hotchachie's back (ALRIGHT!!)

Sorry for the long absence. I have been working (full-time, blech!) and have neglected my blogging responsibilities. So much has happened since June, though. I'll get you back up to speed later, but for now: CANDY CORN!

I found a recipe for VEGAN candy corn. I guess regular candy corn has gelatin and eggs and milk in it. Anyway, I made it on Monday night. It was really easy and fun!! Like molding play dough that you can eat! My roommate and his girlfriend helped with the shapes. It's my new Halloween tradition. At first they didn't quite have the hard texture of candy corn, but after a few days, they are very similar!

In the photo you'll find a dog, a snail, small corn, big corn, a Mexican guy in sombrero, a clown, carrots, pumpkins (mellowcremes), and my gay pride candy! Not pictured that we also made include a monkey, a cat, and a pretzel.

I just learned, however, that Jelly Belly makes candy corn that is practically vegan (contains beeswax, which I don't mind eating... what?)

It's good to be back! Check out my new store http://hopeandspray.etsy.com/

Salut de Montreal!

I'm posting from a place called espressonet which is an internet cafe that serves alcohol in le Village, the gay area of Montreal. I love this city soooooooooo much!! Brian and I have been having a WONDERFUL time.

Yesterday we went to Six Flags. We were able to walk there from our hotel. It's on a little island across from the city, but the bridge is walkable. It took over a half hour, but it was cool. I heard that schools were still in session so I assumed that the park would be pretty empty, but I made an ass of u and me because it was teeming with thousands of loud and pushy Quebecois schoolchildren of all ages. I guess since the Canadian school system is 13 years instead of 12, they have lots of extra time for uneducational field trips like amusement parks. When I saw all the kids, I decided to get a Flash Pass to bypass the lines. Unfortunately, there was some computer problem, and they weren't issuing them when I went to the kiosk. After waiting in hour-long lines for two different sub-par coasters, we went back to the kiosk and were able to purchase the Flash Pass. Then the real fun began. We went on the biggest and best rides so many times that Brian begged me to take a cotton candy (barbe-a-papa) break because his head was spinning. The park closed at 7 PM, but we definitely rode until we couldn't ride no more. One ride, the Goliath, has the distinction of being the tallest coaster in Canada!

On Wednesday, we put the W in walking tour. We explored the old town (dating back to 1642) and two beautiful parks. The biggest park, Le Parc Mont-Royal, was designed by the same guy who did Central Park in NYC and is where the landmark Croix (pictured) is found. The other, Le Parc Lafontaine, is a beautifully manicured European-style park.

That day, we had the most unique dining experience ever. The place is called "Le Spirite Lounge," and it is entirely run by one man, a flamboyant artist named Roz-man. Saying that the decor was eclectic would be the understatement of the year. Every table and set of chairs was different. It took up three rooms, one of which had an elaborate catwalk and stage (which will soon host Roz's one-man show). The completely vegan menu consisted of curry soup, a fruit and veg filled crepe, and flourless chocolate-blueberry cake. There was no choice of food, but he was sensitive to allergy or food dislikes. He told us that there would be a $2 charge for not finishing your plate ("like if you licked it"), and he gave an option of reduced portions if you didn't think you'd be able to finish a regular size. Brian ordered the smaller option, but it didn't seem any smaller than mine. The food was delicious, no question, and we had a great time. Our B&B host told us that it's always pretty much the same food. We've since been to two other delicious vegan restaurants here, but that was the most exciting.

I got my French karaoke on twice so far. I sang my favorite Celine, ZIGGY (Un garcon pas comme les autres). It's a song about her gay best friend who she is in love with. I did it in Celine's key, and I think I would have done her proud!

Our night bus back to New York leaves in a few hours, and then we fly immediately back to the SD. I miss kitty so much!! TTFN!

Vacation Blog! I`m updating from Montreal. It is wet and rainy here, but still glorious. I really love it so far.

To back it up, Brian and I flew to New York on Friday night (arrived Saturday morning). We partied it up in New York with my old friends who I MISSED and haven`t seen for two years. Our NYC adventures include sitting ON the stage for a performance of the Broadway musical, ``Xanadu`` starring Kerry Butler and featuring the guy who beat Britney Spears on Star Search 15 years ago, going to Queens Pride where a friend from NU performed, Showtune night at Splash, buying a cute sweater vest at Century 21, many games of darts, a marathon karaoke session (Brian finally sang ``You Don`t Bring Me Flowers`` with me!!), and lots of delicious vegan food.

We took a night bus from NYC to Montreal last night. It was seriously hellish, but we`re here so that`s all that matters. Definitely buying some sort of pillow for the ride back to NYC.

Today we went to the Fine Arts Museum which was pretty cool. Then we went shopping at a fabulous department store called Simons where I got another cute sweater vest, a gondolier sweater, and tight WHITE jeans. Brian got a cute sweater and hooded sweater vest that both happen to be in my size, too :-) Did I mention the stuff was pretty cheap?

I`m typing from an internet cafe. We`re on our way back to our vegan B&B. It`s very cute, and I can`t wait until breakfast tomorrow because I`ve heard that it`s fabulous. Our other plans for Montreal include mucho French karaoke, Six Flags Montreal (La Ronde), the old town, and whatever else comes along!

TTFN!

