broadcasting from the san gabriel valley

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Someone call the cops.....

Pinatas and Jerome and Lobsters...OH MY

So, the last week was a complete blur. Driving to Arizona, going to Jerome, spending time with friends and family from all over the place, more food than I would care to admit, my first taste of lobster, snow in Northern Arizona and some adorable pugs. Here are a couple highlights from holiday time of 2009:


Christmas Day hiking in Arizona to the Sears-Kay Ruins

Meg and Lauren and Ralphie and Jim-Jim

Meg's delicious Chilaquiles just about ready to be put out for the most perfect holiday brunch ever

World's largest Kokopelli

Throwing coins into a toilet below.....hows that for a crapshoot?

Post Christmas lobsters flown in from the East Coast. Sorry for your illness, David.......

Nathaniel is a proud recipient of one of my Christmas pinatas

Pinatas that I made for my friends for Christmas. Filled with candy and surprises for all.....

Monday, November 30, 2009

Oh Chicago......

This is a blast from the past:



I remember back in the day seeing this commercial and thinking something odd about it. And alas.....in recent years this gem has been elevated to cult status. I mean it. There is even a Wikipedia page paying homage to those amazingly low rates......

Monday, November 23, 2009

Friday, November 20, 2009

Scrooge Alert



During day 2 of being ill, I found my cable-less self watching the tail end of Good Day La. Rarely do I find myself being able to watch these shows so I am out of the loop when it comes to some trends... especially those concerning hot holiday toys for 2009. The last hot toy I can remember was Tickle me Elmo. Well, today on the show, they were talking about these little motorized hamsters called Zhu Zhu pets that are going to be the next toy. Seeing how I had never heard of them, I decided to do a quick search to see what these things were all about. During the search, I found that there was an abundance of folks who jumped on the Zhu Zhu pets bandwagon only to make a hefty profit off of nutty parents who will pay a premium for the chance to place the little electric hamster under the tree. If you do a search on ebay, these things are listed for prices that are much higher than the 10.99 list price.

Kind of cruel..........

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Friday, November 6, 2009

Grad School Humiliations

Along with the scholarship and academic rigor that most people think of when the concept of Grad School comes to mind are also the lesser known humiliations that coincide. I have been living a a world of bad sleeping habit and even worse eating habits. Cookies have replaced dinner for two reasons: lack of money, but more so, sheer laziness. With so such focus on work, school and interning, any sort of normal task like purchasing toilet paper has been severely neglected. Instead, limiting the amount of paper used has a greater appeal than, lets say, taking a forced trip to Ralph's. Tonight, it hit home. At 11:15 PM I found myself craving food that was warm. Having exhausted myself on Nutrigrain bars and coffee, I decided to step it up to the world of warmth. That step took me into the drive thru of Mc. Donald's. What did I opt to get? Yes. You guessed it. A Happy Meal. I guess talking with David last night about McDonald's and their ability to perfect the gold standard fry must have been on my mind. I ate my cheeseburger silently while thinking about my poor deodorant. My poor deodorant that after being used to near completion, was opened up by yours truly, and scraped clean of any usable remnants. And believe it or not, I have been able to round up enough usable solid to use throughout the week. That accomplishment became the absolute pinnacle of the cheap behavior that Grad School has forced me into.


I think tomorrow I should buy some new deodorant and go out for sushi..........

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Arizona Adventures

As you all may have noticed, things have been sort of a ghost town here on the Modern Day Bullfight. Between the internship, the thesis, the classes, the job and the personal life, the blog has taken a bit of a backseat. This past weekend, I jetted back for a whirlwind trip to Phoenix. The main reason for the trip was to go to an Alumni Art Show that my former high school art teacher had put together. I decided to take full advantage of the trip and ended up doing the following:

-Seeing "Whip It" with my parents
-Eating pizza multiple times
-Arizona State Fair
-Serious thrift shopping
-Bikini Lounge
-Four Peaks
-Catching up with friends

Here are some notable pics. Note the Chocolate covered bacon sign. It was seen being sold around the fair along with other heinous delights like deep fried Moon Pies and deep fried Snickers. There was rumor of some chocolate covered scorpions but I saw no such thing.

