Problems in blog-land...

My blog is officially having its first (and hopefully only) problem today! I have moved my blog from angiedawn.blogger.com to angiedawn.net/blog. This seemed to work at first until:
a. I can't update angiedawn.blogger.com anymore.
b. angiedawn.net/blog doesn't contain the history pages.

I'm going to try republishing the entire blog to angiedawn.net and hopefully that will fix things. In the meantime, I also need to work on what I'm going to do about angiedawn.blogger.com!

Anyhow-- it was a good day today. I was able to get a suprising amount done, and I'm looking forward to the rest of this week. It should be an exciting one and I'll keep you updated!

Saturday Night Review...

Last night, plans changed. I'm going to go to see The Second City in around two weeks, after I visit Utah next weekend. I'm looking forward to it. If you want to go with, please send me an e-mail.

I had dinner with friends. As always, it was especially tasty and very unique! The food is always organic, well made, and complemented by a glass of wine!

Unfortunately, they are having some troubles with their cute dog, Arlo (check him out with me and Jessica). He's developed a barking and howling problem when they leave him home alone. So, they're now learning how to untrain these habits before their neighbor turns from nice to nasty.

It's always so interesting to me how dogs can have such emotional problems. My parents have a dog named Zoe who barks at me whenever I wear a hat. If I'm not wearing a hat, everything's fine... but put the hat on and she goes NUTS. Additionally, if she's left home alone with me, she hides in my mom's closet for the duration of the day. I have to coax her out with treats just to eat or go outside.

I suppose this a little like any other animal... I grew up with two dogs, two cats, and a lizard. My main cat was a tabby who was always in an interesting mood. His best friends were neighborhood dogs... and being that he was neutered and declawed, he had to come up with methods of protection while he was running around with animals 10 times his size. So-- he'd curl up his little clawless paw into a fist and BOX any dog in the NOSE that would come too close for comfort. This was always amusing because it sent even the biggest dog running in the other direction. He also learned to crawl backward up trees using only his back claws. I guess you learn to use what you've got... and hey, no wonder he was moody. :-)

The poor lizard was my only pet that didn't have mood swings. He unfortunately was often at the mercy of my smart cat however. My cat learned to open up the lizards cage (very carefully) and would often times come tip toeing down the hallway with a tiny green tail hanging out of the side of his mouth. Luckily, my cat wasn't too viscous and I was always able to grab him, order "drop him," and he'd open his mouth and the lizard would hop out. The hardest part was usually tracking the lizard down after he scurried away.

Let's see... in addition to all of these house pets, I also spent some time on farms of one kind or another... being that I grew up in Oklahoma. One of my most fun childhood activities was horseback riding. I rode English and Western at a local barn close to my house. That's where I found out about the wild moods that horses can have... as well as how smart they really are. When I would go to the barn, I was never allowed to say the words "horse show" because there was one horse there who hated horse shows so much that he would intesionally go lame for days if he heard these words. :)

For the most part, I had pretty reasonable luck with riding. Unfortunately though, because I'm so tall, I would always be given the very largest (and often most difficult to manage) horse available. This was usually a horse named Woody who had a huge attitude and loved to misbehave if he was given even an inch. My only real negative horse experience came when one day my teacher asked me to canter a new huge horse. He wouldn't canter, but she was certain I could make it happen... so I kept riding him in a circle, yelling and pushing him to canter.... until he finally bucked, trying to throw me off! Lucky for me, I stayed on. I was inside of a small arena with a metal fence... so falling off could have been a huge deal. I remember the soaring feeling as we went upward and then my teacher cheering "you stayed on!!" as we landed back on the ground. Apparently, this horse had never actually learned to canter. He was a mature horse that had never been trained to show and had huge, less movable muscles... the teacher was trying to retrain him and slim him down, so he could be used for shows. It's AMAZING to me the things people sometimes decide not to mention. Ever since that day, I've had a persistent knot in my right shoulder that came from the whiplash effect of it all.

Well, I suppose that's almost enough animal stories... but maybe just a note about Alby...

RPI has a great albino squirrel named Alby. Alby is quite domesticated and will eat out of a person's hand. Alby used to have just one web site devoted to her, where you could buy t-shirts and post photos of squirrel sightings. From my search today however, I can see that news of her has spread... she is now mentioned on 694 individual web pages according to Google.

I believe that this is the original Alby page: http://www.libbydance.com/squirrel/rumors.html. It contains photos of Alby and apparently since I was at RPI, she had a few babies; their pictures are available too.

