My long time friend Gautam (known simply as “G” or “G Man” due to our inability to pronounce his name correctly) was out here for work this week. He stayed in San Diego but agreed to drive up to LA for the day to hang out with me and Matt. We took him on a sort of whirlwind tour.

Apparently I suck at giving directions. While I told him how to drive to our complex, I didn’t remember to tell him to park. Oops. I eventually found him and we headed off to Super Mex in Sunset Beach for lunch. He’d had Mexican the night before but didn’t protest too loudly at being dragged there for chicken enchiladas.

From Sunset Beach we went back to the apartment to try to figure out what to do next. Consulted the California Lonely Planet and decided visiting the Getty and Hollywood were good choices. G quickly learned that seeing much of the touristy things in LA requires serious freeway time.

The Getty Center, an art museum housed in a gorgeous building with gardens, was crowded but still interesting to visit. Sadly it was too smoggy of a day to get a good view of the surrounding area.

Next we headed (via surface streets due to traffic stupidity on the 405) to Hollywood and Highland. Discovered you can park right in front of Hollywood High School anytime after six on Saturday. Walked around the Hollywood/Highland area before grabbing frozen yogurt that was similar to what Pink Berry’s supposed to be like but was called something different. Tasted exactly like they took a cup of Dannon and stuck it in a freezer. Eww.

Our last stop was the Abby in Seal Beach, a bar with great food. Then back to the apartment for some bad TV before G had to head back to San Diego. Much, much fun. We’ll meet up with him when we’re in Stuart for Christmas.

I apologize in advance for the fact that this entry has no photos. No cameras were allowed at the taping. Mine was left sitting on Steph’s kitchen table. Quite sad.

As is the norm, the tickets you get don’t actually guarentee you get a spot in the audience. There’s so many special, reserved seats and the masses get to clammer over the rest. Thankfully we did manage to get into the audience, after waiting over an hour in the sun. They only let in a certain amount of people at a time, telling us they’d let more in once people were seated and they knew how many empty seats were left. Um, can’t you count to see?

Once inside, they separated us. Steph’s two sisters wound up farther up than us but at least we weren’t all totally by ourselves. The studio is so small! We must’ve been only thirty feet from Jimmy himself. After watching a warm-up reel featuring past musical guests they sent out a really annoying comic. We got to meet Frank the security guard and Guillermo, a parking attendant. Apparently they’re both regulars on the show. Finally the announcer, former lead singer of the Mighty, Mighty Bosstones, and band came out.

Around seven the show started taping. The monolog wasn’t too funny but I was amused watching the camera guy and cue card lady. During commercials everyone rushed to the stage. I’m not sure who all of the people were but they all seemed to desperately need to talk to Jimmy. The first guest was David Duchovny who Steph and I love. I wish I could remember what they talked about, other than a creepy framed picture David’s wife gave him for a birthday present. The second guest was from the fat guy from Super Bad. He talked about the lovely topic of public urination. The movie looks like it’s going to be really funny. Maybe a potential Wednesday night movie with Matt’s coworkers.

I felt very bad for the people in the Mann’s Chinese Theater who had gone to see a special early screening of Super Bad. Jimmy kept interrupting them to say hi or give them Skittles. They even showed a clip from Super Bad to them! Then again, I’m sure they got in free so it couldn’t have been too bad.

When the show wrapped up we were starving so we headed to Baja Fresh to food. By 10:15 I was home again, watching TV with Matt. I’m glad I went though feel I was a bad audience member because I didn’t find anything particularly funny. Did more of the laugh because everyone else laughed thing.

We’re going to Europe! It’s during my Spring break in late March/early April. Going into Paris and out of Frankfurt. Alison and Amy both plan to join us for at least part of our adventure. I am so excited! Much better than my last spring break which was spent watching lots of bad TV, doing cross stitch, and going stir crazy (thankfully we also went to Yosemite for a few days at the end).

Woo!

I’m going to the Jimmy Kimmel show with Steph on Friday afternoon! She’s got an extra ticket and I was the first to jump at the chance to go with her. I’ve never been to the taping of any shows, despite the fact I live in Los Angeles. Feels like a right of passage. Promise to take as much photos as they’ll allow and will do a little write-up upon my return.

I’m writing this little review of my trip while sitting on the plane from Dallas to Las Angeles. Most other entertainment options have been exercised, including watching their little “CBS Eye on American” videos. Plus Matt stole MP3 player and I’m not awake enough to knit.

Day One

Spent most of the day en route. Three hour flight to St. Luis, another two hours to BWI, then an hour drive to Matt’s parents’ house. We finally got the house around eleven when we promptly went upstairs and went to bed.

Day Two

We knew we would sleep in our first full day there but had no idea that’d mean slowly crawling out of bed after eleven. Grabbed lunch at Lido Pizza, a northern Maryland/southern Pennsylvania place. Got caught in my first rainstorm in months. We met up with Matt’s cousin Jeremy and his wife, Maegan, at their great row house near the Inner Harbor. Maegan and I ditched the boys to go shopping, including a stop into A Good Yarn*. Eventually we met back up to go to Vacarro’s, a dessert shop in Baltimore’s Little Italy. Gotta love skipping dinner in favor of a “colosseus”: imagine a giant slice of oreo ice cream pie with two scoops of vanilla gelato and tons of oreos and fudge poured on top. Maegan and I ended the night by watching Bride and Prejudice which I LOVED. The boys walked to a local bar for a few beers and manly talk. Headed back to the house and crashed.

