Saturday...Sunday...sunshine...

After failing to dampen my spirits Friday night, Mother Nature conceded defeat and banished the rain from LA and welcomed back the sun...and some friendly fluffy white clouds for character.

On this visit to LA, Jeff and I tried a new hotel...Le Montrose...a small, hip design hotel tucked away in a residential section of West Hollywood. This proved to be the ideal location for short walks for coffee and an early Saturday breakfast at the Abbey.


Saturday was a busy day. We drove down scenic Sunset Blvd from WeHo through Beverly Hills, Bel Aire, and Brentwood to reach Pacific Palisades and Malibu...and our midday destination, the Getty Villa. This popular museum specializes in Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities housed in a villa inspired by a first-century Roman country house, the Villa dei Papiri in Herculaneum, Italy.








Saturday evening was an early birthday present from my dear friend Chris. We started with dinner at Pete's Bar and Grill in booming downtown LA...I ordered the perfect strip steak. We followed dinner with the LA production of Avenue Q at the LA Music Center...next door to the iconic Disney Concert Hall. Avenue Q is the hysterical tale of puppets trying to make ends meet in New York City. Think Sesame Street peppered with salty language, racy songs, and sweaty...er, felty...puppet sex.

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU Chris for a perfect birthday present :)




We finished the evening with the best mojitos and the best music at the Abbey.


After drinks and music till 2am, we took Sunday morning a bit slower. We enjoyed a decadent Champagne brunch at The Peninsula Beverly Hills with Chris and Sherry. Everything was divine. On the way to the restaurant, we bought a Map to the Stars. Below, you can see the front gate of the MTV-made-famous Osbourne home, and the supposed front gate of Phil Collins' Beverly Hills home.

The perfect storm (with a side of bacon)...

There are a few recurring themes in my blog: flying is unpredictable, there are way too many people in the world, and rain. This past Friday was the trifecta...all three converged to TRY and ruin my evening. Instead they just made for a tale to remember.

On Friday, we flew down to Los Angeles so that I could catch Genesis at the Hollywood Bowl--the band's second-to-last concert on the Turn It On Again reunion tour. I had caught them earlier in the week in San Jose with Jeff, and we had a blast...but this LA show was destined to be extra special.

I could recount the endless stream of roadblocks that day: the heavy rains in San Francisco, the flooding on the elevated freeway in SF, our delayed flight from SFO, the slow luggage and car rental at BUR, and of course LA traffic at the Bowl causing me to miss the beginning of the concert. And then there was the rain that moved south, dousing the stage and ending the concert early.

But that's not what I remember about Friday evening. My memories?

My first concert at the Hollywood Bowl. How the constant rain...from drizzle to fine mist to downpour...melded with the pulsing lights in and around the Bowl to created a magical glow. The band's unscripted reactions to the weather...Phil Collins' quips and gestures, the failing equipment, the errant fireworks into the audience. The extra energy generated by both band and audience to combat the elements. The drugged-out bleached blond crying and screaming "it never f***ing rains here"..."why why why". The amazing hot dog wrapped with bacon from the street vendor on my long, wet walk back to the hotel.

This was a concert you tell stories about. This was a show to remember. (And yes...these are the CRAPPY images you get with a camera phone in the dark.)

A few thoughts on the concerts themselves...

I have to say that my emotions and expectations were high for these shows. Genesis is one of those bands that I loved in the 80s and 90s...my FAVORITE band...but I only saw them once in concert...a memorable show at RFK Stadium in Washington. Genesis hasn't toured or put out new music (with Phil Collins) since that show over 13 years ago.

But I think the lack of new music was a benefit on this tour. Genesis was able to tell a story versus sell a new release. They played songs from the 70s, 80s, and 90s...and the fans responded to their favorite era.

For me, the appeal of Genesis is their ability to merge a top-40 sound and energy with the long-form, art-rock style. On this tour, the band created seamless extended mixes of songs...with pulsing instrumental sections that had their middle-aged fans standing, cheering, and playing air drums.

I'm glad that I got to see them twice on this tour, which may very well be their last. I was thrilled to share my passion for Genesis with Jeff, in San Jose...where we got to see the entire show, including the encore. And I was thankful to catch a unique show in LA...a show that has all the fans talking.

For my own records, I looked up the song list from the two shows...identical sets except for the final two songs, which are from the encore that was rained out in LA:

- Behind the Lines / Duke’s End / Turn It On Again
- No Son Of Mine
- Land of Confusion
- In The Cage / The Cinema Show / Duke’s Travels / Afterglow
- Hold on My Heart
- Home by the Sea / Second Home By The Sea
- Follow You Follow Me
- Firth of Fifth / I Know What I Like
- Mama
- Ripples
- Throwing It All Away
- Domino
- Drum Duet / Los Endos
- Tonight, Tonight, Tonight / Invisible Touch
- I Can’t Dance
- Carpet Crawlers

Carbrella...

The skies opened up this morning in a heavy, cold rain. As you might expect, the first couple of storms of the season always throw people off...the driver above is no exception.

We were making our way to work, and we noticed this car in front of us driving with the door slightly ajar and with an umbrella sticking out. No, not a parked car...a moving car.

Either the car door wouldn't shut, and the driver decided to drive with an umbrella for protection...or the umbrella wouldn't shut and the driver was determined to hang on tight.

Either way...this person is an idiot.

Of course, I looked like an idiot scrambling to find my camera in my bag...praying that the light wouldn't change...cursing at the light for changing too soon...cursing that I couldn't grab an in-focus shot.

I suppose the rain affects us all in different ways :)

Eating your cake too...

