Beautiful Baby Bea

This past weekend G and I headed over to NYC to meet our new niece, Beatrice. This is also the name of my favorite Shakespearean heroin --- so she too is clearly going to grow up to be strong and smart with a rapier wit. She arrived about 3 and half weeks ago to G’s brother Drew, and his wife, Suzanne.

Bea with her Momma . . .


. . . her Pappa . . .


. . . and her grandma . . .

This girl is ridiculously cute, with her already full head of dark hair and gray blue eyes. I know, I know! Everyone says that about every baby, but somehow, little Bea was just that much more irresistible to us. We may be just a little partial, but she seems to have a rose colored glow surrounding her.

G turned to mush the moment he saw her. You could literally see his insides melting into a puddle of love. He didn’t stand a chance. He was wrapped around her teensy little fingers within moments . . . Well, he wasn’t ready so much for poopy diapers or burping, but otherwise, he was putty in her little hands. It was so moving to see. I think girls fall a little more in love with their guys when we see them being good with kids.

Mush. He was complete mush.

I was also enchanted. Pretty much any time she was in sight, we stared at her completely enthralled, even if she was just lying there. She’s endlessly fascinating. Just laying there asleep, not moving, she’s fascinating. Yeah, we were smitten.

I was pretty much mush too.

I think I might have actually felt my biological clock tick for the first time. I think this gorgeous little creature may have given me my first pang of maternal longing!

Now, before anyone (Mom, I’m talking to you here) runs out and starts buying out Babies R Us, let me clarify. I’m not saying I’m ready to have one now, or even in the next couple years, but the time is coming. This is actually kind of a relief in a way. See, I’ve always had this timeline of when we should probably start having the kiddies. This was never based on any emotional pangs, but was arrived at by considering multiple factors such as health, finances, age, work, etc, and calculating when these factors were most likely to optimally align. It’s more a matter of scheduling the calendar of life’s to-do list.

I love kids, and have always wanted them in the abstract, but I kind of tend to shrink with horror at the idea of actually having one. When asked if I have any kids of my own, it’s all I can do to hold back a ‘HELL NO!’ I love other people’s kids. I like to goof around and play games and am always happy to baby-sit, but I’m also very happy to give them back at the end of the day.

It’s not that I’m even squeamish around them or grossed out by dirty diapers or burp-up. I’ve changed a few diapers in my day and, well . . . I’ve been known to drool a little when I nap myself. Who am I to begrudge a little person’s inability to control what comes out of their mouth when I still haven’t completely mastered this skill after all of these years? I do admit that I’m TERRIFIED of labor, but I’ve simply come to terms with the fact that I will get drugs. Say what you will about the epidural, but being born with your mother in a panic attack can’t be good for you either.

This cautious feeling regarding maternity actually goes back a long way. Even as a kid, while I definitely played with my dolls quite a bit, when I played “house” with them by myself, I was never their mother. I’d create these elaborate stories where I was an older sister tragically left to raise her 12 younger siblings, or sometimes I was left in charge of curiously nice orphanage or boarding school. I may have seen A Little Princess once too often.

It really just comes down to the fact that I still really like my freedom. I’m still too selfish. I like it being just G and me for now. Let’s put it this way, when I go to Disneyland I still want to dictate what rides I go on! And money is a whole other story. Aside from the fact that we really don’t have the money to care for a baby just yet, let alone a home in this city, or schools, or the doctor’s bills --- hell, I think we could maybe just afford a pet --- I still kind of want to spend the money we do have on us for a little while longer before we bring another person into the equation. It’s definitely easier to make a decision to go spend a few months and a good chunk of change in another country, as we will be doing in just another month, when you don’t have another tiny person to consider.

So I was really starting to wonder if that maternal longing was ever going to kick in. Rather than longing for the moment I can have a baby of my own, I often try to figure how far back I can push the timeline I’ve created – maybe 32-34 could be 35, or 36, 37, 38, 39, 40. Is 50 too old? (Actually, nowadays, it really might not be.)

Right now, we’re still nowhere near ready; not financially and not emotionally. I/we still have a few more years of selfish living to do. However, it’s kind of comforting to know that biology may kick in yet. I can actually now fathom that the day is coming when I’d be willing to sacrifice all the freedom I now love so much in favor of another little guy or gal. The charms of Beautiful Bea have given me hope that I may still catch up to my timeline and be ready when the time comes . . . or at least I won’t mentally push the bar back quite so far from now on.

