The Rolling Stones at The Taschen Gallery -- Get What You Need

I had SOOOOOO much fun yesterday. Oh my God. It was one of those freedom days. One of those alive days. And unexpected. Completely unplanned. Which is always the best.

Sexy hot and unfair, Photo by Ethan Russell, 1972. The Official name of this photograph is "Lips."

I had to go to the WGA and because of that, I ended up seeing my friend, Adco, at Joan's on 3rd for an impromptu friend date. I have to do a real post for Joan's on 3rd but I will say this, as hoighty toighty as it is, it's also incredibly relaxed and it has a DAMN good cup of coffee (and super good crispy bacon. I didn't even know they served breakfast and you  know  how into breakfast I am these days). I also want to say seeing Adam reminds me of all that is good: cars, music, art, New York, our mutual friend, Dina and The Rolling Stones.

So it made good sense that on my way home I stopped by the Taschen Gallery to see The Stones show. Earlier in the morning I drove by and remembered Ad had attended the opening night for the exhibit. I remembered the pictures and it looked like fun but forgot. And then boom, I saw this...

...on the corner of Beverly and Crescent Heights. 

When I was growing up I was obsessed with/scared by/attracted to The Rolling Stones. But it was in NYC with my Tall Friend Jen that I became completely, irrationally obsessed. To date, Mick is the only rock star I've ever had a sex dream about and I gotta admit the truth, I'm pretty proud of that.

My boyfriend, Mick Jagger. Photo by Jean-Marie Perier, Paris, 1966

You probably know about Taschen because of their famous Dian Hanson books.

You've seen them for years. They're known as the "sexy books." And there's a great article I recently read about Dian Hanson in Believer Mag. Check it out.

But this exhibit is Taschen's first here in LA. They opened mid-December and way to open! With The Stones! Nice! Because it's been such a success, they've extended the photographic exhibit - which has close to 100 photos throughout the years - to February 15th. And you know, you think Taschen, you think books. So of course, there's a huge and luscious Stones book with the pics from the exhibit on sale for $150. And because it's Taschen, there's also a mega 5k book with all The Stones signatures...

Yari from Taschen displaying their Sumo Rolling Stones Book with The Fella's Signatures

I'm thrilled a piece of history, culture, England, New York -- home -- is in LA. The exhibit is curated by Reuel Golden and the photographers are iconic. You'll see the works of masters such as David Bailey, Anton Corbijn, Gered Mankowitz, Terry Richardson, Dominique Tarle, and Albert Watson here. AND it's all for sale. 

The Taschen Gallery

Knowing they've extended it, I'm sure to go back. And listen, they have The Stones playing continuously while you're there. What's not to like?

Speaking of, driving home, I put on the radio and "Miss You" came on. A sunny day, in LA. Seeing one of my best friends, getting an eyefull of Mick, Keith, Brian, Charlie, Ronnie, Bill. Then driving home on the freeway to "Miss You"? 

Brian Jones by Bent Rej taken in 1965 in London at Brian's home.

You gotta love LA.

Joan's on 3rd is at 8530 West 3rd. There's another location at 12059 Ventura Boulevard in Studio city. Street Parking available. Always check your meter. It gets vicious around here.

The Taschen Gallery is at 8070 Beverly Boulevard. LA, CA 90048. 323.852.9098. Hours of Operation is Tuesday thru Saturday 11-6PM and Sunday 12 to 5PM. And by Appointment. PS: Don't be afraid. It's free!

ENJOY!

Fielding & Friends

My good friend is performing in and hosting a stand-up show in West Hollywood tonight which I highly recommend!
UPDATE: This showtime is at 10PM. They changed the time.

Just a little info about the performers: Michael Kosta  is star of Fox Sports "Crowd Goes Wild." He can also be seen regularly performing on late night TV, including The Tonight Show and Chelsea Lately.  Kira Soltanovich  is  a  stand-up with her own Showtime special, who's writing credits include writing for the late great Joan Rivers. Andrew Donnelly is a comedic actor whose credits include Archer and Happy Endings.  Shelagh Ratner  is  a  Moth performer who's also the Winner of the Funniest Female Flappers. The sexy Scout Durwood  is a Moth Story Slam Champion who you've most recently seen on Mindy. And finally the cute and very hilarious Fielding Edlow. Fielding is  a comedic actress, writer, playwright and stand-up, who's film DVR was chosen as an Official Selection at The Palm Springs and LA Shorts Film Festival and who put this whole thing together and does so every month.

