new location!

Hi there readers.

In my eternal quest for everything to have it's proper home, I started a new LA blog when we got back from Vancouver. It just didn't seem right to keep going with this "Limbo" one. So... you can find it here.

I was waiting to get caught up with posts and photos, but I figure if I wait, it will never happen. So, have a look see and I'll see you there!!!

still here

Hi sports fans & loyal readers. I'm still kicking around =)

I'm actually up in Vancouver right now. I've been here about 7 weeks (eek!) and am here for about 6 more. Alex just came up this week to join me for a while, working on the dame show as I am. That's fun news.

I do have a Vancouver blog going, but it's woefully under posted. Also, there's a bit too much work stuff to make it "public" right now. I'll have to maybe transfer that to a private place & have the rest out there. Until then, if you wan to read it, drop me a line & I'll send it to you (as long as you're not at my office =) )

I'll definately link to photos soon though. It is absolutely gorgeous up here. So much to see & do! Can't wait to show you.

Hugs!!!
T- =)

friends!

Tonight we went to dinner with our friend from London, Edward. It was so good to see him! He's in town over night for a meeting in the morning (he's a real world traveler) so he just had time to see us. We probably kept him out too late. And after we dropped him off we thought off all the places we should have taken him to eat, but oh well. We had fun & got to catch up. We miss our friends in London so much.

david gray

We went to see David Gray last night at the Gibson Amphitheater at Universal City Walk. It was sooo very fun!! We had wanted to see him in London but the show was sold out. So, while we were still there I got tickets for his show in LA. It was supposed to be in November. Then, while here, he got sick & the show was canceled. Booo. Then they rescheduled it. I had never gotten a refund for the Nov tix so I called & asked if they were still valid now. They were! We didn't really believe it, so we went early to get the tix. Only after we had them in our hands were we sure.

We had really great seats and the evening was amazing. He can sing so very well. I'm glad we got to go. I'm sure Alex will write a very poetic & descriptive post about the show, although I'm not sure words can do justice. The drummer was absolutely fabulous and hysterical. Hawaiian shirt and all. We both want him to come out with a live album now. It was the last night of his Spring North American tour, so that was fun. The whole band seemed very into it.

There was an opening band, Aqualung. We hadn't heard of them, yet the name sounded vaguely familiar. After a couple songs I wondered if they were English. (As Davis Gray is from the UK this wouldn't be far fetched) Their sound it very boy-brit-pop. Not in a bad way. I like that stuff. They sound like a young Coldplay, Radiohead, James Blunt, US type band. Then the lead singer spoke, and sure enough, Brits. They were a fun bunch. The drummer broke his snare and as they waited for a fix the rest of them started jamming and singing about the drummer. It was quite funny. But they were so good, it sounded rehearsed. I'd like to investigate them more.

I liked going to a concert (David Gray) where I knew every song. Even the ones that weren't Mr Gray's. It's a seated auditorium so it's not quite as energetic as a standing venue, but people (including me) were singing along to everything. There was one looser who kept shouting "Shine!". Like Mr Gray hasn't already sorted out his play list. Not to mention the fact that that's probably his second most well known song (after Babylon). So... it doesn't look like you are a "cool" fan as much as it would if you shouted out some unknown song. When Mr Gray finally did play "Shine" in the encore it was just him & his guitar. Really great. But looser guy was so psyched. Pumping the air, high-fiving people. Rocking out to a, well, non-rocking song. The girls behind him were totally making fun of him. But hey, he had an awesome time, no?

What struck me the most was the audience. It was 99% white 30-somethings. Yikes. I'm a thirtysomething! I remember when the TV show was on and those people were so "old". So far away from me. But they were all younger than I am now. 5 years younger! Jeez. We saw one older couple at the concert, and maybe a few younger people, but for the most part it was "us".

I was also struck by the "LA crowd". And I didn't like what I saw. When we lived in NYC & London one of the things I loved was the way people dress. It's very stylish. But also natural. They aren't "trying" they just "are" stylish. Well, these people looked like they were "trying", and it wasn't working. Tons of skinny, blonde, airheads in stilettos. Whatever. I miss being in a city with culture & fashion. Sigh.

An awesome night! I'm glad we went and that our tickets worked. He's playing in Cork, Ireland on my birthday... =)

to a T

We ate dinner at Universal Citywalk last night & Alex spotted this T-shirt in a shop. Anyone who knows me, will know how perfect it is. =)

crickets!!!

There is a cricket in our house. He's been here for days. We get them all the time here but usually you catch them in a cup & take them outside, or they just go away. Not this one... no. He's sooooo very loud and he just keeps being here. Driving me crazy. He doesn't really start chirping until 1am (but that's 3 hours before my bedtime) but he goes ALL NIGHT. I tried to vacuum him out from behind the book case. Didn't work. Then he's been in the kitchen for 4-5 days now. I saw him in a drawer, but couldn't get to him. Sigh. So loud. So very loud.

light show

So, it's very crazy in this "modern world" how much electricity we use when we're not using things. The TV, microwave, etc.. but none so much as in the office. I was closing the office door the other night when I went to bed and noticed all the glowing lights at my desk. At least 13 that I could count. !!!!!!!! That's not ok. We totally need solar, just for the idle accessories of life. I saw my computer light, two external drives, the printer, the palm dock, USB hub, wacom, two power strips, laptop... it goes on. And that doesn't include Alex's desk or Melissa's desk! Or, in the other room, the TV, VCR, TiVo, DVD, stove, microwave, powerstrips...

Too many glowing lights at night.

who'd-a-thunk?

That the the best film of the year would actually WIN "best picture" at the Oscars?! I'm soooooo very excited. This was definitely my favorite film of the year (along with Pride & Prejudice and Hustle & Flow) and not the favorite to win.

