Happy Halloween!

Oh what to do this Halloween?

I definitely recommend the free Community Carnival on Sunday at Grace Brethren Church. It has been our tradition to volunteer over the last several years, but this will be the first year for our kiddos, so we will be squiring them around until they eat too much candy and play too much Guitar Hero and insist on going to bed. This is a seriously fun event for kids - with a (literal) ton of candy to be passed out, bounce houses to enjoy, a skate park to be skated upon, and game booths galore. A special "pumpkin patch" area for the littler set to enjoy a quieter evening is a highlight as well.

We're hoping also to attend the Howl-o-ween Parade for dogs and their people friends at Belmont Shore, on Sunday, October 31, at 2:30pm. The start and finish of the parade is at Livingston Park, 4900 E. Livingston Dr. (at Park Ave). The vendor fair and pet adoption is in the park from noon to 5pm.

Dog in a pumpkin costume - yes, please!

And you can always count on Gregorio Luke to present a passionate and thoughtful lecture on any given subject - this one is on the traditions of Dia de los Muertos, at the Long Beach Playhouse on Thursday, October 28th at 9pm.

Get Out this Weekend! Long Beach Events...

Can you believe it's October already?! I can't wait for the crisp weather of Fall. Do we have that in Long Beach?

Here are some weekend events:

Saturday, October 2

Interfaith Blessing of the Animals, Marine Park Stadium, 5225 E. Paoli Way, Long Beach, 90803.

The event starts at 12pm.

More info at Bless the Pets!

Long Beach is having an Open Artist Studio Weekend. I've always wanted to go to this - I love to watch artists in their environments and talking about their work. Saturday and Sunday, 11am-4:30pm. Tour map and schedule below.

Gatsby Books, our favorite new and gently-used bookstore, is having their regular Saturday story time for kids, beginning at 12pm. Miss Jen will be reading her favorite children's books about cats, and might bring her guitar for a sing-along.

Gatsby Books is also hosting their first book club on Sunday at 3pm, moderated by Peter Markman, a professor of Comparative Literature from California State University Long Beach, where they will be discussing The Great Gatsby, of course! Refreshments will be provided.

Gatsby Books

5535 E. Spring St.

Long Beach, CA 90808

(562) 208-9783

Story-Time for Kids at Gatsby Books - Saturday, September 11 at 12pm

I'm so thrilled about Gatsby Books opening in Long Beach. Sean has put together a really great collection of books and some fun family-friendly upcoming events, including Story Time every Saturday at noon, and the upcoming acoustic show for kids and science nerds alike by the Amoeba People on Saturday, September 25th at 1pm, for free! Let's show our support for the independent bookseller - hooray!

I photographed Gatsby the Owl for the flyer - isn't he the most delightful little creature you have ever seen?

(x-posted at blog.modernfrill.com)

The Amoeba People at Gatsby Books - Saturday, September 25th

I'm so happy we have a great new/used bookstore on the Eastside of Long Beach, Gatsby Books, at the corner of Spring and Bellflower.

Sean has already found me a book that is harder to find in print, at a great price! I have gone in a few times since the soft opening on August 1st and always find something to love...

The store is very welcoming and has a cool vibe without being pretentious or exclusionary - the stoneway entrance is midcentury modern and there are bookish gewgaws and little charming touches everywhere, along with comfortable chairs to relax in. Sean plans on hosting story-time for kids beginning in the fall and some upcoming family-friendly events, including an acoustic show of science-related songs, stories and poems with The Amoeba People on Saturday, September 25th at 1pm, for free!

(photo credit: the amoeba people / www.facebook.com/TheAmoebaPeople)

Gatsby Books
5535 E. Spring Street (Spring St. and Bellflower Blvd.)
Long Beach, CA

Busker Fest! on Saturday, August 28th

Come say so long to Summer and enjoy the best of local Long Beach music at Busker Fest, in the East Village.



Pick up wooden nickels to drop at the feet of your favorite band , with a chance to win a 5-day recording session at Compound Studio with Anthony Arvizu.

