Friday, June 30, 2006

Waiting, waiting...

Did you know that Gene Autry was the only person to be honoured on the Walk of Fame in all it's categories? Now you do.



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I'm sitting in the Maple Leaf Lounge at LAX. I volunteered to bump my flight till today, so they upgraded me to "executive class" and I'm taking full advantage of the perks.

Well, not full advantage. I don't drink beer at 8:00am. I am drinking green tea. Trying to recharge my computer. I'm sitting in a comfy chair by the vast picture windows overlooking the runways with the palm trees and the hills in the distance. It's a beautiful clear day.

Got some writing done already this morning. Not much further than my last report, but I'm at 45 230 words.

I wish I hadn't availed myself of the mediocre "continental breakfast" at the hotel, 'cause the stuff here looks better. I'm just not hungry. And I'm jonesing for coffee, but I don't want to be all dehydrated on the plane. So it goes.

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The last weekend in L.A. we visited Santa Barbara, where b/f treated me to a concert - Fiona Apple at the Santa Barbara Bowl. What can I say, she's amazing. Damien Rice should still be practising his craft in smoky dive bars. He's got potential, and he's cute, (ok, and the Irish accent doesn't hurt either), but he's no Rufus Wainwright. David Garza is worth another listen - he played sort of electro-latino ballads.

We also walked around Santa Barbara, hung out at the beach, and checked out the old Presidio - which was essentially a Spanish colonial fort designed to protect settlers and the Fransiscan missions. We also walked around the Santa Barbara Mission - known as the Queen of Missions. It was the 10th mission set up in California in the 1700s. As I learned in the gift shop, Santa Barbara is the patron saint of contractors, builders, and construction workers, mainly 'cause she re-designed the tower she was locked up in.

The Native Americans of the area (whom the Spanish were converting) were the Chumash.

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My last few days in L.A. were mainly packing and bumming around the apartment, but I did head to Hollywood and Highland to buy some last minute tacky souvenirs, and eat Baja Fresh - essentially, fast food we don't have in T.O.






And I went with A. the Housemate to see The Break Up. I didn't read the reviews beforehand. I really enjoyed it. I did laugh, and I also found it poignant and sweet. I understand some of the bad reviews - I can see how someone might compare it to a sitcom highlight reel, but despite the flaws, I think it's a good movie. If you're not going to see it in theatres, it's still well-worth a rent.

Et, voila. That's my last missive from L.A.
I still have plenty of photos to share, but they'll be posted from T.O.
Happy Canada Day (tomorrow) to everyone. Anyone heading to the Islands?

3 comments:

JuliaMazal said...

Oops, I meant Franciscans. Like St. Francis. You know.

Chanel (nbr5) said...

You are the 2nd person (that I've read) who said that "The Break Up" wasn't as bad as the reviews.. the other review I read said that Jennifer Aniston's wardrobe in the movie was chic & trendy to say the least.. I am inclined to check it out now I think...

JuliaMazal said...

If you haven't seen it already... yes, Aniston's wardrobe is perfectly chic! Exquisitely tailored (well, not 1940s or anything), but seriously beautiful. Almost all LBDs, too. Yes, if you like fashion, see it for the wardrobe (and how well it fits her) alone.