Tuesday, December 30, 2008

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Merry Christmas to you!! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and enjoyed a peaceful day with friends and family.

Originally, I was to spend Christmas in LA working. However, I was only scheduled 19 hours at Starbucks and decided that wasn't worth sticking around LA for. So at the last minute, I hopped in the car with Gracie, for a 15 hour drive, and headed up to Pocatello, Idaho to spend Christmas with Mom and Ron.

I arrived on Tuesday to at least 9 inches of snow and it hadn't stopped coming down since. I think at one point there was at least a foot of snow, with more expected to come. It's was great! It really was. It is a nice change from the never changing LA weather. It felt so much more like the Christmas holiday then LA. Plus, it's great to be with family.

We took the dogs for a nice Christmas Day walk on the country club behind the house, and with the snow so deep, Mom and I wore snow shoes out. The following video is for your enjoyment:


It was sad to have to head back to LA. Pocatello has a way of sucking me into the small town life. It's peaceful and relaxing. If I didn't have the drive to be a successful, hot-shot, powerhouse, then I'd probably move to Pocatello. However, I do have that drive, even if it's not entirely apparent at the moment, and I just don't feel Pocatello has room for a girl like me.

Anyways, I drove straight through and got back home around 2 am Tuesday morning. I woke up to a clear, sunny sky and 70 degree weather. Ahhh, I do love the weather here. I can't wait to head to work tomorrow and see the ocean again, get back in the grove of things. Only one more day of 2008. Haven't had any great accomplishments worth mentioning. Sad, yes. But that's okay. 2009 is going to be my year. I've got a lot of great things planned and goals to accomplish. This is the year Kara makes a name for herself here in La La Land. Goal #1: Getting up when my alarm goes off. (It's been quite a problem lately). Hold on, because the ride is just beginning!!

Thursday, December 25, 2008

February 1, 2009

I've done it now. I finally signed up to run in my first ever 1/2 marathon. Working myself up to a full marathon, hopefully summer/fall 2009. So Super Bowl Sunday 2009, Hunting Beach, California, I will be running in the Surf City USA Half Marathon!! Bright and early at 7:45am. I'd love to have my friends and family here for the support, but I realize it's a long way to come for everyone. So encouragement from now till then would be awesome. I've been training, sort-of, I've really got to start training harder. It's a 1 month away! Aha!!! I'm excited though, I can't wait!! If you care to check out the website, go to: http://www.runsurfcity.com/.

If all goes well, this will be the catalyst for the full marathon I'd like to run this summer. Then eventually a triathlon!! GO ME!!

Friday, December 19, 2008

Why You Should Get to Know Me

" I frequently get referred to as 'amazing!' I think I need someone to substantiate that claim."

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Thanksgiving.

It's been awhile since I last wrote and I've been a busy girl. Let's go back to Thanksgiving. My roommate, Eric, had his parents visit. It was an incredibly enjoyable time having family around. While they were here I had the opportunity to get out and enjoy parts of LA that I have yet to venture to on my own. It started with a tour of the Sony Studio. Unfortunately, pass the front gates, pictures weren't allowed. But I can say it was an amazing tour.

You'll have to take my word for it on what we saw. We were shown the Jeopardy studio, the Wheel of Fortune Studio, the original studio where Judy Garland filmed The Wizard of Oz and the drop floor where the Wicked Witch melted into it. So neat. The same studio was actually used for the filming of Cast Away. Who knew that a 3 hour beach scene was actually taped all indoors!?!? We got to walk through a set built like an old hotel where they had recently taped a shoot out. The walls were destroyed with bullet holes. We were shown into a building where the Studio's Academy Awards were showcased. Also very neat. It was in that building where we got a quick glimpse of Ron Howard!! Sunday, Monday Happy Day! Tuesday, Wednesday Happy Day! Thursday, Friday Happy Day! Saturday! What a Day! Spending all day with you! I loved Happy Days!! Our tour guide, who is an aspiring writer, said it was a slow day on the lot. A couple of movies had recently finished filming and the studio lot was pretty slow. Obviously, I would have loved to have seen more action. But the tour was really informative and a load of fun!!



