***BE THE CHANGE***

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Fitness: P90X - Day 3

Day three and EVERYTHING hurts.  I was going to push our morning workout to the afternoon to give my aching muscles a few more hours of recovery time but when Farilla got up and was obviously going for it so I persevered.  Day one went a little something like this....push-ups, pull-ups...more push-ups and more pull-ups...and even more push-ups and MORE pull-ups.  Dude...my lats, pects and triceps have been screaming for 2 days straight.  Day two went like this....squats, lunges, jumping.....more squats, deeper lunges & higher jumps....then DEEPER squats, MORE lunges & even HIGHER jumps.  It's a wonder I can walk today.  Well, I wouldn't call it much of a walk.  It's more of a shuffle right now.  Day three (today) brought more upper body work.  So, as previously stated, I'm sore...TO THE MAX.  Yes, I just said to the max!

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Photos: Farilla Skates

Hitting up the Venice Beach Skate Park is Farilla's favorite new past-time.  I decided to tag along the other morning...

















You can check out the rest of the snaps from this set here.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Life: Look Who's Back!


Life: Look Who's Back!
Originally uploaded by Sanctuary-Studio


We think this must be the baby opossum we caught Sammie "playing" with a couple weeks ago. Glad to see he survived but sad to see that he was never reunited with Blossom and the rest of her brood. I can't get over how big this little guy has gotten since we last saw him. Seriously, check out those fingers!

Fitness: P90X - Day 1







We started P90X in-home training today.  Let me start by saying that I know very little about this workout program aside from its claim to transform your body into amazingness in 90 days.  I haven't seen any of their advertising nor have I read any of the literature supplied with the program.  In fact the above banner was just pulled from their website which I visited for the first time (for the sole purpose of finding a banner).  I'm very much just following Farilla's lead on this one.  Though, from a few conversations I've had with friends, this seems to be the current big workout trend.  Farilla's been really pumped about getting on the P90X train so I figured, wth.  I'm in.  Seriously how hard could it be? It's not like having a trainer in the room with you who would normally hold you accountable for slacking off.  I figure I'll work at my own pace and we'll see what happens.   

Well......what happened was that Day 1 kicked my ass (or rather my upper extremities) so hard that I barely notice how sore my legs are from my run yesterday.  Dude!

Having a partner through this process will make all the difference.  Farilla's support and encouragement (mixed with a dash of my competitiveness) will be enough to keep me from slacking off.  We'll take some baseline measurements/photos and post updates along the way.  Stay tuned!

You can find more info about the P90X program here:
P90X Extreme Home Fitness Workout Program

P90X Extreme Home Fitness Workout Program - 13 DVDs, Nutrition Guide, Exercise Planner

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Life: Thank you, UniqueLA!

<Life: Thank you, UniqueLA!
Life: Thank you, UniqueLA!
Originally uploaded by Sanctuary-Studio


We found tons of wonderfuly UNIQUE (and inexpensive) treats and treasures this afternoon at Unique LA. And Farilla & I both ran into friends who were vending! I love when friends share their creations with the world....almost as much as I love buying them.

Life: My Dream Restaurant...Coming Soon

Life: My Dream Restaurant...Coming Soon
Life: My Dream Restaurant...Coming Soon
Originally uploaded by Sanctuary-Studio

As seen in Culver City.

Friday, April 23, 2010

Food: Grilled Cheeeez, Please!

The grilled cheese posse made a visit to Clementine's for lunch this afternoon in honor of Grilled Cheese Month. During the month of April, Clemintine's offers a special Grilled Cheese menu in addition to their regular menu of "homemade seasonal food".  Despite the five specialty options I went with the Basic Grilled Cheese on olive bread with cherry tomatoes & roasted onions.  Mmm, so good!   Then again I am a complete sucker for extra-sharp Tillamook.


Basic Grilled Cheese on Olive Bread w/ roasted cherry tomatoes & onions

I was, however, disappointed to find out (despite the notation on the menu) that their sandwiches could actually not be made meatless.   I had my heart set on the gruyere & hot honey mustard sammie on pretzel bread (minus the ham).  Apparently meatless sammies were only available during Passover?!  That said, everyone in our party enjoyed their meals.  Once they all arrived, that is.  One of our sammies, The Dy-Ham-Ic Duo, managed to get lost in the shuffle.  As soon as our server realized the mix-up and resubmitted the order to the kitchen she offered up a complimentary muffin from the pastry bar.  The gesture was appreciated but the muffin was declined.

Will I be back?  Potentially.  Although, parking is ridiculous.  We went into this outing knowing that parking in Century City would be problematic.  As such, we purposely arrived at 11am with hopes of getting a jump on the lunch rush.  Our early arrival didn't seem to matter.  The small parking lot was still packed.  We circled the surrounding streets (most of which are permit parking only) three times before finding a meter two blocks away.  If I make it back it will probably have to be on a weekend.  Or, more specifically, on a Saturday since they're closed on Sunday.


Basic Grilled Cheese on wheat w/ roasted cherry tomatoes: $8.25

Monday, April 19, 2010

Life: The Unveiling...


