Stigma

A National Institute of Health panel got together to talk about ways to dispel the stigma of urinary and fecal incontinence.

If we can't laugh about pee pee and poo poo anymore, what can we laugh about?

Xmas is around the corner

Wouldn't a lovely item from the MunMunHouse Store make the perfect gift for a loved one?

Corky Test Comes Back Normal

Hooray, I got the results back from my amniocentesis and there were no chromosomal abnormalities detected!

Also, it's a girl!

Just being contrary?

Why is it everyone I meet, who professes to be a libertarian, works for a big, fat, tax supported government institution?

Crazy Product

Mun Mun was perusing bathtubs for babies on Amazon and came across this model called the "Wash Pod." Looks like the "Baby Bucket" to me.

My Husband: Evil Prankster

TK's friend, J, a burly guy who is a fan of true crime novels and movies, left a computer at work still logged on to Netflix. TK went into his account and added "Care Bears: Kingdom of Sharing" to the top of his queue. It has probably shipped by now.

Back on track

Mun Mun has been working at new liberry with good results! Rarely do belligerent teens pass through new dept. Only mentally ill and homeless are now new friends and constant companions! New friends are so much more quiet (except when screaming from bad trip or assaults on their persons every so often.) Mun Mun also happy with BEST new companions, city officers with billy clubs!

Mun Mun getting fun questions like, "Are scientists teaching dogs to talk?", "Have buffaloes and cows been interbred with fertile offspring?" (answer:yes! Beefalo big industry), and "Where are the muscle car repair books?"

Mun Mun still reading last Harry Potter even though Mun Mun knows ending 'cos of loudmouth fuckers.

Started writing new Pops book. Title is "What Do You Say, Pops?: All Year Round."

Gay Angel Fight!

I've almost reached the end of the His Dark Materials trilogy. The Amber Spyglass alludes to some sexual stuff which is unusual in a kids' book. For instance, there are a couple of male angel characters that are super, super close and some weird garden of eden comparisons with the main characters. This trilogy has been quite a ride.

Leaving this veil of tears

Friday was my last day working in South L.A. You haven't lived until you've had a two and a half year old African American boy tell you, "Get out of my face, bitch."

Rod Steiger dancing

Mun Mun had always loved a scene from the movie, "The Chosen" in which Rod Steiger dances at a wedding to this awesom Klezmer music. I finally tracked down who performed this music and it is a band called Kapelye. If only my lame clarinet teacher had had me learn music like that, instead of boring classical etudes, I probably would have continued to play.

TK and I watched the 90's version of "The Island of Dr. Moreau" with Marlon Brando the other night. I hadn't known that a character in that movie was the inspiration Mini-Me from Austin Powers. It made the movie worth seeing for me (though I don't recommend it.)

Mun Mun through with ghetto fools up in here

Mun Mun is escaping her job in the 'hood in two months and will transfer to a job downtown. Woo hoo! Mun Mun's going to the show.

Mun Mun called in sick Saturday and lucked out by missing another random shooting and pool of blood outside the liberry.

Mun Mun was at home watching her favorite show in pajamas. Mun Mun loves the Sarah Silverman Program on Comedy Central.

Dear New York

Dear New York,

I know there would be problems with drug use and prostitution if you had them, but if you would add more public restrooms, I bet your streets and parks would smell less like pee.

Love,
Mun Mun

P.S. If you added some elevators to the subway, I bet people with baby strollers would appreciate it.

Audiobook of Golden Compass

Yesterday I finished listening to the first book of the "His Dark Materials" Trilogy by Philip Pullman on tape. Though I was alone in my car, I was tempted to stand up and applaud when it ended. It was that good. Philip Pullman narrated and a large cast did the voices on this Listening Library production.

Oge had recommended the trilogy a few years back and I'm finally getting around to it. If you like Harry Potter, you'll dig the Golden Compass fo' sho'.

I love Iorek Byrnison!

TK Sleeptalking

Sometimes I talk to TK and he seems awake, but he's really asleep. This morning around 5 am he had his arm around me.

Mun: I'm gonna get up and go to the bathroom.
TK: Are you going to call someone?
Mun: Like...am I going to call one of the cats? (once I'm in there)
TK: I don't know. I don't work for your organization.

Lost Bitch

I was driving on Gage Avenue in South Central today on an errand for my job and saw a flier someone must have put on a telephone pole looking for a missing person. There was a goofy close-up of a Latino girl and some information about her. Someone had scrawled at the top of the flier, "Lost Bitch."

Depressing and funny at the same time.

Commerce Casino Billboards

Commerce Casino has the oddest ad campaign. TK and I can't quite figure it out. There is a big billboard on Highway 5 that says, "Don't play with yourself. Play with us" and it has pictures of these two weirdos

Are we supposed to want to hang out with them or something?

My fascinating ophthalmologic problems

Since Dr. J injected steroids into the white of my eye, my vision has improved significantly. However, there is still a nagging blind spot. Two weeks ago when I looked at my face in the mirror with my left eye, all I saw was a blurry circle with eyes. One week ago, a mouth started to appear. A couple of days ago, a little bit of a nose started to poke through.

