ChicEgeeks

Updates

2009-08-20T19:10:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been awhile but I am firmly settled in Puerto Vallarta. During time I've met some very interesting folks--expats often have great stories. I've got another blog which chronicles my time and experiences here.

Oliver and Caren welcomed a baby girl on August 10, Lucy Jo, and from the photos she is adorable--can't wait to get my hands on her.

I am planning on coming to California and Denver next week. I have the usual doctors appointments in LA and want to see the new baby along with visiting Kaden and his parents in Denver. I'm hoping to fit in a trip North to finally pick up my furniture and items that Ed has been holding as hostage (items that belonged to me before I even met him!). I am not sure if he's dragging his feet as he doesn't want to have half his house empty or what. He's a procrastinator so the trip to Monterey may not happen--wish me luck.

Puerto Vallarta Time

2009-05-19T16:59:00.000-07:00

I finally made it to Puerto Vallarta after spending three months getting divorced, helping my sister out and having some medical issues. It is a relief to get settled finally--although I am not truly settled yet--I will be soon.

Rather than repeat myself in this blog I'll just refer to my blog about my Puerto Vallarta adventures. To view it just click here

Be sure to subscribe to one or both of my blogs...I love to see who's reading what I'm writing. I know more people are reading them than have subscribed because I hear from many of my 'followers'

It's a great week in Puerto Vallarta

OMG (again) Now It's Mid-April

2009-04-18T18:41:00.000-07:00

I finally settled down long enough to update this blog. I have been staying with my sister in San Jose (living out of suitcases, some boxes and my car) since I gave up my apartment in Los Angeles.

I came to Los Angeles to visit Oliver, Caren and their puppies and to catch up on their lives on Wednesday and to attend a screening at UCLA of a TV show that will air on MSNBC this summer. It's called Lock Up.

I was supposed to fly to Denver this afternoon. Just as I was leaving for the airport I got a call from Peter saying to wait until tomorrow as their was a big snow storm and they couldn't get to the airport. I have a flight booked tomorrow morning (cross your fingers that I get out on that flight). He, Kirstin and Kaden are supposed to leave for Hawaii on Monday and I will be babysitting the animals.

Since I wasn't going to be going to Denver we decided to go to a movie (something I haven't had time to do since February) so we went to see I Love You, Man. It was hilarious. If you want something that will make you laugh this is the movie for you (be sure to stay through the credits).

I am feeling the need for some quiet time and also the need to put down some roots of my own so look for an announcement this summer confirming that I have moved to Puerto Vallarta--can't wait! I haven't updated my PV blog recently but will try to do so when I am in Denver...you can view it here.

What's Up Now?

2009-02-18T13:26:00.000-08:00

I am at my sister Linda's house helping her out since her extensive surgery a week ago. This all happened so suddenly that I wasn't able to contact everyone that I should have so if this is the first time you're hearing this...sorry. In any event I have become a bit of a gypsy. I will be homeless as of March 11.

Ed stopped sending any money and I am living on unemployment which doesn't even cover my rent. Until we reach the max on the credit cards I still can charge things (but not my rent) on our credit cards.

"A person is known by the company keeps":

In the meantime those of you watching what he's doing Ed broke up with the woman who he's been living with for several years (the one who owned Dermal Spa check out the link to see what kind of business she has). He's now living with a 38 year old woman (Ed will be 66 on May 29) and her 9 year old child (she has two so not sure where the 6 year old is living) in our house in Monterey. Good times :-)

How to reach me

My cell phone doesn't work very well here in San Jose so if you want to reach me simply email me and I'll give you the land line phone number.

Will try to update this more frequently but ....you know me

My Christmas Cactus is Blooming!

2009-01-22T11:40:00.000-08:00

My father used to grow beautiful Christmas (and Thanksgiving) Cacti and they bloomed their little hearts out but somehow I never did inherit his green thumb and I gave up on trying to get a Christmas Cactus (CC) to bloom....however....

