The Simple Life - Day 21

The Sunday Morning LA Times is pure decadence.  I mean that, because if there is actually enough time on a Sunday Morning to get up, make coffee, then hop back in bed and read through every section (starting with the comics....my most favorite part! Followed by Travel, Style, Business, then everything else.) I feel like I actually had an opportunity to relax.  It's the equivalent of a bubble bath in an extra large tub.

After breakfast I headed up to Griffith Park for a hike with Chris and the dogs.  He took me to a trailhead off of Ferndell that I had never tried before.  Absolutely magical.  I loved how the trail wove past a creek and then over a bridge (while still being under the road) and through the woods.  We wandered up to the Observatory, one of my most favorite spots in LA, then had lunch at the Trails Cafe (amazing avocado sandwiches!)  Chris wanted to thank me for taking care of the dogs and I really wanted to see the girls...because I've been going thru withdrawal without them.  You could tell they missed me too.

Since Jacqui and I find ourselves currently unattached, we have decided it would be best to have a relationship with each other.  So instead of stressing out over whether or not we should get all the guys we are dating gifts or be concerned about whether or not we should invite them to any of our fabulous parties, we have decided to take each other as dates.  And to further our commitment, we are going to exchange homemade gifts....the thought of what I plan to create for her, makes me completely giddy with excitement...oh how I hope it works out the way I've planned!!

Anyhow, my point...The two of us had a holiday girl-date tonight, where we got dinner, checked out  holiday decor, then went back to her place and decorated the tree, listened to holiday music, and sat in front of the roaring fire...romantic, non?  Ahh yes, Jacqui is delightful...and she has no qualms with my quirky new BFF, Blythe (see photo below!)  I think we make quite the lovely threesome.

Elsewhere....
~Anna Bond's blog is fantastic eye candy.
~The Tea Ceremony Chair by Hiroki Takada just blew my mind.
~This little girl makes the cutest Pippi Longstocking ever!
~Smokey Mountain Christmas...Been in a Dolly Parton mood lately and this little made for TV Christmas movie is one of my favorite holiday guilty pleasures.
~Heidi and Rupaul introduced me to this sad, yet lovely Christmas song: "Hard Candy Christmas."

The Simple Life - Day 20

There never seems to be enough coffee in the world to wake you up after a long night out.  Both Lauren and I had late nights and therefore were dragging in the morning.  But, we rallied enough energy to catch the metro to Chinatown and check out the renegade craft fair in the cornfield.  Love that LA has a place known as "the cornfield," so quaint.  After a few hours of wandering and collecting ideas for future projects, we headed to Chinatown for some takeaway dimsum (late lunch on the run!), then back on the metro and home again, home again jiggit-y jog.  Met up with Ray and friends at The Village Idiot to celebrate his recently acquired MBA (Congratulations, darling!) then home for real, in bed and passed out by 9:30pm.  What a day, what a day!

Total Spent for the day: $15 ($7/Dimsum and $8/Beer at The Village Idiot)
Total Spent for the week: $49.40
Total Remaining for the week: $.60

Food Trucks at the Cornfield

Blythe loves field trips

Pooh loves Blythe!

Blythe has a secret plan to take over the world.  Go Blythe, go!

Blythe is so special, she's even tamed the ferocious crocodiles!

Christmas in Chinatown, just add snow!

The Simple Life - Day 19

"Mercury is in retrograde!" or so Tori Spelling's twitter says, according to my friend Heidi.  Which makes sense, because my phone has gone kaput!  And the tech says that part of that is due to my phone being wonky and part is due to the phone's service being out of order today.  So Monday, we will further examine the mess that is my phone...but in the meantime I must live sans internet/email/gps on my person at all times.  How smart is a smart phone when it has zero IQ?  Blah!

Moving on....today, I did managed to accomplish a ton of things...which makes up for all the other days when I was so unaccomplished.  Let's see....Laundry (check!), Homemade Ginger Coconut Sorbet (check!), Homemade Sugar Cookies (check!), Afternoon Tea with Heidi at Chado H.Wood (check!), Michelle's birthday party (check!), and Heidi's Holiday party (check! check! check!).

Okay, just for a moment let's discuss our afternoon tea.  One of my childhood traditions when I was 3-7 years old was to have a New Year's tea party with my bestest friends, all of which happened to be inanimate.  Since I sometimes get nostalgic for simpler times, days when my friends would not talk back to me ;)  I thought maybe it was time for a jaunt down memory lane, so I got Heidi to join me for afternoon tea (thank you Groupon!).  Little did she know, I would be bringing along one of my newest besties.  Blythe (whom I've loved since before my life in Japan) has teamed up with Littlest Pet Shop and can now be purchased at Target for $19.99....so much cheaper then the normal mini Blythe dolls.

Anyhow, tea was dreamy and all my friends got along marvelously...so the afternoon was a smash hit.

After the sun set, Heidi and I headed to Tiki No to celebrate Michelle's 27th birthday (she's practically geriatric!) after a sampling of strong tropical rum drinks, we hooked up with the Hawaiian food truck, "Aloha Fridays," where I intro'd Heidi to Spam Musubi...another staple from my childhood (classy, I know!) and off we went to Les Deux for the World of Wonder holiday party.  This year's theme was "Glow Job"...and it was amazing!  Beautiful drag queens, boys in speedos, RuPaul Dj'ing (He was fantastic!), and free flowing cocktails with glow sticks.  Every year I marvel at the crazy, fun, themed holiday parties that businesses throw for their employees.  And yes, I do believe we are in a recession....but you wouldn't know it.  After a crazy night out, I rolled into bed around 3am.  How exhausting!!!

