A Very Happy Easter Indeed

While my Easter (unfortunately) didn't include Bloody Marys and a Lamb Cake like Mary's did, it did include church, yoga and gourmet Mexican food, which made for a very happy Easter indeed. :-)

The holiday weekend started earlier than usual as my wonderful place of employment let us off for a half-day on Thursday and the whole day on Friday.  It. Was. Glorious.  There are few things I love more than 3-day weekends.  My normal weekends are usually so packed that I never get a day to actually just REST and catch up on life.  Three day weekends provide that muuuuch needed day of rest.  I honestly think that we should have a 4-day work week and a 3-day weekend all the time.  I feel like studies have been done to prove that this schedule creates a much more happy, healthy and productive work environment.  One day I just might compile all that info and present a proposal of this amazing idea to my bosses.  (I'm only mildly joking about this).  I digress...

Easter Sunday was was a wonderful day spent with wonderful friends.  I began the day at my beloved church (Pacific Crossroads) where we celebrated the true meaning of this glorious day:

After a festive post-service party/reception and lunch, Ellen and I went back to her place to take an afternoon siesta. Feeling refreshed from this little power nap, I took her to one of my favorite things: Erika's power yoga class at The Sports Club LA. This class is just incredible. It's an hour and half long and an insanely good work out.  As we are sweating our booties off, she plays the best music (NOT your average "yoga" music. Her playlists often include a random mix of The Beatles, Jay Z, Death Cab, Florence + the Machine, etc.) I often go through a full range of emotion/motivation levels in this class: I start off feeling strong and by minute 45 or so, I feel like I am about to die and can't possibly finish; then there's another upswing, and by the end I feel like I just had a full body massage and can't wait for next week. Needless to say, it was a wonderful addition to my Easter afternoon.

Later that evening, I enjoyed an abnormally delicious dinner at a super swanky/sexy/cool new Mexican restaurant on Melrose called Red O with some of my dearest friends: Garrett, Bradley, Matt and Ellen. Ellen is quite the foodie, so she had been eyeing this new venture by Rick Bayless (who, according to my quick glance at his bio, is originally from Oklahoma!) for a while. Everything was delicious, but the Quesos Fundidos appetizer and the Veracruz-style Buelos (with salted caramel ice cream and warm Kahlua chocolate sauce) dessert were to-die-for must try items. Probably the fanciest (and most delectable) Easter dinner I've ever had. :-)

The flash next to Matt's head is Bradley who kindly offered to take my 8:11 pic that evening. (it kind of looks like Tinkerbell in that old weird version of Peter Pan... anyone remember that one?  Just me?  Okay.)

Overall, it was a great day. Happy happy spring. :-)

xoxo, 

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Food Trucks and Yoga and Red Carpets, Oh My.

Food trucks are all the rage in LA these days. Hungry patrons follow their favorite trucks on Twitter or blogs and flock to their ever-changing locations. There is probably at least one truck for almost any kind of food you could possibly want... from Korean BBQ to banana pudding to grilled cheese to cupcakes, etc, etc, etc. 


Last Sunday, my amazing church held a preview service of its new downtown location followed by a launch party. Much to my extreme excitement and joy, this party was catered by the In-n-Out truck!  (For those who haven't had the privilege of experiencing In-n-Out Burger, it is a famous California hamburger restaurant that is simply wonderful and loved by all. For those of you who live in the Dallas area, count your lucky stars because this traditionally solely West Coast chain is coming your way soon). 

There is just something inexplicably appealing about lining up and being served delicious food out of a large truck with dear friends. Appealing to so many, in fact, that on July 24th, LA will be holding a Street Food Festival . $45 to go sample food from all the amazing LA food trucks. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it...who wants to go with me?!


One positive thing about job searching is that you get to try out new exciting things during the weekdays that you never would have an opportunity to do while you're working. One of the cool things I've recently discovered is free daily outdoor yoga classes at Runyon Canyon. 

I've gone a few times and it's really great. While certain variables are a bit distracting (like the time a little gopher thing that was popping up and staring at me during my downward facing dogs), it really is a peaceful and cool experience to do yoga under the beautiful blue sky in nature. (Please pardon the crazy California hippie talk... it comes out on occasion). ;-) 

"Are you free tonight for a possible event at Industry? Not sure if I have a plus-one or not. Starts at 7. It's a charity thing with cast from Twilight."  I randomly received this text message from my dear friend and former co-worker, Lorrin, on Monday.  Turns out she did get a plus-one, so I shuffled around some plans and got dressed up for this mystery charity event. Lorrin and I have both been to our fair share of events like this that make grandiose claims that huge A-list stars will be in attendance, and oftentimes these claims do not come to be, so we were highly skeptical we would be partying with vampires that evening. We arrived at Industry  (SBE's newest nightlife venture; formerly Area) to find a crowd of paparazzi, reporters, and a small red carpet.  Maybe someone legit was going to show up after all?  We made our way inside and to the open bar. As we spent the next hour or so catching up, it became apparent that our suspicions were correct and T. Laut and R.Patt weren't showing up any time soon. The gradiose claims weren't a COMPLETE crock, though. These lovely Twilight cast members hosted the night and graced us all with their presence: 

 

Overall, a fun night. When dressing up, an open bar, yummy hor d'ourves, and endlessly entertaining people watching are involved, you can't go wrong. Thanks for the last minute invite, Lorrin. (If only there had been a food truck there...)  ;-) 

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