Tinker Art: Phoning It In

*See OWOH note at bottom of the page!

Because I haven't been writing here much recently - at least not the way I used to - it almost feels like I"ve been phoning it in, lately...and because, frankly, I don't get out much, so I have to make the most of when I do - this may be one of my long posts. I've been feeling a ramble coming on.

So while we're waiting to do the OneWorldOneHeart drawing later tonight (if you haven't entered already, you can still enter mine here on this linked POST, ~~till midnight Pacific time~~ (see note at bottom of page) - and there are HUNDREDS of other drawings to be found over HERE, at Lisa's - our amazing OWOH hostess) - meanwhile, to pass the time, I thought I'd share a little of our latest roadtrip to the big city with you. Even though you're probably busy entering all of the drawings. But just in case you're done with all that, or trying to fall asleep, or have absolutely nothing else better to do while waiting for all the drawing winners to be announced...Here's my long-winded, rambling tale (if you're crunched for time you can skip to paragraph 4 to find out the gist of the story and click onwards). But for those who are insomniacs - this could be better than a sleeping pill. Or if you just like to read something without having to keep clicking while you eat lunch...I know I probably shouldn't eat while on the computer and get crumbs all over the keyboard - but sometimes I like finding a long post, that will take me through the whole sandwich or whatever, so maybe I'm not alone -- or maybe I am and I'm just imagining all of you out there - if you are imaginary, please don't dash my illusions - leave me an imaginary comment, 'kay? Or better yet, a real one. Anyway, if you're not done eating, or asleep yet - here's the long of it:

We live just far enough from LA, that I almost think of it as being in another state - or at least a state of mind -- and no matter how often I've been there over the years, it seems whenever I go back there, I end up feeling (and acting) like a tourist in my own state.

The traffic has gotten even crazier over the years, so I don't head out that way nearly as often as I once did, but every now and then, there will be some compelling reason or big attraction that I can't resist, so I'll venture out that way -- after gathering my courage around me like a cloak of invincibility (I'd wrap my cloak of invisibility around me too, but that might not be safe in LA traffic, where you just hope they see you in time to put on their brakes). Then after circling some of the endless freeways in bumper to bumper traffic, I scurry back to my little country mouse hole at the end of the day. Monday was on of those days - the kind where I feel like a tourist in my own state (wait, I said that already, didn't I? Well, just in case anyone else forgot that point too, I'll leave it in...)

We had a 'girls day out' in the big city, to see a taping of a show (I don't want to end up on every little google search for the show, so I'll just say that it starts with an 'E' and ends with an 'N' - and though I'm not much of a TV viewer, especially during the day - but if and when I ever do occasionally turn on the TV in the late afternoon - it's to see this show, because it's so upbeat and she makes me laugh, even if she doesn't like glitter ;) So that's basically the shorter, reader's digest condensed version of the story, if you're done eating lunch already, or just about to fall asleep - or want to go check out some more of the drawings, go ahead - you can always come back later, if you want. I won't hold it against you. I prob'ly wouldn't even know...(or would I? mwa-ha-ha-HA! Just kidding. Go ahead - this post is about as long as our tour...)

For those of you still eating lunch - or trying to fall asleep -- here's the rest of the story:

My youngest snagged us tickets to a TV show taping, so the three of us - my daughters and myself -- made all sorts of complicated car, work, childcare and other contingency arrangements, then ventured out into the pouring rain, occasional hail, and possible potential snow closures (oh those wacky, bored LA weathermen - we so seldom get real weather around here, I guess they have to make the most of it when we do get a little) -- for a road trip to beautiful downtown - um, Burbank...

Yes, I know - Burbank is technically not LA, but you wouldn't necessarily know that from the looks of it. LA has sprawled out so much, it's hard to tell anymore, where one city ends and another begins -- so in my smalltown imaginary mind map, pretty much anything west of Pasadena just gets lumped into a map file labelled 'LA - Here there be movie stars. And possibly crazed zombies.'

For those of you just tuning in - the cast of characters on this roadtrip, are: Me - mom/grandma/tinkering artist - and my daughters, B and um, B (really should have thought that whole initial thing out better when naming them - but Al Gore hadn't invented the internets yet, when my Bee girls were born) . So to differentiate, there's Cookie - my eldest, journalist-and-mom of-my-grandgirls-daughter, and Bonbon, my youngest, bride-to-be, but-still-at-home-for-3-more-months-daughter.

When you're on a roadtrip, your travelling companions - and a healthy sense of humor -- make all the diffierence in your journey. Especially if you end up taking a 25-mile unintentional detour, after missing a crucial freeway interchange in the pouring rain and splattering hail. Possibly semi-disracted by wedding-plans-talk going on all around you, as well - not that I was pointing fingers at anyone...my hands were too busy clenching the steering wheel...

It helps to be able to laugh - at least later on, afterwards - if someone in the key passenger-navigator seat next to you (not to name names - but the word 'cookie', comes to mind...) Anywho, if this someone - takes the term 'roving reporter' to a whole new level - by trying to conduct a professional-sounding phone interview with a contact they've been trying to reach for days to meet a deadline - who had days ahead of time - plus at least 3 hours of previous driving time - to finally decides to return their call -- but instead, calls when you're at a crucial part of your journey. So what is a roving reporter with a deadline looming, supposed to do? The only thing they can. Take the call, with their laptop perched precariously on their knees - while you're trying to make crazy-a#$ hairpin turns on slippery streets, silently -without making a sound -- while their sister is trying to take over both photojournalist and navigational duties from the backseat, to guide you through the maze...without making a sound. Even though you repeatedly mistake their excited gestures and therefore turn into every possible wrong, Wrong, WRONG! - entrance.

