Composter Down!

I biked to the twice monthly Santa Monica Flea Market at the Santa Monica Airport. The selection of goods was so much better than the Fairfax High Flea Market last month. I walked away with two tablecloths and a kitchen towel. I could’ve bought a lot more, but I am trying to cut back.

Donny and I planned on rinsing out the composter today. Fun Sunday, right?? Stringy food and large pieces have made the inside a bit messy. The motor sounds like it is overheating and stuff is getting stuck inside. I pull the tray out to empty it before we could get the cleaning underway and a weird red plastic stripe had become visible. There is no way the composter can be fixed. I called Naturemill, but their phone number doesn’t transfer you to a live person. I think it is because they are such a small company. I emailed them and posted a comment to their website. Hopefully whatever is broken is covered under the 1 year warranty and they will send us a replacement. We have gotten used to it for months now. It completely changed our kitchen habits and without it all we really have is a big steel pot to throw our scraps in. I hope they get back to us soon.

After a 24 mile evening bike ride down to Hermosa Beach and back up to Venice we walked to a sushi restaurant nearby home for dinner. On the walk Donny and I passed by a 3 day new restaurant on Abbot Kinney called Gjelina (pronounced "jelina"). The interesting thing about this place is that their slogan is "EAT LOCAL". We nabbed a menu and right off the bat noticed German beer on tap, French wine and proscuitto from Iowa. However they also noted having market lettuce, homemade condiments and San Fransisco steak. Our waitress at the sushi joint, Wabi Sabi, told us that her manager, Robert Schwan, had left them to manage Gjelina. The waitress also thought the local aspect went only as far as delights from the farmer's market. It seems like kind of a cop out in my mind, considering all that is available in this region. And for a restaurant with such a strong slogan it doesn't add up but hey, I'll talk to the restaurant directly and get the scoop. To be continued.

Family Summer Visit Pt. 2

The weekend ended up being all about recycling. On Saturday we took a family field trip and walked to see my hairstylist Jen at Ohm Salon. Donny, Kim and my Mom all got haircuts, except my Mom’s cut was the most renegade. She chopped off 10 inches of her hair and donated it to Pantene beautiful lengths. I did the same thing in ’06 and donated to Locks of Love. I’ve had a bet going with my Mom since then that she wouldn’t be able to grow it out. She lasted pretty long, over a year and a half, but it was time to get rid of it and go back to the short ‘do.

Earlier today we went over to the Flea Market at Fairfax Highschool. I ended up buying a nice mid-century vintage bench. I also got a few handkerchiefs, which I’ve decided are my new favorite thing. In my family we are plagued with allergies and asthma, so I go through a lot of tissues. Somehow handkerchiefs don’t feel too girly or old world, especially if you get the ones that are just all white silk, no lace. I just talked some of my colleagues off the ledge about using handkerchiefs. Both of their initial response was “Ew!” But after some discussion we all admitted to having carried used tissues in our bags or reused old tissues, which basically means handkerchiefs are not that gross. After having used handkerchiefs solely for a few days, I think I prefer them over tissues anyway. They are quite soft and it was an easy swap that reduces my tissue use immensely. I am going to call my grandmother and see if she will send me the handkerchiefs my grandfather used. It will be a nice memory to use his old ones and it’s just another way of recycling.

Oh – and handkerchiefs shouldn’t really go in the dryer. If you buy vintage fabrics they can be delicate and best dried flat or outside on a clothes line. We have had some trouble finding the best place for our clothes line. We first tried putting up a make-shift line on our roof with wood planks stuck in concrete weighted buckets. We ended up using the small outdoor space between the side of our building and the neighbor’s fence. It has worked out quite well, though Donny was apprehensive off the bat. We have come up with a good system where we put wet clothes on the line and after a few hours in the sun we throw the clothes in the dryer for 10 minutes. It doesn’t use as much energy as if we put them in for the whole hour, plus they soften up for that last shot of direct heat.

Family Summer Visit Pt. 1

Having family visit your home is always an excess of something. Excess of emotions, excess stress on your body and more scheduling than normal. I feel like I usually eat more food, spend more money, and drink more alcohol when I’m around my family.

So my Mother and her Partner are in town from Philadelphia to visit Donny and me. They are here to see our new place and enjoy Los Angeles. We have several local activities planned for the week, including having them join in our local eating. Last night we made locally grown hormone-free bison short ribs, local organic asparagus and local organic carrots. My mom and I also drank some tasty organic Samuel Smith’s apple cider. This morning we feasted on local orange juice, local organic cage free eggs topped with local organic peppers and local cheese. I had some local grapefruit and we all nibbled on local organic blueberries. Local enough for you? (As always, something has to come from Ralph’s and that is where Donny picked up the Stubbs bbq sauce. And the coffee came from Peet’s. I can’t complain since he picked up the rest of the groceries on a bike ride from the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market.)

This weekend my mom, two other women friends and I are headed to the Melrose Trading Post. It not only sells used & vintage items, but also helps contribute to Fairfax High School. Every other California school dealing with the budget cuts do bake sales or car washes, but this flea market is a great way to give back to the school, while also recycling.