Friday night I picked my sister up then the two of us met my aunt for dinner at Mishima. Yum! I haven’t been there in well over five years, and I have no idea why. The food is Japanese comfort food and consistently good and inexpensive. I need to remember to go more often. As usual, it was a fabulous night as Bethany and I both love spending time with Nan.

Saturday the plan was to sleep in. Unfortunately, that did not happen and I instead found myself jolted awake by the sound of pounding on the roof. At 8 a.m. On a Saturday. I guess my landlord wanted to take advantage of a rain-free day to patch the roof, so the roofers were here bright and early. I threw on some sweats and headed over to a very quiet and empty Target and bumped into my friend David within the first five minutes of shopping. I got the usual stuff, as well as some cute art for my dining area.

I got home, lounged around, then met my friend (and fellow Big Sister) Keren at Little Next Door for a very fun and long overdue lunch. It should be noted that my hot chocolate was a whopping 16 ounces. That is just nuts. Straight from lunch, I visited briefly with my aunt, then came home, relaxed for about five minutes, and changed clothes.

My friend Karrin then came over and we headed over to Birds for a fun and yummy dinner before the awesome ASSSSCAT show at UCB. (By the way, if you live in California you may find this hysterical.) As we were walking to theater, I bumped into my neighbor (the one who, through her husband, I found out went to my rival high school down in San Diego). She mentioned she was meeting a friend for dinner at a different restaurant then going to UCB, so we decided to meet up in line following dinner. Anyway, she and her friend are both super sweet, and we played a brief game of San Diego Jewish geography while waiting in line for the theater. It was cool to chat out with her, because the only times we usually talk are when we’re either doing laundry or unloading groceries from our cars.

Sunday morning I was able to sleep in, yay! I lounged around, did laundry, and decided to go the market. I got there and couldn’t find a parking spot (even in the back, where you have to take the elevator down!) and went home. If the parking lot was such a madhouse, I didn’t even want to see the inside of the store. So instead, I did some stuff around my apartment, went to Bed Bath and Beyond, came home, watched TV, then decided to try the market again, this time with success. That afternoon, I lazed around some more, rearranged furniture, started my taxes online, and baked cookie bars. Quite a good Sunday!
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You may have noticed I didn’t mention the Super Bowl. I did get invited to a couple of parties, but aside from the $10 square I bought at work, I have absolutely no interest in the game and decided to opt for a productive day instead.
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And in totally unrelated news, my Jdate subscription is over. Should I: a) completely remove my profile; b) hide my profile; c) leave my profile up and see who contacts me?

Speaking of Jdate, that segment of The Early Show about Jdate is scheduled to air tomorrow (Monday) morning. Set your Tivos.

(Poll added, see bottom of post! Sorry in advance about the ads.) And it’s been removed, apparently the domain expired. Random.

I voted at 7:30 this morning. And it was a pain in the ass.

I got to my polling place–the International Cinematographers Guild–to find the parking lot closed which I vaguely remembered was the case the last time I voted. Then I circled the block a few times in hopes of finding a meter in a neighborhood (morning rush hour in Hollywood and permit parking neighborhoods make for very difficult parking), couldn’t find one, and opted to brave parking in the strip mall next door. Why have a polling place with no parking?

When I finally got to the front door of the Guild, it was locked, and I was buzzed in by the receptionist. I found the polling place, heard lots of yelling in Russian (there is a large Russian population in my neighborhood) and watched a very unhappy man walk out the door complaining about how he is unable to vote.

Then it was my turn in line. I gave my name and address to the first person and signed the sheet (got the requisite “oh your name is Hilary! like Hillary Clinton!” joke), received a ballot from a second person, and repeated my name and address to a third person. Unfortunately, this woman could not find me on her list and yelled so everyone in the room could hear, “YOU’RE NOT ON MY LIST!” She asked me to repeat the spelling of my last name, apologized for not hearing me well because she had a sinus infection, and again said “YOU’RE NOT ON MY LIST!!” Then she asked, “WHERE ARE YOU?” to which I responded, “excuse me?” and got a “WHERE ARE YOU?” and the look of death in return. The woman next to me in line looked at me sympathetically and shrugged her shoulders. I am here. On the other side of the table from you. The real question is WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU? because you’re obviously on a different planet than the rest of us.