I bought a blooming CC last year at either the 99 Cent Store, Whole Foods or Trader Joe's and after it bloomed it remained alive but no blossoms until now!!! To my surprise it began to produce buds that actually bloomed this year with little (no) care from me.

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

2008-11-17T14:56:00.001-08:00

My friend Giacomo gave me this beautiful mirror Saturday. It made my day. It was so large that they couldn't get it in his SUV so they used a friend's truck. I am loving it! It will look great with all my modern furniture in PV and for those who have visited my place here you know I have modern furniture here too. Thank you Giacomo--you rock!

November? Summer?

2008-11-14T00:37:00.000-08:00

I have been loving the weather here (hope this doesn't jinx it). It's almost perfect (except that it gets dark early-dang!

Today was swimming pool weather (again) but alas the PLB pool is being upgraded so if I want to swim I have to actually get in my car and drive to the sister-pool that is outside of PLB somewhere on Wilshire!

I did take a great walking tour with Melting Pot Tours this month which I found through Goldstar Events. I wrote a review that you can see on their site. BTW if you haven't discovered this great site go there immediately and sign up (it's free)...simply click this link to join. If you live in or near a major city this is a great place to save money and see some great performances (hint: if they have a "Roar" seal that means it has been very well reviewed)....You'll find bargain priced tickets here (and sometimes free). This is a true find!

My month was unfortunately filled with doctors appointments, scans, lawyers and such which didn't make me a happy camper. I am looking forward to a new year when I hope to finally be finished with lawyers and with a change of medication maybe will get back to a schedule that let's me have less time with doctors and more time with me.

October Update

2008-10-22T20:38:00.000-07:00

An email from my friend Joyce reminded me that I hadn't written anything on my blog since August--and here is is October! I am ok but a lot has happened since my last post so this may be a bit long.

One biggie is that I am no longer working at Geni. That caused some adjustment but I am adjusting well (remember I've been doing the dot com's with those l-o-n-g hours for a lot of years so it's time to do something less stressful).

Next is I had a health scare in August which threw me in the hospital for 3 days (my birthday weekend and my sister came to visit and have some LA fun--instead she spent her 3 days visiting me in the hospital!)...things are ok now. Of course that means I continue frequent scans and tests but I am happy that there is no change in my treatment.

Once I got out of the hospital I was home bound for a few weeks (laying in bed for three days was not fun and I think being there made me sicker as once I was released I started to feel better within hours). Oliver was right there to take me to tests after my release and take care of me at his home--don't know what I would have done without him (and Caren who ended up staying up until 3am when I was admitted to St. John's all drugged up on Morphine--she went above and beyond anything I could have asked for--she tells me I was way out of it--I don't remember anything !).

Later in September I spent a few days in Breckenridge with my children, their wives and my adorable grandchild, Kaden--heaven!!! I have to make a comment here that with all that I've gone through I truly appreciate my children and their wives...this is the blessing that warms my heart every day.

In early October I used Priceline.com and took a last minute weekend trip to San Francisco to visit my friend Sue. She and I kicked back, had a fabulous meal (using a $100 gift certificate I had), also a great meal in China Town and acted like tourists. After all that we returned to Sue's charming house in Lafayette and I cooked up a meal of scallops and enjoyed an evening sitting outdoors with her neighbor where we finished off a bottle of wine and had some great conversations--fun!

As for 'the divorce' ...it is still going on (don't ask) :-) Apparently Ed has moved on from his 'first' girlfriend and is now with a stay-at-home mom with two small children (I cannot imagine at age 65+ I would want to be dealing daily with a couple of little kids. He moved into the house in Monterey along with the girlfriend and her child/children and changed the locks (on the exact weekend that I had arranged to be in Monterey). Funny, when I was in Monterey he insisted that I could not change the locks.

As those of you who know me I am doing very, very well and happier than ever--thanks to you my friends. Now that I am not working rediculous hours I have learned that there are some great things to do for free here at Park La Brea (I do Tai Chi Tuesday and Friday mornings) and have met some pretty fun and interesting people--there are 11,000 residence here so it's a town all by itself with a movie theatre with free movies 3 times a week. Two coffee /food places within 2 blocks and a beautiful swimming pool (currently being expanded and remodeled) 1 1/2 blocks away...oh and a gym, free computers and printers (I use the printers since I don't have one but otherwise I don't find the computers that handy), wi fi at the coffee places...wide streets, no traffic...free jazz outside on Friday nights plus lots of event (including elephant rides--really!)

