Ummmm....what?

NYE- past, present...future

2010-01-11T04:59:00.000-08:00

2010

NYE 09:10 from gwen78 on Vimeo.

2009

Cupid Shuffle from gwen78 on Vimeo.

2008

Happy 2008! from gwen78 on Vimeo.

I'm Yours

2009-12-16T20:32:00.000-08:00

This kid, man...

Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Ballesteros!

2009-12-10T18:04:00.000-08:00

Congrats, Pat and Kay!!!

Thanks to Mia and Sheena for doing my hair and make up.

Dude! Zane's in Whistler!

2009-11-30T03:58:00.000-08:00

Zane of Three Sheets was in Whistler and he's a pretty good snowboarder.

Vegas Vacay 11.09

2009-11-17T10:15:00.000-08:00

We enjoyed yet another Vegas vacation with family last weekend. This time it was to celebrate the kiddies birthdays, Evangelyn's second and Dylan's sixth. Also, congrats to Manny Pacquiao for another exciting win! Here are a few pics from the trip.

Nee Nee's beautiful smile

Dale and I with Dylan and his Bakugan

Sushi Roku inside Cesar's Palace was delicious!

After dinner, Dale and I saw Ka by Cirque du Soleil

Cha cha slide by the kiddies

2009-10-12T17:43:00.001-07:00

Oahu 2.0 Sept 17-22

2009-09-28T16:50:00.000-07:00

OAHU 09 from gwen78 on Vimeo.

I went to Hawaii again with my co-workers, Ardene and Leah. Mahalo!

Here's a link to the photo album:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=146132&id=590226494&l=257b1e8c2f

Downtown galavanting part2

2009-09-04T20:43:00.000-07:00

This is Dale doing his best "Michael Cheritto" from the Michael Mann movie from 1995, Heat. It's one if his favorite movies. I was pleased to find out that this bank in Downtown LA was also the exterior of Sydney Bristow's bank on Alias, Credit Dauphine. We geeks. I know.

ALIAS Doppelganger

2009-08-22T01:44:00.000-07:00

This is Dale and I doing our best Michael Vaughn and Sydney Bristow from ALIAS.

We were at Union Station trying to get this shot on a tripod when a guy approached us and offered to take the picture. He asked, "Can I take your picture? I'm a professional photographer." And we were like, SURE! Thanks, Gavin Wedding Photography !!!

500 Days: Zooey and Joseph

2009-08-17T21:37:00.000-07:00

I really liked the movie, 500 Days of Summer. Check it out if you get a chance. Here's a cheesy but cute video (not related to the movie) of Zooey Dechanel and Joseph Gordan-Levitt.

Guri Guri

2009-08-14T02:04:00.000-07:00

Guri Guri is a dessert that is a cross between a sorbet, shaved ice and ice cream. Pat and Kay recommended a place in Maui called Tasaka Guri Guri at the Maui mall. Leia, James, Randy and I went there before our flights to Oahu...OMG, delicious! And 2 scoops is only $1.10! Can't beat that with a bat! Found the receipe online:

Guri-guri

2 cans (12 ounce) strawberry guava juice*
1 can (12 ounce) 7 UP®
1 can (14 ounce) sweetened condensed milk

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir vigorously. Freeze for about 1-2 hours, remove from freezer and stir vigorously again (repeat at least twice). Transfer to individual serving containers and freeze until firm, minimum 8 hours (preferrably one day or longer).

**NOTES**

-Instead of strawberry guava juice, you can use any flavor of soda or juice of your choosing. When choosing your base flavor, just remember that it will be combined with condensed milk.
-If you want, you can also use an ice cream maker. If so, you won't need to re-stir this after partial freezing.

Taken from: http://onokinegrindz.typepad.com/ono_kine_grindz/2005/02/emguri_guriem.html

Maui/Hawaii '09

2009-08-12T11:11:00.000-07:00

Maui and Oahu were way too much fun. We really did feel like we had two vacations in one because each island had its own feel. Rache and Mark's wedding in Maui was beautiful. We have tons of pictures to prove it. Oahu was nonstop activity and partying, especially because of Ja's birthday and because Terry, Trace, Thu, Chary and Mike were there to lead the way. Overall, it was a great trip.

Here are the links to the pics:

Maui July 30- August 4
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=132460&id=590226494&l=d28cc5fc2f

Oahu August 4- August 9
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=132220&id=590226494&l=b106392fc3

Hawaiian Fire Surf lessons Aug 7
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=132777&id=590226494&l=f28b981b6c

Geekfest 2009

2009-07-26T18:26:00.000-07:00

Once again I engulfed myself in the center of the Geek universe at the annual Comic-Con in San Diego over the weekend. It's a place where geeks commune and celebrate everything Geek. I'm the TV Geek so my focus for the weekend was one, DEXTER and two, LOST. Everything else was interesting and amusing and I went with it. For more information, check out www.comic-con.org.

I was walking around in between signings and saw Mr. Spock himself. Surprisingly, not that many people were around him so I got in line to get his autograph. He was a very nice gentleman. He signed and took a picture. After, I shook his hand and said "Thank you, sir." He's 78!

DEXTER

I love DEXTER. It's a TV show on the Showtime network about a serial killer who was raised by a cop and now works as a blood spatter analyst for the Miami PD. It's good drama.

Julie Benz, aka Rita, Dexter's girlfriend, now wife, now mother of Dexter's child

David Zayas, aka Lt. Angel Batista, Dexter's co-worker and "friend"

James Remar, aka Harry Morgan, Dexter's cop dad who taught him how to cover his tracks

C.S. Lee, aka Masuka, Dexter's fellow forensic specialist and "friend"

I was getting Angel Bobble head when "Harry" and Masuka took pics. Great photo op.

I attended the Dexter panel and got to see a sneak peek of Dexter Season 4. In attendance were a few producers, Jennifer Carpenter, Julie Benz, Michael C. Hall and joining the cast, John LIthgow.

I got a bunch of DEXTER stuff- signed bobble heads of Julie Benz, David Zayas and C.S. Lee and a signed action figure of Michael C. Hall. Score!

LOST

Jorge Garcia, "Hurley" was being interviewed, so we tried to get some pics as best as we could.

You couldn't miss the guy. Here's Jason and Trishia with "Hurley"

I got in line for the Lost panel at 8:45am. The panel didn't start until 11am. I was lucky enough to get in. There were several superfans that camped out overnight in line. Below is a clip I found online of the beginning of the panel. I think you might be able to find the rest of the parts by clicking on the right side of the page. Good stuff. Can't wait until the final season begins .

RANDOMNESS

Jason and Olivia Munn

Jason and Olivia Munn

Jason and Deebo from "Friday"

Jason and Alison Haislip of G4

Jason and Gene Simmons

This is Pat doing a workshop for the Art Institute of Orange County. He's the "professional" and gets us in every year. Thanks, man! Check out his work here.

Celebrate Life

2009-07-20T16:31:00.000-07:00

I work on the Oncology unit at UCLA. It can be a pretty heavy place to work on both physically and emotionally so it was nice to have a day that celebrated survivors. This year's Celebration of Life featured Chris Ayers, an artist who drew a drawing of an animal everyday for a year during his treatment and turned those drawings into a book. His second book is set to be released this fall. Best wishes to all survivors and their friends and family.

Here's the cake with the image of the butterfly designed by Chris Ayers.

Here I am with my co-worker, Kim on the left and Joyce Wilbur, a survivor on the right.

Danke schoen!

2009-07-08T02:34:00.000-07:00

Danke means "thank you" in German.