IT'S FREE!

Bar Lubitsch, is on Santa Monica Boulevard between Spaulding & Stanley. 323.654.1234. Street parking available, though always check the signs. Show starts at 10pm.

Enjoy!

Self-Care in The City of Angels

The other day I had a bit of a blow up, meltdown, implosion. It sucked. Lying in bed crying is a great thing to do when you're miserable... FOR A LITTLE WHILE... but it's nothing to make a habit of, especially when you live in one of the best cities in the world for those in need to recover from feeling rejected.

Peg Entwhistle

Unless I'm wrong, poor Peg Entwhistle was the first actress to take a leap off The Hollywood Sign. I'm not going to say if she went to Whole Foods, meditated at The Vedanta Temple and got a massage from Nikom at The Raven things would have been different...

But really, a little self-care goes a long way in a city that thrives on chewing you up and spitting you out.

Sometimes Hollywood feels downright depressing

Because as a writer, actress, director, musician -- you have to know rejection is a part of it. And you do develop a thick skin but that skin has to be immersed and infused with oils, scrubbed down with salts, moisturized with Nightingale poop, plumped up with fillers and kissed all over by the force of the universe to be fully appreciated no matter what, in order to deal with all that is putting its grubby little hands over it.

Yep, sounds like someone had a bad day. So my first stop in trying to feel better -- oh wait, my first stop was a cheeseburger at The Oaks Gourmet in Hollywood.

My little friend, Nancy, met me there. I didn't take any pictures. You wouldn't want to see what I did to this burger or what I looked like in this moment in time. Oh, the best is I say to the incredibly handsome guy at the checkout register (everyone there is incredibly handsome or super-chick-hot -- I kind of think it's a pre-req to getting a gig there) that I'd like a burger, medium rare, no this or that, etc. etc. And then I go, "You know what? I'm emotionally eating. Can I have the Greek Salad as well?" Their Greek Salad is SO good. It has mint and is light and not too onion-y and tastes fresh - really fresh. Like the tomatoes are tomatoes I'd choose. Anyway, he goes, "So, not the burger, just the salad?" And I go "No, I said, I'm emotionally eating. So both. Thank you!" He was too hot and skinny to have any idea what I meant but smiled like the good young optimistic sport he was.

Kirsten Dunst at The Oaks Gourmet (kind of like me & Nancy)

Nancy's like my trudging bud. She knows my pain. She ALWAYS makes me laugh. And if every day I could meet her at The Oaks and eat a burger, one of the best in Hollywood, that would be heaven. No, come on. That would be disgusting. I'd have a major cholesterol problem. Okay. Moving on.

I went home, cried and lied around and listened to my meditation mp3. It's this woman, Micaela Boehm from Vienna (I decided that. I don't actually know where she's from). She's a hypnotist I saw years ago and I still listen to the recording she made for me.  I put on my eye mask, lie down, and press play. She goes So now to begin with I want you to make yourself very comfortable. And just allow your body to sink down, into the soft service, adjusting your body so that you can rest for a few moments, allowing your body to... rest... your mind to drift aimlessly... effortlessly... drifting from thought to thought... while your body begins to sink down... feeling all the stress and tension of your day... and letting yourself sink down... unwind...slow now...as you... drift...float...flow... I don't know what else she says because I immediately fall asleep every time.

Then two of my closest friends checked in. I was "called to action" and met up with Else & Stephanie who let me cry like a colicky baby and got me to laugh at myself.

My Real Housewives Companions, Else & Stephanie

These are the guys I can say the straight dope to and they're kind enough to remind me I'm not always such a downer. They're pretty awesome and I started to feel like people did like me and my Stuart Smalley self was gonna be okay.

Doggone it, people like me!

But the next morning when I woke up, with swollen eyelids, I was kind of like, Wow, people don't like me.

I knew I could just feel sorry for myself for endless pointless hours or I could get into action. Trust me, feeling sorry for myself can be like a super ugly default and a job unto itself. But I chose to do otherwise. First stop?

Meditation at the Vedanta Temple in The Hollywood Hills.