*About A Good Yarn: It’s a very small store with limited selection but helpful staff and decent prices. They didn’t sell a single sock yarn but did have Cascade’s Sierra (beautiful cotton). I walked out with only a skein for myself (and bought Maegan a skein and some circulars to reteach herself knitting with – she already crochets).

Day Three – Five

Slept in only a little then loaded up the car to head to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. Matt always talks about the many, many trips his family has made and, therefore, had me thinking I’d be at the best place ever. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a beaitful park but it’s, well, different than I’m used to. We usually go to Yosemite, a park with lots of “wow” factor. Shenandoah has a much more subdued beauty. You enter on Skyline Drive which is rest along the ridge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Reminded me of how my dad still refers to the street now named Jensen Beach Boulevard as Skyline Drive (this is in my home town).

We did several short hikes which were fun but often shared one annoying trait: walking downhill then uphill. Skyline Drive is on the crest of the mountains so you usually don’t hvae anywhere to walk up to, so the only choice is down. We did manage to see two waterfalls which I always appreciate. Plus I finally got to see Big Meadows Lodge and the blackberry sundaes Matt always told me about.

Day Six

This was our slow day though we still kept pretty busy. We watched TV before meeting Matt’s Aunt Lucy at a Chinese restaurant for lunch. She’d called several times while we were away at Shenandoah, really wanting to see us. We walked in to find Alison sitting at the table. The same Alison who’s supposed to be in Germany, working with asylum seekers and otherwise saving the world on behalf of the Mennonite Central Committee. But, there she was! We had a blast catching up, viewing photos of her adventures, and even got to take her by some of her favorite American stores.

Before we knew it we had to change for dinner and drive down to the city for dinner with Alex and Shelly. It’s Restaurant Week in Baltimore so even the fanciest places have a tasting menu with a fixed priced of $20 for lunch and $30 for dinner. We went to Aldo’s in Little Italy, a small Southern Italian restaurant that makes a perfect apple martini. I had an appetizer of raw tuna sliced thin with a wasabi aioli and scallions, lamb chops with rosemary potatoes, and pane cotta. It was supurb. Of course the next time we go back we’ll have to drop at least fifty bucks a person for the same food but it was a steal during Restaurant Week.

Found out over dinner that Alex and Shelly decided they’ll be getting married in early February but we’d not invited to their small family wedding. We’re happy not to have to buy plane tickets to go to Baltimore yet again and promised to send our now-standard gift of an ice cream maker and Dave Lebovitz’s ice cream book.

Day Seven

Why, oh why, did we decide we’d see King Tut in Philadelphia at 10 in the morning? Note that this requires a two hour drive through rush hour of two cities (Wilmington, DE and Philly). Somehow we managed to get out of bed and got there a whole hour early. Our King Tut “Golden Ticket” got us into the Frankling Institute so we wandered around the exhibits far before the school groups arrived. I had way too much fun in the cardiac exhibit, particularly the giant heart you can climb through.

The King Tut exhibit was really informative. We shelled out the extra money for the audio guide which I’m very happy for. Apparently this exhibit contained none of the same things that were in the last US King Tut tour many years ago. Matt joked that means that all of the good stuff was in the previous tour but I’d have to disagree. The exhibit curators went to legnths to state only proven facts; they had special sections about who King Tut’s father actually was and how he died so young.

It was lunch time when we finished at the Franklin Institute. The museum provided a list of restaurants only five minutes away and we decided on Little John’s, a pizza and sandwhich place right around the corner on Rain and 21st. We each had a version of the traditional Philly cheese steaks and shared an order of mozzarella fries. I love good, local food.

After lunch we headed to the Philadelphia Museum of Art where we spent two hours looking at, well, art. We only left when our feet and legs couldn’t take anymore standing and walking. Five hours of museums can do that to you! We trudged back to the car in the 90-something degree, 90 percent humidity weather and headed back. Only stop was at the GIANT Joann’s in Bel Air where I got some US 6 29″ circulars, a G crochet hook (to pick up dropped stitches, mainly) and a circular needle case for only nine bucks total.

Dinner was steamed crabs which were as good as always. Only downside was their limited number and the moment where I managed to get Old Bay in my eye. For non-Maryland readers, it’s a spice blend with salt. Salt + my eye = much screaming + crying

Day Eight

Saturday we relaxed until Steph’s wedding. After the beautiful ceremony (complete with a Billy Joel song as the recessional played by a trombone quartet), we headed over to the reception. Open bars and getting seated with all of Steph’s other high school friends led to a great night. Lots of dancing without caring and talking to strangers. We really crashed once we finally got back.

Day Nine

That’s today, our day of traveling back home. We’re about to land in LA so it’s time to sign off and put the laptop away in my beer-soaked backpack (stupid drunken soldiers sitting in front of me on last flight).