Tegan and Sara

Tegan and Sara have a unique sound of of vocals, guitar, keyboard and synthesizer that's perfect for an outdoor Coachella music festival. Of all the bands I saw at Coachella this year, they're the ones I most enjoyed sitting on the grass, listening to, on a beautiful hot day in the desert sun. They've got great songs and I could listen to them for hours. The band consists of Canadian singer-songwriters Tegan Rain Quin and Sara Kiersten Quin, who are identical twin sisters.

Below are a couple songs that I really enjoyed live. Today when I heard their music (U. was playing it on his ipod) I had a flashback and I could almost smell the Coachella grass.


Tegan and Sara - "The Con"


Tegan and Sara - "Back in your head"

Day 1 - Coachella

Recap of yesterday (Day 1 of Coachella)

We took an alternate back route to avoid the traffic and it was a life saver getting in and out of Coachella quickly. (Read other accounts that it took 2 hours due to all the mad congestion.) We got there at about 5:30 PM. They did a much better job this year of identifying the tents by posting marques outside each tent listing all the artists and show times. But for some reason this year they didn't use the numbered balloons to identify parking. We were in Lot 4 and luckily there were signs with arrows posted on fences, marking the way, and by using landmarks (and a water bottle on top of our car), we were able to locate our car.

Since we got there late, we didn't have to deal with the heat for that long, as it started cooling down an hour or so after we got there. Although that meant we also missed the two first bands on my pick list. But we did surprisingly well seeing many of the artists on my list (5) , walking by and seeing two others, and a couple extra that I hadn't planned on seeing.

Artists bolded below are the ones we saw

Friday
· Black Kids
· Architecture in Helsinki
· Vampire Weekend
· Tegan and Sara
· Goldfrapp
· The Verve
· Jack Johnson (walked by)
· Fatboy Slim
· Black Lips* (walked by)

The other 2 acts we saw that weren't on my list
· Santogold
· Aphex Twins

2 bands I enjoyed the most

· Teagan and Sara (ditzy but talented twin sisters. I could do without their silly banter that seemed to go on and on and on - but they've got great songs and a distinctive sound that holds up well in an outdoor concert setting.)
· The Verve (It felt like a real mega concert with a polished, seasoned band - and it was great to see the band reunited.)

Everyone was prepared for the heat (or I should say almost everyone), but after the sun went down it got progressively colder, and we saw a lot people who were not prepared for the desert cold. Being a "seasoned Coachella veteran" as U. calls me (although this year I forgot my ID which is required for the beer garden) I came prepared for the heat and cold. It always amazes me how drastic the temperature change is in the desert - going from sweltering hot during the day to freezing cold at night. This year, even with my fleece jacket it was chilly. I felt for those people freezing in their bathing suits.

When we first got there, U. made a comment about people thinking we were old folks with our hats and sunscreen. I replied that I'd rather be old and prepared than young and stupid. Just then I looked up and saw a young guy with a tank top and an awful 3rd degree burn. Even though he was no longer wearing his tank top, with his burn you could see the outline of it on my chest and shoulders. Just nuts. That's cancer time.

By evening's wrap up, we decided to go see Fat Boy Slim. He came on 30 minutes late, which is pretty unusual by Coachella standards. If I had known he was going to be so late, I would have gone and seen a couple other acts playing at the same time. But the tent was packed and it would have been hard to exit and then come back in and find our group of friends again. When Fat Boy Slim finally took the stage, he had a lot of energy and the crowd went crazy so it was a lot of fun.

I'm going to go for a swim now and head out to Coachella this afternoon for Day 2. Going to try and get there a bit earlier today so we can catch Devotchka at 3:35. More updates coming tomorrow.

C-ya @ Coachella 2008!

It's that time of year again - the Coachella Music and Arts Festival at the Indio Polo fields in Coachella. I drove up last night and here I am this morning sitting on a couch in a beautiful home in Palm Springs with wifi, sipping my Chai latte, thinking about all the bands/artists I want to see at Coachella (and the cool art installations)...without any stress. The rat race seems miles away. Yeeessss!

