monday night was a night of toasting. a toast to the future! a toast to my recently-pregnant (!!!!!) sister and brother-in-law! a toast to my last night in LA!

with so many things to celebrate, brandon and i agreed that the most honorable/awesome thing to do would be to drink the brew that my brother-in-law jason MADE at his home in portland. talk about specialty! so we made some sandwiches, cracked open the one-of-a-kind bottle, and kicked back on the porch with robbie and the neighbors.

jason's home made beer

"the pour"

Cheers!

It was smooth and light. a very tasty brew! many exciting flavors! sweets and spices. “Hops,” explains Brandon. We clinked our glasses and agreed that it was very good but it could be stronger (perhaps we are biased? or spoiled).

robbie loves it

we love it

i call it "jj's candlelight portland red"

he makes them both!

MOVING DAY #1:
82 degrees and humid.
as though it was some kind of a preview of the weather in new york, LA was hot and uncharacteristically humid today, covered by a thin layer of ash that had floated down from the hills and coated everything like snow. it was perfect for packing, lifting heavy boxes, dismantling furniture, and driving off across the state! fortunately, i got to enjoy each of those activities today. after loading up my stuff, i left for parents’ place in northern california. the drive from los angeles to sacramento is about 7 hours, which isn’t so bad when you arrive at your destination in the middle of the night and your parents are waiting up for you with snacks :)
morgan and i both fly from our respective hometowns to new york on thursday! just 2 days left.

24 hours ago, this was my room.

*leaving smoky LA air behind.

"lodi" - ccr or "jessica" - allman brothers band

the view from my parents' home. seriously.

we found a place on tuesday. after a few bad leads and a close call with a craisgslist scam (“just kindly deposit the money and get back to with the receipt and your friend’s phone number…” yikes! don’t deal with anyone called veronique on craigslist!) we found a big room in southwest williamsburg.

we picked williamsburg on recommendation from a few friends. the music! the bars! the restaurants! the hipsters! they said we’d really like it. said we should try these:

1. bowery ballroom
2. the HIGHLINE
3. Mast Brothers Chocolate
4. MOMA fridays
5. the cloisters
6. momofuko
7. roebling tea room
8. national underground music bar
9. shake shack
10. burp castle.
11. zabar’s
12. turkey’s nest
13. cannoli at ferrera’s
14. union hall
15. knitting factory
16. market hotel
17. club exit
18. le passion rouge
19. cake shop
20. silent barn
21. town hall
22. pianos
23. pete’s candy shop
24. CMJ!!

tell me bout being on a mission.