Visiting the Moviechic

Blair and Aries Spears of Mad TV

Just got back from Los Angeles and visiting our film maker daughter, Blair. We stayed at her place for a few days while she spent the first part of the week house sitting at the opposite end of the city. We love LA and I think we helped the economy by eating out and parking!

1. Here's an overview: Got in on Friday evening around midnight 3/26 and had a late snack at Norms somewhere in South LA, a local diner/dive, but not the Guy Fieri kind. Saturday hubby had to go to Hooters to watch the Gators. The Burbank Hooters has a Gator alum section, so we had a good time, though the Gator's lost. Bummer. We later went to the Bookstar on Ventura which is an old movie theatre that Barnes and Noble has converted to a bookstore. Loved it! I always open my book on the Nook sample display.
2. Sunday we slept in, we were time-challenged from the 3 hour difference. We all had pedicures in the UCLA area and just relaxed. Blair and I had manicures as well. There is place called Top Shoes that is in the college area that has great deals on shoes, so this was my 2nd annual visit to the store. :) Later we went to The Ivy and had a late brunch. We were cautious of where to park and read all the signs before we got out and walked to the restaurant. But we still ended up with a $65 ticket, though we don't know why?
3. Monday was an early morning at "The Price's Right." We were to be there at 8:30 am. We parked at The Grove shopping mall around 7 am, a beautiful center, but expensive. We didn't think to get validation at one of the stores and spent $24 to park. It took 3 to 4 hours for all potential contestant to get interviewed. We didn't make the cut, but regardless, it would go much faster if they processed everyone as they arrived. It was fun to watch and I would go again someday if they sped up the procedures. We met a lady who had made it to the Showcase Showdown the week prior and lost. Contestants aren't allowed to play again for 10 years, but her husband was there to try out. We ate later at Maria's Italian and I was bummed they were out of eggplant, so I wasn't in the mood to have more than a few meatballs and a side salad.
4. Tuesday we moved into the Best Western on Sunset and loved the nearby restaurants and comedy clubs in walking distance. We decided to go to Rodeo Dr. during the morning and walk around. I was looking for a shop I had gone to before, but it had moved. So we treated ourselves to The Blvd restaurant at the Beverly Wilshire and noshed on some delightful breads and Blair had the Sea Bass and Tom and I had salads. YUM! That evening we walked to the LePetit Four and had a beautiful cool evening dining outside as the they surrounded the tables in towering heaters. I had a Cobb salad and a wonderful layered apple dessert and coffee. Tom and Blair had ?? I don't remember. We strolled to Book Soup and glanced at the offerings. Loved the design of the store. It has its own unique system of categorizing the books.
5. Wednesday was Blair's day to get her hair colored and cut, Tom also got a cut as I sat and read "The Help" on my Kindle. Since Blair's hair was an hour process, Tom and I strolled and got coffee. All the Starbucks and Coffee Bean's in LA are just packed with electronically-focused patrons sipping and surfing the web. We ate at the Saddle Ranch which Blair tells us will be featured in a reality show and we went down the street afterward to Tom Arnold's gig at the Laugh Factory and also saw Aries Spears of Mad TV and Maxcomedian.com (well, just Max Amini, but I gotten give him a plug). Anyway, we sat in the front row and Blair is younger looking than her 20s, so it was interesting to say the least. Naturally, we got picked on for bringing our kid to the show and naturally Blair was the center of many of Aries jokes, as he made her well aware of how we brought her into the world. It was all good fun and fully expected. Afterward we walked to Mel's Diner for a milkshake nightcap before heading back to the hotel. The Best Western has breakfast included in the hotel offerings, so we started our day with coffee, fruit and cereal each morning.
6. Thursday we went to the Craig Ferguson show and that was less time consuming than The Price's Right. We parked at The Grove again, but smartly got our parking validated, which brought the cost down to $10. Paul Giamatti was Ferguson's guest, promoting his new movie "Win-Win." I am a big Giamatti fan, so it was a treat. I was also on a mission to deliver a gift to Ferguson that my 75 year old mother wanted him to have. I wasn't able to accomplish an interaction with the Scot, so I left it in the studio, hoping he would receive it. My mother is feature on Youtube segment: "Nana Loves Craig." She has a major major MAJOR crush on Craig Ferguson. Thursday night we went to Casa Bianca with Blair's friends the Yuan twins (currently doing a stint on "Rules of Engagement") and Frank (the a television show editer). We enjoyed anti-pasta salad, pizza and cannolis. It was so nice to meet some of our daughter's friends. They are all so helpful and generous. The twins are making a slasher short film, Blair has just begun editing her dramatic short that Frank is also producing and they are all looking for projects for the future. It's truly a project-based business.
7. Friday we moved out of the Best Western and went to the Urth Cafe for lunch. The only celebrity sighting we had was Chris Farley's brother (who was in line with us). What great food!! I had a chicken curry sandwich that was my favorite meal of the trip. We then went to the Landmark Theater to see "Win-Win." LA movie theater's rock! I just loved picking out our seats before going in and the cleanliness of the theatre, the sound quality and comfortable seats. The movie was great and afterward we drove to the Santa Monica Pier for our final evening in California. We ate a Bubba Gump's since most of the pier restaurants were closing. Afterward, we went to Blair's for a few hours of napping before our morning flight Saturday. We had time to sleep on the flight. Now we're home and back to work. We miss our daughter, but we'll be back soon! We still didn't hike to the Hollywood sign or catch any plays and of course, we'll have to go out when Blair's film "Relative Eternity" is released!