Here's a spot to buy an Alby t-shirt: http://www.cafepress.com/alby
Rumors involving Alby: http://www.geocities.com/illudwinnepooh4/albino.html
Her own photo gallery: http://www.bithose.com/gallery2/squirrel

She apparently seems to be taking over the top spot as "unofficial school mascot" and has even been incorporated into an RPI logo: http://polyblogs.rpi.edu/

But, of course - how could Alby be such a celebrity without at least a little controversy? Check out the scarry squirrel site here: http://www.scarysquirrel.org/nice/alby/

Haha... anyway, have a good Sunday!

:-) Angie

TSC

I'm so excited about tomorrow - I'm going to visit The Second City on Melrose here in LA!

The Second City is a place that I have enjoyed since 1998, when I lived in Detroit for the summer. There was a great cast there, doing a show called "Impeachment and Cream" - about Bill Clinton's scandal and the crazy driving situation in Detroit. It was always an escape from reality to go, have dinner, and watch a show. The shows are similiar to Saturday Night Live and actually, quite a few of the SNL cast members started at TSC.

So, imagine my delight when last year I attended Second City in LA and the cast from Detroit had relocated here - all of them! And, since then, the cast members have started turning up on TV. One is now on an MTV improv show and the other has joined the cast of MadTV. So, before they break up or kiss TSC goodbye, I'm going to see them at least one last time tomorrow night.

:-)

For Peets Sake!

Today I tried a new coffee place with Emily. It's called Peets Coffee; the one I went to is located on Montana in Santa Monica. We walked around 6 blocks to get there, which was great because the weather was so nice today.

Since I don't drink coffee, I ordered my regular: a vanilla steamer with whipped cream. Although this drink is incredibly standard (steamed milk, a shot of vanilla, and whipped cream), it always amazes me just how complicated it is to order it.

At Starbucks it's called a Vanilla Cream or a Vanilla Bean depending on who you're talking to... one is supposed to be frozen while the other is like hot chocolate, but the cashier will often switch the two. At Coffee Bean, it's called something like a Hot Vanilla. Steamed Milk is Urth Cafe's version.

I can't even remember all of the questions that the lady at the counter asked me. I opted not to find my selection on their menu and just shoot from the hip, "I would like a medium vanilla steamer with whipped cream." She quickly shot out at least 4 questions in order to complete my request - the most odd being, "how many pumps of vanilla would you like?" Oh my! How many pumps of vanilla?? Apparently they use this metric to price the drink...

So in the end, Peets turned out to be just like any other coffee place. In the meantime, I think I'll stick with Starbucks and Coffee Bean. They both participate in fair trade practices, so that's promising. Of the two, I prefer the taste of the drinks at Starbucks and the atmosphere at Coffee Bean. :-)

Baby Angie.

When I visited my family in Oklahoma over the holidays, I took a little time to scan in some photos of my childhood. I'll share one with you.

Wowsa...

It's been a while since I've posted! Well, the past week or so have been a little crazy... but the long and short of it is that I've been working on a few new sites. Hopefully they'll be up soon.

On other interesting news, my brothers are turning 16 today! Their party over the weekend was actually snowed out in Oklahoma... Poor guys!

Back on the suggestions of what to in each of the places I've lived... let's get a few new ones out there that I've recently tried in L.A.:
1. The Second City - Wherever I'm living, I'm always a huge fan of SC. Currently, there's a cast doing their "313" show at the SC on Melrose that used to perform in Detroit when I lived there. I've always loved watching them, and they must be doing well in L.A. because I keep seeing them popping up on MTV and MadTV. With that, I'm going to go see them again on Saturday night... so looking forward to it!
2. The Disney Concert Hall - If you love music, you'll love this place. They have all sorts of concerts from one person playing folk music on the guitar to an entire sympony of classical musicians. I had the opportunity to visit the Disney Concert Hall last week for the second time and it was great. I saw a Grammy award winning violinist do his thing.
3. Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles - So... apparently this place is a must-try for most Angelinos. I was finally convinced to go recently and it wasn't bad. The waffles seem to have a lot of cinnamon in them (I'm convinced this is their secret ingrediant)... and the chicken is extra crispy. Personally, I do prefer the two for seperate meals, but they were still tasty. If I had to compare Roscoe's to a place, I think it would be like a combination of Raiford's in Memphis, Denny's, and KFC. For sure worth visiting though.
4. Diddy Reece - For $1, you cannot possibly turn down a homemade icecream sandwich - with the icecream and two cookies of your choice! At this UCLA land mark, my favorite is the butter pecan icecream and two snickerdoodle cookies. Just beware, there is a huge line that is usually wrapped out onto the sidewalk and down the street!

Well, I hope your week is going well... more to come from me soon!

ShoeSaurus is live!

Hey, check out my brand new shoe site: http://www.shoesaurus.com/! It’s a great place to buy name brand shoes in all sizes and colors, and shipping is even free.

Do you like my new dinosaur? I made him!

