What's My Age Again by Blink 182

It was the morning of July 30, 2000.  I arrived at work in a great mood, it being my birthday and as previously documented, right in the middle of an epic summer.  I had several voice mails, most of them work related, but one decidedly not.  My sister had left me a delightful message.  She wished me a happy birthday, rambled a bit, and then queued up What's My Age Again.  She didn't have it queued up exactly where she wanted it, so there was a bit she did about "having technical difficulties" and there was some mumbling until the line she was waiting for kicked in.  The line was very appropriate: "nobody likes you when you're 23". It was appropriate because this was my 23rd birthday, NOT because nobody liked me.  To be clear. I must've played that message 10 times throughout the day.  I definitely played it on speakerphone to share with everyone else.  I was of course the person who got the most pleasure and amusement out of it because it was 100% Cato and I loved it and I love her.  She still calls me on my birthday every year, but no message has topped that one, when I was 23.

Ricemix by Joe Helgeson

It was the middle of the summer of '00, a truly epic summer.  I had received an email (or call) from my Barcelona roommate Jordi.  He said he was flying into LAX at the end of the month and could I pick him up at the airport?  I was living in San Francisco at the time, a mere 8 hour drive from Los Angeles.  So I made a trip out of it.  I had 2 dear friends living in So Cal at the time and one of them had actually stayed with Jordi while she was visiting me in Barcelona.  I booked a flight to LA and Pam picked me up in her red Mustang.  It was a totally LA kind of trip, if I do say so.  Trip to the beach?  Check!  Laying out by the pool?  Check!  A trip to Hollywood and Venice Beach?  Check! Pink Floyd Laser Light Show at the Griffith Observatory? Check!  We also visited the Getty, the Huntington Botanical Gardens, and Japantown, where Jordi got to try sushi for the first time.

There are so many fun memories and we jammed an insane amount of good times into Jordi's and my visit.  I suppose I should just expand on a few, including of course, the impetus for today's post. You've got to be curious about Ricemix, right?  

• Alex only had a car with a manual transmission and some kind of funky engine, if I remember right.  I did not drive a stick.  In fact, I had scant driving experience at that point.  I was nowhere close to confident enough to brave the 405 and the 5 and the 10 to Cahuenga (don't correct me as I am definitely poking fun).  Alex's boyfriend Joe had a car that we later borrowed and Jordi, yes, the Spaniard, drove all over LA.  But in the meantime, we decided to take the bus and train to Hollywood.  There we were, sitting at the bus stop in fancy pants San Marino.  The cops pull over and start grilling us.  Where are you going?  Why are you here?  Can we see some ID?  I finally asked them what the problem was and I don't remember what they said, but obviously, it was highly unusual to be taking the bus in that neighborhood.  We made it the rest of the way to Hollywood with no incident! 
• We had a little dinner party on Jordi's last night.  Jordi did the cooking and we all enjoyed the food, the drink, and possibly even some other refreshment, if memory serves.  Alex's parent's house has this great interior patio. It was very pleasant.  We later got to listening to music in the living room.  Joe is a composer of electronic music and Alex played some of his stuff.  Ricemix is amazing.  I was amazed that he created it, thrilled to be hearing it.  I love how it starts off  naked, just drums, until a very 90s techno beat kicks in, and then it keeps building up with awesome crescendos and phrasing, and finally just kind of explodes!  I still listen to it on occasion today.  It is by far my favorite of his creations, but track #2 is a close second.  There may have been some teasing, as Track #2 has a section where it sounds like you can almost hear the clubgoers cheering for the DJ up there, spinning away, like Joe giving himself a little credit.  Ok, there was a lot of teasing.  But honestly, I kind of dug that he was owning it, owning the awesome that is his music. 

If there is a place to stream Ricemix, I will post it here for you.  It's a must hear.  

Immigrant Song by Led Zeppelin

I can't very well write about Ramble On without following up with Immigrant Song.  Remember that friend I told you about who clued me in to the awesome LOTR reference in the third verse?  Kevin agreed with me that Ramble On is a great song.  He then shared with me that Immigrant Song is even better.  And you know?  He was right.  This wasn't the first time he had done that...taken something I liked and professed to know something even better....and was right, dammit!  He had this maddening way of usually being right!  And then once I got hooked on whatever he recommended, such as Dawson's Creek, Sex and the City (getting him back a little, clearly), Dave Matthews Band, etc....he would no longer be into that particular thing and on to the next coolest greatest thing like the Sopranos or Ben Folds Five.  I wonder what he is into now?

