Weekday Worker Bees, Come Out and Play

It's always easy to find something to do or somewhere to go on a Friday or Saturday night. But for those of us that work all week and live for the daylight hours on the weekends, staying up late and spending the weekend afternoons hungover is not an option. Similarly, those worker bees like myself usually enjoy indulging in the commonly desired after work cocktail during the week. Well for those in my neck of the woods looking for some week night activities, you have come to the right place.

Although the nightlife crowd in San Diego stays pretty constant downtown, up in North County, the tide is always changing. In the summer, everyone comes out of the wood works to enjoy the warm evening and drink a cold beer. During the holidays, some of the summer crowd go into hibernation, but all the out of towners come home and flood the bars. In between breaks, however, a steady and strong local crowd remains constant.

There are many facets of North County from the the beachside bourgoise of Del Mar, up to the cool comfortable village of Carlsbad, and all the sleepy surfer towns in between. Per the request of fellow blogger and fashionista Erica, I have listed my top picks for your week nights to be spent in North County:

MONDAY:
For the hipster crowd, start off with a beer at Beachside Bar & Grill in Encinitas, and move north around 10pm to Dirty Mondays at the Daley Double Saloon. Heavy hands pour the drinks and spin the ones and twos. Resident DJ Gabe Vega has brought together quite the following, and with the Saloon's infamous industry night appropriately dubbed Dirty Monday has attracted emo kids, surfers and socialites from all corners of the city. For a more upscale evening, try Martini Monday at Delicias where bombshell bartender Lauryn serves up the most delightful drinks in town.

TUESDAY:
Taco Tuesday is a communal day of celebration in San Diego, and the options are essentially endless. To move beyond the standard spots like World Famous and Fred's, try the fresh fish tacos and a glass of chardonnay at the Brigantine in Del Mar. If you're willing to drive a bit further north, Carlsbad's Norte is the best deal in North County: $2 street tacos of any kind, and $2 Tecates. If you've still got some energy after all that food, En Fuego is the Tuesday night spot to see and be seen.

WEDNESDAY:
Start at Zenbu in Cardiff for some tasty rolls and $5 champagne glasses. Once you've got a healthy buzz going, head south to the renowned Jimmy O's in Del Mar for karaoke night among the locals. To avoid the glitz and glamour and masses, try a low key dive night around Cardiff. The Office and The Shanty are too old school joints plastered in surf or sport paraphernalia where you can strike up a good conversation and really savor your drink without getting a headache or a drink spilled on you.

THURSDAY:
Dedicate one of your nights to the laid back style of Solana Beach. Start with some pizza, beer buddies, and pitchers of the Cardiff Chronic amber ale to get toasty at Pizza Port before heading up to Cedros Ave where the Belly Up Tavern is nestled into one of the most unique artist districts in California. Pizza Port, a local favorite for grub and grog, boasts some of the most intricate, complex and tasty beer lists, all brewed in house. Their beer buddies are to DIE for, and are the perfect meal to be washed down with some cold delicious beer. Once you get going, head up Cedros Ave. and take a peek into some of the local furniture, clothing and gift shops that Solana Beach has to offer. About halfway down the drag, you'll hit the Belly Up Tavern, voted San Diego's best live music venue. Every night you can catch a show, and they don't just book up and coming acts or local fave's... they also feature big touring acts, amazing cover/tribute bands, and stand up comedy acts.

Attempting to Contain My Excitement, and Failing Miserably.

Every year, the anticipation leading up to music festival season is tenacious, distracting, and adrenaline pumping. The first of many renowned festivals kicks off the summer in late April in the desert oasis of Southern California. Indio, surrounded by the more populated towns of Palm Springs, Indian Wells and Borrego, is a small town centralized by the well known and loved venue for COACHELLA MUSIC FESTIVAL. Last year was my first year attending any part of the weekend long love fest, and I only got a small taste of what would be my adult spring break in years to come. The heat is pretty intense, temperatures range in the low hundreds, and only minor shade and outrageously overpriced water are present throughout the day. This year, though, the heat will not keep me from my music. Tickets to this years Coachella are three day passes only, as opposed to the option to buy single day passes like in years past. So if I am going to be dropping a car payment on a concert, I am milking it for all it's worth, baby.

