Day One: We Achieve California
So, bear in mind that we had a 6 a.m. flight on Sunday. I spent Saturday night at Roberta’s and I believe I set my alarm for 3:15. That’s not waking up in the morning, people. That’s night. We arrived at our gate at exactly the moment they began boarding, so whoosh, soon we were in the air.
At which point, Roberta realized she’d left her laptop in a security bin in LaGuardia. She was able to reach LaGuardia while we were on layover in Atlanta, and then we were merrily on our way again.
When we arrived in LA and I turned on my phone, there was already voicemail from Joe Bua, saying where he was waiting, and I cannot tell you what a relief that was!
Big hugs all around! Joe is very tall, and very warm, and drives kind of like a crazy person, but we survived. First stop, the Biltmore Hotel, to check in and drop off our bags. (There will be a separate post on the hotel, never fear.)
Now remember, it’s Sunday, August 16, and we have to watch the season premiere! In fact, we’re planning a little party in our room: Ourselves, Joe, Basketwriter hullaballoo, and my friend Seamus plus his father. Funny thing, though, on checking in, we discover the hotel doesn’t have AMC. Well, crap. (Okay, kids, there were a lot of factors I had to figure out in order to choose a hotel, and calling them all and asking what TV stations they got didn’t come to the top of the list). Now, I had brought my screener (pre-broadcast DVD) in case this happened, but we didn’t have a laptop to play it on! (See chapter one.) So we figure we can ask hullaballoo to bring her laptop, and then Joe gets the idea to buy a cheap DVD player and hook it up to the hotel TV.
So, we drove around some, in the general direction of Best Buy (for the DVD player), with Joe pointing out some sites, and then we grabbed a late lunch, early dinner at a place called Barbarella. This was actually extremely complicated, because Joe was like, I know, let’s eat here, and then that place wasn’t there. Wait, what? I know I haven’t been there in a year, but really? Okay, let’s eat here. Wait, what? Closed Sundays? And this went on a bit, so we walked into Barbarella practically at random, and it was awesome. All three meals were great, the atmosphere was fantastic, & the wait staff was adorable. I wanted to get a camera and become a filmmaker just so I could use the place as a location. Joe insisted on treating, which was so sweet. Thanks, Joe!
Next stop, Trader Joe’s, for yummy snacks for our little television-watching soiree. (Pralines! Nonpareils! Weird cheese! Bad bruschetta!) Seamus has promised to bring liquor.
Next, Best Buy. Joe buys the DVD player because the packaging makes it too bulky for us to fly it home. Then back to the hotel, where we take much-needed naps in anticipation of our evening.
We do not sleep well. Or long. As soon as we wake up, the phone rings. No Seamus; family thing came up. So uh-oh, no liquor. But we rally, getting pretty, straightening up, using the ironing board as a buffet table to lay out the food. Then hullaballoo arrives! More hugs! Yay! And Joe arrives and starts trying to hook up the DVD player.
Fail.
Dunno why, just fail. When people say “coaxial cable” my brain goes into shutdown mode, so I have no idea what went wrong. I have found in life that those fuckers never hook up easily. Fortunately, we’d already reached hullaballoo on the phone, so our backup plan kicked into place and we watched Out of Town on her laptop.
It is now, I dunno, almost 10 California time, which is 1 am our time, which means we’ve been up about 22 hours, and Roberta starts nodding off amidst guests, nonpareils, and Mad Men. Our guests politely say nothing. This becomes a theme of our trip; one or both of us is in some stage of sleep deprivation the entire time.
Anyway, awesome viewing experience despite the small screen, and then more hugs all around as Joe left. And then, since there had been no liquor, the three ladies of the Basket went to the hotel bar, where hullaballoo and I had some very fine mojitos and Roberta had…something else. Hull had us laughing so hard in the bar that tears were rolling down my face. That girl is funny.
But all good things must come to an end, and Day One had to end in order to lead us into a most magical Day Two.
