Who Says Cats Can't Get Down?

Out With The Old

Yes, it has been awhile since I've blogged. I simply have no excuse as I've been home for the better part of the summer catching up on "The Office" on my Netflix streaming. It's fantastic. The Netflix streaming I mean...although "The Office" American version ain't too shabby either!

I have to satisfy a request by a very persistent woman on the East Coast to update my blog. So in thinking back on what has been consuming my life recently...besides "The Office"...I thought perhaps you might want to see all the changes we're doing to the house. This week has been difficult because at one time we had about 10 people working at once. We are voluntarily painting the exterior of the house and putting in brand new doors. We DIDN'T volunteer our air conditioner to stop working or our refrigerator to have a part break, causing it to be warmer than an L.A. summer.

Here is what the house looks like right at this very minute as I sit in my living room typing on my lap top because my desktop computer has been in the shop now for about 20 days. Oh yeah, fixing that thing has been just about under $1,000. Pretty awesome, right?

The front of our house!

You can see everything taped off with primer in the appropriate places. I don't know if you can tell, but the trellice is no longer white but a creamy tan color called "Johnston". Since paint color names are my favorite, and that one stinks, I've decided to call it "Perfectly Roasted Marshmallow" color. "Perfectly Roasted Marshmallow" will also be the color of the currently white panels along the side of the house. We are also installing brand new doors! I would show you a before picture of the door we had but I don't want to scare you. It's better to always have happy and bright thoughts. :)

Here is our new door.

Obviously, it's not stained yet. The stain will be a honey oat color. I love the new knocker! We do have a peep hole along with top row of windows. For a tall lass like me, it will be difficult to go stealth if I don't want to answer the door since Mr. Solicitor will probably see my frizzy hair...but oh well. I'll work on it.

Now we'll start walking towards the backyard. These ladders are common on every side of the house.


You can imagine how fun it is keeping both dogs inside all day because the gate has to stay open. Bear has been a sweetheart as always, but Basil...

And now we enter the backyard.

I just cleaned up some of Basil's "bombs" so it's less of a landmine...but it's still pretty bad. Tools everywhere, towels randomly thrown on the ground, painter's masks here and there. You know.

Say hello to Christian!

He's sweet although I haven't heard him say a word yet. It's been about 2 weeks. I've been giving him the benefit of the doubt and telling people he's sweet. You can see the three colors on which we were deciding, next to him. The main body of the house will be the middle green. Then the triangle edges above the windows and garage will be the lighter green, on top of the middle green.

Our garage!

Sergio is to the right painting. You can get a better sense of the green. I love it.

Behold our new air conditioner.

This massive thing, along with zoning the air properly in the house, cost us about $8,000. Let's move on as I don't want to talk about that anymore.

I'll now take you into our new back office. We completely emptied the two rooms that were filled with toys, papers, garbage, unnecessary VHS tapes (VHS tapes, for those who don't know, are objects that hold video recordings). There are two rooms back there and we made the bigger first room into a music haven. It's pretty sweet.


You can see, for any music inspiration, The Beatles are not too far away.

I will not show you a picture of the second room only because I'm not done with it. I'm waiting for a poster sized photograph to be shipped to us. It's taking awhile. But it'll be worth it, trust me.

I think that's about it for now. Carlos has since gotten home from when I started this post and is angry that his lunch plate was too hot coming out of the microwave. The dogs are sleeping in the same position (adorable) and are a bit stinky. Maybe too much information. I'm going to go and continue watching "Unmistaken Child". It's a documentary about a Tibetan monk searching for the reincarnation of his mentor who had passed away. Personally, I think the reincarnation of the mentor is my cat Blue, but why would this Tibetan monk travel all the way to North Hollywood, California?? Shame, really.