The Vedanta Society of Southern California

This is SUCH an unassuming place. It's tucked away on this teensy street right above Hollywood, off of Vine. It's located in one of the oldest, smallest, and most charming enclaves of LA, The Hollywood Dell, where all the houses look like craftsman cabins where magical elves live.

I forgot to get good pictures of this area so here's someone's garage across from The Temple

So peaceful, unpopulated, beautiful, mellow. I went into the temple, pulled up a cushion, and started to meditate. It felt good. I was at ease. I felt so peaceful and quiet.

And then this lady walked in. 

Wasn't sure if it would be frowned upon to take pictures but sometimes being subversive makes me feel better.

She kept moving around. I don't know why. I was trying to think of nothing but sometimes would slightly open my left eyelid to peek over and make sure she wasn't doing something weird. She wasn't. She was just fidgety. I was like that on a plane once to Barcelona. I was sharing a bunch of seats with some woman and I couldn't get comfortable and I kept moving around and she goes, Settle down! and I was like paralyzed for the rest of the flight and didn't sleep one wink. I didn't say sharply Settle down! to this fidgety lady in the temple. I like to think of myself as evolved and she left before my meditation time was up. Oh, that was the other thing. I set my timer on my phone to meditate. Then when she came in, I felt completely like I should turn it off and couldn't stop obsessing over that. I was so relieved when she left. If that lady is reading this, Thank you, Lady!

Hug a tree at The Vedanta Center in Hollywood

Afterwards, I had to go to the dentist. Let's not get into that shit, although I will say, I have the best dentist EVER and he's super nice and travels all over the world and takes incredible pictures. If you need a dentist, look up Dr. Kurtz in Glendale. He rocks (and he likes rocks).

Then off to Whole Foods. My friend, Dina, who is an integrative nutritionist and has a company called Well Is Good reminded me that good food makes me feel better. She's ALWAYS right and besides, I wanted to spend money but spend it productively in a safe atmosphere. So I went to adult Disneyland, otherwise known as Whole Foods, The Happiest Place on Earth (including Bed, Bath & Beyond).

Whole Foods on Arroyo Parkway

Either you hate or love Whole Foods. I get it. I've been there. But right now, I wish I lived in this place. And the one on Arroyo Parkway, which is like award winning and everyone knows it's super nice, is filled with magic beans and good vibes. I mean look at this guy...

Pat, The Sandwich King

I am not kidding. This kid is like a freakin genius. He knows sandwiches and I'm a sandwich maven/snob. If you're at Whole Foods and need a sammy, I pray for you that Pat's working. That's all I can say.

And this lady? I live for this lady. She is SO nice to me. Every time. I will wait in line so I can see her. She always has a nice thing to say and anyway, she's like one of those people that reminds me people are good and nice and nothing really matters. And she always has a nice extra touch, like super fantastic earrings. She's like Flor at Von's in Eagle Rock who usually has a flower in her hair and Dorothy at Gelson's in Hollywood who ALWAYS remembers you.

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But Whole Foods, there's just something special about really good food.

Just found out the Salmon is on sale this Friday for $8.99 per lb.

I don't drink and I don't smoke.

Food is what I got. So trust me, I am going to make the most of it.

Save a cow, eat a pumpkin!

And as good as all that was, no journey towards feeling better about yourself is complete, in my humble opinion, without a massage. LA has a billion choices from excellent super cheap (like Pho Siam on the edge of downtown) to uber dripping in indulgence shmance (like The Spa in Beverly Hills at The Four Seasons). For me though, when I'm really in need, when I don't want to compromise, but I can't justify spending a car payment (or worse) on a massage, I go visit Nikom at The Raven in Silverlake: My all-time favorite massage maybe on the planet.

This guy is a master.  A true master. The guy who owns the place, Barry, took extra care when he hired his staff. Some people are just healers and Nikom is one of those men. I got The Custom (where you discuss what ails you and the masseuse tailors his/her massage to fit your needs). I scheduled an hour, which is $100.00. Now that's not the most expensive massage you'll get but it's not really cheap either. I was splurging. I was going all out. And I'm SO glad I did. Because I noticed he was going over an hour. I was surprised. Now I had called just an hour before to schedule this and might have miscommunicated how long I wanted my massage. That's what I thought had happened until I went to the receptionist to settle up. She said he went over because he felt I needed it! Can you imagine? They still charged me $100.00 but he was generous because HE IS A HEALER!