Oh, also – I currently have a coupon for $5 off. You can find it on my site at http://www.shoesaurus.com/. Feel free to forward this on to anyone you think might be interested in a great deal!

Thanks!
:) Angie

Wine tasting.

Today was a nice break for a long week. I slept in until almost 10, took a quick shower, and was off. I spent the morning driving north on the PCH to Santa Barbara to visit Emily and friends ( PCH is a.k.a. Highway 1 - it runs along the ocean).

We had a great lunch at an old place that's been there for 125 years. They had all sorts of Texas-like food... I had some lovely chili that I turned into chili fries thanks to Bo. :)

Afterward, we headed to a vineyard where we did two wine tasting. I really enjoyed this part; we were able to try around 8 wines. It was wonderful - and, I ended up with 10 new wine glasses - yah!

Last, around 10 of us went to a new documentary at the Santa Barbara Film Festival. The movie was about surfing and I really enjoyed it... but the best part was actually the theatre itself. It's not just a movie theatre - it's also used for full on live products. And, the ceiling looks like a night sky... AND, the inner walls look like they are the sides of old buildings. It's a fun experience for sure!

Well, it's past midnight now; I made it back safely and I think it's about time for bed.

Things to do in...

Since the past 24 hours have been pretty tame, I thought I would take a few minutes to begin a post of fun things to do in the cities where I have lived.

To begin with, I have lived in Oklahoma City, Albany, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Memphis, and Los Angeles - and that's just since 1997.

In any city where I live, I'm always searching to find the best of the local culture and uniqueness in music, food, and people. In the last place I lived, Memphis, I was so emerged in local culture that people who were born and raised there would call me up for suggestions on where to go. It was always a strange paradox that continues even today. How random is it to get a phone call in L.A. from someone looking for something to do in Memphis?

But you better believe that I have an answer!

With that, let's start with things to do in Memphis:

The best martini bar is by far and hands down Swig. Located in Peabody Tower for around three years, it's a great place to start the night. Of the over 70 martinis they offer, I recommend the Almond Joy.

One of my next favorite places is a bar that specializes in beer called The Flying Saucer. Luckily, it's right next door to Swig, so you can stop by both in the same night. The Saucer has 201 different beers, plus great music. Being that I'm not a beer drinker, I recommend the Hummingbird Water. Check out their web site for more details at http://www.beerknurd.com/

One of the most important historical places you can and SHOULD visit in downtown Memphis is the Civil Rights Museum. It explains in detail the rich history that played out in our country. In addition, the museum itself is located in the old Lorrane Hotel, where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed. It's a very important landmark.

Okay, the next must visit place I should mention is Beale Street. This is the famous street in downtown Memphis that's full of music, dancing, and partying. Recommended spots to visit on Beale are Club 152 (for techno dance music), Silky O'Sullivans (for dueling pianos), and A. Schwab (for everything else!). I especially love Beale Street in the summer time when they have free outdoor concerts. Oh, and one more thing - if you do end up in Blues City Cafe, be sure to try the Skillet Shrimp!

For a great roof party on Thursday, try either The Peabody Hotel or The Madison. And, if you do make it to the Peabody (Thursday night or not), be sure to say hello to the Peabody Ducks.

For amazing barbecue, the best place to go is hands down The Rendevous. The first time you visit, you'll wonder if you're in the right place. It's located in a back alley, but I promise, it's worth it. If you can't make it to Memphis, they'll FedEx the ribs to you (of course!) at http://www.hogsfly.com/ - Yumm!

And, if you're looking for stuffed fried mushrooms or fried pickles, T.J. Mulligan's downtown is the place. Mulligan's is right on the trolley line, so it's super easy to get there and it's a fun place to go before concerts at the Pyramid.

Now, to the South end of downtown...

The best place to by wine in downtown Memphis is for sure the Corkscrew! The amazing staff knows all about wine and will often break open a bottle to share when you come in. While you're here, you can get a suggestion on wine to go with the perfect food at amy favorite romantic dinner spot: Harry's Detour. Harry's offers gourmet food at reasonable prices. They don't carry wine, but they do allow you to bring it in, which is why the Corkscrew is so helpful. At Harry's, I recommend the Thai Shrimp Pasta. It's spicy, but it's good!

For the best pub grub, stop by the Blue Monkey. The Monkey has a fun decor and can be a good place for a late night business meeting. When you're there, be sure to try the twice baked potatoes.

After dinner, stop by the Cheesecake Place for amazing, unique, tasty, wonderful cheesecake! I recommend the Turtle Cheesecake.

