Great Urban Race

Forget tour buses or guided walking tours-- if you want to experience a city and all its intricacies, why not run around it by foot while trying to solve clues?

We headed downtown to the Fine Arts Building, checked in, and got our bibs.  Our team name: Tigers Blood & Adonis DNA (not so relevant now, but during the Charlie Sheen twitter overload-- it made sense).



At exactly noon we all got our clues and we were OFF.  Our strategy was to solve all of our clues first and then plot out each destination so that we weren't running back and forth around Los Angeles. 





Don't be fooled, the clues do not keep you in downtown.  After a quick jaunt on the metro up to Hollywood, we found ourselves roaming down to La Brea on foot and moseying all over Los Angeles.  At each clue destination we had to accomplish some task before moving on.  12 accomplished clues later, we finished.




After 4 hours and 16 minutes, we came in 38th place out of 232 teams.  We realized later that had we just taken public transit the entire time, we may have been in the top 15 teams.  Oh well.  It was a fun adventure and everyone should try it at least once. 

Sin City

Las Vegas is sort of like how God would do it if he had money. ~Steve Wynn

And of course, what happens here, stays here......

The List: Revised

Clearly we haven't been as consistent with our list and blogging as we would like to, BUT with the New Year we decided to make this a bit more achievable.
We present you with our new list... revived from hiatus.

The List

It all started with a conversation. Turned into a list. Now it’s a challenge.

In a quest to fully see and know the soul of Los Angeles, we’ve put together our list of 50 experiences that will bring us closer to becoming a true Angeleno.

Beverly Hills
1. Brunch at Barney Greengrass in BH
2. Window shop at Rodeo Drive

South Bay
3. Fish soup at Pacific Fish Center in Redondo
4. Hangar 18 for rock climbing
5. Explore San Pedro

Hollywood & Melrose
6. Hike up to Hollywood sign
7. Magic Castle
8. Roscoe’s chicken and waffles
9. Hike Runyon canyon

Culver City & Venice
10. Walk Venice Beach

Santa Monica
11. Typhoon Restaurant

La Cienega & West Hollywood
12. Pink’s Hot Dogs
13. Campanile – Thursday Grilled Cheese Night
14. Price is Right
15. The Bazaar

Downtown & MidCity
16. Edison - Wednesday
17. Great Los Angeles Walk Great Urban Race
18. Find the best Chinese restaurant in Chinatown
19. Pastrami Sandwich from Langers Delicatessen
20. Drinks at Trader Vics
21. Downtown Art Walk
22. Visit LA fashion district
23. See a movie at the Million Dollar Theatre Cinespia
24. An evening in K-Town to do Karaoke
25. French Dip sandwich at Coles Downtown
26. Lunch at Grand Central Market
27. Walt Disney Concert hall
28. Go to an LA Derby dolls match
29. Parks BBQ
30. Drinks at the Bona Vista lounge at the Bonaventure Hotel
31. $45 Omakase at Toshi Sushi

Westwood & West LA
32. Go to the Museum of Tolerance Ride the Ferris Wheel at the Santa Monica Pier
33. Shabu Shabu

Los Feliz & Echo Park
34. Visit Historic Filipinotown KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas

Glendale, Pasadena, Burbank & San Gabriel Valley
35. Picnic at Griffith Park and visit Griffith Observatory
36. Pizza at Casa Bianca El Puerto Escondido for dodgy oysters

Beyond the Zone & Location TBD
37. A day at Del Mar Race Track Bingo Night at Hamburger Mary's
38. Tequila Tasting
39. Pub Crawl
40. Morning at the East Los Angeles Farmers Market Rose Bowl Flea Market
41. Midweek sample sale Steel Panther at House of Blues
42. Eat at 5 food trucks in one day
43. Go fruit and vegetable picking Randy's Donuts
44. Attend an LA Food Festival
45. Spur of the moment Vegas trip
46. Half Marathon
47. Sign up for a Flying lesson Richard Simmons Workout Class
48. Learn to drive stick shift Trapeze Lesson
49. One Foot reflexology experience
50. Compare the top 3 LA Burger institutions
a. Apple Pan
b. Pie & Burger
c. Cassel’s Burger

21st Annual KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas: Night 2

5 minutes to noon on a random Wednesday in November, I sat at my desk and my palms started to sweat as I anxiously watched the clock.  At exactly 12pm tickets to Night 2 of KROQ's Almost Acoustic Christmas would go on sale and 2 tickets were destined to be mine. 

