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Tuesday, November 29, 2011
random SF stuff
on friday, we hit up the AMC van ness 14 to watch "hugo" in 3-D, which was really sweet. in short it's scorsese's love letter to cinema, and the 3-D (kudos to DP bob richardson and production designer dante ferretti) was the best use of the format since "avatar."
afterwards, we ventured out to the north beach area and grabbed lunch at a tiny local italian spot called l'osteria del forno, where we had a fantastic pizza with pancetta and red onions. the stop was not complete without grabbing a beer sampler at rogue public house...
car trouble
more updates to come, but a scary moment returning to LA on sunday. while driving down the 405, i found myself unable to put my car in gear - any gear - at the top of the hill at sherman oaks. fortunately we were able to coast down the hill the entire way to my freeway exit while in neutral, and was able to glide into a random parking spot near best buy.
ended up calling AAA to have it towed to my honda dealer and was hit with the bad news yesterday... a worn out clutch. it's a significant repair to replace the entire clutch kit, as most of the work has to do with labor costs in removing the transmission to get to the clutch. not the best time what with the holidays coming up, so it was quite the blow. hopefully i can find somewhere to sell my body and make up for it that way.
nevertheless, i'm thankful that we were able to make it down safely and in one piece...
ended up calling AAA to have it towed to my honda dealer and was hit with the bad news yesterday... a worn out clutch. it's a significant repair to replace the entire clutch kit, as most of the work has to do with labor costs in removing the transmission to get to the clutch. not the best time what with the holidays coming up, so it was quite the blow. hopefully i can find somewhere to sell my body and make up for it that way.
nevertheless, i'm thankful that we were able to make it down safely and in one piece...
Monday, November 28, 2011
happy thanksgiving!
even tho my cousin carolyn and her entire brood from seattle weren't able to make the trip down, our family still had a wonderful thanksgiving dinner - complete with a 20 pound turkey, baked ham, homemade ice cream (thanks caroline!), and a hodgepodge of other goodies.
highlights included a drunk, impromptu yoga session between uncles and a group face time session with carolyn's family. good times!
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
gjelina - impeccable customer service
sunday night had us enjoying another amazing dinner at gjelina - the place seriously never ceases to fail - but i went home singing the praises not of chef travis lett, but rather of the waitstaff.
just sips into a hoppy stone ruination IPA, the lady next to me got up to leave, but her purse hit our water bottle and it came crashing down on our table. broken glass, water and sadly some beer spilled everywhere (even my jeans), but within seconds they had it wiped down and glass removed, with crispy new menus and a new ruination atop our table.
the manager offered to have my jeans laundered or dry cleaned on the house, but i didn't want to take advantage, as a regular wash would have done the trick. not only that, when it came to dessert - as i was in excitement mode anticipating their butterscotch pot de crème - our server gifted us that and their apple crisp w/cinnamon gelato, remarking that i "still had wet pants."
i thought they did a standup job in going to great lengths to take care of their customer, turning an unfortunate incident into a warm and welcoming one. thank you gjelina and i will be back soon!
just sips into a hoppy stone ruination IPA, the lady next to me got up to leave, but her purse hit our water bottle and it came crashing down on our table. broken glass, water and sadly some beer spilled everywhere (even my jeans), but within seconds they had it wiped down and glass removed, with crispy new menus and a new ruination atop our table.
the manager offered to have my jeans laundered or dry cleaned on the house, but i didn't want to take advantage, as a regular wash would have done the trick. not only that, when it came to dessert - as i was in excitement mode anticipating their butterscotch pot de crème - our server gifted us that and their apple crisp w/cinnamon gelato, remarking that i "still had wet pants."
i thought they did a standup job in going to great lengths to take care of their customer, turning an unfortunate incident into a warm and welcoming one. thank you gjelina and i will be back soon!
gjelina
1429 abbot kinney
venice, CA 90291
Saturday, November 5, 2011
nike free 3.0 - v1 vs. v2
with the advent of barefoot or minimalist running finally starting to catch on, it seemed like a good idea to do a quick comparison between two versions of the same minimalist shoe - the nike free 3.0. i was able to track down two pairs of version 2 on clearance (no longer in stores, as version 3 is currently on the market) before they went extinct, so i laid them out side by side with the original - easily the best training & running shoe i've ever owned, and i've owned many - and my savior these past few years.
v2 adopts many of the same stylistic cues as the original and most importantly has the exact same bendy, flexible sole. it does introduce a new padded tongue which is nice in theory, but it protrudes a shade higher up on the ankle as the original did. i'm actually tempted to cut off the extension just to keep it more comfortable and rounded at the top of my foot. v2 also has a reinforced toe for added protection. otherwise, it's the same feathery and whisper quiet shoe that weighs in at 7.2 ounces (the original came in at i think 6.9) for my size 10s.
the goal of the 3.0 is to promote a better (or mid-foot) heel strike in order to prevent the leg from taking a pounding of the joints. nike originally doled out three separate entries for the free - the 7.0 (closest to a shoe), the 5.0 (middle of the road) and the 3.0 (closest to barefoot) for an easy to use progression towards the end goal. back in 2005, i bypassed the 7.0 and went straight for the 5.0, which gave me a good re-introduction on how to run. i picked up the 3.0s in 2007 and have never looked back.
i still prefer the aesthetic of the first - it's a cleaner look, smaller swoosh, muted colors - but since it's nowhere to be found, and i found v2 for such a deal, i had to pull the trigger before they became obsolete. i can't fathom the thought of running in anything else!
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v2 adopts many of the same stylistic cues as the original and most importantly has the exact same bendy, flexible sole. it does introduce a new padded tongue which is nice in theory, but it protrudes a shade higher up on the ankle as the original did. i'm actually tempted to cut off the extension just to keep it more comfortable and rounded at the top of my foot. v2 also has a reinforced toe for added protection. otherwise, it's the same feathery and whisper quiet shoe that weighs in at 7.2 ounces (the original came in at i think 6.9) for my size 10s.
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the goal of the 3.0 is to promote a better (or mid-foot) heel strike in order to prevent the leg from taking a pounding of the joints. nike originally doled out three separate entries for the free - the 7.0 (closest to a shoe), the 5.0 (middle of the road) and the 3.0 (closest to barefoot) for an easy to use progression towards the end goal. back in 2005, i bypassed the 7.0 and went straight for the 5.0, which gave me a good re-introduction on how to run. i picked up the 3.0s in 2007 and have never looked back.
i still prefer the aesthetic of the first - it's a cleaner look, smaller swoosh, muted colors - but since it's nowhere to be found, and i found v2 for such a deal, i had to pull the trigger before they became obsolete. i can't fathom the thought of running in anything else!
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