L.A. Earthquake 4.4 Magnitude

My toddler didn't sleep very well last night. He woke up at midnight, then at 1am so I went in there and comforted him back to sleep. After that, I went back to bed but was rudely awakened at 4:04am by some shaking of the house. The Pico Rivera earthquake scared me and it sounded like a slow rumble which gradually got louder and then subsided. It felt like about 5 seconds but really scared me. I got up and went to my toddlers' room to check on him, but then it stopped (he didn't even wake up). It took me a while to go back to sleep because it reminded me of the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

Flash back to 1994, Sunday night at some apartment complex off the USC campus. That is where I was living at the time with 4 other roommates. We were partying that night because Monday was Martin Luther King day and we didn't have classes. I think I passed out that night around 1am and then woke up at 4:30am to the Northridge earthquake. We were on the third floor of the building and it literally felt like someone was shaking the entire building. It lasted a long time and the tremors lasted for a couple days. Books were falling of the shelf and lamps were falling, quite an experience especially after having one too many beers.

A few days later we went to Northridge to visit a friend of mines' house and the surrounding areas. The damage was unbelievable. 3 story parking structures crumbled down to rubble. Apartment complexes that collapsed and nothing visible of the first floor. A very shocking site.

I think the moral of the story is to beware of earthquakes at 4 in the morning...

Pasadena Marathon - an excuse for neighbors to connect

Being parents to a little one with preschool, music classes, sports class, etc. we are not great at reading the newspaper on the weekend. We stay in touch with the world during the week scanning the NY Times, LA Times, CNN and for my wife, TMZ, daily during the week for news, but on weekends - forget it. Yes, we are ignorant folk. So, it was with surprise that we noticed cones and a port-a-potty on our street (thanks God, across the WIDE street) for the Pasadena marathon, which for the first time, had changed course and was coming down our street on Sunday.

At 7 a.m., just as my son was eating breakfast, we saw the first bicyclist come through. (See photo of the first bicyclist) It was so entertaining screaming and cheering them on. They needed and wanted it. We saw moms riding while pulling their babies in carts, we saw women with little dogs in baskets and, of course, serious riders that flew by at tremendous speeds. It was so exciting as many of our neighbors stood outside cheering them on. About two hours later, the runners came through as well (see photo). Again, I was so impressed with the diversity of the group, young kids, senior citizens, families, even those with political agendas like the photo above of the man wearing a dress to promote the legalization of gay marriage.

For the neighborhood, it was such a street party. We got to catch up with all our neighbors, a few of which we had not seen for a while - even though we wave daily as they drive by in their cars on the way to work. I made oatmeal cookies to share, one neighbor made chili, the kids handed out jolly ranchers to the runners for a mile 19 sugar burst, and the young ones played in the front yard watching the spectacle and happy all their families and friends were near by...it was such a special experience. Yes, a modern day Mayberry!

Harlem Globetrotters, Drew Carey, Tommy Lasorda and more

The Harlem Globetrotters offered me and my family free tickets to see the show here in Los Angeles. Being a fan since childhood, I was thrilled. (I had actually entered every HGT giveaway I could find online before we got the tickets becuase I wanted to go so bad!)

The show was everything I had remembered enjoying as a kid and more. And I was not alone. The audience was full of exited parents who you could tell felt like kids all over again. They were there with their little ones who were seeing the amazing basketball tricks, water bucket gags, flips and tricks that are synonymous with this amazing basketball team, for the first time. As if the tricks and stunts weren't enough, the place was full of celebrities. We sat just two rows behind VH1's "Best Week Ever" comedian, Paul Scheer, and not far from professional basketball player Doug Christie. Christie had a ball, cheering on the HGT players and applauding and putting one hand up at each dunk. (I wondered what the HGT players must have thought of having this pro baller cheer them on - so great.) The show began by honoring Los Angeles Dodgers manager, Tommy Lasorda. (See his white hair, light blue sweater between the players??) Comedian Drew Carey tossed the coin with his son to begin the game. With their opponents, the Washington Generals down, the challenging team brought in some Hollywood star power of their own - Flea, the Red Hot Chili Peppers' bassist. Dressed in the opponent's green uniform, he ran up and down the court, playing with the big guys (and dealing with all the "your small as a flea" jokes) until drawing a foul. Lined up for his free-throw shots, Flea Took five attempts, but unfortunately, did not make a single basket. The crowd was cheering him on the entire time and applauded his effort and you could tell he was living a dream come true.

Back to the game, the entire show was about 3 hours in length, with 4 quarters of playtime interuppted by Globey - the HGT mascott who dances like Beyonce, knocks down giant Campbell's Soup cans (a sponsor) with his body and helps keep the audience entertained. By the end, our son was very tired, but we all agreed it was a wonderful break for the entire family. My wife loved the celebrity spotting and the funny tricks, my son loved it all, I loved watching the amazing dunks and my brother who loves basketball loved watching the professional players playing the sport he loved, but with the dunks and tricks that are not allowed in the NBA. We were thrilled to share this experience with our little one and plan to return again and again. Thank you, Harlem Globetrotters, for reminding us what fun is all about.

Disclaimer: In compliance with the FTC, The Harlem Globetrotters provided me with free product, information and tickets through Coyne Public Relations. All opinions are my own.

