living an endless summer...

Playing music on the streets of Portland

2011-04-04T17:43:00.001-07:00

My band, All the Apparatus, has been stuck inside recording our new professional record with producer, David Eaton, at Jam Box studio for the better part of February and March.

So ghetto, right? Love it.

Last Saturday we finally got back out on the streets to perform and I fell in love with the art all over again. Nothing's better than causing an enormous crowd of people, old and young alike, to simultaneously begin dancing in the busy streets of downtown Portland.

I couldn't get up high enough to showcase the sheer size of the crowd. Dang.

In Memoriam: Rue McClanahan

2010-06-04T02:07:00.000-07:00

I realize it's been over a year since my last blog entry on this, my own personal blog, but I thought it fitting to blog my dismay over the passing of yet another of the world's funniest women. Rue McClanahan, who played saucy vixen Blanche Devereaux on the hit TV series The Golden Girls, died from a brain hemorrhage, a.k.a. stroke, on June 3 at the age of 76.

After Estelle Getty's passing in 2008 and Bea Arthur's passing last year, Rue's passing makes recently-repopular octogenarian, Betty White, the last standing Golden Girl. While Rue was in the hospital after bypass surgery and suffering a minor stroke a few weeks ago, White sent her a card that read, "Dear Rue, I hope you hurry up and die so I can be the last Golden Girl left. NOT KIDDING!" and Rue thought it was hilarious. In considering the reality of this second, fatal stroke's tragedy, White remarked, "Rue was a close and dear friend. I treasured our relationship. It hurts more than I ever thought it would, if that's even possible."

Hope your happy now, Betty! (j/k, love you!)

Rue, you will be missed! Thank you for being a friend and stay golden!

In Memoriam: Bea Arthur

2009-05-05T20:35:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, April 25, the world became a little less funny when iconic comedienne Bea Arthur took her final bow at age 86. The indelible character she created, Dorothy Zbornak, in “Golden Girls” helped to bring all the laughs, the tears, and the loves that have continued to bring the landmark series new fans 17 years after it originally went off air.

My new Singer Genie 354 sewing machine!

2009-05-01T13:42:00.000-07:00

I just bought the coolest sewing machine.

I was searching on craigslist and came across this beauty. She's portable, looks simple to use (we will shortly see just how simple), and has the greatest 70s flower power design on the front and inside the hand wheel (aka the spinny knob on the right side of the machine).

Susan, her former owner, was a lovely woman from just-past Mililani, with a friendly and talkative dog, a friendly and talkative daughter, and an American flag windsock. She was gracious enough to sell me the Genie for a mere $25.

There is one thing that has yet to be tested and fixed: the bobbin winder is said to be malfunctioning. Susan gave that it was a recent ailment and, if worse came to worse, I could invest in a separate bobbin winder (or just wind by hand).

I am going to look into the CITO sewing class that Stephanie is taking and see if I might join her. This recent investment may just have been fate.

Skating is FUN!

2009-04-14T19:51:00.000-07:00

I really want to skate more.
I really need more practice.

Thank you Anna for the rad picture!

TWITTER, cause I REALLY need to UPDATE my BLOG but never do!

2009-04-10T20:22:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I haven't updated in FOR-EV-ER!
It's so sad because the videos in my old posts are gone and my blog looks pathetic whilst I've had an office job for six months and part of that very job involves checking blogs! Ah!

So, lately I’ve been discovering all the awesome things that can be done with a little thing called twitter you all must have heard about by now.

What it is:
Basically, just a web application that allows you to update your status, but in so many ways.

What I like about it:
You can update your status via text message (by texting to 40404). You can also choose to have other twitterer's status updates texted to you and text replies directly to people (by putting @username at the beginning of the text).

Most recently, I discovered that you can send pictures to a related-connected thing called twitpic, which is a great way to utilize all those dang-weird things I take phone pictures of throughout my day.

So, what I'm saying is:
Sign up with twitter so I can publicly stalk you (or entertain you) when I get bored!

Updates on the fun I had in New York soon to come...

Dear Ryersons, Merry Christmas!

2008-12-06T00:13:00.000-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself Card

Hope this makes you wet your pants a little.

Merry Christmas Ryersons!

Gay relationships taught to kids in Massachusetts schools

2008-10-17T16:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, maybe there is a VERY religious undertone to this video, but gay marriage is a belief that many don't subscribe to.

?s

Why are kids in Massachusetts schools being sent home with books explaining about gay relationships when it should be up to parents to decide if and when they want their kids to learn about them?

Isn't there another way for the gay and lesbian community to get the rights they want without infringing on many other people's rights of belief?