Kevin and I met in the dorms freshman year and we had a lot in common. He had been in the band in high school, but was over it (of course) by college.  We hung out a lot in the dorms and stayed friends throughout and into the first few years after college.  We attended a lot of concerts together, talked late into the night, drank a lot of beers, shared a lot of laughs, frustrations, and stories.  I always appreciated Kevin because he is genuine and known for keeping things real.  He always gave me the straight story on how guys think and act.  I will never forget the weekend I found out that all guys are totally content to spend an entire Sunday in their sweats on the couch.  I couldn't believe that someone would be content to do so very little, but he assured me that this is what guys do.  And sure enough, I have yet to find an exception to this.  Right again, Kevin, right again.

....Baby One More Time by Britney Spears

At the risk of embarrassing him, and although he is very comfortable in his skin, I'm just going to say it.  Vince used to really like this song!  To be honest, I think he probably saw the video, which let's face it, schoolgirl outfit, sultry voice, that's hot stuff.  In any case, it seemed more than appropriate to make sure this song factored into their wedding party somehow.

Vince and Tammy were married in a very small ceremony (I believe) at the court.  They later hosted a gathering in their apartment in Fremont.  It was nothing fancy, just their close friends and family together celebrating the two of them.  It was actually pretty great.  My wedding was beautiful, but I don't remember a lot of it, I definitely didn't get a chance to talk to everyone there, and in spite of careful planning, the DJ STILL played a couple songs off of my DO NOT PLAY list.  Simple and do-it-yourself has its merits! But I digress.  Back to Fremont.  After realizing that Mitch was not in attendance, I took it upon myself to step into the Best Man role.  I was not necessarily assigned to the role or asked to do it.  I just did it.  I took it very seriously and decided that there should be some wedding-y stuff, whether they wanted it or not!  I think I remember we had them recreate a wedding march down the hallway into the apartment. I recruited Vince's sister and brother-in-law and we organized speeches, toasts, and even a getaway car. Let's not forget, Vince and Tammy weren't getting away to anywhere.  They lived there.  But we thought it would be fun to decorate their car with shaving cream, tin cans, etc.  And boy was Vince mad when he found out I used (up) his shaving cream.  Sorry Vince!

To be honest, I am not sure if we really played Britney Spears, but the song reminds me of Vince and it was a good reason to share this story.  I am still honored to have been included in the celebration and looking forward to celebrating many more occasions with the two of them!

Always With Me, Always With You by Joe Satriani

I appear to be stuck at work at Allegiance Telecom, for here we are again.  For a change, let's go back to the (short amount of ) time when I was successful at work.  During the summer of 2000, I was hitting my quota, getting my name called during national conference calls, and generally having a blast at work.  I loved my boss and my team.  I had a window seat next to my cubicle facing the Transamerica Tower and I was one of the lucky few who got their own computer.
We had a lot of fun in the office that summer with tons of contests and activities to drive everyone to exceed their monthly quota.  In August we kicked off with a scavenger hunt of sorts, cold calling until we set our appointments.  The reward was a big reveal that we were all meeting at Pier 23 for lots of drinks and food.  It was a gorgeous day, to boot, and I was in a great mood.  We all had to take a picture and the following Monday, we learned we were all on Telecom Survivor.  At the end of each day we would gather in the conference room.  If you set an appointment that day, you improved your chances of staying on the island.  A name would be drawn and some trivia was read.  One day I proudly correctly guessed my teammate Don H.  He was very new to Allegiance and to my team and he was just a great guy!  Friendly, funny, smart.  I think he gave me one of my most favorite nicknames ever that summer (Stouty). 
Later that month, during one of my marathon downloading sessions, I asked Don for some song ideas.  He enjoyed techno as much as I did, but that day he suggested a song by Joe Satriani.  It came out that this was his seduction song, used to romance the ladies.  I think someone said that Don had mad game with the ladies and I scoffed at this, which totally hurt his feelings.  What I was trying to impart was that Don didn't seem like this love 'em and leave 'em ladies man....a Mr. Big...a douchebag.  He didn't seem like a game player to me and I meant it as a good thing!  I don't remember if I ever got my point across or if it just got awkward.  It probably just got awkward.  So sorry Don!  I wonder what he is up to now?