Also at the fair is a collection of neat old photo booths....the classic kind. No digital here. These booths print up a 3 picture strip in lies of the traditional 4 set. They also come with a variety of silly wooden cut outs built into the booth. I will scan the actual strip later, but here are some digital pics from my canon.


And what Phoenix trip would be complete with out a trip to my good friend Cindy's house. A true thrift store partner in crime, you can read about her adventures here. Cindy by far has the coolest house that is the epitome of what I feel to be a perfect Arizona home.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

If I had an extra 55 dollars.....


.....I would buy these markers. The architectural set. These chartpak markers are the best. While they have quite an odor, they leave no lines and blend amazingly well into the drawing. I had come across two lonely charkpak markers in my box of tricks here at home and wished I had more than just the blue and green. One day.......

Saturday, October 3, 2009

TwitterTwatter

Since when did Twitter become such a reliable and credible source? It seems as if you cant get away from tweets these days. I was reading an article on CNN today regarding the death of a reality tv star's finance. Towards the end of the article, CNN posted the tweets from the grieving wife....verbatim. This is not an isolated incident. I have come across plenty of news articles written in their standard news article format and in the midst somewhere is bad twitter twatter. "OMG so tired2day." "OMgmbd" "need 2 get the word 2 my fanz". You name it, it has been seen in an article somewhere. And probably with out the use of a space bar......

Monday, September 21, 2009

Dogs that look like little old men.......




The bottom one is a breed called a Brussels Griffon. Or an ewok. Whatever you prefer. All I know is that I think they are the cutest things ever. The top one, is a distant cousin known as an Affenpinscher. Also up there in the cute range. I love little dogs with beards and both fulfill that requirement to the max. When I graduate I will hunt rescues high and low to find of of these little guys!!!!

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

A Thesis.



the wonderful Sophie Calle

self-portrait of Nan Goldin

installation documentation by Miranda July

This year is the year that I am going to be taking on the writing of a very long research project. After much deliberation and advice from the faculty at my university, I have narrowed it down to artists and the therapeutic value of their personal work. However, that is still quite broad. I haven't quite finessed it down further. I need to do some reading about what research approach I want to take. It will however, involve reading biographies, criticism, articles and looking at the work of the selected artists. I plan on looking at the lives of artists and pinpointing what body of work corresponds with significant life events they have experienced. For those of you who know me, you know that Sophie Calle will be among them! Nan Goldin. Perhaps some Diane Arbus...although she is the subject of another thesis from my department. Miranda July. So there narrows it further....rather contemporary female artists and how they use art as a coping mechanism. But the narrowing it down to women frustrates me a bit. I really also want to focus on On Kawara and his art as proof of existence. Argh. This subject, while fascinating, is going to be hard get into a clean, concise, art therapy approved topic to be bound in May of 2010.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Yard Sale Art

As a proponent of collecting things from thrift stores and yard sales, I was immediately interested in checking out the art from Clare Graham. Scrabble tiles, dominoes, rulers, yardsticks and puzzle pieces are all incorporated into his beautiful sculptures. Check out his web site for some more killer images.




http://claregraham.com/

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Star Sightings of a Different Kind


Since moving to Los Angeles just over a year ago, I can count on my hand the stars that I have seen thus far. Jemaine of Flight of the Conchords fame. Kiefer Sutherland. Dustin Hoffman. Oh. And the girl from the Office. However, last night put a whole new meaning to the term star sightings.

After a satisfying dinner of sushi and Yogurtland, Kathy, David and I headed up to the Griffith Park Observatory to their monthly 'Star Party.' At the Star Party, amateur astronomers bring and set up their telescopes for public use. Free. Out of their love for all things planets and stars. Knowing that the line for the Observatory's telescope is pretty long, I have never been up to the park at night. Waiting in line to maybe, possibly get a gander at the stars has not been high on my list. So this Star Party, with plenty of available scopes, was something that I have been wanting to check out since hearing about it.

