February 7, 2014
Sometimes you must plan ahead - here today, gone tomorrow...

 

Last week we warned you that the very unique opportunity to go to the Bob Baker 90th Birthday Celebration this weekend would sell out and indeed it has.  This week's alert is about next weekend's wonderful double whammy: Friday is Valentine's Day and if you want to do something that isn't obviously last minute, you'll want to plan ahead. The following Monday is Presidents Day - a holiday for many and a good time for a weekend getaway. Read our story below about visiting the Elephant Seal Rookery near Hearst Castle where the seals are very actively mating and giving birth right now.  A great destination for a romantic getaway or a family holiday trip anytime.

 

V-DAY ALERT: Last week we warned you that the V-Day Electric Dusk Drive-in screening of Casablanca would sell out and it has. Of course going to a future drive-in night might be a good gift and at least seem thoughtful.  YOU CAN still surprise your partner with something different rather than the ho-hum dinner out like signing up now for Peach Tree Pottery's Valentine's Day Group Couples' Classes. They do this every year and they have a very limited capacity for this unique and romantic experience where you both create a real work of art together.

 

Next week we'll focus on the last minute dilemma...    
IN THE MEANTIME THIS WEEKEND:

WILD SATURDAY: Dress up for an Edwardian evening inspired by Edward Gorey or an 'Adults Only' night at the zoo. Either one is sure to be hot!
ZANY SUNDAY: This World, Antique Books and Legos.

 

Firemen

GIVEAWAY: Make Valentine's Day dramatic by scoring one of three pairs of tickets to see the world premiere of "Firemen" on Friday, Feb. 14 at 8 pm. Set in rural Washington state during the first Iraq war, Tommy Smith's drama explores an unthinkable love relationship launching Echo Theater Company's 2014 season in their new home in Atwater Village. To be entered in the drawing, send us an email at eyespylareviews@gmail.com 

 

 

 

 
 
ANYTHING GOES: Some things are always fun to do... Check out our Places to Go Anytime and Things To Do pages for plenty of ideas that are available on a regular basis.
  • KIDS STUFF - Shows, activities, teas and more for tykes.
  • FESTIVALS - It's never a boring day when you're doing something festive.
  • RECREATION - No reason not to be out and about.
  • MUSIC & CONCERTS - Discover a new band or solo singer.

  HorzLine

 Find more? Check out our Editor's Picks selected at the start of every week.  

  

DiscountsDISCOUNTS - there are some really good ones right now. From whale watching to kids shows to festivals... entertain yourself at a discount. All at very reasonable prices. Even better, most of the discounts offered are direct from the event/activity producers and do not involve additional fees to receive the discount.

  

TIP OF THE ICEBERG: you'll find lots more events and other things to do near you - on our neighborhood and regional calendar links at the bottom of all Eye Spy LA web pages.


Have a Happy Weekend!

 
"The Real Thing" at Two Roads Theatre Forgets its Real Audience by M.R. Hunter

 

  The Real Thing  

Audiences are funny things. They can be as interesting as the show itself, if not more in some respects. Picture, if you will, an assemblage of 50 theatergoers gathering on a dreary evening, made gloomier by the drizzle and the news of Philip Seymour Hoffman's death. It was a Superbowl Sunday and yet, these people had tromped out to see Tom Stoppard's biting romantic comedy "The Real Thing."
 
These people braved the elements.

 

They parked their cars. 

 

They wore perfume and ran a brush through their hair. In other words, they came prepared and eager. A few may have been friends or family of the performers and felt dutifully obliged to dash out after a football party to support their relations. No matter the motivation for being there-they were and to their credit, the audience was in lively form...

 

 

HorzLine  

Compton Drive-in, Compton, SoCal, 1979 by Charles Phoenix
 

Compton Drive In

About 20 years ago, curiosity got the best of me and I decided that I just had to see the house that my mother grew up in in Compton, CA. My grandparents moved out of the house when I was 5-years-old and I hadn't seen it since. So I looked up the address and headed over there.
 
I turned the corner and there it was, just as I had pictured only waaay smaller. As I sat in my idling car staring at the house, a rush of long forgotten childhood memories reran in my mind.
 
I was spellbound. But not nearly as spellbound as when I looked up at the end of the street and saw a gigantic framed mural of Viking ships sailing on a choppy sea and generously labeled with the handwritten name of the city. It was the Compton Drive-in towering over the entire neighborhood. I didn't have even the faintest childhood recollection of this mid-century marvel, shocking as it may seem. I thought I was dreaming. Researching as soon as I got home, I learned that it was beautifully built in 1949 by the largest local drive-in chain, Pacific Drive-in Theaters. For the next couple of weeks I bragged all over town about my drive-in discovery. Finally I went back to take a closer look. Once again I turned up the old street and there was my grandparent's former home but ...

