Today I realized that Matt and I have been in California for over 6 months. I'm not sure what to think about that. Sometimes I feel like we just got here and know so little about CA, but other times it seems like we've been here longer and have our little routine. Perhaps this is normal and everybody who moves gets this.
I also realized that I have been very bad and not updated this in 2 months! That is what happens when you're finally employed after having nothing to do for so long - you are perpetually tired and don't blog.
So here is a recapping of our lives since mid March:
I've been working at two jobs 6 or 7 days a week. The first is for Penzey's Spices - a retail spice shop that is family owned and headquartered in Wisconsin. I talk about food and cooking all day and get a 30% discount which means I've had to clean out another shelf in the kitchen for all the stuff I bring home to play with (Smoked Paprika! Freeze Dried Garlic! Vietnamese Cinnamon!).
The other job is for The Misfit, a restaurant that describes itself as a "Bar with Great Food" in downtown Santa Monica right off the promenade. I run around for hours like a crazy person serving food and drinks while wearing a brass pin that says "The Misfit 59" which makes absolutely no sense because the numbers don't mean anything. We don't even know what numbers each of us have and there are only 32 servers so clearly it is just a weird thing that leaves holes in my work shirts.
Matt has been doing very well at work. He has been in charge of his station for months now and has made it much more cohesive than it was when he started. Also, he has been going into work early a few days a week to spend time in the fish box. This is a room specially for the prepping of the whole seafood that comes to the restaurant in a temperature controlled environment. He wants to learn how to do all of it and then be able to move to another station. One of the people who works with the fish currently is leaving in July so hopefully when he goes Matt can move up and take his place. In the meantime I’m enjoying all of his practicing.
One totally bullshit (and bizarre) thing that happened at Matt's work on April 7th is a hobo stole his backpack. The back door to the restaurant must have been open during service and some random loser waltzed on in and up the stairs to the break room where he took only Matt's bag and then walked back out. This really blew chunks. He lost his credit card, license, keys, brand new pair of jeans, a t-shirt, his epi-pen, not to mention the bag itself. Luckily he cancelled the cards before anything was charged and of course everything is replaceable, but what an awful mess. He had to get a ride home to get the spare key for his truck and then go back to work and drive home again all at 1am after working for 12 hours.
When things like that happen you realize what a MAJOR pain in the ass getting stuff taken care of can be (and of course, that some people really suck). Here are some of the stupid things we've encountered that wouldn't have been a problem otherwise:
1. Our PO Box - we now only have my key and when we went to the Post Office to get a replacement for him they gave us the option of ordering a new one which will cost $9 and take 2 MONTHS. Or we could have the lock changed for $65. Craptastick. We went with ordering a new one, but in the meantime I'm the only one who can get the mail.
2. Getting a California License - we luckily already had an appointment at the DMV for the next day after this happened so in theory getting Matt a new license should not have been an issue. Except that of course it was. Because he didn't have his RI ID, even though he is a legally licensed driver and is in the system, they wouldn't let him get a CA one. They told him to call RI and have them fax over proof. Because of the time difference the RI DMV was already closed by the time we found this out. When he called them the next day they said that in RI they just won't fax the info, oh no, you have to send them a written letter requesting the info along with a check for $13.50 (????? why such an arbitrary #) and then they will mail a piece of paper back to you. This took 2 weeks to get. Then he had to go back to the DMV here and then wait ANOTHER 2 weeks to get the thing in the mail. So a process that was started April 8th didn't end until the mail came on May 6th.
*** on a side note here I got my California state ID while we were at the DMV and when it came in the mail I couldn't wait to see how the picture turned out. It is hilarious. I look shocked or scared of something and weirdly shiny:
3. Epi-pen Replacement - this one bugs me more than the others because it is a safety issue. Matt is dangerously allergic to certain nuts and while every effort is made to keep those few away, this is life and things can happen. Especially with him working in a kitchen, and the fact that we eat out and something could go wrong. I have benadryl in my purse and in the car and the house and in his work bag, but having the epi-pen also is necessary. Maybe there isn't time for him to ingest a pill, or his throat is too swollen to even take one. But we don't have health insurance and he doesn't even have a primary care doctor in RI that we could have call in a prescription. So to get another one Matt would have to make a Dr. appointment with a random person, pay out of pocket for both the visit and any tests they do to prove that he is indeed allergic, and then pay for a new damn pen. We are still sleeping on an air mattress so it's not like we've got cash laying around for stuff like this. Ugh.