“Um, what do you mean by where are you?” I finally asked her, and she said, “WHAT IS YOUR ADDRESS?!?!” and at that point, I half expected her to throw in a DUH! for good measure. The next five minutes were spent by me repeating my address, her transposing the numbers, me repeating it again, and her telling me the list isn’t in any order, and “YOU’RE NOT ON MY LIST!!!” until I finally asked if that meant I could not vote. “OH NO, YOU CAN STILL VOTE! I JUST NEED TO CHECK YOU OFF BY THE END OF THE DAY!” Whatever. I have no idea what that meant.

And I voted. I think. Hopefully my vote will count, even if I am not on that second list.

Earlier this week, I met with my Little, her mom, and our caseworker to celebrate our four year anniversary as a match. I still can’t believe it’s been that long–it feels like just yesterday she was 10-years-old!
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You know those moments when you realize you’re just a big dork? I had one of those yesterday while reading an article in the LA Times about–the multiple uses of parchment paper for baking and cooking! Seriously. I love the stuff, and buy it in huge quantities from Surfas.
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As you may have heard, it’s been cold (for LA standards) here lately. Once the temperature hit 65, people break out the scarves and gloves and hats. It’s OK, you can laugh. But the part that bugs me, the part that I just don’t get, is seeing people bundled up from head to almost-toe. Why almost? Because they are wearing FLIP FLOPS. With a hat and scarf and gloves. What the hell people?
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My Vegas weekend is completely booked now! We decided to stay at Bally’s–definitely not the hottest hotel, but it’s relatively inexpensive, in a good location, and connected to Paris. Does anyone know if it’s possible to buy discount show tickets anywhere? We’d both love to see a Cirque du Soleil show without having to spend a small fortune.
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In dating news, there is none. And I took my profile off Jdate. I need a Jbreak.
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Just a reminder to those of you who feel the need to complain in the comments about the content of my blog: As far as I know, no one is forcing you to read it, so if what I write bothers you that much, stop reading! And secondly, if someone is forcing you to read it, please tell me exactly how they go about doing that, because I’d really like to know.

In related news, I’ve been toying with the idea of implementing reader registration or making my blog password protected. I’ll keep you posted.
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I have no question for this week, so instead, tell me what’s on your mind.

As much as I love spending time with my friends, every now and then I crave a weekend with nothing on my calendar. This was one of those weekends. I:

• Didn’t need to use the heat lamp in my bathroom for the first time in months. (It was in the 80s here!)
• Slept in both days, and watched the Food Network in bed.
• Finally went to Bed Bath and Beyond and bought: a simplehuman trash can (did you know they make $299 ones?!), storage containers, a new tub mat, and a mattress cover to replace my way too old one.
• Went to my stupid neighborhood Ralphs and couldn’t find half of the stuff on my shopping list. When I asked the checker what was going on, she said that is everyones complaint since “they turned the store into a liquor store.” Seriously. Four aisles of wine? Whatever.
• Went to Surfas and stocked up on sprinkles, parchment paper sheets (one of my most favorite kitchen things ever), and other stuff I haven’t had the chance to buy lately.
• Cleaned and did laundry.
• Got back into my pajamas and filed my taxes online, read, watched TV, and lazed around.
• Made Snickery Squares, which include: shortbread, dulce de leche, caramelized peanuts, and chocolate.
• Saw my sister briefly.
• Made dough for Valentine’s Day sugar cookies that I’ll make this week.
• Spent more time on the couch.

Now I’m finally going to take a shower, then I think I’ll plant myself back on the couch. Ahh, Sundays.

As usual, another long overdue book post. Sorry about that!

So, what are you reading? And if you’ve read a book that someone posted about in the comments in part one, part two, part three, part four, part five, part six, part seven, part eight, part nine, part 10, part 11, or part 12, let us know!

Last weekend, I drove down Robertson and passed two men wearing only underwear and holding volleyballs standing outside of Kitson . What. The. Hell. Then this week on the same street, I passed a car pimped out in the Gucci logo.
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Earlier this week during lunch in Century City, Karrin and I saw a woman wearing tapered jeans with zippers at the ankles. I wore these in the 80s. Sigh. If that stupid way of folding at the ankle comes back, then we’re really in trouble.
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My Little and I were having ice cream earlier this week (it was in the 80s here) when her new science teacher walked into the shop. She looked at me and asked my Little, “So this must be your very young mother?” to which I was a little surprised and responded with “I’m her volunteer Big Sister but I would be proud to have a daughter like her.” I never know what to say in those situations, but I wanted the teacher to know that she is part of the Big Sister program. Any suggestions on how to respond?
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Being Valentine-less today, I accepted Keren’s plus one invitation to join her at a friend’s show tonight. Should be fun!