Danke to all that made it out to Beerfest/Oktoberfest on July 4th! Danke to my roommates, James and Seong for letting me throw a party in our backyard and danke shoen to the other celebrants- Andrew, Kay and Joe for being born in July. =)

More pics will hopefully pop up soon. In the meantime, enjoy this short video of the day's events. Stay until the very end of the clip for a special treat. Ole!

BEERFEST09 from gwen78 on Vimeo.

HOUSEWARMING SNEAK PEAK/BIRTHDAY WITH THE FAMS

Jason and Trishia recently got the keys to their new townhome. Mom decided to throw me a birthday party at their new place. She loves me.

We sat on the empty floor because they don't have furniture yet.

Here are some of my cousins.

Bread Basket is yummy...

and so is Auntie Agnes' red velvet cupcakes.

This is Baby Susan with her Uncle Jason.

Happy news...

2009-06-22T18:03:00.000-07:00

Look what Trishia and Jason gave the dads for Father's day. I wasn't able to make it home that day, so I got this text pic instead. Hooray! I'm going to be an Auntie again.

Beerfest preview: Beer Pong!

2009-06-12T14:11:00.000-07:00

LA Live

2009-06-05T17:27:00.000-07:00

Guess who me and Leia saw at LA Live. We first saw him in ESPN Zone and later at Yardhouse.

Can't see it? It is....a Pau Gasol look alike! Hahaha! People were chanting his name and taking pictures with him. Crazy Laker fans!

Watch this kid, Nathan Trasoras

2009-06-03T17:29:00.000-07:00

I saw Nathan Trasoras on So You Think You can Dance and thought he was amazing. Unfortunately, he's only 17 and can not compete on the show this year. Check out his audition below and below that is an up close look at this super talented guy.

Jason and Trishia have been blogged!

2009-05-19T16:59:00.000-07:00

Check out some of the vendors that have blogged about Jason and Trishia's wedding:

Ryan Phillips Photography- Photographer

Picture Perfect Events- Kelley Lee Gin, Wedding coordinator

Fleuretica- Florists

Whitestone Productions- Videographer

Tiselle- Invitations: Tiselle letterpress + design

Here's my short edit of the wedding:

Trishia and Jason 4.18.09 from gwen78 on Vimeo.

And here's Joth Rigg's of Whitestone Productions:

Antonio Wedding Trailer from Joth Riggs on Vimeo.

PARTY DOWN

2009-05-18T12:21:00.000-07:00

PARTY DOWN is a show on the STARZ network that was created by Rob Thomas of Veronica Mars fame, not Matchbox Twenty. I heard about the show but never watched it. I saw the clip above with K. Bell and looked it up online. If you go to the website, you can watch a couple of full episodes.

Here are more clips with K. Bell.

Baby and Birthdays

2009-05-17T22:38:00.000-07:00

I got to meet Jamen at Annie's baby shower.

Zavyer got to meet Jamen, too.

Here are the Padres- Gary, Ate Cyn and Jamen.

MEGAN and CAMILLE's BIRTHDAYS

Every year Megan and Camille have a bangin' birthday party. This year we celebrated at Main on Main in Santa Monica.

Camille and Megan

Leah, Camille, Michel, Joanna, and me

Korie, Michel, Camille, Michelle and me

Leah, Pat, Me and James

Trishia and Jason's highlight video

2009-05-03T22:51:00.000-07:00

Trishia and Jason 4.18.09 from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Jason and Trishia got married on April 18, 2009 at Santa Clara Church in Oxnard, CA with the reception in Westlake at the Four Seasons Hotel. Video footage was shot by Whitestone Productions. I edited it.

Ooooo...can't wait for the pics!

2009-04-30T13:42:00.000-07:00

I just got the video footage of Jason and Trihsia's wedding and I'm so excited. Now my work begins, but I saw this and love it. It's a screenshot of our Sopranos shot. Can't wait for the professional's pics.

Ms. Antonio

2009-04-30T09:17:00.000-07:00

My cousin, Marc sent me this pic of his daughter, Evangelyn. They grow up so fast!

TNJ wedding highlights

2009-04-26T13:19:00.000-07:00

Kiddies

2009-04-22T14:54:00.000-07:00

Trishia and Jason's wedding slideshow

2009-04-22T00:09:00.001-07:00

Trishia and Jason's wedding slideshow from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Here is Trishia and Jason's slideshow. The beginning animation was downloaded from vimeo and was created by Joe Monroe, George Mezori and Rob Meyers- vimeo.com/53265.

Music:

1. Always be my baby- Mariah Carey
2. Can't take my eyes off of you- Muse
3. Can you feel it- The Jacksons
4. Have I told you lately- Van Morrison
5. Swagga like us- Jay-Z, TI and Kanye West
6. I don't want to wait- Paula Cole
7. Up where we belong- Eddie Lovette

Karate Kid, yo!

2009-04-19T23:32:00.000-07:00

karate kid from cecile marie on Vimeo.

Jason and Trishia were married on the same day as Tin and Jeff. Since I couldn't go to Tin and Jeff's wedding, I watched it on vimeo. Loyd did an amazing job, as usual and I can't wait to see pictures. From what I've seen already, it looks like everyone had a blast. The first video was created by Cecile and besides Tin and Jeff, it also features Larnie and Mr. Miyagi. The second video is Loyd's same day edit of Tin and Jeff.

Christine & Jeff | Same Day Edit | Glendale Hilton from Red 5 Studios on Vimeo.

Pics and video of my brother and Trishia's wedding to follow shortly.

-PEACE

Come to the Rescue, Invisible Children

2009-04-10T02:19:00.000-07:00

Hey K. Bell fans- There's an organization called Invisible Children that K. Bell is involved with that is holding an event that she will attend. If you're anywhere near the Santa Monica pier on Saturday, April 25th, swing by around 3pm to check it out.

MM Crew Jam Session #1...enjoy

2009-04-03T01:20:00.001-07:00

MM Crew Jam Session #1 from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Tin's Bach party

2009-03-30T17:13:00.000-07:00

***Updated***

South Beach, Miami part 2

2009-03-30T16:58:00.000-07:00

Dinner at Tantra.

I had tuna tartar

and the seabass...both, very delicious.

Here are the bride's brother, Ambrosio and the groom's sister, me.

Here is everyone. We took the pic with no flash because we wanted the cool lighting in the background.

Katrina's got us VIP bottle service at Dolce's Ultra Club. After celebrating Fergie's birthday party at Liv, the Black Eyed Peas came over and Will.I.Am and Apl de ap spun on stage.

This is my cousin, Sheena and me.

The beezies, part 1

The beezies, part 2

I'm in Miami, Bitch!!!

2009-03-27T15:08:00.000-07:00

We in Miami for Trishia's Beezierette Party and so far it's been PoPPin!

We're staying at the Gansevoort Hotel on Collins. Very cool.

This is the Beezierette and all her alcohol.

And this is most of us before going to Mango, a salsa club. Sorry, what goes down in the club, stays in the club. No public pics.

Food, Johnny Rockets...hit the spot.

Chillin at the pool the next day.

Tonight, dinner at Tantra and bottle service at a secret destination.

Can't wait! More to come later.

what up, what up

2009-03-25T01:48:00.001-07:00

Hi all!

Tons of stuff has been happening. I just have been too lazy/busy to post.

First, Welcome to the world Jamen Emanuel Balanza Padre!!! This kid is going to be the most mischievous little angel in his kindergarden class and mom and dad will be so proud.

Living at Minerva Manor has been fun. We've been playing rock band or guitar hero, watching movies or our favorite tv shows, eating Seong's cookies, hanging out with the hommies and filming the Karate Kid. What up, Miyagi!