As many of us have discussed one is judged by the company he/she keeps and I can say that I am absolutely surrounded by quality people (you!).

Enough of the musings. I am looking forward to the holidays in Denver with Peter and Kir and New Years in the Bay Area with Sue (and others).

Love all of ya!
J.

Screenings in LaLa Land

2008-08-10T19:47:00.001-07:00

A nice thing about living in LaLa Land is that there are often free screenings. I finally have the time to take advantage of this perk. This week I went to see a preview of Elegy a movie based on a Phillip Roth book staring Penelope Cruz and Ben Kingsley--it opens this week.

Today I saw Trouble The Water which will open in LA and New York on August 22. Danny Glover along with the stars and the filmakers were there to discuss the film and answer questions--it won the Grand Jury Prize: Documentary at Sundance this year--an amazine story.

Good - Not so Good

2008-07-26T22:42:00.001-07:00

This has been a tough week for me on many levels. Perhaps later I will blog about the things that made it so yucky but right now things are just too raw to write for the world to read just yet.

The one semi yucky thing that I will mention is that I found my car had a dead battery this morning as I was leaving for my class--and it's a 1 month old battery that is top of the line...I am going to buy one of those portable rechargers this week at Costco (recommendation from a guy--they know these things).

I did have a few good things though which I will write about because they are the best parts of my week and the parts I want to remember:

Dinner with my friend Eric Jackson who never fails to bring wisdom and happiness to me when we share a meal
A class with The Groundlings on Saturday
Emotional support from my children and my friends along with some very good advice

I Love LA - Who Knew?

2008-07-08T23:42:00.001-07:00

I grew up in Northern California and spent much of my time in San Francisco where LA was considered a joke. When I came here I came for my job not expecting to enjoy myself much but looking for something different. Today's when I really appreciated LA. I was sick (really, really sick) and from last night until mid day today I was miserable.

I called an Advice Nurse from my insurance this morning when the pain was intense beyond belief and she said that I should not drink anything and should get myself to the emergency room within the hour as I would probably have to have a MRI or something like that so I should go to a place like a hospital that would have that kind of equipment. Just as I was getting ready to go to Cedars-Sinai a wave of 'feeling better' came over me. I waited it out and voila I felt a LOT better. Not perfect, but better. (I'm getting to the lovin' LA part soon). I napped and read and napped some more to see if the intense (I mean INTENSE pain came back--it didn't) ...then I was hungry and I had no food in my house.

This is why I am lovin' LA: You can have anything delivered within 1/2 hour! For the first time I pulled out the delivery menus I had stashed away and my Yummy.com catalogue and found FOOD. Although I could have had Thai, Chinese, Italian, etc delivered I decided I just wanted some gourmet cheeses, an artisan bread, blueberries and some Mexican fruit frozen bars so I called Yummy and ordered great stuff at reasonable prices and within 20 minutes everything arrived at my front door. I LOVE THIS PLACE! BTW Yummy's is open 24 hours for delivery 364 days a year (they close Christmas day).

So...this is not all that I am loving about LA. As my son mentioned last weekend, there are so many great things to do here and so many invitations to fantastic events that one becomes very, very selective about what one decides to do. And--the weather aint' bad either. (I'll admit it is fun seeing the movie stars too).

BTW after all that my tummy started bothering me again tonight so I may end up at Cedars after all...hopefully not...

OMG It's July Already!

2008-07-06T22:30:00.000-07:00

Just got back from seeing Brad Pitt in The Assasination of Jessie James by the Coward Robert Ford and I absolutely recommend that you add it to your Netflix list if you haven't seen it yet...but I digress.

Wonderful sunny weekend and my tan is coming along nicely (thank you very much) as I finally got some quality pool time.

