Twitter is making America illiterate, and because people don't like to read bodies of writing longer than 140 characters anymore, I joined Twitter to help keep the world updated. Go stalkers!
"Follow" me at http://twitter.com/Lauren_Belfoy
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Warning to doggie Moms and Dads (and Grandparents)
Ichiban got into the garbage last night and pulled out a Ralph's bag that I had thrown my onion scraps into. Luckily it looked like he didn't eat any, but later on he threw up a little. I figured it could have been from a piece of onion he ate. I researched it and never knew how bad they were for them (cats too). I wanted to let you all know to NEVER give your dog onions, raw OR cooked (and even onion powder). Fortunately they have to eat quite a bit, or on a regular basis before anything severe happens. Also I learned that if your dog eats something toxic, like chocolate for example, to force them 1 tbs (per 10 pounds of dog) of (fresh) hydrogen peroxide to induce vomitting right away. I know my Buh Buh gets a lot of people food, and I worry about him everyday of my life, even when he is in the best hands.
Here is what I found online:
"Onions are toxic to dogs. The toxicity is dose dependent, so the bigger the animal, the more onion need be consumed to cause a toxicity. Onion toxicity causes a Heinz body anemia. Heinz bodies are small bubble-like projections which protrude from a red blood cell and can be seen when the cells are stained. This "bubble" is a weak spot in the red blood cell and, therefore, the cell has a decreased life-span and ruptures prematurely.
Here is what I found online:
"Onions are toxic to dogs. The toxicity is dose dependent, so the bigger the animal, the more onion need be consumed to cause a toxicity. Onion toxicity causes a Heinz body anemia. Heinz bodies are small bubble-like projections which protrude from a red blood cell and can be seen when the cells are stained. This "bubble" is a weak spot in the red blood cell and, therefore, the cell has a decreased life-span and ruptures prematurely.
If numerous red cells are affected and rupture, anemia can result. It is a form of hemolytic anemia. Onions are only one of the substances which can cause Heinz body anemia. Other substances such as Acetominophen (Tylenol) and benzocaine-containing topical preparations can also cause Heinz body anemia in the dog.
The toxic effect of the onions are the same whether the product is raw, cooked or dehydrated. The hemolytic episode usually occurs several days after onion ingestion (lowest hematocrit around day 5 post ingestion). Daily feeding of onions could have a cumulative effect due to ongoing formation of Heinz bodies versus a single exposure with a wide gap until the next exposure, allowing the bone marrow time to regenerate the prematurely destroyed red cells.
The cat is even more susceptible. Recently, Gerber began to add onion powder to all its meat baby foods. They are labeled as "better tasting". Since baby food is often used in sick cats that are not eating (to stimulate their appetites), there was concern that the onion powder would cause a Heinz body anemia in these cats. Within a week or two of the change, there were numerous reports of Heinz body anemia in cats receiving Gerber baby food in their diets.
I strongly recommend NO ONIONS for dogs. There is no benefit and certainly the potential to cause harm."
So now you know.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Thursday, April 30, 2009
And then there was....
Hola family + friends! It's been ages since I've updated this blog. To tell you the honest to blog truth, I pretty much just forgot my Blogspot password and had to reset it. So here we are.
A lot has gone down since Joe and I moved into the new place, which is looking awesome by the way. Joe bought a couch today, unfortunately it doesn't get delivered for another 4 weeks. Aside from the bed, cable, internet, BBQ grill, and herb garden, a couch was the only thing we needed to make the place into a livable space.
Alex visited at the end of March and we had a freakin' blast. We went out to Joshua Tree and changed our perspective on things (photos of the trip are on my flash drive, not my laptop unfortunately, but look forward to them on Shutterfly sometime). We also showed him our new 'hood in Hollyhood Hills, and introduced him to Henry's Tacos (amazing), and even made a trip out to Malibu. I miss my little bro so much, we always have tons of laughs.