Life: The Unveiling...
Originally uploaded by Sanctuary-Studio

I wish you could see just exactly how stoked Farilla is with his new bundle of awesome.

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Life: A Secret No More...

Foursquare: (Not So) Secret Banksy Badge

See it. It's not about Banksy but if you're a fan with half a brain you won't be disappointed. Added bonus, I never expected to laugh as much as I did. There's some controversy surrounding the film.  Is it legit or just another super-sized Banksy hoax. Either way I think it's a brilliant commentary on people who make and particularly people who buy.....art. Have you been Brainwashed?!

Life: I Have Exited Through The Gift Shop

Life: I Have Exited Through The Gift Shop
Originally uploaded by Sanctuary-Studio

See it! Wow! Hoax or not? Hmm...

I have my theory.

Have you been Brainwashed?!

Think about it.

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Friday, April 16, 2010

Life: Mid-April Garden Update....

The garden is really shaping up!  Here are a few recent snaps...

Tomatoes are flowering...


Spinach, Red Leaf Lettuce and Chard explosion...


Our first strawberry...


These onions are on a mission...


Broccoli florets....


Citrus Tree Surprise...

(We have no idea what type of citrus tree we have but we're super excited nonetheless!)

Veggie Of The Day: Radish Srpoutlings...
Radish Sproutlings
(These little overachievers were just planted FIVE DAYS AGO!)

Monday, April 12, 2010

Music: Florence And The Machine - Dog Days Are Over

This makes me all tingly inside....

Florence and the Machine "DOG DAYS ARE OVER" Music Video from LEGS MEDIA on Vimeo.

She killed it with kisses!

From Vimeo:
In “Dog Days Are Over”, directed by Georgie Greville and Geremy Jasper of LEGS, and edited by Paul Snyder at Lost Planet, Florence is the shamanic leader of a surreal orchestra where spiritual elation explodes into smokey psychedelic anarchy. Each musical element of the song is personified by a group of colorful characters that combine 60’s girl groups, Hinduism, gospel choirs, drum circles, paganism and pyrotechnics. Florence is a painted primal force of nature that whips a religious experience into a riot.

Lungs
Lungs

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Film: Under God by Richard Farmer

Our friend, Richard, directed this fantastic short film which has been accepted into 35 film festivals across the globe. Farilla and I finally had the pleasure of viewing Under God on the big screen at the First Glance Film Fest in Hollywood where it was recognized for best Art Direction. I couldn't agree more with this honor. The story was great but visually this film was stunning. That said, the sound was stand-out. Bravo, to all of our many friends who collaborated on this project.  I'm still tripping out over the fact that it was shot over the course of a weekend!

Official Trailer...

From YouTube:
Combining questions of Faith, Technology and Politics, UNDER GOD is a Cold War-era parable about the day President Eisenhower met with the worlds first super computer, UNIVAC.
Snaps from this afternoon....
 Life: I Like Under GodI
Richard pins Megatron
I Like Under God

Life: Venice Beach Skate Park

Life: Venice Beach Skate Park
Originally uploaded by Sanctuary-Studio

Farilla tearing shit up in the Snake Run this morning!

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Life: Street Ready!

Life: Street Ready!
Originally uploaded by Sanctuary-Studio

I already have road rash but as they say....it's just like riding a
bike.

Life: Skate Park, Ready!

Life: Skate Park, Ready!
Originally uploaded by Sanctuary-Studio

Is there anything this man can't do?!

Friday, April 9, 2010

Life: Early-April Garden Update

Garden Update

Choppin' Broccoli...


Red & Yellow Onions....


What we're growing...

Greens: Spinach, Red Leaf Lettuce, Chard, Kale, Bok Choy

Fruits/Veggies: Yellow Peppers, Eggplant, Hot Peppers, Sweet Corn, Broccoli, Tomatoes, Celery, Strawberries, Cantaloupe, Zucchini, Butternut Squash, Onions

Herbs: Basil, Spearmint, Sage, Thyme, Rosemary, Stevia, Chives

We picked up some seeds for carrots and radishes last night. Not quite sure where we'll squeeze them in but we're determined to make space.  Everything is doing well so far.  Our biggest concern is over-watering and the return of Blossom.  Stay tuned!

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Life: The One And Only...

The One And Only...

I took my 6yo niece to Diddy Riese, the mother of all cookie shops, this afternoon. I nearly passed out when she looked at a kid in the window eating mint and chip ice cream smashed between two glorious chocolate chip cookies and said I don't like that kind of ice cream sandwich.  I mean, seriously, what kid looks at cookies and ice cream and says....um, no way, Lady.  I then pulled out my multi-tool and clipped a bit of her hair for DNA analysis.  There's no way we're blood related.

Life: More Morning Visitors...

Meet Blossom the Opossum and her 3 little monsters (note the dark patches on her back). She was searching our backyard (now known as the Wild Kingdom) for baby number four. We stumbled upon Sammie "playing" with the baby when we went out to check on the garden this morning. I've never seen a cat look so guilty in my life.

photo.jpg

Another Morning Visitor