Home for the Holidays! Part 2.

As stated in my previous blog, I love going back to Wisconsin and it's mostly because I get to spend some quality time with my family and I get a break from LA's craziness.  Here are a few more of my favorite things from my time home for my Christmas vacation!

At Antonio's in Plymouth with Neil!

When I'm at home I usually try to go out at least one night to catch up with friends from Plymouth and one of them is my friend, Brittany, whom I've known since Kindergarten.  So this trip was no different as Neil and I met up with her and her boyfriend, Josh, at Antonio's and had a wild night there!  It was complete with shots, Gin & Sprites, 'Catchphrase' while at the bar, and blowing fire!  We literally had a group of 10 people playing Catchphrase while we were out and it was a blast.  I even taught one of the Bartender's at Antonio's how to blow fire, and we even got a video of us blowing fire together and she learned it on her first try!  Go Gena!!  Before the night was over we wanted a change of pace and City Club (which used to be where my Dad would pick up Dinner on Friday's during Lent for the Fish Fry) was our next destination.  What a change from when I used to go with my Dad to get Dinner!  It was a lot of young people, playing bar games, taking shots, and the lay-out was totally different.  It was kind of nice to have somewhere else fun to go to!

Christmas also means a wonderful family meal and this year we had family over on Christmas Eve Day and had an awesome meal of turkey and ham, mashed potatoes, dressing, sweet potatoes, fresh rolls, corn, and some sort of pistachio and whipped cream salad that has always scared me but was delicious along with appetizers that included Cheese Fondue and Shrimp Cocktail and also had an awesome dessert of Chocolate Lava Cake, made by my Mom, which was INCREDIBLE!  I can't wait to try the recipe here in LA using my Crock Pot.  And of course, no Christmas would be complete without Old Fashions and Cocktail Hour!  It's been a tradition in my family to take Christmas Pictures for the Christmas Card that goes out the following year and the paparazzi was in full effect!  We had Grayson and Greta, the little ones playing and doing my tradition of taking pictures with the Maker's Mark and Malibu bottles, and then everyone's family photo time.

Wegner Family Christmas Photo

Lastly, aside from opening presents and being excited about what I got my family, this year I had picked out a ring for my Mom from a Boutique on LA called Brandy Melville and another ring similar to hers so my Mom and I would have matching rings which I thought was a fun idea.  I had also gotten my brother a super cool Nirvana T-Shirt that was worn-in from H&M and although my Dad was more difficult this year, he was very happy to use his Barnes & Noble Gift Card to pick out a great book.  Of course, there was plenty more but I really enjoy seeing my family's faces when they see the gift I got them that took some planning or that I figured out would be something they would really get use out of.  After Christmas my Mom and I usually grab Lunch at Victoria's, which is an Italian Restaurant in Green Bay, hit up the mall to return or exchange things that don't fit, and our new thing is going to the Casino.  Unfortunately, I lost but had a couple really good rounds on some games but didn't come out ahead and Mom broke even so I'm sure she was happy about that!

Those are a few of my favorite things when I go back to Wisconsin for the Holiday's and the time always goes way too fast, even though this time I was home for a week.  We always have so much planned that it seems like I'm only home for a couple of days but that just gets me excited for my next trip home :)  Merry Christmas & Happy New Year Everyone!

Home for the Holidays!

One of my favorite things about the Holiday Season is going back to Wisconsin for Christmas and spending a week with my family!  I always take a nice long break from Los Angeles to relax, enjoy the time with family and friends, and get back to a normal and real environment!   Spending time in Wisconsin is not complete without a few things and I'll be telling you about some of my favorite things to do when I go back to Wisconsin for an extended vacation.  

First off, my flight back to LA was showing signs of complications as a Blizzard Warning was present days in advance and as my flight got closer I noticed more and more flights being canceled.  I called Southwest to make sure my flight was going to take off and someone at the Customer Service Center told me because my flight was coming from the West Coast we had a good chance of making it to Milwaukee without any pitfalls.  I arrived at the airport with plenty of time and sat at my gate for almost 2 hours to hear just before we boarded, we might be re-routed somewhere but nothing was certain at this point.  The flight went well and I only noticed the weather and slight turbulence as we got closer to Wisconsin and a half hour before we were going to land in Milwaukee.  The snow was flying by my window, I couldn't see the ground, and I started to pray and grip my seat as we were getting within landing distance at the airport.  I feared that the plane wouldn't be able to stop because of the snow and ice and we would crash into the terminal and the Mayan prediction would come true one day early.  Thankfully, the plane landed in one of the most peaceful landings I've ever had as the Flight Attendant said over the loud speaker, 'Thank you, Jesus.'  The Pilot wasn't the only person I thanked during my trip back to Wisconsin, I had to thank my Dad for his incredible driving skills during the drive from Milwaukee into Plymouth.  I don't know how he maintained 55-60 mph during this blizzard but he did and not once did the car slide or get out of control like so many others did as we saw cars in ditches and swerving in front of us.  Thank you Dad!!

Winter Wonderland in our Backyard in Wisconsin

My Dad definitely likes when I come home because that means we're going out for Steak Dinner at least once and St. Anne is our go-to spot close to home.  It was my Uncle Ollie's Birthday so my parents and I, along with Ollie, Aunt Mary, and their son, Tyler, all had Dinner at St. Anne.  Unfortunately, it wasn't the best steak (even though it's been on my Top 5 for years) so it was a little disappointing but not as disappointing as my Mom's gamey Tilapia.  Typical Wisconsin fish that tastes like lake water and why I never ordered fish at a restaurant for a long time!  We all had a great night and enjoyed cocktails, Birthday cake, and interesting conversations :)

Another favorite thing of being home for the Holidays means that my whole family gets together to play games.  While my Mom, Dad, and brother, Bobby and I played 'The Prisoners of Eskiban' which is actually The Settlers of Catan (I prefer to call it the "Harry Potter" movie name, that I'm not even sure if it's the real title or not) on Christmas Day, it was fun nerding out to a new game!  Neil had bought my parents Beatles Trivial Pursuit so we also played that in teams considering Bobby and Dad would have an extreme advantage, and I surprisingly knew some questions and got some wedges on my own.  YAY!  Then we played a Trivial Pursuit Game I had gotten from Santa which involved everyone betting on whether you would get the answer correct or not, and had more recent trivia and random categories like 'Beer,' 'Barnyard Animals' and '80's Sitcoms.'  While we're with my extended family we tend to play more card games like Spades or Bavarian Rummy so we did that on the last night I was home and enjoyed Old Fashions and Fat Squirrel Beer.  No one makes an Old Fashion like my Uncle Ollie!  We also like to play big group games like Catch Phrase and this year our new game was 5 Second Rule where you had 5 seconds to list 3 things in the category given to you.  Tricky tricky.  We are definitely a Board Game kind of family!

Settlers of Catan on Christmas Morning with Cheli

There's more photos, stories and fun to be told, so part two about my Christmas Vacation in Wisconsin will be coming at you soon...these are a few of my favorite things!  Happy Holidays Everyone :)

Christmas Karaoke!

I hope everyone had a great Holiday and got to spend time with their family, friends, and people they love the most to enjoy a beautiful Christmas Season!  I hosted Karaoke a week and a half ago at Gabe's and am finally able to write my blog about it tonight.  When I'm home in Wisconsin, especially for the Holiday's there's so much planned and we have dial-up Internet which is like waiting for an Easy Bake Oven to make Brownies using the power of a light bulb so it's actually a vacation when I go home with work being put on the back burner.  At the same time, it's also kind of nice and allows me to focus on the important things during this special time.

