Santa Anita Racetrack

D and I spend the day at the races in Santa Anita.  Beautiful day, beautiful horses, and tons of fun having a weekend off together.

Flying V

I went on a walk this morning along a local trail.  It was wonderful to be outside and smell the salty air of the Pacific Ocean and feel the cool breeze against my skin.  One of things that still astounds me about living on the coast, is the amount of wild birds.  Especially now, as so many birds are commuting on to their next destination.  For whatever reason, our home to seems to be a proverbial highway of wild animals. So far I've seen migrating Pacific Grey Whales, dolphins, butterflies, and lots and lots of birds.  Most recently, I've found myself being drawn to the California Brown Pelicans.  Its fun to look down the coast and try to count the number of consecutive "flying-v's" of pelicans.  They look so regal and powerful as they glide over the beaches or as they swoop down and skimp the ocean's surface for a snack.  I never really paid much attention to pelicans before, but here, they're everywhere and you can't help but be drawn to their elegant flight patterns. I found a cute poem about pelicans by Dixon Lanier Merritt, that I'd like to share with you:

"A wonderful bird is the pelican
 His bill can hold more than his belican.
 He can take in his beak
 Food enough for a week;
 But I'm damned if I see how the helican."

Perhaps in my next reincarnation into this world, I'll be a pelican?  Or maybe a golden eagle?  I've always thought mountain lions were cool too.  Will have to think about that one for a while, before I make my final decision.  Its good to have those kind of decisions made ahead of time.

Smiling Faces

"Smiling faces . . . smiling faces sometimes . . ."  Name that tune!

Recently, D and I finished a mini project around our apartment. The project was putting up happy pictures of friends and family throughout our apartment.  This may sound like a minor project, and realistically it is, but the effect of our newly decorated home has had amazing results.  It is amazing what putting up a few pictures here and there of smiling faces or happy memories can do to the ole' morale.  D and I have had a rough couple weeks struggling with work and being down in LaLa land.  Although we certainly enjoy the sunny weather down here and there are plenty of cool places left to explore, we needed a little pick me up.  Most of the pictures that we put up are from our wedding or things surrounding our wedding.  We have some right by our front entrance and as soon as we walk in the door we are greeted by an array of smiling faces.  So if there's anyone else out there feeling a little blue or needs a little pick me up, I highly recommend making a trip to Target grabbing some cheapy frames and throwing up some happy memories on the wall.  Or as one unknown author said once "The world always looks brighter from behind a smile."

Baby Shower

Two weeks ago I took a trip up to the PNW (aka Pacific Northwest) and had a ball catching up with family and friends. One of my dear friends brought two beautiful twin girls into the world this past December and my other close friend is expecting her own little bundle of joy to make her appearance in May.  Here are some pictures from the day:

Pink Sweets Bar - Cake pops, sugar cookies, donuts, apple fritters, rock candy, taffy, gum balls, and pink chocolate kisses (red velvet cupcakes were added later)

Cuddling with the beautiful girls

Boys and their toys

D's childhood friend and best man in our wedding, C, was in town a couple weeks ago for a business trip.  We sat around our apartment, reminisced on old stories, snacked on chips and salsa, and sipped on brews. Their friendship spans more than 20 years, but they both have always had a slight competitive edge around each other, and this last visit was no exception. D busted out the Wii Sports Resorts and a fierce battle between the buddies ensued.  Pretty soon, it got to be so heated that they forgot I was even in the room.  Thank goodness for sneaky digital cameras, they really do help to capture those special moments.

Farmer Hoggett

www.imbd.com

This last weekend, D and I both had the WHOLE weekend off!  What a concept!  One day, we too shall lead our lives filled with weekends off, but in the mean time, we'll deal with the sporadic few that do happen.  I bought us tickets to go see the play "Elevator" in a small theater in West Hollywood. We intended to grab dinner ahead of time and just happened to stumble across Hugo's while parking our car.  As we sat down at our cozy table for two inside the restaurant, I looked at the menu and became instantly concerned. We had just stepped into the stereotypical Socal hippy/sustainable/organic/vegetarian/vegan restaurant. Although I'm open to several of those items, D tends to be little bit more skeptical in experimenting in that arena. Luckily, we agreed to stay and give it a try.  Always fun to try something new!  I took a sip of my water and gazed casually around the restaurant before locking my eyes on an elderly gentleman sitting at a booth by himself.  I slowly turned to D and whispered "That's the guy from 'Babe'!"  On a side note, I am fairly talented in remembering and placing actors from different movies, but I don't always remember their real names.  After a quick search on his smart phone, D whispered to me, "His name is James Cromwell," and then proceeded to tell me a quick recap of Mr.Cromwell's theatrical career. He has an extensive past in movies and it is rather silly that my first connection of Mr.Cromwell was of his role as Farmer Hoggett in the mid-90s family movie called "Babe."  You know . . . the one about the pig, who wants to be a sheep herding dog?  Haven't seen it?  Oh well, nevermind then.  He was the warden in "Green Mile," does that ring a bell at all?  Well, either way, we had a delicious meal and enjoyed our first "star" sighting together.  The play was a lot of fun too!  Perhaps D and I need to start hanging out more in West Hollywood?

Non-fiction

I've been on a non-fiction kick lately in the book department. I typically stay within the fiction category, but lately I have been venturing more and more into the non-fiction realm. It started with reading a book written by one of my idols, Jane Goodall. She wrote "In the Shadow of Man" in 1970s and it has been re-released in various different versions since. This book talks about her first observations and experiences with researching Chimpanzees in Africa. I first read her book when I was in high school and I was lucky enough to attend several of her lectures and even meet her in person! Its amazing to me how such a strong powerful woman can be contained within her demure English-sized stature. My most recent book is called "Half the Sky - Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide," written by Nicholas Kristof and his wife Sheryl WuDunn. I'm only half-way through and it has already stirred and awoken my awareness and interest in international human rights. I studied international human rights in graduate school and also in various other stages of my education, and find the topic fascinating. In this stage of my life, I want to make a difference and actually do something for the world. Although I can't at this point travel the world tackling international human rights issues, I can certainly help with things locally. After my stint with Team in Training is officially finished for the year, I'm interested in getting involved with Homeboy Industries, which helps to provide education and job training for at-risk youth in the LA area. I'll keep you posted on how it goes!  Any other non-fiction reading suggestions?