Hike #1: Debs Park

Last week, I went to Debs Park in Highland Park for the first of my 60 hikes. After parking at the Audubon Center and deciding on my route, I ascended up the hill on the City View Trail (obviously named for its views of Downtown L.A.):

...which eventually led to a nice little pond at the top:


I wandered around a bit (I can't resist taking pictures of dappled light):

...before finally descending and checking out the LEED Platinum-rated Audubon Center (which my company worked on):

Overall, it was a good hike with several decent climbs to work out your calves. To reward myself afterward, I hung out in South Pasadena, eating a fantastic caprese sandwich at the Heirloom Bakery (see my tweets) and trying out the cupcakes at My Sweet Cupcake. Then, I went to the Pasadena Museum of California Art:

I've been wanting to go here for awhile, and though it is a small museum space, it does have its own charm. My favorite exhibit was of 3D images of Mars, courtesy of JPL and Caltech. After putting on the requisite specs, the Martian topography really popped out with the perspectives changing as I walked along the large prints.

Anyway, from one type of landscape to another, it was quite a full day!

How I'm Going to Spend This Weekend (and at least 60 others)

60 Hikes within 60 Miles: Los Angeles (on Google)
Eat: Los Angeles (the Web site and blog)

Hiking endlessly beautiful trails (burning calories painlessly) + Eating amazingly good food (gaining calories happily) = Perfect Weekend Equilibrium

Photo Excursion: Descanso Gardens

Yesterday, I finally made the drive up to La Canada to visit Descanso Gardens. Since I'd never been, I took the tram tour (which I recommend for a good overview), and afterwards, I walked around and took some pictures, mainly of flowers:
Cherry blossoms:Mini Daffodils (I love yellow flowers!):Lilac from the Lilac Garden:

The gardens are known mainly for their camellias, which are everywhere:

Probably my favorite part of the grounds, though, were the green grassy knolls punctuated by the wild, beautiful coast live oaks (very popular for film/photo shoots):

This is the kind of landscape I love. I got a taste of it while I was up in San Luis Obispo this past week, and now I'm planning an extended trip to the central coast for more.

Picture of the Day: Eye to the Telescope

Griffith Park Observatory (taken with iPhone camera):

Also a good metaphor for what I've been searching for lately.

Perfect late Saturday afternoon lunch

Chicken gyro, dolmades and a Snapple Lemon Iced Tea at Papa Cristo's... the meal also came with live Greek music!

(Mobile blog post)

How I should always do my homework

Listening to live jazz on a Sunday afternoon at Larchmont Village. (Of course, I requested Night and Day)

(Mobile blog post)

Resolved, Year Two

My resolutions for 2009:

Resolved, that I will get enough sleep.
7-8 hours minimum per night, hopefully.

Resolved, that I will get to work on time.
Basically, anytime before 9 a.m.

Resolved, that I will not wait until the last minute to do my work and homework assignments.
While I have a sneaking suspicion that this will be a perennial resolution, I have hope that at the very least, I will get better and not procrastinate so much.

Resolved, that I cultivate a more active social life with an emphasis on my friends and family.
No doubt about it... It makes me happy to go out and do things. And I'm even happier when that includes the people I love. So, definitely more concerts, museums, galleries, restaurants, events, etc. in '09.

Resolved, that I will dance more.
Whether it means I get back into the swing scene a little, reacquaint myself with tango or just take more dance classes, this is a must. Two years away from something I love doing is ridiculous.

Resolved, that I will travel more this year.
I think this is the year of smaller domestic trips (especially now that I have the perfect car for roadtrips.) On my radar: SF (for the Cathedral of Christ the Light and the Academy of Sciences), Utah (for my sister), NYC (for friends and food), Minneapolis (architecture) and Atlanta (to swim with sharks). If I have any money left after paying off my debt and going to school, there is the possibility of Japan, but we'll see.

Resolved, that I will read more books.
In the past couple of years, I've definitely lagged on my book reading due to my crazy schedule. At the very least, I want to shoehorn in all of the books on my shelf that I haven't read yet. And that includes "The House of Leaves" and all of the other books that I think are going to scare the hell out of me.

Resolved, that I will make both my home and work offices more inviting.
For my home workspace, I need better organization and less clutter. For my office, I need color, better lighting and something fun on the walls. It's so drab right now.

Resolved, that I will eliminate my credit card debt.
I'm pretty determined about this one and if all goes according to plan, I should accomplish this within the the first half of the year.

Resolved, that I will contribute to my Roth this year.
This is the first year that I think my Roth is a better bet than the 401K that my work offers.

Resolved, that I will drink more water.
I'm borrowing this one from TB.