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Game ON

5 Jan

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Photo from GotGame.com

I was a wee bit worried that buying a gaming system, after not owning one for over seven years now, might take me a bit too far down my past adolescent rabbit hole. Meaning, that for years as a youngster (well, I’m still young) I snuck Zelda at my friends houses and spent weekends with my Dad playing Nintendo’s original Mario Brothers. When Tomb Raider came out, I was done for; promptly begging my Dad for the purchase of the game and subsequently trying to level up for nights on end. I never officially owned a game system, not one by myself anyway, until now, until this past Christmas – and its been taking over my life one after work hour at a time. I bought an Xbox (which I’ll just say here that Xbox seems to have been rated just slightly higher overall against playstation and I don’t care much about the blue-ray, and my friends are adamant I purchase the X, so it was really no contest in the end). So over the New Years holiday week/weekend, in which I had five days off to clean the house, go snowboarding, go surfing, take the dog to the dog park, and otherwise spend my time wisely doing multifarious activities outside, I instead wound up glued to the couch playing Assassins Creed II, Bioshock and Oblivion. This slight revelation comes because I had to explain why, after being grouchily anecdotal over the holidays and barely posting anything over New Years (spent on my patio with two bottles of Champagne and some family) that I remain MIA. I blame the Xbox, because 12pm becomes 3am too quickly to notice when you’re chasing down your enemy.

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What Are You Doing New Years Eve?

28 Dec

Despite my protestations at the endless shopping and mass shoppers, this Monday morning, it is sad to see Santa’s House being deconstructed and the lights un-strung from above. Though the Christmas break meant the less traditional fare of Thai food and Chinese Fondue, more tourists than locals and hours of Xbox, it was one of the best.

I hope everyone is recovering from the holidays! Looking forward to the New Year and it’s extravagant celebration!!

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Finally, the Due Date

22 Dec

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Fucking hell it’s been busy.  Too busy.  Too cold.  Then it was hot.  Then it was windy.  Then it was windy and COLD.  I just can’t keep up anymore with the weather here, and with the mandatory shopping underway, Christmas is still less a jolly holiday than a requisite and painful issue at the end of the year.   So I’ve been busy – so much so that I just bought my tree last night.  When I brought it up the stairs to my apartment, I broke my gothic neighbor’s plant pot by knocking it to the floor with the wooden stand attached to the evergreen.  My neighbor, who hates me and has hung a black wreath with skulls on her front door, well, this will not be warming the cockles of her heart.  So I left a note.  I think she’s on holiday because I haven’t seen her. Thank God.  So, with the outcome of that soon to be pleasant situation hanging in the air, the wind has returned this morning with vigor and the changing weather brings with it a myriad of colors in the sky and an awesome sunrise.  Here is the view from this morning, which I took while standing in the near freezing wind:

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White Christmas

13 Dec

It’s rained for hours now, heaving cold drops that make you shiver just by opening the front door, but it’s a rare occurrence that I celebrate by sitting in the rain with an umbrella. I’m excited about more than the rain though, because in a few hours I’ll be experiencing the best part about working in a corporate office – the Christmas party. Rain or not, I’m headed out in my best dress and brightest red lipstick. Let’s party.  It’s a winter wonderland – with butterflies, angels, vodka, snow and Santa.

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Tinkertoys

4 Dec

Lyman Frank Baum may as well have named his famous story The Wizard of Oz: chasing a dream in Los Angeles. It’s weird, it’s disorienting, you meet strange people, and you definitely get the sense that yes, you might not be in Kansas anymore. It makes sense then, that during a visit through the Hollywood hills I’d find what I consider a eulogy to the enigmatic story and entertain the possibility of confronting an eccentric hermit. I am interested in what reasoning/motivation results in small plastic toys tethered to concrete as a presentation piece in front of your house. e.g.:

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DOLL

FACE

ANGEL

THEWALL

More Thanksgiving/Twilight

3 Dec

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Over the Thanksgiving weekend, I fully intended NOT to watch the wunderkind that is the Twilight series, holding on to some principle that getting on the bandwagon is usually not a good idea and can result in a myriad of regrets. I don’t think I have to really elaborate here (like how I watched the movie everyday since Black Friday, then watched the commentary, bought the books, googled everyone, read their interviews, and listened to the soundtrack), you know where I’m going. I got on the wagon and I’m driving at full-speed. Though I cannot tolerate the knowledge that somehow Bella turns into a whining, stupid, naïve girl in book three, I am compelled to go there because I need to know what happens. I need details, and I need them now. I feel like I’m watching Romeo & Juliet for the first time – Will they? Won’t they? PLEASE LET IT ALL WORK OUT. TOGETHER4EVER.

