Strange Day

Guys, I've been away. New York, then GREECE, having some amazing times with family, friends, and the Gentleman Caller. I am BACK, and here to acknowledge how weird this day is, well, because, numbers blah blah whatever. And just to make you jealous, I'll give you a preview of what I experienced:

YEAH. I KNOW.

Strange Movie I'm Feeling

Strangers, I am stuck in NYC another day and I am really liking this old Brian de Palma movie Dressed to Kill. It's very 80's, but also pretty modern and graphic. I also like that it stars Angie Dickinson, because I never thought of her as a serious actress and she is sort of perfect for the part. Go Angie. Anyway, I might've lost my mind being stuck in this house, but I am pretty sure this movie is legit.

http://www.imdb.com/media/rm580814080/tt0080661

Happy Halloween!

Strange Wilderness

Oh Lil' Strangers, I'm stuck in New York in this damn Sandy storm, so I am blogging. Anyway, I forgot to tell you that two weeks ago I went on a pretty great road trip with the GC. We decided to drive up through Utah to Jackson Hole in Wyoming. WITH HIS DOG. Oh, how I love that dog:

I mean, CAN YOU DEAL WITH THAT TONGUE?! Anyway, first we drove to St. George, Utah to hike the Narrows, a stunning walk through the water in Zion Canyon. Like, behold:

Yup. And:

Yeah. Also:

I mean, I could go on. It was stunning...though I might've peed in my water-sealing pants...sensual. Next, we took a glorious, scenic drive up to Park City, Utah:

Doggie-dog loved it:

So Park City is really adorable. We had an AMAZING charcuterie-stuffed dinner at High West, this awesome restaurant/distillery in town:

That French onion soup was the best I've ever had. High West also makes a DELICIOUS whiskey, I highly recommend you go. Then we went to the St. Regis and they put you in this contraption called a "funicular" that is a sort of tram/chairlift that takes you to the top of the mountain where the hotel has a gorgeous bar/restaurant where you can watch the sunset by the fire:

Yes! Next came another beautiful drive through what are known as "the Alps of America" to Jackson:

USA! Of course, as soon as it became my turn to drive, I almost immediately ran into a herd of sheep crossing the road. The dog wanted to eat them:

So Jackson, while not as cute as Park City, was kind of epic a gorgeous. The first day we hiked around Jenny Lake in the Tetons. Teton National Park is SICK. Like sick AMAZING:

The lake is a mirror! Then we strolled by Hidden Falls:

The water levels were really low in Wyoming while we were there so the falls were pretty...hidden. But after the falls you hike up to this spot called Inspiration Point that's REALLY pretty:

GC said it kind of looked like the road to Narnia/Middle Earth and I have to agree.

He made it! Okay, so we did way more stuff than that, but those are the highlights. I really didn't see a lot of the country growing up overseas and it was pretty wonderful just to get out on the open road with a handsome gentleman and an adorable pooch and nothing to lose. Okay, I just got way too cheesy but I mean...

'Nuf said.

Strange Storm

By the way, Lil' Strangers, I am stuck in New York. I flew home for a week with my parents, bro, and for my friend Hesh's BEAUTIFUL wedding.

Yeah see? Gorgeous. Well, the dancing part got a little scary...

But I digress...Hurricane Sandy is ruining my plans to return to LA, get a job, see my Gentleman Caller, see my LA friends, and live my life in general. NY transit shuts down tonight and my flight that was supposed to leave tomorrow morning has been canceled. The next flight I could get is on Thursday. THURSDAY. So basically, I better see some mother-freaking RAINDROPS. Til then, I'll mostly be live-blogging from this bunker AKA my parents' basement. Bye!

Strange Rabbits

YOU GUYS. It finally happened. I met Frightened Rabbit. The band. It happened. Through a miracle of fate I met the band's lovely manager Storme at a party a few months ago. She's actually just a cool lady I made friends with and then BOOM she tells me she represents one my my most favorite acts! Anyway, she totally hooked me and Gentleman Caller up with VIP tickets to see them at the Troubadour (THAT'S RIGHT. MY FAVORITE VENUE), and so we went and it was Heaven.

