Archive for the 'Pssh...Some People' Category

True Life

I had a dream a few nights ago that I was back in school at Mater Dei.  Having heard Aurora talked about burning her hand on chemistry set back in high school at dinner time, in the dream, I ended up back in a chemistry lab.  My lab partner is one of my school friends but she is for some reason in a wheel chair and for that I have to help her with her lab stuff.

We were supposed to be measuring water into this beaker.  She kept telling me I was doing it wrong, that was too much water, that wasn’t enough water, it wasn’t supposed to drip like that, etc.

Why don’t you just do it, I asked.  You can’t use your legs but your hands are free. I’ll hold the beaker for you, even.

I can’t, she said. I’m sick, can’t you see?  Now, try it again with the dropper.

So I did.  Once again, she said I was doing it wrong.

I grabbed the beaker and poured the water on her head.

Naturally, she started screaming.  What the hell is wrong with you?  Why would you do that?

The teacher came over.  What is going on here, she asked.  Oakley poured water all over me, my lab partner whined.  The teacher looked at me for an answer.

Because she’s being a little bitch, I pointed out.

The room fell silent.

I see America has changed you, the teacher said.  Now, get out of my lab and go pack your bag too. This school no longer welcomes you.  (Apparently, in this dream, my school becomes a boarding school.)

Fine, I said.  And I left.

A bit of foreshadowing perhaps of my trip to come?  Hell, I already got a request to take down my Princess Leia zombie picture on my Facebook because it was “embarassing.”

Just for that, I’m going to upload a whole bunch of pics to my Facebook gallery.

I am turning 32 tomorrow.  Given, I had a pretty good idea of who I was when I came to the U.S. at 16.  However, I have struggled to find my place in the world for years–and I’ve compromised plenty.  Now that I’ve finally embraced my weirdness and quirks and the shape of my body, I refuse to have someone take that away from me again.

Muck like my geek manifesto and declaration of war against “Normal”, I am declaring war against people who want me to be something else I am not.

The only person I would take that kind of criticism from is my mother, and she is no more.  I will no longer compromise when it comes to my identity.

I will not back down to keep the peace just because I make you uncomfortable.  I refuse to be an easy target for you to feel better about yourself.  I refuse to be the scapegoat for your own low self esteem.  I refuse to be responsible for your feelings because you can’t accept me for who I am.

If you need an excuse from me so I am acceptable enough to you, then clearly, you can’t stand me at all.

I am who I am.  Take it or leave it.

Connected

I’ve fired up my much neglected Facebook and updated my LinkedIn.

Boy, did I gather up a whole bunch of new people!  With Facebook, it’s friends and new activity buddies (like Thrill the World people).  With LinkedIn, some long lost coworkers and recent connections.

I personally haven’t used my LinkedIn to full potential, I’m sure.  The Former DemiBoss is a true goddess when it comes to these things.  She’s a real connector in person and that carries into her life in the social media.

I used to really hate it when people say, “I’m glad we could connect,” or “Let us connect later.”

*shudder*

I like the word.  I like what it does.  Connect.  It’s a good thing.  But when it becomes a buzz word for the business world, it loses a bit of magic.

I like to keep in touch with people.  I like to know what is up to with them.  For example, if I hadn’t been sifting through my list, I wouldn’t have found out a former colleague just had her baby in July, or that a spouse of the lady I befriended while at a training class had won an Emmy.

Knowing that people I know are doing well makes me happy.  It makes me truly appreciate the power of the internet to connect people from all over.  Something I couldn’t have done 10 years ago.

Some folks in the business world work the connections because they want to get something.  They want to “connect” because they want to drop the names.  They want to “connect” so they can ask for what they want.  They want to “connect” to get something.

A former coworker (/wave hi you!)  dropped me a pearl of wisdom that works even out of the context of the conversation we were having.

Two kinds of people in the world, Oakley.  The ones who ask, “What’s in it for me?” and the ones who ask, “What can I do to help?”

Obviously, I’m the “What can I do to help?” kind.  Therefore the “What’s in it for me?” folks bug the crap out of me.

Link me so I can USE you down the road for something.

I hate that.

Is there a point to this post?  Not really.  Just venting, I guess.

Life as we know it

Coworkers congregated in my cubicle over some chocolate covered almonds.

“Have you seen Oakley’s article in the Daily Breeze?” Coworker #1 referred to my 15 seconds of fame.

“No,” Coworker #2.

CW#1 continued to tell CW#2 about Temple of Fresh & Easy blog.

CW#2 snorted.  “Who has time for that kind of thing?”

