End o' Week Musings

Woosh! Went my week- how was yours??

Last Saturday, I took my mother to the "Harry Potter Tribute Art Exhibit" at Nucleus Gallery in Alhambra. I'm not a big fan, but the works were amazing! There was sculpture, drawings, paintings, assemblage and more. My favorites were the cut paper creations, especially the one that also included a painted background and other detailing.

My mother said she would have loved to take some of the pieces home, unfortunately her favorites had already been sold.... maybe next time.

Next, we went to Wing Hop Fun in Monterey Park. My mother had never been there and if you haven't, it's a big store that vends tea, wine, medicinal herbs, kitchen items, gifts and groceries. We both bought tea and moochi (the bakery kind). I also purchased some instant seaweed soup and a few other little things. I don't know what else my mom had in her basket, but she did OK too.

I wanted to have lunch at the dim sum place next door, but mom held out for her usual spot- Millie's. It was good, as always, although not quite as exciting as I would have liked...

Sunday was errand day. The best thing about my weekend was I got to take a nap both days!! It felt so decadent, but I must have needed it because I had no trouble going to sleep.

This week, I've been sooo busy with interviews. I spoke with musicians Jessica Fishot and Upground, who are coming to Pasadena, David Serby, who is touting a new album, and Lisa Haley (&the Zydecats), who will be in Altadena. I also spoke with Ennio, who is coming to the Pasadena Playhouse for a week in August. If you don't know who Ennio is, you might want to look for him on YouTube. He uses costumes made of paper to poke fun at a long - and growing - list of celebrities. He lives in Italy, but has quite good English and can sneak through a few other languages as well.

Last night I went to Glendora to meet some of the artists in the upcoming "Everyday Joe" art show. There were folded books, jewelry, sculpture and ceramics. I'm not looking forward to catching their show sometime over Aug. 12 and 13. I'll probably take my mom too, as I've got her quite interested in art now.

Tonight I'm planning to catch Metales M5 in concert at the Levitt Pavilion in Memorial Park in Pasadena. The concert is free and I can take the Gold Line, so it will be no-fuss too. Metales M5 is a brass quintet from Mexico, who perform everything from classical to pop and also have choreography and costumes. It should be fun.

In rotation this week: Finland Station, Manisha Shahane, Bob's CD and a lot of odds and ends.

Photos we got 'em: Just some fun pet pix from the Web to brighten your day.

Thought o' the week: Let it go. I'll admit it, I've got a huge stack of assignments on my desk in various stages of post- and pre-interview waiting to turn into stories on my keyboard. It's been this way for a while- more work than one person really should be expected to do, but that's not news in this economy, where companies are thinning their herds.

It's been weighing on me and causing stress. To combat this, I've decided that I won't stay late or come in on weekends to keep ahead, but rather I will do as much as I can in the time I'm given and, if I miss a deadline, I'm not going to beat myself up over it. I'll just keep my editor advised and do my best.

Each night I go home and turn it off. I take a nice, long walk and then I've finally begun the rest of my evening workout routine. Several nights a week I work out with weights and my ball and other nights I run through dance exercises and choreography. I'm actually starting to feel like my old self and I'm sleeping better too.

It's important to let go of your stress and worry, especially before hitting the hay. Find something to help you with this, whether it's working out, creating art or reading a good book. Pushing all the icky stuff aside for a while helps you to not snap at your family and friends, binge eat or do a lot of other negative things. So at the end of each day, get healthy by taking a little time to "decompress" and let it go.

Keep on rockin'

Mickie