This year we're doing it the right way
House in nearby Palm Springs with a pool for 4 days - check
Babysitter for 3 days (while the baby frolics in the pool we'll be having our own fun) - check
Friends sharing the house and excitement - check

Not only am I super stoked about this year's lineup, but it also feels like a real vacation even though it's only a 2.5 hours from home.

I'm also prepared with my handy dandy spreadsheet - of all the bands/artists I want to see sorted by times and locations. I'm an organized geek fer shizzle.

Dunno how many we will actually see, but here are my picks for Coachella 2008.

Friday

• Black Kids
• Architecture in Helsinki
• Vampire Weekend
• Tegan and Sara
• Goldfrapp
• The Verve
• Jack Johnson
• Fatboy Slim
• Black Lips*
  

Saturday

• Devotchka*
• MGMT
• Cold War Kids
• Kate Nash
• Dwight Yoakam
• Death Cab for Cutie
• MIA
• Portishead
• Prince

Being a minority isn't always a bad thing

If you've ever been in the minority you've experienced that feeling of "one of these things doesn't belong with the others". I know first hand what it feels like. I've been the token Asian on many occasions and there are only two places in the world where I've felt my Asian/European heritage is completely accepted and understood (Hawaii and San Francisco).

Tonight I was a minority but it felt completely different. U. and I went to The Flying Leap Cafe in Silverlake for dinner, and when I looked around the restaurant I realized we were only one of two heterosexual couples in the entire restaurant. In fact, I only saw 2 other women - the waitress and another patron. There were older men, middle aged men, men in their 30's - you get the picture. ALL men.

When I mentioned it to U. afterwards; he hadn't even noticed. (He thought the two older men seated next to us were just old friends.) I noticed it because I'm usually in the minority for completely different reasons. I have no qualms about being in the company of gay men. In fact I love LA and living in a city with great diversity. I think it's good for all people to feel what it feels like to be a minority. We'd have less racism and more tolerance.

Marilyn Monroe had a sex tape?

This is what happens when you're up at 3 AM with insomnia folks.

A secret sex tape of Marilyn Monroe recently sold for $1.5 million, according to a report in the New York Post.

A copy of the 15 minute, 16 mm film was purchased by a New York businessman who plans to lock it up, memorabilia collector Keya Morgan told the paper. The original film is reportedly held by the FBI and still remains classified.

The flick, reportedly shot in the 1950s, shows the blonde bombshell engaging in oral sex with an unidentified male. Former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover reportedly had his agents spend weeks trying to ascertain whether the man was either John F. Kennedy or Robert F. Kennedy, the paper said.

The silent black-and-white flick shows Monroe on her knees, clothed, in front of a man whose face is just out of the shot.He never moves into the shot, indicating that he knew the camera was there, but Monroe never looks at the lens, said Morgan, who saw the footage.The collector said he found the film while doing research for a Monroe documentary.

One of Monroe's ex-husbands, the late baseball great Joe DiMaggio, once tried to buy it from the collector for $25,000 but "he would not part with it," according to FBI files on Monroe that are available on the FBI Web site.

Morgan is a well-known collector who owns memorabilia from the estates of Monroe and DiMaggio and said he was friends with Monroe's other two husbands, Jim Dougherty and Arthur Miller.

He said he learned of the existence of the film while working on a documentary about Monroe, who died in August 1962 at age 36. A former FBI agent told him about it, and Morgan said he confirmed it by tracking down the son of the FBI informant, who had provided a copy to the FBI.

"I thought the FBI agent was embellishing it for my documentary. I never believed it once until I pulled up the FBI document (referring to the film)," Morgan said.

The late informant's son had the original while the copy remains classified in the FBI files, said Morgan, whose deal was first reported by the New York Post on Monday.

"The FBI agent that I interviewed said J. Edgar Hoover was completely obsessed. A team of nine individuals were analyzing the tape inside a lab. J. Edgar Hoover brought in a few prostitutes who allegedly had been with President Kennedy and they tried to ... see if that was really President Kennedy."

Heavily redacted, declassified FBI documents from the 1960s talk about a "French-type" film starring the late actress, who died in 1962 from an overdose of prescription drugs.

Source

Computer Woes

I am still alive, but posting has been at an all time low since my laptop has been out of commission.

