leftovers

Wow, it's been a long time since I've done a How I Fell In Love With and this is the first time I've done a city (or even a location). Since I'm gearing up for a fun-filled Vegas mini-weekend, I thought it was a great time to blog this. My obsession with Las Vegas began even before I had ever set foot on the Strip. Back when I was in college, I still hadn't been to many places outside of Kansas, but my parents had taken a few trips to Vegas and I loved hearing their stories about all the lights, casinos, slot machines, entertainers, and the general excitement they seemed to feel towards the city. They would bring back big plastic cups from various casinos, from back when every casino actually had coin slot machines. It's gross to think now that we actually used those cups to drink out of, but back then we thought they were so exotic! When I first discovered the internet, one of my first "online boyfriends" was a kid who lived in Vegas. We had met...

I slept in and then at some point (1:15pm!) I finally got up and said "why did you let me sleep so late?" Dylan said "you better be talking to your alarm clock." I warmed up some leftover from brunch yesterday and then Dylan and I got ready and picked Marc up to go to Amoeba's first "garage sale." We didn't know what to expect but our friend Adrienne who works there did text us to let us know it would indeed be in the garage, after having told us the other night at El Coyote that she didn't think it was. Dylan had some records in a crate that he wanted to trade in so I helped him carry them in but then I went right down to the sale. I ran into Adrienne and her boyfriend Quinn while I was entering the garage. There were so many people down there and there were boxes everywhere, many of them on the floor, and the lighting wasn't the greatest so it was kind of difficult to really go through everything. I went through quite a few boxes of 4...

Well, today is 4-20 which is known as the "pot smokers holiday" and since this is a public blog I'll just say that this is a holiday I have been known to celebrate with friends. I had intended to go to this art gallery after work that was showing cannabis as art, at the Antebellum Gallery in Hollywood where I had been once before with Dylan. We had sort of made a plan for Dylan and I to go with Marc and Robert, but Dylan was still feeling worn out from his Coachella trip so I just went by myself to meet them. When I got there, Marc had gone to pick up some papers from the Roosevelt Hotel because he is going to be working a film festival there, so I went to go in without them, but it turned out that you had to RSVP or else pay $10 to enter. Well, I hadn't read the e-mail well enough and failed to RSVP and I didn't have ten bucks on me nor did I want to spend it on getting in to a tiny art gallery. I don't think I've ever paid to get into an art show - u...

I was very tired and worn out today after the party last night, but it was worth it. Very late last night I realized I hadn't moved my car yet, as I had parked it a block away in case anyone needed a parking spot. However, I parked on the street cleaning side so I had to go out after midnight and move my car to the only spot I could find, which was 3 blocks away on Crescent Heights. Dylan's mom came over in the morning as she was meeting with her social worker, so she was on the couch in the living room when I got up and went to work. I thought we were having a meeting about Connect Day today, but when I got to the Taft building, Joe told me they had canceled the meeting. Kerry asked me to stay, though, because they were meeting about the Homeless Registry, which will be three days later in the month where we go out and interview homeless people to create a database. Sy from Naked Highway sent me a more final version of his remix of "The Apple Falls" which is sound...

The big day of my MegaPiranha party had arrived! To make sure we had enough energy for the day, I made a really good brunch - Breakfast Burritos filled with eggs, cheese, soyrizo, and veggies; plus homemade hash browns. After brunch, I went out to BevMo to get the liquor for the party since I hadn't had time to do it yesterday. I got Skyy Ginger vodka and Pink Grapefruit liqueur to make my 'flaming redhead' cocktails. Once I got home, I finished cleaning and getting the apartment ready, and the started preparing the food. I was making Panko Breaded Fish Sticks out of the Bon Appetit magazine so I breaded them ahead of time and put them in the freezer. I had used Halibut, which the recipe called for, but it was really kind of expensive so I also got some Swai and Catfish. Guests started arriving around 7pm so I started setting out the appetizers; I had made steamed artichokes, and put out oysters, shrimp cocktail, chips and salsa. Then I started frying up the fish stic...

Today was kind of cool. I got up and showered and put on a suit and tie, which is not that usual for me. I usually despise having to wear a shirt, tie and jacket because normally the weather here is so hot and dreadful that I know I'm going to sweat all over it and look like a soppy dog by the end of the day. Today was nice; cool and cloudy, so I didn't mind the extra layers. I went downtown around 10:30 am and made my way to the new LAPD headquarters, a lovely new structure on the corner of 1st and Main. It is huge and brand new, which is weird when you think about how broke the state and city are now. It must have been finished right before the economy and city budget collapsed. At the meeting, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (who I met previously a few months before at a Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce Business Leaders meeting) was there to introduce his new Deputy Mayor for Business Development and something else that I can't remember right now. They both spoke very e...

It's just unfathomable that I haven't, until now, composed the Tiffany entry in my "How I Fell In Love With" series. So, after a remarkable performance from my favorite redheaded pop singer the other night, it is time to correct this travesty! Said performance took place on Tuesday, Oct. 27th at Upright LA Cabaret, in the bar of Vermont restaurant. I'm ashamed to say that I almost considered not going to this show, as I have been to so many Tiffany shows during my time in LA that I thought I'd sit this one out. I am so glad I didn't. The show was Tiffany's most intimate to date, just her and a piano player on a small stage in a cozy venue with just the right amount of tables set up for her friends and fans to witness her belting out a selection of her hits, songs that inspired her, and a few surprises. It was simply awesome to finally hear her sing "Here In My Heart" and "Landslide" but I was really happy to hear her sing ...