Week Two

My desk at work is already messy.

My room, despite my best efforts, is deteriorating into its usual chaotic and filth-ridden state.

I can’t think of words in English or Spanish anymore. I think I have early onset Alzheimer’s. It runs in the family. It took me three minutes to figure out that I wanted to say deteriorate. If looked it up in dictionary, I’d probably realize I’m using it incorrectly.

Spanish AP style is messing with my brain. Will I ever be able to decide whether a punctuation point goes inside or outside of a quotation mark again?

AP Style, MLA Style, APA style, Spanish style. Fuck it. I panic every time I have to insert a comma. Sometimes you need them, sometimes you don’t. It all depends on what style you’re writing in. If I put style in quotation marks, would that be unnecessary? Probably.

I’ve been cranking out dailies and been chastised for not having story ideas. It’s rather limiting to only be able to report on Hispanic issues. I’ve pitched a couple story ideas, but some have been rejected because the area of town I proposed reporting on is not predominantly Hispanic.

I still like Big D despite missing D.C. something terrible now that D.C. is the bureau’s newest intern. Only today I was comparing the DMN’s diner with the California Grill next door to 1090 Vermont. I used to dine at Cosi, Tryst, Open City and Mr. Chen’s Organic Chinese. I too used to ride the red line to Farragut North and Woodley Park. Ah, D.C. How I was so lucky to be there, but I threw it all away. Today I erased something I had recorded from a press conference held by Senator Biden. SENATOR BIDEN, people! Senator Biden. He attempted to run for president, you know? That’s a big fucking deal. CNN was even talking about Biden being the possible choice for VP for Obama. I sat no more than 10 feet away from him inside Dirksen.

For my assignment today I had to go to an editorial board meeting with the Bishop of Big D. I was sitting with all the big shots of the paper. It was so incredibly intimidating. The fourth flour of the building is a different world entirely. The story I wrote was disappointing considering it was completely rewritten. I hate it when that happens. It’s so demoralizing. The editor told me that I did my job as a reporter though. I guess I never thought of it that way. It was my job to report, his job to make the final product whichever way he saw fit.

I’ve also joined the fit club at work on whim. I must lose weight or I will I bring the entire second floor of the DMN down with me. It’ a competition and I’ve been teamed with everyone who works on that floor.

What else?

There was also a fire drill today late in the afternoon. This one reporter yelled out “I’m on deadline!”

He’d rather burst into flames if only it means that he got his story in on time. Too funny.

Marelynnisms: *****

marelynn:

5:30 PM awww

and ***** and I just chatted

and i totally freaked him out

i just unloaded like all of my problems

and then he just said goodbye

5:31 PM

i love him

and i’m having his baby

lol

and he cannot stand me

Big D!

I was told I live in the ghetto, but the ghetto seems pretty damn nice. I live in what is practically south central Dallas, or Oak Cliff. It’s an old part of town that will be gentrified sooner or later. Other than old cutesy houses with perfectly kept lush grassy lawns, an array of foliage in every yard and the near mansions about six blocks from me, there’s just a whole bunch of Mexicans that live in the area. Uyyy, so scary!!

Although I suppose all the Fiesta grocery stores and Latino this and that signs littered all over the area is a bit reminiscent of J-town, it’s still missing the Mexican soldiers decked out in all black holding giant machines guns on every corner and watching you bag your groceries. So, sorry peeps; Oak Cliff is not Juarez. In fact, it’s more like Kern place on crack, the good crack, with rancheras blasting from a couple houses.

Thus far, my vagabond to Dallas experience has been rather pleasant. And, I have to say, I was a goddamn trooper when I drove the 8 hours to the middle of Texas. I was terrified of driving. I had visions of ending up decapitated on a lonely stretch of highway, my head being pecked at by vultures. You see, I’ve had an accident on I-10 before. While traveling with a beast to Austin, another beast appeared in the middle of the road. Though I’ve never quite figured out what caused my accident, I’ve narrowed it down to either a giant armadillo, a wild boar, or as one of my dearest friends suspected, a bison.

I tried to swerve to avoid the wildebeest, but I over corrected and ending up spinning every which way on Interstate 10.

Alas, I survived both trips! The latest thanks to Monica and the song “Bad Girls” by Donna Summer. I was lucky enough to have been carrying a CD of terrible disco songs which included that gem on my venture. I’m not sure whether it’s the “Toot toot, heyyyyyy, beep beep” interspersed throughout the song, or what sounds like a sports whistle in the background, but the sheer ridiculousness of the song kept me awake and reenergized once my eyelids began to get heavy, and I started running into the shoulders of I-10.

