Sprinkles gives away free cupcakes daily, if you follow them on Twitter and get to their shop in time to be the first 25 to say the secret word of the day. Sometimes, that free offer is a flavor not sold at their stores – a much coveted prize (for me, anyway).
This day, it was this lovely chocolate cupcake with chocolate ganache and marshmallow filling, which isn’t a special flavor, but came in a very special way. I was surprised to get it so fresh that the ganache hadn’t even firmed up yet; now there’s a rare occasion! It was just about the last one left too. Beautiful.
On the left, the chocolate marshmallow with fresh ganache. On the right, the classic red velvet.
My all-time favorite cornbread is the one that can be found at Boston Market. It’s soft and moist without being too crumbly. It’s sweet and has lovely little crunchy bits that make it wonderful to bite into. I absolutely love everything about them, from the taste to the texture. Whenever I go to Boston Market, it’s hard to resist buying half a dozen of them for snacking on. They’re big enough to get me by between meals, yet not too much or too heavy. They’re truly wonderful things! Too bad there aren’t very many Boston Markets in this part of the world. In fact, I only know of two (and thank goodness one is in my current hometown of Valencia).
Sometimes I like to sit outside and eat my Quizno’s, with the traffic on Sepulveda whizzing by. And every time that happens, curious and hungry birds are there, waiting for me to share some of my food. These two were particularly bold in demanding I feed them!
He sat across from me, carefully watching for his potential lunch.
A bit of a model, eh? Check out the classic over-the-shoulder glance. Perhaps he was trying to impress me so I'd feed him. 😛
I decided to share some of my bread and he nearly got within arm's length.
He made it very clear what he was waiting for. Quite persistent!
Well, yet again Time Warner has failed us here in LA, leaving Panda’s apartment without internet or television service. This has consistently occurred on a monthly basis and their repair trucks can be seen on our neighborhood streets a good 2-3 times a week. Not a good sign at all. so here I am stuck blogging on my iPhone, with little heart to put together a nicer entry.
It’s amazing how this happens time and time again. At first, Panda would call in and get a month or a week free, but he just did so this weekend when this same thing happened (albeit not for as long). It’s gotten to the point where even that doesn’t make up for the inconvenience and loss of productivity.
I did enjoy the peace and quiet of not having so much buzzing around me, but I’d rather get to choose when I take a step back from the hubbub of modern life. I didn’t even feel like reading a business magazine I had been meaning to read for months now. Situations like this put a damper on my entire mood and make me wish that TW took better care if their customers. I can’t wait until we leave this place and I find a place near work – I’ll know then to avoid Time Warner at all costs.
Well isn’t it weird that the day after I write about the earthquake tunnel and have a lengthy discussion with Panda about safe practices and earthquake preparedness, an earthquake occurs? I doesn’t seem to be the big one we’re all waiting for, but it was quite large and still shook us in SoCal. Ironically, Panda and I didn’t feel it at all, because we were on the road, driving in Westwood. Plenty of our acquaintances did experience it, and for one it was her very first time. I’m curious what it felt like, but kind of glad I didn’t feel it, since it would have been an eerie reminder of the blog entry I had just posted. Perhaps I should give a honk for good measure the next time I’m in that tunnel.
Not a high-traffic day, so there wasn't any honking, but here's the unassuming tunnel.
I don’t know if you’ve ever heard, but in Los Angeles, there is an “earthquake tunnel” that locals like to use as a good luck charm against earthquakes. It’s a tradition that I learned of soon after arriving here and I have no recollection of how I heard of it or who told me, but I observe all the time when I am there. What am I talking about? Well, where the 405 North ends and merges into the 5 freeway, there is a tunnel that people drive under. When you are under it during rush hour (or any other time traffic is slow), you will find a good third of the cars will honk their horns incessantly until they are out.
I usually am under this thing at night. It's great when big rigs join in the honking too.