Buskers compete from 5-7:15 PM
Jay Buchanan opens the main Stage opens at 7:15 PM
Crystal Antlers hit the stage at 8:00 PM
Delta Spirit close the show starting at 9:00 PM

A little map to guide the way:

Free ongoing Mosaic Workshop! Sundays through August

From their website:

In conjunction with the EARTH exhibition, 2cc and professional mosaic instructors Dawn Mendelson and Luz Mack-Durini will launch a series of fun-filled and educational mosaic workshops open FREE to the public. The workshops will begin in April and continue through August. They will be held on most Sundays from 10:00 am - 1 p.m.

All ages welcome. No experience necessary. Workshops will be conducted in English and Spanish and are set up so that anyone can join in at ANY TIME. Participants will create both mosaic art pieces to take home and work on communal pieces for the gallery's wildlife garden.

Each month we will explore a environmental different topic, have a guest speaker or see a film and create a mosaic artwork. Our final workshop on August 22nd will be a celebratory BBQ in the garden. At the end of summer, the 2,500 sq. ft area behind the gallery will be transformed. We will utilize the knowledge we have gained about our native environment and select drought-resistant plants that attract wildlife. We will have a community planting. We will create an environment for wildlife to find food, water, shelter and a place to nest. The communal mosaic artwork that has been created will be installed. The garden will serve as a quiet place for the community to relax and groups to gather. Every opportunity to come together is a potential to breakdown barriers, gain understanding and build community.

For more information on our instructors, please visit their websites.

Dawn Mendelson www.daybreakmosaics.com
Luz Mack-Durini www.l-durini.com

Please join us by registering for the free classes. Registration ensures that we have enough mosaic materials and healthy snacks for everyone to enjoy. Please either call (562) 901-0997 or email 2ndcitycouncil@earthlink.net. Please use the subject line "Mosaic Workshops.

Summer And Music 2010 : Future Legends Show, 6/12

Future Legends: Now Sounds of the Long Beach Bloodline June 12, 2010, 4 p.m. – 9 p.m., East Village Arts District Come to the free, all-ages show in the East Village Arts District, at First Street and Elm Avenue, on an outdoor, solar-powered stage. Music By: DJ Lithuanian Prince, Korey Dane, So Many Wizards, Boris Smile, Jay Buchanan, Deep Sea Diver and Special Performance by UK band Phantom Limb .

Free Comic Book Day! May 1st

Another May 1st means it's Free Comic Book Day - check out these participating Long Beach comic book shops to explore some new titles and free giveaways.

AMAZING COMICS & CARDS
5555 STEARNS STREET, SUITE 102
LONG BEACH, CA
(562) 493-4427


PULP FICTION
1742 CLARK AVE
LONG BEACH, CA
(562) 986-4154

You might find one of my absolute favorites - The Tick!




In honor of this year's Free Comic Book Day, and to commemorate the first appearance of The Tick 24 years ago, NEC Press offers this special re-presentation of Ben Edlund's legendary first issue of The Tick, in a special Free Comic Book Day special edition! The complete original first comic book appearance of The Tick, as it originally hit the stands in 1986!

Weekend Update! Saturday and Sunday, December 19-20

Here is a great free family-friendly holiday event in Long Beach, from 4pm-7pm this afternoon!


Mike Watt and the Secondmen at Harold's Place, 1908 S. Pacific Ave., San Pedro - tonight @ 10pm. FREE!!


And on Sunday, December 20th:

Things to be excited about! Week of October 19-25

(me and larry mullen jr. holdin' hands)

Saturday, 10/24: California Native Plant Sale, El Dorado Park, 7550 E. Spring St., Long Beach, 9:30am-2pm. Fee: $7 for parking. More info here.