There were a variety of scopes set up for use. Which kinds they were, I couldn't exactly tell you. But if questions arose, the owners of the telescopes, standing proudly next to their babies, would answer them for you. Through chatting with the owners, I learned that I was looking at the Moon, Jupiter and a cluster of 25,000 stars about a bazillion light years away....respectively. We even got a close up glimpse at one of the raging wildfires nearing the city lines of Los Angeles. In addition to the scopes that were set up was a man who was playing a theremin. He provided a perfect score to the ending of the evening with a montage of Star Trek melodies. Then we boldly went where no one went before........drumroll..........and drove home.

http://www.griffithobservatory.org/pstarparties.html

Friday, August 28, 2009

Poodlecamel


A new breed of dog has been unearthed.....the Poodlecamel. A bit of google searching and you also may come across such strange crossbreeds such as the Bisonoodle, Cock-a-Poodle-doo and even a Teenage Mutant Ninja Poodle. I dare you....take a gander.....

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Ra-Ra-Ramen

Ramen! I belong to the percentage of folks who are all too familiar with the infamous 'cup o' noodles.' Many cups in my day were eaten. For the cups were a luxury dinner in comparison to the ramen in the shrink wrap sans cup. I decided to step it up in the world of ramen...which may I add, have not eaten since my 'cup o' noodles' days. I took a trip to Little Tokyo's famous DAIKOKUYA ramen, a ramen shop known for big lines and even bigger flavor. Kathy and I headed out last night for an early dinner at 6:30. Luck was on our side as we rolled into a metered space (free after 6PM) not too far from the soupy haven. As we walked up, we caught sight of a small crowd. Destination found. After a wait of about 20 minutes, we were seated at the bar with a full view of the soup kitchen.

To give you an idea of the amount of soup served, behind the counter were two giant cauldrons that were being supplied with a constant flow of water from the tap. Steam. Spice. Heat. Flames. I was captivated. I asked the server if the soup was spicy...because I am a heat fiend...and he brought a variety of oil, flakes and sauce for when the ramen arrived. We didn't have to wait but 7 minutes and two steamy hot bowls of ramen were brought to the two of us. The ramen was awesome! Pork. Noodles. Hot sauce. Bamboo shoots. More hot sauce. A hard boiled egg and to top it off, the rest of the hot sauce. It was amazing. The ramen gave my favorite Pho at Pho Cafe a run for its money............

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Dog Days of Summer (and Summers Past)

There is something magical in the world of dogs. Something that I, a certified dog person, can not find in the world of cats.....no matter how hard I try. In my current apartment, much to my dismay, dogs are forbidden. Forbidden due to their alleged noise....yes...which I'll admit, does happen. However, the argument loses merit when noisy neighbors play loud music and chat loudly in an all too echo-y courtyard during hours when people should be sleeping. When I asked the landlord about dogs, it was mentioned that "well no, BUT you can have cats!" Cats. A consolation cat. No thanks. Instead I have pre-awarded myself with a trip to the animal shelter as my graduate school graduation gift in May. Until then I suppose I can spend some quality time with some canine friends...........

Little Sadie. We both look a bit chubby in this photograph!

Chi Chi!!!!! A trip to SkinnyGlassesGirl's home is always a treat with this little one to hang out with!

Ahh, Vinny. a dog that needed to move to a family with multiple dogs. i am glad i could have given him a home for awhile and helped to move him forward to his forever home!

rip little Giggles. 10 years of amazing.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

The intamacy of handwriting....


The other day I was chatting about how rare it is to see a persons handwriting these days....and when we finally do, how shocking it can be. I think that shock stems from the fact that we are now conditioned to see typed perfection avec or sans serif. We receive notes, emails, texts and tweets from our friends and lovers in typed form. On average, when out at a bar you have a better chance of borrowing a 300 dollar iPhone from a friend rather than a 50 cent pen. With all of that, handwriting has gained a sort of 'intimate status" in my mind. Thinking back to some guys I have dated, I can describe in detail their underwear but when it comes to their handwriting, it was never seen. I may be able to recall a hastily scrawled credit card receipt or two, but that does not count as handwriting in my book. When I received a mix cd a couple of months ago, I remember being captivated by seeing my name, handwritten in Sharpie, on the silver disc. I also remember really wanting to see more.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

My life through meals and various beverages.....

