Wednesday, January 30, 2008

LOOK WHO GOT HER BRACES OFF!!
laboratory [lab-ruh-tawr-ee]
a building, part of a building, or other place equipped to conduct scientific experiments, tests, investigations, etc., or to manufacture chemicals, medicines, or the like
Synonyms include: workshop

automation [aw-tuh-mey-shuhn]
the technique, method, or system of operating or controlling a process by highly automatic means, as by electronic devices, reducing human intervention to a minimum
Synonyms include: mechanization, computerization
I'm back from my conference and here's what I did...(I had a laptop at the booth with me. Thanks, Jovi!)
1/27/08, 12:40 pm - Right now I’m at the Palm Springs Convention Center for yet another wonderful conference. The random theme of THIS convention: Lab Automation. I have yet to figure out what this means so I’m hoping that by Tuesday night (after the conference is over) I’ll have a clear explanation for you all that won’t sound so *snore* hahaha. Anyhow, I’ve been sent here because I’m the new advertising coordinator for the publication that we promote at this convention every year. Are you ready for the publication's title? The Journal of Biomolecular Screening (subheading: Advancing the Science of Drug Discovery). Again, I can’t completely explain the mechanics of this science yet. I coordinate all the ads that go into this journal and I could do well to describe the ads to you all, but that’s it. The ads are all quite interesting actually; very eye catching. Who knew that ads for biomolecular screening could be so vibrant?!

Anyhow, I left Glendale at around 7:00 am this morning. I would’ve left sooner if mom and dad weren’t pushing to make me eat breakfast before the drive. I prayed and prayed that it would be a pleasant ride to Palm Springs. The last week has been wrought with such stressful driving due to all the rain. Thankfully, the rain subsided for most of the drive; acting fickle quite often between freeway interchanges – 134 East to the 210 East to the 57 South to the 10 East – rain, sunshine, cloudy, bright, sprinkle, etc. In any case, I got here in 2 hours.

It took me about 3 hours to set up the booth, then I headed to “Downtown Palm Springs” to find some lunch. Downtown Palm Springs is basically one street, lined with various shops and restaurants. I ate at this one Italian restaurant; had me a calzone yummy! Then I decided to walk it off, feeling very tired, very full and never wanted to lie down more. But with 3 hours to kill, I had to do something so I walked into one boutique that had some really cute dresses in the front window. When I saw the prices on the merchandise though, I said hell no and left. I had about 3 more blocks left to walk until the end of “Downtown Palm Springs” when I saw it; a familiar place that could do nothing less than comfort me like home: Coffee Bean! Hahaha! I ordered my vanilla latte and sat for about 45 minutes and wrote…wrote…and wrote some more. I was writing so fast I could hardly believe it. I haven’t had one of those awesome spells in months!! It’s too bad I had to leave. Oh well…

3:55 pm - So I’m sitting at our booth, #364, hanging out until the exhibit opens at 4:30. It looks like I have about 35 minutes left to collect and share my experience so far; can't be on the laptop the whole time...can I? The nice thing about this conference is that I’m not the only attendee here representing the company. One of our acquisitions editors, Nancy, will be here with me, in addition to our sales rep, Nicole, who flew in from Pennsylvania, and a representative from the Society of Biomolecular Sciences, Betty, who came in from Connecticut. I’ve gotten a chance to talk to her a lot today. She’s a riot so far!

The exhibit’s only open for 3 hours today and then I have to check into my hotel. Check-in wasn’t until 4 pm and since the exhibit began at 4:30, I didn’t want to take any chances with time so I got dressed in the convention restrooms. I chose one of the bigger stalls and as quick as Superman can change in a phone booth, I went from a frumpy little girl (in brown warm-ups, a green Paul Frank anteater shirt – I looked like a freakin’ tree – and some Adidas) to the professional (in black slacks, button-down polo, vest and flats).

