Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto. Domo...Domo...

The Cupcake Fairy paid me a visit! It wasn't a complete surprise since earlier in the day, there were text messages and even a phone call with somewhat of a promise of sweet treats being delivered. It seemed the timing would work out so that when we got home from seeing John Williams conduct the L.A. Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl there would be some delicious cupcakes on my porch. I mentioned this out loud several times.

We returned home after enjoying the show, which was complete with plenty of light sabers in the audience during all Star Wars themes. I was putting the seat cushions and the cooler away and getting ready to feed the dogs. E came into the kitchen and said, "I didn't see any cupcakes outside."

Suddenly, I remembered. CUPCAKES! I'd briefly forgotten and said, "Oh! Maybe we missed them." I left the cooler on the floor and headed to the front door, hoping I'd overlooked a yummy package. As I opened the door--poof!--there she was! The Cupcake Fairy herself had just pulled into my driveway! I squealed and yelled back to E, "She's here!" This made me laugh because the timing was perfect. (It was also strange that she was up--and practically in THE VALLEY--at 11:30 pm).

I consumed with glee one chocolate/peppermint cupcake that was decorated with fondant to look like Domo-kun, who I just adore. I never realized Styx liked him so much too. ;-)

Thank you very much, Cupcake Fairy!!! (Much better photo here).

It's Not Like You'll Get Into That Cahuenga Club

Ever bored on a Friday night? Have you wondered what you can do in Hollywood for only $5? Well, I have an answer for you! Starting tomorrow night, and every Friday through Halloween, Hollywood MobileMovie has teamed up with the Steve Allen Theater for spooky drive-in movies!

The first screening is From Beyond and will be followed by a Q&A with director Stuart Gordon. That's included in your measly $5!

Just think--you can wear whatever you want. No need to break out the hot pants and high heels to walk around looking like a hooker, freezing your ass off, and still possibly not even getting into the club. You can probably even bring your own snacks, booze, a chihuahua, or whatever. Live it up!

Hope to see you at the drive-in!

Some Things Never Change

While organizing my office at home, I happened across a folder full of bits and bobs from college. My roommate for the first three years used to write and draw the silliest things for me and it was fun to see those again. One thing I'd forgotten about was a handmade ribbon, decorated in pencil, that I think was made by said roommate's then-boyfriend/now-husband during our freshman year. He and I had a very sibling like relationship, so for him to bestow this award on me would not be a surprise. There is a slight chance it was made by the third roommate we had our freshman year--yes, we lived in a "triple," but that is neither here nor there. Here is the inscription:

FOR CLASSIC SPONTANEOUS RUDENESS & ALL AROUND COMMON BITCHINESS
Awarded to Jodi S.
on the 21st of March
in the year of our lord nineteen hundred and eighty-nine

It sort of cracks me up that my rudeness was not only classic, but spontaneous as well. Certainly not planned! Ha!

Sunset over the Pacific Ocean
San Simeon, California
May 5, 2008

Michael: Everybody say a race that you are attracted to sexually. I will go last. Go. Dwight: I have two. White and Indian.

Many of us encounter creeps in our daily lives. Sometimes, we are unlucky enough to meet up with them more than we'd like to. As if once isn't enough! There's a particular Hollywood creep who really makes my skin crawl. If you ever go to art openings or screenings--particularly if they are FREE--you've probably encountered him too. And the skeezy old dude most likely handed you (or tried to hand you) a slip of paper with a phone number to call for info about a party. Yeah, right. Whatever.

My friend T and I are frequently at the same social events. Upon returning to i am 8-bit the other night after drinks with the fabulous Will and lovely Nina, I ran into T. We were chatting when Party Creep approached. I don't think I mentioned his lack of social skills, but that will become very apparent in a moment here. I can't remember if there was an opening to the conversation that occurred like this:

Party Creep (to T): So, are you Mexican or something?

T: I'm Indian.

P.C.: Oh. Hey, do you know any cute Indian girls?

T: Um...no...um...not right now.

P.C. (without even a pause): Is that even your real hair?

T (clearly trying to stifle a laugh): Yeah.

I don't know what, if anything, happened after this point. The whole thing was so absurd! Consider yourself warned. If you are at a Hollywood event with me, beware the Party Creep because he'll most likely be there too.

Drive-In Tonight!

Come on downtown for a drive-in! Hollywood Mobile Movie is screening Mock Up On Mu in conjunction with the Downtown Film Festival LA. Come check it out! More details, in case you are too lazy to click:

From the DFFLA program:

We've put together an evening of programming made for film fans who embrace the cutting edge. The evening revolves around a special drive-in preview screening of celebrated San Francisco avant-garde filmmaker Craig Baldwin's latest feature, Mock Up On Mu.

Just roll up to the giant SCI-Arc parking lot in the Arts District (near 4th Street and the Los Angeles River) and we'll take it from there. Note: All kinds of vehicles are welcomed; the only requisite is that whatever you're driving, must have a working radio.

The evening begins with a complimentary cocktail reception, followed by a presentation of new works by students at SCI-Arc, the experimental architecture school in downtown L.A. Immediately following with be a showcase of shorts from the just completed Los Angeles Digital Arts Festival.

Location: 960 E. Third Street, Los Angeles 90013
Schedule of Events:
4:30 - 5:30 pm - Reception
5:30 - 6:30 pm - SCI-arc shorts
6:45 - 8:00 pm - Digital Arts Festival shorts
8:30 - 10:00 pm - Mock Up On Mu

Tickets are $10, and are available here.