Maybe I will get lucky and be able to read with that eye again.

Mun Mun gets poked in eye with needle

Yesterday my doc injected some steroids into the white of my eye. Not much change yet.

May have to get something to stop new blood vessel growth injected into the middle of my eye. Not looking forward to that.

Apparently this is all to stop new damage. My crappy eyesight may not be reversible. Waaah.

I'd rather stick needles in my eyes, not

Mun Mun went to another eye specialist today who thinks Mun Mun has a rare condition called punctate inner choroidopathy, which I guess is part of a spectrum of disorders called Multiple Evanescent White Dot Syndrome (MEWDS). What is it with my family and rare diseases that only 1 in 100,000 people get?

The doctor is going to track the blob in my eye. I may have to get an injection of steroids in my eyeball to make the inflammation go down at some point. If it comes to that, bring on the Valium.

There was little boy ahead of me when I was waiting to get blood drawn to see if I have West Nile Virus or some shit. The boy was screaming his head off for about 15 minutes while they were trying to pin him down to draw his blood. He screamed that he wanted to get his lollipop and go home. I could relate.

Two Great Toys That Play Great Together

My in-laws have bought the perfect pair of toys. They have an off-road version of the Segway and own a couple of remote control airplanes. That way when they fly the toy airplane and it crash-lands far away, they can just jump on the Segway and retrieve it.

I got to ride the Segway yesterday at a family reunion and it was fun!

I have so many nieces under two years of age all of a sudden.

Fluorescent Pee

Mun Mun had a medical procedure today where they injected dye into my blood, so they could take pictures of the veins in my eyeballs. I turned away when they injected the dye and didn't see what color it was. I was surprised later when I went to the bathroom and the pee was highlighter-pen yellow. You could have dyed Easter eggs in that pee it was so yellow.

It turns out the blob in Mun Mun's eyeball that is screwing up Mun Mun's vision has gotten smaller. So, I may not be going blind after all.

Wouldn't it be nice if one could just expect one's body to go on being healthy?

Not Mun Mun's Week

Mun Mun has suddenly lost some vision in left eye. Doctors are testing. What is wrong with Mun Mun???!!! Might be Mun Mun going blind, or has an infection, or even has parasite. Mun Mun suspects toxoplasmosis. Mun Mun's life surrounds cleaning cat litter.

Trails

A favorite new hangout of TK and me is Trails Cafe in Griffith Park. I went there last Wednesday when I got out unexpectedly early from a CPR and defibrillator class I was taking for work. On the way up there were two coyotes brazenly walking around in broad daylight, unbeknownst to two sunbathers a few yards away.

After a delightful ice coffee at Trails, I decided to take a little hike up a trail I had not been on before. I noticed a lot of men hanging around solo that gave me the creeps. On one nook of the trail there was a guy lurking behind a tree smoking when I walked up and on the way back.

I found out later some of the Griffith Park trails are gay cruising areas. Someone I know has actually come upon people having sex on one of these trails that was littered with amyl nitrate poppers. As long as nobody's going to pounce on a female, I guess I don't care. It's a weird vibe though. It reminded me of walking around red light areas of Amsterdam and seeing creepy men on the prowl.

Chocolate now a vitamin?

When I was a kid I used to pretend my M&M's were prescription pills. I wasn't far off base.

http://www.scienceblog.com/cms/cocoa-vitamin-health-benefits-could-outshine-penicillin-12768.html

Dear Tokey...

My friend "Sundiver" has a fun, new drug (and drinking) etiquette advice column. You should submit a question gentle readers!

The moment I became a Cher fan

Around the late 1980's, I saw Diane Sawyer interview Cher on TV. At the time, Cher was in the gossip magazines because she was dating a younger man, Robert Camilletti. I believe Diane Sawyer was already married to Mike Nichols at that point. I didn't know a lot about Cher, but I knew she had experienced a lot in her life, including marriage, motherhood, many different relationships, long-time independence, and career highs and lows. At a certain point in the interview, Diane Sawyer asked some questions about Robert Camilletti. Then, there was this exchange:

Diane Sawyer (bright eyed): So, is he...the One?!

Cher stared at Sawyer wearily for a prolonged moment.

Cher: You know, I really expected more from you.

I don't remember how the rest of the interview went, but Cher earned my deep respect that day. I can't watch Diane Sawyer on TV without thinking of that dumbfuck question. It just doesn't seem right to ask such a thing of an old soul, such as Cher.

AFI reject: 100 Flicks 100 Trips

Mun Mun's husband's best friend works at the American Film Institute where they have put out various fun movie lists, such as 100 Years 100 Cheers: the 100 Most Inspiring Films of All Time and 100 Years, 100 Movie Quotes.