30 Hours in Duluth

Last weekend G and I took a fly-by trip to Duluth, Minnesota. A girlfriend of mine from college, Carrie, was getting married – she came all the way to my wedding in Colombia and I feel I really I should do my best to go to the weddings of friends who made the long trip to mine. Plus, I was really excited to check out Duluth. I’ve spent little time in the Midwest since the four-year stint my family spent in St. Louis when I was a kid. (Actually, my dad worked in St Louis, but we lived in a suburb called Chesterfield. I refer to these as the Norman Rockwell years as it was all very picturesque.) The trip was shorter than we would have liked, but sweet.

We arrived at our hotel at around 11 in the morning, and as we were early for check-in, our room wasn’t ready. Luckily, we’d done some homework beforehand. Months ago, I heard a little smokehouse discussed on a podcast of the Splendid Table that happened to be in Duluth. Knowing I was probably going to be making a trip here in the next year, I filed the info away in my mind, and then looked it up before heading out. G went a step further and armed himself with directions from the Sheraton, where we were staying, to the Northern Waters Smokehaus. With no bed ready for us to fall into, we immediately headed out in search of food, waiting only for my friend Naomi to join us.

The hunt to find this little joint was our first chance to get a sense of the city as it turned out to be within an easy walk of the hotel. Our walk took us down a couple of the main streets of downtown. There were many cool older brick buildings -- some that were in need of renovation, but also many that had been well maintained or had been restored.

The Northern Waters Smokehaus was in the Canal Park section of town, an area comprised of reclaimed warehouses that have been converted into quaint shops and trendy cafes to entertain locals and tourists. Northern Waters Smokehaus is tucked in the back of one of these converted warehouses, and could have been easily overlooked when confronted with all of the other bustling restaurant options. It is a tiny little place with a counter displaying the various delicious looking meat options and a few shelves and cases filled with tasty selections. It’s clearly intended mostly as a take-away joint, but there are a few spots available for eating in.

The hunt was worth it. Greg and I shared 2 sandwiches – the Buffalo and the Cajun Finn. The Buffalo is basically a spicy take on a Ruben using bison pastrami.

To be completely honest, I can’t taste a huge difference between the bison and normal pastrami, but it was damn good pastrami. The Cajun Finn was also delicious. The house smoked salmon was as tasty as any we had in Alaska.

Naomi had just recently had brunch, so she took some very tasty looking dry meat snacks back with her to the hotel. It was all very YUM! The Smokehaus is also socially conscious with an eye towards using local and sustainably raised meats and fish (albeit the salmon we had was Alaskan salmon). Delicious and socially and environmentally friendly!

Filled with yummy food, we made our way back to the hotel. Our room now ready, G and I promptly crashed for a few hours since we’d taken a red-eye and wanted to be fresh for the wedding.

Time to celebrate! The wedding was held at the Kitchi Gammi Club, a beautiful brick and stone building overlooking Lake Superior with many detailed wooden decorations and architectural elements embellishing the various rooms inside.

The bride was beautiful of course, and both Carrie and Morgan (the groom) held it together very well. I was amazed. Or such were appearances at least. Later Ms. Carrie hinted that her calm composure was merely a façade. Well done. After a lovely, simple ceremony -- Hallelujah for short ceremonies! – we danced the night away.

(Carrie and Naomi were my Theatre Girls in college - together we put together a lot of shows)

The next morning G and I had planned to get lunch at Pickwick’s-- which was recommended by both our cab driver the day before-- and then head out to visit Glensheen, a 17th century mansion in the area. However, we were seduced by the weather into other plans. The gray clouds that had covered the skies on Saturday, completely cleared up for a gorgeous Sunday. We had no choice but to spend the day outside strolling the edge of Lake Superior.

We opted for lunch at Little Angie's Cantina, which has a great deck in the middle of the Canal Street bustle. Ok, living in California I’m probably a little spoiled in the Mexican food department, but the food was just ok. What they did have – beyond the ambiance of course – was margaritas! Perfect for a hot, sunny day! They’re available in 3 sizes – G didn’t miss beat and opted for the largest – 42 oz! It was roughly the size of head. The shocking part is that it didn’t seem to affect him at all.