 

 
HorzLine

Winter on the Central Coast: Elephant Seal Mating and Birthing

 

Elephant Seal

Head up the coast to a natural habitat for local elephant seals. These gigantic creatures (males with faces only a mother could love) can weigh up to 2000 lbs and females log in around the 1500 lb range. 

 

Volunteer docents are available and eager to explain what is going on when you are visiting. 
 
Elephant seals can be seen here all year long but they are actively mating and giving birth during the winter months. It is totally FREE to visit and enjoy.This is a mother and her two day old pup I saw in December.This area of Hwy 1 (PCH) is approximately half way between Los Angeles and San Francisco which makes it an ideal weekend getaway from either city.

 

Read more

  
HorzLine  
Year of the Wood Horse: Chinese Zodiac Horoscopes for 2014
By Cici Psy-Chic 

Chinatown Good Luck The Chinese New Year marks a change in its annual 12-totem zodiac. This year is represented by the Wood Horse. It is a very lucky combination of both the element and the animal-together it portends renewed passion, vitality, travel and sociability. Conversely, the horse is a stubborn creature which could make for greater miscommunications, physical stress, uncertainty and superficial pursuits. 

 

Unbridled enthusiasm can urge us to be more spontaneous but taken too far and we could become reckless. Depending on your sign, the Wood Horse can prompt us to move forward but we must be aware of what it is we're galloping towards. Horses in a Horse year may find themselves coming into their own or seeking out greener pastures. They might struggle however from being too horsey for most others to take. Be bold, courageous and run wild occasionally but also be willing to fall into a trot and cantor...

  

READ YOUR CHINESE FORECAST

 

HorzLine

Jefferson, Dickens and Tolstoy are Irresistible in "Discord" 
by M.R. Hunter

Discord

Discord abounds in Scott Carter's world premiere as egos clash in a philosophical debate concerning theology, epistemology, and metaphysics in an existential battle of self-judgment.  

Three famous writers from three different time periods have one thing they all share: their faith. That faith, however, is subject to scrutiny by themselves and each other as they are confined to a white room in the hereafter. For these erudite captives, purgatory soon transforms into a hellish prison as they discover their personal beliefs run counter to their temporal justifications while challenging their cell mates' notion of absolute truth discoverable in the KJV gospels...
 

HorzLine

Eyestrology LA - Happy Birthday Aquarius by Cici Psy-Chic


 
Happy birthday to these celebrity February Aquarians: Lisa Marie Presley (2/1), Shakira (2/2), Nathan Lane (2/3), Alice Cooper (2/4), Jennifer Jason Leigh (2/5), Rip Torn (2/6), Chris Rock (2/7), Seth Green (2/8), Judith Light (2/9), Laura Dern (2/10), Brandy (2/11), Judy Blume (2/12), Prince Michael Jackson (2/13), Florence Henderson (2/14), Matt Groening (2/15), Ice T. (2/16), Paris Hilton (2/17), Dr. Dre (2/18)

Now's the time to take a flying leap as we head deep into 2014 and the Chinese New Year by playing fast and loose whenever we can. The weather couldn't be finer for us to be outside. Emotionally, many signs will be suffering from an unattractive case of ego and selfishness. We all would do well to consider others in any social circumstance among strangers and relations. Should issues arise, Fire and Water signs will do better at logical discussion while Air and Earth need to pay attention to how their message is landing. Maintain civility and employ diplomacy. 
 
READ THE FULL SCOPE for Aquarius and all of the other signs.

  
ABOUT EYE SPY LA
 

Eye Spy LA has been the online Local's Guide to L.A. since 2003. Content is written, edited and maintained by locals and focuses on local and nearby events and the local creative community.

 

Editorial policy: Eye Spy LA editorials are stories written about places, entertainment and events that we go to. The opinions are those of our editorial staff and the writer of the piece. Calendar listings are ads posted by the people producing events and activities in the local area. Each week we pick and recommend events and other things to do based on our experience or sometimes because they look particularly unusual, unique or in some other way interesting. We do not recommend them based on any fees they may or may not have paid us for advertising.

 

You'll always find the latest events & activities plus commentary about where we've been at eyespyLA.com - updated daily. 

 

Andrea Kirk, publisher (editor@eyespyLA.com)

 

Eye Spy L.A. EYE SPY LA CONTRIBUTORS:

 

M.R. Hunter - editorial and reviews

Mark Share - reviews

Kelly Hargraves - dance and reviews

Leena Deneroff - food adventures

Charles Phoenix - retro slide of the week