Journey Highlights - May 29, 2001                                                                                               

In the Spotlight: Mischa was mentioned in a long, well-written article featuring her employer in the New York Times recently:  "With the company's in-house press rep, a former preschool teacher named Mischa Allen, in tow, Hampshire takes me on a tour of VCA's 40,000-square-foot operation, proudly showing off the state-of-the-art video-editing bays, the room containing 3,000 video-duplication decks (churning out 400,000 tapes a month) and the prop room in which I spot a neon sign for "Bada Boom" from the set of the recent 'Sopornos 2.'. The mechanized assembly line on which the tapes are boxed and shrink-wrapped is as efficient as that for bottling Coke."  Mischa hopes this doesn't count as her 15 minutes of fame.  For the full story, click HERE.   Must be 18 or older!  You'll have to register on NYTimes.com, but it's free.  Mischa is taking a trip to New York for a few days next month.  She's never been and has always wanted to go there.  Luckily, a friend of hers moved out there a while ago and is going to show her the town!  Mischa even has a blind date set up when she gets there!  Long way to go in order to meet a decent guy.

     Home Sweet Home:  Jim Kirner is now the proud owner of a house in Santa Monica.  He will be moving in on June 12th with the assistance of a moving company paid for by Alias WaveFront.  It's a good thing, now that he's sold his Chevy truck and purchased a Land Rover.  You know that new movie "Shrek"?  It was created with the software that he sells, Maya.  Movie Review:  Kirner saw "The Mummy Returns".  He said the story line was a little weak, but you can't beat the special effects!  Lots of 'em - some hokey, most of them are great!

  The Wedding:  The special day is coming up this weekend!  Renee' Luth and Mike Stapley are are soon to be wed!  Renee' was only two or so when I first met her.  I watched her go through elementary, junior high, high school, play soccer and kick butt at it, saw her in a bikini one summer, saw that she had grown up (and out), and finally she was off to college.   <sigh>  Where has the time gone?  Will it be this fast for Laura?  Should I just dye my hair gray now and get it over with?  This will definitely be a day to remember!  I will have an update (and maybe even pictures... yes, Andy & Steve, pictures) for you next week on this awesome event!

      Laura's World:  Thank goodness that gory, pussy eye thing only lasted a day.  If you looked at Laura today, you wouldn't know she had yellow, icky stuff coming out of her face just last week.  She's back in school and abusing the other kids like a normal 3-year-old again.  But what kind of songs are they singing in that school of hers?  Here's an example:  "Two little monkeys swinging in a tree.  One teased the alligator and said, 'You can't catch me!'  Along came the alligator...  SNAP!...  One little monkey swinging in a tree...".  Sure, us adults can joke about these lyrics, especially if you have a dark sense of humor like myself.  But picture a little blonde girl with blue eyes and an angel face singing this song to you.  Can you picture it?  Okay, I'm laughing too.  It's great to be a parent!

   Memorial Day Recap:  It's always refreshing to have a holiday specifically to see friends you don't see every day.  Sure, the BBQ'd food was good, but not half as nice as the gathering itself.  In attendance were: Banzai, Elana, Luigi, Lou-Dog, Mongo, Pumpkin, Skippy, Susan, Swede, T-Man, Todd, ... and myself, of course.  Laura (Pumpkin) got to swim in her new pool while the big kids played pool.  Banzai performed at a Pranic Healing convention and we were lucky enough to see the video of his performance.  We laughed until our sides hurt - he was great!  Here's one of his jokes:  Why did the Atheist cross the road?  Well, he didn't really cross the road because he didn't believe there was anything on the other side.  Elana brought pictures that she took on the set of "The District".  She was wearing a police officers uniform and she was the token white female because the rest of them were black males.  It kind of reminded me of when Jim Carrey was on the show "In Living Color".

      Michael W. Bickley:    Thanks to the O.C. Transit (bus), my brother Mike is home safely as of Friday afternoon, tucked away in his studio apartment at El Nido.  Doctors released Mike on his own recognizance after monitoring him on oral medication for a week.  He was able to get around and didn't require an IV so Hospice was no longer an option.  The doctor fully admitted that Mike was knocking on Death's door when he first arrived at the VA Hospital.  However, he responded to their treatment and "got better" (actual medical term).  His liver is permanently damaged (irreversible cirrhosis).  Mike must never touch another drop of alcohol (or he will surely die) and he will always have an extended belly from fluid retention (which is rather uncomfortable).  His hospital paperwork says, "Final Stage of Liver Failure".

  Guest Book:  <ehem!> Sign my guest book, please.  Thanks to those of you who already signed.  And, hey, what's with all the "private" messages?  Shy much?

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK:  "I wonder if 'going home' is a medical euphemism for dying." - Pat Keith

Renee' Luth & Mike Stapley's Wedding - June 2nd
Steve Shin's B-Day - June 2nd
Thedmo's B-Day - June 4th
Frank Fernandez' B-Day - June 4th
Jeff Rickey's B-Day - June 4th
Jack Irwin's B-Day - June 5th
Edith McCauley's B-Day - June 7th
Sally Aiello's B-Day - June 8th
Ashley Luth's B-Day - June 10th
Westin Gaudet's B-Day - June 10th
Cristie Gaudet's Birthday - June 11th
Don & Anne Hoover's 1st Anniversary - June 16th
Roger Gudobba's Birthday - June 25th
Jerry & Cathy Reynolds' 33rd Anniversary - June 29th

Independence Day - July 4th
Christine Martines' Birthday - July 9th
Don Hoover's Birthday - July 10th
Shaila Mulji's Birthday - July 17th