Get Him To The Greek. I'll Go To The Bowl. - MOVIE PREVIEW

Upon first seeing the movie previews, I didn't think much about "Get Him To The Greek." In fact, it didn't peek my interest at all. Shortly after the previews started, I saw Judd Apatow on Craig Ferguson and was under the impression Apatow directed it. My man Judd sold the film pretty well! After the movie opened, I kept hearing thumbs up reviews and started getting quite excited to see it. I love Apatow films! Turns out I was duped, fellas. Apatow produced the film. Nicholas Stoller directed it. My own fault for not paying close enough attention. NOT my fault for it being a yawner of a film. As for my review...

Totally random, barely a storyline, confusion throughout, and forced. Yes, it's a comedy starring Jonah Hill and Russell Brand and yes, there are liberties you can take with those boys, but the overall story has to make some sort of sense! You can't just throw random desperate story lines together, people. It will not make sense!

My head hurts just thinking about it and I'd rather not abuse myself further. My official review - don't see it. You might chuckle at one or two lines...and I'll emphasize "might."

Russell Brand and Jonah Hill did their typical characters well...how could they not? They've had enough practice. This just wasn't well written. Not your fault, dudes. I'm not giving up on you, Apatow, Hill, and Brand!

American Idol Mania!

Last night I had the fun job of covering the American Idol red carpets for Vh1 News. I love covering red carpets and I love American Idol even more so...when you mix two ounces of love, you get the following:

We show up at the carpet at 2:00 pm. Already, there are crowds and crowds of people around the Nokia center in downtown L.A. Fans are holding posters...



...people are vying for the most coveted spot in show biz...



...all in about 90 degree heat. Bring it, Los Angeles! The energy was fantastic. Everyone was very, very nice and the interviews we got outside were perfect. A little throw back with last year's contestant Michael Sarver...



...throw a little Elliot Yamin in there with Alex (Mullet Boy) Lambert.




Not to be confused with ADAM Lambert who, sadly, was not there. I've heard two different reasons why he didn't show. One was he was on vocal rest due to all his performances coming up. The other, which is MUCH more interesting, was he didn't show up for rehearsal which led to the producer's banning him from performing. Either way...no show.

We interviewed Big Mike, David Archuleta, Kris Allen, Michael Jons, Jordin Sparks, you name the Idol, we got the Idol. We also interviewed Hall and Oates to whom, I'd like to give a big THUMBS DOWN. From the moment they stepped up into my camera shot I knew it was a lost cause. The little one (yes, I identify by size...I was born in '82. I have no allegiance to them!) was in the shade which made him way too dark. The big one was so tall he extended into the sun which made him way too bright. How do I adjust my iris? Answer...you don't. When they're border-line rude and kind of a waste of tape, you let them look silly and move on to Dr. Drew who is a few people down the press line.

Simon Cowell did not do press although he did walk the carpet quickly. To answer that burning question...he's about 5'8". Didn't see Ryan at all but I did get a chance to see Kara and she looked gorgeous!

Okay...show's starting. It's 5:00 pm and we all move down to the "Press Area."



There we had the pleasure of waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting (get where I'm going (or not going) with this?) Can you do a parenthesis within a parenthesis? Anyways, Michael McDonald shows up. Eh, don't really need him for Vh1. Chicago shows up. Eh, don't really need them for Vh1. Bret Michaels shows up. Finally someone Vh1 worthy!



I'm a fan of Bret. Really just because I've met him once before and he was so genuinely nice. He acts very nice on television...he's exactly that way in real life. This is him telling us about winning "Celebrity Apprentice." (Bare with it, it starts about 15 seconds in).




And in all honesty, I thought his performance with Casey was amazing!

Finally, Lee and Crystal decide to roll in...TWO hours AFTER the show had ended! Still worth the wait.




As you can see, Lee can't take his eyes off me. I don't blame him, really. When you're blessed with this beauty...



...how can you look away?

I kid, I kid!!

They were both very, very sweet. I liked them both! Personally, I think Crystal should have won but bottom line is, people like that come from behind story. I feel like in order to win American Idol, you can't come out strong! You need to come out mediocre and fool the audience. Those fools! Then with each episode get slightly better, ever so gently...shed a tear or two...then BAM. You just won the biggest show in television, my friend. Secret's revealed.

