That time Estrella came to LA and I didn't take any pictures of her

Nowadays when I get to see Estrella we have so much to talk about and there are so many things we want to do with our short time together that I completely forget about taking pictures. Usually I at least get a couple but this time I took not one picture of her or us together! I realized later that we usually take our selfies while we're sitting on the pier, which didn't happen this time because she came to visit me so there was no pier.

Regardless, it was so nice to finally have her here in LA! We saw a Poem Store which was so special because we were together the first time we ever saw a Poem Store at a street fair in Oakland, and I've actually never seen one anywhere else. We also got some ramen at Daikokuya and explored Little Tokyo and Olvera Street for a bit before her train. It never seems like we have enough time! Hopefully the universe and our schedules will align again soon.

There's Always Money in the International Banana Museum

The day we went to Salvation Mountain was really an action packed day! On the way to Niland we passed a sign for a "World Famous International Banana Museum", so of course on the way back we kept an eye out and pulled over to investigate.

We didn't take any pictures inside because there was a sign asking that you make a purchase or a donation before taking any, but we did take some pictures with the stuffed banana outside, and the banana bug. The museum was actually pretty small but stuffed with boxes and cans from banana flavored foods, and other banana related items like a Bananas in Pajamas toy and a UCSC banana slugs sweater. There was also a counter where you could order milkshakes, presumably banana flavored as well.







Unexpected gems are really the best thing about road trips.

Bottom two photos taken by Isabel

Salton Sea

On the way back from Salvation Mountain, we stopped at the Salton Sea.

I hadn't heard of Salton Sea before I started looking up Salvation Mountain, and even then I didn't know any details about it. I'm still not quite sure how I feel about it. The shore is made of dead fish, which is disturbing enough to look at, but standing on it was such an unpleasant sensation I can't even completely describe how unsettling it was. In some places it was squishy and my feet were almost sinking into the dead fish mulch; I had to backtrack on to a firmer patch because I couldn't handle stepping on the squishy bits. The water looked horrible close-up, almost like sludge.








But then from a few steps back the lake looks gorgeous and peaceful.


It was a very, very strange place, and I kept thinking about it days after our trip. I read about how the sea was created by accident and how at one point they tried to make it into a Palm Springs-esque tourist destination but it never panned out. Now the sea is fed by agricultural run-off and the rising saline levels in the lake (it's currently saltier than the ocean) caused the massive fish die offs that give the sea it's eerie atmosphere. I found a movie on Netflix called "Plagues and Pleasures on the Salton Sea" which goes much more in depth on the environmental crisis that is the Sea, and on the communities that live in Niland/Bombay Beach. I definitely recommend checking it out if you're interested.




Top photo taken by Isabel

FUN in LA: The Huntington Part 2

We went back to the Huntington! It turned out that we happened to go on day 2 of the Camellia Show, so they had camellias for sale outside and inside they had the winning camellias on display.






They were all so beautiful! I had no idea there was so much variation within the species, it was incredible to see the differences in size and petal shape.

After we left the camellias we popped into the greenhouses, and eventually we made our way over to the Chinese garden, which we had missed last time.


The customary shot of the back of my mom's head.





We also walked through the Children's garden, which we had never seen before! It may be built for children, but everything was just my size.


It was the perfect day for a garden stroll! It was so nice to be outside enjoying the clouds and the slight chill. I know people living in places that get a real winter probably think I'm crazy, but there's no fun in 80 degree days in January/February, so I relish the few cloudy days we get.

I can't wait to go back! I'm seriously considering getting a membership. There's always something new to see!

<3

FUN in LA: Salvation Mountain

To be honest, I don't even remember when or where I first heard about Salvation Mountain. It's possible that I first saw it during it's cameo in Into the Wild, or in the A Beautiful Mess archives, or that I just saw a picture on tumblr somewhere. The first time that I thought of it as a place that I could actually go see was when my mom and I went to Palm Springs in 2012, and I wanted to make a detour to see it on the way. We were planning on going, but we ended up just staying in Palm Springs where there was air conditioning. (I don't know why we always end up going into the desert in August, but there you go. Driving out to the middle of nowhere in temperatures over 110 degrees doesn't always seem like the best idea.)

So what I'm getting at is that I've wanted to see Salvation Mountain for about 2 years now, so I was very excited when I brought it up to my friend Isabel and she said she wanted to see it too. We decided on a day and made plans to trek out to Niland to see Leonard Knight's creation. I was so sad when I heard just days before our trip that Leonard had died, and that news cast a different light on my experience of the mountain. It went from a piece of art to one man's life's work.