So.. I'm writing a book, a cliche I know. I've actually already gotten some really, REALLY good stuff for it. It's a novel, a story essentially about family... in the form of a junior hockey team. It will probably be exactly what you expect from me- a little humorous, a little gritty, a little heartwarming, free of cheese (maybe a little cheese). Some of my old junior hockey friends have given me some amazing stories as inspiration, I should have known my buddies would come in handy someday, and let me tell you after talking to them, nothing I write will ever be as interesting as the things that actually happened. If I manage to keep my attention on this to the bitter end, it will be quite the accomplishment. Writing is not a hard thing for me, commitment is.
Another major event that Joe and I attended was Coachella Music Festival 2009 in the hot, hot California desert (101 degrees, ouch), about 25 minutes from Palm Desert. It was a whole weekend event, though we only attended Friday and Sunday's festivities. We were able to sell our Saturday VIP tickets and passes on Craigslist for $250 the day-of, they were pricey tickets to begin with and we were able to get ours for free through a friend/collegue of Joe's. It was ridiculous fun. We were able to see Paul McCartney play a history making 2 and a half hour set! We figured it was the closest thing we'd ever get to seeing the Beatles live. Pauly Mac did not dissapoint! Sunday's headliner was one of my favorites, The Cure who were also unreal live. The Coachella staff ended up having to cut them off an unbeleivable 3 hours into their set, right in the middle of "Boys Don't Cry", the speakers were shut off so all you could hear was the faint sound of the band (unaware they were shut off, or just didn't give a ish) playing and the entire crowd singing the lyrics, it was beautiful. A riot ensued on our way out, and we got to see some people get maced by the cops. It was pretty funny. I included a few photos from Coachella below.
Well, I am off to Vancouver, BC next Thursday for the EA Sports NHL 10 Event. Those EA people spoil me for sure. It's only a day, so I am flying down to Seattle for a week long visit to see my NW friends and the family whom I haven't seen since Vegas, and my beautiful baby Buh Buh who I haven't seen since CHRISTMAS (the thought makes me want to cry, I miss him so much). Well all of this depending on if I get across the border..... let us pray. As our bud Paul McCartney would say, "I'm a MAN ON THE RUN" haha!
Hope everyone is doing well. I've seen better days (financially?), but for some reason I love my life, I'm lucky to have good health, good times, and good people around me.
"Like a complete unknown, like a rolling stone"... Bob Dylan would understand.
Peace.
A lot has gone down since Joe and I moved into the new place, which is looking awesome by the way. Joe bought a couch today, unfortunately it doesn't get delivered for another 4 weeks. Aside from the bed, cable, internet, BBQ grill, and herb garden, a couch was the only thing we needed to make the place into a livable space.
Alex visited at the end of March and we had a freakin' blast. We went out to Joshua Tree and changed our perspective on things (photos of the trip are on my flash drive, not my laptop unfortunately, but look forward to them on Shutterfly sometime). We also showed him our new 'hood in Hollyhood Hills, and introduced him to Henry's Tacos (amazing), and even made a trip out to Malibu. I miss my little bro so much, we always have tons of laughs.
So.. I'm writing a book, a cliche I know. I've actually already gotten some really, REALLY good stuff for it. It's a novel, a story essentially about family... in the form of a junior hockey team. It will probably be exactly what you expect from me- a little humorous, a little gritty, a little heartwarming, free of cheese (maybe a little cheese). Some of my old junior hockey friends have given me some amazing stories as inspiration, I should have known my buddies would come in handy someday, and let me tell you after talking to them, nothing I write will ever be as interesting as the things that actually happened. If I manage to keep my attention on this to the bitter end, it will be quite the accomplishment. Writing is not a hard thing for me, commitment is.
Another major event that Joe and I attended was Coachella Music Festival 2009 in the hot, hot California desert (101 degrees, ouch), about 25 minutes from Palm Desert. It was a whole weekend event, though we only attended Friday and Sunday's festivities. We were able to sell our Saturday VIP tickets and passes on Craigslist for $250 the day-of, they were pricey tickets to begin with and we were able to get ours for free through a friend/collegue of Joe's. It was ridiculous fun. We were able to see Paul McCartney play a history making 2 and a half hour set! We figured it was the closest thing we'd ever get to seeing the Beatles live. Pauly Mac did not dissapoint! Sunday's headliner was one of my favorites, The Cure who were also unreal live. The Coachella staff ended up having to cut them off an unbeleivable 3 hours into their set, right in the middle of "Boys Don't Cry", the speakers were shut off so all you could hear was the faint sound of the band (unaware they were shut off, or just didn't give a ish) playing and the entire crowd singing the lyrics, it was beautiful. A riot ensued on our way out, and we got to see some people get maced by the cops. It was pretty funny. I included a few photos from Coachella below.