Here is proof that we went (as IF you couldn't trust me):

I know. That's a cute top for him. We got to sit in the VIP deck basically ON TOP OF the stage:

See? I wasn't kidding. The band was wonderful live, as per usual. The drummer was ferocious as always and Scott Hutchison always brings real emotion to every song, even the old ones, as if he'd just written the lyrics the night before. Live, their Scot-rock is fuller, louder and and even more satisfying. I almost cried when they played "The Twist." AND THEN...I GOT TO MEET SCOTT. Gentleman Caller said I giggled like a school girl, but I think I held it together...generally. He was very nice. Anyway, this night knocked my socks off.

Strange Impala

Thanks to Noey my music guru, I am now obsessed with this jam:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljzehPvr9zk

Tame Impala is a cool cool band, but I wasn't into their last album. This song has a Beach Boys-dreamy vibe and yet is entirely modern. I love it a lot.

Strange Unemployment

Welp, here I am again Lil' Strangers: unemployed. This is going to happen from time to time, seeing as I want to be a writer and all. Once again I've been realizing that while many people head to their jobs every morning, Silverlake remains bustling with writers, artists, musicians, and yes, other unemployed people. Oh, and there's this guy:

He's unemployed too and I've been spending a lot of time with him. I wonder how his job search is going...

Strange Beach House

You guys, I love Beach House. I have been saying that about this band for a while now, but really they are Goddamn good. Victoria Legrand's voice is the stuff gravel-y dreams are made of and their ethereal tunes make me feel all kinds of feelings. I saw them at the Wiltern (http://www.livenation.com/the-wiltern-tickets-los-angeles/venue/73790) Tuesday night, and while that venue is certainly not my favorite (come on dudes, if we all have general admission tickets, you can't let only SOME people stand up near the stage!), Beach House sounded great as always. They also upped their show-game with some strobe lights and videos and things:

Okay so we were in the front on the balcony, but we actually had a really good view. One complaint is that the band plays all of their songs EXACTLY as they sound on the album, which is consistent and nice, but I'd love like, ONE freaky breakdown, or something. Anyway, they played all of their hits on top of their new stuff and the set was actually really long; they were up there for about 2 hours. Worth checking out when they come to your town...

Strange Girls

Hey-ho Strange Ones! I am loving the new Dum Dum Girls EP "End of Daze." Even though this band's name is, well, DUMB, this record is retro and dreamy and affecting. It will remind you of a semi-anxious nightmare you had when you were 17...in a good way. CHECK IT OUT!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3f9ZiH6Euw

Forbes, Stop Copying Me!

I mean, duh:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/morganbrennan/2012/09/20/americas-hippest-hipster-neighborhoods/

Strange! Good Pizza in LA

Lil' ones, GC and I discovered Pizzanista this weekend (http://www.pizzanista.com/). So, it's kind of a schlep, and in sort of a scary middle-of-nowhere area downtown (they deliver within two miles but sadly, Silver Lake is further than that), but this is the closest thing I've had to a New York slice in LA.

It's funky and full of young skaters and they have a large selection of pizzas as well as delicious salads (I had the spicy chopped, YUM). We split the Margherita (amazing classic with a grana padano KICK), the Meat Jesus (I mean, the name says it all), and my personal favorite, this pizza with large hunks of ricotta on it whose name I cannot recall (sorry Pizzanista). Anyway, RECOMMEND.

Strange Venue

Yo Lil' Ones, have any of you ever been to the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre (http://fordtheatres.org/) in Universal City? Neither had I before last night where I saw the Walkmen put on a WONDERFUL concert and let me tell you, it is AWESOME there.  It's like the anti-Hollywood Bowl. It looks like it used to be an old Spanish-style church or fortress and in between the striking stone walls is a little stage with beautifully groomed trees behind it. There's no particular seating, so you can just roll in whenever and sit right by the stage. We actually took the SUBWAY to Universal City and then the Ford provides free shuttles to and from the concert venue. It was surprisingly easy and worked out perfectly.

