She is the President of the Liars Club!

And she cheats.

My Gramma, who recently passed away, has been on my mind a lot.  I have been going through the day with many memories of her popping in my head!  She was one of the funniest people I have ever met!  She taught me so much!  So much, that I thought I would share some of these very important tips to living a good, long life.  After all, she lived to be 95 years old!  Let's review:

1.  Always have your nails painted in some shade of red.  Pink is ok, but "red-red" is best.

2.  Buy shoes whenever you can.  If a granddaughter can fit into them, let her borrow them.

3.  If you must use the restroom during a movie, it is ok to go back into a different theater and watch a completely different movie.  Even if you do not tell your family you are doing so.

4.  Offer your friends a ride if you see them walking down the street.  If you are not sure how to unlock the door, just apologize and drive on.

5.  Always fall asleep on the couch.

6.  Support, support, support!  If it's an important event in someone's life, whether it be a new baby, graduation, or Grandparents' Day, attend!

7.  Shiny is ALWAYS good.  If it's shiny, buy it.  

8.  If the shiny thing is already someone else's, "borrow" it.  Especially without asking!

9.  When playing cards, always cheat.

10.  Teach your grandchildren a tune so they can sing it with you.

11.  If someone has a new man in their life, they are automatically YOUR boyfriend.

12.  When meeting an Asian friend, be sure to say "Awe so" and bow.

13.  When kids come to visit, always offer to make "soft eggs and soft toast."

14.  Take kids to the park often.  Cinnamon rolls at the park cafe are always a bonus.

15.  Teach girls how to sew.  

16.  If a granddaughter states they like a particular piece of jewelry, offer it to them.

17.  You're never too old for leopard or cheetah print.

18.  Take pictures with your children whenever you get together.

19.  If you're not sure or don't agree, just say "Whatever."

20.  Some things you say do not have to make sense.  Especially when you say them all the time: "Peacorn, popnuts, chewing soda, water gum."

21.  "Frikka liction thaw, nellick thaw!"

22.  Always comment on how handsome your husband is.

23.  Share your experiences with your family.  Especially the summer you met your husband.

24.  If you win money from playing the Lottery or from gambling, take every single one of your grandchildren to Disneyland!

25.  Teach your children and grandchildren manners, but be sure to stop using them as you grow older.

26.  Be active, like playing golf, until you're 85 years old.

27.  The movie "E.T." is NOT scary if you sit on Gramma's lap.

28.  Double Features are the best.  Be sure to have popcorn.

29.  The movie "Harry Potter" is a dumb movie.  (Although I love it as well as most Sci Fi/Fantasy!)

30.  Lather your hands in butter to make them oh so soft before going dancing.  This will get the boys to always ask you to dance because of your soft hands.  You're NEVER too old to dance!

31.  Even if you have no sense of smell, let them know it smells good, whether it be flowers or perfume.

32.  Drive a '65 Mustang.

33.  Close your eyes for pictures, no matter how many times people warn you they're taking one.

34.  Vanilla is the flavor to get when going to Baskin Robbins (although I never learned this lesson...)

35.  Everyone has a "Fry Attack" in which we must immediately get french fries.

36.  A Diet Coke a day keeps the doctor away.

37.  If you have a cough, move to Arizona.

38.  If someone keeps the front door open, be sure to tell them to "Close that pneumonia hole!"

39.  Always be up for anything, even if it's a spray tan with your daughters and granddaughter and you have no idea what's going on.

40.  Prove you can play catch with your grandson and tell him to throw the ball harder.  After the 3rd time, let him know that's enough.

There are so many more memories and lessons that I've learned from Gramma, but these are some of my top ones.  I will always remember her saying that she "never had it so good!"  Even her last week of life on Earth she told us that.  I love you Gramma.  Thank you so much for the things you've taught me.  Xoxo!!!

I Want to Live in Effington...

It's amazing to me the way music can have an effect on my emotions.  Music has always been a big part of my life.  While I was growing up, my mom and dad ALWAYS had a record playing, or were singing a tune of some sort.  Even to this day when I go out with them in the car the radio is playing.  This has helped me develop a relationship with music in my life.  A strong one that always plays a part in my memories.

The past couple of months or so have been pretty difficult for me.  Many changes and events have scrambled up my daily routines.  It is through family, friends and music that I have been able to overcome such events.

