Summer Escape: Venice Canals

 I've lived in LA for over 20 years now and just last year I discovered the (apparently famous) Venice Canals. Million dollar homes surrounded by water and nestled in a nook in Venice gives it the perfect blend of LA beach city vibes with a cozier and secluded environment. My best friend introduced me to this spot and it was love at first sight- the quaint homes, the ducks, the canoes! Oh to live there! I looked up rent for one of the houses and it's... you ready?.... $50,000 a month! What I liked is it's not a very popular tourist spot despite it's fame-heck, it was featured in Hollywood's love letter to LA-Valentine's Day.

 If you're ever in the area, I highly recommend it. It's a beautiful sight and a great spot for a brisk walk and you can always drive over to the beach or 3rd Street Promenade to experience the night life full of street acts and good food!

What are some spots you've visited that aren't very well known? Any other spots in LA or anywhere else you recommend?

reality v. wishful thinking

In the morning, I like to think I look respectable enough to be seen in public:

not that I think I look like her but I feel nicely put together 

what I feel I look like when I get to work

 

 

 

 

Ideal Habits:

workout via pinterest

 

 

getting work done!

REALITY:

naps! via Pinterest

 

 

 

pizza is my weakness! via Pinterest

work! via funny blog

 And that is why I can't update my blog consistently. 

grad school fifteen

 Forget freshmen fifteen, I'm dealing with compulsive eating courtesy of grad school . Whenever I feel a wave of the usual omigod-I-will-never-finish-this-project stress coming, I either sleep, eat or play with my dogs. They may not be the worst kinds of indulgences necessarily but boy do I indulge more than I should. Before I know it, I've lost an hour (maybe two ok three!) doing anything but what I should be doing.

This makes me wonder if everyone has these tendencies or are there people who handle stress well and turn it into productivity... I, for one, am pushing myself to continue my workout regimen despite how tired I am.

Of course I'm taking baby steps because I enjoyed three pieces of caremel filled chocolates after dance class. Yikes!

my work and my indulgence

What do you do when you're stressed? Of all the things I mentioned, naps work the best for me still.

Experimenting in the Kitchen

 Oh the adventures that come with being hungry! It's amazing what you can come up with when hunger strikes which is exactly what happened to me recently. Armed with baguette bread, chicken strips, veggies and cheese I came up with the chicken sandwich pictured. I was trying to be healthy so instead of just heating up the chicken strips and making some mashed potatoes (my go-to dish when I'm hungry and short on time), I opted to make this instead. I sauteed onions and red bell peppers in olive oil and added powdered garlic, creole seasoning, black pepper and paprika to my chicken strips. I toasted the bread and topped everything off with fresh spinach and a little bit of mozzarella cheese cause I love me some cheese! I have to say, for something I never made before it was really delicious.

Yum-o as Rachel Ray would say...

Have any of your kitchen experiments turned into staple dishes? I was proud of myself and no longer starving so it was definitely a win-win situation ;)

Also, this dish was made by my dad in his own kitchen experiment with kale. Now, I had never had kale before and I admit it doesn't look too appetizing but he boiled it and added garlic and lemon and it's now one of my favorite healthy dishes- SO GOOD. Note the presence yet again of the chicken strips and this time we used basmati rice but I'm sure any rice with lemon and garlic will taste just as good.

Chicken with kale and rice

Happy Kitchen Adventures!

white envy

I am loving Marilyn Monroe's bathing suit in this shot and I'm also amazed at how difficult it is to find a tasteful, white one piece nowadays.

Anyone on Pinterest has seen this shot plenty of times ;)

Are the days of sexy yet classy bathing suits gone? I've searched major department stores and everything I come across (online) is a bikini with an occasional tankini. Not to say that a bikini can't be sexy/classy but it would be nice to have more options. I did find a few including one inspired by this very suit but most were not my style. Do a google search using "white one piece swim suit" and tell me if you feel the same.

La Blanca from Nordstrom's

 

from Monroe suit from Sears

Kardashian Kollection