Still Life no. 1

what I ate & a week in my life: end of May

SUNDAY

I had the day off work. I’m a barista, so I usually work on Sundays, but I took the day off to go to the last of a four-part gardening class I’ve been taking with a friend/coworker. Our last class was scorching hot and too sunny, so I left early. Today’s weather, on the other hand, was perfect: high 60s and a little overcast. The class was fine. Afterwards, I went home to get Fuzz, our friend’s dog that we’re watching for the weekend.

Fuzz and I walked to meet Moss at work, but they still had an hour left of their shift, so I sat at a shaded table in the courtyard. I forgot to bring a book and my phone was dead, so I sat in silence and people watched.

When Moss got off, we went to Laveta to pick up drinks— a matcha for me (iced, whole milk, lightly sweetened + cold foam) and a laveta for moss (iced, oat milk, maple syrup + cold foam). We took our drinks to the park at the top of the hill that overlooks downtown LA. I got a sunburn on my forehead and nose, and we took cute photos of Fuzz. We wrote down a short grocery list and then headed to the store.

On the way, we turned off of Sunset, and passed Quarter Sheets. For once, there was no line. We impulsively parked the car and decided to pop in; we were seated immediately. It was 3pm— happy hour, basically— so we each ordered a Modelo. We ordered four slices to share: red top (mozz, red sauce, grana, basil), pepperoni, vodka pesto (vodka sauce, mozzarella, pistachio pesto & pecorino), and a Sicilian slice (rotating item, and I forgot to write down the ingredients, but it had mozz, jalapeños, spicy sausage). Surprisingly, the pepperoni was my favorite. We ordered a slice of princess cake to take home. On the walk back to the car, a mere half a block away from the restaurant, I dropped the cake box on the floor. I stood in horror as the $14 slice flew onto the ground. A woman who was outside her house witnessed the incident and told me to go back and get another, so I did. We ate the slice, which was sweet, moist, and enrobed in an even layer of marzipan, at home later that night.

left: sicilian slice, middle: vodka pesto, red top, pepperoni, right: princess cake

MONDAY

I’m on the couch drinking a grapefruit hard kombucha and the AMA’s are on the TV (note from the future: they were a waste of time). Moss is in the kitchen making dinner; we’re having spicy vodka rigatoni with sausage. Normally, I have Mondays off, but I switched shifts with a coworker, so I went in today. It was Memorial Day, and we were slammed. I had a financier for breakfast and a cappuccino with a little chocolate on my ten minute break. I brought a chicken wrap (with goat cheese, za'atar, and herbs) and cherries for lunch— pretty good. Came home tired, but not too bad, since I didn’t work yesterday and I have the next two days off.

TUESDAY

I woke up early-ish to head across town to Santa Monica for a medical appointment. I had to have some bloodwork done, so I rewarded myself with a post-appointment brunch at Layla Bagels. [Quick question— why is all street parking in Santa Monica permitted?! I used to have a friend who lived in Ocean Park, and I could never find parking when I went to her place. Same problem now— seemingly all parking surrounding Ocean Park Ave is permitted. Anyway…] I took a chance and parked in a permitted spot (oops), ran to get my bagels, and successfully came back to no ticket. I got two orders of the Scarlett (heirloom tomato, lemon zest, chili flakes, cream cheese)— one on a sesame bagel to take home to Moss, and one on an everything bagel with scallion cream cheese for myself. I also grabbed a few single bagels to take home and freeze.

I'm not a selfie girl...

After lunch, I popped in to Crap Eyewear and treated myself to a new pair of sunglasses as a belated birthday present. I had been eyeing a pair online for weeks, and their Memorial Day sale was still going on. Feeling like a million bucks with my new sunnies on, I headed out for one last stop at my favorite wine shop in LA, Vin on Rose. I was searching for the Goodboy Chardogay pét-nat, but they were all sold out, so I opted for a bottle of the new mini Jumbo Time, which the salesman described as juicy and bright; exactly what I want in a summer bev. They were also stocked up on the spicy Bjorn corn, which Moss loves, so I bought a few bags to surprise them.