The other day, we hung out with some of our new neighbors at John and Carol's, our neighbors on our South side. Everyone's so nice and welcoming. We had wine and appetitzers. Yummos!

The weddings, Jason and Trishia and Ate Tin and Jeff are coming up...fast. I can't believe it's already next month. This weekend- the bachelorette parties. Yup, both of them on the same weekend, just like their weddings. I'm going to fly out to Miami for Trishia's and then fly back on Saturday for Tin's. More fun times ahead.

When I get a chance, I'll try to upload a few pics of the stuff that's been happening.

Hope you're all well.

You can also see what's up with me on twitter: http://twitter.com/vwgwenwv

-Peace

2009-03-13T19:08:00.000-07:00

Check out Jason and Trishia's lifestyle shoot by Ryan Phillips.

Also, check out their wedding planner's blog- Kelly Lee Gin.

guess the mii

2009-03-13T12:22:00.000-07:00

I've recently discovered how to send my mii to another console. These are my coworkers. Can you guess my mii?

on the bandwagon again

2009-03-06T12:36:00.001-08:00

I've joined another cult. It's name is twitter. Haha! Thanks, Cile!

http://twitter.com/vwgwenwv

Minerva House Party

2009-02-27T11:47:00.000-08:00

Minerva House Party from gwen78 on Vimeo.

I wish I had taken more pics and video from our housewarming and Pat's birthday. Here are a few from the night. Missing are clips from the Guitar Hero room, Streetfighter IV room and Ping Pong room. Thanks for coming.

Cile`stache

2009-02-26T16:01:00.000-08:00

Check out Cile's blog and Andrew's blog for more fun.

Couch potato

2009-01-27T22:07:00.000-08:00

I spent all day moving and thanks to my awesome brother and dad, my room kicks ass. I'm so excited. I had the choice to stay at the house where my room is pretty much ready and set or sleep on the couch in the old apartment where my TV is. Guess where I chose to stay. Haha. Aside family, my home is where my TV is.

Fun times ahead!

And I just have to say, Welcome to the world, Zavyer Oscar Ballon! Congrats, Isa and Nick!

And, Congrats Joe and Riann! Can't wait for a little DeLos.

Obama! Obama! Obama!

2009-01-18T17:57:00.001-08:00

Mammoth getaway

2009-01-16T01:05:00.000-08:00

Mammoth on a weekday is the [singing] "greatest thing ever"!

Mammoth on a weekday is the greatest because hardly anyone else is around. The slopes...empty. The restaurants... no reservations needed. Traffic...nonexistant. Ja, James, Pat and I spent Tuesday to Thursday snowboarding, painting and drawing (Pat), working a photoshoot (Ja), eating, sleeping, and playing video games.

Ja took some awesome pictures. Unfortunately, I can't show you any of mine because I lost my camera somewhere on the mountain. Cile loses cell phones. I lose cameras. Oh, well. What are you going to do?

With Pat, Ja, and James on a trip, you know that someone is going to say or do something funny and/or memorable. One of the best lines of the trip came from James. He was trying to do some trick or something down the mountain and fell really hard. I asked "Where does it hurt? Upper back, lower back?" He answered,

"Upper ass, lower back."

Thanks, Ja for taking us!

Holiday Homie Party: Preppies vs. Jocks Jan '09

2009-01-11T16:00:00.000-08:00

We celebrated our holiday party in January at Annie and Will's clubhouse in Long Beach, CA. The night was filled with fun, food and games. Apples to Apples was a hit and so was Nick and Ise's apple spread. Gary can play pool with his eyes closed and Kay got jacked for every present she opened. Fun times.

This year's dress code: jerseys or argyle

the JOCKS

the PREPPIES

Jason is actually the father of Isa, Cyn and Annie's buns in the oven. Haha....no.

Babies 'R' them

Isa, Cyn and Annie are trying to get Bev pregnant by rubbing their bellies on her. Haha... trying to do like a carebear stare.

Curious Button

2009-01-04T23:53:00.000-08:00

I really liked this movie. If you're at all curious about Benjamin Button, go see it! Bring kleenex.

Happy 2009!

2009-01-01T22:03:00.001-08:00

Cupid Shuffle from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Year in Review: 2008

2008-12-28T16:17:00.000-08:00

JANUARY

Jason and Trishia got engagaed! My little brother is getting married!

04.18.09

FEBRUARY

Vegas, Baby! We Celebrated James' and Anna's 30th birthdays VIP style at LAX. Sounds by DJ VICE! See the pic above. Then, watch the video below. Haha! Good times!

Last 7 standing from Rachey on Vimeo.

MARCH

Mom saw Cheryl Burke and the rest of the Dancing with the Stars cast and Rache, Leia and I got Jason Segal of Forgetting Sarah Marshall.

Later that month, Rache, her friend, Randy and I waited outside of the movie premiere and got a glimpse of Jason and Kristen Bell. Rache would have gotten a picture of Kristen then, if it weren't for that little girl who got in her way. Boo! No worries, though. Later in the year, both of us got to meet Kristen and took pics with her.

We *heart* Kristen Bell from gwen78 on Vimeo.

APRIL

WASHINGTON, DC

Washington, DC with Leia and Anna- Leia and Anna's flight transfer got delayed in Houston. So, I explored DC on my own for one night. Cherry blossoms were beautiful. We even shot a lip dub. Ask Leia about it. She won't let me post it.

chicago from cecile marie on Vimeo.

CHICAGO

Chicago for Cile's 30th with Cile, Lester, James, Randy, Larnie, Lester's friend, Junior and me

MAY

V Lounge

Party with the co-workers for Camille and Megan's birthday at V-lounge in Santa Monica.

Randy's 30th part 1

Randy's 30th part 2

JUNE

What the heck happened in June? I have no posts!

Checked out Anna's blog- Congats to Annie & Will and Cat & JoeMama for getting engaged!

JULY

Gwen's Gauntlet

Gwen's Gauntlet from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Bryan's 30th

Andrew's 30th

Joe's 30th

AUGUST

We met Kristen Bell

Kristen Bell at Red Mango from gwen78 on Vimeo.

SEPTEMBER

ESPANA

OCTOBER

Bev and Ja got married!

Bev & Ja's Wedding - Same Day Edit - St. Brendan's Church/Pacific Design Center from Red 5 Studios on Vimeo.

NOVEMBER

Joe and Riann got married!

Introducing Joe and Riann from gwen78 on Vimeo.

DECEMBER

Pat and Kay got engaged!

So You Wanna? from gwen78 on Vimeo.

So You Wanna?

2008-12-17T03:59:00.000-08:00

So You Wanna? from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Pat asked, "So you wanna?" Kay answered, "Yeah, yeah, yeah! Okay, okay! Yeah, yeah, yeah!"

Fight Night

2008-12-09T13:16:00.000-08:00

We were in Vegas for my cousin's surprise party. It was also the weekend of the "Dream Match" between Oscar De La Hoya and Manny Pacquiao. Congrats to Pacquiao and congrats to all of you that won big that night!

It's Freddy Roach, Manny Pacquiao's trainer. We saw him nears the arena taking pics with people. I said "Congratulations" to him.

Red Velvets

2008-12-09T13:14:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, Sheena hung out in LA with me. It turned into a search for the best Red Velvet cupcake in LA. The first battle was between Sprinkles and Crumbs.

