Delightful and delicious

Your daily dose of cute.

2010-07-04T17:05:57Z

The rest of the kitten pictures from yesterday. Enjoy! As for a status update: they are still just as cute today as they were yesterday.

As a reminder, these little guys and gals are up for adoption! If you know of anyone in San Francisco who might like a kitten, they should consider it!

My roommate Dianna holding Billy. He likes to just stretch out and lay back in your arms when you hold him. He also purrs the loudest of all of the kittens.

Their official sleeping space has become the tower that we use for towels and laundry supplies. It's freaking adorable.

Lance waking up from a nap.

Lance all awake and ready to play!

Another one of my roommates, Charly, with Lyla.

Another one of Lyla! She loves the camera, so I have quite a few of her.

Oh my God, she is so adorable.

Lyla sitting on my lap.

A final Lyla picture! She's so skinny!

Kittens! The first of many posts.

2010-07-03T20:24:04Z

I'm fostering four eight-week old kittens for a rescue organization. They'll be with me until they get adopted!

What does this mean for you, dear reader? Essentially, it means that you will be bombarded with cuteness for the next two to four weeks. Apologies in advance.

Lance, Lyla, and Billy take a nap. :)

This is Lyla! She is a troublemaker.

Beatrix. She's the mellow, shy one of the group. She's also the fluffiest.

And this is Billy. He purrs like crazy.

I still need to get a good head shot of Lance, the orange one. He has SO much energy, he's hard to get to stay still for more than two seconds.

kikithepirate @ 2010-05-23T15:55:00

2010-05-23T22:56:07Z

LOST: 100 BEST MOMENTS

1. Death of Jin and Sun - Season 6, The Candidate

2. Charlie drowns - Season 3, Through the Looking Glass

3. Penny and Desmond find each other - Season 4, The Constant

4. Reveal of the first flash forward - Season 3, Through the Looking Glass

5. Keamy shoots Alex in the head - Season 4, The Shape of Things to Come

6. "Why do you find it so hard to believe?" "Why do you find it so easy?" Jack is the first person to push the button. - Season 2, Orientation

