the other side of the party

At 8pm sharp last night, Judd and I walked into Fahrenheit Ultra Lounge & Restaurant to begin our night of revelry in honor of my 27th birthday. Our five hours spent in this establishment began with some killer food and good company. Dos, Billy, Megan, Becca, Kupono, Judd and I sat around a low table in the upper lounge area chatting and munching on calimari, edamame, garlic noodles, and thai chicken. Two of Dos' friends Teresa and Brenda joined us towards the end of the meal, and Aaron and Camille came just in time for cake. As the lights in Fahrenheit turned down and the music turned up, the restaurant began its metamorphosis into a chic night club, libations began to flow more freely, and the ladies decided to head out to the dance floor. Sometime in the night, Helen, Les, Ted, Jared and Brooke joined our party, and the birthday celebrating grew exponentially (it being Jared's birthday, too). Just after 1am, after much picture-taking, bonbon-shaking, and cocktail-drinking, the party began to wind down for us, and we headed home. Although we missed those that couldn't make it out, all in all, my birthday celebration was a success! Thanks to everyone who made it happen, but especially Dos who planned the whole thing!

Here are some fun details to enhance the description of our night out on the town. First of all, around 6:30pm, before the party even started, just as Judd was getting ready to take a shower, our power went out. After scrounging around for flashlights and candles for a bit, we manually opened the garage so I could drive Gracelyn to my parents' house for the evening. Judd showered and got ready in the dark (and, I must say, he looked damn good, despite the circumstances!), and I came back to pick him up on our way to Fahrenheit. After the soiree, we drove Becca home since she was left without a ride (Kupono, being a responsible daddie, had left early to pick up Marina from a sleepover that wasn't working out...her friend was sick & throwing up). After picking Gracelyn up, we finally made it home at 2:15am (thank God the power was back on by that time), and everyone was in bed by 2:45. Of course, having a late night of partying certainly doesn't guarantee a late start in the morning, especially when you have an eight-month-old baby to care for. After only five hours of sleep, Judd dragged himself out of bed to feed Gracelyn (he spoils me, yes...I got to "sleep in" until 8:45). So while most other party-goers were most likely nursing their hangovers in bed until noonish, the Jacobs household was alive-n-kickin' at 8am! Yes, it's a lazy day here for us, but by "lazy" we mean "getting up at 8, feeding the baby, playing with the baby, changing the baby's diapers, doing the dishes, going grocery shopping, returning a pair of jeans at the mall, and updating our blog". Lazy, indeed. That's the other side of the party...

babysitter scramble

Typically, Amanda's mom will watch Gracelyn a few times a week when Amanda teaches and takes dance class. Unfortunately, today there was a last minute exception. Amanda's mom had to take her mother to see a doctor for an urgent appointment. This meant that we would have to figure out what to do with Gracelyn during the time when both Amanda and I were scheduled with other things. We found ourselves with a few options: Amanda could skip teaching; Judd could leave work way early; and, ugh...a babysitter. We pursued each of these options in the above order. Amanda couldn't find a sub for her classes; plus, her boss is all funny about her missing work already since she recently requested a number of days off for our planned vacations and weddings. I had a few meetings with the higher ups at the conflicted timeslot, so option two wasn't so good. Finally, we decided to go with option three, the babysitter. But who do we get? Fortunately, Amanda has a very good network of dance friends who were all gracious enough to help us out. I was scared though. Gracelyn has never had a babysitter and she has only ever met this person once or twice at parties. Also, she would awake from her nap only to stare a stranger in the face. Based on her recent development of separation anxiety (known to affect babies at her age), I feared that she would be a handful and that Caitlin would be faced with a difficult baby for a few hours. To my surprise, Gracelyn received an excellent report. In fact, the only time she was fussy was when I walked through the door. Thanks, Caitlin, for your help and thanks to everyone else who volunteered to help out. We really appreciate everything. What sucks for Caitlin is that she may have accidentally positioned herself as a reliable resource for being Gracelyn's babysitter. Hehe!

happy birthday wife

It's Amanda's birthday today and for the first time I can say that I am celebrating my wife's birthday. Wow. Also, this is the first birthday that she will hear, "Happy Birthday, Mommie!" Again, wow, especially since it will be delivered in a man's voice.

modern monopolies

I would define a monopoly as being the only choice a consumer has. And, with only one choice, consumers are subject to the wishes of the monopoly whether it be high prices, etc. Today, I realized that there are these modern day monopolies that fly under the radar. Take for example a Target, a WallMart, a Best Buy, a Home Depot. For the most part, they all have the best prices, the best selection of brands, the best quality products, the best locations, and flexible return policies. But, in my shopping travels, each of these institutions has pissed me off in some capacity. Specifically, it is either their customer service or their support of some bullshit that I hate. I would gladly boycott them, but where does that leave me? I end up having to pay higher prices somewhere else or risk not finding the exact brand-model combination I am looking for. So, unfortunately, as a consumer who is price sensitive, cares about my time (convenient locations), and likes particular stuff, I feel forced to shop at the places that treat me like shit. Standing up to their crap only affects me as the little guy, not them as the big guy. This sucks!

