I still think Jitlada is overrated!

However, I admire this woman in her quest to eat everything on the menu. Jitlada is not the first restaurant to receive this treatment; she has also eaten everything at The Bazaar.

Fun fact about Jo Stougaard: she has a Bedouin-style tent in her backyard.

I wonder, if I had to pick a restaurant and eat everything on the menu, what would I pick? Perhaps Baja Fresh? Native Foods? Joe's? What does that say about me?

I would not enjoy photographing everthing I eat, just like going to a concert and worrying about taking pictures is a hassle (though, it is easier to take good pictures of food than a performer on a stage far away, blocked by screaming 19 year olds holding up their iPhones).

The first time I was ever on YouTube

Glory Days.


Digitalism was great the next year, at the El Rey, where I learned the difference between a dj set and a live set.

Robyn - Bad Gal

You can tell the guys who produced this are on a dance hall-related label. But it's fun anyway! Hey, I even liked Major Lazer at Coachella last year.



via

The virginity is strong with this one

Oh, people.

Lewis, fetch me a glass of your finest Merlot

It could happen.

Coachella 2011 - Sold Out

It only took a few days! I guess they were serious about selling fewer tickets this year.

Will they release more tickets as the festival approaches? I don't know if I care, as long as there is a DFA 1979 show in LA.

Splash of Grenadine

Fun and slightly sheer.

We need a paper that’s more, and this is less

NYT article about decline of the LAT among Los Angeles residents. Burn.

Requests of Humanity, Vol. II

• Please don't clip your nails at your desk. I can hear you, and that is nasty.

Clash's devotion to Elmo cost him his marriage

This LAT review of a documentary about the man behind (or, underneath and inside?) Elmo did not make me cry, even though it mentions other people crying. Is this a victory for me?

And yes, Elmo bro got divorced due to his Muppeteering commitments. That is embarassing.

Tomas Maier, can you hear me?

Dear Tomas,

I would accept any of the following as a Happy 2011 gift (I will overlook your tardiness just this once):


The Veneta in Lagoon.


Or, the Aquatre.

Maybe a small cross-body bag if you're not feeling so generous. The empire color is very nice too.

I also enjoy the chartreuse, known to you as assenzio.

Fondly,

Erin

CATPACK

I am sure Lewis is a size Large.

Concerns from Lewis' Dad:

That is a step in the right direction, but its not as hands free as I want.
I think it needs to come up higher because he would probably get out (not because he isn't having a great time, but because he's so excited he's having too good of a time).

via

34 Barelies

Yeah, I wear things like this.

Related: American Apparel's website is really scary.

What is Piers Morgan thinking here?

I know she's a lesbian, but I don't care, I want this to get weird; or, I don't know she's a lesbian and I want to get really personal; or, I want her to come clean about being gay while serving an administration that used all kinds of gayhating tactics to win an election?



via

Requests of Humanity, vol. I

• Please don't drink Red Bull while running on the treadmill next to me
• Please don't wear cologne or perfume to the gym
• Please don't walk on the bike path

Stephen Hawking at Caltech

I wanted to go to this event but was too tired. LAT write-up spends more time on describing the heinously dweeby crowd than the speech itself.

Related: who will die first, Stephen Hawking or Steve Jobs?

DFA 1979 at Coachella 2011??!?!?!??!

HOLD THE PHONE. I need to do some further investiagtion. The DFA1979 website hasn't been updated since 2006. SG doesn't have any information on his website. JFK seems silent on the issue as well (though, nice picture of Cactus Taqueria on Vine!).

From the vaults: my review of a Sebastien Grianger solo show.

Go Shark Yourself

The Discovery Channel has a "Shark Yourself" feature on their website. It is supposed to allow you to make any picture look more shark-like; I think the outcome is generally gruesome, not specifically aquatic. You be the judge:

I thought Jenny was sharkier, but apparently not.

Junip

KCSN has been playing a lot of Junip lately, and I like it. I was never on the Jose Gonzales bandwagon, as I prefer the OG Heartbeats, and find a lot of his stuff to be sleepy (though I could say that about the Junip record too).