7. The freighter explosion - Season 4, There's No Place Like Home, Parts II and III

8. Desmond turns the failsafe key - Season 2, Live Together, Die Alone

9. Juliet falls - The Incident

10. Hurley and Charlie drive the Dharma van - Tricia Tanaka is Dead

11. Jack telling the "counted to 5" story to Kate - Pilot, Part 1

12. Ben: "You guys got any milk?" - The Whole Truth

13. The Oceanic 6 get off the plane - There's No Place Like Home, Part I

14. Reveal of New Otherton - A Tale of Two Cities

15. Sawyer enters the cave - The Substitute

16. Sawyer and Jack beat the crap out of each other - The Incident

17. Reveal of Locke in the coffin - There's No Place Like Home, Parts II and III

18. Reveal of Sawyer and Juliet as a couple - LaFleur

19. KATE, DAMNIT, RUN! - I Do

20. WAAAAAAAAAAAAALT is taken by the others - Exodus, Part 2

21. "Live together, die alone" - White Rabbit

22. The light turns on in the hatch - Deux Ex Machina

23. Hurley saves the day - Through the Looking Glass

24. Sawyer jumps from the helicopter - There's No Place Like Home, Parts II and III

25. Dharma purge - The Man Behind the Curtain

26. A broken Sawyer throws the engagement ring into the water - What Kate Does

27. Sawyer shoots the polar bear - Pilot, Part 2

28. Ben to Juliet: "You're mine." - The Other Woman

29. Claire & Charlie and the invisible peanut butter - Confidence Man

30. Juliet detonates the bomb - The Incident

31. Sayid works for Ben - The Economist

32. Ben kills Locke - The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham

33. Locke & Jack open the hatch - Exodus, Part 2

34. First time we see Jacob and MIB - The Incident

35. Ben sneaks into Charles Widmore's room in the middle of the night - The Shape of Things to Come

36. Reveal of Kate as the fugitive - Pilot, Part 2

37. Discovery of Adam & Eve - House of the Rising Sun

38. Rousseau's transmission - Pilot, Part 2

39. Ben kills Jacob - The Incident

40. Kate and Sawyer have cage sex - I Do

41. Martin Keamy makes great eggs - Sundown

42. Reveal that Locke was in a wheelchair - Walkabout

43. Jacob recruits Richard - Ab Aerterno

44. Ben turns the frozen donkey wheel - There's No Place Like Home, Parts II and III

45. Boone dies while Aaron is born - Do No Harm (AND JACK GIVES HIM A TRANSFUSION!!)

46. Tail section crash - The Other 48 Days
47. The blast door map - Lockdown

48. Kate begs Jack to do the surgery on Ben - I Do

49. Bernard and Rose reunited - Collision

49. Locke & Ben visit the cabin - The Man Behind the Curtain

50. Michael shoots Libby and Ana Lucia - Two for the Road

51. Locke meets the Smokemonster - Walkabout

52. Nikki and Paolo get buried alive - Exposé
53. Birth of the Smoke Monster - Across the Sea
54. Penny finds Desmond at the stadium - Live Together, Die Alone
55. Reveal of Ben as the leader of the Others - Live Together, Die Alone
56. Jack & Kate first kiss - What Kate Did
57. Richard Alpert visits Locke as a child - Cabin Fever
58. Kate raising Aaron - Eggtown
59. Sayid shoots little Ben - He's Our You
60. Return of (feral) Claire - What Kate Does

61. Locke tries to convince everyone to let the smoke monster take him - Exodus, Part 2

62. Juliet makes secret video tape for Jack - The Cost of Living

63. Sayid kills a man WITH HIS FREAKING ANKLES. - Through the Looking Glass

64. Smokey massacre at the temple - Sundown

65. Flight 815 lands at LAX - LA X

66. Charlie hung up by Ethan - All the Best Cowboys have Daddy Issues

67. Kate blows up her dad - What Kate Did
68. Faraday drops in - The Beginning of the End
69. Eloise explains that The Lamp Post is an off-island Dharma station - 316
70. Sun and Hurley visit Jin's grave - Ji Yeon
71. Libby in the mental hospital - Dave
72. Jack and Kate get engaged - Something Nice Back Home

73. Sawyer gets Kate to kiss him - Confidence Man

74. Artic station finale - Live Together, Die Alone
75. Ben Linus, middle school teacher - The Substitute
76. Eloise shoots Daniel - The Variable

77. Sawyer kills Locke's father - The Brig

78. The Oceanic 6 all show up for Ajira Airways 316 - 316
79. Shannon dies - Abandoned
80. Sawyer steals the guns. "I'm not a good person, Charlie. Never did a good thing in my life." - The Long Con
81. Mrs. Klugh gives Michael the list - Three Minutes
82. Christian & Claire in the cabin - Cabin Fever

83. Sun finds out the baby is Jin's - D.O.C.

84. Christian visits Claire - Par Avion

85. Ben shoots Locke - The Man Behind the Curtain
86. Juliet tells Jin about Sun's affair - Ji Yeon
87. Locke visits Walt - The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham
88. Jack becomes the new Jacob - What They Died For
89. Juliet and Kate fight in the mud. - Left Behind
90. Ben and Sawyer go up the hill (reveal of Hydra Island) - Every Man for Himself
91. Locke blows up The Flame - Enter 77
92. Jack kisses Juliet - The Other Woman
93. Charlie visits Hurley at Santa Rosa - The Beginning of the End

94. Ben kills Keamy - There's No Place Like Home, Parts II and III

95. Jack has faith that the dynamite will not explode - Dr. Linus
96. Rousseau et all pick up Jin - The Little Prince
97. Jack visits Claire's mom in the hotel - The Little Prince
98. Richard Alpert takes Ben (Oceanic 6 take Ben's innocence) - Whatever Happened, Happened
99. Hippie Rose & Bernard - The Incident

Another click request!

2010-05-10T06:11:12Z

Hey guys, I know this is probably annoying, but I am so close! Have you clicked today?

http://www.beintheheights.com/sarahladue

You can click once per day!

Also, if any of you have large LJ/IJ/facebook/twitter/etc. followings and wouldn't mind asking THEM to click, I would love you forever! I currently have 527 clicks ("points") and am in 7th place in San Francisco. I know it says 38th, but that's nationwide -- I only have to be in the top 5 in SF, and you can see those rankings if you click the little link that says "Change" and select "San Francisco" from the list. The current 5th place person has 739 points, so I'm definitely within range to beat them!

Please help me get into the top 5 and win free tickets to one of my favorite shows! ♥ The show starts its run here on Tuesday, so I'm guessing they'll end the contest for SF residents soon, and then I will stop bugging you!

Request!

2010-05-04T20:36:07Z

http://www.beintheheights.com/sarahladue

Can everyone do me a favor and just click on that link? All you have to do is open it, you don't have to sign up or anything. The top five people with the most "views" get free tickets to the In The Heights tour, which is San Francisco this month. I'm already going, but it's one of my all time favorite shows and I'd sure as hell love to see it twice.

