Monthly Bike Rides & Gems of South LA: Tacos Locos

I seem to be a month behind on blog posting.  Oh well, better late than never!  

Awesome friend @stokesauce aka Sarah plans a monthly bike ride here for our dear little South LA community.  Believe it or not, I went from an avid bike rider as a kid growing up, riding my bike all over my neighborhood in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia...to being AFRAID of riding my bike in LA as an adult!  Crazy, huh.  Riding bikes in LA is definitely a different beast 'cause frankly, LA drivers do NOT look out for bike riders very well.  Sorry, LA drivers, but it's true.  I'm confessing that because I'm one of them...I've almost hit bikers before!! 

Anyhoo, I got over that fear when I bought my bike from none other than my very favorite SONSHINE SHOP THRIFT STORE!!  I started riding my bike to work to get a little more exercise (back when I used to live south of Exposition Blvd) and I got over my fear, but always always as vigilant as possible for cars.  Be smart or be dead, LA bikers!

Anyway, I love biking in groups, it's a fun social thing and we always have a great destination to get to, to hang out, eat something delicious, and play.  We have such great weather year round here in So Cal, and these days NO RAIN...so biking can happen anytime!  In March, we took about a 10 mile bike ride round-trip downtown to Grand Park.  

Here we are, all sweaty and squinty from the ride.  Good old John hanging with the women!  Until Tony showed up later.  Grand Park has these fun pink chairs and tables throughout the park.  If you ever steal them, we'll know that they're from Grand Park!!

We threw the frisbee around a bit, and then went to the Starbucks on the top block of Grand Park.  The park spans three city blocks.  

On our way, of course I noticed this lovely little mural painting with an oh so true message!  Adorable, eh?

And you can't resist a roll in their fountain at Grand Park.  The tiny little boy running in the WAAAAY back behind me in his undies taught me a lesson...to play freely like a child often!

Other friends frolicking in the fountain!  

And now for the latest GEM OF SOUTH LA--Tacos Locos located on Venice and Harvard.  Technically not South of the 10 freeway, but close enough and damn good.  What's better than eating a delicious plate of tacos, beans and rice for second breakfast after working up an appetite after a bike ride?  The answer:  NOTHING.  

John eagerly awaiting the deliciousness.  He and Jess ordered huevos rancheros.

Their food.

My food.

Jess is happy.

John is happy.

And I was very very happy.  Now go bike more, enjoy Grand Park, play frisbee, roll and play in fountains, eat delicious food at Tacos Locos, and shop at Sonshine Shop Thrift Store (like us on Facebook!) and Sonshine Shop Vintage!  (I acknowledge that there are only FIVE items on the Etsy site, but I promise that will change VERY SOON!  Photos and posts to come about some amazing new vintage items!)

Peace.

Food For Thought: The Perils of the Fashion Industry

As much as I love fashion as a form of creative self-expression, I am aware that the fashion industry definitely has a dark side at many levels.  I heard an interesting story about the perils of the fashion industry for fashion designers, specifically high fashion designers.  The report on NPR featured a book by Dana Thomas called Gods and Kings:  The Rise and Fall of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano.  Thomas describes the shift of the fashion industry from family owned fashion houses that were bought by big conglomorates.  As a result, the demand and pace of the high fashion industry increased rapidly, and has led to some of the top fashion designers falling, some due addiction and depression.

While I think that there is still creative inspiration from high fashion, when any institution becomes a part of big conglomerates, greed consumes and results in injustice and loss.

Learning these things about the fashion industry deepens my conviction that sustainable, eco-friendly fashion, thrift stores, and vintage clothing and items are the way to go.  Some people feel uncomfortable wearing used clothes.  When I find any item that someone decided to give away to a thrift store, I feel a sense of delight, like I'm finding treasure.  When I research vintage items for the Sonshine Shop, I delight in finding that these old items are worth something, worth quite a lot.  And the older something is, the more it is worth.  Someone else's trash is another person's treasure.  I hope that the world can come to see it more this way...and I hope to help with that!
Peace.

Gems of South LA: Bacaro LA

When I moved south of the 10 freeway, I moved into unfamiliar territory.  As part of my renewed love for the neighborhood, the last two years or so have been ones of discovery--discovering the beauty in South LA.  Many hear "South LA" and make automatic assumptions about what they think they know about this area.  I won't lie, before I moved here, I made the same assumptions.  

I've spent many hours and walked many miles, and basically falling in love with South LA.  Sounds cheesy, I know, but that's a big deal, especially when I wanted to leave South LA so badly a couple of years ago.  I hope that this blog series, Gems of South LA, captures some of the love that has been renewed for South LA.

One of the restaurants that I first heard about from people at my church was Bacaro LA.  They called it "the date place" because it was the nicest restaurant in the area where couples could go on dates.  

I want to be mindful of gentrification in South LA as I want to advocate for our indigent neighbors.  Bacaro LA is not what I would call a "cheap eat" restaurant, but I still want to highlight it because they are mindful of the community.  It is a splurge to go there, so it's especially a treat.  Anytime they have a groupon or Living Social deal for Bacaro, I always snap it up.  