Lady Marmalade by Christina Aguilera, Li'l Kim, Mya, and P!nk

So after experiencing a moderate amount of success in my telecom sales career, back in 2000, I promptly spiraled into a deep, dark whole of depression and funk.  Once again, there is no reason why I shouldn't have been fired, but someone saw something in me and instead promoted me to National Accounts Manager.  Yep - I was rewarded with a raise and an even higher sales quota.  Gulp.  It was a complete disaster and I don't think I ever came close to landing a national account or coming close to meeting my quota.  You'll be as surprised as I was to learn I STILL managed to keep my job after that, but today's story is about not about that.

After a long recovery from a devastating breakup, I was embracing what I envisioned to be my own version of Sex and the City.  I had cultivated a nice group of girlfriends and was mostly avoiding men and dating.  My boss had put together a group that was almost all female and we all got along fairly well.  For a short time, we ended our workday by playing Lady Marmalade and having a mini dance party in our area.  All that positive girl power energy quickly lent into to Jen N's great idea of starting the Cosmo Club (as in the very popular drink of the time, natch!).  The concept is simple: each person pitches in $10 and there is a drawing.  The winner receives the pot (between $60-100!) with 2 conditions:  the money could only be spent on something frivolous, not for bills; the winner had to plan the next event and share how they spent their spoils.

The Cosmo Club was so much fun and was really important to me and helped me through some difficult times.  It was a diverse group of ladies and everyone enjoyed and looked forward to the monthly event.  We did some really cool stuff, from candlemaking to a ferry ride across the Bay for cocktails to dinner at Asia SF where drag queens dance on the bar to Cocktails and Manis at the Beauty Bar.  There was a later iteration of the Cosmo Club years later when I moved to Oakland, but it just wasn't the same as the original.

Who Let the Dogs Out by Baja Men

It was December 1999 and I was very excited to be going to my first ever company holiday party.  It was being held at Scott's Seafood on Jack London Square so I made plans to take BART with my co-worker Todd L so we could change at his house and drive to the party together.  Todd was super nice and we spent a lot of time walking around San Francisco together "working" because we both agreed that outside sales for Allegiance Telecom was about the worst job of all time.  For about the first 9 months, I was a terrible salesperson.  I never came close to meeting my quota and in fact, I have no idea how I stayed employed for as long as I did!  I eventually hit my groove for a couple months, but in December, I was about 4 months into it and absolutely awful!  I was however very social and observant and funny.  I kept a diary of the funny comments people made during meetings or in the break room or around the water cooler.  The RVP got wind of this and asked me if I might like to give a little talk at the party.  WOULD I EVER?!?!

I remember feeling pretty cute in a slim fitting black skirt with a slit and a red, form fitting top with a very in, very flattering neckline.  All 3 offices in the Bay Area were at the party, San Francisco (where I worked), Oakland, and San Jose.  I was a little nervous, but I quickly got into the groove and I killed it.  There was much laughter.  I closed the speech with something I had worked out with the DJ.  And now....with no further ado.... (queue the DJ)... Who Let the Dogs Out!!  Several people jumped up and the dance portion of the evening began.  Being December 1999, there was no way the evening could go by without dancing to Mambo No. 5, especially considering the line "a little bit of Rita" which we loved singing loudly because of our very own Rita J.

This pictures perfectly showcases my signature dance move.

I'd like to say that evening was the turning point in my career....but it wasn't until April when I finally made my quota and really started making the big bucks....for a couple of months at lease. 

I Don't Care if the Sun Don't Shine by Patti Page

2 girls, driving down Highway 80 after a day playing hooky on the slopes.  This is one of the very few positive memories I have of my first adult roommate. She and I had decided to join Mitch C, Jenny T, and Vince J on a spontaneous weekday ski adventure at Northstar.  It was not a terrible drive up there, probably about 3 hours from San Francisco, and not a ton of traffic considering it was reverse commute on a weekday.  We spent the day skiing and boarding, enjoying a midday beer and lunch in the sun at the top of the mountain.  In the pictures we aren't even wearing coats, so I am guessing it was spring skiing.  We probably stopped at the Chevy's in Auburn on the way home, as was the tradition. 

On the way home, Lydia was driving, it was her car after all, and we were really into this song off the Priscilla, Queen of the Desert soundtrack.  We liked it so much that we sang it over and over (and over) at the top of our lungs, improving our harmonies, getting in tune, sounding better every time.  There was gesturing, smiling, laughing.  In fact, when I saw the How I Met Your Mother episode with the Fiero (500 Miles), I thought it was a lot like that.  I remember being very impressed with ourselves by how great we sounded.  It was a fun end to a very fun day. 

