Recent Adventures

Well, avid readers, family, friends, it's been a while!

What has happened since our car fiasco?

We've gone on some adventures, which I have explained and posted pictures of below, just after the update on our car.

We have decided to keep Gemma. She caused us some major problems, yes. And twice we attempted to purchase a different car, but both times drove away in our little green one. And we've come to accept it. We got brakes and rotors replaced, a new clutch, and a new throttle body. Gemma drives much better now (though I'm still having some trust issues). But the fact of the matter is, she's a car with just over 32,000 miles on it at this point, and while it may have some issues in the next few years that could  come up sooner than a different make, this car will get us through those years just fine. Unsuccessfully buying a different car, twice, helped us come to that realization. So for now, Gemma is still our car. And instead of trading it in for another car in its (cheap) class now, in 6 or 7 years (once we've paid off all our student loans and have established some savings) we have our sights set on trading up.

Plus, also, Gemma is like our child, since we don't have a kid, and we don't have a dog or cat or bird or fish to fill the void. Gemma is ours. And so the thought of trading her in so soon was a tad bittersweet, and now we'll keep her around for a while and that's a happy thought.

See, look at all these pictures of Gemma and how happy we are with her:

Here is Gemma in Sequoia National Forest.

Here is Gemma and a redwood.

Here we are while Gemma hangs out under a fallen tree.

We do love our car. We really do.

And now, for some recent adventures:

We went on a hike at Griffith Park, which is one of my most favorite places here in LA.

Here is the observatory from our vantage point up on a hill.

Here we are on our hike with the Hollywood sign just beyond.

We also went camping the first weekend of November with some great friends. We drove 2.5 hours east to Joshua Tree National Park. It is a desert. But we had a really neat campground. Jeremy took some pictures after climbing up some tall rock formations:

You can see where we parked to the right of the center of this picture. We cooked over a fire just to the left of that, and farther down in the shade just under center you can make out the tents were we slept.

Making camp.

This desert, like any good desert, had an oasis. Palm trees in the middle of nowhere and a small pond of water.

Also, we went to Disneyland this past Saturday, thanks to a birthday present for Jer from his parents that benefited BOTH of us, and we had such a wonderful time!

Enjoying our overpriced Dolewhip.

Storm Troopers in real life, aka all of Jeremy's dreams coming true.

Partaking in the mad tea party.

Now we're getting ready for the crazy party that will be happening in our one bedroom house from November 22nd-29th: seven of the Witzers will be in town. Watch out- they just might take over LA!

Hollywood Bowl

On August 25th we got to explore a little bit more of this city we live in, and attend a show at the Hollywood Bowl. Thanks to my darling sister and brother-in-law, we had tickets to see Goat Rodeo Sessions. After spending the afternoon at The Grove, we headed into Hollywood for a night of entertainment.

The Hollywood Bowl is the largest outdoor natural amphitheater in the United States. Jeremy has been once before, and this was the first time I've gone. The Bowl is home to the Los Angeles Philharmonic over the summer, and tickets for their shows are very reasonably priced, so we've talked about going this summer but never followed through. Leave it to my sister to give us an opportunity we weren't giving ourselves!

I was immediately pleased with the location upon first walking to our seats. The amphitheater is surrounded by the Hollywood Hills on all sides, and while it sits just beyond Highland Avenue, the noises of the city don't exist too prevalently at The Bowl. There is a view of the Hollywood sign just over the top right of the stage; there's a good view of it depending on where you sit. I'd imagine you could even come across some wildlife if there weren't 18,000 people there.

The Hollywood Bowl stage

Close-up to see the sign.

And yes, 18,000 people! The maximum occupancy at The Bowl is close to 18,000, and Goat Rodeo Sessions played a sold-out show. Thankfully, I didn't feel like I was surrounded by that many people while we were being entertained by the music.

Goat Rodeo Sessions is a primarily instrumental band comprised of four members who are the best of the best at what they do, including Chris Thile (of Nickel Creek fame) and Yo-Yo Ma (no explanation needed there?) There was, if I may, a ridiculous amount of talent sitting on stage that night.

The term "goat rodeo," as described by one of the band members that night, refers to many different pieces entwining together, and every part has to be just perfect in order for it to be right. If one part is off, nothing works. As the band blends bluegrass and classical music together, their title naturally makes good sense.

Stuart Duncan is a Nashville-based bluegrass musician who primarily plays fiddle for Goat Rodeo Sessions, and has played for more recognizable musicians that you can count on both hands. Edgar Meyer is a bass player of many genres due an equal amount of talent credit, and Aoife O'Donovan is a surprisingly American girl, with the voice of an angel. I literally have no other words to describe her vocal talents. I typically don't enjoy female vocalists, and I could listen to her for the rest of my days.

It was one of those evenings that reminded me that I should be practicing violin again. And maybe learn how to sing, because Aoife was amazing.

We were treated to a plethora of songs from their 2011 album (the only of their recorded collaborations), and a few extras- a classical piece originally written for flute (if I remember correctly), and others.

One of my favorite parts of this set up was that we got to see Yo-Yo Ma in a relaxed environment. He was up there with the other guys, talking to the crowd and showing his personality. I don't imagine that he interacts with audiences during his black tie classical performances. Classical musicians remain much an enigma, in a way, since there's no audience interaction. It was nice to have that stripped away in this environment.

We should have taken this from the opposite direction with the stage behind us.

All-in-all, it was quite the memorable night. It is always wonderful to see talented people do what they love, and it is especially affecting to me when the talents are musicians. I definitely look forward to finding another opportunity to be at The Hollywood Bowl, and I absolutely would seek out another time to see Goat Rodeo Sessions play together live again!

The National at Hollywood Forever Cemetery

August 11th is a special day, as it is Jeremy's Mom's birthday, and the birthday of one of our good friends. This date also falls part-way between my birthday and Jer's birthday, and this year on August 11th there was a band in town that we knew we wouldn't want to miss. So, back in April we bought tickets to see The National at Hollywood Forever Cemetery on August 11th, for a celebration of our birthdays. We were absolutely not disappointed.

Quite the interesting location for a venue, Hollywood Forever Cemetery is used often for shows, outdoor movies, and large parties, while also being exactly what it says it is- a cemetery. There is a stage set up at the front of a large lawn surrounded by tombstones, small mausoleums, and the very large walk-in Cathedral Mausoleum. We brought our outdoor blanket, a bottle of wine and some dinner, and made ourselves a picnic spot among the masses, not too far from the stage, nor too far from those six feet under.

Picnicking before the show.

The supposed 8:00 show started earlier than on time- opener Daughter started playing at 7:15, and The National started their set with I Should Live in Salt at 8:25! That is definitely my kind of show. (My mantra "early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable" isn't typically part of the music industry.) They played a wide selection of 25 songs from a span of multiple albums, and thanks to Jeremy's influence and very long commutes to and from work together, I was familiar with every single song they played!

While I was enjoying keeping warm with a blanket over my lap at our picnicking spot, I wasn't able to see the stage from that position, as many people ("many" may be an understatement, it was a sold out show) stood up to be closer to the stage while The National played. I stood up to enjoy watching them play a few of my favorites- one of the highlights of the night (also happens to be one of their few happier songs) was "I Need My Girl." I will leave you with a stripped-down version of this beautiful song.