23 Responses to “Deborah & Roberta's Excellent Adventure”
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So glad you had fun! I've always thought the point of obstacles is to laugh at them later.
We used to live in L.A.; we're in NorCal now. Sonoma County to be exact. But you hit on one of two reasons why I would never move out of Calif–Trader Joes and In-n-Out burgers!
Wait for the Tuesday report for the In-n-Out burgers.
We have Trader Joe's in New Jersey nowadays.
I was so tired. I think it was a martini special. I thought I'd find it here, but no. But something along those lines.
The awesomest thing about hullaballoo's hilarity was her accurate description of what goes on between Deb and me on and over this very blog. She totally got us, and there was some pantomiming to enhance her impressions. Nice.
In-N-Out, that's what a hamburger's all about. But you really should have gone to Tommy's.
When I lived in NY, one of the things I really missed was a good burger. You'd think with all those great chefs they would know how. The other irony is in a town where everyone cares way too much about their weight, they have the best junk food.
Can't wait to hear more!
Love the Biltmore! Good choice (despite the whole cable thing).
Can't wait to hear more about the trip.
Wonderful! Thanks!
You hit on the best things about SoCal:
1. Driving around
2. Restaurant changes
3. Best Buy
4. In-N-Out
5. Trader Joe's
We have Trader Joe's in Seattle too, I love it!!! We are, however, sadly lacking a Biltmore and an In-N-Out Burger. I can't wait for the next chapter in your adventures.
The employees at Trader Joes near me are rude…I just go to Wegmans now.
Weggg Mannnss
(sung as if from the voices of a choir of angels)
We don't have local Wegmans. LOVE me some Wegmans.
JS, well that's a first. Trader Joes employees have always been more than friendly to me, wherever I encounter them.
For us East Coasters, a good burger can be had at Five Guys! It is very similar to In-N-Out, even the colors of the restaurant (red and white) strike a resemblance. But I used to live in Las Vegas and In-N-Out was the bomb!
I do like Five Guys–but I liked In-N-Out just a little bit better.
We have Trader Joe's in Virginia too.
In-N-Out is so fresh. It's like you made it yourself. And their french fries are simply potatoes fried in oil and some salt. No freezers in their shop.
This trip already sounds great — cannot wait to hear the rest.
I am in North Jersey too and have a good friend in Bridgewater, I can't resist a Wegman's stop on the way in to see her! We NEED that up here . . . .
I'm so surprised Bergen County hasn't sported one. Or Morris County.
Like Dance, I too grew up in SoCal and escaped North as soon as I could.
The best thing (on bad days, I'll say the only good thing) about my teen years was the appearance of an In-N-Out Burger around the corner the summer I turned 15. That was literally the year that changed my life.
Now, when my siblings "go back to Cali", the In-N-Out pilgrimage is the first one they make. It tastes so good.
Thanks for the story, Deb. Loving the sleep dep …
Ahhh, you guys just made me hungry for In-N-Out. And having just moved to LA three days ago (college! whoo?), with access to a car, I just may go out for some tonight.
The trip sounds great so far. Can't wait to here about magical day two!!
And speaking of coaxial cables, seriously, wtf? Apparently we have cable access, but I need one of those thingys. And to hook it up somehow. And I need one by 10 PM tomorrow…
Congratulations on your move, Luisa!
Welcome to LA Luisa!
Remember, Mad Men is on at 7pm on AMC out here.
And for burgers, either In-N-Out (cheap but awesome) The Apple Pan (classic since 1947 awesome) or Fathers Office (just awesome) are the best. LA does burgers/fast food right.
I live in Essex Cty NJ and frequently drive out to Bridgewater to shop at Wegmans because the markets around here, as Bart Simpson would say, both suck and blow. We do have Five Guys (Millburn Mall), which is pretty damn good.
Luisa – try radio shack or Best Buy. They can talk you through it. Wish I could help, but I know nothing about how any of my electronic thingys work.
You have till 7 pm, 8pm encore tonight – but they repeat during the week.