I rarely read a book in a series if the second one isn't out. I try to hold off because I know how mad at myself I will be in the end when I can't jump right into the second book. This year I broke that rule and it came back to bite me in the end with Article 5. The second book, Breaking Point, was still a long way away from being released. Thankfully there are awesome websites like Boekie's Book Reviews having a contest for me to win a copy of Breaking Point. I figured, if I shared with all of you, and one of you won, you would nice enough to share. So go and enter! and if you haven't read Article 5, you should.

Here is where you go to enter:
http://www.boekiesbookreviews.com/2012/10/breaking-point-by-kristen-simmons.html

My new running buddy. This beautiful girl is my brothers dog, Sydney. She's the sweetest and most well-behaved. I just adore her. She's got a little wolf in her which is great when I go for a run. It encourages people to stay away. 

I took a few days off of taking pictures while I adjusted to being back. Since I cut my time in Vegas short (for good reason), things have been a bit chaotic. My house is still not finished so I am now staying with my brother and sister-in-law. While I was at my house, I was helping box up some stuff to put away so the painters could come in and paint all of the interiors. I came across this photo of my brother and I from 1987. I was 5 and my brother was 8. Back when my hair was blonde and my eyes were blue. (I think my hair is still blonde, but the black hair dye makes it hard to tell)

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Adrienne, Steve, and Cat at Dargan's after Nancy's memorial. It was a beautiful service, and I am really glad I made it in time. Adrienne is such an amazingly strong girl, and she is surrounded by great friends. It was nice to see many of my other Santa Barbara friends that I have not seen in a long time. Nancy will be missed, but the 2 kids she brought into this world are bright and beautiful people, and I know she was so proud to be their mom. 

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This is only part of what it took for Sue and I to get ready last night. Now it is time to pack it all up. Adrienne's mom's memorial is tomorrow morning and I intend to be there. I got some text messages from Adrienne that tell me I need to be there. I can't leave Vegas until tonight. It will take all night to get to Los Angeles, and hopefully I will be able to get to Santa Barbara by 9am. 

Erik, Myself, and Jackson out again. I feel like I will be leaving soon. I can't stop thinking about how much I want to see Adrienne and be there for her even if she doesn't need me. I would rather be there and have her not need me than not being there when she needs me.

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This photo is from the Fremont Street Experience. On a very serious note, yesterday my best friend, Adrienne, called me and told me her mom had unexpectedly passed away. I am thinking about going back to California so I can be there for Adrienne even though she insists that she's okay. I feel useless here. Sue, Erik, and Jackson are being incredible, and they wanted to take me out. 

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The Luxor Hotel and Casino. Even after all these years I think it looks so cool.

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The license plate reads: TARDIS3. I wonder if that means this tiny Smart car is bigger on the inside?

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It's not just the name of the street, it is also an accurate description of the weather!

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Jackson, Sue's boyfriend, has moved out to Vegas! It's fun having him here. Here we are heading back to the house after having dinner with Sue's parents who are visiting. Jackson is driving, and you can see the Mandalay Bay in the background.

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Stink is a nerd.

Today Sue and I were able to check out my friend Brendan's hotel. This hotel is owned by his father and it is also his NASCAR sponsor! It is the only place I real gambled because I figured even if I lost, the money would kind of go to supporting Brendan. I ended up walking out with a little bit more money than I walked in with. Thanks, B!

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 Arrived in Vegas. Been living with Sue and her roommate Erik for the past few days. This is her cat Ella, but we call her Stink. Stink was created in a lab so she is hypoallergenic which is awesome because look at all of that fur; I would be dead if she were a normal kitty.

Still not to Vegas. This photo was taken at around 1 in the morning. These are the chairs in the bus terminal in Los Angeles. Our bus is already over an hour late. This is going to be a very long night. I should be in Vegas by sun up. These chairs are even less comfortable than they look. If that is possible.

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Waiting for the Greyhound to take me out of California. Will be living with Sue in Las Vegas for a while. 

Got all my things moved into the garage of my house in Ventura. Of course, it rained. This has been the rainiest month. We only had to take one break from unloading the moving truck to let it really piss down, but the rest of the time it didn't bother us too bad. This photo was taken through the water on the windshield of the car. I thought it made the trees look beautiful. The house renovations are still not done, and they won't be done for a while, so I am staying with my Grandparents tonight and tomorrow then I will be off to Las Vegas to stay with Sue until the house is complete and ready for me to move in!

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My life in little boxes. I really will miss this apartment. It is one of my favorite apartments. So long, Valley Village. Thanks for being so good to me. 

The sun has returned. With a vengeance. Sometimes I forget just how English/Scottish/Irish my skin is. It's the trifecta of pale.

Storm has stuck around. I can't see the hills of Burbank and North Hollywood. I love this weather. It's so rare to have rain more than 1 afternoon in a row. 

One of those days. Was supposed to head down to the races to see Brendan, but my friend cancelled on me, so it's an "all dressed up and nowhere to go" kind of day. Luckily, I will get to see Brendan in another race tomorrow! 

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This is James. James just took a lance to the head, and despite being heavily armored, he still managed to bust his scalp open. (You can see James and others having full out joust matches on History channel's Full Metal Jousting. It's all kinds of badass).

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Little dinosaurs walking along the top of my computer, past the giant map on the wall behind my desk.

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My daily calendar page has reminded me that I will lose an hour of sleep tonight. In other news, the connect-the-dot for the weekend was an eagle (if you couldn't already tell).

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Having dinner at the Rainforest Cafe at Downtown Disney. This was a lovely display, I just had to take a photo. 

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Back at Disneyland! This time I went with Amy to celebrate her son Robert's 7th birthday. This is photo of Robert with his little brother James as we rode the pirate ship.

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The Hunger Games had a press and public event at a mall in Century City. Here I met Jessica who follows me on Twitter. We have been to several of the same events without ever meeting, and I am glad we were able to here! She is such a sweetheart. In this photo she was helping film a segment. They tried to get me to do it, but I politely declined. 

The Evil Queen's spellbook outside of the Snow White ride.

Back at Disneyland! Adrienne and I had planned on staying awake during the 4 hours between when Disneyland closed at 6am after the special Leap Day hours and the 10am regular scheduled opening. We quickly realized there was no way we would survive staying up for 4 hours and then trying to do Disneyland again, so we drove back to the valley, slept at my place for a few hours then went back down later that morning. It was a pretty spectacular day. Going to Disneyland with Adrienne is one of my favorite things in life.

Adrienne and I went to Disneyland on Leap Day, when it was open for 24 hours. We got there at 10pm and did not leave until it closed at 6am the following morning (and then we came back later that day.) It was so crowded but so much fun. 

Melanie, Shavon, and Megan at the Wildcat as we celebrate my 30th birthday, showing off my lipstick prints on their cheeks. 

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Spending the day before my birthday (and 2 days before Valentines Day) at Alan and Ally's home for the Goddess Gathering, which included all of the girls be spoiled with glasses of wine (you see my hand holding my glass), and chocolate covered everything. It was such a wonderful time with some of the most incredible people I know.

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Screencapture from TV show Southland shows my former building, where you can see my bedroom window.