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Itchy, Bloody, Rainy

I am bleeding. Better now than Christmas or New Year’s.

I have a skin ‘disturbance’ on the outside corner of my right eye. I got it towards the end of my trip in Nicaragua. I figured it was some kind of bug bite since it itches. It went away, but now it has flared back up. I’m trying not to scratch, but it’s so itchy-witchy.

I left friggin cold, snowy wet NYC to touch down at SFO to sunny skies and 60 degree weather. Then it has to go and rain on me. Yuck. Plus, this morning I missed two buses (of course they were back-to-back in a row) and had to wait another half hour. Damn MUNI!

I am ready to take an Ambien and call it a night. I’m not even sure if I can call Ambien an addiction anymore, it is more routine. A pill I pop, like a daily (albeit nightly) vitamin before I brush my teeth and pray the Lord my soul to keep.

But before I go, I will list some of the things I’ve randomly scrawled in my notebook over the past couple weeks.

Horseback riding: The group consisted of me, Jen, a newlywed couple in their late thirties from San Diego, the English-speaking guide, and the horse trainer. While we waited next to the stables for horse assignments, the horse trainer led the first horse out and pointed straight at me–no hesitation. I wondered why I had been such a definitive choice.

I thought my horse with a rich dark chocolate color looked the most stalwart and refined. But as we slowly started up the hill, my horse named Chavallo started neighing loudly. He wouldn’t stop even on the downslope. Ever the model childless parent, I encouraged, “Good job, Chavallo. That’s it!” As I stroked him on his sides, I withdrew my hand which was wet from his perspiration. I think the horse trainer picked me because I weighed the least.

I’ve never had a chance to mention this in my blog, but I LOVE horseback riding. I’m no equestrian, but whenever I get a chance (which only seems to be when I’m travelling in Central America), I do try to find some time to giddyup. Jen and I joke that we have a pattern of always traveling to Central America and horseback riding together.

Mani/Pedi: Don’t you find it strange that manicurists at nail salons can’t have their own nails polished? I think it’s weird that their job is to cut, file, polish, buff, and beautify women’s nails but they can’t have their own nails done because working with the nailpolish remover will just remove it all anyway.

Travelling Must Have: I always forget to travel with earplugs, then inevitably sit next to the crying baby or the sniffer.

Thumping: While cabbing to my house from SFO, I zoned into my Crackberry. I looked up when the cab was stopped at a stoplight because I heard this loud, body-vibrating thumping. I looked up to see The EndUp with people milling about smoking at the entrance. It was 4:15pm. I smiled, realizing how much I love San Francisco.

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12.18.07

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Welcome to my site, derived from an advice column I wrote while getting my MBA. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area. I give helpful, opinionated advice based on my own experience and from the expertise of my extensive network. For more, click here.

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