LACMA time

Anna and I, determined to find all the culture we can possibly get our hands on in Lala Land, have had some nice little exploits lately. Yesterday we went to LACMA with my mom and saw the Vanity Fair portrait exhibit. We really enjoyed the photos and most of what we saw at the museum, but what was most thrilling was actually the grounds of LACMA and the outdoor installations. Very cool stuff with spectacular views. It's free the first Tuesday of every month so, until we are properly and gainfully employed, you will most likely find us there on that day. We also had terrific Indian food at a gorgeous place called Electric Karma and have been regulars at a pump-your-own frozen yogurt shop in the nabe. That last one doesn't exactly count as culture, but it satisfies on the same basic level ;) Our days manage to stay busy - we cook a lot, walk anywhere we can possibly get to by foot and do loads of yoga in addition to random little artsy and craftsy projects. Here are some fun shots from this past week....

Sending Boxes

Power Up!

Power Up is the name of a women's film company in LA that I have followed from afar for years. I'm on their mailing list so I got a posting for volunteer crew work for a series of PSA's they were producing about gay marriage. I signed up for the weekend shoot and told them what I was capable of doing. Me and 7 other girls (were they all 10 years younger than me? At least!) were assigned as Production Assistants, which means the minion who do whatever they are asked to do. My first day I was in charge of the Craft Services table - keeping it clean, coffee brewed, passing out waters, setting up lunch with the caterer, etc. Boring stuff, but I was able to spend a lot of time hanging out with the Founder and Executive Producer, Stacy. I got some good networking in and even felt comfortable handing her a copy of Sondra to watch...how's that for bold? The 2nd day we were at a very nice home of a lesbian couple in the Valley. I was assigned as a 2nd AD and was still a gofer, but this time much closer to the set and doing things that were a tiny bit more pivotal to the shoot...one of which was baby wrangling for one of three triplets that were part of the gay parenting shoot. I fell in love with this little one named Xia (Shea) and didn't want to give her back. I met some amazing queer women and some great tech dudes and hopefully folks will remember me if they ever need someone on their project. Or, better, yet, I hope to have a project that enables me to hire all of these great folks! That's one thing I've always loved about directing...giving people cool opportunities!

New Year's with the Mommies!

We decided to turn New Year's Eve and Day into a slumber party and had our moms up to play. On New Year's Eve we made delicious cheese fondue with fresh baked baguette, apples, veggies all the goodies you can imagine for dipping in. We followed it by a dark chocolate fondue with angel food cake and fruit to dip in. I forgot how fun fondue is. Sitting around a pot of gooey-ness is fun all by itself. We then watched one of my all time favorite movies, Tootsie, and laughed our asses off. We were in bed by 12:01.
The next morning we made eggnog french toast with homemade cranberry sauce and then piled in the car to go for a hike/walk in Runyon Canyon. This gorgeous canyon in the Hollywood Hills is a great place to hike. As you travel up your view of the entire city (and what feels like the universe) gets bigger and bigger. It's a pretty strenuous hike and then a leisurely walk down the back path. The first part was a little tough for my mom, but she made it to the top and I was really proud of her. Anna and I go every Tuesday morning with our friend Emily. It's a great way to start the day and once you get down you feel like you've accomplished something grand.

I just can't help myself!

How frickin' cute is my neice, Bella? She's got cheeks for days and I just want to eat her like a sun ripened peach!!!

Our little travels...

I've been called many things in my day, but never a "Blogger-slacker". Now that the cold wind of shame has pricked up the hairs on my neck, I will blog. BLOG dammit BLOG. I have no good excuse for my absentia except to say that I have felt a bit uninspired, even to write and, as I think anyone who blogs feels sometimes...is anyone reading anyway? But, since December was full of unemployed adventures, I shall blog. Anna and I went to Las Vegas for 4 days to spend time with two of our dearest NY friends, Randy & Roger and to see spectacular theater. We had no idea such exciting things were happening in Vegas. I used to travel there as a kid - my dad was producing Circus of the Stars which took place in a circus tent pitched on the grounds of Caesar's Palace and my mom and brother and I would take a week every summer to swim and run around this lavish hotel while my dad worked. My Vegas memories are good ones, but they are very limited in scope. This time, my first time back on about 17 years, I realized that Vegas is truly Disneyland for adults. We ate incredible food, saw 5 beautiful productions and spent endless hours watching the choreographed fountains outside our Bellagio room. The four of us fell in love with this...installation and caught it as often as we could. We would plan our meeting times around the fountain schedule and would run back to the lake from the street every time we heard the heavily piped music kick in. We had a great escape and enjoyed our time with the gracious gents immensely.

The following weekend we drove up to Cambria to visit Anna's dad and his wife, Margaret. They are retired and have built a lovely home on a cliff in the Cambria hills and have turned the lower two rooms into a B & B. Which means that whenever we stay we get to have the cute little guest room with the fireplace and special breakfasts made for us. Can't beat that. The next day Anna's sister, Sandy and 4 of her 6 children came over. Anna and I have always adored the Rivera kids (who range in age from 11-28) and have watched them grow up in our 16 years together. Venus, the oldest, is now married and 8 months pregnant! We are still not sure how that happened, considering she's only 15 in our heads, but it sure did. We got to meet the adorable hubby and Galaxia's boyfriend as well. All good people. We played silly board games, ate pizza and sundaes and had a great time taking over The Frog Palace as if it were our own.

BECKETT was born!!!

Two of our very dearest friends had their baby yesterday - Beckett Theodore Austin Lopez! How great is this picture of happy mommies and their adorable little guy? I'm jealous of this one...I want to be raised by B & G! How fun would that be? He's bound to be the smartest, funniest, most sensitive and creative little guy EVER!