MALA....OUT!

32 Mountains to Climb Before I Get to Swim

Wow, my whole initial thought was "When In Rome..." but considering I don't have any acting experience and no demo reel, how do I land an agent? That's the next step. I need to land a respectable agent that will get me on auditions. I am meeting with an agent today, courtesy of a friend. Yay! I have no expectations but at least I'll have an idea of where to go from here.

The spot I am in now feels sealed shut. Not an ounce of light. Where do I even begin to get out of this box? I think the first step is I need to get experience. It's an obvious step, just hard to accomplish. So any independent project is really my only hope! Craigslist and I have a date later on tonight.

My goal is to find that secret door in... It's me against everyone else on that search, I know. I can guarantee you all that I can do what I've been seeing on television and film. Come on!

I'll let you know how the agent meeting goes.

To Photoshop Or Not To Photoshop

I'm in the middle of a bit of a dilemma. I picked three photos I liked. I have to be honest, I'm not crazy about my hair but for first head shots, I can't complain. Here's my dilemma. I'll post the three I liked best without being put through Photoshop. Then I'll post the three after Manny (who works wonders with Photoshop) fixed all my blemishes, freckles, and beauty marks!

My dilemma is this - are they TOO Photoshopped? Carlos and our roommate Sean say "no" and that everyone has Photoshopped head shots. Part of me thinks it's not really me!

What should I do? I want to trust Carlos and Sean...thoughts?

ORIGINAL -























PHOTOSHOP-

Headshots - Check. Or click.

Headshots are done, thanks to a WONDERFUL photographer, friend, and neighbor, Manuel Palacios. He does fantastic stuff! He made me feel entirely comfortable and made the whole experience easy! Manny works all over but since I didn't know how confident I would be taking photos in public while people watch, we both decided his home studio would be best. Simple and clean.

Check out the site: www.manuelpalacios.com

Actors and actresses, call this man! He's definitely a lot more inexpensive than most photographers and his work is just as great, if not better.

Okay, step one, done. Hopefully he'll send them along later today and I can choose which ones to print courtesy of Costco. That's right, this Iron Quest will NOT run me dry. You know, I'm taking the cheaper route.

Let's see how they turn out! Next step, picking the winners.

An Iron Quest

Hey Guys - here's the deal. I decided to leave my production job of 3 years in January for various reasons. While I absolutely do not regret leaving, I'm still sitting here, hesitant to continue my application process to production companies. I have had and will have excuses all the way up until May 15th for not getting a job. The biggest being my wedding (which, no lie, has been one of the toughest jobs I've ever decided to take on).

But please do not get the wrong impression. I haven't just been sitting idle watching Celebrity Apprentice and Celebrity Rehab. (Maybe just a little). I've taken on transcribing work as well as press shooting for Vh1 red carpets. Both are completely flexible and have been able to slide in wonderfully as the wedding organizing continues.

Although I've certainly been keeping busy, this "down" time has been quite interesting. So much so, I have decided to embark on a quest. A simple quest, really.

To get a role in Iron Man 3.

Okay...maybe not, but let's shoot for the stars, ey?? I know, more like let's just get an acting thing going.

So what does this mean you ask? It means I slam on the breaks, glance towards my blind spot, and make an immediate 90 degree right turn. Why not? You've got one life. Why not try something new? I can always turn left again, thanks to the support of my loving husband-to-be.

Do I have an agent? No. Do I have experience acting? No. Do I have head shots? No (but that's easy). Actually...years ago, my father and I went to a car dealership when I was in the market to potentially purchase a new car. The dealer sat in front of us at his scarily organized desk and asked these simple questions.
"Do you care about safety?"
My dad and I answered, "Yes, of course."
"Do you want to travel in a reliable car?"
"Naturally, yes."
"Do you want an affordable option for a safe, reliable, stylish car?"
"Why yes sir, we do."
"Well then, this Toyota Scion is the car for you."