While I was living in Hawaii I missed out on a lot of live concerts that I would have liked to attend.  (That's one reason I am so stoked to be back in Orange County!  With Los Angeles and San Diego nearby, I have more opportunities to see the bands I love.)  Last week, I turned to one of my favorite artists, Ben Folds.  As I went through the curveballs in my life, I couldn't help but smile as butterflies filled my basket (thanks for the line Zoolander) as I bought two tickets.  I knew it would have to be my sister Traci who accompanied me!

When we got to House of Blues in San Diego every minute that got closer to the performance got more and more exciting!  Finally it was time!  We first headed toward the merchandise.  If you know my sister, shopping is priority.  I was more than happy to go along.  Then we found our places to stand in the general admission concert hall.  Now as you all know, Traci and I are not the tallest Benincosas in the family.  At all.  I don't even reach 5'4" and Traci is about an inch shorter than myself.  This is the only problem when we face a concert crowd.  We decided to position ourselves where we might get a glimpse of Mr. Folds as well as next to a tv so we could see the whole thing when heads, shoulders and backs got in the way of Ben Folds.

Then Ben Folds came onto the stage.  It was amazing how all of the sadness, anxiety, anger, etc washed away as the harmonies of the song "Effington" began.  My cousin put up a quote on her Facebook page from the movie "Say Anything" that fits perfectly for this moment with the substitution of one word:  "The (music) is like a baptism..."  I couldn't help but beam a smile the whole entire two hours of the performance!

Ben Folds is amazing in his performance because he never forgets his audience.  There is a song he sang with Ben Folds Five called "Army."  This song originally had horns throughout it.  Well, in his more recent shows, he has given the audience the role of being the brass.  It's amazing how he does it.  He splits the audience in half and designates specific parts, teaching his fans the correct notes to sing and gives us some practice runs.  When it comes time, we get to be part of the song!  It sounds amazing and I can't help but get goosebumps!  He has one of these recordings on one of his cds and it's just awesome.  But actually being part of it, is phenomenal! I absolutely LOVE the participation!  It's incredible to me that people can love someone's music so much that the performer can actually stop singing and the audience can continue on for them!

I was introduced to Ben Folds' music through my dear friend Greg Garite.  I even remember hearing it for the first time in his truck on our way home from a friend's house after swimming! The self entitled album of Ben Folds Five (before he went solo) has many, many great memories for me.  Every time he busted out an old-school Ben Folds Five song, these memories and friends all flashed through my mind.  Smile after smile for me!

I have been to many of Ben Folds' shows, including an intimate (as in small people, come on) night of bowling with Ben Folds.  This was my favorite performance of his because this is where I was able to meet him, one on one.  He asked me to sit down next to him while my friend Jeremy Long took a picture of us.  Ben Folds even put his arm around me as I felt the butterflies beat against my tummy.  I gave Jeremy Long one of my autographed pictures for being such a fantastic photographer :)  It's also always fun to see Weird Al Yankovick there!  He even performed with him at the bowling alley!  I've also seen fans of his like Bob Saget and Uncle Joey from Full House!  Bob Saget was wearing leather pants -- I will never forget that...

Ever since that night, I have been playing his music again and again.  I think this is how it goes though.  It's like watching a Broadway Musical for me.  I play the music to relive the feelings I had while the performance went on.  I relate music to everything.  I can make a song out of anything.  I can sing a song with any feeling that I have.  With any memory, there is a song correlated.  I can't help it.  Just like I said in one of the preceding posts, I wake up to a new song in my head every morning!

So in the words of Abba, to my parents, friends and family, I say "Thank you for the music, the songs I'm singing.  Thanks for all the joy they're bringing.  Who can live without it, I ask in all  honestly?  What would life be?"  (I know, I talk about Ben Folds but then end with Abba?  It's the way I roll.  I'm a strange one!, Hahaha!)

Ode to Gramma ♥

(That's my brother V.J., me (yes long sleeves because I'm always cold, even at the beach), Gina, Traci and Gramma)

The following tune is a song my gramma used to sing all the time.  All of us quickly learned the words since she could only remember 2 lines.  I sang it with her many, many times.  Every time I did, she would laugh and laugh and laugh!  I knew it would always put a smile on her face.  Our last song together was this past Sunday, Mother's Day.  This song will always be in my heart.

I love you Girlfriend! Frikka licka shaw nellick thaw!  Xoxo!

I get the blues when it rains the blues I can't lose when it rains
Each little drop that falls on my window pane
Always reminds me of tears I've shed in vain
I sit and wait for the sun to shine down on me once again
It rained when I found you rained when I lost you
That's why I get the blues when it rains
I get the blues when it rains...

