April 2014

April got off to a great start with a visit from my mom. First stop on our Los Angeles area art tour was the Hollywood and Vine metro station, which features the works of Gilbert 'Magu' Lujan.

We stumbled across Ellen's star on the Walk of Fame, which auspicious sign of our plans for later in the day.

We also stopped by Hollywood Forever cemetery and visited the graves of many greats including Mel Blanc, voice of Bugs Bunny (and many other animated classics).

In the afternoon we met up with friends Teri and Andrea to attend a taping of Ellen. It was fun to see guests BJ Novak, cute Luke Bryan, a skilled teen magician, and beauty expert Kym Douglas. The entire audience and I got a huge kick out of watching Mom's dance moves... she was one highlight reel away from making it big!

During some downtime that evening, we skyped with my darling nephew Henry. Can't get enough of that little guy! Next time Sarah will have to join us for a girls' weekend.

Next stop on the area art tour: the Watts Towers. Built over the span of thirty years by Simon Rodia, the concrete mosaic tours were an impressive site to see.

On a whim we found another LA treasure hidden in a neighborhood: Rancho Los Cerritos. The historic home and museum was like a little oasis in the hustle and bustle of Long Beach.

Joined by Adam, we met up with Teri for a dinner at Nick's on 2nd in Belmont Shores. What fun!

On our last full day, my mom and I played the tourist role again- checking out some spots on my southern California bucket list. We fueled up at Stumptown Coffee Roasters then headed to The Last Bookstore.

The fanciful bookstore provided more than just books for sale as novels cascaded down the walls, arched over walkways, and came to life in a colorful rainbow (this LA Times article sent me there).

We made a quick stop at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA, which honestly would not be worth a repeat trip).

For lunch we stopped at Langer's Delicatessen where we had hot pastrami and corned beef sandwiches. We turned to Wikipedia for a history lesson on the nearby MacArthur Park while sipping on probably the best cream soda I have ever had.

After lunch we went to the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art (LACMA). A couple pieces of art reminded us of our stop at the Watts Towers including the piece above "Burn, Baby, Burn" which initially was a commentary on the Vietnam War but soon also came to represent the chaos of the Watts riots.

The other piece of art was by Gloria Stuart ("old Rose" from Titanic)! In the zoomed-in pic above you can see her depiction of Simon Rodia.

I can't help but mention the Diane Von Furstenberg exhibition that paid tribute her iconic wrap dress on its 40th anniversary. Mom was overcome with nostalgia for the dress she wore to threads (above, but in green).

As the day wound down we made one final stop at Blum & Poe, an art gallery that I heard about through Gwyneth Paltrow's lifestyle publication GOOP. We browsed the works of Yoshitomo Nara, which apparently go for top dollar among certain celebrity circles.

After Mom left life returned to normal for a bit while I continued my education elective. On Palm Sunday I officially became a member of Christ Lutheran Church in Long Beach.

In between shifts I was able to sneak down to Oceanside for 36 hours to meet up with friend Chelsey. Adam and Chelsey re-met for the first time since Chelsey's wedding nearly seven years ago.

Joel and 15-month-old Max were there as well, and we all enjoyed some time by the beach.

Though the trip was brief, I cannot think of better company for a mini vacation. We played in the sand, walked down pier, ate some over-sized pizza, saw the Top Gun house, and most importantly spent quality time catching up.

Then it was back to the grind at Harbor for a historic transition. We said goodbye to the crowded old emergency department.

With a small little ceremony of shared fond memories, we closed the doors once and for all. The new space is almost too nice to be true, but the old space will be missed in all its imperfections.

Juliana and I went for a scenic run through the Ocean Trails Reserve in Ranchos Palos Verdes.

Adam and I took at turn at the wheel- the pottery wheel, that is. We enjoyed making lopsided creations at Clay even though we never had a chance to reenact that scene from Ghost.

Adam and I also made it to another Magic pre-release event before I had to head into work for a night shift. The tournament was fun, and I sure showed that room of boys- placing third as the only female competitor!

Finally, April wrapped up with a 44-hour trip to the Bay area. I met up with college friends Jenn and Robert, who are now married and enjoying residencies in Boston (psychiatry and emergency medicine, respectively).

We went for a walk and had some tasty Mexican food on our first night. Then in the morning we ran off the calories as we jogged along the San Franciscio bay through Crissy Field to the Golden Gate Bridge.

It was a gorgeous run past public artworks, parks, and even some playful sea lions!

We ran into Robert and made our way back through the grounds at the Palace of Fine Arts. In the afternoon we had a tasty meal at Good Luck Dim Sum.

We took a drive through the Presidio. In the evening we watched the Giants defeat the Padres.

The next morning we picked up Jenn's grandmother Mo and took her to Ghiradelli Square for some decadent ice cream sundaes.

Then we walked down the Hyde Street Pier. I also got to see some of the iconic Painted Ladies. Before I had to go to the airport, we went for a hike around Stow Lake in Golden Gate Park. What a month!