Once you're finished with the perfect dessert, head down South Main to visit the local art galleries. The best time to go is on a Friday night when Trolley Tour is happening. The local galleries keep their shops open late and offer free wine and snacks for visitors. My favorite is the Durden Gallery; check here for their site: http://www.durdengallery.com/

Last, but not least, if you're up late and looking for dancing, you MUST visit Raiford's! I'm not quite sure how to describe it, but it's essentially all social classes together in one place, dancing on a bright disco floor with a disco ball and a pole. Raiford must be 65 by now and he's the DJ for lot of great music.

I could go on and on, but I think I'll stop for now. I can always write more about the east side of Memphis.... do expect more food suggestions though for the other cities that I have called home!

Good day and good eating-
Angie

Manic Monday.

It never ceases to amaze me the crazy things that happen in my life. Just yesterday, I was on my way to coffee when I left dirty clothes in the laundry room downstairs from my apartment. It was a huge basket with at least 2-3 loads of the clothes that I wear all the time. I would have thrown them right into the washer, but someone was using it.

Now, keep in mind - there are only 4 apartments that share this one washer and dryer downstairs from me. Anyhow, so on our way out, I said hello to the "cleaning lady" who was in the laundry room washing clothes.

Then, we came home... and, our clothes were GONE! Not only our clothes, but also the basket that they came in! The only thing left for me was one of my ponytail holders. That wasn't close to a consolation for the fact that all of my clothes were gone.

My initial reaction was to say, "well, I'm sure our clothes are clean somewhere, I'm just not sure whose house they're in." After talking to our neighbor with the cleaning lady however, my fear started to build. Apparently, her cleaning lady only comes on Fridays and according to her, neighbors and homeless people have been using our washer from time to time.

"Perfect," I thought... "not only has someone been using our washer, but now they've got my clothes too!" I was especially sad that my new tall long & lean jeans were missing. :-( How in the world was I going to go out and replace all of my clothes?

Anyway, to make a long story a little longer, a few hours later someone showed up with a huge basket of clean of folded clothes! I found out that my OTHER neighbor also has a cleaning lady - who comes every other Monday. She apparently washed all of my clothes, folded them, and them put them away at my neighbor's apartment. Thank goodness I left a note asking for our clothes back!

So - that was my Monday afternoon.

Super Bowl Sunday!

Okay, so today was one of those days where I know I must have been productive, but I'm not sure when it happened...

The main productive piece of the day came when I picked out what my brothers will get for their Sweet 16th birthdays that are coming up in a few weeks. I'll keep the suprise to myself for now. I tried to find a recent photo of them together to post, but it seems that most of the photos that I've been given recently include them posing shirtless or in tuxedos as the Wedding Crashers. Luckily, I do have these photos from their first official school dance that was last weekend. Christopher is in black and white and Nicholas is in pink and black.

Otherwise, today was Super Bowl Sunday. I joined a group of friends for a Super Bowl party at the Santa Monica Hooters. I had the buffalo shrimp, and Katie wanted to know how I knew about them. I had to confess that in almost all of my jobs, I've always been the only woman. So, surprisingly, I have actually been to Hooters with my co-workers during work hours.

Anyhow, the guys have an annual Super Bowl tradition for betting on what the score will be at the end of each quarter. During two quarters, the winner has to buy everyone a pitcher of beer, and during the other two quarters, the winner actually WINS money. :)

Whoo hoo - My Mirror is Fixed!

Yah! After a few months of driving around with no right side view mirror on my car, it's finally fixed!

It was incredibly hard to find a replacement, because all of the after-market mirrors in this model are all made in black and my car is white. Since it's a plastic mirror, painting a black plastic mirror white would have been a real challenge. Luckily, my aunt and uncle found a used white mirror that I received for Christmas!

Today, I finally went down and installed the new mirror on my car! I removed the old pieces and put the new mirror on. I didn't break any of the snap in pieces either! The electronic motor is even functioning, so I'll be able to once again change the orientation of the mirror from inside of my car.

Oh, and did I mention that installing it myself saved me over $300? Yah!

Here are a few photos of my big project!

The broken mirror:


The before photo:


The after photo:

Whew! It's Friday! I made it!

I don't know about you, but this has been an interesting week for sure! One of my good friends from college visited me over the weekend and left on Sunday. It was great to see him, since he's been in Iraq for a while with the military. I almost didn't think he was going to be able to leave Los Angeles, as the LAX airport was
incredibly tricky to get around!

Anyhow, tomorrow should be fun! One of my fun girlfriends from Memphis is in LA visiting this weekend because her brother is getting married today. We're going to go out to dinner to celebrate her visit.

Speaking of love and romance, Valentine's Day is just over ONE week away! You'd better get to buying that great gift your special someone will love before it's too late. I suggest my popular new web site:

www.ValentineGiftBoutique.com

It's got lots of great gifts from some amazing stores - you should really check it out!

Anyway, good luck picking out that perfect gift. If all else fails, don't forget the roses!

**Angie** :-)