On #selfies and Hashtags and Followers and Blogs

I have always been conflicted with writing a blog.  During graduate school at USC, I loved it when I started ShishBoomBang because I was new to Los Angeles and needed a vehicle to journal my adventures.  I also needed an efficient way to keep in touch with my friends and family as well as track the places that I visited and the places that I wanted to check out.  Rather than write 20+ personal emails while working as a full-time student, I just sent my kinfolk a link (how sweet of me).  Now, I am more-or-less back to the occasional and much more intimate snail mail.  

In the past year or so, I have got to wondering, are blogs egomaniacal?  They are the #selfie of a journal. Have social media applications like Facebook and Instagram made it ok for us to track and post our every move, our every meal, our every outfit?  Will our kids look back on technology circa 2014 and ask us "What were you thinking, you crazed self-centered beings?"

The thing is, even though the Internet is saturated with first person narrative.  WE, as a collective, care.  We care about the I, me's, and mine's of other people.  We follow. We like. We share. We tag. We hashtag.  When we could just opt out from the smart phone culture of today, we don't.  At all, ever. 

Some bloggers that I follow get upwards of 25K likes per photo they post within minutes of posting.  That's a whole lotta #instalove.  Do blogs actually benefit their readers or do they just glorify the author? or both? I think both. That's why I am here contributing to the blogosphere and posting a selfie. #happymonday

On Coffee & Croissants

At Alfred, where the coffee sleeves are
illustrated with mustaches. 

My boyfriend and I have gotten in the habit of waking up leisurely on Sunday mornings and going out for coffee and pastries.  We usually grab the paper and sit for an extended amount of time over mugs full of cafe au lait and whatever sweet, flaky morsel we can get our hands on.  We people watch and read the newspaper and browse social media before hitting the hills for a hike/run.  

One of our newly discovered places is Alfred Coffee on Melrose Place.  This past Sunday was the LA Marathon so rather than hop in the car we biked over via Hancock Park.  I love browsing the city on a bicycle.   

Our other favorite stops for morning coffee and viennoiserie are: 

 Le Pain Quotidien-- We go to the one in Larchmont since their Sunday Farmers Market is my favorite. Really good coffee, though not so
swoon-worthy croissants.  

Cubed sugar the French way at Le Figaro

Le Figaro Bistrot -- We go to the original location in Vermont Village at the foothills of Griffith Park in Los Feliz.  There is a newsstand adjacent to the cafe, which is perfect.  The outdoor seating is hard to come by, but certainly coveted.  

Urth Caffe-- We have yet to go in the morning together, but from past experience this cafe is perfect for a quick pastry and coffee. Their coffee cake is delish and I am a sucker for their green tea muffin.  However, they don't know how to spell Earth or Cafe very well! (kidding)

and finally 

Window displayed at our regular spot,
Trails Cafe 

Trails Cafe-- Boy and I are here just about every single weekend.  This article in the Selby captures its essence: http://theselby.com/galleries/the-trails-cafe-los-angeles/. Everytime I have a visitor from out of town we end up here.  I recommend getting there early--the line can get pretty long, but it's worth a wait. 

Photos by: author

On Making a Comeback to the Blogosphere

It has been about a year since I last wrote a blog post.  Where have I been, you ask? I am stilling living in and loving Los Angeles.  Since my last Shish Boom Bang entry, I have fallen in love, discovered a boxing gym, continued running, continued working as an urban planner, and continued to explore the city and eat/cook delicious food.  A lot has changed, but a lot has stayed the same. 

I need a creative outlet in addition to working a 9-to-5 and a rigorous workout schedule.  An Instagram account is not enough (my handle is: bljss) so I am back to the blog. Enjoy!

On My Spring Wish List

Spring/Summer is creeping up on us in LA.  It is in like a lamb in the form of brighter moods, bronzer skin, warmer air, lighter clothes, and longer days.  I am beginning to theorize that Los Angeles has two seasons: gray and well. . . not gray.  The former being the season we are breezing into, thank goodness!

With the changing of the seasons comes the relentless need to make some additions to my closet. My wishlist of things and threads includes, but is not limited, to the following:

Striped bikini from J. Crew in the sailor classic navy & blue

A weekender bag for those quick summer getaways.  

This one is from Burberry. 

Summer slip-ons.  

I like Soludo's Dali in black. 

A collection of camp blankets for impromptu picnics

and snooze/read fests in the great outdoors. My favorite

setting for an outdoor summer nap is Barnsdall Park. 

A distressed tee that is soft as skin.  

This one is from Heist. The more thread-bare the better. 

A hoodie. This patriotic one is perfect for the Fourth of July. 

Ps. Friends on the East Coast--I am planning a little LONG weekend

homecoming. Break out the BBQ and some beers--I am coming HOME!

A beer tote for my bike. This is genius! 

This is the perfect way to get to an outdoor concert. 

