Woke up late after going to sleep late. Didn't wash my hair because it was too cold and figured it would just get wet in the rain anyways. Got to the BART station and made the train with about a minute to spare. As usual, went to Starbucks on my way to work. Alex wasn't working yet but I saw him in the back room while waiting in line. Got to the cashier and he walked out for a few seconds to get something. Got a lot of work done. Updated specs. Got LL and DKa started on three files. Got VC and DKw started on a report. Got SJ started on survey changes later in the afternoon. Followed up with PS, NO, and WM on campaign dates, counts, issues. Went to lunch and stopped by Starbucks for white mocha. Alex still working. He has biggest, cutest smile. Asked if I wanted extra whip cream. I said "No that's okay". Wanted to tell him that I'm cutting down on the carbs. An hour later Lisa went to Starbucks. Decided to tag along hoping Alex would still be working and look for the Starbucks mug for Liz and myself. Yea! He was still working. I was looking around for the mug but didn't find it. I picked up another one and was showing Lisa what it kinda looks like. Alex notices and asks if I was looking for the mug that looks like a Starbucks cup. I said yes. He said that he just saw one and looked for it in the front display. Then he looked in one of the drawers. I told him not to worry about it. I can just get it another store. Then he goes to the back room. Lisa says that he's on a mission. Then he looks under a table. No luck. Then Lisa tells him that if he does find one later if he can save it for "Cora". He says sure. He's so swweeeeettt!

Left work around 6:20--15 minutes earlier than usual. Decided to go to Harry & David's to buy stuff for Liz that I had lost. So I trudged the extra blocks through the wind and pouring rain. Turns out that the one on Union Square had closed down. Bummer. I got on the train all wet. Decided that I'll go to the gym. Do a few minutes on the stairmaster (to tighten my gluts) and swim a few laps.

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Sidebar
Forgot to blog that I joined 24-hour Fitness with the Friends & Family Special coupon that Liz gave me. Cool. Haven't worked out in over three years (since we bought the house and no longer had access to the gym at The Keys. Now, I get to go swimming again, lose some weight, re-define muscles (abs, thighs, butt, biceps). I didn't have time to work out last week so I made it a point to work out last Friday. I was able to put in 20 minutes on the stairmaster. I wanted to go swimming but there were too many people at the pool. Plus, I needed to get some supplies--goggles, flipflops, lock. So after the gym and before going to Bev's I went to Target and did some shopping for new workout pants and swim gear.
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On my way there, I realized that I didn't bring any athletic shoes. I was wearing half-boots because of the rain. So I went to Marshalls to get shoes. I didn't start working out until 8:20. I got on the stairmaster and worked out for 15 minutes. Then I swam five laps. Some people had kickboards but I don't know where they got it. Wish I could swim a few laps with the kickboard. Oh well. Maybe next time. I'll bring my kickboard just in case though. While working out, I would think about SBhim and BPhim. How I can't wait to see SBhim tomorrow. How I was surprised to see BPhim when I walked into Church on Sunday. How I parked right next to him and on my way out saw him walking to his car. How our eyes met for a few seconds (happened a couple times in Church too). How I should have stopped and talked to him. How I hope to see him at choir practice on Thursday but probably won't. How I really hope to see him at John's party on Saturday. Maybe I give him a subtle hint if I choose the right karaoke songs to sing. Maybe I can finally get the nerve to talk to him or even do some flirting. But I digress...Every once in a while I was swimming, I would think about Andy and James. Just remembering how Andy and I used to swim at the RIT pool. And thinking about finally being over James.

After I showered and left the gym I realized that I hadn't eaten dinner yet. Didn't feel like eating because I was feeling too good! All that adrenaline. But I figured that I should eat or I'll be eating later in the evening. Didn't get home until around 10pm--just in time to watch Gauntlet 2.

So I'm definitely feeling good. Working out. Saw Alex three times that day. And the possibility of BPhim.

It's been a busy month. Busy at work. Busy because of Super Bowl. Busy because of HIMs--Whim, SBhim, BPhim, WPLJhim. Busy with the family. It's been so busy I almost forgot about Daddy's anniversary. So busy I forgot about James' birthday. So busy I didn't time to send Valentine's cards--snail or email. So busy I've missed some of my favorite shows--Gilmore Girls, Supernatural, One Tree Hill, Smallville, CSI, etc. Oh well.
Can't wait until March. Hopefully I won't be as busy and have more time for my personal life--work out at the gym, update my website, find the right HIM, and spend more time with my current and future godsons.

Sunday I was almost late for Church trying to buy Michael Buble tickets at the Berkeley Community Theater 3/25 8pm. I got my Ticketmaster alert at 9am while I was at Starbucks getting my Sunday morning coffee and paper. There was no need for it because I've been looking forward to it ever since I found out from Lisa about it.