Finally made it to the Disney Theatre on Hollywood Blvd (El Capitan) went to see Wall-E, the new Disney Pixar movie. OK, so it's a Disney movie but it's way over the heads of most little kids--and first part of the movie had no dialogue. However, the theatre is a trip...there's a guy who plays Disney songs on a Pipe organ before the movie... next lot of Disney dancers and singers put on a show with characters like you'd see walking the streets of Disneyland dancing their little hearts out...then a Pixar cartoon followed by the main movie. The theatre is full of red velvet, gold rococo trim...very old fashioned and VERY Disney.

So, I know Disney is for kids but honestly why do parents insist on bringing crying (screaming) babies to movies (my gripe of the day) when the baby can't even understand (haven't they heard of babysitters?) --even a Disney movie (and the kid next to us pooped in his diaper without the parent changing him-phew!)...and while I'm on the subject of parenting....a pet peeve is parents who bring children to movies that are not age appropriate AND allow the children to talk throughout the movie (not whisper mind you) as if they are in their own livingroom. When I am paying $15+ for the movie +popcorn etc I want them to be quiet if they are allowed to go to a movie (or get a babysitter, see above).

AND babies in the swiming pool...please parents put rubber pants on the kids and try to keep their little voices down once in awhile...the pool this weekend had kids that could only scream at the top of their lungs without a let up and then today our pool had to be shut down as a baby pooped in the pool. The area was very quiet then as all the families left and the left over adults all remarked on how pleasant and serene things were... but.... we couldn't get back in the pool due to cleanliness problems that needed to be solved.

There...I'm off my soapbox. Of course, my grandchild will be perfect :-)

Movie star sighting today: Donald Faison (at The Grove) from the TV show Scrubs.

Pets

2008-06-22T22:06:00.000-07:00

Got two new pets....Siamese fighting fish that Michelle gave to me when she left for Spain a week ago. They look very cool in my living room and I am sure they are good Feng Shui for me. They seem like great pets as they require very little work and look beautiful swimming around their bowls. The photos doesn't capture their beauty so I'll tell you one is peachy colored and the other is a royal-ish blue. Outstanding.

Updates

2008-06-14T19:52:00.000-07:00

Got to Denver last weekend and loved seeing Peter, Kirstin and Kaden (and, of course, the animals). Nice to have a quiet weekend.

Saw 'Sex and the City' and it was everything I hoped it would be. The story reaffirms that girlfriends are THE BEST!

Living next to The Grove is a real trip. I walked over to see SATC this afternoon and walked straight into a Hollywood Movie Premier (red carpet and all). It was the opening for 'American Girl' which stars the kid who was in 'Little Miss Sunshine'. They had a line up of signs for all the various broadcast folks to stand in front of and interview stars and give their news...I imagine I'll see this in People, The Star, and all the other celebrity magazines. When I left the movie I noticed that Starbucks had set up a free coffee stand as a promotion on the side of the big lawn...they had set up livingroom furniture all over the lawn (couches, footstools, coffee tables, etc...it looked pretty cool). I love that place as there is always something going on and it only takes me 15 minutes to walk over there.

I'm not in Kansas Anymore

2008-05-24T21:24:00.000-07:00

I stopped blogging in London when I changed hotels and the new one (Hilton Olympia) charged $30 per day for internet connection. Came back from London for a few days and then off to Kansas City for another genealogy show for www.geni.com. Finally have a whole weekend here in LA.

Am catching up on paperwork, TV shows, magazines that have been piling up, and enjoying chats with friends.

Got word that my place in Puerto Vallarta will be ready on November 26 so am happily looking forward to spending a little time there. Right now after so much activity I am feeling a bit boring so will leave blogging until I can sound a little more cleaver or brighter or can write something interesting.....ciao for now

New Places New People

2008-04-29T02:37:00.000-07:00

Monday: Slept in...went to British Museum and took a guided tour...lost the tour group but found them again (me: busy taking photos)....went to Starbucks where I met a very interesting woman (Ph.D from Boston) and we ended up talking for a couple of hours...back to hotel...shower...change of clothes...tube to Victoria to see Elton John's 'Billy Elliot' musical..met some people from Chicago...had a glass of wine during intermission which I had preordered and there it was waiting for me with my #3 receipt !!!(they let you bring it back to your seat if you pour it in a plastic cup)...phone call from the USA at midnight....tired...slept....