This years lineup represents the hip hop, alternative, electro, indie and rock genres with heavy hitting international acts to rising stars from music rich cities like Brooklyn, San Diego, Austin and Denver. Who am I most excited to see? Although performers have been chosen, the schedule of sets has yet to be announced, and won't be until just a few weeks before the show. If I could mix and match my top picks into my ideal line-up, it would go as follows:

FRIDAY
Little Dragon
Them Crooked Vultures
Iglu & Hartley
Vampire Weekend
Passion Pit
La Roux
Benny Benassi
deadmau5
Jay Z



SATURDAY
Camera Obscura
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros
Corinne Bailey Rae
The Raveonettes
The xx
Sia
Kaskade
David Guetta
MGMT
Hot Chip
Muse
Tiesto

SUNDAY
Spoon
The Soft Pack
Julian Casablancas
Matt & Kim
Miike Snow
Phoenix
De La Soul
Gorillaz
Thom Yorke

For full listings of artists, visit Coachella's website.

Ocho Cinco Rides Dirty to Prep for Playoffs

For the past few days I have been sleeping like an angel, courtesy of moving back into my parents place, and have been quite the early riser. So what's a princess supposed to do for the few hours leading up to work? Breakfast is out of the question. A long shower only occupies about a quarter of an hour. So I started following my mom's footsteps, and have taken to enjoying a morning tea while watching Live with Regis & Kelly. Although I must admit Regis has irked me since the Who Wants to be a Millionaire days, since his hip replacement, he has grown on me a bit. And Kelly Ripa is, without question, one of the cutest moms on daytime tv since Carol Brady. She wears the cutest outfits, has a drop dead gorgeous husband, and 2 adorable children to brag about. She cracks cheesy jokes, teases Regis about his old age, and could just fit right into her giant coffee mug.

This morning, a small story struck my gut and made me crack up. For those of you who check my facebook, you will know that a recent interview with Cincinatti Bengals' Chad Johnson (now Chad Ocho Cinco and quite possibly in the future, Chad Child Please) shed some light on an injury he acquired before the Bengals/Jets game on Monday. Before starting the game, in which he did not catch one complete pass, he twisted his knee while running a routine drill. After a poor performance by Chad and his fellow Bengals, many fans were concerned the injury would find Ocho Cinco inoperable for the rematch against the Jets approaching this weekend, especially after the recent loss of wide receiver Chris "Slim" Henry. Thankfully, Regis shared with Live viewers this morning that Ocho Cinco has calmed all worry when he assured fans his knee injury that he sustained last week passed the "crazy bedroom test" in which vigorous sexual activity deemed the knee "in good condition" for this weekends home game. Good thing Chad's "extra curricular" activities are conducive to his physical form or else Bengals fans could kiss the second round of the play off's goodbye.

Swing in the New Year

Thanks to the recession and many years of lackluster New Years Eve's, I decided to throw my own little shin dig to ring in the new year with a few friends and keep things low key. However, when one throws a party in a time of financial crisis, it is hardly worth the effort if one is willing to sacrifice the class and fun in a holiday party. Being that I am inspired by all things pretty, whether its in books, the media or fashion, I decided to give my cocktail party a vintage twist with a speakeasy theme. Attire worn was drawn upon the flappers and newsboys of the 20's, along with the early century gangsters, speak easy's of prohibition and the glamour of the pin up girl's of the late 40's and early 50's.

