I had a great birthday month. The fun continued through to the 31st.

August 22: Supposedly, the Greek Theatre doesn’t allow cameras. I left mine in the car. At the gate, they didn’t seem to be checking so I dragged my friend with me back down the hill to where we parked. I’m so glad I went back. I’ve been up close at Café Tacuba concerts before, but this is the first time I had a camera with me.

August 23: Roommate2, Adja, turned 25 on 20th. She was devastated to be so “old.” Sigh. If I complain about my age, you have permission to kick me or call me out. Okay? Anyway, Adja had friends over to celebrate. I didn’t understand them half the time because they were speaking Wolof (she’s from Senegal) or French.

August 24: The workers started construction on the parent’s house in mid-June. We still don’t have a functional kitchen, but at least I can envision my mom’s dream kitchen.

August 25: One of my close friends is an immigration attorney. Last Monday, she was on the radio (KTNQ 1020 AM) with her boss. The weekly show La Ley de Inmigración features my friend’s boss answering callers’ questions about legalizing their status. This time around, she was on the show too. I shouldn’t have been impressed, but I was. I got some smart friends. For more info on the show, check out this LA Times story from 2005.

August 26: I finally checked out the farmers’ marker in downtown Culver City after doing some grocery shopping at the Trader Joe’s down the street. I bought some delicious nectarines, grapes, strawberries, plums. Later that evening, I shared them with Isa’s family as we waited for her to arrive after her six-week vacation in Southeast Asia. I missed her!

August 27: This is Isabelle. She’s my cousin Frank and his wife Romina’s first child. She was born on July 30. She’s the first grandchild for my tío Joe and tía Mary. She stole the show at my birthday party. It’s okay, ’cause she’s adorable.

August 28: I watched coverage of the DNC every night. I was giddy on Thursday afternoon and kept checking my friend’s updates from Invesco field. While I may have been distracted during some of the other keynote speeches, I was glued to Obama’s acceptance speech. I loved some of his one liners, but what was up with that country song at the end?

August 29: The birthday weekend started out with a night out at Speed Zone. It was my first time racing cars — despite Speed Zone being so close — and I loved it. My siblings and four cousins I don’t see enough also went. I wish I could’ve raced more.

August 30: Maphawk seems really confused about where the real LA Eastside lies. It’s east of the river! Not Silver Lake nor Echo Park nor Downtown nor Chinatown nor Los Feliz. And it’s DEFINITELY not West Hollywood. The folks over at LA Eastside got together for a potluck and to talk shit about these maps again.

August 31: While we were waiting for our number to be called at the fifth — and last — grocery store, I told my mom, “it feels like we’re on some kind of reality show. The premise: you have two days to plan a party. You have no kitchen. You have about 50 guests. You’re short-staffed. Your budget is X dollars. Go!” But my mom didn’t seem phased (my dad’s blood pressure went up though). She’s an expert party planner. We pulled it off thanks to help from Madrina Chilo and Mamá Toni who made the rice and beans and tía Chanita who brought a couple of chocoflans and strawberry cheesecake. Birthday parties are a lot of work!