mount san jacinto - snow hike

sunday, february 20 - a few weeks prior we had plans to scale the peak of mount san jacinto on this day, but a snowstorm that passed thru on friday and saturday didn't help our cause. nevertheless, a gang of 5 of us brought snowshoes in hopes of getting as far as we could, time permitting.

meeting everybody in cypress at 6:30am (i woke up at 5am), we threw our gear in pam's X5 and headed for palm springs. we arrived at the tramway just before 8:30am, but the ranger told us they were still scraping ice off the cables, so we used this opportunity to grab some breakfast and some boots for heidi, since she was ill-equipped in her toms to make the journey. when we returned to the tram at 10:15am, it was all systems go.

even though we were one of the early arrivals, the tram was backed up due to the holiday crowd, so we were stuck with an 11:40am time. in ideal conditions, the roundtrip would take 5-6 hours, so we agreed to trek as far as we could until 2:30pm, then turn back so we while there was still daylight. to the left, a quick view from the parking lot...


with the pressure of us having to make time now off, it allowed us to enjoy the beautiful weather and scenery and take in the winter wonderland of mount san jacinto. and we're off!




at about 2:15pm, we found a protected area amongst the trees - i even spotted an igloo! - and broke for lunch. this was a good time for me to bust out cookies from diddy riese that i picked up the night before for the group. taison also had a nifty thermos from REI that kept things piping hot, so all of us enjoyed some green tea in the snow...





we made it back to the ranger station around 5pm - right about the time they were assembling help to look for a missing skier who got trapped in the snowstorm and didn't make it back saturday night. luckily, he was found alive around noon on monday, so crisis was averted...

V-day, part deux?

not to be outdone and right on the heels of valentine's day, the following e-mail managed to get thru my junk filter and appear in my inbox:

"Good day!!! I am Tatyana . I am 28 y.o.. I from city Cheboksary, it near 700 km from Moscow. I seen the announcement that there is possible to get relationship with the man on the Internet. It was very interested by me ,I have filled resume, and now I want to meet the person which is getting acquainted with me. Im the beautiful girl. I live with my mum and very much I don't have man's attention. I want to search men serious relationship. If you interested in me I will tell you more about myself. If it is interesting to you, write me please on my e-mail: tatyana8855@rambler.ru. It will be very good if you answer me. Your Tatyana."

i'm spoken for at the moment, but any eligible bachelor (or bachelorette for that matter) is welcome to contact tatyana directly. and nope, i won't be offended in the least...

eats - church & state

valentine's day came february 12 this year, as i took the girl out for a surprise dinner at church & state. it's a bustling french bistro with a lively dining room (four-tops and communal seating are in the center, with the cozier tables of 2 lining the perimeter), located on the outskirts of downtown.



since i took the painstaking effort of making her gift, i hit up the restaurant prior to our reservation to inform the maitre d' of my nefarious plan and slipped her some incentive to have them deliver the gift to our table when dessert was to be served. everything seemed to be in place, so i picked up heidi from her tea class and arrived at our destination for our 8:15pm reservation. as we were waiting to be seated, she caught a glimpse of my gift (unbeknownst to her that it was actually hers) on the front desk and remarked how pretty the wrapping paper was and how lucky the maitre d' was to get a gift. aghast, i mumbled something incoherent like "yeah, anyways i'm starving, can't wait to eat!" haha.

since there were a plethora of tasty treats to choose from, we carefully pared down our selections to the following six including dessert:

* tarte flambée (think wafer-thin flatbread) w/caramelized onions, bacon lardons & cave aged gruyère
* belgian endive, watercress, fuji apples, blue cheese, walnuts & vinaigrette
* braised pork belly, frisée, butternut squash & cherry gastrique
* sautéed diver scallops, yukon gold potatoes, diced leeks & smoked potato-leek chowder
* short rib, celery root & au jus
* chocolate/coffee custard, crème chantilly, sablés cannelle cookie





and here's a peek at her gift on the shelf above our table. the wrapping paper is a gorgeous (if i say so myself) handmade silkscreen of yuzen strawberry plum blossoms on a striking black background...



church & state
1850 industrial st.
los angeles, CA 90021
http://www.churchandstatebistro.com/

upcoming 2011 film releases

perusing this month's issue of GQ magazine, writer mark harris brilliantly constructs the current state of cinema and what we can expect this year and next.

here's a choice excerpt - let's see how many can correctly guess which films he's referring to.

winner gets a pat on the back from money B:

"let's look ahead to what's on the menu for this year: four adaptations of comic books. one prequel to an adaptation of a comic book. one sequel to a sequel to a movie based on a toy. one sequel to a sequel to a sequel to a movie based on an amusement park ride. one prequel to a remake. two sequels to cartoons. one sequel to a comedy. an adaptation of a children's book. an adaptation of a saturday morning cartoon. two sequels with a 4 in the title. two sequels with a 5 in the title. one sequel, that if it were inclined to use numbers, would have to have a 7 1/2 in the title."

eats - front page jamaican grille

saturday brought about a gauntlet morning run in downtown, followed immediately by basketball at UCLA, so i was feenin for a good lunch. kyle and i paid a first-time visit to front page, a jamaican joint near LAX that hit the spot. for real.



