we went to the airport with a friend to pick up dani whose first trip abroad is finally over and also making the trip now complete for us as well. we went to westwood to eat falafels because after being away for awhile, you need to eat something completely different. we caught up a bit on what we've done since we parted and what rio de janeiro is like. everyone says you have to visit rio but after hearing first hand account of it is as bad crime-wise as they say it is, damn, i just don't know if i can do it. plus the mosquitos. dani was talking about people getting robbed immediately after stepping off the bus, robbed in the hostel, people not taking pictures because you just don't show off that you have a camera, people trying to steal your clothes, etc. but luckily, nothing like that happened to him, just everyone else in the hostel it seems.

after lunch i drove them around ucla to show the boys the soulless campus i work it. sorry, but i can't stand the way it looks. i've ranted enough about it before.

then it was off to go back home to relax for a moment, just a moment, before we headed out to help a friend move out of california. we didn't leave the state, just helped to load up their stuff. they drive out tomorrow, so weird. the economy is collapsing. there are big pockets of empty homes in southern california. and now i've helped to personally pack someone out of here. at least we did do a round of mate before they left. it seems to be our way of saying good-bye now. i hope that our mate rounds don't always signify people leaving.