A: Over the past couple days, I feel as if I have been on a culinary voyage that consists mostly of coffee. Since the opening of the Intelligentsia in Venice, my visits went from occasional to habitual pretty quickly. So much so in fact that when I was on the Eastside today, I went out of my way, bypassing both Chango AND Starbucks to my beloved Intelligentsia on Sunset. In all honesty, I have to say though that I prefer the Venice location. At first the personal barista concept was a bit much for me to handle. However, after the 3rd visit or so, I was sold. And the design and layout? Stellar. Take a peek:

B: Over the weekend, Kogi was visited. I decided that a Korean/Mexican Fusion would be the best thing to ease me back into eating Mexican food. After the month spent in Mexico, tacos, tortas and chilaquilles have been banished from my diet....by choice mind you. Because yes...you can really have TOO MUCH of a good thing. So 2 weeks home and I decided I was ready. I broke my vow with 2 spicy chicken tacos:

C: On the same day of the Kogi visit...and the morning walk to Intelligentsia, Nathaniel and I went on a visit to Mozza. Prior to taking off from Phoenix, Nathaniel was presented with a 150 dollar gift card for the LA hot spot. I happened to be the lucky co pilot for this journey. We sat down for an early dinner with our good friend gluttony and drank a bottle of wine, ate mussles, salads, breadsticks, pizzas and desserts. Oh. And lets not forget the coffee. I was the recipient of a spicy salami and red pepper pie which was more than delightful:

D: So after not eating for 24 hours post Mozza, I started to get hungry. Finally. Nothing notable was had until this morning. After watching episode after episode of MAN V. FOOD, I had a real hankering to go to Phillipe's: Home of the Original French Dip in downtown L.A. (or for you Twitter users, dtla) Today,after skipping breakfast, David and I went to try the place out. I ordered a single dip beef with a side of slaw. After taking our trays to a nearby table, I decided to put the slaw on the sandwich wih a tiny bit of their special HOT mustard. Delicious. I am already thinking about when I can go back......


Figure A: http://www.intelligentsiacoffee.com/

Figure B: http://www.kogibbq.com/

Figure C: http://www.mozza-la.com/

Figure D: http://www.philippes.com/

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Free Entertainment

So in the midst of having close to zero money and one month before the paychecks start coming in again, I have been hunting high and low for things to do that are free or require very little money. Living in LA makes this a challenging task. Add in the fact that I do not cook and there is now an equation that even John Nash would struggle to solve. Eating aside, I have found a few free things to do here that include routine visits to the library to get dvds and books, walking to the beach and most notably, spending hours a day on the internet playing scrabble and.......drumroll.........

.......perusing Craigslist. The rants and raves? Man. The missed connections? Good stuff. But the highlight thus far has been the 'Best of' in which readers can vote for their favorite posts from any of the aforementioned categories. This one particularly struck my fancy. Perhaps it was just the hunger or maybe the bold use of CAPITAL LETTERS. Either way, this little gem put a smile on my face:

http://www.craigslist.org/about/best/bos/1096925002.html

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Aloha?

If you find the aloha, send some my way.......

http://www.craigslist.org/about/best/hnl/1219109287.html

Saturday, July 25, 2009

A glimpse at my inability to cook......

Today, we went to the neighborhood called Pueblito with our friend and colleague, Marthe. Marthe lives in a neighborhood here in Queretaro that is home to a giant Toltec pyramid that was only just uncovered in 1998:

The 'pueblito' as it is called is small in comparison to its Teotihuacan counterparts closer to Mexico City. Perhaps that explains the "ito" on the end. However, for my gringo eyes, the pyramid was huge. We walked around and took a tour and saw sacrificial altars and dancing platforms. After the trek, we decided to go for gorditas at a nearby roadside restaurant.

While waiting, it was quite obvious that all but one of us were foreigners. The cook said something to Marthe in Spanish that was more than my 3 week crash course brain could handle. I was delightfully surprised when I realized that we had an invitation to come back and attempt to make tortillas. Here is some photographic evidence of my major FAIL at creating a tortilla:

First, we take some dough that has been premixed and roll it into a ball. That, I can handle. Next.........

We place the dough into a press and smash it flat between two sheets of wax like paper.

Finally, we carefully pry the tortilla away from the wax paper and let it gracefully drop onto our hands. Note the word graceful. Probably where my tortilla went awry.

As you can see, mine is the broken one. I think it was politely cast aside when I was not looking. The rest of them made it into the basket for future gorditas. However poor my tortilla making skills may be, it was still a great way to spend my final day here in Queretaro.