The love of all things vintage and glamourous is also reflected on the runway and in major motion pictures. One of 2009's most unique and lucrative films, Nine, is a musical romance depicting the life and love traingle (or hexagon, more appropriately) of a famed movie director in the late 1950's into the 1960's. Costumes, make up and music reflect on a time of the past and give an air of fantasy to the viewer.

In runway news, Louis Vuitton had one of its most successful runway shows in years at the 2010 Spring preview this fall. In addition to modern preppy and bright color palette inspirations, the unparalleled glamour shown in his middle segment definitely drew upon our elders in the earlier part of the 20th century. Sweeping black gowns adorned with rich emerald green coats, large ruby red bows and the distinct air of wealth and aristocracy was reminiscent of the upper class of the 40's and 50's and represented both a tendency for androgynous pieces and a love for offsetting with super feminine pieces.

Even starletts and icons are sporting fashions of the past. Diane Kruger, Kate Hudson, and Dita von Teese have incorporated the once revered pin curls of the 1920's in their red carpet looks. Johnny Depp is fond of the larger cut zoot suit-esque three piece, which he dons on the red carpet as well as out on fancy social outings.

Check out pics from our New Years shin dig and be inspired by decades past in the new year!

Night of the Dragon at Zenbu in Cardiff

For you industry mongrels and pro ho's that didn't make it out to Cardiff on Wednesday for Dragon's Weird Fest, you missed out on one of the best holiday parties this year. What made this shin dig so awesome? Well for one, it wasn't a Christmas party, which was a relief since most of us are sick of the ugly sweaters and red/green limitations. Secondly, it was held at the newest Zenbu location in the trendy Cardiff area. Third? The delicious sushi, of course. And lastly, the event was hosted by Dragon, an action sports retailer, locally infamous for their epic parties. The goal of the party was to celebrate "their number 1 team rider Mick Fannings claim of his second world title". Sponsors included Rockstar Limo and U4IK Vodka, and Zenbu even donated some free sushi to VIP attendees.

Props to Dragon for the sick sunglasses display in the saltwater aquarium. Thanks to Cory McGilvery for the epic photos. And of course, thanks Loren for throwing another weird/fun/amazing bash.

Give. Get. Feel. Good.

It's always to see a community come together and give to a great cause. Isn't that what the Holiday spirit is all about? Amongst all the stuffy country club fundraisers and holiday work parties, a fab collab resulted in an uber-successful charity event this week in North County.

On Monday night, Give. Get., a clothing drive benefitting the San Diego Alpha Project, was hosted at Captain Keno's in Encinitas. One of the most reputable homeless benefitting charities in San Diego, "Alpha Project provides the homeless with the tools they need to be the very best they can be. Founded in 1986 as a simple project offering work opportunities for homeless men, today Alpha Project operates numerous programs, serving over 2,000 people monthly."

Attendees were asked to simply bring in whatever clothes they wanted to donate to the homeless, and in return, were given raffle tickets to be used to win prizes donated by a slew of action sports companies, as well as local businesses (Hence the "give/get" concept). Donations were made by: Adio, Altamont, Brixton, Chocolate, DC, Dragon, és, emerica, etnies, Girl, HairDrezzersOnFire.com x James Mendoza, Henning, Mystery, Pony Attack, Reef, RVCA, Royal, ThirtyTwo, WESC, Zero, and Zico (a whole case of coconut water!).

The event, held at the charming pirate bar Captain Keno's, was hosted by Athena and Svedka, and featured promo models, a futuristic photo booth, and delicious drink specials. The local hideaway spot was appropriately decorated with an array of Christmas decor, including a lovely tree in the center of the bar/lounge. The drinks were stiff, the ribs were a hit, and the gifts were great. The turnout was also pretty prime; huge piles of trashbags filled with clothes were donated by guests, and most people came away with one of the sweet gift packages.

Hopefully all the positive responses will generate an annual event, and hopefully it will become even more successful as years progress. Thanks to Luke Van Voorhis for putting on such a successful event for such a great cause, and thanks to those who donated!