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Cats On Newspapers

25 Mar
No one ever comes to L.A. and thinks that the Subway is a choice for public transportation. However, with plans for expansion in the years to come, it’s becoming a more viable option. Alas, the L.A. Metro does not stop at all cities, such as Santa Monica, but it can get you downtown and to the airport. For my purposes, it’s an easy $1.50 novelty ride from Hollywood to Little Tokyo. Just don’t get on after 6pm, the muttering homeless and generally sketchy characters seem to gather on the platforms after this hour.






Union Station, the Main Portal

Train tracks to my Left

Finally, the Light

Ah! The most unexpected offering of the day. Low lights, cool atmosphere

Sweet Bean Paste Fried in Little Cakes

Local Japanese News…LA, LA, LA..

Mochi, a strange exotic dessert with interesting texture of smooth ice cream wrapped in rice cake.

A View of the Town

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Arrow This Way

24 Mar

If you see this sort of sign around L.A., follow it to a catered lunch. Because this particular sign points you in the direction of a film set in town. The actors, the trailers, the movable toilets, the trays of munchies. It’ll be there.

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Watchmen

17 Mar

Back at the Arclight for an evening movie…

I am always amazed at how small actors really are. They look statuesque on the screen, their costumes so perfectly matched to their form. For a movie like Watchmen, they appear godlike – each wrinkle ironed out, freely moving in latex and hard plastic. But these forms were human, Silk Spectre quite petite.

These costumes felt as they looked. Hardly wearable. I am disappointed that the visuals of Watchmen, which were spectacular, were overshadowed by it’s terrible plotline.

Sorry it’s so fuzzy…



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Supergraphic

6 Mar

Supergraphic Me!

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Free Art

6 Mar

Arts Day LA…a day of free seminars facilitated by successful professionals in several different fields, many of whom currently teach classes at UCLA. There are four seminars for each subject – Creative Writing, Design Communication Arts (Graphic Design), Film, Interior Design and Landscape Architecture – spanning instruction on inspiration, tools and finally your life and career. Although at times I felt I was watching an infomercial for extension classes at UCLA, the information provided was well worth sitting through a little PR. Although Arts Day LA is only held once a year, UCLA sponsors several similar events through Summer and Fall.

UCLA EXTENSION

Trueblood?

Writer Barbara Abercrombie & Playwright Leon Martell

Writer Jessica Barksdale Inclan, memoirist Diana Raab, mystery writer John Morgan Wilson & short fiction writer Victoria Patterson

Lunchtime: L.A. style

A closer look….

Goodbye UCLA!

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A Lilting Scent

3 Mar
For a Californian, seasons are a trivial and uneventful occurrence. Fall doesn’t come with falling yellow leaves, and winter doesn’t arrive in snowstorms – there’s simply a subtle change in temperature. Only cooler nights indicate that winter is ascending, but the days remain sunny and snowy peaks appear in the North (snowboarding is only a few hours away!). Since California’s weather is historically sunny and clear, with the exception of this year’s fifteen days of dripping clouds (and counting – crossed fingers for more rain so there’s no droughts!), there are certain occurrences that mark the changing seasons.

Instead of melting snow, I’ve got the new scent of Jasmines in the air to melt my chilly winter heart and turn my thoughts to beach volleyball and tan skin; unlike so many, I do not tan during the winter, I’m Nicole Kidman pale and scared to show any sort of leg at work for fear of scaring someone. Soon, the Jacaranda trees will start sprouting their purple flowers and rolling blackouts will become part of the regular routine.
Jasmines are the first sign that spring has come again, and if you don’t enjoy the sun, (because it gets redundant) at least you’ll have a nose full to be happy about.


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Perfectly Pink

24 Feb
A breezy day of cool sun comes to an end in pink puffs.


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Little Gold Men…It’s Oscarmania!

