Stix on the Beach: Tales From The Happiest Hooker!

Peace After The Storm in Anaheim (Vol. 1)

Whenever we have Weather in Southern California, we always feel compelled to collect visual evidence of it occurring. Rain storms come around here as often as that asteroid that circles Earth every four years and tries to take us out — except rain is much more exciting!

I found these pictures on my phone from after a rain shower earlier this year. Click on 'em to pop up for much better clarity.

 

 

1.) The Harbor Lofts on the corner of Harbor Boulevard and Lincoln Avenue. I remember when they were building 'em and thinking, "Who the hell wants to live on the corner of Harbor and Lincoln in Anaheim?" Now these lofts are practically my neighbors.

2.) Paul Kott is a name I have seen 'round these parts since I was a little girl. I didn't realize Paul was real (and alive!) until just now! I haven't felt this surprised since finding out Martha Stewart was real (and alive!) too! Maybe someday I will share with you why I confused Martha with this woman.

3.) Looking down towards Anaheim from Harbor Boulevard in Fullerton (about two miles away). This is in front of the Orangefair Mall, which has the most screwed-up mix of stores. But if you need a Santa hat immediately 'cos you're going to hang out with Ryan Seacrest at Disneyland and pretend it's Christmas Day OR if you have raging PMS and need a Double Double with an extra-large Coke right now, damnit OR if you have an idea for a granny square afghan but the two-hundred skeins of Red Heart you have at home just aren't the right colors - then the Orangefair Mall (that's not really a mall) is the greatest place on Earth.

4.) I honestly don't know anything about Bhag Market on Harbor Boulevard — and judging by its inviting storefront — I think that's the way the owners want it to be.

5.) Going home down Lincoln Avenue and into the Anaheim Historic Colony District. Sometimes, when I see all the palm trees, I think I'm back at the beach — that is, after I've washed down a Vicodin with a glass of Fucked Up In The Head.

6.) The old downtown Anaheim area along Lincoln Avenue. I never have much of a reason to go over to this side, unless when traffic is backed-up coming out of Disneyland at night and I freak out thinking I'm getting on the 5 Freeway, but end up here (and not San Francisco). I like this stretch of strip malls, though. The look of it reminds me of my childhood in the late 1970s, early 1980s.

7.) From home, we are two-miles up the street from The Happiest Place on Earth, and two-miles down the street from the Second Happiest Place on Earth: Target.

8.) We live right in the heart of the renovated Downtown Anaheim district — which means being a split lip and a hockey puck away from the The Rinks Anaheim Ice, the official Mighty Ducks of Anaheim training center. It's that, um, bra shape structure in the photograph (my apologies to Frank Gehry). I can't get away from The Ducks — when they won the 2007 Stanley Cup, we lived near owners Henry and Susan Samueli, and after they won, they set off a massive celebratory firework show, like, from their front yard or a barge on the ocean. It was fun after it was clear we weren't being bombed.

below the starry clusters bright

Oh, the temptation to call this post something else at first! But while I was trying to come up with something classier, Marissa stopped me in order to read The Lady of Shalott when I shamed myself by asking, "Who the hell is Tennyson?" And holy mother of King Arthur, I found the most fitting title!

I've been wanting to crochet a blanket with the scintillating colors (soft pinks, magenta, teal, dazzling gold, purples, burnt orange, deep reds, saffron, spiced browns) inspired by the bejeweled Bollywood fashions. Our cat, Kali (named after the Hindu Goddess because of her many extra toes) kept dragging out from my closet a long, skinny scarf that I had crocheted several years ago. It finally dawned on me that the colors (and length for the, um, width) were perfect for what I had in mind!

If you've read my blog for some time now, you know when it comes to crocheting, it doesn't take deep thoughts to throw me off. I can be thinking of how I don't really care much for cake or ice cream, yet I love ice cream cakes, but not ice cream and cake in a bowl together — and then I'll look down at what is in my hands and be all, "What the hell is this? When did this get here? How am I doing this?" And I will have to learn how to crochet all over again.

So when it comes to the pattern, I have chosen something simple, but not boring (since it will probably take three years to finish), and gives the illusion of intricate details. The blanket will alternate between rolls of striped single crochet stitches and rolls of various clusters, bobbles, puffs and other fancy stuff. I will be double-stranding some rows with baby yarn (and other novelty yarn) that has metallic thread — to give the sparkling Zari look.

Below are several links to help you learn the cluster stitch (which is what I'm adding to the scarf, er, blanket first). Clusters, bobbles and puffs go by interchangeable names and if you're not forewarned of this fact when one source shows you one way to make a cluster and another source shows something completely different, you honestly start to think someone spiked your Pepsi with Percocet. Just sayin'.

