Ruby's Shake Shack in Crystal Cove

I went for an early lunch today at the Crystal Cove. There is a great place called Ruby's Shake Shack on a cliff overlooking the beach. It's amazing.

It was featured on Rachel Ray's $40 a day. She had a shake and loved it. So I figured if Rachel loves it, it must be good. I also had the Crystal Cove hero sandwich. Very tasty.

I called my aunt on my way home and she told me that it is 30 degrees in Indiana and they had a deep frost last night. I think I'll pass on the cold and snow and stick with the sun and sand.

If you're ever on PCH between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach you have to stop at the Crystal Cove State Beach. It's gorgeous. There is a biking and walking path. Also dotted along the shore are cottages for rent. You can make your reservation online, just make sure you're planning your visit at least seven months in advance.

Day in San Diego

I realized that I've lived in So. Cal. for 13 years and I have only been San Diego a couple of times. There is so much to see - Balboa Park, La Jolla, Old Town, Mission San Diego, Sea World, Legoland, Heritage Park - lots of history, ocean views and good food. So I headed down to visit my friend Nicole.

We started siteseeing at Balboa Park. It is amazingly beautiful. We walked around to see the ampitheatre, Spanish Village, Prado Theatre, UN village, Japanese Friendship Garden and we only saw a very small part of it. I can't wait to go back to see the Botanical Gardens, visit some museums and maybe go to the zoo.

We went up to Mt Soledad vista to get a sweeping panorama of La Jolla and the ocean. It was breathtaking. It is views like this, warm 80 degree days in October that make living here worth the cost. Even though it was a little foggy it was still stunning.

We drove back down to the water's edge to see the sunset. La Jolla is one of the most photographed beachfront locations in all of California. I can see why, it's spectacular. We stopped to look at the surf and people watch. There were many getting their photos taken by the water, including several doing engagement photos. They were frolicking in the water trying to appear spontaneous and lovey-dovey.

As we strolled along the sea we saw four weddings, ranging from the very young to the very old. We noticed that you could tell the age of the bride by the number of bridesmaids she had. The number goes up exponentially the younger they are. I have to say the sweetest one was the oldest wedding of the day. To see people at least in their 60s finding love was great.

We had dinner at Top of the Cove - fantastic food and a more amazing view. The perfect cap of the night was at a place called Extraordinary Desserts. The line is a mile long to get it but do not let it distract you from visting. I had the best toasted almond and caramel chesecake. What a perfect way to end the day.

Surf, Turf, Art and Ice Cream

Today, Jen and I decided to load up the CR-V and head North. Not too far, just to Pasadena and LA.

We didn’t really have a plan. All we knew was that we wanted to go to the Huntington Gardens to see the rose, Shakespeare, and Japanese gardens, priceless works of art in the Boone Gallery, and my favorite, the sculptures.

Every time I visit the Huntington with someone new I make them pose like one of the scultpures. I think it’s great fun. Unfortunately I think we chose one of the hottest days this summer to walk around. It was like 115 degrees, seriously.

Once we roasted ourselves sufficiently Jen wanted to see Old Town Pasadena, since she’d never been. Neither of us can read a map so we fumbled with the Thomas Guide to try and figure out how to get from San Marino to Old Town. We finally found it and by accident also discovered the fabulous Colorado Street Bridge. We were stunned as we rounded the corner to see it and literally stopped traffic to get a picture, it is beautiful. Then we just wandered around the back streets in the quaint Pasadena neighborhoods with all the Craftsman houses. It was fun.

By this time we were starving, and rather than eating in trendy Old Town we headed west to LA to my favorite restaurant, Versailles on Venice Blvd for Cuban food. It is quick service, reasonable prices and amazing food. Ok, so I always order the same thing. I’m sure there are many tasty treasures on the menu but I love the garlic chicken served with black beans and white rice. I only get to eat it every few months so I savor every bite. Besides I end up smelling like garlic for about two days.

Then we headed down to Venice Beach to the boardwalk. Unfortunately we couldn’t find a parking spot, cause apparently everyone else in Southern California was thinking the same thing we were - it’s cooler by the ocean. So we just ended up driving through Venice and Marina del Rey.

Somehow we ended up on Washington Blvd that winds through Culver City, home of Sony Picture studios and a darling downtown that makes you feel like you stepped back into 1955. It is very clean and hard to believe it’s minutes from LA. So after a stop at Cold Stone Creamery we began the long trek back to South OC.

What a fantastic day.

Coyote Grill

This morning I attended a bon voyage breakfast for a co-worker at a little cafe in Laguna Beach called, Coyote Grill.

What a way to start the day, sipping coffee on an outdoor patio next to a roaring fire with a view of the Pacific Ocean. You can't help but be relaxed as the salty sea air envelops you and the coffee and fire warm you. It creates a near perfect climate and environment to enjoy your breakfast.