Winner- SPRINKLES

Auntie Em's vs. Yummy

Winner- Auntie Em's

Overall winner- SPRINKLES

Introducing Joe and Riann

2008-11-12T21:37:00.001-08:00

Introducing Joe and Riann from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Jason and Trishia's Engagement party

2008-10-25T08:11:00.000-07:00

I got home to find my backyard like this. Junior and Erica- you guys did an amazing job! Thanks to all of you who worked hard to put it together. I know Jason and Trishia really appreciated it.

The party planner, "Junior"

Some of the Kiddos

The cousins- Sheena, me, Mia and Roda

The Bridesmaids

First Dance

2008-10-13T10:34:00.000-07:00

Bev + Ja= coolest first dance ever!

Bev and Ja's first dance from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Congrats, you two! Choreography by Best Man, Ritchie Ramirez with a special appearance by the other best man, James Landas. You go, boy!

If you get a chance, also check out Bev and Ja's same day edit by Loyd Calomay of Red5Studios.net. It's beautiful work.

Now available in HD on Vimeo here.

SPAIN 2008

2008-10-07T14:12:00.001-07:00

VALENCIA

GRANADA

SEVILLE and CORDOBA

MADRID

BILBAO

SAN SEBASTIAN

BARCELONA

1. Valencia, SPAIN

2008-10-07T14:11:00.005-07:00

Hotel Ad Hoc

2. Granada, SPAIN

2008-10-07T14:11:00.003-07:00

TrenHotel

Hotel Macia de la ALHAMBRA

3. Seville and Cordoba, SPAIN

2008-10-07T14:11:00.001-07:00

SEVILLE

Hotel FERNANDO III

CORDOBA

SEVILLE part 2

4. Madrid, SPAIN

2008-10-07T14:10:00.004-07:00

El Greco apartment

TAPAS

5. Bilbao, SPAIN

2008-10-07T14:10:00.003-07:00

ABBA Parque Hotel

6. San Sebastian, SPAIN

2008-10-07T14:10:00.001-07:00

the CODINA Hotel

7. Barcelona, SPAIN

2008-10-07T14:09:00.000-07:00

PORTAFERRISSA

LA BOQUIERA

PARK GUELL

SAGRADA FAMILIA

LA PREDRERA

CAL PEP

Viva Espana!

2008-09-17T01:36:00.000-07:00

Hola, mis amigos! No puedo esperar! Leia and I leave for Spain this Friday. We'll meet up with Drew in Madrid and Terry in Barcelona. Hasta la vista! In the meantime, check out the last time I was in Spain, circa 2000.

Gwen's EuroTrip 2000 part 1- Spain from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Gwen's EuroTrip 2000 part 2- Portugal from gwen78 on Vimeo.

slanted hiking at nerd concert

2008-09-15T17:54:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY: gingergrass and red lions

Slanted from gwen78 on Vimeo.

SATURDAY: lychee and browns

Thanks to Cheryl and Pat and their kids, Tristan and Troy for hosting dinner at their house. The food was yummy and so were the lychee martinis. Next, we'll be Wicked. Just have to plan around football. OHS c/o '96!

SUNDAY: hikes and nerds

Kay and Pat are going to hike and camp to Machu Pichu, Peru. They've been training every weekend to get ready for it.

Here we are climbing up Eagle Rock.

This is Ate inside Eagle Rock.

Here's a view of Jeff and Pat looking out from Eagle Rock.

This is me and my roommate, Pat standing on the edge of Eagle Rock.

N.E.R.D./Common concert at the Wiltern

NERD rocked and Common killed! It was an awesome show. Thanks, Leia.

Jason and Trishia love NERD.

N.E.R.D. at the Wiltern from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Redondo crab

2008-09-12T14:41:00.000-07:00

For Mom's 57th birthday, we had lunch in Redondo Beach for their famous crab. Yums!

Sebastian, you were so yummy!

Raw oysters...so good.

Jason sat in the middle and got crab juice splashed on him from all directions. Sorry, dude.

http://www.happyslip.com

2008-09-06T00:42:00.000-07:00

Aimee, I don't know why, but she reminds me of you. Funny girl.

Circle of Bitches 2008

2008-09-01T23:21:00.000-07:00

Circle of Friends, I mean Circle of Bitches as Andrew has dubbed us has tried to go on at least a weekend trip together every year. This year we decided to do a spa day and hang out at Leia and Cile's for the weekend. All we did was eat, drink and sleep. What a great labor day weekend! The picture above is of us (minus Leia who was at work) after we had a our massages and facials. We were so hungry, we ate at HOOTERS. The picture below is of us at Home restaurant in Silver Lake.

Mystery Box

2008-08-26T23:09:00.000-07:00

Get Fringed

2008-08-22T01:25:00.000-07:00

"Imagine the Impossibilities" is the show tagline. Show premieres this fall on Fox.

I was able to see a few minutes of Fringe and from what I saw, the show looks promising. I know I'll at least give the show a chance when it comes out this fall because one, Josh Jackson's in it and two, JJ Abrams is executive producing it. While at comic con, I got both of their autographs and said hello to them when they walked up the stairs to the VIP area. Here a clip from comic con 08. Part one- josh jackson. Part two- randomness. Part three- part of Pat's lecture on character design.

Comic Con '08 from gwen78 on Vimeo.

This is MY over the moon face!

2008-08-02T20:27:00.000-07:00

Rachey found out that Kristen Bell was going to do a signing for the anniversary of the yogurt place, Red Mango in Westwood. So being the huge fans of Veronica Mars that we are, we went and took pictures with her and got autographs. What a wonderful day. For a more detailed account of the event, check out Rachey's Blog.

This is us in the line that we started.

Kristen Bell at Red Mango from gwen78 on Vimeo.

My hands were shaking when I took this pic of Kristen and Rachey. Starstruck. When do I ever get starstruck?

These are the items we had Kristen sign. She signed my comic con bag with her face on it and Rachey had her Veronica Mars DVD signed.

Comic Con '08 preview

2008-07-28T12:20:00.000-07:00

This is my TV hero, JJ Abrams, the man behind Felicity, Alias, LOST, Mission Impossible 3, Cloverfield, the next Star Trek movie and the new series on Fox, Fringe starring Josh Jackson.

More to come including video footage of Josh Jackson and Professor Pat!

Dylan's unusual talent

2008-07-23T14:30:00.001-07:00

Joe's 30th at Little Temple

2008-07-20T17:17:00.000-07:00

Riann and Joe's "16 candles" shot.

Andrew's 30th: Hamptons Chic party

2008-07-16T18:33:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday we celebrated Andew's 30th birthday. His invitation read: Dress code-Hamptons chic. We live in Los Angeles. What's Hamptons chic? This is our take on it.

By the way, the dinner party was very sha sha. Kudos to Drew for the planning and compliments to Chef Seong and his many sous chefs.

Cocktails and Hors D'oeuvres preceded the dinner. Look! Real strawberries and lemon in the strawberry lemonade.

Our host and celebrant, Andrew

Love the table and setting.

Menu- I think my favorite were the spring wraps and the honey butter, but really, everything was delicious.

Atmosphere

Andrew and the girls

Andrew and some of the guys

Sous Chef Randy and Chef Seong

The westside roommies, me and Pat. Look at Pat's shoes. It was actually labeled "Orange" on the shoebox.

Red Velvet cake

Snow white, AKA Riann and Prince Charming, AKA Andrew

Andrew's sister, Larnie

Here's something for you. Guess the shadow. Who do you think these two are? I don't remember.

Gwen's Gauntlet

2008-07-07T23:47:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since I've posted something. What can I say? I was super lazy. Anyway, I was super excited about my birthday this year, not because I was entering a new decade, but because it was going to be really fun.