Well, I am off to Vancouver, BC next Thursday for the EA Sports NHL 10 Event. Those EA people spoil me for sure. It's only a day, so I am flying down to Seattle for a week long visit to see my NW friends and the family whom I haven't seen since Vegas, and my beautiful baby Buh Buh who I haven't seen since CHRISTMAS (the thought makes me want to cry, I miss him so much). Well all of this depending on if I get across the border..... let us pray. As our bud Paul McCartney would say, "I'm a MAN ON THE RUN" haha!
Hope everyone is doing well. I've seen better days (financially?), but for some reason I love my life, I'm lucky to have good health, good times, and good people around me.
"Like a complete unknown, like a rolling stone"... Bob Dylan would understand.
Peace.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Joe and Laur's New Residence
Here is a picture I took of our new apartment building. We are the top right unit.
Joe and I went by yesterday to drop off our deposit and take another look at the place (we hadn't seen it during the daytime yet). We were in for a pleasant surprise when we found out what amazing views we have. Here are a few pics I took on my Blackberry (pardon the quality):
Joe in part of the living area (it's very open, kind of loft-like). The big windows are great, it's really bright and the ceilings are really high. I'm tempted to put a trampoline here, like on Big. HAHA!
View from our big bedroom window- the HOLLYWOOD sign! The two big living room windows have the same view.
View from the balcony down Beachwood Drive. It's a corner unit, if you lean and look to the left you can see the H-Wood sign.
Kitchen area (nice and big and open). Pardon the mess, they are painting and cleaning and putting in new fixtures.
It's such a gem, we are really excited about it.
Well, 5 more days till Vegas!!! Can't wait to see you all there in full V-town regalia.
Peace.
Joe and I went by yesterday to drop off our deposit and take another look at the place (we hadn't seen it during the daytime yet). We were in for a pleasant surprise when we found out what amazing views we have. Here are a few pics I took on my Blackberry (pardon the quality):
Joe in part of the living area (it's very open, kind of loft-like). The big windows are great, it's really bright and the ceilings are really high. I'm tempted to put a trampoline here, like on Big. HAHA!
View from our big bedroom window- the HOLLYWOOD sign! The two big living room windows have the same view.
View from the balcony down Beachwood Drive. It's a corner unit, if you lean and look to the left you can see the H-Wood sign.
Kitchen area (nice and big and open). Pardon the mess, they are painting and cleaning and putting in new fixtures.It's such a gem, we are really excited about it.
Well, 5 more days till Vegas!!! Can't wait to see you all there in full V-town regalia.
Peace.
Hiking in Hollywood Hills
This weekend Joe and I watched his Aunt's great danes, Diablo and Tesla, while she was in Catalina. Today we took them on a hike into the Hollywood Hills where they have great hiking trails that take you all the way up to the Hollywood sign. We didn't make it all the way up there, using the excuse "the dogs seem really tired." HAHA, really they were! These dogs each weigh probably twice as much as me but they are the sweetest, most well behaved dogs ever. Ichiban is an absolute handful compared to them. The black one, Diablo is my new best buddy, he loves cuddling with me on our bed. I told Joe that I don't want to give his Aunt her dogs back, they are just so awesome!
Diablo sleeping as close to me as possible.