it's a relatively sparse operation, with a husband/wife team manning the big counter up front and maybe six metal tables of two sprinkled about the dining area. and if you eat there, the food is served in to-go boxes with plastic utensils and paper napkins. but all that doesn't matter once the food arrives - in this case i ordered the jerk chicken, which comes red beans & rice, mixed steamed vegetables and fried plantains.

the chicken is marinated and smothered in their homemade jerk sauce and grilled to perfection. the result is robust flavor and fall-off-the-bone tender. the pious man sitting next to us greedily eyed our jerk, then settled in with braised oxtails, which had us doing the same.


i've heard that the curry goat, roasted red snapper and the volcanic reggae wings are also can't misses, so the fact that i only have one stomach was troubling indeed. i did bring home a curry chicken jamaican patty and got hooked up with some of their homemade hot sauce, which they are planning to bottle and market. a return engagement is already in the works...

front page jamaican grille
1117 w. manchester blvd., #C
inglewood, CA 90301
http://frontpagejamaicangrille.com/

salomon XR crossmax - first look

with warrior dash 2011 (april) and the 10k mudrun at camp pendleton (june) looming, it was time to lock down the right equipment for my training in the mountains. with my vegas winnings from hitting a 5-team parlay, i treated myself to some new kicks - the salomon XR crossmax, a hybrid trail-running shoe designed for the trail and for the streets.

since i spend quite a bit of my time either running, hiking or tooling around various fire roads, what better way to take advantage of the terrain with only one shoe than these suckers. the upper is a stretchy mesh which is virtually seamless, so the fit is snug yet with room to roam. plus, it has a one-tug lacing system designed for speed, with a hidden pocket to hide the laces in.

the sole looks like a traction beast, with miniature hang glider cutouts designed to plant in the toughest conditions. i hope to take these puppies out for a spin this weekend...

salomon XR crossmax
release date: february 2011
www.salomonrunning.com/us/minisites/xr/

abbot kinney tomfoolery

monday brought about lunch at gjelina... yay! typically it's a 3-4 week advance reservation for dinner, but MLK day enabled my first foray there for petite déjeuner. while waiting for my traditionally tardy cousin (hey line!), my parents and i got to exchange POVs outside of ohm salon...





we got seated at 12:10pm next to the outdoor patio and after promptly ordering a maredsous 10 and a moylan's IPA for pops, it was on. we proceeded to order - and devour - the following:




* grilled chicories w/crispy farm egg, shaved parmesan & pancetta vinaigrette
* roasted beets, burrata, arugula, toasted walnut & walnut oil
* grilled monterey bay squid w/braised lentils, roasted peppers & salsa verde
* charred brussels sprouts w/bacon, dates & vinegar
* P.E.I. mussels w/chorizo, confit tomato, white wine & grilled bread
* guanciale, green olive, fresno chiles, buffalo mozzarella & rosemary pizza
* pressed braised beef brisket, tomato, onion, arugula & horseradish mustard
* butterscotch pot de crème (last but best)




gjelina
1429 abbot kinney blvd.
venice, CA 90291
http://www.gjelina.com/

eats - water grill

sunday night brought about dinner in downtown at the water grill, another los angeles first checked off courtesy of my parents. come to think of it, my folks should come down more often if it's going to inspire me to get about town!

the water grill has been hailed as the best seafood in los angeles, so a spin from the raw bar was in order. we ordered a dozen oysters of three varieties - my fave being the conway cups from prince edward island - plus the jumbo lump blue crab cake and calamari fritto misto to start it off.

for our main course, heidi swiped my original selection of the soy ginger-braised black cod, so i opted for the line caught pacific swordfish w/peppadew hummus, pomegranate couscous and mint yogurt sauce. swordfish is traditionally a meatier and less flaky fish, but this iteration was the most tender i've had yet. pops had the flat-iron steak w/truffle watercress butter and my mom went all in with the 1 1/4 lb. steamed lobster w/butter sauce:



even though we were pretty full, who can pass up dessert? red velvet pudding and cheesecake w/pear & blackberry jam were in the house:

the restaurant even threw in their 2nd complimentary dish (the 1st was an amuse bouche of raw tuna) - another dessert including mini chocolate hazelnut macarons and lemon poppyseed tarts. the food was terrific and the service even better - props to our server mike for such an enjoyable feast!

water grill
544 s. grand ave.
los angeles, CA 90071
http://www.watergrill.com/

getty center visit

sunday was a most opportune time to visit the getty center for the very first time (embarrassing, i know), with my parents in town and the weather gorgeous. we parked in the lot and excitedly jumped aboard the tram, taking a neat 5-minute ride directly above the 405 freeway.



upon exiting the tram, i was struck by the fact that i had never been to this sparkling jewel of a museum before, despite living a mere 10 minutes away. the beauty is obvious in and of itself, but the lines, the shapes, the breathtaking view(s), the fact that it's free... let's just say that it won't be another 13 years before i make it back for a second visit.




i perused most, if not all of the north (art before 1700) and west (after 1800) pavilions, paying particular attention to the center for photographs in the west terrace. the ability to tell a story succinctly - in some instances just one photo - and visually is something i'm very much fond of, so there was a great deal to admire. yet i found myself gravitating towards the architecture, so i ambled around the halls and outdoors in search of eye candy.






this doesn't even take into account the central garden, who in the words of its creator, artist robert irwin, calls it "a sculpture in the form of a garden aspiring to be art."





getty center
1200 getty center dr.
los angeles, CA 90049
http://www.getty.edu/visit/