Maria_Quiban's Blog

Help!

I'm going to buy a new car in two months. I've been logging on to all kinds of websites comparing various hybrids and fuel efficient vehicles and still can't tell which one is best. Which one I'll feel most comfortable driving. I'm hoping that some of you can help by sharing your experiences.

There's one thing I require. Sitting up higher in my seat is important to me,  so I think  an SUV or a crossover is a must. I'm thinking of the Ford Escape Hybrid or the Toyota Highlander Hybrid.

I also don't want to spend too much. That would be defeating the purpose of saving money in our tight economy. 

'Can't wait to hear your recommendations!

I don't like giving away my secret....new finds...but I figure this one is okay considering how close it is to L.A. and how much I know you'll like it.  :-)
I spent the 4th of July Holiday weekend in La Jolla's THE LODGE at TORREY PINES and it was soooooo wonderful!  The marine layer took it's time burning off while I was there, but it was worth the wait. There was plenty of sunshine by the afternoon.

If you like to play golf, hike, walk on the beach, take in a massage or just lay around the pool with a good book, head to La Jolla this summer. The Lodge at Torrey Pines is a quick drive from L.A. The Lodge is incredibly relaxing and affordable too. You can book one of their many package deals. I booked the bed and breakfast package. There's nothing like indulging in room service and breakfast in bed. I LOVE breakfast....so I ordered everything! Bacon, eggs, ham and french toast.

The hotel was apparently booked for the weekend, but it never felt like it at all. The staff was the nicest! The hotel is non-smoking, but they do let guests smoke cigars on their patio. They have a nice selection of cigars in their hotel gift shop.

Croquet on the lawn was a highlight. I didn't know how to play, but after making up the rules ourselves, had a great time winning two out of three games!

And here's an extra bonus tip, one evening, go to Balboa Park for their Summer Shakespeare Festival. It's an outdoor theater and any seat in the house is a great seat.

Hope you enjoy the rest of your summer!

Yesterday I went to the Body Worlds Exhibit at the California Science Center. It was a very very cool experience!!!!  A little weird at times, but it was a very enlightening experience. I urge you to go and see this incredible exhibit about the human body. 
At times, I did stop and think that what I was looking at were once living and breathing humans. You forget sometimes because it almost looks as though they were just mannequins, but no mistake about it, these anatomical specimens on display are authentic. They belonged to people who declared during their lifetime that their bodies should be made available to science.  I thank them for it!

One exhibit that really struck me featured various stages of the fetus. They show you an actual embryo at 4 weeks all the way up to 26 weeks. Whether you are pro life or pro choice, this is a must see. 
Body Worlds is on display until September. Go online and buy your tickets. Make sure to see the Imax movie, The Human Body, first. Then check out Body Worlds. It's wild!!

I'm a little blue this morning,  :-(   I think it's because of the gray skies. Or is it because it's back to work Monday? Hmmm...Not sure...But one thing is for sure I'm soooooooooooo ready for summer! Aren't you?
Yes---summer conditions bring new dangers like higher fire potential and heat related injuries, but hopefully everyone will be more diligent in taking greater care to prevent them.
So--that being said--I'm sooooooo ready for lots of sunshine, barbecues, bikinis and the beach!   Aren't you? If you are...I've got some good news...We'll get a "taste" of summer later this week. Yay! Wednesday through Friday, we'll see above normal temps and lots of sun. Enjoy it...as cooler temps and the marine layer will return just in time for the weekend. :-)

I just saw the R rated movie "Forgetting Sarah Marshall".  It was hilarious!

But while I was watching this movie, I was suddenly horrified! Not at the sexually explicit language, nudity or numerous sex scenes (all quite funny by the way), but at the sight of
a LITTLE KID sitting in front of me. He was sitting next to, who I think, was his mother!
Can you believe it?!!!

This little boy must not have been older than 10 years old. This movie is rated R!!!! Don't parents know what an R rating is? An R-rated motion picture may include adult themes, adult activity, hard language, intense or persistent violence, sexually-oriented nudity, drug abuse or other elements...so parents are counseled to take this rating very seriously. Generally, it is not appropriate for parents to bring their young children with them to R-rated motion pictures.

I was really appalled at this parent! She was laughing throughout the movie without a care for what this young boy might be thinking. He certainly wasn't laughing. I can only imagine what kind of impression it must have left on him.

With parents like the one I saw in the theater, it's no wonder we have so many socially and sexually dysfunctional individuals in this world!

If you don't have any plans this Saturday, why not buy a ticket
for a really terrific, worthwhile event that includes dinner, local news personalities and lots of entertainment!