Funny observation: Bundled trash on the street left for garbage pick up but apparently on the wrong day...garbage collection people have yellow tape (like the police 'do not cross' type) that says 'wrong date for your trash. Your date is ___'. This tape was neatly wrapped around the trash bundles and was just sitting on the street waiting patiently for the right day!

Interesting to me: How easy it is to meet people when you are traveling alone. I now have addresses and names of two people in two days who were both really interesting...

Tuesday: taking it easy today. Will walk to the Sainsbury Starbucks and read the paper. Getting together with Lulu and Geoff for dinner...not sure what else I'll do...think a nice quiet day will be just fine.

Sunday in London

2008-04-27T12:16:00.000-07:00

Made it to the half priced ticket booth in Leicester Square but found that there were only 3 plays to see (Stomp, Jump and the one I went to) --all matinees because it is SUNDAY. I chose to go see Noel Coward's 'Brief Encounter' which turned out to be a perfect choice. I am sure it will make it to Broadway and be up for a Tony in a few years....it is a mixture of movie (with people going in and out of the screen and movie into real life--hard to describe--you have to see it--amazingly clever)...also the actors go from their parts to playing in the band to singing...the actors served us food during the intermission. (cucumber sandwiches and as the woman from the play said "with the crusts removed")...it was really really amazing. I sat next to Gerald from Houston who was a perfect person to sit next to (and he was cute and fun to talk with to boot!)...he runs a Houston Theatre company and is going home tomorrow--he clued me in on what to see theatre-wise here as he's been here watching lots of them (he said Billy Elliot was great and that I must see Blood Brothers and that there are always 1/2 priced tickets for it...also recommended 39 steps as a really funny play). We laughed all the way through this one...of course there was the romance to it too which was bittersweet and made me long for the old time mushy romance that I (probably all women) dream about.....a really wonderful production.

In between purchasing my tixs and the opening of the play/musical I made it to Piccadilly Circus and Covent Garden. Had a great cup of coffee in a Italian type bistro and after the theatre went for fish and chips...also had 'mushy peas' which I ordered just to see what it was...it was peas mushed up.

Tomorrow I see Billy Elliot and continue my adventures here.

I'm in LONDON!!!

2008-04-26T12:25:00.000-07:00

Im here!!! After going to San Francisco for The PayPal Mafia Party Thursday night (fabulous--but another story for another time) I got back to L.A. in time to transfer suitcases and go to LAX and take off for London.

I was lucky enough to get a whole row to myself in the back of the plane where I slept 9 hours straight, missing dinner and all the movies and TV that Virgin Atlantic has on their fights...they really do have a huge wonderful selection...maybe on the way home....

The hotel I found is soooo English. I am loving it. Very small room but great decor and a very modern bathroom (quite nice) and in a great neighborhood in Knightsbridge (or is it Knightsbury...it's late and I can't remember). Anyway I am just a block away from a great Sainsbury's (grocery) where I got some great Indian take out from the Deli along with some fruit, sodas (Ginger Beer which often hard to find in the U.S.), and local cheeses. AND...there is a nice large Starbucks in it so I am happy, happy, happy.

Tomorrow I'm going to try to get some half price theatre tickets at Leiscester Square for tomorrow night and then go to either the Speakers Corner in Hyde Park (this is where people get up on their soapboxes-yes, literally...and spout off about any topic they feel like talking about...people can yell or shout back at them...this is going on with dozens or more speakers going at the same time in the same area of the park...hilarious) or the British Museum or the Victoria and Albert Museum.

I have tickets for Elton John's Billy Elliot musical for Monday night and then Tuesday I have plans with friends, Lulu and Geoff...not sure what we're doing yet...more later...

