Palm Springs Weekender

{Sunscreen and mojitos - the essentials}

Suffice to say the new job has taken a lot of time, like any change would. I'm not stressed, but my time is definitely more valuable than it used to be just because I have to really prioritize who I see and trim the fat when it comes to social situations that I'd rather avoid (especially when my health is in question!).

A few weeks ago, a handful of us went to Palm Springs for a relaxing weekend in the sun to get out of the hustle and bustle of Los Angeles. We stocked up on crudités, an assortment of cheese and meets, homemade pizza, and the brunch essentials, not to mention lots of rum, tequila and white wine which we mixed with an abundance of sweet watermelon and mint.

It was so relaxing to sip on cocktails all day by the pool, get some well-earned vitamin-D, and relax in a fully furnished home on the golf course. It was exactly what I needed to set me on track for the busy, yet exciting upcoming months.

{Brunch of banana pancakes, eggs and watermelon}

{Babes}

{A glass of Chardonnay from the reserve in the house}

Pacifco Birthday Weekend at the Surf Open

{VIP Deck Passes at the 2012 U.S. Surf Open}

A birthday weekend of fun hit us and it hit us hard... unlimited beer, half naked beach-goers, sand, sun, Mexican food - all brought to you by Pacifico.

Weekend Wars

{So very SoCal}

Remember that amazing MGMT song "Weekend Wars"? It's so utterly summer and the perfect song to play while driving down the PCH without being too cliche.

This weekend was all about laid back fun. From a drive up the PCH and a failed attempt to find the Malibu Creek trail, to a very hipster birthday party hosted by Podshare (this revolutionarily awesome youth hostel), to a barbecue in San Clemente with the best fish tacos I've ever tasted in my life, my weekend was completely satisfying - the perfect recharge before going back to the grind.

{My favorite breakfast: avocado on toast with sea salt}

{Kevin the beach bunny}

{The view from the top, Malibu}

{Podshare birthday party}

{The best fish taco I've ever tasted - exploding with avocado, lime, and freshly speared fish from that morning}

Grease is the Word

{Grease sing-a-long at the Hollywood Bowl - check out the Hollywood sign}

Who plans for months to go to the Grease sing-a-long at the Hollywood Bowl? We do. Ever since seeing Coldplay back in May, three of us bought our tickets immediately for the Grease sing-a-long, and finally the day came.

Dressing up in our best Pink Ladies/ T-Birds gear, we packed up with bread, cheese, crackers, snacks, and the delicious California Chicken Cafe, hopped on the bus, and prepared ourselves for a night at the Hollywood Bowl.

If you haven't been to the Hollywood Bowl, the best way to do it is to catch the Park 'n' Ride. You park your car at a given location and hop on a bus so that you can drink and eat happily (which we surely did).

After picnicking on a grassy area and drinking oh-so-much wine, we made our way in to a pre-show which included the actress who played Frenchie, and the entire Grease movie complete with sing-a-long lyrics, bubbles, and drunken fans who knew every word to every song. Overall, it was one of the most interesting Saturday nights I have had in awhile.

{Wine + Grease sing-a-long}

Friday Night at Dodgers Stadium

{Dodgers Stadium at sunset on a Friday night}

Lucky lucky girls. One of my friend's neighbors works in sales for the Dodgers so we were hooked up with free Loge-level tickets for the Padres vs. Dodgers game. I had been to many Padres games (since I am a San Diego native and a sad sad Padres fan), but I had never been to Dodgers Stadium, so this was definitely a check off of the LA bucket list.

The traffic was terrible, but I did love that the stadium was secluded from the rest of the Los Angeles hustle-and-bustle. I tried my first Dodger Dog, and I even was allowed onto the field for the fireworks! It was a great to end the first week at the new job with another new adventure. Plus, beer and a good hot dog is always welcome.

{A cold Bud Lite and a Dodger Dog with the works}

{Kevin and I on the field for summer fireworks}

Weekend Wrap-Up: Happy July!

