Ho! Ho! Ho! and all the good times of the Holiday Season.
December 30
Out the car window on Olympic Blvd. taken with my phone, where in the middle left you can see the Hollywood sign. In real life it was crisp as could be. Wow, the upside of the Santa Ana winds.
Driving home from my last visit with the kids I could see the Hollywood sign from Redondo Beach.
December 29
The DAK&L family came by for a visit this morning. Among many enjoyable activities, we picked oranges from the tree and made orange juice, and walked to the park for a picnic and some fun in the sun.
Check out all those pigeons in the air and ducks in the water. People just won’t stop feeding the ‘wild’life.
Then Steve and Celina had a birthday party for Ronald (Ronald here in full Silverlake hipster regalia). We drove out to Monterey Park for some AWEsome Chinese food and then came back to Ronald’s place where I ate two large servings of Celina’s AWEsome cake. Happy birthday Ronald!
Kathleen across the street was having a party and I stopped by there for a while too. Wish I had snapped a picture…
December 28
I went up to the Getty Center tonight (that’s the beautiful blue Pacific out there)…
…with the cousins, Nancy and Sharon, to see the holiday lights. I thought they were going to have a sea of twinkle lights, which they did down by the tram, but the main courtyard was a-glow-glow with these projections on the grounds…
December 26
Arriving at my brother-in-law’s shop (Windy’s husband that is). Oh yeah, VET TOWN USA!
Check out the awesomeness of that floor. It’s a Corvette Hospital and Plastic Surgery Ward up in here, with the occasional other Classic American Car such as the T-Bird on the right.
Here’s Jeff, fixing the latch on the hood of my 2004 Ford Focus. So not a Vet.
Then I went to the Park La Brea Towers to meet Nancy. This is her building. It’s really very cool, right down the street from LACMA.
Another view.
“The Park La Brea Towers were designed by Leonard Schultz Asscociates with consulting architects Stanton + Kaufmann in 1948. Inspired by the innovative housing of Le Corbusier in Paris, this architectural team set out to create innovative multifamily housing. …
“The Landmark Towers, in a revolutionary “X” structure with a unique placement, became icons of the Los Angeles skyline. The ingeniously designed plan ensured that every unit would enjoy expansive views.”
The Order of Things: we sleep over on Christmas Eve so we can be there to get right up to see what Santa brought. I was with Rome and we checked our clocks several times through the night, I falling directly back to sleep, Rome waiting quietly. Finally, at 6:16 YES, let’s walk up the rest of the house!
We take turns seeing what Santa brought and then we mess around with our stuff and have a fabulous breakfast.
After breakfast – Gifts! We go around one by one taking turns to open a present. (After a few rounds the adults run out and K&L, ever so sweetly, take turns, admiring each others goodies.)
Darryl is showing the girls how cute they look.
It’s beyond dear how sweet these girls are, how they appreciated everything they got and not once had any reaction but joyful ones. And it’s not a frenzy of more-more-more, no, just FUN.
In the tradition of ‘it’s not lost until Mom can’t find it’…’the knot isn’t permanent until Mom calls for the scissors’.
December 24
The Christmas Eve Holiday Bash at Brian and Marija’s. Here are almost all of The Next Generation.
Troy, Christian, Sara, Christopher, Travis, Melissa, Cassie, Andrew, Cristina, Rachel, Christopher, Steve, Ben, Melinda, and Alex
December 22
Cynthia had to leave today. Bye sweetie, it was So Good to have you around for a while!
ak.
Rome and I had a nice outing. We used to go out all the time, walking here and there, just like I do with Lilly these days, but Rome has got her own schedule now – busy busy – so it’s a treat when it gets to be just us.
As we were driving along Rome did remark that ‘it’s so much quieter when Lilly isn’t in the car’. Right-ee-o.
Later in the afternoon I picked up Muriel so we could have a little walk too. My plan was to take us to the jetty in Marina del Rey but I couldn’t remember how to get there, which was baaad.
We ended up at Burton Chace Park which was fun too.