After lunch, we continued our walk along the shoreline. We made our way across the Lift Bridge (the street portion actually lifts to make room for tall ships to pass underneath) to the beaches, which are really beautiful. The water is very clear and the sands are a pinky beige.

The irony that we flew from LA to Duluth to have a Sunday of eating Mexican food and walking along the beach is not lost on me. Still . . . not too shabby.

The newlyweds were chilling with friends and family at a beach house nearby, so we stopped by to congratulate them one last time before heading back to grab our things and catch our plane.

But, yeah, Dutuh – I get it. You’ve got lots of green and lots of blue. It seemed that were lots of opportunities for outdoor activities like hiking and camping just a short drive from the city. Hanging out on the beach or taking a fishing trip on the lake doesn’t seem like it would be too shabby either. The people all seemed to very friendly, and that Midwestern accent is just infectiously charming, don’tcha know.

I’d happily come back should my path lead me this way again.

LA Bucket List #3: Cirque du Fromage at Palate Food + Wine

Not too long ago, G and I had an AMAZING meal at Palate Food + Wine with our friend Matt and his girlfriend CJ. (I gave this experience very high marks in a Yelp review. I’d link you to it, but I’m having technical difficulties.) Palate is one of those LA treasure hunt jewels. It’s on strip in Glendale populated by auto dealerships. You’d probably miss it if you’re not looking for it, but there it is, smooshed between two car lots.

Like I said, our first dinner there was AMAZING. I was definitely looking for an excuse to go back, and when I read about their Cirque Du Fromage on Tuesday nights -- $12 for a flight of 3 wines, paired with 3 cheeses – I knew it had to go on the Bucket List. What better way to cap off the Circus Theme could there be?

Sadly, the Cirque was a circus and things did not go as planned. They do not accept reservations for this, there is no sign in list, you just have to hover and fight for any open seats. Except of course that there was no turn over. The Cirque flights are only served in one section of the restaurant, nowhere else hand down – not even the perfectly comfy and empty looking couches tucked in a corner that would easily accommodate a large group. (I gave the organization of this event very poor marks in a separate Yelp review.)

On this evening, somehow, stars aligned and many of my most beloved peeps made it out. G was once again absent – he’d been taken away by a last minute invitation from one of the bosses at his internship. However, Marc, Amy, Heather, her boyfriend Kevin, Johanna and her new gentleman caller, all made it out. (I should mention that we’ve been calling this group the Culture Club. Yeah, that’s right, like Karma Chameleon. I thought it was goofy and went with it.) I was all the more ecstatic because Wendy and Kim both came out and I hadn’t seen either of these gals I love in far too long.

So all of my peeps are in the house -- I’ve made them all come out here – and we have nowhere to sit. I was feeling pretty guilty. However, I have to hand it to the Culture Clubbers . . . they rallied. We got wine at the bar, and they were able to work out getting a table with the hostess.

Johanna’s Beau made some excellent wine selections. In fact, the white he ordered -- Saint-André de Figuière Le Réserve Delphine, blanc 2006 -- sent Wendy into a swoon. Marc was talking to her when she was first sipping the wine and she completely checked out of the conversation – just drifted away into a dream world. Wendy had her “AHA!” wine moment. She commented that just recently she’d been asking a group of wine loving friends just what the difference was between “good” wine and the cheap stuff. She said, now she understood.

+ = :-)

The Cirque du Fromage plan abandoned, we sat down to dinner in the main restaurant. We ordered charcuterie and cheese and potted meats and pickled fruits and wined and dined. Good food and good conversation. In the end, it all worked out and we had another fabulous evening.

They made it work.

LA Bucket List #2: The Hunt for the Kogi Taco Truck

Some things could only be born in L.A. The Kogi Taco Truck is one of these things.

The Kogi truck fuses Mexican street food and Korean BBQ. When I think about it, the idea is so obvious I can’t believe it’s never been done before. Consider - When you go to a restaurant for Korean BBQ, you’re brought wonton noodles and thin radish slices in which to stuff the delicious. Increase these in size a little bit and you have something very much resembling a taco. The Kogi people clearly saw this and now we have Korean and Mexican, together at last.

