Rachel's Birthday!

It was Rachel's Birthday a couple weeks ago and a few of us after our show, 'Thenardier's Inn' were able to celebrate with her at Midnight to toast to her 26th Birthday!  Max, Kenni, and I all met Rachel and her friend at Finn McCool's in Santa Monica.  Even though it was a quiet night there, they had live music going and it was nice for all of us to catch up, hang out with Rachel, and have some celebratory drinks!

Midnight Celebrations at Finn McCool's!

The following weekend she had a Sailor & Pirate Themed Party so everyone got dressed up to join in on the celebration!  There were Drink Floaty's, Costumes, we were grilling out, and plenty of Cupcakes & Birthday Cake from Susie Cakes!  Holy cow...I have another new Cupcake place to try because those desserts were AMAZING.  We spent the day by the pool, embracing the sun, dancing to some tunes, and hanging with good friends.  It was a wonderful way to enjoy Rachel's Birthday Party!

Giana, Rachel, and I...Love these girls so much :)

From toasting Rachel with Chocolate Cake Shots at Finn McCool's, to squirting herself in the eye with Rum she was trying to squirt gun in my mouth, this girl makes me happy and can always make me laugh!  I hope you had a wonderful Birthday and you are sure to have a spectacular year to come <3

Break Room 86

It's kind of nice to have off on Friday nights so I'm actually able to see what kind of nightlife that LA has to offer since I prefer to stay in my little bubble when I normally go out during the week.  It's easy to pop into Gabe's if I'm on the West Side or stop in at Lubitsch if I'm in Hollywood but the places in between are the ones that make the night interesting!

Ash & I at Break Room 86

Ashley had told me about this new 80's Bar that opened up in Koreatown a few weeks ago so I met up with her and Jake at Break Room 86, and thanks to Aamil (one of our awesome guys who used to work at Lubitsch) who was working Security there I was able to bypass the long line of people and get into the bar to meet up with my friends with no problem.  They were playing 80's music, there were 80's music videos on the TV's and everyone was dressed in the style as well.  To top it all off, every hour on the hour there were performances, that included hip hop and break-dancers, a Michael Jackson look-a-like, and then girls dressed like they were from 'Flashdance' dancing to Pat Benatar.  The dance breaks were definitely a hi-light of the night.  I started off with a Cherry Chapstick drink that tasted just like it's name and we were able to take a seat at a table above the main area.  There were separate rooms for Karaoke, private and social, and you actually entered into the bar through a back entrance and went though a kitchen area and then exited out a different door when you left.  It had that Speakeasy vibe about it.  

Dance Break.

Raph decided to meet us out after a little persuading and with the whole gang together, we enjoyed a fun night out!  Ash and I actually got some light-up 'Minnie Mouse' type ears and we bounced around on the dance floor and belted out some 80's tunes.  The DJ even took requests and played some Erasure to Ashley's delight!  I didn't get any Pat Benatar from him but there were plenty of songs to dance to!  We had gone out over the first weekend of Coachella so the bar wasn't too busy which was nice.  Although, I'm not sure we would have the same experience if we didn't have somewhere to sit or if the bar was packed with people.  Next time, I'll have to make sure to play some Pac Man since they have a bunch of old-school arcade games along one wall!

Overall, we had a really fun night checking out a new bar on a side of town I rarely go to!  Break Room 86 can be found at The Line Hotel in K-Town!  If you're looking for something fun and different to do in LA, it's definitely a great spot to check out :)

Our 'Saved By The Bell' Cast Photo!

Guest Hosts for our 'Supernatural' Aftershow!

We love having Guests come to Afterbuzz to talk about the show they're in, what it's like on-set, and give us any inside information without spoiling too much!  We had Travis Aaron Wade and Ruth Connell join us again earlier this month and had an absolute blast with them joining our panel.

They both came to Afterbuzz to be Guests when we had our full Hosting panel back in November so it was nice to have a more intimate setting with them this time around since it was just Katie and I.  In fact, Travis was awesome, asking Ruth all these great questions, and made Katie & I's job easy!  Both of them are busy working on projects or filming more episodes of 'Supernatural' in addition to heading out to a bunch of upcoming Conventions all over the place!

Travis & Ruth at Afterbuzz TV with Katie & I

We do know a little bit about the Convention environment since we went to Burcon last November.  It's crazy how big these things are and how much the fans love 'Supernatural.'  Needless to say, Travis and Ruth are a bundle of positive energy and really bring some great insight to our Aftershow and we LOVE their characters on the show too!  We're always looking for a return of Cole and we're happy to see Rowena's storyline continuing throughout this season and hopefully next as well.

You can see our 'Supernatural' Aftershow right here or join in on our conversations on Twitter or Facebook at #abtvsupernatural  We love hearing what you guys think :)  Thanks for watching and listening week after week!