December 21
We had a big breakfast get-together at the Rose Café including me and Cynthia, Windy (Jeff was working), L&H (doesn’t Lona look festive? said everyone who saw her), and DAK&L. Everyone enjoyed themselves entirely which was delightful.
Here is me and my two sisters and of our collective five children, the only girl, Cynthia!
Cynthia brought gifts one being this kit of some modern material that melts down into a puddle after 30 minutes or so, and then you can make it into something else again.
The kit comes with these snowman accoutrement and the whole melting snowman ‘thing’ makes it a winner. Lilly and Rome made a dozen snowmen and could really not wait for the entire melting before making another.
ak.
December 20
Cynthia’s here visiting from Saint Paul! Yay!! Her company sent her out to do some work in Fountain Valley and now we get to kick around for the weekend.
First things first: sushi.
(internet pix)
December 18
On the way to pick up Rome from school, we decided to leave an hour early so we could have a little picnic at our secret picnic lawn but first we wanted to find the highest place nearby to check out the view.
December 17
With Alex and Carol, out for an evening stroll around Beverly Hills.
A different store and another cat theme.
All the windows didn’t have cats but they did all glitter like mad and have merchandise of the crazy expensive variety.
December 16
Our Monday Night Holiday Extravaganza with many thanks to one and all and to Alicia for hosting yet again, for FABulous food, and gifts, and smiles and hugs…Perfect!
Ljubica, Marija, Maxine, Alicia, Maryanne, Ann, Lourdes, me, Marsha, Becky
And here we are 10 years ago. Wow. (I’m putting these two pictures on my wall as motivation to lose weight…so, let’s see what next year brings!)
December 14
It’s Long Beach Naples Canals cruise-around-and-look-at-the-lights night, complements of Gary and Liz. They invited Windy too. We got there a little early and enjoyed a sundowner over at The Crab Pot.
The electric touring boats share the water-ways with a fleet of gondolas that ply the canals during the holiday lights season.
…more than these three.
It’s really a spectacle worth seeing if you have a chance to get out there.
Thanks to Gary and Liz!
Dev, Lola, Windy, Gary, Brook, Liz, Rome, Lilly, Natalia, me, Angela, Darryl
December 13
I joined The Cousins Sharon and Nancy at Sharon’s for dinner and a visit. It’s Sharon’s birthday coming up and her daughter sent this doggy bouquet.
Pretty.
This was also the day of my hearing test (I’m perfectly fine) and the ENT appointment where the guy said oh no, you DO have allergies, they just can’t test for everything, and gave me more/different allergy treatments. So WE’LL SEE.
December 12
Bonnie and me, and a lovely day out and about. That’s Bonnie’s shadow picture .. note: my hands are Free.
bp.
We walked for just the right amount of time here on the trails at the end of Mulholland Drive.
Then we had a quiet lunch, walked around Rancho Park, and had dessert, followed by a movie – Nebraska.
This dessert had a salty caramel topping, crushed Heath Bars, and the yummy cream and chocolate custard/mousse/pie filling. Guess which half was mine.
Ben and Bonnie’s son Jonathan (I stayed with him in Korea and visited him now that he’s living in Israel) and his family were in LA in December 2011. I took that black and white picture of Jonathan and first son Yosef Shalom while they were here.
In December 2013 Bonnie was in Israel and took the color picture of Jonathan and second son Yaacov Hillel. Nice!
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The Golden Globe nominated films I’ve seen so far: The Book Thief (don’t bother); Gravity (+=technology, -=story); Nebraska (slow, quiet, b&w, it gets you); Francis Ha (indie goodness); Inside Llewyn Davis (oh the cat).
The Golden Globe nominated films I want to see first: Philomena, Captain Phillips, Rush, American Hustle, and plenty more.
December 11
One of our busy day’s activities – after our walk searching for a mailbox we stopped off at a neighborhood pizza place. Lilly hooked up with a new friend and we had fun.
Check it out – Donkey Kong AND Ms Pacman. I did not however determine if they worked.
