visit to san francisco and other things

Filed Under goings on, love, travelin' moon | 4 Comments

Last weekend I went to San Francisco, which always makes me happy. I was there for work primarily, but RJ decided to surprise me by driving up with some of his friends to hang out with me. It was short, but sweet…

yum yum during fleet week

~
We walked up the steepest part of Fillmore St and looked back over the Bay where fleet week was in full force. We also ate at the yum yum yum restaurant called Cha Cha Cha. Delicious and rich…
~
cha cha cha from above

~
While I was gone, the mold was being removed from my home. It was crazy chaos when I returned, but I have since been able to turn it into organized chaos that makes my home livable. The best story about this is how Marceau reacts when I disappear behind the zippered, plastic encasement. He gets as close as he can and mews loudly with worry over my disappearance into the abyss until I reappear and tell him I am fine. It’s the cutest gesture of concern…
~
20 marceau happy that i am safe
~
If you’re really curious, you can see the full chaos in photos right here.

I am looking forward to this weekend and having no set plans. Happy Friday!
*

weekend work

Filed Under travelin' moon | 1 Comment

This weekend I am headed to this city…

Can you guess which one it is?

A) San Diego, CA
B) Chicago, IL
C) Houston, TX
D) Wasilla, AK
E) Portland, ME

HINT: They drill, baby, drill near there…
{Thank you Sarah, for correcting the expression for me}

Wednesday, NYC

Filed Under travelin' moon | 2 Comments

My final day in NY was also wonderful. I worked for about half a day and then went about town exploring. I took myself up to the Met and finally saw the Superheros exhibit that I missed last time I was in town. I enjoyed it, but was underwhelmed. I think it could have been very cool if it had been a little bigger, the collection I mean.

The good thing about my heading up to the museum is that I got to stroll my way through central park. I love central park and how you can disappear under the quiet of the trees while the city pulses around you. I sat down in the grass next to all the sun bathers and readers and fell asleep! Yes, I fell deep into a central park sleep, only to awake and feel refreshed and rejuvenated and not the least bit sunburned. Hooray!

sit with me quietly and take in all the beauty i wanna dive into your ocean lady

I then traveled back downtown where I took my cousin and her family out to dinner for Thai food as a thank you for letting me stay with them. It was a nice change to stay with people rather than in a hotel…

Finally I went out for drink with my friend Matt and we caught up on life, love, work and art.

I know it sounds completely crazy, but I found a part of myself that was missing before I went to NY. I knew it was missing. And I can’t even really describe what it is that I found, but I feel so much better now than I have in quite awhile. It’s amazing to me that my trip to NY was initially fraught with drama, disappointment and frustration, but that it turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to me right now.

Now that I have returned to LA, I hope this good feeling lasts. Otherwise I’ll have to move to New York City. Now that would be a trip.

Tuesday, NYC

Filed Under travelin' moon | 5 Comments

Tuesday began after midnight when I couldn’t get to sleep at a decent hour {I thought I was over the time zone switch, but I was wrong}…

I am staying with my cousin in her new home in Battery Park City and her condo faces West, which means that I have a floor to ceiling view of the river and New Jersey. It’s a very beautiful view to go to sleep with and to wake up to, so I took a photo and happened to catch my reflection in the window. I am not a good photographer, but I think these are rather cool shots.

me in the window "in the city"
*click on either one for a bigger view

I then had a good night sleep followed by a wonderful day of studio time and theatre.

In planning for my trip to NY, I had my eye on a play called August: Osage County by Tracy Letts and was thrilled to see that much of the original cast was still performing, so I hoofed it on down to the less popular TKTS booth at South St in hopes of getting a discount ticket. I arrived an hour before it opened and I arrived just in time because about 20 minutes later, the line was winding up the street. {And I did have to get to work after all}.

I got my ticket for 25% off and went happily to the studio to lead a teacher class, which always puts me in very good spirits.

Finally, it was 6:30 and I took the subway up to good old 42St and walked in the sea of people up to W 45th. The excitement and rush I got as I pushed through the tourists made me giddy. {because I, of course, am not a tourist}

sea of tourists

When I reached the theater and followed the people pouring in, I felt so alive and right. I was in the right place for my heart and my soul today: right at home in the theatre.

And this amazing play was 3.5 hour long with two intermissions, but I tell you, it went by so fast because the performance was phenomenal on every level. The set was awesome, the writing was brilliant and the acting was superb. I laughed, I cried, I gasped, I groaned, I held my breath, I laughed, I cried, and I recognized. And it really couldn’t have been better.

My boyfriend tries to convince me that theatre is dead, or irrelevant, and while I understand his point of view, I disagree. The house was packed for a three and a half hour family dramedy. Who says theater is dead? You just have to pay a pretty penny for it is all…

But seriously, tv and film will never replace live theatre for me. And yeah, those musicals are good too, but the straight plays, the brave stuff, the relevant stuff, the truthful stuff…is better than any beautiful “musically-scored-to-let-you-know-what-to-feel” scene in a movie or tv show. {I like tv & movies and I like many musicals, ok? So don’t get bent out of shape.}

After the show I re-entered the sea of tourists {I am still not a tourist} and headed home thoughtful and satisfied. My heart has been ailing and tonight I found a way to heal her.

Monday, NYC

Filed Under travelin' moon | 3 Comments

Yesterday turned out to be a pretty easy and lovely day. I faced work bravely and was met with graciousness. Perhaps the messenger gets shot, but makes a full recovery…

Later I met Mike for some dinner at V*ynl in Hell’s Kitchen where the decor is fun and the bathrooms have famous people themes such as Dolly Parton…

it's just soooo hip.
candid beach balls in the sky

dolly's in the bathroom

In the bathroom there was also a Dolly doll and her music was playing on the speakers directly above the toilet. In the other bathrooms were Elvis & Cher to name a couple…
*
This place was oh so hip…too bad the food was only so so.

keep looking »