My 1 year old laptop wouldn't turn on - so after having spent 5 hours on hold with Toshiba customer service (Note to self: NEVER buy from Toshiba again.), I was referred to a computer repair shop in Burbank to get the power adapter repaired.

When I finally got my laptop home I was thrilled that it turned on, but soon realized that anytime I typed, I'd get a pop up. I took it to a hacker friend of mine (who now does corporate anti-piracy work as an Executive) and he told me I had a virus. He recommended backing up the docs that I needed (making sure the virus wasn't hiding out in each one), and then reinstalling everything. Ouch. And also to let Toshiba know that the repair shop had infected my computer with a virus.

U. questioned whether Toshiba's customer service was as bad as I had described (I cannot count the number of times they "transferred" me only to have no one pick up on the other end), so he tried calling himself and spent 2 hours being transferred over and over again. A "See I told you" was justifiably doled out. Rather than helping like a good customer service should do, they basically told him that he would need to reinstall everything himself. Thanks for wasting 2 hours of my time. Oh wait, 7 hours if you count the first time I called. Yes, I'm bitter. I have never experienced such bad customer service from a computer company. (When I had a laptop by Gateway, their customer service was excellent. They shipped out a box to my house for my computer and paid for the shipping, which was so convenient for me. When it was fixed it was delivered to my house. I spoke to 1 person and didn't have to drive anywhere.)

So now we're in the process of transferring the docs I need to a hard drive, and wiping out all the programs and reinstalling. It's taking awhile, so I have limited computer access when I'm at home.

Fort Knox

At my previous job we had security galore. A security badge was required to get into the building and/or sign in at the lobby desk. Security badge required for the elevators, and then again at each floor to be granted entrance. Even to this day vendors who I talk to say it's very difficult to get to my previous employer's offices, as they have to go to reception on the 6th floor, let the receptionist know who they are there to see, and then someone would come down from the 7th floor to meet them.

So now I work for a firm with much less ado about security. You need a security badge to get into the building, but that's about it. You'd think this would be better right?

Wrong.

I went to the office this morning (Sunday) to try and get some work done and the place was inaccessible. My security card did not do the trick. I guess I have to let someone know when I plan to come in on the weekends so I can get pre-authorized access. That was never an issue with my previous firm. They had a number of check points but with my badge I could whiz on through. Now I only have 1 checkpoint and the place was locked down like Fort Knox. Oh the irony.

Reminders of your past

Once in awhile you're reminded of your past and it feels so foreign to you, like another life.

It happened to me tonight. Got home, went and used the guest bathroom and while washing my hands, I looked up and noticed the painting in there, that I had painted years ago. The setting and inspiration for the painting was my backyard. Years ago U. and I rented a beautiful 4 bedroom home (one bedroom we used as an entertainment room, the other smaller room as a "chill" room, and the 3rd as an office...yeah definitely pre-kid) in LA, with a canyon view, and huge backyard with 20 fruit trees.

We absolutely loved that house and when we first moved in I was moved by the scene of two white, plastic chairs sitting together in the garden. So I painted it. (U. even took photos of me on my knees painting this picturesque scene.) Recently U. told me that initially when he saw my painting, he didn't really think of the house, but now when he sees it, it really reminds him of our old home.

Now the painting sits on the back of the toilet tank in our guest bathroom in our current home. (I guess there could be a joke in there...)

My point here is that the image of two chairs is no longer the image I have of myself. That's no longer my world. I look at that painting now and think of my life as it used to be years ago and I can barely imagine that was me and I lived that life.

As my life is today, I look at that painting and see the missing third little chair there next to the larger two chairs.

Happy St. Patrick's Day 2008!

If you want to celebrate St. Patrick's Day locally with some live bagpipe music and get your corned beef and cabbage fix - visit Colombo's in Eagle Rock, on Colorado Blvd. Yeah sure they're Italian, but tonight's special is a corned beef and cabbage dinner with carrots and potatoes, and soup for $10.95.

My 3 year old daughter was fascinated by the bagpipes and kept asking about the guy's hat, boots, etc. He was dressed in full regalia.

Food Fight

An abridged history of American-centric warfare, from WWII to present day, told through the foods of the countries in conflict.