And of course, CW#2 ranted on about how he doesn’t have time to do the Facebook or “such nonsense” because of his busy social schedule, implying along the way that folks who do those things don’t really have a life.

That did it.

Seriously, I am getting tired of the whole implication that because I put my life online that I have nothing better to do with my time.

Do I talk down on your hobby of fixing up classic cars, pimping rides, antiquing, woodworking, gardening, or, in CW#2’s case, hanging out at bars and clubs?

You choose what to do with your free time.  You make time for your hobby.  Mine happens to be blogging, social networking, and video gaming.

Yet, these “normal people” constantly talk down to us geeks.

I used to just laugh it off and went with the “Oh, I know. I don’t have a life,” as a reply.

But I’m not going to do that any more.

Fuck you and your “normal life”.

I *do* have a life.  It’s not the same one you live or the one you think it’s “cool”.

My life is online, digitized, and pixelated.  But it’s a life I’ve chosen to live.

I find my meaning in writing and sharing my thoughts with the world, whether the world wants it or not.  I find my meaning in sharing my life with other I don’t know as a window into some new experience that is not my day-to-day.  I find my meaning in squashing the bad guys in my games with my controller until my hands cramped up.

Like I discussed with fellow Twitter-ette SallieB before, some of us have the ability to build relationships both online and off.  Some of such relationships only get better with the reinforcements from the other source.

I have human interaction with my local friends, and even better relationships with my long distance buddies.  I actually get to “meet” new people across the world I would never would have met in a bar like Rude Cactus, Steve and Richard of Thai-Blogs, Chef House, and many readers that I have come to “talk” to like Irish Cousin Robert and Amy of the Q Family.

And there’s also the new circle of friends we built around Brandon’s World of Warcraft guild and occasion gathering of the geeks at James’ house.

I put my life online originally because half of the people I know live half the world away.  Blogging was the best way to keep everyone in touch.  Not that they really swing by here often either, but I give them an option to be updated.  I know going in that if I put this online, everyone gets to see it.  I know that since I started my first website back in college.

My blog and other social networking media is a newsletter or a zine that happens to be online.

I’ve always “printed” some kind of zines since I was in 3rd grade.  It’s the same concept with a new medium.

Still my hobby.  Something I love to do and make time for.

So, go on out with your cool kids to the hip bars, “normal people”.  I’ll be right here with my computer and game console, enjoying my own life my own way.

Not the Bunnies!

BBC News reports:

Rabbit ripper shocks Germany

…Rocco and Felina are among the 30 pet rabbits killed in the towns of Witten and Dortmund since last summer.

Many of the rabbits have been decapitated and the blood drained from their bodies…

…It is also unclear how the killer has been locating his victims.

Most of the beheaded pets were hidden from public view, locked away in back yards or back gardens.

It has raised the possibility that the killer has been using satellite images on the internet to find houses with rabbit hutches…

…Fear is driving German rabbit-owners to hide their pets away in the woods, like Julia, or in their garages, or in cellars.

The pet rabbits of the Ruhr Valley are being forced to go to ground, while the killer is still at large.It is also unclear how the killer has been locating his victims.

Most of the beheaded pets were hidden from public view, locked away in back yards or back gardens.

It has raised the possibility that the killer has been using satellite images on the internet to find houses with rabbit hutches.

People are sick. SICK!  Killing hapless little fluffy creatures who all they do is hop around, poop, eat grass, and look incredibly adorable.  How could you!

And wow, I didn’t know bunnies are popular pet in Germany.

Things I don’t understand

People who drive in the fast lane on the freeway going at the speed limit while everyone else is going faster AND won’t get over to let faster traffic pass.

Same people in the carpool lane with a dozen cars stuck behind them AND won’t get over to let faster traffic pass.

Self proclaimed health nuts who looked down upon you for enjoying bacon and butter but they go out to tan in midday sun without sunscreen.

Same health nuts going all organic and fat-free but drink like alcoholics.

Scientology.

My former work place.

Occasionally, my current work place.

Extremists of any kind–Muslims, Christians, Environmentalists, etc.

$3+ cupcakes.

Designer purses.  (Seriously, $3000 for a fucking purse?  Does it come stuffed with $2550 cash?) 

Designer baby/children’s clothing.  (Found at James and Aurora house was a cute little True Religion t-shirt.  They wouldn’t believe me when I said that itsy bitsy 6-12mo shirt was probably $40+.  A boy’s t-shirt on their website is $58.  What do you think?)

People who keep looking at you while you talk to your friend in the elevator, hoping to be included in the conversation just because they get into the same elevator as you.

