Southern California Pet Expo 2016

Dan and I were having a lazy, no-plans Saturday, lounging around in bed, watching the KTLA morning news, when we saw a camel.

A camel and a wolf.

Now, we had plans.

The Southern California Pet Expo was being held at the Pomona Fairplex. Admittedly, camels and wolves are not the first thing that come to mind when I hear the word "Pet", but spending a day with animals is always a good option.

The expo was free, but they got us with the parking. Ten dollars, not too bad. A home expo was also happening at the Fairplex and it was also free, so it was a two-for-one expo kind of day.

The first thing we noticed about the pet expo, was how many people brought their dogs. Dogs out numbered people and we were the only visitors without a dog. It was awesome, especially since the number of animals that were part of the expo ( not brought by guests) was minimal. The expo spanned two buildings, but it was small in content. We saw everything in less than an hour.

Our first stop was that camel. Two hours ago, we saw you on TV!

I expected the expo to include plenty of adoptable animals, and while it did have that component, it also had a lot of petting zoos and animals on display.

A rabbit rescue booth had this sweet bunny. It was sitting perfectly still on the table, accepting pets. So much soft fur!

We quickly realized that it was a good thing that we had small denomination bills, because there were a lot of donation jars at the various booths. Bring your ones people! Of course, it was going to good causes, but we quickly ran through our cash.

We donated at the Wonders of Wildlife Inc, booth, to take a picture of a sleeping possum. I usually see these guys racing through our neighborhood and ducking into bushes.

We also donated at Project Wildsong, so that I could have a picture with a wolf. I'm normally very comfortable around all types of animals and fairly fearless, but something about the wolf ( probably its proximity to my face), made me very nervous. The volunteer told me to blow into his face to make him "kiss" me. Um, no thanks. That was so not happening. The second picture says it all; taken right after I got a wiff of his hot, beef jerky breath. I did give him a good scratch behind his ears.

Here are some animals up for adoption. We'd like to have another four-legged family member. Maybe soon.

Because...

This van had the weirdest, awesomely-bad artwork on the other side. Can I get this done on velvet?

We drove a long way ( over an hour) to see a handful of animals, but it was worth it. Any day with animals is aces.

Trip to Los Angeles Zoo

I spent many years as both a teenager and adult volunteering for The Greater Los Angeles Zoo. The zoo is one of my favorite places in Los Angeles and I was quite surprised to realize that I had not visited in over four years, and I had never visited with my husband. Totally crazy. To remedy this, we woke up early on February 15th and had a belated Valentine's date at the zoo.

In the past, I always had a zoo membership or volunteer badge, and as such, breezed past the ticket lines. Not this time. We arrived at nine-thirty for the zoo opening at ten and took our spot in the ticket line, which was already several rows deep. We do have a membership at the Big Bear Alpine Zoo , which gave us a 50% discount towards our Los Angeles Zoo admission, making our tickets ten dollars each. Score.

The first stop was the flamingos. I spent many years collecting observational data for the Behavioral Research Department. Flamingos and bears were the two longest studies that I participated in. I love bears, but flamingos...not so much. They may look pretty, but they are the meanest birds in nature. Bullies. And as Dan (and every zoo visitor) pointed out, they smell. You don't get used to that smell.

Even though it was February, the weather was more like a day in the middle of August. It was scorching! We lasted less than three hours and a majority of the animals were napping in the shade. A zoo pet peeve of mine is when zoo visitors complain - "The animals aren't doing anything." They're napping and we would have been sleeping-in too, if we hadn't decided to visit on the same day as Satan.

It really, really was hot.

We didn't let copious amounts of sweat prevent us from taking pictures and a few videos.

Check out the Tasmanian Devils- super cute and one of the few active animals.

We caught the Koala's in the middle of their breakfast.

And the Komodo Dragon was checking us out.

Here are some pictures from around the zoo.

The zoo currently has many baby animals, but none cuter than the Hippo. Adorable, right?

Except perhaps for the baby River Otter. We happened to arrive at the River Otter exhibit in time for their feeding. This video is the best thing we saw all day. Be prepared to smile.

I love that the otter held up his fish to show us. Look what I got!