4. New backpack - haven't even gotten one yet, he's been using a crappy little one of mine to tide him over until he finds a normal one that he loves.
And the list could go on - he lost pens he really likes, a good chapstick, and don't get me started on the $1000 Toyota wants to change the truck locks and get him new keys. Just annoying . . .
In much more fun news I got to spend a whole hour with friends from RI who had a layover at LAX and were able to take a taxi to Santa Monica to hang out with me. We went to a little wine bar for a drink and a snack, then had a celebratory shot of Jameson, before they headed back East. It was great to see home folks :) Miss you Marisa and Andy!!
One day that we both had off Matt and I decided to go for a little walk in the Malibu Hills with a picnic lunch. It was a lovely sunny day and only a 30 minute drive along the coast to get to Malibu Creek State park. We’d stopped and got a snack at a deli before we left and when we got to the park we found a nice place with a view to eat. Then we walked around for a bit before realizing that we were both wearing sandals and the trails were actually REALLY steep. So our hike turned into more of a friendly meander than anything strenuous. Still great though. I want to go back sometime with sneakers . . .
About 3 weeks ago Matt and I grabbed a little sushi for dinner and on the drive home he had an overwhelming craving for pie. I looked on yelp for nearby restaurants with pie and a place called Swingers Diner popped up. He ran in to get a slice with some ice cream to go and when he came out he gave me the receipt. I think this is great . . .
The biggest thing that happened recently is Matt got older. Of course we’re all older all the time, but he is now a whole number older than last time I wrote. So what did we do for his birthday?
First, “Good Morning”, breakfast and presents:
Then Beach and Lunch:
Next Dinner:
And this, dear readers, is where it got interesting. Matt had wanted to go to this one particular restaurant since before we lived in LA. When I asked him a month ago where he would like to eat on his birthday and gave a bunch of options, this was the top of his list. I was so happy to get a reservation because it was a Friday night and it can be very hard to get into places here. So far, so good. We got dressed up and drove to Red Medicine, a vietnamese inspired restaurant, in Beverly Hills.
The locale was cute, we got a great table, and the cocktails we started with were delicious.
Because it was a special occasion we ordered their tasting menu with wine pairings. The first dish came to the table, and this is where it all went horribly wrong.
Looks pretty, doesn’t it? Did not taste as good as it looks. And yet, for me this was the best one of the night (which is really saying something). I knew in advance that I wasn’t going to be able to eat everything and that was ok because I figured Matt would be thrilled to eat more. But after course after course of oddly seasoned, weirdly flavored and over-garnished food came to the table it became clear that we were both going to leave hungry. It became a game of, how can we make it look like we ate some of this, without really having to eat any of it because it is BAD.
Here is what the menu said we were going to be enjoying:
Yes, food did come to the table. Food approached us for 3 whole hours, accompanied by different wines and even a beer. But in the end it was really just an expensive place to sit and drink with food as decoration. So disappointing. We have no idea what the chef is thinking with some of that crap. Why does any dish need so much greenery that you have to dig through it to find your meal? Look at this monstrosity they sent out:
And in a fish bowl no less. Like that is easy to eat out of even after the floral arrangement is removed from the top.
The whole evening became sort of a job with Matt and I trying to figure out what stuff was and then not eating it. For example, what the hell do you think this is?? I certainly don't remember. Looks like a piece of toast hiding under a bush.
Finally it was time for dessert. Matt was excited because he had heard the desserts were really good so he actually had high hopes, even after all the savory stuff was awful. He did like it. He liked the first 3 bites. Then he looked up and said “You know, after a while it kind of tastes like soap”
To “finish us off” we were brought a last treat from the kitchen. By this point I hadn’t even bothered to try anything for at least 2 hours but brave Matt went for it.
His verdict: “Looks like a funny wedding hat. Nice wood sorrel. Don’t eat it”
So that was our dinner. The worst best meal ever. We had a great time with each other, and the fact that it was just so horrible quickly became funny so there wasn’t disappointment - disbelief, yes, and fits of the giggles but not disappointment.
So that brings us to the end of the wrap up. We don’t have any big plans for the immediate future as of now. Probably going to just keep on keeping on.