Speaking of Valentine’s Day, I made cookies!
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I’m heading down to San Diego for the long weekend tomorrow after work. I can’t believe it’s been two months since I last saw my parents. That’s insane, considering they are only 120 miles away. What are your plans?
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If you haven’t already done so, please tell us what you’ve read lately. Speaking of books, Jessica’s book, The Fug Awards, is out! Go buy it!
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Have you seen the Pedigree dog food commercial (click the one that says KING) where the family moves and doesn’t take their dog? Every time I see it, I want to cry.
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This week’s question: In honor of Valentine’s Day, tell me about a song that you find sexy. It can be due to the lyrics, the beat, the band, whatever. For me, “Out of Control” by She Wants Revenge comes to mind.

This weekend I went down to SD to visit my family and I:

• Picked out new sunglasses at my dad’s office.
• Relaxed a lot.
• Slept a lot
• Ate a lot.
• Was joined by my friend Karrin who drove down from LA for a short visit.
• Had a delicious dinner at Pacifica Del Mar.
• Watched Gone Baby Gone.
• Walked down to downtown Del Mar, ate breakfast (and chatted with three families we knew), then walked back home.
• Removed an insane amount of spyware and other crap from my parents’ laptop.
• Noticed someone is stealing some of my cupcake photos and passing them off as hers.
• Had lunch with Julie and her boys.

As always, it was fun being down in SD with my family, and I won’t let two months without seeing them happen again!

Now I have to get back into work mode. Sigh. I wish I had just one more day off…

While many of you are reading this, I’ll be at the cardiologist having an electrocardiogram (ECG) and echocardiogram (ultrasound). Not sure if I’ve ever mentioned it before, but I have a congenital heart murmur that is caused by one of my valves having a narrow opening (imagine a cinched garden hose). So, I go to the doctor every other year for him to check it out and make sure the valve isn’t narrowing a lot. I think I’m his favorite patient, because I’m a good 30 years younger and much healthier than everyone else in the waiting room.

The reason I mention the doctor at all is because I’m more excited to go there than I am to go to my office to work on proxy battle stuff. Is that sad or what?
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Last week I mentioned my friend Keren invited me to a show her friend was producing on Valentine’s Day. We went to see Mortified (yes again), and as always, it was a blast. I remember the first Mortified show I saw was at the tiny room at The Knitting Factory; now they’re selling out King King in Hollywood. I’m so excited for them! If you haven’t seen it yet, definitely check it out. And they have shows in other cities, so there’s really no excuse.
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The Googler is bitter. Oh yes he is. I looked at his blog last week and saw a collage of 64 Jdate women, yes he ganked their photos, (What the fuck? Who does that?) and a post about how they either disappeared (not unlike what he did to me), or neglected to return his phone calls or emails. Of course, I recognized a friend on there (and my sister recognized her friend as well) and immediately sent them the link, then proceeded to send it to more of my friends who in turn sent it to their friends who sent it to their friends, etc.
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I made red velvet cake balls yesterday. Crumbled red velvet cake mixed with cream cheese frosting, rolled, and dipped in chocolate. Yes, seriously.

And in other food news, someone is stealing some of my cupcake photos and trying to pass them off as her own. I’ve twice now asked her to remove them from her Flickr stream and she is ignoring my requests so I filled out a copyright thingy on Flickr. Who steals cupcake photos? Hmm, maybe I should hook her up with The Googler.
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Are car washes in parking structures only an LA thing? It’s come up in conversation with people who live outside of LA and they think I’m nuts when I say I dropped my car off with the car wash guy in the morning when I got to the office.
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TV: I am embarrassed to admit my three current favorite TV shows are Celebrity Rehab, The Millionaire Matchmaker, and Project Runway (who do you want to win?). I’ve also been catching random episodes of Heat and am enjoying it even though I find the chef super annoying.
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This week’s question: What is your favorite made up band name? You know, when you hear two words together and think, “that would make an awesome band name.”

Nothing exciting to report as I spent most of the weekend in bed fighting off something. Two nights of 11 hours of sleep, what the hell?