Hi! I realize that I left my blog mid-post last week and haven't gotten around to completing it. The jist was that I am thinking about quitting gymnastics forever. It just isn't very fun anymore, and I am afraid that if I keep going just to maintain my skill level, I'll eventually injure myself. My solution is to go one last time and make a video of me doing all of my best tricks. Then, I'll never have to do them again. If someone wants to see me flip, I'll just press play! No warming up required! This really would have come in handy at my graduation party last weekend when my dad goated people into wanting to see me flip. I showed a crappy video of my old dance recital that had me doing some stuff, but it was hard to watch knowing that I am MUCH better now than at 14.

Somehow, after we studied abroad together in Paris, I left never wanting to live abroad again while my friend Kara left never wanting to live in the US again. She has since lived in Bangladesh, England, South Africa, and maybe a couple other places. Now she is working for malnourished children in Haiti, and she has a BLOG. I recommend it if you are into world travel. She writes in great detail of all aspects of third world life...some funny and some not. Do you remember a bestselling chick-lit novel a few years ago about a working mother called "I Don't Know How She Does It?" Well, if that was about Kara feeding children in Haiti, it would be called "I Have No Fucking Clue How She Can Possibly Do All the Fuck That She Does In Such a Fucking Difficult Place." Hopefully by the time I can afford exotic, international trips, Kara will be working in a more Charlie-friendly place like Barbados or Bali because I really miss her.

Brian and I saw a French movie called "The Valet" yesterday. It is by the people who made "The Closet" (Le Placard) which I OWN and LOVE. "The Valet" was really good, too. You'd assume that the title in French would be "Le Valet," but it's not. You see, valet doesn't mean car parker in French. That word is voiturier. So then you'd assume that the movie would be called "Le Voiturier," but doing so would make an ass of u and me because that's not right either. The French title is "La Doublure" which means the stand-in. Weird, huh? It really is about a valet, though. You see, this billionaire is dating a supermodel, and they are photographed together as the valet is walking by them. The billionaire's wife sees the photo in a tabloid, and he tells her that he doesn't know the supermodel and that she is with the valet. So then, he pays the valet to live with the supermodel for a month so that the snooping wife will believe the story. I highly recommend, as it is one of the rare French films that is actually enjoyable to watch and doesn't leave you confused or unsatisfied.

TTFN!

I just got an idea. As anyone who knows me knows that I love gymnastics. I've been doing it since I was 5, and I've never gone more than a couple months without going to the gym and practicing my tricks. However, now that I am 26 and a half, it might be time to pack it up.

Last week, I went to the YMCA for the adult open gym. Now, I've gone to adult open gyms in lots of different cities, and it's always the same old shit. First is stretching when I lament the fact that I still can't do the splits. Then back bends, which get worse every year, and handstands. Then we line up and do easy tumbling like cartwheels and rolls. My back extension rolls always impress.

Next, it's time for diagonal tumbling, but I'm already tired so I take a break. Then it goes, round-off filp-flop, round-off flip-flop series, and round-off flip-flop back. I used to do layouts next, but I stopped because it hurts so much if you land them at the wrong angle, and I don't even want to bother. Then I freak out about doing a full because the first one is always funny and not in a good way. Like, if I don't finish the twist before I land, I will be on the floor for the rest of the practice. After lots of self-talk, I get the courage to throw the first one. It's exhilerating, but, after I land, the coach always gives me some stupid advice ("remember to go up!" where else am I trying to go, dickwad??), not understanding that my first one is always bad. By this time, I'm exhausted and can't believe that there's still an hour or two left. Then I putz around trying to think of other skills to try.

To be continued...

I have a few exciting things to share! First, I rented "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" this weekend and definitively placed it on my list of BEST 80's movies EVER! If you haven't seen it, you really need to. Brian encouraged me to learn one of the dance sequences, and I did! If only I had a video camera, I would make one of me doing the dance with the TV screen, and I'd become the next youtube STAR. If only.

In other awesome 80's movie news, I found out that they just released a re-recorded soundtrack of "Teen Witch." Check out the video. I want it, I want it, I want it!

Here's another hilarious video. It's a MadTV spoof of "High School Musical." If you haven't seen it, this parody will still be funny, but I have to ask why the hell you haven't seen it? Been living under a rock? It's a fucking phenomenom! Get thee to Blockbuster or just check your Disney Channel listings, it's on every other day.

THat's all for today!

That's my new nephew, David! Isn't he cute?

Brian and I planned a trip to Hercules this weekend to see the baby (which was due the week before), but when we got there it still hadn't come out. I was happy about that, though, because it gave me the chance to see my sister pregnant. Also, I got to see for the first time how contractions can affect expectant mothers, and now I don't understand why more people don't adopt. Unfortunately, they started getting really strong halfway through Desperate Housewives so we had to leave the room and find another TV in the hospital before the end of the commercial break (we did!).

I was sad that I didn't get to see any friends in the Bay Area, but how do you make dates when your sister can go into labor at any second?

On Sunday, after Rosie went to the hospital, my dad went to visit first and then my mom. Brian and I were home, leisurely getting ready to go next, when we realized that my parents left us in the house without a car. I took the opportunity to give Brian a walking tour of Hercules, from the Swim Center to the Taco Bell.

Oh, and all you Herculeans out there need to be aware that they have destroyed the best parts of Refugio Valley Park, the concrete slide and the sliding pole. Seeing that broke my heart because those two structures played a huge role in my childhood. Even though I'm pretty sure that being forced to go down that pole when I was five is what caused my severe fear of heights, I'm really sad that I'll never get to go down it again. And the concrete slide was often the only fun and excitement to be found in all of Hercules. You'd sit on a piece of cardboard and fly down into a pile of sand. Now they've covered the slide with flower beds. Let's see if I can find a picture of how it used to be. Nope, but here's one of the park's famous gazebo.