I have been wanting to try the Kogi tacos for ages. They burst onto the scene a while ago and the whispers of their creations began to spread. There is a kind of cult following of these trucks, and rumors of lines hours long started to circulate. Of course I wanted to know what all the fuss was about. However, the Kogi People’s preferred method of disseminating details of their trucks' whereabouts is via twitter. I don’t tweet. Not yet at least – can’t really see the point. Kogi definitely tempted me though.

The Kogi People finally set up shop not to long ago at the Alibi room, Culver City, not too far from where I live, where they serve their creations every night. I thought, “Finally, they’ve come to me!” and yet I still have not been. This was slated for the Bucket List a few weeks down the line. I still felt a pang, though, that I’d still be missing out on the hunt factor.

Enter Christine, former intern/pa who is now working on a project for the company. Also, friend and former prom date in ages past of Kogi family relative. She was connected via Twitter to the Kogi Info line and got word that they’d be down the street from noon to three. She’s a skinny thing with a healthy appetite, and her hunger pangs lead her to exclaim the news. We concocted a plan.

One thing lead to another though, and we got a late start. Eventually, however, we piled the office interns into my car and headed out on a fieldtrip to search out the Korean tacos. It was a very hot day. The sun beat down, my car sizzled. Eventually, we found the truck hidden in the back alley of a building by a residential neighborhood. We arrived at our destination triumphantly and the line wasn’t crazy long. Another member of the line smugly commented that they had announced that he would be the last guest to be served.

THWARTED!!!

To have come so far only to be denied was heartbreaking! I’ve waited so long for Kogi!!! We stood around for a few minutes dumbfounded. Our interns, Max and Lauren, were starving – poor kids – and went and ordered from another nearby truck. A few moments later, Christine had the stroke of genius to see if her friend could somehow remotely help us out. A few text messages later . . . SUCCESS! Word was sent through the grapevine that they should get us in.

Christine, lunchtime heroine!

I ordered an assortment of tacos and a Kimchi quesadilla for everyone to share. Starving, I snuck a bite of the quesadilla while fresh and hot --- a delicious mix of spicy, sour, and cheesy. The rest of the spoils were brought back to the office where we all enjoyed our fest.

The food was great. The tacos suffered a little bit from the lag time in between ordering and eating, and that bit of the quesadilla when it was fresh was by far the best bite of the entire lunch. I’m not sure I’d wait in line for hours, but they were definitely tasty and a uniquely LA flavor.


Plus, the hunt provide for a little lunchtime adventure --- a mini odyssey in the middle of my day

A Saturday with the Kids

Every summer my sister-in-law Hilary and her husband Rich pack-up the troops and head down to G’s parent’s house for a week or two. G and I drove down this past Saturday to meet up with them during this year’s visit.

There are many members of the Brunn Clan, so when they’re around, it’s instantly a Family Gathering. Anna (who is leaving for college very soon), Nina, Cara & Kenny were present on this trip.

Kenny

Cara


Nina

Anna - Somehow she eluded G's camera the whole day.

Sadly, no pics of G either - he was behind the camera the whole time.

We spent a lovely afternoon that began with an intense game of Apples-to Apples. I started out slow, but my co-conspirators rallied against G, who had taken an early lead. A stroke of luck sent me on-to an underdog victory. G seemed to have an uncanny ability to win my vote. No matter how hard I tried to avoid picking his card, somehow I always ended up voting in his favor - usually to Cara's detriment - which left me feeling very easily manipulated. It makes me wonder what other evil machinations G is using these powers for.

We followed this up with an adventurous hiking expedition into the nature preserve just up the street from G’s family’s house. It was a hot day and the sun was beating down, but this did not stop Kenny from bounding up hills and trees with boundless energy – I think he might be part monkey or koala.

After building up a hearty appetite hiking, we came in to a fabulous BBQ prepped by Rich and Hilary, paired with delicious wines from Van’s collection, and capped off by homemade ice-cream Carolyn ha whipped up.

A delightful gathering indeed!

