well friends,

Happy Halloween.
For Halloween, I will be jumping on a plane @ 7 AM to head to the Big Apple.
Its gonna be a busy week - I am not necessarily looking forward to it.
I'll be dressed as Princess Leia tomorrow (white dress rendition, not Bikini Jabba the Hut version) - and Paul will be Han Solo.

anyway, I apologize for the lack of writing last week.
and I will apologize in advance for the lack of writing this week.

and I must say, I am REALLY looking forward to thanksgiving. I am counting the days till I get to stuff my face with fellow Strannigans. I miss them all dearly.

check that one off the dream chart.

yeah, I finally get to see him tonight.
I AM SO EXCITED!

way to go, boys.

the science of sleep (not the movie).

There are some days when the light at the end of the tunnel is very dim.
Other days, that light may shine brightly.
And, then, there are pockets of time -- months, weeks, etc -- where there is no light at all.
I think that now is one of those times.
For the last month, I've begun to hit snooze on my alarm clock. Just 7 more minutes of sleep, dammit! Never before have I been a "snooze" person. I've also started excercising, which supposedly makes one feel better, healthy, energetic, etc. I am going to have to disagree completely and say that exercise furthers my exhaustion.
I'm up to 4 cups of coffee a day or so. Never less than two.
I want to go to bed at 9 every night (tho, I never do. someone or something always coerces me against my better judgement to stay up way past my bedtime).
Danielle told me she's been feeling the same way. She went to a doctor and he told her to take vast amounds of Vitamin C, Vitamin B and an Immune booster. I'm a sucker of a daily dose of "Emergen-C" but apparently this is not enough to undo whatever it is I've 'done' to myself.

And on a day like today -- where I spent 12 hours of my day immersed in terrible pop music, schmoozing with the greats of the music biz, and selling discounted CD's to mindless children -- that I feel especially tired. And the tunnel feels especially long and dark.

And, as I dozed in Brandons car on the way home from the sad little city of Pomona, with the sweet sounds of Switchfoot (yes, Switchfoot) serenading my ears, I knew one thing to be true: sleep would come quickly to me tonight. And it will feel good.

But if I were a betting woman, I'd wager that my snooze button gets some love tomorrow morning. Because 7:30 comes awful early on a Sunday.

The Great Pumpkin / The Big Apple

I got my plane tickets to New York today, for the CMJ Music Festival.

So, its official. I will be spending Halloween in New York City.

Paul wants me to dress as a stewardess. He's going to be an airplane. And Matt Maust is supposedly going to be an air traffic controller (complete with those lit up cone-type things they hold in their hands to direct).

It frightens me a little, the great pumpkin in the big apple.

but then, I thought about it. Summer is there. Paul will be there. Nick is there. The Cold War Kids will be there. Sherwood will be there. And, maybe Nate Rose, Kristin, and Melissa?

This could be shaping up to be a very excellent holiday.

CWK, my parents house, Body Magic.

for some strange reason.

Today I decided to Wikipedia my birthday (Aug 16). I hadn't done it before, and it seemed like a good thing to do.

I already knew Elvis died on my birthday.
I found out that Steve Carrell and I have the same birthday (and Vanessa Carlton and Madonna).

But, then I found out about a lot of wretched things that happened on my birthday. Funny enough, there seems to be a theme. A lot of people arrested on my birthday, a lot of plane crashes, and a lot of Wars.

strange...

1928 - Murderer Carl Panzram is arrested in Washington, DC after killing 20 people.

1930 - The first color sound cartoon, called Fiddlesticks, is made by Ub Iwerks.

1942 - World War II: The two-person crew of the U.S. naval blimp L-8 disappears without a trace on a routine anti-submarine patrol over the Pacific Ocean. The blimp drifts without her crew and crash-lands in Daly City, California.

1946 - The Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren, is established, and Ichirō Ishikawa is appointed its representative.

1960 - Joseph Kittinger parachutes from a balloon over New Mexico at 102,800 feet (31,330 m), setting three records that still stand today: High-altitude jump, free-fall, and fastest speed by a human without an aircraft.

1966 - Vietnam War: The House Un-American Activities Committee begins investigations of Americans who have aided the Viet Cong. The committee intends to introduce legislation making these activities illegal. Anti-war demonstrators disrupt the meeting and 50 people are arrested.

1969 - Police raid on Spahn Ranch; Charles Manson arrested.

1975 - Serial killer Ted Bundy originally arrested for suspicion of burglary, only to later escape twice.

1984 - Carmaker John De Lorean is acquitted of all eight counts of possessing and distributing cocaine.

1987 - A McDonnell Douglas MD-82 carrying Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes on take-off from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, killing 155 passengers and crew. The sole survivor is four-year-old Cecelia Cichan.

2003 - U.S. Representative from South Dakota Bill Janklow hits and kills a motorcyclist with his car at a rural intersection near Trent, South Dakota; he will eventually be convicted of manslaughter and will resign from Congress.

2005 - West Caribbean Airways Flight 708 crashes near Machiques, Venezuela, killing the 160 aboard.

little blips

its been 3 months since I've smoked a cigarette.
Beck was slightly dissapointing.
Season 3 of LOST starts on Weds. I am stupidly excited.
Jamie got kicked out of the USA.
Linda arrived back in the USA today.
I've had to cancel multiple tours in the last few weeks. it makes me sick to my stomach.
I went to Sacramento last weekend.
Wine tasting with the 'rents at Apple Hill was just what my lil soul needed.
I found THE PERFECT PUMPKIN (you don't believe me? come to my house and see it).
I saw my friend from high school (Emily) and we realized we hadn't seen each other in 7 years. since I left high school. that made me feel old.
I want to ride bikes more often.
I want to buy a bike.
Got some good hits at the thrift stores this weekend.
I am VERY proud of my friends, the Cold War Kids (Cover of the OC Weekly this week, sold out show @ Detroit Bar).
I like having the CWK in Long Beach
I am going to start working with the Sound and Worship teams @ my church.
Beth Balmer is a newfound hero of mine.
I discovered how to get free music of myspace. revolutionary.
I got new jeans. not terribly excited about them.
I met some nice women who work in the music industry and we are going to have "women in the industry" dinner nights. no joke. it wasn't my idea.
I miss my family.
I drank 5 cups of coffee yesterday, simply because it was overcast.

Someone (a good friend) told me yesterday that my voice is their favorite voice to hear in the entire world.
And they meant it.
I think that's one of the nicer things someone has ever said to me.