Christmas Karaoke took place on December 19th (just one day before I boarded my flight to Wisconsin and just barely made it in, but that's another blog) and we had a very busy night!  I opened the night with 'We Belong' by Pat Benatar while Art sang Michael Buble's version of 'The Christmas Song' and Lee and Marcus sang 'Jingle Bell Rock' doing a fun little duet.  On top of getting into the Christmas spirit we were celebrating Amy's Birthday and Judy had baked cupcakes so we all sang to Amy and continued with some more Christmas music.  Jamie and Spark arrived along with Sean and Spark opened his night with 'The Joker' by the Steve Miller Band while Jamie sang 'My Life Would Suck Without You.'  Everyone brought their Holiday Cheer during the next round of songs which included 'Rocking Around the Christmas Tree' sang by me and a super fun song, along with 'Santa Baby' by Jamie, which was perfect for her voice, and 'White Christmas' by Spark which is one of my favorite Christmas songs and from my favorite Christmas movie.  I love Vera Ellen, her tiny waist looking incredible in costume and graceful dancing!  Sean couldn't stay long but he was able to sing 'Man or Muppet' for the first time in a long time thanks to Spark while a couple new people, Calvin and Rolanda, sang some Louis Armstrong and Journey!

My new song of the night was Whitney Houston's version of 'Do You Hear What I Hear' because as much as a power house that Whitney is, her version of that song is right in my range!  It was a fun and challenging song to sing, and I'll definitely try it again when I can practice it some more but I was happy with that being my final new song of 2012!  Judy sang some Patsy Cline for everyone while Jamie sang 'On My Own' from "Les Miserables" which I can't wait to see in the theater's now that it came out on Christmas Day!  Spark got the crowd dancing...well, at least Jamie and I, by singing 'Shout' while Marcus sang a couple more duets doing 'Ebony & Ivory' with Calvin and then 'Under Pressure' with Spark.  I hadn't sang 'Mr. Jones' by the Counting Crows in a long time so I did that and when someone sang 'Dream On' it gave me the perfect idea for my closing song, having Jamie and Spark join me in singing 'Cryin' by Aerosmith, and getting some help on those final high notes from another Karaoke patron.

Christmas Karaoke was a success with some beautiful Christmas music, plenty of dancing and lots of Holiday Cheer!  I'm looking forward to continuing my Resolution which will now be a Challenge of singing something new at every Karaoke shift I Host and I'm proud of keeping that Resolution for an awesome 2012 year of Karaoke!

'Featured Beauty' in Wheels & Heels Magazine!

I was so excited when I finally got the news that I was the 'Featured Beauty' in this month's Wheels & Heels Magazine!  I had done a test shoot with them back in September and I found out this weekend they were going to be featuring me in 3 different articles!  I feel so lucky and blessed to get this wonderful opportunity and what an awesome Christmas present!

You can see all three of the articles at: Wheels & Heels Magazine On-Line

I'm so thankful that I got to work with Py, the talented Photographer from Wheels & Heels Magazine on our shoot in Alhambra.  Not only did our photos turn out great, I had an absolute blast and we had so much fun on set!  There's a ton of photos on the Wheels & Heels Website and the articles also include an interview section.

Feature Set 1 

Feature Set 2

Feature Set 3

Those are the links to each article and I've included some of the photos below!

 

These are my first published photos and hopefully there will be more to come!  Thank you to everyone who's been supportive and encourages me along my way to success :)

What's for Dinner? Part 11.

I made this quick and easy recipe the other day when I was having a relaxing evening in before a busy work week and after my awesome weekend with the Boyce Avenue Concert and Bar Lubitsch Holiday Party!

Four Cheese Rice, Sausage, and Veggie Casserole

1 Box Four Cheese Rice

(2 1/4 Cup Water and 2 Tbsp Butter or Margarine)

1 Apple & Maple Sausage

1 Cup Veggies of your Choice (I did Corn & Carrots)

A sprinkle of Cheese

Cooking Spray

This recipe is very simple, just follow the preparation steps on the box of Rice, adding in water and margarine.  While I was waiting for my water to come to a boil I sauteed the chopped sausage in a pan that I had sprayed with some Olive Oil and as soon as that water was boiling I added the sausage in, lowered the temp on the burner and covered the dish.  I usually cook the rice for about 15 minutes and during the last 5 minutes I added in my frozen vegetables.  Once the 15 minutes were up I moved the dish from the burner, added in the special seasonings (from the Rice preparation), stirred it up and let it cool for a couple minutes.  Once it was cooled I added some Mozarella Cheese right on top of the Casserole.

It was definitely comfort food without all the fat or wasted calories which is always a plus.  The one thing I loved was that the rice took on the flavor of the sausage so it had a hint of sweetness to it, since the sausage continued to cook with the rice for 15 minutes.  It was an easy recipe and perfect for a night in while watching DVR'd TV :)

Retro, Musical, and Unique Songs for Karaoke!

Rain in LA didn't stop friends from coming out for Karaoke on Wednesday night at Gabe's!  It had been dreary for a couple of days and even now that the sun is out, it has been very cold in LA.  When it goes below 50 degrees, it's a cold day, and it actually feels blustery here...almost to the point where I want to turn the heat on!  What am I going to do when I go home to Wisconsin next week and have to deal with the snow?!?  Thank goodness I will be packing for Winter with long-sleeves, boots, and heavy jackets!

We had quite the busy night at Wednesday Karaoke as some of our regulars were singing as well as friends that came from the Valley to join in on the fun!  One of my favorite things about Gabe's is that it's always decorated no matter what the season and it was a full-on Holiday with Icicle lights, a beautiful Christmas tree, Garland, and little singing munchkins.  I got the night started with 'Redneck Woman' since she keeps her Christmas Lights up on her front porch all year long ;)  Spark and Jared showed up next, while Marty arrived before I got there and he was just itching to sing for everyone!  Art gave 'Cruisin' a new style performing with one of the regulars but brought back his awesome rendition of 'Goldfinger' before he left for the night!  Then Judy, Jamie, and Sean came and Neil showed up after his screening so we had the whole crew ready for an awesome night!  Spark's first song of the night was 'Walking in Memphis' as he wanted to warm-up his vocal cords for an excellent night of Karaoke while Marty warmed up with 'Every Rose Has Its Thorn.'  Jamie started her night with 'Stay' by Lisa Loeb which she hasn't sang in a while and Sean also did a song we haven't heard in a long time, singing 'Faithfully' while I helped him out with the final high notes!  I love that everyone was bringing back songs they used to sing and Neil followed suit by doing 'Why Georgia Why.'  It had been a while since I sang 'Oh Darling' but apparently another Karaoke singer really wanted to sing it as she stood in front of me singing louder than I was using a microphone but what are you going to do?!

Next up it was new songs for all so Jamie and Spark did a great duet of 'Suddenly Seymour' and Jamie and I did our duet of 'Take Me Or Leave Me' from "Rent," which wasn't the only "Rent" song of the night but I'll get to that later.  Marty's new song of the night was 'Tainted Love' and he gets the award for best song choices of the evening because every song he sang, he had the entire crowd singing along!  Some guys that come into Karaoke on occasion brought the Country and Rap singing Garth Brooks, 'Friends in Low Places' and Sir Mix-A-Lots 'Baby Got Back.'  Spark did another new song, singing 'With or Without You' which is one of his favorite songs while my new song of the night was Carly Rae Jepson's 'Call Me Maybe.'  It was a fun song to sing but it might be the only time I sing it unless requested even though everyone was singing along to it.  Jared who was moonlighting as Fun Size for the night, sang and also danced to 'My Girl' with the lovely Jessica and had a Photo-Worthy dip at the end of the song!  Along with our new songs, and old school songs, it was a Musical-Themed kind of night as Neil's new song was 'This is the Moment' from "Jekyll and Hyde."  It's an incredibly difficult song because of the range and the high notes but Neil did it justice singing with power as well as restraint.

