National Coffee Day

September 29th is National Coffee Day.  Now, I haven't heard of it until this year, however everyone seems to be celebrating.  Time to get in on the action.  In the link below, there is a short story about the possible origin of one of the most traded and consumed commodities in the world.  There is also a link inside the link to some of the coffee companies around the U.S. that will be participating in free or discounted coffee drinks for the holiday.  It's definitely worth the few clicks.  Not included in their list is Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (one of my favorite coffee places).  At participating locations, they will be offering 1/2 off iced coffee, flavored iced coffee or iced americano drinks all day.

I'm looking forward to celebrating but not really sure where I will end up.  Possibly a new cafe to explore?  Or a favorite cup at home with the husband and Nugget.  I could also meet with friends, maybe even over Skype.  Share with me how you celebrate.  Take it in, savor the break in the day, snap a photo.  That little cup is more then just a drink.  It's an international symbol to relax and bond.
A friend of mine recently sent me a shirt for the holiday.  I'll be sporting it wherever I end up.  The shirt's message rings true, everyday is National Coffee Day.  Enjoy.


http://nationaldaycalendar.com/national-coffee-day-september-29/

Free Sample Review

My older sister is signed up with Ralph's grocery store.  They email her coupons for new products or items that companies want people to try and it's all free.  She just goes in on the day they state and pick up the item.  No charge.  Over the years she has gotten some good stuff and some stuff she'd rather pass on.  If she gets something that she's allergic to or thinks someone else would like more then herself, she will pass it along.  So when she sent me a text asking if I preferred vanilla, cappuccino, or mocha, I knew a sample was coming my way.
The coupon was for Skinny Cow Creamy Iced Coffee.  Naturally, I chose the mocha latte flavor.  She picked it up and delivered it to me.  Skinny Cow makes a lot of great tasting, low calorie products.  The reason stands because they use regular ingredients but the portion size is majorly controlled.  So when my sister handed me this tiny 8 ounce bottle, I wasn't shocked, but my inner fat American felt a little sad.  To make things seem normal, I used an 8 ounce mug.  Not a very common sight in my vast mug collection.  (For years, this mug was used as just a pencil holder on my desk.  The Batz Maru character is my favorite from the Hello Kitty family, so I loved looking at it when I wrote letters.  It was a gift from my mate, who now sees it was only one of many mugs he would be getting for me over our long friendship.)
With my "full" cup of iced coffee, I sat down and relaxed for a bit.  It was delicious.  A rich, creamy flavor, so I didn't feel like I was drinking diet coffee.  I would definitely get it again and even try the other flavors.  They come single serve or in a four pack in 3 flavors.  I look forward to seeing what other free stuff my sister will share with me.  Trying new things is fun.

It's Never Too Late For A New Favorite

My mom has lived in the same area code her entire life.  Of that, she's lived in the same vicinity for roughly the last two decades.  In Reseda, in the Loehmann's Plaza, sits a cafe, that in all the years my family has been going to that plaza, we hadn't tried until now.
The store Loehmann's, which was a clothing store, in the Loehmann's Plaza has long closed, but the name stays.  For the most part, the same stores have been there for forever.  CVS, Vons, Pizza Hut, Kaye's Music Scene, and Carl's Junior are all still there.  Gone is the Blockbuster Video and KayBee Toys.  It's the new home for Fab Dogs, a terrific hot dog joint, made famous on Diner's, Drive-in's, and Dives on the Food Network.  It got too famous for it's old location and moved here to continue gifting the world with their bacon wrapped hot dogs and genuine Chicago dogs.  Next to Kaye's is a cafe that I swear has been there for forever.  Glass front windows and colorful high-backed booths for outdoor seating always looked inviting but we always felt they would be too expensive.  We never gave them a chance.  It turns out, Roladin Bakery and Cafe is a fabulous little Mediterranean restaurant with good prices and simple, clean, inviting decor on the inside as well.
The Little One, her techie friend, and myself needed to run errands and the plaza had most of the stores we needed.  We hadn't had breakfast or coffee yet, so we thought now is as good a time as any to give them a shot.  The three of us walk in and behind the large glass bakery counter, we're greeted by a couple of girls who show us to our seats and hand us each a tall, spiral bound menu.  This menu has everything.  Breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks, desserts, and a huge section of coffees.  Before we order, a pretty, cold bottle of water was brought for the table as well as some Turkish appetizers.
We each order breakfast, which the portion sizes are huge, and a coffee drink.  The Little One ordered a blended iced mocha.  Chocolate was poured down the sides of the glass and it was topped with java chips.  Her friend ordered a cappuccino that came with pretty design in the foam.  For myself, I thought I would try a house specialty.  The Roladin Dream is a hot coffee with caramel and white chocolate.  The white chocolate isn't just an added powder.  It was white chocolate chips melted into the coffee.  It was sweet and rich and at the bottom of the mug was a pool of leftover melted white chocolate.  All the coffees were great and so was the food.  We didn't have room to try anything from the bakery case but we're sure to revisit soon.
We rolled out, very full and very satisfied.  We needed to walk off some of our recent indulging.  Lucky for us, they turned the old Blockbuster into a Petco Unleased.  Buying cat food and litter was next on our errands list.  And we may have needed to check out the newest Star Wars cat toys.