Diablo sleeping as close to me as possible.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Lauren and Joe have gone HOLLYWOOD
Joe and I just found out today that we got the place we wanted in the Hollywood Hills, we FINALLY agreed on an amazing apartment that we both LOVE. We found a gem of a place on the highly coveted Beachwood Drive (the surrounding area is called Beachwood Canyon) and for a steal of a price (I suppose now is the right time to rent). It's a top floor (3rd) one bedroom with a killer floorplan, super high ceilings, a big balcony that faces Beachwood Drive (totally hammock worthy), a HUGE walk in closet (dibbs!), underground parking, and it's close to downtown Hollywood and the 101 Freeway. Ironically after all the classifieds searching and apartment viewing we found this one by just walking by We move in March 15th officially. I posted a couple pictures of the street (Beachwood Drive) that I found on Flickr. As you can see it's directly below the Hollywood sign! I will post more of the place when I get the chance to take some.
Good riddance Little Armenia!
Oh and Joe and I are taking donations (in the form of money or furniture, etc) for furnishing our new place... seeing as we are broke as a mother fuckin' joke. Anything is appreciated :)
Good riddance Little Armenia!
Oh and Joe and I are taking donations (in the form of money or furniture, etc) for furnishing our new place... seeing as we are broke as a mother fuckin' joke. Anything is appreciated :)
Friday, February 13, 2009
Go Flames Go!
For Christmas my super cool boyfriend got me center ice tickets to the Flames @ Kings game on February 12th. Well last night I finally got my Christmas present when the Flames shut out the lousy, basement dwelling Kings. It was a lot of fun, lots of beer, and we had the perfect seats! Michael Buble was at the game and they showed him on the Jumbo-tron, all the housewives went crazy. I have now officially seen all my favorite NHL teams play live. Very exciting. Check out some pics from the best date ever:
But the fun isn't over yet, we are going to see the Oilers play the Kings tomorrow on Valentines day. Beer and hockey is my idea of romance....now who says true love doesn't exist?
But the fun isn't over yet, we are going to see the Oilers play the Kings tomorrow on Valentines day. Beer and hockey is my idea of romance....now who says true love doesn't exist?
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Dreaming of Maui
So I decided today that I want to live in a little bungalow in rural Maui for about 6 months. I was perusing the Maui Craigslist housing just for fun (http://honolulu.craigslist.org/mau/apa/?SAB=mau) and I found out that you get MUCH more for your money in Maui than you do in LA (which is probably the case for just about anywhere). When I'm feeling discouraged about the ridiculous rents in LA I like to look at what I get for the money in other places. I will never again think Maui is an expensive place to live! Here is the little cottage that I found in Haiku, complete with Loft and Tiki bar... amazing. And the rent is only $1150.... pocket change for paradise compared to a dump in Glendale.
I'm going to live in this little hut and sell fish tacos on the side of the road to all the surfers and Joe is going to sell fresh juice in a stand next to me. We are going to rent a crappy little Jeep and just wander the island, surf, and sleep in a hammock (separate hammocks....) on our lanai. Live off of fresh Mahi Mahi, sticky rice, spam and fresh fruits from our yard. We can spend our weekends writing and painting and playing music. We will just wear bikinis and board shorts every day so we can pack light.
You are all welcome to join.
I'm going to live in this little hut and sell fish tacos on the side of the road to all the surfers and Joe is going to sell fresh juice in a stand next to me. We are going to rent a crappy little Jeep and just wander the island, surf, and sleep in a hammock (separate hammocks....) on our lanai. Live off of fresh Mahi Mahi, sticky rice, spam and fresh fruits from our yard. We can spend our weekends writing and painting and playing music. We will just wear bikinis and board shorts every day so we can pack light.You are all welcome to join.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
New EA Blog / Show Dog Moms and Dads
The following is a link to my new blog on EA Sports website:
http://www.easportsworld.com/en_US/news/NHL_3on3_Arcade_LB_Blog
It's about the new 3-on-3 format for NHL09 My new friend at EA (the new online content manager) hooked me up this week with some free games, and a little free press. I FINALLY got to play NHL09 in the comfort of my own home recently and it's fun as frick! I even got Joe addicted to it. We play some pretty good retarded virtual hockey together. And of course, I won't have to pay to download 3-on-3 Arcade.... duh.
