We Love LA

Randy Newman's I Love LA
To get the full effect of this post, listen.

Kirstoner (no, she's not a stoner nor was she, but you just have to go with a college nickname) and I meet in Santa Monica every year for Girls' Getaway, sometimes twice if we're lucky enough to get the chance to check out Grammy parties.

We are always trying different Santa Monica and Beverly Hills hotels. Our search for the perfect hotel is over. The hotel, Casa del Mar delivered in every way: service, excellent; hotel restaurant (Catch), excellent and reasonably priced; room decor, excellent; location, excellent; and the lobby, most SuperFabulous.

Any lobby that has Zoltar and a photobooth gets my seal of approval.

And look who greets you upon arrival.

We stayed in Casa del Mar's most basic room, and look at the high SuperFabulousness factor.

The moment I saw the photobooth, I knew we were going to have to use it daily to document our fun. Until you get in a photobooth, you never anticipate how hard it will be to come up with six different spontaneous-looking poses, and the only image in my head was of Jay Leno's talking photobooth.

Check it, almost as entertaining as Jay walking.

Getaway Evidence

On this trip, we met up with Evan Wright (K knew him pre-Vassar), journalist, writer and person extraordinaire. And he had no choice, but to join in the photobooth fun.

Evan started out reviewing adult movies for Hustler magazine (wasted talent, but good to have an intellectual on the inside); he went on (thankfully) to report on divergent youth subcultures for Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair by entering his subjects' worlds. As a reporter for Rolling Stone, he was embedded with the Marines during the early stages of the invasion of Iraq. His war reporting became his book, Generation Kill. Check out the trailer for the HBO miniseries of the same name. The miniseries already came out, but you can always rent, borrow or buy the DVD.

Because Evan has been a part of many different groups, he has great insight into the dynamics of the group and the mindsets of the individuals. This makes him a very compelling and captivating man. He grew from a troubled youth to an adult who is able to make sense of worlds we could barely imagine or understand.

Given Evan's life on the edge and penchant for gingham and corduroy, I see Clarks Desert Boots in his future. I didn't even need Zoltar for this one.

Buy them, Evan; I promise you won't regret it.

U r 24K!

xoxo,
Krom