{Channing Tatum and Joe Manganiello}

This weekend was a blur. As you know one of my best friends left for vet school this weekend, and her final request was -wait for it- to go see Magic Mike. So we did her bidding. We bought tickets for the 11pm showing on opening night and snuck in bottles of wine to keep us occupied during the uninteresting plot that they attempted to shove down our throats. We thought we were being original when in reality, the half-full theater of hormonal women all had the same idea. The movie was only good when the cast was dancing and shaking it -oh boy, was that dancing amazing- and I probably enjoyed it a little bit more than I would otherwise thanks to the wine. But like I said, the plot is horrible. They should have stuck to dancing the whole time.

I also visited 800 Degrees this weekend in Westwood. This pizza is all the craze among college students so my sister and I did a little double date to the pizzeria. You select a pizza base (Margherita, red sauce, or sauce-less) and then you pick the toppings that they generously pile on. The pizza is cooked in an 800 degree oven to perfection. It is thin and light, and  you can eat every last bite (you'll want to too). I chose tomatoes, chicken and artichokes as my toppings and the boy chose pepperoni, spicy Italian peppers and tomatoes. Delicioso!

This week I am focusing on taking care of myself (with the exception to the Fourth of July celebration to come) because I am leaving my job at the end of this week to start working managing social media efforts for a huge beauty brand (I'll leave you with the suspense and tell you at a later point where I'll be working). I'm so excited, but through all of the excitement, I'm bound to get sick due to sheer sensory overload. That's why this week I'll be posting healthy summer recipes in order to inspire myself and maybe even inspire you.

{800 Degrees Pizzeria}

{A healthy seasonal snack packed with antibiotics}

What's on Your Los Angeles Bucket List?

{Hiking the Hollywood sign}

One of my best friends is leaving for vet school at UC Davis, and despite all of us living in LA for the past six years, there are so many things that we have yet to experience! Of course, we're trying to cram all of these into her last week (despite working full time and packing up her entire apartment). A lot of these things on our list I have already done, but I feel like you can't live in Los Angeles and not do these things.

Los Angelenos, what are the activities on your bucket list? Here are a few that are on mine:

1. Hike to the Hollywood sign
2. Take the Orochon challenge
3. Visit the Santa Monica Pier and ride the Ferris wheel
4. Drive up the PCH all the way through Malibu to Santa Barbara (like we did here)
5. Eat fish tacos at James Beach
6. Visit the Griffith Observatory at night, stargaze
7. Walk through Rodeo drive, celeb stalk
8. Buy a six pack of Sprinkles cupcakes, eat them all
9. Walk the Venice boardwalk after pitchers of Sangria
10. Go to a summer concert at the Hollywood Bowl, drink lots of wine
11. Visit the Getty Museum, Getty Gardens, and Getty Villa

{Griffith Observatory}

{Santa Monica Ferris wheel at the Santa Monica Pier}

{The Getty gardens at the Getty Museum}

The Summer Adventures List

Summer is a season that I welcome with open arms. Not only is it the season of my birth (the end of July marks my birthday and a huge party, followed by a huge hangover ever since my 21st birthday), but also the sun is out, the air is hot, and adventures are endless.

Every summer I look back and think: what did I do with my summer? I always plan to do more things than I ever commit to doing. This year, my friends and I have found the solution: a shared document where we can track and plan all of our adventures in one central location. Thank you, Google Docs. We have listed everything out-of-the-ordinary that we want to do as a group from wine tasting to a trip to Palm Springs and Napa. All affordable, nothing insane. Just things that we want to experience before the summer is over. So far we have even bought our tickets to the Grease Sing-a-long at the Hollywood Bowl. Endless wine, and endless singing along to John Travolta (which is even more amusing now with his recent masseur controversy).

I find that especially since I have been in a relationship for so long, it is important to make time for trips with girlfriends. You don't have to do everything with your significant other (even though it is fun to have your other half with you when you try something new or go somewhere different) - and sometimes it's more fun to experience things with your girlfriends, especially if you have an interesting group of people with great taste that you hang out with constantly like I do.

What are your plans for summer? Anything extravagant? It's exciting to look at summer with those seemingly endless three months of perfect weather - but they go fast!

Weekend Wrap-Up: Memorial Day Edition

{Hermosa Beach Fair}

While many Los Angelinos were in Las Vegas or Palm Springs, my friends and I decided to stay local and enjoy the many things the city of angels has to offer.

