#2409: Friday, December 27: Greetings from LA

Post 2409

- 8 years and 361 days since I started this blog -

Aboard Delta Flight 331. Took off late, landed early. So it begins.  

Journal
(written Dec 20-21, 2019)

Read this once (it won't change for the rest of the trip(s): I'll be linking this post to Facebook. If that's how you got here, here's some background: About 9 years ago I started this blog as a food journal. I had a medical situation and needed to lose weight. Initially, that's all I did here: Journal my food intake and my weight. It contributed to helping me lose 20+% of my body weight in 6 months, and continuing has kept me on track since then. I started adding commentary after a while, but lately it has become infrequent. 

While I'm traveling, I let go of the weight-tracking and food journaling, except for the occasional food shot when I've eaten something interesting. And that's where we find ourselves now.

Thursday, December 19:  After my all-time quickest passage from Hancock in Syracuse to LAX in LA, I got to my airBnB a little after midnight. The one of my hosts who was home met me at the door, handed me the key, showed me to my room and said good night. Even though it's late for him, I'm still on NY time and it's after 3am for me, typical bed time, so that's fine. because I'm really tired from walking through airports (times three). The room is very nice and comfortable and clean and well-appointed. Since I'll be spending a total of 3 weeks in it, that's a very good thing.

My AirBnB room. Mr. Zimmerman observes from fifty-plus years ago.

It is too late to connect with Alex, who texted his good night after he heard that I'd landed safely. 

It's Friday, and I'm exhausted. And sore, from however many miles I walked through airport terminals yesterday in Syracuse, Detroit and Los Angeles, with a heavy backpack and my Steinberger bass in hand. I wonder today if I am getting too old for this. 

Nah!

Alex has temporary digs these days, he's moving to a new place in January. Meanwhile, this week he's house-sitting for his boss, taking care of Emily, the mellow wonder-dog. The house is in Hollywood, and it is very nice and comfortable.

After a delicious meal (we eat and eat and eat in LA. Everything is planned and discussed over food), we visit his more permanent temporary house, a big beautiful mansion in Calabasas.

Out of respect for their privacy, no pics of the house exterior or interior, but this is Alex, in the back yard. As pretty as it is, you need to walk to the end of the property for the view of the canyon to see how beautiful it really is.`

Here's a 180º view of the above.

The other thing LA is paradise for is getting stoned. Now completely legal, we make a stop at the Weed, Alex's dispensary of choice. First things first, right? Going forward, you may assume I'm writing stoned, because I am.

In Smörgasburg, you are spoiled for choice. You could faint just from the heavenly aromas, booth to booth. 

Alex, with dumplings.

Walking out of Smörgasburg, I encountered Poison Ivy's (Batman reference) apartment building.

The contrasts of LA: Beautiful weather, lots of homeless people lining the streets downtown. This is another reason Alex doesn't go to Little Damage very often - you have to weave your way through homeless people on sidewalks that are used by them as their residence... It's heartbreaking. And it does detract from your enjoyment of this fru-fru dessert. But not enough to make that creamy deliciousness less irresistible.

Then, in case there was a single cell in me that was not completely full, we head through skid row to Little Damage, Alex's favorite ice cream in LA. He is never downtown, so only gets to go on special occasions.

Incredible ice cream at Little Damage (dark chocolate-peanut butter-banana, here). Throughout the week, LA's artisanal ice cream parlors are providing dessert, even after dessert. Don't judge me. It's a thing I do in LA.

That night, I make my acting debut in a short film about Hanukkah (the holiday is just beginning. I play an old sleepy Jewish grandfather (it's Hannukah, and about a Jewish family). I have three lines: "What?", "Who died?", and "Moses did what?". When it's edited and published, I'll put in a link. Meanwhile, trust me, I killed it! LOL. Probably not. My big debut will probably end up on the proverbial cutting room floor.

But it was fun!

In a sad coincidence, most of my LA friends are not in town this week. So it goes. I make what plans I can.

One of which is meeting the parents of Alex's friend Alex. You might recognize him as the other Alex in 'Kellerman Hates Fruit' or 'Lewis Hates Liquor'. Everybody in LA is named Alex, so they all call each other by their last name. If you hear somebody being addressed in a friendly way by their last name, their first name is Alex. Got it? It seemed a little weird to me, since this is the only place I've encountered this behavior, but now I'm used to it.

Alex's parents are incredibly nice. We have a pleasant dinner, good conversation, and then back to the manse for Hanukkah candle lighting and gift-giving.

