behind the music remastered

we are headed into the big city today on a little adventure.  adam is being interviewed for an updated version of leif garrett's "behind the music remastered" which will air on vh1.  adam produced a bunch of songs for him in the last few years. . .hence the request to participate. 

considering leif's recent drug-related legal trouble, it should be interesting to see what angle this interview is going to take.  we are hoping they focus on the positive.  regardless, adam plans on keeping his side of things very positive. . .especially considering he's had nothing but good, professional encounters with mr. garrett.  but we shall see!

i'll keep you posted if/when the show airs so we can all watch my fabulous husband in all his glory on the big screen. . .or little screen depending on how big your tv is.

on another note, yesterday i discovered you can see quite a bit of cool old footage of my hubby back in his heyday all over youtube.  here are a couple of gems for your enjoyment:

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

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GadDwbI-3xE&feature=related

mission accomplished

well i succeeded in finding that last cushion.  it took 3 hours out of my day, but i got it.  i fought rush hour traffic to get to the west hollywood target after a meeting this afternoon. . .and they had none.  i then ventured north and west a bit to van nuys. . .and they had none.  i contemplated between going back east to north hollywood or further north to north van nuys.  i opted for the later and struck gold.  they had not one, but TWO cushions.  i really wanted to buy them both considering what i had gone through to find them.  but i only needed one.  so i left the other for someone else searching as tirelessly as i had.  i hope they find it!

after completing my mission, i felt the harsh pangs of hunger stabbing at my gut.  i had left my meeting at 3 pm and it was now 6 o'clock!  and i still had to fight traffic all the way back across the valley to my little western suburb.  i decided to avoid the freeway and take side streets.  along the way i figured i might be inspired by some new little restaurant (new to me) to try.  i wasn't.  but alas, just a few blocks from my house i remembered the little empanada place i had been wanting to try.  i was on my own for dinner tonight with adam out at band practice. . .so i could eat whatever i wanted and be a little more adventurous.  and i was not disappointed.  i have found my new favorite place! 

one of the biggest challenges since moving to our new little suburb has been eating out.  we LOVE to eat out and try new little places.  but the variety isn't as great as it was in the heart of the city.  out here we are plagued by chain restaurants. . .olive garden, outback steakhouse, california pizza kitchen, chilis. . .etc.  they are ok now and then. . .but not like the little one-of-a-kind places that are so predominant in the city.  and now i've found one close to home.  hooray!

so this is what i had: grilled chicken satay with thai peanut sauce, sticky rice, a green salad with mango and balsamic viniagrette and a spinach and cheese empanada with chimmichurri.  holy moly was it good.  i couldn't nearly eat it all. . .and there are so many other things on the menu i can't wait to try.  mom. . .hurry and get out here so we can go back!

on a mission

i've been wanting cushions for my four outdoor chaise loungers.  they look really cool without, but would be so much more comfortable with.  and in my searching i've found several i like, but they are just so darn expensive!  i really can't see spending $150-200 per chair! 

so i found a style at Target i could live with.  they are plain and simple turquoise and fit perfectly.  but that would be too easy just to find them and buy them.  i bought all two they had in stock at my local store.  i went to purchase the other two online since typically shipping is free from Target if you spend more than $50.  nope!  they were going to charge me $25 to ship.  that's no good. 

so i decided i could find these cushions myself. . .and i've put my mind to it.  a visit to the Topanga Canyon store resulted in zero cushions.  West Hills had one, so i'm up to three. . .only one more to go.  Northridge North had zero.  today i shall visit North Hollywood and West Hollywood.  if i find nothing there. . .i'm off to Northridge, Van Nuys and Van Nuys North.  i am determined.  i'll probably spend more than the stupid $25 shipping cost in gas before this is all said and done.  but it's the principle.  and i'm on a mission. 

and if i don't succeed in finding that one last cushion at the aforementioned stores. . .there are plenty more in the Los Angeles are.

tidbits from the ranch

the palm ranch has been a whirl of activity and i haven't had even a minute to write my blog!

last week i was working on the beach down in san onofre state park at a professional surf contest.  it's long days and hard work, but there's something to be said for having an office complete with wireless internet, TVs and printers all set up on the beach.  now if only they had plumbing and real bathrooms!  this is the 5th or 6th year i've done the PR for this event and i always look forward to spending the week down in San Clemente.  such a different vibe than LA. . .much more mellow and surf influenced. 