This quote from today's SF Chronicle was supposed to reflect the City's growing frustration with our homeless problem. I just found it amusing how easy it is for San Franciscan's to work a George Bush dig into just about any issue...even an issue he has no relation to: "People have realized they can still hate George Bush, but not want people crapping in their doorway."

You just KNOW that you're unpopular when you are compared with poop on the porch!

A full Sunday...

We started off our Sunday with brunch at a new restaurant in our neighborhood. Le P'tit Laurent is a tiny French bistro, which opened a few months ago in a space formerly occupied by a bar. The restaurant hasn't even finished painting its exterior, but there is always a line out the door for dinner. Fortunately, we awoke early this morning, and beat the brunch crowd by just a hair.

The food was wonderful. I had a Croque Monsieur , and Jeff had a ham and Gruyere omelette. We will definitely try this spot for dinner. Its a welcome addition to our neighborhood.



This afternoon, after we had finished a ton of little errands, we hopped across the hill to wander through the Castro Street Fair. This street fair has all the arts and crafts of a typical SF festival, but with all the color and pulsing music you would expect from the Castro.

Blur...

I'm really drawn to this simple image I shot somewhere along my trips this week. Its similar to other shots I've done with this same theme...the hectic blur that is life.

A bit of LA art...

When I visit the LA civic center Federal Building, I always park across the street at the Los Angeles Mall, a lonely, isolated shopping center from the early 1970s.

During my numerous visits, I've noticed the odd art sculpture at the street-level of the mall. I've never stopped to examine the structure...only rushed past it to get to a meeting or grab a quick bite in the sad food court.

But on this visit, I circled the structure, and tried to figure its purpose. There is no explanation of its odd concrete and glass form...just a small metal plaque at its base with the name "Triforium".

So, I looked up an article on the Triforium, and its creator Joseph Young. The sculpture was dedicated in 1975, and is noted as "the world's first public sculpture to integrate light and sound by use of a computer". It is also widely ridiculed for its nearly $1 million price-tag, its frequent technical failures, and its leaking pools...which have been turned into flower beds (the lavender in my photo above). Its planned lasers and motion sensors were never realized due to cost overruns.

Still, this quirky feature of the mall is by far its most interesting. Its a reminder of the vision of a lively after-hours Civic Center, which has become overrun by cheap stores and vagrancy.

Emily returns from rehab...

The good folks at Garmin decided to replace our faulty GPS unit, and just in the nick of time. I really tested Emily on my trip to LA this week. In fact, as I sat on I-5 (pictured above), Emily's lilting British voice was welcome company. (Jeff has dubbed her "the new Emily", quoting from The Devil Wears Prada.)

It was Emily's job to route me from Bob Hope Airport, to the LA civic center, to the Santa Ana civic center, and finally to John Wayne Airport. Along the way, I ignored her to take short cuts, inserted intermediate food stops, and took several wrong turns. Emily kept with me...patiently "recalculating" at every turn.

The one upside to my "traffic time" was catching a few odd building signs along the way. You can vote for your favorite:

1. First (and my personal favorite) was the permanent sign for a Swap Meet, with a temporary sign underneath announcing a weekend tribute to Ozzy Osbourne. (This reminded me of a classic scene from Spinal Tap..."I’ve told them a hundred times: put ‘Spinal Tap’ first and ‘Puppet Show’ last.")
2. Then, there was the sign for the "Taco Bell Discovery Science Center". That's just frightening...it must be where they invent new combinations of meat + cheese + tortillas.
3. Lastly, a rather sketchy sign for surgical supplies. Its more about the quality of the sign and building...so I actually snapped a shot of the sign (below).
   

My love affair with Bob Hope...

Well...at least his airport.

For several years, I have been flying from San Francisco to various LA destinations via the tiny Bob Hope Airport...formerly know as Burbank-Pasadena Airport. This has got to be my favorite airport, because 1) it sits smack in the middle of LA and 2) it remains small enough that that there are never more than a couple of people in line.

And let's not forget 3) its not LAX...which is the exact opposite of convenient. Of course...LAX actually flies to lots of places.

But SF to LA? Bob Hope ROCKS!

Impulse snacking...

To soothe my nerves after a trying morning in the office, my dear friend Sarah recommended a new guilty pleasure: Oreo Cakesters.

These little morsels of sugar have the flavor of an Oreo...only puffed up like a balloon animal...if cookies were in fact animals...which they aren't...although Oreos do make you smile...like a puppy makes you smile...before it makes an Oreo-colored pile on the carpet.

Anyhow...in my month of celebrating new-ness, this new indulgence definitely hit a sweet spot...thanks to Sarah...my new sugar/crack dealer!

Its the most wonderful time of the year...

October rolled in with a light morning drizzle that created a classic "autumn smell" for my morning commute. For many reasons, this has always been my favorite month of the year.

The skies cleared by midday, and I was able to take a long after-work walk along Mission Street to pick up my car from its 5K check-up. My route along Mission passed the new SF Federal Building, a striking modern building by noted architect Thomas Mayne. The building is heralded for its green features--particularly its natural air conditioning fed by the city's year-round moderate temps and strong off-shore breezes. The neighborhood around the building is definitely a work-in-progress, with shocking scenes of neglect and homelessness.




This evening, Jeff and I tried a new restaurant to inaugurate a month of new experiences. We visited the recently opened Bistro 9--on 9th Avenue in the Inner Sunset--which specializes in rotisserie and grilled items. Definitely worth a repeat visit.

Blank this...

I find it ironic that the very same credit companies who put so much personal information on credit applications that junk mail becomes fuel for identity theft, that those same companies cannot be bothered to fill out my frickin' marketing opt-out form.

Of COURSE they will make me work hard to avoid having my name sold off to other junk mailers. Here is a concept...how about asking me to opt-IN before you whore me out and fill my mailbox with more forms that could compromise my identity.