sunday.

Last Sunday, I went to the UCLA campus with my friend Martha.

We watched a drum circle.

And saw this exhibit.

Then a concert by the Colburn Conservatory Orchestra, featuring Nigel Armstrong playing the Korngold Violin Concerto and Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra. It was the first time I had ever seen Sir Neville Mariner conduct. Standing ovations for all.

We ended the day back in Highland Park in a pho coma.

jasmine.

Even on chilly "winter" days in L.A., it blooms and smells so good.

suddenly, last summer.

A film about how human beings prey upon and devour each other. Then go insane. Then try to cut part of your brain out.

99-#13 jitlada.

So, my resolutions this year include losing the 10 pounds my deadened thyroid gland has put on (duh), improving my Spanish and eating my way through Jonathan Gold's 99 Essential L.A. Restaurants. Because I'm a simple gal. Who knows that while learning a new language and losing weight are lost causes, going to 99 restaurants is not.

I went through the list the other night, and I've already been to 13, although it's been more than five years since I visited a couple, Musso & Frank's and Lucques, so I'm not sure if they count. I think I need to go again, just to make sure they deserve to be on the list.

So, Friday, I made myself get in my car and drive some place to eat, because I'm so goddamned sick of Chipotle, and as much as I blame my sluggish thyroid for my recent weight gain, I know it's the vegetarian bowl-to-go with a massive side of chips and salsa every day that's really the culprit.

And I went to Jitlada, located in the Thai Town enclave of East Hollywood, although unlike most restaurants which are in crappy strip malls off Hollywood Boulevard, Jitlada is in a crappy strip mall off Sunset Boulevard.

If you live in L.A., you hear about this place a lot, and it always makes Gold's list every year. I'm not a huge fan of Thai food--I don't know why. But I figured if this place was as crazy authentic as everyone says it is, it'd be a whole different experience.

And it was. The menu at Jitada is legendary for it's last, type-written page...no photos, no graphics, just a list of 100's of dishes, crazy-ass ones like frog's legs, fish kidneys, mudfish and ox tails. Things only restaurant critics eat and then rhapsodize about.

Maybe I'll be more adventurous the next time I go back (because I do plan to go again), but since it was my first time there, I decided to stick with one of their famous dishes, the Morning Glory Salad. It was soooo good, lightly deep-fried watercress, bits of shrimp and veggies in this amazing sauce. I think it was lime and ginger. I don't know, but I ate it and loved it.

33 variations.

Last week I won tickets to the play, 33 Variations, which I saw on Tuesday with a friend. I was really excited because 1. I don't win many things, 2. I hadn't yet been to the Ahmanson and 3. the play was about Beethoven.

It was really exciting and a great theater-going experience. The production was pretty breathtaking--the most subtly spectacular effects I've seen on a live stage, the narratives of Beethoven and the musicologist studying his manuscripts interweaving with the Variations played on piano and...Jane Fonda. I mean, come on. I felt like I was seeing a true Grand Dame of the Theater.

It was a bit schmaltzy and life-affirming in a Lifetime for Women kind of way. At one point, Jane's daughter, played by Samantha Morton, yells "I finally see how you see me mom. And it's horrible!" before storming off the stage. A little cringe-inducing, but I could forgive it. There were many moments that made me laugh, and I don't mean in a phony, artificial way, like "they want me to laugh here, so I'll let out a little chuckle." I really laughed. And I stayed awake through the whole thing! And that, my friends, is a good play.

flora.

Just a few flowers I saw on my hike yesterday.

friday.

I never really get out eat lunch these days, because my job is nuts. But Friday was payday, and dammit, I wanted to go somewhere nice.

So, I popped in to Mercantile on Sunset. I've written about here before, and I'm writing about it again.

I had a kale and feta salad, plus a cup of chilled tomato & roasted red pepper soup. There was a little too much feta in the kale for my taste, but I ate it anyway.

Then I walked over to Amoeba Records.

I might have grabbed a "Shave Ice," but it was a little chilly for it.

Amoeba didn't have what I was looking for: the soundtrack to the movie Birth or the DVD of Sherlock, Season One. Anyone who knows me has heard me rave about Sherlock. It's insane how good it is, starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock, and....wait....I just can't type "Benedict Cumberbatch" without laughing.

Sorry...it also stars one of my Top 5 Crushes, Martin Freeman as John Watson.

I was a bit disappointed to find neither of the things I was looking for, but you know what I did find? Cute-Boys-a-Go-Go. You can always count on Amoeba for that. Seriously ladies, whenever you're feeling like there just aren't any worthwhile boys left in L.A., just take a spin through Amoeba. And ok, they're all 23 and work in a record store, but still...somehow they make everything...ok.