The following video was when we visited her for her 95th birthday this past January...

I'm 5!

One of the sacrifices I made when I moved to the beautiful island of Oahu was giving up my Disneyland pass.  I admit, I was spoiled living in Southern California.  Instead of spending money on material things or therapy to make me happy, I would go to Disneyland.  A few years ago, I went every Tuesday with some of my coworkers who became good friends.  Tower of Terror at California Adventure was my ultimate therapy -- that and Space Mountain... and Indy... and Thunder Mountain..  Any bad day at work was immediately cured just by boarding a ride.

When I first moved back to Huntington Beach,  the first thing I did, well... I should say after my first paycheck, was buy a Disneyland annual pass.  I couldn't help it!  Disneyland has always made me happy!  I was working twelve hour days trying to pay off the debt I created whilst living in Hawaii (not to mention spending my holiday in Australia and New Zealand -- yes, I spoil myself in more ways than one), that I felt I needed to reward myself.  So, I got the Premium pass with no blockout dates!  I deserved it, come on!

So now, I go when I want!  And this past weekend I got to go to Disneyland with my bestie!  I swear we were 5 years old.  For example, we woke up at the butt-crack of dawn and got there right when it opened.  That's right!  When we got there, we decided to work the Fast Past tickets.  I love to overcome The Man and his ways!  Now, because I'm a professional Disneyland goer, I have learned to work the system (with some help from Marisa too).  I learned that you actually don't have to use your Fast Pass ticket in the allotted time on the ticket.  As long as it's after the time printed as the earliest period you can go, it's all good.  You can go anytime thereafter.  So, we went on pretty much every ride we wanted, except the new Toy Story ride which has no Fast Pass and a line that is at least 45 minutes...

Giant dill pickle craving.. resolved!

Now, we didn't seek out any of the characters around the park, but when we ran into them, we decided we needed to take pictures with them.  It was hilarious!  I totally felt like I was 5 years old!  We got pictures with Cruella, Chip and Dale (twice with different outfits), Mickey, Donald, Minnie, Sully, Lightning McQueen and Mater, Tinkerbelle and some other pixie, Brer Fox and Brer Bear, and more!  How pathetic are we?  Ha ha!

Sully is getting fresh with us.. check out where his hands are! And chip 'n' dale as indians?

We went between both parks again and again, using our Fast Passes for all the rides.  (Something that was mandatory as we did this was get a handstamp at every exit.  I can't help it.  Disneyland handstamps are THEE best smell in the world!  I asked several people where they get the ink for the stamps, but no one could tell me.  One actually showed me the bottle though so now I am going to have to do some research on where one can buy it..)  I even made Marisa wait 30 minutes to watch the Pixar Parade in California Adventure and go on Tower of Terror twice.  She has a fear of heights, by the way.  But that's ok because she made me go on Splash Mountain when I was already cold.

My favorite horse... The devil's horse!  Marisa

got to ride Jingles!

The bummer of the day is when we waited for the fireworks show, in which I believe is THEE best fireworks show EVER!  The first time I ever saw this show was with my friend Danielle and by the time it was over, we both had tears in our eyes.  Pathetic, I know.  Laugh it up people.  So, I took Marisa to one of the best spots to watch the fireworks... And they cancelled it due to wind.  It was very sad.

By the end of the day, we were both exhausted.  Our feet hurt, we could barely keep our eyes open...  We booked a room at a hotel across the street and passed out.  The next morning, we woke up and did it all over again.  This time, we had to wait in line to get into the park because we got there early.  Ha ha!  This time, we could only handle the park until 7:30pm.  We are getting too old to do this two days in a row.  And in that last half hour or so, we sat on the train eating a turkey leg and rode it around the park 2 1/2 times.

But let me tell you what a good friend I am...  Marisa REALLY wanted to go on Splash Mountain as our last ride, which we had a Fast Pass for, so why not?  But this time, I decided to go in the front since I was behind her last time and I got most of the water.  Bad choice.  I don't know where the tsunamis came from, but by the time I got off that ride there was not a dry spot on me :(  And of course, Marisa laughed the whole time and forced a picture on me.  Very sad.  I don't think I can work the wet cat look...

Sad day...  And now i am sick..

Anyway, Disneyland, I've missed you!  I've missed your handstamps, turkey legs, dill pickles, clam chowder in a bread bowl, characters, rides... I'm happy to be back!