Weekend March 21

2008-03-21T18:44:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was spent in Provo, Utah at a genealogy event. Came back Sunday and worked all through the week. *sigh* I am so looking forward to a weekend of naps...

Did go to St. Patricks benefit at (my favorite place) The Groundlings Improv on Melrose. Free beer and fun improvs provided by Michael McDonald (MadTV), Mindy Sterling (Austin Powers), Mike Hitchcock (Best in Show), Ted Michaels (And God Spoke) and Jeremy Rowley (Reno 911).

This weeks celeb sighting: some current rock star guy that I'd never heard of which means absolutely nothing....everyone else knew who he was....missed seeing Brad Pitt...dang...Michele and Scott saw him crossing the street by our office and they said he was indeed 'hot'. Now that these sightings have become weekly (if not daily) I'm not as excited.

Monday I am going with Kerry and Emma to a Mad TV taping. ...after the Dancing With The Stars taping I decided that would be enough but I am a huge Mad TV fan so I will go this one last time....then probably no more tapings unless they are really, really, really huge stars and hard to get tixs.

Have a great week!

Kathmandu Dreamin'

2008-03-10T22:19:00.000-07:00

Puerto Vallarta has been on my mind more and more recently--must be time to take a trip back. Same for Nepal. I'm haven't been in contact with my Sherpa friends for awhile so I think I'll see what's up over in Kathmandu. London in May. More later....

Travelin' and Restin'

2008-02-24T23:03:00.000-08:00

Haven't been home for several weekends so loved staying home this one! Had genealogy shows in San Luis Obispo and St. Cloud (Utah) followed by some personal time in Monterey. That meant that I was away 3 weekends in a row and I was wiped out.

When I returned from Montery I did a tiny slip (not even a fall) but broke my FireKing glass nesting bowls and they broke cutting two gashes in my right arm--gushing blood--trip to Cedars Sinai Emergency Room--7 stitches. As I sat waiting to get the x-rays of my arm back I thought about what I was supposed to learn from this experience and what I think it was to s-l-o-w down. Second lesson was that I probably shouldn't be cooking--that was why I'd brought the mixing bowls back...some crazy idea that I might do some creative stuff in the kitchen--silly me.

I think I there are some additional lessons I am supposed to learn --I'll share those when I am ready to go in to the details. In the meantime: are you intrigued?

This was Academy Awards day/night in Los Angeles which means parties around town. For the past week I had been passing a sign warning that one of the major streets I drive on was going to be closed today from 3pm on so I decided to stay in for the afternoon. Had breakfast (Kantors) with a friend followed by a manicure and pedicure (always a feel good experience) and home to do some tidying up. Gal Pal Jennifer came over and we critiqued the clothes and anything else we felt compelled to comment on for the awards show. Winner of Best Song, Falling Slowly, from the movie "Once", had us almost in tears....imagine, $100K, 2 mini cams, and 3 weeks to make that small teriffic movie and the acceptance speech was the best of the night....I can't get that song out of my head (just had to download it to my ipod immediately). Oddly last night they had played the song as I was waiting for the movie I had gone to see (The Savages in case you were wondering) and I asked my friend what movie that was from...just couldn't remember but it was sooo good! Well, there it was tonight, winner of best song!

As a California Cosmic Cookie kid I guess I can say the Universe is giving me answers.

Welcome 2008

2008-01-06T20:03:00.000-08:00

Spent a few days in Denver visiting #1 son Peter and daughter-in-law Kirstin. Snowed fiercely the night I arrived and the one I left--otherwise beautiful. Spent the time there visiting, playing Wii games and (tah-da) sitting for a photo shoot (I'm posting the photos).

Puerto Vallarta Update

2007-12-20T23:10:00.000-08:00

The condo is better that I expected it to be...a gorgous bathtub which I'll post so you can see. PV seems a lot like being in America. Great restaurants, events like celbrating John Lennon. Also There is the PV Film festival which Id like to get involved wtih. Met lots of fun people, went dancing, played Mah Jongg with the locals. Met with my realtor and discovered an old PayPal friend (Norm) is the cousin of Franklin (my realtors partner). I've see Norm twice since being in LA. Susan loved the place--I think it is going to be a great decision or so I hope.Lots of details to get through and I'll write about those later. I have a lot of businsess travel this year so hope I'll have some time to go back a few times.

