Throwback Thursday Blog!! "I Give Last Weekend a 9.5"

Note: This blog is particularly insightful and "hil" (hilarious) to me because I'm pretty sure I didn't do anything at all last weekend.  Maybe tea with some friends?  I know Cass and I went on a really amazing walk through Beverly Hills and Rodeo Drive with her dog, Howie.  But besides that I'm pretty sure I just worked. Oh, how times have changed, and for the better!

Finally, LOTS of love to Christine Biondo, she was a key part of my mid-twenties.  And lastly, this Throwback Thursday post reminds me of an old friend I don't communicate with anymore.  I hope she's well.

I give last weekend a 9.5                                                                                                    Feb. 6, 2006

Current mood:drained

I can't believe I'm about to say this, but for all of you who weren't in Springfield this weekend, you missed out.  I had a fabulous weekend with the girls, and a few guys.  Now that I've slept more than 4 hours-thank you Brian, it's difficult to differentiate between Fri. and Sat.  I know Sat. was one BILLION times more fun than Fri, but overall; a great weekend.  Let's recap: Sushi, free sushi, (who did that, Christine?), vanilla vodka and diet coke "vanilla cake," chubby guy dancing on the stage, he meant every move he made, a striking disclosure of a threesome, and I shall NOT name names in order keep my ass from getting kicked, an afterbar so smoky, it made our eyes water, and our throats sore, me SWEARING I'm not going to smoke on Sat., but starting up before we even have dinner, a guy named Bubba who uses his Rolex to unsuccessfully pick up chics, me passing out TWICE, and TL you know I NEVER get to pass out. Finding my top in the living room and my bra in the hallway the next day and realizing that I changed infront of everyone. Peanut butter on my face, Mira sprawled on the ground in front of Icon, that piece of shit door guy Shane, can we put a hit on him?  Grinding with Triptophan, I mean really, I was grinding, and all who really know me, know I do not grind. But it was funny.  Mira being carried "spread eagle style" all the way to the afterbar, and I FINALLY got the nerve to wear my sequin tubetop out, without something over it, and the pinnacle of the night?  Sarah and I deciding it's no big deal to pull down our shirts at the bar and let everyone see our strapless bras because "it's just like a bathing suit." The end.

The Pursuit of Happiness

Coming back from my trip I’ve spent time with several people who were to my surprise, very interested in how my trip was and where I am now.  Most of them have wanted to know the same things: what did I learn?  Did I meet anyone special?  Did I fall in love? And where am I now?

Even though I was gone for only two months, I learned a LOT.  I believe I’m closing in on the last chapters of my personal quest to familiarize myself with the art of patience (my least virtuous trait).  I can’t say I’ve “mastered” patience because that would make me some sort of reincarnated Monk on my way to Enlightenment.  Not there yet.

In Chiang Mai, Thailand, singing "Earl" with Lara and Candida.

Throwback Thursday: London or Bust!

This is the very first blog I have on record, dated Feb. 2, 2006.  I had just bought a ticket to visit my best friend Lindsey Mason who lived in London at that time.  The blogs have not been edited for spelling or grammar, I'm posting them as-is.  I had just turned 26 years old and the name of my blog was Oshkoshbtosh (a nickname from college).  I was Tosh.0 before Tosh.0 was cool.  

I booked my flight today, and I am "leaving on a jetplane" on April 28, and will make my return May 7.  I'm so excited, I'm a little bit nauseous.  Of course that may be contributed to the very bald and shiny headed man with the mammoth set of keys with the distincly one-leg shorter and his nasty cologne which permeated the hallways for many moments after his breeze through the advertising area.  Pardon the run-on sentence.  I bought my ticket today after lunch.  I can't even contain my excitement.  And, to make matters 1,000 times better, I'm getting paid vaca for the time I'm gone.  I just started my job 3.5 weeks ago, and I'm getting to use my p.v. Tara, I knew there had to be a prince in those toads of asshole bosses I've had my entire life.  Cheerio bloody Americans!

On Love

All a girl really wants is a guy who can pick her up off the floor amidst a mental breakdown.  If a girl is willing to let him and a guy is willing to help her up, then this is a good place to start.

Road Rage in LA

The biggest culture shock I received when I returned to LA wasn’t the fine-ass hotties strolling the streets of Abbot Kinney, Sunset Blvd., and the boardwalk; it was the narcissism of this town.  I first noticed it when I hopped in the car with a girlfriend and she almost immediately started slamming on her horn and cussing at the drivers around her as if they were personally seeking a vendetta with her. 

