It's a good coffee day

It's a fabulous Monday morning for me here in LA. My sweet boyfriend, CE, was on the east coast for business on Saturday and brought me home 2 pounds of my favorite Dunkin Donuts coffee plus a DD commuter mug! It was too late for me to brew a pot after our swing dancing adventure last night but I flew out of bed at 6:15 this morning for this yummy coffee. I wonder if NY'ers realize how lucky they are to have DD? I never (well hardly ever) eat donuts at home but in NY I make Dunkin Donuts my first stop in the morning. My last two trips I've been on the west side - no DD's near me there but a 'Bread Factory' with fabulous chocolate croissants - so sometimes I'll walk over to the upper east side to go to a favorite DD. There is an old cat that sleeps in the window of a laundry place around the corner from this DD and I swear it remembers me each time.

Dancing at the Derby

Last night CE and I went to the Derby in Hollywood for their Sunday night lesson/dance party! We've got a wedding coming up in a couple of weeks and then the cruise at the end of May so I thought we should brush up on our dancing - and what a great time we had! We had considered taking lessons at a regular 'Arthur Murray' type place but I'm so glad that we tried the Derby first. We learned so much in 2 hours! They teach East Coast Swing but on the last Sunday of the month you spend the first hour learning something else; last night was Latin! I feel so much more confident now and we're going to try to make it back there a time or two before our trip. The $10 cover charge is a great deal. There is a safe parking lot behind the club which only charges $5 for parking. I always think about the parking situation before venturing out to Hollywood at night. The other dancers were friendly and helpful and there were singles as well as couples. I would feel completely comfortable going there alone; there were no 'creepy singles bar' types at all. What a fun night.

Today I wish I were....

Some mornings I wake up thinking about how I would spend my day if I were in another city. Not too knock LA but a piece of my heart will always be in San Francisco. My beloved Auntie Ethel passed away a few years ago at the age of 96 after living at 150 Haight Street for most of her, and all of my, life. When she became unable to live alone we moved her to a nursing home outside of the city but we couldn't tell her that she wasn't in 'her' city. She loved that city and her life there. I'm not sure that LA is a city that you can LOVE. I having loving feelings toward NYC but haven't lived there so I'm undecided on that one. I would like to find out, though. East Coast winters may be a bit tough on this California native. But for today I am wishing I were in my city by the bay enjoying an irish coffee at The Buena Vista.

Off to Arizona!

This weekend will find me in Arizona for some family time. My father lives in a tiny western town that has one stoplight and two police cars. There is a tiny theater which shows one movie for 2 weeks at a time. I think the ticket price is $4 and a large popcorn (with a refill) is $1.50. Visiting there is like stepping back in time. We love it for a day or two and then can't wait to get back home! I have been a little bit of a recluse this week, just staying in and spring cleaning and fretting over my hair and what to wear on the cruise next month. Did you hear about the cruise ship that hit the rocks in Greece? Well, it's not the same cruise line as the one I'll be on but that IS one of our stops. Speaking of recluses - I'm going to see 'The Hoax' tonight. Has anyone seen it yet? I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend! Please continue to write in and share your own bon vivant tales with me.

Oh My Hair

I am having a hair crisis and need some input from my readers. I went to see Lynette 2 weeks ago for a trim. I love Lynette and have followed her to 3 different salons and now she opened her own small salon in Studio City so I was especially excited to see her new place and try a new style. Remember, I have had the same long, straight hair with bangs for so many years and then last November Lynette gave me an angled chin-length bob and I loved it and felt so grown-up and sexy and vixenish (word?). I got so many compliments on the new 'do. OK, so 2 weeks ago I went to Lynette's new place and told her I wanted it a little shorter and 'choppy' all around the ends - softer, not so a-line-ish. Well, I don't like it now. It looked good the first two days and I'm not sure whether to go back and have it fixed or just wait until the first week of May and just get a new cut then. I need it to look FABULOUS for this wedding on May 12Th and decent again for the cruise at the end of May. I am trying very hard to be clear with myself on what I don't like about it. That's the hard part. I saw a woman last Tuesday night at a discussion group and she had the hair cut I want. Just like mine in the front but short, short, short in the back and it was adorable. So, am I dissatisfied because I want her hair now or am I truly unhappy with my cut? I think I look like my hair needs a trim now. I guess it's that choppy thing that makes it look that way. Not one person has complimented me on this cut. Last time I got 'Oh, I love your hair' now I have heard from several neighbors and friends the exact same thing 'Oh, you cut your hair again'. So, here is my dilemma: Do I go back and ask her to re-cut it to look like that woman from last week or do I let it go another 4 weeks? Advice, please! I will look for pictures of how mine looks and how I think I want it to look and post them here as soon as possible...