(Agoura Spunky Monkey Flower)

October 19-November 20th: We Love Long Beach Thanksgiving Food Drive!
10/4-1/31/10: Wayne Thiebaud

(Three Machines, Wayne Thiebaud, 1964)

Wednesdays - Sundays
12:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Pasadena Museum of California Art
490 E. Union Street
626-568-3665
$7 for adults

And in the "best news ever" file-

Sunday, 10/26: Since I won't be carrying my very pregnant-with-twins self to the Rose Bowl on Sunday (long lines, far-away bathrooms, parking lot nightmares, etc.), I am thrilled U2 will be live-streaming their concert on youtube , beginning at 8:30pm. We just saw "It might get Loud" on Wednesday, and I'm well looking forward to seeing them play live, now from the comfort of my bed. Ahhhhh!

Did you RSVP for the Swell Season in-store at Fingerprints tonight at 7pm? Yep, it's sold-out. Be sure to take pictures and tell me how it goes. Glen and Marketa do sing so lovely together...

The Outfit and the Kids are Alright - Summer Trunk Show

The Outfit is hosting a Hydra Heart trunk show at The Kids are Alright, 3405 Broadway in LB - this Saturday, with a special and FREE! kid-friendly craft workshop from 1pm-4pm.

10% of proceeds from the Outfit's Saturday-only in-store and web sales will go to MaryPat Bamrick's Adopt-a-Teacher Grant Program, through the Long Beach Junior Chamber of Commerce Charitable Foundation. If you live in Southern California, you know that our school districts are struggling and this is a great opportunity to show support for your schools, your teachers and your kidlets - and with all the lovely goodies at the Outfit and the Kids are Alright, you can really get your shop on! The Kids are Alright will also be featuring local designer Mixie, presenting a sale on past-season styles of adorable dresses, skirts and tops.

To sweeten the deal, the Ice Cream Man will be passing out FREE ice cream on what is sure to be a lovely summer day.

See you there!

Free Cold War Kids Show in Long Beach, this Friday, 8/21- Busker Fest!

Hallloooooooooo! I've missed you all - vacationing on the East Coast and processing some new big news at Casa de Mod has kept me from posting lately. However, I didn't want you to miss the fun this Friday, August 21 at 7pm. Summer and Music Long Beach (SAM) is featuring a FREE Cold War Kids show for Busker Fest - and it's interactive! -

From Yelp, "Local bands will be playing 25 minute sets beginning at 6pm, and it's up to the audience to vote for who gets to open for Cold War Kids later in the night. Featuring Free Moral Agents, Deep Sea Diver, So Many Wizards, Chris Paul Overall, Pawn Shop Kings, Brook Lee Catastrophe, Forcefield ON and 60 Watt Kid, and more...

At 6 p.m., Busker Fest information booths will open, giving attendees a chance to collect wooden nickels, maps, and schedules for the different performances. The first round of busking will begin at 7 p.m., followed by a second at 7:30 p.m. and a final round at 8 p.m. As the audience makes their way to the main stage, judges will tally the wooden nickel counts and declare a winner.

The group with the most wooden nickels by the night's end wins $1,000 cash prize and gets to open up for Cold War Kids at 9 p.m., on the main stage at the corner of First Street and Elm Avenue."

Friday, August 21
East Village Arts District
Broadway and Linden Ave
Long Beach, CA 90802

Matt Maust from the Cold War Kids recommended The Good, The Bad and The Queen to us and we've been listening nonstop lately.

Barbie On Broadway - recap

We had a bunch of fun at the Barbie on Broadway event last weekend. Curated by Sidney of Spa Sidney, the shops on Broadway at Redondo turned into a playhouse of fun exhibits, workshops and charming displays of all things Barbie. Maritza at the Kids are Alright featured "make your own" Barbie glam headbands, and John at DDR Gallery featured local artists' works based on the blonde bombshell. I snapped a few shots at the Spa Sidney "Barbie Museum", featuring several designers talking about their Barbie doll lines. I have never been a big Barbie fan, but I thoroughly enjoyed the "reproduction" Barbies in adorable vintage outfits, a line which started in 1994 to celebrate Barbie's 35th birthday.

Here are a few digi-snaps from our visit to Spa Sidney.









We are continuing our pursuit of eating more raw foods - this gorgeous green-ness is zucchini noodles with creamy spinach sauce and cashew "parmesan" cheese and a swiss chard salad with almonds, apples and raisins. Delicious!!

