Vacation at home



Playing tourist in a place where I've spent more than 98% of my life (after doing the math, I've only lived approximately 1.67% of my life outside of California) is a little odd.

Last week I went with my father to the island of Catalina for a day trip.  Definitely worth a day trip, unless you become part of the publicly available (for two bucks) private beach where you can get toasted with booze while you toast your tootsies.  The pops and I went on two tours, one of the island via bus (complete with stomach churning puns) and another one of the famous casino in Avalon (where there has never ever been gambling).  Sadly, we didn't go on the famous zipline, but with my father's knee replacement surgery just a few days away, it will have to wait until another trip post recovery.  Despite being able to see it from Irvine on a clear day, this was the first time I set foot on the island.  And considering the water coming out of Balboa harbor, I was shocked at how crystal clear the water was in Avalon bay (a mere 22 miles away... according to the Catalina Flyer which does the trip twice daily; alas, not as catchy as the song). 

Then Sunday I went with my mother to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA).  We went to see the exhibit on Tim Burton's work.  I'd show you pictures, however photography and phones were prohibited from being used.  Heck, they didn't even want you to look too hard at some of the art and sculptures.  They covered some of his work from Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare before Christmas, The Corpse Bride, and several of his other movie ventures.  Oh!  Did I mention they're turning Frankenweenie into a full length movie in stop motion animation?  But honestly, does it compare to the charm of the live action short with Shelly Duvall as the mom?  With that heart wrenching scene in the windmill of the mini-golf course?