Then last night I met some people, we had something to drink and I asked about Twilight: “Oh I hate Kristen Stewart as Bella, I have a friend who was up for that part, it was between Kristen and her, and she at least was relatable.” Agh. Whatever.

The discussion weaned away from Twilight and the multifarious possible actor/film/director choices to talk about making a living, and more about actors (because almost everyone there was, had been, or wanted to be at one time). In fact, several actors there had auditioned in front of the casting director that I was now talking to: “When you tell someone what you do, people in L.A. never actually believe you. In New York, if you say you’re an actor, there’s some credibility to that.”

And finally we discussed the holidays. A friend mused humorously about his Thanksgiving dinner with friends and acquaintances, during which he was told by a fellow dinner guest in an excited and possibly concerned manner, “OH MY GOD, you are so skinny!” while ironically holding only a salad.

My head might hurt this morning because either:

a) I’m too punch-drunk on twilight and its brood and I’ve overindulged

b) The particular vernacular of L.A. always sets in a certain depression(we’re all TRYING TO MAKE IT)

c) Obviously, I had WAY too much to drink last night. i.e. I might still be drunk (I stumbled and fell over when I got out of bed this morning).

A Fine Vintage: Take Two

30 Nov

Alongside the mundane tourist shops shelling out sparkly Ed Hardy, gothic Doc Martens and tiny skirts, there are a few stores worth a trip to Melrose Avenue. Don’t be fooled here, Melrose Avenue is a cornucopia of crap (but is still well-known as a destination). Be prepared to step inside multiple stores to see the same fluorescent jersey, the same shiny gold lingerie, newsboy caps and pleather bags for fifty dollars; I don’t know anyone who lives here that buys into the idea that to buy good, you buy new. Buying designer labels doesn’t make you a fashion icon here, it’s about personal style. Apart from the earlier mentioned ‘Thrift Store’ there are a few other stops along the way that make shopping in L.A. a shopper’s paradise. First stop, Crossroads Trading Company. Vista Boulevard and Melrose Avenue:

The store’s selection usually consists of worn-in vintage tees, designer bags and shoes (from size six to ten), lots of dresses, lots of pants, jackets, shorts and skirts – all arranged according to the color scheme they fit into.  The inventory has a heavy dose of seventies glam, but the buyers here seem to know what sells, what’s trending and what’s quality (up to a point).   The best assets of the store are usually hanging above the fray (i.e. Marc Jacobs dresses, James Perse tees, etc.).  Just ask a clerk to get them and they’ll happily oblige you.  Most pieces remain below the $50 dollar mark and the average cost is only $10 – $20.  Remember that their inventory is always changing but once you’ve visited, two weeks time until your next visit will allow the store to restock with new inventory.

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Second stop: Wasteland.   Wasteland is a stone’s throw from Crossroads and on another level.  Here, the buyers always select the best stuff, bring in the priciest designers and ensure that their inventory offers original and new pieces each day.   It is (of course) more expensive here than any of the other vintage stores, but you’ll still be able to find edgy bags and romantic dresses from designer stock well below $100.   Shoes here are also an inviting situation: all sizes, both men’s and women’s, boots, sneakers and heels.  The music is pumping, and the store vast, so be prepared to spend some time here.

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Thanksgiving Day

27 Nov

I was prepared to write-off Thanksgiving Day in Los Angeles as any other ol’ holiday, the same happens here as in Wichita, Kansas – just families getting together for a meal that makes you loosen your belt-buckle – but then, I was waiting in traffic at a stop light and suddenly, Pocahontas walked in front of me. Yes. Moccasins, hand-made paper headdress and nude-ish onesie. Awesome.

Turkey Legs

25 Nov

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Have a great holiday weekend! Happy Thanksgiving!

Big Teeth/Glasses

25 Nov

Like a dog territorially watering every post and inch of grass, a certain tagger has been making his mark from Hollywood Boulevard to Melrose Avenue, even streaking his trademark across the local Hollywood Laundry bathroom floor:

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