I drove back home at 1:30. Horrendous traffic, as expected— about an hour-long drive. My phone died while I was on the freeway, so I was stuck with the radio all the way home. When I was back in my neighborhood, I went to an early evening yoga class. It was hard! I came home and made a spring veggie pasta for dinner (with goat cheese, lemon, peas, asparagus) that was truthfully not very good. My very long Tuesday ended with a lavender rose Honey Mama’s bar and some cherries for dessert.

WEDNESDAY

I had the day off again. I slept in, had coffee on the couch, did some chores, and talked myself out of going to a spin class. Picked up the miso chicken bowl from Honey Hi for lunch. Moved to the bed where I cuddled my cat and wrote in my journal for the first time this year. When Moss came home from work we made dinner together (corn salad and steak) and ate it while playing a game of scrabble.

THURSDAY

Back to work. Someone made BLTs on focaccia with a side of potato salad for family meal, and I ate it on my lunch break. Our strawberry latte is back on the menu, so we sampled that and strawberry milk. The strawberry latte was on the menu when I started working at the bakery last year, and I’m happy it’s back. It also signifies that my 1-year is coming up— time flies when you’re making lattes for the good people of Los Angeles.

FRIDAY

Today was the longest day I’ve ever lived. That’s not at all true, but it was a long day. I got to work a 7— opening shift. Two of my coworkers called out sick, something is going around. Fridays are always busy, but today was exceptionally so. Moss came to visit me on my break. I had chia pudding that Moss prepped the night before; added peanut butter, granola, and fruit. Came home and ate a buckwheat chocolate chip cookie on the couch, and now I’m writing this from bed. Moss and I were going to pick up dinner from a Lebanese place we like, but decided to save money and make dinner at home instead. We still had ingredients for wraps, anyway— pita, yoghurt, chicken, arugula, herbs, za’atar, etc. etc.

Also, big day for the most annoying girl you know (me): Taylor Swift owns her masters again. Going to listen to her entire discography all weekend.

SATURDAY

I had a late start at work today, so I got to sleep in. The rest was much needed and work was busy. I took Moss’ car this morning, so I picked them up in the afternoon. My favorite scone is back in season at the bakery they work at (yes, we both work at bakeries), a seasonal scone with coconut and blackberries. I sat on the porch outside and snacked on it while Moss finished up work. We came home and relaxed while we waited for the Dodger’s game to start, not because we were watching it, but because traffic in our neighborhood is terrible during a game. Once it started, we went out for errands— we’re watching our friends’ cats, so we went over to feed them, and then to the store to pick up some things for our dinner. Moss made us hot dogs and French fries tonight (on-theme for the baseball game, I guess).

I also have to add that our cat has been having issues with her chin (aka cat acne) so we bought a neck brace to stop her from scratching herself. How cute (and grumpy) does she look!!!

SUNDAY, again

Happy pride everyone!!! Moss and I both worked in the morning, and then immediately came home for a power nap before heading out for the night. We had hot dogs for dinner again. I didn’t take a picture of this one, but I should have, because it was divine and loaded. Moss spiraled the dogs, and instead of the usual fixings, dressed mine with cheese, soyrizo, relish and onions. We called an uber to West Hollywood, and grabbed a drink for the ride (a hard kombucha for me, a can of agua fresca with vodka for Moss).

I love my partner and our gay life

Our friend’s wife worked on the Outloud Music Festival, so we were able to get a couple tickets for free. I have to preface that I’m not really a West Hollywood girl anymore; I went through the trenches of the Abbey and Flaming Saddles in my early twenties, and I simply don’t have the energy for that scene anymore. However, an exception was made! We had a few Topo Chico seltzers and danced our little gay asses off to Sasha Colby, Shygirl, Rebecca Black and Paris Hilton before throwing in the towel and heading home for the night. Dehydrated, tired, and hungry, Moss and I did something neither of us has done in years— ordered McDonald’s. We kept it simple; a cheeseburger for Moss, and a 3-piece chicken tender order for me. It was just as disappointing as we expected it to be, but it sobered us right up. I don’t think I’ll be back to WeHo or McDonald’s anytime soon.