Hugh Laurie Makes Us Feel Classy on a Thursday

{Hugh Laurie, the Dr. Gregory House, in the house}

A wonderful television series ended this week. Yes, I'm talking about House M.D. Kevin was feeling rather sad about it, so on a whim we decided to try and see Hugh Laurie in concert. 

Weekend Wrap-Up: Ring of Fire Solar Eclipse Road Trip

{Welder's goggles covered in Pop-Tart wrappers to shield the eyes}

This weekend Kevin and I decided to take a Sunday cruise up the Pacific Coast Highway in order to get a beach side, firsthand look at the Ring of Fire solar eclipse.

The tools: a pair of welders goggles covered in Pop-Tart wrappers (the internets said it was wise), a few roast beef and avocado wraps, hummus and peppers, watermelon, a six pack of Sam Adam's Summer Ale, and some sort of makeshift mechanism to protect the camera phone from the rays fashioned out of the top of a cigarette box and some more Pop-Tart wrappers.

The plan: to head north of Santa Barbara to some state beach, picnic and watch the Ring of Fire solar eclipse.

What really happened: As we reached Santa Barbara, the fog was rolling in thickly. We decided to turn around and head back to just north of Malibu to the southern tip of the Naval Base. We sat on a log and watched the eclipse that took about an hour.

Check this one off of the bucket list! Aside from being able to enjoy the lovely weather, I had my own lovely mash-up of Total Eclipse of the Heart/ Ring of Fire (Johnny Cash edition) stuck in my head all day. I had forgotten just how gorgeous the PCH was on a sunny day, and Malibu for some reason never ceases to amaze me.

{Pacific Coast Highway in the sunshine}

{Point Mugu Beach}

{A silk scarf from Hamburg to hide my Pale Ale (and keep me from getting in trouble with the law)}

{Curious Kevin the engineer}

{Shielding my eyes from the sun's harmful rays - even with the goggles you couldn't look for too long without feeling the consequences}

{We created a pinhole camera (on Kevin's adorable grandpa hands) in order to watch the eclipse (and to photograph it!)}

{Kevin and the Ring of Fire - at this point the sun was almost completely shielded by the moon; the camera wasn't able to process the strength of the rays}

Weekend Wrap-Up: Happy Birthday Dad!

{Roasted bone marrow with croutons and a parsley salad}

Today is my lovely father's 55th birthday. Not only does the man not look a day over 40, but also he is one of the most caring, loving fathers out of anyone I know. Okay, I'm a little biased - but he really is one of the most awesome dads in the world. Ask my friends. He also is one of the most humble people I know - he insists that instead of taking him out to a fancy restaurant, that my sister and I cook a "low maintenance, home made meal." Of course since he is so special to us, we find ways to spruce up the annual birthday dinner. This year with roasted bone marrow, pork with a white wine cream sauce, white wine risotto, and garlic haricots verts.

 It may be one of the best meals that we ever threw together (and I may or may not have thrown in some cute pictures of my dad from childhood until now)...

Lovers in Japan (Coldplay at the Hollywood Bowl)

{Coldplay at the Hollywood Bowl}

Well, well,  here we are again at yet another spectacular spectacular Coldplay concert. This past Tuesday I was lucky enough to visit the Hollywood Bowl with three of my friends and boyfriend in tow. A magical night of miracles where we barely made the Hollywood and Highland shuttle, and where we were able to picnic on not one, not two, but three bottles of wine (okay it was more like 3 mondo-bottles...), endless Brie and baguettes, cured meats, hummus, and my famous broccoli pasta salad.

Weekend Wrap-Up: Sweet Sundays with Suzanne

{Sundays with Suzanne (my mom) on the Venice Boardwalk}

This Friday commemorated my dog's birthday who passed away in February after 15 loving long years with our family. This Sunday my mom decided to come up to visit my sister and I to visit, catch up, and have a lunch full of laughs, interesting encounters, and sharing of memories from our relationships with our sweet puppy.