The house specialty at Coyote Grill is enchiladas and eggs. I was a bit skeptical but since Rachel Ray recommended it from her visit to Laguna on $40 a Day, I knew I had to give it a try. I must say, she was right, it was really tasty. I was a little worried about having enchilada sauce for breakfast but it worked like a salsa for the eggs and blacks beans. I am stuffed and very happy.

Now I just have to get from mellow mood into work mode.

Garden Grove's Strawberry Festival

Rebekah and I decided to go on a little adventure today so we headed to Laguna and had a late breakfast at The Cottage on PCH. It has a great view of the ocean and a diverse menu. It was perfect.

She was meeting another friend at 4 so we decided to venture North to Garden Grove and check out the annual Strawberry festival. I've heard about it for years but never made it until now.

I think I watch too much Food Network tv. When I think festival I think everything and anything related to the food, vegetable or fruit being celebrated. In this instance I thought there would be lots of strawberry foods, pageants, clothes, flavors, a mascot or two etc. Ummm.. not so much. Not even a contest to see who can grow the largest strawberry.

We had to hunt to find the strawberries at all. There were lots of rides, swap meet type booths and a deep fried burrito but not much strawberry type stuff. I couldn't even find strawberry ice cream. How sad is that? There was vanilla ice cream with strawberries, but no strawberry ice cream.

I guess its better than the Lemon festival we went to last year in Upland where the only booth sporting lemon anything was Albertson's grocery store with a lemon pie.

I'm beginning to think that towns in Southern California don't know how to throw a festival. Perhaps they don't know what festival means. They just need to call it a strawberry-flavored fair or something, but a festival it was not.

Harborhouse Cafe

Jeff and I, who share a love of brunch, headed north to Sunset Beach to try out Harborhouse Cafe.

I had no idea where Sunset Beach was, I had never even heard of it. Turns out its near Huntington Beach.

The web site says it is a very popular spot with locals and surfers and while its open 24/7 we opted for 10 a.m. Note to self parking is a pain. I drove around for about 10 minutes looking for a spot. I hate that. Once we parked we had a 30 minute wait. To me that is a good sign.

Once we got seated service was quick. Harborhouse has a diverse menu and boasts over 25 varieties of omlettes. I had a scramble and Jeff had the chorizo and eggs. It was okay, nothing spectacular. I was disappointed that my coffee cup sat empty for a while. We had to flag down someone to get a refill. That is a bad sign.

I don't know if it was worth the drive up there, but if you're in the area I'd choose it over Dennys, it definitely has more atmosphere. I think I most enjoyed going to the beach after breakfast to just sit and enjoy the water.

Harborside Cafe: Sunset Beach 16341 Pacific Coast HighwayCalifornia, 90742 (562) 592-5404

Bible and the People at the Huntington

Today Joanna, Erika and went to the Huntington Gardens in Pasadena to see the new installation The Bible and the People in the Boone Gallery.

This new exhibit traces the evolution of the Bible from the 11th Century through today. The written Word of God started hand-written art only available to a select few. While the pages were beautifully adorned the books, chapters and verses were inaccurate and out of order. The most reliable translation was what was passed down from priest to his congregation through an oral message of memorized passages.

We watch its transformation from an isolated word to one possessed by millions. The invention of the printing press exploded the ability to actually have your own copy. It was now something everyone could own in their home, not just visit on Sunday. Now there are many translations, kinds and it exists in most every language on the planet.

It's a fascinating study of how this one book has transformed and metamorphized to meet the needs of those who read it.

After visiting the exhibit we had tea and wandered through the rest of the gardens visiting the new children's garden , checking out the new conservatory and our favorite, the rose garden.

I highly recommend tea at the Huntington, for about $15 you're treated to three different kinds of tea (China Caemon is delicious), and a tasty buffet of cheese, crackers, little sandwiches and all kinds of desserts.

You'll need the walk around the grounds to work off your tea and the rose garden is the perfect place. One of the great things about all of the unexpected rain we've had lately is the flowers are back in bloom. We noticed some unusual names for roses - like mischief, bridesmaid, and sexy girl. Sounds more like screen names than flowers but hey who am I to judge??

So we decided to name some of the roses as follows:

• Erika named a beautiful orange rose - comquat joy. Just because she likes the sound of it.
• Joanna called a stunning pink rose - Oops, because when you make a mistake you blush that exact shade of pink.
• I named the ever popular red rose - Atonement (most of the time a girl gets a red rose is because some guy messed up).

Pick Your Favorite Procedure

On the radio this morning I heard an ad for the Cosmetic Enhancement Expo, November 5-7 in Los Angeles. An entire trade show dedicated to plastic surgery and why you need it. Executives from Extreme Makeover and The Swan will be there for casting.