And the Walkmen were GREAT:

Isn't it dashing how lead singer Hamilton Leithauser always dresses up to perform? His voice was INSANE and the sound is so good at the Ford. I definitely cried when the did "In The New Year" and "Line by Line." I thought Leithauser was going to lose his voice but he just never did, straining his neck and belting out song after song. The band had a brass quartet join in on a couple of numbers, which was great and they played a perfect mix of old and new tunes. What did it for me though was when they closed with "We've Been Had." It's a strange song and sounds different from their other stuff, but the crowd went nuts for it. What a special night!

Strange Mercat

Last night Noey, the Gentleman Caller, and I went to Baco Mercat downtown (http://bacomercat.com/). BECAUSE WE WANTED TO. It's real cute-looking from the outside and the inside is in one of those nice downtown rooms with incredibly high ceilings but, you guys, THERE IS NO AC. Like, we sweat right through our meal. Some people are into this, I can only really do it with BBQ. Go for the outdoor seating, if anything. Anyway, this restaurant has been getting RAVES, possibly due to a Brussels sprouts Caesar salad that is no longer on the menu according to one Emily Moffet. I, however, give it a MEH. And I know my shit, and by shit I mean food. The best thing we got was this okra, resting in one of the best tomato sauces I've ever tasted:

Oh yeah, I was definitely the annoying girl taking pictures of our food last night. Also, swell, all of the pictures came out incredibly dark because at concerts I have to turn off the flash. ANYWAY, yum to the okra. Then we got this somewhat disappointing spaghetti squash with creamed corn, which was a little al dente and vinegar-y, in my humble opinion:

Everything was pretty full of vinegar; I think it's a thing at Baco. GC got two sodas, because the place makes special, vinegar-based sodas (also did I mention it was hot as BALLS in there?); one was a delicious blueberry thing and the other, a blood orange, was, well...vinegarific. Anyway, then we got this actually really great, oil-slicked beef tartare that came with cherry tomatoes and a freshly baked, dense hunk of bread (I love a bread hunk). Then we all got sandwiches, or "baco." Noey and GC went for the "toron," which was salty and delicious and I think it involved oxtail. I went for the chicken which was done in a spicy "lebni" sauce with crunchy cabbage. The bread was that great, thick kind of pita. Mmm:

Yeah, dark I know. I probably would've enjoyed this sandwich more if I wasn't pretty full. But of course, we had to get dessert. We decided to try a banana cream rice pudding with caramel sauce because please, did you read what I just typed? It was great flavor-wise, but GC and I agreed we prefer a thicker, more rice-ful consistency (Noey, however, does NOT):

Okay, okay I'll turn my flash on. Anyway, it was decent. If it's not to hot out and you're into vinegar, RECOMMEND.

Strange Spice

Hey Lil' Ones! Last week I went with my lovely friend Leah Newman to Spice Table downtown, right at the edge of Little Tokyo (http://www.thespicetable.com/). It is LOVELY inside: low-lighting coming from birdcage fixtures, whitewashed exposed brick, and well-spaced wooden tables. I didn't even take a picture because it was so classy. Attracting a slightly older crowd than I expected, Spice Table wasn't loud or wild. The food was...INSANELY good. Okay, so I am going to tell you what us two women ordered, but just don't judge me too harshly, okay (it did not help that this place is reasonable priced and therefore allowed us to GO FOR IT)? SMALL PLATES, STRANGERS, SMALL PLATES.

So we got: Kaya toast, which is basically a toasted coconut jam sandwich that you dip into gooey egg and soy sauce (AWESOME), crab toast where the dipping sauce is this almost-curry with hunks of soft cooked crab, an oyster omelet (my least favorite, but still interesting), pigtail that you cut up yourself and sandwich in mixed greens then dip in a sort of vinaigrette, and BONE MARROW with a delicious relish that you scoop up with more fresh bread OKAY I AM A FOOD MONSTER DON'T HATE ME BYE!

PS There was also creamed kale. That also happened.