It’s one of those fun, somewhat underground (haha no pun intended) traditions that is still alive and well. I guess it’s a superstitious act, since honking your horn is supposed to prevent earthquakes from hitting us too hard. It seems to be working, since that big one is way overdue and still not coming… Anyway, whenever I’m stuck in that tunnel during traffic hours, there’s always a car or two honking its way through. I’ve only joined in once, but it puts a small smile to my face as those people enjoy their freedom to honk as they please. After all, I realized not long ago that I don’t even know what my car horn sounds like. I don’t exactly have a situation where I can test it without drawing attention.
Panda and I went to a performance by the West Los Angeles Symphony at Royce Hall tonight (called Good Vibrations). I enjoyed their unusual lineup with solos by a harpist and marimba-ist (is that what they’re called?). These two instruments don’t get the limelight enough, so it was refreshing to hear them in their glory. Yet, what I noticed most was the fact that the two ladies playing these instruments got to wear beautiful evening gowns whereas the rest of the orchestra wore black, as is traditional. Is it the fact that they had solo acts or is it because of the unusual nature of their instruments? Either way, it was a great way for them to stand out even more and truly perform to us the audience.
I also noticed that I enjoyed the energy level of certain performers, whereas the more reserved ones decreased my enjoyment of the music. In particular there were a few who really moved with the music, so I liked to watch them most. But occasionally, my eyes were drawn to the one lady who barely moved at all, even when the music was loud and energetic. Everyone else around her moved with forcefulness, but she was completely stiff, letting as little of her body do the work as possible. It was really strange and really awkward to see. I tried to avoid looking at her, but sometimes her lack of passion really stuck out like a sore thumb.
Also entertaining was the first celloist, who was a lady with a fun outfit on of black laced with gold in a full pantsuit type attire. She looked a lot like one of my old high school friends, who I showed Panda on Facebook and he agreed. They had the same short brown hair with thin bangs that fell in a stringy sort of manner. And of course, my friend also played a stringed instrument, not like that was much of a coincidence. I was greatly entertained by that resemblance though. I could totally see my friend being just like that lady in the future, performing in an orchestra.
Rounding off the night were the comments from Panda, saying he liked the hair of this and that guy (one with crazy gray curls that reminded me of a doll my mom used to have – except that doll’s hair was blonde – and one with white hair pulled back in a ponytail). Certainly not the hair styles I would expect him to aspire to. He also started to point out the couple of men he thought had day jobs as engineers because they “looked smart.” -___- As if only engineers can be smart. I do wonder if the West Los Angeles Symphony is composed of professional musicians or more of hobbyists. Perhaps I should do some research.
It was a fun night and loved that it was completely free! We had a nice stroll/speed walk there and a refreshing jog back. I need to get more active again!
At UCLA, students like to de-stress during finals by doing some silly things, like Midnight Yell and Undie Run. In case you feel like you’re missing out on the fun, here is a look at what it’s like to be a part of the Wednesday night tradition that grew so big it was banned. It would have been tonight (and I know a small group still showed up to do it – we’ll see how that went down when the Daily Bruin comes out tomorrow).
To start, there is a lot of cheering, singing, screaming, and all-around joy.
At the stroke of midnight, the crowd begins to move, hollering at the top of their lungs. Note the traffic lights that have been disabled – police took measures to ensure motor vehicles stay away from pedestrians overtaking the roads.
In the recent year or so, the route of Undie Run was changed to go through this tunnel, which actually makes it quite fun since it’s so thunderous in there.
The last “legal” Undie Run was re-routed once again so that it ended not by Powell Library and Shapiro Fountain, but on the IM field, where there were plenty of lighting and spectators, including this helo!
All in all, a great celebration that gives students a relatively innocent outlet for the intense studying that had taken over their lives for the past week or two. It’s a pity the university wasn’t willing to work out another revision to allow it to continue. I’m sure the students will continue to fight for it, until they either get it back or find a new way of letting out their tension.
My philosophy is simple: things change. Therefore, we are all on a lifelong journey of discovery. We should be flexible, questioning, learning, adapting, and growing. Always.
little fat notebook pays homage to Mead's "fat lil' notebooks" that I use to write down any thoughts that strike me throughout the day. I keep one by my side at all times. After all, inspiration waits for no one.
