Pacific Park at the Santa Monica Pier

This was a total whim, heading to Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier. Whim, yes, but one I will definitely do again!


Pacific Park is like an old-time carnival, with whack-a-mole and ring toss games and the vomitorium also know as the Scrambler, but with awesome new-fangled rides, too. The 85-foot-tall Pacific Wheel is the world's only solar-powered Ferris wheel! As you can see from this picture, it also offers awesome views of the shoreline far, far below. Then, there's the steel roller coaster, as opposed to the old-school wooden ones prevalent on boardwalks, and the electric vehicle bumper cars.

Next time, I'm getting the wristband for unlimited rides, because there was plenty of fun to be had at Pacific Park. Who's with me?!

Click here to go to their Web site.

Audubon Center and Debs Park

Nestled across the 110 from the Southwest Museum in Highland Park, the Audubon Center and Debs Park abounds with pleasant surprises.

I first heard about the Audubon Center in connection to their Platinum LEED rating, meaning they achieved the highest possible level for green buildings. And, they were the first in the nation to earn that honor. I had to go check it out, and I was blown away by all the Center and the Park had to offer.

Debs Park has about a dozen trails, all of which I plan to hike. On my first visit, the Butterfly Loop led to a mental vacation from LA! Imagining the traffic zooming down the freeway was flowing water, then spotting the hawk flying overhead, and I was definitely not in the city anymore.

The Center's Sustainable Technology signage details the design, systems and material selections "to make the gentlest impact" on the environment. The nugget that amazes me is the wealth of resources loaned to park visitors. As shown in the photo, you can borrow baby carriers, binoculars, art supplies, and guide books to make the most of the visit. They even have trail strollers available.

Another surprise was the free Tai Chi classes Sunday morning. I'll see you there, near the lily pond or out on the trails, for as Henry David Thoreau said (as does a sign by the entrance) "We can never have enough of nature."

Click here to go to their Web site.

Pete's Blue Chip in Eagle Rock

It's Saturday, so that means getting up at the crack of dawn and running with my training group. And, it usually means that food will follow. Today, Coaches Jeanne and Bert had a tempting menu from Pete's Blue Chip on Colorado in Eagle Rock. I remembered Pete's Burgers down by USC with their yummy fish sandwiches, so I was totally game, thinking it was the same joint. I'm thrilled to report Pete's Blue Chip is way better.

Better because they serve breakfast burritos all day, for starters.

You may already know about my fixation with breakfast burritos, surprisingly spurred by one at a DQ in Indiana. Since then, I've been on the hunt. At Pete's, I ordered the mushroom, egg and avocado version, and it was fabulous. Not only was it about the size of my forearm (no joking, I almost used that picture but you couldn't see the filling), but the avocado was fresh and plentiful, and there was a tasty salsa mixed in. Yummy! For about $7, I got the burrito plus a root beer with horchata chaser. Be prepared to be shocked, but I could only eat half and look forward to finishing it off for dinner tonight.

As you can see from the photo, the portions are more than ample, and everything is cooked to order so it's fresh. There are lots of other menu choices to sample, including some delish-looking zucchini fries. Whether I ever order those other things is up in the air, as my blue chip at Pete's is pretty well set.

No Web site at this time. Street address is 1701 Colorado Boulevard, LA 90041. Cross street is Mt. Royal (in Eagle Rock). Phone is 323-478-9022.

Identity Exhibit at California Science Center

Identity: An Exhibit of You at the California Science Center was quite the learning experience. As a psychology minor, I thought I pretty much knew all there was to know. Not so! Identity is actually the brain intertwining physical, social and psychological factors, and this exhibit has many interactive areas to further explore each concept and how it all comes together.

Wander through the 20 or so stations to learn about brain chemistry, structure and activity, and how it differs for each person to make up his/her personality and identity. And, how personalities are currently thought to be made up of five characteristics and where you fall in the ranges determines who you are: extrovert/introvert, organized/impulsive, innovator/traditionalist, wired/relaxed, challenge/get along. And, it isn't just you, we all act differently with different social groups in different situations, like when you run into gym friends at Trader Joe's and it takes a few minutes to figure out how you know them. I call it the ol' mental rolodex game. One of the more intriguing stations offered on-screen simulations of what you may look like as another race. Fun!!

Click here to go to their Web site.

Fosselman's Ice Cream

Due to overwhelming demand, here's a full post for Fosselman's Ice Cream. Yes, I took one for the team and visited Fosselman's for the sake of my devoted readers.

Celebrating their 90th anniversary this year, Fosselman's serves up delicious ice cream flavors at their shop in Alhambra. The factory is next door, so you know their ice cream is going to be fresh. Window signs tempt passersby with the seasonal flavors. On this visit, it was fresh peach. I topped that off with lemon custard, my current year-round favorite. YUM! It took the place of the peppermint candy, which still holds a soft spot in my heart, and probably a clog in my arteries.

My favorite combo flavors come out in fall: black licorice and pumpkin. Stir those two together for an awesome treat. I have to wait about three months, but I'm already shivering with antici - say it - pation!

Click here to go to their Web site.

Glendale Cruise Night

There's nothing like the intertwined scents of CO2 and testosterone on a hot summer night! Throw in lots of folks looking at hundreds of cruisers, Dean Torrence from Jan and Dean, Pat Boone and Sha Na Na, and you have the Glendale Cruise Night.

I arrived just in time to hear "Deadman's Curve" before getting bobbled into the mass of serious cruisers, hotrodders and lookie-loos checking out the cool cars. This ride ranked way up there in my favorites, since it was barely clearing the ground and the paint job was phenomenal. I ran into some car-fanatic friends, and I never made it back to the stage. Pat Boone was there to present awards, and Sha Na Na was the headliner. They were celebrating their 40th year since playing at Woodstock. Wow! That would be a whole other scent lingering in the air, but I digress.

The coolest part was the breakdown of the show, which meant the drivers fired up their engines, showed off a bit, and drove in mass down Brand Boulevard. Fun!

Skeletons in the Closet at the Coroner's Office

Last weekend was the Japanese Buddhist Day of the Dead celebration, which got me thinking that every day is the day of the dead at the Coroner's office. I've been to the Coroner's whimsical Skeletons in the Closet gift shop before and decided it was time for another visit. If you haven't been, they sell wacky things like a suit bag marked "body bag," a crime scene kit with the yellow tape and body-outlining chalk, a variety of plastic skeletons and skulls, plus t-shirts, mugs and beach towels printed with their logo of a chalk-outlined body.

Skeletons in the Closet, which uses the delightful tag line "We're dying for your business" and posts signs that say "Shoplifters' next-of-kin will be notified" and "Checks accepted with two forms of ID or dental records," takes their business very seriously. Proceeds go to the Coroner's Youthful Drunk Driver Visitation Program, an anti-drinking and driving program that includes a visit to the morgue for the participants.

Good to know that purchasing my favorite pen with the famous chalk-outlined body (shown here in white, blue, yellow, red, green and black versions) goes to preventing drinking and driving deaths, because there is no celebrating at the Coroner's office.

Click here to go to their Web site.