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surviving NALIP

after picking up Amalia's photos, i was driving down to newport beach. and in too much of a hurry. i rear-ended a 2005 BMW. it was all my fault. my first car wreck since 1994. the guy wasn't pissed, just surprised. named Mario Lopez, but he was not Zack's best friend on Saved by the Bell. anyway, i screwed up my car's hood, bent it so it wouldn't open. my radiator was hissing. so i pound of the hood to flatten it out. it actually opened, and i got my radiator to stop leaking. but the hood won't close completely now. and my front license plate is at a 10 degree angle.
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gotta respect my little car. i smash up some fancy convertible, and it still runs fine. so i kept driving and made it. my girlfriend was able to get her headshots to some people, and performed great at the "cold reading showcase." very proud of her.
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we both volunteered almost 8 hours saturday. so tiring. but the gala ball was badass. i dressed up fancy, and looked pretty good. but Amalia was absolutely gorgeous. Edward James Olmos asked me, "How you doin'?" (Holy crap, it's Eddie Olmos!) (i understand he didn't actually care how i was doing). he has that gravelly, quiet but forceful voice. also Dolores Huerta (nuestra idol) Hector Galan, Freddie and Adam Rodriguez (not related). and the sometimes-funny Joey Medina. we were selling loteria tickets, and the boletos had places to write your name and contact info, but also a question: "if you win, what will you do with the money?" Medina bought two tickets, he asked what most people wrote for this, we told him _______ and __ (very non-humanitarian answers). but also about the woman who wrote "build a school for an AIDS orphan charity in Sudan." Medina said he hoped to combine evil and noble intentions, and wrote "fly to alaska, club baby seals, use the fur to make coats for the homeless." i played along: "this way, you're solving two problems, the overpopulation of baby seals, and cold among the homeless, which is really the number 1 concern for homeless families in Los Angeles."
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what was the point of that story? we saw a bunch of San Anto friends, too. Beva & Eduardo, Frances, Robb, Lisa & TJ, Laura, Jimmy & Faith, Haldun, i don't remember who else. the filmmakers and executives of NALIP gave an award to Edward James Olmos (Holy crap, it's Eddie Olmos!). he talked about community work, and positive representations in media, and made accusations against the Latino film industry people. "you guys would rather give me an award for doing the right thing, than bother doing the right thing yourselves." maybe they won't change their lives, but at least they'll feel a little guilty next time they exploit someone. Eddie Olmos rocks.
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at the ball, DJ played mostly salsa, but a bit of cumbia and an almost-ranchera, per Amalia's request. we danced, drank (at the marriott, the "special discount" rooms were $192, and bud light was $7), laughed, then watched a movie screening which was marketed as "including a free tequila shot" (this turned out to be true). 2 friends stayed with us last night, Amalia's making papas con huevo. good weekend, a pesar del choque. looks like i'll still get a bit of work done.

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