As we were rounding the end of the night we all played into some of our favorites with Jamie singing 'Alone' and then closing out her set with Adele's 'Someone Like You.'  Marty once again got the crowd involved doing 'More Than Words,' and Judy sang my personal favorite song for herself, 'Walking After Midnight' and then did a duet with Foxy, singing some Sonny and Cher.  I hadn't sang 'Gravity' by Sara Bareilles in a long time so I decided Wednesday was the night and I think it was my best performance of it yet, at least according to Jamie and Neil.  As the night came to a close, Neil and I finished up with 'Another Day' from "Rent" since that Musical reminds me of Christmas and he won't be here for Christmas Karaoke next week!

We all had a great night hanging out, singing songs, having a couple shots, and enjoying the Christmas decorations!  I'm hoping we get some Holiday songs next week and I'm going to have to up my game and learn some new stuff to keep the standard favorites for new singers that night!  Next week will be the final Karaoke night of new music for a whole year and I'm hoping I'll have a new song next week and I'll have kept true to my New Year's Resolution :)

Food Babies!!

Honestly, that is the only way to describe how Jamie, Spark, Venk, and I were feeling after having Dinner at Manhattan Beach Post earlier this week!  We all left so satisfied and so full, I could barely walk to the car, and I think all of us felt like we had Food Babies for the next 24 hours because we tried over half of the menu!

When we got seated in the Dining room we started off with cocktails and each of us ordered something different, Venk got the Mezcal Tequila drink, while Spark got a Manhattan, and Jamie got a drink with Scotch and Apple in it, that was my favorite.  I ordered a Gin, Kiwi, and Elderflower drink because I'm currently on a Gin kick and that was so light and refreshing but for the rustic meal we were having I think the Scotch drink would have been more appropriate, for me anyway.  I think all of us were in agreement that it was our favorite!  We had the same waitress, Janet, from the last time Jamie and I had Brunch at Manhattan Beach Post and she's such a wonderful server, friendly, suggestive, attentive, and still gives you the space you need to finish an incredible meal :)

Dinner at Manhattan Beach Post

Then the food started and I don't think it ever ended!  I saw Cheddar Bacon Biscuits in my future and sure enough, there they were in all their glory served with that Maple Butter.  My only bit of sadness (and it was tiny) was that they weren't served hot.  We also got the Soft Pretzel that was served with a Horseradish Mustard and it was the best Soft Pretzel I have ever had and the Mustard had the perfect amount of kick and added a little flair to the delicious Pretzel!  After our Carb Course it was time for Meats, Mustards, and Cheeses.  There was this fresh Ricotta Cheese and all these Meats, Proscuitto, Salami, and three fresh Mustards: one was Stout, another was Red Wine, and the last was a Pink Peppercorn, and I really liked them with a little cheese, Meat, and bread.  Another favorite off the Charcuterie board was the Pickled Vegetables and Pickled Grapes which were an interesting and pleasant surprise!

Details of The Charcuterie...yum!

Cous Cous and Brussel Sprouts

We had planned that we would get three items in each section of the menu, so 3 appetizers, 3 vegetables, and 3 entrees.  By now, we were just getting started and then the Brussel Sprouts, Green Beans with Crispy Pork, and Cous Cous with Pomegranite were dropped at the table.  Freddy Smalls currently holds my heart with their preparation of Brussel Sprouts, fried and served with Goat Cheese and have an Apple Cider glaze.  They are the perfect savory but sweet treat!  And they are still my favorite after trying the Brussel Sprouts at MB Post but I like anything that can be made sweeter and these had a Cheese and more savory flavor than the ones at Freddy Smalls.  The Green Beans were incredible and I found myself polishing off those and the Cous Cous because I didn't want anything to go to waste!  The Cous Cous was probably my favorite of this section of the meal because it was so light; it came with Feta Cheese, Grapefruit, Yogurt, Mint, and the Pomegranite seeds and was light and tasty.  We also ordered the Shrimp Ceviche which had fresh Jalepeno and certainly had that great kick of flavor and was also served with home-made Shrimp Chips!

Pork Jowl

Fresh Shrimp Ceviche

By this point we were all so full we decided on one Fish entree and one Meat entree.  We ordered the Scallops and perhaps it was just that I was so full they weren't my favorite part of Dinner and I've been spoiled with the Raw Bar at Water Grill that those were one of the few things that didn't get finished.  We also ordered the Lamb Belly and I was nervous because I didn't want to be eating a Baby Lamb, poor Lamby, since I have a tough time thinking about it (similar to the way I feel about Veal) that I was worried about trying it.  I know, I know, I eat Steak, Chicken, Pork, etc and there's no need to get into things but it's a different thought process when I'm thinking about eating a little one.  Jamie assured me it was a full-grown Adult Lamb so I did try it, even though it looked like Duck meat when it came to the table, and that is also not my cup of tea.  We all agreed it was a little salty and for me, it just wasn't my thing but it doesn't mean I wouldn't try it again either.  Then the Chef dropped off a couple things for us and I don't know how we were even going to fit through the door on the way out after all we had eaten!  He brought the Pork Jowl and the Steak with a Chimichurri Sauce and Broccolini.  The Steak was awesome, it was tender, perfectly cooked, and I loved the Broccolini with it.  I also liked the Pork Jowl because it had a crispy edge but by this time I could barely fit anymore food in my belly so I had to stop.  I still think I out-ate everyone ;)

We dined for over 2 hours and were ready for a little break so we had some French Press Coffee to help our stomachs settle and of course, there was no passing up dessert with this crew!  We got the Elvis Dessert that was Chocolate Pudding, Peanut Butter, and a Bacon Brittle (which of course I made room for) and it was so amazing!  I was definitely happy to end the meal that way.  Plus, the French Press Coffee, which I drank Espresso style was the best cup of Coffee I have ever had!  I may turn into a Coffee Snob because of this!

Thank goodness we didn't take an after picture because I'm not sure we would have been recognizable after all that food but what an incredible and exciting meal!  It's not something I could do even on a regular basis because I do like the simplicity of things but it was a very different style of food and I love experimenting because I've found some new favorites that I'll be drooling about until I get to try even more!

Holiday Party :)

After an awesome Christmas Surprise on Saturday complete with Dinner at La Piazza at The Grove and the Boyce Avenue Concert at the Nokia Theater at LA Live it was Sunday which meant Football, Christmas Shopping, and my Bar Lubitsch Holiday Party in Hollywood with good friends!

Fox Hills Mall has really come together in the past few years and feels a lot safer and has more stores than it did when I was working at Level10 back in 2006.  I made a killing at H&M and got a ton of Christmas presents and got some more ideas from my trip to the Mall.  Plus, I had an awesome Lunch from Stone Oven, which is one of my favorite salad places because of their incredible Focaccia Bread served with a Basil Dipping Sauce.  

After shopping it was Football time because the Packers were playing the Lions for the Sunday Night Game and as I watched the Game I realized my chances of the Play-offs in my Fantasy Football League had diminished and I had come in 10th place for the year.  Eli Manning, you were the hugest disappointment of the year, along with my other players that were playing like Randy Moss, which really isn't playing at all, or only when he feels like it.  Jordy, Wes, Jimmy, Darren...injuries, great games of 20+ points and then weeks where you got me .5 of a point.  It just goes to show, some of the greatest receivers, running backs, and tight ends are still great, but just not Fantasy Football leaders.

Candy Cane!

