January 22nd- Spiked Heels

Formosa Cafe

Jen on stage

Kristen previewing a Doie Spring/Summer Top!

I’m one of those annoying people who rarely leaves the West side. I’m usually AWOL (Always West of Lincoln). However, this weekend we decided to have some East side adventures. I’ve grown so accustom to the small town feel of Santa Monica and Venice, that other parts of LA now feel like “the big city” (this coming from someone who lived in Manhattan for almost 7 years).

Friday night we were excited to check out Mandy’s boyfriend’s new play- Spiked Heels! It was opening night and a big group of us had tickets. We first met for dinner at Yatai, an Asian Tapas restaurant. I decided to drive and driving is not my forte. Kristen was riding shotgun and kept saying things like “you have to drive more aggressively GO!” and “Turn, NOW, follow that person, U TURN…” It was a bit stressful but we made it right on time. I loved Yatai! The food was so good and I liked the atmosphere.

From Yatai we headed to the play, where we had front row seats! A little synopsis: “Pygmalion goes awry in this contemporary comedy that explores sexual harassment, misplaced love, and the possibility of a four-sided love triangle.” The play was awesome and Jeff, Mandy’s BF, did an amazing job! I highly recommend it!

The after party was at Formosa. I had never been to Formosa- it reminded me of a scene from the movie Swingers, so LA! In fact there was some type of 40s/Rockabilly party out back, but I was too much of a wimp to try and get a photo of the people dressed up. They looked amazing. I didn’t stay long, but I would totally go back there.

January 16, 2010 - My Birthday! (Night)

Jen wore a cute Doie dress!

End of the night at Chez Jay

To top off the day, my friends invited basically everyone that I know in LA, to the back deck at Warszawa, in Santa Monica. This very laid back place is the perfect "birthday party" spot. I was surprised by what a great turnout we had! The party then continued on to Chez Jay, one of my favorite dive bars in LA. It's small but always a good time. I heard that the party then continued to a house party (this is not NYC, so nothing is open after 2am), but I was exhausted and apparently missed a lot of dancing and a really great time.

January 16, 2010 - My Birthday! (Afternoon)

Cheers!

After pilates we had worked up quite an appetite for brunch. A small group of us met at Gjelina, on Abbott Kinney, for my birthday brunch! I cannot say enough great things about Gjelina- it is by far my favorite restaurant in Los Angeles. The food is amazing, the atmosphere is great, and there is some of the best people watching and celebrity spotting of anywhere on the Westside. Speaking of celebrities, Edward Norton and a few of his friends were sitting in full view of our table. We tried not to notice him as we sipped our champagne but it was nearly impossible. When we were done eating we went outside to take a group photo. As it turned out, Edward and his friends were the only people around to take the photo! As I approached his group to see if someone could take the picture, I noticed he kind of shrank back when I approached with my camera- of course assuming that I wanted a photo with him. When I asked if someone could take a photo of us, he looked a little surprised/relieved and I thought it was pretty funny. One of his friends volunteered to do it.

After an amazing brunch we strolled Abbott Kinney and did a little shopping. Birthdays are not always my favorite but it was a pretty perfect day and we still had the night to look forward to!

January 16, 2010 - My Birthday! (Morning)

I woke up to a gorgeous sunny day and headed over to Palisades Park, which is about a block and a half away from my apartment. Every Saturday Kristen holds a Pilates mat class in the park, overlooking the ocean. It is a great workout, it's only $10 and it is the perfect way to start the day!

January 13th, 2010-Yoga

Just as with the hiking, I will not post about yoga every time I go, but my blog would not be complete without mentioning Yogahop. People joke about how everyone in LA is obsessed with yoga, but I have to say, yogahop is one of my favorite things about living in Santa Monica. It isn't traditional yoga- they blast hip hop and other great songs while you move at a pretty rapid rate. It is the best workout I have ever done and I really think that it changed my body. It may not deliver the same "zen" feeling as traditional yoga, but I always leave there feeling better.

I used to go to Maha, which is the same concept, but more of a scene. The last time I was there people were using their blackberries in "down dog" and that was pretty much it for me. It also gets so packed that it is hard to move without getting a foot or butt in your face.

January 12th-Paseo Miramar

Dead pelican- so sad
View of Santa Monica
One of my favorite things about living in Santa Monica, is the hiking. I try to hike about 4 times per week, switching it up between Paseo Miramar (photos above), Temescal Canyon, and Topanga Canyon. Paseo is usually reserved for a weekend because it is a longer hike (2hrs), but Shauna B. and I had some time today, so we decided to hit the trail. It was a gorgeous day and there were not too many people hiking. This trail is great because not only is it a great workout, but the trail is wide so you can hike side by side.

After hiking, we headed to my favorite lunch spot, Huckelberry (Lemonade runs a very close second). I love the burrata and marinated peppers sandwich. As most of you know, I abhor “American Condiments,” so I rarely eat sandwiches, but these sandwiches don’t have mayo, mustard etc… on them. They are amazing. I ended up ordering the Trio of already made salads. We debated getting one of the amazing desserts but we decided against it.

January 7- January 11-Babies and Weddings

I headed up to San Francisco for a weekend of weddings and baby showers. I went directly from the airporter stop up to Comforts, to meet up with Abbie S. and Yael M. Comforts might be my all time favorite lunch place ever in the world. The Chinese Chicken Salad is so good and we have been having lunch here since high school. We had a nice, long lunch and a good "catch up."

That night was dinner at Bungalow 44, with Justine W. We went from wanting to pick up salads at Whole Foods to somehow sitting at the bar at Bungalow and drinking champagne, eating oysters, and sharing some other dishes. The food was amazing and quite a step up from our proposed grocery store dinner. After dinner, Katie came to join us at my parents house where we watched a scary movie and they both slept over- just like Junior High... although we didn't crank call anyone.

The next day started with an awesome hike, in Mill Valley, with Lisa K. It was time to work off some of that food! Of course the hike was followed by brunch at the Dipsea Cafe. The Dipsea is one of my all time favorite brunch places. It was freezing and foggy outside and we enjoyed our brunch by the fire.

I continued to eat my way through Marin by having dinner with Stewart H. at Picco, that night. Picco is now my new favorite place to eat, in Marin. We started out with Gin and Tonics made with "Indian Tonic water." We didn't know what that meant, but it sounded fancy. All of the food was amazing but my favorite was the ahi tuna tartare with sticky rice cakes. We also liked how there was a "silent c" in the restaurant name.

After being a bridesmaid 12 times (seriously), I was excited to go to a wedding that I wasn't a part of. Not that I don't love being included in my friends' weddings (I do!), but it was nice to not be behind the scenes, for once, and to pick out my own dress. Katie's sister Meghan got married at the St. Francis Yacht Club, in San Francisco. It was a beautiful wedding and we had a great time. We headed to Balboa afterwards to meet up with some friends for a few drinks.

The next morning I went back to Marin for Johonna K's baby shower! Yael and I were two of the hosts and Yael had it at her beautiful home in San Rafael. It was a very mellow shower with lots of crafting, gift opening, and of course eating (I picked up salads from Comforts).