What Dreams are made of.

Cappuccino.

Blended iced mocha.

I liked the big landmark photos hanging above the booths.

Fiesta For The Bride To Be

If you're from L.A., you know the term, "South of the Boulevard" means the upscale-ish or desirable neighborhoods just south of Ventura Boulevard in the San Fernando Valley.  My high school was "South of the Boulevard".  A large portion of the student body lives in that area as well.  I haven't thought much about it until I recently attended my co-worker's bridal shower.
Our Disney team, as I've said before, is more of a small, wonderful family, then of a place of cold laborers.  My co-worker and her fiance have been together a long time, so our store was overjoyed when they announced their engagement.  Her best friend, that she has known almost her whole life, was hosting her fiesta themed bridal shower, at her house, South of the Boulevard.  The guest list was all women, including the bride's family, childhood friends, co-workers from her other job, and the Disney Store family.  Our family took up two large tables, filled with the old and current teams that she has worked with.
In the backyard of this big, beautiful house, there was bold colored tablecloths, stunning floral centerpieces, a fun photo op spot with props, traditional paper banners, lots of delicious homemade food, and a margarita/sangria station.  The bridesmaids offered tropical Jell-o shots between courses while the guests fanned themselves with sequined folding fans.  The weather was perfect to be outdoors, laughing and eating.  As the sun set, we played some shower games.  One of the games gave some of the guests a chance to tell stories about the bride.  Another game found us decorating each other in toilet paper wedding gowns, complete with accessories.  Our bride even had a paper guarder and a paper diamond ring.  The last game was a version of musical chairs, but instead of moving chairs, the guests passed a bouquet of flowers around until the music stopped.  If they had the bouquet when the music ended, they were out.  Out of all the guests, it was down to two of our own girls.  The bride laughed as our 20-year Disney veteran waved the winning bouquet around and teased the other girls with it.
During and after the games was dessert and coffee.  Traditional Mexican candies and desserts were laid out buffet style.  The coffee was in a tall metal container and I was hoping that it too, would be traditional.  I was not disappointed.  Mexican coffee has spices, including cinnamon, that give it an almost soft, chai coffee taste.  If you have never tried it, I highly suggest you bring a big mug and dive right in.
The bride moved on to opening her shower presents.  Our big boss at work suggested that ever bag that came from our store include a sexy piece of lingerie.  "A little something for the honeymoon *wink*"  So along with a stack of cards wishing her and her fiance a lifetime of happiness, there was knife sets, mixing bowls, and tiny pieces of floss that is intended as underwear.  It was a blast!
The bride is ready for the big day and it's fast approaching.  Like myself, the bride had attended the same high school that was "South of the Boulevard".  Though she was a different year, she had a lot of the same teachers.  It's really awesome how our Disney family is so intertwined through many of life's paths.  She has worked with our team for many years and I know we all can not wait to see their happily ever after.

Easy, Breezy Evening

My idea of perfect weather changes based on my situation.  Sure, A crisp autumn day with a few clouds in the sky is ideal but if I'm gonna be at work during that optimum outdooriness, then I get upset.  I feel like it's a perfectly good day, wasted.  During this summer's heat, there isn't many days that I enjoy the weather, working or not.  However, there was an evening not too long ago that it was nice enough out to go for a hot drink and a stroll.
The Little Boss had had two workout classes during the day, and I had run errands with my sister.  We decided that we should meet up for coffee and some girly gossiping.
The Calabasas Commons is a shopping center near each of our houses with restaurants, a movie theater, a bookstore, and a fountain with live turtles in it.  Not gonna lie, that little fountain with the turtles is really cool.  I've not seen another like it anywhere else around here.  We picked the Corner Bakery for coffee but once we got there, my mood changed.  She still had some of her post-workout smoothie so she didn't order anything, but as the sun was setting, I felt like tea instead of a heavy coffee.  Specifically, mint tea.
The tea was exactly what I wanted.  The subtle mint flavor matched the quickly cooling summer air.
I got my cup of tea and we picked a spot on the side of the restaurant with a few shady trees.  We talked about the drama at the hotel and how they had offered me a job again but it was just my same position with 5 more added tasks, for less then a dollar more an hour.  Uh- no.
The sun finally set and we still had the rest the night to free to do whatever, so we called up another coworker of ours and told her to come meet us.  The Little Boss and I took a stroll to the bookstore at the other end of the Commons.
This Barnes and Noble has been there as long as I can remember and is one of the few chain retail bookstores left.  I usually buy all my books at libraries in their various used bookstores, but Barnes and Noble has a great selection of action figures, journals, and notecards that still brings me in.  As we walked around waiting for our friend, I was trying to explain something I saw online earlier in the week.  It was a set of sticky-note paper bookmarks that can be mixed and matched to create scenes at the top of your books.  Check out this link to see what I was talking about.

