Most recent episodes
August 30, 2007
The Barking Lot’s Low-Cost Pet Vaccinations on Larchmont
Filed under: Shop — StyleGuide @ 11:16 am
Awhile back I was searching for low-cost vaccinations for our cat Trouble. PetSmart’s clinic had a line out the door, and I really wanted to shop locally but not pay for a vet visit. A little Internet research and POW! I found a low-cost vaccination clinic at The Barking Lot on Larchmont.
The first Tuesday of each month between 2:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. a veterinarian from Larchmont Animal Clinic sets up shop for dog and cat inoculations.
The service may be a little grumpy (what can you expect from people who typically relate better to animals than to people?), but there’s a big free parking lot, they offer a good selection of pet products, and I’ve never had to wait in line to see the vet.
Makes vaccines a little less painful (for me, at least).
Price: $$$ (I paid under $50 for a series of cat shots)
Where: 336 N. Larchmont Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90004
Call: 323-464-3031
Do you know any other low-cost vaccination spots? Give us the word….
August 28, 2007
Garage-sale-tips-maps.com
Filed under: House + Garden, Shop — StyleGuide @ 7:01 am
There is a sort of hierarchy of used stuff, starting at the high end with the auction house and antique dealer, then progressing downward to the antique store, consignment store, junk store, flea market and finally, that most democratic of retail outlets (and just one level above dumpster diving), the garage sale.
Each step down the “used stuff food chain” typically means a drop in price and average quality. Slumming it at garage sales requires a commitment to sift through the trash, but it can bring the rewards of finding unfathomable treasures at rock-bottom prices. The key to finding the good stuff is volume. Hit as many sales as possible in the shortest amount of time.
Fortunately, a new website can help. Enter your address or ZIP code at www.Garage-sale-tips-maps.com and the site generates a map with nearby garage sales from craigslist.org. You can check details on craigslist with one click. More features are expected soon.
A little time, a little patience, but the potential for a major payoff. Just remember me when you earn screen time on Antiques Roadshow or graciously accept compliments on your stylish pad built on a mini-budget.
August 13, 2007
Palm Springs Follies
Filed under: On the Road — StyleGuide @ 6:25 pm
For a near-by get-away that feels more like a trip through a time warp, there’s no place like Palm Springs. And come fall, once both the temperature gauge and the snowbirds descend, one of the greatest shows of all time lights up the night.
They come in wheelchairs and retirement home buses, an audience “with an average age of dead” packing into a gargantuan theater for a sold-out show with music from the 20s, 30s, and 40s — featuring performers from the 20s, 30s and 40s.
It is the inimitable Fabulous Palm Springs Follies, a Vegas-style revue with a cast ranging in age from 59 to 84 years old.
Some may balk at seeing the elderly in little more than skimpy bathing suits and strategically placed feathers. But the artistry, dedication and endurance of these performers will win you over.
Tickets are a little pricey, but sometimes I like to splurge a little on vacation in the interest of expanding my mind. And in this case, mission accomplished.
Price: $$$$ ($50 and up)
Where: 128 South Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs, California
Call: 760-327-0225
Have the Follies blown your mind? Tell us about it.
Mao’s Kitchen’s Home-Made Ginger Ale
Filed under: Westside, Midtown, Eat — StyleGuide @ 5:51 pm
If your experience in ginger ale was limited, as mine was, to the two liter bottles with the brown and green labels from the soda aisle at the grocery, then ginger ale from Mao’s will seem like more than a different country, but a different world.
First the slightly carbonated, slightly lemon-scented sensation. But look out! The ginger quickly explodes from a taste to a physical mass, commandering your entire sinus cavity, but ending with a fresh and clean feeling.
It seems an elixir from the gods for the nauseous, and a palliative for a hot sunny day for the rest of us.
Mao’s Kitchen “serves the people” from locations on Melrose (with that rarest of Melrose amenities — a huge free parking lot) and in Venice on Pacific Avenue.
Price: $ ($2.50 for ginger ale, entrees from $7)
Where: In Hollywood at 7315 Melrose Avenue or in Venice at 1512 Pacific Avenue
Where do you get great ginger-ale?
August 2, 2007
Bargain Zen: Leslie Porter’s Meditation Class at Santa Monica College
Filed under: Play — StyleGuide @ 2:48 pm
I am a regular in the hallowed halls of community college adult extension programs across the Southland. As an alumnus of East L.A. City College, Santa Monica College, Rio Hondo College, L.A. City College, UCLA extension and Beverly Hills Adult school, I have to say one of my favorites courses is “Meditation for Everyone” at Santa Monica College’s Continuing Community Education program.
The class begins with instruction on how to meditate, then everyone gives it a go for increasing periods of time. Finally, instructor Leslie Porter leads a discussion on Buddhism.
Once I got past being surprised at myself for paying a course fee to sit completely still for 45 minutes, I found it rewarding. Supporters tout improved decision-making, communication, well-being, health and patience as long-term benefits of meditation.
Leslie herself will surprise you. She started our class saying, “I go on meditation retreats where I spend 40….”
This is the part where I expected her to say “minutes.”
“…days in meditation,” she finished. Forty days without saying a word? Amazing.
Me? I’m pretty proud when I get my 10 minutes a day.
Where: Santa Monica College
Price: $$$ ($20-50)
Do you meditate?
Best Fried Chicken in L.A. - Golden Bird Fried Chicken
Filed under: South, Midtown, Eat — StyleGuide @ 3:13 am
A bold statement, I know, to declare the best fried chicken in a city full of strong birds, whether Dinah’s, Roscoe’s or Honey’s.
But I have to say, there’s something about Golden Bird.
First, the name. “Golden Bird” is the perfect appellation for a chicken that, fitting for Los Angeles, is the color of a deep, dark suntan glistening with oil. The tender meat sports a batter coating that is smooth, crispy and light.
Served with the ubiquitous (but odd) side of crinkle cut sweet pickles in a tiny paper cup, the chicken is consistently good. Sides, however, can be hit or miss, but heaven can’t be much better than those days you strike upon a buttery, flaky biscuit with its salty top baked a rich brown, creamy mac and cheese or greens spiked with tender chunks of pork and a sprinkling of crushed red pepper.
There’s a lot of nostalgia for Golden Bird chicken, an L.A. institution since 1953, as locations have diminished over the years. Expect a resurgence with 14 new locations soon to be added to their five existing L.A. stores.
I hit the one at 4725 West Venice, just west of La Brea near the OSH.
Price: $ (under $10)
Where: Check www.goldenbirdchicken.com/contactus.html for locations
Call: 323-525-0488
Do you love Golden Bird? Or does your heart belong to another poultry shop? Tell me about it….
Beignets outside New Orleans: The Gumbo Pot at the L.A. Farmer’s Market
Filed under: Midtown, Eat — StyleGuide @ 3:06 am
I like the L.A. Farmer’s Market at Third and Fairfax best on sunny afternoons. We set up on the west side of the market to enjoy a perfect pair — cold pitchers of beer from the bar and hot beignets from The Gumbo Pot.
Discovering The Gumbo Pot’s beignets capped a long search for decent New Orleans-style beignets in Los Angeles. For the uninitiated, the famous doughnut-like confections are airy rectangular pillows served adrift in a snowstorm of powdered sugar. The truly decadant can choose chocolate beignets.
Beignets, beer and the sounds of the market — close your eyes and fool yourself, just for a moment, that you’re 1,900 miles away, basking in that Big Easy sun.
Price: $ (under $10)
Where: Farmer’s Market, 6333 W 3rd St., #312
Call: 323-933-0358
Have you found good beignets in Los Angeles? Give us the 411.