Uh-oh..the convention has commenced. Gotta go fake the funk now, without being too obvious of course =)

1/28/08, 10:45 am - Geekfest – day 2. hahaha! I should stop saying that. Geeks are people too. =) So allow me to be superficial for just a sec. At the neuroscience conference, I was telling all the girls about all the nice-looking neurosurgeons, neurologists, and neuroscientists walking around. Who knew McDreamies could exist in real life?! So Lab Automation certainly has a lot to live up to and, I have to admit, so far so good. I know seriously; leave it to me to attend a conference and check out guys. Hey man, when it’s in front of your face it’s in front of your face! What’s a girl to do? The booth to our right is being manned by this hot dude (who looks to be in his early 30’s), spikey hair, wears glasses (uy ve) and then he opened his mouth to speak and…BRITISH ACCENT. Oh buddy, you had me at “cheers!”

Damn, today’s gonna be long as hell. It’s only 11:15 am and I have to be here until 6:30. AAAAAAHHH!! I’m freakin’ starving too because, unlike the conferences at the SD Convention Center, there aren’t any snack bars around here.

Ho hum…come on people (or as Iya’s niece Samantha would say, “Ta mon!”), stop by and talk to me, ask me about our journals. I promise I’ll make up something really cool! Hahaha!!!

Ok dammit, I better go…though I’ll probably be back in a bit.

12:15 pm - Building bridges – isn’t that how all relationships (social and business) start? You find something in common with someone, even the most random points of interest, and next thing you know, half an hour has passed and you’re still conversing. When I first saw Julian yesterday, (he’s in the booth to our left), I immediately thought – European. In style, attitude and well, I heard his accent (Germanish), it was a no-brainer. Homeboy’s about 6 ft tall, dirty blonde hair in gel-tastic disarray, and he is Australian-Swiss. How random. In the 20 minutes that we got to talk, I learned that he was born and raised in Switzerland but has dual citizenship. He moved here to Santa Monica last year and just found a place in Marina del Rey that he'll be sharing with one of his friends emigrating from Switzerland. He misses home every time he sees the mountains here and appreciates Starbucks not for its quality (he’s European for crying out loud), but because it’s something regular that he can rely on. He also thinks that Americans are unable to cook vegetables properly. “I hope I don’t offend you,” he said, “but here vegetables are either over or undercooked.” No offense taken, Julian. Thanks for the note.

And his colleague, Rich, was here when I was setting up. He’s from Chicago so we talked that city up too. I love that traveling has proven to be so beneficial to my ability to make connections.

2:35 pm - Talk about not having enough to do! It’s ok though. Every few minutes I’ll walk around the booth, smile at people, talk to Nicole and Betty so they can re-cap their conversations with potential advertisers. And I finally got something to eat – thank God! The society who’s holding the conference had boxed lunches for everyone here. That’s like 4,600 boxes! Plus they have a refreshment stand somewhere and when I say “refreshments” I mean beer and wine. Yesterday, every other person was walking around with either a Corona, a Heineken or a glass of red wine in their hand. Talk about pleasing your attendees. Unfortunately, I’m still taking Naproxen so alcohol is a no-no.


1/29/08, 10:53 am - Alrighty, Julian the Swiss-Aussie and I are officially homies. We’ve only been here for 25 minutes this morning and I’ve found out that he’s getting married in Switzerland in August, to his girlfriend of 4 ½ years, who is studying to be a nurse. After she’s done with that, she’ll either move here or he’ll move back to Switzerland. Must be nice to be you, buddy. Out of all the conferences I've been to, the people I've met here have definitely been the friendliest!

Ok, only 5 1/2 more hours before I get to tear down this booth...

***And that was my 3 days in Palm Springs...hooray!

Monday, January 28, 2008

Happy 30th Birthday,
Mina!!! DAW!!!

Sunday, January 27, 2008

I'm in Palm Springs for a conference: LabAutomation 2008. hoo...ray...I'll see you all Wednesday!!!




...and Happy Birthday
to one of my favorite pinsans,
AIMEE!!!

Saturday, January 26, 2008

Happy 30th
Birthday,
FANTONE!!!

Friday, January 25, 2008

Welcome to Anna's poetry corner...

Ahem..

Rain, rain go away.
Come again when I don't have to drive 40 miles to Thousand Oaks.

Thank you.

(If you don't get this, that means you're not a fan of Animaniacs and you should be!)

