Friday, June 14, 2013

FUN in LA: Little Tokyo

Little Tokyo
Last week Lena, Chelo, and I went out to Little Tokyo. I hadn't been in a while, and I was looking forward to checking out the current exhibit at MOCA, but for some reason I always end up in Little Tokyo on the day that MOCA is closed. (Seriously. I think the last time I went to MOCA I was 15, every time I've tried to go since it's been closed.)

But we still had fun! We caught the Metro and ate at Daikokuya, which was amazing. My only other experience with ramen has been Orochon, and there is no comparison. The broth at Daikokuya was perfect! I ordered tsukemen, and I've been dreaming about it ever since. After lunch, Chelo met up with a friend while Lena and I got coffee at Demitasse. I ordered an orange-thyme latte that was excellent, but it was so strong I was buzzing from the caffeine before I was even half way through it.

The only downside to Little Tokyo is that there's not much to do besides eat (especially when MOCA is closed), but the food alone is definitely worth the trip.
Little Tokyo
Blurry tsukemen
Little Tokyo
Lena looking supercute, as usual

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Doughnut Day!

Donut Day 2013
Yesterday a few tweets and texts told me it was National Doughnut Day. (sidebar: is it doughnut or donut?) One of the perks of being unemployed is that I had no prior engagements so I decided to put my doughnut pans to use. I used this recipe for blueberry doughnuts from pinterest, but without the glaze. Aside from being slightly misshapen because I overfilled the pans, they were great!

Donut Day 2013
Donut Day 2013
Donut Day 2013

<3

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

FUN in LA: The Huntington Library and Gardens

Huntington Gardens

A few Sundays ago me and my mom went to the Huntington Library and Gardens. We've been there before, it's a really nice place to walk around and take in some carefully cultivated nature. Admission is kind of pricey for my tastes, especially since I am now without a student discount, but I still recommend stopping by if you're going to be in the LA area.

It was pretty warm out on the day that we went, so we didn't stay too long but we did get to see the Japanese garden, which is my favorite by far.

Huntington Gardens
Huntington Gardens
Huntington Gardens
Huntington Gardens
Huntington Gardens
Huntington Gardens
Huntington Gardens
Huntington Gardens
Huntington Gardens

As my mom pointed out, we've been there twice and we've never gone inside any of the buildings, but that just means we'll have to go back to check out the exhibits they have inside.

<3
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Sunday, June 2, 2013

Voyage Autour de Ma Chambre

Room Tour Part 1

Welcome to my room!

We moved into this house just a few months before I moved to Oakland, so before I could really settle in to this room I was already focused on setting up my dorm room. As a result, it hadn't really felt like mine, it had just been kind of thrown together and was mostly full of stuff I didn't want to take to college with me. Last summer I decided I really needed to work on this space, so I took inspiration from  blogs with excellent interior design like Rachel's and I made an effort to spruce it up.

I don't have any pictures of what it looked like before, which I am partially thankful for because it was really a mess. I had a desk in here, my bed was in the middle of the room and it had a bright red duvet that was too big so it draped really heavily over each side. It was very cramped and there was almost no space to walk around in here.

Last summer the first thing I did was move the desk out into another room, and with the extra space I moved my bed, chair, and wicker drawers to where they are now. (I also spray painted my wicker drawers white). I brought in the glass side table from another room in the house, and just that re-arrangement made a huge difference.

I went to Ikea and picked up a duvet that actually fit my bed, along with some new pillows and by the end of last summer I was really happy with the changes I had made.

Since I've moved back, all I've done is add in the gallery wall (which may be my favorite thing about my room now), lamps that used to live in my dorm room, and a mobile that I got in Oakland is now hanging over my reading chair.

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Room Tour Part 1
I still have a lot of art that I want to frame and put up on the walls, and the space over my bed clearly needs something, but so far I'm proud of how it's turned out.

What's your favorite thing about your room?

<3