Time for a Catch-Up!

Hellooooo out there! I am so grateful for my faithful readers. I am thrilled by the comments posted by Susan Silver! I am such a fan of her column and spent a couple of hours this past weekend reading catching up on some early postings on NYSD. I know she has been on the hunt for Mr. Adequate for quite some time now and then realizes that maybe she hasn't had her whole heart into the search. I think it was after one of her Aspen weekends when she recounted how she made a decision to leave a panel to go visit with a married man whom she had no real interest in and left a nice young man who had real relationship potential just hanging in the wings. All of this made me think. I had dated for a few years after my husband passed away and the men were definitely fun but definitely not 'husband material'. Then, 2 years ago, when I felt like I was ready for a relationship and truly clarified to myself what I wanted in a mate, POOF! An incredible man who had been a friend for a couple of years suddenly was single and we had a lunch together and something just 'clicked'. Now, after 2 years of dating, I think we are going to take the next step and become engaged. We tried on that ring at Tiffany last summer and he has been asking a few questions about it over the past few weeks so I think I may get a proposal soon. I will keep you posted!
Last week was full of fun for me here in LA. I ended up wearing exactly what I promised myself not to wear again: black sweater and jeans. I tried to accessorize well but I am back to my same old uniform. Once the weather warms up I will feel comfortable in my lighter colors but for now I just can't seem to get away from black. I have to start thinking about that evening wedding in May! I refuse to wear black to that. OK, I'm off for now and promise to write in more detail all the fun things from last week and what is ahead for me this week. Also, CE invited me to go on a Mediterranean cruise this summer - perhaps that's when the proposal will take place?

I Just Didn't Like The Pretzel Croissant

After all the buzz about this thing I drove to the Brentwood Country Mart to go to City Bakery and really didn't like it all that much. I had read about this in Rita Konig's 'girl about town' blog on www.dominomag.com and being a big fan of pretzels and croissants I could hardly wait to try this. I didn't love it. I thought I would so maybe the buildup was too great. It was still buttery like a good croissant but didn't have enough pretzel taste for me. I took about 2 bites of it. I did buy an oatmeal raisin cookie that was quite tasty but overall I was unimpressed with the City Bakery and the pretzel croissant. I am still missing all things NY and this made me miss the chocolate-filled croissant from the Bread Factory near 55Th and 8Th.

Wardrobe Crisis!

Well, here I am again completely depressed about what to wear! I know there are many other important issues going on in the world today but in my world this is major. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO WEAR. I like my dressy clothes. I love my pajamas and thanks to a nice Victoria's Secret gift card I received this past holiday I really like my undies. I have shoes galore and even more handbags. I am somewhat happy with my hair now. Remember it's been longish for years and years and then I started to feel like I was getting a little long in the tooth for that length (but it still works for Suzanne Somers) so last November I let my beloved hairdresser, Lynette, do whatever she wanted and I ended up with a fabulous A-line bob which worked perfectly with my naturally straight fine blonde hair. So, I've had 2 bang-trims since then and now I am looking a little shaggy and ready for a new cut. I feel much more grown-up with shorter hair and sexier and not like an older woman trying to look 20-something. I see so much of that here in LA. I have a very favorite sitcom line from 'Maude': "I am many things, Walter Findlay, but I am NOT a woman of my age". I just love that one. So, I'm going in for a cut this week. Lynette just opened her own salon which is exciting news for her. I have followed her to three different salons. OK, back to the clothes... I just don't know what to wear for daytime casual. I am sick of jeans. I have one decent pair of white denim pants that I have had for years that I love and just pulled out of the closet. I am sick of the whole LA yoga-casual look. I feel better when I wear black but am truly sick and tired of all the blondes in black here. I just don't know what to wear. I would be happier back in a city. I feel like going back to bed this morning and reading fashion magazines to find inspiration. My one great idea is to look through some magazines and find a good look for myself and then to go out and try to re-create the entire outfit. I know it doesn't sound very creative but I am desperate. I have an event to go to Wednesday night at the Montmartre Lounge in Hollywood and I imagine it will be very casual but I still need to look stylish for it. I think I need to find a fashionable friend to help with things like this. Any ideas?