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Happy, Happy
30th Birthday,
Jay!!!

Happy, Happy Birthday, Diana!!

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

patience [pey-shuh ns]
the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like; an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay
Synonyms include: calmness, composure, even temper

A test of the aforementioned:
I woke up half an hour late; attempted to make myself look presentable but with only 25 minutes to accomplish this daily feat, failed miserably and I look like I got out of bed and walked to my desk; an accident on the 101 allowed me 2 hours and 15 minutes of precious Anna-going-nuts-in-the-car alone time; broke a nail while I was adjusting my seat; the only parking spot left on the lot was next to a Camry that parked at such a careless angle that I had to climb over the hand brake to exit my car from the passenger’s side. I was cheerful this morning, just a tad, because I missed the game last night but found out the Lakers won! But then I checked ESPN.com this morning and read this: http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3206516 What a weird way to kick me when I’m down! haha!

In the middle of writing this entry, Iya emailed this (thanks, friend!):

The 7 Ups!

1. Wake Up !!
Decide to have a good day.

"This is the day the Lord hath made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."
Psalms 118:24

2. Dress Up !!
The best way to dress up is to put on a smile. A smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.

"The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."
I Samuel 16:7

3. Shut Up!!
Say nice things and learn to listen. God gave us two ears and one mouth, so He must have meant for us to do twice as much listening as talking.

"He who guards his lips guards his soul."
Proverbs 13:3

4. Stand Up!!
. . . for what you believe in. Stand for something or you will fall for anything.

"Let us not be weary in doing good; for at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good..."
Galatians 6:9-10

5. Look Up !!
...to the Lord.

"I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me".
Philippians 4:13

6. Reach Up !!
. . . for something higher.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path."
Proverbs 3:5-6

7. Lift Up !!
. . . your Prayers.

“Do not worry about anything; instead PRAY ABOUT EVERYTHING."
Philippians 4:6

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Iya sent me this...

THE TONGUE CAN BE YOUR WORST ENEMY!
Your words, your dreams, and your thoughts have power to create conditions in your life. What you speak about, you can bring about.

If you keep saying you can't stand your job, you might lose your job.
If you keep saying you can't stand your body, your body can become sick.
If you keep saying you can't stand your car, your car could be stolen or just stop operating.
If you keep saying you're broke, guess what? You'll always be broke.
If you keep saying you can't trust a man or trust a woman, you will always find someone in your life to hurt and betray you.
If you keep saying you can't find a job, you will remain unemployed.
If you keep saying you can't find someone to love you or believe in you, your very thought will attract more experiences to confirm your beliefs.
If you keep talking about a divorce or break up in a relationship, then you might end up with it.

Turn your thoughts and conversations around to be more positive and power packed with faith, hope, love and action. Don't be afraid to believe that you can have what you want and deserve.

Nice...thanks, Iya!

Friday, January 11, 2008

tendon [ten-duh n]]
Anatomy. a cord or band of dense, tough, inelastic, white, fibrous tissue, serving to connect a muscle with a bone or part; sinew.

tendonitis [ten-duh-nahy-tis]
inflammation of a tendon

I’m always a bit wary when I have to see a new doctor. You always hope that they’ll be nice and above all, obviously knowledgeable about their practice, but sometimes it doesn’t always work out that way. Yesterday I saw a podiatrist for the first time. I finally got around to it! The foot pain was just getting ridiculous. It wasn’t SOOO unbearably painful, but it got pretty bothersome and the swelling above my ankle wasn’t getting any smaller, even with the ice packs and numerous hits of ibuprofen.

So Dr. Addiego is my new podiatrist; really nice guy, very receptive to my questions. He bent my foot in all these different directions, placed pressure against various areas around my ankle, and depending on which movements made me cringe, he finally diagnosed my ailment: tendonitis. Actually, his exact words were, “Ok then. Looks like you just have tendonitis.” JUST tendonitis?...Ok what’s tendonitis? Hahaha! He said it wasn’t that serious and he prescribed some anti-inflammatory meds (Naprosyn). Being the pessimist that I am sometimes, I asked him what would happen if the meds didn’t work. He said I might need to get a cortisone injection. I think the expression on my face just did it because right after he mentioned it, he immediately said, “but don’t worry. We’re not there!” hahaha! Alright man, just making sure. Needles are not my favorite things, that’s all.