Easter Sunday :D

It was a long-awaited Easter as I noticed I was eating far more cookies this year since I couldn't eat candy, and although giving up soda was fairly easy and I enjoyed drinking more water and my skin reaped the benefits (Jennifer Aniston knows what she's talking about), I was stoked when I finished up my shift at Bar Lubitsch on late Saturday night/Sunday morning and ate a piece of Ginger Candy.  Sigh.  I missed those little pieces of goodness!

Bungalow Shenanigans with Ash & Raph

I got up early on Sunday morning to go to Church on Easter with Samantha (so glad she came with me), I got in a quick work-out and then got ready to meet Ashley and her friend, Raph, in Santa Monica at The Misfit for Brunch.  After having our first cocktail we decided to get the Punch Bowl of Pimm's Cup since we were making a day of the festivities.  For Lunch, I ordered the Asparagus Soup along with the Prime Rib Sandwich, while Ashley got the Chicken Tortilla Soup and Crispy Chicken Sandwich (lettuce-wrapped to Raph's dismay) and Raph go the Burger.  I have to agree with Raph and our Bartender, Dave, that the Crispy Chicken was absolutely amazing and what I'll be ordering next time.  I did love my sandwich too, but my soup even more!  They also had these Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies that were to die for and paired perfectly with my Double Espresso.  I'm pretty sure that we all had at least 3 or 4...or 5...

The Sunset on a sensational Easter <3

We then headed over to Bungalow (a special thanks to Alana for hooking us up with some drinks throughout the day) and we actually had a really great time!  I'm usually pretty anti-Bungalow because it's normally packed to the max, the drinks are ridiculously over-priced, and the people (for the most part) are pretty douchey.  We had a good crew meeting up with us and found a secluded spot on the patio with a table and few chairs and all of us had a blast!  The rest of the night we bar-hopped in Santa Monica, hitting up The Basement, Rick's Tavern where Dave, Garet, and I did some Karaoke, and closed off the night at JP's.

It was a day full of new places and food.  I had never been to The Misfit and always wanted to go ever since Creating Arts Company had been putting on shows in Santa Monica and I'd walk by and see the busy bar and patio.  All the bars on Main Street in Santa Monica were new to me too, so I've already gotten a great start on my New Year's Resolution for April!  It was truly a great Easter with friends and one of the best I've had since moving to LA <3

Lent, Easter, and Community

Last weekend was Easter and those 40 days of Lent went by fairly quickly!  Easter is a time for sacrifice, reflection, and positivity.  And of course, celebration, which I certainly did!  You can read more about that in my next blog ;)

At your service :)

This year I gave up the usual, candy, soda, and fast food, but new this Lent I also gave up swearing.  Overall, I did a really good job, no soda at all, and candy only once on accident at Yogurtland (it was a topping and I totally forgot), and no fast food, not even Subway!  Now, swearing on the other hand, was far more difficult.  I don't swear all the time, but there are times when you're feeling passionate, or frustrated, or even excited, and one or two happen to pop out.  In actuality, I really like some swear words, and missed using them during the 47 days of Lent.  And there were times where I swore on accident, and other times, I did on purpose, and those 30 swear words are hours I will be putting towards community service and charity.  I'm really happy to be doing some good from it all!  The point of giving up swearing was to force myself to find better and more intelligent words to use.  I've been doing my best to continue to not swear this past week and decided that I'll be more aware of when I'm swearing and contain myself to those highly anticipated moments where it's the right time and place.

Before Lent had started I was doing some Community Service for Habitat For Humanity, working at one of their Re-Stores in Torrance.  It was really fun to help people pick out items for their homes and help them decide what would work in the space they told me about.  I also got to price items, clean up around the store, and do a little home decorating as well to make sure the displays looked awesome.  I'll be happy to be back and working with some of the same people over at the Re-Store and also look forward to working on building a home when there's one a little closer to where I live.  

It's such a great feeling to help others, and to be there because I choose to be, it makes it all the more worthwhile :)

Mom's Visit to LA and Vegas!

My Mom visited me here in LA last week and we had a full week of craziness planned!  She was spending a few days here and then we were heading off to Vegas for a couple days to celebrate my cousin's 21st Birthday and my Aunt's Birthday as well with some more of our family!

Talk about a busy week, it was literally go-go-go every day!  From when she got in on Wednesday afternoon, we went and had a late Lunch at Lemonade in Brentwood (which she loved and I had to have her try the Miso Short Ribs because they're so incredible) and then she helped me rehearse some songs for my Audition that evening and later on I Hosted Karaoke at Gabe's.  A bunch of my friends came to spend some time with her and to sing Karaoke, so it's always nice to see everyone together!  We did get to spend some time in the sun early in the mornings before the days really got going which was nice, and on Thursday she came with me to Afterbuzz TV to tape my 'Supernatural' Aftershow and that night she got to see 'Thenardier's Inn' for the second time.  She said she really felt the songs and music and liked it even more than the first time she saw it in November!