Thanks to everyone who came and played with us. A special thanks to my brother, Jason+Trishia and my parents for all their help. You guys rock!

Next time- DODGEBALL and KICKBALL!

Here's a link to pictures taken by Anna

This is the Taco Man, Jesus. Jesus and his brothers served pork, beef and chicken tacos a la cart, literally.

Here are Sofie and Sake chillin' under the shade.

Our team flags

Team Red

Team Blue

Game: Impulse

Game: Impulse

Game: Tug of war

Game: Water balloon toss

Game: Tricycle relay

Game: Tricycle relay

Game: Hot Potato

The cousins at the beach

THE AFTERPARTY: BBQ dinner and karaoke

THE NEXT DAY

The overnighters and I checked out the Fourth of July sales at the Camarillo outlet and had lunch at Wood Ranch. Then I headed to my uncle's house in Casitas Springs near Ojai for the weekend "family reunion." My uncle extended an invitation to distant Antonio relatives to his house for a weekend of camping.

It was really hot up there. The slide was a great way to cool off.

This is one of my uncle's ATVs. Unfortunately, a 10-year old girl and her brother got hurt riding it. Got to be careful!

Here's the baby bike that I think Ja had a little bit too much fun with last year at the rafting trip.

The woman on the left is the first lady of the house, Auntie Lita and on the swing is Auntie Moore. The temperature on the clock read 80 degrees and it was 7pm.

The sign at the top reads: Welcome Antonio Descendants Happy Reunion Bday USA. The sign changes periodically with every event.

This view of the tents is from the playground.

This is the cross street of Mr. Ed's Place and Carabou Farm Road. I think the other sign post says Lolita's Way and Carabou Farm Rd.

BRYAN's 30th

It was my friend, Jennifer's husband, Bryan's 30th birthday on Saturday. Their daughter, Joylynn was the one who got to blow out the candles.

We got five out of the eleven high school hommies: (clockwise from top) Aimee, Sheryl, Jennifer, me and Cheryll

Randy's 30

2008-05-30T17:14:00.000-07:00

Randy's 30th part 1

On Randy's actual birhday, the 22nd we headed over to Saints and Sinners for some Hell's Fire fun.

Kay's personal space invaded.

Hooray! These boys are back. Seong's back from Korea and Eric's back from the East Coast.

Saints and Sinners bartenders are crazy. Now that's a real Hell's Fire.

Sleepy Randy.

Randy's birthday part 2

On Sunday, we started with dinner at Lala's and ended up at Hollywood Billiards.

LaLa's in Hollywood.

Randy and his boys.

Hollywood billiards.

James and Ate's back shot.

Group shot #1

Group shot #2

Passed out Randy. Thanks to everyone who helped bring Randy home.

Americana

2008-05-16T12:38:00.000-07:00

A few old high school friends and I checked out the Americana at Glendale the other day. We heard people describe that place as "the Grove on crack." It's really nice. They have the fountain with the choreographed water dances to music, Cheesecake factory and Katsuya, Anthropologie, H&M and all those stores. Angela and I found out they don't have a Starbucks. They have a Barnes and Noble cafe that serves Starbucks coffee. They even have this clock in the plaza so everyone can keep track of the time.

One lady asked us what time it was. Here's Ange's, "Excuse me, what time is it?"

Now notice where we were standing. Haha!

Me, Aimee, Angela and Bernadette

Angela still doesn't know what time it is.

Bernadette and Aimee

Double birthday and triple baptism bring good luck

2008-05-14T14:28:00.000-07:00

V-LOUNGE for MEGAN and CAMILLE

A few months ago, we had Megan's goodbye party at Tony's. Last Saturday, we celebrated her return and her birthday as well as Camille's at V-Lounge in Santa Monica. Everyone at work gets me and Camille mixed up. She's my twin at work. One day that we worked together, she answered a call light from a patient that we both had.

Camille: I'm heartbroken.
Me: Why?
Camille: Your patient just said that I was one is his favorite nurses thinking that I was you.
Me: How do you know that?
Camille: Because he said to me, "I still have your name on the board." And the name on the board was yours.
Me: Awww.

Anna, Camille and Me- Hell's Fire champs

Me, Megan, Camille, Anna

Anna, Randy, me, Leah and Pat

me, Leah, Anna, Michelle, Michelle's husband, Camille

RN's off the clock having fun on the dance floor.

Can't miss Michelle's husband on the dance floor.

My bodyguards, Pat and Randy

MOTHER's DAY BAPTISMS

I have tons of cousins and many of them are mothers. For mother's day this year, we celebrated three baptisms and I became Godparent to my ninth godchild.

Jason became Ninong to Jacob Christopher, son of our cousin from Ohio.

I became Ninang to Evangelyn, daughter of our cousin from Las Vegas.

And Raelien, daughter of our cousin from San Diego was also baptized.

GET IT TOGETHER!

Yesterday, Leia and I tried to win tickets to Wicked. Unfortunately, they didn't pick our names in the lottery. Instead, we had dinner with Joe, Riann and Larnie at il Capriccio and had drinks at Good Luck Bar. At times, we were a little clumsy, dropping stuff or forgetting things. Our line of the evening, "Get it together!" For example:

Larnie: [Tried to use her straightened out fork to pierce a crouton from her salad. Instead, it slipped and flew across the floor.]
All: Larnie! Get it together!

Smells like Manna

2008-05-06T10:45:00.000-07:00

Photo by Ja Tecson

Cile's birthday celebration at Manna.

MARIAH CAREY's new video, "Bye Bye"

Gwen's State Tour part 2

2008-05-01T23:08:00.000-07:00

CHICAGO!!!

We flew into Chicago last Thursday for Cile's birthday. Fun drunk times is all I can say. Good food + lots of drinks + fun people = great time in Chicago.

First impression of downtown Chicago, it's clean, mellow and cool. There are restaurants on every corner and bars, lounges and clubs galore. Everything was pretty much within walking distance of our condo, which by the way was supercool. We were on the 55th floor of 30 Huron and had an equally cool doorman, Herbie. The condo offered breathtaking views of Lake Michigan, the Magnificent Mile and the whole city. The place came with binoculars. Awesome.

Day 1

Arrival into O'Hare International airport in the evening and taxi to our condo in downtown on the 55th floor of 30 Huron.

Late dinner at Jake Melnick's for Happy Hour appetizers and beer.

Day 2

Gino's East for Chicago's famous deep dish pizza. It's a tagger's paradise in there. You're allowed to tag anywhere in the restaurant except the bathroom.

We walked over to Navy Pier where Larnie got a massage on a dog paw chair.

Cottonelle was doing some promo stuff. While Larnie was waiting for her massage, the rest of us checked out the dog bus and "butt bar." Their slogan- Be kind to your behind.

Having fun with funhouse mirrors. Look at Randy's gumby head.

James with Lake Michigan behind him. Hey James, I read that Lake Michigan is a freshwater lake. Doesn't the water look caribbean blue?

Jumpshot with the Chicago skyline in the background.

Here's the birthday girl and her boyfriend, Lester. Cile found this awesome sushi place in downtown. We began her birthday celebration at Oysy.

Here's the gang sober. We had a few sake shots here and continued celebrating Cile's birthday at JBar around the corner.

Me, James and Randy

Larnie, Lester, Cile and Junior

Bring on the rounds. The yellow drink in the martini glass is called "the James." The brown drinnk was Junior's "Applejuice."

Some lady asked Lester to get "jiggy with it" when we first got into the lounge. Lester got "jiggy with it."

The JBar was like a modern Saints and Sinners, small, cozy, dangerous and fun drunk times.