Hot Child in the City by Nick Gilder

I was in my car with Christine W. and we had just taken the Joaquin Miller Rd exit off of Highway 13.  Hot Child in the City started playing on my mix CD.  She was delighted with this song, as was I.  I can't speak for her, but the first time I had ever heard this song was on an episode of Sex and the City. It was an excellent episode in Season 3, all about acting like a teenager, hanging out on a hot summer day, and smoking pot.  The song practically demands that you chill out, kick back, and relax.  It is excellent. In fact, when we met, Nick said that this song actually reminded him of ME.  This might have been a line, but I was incredibly flattered and also validated because that was kind of what I was going for back then.  Being hot.  And living (near) the city. 

Back to the car ride, we were heading to a party at Scott B's house.  It might have been the first of his annual oyster parties, although I can't say for sure.  This guy is a real character and I met him in Spanish class during my sophomore year at Cal.  He was renting a downstairs unit of a women's house in the Oakland hills.  He had access to the yard and hot tub and amazing view.  He had had a number of interesting jobs, most notably, chef on a private yacht that belonged to the Hiltons.  He was such a relaxing, interesting, welcoming person, with fun, colorful friends, and an afternoon at his house was an afternoon well spent.  I had never eaten oysters, but was game to try them.  He had prepared amazing dipping sauces and I learned how to shuck them.  I tried them both raw and BBQ'd.  We also BBQ'd chocolate chip cookies, which I was surprised to find out is totally possible and also delicious.  There were amazing dips, like roasted eggplant with chopped parsley.  Strawberries with mint and balsamic. Tri Tips and crusty bread.  It was an endless feast, perfect weather, and great conversations.  I went to several oyster parties thereafter and always had a memorable time. 

Sitting, Waiting, Wishing by Jack Johnson

Nick and I were sitting in a movie theater in Walnut Creek, waiting for the previews to start.  I cannot remember which movie we were going to see.  In fact, it was odd that we were in the movie theater because Nick wasn't a huge fan of going to the movies.   When we started dating, he was the quintessential, 20-something, single guy.  He lived in an apartment with his brother.  He decorated rather well for a 20-something guy, but his decor definitely included the expected beer bottle and alcohol themed art, in addition to a lot of framed artwork (a plus in my book as I equate framed art to being a grown-up) and some interesting pieces.  He folded all of his towels precisely and the bathroom was always clean.  He was a catch! 

I hadn't really dated anyone long term in a long time before meeting Nick.  In fact, I hadn't had any long term boyfriends who were not in college or living with their parents so seeing how guys really lived was novel to me.  They eat a lot of fast or frozen food and spend a lot of time on the couch, unshowered, watching sports.  Of course they have all the channels.  In fact, Nick seemed to have oodles of spending cash to spend on anything he wanted.  Unlike me, he wasn't paying off a car or student loans.  Instead of renting movies at Blockbuster, he would just buy them.  We went out to eat or for drinks constantly.  And I will never forget the first time we ordered pizza and ate it in bed, watching a movie.  I could count on one hand the number of times I had ever ordered a pizza!  He was even a regular at a Chinese delivery place.  One time we even went to Macy's to buy him new underwear (I thought that was a big deal for our relationship, for the record). Those early days of dating were so much fun and there was never a bad moment.  I wanted the weekends to stretch out forever and we usually packed an insane amount of stuff in between Friday night and Monday morning.  It was supposed to be a summer romance (that ended up turning into forever) and it was the stuff of stories. 

So back to the movies.  Before the previews started, there was a music video promoting a new song by Jack Johnson.  The whole thing is filmed in reverse and both the video and the song are EXCELLENT.  We both watched it enraptured, not wanting it to end, but when it did, we turned to each other and both gushed over how cool it was!  I bought the CD not long after that and it always reminds me of those early days dating Nick. 

Zombie Nation by Kernkraft 400

Even though I was living in the East Bay and San Francisco for a number of years, it wasn't until 2002 that I really took advantage of how easy it was to go to Oakland A's games.  It was a quick BART ride after work and then on weekends there were tailgates!  2002 was a big year for me and Oakland A's baseball and I went to quite a few games.  It also happened to be a big year for the A's with an amazing, unstoppable pitching staff, including Zito, Hudson, Mulder, and Koch.  In spite of this, it was never difficult to get A's tickets and I almost always bought mine at the gate.  I went with friends, family, co-workers, anyone who wanted to go with me.  I always had a blast and I often "watched" the games I couldn't go to online if they weren't on TV and even listened to them on the radio.   Nick might've actually considered me a real fan that year.  I certainly am not much of a fan now.  Still call myself an A's fan, but I don't watch any games or follow them whatsoever. 

