I Devour LA, Part 5

Today started off right, with a cruise over to Roscoe's for some fried chicken and waffles. Surely I don't need to describe how delicious this was:


Sheeeeeeeeeet. That was some good eating. Then the heat came in, making me feel sleepy and uninspired. Spent most of the day half-asleep on the couch.

Fortunately, we got it in gear and put together a little beach cookout. We arrived just in time to see the sun set.


Bill got the fire started...


...and it wasn't long till I had a couple of dogs out over the flames.


The dogs were phenomenal. Here the gang enjoys the cookout:


Glenn takes it to the next level with some marshmallows:


The finished product:


It was pretty great to spend the night at the beach. LA living is pretty sweet.

Later I put Petey inside the couch.

I Devour LA, Part 4

Woke up at Pat's house craving coffee and something sweet. We walked across the street to a really nice, Dean and Deluca-esque cafe, where I loaded up on coffee and a delicious strawberry muffin. Never even heard of a strawberry muffin before. It was goooood.



Spent the afternoon driving from one cafe to another, looking for free Wifi and a good place to work. Then, acting on a hot tip from Michelle, I had the pleasure of dining al fresco at Yuca's Tacos. This place was amazing. Needless to say, after devouring a carne asada and a carnitas taco, I had to go back up and order a shredded beef taco, as well. All were delicious. Simple, excellent food for cheap. I like being back in civilization.



Then of course I spent the evening cheering the Phils! Still having trouble getting my head around them being in the World Series. Wow. We celebrated by driving over to a highbrow fast food joint called The Oinkster that we read about online. It was somewhat overrated, but still tasty. Take a looksee at my pulled pork sandwich and fries. Apparently I should have used a flash.

I Devour LA, Part 3

I started out the day at Tropical, once again, though I skipped the guava cheese pie and just went straight up mango shake and coffee. Once again, delish!

I've really been haunted by a salad craving the last couple of days. Got a recommendation and drove out to Tender Greens in Culver City. It was a bit of a schlep, but check out my grilled chicken cobb salad! It was pretty amazing, and I wanted to eat everything on the menu.



This thing totally filled me up for the rest of the day, and shockingly it was the last thing I ate. No dinner, no late night munchies, no nothing. Very unlike me. Of course, happy hour was the exception. Got together with Bill and Abby at their favorite margarita joint. I went old school w/ a straight up margarita at first, but then succumbed to peer pressure and ordered a frozen strawberry version next. In a word: awesome.



Here we are, enjoying our cocktails.



The night ended at the old LA Forum. If you squint real hard, you might see Weezer in this photo.

I Devour LA, Part 2

My first full day in LA starts with a bang. I have 2 favorite breakfasts, one on the East Coast (Middle Eastern eggs and coffee at Cafe Mogador, NYC) and one on the West. (Needless to say, when in DC I just make breakfast at home. No point going out.) I am completely obsessed with Cafe Tropical, and my first visit of the trip did not disappoint! Behold:



That there is a fresh mango shake, and a slice of guava cheese pie. Not shown: the best cup of coffee I've had in at least a year.

Here's a closer look at that guava cheese pie. Indescribably delicious.



Later I rented a car and spent the day getting lost in LA. It was fun to explore the city myself, as opposed to being schlepped around by friends as I usually do. I got a nice feel for the city, being out there alone.

Stopped off at a scenic overlook along Mulholland Drive. Here's the view:



All that driving got me hungry, so I swung by the Farmer's Market for a nice outdoor lunch. At the time, I thought I was going to the Phillies/Dodgers game, so figured I'd eat light. The tickets wound up falling through at the last minute, but this was still a pleasant lunch on the lighter side: turkey, cheese and tomato crepe. And it was totally gorgeous outside.



Got lazy and just ordered some takeout for dinner, to accompany the Phils.

More good eats to come...

I Devour LA, Part 1

Twenty minutes after touching down in Long Beach, I found myself standing in line for what I hope to be the first of many Mexican delicacies. A dude out on the sidewalk was frying up what appeared to be intestine tacos...so my gringo friend and I decided to play it safe and order from the regular menu inside. One carnitas burrito with everything, coming right up!



Doesn't look like much, but it was loaded with yummy grilled pork, and amazing feta-like Mexican cheese. Though I do love my cheddar and sour cream, this was a nice authentic change of pace.

Here's Petey the cat attempting to take a sip of my Brisk. Petey has been all up in my grill piece for 2 days now. I am not cut out for cat ownership.

A Poll For My 3 Readers

I knew there'd come a point where I'd regret not writing more often, cultivating a readership, etc.. And here it is. My last post inspired an interesting little mini-debate that I've still got on the brain. I'd really love to know what people think about this issue. So, my 3 readers, please comment!

Essentially, the question is this: is it wrong (or racist, or etc.) to make a generalization about a specific ethnic/racial/etc. group of people if the generalization isn't a negative one?

For example, if someone were to say, "The Jews are smart," am I supposed to be offended by this? (I'm not).

Or, if I were to say, "Girls are pretty." Is that bad/sexist?

In other words, does racism/etc. imply negativity. Or is it the act of generalization itself that we are supposed to avoid.

I admit I'm somewhat torn. Weigh in!

Notes From My MRI

I celebrated the start of a wonderful new work week by having my head examined. Literally. In a seemingly never-ending quest to figure out why my ears have been ringing for the past 4 years, I subjected myself to an invigorating brain scan Monday afternoon. First, I couldn't have any coffee or food beforehand (unless I wanted to get up super early, at like 9am or some shit. No thanks.). Second, it was way out in Maryland someplace, requiring a schlep out across dreaded New York Avenue and beyond. And third, I wasn't sure if you are allowed to wear contacts to an MRI, so I donned glasses, which always makes me feel all weird and out of it for some reason.

Anyway, like a mole I appeared blinking into the bright lights of the MRI waiting room. And from there, let the observations begin!

1. [removed by PC Police]

2. I don't think the dude that guides you through an MRI procedure should be wearing high-top sneakers. Makes me nervous.

3. Me: "I wasn't sure if I could wear contacts or not." MRI dude: "Unless they're made of steel, you can." Touche.

4. When they ask if you want a blanket, say yes. It's freezing in that tube!

5. Did you know an MRI is so loud you have to wear earplugs? It's true. And as a regular wearer of earplugs, I was quite impressed by the selection. Asked the MRI dude where he got them and he looked at me like I was crazy.

6. If you can forget that you're basically lying in a coffin, an MRI can be quite relaxing! For the first ten seconds or so, I felt really claustrophobic, then got really really relaxed by repeating the following mantra: "people are at work right now. people are at work right now. people are at work right now." Ah, MRI. It's all relative.

7. In this day and age, can't they put Wifi up in the MRI tube somehow? You mean they're looking at my brain but can't figure out how to let me read about the Phillies at the same time? C'mon.

8. What if you're really fat? Can you fit in there?

9. I often read about baseball players having to go get an MRI. How does this work? Do they just dip their ankle (or whatever) into the machine? Is there a different MRI machine for non-head scans? Do they still have to go all the way in the tube to have a shoulder looked at? I need answers.

10. One of the most difficult questions I've ever attempted to answer is: "How did your MRI go?" Since they don't tell you anything when you're done (I guess the doctor will contact me at some point?), this basically amounts to "How did your sit in that chair go?" or "How did standing up go?" Um, it went pretty well, thanks. I lied on my back and waited for it to be over. That's about it. Ultimately kinda boring.