LA Summer Bucket List Item #1: Incandescence at The Edison

Seeing as I have 2 months left in my beloved Los Angeles before G and I head on our adventure to the Land of OZ for four months, Marc and I concluded that I had to put together a Bucket List of everything I want to do before I leave and cross off as many items as possible in the time remaining. The term is stolen from the movie with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman of the same title – which I have not seen – in which the two men make a list of everything they want to do before they “kick the bucket.”

Admittedly, this is actually round 3 at the Edison. (see my previous post) However, only our second trip on Wednesday night when the bar is taken over by Incandescence: The Dark Side of Light, and aerial artists, acrobats, and burlesque dancers take over the stages and hang from the walls and ceilings. (One more notch for the circus theme!)

On our first Wednesday visit, Marc and I took in the spectacle from the sidelines. This time we brought the troops –. Heather, Mike, Melissa T. , and ‘lil Amy, just returned from a long job in New Mexico. (Sadly, G had a rough day at work and opted out at the last moment, as did a sick Johanna.)

Last time, I noticed that many people dressed up for the occasion. As we know, I love costumes, so this time I did too. Walking down the street I felt a little eccentric, but the moment we walked in I felt right at home since all the performers are continuously mingling through the crowd in their 30’s/goth blended attire and corseted burlesque costumes and many of the other guests also dress to match the spirit of things. The Panama hat I borrowed from G did, however, catch the attention of the stilt performer in a top hat, who I have named Chapeau.

The vibe is infectious. By the end of the night you can’t help but feel just a little bit wicked and debaucherous. The well-made classic Mai Tai’s certainly helped as well. When Ms. Amy gets tipsy, (I’m not even saying she drank all that much, but she’s tiny waifish thing) she gets quite affectionate and flits about like a pixie bestowing hugs and kisses on the cheeks to everyone around her. You can’t help but feel the love.

This was Edison round 3, and I highly doubt it will be the last.
The Bucket List is off to a great start!

Post 4th Tea Time at Huntington Gardens

My friend Melissa decided a few months ago to make a monthly ritual of going to tea with the girls. Nearly every month, she picks a new place and invites all her girlfriends to join her. I am a very willing co-conspirator.

Melissa had been working on a film in the Czech Republic for a few months, and this was her first tea back. For this occasion, she chose the Rose Tea Garden Room at the Huntington Gardens. Greg brought me here for one of my first birthdays in Los Angeles, and I absolutely loved it! I hadn’t been back in years, and I was very anxious to go back; so despite the revelries of the previous night, I made sure we were up in the morning.

Apparently, teatime does not drive others in the same way. I think the 4th of July took the majority of the other girls as casualties, because I was the only lady left. Luckily, Melissa had chosen to invite the boys on this occasion. It ended being Melissa and I, and a group of gents – her husband Jason, our friend Paul, and I somehow managed to rope in both Marc and G.

Luckily, G woke up with the right attitude, proclaiming that he was “going to eat the shit out of those sandwiches.” The tea munchies at the Rose Tea Garden Room are served buffet style, and G was in perfect mental form. The tea selection is limited here, but the mini scones are delicious, as are the sandwiches and salads. It was a really hot day and the refreshing fruit trays hit the spot.

The botanical gardens at the Huntington are extensive, consisting of several theme gardens ranging from a “scratch and sniff” garden (Chocolate mint really smells like chocolate mint!), to a bonsai garden, to an Australian garden.

Even though it was so hot out, we decided to walk around the grounds. The tickets are a little on the expensive side --$20 on the weekends, plus the $24.95 per person, plus tax for tea – so once in, we were definitely going to spend some time there to get our money’s worth. The boys mostly talked about movies and video games, although G did exercise his camera quite a bit, as did Melissa. We spent a good amount of time in Desert garden this time, which was cool since the plants seem so alien you feel like you’re on another planet – perhaps created by Dr. Zeus, as G pointed out.

There is a lot to be seen at the Huntington, but I had to get back home to cook for a dinner party -- a thank you to the interns and PA’s that kept me sane during the production of the film I was working on – so we didn’t get to go to the lily pond this time, or the art galleries, or the library of rare books and illuminated manuscripts. (Being a big ol’ nerdy bibliophile, this is my favorite!) Perhaps if my mom or Anto actually make good on their plans to come visit this summer, I’ll make another trip out there -- but probably on the free day.