Here's James' drunk tell. His hair slowly starts getting higher and higher throughout the evening.

By this time, we were all drunkos. There are more pics, but I won't be showing them to you here. All I remember is trying to inflate the air mattress and getting tackled to the ground by Lester. WWE followed. We've got bruises to prove the battle. Cile has her own story. She was big winner that night. Ask Larnie about it. Sorry, I wasn't able to help. I was knockout out in a drunken slumber.

Day 3

Potbelly's for lunch.

Millennium Park's Cloud Gate or "the Bean."

Here's Larnie's water trick.

Dinner at Roy's- I had the Butterfish.

Reyna was Cile, Terry and Anna's roommate in college. She's now living, working and going to school in Chicago. Her boyfriend is a resident DJ at a club I can't remember the name to. (Sorry, I'll update this when I find out.) Anyway, she totally hooked us up VIP style. Thanks, Reyna and thanks to your boyfriend for hooking up the hiphop set. Again, we were the only ones singing to BBD's "Poison."

Junior, Cile and Lester

When and where else could you get unlimited bar drinks whenever you want? That's all for Cile. Haha.

Olivia, another UC Irvine alum is also living and working in Chicago. She met up with us at the club. Congrats on your engagement, Olivia!

You know how you're always hungry after clubbing or drinking? We headed over to the Flagship McDonald's. You have never been to McDonald's if you have never been to this McDonald's. Two floors, executive chairs, gelato station, large screen TVs, two drive thurs. I wish we had one of these in LA.

Day 4

What up, Harold and Kumar? We had our own little journey to find and eat at White Castle. Little did we know there was no place to eat. So, we kicked it curbside. In Chicago, beggers don't ask for a dollar. They ask for 50cent. Ask Lester.

One of the greatest players of the game, Michael Jordan.

We rode the "El" and rode the bus, but we did alot of walking. Here's the Chicago Theatre. Playing that night, Margaret Cho- SOLD OUT.

While the others took naps, Randy and I went shopping on the Magnificent Mile. We found the Hershey's store and scored free hats to go along with our hot chocolate. We also scored free Full Throttle drinks. Random, right?

Dinner at a Spanish Tapas place. What a great way to end the trip, tapas, sangria, gaspacho and paella. Muy bien!

10pin bowling is kinda like Lucky Strike lanes. That night their video jukebox was out of service. Unfortunately all they played on the screens were Country videos.

Our last outing before heading home. I won. Thanks for the fun times, guys!

FSM

2008-04-18T11:55:00.000-07:00

Can't wait to see Forgetting Sarah Marshall. I was so excited when I first heard Kristen Bell and Jason Segal were going to be in a movie together.

Last week, Rache, her friend, Randy and I went to see if we could get pictures of Jason or Kristen at the FSM premiere at Mann's Chinese Theatre. We made posters to bring along with us. One said, "We *heart* K-Bell!" Professional celeb photographer, Sthan spotted us from across the street with our sign. We were even interviewed by a camera crew. If you're in the IE and ever watch a show called Take One, watch for us.

Another sign we had read:

"Jason-Sing me the Nite-Nite song!"

He saw the sign as he went down the line signing autographs, stopped and smirked. Hee hee! We made him smirk.

We were finishing dinner at Hooters when the movie let out. I went ahead to see if I could get to see the actors. Rache and Randy stayed behind to pay. I stationed myself near the escalators and was able to see the cast of How I Met Your Mother, Chris Kataan, Tom Arnold, Ryan "Dick Casablancas" Hansen, Andy Dick and Billy Bush. Rache and Randy went to the other escalators and saw Kristen and Jason. I later joined them and said hello to Paul Rudd and Russell Brand.

It was a little difficult to get close enough to Kristen to ask for a picture, but we were still able to see and talk to her. Here's our encounter with Kristen as she left the after party.

We *heart* Kristen Bell from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Bonus pic
JASON's SEGAL

Gwen's State Tour part 1

2008-04-09T19:06:00.000-07:00

VEGAS! Baby!
03.28.08-04.04.08

I spent the entire week in Vegas with my cousin, Marc and his family. On the itinerary, shopping, playing DS, Rockband, wii, basketball, football and Chuck E. Cheese.

I didn't gamble at all, but I did find this Wheel of Fortune game at Chuck E. Cheese. Here's me with the only other Miss Antonio.

Marc and Denise and the kiddies, Tristan, Evangelyn and Dylan

This is one of my favorite pics of Dylan and his new friend pretending to be shopper and employee at a bakery at a tree park at the new shopping center on the Vegas stip.

We bought real cupcakes at Cupcakery on Eastern Blvd. Their red velvet cupcake, not bad.

Dylan's Robot from gwen78 on Vimeo.
For whatever reason, Tristan and Dylan love the movie, Kickin it Old School. It in, there's a breakdance battle that they love to copy. Here's Dylan's take on the robot.

WASHINGTON, D.C.
04.04.08-04.07.08

DC was a little wet, a little cold, but a whole lot of fun.

I had a really good time with the kids in Vegas, but I was looking forward to some grown up fun in DC. I was supposed to meet up with Anna and Leia on Friday night. Unfortunately, Anna and Leia were stuck in Houston. They were finally able to get a flight out of there and met up with me the next day. They'd both lived and had internships in DC so I didn't think to buy a map or do research on places. So, when I got there, I just walked around.

I walked to Dupont Circle, where it seemed to be club night for the college kids and locals. Everyone was dressed to the nines. I walked into Kramer's bookstore and Afterwords Cafe and immediately walked out because I wasn't FEELING as cool as everyone in there at the moment seemed to be. Although, I explained to Anna and Leia, that didn't mean that I wasn't cool. The next morning I did the touristy thing and saw the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Vet Memorial and White House.

Cherry Blossoms! They're so beautiful! They were everywhere in DC and they are only in bloom 2-3 weeks out of the year.

We made a little music video, but for now, it's set for password protection on vimeo per the artists' request.

Here are a few pics:

I sat at the Lincoln Memoral for quite some time. It was a really pretty day.

Sushi Tako- all you can eat sushi in honor of the cherry blossom festival. Can't beat that and we got to sit Japanese style, on the ground.

We had dessert and drinks at Kramer's bookstore and Afterwords cafe.

Anna solo outside the Basilica with the pretty cherry blosooms.

Leia's solo at the butterfly exhibit at the Museum of Natural history. A couple of butterflies landed on her. This one is on her right leg.

My solo with the Jefferson Memorial in the background

Me, Leia and Anna and cherry blossoms

We had a lovely dinner at Al Tiramisu, a celebrity and political hotspot.

Step it up and Dance

2008-03-26T23:55:00.000-07:00

There's a new dance competition show that starts April 3rd at 10pm on Bravo and I have my pick for the winner.

Her name is Michelle Camaya and she's one of the best dancers out there. Tune into the show and you'll see. She happens to be one of my mom's best friends' step-daughter and was on Kaba Modern when she went to UCI. Vote for her!

MOM's DANCING WITH THE STARS

Speaking of dancing, I got my parents tickets to the PaleyFest event for Dancing with the Stars last Friday. Mom scored some pictures with some of her favorites, Cheryl and Julianne.

Mom and Cheryl Burke

Mom and Mark Ballas, Jr.

Mom and Julianne Hough

Mom and Derek Hough

We love Jason Segal

2008-03-18T03:52:00.000-07:00

Leia, Rachey and I went to an event at the PaleyFest to see "Judd Apatow and Friends." Scheduled to appear with Judd were Tom Arnold, Andy Dick, Gary Shandling, Jason Segal, Seth Ross, Jonah Hill, Paul Feig and Busy Phillps.

