’23 July

Bodhi, Desda, Shira, Bob, Richard, me, Chad

This was fun! I got to meet Baby Bodhi for the first time and what a charmer. We very much enjoyed walking around the restaurant together (we were in an empty section of Canter’s!) pointing at all the Lights. Lights! I’m so glad the timing worked out and I happened to be home when this beautiful family happened to be in LA.

Here’s what I did in these two days between DC and Oregon: unpack, wash clothes, repack, Steve and Celina over for dinner, Bob and Desda at Canter’s, Susan from Australia over at Lona’s, Lucas, Betsy, and Anya over for a walk-through, REI for a backpack, and what else? It seemed like there was something every hour.

So, I didn’t finish the pictures for DC until 5 days after is was all over. At one point, Marsha pointed out, I was 8 days behind and when that happens I’m not as happy with the results of my story since I Forget. But at this moment it’s Aug 2, three days into my trip with Lilly, and I’m ready to start this trip. Getting close to catching up!

This is one of wikipedia’s pictures of the flag of Bhutan.

And here’s where Bhutan is in the world.

For so long it was very difficult to visit Bhutan, hard to get a visa, expensive, etc. but now, post-covid there has been a softening in the requirements and although you’re still better off with a guide, it can happen!

Hilda, ably aided by Merlyn, is the organizer of a club in their building, The Travel Club, and every couple months someone comes to the well-appointed rec room with a travel related presentation. This lovely young man below, (his parents reside in the building) has been living in Bhutan for +/- 10 years and shared a historical perspective, many of his experiences, and briefly outlined how one goes about visiting there. If you’re interested let me know. I’ll put the contact information here as soon as I get back from DC.

Lona has been hosting a couple of cousins from Australia related through our father’s family, something like our father’s brother’s son’s daughter’s kids, something like that. I visited them when I was in Australia back in 2017.

We had a fun day – a walk up to Inspiration Point, then a picnic, then a tour of the Will Rogers house, and then some polo. All together delightful. After which the rest of them went to the Hollywood Bowl! I was going to be busy the next day and bowed out of the Bowl but Lona kept right up with the young folk.

Marsha and I have been getting boxes for a few years now and it just adds to the comfort and delight of a wonderful evening. What’s the best of the best? When the other two seats aren’t taken, which we enjoyed this very night. Get our food delivered, drink some wine, kick back, put my feet up, ahhhh.

This performance was lead by our Gustavo Dudamel and the LA Philharmonic playing Ellington’s Three Black Kings and Night Creature, Gershwin’s An American in Paris, and selected songs performed with Patina Miller.

Here’s Patina Miller and Gustavo during this show, snagged from Getty Images on the internet.

The weather was perfect! Unlike our seats at the Disney Concert Hall where all the performers are easily seen, here we often end up watching the monitors where you get all the good closeups.

On the left is my beloved charm of Hello Kitty Sitting On Buddha’s Lap. I’m so fond of it I don’t use it anymore for fear of losing it. So Rome had some Hello Kitty stickers and I was going on about making the HKSBL image for my phone case. Lola was over and said, oh, I can draw that for you. Really? Cool! Look what she did, a design from her own imagination!! Thanks sweetie!!

And since I didn’t take a picture of Rome and Lola, here they are at The Broad from January 2017.

Earlier Rome, Lilly, and I had a tasty Indian lunch and then went to The Mystic Eye Botanica. Rome took this picture of me, enjoying a nice rest in The High Priestess Chair.

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And here’s Lilly at the Mystic Eye!

Frog Boy is g.o.n.e Gone! It poked me in the eye instantly and I didn’t get over it for the entire visit. Frog Boy, what happened, where are you, why are you gone?! The internet doesn’t seem to know but according to one of the people behind the information counter, he was returned to the artist and not popular with the guests. Not popular with the guests?? Popular with ME!!

They even changed the entrance hall.

Reflect-o, for the good times, and a good lunch to end a lovely day. Except for the missing Frog Boy. I’ll probably get over it.

For my birthday the kids gave me A Day! For the whole day they all worked off my entire Around The House To Do List. Wow, right?!

This guy was the size of my little finger. Bang Bang Banging against the window. I waited until morning when he was so tuckered out, swept him into a kitchen towel and shook him out in the yard. Where are his friends? I hope I never know!

He’s in the kitchen window and the window is covered with plastic film from the painters. Below is a super-distorto of the living room/dining room also covered with plastic film. It’s been very weird inside, like living in an igloo.

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The tenant that left yesterday left the place in shall we say less than ideal condition. Alex fixed the broken bathroom sink, I had to call the snake guys to clear the drains, and the housekeeper worked all day cleaning.

But on the up side Carol and I had a fun outing. We walked through the Water Garden and visited several of the galleries at Bergamot Station. The impetus for the visit was a Flower Garden exhibit at the Peter Fetterman Gallery, mounted in concert with the exhibit at LA Louver that I saw with Susie. The gallery specializes in photography and it was lovely to see what the curator did with the theme.

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At the edge of Bergamot Station. Irresistible!