I had to twist Eric's arm to take this photo with me!

Me giving Bernie Mac a kiss.

After the Sony Studio Tour we went to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the LACMA. I was really excited about this because they are currently exhibiting the Vanity Fair Portraits. An exhibit I was dying to see! There were so many amazing photos from the covers of Vanity Fair from when the magazine was first being published to the the present. It was interesting to see the changes from year to year. Many of the photos were done by the very well known Anne Lebowitz, a fashion photographer whom I admire immensely.

The Steps leading up to the Museum.

Right next door to the museum is the Rancho La Brea Tar Pits. It's one of the world’s most famous fossil localities, recognized for having the largest and most diverse assemblage of extinct Ice Age plants and animals in the world. It's interesting to see because it's so out of place in this city. And no, these aren't real mammoths. Just replicas.


This photo I took is actually a reflection in the tar-y murk. I personally think it's quite cool looking.

On Thanksgiving day, I had to work at Starbucks. We were surprisingly very busy. Sadly, many stores in the shopping area where I worked, were open and people were out shopping. The holidays always get me missing my family and wishing I were with them. Like I mentioned, it was great to have Eric's parents here. It helped to ease the homesickness a bit. Eric's parents also cooked us quite a feast. We had fresh crab legs, shrimp, lots of wine and all the delicious sides to go with them. Yummy!

Mrs. Ries, Eric, Mr. Ries and Joe

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Little Red String on Your Finger




"Every day is a gift - even if it sucks."

Friday, November 21, 2008

I'm Moving!!!

I can't even begin to express the load of relief I am feeling right now. We (the roommates and I) just heard we got the apartment we wanted. I'm so excited!! It's 5 doors down from the apartment I lived in 3 years ago out here, which actually is now level with the ground. Sad. :( It's not easy finding a landlord who will accept three medium sized dogs. So our new place is 2 bedroom, 2 bath. Yea for me!! I get my own bathroom. And my room is going to be bigger then what it currently is, AND my closet is also going to be bigger AND it has a small patio for me, AND it has a dishwasher AND it's less money!!! Oh Man!!! I can't wait. It's so exciting. We take possession on December 15th which is just right around the corner. It'll give us a couple weeks to slowly get moved over before we officially have to be out of Greenwood Avenue on January 1. I'll get some preliminary pictures posted as soon as I get some. Now that I know I won't be homeless, which continued to clutter my brain, I'll be able to start job hunting again.

As far as jobs go, I've got a few good leads. I've been really working hard on making connections with people I meet. Just today while working Starbucks, I complimented a lady on her jewelry. Come to find out, it was all her work. I told her I've been dabbling in jewelry and have been wanting to learn more, so she gave me her card. Said she could use some help with Christmas orders and that she'd teach me. Perfect! We are planning on getting together this week.
OH MY GOSH!! I attended the Twilight movie premiere at FOX theater in Westwood on Monday night. Insane!! And let me be more clear. I didn't actually get to SEE the movie, I just went to watch all the actors arrive on the red carpet. I got there around 4:30 and the streets were packed. Thankfully I was fully prepared. I'm not the only Twilight fanatic out there, and this proved it. There were girls in "Team Edward" and "Team Jacob" shirts, which I had yet to know existed, and now I totally need one! The anticipation was almost unbearable. After standing around for more then 2 hours, packed in like sardines in a can, they actors finally started to arrive. But not all at once, oh no. It took another full hour just to get all the actors there. It started with the supporting roles and worked its way up to Edward and Bella, the main characters. At one point, rumors started rolling that Edward and Bella weren't actually going to show up. Oh, but when they did, I had to hold my ground to not get smashed by screaming 16 year olds. It was well worth it. The pictures I got were lousy. I couldn't hold still long enough for them not to be blurry. I'm hesitant to see the movie though. I hold the books to such high standards, that I'm afraid of being completely disappointed. I'm just not sure I could handle it.


Team Edward or Team Jacob???

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Random Updates.

