The day after Christmas, the parents and I went to my Grandma's house to put some flowers on Grandpa's grave and to clean it. When we got to Grandma's house we stood a bit, ate some more tamales (yum!) and talked with my Uncle Me�o for a while before he had to go back to work. Grandma gave me my gift for Christmas which included:
-a teddy bear frame
-stationary
-$40 (she knows I'm poor!)

-This tiny little book called Age Before Beauty that has lovely quotes about the two and little Victorian drawings in it

-This package of Celine Dion perfume samples. I don't know where she got this but I think it's awesome she had this!

My parents, Grandma, and I made it to the cemetery and I could not believe my eyes. It looked like a tiny Christmas wonderland, tinsel and little Christmas trees as far as the eye could see. I was amazed, I'd never seen anything like it before.

The far-off areas surrounding my grandfather's grave

My grandfather's neighbors

I know now how to get to my Grandpa's grave site. We found it and cleaned off the debris and whatnot that was stuck on the engraving of the headstone. We set a poinsettia plant near his headstone and put some of the fallen branches in the flower holder. Grandma stood there crying and talking to Grandpa, mom held her near. It was a very short visit and I wanted to stay longer but Grandma wanted to find her mother, my great-grandmother, on the other side of the cemetery. I was also ticked that my dad was hanging around the area and wouldn't let me have alone time to talk to my Grandpa and I know him, if I told my dad if I could have a moment alone he would have gotten all huffy about it. He's just weird like that.

Grandpa's spiffed up Christmas-y grave site. Next year we'll be prepared so Grandpa's site looks as festive as the neighbor's! He would like that!

After driving a bit, we went searching for my great-grandmother's grave and found it. Grandma cried again and I cleaned off the marker. Mom told me great-grandma died of cancer. I have cancer running strong on both sides of my family. :( After we made it back up the hill and to the car, Grandma wanted to eat so she said we're going to The Hat to eat some pastrami and that we did! Well, they did; when we were waiting for our food, Saul called me and I was happy to hear from him. We talked about our previous conversation from the evening before. Something that had been on his mind and mine also, about feeling distant and whatnot. I was glad he brought up the conversation cos I don't think I would have. Anyhow, he wanted to call me to see if I was okay with what we had talked about cos he felt like maybe he'd said something wrong. I assured him I was alright, for some reason I was getting really ticked off the more we talked and I didn't exactly know why. Maybe it was cos I couldn't really hear him, I'd gone outside to speak to him, or that I was away from my family. They understand that a call from Saul isn't easy to come by but I felt bad about it. Eventually my family walked out of the restaurant and gave me my food, saying they were going across the street to get some groceries. I wrapped up the phone call telling Saul that I missed him and love him very much. The whole uncertainty of his release, what happens after he's released and his plans really bother me cos they are uncertain. I'm at a point where I don't feel like I have him close to me at all and I really don't like that feeling at all but I know it's cos of the distance and being unable to visit him right now. Sometimes I don't think he understands my limitations but being where he is I understand how much he wants to see me right now. I need to see him, too. I feel so far away from him...

So after we took Grandma home my mom and I went shopping! We got some stuff at clearance prices at Bed, Bath, & Beyond, including a wonderful calender of vintage food posters!

Bon Appetite! the cover of the calendar caught my eye right away!

Just a few of the posters in the calender!

After there we went to Target where we raided the dollar & Christmas aisles. I got some fake dove ornaments, I'm going to steampunk them out and wear them on my shoulder!!!


While we were there, I got a call from Tako asking if I'd like to join him at Beer Station. I happily accepted and was happy that I would see him. At home, parents were arguing so I was happy to get out the house. MPsy stopped by before I left and gave me a lovely steampunkesque gift for Christmas: a little silver piano with a beautiful mesh/velvet top and an angel in the middle! He said he found it on one of his swap meet days, it was broken and he fixed it up!

darling, such great detail!



front detail (I have no idea how this effect came out like this but I like it! If I'd tried I couldn't get this effect!



top detail!