But first, let me tell you, you walk in and it's like you're suddenly in Bali or something.

And the whole place reeks of sage, and I love this smell. I know to some people it's pot-adjacent but I love love love...

Native Sage, 10 bucks, at The Raven in Silverlake

It's the whole place that heals you. Every little thing...

Massage Beds at The Raven

The Main Area

Inside my massage room

You know, I can't remember how I first came across Nikom. Was it through my friend, Amanda, or did we both find him around the same time? I can't remember. All I know is when the going gets tough, the tough, battered, bruised, sad and emo -- if they're smart -- go to Nikom.

And that's it! That's what it took to feel okay, ready to take on the world, cease the self-pity party. I should say, that's what it took this time. Trust me, I have a lot in my quiver to nurse a bruised ego. Because I live here. I like it here. I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to keep trying, persevering and I have to know that rolling with the punches requires some extra TLC.

But man, I wish I had chosen some profession in the self-care industry instead of wanting to be a writer.

I would be really rich right now, right?

The Vedanta Society (Hollywood Temple) which also offers classes, lectures, meditations and private meetings with their head swami is located at 1946 Vedanta Place, Hollywood, CA 90068. It's open from 6 AM to 7 PM Every Day.  Park on Vine for free but always check the signs.

My favorite Whole Foods is at 465 South Arroyo Parkway, Pasadena, CA 91105. Parking underneath the market.

The Raven Spa of Silverlake is located at 2910 Rowena Avenue, Silverlake, CA 90039. 323.644.0240. Street Parking Available. Always feed your meter extra since you want to relax after! They also have a yoga studio you should check out. In addition, they have a Raven in Santa Monica (I don't know it that well) as well as El Leon in WeHo which I haven't visited for a long time but when I did I absolutely LOVED it.

Enjoy!

My Favorite Salad

Just have to make a quick and fast recommendation for one of my favorite salads. Actually it's one of my favorite lunch spots.

On Sunset, just a couple of blocks east of Silverlake Boulevard, sandwiched between Sumi's and Hemingway & Pickett, is Food + Lab. Now there's another Food + Lab in West Hollywood, and that one is fine, but this is the one I love and I can't for the life of me say there's any real major difference aside from the fact that...

...it's in Silverlake.

Food + Lab is simple. Good food. Fresh food. Well prepared. But also the entire place is clean and mellow. New York tiled, metal but comf chairs and and I'm a big fan of the mirror and the artwork and hanging-low light fixtures:

There aren't that many restaurants where I feel I can really think. I can be alone and it's okay. This though is one of them. And though it has delicious sammys...

Grilled Cheese with Kale Salad at Food + Lab

...tons of sides like kale salad and white bean salad, and Deluscious Cookies (which are at the counter and just trust me you should get one, they are fabulous) the reason I go is for one reason and one reason alone.

The Cobb Salad at Food + Lab

This is my favorite salad: The Chicken Cobb. Grilled chicken, yummy little tomatoes, spring lettuce, gorgonzola. It comes with 1 dressing but I ask for two and mix them because they're both AMAZING. They're not fattening, they whip the dressing so they taste rich and have a silky texure and it's a salad and who cares? One is the House Vinaigrette, the other, Lemon. The salad comes with bacon and egg but I don't get either. I feel indulgent with the bacon and I dislike cooked egg. So for me they usually just throw in some more of something like the cheese or the avocado or the tomato. Doesn't matter to me which component is added because they're all so good and the chicken, seriously, is grilled to perfection, charred - a hint of salt. So tasty Tom Colicchio (and it's his voice I hear in my head when I bite into it) would say, "The chicken is cooked perfectly."

Grilled Veggie Salad. Which is good too. But it isn't the Cobb.

They have other salads too, obviously. They can't just serve one. Like they have the extremely popular grilled veggie with goat cheese but I likes what I likes and you'll rarely see me diverge from my original setting.

While you're on the block, it's worth going to the places that align Food + Lab. They're both good little stores -- though one is about to move. Sumi's is going to Vermont which is a shame but they're there for now and the handmade jewelry is really lovely.

