The little kids!; 09.18.11



My company is part of a local networking organization that hosted Knott's Berry Farm night on Friday night.  So after a dinner @ Alpine Village in Carson with B's family, we bolted out to Buena Park and hung out with my co-worker Teresa and her family, since she has three boys ages 6-16; which means B can ride the scary rides while I roam around with Teresa for some window-shopping and gallery games. 

I loved the prime rib @ the restaurant inside Alpine Village.  It is the best one I've had in years.  The Village is famous for their Oktoberfest.  The ticket to get to the Oktoberfest is $20, and the ladies in their best Bavarian attire served beer and sausages, while enjoying live music.  You can do the chicken dance here too.  It's a fun time all around.  I went there about 7 years ago, and I enjoyed it.

The Knott's Berry Farm currently have their Halloween Haunt events until October 31, so it's a great place to check out for about $36-$40 a ticket.  The park has Pink's Hot Dog restaurant just before you enter the park, and I so look forward to going there this year again, but being full from the dinner, I sadly passed up the chance to eat some of Pink's hotdog goodness. 

I'm scared of heights, and scared of roller coasters.  So I'm glad B had a chance to ride with the kids @ Supreme Scream, Jaguar, Sidewinder and Pony Express.  I finally agreed to join everyone at the log ride, which got me really wet.  Teresa kept cracking up once I got out.  B on the other hand, had so much fun, he was like a little kid, especially after the Supreme Scream.

 

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On Saturday, B and I went to San Pedro's Knoll Hills Dog Park.  To get there, take the Channel Street exit off the 110 Freeway South, and make a right on Channel, another right on Pacific, and left on Front Street, and right on Knoll Street.  We first stopped by Busy Bee Market for some pastrami sandwich.  Jerry, B's brother in law, mentioned this place the other night, so we wanted to check it out.  It's on the corner of 24th and Walker in the middle of the residential neighborhoods, so they were not hard to find.  Just hard to believe there was a market in that pocket of town. 

Back at the park, we unfortunately don't have any ball nor frisbee in B's car, so we hoped that there were some stray balls to keep Tico enteratained, but no bueno.  So after about half an hour of sitting around and staring into space, we decided to take a walk around Hollywood Riviera instead.  We walked around Riviera Village first, and circled over to the ocean front. 

To get to HR, take the Pacific Coast Hwy exit off the 110 Freeway South, and make a right on PCH for about 6 miles.  Make a left on Avenue I, and left on Esplanade. 

This dog wanted to play with Tico, but Tico's a little pooped from the walk. 



 

Sunday was a day of dog park @ El Segundo dog park and housework, after B's overtime work.  Then we put up some signs for B's Herbalife business all around Playa Del Rey/West LA area.  Afterwards, we drove to Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica and dined at Buca Di Beppo for some Beef Rigatoni for B and a couple of Peroni, and some Veal for myself and a glass of red.  Tico had a few dishes of water.  We cut him off after the third bowl.  It was fun watching people pass by while we enjoy the Santa Monica breeze on the restaurant patio.  They enjoyed seeing Tico laying out in the corner, and wanted to play with him all of the time.

This was on the wall inside the restaurant on my way to the restroom. 

This dog wanted to say hello to me.

While B was at work in the morning, I met up with Mai for some yoga in Sherman Oaks, called Core Power Yoga.  I've done Yoga with friends once or twice, but I've never done it in a studio setting.  This one is heated, and the potential to burn 1,000 calories was very tempting to me.  Add to the fact that I got to try the studio for free for one week, I was sold.  It's humbling to be sweating it out in tight clothes in a room full of ultra-fit people.  With my stinky, sweaty self, I did not care.  It felt really good.  Afterwards, we grabbed a quick bite @ Baja Fresh next door, and found this lovely dog being fed with chicken.  She's so calm and quiet.  Tico on the other hand, would not be as calm and patience.  He's like a fussy little kid.

I tried Corepower Yoga again three times, since they have a studio in West LA, near Brentwood.  It's on 11891 Wilshire Boulevard.  The parking is free, and the facilities are amazing.  B joined Mai all three times in West LA, so for the week, I had a potential to have burned about 4,000 calories.  Which is helpful, considering what I'd be eating in the following week.  My favorite poses are happy baby and the child's pose.  Anything that's relaxing and did not require much out of me.  Tico would have enjoyed the downward dog pose.  At the end of each session, I felt great and a huge weight gest lifted out of my chest.  I'm like a refreshed new person. 

So like B at the Knott's Berry Farm, Tico @ the Buca Di Beppo, and myself @ the yoga studio, we're like three little kids this week.