So I have to keep my foot immobilized (not so much not move it, but not bend it back and forth so much, which won’t be a problem because it hurts!), and I have to keep it wrapped. Tin has become an expert on wrapping the ankle since hers is wrapped for every practice and game. I have to come back in 2 weeks to make sure everything’s ok. He took some x-rays of my foot and showed me that I had an extra bone somewhere. Weird.
Terry is having foot issues too. We even had podiatrist appointments on the same day! Feel better, Ter!!

Anyhoo, here’s hoping. Larnie Boquiren, I’ll be waiting for your input soon…=)

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Happy Birthday,
Khahloh!!!
(aka Carlo)

Monday, January 07, 2008

Freudian slip
(in Freudian psychology) an inadvertent mistake in speech or writing that is thought to reveal a person's unconscious motives, wishes, or attitudes.

This morning I was watching SportsCenter and during the NBA segment, they were showing a clip of Nowitzki running down the court and the voiceover of one of the ESPN commentators said, "Last night the Mavericks played the TIMBERLAKES." He meant Timberwolves right? hahaha! I rewound it like twice and he totally said "Timberlakes." That just cracked me up!

Okee, hope everyone's getting through their Mondays alright...

Sunday, January 06, 2008

JC Chasez on Las Vegas

AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Allure - Last Chance

RIANN FOUND IT!!! Check this video out! Scandalous!! hahaha!

Friday, January 04, 2008

linguistics [ling-gwis-tiks]
the science of language, including phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, and historical linguistics
Synonyms include: language

I bought this Italian-phrase-a-day calendar and so far I’ve learned how to say the following:

Buon anno nuovo! – Happy New Year!
Che bella festa! – What a great party!
Come stai oggi? – How are you today?
and…
Ho bevuto troppo spumante. – I drank too much champagne.


HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!

I’ve forgot how great it feels to learn a new language. As geeky as this sounds, one of the things I looked forward to in high school was taking a Spanish class. I grew up speaking and listening to English and Tagalog so to be able to communicate in a whole new language (or attempt to anyway) just seemed really…well…cool.

I have to admit that I got through Spanish mostly because I could understand Tagalog. I had never been so appreciative of Spain’s influence on the Philippines until I got to Spanish class. And with just 3 years of high school Spanish in tow, Italian became a fun language to learn as well. I swear every language is derived from Latin!!

I still can’t believe listening to a 90-minute Italian cd a few times got us through 2 weeks in Italy! “Buongiorno, grazie, prego and si” sure got us far! Hahahaha! Granted, mostly everyone there can speak and understand English, it was fun to try to speak Italian anyway. Hats off to our Italian friends for being so patient with us. Grazie amici!

Ok, back to work! Until next time…arrivederci! Adios! Ok bye!!!

Wednesday, January 02, 2008

27 Dresses

WHO WANTS TO GO WITH ME TO WATCH THIS?!!!!

Happy Anniversary,
Mom & Dad!!!

Happy Birthday,
Leia Beth!!!


Tuesday, January 01, 2008

horizon [huh-rahy-zuhn]
the line or circle that forms the apparent boundary between earth and sky; the limit or range of perception, knowledge, or the like.
Synonyms include: border, boundary, limit, extent


The brink of each new year always leaves me wondering if I should spend time reflecting on the past or take a moment to look forward to the near future. 2007 was a notable year, not only for me but for everyone around me. And whether I awoke each morning to experience pure elation or seemingly unbearable misery, I lay down each night an altered individual, wiser than I was the day before...at least I hope I did.

Halfway through the year, I was ready to show 2007 its way out and welcome 2008 in. We often seek that point to begin anew when we're struggling to make sense of the nonsense of the present. It's funny how we look to the future to start over when NOW is so much closer.

Well, that new beginning and NOW have finally intersected on this first day of the new year. So what happens next? Next we take what 2007 gave and open up to what 2008 has to offer. From what I can already see, we'll be swimming in the abundance of it all this time next year.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!