The pretzel and bratwurst were pretty obvious, but I have to admit I didn't get the cracker "matzah" until I looked it up. Duh! The beef stroganoff working with the kimchee, springrolls, and Cuban sandwich was classic.

For the official cheat sheet (breakdown of the foodstuffs & actual battles portrayed in the film) visit:
http://homepage.mac.com/stefannadelman/foodfight/cheat.htm

The Palace (new Chinese restaurant in Los Feliz)

The Palace

Neighborhood: Los Feliz

2112 Hillhurst Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90027

(323) 667-1595

Location
The Palace is a new Chinese restaurant located in the old Chi Dynasty location on Hillhurst in Los Feliz.

U. and I stumbled onto it after the wait at Little Dom's (up the street) was too long.

Decor
The restaurant is beautifully decorated in reds and blacks. The wait staff are dressed in tuxes and formal attire. You can see in the photo above that they have a traditional Chinese dress framed on the wall. It feels like a sophisticated, upscale restaurant, but children are welcome. (And unlike the kid friendly Chinese restaurant in Atwater Village - this place is CLEAN and has much better service!)

If you do bring your kid(s), make sure you get the coveted table next to the large fish tank. My kid loved it. It even has a number of Nemo aka Clown fish in it.

Food
The Palace bills themselves as "Authentic Chinese Cuisine," meaning not a Panda Express wannabe. The food takes awhile (U. commented in surprise that they really must be cooking it back there - rather than cheap Chinese food that sits in warm pots ready to serve right away) but the dishes were nicely prepared and yummy so it was worth the wait. Get the soup as an appetizer so you're not twiddling your thumbs waiting for your entree. And for dessert get the plum or green tea ice cream, which is served with candied walnuts and a cherry on top. Yum!

Dishes I've tried
Wonton soup - thumbs up
Velvet shrimp - very tasty and this is the healthy version that's not deep fried
Mooshu Vegetable - the 1st time I ordered this dish it was delicious and even U. who is not a big Chinese food fan, loved it; but when I ordered it on my 2nd visit it tasted like all the veggies had been burnt. They give you a finger bowl filled with warm water and lemon to rinse your fingers after eating this entree.
BBQ sliced pork - tasty but too much sweet sauce for my taste - got this for the baby.
Dumplings - they take about 15-20 minutes and are served with ginger, vinegar, soy sauce, and chili oil. They have 2 versions: veggie only and pork. The veggie ones I had were bland so next time I'll try the pork instead.

Note: They are still waiting for their liquor license. So enjoy your hot jasmine tea for now.

Summary
It's a great option for dinner being conveniently located in Los Feliz. I love the decor and ambiance of this local place, and give them props for the effort they put in to be "upscale". When U. is away on business it's always nice to have an option for dinner with my daughter where we both enjoy the food and kids are welcome so we both feel comfortable as well. (They created a "kid safe" cup for my daughter out of a plastic food container, filling it with water and cutting a hole in the top to put the straw through - without me even asking.) The first time I was there the food was excellent, but when I went back a second time the food was just so-so. I'm hoping they were just having an off night, because I'd like to return.

All is good on the homefront

Yes, I'm still alive and kickin'. Just busy with my new job and getting used to the new routine with preschool added in for good measure. My husband has been a saint cooking dinner for the family. After my first day on the job I came home to a whole roasted chicken (yes, he rocks my world), and we are now eating together as a family every evening (with the few hours we have together before our daughter has to go to sleep...to get in enough zzz's for preschool the next morning). We're a busy but happy family. =)

The future is looking bright

Today was my daughter's first (half) day of school.

I'm happy to report she did great (and so did mom)!

Happy Valentine's Day Honey! (I've got you under my skin)

Frank Sinatra - "I've got you under my skin"


Diana Krall - "I've got you under my skin"

From seeing Diana Krall perform at the Hollywood Bowl together years ago (sushi, wine, and falling asleep on your shoulder, under the stars while Tony Bennett was singing), to the Frank Sinatra crooner in Arizona who sang this song for us and asked us if we were having an affair - this song always makes me think of you. (And not just on Valentine's Day.) Love you!