And we don't care.

"The three bears", West LA; 09.11.11

Today was a nice sunny day.  We got out at around 10-ish in the morning to The Boneyard, a dog park in Culver City on Jefferson and Duquesne, just south of downtown Culver.  To get there, take the Jefferson Blvd. exit off the 405 North, and make a right on Jefferson headed East.  There's tons of parking across the dog park, and street/side parking as well.  It's a part of a large community park, where there's a children's playground, a nature trail, etc.  There's a separate area for small and large dogs, and there's water fountains on either parks.  There's tons of benches, but only a few with shades.  Bring your hats and sunglasses, as it can get pretty bright on here.  It's all dirt, so wear covered-toe shoes.  There's tons of balls for dogs to play with, and it's pretty large (about an acre).  It's not a flat area, so for a large, overactive dog, this place is perfect to run around in.

When we got to the park, there were about 4 other dogs in the large dog area; we got in at the same time with another german shephered Tico's size, who's apparently about 3 years old and a female.  She looked just like Tico.  After about 15 minutes in, all the large dogs left; so B, Tico and myself had a ball throwing tennis balls around the park to get Tico his due exercise.  I've never seen him get so tired.  Even now that I'm typing this about 7+ hours later, he's still pretty beat.  So he tried to rest in one of the shaded areas.  After about 10 minutes of sitting down, I figured we'd walk towards the nature trail.

The nature trail is inside the parking lot across from the dog park.  It's wheelchair accessible for the handicapped, and there's also dirt trails for the joggers/runners.  It's a 20-minute hike with a 105 feet elevation.  I saw the ramp, and got curious, but alas, it's not dog-friendly.  So I took a sneak peek and went up halfway to see a decent view, and I was not disappointed even at that height.  I could see the ocean from the horizon, and all of Culver City as well as the children's playground down the hill within the Culver City park.  The trail drops you off to the side of the baseball field, and the overlook, from the pictures I found online, looks very good.  One minute into the trail, I came across Fulcrum Adventures' 50-foot climbing wall and high rope activity set up.  Fulcrum, as it turns out, is a team-building company, whose clients include Northrop Grumman and UCLA. The 50-foot wall made of weathered wood looks intimidating and unstable.  A well-trained staff with the right gears are needed because if you make a mistake, you can easily break a leg, or worse-your neck.  It's private, so contact Fulcrum/park if you are interested in checking this wall/rope out.  If you have to have your climbing fix, check out Rockreation Indoor Climbing instead, just north of here on La Grange, just off of Bundy and Olympic Blvd.  For $45, you can sign up for FG1, which offers a two hour class, a week of free climbing, and includes shoe/gear rentals.  I've signed up for this a few times before, I just never followed-through each time.

There's the Culver City stairs within the Culver City park that B and I still have to check out one of these days; but sans Tico, as it's not dog-friendly.  And unlike the Santa Monica stairs, it has twice the steps, and apparently, just as crowded nowadays. 

B needs to get his car washed, so I took him to the local car wash in Del Rey/Mar Vista area that I used to go to.  It's next to Outdoor Grill, a place known for some good tri-tip in West LA.  I had their chicken here once, and they did not disappoint. 

Since we have about half an hour to kill, and having a dog is not condusive to just sitting around in the waiting area, we walked around the neighborhood, which served us well, since we're looking for ideas for wood fences for the house.  Venice/Mar Vista is known for their lateral wood fence and home curb appeals that are still accessible to the common folk like B and myself.   But we feel like Goldilocks and the three bears; some of the fences are either too high, too low, not private enough, wood's not treated, etc.

This wood fence is good width, but we could use another three feet higher.

The multi-color wood is nice, but it's too high.  B is 6'4; so I think 6 feet is pretty high enough for us.

Nice wood work, but not good for someone with a large dog.

 Too low/not private enough.

 There's an entrance door at the end of this, apparently; and a large, angry dog on the other side of the wall.  We did not hang out long enough to find out more.

Great concept, the main gate is very zen-like, but I don't see this lasting more than a few years.

This is a lesson in weatherproofing your wood before installation.



This house reminds me of Costa Rica. 



What a welcoming, friendly looking house.  The french door entry is very appealing.We liked everything about this house.

We like the decorative tilework on the front steps of this Spanish-style house.

Tico saying hello to the neighborhood ridgeback/weimerauner/something else mix 9-month old female dog.  She wanted to play with Tico, but he's too tired.



This building is on the corner of Duquesne and Washington.

