3...2...1... SUMMER is HERE!!!!!!
What is one to do when the summer is just beginning and your vacation is just ending? Well, to make the best of it … would seem the best answer! The bright colors and the linen pants are virtually everywhere ... good choice considering the rising temperature. As for me, school starts this week. Another ten weeks of heavy reading and long nights at Starbucks cramming for tests. So much fun!! This past couple of weeks I decided to use my nights and weekends doing as much as possible to prepare myself for the next ten weeks of exile from the “normal” world: I went out and try to enjoy what this gorgeous city has to offer.
I was often at the movies. I went to Universal Studios City Walk to watch Shrek the Third. It was just as hilarious as the previous installments. I love the baby-shower part and the increased screen time for the other characters: Cinderella, Snow White…etc. I was there with E. We ate at Café Tu Tu Tango. The chicken empanadas were delicious! Then we walked around City Walk and did some souvenir shopping. We got tickets for the last show 11:50 PM, so we left the place at around 2:00 AM. It was a very fun movie, definitely worth the staying up late. We also went to see 28 Weeks Later at Santa Monica’s 3rd Street Promenade. This movie was just as intense, if not more, than the first one. We walked around the promenade and got some French crêpes with some Starbucks hot chocolate. E and I also watched Knocked up at the Northridge Mall in the San Fernando Valley. This movie was just extremely hilarious. Probably not a good date movie, if your date is a woman. But, since I do not have that problem we had a blast. Man, guy-movies are so much fun. We got some food at Applebee’s, and then called it a night. We watched a low-key movie called Fracture. Even though E and my other friend fell asleep, I liked the movie. I also went with my family to watch Fantastic Four’s Rise of the Silver Surfer. My brothers are fans of any comic flick.
I went to enjoy an Opera with some co-workers. It was a very much-advertised Placido Domingo’s opera called Luisa Fernanda. It was entirely in Spanish and the performers did a great job. I loved it, especially the ending. It leaves you speculating on the end result of Luisa’s choice. The event took place at LA’s Opera house, The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, in the heart of Downtown. It is always fun and refreshing to walk around these streets and getting some drinks on its outdoor bars. I also went with my coworkers to this chic place in Downtown called J-Lounge. It is really nice. The best part besides its Mango-Mojitos and its cabañas, is that as the evening approaches and it starts getting darker, the Downtown skyline shines in the background contrasting with the patio heaters’ light creating a very inviting atmosphere. It was fun. Maybe I drank a little bit too much … but nothing to feel ashamed about
E and I also took a trip to Santa Barbara. We ate, shopped and had a great time. This city seems to have stopped in time. It’s calm streets and yet lively pubs are a fun contrast. We sat at the pier and talked, and talked and talked … well, he did most all the talking. I also took the opportunity of taking my dog (a rottwailer out for a walk out in the nice SoCal weather after a visit to the Vet.
So, school is beginning. No free summer for me. But, at this point I feel I’m ready to hit the books. Besides I have the 4th of July long weekend and a week off from work during the summer. Movies, Opera, Chic restaurants and bars, beaches, parks, cafes and retail stores… you gotta love Southern California.
Remembering is Memorial Day
It is an unfortunate truth that the very same reason why we have a memorial day in the United States is the very same reason why many in this great nation do not know what it stands for. The fact that we can go around and sit down at some Starbucks and order a seemingly complicated drink while we use the shop’s Wi-Fi to chat, play games and check one’s emails while half a world away our troops are constantly dying is almost hard to grasp. I want to clearly state that I’m not implying that the reason our troops are in Iraq is what keeps us safe here in the States. What I am saying is that due to the many previous military actions (including External Wars & the Civil War) have laid the comfortable foundation we now stand on. It has taken many lives - most of them personally volunteered ones - to defend the liberties of this land. Memorial Day stands to remember the lives of those who have courageously stood up when the nation needed them, or when the nation’s leaders decided to send them as is the case in Iraq. Now, we take this holiday as an excuse to not work, to rest, to barbecue, to take advantage of the many, many sales created by the retail industry. We do everything but remember why we are able to do all these things in the first place while in other nations, these very same things we take for granted are but distant dreams or mere illusions.
I am just as guilty. This past Memorial-Day weekend I took Friday off from work – I thought it would be great to enjoy a four-day weekend. I woke up early and headed to the bank to withdraw money. Then I went to pay my tuition at school -- apparently VISA is only welcomed to set booths to lure students on campus, but not to pay for classes. After that I headed to the gym, made an appointment for a Swiss massage at the Spa, worked out and had lunch at the very healthy-conscious California Crisp in Downtown L.A. After a good lunch I went to pick up my meds at the Rite Aid across the street from the gym, picked up my clothes from the dry cleaners and drove back home. I took a shower and then watched some T.V. I put some clothes on and headed out to my boyfriend’s home. I arrived around 3:30 PM. We headed to Santa Barbara. We put some very expensive, and ever increasing, gasoline on the car, bought some chips, water and chatted while listening to music from the Ipod connected to the car. About an hour an half later, we arrived at Santa Barbara. We were hungry so we walked on State Street and ate at the closest restaurant: the California Pizza Kitchen at the Paseo Nuevo Center. We walked around and did some shopping. Then, we headed towards the pier and while stopping at some bars to enjoy the different entertainment.
Then, right at the beginning of the pier something happened that caught me off guard. There was a man, apparently homeless, begging for money next to a statue of sand. The statue was that of two dead/wounded soldiers. The man claimed he sculpted them and was asking for money to take a picture of it. We gave him some bills and snapped a photo. As we walked towards the end of the pier, I kept on thinking about the sand soldiers and what they were representing, especially this weekend. That’s when it hit me. I was able to enjoy this sunny weekend in this beautiful Californian land with all its perks because of the many men and women who have fought, risked and even given their lives for our American Dream. I wonder how many more people thought about it. Well, I know who did not: Nicole Richie. Her infamous email-invite to her Memorial Day party explicitly, even though it might have been only as a joke, revealed that many, including the rich & famous who receive such great benefits from this nation, “have no fucking clue what Memorial Day really means.” I really hope things change and we learn to value what we have. I hope that our arrogance will not get the best of us and that we won’t need another tragedy to value our past. I hope we can value it so we can enjoy our present and secure our future. May I never forget … may we never forget, that we are very fortunate to live in America – and may I constantly remember those heroes whether or not it’s Memorial Day.