Have a great holiday--whichever you celebrate!

Saving Money

2007-11-19T21:28:00.000-08:00

It's almost the holidays and I have decided on a few things:

1. All shopping is on line and done by the end of November
2. I will not overspend on gifts
3. I will put lots of thoughts in to what I send people
4. I will always look for the best price (with free shipping if possible and gift wrapping too!)

My friend, Kerry turned me on to a site that's been around a l-o-n-g time and that I have somehow managed to not find (go figure!). It's called eBates and has all the stores I would normally shop at either on or off line (Nordstroms, Origins, Zappos, you name it--it's there)

Now comes the best part! They give you a rebate on your purchase price and right now they are offering free shipping on many things. Tonight I ordered some Origins body cream that I would normally buy at Macy's...I bought the $30 jar of cream right from the Origins on line store, I'll get free shipping and free giftwrapping plus a sample of another product---AND a 7% rebate off the price!!!

The way it works is you join eBates (click on this link and we'll both get some $$$ when you make your first purchase). I signed up when Kerry told me about it and we each got $5 or $10. They will either send the rebate to you as a check or put it in your PayPal account....isn't that great. Once you join you can just go to ebates.com and sign in....if you use the search box for what you want you will be given a list of stores with the best prices and rebates for that item--then just click and you will be taken to that store to make the purchase. In a couple of days you can see the eBate credit appear.

Purchases I've made so far: Havanista flip-flops from Nordstroms and Origins body cream. Kerry got some great DVD's at teriffic prices with free shipping form Best Buy last week. She's racked up some really nice rebates....so that's my recommendation for today!

OK....I give up!

2007-11-04T20:10:00.001-08:00

I give up....I am resigning myself to occasional blogs instead of more frequent ones...there I've said it...so don't email me complaining.

Here are my current recommendations:

Book: The Kite Runner
Movie: Things We Lost in the Fire
Gadget: RoboForm2Go (it saves all your passwords on a USB stick that you can carry with you--it keeps them private, safe and secure--you'll need one single password that you must remember but that's it--with all the passwords I have this is my #1 cool gadget!
Best Easy Camera: I have gone crazy with picture taking for Facebook and Geni. I have been creating a chronicle of 2007 online. I'm using the Canon SD600 Digital Elph and it is awesome (and easy)- there is a new model out now so maybe you can get the SD600 at a discount.
Cartoon that cracks me up--really!: Angry Little Girls. A hilarious cartoon is posted there each week and the book is a riot.

Have a happy week

2007-08-05T22:47:00.000-07:00

It's August now--can't believe that 4 months have gone by and I've ignored this blog...but...I'm baaaacccckkkk!

Still lovin' LA. Surprise Birthday (Toga theme) party for David. Team Geni took a huge limo to the Magic Castle for another night out of dining and fun. In June we celebrated our first Birthday at a rockin' party. Some of the team headed out for gelato at Charlton's new place one sunny afternoon, Caffe Primo, (mentioned last week on HBO's Entourage)...thanks Charlton--looking forward to dinner or lunch with you once your foot recovers and you are back in LA. On a more serious side, I've been getting established with doctors & dentists--not fun but necessary.

Star sightings (that I can remember): Warren Beaty, Nelly, Michael Jackson's brother, Matthew Perry, Sandra Oh, the cast of General Hospital, the finalists on "So You Think You Can Dance" (saw them last night at Subway Sandwich on Melrose) and Bob Barker.

Those are the highlights.

Now to the present: This week was a busy one for me beginning with a visit from Susan M. who came in to town to do a Marie Callendar's commerical(s). Then another visit to the Magic Castle and a tour of the set of General Hospital with Peter and Kirstin (who also came for an LA visit this week). Thursday had Korean BBQ as a going away party for Juney. Saturday night went to The Groundlings and after theatre had dinner at Cantor's Famous Deli. Mel & Susan surprised me with a visit at The Grove and BBQ dinner today--they were visiting from Monterey--I love unexpected treats like this.

