"ECHINACEA" SOUNDS SUSPICIOUSLY LIKE "EUTHANASIA".

Yeah, I keep sneezing and my throat is sore. I must be feeling sluggish, too, cos I couldn't seem to escort my ass upstairs to the water cooler for a tall cool one to drop my liquid echinacea into today. So I just put an eyedropper full of that lovely brown nectar (now with goldenseal!) straight into my mouth. Next time that notion pops into my mind, I think I'll opt for guzzling an ounce of Chanel #5 cos that's what the ecccch-inacea tastes like in it's "pure" form, 'cept I don't get to feel posh like I would if I had drank the perfume instead.

I got my water and my wonder herbs mixed in and it tastes lovely in comparison... now get to work echinacea so I don't get ill!!!

Last night was a fiasco. I think Ben is right. I'm gonna have to get a mobile phone again. Amber and I were supposed to meet Vicky at the House of Blues. I was supposed to go to Will Call and get my Jurassic 5 ticket to sell to Neil. Amber was supposed to attend with the ticket she had in her posession. She was to get a ride home with Vicky and Company or a ride to Vicky's in Burbank where I would go pick her up. I think this story must already be giving THE READER a headache! But wait, it gets better! So, I'm selling my ticket cos I don't feel too great and because I am broke and I need the money. The show starts at 7:30, and we hit traffic and don't arrive until 7:15. Parking costs $10 (highway robbery!!!) and not only do I not have the cash on me, but I just don't HAVE IT at all. So, we decide that Amber will not be attending either and she will meet Vicky and sell them her ticket because for me to get my ticket from Will Call I would have to paaahk the caaahh. Amber looks all over for them as I circle the block over and over again. And it's "drive like a fuck" night anyway so I illegally stop in front of the club for a bit. No sign of them at all. It's past 7:30 so we assume that they got tired of waiting and didn't want to miss any of the show, or that Neil decided not to go (hence making it pointless for them to wait outside and miss any of the show).

Amber and I had no idea what happened, really. So we went to the Virgin Megastore up the street and scrounged up the change to call Vicky's mobile phone, to which there was no answer. She had it shut off. I left a message saying that we were going home. So we went home and made really nice pasta in alfredo sauce! yum!

I found out today that the reason why they weren't there was because Annie forgot their tickets in Burbank and they had to go back home and get them and then they were stuck in traffic. Luckily, Vicky thought to check her messages and when she heard that we had gone, they bought a ticket from a scalper for twice the price and all was well with Vicky and Company.

All was well with Rachie and Company, too, because I am learning slowly in my old age that it doesn't do any good to get upset or try to blame other people when it is just shitty circumstances all around. I feel good in the knowledge that they all got in and had a good time and that me and Amber had good food and got to bed at a normal hour. It could have been worse, and in the end it all worked out OK.

Now if only I could stop sneezing.... AHHHHHHKENCHU!

SIGN OF THE TIMES.

It seems like there are a lot of fellow Librans around... Llew had her birthday whilst on her roadtrip, which I'm assuming, makes her a Libra. And Idleberry's is coming up. And so is Jim Purple Trousers' birthday... and a lot of people here at work... four others besides me.

It's a fabulous sign. We get along well with everybody.

Yesterday, Ben had his interview at the U.S. Consulate in London. He got his Visa! Which means that he can come over to STAY at any time. He told me last night that he was looking into getting a flight on October 21st, which would be soooooo great. I am very excited!

It looks as if the wedding will most definitely be on December 31st. Possibly at the courthouse in Santa Barbara. I'm still waiting to receive the info. I need to go shopping for my red wedding kimono soon! I'd like to wait for Ben to be here to pick out one with me. Then I can think about matching my hair to my outfit!

I found out the other day that I'm getting around a $6000 raise to go with my new Senior Artist title, effective immediately. That will make all the people I owe money to very happy. It makes me pretty happy, too. I can't wait to be out of debt.

Allergies are the bain of my existence right now. I refuse to believe that I have caught a cold. It must be allergies. I have kicked my daily dose of Allegra, and now these allergy attacks happen only occasionally. But last night, I was out later than usual and I had an allergy attack. It feels like what I'd imagine an asthma attack would feel like, though I have never been diagnosed with asthma. Maybe there was something in the air that night (fernando!) that I'm allergic to. I'm not taking any chances, I've loaded up on the echinacea.

So, last night I went to the L.A. Film School to be in a film that Allison's (the controller here at work) boyfriend was doing for school. I got to dress up like a painting and be filmed. I wore a wig and the shirt I wore had a verrrry low plunging neckline and I held a skull on my lap with my hands folded over the top of it and I looked over a mirror with a candle burning in front of it so that my face was mostly turned away from the camera. Since I was lit only from the glow of the candle and a few other subtle lights, the curve of my cheek and my jawline and my throat and chest were all complimented and looked radiant. They said they chose me for "your round face and perfect skin." It was pretty cool cos they made me look exactly like the painting!

They took me to dinner afterwards to this Thai restaraunt that I want to take all my friends to. It's called the Palm and it's on Hollywood Blvd. and Western. There is a Thai Elvis impersonator there who sings while you eat! He sounds just like Elvis when he sings but when he talks he speaks very broken english! There was a Japanese couple next to us, picking meat off of the fish carcass they had ordered and I couldn't take my eyes off of them as they picked out the fish brain with their chopsticks. the remaining bones looked like the ones in the Heathcliff cartoons. The girl was very pretty, she reminded me of my old friend Mayumi from Tokyo. They both reminded me of the movie Battle Royale, which vicky brought over on Sunday for us to watch. It was so fantastic!

Even though that was just last night, and I will undoubtedly be eating my leftover pad thai for dinner tonight, it seems like that was so long ago...

I was going to go see Jurassic 5 at the House Of Blues in Hollywood tonight, but instead I'm going to sell my ticket to Vicky's friend Neil. He likes them more than I do, and Vicky likes Neil so I think it would be cool if he could go, and the show is sold out. Plus I just figured out my finances and I am soooo poor until a week from tomorrow! Thank heavens for that raise!