So there I was logging in at 9:45 to see if prices were actually $65 and $75. Yep. They were. No sweat. I can afford it, but the girls can't. I was going to buy two tickets anyways in case one of them are able to save and buy it off of me. Or I can call Scott to see if he'd like to go. Or I can give it to Auntie Irma as an early birthday present. At 10am I refreshed the page and began ordering searching for 2 best available tickets. I get a screen that says that they're searching and not to refresh or go back or I'll lose my place in line. I wait five minutes. Then ten minutes go by. Something's gotta be wrong. So I call ticketmaster. I get connected and they tell me the seat numbers but I don't know where they are. I open another page and start looking for where the seats are. As I'm getting to the page I get a busy signal. I wait a few seconds and still hear the same thing. So I re-dial but I get a busy signal. I try around five more times and get the same thing. So I go back to the Internet. I go back and try to purchase two tickets. None available. I try one ticket but it's in the orchestra about 30-40 rows back. I wanna get a better seat. And try again. This time it's in the upper balcony. No Way! I don't want to spend $65 for tickets up there. At least if I'm downstairs, there's a chance he might come out into the audience. I try again. No tickets left. What?!? I try again for several times. Same thing. It's about 10:30 and I'm not dressed for Church. I wanted to dress nicely because choir bass player will probably be there. I get dressed quickly not wanting to be late...don't want to miss him. Yeah! I'd choose bass player HIM over Buble. But on the drive to Church I kept thinking that I'll check CL and eBay.

Saw bass player HIM. He came it at almost the same time as we did. I could see him from the corner of my eye. Just like Phil, the former Choir HIM, he sits on the other side of the church but by the aisle. He seems to be looking for someone then sits down. During mass when we say the "Our Father" I look towards his side of the Church because I have good excuse to (need to grab the person's hand to my left side but doesn't seem to want to hold hands) I could have sworn that I thought I saw him looking at me or maybe it was someone near me. I wish I was right.

Was hoping to see bass player HIM after Church but he must have left.

After getting home, I check craigslist and people are selling their tickets for $150 and $200. What?!? I'm not spending that much. Buble might be worth it but I'm not going to let anyone profit from my misfortune. Uggghhh. I'll just have to watch his next show. I've learned my lesson. I'll join the fan club so I'll be able to buy pre-sale tickets.

Michael. Please come back soon...

Yesterday I didn't get home until after 11pm. Had to work late because of file pulls...LL working on two and DKa working on one big one with almost 1MM records. I had to manually fix one of the pulls that LL worked on then I had to re-format the other one. Ended up leaving a few minutes before 9pm. On my way to the BART, I looked through the Starbucks window and saw HIM.

Back in the East Bay I grabbed something to eat at Wendy's and went to Liz's and told her about choir HIM. I told her and Brian about Auntie Irma telling me to call WPLJ's him and how I'm debating about whether I should.

Today I was hoping to get to work earlier than usual because clients were coming in. But I came in at my regular time. Was able to get some stuff done. Then I cleaned a little and made coffee. Talk to BB. Then I had to go to Starbucks to buy pastries on my way down I saw JR. Then SW. Went to Starbucks and HE was working. Unfortunately he wasn't my cashier. Oh well. Got back to the office CH and JM were there. Worked. Didn't go to lunch with them. Got lunch and stopped by Starbucks. HE wasn't working but I think he was sitting outside. At least I think it was HIM, but he was wearing a beret. Worked some more. Problems with survey. Problems with survey data. Left work a few minutes and rushed to the BART station.

Got to the East Bay. Was a little hungry and didn't feel like going home so I went to Fuddruckers. Was able to watch ESPN. Gretzy says he didn't bet. Heat lose to Mavs who have won 13 in a row. WM and JK must be really happy. Then browsing at Target. Got The Notebook. Now I'm home blogging.

Friday - Worked late (as usual). My fault though. After chatting with WM, had to update my tasklist, water plants, check CS emails. Went shopping--Target and Barnes & Noble. Ended up buying a victorian romance and a Sia CD.

Saturday - Woke up late. Dropped girls off at the mall. Went shopping again--Albertson's, Navlet's for gladiolous bulbs, Rasputin's for used CDs. Picked up Liz and went shopping at Costco, Albertson's, Rite-Aid. Did more shopping at Albertson's...had to get Frank's hot sauce and lil' smokies. Went to laundromat to dry clothes (when will Bernard fix the dryer???). Hung out at Auntie Irma's with Bev, Manny, EJ, Raquel, Marie, Liz. Siah wasn't there. He was at his other grandparents house in Stockton. Sang karaoke when some of them played Monopoly.