Spin Art - Party Trend

We've been to a couple birthday parties for the toddler set lately and the cool party item is the paint spinner. You put a piece of paper in the spinning machine, drop little drops of paint and spin away. When the spinner stops you have unique pieces of art. They rent machines for about $40, but we bought inexpensive, paper spin-it-yourself versions at Michaels Crafts Stores for just a few dollars. Either way, it's loads of fun.

Harlem Globetrotters Giveaway!

I can hear the theme of the Harlem Globetrotters in my head right now, Sweet Georgia Brown! As a kid I remember going to a couple of the shows and I remember that the Washington Generals always lost. I also remember Curly Neal sliding around dribbling on his knees and I thought that was the coolest thing ever. The classic staple of the show was when they came out with a bucket of water and they pretended to throw the water on the audience. Somehow, they always switched the bucket of water for a bucket of confetti. Good times.

2010 marks the 84th season for the Globetrotters as they do their "Magical Memories” World Tour to over 215 cities across the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. In February, they come to southern California! I can't wait to share this experience with my toddler!

Discount Tickets!!! Use the code HGMOM to get a $7 discount for each ticket purchased*. Ticket prices do vary slightly at the various arenas, but they typically average $25 each, thus allowing a family of four to save $28 in total. Go to http://www.harlemglobetrotters.com/ locate a game in your area and purchase tickets using the promotional code: HGMOM to redeem the coupon.

*Please Note:
-Not valid on VIP or courtside seats
-Available online only
-Valid until the day before the show

GIVEAWAY!!!

The giveaway will include a Harlem Globetrotter mini-basketball, authentic Globetrotter wristbands, an autographed Harlem Globetrotter team photo and a 2010 game program. Giveaway ends February 12th, 2010.

How to enter?

Mandatory (1 entry) - Follow my blog and add a comment on why you like the Globetrotters

Extra entries

Add my button - 5 entries (add one comment for each entry and leave me the link to your site)

Blog about the giveaway and link to my site - 5 entries (post one comment for each entry)

Tweet about the giveaway - 1 entry

Disclaimer: In compliance with the FTC, The Harlem Globetrotters provided me with free product, information and tickets through Coyne Public Relations. All opinions are my own.

Gold Class Cinema Review

If you're looking to treat yourself to the latest new release out in the theaters and you have a little extra money to burn, then Gold Class Cinemas is the place to go. Currently, they only have 4 locations in the United States with 2 in Illinois, one in Washington, and one in Pasadena, CA. Now, why would you want to spend $22 per ticket compared to $11.50? Let me tell you why.

Sure, it's a little more expensive and I will only go on special occassions, but the experience is one not to forget. The waiting area has a full bar with nice seating to relax before and after the movie. Each theater occupies about 50 people and is well equiped with very comfortable recliners. Similar to an airline flight in first class, they offer you a nice pillow and blanket to make your stay more comfortable. The left arm rest opens so you can put your personal belongings (jacket,purse) and each pair of chairs has a call button for your waiter.The menu consists of appetizers, wine, beer, main courses, or dessert. And don't forget your traditional gourmet popcorn as well. I went with my wife and inlaws and we ordered a nice bottle of pinot noir, some popcorn, and a cookie tray. I must say that the popcorn was top notch and the cookies were out of this world! There weren't that many, but they had some chocolate cookies, shortbread cookies, and something else that was very delicious! It wasn't the wine talking either.

The experience was a memorable one and a fun adventure. It's worth checking out if you have one nearby. Oh ya, we saw a movie while we were there too. We saw Sherlock Holmes with Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law. The movie was not great and it dragged on a little, but it was entertaining.

Robert Downey Jr.'s performance was average and his accent slipped a little from time to time, but more and more I am impressed with his acting. Over the last couple years he has done Iron Man, Tropic Thunder, The Soloist, and more. I used to hate him, but now I'm a fan.

In the old words of Siskel and Ebert, for those of you that are old enough to remember them. We gave the entire movie experience Two Thumbs Up!

Burke Williams Spa Review

For the last six months I've been a pretty high stress individual. Fortunately enough for me, my wife recognized that before Christmas and she got me a 50 minute spa treatment at Burke Williams. Although I loved the idea of getting a relaxing massage, I was very hesitant because I had only had one other massage before in my life and that was a couples massage on our honeymoon in Tahiti.

I arrived 30 minutes early and walked around the place. I had just enough time to check out the steam room and then get ready for my massage. So far so good, right? I went to the waiting room and was finally received for my massage. I signed up for a 50 minute pure relaxation massage and it was fantastic! Next time I need to find out what those warm bags of rocks were that they put under my neck. Very relaxing and I was able to put my mind at ease and not have a care in the world.

The one thing that kind of annoyed me was that about 10 minutes into the massage the lady said that I indeed had a lot of stress points and that I could benefit from a deep tissue massage for an extra $20. Now, I wasn't sure if she was telling the truth or if it was standard practice to try to upsell each customer into a better massage. I declined and then quickly forgot about it.

After the massage, I used the steam room and the dry sauna. I think I was there for almost 3 hours. The experience was awesome and I was so relaxed after it! I thanked my wife and I told her that she should get one too. Then I told her that I wanted to go on a quarterly basis and she laughed. I'm sure I'll go back soon...