Oh, and it gets better...it's a music box!!!

SOOO COOL!!!!

I got to Beer Station and the owner was talking with Tako. Tako gave me a Christmas card with little kitties on it :3 and he wrote very nice things on the inside, I was touched. We sat and he drank, I had a sarsaparilla to drink, they're good! We split some tofu and talked some more and he drank some more. By then end of the night it was 2 sarsaparillas for me and a whole lotta beer for Tako! I drove us to Denny's where I had a hot cappacino (it was so cold that night!) and we split a sampler. We talked more and laughed and had a good time, I was very happy to spend time with Tako! We drove back to Diamond Plaza and said our goodbyes, he prepared to sleep off the beer in his car and I drove home after praying for a good while. I was happy I got to spend this time with him cos I hadn't seen him in a while and with his moving and all that it's going to be hard to spend time with him. I'm glad he called me! Pic of the night:

1:30am. Denny's. 'Nuff Said (the bow was off a can of vegetarian beans from my mom to Tako. Usually she gives him a can of meu�do but since he's going veggie right now, she compromised!)

I want to post these vids of Cyrene's new toy, a talking blue Haro! Tony got it when me, she and Keil were at Little Tokyo on Wednesday, she swore us to secrecy when she got it! Lots of shopping, yummy T.O.T. food and threats of murder persuaded us!

Sunday, church, was tired cos I came home late but took a little nap. Mom and I went shopping again and found more stuff at Target and Walmart. I got some supplies to make little tassel dolls to hang jewelry from!

This morning I woke up pretty early cos I was waiting for the unemployment office to call me about my benefits. They cut off my checks for a month, then I was informed that I had no incoming benifits unless I re-applied. I was very saddened by this as it was before Christmas and I had no means to get anyone presents and I could not finish my cosplays for ALA in time without that money. Not to mention my bills that needed to be paid. Ugh...so anyway, I waited and waited until I couldn't wait anymore and got ready to go to confession. The unemployment office called me a half hour before I was going to leave and, thankfully, I got another extension and I will be good for another 20 weeks, enough time for me to graduate hopefully! I went to confession and the priest told me not to drive and talk/text on the phone anymore cos I confessed I'd been doing that, therefore driving recklessly. I kid you not, as soon as I drove away from the church I got 8 text messages and a phone call! Tako had called cos he locked his keys in the car at his grandma's and wanted to know if I could help. So I drove up there, gave AAA a call, they informed me I'd be billed for it a ridiculous amount since I hadn't renewed my membership yet. O.O Anyhow, the guy came and it took him a long time and a lot of gadgets to try to open his door! But there was success and it did get opened! Afterward we went to eat somewhere, came back and watched Mythbusters while Tako worked on his cosplay, it was a really nice evening. His grandma is really nice, as is his grandpa! We watched Green Mile for a while until I had to go home.

I was feeling off from before I started driving up there, lightheaded, a little off. I thought it was cos I needed something to eat but I feel that way now as I'm typing. Maybe I need more sleep or something. Last night I thought I felt a cough coming on so I took some cough medicine with codeine. Never. Again. No. Not. Ever. Never. Again. EVER!!!! I woke up realizing I hadn't slept, breathing like I wasn't getting any air in my lungs, I could see in the dark perfectly without turning on the light or so it seemed and I was looking for some water cos I was all kinds of mesesd up. I must be very sensitive to codeine now and days. UGH!!! Not a fun time at all.

It was a great weekend (and then some!), I saw my family, some of my friends, I am blessed and very happy! New Year's is just around the corner, Little Tokyo!!! Chilling with friends, ALA is coming up, too, and so are the auditions for the San Diego Repo! shadowcast! I'm so excited! I'm very ready to bid adieu to 2009, what a year, what a troubling, grueling year, very blessed and wonderful but so very depressing. I'm ready for the new year, bring it on!!!