In other news:

• The cupcake photo thief saga is over. My photos were removed from her account, finally. Yay!
• I made Pecan Sour Cream Biscuits (minus the pecans) as part of Tuesdays With Dorie. More about that coming soon.
• I bought and assembled an Elfa unit for my makeshift kitchen pantry. For whatever reason, my apartment doesn’t have a pantry, so I decided it was finally time to invest in a real shelving unit and turn the broom closet into a pantry. Why are Elfas so damn expensive?
• I replaced my old DirecTV Tivo receiver with one of their new DVR receivers. It is so much faster. Hopefully I can sell the Tivo receiver on ebay.
• DG apparently IMd my sister on Jdate, and even after she told him she was my sister, he continued to want to correspond. Kinda ick.
• Thursday night, I went to an awesome LA Theater Works staged reading of The Paris Letter at the Skirball. The story was great, and the reading was taped for The Play’s The Thing which airs on NPR. And oh! Guess who was in the cast? None other than my future husband, Josh Radnor, who was sporting major facial hair and a Jewfro of sorts. The rest of the cast included Neil Patrick Harris, John Glover, Ron Rifkin, and Patricia Wettig. I know, quite a treat!

And now I’m going to close my doorwall so I can watch the rest of the red carpet arrivals without hearing the helicopters above the Kodak Theater.

I don’t know what to do about this blog. Every day I sit down, try to write, and nothing comes out. Or I begin writing then midway through, hit the delete key until I’m back where I started, at a word count of zero. Of course, I have a million thoughts in my head, but I’m not sure if/how I want to write about them here. Back when 100 of you read this everyday, it was much easier for me to whine, rant, and talk about anything on my mind. But now that my readership has grown, it’s not so easy. It’s not that I’m scared of being judged, but rather that I’ve come to realize there are certain things I don’t really want out here for the entire world to read. Make sense?

Not that this is a surprise to most of you, but I don’t write about every aspect of my life. There are dates I didn’t share details about, recipes I didn’t review, purchases I didn’t reveal, stressful work related things I won’t mention, and more loads of laundry that weren’t blogged about. Yes, there is more going on in my life than what is contained in my tiny little piece of cyberspace.

And so, please bear with me as I figure out the direction of this blog. The plan is to at least continue my weekend and Thursday posts (basically what I’ve been doing for the past few months) until I get it all sorted out. Thanks, and happy reading.

As I backed my car out of my parking spot Monday morning, the pole that I’ve parked next to for ten years moved a few inches and hit the passenger side mirror of my two-month-old car! (OK fine, it didn’t really move. I hit it. Blah.) Fortunately, there was minimal damage–just a bit of paint from the pole that the car wash guy was able to buff off, but I was not a happy person when it happened.
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With my new DirecTV DVR, caller ID displays on the TV! Well it did, for one day. Then it didn’t and and I called DirecTV and they told me to restart the receiver. And it worked again, once! Then I just gave up and decided I could live without the caller ID feature. But now, it decides to sometimes lose the picture when I fast forward, so I have to rewind and fast forward again. Sigh. I miss my Tivo. I should also note however, that the DVR in the living room (the prior model, which has the five (?) second “skip back feature,” and I am sadly unable to get) works just fine. And FYI for those of you upgrading–you can upgrade DVRS for free, you just pay the “handling fee.” Hopefully yours will function better than mine.
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I’ve joined a food blogging event called Tuesdays With Dorie. As you may have figured out, I adore Dorie Greenspan and her recipes, and am always anxious to try out new ones from her cookbook Baking: From My Home To Yours. Fortunately for me, others had the same idea and this event, where food bloggers everywhere all make the selected Dorie recipe and post about it on–you guessed it, Tuesday–was born. My debut Tuesdays With Dorie post was about the pecan sour cream biscuits you saw pictures of over the weekend.
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I was watching TLC the other day and saw a commercial for tonight’s LA Ink episode and swore I saw my favorite doctor ever ever ever on the TV. After rewinding, I decided it was definitely him, apparently he’s Kat Von D’s doctor now. Dr. Katz was the first doctor I went to in LA when I started college up here and the one who, eight years ago, returned my panicked 11:00 p.m. call to his answering service when I found a lump in my breast. I really hope he doesn’t stop accepting insurance and turn into one of those doctors that only caters to Hollywood. I happen to have an appointment with him next week and will have to tease him about his TV appearance.

In related news, is it weird that my dermatologist has more TV appearances to his name than most “actors” I’ve dated in the past?

In non-doctor related TV news, what’d you think of last night’s Project Runway? I loved Chris, but human hair? Kinda creepy.
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Thank you for your kind comments to my last post; I’m still thinking about where, if anywhere, this blog is going.
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This week’s question: What scent instantly takes you back in time? For me, whenever I smell pipe smoke I immediately think of my Papa and Uncle Max.