Christmas Eve and the pot shops have sales. Alex and I want to pick up some edibles for the next day, when we're going to see 'Cats' because we think the movie will be strange and twisted. On the way to meeting Alex at the dispensary (where I will buy more pot than I can smoke in my remaining time in California, I look to my right on Santa Monica Boulevard, and see Sharon Stone driving a black Porsche Carrera. 

I don't know if it's really her, but when I first look, I don''t think, "That looks like Sharon Stone." I think, Sharon Stone is driving the car next to me. 

She escorts me to the pot shop, then drives away as if we haven't established a lasting relationship, but I think she likes me.

Christmas day Alex and I split a cannabis chocolate bar and go see 'Cats'.

I liked it a lot. As far as I can tell, I'm the only person in California who's had that reaction. Alex and all his friends are very critical. Alex doesn't seem to have liked anything about it. I can't account for this disparity. Or maybe it's the pot.

Yesterday, I got to play a little bass with the movie-scoring father of the film-maker who is having a story conference with Alex in the next room. A little 'Watermelon Man' jazz-and-bass thing. It swings. He's really good, and plays many instruments, including bass. I'm on his beautiful forty-five-year-old blonde Rickenbacker 4001 (the Sir Paul bass). Things are good.

From there, Alex and I go to Pasadena to meet my one friend who is accessible this week. On the way, I encounter a first for me: Snow in Southern California.

Snow on the mountains. I haven't mentioned it until this point, but it is cold - well, cool - in LA. I haven't been taking so many pictures because it has been mostly overcast, even rainy, the last few days. I have been caught out and gotten rained on more than once. I took this pic on the way to my friend's in Pasadena. It's unusual. I've never seen snow out here. Temps have been in the fifties, and I have no appropriate clothes (e.g.. a jacket or hoodie) with me and that's been a little inhibiting in terms of my activities. Almost as much as my jet lag. But I digress. 

My visit to Pasadena is great. I met my friend nineteen years ago, in Atlanta, and he had just started seriously dating the woman he married. Now they've moved to California, have a beautiful house and kids, and, after all this time, I finally meet her. She's pleasant, he's manic with the intensity of his career - he's a very high-powered database consultant, and he's working on cryptocurrencies. He's every bit as gregarious, but much more hyper and intense than I've known him. He's excited by all the action - a lot of government agency intrigue, too.

Alex met him about seven years ago. The three of us have a nice Irish pub dinner, and there's an open mic happening that I don't get involved with. Everybody is a 20-something singer-songwriter-guitarist. Everybody. I am none of these things.

It's Friday afternoon as I'm writing this. I've been doing some end-of-year work on my computer, Alex is writing - my visit has had a negative impact on time for that, and I completely understand that he needs to set aside some time for normal activities. So I've been on my own.

I've lounged around in bed, sleeping in, waiting for the market to close on the last Friday of 2019 (which happens at 1pm Pacific time). I have a little record-keeping to do, my investment spreadsheet to update, then, at around two, I walk a couple of blocks to Hugo's Restaurant for breakfast. It's always good, and this is the first time I've ever stayed within walking distance.

Tonight I'll see 'Dear Jerry' starring Alex's friend and film-making partner Alex Lewis. He, of Lewburger, 'Bring on the Funny' fame. I've already seen him a couple of times this week, but haven't seen the play.
Things are good. I'm having a great time. More to come. I couldn't be more grateful.

Food Comment

Breakfast at Grub: Famous for 'Crack Bacon' (their menu nomenclature, not mine. Don't do drugs). We also have some fruit, a Mediterranean scramble with fried potatoes and rye toast.

At Smörgasburg: Pastrami on artisanal sourdough bread with 'homemade' mustard. Incredible!

At Smörgasburg: Dumplings. Chicken, beef, pork with vegetables fillings. Even better than they look.

At Smörgasburg: lobster roll on fries. The lobster was as good as any I've had, and the fries weren't bad, either. A big hit! (Have I mentioned, all these foods are shared. Even I have my limits, and my eyes are bigger than my whole GI tract).

At Smörgasburg: BBQ pork belly and cole slaw. With red and green barbecue sauce. That's it - over and out. Not shown (along the way, before this, which was my last dish of the day at Smörgasburg): A 'designer' donut, and a michelada. 

At Fred'62 (no, I don't know why this restaurant is named that): Thai Cobb salad (that's a pun, son) - a cobb salad with a Thai twist that was absolutely amazing. My favorite new dish of the trip).

At Hugo's Restaurant: Papa's Pasta: Spaghetti with eggs, sausage, spinach, bacon, and other stuff too numerous to mention. Breakfast of champions. (I say that a lot).

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