jelly bellies and no beer

Since I had the day off on Monday, we decided to go to Fairfield to the Jelly Belly factory. We packed up our shit and cruised for several miles until we finally got there. Gracelyn conveniently napped for the majority of the trip which was perfect. The tour was okay. We saw the jelly bellies moving around in the stainless steel tumblers and got to taste whichever flavor we wanted. Our tour guide was lame. She was monotone and sounded annoyed the entire time. Afterward, I enjoyed a tasty childhood treat, PB&J, while Amanda had a jelly-bean-shaped hamburger. On the way out of Jelly Belly land, we also saw a Budweiser beer factory. I was so excited to follow-up our sugar high with alcohol. But, the damn factory was closed for tours on Sundays and Mondays which sucked. Good times were had, but who would knowingly eat a Jelly Belly that tastes like dirt or wet grass? I still can't believe they have such flavors!

PS: I think we look like a family of In 'n Out workers in the above picture. I am pretty sure Gracelyn will be pissed when she grows up and finds this image floating around the Internet.

happy birthday mom

Today is my mom's birthday. Happy birthday mom! She is in Seattle visiting my sister. Apparently, they are drinking a lot. I got several drunk dial calls last nite, each more annoying than the next. She is suggesting it was some sort of payback for all my drunk dials at 2 AM. But, for my drunk dials, she never answered the phone!! Anyways, today they are planning on watching the playoff game and will go to the RAM for more drinks and football. In case no one knows, the game starts at like 10 AM PST. Drunk people...I bet they are still sleeping.

In orthogonal news, Gracelyn met Miss Amanda's Saturday dance classes. She was very well received and had lots of fun with the other kids. Only twice did she cry. Both times were because someone barged into the back room while she was napping and jerked the 'bed' she was sleeping in. It was kind of funny too. The look on Gracelyn's face was a {what-the-fuck}{who-are-you}{where-am-I}{there's-my-dad}{I-am-still-tired} look. She fell back asleep though which was good.

home improvement...before and after

Many of you know that last weekend, we embarked on a few home improvement chores. Our water heater was bunk and our kitchen sink and faucet were crusty and jank. The water heater installation was a success. We now have the only tricked out water heater on the block. We upgraded to a 50 gallon tank, an extra expansion unit, a temperature read-out gauge, new pipes, etc. It is also fully insulated. As for the sink, that also was successfully installed with the faucet. But during the demolition, the crap counter top that we have was injured. A piece of the Formica peeled up and ripped off. All in all, it was progress, though we would have liked to have avoided the fractured counter top. Thanks to everyone who helped us, specifically George and Mark. Below are some before and after pics. (All pictures have been done up to best represent successes and hide any mistakes.)

birthday plans

So, Amanda Dos (as in #2, not her last name...I was born first, so I'm #1, she's #2), being the wonderful best friend that she is, has offered to organize and plan my birthday celebration. My actual birthday is on the 20th of this month, but we're having a night out on the town in honor of my birthday on the 27th. The original plan was to get a party bus of some sort to pick us all up in SJ and take us to a few clubs in SF. After looking into it a bit further, we realized how freakin' expensive that would be (nearly $1500 for four hours, and that includes the travel time to the city and back)! Since my main desires for my birthday are (1) to spend the evening with my friends and (2) to shake my bonbon on a dance floor somewhere, we decided that a party bus is not a necessary component to "get 'er done" on my birthday. Now we're thinking something more local: downtown SJ, PA, or LG, for example. The problem is that, since Judd and I don't really get out for local nightlife very often (something about having a 8-month-old severely limits your going-out desires and capabilities), I have no idea what clubs are good. I just want someplace with a good dance floor (i.e. spacious, so all of us can shake it together without being too crowded), good music (i.e. hip-hop, pop, funk, stuff that's fun to dance to...no electronica please!), and possibly an opportunity to be on the guest list (so we don't have to wait in line or pay a ton to get in). Which local clubs will fulfill all my birthday-dancing-with-friends desires? Does anyone have suggestions?

8 months

It's hard to believe, but Gracelyn is now 8 months old as of Saturday. Since turning 8 months, she has accomplished a lot. She now is able to eat fruits, not just vegetables and rice cereal. So far, she loves pears. And, she has mastered the pre-crawl ho-de-doe. She is able to get up on all fours, pull her knees in and scoot/slide/reach/face plant. Sometimes, there will be an object out of reach and she will do this ho-de-doe and magically the object is now in reach. The funny thing is that I can't tell that she even covered ground. It looks like a crazy jiggle dance and then drop, but somehow she gets closer.