I was so excited to wear a brand new dress I got from Foreign Exchange a couple weeks ago and my Bar Lubitsch Holiday Party was the perfect opportunity to wear it!  Our Party was at Palihouse in Hollywood and my friend, Jonathan, who used to be a regular at Saint's & Sinner's was the Head Chef there, so I was even more excited to try the food.  The Party started at 8 pm and had a Buffet until 10 pm with an Open Bar all night long!  Neil and I got to the party just before 9:30 and each got a plateful of food, complete with Cavatelli Pasta, Wild Rice, Steak, Beet Salad, French Fries, and Grilled Chicken, as well as assorted cheeses and meats from the Charcuterie.  Everything was absolutely incredible and what made it more awesome was that Jonathan invited us into the Kitchen to say hello and also see James, another regular from Saint's & Sinner's preparing the steak for the evening!  It was great to see them and Neil and I both wanted seconds but Dinner ended promptly at 10 pm and we had to snack on a few different bite-sized desserts that were just as amazing as the food.  It was definitely an impressive meal!

Matching Stripes!

The Party continued until 2 am with plenty of drinks and shots...I was drinking Hendricks Gin and Sprite all night and woke up on Monday morning with no sight of a hangover and feeling really good!  It's true...the better the liquor, the better you feel the next day!  A bunch of the Bar Lubitsch Bartenders were in attendance, as Adrian, Jessica, and Brian and I all took shots together, and when Jonathan was done in the Kitchen, Mike, him and I, all had an S&S shot together (which unfortunately I did not drink because I couldn't do any whiskey that night and I congratulated myself the next morning when I could still do my work-out).  Neil and I had our own turn in the Photo Booth as that was the longest line of the night...cheese :)  Dija looked incredible in her silver sequined dress and I was so happy to meet, Connie, Mike's girlfriend after hearing about her for the past 3 months!  The Bartender, Parker, made me the best Old Fashion I've ever had (aside from my Uncles who make theirs with Brandy)!  I won't give away his secrets on here but I'll just say you have to go visit him at Palihouse and try them for yourself...Neil and I split it since I was sticking to Gin, but I loved it even with the Bulleit Bourbon he used!  You make a fantastic cocktail, Parker!  As I chatted with Arky and his girlfriend, Danielle, who was visiting from Nevada, the whole El Carmen crew came together and they are definitely a wild bunch...and another shot I passed on, since it was Tequila.  Neil, I can't believe you kept up all night long with all the debauchery that was happening!  Haji, David, and Brandon, all door guys at Bar Lubitsch (Brandon also Barbacks) and I took some pictures and I did have a shot with them as we spent the last part of the night chatting and enjoying the Party!

Connie, Dija, and I at Palihouse for the Bar Lubitsch Holiday Party

Overall, it was a great night and an incredible party!  I had so much fun and was not only impressed by the amazing food that Jonathan and James made but by all the Bartenders cheerfulness and tasty cocktails!  This is what a Holiday Party should be!

*I think there is even a picture of Neil and Haji 'Dropping it like Raji' since I'm the only one who can really do Aaron Rodgers Touchdown Dance ;)  But I think I'll hold onto that one for a while!*

Christmas Surprises!

Last Saturday Neil planned a special surprise for me as an early Christmas Present and tradition we do every year.  I knew we were going to a concert but I tend to figure these things out and he told me to not look up who was in town or look up venues in order to keep it a secret.

The Grove is so beautiful at Christmas but we were on a tight schedule because I had work at 10 pm at Bar Lubitsch and since it was a Private Party I couldn't be late.  The first part of my Christmas Present was Dinner at La Piazza (also a Christmas tradition).  I wish we could have walked around and been out in the 'snow' but we had to leave by 7 pm for the next part of the surprise.  We got a table on the second floor by a huge chandelier and Neil ordered a bottle of wine and we got Gnocchi in a Tomato, Oil, Garlic, and Basil sauce while Neil got the Filet Medallions with Grilled Veggies and a Balsamic Reduction.  I'm happy that we both like to share because his Steak was cooked perfectly medium rare and my Gnocchi were like little fluffy pillows and I loved the fresh basil.  Neil's Balsamic Reduction was a perfect compliment to the steak and after finishing off his meal we wrapped the rest of mine to go (we had filled up on fresh bread with oil and vinegar as well as Parmesan cheese).  We didn't have time for dessert but we each got a glass of Sambuca, dark for Neil, clear for me, even though they didn't have espresso beans, and also an espresso for each of us.  To me, there's a distinct difference in the two kinds of Sambuca and I love the espresso bean in the glass.  Neil dragged me past the Spinkles Cupcakes on the way out and we were onto part two of my Christmas Surprise.

We parked a few blocks away from LA Live and made our way to the Nokia Theater.  The woman scanning tickets said the name of the band but I was so in awe of the ice skating rink outside and all the Christmas decorations that I hadn't even paid attention and while Neil was worried she had ruined the surprise, she didn't at all.  It was my first time at the Nokia Theater and I noticed it looked like a big club with a long bar and there was an opening act playing, Tyler Hilton who has played on all of the "One Tree Hill" soundtracks.  Before I could see the stage, Neil said we were here to see Boyce Avenue, as there was a huge banner right behind the opener!  Hooray!!  This band has such a special meaning for the both of us and it was an excellent surprise.  We grabbed beers and made our way towards the stage when Bethany Joy Lenz joined Tyler Hilton for a duet of 'When The Stars Go Blue' and I was excited to see her perform because she used to be on "Guiding Light" my favorite soap opera from back in the day when I was in 8th grade and had to VHS tape it every afternoon!  Another favorite from his set was his cover of 'Missing You' which is a great 80's song made famous by John Waite.

Me and the girls of Fifth Harmony from X-Factor, Lauren, Camila, and Ally, 'Vamping It Up' according to Neil!

We decided to check out the other side of the stage when I recognized a group of girls taking pictures with some people.  They were the girls from Fifth Harmony, one of Simon's groups on 'X-Factor.'  They had an incredible performance last week and even though they've been criticized in the past for not harmonizing they showed off their skills when they performed 'Anytime You Need a Friend.'  I went up and congratulated them on a fabulous performance and knew the three girls, Camila, Ally, and Lauren, who are all 15-19 years old, and I was so impressed by their pose, positive attitude, graciousness, and appreciation.  They each took the time to ask my name and give me a hug and it was great to see such maturity in these young role models!  Kudos to Fifth Harmony, and I told you then, and I'll tell you now, you deserve the contract and money because of your hard work and dedication!  Keep up the great work :)

Alejandro of Boyce Avenue at the Nokia Theater

 At 9 pm Boyce Avenue took the stage and sang the first of many original songs that they sang throughout the night.  It was a 2 hour show but unfortunately, Neil and I had to leave at 9:45 pm in order to make it to Bar Lubitsch by 10 pm.  My favorite original they played was called 'Briane' and it held a special place in all of their hearts.  The group was formed by the 3 brothers in 2004 and came to fame by putting videos up on YouTube of mostly cover songs.  Currently, my favorite cover they've done is 'It Will Rain' by Bruno Mars...it's incredibly amazing and I don't know whose version I like better!  Neil and I also took a cue from them a year ago when we did our own version of U2's 'With Or Without You' after seeing them perform it with Kina Grannis in a YouTube video.  Click here to see Neil and I's version of 'With or Without You' on YouTube  My favorite song they played at the concert was Adele's 'Rolling in the Deep.'  It was an awesome cover and it's great to see bands playing instruments and not relying on background players to make their sound.  Plus, Alejandro not only plays guitar but also the piano and brought it out on-stage for a couple songs so that was really cool too!  It was a very special night for a couple that got engaged in front of everyone at the show and of course, she said yes.  Before we knew it, it was 9:40 pm and we wrapped up our bill and made our way to Bar Lubitsch just a couple minutes late.  Whew!  I really wish we would have been able to see more of the show but this just means we'll have to check them out again the next time they are in town!