Breathe in so deep...

2008-10-16T19:49:00.000-07:00

Breathe in so deep,
He is absorbed by your lungs,
Travels through your bloodstream,
And into your heart,
Where he stays, makes it beat,
And into your mind,
Always to be found,
If only you will recall him.

Breathe in so deep,
That he cannot escape you,
Nor does he want to,
And you don't want to leave him,
You just want to breathe him,
Addicted, like a smoker,
He is your cigarette,
And your love is the cancer,
Incurable.

YES on California's PROP 8 or bust!

2008-10-08T21:23:00.000-07:00

As a California resident living in Hawaii, I am somewhat confined in my ability to express the urgency I feel in supporting and encouraging others to support PROP 8. But I can blog...

Hawaii's state motto is:
"Ua Mau Ke Ea O Ka Aina I Ka Pono" which means "The Life of the Land is Perpetuated in Righteousness." Hawaii is a beautiful place where most freedom is upheld. I mean, just take a look at what happened to the unrighteous Babylon, Sodom and Gomorrah. They were destroyed. California needs to remember these examples when considering the prop 8 situation.

DID YOU KNOW?

If the definition of marriage changes, this new definition will most-likely be taught to kids in California schools.

I love and respect my gay friends, but I DON'T believe that same-sex marriage is right, NOR do I want my kids to be taught to respect same-sex marriage as equal to the God-ordained and divine institution of marriage between a man and a woman. This is a moral issue. I believe that happiness comes through families, and families cannot be created by two members of the same sex. Create life in the sacred bonds of love! Be HAPPY! Vote YES!

EVERY VOTE IS CRUCIAL!

CALIFORNIANS! Please register to vote today:
http://www.rockthevote.com/rtv_register.html

or register to vote by mail:
http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/elections_m.htm

and JOIN ME... vote YES ON PROP 8!

The Print Services Crew

2008-07-11T13:05:00.001-07:00

Sometimes, I hear the wailing cries,
Of an Iggy or a Brenda,
And the strange, pounding noise coming from the back,
Somehow, a print job it will render.

Sometimes, I don’t know what they’re doing,
When they hustle and they bustle,
But when I can’t lift a box of paper,
I know Vincent’s got the muscle.

And Debbie in her office,
And Rachelle and Enele, too,
Are working to make sure we get paid,
For all the work we do.

Angus helps us roll in the dough,
When he rolls out banners for a PCC show.

And Craig, he’s really good at engraving,
Which gets all the campus departments paying.

Puni, Bo, and Anna, they do all kinds,
Of printing, cutting, scoring, folding,
And Ane fixes copiers,
When frustrated departments come a-scolding.

Together, we are Print Services,
Summer, two-thousand eight,
“But what does Kathleen do?” you ask,
I know, I made you wait.

I was hired to make the website,
And the website has been made,
So my time spent here with you,
Has been productive and well stayed.

I don’t quite know when my time is up,
But I know that, in the end,
My greatest reward in working here is:
In each of you, I’ve gained a friend.

Excited for Home

2008-07-10T14:49:00.001-07:00

I'm excited for my trip home to California at the beginning of August. So much has gone on without me over the last six months, I can hardly stand it. I'm especially excited to see my new nephew, Elijah, who was supposed to have been born before I left but waited until a week after I left to make his debut. The sad thing is how fast babies grow and that I've already entirely missed his infant stage and I really wanted to see him in that stage. I'm afraid he might freak out now, because he doesn't know me.

There's a lot to be excited about. This two-week trip home is jam-packed with exciting events...have I mentioned I am EXCITED?!

First, I am going to go through the temple to take out my endowments on August 7th. I've been taking temple prep classes since 2002, and I'm on my fifth one now, so I feel very prepared and happy to be finally attending the temple.

Second, my sister, Sarah, and her husband, Shane, and their family are aiming to be sealed on August 8th. I was originally planning on taking my endowments out on that day, but if they want to have 08/08/08 as their sealing day, I'm willing to be flexible.

Third, I'm going to Palos Verdes Stake Young Women's camp as a counselor. The fun part is that it's going to be at San Onofre State Park, which is right at my favorite California surf spot, San Onofre. The fun part is that they are letting the girls bring surfboards, so we'll be able to go surfing during free time. Woot! Also, I think my sister's family will be camping at the same campground so we can hang out with them, too.

Fourth, I'm going to try to meet up with my roommate, Sarah Fisher, and go up to play at a community recreational center that her mom and brother work at. There's supposed to be a wave machine getting put in. I hope it's there by the time I visit. I've been wanting to try a wave machine for a while.

