Tis the Season
For taking time off! And we here at kuaptic are no slouches when it comes to taking time off. We'll be back on January third, off our holiday schedule, and with loads of new and exciting stuff! See you then!
One last Christmas Treat
Around Christmas time, everyone is coming together, sharing food, laughter and neuroses. What more perfect refreshment is there than a little hot chocolate? Warm and delicious, with a full, dusky flavor like melted chocolate bars. And here's Aunty kuaptic with the perfect recipe!
1 Microwave1 Mug1 Spoon2 Teaspoons of Unsweetened Cocoa
Half an Inch of Tapwater
2 Teaspoon of Sugar1 Packet of Sweetner
Milk (We like 2%.)
Take the mug and combine the cocoa, the sugar and the tapwater. Microwave for 1-1.5 minutes. Add milk and sweetner. Stir. Nuke for another 2 minutes or until hot. Enjoy! (But be careful of the dregs, they can be pretty strong.) Also, for you calorie counters, just use nonfat milk and additional packet of sweetner instead of sugar and you're in business!
Crepe e Vino
Somtimes kuaptic ventures pretty far afield from our comfy westside digs. This weekend found us in Old Town, Pasadena, crowded, festive and chock full of good restaurants. Saturday night was unexpectedly crowded at the newly opened Crepe Vine, a little European place, warmly decorated in rust tones and old tin ceiling tiles, with a splendid bar and a bright, large chandelier. There are a few outdoor seats, but when we were there, most of the indoor seating was taken up by two huge parties sitting in booths along the wall.
It's hard to say that the staff was unattentive. They were very affable but hard to get sometimes. We had a reservation and still had to wait a good forty-five minutes, another twenty for the appetizers we ordered at the bar to show up at the table. Dinner did not come out all at once, with approximately fifteen minutes between the first couple of dishes coming out and the last couple. When we asked if the wait for a dessert of chocolate fondue would be prohibitve, the waiter answered us with a movement of his eyes. We laughed and got the bill.
For all the waiting, the food was excellent. We started with delicious cheese fondue and wonderfully crunchy garlic fries and a bonus of giant prawns. There was a green and lovely salad with bits of Greek olives and tomatoes. Then came the crepes. They were a wonderland of cheese and fresh ingredients -- chicken, sausage, someone had the Stroganoff and liked it very well. All in all, it was a fabulous, winter meal, full of cheese and savory flavors. The wait was well managed by large glasses of wine and the trickling out of food. Though it was crazy, no one minded -- the staff made light of it and the food was great. They comped half our bill. The Crepe Vine is definitely worth another visit, though perhaps in a couple of months when the kitchen is a little more sorted out.
The Crepe Vine Bistro and Wine Bar, 36 West Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena, CA
Every day is Christmas
A little photo has been making the rounds on the LA blog circuit, and we couldn't be left out of the party. Don't think you know what to get us now. We're holding out for one with a full sized reindeer!
Woe to the Couch
Here's a fellow begging a minivan to make off with him. Note his closeness to it, his open stance. He's obviously trying to woo it, and he must have some experience at such a venture. But the minivan is wise to his game -- knowing that once given a ride, the couch will be gone forever.
Hey! That's Not Santa!
Walking along our street one day, we came across some guy trying to scramble up an air conditioner onto the roof of an apartment building. So like any concientious Los Angeleno, we took a picture. It's not a great picture. In fact, it could be Nessy trying to climb up on that roof (hey, imaginary dinosaurs who live in lakes have needs too!) You'll just have to take our word for it.
Crushed on Creches
You know creches, right? They're those representations of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, along with various angels, kings and animals. Often they are small, meant to be included modestly among the loud christmas decorations. But sometimes they get center stage -- all lit up in the middle of someone's lawn. All the better for young children and *ahem* older "young" people to sit among.
City of Lights
In trying to keep the coal out of our stockings, we thought we would try for a more good spirited holiday activity most. And what could be more fun than Christmas lights. We love to celebrate the darkest time of year with spangles, sparkles and glittering lights. Sure, you see them around everywhere, but maybe you need even more. So if you're jonsing for a more overwhelming experience than driving down your street, try one of these.Candy Cane Lane
It began in 1952, with a neighborhood putting it's best foot forward in the spirit of the season and has morphed into a snow edged, kid boggling extranvaganza. Not so Christmas-y though are the consumer minded elves selling cocoa and pics with Santa.
Lubao Avenue and Oxnard Street, Woodland Hills, CA
Christmas Tree Lane
Deep in Altadena, is a street lined with imported Italian Deodar Cedars. For the past 50 years, the city has lit them for the holidays.
Santa Rosa Avenue and Altadena Drive, Altadena, CA
Griffith Park Light Festival
DWP workers adorn part of Griffith park with this kitschy celebration of both Los Angeles and the festive season. It gets crowded, so watch out!
Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, CA
I wandered Lonely as a chair...
Bad things always seem to come in pairs. Indeed, this is the second half of last week's ugly couch. They're both too ugly to want to be seen with each other so they were found at opposite sides of the street. the chair appears to be cannier about its condition, however -- it's facing the ground, ashamed to look anyone in the eye.
whoops!