It kind of looked like this.

New Year in Bali

Reviewing my posted blogs I realize I’ve forgotten to post about one of the most interesting cultural experiences I was lucky enough to encounter while in Bali: NYEPI!!!  Also known as the Balinese New Year.  While most travelers got the hell out of Bali, Hannah, Candida and I decided to stay in Ubud.  I had already been to Ubud and wasn’t keen on going back, but it was better than staying in Kuta.  And those girls could create a good time with nothing but a piece of paper and some dental floss, or more accurately, Deet and a plastic bottle.  

My crew.

God Bless America. And Los Angeles.

On my way from Thailand via China I had a 12 hour countdown to my beloved country.  When we crossed the International Date Line I looked out the window into the middle of the night and saw a billion familiar stars that I hadn’t seen in months. 

The International Date Line.

A few hours later we were approaching the USA and I had the joy of watching the sun rise for the second time in a day – the first being in China.  I noticed I was the only one with my window shade up, the entire left side of my face pressed against the freezing cold Plexiglas, my left eyelid precariously close to being flipped inside out by my sheer will to see the sun shining on my hometown.  Gawd I love LA and America.  Here’s why:

I can let my guard down.  I don’t feel like I have to constantly watch my back or hold onto my purse with a Vulcan Death Grip.  I can breathe and relax because the odds of someone ripping my purse off of my shoulder while walking down Abbot Kinney are slim.  I feel like my entire body has exhaled.  According to my friend Christy Moulin, it’s my Circadian Clock readjusting to my familiar rhythm.  I won’t go into super specifics but being in a different hemisphere with different people, food, time zones and just traveling in general can mess with all SORTS of body functions and schedules. 

I can go where I want when I want, because I have a car.  I no longer have to rely on a taxi, tuk-tuk, scooter, motorcycle, bus, plane or boat to take me anywhere.  I can hop in my very own Mini Cooper, open the moon roof, roll down the windows, crank up the radio and go wherever I want.  I no longer have to worry about getting on a guy’s scooter and wondering how much he has drank, if he’s a good driver or not, holding my breath praying we don’t wreck.  What a relief. 

We have the BEST music in LA.  I’ve heard Oz has a great music scene as well, but my gawd I LOVE our music!  We have The Silversun Pickups, Of Monsters and Men, Awolnation, The Neighbourhood, Mumford & Sons, Lord Huron, Youngblood Hawke, Imagine Dragons and soo so so many more.  Just the music and the tacos alone will make you want to the star-studded sidewalks in this town. 

Being in houses.  For the past two months I’ve bounced around from hut to bungalow to homestay to hotel to hostel and it’s nice to spend time in my friends’ homes, where they live and cook and sleep every day.  It’s nice to know that everything in the house is there’s and it has only been used by people they know.  Just that fact gives the places I’ve been staying a completely different energy than the places I stayed in Asia (even if they were cool huts and bungalows).  Being away for two months makes me feel at home everywhere I go!

Freaking fast internet.  I can get through an episode of The  Vampire Diaries in the actual 40 minutes it should take, instead of 3 hours of load time. 

Hot guys riding their skateboards down the street in their Dodgers hats, Ray Bans, plaid shirts, designer jeans and some variation of Chucks, Vans, or boots.  Or maybe no shirt, like below.

Typical dude in Venice.

The Power of Manifestation

I have been ordered to write a blog manifesting the optimal ending to my search; a sort of “if you build it, he will come” type of thing.  What am I building?  In this case, the “perfect” job.  I’m dropping my resume at Shutters on the Beach on Monday morning and I’m going to ‘razzle dazzle’ them, thus getting the position as esthetician at their elite spa.  Hurray!  Manifestation created.  In these parts (Los Angeles) it’s sort of taboo to speak about a potential position, promotion, role, etc. before you’ve sealed the deal and signed the contract but, what the heck.  I’ll give it a shot because Mark Harmon told me to and his advice is almost always spot on.   

Since I was on a role with the power of manifestation, I asked my friend Jenny McClain what she would like to manifest for her latest project, a pilot that will be pitched and shopped to the major networks.  I believe saying what you want out loud to another person puts a lot of power behind your words.  So always try to speak from the heart and be very very detailed about what it is you want.  Jenny wants her pilot to be picked up by a major network, with several seasons and the original cast and crew carried through the project.  Fabulous!