UPDATE: SUMI'S HAS MOVED TO 1812 NORTH VERMONT, LA, CA 90027.

Sumi sells both some of her own designs, some of local designers. Very tasteful stuff and a close friend actually got her wedding ring here. 

Wrapped Necklace at Sumi $143

Classy and simple Rose Gold Earrings, designed by Sumi $46

There are also these very cute handmade Carita Viola bags from Finland, tons of artwork and pretty little knick knacks. 

Gorgeous scarf at Sumi $22

On the other side of Food + Lab is Hemingway & Pickett. Also a totally charming and unique store.

$12 for the pair of Territorial Beer Holders

Awesome retro clocks by Bruno. $55.

Terra Nova Natur Oil, 10 bucks.

Original cards.

They're great places. Probably worth the trip alone. But for me, it's very clear why I'm coming to this stretch of land...

Food + Lab is open for breakfast, lunch, dinner and caters. Hours are 10 to 9 on weekdays, 9 to 9 on weekends. It's located at 3206 West Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles 90026. Metered parking is available on Sunset, free side street parking is also worth the hunt but as always, check the signs. 323.661.2666. Their other location is 7253 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood 90046. Hours are 8-8 daily. There's metered parking on Santa Monica and free parking available in the back. 323.851.7120.

Sumi's is at 3204 Sunset. 1812 North Vermont, LA, CA 90027. Monday thru Saturday 10-8. Sundays 11-6. 323.660.0869.

Hemingway & Pickett is at 3208 Sunset. Tuesday thru Saturday, 11-7. Sunday and Monday, 11-5. 323.660.4200.

A Great Saturday Morning: Discovering Breakfast at Blu Jam

I'm a huge breakfast snob and I really don't like places that overdo it. Those that do so shall go unnamed. Why be a hater? But what I will say is some of the most highly touted breakfast places in LA, the places EVERYONE tells you to go to, are heavy, give you way too much food, and load up on the uber fatty ingredients. Maybe if you're a hungover breakfast goer, you really want to pour it on to cut through the cigs from the night before. But for me, I like places that give the ingredients a chance. And frankly, if everything is about butter, syrup, and creams -- what are they trying to cover up, you know?

The Blu Jam Cafe on Melrose between Martel and Fuller is a good, hearty, delicious, non-gloppy breakfast that uses fresh, high-quality ingredients. Meaning: You don't have to take a nap afterwards.

I'm an eavesdropper. That guy was telling them about his China trip. One more fact: he ordered the cornflake encrusted French Toast and man, it looked GOOD.

First off, can I just say, there is now, finally, a very cool service-oriented generation. For a good decade you'd go to many a restaurant and feel as if you were pissing off the people who work there by simply showing up for your reservation. They didn't want their jobs - and they were hard jobs, to be sure - but they kind of let you know they were too good for it. There's a FANTASTIC trend now toward amazingly good service. This is in spades at Blu Jam.

The Host Desk/Front Desk People were super nice, funny, on it and adorable. Loved these guys. And I'm sure had we arrived 20 minutes after we did we would have had a very long wait, but we had about 15 minutes and then were seated. This was shortly before 10am on a Saturday. Here's the other thing: very realistic seating expectations were set by the front desk. And they had our number and texted us when our table was ready so we didn't have to stand right in front of them whipping our heads around every time one of them would duck out from behind their "podium." Actually what we did was take the host's suggestion and went to their bar to get an ice coffee while we waited. It was pretty delicious and right after we ordered it, we were seated.

Norwegian Eggs Benedict at Blu Jam

This is what I chose: The Large and In Charge Norwegian Eggs Benedict with Dill Hollandaise, Spinach and Salmon. In NYC, on the Upper West Side, me and my friend Allison used to go to a place that called this dish Eggs Benny. Allison, if you read this blog please remind me the name of that restaurant joint! Anyway, Blu Jam's version was just as fantastic. And they had a little chive on it that added a light mellow onion touch. Though I could have had potatoes, I ordered the fruit. Considering I was having the Hollandaise I thought on some level I must be healthy. It's always a gamble. I've gotten so hosed with choosing fruit in the past because have you ever noticed when you order fruit in lieu of potatoes they give you pretty much every piece of fruit you don't normally eat and none of it is ripe? It's like hard, freezing cold melon varieties and if you're really unlucky you get some rind thrown in. Well, this was Farmer's Market fresh: Strawberries, grapes, pineapple, blueberries... tart and sweet and at the end of the day, I didn't just feel healthy, I felt respected.