Apparently I am late to this party; Junip played in Hollywood last November. Cool! Ask me about my latest pop culture finds, like unknown film The Social Network and underground Swedish pop princess Robyn.

Coachella 2011 already?!?

People are talking about it. PJ Harvey will allegedly be there, which is not as exciting to me as the fake poster with Talking Heads headlining on Sunday.



After last year's crowded fiasco, I am not so jazzed. I would go if I got a free ticket, or could buy a one-day pass, or if Goldenvoice assures me they will prevent the extra 15,000 people from attending each day. Thank you for listening.

Miracles that I would accept from the Late Pope John Paul II

To achieve sainthood, the Vatican needs to confirm a second posthumous miracle performed by JPII. The first miracle was curing an old nun of Parkinson's. Boring! This is what I'm talking about:

• New job, riches, eternal happiness, etc.
• Move 10 lbs accumulated over past year from thighs to breasts
• Cure cancer, end famine, stop global warming, pollution, and overfishing
• Give Amy Heckerling the inspiration to create another Clueless-caliber masterpiece
• Bring John Kennedy Toole back from the dead to write a follow-up to A Confederacy of Dunces.
• Make Sigerson Morrison redesign their closed-toe shoes so that they fit me.

There is still hope, JPII! Make a believer out of me.

Cover It Live

I am a reader of online chats. I do not participate in them, but I enjoy getting the author's personal take on a subject, or some expert analysis. It is also fun to see what kind of questions come from the general (read: wackadoodle) population.

But the world of online chats has been invaded by an innocent-looking menace: Cover It Live software. I have no idea if this software/program offers a benefit to publications, but as a reader I really don't like looking at it. For example, this LAT chat on yoga and this NYer chat with David Brooks both use Cover It Live. This NYer chat doesn't. I think CIL makes the page harder to navigate, and is not nice to look at (and occasionally won't allow you to keep the chat window open after you navigate away from the page). Am I just a Luddite (yes)? Am I missing some great benefit?

Blood, Bones, and Butter

I might want to read this when it comes out. I read Gabrielle Hamilton's personal essay in the latest New Yorker and enjoyed it, though it took a surprise turn to tear town. Seriously! Came out of nowhere.

On the subject of food and books, I think I also want to buy this cookbook when it is reprinted. I may even eat at Julienne this weekend. Their chewy graham bars are well-received.

Sal Esposito

I must be a little cat wacky, because this week a few people have sent me cat-related items to post here. But I am not cat wacky enough to include my pet on the US Census form, resulting in a jury duty summons.

The article is worth reading, if for no other reason than the great cat puns in the comments section:
Do you swear to meow the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?
I mew.

Cream on the inside

Gucci Mane now looks like this (via):

I am familiar with the name Gucci Mane, but when I looked him up on Youtube, I realized I am not familiar with any of his songs. Lemonade? Worst Enemy?

Based on his tattoo and necklace, I assumed he was the guy behind this gem:


But that is Dorrough. What a name. I think that is the extended spelling of Homer Simpson's "Doh!"

"Kitty" to the tune of "Gypsy"

Songwriting credit: Jenny Crapser

So I'm back to the scratching post
Back to the floor that I love
To a room with some newspapers to shred
Back to the kitty that I was
To the kitty... that I was

And it all comes down to you
Well, you know that it does
And catnip strikes, maybe once, maybe twice
oh, and it lights up the night
And you see your kitty
You see your kitty

To the kitty that remains faces freedom with a little fear
I have no fear, I have only love
And if I was a kitten
And the kitten was enough
Enough for me to love
Enough to love

She is purring away from you now
She was just a meow
She was just a meow
And a hairball is all that is left for you now
You see your kitty
You see your kitty

Catnip strikes, maybe once, maybe twice
And it all comes down to you
And it all comes down to you

Catnip strikes, maybe once, maybe twice
And it all comes down to you

I still see your bright eyes, bright eyes
I have always loved you
And it all comes down to you

Cat-themed cover band

My newest endeavor is forming a cover band that takes pop hits from the 80's, 90's, and beyond, and reworks the lyrics to include more cat-oriented language.

