bloody sunday

no i am not refering to the troubles in northern ireland in the twentieth century, i am talking about my sunday- today.

in all essence of the term "bloody sunday"- this is exactly what today was all about.
i was woken up this morning by my roommate with a panicked voice banging on my door demanding for me to get up. i managed to drag my feet outside my room and blurry eyed could not believe what i was seeing. one of my neighbors, an elderly russian woman, face full of blood holding a damp cloth smothered in more blood. she was accompanied by another elderly russian couple who were attempting to get her help. she was all blood and my roommate on the phone with 911.

she was not only mugged at the front door of our building, but shoved inside the garage and hit on the head, face, etc. she was so shaken up and scared and bloody. we rushed her to the ER and I was her translator. it was difficult to communicate with her as her sight and hearing is not so great and her family was not there, as I am sure she was so terrified and not to mention in a lot of pain. her whole face full of blood, in her mouth and nose, underneath her eyes, on her hands.

the doctors were doing their best and trying to calm her down and i was.... translating, and sometimes speaking in russian to the doctors by mistake as i was also very shaken up by the situation.

whoever did this to her must have been keeping her eye out on her for some time. she is a nice lady who doesn't really have much, and to think that someone would strike her for her belongings is absurd. she was victimized by a brute. and word on the street is that there is a few hooligans in the area attacking elderly russian immigrants.

im so disgusted.

eventually her family came to the hospital and we left to go home. back at the apartment building we found blood blood and more blood everywhere. in the garage, in the elevator, on the stairs, all over the place. caroline, jason and I spent about an hour cleaning everything up. it felt like we were covering up a crime scene- which really is what happened. i actually couldn't believe how calm i was... knowing how i am in the presence of blood, i trusted my latex gloves and my bottle of bleach.

and the OPD just came to talk to me and how i wish they will catch this motherfucker.

i still can't believe this... what the fuck.

ugh oh on a sunday night

i woke up early today.... like around 10am.
i suppose its early for a Sunday, for me.

brunch with Camille, my new friend in San Francisco. we sat in a quaint neighborhood cafe, buzzing with hipster babies, mimosas and poached eggs. and then there was was. the sun decided to come out and shine and make us happy. as we headed with our stomachs full and our heads buzzing toward Delores Park we spotted some furniture someone left on the street. people tend to do that in San Francisco, leave a bunch of random stuff on the street for the passer by to pick up. amongst the rubbish stood the magnificent antique armoire. what to do? camille has her eyes peeled on this beauty. so i tell her to stay right there and not let anyone touch it. i flag down the first pick up that i see and explain to the nice gentleman the situation. after a few pauses and awkward glances the dude decides to help us out. he grabs the heavy piece of wood and its drawers and hauls our asses to camille's, who lived just a 5 minute drive from the spot. we were giggling the whole time, not believing what we were doing.... so typical. she thinks im crazy. the guy was very nice though, turns out he is the sue chef at a VERY expensive members only restaurant not too far from my work and invited me to come by for lunch sometime, i suppose i wouldn't mind to see what a "members only" restaurant is all about.

the day was good. i spent my afternoon browsing through thrift stores, candy lanes, and fighting with the russian ladies at the produce section on Geary at my favorite piroshki stop.

i am starting to care more and more about things like New York's relationship with Tailor Made, Brittney Spears going psycho and the new collections at Impulse at Macy's..... is this for real?

I hear Lonely Planet has its headquarters right here in Oakland, omfg. I am going to stalk them.

currently listening to Kate Nash.

new year, for real

@"The Underground" with my two curly companions, not in London- but in Hermosa, so much white trash with so much money and so so much style....

it definitely feels new. i know that time is just a convention, but there is something about the 365 days slowly passing us by and as the clock strikes midnight we change, back into Cinderella, back into our old habits, back in to time. but this year i am making changes, like real changes and not just hypothetical revolution resolution day dreams.

i realized just how fast time flies when i walked into Woody's today, my local friendly laundromat where my Oaklandish buddies are a sight for the eyes and ears, an entertaining little nook if you forget for a split moment that it is, in fact, a laundromat. But back to my point... Woody's changed. They walled up a whole section of it, where the change machines were just a few weeks ago.... or maybe its been way longer since I've washed my things. And where was I not to notice that my favorite little place around the corner is remodeling? And in the day there are not enough hours, I decided that this morning as I was sweating violently in my step class(yes another new year's resolution on its way, hope i keep this one up though) i just find myself full of lists lists lists. and where is the time?

and friends are moving away to far away countries, and others are getting married, having babies, making money, having a career.... and i am just content in my cosy pink room filled with scented candles and craving to be used paint brushes.

i find myself so caught up in thinking so much of what i ought to be doing that i feel that i am missing out on actually doing! like, reading for example. i have had the hardest time getting through just one book the past few months or so, when i can easily be indulging myself in a dozen at a time.

some thing's on my mind....
i suppose what i really miss is my little group of people. i always seemed to have one, whether it was in Palos Verdes, or San Francisco, or Dublin.... its been strange to find my people again. where are they? do i scare them away? i feel that the new people i've been meeting just don't do it for me, i prefer to spend time on my own instead of with people who really make me choke every time a word comes out of them.... choke.

still reading the old stuff....
and looking for new stuff, suggestions welcomed.
back to my warm abode in this freezing city and on for another fashionable day at work, oh the glamorama.