The ability of this car dealer to get us to say "yes" on most everything, left me with an attitude like we would be stupid NOT to buy this car. Thanks to my grounded dad, he was able to get me to see what he was doing...but I always remembered that feeling. Wow, the power of YES.

So how about this. Can I get an agent? Yes. Can I get experience acting? Of course. In fact, I'm taking classes. Do I have head shots? Got 'em scheduled for this Friday morning. Booyah.

Okay guys, follow me on this quest.

My Letter to Sir Paul McCartney

Dear Paul,

My name is Laura Mala and I am a 28 year old forever fan. I was incredibly fortunate to see you and your band play at the Hollywood Bowl last night and I sit here now, typing this letter to you because your concert last night was SO MUCH MORE than a concert. It was an experience. An experience about which I would do anything to stand atop the "Hollywood" sign and scream my bragging rights.

The minute we arrived at the Bowl and were going up the outdoor escalator, a wonderfully refreshing feeling of acceptance for the city Los Angeles swept over me. For a split second I was confused. Here I am - an East Coast transplant who has been successfully resisting the temptation to "belong". I have, for five years, refused to accept that the City of Angels is where I now call "home" and yet, as I am going up a creaky escalator at The Hollywood Bowl, I feel genuinely grateful for being in Los Angeles. It could have been the slightly foggy sunset, it could have been the Palm Trees contrasting against the pale pink sky, or it could have been the simple anticipation of seeing you. I think it was the right mixture of all three. It was the moment. I was so thankful towards this often insincere city, for giving me what I knew would be a memory I will never forget.

From the moment we arrived at our seats, sat down and looked around, I could tell everyone in that venue was stirring with giddy, childlike anxiety. It was as if we were all about to be let in on the most incredibly delicious secret known to mankind and the entire outside world was missing out. People were holding hands, hugging, and laughing from the first row to the very last.

Finally, the sky darkened and you and your bandmates Brian, Rusty, Paul, and Abe stepped on that stage. Naturally, it was at that moment the people in front of us decided to sit in their seats, briefly blocking our view of the stage. I swear, I thought the woman to my right was going to unleash a jab, left hook combination on the late comers, fast enough to catch Floyd Mayweather. They quickly sat, my neighbor exhaled in relief, and you sauntered center stage, dressed to the nines. (Honestly, would it be any other number?) As much as I loved that black and red suit jacket, I knew it was inevitable we were going to be treated to those soon to be "signature" suspenders. Even as one kept cutely falling off your shoulder, you didn't miss a beat. How could you? I love those suspenders.

Throughout the entire night I was battling interesting emotions. There was a part of me that wanted to dance and sing and laugh with absolute freedom. Then there was a part of me that wanted to concentrate and focus on your every foot tap, your every strum of the guitar, and your every word sung because I wanted to remember every single, solitary minute of it. Remember when you said to the crowd, "Let me just take this in for a minute"? And the lights came up, the crowd started cheering, and you stood off to the side staring ahead? That's how a part of me felt the entire night. Wait, WAIT!! Let me just take this in! Don't go yet, don't finish that song yet, don't sing the reprise of "Sgt. Peppers" yet!! Please, wait! I'm not ready for this to be over!

Almost three hours of music filled that cold night. You gave us everything. "Highway", "All My Loving", "My Love", "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da", "Foxy Lady".…"Foxy Lady"?! Come on, could it GET any better? Watching the great Paul McCartney pay tribute to another legend showed a lovable, unique humility. That little shout out proved you too, have a "Paul McCartney" in your life. He just happens to go by the name "Jimi Hendrix."

I have to say, "I've Got A Feeling", for me, was the highlight. If a song could have swagger, it's that one. It's got a strut for which you quickly clear a path. "I've Got A Feeling" walks down the hallway, cigarette tucked behind its ear, followed in admiration by every other song ever written.