There are houses along Duquesne that are for sale, which gave me another option with future homes.  Although this area is not cheap, the walking distance to the Culver City park/Boneyard and downtown Culver City is appealing to me.  And the ocean is only 4 miles away.  The 10 and the 405 freeway are a few minutes from here as well.

This bar called Bottlerock is a local wine bar in downtown Culver City that I've always wanted to check out. I took this photo yesterday, after meeting the girls for some churrascaria(sp?) at Libra Brazilian Steakhouse next door.  Amazon.com offered a half off coupon, so I got four for me and my girlfriends.  Another place I'd want to check out here is Fraiche's, but my pocket book says no bueno.  L'Epicerie, which lookes like a Dean and Deluca type place, is on the corner of Culver and Duquesne.  That's another place I'd want to check out.  Weaver's coffee sounds good.  That place more is like my speed, aka my budget.  Downtown CC offers two hours of free parking, and $1\hour after that.  So it's worth a visit.  Ugo (yay!), Rush Street (wee!), Tender Greens (yum!), Akasha (meh) as well as Trader Joe's and the theaters are also in the area.   

The cons about living in Culver City is that it's further north from us, which is not a good idea for B, who works about 36-40 miles south from our house as it is.  So the further north we live, the worse it is for him.  My job is pretty centralized and is accessible via multiple freeways, so I'm pretty set.  I mean, I got off work at 5pm, and had plenty enough time to stop by the house to let Tico out, stock his water/food dishes, and drive down to Anaheim to meet B, his sister Michelle and Jerry to see the Yankees/Angels play.  B on the other hand, not so much.   

Here's a photo of the Friday night fireworks the Angels put up after the game.

Anyhoo, it never failed that for the few minutes that we were at the dog park, Tico apparently over-exerted his paws.  And he is now nursing a raw rear-right paw.  He now walks around smelling like a bacon-wrapped hotdog you see cooking along Santee Alley.  He's whiny, limping and cranky.  And he bites me whenever I wanted to check out his paw.  He listens to B more, me not so much.  It looks like it's going to be a sock-around-the-paw time in the Tico household tonight.  Between this and the Pedi-paws session yesterday, it has been a butt-head weekend around the house.

I can't wait to send him to bootcamp.  Hopefully that would mellow him down a little.  He's such a grumpy bear.

The Wedge, Newport Beach; 09.05.11

The boys and I went to Huntington Dog Beach today for some beach fun.  Since our dinner plans are cancelled, we decided to stay in the OC and check out "The Wedge", which is a popular surfing spot in Newport Beach.  B used to go here all the time during his high school days.

'The Wedge" is at the end of East Ocean Boulevard, at the end of Balboa Peninsula.  Take the 405 South, and get on 55 South, and take it all the way until it changes to Newport Boulevard/Balboa Boulevard.  There's tons of street parking, there are benches to watch the boats/yachts go by the water.  The surrounding houses are smaller, cottage-style houses perfect for marina/beach living, save a few Tuscan-inspired behemoths you see lined up along PCH in Huntington Beach.  

The surf spot itself reminds me of Sandy Beach,  which is a perfect spot for body surfers who can get decent wave within a few feet of the shore.  Such is the case today, since all of them were just bodysurfing today.  We saw at least three dophins about a 100 yards away swimming too.  It was a great way to spend a holiday. 

When we got home, Tico smells funky, for a day of sand, water and dog hair so I hosed him down in the front yard.  Considering we just gave him a bath last week, this is a big deal, since we try to only bathe him every other month if anything, so he does not lose his furs' 'natural oils'.  But we had to do it.  My car, on the other hand, was also just washed two weeks ago, and it is now stinky and also full of dog hair.  

Owning a dog is not easy.  Owning a large, long-haired, shedding dog is harder.  If we don't sweep on a daily basis, our living room floors will be layered with clouds of gray doggie hair.  We're lucky to have floor laminate, which, besides tile floors, is the most dog-friendly.  Carpets are terrible, and wood floors are too pretty and can be easily scuffed with sharp paws.  

We have a faux leather sofa and loveseat, and we don't plan to replace it until Tico gets older or we start having kids.  Then Tico can have the old couches all to himself.  We still dog-proof the house when we leave, like keeping cords and shoes away, food out of reach, etc.  He's stopped eating and chewing shoes, cords and furniture, but it's always good to be careful.  

It will be very interesting though, to see how we will be traveling with the dog hopefully, a baby in the next year or two.  It already takes a lot of logistics planning whenever we go away with Tico, so to go away with a kid and a dog will be very interesting.

We shall see.  In the meantime, there's more time for the three of us to have some QT at the beach/park/restaurants on our own for now.  And today at Huntington Dog Beach and The Wedge is one of those days.