Homemade Granola, Blu Jam

My husband got the granola which has like about 50 ingredients in it (almonds, coconut, flax seed, raisins, you name it). It was so freakin delicious. One of the best granolas in any restaurant I've ever eaten. They gave him a scoop of yogurt (you can get milk) and it was clearly not enough. So they gave him another scoop and I believe they did that free of charge. So nice of them.

French Press Coffee, Blu Jam style

At Blu Jam I had two cups of this Costa Rican (they have a different type daily). Super yummy, edgy, perfect. I could marry it. I'm beginning to think my relationship with coffee is in the unhealthy area. You know what I mean? I love it as if I can't live without it. And by the way, I can't. I might have to soon start to look at my coffee situation. Some day. We quit things in the order they kill us, right? And you know seriously, if I was killed by coffee it wouldn't be the worse thing. I'd certainly die energetically.

TD and our waiter

Doesn't that look like "the film's director" in the background? Or like I captured the image of a ghost? I know. But listen, I just want to say "hi" to our waiter because he was on it, sweet and nice, AND he had on that awesome vintage Yankees shirt (which he got in New Jersey 5 years ago) and I just want to say I had a shirt VERY SIMILAR when I was growing up. Though I have no current particular allegiance to The Yankees (I like both The Yankees and The Mets no matter what's happening or where they are in the running) I will say, seeing this shirt brought back good memories of evenings in The Bronx with my dad and made me like the restaurant more.

Afterwards, we ducked into the American Vintage which is on the same block but I decided I needed to get going. I was heading to Silverlake for a hair consultation (oh my God, it's out. I'm planning on cheating on my hair stylist. Did I already tell you?) and so on my way to my car I ran across this guy:

He had parked his brown Mercedes (sorry Adco, I didn't get a good picture of that and it was a very cool looking coche) and set up a tripod and started taking a video of himself dancing in front of this wall of graffiti:

Your body's on time and your mind is appealing

I asked him if he was the artist and he said no and then took off. God bless him.

Moving east towards my Consultation to Cheat Appointment in Silverlake, I had one final fantastic moment to my morning...

Saturday Morning Car Porn

While listening to "Blue Monday" - Saturdays seem to be 80's satellite radio time - I came across this particularly wonderful car and wanted to share it with you. By the way, Stir Crazy is a fun place for a cup of joe. It's on Melrose & Orange in Hollywood. It's a good writing cafe, you know what I mean? A place you can get a cup of java and plant it for awhile.

Anyway, after "Blue Monday" it was time to admit it. Morning was almost over. I was leaving the magical world and going into my day. So I put Paul's Boutique into the CD player (the mix by DJ Cheeba, DJ Moneyshot and DJ Food) and drove off to Silverlake.

Here's a link to that mix: 3 DJ Mix of Paul's Boutique. Super worth it. Great car music.

All in all, a most relaxing delicious sunny and enjoyable morning in a long while.

To recap: If you got a hankering for a really good breakfast, fresh ingredients, good service, strong and tasty coffee, trust me on this: Blu Jam Cafe. If you want to see some guy dancing in front of a great wall, go right behind the building in the alleyway of Martel, south of Melrose. If the need for good music in your car is required on a sunny Saturday, I recommend New Order's Blue Monday and the 3 DJ mix of Paul's Boutique. If you want a cup of coffee to write in your diary about your caffeine addiction, check out Stir Crazy Cafe in Hollywood.

No matter what, get in your car, open the windows, and turn on your music. It's a beautiful day.

ENJOY!

Blu Jam Cafe is located at 7371 Melrose Avenue, between Martel & Fuller. 323-951-9191. They also just opened a second location in Sherman Oaks on Ventura between Kester and Sepulveda. They're open 7 days a week, 8 - 4pm. It's my understanding they don't take reservations. Also, the head chef and co-owner, Kamil Majer, is a sommelier. There is an array of carefully selected wines and beer, for those of you who partake. Street parking available. I've never been to the Sherman Oaks location so I can't speak to that but as for the Melrose spot, don't go when you're hungry. Be prepared to wait!