Communicating almost entirely through sign language - just the occasional hushed, half-heard whisper in the ear -- tapping on the car window or alternatively, the driver's shoulder in morse code, so as not to give away the situation to the interviewee at the other end of the phone -- but thus confusing the driver, so that even once you get almost to where you're going, you end up trying to enter every other gate than the one you're supposed to...Including ones where only certified television production people and bona fide TV stars are supposed to enter. While gate guards look at you skeptically - noting the cameras, cell phone in operation and open laptop, and try to determine if you're a) paparazzi from the National Enquirer, b) some new Three Musketeer-version of Lucy and Ethel, trying to get on Ricky's show, or c) some other, previously-unidentified version of Hollywood-celebrity wacko stalker.

All of which made the drive into LA, crazier than ever. On a route that's usually already pretty darn long and crazy, anyway. Finally, we found the right gate, wound up through the parking structure, to find a parking space up at the tip-top - the part that's open to the elements - i.e., pouring rain, hail etc - somehow managing to park in a 'compact car' space that was barely big enough for a motorcycle (you should have seen the contortionist act it took to get out of the car - never before have I wished for a sunroof - right then, I was thinking how handy that would be, to just climb out through the roof).

But woo-hoo! we made it! The rain thankfully stopped, and we finally arrived - nearly 20 minutes late for check-in - but we were there...Where, unsurprisingly, we ended up in the riff raff (overflow) room. Which somehow seemed appropriate.

We had to leave our cameras locked up in the car, so no photo documentation of the actual show. Nonetheless, we had a great time. Think 'conga line'. Doing the limbo rock. Think dancing so you don't freeze your - um, um - fill in the blank, yourself...(for future reference - if you ever decide to go to a show taping - it's cold in there. Dress in layers. Lots of 'em.) Still the dancing was fun, even with a still-healing-wobbly ankle -- which I hardly felt at the time (at least til the next day), I was having so much fun, while trying to stay warm...But fun! So much fun, that we're going back to do it all over again in a month. They said they'd let us into the real seats, next time. Do they realize who they're dealing with? At least next time, we may know where we're going...

Afterwards we took the scenic (or not-so-scenic, but interesting) route around town, hunting for dinner. After much debate between Olvera Street vs Chinatown, we ended up at neither one - going for Phillippe's -

a wonderful old-fashioned deli (since 1908 - doesn't get much more old-fashioned than that!). Where we delighted in the graffiti'd brickwork (where some of us may have pretended to pose for our 'album cover' ;) and both of us embarrassed Bonbon by taking photos of everything else in sight (did I mention she had earlier been fired from photo-documentation on the trip? She kept refusing to snap 'embarrassing' photos 'like a tourist'...kids!) But her sister and I rehired her to snap this one of us 'phoning it in.' After that, she hid behind her lemon meringue pie, pretending she didn't know us - we were just some annoying tourists that wouldn't leave her alone till she took our picture for us.

On the ride home, I re-hired both of them as photojournalists/navigators (remember those earlier '25-mile detour, three hour tour' and 'storming the studio gates while phone interviewing' incidents), and they reelected me as Mom and Driver (I'm joking - despite the occasional mumblings about a coup de tat, I don't think I was ever in danger of official impeachment). The skies and the roads cleared up, and we made the best driving time in years, arriving home from LA in about an hour and 25 minutes - which is something I don't think has happened for me out here, since the eldest was still in diapers. I'm taking it as a good sign. So we'll do it all again, next month. Hopefully without the pouring rain and three-hour tour, next time.

*Check back here after midnight ~~Pacific time~~, when I'll phone in the winner of my OWOH giveaway! (actually, I'll probably just type it in, since I'm so backwards I don't even know how to text - but 'phone in' goes so much better with the title of the post) - either way -- like our Governator once said, I'll be back.

See ya later, alligator...

*UPDATED: It's dawned on me through visiting other blogs on the other side of the world tonight, that my cutoff time, might cut short the time for those in the southern hemisphere - so to be fair to those on the other side of the world, in the spirit of One World, One Heart - I won't close comments till noon on Feb 12th Pacific time - my grasp of timezones is shaky at best, so I'm hoping that will give enough time for anyone in any part of the world to participate by midnight of the 11th in their time zone! My apologies to anyone coming back here at midnight Pacific time hoping to find a winner - it will be announced tomorrow!

Comments

What fun!!! About your B's, who knew you were going to be a blogger later and need different initials?

(I know a family that has three boys named B, and three girls named M:)

Posted by: Carla | February 12, 2009 at 08:37 AM

What fun! And darn! I was in Burbank on Wednesday to take my son to the airport. I always think of it as an adventure when we travel "down below" to the L.A. area.

And both my kids names begin with "M"....I wasn't thinking about blogging either!!

Posted by: Janet | February 12, 2009 at 10:20 AM

Aloha Tink,
My duaghter and her hubby are running friends to LA this weekend..I'll have to send her this link.
It made me smile.. :)
Peace, Kai

Posted by: kai | February 12, 2009 at 11:11 AM

Hi Tinker,

I am sorry to hear that you were too late for my OWOH giveaway (earlier time zone in Germany!). However, I just re-visited a couple of OWOH blogs and if I remember right, you were lucky to win a stamp and tag, weren't you? Congrats! :) Thanks for visiting my blog -- it was nice to "meet" you. :)

Greetings from Munich,
Birgit

Posted by: Birgit | February 12, 2009 at 11:14 AM

Oh is this a fantastic story! I read the whole thing, laughing all the way. Yes, Lucy and Ethel came to mind. At least you got there in the end! (And plan to do so again - aren't you brave??!!) What fun!! xoxox

Posted by: Paris Parfait | February 12, 2009 at 12:26 PM