kitchen-fire

Back to School

2010-07-14T12:02:00.000-07:00

Last night was my first Korean class. I signed up for the beginning level, even though I knew some of the material would be review for me. This is my first time studying Korean in a formal way, and there are some gaps in my knowledge. I think it was the right decision. Although I know the hangeul, I get hung up on the pronunciation of consonants, and the teacher explained the sounds in a way that

Looking Up

2010-07-10T22:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we took the bus to Grand Performances in downtown L.A. The bus creaked along, stopping every five minutes as it wound along Third Street through Koreatown. It took forever. Now I get why no one rides the bus* here.As we hiked up Grand Avenue, I found myself craning my neck to look up at all the old buildings.Downtown L.A. is the only place in L.A. that feels like a real city, with

Serendipity

2010-07-08T00:01:00.000-07:00

When you have a baby, it's easy to meet other moms. The lives all new mothers are more or less the same, a fog of feedings and diapers and sleep deprivation. But when you have a six-year-old, it's harder to make new parent friends. It's not so much that people are unfriendly, but they already have their friends, and they aren't in the market for new ones.I was beginning to think my lazy-summer

Pink Flamingoes

2010-07-07T13:55:00.000-07:00

We pass this house daily. Every time I see it I smile, because it's so very L.A. It's called Youngwood Court.Rumor has it that the owner put up a single replica of Michaelangelo's David, and the neighbors complained that he was bringing down their property values. So he added a few more.The rest of the houses in the neighborhood look like this:Maybe I would be mad if I were one of his richy-rich

Ye Olde Prop Shop

2010-07-04T18:40:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things in this neighborhood is a big junk heap on La Brea, full of weird and wonderful things like pink formica tables and 1980s arcade games and giant plastic Clydesdales.This chair would be perfect for World Cup viewing, no?

Settling In

2010-06-29T22:15:00.000-07:00

So we've been here a week now, and we're settling in. I enrolled Bella in the neighborhood school, which seems lovely. I also put her on the waiting list for the Korean dual-immersion program, but it looks unlikely that she will get in. So in the meantime, we signed her up for a weekend Korean class. It's for beginners, and the curriculum sounds fun. I'm also going to be taking a Korean class

First Impressions

2010-06-25T16:46:00.000-07:00

Our original plan was to live in Koreatown. My husband's commute would have been a breeze, and I liked the schools. But after a lot of back-and-forth, we decided it wasn't a good place to raise a kid. Of course many kids live there and turn out just fine. But my husband grew up in an edgy L.A. neighborhood and he didn't want that for Bella. Neither did I, actually. So we are one neighborhood

Then We Came to the End

2010-06-16T08:28:00.000-07:00

Little by little, we shed the trappings of suburban life. The dryer was first to go, followed by the dishwasher, then the mower. I've been washing dishes by hand and hanging the clothes to dry in the backyard.We still have the washer. Anyone want a washer?***************Monday was my last night at work. Although I'm a little sad, I also feel like a great weight has been lifted. I loved the work

I feel prite.

2010-06-08T15:21:00.000-07:00

Yesterday one of my students brought me an avocado-coconut boba shake. I'd never had avocado in a dessert, but it was rich and decadent and surprisingly tasty.This student is kind of a miracle. She worked from childhood, so she never had the chance to go to school in Mexico. When she was an adult, her husband didn't want her to go to school. But she defied him and went anyway, and now she can

The Rules

2010-06-05T01:18:00.000-07:00