Gettin' Strange at FYF 2013

Welp, Lil' Strangers, this Labor Day weekend I once again hopped on the subway downtown to attend the Fuck Yeah Festival (I am sorry, that is its NAME). And once again, in spite of the heat and the dust, this was my favorite festival of the year. In all seriousness, I like FYF more than a Coachella or Bonnaroo because it is young (this was only its ninth year in existence) and it just, frankly, doesn't give a shit about itself. Also I just have to travel downtown and don't have to get a hotel.

Like on day one (Saturday), Noelia and I walked in and I realized the tickets I got in the mail did not include my wristbands (I got some email saying I had to go pick them up at Origami Records in Echo Park but like, seriously guys? Just mail me all of my shit, thanks). Randomly, one of the festival managers, a gentle looking man in a hat and bandanna by the name of Sean, had wandered over to "regulate." Initially, he brushed me off, telling me I had to go wait at the box office with all the other riff-raff. I made a terrible face as I began to walk away (I was VIP! Now I had to stand behind 500 days of manic pixie dream girls to get my goddamn wristband?!), but I think Sean noticed my near-meltdown and called us inside, telling us to go to the "merch" counter and tell "James that Sean sent us" and James would hook me up with my concert bracelets. Of course, once we trekked the half-mile over to James we were greeted with "yeah, I got Sean's email. No one gave me a single wristband, though. I mean, its FYF, girls." WELL SAID. So it was back to the box office for us. However, I bypassed the line by deciding that this was a "customer service" issue more than a "box office" problem (there was no line at customer service). The very kind gentleman there gave me both wristbands, admitting that if this was later in the day, I'd be screwed, but he was feeling generous and we were super punctual. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! We were in.

Okay, now to the important stuff: the music. I guess the real reason I love FYF is that they get the smaller bands I've been loving at tiny venues all year and also some of the odder bands that I wouldn't pay to see on their own, but that I really enjoy checking out as part of a festival. We started out with King Tuff (okay lie: we started out in the VIP beer garden swooning at salty, salt-and-pepper haired comedian Marc Maron). I've blogged about Tuff before, but they're a very fun, old-school pop/garage outfit. The lead singer kind of looks like Andrew WK and  his two band mates both look like Matthew McConaughey in Dazed and Confused. Anyway, what a fun way to start:

The next great band we saw was Cloud Nothings. EFFING. INCREDIBLE. This band also has a garage-pop base, but they end up rocking much harder than King Tuff, especially live. What incredible, precise musicians. There was literally a twenty minute breakdown where no one sang a note and I was completely mesmerized. And the main singer looks like THIS:

Cute, young, glasses fellow who can WAIL WAIL WAIL on that guitar. Please check these guys out live if you get the chance. Then came John Maus, who was bizarre. Like his music is very mellow and he played to a pre-recorded track, but was SCREAMING and pulling out his hair and rubbing his jeans like he was having a bad acid trip. Oh also, he was in jeans and a long-sleeved button down and had NO SWEAT STAINS. Like, what?

Oh, I know. I am a professional photographer. Anyway, then we caught the end of the Men's performance and like, they are good, but were much more compelling when I saw them at the Smell downtown (maybe they were too hot...like sweaty).  Also the Men came before Cloud Nothings but see? They weren't memorable so I don't remember where they fit into our experience. Then we took a bit of a break in the beer garden, listening to Warpaint (always lovely and sharp) and then headed to Tanlines who really surprised me! They were so fun and melodically dance-y!

Cool green background, right? Then we danced in the beer garden to Sleigh Bells who are just loud and jarringly silly/fun:

Boom! Then this girl needed to call it a NIGHT.

Sunday we went down a bit later and I drove. When we parked, Noey and I decided to spend 45 minutes in my car listening to Toni Braxton, Monica, and Brian McKnight for some inexplicable reason -- oh wait, I know, BECAUSE THEY ARE ALL AWESOME AND THE 90'S WERE THE BEST. Anyway, we started our Sunday with he lingering strains of Wild Nothings, which sounded kinda MEH. Then came Father John Misty. Now, I really like his stuff, but it sounds pretty folksy and mellow and the lead singer is the drummer from Fleet Foxes, so I thought he would look like all of this sounds. No:

This picture does not do justice to what he was doing onstage. He kinds of looks hot and Fassbender-ish with his glasses on, but he was writhing around doing a faux-Jagger thing and acting a FOOL to the point where I could barely look at him. Whatever; he is new at this whole front man thing, I can give him a break. I still really like this song/video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtOToiIDNRA

Yeah, hi Aubrey Plaza! Anyway, then it was time for this hardcore band, Lightning Bolt, that I love, but would only check out at FYF:

Yeah, um that is the drummer/lead singer. He sings through a ball-microphone strapped into his mouth by a MASK. Scary! The band is strangely tuneful, though. I stood on the periphery of the mosh pit with my buddy Rob, but of course Noey got right up in there and managed to emerge unscathed; my hero! Anyway, then we took a giant break in the beer garden where we shared a terrible $9 cheeseburger that consisted of an overdone slab of meat with a Kraft single placed gently on top (they still kind of need to work out the food situation at this thing, but it was much better than years past). We casually listened to Dinosaur Jr., who still sound great in that comforting, old-timey way (the 90's, man). Then Desaparecidos came on Conor Oberst reminded me I am in love with his voice, although this is a much more animated act than he usually does. Liked it a lot:

Then Yeasayer came on and they're overrated, I think.  Anyway, I was kind of fading, so it was my time to go. There were many wonderful bands that I missed, but I did what I could. It was a GREAT ONE, you guys. Hope to see you there next year!

Strange Orange

Hey, Noey turned me onto this song by Blood Orange called Champagne Coast. It's sexy and the video is real weird:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nO6y1-erVEw

Happy Humpday!

FINALLY, Some Strange Sushi

Lil' Strangers, there is this weird phenomenon in Silverlake where there are like, NO good sushi places. I am open to your commentary on this subject but honestly, nothing I've tried has impressed me. UNTIL LAST FRIDAY. The inner room at Cowboys and Turbans has been remade into a sushi bar called Ji (http://www.yelp.com/biz/ji-sushi-los-angeles), and I am telling you, it is TASTY.

The dude-caller and I didn't order much, but what we did get was a whole bunch of simple, well-prepared fish. We started with a half-dozen oysters (yeah, they do OYSTERS at Ji) and they were deliciously sauced with vinegar and green onion, though they were a bit on the creamy side. Then I got the sashimi regular and all the fish was SO GOOD. The salmon was bright and clean:

Mmm. There was some really solid albacore, a refreshing yellowtail and a thick, dark brick of tuna. But the real treat was the special fish of the day: red snapper. The (very friendly) chef torches the skin of the snapper giving it a light char that just made the fish taste really special. Yum:

This is actually the nigiri version. I got the sashimi and the gentleman caller liked it so much he ordered more. I washed everything down with an Asahi, which they have on tap. Oh ALSO, there's a giant flat screen TV that plays sports so if you want some good sushi, but don't want to miss the big game, this place is super for you. Yay! Finally good raw fish in my neighborhood.

Strange Santi

Strangers, I can't stop listening to "The Riot's Gone" by Santigold (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjZp9GfirSs). It's just really lovely and I don't know what it's about but when I blast it in my car, I feel NICE.

Also, Santigold is generally really good and she kicked BUTT at Coachella. Usually she is singing a dance jam, so this is a nice, ballad-like tune for her.

Okay, bye happy Tuesday!

Strange Soy

Hi Lil' Strangers. Sorry I haven't been in touch lately. It's not that I haven't been doing strange things, but I've been busy. I still love all 20 of you. Oh, I checked out the Echo Park Rising Festival Saturday (http://echoparkrising.com/), which was kind of a sweaty mess of 18 year-old hipsters trying to get a hold of PBRs and moshing in the street, but hey, I appreciate the effort. Also, my lovely friend Grey played with this band Jules Verne (http://julesverne.bandcamp.com/) and they were very solid, especially considering they played in a packed tiny record store with no AC and human bodies flying in their faces...but honestly, it was kind of badass. Also badass: the fact that I was wearing sunglasses. I'll tell you why:

SCARY! No, my gentleman caller did not punch me in the face. Yes, my eye eventually swelled all the way shut and I refuse to send you the picture I took of myself where I look like the dude's mask in V For Vendetta. My sexual face is the result of a soy allergy that occurs so sporadically, I choose to deny it and chug a soy-based drink at 9:30AM. NO MORE. Like, this has happened to me three times. Ever. All in my twenties. But obviously I am allergic to SOMETHING in soy, because I had a soy latte first thing Saturday morning (provided by Noey and her fault in NO WAY because I knew about this and she didn't), went to brunch, and immediately went all Hitch on everyone. Like, my friends Christopher and Mary Beth were telling a hilarious story about a topless lady on Sunset Blvd. one minute and the next I was in the bathroom texting Noey to bring me my bag and my SUNGLASSES PLEASE FRIEND RIGHT NOW.

Anyway, a couple of hours later...my eyes were not better. But I didn't want to waste one of the last days of summer and so I put on by cool-lady aviators and went to my friend Cornelia's pool party. Now, sunglasses totally work at daytime pool party. They do not work in a darkened record store at midnight. And by "do not work," I simply mean strangers will question your motives for wearing sunglasses at night. I mean, people bugged Sting so much he wrote a song about it and now I like, TOTALLY FEEL FOR HIM. Multiple people asked why I was wearing shades and we weren't in Beverly Hills; we were in a neighborhood where people think it's okay to wear bathing suit bottoms and a sheer lace bra to brunch (referring to a specific lady my friend Julie and I encountered Sunday). Even my friends were like "Come on girl, it can't be that bad," but then I would show them and they would be all, "Oh, okay, you know what? Sunglasses at night is a fun trend you should start!" Only Noey whispered "I am secretly jealous of you because I want to wear my shades always." She is a nice woman. Anyway, wore those puppies until the wee hours of the morning and I am now proud to report my eyes are mostly back to normal. Bye forever, SOY DEVIL.

Strange Beautiful Music Man

So Saturday I was feeling a little blue and so a nice, handsome gentleman caller made me a root beer float:

Like he seriously bought ice cream sandwiches and root beer from a gas station and made this. He is Tom Colicchio meets Tony Bourdain. I said Tony; what?

Anyway, then it was time for the JACK WHITE concert with Noey. Seriously. I was finally getting to see my idol/IDEAL live (note: I saw Jack White at Coachella with the Dead Weather two years ago and it was ELECTRIC, but I had to divide my attention between him and Alison Mosshart and that was HARD). Jack played at the Shrine Auditiorium (http://www.shrineauditorium.com/), which is the big place downtown by USC. It's really pretty in there:

Yeah, so, we were in the balcony. While Jack was kind of tiny, the show was everything I had hoped for. With an all-female band of INCREDIBLE musicians (the drummer was so ferocious she smashed her cymbals onto the floor twice, but somehow never stopped playing perfectly), Jack was loud and energetic and fully committed to the show and you could tell that's how he always is for every gig. It was a real treat because he played a lot of White Stripes songs and some Raconteurs stuff as well. I thought I was going to pass out during "My Doorbell." Anyway, the show was well-worth the cost and I am still in a state of ecstasy from it. SIGH.

Strange Taco

Heyo Lil' Strangers-

So this new gourmet taco place opened up across the street from me and MY NEW NEIGHBOR NOEY WHO MOVED IN NEXT DOOR IT IS SO GLORIOUS, called Diablo: Urban Taco Fabricator (http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/5/1695131/restaurant/Silver-Lake/Diablo-Taco-LA). Okay so two things: 1) who needs another overpriced, "fancy" taco place in LA when the El Flamin' Taco truck at Alvarado and Sunset is so damn good and cheap and 2) what in the shit does "Urban Taco Fabricator" mean? COME ON. However, this place was the JAM you guys, and I am determined to make it my neighborhood Cheers. You walk into this lovely, exposed brick room and stand in line to order your food and first drink. The staff gives you a number and you find a seat in the spacious room in the back that also includes a bar so it's convenient to get your next drink. All the menu items are written on a chalkboard, but they have paper menus as well. This is what I did:

At the back is an octopus salad with purple potatoes (so yum if you like the weird octo-texture, which I do), the taco to the left is Maine lobster hunks with some kind of creamy zest and the taco on the right is hen of the woods mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, and again, some kind of creamy/spicy sauce (I LOVE a sauce). The drink is their special "Michelada" and it is INSANE. It's a beer of your choice (I think I went with a "Buddha's Belly") with this kind of bloody Mary ice pop in it. It's DELICIOUS, either on its own or inside the beer. Anyway, although these tacos are pricier than at the truck, the vibe and the tastiness are well worth the price-bump. I'll see you there!