And lastly, as I could go on forever, please do me a favor. As you obviously know, during the singalong for "Hey Jude", you break up the men and women for our own chance to shine with the "Na, Na, Nas." During the men's solo, you give a sweet, funny muscle man pose. I love it. Although, here's where I need the favor. Promise me that as we ladies get that chance to sing, you will always, always, always give that little one hand on the hip bounce, other hand doing the hair bob shimmy because it is absolutely, beyond words, adorable.

Here it is, Sir Paul. Thank you for an experience. I know in my heart of hearts, I will be at another of your shows and I will be the one throwing an album on stage to be signed. You have a smile that melts a girl's heart, you have eyes that scream, 'I've seen it all', and an overall "I've Got A Feeling" swagger that makes everyone want to follow you in admiration. For all that, you will always be one of the sexiest men alive. Even though it was time to go home last night, it isn't over. I'll see ya next time, Macca.

Love - Laura

MOVIE REVIEW - Alice In Burtonland

When I first heard Tim Burton was doing a version of "Alice In Wonderland" I must say, I was pretty excited. Burton, as we all know, is a genius at what he does at times. If he nails it, he's GREAT but sometimes his films come across as a Burton film TRYING to be a Burton film. Ok, ok, without too much explanation, his version of "Alice In Wonderland" was one of those films. The film's story was just okay and the resolutions were just okay. I don't know, if this were the first time I was watching the story of "Alice In Wonderland" I can't say I would be too pumped about Wonderland itself. I was hoping Tim Burton would create this jaw dropping, mystery place that you would trade in anything just to live in for a day. Similar to Pandora in "Avatar." The visual effects were quite amazing and even though the film's story tends to lead audiences to believe Wonderland is dangerous, I still think it could have been charming and mind-blowing enough to make you want to be there.

Helena Bonham Carter did a fantastic job as the Red Queen. Well deserved. And as much as I like Anne Hathaway as an actress, her role as the White Queen could have been anybody. Preferably someone a little older? Elijah Wood, I mean, Johnny Depp was great like he always is but overall it's truly nothing we haven't seen before. I know it's not easy to make something we haven't seen before...but you have Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Crispin Glover, and Anne Hathaway. Mr. Director, with your skills, you HAVE to make it something we haven't seen before.

The good news is the end credits were the coolest I have ever seen. So, my final review, go see Avatar (if it's still playing) and pop in Alice in Wonderland for the last 2 minutes.

Fun With Unemployment = Funemployment

You know...'cause I had the time.

Hangin' With A VO Legend

Over the weekend, we were invited to a BBQ filled with animation extraordinaires. Tom Kenney, voice of Spongebob, Carlos Alazraqui, voice of Taco Bell Chihuahua (and affectionately known as my fiance!), and June Foray! June Foray was the voice of Rocky and Natasha in "Rocky and Bullwinkle." She also did voices in Peter Pan and Cinderella. Magnificent! Carlos and Tom had the opporunity to read from an episode script of "Rocky and Bullwinkle" with June which was so amazing. Of course, we had to sneak in and have her sign it. It says, "June Foray - Hokeysmoke!"

Are You A Sports Fan?

Are you a soccer fan? Are you a Wellington, Phoenix fan? Are you a...ok, enough. Carlos and I had a chance to catch the Wellington Phoenix play the Central Coast Mariners while we were in New Zealand. What an incredible experience! There was a lot riding on this game because if the Phoenix won, they would advance to the playoffs. I caught the first goal on my camera and was SO excited about it! 20 minutes later...I deleted it. (Accidentally) Not happy. I was praying...praying...PRAYING for another goal. And then...

UPDATE - Mission = Revenge

Ok - for those following my mission to meet Russell Crowe (part deux) I have just found out, not 2 minutes after arrival back in Sydney that my "FRIENDS" did NOT meet Russell Crowe for dinner. They decided to play a little joke...a jest if you will...on me. Oh. That was no joke. IT IS ON!! Little comedians in training knew he is my number one and they thought it was funny! Harumph. They have a little apologizing to do, especially to my wonderful fiance for putting up with my sphoonge and hissy fits on Friday due to a close missed encounter with the Crowe.