We were treated with a clip of "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," which opens April 18 and stars Jason Segal and Kristen Bell. We love Jason Segal. We think he's great and funny. We didn't expect to get to see all of his....funny parts. =) Enjoy the clip!

*****SPOILER WARNING!!!*****

Don't watch the clip if you don't want to ruin your viewing experience. Also, I don't want to get into trouble here so, you really shouldn't watch it if you're under 18 years old. It may contain adult content!

We love Jason Segal from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Jason couldn't really stop for pictures. "Jason, Jason! Picture?" "Can you get it while I sign?"~SNAP~"Did you get it?" "Yeah, Thanks!"

Paul Rudd was trying to catch a flight and was in a rush. There's Leia at the bottom left of the picture.

Here's Rache and Leia with Paul Rudd leaving in the background.

Leia and Jason- We would have gotten a better picture, but the guy next to her and her friend shoved their own camera into Rache's hand and stole the shot.

Vocab lesson

2008-03-17T04:54:00.000-07:00

Just at work and learning some new words.

***WARNING! Pictures are graphic.***

1. pannus or panniculus- a medical term for a hanging flap of tissue

2. rugae- a term used in anatomy that refers to a series of ridges produced by folding of the wall of an organ

3. carbuncle- an abscess larger than a boil, usually with one or more openings draining pus onto the skin.

Ah, the things we do at work to pass the time.

2008-03-01T14:31:00.000-08:00

Larnie said the other day, "Hey, Gwennie. You know how your coccyx is supposed to be curved. My chiropractor took an X-Ray and said mine isn't. It's like this." She put her hand out vertical and straight.

When did Larnie's tailbone become straight and not curved?

She thought back to the first time we all went to Mammoth in 2003, when we went sledding and she hit a rock really hard. She thinks that was the moment she straightened out her coccyx.

This is what your coccyx is supposed to look like:

And this was what we were doing when she hurt it:

Poor thing! She looks like she's in so much pain.

Oh, Larnie. So sorry! If it makes you feel any better, my back still hurts from the last time we went to mammoth this year.

UCLA Hospital Tour

2008-02-29T00:55:00.000-08:00

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center Tour from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Here's a quick look inside the new UCLA replacement hospital. It'll open sometime this spring.

O'Brigado, Luciano!

2008-02-23T07:53:00.000-08:00

Went out last night with Rache, Randy, James and Larnie to Pink Taco in Century City...cool, kinda bad ass place. The wait to be seated was an hour so we went to Borders to kill time and ended up at the bar where we met a really fun, Brazilian Bartender, Luciano. The rest of the night was sort of a blur for me.

FYI- My camera is out of order for the moment. Cameras and Vegas with me aren't a good thing. Anyway, in the meantime, I have to use my cell phone to capture the insanity.

30 Vegas

2008-02-16T02:26:00.000-08:00

There's no place like it to party, really...Vegas! For Anna and James' 30th birthdays, we celebrated High Roller style with bottle service at LAX in Luxor, but first Randy and I made a stop at my cousin's house to play with the kiddies.

Vegas with Family

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Dylan Rocks from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Vegas with Friends

30 Vegas- Randy, Riann, Leia, Jeff, Tin, Bev, Anna, Ja, James, Cile, Steve, Jaime, Rache, Me, Andrew, Larnie, Joe and friends that met up with us at the club

Here are a few pics from both nights.

@CatHouse Friday night

Loved the speed clubbing.

Love it, Ate Tin in her element!

What!- Riann and Jaime

@LAX Saturday night

In our own VIP lounge- 7 bottles, 2 bartenders, 1 bouncer and 1 accidental drink over the ledge that almost got us into trouble. Oops!

Riann and Joe- Reyonce and Joedy Jenner in the house!

Living it up- Jaime, James, Me and Randy

Oh, Anna! Please don't stop the music!!!

What!- Leia and Joe

What started out as a party of 20+ ended with 8 people left standing. The rest...well, the rest wanted to die the next day. Haha. Oh, and congrats to Miss Riann! She got to meet and take a picture with DJ Vice. Fun Times all around!

More about Vegas on Cile's blog and Anna's blog.

Last 7 standing from Rachey on Vimeo.

We'll miss you

2008-02-01T02:55:00.000-08:00

Since the new hospital that we are moving into is smaller than the one we work in now, we're sort of "downsizing" in our staffing. It basically means we're saying goodbye to some really cool people.

A few weeks ago we had Megan, Debbie and Ashley's goodbye party at Tony's house. Alcohol plus off duty nurses equals loads of fun. Randy's Lychee drink was a hit. That stuff...deliciously dangerous. There were some other interesting alcoholic inventions to wonder about there, too. Check out the beer stick.

RNs- Corina, Megan, Stephanie, Ashley, Debbie, me, Bisrat

RNs- Leah, Tony, Camille and Megan. Camille and Megan were double fisting early in the evening, beer in one hand and lychee drink in the other.

There was more than one beer stick at the party. No, I did not have one.

Yesterday was Marlo's farewell dinner and a movie night out. Who knew finding the Beverly Center was difficult? We finally got everyone in the right place and enjoyed some Todai eats.

RNs- Julie, Marlo, Allan, Me, Michel, Anna

East coast and island girl- LA livin'.

Sorry, Marlo. Couldn't get a good jumping shot. We try again some other time, yeah?

No popcorn for the nurses. Julie's 5150 took it all. Haha!

Mammoth '08...

2008-02-01T02:08:00.000-08:00

...last dragon...speeding ticket...kickers...natural jump...helmet...13 degrees...sleds...ate tin...aches and pains...oreos...tomato soup...patch adams...freaks and geeks...korean bbq...uno...'til next time, mammoth

Anna was flipping through my pics on my camera and said I should blog this picture of James' beanie head.

Now check out Ja's beanie head. Haha.

It was so pretty up at the top of the mountain. We had to take pictures. I'm just glad I didn't fall off the side of the mountain.

Tin's so funny. She had her iPod on and was shadow dancing. Haha, those kiddies just snowboarded right through her routine.

Cile really is a Ninja!

Jason and Trishia

2008-01-22T20:02:00.000-08:00

Congratulations,Jason and Trishia!!!

My brother and Trishia have been going out for 9 years. On their Caribbean cruise last week, Jason finally proposed.

I say, HOORAY!!!

Mammoth '08

2008-01-22T00:18:00.000-08:00

Mammoth '08 crew- Jeff, Tin, James, Cile, Fantone, Larnie, Bev, Ja, Rache, Randy and me.

Mammoth rocked as usual. Muchos gracias to Jeff and Ate Tin for hosting. You guys are the best!

More pics and videos of Mammoth '08 to come shortly.

Stan: The Man

2008-01-11T08:42:00.000-08:00

Hooray for Pat!

Check out Pat's artwork on display at Gallery 1988 for the Tribute to Stan "the Man" Lee. You can see his piece along with the other artists' here.

A few of us got to go to the opening reception. Not pictured are Kay, Fernand, Joe, Riann, Jason, Randy (Rachey's friend), Andrew and Steve.

Jason and "the Man"

In 2003, comic geek and Alias geek, AKA my brother, Jason and I went to Comic Con for the first time. We had no idea what this event was going to be like. FYI- It's madness. Anyway, while moving about and walking around outside we glanced up and saw Mr. Stan Lee standing on the corner looking like he was waiting for a ride. Why wasn't he surrounded by his adoring fans? Where were the fanboys? We had no camera, no comic for him to sign, so we got his autograph on the event program. Not really memorabilia, but still proof we met "the Man."