Frances Bean Cobain at 15 (Harper's Bazaar)

Frances Bean Cobain, 15, the daughter of Courtney Love and late grunge legend Kurt Cobain, graces the March issue of Harper's Bazaar, including a photo-spread for the magazine as Evita, and characters from Grease, and Beauty and the Beast. About Frances

Frances is disarmingly direct, dispensing bons mots like a 17th-century raconteur. (This may explain why the French period drama Molière is her current favorite movie.)

She's implicitly aware that this interview—with no hovering minders, no publicists, no Mom—represents something of a coming-out party. And she is dressed for the occasion in a sparkly red J. Maskrey cardigan, a navy tank, and a black American Apparel skirt. She recently dyed her hair black, accenting the look with more red lipstick, red fingernails, and — mais oui — red toenails. She has a brand-new nose piercing, too. "Mom went with me. She was freaking out because she thought it was going to be a big stud or a big ring," she says. "And, God, it hurt. It was worth it, though, because it looks so cool."

Her Genes (& her father's eyes)
But it's Frances's eyes that have it: Huge pools of "like green, blue, yellow, purple, orange, gray," they are startlingly and immediately reminiscent of her late father, Kurt Cobain. They are inescapable. "I'm very lucky because my eyes work with almost any hair color," Frances notes breezily. "Thanks for the genetics, parents. Rock on!"

Frances talks about being a child of famous parents

“These people are fascinated by me, but I haven’t done anything,” she says. “If you’re a big Nirvana fan, a big Hole fan, then I understand why you would want to get to know me, but I’m not my parents.”

Without dismissing the accomplishments of her folks (her father was dead before she was 2), Cobain advises, “People need to wait until I’ve done something valid with my life.” When asked if she planned to follow in her mother and father’s footsteps and go into music, Frances said she thought about photography and/or journalism, and might do a summer internship at Rolling Stone.

Courtney Love on her daughter

"Whatever you want to say about me, go look at my kid. ... I don't think any child has ever been more wanted. And I don't think that any parents have wanted to fuck up less."

The Loves of Frances Bean the Teenager

These days, Frances is getting on with the business of being a teenager. Picking up her Sex and the City DVD, she grins. "I am pretty much a shoe junkie. Think Carrie Bradshaw times 20. It's not even cute; it's sick."

She adores the style of Dita Von Teese. "She's like a very dark, gothic, beautiful burlesque doll. Oh, hey, want to see what I bought on eBay?" She runs to her room, returning with a curvy Dita-esque vintage purple dress. "It looks amazing on. I'm not gonna lie."

What does Frances aspire to be?
"I want to be sublimely happy. I want to be able to live in a way that isn't too hectic. Calm. And I want those around me to be sublimely happy as well.

"But," she continues, her big green-blue-yellow-purple-orange-gray eyes widening, "I'm really scared to hit adulthood because if everything is this hectic and I'm only 15 years old, what the hell is going to happen when I'm 22?"

Click here to read the entire interview.

1991 Chevy Silverado hits the 1,000,000 mile mark

On Friday while driving to dinner, I was listening to All Things Considered on the radio, and they had Frank Oresnik on the line, owner of a 1991 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck that was about to cross the million-mile threshold. He talked with Robert Siegel (the host) from the road as his odometer hit 1 million miles. (Not sure what that looks like, as I had to leave the car to make my dinner reservation. Does it go back to zero?)

While many argue that foreign cars are far more reliable than domestic automobiles, here's at least one case for the Big 3.
Talk about the best commercial ever for Chevy! This story has lit up the message boards, and has people talking about Chevy...i.e., "Made in Americaaaa!!!"

When informed of Mr. Oresnik's impending milestone, Chevrolet General Manager Ed Peper said, "Most Dependable, Longest Lasting isn't just a slogan, and it applies not only to Chevy pickups but to the people who drive them. We get lots of mail from customers with hundreds of thousands of miles on their Chevy trucks - so much, in fact, we formed the Silverado 200,000 mile club in 2006 - but a million miles is certainly remarkable. We're glad to have Mr. Oresnik on the Chevy team." Congrats to Mr. Oresnik. May your next truck be as dependable as this one.

The Story
Frank Oresnik of Medford, Wisconsin bought his used '91 Silverado in 1996. At the time, it had 41,000 miles on the odometer and the previous owner's widow was selling it because it was too big for her. He has since racked up an average of 85,000 miles a year delivering seafood and steaks in the upper Midwest, in three states.