This is the most insane thing. A smorgasboard of surgery. An entire convention center dedicated to making you feel bad about yourself and how surgically altering your body will make you better and worth while.

A benefit of attending the show is the opportunity to win free botox. Seminar topics include: Surgery on Friday, Back to work on Monday, Wake Up in Beverly Hills with a Brand New Smile, What's Hot in Lunchtime Makeover Procedures: Minimally Invasive Rejuvenation and Total Body Work. I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried. These are actual seminar topics.

Not in LA, not to worry, this traveling vanity show will be in a city near you in 2005.

LA Losing a Piece of History

A 4-3 vote from the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) defeated years of struggle to save the historic Ambassador Hotel.

For the past eight years conservationists, spearheaded by the L.A. Conservancy, have battled to save the legendary hotel from total demolition. The school board decided to raze the most of the grounds and build a $318.2 million complex for grades K-12.

Conservationists were hoping that the LAUSD would incorporate existing buildings into the their designs for the school and remove only what was necessary. However, the latest vote was that only the renowned night club, The Cocoanut Grove, would be preserved and a committee will decide if other historic locations in the hotel should be saved.

The famous hotel is home to many infamous moments. It is of course where Sen. Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1968 by Sirhan Sirhan. The pantry where the murder occured is one of the locations up for committee decision. Its bungalows were the home-away-from home for many celebrities like F. Scott Fitzgerald, Rudolph Valentino and Albert Einstein. After its closing in 1989 it became a stage for many movies including Pretty Woman and Charlie's Angels 2. It was used so often that it was referred to as Ambassador Studios. The hotel was also home to six Academy Award ceremonies, and was where the Oscar made its debut.

Erika and I saw a performace there last year by Dance Collage that depicted what life would have been like at the hotel in its prime through modern dance. The building itself is an architectural gem with an amazing art deco design.

I am very sad that the battle was lost. I wonder why progress has to be at the expense of history? I think we lose a sense of who we are when this happens. I love history and I love to visit historical places. My active imagination takes me back to what it must have been like in its heyday.

Buildings like the Ambassador Hotel are a part of L.A. culture, a place many argue doesn't have much to begin with. I wish they would let us have one more tour of the place before it is destroyed as an homage to what it was.

On a side note - The L.A. Convervancy offers great walking tours. Go check out some of the great architecture in the city, who knows what will be next on the chopping block.

Night with Norah

Eating tasty food, drinking hot chocolate and listening to Norah Jones under the stars, what a way to spend the evening. She, like Michael Buble, has a soothing voice. My friend Jer described her as adult-level entertainment, and that she is, which is why the Hollywood Bowl is perfect for her.

It was a good show, a mix of her first album and some of her favorite songs. I'm glad she didn't play too much from her current CD, Feels like Home, it's too country. I know that's counter-intuitive to a concert promotion of the new album but who cares.

We paid the big bucks this trip the Bowl to sit in the coveted box seats. We thought it would be a whole new world down where the tables are. It was a new world, but not the one we expected. Normally we sit with the masses up in the bench seating. Your food rests in your lap and you watch the show on the gigantic screens, cause the musicians are about an inch tall. Most everyone is fun and its a great shared experience.

Life in the box seats has its perks. Seats are definitely more comfortable and you don't need to bring your own cushions to keep your butt from going numb. There is also a table to eat on and the entertainment is definitely closer. But is it better? I guess that depends on what's important. They don't tell you that most tables are on a 30-degree angle. Anything we put on our handy pop-up table slid down. Luckily we didn't bring candles or I would have set Joanna on fire.

The boxes themselves are big enough for said table and four chairs. You can't get in or out of the box once you are seated. So if you're sitting in the back corner and need to go to the bathroom in the middle of the concert then everyone has to stand up, one chair, possibly two have to be removed for your exit. It doesn't make you a popular person, especially if you don't know your boxmates. Doesn't make those behind you love you either since now they can't see.

Luckily, Joanna and I didn't have to share a box. However, we were surrounded by some interesting characters. The most interesting would be the drunk couples that showed up an hour and a half late for the show. They were loud, bumbling and stumbling. I'm sure Norah must have heard them from the stage. I'm surprised she didn't remind them that she provides adult-level entertainment, not music for frat parties. They continued to drink through the remainder of the concert and left early. We think that the concert was merely a stop on their bar hop across Hollywood, but why buy expensive seats when the cheap seats, closer to the bar will do?

In the end, it was a cold night in the expensive seats of a really good show. It was nice to feel the cold chill in L.A. beneath both visible stars listening to fabulous music with your best friend. That is life as it is meant to be lived.