An afternoon at Joshua Tree

Just before Christmas, Luke and I made a quick trip over to Joshua Tree. I had been meaning to go for ages. We got a bit of a late start out of LA so we didn't have that much time to explore before we started losing light. I think we hit some of the main highlights though. We had a lot of fun climbing around on the rocks and exploring all the nooks and crannies. As the sun went down, we drove further into the park so I could try to take some pictures of the joshua trees against the sky. The moon was nearly full and it was amazing to see it way out in the desert! Once it was dark, we were making our way back to the park entrance and we passed someone slumped over on the side of the road. We immediately turned around and went back for them. We found a girl who had gotten separated from her friend and had been walking for miles and trying to find help. We took her to park entrance and left her with a ranger. I hope they found her friend.
On our way out, we stopped by the welcome center where they were doing a cool night sky talk. The ranger had a really great telescope that we were able to look through. It had a GPS so you could just input the coordinates and it would point itself in the right direction. Really interesting but it was so cold out there and we decided to move on. We stopped over in Palm Springs for dinner at The Ace. If you find yourself there then I would recommend the black bean burger! All in all, it was a fun little departure from the usual.


All images by Maureen Price. Please do not use without permission.

Waiting for Autumn...

I've been day dreaming about autumn a lot lately. It's my favorite season. I love the crispness of the air, the sense of anticipation about the holidays, the food, the clothing, the colors. I've always wanted to run off and spend the season somewhere in Vermont drinking apple cider, riding a bike on country roads, and building a fire every night. We don't get much of an experience here in LA. It goes from hot to sort of chilly...aaaaand that's about it. It's hard to get in the spirit of things when you're surrounded by palm trees and it's 82 degrees on Halloween. Certain seasons are just meant to be experienced in certain places.
Not being one for summer fashions, I can't wait to break out the scarves, boots, and jackets. One of the best moments of autumn? Seeing your breath for the first time. I used to get so excited about that as a kid. It meant change and excitement were on the horizon. Oh, to be a child (jumping in a pile of leaves) again...


Images 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6

Escape

I've been dreaming of a bit of an escape. The world has been an especially nasty place of late. It's always difficult feeling like you have no control over the problems that surround us. I try to be a very "plugged in" person in terms of news and world events but it can really get to me at times. Like many people who aren't truly suffering (directly), I can be overwhelmed by sadness and frustration. Feeling the desire to run away, to let go, and to escape to a more simple place...it was meant to be that I came across these images by photographer Courtney Townsend. Courtney captures the beautiful and wild spirit of horses in such a stunning and timeless way. I love her use of color and texture within the images. They're so reminiscent of early photography in their rough and wonderfully imperfect nature. I definitely feel transported when I see these and I wish I could be out there running alongside the horses and sleeping under the stars completely away from it all. Keep up the lovely work, Courtney! So beautiful...


All images by Courtney Townsend

Broome Street General Store

Last weekend we discovered another little gem close to home. I'd been hearing some chatter within the blogosphere about Broome Street General Store and when I realized how close it is...well, no excuses not to visit. It's an absolutely charming little place tucked away on Rowena Avenue in Silverlake. I love the patio area out front complete with a white fence and lavender. Inside you'll find all kinds of goodies from tasty treats to vintage bits and pieces. Everything from old to new is so beautifully displayed that you just want to spend a good hour looking around the place. I was all over the vintage letterpress paraphernalia. We tried the verbena mint iced tea which was delightful and you shouldn't leave without one of their chocolate custards (with caramel on the bottom...ooo!). It's such a great place for a little summer gathering.


All images by Maureen Price

Long Beach Adventure

Last weekend, Luke and I took a little day trip down to Long Beach. I'd never been and I wanted to check out the Aquarium of the Pacific. We made our way there and walked along the coastline across from the Queen Mary. I want to go back and have afternoon tea and a walk around on the ship! It was interesting to see a Carnival ship boarding right next to the Queen Mary. After a stroll, we went in search of food and, of course, the one vegetarian place I wanted to try was randomly closed (??). We ended up at the aquarium later on which was a pretty big deal for me as I'm deathly afraid of certain marine life (the toothy, predatory variety). Going to the aquarium was a step towards facing my fear. I did better than I thought I would but I definitely had one minor freak out along the way. My favorite part of the aquarium...jellyfish! Having been brutally stung by one as a kid you'd think I'd want to nothing to do with them but they are fantastic to photograph! I hogged the prime real estate in front of the tanks to get some decent shots. Such amazing creatures. I was hoping to see the sea otters in action but they were totally not having it. Most incredible sight there? The weedy sea dragons! I have never seen anything quite like them. I didn't leave empty handed (I'm not usually a sucker for gift shops). I bought a great watercolor print of seahorse species. Lovely. All in all, it was a fun day. We'll have to head down there again for tea on the Queen Mary!