I'm not a typical concert goer.  I wish I was, but frankly, I'd much rather spend my money on food and clothes than paying 2 weeks worth of groceries for one night of watching bands that I can hear during my commute at higher quality.  Not that I don't appreciate live music, I do... I just love food, clothes, and my money a lot more. 

But this time was different.  My new found love for The Black Keys had driven me to a sense of madness when I discovered that they didn't have any stops in LA for the rest of their tour.  That all changed when I found out that they were gracing Los Angeles with their presence as part of the lineup at KROQ'S AAC. 


After 13 minutes and a barrage of friends helping to secure tickets, I had the tickets waiting in my inbox.  A hipster's dream come true--or in my case, a hipster-poser's dream come true.

The lineup:
Phoenix
Vampire Weekend
Brandon Flowers
The Black Keys
The Temper Trap
Neon Trees
Florence &The Machine
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros
Broken Bells

The result: 4 1/2 hours of eargasms (give or take a few songs), a rotating stage, Patrick Carney banging the life out of his Ludwigs, Florence's voice box entrancing all lost souls in the greater LA area,  Phoneix's psychedelic laser light show, 5000+ people, and the occasional puffed cloud of kush that would waft past our seats. 



My mental state of mind: Musical Bliss.

Foot Reflexology

When you see a sign while out on your lunch break that says "SPECIAL: $20 for 60 minute massage" you say YES!  And that's what we did.


We both had never had a foot reflexology experience so this was going to be first to check off the list.  The sign on the window said "Foot Ralascology".  I'm pretty sure that's a typo, but that didn't stop us from booking our appointments.

 

They brought us into a dark, window and doorless room where they had us lay down onto pillow .  Sounds creepy, but we could hear an asian grandma gossiping in the back so we figured it was safe.

So when you think of foot reflexology you'd imagine that they'd be spending an hour on your feet.  That's not the case.  They massage your shoulders, back, hands, arms, and do this little scrapping thing on your fingertips and toes.  It's pretty unconventional, but after an hour, messy hair and all, I was definitely relaxed.  All of that for $25 including tip.  Count me in.  It's no spa experience, but if you need some relaxation in the middle of the day-- this is your spot.

The Bazaar

Omakase at Toshi

To put one’s faith in a chef and ultimately one’s dining experience may seem to some, like you’re losing control. And this precisely is what it is - Omakase – from the Japanese, simply means “to entrust.” You hand over your apprehensions, food phobias, and general pickiness and allow the chef to create a dining experience that he feels is the best given the quality of ingredients he has that day. In true Japanese form, here is our meal, plain and simple – artfully composed and deftly balanced.

1. Seaweed Salad, Homemade Tofu, Lemon, Sesame, Yuzu



2. Oyster, Scallion, Lemon
3. Octopus, Yuzu
4. Squid, Ink, Soy



5. Sardine, Tuna, Amberjack



6. Black Cod, Miso, Radish



7. Kobe Beef, Ponzu, Ice
8. Scallop, Bone Marrow
9. Salmon Two Ways
10. Sardine, Ponzu
11. Tuna Roll



12. Shrimp Head



13. Sweet Shrimp, Mackeral, Seared Tuna, Konpachi, Albacore, Urchin, Salmon Roe, Tamago



14. Miso, Clams, Radish Sprouts



15. Green Tea Ice Cream

The Day's Damage: (2) Omakase Sushi Dinners $45 = $90
Item 31: Check