December 10
Welcome home Mindy! Back from Africa for at least two years, with a job in Washington DC, Mindy will be able to join her family and friends ever so much more easily these days…
…and here we are at the Sherman Oaks Galleria for Holiday Cheer with Ken and her dad Bill.
December 9
A series of circumstances brought me and Sharon together for breakfast. We went to the deli and both got what we wanted. This is so funny, our food choices. It reminds me of the time in Yellowstone when for lunch Sharon got a salad and I got a hot fudge sundae.
…and Holiday Cheer at the Water Garden business park.
Then I ate from the Monday night potluck until my stomach begged for mercy.
December 8
Dance Dance Dance! Rome and Lilly’s dance studio had their winter recital.
The studio folks and volunteers kept 100+ kids from age 3-18, without their parents at hand, all quiet and under control for more than Three Hours. Some of those little guys were on stage for three minutes and for the rest of the time they watched and waited. It was the most amazing feat of the whole fabulous spectacle.
The younger kids were in groups that ranged in size from maybe twelve at the most to as few as four. Lilly is third from the left.
Every time the lights came on to reveal a stage full of the littlest ones the whole audience groaned with AWWWWs.
These platters were piled to the sky with cookies and within minutes – gone. Kids were walking away with three in each hand and the parents were plenty ‘eager’ too.
Ohhh, that poor little girl in the upper right. Oh nooo, the cookies are All GONE.
Then we went to dinner in celebration of the two stars of the show.
I have pictures of some of the other acts too which I will put together tomorrow. What fun!
December 7
Muriel, photo by Nancy at Muriel’s second chemo treatment. Doesn’t she look beautiful?! All is going very well; yay Muriel.
We ate yummy food as always at Muriel’s, and Nancy and I went to see Inside Llewyn Davis which we agreed was the seventh or eighth, maybe ninth best Coen brothers movie. Even that far down on the list it was still good, and the cat was a treasure.
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December 6
Reopened in June 2013 after a two year ‘Rehabilitation Project’, it is pretty amazing I think for those of us who have followed Echo Park Lake through its nice-not so nice-bad-badder-baddest cycle to see how fine it is now.
Not only is the lake in good shape, the surrounding walk is free of trash and taggers.
Very near by, you can walk, is Carroll Avenue – where the entire 1300 block was listed under the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. The wiki article has pictures of them all and a few show-biz stories.
The neighborhood is named Angelino Heights, one of the first LA suburbs built in the late 1800s and now in full view of the downtown skyline. Wiki calls the architectural style ‘Bungalow/Craftsman, Stick/Eastlake, Queen Anne’.
December 5
Angela’s picture from the weekend outing of the Kanouses and the Elinoffs to enjoy the American Girl Doll Store, Santa, and the Holiday Season.
Oh you adorable girls!
Lila, Lilly, Nora, Rome, Anya
ak.
December 3
Saint Paul, MN. What the computer thinks the weather will be where Cynthia, Mike, and Kieran live. And it’s going to get even colder as real winter kicks in.
PS, the big number is the High.
December 4
Ridin’ the ‘ponies’ at Big Lots (although Lilly did choose the frog). YeeeHA (RIBBIT!)!
December 2
Steve and Celina’s house is deep into Home Improvements with, among other projects, a complete kitchen renovation.
Behind this wall the roses are as grand as ever.
December 1
I went up to the Getty Villa today with Gina. We were sitting outside the café, catching up on our lives and I allowed as how I take pictures almost every day, just travelogue/diary stuff, and how I never tire of it, and that I’m never not intrigued by some view .. like those very shadows ‘right there’.
We did a highlights tour. Of the four objects in the tour I had heard only one previously discussed so that was a treat.
After the tour we went to see the big show, the Cyrus Cylinder, leaving on December 8th so hurry if you’re interested.
I’m so glad to have caught it. It’s a tiny little thing! From all the pictures around the internet and the banners on the street I had gathered it would be much bigger.
A view from the herb garden, ‘never twice the same’ (said of the gardens at the Getty Center, true here too).