Give me a ring, darling!

I am in love with this ring. I am more in love with my fabulous boyfriend, CE, but this ring is really something. Last summer we stopped by Tiffany in NYC (actually at CE's urging) and it was just so beautiful in it's simplicity and very exciting for me to be trying on engagement rings. I called my mother up in the Bay Area from the Ladies Room just to share the excitement with her. For those who don't know my 'back story' there is a long, interesting one which led me to this point of considering being engaged and marrying again. I promise to share it with you soon but for now just behold this beautiful ring!

For the Love of Susan Silver

How many other Susan Silver fans are there out there? I am a devout reader of the New York Social Diary and have followed Susan's column "The Search for Mr. Adequate" since Day One. Over the past 2 years I have followed her dating life on a weekly basis so you can imagine how sad I was to learn that she will no longer be writing her weekly column. The NYSD has changed it's format beginning this week and Susan will now be a 'guest' writer. I will miss her so much. She has promised to revive her blog www.mradequate.blogspot.com so that gives me something to look forward to. If you are not familiar with Susan or her fabulous 'Search for Mr. Adequate' I believe you can still pull up her archives on www.newyorksocialdiary.com under the 'guest' heading. I guess all good things must come to an end but hopefully this will just be a new beginning for Susan and her Faithful Readers!

Pretzels

My mouth is watering at the sight of these pretzels. I think I could live on these things. Last year I swore off movie theater popcorn after a bad episode with stale popcorn at my local AMC and made the switch to pretzels and have never looked back. As most foods do, these taste better in NY. On my last trip I saw a police car against the curb at 8Th and 55Th with the officer holding the mustard bottle up in the air, steering wheel height, squirting the mustard down onto the pretzel which must have been on his lap. It was a perfect NY sight.

Spring and Leprechauns and Cheap Wine

Good morning my loyal readers! So sorry for the long absence. Your Bon Vivant has been remiss in filling you in on her daily doings and is terribly, terribly sorry! The weather here in LA has been beautiful and now with the time change this past weekend it feels like spring already. Friday night was a fun fix-up double date - I didn't predict it would be a great match but knew that the two would enjoy each others' company and they did and it was good. My dear boyfriend, CE, has a large social circle including many single Jewish friends so I was looking forward to setting up this friend of mine who is lovely and looking to start dating and socializing more. We met over at the Skylight Theater on Vermont Ave. It's been a few years since I visited that part of town but must go there again. So, we met in front of the theater and walked over to an Italian restaurant (I'm blanking on the name...maybe Palermo?) and shared a big pizza and the two didn't talk much but it was fun and lighthearted and a little noisy. After our meal we still had about 30 minutes until our show so we crossed the street to "House of Pies" and shared a big slice of chocolate cream pie with extra whipped cream. Very fun and reminded me of a high school date with 4 people sharing one slice of pie. After our pie we walked over to the theater and found our seats for the 'Brother Theodore' tribute. I was not at all familiar with Brother Theodore but our two NY guys knew the original BT from his 20-year run in NYC and frequent David Letterman guest spots. This was a tribute to the performer who was obsessed with dying but lived and performed until age 90. After the show there was a reception and feeling a little chill I decided to try a white wine and had one of those moments where I was thinking something (This must have been bought at the 99cents store) and I actually said it. Only a few people heard but it sounded very rude and I immediately apologized and looked at the bottle and it was a Charles Shaw which retails for $1.99 so my 'wine nose' was off by a dollar. Still, I felt bad for saying it out loud. I am not a wine snob in any sense of the word but this wine really did have a dusty-musty taste to it. Our evening ended with hugs and a 'This was fun lets all do it again' from CE's friend so we'll see what happens there...
Yesterday was spent at home decorating for St. Patty's day and Spring! I love the way my home looks now and I am motivated to start my spring cleaning now. Last night I moved all of the living room and dining room furniture and this morning will clean clean clean 'til this place shines like the top of the Chrysler Building! Speaking of which, I may have the opportunity to travel back to my beloved NYC for Memorial Day weekend. Ahhh, I can taste the coffee now. Dunkin' Donuts here I come.