Thanks! For more In The Heights awesomeness, check out their Tony Awards Performance or the video they made for the touring cast. I love them.

The first Lost post of 2009.

2009-01-21T06:12:04Z

Yes, yes, we finally have a new President and I am very happy about it. IDK, I've had all of the high and low moments I'm capable of having over this election already.

But what I can get excited about is something that happens in less than 24 hours:

LOST, SEASON 5.

As such, I bring you my first Lost post of the season. Longtime readers will know that there will be many as the season progresses. I would like to start it out with this quote, from the world's smartest man, aka my best friend Dane:

"Certainly talking to other Lost fans can be annoying, since most of them are so clueless and watch the show the way most people read Dan Brown novels. But I think what bugs me most is people who try to trivialize the show because they aren't into it. When people tell me "it's just a TV show" I regularly tell them "and 1984 was just a book" - or something along those lines. Yes, I realize it is *just* a TV show and the world does not begin or end with Lost... but Lost makes life worth living."

And now... I give you a giant dose of Lost picspam, along with some ponderings and favorite Lost quotations!

WARNING: DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED SEASONS 1 THROUGH 4.

What a bunch of good-looking folks we've got there.

ABBADON: I'm here, Mr Reyes, because we heard about your recent (pauses) episode. Your arrest. Your incarceration here. Frankly we feel terrible about it. So, on behalf of Oceanic, I'd like to extend you an invitation for a little upgrade.
HURLEY: What kind of upgrade?
ABBADON: To a facility where the paint isn't peeling off the walls. Where you'd have your own bathroom. You could see the ocean from there...
HURLEY: I don't wanna see the ocean.

-----

Wait, so... why was Abbadon trying to take Hurley away? Was someone else trying to get the Ocean 6 back to the island? WHO IS ABBADON WORKING FOR?

HURLEY: And why would I go anywhere with you? I haven't seen you in, like, forever.
SAYID: Because circumstances have changed.

-----

Dear Sayid: Please kill more people with your feet this season.
Love, Sarah.

-----

Speaking of things I'd like to see, does Walt have to go back with the Oceanic 6? I mean, Ben said "everybody," right? I'd like to see things with Walt's character get resolved in a meaningful way - I think he brought a cool dimension to the show. Plus, someone has to babysit Aaron while Kate and Jack have make-up sex.

-----

KATE: "We have to go back"? "We have to go back"?
JACK: Now hold on--
KATE: Who do you think you are?! You call me over and over again for two days straight, stoned on your pills! And then you show up here with an obituary for Jeremy Bentham. (Sighs) When he came to me and I heard what he had to say, I knew he was crazy. But you... you believed him.
JACK: Yes.
KATE: Him, of all people.
JACK: Yes, Kate, I did, because he said that that was the only way that I could keep you safe--you and Aaron.(Kate slaps Jack.)
KATE: Don't you say his name. I still have to explain to him why you are not there to read to him, so don't you say his name!
JACK: I'm sorry.
KATE: I've spent the last three years trying to forget all the horrible things that happened on the day that we left. How dare you ask me to go back?

-----

HOW DID LOCKE GET OFF THE ISLAND?
WHY DID HE LEAVE THE ISLAND?
HOW THE HELL DID HE DIE?!?
WTF WTF WTF WTF!

-----

Now there's a guy who has some of the answers I'm looking for.

LOCKE: I'm sorry Ben, but maybe I've missed the part where you explain what I'm supposed to do with the armed men inside.
BEN: I'm gonna take care of 'em.
LOCKE: And how the hell are you gonna do that?
BEN: How many time I have to tell you, John? I always have a plan.

-----

JULIET: The other day, when you came back from the other side of the island, Jack kissed me.
KATE: Oh...
JULIET: It was nice. But it wasn't for me. But it was for him. I'm pretty sure he was trying to prove something.
KATE: Prove what?
JULIET: That he doesn't love some else.
[Pause)
KATE: Thank you, Juliet. Thank you for saving his life.
(Kate goes out of the tent]
JULIET: [To Jack] I know you're awake.

Okay, so. I love Juliet. And the #1 thing that I'm most excited about seeing this season is some hot Juliet/Sawyer angry sex. Seriously. It's obvious that it's gonna happen. This just became my new OTP, now that I've realized that Kate will never be good enough for Jack and Jack will never realize how badass Juliet really is. I mean, Kate always treated Sawyer with this disgusting, lovey-dovey, nearly sisterly attitude. Juliet's not gonna mess with that crap. Homegirl will throw down. Those hook-ups will be hot. I cannot wait.