It's Thursday morning and as I'm getting ready to head into Starbucks and I thought I'd take a minute to update everyone on what's been happening. My days have been consisting of mostly work and no play. However, I've taken it into my best interest to start job hunting again, for the 9-5 job, so I can have my evenings and weekends free. Now its just work work work, 24-7.

Last night I had a Emergency Prepardness event at Paramount Studios. Just learning, as event planners, what to do in case of an emergency. It was informative, but the great part of the evening was what I did at the cocktail hour afterwards. The Event Manager of Paramount Pictures was there and I walked up to her and asked her if we could get together in the upcoming weeks so I could find out more how she broke into the business, etc. But really, it's a great way to get my name out there so that next time they are hiring, she'll hopefully remember me!! She loved the idea and mentioned meeting for lunch next week. I was proud of myself for taking the initiative and can't wait to join her for lunch.

Wednesday night I "bartended," (more like handed out drinks) at an EcoStiletto sponsored Girl's Night Out "Dress For Success" Party. An event collect work clothes for needy women trying to get back into the work force. It was a long, but fun evening, and hopefully Bash will get some business from it. Which is the reason we did this, for free! Unfortunately, half the guests keep asking if I was the liquor rep. for the organic vodka we were serving. I had to keep correcting them and letting them know we were an Eco-friendly event planning service. Oh well. We did get asked to serve drinks at a party next week that Dustin Hoffman and Cindy Crawford are hosting. I'm in!! More on that later. To check out the photos of the evening (I'm in a white vest), click here: http://www.ecostiletto.com/index.php?/Beauty/photos/C4.

Shawn Johnson, our Gold Medal winner in girls gymnastics, stopped into Starbucks with her Mom. She didn't order a coffee though, just got a Fizz Soda. My co-worker Matt was estactic and asked if he could get his picture with her. Then he spent the rest of his shift calling all his friends and family to tell them about it.

While we're at it. Here is a picture of Espy and I at work:


When I walked into work today, my co-workers told me I had just missed, by seconds, Jennifer Garner. She had sat down and enjoyed her tea, AND I MISSED IT!!! I was really upset about that. Really, I was. But Eric got to work on Andrew Keegan's computer today at Apple. Eric called him "dreamy." Ha ha Ha. I love my roommates!!

Thursday, November 6, 2008

What a long week.

I'm exhausted, and yet, I decided to write to you, instead of getting some much needed sleep. Tomorrow is Friday, which has no meaning for me, since I work through the weekend. In fact, I haven't had a day off work since October 29 and my next break isn't until November 11. I'm not sure why I do this to myself. Oh wait! Yes I do. It's because California rent sucks.


I'm sorry to report that Eric and I did not win the Smashbox Face Off photography competition. However, the opening reception was fantastic and Eric's photo was just as professional and good lookin' as the rest. We arrived to this brightly lit, red carpeted event. Eric had a petrified look on his face all night and I was just having a ball wondering around to all the different rooms enjoying the festivities of the evening. In an Out catered the event, there was a Journey cover band. Journey!! And it was a lady!! What!! I'll admit, after a few drinks it was kinda fun to rock out and embarrass Eric with my "Don't Stop Believing" moves. But again, Journey?? You would have thought they could have come up with a better cover band then that! Or what about some up and coming band, it is LA after all! Falling right before the election, it was also very Obama centered, as the following picture proves:

Eric, Joe and I, Smashbox Face Off Competition 2008

All in all, we had a great evening. I'm hopeful that with persistence and some hard work, Eric and and I will enter more competitions and eventually make a name for ourselves. It will come in do time, for that I'm sure. And to wrap things up for this evening, here are a few more photos from Face Off 2008.


Joe and Eric (with the terrified look in his eyes).


Me and Eric. Eric and I.

Eric, without the terrified look in his eyes, but plastered all over his face - and me, of course.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Do Good Anyway...

"In the Final Analysis"

By Mother Teresa

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered... forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish ulterior motives... be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies... succeed anyway.


If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you... be honest and frank anyway.

What you may spend years building, someone may destroy overnight... build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, people may be jealous... be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow... do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough... give the world the best you have anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it's all between you and God... it was never between you and them anyway.