Speaking of which, my first concert of the season is this weekend. Holla!

On Piers

Santa Barbara Pier, photo by author

I love the coast and most things associated with the coast--lighthouses, sailboats, fishermen's sweaters, lobster traps, buoys, ropes, anchors, oh and piers.  I love me some piers. Today I read that there are three types of piers: working piers (intended for hunky fisherman and longshoremen), pleasure piers (wouldn't you like to know?!), and fishing piers (again think sexy men-types).  Despite piers' somewhat impracticality-- being a dead-end walkway over the water-- I am delighted to visit them. They are simple, robust structures that smell of tar and wooden beams.  They are solid and reminiscent of a strong, hard-working man with calloused hands.  I like to walk out to the end of a pier and gaze out into the sea.  I will stay out there until I am ready to go back to being a landlubber--sometimes that means I will stay at the pier's end for a really long time thinking about my fantasy life as a seasoned sailor.  When I am at the end of a pier suspended over the salty water thinking about boats and salt and sea, life is so simple. 

On Lena Dunham

I watch very limited TV. I do not own a television set so everything I catch is off of my Mac from Hulu+ or HBO Go or at a friend's house. Every Sunday, I make it a point to watch GIRLS.  My sis and I text commentary (mostly Emojis) back and forth while I hack into my bro-in-law's DirectTv account.  Lena Dunham has brilliantly captured what it is like to be twenty-something desperate for approval, moody, and self-entitled while, in reality, she actually is a twenty-something experiencing the same painful reality that she does on the show  (Lena Dunham certainly must not endure a painful reality these days considering that she regularly gets attention from Judd Apatow, appears on popular late night talk shows, signed a honking book deal, and probably has committed a few more seasons to HBO). Despite her prosperous state of affairs, Lena Dunham manages to write/produce/act with an insightful view into the awkward,loathful phase of being a twenty-something-year-old-women. 

Addendum: onscreen, Lena as Hannah needs to find some pants.  She needs to find some underwear that isn't Hanes her Way.  She need to invest in some  serious tattoo removal.  Most importantly, she needs to spend her time with more worthy male counterparts, but I do give her helpless/hopeless character credit. She carries the show (Can you even imagine a show centered around Shos? That would be a bantering headache).  I especially loved it when Hannah told Josh/Joshua that she liked the satisfying feel of throwing away garbage in the wrong place.  That is just so. . . . odd, and f'ed up, yet also so refreshingly and humorously real. . . well for TV.  Don't even get me started on the mesh top/cocaine incident. 


 

On My Ever Growing List

I have been in LA for close to three years.  Wow, that is weird to even type, let alone, think about. Three years went by with the blink of an eye.  One of the ways that I have gotten to know my sprawling urban home is by eating out.  Food lures me out of my KTown enclave and ushers me to locations far and wide.  My restaurants-to-visit list is growing longer and longer.  One would think after being here for a bit that it would shrink.  Not the case. Right before my very eyes, Los Angeles is getting better and better by the minute and its restaurant scene is just ka-boom blowing up.  I like it here because you can see, feel, hear, and well. . . eat new things each and every day.  It is the city that never ends.   

I will spare you from listing my each and every restaurant-to-try.  I have a honking list on my IPhone which I scroll through with at least 35 flicks of my thumb.  The highlights include: 

Plan Check :(West Los Angeles) As an urban planner-by-trade, I am drawn to the name of this place.  It seems like the perfect setting to grab a burger and a beer after pushing permits all day.  Not to mention its sleek, minimalist design and its unassuming location.

Goldie's :  (Mid-City) Modern California Cuisine which means all things earthy, nutty, and crunchy.  The eatery was inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright design--wood is likely to be ubiquitous.  Created by Nick Mathers, the man behind Eveleigh, Goldie's will be mine to dine for brunch.  I heard the menu is short which usually entails quality in simplicity. 

Bestia: (Arts District) A girlfriend with impeccable taste in food suggested that we go to this place for dinner to celebrate our long-past mutual birthday.  Bestia is a return to-its-roots Italian place that occupies an old warehouse in one of my favorite neighborhoods in all the land.  The urban-industrial feel of the Arts D. gets me every time.  Rumor has it the restaurant smells of smoked meat. Delish!

Mess Hall : (Los Feliz) Summer camp pastimes taken to a whole new level.  Mess Hall adds kale, aioli,pomegranate vinagrette, and crème to your fond memories of the camp cafeteria--not to mention booze.  They serve some cocktails in campy tin mugs.  Reader beware: this place has gotten mixed reviews, regardless, I am a fan of the concept. 

Palihouse Courtyard Brasserie: (West Hollywood) The atmosphere of this brasserie looks like it will whisk you away from urban malaise any day of the week.  I would love to grab a Friday night dinner with friends and just spend hours kibitzing with bottles of red wine and steak frites. 




If you have been to any of the above, please enlighten me and tell me what you thought of your experience! Xo.