Let's see.. what other news do I have? Yesterday Joe and I took Ichiban to a casting call for Hartz pet products. Ummm.. yes, it's exactly what it sounds like. We came across a listing on Craigslist while I was looking for jobs the other day, and we found this open casting call for dogs and cats. Weird. But we figured since Ichiban is the second cutest dog in the world, and probably the friendliest, that he'd be a natural, plus it would be really funny to go to a dog casting call (?). Ichiban is so Hollywood. Well we went to the studio on Sunset Blvd. and waited for like two hours to be called in so they could "audition" him. It was very weird because they were casting people to be in the ad too, I'm telling you... you could FEEL the desperation of these cliche actor-types in the air, most of which were totally wrong for this type of ad (I mean, do real life pet owners have boob jobs and Sharpie eyebrows?).. Haha! Joe and I had a good laugh over it, and Ichiban killed it at his "audition", he's very photogenic. I gave him a little tip before hand that sleeping with the director was probably a good idea to get the part, instead he just licked the crap out of her face. It was a very unusual but hilarious day, being stage parents.
Oh PS- I kind of fixed my infected computer so I can finally use my internet again. If only it were that easy to fix the infection in my sinuses.
http://www.easportsworld.com/en_US/news/NHL_3on3_Arcade_LB_Blog
It's about the new 3-on-3 format for NHL09 My new friend at EA (the new online content manager) hooked me up this week with some free games, and a little free press. I FINALLY got to play NHL09 in the comfort of my own home recently and it's fun as frick! I even got Joe addicted to it. We play some pretty good retarded virtual hockey together. And of course, I won't have to pay to download 3-on-3 Arcade.... duh.
Let's see.. what other news do I have? Yesterday Joe and I took Ichiban to a casting call for Hartz pet products. Ummm.. yes, it's exactly what it sounds like. We came across a listing on Craigslist while I was looking for jobs the other day, and we found this open casting call for dogs and cats. Weird. But we figured since Ichiban is the second cutest dog in the world, and probably the friendliest, that he'd be a natural, plus it would be really funny to go to a dog casting call (?). Ichiban is so Hollywood. Well we went to the studio on Sunset Blvd. and waited for like two hours to be called in so they could "audition" him. It was very weird because they were casting people to be in the ad too, I'm telling you... you could FEEL the desperation of these cliche actor-types in the air, most of which were totally wrong for this type of ad (I mean, do real life pet owners have boob jobs and Sharpie eyebrows?).. Haha! Joe and I had a good laugh over it, and Ichiban killed it at his "audition", he's very photogenic. I gave him a little tip before hand that sleeping with the director was probably a good idea to get the part, instead he just licked the crap out of her face. It was a very unusual but hilarious day, being stage parents.
Oh PS- I kind of fixed my infected computer so I can finally use my internet again. If only it were that easy to fix the infection in my sinuses.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
And we thought Spider Crabs were scary....
This is called the Coconut Crab because it can crack open a coconut shell with it's claws. Could you imagine crossing paths with this big fella? Nature is scary.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Bangs, pottery, viruses, and more
I realize it has been a while since I've updated this blog. I haven't been able to use my laptop because I have a virus! Go figure, me and technology have never gotten along, I promise it wasn't all that illegal music and porn I've been downloading, haha! I was able to kind of fix it, but I still can't use my Internet Explorer (boo), so I'm typing this on Joe's laptop right now.
Other than my computer being sick, I have had a nasty sinus infection that has been haunting me since my cold at Christmas. My nose has been bleeding for about a week now! CUTE. I'm OD-ing on Claritin for the time being.
Oh, I got my haircut a few days ago. Our friend Rynne's nephew was in town to do my hair on the video shoot and I talked him into cutting me some bangs and giving me a trim a couple days later (hey, you do what you can when you can't afford haircuts). It took a while to get used to, but you gotta change things up every now and then.
Yesterday, just for fun, Joe and I were feeling artistic so we went to Color Me Mine in Pasadena and painted some food and water bowls for Ichiban. We ended up being in there for like 3 hours working on those damn things! I have a long attention span for creative-type things. It's super dorky but we actually thought it was pretty fun... and kind of relaxing, haha.