What an incredible night and an amazing Christmas Present!  It was definitely a surprise and we both had so much fun and I'm happy that this is our very own Christmas tradition.  We had a great meal, had a very creative evening seeing live music, and I ended it with a fun night at work.  That's what I call a Saturday :)

Lunch at Franco and "The Hunger Games"

I bought a Bloomspot Gift for Lunch at Franco on Melrose and it was expiring this week so I made a stop on Saturday to check it out and have my 3-course Lunch.  I love getting all these Daily Deals in my e-mail and have tried a bunch of new restaurants this way as well as bought gifts for people because there's such a variety of things to buy!

The Caprese Salad at Franco on Melrose

From the outside, Franco didn't look all that spectacular but when you walk inside, the Kitchen is at the front of the restaurant and as you walk into the Dining Area at the back of the resturant my breath was taken away by how beautiful it was.  It was quaint with pretty lighting, heat lamps, decorations, and beautifully set tables; it would be perfect for a small party or reception!  I started off with my favorite, a Caprese Salad, which was good.  It needed more of a balsamic reduction and the tomatoes were just plain tomatoes so this was something I could easily create at home and charging $12 for it seemed a little steep.  The mozzarella was amazing and there was a small roasted pepper salad in the middle that was good too.  My entree was the Chicken Ravioli in a Mushroom Cream sauce and while the cream sauce and vegetables were amazing, the Ravioli was rustic and tasted like chicken.  Yes, I know, I ordered Chicken Ravioli but I guess I was expecting something more.  Obviously they make everything in house to be fresh but perhaps I should have gone with my gut and ordered the Corn Ravioli with Truffle Oil, but did the Chicken Ravioli on the Waiter's suggestion.  Lastly, there were only a couple choices for dessert so my only choice was Tiramisu which I normally find just ok.  This was by far the best Tiramisu I have ever had; it was light and fluffy, not too sweet, had the perfect amount of espresso and cream.  It definitely made me re-think my average idea of Tiramisu!

Overall, the meal was ok, while the ambience was pretty, and the service was good, I wasn't all that impressed by the food.  I will definitely go back and give it another chance and order something that I think looks good and hopefully can come back with a better overall impression.

Last night, I had Neighbor Night with Sean and Julie from Karaoke who live just down the street from me, to watch "The Hunger Games" on Blu-Ray.  As I had left a very long day at the Irish Times around 8:30 I had called my Mom to let her know how my day was and told her I was going to watch "The Hunger Games" with my neighbors and she said it was a really good movie and she liked it a lot.  I'm thinking, what?  You watched "The Hunger Games?"  She said yes, she saw it at the rental place, thought it looked good, rented it, and said she actually stayed awake for the whole thing and really liked it, even with the story-line that they're killing children.  Impressive, Mom :)

I've read the first two books in the series and have been waiting to rent the third book from the library but it's been taken out for the past 6 months so I haven't been able to finish the series yet.  That was the one thing I was missing from the movie; clearly a movie can't go as in-depth as a book can but I felt like there were pieces missing from the movie and that there were holes.  It almost needed to be 2 parts like the 'Twilight' series.  The first part explaining Katniss and Gale's relationship, the Reaping, backstory for everyone, and then training for the games.  Part two would be the actual games and everything that happens during that.  The best parts of the movie were Josh Hutcherson and Woody Harrelson's performances, very strong, and Woody was hilarious and perfect for the role of Haymitch.  I kept going back and forth on Jennifer Lawrence; I've seen some of her more indie movies and really liked her but there was something that made me dislike her in this role even though I thought it was great that they cast an athletic and pretty girl, and not some rail-thin stunning actress, because that wouldn't make sense.  Casting did a good job for Elizabeth Banks as well and the world of the districts was incredible to see with all the colors, costumes and make-up applied to so many extras.  It's crazy to think of how many people had to be cast in this movie to fill it out!

Overall, I liked the movie and am looking forward to the second one and I'm hoping there will be more of a story and that it won't feel so rushed.  I don't mind watching a long movie and having an additional hour for this first movie would have given the actors and crew involved a better chance to tell more of a story and give the viewer a better understanding of "The Hunger Games."

Lea Michele & Hair Metal Karaoke

Wednesday was a rather eventful day when I got back from my 3 mile run and stair session I got a phone call from Sande Alessi's Office (Casting Director) that my submission for Lea Michele's Photo Double on 'Glee' was accepted and they just wanted to make sure they had the correct sizes and asked if I would be available for an interview on Thursday.  I work every Thursday at Irish Times at 11:30 am and am there till 7:30 pm.  I told them I would be free before or after but at this late of notice, getting off of work was going to be nearly impossible.  Sure enough I got the call after 8 pm that night that the meeting was at 5 pm on Thursday at the Paramount Lot in Hollywood and I had to attend in order to be considered for the job.  Unfortunately I wasn't able to go and what a disappointment :(  Mind you, just because I went to the interview didn't mean I was going to get the job as I'm sure there were going to be a bunch of girls going but it would have been a great opportunity that hopefully will come around again.

Onto Karaoke night though...there was a Birthday Party just finishing up as I arrived so the bar was full but we only had a few singers.  I opened with 'Wonder' by Natalie Merchant while Lee kept the crowd involved with his up-beat country tunes.  Judy was in early so she sang a couple Patsy Cline songs along with 'Superstar' by The Carpenters.  Khad made a surprise visit at Karaoke for the first time in over a month so it was great to see him and hear his awesome voice again, opening with 'Welcome to Paradise' by Green Day.  When Sean arrived he decided to start a Hair Metal Round so his one and only song that night was 'Sister Christian' by Night Ranger with Khad backing him up...Motoring!  Khad's Hair Metal song was 'Every Rose Has Its Thorn' by Poison and he did a great job!  I want more 80's Rock from Khad!  I decided to join the fun and did Def Leppard's 'Bringing on the Heartbreak' which is one of my favorite Def Leppard songs and I had a great time with it; I think it was my best performance of it!

When Jamie arrived it started a slew of new songs from everyone with her doing a jazzy version of 'Sunday Morning' by Maroon 5.  Khad had some fun with Pearl Jam while Judy did duets for the rest of the night singing 'Bye Bye Love' with Lee and then 'I Got You Babe' with Foxy.  Jamie and I continued the night with a superset of Adele, her doing 'Someone Like You' while my new song of the night was 'Rumour Has It' and that's definitely a fun song to sing.  It's a difficult song and I'll be excited to sing it again when I know it better but I still had a blast with it.  Then there was a round of Disney songs with another duet by Foxy & Judy singing 'A Whole New World' from "Aladdin" while Jamie and I backed up Jasmine, and then Khad doing an amazing rendition of 'Mulan' because it's been a while since he got to sing it.  I did get to try my new song last week, 'Everything I Do, I Do it for You' a full note higher but something still isn't right so I'm going to continue working on it till I find the perfect start!  Jamie sang a couple more times, doing 'Angel' better than Sarah MacLaughlin and then singing another new song by Deana Carter which was beautiful as well!

Even though the night had to start a little later due to the Birthday Party and ended early because there were just 4 of us singing over and over again it was actually a really great night with a variety of music and lots of fun catch up chats had by all!  I'm really looking forward to our Theme Night in the near future...now I just need to come up with it!

Editing my Acting Reel...

My first Acting Reel was done by my friend, Alex, (who also shoots Photography and has done Headshots for me a couple times) because we worked on a Short Film for his Directing and Film Class.  My first Acting Reel was 4 minutes long, scenes were long, and this was done a couple years ago so I have a bunch of new and updated footage.  My next editing project will be doing my Commercial Reel.