Free Breakfast in Long Beach! Today from 9am-11am!

Will Crum=LOVE!

This made me super-happy - wish I could have seen it in person! An escapade of "Man on Wire" proportions. Enjoy!!!

Haute Dog Howl'oween Parade, Long Beach!

Justin Rudd has done it again! This weekend was the Haute Dogs Howl'oween Dog Parade and costume contest in Belmont Shores, and the Great Pumpkin Drop.  Fun, Fun!  Who is scared of the world's smallest hyena?















More cute pics at Laist!

Thanks, Justin! for the link from Haute Dogs!

Email me for info on pet portraits.

Hammer Presents: An Evening with Michel Gondry

Field trip to the Hammer Museum tomorrow, 10/21 at 7pm, to check out Michel Gondry, discussing his installation project based on Be Kind: Rewind.

"Creator of influential music videos and feature films, French Academy Award-winning filmmaker Michel Gondry discusses his own technical and conceptual process and his new book, You’ll Like This Film Because You’re In It: The Be Kind Rewind Protocol. He presents clips from his own films and homemade films from visitors to his DIY interactive installation Be Kind Rewind at Deitch Projects. Gondry has collaborated with such luminaries as Björk, The Chemical Brothers, and The White Stripes. His feature films include Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Science of Sleep, and Be Kind Rewind."

While I didn't see Be Kind: Rewind - it seemed sort of intriguing, but I couldn't get past the trailer - Mr. Mod and I LOVED the Science of Sleep, as much the "Making Of" featurette on the DVD, as the movie itself.  Mr. Mod was inspired by the tiny city created in cardboard for the dream sequences, and I loved the interplay of reality and imagination within the film and Charlotte and Gael's interpretations of characters that were both off-putting and charming at the same time. I was also dazzled by the stop-action horse, running along the piano and the living room floor- so whimsical.

All Hammer public programs are free. Tickets are required, and are available at the Billy Wilder Theater Box Office one hour prior to start time. 

Limit one ticket per person on a first come, first served basis. 

Members receive priority seating, subject to availability. Reservations not accepted, RSVP's not required.

Justin Rudd presents: Interfaith Blessing of the Animals - Saturday, 10/4, 11-2:30, Marine Stadium

The Interfaith Blessing of the Animals, presented by Justin Rudd and his nonprofit 501c3 Community Action Team (C.A.T.) and co-sponsored by Councilman Gary DeLong... is the second largest pet blessing in the U.S., held in conjunction with St. Francis Day.

This year, organizers are working with a wildlife education team to bring some more unusual animals to get blessed by the various faith leaders. These animals will be brought out one at a time at the very beginning of the outdoor service:

This will be a really interesting event, and a great time to enjoy community and our adorable animal friends! The blessing will begin at 12pm and will last for 45 minutes. Pet Vendors and a Pet Adoption Fair will begin at 11am at the Stadium, closing at 2:30pm.



more photos to come!

Long Beach Certifed Farmer's Market!

Thoroughly enjoyed my first time visit to the Thursday Long Beach Uptown Certified Farmer's Market q 3-6:30pm, located in the frontage road at Vons on Atlantic and 46th. I usually go after church to the Farmers Market at the Marina, but would rather not feel pressured to race across town, so this was a nice change of pace.

Come for the 5pm produce raffle - tickets are FREE! I won a gorgeous bouquet, winning ticket #180!




I also bought several bags of peaches, plums, tiny red potatoes, various squashes, and radishes, for under $20. Long Beach Farmer's Market info can now be found at their new website: www.goodveg.org. I think the Thursday night market produce is priced a little more reasonably than during the weekend and the community vibe is very welcoming.

We Love LB BBQ - Saturday, 9/27, 1p-5pm

Here's a little viddy by the effervescent Jon Palsgrove, from a We Love Long Beach picnic earlier this summer. As always, Good Times!

Props to Scott Jones, for helming the We Love Long Beach project. Good work, Scott!!!

(you may want to pause the bossanova radio to the left, prior to viewing)