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Anyway, I can't wait to see all of my family in Vegas the first week of March! I look forward to playing a round of Let-It-Ride and have a few drinks with you all! XOXO
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Bowie
Look it's "Bowie", a Bentley and Chloe hybrid! Hahaha! I googled Boston Terrier and Papillon mix and I found this little "Bostillon". Aunt Tam and I think she looks a little like Chloe... hmm maybe Chloe actually has a little Pap in her. No wonder she's so cute!
Red Sparowes Music Video Shoot - Sunday Jan. 18th
On Sunday I had a music video shoot for a band called Red Sparowes. Joe's Aunt Camella is producing the video which is going to be 18 or so minutes long, and spans through three of the band's songs. I guess it will be released on dvd with the band's next album, it's going to be a kind of dreamy, surrealistic video which is what Camella does really well. We shot just my scene on Sunday in Studio City. We got there around 3pm and I didn't get on set until 10:30pm, and we probably didn't begin shooting until 11pm! The hair and make-up was really extreme, I had white spirals painted all over my face, neck, arms, and lower legs and a crazy up-do with spirals of hair all over it. Its took several hours to complete, my butt was hurtin' in that chair for sure. The end result looked really cool though, I've never done anything like it, and I couldn't believe that was actually all MY hair! I could barely move, Joe had to feed me pizza while I sat in the make-up chair and help me go to the bathroom, haha! He was amazingly helpful and sweet the whole time, I couldn't have done it without him there.
The set that they built looked amazing! And they rigged the three walls and "ceiling" so that in the final scene, water would drizzle down them. Shooting was a lot of fun, even though we shot until 4am. It was all really easy and repetitive, and I only suffered one bout of the giggles (Joe's brother was filming with one of the cameras and he kept cracking me up haha). In the very last scene, the object was to create a storm that would mess up the hair and make-up and the set (we couldn't screw it up because this could only be shot once). It was already really cold out, and I had to get "rained" on with cold water and have 3 high-powered fans blown on me... fuuuun. I sucked it up like a true Northerner and the scene went off without a hitch.
We were all so exausted after we wrapped, but it was an experience for sure. Haha not so sure I'm cut out for this show-biz stuff.
Check out www.redsparowes.com to see more about the band (I'll admit, I'm not very familiar either).
The set that they built looked amazing! And they rigged the three walls and "ceiling" so that in the final scene, water would drizzle down them. Shooting was a lot of fun, even though we shot until 4am. It was all really easy and repetitive, and I only suffered one bout of the giggles (Joe's brother was filming with one of the cameras and he kept cracking me up haha). In the very last scene, the object was to create a storm that would mess up the hair and make-up and the set (we couldn't screw it up because this could only be shot once). It was already really cold out, and I had to get "rained" on with cold water and have 3 high-powered fans blown on me... fuuuun. I sucked it up like a true Northerner and the scene went off without a hitch.
We were all so exausted after we wrapped, but it was an experience for sure. Haha not so sure I'm cut out for this show-biz stuff.
Check out www.redsparowes.com to see more about the band (I'll admit, I'm not very familiar either).
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Happy Half-iversary!
Yesterday marked Joe and my "Half-iversary", apparently we began dating exactly six months ago (you know I'm bad with dates, thank god my boyfriend is so good with them), plus I've never celebrated such a thing before. Now I insisted it was a "half"-iversary because few things irk me more than when someone says "six month anniversary". This is incorrect because the prefix "ann" means annual, meaning once a year. Get it right people.
We went for a hike with Ichiban (Joe's dog) up the hills around Griffith Park. It's been really, really nice here, around 86 degrees everyday. The 360 view of the city was amazing. I need to be one with nature every now and then (a true Northwest girl), or else I'll go insane. And things like this actually make me kind of like LA (for a couple hours or so, haha). Joe and I have made a 2009 vow to do something like this at least once a week, even if it's just taking the dog to the park to play.
Later we went to this place called Castaway's up in the hills of Burjank for drinks and appies. Yet another unreal view of the city, and we got there just a little after sunset.
Here are a few photos from yesterday:
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