People who rush into the elevator before the people inside can even get out.  (That is a very FOB Asian trait, by the way.  So yes, partly it’s cultural, but that doesn’t make it excusable.  Thai people do that at home.  I mean, think about this for a second, people.  If the folks inside couldn’t get out, there is no room for you on the damn elevator.  Duh!  But you’re not in your homeland any more.  Adjust to the new norm already, sheesh.)

People who talk on their cell phones in the restroom while doing their business.  WTF, seriously!

I’m sure there are a LOT more things one don’t understand.  Care to share a few?

Grab and Go

On my bus last night, one of the ladies asked the other, “Have you been to the Fresh & Easy market?”

“Oh my god, YES!” I chirped in. “I LOVE the place!”

The lady looked at me, stunned for a second. “Oh, I was going to say the opposite.”

Apparently, that might just be the opinion of most Americans of the brand new “neighborhood markets”, a creation of Tesco. The LA Times reported a few days ago claiming that the sales at F&E were 70% off mark.

Folks don’t want to change their shopping habits. The lady on the bus claimed that F&E has “nothing”. The store was too bare, she said. She wanted more variety and stuff. She hated the self check-0ut. And, she didn’t say it outright, but she wanted the groceries bagged.

I am one of the small number of people who is madly in love with the place because it is the exact opposite of what that lady wants in a store.

I don’t want that much variety because I don’t want to spend an hour in there wading through stuff I don’t need. I’m not stuck on brand to begin with. The less variety, the better.

And when I say the less variety here, it means the less of typical COMMERCIAL variety, but not in the range of products.

For example, last night I picked up a Greek style yogurt, a Swiss style yogurt, and a Goat Milk yogurt on the shelves among a wide variety of F&E brand yogurts. You just won’t find your regular Yoplait in the place. There may not be a fridge full of competing Tillamook and Land O Lake cheeses but there’s a wedge of Cotswold and other delicious cheeses you won’t find in there. And dear god, the meaty and delicious British cut bacon!!! But I digress.

The place is clean and streamlined. No giant display around the corner. No coupons needed. No member cards needed.

The best part? You check out your own grocery. Oh my god! No more wasting time waiting for somebody to bag your stuff while trying awkwardly to be friendly with the cashier. Absolutely no line to fuss with.

It was easy to get in and out of Fresh & Easy and THAT is exactly what I want. Sure, I would spend about the same amount of time going to my local Vons around the corner as driving a mile over to the closest F&E. But I spend a LOT less time in F&E than in a Vons.

Everything you usually come in for–produce, meat, dairy, and booze–are located in the first few rows, not buried in the back of the store like most grocery chains. If you want to stay and browse, go right ahead and saunter through the back parts of the store. Otherwise, you’re in and you’re out.

The quality of the meat from this place is definitely better than my local Vons. The chicken breasts were definitely fresher. The beef? Rival what I can get fresh at Ploughboy in Fountain Valley.

And the price? People assume that because it’s a British chain, or a brand new small fry that it’s going to cost more than the bigger chain. WRONG. The prices are very competitive. They even have a special sign to tell you when certain products are cheaper than anybody around.

Let me just say that Brandon has NEVER ask to go to the grocery store before. Last night, he actually wants to detour from our dinner run to go there. After all, he says they have the BEST pre-cut pineapples outside of Hawaii. He also loves the self check-out.

So while I let this older lady dissing the joint. I can see the younger generations flocking to this place. It’s perfect to pop in on the run.

If you like to spend time in the grocery store and getting your human interaction fix from your cashier, stay clear.

If you value your time and your money; if you’re an adventurous consumer; and if you HATE everything the normal grocery store stands for, you’ll love Fresh & Easy.

Find one near you.

Note: Yes. I’m supporting my local favorite store for the most selfish reason. I love the goddamn store! And if they go under, I have to go back to Vons again. And I DON’T WANT TO!!!

Oh puh-lease!

My car is now in the shop. I dropped it off last night and no only I didn’t get the rental car as promised, I didn’t get the courtesy shuttle ride either. Nobody told me if I get there after 6 p.m., the rental car place is closed and the shuttle service is over.

Oh and they called me this morning, they asked me again if I wanted the fuel injection service. I said no already. Sheesh.

Like that is not only enough aggravation, Brandon has gone and done this.

ETA: Now that the day’s over…and trust me, part of it I wish someone would jump out from behind a cubicle to say April’s Fool!…Happy April’s Fool, everybody!  The original post had a Rick Roll, but it seemed EVERYONE was doing on today so I switched.  Hehe.

