California Christmas Part 1: I Love L.A.

As much as we love the exhilarating winter activities of Big Sky, Montana, Julie and I lived most of our lifetimes in sunny southern California.  The fact is, we are accustomed to warm weather year round.

My sister's family decided to pass on their usual Big Sky Christmas this year to stay home in San Diego.  They enjoy Big Sky's snowy vistas and equally appropriate decorations for the holidays, including the large nutcrackers that stand guard to their gated community, but after thirty-plus years of hosting Christmas in Montana, they decided to forego the coldest weather of the year and, more significantly, holiday crowds.

As bitter cold weather swept the nation almost everywhere except California and Hawaii in December, that proved to be a brilliant, prescient decision.

This also happened to be the alternating Christmas when our son Jay and his wife Sasha would be primarily focused on spending time with her family.  Their new home in Santa Monica would be the site of their Christmas.

Facing a full winter of cold weather and not wanting to have a "Blue Christmas," Julie and I decided to book a pre-Christmas Hawaii cruise from Los Angeles.  For those of you who aren't aware, some of the best cruise rates of the year are in early December, because most families busy themselves making holiday plans and shopping for presents.  I'll write more about that cruise soon.

We drove south to catch our cruise three days early, breaking up the long drive with a hotel stop in St. George, Utah,  That still gave us two pre-cruise nights in California, which we planned to spend at Jay and Sasha's new place in Santa Monica.  Unfortunately, Covid-19 hit them both about the time we were leaving Big Sky, so we called an audible to spend two nights in Hermosa Beach.

Julie booked a boutique hotel room a block over from Pier Avenue, so we were able to walk to our old haunt, The Lighthouse, both evenings to savor fantastic live music.

The first night featured a soulful Jazz Jam, where a few Christmas classics found their way into the mix.  We used to regularly walk to the Lighthouse on Saturdays to hear jazz.  This quartet played in the melodic style we most treasure. 

We also went to another favorite on Pier Ave., Hennessey's Tavern, for dinner both nights.  

On our second evening, we were joined by Randy and Karen, who still live in the condo complex in Redondo Beach where we lived for ten years.  Randy had a homeowners meeting that night --- he's the President --- so they couldn't stay for the live music.

If only Randy were President of the United States instead of Ocean Plaza Homeowners Association, then maybe he could've gone to hear the terrific folk-rock duo play a set.

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay in Hermosa Beach, taking walks along the beachfront strand all the way to Redondo Beach and Manhattan Beach, which border Hermosa Beach to the south and north, respectively.

We've stepped along that pathway by the beach many times over the years, and it never ceases to be a gorgeous walk, with the everchanging landscaping providing special moments to appreciate for those not sucked into the abyss of their smart phones.

From Hermosa Beach, we cruised to Hawaii, but we were far from done with California.  On our way from the port in San Pedro to Santa Monica to spend a couple of days with Jay and Sasha, we stopped at Skechers Outlet Store to buy a couple of pairs of my favorite shoes, because Julie said what I thought were pretty new sneakers had gotten rather ragged from hiking trails in all kinds of weather over the past year.

By the way, if you're wondering about the odd photos with me in the corner, they are from a program called BeRe.al.  Our younger daughter Amy signed me up during her Thanksgiving stay with us.  It allows me to catch up with my kids, sharing pictures of what we're doing about once a day.  On cue, we take pictures on our phones using the program, and it automatically snaps photos of us at the same time, putting a small self-portrait in the corner overlaid on the subject photo.  Often, they aren't quite right, like my frequently goofy expressions captured on the fisheye selfie lens, or in the case of this Santa Monica photo, our grand-dogger Jojo choosing to duck behind Julie just as a random dog showed up.  Still, it makes me feel part of my kids' busy lives on a daily basis, and I love it.

We walked along the beach at sunset both days of our visit, something Jay, Sasha and Jojo endeavor to do every evening, which seems a very good habit indeed.

One of the best things about having a pet dog is the encouragement to take regular walks in the great outdoors, often encouraging interactions with others, which is how Sasha landed her current terrific job.

Another is the unconditional love.  Jojo visited us in Big Sky when she was a very young puppy, and ever since then, she goes crazy whenever she sees us arrive or finds us when she comes to our home.

Jay and Sasha also made us feel very welcome, taking us out to tasty meals in some of their favorite restaurants.  On the first evening, we returned to Ye Olde King's Head, where we went in January while their new condo was in escrow.

On the way home, we strolled through Third Street Promenade, which was decorated for Christmas.

With buskers singing opera from a stage or soul songs from a wheelchair, playing folk music or rock on guitars and more, there's something to suit the tastes of every melomaniac.

Plenty of restaurants with sidewalk seating attract lots of locals and tourists.

There were some last-minute Christmas present shoppers there too, but without those over-crowded sidewalks of New York's vaunted Fifth Avenue at Christmas time.

Jay and Sasha had stranded lights on a freshly-cut Christmas tree before we arrived, making a welcome sight in the dining room next to Sasha's grandmother's antique family table in their lovely home.

On our second evening there, Sasha's mother Libby, sister Whitney and brother-in-law Adam all came over for a home cooked dinner.

Jay and Sasha made Indian foods, chili and baked potatoes.  The chili and potatoes were great, and others praised the other dishes too.

Sasha baked some delicious gingerbread cookies for dessert.

I wanted to get a picture of everyone around the fully decorated tree, but failing to provide sufficient motivation for this busy group, I took photos of the tree and then people involved in assorted activities "around the tree."

Whitney had a deadline for her law firm that forced her to work remotely, but she took some time away from her computer to help decorate the tree, hanging special ornaments that have become her tradition to hang on the family tree through the years.

Adam is also a New York City lawyer, but he works for a smaller firm that doesn't tend to advocate on behalf of big corporations pushing overtime hours doing due-diligence during the holiday season.  I must say he seems more relaxed, though obviously there is just compensation for Whitney's end-of-the-year push.

Our trimming efforts resulted in a beautiful tree.  

The evening passed far too soon, but we would all be heading down to San Diego the next morning for another slice of Christmas in California.

The next morning before leaving Los Angeles County, however, we wanted to swing by Libby's historic house in Venice where she moved a couple of years ago.  She is in the process of restoring a 1905 home, a challenging process that only recently dropped the scaffolding drapes around the exterior to reveal new. historically-correct cedar shake shingles.  The interior has been undergoing an even more drastic transformation that it is coming to fruition, beginning with beautiful bathrooms and kitchen.

I didn't think to snap any photos while at Libby's house, but the work in process is turning out better than new.

We really admire her gumption in taking on such a massive project.