http://www.boredpanda.com/miniature-sticky-paper-bookmark-worlds-duncan-shotton/
 
I couldn't remember where I'd seen it until a few days later.  You could say having a bookmark would have helped.  See what I did there...
Our friend finally arrived.  We finished up our browse around the store and went outside where we found a table with exactly three chair and no one around to bother us.  The weather was perfect to just sit and catch up but we lost track of time.  After several hours of enjoying the night air and each others company, we went our separate ways home.

SORRY, Not Sorry

Every year for my mom's birthday, we do pretty much the same thing, but she loves it.  We get the three daughters together for board games, cake, and hang time.  Mom's board game of choice is SORRY.  Old school, but it's her favorite.  I'm almost always yellow.   This year was no different.
I drove through McDonald's to grab coffee for the Little One and I before heading to mom's house.  Our usual Frappe's on a hot July day.   We watched a little tv and then let the games begin.
With my older sister joining us, the four of us sat down at the table for a family fun game of SORRY.  This particular game was intense up until the last minute.  All four of us were neck and neck down to each having three guys in home and one in the safety zone.  In the end, I won.  I'm sure it was thanks to my super secret strategy.  I try to keep a man in the start for the entire game, if I can, so if a SORRY card is pulled, I can use it long after everyone else has all their characters out and almost home. I get a quick skip ahead and crush the competition.  Just after the first few rounds, everyone else has already pulled all their men out so the SORRY card is useless to them.  Wait, my mom reads my blog?!  My secret's out.
After a couple of games, it was cake time.  We got a store bought chocolate cake.  It was dense but not too heavy.  My sister brought Brownie Bites that we put chocolate frosting on top of.  When cake time was done, we were all thoroughly chocolate wasted.
Flowers given, presents opened, games played, and cake devoured, mom had a great day.  Can't wait to do it all again next year.

Little One always gets the large mocha without whipped cream.  Mine the small with.  Sugar!

Must Go Back

The Little Boss took a cruise to Greece so we got together to grab coffee and catch up.  We picked the new center in Westlake Village to find a place.  There is lots of options to chose from there, including In N Out, Tifa's other location, and what we ended up choosing, which was Jeannie's.  A friend of ours referred to it as pricey but once inside, it's more like getting what you pay for.  (Officially: Jeannie's Gourmet Food Hall)  It's called a gourmet food hall as when you enter, you are greeted with several locations that grab your attention.  To the left is the baked goods and coffee counter, straight in front of you is a cafeteria style, long counter, to your left, passed a small sitting area, is a gorgeous bar with bar seating, booths, and tables with clear, acrylic chairs.  At first, it can be slightly overwhelming but then you understand what's going on.  This is not a normal sit down style restaurant.  It's more of a boutique, fun restaurant, possibly something you would see Downtown.  Offering it's breakfast menu until 3pm and happy hour everyday, featuring options like a cheese platter, sushi, and flatbreads, it definitely not the norm for restaurants in the valley.
During our visit together, the weather was nice so we sat out front.  A slightly private, shaded patio faced the fountain that sat in front of the restaurants across from us.   We saw some really relaxed seating areas with glass fireplaces that look like they would be wonderful to have a glass of wine at.  Little boss and I ordered our food and started chatting it up while we waited for them to make our food and find our number card.  All of her pictures from her trip were saved to her laptop but she shared with me a stunning panoramic of the boat leaving Venice while she told me about the ports they stopped at and the hikes they took.  She didn't have a lot of time for shopping but did bring me back two postcards.
My coffee arrived first.  A delicious, creamy mocha.  As I drank, the inside of the mug revealed a message: Love has no... well, I don't know what the rest of the message said because I had been caught up in the Little Boss's stories.  I'm sure it was something profound, like Love has no unknown karate moves.  Ok, maybe not.
Her flatbread was fresh and tasty and my side order of French toast was massive.  For some reason, all the dinnerware had the restaurant's name branded on it.  The napkins too.  Everything was great.  My mocha didn't have the sandy chocolate remnants that come with some coffees and our food left us satisfied.  Definitely a place where you could split a meal and dessert and not break the bank or your belt buckle.
We were too close to Tifa to not get gelato after, so a strawberry basil for me and she mixed up a coffee with lemon pistachio.  They gave us little rolled cookies in it for free.

The fountain is to the left from this view.

Bye Bye Venice!

Tifa always has the prettiest fresh flowers.