Dibs!

Before we left the house for the night of festivities on Thursday, I explained to Justin about my “Anti-Boy Goggles”.

There is a difference in how guys treat me on nights out when I wear my usual glasses versus the contact lenses. Not that I often get hit on–I mean, what guys in their right mind hit on a flat-chested plain looking girl with glasses–but I feel like I go under the radar with the glasses. It’s like a cloaking device. Without it, suddenly people start to notice that I am around.  Totally the Superman/Clark Kent thing.  Glasses on, you’re gone.  Glasses off, you’re here.   It doesn’t matter how cool my glasses look, it repels unwanted attention, and for me, that is quite awesome.  Ahh…the good life of us 4-eye freaks.

But anyway. We went to dinner at a sports bar called the Whiskey Girl. I came back from the last trip to the restroom to this question from Justin.

“Did you get hit on on your way back from the restroom?”

I looked at him. “By what, the door?”

*

Justin’s Match Day celebration was at this chic lounge in Downtown SD.  The bar area was mostly occupied by Justin’s peers. We pulled some trendy bar stools away from the bar so we could sit while Justin and his friends socialized. Originally, Olaina was standing facing us lazy folks who sat down and the bar. Three “kids” rowdily and noisily yapping behind Olaina and started to back up into her.  Well, this Queen Bitch kept leaning into this guy and he kept stepping back.  Mind you, the bar was not empty but it wasn’t THAT crowded. After Olaina got bumped into a few times by these inconsiderate fools, she moved over to get out of their way.

Somehow, that stepping away was perceived as an invitation for them to mad rush the bar, squishing themselves by us.  At that point, Olaina had already sat down with her back to the bar.  And of course, these guys would be standing, once again, right behind her.  We made a point to drag her chair away from those guys. And once again, they seemed to think that was an invitation to take up more space.

Somehow, not a minute later, the Queen Bitch started to back into Olaina with her massive purse, tapping her in the head, as she continued to yap and squeal to the other boys.

Olaina had it. She grabbed the girl’s purse forcefully and said calmly, “Honey, your purse keeps hitting me in the head. Can you please keep this closer to you or move away?”

The Queen Bitch snatched her purse away and in a huff spewed “Oh. Sor-ry.” Then she turned back to her little cronies with her panties in a twist–obviously bitching about this lady who told her she can’t do what she wanted.  Another friend of theirs, as if on cue, came to fetch the Queen Bitch away to go sit somewhere else almost immediately.

At this point, we also decided to remove ourselves to the couch to further watch people. We came to a conclusion that people are that inconsiderate because of the generations. I mean, I think we, in our 30s, were the oldest people in the damn place.

“See, that kind of inconsideration is sooo Generation Y,” I said.

Olaina actually said, “More like Generation ME”, but what I heard she said was, “More like Generation Meathead.”

Well, either one of those statements still defines that generation.

Later on, we told Justin of what would have gone down with the Queen Bitch and her big ass purse.

“Oh, I was so close to just slap her,” Olaina said. “But I don’t want to ruin your party.”

Justin said, “I would totally have your back in that fight.  And so would [his other med school friend].”

*

Since I’m not usually the clubbing crowd, going to that chic lounge was almost a lesson in anthropology. There were tons of “characters” that come out at night, it seems. Olaina and I, having had nothing else better to do, made our observations of the species.

First, there was this skinny lady with that leathery looking skin from too much sun, wet-and-crimped looking blond hair, black mini dress and 5-inch heels. We agreed that she stepped out of her time machine for a drink before returning to the high class call girl circle of the late 90s.

Then there was this, to put delicately, big boned girl who went crazy at Torrid, the plus size version of punk-goth Hot Topic, with low cut t-shirt than cling to her massive buxom and skirt way too short of her built. Oh, and the fish net stocking too. She decided to sit with her other mini-skirt wearing friends on the leather couches. Too short skirt on too big girl who doesn’t know how to sit properly in that situation equals a very sad and disturbing scene for the rest of us at the bar who happened to look that way.

Then there was his skinny overly-tanned to orange perfection girl (What’s up with the maximum fake bake in this place? I mean, it’s San-fucking-Diego, people. Go get some real sun.) in these tight, white pants and that long sleeve, tie-at-the-chest bright turquoise number, showing off her abs.  Excellent abs to her credit, by the way.  Still, I’m sorry but honey, you’ve missed the exit for South Beach by some thousands miles.