Sunday - Woke up early. Got ready. Went to FoodMax to buy more stuff for Liz's Super Bowl party. Got my Sunday morning Starbucks coffee and paper. Sang in choir. Thinking more and more about the bass player. Yep. He's cute. (But what if he has a girlfriend? What if he's gay? Chances are he's one of them because that's always what happens when I like someone. Oh well.) Went to 2 Baskins & Robbins hoping to get quarterback crunch ice cream for Liz's party but they didn't have any. I was so disappointed. It was still football season and last year they still had some weeks after the Super Bowl. Oh well! Went home to pick up the stuff for the party at Liz's. Had to miss some of the Super Bowl including the ads because I had to cook...buffalo wings. Almost won in the company pool...if the Seahawk's touchdown wasn't called back because of the push off penalty instead of making that fieldgoal I would have gotten money. Damn!! Steelers ended up winning. Damn! I bet John Ellis Deal IV is happy. Talked with Kristin. Cousins hanging out in the other living room. But I had lots of fun.

Monday - Nothing noteworthy except that I saw SB HIM...only once...in the afternoon. Chatted with WM about Joe Montana, old newspapers, comic books, and his complicated family history.

Tuesday - Didn't see SB HIM. But I've been thinking about new choir HIM. Got curious and googled his name. Found out that he went to Stanford and studied Physics. Then went to UCLA and got a PhD. Wow! Super smart guy. In junior college, I took a physics class because I was still debating about whether to go into medicine. I also took a lot of math classes (courses I didn't need as a business major)--calculus & analytic geometry, statistics and probability, finite math. I love science and math. Now he does statistical analyses. Sometimes I work with statistics and analyzing data. Cool! Lots of things in common. Hmmm. Hope he he doesn't have a girlfriend or a boyfriend. But I guess I'll find out in the next couple of weeks.

Anyways, best part of the day. I was able to leave work at a reasonable time (due to not getting a project done in the afternoon and was able to get an extension from client). Just as I was updating my task list, Bev calls and says that she just got out of school. I ask if YaYa's with her. She says yes. Then she asks if I want a ride home. I ask are you sure...it might be difficult getting out downtown. She says she doesn't mind. Maybe she doesn't want to be bored driving home. So I said sure. Yea! I get to see my godson!!! It was fun driving home with Bev and Siah rather than sleeping on the train or reading my romance novel. She drove me to PH BART station and I met her, YaYa, Auntie Irma and EJ at Claim Jumpers. YaYa would play with us while we ate. Every once in a while I'd stop eating to watch the Duke/UNC game (it was a close one and I was pulling for Duke) and Auntie Irma would tell me to eat. Then Siah started telling me to eat too. So cute! I love my godson so much. Yeah, Tuesday was a great day.

I was so busy blogging about my BART ride yesterday I forgot to mention that I'd seen the Starbucks HIM. As a matter of fact I had seen him twice on Tuesday and on Wednesday. I also saw him twice today. Every morning I'd get my wake-me-up coffee and he'd be there so I figured he'd be working until around 1 or 2 o'clock. So after picking up lunch I'd stop by to get something to drink instead of waiting until around 3 o'clock to get my pick-me-up coffee frappuccino or white mocha. And yes he would be there. So cute. Anyways on Tuesday, I started to think that maybe he liked me too so I posted something on CL. Isn't that crazy? I still don't have the nerve to actually approach him in person though.This afternoon he noticed that I was back and said Hi Again. How sweet. He's got the cutest smile. I hope that I'm not getting infatuated with him just because he look sorta like James (with facial hair and without the blue eyes). Hope I see him again tomorrow.

WHIM mentioned his girlfriend. I know that I'm just about over him (because I'm getting more interested in the SB HIM and another him that I'll mention later) but whenever he mentions his girlfiriend it just irks me. I guess it's karma catching up with me. Joey, Scott and James used to hate it when I talked about other cute guys. I didn't realize how hurtful it feels. If I could take it back I would. Sorry...

Had choir practice today. I didn't feel like going but ended up going. I got there late and as soon as got there Fatima says "Did you get a call?" I thought she was talking about a call to go to choir practice so I said "Yes, Auntie Irma called me." She said "No the other call. Did he call?" I didn't get a chance to answer because we had to start practicing. I would have told her and Auntie Irma "Yes" but other choir members would ask about the WPLJ's HIM and I didn't feel like talking about it.

John asked if some of the choir members can stay a little longer so we can practice with the new bass player. He's flight from San Diego was late. Good thing I stayed. He's kinda cute. Cute and a musician. If he was Catholic and loved sports he'd be perfect. I noticed that he didn't have a ring. But what if he had a girlfriend. We'll see...

Finally updated my website after two years. YEA!!! The past couple of years have been so busy. Then I was hoping to update it during the holidays but I was too busy. But I was able to take an hour or two while watching tv each day last week to write stuff to update my old pages, load new pix, and code some new pages. I still have to code a couple of new pages with more recent pix. Hope to do so this weekend. I just have make it a point to update my website at least once a year.