Imagine our surprise when we found this in our garage! We expect this guy's gonna be around for awhile -- he's not going anywhere.We also thought it would be nice to provide a new clue for our stalkers (our records indicate that 3 out of the five people who read our little blog are stalkers. That's five TOTAL by the way). Enjoy!
It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
Yeah, we know. It's been a slow week at kuaptic. A deadly combination of post-Thanksgiving, pre-Christmas malaise (read: busy-ness) has swamped us. We've also been working on a special treat for you kuaptic-ites. But it's been taking a bit longer than we'd like -- a lot of research and even some on-site work. So bear with us. It gets better.
In the meantime, we thought we'd throw up some ideas for those of you who are looking hard for some Christmas spirit. If you don't want to spend the cash to drop in at Disneyland (where you get Mickey in a Santa outfit and some bubbles that you have to work pretty hard to believe is snow -- not really worth it for the $50/person. Don't get us wrong, we like Disneyland, but if you're looking for a little Xmas-y feeling at little effort and expense, it's not ideal.)
Christmas at the Grove -- come experience lights and "soft jazz" (a notion which makes us shiver -- and not with cold) at everyone's favorite old-time LA landmark-turned-super-mall. Sounds kinda nice, but you have to deal with the shopping crowd. Still, we like the Farmer's Market, even in this incarnation, so we have to recommend.
The Grove, 189 The Grove Drive, Los Angeles, CA
Downtown on Ice (11/30 - 1/12) -- Enjoy skating and crazy bums along with a lovely view of skyscapers in downtown's Pershing Square. The modernization of the square is sad with its eighties lumpy concrete architecture, which looks like it was designed by a dyslexic, colorblind 5 year old whose I.Q. defines his future career high as supermarket bag boy. However, we are fascinated by the rejuvenation of downtown -- a place with so much architectural beauty and history, still a little scary, but with a feeling of "up-and-coming-ness".
Pershing Square, 532 South Olive Avenue, Los Angeles, CA
Glory of Christmas at the Crystal Cathedral (12/2- 12/11) -- We don't think this is actually very cheap, but the Crystal Cathedral seems to be a center of crazy religiousity, which has to lead to much unintentional mirth. Plus, last year during the pagent somebody was murdered.
Crystal Cathedral, 12141 Lewis Street, Garden Grove, CA
LA Master Chorale: Messiah Sing-A-Long (12/19) -- You know what two words sound funny together? Messiah Sing-A-Long! We're not sure this is so cheap either, but it sounds like fun, and it's at the Disney Concert Hall, which we love.
Disney Concert Hall, 111 South Grand, Los Angeles, CA
All right. There are some caveats. But what do you expect from a cheeky little blog like this?
Somtimes kuaptic ventures pretty far afield from our comfy westside digs. This weekend found us in Old Town, Pasadena, crowded, festive and chock full of good restaurants. Saturday night was unexpectedly crowded at the newly opened Crepe Vine, a little European place, warmly decorated in rust tones and old tin ceiling tiles, with a splendid bar and a bright, large chandelier. There are a few outdoor seats, but when we were there, most of the indoor seating was taken up by two huge parties sitting in booths along the wall. 
A little photo has been making the rounds on the LA blog circuit, and we couldn't be left out of the party. Don't think you know what to get us now. We're holding out for one with a full sized reindeer!
Here's a fellow begging a minivan to make off with him. Note his closeness to it, his open stance. He's obviously trying to woo it, and he must have some experience at such a venture. But the minivan is wise to his game -- knowing that once given a ride, the couch will be gone forever.
Walking along our street one day, we came across some guy trying to scramble up an air conditioner onto the roof of an apartment building. So like any concientious Los Angeleno, we took a picture. It's not a great picture. In fact, it could be Nessy trying to climb up on that roof (hey, imaginary dinosaurs who live in lakes have needs too!) You'll just have to take our word for it.
You know creches, right? They're those representations of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, along with various angels, kings and animals. Often they are small, meant to be included modestly among the loud christmas decorations. But sometimes they get center stage -- all lit up in the middle of someone's lawn. All the better for young children and *ahem* older "young" people to sit among.
In trying to keep the coal out of our stockings, we thought we would try for a more good spirited holiday activity most. And what could be more fun than Christmas lights. We love to celebrate the darkest time of year with spangles, sparkles and glittering lights. Sure, you see them around everywhere, but maybe you need even more. So if you're jonsing for a more overwhelming experience than driving down your street, try one of these.
Bad things always seem to come in pairs. Indeed, this is the second half of last week's ugly couch. They're both too ugly to want to be seen with each other so they were found at opposite sides of the street. the chair appears to be cannier about its condition, however -- it's facing the ground, ashamed to look anyone in the eye.
Imagine our surprise when we found this in our garage! We expect this guy's gonna be around for awhile -- he's not going anywhere.
Yeah, we know. It's been a slow week at kuaptic. A deadly combination of post-Thanksgiving, pre-Christmas malaise (read: busy-ness) has swamped us. We've also been working on a special treat for you kuaptic-ites. But it's been taking a bit longer than we'd like -- a lot of research and even some on-site work. So bear with us. It gets better. 