Well, at the end of the night, where we were standing by the bar, Olaina pointed out to Justin the abs-licious Miami Vice who happened to stand right in front of Massive Mall Goth. I was sitting down and I didn’t quite see MV. So when she started to gesture that direction, I thought she was pointing out MMG.

Olaina: Did you see her?

Justin: Who? The girl with the belly?

Me: That one over there, the beastly one in short skirt? Wait, which one are you talking about, Olaina?

Olaina: I was pointing out the one with the Belly.

Justin: And I was looking at the Beast.

Me: Belly and the Beast! This place has ‘em all!

*

Last night, we went to dinner at Ritual Tavern, a gastro pub and restaurant. We were there at dusk so as the sun was setting, our corner was slowly getting darker. Olaina ordered the special of seabass and fennel reduction with, as we found out later, baby purple potatoes. In the dim light, Olaina couldn’t tell what those orbs on her plate were. She cut into one to figure out what it was. But of course, being the purple potato, it still looked like an unidentified black round thing.

She lifted her fork toward Justin, “Honey, is this a date?”

I chimed in, “I would be if I wasn’t here.”

Armargeddon Theater

Brandon and I went to see Jumper at the Los Cerritos Center on Sunday. (Yes, even after I spent the entire day before in the theater, I willingly went back.  Just don’t give me any popcorn.)  We dutifully sat through the previews. (Yey, Indiana Jones!) The movie finally begun.

Just after Hayden Christiansen’s character trudged home soaking wet after his first “jump”, about 5 minutes in, the little lights through out the theater started to flash brightly. A voice came on to tell us that there is an emergency and everyone please calmly exit the building through the emergency exits at the end of the theater.

We got up and started down the stairs. The lady behind me was pushing up behind me, not quite pushing hard to enough to make her own way but definitely pushing. I whipped around.

“Excuse ME!”

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I slipped.”

No, you didn’t, you overly panicky dramatic bitch. But whatever. We walked out the door and down the stairs outside the building.

Once outside, we didn’t see a stream of people exiting the mall. So, we went back in to get our money/tickets back. A blond lady pushed through the line of us who were queuing up to get our refunds, demanding that she gets a paper bag to breath into because she has anxiety disorder and was freaking out.

After that, she demanded a chair to sit down at the head of the line and some water but not the kind that the theater has because “I don’t drink that”. She told everyone within earshot that there was a bomb going off in her movie and when the alarm went off she thought it was a terrorist attack. (By the way, if you have anxiety disorder, why would you go see a movie that would make you anxious to begin with?) When the management offers to call the ambulance for her seemingly mounting symptoms, she refused but yet continued to discuss loudly that she can’t breath, that she needed water, that she was going to pass out, etc.

I can’t judge here, but I don’t know if people who would actually suffer such disorder would really make that big of a scene AND refuse medical assistance. But that’s just me.

The entire time, fear doesn’t even cross my mind. True, I was with Brandon so that was definitely an assurance. But still, the whole emergency thing didn’t bother me one bit.

It went through my head like this.

I didn’t smell smoke, so there wasn’t a fire. I didn’t hear gun shots or explosions, so there possibly wasn’t any AK-47 wielding mad men outside. I didn’t feel any movement of the building so that wasn’t an earthquake or the building wasn’t losing its structural integrity. I didn’t hear anybody scream so whatever it was couldn’t possibly be that bad. The exits were right there in front of me and they would put me outside the building which is only a few stories up, an easy escape.

And more importantly, my guts didn’t react to any of it.

There was no cause to fear. I wasn’t afraid.

But then there was all of these people pushing me down the stairs and this lady freaking the fuck out.

I wonder if in the real situation, who will actually survive the ordeal, me or them…

Keeping the faith

So, someone wants to buy OakMonster.com from me.

No. He did not send a legal or formal request. Just an email. I said no. Then he asked how much. I said no again. Then he tried to patronize me.

Nice way to ask to ask someone to sell, bro. I would’ve given it some more thoughts. But man, I hate it when people are rude.

I was the only OakMonster in town until someone went and coined the wine term. Or the term for the Oakmont golf course. And, of course, long before someone went and tried to make a company name based on the wine term that was coined.

As a matter of fact, I think someone else DID coin that wine term…or at least popularize that term.  I wonder if these guys checked with Gary at TheOakMonster.com…

In any case, I just want you guys to know that someone wants to take your beloved OakMonster.com away from me.  Just in case one day, you show up here and it wasn’t me you see in this spot but some random wine vendors.

If I can help it, I won’t be going anywhere. But who knows how these things go.

It’s me against the big world.  But I know y’all love me.  Right?

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