i came back from San Clemente a day early to attend a wedding with Adam.  his friend who is the bass player in the band Alice in Chains was getting married up in the hills of a rustic little town called Ojai.  it's near Ventura and a little over an hour northwest of us.  the house was beautiful and had an insane view of the entire valley and a big lake down below.  needless-to-say there were all kinds of long-haired and tattooed rocker types there including members of Guns n' Roses, Velvet Revolver and Ozzy Osbourne's band.  i had to do a little shuffling to finish my work on the surf contest.  so i attended the wedding ceremony, then snuck out and drove down the hill to the nearest Starbucks, which fortunately was less than a mile away.  there i finished writing the press release for the surf contest, distributed to my media contacts and made it back in time for dinner.  success!!  i did look (and feel) a little out of place in my off-the-shoulder black silk dress and heels at Starbucks. . .i even got picked up on!

on Thursday we have visitors from NYC coming to stay the night.  my college roommate and good friend Robin and her husband are passing through town and were able to schedule in a whole day and night for us.  the weather is great right now and should be sunny and in the 80s for their visit.  so we're planning a Malibu beach day and a backyard BBQ. . . something the "city" kids don't get to do too often.

this week has been playing catch up and getting back into the groove with all of the clients i neglected while away.  at the beginning of the month, we signed a new client, so we've been getting them all up and running.  busy, busy.  we've also had a couple of promising meetings with two other potential new clients. . .so hopefully we'll hear back on those soon.

next week i head out of town again.  this time i'm going to Austin, TX for a few days for a sales meeting followed by a quick jaunt up to Cincinatti for a wedding.  Adam opted out of the wedding since it's so difficult for us both to travel together, but I'll know a few people there.

not very exciting stuff. . .but it's my busy time of year.  so that's what you get!

bitter sweet change

6 years ago (and just a few days), i arrived in los angeles.  it was just me and my car "lego".  we had driven the more than 950 miles from portland together.  just the two of us.  it took almost 16 hours and we made very few stops.  it was a long arduous journey, but we had each other.  and we made it.

up until arriving in LA, i loved that little gray jetta.  she was nearly new, having only been purchased a few months previous to my move.  but the love faded quickly after arriving in this city of perpetual traffic congestion.

i hadn't foreseen the move to LA when i purchased lego.  and i made the error of opting out of the automatic transmission to save a few pennies.  my first cars were all manuals and i had no problem shifting gears.  in fact, i always thought it was kind of fun. . .and sporty. . .and i liked the control.

but that wore off quickly after a few times stuck in stop and go traffic, trekking across the city. . .12 miles that could take almost 2 hours.  horrible to say the least.  and for the last 6 years, despite our tight bond, i have resented lego.  her neediness had become unbearable. . . constantly needing an extra push of the clutch. . .shifting up, shifting down. . .over and over again.

and so yesterday, it all came to a bitter sweet end.  lego has been replaced. . .upgraded even.  my new ride needs no extra attention.  she does it all and then some.  in fact, so far, she's proven a bit smarter than me.  but i have a feeling we'll get along just fine.

and lest you think i haven't a heart.  don't be mistaken.  i was sad to see my lego go.  she had been good to me.  she was paid off.  she had never had any significant problems.  she was representative of youth and freedom.  we had a lot of great memories and she will be missed.

but please welcome the new audi a4.  she doesn't have a nickname. . .she's much too mature for that.

matzo ball soup

today i'm a bit under the weather.  i awoke in the middle of the night with a sore throat and the first signs of a cold.  i went back to sleep, hoping it was only a bad dream and i'd awake perfectly fine.  no such luck. 

so my day has been filled with consuming nutrient-rich foods and beverages, which my doctor is delivering to my bed, in the hopes of flushing this bug out as fast as possible. 

i'm right in the middle of my busy season at work and have no time to be sick.  and next week i'll be outside all day working at a surf contest. . .on the beach no less.  sounds cool. . .but it's definitely not if you are sick.  they are long days. . .it can be cold. . .and there are only porta-potties.  ick! 

anyhow, my day started with one of my doctor's (aka husband's) infamous fruit bowls, a cup of tea with honey and one of his power-packed juice blends (orange, apple, cranberry).  that was followed by a shot of wheat grass and my favorite sicky soup. . .matzo ball. 

you see, out here in los angeles, we have these wonderful jewish delis.  they've got all kinds of crazy things on the menu that this midwest girl never knew existed. . . like gelfilte fish, fried kippers, knish and kishka.  i don't partake in those selections.  but what i really love to eat when i'm sick is a big bowl of hot matzo ball soup. 

and on the days when i am 100 percent, i love two sandwiches they do particularly well. . .the corned beef reuben and the beef brisket.  you may have had one of these before, but unless you've had one from a jewish deli, you haven't lived.  ask my mom.  she's a big fan.  so when i'm eating one, i love to call her and tell her just to make her jealous.  (really, i'm trying to encourage her to come out for a visit though!)

a rose by any other name

kris, these are what my roses are looking like today. . .