Jason got his other chance to meet "the Man" at Pat's opening reception.

Here he is actually shaking his hand. That's his bald head at the bottom of the picture.

The Holiday

2008-01-04T14:36:00.000-08:00

Christmas party at the Ballon's

My Christmas '07 10x10 from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Thanks to Isa and Nick, we celebrated our Christmas party in Anaheim. Proof I need to visit Ise more in 2008- I parked my car at the side of the corner house. Pat, Kay and I walked up the patio stairs and wondered when Isa and Nick got a van and basketball court in the yard. Wait! This isn't their house. Luckily, Pat didn't ring the doorbell and we walked one more block to where Ise and Nick's house really was. Oops! Love ya, Ise!

Ate Tin and Trevor- All I want for Christmas is you

Riann's stunna shades playing catchphrase: music edition

Group shot minus Ja (setting up the camera) and Gary (head turned to the back). Gary!

Rockin' New Year's at the Landas Lounge

Happy 2008! from gwen78 on Vimeo.

Hooray! I wasn't Ding Ding Ding. That honor went to a few other people. The Landas Lounge was Rockin'. There was the xBox ROckBand room, the PopStar Karaoke room, the take-a-shot kitchen area and sounds provided by DJ DeLos in the Garage. 2007 was a pretty good year. Hope your 2008 is even better!

What the hell were we drinking?

DJ DeLos on the ones and twos and his number one fan dancing it up.

Riann and Fernand competing for the PopStar title

Girls Gone Grove

2007-12-28T02:09:00.000-08:00

Hey, look- First time appearances by Bern and Aimee on my blog.

I stole my dad's new car so the nurses could go out and play. The day started out as just lunch, but finished way after dinner. Good times.

I've known Bern (on my right) ever since we were five years old in Mrs. Bowkowski's kindergarten class at Lemonwood. I still have a stuffed animal you gave me that says, "Friends Forever." Hi, Friend.

My friend, Aimee, RN is on my left. At the grove we saw posters for Wicked.

Aimee: So I told my friend that I wanted to see Wicked.
Aimee: He said, "Look in the mirror."
Us: Hahaha!

You Wicked!

Here's Leia and Larnie's version of Anyone but you from the movie, Juno.

Juno- Anyone Else But You from gwen78 on Vimeo.

CONGRATULATIONS to the newly engaged!!!

Jeff and Ate Tin

The Proposal from James Landas on Vimeo.

Bev and Ja

Bev and Ja from cecile marie on Vimeo.

JUNO + Forgetting Sarah Marshall

2007-12-20T23:41:00.000-08:00

I liked this movie. Cute and funny.

Here's a preview trailer of the Judd Apatow-produced movie starring Jason Segal of How I met your mother and Kristen Bell.

L'Scorpion, part deux

2007-12-02T21:53:00.000-08:00

Bunch of drunkos in hollywood- This is what happened to us when returned to L'Scorpion...and tequila.

L'Scorpion, part Deux

scorpions from cecile tecson on Vimeo.

L'Scorpion, part one

L'scorpion from cecile tecson on Vimeo.

We even drunk dialed Leia. Hahaha!

drunk dialing LB from cecile tecson on Vimeo.

TV show update

2007-11-28T16:36:00.000-08:00

The writer's strike has left the actors speechless. Check out more of these videos here.

Here's an updated list of how many remaining new shows we have left.

30 Rock: Ten episodes will be produced. Six episodes have aired, so there are four left.

Aliens in America: Seventeen episodes will be produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are eight left.

Back to You: Nine episodes will be produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there are two left.

The Big Bang Theory: Eight episodes were produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Bionic Woman: Eight episodes will be produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there is one left.

Bones: Twelve episodes will be produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are three left.

Boston Legal: Fifteen episodes will be produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there are eight left.

Brothers & Sisters: Twelve episodes will be produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are four left.

Carpoolers: Thirteen episodes will be produced. Six episodes have aired, so there are seven left.

Cavemen: Thirteen episodes will be produced. Six episodes have aired, so there are seven left.

Chuck: Thirteen episodes will be produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are three left.

Criminal Minds: Roughly twelve episodes will be produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are roughly two left.

CSI: Eleven episodes will be produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are three left.

CSI: NY: Fourteen episodes will be produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are five left.

Desperate Housewives: Ten episodes will be produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Dirty Sexy Money: Eleven episodes will be produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are three left.

ER: Thirteen episodes will be produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are five left.

Friday Night Lights: Fifteen episodes will be produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there are eight left.

Gossip Girl: Thirteen episodes will be produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are five left.

Greek: Eight new episodes will be produced. None have aired yet, so there are eight left.

Grey's Anatomy: Eleven episodes will be produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Heroes: Eleven episodes will be produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there is one left.

House: Twelve episodes will be produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are three left.

Jericho: Seven episodes will be produced. None have aired yet, so there are seven episodes left.

Las Vegas: Nineteen episodes will be produced. Nine have aired, so there are 10 left.

Law & Order: SVU: Fourteen episodes will be produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are five left.

Life is Wild: Twelve episodes will be produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there are five left.

Lost: Eight episodes will be produced. None have aired yet, so there are eight episodes left.

Medium: Nine episodes will be produced. None have aired yet, so there are nine episodes left.

Men in Trees: Nineteen episodes will be produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there are 12 left.

My Name is Earl: Thirteen episodes will be produced (that includes two one-hour eps, which count double). Ten episodes have aired, so there are three left.

The New Adventures of Old Christine: Eight episodes have been produced. No episodes have aired, so there are eight left.

Numbers: Twelve episodes will be produced. Nine have aired, so there are three left.

The Office: Twelve half-hour episodes will be produced. Twelve half-hour episodes have aired, so there are zero half-hour episode left.

One Tree Hill: Twelve episodes will be produced. None have aired yet, so there are twelve episodes left.

Prison Break: Thirteen episodes will be produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are five left. (On hiatus 'til Jan. 14)

Private Practice: Ten episodes will be produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Pushing Daisies: Nine episodes will be produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Reaper: Ten to 12 episodes will be produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there is one to three left.

Samantha Who?: Twelve episodes will be produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there are five left.

Scrubs: Eleven episodes will be produced. Four episodes have aired, so there are seven left.

Shark: Eleven episodes will be produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there is one left.

The Shield: All 13 season-seven episodes will be completed. None have aired (the final season gets underway in '08), so there are 13 left.

Smallville: Fifteen episodes will be produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are seven left.

Supernatural: Ten to 12 episodes will be produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there are three to five left.

Ugly Betty: Thirteen episodes will be produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are four left.

Meet Sake's little sister

2007-11-27T11:14:00.000-08:00

Sake has a new little sister.

Her name is Sofie and she is a one year-old Sheba Inu like Sake.

My parents were walking Sake and ran into a lady that just had a baby and was looking for someone to sell Sofie to. My parents thought it was time that Sake had a playmate, and there you go. Now we have two Sakes.

Heroes and Friends

2007-11-20T15:40:00.000-08:00

I know. If I'm not blogging about Alicia Keys, I'm blogging about Heroes. I haven't done anything much exciting lately besides work and study. I'm now done with ICU training and am on my own. I do one week during the month in ICU and the rest back in Oncology. Everyday before work in the ICU, I have palpitations. When I come home from work, I watch.

It was fun seeing Kristen Bell and Hayden Panettiere together on screen on last night's episode of Heroes. I found a cool interview of them together at TVguide.com and another one of them on some local TV show. Check it out.