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

My Hollywood Debut!

We are now only one day away from my Hollywood Debut! As I mentioned before in a previous blog, Eric and I entered a photography contest. He acted as the photographer, I, his model. And so I don't take credit where credit is not due, this is all Eric's idea. He read about the contest and put the time and money into it. But as a team, we rocked. We spent a day hitting up the thrift stores, looking for clothes we could ruin. And then we spent about 4 hours one evening, out on the beach, shooting our photos. It was a blast. I think Eric had the most fun splattering me with fake blood, which was hilarious in the way he went about it. Anyways, tomorrow is the opening night where all the photos will be displayed in a gallery-like fashion at the Smashbox Studios. The same location where they just held LA Fashion. It's going to be a PARTY!!! A night of dressing up, schmoozing, music, booze and good 'ole fun!! I can't wait!!! Our theme was Fashion to Die For. So without further ado, I give you the winning (*positive thoughts, positive thoughts*) photo. Drum roll please..... dum dum dum dum dum dum..........



How cool is that!?!?! I love the photo. I personally think I played a very realistic victim. :) Out of the 400+ photos that were taken during this photo shoot, Eric was able to dwindle it down to just two, of which he felt were the best of the best. The one pictured above and the one that follows. The one that follows was going to be the one that we submitted for the contest and at the last minute, very last minute, Eric changed his mind and turned in the previous one.


Do I look good, or what!?!?! Ha Ha Ha. For inquiries about my availability for upcoming photo shoots, please contact my assistant, Gracie. She would be more then happy to assist you in any way she can.




Saturday, October 18, 2008

Another Year Older....

So another year has come an gone in my life. I'm now 26 years old. I can't help but to think that in 4 more years I'll be 30. I don't feel like I have any business turning 30. I suppose I should just try and enjoy this year and not dwell on what's to come. I will say that I do have many goals I hope to accomplish in these next 4 years so I better get myself in gear and focus.

Mom came into town from Idaho for to help me celebrate my birthday. For those of you who don't know, Mom and I share consecutive birthdays. Mine on the 6th, hers on the 7th. So it was a combined birthday celebration. Mom helped me *spruce* up my bicycle for my birthday present. I now have a cute bell to get people to move out of my way, a comfy seat for my you know what, a water bottle holder, new tires and squeak free breaks!! Very exciting for this LA Girl who rides her bike everywhere!! In fact, my latest credit card bill showed my last gas purchase was made on September 18. Over a month ago since I filled up on gas!! When is the last time you didn't put gas in your car for over a month???


Anyways, cleaning my bike up wasn't the only thing I did for my big day. We also went geocaching!! A few of you might know what this is, or at least heard about it, but my short description of it is an adult scavenger hunt using a GPS. It's addicting once you get started. Not to bore you with details, but Mom and I spent the day on our bikes, by the beach hunting caches. I really couldn't have asked for a better birthday. We also spent Mom's birthday doing the exact same thing. If anyone comes out to visit me, I'll be sure to take you caching!


I've failed to write for awhile so let me fill you on on whats been happening. I've been working my tail off, for starters. Event planning, Starbucks, Sephora, and the occasional baby-sitting gig is keeping me on the go. Early mornings and late nights, but I enjoy it.

I've decided my blog should also be a place where I keep track of my celebrity sightings. I'll attach any pictures I can get without being to TMZ. So for your enjoyment, let me tell you who I've spotted.
-Steven Baldwin on the Santa Monica Pier with his shirt up.

-Paul Johansson (aka Dan Scott, the mean father on "One Tree Hill"). I served him his coffee at Starbucks. Googling and giggling all the while.



-I've yet to run into him, but I've been told John Tesh is a fellow member of my church. I'll have to keep my eyes peeled for him. Because who doesn't love John Tesh??

That's my sightings so far. Certainly no Brad Pitt, but I'm keeping my eyes peeled.

I got "scouted" out by some modeling agency while working at Starbucks. That was fun.