2002 was also the year of the 20 game winning streak.  I was very emotional watching the film Moneyball because it documented this entire year of baseball so well.  What a treat to have this great year that already stands out in my memory on film!  I went to 3 out of the 4 last games in the streak.  So typical of A's "fans", that 20th game, a Wednesday $1 hot dogs and tickets game, ended up completely selling out, including opening up some seats on Mt. Davis.  Luckily for me, my mom's friends had coincidentally bought tickets for this particular game ages ago, not knowing it would be such an historical event.  I had been offered a ticket.  It was such an amazing day.  It was an exciting game, coming down to the wire with a walk off home run to win the game and continue the streak, breaking a record.  There was this amazing energy, everyone on their feet cheering throughout the game.  I may have even cried when we won (there is no may have about.  I totally did).  We broke out in the Wave, which is really impressive with a packed house.  And of course, the strains of Oh-Oh-Oh softly coming in as Zombie Nation started playing, which served to energize the crowd even more.  I hear that song and think of a batter stepping up to the plate, the crack of the bat, the crowd cheering.  All the sights, sounds, smells, and feelings in baseball.  That is why I love it!

Cattleprod by Lo Fidelity Allstars

Remember when I moved from the Mission District in San Francisco to Daly City and I had to buy a car?  My apartment was just far enough from the BART station to necessitate driving, mostly because the walk home was almost entirely uphill.  That was almost the extent of my driving - to and from BART, as well as trips to the grocery store or some other errand.  I took full advantage of my short little drives to play music at top volume in my car.  My rocking Hyundai with the CD player hooked into the cigarette lighter.  It was a little "me" time, alone in my car. 

Cattleprod was one of those songs that I listened to as I drove up, up, up to the top floor of the BART station to find a parking space or after work when I was winding down on my way home.  It has this killer beat and bass line that I couldn't get enough of.  My mornings could be really stressful because I started work at 8am, just like practically everyone else in San Francisco, which meant the parking lot filled up all at once and I could miss getting a space by a minute or two!  Eventually BART started charging for parking, with the option to purchase a reserved spot on the 1st or 2nd level.  I purchased the spot, not because it afforded me the flexibility to arrive at work whenever I wanted, but because I didn't need that kind of stress in the morning.  Yet there was something about the dark, concrete parking structure that I really liked because I felt like I could just blast the music almost in private and really listen to it, as opposed to being focused on driving.  My driving "skills" have been talked about before, so there is no need to point out that a parking lot/structure is probably one of the most distracting, accident prone places to be.  On the other hand, all of the commuters were on autopilot, just like me, so there was rarely a case of someone waiting on a space or driving slowly while looking for a spot.  Everyone knew to just keep going up, up, up to find the last remaining spaces.  Sometimes I really miss commuting and that "me" time. 

Dirty Pop by N*Sync

After an embarrassing and unfortunate incident in which I broke my ribs compounded by having been on anti-depressants for a period of time, I suddenly found myself with 20 lbs of unwanted weight.  Once my ribs were healed to the point that they were no longer painful, I became bound and determined to take that weight off, so I hit the gym.  At one point I was working out 6 days/week.  It was mostly about exercise and I wasn't hyper focused on diet, although I may have been doing some portion control and limiting carbs, that kind of thing.  My gym membership included all of the Crunch and Bally's locations and there were 2 within very close distance of work and another with decent parking for the weekends.  I did a variety of classes, such as Spinning, Sculpting, and Pilates.  If I missed the class or if there wasn't anything interesting going on, I hit the cardio and weight machines.  I would run/walk for 20 minutes, followed by another 20 minutes on either the elliptical machine or stationary bike.  One location had a 15 minute ab blast so I would often incorporate that as well.  After the cardio, I would typically do 3 set of 15-20 reps on all of the various machines, incorporating all the major muscle groups.  I vividly remember listening to Dirty Pop while lifting weights.  It has a great driving beat and I couldn't help but sing along.  It made the workout a lot of fun. During this time, there was a weight loss contest sponsored by the gym.  I decided to participate and duly took my before shots, but I never took any after shots or officially entered the contest.  I can't remember why I chose not to enter, but I can report that after about 6 months I was in excellent shape at a weight to be proud of and 3 months after that, I was thinner than I had been in a long time.  Whatever I was doing, it worked!