As for how he got this far, Oresnik credits regular maintenance and "a little luck." His detailed service records show 300 oil changes every 3,000 miles. It's had so many changes that the oil pan drain plug had to be rethreaded several times, he said, and "you never hear of that." The truck has had four radiators, three gas tanks, five transmissions and six water pumps, but the engine has never been overhauled, Oresnik said.

Frank Oresnik's trusty pickup truck — he calls it "the old girl" — passed the 1 million-mile mark on Friday with a camera crew filming the event and a public-radio audience listening in. "I can't tell you how much fun it was," he said. "It was really humbling, all this interest."

On hand was a film crew from Chevrolet's public relations and advertising company, and Mr. Oresnik was speaking live to Robert Siegel, host of National Public Radio's "All Things Considered."

A news crew from CBS had been with him earlier in the day.

"I wont say it was relief ... it was exhilarating," Oresnik said later during a stop in Gresham where he has one of his longtime customers. "This truck has been so dependable over the years."

What happens to the truck now?
Even though his truck is still in working order, Oresnik plans to retire it after having reached the 1 million miles. "I feel almost like the longtime NFL player as he goes into his last training camp knowing this is the end," Oresnik told The Detroit News.

Now that it's made history, the truck could be headed back to the automaker or Shell Oil. Oresnik said there's been some interested in GM or Shell Oil buying it.

Chevy Silverado 200K Mile Club

http://www.chevy200k.com/

Related story with less fanfare

Chevy with over 2 million miles.

Yet another reason to love LA

It's mid February in the dead of winter, and yet today in Los Angeles it feels like a glorious summer day with a high of 83 degrees.

I Voted

(That's me behind my daughter, voting.)

The most exciting Presidential Primary ever! It even got my apathetic self (anyone remember the 2000 Bush vs. Gore experience?) to the polling place. I waited until U. got home from work so we could go together as a family to introduce my 2 year old daughter to our voting process. As whacky as it is (we voted in a Mexican church), and no matter how much you doubt whether your vote matters, it still feels good to be apart (and aware) of the process.

Not since a Presidential election have we been so glued to the news watching the votes come in. We are a house divided for the first time this year as well (as is much of the country), so it's doubling exciting.

I'm registered Non-Partisan so I voted for the Democratic candidate. Everyone at the polling place was super friendly and helpful. When they announced the sole Republican voter - "Republican!" (in order to give him the correct ballot), heads turned and everyone had to laugh (even the Republican). He was definitely a rare breed in our neighborhood.

Congrats NY! - Super Bowl 2008 Champions

Photo by: Dave And Thomas

The NY Giants with little Eli Manning defeated the New England Patriots and their Uberquarterback Tom Brady, putting a kibosh to New England's perfect season, and becoming Super Bowl XLII champions. What an upset! I love seeing the underdogs win!

The NY defense was superb. U. was delighted that "they weren't letting Tom Brady do his thing." And did you see Eli Manning break free from like three New England linemen pawing at him and pulling his jersey, and then make an incredible throw to top it off? That's the stuff of legend there. Plus is was fun to see big brother Peyton Manning and his parents reacting and supporting Eli Manning. It was a much deserved victory for Eli and the entire team. It felt great to see them win.

(I'd be remiss if I didn't mention - It's a good thing the game was so exciting, because the commercials stank this year. What happened???)

Happy Groundhog Day 2008!

Photos from http://www.groundhog.org/

Punxsutawney Phil's prediction for 2008:
Six more weeks of winter!

Scenes from Punxsutawney, PA this morning
Everything you wanted to know about Groundhog Day

A behind the scenes look at Groundhog Day at the Groundhog Capitol of the world: Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.

Increased popularity thanks to the movie

In years prior, a good year brought out 3,000 to 5,000 people. After the movie, crowds soared to 30,000. It's on my list of things to do and places to visit.

The Cult Classic Movie

Bill Murray in the role of weatherman Phil Connors who is sent to Punxsutawney, PA to cover the story about a weather forecasting "rat" and finds himself repeating the same day over and over again.

I never get tired of watching it.