Also, writing down your goals and manifestos and then reviewing them frequently helps to keep you motivated and on track; which is why I’m home in bed and not out partying.  I have a high profile client in the morning and I need my wits with me.  While I was in Bali I read The Way of the Superior Man and in that book, author David Deida says you should live on the edge and your work should always be driven by the desire to truly pursue and live your purpose.  I believe when you meditate and focus on your purpose the universe will speak to you and show you the way to living your truest self. 

What are some of your goals, dreams, or aspirations?  How do you feel after you’ve written them down and taken the time to look at your list(s)?  

Big Trouble, Little China

Or, a blonde American’s survival guide to accidentally booking an overnight stay in China. 

Yes that’s right, as I type this I’m in China.  In typical Nat fashion, I booked a flight and thinking that I had all my ducks in a row, managed to miss a couple of important details.  Like the fact that my next flight out of Kunming Airport was 13 hours after my arrival.  I don’t know how I didn't see a red flag when booking this but I think I was juggling a flight to Thailand at the same time.  Regardless, here I am in China in a very rural town, I think – I can’t Google it because the internet is controlled by the government and I’m not allowed access to Google, Facebook, twitter…not even my own blog.  Crazy!! 

I did start to freak out a little bit while at the airport; I mean what the hell am I going to do for 13 hours in China? 

The immigration people at the airport took me into the back area of the airport (not typical procedure here) where I could pull up my itinerary and prove to them that I in fact had a continuing flight from here to Shanghai.  I was under intense supervision the entire time using the internet in China is a very big privilege which they do not take lightly.  I mean, that immigration woman was standing thisclose to me.  Pulling up the ticket I wanted to be all “See??  Right there it says my connecting flight is in an hour!  Can I go now?” but when we opened the email she didn't even notice the problem, I had to point it out and explain to her what had happened.  My mouth literally popped open in shock, I couldn't believe I hadn't noticed it before, and I had just looked at the itinerary the day before.  Crap.  The head of immigration was nice enough to give me a 24 hour visa with the adamant demand that I was to be out of the country the next morning.  He was so the picture of Chinese Communism, on his high tower above all the immigration stamp workers, it was almost ironic. 

He gave my passport back to me and without a trace of sarcasm or warmth he said “you make sure you know what time your flight is tomorrow and be here for your flight.  Do not stay in China longer than 24 hours.” 

All I could say was “Yes! Yes, 7:30 a.m., I’ll be here.  I’m here.  7:30 a.m. tomorrow”  Small pause… “and could you also recommend a reasonable hotel for me to stay tonight and also tell me how to get there?”  I had succeeded in turning Chinese Immigration in a travel agency.  WTH??

Ruckiry as I was leaving the airport a nice man asked me where I was going and when I told him I needed to get to Airport Hotel he turned out to be my amazing Chinese guardian Buddha.  He spoke English very well and he was very excited to tell me about the new airport I was in, take me to the ATM and then to the hotel.  In the back of my mind I was thinking “please don’t take my kidneys, please don’t take my kidneys, please don’t take my kidneys” and he didn’t!  He arranged for a wake up call for 4:30 the next morning as well as the hotel car to take me to the airport in the morning.  He also set up my wifi and let me know it was safe to walk around the area and get some food. 

I went to a little Chinese restaurant and even though I wasn't hungry but I thought I should eat some real Chinese food since I am in China (!!!).  I stuck out like a sore thumb in that one-horse town.  People actually stopped what they were doing when they saw my blonde head bobbing down the street.  Their eyes would follow me all the way past them and then I could hear them talking as if they were saying “Did you see that girl?  What is she doing here?  Is she lost?”  And then they would all laugh.  Haha, so funny guys!

After dinner at the local greasy spoon I took a scorching hot shower and I was so excited to climb into my fluffy bed and watch a movie on the flat screen in my room but my hopes were shattered when I flipped through the channels which were ALL Chinese – not even a BBC station.   Thanks Commies!  Ugh.  *rolls eyes.  No worries, I thought.  I’ll just write this little ditty on China instead.  Looking forward to my 4-Star bed I pulled the covers back and plopped onto…a wooden platform disguised as a mattress.  The bed was basically a board covered in linens.  I couldn't believe they went through all the trouble of making the bed look so lush just to sleep on a hard flat surface.  I guess it’s a cultural thing to have extremely firm beds, I’d Google it, but I’m not allowed.