I Believe in Santa Claus by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton

It was shortly before Christmas in, I want to say the late 90's, and we were visiting the M Family in Lafayette.  We decided it would be fun to head into San Francisco for the day for some window shopping and probably a Ghirardelli sundae, although I can't remember the specifics of what we did that day.  What I do remember is we decided to all pile into Aunty P's 1992 (right?) Honda Civic.  Imagine, 2 people in front and 4 grown people (3 girls + Matt) in the backseat.  In a Civic.  We were going through the Caldecott Tunnel laughing hysterically because the tunnel has this rhythm or something to it and it seems like you go over bumps at a regular pace.  Every time we would hit a bump, we thought for sure we would bottom out.  Not super hilarious in reality, but the situation certainly warranted laughter.

We were also listening to the Kenny and Dolly Christmas Album.  I don't know anyone else who listens to this during the holidays, but it is a tradition in our 2 families.  I am sure one of the moms introduced it to the other one.  Kenny and Dolly were both popular in the 80's, but this album is the cheesiest thing imaginable.  It is mostly Dolly's fault, but it is so gosh dang cheerful and jolly, you just can't stand it!  The best line is when she sings:  "I believe in miracles!  I believe in magic, too!"  Her voice breaks on "magic" and it is hysterical.  Julene sang along with her that day in the car and got the giggly "magic" just right.  I have the album mixed into my Christmas playlist and look forward to hearing it every year. 

Under my Thumb by the Rolling Stones

So much of my first trip to Vegas truly falls under the "what stays in Vegas" category, but there are still plenty of anecdotes that I CAN share. Bryan A. invited me to come along as his date to a wedding in September, 2001.  Lucky for him, it was mere days before 9/11/01.  On our way to the airport (in Oakland), he realized he had forgotten his wallet.  Being that this was (just) before 9/11, a game of 20 questions was enough to get him on the plane.  I can't remember exactly how he got the wallet, but I think that someone came by the house and picked it up and brought it to Vegas.  Bryan then somehow lost his boarding pass between the ticket counter and the gate, but again, this was no big deal.  We made it to Vegas in one piece!

Vegas was amazing and I immediately understood why Bryan thought I would enjoy it there so much.  Lights!  Drinking!  Beautiful people!  Nightclubs!  Pools!  Music!  Staying up all night!  No rules!  It truly was the adult version of Disneyland and I had a blast.  The wedding was also 100% Vegas.  The bride walked down the aisle, accompanied by Elvis.  Elvis officiated the wedding and it was still totally sweet and she wore a white dress and had a wedding party and everything.  Elvis serenaded the happy couple with Love Me Tender and it was a lovely service.

The rest of the trip was all about those things I exclaimed about above.  I think my favorite thing we did the entire weekend was a walk down the strip.  We each had a 40 oz, which you can drink, right there on the street, legally (right?).  We walked to each hotel to check out its spectacular features, like the fountains and amazing ceiling at the Bellagio and the Roman columns inside Caesar's Palace.  But my very favorite memory of the entire trip was just a little thing.  Bryan and I were getting ready to meet the group and we were hanging out in our room, listening to the radio.  We were about to leave and Bryan says, "Wait!  I have to listen to this song!"  It was Under my Thumb, admittedly an excellent song.  He sits down on his bed and starts bobbing his head, tapping his toes, and drumming his fingers on his legs.  He might have been singing under his breath.  It was so hilarious and endearing, the cutest thing Bryan had ever done!

Rag Doll by Aerosmith

I am not the greatest driver and I have no problem admitting this.  I got a late start and in general, I do not have the best attention span or attention to detail that driving requires.  I also seem to have a poor sense of spatial awareness and depth.  Add to that the fact that I really do not care about cars and you have a fair driver, at best.  I have never caused a major accident and I get to where I need to go.  I have driven in several of the large cities, including Chicago, San Francisco, and New York City (Queens Borough) without incident and even with a fair amount of confidence.  Driving is something I can do, but I don't love it.