-----

HURLEY: We're all gonna die.
SAWYER: Calm down, Chicken Little. Sky ain't falling just yet.
HURLEY: This is exactly what he wants. To fight amongst ourselves. You're making a big mistake, dude.
LOCKE: It's his to make, Hugo. Let's get on with it.
SAWYER: Right. [pauses] I'm attacking Siberia. [The camera zooms out revealing that they are playing Risk. Sawyer and Hurley roll the dice, and Sawyer wins.] Sorry.
HURLEY: Can't believe you're just giving him Australia. Australia's the key to the whole game.
SAWYER: Says you.

SAWYER: What the hell do you mean you saw Walt? In a dream?
LOCKE: No dream, it was Walt. Only, taller.
SAWYER: Taller? What like a giant?

-----

JIN!!! DID YOU JUMP OFF THE BOAT IN TIME TO LIVE AND MAKE IT BACK
TO THE ISLAND!?!? INQUIRING MINDS DEMAND TO KNOW.

-----

Okay, so I'd like to go ahead and clarify that I think the producers are trying to trick us into thinking that Sun thinks that Jack is the "other person" she blames for Jin's death. I just have too much faith in Sun's ability to be rational to think she's harboring some sort of death wish toward my Jack. I think she's got some sort of evil mastermind plan to bring down Widmore from the inside, and I think it's gonna blow our socks off.

SUN: Are you really going to pretend that you don't know who I am?
WIDMORE: I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about, Ms. Kwon.
SUN: Yes, you do know, Mr. Widmore... just like you know we've been lying all this time about where we were and what happened to us there. You and I have common interests. When you're ready to discuss them... (Sun hands Widmore her business card) call me. As you know, we're not the only ones who left the island. (Sun walks away)

-----

SAYID: Naomi, were you close to her?
MILES: Nope. Met her on the boat.
SAYID: You don't seem particularly affected by her death.
MILES: Sure I'm affected. She was hot and I dug her accent.
KATE: Nice.

-----

How was Charlotte born on the island? If they've gone back in time, does that mean that she'll meet her birth parents? What about little baby Charlotte? Will that cause a paradox, and will she start to disappear, Michael J. Fox style?

MILES: I'm surprised you wanna leave.
CHARLOTTE: Sorry?
MILES: It's just weird. You know, after all that time you spent trying to get back here.
CHARLOTTE: What do you mean, get back here?
MILES: ...What do I mean?

-----

Glad that you brought some redshirts back to the island, Dan.
We needed a FEW people to kill off and not mourn this season!

-----

For me, the most hilarious moment in the Season 4 finale was when Desmond ran away from the bomb before Jin. Oh, sure, Jin's got an unborn baby, but you have to get back to Pennay! Real nice, Desmond. Real nice.

DESMOND: Are you sure about this, brother?
JACK: Are you sure?
DESMOND: As long as I've got Penny... I'll be fine.
JACK: Don't let him find you, Desmond. I'll see you in another life, brother.
DESMOND: Aye. I guess you will.

Based solely on my information from the trailers, I don't understand anything about Desmond this season. Why does he leave Penny and the baby? Why not bring the baby along, so that Aaron has a playdate? People just never think of the children these days.

-----

Oh, my main man. There you are. I am so glad to have you back in my life once a week. I will continue to defend you against all of your naysayers, and I have to say - I am so glad that Ben's making you shave the beard in the first episode.

HURLEY: I was happy, too, Jack... for a while, anyway. Then I saw Charlie. He likes to sit with me on the bench out on the front lawn. It's pretty cool, actually.
JACK: Okay. [Sighs] so what do the two of you talk about?
HURLEY: Well, yesterday, he told me you were gonna be coming by. He wanted me to give you a message.
JACK: A message?
HURLEY: [opens the drawer] He made me write it down so I wouldn't mess it up. "You're not supposed to raise him, Jack" Does that make any sense?
JACK: No, that...doesn't make any sense.
HURLEY: Do you think he means Aaron?
JACK: Take your meds, Hurley. Just take them.

I just hope I don't have to endure a long period of time during this season where everyone hates him. The man did everything he did FOR YOU PEOPLE, YOU UNGREATFUL WENCHES. He couldn't have known that bad things were going to explode all over the place!

-----

See you tomorrow.

Videos - Gaza Attacks

2009-01-03T22:12:34Z

The following videos are footage of what's been happening in Gaza for the past week. They're disturbing and graphic, but I strongly believe that adults should watch them - we need to fully understand what's happening, not just brush over a few news articles and discard them as 'depressing.'

