Hallowork

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My firm goes nuts for Halloween. It's bizarre and, frankly, rather stupid.

But I can't look away. Just call me "rubbernecker."

Very few attorneys dress up. I don't think any did today at all. My guess is that staff members like to do it for the prizes (gift certificates and gift cards ranging from $25 to $100).

Our IT department posed as everyone's favorite little blue Communists.

Please note that Smurfette was a man. Impressive.

Senator Larry Craig...in a decorated stall. (For the record, this was a woman.)

Half-assed pirate emcee.

Wonder Woman. Very popular with the men. You should've seen her red boots.

Lindsey Lohan, Nicole Richie, and Paris Hilton.

The saving grace of this madness. Candy, candy, candy.

Simple Joys

Co-workers who wear trouser shorts a la Angus Young.

A bacon cheeseburger from Morton's.

The ability to watch Beauty and the Geek and the Laker game simultaneously.

Karaokefest 2007 Videos

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As promised....

Young_Love does her signature song. Truly awe-inspiring.


Brianna is Kevin Bacon, but *someone* is an idiot and took the video sideways.


Hit us, baby, one more time.


And, in honor of the wonderful BPLJ (the original Sisqo impersonator at my 30th birthday party), I attempt to recreate the magic. Those who witnessed the original will likely agree that my version pales in comparison, but I tried!

Halloween Karaokefest 2007

What do you get when you put old-school L.A. Knotties/Nesties and old-school OC Knotties/Nesties in a purple room with three echoing microphones, two tambourines, a wall of TV screens, and flashing rainbow lights at Orchid?

Good times! yAy!

tater made these festive favor bags filled with J-candy, glow-in-the-dark necklaces, and Halloween action figure rings. L.A., represent!

Winnie made these cute favor bags filled with more J-candy, bracelets, and light sticks. L.A., represent!

Kate and 10Years made cookies and brownies. OC, represent!

cheapbeachbride, Winnie, and I modeled some items from the favor bags. And that's Kate, raising her hand to get our server's attention.

Because pictures are worth a thousand words (and words cannot begin to describe tonight -- I am hoarse from shrieking and laughing), I present to thee the following pictorial essay.

Videos [maybe] to come. Yes, that's right. I took video, folks. However, they take a damn long time to upload, so you've been granted a temporary reprieve.

Oh, and one of you left behind a medium heather gray zip hoodie. Let me know if it's yours, or it will become Monkey attire.

Sodium City

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President Thai was our lunch destination today with Mr. Monkey's family. We go there often because it is close to where Little Monkey Niece lives, and, as you know, Mr. Monkey's relatives are creatures of habit. No matter. It's a fine place for kids because it's fairly noisy, so thumbs up for appropriateness on that front.

Whether or not President Thai is authentic, I have no idea. I often judge authenticity by clientele. I know this may sound terrible, but, if there are a ton of white people eating at an ethnic restaurant, I pretty much write it off as fake and not worth my time. President Thai is split fairly evenly between white and Asian patrons, so my normal method of assessing authenticity was somewhat thwarted (albeit it should be noted that many of the Asian customers are Chinese and not Thai, making it even more difficult to judge).

Non-sequitur: I was disturbed to see the unnecessary Halloween-ifying of the usual decor.

We ordered a number of lunch specials to share. Lunch specials cost between $7 to $9, are available daily from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. (including weekends), and include a main dish, soup or salad, rice (white or brown), and fried wontons.

I didn't take photos of everything, but our order included garlic pork (very good, tender, and juicy), chicken with baby corn and mushrooms (boring and bland), green curry sole fillet (smooth and creamy with just the right amount of kick), duck noodle soup (great rich broth), and three flavors fish fillet (quite possibly the best lunch special there is).

In addition to the lunch specials, we had some Thai iced tea and Thai iced coffee, as well as a few so-called "recommended" dishes, including ong choy ($10.95), President's Crab ($12.95), and fish cakes ($8.95). These dishes were especially strong choices.

Overall, President Thai is a reliable choice for a simple lunch. It is far from rave-worthy, but you won't go away disappointed, nor will your wallet be unnecessarily emptied. I do, however, always find that I am extremely thirsty for hours and hours afterward. I think the title of this post says it all. I ate over four hours ago, and I'm still detoxing from all the salt. Blech.