and I signed up. I asked on Monday before T-day and they said I should be getting 2 guests but someone will confirm with me later. I haven’t heard anything so I went and bought all the foods anyway. That was the day when the truckers join the grocery store strike. So Brandon and I hauled home a 22-lb turkey.

Wednesday afternoon, the last and final day I should hear about hosting military guests, I still haven’t heard anything…meaning, no guests. Brandon and I launched into a desperate, last minute search for Thanksgiving Orphans, but everyone already made plan by this point.

Thanksgiving morning, I wrestled the 22 pounder out of the cooler where it’s been thawing, and damn near fell in to the cooler myself. I cooked the bird, made the stuffing and all the fixings. The maple-glazed, sage-buttered turkey came out perfeftly! (I’ll have the picture here soon.) We probably ate about 3 lbs of turkey that night.

Today, I’m off to the store to buy stuff to make turkey and dumplings.

Turkey lurkey loo…and turkey lurkey lap. I eat my turkey then I take a nap….

Farscape is baaaaaaaaaack! As a 4-hour mini series some time next year to tie up all the loose ends. The worldwide SaveFarscape efforts paid off. It may not be the return of the series, but we created enough waves that a mini series are in order. Who know what else can come of that.

Viva la Farscape!

When I was growing up, I never really had big birthday parties. For us, it was usually my family, my uncle’s family, and my grandmother. We gathered around a birhday cake with presents on the evening of the birthday, and opened presents. Then it was a dinner at a special restaurant with my family that weekend. I only remember one birthday party I had, and it was at McDonald’s, 5th grade. That was about it.

When I came over here, it was still quite the same: low key family event. During freshman year, my college suitemates threw a surprise party for me after I returned from a disappointing USC-fucla game. That was my first surprise party ever! The only other surprise party was from my HSX colleagues during my first year there. (I was walking around wanting pies that day and they got me some that afternoon!)

Anyhow, so I tried to gather friends around for a big birthday bash after that. But it never really happened. I would have a turn out of 5 people maximum. These past couple of years, when I went to other people’s parties, I would get depressed. How come I never have that many friends at my party? Am I that big of a loser??? I have never need a party full of “friends” to define me before. I guess having attended some of the parties when the beers are flowing and the music pumping, I wanted to do one with my bunch of friends too.

I forgot 2 things. First, not many of my friends are party animals. And secondly, other than Brandon’s friends, I don’t have any friends living within 10 mile radius from me.

For the past couple of years, I have been trying to be someone else. I tried to be the social butterfly and party girl…who I really am not. I finally found myself amidst all of the alluring glitz of raging parties. I’m not built like that, and neither are my friends.

So it’s back to basics for me. I called my parents. My brother called me (…he doesn’t call a lot…so it TOTALLY made my day). I spent the day with Brandon, watching “Patton” on the couch. We went to get lunch at one of my favorite junk shack, Wienerschnitzel, cracked open my sewing machine, and later on I watched as the e-Cards come in. Then we splurged on dinner so I can have sushi and sake. It’s probably one of the best birthdays I had in recent years!

The birthday present I gave to myself this year is peace, and a chance to get to know me again.

Thank you Brandon for spending the day (and the moolah) with me And thank you everyone who sent me an e-Card (and real cards too). It means a LOT to me that you remember!

Guess what I got for my birthday? A sewing machine!!!

I was like an inspire artist without a paintbrush for a while. I slaved for hours, hand stitching projects together. (See Brandon’s Halloween costume.) No more!

Then again, the last time I used a sewing machine was home-ec class in 6th grade. And that was the pedal-powered kind, not electric.

I’m still amazed at how much I’ve grown to enjoy sewing. Anyone who knows me since childhood should know–especially my mom–that I’m no girly-girl, and sewing was probably one of my most hated activity. Then again, if you had no job for 9 months and all you watch was Martha Stewart, you too would have gotten motivated enough to start doing something new.

A HUUUUGE thank you to Mom and Dad Boren for this wonderful present! Like a good little girl, I’m not opening my present until my birthday tomorrow. Okay fine, I’ll open it at 12:01

For those who’ve visited here before, I hope you like what I did with the place now. I’ve geeked out many hours this evening.

By the way…TROJANS KICKED ARIZONA’S @SS!!!!! 45-0 booyah baby! Sugar Bowl…All - the -wayyyyyy!