I registered my car to California. I now have California license plates and a California drivers license. I'm much more official now. I also feel better about cutting people off in traffic. Before it was "Go back to Kansas!," now it's, "b**ch, get the f**k off the road!" Ha Ha Ha. People need to just let it go. They'll get there when they get there.
I'll finish things up by letting you all know my roommate, Eric, and I are entering a photography contest by Smashbox Studios. Eric is the photographer and I'm his model. We spent the other night out on the beach shooting. Our theme is "Fashion to Die For." We make a good team and we got some really great photos. So to keep you all in suspense, I'll post the photos in my upcoming blog.
And very lastly, I'd like to thank my friend Kristin for becoming a follower to my blog. She is the first, and possibly only person to read this. So from the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU. **You've just won free coffee from Starbucks!!** (let me know what you like.)
LA Girl is signing off.






Monday, September 22, 2008

My First Party!!


L-R: Suzanne (my fellow intern), Me & Josie Maran.

Had my first party since working with *bash*. It was the launch party for a new organic make-up line for the model Josie Maran. I got a bit spoiled by this party, not only for the fact that I walked away with hundreds of dollars worth of free make-up, but also because for my FIRST EVER party, I got to mingle with celebrities!! Okay, let me not lead you astray, George Clooney and Brad Pitt were NOT there, but Amy Smart was. Some of you might know her from Varsity Blues or The Butterfly Effect. Also, Emille De Ravin from the very popular Lost series. My personal favorite was Darren Moore from AlterEco on the Planet Green channel. What a hottie!! And yes, I actually had a conversation with this guy. Let's not forget Josie Maran herself. She was a very cute and sweet person. Easy to work with also. Oh yea, Access Hollywood was there filming. I have no idea when that is suppose to run. I'll let you know as soon as I know, if we haven't already missed it. For a full article on the party, check out this link: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/09/josie-maran-sephora-eco-friendly-launch-party.php

Peace!

Monday, September 15, 2008

Finally Getting Settled In.


Welcome to my Blog!!

This blog is going to be my way of keeping in touch with my friends and family. A way for you to see how I'm doing and what I've been up to.

For some of you I haven’t spoken to in awhile, you might not even know I’ve moved back to LA. Well, I have, and here is an update for you. Sorry for not have writing sooner, but all my free time was spent job hunting, (well, sort of. More like job hunting and taking advantage that I live next to the beach!) After spending over a month searching for a job, I finally came across one. It was a long and grueling process, as jobs, of any sort, are not easy to come by out here. However, I’ve landed myself an internship with an event planner. Her name is Paige and she just started up her company *bash* a little over a year ago. www.bashstyle.com We do event planning that is friendly to the environment. So no balloons, all recycled materials, the use of only soy based inks in our printing, etc. I LOVE IT! Like I said, it’s only an internship for now, after another month or so, it’ll turn into a paying job. I do get paid for the actual parties I attend and help work, but not for all the hours I put into helping plan and research the party. I STILL LOVE IT! LOVE IT! LOVE IT! Although the company is new, we are really beginning to take off. We scored a celebrity party that is coming up this Thursday. It’s a launch party for Josie Maran (a model) who is coming out with her own line of Organic Make-up. It’s going to be awesome! The guest list is quite impressive and I can’t wait to mingle with celebrities!!

So to supplement my income I got a part time job at…….Starbucks. I am now in training to be a fabulous barista!! I’m a bit of a sell-out, seeing as I try not to support corporate coffee shops. I prefer the local, independent stores, however, Starbucks is giving me full benefits for my part time work. So yea, I’m a sell-out. What’s a girl to do? It’s not as easy as you might think. People are very particular when it comes to what they want to drink. I really had no idea there were so many options. A good majority of the people don’t order a basic menu item either. Everything seems to be modified. Like a venti decaf extra shot skinny latte light on the foam. Excuse Me!?!? I’m sure it will all get a lot easier once I’ve had more training. I have only had three days so far, but it’s great! I’ve always wanted to be a barista!! Plus I’m located on the 3rd St. Promenade, which is a very busy location in Santa Monica. So there is never a dull moment and it makes time fly by!