In the first video, the man at 1:52 is giving his declaration of faith, a practice which Muslims do right before they die.

The second video shows people streaming into hospitals, all of which are low on supplies and struggling to deal with the number of people being brought in.

I'm not someone who "sides" with any one government here - in fact, that's impossible, because no one can really agree who both sides are. In theory, this fight is between Hamas and the Israeli government. However, the lines are blurred, and I simply can't find any way to rationalize the numbers of innocent Palestinians who have been killed or are suffering and starving due to all of the area's supplies being cut off. Yes, Israel has a right to protect itself, and an end most certainly needs to come to the rocket strikes being carried out by Hamas. But killing hundreds of innocent civilians doesn't seem like lateral retribution to me, and the situation in Gaza is only breeding more hatred for the Israeli people among young Palestinians, who will in turn grow up to plan new attacks on Israel. It's a tragic cycle, and the worst thing that the world can do is to continue to turn a blind eye.

A few teaser pictures!

2008-12-20T06:05:33Z

OH HEY I'M BACK IN CALIFORNIA.

And I'm exhausted. And I've begun the strenuous process of uploading my 500-ish pictures to Facebook. I'll link to all of them when I'm done (sometime tomorrow, I'm guessing) but for now, please enjoy a couple of my nicer photos that I've fixed up in photoshop for display:

Paper umbrellas for sale on the side of the street in Luang Prabang, Laos.

A wat (temple) at sundown, Luang Prabang.

A monk shades himself from the sun, Vientiane, Laos.

Tiny chili peppers drying in the sun, Luang Prabang.

Inside the "Amazing Cave," Ha Long Bay, Vietnam.

Sapa, Vietnam.

Relaxing on the beach, Phuket, Thailand.

The end (cont.)

2008-12-18T04:31:55Z

I made it to Bangkok! The train was fine, actually, and crossing the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge (I just love saying that - come on, say it - Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge!) went smoothly, although immigration on the Thai side took FOREVER. I slept pretty decently, although my window kept coming open and my allergies have been giving me a really hard time. I also picked up a new book in Vientiane yesterday, thinking that because it was pretty thick, it'd take me AT LEAST two days to get through... unfortunately, I started and finished it on the train. Sometimes I really hate how fast I read. I traded it in for another used book this morning in Bangkok, and I figure I'll probably finish it today and buy another one in the airport in Korea tomorrow.

I was really horrid looking when I got off the train - I mean, come on, I have massively curly, long hair and I was sleeping on a train - so luckily I was able find a guesthouse with a shower I could use for 30 baht (about $1). They also let me leave my ridiculously heavy bags there (I finally did my Christmas shopping in Laos) so now I'm just wandering around, killing time.

I bought an airport bus ticket for 8pm, because although in theory my flight leaves at 1:15am, it was a change from the original time of 11:15pm, and my Expedia account still has the original time on it, even though they're the ones who sent me the time change. I'm not too concerned about it, I'm sure the 1:15am time is probably correct, but it's not like I have anything to do, anyway, so I'm just going to get to the airport around 9pm to be safe. I need to remember to bring food with me, though - it's horrendously expensive at the Bangkok airport, moreso even than most. $3 for a can of Pepsi! WTF, Bangkok. WTF.

Ummm... ok. I am going to try and kill at least another 30 minutes on the Internet before I go find lunch. Basically I plan on just eating all day. I think this is a pretty legit plan.

ALSO: I can't wait to get home and see my cat. Seriously.

The end.

2008-12-16T12:30:53Z

Well, today was my last "real" day on this trip, and I spent it walking around Vientienne, the capitol of Laos, and eating lots and lots of food. Seriously. Lots. I am pretty sure I have gained a significant amount of weight in Asia. I don't even like looking at myself in the mirror. Of course, it doesn't help that I feel like I haven't had a proper shower in ages and I'm pretty sure my clothes smell and it's hot as hell outside.

Tomorrow I get picked up at 3pm to go catch my overnight train to Bangkok. I arrive back in Bangkok at 6am on Thursday, and will spend the day lugging my bags around the city, trying to stay cool, and possibly begging various hostels and guesthouses to let me use their showers. This is because my flight doesn't leave until 1:15 in the morning, so I don't have to be at the airport until 11pm - and let's remember, I won't have showered since Wednesday morning in Vientienne. And, uh, it's really really hot in southeast Asia.