This bro at ICHC knows what I'm talking about:


For those among us with more contemporary taste, you may enjoy my rendition of Yacht's "Psychic City," which I will call "Psychic Kitty."



This band needs a name. Suggestions?

P.S. Best comment on the Yacht video: "FUCKING FREAKSHOW CUNTS GO AND DIE"

Lewis, don't get any ideas

http://catswatchingyouhavesex.tumblr.com/

I am creeped out. Thank you mrdubin.

Energy Drain

When I consider my energy consumption, I think about tangible use: turning on appliances, using two towels at Equinox every day, heating and cooling, etc. But, Internet use is one of the fastest growing energy drains in the world. A scientist quoted in this David Owen piece on the Jevons Paradox predicts that "by 2014, the U.S. computer network alone will each year require an amount of energy equivalent to the total electricity consumption of Australia."

Something to keep in mind as we all switch to the iPhone.

This letter to the magazine regarding Owen's article is tough for me to comprehend without referencing outside material, but I like that it is written by Amory B. Lovins. Yeah Amory, you be lovin'.

Don't You Know by Jan Hammer Group

Slow jam.

All the bitch that's fit to print

This Saturday.

Debra

If you know Sarah Russell, ask for a live performance (preferably over some Zankou Chicken).

You blew that one, too

NYMag has a brief interview with Bill Maher. I like it almost as much as the look on Zach Galifianakis' face in that picture.

Ode to stranger with bike pump

Your fixie is pink and green
Your English is poor
But we speak the universal language: bike pump
You thought only my back tire needed air
You were wrong
Why were you taking tire tubes out of the dumpster?
I will never know
Regardless, I thank you.

School on Wheels

The LAT has a piece on School on Wheels, an organization I used to volunteer for. My students only showed up for their tutoring sessions about 50% of the time; maybe I would have been better off donating money.

Please watch this

everybody dance!

Carrot salad and chard and white bean soup

I added pasta and some extra vegetables to this soup, and was very pleased. It is like a minestrone, was tasty, healthy, and should freeze well for future consumption.

I was less thrilled with this carrot salad. My personal preference is on the savory side of the spectrum, and this salad was nice, but too sweet for me. Others might enjoy it. Next time, I will use this recipe (note: buy harissa).

Macarons at home?

I wonder if I could do this recipe justice. I might have to take a stab and see what happens, using memories of Pierre Herme as inspiration.

Lasagna on NYE

I rang in the last full night of 2010 with three types of lasagna (all from Epicurious):

• Sausage, Cheese, and Basil
• Mushroom and zucchini (no red sauce)
• Red pepper and spinach (subbed spinach for the broccoli in recipe)

The mushroom lasagna created the most crowd reaction. It is hard to find vegetarian recipes that satisfy meat-eaters, so I was impressed with the results, despite the fact that the recipe is pretty time consuming and led to a mini-breakdown on my part. I avoided a problem I experienced with my previous white lasagna endeavor (too dry) by leaving the cooked noodles in water until arranging the lasagna. The bechamel is also tremendously buttery, which helped keep it moist as well.

The other lasagnas were tasty and pretty easy. I would make all of them again, probably saving the mushroom recipe for special occasions or days when I have a lot of free time and don't mind pulsing two pounds of white mushrooms in a food processor.

Explorer: Science of Cats

This National Geographic series is compelling for the title alone. They blew it in the photo section; most of the pictures are of hairless cats. Next time, they should use Lewis Catberger as their catmodel. See headshot below. Kthxbai.

Where to?

New year, new thoughts about how climate change will irrevocable change my way of life, especially considering that I live in Southern California, "the first dying canary in the coalmine" due to increasing drought conditions.

So ... France? Vancouver? I bet Detroit will be ready for a renaissance in a few decades.