Stan’s Obligatory Blog

Route slip

The Sunday ride for this week was my route up to the Hollywood sign, coming back by way of Toluca Lake and La Cañada. The time change had some of us a little sleepy starting out, but it turned into a perfect spring day.

We rode out through Eagle Rock and down to the L.A. river, crossing over into Silver Lake. Then we went across the Shakespeare Bridge and down Franklin Ave. At Beachwood, we turned right up the hill and headed for the sign. Just after the Hollywoodland gate, we turned left, and that was where the real climbing began. The road up the hill there is very steep and rough. At the top, we went right on Mulholland to get to the dead end right below the sign. There are large signs telling us that hiking up to the sign is prohibited. But there is an obviously well-worn trail that begins right behind those signs. We stopped to take in the view and take some pictures. Then we headed back down Mulholland, down to the Lake Hollywood reservoir. From there, there was another steep climb up and over the hill to get to Barham Blvd. Then down into Burbank, and our snack stop at Priscilla’s.

Coming home, we rode straight across Glendale and then up Verdugo to Hospital Hill. Then down the other side through La Cañada and back into Pasadena. Finally, we took Mendocino back across Altadena and then back to the park. The actual route was about 44 miles, and I rode out to Sierra Madre and back again, just to enjoy the sunshine some more.

50 miles.
cycling

Today’s bike ride was the regular Toluca Lake route. Straight out across Eagle Rock and Glendale to a snack stop at Priscilla’s in Toluca Lake. Then home by way of Griffith Park and Atwater Village. It was a nice day for riding.

The ride out was pretty uneventful. We saw one abandoned couch in Eagle Rock, pushed up against the retaining wall for the 134 freeway. We stopped for snacks at Priscilla’s. Then we started back. The route back went past the Hollywood Hills Forest Lawn, so a few of us stopped off to do some celebrity grave sightseeing. The main attraction this time was Andy Gibb, who, sadly was not “Stayin’ Alive“. We also saw Jack Webb, Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, Freddie Prinze, Walter Lantz, and Forrest Tucker. Pictures are in the Graves Gallery.

On the way back through Highland Park, we saw Chicken Boy. Then we crossed into South Pasadena, where Doug got a flat.

When we got back to the park, I had 46 miles, so I rode out to Sierra Madre and back, just to get to a nice, round 50. It was a fun ride.

50 miles.
cycling

She’s nine now. The party was Saturday. Pictures are in her photo album:

http://www.1134.org/lucinda/photos

Enter the ICHC online Poker Cats Contest!

The hummingbird is still nesting. I haven’t seen the baby hummingbirds sitting up yet, but that should be coming in the next few days. The mother is still sitting on the nest most of the time, and just flying off to feed for a few minutes at a time.

And I’m still nesting. Lamb loin chops with fennel-rosemary-thyme spice rub grilled over an oak wood fire, mashed potatoes garnished with chives from my little spice garden, and broccoli cooked Italian-style with olive oil and garlic. It was pretty good. And I have enough left over for three lunches this week.

So the little hummingbird and I are buddies. We’re both getting by on our own.

Today’s ride was a Carpenters theme route. We rode to Downey to see the “Close to You” and “Only Just Begun” apartments, and also to see their old house, which was pictured on the cover of their 1973 album, “Now and Then“.

We rode straight south down through San Gabriel and then on Rosemead Blvd down to Downey. We stopped off at the oldest operating McDonald’s at the corner of Lakewood and Florence. Then we rode over to see the two apartment buildings that Karen and Richard Carpenter bought and named for their first two hit songs. Then we rode back across Downey to see their old house on a cul-de-sac right near the 5 freeway. There was an article about the house in the L.A. Times a couple of weeks ago, since the owner is trying to get a permit to tear it down and build a new McMansion on the lot. Apparently, there’s a lot of that going on in that area.

On the way home, we tried to stop off to see Dennis the Menace Park in Downey, but the entrance was not on Lakewood Blvd, and it was not obvious from peering through the fence how to get to the entrance. So that photo-op will have to wait for another day.

When we got back to Rosemead, we saw the ‘Welcome to Rosemead’ sign, with the slogan, “Where city pride is justified.” And, I guess, “if it doesn’t fit, you must acquit.”

By the time we got back to the park, it was a very nice day. So I rode a bit more, just to enjoy the sunshine.

46 miles.
cycling

Today’s ride was the Crown City Trainer, which is another way of saying that it’s a ride that doesn’t really go anywhere in particular, but it does go up and down some hills.

It was cold, overcast, and misting a little this morning. But I still wanted to go riding. We met at the park down the street from my house, so that was easy. And the ride itself was very pleasant. I took them on a short detour to see the weird house I discovered. But aside from that, it was a pretty unremarkable ride.

At the end, it was getting colder, so we all just headed for home.

31 miles.
cycling

Here’s an update on the hummingbird nest in our back yard.

The hummingbird’s eggs have hatched. Lucinda and I took a quick peek inside the nest when she left to go feed. And there they are. They must have just hatched. This should be interesting to watch. And I hope they won’t be too bothered by having a bunch of kids in the yard tomorrow for Lucinda’s birthday party.

Tonight I went to see “Varla Jean Merman Loves a Foreign Tongue” at Ultra Suede in West Hollywood. I went with my friend Nick, who is also a big fan of Ms Merman.

We got there early, so we got to sit in front. We shared a table with the one non-gay couple there. I’d met them at Varla’s show last year.

The show was very funny, and overall it was tremendously entertaining. And afterward, Varla held court in the back of the room, selling DVDs of her third video collection, signing autographs, and posing for pictures. Nick and I both remembered to bring our cameras this time, so we got our souvenir pictures with La Merm.

It was a fun evening.

I found a hummingbird nest in the back yard. So now I have company in my nesting behavior.

Edit: I added another picture when I got home from work. As usual, my camera rocks.

Cooking is still one of my most favorite ways to express creativity and reduce stress. So I’ve been trying a lot of new recipes lately. Tonight I made Thai-Style Chili Beef.

It was quite good. Very tasty. The recipe used Thai basil instead of the cilantro-mint mix that Cooks used. Since I had cilantro and mint, but no basil, I went that route. I used jalapeño peppers, which I was hoping would give it a good kick. As it turned out, they were quite mild. Next time, I’ll try serranos.

Still, it was very good. Lucinda and I liked it a lot.