So then, assuming no one else decides to take over the Bangkok airport, I fly to Seoul, South Korea, arriving at 8ish in the morning. Hopefully I'll be able to meet up with an old friend for lunch (and maybe use his shower, if I'm still in a nasty, disgusting state?) and get a nice little Korean stamp in my passport. Then I board the horrifically long flight back to San Francisco a little before 5pm. Due to the strangeness of inter-continental travel, I arrive in California 7 hours earlier than when I Seoul, at 10am on Friday. I am pretty sure that I'll probably pass out on the drive back to Sacramento (my dad's picking me up) all things considered.

I've done A LOT of traveling in the past week or so. I plan to write about it when I get back home, and have oodles of time and absolutely zero money - the perfect situation in which to spend hours on the Internet. I can pretty safely say that my decision to take the road-les-traveled over the most Northern Vietnam/Laos border crossing was probably a mistake, considering how little time I had and the amount of really, ridiculously difficult travel involved. However, I met a ton of amazing people along the way, and saw lots of really awesome stuff, so in the end it all worked out. I definitely hope that I can come back to Laos someday soon and be able to spend more time here - it's amazing, and you could easily spend at least 3 weeks just exploring this secluded little country.

I'm quite excited to get home for Christmas, which is, hands down, my favorite holiday. I've even been walking down the streets of Vientienne singing carols, because I'm past the point of caring whether or not people thing I'm crazy, and because Lao people seem to randomly sing to themselves al the time. And also because even though it's horribly hot outside, it's Christmastime, damnit!

Oh, and: last night I stayed in a hotel that used to be a CIA hotspot during the US's secret war in Laos. It was awesome and I am basically a secret agent. That is all.

Day 12: And yesterday I went to Little India.

2008-12-01T15:10:04Z

Tonight I have been applying for jobs in California, booking a hostel in Hanoi and arranging my travel to Malaysia tomorrow, while sitting in my friend's living room in Singapore, eating baklava that her roommate, who works as a flight attendant, bought in Abu Dhabi.

My life is truly international.

Day 8: The Lion City

2008-11-29T03:07:08Z

So, for those of you who are not my friend on Facebook (why aren't you my friend on Facebook?) I should announce that I made it safely out of Thailand, thank God. 15 hours in the Phuket airport is enough for me to NEVER WANT TO GO BACK. Only too bad I have to fly out of Bangkok on the 18th.

So now I'm in Singapore! There's a whole long story about how I got here via KL, but I've already typed it to people several times in e-mails and conversations, and I'm too lazy to write it up again. But do know that I am herE and my friends are taking excellent care of me. It's nice to have real showers and free places to stay for a while, since Thailand cost me way more than I had expected - especially considering that I had to pay $100 to get a new plane ticket out.

But now my travel plans are a bit messed up, as I don't think I'll be able to get a Vietnam Visa in time for my flight on Wednesday. So I'm either going to have to see if the airline will change the ticket, get a new ticket at a later date, or just not go to Vietnam and get a ticket into Laos or Cambodia instead.

Aaaannd... that's all. I need to go re-pack my bags for when Charmaine comes to pick me up.

Day 7: Stuck in Thailand

2008-11-26T07:32:50Z

So... for the first time in my life, I can say that my flight was cancelled due to attempts to overthrow the government.

And rather than feel worried or frightened, I'm simply annoyed.

I was really counting on getting to Singapore today, as I'm a bit sick of Thailand, and Phuket in particular. For those of you (I'm guessing most of you, as this story isn't really being covered by western media) who don't know, there are some major riots and protests going on in Bangkok right now, and they are seriously attempting to overthrow the current government. Which isn't a particularly unusual thing in Thailand, though it's slightly unusual that so many people have joined together in this movement - the last coup was in 2006, and it was done swiftly by the government and was completely bloodless.

Anyway, here's the story about why the airport has been shut down, as I don't think that I could do a much better job at explaining the situation.

The thing is, I didn't think that I'd be affected by this, as I'm in Phuket, not Bangkok, and the airport here is still open. But as it turns out, the flight to Singapore uses a plane that's housed in Bangkok, and until that airport re-opens, my flight is cancelled.

So. I've been "re-booked" on the same flight for tomorrow, but I'm using quotation marks as I highly doubt that the Bangkok airport will re-open in the next 24 hours. Hopefully, I'll be able to pay a bit extra and get my ticket switch to a flight to KL, in Malaysia, and from there I'll take the 6 hour busride down to Singapore. If that's not an option, then I'll probably be taking a bus the whole way, which will be, uh, less than fun - it's about 9 or 10 hours just to the southern border of Thailand, and probably an equally long trip down to Johor Bahru (the border crossing to Singapore). I'd prefer not to spend my Thanksgiving on a bus, but I'd also prefer not to spend it in Phuket, so compromises must be made, I suppose.