I didn't get to take a nap on my train ride home but I sure did a lot of thinking. I went to the Powell Street station so that I can get a seat then take a nap. I was waiting about 8 minutes (with 2 minutes before the train showed up) when a man started standing several feet to my right. There were other peple already in line. I had a feeling that this guy was going to try to cut. Sure enough the train pulled up and he had stepped closer to the door. But I stepped to my right to let people out and was able to block him from cutting in front of me. I was able to get a seat in the middle of the train. By the time we reached Montgomery it was standing room only. Then we got to the Embarcadero station and more people got on the train and had to stand. Then I noticed that there was an elderly couple standing in the aisle several rows in front of me. I was amazed that no one offered their seats especially those who sat by the doors which is better for people who may be physically challenged like senior citizens, handicapped, and pregnant women. I tried calling to them saying excuse me but they didn't hear me. Then I waved at the elderly gentleman and pointed to my seat asking if they'd like to sit. The elderly man gestured to his wife to sit. She said Thank You and I said You're Welcome. I really didn't mind because I had been sitting all day. Besides, if I was only treating her they way I would want to be treated. I know it would be strenous on their backs and legs to have to stand for such an extended period especially having to withstand the sudden movements the train makes.

As I stood I started looking around in disbelief that no one was offering the man his/her seat. The man who was trying to cut in front of me at the Powell station had gotten a seat in front of me on the train. I just stared at the back of his head thinking that he's such an asshole. I mean here is this young virile guy who was so self-absorbed he didn't want to offer his seat to the older man who was standing right beside him. I know he was trying to play it off pretending not to notice...just listening to his iPod. Then I started to think James would have offered his seat. He is such the gentleman. Then I started to think I would only marry someone who would offer his seat without complaints. Then I started to wonder if the Starbucks guy would offer his seat. I think he would. Would WHIM offer his seat? I think so. Would WPLJ guy? Probably not.

Then I started glancing at other people who were sitting. There were other men and women who should be physically capable of standing for a long period of time. These F***ING (or as Michael Buble would say...friggin') people are so inconsiderate. (I would have said freakin' but that's being nice...I was a bit livid). I started to think that I hope that when they get old they'll be treated the way they were treating the elderly couple...Karma...it will catch up with them.

Then we got to Downtown Oakland (about 12 minutes since Embarcadero). That GUY got off the train so the elderly man was able to sit. Then I noticed that he was reading a clippng of an obiturary (for a James Stewart). I started to realize that they must have just gotten back from a memorial service. When I first noticed them on the train they were wearing black. I thought that they were coming from a show...opera or musical. But at the time I thought it was too early and didn't think of it again. Poor man. Maybe this James Stewart was a very good friend.

Then I remembered before the holidays I was in a similar situation. I had gotten a seat a row before the end of the car...seats facing each other. We got to West Oakland and noticed a woman who kept looking around. Then I noticed that she was pretty thin but her belly seemed to be big. Then I realized that she's probably pregnant. I remember Beverly telling me that when she was pregnant and had to take BART to San Francisco State people weren't offering her a seat. I took a minute to weigh out whether I should offer the woman a seat because I started to wonder what if she wasn't pregnant and gets offended. But then I said she has to be...she can't be fat...she's too thin (her legs and her arms). I figured it's better to be safe. So I waved at her (she was standing close to seats that are by the train doors) and asked her if she'd like my seat. She said Yes thank you. I said No problem. A couple stops later, a seat next to the window (diagonal to the seat that I had offered to the pregnant lady) became vacant and she was pointing it out to me but I had already noticed. She had to get off several stops later and thanked me again.

Anyways I tried to get my mind off of the current situation. I started to think about adding a Wish List to my blog (which I'll do later this week). Then I noticed that there was a man who looked like an actor. I couldn't remember the actor's name. He was in Bosom Buddies with Tom Hanks, The Newhart Show, and Honey I Shrunk the Kids tv show. For a couple minutes I kept trying to remember his name. Then I remembered that it was Peter something. Then about 5-10 minutes later it came to me...Peter Scolari. Yes that was it. Then I started to think that I just have to remember my thoughts so I can add it to my blog.

A few minutes after the train leaves Orinda (which is about 25 minutes from Embarcadero) the woman tells me that they're getting off at Lafayette and asks if I'd like to sit. I said sure. I just wanted to jot down notes of what I wanted to put in my blog. Then she expressed her gratitude again and paid me a compliment by saying that my mother and grandmother raised me properly. I said Thank You. I felt so proud.

The more I think about it. I'm glad I offered my seat. I think I benefitted more than them. I was able to do some useful thinking and learned a lot about myself...not so random musings at all.