Wine at Bandera, Salmon at Sugarfish, Bloody Mary's before Vegas,
and Kalissa's famous Cookies and 'Crack Buns!'

Friday kicked off the weekend of work with Bartending at Irish Times, where Mom got to try out some of our new beers and we got some great goodies from C&M Cafe which I'd been waiting for her to try for months!  That night, Marty, Mom and I had Dinner at Bandera, which was an absolute blast and special treat.  Carolyn met all of us a little later on when we stopped at Gabe's for an after-dinner drink!  On Saturday, we went to Lunch at Sugarfish in Marina Del Rey (which was Mom's favorite sushi I've ever taken her to).  I also read in Church for our Palm Sunday services and it was nice to have Mom there in Church with me when I was such a big part of the Mass.  She came with me to Bar Lubitsch since I was Bartending that night, and Jamie met up with her, and they had a couple cocktails and some fun as well!  She even told me I made her the best Old-Fashion she ever had!!  YAY :D

Mom and I are ready for Vegas!

On Sunday I made Mom and I some Bloody Mary's and we hopped on a flight from LA to Las Vegas.  We stayed at the Riviera Hotel and got placed in a Suite for the first night but actually down-graded the following night because the first room was so spread out, we wanted a smaller space!  It was a typical Vegas vacation, with lots of gambling, a day by the Riviera pool, and walking around the casinos.  In fact, on Monday, Mom and I had walked more than 10 miles that day according to my phone!  We got the family together and played cards and had Dinner, checked out the Flamingo's Gardens, and just hung out.  Mom and I did the $10.95 Prime Rib Dinner at El Cortez off Fremont Street and it was awesome!  It was my first time checking out Fremont Street and old Downtown Vegas and is very different than the normal strip.  Our last day we all indulged in the Garden Buffet which was at the Silverton Casino and was delicious!  After that it was back to LA for me and back to Wisconsin for Mom.

The time once again went by way too quickly.  I would have loved another week together, especially since we were so busy, it would have been nice to have some time off to just hang out.  We always enjoy cooking a meal together and there was just no time for that, aside from making Kale Chips, which certainly is not a Wisconsin meal or snack to us, but still quite tasty.  Can't wait to see you again soon, Mom!  Thank you for everything :)

March Karaoke

Since we re-opened 'Thenardier's Inn' with CAC Studios on Thursday nights I've had to be a little more easy on my voice with Karaoke on Wednesday nights.  We actually had some great Karaoke nights and my Mom was in town the last week in March so it was a really fun month!

The Ronettes "Be My Baby"

Eric Carmen "Hungry Eyes"

Bush "Comedown"

Pat Benatar "Invincible"

Linda Ronstadt "It's So Easy"

Natalie Merchant "Jealousy"

Jekyll & Hyde "No One Knows Who I Am"

Pat Benatar "We Belong"

Foo Fighters "Everlong"

Rent "Another Day"

Britney Spears "Baby One More Time"

Fleetwood Mac "Dreams"

Bon Jovi "You Give Love A Bad Name"

Linda Ronstadt "Just One Look"

Lauryn Hill "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You"

Jewel "You Were Meant For Me"

Guns & Roses "November Rain"

Fiona Apple "Criminal"

Pat Benatar "Promises in the Dark"

Edwin McCain "I'll Be"

The Little Mermaid "Part Of Your World"

Bread "Make It With You"

Week one I started with a little 'Dirty Dancing' super-set and then went into my new song of the night "Comedown" by Bush which actually went really well.  I also tried to add some more new music to my history so I brought in some Linda Ronstadt the past few weeks.  My new song the second week was "Everlong" by the Foo Fighters, and that is a difficult song to Karaoke.  It starts so low but gets really high, of course, Dave Grohl's incredible voice!  I'll have to figure out the right key for that one for next time.  Then it was duets for the rest of the night.  I kept it 80's and 90's the third week with my new song being "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You" doing Lauryn Hill's version.  It's a little more fun and do-wop.  Our final week of March Karaoke, my Mom was there, so I had a bunch of friends stop in to visit with her and sing, so my new song was Bread's "Make It With You."  Mom had never heard me sing "I'll Be" or "Part Of Your World" and Jamie and I also sang "Take Me Or Leave Me" from 'Rent.'

It was a great month of Karaoke and since April marks my four year anniversary of Hosting Karaoke at Gabe's we'll be doing something special and have a Theme Night!