Any suggestions on payback? It's war.

Mission = Meet Russell Crowe

When I was in college, I had a chance to go to the set of "A Beautiful Mind" which was filmed at Princeton University. As much as I want to say all I had to do was walk downstairs from my dorm room, I actually went to a college about fifteen minutes from the Princeton campus. So getting there was easy...meeting Russell Crowe, not so easy. Who pulled it off? I did. Took a little sneaking and a little prodding, but I did get his autograph and he definitely signed it, "To Laura - Love Russell." Problem though...I didn't get a picture with him.

Carlos and I left for New Zealand yesterday and who did our friends back in Sydney have dinner with last night? Russell. Me = jealous!! It's on guys. Two and a half days left in Sydney. Mission = Meet Russell Crowe and take a photo. Can I do it??

A Coupla Kiwis

We've safely landed in Wellington, New Zealand! Carlos has a long weekend, due back in the Sydney studio on Monday. We decided to take a little vacation from...well...our vacation. Kiwis look out, we're no longer Aussies. Today we arrived and walked up Cuba Street which is quite similar to the Haight in San Francisco. A lot of young neo-hippies singing for coins. It's got a really great vibe to it!

We ended up hiking to the Botanical Gardens which were quite breath-taking! Very "Twilight-ish" if there are any fans out there (guilty). Not too much happening today...Carlos and I got a little camera happy as far as the artsy fartsy photos go - enjoy!

Laura The Explora!

Tomorrow Carlos and I leave for Kiwi Country until Sunday so I decided to go up to the Blue Mountains today (as I would miss the group visit this weekend). I was all by lonesome - out of our usual group of people - and it was (as my mom would say) an ah-venture!! I went with a tour group and it was a great little day, if I do say so mahself. I got picked up right outside my hotel and our first stop was Feathervale - a petting zoo! I got to chill with kangaroos...

and even better, was granted permission by the great Koala-ini to have a picture taken with him! What you can't see, is my hand is on his little furry booty. It was so cute!

Then we headed to the Bue Mountains! To be very, very honest, yes it was beautiful but it wasn't anything I haven't seen at say, Yosemite National Park. I think what wasn't the nicest thing was we did A LOT of driving. We spent the majority of the day in the tour van when what I really just wanted to do was explore the park.

I did get to ride down in the cable car which took you right through the rain forest. Wow. I've walked through a rain forest. What an incredible, humbling feeling...being dwarfed by massive pieces of nature, basically saying, "Girl, I could crush you if I wanted to..." :)

What A Bunch Of Stand Up Guys

I know I've said it before during this trip, but I shall bow down to the amazement that tonight presented. The whole lot of us decided it was comedy night at a place called The Sugar Mill. Fantastic woman named Ollie booked the boys and they got together to do a Happy Feet comedy show down! I ain't lying to you when I said every single person...NAILED it. The place was in hysterics!
Gary (the co-writer on Happy Feet) was wonderful...started it off on a great note.

Carlos carried it on wonderfully...buzz started growing...

Jeff Garcia nailed it...buzz got louder and louder...

And then...he couldn't hold it in ANY more...Robin Williams blew up like balloon just touched by a cigarette lighter! BOOM! He jumped on that stage faster than Mumble could tap dance. He brought down the house! A live, intimate comedy show from the Robin Williams!!!

This was the highlight of the trip. I can't even begin to explain the energy in that room tonight. The noise that the audience made for Robin was absurd. It was jaw dropping. Jeff Garcia is doing his bit, Robin starts playin' with him, people start turning their heads...finally, Jeff screams, "Ladies and gentleman, give it up for Robin Williams!!!" I'm telling you, it was so. beyond. cool.