Anyway, I decided to start editing my own Acting Reel since I have the software and this way I can pick and choose which scenes I want to use and cut them to be shorter and also design how everything will look, as well as control the flow.  Getting footage is always the hardest part after you work on a project or film.  I don't think I'll ever get the footage from the film in which I played a Heroin Addict as the Director never finished the project and even though I only want the footage from my scene, I've never received it.  I do have a few of the new projects I worked on in the past year and I've already edited and shortened them into 20 second clips.  I have also re-watched and shortened the old clips to display the best footage and so far it's just 2 and a half minutes long which is great!

Shooting 'Chinese Guys' with Chris Dotson, Jessica Lowndes, Chris Miller, and directed by Steven C Miller

Next up, I need to decide what I want to open with.  You usually want something strong to catch the viewer's attention, and then something different as your second clip to show range.  I've got both comedy and drama clips and I've heard pros and cons for having both on one reel.  This way you've only got one reel and you're covering ground with range.  The cons are they may be looking for someone comedic and see the drama and lose sight of what character you could play.  On the other hand, having a separate comedy and dramatic reel, may hurt you because the Agent or Casting Director may not have time to look at both and in the time to look at the dramatic reel, they may move onto the next Actor.  I've decided I want both types on one reel to make it more interchangeable. 

Screen Shot from 'The Pink Conspiracy' with Mercedes McNabb and directed by Marc Clebanoff

Lucky for me there was just an article on Backstage.com that gave some tips for making the best reel and the number one rule was to load it with your strongest and newest work.  This article suggests having separate reels as well as other random clips that can be viewed on your website.  Another tip is to make it easily accesible and keep it simple for the viewer.  My e-mail address and contact info will be on the reel, as well my name (twice) and I'll keep it short to keep the viewer entertained.  I'll be posting it on my YouTube and Facebook page, as well as here so that there are multiple opportunities for it to be seen.  Sometimes when I'm submitting for projects I post a link to my Hosting or Acting Reel, or a show I've done recently, or even just my YouTube page.  I'm going to be very excited to have new footage showcased on my new Acting Reel!

I'm waiting for one or two more pieces of footage for the reel but other than that, I've got everything edited together and so far I am happy with the variety I'm looking at!  Once it's all finished, I'll post it here for everyone to see :)

Classic Movies

I can't believe it's already December!  It feels like it was just Halloween and before that, that it was still Summer and Hurricane Harbor season, and before that Springtime in LA, but alas, the Holiday's are upon us, and that means Christmas shopping, Hot Chocolate, time with Family and plenty of traveling.  I've been busy with work lately and on my nights off I've been watching classic movies!

Classic Birthday Princess on my 26th Birthday

A couple weeks ago I saw 'The Princess Bride' for the first time ever!  I have to admit Cary Elwes was very handsome at that time and perfect to play the Prince.  I read the book a long time ago and wasn't all that into it and as I watched the movie, I kind of felt the same way.  Perhaps I just wasn't in the right mood for it, but it reminded me of 'Labyrinth' which is also a classic Fantasy movie and one I watched so many times as a child and that I fell in love with.  I loved it so much as a kid that I recorded the music onto a tape so I could listen to it when I didn't have the VHS Tape rented from the Library.  My cousin, Katie, and I used to joke about who was going to marry David Bowie, because he was so good-looking.  Apparently, I l still like my guys wearing make-up and tight pants ;)  Just kidding!  But I still enjoy watching that movie even today, and consider it one of my favorite's!  I'll give 'The Princess Bride' another shot, and maybe this year with Katie's kids because they're just about the age when I first saw 'Labyrinth!'

Last week, I watched 'Gone With the Wind' for the first time in about 10 years since I saw it when I was recovering from getting my tonsils taken out.  I was on Percocet at the time so I don't remember it all that much, just that there was a lot about the war, but I didn't realize how brilliant the story was.  The movie was on AMC over the Thanksgiving weekend and as I watched the movie this time around I actually really enjoyed it; everything from the beautiful costumes and dresses that Scarlett wore (especially the famous and gorgeous red dress she wore to the Birthday Party), to the relationships between everyone in the movie, and the storyline.  It killed me to see Scarlett in love with Ashley when he never loved anyone but Melanie and Rhett loved her the entire time.  Of course, I was sad to see the movie end without the love story, but happy to see a strong female character.  I love watching movies like this and then reading the Trivia Facts on IMDB and finding out interesting facts...yes, I'm a nerd.  I am actually looking forward to watching this movie again in the near future to pick up more of it the next time around!

Tonight I watched 'Lady and the Tramp' and didn't realize this movie was released in 1955 and had some of the same voices from 'Sleeping Beauty' which is my favorite Disney movie.  I haven't seen this movie in a long time but I remembered thinking how cute Lady was as a puppy and was reminded of that in the opening 10 minutes of the movie.  It actually makes me really sad to think about how animals feel when someone's not around, or when a couple has a baby, do dogs really notice it and feel left out?  And I hate those darn Siamese cats...perhaps that's why cats are still not my cup of tea, even today.  My whole life growing up, my family has had Cocker Spaniel's and they're such pretty dogs.  This is definitely a classic Disney movie worth seeing again!

Now, if only there was snow outside on the ground and I was snuggled up in a blanket with a fire going, this would be the perfect December day :)

Celebratory Karaoke

What a fun Wednesday Night Karaoke at Gabe's last night!  I walked into a busy bar thanks to the Clipper's game but I knew everyone wasn't there for Karaoke but I also knew it was Lee's Birthday so that meant more people and lots of fun!

We got started around 9:30 pm because I wanted to make sure Lee got to sing a bunch because it was his Birthday and he had to leave around Midnight so Lee opened the night with Billy Joel's 'Just the Way You Are' while we got some ladies singing 'Goodbye Earl' and 'Proud Mary' bringing out their slick dance moves.  Art tried a new song singing 'Brown Eyed Girl' while Marty showed up and his new song for the night was Bon Jovi's 'Blaze of Glory.'  Lee's next song was 'That's Life' by Frank Sinatra and then he sang 'Something Like That' by Tim McGraw because it's one of my favorite songs to hear him sing!  Judy not only brought her lovely voice but also cupcakes and cake for Lee's Birthday which was so sweet!  Her first song of the night was Nancy Sinatra's 'These Boots are Made for Walking.'  Marcus vamped it up doing Meatloaf's 'Two out of Three Ain't Bad' while Bob sang the Rolling Stones 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' and CC rocked out to Jefferson Airplane's hit 'Somebody to Love.'  As the bar filled up for Lee's Birthday we got another round of songs going and I sang 'You Know I'm No Good' by Amy Winehouse which I haven't sang in a while.  Marty sang another new song for the night doing 'I'll Be' by Edwin McCain to which Jamie came in after a long work-shift and sang 'On My Own' like she should have been playing Eponine in "Les Miserables."  Jamie also brought me wonderful drops of happiness called Bacon Cheddar Biscuits from Post in Manhattan Beach and I about dropped down in the corner with my excitement of the delicious treat!

Next up it was Birthday Cake and singing for Lee's Birthday from everyone in the bar which started a round of Duets.  He and Judy sang 'Bye Bye Love' by the Everly Brothers and that reminded me how much I really enjoy that song!  One guy who had never sang Karaoke before sang a Jon Secada song and did really well, impressive for a first-timer!  My new song of the night was Bryan Adam's 'Everything I Do, I Do it For You' since I just watched the "Robin Hood" with Kevin Costner.  It's one of my favorite movies!  I'll definitely sing the song again but raise the key for me, it's rare when a song is too low for me, but considering it's a guys song, that would make sense.  Next up was Marty singing 'More Than Words' and Jamie singing Alicia Keys while Judy did a great version of 'Walkin' After Midnight' originally sang by Patsy Cline.  Bob and Marcus did a duet before the night was over and as I said, the Duet's had begun because Marcus and I did 'Cruisin' which was awesome!  We hit all the harmonies and I love singing that song though it's never the same without my bestie, Mike Weiss.  Since it was a night of celebrations and dancing I sang 'Love You Like a Love Song' by Selena Gomez which was my new song last week; it's a little guilty pleasure!  Jamie and Marty closed out the night with plenty of applause after singing 'A Whole New World' from "Aladdin."