For those of you familiar with L.A., I’m living right up the street from Venice Beach. I ride my bike EVERYWHERE, so in bike time, it’s about 15 minutes from my house to the beach. It’s perfect!! Just perfect. If you don’t know, I’m living with two guys, Joe and Eric, whom I knew from my old Topeka days. One is working at Belkin, the other is a Genius at Apple. We get along great and are really enjoying our time here together. Our sub-lease is up December 31st. A terrible time to be moving, but we have no choice. We are sub-leasing a house from a couple who recently got married and is traveling and doing some Grad work on the East coast. We are house hunting, as Joe’s parents are interested in investing in some property out here. However, houses don’t come cheap!!! We might end up settling on an apartment or renting another house, seeing as we have 3 dogs!! Did I mention we have 3 medium sized dogs!?!?! 3 dogs in an apartment is less then thrilling to me. Besides, I highly doubt we can find a place that will take 3 dogs.
I’ve started to attend Bel-Air Presbyterian Church. It’s the same church I attended when I was out here the first time around. It’s just as great as ever and I’m really excited to be back there. I actually look forward to Sunday mornings now!! I also, just last week, attended a small group. It was equally enjoyable and I’m really excited to get more involved with the group. They meet every Thursday night. It’s made up of a married couple, a dating couple, a single guy, a single girl and ME. All in their mid to late 20’s. I’m really looking forward to getting more involved with the church and their ministries.


The first month out here was tough. Sure, the beach is great and everything. The sun is always shining and the temperature is always perfect, but the transition was hard. Job hunting got real discouraging, paying my larger then used to rent and not having any sort of income was discouraging, not having any friends (besides the roommates) was hard. My cell phone minutes have been cut in half since moving. It sucked at first, not having anyone call me up to hang out, but it’s quite peaceful now. I’ve learned to enjoy it and my time by myself. My roommates have been a huge help in the transition. They are both newbie’s to L.A. Both had never even visited LA before moving here. Like I mentioned, I bike everywhere. Traffic really is just as bad as they say it is. I find I can get to where I need to go on my bike in a reasonable amount of time without the irritation and frustration of driving. Plus, it’s great exercise! It’s just another reason why I’m loving LA so much!!

So as the year is slowly coming to an end, and I tack on another year to my life. (I’ll be 26 in less then a month!!! AGH!!) I’ve got a few goals for myself. I’ve decided to share them with you in hopes that you hold me to them and ask how they are coming along. The first is to think positive in everything I do. Positive thinking brings about positive results, no matter how outrageous they might be. They might not be instant results either, they might take time, but in the end, you’ll get what you want if you believe it can happen. I want to be more assertive and I want to really focus in on my career in event planning. I feel very fortunate to have landed my internship. I believe we have great potential to become a very successful company within the next few years, and I’m lucky to have gotten in on the deal before we make our big mark on LA’s green, event planning scene. So one of my goals is to really learn about the LA event planning scene and land my very own party, that I’m in charge of. And that will happen, because I’m thinking positive thoughts about it. I’d also like to sign up for a marathon. I’d like to run a ½ marathon no later then January of 2009 and a full marathon by April 2009. I have wanted to run a marathon for 4 years now, and it’s cluttering my brain. So, that’s another goal of mine. I’ve taken the first step and bought new shoes and I’ve been breaking them in by taking Gracie for walks in them. Actually, I have the day off and I think I’ll take my first run as soon as I send this letter off. Another goal of mine is to learn Spanish. I don’t expect this to be something that just happens overnight. I just want to discipline myself to study my Spanish books for a few hours a week and when I get CA residency, sign up for a community college class. (Community college is dirt cheap for residences!!!) So those are a few of my goals. Ask me how they are going when you talk to me, hold me to them. It’s so much easier to sit down and watch Bravo for 3 hours or search for nonsense on the internet all night, then actually get out and run, or study Spanish, etc.
Well, for not being much of a writer, I sure have managed to write a lot. Writing was always my least favorite thing to do in High School and College, and now I've gone and stated myself a blog!! As Alanis Morissette would say, "Isn't it ironic, don't you think?" Apparently, they had me writing on the wrong subject!!


I hope all is well on the receiving end of this message!!

God Bless!!