It Was a Very North Hollywood Day
I was in North Hollywood this afternoon because I wanted to see a movie and I wanted to have a brie and jalapeño sandwich while I watched it. It’s been a tough week for the old gal. Mr. G’s travel schedule is going to be nightmarish until the Superbowl is over and then there’s a massive project that will keep him busy through August. I’m really happy that he’s happy at work but I’m fighting a bad case of the lonelies and the more I’m in it the worse it gets.
You see I have an amazing network of girlfriends and all I have to do is reach out to them. I’ve sort of failed at that recently. The holidays made me feel insular and just want to hoard time with my husband and kids and now that the kids are back to school and Mr. G is somewhere in the southeast I’m sort of stuck alone and not sure I’m ready for company. Maybe next week. You know how it is when the more you’re alone the more you want to be alone?
So today I decided to indulge myself. We spent the morning at Archer where Jane interviewed. Archer is a magnificent school in every way. I think her interview was great and I’m marginally comfortable in my assertion that I didn’t put my foot in my mouth… much. I guess we’re all a little awkward now and again?
The school interviews are weird. I sort of defer to my husband and let him do the talking. I don’t care much about the social stuff for my daughter. Socially she’s adept and every school we’ve looked at will be fine. She’ll leave with nice friends and she’ll pick the kids who inspire her. I’m looking at each of the schools and trying to determine which one will offer her the most rigorous academics without breaking her spirit. An interview with a mom who says, “Work her ass off” might not be the best interview. Or maybe it would. We’ll never know.
After dropping Jane off at school right in time for lunch I headed over to the Village Gourmet on Tujunga because they get fresh burrata every Thursday afternoon. Obviously Thursday is burrata day at my house. As I was standing there and thinking about running home to roast some beets I looked at the menu and remembered that they make stunning sandwiches. So I ended up grabbing a baguette with just a smidgen of smoked turkey and a whole lot of soft ripe brie with romaine lettuce and spicy jalapeño jelly. As I was checking out I also picked up a decadent sea salt and caramel chocolate thing that was ridiculously expensive but quite small and worth every penny. I decided to pop it all in my purse and catch a movie. Alone.
I like going to lunch alone and I enjoy matinees alone so this was sort of a trifecta. Lunch, jalapeños and a matinee. I win.
I drove past Henry’s Tacos, which is a very ordinary taco stand that is closing down, and the line was quite long. Henry’s has been at the north end of Tujunga Village for decades but the current owners are unable to keep it because of rent increases. The lines were long today (as they have been each day since the imminent closure was announced) and I just marvel because as adorable as the place is, the food is crap. Remember your school lunch tacos? That’s Henry’s. Nothing special is happening there except that it’s closing and someone with something more expensive and trendier will take the space. Leases end. Life moves on.
So I went to the Laemmle in North Hollywood and was thrilled to see a matinee crowded. I was even happier to see that it wasn’t all old people… long story… I’ll explain another time.
I enjoyed my sandwich and chocolate and chased it all down with a Prilosec and Advil because heaven knows that wheat makes me feel like crap but lordy it’s delicious. And I watched the movie.
To my credit I think I only dozed for a few minutes in the middle and I absolutely adored it. Not Fade Away isn’t as campy as Moonrise Kingdom but it touches on all the coming of age issues that we love to romanticize. The sweetness of the movie is that the primary relationships are men and boys and there’s a simplicity to them (the relationships not the men) that makes you love the men in your life a little more. The wigs were distracting (a la Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) but the soundtrack and the flavor of the movie was totally engrossing so I was able to overlook the straw on their heads. Even though Gandolfini seems like he’s playing Tony Soprano in the trailer he really isn’t in the movie and he’s really quite wonderful in the role of a firmly middle class father in the late 60’s. This movie is worth seeing on the big screen.
I left the show feeling pampered and ready to roll up my sleeves for the remainder of the week but I also had about 45 minutes to kill before the kids were ready to be picked up from school. I did what every logical woman does. I ran over to my Ford Dealer and took a spin the C-Max Energi. Before I pull the trigger on the Lexus I want to be 100% sure that Detroit doesn’t have a better option for me. I love that car. I love hybrid plug ins (I do not love straight EVs) and I really want to find a way to make that C-Max work for us but I’m not sure I can swing it right now. I’m going to try and figure everything out tomorrow and get the first car situated. Mr. G’s car will be a whole other hassle. He wants another Jaguar… why? Obviously because he’s excited about three more years of having a car that’s like a cheerleader: fast, sexy and dumb. Yay us.
Photo credit flickr via creative commons.