With so much great food, Birthday cake and Biscuits...lots to celebrate, Birthday's and Friends, it was an awesome night of Karaoke!  Bring it on next week :)

Acting Thoughts...

It came in the mail last week and I was so excited to see it...I finally got my SAG Card!  I feel like an Official Member of the Screen Actors Guild now and am so excited for the opportunities it will bring.  Next up is the SAG Awards at the end of January and as a Member of SAG I'll be getting all the screeners of the Nominee's so I can see all the performances and movies that are up for awards!  Even though I may just be one person, my opinion along with the other SAG-AFTRA members will make the decision for who wins Best Picture, Best Actor & Actress, Best Director, etc.

I was reading through a bunch of e-mails regarding Casting tips and information and I actually took some notes on Commercial Audition Techniques.  The one thing I have noticed since I joined the Union is that there's so much more Non-Union acting work on the Breakdowns and I can no longer submit for those jobs since I'm a SAG Member.  This only pushes me to get out and find an Agent so that I can be submitted for the Union jobs that aren't listed on the Breakdowns, but finding an Agent was always more difficult than it seemed.  Perhaps now that I'm a part of the Union I'll have a better chance of finding someone to represent me Theatrically and Commercially and I'll be working towards that full-force when I'm back from Christmas vacation as most of Hollywood shuts down in the month of December.

A lot of the tips in the article I have used in my own Auditions and they certainly bring confidence and have helped but there were other tips that I'm so excited to use at my next audition like 'Coloring the picture with adjectives to hi-light the product' or 'Demonstrating what life was like before and after the product'.  It's amazing how simple it seems but you get in that Audition room with the Casting Directors and on top of memorizing the script or scene, as nervous as you may be, you have to do all these things and more just to stand out from the crowd and bring yourself to the Audition.  One of my favorite things to do at Auditions is figure out the clearest way to get the product or scene across and then challenge myself to figure out other ways to do it, making it different from what everyone else is probably doing.  This way I'm setting myself a part from everyone else and giving the Director something different they may not have seen yet.  Sometimes you'll take that chance and it'll work and other times it won't be what they're looking for but at least you tried!

Another article I was reading talked about staying positive through it all and not letting negative thoughts affect you.  It's hard to be optimistic all the time when you're constantly bombarded with commercials that you think you might be perfect for or even commercials that you auditioned for you and you don't know why they hired the actress they did but you can't think like that.  I've learned I need to take what I gained from that experience and use that at my next audition, anything that can better help me in the future or parts I should work on and improve but be proud that I went in and did my best at that time!  Positive energy manifests itself and brings better things along and I can work my hardest but know that it'll happen because I am determined, creative, and well-prepared.

My New Year's Resolution was to write in my journal every day, write blogs that contain fun and important moments in my life along with creative happenings.  Since I recently created a portfolio that I bring with me to Auditions, I have started taking notes about the Auditions and also writing blog entries that will help me at future Auditions because I can look back on what I did that worked and what didn't.  It's important to keep these details along with Casting Information so that when I'm working with someone, I know who has brought me in for a Commercial or to read for a certain role.  I'm a huge believer in Thank You notes/e-mails, so after I Audition I usually send out a Thank You e-mail within a day because at the end of all of this, it's about networking, and creating lasting relationships with people you'll work with in the future!

So I'm soaking up all this new information, meeting people, talking about work, and am excited for the future and Acting work.  If I'm not Auditioning, that just means I need to create something myself, and I'll work hard to continue doing what I love :)

Thankful Karaoke

I've been dealing with an annoying cold this week but that wasn't going to stop me from Hosting Karaoke on Wednesday at Gabe's, the day before Thanksgiving.  We all have so much to be thankful for and I was thankful that I still had a voice, a job where I can be creative, and awesome people to make the night special!

As I waited for the Laker Game to finish up, I got Karaoke ready, and saw that we were going to have a pretty good night because we had lots of people waiting to get started!  I opened with 'Because the Night' by the 10,000 Maniacs since I needed a song that was a little bit lower for my voice, and Marcus got the night going with 'Hey Jude' and vamped the last 4 minutes of the song, doing the nearly 8 minute version.  Lee kept it country throughout the night, singing Brad Paisley, and then doing a couple Bobby Darin hits.  Marty stopped by and of course, even with me having a cold, wasn't going to stop him from getting Amy, him and I, shots.  Thankfully, we got Orange Kamikaze's and I was able to get a little Vitamin C from the Orange juice!  We had a couple singers that don't come in very often in for the night, a newly engaged couple that were singing Joan Jett and The Kinks.  

The night went on with new singers and new songs, a little Bell Biv Devoe, by one of the girls from the Birthday Party and 'Alone' by another lovely lady.  Marty's new song for the night was 'Wanted Dead or Alive' by Bon Jovi, while I did a little back-up, and he also sang 'Iris' by the Goo Goo Dolls, which was another new song.  My new song of the night was 'Love You Like A Love Song' by Selena Gomez which was actually a lot of fun and I'll be excited to sing it again when I have some friends visiting me at work.  Marcus kept up with another 8 minute song doing 'Dead Man's Party' by Oingo Boingo while one of my old Friday Night Karaoke regulars sang 'Do You Remember The Time' by Michael Jackson and also sang 'Creep' by Radiohead.  Marty had the whole room singing along to 'More Than Words' while I had the ladies dancing during 'These Boots Are Made For Walking.'  Marty and I closed out the night with a little duet of 'Need You Now' by Lady Antebellum and I was happy to have had a great Karaoke night before the Thanksgiving Holiday!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving, had plenty to be thankful for, and enjoyed lots of great food.  I'm thankful for Family, Friends, Football, and Food...the 4 F's of Thanksgiving :)  And now it's on to the Christmas Season with Holiday Music and Carol's, gift-giving and shopping, baking, and Christmas Cards.  Happy Holiday's Everyone!

What's for Dinner? Part 10.

It's Tater Tot Hot Dish!  My best friend, Sarah, from College, used to make this on occasion for our Girl's Night's where we'd have a yummy meal, watch movies, and have wine coolers...we were pretty darn classy in College ;)  Anyway, it's been a while since I had it, and I thought it the perfect comfort food since I have a cold and its been chilly outside!

Tater Tot Hot Dish

1 Package Tater Tots

1 lb Lean Ground Sirloin (or Ground Beef)

1 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup

1 Can Corn

1 Can Green Beans

Salt & Pepper

Seasonings

Shredded Cheese (of your choice)

Look at those Tots!

At the grocery store I picked up Ground Sirloin because it was leaner than the ground beef and was also on sale!  So first, I browned the Sirloin, adding in salt and pepper, garlic salt, and some steak seasoning to taste.  I didn't have any Worcestershire or Steak Sauce, otherwise, I would have added that in when I was cooking the Sirloin because it makes it more juicy and flavorful.  Then, I drained the meat and put that in the bottom of a 9x13 pan that I had sprayed with cooking spray.  Next, I drained both cans of vegetables and spread my corn and green beans over the meat.  You could use 2 cups of fresh or frozen vegetables but being sick, I went the easiest route possible.  Then, I spread each can of soup over my Sirloin and vegetables and topped that with rows of Tater Tots.  Normally, I'd cook this in a baking dish, so you'd probably only use half a bag of Tater Tots but because I didn't have one available I used a 9x13 pan and had lots of Tots!  Lastly, I baked it (uncovered) at 350 for 45 minutes making sure the Tots were golden brown and crispy.  Let it sit for a minute or two before serving because it's going to be very hot.