Have a listen!

Things have also gone rather well at work. Everyone is nice! Wow, what a concept. And I’ve already met a Pulitzer prize-winning photog. Thanks, Shemale (BT). Speaking Spanish makes me happy. My first story gets published tomorrow. I feel rather productive cranking out a daily, despite it being a silly story about a children’s art installation. Spanish is rather difficult though, I end up make some wack ass translations. I just don’t have the vocabulary. I was reading Cien Años De Soledad, and I swear I had to look up at least 10 words on the first page. Truculente!! That’s a good one.

My only complaint is that I need a GPS navigation system. Being lost is Dallas traffic is nooooooo fun. I promise. I have to text Google from my phone all the time and it doesn’t always focus.

Well that’s it for my cheesy update for my friends and family who read this. I believe I am hanging out Ben, who I have renamed Shemale, tonight.

Oh, by the way, an opossum died by way of vehicle that I was a passenger in the other night. What luck I have with animals!

Some photos:

Mi Trabajito

The Bahn

The caballito that we almost were killed for in San Antonio

El Quijote

The wind in El Paso is driving me mad. Will the constant rustling ever stop? I feel like I am Spanish–one of the women in  Almodóvar’s Volver dusting off the grave of my dead husband. Stop, wind. STOP.

The Disneyland of Mexican restaurants

Casa Bonita is one my favorite episodes of South Park ever. There was a rerun on Comedy Central (yes! I have cable & dvr back!) last night. If you’ve never seen it, you should. Season 7, episode 11.

Eva

If you read gossip rags, you probably already know Eva Mendes posed topless for Vogue Italia. Marelynn sent me the link earlier this week. Some people have been talking shit, but I think she’s awesome. So are the pictures and so are feet and so is her decision to go topless.

Your picture is still on my wall

In my haste to return to Texas for nothing, I booked myself a flight 2 days after my internship ended. I had intended to play D.C. tourist for a week, or at least a weekend, but I had had enough of bustling diversity, phenomenal architecture, 60 degree weather, green everywhere and the most powerful city in the world, as Ivan likes to call it.

Because of my early return, I missed Beach House at the Rock n’ Roll Hotel, the same venue where St. Vincent played. The show was on a Friday night and I left early on Saturday. I even had tickets, but I chose to spend my last day in D.C. getting drunk at happy hour, packing and going out with my fellow interns for my final rendez-vous with Adams Morgan.

I should have stayed another week, another day at least. I should have seen Beach House and dined at Mama Ayesha’s with D.C.’s finest until we all met Helen Thomas.

I wish I could write a story like this!

Best story in The Austin American-Statesman EVER.

Bargain hunting urbanites changing the fabric of East Austin

Midrise condos tower over 60- to 80-year-old houses where many original families still live.

By Marjon Rostami
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Sunday, April 27, 2008

Two bars sit on opposite corners at East Sixth and Pedernales streets.

In one, hipsters drink cocktails and bob their heads to the folky strains of Feist.

At the other, a more than 30-year-old neighborhood pub, regulars drink Bud Light, listen to loud Tejano artists Gary Hobbs and the Hometown Boys and ash their cigarettes in empty soda cans.

The Peacock and Kellee’s Place are in the center of a whirlwind of change on the east side.

Midrise condos, with office and retail space and residential units priced as high as $300,000, tower over 60- to 80-year-old houses where many families of the original owners still live.

The new development is raising property values, even of the older homes.

According to the county appraisal district, property values for an average-priced house in the area, now about $120,000, have increased more than 100 percent from 2000 to 2007.

And though some residents see such gentrification as a good thing, the clash of cultures — professional upper-middle-income white singles and couples moving into a historically working-class Hispanic neighborhood — has others regretting the interest in their part of the city.

KEEP READING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Craig Ferguson is not funny

Morrissey and Kathy Griffin were both on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson tonight. I love Moz, but sitting through Ferguson was almost not worth it.

He’s just NOT funny. How did this guy ever get the job over Michael Ian Black?

Seriously?!

I still love you

And I always will. Even if you never ever beat the Spurs. F those haters! There’s always next season. Maybe before Nash turns 80. I love you, Suns!!!! At least the Mavs are out! That makes me a little happy.