More of the same since my last post, just getting settled into my new neighborhood. A few nights of exploring followed by some comedy and a brush with nature. Read on.
John and Danielle helped to finish up the exploring as the work week ended.
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| Travel nurse buddies (Danielle and John) |
That following weekend, my travel buddies (Bryan and Michelle) came up from Redondo Beach to North Hollywood for the night with Bryan's brother, Chris. We went to dinner and caught a show at the Laugh Factory, followed by more food at the food trucks. These things are amazing! This one had boba teas but I was skeptical getting it out of a truck. We settled for the sliders.
Dane Cook was the special guest the night we were there so that was a fun surprise! He, along with everyone else who performed, made us laugh the night away. It was nice to be in such an intimate setting with familiar funny faces, star struck as always.
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| Ready to laugh.. |
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| Dane Cook at the Laugh Factory |
In the morning we tried a brunch place across the street from my apartment complex, EAT. There was a large line to get in which made me excited to see what all the fuss was about. Turned out, the wait wasn't too long and the food was extremely delicious! I will definitely go back and "try" that place again. And maybe even again, just to be sure.
We spent the afternoon in some part of Hollywood that was Little Tokyo (or something like that). We had dinner at a place with a revolving sushi bar. You could pick what you wanted from your seat as it passed on a revolving belt. They charged $2 per plate and we certainly stacked the plates trying almost everything that passed by.
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| My wimpy showing |
Afterward, we got my favorite dessert/treat, boba tea (bubble tea)! They had a lot more variety than I am used to. Long Beach still has my favorite place in California so far, behind Rose Tea Cafe in Pittsburgh, who still holds a #1 from me for best boba, ever.
Back to the real world again.
I told you that I can get to and from work without GPS, right? I am even starting to figure out the hospital lay out and can make it to the cafeteria (I think) without a leader or someone's direction. These are just a few pictures I snapped this week from work.
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| ICU orientation |
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| THE Scientology Church. Set across the street from the hospital. It's HUGE! Can you see Tom Cruise? |
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| LA in the distance. Way closer than this picture allows it to appear. SMOG. |
Thursday night, I had company again. I have been so lucky that friends are willing to drive 30-40 minutes (or longer in traffic) to hang out with me. We had some drinks and Paleo appetizers before heading out to frequent a new favorite place for another drink.
Somewhere in the middle of all of these food and drinks and conversations, John hit me at the right moment and I agreed to go hiking the next morning, like 6am morning. Am I insane?! Or just curious and open minded? A little of both I think.
Two other friends joined us. The drive to a part of Angeles National Forest was mostly foggy and even at that time, the traffic wasn't terribly heavy. As we hit the mountains, the fog started burning off and it became a clear, bright blue sky day.
The mountains and nature reminded me a lot of home. Everything looks very Pennsylvania foresty. The only reminder that I was in California was the sandy foot path. The views and being away from the city was refreshing and a welcome reboot.
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| Link and Holly |
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| P.U. A pre-hike "toilet" pit stop. Scratch and sniff in case you wondered what a urinary tract infection smelled like. |
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| Incredibly real |
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| Reminds me of camping with my dad as a little girl |
So the path stretched two miles down the side of a mountain to what appeared to be a dead end. There were rocks and cliffs and pools of water beneath waterfalls. Some people waded in the "baby pool" area (below)...
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| John (blue shirt) mapping out the fall |
... while others contemplated and carried out a four-story jump into a pool of water below. Yikes! Not this girl.
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| Is this happening? This IS happening... |
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| The first brave soul |
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| Pool below, 45 feet down |
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| I made it MOST of the way down before sliding and scraping my legs up. Coming up barefoot was MUCH easier! |
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| pre-flight |
John ended up jumping twice and has some cool pictures and videos to remember it by. Several other guys joined the group and jumped with a cheering audience below. Then once he dried off, we drove back to North Hollywood and celebrated with a (non-paleo) pizza and beers. Eh, 80/20, right?
Some more shots of our walk back:
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| the uphill |
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| "May your search through nature lead you to yourself" |
Afterward, we were home by 1pm, so I showered and went shopping at a mall nearby. The picture below is what I see as I drive there. I am in awe everyday of the views around here.
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| Happy shopping! |
In other news from home, it is back to school time! Ben and Vivian started school on Thursday this week. Ben is now in 6th grade and Vivian is in Kindergarten. I cannot believe how quickly time has flown by! That means Abbey (my sister) is home with only three kids, which is hardly an "only" because that's still a lot of kids if you ask me!
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| waiting for the bus |
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It has been a very busy weekend of catch ups now that I have wi-fi and can FaceTime with everyone. I talked to my parents, siblings, some of the kids and a few friends, still have a few friends to go yet later this week. It was good to see everyone's faces to cure being a little under the weather with homesickness. The kids are all growing so fast and Ben was wowing me with all of his smarts and activities this year. He is entering another talent contest so be prepared to see that video when it happens. In case you forgot my boasting aunt shares:
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| Alyssa |
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| Smarty 6th grader Ben |
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| Big Willy Style on the FaceTime (with a side of mom) |
Will was really interested (or really terrified, I couldn't tell) of my squeaks and raspberries. Below is a picture from his first vacation. Almost three months old and already went on vacation and had to schedule and appointment to talk to him because he had a birthday party to go to and wouldn't be home. What! Slow down, baby, you're growing too fast.
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| Taking a break from almost three months of life |
And of course the obligatory fur child photo from this week. Max was enjoying some peanut butter kong time after work one night. It's so stressful living the city life!
Coming up soon:
- Conan this week. Set your DVRs for Thursday 8/30 on TBS. We are SO there!
- Will I sign the extension offer though I haven't worked a day by myself yet?
- Maybe some ink in my future (close your eyes Mom and Dad)?
- Will I ever finish Hunger Games so that I can watch the movie?
- Will Cesar Milan's dog walking tips help Max tolerate city toileting?
- How will I be celebrating Oktoberfest Acht on the west coast?
Stay tuned...
XO
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