Tater Tot Hot Dish

This was my version of Tater Tot Hot Dish as I know there are many out there and it's pretty hard to mess up a casserole, but I liked all the vegetables and it wasn't soupy at all, just creamy.  You can add your favorite Cheese as soon as you're ready to serve it and it gives it another element of creaminess.  For mine (not pictured with cheese), I used a Cheddar, Jack, and Mozzarella blend.  The Tots cooked perfectly and were actually crispy when biting into them and you had a Tot for every bite and I love my Tots.  If using this large a pan I would add in more meat because I felt like I was missing out on that, and you could make it even healthier by using Ground Turkey.  If there's one thing I learned from making Green Bean Casserole for Thanksgiving last year, you don't use Fat Free Cream of Anything soup, there's a major flavor difference, so you have to go for the flavor and not worry about the fat.  It's meant to be a comfort food, and I had 2 servings and was perfectly full.  It was easy to prep, you let it cook for 45 minutes and it's done.  Plus, it's great as leftovers!

Now...Eat your Tots!

Karaoke Wednesday

I love Hosting Karaoke when I have a bunch of friends in because it makes the shift that much more fun and when I haven't seen people in a while and didn't know if they sang or not, it makes for an interesting and exciting night!

Jamie and Spark were the first to arrive, ready to sing, and started the night going with me.  There was Pool League so we had a couple additional people that I hadn't seen before but gave us some time between singing.  After opening the night and testing the sound and microphones, Jamie was up to sing; she sang 'Creep' by Radiohead with Spark following her singing 'Otherside' by the Red Hot Chili Peppers.  I always forget about that song and I was glad that Spark sang it, not only because he did a great job, but because I knew it was going to be a crazy and fun night with plenty of sing-alongs.  The next round of songs we all slowed it down, while I sang 'Foolish Games' and really felt the lyrics, Jamie did Adele's version of 'To Make You Feel My Love' and Spark did 'House of the Rising Sun.'  Marty showed up and decided to do a little rock & roll singing 'Every Rose Has Its Thorn' and trying something new for his first time singing that night.  Next up it was a round of new songs for everyone, since Marty had kicked off the night with his new song, I decided on Phil Collin's version of 'Against All Odds' adding a few Mariah Carey notes and just having fun with the song.  Jamie's new song was 'Black Velvet' by Allanah Myles and she brought some soul to her performance while Spark had everyone singing along with him while he sang 'Everything I Do, I Do It For You' made famous by Bryan Adams.  Oh, how we all love that song!  And Marty sang another new song doing 'Wicked Game' which I loved!

Of course, with friends in for Karaoke, that only means shots, so there were Raspberry Kamikaze's, Gummy Bears, and Whiskey.  There were a couple more arrivals about half-way through the night, bringing in Sean whose first song was Edwin McCain's 'I'll Be.'  Still celebrating his Birthday, Sean McCracken was also a late-arrival but an awesome surprise when he sang 'Breakeven' by The Script and impressed us all with his fantastic voice!  There were a few Duets to be done, so Jamie and I did our song, 'Take Me Or Leave Me' from Rent, while she joined Sean for 'Lucky' and I closed out the night doing a duet with McCracken.  We did Lady Antebellum's 'Need You Now.'  Back to the solo singers, Jamie did 'Gravity' just beautifully while Spark sang 'Walking In Memphis' and showed us his range and variety in songs, which always makes me a happy Karaoke Host!  Marty made us all believe 'The Reason' was you, singing Hoobastank's hit, while McCracken sang some James Taylor, changing up his style as well.  Sean brought a little country to the bar doing Tim McGraw's version of 'When The Stars Go Blue' while I brought the alternative angry vibe back with Nirvana's 'Heart-Shaped Box.'

It's always great when you can get your friends together to do something fun and creative like singing Karaoke.  It's awesome to surprise everyone with your choice and variety in songs and being able to try something new, whether you kill it or mess up, can laugh at yourself because we all appreciate the effort and courage to get up there and sing your heart out!  Till next week...

Brunch in Manhattan Beach!

Manhattan Beach Post Brunch

Last Saturday Jamie and I hit up Manhattan Beach Post in Manhattan Beach for a new and exciting Brunch!  It was a beautiful day outside, a little breezy, with the sun shining brightly, and as we got seated at our table we had an incredible view of the ocean and the waves crashing in!

Both of us were so hungry so after ordering 5 different dishes, we hoped that would be enough.  First off, we got started with cocktails, Jamie ordered the Pushing Daisies which had Champagne, Grapefruit and Rose in it, and I got their version of a Mojito.  Jamie's was served in a beautiful glass, and my Mojito had crushed ice in it and was delicious!  Our first bit of heaven were the Cheddar Bacon Biscuits that reminded me of Red Lobster's (don't tell them I said that) but were a billion times better!  It was honestly the best biscuit I've ever had!  I actually saved half of it so it would be the last thing I ate before we left!  The biscuits are served with a maple butter and have their own Facebook page.  You can check it out here: Little Drops of Heaven called Bacon Cheddar Buttermilk Biscuits! 

Biscuits & Our Fruit Salad

Next up was a Citrus Salad with Mint and Honey.  It was not what I expected but still good and perfectly chilled.  There were a few different fruits served in a grapefruit bowl with some mint and honey drizzled on top.  I was expecting a salad so aside from that it was good.  Perhaps a little expensive for a bowl of fruit, but anytime you order a fruit bowl at a restaurant it's normally going to be around $10.  Our Chile and Maple Bacon came at the same time as the Citrus Salad and wow was that awesome.  It was the perfect amount of sweetness with a nice kick of spice.  My only complaint there was that I like my bacon crispy, but sopping up the juicy goodness in the skillet was pretty darn awesome.

Before our entrees came, Jamie ordered another cocktail called The Hessian made with was rum, allspice, nutmeg, and pumpkin which was the perfect holiday drink!  All of their food and cocktails change depending on the season and what's fresh, so it's kind of exciting to try entrees and cocktails that may not be there on our next visit.  Our Ricotta French Toast and Roasted Peppers with Burrata Cheese Sandwich came next and looked beautiful.  The sandwich bun was soft but firm enough to keep everything inside, and the greens had a citrus dressing on them which blended perfectly with the cheese and peppers and was served with home-made chips that were huge and hard Parmesan on them.  There was the perfect amount of Ricotta Cheese between the 2 slices of French Toast, that was sweet but savory, and a perfect dessert to end our meal.

Roasted Pepper & Burrata Sandwich with my amazing Biscuit!

I wish I would have had room for another biscuit but I was so full at the end of our meal I could barely finish the other half of my first one!  I'm going to go back strictly for biscuits one day!  Before we could go home, we were gifted with yet another cocktail, this one was The Man in the Yellow Hat.  I'm not a big Tequila drinker, and I don't particularly like Mezcal Tequila because it's got a smokey flavor and reminds me of bonfire, which I hate, but because of the banana, coconut and cardamom in the drink, it was really well blended and actually suited the drink.  Knowing me, I'd probably order it with Silver Tequila but seeing that I could drink it with the Mezcal made it a great drink and something I could sip on and enjoy and that was a pleasant surprise!

Our whole experience was amazing.  From sitting down at our table with our ocean view, to the impeccable service, thanks to Janet, the fun-flavored cocktails, and the elegant yet perfect comfort food, we were very satisfied customers and are excited to return!