It's the 36th annual SIPA Awards Benefit Banquet. SIPA (Search to Involve Pilipino Americans) is one of my favorite organizations in Southern California and this Saturday they will honor individuals and organizations for their outstanding contributions to the Los Angeles Pilipino American community and their support of SIPA!

http://www.esipa.org/happening/dinner.html

Saturday, April 26, 2008

Sheraton Los Angeles Downtown

711 South Hope Street

Los Angeles, California 90017

5pm - VIP Reception - The Polaris (26th Floor)

6pm - General Reception & Silent Auction -

The California Foyer

7pm - Dinner - The California Ballroom

8pm - Awards & Entertainment - The California Ballroom

See you then!

I'm watching Dancing with the Stars....and I am soooooo loving it!!!!

One of my dreams is to be a magnificent ball room dancer. Well....maybe just good enough to dance the mambo at the next ball!   : -)
To move like those dancers.... gliding on the floor...I wish it was me.

I'm not a good dancer at all....I can barely dance....I guess that's why Mark Thompson is in charge of the dancing part in front of the weather wall. He's very coordinated.
Me? I need a really good teacher!

Being on Dancing with the Stars would force me to learn the right way. It would be a fantastic way to exercise too. I hate going to the gym so the dancing thing might be just what I need to get my heart pumping.

Tom Bergeron....please call me and tell me I have a spot. 
:-)

Yesterday, I decided to accompany a friend to a car dealership to buy a car.  It had been awhile since I've stepped foot into a dealership and since I'm considering buying a new car this fall, I thought it would be educational for me to go and see if there's been any improvements to sales people's tactics when it comes to buying a car.

First, walking into the dealership, was once again like walking into a den of vultures. That hasn't seemd to have changed at all! Sales people standing around the showroom watching us walk past to the sales woman we had already made an appointment with. 

The sales woman was pleasant enough, but she wasted no time getting into a familiar speech of advantages to leasing a car versus buying a car.  Considering that her business card stated that she was a 'Lease Rentention Manager', she was most definitely steering us towards a lease.  She showed us several new cars in the fleet available for lease. Going on and on about the dangers of owning a car...then trying to re-sell your car on your own when you grow tired of it....salvage titles...kelly blue books...etc. Ugh!!!
Nope...no change there.  I can't believe she's talking to us like we're kids out of high school without ever owning cars before. Unbelievable!

Then, back to the sales office. A blank piece of paper comes out. There she goes writing out numbers in columns. Asking us what number would be a comfortable number to pay each month. My friend inquires about purchasing the vehicle outright. She looks it up on her computer....and after what seems like an eternity of explaining feature after feature on this car....she gets to a grand whopping total that we know for a fact is WAYYYYYY above the invoice price.  In fact....WAYYYYY above the MSRP. 
Hellooooo!!!!!   Sales people!!!!  Have you ever heard of the internet??? We have access to it too!  We know how much these cars sell for---out of the factory...to the dealer!  Sheeeeesh!!!!

Needless to say....after 3 or so hours...of haggling...wheeling and dealing...suddenly the price miraculously dropped by about 10,000 dollars.

I am NOT looking forward to buying a new car this fall, if I have to deal with salespeople like that!
Why go through 3 hours of torture? Why can't they just get to the bottom line price and be done with it in an hour?

Car sales people, if you happen to be reading this...please, if you haven't already done so, check the calendar. It's 2008. 
You don't have to do business like they did back in the 1950's.

:-)  Glad to get that off my chest.
I'll be sure to bring my patience when I actually try and buy a car later this year.

I'm often asked how I float every night above my weather maps.

Well..here's how it's done. Through chroma key technology or green
screen technology. Every night before the newscast, I produce my weather
graphics on a computer system called WSI. After I finish building my
sequence of maps, I load "my show" into a channel that the control room
can access.

I then go in front of a giant green wall that actually extends out
several feet to the floor. I'm actually standing on top of/as well as
in front of a green backdrop. This is where the green screen or
chroma key technology comes into play. The camera is told that anything
it sees as green will be replaced with my weather maps. That is one
main reason that I cannot wear anything green as the camera will then
read me as a place to put maps over. Other newsrooms use blue walls. I
prefer green as I have fewer green items in my closet than blue.



Sometimes on Halloween night, weather anchors will wear a green suit to
appear as only a head floating above the maps. It's a trick of the camera.

When we turn toward the maps, pointing to individual cities, we are actually
turning to a monitor that is placed to the left and/or right of the
wall. Those monitors show the same image that you see at home. It takes
some getting used to. It was a little complicated at first, but like
anything else, you get the hang of it after awhile.

It's really a lot of fun.

I hate it when it happens! But yes...it does happen from time to time, I was half right about this past weekend's forecast.  Saturday was a cloudy and cold day with light drizzle. Ugh!