All images by Maureen Price. Please do not use without permission. Thanks!

Amazing!

These two pieces are absolutely remarkable. I can't even imagine the time and effort that went into their creation. Both are by the artist BLU (with a collaboration with David Ellis on this first one). I don't really know what else I can say other than...watch them!

COMBO a collaborative animation by Blu and David Ellis (2 times loop) from blu on Vimeo.

BIG BANG BIG BOOM - the new wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.

Adventure calls...

I'm really itching to go on a smallish trip sometime soon. Feeling spontaneous. I need to get out of LA in a big way. Well, I guess there's still time to possibly book some train tickets out of town for the upcoming Traffic Armageddon (the 405 freeway will be closed next weekend and LA will come to a grinding and totally miserable halt...get out of town or stay home). There's so much I want to see in California and in the South West. Sometimes you just have to walk out of the front door and GO. I need to stop putting it off. Let's just go and figure it out!


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Photochrom Travel

It's easy to spend a lot of time looking through the Library of Congress Flickr photostream. That's where I found my Rosie the Riveter pictures last week. Well, I couldn't help myself when I found their travel set with over 1,000 photochrom images. "Published primarily from the 1890s to 1910s, these prints were created by the Photoglob Company in Zürich, Switzerland, and the Detroit Publishing Company in Michigan. The richly colored images look like photographs but are actually ink-based photolithographs, usually 6.5 x 9 inches." The locations for three of my favorites here are Blue grotto, Capri Island, Italy, then Kongen og Dronningen, Bispen in Norway, and the pier and shore in Blankenberghe, Belgium. If you're a history of photography buff like me then you will go nuts over this collection on Flickr!

Tasty

The other day, Luke and I decided we wanted some treats so we made our way over to Le Pain Quotidien. They have the most delicious (and legit) Belgian waffles. Mmm! I always get their lightly sweetened lemonade with mint leaves. The tartine pictured below is also very tasty for summertime as it's served cold and it comes with a spicy tahini sauce that is glorious. Their desserts are pretty irresistible too. I'm partial to the fruit tarts but they also have cookies the size of my head. I kid you not. Luke and I tend to be creatures of habit when it comes to ordering at restaurants so we almost always get the same things here but there are lots of tasty-sounding options on the menu. I also love that LPQ labels their vegan/vegetarian option as SO many restaurants don't do this. Anyway, they have locations worldwide if you want to get in on some of the waffle goodness. How could you not!?



All images by Maureen Price

First day of SUMMER

Summer is upon us! So far, the air conditioner hasn't been used (really). We've had such a nice spring here in LA. Although I know the heat is coming. What are your summer plans? I'd love to take a trip or two. We'll see if that pans out. No matter what, lots of lemonade will be consumed!


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Garden of Cosmic Speculation

The Garden of Cosmic Speculation is the brain child of Charles Jencks an American architectural theorist, landscape architect and designer. "Jencks has become a leading figure in British landscape architecture. His landscape work is inspired by fractals, genetics, chaos theory, waves and solitons." The GCS is Jencks' private garden located at Portrack House, near Dumfries in South West Scotland. The garden is open one day a year to the public and the ticket proceeds go to a cancer care charity.
I first came across the garden about a year ago and was instantly fascinated! It's basically a real world wonderland. It would be such a cool filming location.


Image via ardub


Image via Ferdia


Image via Travel Into World


Image via ernywatt


Image via Ferdia


Image via kuriositas


Image via gardening.wonderhowto


Image via judith.davies2007


Image via theshopatvictoriagardens.blogspot.com


Image via www.billward.eu

Bicycle races are coming your way...

While I was checking out one of my favorite blogs (A Cup of Jo), I came across this video that the blogger's sister sent her. It's bicycle "rush hour" in the Netherlands. Apparently more than a third of the population commutes via bicycle. I'm very jealous. I love riding bicycles but haven't done it in years. Now that I live in Los Angeles it's even less likely as it's one of the most impractical cities for bike commutes. Not only that, I'd be totally terrified to try it here. However, if things were a bit more bike-friendly around these parts, I'd probably pick up one these beauties. But first, the video! Look how few cars there are! How amazing and refreshing!


I want to ride my.....

Image via Harbor Country Bike

How great is this?! Three generations. One bike. Transport for the whole family.

Image via Cycle Chic

I guess I'll have to move to Copenhagen or Vienna to look this chic and classy whilst pedaling in heels.

Image via Cycle Chic

I hope I'm doing this well (and dressed this nicely) when I'm, umm, 80 (?).

Image via Cycle Chic

How cool are these baskets? They've made their way around the blogsphere a few times but I figured I'd post them anyway. They come in green, black, and white and they're inspired by traditional and intricate crocheted tablecloths. Pretty cool. Available from Scandinavian Grace


One more for the road...

Image via Overstock.com