For now, I've moved to a cheap hotel in Phuket Town, and it's markedly better than Patong. I've had some good food and mentally chided myself to chill out, so I'm feeling much better.

Day 5: Diving in Phuket

2008-11-24T13:39:21Z

- Today I spent the day out on the ocean, and did 3 dives. Now I am back on land, but still feel like the floor is rocking below me.
- The first dive was not-so-great, due to really shitty visibility and ridiculously strong currents. Which is a shame, because it was my first ever wreck dive.
- The next two dives were really great. Leopard Sharks! Giant starfish! Lion Fish! Awesome corals! Etc. Etc. Etc.
- The people on my boat were pretty awesome. My dive buddy was a girl my age from Denmark, named Sophie, who I will soon be friending on Facebook. Also, the boat itself was by FAR the nicest dive boat I've ever had. There was hot tea and toast and a lounge area and FRESH WATER HOT SHOWERS WITH SHAMPOO AND CONDITIONER, OMG.
- Australian guy from my dive boat invited me out with him and his friends tonight, only neither of us seem to be able to call the other from our phones. So I might just go see a movie instead and then call it a night.
- I'm reading The Historian. It's really good, though I'm pretty sure it was party responsible for giving me some pretty fucked up dreams last night.

The End of Day 3: First Night in Phuket

2008-11-22T15:37:02Z

Well, I was right: the hostel I wanted was all booked up by the time I got here, and I seriously underestimated the sheer overwhelming nature of Patong. As feared, I ended up in a pretty expensive room - by my Thailand standards, at least. But it's sort of nice - only $35 and I have my own bathroom, air conditioning, a big (soft!) bed, and free Internet. Tomorrow I'll transfer over to the hostel, which is just down the street. So no worries, really.

Went out in search of a drink and found myself overwhelmed yet again. Too many people, and way too many old white dudes with Asian girls at their side. It is extremely off-putting and it makes me uncomfortable. I sat with a bunch of young guys at a bar for a while (one Scottish, one English, two Kiwis) and one of them informed me that in a bathroom, he even saw a sign that said, "Bring your loved one home!" and had instructions for getting a Thai person a foreign visa. Ew. All in all, the streets in Patong remind me of a neon version of Del Playa back at UCSB, only with more Asians and way more old white dudes.

It's 10:30 and my feet hurt, and let's not forget that I got up at 5am today, so I'm headed to bed in my room o' luxury. Hopefully I will meet some friends tomorrow, whether it be at the beach or in the hostel. I also need to check out diving prices.

Day 3: Leaving Bangkok

2008-11-22T02:48:02Z

Today I fly to Phuket. Thank goodness. Can't wait to get out of the hectic city and onto the beach. I'm just hoping that I don't have a lot of trouble finding a hostel upon arrival, but I'm not too worried. Worst case scenario is I end up somewhere shitty or somewhere overly priced (read: over $6) for one night.

BUT even if it does take me a while to find a place to stay, it won't be so bad because I shipped a bunch of clothes home today. Yes, I know, I am an idiot who overpacked, but at least I've solved the problem quickly. It was about $25 to ship them home, and they're set to arrive in 3 months.

Dear clothes,
I hope we meet again in February.
Love,
Sarah

OH ALSO. I was so exhausted and hungover yesterday that after I took a river ferry to Chinatown and back, I fell asleep around 3:30pm, not to wake up. Needless to say, at 5am this morning, I was wide awake.

Day 2: Morning in Bangkok

2008-11-21T02:29:50Z

- Hungover.
- Hung out with Irish boys last night. Hence the hangover.
- Not sure what I'm going to do today, but since I only had like 3 hours of sleep, I'm pretty sure a nap will be included.
- Also haven't showered yet.
- Or eaten.
- But I am drinking a pop.
- I'm gross.
- I fly to Phuket tomorrow.
- So I should probably go see the Giant Reclining Buddha today.
- Also had an invitation from these British girls I hung out with at dinner to meet them at 10am to go shopping, but that's just not going to happen. I want it to, but... again with the gross and needing to shower.
- More later when I've actually accomplished something.