What can I say other than I'm sorry to those of you who planned an outdoor BBQ but  instead, had to push the party inside.  Sorry...for the drizzle that may have ruined your newly waxed car.  Sorry for the tan you wanted to work on at the beach but didn't even have a chance to grab that sexy suit.

But hey------ There was Sunday!!!!!!!!
That forecast was Spot on!!!  
:-)
We'll try and get it right again this week.

"Pete Seeger: The Power of Song"

Go and see this movie!!!!! I saw it this weekend at the Laemmle theater on Wilshire.

WOW! Rarely does a documentary move me the way this one did. I initially agreed to see the movie because it was about the man that inspired Bruce Springsteen to record the album 'We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions.'

I came out of the theater with a new found love of the banjo and Folk Music. More importantly, I came away with a new sense of hope and inspiration.

In today's society where children often emulate the latest pop-culture celebrity,
Pete Seeger is a true role model.  An amazing musician who believes the power of song can make a difference and effect change in our families, communities and our world.

Seeger has been at the forefront of the labor movement, the struggle for Civil Rights, the peace and anti-war movements, and the fight for a clean world. He has been a beacon for hope for millions of people all over the world. Once blacklisted from national television for being unafraid to voice his opinions, he was given the nation's highest artistic honors at the Kennedy Center in December 1994.

This 90 minute documentary is a powerful, inspiring and entertaining story of an ordinary man, who is everything but ordinary. I hope I can meet him one day near the Hudson River Valley where he still lives.

Let me know how you like it. I would love to hear about your experience.

"we shall overcome!" pete seeger

For the entire upcoming week, it will be my turn to fill in for Jillian while she's home with her newborn.

I'm really looking forward to working with the morning crew and doing LOTS MORE weather.  We get so little time on the evening news compared to the morning, it's hard to mention all the cities and microclimates in SoCal. But I'm sure as heck going to try!

Want me to give your neighborhood a special shout-out? Let me know!  I would be more than happy to!

 

 

Yes, when it's cool and cloudy...there's nothing better to do than stay in and curl up with a good book!

A bit of June Gloom....that's what's in store for the rest of the month. If you're inland though...you'll probably see more sun and warmer temps.

I love days like these...Don't you? Sizzling summer temps are right around the corner and we'll soon be daydreaming of cooler days.

WIth the past gloomy weekends in May...I've been able to get through so much of James Michener's epic novel.."HAWAII". I was drawn to pick it up recently after hearing about the author's recent passing. It was once required reading for me in school. But I never got around to it. The size alone is enough to make you run away from it.

But now...considering that I am from Hawaii afterall...I felt it was time to embrace it. I'm so glad I did. It's a book I can't put down. I'm about 75% finished and I'm starting to feel sad that I'm almost to the end.

If you've read it...I'd love to hear your comments.

What other summer reads do you recommend? My goal is to get through Pulitzer Prize winning books. Wish me luck!

Bix a Bel!

Last week was an incredible week in the Yucatan Peninsula. The weather was just perfect.

April is the best time to visit as it is before the rainy season. Peak prices also end, so hotel costs are a little lower. If you plan on going, try to schedule your trip right after Easter. It's much quieter.

I started the trip in Chichen Itza. What a fascinating place in history. Exploring the old Mayan Ruins, brought me back hundreds of years. According to one tour guide, there are conflicting reports on the true history of how the Mayans lived in Chichen Itza in 900 A.D.

There was a movie made about the ancient Mayans called Apocalypto. I haven't seen it yet, but I'd like to. There are still quite a bit of people who speak the old Mayan language. It's very different from the spanish spoken elsewhere in Mexico.

My trip continued on to the coast... in Puerto Morelos. 15 minutes south of Cancun. There's an old fishing town just a short drive from Puerto Morelos called Playa Del Carmen. It is much smaller than Cancun, but a lot more fun to explore. If you're planning a trip to Cancun, I'd opt to stay near Playa Del Carmen. There's plenty of good restaurants and lots of nightlife.

Tulum is an hour drive south of Puerto Morelos. The ruins in Tulum were breathtaking. Sitting on a bluff overlooking the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, I can imagine how the Mayans enjoyed the views while waiting for the trade ships to sail in.

I'd like to return to the Yucatan again soon. Next time heading to Campeche.

By the way, temperatures were in the 80's with a light northeasterly breeze.

After a blustery and cool day in So cal, I'm grabbing my suit and heading south. South of the border to see the Mayan Ruins.

I've never been to Chichen Itza or the Yucatan. Have you?

Looking forward to seeing how the local Maya are living and hoping to learn more about this fascinating mesoamerican civilization.

If you have some "must-sees"  or "must-dos".....pass them along. I'll file my full report when I get back.

Aloha!

¡Vamos!

Maria