Mun Mun made a suggestion for a list, but apparently AFI is giving up the lists soon. Here's my idea:

100 Flicks 100 Trips

The hundred most surreal moments in American film

Nominees

1. Salvador Dali dream sequence - Spellbound
2. Brainwashing/garden party - Manchurian Candidate
3.Bathroom becomes torture chamber - Head
4. Jack Nicholson in red bar room - The Shining
5. Tracking through the woods - Evil Dead 2
6. Zoom in, dolly out on Roy Scheider's face - Jaws
7. Ghouls thrashing - Jacob's Ladder
8. Talking trees - Wizard of Oz
9. Closet door opening repeatedly - Patty Hearst
9. Erasing memories - Flash Gordon
10. Everyone looks like John Malkovich - Being John Malkovich
11. River sequence - Night of the Hunter
12. The mirror becomes liquid - Donnie Darko
13. In heaven everything is fine dance from Eraserhead
14. Circus Circus scene from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
15. Brooms carrying water in the Sorceror's Apprentice - Fantasia
16. Cantina scene - Star Wars
17. Cereal falling in slow motion on boy - Mysterious Skin
18. Typewriter bug - Naked Lunch
19. Large Marge - Pee Wee's Big Adventure
20 Baby old man - 2001
21. Pink elephants - Dumbo
22.Replicant workshop with little Prussian soldier - Blade Runner
23. Fight scenes - Matrix
24. Rollerskating guys with one beard from 5000 fingers of Dr. T.
25. Talking fish from the Road to Utopia.

Can you think of any more nominees? Maybe I need to consult the Psychotronic Film Guide. I guess more science fiction and horror films could go on this list.

Your Natural Selection At Work

Morning Dove,
originally uploaded by hearman.

A few years ago at my old apartment, before I had cats, a mourning dove built a nest in the window box on my porch and laid an egg. It was lovely having it there. However, one morning I woke up to total carnage; feathers and nest scattered everywhere, egg gone. Either a cat or a raccoon got it.

The past couple of days, outside my new place with TK, a mourning dove has been hanging out on a low wall. I am hearing that chirpy sound mourning doves make when they fly over and over. It's probably building a nest on the wall, goddamnit. Stupid bird. My cats are indoors, but there are about four outdoor cats that live here.

1-2-3-4 University High School!

Mun Mun played two semesters in marching band to avoid PE in high school and developed a deep dislike of football. Nevertheless, Mun Mun went to a fun Superbowl part on Sunday and memories of some of the high school cheers came back. Mun Mun also has a deep disdain for cheerleading, but has to admit Uni High's cheerleaders were pretty saucy.

The following are Mun Mun's favorite cheers.

1.We Ain’t No Cougars

We ain’t no (sh sh sh sh, sh sh sh sh) Cougars!

Hey hey we ain’t no Cougars
Hey hey we ain’t no Bulls
Ole, hey hey, ole
We ain’t no Roughriders
Whoa hey haw
We ain’t no dolphins
That swim through the sea
We ain’t no lions
They cannot scare me
We ain’t no comets
That fly through the sky
We ain’t no [chargers?eagles?]
I can’t tell a lie
We ain’t no sheiks
That ride camels back
We are the Warriors
So send them on back

We are the Warriors
Hey hey the mighty Warriors
Hey hey so check us out

Hey, you know that!

2.
OK
All the way
One play

3.
One, two, you know what to do
I said, freeze
Defrost
Three four, you don’t want no more
I said leave, bye-bye, get lost

4.
We are so live
Class of '85
We're in the mix
Class of '86
We are in heaven
Class of '87
We are so great
Class of '88

See you later on the Rooter Bus.

Hey, you know that!

And you are...?

Mun Mun has never been great at remembering faces and names. The November 2006 issue of Wired had an interesting article about prosopagnosia or face blindness. Some people can't even recognize their loved ones that they see every day. I went to the website of the researchers www.faceblind.org and took one of their face recognition tests. As I anticipated, I scored somewhat below average (5%).

I recently didn't recognize a, ahem, high level director of the organization I work for and it was a little embarrassing.

Red passion flower

Red passion flower,
originally uploaded by JanetD.

Found this on Flickr. I've only seen red passion flowers at the Juice It Up on Venice Blvd.

Mun Mun Endorses Sharon's Sorbet

Mun Mun has had a scratchy throat for many days and has been sampling sorbets from the supermarket to ease her pain. She picked up some Passion Fruit sorbet from Trader Joe's today and cannot f'ing believe how good it is. If you like passion fruit, try Sharon's Sorbet. Mun Mun also likes Haagen Dazs peach sorbet, but does not like the mango flavor quite as much.

Mun Mun is a big fan of passion flowers. There is going to be a noon lecture at LA Central Library soon on passion flowers that she will sadly miss.

Lyrics to Song From "The Daydreamer" by Rankin and Bass

Luck To Sell

I've done enough waiting for my lucky day
I'm gonna start searching for my dream today

Does anybody have some luck to sell?
Or an extra wishing well,
My luck's run out
My well's completely dry

Does anybody have some luck to sell?
Or a mystic, magic spell
The star I wished upon has left the sky

I want to pick my future from a bush, a rosy one,
Where happiness grows,
Find a clover with one leaf over,
I'm charmed right down to my toes

Does anybody have some luck to sell?
Or an extra wishing well
My luck's run out,
My well's completely dry
Does anybody have some luck to sell
To a real unlucky guy