My dad purchased a 1967 Mustang for me and my sister when we were in high school with high hopes that we would love tinkering with it.  My sister did, but me, not so much.  I didn't get my license until half way through my Senior year and then it was off to college in Berkeley which did not require a car.  I didn't get a car until 2000 when I moved to Daly City.  I purchased my aunt's Taurus (can't remember the year or even the color) for $2,000.  It was an enormous sedan and the least cool car on the planet.  It lasted for 1 year and then the transmission died.  I bought my very first car in late 2001.  My dad suggested the Hyundai Elantra because of its 10 year/100,000 mile warranty.  I thought that sounded fine and more importantly, it required no thought or research on my part.  I almost let him talk me into a color I didn't like and I did let him talk me out of getting a CD player installed.  I bought the car in about 30 minutes, didn't even try to negotiate price.  My dad had panicked and left at this point because he couldn't believe I could make a $15,000 purchase so quickly.  I felt like a winner though because this was in the days when the sales tax was based on the zip code where you bought it, not where you garaged it, so I saved about $1,000.  I drove off in my brand new, BLACK, 2002 Hyundai Elantra, happy as a clam. 

For a couple years I even took really good care of it.  I religiously changed the oil and got it serviced, right on schedule.  I also kept it looking good and washed it frequently, inside and out.  There was a car wash in Daly City on John Daly Ave that I liked to frequent, but it was often busy.  I would bring a book and crank up the tunes while waiting for the car wash.  Rag Doll was one of the songs I would crank up (in my Discman with adaptor since I didn't get that CD player installed until 2003).  I loved the intro with the thumping bass line.  It made me feel rebellious because I remembered the scandalous music video.  The next time I get a car wash, I'll have to blast it for old times sake. 

Paul Revere by The Beastie Boys

Washbag was a favorite Big Game Week tradition.  Washbag stands for the Washington Square Bar & Grill in San Francisco.  The Cal Band would descend on the restaurant in Straw Hat attire.  We spread out throughout the entire restaurant, an already fully packed house, lining up the stairs, amongst the patrons, against the bar.  We played a variety of Cal favorites as well as some rock n roll hits.  It was always a lot of fun.  The party continued as we lined up in the street outside the restaurant and continued our concert.  There was usually (ok always) free booze involved in this event, usually from dining patrons who were so caught up in the excitement, they would start slipping us their glasses of wine or beer.   In 1998, either some of the drinking-age bandsmen or perhaps some of the patrons dashed across the street to a corner store and the next thing you know, a dolly full of cases of beer is being wheeled our way. 

Fun Club - June, 2001

The party continued on the bus ride home, beers in hand.  Bryan H. stood up in the front of the bus, microphone in hand, and proceeded to sing/rap the entire Beastie Boys classic, Paul Revere.  He had it down, from the lyrics, to the accents, to the intonation.  It rocked and everyone enjoyed it so much.  I remember looking around the bus and everyone was smiling, clapping to the beat, totally in the moment.  I didn't know Bryan very well at this point.  I knew him mostly as Kathy R's boyfriend, but after this, he became Kathy's cool, enviable boyfriend.  It turned out, Bryan was cool without trying and even better, he was so friendly and it was the easiest thing in the world to like Bryan.  I got to know him a lot better in the years following college when he and Kathy would come over to my house for dinner (or vice versa) or when we would meet up in the city for drinks, dancing, and Fun Club.  Bryan was 100% fun, full of life, adventure, and positivity.  He will be missed, but will live on in my memory whenever I hear Paul Revere.

Me and Bobbie McGee by Janis Joplin

We were in Mitch's car, heading back from the Bison or perhaps a party in the East Bay.  Mitch lived in Pacifica at the time and passed by my place in San Francisco's Mission District so I often caught a ride with him on the way home from wherever we were.  Mitch was playing Me and Bobbie McGee which I had never heard before.  He said it was a classic and turned it up.  It starts off folksy and quiet and builds into this crazy frenzy of la da das and you cannot help but sing along with it, at the top of your lungs.  And that is just what we did, cruising along Highway 80/101 through San Francisco, la da daing away.  It was about at this point that we decided we were not ready for the evening to end so we headed into the city for a Mitch adventure. 

One of the stops we made was at the Westin St Francis on Union Square.  We walked through the main lobby and over to the elevators.  They are glass elevators that give you an amazing view of the city as you ride up, up, up into the sky.  There is a nightclub at the top, but that is not what Mitch wanted to show me.  The fun part is riding the elevator down.  You are supposed to lean your head against the glass (a la Ferris Bueller in the Sears Tower) and as you approach the ground floor, there is this fence with kind of spiky things on top.  It feels like those spiky things are going to drive right into your skull!  It is awesome!  I loved this so much I started incorporating it on my own tours of San Francisco with visitors to the city.  Oddly, most people did not find this as exciting as Mitch and I did.  Well la da da da da da da!  Hey Hey Hey!