Day 1: Bangkok

2008-11-20T07:48:30Z

It is 2:30pm. So far today I have:

- Woken up incredibly early, and probably woke up all of the 7 other people in my hostel dorm at 6:45am while shuffling around in my bag.
- Remembered what it's like to shower while traveling in SE Asia. Realized I will have to re-learn that process.
- Re-packed my backpack. Yup, definitely overpacked. Definitely is REALLY HEAVY. Considering shipping some stuff home.
- Bought some fresh papaya from a street vendor for breakfast.
- Walked around the Sukumvit area for a while.
- Took a taxi to Khao San, in search of a cheaper hostel.
- Walked around with the Bag of Heavy Doom for a while, finally found a really cute guesthouse with rooms for 250 baht, or about $7. Paid for two nights, lugged the Bag of Heavy Doom up ten million flights of stairs.
- Left the guesthouse around 9:30am (yeah, I know, seriously, we're only at 9:30)
- Walked.
- Walked.
- Walked more.
- Realized I was dressed improperly for being allowed in the Palace and the temples (I'm wearing shorts and my knees are showing).
- Realized that anyways, I had left my camera in my room, but only once I was several miles from the hotel, and frankly somewhat lost.
- Ate lunch at a random stall by the river. Have no idea what it was. Guy said chicken: definitely NOT chicken. But it was delicious and there was rice and it was spicy and it only cost me 30 baht (a little less than $1) so I'm not complaining. Feel free to make "Sarah ate dog!" jokes starting... now.
- Walked a lot more.
- Bought some postcards and camped out with some delicious Thai Milk Green Tea while I wrote them, and visited with a couple of American dudes who are heading home tomorrow.
- Saw two million white people.
- Bought something that I think might possibly be a converter, which I will eventually need to charge my camera batteries. If it's not, it was only about 25 cents, so no harm done.
- Almost got struck by several moving vehicles, including but not limited to: motorbikes, cars, vans, trucks, and tuk-tuks.
- Began to once again feel like a big, fat, hairy giant. Oh, how I missed that feeling.
- Found out from one of my friends in Singapore that a there was a bombing here in Bangkok last night. I am going to try not to get bombed. Being bombed would suck.

Aaaaand I think that about brings us up to speed. I camped out in this air conditioned internet cafe to let my feet rest for a while. I think I might go back to my room and take a quick nap before the evening... my plans include eating a delicious dinner somewhere, possibly crashing other backpackers' table during said dinner in order to make some friends, and going out drinking at night. Should be good times.

In Bangkok.

2008-11-20T01:05:12Z

My flight out of Seoul was delayed last night, so I didn't get into Bangkok until 1am, and didn't get to my hostel until after 2am. BUT HERE I AM.

I think I'm limited to 20 minutes on the computer here, and I'm about to go off in search of breakfast and a cheaper hostel, so. This is all for now!

Heading out!

2008-11-17T23:30:58Z

Alright, this is it. I'm shutting down my laptop and leaving it behind. Heading to San Fran to spend the night, and exiting the country via jet plane tomorrow at noon!

I'll have my cell phone until I board the plane, and I'm sure I'll be checking my e-mail at random computers in the hotel lobby, etc. Otherwise, I'll post again from Bangkok!

And the panic begins.

2008-11-17T17:01:50Z

Ummm... I think I'm packing too many clothes??? My bag is pretty heavy. BUT I AM GONE FOR A MONTH. A FREAKING MONTH. And my backpack has hipstraps, which make it not really heavy at all? UMMMMM I AM STARTING TO FREAK OUT. CRAP.

Also, it looks like due to random chance and happenstance, I'm going to have a mel06 in my hotel room tonight!!

So true. So very, very true.

2008-11-15T03:00:49Z

Obama Win Causes Obsessive Supporters To Realize How Empty Their Lives Are

Teenage "poetry"

2008-11-14T04:06:45Z

Reading diary entries from my teenage years makes me want to die. Except sometimes I wrote poems:

The Woman Next Door
I ride her exercise bike
It is old and doesn't work too well
She is dead and has no more use for it
The old woman who lived next door
She drank and smoke a lot
I think she was from Vietnam
Her husband is sad
But he gave us her bike
I guess I should feel bad that she died
But I don't
And now I can exercise
Unless I die
In which case,
Someone else
Can have it.

OH, FIFTEEN YEAR OLD SARAH. YOU HAD A HEART OF BLACK, EVEN THEN.

Talk about specific.

2008-11-05T22:20:59Z

As I was cleaning out and packing up my office, I found a fortune cookie.

I went to throw it in the trash, but the superstitious part of me took over, and I decided to open it.

It read:

A four-wheeled adventure will soon bring you happiness.

It's here.

2008-11-04T13:17:18Z

I caved in and made a Twitter again. I'll be updating it throughout the day today, from my phone. Feel free to check it out, if for some reason you're interested in my up-to-the-second election day thoughts:

http://twitter.com/ladue

And now I leave my comfortable Cedar Rapids office for the wild of Benton county.

Vote.