Here she is enjoying her Zwieback Toast thingy. (Pay close attention to words on her bib!)

everything hurts sometimes

At one point in my recent past, when Adage (pronounced "a-DAHZH", a dance term, for those of you who don't know) was open, I was taking about 6 dance classes a week - ballet, modern, jazz, and hip hop, with the occasional tap class thrown in, too. Since the dance studio closed in May of 2005, my opportunities for quality dance classes diminished drastically. Furthermore, when I became preggo and eventually gave birth, my ability to fit multiple dance classes into my weekly schedule also became a factor. We Adageans still have one regular modern class each week, and I look forward to shakin' it with all my dance friends every Tuesday night. However, anything beyond that is a bit difficult. So, it's been over a year since I've taken a ballet class. Well, this past Tuesday (3 days ago), I had the opportunity to take the advanced ballet class at Western Ballet in Mt. View, from 6:30 to 8pm, right before our regular Adage modern class. I was so excited to be able to take a ballet class again! After work, I raced over to the studio, changed into my ballet clothes, and took my place at the barre, ready for some balleting. By the end of the second exercise at the barre , my body was already screaming at me - "what the hell do you think you're doing? we haven't had to use these ballet muscles in over a year, and you expect them to still work? are you crazy?" I fudged my way through class, trying to reprogram my body and brain to move and think like the ballet dancer I once was. It was pretty sad, really. Let's just say that I was thankful for our Adage modern class right after, since it helped remind me that I'm still a dancer in some form...I just need to de-rustify my ballet dancer self.

So, three days later, every muscle in my body is still hurting from my three hour dancing stint on Tuesday night. My "turn-out" muscles (the ones in your butt) hurt, my quads hurt, my inner thighs hurt (you use those a lot in ballet), and my calves are the worst. They feel like they're going to snap with every step! Ouch! Hopefully, I'll have recovered by next week. The plan from here on out is to take ballet every other week, in the hope that my ballet dancing self will make a comeback!

burrito stat counter

I have decided to track my burrito count for 2007. Living in a burrito rich environment, I often stuff these yummy meat, rice, and bean delivery vehicles down my throat. (The term delivery vehicle was borrowed from The German, a co-worker of mine. I am allowed to use this on a limited basis without infringing on his intellectual property per our unspoken, recent agreement.) I used to have a punch card at Bueno Bueno and often got a free burrito after purchasing 10. In fact, there were years where I think I ate a burrito almost every day for lunch. So far, in 2007, I have only had 2 burritos. I have been known to eat more than one in a day, so let's see how fat I can get. Also, do I need to have a goal in mind at all? And, if I eat 3/4 of a burrito can I add that to my count?

Check out the official 2007 burrito stat counter in the margin.

4nyay sighting

Scott came by tonite. We went to Tied House for a burger and beer. Recall that Scott is going to be in Korea for the next two months and will be without such American cuisine. Instead, he will be enjoying k-9 and various other little critters that I would never eat sober. It was good to catch up. He has a lot of cool stuff lined up for this calendar year.

Also, Amanda cut her hair short. When I got home there was a pony tail in a plastic Ziploc on the counter. It was hers. She is going to donate it to some charitable organization. What's funny is that the hair tie was still on, holding the ponytail in its proper ponytail position.

on all fours

Gracelyn figured out how to get on all fours. She has repeated this operation a couple of times suggesting that it has been learned and is not random. However, this is all. After arriving in this position, she will rock from side to side and then slide back down onto her belly.

people were drunk

Amanda, Gracelyn, and I headed up to San Leandro for New Years. Erika and Bram were hosting a little house party. There were lots of familiar faces, drinks, food, and gambling. Somehow, I managed to get pretty drunk too! There was even a dog who jumped on me and hit my privates. Gracelyn did fabulous. She hung out for about an hour or so before we put her down for bedtime in her pack and play. Actually, I am pretty shocked she did so well since there were several drunk people talking baby to her about 2 inches from her face. I don't think I could have handled that. I can't recall much more. Amanda apparently fed me some aspirin before I passed out which saved me the next morning and I hear that Ted puked on Aaron's car. Thanks everyone for such a good time.

Oh, and if you waited to resolve something until new years, then you better have determined the need for that change a day or two before. Please don't tell me you were 350 lbs. in March and waited until just now to lose some weight.

size 3

So, how do you know when you are supposed to move up diaper sizes? Well, each size has a recommended weight range, so it should be simple. But, if you don't know how much your baby weighs (save for she was just over 15 lbs. a couple months ago) and you don't have a scale (short of weighing her in the grocery store produce section), then how do you know? One way to find out is to wait for her diaper to leak regularly. This is hard or, rather, soft and mussy evidence that it is time to go for the next size up. Unfortunately, this method sucks pretty bad, at least that is what Amanda says. But now, thanks to a newly discovered prediction methodology, this is all a moot point. Simply, strip the baby naked leaving only her diaper, roll the baby onto her stomach, and peak inside the diaper from the entrance (or exit) near the small of her back. If you see crack extending beyond the lining, then that means that there is not enough material to support a potentially large load. At this point, you upgrade. Following this method, Gracelyn has arrived at size 3 diapers with hugflex technology. I am not sure what hugflex does, but hopefully it has something to do with keeping stuff in the diaper.