heather's visit

Isn't H lovely?


She bought those yummy daffodils for the kitchen on her way back from her morning run. They smelled fragrant and were so pretty.


Casa c+potion was honored to have special guest H over for the weekend. She was in town for a conference in downtown L.A. so we picked her up Friday night and took her to Olivera Street for dinner. I've only been to Olivera Street once for Dia de Los Muertos. It was fun. A little kitschy-touristy, but kinda off the beaten path. I think most folks who come tor sight seeing in L.A. head to the Hollywood walk of fame, our beaches and maybe a theme park or two. I don't think as many people know about Olivera Street. I'm more or less a L.A. native and I only just heard of it a few years ago.

We went to La Golondrina for dinner which is where we went the last time I was there. I love how their menu features dishes that you don't normally see in Mexican restaurants. M feasted on Cochinita Pibil which was a succulent pork dish marinated in spices and baked in banana leaves. Mmmm. H opted for the chile rellenos de jaiba which was stuffed with seasoned snow crab and served with roasted mushroom and chile chipotle salsa. Holy cow! And I ordered what I'd had the last time I was there oh... 5 years ago? A seafood enchilada that was so yum.

On Saturday, we had a quiet morning of pancakes and strawberries for breakfast and just chilling around our neighborhood. H wanted to experience what a day in the life of jean and M was like. So I took her round to the thrift shops that I drop in on once a week. I almost walked out with a new(old) leather jacket and H considered a few sweaters, but we left empty handed after all. We stopped off at Beard Papa for some coffee and cream puffs (it was sort of an international food weekend when I think of it).


And then back home again for more chillin'. I was still recovering from my cold and kinda wiped out from all the excitement.



For dinner we took H to a little Lebanese joint a little ways from our neighborhood. Our waiter remembered us (or M mostly~I think someone might have a little crush on my husband) commenting that it had been a while since our last visit. It was crowded, the food was good, we left full and a little sleepy.

At home, we relaxed with some wine and a brainstorm session on a new script idea that M was working out.

Some of us (I won't mention any names) contributed a bit more to the topic than others)

Sunday we had ideas for a bunch of different activities. A stroll through either of The Getty Museums, watching Juno at our favorite new movie theatre, checking out ethnic grocery stores, various beaches to share, a new obsession to fulfill, oh I feel like I'm forgetting something...

We decided to figure it out - over lunch (of course).



While waiting for our movie to start, we strolled around the neighborhood and found this little gem nestled in an otherwise inconsequential looking nook.


It was the roof that caught our attention.


Sorry, the photos are a little tough as it was assaultingly bright that day.

H pointed out how the roof of this cottage gives consideration for the tree planted against it.

The movie was excellent even a second time around. And we'd explored a few exotic grocery stores in the area too, but I forgot to take pictures there. Then we piled into the car and headed west to the ocean.

We showed H the canals in Venice. The homes are fun to look at because they are colorful and close together and every single one seems to feature a porch or a deck or a patio that makes you long for a sit-down with a beverage of your choice. And all I remembered to document were the ducks. Thank goodness for the internet.

The canals aren't far from the beach so we took a walk over there too. The elements weren't optimal for beach-going, so bright! So windy! I told H that her hair looked like it was just one giant lock frozen in an alarming amount of hairspray.


And the birds looked like they were suspended by wires.




We went home after that (with a quick stop at the market for dinner supplies) to hang out for the rest of the evening. We do enjoy a lot of hanging out.

And the last few memorable bits not worth going into detail, but 5 years from now when I look back fondly on this weekend while reading old journal (blog) entries? I'd like to remember this stuff:

Hi-Chew
Pocky Men's (oh really?)
Discovering and trying to incorporate bu(t)(t)lust (sorry, you had to be there) for the whole weekend
Text-messaging with Bruce
Trading funny video discoveries
Egg-in-a-hole


We miss you H! Come back and visit soon!