*********
Location
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SCI-Arc Parking Lot
Map: http://www.sciarc.edu/portal/exhibitions/locations/index.html You will need a ticket to get past the security gate at the SCI-Arc lot. To buy your ticket, click the link above.

The entrance to SCI-Arc's parking lot is at 350 Merrick Street, Los Angeles 90013, between Traction Avenue and 4th St in downtown Los Angeles.

i am 8-BIT

Tomorrow night is the Opening Night party for the i am 8-BIT art show. It's the fourth year for this event featuring artistic interpretations of those old school video games many loved and wasted lots of quarters playing.


Part of the reason I'm pimping this is that E has a video installation in the show. So, if you're in the L.A. area and stop by, be sure to say hi. His piece features Q-bert, by the way. Hope to see you there!

Coming Soon To A Blog Near You

I have a couple blog posts brewing in my brain. I don't have time to do the first one right now and I'm doing some fact-checking for the other one. I just wanted to let you, what are we down to...three? two?...readers, what you have to look forward to. I'm often asked how E and I 'find' so many fun and cool things to do. Well, I'm gonna tell you! Also, 'white trash mimosas.'

Now, it that doesn't pique your interest...I don't blame you.

Jay: Fly, Fatass, fly!

I got the best comment on one of my YouTube videos. The best because it made me laugh at its absurdity. Someone must have too much time on his hands. I won't mention the username. Gross, immature, & removed.

"Stuffing His Cheeks"

It was, "What a fatass...hamsters are so greedy and dumb."

WHAT?

Michael: Hey, send me that link to the monkey sex video. I'm going to forward it like it's hot.

Links and a bit of shameless self-promotion. Hey, someone has to do it.

• I recently self-published a new poetry & photography book called Squirrel Sonnets & other Rodent Rhymes. Yes, there are actual sonnets and no, all of the other poems do not necessarily rhyme. Click on the link to see a preview and/or order a copy. I also have copies on hand in case anyone wants one signed.
  

• The few photos I took at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con are now posted on flickr. If you are a fan of Battlestar Galactica, you may even find a few of them interesting. Especially if you like Apollo.
  

• One of my dogs, Little Guy, commented on the L.A. Times' database of the names of registered dogs in the county. He also compares himself to a Brady kid. It's not the first time.
  

• I'll pimp this again next week, but if you want to check out a cool art show on opening night, i am 8-bit is having an extravaganza on the 14th. My husband, E, has put together a really cool video installation that should be featured prominently in the gallery.

This last one has nothing to do with me, except that it has two things I like:

• If you, like me, love Ben Folds and hamsters, check out this video for the song "Carrying Cathy." It's not new, but I just saw it again tonight and enjoyed it very much. Hamsters. Ben Folds. Yes!

Ice Lolly Sticks, Jazz Chickens, & Ninja Sheep

Within the last month, E and I have been to the Kodak "The New Home for the Academy Awards" Theatre in Hollywood twice to see British comedians. It's a nice, posh theater and feels more intimate than it looks on tv. Last month, we saw Ricky Gervais, who was quite hilarious. His stand-up persona is not too far off from his David Brent character on the UK version of The Office. Very funny and very raunchy.

Tonight was a special treat. We saw probably my favorite British comedian and definitely my very favorite transvestite--Eddie Izzard. Tonight he happened to be an "off duty transvestite," as he put it, which is fine by me. He looked quite dapper in his jeans, coat with tails, and facial hair. Not only is he downright funny, but he is intelligent, often joking about history or current events. But, along with that he can be downright silly as well. He's just brilliant. Oh, and early in the show, he said something about a hamster!

I've been lucky enough to see some of Eddie's shows he did in the past year or so at The Coronet (before it became Largo). He'd come to L.A. for a week or two to test out material for this tour. I really loved the thing he did about bees, but it didn't make the cut. He did do the one about the giraffe trying to warn the other giraffe about a tiger. Maybe only Ren knows what I'm talking about and maybe I'm just crazy. There was also plenty of the usual badger and spoon talk as well.

We got sweet t-shirts tonight. I'm planning to wear mine to an upcoming event, so I can't say anything about it yet.

You Don't Have To Be A Man-Ho

A few weeks ago, E was browsing the Largo calendar online and noticed an event called The 1st National International New Zealand Day. Knowing that Flight of the Conchords have played the venue quite a few times (none of which I'd been to, dammit!), including the weekend before when we were in San Diego, he had a feeling they might be part of this Kiwi celebration. I immediately called for tickets.

$20 souvenir mug. Proceeds went to charity. I got the last one too, suckas!

There's something you should know about E and that's the fact that he is usually right. I'm not just saying that-it's a fact. So, yes, the Flight of the Conchords were absolutely part of the Largo show and in fact were the hosts. They were on stage several times and treated us to many new songs that I can already picture as hilarious vignettes in the upcoming season of their HBO show. Let's just say that Jemaine may need to prostitute himself for some creme brulee.

Other acts included Bo Runga, Bic Runga, and Greg Johnson. We've seen Bic perform a few times and her sister, Bo, is just as talented. Greg was great too. One of the best parts of the show was Rhys Darby in his dual role of stand-up comedian (himself) and band manager (Murray). He played Murray off stage and did such things as call the guys in for an "emergency band meeting," complete with roll call. It was hilarious! He also did a small portion of his stand-up act, which is pretty side splitting.

All in all, we had a blast and are still talking about the show.