I'm too tired now to give a full opinion on the awards show. Maybe tomorrow. But congrats to Crash!

oscar!

Happy Academy Awards day everyone!!!
Hope you win all the pools (except the ones I'm entered in) =)

there he is!!!!

I thought I saw Alex earlier but couldn't be sure but now... I saw him! I saw him!!! I could tell by the walk, but then the jacket, trousers & beard clinched it. I took some screen shots & video of the computer screen. Again, the stream is very bad quality so the image is not great, but you can totally tell it's him. Yea!!!!


screen shot from Iditarod.com

red & black

So, Ididarod.com is streaming the start of the race live this morning. I got up (after only a couple hours sleep) to see if I could see Alex helping with the dogs. The stream is very pixilated & sometimes jerky but it's fun to see where he is. We figured I would be able to see him because of his bright red & black jacket. Well, turns out about 60% of the helpers are wearing red & black jackets!!! But, I can usually recognize him from just the back of his neck, so maybe if you can actually see him, I'll notice.

Any red & black jackets...?

screen shot from Iditarod.com

volunteer

Up in Alaska, Alex has been wandering around Anchorage, seeing the sites & meeting Eskimos. But today, as he roamed the headquarters of the Iditarod race, he found a group of volunteers. He asked if they needed help and they said OK. Yea!! I'll look out for him in the morning.

owwwwww!

I just went outside and wanted to turn on the "fairy lights" (as they're called in the UK) so I plugged them in and... a huge light came out & went up my arm. Man! It hurt! I don't know that I've ever been electricuted before. I wonder if it had rain in it from the last couple days. Now it's dark and my arm hurts.  =(

and… he's off

Today I went down to the airport to drop of Alex for his adventure in Alaska. He's going for about 6 days to watch the start of the Iditarod dog sledding race. It's so exciting. I'll miss him tremendously but I know he will have a fabulous time.

Have fun Sweets, & be safe!

"modern" woman?

We are having a dilemma here in the Hillkurtz household. And it comes down to the age old question of work, priorities & kids (or at least a question since "women's lib").

We are trying to figure out wether to move to Vancouver, for a job for me, or stay in LA for Alex's work. There doesn't seem to be much going on here for my career. I could go back to production but it's about 1/3 the salary & not my passion any more. But Alex has already been taken away from LA and all his contacts for two years whilst we were in London. Another two years away and he might be forgotten by the business. It seems it comes down to "who's career?" which we hate.

And the logical answer is, stay here. Because some day we will want to have children & I will take some time off work. Then Alex will have to provide for the family, so it would behoove us if he had a sucessful career. Somehow I don't see him fulfilled as a stay at home Dad, just as I don't think I would be as a stay at home Mom. But none the less, even if I go "back to work", I do have to take some time off. I'm not going to put a child of ours in day care at 8 weeks old! So... back to the main problem. I hate that it feels like an either-or and it doesn't seem fair. But, who ever said life is fair. I think the most important this is that we be together. Together we can do anything. We've done the living-apart-for-work and it doesn't... work. What to do???????????

testing

I just downloaded the Blogger widget so I'm seeing if it works. I love widgets! I love Tiger. I love Macs! Yea!!!

You can also easily bold things and italicize things. How's the linking?

7 year itch

As of today, Alex & I have been dating for seven years. Wow! Time sure flies, eh? But, on the other hand, we sure have done a lot. From making shorts, to living in NYC, to driving cross country - twice, getting married, living in London, traveling in Europe, buying a cabin, rock climbing, camping, tulips, horse riding, star gazing, Shakespeare plays, baseball games, beaches, bookstores!, boating, movies, museums, concerts, parks, birthdays, reunions, beers, sunburns, fireworks, building, eating, bicycling, theatre, weddings, northern lights, ice cream, sunrises, sunsets, french class, dinosaurs, babies (friends), game nights, lighthouses, snow storms, paris, tango, cooking, new years', skiing, peace walks, parties, cathedrals, hawaii, irish fairs, vegas, hiking, picnics, families, rappelling, hair styles, clothing styles, holidays, distances, sight seeing, funerals, pubs, dog sledding, coffee shops, hospitals, cigars, politics, reindeer pizza, laundry (UK style), canals, rollerblading, pool, croissants on sunday mornings...

...and so much more.

We are just itching to get out there and have some more Adventures!
Loves, Sweets.

needles

A friend of mine recommended her acupuncturist to me so last week I went to see her, Dr. Jing. It was really great. She could tell a lot that is wrong with me & my health right away. She had me lay face down & put her needles in. In my head, shoulders, back, legs. I couldn't really feel them (the needless) but I could totally feel energy (for lack of a better word) in those areas. She sent me home with some really gross chinese tea to drink.

I went for my second visit today. I had had a bad week of back pain & fighting a head cold. I think she released a lot of toxins into my system & it was just trying to fight them off. This time she had me face up & quickly put the needles in. She's so quick. Then she has them stay in for 30min. Then she send me on my way with more tea. I felt the needles a bit more today but physically I feel so much better.

We'll see what happens next time.

more rap

It is amazing what some people with a video camera & a computer can do. The explosion of sites just to host "home made" videos is growning every day. Most of them really suck and are painful to watch, but there are some good ones.

You may remember me posting about the "Narnia Rap". Well, some guys from LA have done their own version. It's not nearly as funny, but if you know LA you will definitely giggle. See it here.


Then, there's the guys from the Midwest and their version here.


(note: I do have copies of these if the links ever stop working, but I'd rather not use up the storage space & bandwith unless I need to. Just let me know if you need a copy from me.)