Shiny Disco Balls by Who Da Funk

Drugs.  Rock N Roll. Bad Ass Vegas Halls.  Late Night Booty Calls.  Shiny Disco Balls.

Those are the only lyrics in the entire song.

In late 2000, I was so excited to be getting out of a bad roommate situation and into a good one - with my SISTER!  She was transferring to SF State so she could live with me.  I didn't even care that we were in Daly City because San Francisco was prohibitively expensive at the time.  We had our own apartment and our own rooms.  We had a view.  We decorated it together.  I was excited to shoulder 2/3 of the rent because it was my sister, a college student, and she wanted to live with me.  It was going to be awesome. 

It mostly was, but I think she was mad at me a lot of the time.  I was going through a hard time in those couple years, but I always felt like she was there for me.  I honestly didn't realize until later that she was mad at me.  I mostly noticed the good stuff.  We had a show we watched together (Gilmore Girls).  I had a blast cooking dinner together, but I especially loved it when we would pick up Chinese to go at Ranch 99 market, always way too much greasy and oh so delicious food, and eat it at the coffee table.  I could always find something to wear in Cato's closet and since she had the full length mirror on the back of her door, it totally made sense for me to go in her room.  We went to parties together, hosted friends at our apartment, had mani-pedi dates followed by daytime cocktails.  It really was a fun couple years, something we'll never get back and something I am so grateful to have experienced.

Unlike me, Cato had a bunch of jobs in retail (Papa Murphy's, the Wherehouse, Peninsula Beauty).  She would get bored of one place and literally walk next door and get a job there instead.  She got her first "real" job by sending a fax to a job posting in the NEWSPAPER.  Seriously!  She either has the best luck or the best instincts, but that kind of approach never worked for me.  Also she is very brave!  I think she actually heard Shiny Disco Balls playing while working at the beauty place, not the Wherehouse.  They would play a lot of trendy music and she would come home singing.  I thought the lyrics were ridiculous, but then I heard the song, liked the beat, memorized those ridiculous lyrics, and it became our thing.  We'd play it in the car on the way to the store or just around the house.  One last thing that bears mentioning because I thought it was so cute - Catherine would get ready in the morning by blaring music on her stereo in her room.  I loved that.  She didn't do that when we were in high school so it seemed out of character, but I found it so endearing! 

You Can't Count on Me by Counting Crows

Williams-Hamilton dinners date back to 2005.  It was something you could count on every month.  You never left a dinner before scheduling the next dinner.  Each one was a much anticipated event.  There was a food theme for each dinner (Argentinian, Indian, Japanese, and Moroccan, to name a few).  The hosts usually provided the main course and some drinks...the visitors usually provided appetizers, sometimes desserts, and more drinks.  It was an all night affair, full of talking over each other (all 4 of us doing this at the same time), board games, laughter, and friendship.  It rolled over into the morning with breakfast and more story telling and more laughter.  And of course, there was music.  I put a lot of thought into the music I would play at each dinner and if you look at my iTunes, you will see playlists titled Hamilton Fun and More Hamilton Fun.

I had never been a big Counting Crows fan, I know, sacrilege. I am supposed to feel a strange loyalty to them.  But I didn't.  A friend of mine had an extra ticket to the concert back in the Spring of 1996 so I went with him and I was unimpressed and also concerned because Adam Duritz was so stoned I worried he would fall off the stage at any moment!  And also, they played Mr. Jones, the one song I enjoyed, in slow motion, like a remix, but not in a good way.  Scott H. really liked Counting Crows though and even suggested going to a concert.  I said no, I was not a fan, etc, but I wish I had said yes in retrospect.  Live performances are FUN and now we have kids and when will we ever be going to a concert together now??  It was probably at their house when I heard some Counting Crows that I wasn't familiar with and started to hear them in a different light.  I downloaded a couple songs and later burned the CDs that Scott had.  My favorite song is You Can't Count on Me.  It's kind of cheerful sounding, but the lyrics are anything but cheerful.  Regardless.  I think it's become clear so far in my life soundtrack that I don't listen too closely to the lyrics.   I started incorporating some Counting Crows into my Hamilton mixes.

Over the years we added two rambunctious dogs to our dinners, which only served to raise the volume considerably, as there were now 6 voices talking over each other.  The years went by and we added 3 kids to the mix.  Dinners turned into lunches and most recently a day trip.  Still fun, still much anticipated, but no more themes, no more overnights, and much less drinking.  I still create a music playlist when it's the Williams turn to host.  Speaking of which, I need to email Karen H. to plan our next get together!