It is a quality restaurant with delicious and creative tapas, or small dishes.  Enjoy and go try Bacaro LA sometime, especially when you want to get dressed up and look swanky on a date!

Outside shot.  Love this entire little strip mall.  Bacaro LA owners also run the coffee/tea place down the street called Nature's Brew.  That's for another Gems of South LA post.

Inside shot with fun chalkboard walls with wine menus, etc.  It was pretty crowded that night as usual, lots of USC students.

We ordered my usual favorite tapas that are of course, gluten free.  I'm a gluten free gal in case you didn't know (more future posts on getting AFFORDABLE gluten free), so it can make eating out a bit of a challenge at times.  From top to bottom: caprese salad, pork belly skewers, polenta with eggplant puree, cauliflower with amazing chipotle sauce, the Bacaro burger on a bed of greens, and hanger steak.  All delicious!

My friend and date for the night, Lindsay Modrow!  Amazing woman!

This post would not be complete without some outfit pics.  A night at Bacaro LA called for sparkly tops (from the clothing swap), my vintage silk pants, gold wedges, and of course the amazing beaded bag (it was my mom's!)!

Enjoy your weekend and PEACE.

OOTD: St. Patty's Day, Easy Being Green

I guess it was inevitable.  I was bound to be the first customer for Sonshine Shop Vintage.  That's the tough part of having first dibs on all of these amazing items.  When you're the first to get your hands on them, it's hard to not want to buy them all for yourself!!

When I saw these green silk pants, I knew that I would eventually buy them.  And when I did, I wore them for three days in a row practically.  They are so light and comfortable.

Of course, I wore these lovely green pants on St. Patrick's day!

This amazing beaded purse was...my mother's!  If you couldn't tell by my outfits, I've been really into the style and fashion from the era of Downtown Abbey.  The long beaded necklaces, loose sparkly tops, and delicate, fancy hairstyles.

Aside from wearing green on that day, I've learned some about St. Patrick and his life and have a huge amount of respect and admiration for it.  This article tells you a little more about the patron saint of Ireland, and the movement through Celtic Christianity that changed the world.  Celtic values and love for nature, community, and hospitality were the heart of their spirituality, which is so inspiring.  

I had the privilege of visiting Ireland at a very young age, and I really sensed these values.  Everyone I met smiled at me, and I felt so welcomed.  I fell in love with their culture and people.  Maybe because Irish culture and history feels so close to home, to Korean culture.  A friend posted this article on Facebook which is hilarious, but is completely true!  Koreans and the Irish have much in common that we are called the Irish of the east!  Peace!

The Shedding, a Poem by Sarah Kotchian

She walked

out of the old stories

Each on a garment

worn and reworn

One by one

she loosened the buttons

and they fell away

behind her on the trail of her footsteps

She did not look back

The chain of stories clung together

Rattling from her silent throat

Reeling out in

Great loops that lay

like the harmless shadows of snakes in the dust

Where other travelers trod them unheard

The old skin shed

Layer by layer

As her body moved forward

step by step

Into presence

Until she was

Naked under the sky

Only her feet bare on the ground

Only her new skin

Smooth

Feeling the wind and the drops of rain

Only the word now

on her tongue

That she tasted and savored

And did not speak.

[From Spiritual Directors newsletter, date unknown]

Welcome to Sonshine Shop Vintage on Etsy!

Friends!  Sonshine Shop Vintage Etsy has opened as of last month!  The 5th garment has been posted today, and it was fun to take photos outside of World Impact.  Here are the photos (below), and the link for Sonshine Shop Vintage.  

Please circulate far and wide to people who love all things vintage.  

We received a very large donation of antique and vintage items last week, and I LOVE every single garment.  It's taking every ounce of will power to not buy them all and keep them for myself.  Can't wait to post them for you guys to see.  

I thought this last photo was funny because it reminds me of how I once called myself an Italian trapped in a Korean American body.  I really do talk with my hands.  I was telling my photographer (Thank you, Sara!) about what I wanted to capture in the photos of each garment.  She did a great job, didn't she?  Love this dress!  Someone go buy it!

Peace.

It Was My Mom's

The day that I had my Bless the Balcony/Chalk It Up Porch Party, I wore this lovely vintage outfit. The matching top and skirt were my mom's and I remember her wearing it when I was younger.  It was a perfect day to wear it because it was really warm outside, and the material is fairly light and airy.

It's a lovely pattern!  I don't usually wear much purple, but I love the different shades of purple that this pattern has.

One of these days I will get that picture of my mom wearing a cute sweater dress back in the 70's or 60's so you all can see how fashionable she was.

I love vintage clothes because things made back in the day are better quality, better stitching, hence why they last so long, and become vintage.  Because they are vintage, they are often unique or rare, so I bet that not many people have clothes/dresses with this pattern!  There are many reasons why I love vintage items and I will share more of them soon.  Peace.