I'm pooped after this busy week and am looking forward to a quiet 3 days in Morro Bay next weekend. Then it's off to Indiana for a genealogy convention.

Puerto Vallarta Update: Construction has begun and I've decided on the marble tile size for the floor. Added some more square footage by adding a third bedroom. Hope to get down there in early December to pick out granite & cabinets. Completion date scheduled for October 2008.

There, my friends, I've brought you semi up-to-date. I'm sure there was more happening but I'll try to keep you posted a little more regularly. Keep me posted with your updates too....ciao for now, J.

Furniture, Glorious Furniture

2007-04-08T08:49:00.000-07:00

Finally got a desk set up, wireless, etc. Also, thanks to Jennifer moving to LA, got a couple more things from my house added to her moving van--now I have my wonderful tansu chest here in LA. Yeah...things are looking good!

Time Flys...etc

2007-03-14T21:09:00.000-07:00

I'm getting settled in 'the apartment'. I am actually lovin' not having to worry about 'things' for a change. I miss the jacuzzi tub and fireplace but otherwise I don't miss the work of the house. It's nice starting over with all new things that I've picked out all by myself. Life is good.

The office just got a Wii and I built my avatar today...will be trying out boxing or bowling on it tomorrow. The chef has turned out to be pretty good and the food is healthly so I usually bring extra veggies for later. Haven't found a gym yet--mostly due to having to go to Monterey almost every weekend. This weekend I will be joining one absolutely, for sure. A one hour walk around Beverly Hills doesn't count as adequate exercise although I wish it did :-)

LA moments: #1 After my TV got hooked up to cable and they tested it...the very first thing I saw was a prolonged car chase....apparantly this is very LA-ish. #2 On my way into my apartment I saw what looked like a bum complete with long hair, torn clothing and blood dripping down his shirt...he was accompanied by two younger folks which I though might be children entertaining their ex-hippie-bum dad...as we entered the elevator I noted that the boy had blood all over his shirt along with bullet holes in the 'Dad's' shirt...turns out they were returning from doing a western for tv or movies...I guess I'm not in Kansas anymore.

Check out http://forum.geni.com there's a photo next to my 'posts'

Best part of LA: the weather...love it!

Moving to LA - Fun in the Warm California Sun!!!!

2007-02-22T23:16:00.000-08:00

Things have been changing and changing fast!! After saying all those nice things about Geni.com guess where I am working now--yes, it's www.geni.com!!!

I'm back with some of my old PayPal friends working in West Hollywood right on the edge of Beverly Hills. The adventure is still unfolding and I'll give you some of the LA moments that I've experienced in the 3 weeks I've been here but you'll need to stay tuned for a future blog to hear of these moments.

The office Chef starts next week and the menus look great--I'm back on Jenny Craig trying to get back in shape after the holiday festivities and attending The Blue Elephant Cooking School (Christmas Bangkok trip)---this means I will most likely not be enjoying the desserts the new chef whips up. I'm missing my treadmill so need to find a good gym that is convenient and has crazy hours--real crazy hours.....stay tuned.

I'm going to give up my tickets to the Monterey Blues Festival so if you are interested in two awesome season tickets let me know before I let my tixs expire. Also will probably be giving up the Infinity. Ain't moving fun :-)

New Discoveries

2007-01-21T19:48:00.000-08:00

Wow! Did I discover some cool things this weekend.

Check out the merchandise at www.redeyetraders.com for some very interesting stuff

Also take a look at a new website that is very cool...it makes keeping track of your family tree fun and was started by David Sacks who I worked with at PayPal a few years ago...check it out at
www.geni.com It's in "Beta" now which means there are going to be glitches so don't be too hard on him yet but send in your suggestions and they will work as fast as possible to get the best ones incorporated first and the others later...I've heard they are burning the midnight oil to get this site perfected.