It took us about three hours to get down there, and the last hour of the drive there was literally nothing around. Just road and desert. When we finally caught sight of the mountain it was this big splash of color rising out of the emptiness. We walked all around it, inside it, and climbed the mountain and I was just blown away by it. Just the sheer size of it is incredible, and then you realize that one man built the whole thing and it becomes that much more mind-blowing.

There are signs on the mountain designating it as an American Folk Art site, and Isabel said something I thought was really interesting, that Salvation Mountain felt "very American." She talked about how the monuments and tourist attractions in Europe are usually religious, and this was like the American counterpart. I liked that a lot, it got the American Studies minor part of my head buzzing. I totally agree with her. I think in relation to the European cathedrals and shrines that were built as tributes to God over hundreds of years by thousands of people, it does seem really fitting that the American version would be built by one man all by himself out in the desert. It was hard to shake the John the Baptist vibes I got from the place too; a voice crying out in the wilderness that God is love.

FUN in LA: Whimsic Alley

A few weeks ago one of my friends took me to the most magical place in LA.

Not Disneyland. Whimsic Alley.

It's a store designed to look like Diagon Alley! So you walk in, and the different sections of the store look like little store fronts of their own. They even have a Great Hall that you can rent out for parties!! It was so awesome it was overwhelming. They have so much Harry Potter merch, but also Doctor Who , Hunger Games, and Game of Thrones stuff.




It was so much to take in all at once, I couldn't decide on what to get. I ended up getting a Ravenclaw prefect pin, a button with a dark mark, and a button with the Ravenclaw crest to put on my work apron, and a time turner necklace that I have not taken off since I bought it.


I think I'm going to go back after the holidays to get myself a Ravenclaw Quidditch jumper, but mainly just to be immersed in the awesome-ness again. I wish I had found out about this place sooner, because they also do events like a Yule Ball!


It's my new favorite place, and another spot I think you NEED to see if you're visiting LA.

<3

FUN in LA: Moonlight Rollerway

You guys, I've found a wonderful place. One of my coworkers is moving away, so we wanted to have a going away party for her and another coworker suggested we go roller skating, which led to this beautiful discovery. The Moonlight Rollerway is so awesome, every corner was Instagram worthy, from the signs outside to the carpet inside. I was pretty sure we'd be the only ones skating on a Thursday night, but there were a lot of people there who were clearly regulars because they were skating PROS. The rink had a great atmosphere too, everyone was really positive and helped us (me) when we'd fall instead of judging us for not being on their level. I'm pretty sure some of the ladies who were skating do roller derby, just to give you an idea of how badass they were.





The actual skating itself was so fun! Normally taking someone who has trouble walking in general and strapping wheels to their feet is a recipe for disaster but I only fell 4 times! By the end I felt like I was really getting a feel for it and my roller blading moves were coming back to me.

Apparently this roller rink is famous! It was the one featured in the skating episodes of Parks and Rec & Modern Family and a Katy Perry music video was filmed there. I can totally see why they use it as a filming location, it's a gem. If you're coming through LA you have to stop and skate here.


When was the last time you skated?
<3

FUN in LA: Sleigh Bells

For a long time I was confusing Sleigh Bells with Best Coast. It wasn't until I saw the trailer for Bling Ring and I fell in love with "Crown on the Ground" that I realized my mistake.

So when my friend asked if I wanted to see Sleigh Bells with her a few weeks ago I didn't hesitate to say yes. (Full disclosure: I hesitated a little bit because my work schedule can be unpredictable, but when I knew I didn't have to work I was all in.) 

We ended up missing the opening act but we got to the venue in time to see Sleigh Bells and it was SUCH a good show. Alexis Krauss is my new hero, she's so badass. She backed onstage in the robe she wears in the Bitter Rivals video, with one fist in the air and it made me want a leopard and satin robe so I can enter every room the way she did. It was a small venue to begin with, and we ended up right at the edge of the stage so we had a perfect view.



If you get a chance to see Sleigh Bells live, definitely take it. In the meantime, check out their new album.

Have you been to any good shows lately?

<3

FUN in LA: The Brewery Art Walk

The Brewery is an art colony in LA, and if you live here you've probably seen the smokestack from the freeway. When it was built in the early 1900s the building was a steam power plant; it later became a Pabst Blue Ribbon factory which eventually got converted into artist lofts. Twice a year the colony has an art walk that opens the space up to the public to walk through the studios and see the artist's work.

I absolutely love open studios. One of my favorite Mills events is at the end of each semester when the Studio Art MFAs have an open studio. I love seeing how each artist interacts with the space they're given almost as much as seeing the art itself. The Brewery's art walk adds a whole other element to the studio, because so many of them are live/work spaces. So not only was it like walking in an art museum, it was also like walking into 100 different houses. Being the naturally inquisitive (nosy) person that I am, it was right up my alley. 