Strange Cartoons

You guys, the Hollywood Bowl (please, you know it...http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/) does the coolest thing in the summer: the orchestra music from various Pixar movies as clips from those movies are projected on a screen. It's so pretty, look:

I know, right?? The very nice, handsome gentleman who brought me got us a box, which is the closest I've ever sat at the Bowl and it was awesome. They have these little (and I mean REAL SMALL) boxes of four seats with these fold out tables so you can have a picnic as the sun sets. Nice, handsome gentleman is a freaky-great cook, so my picnic included things like this:

That's a mother-loving QUICHE, bitches. Anyway, it was delicious. Yeah, I am definitely bragging about my evening. Also, I sobbed through the entire show; those Pixar movies are effing TOUCHING, okay?! Anyway, good times.

PS I also saw Celeste and Jesse Forever (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQoH1IGRB3w), and it starts out annoying but then gets really good, in my opinion and features a lot of lovely LA spots, mainly on the east side. So check it!

Strange Random

Hey-ho Lil' Guys,

So this weekend was a mish-mash of loveliness. Friday night Noey Jones, Rob Lowe (not the real Rob Lowe, but my friend Rob, who is probably better than the real Rob Lowe. However, if the real Rob Lowe wanted to hang, I wouldn't be opposed) and I checked out the King Tuff show at the Echo. While this dude's interstitial words were nothing special (the third time he said "This one's dedicated to the mother-fuckers," I wanted to strange him), I have to admit he is just an INCREDIBLE musician and his songs are retro-garage rock at its best. He didn't play my favorite jam, "Swamp of Love," because it's more ballad-y, he brought the house down with his other hits and I found him surprisingly attractive with his long, scraggly hair, Philly's cap, and sheer mesh jersey top (Noelia asked how much I had had to drink at that point but WHATEVER I have weird taste).  Here he is:

Yeah, I was having camera issues. Anyway, Saturday Anna and I met some buds at the cemetery screening of The Big Lebowski. I can't really show you any pictures I took, because they are all unflattering shots of my friends sleeping during the movie (not that they don't love it; the cemetery is just such a good place to nap!...forever). Oh, Jay did have this incredible idea to buy pool rafts and use them as beds on the lawn. He had way too much fun blowing them up...

It's the little things, Strangers. Also the guy that Lebowski was based on, Jeff Dowd showed up and was fun at first and then kind of went on a weird tangent but hey, that's the Dude, so whatever, bless him.  Sunday after my res walk I bought this, simply because, well:

Ew! What does that taste like?! It will potentially live in my fridge forever but maybe it will acquire some value? I dunno. Finally, Noey turned me onto this song, "Coming Down" by the Dum Dum Girls and I love it and want you to as well:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZdbNMDH8hc

Adios!

Strange Outpost

Lil' Strangers, on Monday night I did the most Echo Park-ish thing ever (Echo Park is right next to Silverlake and even more hipstery, Mom). I went with Miss Noey to this place called the Echo Outpost (http://echocountryoutpost.com/) which is basically this huge warehouse that belongs to this adorable couple and they have concerts there and like this country store that sells old-timey things. Behold:

There is also a terrifying tooth brush holder in the bathroom:

I accidentally touched it! Aaaahhh!! Anyway, we went to see this band, Whiskey Shivers (http://whiskeyshivers.com/), perform. They we're GREAT. It's kind of, as Noelia said, all about the live show with them because they are these beautiful, shoeless young things that just play the fastest, sweatiest folk-country ever. I could write my own country ballad about the lead singer's arms:

Precious, right? When I met them (Noey introduced me because she filmed them at South by Southwest...yeah, she will always be better than you) I am pretty sure I just giggled and definitely sure I spilled beer onto the guitarist's bare foot. Oh well, I am never gonna be that cool. Anyway, I urge all of you to have a listen to this band and if you live in the area, DEFINITELY check out a show at the Outpost; you won't be sorry.