Total Spent for the Day: $5 ($2/parking, $3 for 2 Spam Musubi)

Total Spent for the Week: $59.40

Total Remaining for the Week: $15.60

The Simple Life - Day 18

Ugh.  You know those mornings where you really, really don't want to wake up, but have no choice, because there are a billion things to do before you go into the office.  But unfortunately, you stayed up 'til 2AM candying ginger and attempting to watch MAD MEN (still don't love it) and not getting your much needed beauty sleep?  Yep, that was my morning.  But somehow, I managed to get up and finish the lovely hostess gifts.  Here is a picture of the completed project...sorry I can't actually tell you what's inside.

Then got some writing in (even manage to get another Blog pitch accepted!), made lunch (Branston Pickle and Cheddar cheese sandwiches, nut mix, and Strawberry pocky sticks....My fridge is truly a sampling of the United Nations.), and showered (which honestly feels like a triumph in and of itself somedays...oh my lord, I'm starting to sound like one of those over-exhausted sitcom moms), then hotfooted it on fumes (really needed to stop for gas, but no time!) to work by 11.30AM.  My goodness!  I can't believe I made it.  Seven hours of holiday party set up later and I was ready to get out and be done with the day.

Abby and I met up for dinner at Wat Dong Moon Lek, one of our favorite SilverLake restaurants.  I got the spicy lime and sparerib soup.  She got the Tom Ka.  Both of us were completely happy and satisfied by the time we were done catching up.   And then I headed home to finish wrapping gifts.
I love the holidays!!!

Total spent today:$29 ($15 for gas, $14 for soup with Abby)
Total spent this week: $54.40
Total remaining this week: $20.60

The Simple Life - Day 17

Got a crazy call this morning from a former colleague asking if I'd be interested in a job.  Since I'm letting the universe be my guide, I figured it may not be such a bad idea to meet with her about it, however it would be back in the film industry and I have a few reservations.  But, hearing about a new project  is never a bad thing.  Plus all the folks involved are super talented, so maybe this will be an amazing opportunity.  And I think the meeting went well, just have to wait until Friday, while they interview a bunch of other super talented, overqualified, former studio kids...God, I love this town.

The majority of my day was spent working on those silly holiday cards.  I realized I have over 100 to send, and that barely scratches the surface of my friends, family, and colleagues.  So far I've made 19.  I have a lot of work ahead of me.

But the hostess gifts, well I made a serious dent in them.  Candied a ton of ginger!  Tomorrow I should be done with all of them and may post pictures....or maybe I will wait until the end of the season.  I did have do a bit of shopping for supplies and spent a whopping total of: $14.46...of course that included an impulse buy of mint flavored yogurt drink...BLAH...I should have known, there is a cartoon cow on the label that says, "I made this one extra special for you." It tasted like a dairy-fied kombucha.  BLAH!

Spent my night working at the Blu Conference about Pre-fab homes and sustainable living.  There are some amazing models out there that totally make me salivate.  Perhaps one day?

Total spent for the day: $14.46
Total spent this week: $25.40
Total remaining for the week: $49.60

Lani's Christmas Wish List

Lani's Christmas Wish List by kikuejewels featuring cross-body handbags

For my beloveds....since I know that world peace and that trip to Antarctica aren't in the budget for this year.  Here are my material desires.  Of course you could just buy me some bees at Heifer.org and I would be just as pleased.  xoxo.

The Simple Life - Day 16

With the holidays getting closer, I feel as though I'm in vacation mode.  Of course I have random events that I have to work at throughout the week, but all of my personal projects...the ones I'm doing for my greater good and the future, all seem to be hanging by the wayside as I find myself procrastinating more and more each day.  Today, I stayed in my PJs until 1.30pm.  I only managed to take a shower because I was meeting Katie and Heidi for a hike in Fryman and didn't want to attract the attention of too many flies. Of course I managed to get in some writing (ironically I did a pitch about procrastination for a women's blog this afternoon), but I've barely made a dent in my to do list.

After the hike, I ran errands and made dinner.  Then with a sudden burst of creativity, I began working on those New Year's cards I've been thinking about.  Of course, in order to seriously do any work, I need to create a full on mess, and bury myself in the middle of it.  Which explains why every inch of countertop and dining room table are now covered in glitter, and the floor is a mass of ribbons.

Today's Menu: All things found in the Fridge and Pantry.  I wonder if I can get thru the week without buying any food?
~ Decaf Coffee (who knew I would like it so much?)
~Gingersnap cookies (breakfast of champions)
~Corn and Pepper Bisque
~Salad
~Spaghetti Squash with homemade pasta sauce and mango chicken sausage

Things that amaze me:
~Proverbial Wallets...if I had one of these, I probably wouldn't be doing my $35/wk food experiment.
~Forth Magazine is featuring my pal, Brooke Harker's paintings.  She is so fabulous, I am a big fan and even own one of her paintings.
~ While catching up on my TedTalks I saw Ze Frank's speech and was struck by the "chillout song".  So beautiful... just hit play below to listen:

Total spent for the day: $0
Total remaining for week: $64.06