Since there was a big crowd at the art walk a lot of the artists were busy talking with other people, and quite a few were not friendly at all, but we did get to talk to a couple that were incredibly nice. One of them was the artist behind these trees.

They're so beautiful! He talked with us for a while about where he gets the bonsai from and what he does before he starts building in them. He said he worked on this piece for almost 10 years, which is incredible. 

The other person we talked to was the girlfriend of one of the artists. Their loft was one of the most beautiful spaces I saw at the Brewery, and being able to talk to her about it is probably what made me appreciate it more. She told us that when her boyfriend moved in the room was literally a blank square, but the finished product looked like it could have come out of a magazine. Most of their living area was roped off upstairs but the kitchen was downstairs and it was just gorgeous. Their oven is the same model as the oven in Bewitched! And the rest of the downstairs was their workspace. I gushed about how in love with her kitchen I was, and I told her that it was nice to be able to see the studios because the space itself becomes an art piece in a way. 

Basically I left the art walk desperately wanting a studio. It was a very good day. 

Aside from the studios themselves, the art was amazing. There was such a wide range of so many different aesthetics and styles. If you live in the LA area you should definitely check out the Brewery's website for info on the next art walk. 

<3

The Resignation Tour 2013

Rx Bandits is hands down my favorite band. In 2011 they went on hiatus after a farewell tour and I was devastated, so when I found out that they were going to go on tour to mark the 10 year anniversary of their album The Resignation I freaked out. Seriously, I was mid-conversation with Estrella when I saw the tweet and I started shrieking. Not only are they my favorite band, but The Resignation is my favorite album. And they were playing at the Glass House, which is my favorite venue! It was a perfect storm of all my favorite things! I had already missed out on the pre-sale by the time I heard about the tour, but I was not about to miss out on tickets altogether so I bought them the minute they went on sale.


Me and Lena headed out early to avoid the traffic; getting to Pomona like 3 hours in advance gave us time to find stress-free parking and enjoy some pho. The show itself was AMAZING. They played all of The Resignation, and for the encore they played some of my favorite songs off of And The Battle Begun. I had managed to make my way pretty close to the front when the guy in front of me turned around and motioned for me to take his place in front of the barricade. Major thanks to that guy for looking out! After that I got to enjoy the show without getting pushed around and I had the most amazing view.

After the show ended I didn't want to leave! Since I don't know when they'll play again and in 2011 I seriously thought that was the last time I'd ever see them this show felt like a gift. It was such a great show, as always, and I can only hope I get to see them play again.


<3

Fun in LA: Disneyland!

Disneyland is a weird concept, if you think about it. You pay a huge amount of money to get into the park (not counting what you have to pay just to park your car), and once you get inside you're pretty much forced to spend more money if you want to eat or drink anything. This is not to mention the cost of any souvenirs you might pick up. You basically pay for the privilege of spending more money and standing in lines longer than the rides themselves. And yet, on any given day Disneyland is packed!

Maybe this is a symptom of becoming an adult who's more conscious about money (hello student loans), but lately I've been more skeptical of Disneyland even though I love it. Up until this week the last time I had been was almost 3 years ago. Even though we talked about going every time I was home for a break I couldn't justify spending so much money in one place, which is why I was so excited when a co-worker of my mom's offered us free tickets. It may be a strange money-making machine, but you can't deny it's fun. 

We got to go on almost all of our favorite rides, Pirates was closed and I didn't want to lose my hat on Space Mountain so we missed out on those. The guide we had on the Jungle Cruise was hilarious! As it is I'm a fan of cheesy humor and I love puns so the Jungle Cruise is right up my alley, and this guide had the best one-liners I've ever heard on the ride. I realized that I had never been on Peter Pan so we braved the line and it was totally worth the wait. It was a fitting day for my first ride because I finally caved and bought the Peter Pan hat that I had been wanting forever. I also got to have my favorite Disneyland treat, a Pineapple Float, so I was a happy camper.

One of my favorite things to do at Disneyland is peek into the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and see the little ones getting their hair done like princesses. Honestly I don't know what it is because when I was that little I don't think I would have liked being in the princess dress or having a bunch of glitter in my hair (I had a very strong anti-tulle stance), but seeing the looks on those little kids faces as they get their hair done is too much for me. I just see them there looking like they've never been happier, and how it really is a magical experience for them and it gets me right in the tear ducts. 

As always my mom is not pictured, but rest assured, she had fun as well. 

Outside Club 33

Jungle Cruise

Pineapple Float

Waiting for Captain EO


End of the day, photo credit: mom

Fireworks! Photo credit: mom

All in all it was a magical day, so mission accomplished Disneyland. 

<3