It will also be my mother's birthday on the 11th. Dad won't be in town for her birthday and most of her kids will be camping, so I hope she joins in the camping fun.

Overall, I'm glad to get to visit my family and friends. I miss them. If only they were all in Hawaii with me....I can dream, can't I?

Let Me Introduce Myself...

2008-06-16T22:15:00.000-07:00

Hi. My name is Kathleen Amira Majdali and I am going to start exposing myself. Not so much physically. Just intellectually, spiritually, and probably even emotionally. I've wanted to take advantage of this blog for people to see who I really am (or at least who I am in MY mind) for a while now, especially since I'm usually reserved except when with close friends. I mean, I think I'm cool (not to be too vain about it or anything) so maybe you will think so too?

As far as girls go, I think I am feminine in many ways but, deep down, I am a tomboy. I love rough and rugged sports and activities that have the possibility of badly injuring the participants. I was a cheerleader in high school, which I don't usually admit to most people right off the bat, but I definitely got kicked and elbowed in the face, had my braces go half-way through my lip, and consider cheerleading to be one of the more dangerous things I've done.

A really quick list of things that I love to do:

#1, surfing. Of all the things I am, I would first consider myself to be a surfer. I don't think I could live too far from the ocean or moving water without getting a little antsy. I also like to skateboard, body board, body surf, and I've snowboarded a handful of times. I like to do these things because they are similar to surfing and all rather thrilling.

#2, dancing. I especially love swing dances and, believe it or not, polka. If you can twirl me around the dance floor, I'll basically be swept off my feet in an instance, especially if you're a dude and you're highly physically attractive. Besides ballroom dancing, I love to just rock out alone in my room or with a few close friends. I also like almost any music that has a good dancing beat. I feel I have a very eclectic taste in music because I need different kinds of music to dance in different ways or different styles.

#3, creating. This is a pretty vague category because it encompasses my creativity in the realms of ART and DESIGN, MUSIC, and WRITING, among other things. I love to invent, I love to think deeply, I love coming up with things, dreaming, and seeing those things take some form of shape, whether these ideas are just a quick jot or sketch in my notebook, or whether they become one of my real projects.

One final word for this post: I love making mischief. If I can find something to do that will mildly annoy someone or throw someone off, I will probably do it. I think some of my more childish moments involve throwing things into ceiling fans, toilet paper and cars, drums and ignoring curfews, and abandoned maid carts and ice machines at hotels or resorts. I genuinely care about people and I don't mean to upset anyone too much. Hopefully you don't take my pranks too hard.

Feel free to ask questions. Your questions will help to facilitate other awesome blog posts.

MLKJ Day

2007-01-16T02:26:00.000-08:00

So, I went to see the perfect Martin Luther King Jr. Day movie, "Freedom Writers." It reminded me of my last two years of high school and that I wanted to be an English teacher to help inspire the students in the awful Los Angeles School District that language gives you a voice, writing gives you power. At least, that's what an inspirational English teacher taught me my senior year at Narbonne High School; if you can call it a high school and not a prison.

While watching this movie, I remembered stories my friends used to tell me about drive bys when they were trying to have birthday parties. I remembered friends bringing guns to school. I remembered seeing one friend stab a rival gang member during lunch time and then hide out in the girl's gym. I remember another friend coming back from lunch, having witnessed a dead body just feet from where she was going to purchase her food, but decided not to eat after what she saw. Yet another friend came, from an afterschool stop at McDonald's, to the girl's gym covered in someone else's blood, to hide from the police or whoever.

Fortunately, I never got hurt, never got scared. Just shocked, amazed, angry, sad, careful. I became "tight" with the people who might've hurt me. I came to understand them. I wanted to listen, to understand, to help. Maybe I didn't fully understand their experiences, but I came close to alot of the dangers and went through the same crappy schooling as they did. I was blessed with good parents and a good home, in a better part of town than many of them. I say them, but it was us. I am one of them, a product of the Los Angeles Unified School District, but an unusual one.

So, I suppose I still want to help, because I know how much difference a teacher can make, and "Freedom Writers" reminded me of that. I'm thinking more seriously about joining the "Teach For America" program so that I can actually get in there, get into the system and try to change things for the better. All it could take might be an understanding teacher who cares. That's what it took for me anyway.

Just Signed Up!

2005-10-27T02:04:00.000-07:00

I only wanted to post a flippin' comment on a friend's blog and I had to go through this whole rigamarole just to do it.

So, something cool that I found out about tonight: one of the original Dogtowners lives out here on the North Shore and wants to start a girl's skate team and I've just been invited on! Heck yes! How you like me now?