19 Feb
Oscar is quietly pitching his tents and constructing bleachers during this cold L.A. week. The red carpet has gone up, tourists are gawking and Hollywood Boulevard has been shut down. This weekend, we’ll get to watch the actors and actresses we both love and hate walk down the red aisle to our chagrin or ecstasy. This is what it looks like:


On the way home…

(Memento Mori)


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Fracophilia

16 Feb
Hello everyone, I am a Francophile.What started as an introduction to language class in Middle School burgeoned into a lifelong obsession with the French, their language and a thirst for a European dream. L.A. is just a stop-over.

En route, I’m submerging myself in authentic French flavor. This is why I’ve ended up at Monsieur Marcel. This tiny grocery store sits within the historic Farmer’s Market, adjacent to their associated restaurant with the same name. Mr. Marcel offers familiar stock to any French expat, such as wine, cheese, cutlery, napkins, champagne, chocolates, baguettes and the ultimate, popular French cookie, the Macaron (in their traditional assorted colors). The restaurant has a charming candlelit wooden bar and has arranged it’s seating ‘dehours’ (outside), underneath a canopy. It’s a romantic, isolated spot among the bustle of the other vendors located within the Farmer’s Market precinct. I recommend the Fondue (the best I’ve ever had).

There is also Cafe Flore. A favorite of mine off of Robertson Boulevard, a high-end shopping district. It looks humble but their prices, cozy atmosphere (although admittedly corny thanks to water paintings and gold frames on the walls), great food (for both presentation – artistic, colorful and befitting much higher prices – and taste), perfect portions and French waiters are worth a visit. If you’re in Denver, Colorado, try Le Central.

L.A. is full of French restaurants that are very romantic but prices are high and you don’t get what you’re paying for. Spiritland Bistro is a quaint restaurant in Santa Barbara. On their menu is the lavender honey Creme Brulee. This twist on the classic dessert is noted in many reviews, but once it was in front of me disappointment set in. The usual crunchy blazed sugar crust was soft, the cream inside was marginal. I wanted my ten bucks back. There are a hundred French gourmet options in L.A., not all of them genuine but rather American interpretations of the authentic product. So we’re back to Mr. Marcel and his Macarons.

Below are some of my most recent purchases. Bought primarily for their whimsy and color – a quality I find prevalent in French products, fashion, television and movies. It’s fun to indulge.

The display case at Monsieur Marcel

I am in love with the Pistachio (on the far right). Although seemingly crunchy, these pieces are filled with cream, and are more like tiny cakes than a true cookie.


My Macarons!!

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Within The Vicinity

10 Feb
Pay attention to your neighbors.I once took a six-week fencing class at the Los Angeles Community College. On the last day of class, I discovered that I had been dueling with very talented and successful writers, one producer and several amateur artists. One woman had come to L.A., after a stint writing for a succesful Canadian sitcom. This the great thing about L.A., the company you unknowingly keep can be a vast and untapped resource. Companions that I had little ambition to take note of (how very L.A. of me), until we sat after class discussing our respective careers and our teachers foray into screenplays. I was taken aback, surprised at the lack of ego and pretention and their willingness to share whatever insight they could offer into the industry culture and their estimated success in the bewildering Los Angeles landscape. At a theatre performance, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? starring Kathleen Turner, I sat next to a woman who translated the show’s events for the blind into a tactile experience. More recently, a co-worker of mine shared that unbeknownst to her until a week prior, the famous Korean actor named Rain (as in, famous like Brad Pitt) lived just a floor above.

Unfortunately, I have nothing to share here, but I want to point out that if you decide to move to L.A., don’t become a hermit. I happen to love my lonesome ways, and given my experience in the fashion showrooms here, an experience I liken to a mock celebrity environment (cut-throat and untrustworthy as it gets, with drug use on the side), it has been hard to trust people in this town ever again. Slowly, it gets better. My sister is far more social than I’ll ever be, and the high expense of entrance fees and drinks is enough to make you want to stay home, but she’s deftly focused her career and her friends have only widened her prospects.


Photo by Liz Chrisman

This is not new news, but just a helpful reminder. Even to myself.

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