As expected, we had a fun day at the zoo, despite the heat and crowds. Some of the new exhibits, like the Rainforest of the Americas, where the River Otters are located, is fantastic. A wonderful addition to the zoo. However, I was disappointed to see the shabby state of the children's zoo (where did the bats go???) and several of the round-house exhibits. I realize that funding is a constant problem, but it's sad to see a zoo in a big city like Los Angeles, so run-down. It needs help.

Amsterdam- Timothy Oulton x 2, The Conservatorium, and Miffy

Our first night in Amsterdam, I learned something about the city; this is a night town. It may have been a unique attribute to the neighborhood, rather than a statement about the city, but the streets were alive until very early in the morning, 3-4am on every day of our stay. The mornings, were quiet and empty. I mean EMPTY!

Here are some pictures from about 8:30am on a Thursday.

Restaurants for breakfast were difficult to find, most places seemed to open after eleven. They still served breakfast items, but opened later. I'm not at all a morning person, so I can get behind this aspect of Amsterdam living.

It was our first full day in Amsterdam, we were well rested, and ready to go furniture shopping. I bet you thought I was going to say The Van Gogh Museum or Anne Frank House...nope, those could wait. One of our top priorities in Amsterdam was visiting the Timothy Oulton stores, both of them.

We are huge fans of the Timothy Oulton brand and have bought several pieces for our home. . Our immediate love for the brand has turned into quite an obsession and in turn, quite the collection. Here is a blog post that I wrote after our first experience with Oulton at H.D. Buttercup in Culver City, CA.

The weather was beautiful and Timothy Oulton was a short walk from our hotel, so we enjoyed the morning. Here are some pictures from our walk.

In Pasadena, we used to have Leonidas Pralines, which made the absolute best hot chocolate. They closed down several years ago and I was happy to see that the store still exists in Europe.

Timothy Oulton on Runstraat is the more intimate of their two Amsterdam locations. The focus is on their smaller furniture pieces, lighting, and accessories. We met with Leon, who showed us around.

We found our latest "must-have" Oulton piece...a periscope!

Although we were warned that it was quite a hike, we decided to push ahead and walk to the other Oulton store, located across town in a repurposed church. Walking is my favorite to explore the city, as I'm not a fan of bicycling, the preferred mode of transportation for locals. I've never seen so many bicycles in my life.

We cut through the beautiful Vondel Park.

In the park, we came across a costume picnic.

And some really lucky preschool kids getting a ride from their not-so-lucky teachers. Later on the trip, I saw a teacher doing this in the rain, the kids all snug under a tarp, teacher drenched.

The main Timothy Oulton store was enormous! We met with Caroline, who gave us a tour.

As a book addict, the "Pillar of Knowledge" was my favorite thing in the store. The Blue Room at the Los Angeles Athletic Club also has the feature as a centerpiece. Can I have one in my house too? Please?

The Aviator Valkyrie Desk is a piece that Dan and I have loved from our first encounter with Oulton. We were talking to Caroline about the practicality of the desk as an everyday office piece and her response- "Women don't wear high heels because they're practical." Sold.

Not only was Caroline welcoming and knowledgable regarding all things Oulton, but she also helped us plan our afternoon. She made lunch reservations for us at The Conservatorium Brasserie and called a taxi to take us.

Located in a former music conservatory turned hotel, The Conservatorium Brasserie was nothing less than spectacular. The restaurant and lobby of the hotel are location in what was once an outdoor courtyard for the school, that has been covered in glass, like a enormous green house. The decor is unexpected and creative, even the bathrooms with their giant stone walls, including the doors to the bathroom stalls. It felt like dining in a modern art installation. An utterly unique and delightful experience.

The meal was one of the best that I've ever eaten, anywhere. Slight problem, each dish looked nearly too beautiful to eat. Nearly. We got over it. Check out these gorgeous plates. It's art.

After our meal, we found two Miffy statues.

Miffy is a character from a popular Dutch children's book series. I'd never heard of Miffy prior to this trip, but Miffy was impossible to miss. As part of an anniversary celebration of the books, Miffy statues were placed all over the city, each statue a unique tribute to the character. I love books, rabbits and Sanrio ( Although not a Sanrio character, she is Sanrio-esque)...so loving Miffy was going to happen. I returned to America with a ton of cheese and a bunch of Miffy products.