Mom also mentioned that she had gifts for my sister and I: a very sweet, caring woman, my mom tends to give very interesting (and sometimes weird) gifts even though she doesn't always fully get how creepy she can get. My sister and I jokingly speculated that she got us mini urns with the dog's ashes (or more morbidly pieces of her fur, or her paw on a key chain like a rabbit's foot). The gift was a very thoughtful dainty silver ring with our dog's name engraved on the inside of it. It is something that I will wear every day, and a great reminder of the great relationships that we have formed with both the present and the past.

{Sangria at the Venice Ale House - a necessity in our family}

{A dainty silver bangle as a gift from my mom}

{The Venice Boardwalk - quite the culture shock for my mom}

Traveling Vicariously: Frankfurt, Germany

{Along the Main}

As you may or may not know, the other half has been sent to Frankfurt on business. Despite my whining and complaining, I could not accompany him on his first trip to Europe (even though I do have the vacation saved up at work). So I have decided to share my brief trip to Frankfurt from 2008 in order to quench my thirst to go back to Europe (especially since I am completely jealous that someone I know is going there without me).

Los Angeles Spotlight: Orochon Ramen

{Orochon Ramen, Little Tokyo}

This past Saturday morning my boyfriend looked at me and said: "What do you want for breakfast? Coffee? Eggs?" My response: "Orochon and beer." It may not be my classiest moment, but it was quite the moment of glory that added to my credibility as a girlfriend.

Orochon Ramen used to be nothing more than a "cult classic" that my boyfriend and his friends used to obsess over. And then I tried it. Orochon may be the most delicious bowl of noodles that I have ever tasted in my life - and that's saying a lot for me, I don't typically enjoy just a bowl of noodles.

You may recognize it from the Travel Channel show Man vs. Food. Orochon is no joke. You can order how spicy you want your broth from 7 (mild) to -2 (yes, that's negative 2 and it will probably burn your esophagus all the way down to the toilet). If you can eat a whole bowl of -2 Orochon, then you are a champ. However, you may pass out before the sheer volume of food before you realize how spicy it is.

We always order a miso #4 (4 is spicy but not too spicy - we always add a little bit of hot oil). There are three broth options, but I haven't even bothered trying anything other than the miso because miso is the best. Don't forget to order a few eggs with your Orochon (which makes it even more decadent). The basic bowl comes with noodles, broth, veggies, and pork. I tend to add an egg or two, double meat, and garlic to that.

There is no dainty way to eat Orochon. You just really have to dig in, and wash it down with a nice pitcher of Kirin or Asahi. There really is nothing better to cure a hangover or a craving for a great bowl of noodles in Little Tokyo than Orochon Ramen.

{The only way to eat Orochon: shovel it like a beast}

Coachella Miracles

{More Coachella, please}

Four things you may be thinking: (1) Is this girl done obsessing over Coachella yet? Never. (2) Did she coordinate her teal ombre sunglasses to match her teal ombre hair? Actually my style was pure coincidence. I'm just that good. (3) Why won't she retire that ratty old jean vest? Because I love it dearly like a childhood blanket. (4) What's a Coachella miracle? Well I'm glad you asked.

You see every year we camp with this ever-growing-eccentric group of people from all walks of life, and every year there are Coachella miracles (so they call them). Coachella miracles can range from finding an extra roll of toilet paper, to finding your vodka hidden deep inside the cooler when you thought you drank it all, to the angelic voice of Florence Welch, to a hologram resurrection of Tupac Shakur (yes, I went there). This year the Coachella miracles were bountiful - so bountiful that I cannot remember all of them. It's more of a believing over seeing type of thing anyways (kind of like Santa Claus but with a lower standard of hygiene).

Here are the last of the Coachella pictures that I will share with you. Coachella 2012 weekend 1 was definitely a Coachella miracle in itself and a weekend that will never be forgotten. I highly recommend getting together a fun group of low-maintenance people and camping under the stars for the best music festival to ever hit California (and maybe the United States).

{Grouplove - my new favorite Coachella discovery}

{Cold-chella under the Ferris Wheel (waiting for the Black Keys, mind you)}

{Car camping day two}

{Beware of landsharks}

{Day three and still standing}

{Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre}

{"Playing House" at the campgrounds}