Cronkite and Cooper!

Monday night was chilly and clear up at Universal Citywalk and I had the great fortune of being able to see two of my all-time favorite newsmen in person. The University of Judaism department of continuing education hosted this event at Universal's Gibson Amphitheater. CE and I were running late and starving so we found a crepe restaurant at Citywalk and made a dinner out of french fries with fabulous dipping sauces (I had the pesto-mayo) as we rushed over to the theater. What a night! I love Anderson Cooper and believe that he is one of the greatest reporters of our generation, he has a vulnerability rarely seen nowadays in reporters covering hard news. After a brief introduction, Walter Cronkite entered to a standing ovation from a nearly full house. At 90 years old, Mr. Cronkite was full of life and entertaining stories. Our seats were close but I kept looking at the monitors and then reminding myself to watch the stage instead - I have seen Walter Cronkite on a monitor my entire life and this was a chance to watch him in person. Such a treat for this Bon Vivant!

The Other Awards

In honor of tonight's awards show I'd like to report on a fabulously entertaining event I attended Friday night. "The 2nd Annual 67th Annual Fake Awards" were held at the Fake Gallery on Melrose www.fakedotcom.com and I still cannot believe how funny this was. Movies which I had forgotten about from 2006 were nominated and rather than showing clips from them the talented Fake Gallery performers re-enacted key scenes from: Snakes on a Plane, Pirates of the Caribbean (including an appearance by Cap'n Crunch) plus several academy-nominated films. The performance was complete with live music, a charming tuxedoed emcee, a live commercial and a Lifetime Achievement Award winner who made his way to the podium with a walker wearing half a suit and a diaper. I was tickled with my goodie bag (certainly not as fancy as the the ones that will be given out tonight) and also to see how many attendees dressed up in old Hollywood glamour for this hilarious event. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a 3rd annual awards ceremony next year and if the level of Friday night's talent is any indicator I'll definitely visit the Fake Gallery for other productions.

Searching for a signature piece

I keep trying to find a 'signature' style piece for myself! All truly stylish people have one. I read that Jackie O kept a basket full of her signature sunglasses on a table near her front door. I think about Truman Capote with his glasses. I'm just not a glasses person so that shouldn't be my signature piece. I've considered wearing combinations of black and white all the time but I wold miss color too much. Besides, I'm trying very hard to stop wearing black to social events in LA - I am sick to death of seeing a sea of highlighted blondes in black. In a dark room it looks like a bunch of floating heads. I've tried wearing red all the time but it really washes out my pale complexion. I've considered making a certain pin my signature piece but I know I'd get tired of that and people would wonder what was wrong with me for always wearing it. I don't want to be recognized for always carrying a big purse or wearing a certain color. There was one woman all over the society pages a couple of years ago, Rachel Feinstein (I think) who always wore a big cocktail ring and showed it off in every picture. I just don't think that's my style, either. I'll keep you posted on my search for a signature style piece. Please share any suggestions!

Missing NYC coffee

I just found a ceramic version of this classic New York coffee cup http://areyoubeingserved.com and I'm tickled! My first cup of coffee on my very first trip to NYC was in one of these cups so it holds sentimental value for me. I couldn't believe how good it tasted or how cheap it was. I found that everything tastes better in New York. It must be something in the water. I have found some tasty pizza here in LA at a place called "Lamonica's New York Pizza" they fly in NYC water to make their dough.

The High Style of Dorothy Draper

This fabulous book was written in 1941 by high society interior decorator Dorothy Draper. I fell in love with her 'devil may care' approach to decorating and her urging of 50's housewives to "go ahead - paint that door green!" Dorothy exemplified the Bon Vivant spirit. My wonderful boyfriend, C.E., and I were in NYC last summer and visited The Museum of the City of New York for an exhibit showcasing Ms. Draper's style - such inspiration! My first Draper inspiration is to think about my front door and what it says to the world. I just bought a luxurious, oversized welcome mat and now must find 2 grand matching pots in which to plant some friendly-looking plants!