Strange Visitor

...Jokes! She's not strange, she's one of my college besties Elisha and she came to visit me from NYC this weekend! Lil' Strangers, we did it up.

Well, first of all, Friday Kalen hosted a concert featuring some of the bands that appeared on his and Noelia's web series, Knock n' Rock (www.knockandrock.com) at my friends Kira and Max's home/performance space, Yeaheavy (www.yeaheavy.com). IT WAS SO PRECIOUS. The bands were GREAT (3 1/2 sounds like a funky Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Coyol has this beautiful folksy sound and features two of the most attractive/vocally talented humans I've ever beheld and I missed the third band, but I've seen them on the show and they're AWESOME). The atmosphere was wonderful and I had a BLAST.

Anyway, I scooped Elisha at the airport Saturday and we headed to meet Brett and Kyle for brunch at Brick and Mortar in Santa Monica (http://brickandmortarla.com/). Okay so like, the food was FINE (to be fair, I got a salad), but the atmosphere is nice and they have $15 bottomless mimosas and a bloody Mary bar and I was just so happy to see my bud. Afterwards, Kyle, Beesh (Elisha's nickname), and I drove to Carbon Beach in Malibu for some of the most glorious weather I've seen in a long time. We all passed out for a solid half-hour until I had to pee so badly that I woke myself up. Then it was time for my friends Melanie and Brian's joint birthday party at Brian's ranch in Topanga Canyon.

Melanie is this tiny firecracker with a giant, warm smile and is one of like 5 living humans who can pull off high-waisted jeans. Brian is Melanie's gentle, mountain-man boyfriend who lives in this Utopian Topanga paradise in this little, fabulously decorated cottage on stilts that features an absurd view. There are vegetable and herb gardens, adorable dogs everywhere, cute babies, and horses. This is the picture I took:

Okay, so maybe I should've focused on like, people, and the canyon, but Giraffe here was just really compelling. He is this ginormous, loopy horse that will have an entire conversation with you and then pose for photos. Love him.

After Topanga, Elisha and I cleaned up at my place and then went to this house party in Los Feliz with some friends. You guys, it was like Can't Hardly Wait. I'm serious; this party was epic. I guess ten dudes live in this mansion with a huge, multi-level backyard. There was a DJ (some great 90's rap, but also a lot of confusing, random stuff causing me to dance in ten minute bursts). This pic does not do justice to how large this fiesta felt:

Yeah, no. No justice. Anyway, afterwards my friend Jeff (thanks Jeff!!) drove us to El Flaming Taco, my favorite Silverlake taco truck and the truck owners judged me because I asked for "a burrito without the burrito" (sure, that sounds a little confusing).  It was a fantastic night.

On Sunday Elisha woke up super-early, still being on East coast time and so I sent her to Intelligentsia to get coffee and feel overwhelmed by hipsters in fedoras. Then we decided to walk to Little Dom's in Los Feliz for brunch and discovered that the Los Feliz street fair was happening:

Freaky! We just kept right on walking. At brunch I had steak and eggs and we took down some lovely brunchtime drinks. Afterwards it was time for Barnsdall Park (http://www.barnsdall.org/) where I've NEVER BEEN. You guys, this part is right at Vermont and Hollywood. Like, it's stupid I haven't been there. It's an "art park," so they do wine tastings and stuff and there's a museum there, but this Sunday it was just a bunch of friends, my ipod, and some drinks:

So pretty, no? Also, I know it looks like all of my friends are posing, but really they're just that good looking and Elisha just likes stretching, Jon likes reclining, Rob likes contemplating, and Grey likes sitting like a dad in a tank. Anyway we hung out for hours until I was beginning to become a little red and we called it a day. I was just sad the weekend was over.