Double Dog Skunking

Photo by my four year old son

Morning plans slightly altered after Miss Trudy paraded into the house with a tell-tale stink lagging two seconds behind her darting body. I fished her out from under my bed, tethered her outside for a cleaning only to find Miss Moxie also played a part in the skunk debacle. In fact, she took more of the spray than Trudy did.

Skunk spray remedy applied (miraculous, really). Dogs de-skunked. The big upside is now we have two clean dogs. Dog wash was on my to do list but much lower. Not so bad to make it a priority.

Growing

Purple Cosmos

Encelia californica & lemons

Places I Will Not Likely Visit Again

Pig and Whistle, Hollywood

Hollywood Palladium

Eric and I ventured out last night to see Wilco at the Hollywood Palladium. We stopped by the Pig and Whistle for a quick bite and drinks before the show. The Pig and Whistle and the Palladium are not necessarily bad places. Both have a rich history. The P&W's past dates back to the 1920s when it was a haunt of Hollywood's elite like Clark Gable, Carol Lombard and Clara Bow to name a few. At one time, LA had two downtown P&Ws, the Hollywood landmark and one in Pasadena. Only the Hollywood location remains. The last time I was there, I remember it was so busy, I could barely walk across the room. Last night, it was practically deserted. Our meal was served to us by a quiet waiter whose pants were too short.

Eric and I both share a personal history of the Palladium of shows attended long before we knew each other and way before we had kids. Eric was at the legendary Black Flag show where the crowd broke down the doors. Sixteen year old Eric watch D Boon fly over the stage fronting the Minutemen. The floor was empty, only to be flooded the moment Black Flag stepped on stage.

Even then, I think I would choose a different venue to see a band than the Palladium. The sound was so-so and I couldn't see any of the chord changes by the infamous Wilco frontman. Really, how am I supposed to develop my rock and roll chops if I can't steal from the source? From here on out, it's the Wiltern or Troubadour. Sorry Palladium. Of course, I'll be back in a second if my kids form a band and play there. I'll just bring one of those canes with a foldable seat, so I can rest in between stage dives.

Give a Kid a Shredder

Or at least let the kid be the one to run the food processor and fun will be had. My youngest son and I spent some time on Friday shredding golden beets, red cabbage, carrots, celery, ginger, garlic and lemon for fermenting.

I am amazed how long my son will stay in the kitchen so long as a food processor is being used. Only two days have passed and the vegetables already give off the tangy smell of fermentation.

On Saturday, we logged more kitchen hours baking dark chocolate chip cookies as the rain came down and the fire burned all day in the fireplace. The weather report says a chance of rain tomorrow. We're prepared with firewood & more cookie dough if necessary.

Ramshackle Graffiti

My tagged trailer/studio. Is it wrong to imagine your seven year old with a tattoo that looks just like this?

Lazy Susan Gets Lazy Sometimes

Long before we moved here, another man and woman claimed this dwelling as their home for many years. He left behind a work bench with his first initial and surname stenciled in black on the front, a collection of common stones in jars labeled with papery masking tape that no longer adheres and a question mark as to who he was. Who she was. What kind of life they lived.

In the upkeep and repairs of our home, I often find traces of his touch. I suspect he was the hand behind the construction of this lazy susan cabinet in the corner of the kitchen. I imagine the lazy susan is at least fifty years old. Over time she occasionally gets lazy and stops turning. The circular shelf sinks a bit and rests on the frame rendering it motionless.

In the past, I've been able to tighten up the axis rod and raise the height of the lower shelf to solve the problem. This time, the upper beam that supports the axis broke. I rigged together to a carpentry fix only to find the problem of the fused shelf persisted.

Friend Phoenix is back from a trip to Ibiza and Germany. He helped rig up a solution to the lazy susan problem. Now that girl spins like a top.

Under the counter, with the susan in pieces, I found another relic from the former inhabitants who walked these floors: De Kuyper Creme de Cacao. Open and imbibe at your own risk.

Happy New Year 2012

2012 looks good already when you get to ring it in with your favorite summer time Alaska cousins/pals out visiting for the holidays. The Goodyear blimp flies over the home.

We meander to Pasadena where the not so Stealth Bomber flies over the Rose Parade route.

Tall beloved cousins lend a shoulder for a good view of the parade.

Floats abound, including a stellar representation from Ramshackle favorite the Los Angeles County Natural History Museum. I love a float that makes good use of brussel sprouts for T-Rex flanks and artichokes for the landscape. I was read to pluck and broil those puppies before they made the t.v. documented turn onto Colorado Boulevard.

And the Occupy movement even gets a blessing to follow behind the sanctified parade carrying their own stunning spider float made from garbage bags.

Welcome 2012! Happy new year!