Pumpkin Contest

Some of you have been following me through two pumpkin contests. The first is a huge pumpkin at my lunch cafeteria. It weighed so much I couldn't lift it, thus I guessed it weighed 97 pounds. The person closest to the actual weight won a free lunch from the cafeteria people. After a few weeks, the bum of the pumpkin grew moldy. The winner was announced today... the pumpkin weighed 60 pounds. I am not as strong as I thought.

The second pumpkin contest is for the weight of the pumpkin on my kitchen table, also pictured is the previous post. The result of that contest has not been released yet. Stay tuned. Submit your vote.

Heels Signify a Top-Notch Weekend

After an outstanding Los Angeles weekend, I could not resist buying the heels pictured here at a Malibu garage sale... cowboy boots for climbing a mountain in heels.

Sufjan Stevens

Saturday eve Sufjan Stevens played at the Wiltern - a music venue in Koreatown in Los Angeles. Some fancy photos are posted here.

Sufjan in my mind is remembered as the man who wanted to make an album based on every state - "the states project." After making Illinois and Michigan, he disappeared somewhat for 3 years, only to reappear with "The Age of Adz" album. Instead of the classic folk banjo tune he typically boasts, this album plays with the fundamentals of sound, or so he said during the concert. Believe him. One of the songs is 25 minutes long, and well worth every minute of the listen. He explores music ideas and leaps into the techno-dance vibe. After the 25 minutes, he rewarded us with Chicago - a crowd pleaser.

I appreciated the extent of effort Sufjan put into making an unforgetable concert. There were two dancing singers in the back who coordinated with Sufjan in aerobic dance moves. The singers dressed in space-like suits which matched the images displayed on the screen behind the 10 piece band. The images honed the art of the late Royal Robertson, a schizophrenic art? type with apoctaliptic visions from which Sufjan drew his inspiration of this latest album. The music soared. And the night was unforgetable; one of the best concerts I have ever seen.

Tour de Fat

This weekend I participated with neighborhood friends in our friendly neighborhood wonderous whimsy - the Tour de Fat. This event is sponsored by New Belgium brewery in Fort Collins, Colorado which makes Fat Tire beer. New Belgium hosts a carnival aimed at bicycle awareness, fun, and to "roust a city's inner-cyclist". The #1 rule is:
1. Put no means of transport before thy bike: Come by bike because not only are bikes fun, but they help stave off some of our most wicked ills: Traffic, laziness, and pollution. Tour de Fat has a solution: ride this day, every day, and definitely when Tour de Fat heads your way.


Here are some photos of the hipsters who joined the bike parade:

Wisconsin fans:



Tall bike with full body outfit:


Big bird:



A garden in tow.



Banana Suit





Among the activities was a 5 mile bike parade through town with several hundred bikes - including my friends and I. We followed traffic signs. When we returned to the park, we ate at food trucks and sampled fat tire, for a small price. At "the pit" we tried out various bicycles, such as one with no tires but a circle of shoes instead. Other bikes had an off centered tire center so you moved up and down as the bike moved forward. Outside of the pit was a stage with entertainment - comedians, bands, carnival people on stilts. Toward the end, one person even traded in their car for a bicycle (very very nice bicycle).

CicLAvia Los Angeles -- 10.10.10

On Sunday I took to (7.5 miles of) the streets of LA during a "CicLAvia" event. The city closed 7.5 miles of streets and opened the streets to bikers, skateboarders, runners, walkers, or strollers. I felt a rush as I zoomed through intersections downtown. I threw caution to the wind with no car to run me off the road. Strangely I was one of the only nerds with a bike helmet, but I considered it a fashion statement. Enjoy these photos taken by others that I found online at laist.com.








Some history from the CicLAvia webpage:
Ciclovías started in Bogotá, Colombia, over thirty years ago as a response to the congestion and pollution of city streets. Now they happen throughout Latin America and the United States, connecting communities and giving people a break from the stress of car traffic. The health benefits are immense. Ciclovías bring families outside of their homes to enjoy the streets, our largest public space.


And a video, too!

San Gorgonio

My alarm rang at 3:15 a.m. on Saturday morning. Whoever said weekends are for sleeping didn't live in Southern California. By 6:00 a.m. I had driven two hours to the Vivian Creek trailhead just past Forest Falls, CA. I joined a Sierra Club hiking group to complete the 18.2 mile, 5,600 ft. in elevation gain, round trip to San Gorgonio, the tallest point in Southern California. San G hails at 11,500 ft. The weather, the company, and the views made for the perfect Saturday.

Pictured here is the trail just before the peak,


our group,


and two trees - the white one had been struck by lightening.

Movies with Movie Stars

This past week I watched not one but two movies in the theater.

First, I viewed "I'm Still Here," the Joaquin Phoenix mockumentary... or is it? For those who have not seen this movie, it's a documentary of a year following J.P. Remember when he showed up on David Letterman with a huge beard, was stoned out of his mind, and left his gum under Dave's desk? That was the year of filming. Anyway, the meaning of that movie will continue to develop for years to come. While somewhat painful to watch, it made me think long and hard about the life of actors, America's obsession with stars, and I pondered why we like people who have egos and problems. Somehow, I think this movie touched on a lot of ideas, while also confusing the viewer as to whether it was real or pretend. Again, a metaphor for life?

Second, I viewed "The Social Network." This is the movie about the origins of facebook. Justin Timberlake played the founder of Napster. Nice touch. I saw this movie at a one screen theater in my neighborhood. Sitting next to my friend were Charlie Day and Mary Elizabeth Ellis. They are main characters on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. The friends who were sitting by the actors are major fans of the show - serendipitous. Well we all played it cool to be watching a movie next to movie stars. However, the over eager newbie Angelinos behind us asked to take a picture with them. The actors asked to wait until after the movie. Sure enough, as we waited in the lobby after the movie, the fans took a picture with Charlie Day. An innocent bistander then asked Charlie Day, "Is that your friend?" To which he responded, awkwardly, "Oh... just a fan." And she so smoothly replied, "Are you an actor or something?" He mumbled and escaped outside. Ah to be a movie star at a movie!

Just another day in LA folks!!