Written instructions: www.dummies.com/how-to-crochet-a-cluster-stitch

Visual instructions (repeat steps for larger cluster): Crochet Geek ~ Cluster Stitch

Click to enlarge photo of cluster pattern and scroll with arrow keys to view page. :)

Wanna get hooked too, but don't know how? Check out the "Beginner Crochet/Crochet Geek" series by Art of Crochet by Teresa on YouTube!

A Walk in the Clouds

There are mornings when I wake up looking right out the bedroom window and onto the early morning blue sky embellished with cumulus clouds. I'll quickly make up my mind to get up, grab my camera and walk down to the beach before it becomes crowded with inlanders who bring along multi-room tents and umbrellas that rival the McMansions perched on the cliffs above the sand.

Then a wave of reality comes crashing down on me. The closest large body of water near me now is the apartment complex swimming pool. Even though I don't miss living in Corona del Mar, a seaside village that could single-handedly keep the vineyards of the world in business, I do miss walking along Ocean Boulevard.

Ocean Boulevard sounds like it would stretch for miles, like Hollywood's Sunset Boulevard, but it's only about one mile, give or take a 5-car garage or two. It's in a relatively quiet  neighborhood (when it's not crawling with thousands of beach-goers!) consisting of celebrity athletes and a celebrated advocate living amongst an eclectic mix of residents ranging from authors to religious zealots, all of whom have the Pacific Ocean out their front door. And while not yet as eccentric as Norma Desmond, we did have Diane Keaton hanging out in the 'hood!


Lately I've felt that leaving Corona del Mar was the wrong decision at the right time. If we had not moved to Anaheim when we did, we'd surely would have been homeless. Yet, when I think of home, I see myself strolling about Ocean Blvd. And I start to wonder, "If I could tune out the village idiots, maybe we can move back."  Then I pull my head out of the clouds.

Holly Holy Hell!

This Post Will Contain Spoilers From Season Four.

 

My thoughts on what I believe about Holly keeps changing just like the wind. Join me this week as I start to determine if Holly Cleary is a huggin' & a lovin' pot smokin' magical doppel .... or a demon worshipper.

Kick 'em When They're Down

This Post Contains Spoilers from Episodes "And When I Die" (Season 4) & "The First Taste" (Season 1).

The season finale has knocked the breath out of everyone. Seems we're all feelin' like we've been kicked in the gut. And the moanin' and groanin' is being heard throughout the fractured  fandom.

"Alan Ball didn't give us this!" "Alan Ball didn't give us that!"
"Alan Ball didn't give us quivering wet puppies beggin' to be petted!"

But some of us have suspected we've spent most of the season in Bill's House of Mirrors. We're disorientated and nauseated. We need to get our bearings, swallow down the bile and step out of the Billshit.

“I can't explain myself, I'm afraid, because I'm not myself, you see.”
~ Lewis Carroll (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland)

Fans are upset over how so many characters seemed, well, out-of-character this season.

How odd, in a season with magic spells, memory loss and skinwalking?

You can blame the "stupid writers" or we can examine the idea that these characters were experiencing an epic identity crisis.

The theme that stood out this season was IDENTITY: lost, false, true, multiple, stolen, mistaken, and borrowed. And while the main characters were often seen running around with their heads cut off, those "waste of storytelling-time extra characters" were doing what they do best: telling us what's really going on. No one did this more in season four than Jason Stackhouse.

 Jason started to see the light at the end of the season three finale. It literally shined down on his face. And he has been our light in the times of darkness in Season Four. If you have not been paying attention to Jason - other than for his sexy hipbones  - it's no wonder you are in the dark. And being the jock that he is, Jason really took one for the team in the season four finale.

                                                                         Screencaps Courtesy of LadyManson.com

This seemed awfully familiar, didn't it?
The trees, dirt road, bloody opened mouth, black figure in the background..

  That's because the writers haven't forgotten a damn thing.
(Warning: Graphic Photo)

 Sookie's beating happened in The Dark. She was knocked down to the dirt and kicked by a little man with a chain.

Jason's beating happened in The Light. He was knocked down to the dirt and kicked by a big guy with a chainsaw. 

There's still plenty to explore as to exactly what Jason was trying to tell us with this borrowed Sookie identity. I'd like to think it was simply the writers flipping off the rabid fandom for believing they forgot a scene that was three years in the making (and a side-order of "Fuck you, very much!" for not thinking that them not mentioning it is part of a bigger picture!). But since Jason is Eric's main doppel, I am leaning towards the idea that this was to show Eric has also been kicked around (narrative-speaking) by someone bigger than him this season — that being KING BILL.

Whatever the message is for us, Jason felt being honest was the right thing to do for himself, for Jessica, for Sookie, for Eric. 

Thank you, Jason. We know how bad the truth can hurt.